《Necron: The Legend Of Rezar DeathWind》 Chapter 1锛歍he Necron Elysium..... beautiful, vast, and Majestic. A world without end, rich, lush, wild, and dangerous. But it is a land of eternity, of long life and growth, of evolution and power. It is the dreams and imaginations of man given flesh, a world where you live and die, and live again, and again, and again. In this World you can dare to dream, and dare to achieve the impossible, to be a king, a queen, a hero, or a monster. And you get to be so many different things over so many different lives, seeding power and glory across multiple life times all under your control and free from the clutches of fate and destiny. Elysium.....is a virtual world. But be that as it may, eternity is a long time, and the world itself understood it. And so in a bid to restore balance, to teach humans once again how to value the lives they had, even if they can live a different one if they do chose. The death classes were born, and they were feared, and reviled and hated. Incapable of seizing power for themselves, being nothing more than the harbingers of the (True Death), an eternity without reincarnation, just darkness for all times. But the wielders of the death classes refuse to be nothing more than tools of death, even they want power. And in a history long forgotten, they made a very powerful tool. A book! One that is capable of completely taking charge and rewriting the life of everyone living in Elysium, a book that can decide how you live, where you live, if you reincarnate or when you reincarnate. it could tell you what your traits will be in your next life, change it, make you an animal, or make you a god. it had the records of all life past, and the ability to summon the powers of past lives, and learn the secrets they hide. The power of a god in the hands of men, and this book had a name, like all books did. They called it.....The Necron! Chapter 2锛歍his Is Elysium 1 It really didn''t matter what people said, a trait of necromancy was a bad idea, he knew that for a fact but it wasn''t as if he had any other choice. In this day and age how many people ported into a virtual world would be reborn as nothing less than stellar with the best attributes, and at the very least the most comfortable of backgrounds. But Rezar had one stroke of bad luck after the other, while he had no memories of his past life, or rather it would be easier to say he had no fundamental memories. He had no idea what his previous given name was, who his parents were; of if he had any siblings or other loved ones. What he could remember however in regards to people were his enemies, and the reason why he was reborn in a slave mining town as the son of a prostitute, and even worse why he wasn''t given any class at birth, but a trait that simply read {Son of Death}. But then again there were too many disjointed information, it would be best to start at the very beginning. Or at the very least; what the teenager known as Rezar Deathwind, could actually remember of the beginning. Apparently he had slept with the girlfriend of a rather famous playboy from earth, his reasons being....revenge. What it was the playboy did to him, he actually couldn''t remember, but the ensuing chaos saw him getting arrested for ****, with the girlfriend being all too eager to throw him under the bus after knowing she was just a tool in his plot for revenge, aha! She wasn''t the girlfriend at all, she was the mother. Rezar smiled to himself at the thought, he was a bit surprised that he wasn''t as upset at his current situation, but that was probably due to the fact that he felt somewhat vindicated. But long story short he was sentenced to life in prison, which if you ask me was a steep price to pay for fucking an old woman who was all too keen to have her old cooch re-serviced. This place, or rather this world was Elysium, and it was a virtual world, the only of its kind still in existence. From what Rezar could remember, there used to be hundreds of virtual worlds if not thousands, all connected to a single network that led to a hub that was the prime. One well organized terrorist attack and they all died, along with the billions of people connected to it. That was the second coming of the dark ages for mankind, population was cut by more than seventy percent, and nations were left without leaders and democracy pretty much died out. Fast forward two or three hundred years into the future, and the earth was ruled by kings, queens'' emperors, nobles, chiefs, councils, chancellors etc. Luckily technology did not regress and it was still advancing, population expanded, the norms of society changed. A woman would have five husbands with a strong enough body to bear multiple children for each of them, assuming she''s one of those purists who think the old way was the best way. Or she could just have the baby grown in a stasis pod, Rezar wasn''t exactly sure how that worked, neither did he care. He might not remember who his mother was, but at least he knew he was born the old fashion way. With the implementation of the stasis pods, genes could be altered. A child would be born smarter, stronger, faster, healthier, more handsome or beautiful, an elite of the new world and they haven''t even grown an ear. It would have been the perfect world except for one very real and in escapable problem, and that was death. Yeah, that was the one thing they could never escape, sure the average human life span was about 300 hundred years with a maximum of 400 years, enough to achieve a lot of things, but it was just not enough. And so Elysium was created, a world where you could have that life of immortality as many times as you want. A game that was ever growing and ever expanding to accommodate the sheer amount of people surging into it every day to escape death. In Elysium when you want to upload your consciousness, you would be allowed a chance to customize your look and background. However a special class and trait would be given to you, much in the same manner how in the real world someone would be born smarter or could sing better than others. You lived a full life from childhood to adulthood, you could choose to be ordinary and be a simple farmer or go on adventures and slay dragons and achieve pseudo immortality by gaining higher levels and stats. But just like the real world even in Elysium all life must end, and then it resumes, starting all over again, and again, and again. Your reincarnation can take up your old post of power or you could make a new one. The tradeoff however was the fact that with each reincarnation pieces of your old life are shaved off and deleted, to enable you to move forward and not hold on to unnecessary sentiments. And it will continue that way until earth has become whispers on the lips of strangers, while you''re fully a part of this world, or Elysium. In Elysium there are no NPC''s except for those that handle the system''s administration, the ones known as the gods, demons, angels etc. everyone in here at one point or the other had been a human on earth, and now Rezar was one of them, however his story was not as simple or as straight forward as those of the others. He was stuck in a world of immortality with a curse disguised as a blessing, a slave and prisoner with nowhere else to turn to, but to slave away, reincarnation after reincarnation in a mining town filled with slaves on the fringes of civilization, what a perfect life. Chapter 3锛歍his Is Elysium 2 Rezar picked himself up from the wooden post he had been standing on, looking past the massive green barrier that kept him and eight thousand other slaves stuck in this valley. Some of them would get their freedoms eventually and go on to live a proper life, but people like him, would eventually die here, over and over and over until all he knows and remembers are the dreary caves of the Lobotar stygian mines. Earth was a just a bunch of disjointed memories in his head, of course his memories of important events that happened within the planet was still clear, but it was just a bunch of disjointed information in his mind. There was no feeling attached to it, no sense of loss or achievement. Sure he would very much like to beat the ass of the person who sent him here, and maybe fuck his mother again, and this time right in front of him, but Rezar was paying for going up against people he should never have messed with in the first place, maybe it would be better to just keep his head down and be resigned to this dreary life that has been given to him. Unlike normal uploads, prisoners don''t get to experience their childhood, they would be subjected to a cut scene where the childhood memories would be played, and then they wake up fifteen years old, in a prison very much like this one, slaving away for all eternity. For first time uploads it could be quite hard to get used to a life like this, but they all get used to it, eventually. There were hundreds of thousands of classes within Elysium, magic was common place and even a level 10 farmer can be a level 79 blood mage or warrior, there was no limit to the amount of classes you can have, as long as you were willing to put in the time to train and gain exp. Prisoners on the other hand a limited to four classes, one of which is slave, and the second is miner. Rezar has been here for all of 5 hours and he already knew he was screwed over massively. Two useless classes with abysmal stat bonuses on level up, and a very cursed trait, that left only one path of strength for him...necromancy. Even though normal uploads could have as many classes as they wanted, the nature and sometimes strength of the class gained is very dependent on the traits you were spawned with, and whatever extra traits you get from your achievements within Elysium. So if per say your trait says {holy one}, then definitely your getting a cleric or religion based class. Also traits could be formed or created based on your character and manner of game play, and as such combine together to influence the kind of class you could choose or gain. Every upload has to go to a town spire or a convocation hall to change classes. The spires are like the basic management of a town or basically any location that''s a settlement. If you wanted to seed a new town, you had to have a spire crystal which would grow to become a settlement, village, town, city or kingdom spire depending on which grade it is. Normal uploads only needed the spire to change classes and even delete class, stats are allocated automatically, however skill points need to be allocated manually, and this could be done normally, without the help of a spire, but for prisoner/slave they needed the spire to access their system page and allocate their skill points. The stat page won''t show up normally without the help of the spire, this makes it very hard for the prisoners to survive should they ever escape, and every spire would be able to recognize their slave class and alert the proper authorities. Rezar sighed heavily as he moved towards the spire, the moment he was spawned here he already knew the trait he was given, and as such it has left him feeling all sort of upset. But never the less he had to choose a class, if not two to max out the class slots he had. The thing is every class gave a bonus that would help someone survive longer, and even though his trait had been exposed the moment he had spawned, prompting every other slave to give him a wide berth, he still had to get a class, and increment in stats was an advantage. The spire of the valley was a town spire, it didn''t mean much, but sometimes the grade of the spire affected the rarity of the class gained. There was a small market hub around the spire with slaves either selling rations or extra stygian ore to help other slaves reach their quota for the day. Some of them were even selling skill books that had dropped from monsters found within the mines, most slaves didn''t have the extra skill points to spare, however some of the slaves also made a living hunting the beasts in the mines, a sort of special task force that answered to the foremen and had a little bit more clout and leeway than the other slaves. In other to join this task force you would need to have maxed out a basic combat skill, and since this task force enjoyed a lot of privileges many slaves strived to max out a combat skill, so for those of them who wanted a more easier life, buying this combat or extra skills was akin to saving their lives, though magic skills were quite rare. Rezar ignored them, just as they also gave him a wide berth; it was as if a plague had come to the Lobotar stygian mines. Rezar shook his head, what he wouldn''t give for a pack of beer right now, he didn''t give a shit if he was in a fifteen year old body, he just wanted to get very much wasted and incoherent to the situation around him. He took a deep breath as he walked forwards and placed his hand on the spire, there was a small flash before his vision went white. Chapter 4锛歍his Is Elysium 3: Necromancer NAME: REZAR DEATHWIND AGE: 15 CLASS: [SLAVE(LV1) (0/10)] [ MINER(LV1) (0/10)] [N/A] [N/A] EXP: [NORMAL EXP: 0] [BATTLE EXP: 0] [QUEST EXP: 0] TRAITS: [SON OF DEATH] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] STATS: [POWER(TIER 0): 6] [SPEED(TIER 0): 4] [DEFENSE(TIER 0): 5] [MAGIC(TIER 0): 0] BONUS: [+85% TO ALL DEATH AND BLACK MAGIC] [+5% TO ALL MINING ACTIVITIES] [-20% TO RUNNING SPEED AND +100% COST TO ALL PURCHASED GOODS] PASSIVE SKILLS ACTIVE SKILLS MINING: BASIC LV 1 SKILL POINTS: 0 MONEY: CPR: 0/ SIL: 0/ GLD: 0/ PLA: 0 Honestly his stats were pathetic, but it was quite fitting for his 15 year old slave body. Rezar had memories of playing Elysium before as a game rather than the virtual afterlife it''s supposed to be. He couldn''t remember the details that were behind it, but he was able to achieve much more than this, either way it would be another very long journey to the top, heck all he even had was a single passive skill showing just how bare bones he actually was, even the slave class did not generate a skill for him, showing just how much the upload was rigged against him. Either way there was no going back, his real body on earth would probably serve as replacement body for those very wealthy people in Elysium who would want to download back into a weak human body and feel and experience the earth in all its splendor, except of course they had unfinished business. Rezar shifted his focus back to the screen in front of him and decided to choose a class, unfortunately there was only one option available to him. {NECROMANCER} RARE: masters of death and the soul, capable of controlling the river of reincarnation, but also great masters of plague and disease and corruption. Where there is death, there is a necromancer, and where there is a necromancer, death will follow. + 2 stat points to magic every level, +3 skill points every 2 levels/ +100% damage from light and holy magic/ +40% resistance to all elements except lightning and fire/ +40% extra damage from lightning and fire elements. (The necromancer class has been selected; you are now an apprentice necromancer. The passive skills {Death Aura} and {Death Magic Mastery} has been generated. The active skills {Raise Undead} and {Rot} has been generated. Have gained 300 normal exp, and your magic stat has increased by 4) (There are no more classes to be had at this time, please level up your current classes and gain more traits before coming back.) Such was life; there wasn''t really anything Rezar could do about this but to move forward with what he has. For a miner the magic stat was pretty much useless unless the class is maxed and it advances to a level where it develops active skills. However skills could also be generated, and the magic stat was responsible for that/ if likened to old rpg games, the magic stat encompassed all mental stats like intelligence, wisdom and perception, and you had to be really smart to generate new skills. But in all honesty what Rezar was in dire need of right now was physical strength, and much to his surprise and happiness, choosing the necromancer class had gotten him 300 normal exp, more than enough to raise the miner class to its mid to late levels. (270 normal exp has been used to raise the miner class to level 9. +9 power, +4 defense. The mining passive skill has leveled up 2 times/+3 skill points) Rezar kept the skill points, he was going to be here for a very long time, it was better if he raised all of his skills the old fashioned way, and that is by training them. He already had a head start as opposed to other slaves who started here, so while the cursed son of death trait ruined a lot of things for him; it still gave him an edge above others. At the very least it would make sure nobody bothered him as long as he kept to himself. NAME: [REZAR DEATHWIND] [AGE: 15] [RACE: HUMAN+] CLASS: [SLAVE(LV1) (0/10)] [MINER(LV9) (0/330)] [NECROMANCER (0/25)] [N/A] EXP: [NORMAL EXP: 30] [BATTLE EXP: 0] [QUEST EXP: 0] TRAITS: [SON OF DEATH] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] STATS: [POWER(TIER 1): 15] [SPEED(TIER 0): 4] [DEFENSE(TIER 0): 9] [MAGIC(TIER 0): 4] BONUS: [+85% TO ALL DEATH AND BLACK MAGIC] [+5% TO ALL MINING ACTIVITIES] [-20% TO RUNNING SPEED AND +100% COST TO ALL PURCHASED GOODS] [100% DAMAGE FROM LIGHT & HOLY MAGIC. 40% DAMAGE FROM FIRE & LIGHTNING MAGIC. 40% RESISTANCE TO ALL ELEMENTS EXCEPT FIRE AND LIGHTNING] PASSIVE SKILLS: MINING: BASIC LV 1 DEATH MAGIC MASTERY: BASIC LV1 DEATH AURA: BASIC LV1 ACTIVE SKILLS: RAISE UNDEAD: BASIC LV1 ROT: BASIC LV1 SKILL POINTS: 3 MONEY: CPR: 0/ SIL: 0/ GLD: 0/ PLA: 0 Rezar closed the screen and he found himself back in front of the spire, the eyes of everyone in the plaza were looking at him, shock and animosity quite clear in their eyes. He turned to look at the polished silver spire, his image reflected back at him. His skin was still the same dark brown as with all Africans. However his hair had turned a startling shade of white and his formerly black eyes were now the deepest shades of blue, the kind that you would call unnatural. And therein lies the problem, nothing is more feared than death, and for some reason nothing was more absolute than the death from a necromancer. For some reason the system behind Elysium wanted to keep a balanced scales between the veritable long life of its denizens, and its reply to that were traits, classes and skills that had to deal with death, chief amongst them necromancy. In a way you could say anyone with a death oriented class were the grim reapers of Elysium. The only ones capable of administering what everyone now called the (final rites) or the (true death). And as such they were the most hated of all existences, and the easiest way for you to identify them, was by their pure white hair and dark blue eyes, and the unmistakable aura of death and decay that followed them around. And this was what Rezar had become. Chapter 5锛歍his Is Elysium 4 Rezar made his way to the foreman in charge of this sector of the valley, he might have been here for all of five hours but even he knew that he would not be becoming bunk mates or best buddies with anyone else. He was too dangerous, and if he wanted to actually enjoy a proper second life even as a slave, he would very much like to be kept away from others. When he reached the foreman''s hut, he had reassessed his knowledge as it was forewoman rather than a man. She was thin, had on round wire rimmed spectacles and wore baggy clothes that did nothing in keeping her curves hidden. Her red hair was sprayed all over the side as she worked on a ledger, biting her lower lip for good measure. Rezar''s fifteen year old body still remembered what it was like to get aroused by a woman, and while he tried hiding it, the rough hemp clothes he had on could not keep the beast caged. "It would be in your best interest to keep your desires caged Rezar, for one you would never get a chance to touch me, two you have death all over you, not even the whores of corner market would want to spread the diseased vaginas for you, so take my advice. As soon as you''re in the mines, cut it off!" Rezar could not help but swallow hard and take a few steps backwards, she was mean and her words rapidly killed whatever enthusiasm his little brother might have mustered at her appearance. Now it was nothing like the raging lion it once was, but rather a cowardly cat mewling at the feet of its master. She nodded her head then looked up at Rezar, deep red eyes stared back at him as a memory came to the forefront of his mind.....she was a demon. "Now seeing you white hair and very annoying blue eyes, I think it''s safe for me to assume that you now have a death class. As such you really can''t stay near anyone; this is as much for your safety as it is for everyone else in the camp. So you''ll be living in the mines, there''s a stretch of uncharted and unexplored natural caves in the north-western quadrant. Necessities would be given to you, but you''re only allowed back into town once every week and only for two hours. You would summit your entire quota for the week on that day, then get your rations and exchange any extra ores for real money, though that would be useless to you, or barter it in exchange for something else. I''ll make sure to keep others away from you, so please make my job easier and keep away from the normal people. Your sentence is for life, unlike most that would eventually get their freedom, so take the area allocated to you and make it yours. Deliver your quota on time and don''t try to cheat me by mixing rocks with the stygian ore and you would not be having any problem, do you understand?" All Rezar could do was nod his head in agreement, this was much better than he could have asked for. He didn''t think he was a loner of any sort, but honestly, this was probably the only way he would be able to survive without any sort of problems. In the face of survival, the need for social interaction didn''t mean shit to him, besides it was going to be a long eternity, Rezar knew he was going to make a friend.....eventually. The forewoman who up till now had still not give her name to Rezar got up and walked out, Rezar followed behind her and tried his best not to stare at the ass jiggling in front of him. Once again he was subjected to stares and sneers until she led him to the entrance or at least one of the entrances of the Lobotar stygian mines. There were tracks and carts on them going in and coming out, however there was a somewhat abandoned track that had a sort of pulley like car/cart. There were supplies in it already, Rezar could make out a mining pick, shovels, plates, pots, cups, somewhat dull looking knives, blankets, tents, and a somewhat dull sword and dented shield that looked as if they had seen better days, along with a spear that for all intents and purposes was a harpoon. There were three big casks in the three meter wide cart; Rezar reckoned they were filled with water, and quite a few other things, even books. Looks like someone went through a lot of trouble to make sure Rezar was taken out of the hair of everyone. If making him comfortable will keep him away from everyone else, then they were all too happy to keep him comfortable. There was an extended platform behind the cart where someone could stand and use the pulley to push it forward, unlike normal carts that seemed to move automatically and with the help of magic, this seemed to be manual. "Well then Rezar, I honestly don''t care if you die, even the weapons given to you might not be enough to fend the creatures of the dark within those caves, but hopefully you really are the son of death and she doesn''t call you back to her bosom any time soon. Stay away from my mines and my town and you wouldn''t have to worry about me tearing you apart, now get the fuck off my property." Scary did her no justice, this woman was terrifying, but somehow Rezar just found her all the more appealing. Honestly he had noticed something so far, he was without fear. Not that he could master and conquer his fear; no he was literally incapable of fear. He could be surprised, but to be afraid seemed impossible, which was why as he got on top of the car/cart and began working the pulley, he turned to her and said. "See you later Red." And then the squeaky sound of his cart faded into the darkness as the mouth of the mines seemed to swallow him hole, or rather to some, it seemed as if the darkness embraced him, and the forewoman affectionately called red was left watching with a raised eyebrow. "Well aren''t you a peculiar fellow Rezar Deathwind....hmmmm." and then she turned and went back to her station. She had work to do, and as the saying goes, out of sight, out of mind. Rezar was the mine''s problem now, and as for her she still had thousands to deal with. Life goes on. Chapter 6锛歍his Is Elysium 5: Home Sweet Home *squeak!* *squeak!* *squeak!* His arms were burning; this was not what he expected, though to be fair nothing that as happened to him so far was what he expected. Now the motion of pumping his arms up and down for the better part of two hours was to say the least, extremely painful. The tracks had led him deeper and deeper into the mine, by this point the lamps that gave light to the tunnels had become less and less until all he had was darkness. Luckily for him, Stygian ore had a faint silvery glow to it, and the tunnels that he has been sloughing through were filled to the brim with it, though not enough that it could be considered bright enough to play around with a blade. Eventually he got to the end of the track; it opened up into a massive cavern. The cavern was probably the size of an Olympic stadium, its walls were had hundreds of caves lining them, and the floor of the cavern had what seemed to be a grass field of bioluminescent grass and flowers. This was a place of beauty, at least it could be considered such if it was not a nesting ground for hundreds of different king of monsters. They were minding their own business, which was probably why Red had sent him here. Not unless he went looking for trouble, the monsters won''t bother him, unless of course they were hungry, nor he mined to close to the agro range of a rather ferocious monster. He looked to his left and noticed remains of an old shed, most of the wood had been eaten by termites and what was left standing was just three fifteen centimeter in diameter and two meter long posts. With no other choice and not to willing to waste his time doing nothing he went to work clearing the shed of rubble. It would be smarter and much more safer to be close to the tunnel and the tracks that led out of the mine, that way if he had to make a quick escape for his life he would be able to do so without any sort of problem. Rezar was able to clear the shed of any debris, the termites left behind a lot of wooden chips and strips that littered the area, after he gathered it into a pile along with a bunch of wood, Rezar reckoned he could use it to make a good campfire, however that would probably draw attention to him that he wasn''t ready for at all. He got the posts up, setting two of them about two meters away from the cavern wall. There were spiral like ledges at least five meters wide that went round the cavern, it was on this ledge that Rezar fixed two of the posts, before turning the third sideways and nailing it to the wall above a cave entrance after wrapping his tent tarp on it. For some reason the tent tarp given to him was really large, it was about five meters long and two wide, there was a small cave where the shed was built, so it would serve as an inner room while the tarp sort of made a shed outside and made a curtain that served as a sort of door. Of course it probably won''t be able to keep any of the monsters in this cavern away from him, but at least it gave Rezar a certain sense of safety. The sides were still exposed, but that would be what he would place his focus on next. The cave behind the tarp was five meter long and wide, but its ceiling was bit high going up eight meters before spreading out into what Rezar was sure was another cave above him. He couldn''t see that far especially in the dim lighting of the cavern. He shifted his focus to clearing out the tiny cave; there were broken pieces of pottery on the ground with only one intact copper pot, which Rezar suspected was a chamber pot of some sort. But beyond that was the dried up stains of blood on the ground, it was not hard to imagine what had happened to the last miner who had stayed here. From what he could see, it would require an extensive force of fighters all of them with multiple classes, basically a full raid group to be able to clear this cavern of the monsters that inhabited it. But that would cost a lot of money, and there was enough stygian ore in other much safer parts of the mines than here. No one was willing to spend millions if not billions of gold elys to guarantee the safety of a bunch of miners destined to die and reincarnate and continue being slaves. Not even the greediest of nobles were willing to take that much of a loss. Until such a time when the other parts of the mine have run out of ores, this place will continue to be ignored. After Rezar was done cleaning the cave, he brought in everything he had been given and started arranging them in one corner of the cave before proceeding to properly cataloging them and arranging them. Amongst the things given there was a bed spread seemed to be made from some sort of poorly treated animal hide. The fur was still there, stiff as bristles and it was incredibly rank. Not to mention the moment he had unfurled the spread, insects of all sorts, the most prevalent being cockroaches and bedbugs fell out of it. Rezar knew sleep would be incredibly difficult for him in the coming weeks. There was a bag of hay, probably kept there for him to use in making the ground less hard to sleep on. His rations consisted of two massive casks of water; they were both about a meter tall and half a meter wide. With proper rationing this should be enough for a week. There was a bag of incredibly hard bread, seven loaves in all to correspond with the seven days he had to remain here before he could go back to town to restock. There were also strips of dried processed meat, it wasn''t much and seemed to be no more that a small luxury afforded to him, but at least he was getting some protein. Lastly were the potatoes, even in a virtual world like Elysium; potatoes and its many variations were the easiest plants and staple food to grow. However this was just ordinary potatoes, and not the sweet kind that could relatively be eaten raw, for Rezar if he had to eat this, then he had no choice but to start a fire, and that was just too dangerous a move to make with his current level of strength. He placed all of his rations in a safe corner and made sure to store them properly. Then he picked up his mining pick, shovel and mining basket. Then he picked up the harpoon that was given to him as he made his way outside of the cave. It was time to go do what he was sent down here for; after all.....what else was there to do? Chapter 7锛歁ining And Cavern Moles QUEST ALERT! {Mine and submit 150 pieces of stygian ore within the next seven days to the foreman. Failure to complete the quest in seven days would result in -50exp in all classes and 20 lashes from a chain whip} (REWARD: +20 NORMAL EXP, ????) Such a small reward for such a massive task, if it was someone else other than a slave, a quest like this would net those thousands of exp, not just the measly amount that he was being offered. The thing about being a slave is that unless specified by your master, you only receive 1% of the normal exp other uploads or players would gain upon completing the quest. Honestly it made Rezar have the urge to hit something, thankfully he could let of some steam by banging at rocks. Rezar had no intention of going too far from his newly acquired home, apart from having a sense of safety, he should also be able to keep an eye on it and react on time should anyone of hid very dangerous neighbors decide that it''s a good idea to rob him. With his mining passive skill a little bit higher than the norm, he was able to rely on it to quickly find an ore vein. Now his basic instinct would have had him hammering away at the area around the ore vein, but Rezar was not just after the ore, he needed stone blocks to build up a wall. So it would be better to mine around the vein, or preferably mine an area without a vein so as not to mess up the ore once it''s been mined. Looking at the clear rock face in front of him, Rezar did not hold back as he raised the pick and brought it onto the surface with a crisp ding. His hands vibrated a bit as the pick seemed to shake within his grasp, but he didn''t let that stop him as he brought the pick down onto the surface of the cavern wall, again and again, and again. With a mining a basic level 3 mining skill, it took Rezar no less than four hours to have multiple misshapen size of stone blocks that he could use. He was feeling tired, but he had no intention stopping yet. *ting!* *ting!* *ting!* (You Have Mined One Piece Of Stygian Ore/ Mining Skill+1) (You Have Mined A Piece Of Copper Ore/ Mining Skill+0) (You Have Mined Two Pieces Of Stygian Ore/ Mining Skill+1) His incessant banging of the cavern wall no matter how gentle had drawn the attention of some of the monsters that lived close to him, yet none of them seemed that willing to bother him, so all Rezar had to do was be careful and focus on what lay in front of him. He had been mining for the better part of eight hours, so much so that he had mined past stone and discovered a vein of stygian ore, quickly followed by a copper vein. Copper was considered a low and somewhat worthless material in the mine, after all this was a stygian mine, and even the system recognized copper as an ore that had no uses, refusing to give Rezar any sort of experience to his mining skill. Each skill had a percentage to complete before it gets to the next level, assuming you''re not willing to use your skill points to level said skill up. Without the capabilities of being able to see and manage his stat page, Rezar was unable to track his skill progression, so he had no idea how much percentage was left for it to get to the next level. Either way Rezar this was as good a point to stop, he already had everything he wanted. (27 Pieces Of Stygian Ore, 58 Pieces Of Copper Ore, 1 Obsidian Diamond) He had gone past his quota for the day by seven, to deliver a hundred and fifty pieces of ore in seven days, Rezar had to mine at least twenty pieces of stygian ore a day, and honestly if he had been placed in the same mining area as other slaves, it would have been hard to reach this number even if we worked hard all day. Those other parts had more slaves which mean less ore to mine as it was basically a war for resource with barely anyone of them having the courage to go deeper for fear of encountering monsters that would take their lives. But in Rezar''s case, he was the only one here, and as such, there was more than enough stygian ore for him. He was getting twice the gains for less than half the work, proper management of his time and he would be working much lesser than everybody else in the mine, free to pursue other hobbies should they arise. With that out of the way, Rezar began the tedious job of moving heavy slabs of rocks across a fifteen meter distance. It was back breaking work, and it took Rezar another two hours to have fully moved all the rocks and lined them on both sides of his open tarp, which now that he thought about it, looked more like a canopy in front of a stall. The blocks were to uneven to be stacked on top of each other, so Rezar for lack of a better judgment and nothing to do, decided to take it upon himself and carve or rather sculpt the entire gathering of meter wide boulders into smaller blocks or bricks and stack himself a proper wall. After all he had a massive amount of time on his hands to be doing nothing; there shouldn''t be anything wrong with making a wall. But all of that would be a dealt with later, for now he was incredibly hungry. So he went into his cave got himself a piece of hard bread and dried meat. He made sure to ration the meat, this was practically the only delicacy he had, regardless of its tough and chewy texture, Rezar was going to ration it as best as he could. (You Have Achieved A Milestone Having Spent Five Hours Working Hard. +1 To Power, +1 To Defense +10 Normal Exp) (Power And Defense Are Now Tier 1, Speed Automatically Raised By +1) This was something Rezar remembered, milestones were like a lesser form of traits. Basically traits came about based on characteristics and style of game play, most milestones lead to the bestowal of traits as they come about by achieving things that are considered notable by the system. The thing is no can keep track of milestones or traits, and that''s because it''s always different for each individual. Someone might achieve a milestone for walking a kilometer while his neighbor would probably have to walk twenty or thirty kilometers before he could get a milestone alert with the same reward. Honestly no one knew how the milestones were calculated, but Rezar reckoned that perhaps it was based on actions, traits, and what can be considered an achievement for a person with such a trait. For example his (Son of Death) trait made him heavily aligned with magic, plus being a son of death probably meant something along the lines of causing death, or causing havoc, but here he was a slave and doing honest work, something that quite frankly isn''t what you would expect from a son of death. Hence the hard work milestone, which can also, built one seeing as it was measured by hours of work. Either way there was quite a lot to think about, and his head was filled with an inordinate amount of thoughts. But Rezar just laid back on his animal bed spread placed on hay and closed his eyes to the world, his bones aching and muscles exhausted. For a first day he didn''t feel like he had done too bad, so terrible situation or not Rezar went to sleep with a smile on his face and the smug feeling of achievement. However even as he slept, he was completely unaware of the black beady eyes staring at him in the dark with sinister intentions. Chapter 8锛欴reams Of Death And Cavern Moles The hallway was damp, humid, dry, and cold. It really didn''t make much sense to Rezar, but the temperature of this hallway was hard to properly describe. It was changing rapidly, like the pages of a book being flipped by a frantic reader. The walls seemed to be made of some sort of polished grey stone, there were sectioned like bricks, and the seams in between them seemed to be glowing. In the distance was a black door, it was about ten or so meters away and just seemed to be suspended right in the middle of the hallway, no frame and no hinges. The hallway on its own was about two feet wide, and for a door that was just about a meter and the half wide, it came as no surprise that its edges weren''t touch the wall, but it was still incredibly spooky to see a door hanging in the air like that. He turned his head to the side, there was another door, however this one was made of bleached white bones and skulls, even the skulls themselves were not normal as blood could be seen leaking out of the empty sockets and nose holes. Rezar turned to the black door and noticed one startling factor, it was also made of bones and skulls, and however the skulls and bones on it were decidedly not human. Orcs, dogs, lions, snakes, elves, winged beings like demons and angels, and they too bled the reddest of blood. Rezar felt as if he had to make a choice between the black and white doors. It was crazy, he had no idea where he was, and to be honest he was not too conscious of his actions either. Was this a dream, a hallucination, or has he been eaten already by some monster in his sleep. He really couldn''t tell, but the bottom line about this was the fact that no matter which door he chose, he couldn''t help the feeling that he would be condemning himself and his soul to something he would never be able to take back. But then again should his choices even matter, did he even have a soul, or was he just a billion neurons of programmable computer code being fucked with at the behest of another program. A soul was there even anything human about anymore, he was just code, a machine, a program. At this point things like love, hate, duty, friendship all those things could be programmed into his character and actions. How he was so sure he was in control, there was no telling, so how then can his choice really matter. The way he saw it, light or dark all that was left to him was blood and death...if so then why make a choice, why cater to the whims of the system, to the whims of this fake ass afterlife called Elysium. It was supposed to be a paradise, a world that could bring all of your wildest fantasies to life and let you live on forever and ever enjoying and experiencing the finest of all lives. But why then are there slave camps, prisons, wars, feuds, sickness, plague, betrayal and pain. This was no Elysium, just like the world he came from this was very much Hades, it was hell. And that''s just what humanity does; turn everything beautiful into something terribly ugly and vulgar. This was no paradise, because if it was, why then did have to make a choice between darkness and more darkness, it didn''t matter if one door was black and the other was white, there was both a path of blood. So far he has been okay with what life he has been given, he just rolled with the punches accepting the fact that he was not a slave and there was nothing he could do about it. He just told himself he was okay and to just see the bright side in all of his fucking misfortunes, but seriously he was not okay! He wished he had someone who could hold him and tell him not to worry, that everything was going to be okay, that it would be fucking fine and he was not just condemned into an eternity of darkness and misery and gnashing of teeth and the wailing of voice. This was a fucking death sentence of biblical proportions, and it wasn''t his body dying, it was his mind, his sanity, his sense of being. But when it comes down to it Rezar wasn''t exactly sure who he was, before this he had no idea who he was, what he loved, who he loved. All he knew was he fucked the mother of an enemy for revenge and as a result he was sentenced to living a hellish existence. When he thought about it, Rezar couldn''t help but think that the old him was a total idiot. But still what choice would he make, maybe by choosing one of those doors it would truly tell what kind of person he was, and what kind of person he would be. But he had no idea what both doors meant, ultimately he knew it was all just about death. But the thing is choosing either door meant he was choosing a version of himself as interpreted by Elysium. How could he be really sure that either one of those doors would show who he really was, if that be the case then he''d rather not make a choice, this is who he chooses to be, he wouldn''t let Elysium decide who he should or shouldn''t be, he was just going to sit his ass down right here! But even if he had decided not to make a choice, it didn''t mean Elysium wouldn''t be happy to make that choice for him. There was a loud creak from both sides of the hallway, Rezar felt his heart skip a beat, for the first time since he spawned in the Lobotar mines, and he truly and wholeheartedly felt fear. On the white door blood human fingers of all age and sizes could be seen slowly pushing the door open. And on the black door, scaled claws, hairy paws, pristine fingers, and demonic hands pulled the black door open. They were both being pulled inward agonizingly slowly and with each inch opened, Rezar''s heart pounded ever louder within his chest and ears like the stampede of a thousand war horses. He was stuck, his choice to be indecisive a few moments ago seemed to have sealed his fate as there was no anywhere to go, and then both doors were opened wide. For a second nothing happened, and then slowly there was a loud rumble, and then roars and wails of hundred if not thousands of beings coming from both doors. And then the wind picked up, ruffling his white hair and his naked body. Rezar was shocked; he had on clothes, didn''t he? But there was no more time to contemplate as out of the bowels of darkness contained within both doors; rivers of blood gushed out. Within both rivers were the faces and forms of humans, beasts, demons, angels, elves, dwarves, beastmen, mermen, and every race that has walked the grounds of Elysium. And the crashed into him, swallowing him in a cascade of blood, fangs, claws, hands, talons, teeth, wings, and death, so much death, and when it seemed as if he couldn''t hold on any longer, he woke up, and just in time too as a mole the size of a house cat flew towards his face, deadly claws outstretched. Chapter 9锛歊ot And Cavern Moles Fear? Nothing of the sort existed when Rezar was awake, the moment he was roused from the dream, the concept of fear totally disappeared. Which was why he was able to react accordingly as the mole jumped towards him, he rolled to the left coming up to the wall and leaving his body sideways prone. He jumped up, but not in time as a swipe from the mole had shredded flesh from bone, leaving a cut so deep that the whites of his bone was exposed before blood gushed out. "Arghhhh!" He might not be able to feel fear, but pain was a whole other ball game, after all he was still a human necromancer and not an undead lich, he could still feel pain, and right now he was feeling lots of it. But the curve was that the concept of pain was always associated and accompanied by fear, but in the absence of fear, it was all too easy for Rezar to ignore the pain he was feeling and whip his right leg forward, smashing it into the soft belly of the mole and throwing it across the small cave. It smashed against the opposite wall with a rather loud thud, there was no such thing as an hp bar in Elysium, a significant enough damage can kill or incapacitate any opponent. Weapons also have no such stats as weapon damage; they had special effect and durability, but no damage gauge. Stab a copper dagger into the eye of a level 65 dragon and you would blind it, stab that same dagger into the eyeball of level 100 divine pope and you would kill him. He has a smaller skull than a dragon, and no matter how strong your defense is, unless there''s a special skills, eyes were still one of the most vulnerable parts of the body. The only things that can actually have hp bars are town spires, city walls, special buildings or certain materials. So quite simply when the mole landed on the ground it seemed to wobble about a bit, now normally his first instinct should have been to find a weapon and end this monstrosity. However his instincts were different, he was the son of death after all. {ROT} (One Magic Point Used) He had aimed for the head of the mole and even though this wasn''t the first time he had used a magic skill, there was no awkwardness and the activation and usage of the skill was done with such ease that Rezar was somewhat shocked. But given as instincts from your past life were always maintained when you reincarnated, sure some would be lost in the process, but some things would stay with you no matter what. The mole suddenly stiffened and fell to the ground; it''s larger than normal body for a mole convulsing terribly as a patch of white and yellow pus began to spread on its head. The skill itself was akin to using acid as its fur and skin was burnt through in seconds and then is skull, part of its face and then its brain. The moment the rot reached its brain, it stopped moving, completely dead. (You Have Slain Basic Cavern Mole lvl5/ You Have Gained 80 Battle Exp) The easiest way to level up and the most common and easily accessible way, not to mention the best way is by completing quests. It gave more rewards and wasn''t as stressful as going out into the wild to hunt monsters. Now slaves were handicapped when it came to quests, just like reality a slave can escape, heck if they''re lucky enough to go to a town that doesn''t discriminate against them, they can have the slave class deleted for a hefty sum of money, last he heard (or remembered) it cost a 100 thousand gold elys aka a single platinum elys to delete the slave class. Without quests, the only way to earn money, it''s quite obvious how screwed slaves really are, and even the quests they do get to complete only earn them 1% of the exp and reward. But the Elysium system likes to be seen as a balanced system. Slaves who gain exp from bonus gets a 100% increase in exp, after slaves were supposed to be weak, and winning a fight, any one at all is quite the achievement and so they''re rewarded accordingly. But how would a slave that more often than not would be stuck within a particular area for the whole of their lives be able to get into a fight. Except for killing rats, pests or a few fights with coworkers, how could they get the battle exp necessary to become true powerhouses or to at least even escape from their masters and then work hard enough to raise the money to be completely free of the slave class. Strictly speaking, it has never happened before, so while it might seem that Elysium had a balanced system it was all just complete and total bullshit. If you''re a slave, then you would always be placed in a position where being a slave was all you could do, so the 100% bonus was just a complete waste. Rezar took a deep breath, but he really wasn''t out of the woods yet. He moved towards the dead mole, only to hear three distinct squeaks from behind him, he turned to look at the entrance of his cave and saw that there were three other moles there, and these ones were quite bigger than the one laying dead at his feet. A meter long from snout to their hind quarters with tails that were just as long as their massive bodies, they had ten inch curved fangs hanging out of their mouth along with s even inch claws that were wider than normal but still sporting a deadly curve. Both sides stared at each other for a few seconds before Rezar made the first moved by throwing a {ROT} skill at the one in the middle. There was just a flash of grey light as a small spell circle appeared on top of Rezar''s right palm. The cast was instant and it didn''t have an obvious animation except for the spell circle, the rot just started spreading from the mole''s chest as Rezar turned and grabbed the harpoon that had been given to him. *screeeeeeeeech!!!* Whether that was from the pain the middle mole felt as it rolled on the ground or the anger and indignation its companions felt, Rezar didn''t care. He acted immediately thrusting the harpoon as the mole that though it was wise to leap at him. Ignoring the pain from his mauled arm, he let the harpoon remain in the air as the massive mole impaled itself on the fishing instrument that had seen better days. The harpoon stabbed through the mole bursting out of the opposite end, but the bulk of the mole had pushed Rezar backwards as he tripped over his mining pick, slamming the back of his head against the wall behind him, and just in time for the final mole to sink its seven inch long fangs into his legs. "arghhhh ahhhahhhahh God!" the stabbing would have been manageable, but it was the wrenching and tearing motion that almost drove him insane with pain. As usual there was no pain, just anger, pure blazing anger and wrath. Rezar reached forwards and grabbed the mole in the throat, choosing instead to squeeze with all his might as his fingers dug into its throat, severing arteries as he let it choked on its own blood while its fangs were still firmly stuck within Rezar''s calf. The mole squeaked and screeched as if to plead, trying everything in its power to get away from this seemingly insane man. But Rezar kept on flexing his hands and fingers, digging deeper and deeper and letting out loud manic roars of rage and bloodlust until finally he wrenched his hand back, taking with it the throat of the mole. A quick look around the small cave showed that all the moles, even the first of the final three who had been shot with a rot spell to the chest, was dead in a pool of its own decayed blood and flesh with a hole in its heart. And with the confirmation that they were all dead, Rezar sat back completely overwhelmed by the rapid stream of events, up from the moment that the first mole had attacked to the final moment of him wrenching out the throat of the final mole Rezar hadn''t even hesitated. He was shaken, not afraid but shaken. The way he had just visited death in the most brutal manner imaginable to a group of monsters shocked him, but more than that it was the very real fact that while he used spells against them, stabbed them, and choked and ripped their own throat out whilst covered in his blood and theirs.....Rezar was very much having the time of his life, and he had to admit that feeling, that euphoria he felt....it scared him. Chapter 10锛歊aise Undead And Cavern Moles Rezar couldn''t move and he was bleeding out. There was nothing within his cave that would have been able to save him, so he could only put his hope on an abstract idea that he wasn''t really sure would work, and even then he has been failing for the last twenty minutes the fact that he was still alive spoke volumes of his tenacity. {RAISE UNDEAD} (SKILL FAILED!) It took a minute and half to regain a single point of magic, and currently he only had four points in magic and Raise undead cost three magic points. So after every failed attempt he would have to wait a little while for the points to regenerate. But with each failure, Rezar drew closer and ever closer to another reincarnation, and while that might seem like a better option than his current state, maybe his current son of death trait would be lost, but he wouldn''t count on it. Besides he didn''t want to take the same approach to life as everyone else, they didn''t feel the need to cherish every reincarnation and tend to make stupid choices because they know they would always have a second chance. Rezar didn''t want that, and he would rather try his best to live, no matter how sucky a life he''s been given. {RAISE UNDEAD} {SKILL SUCCESFUL BASIC CAVERN MOLE LVL 10HAS BEEN RESURECTED! LEVEL REDUCED TO 5. RAISE UNDEAD HAS REACHED LEVEL 2 +2 TO MAGIC} {YOU HAVE GIVEN LIFE TO THE DEAD AND REACHED A MILESTONE! +2 TO MAGIC, +1 TO POWER, +1 TO SPEED} ? Basic cavern mole [lvl 5] Undead(Zombie)+ ? Exp: 0/35 ? Skills: [Rapid Digger lvl 1] [Claw Slash lvl 9] [Night Vision lvl 4] [Treasure Sense lvl 7] ? Time left until de-animation: 40 minutes 13 seconds Rezar didn''t have much time to contemplate anything else as the mole whose throat he had ripped out slowly staggered to its feet. Its previous black beady eyes were now ice cold pools of red flames, it was quite eerie to be honest but Rezar was incapable of fear. There wasn''t much he could do or say but give the mole a silent order, one that he hoped the mole had heard before the darkness swallowed him. "Save me!" >>>> Rezar woke up almost an hour later, his head was pounding and his vision was blurry, he felt as if he had the biggest hangover of the decade, but even that couldn''t compare to the foul taste in his mouth and the dried but still sticky juices hanging all over his lips. It took a few moments for his vision to refocus, the first thing he noticed were the dozens of massive snake sized earth worms on his body. Most of them were still alive, and their writhing and crawling over his body was one of the most unsettling feelings Rezar has ever had to face, but yet as usual there was no fear. Considering that quite a few of these earthworms were in chewed up pieces, they were probably what had been used in saving his life. He brushed the earth worms off his body bo0th dead and alive without as much as a flinch or shudder. He looked at his hand and leg, the wound on them had been completely healed and his chocolate brown skin was without blemish, so other than the somewhat emancipated look that stood as a testament of his status as a slave, Rezar was doing completely fine. He move his gaze and noticed the mole he had managed to resurrect, all that was left of it was a pile of melted green good that was bubbling in much the same manner acid behaved. There was always a cost to go against the flow of nature, apart from the fact that Rezar didn''t have a high enough level in his necromancer class and raise undead skill to maintain the undead indefinitely, the death energy would always decay and destroy the bodies of weak resurrected creatures. The stronger your body when you''re alive, the longer you would last as an undead, maybe even long enough to rank up and evolve from a common zombie, giving you enough time to remain alive. Rezar though was quite surprised by how much he knew about undead; it was as if there was this kind of instinctual knowledge about it encoded into his brain. Normally that should be impossible, but this was a virtual world, and Rezar was no more than a bunch of code himself, so it wouldn''t change anything if he thought too much about it. There was something he had to check though, and those were the system messages received from when he killed the moles. [You have slain three basic cavern moles lvl 10. You have gained 480 battle exp; the night vision skill book has been dropped] [You have reached a milestone by surviving your first fight against unbeatable odds and without fear. You have gained +2 to power, speed and defense, +1 to magic] [You have eaten 36 basic cavern Stygian earth worm, all injuries healed, +1 to defense] Rezar was shocked by the effects of the worms, they didn''t seem to be carnivores either, yet they had such an amazing effect. Their taste left much to be desired, but he was fully healed in under an hour so he could at the very least bear with that. He contemplated just killing the rest of them and storing them, but that could be problematic. For one he had no way to preserve them, and there''s a possibility that for their healing to work, they had be alive. Elysium never made things as simple as they seemed, there was always an angle, like some sort of shrewd business man. Rezar looked at the remaining moles; he was going to resurrect each and every single one of them, both as a way to level up his raise undead skill, but also because they were natural miners and quite fast. With their help he might be able to complete much of his quota today and return to the camp a little earlier, but not for supplies, he needed to use the town spire and level up his apprentice necromancer class. He might want to just roll with the punches, but if he''s dead there would be no punches rolling. [Learn Night Vision skill book? It would cost 0 skill points to learn this book] [Night vision skill learned. You have studied your first skill book, +1 skill point.] The skill was a passive, which in the world of skills was rarer and definitely more valuable. Rezar himself was quite lucky that he was able to learn the skill without spending any of his skill points, those things were incredibly valuable. Then he turned to the remaining three dead moles, completely ignoring the dozens of worms crawling all over his leg and the floor. {RAISE UNDEAD} {SKILL FAILED!} "Shit! This is going to take a while." {RAISE UNDEAD} {SKILL FAILED} "FUCK ME!" Chapter 11锛歁ined Gains Three days, it has been three days since Rezar almost lost his life to a quad of moles. He was able to successfully raise all of the moles from the dead, but they were all dead except for one, and quite honestly the fact that it lasted the longest out of all the other moles surprised him. To be able to successfully raise one of those moles, he had to fail twenty out of twenty one times, so by the time had successfully raised the final mole; he had already raised the raise undead skill to level 4. The time extended from forty minutes to three hours, the bonus of the son of death trait more than increased the capabilities of any dark and necrotic skills and spells. He was just too good at this, not to mention the sometimes random burst of knowledge and instinct had helped him greatly. Within the three days that he has had access to the moles he had used them strictly to mine, his top priority right now was to get back to the town spire, and make sure he was strong enough to face any more threats this cavern might have in store for him. But even if that was his top priority, he still had other things to worry about. The claws of the moles were akin to carving knives, so he was able to direct them to carve multiple bricks for him, it wasn''t a lot but when he stacked them on top of the other blocks of stone he had placed, he was able to raise the walls on the side of his tarp, and then narrow the entrance from its original two meter wide gap to a meter and just let the tarp stay down, covering the entrance. This was essentially creating a living room for himself, but he didn''t mind at all, more space wasn''t bad. As for the final mole, Rezar wanted to take it back to the spire with him, by some stroke of luck it had managed to level up from level one to five and was eligible for some sort of advancement. To raise anything or person from the dead, the target would have to lose five levels of all classes. And the moles only had the class they were born with as very, very few monsters have access to a town spire and a chanced to host multiple classes. If he wanted the mole to live and not expire, he had to take it to the spire and facilitate its advancement. Since he was basically the master of the zombie mole, he could control every aspect of its growth, including what kind of stats and skills to invest in and what class to choose. But he couldn''t go back empty handed, but luckily for him, he wasn''t. [462 pieces of Stygian ore, 783 pieces of copper Ore. 17 black diamonds, 3 rubies, and two pieces of mythril ore.] Rezar didn''t need former memories to tell him that he had hit the mother lode; he had enough Stygian ore to meet up a three week quota and then some extra to use in battering. He would really like some new clothes, a new mining pick, but that would be useless with what he planned to do next. What he would need would be wood, a lot of rope, maybe some nails and a hammer, more food, and real money. Now as a slave buying things would force him to buy at 100% the market price, there was no other way around that. But selling wasn''t as bad, he would still be cheated by the system by selling it 40% below market price, but this was not a bad gain for him as this was just a long term goal for him. The copper ore could be sold for ten copper elys per piece, which means he would be selling them at 6 copper elys a piece and with 783 pieces that would be... 4,698 copper elys and it''s a 100 copper elys to get a silver elys making it 46.98 silver elys. Or rather 46 silver and 98 copper elys. But his was just for the copper ore, 17 obsidian diamonds with one selling for a high price of 15 silver elys. They were used to make jewelry that could be sold for as high as a gold elys, some with proper enchantments would be worth hundreds if not thousands of gold elys. 15 elys with the 40% below market price cheating scheme and he would be selling a single piece for 6 silver elys, and six silver elys in 17 places would be 102 silver elys, basically a gold elys and two silver elys. The diamonds were much more rare and valuable than the copper ore, hence why just seventeen pieces was enough to completely offset the entire gains 783 copper pieces could make by more than a 100% It just went to show just how effective a workforce these moles are, so once he gets back, he would not be as focused on mining. With great risks comes great rewards, so he would go looking for more moles, and then turn them into undead to raise his work force. Why the prison mine never thought to tame this creatures surprised him, but then again he was raising his from the dead as opposed to tamed creatures that might rebel if there worked too hard or not fed well enough. And quite frankly Rezar knew that no prison mine was wealthy enough to handle such expenses. As for the rubies and mythril ore, they were even more valuable, but he wasn''t exactly sure what price he would get for them. He would just have to put his faith in the merchants that loiter around the mines market. Rezar spent another thirty minutes fully loading up the cart with everything he had gained, his journey back would be harder as the mine car/cart had a lot more bulk than before. But he also had increased strength, so there shouldn''t be too much trouble getting to the spire on time. Rezar picked up the mole, ignoring its decay and stench of death as he placed it into a sack on his back, whilst giving it an order to be silent. And seeing as it was very much dead, that wouldn''t be a problem, and so with everything ready, Rezar began to pump on the cart`s pulley, moving rapidly through the tunnels as he returned to the surface, three days earlier than he was told too. Hopefully nobody feels the need to tear him apart, because quite honestly....it would suck. Chapter 12锛欱ack To Town *squeak!* *Squeak!* *Squeak!* The infernal nerve grating sounds of Rezar''s mining car rolling down the rails of the mine made a lot of people irritated. But the moment it was noticed that he was the one responsible, they all happily backed away as anger and irritation gave way to fear and disgust. It wasn''t too hard for Rezar to understand, so he made sure to keep his distance as he came out of the west tunnel and the main entrance. Another mining cart was required to move all of his ores, but since these carts were smaller it was beyond impossible for him to carry everything he had brought with him. But he wasn''t too worried about the things he brought out from the mines, leaving the massive heap of copper ore pieces behind, he filled a cart with the stygian ores and kept the precious ores close while he went straight towards the foreman''s office. He dragged the cart filled to the brim with stygian ore through most of the town, and quite frankly everyone staring at him was quite uncomfortable, but more than that was the look of greed in the eyes of some of them. There were definitely those groups of people who didn''t give a shit about his whole grim reaper of Elysium gig. Rezar couldn''t help the feeling that one way or the other, there''s going to be a confrontation today, and he wasn''t really sure he wanted to find out how that would turn out. Thankfully he got to the foreman''s shed in record time and without any sort of altercations, and when he gave a loud knock on the door, ignoring the stream of curses that came from the other side of the door; he waited as Red marched out in a suspicious state of undress. Her blood red hair was plastered all over her face, as sweat could be seen slowly sliding down the middle of her pale white cleavage, that at the moment was half exposed with her nipple peaking out of the edge of the shirt she had on. Rezar raised an eyebrow and looked behind her to notice a lightly armored man trying to move to the side to evade his searching gaze. There was definitely something going on here, Rezar wasn''t shy to say he was disappointed he wasn''t the one stuck in the room with her, but that was a topic for another time, he was here for business. "What the fuck are you doing here? Didn''t I say you can''t come back out unless you finish your weekly quota! Do I look like I''m someone whose orders can just be ignored! Listen here you white haired freakish punk!" "I finished it." Rezar said to her with a bored look on his face, he wasn''t angry at her, he was sure if he was in her position he would be just as angry that someone interrupted his chance to get a good skin to skin workout. "Wha-what?!" she asked confused, before she noticed the heap of ores on the cart behind him. "I completed my weekly quota, along with next week''s and the week after that. I came back because I need to use the spire and exchange for some resources. I hope that''s okay Red, I really didn''t have much of a choice since I was almost killed by moles." It might seem shameless, but Rezar was hoping to appeal to some sort of pity in her so that his act of coming out early would be overlooked. However she wasn''t really paying attention to his explanations as the shiny ruby gem the size of a baby''s fist sat on top of his pile of ores. The other was hidden within the small sack he had the zombie mole in, along with the two mythril ores the moles had mined. She picked the ruby up, examined it for a moment and then turned to him. "You mined this ruby?" she asked, and he nodded in answer. Though if he had to get technical, it was the moles who had done all the work. but what she doesn''t know wouldn''t kill her. "Sell it to me, I pay you 20% below the market price and give you as much resources as you need. However your movements through and fro your cavern and the town would still be restricted." Rezar pretended like he was thinking for a while before he answered her. "It''s a gift, though I would very much appreciate your help with the resources I came for and a small favor for a small task I can''t really complete on my own." Rezar said to her with a smile, he wasn''t exactly handsome, but his white hair and freakish blue eyes on his very dark chocolate skin made him seem exotic, he was still a long ways from being a Nubian hunk, but at least he looked like the kind of thin g you would want for a pet. "Very well then, you have a deal. Write down the things you need and the favor you want it better not be sex or you''ll be heading to your next reincarnation in five seconds!" Rezar rapidly shook his head as Red turned and went back into her cabin, coming back with a sheet of paper and a pen. One fun fact about Elysium was that unless you have a class that was catered to stealing; you couldn''t steal from anyone. And even if you kill the person, the most precious of their loots vanishes too, so there''s no guarantee unless the person doing the killing has a criminal class. It was aimed to put crime at a minimum, but it sort of gave birth to the most skilled thieves, assassins and bandits in virtual world history. It became something akin to a professional business to have a class that could steal, and their targets? Well let''s just say there''s no where safe to hide your money, not even in the virtual coin pouch that''s a feature of every stat page. Rezar quickly wrote down a long list of the things he might need before quickly explaining what he needed Red to do, he even had her sign an official document that she wouldn''t cheat him of his profits. With that done it was just a small matter to quickly return with the copper ores, along with the black diamonds, the last ruby, and finally the mythril ores, much to the shock of Red. Rezar was pretty sure that she was probably rethinking her perception of him, seems like he could be pretty shrewd in his dealings even though he was somewhat innocent looking and was just fifteen years old. Not that age mattered within Elysium, but still, it mattered in some way of the other. Rezar gave her cheeky grin, bowed and left to go take care of his business with the town spire, the extra stygian ores were tallied and set aside for his next delivery which was frankly three weeks away, and so Rezar had every intention of making good use of all that time. As for whether she would cheat him or not, contracts on Elysium were binding, even if it was made in the middle of the wild with just verbal agreements. And funny enough the punishment of its breach is always based on the traits of both parties. So someone with the trait kind hearted would probably have no choice but to watch the system forgive the person who breached to contract or maybe just take a small fine from them. But if your trait was killer, destroyer or let''s say something ultimately scary as son of death...then you''re pretty much fucked. Rezar marched his way through the town, trying to keep himself small and Insignificant until finally he was right in front of the town spire. Guess it was time to get stronger. Chapter 13锛歀evel Up! Standing in front of the spire this time felt a lot more different than the first time. It might have been only a few days since the last time he was here, but after that weird dream and the attacks of the moles, Rezar could not help but have this urge, the urge to live. This was sort of ironic considering he was pretty much the son of death as his trait says. But he didn''t want to just exist and roll with the punches, no matter how little, he wanted to make a place for himself, a small corner that he could call his own and happily say that he has fully lived. Just living his life wasting away and swinging a pickaxe at a rock wall was definitely not for him, he wanted to have a garden, grow something, get into legendary battles, see how far he could train his undead, get married and have kids. Because whether he would admit it to himself or not, Rezar wanted to live, to experience everything that had to do with living. And be prepared to live and die without any regrets even if he remains a slave forever. Rezar didn''t liken himself to main characters from a novel or some hero in the making, he had no delusions of revenge or raising a legendary undead army that could and would sweep across the land carry death and disease along, but he just wanted to have a successful and happy ordinary life, totally and completely unbothered by anyone of anything. He took a deep breath as he placed his hands on the spire. NAME: REZAR DEATHWIND [AGE: 15] [RACE: HUMAN+] CLASS: [SLAVE(LV1) (0/10)] [MINER(LV9) (0/330)] [NECROMANCER(lv1) (0/25)] [N/A] EXP: [NORMAL EXP: 60] [BATTLE EXP: 560] [QUEST EXP: 60] TRAITS: [SON OF DEATH] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] STATS: [POWER(TIER 1): 19] [SPEED(TIER 0): 8] [DEFENSE(TIER 1): 13] [MAGIC(TIER 0): 7] BONUS: [+85% TO ALL DEATH AND BLACK MAGIC] [ +5% TO ALL MINING ACTIVITIES] [-20% TO RUNNING SPEED AND +100% COST TO ALL PURCHASED GOODS] [100% DAMAGE FROM LIGHT & HOLY MAGIC. 40% DAMAGE FROM FIRE & LIGHTENING MAGIC. 40% RESISTANCE TO ALL ELEMENTS EXCEPT FIRE AND LIGHTNING] PASSIVE SKILLS: MINING: BASIC LVL 4 DEATH MAGIC MASTERY: BASIC LVL1 DEATH AURA: BASIC LVL1 NIGHT VISION: BASIC LVL 1 ACTIVE SKILLS: RAISE UNDEAD: BASIC LVL4 ROT: BASIC LVL1 SKILL POINTS: 4 MONEY: CPR: 0/ SIL: 0/ GLD: 0/ PLA: 0 Even without having access to the spire Rezar knew he had grown stronger, it was a wonderful feeling though if he had to mention one thing that was off, it would be the fact that he had more power than magic when he was obviously a magic oriented combatant. But he didn''t actually mind that, with enough power he would be able to throw off suspicion, because if people knew he was dabbling in magic, death magic, things would get pretty complicated really fast. But never the less it was time to level up the necromancer class and get stronger, hopefully he could get more skills or something like that. [Spend 525 battle exp to raise apprentice necromancer to level 6. Exp used, apprentice necromancer class is now level 7. Death magic mastery is now lvl 2, death aura is now lvl 2, raise undead is now lvl 5, rot is now lvl 2. + 12 to magic, + 9 skill points] Battle exp can only level up combat classes, whilst normal exp can level up normal or lifestyle classes like miner and slave. Quest exp can level anything, but it would cost more to use it. The necromancer class getting to level 7 was a good thing, Rezar knew if he was careful enough it wouldn''t take too long for him to get the necessary battle exp that would level it all the way to nine, once that happens he would be able to level it to 10 and become an intermediate necromancer. But of course that would cost a lot of battle exp, but he as long as he doesn''t bite off more than he could chew, with 100% exp bonus for slaves he would be able to get that quickly. Now would be the allocation of skill points, instincts, memories or not, there were still a lot of things Rezar didn''t know about his class. However he was sure the death magic mastery skill would help reduce the cost of his spells and should make them more efficient. The damage of rot would increase, and raise undead would have more success rate and a longer duration of which the zombies would stay alive. However passive skills cost more to raise than active skills. To raise death magic mastery he needed to use three skill points, the most expensive of all his skills which was how he just raised it once to level three. The magic cost for raise undead which had reduced to 2 after it got to level 5 was now 1, rot still cost just 1 point, but now he had the ability to summon the skill inside the body of an opponent as long as their combined class weren''t higher than his by five levels. Effective against monsters, but against sentient uploads and players; it wouldn''t even leave a scratch. Rezar was tempted to raise the level of another skill, but he held back as he had other plans in mind. With the high amount of power he had, he was hoping to find a weapon mastery skill, preferably a spear or staff so that he could have something else to fall back on and hide his abilities with necromancy. He would probably have to get his money from Red first before checking the market and seeing if there was a weapon skill he could use as a camouflage for his necromantic skill. But before that, he had something else to worry about, and that was the upgrade of the zombie mole in the sack he was carrying, he had to see to it. ? Basic cavern mole [lvl 5] Undead(Zombie)+ ? Exp: 35/35(evolution possible ? Skills: [Rapid Digger lvl 3] [Claw Slash lvl 9] [Night Vision lvl 4] [Treasure Sense lvl 7] ? Time left until de-animation: 4 minutes 43 seconds (Possible evolution routes: [power: zombie elite cavern mole| power increase by 75%, defense by 25%, speed by 10%| body slam skill will be generated, infection carrier passive skill will be generated] [speed: Zombie elite red mane mole| speed increase by 200%, defense by 10%, power by 10%, magic by 25%| red flash claw skill will be generated, infection carrier passive skill will be generated] [defense: Zombie elite bone armored mole| defense increase by 150%, speed by 10%, power by 55%, magic by 5%| bone shield skill will be generated, infection carrier passive skill will be generated] [magic: Zombie elite infant mole-man| magic increase by 100%, power by 50%, speed by 100%, defense by 35%| dark tremor magic skill will be generated, infection carrier passive skill be generated, black magic mastery passive skill will be generated]) Rezar really didn''t want to think too much, without a doubt the best option would be the mole man option. And Rezar happily chose that, once it has finished with its evolution, it would probably be eligible to have more classes, but the evolution itself would take under 24 hours, so choosing a class for it would have to wait until the next time they came to town. He decided to have one final look at his entire stat page. NAME: [REZAR DEATHWIND] [AGE: 15] [RACE: HUMAN+] CLASS: [SLAVE(LV1) (0/10)] [MINER(LV9) (0/330)] [NECROMANCER(lv7) (0/175) N/A] EXP:[ NORMAL EXP: 60] [BATTLE EXP: 35] [QUEST EXP: 60] TRAITS: [SON OF DEATH] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] STATS: [POWER(TIER 1): 19] [SPEED(TIER 0): 8] [DEFENSE(TIER 1): 13] [MAGIC(TIER 1): 19] BONUS: [+85% TO ALL DEATH AND BLACK MAGIC] [ +5% TO ALL MINING ACTIVITIES] [-20% TO RUNNING SPEED AND +100% COST TO ALL PURCHASED GOODS ] [100% DAMAGE FROM LIGHT & HOLY MAGIC. 40% DAMAGE FROM FIRE & LIGHTENING MAGIC. 40% RESISTANCE TO ALL ELEMENTS EXCEPT FIRE AND LIGHENING] PASSIVE SKILLS: MINING: BASIC LVL 4 DEATH MAGIC MASTERY: BASIC LVL3 DEATH AURA: BASIC LVL2 NIGHT VISION: BASIC LVL 1 ACTIVE SKILLS: RAISE UNDEAD: BASIC LVL5 ROT: BASIC LVL2 SKILL POINTS: 10 MONEY: CPR: 0/ SIL: 0/ GLD: 0/ PLA: 0 Rezar pulled back, and just in time too as he saw Red walking towards him with a not happy but not annoyed look on her face, looks like the trade went well. He ignored the new system messages and happily turned to face the merchants and their sheds, it was time for some shopping. Chapter 14锛欰n Act Of Prejudice Red didn''t seem all too willing to say much to Rezar as she just handed him a coin pouch that quickly evaporated into thin air. While it was quite possible to hold money in your hands, the currency on its own was pretty much virtual and can only be seen in some form of physicality when it drops from a dead person or it is being handed over to another like how she just gave it to Rezar. He was about to say something when all of a sudden she grabbed him by the neck and dangled him the air like he weighed nothing, there was murder in her eyes, but the look of fear she was looking for was not even hinted at, much less shown on Rezar''s face, "If you call me Red again; slave! I''m going to fucking kill you. Do I make myself clear?" she said to him as he nodded back and replied in a chocked up voice. "Crystal!" She dropped him to the ground and was about to leave when she suddenly stopped and faced him. Rezar was a little annoyed by her display, if it was a man he would have attributed it testosterone and a need to prove himself the alpha male. But then again women made men, literally! So who says they can''t be caught in flights of fancy and feel the need to show a weaker person just who was boss. In a man it was annoying, but in a woman, it was incredibly arousing, but still it was embarrassing to be dangled that way in front of everyone, and it left Rezar feeling upset. Slave or not he should have at least some modicum of dignity, but she seemed all too e ager to trample it in order to prove a point. She stood over him as he looked up at her while massaging his chaffed throat, his annoyance not at all hidden in his gaze. "Why the fuck are you still in town! Do you need anything else?" she asked him in a tone that was akin to a general barking out orders. "I''m trying to see if I can get a weapon skill, so that I can properly defend myself from the monsters in the cavern." He had scarcely finished speaking when she suddenly marched towards a merchants stall and after using a second to observe what he was selling, grabbed a book and threw it towards him. Rezar didn''t have enough time to reorient himself; or rather the book was thrown so fast that there was just no way would he have been able to catch it. So with a rather resounding thud; the book smacked into his forehead. "You got what you wanted; now get the fuck out of my town!" Now this was a weird turn of events, but Rezar was rather intuitive so he knew well enough that she was putting on a show. And who else would it be for than the handsome blond wearing armor standing a few feet away. The face he couldn''t recognize, but the armor, it was the same one he saw in Red''s shack. So this is probably the guy she was shagging or attempting to shag when he had knocked and put an end to the happy deed. Rezar didn''t poke too much into it, in a way he was the one who interrupted them, so he brought his head to the ground and left the market square as fast as he could. As usual eyes were on him, but he ignored that and moved himself to the mine entrance. However once he got there, he noticed his mining car had been replaced with a bigger one that was a lot more rusty and squeaky, but seems to be running on an entirely different mechanism than the previous pulley like system of the old car. This time there were spokes, wheels, belts, pedals and a very past its prime seat that was basically just a chain mail stretched over four metal rods. "Fuck!" Rezar cursed at the sight of the monstrosity in front of him. "Don''t curse fool! This is more than you deserve" a deep voice called out from behind him as a massive shoulder with a significant amount of power slammed into his shoulder, forcing him to trip forward and forcing the skill book he was given to fall out of his grasp. He had to bite back the urge to curse again, but not at the bully and his friends who just walked over him and his book to walk into the mines, but rather at Red and the bloody title on the skill book. (BASIC SWORD MASTERY LEVEL 1) What he wanted was a spear or staff weapon technique, and he was aiming for an active skill not a passive one. Swords weren''t bad, but the thing is he hated swords! How and why, he really didn''t know, but his instincts were telling him he should avoid it, but in the end he had no choice, this was what he was given. And like everything else so far, he had every intention of making the best out of it. He moved toward the new car that was a good five meters long and two wide. Its entire frame was rusted, yet all of the supplies and resources he had asked for had been packed into it, it would a lot of energy and strength to ride this cart back, and the distance wasn''t something small, Rezar knew he was probably going to go to sleep with aches all over his body tonight. Ignoring the looks of others, he picked the skill book, lamenting at his loss of a skill point as the skill was learned. Then he paid attention to a system alert he received when Red had given him the coin pouch. [You have received 30 copper elys, 33 silver elys, 26 gold elys and 0 platinum elys] As he began to slowly pedal his way back into the darkness he couldn''t help but marvel at the ridiculous amount of money he just gained, and all this from getting a bunch of undead moles to dig for him. The possibilities of what he could achieve made him giddy as there were quite a lot of monsters that were better diggers than his mole friend. If he could have them under his command, then raising the platinum elys required to delete the slave class might be a possibility he could achieve quite quickly. Of course it wouldn''t be easy, as opposed to how a 100 copper made 1 silver, and 100 silver made 1 gold, 1 platinum was worth 10 thousand gold elys. This was enough money to buy a spire, buy a land and build a few castles and live as the lord of a domain. It was a lot of money and somewhat of an uphill battle, but he had access to an avenue with which to increase his strength. He didn''t mind being a slave, so far it doesn''t seem to be as bad if not for the restrictions and lack of proper food and comfort, but in the end nothing was sweeter than freedom. Chapter 15锛欳avern Moles (I): Blue Eyed Death In The Dark For the better part of an hour after he had returned to his cavern or rather his shabby cave in the cavern, Rezar has been trying to figure out what his next move would be. Of course it was not as if he could do anything else, he had barely been able to crawl away from the new mining car that he had been given. Every square inch of his body ached, but he had actually been able to get back in record time considering how large and loaded the car had been. It had only taken him an hour and half, but these were probably the most physically grueling hour and half of his life, he had even hoped he would have been able to reach a milestone and get a stat reward, but there was absolutely nothing. So now all he could do was lie down and figure out what to do next. First of all he had to make sure the entrance to his cave was properly fortified; there was a significant amount of wood planks and beams amongst what he brought with him, so he might be able to make a door of some sort. As for the stone walls, a couple more digs and he would have enough to raise them high enough to reach the two meter height he was hoping for, though he honestly wished he had something like cement to make them stick. But after that he would want to expand the cave, apart from making the current three meter wide and long rectangular cave a little bit bigger, he was going to dig out a new room. With the help of a few dozen moles, and he should be able to properly work that out. He wanted a wider space, plus he was actually planning to rear those earthworms, they were massive, slimy and utter revolting. But he couldn''t deny the fact that they were the only life saving option he had available in the cave as of this moment. And interspaced between all those goals would be a few mining projects and a few monster hunting ones. He might have good instincts and a very distinct lack of fear, but he couldn''t deny the fact that he really lacked the knowledge, skill and experience to be a proper fighter. And much as he didn''t want to use a sword in a fight, or reasons he just couldn''t bring himself to understand, it was the only other option available to him. His necromantic abilities would grow naturally as long as he kept using them, so he could place a little bit of focus on swinging a metal stick like an idiot. He heaved a bit as he looked up at the hole in the ceiling of his cave, his night vision made him see a little better, but enough that he knew exactly what was beyond the six meter distance. The cave was shaped like some misshapen hour glass, with the tiny past being the bottom where he was, and much larger one being above him. He couldn''t help the feeling that there was something hidden at the top, like it was a whole other world over there, but regardless, that was not a place he can reach yet, and so he just closed his eyes, giving himself so much deserved rest. >>>>>>> Maurice was living his third reincarnation, there was nothing to be said about his first two as he hadn''t achieved much, but that was understandable, he has been a prisoner for all of his three virtual lives. On earth he was something likened to a rapist, but he was different, he liked to think that his crimes were an art form, he was not like other men who would accost females at the corner of deserted alleys or break into their houses. For one thing he always tried to spare his victims any sort of mental anguish, so instead he went for the ones that wouldn''t notice the carnal pleasures he was delivering to their bodies. He couldn''t help it that some women in this world don''t understand the meaning to let loose and enjoy the feeling flesh against flesh, a dance of carnal eloquence that has been the propagation of the human race from the moment they came into existence...it was beautiful. His victims were mostly uploads, or rather the mortal bodies they left behind when they decided earth had nothing more to offer them, once in a while he would switch up his appetite by rocking the bodies of deep divers, those that still beard the title of players and ran around Elysium like it was some sort of game. Their bodies were always the sweetest though, sometimes he could feel their muscles react, feel them clench him tight from whatever it was they were experiencing with Elysium, and that was his own personal heaven...at least until he got caught. Maurice staggered a bit as he crawled through the cold tunnels, abandoned mining equipment could be seen and the lamps here were already flickering and almost dead. He shouldn''t be here, after all it was in this very direction that bad omen carried out his mining operations, but Maurice wasn''t scared of him. He thought it was incredibly stupid that a world in an advanced technological age and in a marvel of technology like Elysium that it could almost be considered magic; would be so strung up on the superstitions of uploads and players who had the death class, he didn''t believe in all those bullshit. And that was why he made a point by bumping into the fool earlier in the day; he was just a kid who knew nothing. Though if he was a woman, Maurice would not have minded teaching him a little lesson in respect, but alas he was just a punk ass kid. He came to an abrupt stop with a rather annoyed frown on his face; his bottle was empty. Maurice shook it a bit before angrily smashing the bottle to the ground, it was just as nice that he was heading to his secret stash, he had every intention of getting terribly drunk today, it''s the only thing that would keep from heading into cursed arms of lady Sala and her brothel of STD propagating wenches. Of all the diseases Elysium could simulate and make real, it had to be gonorrhea, now he had to abstain from carnal pleasures for three whole days for it to wear off. And so his pleasures this night would be at the embrace of cold bottle of Stygian moonshine. He had to hide it so deep in the western tunnels, because slaves weren''t allowed to drink, though you could definitely go around that rule, by drinking away from superiors. Also for some reason the western tunnel was always really cold, so his brews were always chilled when he came for them, and drinking them in the silence away from everyone else has turned into a favorite pass time of his, which was why he... *Scrape!* Maurice paused, he was drunk, but not so drunk he would not be able to recognize the sound of someone slipping on rocks. He was either being followed or the sound was coming from deeper within the western mines, but honestly he couldn''t tell which direction at all. He bent down and picked up the remains of his bottle, holding the neck and pointing the jagged edge of it towards both direction, and in the end he ended up turning so many times that in his light drunken haze he had no idea which path was in or out. He didn''t say anything, he was a rather big man, and he was pretty sure he could take on anything, even if it was that scrawny white haired blue eyed freak! But just as he strengthened his conviction, a chilling and cold wind blew past him, causing him to shiver as he looked up to see a sight that chilled him to the bones. Icy blue eyes floating in the dark, it w as if the form that those eyes belonged to were fully and completely embraced by the darkness and all he could see were those icy blue that looked all too much like death. In a heartbeat those eyes were before him, he opened his mouth to let out a cry of terror, but all that he could do was gurgle up blood as his lungs were filled with the life giving liquid. A wet squelch told him that his ripped out throat had been thrown on the ground like a discarded piece of flesh. He looked up one last time and he could see was blue, and then white, followed by teeth and claws, and pain, so much pain. And then finally......darkness, and death. Chapter 16锛欳avern Moles (II): Screet Rezar was absolutely annoyed by what he was seeing, how hard could it be to make a door, this was ugliest piece of shit door he has ever had the pleasure of seeing. It was completely misshapen and crooked; it looked like something an ogre living in a swamp would use to protect its house. Much as he hated it Rezar knew it was just this ugly because he didn''t have a craft class that had to deal with carpentry. If he had to stack wooden beams against walls, tunnels and caves to prevent a collapse, then that would have been done perfectly, after all that was a part of mining. But anything other than that and the final look would be extremely horrendous. So the door was a bust, the earth worm pen on the other hand was absolutely okay....at least by his cave man standards. It was large enough to hold a 150 of those worms, though in the end it was just a jumbled mess of entwined worms, it was like looking at an extremely large ball of thread or yarn, it was quite creepy. Which person in his or right mind would rear worms like common farm animals. Rezar didn''t know, but he was pretty sure he was not in his right mind, either way the door was a bit too early if he had to be honest. The walls weren''t completely up and he was just trying to while away time while Screet went to run reconnaissance and look for another bunch of cavern moles for him to slaughter and bring back to life to slave for him. As they say, speak of the devil and he shall appear. ? Infant mole-man [lvl 1] Undead(Zombie Elite)+ ? Name: Screet ? Magic: 10/10 ? Exp: 13/35 ? Skills: [Rapid Digger lvl 3] [Claw Slash lvl 9] [Night Vision lvl 4] [Treasure Sense lvl 7][Dark Tremor lvl1][Infection carrier lvl1][Black Magic mastery lvl 1] ? Time left until de-animation: nil He didn''t exactly look like a man; he was basically just an anthromorphic looking mole with rather long claws. Screet was still an infant, but he was pudgy, like some fat ugly baby. His arms were quite beefy; or rather it would be quite unfair for Rezar to call it a pudgy baby, Screet was more like a muscular man child. He was paler than what you''d expect from a mole, which was just enough to prove its status as something that wasn''t really alive anymore. Communication was still quite difficult for them, and that could mostly be attributed to the fact that Screet was still a low level undead creature, even if he was an elite zombie and could exist indefinitely, he wasn''t smart enough to think for himself. All Rezar could do was give the mole man specific but simple orders for him to follow, with enough time, patience and some leveling up, he knew Screet would become smarter. Rezar looked at the mole man, definitely Screet would be unable to tell him much about what and where he had found the moles, or if he found any, so all he could do was let the mole lead him to his discovery. Rezar went back into his cave and picked up the armor he had been given. It was just simple leather armor, and obviously it has seen better days, but he didn''t have much of a choice. He reluctantly picked up the chipped long sword he was given, as a sub weapon whilst, carry his spear\harpoon as his main weapon. He went outside and gave an order to Screet that was quite simple. "Show me what you found Screet." The tiny mole man scampered into the darkness his claws scratching across the ground. Rezar followed with a focused gaze, the was the first time he was moving away from the area had designated as safe within the cavern, so the idea of being careful could not be stressed enough. Their home was on the east side of the entrance, and the area he had been mining was just a few meters west from the entrance. What he hadn''t noticed at the time was that about ten meters away, there was tunnel about five foot tall, hidden into a small alcove that he had been unable to notice previously. But seeing how Screet had ducked into the tunnel, it sort of explained a few things to Rezar. They had noticed him and had followed him back and then proceeded to try and eat his face...or something like that. Rezar ducked and followed after Screet, he was just a bit under 5 feet 6, so he had to bend down a bit to prevent his head from hitting the roof of the tunnel. Though Rezar was hoping that the tunnel was not as big as this; in all honesty, it would be incredibly hard to fight, within the confines of this tunnel. But his worries were a bit unfounded as just under a few moments, the ten meter long tunnel came to a stop and opened up into a miniature version of the cavern. The room alone was as wide as basket ball court, and there were tiny caves all over the wall, to the Rezar this seemed like the inside of a bee hive, or a honey comb. But either way their arrival was not unnoticed. Just after they arrived Screet had turned to face his master, ''as if to say mission accomplished, so what next?'' obviously what came next was the kicking of ass, but Rezar was wondering he was not a bit rushed in his decision to come hunt in the cavern moles nest. Hundreds of beady black eyes stared at him, this was a lot more nerve wracking than the first time he met these moles. He was nervous, but once again the absence of fear enabled him to stand his ground as he looked around and tried to figure out a course of action. He could slowly back off and run away, but the tunnel was just too narrow and too short, it was a very tight fit for him, but not for the moles as they had no qualms about swarming him and ripping his flesh from his bones. Which meant he had no other choice but to go on with this fight, but he wasn''t exactly alone, he had Screet who had evolved from these moles, he was stronger, faster, and even had magic now, but they were still outnumbered. Rezar notice a large cave about two meters above the ground, there was a single massive cavern mole in it staring intensely. The cave mouth alone was over five meter high, showing just how large it was and it was pretty much isolated from the other caves by at least a few meters. There was probably a hierarchy between the moles and this guy must be one of the big bosses as Rezar noticed a few other caves of similar size. Well if he was going to die here today, then he had to make an impression, and what could be better than going after one of the big bosses. Plus that mole was the size of an adolescent lion, if he should be successful in taking it down and raising it back up, he should be able to put up a fight. All he needed was a single moment of opportunity like NOW!! Rezar threw the harpoon in his hands straight at the cavern mole, quite frankly it was an unexpected move, and even though there wasn''t much power behind the throw, it was still strong enough to dig into the right shoulder of the mole, eliciting a pained screech that shocked all of the other moles and pushed them into action. However Rezar was already on the move with Screet held under his arms. One of the moles rushed towards him. But Rezar jumped high, placed one foot against the cave wall and pushed of it just as another mole jumped and smacked against the wall. Rezar got into the cave with the cavern mole he had just attacked, but before he could gather himself, the injured mole rushed towards him with its jaws open wide and claws outstretched. It seemed as if death had came calling. Chapter 17锛欳avern Moles (III): Elite Cavern Moles Rezar let go of Screet bas he held his hands outwards and grappled with the incoming cavern mole. The moment they had come in contact with each other, Rezar noticed one very obvious problem, and that was the fact that the cavern mole was a whole lot stronger than he was. So when it came to contest of strength, he was obviously going to be losing a lot faster than he would have imagined, so the best thing he could do was strike a decisive blow before the cavern mole got smart enough to utilize its entire strength and power. [ROT] The cavern mole released an ungodly screech as Rezar''s hands on both sides of its neck began releasing sizzling sounds and the sound of rotting flesh filled the cave. The mole reeled backwards screeching in pain, but soon enough Rezar also joined it in crying out in pain as a mole had scaled the wall into the cave and had taken a bite out of his leg. He pulled out the sword hanging by his hip and stabbed it into the skull of the cavern mole. However the sword was already in bad shape as it is, and after stabbing into the moles head, it broke in half when the mole made an erratic movement due to shock. Rezar didn''t have time to rest as another mole jumped over the dead body of its comrade and jumped towards Rezar, but he stabbed the broken sword out, piercing it into the mouth of the mole and out the roof of its mouth. In that same second he placed his hand on the mole with the broken sword tip lodged in its head and tried to raise it up. [Failed!] But he didn''t let that stop him as he pulled the sword out of the mouth of the second dead mole and slashed the face of another that had just came up the wall of the cave. Fresh hot blood sprayed out as he literally cleaved the mole''s entire face in half. He quickly turned himself over and backed a bit away from the ledge of the cave, which was smart as another mole almost as big as the one currently screeching in pain and bleeding out as the skin around its neck rotted away. This time it was Screet who had made a move, the infant mole man was still quite slow, after all it was a zombie so there would definitely be a penalty to movement speed on the account of being dead. But still! Screet had sharp claws and jaws that could stab through wood, the cavern mole didn''t stand a chance as the infant mole man grabbed it by the jaw, not at all caring about the stream of blood pouring all over his body. And then in an impressive show of strength, he pulled the massive lion sized mole into the cave and made sure to wrench his head back and forth in a frenzy, ripping open the wound and making it bigger and larger. Rezar hobbled to his feet and then stabbed the broken sword into the skull of the first mole he had used rot on, effectively ending its life. He retrieved his harpoon and returned the broken sword into its sheathe, turns out swords were quite useful. He moved back to the edge of the cave and peered down, hundreds of beady black eyes stared back at him, Rezar looked at the direction of the tunnel he had just come through, he couldn''t help but muse to himself, this was exactly what regret looked like, this wasn''t some fantasy where he could make random and stupid decisions and not expect for them to be consequences. He had gotten a taste of power, and that taste had made him greedy but as it stood there was no choice....he had to kill every single mole in front of him. But he obviously couldn''t do that alone, there were just too many of them, not to mention he was injured, however that was something he would be able to deal with soon enough. He looked at Screet and scrunched up his face, the mole man had eaten a massive chunk of the cavern mole he had just killed, it was annoying and it was going to mess with raise undead skill, the more damaged a body, then the more difficult it would be to raise it back to life. He''s had enough time to analyze his previous fight and understand what had made it so hard for him to raise Screet and his comrade, even with the massive bonus he had to death and black magic. It was just speculation on his path, but Rezar concluded that certain injuries would make the price of the resurrection cost a bit more. But he couldn''t stop Screet from having his fill, the fellow was still a zombie, and zombies were driven by sheer insatiable hunger, so this was required, after all Screet could exists and grow indefinitely on the premise he had the energy to survive, and the only way to do that was to kill and eat. {Raise Undead} [Skill Failed] Rezar gave a sigh as he looked down at the group of moles still gathered below, for some reason they weren''t too keen about rushing upwards, they were just common monsters, basically animals so he wasn''t too sure about their actions. Its either they were too afraid, or they were waiting for something or were under orders not to do anything. Rezar wasn''t exactly sure, but the sooner he got an extra trump card the better, he had no intention of sitting still and waiting for them to get tired. {Raise Undead} [Skill Failed] Rezar had to resist the urge to scream out in anger, sure he had only tried twice, but with how much he had raised this skill, he expected it to be a breeze. Was the son of death trait just there for show, how bringing a mole back from the dead can be such a difficult task? It was extremely annoying, and even worse was the fact he didn''t feel frantic or afraid about it, just annoyed. Seems like his fear had been traded for a very low threshold for failure, he could get irritated or annoyed by certain things fairly easily. {Raise Undead} [Skill Successful!] (You''ve raised elite cavern mole level 15) ? Elite cavern mole [lvl 15] Undead(Zombie) ? Exp: 35/35 ? Skills: [Burrower lvl 3] [Claw Frenzy lvl 4] [Night Vision lvl 8] [Treasure Sense lvl 8] ? Time left until de-animation: 6hours 4 minutes 43 seconds There were skills here he didn''t recognized, but he knew they probably evolved from the basic skills it had as a basic cavern mole. The mole slowly got back to its feet, the rotten flesh around its neck still festering as its now blank white eyes stared back at Rezar. It took him three tries to raise this mole, which honestly was more than good enough, Rezar knew he had just gotten a bit impatient and the pain from his leg was making him annoyed. (Your undead Infant Mole man has infected elite cavern mole level 15 with a zombie virus. You now have control over [elite cavern mole level 15]. The zombie will only exist for 20 minutes.) Rezar blinked completely surprised by the turn of events, however he was quite happy. He hoped this infected zombie mole would be able to spread the infection; it would be the perfect scenario as he wouldn''t have to do much to take care of the mole. Putting his hand into the small bag he had carried here, he removed one of the earthworms and closed his eyes and he quickly ate the snake size still alive creature. He shuddered in revulsion before turning to the new zombie. "Go down and kill them all!" It was time for a counter attack. Chapter 18锛欳avern Moles (IV): Fight! It was a complete and total massacre, the moment the zombie moles Rezar had raised and Screet had infected fell into the midst of their former comrades they went wild. They were discriminately using their skills and all Rezar could do was sit back and watch as they reaped lives. At first none of the moles were able to react, because with their lack of intelligence, it wasn''t so easy for them to tell that the moles had been changed into something else entirely. Their claws ripped most of the smaller moles in half before the others could realize that their own comrades were tearing them apart. Rezar was assaulted by a plethora of messages about his resurrected moles slaying and gaining battle exp and some normal exp too much to his surprise. Both way Rezar and Screet watched as the first mole that had a hole in its head and a mostly rotted neck barreled through groups of cavern moles. It made it as far as the middle of the cave, biting and chewing and ripping apart, before two other moles just as big as it was joined the fray. The first pounced on it, biting at its already rotted neck, however the mole pulled back, spitting out rotted flesh, obviously that didn''t taste as good as it expected. The resurrected mole retaliated by gouging a rather nasty cut across it stomach, blood spilled as the mole screeched out in pain and retaliated by slicing its claws across the zombified face of the zombie mole. Pieces of flesh and bone flew into the air, as the left eye of the zombie mole was left hanging out of its skull while its brain was exposed to the world. But the undead felt no pain so it barely showed any reaction apart from reeling from the pain. The other mole took the opportunity to deliver a mightily blow on the back of the resurrected mole, there was a loud crack as its back was broken, but once again that zombie vitality showed itself. The zombie mole rapidly turned its body, displaying an agility Rezar did not think a zombie was capable of; after all if he had to be honest after resurrection all creatures suffer a massive degeneration of speed, not to mention any and all signs of intelligence would be gone. Rezar felt that zombie''s lack of speed and intelligence were the same thing, but this speed loss only attributed to movement. When they''re fighting on the other hand, sometimes their speed would reach what it was like when they were once alive. The zombie mole''s claws glinted with a dull grey as it began to rapidly swipe it over and over on the body of the second mole. Rezar opened his eyes wide from shock as strips of flesh, organs and bones were flying every which way, and the zombie mole didn''t stop until all that was left behind was an in ordinate pile of ripped flesh, shredded organs and broken bones. He couldn''t help but swallowing at that, because he really couldn''t imagine where he would be now if the mole had decided to use that skill during their fight. The other mole that had been previously injured was not willing to die alone as it jumped onto the back of the resurrected mole. It dug its claws deep into its sides, screeching in rage or the mole equivalent of it. And then it pulled its head back and latched tightly onto the moles neck, its jaws easily digging into festering skin. And this time it refused to let go, completely determined to bite through the resurrected mole for all it was worth. Rezar had noticed about the moles, and that was the fact that they had good instincts, so he was not surprised how two seconds later the head of his resurrected mole rolled onto the ground and he received a system message that his resurrected mole had died. The mole responsible for the deed collapsed immediately, its mouth covered with yellowed rotten flesh and foam as it frothed from the mouth obviously poisoned from tasting the rotted flesh. Rezar shifted his gaze towards Screet''s infected mole, the mole was not as vibrant or active in a fight as the other mole Rezar had resurrected, but it was still deadly enough as there was an inordinate pile of dead smaller moles around it. Though Rezar was a bit upset, it looks like the infection that zombified the mole could only be gained from Screet, those infected by him would be unable to infect other living being, basically the infection had to come from the carrier of the source itself, so there wasn''t going to be any legendary zombie outbreak like those old movies. Not unless Rezar had enough zombies raised and evolved on his side. Either way, Screet''s zombie was doing well, but unfortunately that came to an end. There were just too many moles within this cave, and, there would be three more to take its place. Rezar and Screet watched with focused gaze as the mole was eventually overwhelmed and brought to the ground as one tiny mouth became two, and then three, six, twelve until it was literally stripped of its flesh leaving nothing but bone behind. Rezar gulped, it was quite nice that he was able to raise those two moles, or rather he raised one and Screet was responsible for the other one. It netted him a lot of battle exp, so much so that he had lost count, however none of that would matter if he''s unable to get out of here alive. And quite frankly without those massive moles, the three dead smaller moles still stuck in the cave with them would be unable to put a dent in the massive horde and from the look of things they were rearing to come rip him apart. There were no more elite moles in sight, Rezar reckoned that the elite mole were from level 15 to 20, however if he raised them, they still retained their elite factor, only that their levels would drop along with whatever bonus they had gotten from those levels. But the crux of the matter was the fact that there weren''t much of those elite moles, outing the four that just died, Rezar counted six other caves just like the one he was currently in, with three now being vacant, coinciding with the dead elite moles. There were three elite moles left, but none of them were willing to leave their caves, and Rezar''s [rot] spell didn''t have enough range to attack the other moles in their caves. However they were all willing to sit back and let the little ones go after him, and Rezar knew that should they overwhelm him, then its game over, but there was no other option than a prolonged battle of attrition. He had 9 more of those earthworms in his tiny sack, which is to say simply he could afford to be near death 9 more times before his luck would run out. Either way he would have to use every tool in his arsenal, besides this would be a very good way to practice how to rapidly raise things from the dead. These moles weren''t as high level as the other elite moles that had taken three tries for Rezar to resurrect, so he was sure that he only needs a single try to bring them into this fight. He had 19 points of magic, basically a tier one magic stat, and every resurrection needed two points while rot used a single point. Magic regeneration was a point every 90 seconds, if he goes all out in the beginning and avoids using [ROT] he would be able to raise a significant of these moles to help with the fight. Not to mention he also had Screet by his side, to truly survive he had to be conscious of the usage of his magic. But more than that he had to fight harpoon and broken sword in all, he had to push himself to the limits. Physically and mentally, but it was all good. Normally the thought about the consequences of failure would paralyze most people, but Rezar wasn''t most people; fear did not exist for him. And it was in that moment the first mole climbed over the edge of the caves entrance, Rezar didn''t hesitate, his harpoon flashed forwards. Chapter 19锛欳avern Moles (V): Fight!! "Screet attack all hostiles, but keep back, don''t let them drag you down!" Rezar gave Screet a sharp order as he swiped the harpoon in his right hand, smacking it against the face of a mole and sending it tumbling down. Attack all hostiles, keep back, and don''t get dragged down. Three simple commands, anything other than that would have been incredibly hard and difficult for Screet to follow. It was still just a zombie, and even more so just a simple infant mole-man. It was a higher evolved monster than a common mole, but still pretty much basic, so Rezar had to make simple plans that they could both follow and stick to. Rezar''s stabbed his harpoon forward, right through the head of a basic cavern mole, basically the mole with the medium size bulk and had levels from 10 upwards. Once they get to fifteen or rather sixteen they become elite moles. He used the still lodged mole to sweep aside other moles climbing the walls and I to the cave much to his surprise. Moles were usually slow and somewhat clumsy, they had powerful claws and forelimbs for digging holes, but moles were for all intents and purposes fat. Not to mention their limbs weren''t arranged in such a way that could make them really good climbers, but here they were defying all the odds, which was understandable in a way, Elysium was not the real world, no matter how real it might seem. Rezar pulled the mole out and grabbed it with his hand, it was a bit heavier than he thought, but it didn''t stop him from acting. [RAISE UNDEAD] [SKILL SUCCESFUL] He didn''t even take time to look at the stats of the mole he had just brought back to life, as soon as it could hear and see, he chucked it into the crowd of incoming moles and gave it one order; "Kill!" and it reacted almost immediately, its claws flashing as it ripped two of its comrades apart before pouncing on to the next. Rezar stepped forwards and smashed his toe into the face of another mole sending it flying like a soccer ball. He swung his spear like a wooden bat cracking open some few heads as he noticed moles with significant chunks of their bodies missing falling into the horde from the cave and going wild as they also attacked, looks like Screet was already putting in the work. However his momentary lapse of concentration cost him as a mole pounced at him, using an agility that was totally not supposed to be possible for moles. Its massive jaws found purchase in his neck, ripping into his throat as his life giving blood began to spill out in a gushing stream. There was such intense pain that he almost blacked out. His harpoon fell out of his hand and rolled out the cave into the crowd of cavern moles still scrambling to climb over each other and get to him, and also suffering from the assault of the moles both he and Screet had resurrected. But as usual there was no fear, even with an injury that could pretty much guarantee his death, and also in the midst of blinding pain, Rezar was still able to act accordingly to the situation as he placed his hands on the moles chest and internally activated his skill. [ROT] The mole released its hold on Rezar''s neck as it screeched in pain and fell back to the ground. Its body contorted and twisted as it writhed in pain, Rezar reckoned that this was probably what it felt like to have a cardiac arrest, but he couldn''t be sure, it''s not as if he''s ever had a cardiac arrest. Even with his weird train of thought, Rezar had already pulled out an earth worm, ignoring the writhing movements being made by the fifteen inch animal; he pulled out its head or tail.or head. It was hard to determine which part of its body was which; it was an earth worm after all. If there was someone else watching, they''ll be able to see with startling clarity how Rezar''s ripped out throat began to repair itself. Cells rapidly replicated themselves as tissue was reattached or re-grown in seconds and a smooth unblemished chocolate brown neck was left exposed for the world to see. "Fuurrrrk!" Rezar scrunched up his face a bit, looks like it would take a little longer for his voice to get back to normal, but right now he was still in the middle of a fight. He picked up his broke sword and took a step forward, stomping down on the head of a mole and stabbing the broken blade into its neck with ease. He pulled the blade out, already using the raise undead spell as he slide the broken sword under the jaw of another mole. He used the skill again, and they were both successful as two newly resurrected zombie moles fell off the cave entrance and into the melee beneath them. A massive jaw clamped around his calf, but Rezar ignored it as he casted rot at a mole that seemed a little bigger than the rest and was standing out within the crowd of moles. The mole screeched in pain as ifs face began festering and rotting. The rot skill only had a three second duration, but even after that what''s left will keep on spreading like a cancer, though Rezar knew if it was a creature of significant strength and defense, it would probably be able to shake off the effects of rot and still try to kill him. Rezar swiped the broken sword on the neck of the mole; cutting it so deep that even bone was shown. A claw swipe from out of nowhere took Rezar''s right eye and much of his face was gouged out, even to the point where his teeth and cheekbones could be seen. He resurrected the mole that had bitten his leg before stabbing the half sword at the rump of the mole that just tore his face open and tried running away after, quite crafty for a mole. And its tail was longer to. It managed to escape into the crowd, but not without a souvenir from Rezar. Rezar took a step back and pulled out another worm before calling out to Screet. "Screet use dark tremor." Screet did not even act as if it had heard as it stabbed it''s scary looking claws into the eyes and subsequently the skull of another mole and flung its body away, making sure to smash it into another comrade of his. The two foot tall mole-man walked forward and then slammed its clawed feet on the ground, causing a deep rumble for about five seconds that got moles attention, before a shockwave of black energy spread out with three meter radius. The moles that were closer were blasted back and had their skin and body rapidly shriveled and twisted before they hit the ground. The closer they were the more effective the skill and those closest were dead, almost if their life force was sucked away. None of these moles had a resistance to dark or death elements, plus they weren''t on the level as actual human beings or other races, so it was like throwing a grenade into a classroom filled with children. Rezar ate the earth worm in his hand, lamenting the fact that it tasted like crap and this was the eight one, he had seven left. And this fight didn''t seem any close to getting finished, either way there was no other option but to go forward. This time he jumped down out of the cave with Screet in tow, all of the other moles they had resurrected gathered around them and numbered at least 26, most of which came about because of Screet, either way, Rezar was going to grow this army and win, and he had to. Chapter 20锛欳avern Moles (VI): Rewards, What The Hell Is A Vampire? Rezar pulled the mole hanging on his shoulder off, wincing a bit at the sound and feeling of flesh being torn off. He immediately bashed the head of the mole against the cave wall, before pulling back and stomping on the head of another mole, smashing its skull to bits with way more strength than he thought himself possible. He was tired, so tired. He had been carrying on with this battle for the better part of an hour, and he had lost count of how many moles he had killed, or how many times he''s had to pick his guts from the ground as he slowly healed. He was also out of magic and was practically running on fumes, of all the moles he had raised, there were only 8 of them left, and he knew it wouldn''t be too long from now before the first of them expired. He was hunched over breathing hard as he held his broken sword in one hand, during the course of the fight he had retrieved his harpoon and had subsequently lost it again, using it against an endless amount of enemies that were small and came at you from every angle was a bit cumbersome, especially when the harpoon itself was so off balance and quite difficult to use when you''re swarmed. Rezar raised his head up, ignoring the trickle of blood from his right shoulder and his left thigh as he looked for his next enemy; there were none in sight. All he could see were hundreds of dead moles, and the over two dozen zombie moles on his side, mostly due to Screet''s involvement. Rezar knew if not for the mole-man, he would pretty much be dead by now, so quite frankly Screet was the best investment he ever made in his life, but when you think about it fully, the mole man was the only investment he had. Rezar dipped his hand into his sack to pull out another earthworm, but it was empty. He didn''t know how, but during the course of the fight he had used up all his supplies of the earthworm, which meant he had to find his way back home before he bled out. But it couldn''t be that easy could it? Rezar raised his head and looked at the three caves that still held elite moles. He really couldn''t see them, but he knew they could see him, and from the look of things none of them seemed all that willing to make any sort of move. "Screet lets go, let the rest of the zombie moles stay behind us." Rezar wasn''t sure that the zombie moles would be enough to deter the elite moles should they decide to move, but this was the only plan he could come up with. As he was now, he could not even deal with half an elite much less three, his stamina surprised him, but there was only so much he could do, he was at the end of his rope. Thankfully the elite moles didn''t seem all than interested in disemboweling Rezar and he was honestly very thankful for that. They made their way back through the tunnel that had brought them in, and with every step he took; Rezar looked back, just to be sure the elite moles weren''t coming after them. Honestly he was feeling quite tense, but yet he was still calm about the entire situation, and quite frankly it made him angry. His distinct lack of fear had already been noticed, and he knew it was also making him quite reckless. Not many would agree, but while fear can cause widespread panic and chaos, it also held people back from doing incredibly stupid shit, without an iota of fear in his body, Rezar took action the moment a thought entered his mind. And not once did he ever care about the consequences, and more often than not those consequences were quite dire. If not for anything he knew he had to get this lack of fear under control, it wasn''t a good thing as amazing as it might sound. Fear made people irrational, but a lack of fear also did the same thing. He let out a breath of relief he didn''t know he was holding after they came out of the tunnel, after that it was an uphill walk up the slope as they passed the area he had been mining before coming up to the tunnel that led to the entrance and then going past that to come up to the place that Rezar have taken to calling home. But this was not home, he didn''t feel that warmth associated with the word, instead this place felt like an office, or a gym. A place; where he could make money and grow stronger, to face bigger threats, and maybe, one day find a home for himself. He immediately went to the haphazard pen he had made for the earthworms. He noticed that some of them had crawled out and had escaped while others were in the process of doing so. He grabbed the first and threw it into his mouth with so much as a hint of discomfort, he had absolutely gotten used to its taste and texture. He turned to the zombie moles and Screet and gave the best order he could come up with at the moment. "All of you go mine ores and gems; pile them all in front of the cart. Screet! You stay behind and keep watch, wake me up if anything goes wrong." The most any of these other zombies would last should be another 2hours give or take a few minutes. This was even more time than the previous batch that Screet belonged to. He knew that even most of these zombie moles had reached max level from the killing and could evolve just like Screet; he couldn''t take them back to town because he had an agreement with Red not to come back until after every week. So it would be a pitiful waste, but a necessary one, besides he had a plan for how to get some of the moles to a high level and bring them back to the spire for a class upgrade/racial change. But none of the moles in front of him qualifies for that as they would expire soon. But he still had a cave filled with very much dead moles waiting to be resurrected and trained, so his plan was still pretty much fool proof. But with that out of the way, there was just one thing left to do, and that was to check up on all the system messages he had received during the fight. (You have achieved a milestone by fighting for over an hour straight against odds you could not fully win against. +3 to power, + 5 to defense, + 2 to magic) (you and your undead have slain 246 basic cavern moles and 4 elite cavern moles. 39,960 battle exp earned, 5,433 normal exp earned) (You have achieved a milestone by defeating 300 monsters in one battle. + 3 to power, +3 to defense, +3 to magic) (Raise undead has reached level 9. Rot has reached level 7. Dark magic mastery has reached level 4. Basic sword mastery has reached level 5. You have learnt passive skill Basic staff mastery level 1) (You have danced, dined, embraced and come ever closer to death. The Mental stat has been unlocked; you have been given the passive skill life sense. Life sense and the passive skill night vision have combined to form the active/passive skill life sight) (You have survived by taking the lives and vitality of a living thing, and as such you have been cursed! Your own vitality will now give life to all who take it from you.) [The vampire racial path has been unlocked! Complete all racial quests to change your race from human to Lesser Vampire] "Okay that''s cool and all, but what the hell is a vampire?" Chapter 21锛歏ampire Quest, Maureen And The Dark Vampire? What is a vampire? Rezar got the feeling that he was supposed to know what it meant, it was a race but he did not remember such a race from before when he was still a player rather than upload. It was an accepted fact that Rezar was not completely clueless about Elysium, heck he even remembered locations from within the virtual world. Important information like the best grinding spots for low level classes, good dungeons that would deliver great crafting materials, and the common and easy ways to get some traits to determine the kind of class you could get from a spire. He wouldn''t say he knew everything, but he could say he knew just enough to be considered quite familiar with Elysium, but why then was the race called a vampire one massive blank in his mind. In fact he was sure there was something about it in the real world too, but such information was also missing leading him to one startling conclusion. Whatever information there was about vampires, it was something that used to be quite personal for him and very much entwined with his previous life and who he used to be. So when he was finally uploaded and his sense of self an identity brutally wiped, leaving behind just common knowledge, the information behind the word vampire and what it meant as a race was completely wiped out too. But now whether by fate or by coincidence (which is pretty much the same thing) he has now found himself face with a chance to know and understand more about this vampire race. But he at least knew one thing for a fact, to change or as it stands in Elysium upgrade your base human race to another race; you need at least two combat classes and two normal classes all at level 25, and the quest for the vampire race change proved it. QUEST ALERT: RACIAL UPGRADE! (LESSER VAMPIRE) 1. [gain 2 normal class and 2 combat class: 3/4] 2. [get 2 normal class and 2 combat class to level 25 each: 0/4] 3. [drink the blood of 25 different beings(humans included): 2/25] 4. [get your magic stat to tier3: 0/1] 5. [kill a sentient living being by drinking them dry of their blood: 0/1] 6. [get a passive and active combat skill and a passive and active normal skill to intermediate: 0/2] 7. [DIE! : 0/1] This was ridiculous, even Rezar with half baked memories knew that the requirements to change his race to vampire were just too much. Not to mention the requirements were as eccentric as the name of the race itself. He was already branded with the title son of death and stuck with the necromancer class. From the looks of things, if he successfully becomes a vampire, then he''s done for, the race seemed even more evil than the necromancer class itself. Of course it didn''t seem to have anything to do with the death classes, but a racial quest that required you to die! Hell no! But still he was still curious about the vampire race, so he would probably be asking a couple of questions when he goes back to town in about a week. But till then he would put this vampire shenanigan aside for now, at first he was content just living his life mining away. But with the danger to his life, and the sheer fact that Rezar honestly loved the feeling of being powerful. Everything he''s experienced and been through so far was just pushing him straight to a path that would lead him to power. He was more than willing to walk that path, he didn''t know how a person like him with no proper self identity, and even worse no iota of fear could want this; but he honestly, truly wanted to live his life to the fullest. He wanted to go on adventures, fight monsters, save damsels, get laid lots of times and just have as much fun as he could. A carefree life and a chance to share that life with someone special, and he knew he would not be able to get such a life if he remains a slave, so right now he''s aiming for 10 thousand gold elys. One platinum elys that would give him a future and he won''t let anything or anyone stand in his way. With his conviction set, Rezar closed his eyes as exhaustion finally caught up to him. But while he slept, he had no idea of the storm brewing through the mining town, or the fact that the stench of death had his fingerprints all over it, darkness and blood have come calling. >>>>>>> Maureen was 13 summers old; this should be her sixth....no! Her seventh reincarnation. She was not really sure though, the only thing she knew was that she had lived a lot of lives, so many that she had forgotten what they were like except for the previous two or three lives. But most of all she couldn''t remember anything about her first life, the real one she had on earth. The only thing she could remember was ice cream and green fields and flowers, lots and lots of flowers. Such things couldn''t be found in a mine like this, but there were little pleasures she could appreciate. She along with the family she was born into were war slaves, they were sold to the mine, but life hasn''t been too difficult for them and they seemed to have found favor with the forewoman. But that was just their luck for being bought by her, so at least they get to live in town as opposed to others living in the mining sectors ran by other foremen. Maureen was on her way home though; she had stayed a little too late playing with a friend. But she was not too worried, in her previous life she was a paladin, so at the very least her mind still retained some combat training. Which was she reacted in time to duck forward into a roll as a mass of darkness swiped over her head, blue eyes blazing in the night. She turned as swung her dainty thirteen year old fist into the mass of darkness. Her fist made contact and even pushed the mass of darkness back, earning a surprised look from the entity cloaked within the darkness, not that she could see it, however for such a young girl she was packing quite a punch and had instincts that were very good. But in the end how much instinct could a thirteen year old slave girl really have, against the power the entity wielded, this child was nothing more than a joke in front of it. And so it rushed forward once again, gliding around the dainty fists of the young girl as her dress was grabbed and she was thrown backwards. What Maureen hadn''t noticed was that she was close to the entrance of the mines, and that''s were the best had attacked her from. Her tiny body smashed into a rail car at the entrance, ribs broken and bones fractured in an instant. There was a rather nasty cut on her forehead, but before she could even register the pain, her body was thrown to the ground, her legs grabbed by the mass of darkness, and subsequently dragged into the western tunnels, the sounds of clothes and flesh being torn and teeth scrapping against bone, while her whimpers of death faded into the dark. Chapter 22锛欴ecide To Explore Rezar couldn''t help smiling, there was a rather sinister grin on his face as he rubbed his palms together in satisfaction of the sight in front of him, and what sight was that? It was money, or at the very least the extreme avenue to make money in front of him. The past three days had seen him make multiple trips back to the cavern mole caves, by now a significant amount of the dead moles there were already resurrected, put to work and expired. They mined for him, but not just mining, he used them to expand the cave he lived in. They were hard workers, but quite dumb. But of course it was that way, zombies weren''t known to be the smartest, heck they were called zombies because of that, or at least because they were undead. Rezar had to monitor the expansion of his cave, he also lent a hand since he was a bit stronger, and he had all this mining skills and class, so it would be a waste not to put it to good use. It took them the better part of a day to expand the cave, and then dig another room into; this was much larger and would serve as a bedroom when he needed it. It was an inkling feeling of sorts, but Rezar didn''t feel the need to get to attached to this cavern, he very much wanted the opportunity to walk in the sun free of his shackles and live the carefree life he envision. In fact since death classes were so reviled, and he had both a death class and a rather ominous trait that had to do with death, he plans to get his freedom and travel to the frontier and pioneer new lands that would be his alone without trouble from the other denizens of Elysium. As it stands, based on what he remembers, Elysium was a planet/ continent that''s giant circular landmass on top of a globe. Basically the planet and the singular cap like continent were one and the same, and it is ever expanding ever growing, as more and more people from earth upload into Elysium''s servers. The frontier of Elysium are wide stretches of land, mountains, forests, seas, deserts, jungles, mountain ranges etc that has not been colonized. Though it was quite dangerous, and quite a lot of people have failed, many decide to travel as pioneers and colonize new lands. They would save enough money to buy a spire and then travel until they find a place worth settling, brave the elements, monsters and treacherous terrains. But funny enough people living in these settlements always strive to travel inland to return to the other properly established kingdoms and empires. In the end without access to proper trade channels and special bodies of power like the adventurers association, the mage towers, and the forces of every settlement, village, town, city, kingdom and empire, it becomes really hard for them to survive or grow. But Rezar had a different plan, the wilds of the frontier were his goal as that would keep far away from prying eyes and he could live as freely as he could. He would prefer building a house over a cliff overlooking an ocean, a place where he can watch the sunsets and the sunrise together. Rezar shifted his gaze back to the project he had in hand, and that was actually nothing. All of the zombies had already been given tasks, and even though he had been somewhat busy, he now suddenly found himself devoid of a job. It was weird; this was the first time he suddenly found himself devoid of any sort of job since he came to the cavern. Screet was also free as the red eyed zombie Mole man seemed all too willing to hang around his master, but when you think about it, it''s not as if he had a will or consciousness of his own. But without anything to do, it left Rezar with just one option, and that was to finally explore the cavern itself. He had no intention of going far, but just poke around his immediate vicinity and sees what other neighbors he had to contend with apart from those annoying cavern moles that honestly at this point he no longer considered a threat, not even the elite moles hiding in the cavern could shake him. But none the less he had to be careful, so he grabbed his trusty javelin, his broken sword, a sack full of earth worms; his almost ripped to shreds leather armor and brand new pants. The last pone did not survive the cave of the cavern moles. "Screet! Come on we''re going on an adventure." Rezar looked at Screet with a look of expectation, but all the mole-man did was look back at his master with the same blank look as before, Rezar sighed and hung his head down a bit, honestly he felt like a fool. How long has he been here, yet he felt extremely lonely, never the less he still had places to be. He stepped out and looked out into the cavern that though dark was quite bright to him. Rezar wasn''t sure why he had such a sunny disposition today, but at the very least he wasn''t feeling negative so that should be a plus. He turned his head to the left and marched east, unlike the western part of the tunnel entrance into the cavern that sloped downwards, the eastern part went upwards, basically the cavern itself was like the inside of a shell, with the spirals going round its entire circumference and acting as ledges and pathways to the hundreds if not thousands of caves littering the walls of the cavern. Exploring was the only other option available to Rezar right now, as much as he wouldn''t like to admit it, when it comes to crafting the things he needs to survive and have a comfortable life, he absolutely sucks. But he wasn''t too worried about that, he couldn''t learn everything, so that door that''s still making a mockery of him can remain there, he''s going to go take a look around and see what sort of other monsters were still living within the cavern. He might still be trying to figure out who he truly was in this world, however he had already taken the first step in deciding what he wanted to do with his life. And Rezar knew it wasn''t really something many people are able to figure out on time, but yet he had chosen a path and had a vision for how he wanted to live his life. The only hope is that in the process of making his way of life a reality, he comes to discover who he truly is as a person. But for now he knows that there''s something he really enjoys doing, and as weird and downright sinister as it sounded, that thing he''s suddenly found an appetite for was...KILLING! Chapter 23锛欴ark Side Of Humanity (I): Autopsy The smell of death was so prevalent that it was almost impossible for her to breathe. This was the eighth body in five nights, and this one was even more tragic than the previous ones. Maureen was loved by quite a few people in town, and even if she wouldn''t like to admit, she knew most of the slaves here loved Maureen because they knew she was going to grow up into quite the beauty. And quite frankly for a girl born into slavery, there was only one other option available, and that was prostitution. Elysium might claim to give eternal life and a blissful experience of it, but everything that was wrong with earth was also wrong with Elysium. The patriarchy still stood strong and it''s hard to see women as anything other than givers of pleasure. She took a closer look at the bodies, slaves died every day, and even though she also wouldn''t admit that she had been ignoring the previous deaths and considering them all as routine reports, the death of Maureen had been a wakeup call, after it''s not just the males slaves and guards who have waiting for the little girl to grow up. "What can you tell me about their deaths? I need you to get to the bottom of this and find who is fucking responsible!" Her presence was quite intimidating to everyone; she never seemed to have a reason to smile to anyone, least of all the slaves. Only few people have seen anything other than her blank looks, and more often than not most of them end up dead. There was even a rumor that even in the throes of an orgasm the forewoman was unresponsive and was akin to a block of wood. Bottom line; she was scary, and the doctor would rather not get on her bad side, so he quickly told her everything he had found out so far, very desperate to get the demoness out of his clinic. "Whatever it is that killed them, it sure took its time. The claw marks on their bodies are very light and shallow, from what I can see, the claws responsible for this damage can shred rocks if not steel quite easily. It seemed to take fun in tearing into their skin, however while it took its time, I reckon they died fairly quickly, except in the case of Maureen. All the previous victims were male and literally had their throats ripped out before their bodies were mutilated. Maureen was alive, and not just that residue found on her..errrr...on her privates shows that she might have engaged in sexual....arghhhh I mean she might have been raped by what was responsible. But since sexual intercourse came into question, I''m afraid we''re not dealing with a monster but a man with the ability to transform his body, or having access to a monster with fearsome strength." She had to resist the urge to slap this man''s head off his shoulder, she didn''t like pretence of hypocrisy, and she especially didn''t like people beating around the bush. No one here was innocent, so his aversion to using the word **** left her annoyed, after all he was imprisoned here and made a slave because during the course of his medical practice; he had killed hundreds of female patients just to have as he so put it ''sexual intercourse'' with their corpses, very similar to another slave here, but surprise he''s lying dead on a table too, just like Maureen. "What exactly ties all the victims together? Are we sure the same person is responsible for all their deaths and these is not just some random occurrence." She asked as she looked at the doctor who was smartly nervous, there was an edge to her voice now. "Quite honestly, when it comes to their personal life and relationships, nothing links all eight victims together. The only thing prevalent is the way they''re killed, their throats were ripped out, their bodies cut hundreds of times in different places, and their hearts torn out of their bodies and taken away. I don''t want to jump to conclusions, but to me, this looks like a....." "Necromancy ritual!" They were both silent for a while, it was easy to see where this going, after all there was only one necromancer in the whole of the mine, and even if he was just a fifteen year old kid, people with death classes cannot be trusted. But still she wasn''t sure he was capable of such a thing, he has been here for all of two weeks and he would be killing people? It made no sense; he was a lot smarter than that. But still he was the only suspect they had right now; with no other leads Rezar was the only one that seemed responsible for this. "There''s something else forewoman....all of the bodies were found at the entrance of the western sector of the mine, there were foot prints leading deep into the tunnels before finally disappearing." More damning evidence, there was no one else living in that part of the mine but the young necromancer she had thrown there, he was guilty. But she couldn''t help but feel that this was a little bit too convenient, it was easy to blame a necromancer for anything that goes wrong, heck even a common cough would have people praying against the influence of a necromancer, and very much so if said necromancer was anywhere close by. The death classes were the easiest scapegoats in all of Elysium, and because of the fear people have for the death classes, things like a proper trial or investigation would be waivered and they would be executed. But she just couldn''t wrap her head around this, he was audacious and without fear, but he wasn''t stupid, something off was going on here. And as the forewoman even though it doesn''t matter in the long run, she would very much prefer to punish the guilty and leave that kid with the audacity to call her Red alone. After all he would make such an amazing plaything, and she''s just lost one, she would prefer not to lose another one to this unsavory situation. "Keep everything you''ve found out to yourself, I would like it if panic doesn''t spread across the town. If I hear even a whisper of this from anyone else''s lips but yours, I''m going to flay you and hang you on the spire for all to see. Do I make myself clear doctor Cusack?" The doctor swallowed hard as he looked up at the fearsome red haired demoness in front of him. "Crystal clear forewoman Lenore, my mouth is sealed." Lenore couldn''t help but sigh, she knew his lips weren''t sealed, Cusack was well known for his love for gossip, and even more so for his obsession with pretty dead things. In less than an hour Rezar would probably become public enemy number one and there really wasn''t anything she could do about it. And even more Cusack she really couldn''t do anything to Cusack, he was after all the only doctor they had across all eight sectors of the mine, putting him out of commission for any amount of time would screw them over. She stepped out of the house that served as a clinic and Cusack''s hideout wincing a bit at the blast of hot air that hit her face. There were spells that made the house cool to prevent the decay of the corpses; it was really hot this time of the year. But Lenore knew winter wasn''t too far away, productivity would probably drop by an estimated 67% and she would be in even bigger trouble if she doesn''t solve this fucking case properly. She turned to look at her head guard/enforcer. "Gather the others, we''re taking a trip to the western sector, tell them to be fully armed. We have no idea what we''re walking into, and keep the movement as silent and as discreet as possible. We don''t want to incite panic or gossip, there''s already so much going on right now, no need to add any extra stuff to it. Move out!" Chapter 24锛欴ark Side Of Humanity (II): New Enemies(Prey) Rezar looked behind him completely surprised by what he was seeing if he wasn''t wrong he had only resurrected this mole for the whole of thirty minutes before he decided to go check out his environment. But yet it had somehow gotten smart enough to start following behind him and Screet ever since they left their cave. Rezar couldn''t wrap his head around it, but it seems when this mole was still alive, it was smarter than the norm, heck it even looked a lot more different than the others. Its tail was shorter and there were tiny nubs on its head as if it wanted growing horns or something of the sort. Given enough time Rezar reckoned it would have leveled up and evolved into a mutant or variant monster. In Elysium there would always be a special breed amongst a particular species of monster that would set them apart. It''s like humans in the sense that some are born with blue eyes or blond hair while the majority have black hair and black eyes. But not all mutation or variation was good, simply put some might turn out to be quite defective, also in a manner akin to humans born with genetic defects. Of course defects in their variation and evolution aside, they were still monsters, and being a special breed of monster means that they always had an edge that the other members of their race could not hold a candle to. And this particular cavern mole seems to be incredibly smart when it was alive, and that smartness seems to have been retained in its new undead existence, giving it a trace of intelligence that the other moles and even the evolved Screet didn''t have. "Well what are you waiting for? Keep up with us, we don''t have all day!" Rezar said to the mole that hurriedly caught up to them, its rotted innards trailing on the ground behind it, with a wound on its rump. That''s when it hit him, cowardly mole! This was the mole that had attacked him and tried to run away! He had decided to name it cowardly mole at the time, but maybe smarty mole would do until he''s able to get it to the spire and evolve it. It could last for another ten hours, he should be able to find a way and convince Red to let him use the spire for a few seconds. He only had to wait two more days; before he can return to the town, but the mole would be expired by then. So maybe a few bribes would be in order so that those people out there wouldn''t give him too much of a hard time. They kept moving up at a steady incline for about fifteen minutes before the came up to the opening of a large cave. So far all of the caves they had seen before coming up to this were no more than a meter deep, making it nothing more than just a small hole or indent in the cavern wall. This cave however had a rather ominous vibe to it; the first Rezar noticed was the bleached white skeleton of a human being laying half buried in front of the cave entrance. Finding the remains of a person wasn''t that surprising to Rezar, after all there used to be miners here, but the cost of mining and dealing with the monsters of the cavern was too much to handle for weak slaves. So they pretty much ignored the place, however that didn''t mean that there won''t be remains left behind. There was nothing else apart from the skeleton, and ahead of them was the cave. It stands to reason that whatever had caused the death of the person who these bones belongs too would probably by chilling in that cave. Well it might not be chilling per say, but it''s definitely there, but apart from that Rezar didn''t know how long ago this person was killed. So there was a very high probability that whatever killed this person was now a lot stronger than when it killed the man. Both ways standing here wouldn''t help, and he couldn''t ask Screet to go scout. Quite frankly the mole-man wasn''t smart enough, so even if he scouts, without the ability to use neither words nor even show images, it would be a complete waste. Leaving Rezar with no other choice but to go in himself, of course just to be safe, Screet and cowardly mole would take point. The trio of unlikely master and servants walked into the cave, it took Rezar a few seconds to get accustomed to the darkness within the cave, but his life sight helped a lot. Basically he could sense anything that had to do with life, it was a bit abstract but Rezar felt it wasn''t just limited to things alive, but also energy. Either way the first thing he noticed was the heat, he felt as if it was not the kind of heat that would come from a fire source, but the kind of heat that came about as a result of lots of bodies squished together or even from breathing. Though he wasn''t sure he could have sworn that there was a sort of red haze in his vision, but his life sight was still low leveled, a little more use and a lot of things would be that much clearer. Very much like his own cave, there was tunnel at the back, the moment he entered the cave however he noticed the walls. There were weird scratches and grooves all over, but at the same time it was also extremely smooth, like someone had taken sandpaper to the walls or rubbed something on it to give it a glossy and smooth feel and look. There were more bones within the cave, but none of these were actually human, or there might actually be human bones, but it''s buried deep within all the piles he could see. If it were a normal person, this would be where their senses start tingling warning them of danger by banking on their fear of death. But Rezar was defective, he had no fear and as such he had no danger sense. He walked into the tunnel in an s ingle stride, Screet and cowardly mole following close behind. The tunnel was larger than he had expected, it was almost ten meters tall and spread out like a cone into a passage that was at its best about 25 meters wide. It had a narrow entrance, which in Rezar''s opinion was a flawed architectural move. Whatever lives in there would be unable to move out seeing how small the tunnel entrance was. But there was something to be noticed about this tunnel, it was rough and filled with rubble and dust, very much unlike the cave behind him. If Rezar didn''t know better he would have to say that whatever lived here, was probably trying to expand the tunnel to make it easier to come and leave, or maybe to just give a much larger creature a chance to walk out. Rezar paused, he was fearless not stupid, so if this was being made for a larger creature to walk out, then just where was this larger creature, and beyond that....where the fuck were thing things responsible for expanding the tunnel? *chiririririrhciriririr* Rezar moved his head to the side and in the same motion pulled out his broken sword and removed a head. He took a couple of steps backwards until he was standing right back at the entrance of the tunnel. Then he quickly shifted his attention to the system message he just received. [You have slain giant fire ant lvl 5. You have gained 110 battle exp] But just one death didn''t really matter in the long run, there were hundreds of those ants hanging above his head, it was as if all they were waiting for was for Rezar to take action. A deep red glow began to suffuse the entire body, with their heads and thorax pulsing rhythmically. But it wasn''t the glow that was eye catching; it was their large and extremely sharp mandibles that were dripping acid. Rezar didn''t need anybody to tell, he turned and ran. Chapter 25锛欴ark Side Of Humanity (III): Invaders! Rezar didn''t see the need to even look back as he grabbed Screet and cowardly mole and ran out the cave of the giant fire ants, but even then those insects weren''t willing to let him go as they followed after him in full force, quite adamant to rend his flesh from his bones. But he didn''t stop, he needed to get out into the open so that he could face them properly, besides a terrain like this served them a whole lot more than it served him. They would be able to move a lot more agilely than even the cavern moles that had surprising speed for moles as a whole. Rezar burst out of the cave and then threw Screet and Cowardly mole before turning around and slashing down with his broken sword, digging into the skull of the closest fire ant that had been nipping at his heels. A quick flick of his wrist and [rot] appeared on the head of one of the giant fire ant in the midst of the crowd that was chasing after him. The ant crashed to the ground and began moving erratically, throwing the rest of its brethren into disarray and causing a bit of confusion. It slowed them down, but not by much, however it was still enough time for Rezar to pick up his pair of zombie moles and run down the slope that led them right back to their own cave and their small army of zombie moles. With them at his back, he would be able to put up a bit of a fight against these persistent ants. It took them a little under fifteen to twenty five minutes to get up this slope and arrive at the cave of the giant fire ants. But when running down the slope and utilizing every bit of speed his body could muster. The result was Rezar moving at speed that no fifteen year old should be capable of, this was similar to what a grown man that''s been trained to be an Olympic sprinter could bring to bear. He ran fast, really fast. And he was strong enough that the weight of Screet and cowardly mole didn''t slow him down. But yet even though he had given them quite a huge gap, the ants were still coming; they really had no intention of giving up on Rezar and seemed very determined to kill him. It was upsetting, all he had done was trespass, and did they have to be so upset about it that they wanted to kill him. Granted he did kill three of their friends, but that was because they had attacked first, but then again why was he trying to justify the actions of those ants. There were basically animals that had become monsters; it didn''t mean their instincts changed or that they were smarter. He was food and they wanted to eat him, there wasn''t anything to complicate about that. [Your undead mole has been killed!] [Your undead mole has been killed!] Rezar was taken aback by the system messages, were the other elite moles attacking? If that was the case then those things were really smart. They were waiting for him to get away before they launched an attack on his base, but suck for them they had no idea he was so close. He turned the final corner, a rather annoyed look on his face as he imagined the manner in which he would reap those moles apart, however what he saw turned his annoyed look into a confused frown, until. [Your undead mole has been killed!] "Hey! What the fuck is wrong with you guys? Stop killing my moles you ass!" Four men were busy laying the beat down on his moles, and even worse was the fact that the moles were unable to fight back since their primary orders had been to mine. Rezar''s yell had brought their attention away from the moles and unto himself, and the first he did was jump into the air and slam his feet into the chest of one of the men who had killed his mole, the result was him landing on his back as it seemed as if he had just drop kicked a brick wall. "Admirable but foolish. You''re a slave; there isn''t much you can do against a trained militia. Kill all of the zombies; I don''t want these things spreading any sort of disease later". The commanding voice of Lenore sounded out, but there was no way in hell Rezar was going to let that happens. "Like hell am I going to let you kill my workers, if you want to kill something, and then kill those ants heading our way! Or else I''ll tell my zombies to attack, and believe they have really sharp claws!" Lenore was surprised, but it didn''t mean she was going to change her mind, or at least she had no intention of changing her orders. While she did find the fact that he was able to slay this much moles and raise them impressive, things like this wasn''t looked upon favorably, and she would have continued with her orders until she heard the last part of what he just said or rather the part before his threat. "Rezar! what the fuck did you do?" she asked him with an annoyed look on her face, but the look she was so proud of, that her cowered even greater men than this slave in front of her seemed completely ineffective as he got up and shrugged his shoulder before answering her. "Nothing! I just went exploring I swear!" somehow Lenore got the feeling that he was trying too hard to seem innocent. But the literal army of giant fire ants coming down the slope ahead was more than enough to have swallowed what she wanted to say. These things were to low level to pose any sort of threat to her or her militia, but the problem lay in the fact that there was just too many of them. Eventually injuries would pile up, and they didn''t come here prepared for injuries. She had them come for a fight, just in case Rezar resisted and came up with some death class voodoo to stop them. Or even worse; was if he was actually the creature responsible for the deaths. However it''s obvious this kid can''t even leave a dent on a single one of her militia, so it would be hard to imagine that this kid without fear and a lot of innocence would be responsible for the deaths of those slaves. And his undead were frankly incapable of carrying such a task out, they were just too weak. Each of the people who died have been living in the mine town for years, they had at least second tier classes and as such had higher stats than the norm. Lenore pointed her hands in the direction of the approaching giant fire ants. A stream of purple flames gushed out and swallowed them up, the sounds of burning flesh and loud chitterling of pain filled the cavern, but even then it was not enough to slow them down as some of them went round the flames. "Get in formation boys! And Rezar! Get your zombies to attack or I''m going to throw you to the fire ants!" Rezar really didn''t want to know what it felt like to be chewed into by dozens if not hundreds of fire ants. Either way he had no intention of sitting back anyway, this was a whole bunch of exp and new undead, and obviously the fire ants were more suited to building stuff than the moles. The moles were very good miners, and in a fight they weren''t too bad, but mining was more their thing, and the ants were more suited to be builders. Rezar felt as if he had just gained an epiphany, there was something really awesome being cooked in his head right now, but hell deal with that later, for now, he has a couple of ants to squash. And then once he was done with that, he''ll get to the bottom of why Red was here with her lackeys, and then deal with that. And once he''s done that, he''ll be able to properly explore his epiphany and the potential he was about to unleash. For some reason he felt good, really good. At least until an ant jumped toward his face. Chapter 26锛欴ark Side Of Humanity (IV): Under Arrest Rezar gave swift orders to the moles, with the exception of Screet and cowardly mole, the rest of the zombie moles surged forward to meet the incoming crowd of giant fire ants. Rezar kept a close eye on the battlefield, for some reason he just couldn''t help put all of his focus on the way his undead surged in the crowd of fire ants, there was no order to it, and quite honestly they were dying a lot faster than he wanted them too, even with the obvious fact that they were zombies and as such had fewer restrictions to being in a fight, they were still too scattered to make any sort of difference. "All of you attack from the left flank!" However all they could do was stand there simply and stare at him as they were cut down by the fire ants. It almost drove Rezar insane with anger, they just had no idea what they were doing, o9r rather couldn''t understand one smidge of the words he was saying to them, and quite frankly it pissed him the fuck off. "The fuck is wrong with you guys? Move! Move!" Rezar yelled at them, sorely tempted to pull a fistful of his bleach white hair off his head. "Stop yelling at them! You and the undead are too low leveled to be a cohesive unit! Just have them run interference by attacking the fire ants! That way they can prevent the scenario of us being surrounded and swarmed. You can make more later, now move!" Lenore or as Rezar knew her; Red yelled at him. She was right, but that didn''t mean Rezar was unhappy about it, because quite frankly it meant that his zombies were stupid because he was too low leveled. Well she wasn''t wrong about that though, even his drop kick had no effect on the guard he had attacked. So he had no choice but to have his zombies, his cheap workforce become nothing more than cannon fodder. And honestly, it made him feel pain deep in his heart. "All of you attack the ants!" at least that was an order they understood, yet Screet and cowardly mole stayed behind, maybe that was because in his heart Rezar didn''t want this two joining the fight without him. Either way he had to get Cowardly mole to a high level so that he would be able to evolve the mole when he goes back to town. He charged into the fray much to the surprise of everyone else, his broken sword found purchase in the head of an ant as cowardly mole and Screet both united to take down another ant, their deadly sharp claws ripping through the chitinous armor of the fire ants like hot knife through butter. The ants had really poor defense, however when they were killed, they bled out a sort of a fiery green liquid that was scalding to the touch. Rezar made it a point to avoid said liquid, it seemed like acid to him, and he was pretty sure that wouldn''t feel good on his skin. He sheathed his sword and grabbed the harpoon form his back, throwing his foot forward to smash into the face of an ant, bring its head crashing to the ground before cowardly mole pounced on it, its claws severing its head from its body. The dog sized mole quickly scurried behind Rezar, shocking Lenore and her militia at the surprising level of self preservation the mole was actually showing. Either way Rezar pretty much expected this and he actually supported such a course of action as it at very least guaranteed the moles survival. He swept the harpoon out in a sweeping motion driving the fire ants into each other and making a rather rough pile that was quickly set on fire by Lenore. He stretched out his hand and used [ROT] on an ant in the middle of the seemingly endless formation, causing it to crash to the ground as a couple of its comrades piled on top of it. It was in that moment one of the militia men rushed past Rezar and jumped into the air, he held a massive war hammer above his head and brought it smashing down to the ground with extreme prejudice. *BOOM!* The shockwave from the strike pushed even Rezar backwards as a crater with an eight meter radius and half a meter depth was formed. The ants caught within the range of the strike had been reduced to unrecognizable pulp, while the shockwave pushed quite a few other backwards, and it was in that moment Lenore displayed a small measure of the power that made so feared. "Chain Lightning!" Purple bolts of electricity traveled from one ant to another, electrocuting and frying them all to0 a crisp in an instant. Rezar watched as the lightning went from one ant to the other, eliminating dozens within the first 3 seconds, and by the time it got to the 5th second, there was barely any more giant fire ants left standing. Of the ones that remained, they didn''t need to be told twice before they turned on their heels and ran back up the slope, heading with frantic urgency back to the cave they had made their home. Rezar looked at Lenore and the back at the fleeing group of ants; he couldn''t help but ask her. "Couldn''t you have used that spell the first time around?" Lenore didn''t seem all too willing to answer him as she ignored what he said and instead went over to take a look at not the ants they just killed, but his zombie moles. Which now that everything had calmed down, Rezar noticed had also been killed, caught up in the chain lightning spell. "You killed and resurrected all of these cavern moles yourself?" Lenore asked as her voice had a calm note. "Well not alone, I had a little help from Screet, we did it together." Rezar answered with a confused look on his face, not at sure why this question was relevant. "I take it Screet is the Infant mole-Man?" she asked again as she crouched down in front of Screet and Cowardly mole (who needs a new name). "Well yeah that''s Screet, but I don''t understand why all these question are important, have I done something wrong?" Rezar asked as he surveyed the battlefield, for some reason he was feeling a little uneasy, the men from the militia had subtly surrounded Rezar when he was talking with Lenore. Fearless but not stupid, something was up. "Rezar there has been a string of murders since the last time you visited the spire, the entire town is on edge, and quite frankly the only suspect we have is you. I''m here to arrest you." But of all the things Lenore expected Rezar to say or the list of reactions she had simulated in her mind, it didn''t prepare her for such an unenthusiastic or fearless reply, all he said was.. "Oh! Can I bring Screet and Cowardly mole along, I would like to make a quick stop at the spire, also I''ve mined like a shit ton of ores and precious gems and all manner of weird goodies. I haven''t sorted through them yet, but after the journey to the town, id like permission to come back and sort through what I want to sale. And then hand over the stygian ores and clear my quota for a very long ass time." It wasn''t just Lenore who was no shocked, all of her militia men couldn''t understand how this kid couldn''t understand the severity of the problem he had suddenly found himself in. if this went badly, it wasn''t too farfetched to say that Rezar would end up very much dead and on his way to his next reincarnation. It was out of character that one of her militia couldn''t help but ask. "Aren''t you afraid? You might end up executed!" Rezar looked at him with a raised eyebrow and then said. "Really? But I didn''t kill anybody! I''ve been here mining with my zombies since then, except for the first three days when I tried making a door and failed miserably, then Screet and I went fighting in that caver of cavern moles, pretty sure I spent at least half a day in there. And then since then we''ve been mining, except for today when we went exploring and ran into these hated ants." Honestly they all thought that Rezar was pretty much retarded and that he wasn''t that smart as a person, he was just too innocent. However that could only be farther from the truth, Rezar was not innocent, he was innocent, and even beyond that he was incapable of being afraid. But it would best if he acted as normally and at ease as possible, any suspicious activity on his part could make things end badly for him. "We''ll just have you come with us to answer some questions, after that we would pretty much be letting you go if your alibi checks out. But even then, you can actually increase productivity of the mine by an estimated 300% you''re much too valuable to be killed. As long as you''re innocent you have nothing to worry about." Lenore said to him and gave him a stiff nod; there was still no show of emotions on her face. "I don''t have any problem with this, as long as you guys find who''s responsible and give due reparations for the slander against me." They were shocked, he didn''t just believe he was innocent, but he actually believed that when all this was over they would hand him an apology, seriously? "Who do you think you are? You''re a filthy death class holder; you''re not supposed to even have any rights!"One of the militia men with bright green hair and the half tipped ears synonymous with half elves spoke, but Rezar looked at him blankly and turned to Lenore. "Let''s go Red; I really want to be back in time before the carcasses of these giant fire ants are scavenged by other monsters. That would be a waste of cheap labor." And then Rezar picked up Screet and Cowardly mole, overturned the sack he had on his back, throwing out all of the earth worms in it, before putting both mole-man and cavern mole in it. It was a tight fit, but Rezar didn''t care, and he knew they both wouldn''t be complaining of discomfort, so he marched into the darkness towards the rail cart, guess he wouldn''t be exploring today but clearing his name for a crime he didn''t commit. However he knew that might be too hard if not impossible, not when everyone seemed convinced that he was guilty. Chapter 27锛欴ark Side Of Humanity (V): Trial The moment Rezar came out of the tunnels with Lenore and her militia behind him, a clamor seemed to spread across the entire valley. The turn up was rapid and it was quite shocking to Rezar, because in the end he didn''t imagine that he was hated by this much people, and even worse was the fact he absolutely didn''t know a single one of them. "Whatever you do Rezar keep your mouth shut, I have enough problems dealing with this mob as it is, so don''t add any more fuel to the flame by saying anything." Lenore whispered to him as the led him away from the mines and towards the guard house. But even then with her warnings and protection, it didn''t stop the people from saying what they wanted to say. Rezar couldn''t feel things like malice, but in the face of such angered looks and loud whispers, it was easy for him to tell that he was absolutely reviled by all these people, and even worse was the fact that they were slaves like him. "Look at him, that evil son of a bitch is a bad omen; I knew something bad like this would have happen the moment the forewoman allowed that cursed thing to walk amongst us." Rezar felt the need to call out to the man who had just finished speaking; he would have to tell him was being rude, overly mean and insensitive. But he had to keep his mouth shut as Lenore had said; it was the only way to truly keep him safe from being lynched. But just he decided to keep his head down; it didn''t mean that the people would stay idle when they noticed their words weren''t doing anything at all. The first clump of mud smacked across his face with a lot more force than he imagined, if it was the him of before h got his necromancer class, then obviously his head would have been taken off his shoulders. But all this did was leave him with a very terrible headache. But in that moment when the first projectile touched him, Rezar found himself at an impasse. He pretty much wanted to yell out in ager at such unfair treatment, but ultimately it didn''t matter as all manner of objects were being thrown at him. And for those of them who had spent a significant amount of years as miners, they had above average strength or just enough strength that anything they threw at him left bruises. With his incapability of feeling fear, all Rezar was left to feel was humiliation and anger, he knew being a wielder of a death class was bad, but he didn''t expect it to be this bad. He never hurt anyone, and all he wanted was to be left alone to earn his money and gain his freedom. But people die, and all of a sudden it was his fault, just because he was the son of death or what? These were things that he had no control over, why was he being treated this way. But in the end Rezar couldn''t say anything; it wouldn''t be too farfetched to say he was shocked by this display. Normally extreme attitudes like this should not have been so foreign to him, but all he had been a general knowledge of the world he lived in, with some in depth knowledge about a couple of things. But the memory of his life, feelings and emotions; that he was supposed to have and that would have helped him face this situation was gone. It was all new to him, so much so that even his previous carefree attitude was gone. This was the first time he felt a negative emotion other than anger, and it was hate. Those looks in their eyes were unlike anything he had ever seen, this wasn''t a look that might change, and it was a look that told him that no matter what he did, no matter what story he told, he was always going to be the cursed thing, the bad omen. The future here he hoped he would be able to find someone who could love, care and live a carefree life with now seemed quite bleak. He knew he was hated and that he had to live away from normal society, but he never thought that even when he wanted to mind his business, they would still look for a reason to kill him. Lenore had made a detour the very moment they had come out of the mine tunnels, however her militia which were responsible for leading Rezar to the guard house, made sure too keep a good enough distance from Rezar as he was subjected to the abuse of the people. Their job was to escort him to the guard house, alive! In what shape he arrives in, it wasn''t their business, they were not willing to get in between that angry mob and Rezar. They didn''t see anything wrong with this, Rezar was a death class holder, and as such most of his rights were waived. But in the end all these served to teach Rezar a very important lesson about the Elysium in his memories and the Elysium that''s his reality. No one would love him, no one would care, and all he truly had to go on was he and his zombies, because at least that way he knew they would never betray him. The wooden door to a very dark cell closed behind Rezar, Screet was sitting very still in the sack while cowardly mole made rough movements every few seconds. Rezar sighed, honestly speaking there was a part laid out in front of him now, the way he did things would have to change as if he''s not strong enough, he could pretty much die by the end of the day, but should he survive. His carefree attitude would have to go. If he wanted to survive, it seems like he has no other choice but to embrace this death class and everything it brought. Because this world won''t leave him alone, they would do everything in their power to hurt him, and while he was sure he could deal with it, he didn''t want to leave his life a salve to the prejudice of others. He had to become strong. "How are you feeling?" Lenore''s voice came from behind him, he would have thought she was concerned if her voice wasn''t so, dull. "I didn''t kill anybody." Rezar said to her as he faced the wall, with his back to her. "I believe you, but the slaves do not. They have no rights here, but there are enough of them with voices that can make a difference. Because of them I would have to listen to the slaves and try to keep the peace. The Future of the mine''s smooth operations depend on it. There''s going to be a trial, normally that trial should not cause too much of a problem for you, but you''re a death class, so it would be pretty much lethal." Rezar frowned, even the trial was going to be rigged and the odds stacked against him, honestly it just seems as if this day just kept getting more and more shitier. He turned around and faces Lenore through the bars of his wooden cell door and asked. "What''s the trial going to be like?" Rezar successfully managed to keep his voice even. "There''s a church in the town, they have an artifact called they medallion of truth, anybody who holds it would be compelled to tell the truth. The problem is that artifact is extremely reactive and volatile to anything that has to do with black magic or the infernal. So things like demons, for example myself, or people who own death classes would be unable to touch it. The moment you do it will release a concentrated of holy element energy, Rezar its going to burn you from the inside out." For just a fraction of a second Rezar felt his heart skip a beat, it was weird to say the least, but that feeling only lasted for a second. He looked down and held his chest for a second, as if trying to grab that feeling, to call it back and understand what it meant. But it was gone, just as fast as it had come. "Is there a way I can resist? That I can survive it?" he asked as he looked up at her, hope within his gaze, but that hope quickly died out the moment he heard her answer. "That would have been a possibility if you were at a higher level and had an ordinary black magic class like warlock, and not a completely death oriented class like necromancer. I suspect your class gives you a massive debuffs against holy and light element damage; you wouldn''t even be able to last 5 seconds to answer any questions. You''ll die!" His mind was blank; he just couldn''t muster any sort of emotion towards the news that he was just about to die after he just gained a life. There was no fear, and as such there was nothing else to be felt. But in a way this felt to convenient to Rezar, if all evidence led to him committing the murder, then a trial was required...but the Medallion of truth, if his memory serves was only ever brought out when the person being charged had committed a crime against the church or if someone had made a request. He looked up at her and asked. "Who requested for a trial by the medallion of truth?" Lenore was a bit confused by why he asked such a question, but it didn''t take less than three seconds for her to realize what he meant. Her eyes opened wide in shock and surprise, but there was a bit of hesitation in her eyes. "That''s not possible; he''s just a visiting supervisor and would be gone soon, what he would gain to frame you for.......the deaths started the very night he came here. The very day you came to deliver your quotas and use the spire, I noticed he was a little too interested in you that day, but I didn''t think it w as for this. But even then Rezar, we have no proof, and even if we have proof there isn''t really anything we can do to him. His family owns this mine." Lenore said to him with a sullen look. Rezar knew she had given up before even trying to fight back, looks like this supervisor had way too much power behind him. Even if he had not decided to frame Rezar and had openly killed all these people, there would have been no one with the guts to stand up to him. This was all just a game to him, entertainment to be gained by playing on the negative emotions of ignorant people. There was nothing he could do or change, this was it. "Looks like I''m going to be dying after all." Chapter 28锛欴ark Side Of Humanity (VI): Roland, Innocence Rezar didn''t have to wait too long before he was dragged out for his trial, as opposed to the first time he was brought to town, this time the militia made sure to rough handle him as best as they could, the slaves and other denizens of the mining town certainly appreciated the sight of him being shoved to the ground, Rezar felt like Jesus. But unlike Jesus Rezar did not perfume miracles or did good things, or went to their temples to beat the shit out of merchants. In fact he did nothing, but then again he was a death class holder, that was a taboo, in a world where eternal life was guaranteed he was one of the few people capable of delivering death, permanently. People tend not to like things like that. It was practically a straight line from the spire and market place to the mine entrance, however to the west of that was the church and to the east was the guard house he was just led out of. The distance between both buildings were roughly about a hundred meters, the town itself wasn''t that big as most of the slaves slept in the mines or underground. Either way, it was enough distance for Rezar to get completely pelted with rotten fruits, shit and rocks, and they hurt...a lot. Eventually he got to the steps of a small wooden church, there wasn''t really much to be said about the church, it was just a massive wooden shack. Rezar had some sort of feeling, he wasn''t exactly sure, maybe before his upload he was a religious person, but now he doubted it mattered. Elysium didn''t just take in humanity, it also took in their religion, and in a world where everything was codes and algorithm, there were a bunch of gods running about, basically the only unique sentient Ai''s in the game apart from monsters. The church was on a small hill with about a dozen steps leading up to its patio where a priest that looked like he has not had a good meal in months stood with a crucifix in one hand and a medallion with a sub emblazoned on it with golden wings stretching from its back. All in all it looked or rather he looked very holy....if you considered holy to be a priest on the verge of starvation, and would do anything to get a little extra ''donation'' for his parish. This was a fun game for Rezar, he was going to die, so it was quite entertaining trying to figure out why the people involved in this farce of a trial was involved in it. The priest looked as thin as a reed, the fucker was probably not enjoying enough donations for the upkeep of his parish, and this would help fill the coffers of the house of god and his belly. Standing beside him was Lenore; Rezar had to admit that was a better name than Red, it just rolled off the tongue. She was there because she had no choice, right now she had no power to uphold justice, so all she could do was get swept up with the currents and be along for the ride. And standing beside her was the only person in the entire town that was neatly and extravagantly dressed. Blond hair slicked back, glossy and so shiny it seemed to reflect the sun. If Rezar had to give and advice he would tell the guy to take it easy with the gel. He had on a red velvet blazer, some really nice looking black slacks and combat boots. There underneath it all he had a simple white t-shirt. Modern dressing in a fantasy world that was expected, medieval dressing sucks, but the price to dress like this wasn''t cheap. Either way he was the perfect definition of handsome, his sky blue eyes could just draw you in, very unlike Rezar''s deep midnight blue that did nothing but spook the shit out of anyone who stared too long into those infernal orbs of his. So this was the mastermind to all of his current misfortune, his very obvious smirk on his face made Rezar very irritated. He just didn''t know why, but this guy rubbed him off the wrong way, he made him nervous, but beyond that he very much wanted kick him in the balls and rub his face in a big pile of steaming shit. Such crass thoughts for a fifteen year old, but Rezar didn''t care, he was pretty sure he was in his twenties before he got uploaded; he has more than enough right to curse damnit! "We have gathered today to witness the trial of this..." "Why did you kill that girl anyway?" Rezar suddenly asked, interrupting the priest as he shifted his gaze to Mr. Tall, shiny and handsome. Lenore looked like she had swallowed a rock, but lack of fear or not, Rezar didn''t think he was the kind of person who would go quietly to his death, after all he did get thrown into all this mess because he fucked his enemy''s mother. So at the very least he knew one thing of his character. Whether he was a good person or not, there was simply no changing the fact that Rezar was a very vindictive person, and he had a mouth sharper than a razor blade and powered by a very distinct lack of fear. He was a living, walking, talking natural disaster. At least until he dies, it would be nice to sow some chaos in the process, besides...he found this oddly appealing. "What do you mean by that? Are you saying I killed all the people you so brutally murdered in the dead of night, you ripped out their throats and ate their hearts! And yet here you stand trying to slander my righteous personage. I should cut you down where you stand!" Wow! Rezar blinked his eyes and moved his head back; he had to admit this guy caught him by surprise. He was good, really good, but why the fuck was there a halo behind him, was he using some sort of charismatic skill? Rezar didn''t know how, but he had got to get himself one of those. Maybe that way his undead will listen to him a lot more easily...but maybe in the next life. "Say Lenore? I thought only you and your militia along with the doctor in charge had seen the bodies? How in God''s name does he know I ripped out their throats and ate their hearts, and how did you even know I killed them in the dead of night, it could have been the early hours of the evening or early in the morning. I was told the information was isolated, and even if it spread no one would have gotten the full details, or at least not so accurately. Lenore could you grab hold of that medallion thingy, and answer me?" Rezar asked as he went up the steps. "There''s no need for that Rezar, I never told supervisor Roland anything about the incident, and in fact he was supposed to be away from town grinding monsters in a nearby dungeon until just about twenty minutes ago when he came and suggested we give you a trial by the truth." Lenore answered crisply and swiftly. Pretty boy Roland''s calm face twisted into an ugly scowl, ahhhh! Rezar hated to admit it, but even frowning; this ass was pretty much a picture of perfection. Of course Rezar knew he was also pretty good looking, he''s seen his own face you know, enough that he could actually rival and surpass that guy. But he was covered in dirt and grime and was a death class holder.even a blind man would call him ugly. "I did! I told the supervisor! As the doctor in charge of the autopsy I had to make sure the highest authority knew exactly what was going on!" Rezar looked at the spectacled fatso talking and smiled. How the heck is a slave so fat and why is someone so fat a bloody doctor, seriously! "You don''t say....hmmm oh well let''s get on with the trial then, my next reincarnation calls to me" The doctor should have kept his mouth shut, Roland was smart, he knew the moment the doctor opened his mouth to talk everyone else knew this case was not as straightforward as it might seem. There were now too many holes in the story, and to make matters worse, the most crooked person in town had stood up for him, obviously they were cahoots and both hand in this. Even Lenore was able to connect the dots quite clearly now, after all it was the doctor himself that pointed her in Rezar''s direction. She was shocked, and quite frankly she was shaken. In just the span of a few moments Rezar had not only proven his innocence, he had made the people guilty reveal themselves. He was smart, scary smart. But the scary thing was the fact that he had done all of this with a smile on his face. But even if he had proven his innocence, there was nothing anybody could do for him, Roland was the most powerful person in town, even if he ran her through with a sword right now, nobody will be able to stop or even say anything to him. He was the lord, master and commander. But now his mask of being a handsome and benevolent lord had been pulled off, no one could stop this trial from happening, but Roland had already lost. And even if Rezar should die, he already had one up on Roland and everyone else in this town. As for the person responsible for all of this commotion, he marched resolutely to his death. There really wasn''t anything he could do about this, he drew no sense of satisfaction of justice from this, why would he? He was still going to die. And even if he would not admit this, Rezar had actually grown to love this life, the potential of who or what he might become, struggling for freedom and making money with all those ores, so much money man! And he''s going to lose it all because of some psychopathic ass. He wasn''t feeling satisfaction, he was still very much angry. So he didn''t waste any time as he marched up to the priest with a calm look on his face. The priest was a little hesitant to say the least, this went against his faith and he didn''t want to condemn an innocent child to death, it didn''t matter if he was a death class holder, all are welcome in the house of the lord. The priest wanted to pull back, but Rezar held on to his hands and said to him with a smile. "Don''t worry padre, I''ll see you soon." And then Rezar grabbed the medallion, and he burned. But just before could feel the scalding unforgivable burn of holiness and light, he felt the unmistakable scrape of fangs and a jaw against his neck, and then everything went dark. [YOU HAVE DIED!!!!!!!] [PROCEED TO CHARACTER SCREEN FOR NEXT REINCARNATION] Chapter 29锛欴ark Side Of Humanity (VII): Ressurection [You have been infected with a viral strain by an undead cavern Mole! As such your Reincarnation has been intercepted, you will be resurrected as a zombie!] [Your body is resistant to the Viral strain as it was created from your magic, it has turned into a rejuvenating Elixir for your body! You will be resurrected with only ten minutes left to live, please heal yourself as quickly as possible.] [You have been blessed by the holy light of God, health increases by 1 every 15 minutes! Residual holy energy in touch body has melded with the healing light, new cells have been born. You have developed the passive skill, Holy Cells. You are now 10% more resistant to damage from the holy element. Your body is healing rapidly] [Vampire Racial mission complete: Die: 1/1| You have gained 1,000 quest exp, 50,000 normal exp, and 500 battle exp] [You have finally fallen into the embrace of death, and stared into the abyss of Darkness. Now you''re not just her son, but also her partaker, and her beloved. However death is neither evil not just, but you were pushed in her embrace by the light of good and brought back by same light. You have unlocked the trait: Angel Of Death.] [Angel Of Death: your death has brought you into the realm of the divine, you have been loved by death and blessed by God: +50% To Power, Magic, Mental and Defense. You cannot be killed, except by an object of divine and devilish might!] [New class{es}available! Please visit the nearest spire for more information!] [You have achieved an Unachievable mile stone! You have died, and you live again. +10 to Power, Magic, and Defense. -50% Exp for all undead to level up, -20% exp for you to level up. + 10 skill points] Rezar slowly opened his eyes to a shabby wooden ceiling, every part of his body hurt like hell, but he couldn''t feel any external damage. But his insides on the other hand was another story to tell, that medallion of truth really kicked his ass, and obviously it won, only the medallion was not responsible for his death, cowardly mole was. Rezar had a theory, he wasn''t sure if it would have worked, but asking his own undead like to kill him seemed to have been the secret to survive being smote by divine power. He was hoping to get resurrected as a zombie, he had enough exp to properly level up his class and stabilize his body. Who knew his own zombie viral strain couldn''t kill him, but it was in that moment Rezar realized he made a big mistake. Screet was evolved, and as such had access to the zombie virus, how the hell did cowardly mole that should probably have expedited by now, able to utilize it. It was absolutely shocking to Rezar, but whatever the case, he was absolutely glad it worked. Cowardly mole was so smart, he had completely forgotten that it wasn''t as evolved as Screet. And he bet his fucking life on it! If he wasn''t so incapable of feeling fear, this would have left him pretty much terrified. He shook his head and took a look around the room he was in, he decidedly chose to ignore the forms of Screet and cowardly mole sitting in one corner of the room. There was barely anything in the room, however the walls were hung full of swords, a few whips, Spears, war hammers, mace''s, and magic guns. It was as if this was an Arsenal. In that moment the only door into the room slid open as the priest walked into the room, with a tray of food on his hands. Rezar didn''t expect that, but there was nothing to it really....a bunch of things made sense now. The priest saved his life, that alone was enough to offset the fact that said priest was used to condemn an innocent man or rather boy to death. "You''ve only been dead for 5 minutes, then you woke up and I had to heal you. That''s a feat no one has accomplished, and it''s made pretty much everyone think you can''t be killed. But they don''t know the extent of the damages, I do! Which is why I can''t help but ask.....how the hell are you standing up and hour after you just died and was resurrected? Sure this is a virtual world and the rules are different, but this is also our reality and it''s not overly ridiculous that a man will die with sever injuries on his organs and then be able to actually sit up in under an hour." Rezar blinked his eyes at the priest, the frail old man placed the tray at a bedside table Rezar had not noticed, before turning to face the white haired blue eyed necromancer. But Rezar didn''t answer his questions, there were some things he also didn''t Understand, so instead he asked the question that was burning in his head the most. "Are all these weapons yours?" The priest was taken aback for a minute, he looked at the room that truly could be considered a small Amory, then nodded his head. There was a small chair by the table which he pulled out and sat on. The chair creaked so loudly Rezar was baffled, how could a man so frail cause a chair to make that much noise as he sat down, it was weird, or was it the chair itself that was not really strong, it looked completely okay to him. "You seem a bit out of it, but death class holders have always been known to be weird, so that''s to be expected, but I''m in the mood for a little chat, so let''s have one..Rezar was it? Yes those weapons are mine, or rather I should say the belong to previous reincarnations of me." Rezar was confused, the priest was certainly weird, but keeping the weapons from his previous reincarnations, was something else. Basically this was a case of the pot calling the kettle black, it then again Rezar wouldn''t mind a conversation. Frankly speaking he would rather not talk about the clusterfuck of trial that almost took his life, so this seems a goo enough topic to put his mind on. "I''m sure you''re confused, but really it''s simple. I''m what you would call a permanent trait holder, if you don''t know what that means I''ll explain it to you. Permanent traits never change, they always go with an individual through every reincarnation, and more often than not, death class holders are also permanent trait holders, so your son of death trait is also permanent. None the less my trait is Memory Bank! It''s a funny sounding trait, but it can be extremely powerful, for an ambitious person at least. The trait makes sure I never forget anything I learn, even after multiple reincarnations. So as you can see, I have skills for every weapon you see here, I know magic that most people have pretty much forgotten actually exists. I also have Information about so many secrets, treasures and creatures that people don''t know about. I''m a living, walking, breathing encyclopedia of Elysium." Rezar had to admit that this was pretty cool, it was awesome beyond measure and he couldn''t help but appreciate how wonderful such a trait was. However, sometimes things couldn''t be as simple as it looked, because despite having a trait like that, he still pretty much looked like he had one foot in the grave. There was more to this old priest than meets the eye, but yet Alex had to ask something. "Why''re are you telling me all this? I suspect you''re either hiding here or stuck here, because with how much knowledge you have, living a good life shouldn''t be too hard for you. Besides we don''t know each other, why trust me so much to tell me all these?" The priest was a little taken aback, indeed he had to think on his course of action a little bit deeper, why was he able to just tell something so secret and important about his life to Rezar. Maybe it was because he felt Rezar wasn''t much of a threat, because when you think about it, the kid was still just a slave, what more could he actually achieve, even after the hell he just went through by dying and coming back to life. "I honestly don''t know Kid, I feel like I owe you for the part I played, the church is supposed to uphold truth, justice and purity, and I let my needs cloud my judgement. I guess I''m trying to get to know you better, and maybe....." "Do a few nice things for me so that I can forget you owned the medallion that burnt me tons crisp from the inside and sent me to my death, that I would forgive you, because you nursed me from the brink of death after I resurrected and maybe have teas with you... don''t be stupid preacher! The real world never worked like that, and most definitely this one, if you''re looking for pity and understanding from me, because you think I look young and impressionable, then you''re even more stupid than I thought." The priest was surprised to say the least, the most surprise thing being the fact that Rezar wasn''t even speaking with anger but had a cool and calm voice. But even after all that, he could see that the young man still had much to say, and all he could do was calm down and listen to him. Chapter 30锛欴ark Side Of Humanity (VIII): Vampires Rezar looked at the priest with a look that the priest himself couldn''t understand, it wasn''t one of decision or disdain, hell it wasn''t a look of anything, but at the very least the priest felt that it meant something. But he reckoned that what Rezar had just said was right, the world wasn''t as simple or as nice as he had made it out to be, the consequences of some actions don''t just vanish like that. "The only way that you can truly make up for this, is one if you help me some more, I promise it would be worth your while and your church will prosper. You just have to be willing to stand by me and don''t look at me like I''m carrying the worst disease to have ever existed in Elysium." "But you are the worst disea....." The priest swallowed the rest of his words, that had slipped out before he knew it, but Rezar knew he was right. Something hat can chase permanent death in a world that''s practically a virtual recycle bin for the human soul. He was a fucking virus! That could eat up everything in it''s path. "The second thing you would need to do is help me bring Roland to justice!" it was at this point that there was a look on Rezar''s face. It was calm, but his dark midnight blue eyes seemed to glint with a hidden shine of stars. The priest has lived many life times and has had the blessing and curse of remembering it all, he could recognize such a look even in his sleep; it was cold rage and wrath. "You''re going to kill him aren''t you?" The priest asked with a voice that was just as calm and just as cool. Rezar funded to him and this time he gave a mischievous smile. "What? Did you think I was going to adopt him? Hahahaha nope, Elysium would be very much like earth in that regard, there would be no justice for me or the people who have died, not unless I take it for myself. And lately I''ve realized I''m very fond of taking things for myself, especially when it''s a life." The priest felt a chill, but he still felt that he needed to say this. "Then you''re out of luck, he''s already left for his family''s lands in the east. The coward couldn''t spend an extra second because he was scared the slaves would tear him apart, he also took the doctor with him, pushing me into that role until another one is found. You would never get a chance to see him again." It might seem like the Priest was trying to discourage Rezar, and maybe he was, but this was he reality of his life, the quicker he accepted it, the better. "That wouldn''t stop me, if my plan goes according to plan, I would be out of this place and a free man within 6 months to 3 years. My sentence was slavery for all lifetime and all reincarnations, it would take a little more than a single platinum coin to get me out of here, however I can achieve that with what I''ve been given. Three years is not too late for me to go get my revenge, Roland can enjoy his borrowed time until I come for him. And you''re going to help me." It wasn''t a question, Rezar didn''t have time to give the Priest a choice, after everything that''s happened to him, the priest was either on his side, or part of the enemies he has to take down. "I''ll try my best to help, this is just and it''s not something God will stand for. What do you need from me Rezar?" the priest asked, accepting his fate and justifying it in the name of justice, not even caring or thinking that maybe for Rezar to get to Roland, he would most definitely leave a pile of corpses in his wake, the priest really had a problem with justification and seeing the bigger picture, he just did as his heart led him. Rezar felt it was foolish and stupid, but it was admirable and Understandable because before he was placed in front of slaves and forced to his death, he was just like that. "Well first of all I need you to train me, teach me everything about fighting, especially how to fight in groups, like an army or something. I''m sure you''ve experienced or seen something like that in one of your lives. You also have to teach me how to fight too, I don''t want to be weak anymore or have strength with focus and direction. Secondly I''ll need you to help me make money, I can mine and excavate ores, the simplest to the rarest and have them available in bulk, enough that a single shipment of it would have you rolling in gold coins. I don''t trust Lenore, she might have tried her best, but she''s still a puppet under the control of that Roland and his family, so I''d rather avoid dealings with her. I''ll give you the ores, and you''ll be responsible for selling them. Either get a merchant you can trust, or go to a large town or city and sell it all. Either way you''ll help me make the money I need to get free of slavery. It would also help you and your church, I''ll give you a 2% cut from every profit we make. Don''t be greedy Padre, two percent of a hundred fold is two gold, that''s frankly too much money for you in a month. If we''ll be making more than that. And finally I need information from you, it''s very important and I''d like to know what it means or if there''s a secret behind it, because I can''t remember anything about this particular topic.. what''s a vampire?" The Priest was taken aback, from his reaction he knew exactly what a vampire was, and it was definitely not information that someone other than him was supposed to know. How and in what way had Rezar came in contact with information about a vampire, not unless...no! It would not be wise to jump into speculation, it would be better to just answer the question. " Vampires are old secrets, very old! What I didn''t tell you is that I''ve been alive for no less than 469 reincarnations, and in all of them, the least amount of years I''ve lived is 16 years old, before dying and moving on to the next. In all of those reincarnations, I''ve came across vampires in my first, to sixteenth reincarnation and they''ve never been heard from since. Vampires! Are the true definition of eternal life, they''re very much immortal and were born from a time when death classes were actually as a peak. It was very dark times Rezar, necromancers were very powerful beings that could actually control the very cycle of reincarnation with the help of a powerful book they called the Necron. They were unstoppable, they brought death, they brought chaos, but most especially none of them were humans! The necromancers were able to obtain a racial upgrade well suited for their death classes, that race had many disadvantages. They couldn''t come out in sunlight, they were allergic to silver, they couldn''t come near holy places, or come in contact with holy water, and they could only survive on one thing alone...the blood of the living. But even with all those disadvantages there were also great advantages, even at the basic tier of the race, they had strength akin to a level 50 warrior, speed akin to a level 60 ranger or rogue, they could heal from almost any damage in seconds even if you use the things I''ve mentioned to harm them. As long as they aren''t exposed to silver, sunlight and holy water for long they''ll heal. There are even some very powerful enough to heal from a decapitated head. They controlled the shadows, and the night itself, they had a fondness for bats, could shape shift, had a powerful Charming ability called the allure, and the most dangerous of them all, they were the most powerful necromancers in existence. They unlocked and utilized parts of necromancy never seen before of has ever been seen since then. But they weren''t just necromancers, they were lichs, death knights, soul reapers, death adjudicators, dullahans, and so many of the most powerful and the most dangerous of death classes. Their reign was one of revenge Rezar, they went after the people living in Elysium, for all of the prejudice and torture they went through, the sought revenge. And with the use of the most powerful tool ever created in Elysium, the Necron, they could decide how you lived, when you lived and who you''re supposed to be. It was the Necron that gave me the trait of Memory Bank! Making it so that I remember everything in all of my lifetimes. The vampires were destroyed with help from the outside, someone was able to create an event in Elysium, they called it the daylight war. At the time the time the vampires were trying to create a spell that would shroud Elysium in darkness for all eternity, and with the help of someone on the outside, in they real world, the spell was piggy backed by an elite group of religious classes. There was sunlight for three whole months! And that was enough to completely wipe out the vampires until none of them were left. The Necron was lost, tales of it and the vampires that created it were lost to history, somehow Elysium seemed to have deleted and removed it from the memories of everyone and everything. Maybe there are records of it in the outside world, but none in here.....except for me. The thing about vampires is that, they''re like zombies, in fact they''re the pinnacle of undead creatures, and after the first vampire completed his racial Quest that changed him into a vampire, he became capable of turning others into the same creature, by draining them dry of their blood, and giving them his own to drink when they''re on the brink of death. Then he kills them And then buries them. In under three days, they''re back on ground, stronger, faster, and with an intense thirst for blood. Now the most powerful beings to walk Elysium. Rezar...please answer me truthfully as this is important.....are you a vampire? Is that how you survived?" Rezar looked at the priest and said. "I''m not a vampire priest, the reason for my resurrection is very different, but now that I know what a vampire is, I can wholeheartedly say...it''s a disgusting race to be!" Chapter 31锛歀iving My Own Life, Reaper Did he think that being a vampire was dirty? Not really. In fact, after the explanation that the priest had given, Rezar would be lying today he was not at all overly eager to complete the vampire Racial quest and become that which once held all of Elysium sway. But he had to make himself seem unenthusiastic, because the priest who for some reason is also named priest was a little to...involved. Vampires were dangerous, then there''s that death artifact called the Necron, it seems like a really sensitive subject for Priest, so Rezar wanted to avoid him having his eyes on himself, even though he was pretty sure that by asking those questions, he had already raised a bunch of flags. Either way he was going to try his best to complete the vampire Racial quests, since the world wouldn''t accept him for who he is, and would look for opportunities to try and make his life miserable, then he was going to embrace the roles they had given and forced him to play, the power they were afraid of he was going to cultivate it, and make sure he''s strong enough to be above the prejudice of Elysium. "are you heading to the Spire now? Don''t you think you need to rest a bit more, you''ve just been through an incredible ordeal you know." Priest said to him in a soft tone. "You mean to say it''s too early to show my face to the crowd of people that just tried to have my lynched, dancing on the strings of an asshole who murdered their friends and family for reasons we don''t exactly know of. It would be better if you just tell me as it is, rather than beat around the bush." Rezar said to Priest as carried Cowardly mole and placed him back into the sack he had used in carrying it before. "Don''t you think it would be Awkward? I mean it''s a little too early to show your face to these group of people, they all probably feel really stupid for what they did, and seeing you would just remind them of that, maybe you should try going tomorrow." In response Rezar opened the door to the room Priest had kept him and then turned around to say. "First of all, how can you be a Priest named Priest! It makes no fucking sense! And also, I don''t give a shit how they feel or think, I''m going to be living my own life now, and if anybody gets in my way, I''m going to fight back. I''ll come see you tomorrow with the ores I need your help with, after that if you don''t mind, can you come into the mine for my training? I really wouldn''t want these people to know what we''re up to." Priest shook his head in an exasperated sigh, and gave a nod of agreement before Rezar walked into the church from the side room, and then marched out. Priest just kept on watching the young man as he left with purpose, being close to and experiencing death changes a lot of things in some people. But actually dying and then coming back to life? He could not even begin to fathom the degree of changes that Rezar has gone through. However he knew Rezar was probably now three times as strong, Elysium was balanced, with great risk came great Rewards, and he was pretty sure the rewards for dying and coming back to life would be fucking substantial. Rezar couldn''t be played with again. >>>>> The moment Rezar left the church he was in full view of a lot of people. It has just been under about and hour since Priest had dragged his lifeless body into it, healing it along the way, and now here he was, in full view of them. Priest was right, this was extremely Awkward, even for Rezar. Normally what would or should follow would be an apology, at the very most, this was the least they could do. But Rezar was still a cursed thing, a death class bad omen, so even if they had been totally and completely unfair to him, they couldn''t bring themselves to say they were sorry. Rezar tried not to let it bother him as he walked past them and went on to the Spire, Screet had been following right behind him. Normally he would be focusing on himself first, but he wanted to get Cowardly mole''s evolution over with. Just like before the same three options that Screet had received was there, but this time there was a fourth option, and it was likely what Rezar was going to chose, along with a new name for the mole..Ward seems nice. [Royalty: (Zombie Lord) Demon Mole-Queen| Magic, Power, Defense, Mental increased by 400%| Black Magic Mastery and Infection Carrier passive skill will be generated, Mind Rend, Telepathy, And Subjugation active skills will be generated.] [Commencing Evolution, estimated time to completion. 15 days, 17 hours, 39 minutes and 4 seconds] Guess this explains a lot about why cowardly mole was so cowardly. It was smarter than very other mole, and instead chose to attack from behind rather than going up against Rezar head to head like the other moles did. For one it was female, two it was a royal, which means this was the queen of Cavern moles or something like that. Also there was the very obvious generation of active skills that showed that she would be more inclined to mind control, a general of sorts. But what Rezar noticed that she might be able to help him deliver clearer instructions to his other undead. He also had to rethink the Ward name, it was just a shortened form of coward after all, and that didn''t seem exactly fair to her. The sack on his back seemed a little bit lighter, but there wasn''t much to it, She was undergoing her evolution and she won''t be coming out any time soon. Rezar was sure he would have achieved quite a bit by the time she was done with her evolution, but be that as it may, it was time for his own evolution. Rezar''s growth could be considered to be quite rapid and this was in no small part attributed to the exp bonus he got due to the slave class, but that was just one piece of the puzzle, heck it was pieces he hasn''t even used yet. Rezar knew his experiences so far, the fights, the things he tasted, did, dying, all those things made him stronger, proving truly that what doesn''t kill you, will only make you stronger. But never the less it was about time he leveled up his classes, he was missing a single combat class to raise to 25 along with necromancer to complete one of the missions in the vampire Racial change quest. He also had to raise two of his passive skills and two of his active skills to intermediate. After what happened today, Rezar was a little bit frantic and he wanted to quickly complete the quest and have more power under his control. [Spend 790 normal exp and 625 battle exp to raise The Slave class to Intermediate Slave, The Miner Class to, Intermediate Miner, And the Apprentice Necromancer Class to Intermediate Necromancer] [All classes Advanced.+ 6 to Magic,+ 6 power,+6 defense/ Power Strike (Miner), Siphon (Necromancer) Strengthen Undead(Necromancer) active skills generated/ Endurance (Slave) Identify Weak Point (Miner) passive skills generated.] He plans to level them up some more, but before he does that, it would be best if he chose his second Combat class, and then spend all of the exp in hand at once. But before that can happen he had to choose a class, and luckily or unluckily for him, his options this time were more than last time. He had to pick from three classes, but the curve would be the fact that two of them are normal classes. The first Was blacksmith, and the second was carpenter. Rezar had an ugly look on his face, he really wanted there to be more option this time, but this Spire seemed to love fucking with him. Luckily for him the third was a Combat class, and it seems it''s not that simple. {REAPER:(Legendary)The policemen of the living, their judge, their jury and their executioner! The power to decided life and death, and the drive to command the souls of the circle of reincarnation. +5 to speed,+3 to power,+ 5 to Magic every level.+ 5 skill points every three levels. Gain passive skills (See Sin) and unique weapon mastery (Chain Scythes)/ Gain active skills (Bind) and (Reap). } [Reaper class has been chosen! You have gained + 3 to all stats for gaining a Legendary class.] With great risk, came great Rewards, and after all of the bullshit he''s gone through, this seems like quite the upgrade. But..Rezar couldn''t help the feeling that with this new class, the dangers he would have to face had increased. But that as the truth isn''t it, the stronger you become, the more powerful your enemies are. Chapter 32锛歍he Art Of Death (I): Rapid Growth, Death Reaper (Spend 4600 battle exp to raise the Reaper class to Death Reaper, spend, 10,800 battle exp to raise Intermediate necromancer to level 9. Spend 10,800 normal exp to raise Intermediate Miner to level 9. Spend 3600 normal exp to raise Intermediate Slave to level 9) (The passive skills See Sin, Life Sight and Identify Weak Point can be combined into the skill God Sight, combine skills?.....skills combined!) (Reaper class has advanced to Death Reaper! Speed + 40, Magic + 40, + 15 skill points. The passive skill (Ignore Defense) and the active skill (Apparition) has been generated) (The Magic stat has reached tier 4) (You have completed vampire Racial mission: get your magic stat to tier 3(1/1) and gain two normal class and two combat class (4/4) + 4 skill points) NAME: [REZAR DEATHWIND] [AGE: 15] [RACE: HUMAN+(????)] CLASS: [INTERMEDIATE SLAVE(LV9) (0/1000)] [INTERMEDIATE MINER(LV9) (0/2600)] [INTERMEDIATE NECROMANCER(lv9) (0/3000)] [DEATH REAPER(Lvl1) (0/1000)] EXP:[ NORMAL EXP: 39,490] [BATTLE EXP: 24.462] [QUEST EXP: 1060] TRAITS: [SON OF DEATH] [ANGEL OF DEATH] [N/A] [N/A] STATS: [POWER(TIER 2): 55] [SPEED(TIER 2): 51] [DEFENSE(TIER 2): 46] [MAGIC(TIER 4): 101] BONUS: [+85% To All Death And Black Magic] [ +5% To All Mining Activities] [-20% To Running Speed And +100% Cost To All Purchased Goods ] [100% Damage From Light & Holy Magic. 40% Damage From Fire & Lightening Magic. 40% Resistance To All Elements Except Fire And Lightning] [+50% to Power, Magic, Mental And Defense. You can not be killed except by an Item of Holy or Demonic Might] ? PASSIVE SKILLS: ? Mining: basic lvl 4 ? Death magic mastery: basic lvl3 ? Death aura: basic lvl2 ? Sword mastery: basic lvl5 ? Basic staff mastery: basic lvl1 ? Holy cells: basic lvl1 ? Endurance: basic lvl1 ? God Sight: LVL 1 ? Chain Scythe Mastery: Basic Lvl1 ? Ignore Defense: Basic lvl1 ? ACTIVE SKILLS: ? Raise undead: basic lvl9 ? Rot: Basic Lvl7 ? Power Strike: Basic Lvl1 ? Siphon: basic lvl1 ? Strengthen undead: basic lvl1 ? Bind: Basic Lvl1 ? Reap: Basic Lvl1 ? Apparition: Basic Lvl1 ? SKILL POINTS: 54 ? MONEY: CPR: 30/ SIL: 33/ GLD: 26/ PLA: 0 Rezar blinked his eyes and took a step back from the spire, he could still level up his classes and even use his skill points to increase some of his skills, but he''s as tired of looking at screens already, and to be honest he has grown a little too fast for him to be able to keep up with. Sure he couldn''t be compared to tough nuts like Lenore who had stats in higher tiers, but at the very least he liked to believe he was stronger than your average slave. He was tired of looking at screens to be honest, he just wanted to go back into the confines of his cavern and sleep. He still has to come here tomorrow with those ores, so it would be nice if he got a head start, but in all honesty he was feeling extremely suffocated in the town. There were still eyes on him and his every move was being documented, after everything that''s happened, he was sure now more than ever; that the people of the town, slaves and free cool alike would leave him the fuck alone. Rezar marched towards the tunnels, Screet scrambling right behind him as he held on to the sack that carried.....Quen? Yup! Since she was a demonic mole queen something, he would call her Quen. Though why cowardly mole turned out to be a girl was quite surprising, many would expect or rather all would expect a male to be that Cowardly. Of course no one stabs people in he back more than a woman, but that would be up for debate, who betrays the most? A man or a woman. Rezar shook his head to gather his thoughts as he went up the small hill that led to the mining tunnels, he came face to face with Lenore then. Rezar didn''t say anything, honestly he didn''t think he had anything to say. This wasn''t her fault, but it sucked that she was unwilling to stand up for him. But then again that was expecting too much from someone he didn''t really know, she owed him nothing and he owed nothing except for his weekly quota as a slave in the mine. She looked at him for a moment and then sighed as she shook her head in exasperation. "Rezar your weekly Quota has been increased, from now on you have to deliver 300 pieces of Stygian ore every three days, basically 900 pieces a week." She said to him with her gaze right on his. "I''m guessing this arrangement was made by your boyfriend?" he asked her as he cocked his head to the side. "First of all he''s not my boyfriend! There are some things you have no choice over, I''m as much a slave as you are Rezar, freedom is an illusion, we''re all slaves to someone or something in Elysium. I know this isn''t fair, but in exchange you''re allowed into the town anytime you want and free to use it''s facilities as much as you want. This is the least I can do, you can still bring your ores and I''ll help you sell them since slaves always sell at a loss. For what is worth I''m sorry." Lenore said to him. "Its not worth anything, but nevertheless this wasn''t your fault. You were not in a position to do the right thing, not without putting your own life on the line, so let''s just leave it at that. See you around Red." Rezar said to her as he moved into the tunnel. "Hey! My name''s Lenore! Don''t let me hear you calling me Red again!" she backed at him as he got on to the rail car, his bored voice echoed back as the wheels of the railcar began to squeak and move down into the tunnel. "I know..." >>>>> Rezar woke up feeling very different, he slept through much of the day but at the very least he was refreshed. None of his undead moles were still alive as they have all been pretty much reduced to a pile of goo, there were still a bunch of them in the cave he fought them, but he knew raising them up would be a little bit more difficult. The longer a body has been dead for and the more damaged it was, the harder it would be to raise. Sure he would be able to offset that if he had a higher level of the skill (Raise Undead.) Rezar made his way outside and gave a cursory glance to his home, it felt small to him if he had to be honest, it felt old. Maybe it was because of everything he''s been through, but he felt the need to start over, this time much better and stronger. He shifted his gaze deeper into the cavern as thoughts swirled through his brain. He could see things a lot more clearly than before, in fact he could even zoom in and out and see things in more detail. This new God sight skill was really amazing, and if it was this good at level one, Rezar could not imagine what it would be like once it was maxed out. The skill itself had no grades, there was no basic or Intermediate, just a level 1 to 10, Rezar knew the cost to raise it by even a level would be heavy, so this was just a skill he would let level up itself by more use. But then again it wasn''t the only new insane skill he had gotten, the Miner skill (Power Strike) could actually be used in combat, which explains how some slaves got strong enough to be a part of Lenore''s militia. Then there was the skill (Ignore Defense) it might seem simple, but from now on, no matter the armor, or magic used to defend, be it a person or a structure, Rezar would be able to damage it. Sure the skill was also low leveled, but enough battles would see it a raising, Rezar now had enough tools to himself to survive and even be a threat to a lot of monsters and people. The greatest gain came from his magic reaching tier 4 after it got to 100, it was a lot of help to him as it meant he could fight longer than normal, and thankfully all of his skills didn''t use much Magic to activate. The new Skill Apparition use 8 magic points, Real used 6 which were the highest, and Siphon use 0, which was Understandable as that skill was able to drain magic from any living thing it touched. Rezar felt the need to put all of these skills to the test, but before he could do so he heard he sound of a Railcar coming to a stop. He raised his head to see Priest stepping off with a massive chest being dragged behind him. He let the chest drop to the ground with a loud bang, causing an indent in the ground as he looked at Rezar''s and removed his crock, showing a thin but well trained body underneath. "Well Rezar, what are you waiting for? Take your shirt off and let''s begin!" Chapter 33锛歍he Art Of Death (II): Training "You want me to take off my clothes? But why?" Rezar asked as he looked at priest with confusion etched all over his face. Priest on the other hand just shrugged his shoulders and answered. "So that every time my fists touch your body it will leave a mark. I''ll train using two or more steps! Why? Because I''ve only figured out the first two steps, I''ll make up the others as we progress." Rezar raised an eyebrow at that, he took of his shirt leaving his upper body bare as he walked until he was in front of the old clergy. Rezar didn''t known what came next, well he did; but how? What and next was pain, and he was incapable of feeling afraid of it, so he just stood there as Priest made a move, smashing his right fist into Rezar''s jaw so hard that he heard it crack ad he was thrown off his feet. "I''ve noticed child! That you don''t feel fear, there''s nothing that you fear in this world, not even pain, and as such you''re always willing to keep fighting! How do I known this? Well I''ve lived with death class holders and vampires before, I know you''re all incapable of feeling afraid, but this is something that''s important for you. Fear or not, you have to know pain, embrace it, love it, conquer it, and above all be able to knock me down on my ass with just your fists, legs and body alone. This is unarmed combat! And I''m going to kick your ass!" Rezar received a knee to the side of his head as his vision went blank and he rolled to the edge of the ledge they were standing on, he shakily got to his feet only to receive a bare foot to the chest that sent him over and falling seven meters until he smashed down into the ledge on the level below. It didn''t matter how fearless he was, or how strong he had become, Rezar passed out. > *Splash!* "Fuck!" Rezar shouted as he was jolted awake, his entire body filled with bruises and both his eyes having swollen up. He was dark skinned, so the bruises on his body wouldn''t show in color, but nevertheless he was still very much hurt. "Watch your language, why are you screaming?" Priest asked as he flicked a single droplet of water of his bare chest. "The water is cold damnit!" Rezar replied, not at all willing to censor his language for anyone, not even Priest. Rezar shook himself and then asked. "How long have we been doing this?" there was a blank look on Priest''s face before he sent a fist smashing into Rezar''s stomach, his wet body seemed to even increase the intensity of the pain, then he answered Rezar. "We''ve been doing this for three hours, and you''ve passed out six times." "Urgh! Thanks! Ufff! Good to know!" Rezar replied before he crashed to the ground curled up in pain, this hurt even worse than when the Cavern moles were taking a chunk out of his body. Priest rolled his eyes and he sent his feet smashing into Rezar''s stomach, however he was ready as he grabbed onto Priest''s leg and attempted to pull him to the ground. However all the priest called Priest did was push off the leg that was held, jumping up a bit and bringing his free let smashing into Rezar''s face, safe to say the young man found his way back to the land of unconsciousness. > "A lot of people talk about the art of war Rezar, the millions of ways to wage war and defeat your enemies, tactics upon tactics, however I feel that a battlefield is just a personal fight between two men; one commander against the others. And that''s how fights and wars are, there''s no difference, there are all one and the same thing. In a fight you must act and think at the same time, you must be able to not only anticipate, but predict your opponent''s moves, and come up with contingencies when it seems your prediction did not pay off, and you must do it all at the spot. Wars and fights are the same, there should be no wasted movements, and every strike and hit should be as critical as possible and aimed to bringing your opponent down as fast as you can. A prolonged fight is never good, so every time you decided to draw your sword, you every strike must be to kill. In the body of a man, his shoulders, stomach, neck, eyes, nose, groin, joints, if attacked properly could decide a fight. You must have power Rezar, you must have defense, but above all, you must have speed. There are many school of thoughts about what matters most, absolute attack, absolute defense, or absolute speed. In my opinion I would say, why not all of them! Balance is the essence of life, my faith teaches that everything is created by God, but he lets it live on and thrive or fail without interference because life must have balance! If you want to but hard, then you must be fast enough to but twice as fast as speed enhances attack, and your fist and body must be sturdy enough to withstand the impact of that hit. So fight me, and make sure I don''t ruin that pretty face of yours today, yesterday was quite productive, but it was also quite disappointing. Fight better today alright! God bless you child!" Rezar so wanted to rip apart the smile etched on Priest''s face, this was the second day, but he had spent the entirety of the previous day getting beaten to Within an inch of his life and being unable to fight back. In all honesty it baffled Rezar, why did he have to get beaten up so much, he had no idea how this coincided with training. He has not even achieved any Milestone, or received any sort of stat or skill point bonus. Maybe it was because he now had higher levels in all of his classes and as such more stats, so the achievements of milestones would be a lot more lesser, however; getting his pretty face smashed in by a priest still didn''t feel good. But what could be do, he asked for this. > And it was in this manner the days blurred together, Rezar had not had the time to go hunting for any other monsters, but instead sparingly raised the remaining undead cavern moles and had them mine and like up more ores and gems. Every time priest left, he would leave with at least half of the gems, he ignored the Stygian ores and had instead advised Rezar deliver them all and clear a significant amount of his Quota. As of this moment Rezar was free of labor (in a way) for the next three months. The Stygian ore was in abundance with his sector of the mine, and he had the best sort of miners with the moles. Either way they''ve been training for a week, still no milestones or bonuses, but there was great change in Rezar. Priest didn''t teach him any sort of martial arts, but Rezar was quite imaginative in the way he applied his movements and fought. He would strike with his foster hands but push his middle finger out a bit to create a concentrated point of impact. He was fond of attacking joints with that move, and he was usually quite fast. To Priest Rezar was a slow learner, a very slow learner. Compared to others he had trained, even with his more magical oriented combat classes, others in his shoes would have either earned a trait after three days, or even some stats bonuses. But he remained the same....at least in stats anyways, skills could be trained, but they could not be generated from practice. You needed the skill books to get the corresponding skill, so while Rezar was learning unarmed combat, without the skill, there would be no bonus to his attacks. However he was still learning to be a good fighter, which exposed an aspect of Elysium that was a bit grounded in reality. Not everything learned here, can be a skill. You can be a good cook without having the cooking class or skill. But the difference between you cooking and someone who has the class and skill would be miles apart. The person would cook a food capable of giving bonuses. But yours will just taste really good. But nevertheless after a week Rezar could fight decently, the only thing that worried priest was the fact that Rezar thought a little too much during a fight. It made him understand something of Rezar''s character, though he suspects his necromancer class might be the cause. Rezar like to predict the outcome of a fight from start to finish, and he used the most efficient way to try and attack, which was good. But every move was a scheme, a carefully crafted dance to push Priest into a corner. After seven days of training, though much more was still needed, Rezar already knew how to control the flow and tempo of a fight. He lost every time of course, Priest was trying to teach Rezar how to fight directly without tricks and fancy moves with efficiency. But this kid likes to torture his enemies, he was turning the entire lessons upside down. He was using tricks to deal damage in the most efficient and sustained way possible, every move should cause pain and make the fight easier for him. This was a tactic he adopted because he was fighting an Enemy stronger, faster and had more endurance than him. Instead of hoping for a fatal attack, he was fighting to leave an impression, basically he fought with the mindset ''I know I''m going to lose, but I''ll make sure you work for it'' and after the fourth day priest knows he has been working for it. He was still loads faster and stronger and more resilient, but a dozen tiny punches will still hurt eventually, even if he had all his stats above tier 6. Rezar was not the best he''s trained, in fact he was just about the worst, but Priest had to admit he was the weirdest and most adaptive, or rather it would be best to say things adapt to him. "Its been seven days old man, you took the last of my precious stones and ores three days ago! Is your merchant friend not back yet?" Rezar asked as he looked back from the ledge where he was sitting with his leg dangling over the edge. "Don''t be in a hurry, Bahrenburg is a newly established land in the frontier, the warlords are still warring between each other in an attempt to crown a new king, movement between all of the Duchies ain''t easy. Not to mention we''re right at the edge of Bahrenburg, in a place called the wild canyons of Toromont. Navigating this place is tricky, but never the less the Merchant is back and he''s brought your money, here." (You have received 427 gold, and 80 silver Elys.) Rezar had a big smile on his face as he turned to Priest and asked. "So what do we do next?" Priest smiled and answered. "Now! We''re going to beat you up with Nunchakus or rather both you and I will be beating you up with it, isn''t this fun? It''s the next step in your training!" Rezar was surprised, he didn''t know how to react to this sudden turn it events because quite frankly this wasn''t what he had expected for the second step. He thought maybe he would start training with weapons, which in way he was actually right about, but why Nun-chucks of all things? It didn''t make sense to him, not one bit, so all he could do was look at Priest and ask. "Nun-chucks?" Chapter 34锛歍he Art Of Death (III): Neema This was the worst sort of torture Rezar would have ever imagined himself being in, the Nunchakus as a whole was a weapon that was very complex and unwieldy. Why would Priest have him start with it, and even more so force him to stay rooted in one spot and swing the unforgiving metal over his shoulder from right to left and back again, and he had to do it really fast! There were welts on his head, bumps so huge the looked like eggs, not to mention the pounding headache and the aches on his shoulders, back and stomach; this really was torture, and Priest was enjoying every moment of it. "The goal is to teach you awareness and dexterity, you won''t have the skills for it, but you can bet your ass that you''re going to master it. Usage of the Nunchakus requires a lot of wrist movements, master it and you would be able to swing a sword a lot more better than people who have their sword mastery skill above the basic realm. Besides this would also help with your staff Mastery and chain scythes mastery, I doubt anyone would be able to use those weapons as good as you can by the time I''m done with you." Rezar rolled his eyes, but he kept on pushing. Whether it was due to his lack of fear or something else, Rezar had a rather stubborn streak. He would keep on pushing himself until he achieved what he wants, and in this case it was the mastery of this very weird weapon, and it was in that manner another seven days passed, two weeks if sheer pain and anguish, and there were finally results to show for it, plus it was about time someone else woke up. [You have achieved a milestone by undergoing two weeks of hard grueling training! +10 to all stats, +5 skill points] Honestly Rezar expected a lot more than this, but at the very least it was better than nothing, besides his training wasn''t over yet, he wasn''t even done mastering the Nunchakus. In the real world it would probably take a normal human being months if not years to fully master such a tool, but Elysium was a virtual world, things worked a lot more differently here. And in the seven days that Alex had spent practicing, he could now use the Nunchakus like someone who had spent months using it. [Evolution Complete!] *Screeeeeeeeoooooooooooaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrr* Rezar felt his blood boil with excitement and shock at the sound that rang across the entire cavern, even more surprised that it was coming from his own abode. But it didn''t just end there, almost as if they felt challenged, the hundreds of beasts Within the cavern itself roared back in anger and indignation, they now knew there was someone or something else capable of being a ruler within this cavern. But the roars from other beasts aside, what truly scared the crap out of Rezar, or rather shook him enough that he had to take a step back, was the sheer amounts of Cavern moles that started snowing up from every which way, there were some so massive they completely dwarfed Rezar, he couldn''t help but imagine how different his fight in the cavern would have been if he and Screet had faced this 8 foot tall and 15 foot long moles, there wouldn''t be any part of him left to get tortured by Priest. "Rezar what''s happening?" Priests asked in shock with fear very much laced within his voice, strictly speaking it was expected that he would be afraid, no matter how powerful he was right now, he was still just a priest, and the sheer amount of cavern moles in front of him was enough to overwhelm him should they decided to attack. "Neema just finished her evolution." He simply answered the old man. "Neema? Who''s Neema?" Priest asked confused [Name registered as Neema.] But he got his answer the moment she walked out of the cave Rezar had been living in for the better part of a month. She was definitely different than what they expected, she was bipedal, or rather it would be better if he said that she was now Anthromorphic. The mole tail, head, ears, nose, danger jaws were still there; though now she had silky black tresses that reached the middle of her back, thin arms that ended in scary looking clawed hands, breasts, a vagina that looked very human(not that it mattered). Tattoos all-over her body, clawed feet, and a single horn sticking out the middle of her forehead. Her previous red eyes had turned green, a sign that she was no longer just a common undead but a high grade one. This was amongst some of his very instinctual Knowledge, but the undead were separated into grades by virtue of their eye color. Red was basic, Green was high Grade, purple was master grade, and then finally Blue! Which was a unique breed all together so it can''t be classified amongst the undead grades. But all death class holders had blue eyes and white hair, proof of just unique it was. Rezar watched as she came to stand in front of him, and then bowed, all in all she was just four feet tall. A freaking Look demon mole. Though Rezar wondered why the breasts were so massive and jiggled every which way in such a weird manner. Priest had already turned his head to the side and was making a prayer against the temptation of demons and the devil, Rezar chose to ignore him. "Mas.....ster! Neeeee.. ma! Will...Se-erve wee-ee-l!" ? Demon Mole-Queen [lvl 1] Undead(Zombie Lord)+ ? Name: Neema ? Magic: 40/40 ? Exp: 0/50 ? Skills: [Rapid Digger lvl 7] [Claw Slash lvl 9] [Night Vision lvl 8] [Treasure Sense lvl 7][Mind Rend lvl1][Infection carrier lvl1][Black Magic mastery lvl 1] [ Telepathy lvl 1][Subjugation Lvl1] ? Time left until de-animation: nil Speech was a little bit too hard for her at the moment, but Rezar knew with time after a few level ups she would be speaking as clearly as was considered normal for demon mole queens. Either way she was quite a sight and Rezar was quite satisfied with her evolution, at least he no longer had to call her cowardly mole. He placed his hand on her hair and caressed it gently, she closed her eyes and seemed to be crooning as her meter and a half tail swung about in excitement. The hundreds of Cavern moles that had come out silently watched as what could be their queen was born, Rezar had no idea what the future would hold for them both, but this was his first sentient undead, since she''s gotten to this point he had to protect her "Priest if you don''t mind, can you please head back and get her some clothes...and maybe some armor. I''ll need the same too, all this training is boring me, plus we''re out of stock for both ores and precious gems and rare metals. I need to replenish my miner work force, plus I have a date with a bunch of ants." "What" "God Damnit! Priest just get me what I asked for!" Rezar snapped, he knew the Priest was messing with him, but with everything he''s put Rezar through in this two weeks, the young Necromancer wasn''t ready to be toyed with. Besides he was feeling a bit impatient, he needed to kill something. "Watch you language young man, no need to be so crass and uneducated. I''ll get you what you need, and a new sword to match. Also the chain Scythes you asked for, is something I don''t have, I seem to have lost mine, but I can forge one for you, you just have to get me the materials. In fact I can forge the best armor and weapons in this entire mining town, get me some good materials and you''ll have the best. But I''ll get you temporary replacements before we talk about forging. And please Rezar, do not let the devil whisper into your ears and lead you to commit grave sins. She''s no larger than a nine year old, no matter how big her breasts look, not to mention she''s an undead animal and a demon. Keep your dick in your pants if you don''t want to carry worst diseases than gonorrhea." Rezar couldn''t say anything at all, he just watched with his jaws hanging as Priest left, and in all that time Neema kept on rubbing her head against his chest. Rezar quickly jumped back, unfortunately the ledge was still behind him and he fell six meters down, landing with a rather painful thud. But honestly he didn''t mind, at least he was away from the temptation of the devil. Chapter 35锛歍he Art Of Death (IV): Going To Pay Respect Rezar looked at the pile of armor in front of him, along with a bunch of clothes that didn''t seem like they would fit him, and then raised his head back at Priest. He had much to say, but he kept his mouth quiet and instead got Neema dressed in a short dress with frills. You could say this was practically a maids uniform, if you excluded the fact that her abdomen was armored with scales, she had silvery shoulder pads that stretched all the way down to her waist. She had on a pair of black hose that were equally as scales as her uniform before ending it with a pair of steel toed boots. Her hair was pulled back into a pony tail, but even then it was still extremely long and still reached the middle of her back. She seemed incredibly innocent, but still quite scary considering she was a mole and an undead. She was mainly supposed to be support for Rezar, because honestly he had no idea how she would fight now, but the childish looking demon mole queen went into the stash of weapons Priest had brought and pulled out a massive two handed double bladed war are that was twice as wide as she was. Then she looked at Rezar and said. "Mas-ster! NeeeMa! Wants!" her big scary green eye didn''t make her cute, on the contrary it made it seem like if Rezar didn''t give her what she wanted she was going to bite his toe off or something. "Sure Neema, you can keep the Axe, just be careful with it." Rezar spoke to her like she was just a child, which in a manner of speaking, she actually was. He shook his head as he turned to face Priest. "The fuck am I supposed to do with a full plate armor, I just wanted enough protection that I won''t get hurt easily, I didn''t ask to be tied down by and inordinate amount of metal. Also thanks for the clothes, and Neema''s dress armor is really good, how did you get something like that? Can you get something similar for me too, but less tight in certain areas." "do I look like I care about your comfort? Let me set this straight, your training would be going on for a very long, long time Rezar, and I have every intention of cramming everything I''ve learnt in my extremely long and vibrant lives. You''re going to be wearing those armors, when and how I say you would be wearing them, but nevertheless you wouldn''t be starting with full plate mail. Just pick a leather armor set and get ready for your expedition." Priest said as he pulled out a bottle of wine and walked into Rezar''s cave. "I wouldn''t call it an expedition Priest called Priest! It''s more like house cleaning." Rezar called out as he bent down to pick a simple leather armor, and leather pants and boots to go with it. "So the cavern is your house now is it? If that be the case then this is no house cleaning, it''s more like a house reclamation. Or something like that, make sure to keep the little one safe, what would you be going after, the moles or those ants you seem to hate so much?" Priest asked as he leaned back against the wall and poured a rather unhealthy amount of the wine down his throat. "The moles aren''t a problem any more; with Neema here she should be able to gain control of them with ease. But I plan to have her turn them to zombies, it would be better to do so as they would also be under my control and I can avoid any awkward events should God forbid something ever happens to Neema. My target are those bloody ants, once I''m done with them, I should have proper builders to rely on." Rezar said as he strapped the leather armor on and picked up a simple iron sword. "Well I wish you good luck on that Rezar, your lessons will now be following a schedule of my own choosing, and in our next session you better prepare yourself, cause you''re going to be studying a whole bunch of stuff." Rezar suddenly paused as he turned to face Priest. "I''m sorry if I sound disgusted, but I could have swore I heard you say I was going to study." Priest placed his bottle of wine to the side and looked at Rezar with a smile before answering. "You heard right, now please get out of my sight before I make you swing those Nunchuks fully armored, or maybe I''ll replace the Nunchuks with mace''s instead, that would be quite a sight I''m sure." Safe to say Rezar didn''t waste time as he scurried away with Screet and Neema following close behind. >>>>> Rezar found himself standing in front of the cave that belonged to the fire ants again, contrary to what Priest might think, Rezar was not here just to get himself a bunch of undead, rather he was now someone who had a bunch of skills to call upon as opposed to the first time he had to fight with just two. Not to mention he had a bunch of passive skills, supporting him right now, Rezar was here to see just how strong he had become. He turned to look at Neema and Screet, the mole queen had been dragging the massive Axe behind her during the entire journey here. It was heavy for her, but her speed wasn''t disturbed as it seemed she was really fast. The only stat she had was a magic stat, which was also rather high when he thought about it, but it seems she was also quite fast too. Screet still remained as stupid and as dumb as before, Rezar knew it would take a couple more level ups and maybe evolutions before the Infant-Mole man becomes fully coherent. "The two of you should be careful, stay behind me mostly, and be prepared to run away should anything unsavory situation arise." He shook the sack on his back a bit, finding comfort in the writhing of the earth worms within it. At the very least he had his life saving snack should things go wrong. Rezar marched into the cave, and unlike the first time he had come here with the two of them, there were three fire ants in with the cave, busily expanding the mouth of the tunnel that led deeper into the tunnels/caves they lived in. Before now Rezar had a proper discussion with Priest about his skills, though there were some he wanted to keep for himself, he realized it was best the old man knew. Rezar needed up discovering that most of his passive skills, especially the ones for the normal classes, were actually quite applicable in combat. With just the (God sight) passive that was a combination of both a normal passive skill and a combat skill, Rezar could pinpoint the weakness on the body of the ants with just a glance. He pulled the long sword out from his back and charged forwards, relying on his previous experience of fighting, he used a spell first as it seemed the ants hadn''t noticed him yet. (ROT) The first ant developed a site on top of it''s head that was rapidly beginning to fester, it let out an intense screech of pain, alerting it''s comrades to Rezar''s presence. But his moves were not over yet, he was a lot more faster than before as it took barely three seconds to cross the ten meter distance from the mouth of the cave to the tunnel. Rezar twirled the sword in the air past his right side as he brought it stabbing down into the head of the ant that had fallen prey to his (ROT) skill. (BIND) A single chain made of black shadowy ink surged out of Rezar''s back, tying down one of the ants as Rezar turned in one smooth motion, the sword held with both his hands, and sliced it from left to right at the third and final ant that had leaped at him. The sword developed a grey base on it''s form as it smashed away, rather than cut the ant, sending it backwards until smashed itself against the cave wall, it''s body terribly broken into pieces. (Power Strike!) Rezar used the same skill on the ant that was bound, smashing it''s dog sized head into pieces like it was a watermelon. Rezar shook himself and turned to see Neema and Screet watching him, he couldn''t help but give his undead a thumbs up, though honestly he had no idea what he did that for. Back to the matter at hand, (Power Strike) and (Bind) were still level one skills, but Rezar was able to discover something from their usage. (Power Strike) was more suited to blunt weapons, just the two uses and the edge of the longsword was chipped. It was an impact move as opposed to be a slashing or cutting move, what it was however was piercing move as this was skill he gained from his miner class. Definitely it could be used with a pick Axe that has a pointed end. So if he wanted the best use of this skill, he had to learn how to stab with it, not cut. As for (Bind) he had no idea how strong the confining skill was, there was just a single chain to the skill, but he doubts it would be able to hold back whatever monster these ants are expanding the cave for. But as it stands, he could still put it to the test. He was not under the illusion that these ants he had face were the best this very obvious colony had to offer. He knew how ants worked, and he knew these were just workers, the bottom feeders, there would still be soldiers to face, and then a queen. He still had enough opportunities to test the limits of the skills and increase their levels. He turned to Neema and Screet and then said to them both. "What''d you guys say about us going to pay our respect to the Queen down under?..... It would be fun wouldn''t it?" "Screeeet!" "Ff-uuun?" "Yes indeed my friends, Screeeet Fun! ????????" Chapter 36锛歍he Art Of Death (V): Showing Skills Even if he had the intention to go pay respects, Rezar did not even get the chance to walk into the tunnel when another fire ant jumped out and smashed into his chest, it''s massive pincers attempting to shear him in half. However the leather armor he was wearing was made of sterner stuff, so while he wasn''t cut in half, the ant had enough Jaw power to crack his ribs and make breathing s little difficult for him, however it was just a little. Rezar placed his hands on the head of the fire ant and used another skill. (Siphon) the fire ant quickly released it''s pincers from it''s spot around Rezar''s body, releasing tiny squeals of pain as it attempted to move back, but by then it was too late. It''s vibrant red body rapidly turned grey and fired up as fiery globs of light moved out of it''s body and straight into Rezar''s, giving him a feeling of satisfaction as his cracked ribs were healed almost immediately. What was left behind of the fire ant was nothing more than a grey desiccated carcass that quickly turned to dust. Paying too much attention to this particular ant had been a mistake, there were three other ants who had made their appearance known as they jumped through the tunnel entrance, and straight at the still relaxed form of Rezar on the ground. Neema''s war axe flew shoved his head, with barely two inches worth of space between his body and the incredibly large and powerful weapon. One of the ant was cleaved in half, it''s body being separated from it''s head all the way to it''s errrr....rear? The swing was a little too powerful and even if Neema had been able to successfully drag the Axe behind all this while, it seemed as if she didn''t have enough balance and power to use it, as the axe dragged her along and smashed into the body of another ant. (Apparition) Rezar''s body turned into a mass of shadows with red eyes as he felt light and tried moving his body to the left. The result was him smacking his head so hard into the cavern wall he began to bless. Needless to say, this was incredibly embarrassing, getting injuries from the usage of your own skill, and all because it was the first time you used it. Rezar tried recalling the details of Apparition as he rubbed his aching bleeding head and watched as Screet pounced on the final fire ant, class slashing everywhere in a fury you wouldn''t expect from a mole-man, much less a zombie. {Apparition: turn yourself partially into a shadow ghost and increase movement speed by 300% for 2 seconds. All damage taken in this form is reduced by 30% costs 7 magic points with a cool down of 2 minutes.} Frankly speaking this was the only skill of his that had a cool down, the others could be used as many times as possible, as long as his magic points was still a bit high. And it was also one of the few that cost quite a bit, but he couldn''t use all the time, so he would recover a bit magic points after every use. Not to mention it left a weird after taste in his mouth, and made him dizzy. There were chittering coming deeper from within the tunnel and the cave beyond that. The remaining ants were coming to the rescued of their comrades, frankly speaking Rezar didn''t expect to fight here for long, this was just a practice test run on his abilities. But he also wanted to see just how much of these things he could resurrect. Normally the skill Raise Undead should also have a cool down, it would be extremely crazy if someone could keep raising undead as many times as possible. But the thing is, While Elysium might seem like a game in the way things work, it absolutely was not one; it was a virtual world. So there were just very few skills, amongst the thousands if not millions of them that had cool downs. Besides no one had infinite magic, so you can''t per say resurrect an entire city of dead people, even if you''re at the level cap of 100, for a particular class. So eventually you would run out of magic in an attempt to resurrect dead beings that would definitely be a lot weaker than they were when alive, Elysium seemed wild, but as usual, there was a balance for everything. Rezar swung the sword and took a stance, his knees spread apart and the sword pointed in the direction of the tunnel. He could see into it, not as clear, or rather not in the manner that was required. He noticed heat signatures as his eyes seemed to shift the color spectrum, but he couldn''t see that way for long as they began to ache and he had to shift to his normal vision. He would probably be able to use the god sight better when it''s at a higher level; However what he saw was definitely not something he could joke with. (Giant Fire Ant(Soldier): Level 25) There was no running away for Rezar, he looked at both Screet and Neema, and the worker ant that had been resurrected and zombified by Screet. Then he turned to face the first soldier ant that had reach him. One and the half meters tall, with a mother two meters long, and about a meter wide. The pincers on their face was about as long as Rezar''s arm and seemed even sharper than his sword. But Rezar didn''t let that stop him, he made his move. (Power Strike) This time he stabbed forward as the tip of the sword developed a grey hue. It sliced into the head of the ant, killing it in one strike, however it''s girth and mass was still enough to push Rezar back, his legs dragging on the cave floor. He turned to the side, pulling his sword out as he placed his hand on the head of the soldiers ant. (Raise Undead) (Skill successful) Rezar swiftly turned his sword swung with his right, and slashed at another ant. (Reap) the sword glowed blue, as it sliced through it''s head, However, something extremely strange Happened, the sword brought along with it what seemed like the soul of the ant. It was a little surprising to Rezar, but considering the monsters he raised from the dead could level up enough to the point of having personalities of their own as is the case with Neema, then it stands to reason that they also have souls. (Absorb Soul?) (Release Soul?) (Imbue Soul In Equipment?) (Please note, current Equipment is too low in quality to hold a soul.) Rezar had to make it a point to read the description of his skills from now on, at the very least this was something he didn''t the spire for, he hated being caught off guard like this. He agreed to absorb the soul, just to see what would happen. (Giant Fire Ant (Soldier) soul has been absorbed, power increased by 10% for 60 seconds!) It gave him a buff...that was totally unexpected, and quite frankly amazing. 10% might not seem like much, but it could make all the difference in a fight. Rezar stepped to the left just as the soldier ant he had resurrected blasted last him and into the ranks of it''s former comrades, it''s pincers wild and out and ready to cause the worst fort of havoc imaginable. (Raise Undead) (Skill Successful) Another giant fire ant soldier joined the tray, as Screet surged forwards and used (Dark Tremor), causing a small earthquake of darkness that blasted the ants that were significantly larger than him backwards. After that, it was just a wild fest of class slashing and used biting, and as the ants died, they quickly rose up again to join the fight evening the numbers on their side as slowly but surely Rezar and his undead advanced deeper into the cave. Rezar was honestly having too much fun, if there''s one thing he''s confirmed about himself so far, it''s the fact that he had a love for battles. He loved the feeling of his sword slicing through chitin, the feel of magic being used and his spells causing damage to the ranks of his enemies. He loved watching them die, and he loved watching them come back to life again to tear their friends apart. Was he insane, maybe a psychopath with eccentric tendencies..... perhaps. But that was just on the battlefield, Rezar knew he was always a very a different person when there''s not a weapon in hand or in sight. But once he''s in a fight, nothing else matters and it boils down to just how fast, he could kill and resurrect his enemies. Just like priest had said to him, this was not an art of war, it was quite simply...an art of death. Chapter 37锛歍he Art Of Death (VI): Trap Rezar noticed that the tunnel was a lot larger than the last time they were here, but one major difference was the sheet amount of dead ants that littered the entire place. While the soldier and worker ants were more like drones and working connected to a hive mind, it obvious that they having souls meant they had distinct personalities of their own. Which means it was quite possible for them to feel fear and be not too willing to experience a surge of their undead comrades attacking them with extreme prejudice, and that was just what had happened. They had cleared the tunnel, but there was still a whole lot more to be done, Rezar turned to Neema and Screet, they were sitting opposite each other with Neema''s Axe on her lap. She seemed to be teaching Screet how to speak, by pointing at the axe and asking him to say Axe. However all the mole man could do or say in reply was Screet. Rezar shook his head as he went around the corpses, he had work to do before they went ahead. (Raise Undead) (Skill Successful) {Raise Undead has leveled up to Intermediate Level 1! You have gained 2 skill points and +2 to magic. You can now raise three dead at the same time.} Rezar blinked his eye at that, many of his skills had reached basic level 9 and it was only a matter of time before they all start advancing. One thing he noticed was that apart from having a higher success rate, when (Raise Undead) was still a basic skill, it could only raise a single undead. Now it could raise three, had a higher success rate, and the cost remained the same. But the cost of the skill was also something he noticed was prone to change, if the monster being thought to life was a lot stronger than the norm, it would take more magic from him. (Raise Undead) (Skill Successful) (Three Zombie Giant Fire Ant (Soldiers) raised.) From then one it was just about moving around raising the ants back from the dead, with the skills evolution, it didn''t take him more than 15 minute to be done. All in all he had 15 soldier ants and 26 worker ants arranged in front of him. Rezar felt like a general in an army as he looked at them, never the less it was about time they moved forward into the dark gloom of this tunnels. "March!" He didn''t have say it out loud like that, but honestly it felt good to do so. He moved along with them, as they went through the tunnel that slowly sloped downwards in a spiral. They were marching downwards, the hands of the ants scraping across the ground, but with enough force that the ground itself vibrated. It really was as if they were an army moving forward. Rezar on the other hand was busy looking at the tunnels, the walls were smooth like glass, and sturdy. Whatever it was that the fire ants secrets, to smooth the rocks over, it was akin to cement. As if that wasn''t enough, the walls of the tunnel seemed to be closings within the darkness, tiny pinpricks of sliver, blue and red light seemed to escape from the Obsidian walls. Obviously the ores had been, smoother over during the excavation and now they gave this place a sort of aesthetic beauty. Eventually the tunnel came to an end and opened up into a massive cave, just looking at it gave Alex a sense of awe. He felt as if he was looking at an Arena of sorts. He shifted his gaze to the left and to the right, there were two extra tunnels going left and right, but what was mostly eye catching was the twenty foot tall and thirty five feet long ant queen standing in front of him. There were a bunch of soldier ants surrounding her, each of them significantly bigger than the ones Rezar had on his side. There were tiny chittering as scores upon scores of worker ants walked out of the side of both tunnels, Rezar opened his mouth wide one surprise. If he had to be honest, this was totally unexpected as if he had to take into consideration all of the ants that have been killed by himself and Lenore''s and her militia. Then it would only amount to just about 10% of what he could see if not less. "Human! You are intruding into my domain! For that, you must die and become sustenance for me and my children." "....." "....." "you can talk? Wow! I so did not see that coming." Rezar replied as he slowly backtracked, pulling Screet and Neema back. "The fact that you believe a creature of my Caliber to be nothing more than a common animal shows how much disdain you humans have for your creatures other than yourself. It is your superiority that annoys me the most, how you feel the need to stomp on an ant because your large and have a boot. Well now I''m the one who is going to step on you." Rezar raised an eyebrow as he shrugged his shoulders before giving her an answer. "We really just came to pay our respects you know, and we didn''t step on any ants with our boots, scouts honor!" "You dare lie! In my presence! Everything my children see, I see, even till the moment of their death. Everything they feel I feel, and I know you did more than use their boots you Infernal creature of death!" Seriously this was annoying, it had gotten so bad that even an ant was judging him for having a death class, it absolutely did not feel good. Also, Rezar knew he could beat her army much less her, so the only other option was to run away, except of course he could hear the sounds of other ants coming up from the tunnels hey just used to get in, they were flanked. Rezar quickly moved into the center of his undead with Screet and Neema, he looked at all the ants he had raised, the soldiers with their two meter tall frames, and the workers with their meter tall bodies. The workers could actually hide in between the legs of the workers, and in doing so the vestiges of an idea began to grow in Rezar''s mind. Priest had told him that as he''s advanced his Necromancer class, it would not be too hard for him to control basic monsters like this, even if they were dumb and slow, they would respond to his orders as long as they weren''t too complex, like asking them to run off a wall, do a backflip, slide and then do the jig. Single definite orders, one after the other and you''ll have a cohesive unit to work with, rather than a rabble of undead. Of course more training is needed to be able to fully master that, but Rezar knew he needed to have his undead fight like an army, as that''s the only way they could break out of this place or maybe, even out up a resistance against the queen and her own endless story of very alive, very angry three meter tall soldier ants, workers and the like. "All soldier ants group up in a circle! Make no space between yourself." *Bang!* It was instant, there was no wasted movements and it really shocked Rezar, but he had a suspicion. Maybe the kind of creature it was when it was alive, or the kind of characteristics it''s species embodied, carried over as an undead, so orders relating to that would be easier to carry out. They were soldiers why the sampler ones were workers, soldiers were fighters, a part of an army. In the same manner Rezar could not Screet was more suited to be a worker rather than a fighter, most of his skills were totally meant for mining, even the dark tremor skill was like a miniature earthquake of sorts to smooth out tunnels for the mole man. Rezar was annoyed that he didn''t discover this earlier, but like they said, better late than never. At the very least his commands would be carried out easier, and they would have a chance. Though he really wished he didn''t have to talk to get them to act, the Queen was intelligent, she would be able to come up with counters for any orders he gives. But in the end, there was nothing he could do about it. "All worker ants stay low, in between the legs of the soldier ants. At my command all units, both soldier and worker ants, use fire acid! Prepare yourself!" ? Giant Fire Ant(Soldier) [lvl 20] Undead(Zombie)+ ? Magic: 7/7 ? Exp: 0/220 ? Skills: [Big Chomp lvl 7] [Leg Pierce lvl 9] [Night Vision lvl 8] [Fire Acid lvl 7][Sharp Rend lvl1][Infection carrier lvl1][Pincer mastery lvl 8] ? Time left until de-animation: 13 days 20 hours 16 minutes 37 seconds. Chapter 38锛歍he Art Of Death (VII): Undead Ants Vs Fire Ant Queen Army If Rezar said he had any idea of what he was doing, then that would be an absolute lie, but the crux of the matter right now was that this was the only way he knew he could survive long enough to turn the tide of what would soon be a terrible massacre around. He looked at the giant ant queen, watching her just as she watched him, he wasn''t afraid, but he most definitely didn''t want to die, and so to avoid that he had to give it his all. Then suddenly her ants surged forwards, moving forwards rapidly like wave on the sea, there were many of them, coming from all directions and with the intent of rending flesh from bone, his flesh! Rezar knew he had to whittle down their numbers before they go close to melee range, and lucky for him the ants had good ranged capabilities. Sure he would need to train them fully to know just how far it goes, but there was basic intrinsic knowledge about the creatures he raised from the dead, one of which being that their (Fire acid) ability had a range of five meters. "Now!" And they responded, throwing their heads higher into the air for maximum range, something he didn''t expect they could do. A rain of fiery red acidic spit fell from the sky onto the rapidly approaching forms of the other ants. Rezar had no idea that they would be able to improvise like that, this was a lot better than he moles when he first raised them from the dead. But he knew it was not just because the fire ants were a higher quality of monster, but also because he had advance his Necromancer class, and his raise Undead skill was also at a high level. Well it was at a high basic level, now it was Intermediate, even higher. There were only a few ants amongst his army of ants that were resurrected from Screet''s Zombie infection skill, Neema had the same skill but she had avoided killing without her are, it seemed she really like the weapon, and considering it was a bit taller than her and twice as wide as she was, it was hard for Rezar to see why she like it so much. Either way she couldn''t use it now as she was right in the middle of a crowd of ants. The first volley of (Fire acid) fell down on the approaching board of ants, they were coming from all directions and immediately the acid fell down, their already scattered formation became even more scattered as the injured ants stumbled and the uninjured ones crashed over the forms of their comrades, their sharp legs piercing through, and killing quite a few of them. And this was exactly what Rezar wanted, an opportunity to get his soldiers into their ranks, or rather tune their dead into his. (Raise Undead) (Skill successful!) (Three Undead Raised!) (Raise Undead) (Raise Undead) (....) Rezar could spam this skill for at least fifty times before he had to start getting worried about running out of magic, and by then he was sure he would have gotten a significant part of her army on his side, assuming the ant queen chose not to act. But things can''t be as easy as that, the worker and soldier ants had limited magic, and Alex had to take that into consideration as after two volleys, he had the soldier ants stop firing and left that work to the worker ants in between their legs. The soldier ants stopped and braced themselves for impact, while the worker ants were firing their (Fire Acid) skill at the approaching soldier ants that were significantly larger than they were. Their shots didn''t need to be accurate as with how clustered the other side was, no shot was a miss as every hit brought an ant down. It was not enough to kill them in one strike, but it was enough to severely injure them and let the stampede from behind take care of the rest. At this rate the ants were dying more from them walking all-over themselves without a proper arrangement, than from the assault Rezar was directing. Now it would be nice to get something straight, Rezar did not even know that it would turn out this way, that the ants would be stumbling all-over themselves, even with so many legs. When the one''s struck by the (Fire Acid) skill fell, others would step on them and have their legs stuck in their body, it spoke volumes of just how sharp those legs of their were. But anyways while they''re stuck, the others from the back would experience the same thing with only a few of them getting through, and it was those few that Rezar now had to face. But still there was another rapidly growing situation on the battlefield. (Raise Undead!) (Skill successful!) (2 Undead raised, 1 failed) (Raise Undead!) (Skill successful!) (3 Undead raised) And the moment this zombies woke up, they didn''t need orders from Rezar, they just attacked, causing even more havoc in the ranks of their comrades. This was the first time Rezar had led a fight between two armies, and it definitely won''t be the last. But now he was able to learn that it would be extremely hazardous if an army didn''t have a proper plan or formation. An army without a formation and proper use of weapons and skills, would definitely call to the hands of an enemy that''s prepared, and ready to take advantage of everything on a battlefield. Rezar was winning, but even at that he wasn''t stupid, as his motto says ''Fearless Not Stupid''. They might be winning, but that Queen was smart, and she was still the bigger threat, the only thing truly holding her back was the fact that her ass was too big for her to move around. And as funny as that sounded, Rezar couldn''t joke with it. The aim shouldn''t be to win, but to escape, he turned around and looked at the tunnel that had brought them here, it had the least population of ants, and most of them had fallen already. Rezar turned to look at the Queen, a very obvious and annoying grin on his face as he discovered all four of her eyes were right on him. He waved, and her body seemed to shudder in anger and revulsion as she opened her massive jaws to say. "I''ll make you pay for this human! This cavern! This world is not big enough for the both of us! I have seen your tricks and I have seen your magic! Let me assure you! It won''t work again the second time! Now beyond from my presence!!!" "Ehh! What! You''re letting us go?" Rezar asked in surprise, but he quickly got his answer as the ants seemed to move back and clear a path for Rezar and his undead. He didn''t expect that, this ant wasn''t human so it was hard to figure out what she was thinking. But he had a suspicion, he wasn''t too sure as if he had to go by that it made sense but was still stupid. He couldn''t estimate how many ants she had, but he reckoned at least a 150 of them had died, and he was able to raise about 25 of that, give or take a few Numbers. But when he looked at the sheer amount of corpses left, his eyes glowed with greed. "Don''t! Even! Dare!" Seeing how she made sure to highlight every single word with a stomping of one of her massive legs, he knew he wouldn''t dare. It seems she was pulling back because she was loosing too many soldiers, but honestly it made no sense as Rezar knew she still had enough to Squash them. All she had to do was give them the order to use the same skill as he had; the (Fire Acid) and they would have been nothing more than sitting ducks considering the sheer amount of Giant fire ants that she had on her side. But nevertheless Rezar was never one to look a gift horse in the mouth, he made sure to quickly retreat. His small army following behind him as he slowly went up the tunnel that brought him down here, Neema looked reluctant to leave, and that was proved by the multiple comments of ''Neema Want Fight'' she kept on repeating, but Rezar was not putting anymore of his undead at risk, most especially she and Screet. He''s had enough of an expedition for today whatever reason the Queen had, is she didn''t consider it, then maybe by now there''ll be acid chewing through his flesh. It was best he took the olive branch that was offered and got the hell out of there, but regardless, right now he had learnt a lot. And he felt there were still a couple hundred ways that he could apply what he had learnt in a fight. In a way Priest was right, here were many ways to kill a man, and today he just learnt something new..a way to kill an army. And of that, he was sure there were many, many, many more ways to do so....and he was going to learn them all. Chapter 39锛欰n Offer You Literally Cant Refuse (you have gained 12,045 battle exp) That was a good gain, or as good a gain as he would have gotten from the ant queen. They were enemies now, and Rezar knew that was mostly his fault for intruding. But never the less all bridges have been burned by this point, and he knew there was no going back for the both of them but mutual destruction. But never the less, Rezar happily led his new army of ants back to his abode and to his teacher, however the moment he got close enough, he noticed that they seem to have visitors. Priest was standing right outside, and standing with him was Lenore with her militia, or at least the part that followed her around. Rezar scrunched up his eyebrows in annoyance, he did not have to submit anymore quota for a very long time, three whole months to be exact, so why were they here. Above all else, he really wanted to keep his distance from people in general as nothing but trouble would come from it, but it seems they''ve come looking for him after all. "Well hello Lenore! What can I do for you this fine afternoon, do you want to arrest me and have me killed again? I''m pretty sure we can fit that into your schedule." Rezar said as he got closer, since it seemed he was the one they were waiting for. "Rezar don''t be rude to the forewoman, she comes in peace, plus she needs our help." Priest explained, in an attempt to prevent Rezar from saying things he shouldn''t out of anger. "The answer is no! whatever it is, I''m not doing it." It wasn''t as if what had happened was Lenore''s fault, but frankly speaking she was the only one Rezar could project his anger at. But even with all that, she didn''t even have a change of expression as she strode forwards and swiftly wrapped her fingers around Rezar''s neck and lifted him off the ground, before throwing him at a wall. Rezar smashed so hard into the wall that he left cracks on it and fist sized pieces of rock fell to the ground. His bones creaked in pain as he lost his breath, his entire body seemed to burn with pain and agony, but that wasn''t enough as Lenore strode forwards and smashed her foot into his stomach, raising him up like a soccer ball and blasting him back into the wall. This time, ribs were actually broken, as shoulders were dislocated and his vision developed dark spots for a few seconds. Neema hissed in pure animosity as she grabbed her massive axe and took a step forward, Screet and the fire ants also made efforts to move forwards to attack, but Lenore quickly grabbed Rezar by the neck and smashed his back against the cavern wall, this time forcing him to cough out blood mixed with saliva, that slowly dribbled down his chin. "Tell your undead to stand down, or ill snap your neck like a fucking twig!" Rezar didn''t need to say anything as Neema hissed in annoyance and turned to the other undead. "Neema says stop!" her words were crisp and clear, though she was referring herself in the third person, it was already obvious that she had gained quite a few levels, but while Lenore and her militia, along with Priest were surprised by the fact that she could talk so clearly and well, what surprised Rezar was the fact that she could command the other undead and they stood their ground. It was totally unexpected, but at least this proves that she wasn''t a simple zombie. "Neema hates you, pretty woman!" she said to Lenore as she kept her eyes on both her and Rezar, Lenore on the other hand just smirked and said to her, "There''s a long line of people that hate me freak! Get in line." Rezar would have given a witty retort, but considering this demonic woman had her hands wrapped around his throat, there wasn''t much he could say, plus he was in a lot of pain, or at least he was until he received a system alert. {Holy Cell has been activated, your body is slowly healing itself} {the holy cell passive skill has now leveled up to 2} it was slower than when he first started using the earthworms, and considering that at the moment, his body had built up a resistance of sort to the earthworms, this effect was load better than he expected. His bones popped back into place, as the bruises on his skin healed rapidly. Whether or not she noticed it, Lenore didn''t care as she smashed a fist into Rezar''s stomach, crushing his already healing ribs, but at this point she had already made her point. "Listen to me, SLAVE! I don''t give a shit what sort of negative feelings you have against me, because quite frankly your worth is as much as the very ants that crawl under my shoes! As long as live here, as long as you''re under my jurisdiction you will do as I say. If I say you should jump, then you fucking worm! You will jump! Do I look your mother? Or your fucking woman that you would have the audacity to give me attitude! If you''re so hungry for death, you fucking bad omen, then tell me! Ill happily send you to the next life! Now will you listen, or do I have to take a few toes?" Rezar couldn''t speak, but while he wasn''t afraid, he very much wanted all of his toes to remain where they were, so he shook his head in answer and Lenore let him down. He hacked and coughed as he tried to catch his breath, but before he knew it, his mouth went on and got him trouble again. "Jeez Red, is it that time of the month or what?" safe to say, the boot to the face that smashed the back of his head into the wall behind him and knocked him out was well deserved. >>>> "oww my fucking head!" Rezar muttered as he opened his eyes to the concerned look on Priest''s face, while Lenore stoically looked on, and her Militia jeered at him. Rezar was tempted to tell one of the soldier ants to just try snapping their necks in half with those massive pincers of theirs. But so far, it was his mouth that got him in trouble, so it would be smart to take things a bit easier and shut the hell up, he wasn''t too keen on getting beat up again. "Now that you''re awake, let''s get down to business. There are two things that are needed from you, I won''t waste time and get straight to the point. It has been proved that your undead moles are quite adept at mining, and with the Quota you delivered, you increased the entire mine''s output by at least 75%. As such I''ve been ordered to reach agreement with you. If you provide the mine with a mole, we would give you twenty silver coins, and 25% of whatever yield that particular mole mines. This is not up for negotiation, if you do well, they might increase the price, but for now, that''s all there is to it, and you would do just that. I expect you to provide twenty moles every two days, which rounds up your money to four gold coins every two days. Keep that up, and eventually you would have enough money to buy your freedom. In about 30 years give or take a few months. But never the less I''m sure you''ll be out of here in no time seeing as you have Priest running around selling ores for you. Regardless, this is what is expected from you, however your weekly quota will remain the same, so don''t think this would get you out of it." Rezar was shocked, they were totally taking advantage of him, 30 years! Was a long time, but Lenore was right that he wouldn''t need that much time. But then again he was sure a single platinum coin would not be enough to buy his freedom, he would need a lot more to be fully free of the constraints of being reincarnated a slave for all of his lifetimes, but this was a way to get more money, however he just had to increase the level of his (Raise Undead) skill, this way the undead would last longer and earn him more ores. "So you said there were two things you had to talk to me about, what''s the second thing." Rezar asked as he shakily got back to his feet. Lenore suddenly adopted a serious look on her face as she turned to him. "a dungeon has been discovered within the mines of the east quadrant, normally that shouldn''t be a problem, but said dungeon is filled to the brim with monsters and is almost ready for an outbreak. Should that happen, then a lot of people will die. It would take some time for us to get a force ready to dive into the dungeon, so you''ll be leading a vanguard of new slaves who have combat classes. Your job is to help them train, and keep them safe. Do you have anything to say about that?" Lenore asked, and of course Rezar had something to say, but he didn''t want to get his ass beat again so he said. "when do we start?" Chapter 40锛欼nterlude Neema had a skill that could fully command the cavern moles, but just like Rezar had incurred, it would be much too risky to rely on that, so the best course of action would be to have the moles killed and then resurrected. One thing he had noticed so far was the fact that undead created by Screet and Neema were lower leveled than his, and they were incapable of leveling up, but the trades off to that was that they could exist indefinitely. And not just that, they also, lost a few vital skills in the process, but then again it wouldn''t matter much as all they were needed for was mining, and nothing else. Obviously the moles he keeps for himself would be that much better and would be able to evolve into mole-men eventually, and the ones he gives to Lenore would be fully monotonous zombies without any hope of evolution. This could be thought of as his way of giving Lenore and her blood bosses the middle finger, though if he had to be honest, Rezar still wanted to stick his middle finger inside of her, but that doesn''t seem like something that would happen. Never the less he had 60 moles ready for her after working tirelessly for an entire day, or rather it could be said he had Screet and Neema working tirelessly. The few moles he did decide to kill, were sent to mine for his own benefit, he had no intention of slaving away for this mine for thirty years, he was going to keep to his estimate and get the hell out of here in three years. If not lesser than that, this was the frontier lands, there were vast stretches of un claimed and unoccupied lands to be had, and he had every intention of claiming a piece for himself. "there''s still much you have to learn Rezar, I honestly don''t think you''re ready for this dungeon, even worse is the fact that you''re expected to lead a group of rookie combat slaves and have them gain exp. Frankly speaking, even if it doesn''t matter, you''re still a child. You should be having crushes, playing warrior and maybe stealing a kiss from a fair maiden under the moonlight." "But instead I''m hated and prosecuted for something that''s out of my power, and used and taken advantage of at every turn, what a wonderfully bright childhood I have going for me." Rezar replied to Priest with a sarcastic tone so thick you could actually feel it. "But on the bright side old man, I actually have a crush, only she would rather smash my balls and face in before giving me a kiss under the moonlight, so trust me when I tell you, I''ll be fine in this dungeon. I''m getting stronger a little too fast by relying on the bonus from the slave class, you call this an extreme bug, but I''m earning exp twice as much and twice as fast as other normal classes. I''m in a position where a lot of things can work in my favor, I reckon I would overtake you in three months or less, and be strong enough to pin Lenore down and have my God awful way with her. But never the less I would build my strength, grow, and bear whatever shit they have to throw at me, before I completely go wild and break the shackles that are holding me bound. I''ll make a place for myself, and for people like me, or at the very least anyone that wants to be free from oppression. I don''t know why I''m telling you this, but Priest if you know that you''re going to betray me, then you better kill me now, or at least try to do so. Because if you betray me, no force on Elysium would keep you safe from me, not even death." Rezar said to the old priest as he made his final preparations and marched the moles onto the massive mining cart that would take them back to town. Priest on the other hand didn''t seem as if he was affected by the threats Rezar had given, after Lenore had left two days ago, he had spent some time teaching Rezar a few more thing after he gave a description of his battle against the ant queen. They played chess, and in that moment Priest fully got to know what sort of person Rezar was, or rather what sort of person he was becoming. The young man was man of his word, scary smart and he seriously loved to play games with his opponents. The idea of a swift death only came into play when he was in the hit of battle or when he was anxious to avoid defeat. But apart from that, Rezar was slow and methodical in all of his dealings. His plans had plans, and those plans also had plans of their own, Priest was ashamed to say this, but in the two days of teaching him war and battle strategy and playing chess, out of 56 games he had only won 16 and the remaining 40 had been a very close draw. This wasn''t like all those stories where the master and teacher was so intelligent the student would struggle and study so hard to be able to come up with ways to defeat his master. Unfortunately, Rezar was a monster that was a natural at coming up with ways to defeat his opponents. And most of the time he would be winning and you wouldn''t know, which was why priest knew Rezar didn''t just tell him about his plans or at least a part of it because he trusted him. The necromancer wanted something, and he was sure he would get it. Rezar honestly reminded Priest of ''HIM'' the first vampire, they had the same air and same charisma, something that Rezar was oozing a lot of. But never the less Priest felt the need to reassure himself, and also hold on to his position as teacher. "I don''t care about your plans Rezar, do what you have to do. However, if you survive this dungeon without losing a single person to the monsters, then I''ll tell you a very big secret that had to do with the vampires and their ever elusive book the Necron, it would be a great help to you, and it would give you leverage over me, so you won''t have to worry about me betraying you. Now run along boy, and be careful! Also; where are the giant fire ants?" Priest asked as Rezar turned around to leave. Rezar stopped and gave Priest a rather predatory smile. "They''re doing what soldiers and workers doscouting and building." With that said he walked on with Neema and Screet in tow as they got onto the mining cart with the rest of the sixty cavern moles that were piled haphazardly onto each other. But they were zombies, there was nothing to worry about when it came to their comfort, they were all very dead. The cart started moving forwards as Priest watched on like a worried parent, at the very least he looked worried until Rezar faded from his view and all he was looking at was the darkness in front of him, and for a second, just a small fragment of it, his eyes flashed red as a sinister look was etched onto his visage, but it was gone soon after and that was there was the aged face of a kind old priest called Priest. Chapter 41锛歋kill Upgrade The town looked pretty much the same as it was the last time Rezar was here, heck it even looked as if there was an increase in population. Rezar didn''t know if he should feel annoyed about the fact that everyone had just carried on with their lives after what had happened to him here. But there wasn''t anything he could do, even when they lost their loved ones; life still went as usual. Per agreement he was supposed to meet with Lenore and the group of people he was supposed to party up with, and while that would be the wise choice, Rezar felt the need to be a little mischievous, besides he was still holding a bit of a grudge against everyone in this town, guilty or not, most of them had chosen to remain silent when he was being killed for a crime he didn''t commit. Which was why he was happily strolling through the mining town with 62 undead in tow, safe to say he totally threw everything off key and out of balance as there were screams of shock and fear. Children ran to their mothers, or at the very least those that did have parents did. Men grabbed weapons in an attempt to put up a fight, most of the women did the same, but regardless no one was willing to make a move. Death or even an Injury from anything associated with a death class would be fatal to anyone living, and should they die, there was no coming back from that, it was permanent, death for real with no hopes of a reincarnation or a chance of ever coming back. His march through the town was akin to an invasion, but that could be farther from the truth, Rezar was just here to level up his skills in preparation for the dungeon. Perhaps it would be best if he raised the level of his classes, but right now, Rezar knew getting too strong, too fast wasn''t a good idea. Besides rushing for a higher level without properly getting familiar with his skills and current strength wouldn''t be wise, frankly speaking should he come face to face with someone more in sync and conversant with his or her skills then Rezar would be seriously fucked. But leveling up his skills would be better, plus it would help with completing the vampire racial change quest. And doing that would make him stronger, honestly getting more strength would make these people see him as more of a threat, but the alternative wasn''t fun either. Being weak when it was obvious all of Elysium would love to stomp him into the ground was not the kind of life he wanted to have for himself. It was better to be able to fight back, rather than passively swallowing every kind of shit they decide to feed him. Rezar eventually made his way to the spire without any incident, check even the militia responsible for keeping the safety in the town had kept a respectable distance from Rezar and his small army of undead rodents. Rezar had to admit this was better, since they couldn''t love him and just accept him for who he is, then it was better they hated and feared him, at least that way, they''ll back the fuck off! The skills Rezar wanted to focus on the most were his active skills, to at least give him more damage during battle, but he also knew his greatest advantaged laid in his passive skills, and if he had to be honest, he had some really fearsome passive skills. His focus would be on the passive skills (God Sight), (ignore Defense), and (Sword Mastery). The combination of god sight and the passive skill ignore defense was beyond brutal. Ignore defense completely ignored any sort of defense, and coupled with God sight that was capable of finding weak points in an opponent or object, and whether is weapons or spell craft, Rezar would deal the most damage by attacking the most optimum location and with a higher accuracy than most. High level rangers, rogues and archers had similar skills, but that would have them stay still for a while. But the cost to raise these passive skills was beyond insane, God sight alone required twenty whole skill points, while ignore defense required five skill points to raise it to basic level 2. God sight was an understandably powerful skill as it didn''t have tiers but just levels, the sword mastery skill just needed two skill points to raise it from basic level 5 to six, Rezar was going to raise it to intermediate. As for the active skills, he didn''t want to hang too much on them as they were mostly spells and grew faster than his passive skills, so a few more battles and pretty soon most of them would be hitting the intermediate tier, but none the less active skills were important for the battle ahead, and it would be good to make sure that at least one or two were up to par. So he would raise Rot to intermediate and power strike to basic level 5. Rot was already level 7, so raising it to intermediate would cost six skill points, and power strike was pretty common and cost one skill point per level to it level 5 and two skills points thereafter. With all that accepted, he facilitated the level up of his skills. {Spend 46 skill points to raise (God Sight LVL1=> LVL2), (Ignore Defense LVL1=> LVL2), (Sword Mastery BasicLVL5=> Intermediate LVL1), (Rot Basic LVL7=>Intermediate LVL1), (Power Strike Basic LVL1=> Basic LVL5} {Skills Upgraded!} PASSIVE SKILLS: Mining: basic lvl 4 Death magic mastery: basic lvl3 Death aura: basic lvl2 Sword mastery: Intermediate lvl1 Basic staff mastery: basic lvl1 Holy cells: basic lvl1 Endurance: basic lvl1 God Sight: LVL 2 Chain Scythe Mastery: Basic Lvl1 Ignore Defense: Basic lvl2 ACTIVE SKILLS: Raise undead: Intermediate LvL1 Rot: Intermediate Lvl1 Power Strike: Basic Lvl5 Siphon: basic lvl1 Strengthen undead: basic lvl1 Bind: Basic Lvl1 Reap: Basic Lvl1 Apparition: Basic Lvl1 SKILL POINTS: 13 MONEY: CPR: 30/ SIL: 13/ GLD: 454/ PLA: 0 There was no prompt that he had completed any of the racial mission, but Rezar understood why, he also had to get a passive normal and active normal skill to intermediate. But once that was done, he would be left with only two really off putting missions. He had to drink a person''s blood till they''re dead, and then he had to taste the blood of at least twenty-five different living beings. Only then would he have been considered to have completed the vampire racial quest. "Rezar! What the fuck do you think you''re doing!" Lenore''s annoyed voice screamed out from behind Rezar, well it wasn''t as if she screamed, but it was loud and imposing enough to actually be considered one. Never the less Rezar turned to face her, a bright smile on his face. Whatever it is she had to say, or whatever she was going to do to prover her superiority, right now, Rezar didn''t care, because judging by the look on her face, he got exactly what he wanted and pissed her the fuck off, life was good. Chapter 42锛歅arty Rezar didn''t want to get his face smashed in, so he obediently stopped what he was doing and followed after a fuming Lenore. He was thankful she didn''t do anything else to him, but then again even with him following behind her, he still had a throng of sixty plus zombie moles following after him, and they walked and acted much like zombies did with the exception of Screet and Neema of course. Eventually the got to the cabin that served as Lenore''s office and home, there were a couple of slaves standing there, with the youngest being about thirteen, and the oldest twenty-five. There were three of them there, and the moment they saw him and Lenore approach, they seemed to stand at attention. Then Lenore turned to Rezar and started speaking. "I asked you for 20 zombies every three days, I reckon that''s how long they should be able to last with your level of skill, this much is a waste, and not for me, but for you. Because believe me when I tell you, even if you just delivered sixty zombies, you''re still going to deliver the twenty I asked for. Once operations with the moles start, there should be no hitch or halt. Do you have anything to say about that?" She asked, with a look that said she was challenging Rezar to argue with her. "We''ll all what you''ve said is true, or would have been true if my skill wasn''t a bit higher than you think it is. These moles would last for another fourteen days, you can just pay me as previously agreed, the extra 40 is just a first time bonus, sort of an apology for being such an ass. After the two weeks'' elapse, then I''ll work under the parameters that we''ve previously agreed upon, that way we don''t wipe the entire cavern of its cavern mole population." Rezar said to her with a smile. But as for whether this was really an apology, Lenore called bullshit. In the time she''s known Rezar, though it hasn''t been for long, she''s had a little insight into the kind of character she had, and she knew Rezar was not the kind of person to forgive and forget. Not after what had happened to him and the part she played. She''s always lived her life imagining the person next to her was a worse person than she was, and if she was in his shoes, she would probably have poisoned herself already to get revenge. They both knew this was just a ploy, but for some reason Lenore didn''t have the courage to call him out on his ploy. Rezar was playing a game, and she was involved but she just couldn''t stop him. She shook her head as she turned to the group of people standing in front of her Cabin. Then she turned to Rezar. "These four are slaves, but they have a rather special status so under no circumstances are they to be hurt. All you have to do is take them into the first floor of the dungeon and clear it, I''m sure you''re stronger now, and with your ability to raise anything you kill I expect this should be a breeze for you. You will party up with them and help them train." Rezar raised an eyebrow as he felt annoyance begin to simmer in the pit of his stomach. "Basically you''re telling me that I have to party with them, and clear an entire dungeon by myself while the siphon my hard earned exp, and above all that I have to make sure that not even a single one of them is hurt?" Rezar asked with an annoyed look on his face. "That''s just about it yeah, should they get hurt, you''ll lose a limb, but should anyone of them die.im afraid you wouldn''t live to see the light of day, whether or not it''s your fault Necromancer." Lenore answered as she pulled out a medallion with miniature crystal ball in the middle. "This is a party Medallion, Boris you''ll be the party leader and you''ll be responsible for distributing the loots after the monsters have been killed. Make sure to keep Rezar on a tight leash and close to you guys. But let me warn you..you will have no guards and no protection! In that dungeon the things you should fear the most are not the monsters, but rather death! And he''s walking with you all. So for all your sakes, keep the prissy noble attitude to a minimum and you won''t drive him enough to the wall that he decided to throw caution to the wind and then kill you. I''m sure you know well enough, that if he kills you. you aren''t coming back." Lenore said to the 25-year-old looking slave. "I Understand Forewoman Lenore, we will try out best not to antagonize the cursed being." And he spoke with such a straight face that it was hard to even imagine that he was being extremely condescending. Rezar narrowed his eyes and Lenore shook her head with a sigh before turning to Rezar. "I don''t care how you do it, but keep yourself under control. For every level each of them gain, you''ll be paid five gold coins. And if you''re efficient enough, you might be called upon again to render the same services. This is a job, not an order or a command, and it''s not one that you can refuse either way, but still just do your best and don''t fuck it up. You''re already geared up and so are they, so you guys can move out now, ill lead you to the entrance of the dungeon." Rezar just turned his head to the side after Lenore had finished speaking, there was nothing he could do about it, it really sucked being a slave and no in control of your own life. {Boris Ravenheart has invited you into the part Young Legends Arise, you cannot refuse this invitation. Invitation accepted. Loot distribution has been set to Party Leader Allocation] Party: Young Legends Arise Leader: Boris Ravenheart (Slave lvl0) (Noble lvl 14) (Holy Warrior lvl0) (Defender lvl0) Member: Marie Ravenheart (Slave lvl0) (Noble lvl8) (White Witch lvl0) (Light Mage lvl0) Member: Reinhart Milton (Slave lvl0) (Noble lvl 10) (Grey Knight lvl2) (Iron Ranger lvl6) Member: Rezar Deathwind (Intermediate Slave lvl9) (Intermediate Miner lvl9) (Intermediate Necromancer lvl 9) (Death Reaper lvl 1) It was funny because thirteen-year-old, who Rezar had taken to be Reinhart, was higher leveled than the other two who were much older than he was. Boris looked twenty-five, and Marie looked seventeen or a little older. Reinhart turned to Rezar and cocked his head to the side before asking a question. "What sort of class is a death reaper?" the moment he asked that question, Lenore turned around sharply, maybe she didn''t mean to show it, but Rezar could see as her breath hitched in her throat. Looks like the death reaper wasn''t the kind of class people played around with. Rezar turned to the young boy who looked just a bit younger than him and said. "Pray you never have to find out Reinhart. however, a death reaper...is a death bringer, all he does is bring. death!" Chapter 43锛歂anny Maybe it would have been a bit better if he had increased his levels, this entire bullshit about balance and stuff just didn''t make any sort of sense. But that''s what he learnt not just from Priest, but from the memories of his old life. Sometimes the amount of experience a person has with their skills, which would also coincide with their skill''s levels would and could triumph over someone with a high level, but then again this has been a bone of contention between a lot of people in Elysium for an inordinate amount of years. Rezar just shook his head as he followed after Lenore, who in turn was followed by the dead weights she had just foisted onto Rezar. Carrying someone to level up was not a rare thing, in fact from what he could remember there were people who actively followed this route as a way to earn income or as a class itself. The only difference would be the fact that those guys charged a lot more than what Rezar was being offered. For most carriers or nannies as most have taken to calling them, a single day of carrying at least five people would earn them enough money to live comfortably for a month or two, much less the fact that it was rare for a carrier to have less than five clients a day. Usually people who need to be carried were children, people who were reincarnated and just grew up enough to start taking an active role, hence the need for exp, or new players. And they all do that through Guilds. Only certified and recognized upload organizations could give out carrier contracts, and more often than not the Guilds themselves would have nurtured these carriers. It was rare to see solo freelance carriers; they could only be found in remote places where the influence of guilds hasn''t reached yet. And in the case of the mine, it could be considered so. Nevertheless, Rezar could be considered to be a freelance carrier, and while the money offered to him might seem really extravagant, in the end...it was just 10% of what certified carriers could earn in a day. But then again, carriers were rare as there were quite stringent requirements for someone to become one. Firstly, they needed to have multiple combat classes, at least one melee class, one ranged class, one magic class, one defensive class, and one healing class. And a cooking class was also requirement to help cater to the people being carried if the duration was a little bit extended. Each and every single one of them had the slave class, this was understandable in a way though. Slaves had a 100% bonus to all exp gained, whether it was from quests, or from killing of monsters, they will earn double the amount of exp. This was Elysium trying to make balance, but beyond that everyone else, especially those in power would love to take advantage of it. By taking the slave class, at least for a limited amount of time, you could have that bonus for quite a while. And it would help you advance quickly in a world where it would take you an inordinate amount of to get any substantial strength and you would have to go through dangers, even die before you could achieve anything, and that honestly did not conform to the image of the virtual paradise that Elysium was trying to propagate. Lenore led them north of the mining town, further away from the market square and the mine entrance on the western wall of the valley that led to his home. Going forwards a bit, Rezar noticed there were nicer houses and cleaner streets and the people here were better dressed than others. It made sense though, this was a frontier mining town, Lenore could not be the only one in charge, and the things about frontier towns were that it was always a noble or a group of nobles who would seed them. The truth of the matter was that only nobles had the money to go on colonizing uncharted lands, and even had the money and materials to have a basic town standing for so long. Rezar had no idea how much more foremen there were apart from Lenore as it seemed as if the town itself was split into two different parts. None the less Lenore made sure to skirt the edge of the good part of town, but based on the way Boris and the others followed her, it was obvious they were a lot more familiar with the place than she was. But never the less they eventually came to a stop in front of a mound, it was the height of two men and just about as wide as a door, and beyond that there was just blackness. The moment Rezar saw it he paused, he couldn''t help it. At the moment there were flashes of black and white doors made with bones and overflowing with blood. He felt his breath hitch in his throat as his legs got stuck in the same place. And then just as it had come, the vision quickly vanished and Rezar was left standing in front of a dungeon entrance being stared at by his soon to be companions. "What''s the matter freak! Did you get cold feet or something?" Boris asked with mirth in his voice, but one piercing glare from Rezar had the next set of words he had to say stuck in his throat. Rezar walked forwards as he turned to them and Lenore who had taken a few steps backwards. "From here on out I''m in charge, I don''t give a shit who you are or who wipes your ass and kiss it every day. But if I tell you to walk, then you better fucking walk! If I tell you to run, sleep, shut up or scream like a fucking bitch, then you would do well to scream like a bitch! Or I''ll let the monsters in the dungeon take a bite out of all of you, one piece at a time. Now if you''re done wasting my time, let''s go!" As soon as he finished speaking he walked through the shimmering curtain of darkness with Screet and Neema in tow. Boris and his fellow nobles could only cast a forlorn glance in Lenore''s direction, but it was obvious the demoness had no intention of helping them out with their Rezar problem. And so with heads bowed and hearts pounding, they followed after the incarnation of death. And as they did so, the slight grin of amusement at their discomfort hanging on Lenore''s face was completely missed. Either way she had to go get her militia ready for a dungeon run, at the very least she hoped Rezar would have fun, but given his character, she knew that was already guaranteed. Chapter 44锛欶irst Floor (I): Miniature Minotaur And Pink Sheep After the flash of light, the first thing Rezar noticed was the fact that he was in an open field with knee high grasses. There was no wind, there was no sun but there was light, and four-foot minotaur was charging at him with a plethora of pink wool sheep behind it. It was to that sight that Boris showed up in a flash of light behind him. "Moooooooooooooooo!!!!" Rezar didn''t even have time to give orders as Neema rushed forwards her massive axe being dragged behind her, but she didn''t go alone as Screet went with her, he was even faster as he jumped into the air, his stout and pudgy mole-man form making a sharp arc of five feet to land in front of the charging miniature minotaur. A mass of light dark fog spread out from him, causing a small tremor that brought the stampeding minotaur to a halt and letting the subsequent sheep''s behind him to crash into his body. Neema wasn''t too far behind as her axe made a beautiful but quite terrifying arc over her head and landed onto the head of the minotaur. There was a sickening crunch as her axe buried itself deep in the skull of the minotaur before going through to completely cleave it in half and bury itself self into the grass. The sheep surged forwards as Neema struggled to pull the axe out of the ground. Seeing as she couldn''t pull the axe out of the ground, she abandoned it entirely and strode forward, her arms outstretched and her pushed forward, and then she screamed. "YIIIIIIAAAARRARARARARRARARARARAR" [Your Undead Neema has Used Mind Rend! You''re Dazed for 2 seconds] Even Rezar who was her master was affected by the skill, as his head suddenly felt light and he had to take a few steps backwards. Boris and his sister Marie fell back on their ass, whilst Reinhart was brought to his knees, however he was still able to hold on. But as for the sheep that were the real target of this skill, Rezar watched in surprise as their heads literally exploded into a shower of blood and gore. [11 graceful field pink sheep have been slain, you have gained 220 exp, exp has been split between party] [A miniature Rage Minotaur has been slain, you have gained 200 exp, exp has been split between party] Rezar was annoyed that he and his undead had to do all the work while these spoilt brats enjoyed the fruits, but from what he could see, the exp was allocated according to who did the most work. So from this altercation, he was obviously the guy with the lions share. But that won''t help, he had to make sure they leveled up fast and got out of this dungeon. Though from what he could see, this seems to be a dungeon unlike the ones he remembered from his past life. This was a special dungeon as it seems as if there was no definite entrance in and out, the only way out would be to clear the first floor, or to use a dungeon escape stone to get out. None the less they had to pick a direction and start moving towards it, however that doesn''t seem to be the case. The field that they now found themselves on stretched as far as the eye could see, ending in a tree line that seemed to surround the field, making it seem like it was a glade of sorts. Or simply put a meadow. From those tree lines Rezar could see another group of Minotaur''s and sheep coming for them, this time it was two groups, and they were coming from the north and the south. By their speed, they should be here in about three minutes give or take a few seconds. They might seem like weak monsters but it would not be wise to have them flank their party, seeing as there were literally three weak links that he had to worry about. Rezar turned to the three of them and said. "Follow Me! We can''t let those monsters flank us!" And then he took off running towards the northwest dragging Neema and Screet behind himself literally leaving the noble trio behind to eat his dust. It took him all of twenty seconds to realize that he had vastly outpaced the people he was supposed to wait for, so he waited for them to catch up, before continuing onward at a steady pace. He eventually came to a stop in front of a large rock that looked suspiciously like Pride rock from the lion king, even hundreds of years after its creation that movie was still a classic. The nobles were heaving, but they wouldn''t have enough time to catch their breath as the monsters were already less than twenty meters away. "Screet, Neema! You guys rake the northern group; I''ll handle those coming from the south. And you guys should just stay back and learn what death truly is." [Strengthen Undead] [Strengthen Undead] [Neema and Screet Strengthened! Power, Speed and Magic raised by 5% for 2 minutes] Though the upgrade wasn''t much, it was still better than nothing. This wasn''t also the first time Rezar had used this skill, so he would use their time in this dungeon to try and raise its levels. As Screet and Neema scurried towards the team of a dozen farm animal monsters coming from the north, Rezar shifted his gaze to the south and pulled out his sword. He didn''t have to take this fight to seriously if it was only him, but he was carrying a bunch of people who still haven''t outgrown their milk tooth. He had to pay 70% of his attention to those three, because quite honestly he didn''t expect anyone of them stepping up to fight, besides they were so weak. The minotaur in the lead jumped at Rezar, but a quick [Rot] on its face arrested its development as Rezar''s sword found its way into the Minotaur''s chest. [Raise Undead] quickly followed, and before the minotaur even reached the ground it was already turning on its comrades. From then on it was a rapid slaughter, but even with that, more monsters came out of the tree line, this time the came from the north, south and east, and this time it was two teams of a dozen monsters from the cardinal directions rather one. Rezar sighed as he turned back and looked at the three nobles who were huddle together by the rock and watching the show with a varying degree of expressions. Either way, it was the look on Boris''s face that truly annoyed him, either way he could deal with that later, but for now. death wanted to play Chapter 45锛欶irst Floor (II): Trouble Rezar quickly took care of the pink sheep and with more ease than he thought possible, but it was becoming rapidly obvious ton him that this wasn''t your normal dungeon, and the only way to pass the first floor was to pass a gauntlet. But this dungeon was reported to be on the verge of an outbreak, which means if the normal gauntlet was a hundred monsters, Rezar would be facing a hundred times that amount at 10,000 and even more so was the fact that stronger monsters would have stronger higher leveled monsters amongst their ranks, it really wasn''t looking good and he had to look at a bunch of people he couldn''t trust to watch his back, They easily took care of the second wave and backed up to the nobles, Rezar had gained eleven new undead, six of those by his own hands, and the other five from Screet and Neema leaving a few of their preys intact for the zombie infection to take hold and resurrect them. The extra zombie sheep, along with the mini minotaur was a welcome addition as it afforded these bunch of kids a more secure line of survival, but Rezar knew Lenore and whoever was truly behind this had fucking miscalculated. The dungeon was experiencing an outbreak, at best the monsters on every level would experience a 100% increase in numbers, at worst it would be a 1000% increase, and to make matters worse monsters from higher levels would come down and mix with the low level monsters. Rezar doubted he would be able to save these spoilt brats against the onslaught of monsters that was heading their way. The third wave was already coming and they were coming from the four cardinal directions this time, and they were still pretty much exposed. Even though they were closer to the western tree line, there was no guarantee those trees would offer any sort of solace, and what was worse had to be the fact that Rezar had absolutely no idea what sort of gameplay that was required for him to use in clearing it. He quickly turned to his so called party members. "Do you guys know what this dungeon is all about? I need proper information to be able to come up with a strategy before Lenore and her Militia gets here." They looked at him for a few moments longer than was necessary before the young boy Reinhart decided to speak. "I heard it was just a basic dungeon with five floors, and that it catered to combat or any other sort of class from level 1 to 25. Each floor is a gauntlet, at least till you get to the fifth floor where you would have to explore some sort of swamp and find the last boss and the dungeon core its guarding. But there''s a better dungeon with better loots about a mile north of the town, so most people prefer to train there, or in the wild if they''re not so keen on loots and dungeon generated resources. The first floor should pit you against two dozen sheep and a single mini minotaur boss, but that n umber seems to have increased. The first floor gauntlet should only last for a two rounds." Rezar didn''t feel the need to state the obvious for the boy, but it was obvious that they were going to be dealing with a whole lot more than just a dozen monster farm animals. He had scarcely finished that train of thoughts when the trees on the north and south side of the open meadow split open and two monsters that should very much not be here showed up, dragging an axe and spiked mace that would put Neema''s to shame. *MOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!* [Dungeon Minotaur Level 18(Elite) mini-boss] Rezar didn''t need anyone to tell him that those monsters were not supposed to be seen until at least the fourth floor if not the fifth floor itself. But now they were here which means they had completely underestimated the severity of the dungeon outbreak that was about to happen, they should never have decided to use this as an advantage to train a bunch of snot nosed spoilt brats. "You guys will have to fight! Neema and Screet will kill the first floor monsters and make sure they raise enough of them to create a proper shield for you guys, not to mention the new un dead would help ease the pressure, but you all have to pitch in, or were all going to get overwhelmed. I''ll take care of the mini-bosses; you guys would have to keep the other monsters off my back." Rezar said to them as he prepared to charge the incoming minotaur''s. "Slave we don''t have to do shit! This is the job you''ve being commissioned for, keep us safe and get us the exp we need! Should things get bad, we can escape the dungeon so just worried about yourself Slave!" Boris said with a sneer as he looked down his nose at Rezar, for some reason he seemed really adamant about bringing the necromancer down, to make fun of death and get away with it. "Don''t worry, Reinhart and I would help you as much as we can, brother we came here to train and get stronger, it''s not just the exp we need, we also have to grind our skills. Stop being such a bully and help him, if not for his sake then for yours, or are you going to run like a coward like you do every time." That seemed to trigger Boris, as he started grinding his teeth in anger, and it was so loud Rezar would swear he felt his bones vibrate. This was the first word the only female in the group had said to him since they started, but it seemed all it did was add fuel to the fire as her brother looked like he wanted nothing more than to tear Rezar apart, limb from limb. Rezar shook his head as he relayed swift orders to his undead and then rushed towards the rapidly approaching cowmen, at the very least the burdens had decided to make themselves useful. Chapter 46锛欶irst Floor (III): Honor Rezar knew that no matter how he made his movements, he would still be flanked by the little sheep''s and bosses, but above all else he had to make sure he drew the attention of the minotaur''s to himself instead of the nobles, they were absolutely not ready to face this kind of odds, heck he didn''t even think anyone of them was ready to face any sort of odds. So he had to take all of the pressure, if not for their sake but for his, a hair of theirs missing only meant that his ass would get kicked. [ROT] The minotaur coming from the left let out a roar of indignation, anger and pain as the skill appeared on his shoulder, happily eating away at his defined muscles. Thankfully, he knew who was responsible and charged after Rezar, his massive Axe digging furrows in the ground as he went after the Young Necromancer. Rezar didn''t waste time, he made a beeline for the other Minotaur, and the other followed closely. Rezar kept charging at the minotaur with the spiked mace, and the fact that he would even have the audacity to do so drove it made with anger. It smashed its mace on the ground, blasting dredges of earth and ripped out grass into the air, meanwhile the minotaur with the Axe was drawing closer, his horns pointed squarely at Rezar''s back, ready to gore the seemingly fleeing necromancer, however. [Apparition] He turned into a mass of shadows, blocking the sight of the minotaur in front for the fraction of a second, shocking the mace wielding minotaur, before moving out of the way for it to be gored by the axe wielding minotaur. Rezar won''t say he''s had the pleasure of seeing a cow or bull gore someone before, but this was a prime example as the horn went clean through the chest of the Mace Minotaur. And the Axe Minotaur in its blind rage did not even care as it lifted the other minotaur into the air with it still hanging from its horns, and then its brought body crashing down to the ground with a loud thud. Even when the minotaur pulled out its horns, it still didn''t stop attacking, bashing away ferociously at its comrade with its axe until suddenly its right arm fell off, prompting another pained scream and yell. From the look of things [Rot] had still carried out its due process, and it was for a lot longer than Rezar had expected. He didn''t hesitate as he moved forwards, his sword gleaming as it sliced through the back of the minotaur''s neck. Rezar didn''t have enough power, neither was the sword sharp enough to cut clean through the incredibly thick and well-muscled neck of the minotaur, but it was enough for Rezar to use a skill that was required to end the fight. [Reap] a flash of black and grey was seen on the edge of the blade, before a system prompt showed up in front of Rezar. [Soul of Dungeon Minotaur absorbed level 18(elite) mini-boss, power and defense raised by 15% for 15 minutes] This was a longer duration than the fire ant, not to mention he had an increase in both power and defense, a 15% increase. He only wished there was a way he could store the soul and use it for later, but for now this was what he had to make do with. He hurried back to help the nobles get rid of the monsters they were facing, thankfully there was not a scratch or a hair missing, but he was in for the shock of his life. "Thank you so much for your help Slave! With the amount of Exp earned we can all get our main combat class to level 10 with ease, seems that minotaur you killed weren''t normal monsters. We thank you, and your rewards would be waiting outside for you if you survive that is. Goodbye!" Boris said as he and his sister vanished in a flash of light leaving Reinhart and Rezar behind. He blinked his eyes, and then blinked it again. He knew this was a possibility, but he didn''t actually think that something like this would happen. The people he was asked to look after had actually jumped ship and abandoned him, it was so expected but yet so funny that he couldn''t help but start laughing, and even though he wanted nothing more than to find Boris and rip his throat out, he still laughed harder. Then he turned to Reinhart who was still standing there, a bow in hand. "why are you still here, aren''t you supposed to follow them?" he asked as he moved closer to the young boy, however with each step he took, he noticed how hard the boy''s knees knocked against each other, he was scared of him. But unlike previous times, this time he didn''t lash out in fear, he just stood there seemingly frozen and sweating before giving an answer. "I''m not like them, the agreement was that we''ll stick with you and you''ll keep us safe. You''ve held up your end of the bargain and the dungeon run isn''t over yet. Whether we''re nobles or not, it would be extremely unfair for us to abandon you to your fate like this, not after all the help you''ve given. There''s no honor in that." Rezar raised an eyebrow at that, was this kid stupid or something, even he didn''t think he had the predisposition to make the choice this kid just made. "what would your honor be worth if you lose your life over a stranger you just met today and just under an hour ago. Going this far for me is stupid, do you think if I was in your shoes I wouldn''t run. No one is worth your life kid, not even your wife. People can''t be trusted, and in a world where you can live as many lives as the stars in the sky; things like honor, respect or a moral compass seems irrelevant. There''s always a reset button kid, honor is for the na?ve." Rezar said to him as he ruffled the boy''s hair with a small smile on his face. "I don''t think soRe..Re-Rezar. If there''s no value in being true to ourselves then we don''t deserve eternity. No matter how many lives we have, we should always try to not only live it to the fullest, but live it with honor and honesty. It''s easy to just live and look out for yourself and not fully care about the consequences of your actions because you would definitely have a reset button pushed once you die. But your honor should live on, with so many lives lived it might seem useless, but being good and honorable or even evil, but still having honor and being known for it shows that we''ve not become what Elysium has turned us all into. Ones and zeros with no shadow of humanity left. There''s more evil in this paradise than they ever were in the real world, even if it''s stupid and na?ve, I''d like to leave behind some goodness, it shows I''m different, that somehow, someway the goodness of humanity still lives on. And if even one person will remember me for my honor, then it means I''ve lived every life well." Rezar blinked, this boy had given him a lot to think about, and in ways he honestly never expected. It was nice if he had to be honest. "I still think you''re a na?ve fool, but I get your point kid. But never the less get out of here, you would only get in my way, let me handle this. Once I''m done, buy me a drink in that fancy town of yours, then we can talk all about the philosophy of honor till you get tired. Right now though, I have monsters to slay." Chapter 47锛欶irst Floor (IV): Alone Reinhart didn''t stay too, long after Rezar had convinced him to leave, in all honesty the boy would have been nothing but a nuisance, so all Rezar had to do was face the endless throngs of monsters that came after him. He was able to resurrect both minotaur''s, and they''ve been a great help so far. But it didn''t end there, after Reinhart left, waves after waves of monsters came and by this point Rezar had completely lost track of how many. The only upside to this was that he practically had an army of undead by his side, but then again it was hardly enough as with each wave there were more and more monsters and the preparation time between each wave was too small. Out of all his undead only Neema and Screet could resurrect a monster. But with just the three of them, their rate of resurrection couldn''t keep up with surge of monsters. Rezar took a step back, evading g a swipe from a giant rabbit monster. He moved in stabbing his sword upwards into its throat then turning around to stab his now blunt sword through the cracks of giant cockroach''s carapace. He ducked under a wild swing of a bipedal goat that stood a head taller than him. He smashed the pommel of his sword into its stomach, causing it to hunch over before he places its head under his armpit and twisted, breaking its neck as he flung the sword in his hands. [Power Strike] The sword was like a bullet and grenade at the same time, it released a concussive blast on impact that threw a few monsters backwards before shattering into over a dozen pieces. Neema rushed past him, her giant axe spinning her tiny body round and round as she sheared every monster that came close to her in half. Screet was putting his claws to good use as he went low, bringing monster to the ground by cutting through their tendons and then slashing their throat open. [Siphon] Rezar moved his hands to the neck of a minotaur that could be considered medium sized, the body of the minotaur rapidly desiccated and wilted as its life force was absorbed and Rezar''s depleting magic stat slowly regenerated. But that wasn''t the end as the siphon skill didn''t have a cool down and didn''t require and magic expenditure. He smashed his hands into the chest of a rather beefy hairless ram, sending it flying back into a group of enemies as used both hands to grab another goat man by the horn and then used the [siphon] skill. He flung the desiccated body away, not paying attention to it as was smashed into dust, however it was in that moment an elite minotaur with a halberd stabbed its horn through his chest. There was pain, but there was no panic as Rezar had grabbed its horns and only the tip had pierced his chest. But the momentum of the minotaur was not one he could bring to a complete halt with his power stat as he kept getting pushed back, his feet digging furrows into the already bloodied meadow. Both his hands were occupied and the minotaur was not stopping, so Rezar just let his instinct take over as he pulled back, dislodging the horn from his body and bringing his head down to the neck of the minotaur. It wasn''t easy, but his teeth bit into the neck of the minotaur. Its blood gushed into his body like a fountain of life and rejuvenation. It didn''t taste good, but it felt good. Rezar pulled back and then brought his knee smashing into the jaw of the minotaur, not at all caring that he lost his balance and fell on his back. But he was incredibly satisfied hearing the crack of the monster''s neck as it fell across his body, very much dead. Rezar pushed the minotaur off him and got into a kneeling position. [Raise Undead] [Skill Successful] The Minotaur got to his feet and joined the fray, smashing through its comrades like a freight train that had gone off its rails. Rezar on the other hand had developed a weird urge on the battlefield, and he happily indulged it. Everywhere he went, his pearly white teeth flashed in abject hunger and pleasure as he ripped into the monsters, drinking their blood like there was no tomorrow. Some part of him was disgusted with his actions, this wasn''t the kind of behavior you would consider normal, but he was not stopping, in fact it didn''t seem like he had any intention of stopping. And so they continued, a teenager and his undead laying waste to a battlefield and indulging in what could only be considered a literal bloodlust. Rezar didn''t stop, happily killing and killing until there were no enemies left to kill. He waited, and he waited, but there was nothing. Just him and over 300 undead mutated farm animals. The dungeon itself had worked under a farm animal theme, which was why the monsters were all variations of farm animals. There were real minotaur''s in Elysium, and they were either players or uploads living out a unique reincarnation just like Lenore who was a demon. It was silent, and the only thing present apart from Rezar and his undead were the scored of dead monsters. He was the only one still in the party, plus with those three leaving the dungeon, all of the loots were now his. But they would only be distributed when the dungeon had been completed. All of a sudden the dungeon began to shake, the winds became fierce, and the earth beneath his feet shook. Then the forest in the north of the meadow seemed to peel away like some sort of painting, there was a ripping sound as more and more of it was torn apart, and it spread. Going round the entire meadow until Rezar realized he was no longer in a meadow surrounded by forests, he was in a meadow surrounded by a swamp. This was the fifth floor, it was time for the real boss to appear, and this was because Rezar had done the impossible. he had slain every monster sent his way. And now he had to slay the monster responsible for the sending, this was the only way he could escape the dungeon. Chapter 48锛欶irst Floor (V): Bessie the Boss There was a draft of air so cold Rezar couldn''t help the shudder that spread through his body. All of a sudden the meadow became so still and calm, like there was nothing more than the dead on it, and in a way, that''s actually true. Rezar looked around the now meadow in the middle of a swamp, the air was humid and he watched as the previously blood stained green grass began to turn brown and the ground beneath became a little bit loose and wet. Everything began to shake, the undead monsters that didn''t have as much balance as when they were alive were being thrown on the ground and knocked against each other. And then all of a sudden, right in the middle of the meadow an altar made of stone seemed to rise up out of the ground. On the altar was a massive blue crystal in the shape of an obelisk, if he didn''t know better he would say that it looked pretty much like a town spire, but in this case it was just a dungeon core. *thud! Thud! Thud! MOOOOOOOOOOOOOO* Standing at fifteen feet tall and twenty-five feet long, give or take a few feet, and about two and a half meters wide. Horns the length of two men and as thick as five-meter rug rolled into itself. Her hooves glinted as she pounded it on the ground and made her way out of the swampy tree line, mud clinging to her hooves and legs, but doing nothing to hide powerful muscles she had. The only thing Rezar was really thankful for was the fact that she was not bipedal, if not he had no idea how he would deal with such and obstacle. [Bessie Ironhooves: level 30 Dungeon Boss (Named Monster)/ Dungeon Core Guardian] It was safe to say that this was going to be one very tough fight, and the massive cow didn''t give them even a second of preparation as her massive udders began to fire lances of milk that quite frankly would hit with the full force of a tank shell. Rezar grabbed Neema and Screet and dove to the left as the first strikes decimated the undead hanging around them, with how clustered they were it would pretty much make them a big target to the massive cow. "All of you spread out! And then attack from every direction!" The shortcomings of the dungeon monsters were their lack of ranged attacks, up till now the only monster he had seen with ranged attacks was the boss itself. So there was no need for any sort of elaborate moves, the zombie monsters just had to grab the monster''s attention, while he and Neema and Screet would take advantage and strike the decisive blow. Rezar let Screet and Neema go, knowing they would do their own thing as he charged straight for the boss along with the rest of the zombie. Spreading out and attacking from another direction was a basic enough order and they followed it well, except their speed still suffered, and Rezar had quickly overtaken them to become the sole focus of the boss. The cow stomped hard on the ground, creating a concussive shockwave that smashed into Rezar''s chest and flung him into the air like a ragdoll. It was an unexpected move, and one that came so fast he couldn''t react to it in time. He was blasted backwards smashing into his ranks of undead and even taking some of them out of the fight. Rezar could feel his bones aching as blood slid down the side of his head, but this fight was far from over. Low level undead were incapable of using skills except they were given orders by their necromancer, Rezar was in too much pain, but he could still think clear enough to know that a prolonged battle with this giant cow would end up with him losing his undead and not achieving anything, so he gave the best possible order he could at that moment. "All of you! Use your most powerful skills! Don''t hold back!" That was an order that was as simple as it could be, and they all paid attention. Somehow Screet had gotten closest to the monster and his claws developed a grey hue as he maniacally slashed them on the calf''s and hooves of the cow, ripping flesh, iron and bone with each swing, and using a speed fully uncharacteristic of his slow zombie body. "MOOOOOOOOO!" The cow was in pain and raised its hooves up to stomp down on Screet, but Neema''s head developed a purple halo which in turn turned into a piercing beam of light that went straight into the head of the cow. If froze for a second before releasing a massive scream of pain, and just in time too as the rest of the undead reached it, the minotaur''s included all slashing the bulk of their body into the cow''s. [Rot] Rezar didn''t care much for aim, he didn''t notice it at first, but he couldn''t move. Both his legs were broken and there was a wetness in his chest, not to mention there was a choking feeling within his lungs. But no matter what, he could still fight. *bang! * The cow fell back, which was a mistake as the zombies swarmed it. An ant can never stand up to the might of an elephant, but a hundred ants working together can definitely bring an elephant down, and there was proof right in front of Rezar. But he knew it wasn''t going to be enough, it would take too much time for all of the damage to stack and fully bring down the cow, so Rezar had to help move it along. [Apparate] Rezar''s shadowy form flew over the battlefield. He wasn''t completely made of shadows as he was still physical enough that he could still feel 50% of any damage, but he immediately discovered that if he focused enough, he could control the area of his body he wanted the skill to affect. [you have gained even deeper understanding and insight into the skill Apparate! Apparate skill has gone up 2 levels] It was a welcome development, but he wouldn''t let that stop him from the matter at hand. He made his broken legs fully shadowed, completely negating the effects of his broken legs and moving even faster than he normally would with the skill, of course it just went up two levels, but it was still to his advantage. He ended up above the cow, staring into its black eyes as he raised the chipped sword in his hand and used two skills at the same time and completely emptying his magic stat. this was a strike he hoped would end everything, but even if it failed, it would still cause a lot of damage. He materialized on the cow''s head and let gravity drag him down as he yelled out and held the sword two handed, this was the moment of truth. [Power Strike!] [Reap] *Boooom! * There was an explosion so loud and a surge of power and energy that threw Rezar backwards through the air until his back smashed against the pedestal that held the dungeon crystal. This was the most powerful strike he has ever delivered, but still. *mooo* The monster still lived. Chapter 49锛欶irst Floor (VI): Dungeon Cleared, Rewards, Trapped The zombies were not spared from the explosion of skills, Rezar didn''t know if he had conveniently chosen to forget this memory, or it was as a result of his jumbled up mind when he was finally downloaded, but he immediately remembered that the combination or utilization of two skills at the same time in Elysium was usually forbidden. No matter how game like Elysium seemed, there was a science to it, a process and its very own natural rules. Magic was needed to power skills, and it was understood that each skill causes the magic in a person''s body to flow in a particular pattern, speed and tempo. It made it possible for each individual to actually customize their skills; by mastering that flow and tempo, you could modify a particular skill and the way it was used. But this was a high level technique, and you would need a significant amount of magic and defense and ton of healing potions or spells to be able to deal with the outcome, Rezar had none of those and so he died, or he should have anyway. [Angel of Death: you cannot be killed! Except by an object of Divine or Devilish might] It was quite nice, honestly it was such a great advantage, but Rezar seriously wished he didn''t have that trait. He would very much prefer to be dead right now, in hindsight his entire right arm has been blasted off, half his face was missing and his insides were garishly hanging outside of his body, and there was a rapidly expanding pool of blood around him. He had made a desperate gamble, and while he won, he was paying the price, this was unlike anything he ever had to experience, it was the worst kind of pain he''s ever experienced. But he was not the only one in such a terrible state, the boss Bessie Iron-hoof had half her cow face blasted to shreds, both horns were dislodged from her head and she was missing an upper jaw. Now it was just a question of who would die first, but given that Rezar couldn''t die, the seconds would extremely torturous for the both of them. She would die eventually, but Rezar had no idea how long he had to wait before he would get help and be saved from this pain, but regardless he was still alive. [Holy Cells has gained a level! Time to estimated full recovery.2 weeks] Rezar opened his eyes wide in shock, he had to wait that long to get healed, within that time he would be assaulted by hunger and thirst, but because he couldn''t move, he had no choice but to remain where he was. And neither the hunger or the thirst would kill him, he would just sit here languishing in pain and starvation until the holy cell passive skill ran its course, but therein lies a big problem. Passive skills weren''t active and always worked in the background, but skills like holy cells also required energy. And now it was working at full force, which means it would require a lot more energy than normal to keep up with the healing. Rezar reckoned the estimate was based on the current amount of magic he had, but once that ran out, then the time would stretch, it would take longer and longer which means he could be here longer than two weeks. This was going to be hell on earth, but as if that wasn''t enough there was more bad news coming his way. well mostly good news. [You have completed the Monster Farm Dungeon at Extreme difficulty and with the threat of a dungeon outbreak. +10 to all stats, +10 skill points, +278,645 battle exp] [Your undead Screet is due for promotion] [Undead units due for promotion Elite Minotaur (x3) Mini Minotaur (x9) Pink Sheep (x19) Diamond Tooth Rabbit (x25) Poison wing chicken (x12) Smart Goat (x8) skull head Black Bulls (x10)] [Your blood and magic has come in contact with dungeon crystal! Level insufficient to complete bonding! Estimated time to full bonding is 8 months! You can''t leave the dungeon within that time period and no one else can come in. until the dungeon has been fully bonded it will be spawning waves of monsters every 6 hours! The strength of the monsters spawned would scale according to your combined levels. Dungeon''s difficulty has been reset from extreme, difficult, to Hard] [The Dungeon Crystal is a Spire for monsters! Due to the bonding process you and your undead are now considered monsters of the dungeon! You can use it in place of a town spire! Please note you can''t pick a new class or delete and old class. You cannot communicate with other town spires; neither can you purchase anything from the Elysium Spire Store. The cost for leveling is three times as much with this spire, cost will reduce the higher the percentage of the bonding. Every usage of the dungeon crystal costs 1 gold coin! Good luck] [You have received loots from clearing the dungeon! You now have access to dungeon inventory] [ 2 sets of grey Minotaur leather armor, Butcher Mace, Butcher Axe, Butcher Halberd, Butcher Warhammer, 3 minotaur Horn short swords, 3 flasks of basic health potion, 3 flasks of basic magic potion, 1 flask of basic defense potion, 1 random grade familiar summon ticket, Level 1 basic monster animal farm blueprint. 87 silver, 624 gold, [Horn Charge] skill book, [Gore] skill book, [Basic Farming] skill book, Animal Farmer class change token.] [please note that every monster now spawned by the dungeon cannot be raised as an undead!] That was a lot of rewards for just one person alone, but it was understandable. This was a party dungeon, but in the end the only person left was Rezar after the nobles had left. Sure it was quite nice that he had all these rewards to himself, but he was stuck in this place for the next 8 months! There was no way he could feel good about it. He could increase his level to hurry the bonding up, but the tradeoff was that he would be facing much stronger monsters than he needed to, which would put him and his monsters in a whole lot of trouble. Now the advantage was that his level couldn''t be allowed to increase, but the current amount of undead he had here could level up as much as they could. He was limited in the way he could grow, but they could get as strong as they wanted. These were just the undead that were ready for promotion, there were still a bunch of them hanging around, which mean there was still a chance. So even if he couldn''t make any more undead, he could at the very least make the ones he had here that much stronger. Survival would have been a question, but there was food to be had in the amount of monsters coming his way. The isolation would be terrible and hard, but at least he would live and he would get stronger. Somehow he understood that it was not his fate to be weak or anybody''s bitch! This was a terrible situation, but it was also a very good opportunity. By the time he''s out of here, the world better watch out. Now... where was that healing potion. Chapter 50锛欶irst Floor (VII): Aftermath This was weird, Lenore really couldn''t understand what was going on, because in all honesty this wasn''t something she''s heard of before of had ever experienced. But here it was, and it was staring at her right in the face. Still in doubt she decided to move forward and try again, by this point she and everyone else that were gathered here had lost count of the amount of time she''s tried to enter the dungeon, but the answer was the same every time, she couldn''t. [This dungeon is no longer accessible.] And there was no explanation offered for it, of course the consequence of the dungeon being inaccessible was completely inconsequential, it was only there as a training ground for slaves that made it into the ranks of militia, there were no valuable resources to be mined from it as it was more of an instance dungeon than a traditional one. But all that aside it didn''t change the fact that Rezar was stuck in there and that smug bastard Boris Ravenheart seemed to find it amusing. Lenore couldn''t help herself as she walked up to him and gave him a punch that caved half his face in and ruined his noble visage. He would live and be as good as new the moment Priest decides to heal him, but then again knowing Priest and how fond he was of Rezar she doubted Boris would be receiving any help from him, so this was still on her, dam it! Lenore hated being indebted to someone and even worse she hated guilt, she was a woman who was always sure of her decisions and was just in her actions, no matter what the situation might be or call for. But twice now her honor has been called into question, the only thing that truly set her aside from the rest of her race. But twice being responsible or in one way or the other being responsible for the misfortune that befell Rezar has left her feeling all kinds of wrong. Sure she pretty much didn''t have much of a choice in any of the situations, the calls were made by people who for all intents and purposes her employers. Even her body doesn''t really belong to her as even she has to give it up to survive and grow stronger. Truly everyone was a slave here, and now it seems there was one less slave too. Priest walked towards her as he made his way back to his church, but just before he left he said to her. "that display of anger from you doesn''t mean shit Lenore, not that ill argue that stuck-up prick Boris doesn''t deserve it based on the story Reinhart had given, but you collapsing his face won''t bring Rezar back, neither will it make up for the cowardice you''ve shown and your inability to protect an innocent person. If he survives this, I assure youthere will not be a third time, so shelve your worthless guilt and find a way to get him back! Or my hands will start itching and I would be the one doing the killing," with that said he walked off, leaving a very conflicted Lenore behind. >>>> MONTHS LATER Lenore never did find a way to get Rezar out of the dungeon, she has tried every day since, and not just her, the now fourteen-year-old Reinhardt did too. But after almost four months of watching there was no change and she had pretty much lost hope, going over to the dungeon entrance now was nothing more than just a formality for her now, and obligation she just couldn''t seem to get rid of, never the less she did manage to get over it. Hopefully he gets to have a better next life than the one he suddenly found himself saddled with. But since that incident there has been quite a few changes around, about a week ago a high priestess of wild tribe was brought here along with eleven of her people. While it was hard to imagine that such people existed, the wild tribe were pretty much what you would expect hippies and barbarians to be like. They were uncultured, rough around the edges, and had a hard on for anything that had to do with death or the death classes. Only problem was that the princess brought here was no ordinary person, even more so when she only ended up here due to a coup and betrayal from some of her people. She was a shaman, of course this wasn''t too rare of a class, but shamans were known for channeling the spirits of monsters and draining on them for combat, it was similar to the druid class but not exactly the same. This shaman on the other hand could channel the spirit of the dead, and not just any dead; she could channel the spirits of people who had experienced true death from the hands of death class. In a way it sorts of showed that maybe there was something beyond the true death for people who die from the actions of death class wielders. But her ability was eccentric, no matter how you looked at it, it was something that could pretty much change the status quo, in the wrong and right hands, her power would be extremely powerful, it would be entirely possible for her to unravel the secrets of the past and find the treasures left by the past reincarnations of many. It could make someone the most powerful being in all of Elysium, but therein lies the problem. This woman will not be controlled, she wouldn''t let it happen, not by her people and certainly not by the nobles who bought her, and even worse she couldn''t be killed due to how valuable she was. She was sent here as a sort of punishment; to see if living like a slave for a few years would make her more susceptible to control. Lenore was a woman too she knew such a method won''t work, the priestess seems to have an iron will even she couldn''t match up to. So to keep her safe and also to keep the rest of the camp from crossing paths with her she did the same thing she did with Rezar and had the princess live in the western Quadrant, however only a single member of her entourage was allowed to see her as the rest were thrown into harder labor than was necessary. But this was the punishment, she also had to see the people willing to follow and support her suffer and die one after the other, it was cruel but just like before Lenore had no choice but to carry out. Everybody here was a slave herself included. Lenore could only hop that just like Rezar, the priestess would find a way to survive and make her life easier, because since Rezar left the western Quadrantthe darkness had gotten more dangerous. Chapter 51锛欴eath Returns (I): Eight Months Later "Screet what do you reckon he''s doing now? I''m getting bored of this." Neema muttered in annoyance as she ducked under the wild swing of cheetah like monster and turned, grabbing its hind legs and smashing it on the ground before its momentum would take it past her. Screet didn''t seem to be in the mood to answer as the now much taller 4 feet tall mole man spun a metal staff in his hand and brought it smashing into the ground, creating a tremor that spread across the entire field and throwing the group of horned cheetah monsters heading their way backwards and off balance. What was left of their once large zombie family jumped into the fray as a minotaur with a flanged mace smashed in the head of a cheetah and turned to answer Neema. "I''d reckon he''s running around the edge of the dungeon again, still trying to find an exit." The minotaur answered as its leathery pale skin seemed to stretch taut with every movement he made. "Seriously, he should just be patient! He only has three hours left before we can leave, is there a reason to be so brash, he could get hurt." A bull the size of a car said, however it only had the body of a bull, sharing the same pale disposition as everyone else currently on the battlefield, his head on the other hand was just a skull with green flames burning from within, and to the eyes of people other than his current companions he would be quite a horrifying sight. "Our master cannot be killed, so no kind of hurt would faze him. Asking him to cower because he can get hurt is an insult to his esteemed self, watch what you say Brutus." Screet finally said, red flames in his eye sockets blazing with a promise of pain and death. The Skull headed bull didn''t have a functioning throat, but everyone else heard him swallow loud and clear. "Screet you should be nicer to your little brothers, you know he didn''t mean anything bad by that, he''s just worried about me." Rezar''s voice was heard as he showed up in their midst, shadows wafting off the edge of his armor. He hadn''t changed much over the eight months he''s been here, his hair was longer and more unkempt and was spread all over his face. His already golden brown skin seemed to have a deeper tan than normal, but that was inconsequential. The only major difference was his height; he was extremely tall for a boy that''s almost sixteen. At five-foot-eight he was just as tall as most adults, and he was still growing. Neema was still just about four-foot-tall, the same with Screet who had grown during their time here, not just in power but also in intelligence, grace and meanness. The now Ghoul mole-man had developed a strict trait that he used in keeping everyone else online, even Neema had to defer to him which was pretty much surprising, considering she was of a species more advanced than Screet. But Screet was the first, he had a special place in Rezar''s heart and everyone else also had a soft spot for the strict mole-man who made sure to take care of everybody. But it was weird, especially for Rezar, it was well known that there were no NPCs in Elysium except for certain beings in power like gods and the others, but this group of four undead creatures had personalities and feelings. Of course it had taken a long time and a lot of battles to nurture them to this stage of intelligence, but still it left Rezar with a lot of questions. Were they NPCs or actual humans reincarnated into this form but without any memories of their past lives. He didn''t know and neither did they, but in the end they were his family, taking care of them would be his responsibility. "Are you going to level up now master?" Neema asked as she placed her massive Axe over her shoulder, being able to move the weapon with a lot more ease than before. Rezar looked at the still incoming wave of Cheetah monsters, spotting a few leopards and further down hundreds of lions joining the fray. "yeah I''ll go level up my classes and skills, though I feel the skills have grown just fine. Please take it easy on the lions, they''re my favorite." Rezar said to them, but the still unnamed Minotaur had something to say about that. "No they''re not, you hate cats! You just want us to be gentle so we don''t upset Varka, and seeing how he''s not here I assume that lazy lion is sleeping by the core again!" Rezar shook his head with amusement turning around as he spoke. "you shouldn''t be so jealous Jason, Varka is still just a child. Have fun with the final wave, I''ll try to join you guys as soon as possible." With that said Rezar made his way to the dungeon core, ignoring the adolescent lion that was sleeping there with his legs pointed up into the sky. It was comical and Rezar had to resist the urge to kick the damn cat, not that it would do anything because Varka was the laziest monster he''s ever had the pleasure of meeting. Rezar faced the dungeon core with a smile, it has been an eventful eight months. From being barely alive to having undead three times as strong as he was when he was fist stuck here, not to mention he had also gotten stronger and significantly so much so that he was sure he could give Lenore a run for her money. But honestly he didn''t want to get too cocky, if there''s on thing solitude had taught him, it was humility. He was strong now, but given that he''s only been here for about a year, it can''t be compare to those who''ve had the chance to train and live here from childhood. Even his past memories and experience of Elysium did not prepare him for this, but then again he doubted anyone has had to fight wave after wave of monsters six hours apart. He watched many of his undead die and those that survived get stronger, until there was only four and an extremely lazy familiar, but never the less time has come to finally leave this place, but first leveling up will be good. Chapter 52锛欴eath Returns (II): Level Up! NAME: [Rezar Deathwind] [age: 16] [Race: Human+ (????)] CLASS: [Advanced Slave(lv9) (0/28,000)] [Advanced Miner(lv5) (0/24,000)] [Advanced Necromancer(lv5) (0/70,000)] [Death Lord(lvl1) (0/30,000)] EXP: [Normal Exp: 80] [Battle Exp: 8,648] [Quest Exp: 1060] TRAITS: [Son of Death] [Angel of Death] [N/A] [N/A] STATS: [Power (TIER 3): 133] [Speed (TIER 3): 148] [Defense (TIER 3): 117] [MAGIC (TIER 4): 173] BONUS: [+85% To All Death and Black Magic] [+5% To All Mining Activities] [-20% To Running Speed and +100% Cost to All Purchased Goods] [80% Damage from Light & Holy Magic. 40% Damage from Fire & Lightening Magic. 40% Resistance to All Elements Except Fire and Lightning] [+50% to Power, Magic, Mental and Defense. You cannot be killed except by an Item of Holy or Demonic Might] Rezar was very annoyed, in his excitement about finally getting out of this bloody dungeon, he had completely forgotten that the cost for leveling up his classes were double the required amount. Which is to say he had given up the exp that could have easily taken all his stats into tier 4 if not past it. Tier 3 was the peak of what you would call the low level powerhouses, it was from tier 4 and above that people would start taking you seriously. But none the less he had his magic stat in tier 4, that was a consolation at least, but it could be more and he had lost a very good opportunity. He got a bunch of new skills, but he couldn''t be bothered with those at the moment, if he had to be honest he didn''t even want any new skills, over the eight months he''s been here, he had learned to master his previous skill sets, increasing their level and, making those skills his rather than some thin g given by Elysium. Having a bunch of new skills to deal with was a bit too bothersome, he had to take things a bit slow, besides he had a plan that he wanted to carry out, and more combat skills would be nothing more than a hassle for him. Never the less he was done here, once he gets out of here he would check his skills at the town spire for good measure and pay a visit to Priest, assuming he was still around. Rezar sat down on the platform, watching as this quad of undead took care of the army of monsters. He only had the four of them now, every other undead was dead, so the plan of a grand army was out of the question, however he didn''t have an army now, but he could at least go out there and get one for himself. Rezar didn''t think he was going to be gone for this long, but he before he left he put all of his remaining undead to work, the moles probably left behind a heap of ores, and he had actually kept that in a secret location. But the ores were inconsequential to what he was really looking forward to, and that had to be the project he had the giant ants take care of. He doubted they actually got as far as he wanted them to, but they should have made significant progress, and he could pick from there. He was going back with a lot more cards than he came here with, and with a lot more schemes and plans to carry out. Rezar couldn''t help but smile, his mistake with his exp aside he was extremely optimistic about the future and he had a really stupid smile on his face. There was just something to be said about the joy and pleasure of achieving something, he leaned back on the dungeon core as he took a look at a rather special skill he gained after getting to Advanced necromancer. [Summon Undead: Basic Level 1: Summon a basic skeleton from the underworld, with 60% of the summoner''s Power, Defense, Speed and Magic (note: class of skeleton summoned is random)] This was probably an advanced form of the raise undead skill, the raise undead skill needed a corpse to work on, and the fresher the dead body the higher the success of the skill. Of course Rezar had leveled the skill up to a point where he was sure he could raise a dead body that has been dead for months! And it was hard raising said skill as the monsters spawned by the dungeon during his captivity were pretty much incapable of being raised. But he had succeeded once, though the monster had only been alive for six seconds, it was enough to raise the level of the skill by 8 whole levels. It was at that moment Rezar really understood that it wasn''t just to use the skills, but to understand and study them, learn what they were meant for and how they were activated. Basically it was like turning off the automatic mode and choosing to go manual. It was harder, but it was much more rewarding, and it made Elysium feel more like a real world than an over glorified game. [You have completed the bonding process and are now the master of this dungeon core!] [Take control of this dungeon or move dungeon core to be planted in another location] [You have decided to take the dungeon core, please plant core in a suitable location to grow a dungeon within 96 hours or dungeon core will be destroyed.] [Note: you can attach dungeon core to a town spire to upgrade its level and give it the ability to spawn monsters in defense of the location the spire is located.] The moment Rezar finished reading that, it was as if the world itself started shaking, the land cracked as an endless void was seen, even the seemingly sunless sky grew cracks, but beyond that void of blackness, Rezar saw something that shook him a bit, and left him feeling shocked, lines upon lines of numbers and letters hung above the void. Some were in grid form, others were in a helix formation, some circular others in a pentagram. These were codes, the programming codes that governed all of Elysium. Rezar knew that if it weren''t for the skill [god sight] he would not be able to see all of those things. But knowledge of those codes were meaningless to him, and that was a can of worms he would not be opening, at least not in this lifetime anyway. "All right you guys should gather up! Brutus stop playing around, Screet stop yanking at his horns! Neema Keep up! Oh thank you Maximillian." Rezar said to the minotaur with a smile as he handed Rezar an extremely long spinal column. "All right guys, it''s time to leave." He said to them. "Are we going home now?" Brutus asked as he snorted, green flames billowing out of his nostrils. "home? Nothing of the sort Brutus, we don''t have a home, at least not yet. But that''s why we''re leaving, because we''re going to find it or better yet I should say we''re going to make it. And if anybody stands in our way, then we''re going to take theirs too!" Chapter 53锛欴eath Returns (III): God Is On A Holiday The town was tranquil, it''s been a few months since anybody has had to experience any sort of exciting event, but none the less they were all grateful and thankful for the peace and quiet. After Rezar had disappeared or rather after he became stuck in a dungeon and was presumed dead, Lenore had made sure to utilize the zombie moles he left behind. As they were zombies they had no need for rest or to slow down, so in the two weeks they existed before turning into a pile of bloody goo, she let them mine as much as they possibly could. It made life a bit easier for the slaves in the mine, so they were a few that were a bit thankful for that respite, though if they all had to be honest, it was good riddance to Rezar. It was good that he died in the dungeon, because honestly he made everybody uncomfortable and there was no way he would have been able to fit in, even amongst the midst of slaves. Besides whatever relief his undead gave, that was eight months ago, and while many of them recognized the potential of such a work force, they would rather be in bondage, struggling to get by, than to have monsters around that were capable of completely eliminating them and erasing any chance of them reincarnating. *RUMBLE! * The still nameless mining town began to shake to its foundations, windows shattered as stalls broke apart and people feel over each other. In Elysium there were places and times when natural phenomenon took place, it was completely randomized, but things like earthquakes were rare and weren''t really so bad that houses or stalls would be damaged in the process. This was a first for them and it was coming from a particular location. Lenore left the confines of her shack and the arms of the man who was holding her a little too close for comfort. Roland frowned at that, he hated interruptions, but even he had to admit that this was something that required her attention and he couldn''t hog her all to himself. Sampling the body of this demoness is the only reason he had taken this god forsaken job as a supervisor, if not, why would he leave the safe confines of his father''s castle to come mingle with slaves. But never the less something was up, he had to know what it is. More than half the town were already gathered at the epicenter of the earthquake, a quaint little corner by the east quadrant where the portal to a low level dungeon once stood. Or rather it still stood there, but no one has been able to access it for months. But it was quite funny that instead of running away from the epicenter, they were running towards it. But this was Elysium not earth, when things like this happened, be sure to know that people would run towards it in the hopes that they would discover a treasure. The portal to the dungeon sizzled, stretched and pulled in to itself, then there was a shuddering tremor as the portal seemed to collapse into itself and then disappear. But then seconds later, and explosion of light spread out from the point of the portal''s disappearance; creating a shockwave that pretty much threw everyone around on the ground and robbing them of their vision for a few seconds due to how bright it was. Everyone was gathering themselves, when someone''s terrified voice was heard. "Good God in heaven save us!" it was enough to drag the attention of everyone around, but the answer that came after gave each and every single one of them chills; and it was a chill so deep they felt it to the very core of their souls. "I''m sorry, but God''s on holiday at the moment. Why else do you think he would send me herehello Red, did you miss me?" Lenore raised her head at the voice, it was a lot deeper than she remembered, but he was a growing boy and eight mon this had passed. Rezar was on the back of Brutus, the Ghoul Bull, as Brutus was not a zombie. The intimidating appearance of the bull alone was shocking, ignoring the fact that it had a bunch of bags on its back, there was a minotaur three meters tall and built like a rock. He was dressed, wearing pants and boots, and a long leather jacket that stopped at his calves, a massive flanged mace hanging on his back. Then there was Neema who was leaning on a huge meter wide axe playing with her finger nails, Screet was right at the forefront, his metal staff planted hard into the ground, the look in his eyes being one that promised death in all of the worst ways possible should anyone decide to make a move on Rezar. Rezar on the other hand was comfortable sitting cross legged on Brutus''s back, he wanted to make an entrance on his way back, he just didn''t expect that there would be an audience. "YOURE ALIVE!!!!!" But it wasn''t Lenore who had screamed that out loud, it was Roland who was so shocked and so unnerved he had no control of himself anymore. Rezar narrowed his eyes, nine months was not enough for him to forget the hell this bloody fool put him through. Sure he came out all stronger for it, but he wanted revenge, and he would get it, and he would start from today. "Why? Was a murderer like you hoping I was dead; do you hate me that much? Is it because I''m a death class holder, or because I know the truth hidden behind that god forsaken face of yours. I''ll get to you eventually Roland, and no amount of running away would keep you safe from me." Maybe threatening the supervisor just after he came out from what should have been a life and death situation wasn''t wise, but Rezar gave himself at least ten minutes, he would not be a slave again. And as for the next reincarnation, he would make sure he never dies, he was a necromancer playing with life and death should be a hobby for him. He was going to live till the end of Elysium, and he would make sure no one stood in the way of his survival, but who would? He was going to become a vampire! Chapter 54锛欴eath Returns (IV): Are You Ready For What Comes Next They were afraid of him, and at this point it was understandable as opposed to when he first got here and he was a victim of prejudice because of the fear they all had for him. At that time there were even people willing to bully him, but now, he could see the fear in their eyes and he knew it was intense. He couldn''t say he knew what they were feeling or that he understood how much of an impact his existence had on them, after all he didn''t feel fear. But by this point he didn''t care, he previously wanted a place from himself where he could fit in, but he had to admit that some part of him wanted acceptance from them, for them to not look at him as a freak and instead accept him as a person. But he''s just spent the past eight months on his own and he realized something, he didn''t need them. He didn''t need their approval; he didn''t need their acceptance. There was no worth to his life if he lived it trying to please people who weren''t even worth his attention. So right now, just to show them they really had no power over him, he was going to do the one thing they never expected him to do, in fact Lenore had estimated he needed thirty years just to achieve it. But he only need eight months and a dungeon that happily distributed gold coins as rewards for clearing its endless hordes. Brutus started moving towards the town spire with Rezar sitting cross legged on his back, even if the Ghoul was not enough deterrence, Screet with his piercing green flames for eyes that sometimes faded to red and the aura of decay that seemed to hand around the four. Every step they took made the grasses, and weeds on the ground wither and die. By the time they got to the market, it was already devoid of life, the only person still following turned out to be Lenore and Roland. They had much better upbringing than most of the slaves here, so they were more in control of their emotions, especially when they were absolutely confident in the strength they held. Rezar ignored them though and placed his hands on the spire, and he let it know just what it is he wanted at that moment. [To buy yourself out of slavery and delete the slave class; a fee of 5 platinum coins is required] It was cheaper than he expected, but then again it would have taken him 65 years as a slave to earn that money, assuming if he was normal as the others without the necromancer class to rely on. But even with the necromancer class it would have taken him anything from two to three years to be able to fully raise that money, but here he was with a stroke of luck. The normal price to free a slave was a platinum coin. His sentence was for all of his lifetimes, normally a single payment was enough, but for him who had such an intense sentence, he needed five times the normal amount to clear a pathway for himself and be truly free. The people who put him did not count on a lot of things going Reza''s way, and the title and class that was bound to be a hindrance; a cures, had turned out to be his greatest blessings and advantage. Rezar paid the five platinum coins, reducing all of the money he and his undead had earned killing monsters to twelve platinum coins. It was a lot of money, even for the barons and viscounts who were currently fighting over Bahrenburg. This money was enough to get Rezar a piece of land here to make his own, but he had already decided that he would not be asking, he would be taking. There was a soft cascade of light over his body, somehow he seemed cleaner and less desolate, the class was gone, along with all of its bonuses, which in a way was quite a shame, but it wasn''t too bad. Rezar didn''t mind growing strong at the same pace as everyone else and working hard to achieve it, he was a sixteen-year-old with a tier 4 magic stat, that enough qualified him to be a monstrous talent with his age alone. "You''ve purchased your freedom." Roland said, but Rezar couldn''t tell if it was just an observation or he was asking a shocked question. "Indeed I have Roland, and do you know what that means?" Rezar asked as he pulled away from the spire, he had nothing to do with this spire again. He honestly hated it, and as he had gotten his freedom from it, let it be his own version of a farewell to it. As for Roland, he kept a straight face, honestly speaking he was not threatened by Rezar, this mining town belonged to his family and two other noble families that had joint ownership. He had hidden guards, and even the all-powerful demon forewoman Lenore was bound to step in for him should Rezar attempt to make a move on his life. "Well since you''re not answering I guess you do know what comes next. But rest easy young man, I''ll come square my debts with you when I''m ready, the same goes for you Lenore or should I say Red, you owe me plenty." Rezar said to her. "I don''t think its wide throwing threats in their territory Rezar, you''ve just gotten back from an 8 month ''whatever the fuck you''ve doing in a dungeon'' trip. Relax, get a drink, visit the brothel, sleep on a real bed or something." "You know I can''t do that." Rezar said with a smile as he turned to Priest who was pulling along a massive rectangular metal box. "I know, that''s why I kept this safe for you till you got back. Never the less ignore the bad blood of the past for now and answer my question boy. are you ready for what comes next?" Chapter 55锛欴eath Returns (V): An Offer and A Revolt When priest asked him if he was ready, Rezar wasn''t so sure how to answer. Normally he should have replied with a resounding yes, as proof that his conviction was strong, and in a way it was. He was fully prepared, but if he had to be honest he half expected to have already died before he reached this point, and he also thought it would take him a few years before he did, but here he was, with a free path forward and a future all his own. One of the fundamental things he had learnt from Priest during his training phase was that a life without plans, goals, directions and ambition was worthless. It was at that point Rezar was forced to think deeply about what he wanted, would he be satisfied with just living a life free of worry or prejudice. Did he just want to settle down with one woman and have kids and tell them stories of a dull simple existence? Or did he want to go on adventures like the player he once was, complete quests and slay dragons. Clear dungeons and forge stronger equipment, living a man''s romance. It was quite enticing, one was a life he remembered living, though at the time it was as a human logging in to Elysium and playing around like it was a game. And former was the life he wished for the moment he realized how prejudiced and prosecuted he was. It took a while, sometimes just gaining a conviction to live isn''t enough, an equally strong ambition was required. To be honest Rezar didn''t know when it started or how, maybe the seeds were planted during Priest''s lessons, or his ability to control death and life as a necromancer had fostered a seed inside him. But right now, everything Rezar wanted was power, power and glory. Why have one woman when he could have ten, why have one house when he could have an empire, why suffer under the pressure and suffering of people who misunderstood him, when they could thrive under his rule or quake under his fist. Why would he be forced to give so much, it wasn''t fair and he refused to live a life where things would be unfair to him. They all seemed to think he was evil, Rezar has come to realize that they were right. But then again what is evil and what is good, there was a saying from back on earth; one man''s food is another man''s poison. He didn''t want to ravage the lands and bring about an era of death and destruction, no his first goal is still his current goal, only the scope seems to have gotten a wee bit larger. He wanted to build a place where no one could hurt or prosecute him, but he didn''t want a simple farm or island, he wanted an empire. And he wanted the adventures, to pioneer new lands and see just what this bloody virtual world has to offer, to uncover its secrets and somehow find a way to get his hands on the most powerful and elusive treasure of all; the Necron! A book he knows he wouldn''t be able to find or possess or even if he does, without the power of an empire and its armies behind him. If history had taught him anything, it''s that there were many amongst humanity who were willing to believe in the visions and capability of the most radical of leaders. Julius Caesar, Genghis Khan, Napoleon Bonaparte, Alexander the Great, Hitler, Bin-Laden, Saddam Hussein, Lucifer Morningstar the devil himself! He was going to be all of them and more, and Elysium won''t just fear him, it would love him too. Rezar looked up at Priest and asked. "I take it you''re coming with me too?" the old Priest named Priest looked at him like he had grown two heads. "Of course I''m coming with you, who else is going to pray for the salvation of your corrupt soul and for the mercies of the most high God in response to the hell you''re about to unleash." Rezar gave the priest a blank look, not that what he said was wrong, but did he have to be so damn literal about the entire thing. "What are you planning?" Lenore asked as she mover her hands to the longsword at her waist. Rezar ignored the threatening stance and then said to her. "I have a job offer for you Red, I''m in need of a personal guard or better yet in need of a fighter that''s not a kind of undead to serve me. In return ill not only forgive you for all your mistakes which while I understand you had no choice in much of the matter, I still hold a grudge. You will be paid quite well, and as an added bonus you don''t have to keep getting fucked by a dirt bag with a small penis." Roland''s face grew incredibly stiff, the first time Rezar had seen him, he was in the middle of doing the deed with Lenore, unfortunately the young noble was unable to put his rather poor excuse for a tool quickly away from prying eyes scarring the mind of the innocent Rezar for life times. Roland was just as disgrace to men everywhere, but then again it shows why he has such a sucky attitude. "I told you I''m a slave just like you, plus you have nothing, what can you possibly offer me that would make me give up a comfortable job such as this, and with quite a bit of influence of my own." After what Lenore said Roland had a smug look on his face, it was as if he was saying that there was absolutely nothing that Rezar could offer that could make Lenore want to leave the employ of his family. Rezar shook his head at what he could only describe as intense naivety, it was hard to imagine that this guy was a noble, because a true noble would have noticed the hint all so scattered in Lenore''s voice. She was instantly interested in what Rezar had said, she just needed him to sugar coat it a bit more to hit the entire deal home, and the funny thing was she didn''t even know it herself. Rezar found it weird, eight months away from people and they became incredibly easy to read and understand. But he would play her game, even if she didn''t know she had one going on. He stepped closer to her as he started speaking. "You''re a demon, maybe when you first started living in Elysium that wasn''t what you started out as, but this is who you are now. And I''ve seen it in the way that you act, you''re at war with yourself. You''re a creature or carnal pleasures, greed and a hunger for destruction and power. You like being dominating, but at the same time you love the feeling of being helpless and under the thrall and control of someone who is not even stronger than you, but more powerful than you are. You want to serve, but he person you serve now is just not giving you what you want. You have a good heart I give you that, you want to protect people, but you also want to see blood, want to see you enemies squirm underneath your feet as you take them apart piece by piece. By an over glorified gate woman is not what you want, so set yourself free and I''ll turn all of Bahrenburg into your playground, and your first toy will be him!" Rezar said as he pointed at Roland with a smile, Priest rolled his eyes as he muttered to himself. "This isn''t going to end well." Rezar turned his eyes to Lenore''s and asked. "So what would it be?" he got the answer he wanted, and it came in the form of a severed hand, quickly followed by an ear and an entire arm. Priest shook his head again as he looked to the sky and said. "Father help us, this fool just started a revolt before setting his plans in motion. Well, this place was going to burn either way, doesn''t matter if it was just a few months earlier, death still comes to all." Chapter 56锛欴eath Returns (VI): Skeleton Lady Rezar watched from the entrance of the mine as the town went up in smoke, honestly this wasn''t a part of his plan, at least not yet anyways, but now everyone was running around looting, fighting, killing and dying. The atmosphere here was just so comfortable. Lenore relieving her former boss of a few limbs was literally the spark that started this inferno, in no time at all the entire western side of the mining tow all the way to the market in the central area had gone gaga, it was only a matter of time before the violence got to the eastern sides. Rezar hoped the foreman and the militia on that side were strong enough to keep this angry mob of slaves at bay, but then again he didn''t really care if they could. The longer they kept their focus on themselves, the more time he had to escape from this place. Only problem was he couldn''t use the front gate, it would be all too easy to track and follow him if he should go in that direction. But beyond that he would be marching right into enemy territory. The wild canyons of Toromont were right at the edge of the Bahrenburg frontier, specifically the south east. And if he should walk out the front gate, because of how the canyons were, it would lead him farther into Bahrenburg, rather than away from it. He needed to go out the back, away from prying eyes and specifically south west were endless plains of green grass, a dense forest, rolling green hills, mountains and the sea waited for him. There would be enough natural barriers between him and his enemies and an un-traversable terrain, it would give him time to grow, and make it hard for him to be followed. Not to mention he would have access to a boat load of natural resources to help with the growth and advancement of the settlement he was about to go build. But of course this endeavor wouldn''t be easy, but that''s okay, if it was too easy then it wouldn''t be fun. "I saw some people running down the tunnel master, would they be a problem?" Jason said as he hulking form seemed to fill the entire tunnel. Rezar shook his head in annoyance, that was an unwanted development, he didn''t expect anyone to run down the tunnel to his area of isolation. "That won''t do, if we want our plan to work, no one should know that we moved out through the western quadrant, it''s also our ticket back in. it''s unfortunate, but they have to die." Rezar said as he turned away from the entrance and began to move deeper, there was no mining car around to be used, so they probably had to run the entire way down, but at their level of strength, it shouldn''t be a problem. "You don''t have to kill them, in fact they would be quite useful to you, tell him Priest." Lenore sounded frantic, Rezar raised an eyebrow, did she take on another pet project after he disappeared for eight months, he felt so hurt. "Why''d you have to bring me in to this bloody conversation woman! But yeah she''s right. There''s a priestess living in your cave right now, she''s also a shaman. But beyond that, she''s a shaman with the ability to talk to the spirits of those who have experienced true death." Priest said. "And that''s useful to me how?" Rezar asked with a raised eyebrow and all too cynical look that Priest had to admit he missed. "You''re so dumb sometimes I wonder how you got the title son of death. She can talk to people that are supposed to be truly dead, aka completely deleted from Elysium''s data banks and server. And with it, she could find remnants of lost civilizations, hidden and lost treasures, the fucking Necron!" Rezar blinked once, and then twice, he moved his eyes from Priest to Lenore and then back again. "Let''s get going, we don''t have much time." Rezar said as they all doubled their speed and ran deeper into the mines, Brutus on account of being a literal ghost bull was left with the task of pulling along the massive metal box Priest had brought along. Though the ghost bull wouldn''t say it, he felt totally humiliated, he was freaking beast of burden and that did not feel nice, not one bit. With Rezar leading the charge, they eventually came up to the cavern; for Rezar there was a sense of nostalgia, but he quickly squashed that feeling when a crudely made spear what sent stabbing towards his head. The speed was fast enough to give him pause as he quickly ducked and turned his body so his back was facing his attacker, them he moved backwards with the spear and his attacker''s arm over his shoulder. A hard stomp on the ground had his assailant flying over his head and slamming hard into the hard ground. He quickly turned the back of his palm slapping at the spear that came hurtling at his waist. His slap was enough to break the crude wood and stone spear, it was heavier than he expected, and as a result of breaking it, his second assailant lost balance and stumbled forward, send his neck right into Rezar''s open hand as he lifted him up and brought him smashing down with a choke slam that was accompanied with the sound of breaking bones. Three spears came from the darkness this time, their attacks were swift and they were all aiming for vitals. Obviously these guys were well trained and knew exactly how to hit him where it hurts, the only downside to this was that they were lacking in stats. But given that they were slaves that much was understandable. Rezar stood there and let all three spears run through his body, all he did in return was give them a rather nasty smile. [Bind] Seven chains with arrow like heads blasted out of Rezar''s back and stabbed into the legs of his assailants. The seventh spear hovered above their heads like a cobra preparing to strike, the chain even rattled and shook like a snake that was alive, Rezar smiled as the seventh dropped. "Wait!" a female voice screamed out as a woman came out of the darkness clad in a dark cloak and holding a very weird look staff. Rezar looked up at her with his signature predatory grin as he answered. "And why would I do that Skeleton Lady?" Chapter 57锛欴eath Returns (VII): Woman of Death She wasn''t as dark skinned as he was, if there were on earth Rezar would be considered African to the core, but the woman in front of him had a skin tone that was synonymous with Hispanics or were they Latinos or Latinas? It was hard keeping track of all those terms, he felt as if he should know those words and they were hanging right at the tip of his tongue but now it just felt weird. Her hair was rather rough; it was the first thing he noticed. It was afro like but curly, normally hair like that would be a fashion statement if not for the fa t that there were stones and the skeletons of dead rodents suspended and weaved into the hair. But there were also diamonds, emeralds, sapphire''s and rubies weaved into the hair, and a coupled of bones too. It was downright spooky, and then there was this intricate tribal tattoo on the side of her face that glowed with the colors of the rainbow, but that Rezar felt only he could see. Her eyes were blue, well it was weird but they were actually green on the top and blue at the bottom, like the blue was filling and covering the area of the green. It was confusing, but Rezar had a theory. There were shadows floating around her, spectral skulls that seemed to fade in and out of focus, turning to skulls with dull sockets filled with blackness to people of all races with a vibrancy of life and then back to skulls again. Rezar was sure everyone else saw skulls, maybe it was also different for Screet and the others. Her face on the other hand it wasn''t right, not one bit. Lenore was a demonic beauty, she gave Rezar pause more than once and set this teen body on fire with a single look, and that may or may not have been the reason why he had decided to bring her along. But this woman she made him feel like death was the most beautiful thing on earth. She was older, like she looked somewhere around her late twenties to early thirties, but in the face of a loved destined on the eldritch blessings of death, what could stand in it way maybe nothing but an annoying undead by the name of Neema, who wanted to get in the way of her master''s love filled gaze. "Master if you stare any harder your eyes might fall off" and she was standing right beside him when she said that, spooking Rezar and forcing him to yell out in pain as he was currently still poked full of spears. "Here master let me help you with that." "No Neema Wait!... OOOWWWWWWUUUUU!!!" The undead demon mole queen harshly wrenched all three spears out of Rezar''s body, and seeing as she had used her recently developed telekinesis skill, there was no finesse in what she did, and it hurt like a bitch, forcing Rezar to make a rather unmanly squeal. Blood poured out of the wounds and flowed to the ground, but it only took Rezar five seconds to register the pain before he was standing up and the wounds could be seen rapidly healing with a hint of golden light. The holy energy coming out of the wound was so thick and heavy that everyone apart from the undead were shocked. "How how is this possible!" Priest asked in surprise as he came forward, but Screet stretched forth his metal staff and blocked his path. "Not now old man the master is working." Rezar smiled when he heard that, then he turned to the gorgeous woman who was obviously the priestess he''s heard so much about. Apart from the five that he had made short work of, there were still seven other people behind her with their crude spears that for some reason could pierce armor and hurt him. Sure the armor he had on was made of leather and the defense wasn''t that strong, but spear''s made with less than stellar wood and stone shouldn''t have slid into his body that easily, it was fucking painful and also quite impressive. Rezar looked at the three who still had his chains in them, the skill would run out of duration in 3 minutes, couple with the already wasted two that was a whole five minutes speaking volumes of how high a level it was at the moment. And Rezar realized he could also use other skills with it, so if he so chose, he could torture the hell out of this three and their Priestess would not be able to stop him. He moved back, and the seventh chain rapidly folded itself into a platform that he sat on cross legged while floating on the air while the remaining six was stabbed into the legs of three people. "I''m escaping this place and I''m going to make a kingdom where all sorts of weird things and people can live without any kind of trouble, you want to come with? I already set fire to the town, of course you would have to sell yourself to me and all that shenanigans seeing as I don''t trust you. But soon as I do ill set you free." Priest slapped a palm on his face as he muttered under his breath, Lenore shook her head. She''s since just how scary this kid could be when he''s serious, how deep and Insightful he was. But that wasn''t him, the real Rezar would smile and laugh while he pulled your intestines out of your body. His natural disposition was joyous and straight forward, if the kid wanted to play politics he would, but he didn''t feel it was necessary. The priestess was not his equal, but he was not underestimating her either. "You''re the necromancer that once lived here? The one the slaves called Rezar the Un-killable?" her voice was really deep and sultry and Rezar felt as if he could just fall asleep listening to it. But that won''t happen, it would take a whole lot more than that to shake him. "well that is me, I''m not so sure about that Un-killable part, but yeah as you''ve seen, it''s pretty hard to kill me. None the less you should." "I''ve been waiting for you! I take it you would be heading to the Giant Ant Queen''s lair, I''ve kept the tunnel secure and the area around it has been cleared of any beasts. My people and I will wait for you there while you go carry out your. recruitment. I apologize for the attacks, after my people told me there was a revolt I feared the worst, I didn''t know you were the one responsible as I didn''t see a revolt in my vision of your return. It seems you''re one to go against destiny, that is good, you will need such a power. Please release my people so that I can treat their wounds, they would be quite valuable to you as anyone of them dying would mean you won''t get a single help from me. And just so you know I''m not kidding around, I can tell you the clues needed to find the Necron. So let my people go Lord Rezar." Everyone blinked, Rezar turned to face Lenore and Priest, the look on his face said it all. He folded his hands and said to them. "You didn''t tell me she could see the future! Now I feel so exposed!" "No you don''t!" "We didn''t know she could do that either!" Lenore and Priest replied to Rezar as he retracted the chains out of the legs of her people. They weren''t human though, the wild tribe were humanoid like elves and beast people, but they were a whole other race entirely. As soon as he released them, the others behind the priestess quickly came forward and retrieved their comrades, Priest went forward to lend a helping hand and heal the wounded. Rezar shook his head, scheming as that man was he was still a bleeding heart, let them heal themselves, no one seems to be worried he was poked by spears until his insides became his outsides. "Is there anything else you want to tell me, Priestess that can see the future who''s name I don''t know." Rezar said with a hint of annoyance in his voice, turns out this woman was his equal. She had something he needed and as such she had him by the balls, making her an equal rather than an asset to subdue, Rezar did not like that one bit, guess this wasn''t love at first sight. "Yes! My name is Gynaika De La Muerte. And you should be careful with the queen, she''s gotten stronger." Rezar shrugged his shoulder as he made his way up a familiar path, calling out behind him so that Gynaika could hear him. "So have I Skeleton Lady!" Chapter 58锛欴eath Returns (VIII): Giant Fire Ant Queen 1 Before Rezar could fully disappear up the slope, Screet and Neema turned in the opposite direction and made their way towards the caverns that they were born. Just as Rezar had a mission of his own, so too did those two. Rezar has had time, even before the eight months he spent trapped in the dungeon, planning for today, he knew exactly what he wanted and how to achieve it. Lenore was confused, so she had to ask. "Where are they going?" Rezar turned to look at her and said. "To get their family, and some back up should we need it. But don''t worry about that for now, let''s deal with what''s in front of us at the moment." With that said they picked up speed until the entrance to the ant caves were right in front of them, unlike the last time he was here there has been some significant change. The entrance was wider and taller, big enough that the fat ass queen would have been able to easily enter and exit. And the guard detail has been tripled, there were six massive soldier ants waiting there, but in the end they were all just prey. The first ant noticed them and surged forwards, coming to a stop as it spat out its red flaming acid, Rezar ducked under the spit and turned around, pulling out a pair of sickles from his back, making a full 360 rotations and slashing upwards, dividing the head of the of the ant into three accurate pieces. The ant collapsed as Brutus being through to his name barreled past Rezar and practically stampeded all over the fire remaining ants, turning them into mush. "Are you an idiot or something! Now we can''t resurrect them!" Jason yelled at the Ghost bull, his deep baritone voice reverberating across the entire cavern. Brutus looked remorseful as he had truly let himself get carried away, but Rezar patted the bull on the head to comfort him. "Jason take point, keep as much bodies intact as you can. And don''t focus on resurrecting them, leave that to me, just make a trail of bodies till you get to the queen." Rezar ordered as he bent down to resurrect the ant he had killed, ignoring Jason''s infernal braying as he bulldozed his way into the Ant caves, his happy moos sounding out while the death throes of giant ants filled the air. "You can follow after him Brutus, but be gentle!" Rezar said to the Ghoul bull that was busy hopping from one hoof to the other in anticipation of the fight. Lenore shook her head; this was an undead creature? Was this what the whole world was so afraid about, but why? This was no different from a father trying to keep his sons in line. "What are we doing here Rezar?" Lenore asked as she followed behind Rezar and the newly resurrected fire ant, that looked a whole lot more different than it should normally. [Giant Fire Soldier Ant (level 5 Ghoul)] That didn''t seem right, as ghouls were an undead one level above a zombie, after that was a draugr, and then a lich. But this were racial upgrades, not class ones. It should not be possible for Rezar to directly raise any monster as a ghoul but then again she was not a necromancer, so she had no idea how their skills worked. "The ants in this cavern are very well organized and are fast workers, above all they''re good tunnelers, more that 85% more efficient than moles. But of course the moles are still the superior miners. Our path out of here to go deeper into Bahrenburg frontier and take an unclaimed land for ourselves. There''s a tunnel, but seeing as I was stuck in a dungeon for eight months, I doubt the ants I left behind were able to complete. I gave them a general direction to tunnel towards, now that I''m back I need the ants to finish the job, but seeing as we''re in a hurry, I''m going to need a lot of them. Plus, if I kill the queen, there''s a chance shell drop the spawn sigil for the ants, I''ll need it to build my city and make it so that the ants are one of the creatures my dungeon core spawns once it binds with a town spire." Lenore opened her eyes and mouth wide as she practically yelled out. "You''re creating a monster city! Have you lost your mind!" Rezar shrugged his shoulders as he resurrected ants, going deeper and deeper into the cave as he followed the trail of destruction Brutus and Jason had left in their wake. "You didn''t think that at the start there''ll be people willing to come join us with open arms, heck I''m not even sure I want people around me. But wat I know is I need an army that I can control, and this is the best way to get it. Besides, I''m not all about war, if most of you weren''t so blind, you''ll k now that many of these monsters are good for so much more than exp!" Lenore couldn''t argue with that; she knew he was right. The ants with their tunneling and the moles with their mining, if Rezar was able to utilize their skills well, it wasn''t a matter of military might, he would be the richest man in all of Elysium with what he could achieve. He could build roads and take a toll, excavate mines ten times faster and more efficient and control the trade of ores and precious stones. And god forbid he discovers other creatures or monsters with more ''Unique'' skill sets. He could very well build an eternal empire that history would be unable to forget. "YOUUUU!!!" a nasally voice screeched, Rezar gave a happily laugh and spread his hands as he answered. "Yes me! Did you miss me your highness? Eight long months without me to give you some pressure must have been tough, look at you! You''ve grown fat! Hahhahhahaha, but don''t worry. We''ll be having a little workout, and once I''m done. I''ll be the best and the only one, you''ve ever had." All Lenore could say was. " We''re going to die." Chapter 59锛欴eath Returns (IX): Giant Fire Ant Queen 2 It seems growing older and taller was not the only thing Rezar done in the eight months he had been away, as Lenore watched him, she couldn''t help but reason that he seemed to have gotten a lot more crazier. It was define9tely not right for Elysium that someone with his level of insanity would exist in it, she could already feel her blood pressure boiling to melting point, and this was the boy she had sworn her service to for the foreseeable future, she really was dead. Rezar on the other hand was shaking in anticipation, the truth of the matter was that the giant fire ant queen wasn''t a threat, in the eight months while he may not have fought monsters with her intelligence, he had fought plenty with her size. Of course then again her intelligence made her much stronger than they would have ever been. Her usage of skills and battle tactics would be second to none and most challengers would be sitting ducks in front of her, and all this was due to the single factor of intelligence. So while he might have face monsters her size, ''Bessie the iron whatever'' being a prime example as she was even bigger, this queen would be his toughest opponent yet. Rezar was covered head to toe in weapons, he had two sickles, which could actually pass for scythes, a bone long sword made from the thigh bone of tiger monster, and extremely long spine wrapped around his torso. That though was a forging material, a dungeon would only drop equipment based on its preset theme. Monsters in the wild did not drop anything after they were defeated, you could only scavenge their corpse for materials to get by and find what you needed. On the plus side, you could use almost any sort of material to forge what kind of equipment you wanted. Sure metal ores would be better than crystal ores in some cases, at times there''s a monster with a special kind of bone that''s even stronger than crystal or metal ore. All of them could be used to make the same equipment, however the there will always be the most optimum material to be used. Rezar shot forward, the edges of his body releasing faint wisps of shadows as he used [Apparition], his speed was beyond insane as his form flickered in between the giant fire ants until he was right in front of the queen. A massive leg came crashing down, but Rezar''s form flickered again as he jumped upwards, the ground beneath his feet getting cracked as he had little to no control of his current power. He slashed the two sickles upwards slashing underneath the jaws of the giant fire ant queen. *squeeeeeee! * The sound of metal scraping against each other was heard as sparks was raised from underneath the giant fire ant queen''s jaw. The only thing to show for Rezar''s attack was a pair of thing whit lines, but otherwise there was not even a scratch on the queen. He surged forwards as her massive pincers attempted to snap Rezar in two, a fire ball came flying from behind and smacked into the face of the queen, throwing her head to the side as Rezar flickered backwards, his body leaving a trail of black shadows. [Decay] the evolved form of the skill rot, its effects were deadlier, duration longer, range wider, much wider, and effects so deadly it would remain long after the battle was over. The skill splashed over the torso of the queen, releasing hissing sounds akin to acid on a person''s skin. The queen screeched in pain, but her defense was tough, way tougher than Rezar expected as the skill barely made a dent on her armored shell. But it did expose something though, there was a flicker of magic over her massive frame, which is to say she had active defensive skill that either absorbed damage or completely negated them. Or better yet that''s just an effect of her incredibly hard shell. Rezar kicked his leg forward, smashing his foot into the skull of a soldier ant that jumped at him, he moved back and vanished from his position as numerous ants crashed into where he once stood. He appeared besides Lenore with a smile and only said one thing before he vanished again, the duration for [Apparition] was almost over anyway. "Get her attention, get her to look down Red, thanks." And then he was gone, his shadow encased figure disappearing into the roof of the cavern. Lenore resisted the urge to curse and she sheathed her rapier and pulled out a small baton on her waist. One small whisper later and the small baton had transformed into a black staff with eldritch runes and creatures etched on it. It glowed a sinister red as Lenore rapidly underwent a transformation and massive red horns grew out the front of her head. [Hell-Fire: Gatling Barrage] The staff was similar to a monk''s staff, but it glowed as a fire ball the size of a basketball appeared above it, then it slipped into countless tiny smaller forms and began to fire with extreme prejudice at the queen and her all so numerous children. It bore holes through them, some of them were blasted to pieces as the tiny fire balls had an explosive effect. Luckily the fire balls recognized their allies as they seemed to curve around Jason and Brutus who watched on with brightly lit undead eyes at the sheer amount of destruction that was happening around them. The Queen was no spared from the barrage of flames as two of her legs were lost, shocking both Rezar and his undead. He couldn''t even leave a dent on that thing, granted he wasn''t using a skill and it was just a glancing attack to the test the waters, but seeing the ease with which Lenore used in causing damage to fire ant queen, it left them feeling a little bit intimidated, sure they could tank five or six of those fireballs, but they didn''t have any skills that could deal as much damage. But never the less Rezar already got his wish as the fire ant queen had looked down, completely enraged and assaulted by pain as she lost two of her legs and stumbled forward, her massive form shaking the entire cave, but that was all the chance Rezar needed as he shot downwards, using the last few seconds of the [Apparition] skill to propel him forwards as he brought his right fist which was glowing in ominous blue light smashing down onto the head of the giant fire ant queen. [Power Strike] *Boooom! * Chapter 60锛欴eath Returns (X): Giant Fire Ant Queen 3 The entire cave shook from the force of the hit, safe to say Rezar could happily say this was the most damage he had caused to a monster. But it wasn''t enough, the Queen''s massive head smashed into the ground creating a crater and developing massive cracks and dents on her head, however in retaliation her carapace seemed to glow and increase in temperature, and it happened so fast Rezar didn''t have time to moved away from the skin on his knuckles were scalded. The Queen raised her head up with a loud roar as flames gushed out of her open jaw, and it was going straight for Rezar''s companions and the slew of already dead ants that were actually coming back to life. It was a worrisome situation n as Rezar hadn''t gotten back into position, but even if he did, he only had a recently acquired defensive skill, and it was not high leveled enough to cause any sort of damage. At the rate things were going, he might end up losing Brutus and Jason for underestimating the queen. [Hell-Fire: Infernal Gates!] Rezar didn''t know just how many classes, and how high leveled the classes of Lenore were, but she was strong. She was posing as a melee fighter, and she even had the stats and skills for it, but she was a mage through and through, and she had really fearsome skills. A massive blazing gate appeared, shooting out of the ground and blasting rocks every which way. The gates had skulls, bones and skeletons of creatures that were obviously demons, and hanging from it were hundreds of chains that were keeping the gate shut. The flames blasted against the gate, but there was no splash damage as the thirty-foot gate absorbed every last inch of the flames until there was nothing left. It was surprising turn of events not just for Rezar, but also for the ant queen. And with the way her body was swaying, it''s obvious she was already at the end of her rope, that fire attack took a lot out of her, and not just magic. After the flames died down, her formerly vibrant carapace had turned a dull brown from a brilliant fiery red. If there was ever a time to make a hard and decisive strike, it was now, and Rezar didn''t let such an opportunity go to waste. he ran towards the ant queen, running across the wall behind her and then pushing of it until he was above her again. Using two skills at the same time was a bad idea on a whole other level, Rezar knew that, but he would rather not have the Queen make a comeback and spit fire like a dragon again, for Christ sakes she was an ant! He jumped over her head and angled his body down, a dull grey light begging to shine and slowly intermingling with a black starlight glow, and then Rezar reached her, making sure to punch right at the same area he had hit previously. [Power Strike] [Reap] *Dum! -Crack! -Bang! * Her skull was pretty much intact, but this was a two pronged attack, Rezar smashed her brain to mush and at the same time reaped her soul. The first skill put her in a weak enough state that the reaping would be successful, and it clinched the victory for them. This fight might not have lasted too long, but Rezar had to be honest, he was a little bit worried that he would fail, especially when the Queen decided it was quite normal for an ant to spit fire like a dragon. As soon as the queen died, the ants that were still alive scattered, Rezar didn''t wasn''t that but he couldn''t chase after them, before she spat out fire the queen had abruptly raise her head, it wasn''t just his fist that were burnt, but his ribs were pretty much smashed. It wouldn''t take too long to heal, but there would be no chasing after the ants, besides as it stood he had enough dead ants to accomplish his goal. [You have reaped the soul of a field boss/absorb soul? /release soul? / Imbue soul in equipment? /store?] [Soul stored] [You have slain the Field Boss Giant Fire Ant Queen Level 39/ you have received giant fire ant Spawn stone, 1000 gold coins] That was surprising, only dungeons dropped loots and money, so it turns out the queen was a special existence or the caves themselves were considered a dungeon. Never the less it didn''t matter much anymore, the Queen was already dead. Rezar walked towards Lenore who for some reason looked incredibly pale whilst ignoring Brutus and Jason who were busy piling the dead ants into a pile, while the few they had killed with their physical prowess followed behind them in a zombie like sluggish manner. If they killed the ants with weapon the ants won''t be resurrected, but if they used their horns or any other part of the body, the zombie infection would be passed. Unfortunately, unlike the movies the zombies couldn''t pass on their infection, not unless it was a zombie he raised and evolved at least once. The resurrection thing was really stringent. Lenore collapsed her staff and hung it behind her waist as she stood up to look at Rezar. "Using those flames must have exhausted you, I''m sorry. We''ll be done here soon enough, let me just resurrect these ants and have them march to the rendezvous." Rezar said as he turned around, but Lenore stopped him as she asked. "What about the queen?" Rezar moved his head to the dead carcass of the formerly fearsome monster and said. "We''ll take her with us, but we''ll have to cut her apart, dragging that much bulk will slow us down. The ants have enough strength to carry or drag their former queen behind us, she''s going to make some really great armor if I do say so myself." With that said Rezar smiled as he turned to massive pile of dead ants and smiled, he raised his hands up into the air, looking every bit like the evil necromancer people though he was as he used his skill, time to move forward with his plans. [Raise Undead] [Skill Successful] [237 Undead Raised] Chapter 61锛歍unneling to Freedom 1 Priest felt his patience slipping away from him, as much as he didn''t want to, he was dragged down to the floor of to join them with what Priest can only consider an army of cavern moles. There were almost three hundred of the creatures if not more, of all shapes and sizes. And then went down across the cavern, crossing a marshland that was almost a kilometer long, going around a lake that gave him chills, before coming to the other side of the cavern, where a massive tunnel seemed to have been dug. The bottom of the cavern was dangerous, while most of the monsters were still in their caves, it was well known that the worst of them had made their nest on the ground, rather than the hundreds of caves lining the cavern walls stretching deeper into the canyon itself. The entrance of the tunnel was actually boarded up and covered with branches, it was a good ten meters tall, and ten meters wide. If he didn''t know better, Priest would assume that this was a major road of sorts, it stretched deep into the darkness so he couldn''t see too far. But there would find out eventually, and that''s how they waited for a good hour and half before Rezar showed up with another army of undead ants, but if that wasn''t enough they were dragging the segmented pieces of an even bigger ant, like seriously huge. Of course he has seen bigger, but Priest honestly didn''t think Rezar was capable of bringing down such a monster. but granted Lenore was with him then it stands to reason she would have helped too. Rezar gave the surprised Priest a happy tap on his shoulder as he went past him until he was standing in front of Gynaika and her soccer sized group of followers. The five that were injured by him previously were completely fine, a sharp testament to Priest''s healing skills. But they looked quite pale, so they probably weren''t a hundred percent yet. "Gynaika, there''s much I want to ask you, but we don''t have the time." Rezar said as he moved closer to peer at the tunnel. "Indeed, our presence here has alerted the hegemon monsters of the cavern, I can feel them and they''re coming for us, we should make haste Son of Death." Rezar blinked, the only thing he was saying in his mind was just how unfortunate this all was, so beautiful with a body that he was sure even Priest the priest couldn''t resist, and all that amounted to was the fact that she was batshit crazy. But she wasn''t wrong, they needed to get the fuck out of here, they had a long way to go. "Priest you''re up, tell me exactly which direction we have to tunnel towards, but for now everyone into the tunnel, and you bunch of ants, use the queen''s err butt? To seal the cave." With that said, their army of undead and living monsters and a total sum of fifteen people, 2 humans, 12 wild tribe members whatever the fuck kind of race they were, and a demoness marched into the tunnel that at this moment, had already been dug for a gran distance of 5 kilometers, and there was more to be dug. >>>> About fifteen minutes later, everyone had gotten into the tunnel with the ants taking the lead, which was understandable, they would be digging out the tunnel. The march was going to be pretty slow, so to avoid that, Rezar let the ants go forwards with Neema and Brutus while Jason and Screet stayed behind to serve as his back up, but Varka, the familiar he had gotten from the random grade familiar summon ticket he had gotten from the dungeon was still sleeping as a tattoo on Rezar''s back. There was no danger, and this was trump card that no one here knew about. "Priest where are we heading to?" Rezar asked as he looked over Priest''s shoulder at the map he held in his hand. "In theory the Bahrenburg frontier should be one of the most fertile in Elysium, but even if that''s not the case, it''s an uncharted piece of land that has not been fully claimed. Never the less, the area known as Bahrenburg is estimated to be at least 1 million square miles in size, but only 68% of that is available to people, and this is not the fault of beasts, but rather as a result of the terrain. The canyons of Toromont have split Bahrenburg into two halves, the canyon is 68n kilometers long and its practically a maze that at the moment no one can fully traverse, not unless you''re a winged being or have and airship to go over. But then again there''s quite a danger, the canyons are as wide as valleys, and they''re home to wyverns, and wyrms. It''s a literal nesting grounds for draconic beings it''s so dangerous even members of the wild tribes avoid it. Flying over is even more dangerous than walking through it, however there are safe passages through. And one such passage leads to the mine, now we''re tunneling under the canyon, luckily for us the mine is almost at the end of the entire canyon itself, it''s a dead end, but were going under. I''ve been privileged to see the area where the mining town is located for above, and I can say we''re going in the right direction, and that''s south-west. We need to moved forwards for another fifteen to twenty kilometers, there''s a 37 kilometer forest just after the canyons, the tunnel should bring us right in front of the forest if not directly within it. After moving for at least twenty kilometers, we can tunnel upwards until we hit the surfaces, by then we should be fully in the forest. Then we can head west, there''s a massive basic close to the coast that used to be the lair of a leviathan, but it was slain the first time pioneers came to the land 246 years ago. If we''re walking it would take us about a month to or more to get there, if we run maybe less. But the ants are fast and undead, we should be there in a week, and our speed will definitely increase once we''re above ground. I have supplies that would last us three weeks easy, by then we should be completely away from the control of any sort of power. From then it''s all up to you Rezar, as far as your eyes can possibly see, it would have left to you just how much of this land, you would want to conquer." Chapter 62锛歍unneling to Freedom 2 Rezar shook his head dislodging a bit of dirt hanging off his luscious white locks, he furrowed his eyebrow as he sat on ant and nibbled slowly on a loaf of bread. Its been a day, and quite honestly he was getting a bit frantic and feeling all sort6s of claustrophobic being in this tunnel. They were already mining upwards at an incline, so it was only a matter of time before they got to the top and burst out into the open world above, into freedom, but the dungeon core would ty last that long, so Rezar was going to try and do something he wasn''t sure would work, but he had to try. "Priest! Can you open the case i need to see the town spire, Brutus comes over here, I need the dungeon core?" The town spire wouldn''t be activated until it was planted at a location, but Rezar was hoping it would bond to the dungeon core, and the dungeon core would become inactive until they finally get a place to call home. The ants at the front kept on tunneling, and while there has hardly been any sort of debris with the ants eating the rocks and turning it into a biological cement that they used in keeping the tunnel smooth and clear. Normally when building a tunnel like this, you would need to set beams to support the ceiling from falling down, however the biological agent the ants secreted when digging, which acted like acid to break down the rocks, but had its effects fade quickly leaving behind a severely hardened patch of rock that held the tunnel together. Rezar shook his head as he faces the situation in front of him. Even if they got out of the tunnels on time, they would still have a wide stretch of land to cross before finally reaching their destination, not to mention there was no guaranteed that there wouldn''t be any sort of encounter on the way. Rezar had be downloaded into Elysium as a slave, almost had his face chewed off the first day he got here, got framed, and then subsequently got stuck in a dungeon for eight months. he wholeheartedly expected something to go horribly wrong, that way he could make contingencies and not be caught off guard. The metal box was easily two meters tall and had three segments, from what Rezar could remember and understand about Elysium, there was no such thing like an inventory. There''s a virtual coin pouch or something similar that keeps all your money bonded to your status page, you could use from there, and transfer it. However, there were quite a few people who like the feeling of real gold coins so they could go get a withdrawal from a bank. One of the segments slid down as everyone turned to see what Rezar was doing, the ants kept on working, with the main force being at least two kilometers ahead. The spire beneath the metal case was unlike any Rezar had ever seen before, instead of the normal floating stone spire with glowing symbols and runic scripts, there was a blue 1.7-meter crystal with golden runes all over it, and it pulsed with a rhythmic light that seemed to sooth and strengthen everyone here, Rezar heard Lenore and Gynaika gasp in shock, Priest had a sheepish look on his face. Rezar ignored them for now, whatever the case may be, Priest would give him an answer once he was done, this town spire didn''t seem like something that was normal, in fact it sorts of felt ''familiar'' in a way that he couldn''t fathom. He was about to touch it when he heard Lenore berating Priest. "You! lazy old man! Couldn''t you have just gotten him a simple basic spire, we could have leveled that up, but you went ahead and got him a Legacy Spire. You know unless he has a class, or title, or a bloodline connected to the previous owner, that spire would not activate for him. This would have all just been for nothing, we''ll be sitting ducks out there without a settlement to shelter us." But all Priest did was motion with his head at Rezar for him to continue. Rezar shrugged his shoulder and placed a hand on the spire, at first there was no reaction, then the golden runes on the spire began to flash and glow, subsequently followed by the crystal itself as a cold feeling rushed into Rezar''s body. It was a feeling he was familiar with, one that he has had to deal with ever since he woke up here, and that was the feeling of death. Cold and unforgiving and impartial, going by what Lenore just said, it can only mean one thing this spire once belonged to a death class holder. [This is a legacy spire for the hidden city Roma''s Boneyard. You have met the requirements to become the new owner of the spire, begin bonding procedure?] [Spire bonded] [You have a dungeon core. Attach crystal to spire for auxiliary effects/ or use as a catalyst to level up spire] [Dungeon core attached, your town spire can now spawn monsters] [You have a giant fire ant spawn key, should dungeon core absorb key?] [Key absorbed, your dungeon core can now spawn giant fire ants] [The town spire has two available skill slots and the dungeon core has one. Each skill slot will devour a skill, Title or class from you and give the core or spire skills or effects that would determine their orientation and progression. You can gain a new skill slot when the spire or core gets to a higher level. Please input skill to be devoured] "err maybe later." ? Item: Town Spire(Un-seeded) || Name: Roma''s Boneyard (Changeable) ? Grade: Legacy|| Owner: Rezar Deathwind || Level: 0(0%) ? Attachments: Dungeon Core Level 1(10%) For a town spire, it seemed pretty basic, but Rezar could infer that it was probably because it was still ''un-seeded''. So until they get to a place where they can fully place this spire on the ground, it''s going to remain like this. But it wasn''t bad, at least now he didn''t have to worry about the dungeon core becoming useless. But more than that was the discovery that said dungeon core could be used to level up a town spire. It was a good idea, but it didn''t seem cost effective, dungeons were a hot spot for resources, and almost every place where people gathered to live, needed a dungeon to survive, so there''s hardly anyone who would be willing to destroy a dungeon to level up a spire when it could do that on its own with time and proper management. But it was something Rezar was willing to take under advisement, for future purposes of course. *BOOOM! * "What the hell was that?" Priest shouted as the tunnel shook a bit and they all looked and ran towards the front of their extremely long procession. Rezar was extremely worried as he quickly got to the head of the line and discovered that a part of the tunnel had collapsed, crushing quite a few ants. He looked around and quickly located Neema and Brutus, thankfully they were okay. Screet walked up to Rezar and said. "Congratulations master, we''ve reached the surface. But since when did Elysium have four moons?" Screet asked in confusion, but Rezar all too willing to answer him. "Those aren''t moons Screet. They''re eyes!" Chapter 63锛歍unneling to Freedom 3: Shadow Wyrm Rezar swallowed hard as he took a step backwards, but a firm hand on his shoulder made him freeze as the same movement was transmitted to his undead and they too stayed still like the dead they were. The reptilian eyes that stared at them was a blazing yellow, however it was dull, like a film was placed over it and completely unfocused. Rezar didn''t need anyone spelling it out for him, this monster was completely blind and couldn''t see them, as for its other senses. He wasn''t sure just how good they were, but given how everyone was staying silent; it stands to reason that it had an above average sense of hearing. The seconds bled into minutes as the only thing to accompany them was the sound of the monster breathing, its massive scaled head filled with grooves and awkward ridges that; on the face of a normal person could go for wrinkles; had massive spikes jutting out of it. Rezar couldn''t even see the whole of its head, just the area around its eye, but that alone was terrifying as the eye had a shocking 100-meter radius, calling it huge would be a gross understatement. Rezar wanted to curse at Priest, he was sure they were past the canyons, he could see the night sky above, but the question was why in the hell was there a monster this massive waiting there, nobody had an answer to that question, so all they could do was wait with their hearts in their throats and their bodies silent. At least until Rezar''s nose itched him and he absentmindedly scratched it. The eye moved and he froze, everyone else that was alive wanted to curse at him. but the thing is, unlike everybody here, Rezar was not afraid. He was sticking to his current spot simply because he was fearless not stupid, he wouldn''t be able to go up against that thing, not for a very long time. And then just as suddenly as they had encountered it, it decided to leave, a massive serpentine body, over a hundred meters long, slid over the hole, giving them front row seats to a scaled underbelly that looked like it could tank the full force of a nuke. It moved really fast, but it took a whole 3 minutes for its entire body to have moved over the hole. Rezar turned to look at Neema and gave her a signal with his head. The undead mole queen scrambled up the slope of collapsed earth and poked her head out the hole, scouting the entire area as she sought to see if there was any more danger. She looked around for a few seconds then looked down with a thumbs up. "We''re clear!" "What the fuck was that?" Rezar turned to Priest as he asked, a monster would only be identified after you slain it or tamed it or you actually had the inspect or appraise skill. "That''s a shadow wyrm. Massive behemoths and the kings of the frontier of Bahrenburg, there''s only five of them in existence and they''re all here in Bahrenburg, with their nests deep in the canyons and underground. This is the first time I''ve seen one, and the first time one has been above ground and out of the canyons, maybe it has happened before, but I''ve not heard of anyone seeing them outside of 5 kilometers from their nest. So honestly this is a surprise, but at least we''re safe." Rezar didn''t feel safe, on the contrary he wanted to get the hell out of here and away from that thing before the urge to touch it gets too overwhelming, because that was a surefire way to die. Of course Rezar wasn''t so sure he could die, but courting death by going to feel the texture of the shadow wyrm''s scales and wondering what sort of armor it can be used for was not a good idea. "so which direction are we heading towards?" Rezar turned to ask Priest as he took a cursory glance at the night sky above their heads. "I may have forgotten to bring a compass along with me, so unled its daytime where I can use the sun to navigate, movement is pretty much useless. And unfortunately the stars in Elysium changed their positions every night, I would need the astrologer class to be able to find a route to our direction, and I don''t have it." Rezar twitched, this was annoying, he didn''t want to stay here. Granted the night might be even more dangerous than the day, but he wanted to seriously get a move on, before something else less blind than that shadow wyrm stumbles upon them and decided they were the best sort of snack to have in this current situation. "You don''t have to worry; we can lead you to your destination. Before my exile, my people have roamed this lands for centuries, while our home is beyond the great maze, we''ve come here many times on pilgrimage to the holy mountain of Cruschet. My people can lead you to the coast." Gynaika said as she came close to Rezar. Priest furrowed his eyebrows feeling completely overshadowed, but he was not a child. This much he could deal with, not to mention Gynaika was right. Her tribe was well known within and beyond the canyons, having been one of the first wild tribes people have come in contact with when Bahrenburg was first being pioneered. If there was ever a group of people who knew the lay of the land beyond the canyon, it would be them. "We will have to ride all night and very fast, we would also have to keep to the edge of the forest; it''s almost a dangerous as the open, but staying close means we can move into the canopy for cover should we come across any sort of danger. If we leave now and maintain top speed, we should be there in at least two hours to three hours, the ants are very fast." Well she wasn''t wrong, the ants were very fast and if he should push them all to the limit, their speed would just fall a bit short of a horse. But they''re undead, which means their stamina is endless, they could run for the next one year if they had to, and they probably could. His undead could last that long now anyway. Rezar began to give out orders as he took his place on a giant soldier ant, this was bigger than much of the others and it had been personally raised by Rezar. The workers were quite slower than the soldiers and smaller, but there were more of them too. The tunneling had been mostly their efforts, while the moles helped a bit. Never the less top speed for everybody would be a bit difficult as the moles were not as fast, so estimated time of arrival should be about five hours. But it didn''t matter, they were close, close to the place that would become their new home, Rezar was giddy with excitement. Chapter 64锛欳laim 1 Rezar cursed in annoyance, he was already so tired of sitting on this ant, his butt felt extremely chaffed and raw from the constant sitting down on the back of the giant fire ant, the only thing that had really helped him had been his regeneration, if it was for anything other than that, he was sure he would have very bloody legs and clothes. They were close, they just left the forest behind them, and a two-hundred-meter-long plain was spread out in front of them. At the end was the dark horizon, but it was gladly lighting up as the sun rose behind their backs and the shimmering light of a crystal blue sea lit up in all of its glory and splendor. Rezar had to appreciate the beauty of such a sight, it was graceful beyond compare and he was glad he had at least made it this far. At the end of the two-hundred-meter plain with ankle length grasses and flowers was a cliff, or better yet it could be said to be the opening of a basin. It was in the shape of a moon, but if it was looked out from above, the basin was shaped like the omega symbol. Rezar estimated its rim to be at least 10 kilometers in diameter. It was like the opening of a cave, but it should be shaped like an upside down bowl so the top would be that much smaller, meaning it would spread out within covering more space, and he was right. A luscious biome of green and life spread out until it met crystal withe sand that met the crystal sea with a soft hug. Normally, Rezar would worry about the tides, but everything was at an elevation, with its peak being almost a hundred meters above sea level. The peak met the back of what was obviously a bowl shaped cavern, leveling out into a flat plateau that had a tree with golden leaves solitary standing and surrounded by a field of beautiful flowers. This place was beautiful, special, but above that it was extremely full of life. From the back of the cavern. Which is the cavern wall, all the way to the sea, was an estimated distance of 20 kilometers. 2 of which was just a sandy beach of extreme beauty. This was enough space for a city, whether it starts out as a settlement and levels up to a village, in the end all Rezar could see was a grand city by the sea and sheltered by earth. But all it was now, was potential and an untapped land, he had to make it into what his vision just saw. "Let''s get down, the sun just rose, we should be able to take care of some things before the day runs out." Rezar said as the ants went over the rim of the basin. Kin a way this could be considered a cove, but the top was blasted away, Rezar was able to see that the edges of the rim was very jagged, like something had shot up out of it in anger, and since this used to be a nesting ground for a Leviathan, it wasn''t too hard to come to a conclusion about what blasted a hole this large. As they went down, Rezar paid attention to a lot of things, the distance down the wall to the elevated plateau that was just about 300 meters in diameter, was about 90 feet. Enough space to leave someone a bloody stain on the field below. The walls of the cavern were dark, in fact they were black and Rezar had only see Obsidian ore shimmer with such a color. However, he had a new passive skill to his mining class, [Earth Sense]. The skill synchronized well enough with his god sight, and he could see specks of multicolored lights all over the cavern wall to show veins for ores and precious stones. And from what he could see, there was a shit ton of diamonds here, like so much he had to close his eyes and open them to revert them back to his normal sight. That was a lot of money looking at him, but he would have to get in contact with ''normal'' people to sell them. But one hurdle after the other, he wouldn''t rush himself or worry about making money now. When that bridge comes, he would happily cross it, but for now, he just need a place to set roots. They finally got to the bottom, and Rezar jumped off the back of the ant. The ground beneath his feet was solid, but he could still feel the way the grass beneath his feet caressed his leather boots, how the scent of the sea rushed forwards and embraced him, it smelled so much like freedom, until. "Who who are you?" a tiny voice asked from in front of him, Rezar whipped his head so fast to look in the direction of the golden tree as his gaze fell on the 3-year-old girl that was hiding within its branches. One word could only come out of his mouth at that time. "Dryad!" But he was not the only one surprised, there was no other tree around, and that was a fundamental aspect as Dryads are only born within forests, or close to cities. Because for all intents and purposes they weren''t monsters, but reincarnated humans! Or players who chose to play the race. But she was here, all alone, practically in the middle of nowhere. The dryad race was unique in Elysium, those who download for the first time or chose to reincarnate assuming they have a choice into the race, do so for one reason and one reason only. The race remembers nothing of a past life, no impressions, no knowledge apart from being able to speak, not unless they were players. And seeing how young she was, it only stood to reason she''s been alone this entire time. Rezar didn''t care though, she was an unexpected bump in his path seeing as he already had plans to remove that tree, it was right in the middle of the plateau and he wanted to plant the town spire there. But think about how a town spire is supposed to be accessed by everyone, that might not be a good idea. But he found it hard to believe she had been alone by herself all this time, he moved forwards to ask more questions until "Watch out!!" he heard Gynaika yell behind him as she jumped forwards and pushed him out of the way as root surged forwards from the three and drilled into her stomach bursting out from her back. And then the golden tree turned into a blood red tree with leaves, the dryad grew older and had a bunch of horns, and just as she attacked, about a dozen men and women jumped out of well-hidden spots Rezar had previously not noticed. Looks like someone else had come to stake his or her claim on this fertile and strategic piece of land. There would be no negotiating between both parties now, only death. Chapter 65锛歍he Darkness In The Light THE HOLY CROSS THEOCRACY HOLY CITY OF YAWEH SALVATION CATHEDRAL The young acolyte ran past winding hallways and elaborate halls. The ambient atmosphere of the cathedral was one that gave anyone visiting here for the first time an aura of intimidation and the divine. A realm of holiness and power one just could never hope to achieve, but to the most cynical atheist, they would say the stench of religion was heavy in the air. But Elysium permitted this, it allowed it to thrive, after all just as it breeds chaos, nothing breeds order just as good as religion, and the church of the holy cross was one of the oldest there is. The ambience of the cathedral was something the acolyte was already used to, now it was no longer such a daunting location, but a place he has come to call his home. A place that gave him purpose and understanding and direction the likes of which he has never experienced before. But for all intents and purposes this was his home, but now a grave news has come forth. The acolyte went deeper into the cathedral, escaping from the numerous halls and coming up to a central tower whose very peak pierced the clouds, to many this was known as the tower of crucifixion, or the golden cross, because that was what it was. A tower thousands of feet tall that it pierced the clouds and could be seen for kilometers on end. The acolyte was still just a messenger and not yet a pastor of the church, even pastors themselves were restricted in access as only priests and priestesses of the divine faith could go into the golden cross. But this acolyte was part of a special breed, he was a diviner, a low level one, but a diviner none the less. The ability to read the codes of Elysium and divine the past and present and sometimes even the future was rare, they might not be able to interfere with Elysium, but they could tell what events were currently happening, and the grand diviner of the church has just discovered something that warranted the attention of the Grand Saint. And this lowly acolyte was the messenger chosen to deliver the message. After a significant amount of time, he found himself in front of a four-meter-tall golden door. The door itself was ornately crafted with the symbols of the almighty and the sacrifice of his son, and the council of light gods and the legion of divine angels that served them. this was the chamber of the saint, and standing right in front of the doors, the acolyte couldn''t help but get down on his knees as a look of reverence and respect became etched on his face. "Y-your E-eminence; this Lowly Acolyte brings a message from the Grand diviner." As soon as he finished speaking there was a sudden pressure on him, however this pressure did not scare him, rather it eased his nerves and healed his soul, the acolyte was shocked. This was [Holy Bastion] and one that was probably at the highest level. Only one person in the whole of Elysium could have this spell, and here it was being used on him. "Speak child, what message does the diviner have for me?" an incredibly soothing voice sounded out, and with that it confirmed a rumor for the young acolyte; the current grand saint was in fact a woman, while not the first, she was the youngest ever; 46. The acolyte swallowed as he prepared to deliver the message. "The grand diviner has received a revelation your eminence, a death class holder has risen in the frontier." The acolyte said, waiting for affirmation from the saint to continue his message. "Which frontier?" she asked, and the acolyte bowed even lower as he answered. "The Bahrenburg frontier your eminences, the Grand diviner has also said that he lives with the light of holiness in his veins and is loved by death herself." The acolyte completed his message as he bowed waiting for a verdict. "it seems that''s all the message you have for me, very well. Go back to the diviner parish and have the grand diviner come pay me a visit, so we can have a talk about this necromancer that lives with the light of holiness and is loved by death. You''re dismissed acolyte, remain blessed by the father, the son, the spirit and the divine lights of the savior." The acolyte bowed and then turned around to walk down the massive tower and head another few kilometers back to the diviner parish. He couldn''t wait to be a priest and be granted a teleportation medallion, at least moving around will be much easier. He was gone, but there was a heavier atmosphere as the only thing that could be heard was the breathing of the saint. And then she spoke, her voice traveling across a great distance unheard by the ears of many, deep down into the basement of the tower, to an obscure room where a man sat on a throne made of bones with a book in his hand. "Malik another death class user has surfaced, this is the seventh one in recent memory, and from what I''ve heard it seems he is quite special as opposed to the others. I need you to go to Bahrenburg frontier and retrieve him, make sure he is unharmed. And fully whole Malik I would not want a repeat of last time." The voice of the saint admonished as the man closed the book in his hands, his piercing blue eyes glowing in the dark as his white hair seemed to shimmer. "I don''t know why you have me doing this fetch quests, you have paladins and bishops that are considered the best and strongest in Elysium, not to mention all your bloody popes. Why does it have to be me every time?" the man, known as Malik said as he got up to a standing position, as he flung the book in his hand behind him, a hint of annoyance in his eyes. "You''re a servant of the theocracy Malik, a part of this family so you should be willing to do your part. Besides no one knows the death classes better than you, wouldn''t it be better if the strongest of them all is the one responsible for finding and capturing all the death classes and keeping them under control?" the saint''s voice asked, sounding sultrier than holy. "You mean under your control?" he asked with a mocking smile on his face. The saint answered with an equally annoyed tone of voice. "the death classes are a threat to order, it has been the responsibility of the church and every other holy faction to make sure the threat is curbed and maintained! So stop asking so many questions and do as I say! Go to Bahrenburg and retrieve the death class user there, deliver him safely to the control of the church and you will be well rewarded as always." The saint said with an even voice. "Well that wouldn''t be a problem for me, but what if this new necromancer proves too hard to err ''convince'' to follow me back?" Malik asked as he had a rather sinister smile on his face whilst lifting up a spear that looked like the very personification of death itself. "I never said he was a necromancer Malik." The saint said with curious tone in her voice. "You didn''t have to; I just have a feeling that''s all." Malik replied with a smile, the spear immediately catching fire as a dark green flame covered its black frame. "well if that''s the case and he is a necromancer then he has no need for both his legs and his left arm, that should make him more pliable. And if he resists even more, then get rid of his right arm too. All in all, as long as you get him back here alive, your mission would still be considered complete. However, Malik; if he''s not whole the rewards would be lesser, try to be careful." All Malik did was smile at her before his body disappeared in a blaze of green flames, but as he left his voice still rang in the ears of the grand saint. "You know me Soraya I''m always careful." Chapter 66锛欳laim 2 Rezar was caught off guard, because he honestly didn''t expect that there would be this much people waiting for them in ambush, or there would even be anyone here at all. Necromancers had skills that were unfortunately not catered to dealing damage or being defensive, they didn''t have debuffs as most dark priests, but they were good in deal DOT (damage over time) to their enemies. But all classes were balanced, a necromancer would eventually have defensive skills and attacking skills that dealt higher than normal damage and didn''t deal sustained amounts of damage over a certain amount of time. After his necromancer class had advanced, Rezar had gotten four skills, the first had been [Summon Undead], the second was a basic attacking skill for black magic, which was pretty much different from dark magic as dark magic had to do with the darkness element in much the same way fireballs were born from the fire element. This skill was [Black Bolt] which also carried with it a 5% chance to reduce all stats of anyone struck with it by 50%. And when you bring into question the other buffs brought on by his son of death title, then that percentage was pretty much higher than normal. He was literally born for this, however what was really taking the center stage here was a defensive skill, and this was practically the only one he had. Rezar had actually spent a significant amount of time training this skill on their way here, enough so that when another root and a lance of flame were blasted towards him, he was more than ready to bring it to a halt. [Reaper''s Wind Shield] A concave screen of the deepest shade of black came into existence in front of him, easily absorbing the skills that were sent flying in his direction, and it happily replicated it and sent it shooting back at 200% their original power, smashing into a shocked dark dryad and her ground of friends, throwing their incoming formation into disarray. Rezar turned to look back at Gynaika, Priest was already healing her, a warm light spread all over her injured form as he tried to save her life. Everyone else apart from her entourage who had crowded around her surged forwards towards the attacking group of enemies, and if Rezar had to be honest those enemies were pretty much stupid as he gave a silent order for his undead to go round and flank them. and this was a result of the third skill he had gained after advancing [ Undead Telepathy] and it was a passive rather than active skill, allowing him to control and give orders to his undead without having to say it out loud. The shield fizzled out and Lenore shot past him, her rapier outstretched with its edges covered with lightning, which if Rezar had to be honest was a far cry from her previous fiery disposition and skills. But she was not the only who had move forwards as Screet had jumped high into the air and came down with so much force the very earth beneath his feet shook and cracked in response to the usage of his skill [Earth Tremor]. This threw the attackers off guard as Lenore''s rapier pierced forwards like a bullet heading for the dryad''s neck as she was still at the forefront. She crossed her hands in front of her face blocking the blow, but the blast of [Thunder Shock] that came next sent her flying back into her comrades as Brutus bulldozed his way into their formation after seemingly coming out of thin air. he gored a female mage with the most intense prejudice, not even stopping as his horns pierced her and she released a scream of anguish. He moved his head left and right and flung her off his ivory horns now bloodied with her blood as he turned to face her companions, who were now realizing they weren''t dealing with a normal party, especially since they were now able to notice the seemingly endless stream of undead ants and living cavern moles crawling down from the top of the rim. "There''s a necromancer here! Retreat! Retreat!" a man with a red themed iron armor yelled out to his comrades, but Rezar had no intention of letting the five in front of him escape. [Bind!] [Black Bolt!] The leader had a scroll in his hand, this was probably a teleportation scroll, and seeing how each of his comrades pulled one out, they were obviously prepared. The only difference was the dryad who was terribly injured and faced with a single minded Lenore who wanted nothing more than to lop of her head. If not for that, she couldn''t escape as her very tree was planted here, she would have to uproot said tree and teleport with it. Rezar ducked under a wild swing from a root, as eldritch black and purple chains shot out of his back heading for the four other members who were about to make their escape, seeing how it was taking so long to activate those teleportation scrolls, it seemed they were from a place that was not close by. The chains stabbed through two of them, interrupting the teleportation, but the leader dragged the third member in front of him and let the chains pierce into his body, while he allowed the teleportation scroll fully activate. But as he was about to disappear into the portal that seemed to suck in his form, a ball of black formless energy smashed I to his chest, forcing him to spit out blood as he disappeared from the cove. Rezar cursed softly as he turned his gaze to the only person that had not been subdued, and that was the dryad. But from the look of things, Lenore had her on the defensive, or at least it seemed that way until her tree literally picked itself up and surged forwards towards Lenore, using a speed that should not have been possible for a tree. [Apparition] Rezar disappeared from his previous position, grabbing Lenore and moving out of the way as the tree and Dryad became one. The tree seemed to grow bigger and its roots thicker, Rezar couldn''t help but think that somehow this had transition into a boss battle. Dryads are known for their intense skill over nature magic, even if she was a dark dryad that was born to feat on the blood and bones of the living, she was still dangerous. And ultimately, one thing still had to be considered, and that was their powerful defense. Rezar was at an impasse, he needed answers, and the Dryad was the only member of the attackers still left alive. Rezar came to a stop six meters away from the giant tree that had taken the shape of a woman. The chains from his [Bind] skill hovered behind him as he shook the bodies of the other members off and looked at the dryad with all of his focus. "I have some questions Dryad, and if you don''t answer me, then I''ll be using you for firewood tonight! So, what would it be?" Rezar asked with his eyes narrowed, however the answer he received was on he didn''t expect; the Dryad just turned around and ran away. Chapter 67锛欳laim 3 Running away wasn''t something anyone of them would have expected, so it stood to reason that as the feminine giant blood red tree took huge strides to escape, they were all stuck staring at her direction in surprise, at least until one of Gynaika''s followers threw a spear with such speed and accuracy, Rezar felt his heart grow cold. The spear planted itself solidly in her back, eliciting a pain screech as more than half of the spear had sunk into her tree like body. It kept her in place long enough for Rezar to make a move. [Bind] The chains surged forwards in an incredibly threatening manner and stabbed into her branches, or basically the parts of her body that were her legs and arms, completely pinning her down. But she was stronger than she looked as she pulled at the chains, dragging Rezar as his feet dug furrows into the ground, ruining the pristine carpet of beautiful green grass and flowers that stretched all the way to the beach. Rezar furrowed his brow as the chains pushed forwards even more and stabbed through her body, before stretching out and curling around her to keep her completely bound and captive. She had terrible wounds, but she was Dryad, it would take a little more than those wounds to keep her completely down. Rezar turned around and made a bee line for Gynaika, his face furrowed in worry as Priest tried to heal the damage done to her. "Rezar my healing can''t keep up with the bleeding and the curse that''s placed in her. The dryad used a skill that would not only cause the wound to keep on bleeding for as long as it''s open, but there''s a blood seed in her body, its attached itself to her heart and its slowly draining her of blood while stretching its roots allover her body. I can''t slow it down or stop it without a full surgery, and I''m not prepared for it. She''s going to die." Rezar didn''t like the sound of that, it didn''t matter what Priest thought, but she was in this situation because she had put herself in harm''s way for his sake. She didn''t need to, Rezar could not be killed except by an object of holy and demonic might, basically a weapon that has both attributes and even he knew that such was too rare. He ignored the stink eye most of her followers were given him, he had to find a way to keep them under a tight leash, they were her followers not his, so it stands to reason they could betray him later, but before he has to deal with that he has to save Gynaika first, and thankfully there was way. He was cursed, and while it might sound like a terrible thing, in some special cases, like the current one they were all facing, his curse was a blessing. Rezar bent down and in on swift motion used one of the sickles to slice apart his wrist. Ruby red streams of blood gushed out of the wound, dripping down his hand and into her open mouth. Everyone was shocked, and her followers even more so as they moved forwards to attack, but Jason''s large form and Neema''s look that promised death and a painful one at that forced them to remain where they were, but the rage in their eyes was palpable, they probably felt that Rezar was defiling their holy priestess. Rezar on the other hand didn''t give a shit. It didn''t even take five seconds for Gynaika to surge forwards, opening her eyes wide as she started vomiting a significant amount of blood and probably her breakfast too. Everyone gave her space as her complexion seemed to go through a variety of changes from extremely pale, to bright red. She seemed to be in a lot of pain as she hacked and coughed and clawed at her neck where green veins could be seen. Rezar was just as shocked as they were, he didn''t exactly know what was going to happen when he gave her his blood. He had only ever done this once for Jason when he was seriously injured, but this was the first time he was doing this on a live person, and even more so one that wasn''t really human. Gynaika gave one final hack as a bloodied orb with roots clinging to her Insides could be seen on her lips. She stretched her hands to pull it out. It was a rather unnerving sight as she pulled what was obviously the blood seed out of her mouth, and as she did so, what followed was an extremely long bunch of thin blood red roots that were very much alive. It was a struggle, but she was able to completely pull the roots out, before throwing the seed to the ground and falling on her back completely passed out. The seed had its roots waving about in the air like the legs of a centipede when it was turned over on its back. Rezar shuddered, shaking with disgusts as he looked at Priest who looked back at him with a surprised look on his face before saying. "She''s fully healed, there''s no scratch, nothing at all to show that she was injured apart from her ripped clothing h-how?" Rezar didn''t give him an answer as he turned to face the still bound Dryad, he''s [Bind] skill was almost out of its duration. "We''ll talk later old man, but for now we need to find out where these visitors of ours had come from." Priest opened his mouth to say something, but he kept his mouth shut knowing that truly this wasn''t the time for questions, they had pressing concerns. Rezar walked until he was right in front of the Dryad, and just to drive his point home of not being in the mood to play around, he stomped down hard on her wooden leg, his face completely impassive as the sounds of wood splintering filled the cove. Her screams and tears were ignored as he walked up to her face, and then pulled on her branch/leaf like hair. "Now tell me, who else wants to claim this place?" Chapter 68锛欳laim 3: The Beginning The Dryad knew she didn''t have much of a choice, in fact from the moment Rezar captured her compliance was assured, because while she might be attached to her current life, if Rezar decides to kill her like her three former comrades, then there was no second chance for her, no reincarnation and no eternal life, just the true death in all of its grisly glory, so when he asked, who else wanted to claim this land, she happily or rather fearfully. Spilled the beans. "it''s the Dustin Crowe merchant company! I''m just an adventurer hired by them to come scout the land and lay down and help build a wharf so that their ships can dock and begin preparations to cultivate the land into the first official port city of the Bahrenburg''s frontier, more specifically the first city here, in the dark lands." Rezar placed a hand under his jaw as he watched her, frankly speaking he had a few memories about this merchant company, it''s been in existence for roughly 80 years. The owner always left clues, and pathways that enabled him to gain back control of his company every reincarnation, until it had grown to be one of the major conglomerates in Elysium. It was not amongst the top ten, but it was notable enough to be in the top twenty. And it was because of this; Rezar knew that they''ll be back, and this time with an army to put an end to his dreams of world domination before he''s even had a chance to begin. He looked down at the Dryad contemplating whether or not he should kill her, he didn''t think she was important enough to the Crowe merchant company seeing as the leader of her group had unceremoniously left her behind, but then again there was a small chance she could be a useful bargaining chip. The look in her eyes might be foreign to Rezar, but he knew exactly what it was, and for a moment he was beset by a feeling of want, of longing as he easily read the emotion in her eyes; fear, something he doesn''t have, or will ever seem to have. Rezar retracted his chains and made sure to roughly pull out the spear lodged in her chest, ignoring the scream of pain she released as she fell to the ground, crying as snot and saliva mixed with the dirt in the ground, she was beaten, there was no need to do more. "I get this feeling that you would be useful to me later on, but my feelings have been wrong before, so I wouldn''t get to comfortable if I were you. Any suspicious activity, or if god forbid I get tired of looking at your sorry self. You''ll be doing in the most painful way imaginable, do I make myself clear?" Rezar asked as he gave an order for the ant carrying the town spire to walk towards him. "Yes sir!" the Dryad gritted out with forced breaths heavily laden with pain and poorly disguised contempt. Rezar didn''t care about that though, as he moved down from the small plateau, and went down the slope, going down until the others were in the distance, and he had come to where he envisioned was the true center of all this place, and there was an empty patch of grass there, showing the brown soft earth for Rezar to plant the town spire. [Do you want to bound town spire to this location (leviathan''s Lair] [Bonding in 5-4-3-2-1-0 bonding complete, you are now the leader of this settlement. Please be sure to name the settlement, and harvest resources for construction. As a leader, you now have access to the town spire market and auction hub. Communication with other towns and cities is now possible, along with making binding trade agreements or purchasing blueprints to help improve your territory. Congratulations.] Rezar watched as the town spire floated above the patch of earth, before a pedestal of sorts grew up from the ground, glowing a golden light as it held onto the spire, though there was still a bit of separation between the two as the spire still floated. All in all, Rezar was well on his way to making that home for himself that he always wanted, but he also knew he would have to defend it sooner rather than later. ? Settlement Name: N/A (Changeable) || Level: 0(0%) ? Grade: Legacy(Undead)|| Leader: Rezar Deathwind ? Population: 15/30 ||Military: 0/10|| Military Might: F- ? Attachments: Dungeon Core Level 1(10%)+ ? Perks: N/A (upgrade settlement to village) ? Skills: N/A (upgrade settlement to village) ? Resources: Food (0)/ Wood (0)/ Stone (0)/ Ore (0)/ Magic (32)/ Money: (0/0/0) ? Shop/ Allies: N/A (Upgrade settlement to town) For some reason all of his undead were not considered a part of the settlement, just those who were alive in the normal sense of the word. They were probably considered a personal property of his, hence they could not be counted as his. Rezar had seen a screenshot of a towns stat page, there was a lot of detail missing, but he knew once the settlement evolved all those missing options would be laid bare, population would be a problem though, but he was not too worried, he would cross that bridge when he gets there. Never the less it was time to put his undead ant and mostly living cavern mole workforce to work. Buildings could be done manually, but they system could take care of that if you had resources, gold and a blueprint of what you want to build. Now at the moment the settlement doesn''t have money of its own, so Rezar would have to dip into his own pockets, but that wasn''t so bad, this place belonged to him. He swiftly gave orders, of the two hundred plus ants, he sent two hundred up the cliff and back to the forests they just skirted the edge of. Jason would be supervising as they went to gather wood, the moles would mine the surface of the cove walls, Rezar planned to build an expansive city that would stretch into the cove itself, but for now it was a well prepared source of not just stone, but also ore and magic! With that out of the way, all Rezar can do now is check the shop and purchase the tools that would help them all survive the coming days, this was just the beginning, but no matter what happens, history will remember that on this day; Rezar Deathwind laid claim! To a Leviathan''s lair, and it felt good. Chapter 69锛欱lueprints And Quests When it comes to a settlement, the first thing of importance should be shelter, they needed to have a roof over their heads before they could have tackled anything else, but regardless Rezar knew he had to plan proper allocation of the buildings so that it wouldn''t cause issues in the future. While the system can help build the shelters, it wouldn''t help in moving them, something about balance, so a demolition is what would free a space from land. So this was why Rezar and Priest were looking at a virtual depiction of the land that was now their settlement, it stretched all the way to the beach and back to the forest itself across the plain, it had tiles to serve as a representation. Each tile was about a fifty by fifty square, and a single column had 341 squares, and a roll had 177 squares. By rounding up that figure using multiplication, the entire length of their territory was 17,050 meters, which in distance was 17.05 kilometer or 10.59 miles'' worth of land. That was a lot, like a whole lot and it would take someone a significant amount of time to walk from the beach all the way to the forest. Rezar reckoned that his earlier calculation was wrong, guess his eyes weren''t as accurate as he thought it was, and he was underestimating the size of the territory he had claimed. In width, it meant the territory was 8,850 meters wide, and in distance that was 8.85 kilometers. Giving the entire territory a total size of 25,90 kilometers, Rezar wasn''t so sure how that translated into square kilometers. But never the less it meant he had enough land to play with. The plateau they were on alone was about 4 kilometers long and a good seven kilometers wide. Call him delusional, but all Rezar could imagine this large swath of land being, was a castle, one shrouded in fog and darkness as the world quaked in fear of its majesty. This part of the cove he was claiming for himself, but he would get to that. He and Priest decided to make simple allocations first, extravagant and exquisite planning can wait seeing as there just wasn''t much of them here, so they''ll just make do and take care of their immediate needs., with that said Rezar turned to the system shop, going after blue prints, but all it could offer was simple options due to the fact that they were just a settlement. CONSTRUCTION UNITS: ? Housing Unit: Basic Log Cabin (20 silver)/Leader''s Cabin (50 silver) ? Defensive Unit: Wooden Stake Wall (10 silver), Wooden Scout Tower (30 silver) ? Commercial Units: N/A (Upgrade settlement to village) ? System Controlled Unit: Basic Citizen Recruitment Hall (2 gold) Everything here was pretty much expected, but what caught his attention the most was the citizen recruitment hall, and then he remembered something, with priest even helping him confirm it. Spires were connected to each other like some elaborate social media account. There are hundreds of people always on the lookout for something new, or wanting to start afresh in a new town or serving a new lord, Rezar could place a certain amount of coins in that hall every day, and it would recruit people from all over Elysium to join his settlement. A higher leveled hall would even be able to recruit players, and in all honesty they were some of the best resource in Elysium given their undying nature. There were no units to handle the growth of food, so probably they had to wait till the settlement upgraded to a village before they began to worry about food. But everything was a slow and steady crawl at this point, so he focused on what was right in front of him. He bought ten blueprints for the units of the basic log cabin, he got the leader''s cabin for himself, and then got the blueprints for the wooden wall, the scout tower, and the basic citizen recruitment hall. To build any of these buildings a single blueprint was required, if you needed more, you also had to purchase more blueprints, and then pay the cost for the system to build it. To Rezar the system was just eating his money, but he knew that wasn''t the case. Apart from the system controlled buildings, every other blueprint or resource sold, was placed into the system through the town spire for sale. Which is to say should he get a capable civil engineer or architect, they would be able to make blueprints of their own and place into the system for sale, automatically earning the settlement money. Never the less, he wanted to be done and level up, if not upgrade the settlement up and as soon as possible. There were no units for storage, and the only other categories the shop has, was for perishable food and tools. Weapons weren''t even on sale, so levels are needed. The only problem lay in the fact that Rezar had no idea how to level up a territory, at least until now. [Your undead have harvested 100 units of wood for the first time! You have received settlement 5% exp progression.] [Your cavern moles have mined 100 units of ore for the first time! You have received 5% settlement exp progression] [Your cavern moles have mined 100 units of both stone and magic for the first time! You have received 15% settlement exp progression] [Your undead have harvested 100 units of food for the first time! You have received 5% settlement exp progression] [Your undead has defeated a pack of forest wolves, there are no losses. You have received 200 battle exp, 100 normal exp, and 10% settlement exp progression] Rezar blinked his eyes and smiled, seems the right way to level up a territory, was to actually try and make it better. The answer was right in his face and he didn''t notice, but of course it seems a little bit more detailed than that as various amounts of activities are what leveled the settlement up. And the exp gained was measured in percentage rather than numbers, Rezar didn''t know if that made it easier or harder, but as long as they grew he didn''t mind. QUEST ALERT! [Gather 500 units of each resources within 1 week/ Reward: 300% exp progression] [Erect 5 buildings within the span of 1 week/ Reward: 50% exp progression, the blueprints for basic town hall] [Upgrade your settlement to a village within a time span of 3 months/ Rewards: 300% exp progression, the blueprint for basic barracks, the spire skill [Blessed Harvest], 100 gold Elys] Rezar smiled, this didn''t look so bad, at least now he had something to work towards rather than bumbling about with just half an idea about what he was supposed to do. This really was the beginning of something great. Chapter 70锛欳onstruction And Skills [Your settlement has achieved a milestone! You have gathered one thousand units of each available resources. You have been awarded 100% settlement progression exp and 300 normal exp} [Your settlement is now level 1] It didn''t take them too long to achieve that milestone, in fact it took them just six hours on the first day, but Rezar didn''t let them stop. The moles needed to rest, but the ants were undead, they were tireless, and they would keep on going for as long as Rezar wanted them too. But he didn''t want to draw too much attention to himself, so by the end of the day, he had the ants come back to defend the settlement and help the moles make tunnels that would serve as a shelter till Rezar was ready to start construction. Everyone settled in to a routine over the next few days, it rained once, and the tides came in, but it never went past the beach, which Rezar was thankful for, and with the rain falling for an entire day straight, they were able to get a significant amount of freshwater stored, while it wasn''t that much of an importance, it still helped them. in the three days, Gynaika has been avoiding Rezar, though he didn''t know why as he half expected her to be on her knees thanking him and professing her undying love to him, but she has been... solemn. But never the less Rezar had avoided doing anything within these three days because he wanted to accumulated enough resources to make sure he took care of all the construction requirements at once. They didn''t have a storage unit of any sort, so everything was kept within the tunnels the moles had mined. But it was time to start putting the buildings in place. Each of these buildings could be upgraded, but that mostly depended on the residents, however seeing as all those buildings would be coming out of his own pocket, upgrading them would still be up to him as the people living in it would have to pay rent. But that wasn''t something he had to worry about for a very long time, at the moment they just need a place to stay. [Begin construction on 10 units of basic log cabin? It would cost 800 units of wood, and 20 units of ore] [Commencing construction! Time to completion: 3 hours] QUEST COMPLETE: [Gather 500 units of each resources within 1 week/ Reward: 300% exp progression] [congratulations! Your settlement has reached level 4, speed of construction has increased a little, durability of buildings has increased a little, defense of settlement has increased a little] Rezar wasn''t so sure about all this ''a little increase'' there was no obvious change, especially since the none of the buildings have been completed yet. But none the less he still had to carry on with the construction. [Begin construction on one unit of leader''s log cabin? It would cost 200 units of stone and 10 units of ore, and 5 units of magic] [commencing construction! Time to completion: 1 hour] [Begin construction on wooden stake wall? Please specify range of wall to calculate amount of resources required] Once again Rezar had the holographic map that showed the entire scope of his territory. Frankly speaking he wanted to cover the entirety of his territory with the wooden stake wall, but it would cost a lot of wood, and when time came to place a better defensive measure, the stake wall had to be manually removed. However, if he''s able to cover his entire territory with it, then the walls itself would upgrade with the territory every time it upgraded itself. If not, he would have to pull it down and raise it up again, which means he would have to bite the bullet and empty out his reserves of wood, it might not even be enough, so the ants have to still keep on bringing more. Once construction on the wall is completed, then it should not be all that hard to raise the scout tower and then shift his focus to the recruitment hall. But the recruitment hall mostly needed stone for it to be built, so there should be enough of that, but right now, he would just focus on the wall. [To focus construction on the are you have specified; you need 26,053 units of wood. You currently have 3,058 units of wood. You need 22, 995 units of wood. Wait until resources are available, or begin construction?] [Commencing construction! Time to completion: 1 week, 3 days, 14 hours, 33 minutes and 44 seconds. Please harvest more units of wood to complete construction,] Well that was that for any sort of construction, for now at least. The ants would be working tirelessly to gather the wood, and since they only needed about six hours to gather roughly a thousand units of wood, if not a bit more, then it would take a few days but there should be a steady influx of wood to help complete the construction. The settlement has leveled up quite a bit, but this was mainly due to the help of the quests, with higher levels, the percentage of exp gained from gathering resources wasn''t so high anymore, and it would need larger amounts of resources to be able to get that 5% exp progression that would help propel the settlement forwards. But Rezar wasn''t so worried, with time there''ll be lots of people doing one thing or the other that would bring a steady influx of exp and help level this place up. But there were also other things he had to address, and chief amongst that was the fact that the dungeon core was no longer active, or better yet it could be said to be dormant until the settlement levels up to a village. So he would be unable to have a steady stream of spawned giant fire ants to help out with the efforts here. Not to mention he had wanted giving his summon undead skill to the dungeon core so that it would utilize the skill to summon undead, at a steady and regular interval. But that too will have to wait until the settlement grows into a village. [Your Undead has been attacked by a contingent of Goblin Wolf Riders! You have lost 17 units of undead] QUEST ALERT! [Your settlement is under attack from contingent of Goblin Wolf Riders. Repel or defeat their forces. / Time Limit: 40 minutes/ Reward: Random Scout tower skill tome with 5 uses, 100% exp progression] Well then, it''s time to go take care of some goblins. But before that, Rezar had one very important think to take care of, and that was to see just how extensive his skill list was now. ? PASSIVE SKILLS: ? Mining: Basic lvl 7 ? Death magic mastery: Intermediate lvl8 ? Death aura: Intermediate lvl6 ? Sword mastery: Advances lvl3 ? Staff mastery: basic lvl9 ? Holy cells: Advanced lvl3 ? Endurance: Advanced lvl 2 ? God Sight: LVL 4 ? Chain Scythe Mastery: Basic Lvl3 ? Ignore Defense: Intermediate lvl2 ? Earth Sense: Basic Lvl 1 ? Undead Telepathy: Basic lvl 1 ? Soul Mark: Lvl 1 ? ACTIVE SKILLS: ? Raise undead: Advanced LvL6 ? Decay: Basic Lvl7 ? Power Strike: Intermediate Lvl5 ? Siphon: Intermediate lvl7 ? Strengthen undead: Intermediate lvl4 ? Bind: Advanced Lvl1 ? Reap: Intermediate Lvl8 ? Apparition: Advanced Lvl1 ? Black Bolt: Basic Lvl1 ? Summon Undead: Basic lvl1 ? Reaper''s Wind Shield: Basic lvl7 ? Rend: Basic level 1 ? SKILL POINTS: 123 ? MONEY: CPR: 30/ SIL: 73/ GLD: 755/ PLA: 4 So many skill points, and sure it would be nice to raise the level of some of the skills, but Rezar knew it wasn''t enough to make a dent in his major skills. Apparition alone needed 50 skill points to go up a level, and this was the reason a lot of people had dozens of classes at a time. Levels grew slowly, but if you have a lot of base classes, the bonus would help increase your stats, and the level ups of those classes would give you the skill points necessary to level up your skills if you were the type who couldn''t train them the hard way. Rezar shook his head as he placed his hand on his back, there was a feeling of warmth there as he smiled and said. "Varka wake up, we have a job to do." [Familiar Summoned] Chapter 71锛歍he Goblin King (I): Players and Goblins There was flash of light as the ever elusive Valka showed up in front of Rezar, his appearance has startled everyone around as the Lion was about the size of a full grown dog, with a tiny tuft of man on his head to show that he was just an adolescent, however the major attribute that truly drew all eyes to him, was the fact that Valka was for all intents and purposes, a pitch black lion with eyes so blue it was like looking at Rezar in a different form. ? Familiar Name: Valka Deathwind// Level: 10 ? Familiar Race: Nether Lion// Type: Assault ? Familiar Grade: C+// Growth Factor: 7 ? Familiar Skills: [Nether Blast] [Eerie Roar] [Dark Cut] [Speed Up] Rezar knew absolutely nothing about familiars, so he couldn''t exactly tell just how strong this familiar of his was. Valka has been in a few fights in the dungeon, which was why his level was ten, but the lion preferred to laze around rather than participate, but this time Rezar was not letting him sit on the sidelines. Rezar called an ant for both himself and Valka, the rest of the undead along with Lenore and Priest were in the forest trying to canvass the area while the ants harvested the trees from the forest for wood. Normally Rezar would worry about deforestation, after all everything in Elysium has to have a balance, but that forest was a hundred times the size of his territory, and each tree gave 50 units of wood, including those that were fruit trees and held food. It would take dozens of years for them to clear it out. And beyond that those trees will still grow back in they made proper rotation of it. As the left the cove, leaving Gynaika and her entourage behind, the ant Rezar was on ran across the open grassland to the forest ahead. Rezar could see the forest line had receded a bit like a man approaching his middle age and slowly growing bald. The wind rushed past his ears and blew his white hair every which way as the ant he was on, though undead with its speed reduced, traveled at 25km an hour. Rezar got the feeling that they could be faster, but this was enough for now as they rushed past the grassland, past the stumps of trees that were once a part of the forest and straight into a fight as about two dozen goblins riding on wolves were going on a killing spree on his undead. *Roooaaaaaar! * [Eerie Roar] Valka roared, causing a chill to cascade over the body of everyone here capable of feeling fear, and in that regard it was just the goblins and their wolves as Priest and Lenore were strong enough to brush off the effects. But the few seconds bought by that roar was enough to change the tide of the battle as Rezar gave orders to his undead ants telepathically. The ants surged forwards, the pincers snapping the goblins closest to them in half, whilst throwing their acid spit at those too not within Melee range. The attacks brought most of the goblins out of their frozen stupor, but with Rezar here this battle was going to be to their advantage. [Strengthen Undead] 50 undead ants at a spot glowed with a shimmering light as they became faster and seemed to have gotten into a berserk state, rushing at the goblins and their extremely nimble wolves. But the goblins had already killed a little over twenty undead before he got here, so there was no way they could be so simple. For one they were about a meter tall, a little bit taller than normal goblins closer to the center of Elysium as opposed to the frontiers, so you could say being in the wild made them thrive. As the ants rushed, a rain of arrow came surging from beyond the tree lines, obviously some of the goblins had chosen to remain hidden. But these arrows did nothing but bounce of the carapace of the ants, even those that weren''t strengthened had enough of a defense to tank the arrows, or at least that was until the arrows themselves became a blaze of light and it became obvious that they were using skills, and this left Rezar confused as he came to a very startling conclusion. He wasn''t dealing with simple monsters, their coordination, the usage and application of skills, and the way they hung around the edges and circled around them to pick them off rather than go at them head on as most if not all goblins would do, he was dealing with people, really smart and intelligent people. Maybe not all the goblins were people as there were some making repetitive attacks, and that''s when it dawned on him; PLAYERS! He was about to curse in anger when Brutus used a skill of his that made him disappear, he appeared right in front of the tree line and smashed forwards with his horn and eerie purple fog trailing behind him along with after images. [ Spectral Charge] could not be defended against, and he smashed the trees serving as cover for the goblin archers. Screet was dancing across the battlefield, his staff whizzing through the air with a speed unlike any other as smashed goblins of their wolves and left them to the mercy of the ants. The wolves themselves weren''t safe from this assault as Neema and Jason decapitated and smashed them to death. They were winning, but they were losing undead just as fast. Valka blasted onto a goblin, his claws taking on blackish white hue as he ripped the goblin apart and jumped to the next. Rezar was about to jump into the fray when Brutus was blasted backwards, Rezar barely had timed to lean back as his Ghoul Bull went over his head, mooing in agony as he landed hard, his body uprooting a few tree stumps along the way. But he was back up to his feet in seconds as he releases a roar that showed his anger and rage, by this point he was well and truly berserk. Rezar turned and saw a goblin that had at least human height; a hob-goblin. Clad head to toe in iron armor point a sword as he held a shield close towards Rezar. The hob-goblin was laying down a challenge, taunting Rezar, but Rezar knew this Hob-goblin was just a puppet. The real enemy probably had to be that scaled goblin sitting on a wolf as large as Brutus, and surrounded by a force numbering in the hundreds. "You cannot beat us! Most of us are players and every time you kill us, we will come back. We''re no different than your undead, surrender to us and I promise, you''ll be treated well." Rezar wasn''t so sure about the plot of his story, but this sort of confrontation was happening way to early, or better yet it seems he was the villain or the stepping stone in someone else''s story. But they were players and they could die over and over again, true. But did he know as a player if you died to a necromancer or undead that''s not in a dungeon a certain number of times, your account would be disabled and your character lost forever. This was Elysium''s way of balance. And better yet, when they died players left bodies, it takes them 5 minutes at least to resurrect and within that time, their bodies would be left behind to give a feeling or show of realism. But what happens when said body is raised as an Undead, Rezar would very much like to find out. He called his undead back to his side, Lenore was nowhere to be seen, so obviously she''s off exploring somewhere, but Rezar knew better, she was just bidding her time. He turned to Neema and said. "Neema if you don''t mind get the cavern moles up here, we''re about to have our first territory defense. And the difficulty just went up to total annihilation!" Chapter 72锛歍he Goblin King (II): Terms Rezar knew that the biggest advantage they had was the fact that these army of goblins were severely underestimating him and his people. Priest couldn''t take an active role in this fight because he was well because he was a priest and to him all life was sacred or some bullshit like that. Normally it shouldn''t matter much as other classes would cover for that weakness, but in this life he had chosen to have just a single class, so except for defense, buffs and healing he was useless, but then again weren''t those in the job description for a priest. But never the less there were a few points Rezar had to pay attention in this fight, one: the goblins were strong enough that even a single one of them could take out his ants. Which means they had a major stat in tier two, probably their power and with the wolves probably having tier two speed, this made them very dangerous. As powerful and useful as those ants might seem, they were only tier one undead, which meant they were just free exp for this group of goblins. Two he had no idea just how many of them they really were, he assumed these goblins had seen his undead logging a few days ago and estimated their numbers. Or they might have seen them pass through when they were heading for the cove and came with a large enough force to completely route them out. But the one thing he could count on now was the fact that they seemed to be here for conquest, which would give the moles enough time to get here. Neema would probably have them follow a roundabout way so that the goblins won''t see them coming, so they all had to buy time here before that happens. "The lands you walk on belong to the goblin king, we''re claiming this frontier for ourselves and it would be in your best interest to fall in line and serve, there would be a place in our ranks for a necromancer such as yourself, and your abilities would be greatly valued." The goblin sitting on a larger wolf said as his brown hair was blown in the wind with a flourish befitting nobility. He was also a hob-goblin, which would explain the hair, but beyond that their current scheme was blown wide open. This was meant to be a show of force; it was also a threat but that''s not a 100% confirmed. He would either be cowered or impressed enough to fall in line, or they would beat subservience into him. But come on, they were goblins, there was absolutely no way Rezar could sell himself to them, not to mention, there''s not a single person in Elysium that Rezar would allow to hold him down, no matter what, he was not going to be a slave again. "I''m afraid I''ll have to reject your gracious offer. Frankly speaking we don''t have to be enemies, we can be allies and help each other grow rather than fight to steal from the other. How about it, your goblin king and I can come to a compromise, I''m sure there are services I can offer him and services that he can offer to make this a glorious alliance. So what do you say?" Rezar said as he asked with a calm voice and bright smile that was a little to fake and also quite obvious in that regard. He had offered an olive branch, frankly speaking he didn''t expect to go against every group of people out there, me against the world was just a fucking expression as any territory would need to rely on trade and alliances to survive. With this goblin king here, it made one thing quite obvious to Rezar, and that was the fact that the dark lands of the Bahrenburg frontier weren''t as isolated as he thought it was, and there were also other people here fighting and clawing for resources and dominance. "There would be no negotiation you filthy one of death! The noble personage of my king would not be making alliances with the likes of you, surrender now or prepare to be annihilated!" the hob-goblin wasn''t being all that nice at all, and his companion clad in a full plate mail from head to toe banged his broad sword against his shield as he growled menacingly at Rezar. Rezar on the other hand shook his head in exasperation as he turned to look at Lenore with a questioning gaze and a smirk on his lips. She returned a similar smile and said to him. "Why are you so surprised Master, you can''t expect sound judgement from low born monsters like goblins. We should just kill them all!" As if that was the signal needed, moles blasted out from the eastern part of the forest, many of them already had blood on their mouth and claws, obviously they had encountered other goblin s on the way, probably scouts and they had shown no less ferocity than the one Screet and his now deceased group of friends had used when they had first attacked Rezar. And the Moles were not alone as on their backs were Gynaika and her followers. There was a whoosh as they all threw the spears in their hands with so much speed and power that at a spot, two to three goblins were impaled and killed, the same thing went for the wolves, Lenore pulled out her Rapier, lightning sizzling across it as her form blasted into a group of goblins, her intent to kill no less small than that of the moles. Rezar ran forwards pulling his sword out from his back as he raised his hand up. [Raise Undead] [Skill Successful] Rezar winced and ducked back as a goblin rider threw a flail at his face, peeling half the skin off his face. Even his tier three defense was not enough to tank that, but karma was a bitch as a giant mole snatched the goblin and gobbled him down in one swoop, but not before chewing a bit to let the flavor spread all over its tongue. Rezar shuddered as he turned, bring his sword to intercept a strike from the armored hob-goblin. He was about to attack with a skill when a fire ball smashed into the side of his head, burning his face and stripping the flesh off his modestly handsome face. He was caught off guard by the attack, and the armored hob-goblin took advantage of it and smashed its massive shield into Rezar''s chest. It cracked ribs in the process as Rezar was blasted back, his body rolling backwards like a rag doll before his head smashed into a tree stump. The subsequent crack was so loud that everyone on the battlefield paused in shock, for all intents and purposes Rezar should be dead by now. But barely a second later he was back up to his feet, his white hair was soaked in his blood, and even pieces of what could be considered his brain. One side of his face was horribly burnt while the other was a mangled mess of flesh that showed his broken cheekbones and a hanging eyeball from his sockets. It was such a harrowing sight yet he was still standing like the pain meant nothing to him. And then he started healing, it was slow, but they could all see it, flesh mending and the sound of bones popping back into place. But Rezar didn''t wait for that as he walked forwards and picked his sword up, he swung it around a bit and then said to armored hob-goblin, his bloodied face still in full display. "Well then, let''s try again shall we?" Chapter 73锛歍he Goblin King (III): Repelled In the eight months that he had spent in the dungeon, Rezar had never stopped training his swordsmanship skill, but in all honesty the sword wasn''t his weapon of choice, after all he was a necromancer with very powerful melee abilities. The sword was just filling in until a proper chain scythe has been forged for him. But never the less he was good enough with the sword, and not just based on his skill level alone, in this fight, as opposed to the Hob-goblin, Rezar knew what he was doing. [Apparition] Rezar surged forwards, his sword piercing forwards to the throat of the hob-goblin, shadowy afterimages trailing after his form as a lightning blast from Lenore smashed into a fireball heading towards him. He didn''t have to worry much it seems as Lenore and the others would watch out for him now, so he could focus on this fight wholeheartedly. The armored hob-goblin used his shield to defend, just as Gynaika went past, her spear going through the body of a mounted goblin along with his whole, pinning them both to the ground before they could blindside Rezar. Rezar took a step back, evading a strike from the hob-goblin as a beam of golden light fell on him, accelerating his healing and prompting him to move forward as he twisted his wrist and sent it stabbing towards the right eye of his opponent. The shield was raised one again as the Hob-goblins sword found purchase in Rezar''s side. Digging into his flesh and sliding in between his ribs. All Rezar did was grunt as he swiftly turned his sword and smashed the pommel into the helm covered hobgoblin head, producing enough force to push the hob-goblin back for a few steps. [Black Bolt] *Bang* The shield was in the way, as it raised up to defends against the arcane of bolt of black magic. In a way it was quite surprising that Elysium was differentiating between black and dark magic. Dark magic was basically elemental spells of the darkness element, but black magic just had to be worst of all magic, the kind that had you sacrificing day old babies to greatest evil you could ever imagine. But back to the fight at hand, Rezar didn''t let up or lose his advantage. [Decay] He aimed it at iron boots the hob-goblin had on. Decay was what Rot evolved to when it got to advanced level 9 and was about to enter the master grade. Basically Rot could only affect organic materials as a skill, but now Decay had effects on everything, both living and dead, and as such it didn''t take too long for his right boots to start turning a shade of rustic red as age seemed to catch up with it and it began to rust. His step faltered a bit, and Rezar used that opportunity to move to his side and stab his sword towards the Hob-goblin''s neck. *Bang! * A shield made of shimmering grey energy showed up, defending against Rezar''s strike with a rebounding effect that pushed him three meters backwards and onto the incoming path of a rampaging wolf rider, but Screet was there with an upward thrust that sent both rider and wolf flying into the air and into the incoming axe of Neema that didn''t hesitate to slice through them. *Braaa-kraaam! * A bolt of lightning fell from the sky right onto the Hob-goblin, eliciting a scream of pain from his as all the iron armor he had on was an all too good conductor of electricity. The armor was a nice touch, and with the weapons both he and Rezar were an equal match, but physics existed in Elysium too. And without enchantments to resist certain elements, most armors were just hunks of metal that increased speed, power, defense and magic. The Hob-goblin shook with a fervor that left it stuck in a single position for five seconds, and the ensuing lightshow was enough to draw the attention of everyone else here, so Rezar took advantage of that. [Bind] the eldritch chains of darkness and shadows blasted out of his back and pierced into the armored Hob-goblins arms, feet and through his thighs before smashing into the ground and keeping him bound there. Then Rezar turned to the well-dressed mage Hob-goblin and raise both his hands up. [Raise Undead] [Skill Successful] [You have raised 72 undead High goblins and Forest Wolves] It was a taunt, and it worked. With their heavy hitter incapacitated they were left with only one other option, and while he looked extremely reluctant to make the only other obvious decision, he had no other choice but to do so, and from the annoyed look on his face, it was obvious the very idea was revolting to him, running away from Rezar seemed to be a great dishonor to him. "Retreat!" His voice was sonorous, but loud enough that it reverberated across the entire battlefield, the goblins retreated, those who were slightly injured or uninjured tried to help those heavily injured, placing more emphasis on certain groups of goblins while others were killed to prevent interrogation. Rezar reckoned those were probably reincarnated uploads, so they had priority as players could respawn. An arrow came flying towards the armored hob-goblin, but a golden shield sprung up in front of him, as Rezar ordered the remaining undead ants to go surround the hob-goblin and keep him safe. Rezar was still going to kill him, but not until he had some information about what kind of enemy he was dealing with. "You will pay for this affront Necromancer! The goblin king would come for his revenge, and you and everything you value will die painful deaths!" Rezar was pissed off, he was not so calm and nice that he would ignore what had just happened, especially when the fucking hob-goblin was making it seem like it was Rezar who had come looking for trouble, talking about vengeance and an affront and all those hypocritical righteous bullshit. He hated being called out or blamed for something he didn''t do, his time with Roland back in the mines had left a rather dark shadow on his mind, and this hob-goblin just triggered it. "Hey! You and your fucking goblin king don''t have to worry about revenge and such shit. I''ll be coming for you myself you miserable green bastards, and nothing! Not your armors, not your magic, not your wolves would keep you safe from me. So kiss you wives, your children, your god forsaken parents that gave birth to you, and your bastard king goodbye, because in a week! All of you would be corpses marching at my command!" Rezar huffed in undisguised anger as he watched them walk away, then he turned to Screet, "Go into the forest and get me as many birds as you can. They don''t need to be strong, the weaker the better, but those with high intelligence would be required. The rest of the ants continue logging, Neema and Brutus you guys will keep an eye on the ants along with the rest of the mole, we have enough ores and stones to take a day off. Jason I need you to go south, hug the edge of the coast and travel for six hours, then travel back. I need you to tell me what you find. The rest of us can go back to town, we have a prisoner to interrogate." And with that said, Rezar marched back, with a couple of ants dragging the injured Hob-goblin along whilst Rezar looked at a system screen in front of him. ? UNDEAD CREATURES: ? Screet: LVL 32 Ghoul Mole-man ? Neema: LVL 47 Ghoul Demon Mole Queen [239 cavern Moles led] ? Jason: LVL 26 Ghoul Minotaur ? Brutus: LVL 15 Ghost Bull ? Zombie Cavern Moles [47] ? Zombie Giant Fire Ants [189] ? Zombie High Goblins [72] ? Zombie Forest Wolves [72] Chapter 74锛歍he Goblin King (IV): Blood Soaked Answers QUEST COMPLETE [Your settlement is under attack from a contingent of goblin wolf riders. / Time Limit: 40 minutes/ Reward: Random Scout tower skill tome with five uses, 100% settlement Exp progression.] [Congratulations! Your settlement has leveled up to 5, construction is now a bit faster, population limit increased from 30-50] [Scout Tower Skill tome (Eagle Eye): increase the range of sight of any scout or tool within the scout tower by 500 meters. Skill levels up with tower/ can be taught 5 times] Rezar dismissed the notification screen as he sat down with his back against the cove wall, the screams of the hobgoblin echoing out from a tunnel at by his side as Lenore put to work all her years of being a skilled forewoman to a mine, and for all intents and purposes the warden to a prison. It was funny really, but even Priest had praises for her torturing skills, though he did all that with a hint of apprehension in his eyes, almost as if he had experienced it firsthand. While he waited, Rezar bought four more blueprints for the scout tower, he already knew where he was going to place them, but this was so he could place them in strategic locations. At the moment his territory was shaped like an omega symbol, the ends of it opening up into the sea with two distinct cliffs that served as gates of sorts. He was going to build one on both cliffs, so that the scouts would have eyes to the south of the territory, which was actually west, and north west, and south west. He would place another south, which went deeper into the Bahrenburg wild lands. But if he had to use the way his territory was shaped, that would be east, and the direction Jason had gone scouting. The north was to the canyons of Toromont, the dividing line of the Bahrenburg Frontier filled with the most ferocious of monsters. And then the final one would face east towards the forest and the goblins. That seems to be the direction the most danger was coming from so Rezar would keep half of his focus there whilst splitting the remaining half for the other directions. He felt as if he was a small fish in a shark''s playground, this lands that he''s come to be a part of was currently being contested for, and this was not part of what Priest had told him. The idea had been this was a wild land that had no one in power or contesting for it, all of the fighting was on the other side, so there should never have been any sort of problem and he would have been able to develop with ease, but it looks like that plan was no longer viable. He would have to fight for his place in the wild lands, especially if he truly plans to go after Roland and the noble family he''s a part of. "You seem deep in thought, want to share what''s go our fearless leader so wrapped up in his own mind." Lenore said as she came out of the tunnel, using one and to fling the Hob-goblin to the ground, he was covered with blood from head to toe, all the nail on his four fingers and toes were missing, along with a few teeth. But the damage went beyond that, the skin on his entire right arm had been peeled off, exposing the tissue beneath, all bloodied and raw. Rezar turned to look up at Lenore and said. "First of all, I don''t have to tell you anything. Secondly how long or rather how far did you have to go before he started spilling his guts out?" Rezar asked with pensive look on his face. "Literally when I started spilling his guts out, but given that''s what I went after first, I''ll say he didn''t last a minute." Rezar heard what she said and looked back at the Hob-goblin to see that he was clutching his stomach tightly as blood spilled in between his fingers. "Then why did you go after other parts of his body?" Rezar asked. "I had to verify that what he was telling me was true, and before you ask; I confirmed when I took the second finger, which should be about two and a half minute into the torture, safe to say he talks really fast." Lenore said as she pulled out a handkerchief to wipe her bloodied hands. Rezar shrugged his shoulders and went up to the Hob-goblin, should he kill him then this hobgoblin would not be reincarnating, that would be it for him, and the intense look of fear on his face was more than enough to show he feared the outcome of Rezar taking action. [Black Bolt] The hobgoblin was already at the end of his rope, the attack swiftly took his life, and as for the topic of Rezar taking away his chance of reincarnation; he didn''t give a shit about that. This hobgoblin was an enemy, yes he was defenseless, yes he was tortured, and killing him would have let him move on to the next life, giving him a second chance. But his conscience was clear, its kill or be killed, and that hobgoblin would not have hesitated to kill him if he was in Rezar''s shoes. He was no stranger to the morality of death and killing someone, and even more so when in a world like this, every time Rezar decides to make a move, then that means someone is dead for real. That would weigh heavily in the minds of most people but not Rezar, he had a line he wouldn''t cross, and that''s not to kill indiscriminately or to kill innocents. But that''s as far as he would go, if you''re his enemy, and you so much as spit on him, he''ll kill you without question, he was a fucking Necromancer, people like that are not the good guys, but that doesn''t necessarily mean they have to be the bad guys either. This should make him more like an Anti-hero. "What did you get from him?" Rezar asked as he sat back down and raised the Hob-goblin back to life as a zombie. "Well there is a goblin king, he''s a player participating in a worldwide event. Apparent the four frontiers of Bahrenburg are now claimable lands, and the players with the help of the uploads, depending on where your alliance lie, would build new powers and nations etc. basically it''s a strategy/kingdom building event for the players, and we''ve landed smack dab in the middle of it. The Goblin King has been operating within the forest for close to a year now, he''s united 38 goblin tribes and settlements into one massive city. He has six generals, with that mage being one of them, and he has an army that approximately 6, 000 thousand strong, with each of the generals heading a division. The general we just face is a hob-goblin call Tetum, he''s the general in command of the mounted goblin division, basically a mixture of a Calvary and shock troops due to how agile and versatile they are. They''re also mainly responsible for scouting out new territories and forces. If what he says is to be believed, it wouldn''t take too long for them to regroup and come hunting for us. The town that serves as a base for the Mounted Goblin Division is roughly 2 miles from where we had our battle. They regroup and might even ask for reinforcements from other divisions. But it would take a while for those to get here." Lenore said as she looked at Rezar who looked back at her and asked. "So a Preemptive strike then?" she nodded her head and said. "Yes that''s what I would suggest, but I believe guerrilla warfare would be in our favor. We should hit them hard and then retreat, there are players there too, which means an endless source of bodies for you to resurrect. There should be more planning put into it, but I believe that''s what we should do." Rezar nodded his head as he got back up to his feet, and said to Lenore. "Get me Priest and Gynaika, let''s get this done." Chapter 75锛歍he Goblin King (V): The Diviner Rezar had an overdue one on one conversation with Gynaika, just so that he could know exactly where the loyalties of her and her people lay. Basically he had to establish the grounds of their partnership, they were still slaves, however they were runaway slaves, and while didn''t mean much, in any other city in Elysium things would extremely difficult for them, so he had to know if they were willing to serve, or if he had to use stricter methods to get them to fall in line. But he wouldn''t deny that they''ve been a big help so far, not that everything they''ve helped with couldn''t have been managed on his own, but with their interference, it has certainly been a lot easier. But that talk would have to wait for later, right now they had to make plans about how to deal with the Goblin King and his army. Normally an enemy with army of 60,000 would be problematic, but Rezar was more than confident that he would be able to trike hard and decisively at the Goblin King''s army. "What is it you need to talk about?" Priest said as he looked at the newly resurrected Hob-goblin and wrinkled his nose in annoyance, seems the old man was getting tired of being surrounded by undead, or was it something else, he was present in the battlefield after all. Gynaika was followed by her attendant, a small teenage girl that had tribal tattoos stretching down the side of her arms. The wild tribes had a particular race of their own, after a bit of discussion with priest Rezar learnt that they were called the Ifa. A race of humanoid shamans and warriors that were quite attuned to the supernatural side of Elysium, but they were basically still considered barbarians. But never the less they were quite useful in the fact that they''re some of the fiercest warriors to roam the land. Gynaika was an asset, especially with all her weird classes that seem to help her see the future, which ultimately would also help in the fight against the goblin king, at least he hoped it would anyway. "We need a plan of attack against the goblin king, Lenore and I feel it would be best if we utilize some guerrilla warfare tactics, hitting them and running whilst getting rid of important resources within their bases. Frankly speaking they outnumbers us 12 to 1 and quite a few of them are players which means they''ll keep coming back to life after they''re killed. But that would also be to our advantage as we would be able to raise the ranks of our own forces by resurrection the goblins that are killed. I just wanted to know if anyone of you had any suggestions to be utilized in this fight, or if you have a different plan to be utilized." Before he was stuck in a dungeon for 8 months, one of the many lesson Priest had tried to impart on Rezar was the fact that all good leaders can do great things alone, but the best kind of leader is the man who has people who can do great things, and in turn he would be the greatest of all leaders. At first it didn''t make sense to Rezar, but now he understood it, a good leader can do great things alone, but a great leader can achieve the unthinkable with the help of loyal people by his side. "A guerilla style attack would do great, but I would advise you to attack their base directly and lay waste to it." Gynaika said with a small smile. That confused everyone here as they turned to her in surprise, that would be suicide, with the force they had, even if they were undead, attacking their base was nothing more than suicide. "I know you all think this is a bad idea, but I lay it all out for you. In my previous life, which was actually the 10th life I lived as an upload, I was born with a rather unique trait. That Trait was [Eye of Elysium] and it served me well as the previous high Priestess of the temple of Athena. I know war, maybe a lot more than you do Rezar, after all I did serve a goddess of war. But that''s beside the point, I was born with that same trait in this life, and that trait has afforded me two unique classes that leaves the outcome of every battle pretty much open to me. The first is the [Soul Shaman] class, and the second is an advanced form of my first class [Priestess]. This class is called [Diviner], and you don''t have to take it from me about how powerful or dangerous this class is, you can ask the priest." Rezar was annoyed about the fact that she was beating around the bush, but he turned to Priest just as she had pointed out and he noticed the old man with his jaw hanging halfway down to the ground, then Priest turned to look at Rezar then said. "Compared to her, all three of us are just trash!" Rezar raised an eyebrow at that, he didn''t agree with that statement, he was awesome, but given how Lenore did not have a change of expression but a dull look on her face, Rezar suspected she actually agreed. Just what sort of fucked up class was the [Diviner] anyway. "While many have lived and died so many times in Elysium that they would have forgotten that this is a virtual world, it is still one. And from what I can remember Elysium is running by an Independent program that is a culmination of 367 individual consciousness. Which are vestiges of the people who were responsible for its creation, its one brain with multiple parts doing different things. Its conscious but at the same time it''s not, the most attractive thing about Elysium was the lack of AI''s in any sort of controlling position. Which means no one could mess with the codes of Elysium, at the very least until the [Necron] was created. But there''s a special class that works similar in the way the Necron works, its quite rare, and at a time there cannot be more than three in a single generation. That class is the [Diviner] class, and with it, it''s possible to read the codes of Elysium, to read its programs and its events. While it''s not reading codes in the literal sense, it''s a class that''s capable of knowing the past, and the present, and capable of predicting the future of Elysium to a limited degree. So basically I''m saying if she so chose, she can tell you exactly what your passed life is like, tell you what you did yesterday, and tell you what''s happening somewhere else this current moment. Reading the future is a bit harder, but if she decided to do so, then it is possible." It was impressive, but Rezar didn''t want to spend time marveling about it. She had already made mention of this some time back, even if she didn''t give too much details. But at the very least right now, he would be able to get some answers from her about this goblin base she insist they have to attack, so he gave her a nod asking her to continue. "The Hob-goblin Tetum has received orders from the goblin king to go wipe out a small town of High elves deep in the forest. The town was just upgraded, and its mostly an industrial town, so they won''t stand a chance. However, learning a lesson from us kicking his ass just an hour or so ago, he''s taking his entire force with him. He has also not had time to report to the goblin king that his encounter with us ended up in a failure, he wants to wipe out the elven town first before giving a report, that way he could at least reduce his punishment with that achievement. The base would be practically empty and ripe for the taking, we can sack the place and burn it to the ground before they get back. With their morale down, we can pick them off one by one by setting traps for them along their route back." Gynaika said as she smiled, all too sure of her plan, which if Rezar had to be honest was all too good. "But shouldn''t we help the elves? We can create a bond with them that will help us against the Hob-goblins" Priest asked as he turned to look at all of them, almost unanimously Rezar and Lenore turned their heads to Gynaika to hear what she thinks. "That''s a waste of time and resources, even if the goblin-king did not set his eyes on us, eventually even that elven town will come hunting for us. However, we don''t have to do anything to bring them our way. After the attack from the goblins the elves will lose, I''ve seen their military force, that place is basically a town of craftsmen and farmers. The only other direction they''ll be able to run towards is us, and we''ll be there to save them by destroying the goblins. They''ll have no other place to go, and quite frankly that would leave them at our mercy. We won''t be their equals, rather they would be subservient to us, and that''s better than having to share the same cup. The only way to truly become strong is to take control of the wild lands, and the forces in the forest would be our first hurdle to cross. We don''t have time to make friends, we can get betrayed that way." Such a suggestion was as brutal and as heartless as they came, but they all agreed it was the best plan. Neither Rezar or Lenore were against it, and even Priest was good with that. There was no room for morality or chivalry, they were not paladins or the church or any of the other religious powers. Their leader was Necromancer, the dark side of doing things called out to them all too easily, and that''s what they would focus on. "Gynaika I need to talk to you, Priest? Lenore? You guys make any preparations you need to make and get ready, well leave as soon as the cabin finish construction, so rest up if you have to. Priest you will be our rear guard, so the territory would be left to you to look after. Gynaika come along." And with that said Rezar walked into the tunnel that was used to torture a hob-goblin, with Gynaika not too far behind. Chapter 76锛歐hat She Wants They both stared at each other in silence, her handmaid was not too far away as she silently kept watch like a sentinel, there was something weird about that maid, but Rezar couldn''t put his finger on it, but never the less the silence was making him nervous, and he didn''t like it, so he asked again. "What''s your endgame Gynaika, for all of the help you render, for your loyalty and that of your people, what do you want in return, or what is it you hope to achieve." He asked as he leaned his back against the uneven tunnel wall, a far cry from the smooth tunnels excavated by the ants. Gynaika didn''t say anything at first, then she moved forwards until she was standing close to Rezar. Even though he had experience a bit of a growth spurt, she still towered over the sixteen-year-old, and with her beautiful she was, having her this close was extremely uncomfortable. Or if he had to be honest he was liking it a little too much. Gynaika''s skin was just light and dark enough that if she was living on earth it would be hard to determine just what color she really was. Was she light skin black, or was she white with a significant tan, it didn''t, matter to Rezar though, she looked like the kind of woman you would find during the Brazilian carnival. The only thing missing was a skimpy bikini and an extravagant costume. "You don''t have to hide it Rezar, I can see it in your eyes, your desire. While you don''t trust me, or my ambitions that''s one thing that has never faded in the short time we''ve known each other, you want me, you want to claim me, to use me and dominate like every other man who sees me wants to, am I wrong?" Rezar narrowed his eyes and glared at her. "That''s not what I asked you for, my desire for you will not outweigh the fact that you''re a threat and it doesn''t matter to this conversation, you" "Oh but it does! It really does!" Gynaika said as she leaned in closer, softly breathing in Rezar''s ear. "W-what do you mean?" Rezar asked as his voice cracked and he was forced to swallow, hard. And it was all to his extreme annoyance as that more than showed that she had some sort of power over him. "Your desire for me is the main reason why I''m still here, the fact that even with your ambition, even with the future of blood and death you know and have accepted you will bring to Elysium, you''re still human enough to want me. It shows that fear is the only thing you lack, everything else is still there, and I want it to remain that way. You''re an interesting toy Rezar Deathwind, a fun one that leaves me all hot and bothered just by the way his voice sounds." Rezar swallowed again as she was so close their bodies were only separated by an inch, her voice was such a sultry whisper that Rezar broke out in a sweat. "Your very existence makes me shudder with anticipation, I can hardly control myself. Technically I''m 14 years older than you, but we both know in Elysium age doesn''t mean squat to anybody, your body just has to be matured enough. You see Rezar, I desire you too, the first thing I did when I was put in your cavern was divine your location and did you know what I saw? Do you want to know what I saw that''s made me all so fixated on you?" As turned on as he was, the moment she mentioned that she was able to divine his location when he was in the dungeon, it felt as if he had a bucket of cold water doused on his head. This woman was dangerous, he already knew that, but this [diviner] class was fucked up. Its user had the power of a god by being omnipresent, she could see and hear everything. "I saw you rip the jaws of crocodile monster in half, all the while missing half of your chest with your organs spilling out of your body. It was a terrifying sight, but even in the midst of that pain, you still turned around to place yourself in front of Screet; an undead that has no emotions and feels no pain. Sure he has a personality, but everything else a person needs to feel to be alive, he doesn''t have it. And yet you saved him even with a foot in the grave." You place value in useless things, but you also have an eye for treasure and a heart for conquest, you''re a tyrant ion the making Rezar, and I want to make a Tyrant my pet. But even I know that I can''t be your master, in fact I know even if you desire me, you won''t hesitate to end me should I try to control or enslave you. You''re a natural born monster, a destroyer, but above all and very funny enough Rezar. You''re a good man. A good man that''s evil and rotten to the core and would do everything to get what he wants and keep his people safe. I will serve you because your potential is one I can measure, and if I choose to serve, so too will my people. I will swear an oath of fealty, sign a contract if I have to, but there''s something I want." Gynaika said as she pulled back, a sultry smile on her lips. "I knew there was a catch to this, while I''m seriously flattered by your desire for me, it doesn''t blind me to the fact that just like me, if not even more so, you desire power, and you want a lot of it. Even more than my appetite can handle, so I''ll ask for the last time Gynaika, what do you want from me in return for your servitude." Rezar asked, his eyes blazing with focus and promise of death and pain should Gynaika ask for something he could give. "What I want is simple Rezar Deathwind, the son and angel of death. What I want is you!" Rezar was caught off guard again as his brow furrowed in confusion and he asked again. "What?" "Yes, I want you. When you become a vampire and gain eternal life, you will turn, me first, when you become a village chief, only I would be worthy to stand by your side. As your diviner, shaman and priestess, when you become a town mayor, only I would be allowed to stand by your side as your second in command and your strategist. When you become the lord of a city with a rank of nobility, only I will be worthy to stand by your side as your woman, and when you become the king of a kingdom or the emperor of an empire, only I, Gynaika De La Muerte would be allowed to stand by your side as your Queen and your Empress. I''ll give you children, and the world itself; ill use every tool in my arsenal to lay it at your feet. All I ask is that the most important place at you side, you''ll give it to me. You can think of this as a political marriage. So what will it be, make your choice now, I won''t be giving you time to think about it. You can make a counter offer if you feel this is too unfair for you, but never the less you will give me my answer right now. So?" Rezar was shocked, he didn''t know what he should say to this offer in front of him, but she was right. He had to give her an answer, and it was obvious. Right now Gynaika was making a devil''s bargain, and that made her the devil himself, or herself. But in the end the answer was all too obvious, he looked up at her and said. "My answer is" Chapter 77锛欶irst Campaign 1 QUEST COMPLETE [Erect five buildings within the span of one week/ Reward: 50% exp progression, the blueprints for basic town hall] [Blueprint: Basic Town Hall: a hall that''s necessary for any settlement, it increases all territory related attributes and buffs by 10%/ needs 1000 units of wood, 200 units of stone, 20 units of magic to construct.] [Que Town hall Construction due to lack of resources? Construction queued.] [Your settlement has leveled up to 6, construction speed increased by a little, resources gathering speed increased by a little] +10 to settlement defense] ? Settlement Name: N/A (Changeable) || Level: 6(20%) ? Grade: Legacy(Undead)|| Leader: Rezar Deathwind ? Population: 15/50 ||Military: 0/10|| Military Might: F- ? Attachments: Dungeon Core Level 1(10%)+ ? Perks: N/A (upgrade settlement to village) ? Skills: N/A (upgrade settlement to village) ? Resources: Food (2300)/ Wood (3401)/ Stone (4440)/ Ore (1560)/ Magic (832)/ Money: (0/0/0) ? Shop/ Allies: N/A (Upgrade settlement to town) Rezar nodded his head at the growth of the territory and mounted the ant standing in front of him, priest had gotten a bit busy and fashioned a saddle for the ants, making them a lot more comfortable, and capable of utilizing their full speed, without having to worry so much about the discomfort it would cause. To his left was Lenore, and to his right was Screet and Neema sitting comfortably on Brutus. Jason was not back yet, but when he returns, he would be the rear guard with priest and keep the settlement safe. Gynaika was still surrounded by her followers, they would be responsible for keeping her safe while they carried out the raid on the goblin base. Everything was set, even the plans that needed to be implemented and the contingencies should they fail had been all but completed. And so they marched, the sun was already setting by this point, so the darkness would cloak them well, and that was knowledge Rezar knew the goblin general Tetum would use to his advantage. They only took fifty of the ants and fifty of the moles, the moles traveled slower, so Neema had sent them ahead over an hour ago with clear instructions, and given that she was telepathically linked to all the moles, undead or alive, she could see what they saw and even felt what they did. The ants rushed through the forest, Rezar was sure the forest had a name, but up on till now they''ve not discovered that name yet. But without the trees and dense foliage, the land the forest covers would be a sprawling vista of rolling hills lakes, small creek and streams, ponds, rivers, glades, underground caves, tall cliffs and orchards of fruit trees. There might be a random mine here or there, but this was what this land was like, but above all else it was fertile. A stark difference between the canyons of Toromont and their rustic red desert like dcor, and the vibrant green of the forest and its surrounding lands. They moved fast, and in no time at all they came upon a hill, down below was a small basin surrounded on all sides by tall hills like the one they were upon. There were two entrances in and out of the base, but all of these entrances were actual tunnels into the hills, which is to say this base was similar to the settlement, only there was no visible entrance as opposed to the settlement who''s only obvious entrance faced the sea. The base was quiet, there were a few goblins standing guard, a few other goblins running around doing god knows what, and some out rightly passed out drunk. Apart from that there were hundreds of simple wooden houses spread out in an unorganized manner, but given that this was a military base, an aesthetic approach to construction was not something they would worry about, safe to say, Rezar hated it. Neema had given them and outlay of the base earlier as she had sent her moles ahead, they were able to tell her what to expect and she in turn relayed the message so that they could plan accordingly. The moles were now digging a trench at both entrances, or rather than calling it a trench it would be easier to say they''re digging under the entrance of the base. An area of a 150 square meters would be dug out, with only thin pillars of earth supporting them from within, and few well shaped earth spikes with the help of ten ants and their acids. It was a pitfall trap, only this was much larger and would be quite painful. But that would be the surprise left behind for when Tetum returned with his army if he''s not so busy with chasing those elves. But for now, they would be taking the fight to this poorly defended base and burning everything to the ground. Tetum would come back to find nothing, assuming he survives the wave of attacks Rezar would launch on him and his exhausted and caught unawares army. This was step one. "Lenore collapse the entrances." Rezar ordered as he pulled out one of his trusty sickles (He needs to replace them soon though) [Hellfire: Wild Bloom] Four blood red flames flew out of her staff, looks like she would be going the mage route for this fight. The flames were the size of basketballs and two split from the four going in one direction to the north entrance, while the others went to the south. The flames glowed brightly enough that even some of the goblins that were sleeping were roused from their sleep, and then they went in to the tunnels and came to a stop in the middle, and then *Boooom! * *Boooom! * The balls of flames exploded, going from the size of a basketball, to the size of a truck, doing more than just collapsing the tunnel entrances, but bringing down the entire hill. The soldiers who were guarding the entrances were also blown to bits as chaos ensued within the camp. Rezar turned to his undead and his comrades, and with a bored look on his face he said. "Kill them all." Chapter 78锛欶irst Campaign 2 It was chaos down at the base, and Rezar knew to take advantage of it, the ant he was on rushed down the side of the hills surrounding the base, the saddle Priest had fashioned was made well enough that Rezar wasn''t pulled downwards by the gravity, instead having a harness that held him snugly to the ant. With both entrance blown to bits, the attention of the goblins was split as they had no idea where the attacks were coming from, and in the midst of those confusion, Lenore made sure to keep the pressure as she sent more basketball sized flames blasting into the base and setting a significant amount of its wooden houses on fire. [Apparition] This was just an instinctual use of the skill as Rezar noticed a rain of arrows coming for him, but much to his surprise he had made the move with the ant he was on. He surged forwards to the ground, his shadowy form rushing towards a trio of archers. His sickles sliced on both sides taking off the head of the goblins as the ant used its jaws to snap the goblin in the middle in half. Rezar jumped off the ant and patted its side, as if telling it to go wild and do what it had to do. [Strengthen Undead] Using that skill was quite draining, and honestly it wasn''t required since none of the goblins here were that much of a threat, but better safe than sorry. Rezar shifted his head to the side as a red tasseled spear stabbed towards his forehead, he retaliated by moving close to the goblin and stabbing both his sickles into his jaw and raising him up, before roughly wrenching both farm tools to the side and splitting the goblin''s head in a gory manner. [Raise Undead] There was a significant amount of dead goblins in the base by this point, and the usage of the raise undead skill happily brought those dead goblins in Rezar''s rank. He looked around not finding any opponent and began to make his way towards the biggest building in the base. Obviously that had to be a town hall, or at least the place where that fool Tetum probably lived, so it''s sure to have a significant amount of resources and secrets. There shouldn''t be too much of problem now, or so he though until he discovered four heavily armored Hob-goblins in front of the building. They each had halberds that were at least two meters tall, and the hobgoblins varied from 5 feet to 5 foot 8, giving them the height of average humans, but the muscular structure of top athletes as they were so heavily muscled that the thick armor they wore seemed too tight. Rezar shifted the sickles until they were held in a reverse grip, their crescent moon form glinting under the flames of the burning base. The sickles themselves were almost out of durability and would become useless soon without repair, but it didn''t matter. He could take them on ever without weapons, and he was going to do just that. [Shadow Bolt] A ball of a chaotic dark energy showed up in front of Rezar and flew towards the hobgoblins, it was an impressive sight, but the skill was terribly slow as the hobgoblins were able to dodge it and rushed towards his direction. The first to get close smashed a shield into Rezar, moving past a five-meter distance in just two seconds, blasting Rezar into a burning building. Rezar was not one to be held back by pain, ignoring the smell of burnt skin as the leather armor on his body easily lit ablaze. He turned just in time to have a halberd stabbed through his stomach, and another one through his chest, it was a rather painful experience, but frankly speaking Rezar has been trough worse. [Decay], the helmet of one of the Hob-goblins quickly showed signs of rust as he or as it turned out a second later, she started screaming in pain. She let go of the halberd stuck in Rezar''s chest, as he pushed himself forwards, letting the halberd stuck in his stomach to completely run him through, much to the shock of the Hob-goblin still holding on to it. Rezar swung the sickle and a helm covered head flew into the air. At the very same time the female hobgoblin''s armored body fell to the ground, her helm rolling a few feet away from her body as a thick sludge and an overwhelming stench of rot wafted out the rusted helmet. The remaining two Hobgoblins hesitated when they saw this, spurred even more when Rezar removed the halberds stuck in his body and removed the still burning leather armor, leaving his upper body bare and very much scared, but at the same time he was healing at a rapid pace. He took one step out of the rubble of the burning building, and the remaining two hobgoblins turned tail and ran into the large building much to Rezar''s shock. That didn''t make much sense, in the novels usually the enemies all fought until they died, but now they''re running away reality was disappointing. But Rezar had scarcely taken two steps forward when multiple balls of flames followed the hobgoblins into the building before they could close it. Rezar wanted to shout at Lenore to stop, but it was already too late for that. [Hellfire: Wild Bloom] *Boom! * This time it was a single or two balls that went off, it was six of them, all in the same small and confined space. The explosion was spectacular, so much so that it blasted Rezar off his feet, across the entire base until his body was roughly smashed into the rubble that used to be the tunnel entrance and hill it was built from. Lenore winced at Rezar''s rough landing and raised her staff a bit as if to hide whilst Gynaika looked at her with a raised eyebrow and asked. "Seriously?" all Lenore could do was look embarrassed as she said. "Sorry." Rezar on the other hand had a pretty lifeless look on his face as he stared at the burning conflagration that used to be the most important building in the base. His eyes watered a bit as he softly cried out. "My loot." But there was no answer for him, at least not for a while anyway. He slowly got back up to his feet as his body mended and fixed itself, the leather pants and boots he had on at the moment were basically scraps at the moment, but given how wild his style of combat was, maybe he never had a need for armor anyways. Many of the goblins were surrendering, but they were being attacked by his undead, those creatures knew no such thing as mercy, so they couldn''t give it. Everything in the base was killed, even to its livestock and any unfortunate rodent that got caught in this wave of death. [You have completely destroyed a base of the [Goblin King] army. +150% exp progression, +300 gold Elys, Basic Mounted unit training dome, you have gained 10,340 square kilometers of territory, you are now at war with the Goblin King] The rewards were not that bad, But Rezar really wanted was the town spire that he was sure would have been in that building. Taking that would have at least raised the grade of his own town spire, as a legacy grade didn''t mean it was that great, but that it has been used before. Never the less there was no use crying over spilled milk, Rezar called for the ant that had now become his personal mount, Ant Tony. Calling him Anthony would just be a blatant plagiarism at this point, but when you thought about, he really was just like ant-man. except his ants were undead and they were the ones who were giants. He would worry about the details later, he turned and signaled Gynaika and Lenore, right now the next phase of the plan depended solely on Gynaika. She would help them navigate the forest and find Tetum and his army, and then there''ll pick them off, one goblin at a time, it wasn''t over yet, cause the night is still young, and honestly, so was Rezar. Chapter 79锛欶irst Campaign 3 With it being a moonless night, the forest was even darker than usual, but goblins were creatures of the wild. Whilst they were monsters they were one of the few monster races that could be played or reincarnated into. And when such happens, the intelligence of goblins was increased by a significant margin, to the point where they were known as some of the best engineers in Elysium matching the prowess of dwarves, and also shrewdest merchants, unmatched by any other race. But intelligence and shrewdness was something this troop of a hundred goblins lacked. They were the rear guard of the main force, Tetum had led the others to chase after the elves, smartly corralling them in a certain direction, and that was towards the territory of the necromancer they had faced earlier today. He hoped to catch the necromancer off guard, and then use the elves as cover to properly invade his territory. This hundred goblin force comprised mostly of the injured and almost dead or those really weak, their jobs was to escort the prisoners with them, and the town spire recently advanced elven town back to base. Most goblins were archers, in fact until they evolved into their higher variant of hobgoblin, they''re mostly trained to be long range fighters. This was due to how weak they usually were as ordinary goblins, of course whether they would like to admit it or not, their tiny size was to their advantage, making it harder for them to be attacked, and keeping relatively unnoticed from the majority of large opponents, however. *Whoosh* An arrow flew out of the forest and found purchase in the neck of a mounted goblin who was at the forefront of this line of goblins and elves. The elves which numbered roughly around two hundred or there about, where all chained to massive carriages and being forced to pull them as beast of burden. These carriages either held injured goblins and their wolves, held the plunder the goblins had gained from the elven town. Another arrow flew, bring down the wolf of the goblin, and then there was another, and another, and another. The accuracy utilized for these kills were amazing, while some of them went wild and even hit the prisoners, it was still enough to take down fifteen abled bodied goblins in less than a minute. By this point chaos had already broken out, no one was sure what was going on, and there was no one more scared and at the same time hopeful than the elves, their capturers were being attacked, and even if there were injuries showing up on their side, the goblins were still the target. "Everyone! Get under the carriages, quickly!" A teenage looking elf (they actually all looked like teenagers) swiftly ordered the other elves, the carriages were made of metal, plus they were roughly three to four meters long, which explains why it needed so many elves to drag and push. Such movements were bound to be severely exhausting, but right now the carriages served even better as a defense for all of them. the goblins really couldn''t put up a fight, the moment they died, zombies took their place, soon enough the injured were also killed, and of all the goblins that were leading their captured slaves back, none of them remained alive. "There''s a necromancer around, you guys should be careful, don''t make a sound" the elf that seemed to have taken the position of leader ordered to his fellow elves as they were all huddled under five different carriages. All they could see was the shuffling movements of zombie goblins, and then the face of a man dropped down, scaring them so much that they took quite a few steps back. "Are you guys going to remain hiding under the carriages of do I have to kill you all too. It doesn''t matter what you guys choose, you would be leaving this place one way or another, so what choice would you be making?" Rezar asked as he crouched down to stare at the faces of the elves, however there was something off about them. For one their ears were shorter than normal elves, it was no larger than normal human ears, just a lot more pointed and wider. Their eyes were a dull silver grey, and they had horns. They didn''t look like any species of elves he''s ever come across before, but given he doesn''t remember much from his past life, and there was still much he also didn''t know about Elysium. So seeing a strange new species of elves in a frontier land that''s not been fully colonized yet shouldn''t be that much of a surprise. Rezar got back up to his feet and watched as the elves slowly shuffled their way from under the carriage, judging by their numbers, they should be about 70 to 80 of them, but Rezar knew he was not good with numbers, so he would rather not jump to assumption until a proper census has been taken. He turned to Gynaika and Lenore. "The both of you will be responsible for leading the elves back to the settlement, the goblins will push and pull the carriages, or better yet I''ll leave ten ants with you guys. Even as undead they can still lift ten times their body weight. Let two of them drag a single carriage each, the undead goblins will help, make sure the elves don''t run away and if they try anything funny, kill them. I''ll take the rest of the undead and hunt Tetum down. See you guys at home." And then Rezar turned and vanished into the forest, with much of the undead in tow, Lenore suddenly turned to Gynaika and asked. "So what did he say?" Gynaika rolled her eyes, but she knew exactly what Lenore was asking about. "why are you asking Lenore, do you feel threatened by me?" "Get over yourself Diviner, climbing into bed with you can either make or break him, and I''d rather not served a broken man who does nothing but cater to the whims of a woman with too many schemes in her head," Gynaika raised an eyebrow as the procession of prisoners started moving, she moved ahead a bit before turning to Lenore. "He said yes, but I would have to do everything he says, live as he says, die if he says so, fuck another man if he says so, and smile with jaws wide open if he decides to marry a 100 wives. He would give me the power I need, but I would have none over him or his kingdom except in the bedroom of course or where it really mattered. He''s not as young and as gullible as you think he is; he thinks farther than most. He knows to truly conquer and build a kingdom he would have to make deals and play politics, arranged marriages, trade deals, political gathering, espionage and all those really nasty things you can think. To survive all that, he cannot be under someone else''s thumb, but he also knows how to respect talent and take responsibility for it. He knows he needs me, I know he does, but he''s not going to let me use that against him, because he also knows, that I need him too, right now we''re both just playing with our lives to get the maximum gain." Gynaika said as she looked up at the night sky, silently cursing about how dark it was. "So you don''t love him? Or do you think you can ever fall in love with him?" Lenore asked as she moved closer, Gynaika raised an eyebrow and said. "Are you stupid or something, love doesn''t matter, not in this game we''re all a part of. Love is for children, we will be loyal to each other and fight each other''s battles, and not because we love each other, but because its required for us to both survive. Lenore my dear I think you should wake up, because dear child Love doesn''t exist." Chapter 80锛欶irst Campaign 4 Marching through a forest at night with an army this big did not seem like a good idea, but in all honesty Tetum didn''t care, there was not a single force around to challenge their power and might. It was so strong that even the wildlife in this part of the forest had moved in deeper to avoid the wanton hunting and foraging of the goblins. It was only those elves that turned out to be the closest neighbors, along with that necromancer that popped out of nowhere. The elves on their own were actually not that much of a threat, they were intellectuals, choosing to build a territory ran by magical and technological advancements, and in the process their military suffered a lot. Tetum had to be honest, it wasn''t a wise choice or a wise move at all, the way he saw it, they should have developed measures that would keep them safe, if they were not interested in conquest that should have been the priority. That way they could have developed in peace and not have anybody come rain on their parade just like just did, but it was unfortunate. But they looked like a new species of elves, so for what is worth, they''ll fetch quite the price in the slave market, especially with how inventive they seem to be. [Fire Arrow] The arrow flew forwards and pierced through the head of a girl who looked no older six, Tetum caused at his abysmal aim, but he really couldn''t be blamed about that, he was preoccupied with thoughts of how stupid these people were, so if one of them died in the process, then it was all their fault. Him thinking about them and their value was given them way too much value than they deserve, oh! That''s great! This time he took a leg off, the value reduced, but at least it was still alive to be sold for a pretty penny. Besides this was Elysium, a leg can be regenerated for quite a pretty sum. But as he marched forward, with a rather nasty smile on his face, he had no idea what was going on behind him as both their captured prisoners and much of his soldiers started disappearing into the dark forest around him. And his pursuit continued this way for the better part of an hour, eventually they came up into the plains, before their eyes a wooden fence with spiked stakes had been driven into the ground, and in the distance the fence could still be seen being spread and grown like some sort of plant being grown out of the ground. Tetum knew what this was, for every settlement this was the first sort of fortification you could build, but given the sheer amount of wood it sometimes required, it was always better to wait for the settlement to upgrade to a village and get the blueprints for a palisade or wait till upgrades to a town and get the blueprints for a stone wall. This wasn''t cost effective and it would have been better to wait until the blueprint for the palisade is obtained, the cost to build id would actually be roughly the same as the system won''t put too much pressure on account of the territory being fairly new. It would usually cost three to four times as much wood resources to build any sort of fortification or building manually. But this wasn''t a problem for him, he could just as well take care of the wooden stake fence by attacking it once he was done dealing with his slaves. However, the advantage he had here was the fact that the wooden wall, has put a stop to the advancement of slaves. Tetum went forward with his brownish red hair waving in the wind, his four feet tall frame covered in and extremely gaudy and elaborate purple mage outfit, one look and Rezar could tell there was hardly any sort of enchantments or bonus from that gaudy thing. Rezar stood hidden behind the tree line and watched as the scared elves turned around watched as Tetum and his goblins marched closer and closer with a rather nasty look on their face. At first he had thought that he had set a trap for Tetum by having his moles dig was pretty much a pit fall trap and a cave in waiting to happen. But with the ways things seem to be going here, Rezar changed his mind, he was going to kill the fucking Hobgoblin right here. "You all have e run pretty far, but do you think you can escape? Did you think salvation laid waiting for you if you ran towards the sea? Or is it that you weren''t looming or thinking of salvation and you just wanted to run; wanted to get away from me. But is that right? I am your destiny! It is I who will give your mundane lives purpose and meaning, by having you all slave for the gloriousness of the goblin King''s army. So please for your sakes lay down your lives to me, I''ll be sure to put it to good use. And beyond that the territory you see behind you belongs to an evil cursed and degenerate necromancer who will have his legion of corpses **** you all one by one whilst taking your bodies apart for experiments piece by piece until there''s nothing left behind but your soul which he would in turn use to strengthen himself and gain an unnaturally long life. Compared to him, I''m the lesser evil don''t you think?" "Now that''s just bullshit of the highest order! I mean seriously! How far up your ass is your stupid green head?" Tetum was startled and shocked, he turned around swiftly to see Rezar marching out of the forest with a couple hundred undead goblins and their mounted wolves. It was then he realized the very small amount of soldier he had left, but of course over four hundred plus wasn''t small, but compared to the undead that felt no fear or pain and could only be killed by destroying their brains, he knew he was terribly outmatched and also trapped. "I''m only going to say this once, and I''m saying it to both the goblins and the fucking elves that just trespassed my land. Surrender now, or die! Just so you know elves while most of what he said about my necromantic tendencies were total and utter bullshit, he was right about one thing though I''m a greater evil than he is, so choose wisely," Chapter 81锛欶irst Campaign 5: DEATH Honestly speaking Rezar didn''t expect the elves to make any decision n, he was a necromancer, a death class holder and frankly speaking that made him even more scarier than the devil himself. But the goblins just brought death and destruction to them, so they were pretty much on the fence about who they could trust, after all... the devil you know is better than the death reaper you don''t, of course Rezar knew that proverb referred to angels; but let''s face it there was nothing Angelic about it. "Charge!!" He gave the order, but telepathically linked to his undead meant he could direct their movements. The ants and the goblins and their wolves all spread out like the wings of a bird, moving left and right to flank the still living army of goblins while Rezar, Screet and Neema went head first towards the army. They would be attacking from three sides, and even though it might seem suicidal, this was the best possible way they could win this fight. [Strengthen Undead] [Apparition] All the undead glowed a bright blue light as they got faster and more ferocious, at its current level, his strengthen undead skill could give a boost of 150% to all his undead. The buff from his traits made his abilities as a necromancer or with any sort of black magic skill almost op for a person of his level. Rezar surged into the crowd of goblins, a wild swing from him took off the head of every goblin in his path, with the ant he was also benefiting from the boost and turning its pincers into ferocious shears that snapped any forest wolf unfortunate enough to be in its path in half. (Boom!) A fire arrow smacked into Rezar''s bare chest and blasted him off the back of the ant, throwing him to the ground as his back broke on impact, not to mention his shattered ribs as the fire arrow drilled a hole into his chest, its impact breaking bones and burning organs. No matter how powerful he could get, Rezar was weak to fire, lightning, light and to some degree holy elements. But he wasn''t so sure about the holy element though, odd are if it''s not in a high enough concentration, all the holy element would ever do is make his passive skill [holy cells] even stronger and boosting his regeneration. An arrow found its way into his forehead as a crude club smashed his skull in, a wooden spear tried going through his thigh, but his skin was tough enough to actually bounce it back. Rezar pushed upwards slashing both his sickles upwards, diving a goblin in half, and the other finding purchase under the jaw of another. He shifted his gaze towards Tetum and saw the hobgoblin pointing an exquisite magic wand in his direction. [Fire Pillar] "Arrghhhhhh" Rezar was caught within the blast radius with a couple more goblins, killing them instantly whilst all he could do was endure the torment from the five-meter-long, ten-meter-wide AOE skill, that not killed goblins but also relived him of some of his undead. The pain was such that Rezar couldn''t think for a second, but it didn''t matter, this was his way, this was how he fought, he truly embodied the saying of no pain, no gain, and with that the skill came to an end. [Black Bolt] A shield came up in front of Tetum to block the strike, defending him with ease. But he was shocked that Rezar would be able to attack immediately after the fire pillar skill ended. It was only by sheer instinct he was able to defend himself, but in that short amount of time, Rezar had already found his way to the front of Tetum with his hands read back for a punch as both his sickles had been destroyed in the flames. [Power Strike] The force of the punch was so powerful it blew Tetum and both the undead and goblins fighting around him away, creating a ten-meter radius buffer zone that had absolutely no one around. Rezar had a passive skill called [Ignore Defense] and while his magical skills have not been able to fully incorporate that skill, his physical attacks and skills cause direct damage. Which would explain the shocked look on Tetum''s face while his shield was still active, and the fact that half his chest was caved in. he quickly pulled out a bottle of red liquid from thin air and gulped it down, his wound rapidly healing as he shakily got back to his feet much to Rezar''s shocked gaze. But be that as it may. He wasn''t stopping here and he wasn''t stopping now. He rushed towards Tetum who pointed his wan at Rezar, firing off rapid bolts of flames while his other hand held a scroll with flowing golden script. Rezar immediately recognized what that script was and reacted accordingly, he had already made up his mind to kill Tetum here and there was no way he was going to let the hobgoblin to escape and bring a more dangerous and powerful force back here. [Bind!] Eldritch chains with a black and purple hue surged out of Rezar''s back in a second and pierced to Tetum''s chest. The shock from the strike cause him to cough out blood as the teleportation scroll feel out from his hand and touched the ground. Tetum gritted his teeth and shot one last blast of flame at Rezar''s face. The flames exploded with a bang, burning Rezar''s head and face, taking away with shiny white hair, and even burning his skill and flesh until that was left was a charred skull with milky white eyeballs. The sight was so horrifying that many people screamed and lost the contents of their stomach. But still Rezar kept walking forwards, at home with the pain, looking an eldritch being of death and destruction, shadows flew out of his back forming the image of wings, and slowly his skin and flesh began to return, tissue over bone, nerves, cells and everything that made him who he was. And his drew closer Tetum watched with ever growing horror, even as his life was coming to an end. "Y-you''re a m-monster! You''re DEATH! STAY AWAY! STAY AWAY!" But Rezar didn''t listen, the chains on his back drew the hobgoblin closer as Rezar held him in the same way a mother would hold her child, or a man his lover, and then he sank his teeth into his neck, drawing deeply as the lifeblood of the goblin found its way into his throat. It would be a day that many would speak of for many years to come, because they would say it was one of the few times, the world of Elysium ever saw the red and gold eyes of Rezar Deathwind and the bloodlust they held." Chapter 82锛歂ew Born (I): Fear The Sun THE KINGDOM OF LERROWARN DUCHY OF DERKOSHA SELENE (THE CITY OF A THOUSAND MOONS) In a room located in the tallest tower in the most elaborate of castles, exquisite in its making with white rocks of shining silver and gaudy highlights of black red and gold. The stench or scent of blood hung thickly in the air as the secret true lord of this city sipped the reddest of wine from a tea cup whilst sniffing a rose. Pale skin made it seem as if he was covered in a layer of makeup, but many knew and could tell this was definitely not the white of makeup, but the white of death. But never the less his purple velveteen shirt and tight black pants with a silver belt was enough to make even the hardest of women feel week in the knees as they''ll struggled to staunch the flow of desire from within their most secret place. He was bare feet and his lips were the red of a rose, or the red of blood. He smiled as he looked out the window into the lively city below as the festival of the trickster god Loki was in full swing. He longed to join them, to be swept amongst their revelry as it was a night where any and all pranks were legal and allowed. He could almost smell the sheer amount of tears that would be shed, blood spilt as lives would be taken under the cover of pranks that the festival provided. A feast of exquisite blood would flow as slaves would be torn apart and their insides spread all over the city in a beautiful decoration. Loki''s Banquet was such a wonderful day to be a monster, a wonderful day to be evil, and a wonderful d ay to be a vampire. He chuckled softly, his joy coming not just from the sounds of beautiful music, the sounds of bloodlust or death or the intense stench of blood. No the system message he received a few minutes ago along with the boiling of his blood left him eager with hunger and excited with lost. He was so happy and his mood was reflected in the city of a thousand moons, beautiful, mystifying, and hidden, all so well from the outside world. After all there was a reason why it was called a city of a thousand moons. He stretched, brushing aside the silky white hair that hung over the side of his face as his eerie blue eyes seemed to pierce into the void of space. The city with a thousand nights and one day; Selene. A land where the goddess of the moon landed and had her secret children with the god of mischief Loki. A land cursed and blessed with werewolves, and ruling above them all was one vampire. And for so long it seemed that he would be alone, that there would be no one to understand the pull of the thirst, the urge and the ecstasy of the feed. The excitement of the kill and the power to bend the mind of mortal to you will, the power of a god. But now he could feel it, deep in his blood and deep in his code, he was not alone anymore. And he was not like these people, sometimes they call themselves players other say they''re uploads. But it didn''t matter to him as they were all the same and none of them could feel the chasm in his heart, but now he knows someone else has been born and made manifest unto the world. Of course this person could not really be like him, after all he was a true born child of this world of these universe. What was it that one man called him before he was drained dried and his body ripped apart in the most elaborate manner, there were a lot but it should all mean the same. A program, NPC, an AI, or that last one Virus, it sounded cool, REALLY BLOODY COOL! >>> QUEST COMPLETE: RACIAL UPGRADE! (LESSER VAMPIRE) 1. [gain 2 normal class and 2 combat class: 4/4] 2. [get 2 normal class and 2 combat class to level 25 each: 4/4] 3. [drink the blood of 25 different beings (humans included): 25/25] 4. [get your magic stat to tier3: 1/1] 5. [kill a sentient living being by drinking them dry of their blood: 1/1] 6. [get a passive and active combat skill and a passive and active normal skill to intermediate: 2/2] 7. [DIE: 1/1] [You have changed your race from human to lesser vampire, but as you have the cells of a lesser divine being, your race has been mutated to lesser Dhamphir [ half human/half vampire]. You have received the trait [Daylighter] and the skill apparition has been changed to [Bat Apparition], the skill siphon has been change to [Feed], you have gained the passive skills [Steel Mind], [Blood Magic Mastery]. You have gained the passive skills [Compulsion], [Blood Rain], and [Turn]. You have received 40,000 quest exp] [You have completed a hidden quest of every territory: Engage in conflict with your neighbors. You have received 5,000 quest exp, 2000 magic resource and the blueprints for 5 basic arrow towers] [You have achieved a milestone! You''ve went up against an army larger and more equipped than you and won with an impressive show of force. You''ve received forest wolf spawn key, and the blueprints for basic army barracks.] Rezar sat huddled within one of the tunnels within the cove, he couldn''t move out for one very obvious reason, sunlight. While they were lucky enough to make it back to the camp in time, he was still unlucky enough to get caught under sunlight and it scared the shit out of him. For the first time since he was reborn in Elysium he was afraid of something. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest as his breath hitched while the rays chased the shadows away. He ran, but even that didn''t take the fear away, it seemed etched into the deepest part of his bones and deep into his soul. He was scared of the sun. Chapter 83锛歂ew Born (II): Settlement Upgrade The sun didn''t really burn him, if he had to consider the grand scheme of things, well that would be wrong, it felt hotter than normal, and he felt a little weak under it, but apart from that everything else seemed normal. Well as normal as your diet changing to mainly contain blood as primary source, and feeling an overwhelming urge to rip into the neck of any living being that comes close to him. Not really sure he would have been able to handle such a change, but Priest has been by his side all through, offering as much support as he could and making Sure Rezar hadn''t lost his mind, hut it has been three days, it was time for him to go back and pay attention to his settlement. For one the construction of the wall seemed to have accelerated, after the fight with Tetum and his subsequent defeat, the territory had leveled up to 8, and with the constant foraging of resources, the experience percentage has been steadily climbing up. Rezar took a deep breath as he turned to look at the clothes that were placed at his side, Priest and Gynaika had put most of the elves to work, and luckily some of them had a little bit of talent in tailoring and leatherworking, so he was able to get new clothes that were honestly a hundred times better than the previous ones he had on that had gotten burnt. The pants were matte black, they clung to his frame really well and was accompanied by a midnight blue belt that honestly looked like it was made from stone. From the knees of the pants, a sort of shark fin like design of the same midnight blue coloring stretched up to top of his hips, and then there were boots lined with fur, but at the same time felt so light and comfortable. There were two silver buckles on them, and their soles, heels and underside was made of the same silver. When Rezar touched them, it had burned a little, but Priest had suggested he kept them close, as a vampire or half vampire his body was now weak to quite a few things. While those things won''t kill him, they could cause him more pain than he could bear, and one of those things was silver. So Rezar should get used to having silver all around him as it would help him with the resistance, and help him not be too afraid of it. Though he wasn''t afraid of silver, Priest reckoned that this would be a good ''mind over matter'' training for him. A shirt wasn''t made for him as Priest had asked them to skip that part, with the way he fought, getting Rezar a shirt would be a complete waste of time, so all they made for him was a midnight blue cloak with a hood, lined with fur that had been dyed white. The cloak was sleeveless, but Rezar could still zip it up if he wanted, but honestly he would very much like to leave his body open, after all he was a rather fine chocolate specimen of a man. Topping it off was a pair of gloves, that while soft on the inside looked a bit scary outside. Still going with the whole black get up, the gloves were obviously made from the scales of a monster, punch someone with this and the bruising would definitely not be nice. [Black Tyrant Armor Set: Power+ 20/ Defense +35/ Speed +45/ Magic +45/ a clothing set made by a scared tailor for a man she believes is a monster with a black heart. Anyone who sees this set would feel fear and worry] Rezar shook his head at that and went out of the cave he had hidden himself in for days. The settlement seemed to be a little lively, but that was mostly on the part of the undead. The elves and what remained of the goblins or not, those were mostly undead keeping an eye on the dwarves. Rezar moved towards the town Spire ignoring pretty much everyone as he was lost in his thoughts. For one, there was a lack of housing due to the increase of population, though the elves were more like prisoners or slaves, they were now considered a part of his settlement. But the thing is, with the wall still being built, there were a lot of buildings that were queued, the scout towers, and the basic citizen recruitment hall. The leader''s cabin had been completed with the rest of the earlier log cabins, but he had preferred the darkness of the tunnels. Never the less he needed a way to increase construction speed, because there was still a couple of blue prints in hand that he had to begin construction upon. But first things first, he would like to combine the town spire of the elves with that of his settlement, increasing its grade, he didn''t really know what would happen after that, but it should be enough to either level the settlement to level 9 or better yet upgrade it. And after that he would have to name the settlement, he has been putting that of for a while now, and it was about time he did so, [Absorb Town Spire for Muriel elf town; Seteria?... Spire absorbed] Almost immediately there was a flash of light that seemed to shoot up into the sky, the wind billowed and shook as Rezar took a few steps back, his new clothes flapping in the appearance of the wind and the sudden light show. The golden scrips on his spire seemed to peel off the body of the spire itself and floated into the air, before latching on to the Seteria town spire and turning it into motes of light that was absorbed by the golden runes, which in turned surged back to the spire and released a shockwave that blasted Rezar backwards. [The town spire has become stronger, its grade has changed from the default Legacy(Undead), to a silver grade Legacy town spire] [Due to the outburst of energy from the fusing of the two town spire all queued construction has been completed, all subsequent exp has been tallied. Congratulations! Your settlement has evolved into a level 1 village.] [Five basic Scout towers have leveled up to Level 5 basic scout towers, Leader Log cabin has leveled up to village Chief''s abode, Town hall has gone up by two levels (size increased), basic citizen recruitment hall has leveled up to Intermediate citizen recruitment hall, wooden stake wall construction has been completed and ranked up to wooden palisade wall] [All current wood resource has been exhausted along with 2000 units of stone, ore and 3000 units of magic for the upgrade.] [Spire skills now unlocked, dungeon core can now start spawning monsters for the defense of the village.] [To upgrade village to a town the following requirements must be met.] ? Population: 1500 ? Military: 200 ? Military Might: E+ ? Resources: Wood [20,000]/Stone [50,000]/Ore [35,000]/Magic [25,000] ? Barracks ? Pier ? 300 gold Elys Daily Income ? A Name Rezar felt stupid, and very, very upset. All of his gathered resources were pretty much gone, but what pissed him the most was that he had a couple of blueprints in hand. If he knew the Spire increasing in grade would level the settlement into a village and automatically complete all the current construction, he would have readily Queued all of them and saved him a lot of trouble, but now it was back to the slow grind. But it didn''t matter, they''ve achieved quite much. That is until a problem arose. QUEST COMPLETE [Upgrade your settlement to a village within a time span of 3 months/ Rewards 300% exp progression, the spire skill [Blessed Harvest], 100 gold Elys] [Your village has leveled up to level 3, villages defense, durability and productivity increased significantly] Rezar cursed the system, because right now, he had two blueprints for basic barracks. "What a fucking waste!" Chapter 84锛歂ew Born (III): Settlement Upgrade 2 The light shows aside, watching everything else begin to take shape was quite a sight, the log cabins remained as they were as these were units that had to be upgraded individually. The leader log cabin on top of the plateau had changed into a quaint little cottage. It wasn''t an extravagant piece of architecture, but it was beautiful in a simple kind of way. The citizen recruitment hall was now a part of the town hall, and it was built right at the foot of the plateau. It was a big wooden building that seemed like a church, but connected to another smaller building on the side, however there seemed to be more usage of stone I n its construction than before, the foundation itself was made of stone, while the rest of the building upwards was wood. Raising the virtual grid map of the territory, Rezar was able to see the two-and-a-half-meter tall palisade wall. It was not that different from the meter and a half wooden stake wall, but the wood used was thinner and taller, and tightly bound together, to make a seamless wooden wall, but they were still lacking a gate. Never the less it wasn''t too bad, three of the scout towers were now a part of the gate, the other two at the bottom edge of the territory still stood on both sides of the cliff facing the ocean. The territory was still bare, but at the very least they''ve achieved a little more than was expected of them. Rezar shifted his attention to the town spire and took care of somethings. He had two blueprints for a basic barrack, but he only needed one, so it''s better to keep the other until a need for it arise. He began the construction of the barracks, attached the forest wolf spawn key to the dungeon core that had now reached level 2. Now the dungeon core would be spawning five giant fire ants, and five forest wolves a day to serve in the village''s defense. At the very least they were all level 15 and even better was the fact that they were partially undead, or at least affected by Rezar''s necromantic ability in some way. [Giant Fire Ant (Necrotic Guardian Beast/Mount)/ Level: 15/ Skills: Iron Pinch, Hive Mind, Necrotic Acid, Hard Shell] [Forest Wolves (Necrotic Guardian Beast/Mount)/ Level:15/ Skills: Rot Slash, Pack Mentality, Necrotic Bite, Quicken] Two attack skills, a passive skill and a buff skill. Rezar was sure the skills shown here were completely unlike what they had when they were alive, but these was good. Right now all he could imagine was a cavalry of five thousand soldiers riding the ants and five thousand more riding the wolves. Already they were spawned as a cohesive unit, and though the wolves were sure to be faster, the ants had more defense. Which would make the wolf cavalry better for flanking, and the ants would be a heavy cavalry responsible for breaking down the enemy formations. But that was a little way in the future, for now they''ll just be responsible for keeping the territory safe. Next Rezar contemplated which of his skills he could hand over to the dungeon core, he still wanted to give it summon undead, but he was not sure how it would affect the spawn rate of the ants and wolves, so he would hold back on that for now. He''ll check the village''s current stats, but before that he opened the store and made sure the citizen recruitment page for the village was already active, but it wasn''t, he still had to name the town, and so he did, without much fanfare or so much as a deeper thought to it. [You have set the name of your village as [NECRON] congratulations!] The citizen recruitment hall was still level 1, so it recruits 5 people every three days. It was a slow start, but a village is not expected to become a town overnight in much the same way the settlement had blazed a trail. Never the less with the name in place, and Rezar setting the requirements for recruitment as anybody, with specifics on professionals, mainly architects, blacksmiths, masons, tailors, hunters, and anyone willing to be part of a military force. Then he bought a few more blueprints, he got a [Basic Coble Stone Street] blueprint, [Basic Smithy], [Basic Tannery], [Basic Store House] and finally a [Basic Dormitory. There were more people than houses available, and the basic dorms had at least 30 rooms to a dorm. It would cost a significant amount of stone to build, but the moles and ants were still really hard workers and would be able to get it up and running. He bought 3 of the dormitory blueprint, just so that there''ll be enough rooms for people. The other log houses would be occupied by his people, Lenore, Priest, Gynaika and her entourage. ? Village Name: Necron|| Level: 3(44%) ? Grade: Silver Legacy|| Leader: Rezar Deathwind ? Population: 180/1500 ||Military: 0/200|| Military Might: F- ? Attachments: Dungeon Core Level 2(0%): Spawn 5 Giant Fire and 5 Forest Wolf a Day ? Perks: N/A ? Skills: [Blessed Harvest: +65% growth to all plants and food, +25% speed to gathering of resources] ? Resources: Food (2800)/ Wood (18)/ Stone (40)/ Ore (1260)/ Magic (232)/ Money: (0/0/100/0) ? Shop/ Allies: N/A (Upgrade settlement to town) ? Defenses: Level 5 Basic Scout Tower (5)/ Level 1 Wooden Palisade/ Buff: 12% ? Attack: N/A ? Buildings: Level 2 Town hall (Village Defense and Attack +10%, Productivity and Construction Speed +10%)/ Level 1 Citizen Recruitment hall (Recruit 5 new citizen every 3 days)/ Village Chief''s Abode (+5% to village productivity and stability) There was now a lot of change to territory''s stat page, as some things that weren''t there when it was a settlement had appeared. Never the less it was al to his advantage, and with this out of the way, he was left to deal with the most pressing matter at hand, and that was the matter of the captured elves. The question he''s really asking himself right now though; was whether or not he should leave them as slaves or should he set them free and let them decide for themselves what was the right thing to do? Because whether or not he would want to admit, Slavery left a really bad taste in his mouth. Chapter 85锛欰listair the Muriel Elf On his orders Lenore had gathered everyone at the foot of the plateau, there was much to be said and much to be done. The next decision he had to make had left him feeling a little confused; because if he had to be honest, he did not want to put anybody through the same hell he went through as a slave, but the thing is, you really couldn''t trust anybody. Even Gynaika, the woman he''s made a deal with to marry was still a slave, and that was strictly because he didn''t trust her enough yet. The limitations of a slave can be set by the owners of said slave, he could make things a little stricter, but he was thinking of using a different method. This Muriel elf were not like the traditional elves. They had fair skin, horns, and yellow eyes, and their hair was red, with a few streaks of different colors to differentiate amongst themselves. They were a new species, but he learnt they were an elf species more oriented to technology as opposed to high elves with their magic, dark elves with their assassination, hate for sunlight and contracts with spider monsters. Moon elves and their priestesses, illusions, wolves and severe worship of the moon goddess Athena. The snow elves and their ice palace and really unfriendly attitude, and then the forest elves which were Elysium''s version of environmentalist and eco-terrorist. That was what it was with most races, they were attuned to a specific kind of talent. And that helped their respective economy grow as the specialties made it possible for them to trade. And now there''s the Muriel, a race that has not existed in Elysium since its founding, or maybe it did, but it was experiencing a resurgence. Never the less if there were a race attuned to technology, then it would only mean one thing. The frontiers being open wasn''t just for the grab of land, but for the advent of a technological age, or at least Techno-magical age. "I need all of you to pay attention to what I''m about to say. I''m sure you''re scare, and you feel alone and you''re not so sure of the future that lays ahead of you, even more so at this very moment when all you have to look up to is a death class holder that isn''t human or any sort of race you know about. If I were in your shoes I would be scared too, and I wouldn''t trust me, that''s smart. But frankly I doubt any one of you have a choice with this, your lives have pretty much ended as a town, many of the players from your village are gone and would be unable to respawn, not unless they get sent to another town, or completely removed from Bahrenburg itself. You''ve lost your Spire and your future is pretty bleak, but I will give you all a choice. Your slaves now, my slaves. But I promise to give all of you your freedom in six months! And when that time comes you will be free to do whatever it is you want to do with your life. You can choose to stay. I hope, or you can leave and take your chances out in the wild lands of Bahrenburg as see if you can rebuild, or join some other town that''s not so death inclined." "What''s the catch?" the elf that Rezar has so far noticed to be the leader of this group of over a hundred elves asked. "Catch? There''s no catch, why would they be a catch. You sound as if I''m trying to make a deal with you guys." Rezar said with a scoff as the elf asked. "Aren''t you?" Rezar rolled his eyes and said. "Are you stupid or just pretending to be? You''re my slaves now, frankly speaking you don''t have much of a choice in this, even if I tell you to get to the top of the cove and jump into the sea to get your body smashed into pieces by the rocks waiting down there for you, you wouldn''t be able to do anything but to agree. There''s no catch to anything I''ve said, for six months, you all will work with me and help me make my territory into something meaningful, once that''s done ill set you all free. You can take my word for it, or don''t. heck if you all work well and prove yourself I might consider setting you free a little early. I will keep my word, all I ask is that you use that big brain of yours and achieve something for my territory. And when the six months is over, you all can leave if you want to, or stay, as free citizens of Necron without being bothered by anyone. You will have job s, food, shelter and a chance to move your life forward. It''s not really a choice, I''m just informing you all of my decision. And you come with me!" Rezar said to the leader elf. His words were significant, he didn''t want to see, like a tyrant, but he would not let anybody have power over him. He knows he''ll keep his word, and these people would not suffer under his rule, however give them to light of a hand and they''ll take him for granted and think they can plot behind his back. Or that might not be the case at all, but humanity is not trustworthy, they''ve never been and they never will. "You seem to be the leader of the Muriel Elves? I see the way they look up to you. So where you the former Mayor of your destroyed town?" Rezar asked as he spoke to the elf away from prying eyes and listening ears. "No! Not at all! I was the Mayor''s assistant and the chief researcher of all our projects. Since we were what you would consider a craftsman town, with all of the residents having their projects consolidated under the Mayor, I was responsible for picking out projects, seeing which ones were good and allocating funding, resources and personnel for it. Other jobs included in depth city planning and expansion and I was also responsible for keeping and establishing diplomatic ties territories." Rezar raised an eyebrow as he looked at the elf. "Are you guys a town or a company of some sort?" he asked surprised. "Our Mayor is a player and much of our residents. When the event for the colonization of the Bahrenburg frontier started, many companies decided to take a bite out of it as it would be possible to establish another supreme power. The Muriel elf template was bought by the mayor, unlike most elves, were more like monsters in the fact that we''re spawned. Some of the young ones were born though as the town can''t spawn a Muriel elf below 10 years of age. Anyway since it was a company that started the town, we followed that demographic and had everything work like a corporation. We had only begun to recently start trading with others, trying to raise funds, and get connections with the larger empires, theocracies, kingdoms and powers to help us stand, maybe even build an army of our own as our technology has only recently just touched upon weapons design and construction. I made a mistake during a diplomatic visit with the Goblin King, I exposed what we were capable of and what we could achieve if he enters an alliance with us, and maybe give us soldiers to protect us from the eyes of other territories. The choice he made was to conquer us instead and have us slave for him they burnt everything to the ground." Rezar looked at him for a moment, before turning his gaze towards the sea, night had already fallen but he could see as clear as day, and what he could see was beautiful. "What''s your name?" he asked the elf. "My Name''s Alistair Be''tui''to." That''s a funny name, but he''s an elf, their names are always a mouthful. "Well Alistair, from today henceforth you can resume your previous job as an assistant, except of course you''ll serve me instead. I grant you your freedom, and for your people''s sake I hope you''re loyal." [You Have set Alistair Be''tui''to free from slavery] [You Have hired an Assistant! Village Personnel list now open.] ? PERSONNEL: ? Village Head Assistant: Alistair Be''tui''to Chapter 86锛歅lans The village chief abode wasn''t that bad, it was cozy but small, but it had absolutely no furniture, guess the blueprints came only with the buildings and not the furniture. But thanks to some really dexterous and fast working Melves as Rezar had taken to calling them in order to have a clear distinction, there was enough furniture in the house to make it a little homelier than cozy. Either way Rezar, Priest, Lenore, Gynaika and their new addition Alistair were sitting in various corners of the sitting room as they decided to have a meeting to decide which direction to take the village. "I saw that Jason is back from his errand, did he find anything?" Lenore asked as she crossed her legs and looked at Alistair who was standing behind Rezar looking very nervous. "He did, four and a half hours from here there''s a fishing town by the sea, and its owned by the same merchant company that sent our resident prisoner to come scout this place. They have ships, both those made for fishing and those fashioned for war, and while there''s no preparation of any sort, I envision they might be preparing for a clash with us soon enough." Rezar said as he removed a little bit of dirt from his fingernails. "So basically we have enemies to the south, and to the east in the forest, amazing! Have you heard anything from the Goblin King yet?" Priest asked with a somber look on his face. "The next base is a little farther away than Tetum''s mounted division, both Neema and I don''t have enough range with our undead telepathy to send a unit that deep into enemy territory for scouting. But within our borders, there''s been no sign of goblins, though we did discover a small village of wood sprites. I''ll just leave them alone for now since they''re not a threat yet, but also we''ve discovered a dungeon, and its usefulness is extensive." Rezar said with a small smile. "If It''s a dungeon then that''s really good! What''s the level range?" Lenore asked as she sat forward. "From Level 1 to 200!" Rezar said with a nonchalant shrug forcing everybody to take in a deep breath. It was understandable, every class, even when they upgrade to the next level has a level cap of hundred. The first base would need 10 levels to jump to the next rank, the second 10, and the third will need 20. The fourth will need 30 and the fifth will also need 30 before reaching the peak, and then you can focus on a secondary class to keep on increasing your stats. Monsters don''t have classes, they have levels. Some are lucky enough to evolve after their levels get to a certain limit, evolution would reset the level count though making them start from one. But there are some monsters who don''t evolve, or have evolved to the limit. Their levels would just keep on growing and so too will their strength, and the amount of Exp gained when they''re defeated. Dungeons were the only things in Elysium that dropped loots, not to mention dungeons were like mines or untouched forests, apart from the loots, and the rewards received for clearing floors. There were resources that could only be found in dungeons that can greatly help the advancement of civilization as a whole, not to mention a dungeon from level 1 to 200 was extremely valuable to any territory. You don''t have make deals with others or travel far to use dungeons with higher leveled monsters, it usually costs a lot to use it and has served as a source of revenue for the power that owns the dungeon. "you guys should not get too excited though, that dungeon is smackdab within the territory of a village of beast people, specifically the tailed foxes. I don''t think they''ve discovered the dungeon yet, but its right in their territory. I don''t need to tell you just how bad it would get if they claim it before us but rushing on to another campaign at the moment will be too brash, I need us to place our focus a little bit closer to home for the moment. What do we need right now?" Everyone got silent at that point, it wasn''t as if there was nothing to say, but Rezar got the feeling that Gynaika, Lenore and Priest were competing with each other, as if to see who would give a lousy idea first. Rezar didn''t like it, but for some reason he found it amusing, what''s a kingdom without a little politics anyway. It was then he heard a cough behind him. "Alistair it seems you have something to say, what is it?" Rezar asked him as he crossed his legs and placed his fist under his chin. "I think at the moment we should try to be self-sufficient, so I suggest we place our focus a bit on farming," Rezar raised an eyebrow, and with the way Priest''s eyes twitched that was probably the idea he wanted to bring up, but it doesn''t matter who brought it up first, it was something they needed to deal with. Rezar looked at Alistair and nodded his head asking him to continue. "I would like if you would let me take a few acres of land above the cove, the lands are fertile and I can draft up a blueprint for an irrigation system with purification abilities, not to mention I can also build and advance sewer system to cover the entirety of the cove, with enough modification that waste would be turned into energy that could be used in different sectors. But that''s just getting ahead sir, the thing is we have advanced farming techniques and if we can requisition the help of either earth spirits, wood sprites, fairies, dryads and wood elves, then we would be able to have bountiful harvest. The technology we''ve developed can to a certain extent amplify the power of none combat spells and skills to a significant degree, we could grow food and open up trade to start earning money for the territory." Rezar nodded his head, seeing the wisdom in his words and loving the ideas that he had just suggested. Honestly speaking his pocket would not be enough to carry the village for long, the best idea right now was to find a way to be self-sufficient. And it doesn''t matter if it was in the real world or in Elysium, nothing sells better than food. And technology too. "Alright then, lets focus on the farming for now, let''s convene in a weeks'' time, by then all the buildings should have been completed and the farming plans should have been implemented. Ill tweak the recruitment page to show that we have need for a specialist farmer or botanist, specifically wood elves, fairies, earth spirits, wood sprites and dryads. Lenore ill need you to draft of an extensive military plan, I get the feeling you have experience with that, Priest will help you. Gynaika. just stay out of trouble would you, but do keep an eye on everyone in the village and make sure they''re comfortable. I''ll take over the patrols myself for now, and see if I can scout both the fisherman town, the tailed fox village and locate the Next base of the Goblin King. Now Alistair? Tell me what you would need." Chapter 87锛欱lood Night (I): A Target It was hard to determine between the three camps of the goblins, the tailed fox, and the merchant company who they had an altercation with them the first time; which of them were the bigger threat and needed to be taken care off. But given that the merchant company hasn''t made any sort of move, the tailed fox''s had no idea about their existence, and the goblin king should probably be finding out about them right about now. Management and watching how the territory grew wasn''t really his style, or maybe it was, but he really couldn''t pay much attention to them when there were threats to be neutralized. The foxes were a threat because of his own greed, which makes them a target to be conquered. The merchant company where rivals he had gotten the best of, they''ll be back for retaliation but it seems it wouldn''t be any time soon. Rezar suspected they were probably waiting for him to build up the territory a bit, before sending either someone to negotiate with them, or a force to wipe them off the face of the earth. And that left the goblin king that had out rightly decided to attack them. His choice of action cemented him as an enemy and the biggest threat that he had to take care of at the moment, so Rezar would be going after the goblins instead. But before he could do that, he had to get geared up. With the arrival of the Melves (Muriel Elves) his worry about weapons seemed to have been reduced a bit. While they were more technologically oriented, they had enough, magical abilities to mold, shape, change, and enchant a material, and then create other sort of materials from scratch. And with Alistair as his assistant, they were all too willing to make a new set of gear for him. [Mark 1 Plasma Core Magical Bone Scythe// Magic +35%, Power +20%// all skills +30%// a first version hybrid scythe of magic and technology made from the spine of monster snake and coated with refined magical metals. The blade of the scythe was formerly the pincers of monstrous ant queen, and attached with an enchanted technological core that generates vast amounts of heat around its blade, giving it the ability to cut through metal. This scythe is only a prototype and can be improved. // Durability: 100/101] The name of the weapon was a handful, but the scythe itself was over two meters tall, with its blade being half a meter wide. The edge of the blade has a red outline from when it would heat up, and while this wasn''t the chain scythe that his reaper class was supposed to use, this scythe served a purpose given that it was trifecta weapon. Technology was just coming into play in Elysium so it should be pretty rare to see a weapon that combined tech, magic, and physical attacks into one. Later Alistair offered to design swords and firearms for him, and get him a pair of smaller scythes or sickles as he had grown attached to the previous ones. But none the less with the scythe and his all black get up, he looked every bit the dark necromancer king the whole world thought he was. Ant Tony was almost ready to be evolved, but he needed to be in a few more battles. But since he was sort of Rezar''s official mount, the ant was lightly armored so as not to affect his speed, increase his defense, and had his pincers enhanced and replaced with implants. It was sick looking and downright scary as pincers made of chitin compared to those made of refined obsidian steel was downright scary. and it was after those pincers were made did his territory get its first perk. [Tech Savants: +15% to all creations or advancements of science and Technology] With that Perk Rezar stopped imagined cavalries of armored ants and wolves and started imagining an army of undead bionic ants, it was a scary but somewhat beautiful thought. But everything was arranged, and even though many tried to argue, chief amongst them Screet and Jason, Rezar still chose to travel alone. For one he felt that he needed the silence and the personal adventure, which quite frankly was something he''s not had since he became a slave. It would also be easier for him to escape should something come up, and if he so chose, he was still a one-man army with his annoying ability of not being able to die. In the end they couldn''t argue much as he loaded Ant Tony with a bunch of saddle bags that were pretty much empty. He had retrieved an inventory from Tetum, in this case a braces with a 5x5 space. Each box could be stacked with similar materials till a hundred, the saddles were more of a habit to make Ant Tony seem more like a mount. "You Know you don''t have to do this at least not alone." Gynaika said to him as he mounted meter and a half tall giant ant. "I know, but I want to. What''s the point of being a leader if you can''t do what you want? Besides don''t worry, I''ll keep myself safe." All she could do was nod, in all honesty, no one but Priest knew why he was really going out this time. And while many of them might think it was because of his thirst for adventure, only he and priest knew it was because of his thirst for blood. For better or for worse Rezar had become a vampire, and he was hungry all the time. To truly deal with this he had to go feed and he would rather not eat his own people, and at the same time he had to understand his abilities as a vampire. Because ever since he became one, it was not just skills he received, his stats too increased and what he saw shocked him. So he was going out to hunt and to learn control over what he could only assume was. Limitless power. NAME: [Rezar Deathwind] [age:16] [Race: Lesser Dhamphir (Half-human/ Half-Vampire] + CLASS: [Advanced Miner(lv5) (0/24,000)] [Advanced Necromancer(lv5) (0/70,000)] [Death Lord(lvl1) (0/30,000)] [N/A} EXP: [Normal Exp: 8,880] [Battle Exp: 123,648] [Quest Exp: 46,060] TRAITS: [Son of Death] [Angel of Death] [Daylighter] [N/A] STATS: [Power (TIER 5): 250] [Speed (TIER 5): 250] [Defense (TIER 5): 250] [MAGIC (TIER 6): 300] BONUS: [+85% To All Death and Black Magic] [+55% To All Mining Activities] [50% Damage from Light & Holy Magic. 40% Damage from Fire & Lightening Magic. 40% Resistance to All Elements Except Fire and Lightning] [+50% to Power, Magic, Mental and Defense. You cannot be killed except by an Item of Holy or Demonic Might] [You have all the strengths of a vampire and few of their weakness. -30% bloodlust, -100% damage from sunlight, +25% to blood magic] Chapter 88锛欱lood Night (II): Enemies The nights were rather cold; even with the trees blocking the wind from the sea, it was still an extremely harrowing experience. But that was mainly attributed to his abilities as a vampire, or a half vampire. To Rezar the cold was colder and hot was hotter. There were more stars in the sky and the smells were sharper, the sounds louder and the taste more elaborate and diverse, so much so that he could even taste the scents in the air. In that regard the forest was the wrong place to be, but in the end this forest was an empire all to itself, and his goals laid within it. *Rumble!!* Rezar grunted in pain at the sharp pain he felt in his stomach, he was hungry, but this was unlike any bunger he had ever felt. It was so all consuming and deep, like if he didn''t eat anything soon his whole world would fall apart and nothing else would matter. The annoying part of this was that he has only been away from the territory for the better part of four hours, yet his hunger and lust for blood seemed to be so all consuming. According to Priest, he was young, both as a human and a vampire, which meant he would have zero to no control over his hunger and bloodlust. Rezar shook his head as he gave orders to Ant Tony, the undead ant scurried up a massive tree as Rezar picked his way amongst the shrubbery to the hill where a few days ago, he and Lenore had rained fire and death on the goblins. It shouldn''t have taken him so long to get here, but he had traveled in a roundabout manner, checking all three locations of their previous battles to see if there had been tempering apart from the clean-up carried out by the undead in the locations close to the territory. He didn''t find anything, but there were goblins back at the base for the goblin mounted division, they seemed more like scouts seeing as there was just twelve of them. but they were hobgoblins and decked head to toe in heavy black armor. Their mounts were similarly armored boars that looked like they could smash through everything in their way. Obviously their battles with Tetum had caught the attention of the goblin King, and with his eyes on them now, things are bound to get dicey real fast. "Do we know who did this?" one of the armored Hob-goblins asked. "At the moment scouts from HQ would be coming here to scour the area, we can''t tell who the enemy was as there''s absolutely nothing left behind, not even the bodies of our fallen comrade, so whoever or whatever did this has need for their bodies, maybe for food, so I''m suspecting maybe monsters from the canyons found their way or its way here." Another hobgoblin said. "If that were the case then there would be more signs, for one the tracks are all over the place, so it''s hard to tell which is which. But if it was a monster there would have been definite signs that it was a monster, and if you would pay attention to the entrances you would notice that it was collapsed from an explosion, magic was used and a monster doesn''t have that level of intelligence unless it''s under the control of a tamer or summoner. But if this was a tamer or summoner, there would have still been definite signs of a monster large enough to cause this much destruction. What I can glean from the tracks, is that there were lots of enemies, it was an ambush and the goblins in the camp couldn''t really put up a fight. The enemy probably had a mage with a high level fire class, bringing enough fire power to bear that the soldiers here were unable to fight back when it mattered. The only problem is that we have no idea who the enemy is." A hobgoblin whose armor had red streaks said as she knelt on the ground. "We need to split up, the rest of us should head back to HQ and tell the king what happened here. An entire division was wiped out, reducing our overall military might. I''m pretty his attention is already here too, but this takes precedent as we have no idea what sort of enemy we''re dealing with. Corus and I would head in the direction of the Muriel Elves town; Seteria. Tetum''s recent mission was to subjugate the town, so maybe we''ll find clues about what happened here, the rest of you take this information to the king as fast as possible, we''re dealing with forces we can''t see yet, and you getting word to the king might decide if our people will live or die." Twelve hob-goblins, probably all from the same division, them splitting up was good for Rezar. The two who would be heading towards the location of the now destroyed Muriel Elves town wouldn''t be that much of a problem and he could intercept them on their way back. What really mattered to him was the ten who would be heading back to the goblin king with information that was almost too accurate. Guess goblins were no longer as stupid as they once were. He had to go after them, apart from the fact that they would give him the proper route back to the goblin King''s territory, he could actually take the chance to deal with them all this night. Rezar gave an order to Ant Tony, sending the u dead ant back to the territory with a message for Neema and Screet. It would be up to them to take care of that Corus and the other hob-goblin. As for the others, Rezar was hungry, and it was just past midnight; this was just as good a time as any to try and master his new strength and abilities as a vampire. What he''s not been able to tell anyone was the fact that becoming a half vampire seemed to have created something in him, something scary and wild and just out for blood and death, and tonight, he''s letting out of its cage. Chapter 89锛欱lood Night (III): Hunt The sounds of pounding hooves filled the forest, the tranquility and silence of the night disturbed by their fervent march, it was quiet, and most predators knew to keep away from the group of hobgoblins riding through the forest, all but one. It would be too far-fetched to say that Rezar was in control, that every step he took and every breath drawn in was all under his control, but that would be a lie of epic proportions. His speed was unlike what most would expect, his muscles compacted as he jumped forwards, coming behind the hobgoblin at the rear, his hands outstretched, claws poking out of his fingers. *Fwooosh! * The hobgoblins came to a halt as suddenly a spooked armored boar rode ahead of them; its rider blatantly absent from its back. This group of people didn''t have to share or even say anything as they immediately corralled their boars into a circular formation, with each of the nine watching each other''s back. For some reason the forest was extremely silent, no sounds, not even crickets or birds, or even the wind itself, all of it was silent. And as they watched with baited breaths, a round metallic object came flying out of the darkness of the forest. They held their weapons tight, watching as the object came to at their feet. By matter of providence, in that very second a stray cloud that had been covering the shine of the moon moved aside as a little bit of wind came blowing over the forest and swaying the trees enough that the gleam of moonlight could peak through the hole made from the trees swaying. And right then and there they were subjected to the sight of their missing comrade, a look of fear etched all over his green skinned face. Rezar hung on the branches of a tree ten meters in the air, he was covered and sheltered by nature itself, and he watched them from his perch, one eye blazing gold and the other burning red. Blood slowly dripped from his hands with a significant amount of it covering his lips as pearly white fangs poked out of his mouth. For him there was no thought or wonder, just instinct, just hunger. Everything was a haze, and all that was at the forefront was his bloodlust and hunger. The hobgoblins kept a tight formation and their eyes peeled for any sort of danger, but at this point Rezar had gone beyond just being considered a danger, he was just death. A swarm of bats suddenly gathered around the hobgoblins, it was sudden and nerve wracking as they fought back and released skills to take care of the bats, but just as they suddenly appeared, the vanished, taking with them the lives of two other hobgoblins. Their bodies fell of their boars with a massive clang, their heads which had been thrown into the air falling down besides their headless bodies mere seconds later. In just mere minutes 10 hobgoblins has been reduced to seven, and even then they had no idea what was responsible. They couldn''t see it and their eyes couldn''t follow its speed. To say this was scary was an understatement, but there were left with only one choice. "We''re being hunted! We should-arrrck!" The hobgoblin that was speaking had his words cut short as a chain of infernal makings shot out of the forest and stabbed through his chest, and then it dragged back into the dense foliage of trees and plants, his screams echoing in the night before it was cut short with nerve wracking sound of a wet squelch, and seconds later hos head came flying into the area where the remaining six hobgoblins were standing. This time they didn''t need to talk or say anything, they just spurred their boars on and ran. This time the pounding of the boars'' hooves was frantic and akin to the sound of thunder, event he mounts themselves were besotted with terror at the scene they had just experienced. If there was ever a way to describe death, this was it. But they had barely run for ten minutes when they heard an infernal squeal, turning behind them their hearts seemed to beat even faster at the sight behind them. The four boars of the deceased comrades had been changed into monsters of the worst sort, but even more scary was the fact that said comrades were riding on their boars, their eyes red and lifeless as the unrelenting claws of undeath held them. this was even more horrifying than they expected, they weren''t being hunted by a monster but a death class holder, but then again what were death class holders but monsters of the worst sort. There was a cacophony of loud noises and screeches as a cloud of bats swiftly flew over the charging undead hobgoblins making a beeline for the escaping ad very much alive hobgoblins. A face of horror with hair as white as snow, fangs the color of silver ivory, and eyes the golden of the sun and flame and red of blood and roses. There was no stopping as he surged forwards, swinging hi arm that was hard to distinguish from the crowd of bats he was covered in or made off. A scythe with its blade blazing hot slashed out, taking off the head of the hobgoblin in the rear, and putting an end to his life as his boar kept on running with all its might, terribly afraid for its life, and not caring one bit for its now deceased master as the master''s body was dislodge from its back. Rezar came to a halt, his feet digging furrows into the ground as the bats slowly melded back into his body. He held his scythe to the side, the blade sizzling as the blood on it rapidly evaporated. Rezar stood where he was as the undead hobgoblins and their boars came to a stop behind him. The red and gold colors faded from his eyes as the eerie blue he was familiar with bled back in. his hunger was far from sated, but there was clarity in his eyes, even though he was completely bloody. He watched on as the remaining hobgoblins fled for their life, he wasn''t too worried, he never intended to kill them all anyway, after all they still needed to lead him to his next target, but then again he didn''t need five hobgoblins to lead him to his destination or deliver a message looks like the hunt continues. Chapter 89: Goblinshire (I): Looking For Work The sound of trickling water and deep breaths filled the area as the first rays of sunlight began to peak through the canopy of dense green trees. A small brook that ran to through the forest had its previously clear and pristine water turned red, as the vestiges of a battle was washed off. Rezar felt melancholic, for some reason he had found himself in this reflective state of mind as he stared at his image in running water, he ignored the bloodied image in front of him as he took a handful of water and washed his face, relishing the coolness and the chill of the water, and the feeling of relief it brought him. The bushes to his side rustled a bit, and Valka walked out of it, his greyish white coat a stark contrast to the deep and vibrant green of the forest. Somewhere along the line, the familiar had found its way out and followed after Rezar as he hunted the hobgoblins until there was all but one. And after that they both just found their way through the forest, following after the hobgoblin until he led them here, the outskirts of a town deep in the forest and nestled against a few large hills. "Master are you okay?" Valka asked as he walked close, his paws eerily silent as he moved close to the necromancer who focused on getting the dried flakes of blood off his body. "I''m fine Valka, did you scout out the town? What did you find out?" Rezar didn''t feel like anything was wrong, but given the small massacre he just carried out in the forest last night all the way to the early hours of this morning, then it stands to reason that he might really have a lot to talk about and a few significant topics to get off his chest. But Rezar agreed with one thing, and that was the fact that he was a necromancer, a death class holder. No matter how much of a bloody affair it might be, death was what he dealt with. "The final hobgoblin only passed through the town, or rather I should say village instead. The village seems to be one of the territory under the goblin king, the hills behind them is rich in iron and copper, and a few other miscellaneous ores. It''s a mining village, and based on the sheer amount of activity I can see, it seems they''re probably mainly responsible for the distribution of ores for forging within the Goblin King''s territory and others included. The population leans more to the goblin side, but there are only, and please take this with a grain of salt as I''m not that good with numbers, but the goblins make 60 or so % of the population. There are other races, most of which I think are merchants who purchase the ores from the goblin sanctioned miners, most of which are dwarves who I might add are also slaves. The other races seemed to have settled in the town, looks there''s a lot of opportunities and wealth to be gained, and there''s not much restriction in place for people who want to get in, you just have to pay a fee." If Rezar had to be honest, he''s had enough of anything that had to do with mining, slaves and a mining town or village. But for some reason it seems slavery is a big part of the lifestyle in Elysium, and it was puzzling how Elysium itself would allow such a thing. It seems no one''s learnt anything about the pain and bad blood slavery caused in the real world. At the very least this time it wasn''t prejudiced against race or creed, as long as you''re an enemy that got captured or raided, you can and will become a slave. regardless of your race. "So what do we do master? Do we skirt around the edge of the village and keep on chasing the Hobgoblin, or do we slaughter our way through the mining town?" Valka asked as his eyes glinted with the promise of carnage and destruction, but Rezar shook his head, he''s done enough killing to last him a lifetime if he had to be honest. "We''re just going to find an inn and take a nap, then later we can look around the village and gather information and resources that might be helpful to our territory. We still don''t know what this forest is called and how the demographic of power works. When the night comes, we can decide whether we''re going to be slaughtering our way through the village or not. As I see it, the Hobgoblin has done his job, it wouldn''t be too hard to find the bases of the goblin king after asking the right people the right questions." Rezar said as he got up, water dripping from his head and down his still growing teenage body. Grabbing his cloak from the low hanging branch he had hung it, and then hanging his massive scythe on his back, he turned around and worked in the direction of the village. They were coming from the east, and have been chasing the hobgoblins at top speed west through the forest. The village itself was built south, facing north with massive hills and cliffs behind it. The hills themselves seemed to continue on for a distance and were quite spare of the dense forest, instead opening up to a prairie that stretched quite a distance to the south before embracing the forest once again. Such a wild expanse of land would have been a nice place to build a town, but given how open it was, it would be almost nigh impossible to fully defend it with building a fortress, as they would be open to attacks from all sides. There was a well-made road, well it was more like an extremely large path, but given this was a fantasy setting, the smooth well walked road was more than enough to make the village accessible. The road stretched towards the north and seemed to curve 5oo meters ahead, going back west and leading further into the forest. If he had to hazard a guess, then this was the true boundary of the goblin King''s territory, Tetum''s base was an attempt at expansion. Rezar shook his head and continued on towards the entrance of the village where two goblin guards stood mounted on top their forest wolves. Rezar had his hood over his face, covering his hair and shading his blue eye. Since there wasn''t much of a restriction he hoped he didn''t have to expose his features as that would make getting into the village that much harder. "Halt! Identify yourself and state your business in Goblinshire?" Rezar raised an eyebrow at the pretentious name of the town, but gave an answer none the less. "My Name''s Rezar Deathwind. I''m here looking for work?" Chapter 90: Goblinshire (II): Green Boar The village didn''t seem large at first, but after walking through it for a while, Rezar knew he was wrong. There really wasn''t much of planning put into its construction as you would find an inn, a smithy and bunch of residential buildings in the same street. The village itself only had five streets including the main street that led straight to the mine entrance where a bunch of goblins stood guard and others carried out transactions between the visiting merchants and those who needed the ores for one thing or the other. The sun was well above his head by this point, and while he really wasn''t hurt by it, the idea of being out in sunlight did not sot too well with him. He made his way to an inn called the Green Boar, for some reason the names of the establishments here seemed to cater to the ego of the goblins or seemed to appeal to them in one way or the other. Rezar could tell that this goblin king monarchy style government seems very totalitarian. Everything seemed firmly within his grasp without any room for difference or originality. It made it really difficult for Rezar to believe that the Goblin king was actually a player, the way he did his things were really hands-on, that sort of style was synonymous with uploads not players. Shaking his head, he walked into the inn that also seemed to serve as a bar, but it was the morning, so the only people up were miners who had things to do, or visitors who wanted breakfast. In one corner of the inn were a bunch of tables were arranged, Rezar could see a couple of drunks, and in the other corner were those having a simple and hearty breakfast. Rezar moved forwards with Valka close behind as he moved to the counter of the inn and took a sit. "What can I do for you stranger?" a woman asked, as she turned to look at him, using a clean cloth to wipe the insides of a mug. The woman in front of him was we''ll ahead in years, she seemed to be in her early to mid-sixties, yet here she was working in an inn and in a position that should normally belong to younger girls of middle aged women. She raised an eyebrow as Rezar stared a little bit longer than was necessary before he started speaking. "I''m sorry, but do you have any available rooms? My companion and I have been traveling all night and we would like to rest." Rezar said to her as he apologized for staring or rather for getting lost in his thoughts while he stared at her. He shuddered to thin k what the older woman might think about his prolonged stare, he might find older women very appealing, but he did now want to go that ''old''. "Well that might be a bit difficult to arrange. All of the standard rooms have been occupied, a deluxe room has just been vacated, but its price is a bit higher than the norm, so I don''t know if you would want to pay for the full package" the woman said as she stopped cleaning the glass and gave her full attention to him. "Well how much''s the full package? Money is not a problem for me." Rezar said to her as he shifted his gaze around the inn, moving his leg to kick Valka in the side and stopping the familiar from using his claws to scratch at the counter they were sitting at, he wouldn''t want to be billed for that if he had to be honest. "The Deluxe room is 5 silvers a night, including a bath, breakfast, lunch and dinner, and a few extra services from the ladies working in the inn, if you''re into that sort of thing." Rezar raised an eyebrow, while he wasn''t averse to sex or shy about it, he was still in a sixteen-year-old body. Plus, he''s not really looking to pleasure, nit when he was like a ticking time bomb of bloodlust, fangs and death ready to go off at any moment. He would very much prefer to keep people away from himself. "I''ll pay you twenty silver Elys for two nights, the extra ten Elys would be payment enough for information about the current state of things. As you can see I''m a stranger here and I don''t really know much about the territory I''m in and the surrounding lands, all I know is that these are the Bahrenburg wildlands, and this territory belongs the goblin king, anything else is a big blank I''m afraid." Rezar said to her with a soft tone to make himself seem harmless, of course that was way far from the truth. "Well make it 25 silver elys and I''ll tell you the kind of underwear the goblin king wears every Thursday." Rezar raised his eyebrow at that, while he was sure she had no idea what sort of underwear the goblin king wore every Thursdays, she seemed very confident about her information. But then again, liars and scammers have to be really confident in their acts to be able to sell their stories to someone else. But whether or not she would lie to him remains to be see, besides money wasn''t a problem. "Deal, now tell me what you know?" Rezar asked as he deposited a bunch of coins on the table, but instead of telling him what he wanted to know she shook her head and put her fingers to her lips before going under the counter and coming back up with a key. "I''ll take you to your room, and as for anything else, I''ll send her up to your room later." For a moment Rezar was confused about the ''Her'' but then he realized he was asking about information about the area, including its ruler and he was doing it in a goblin village that pretty much seemed to preach the propaganda that goblins are better than everyone else. Getting that information out in the open would be pure suicide, and while it wouldn''t be a problem for Rezar who can fight his way out, the same couldn''t be said for the woman in front of him who was just trying to make ends meet. "Valka lets go get some rest, could please send up some breakfast for my companion too?" Rezar asked as the woman nodded and moved out from behind the counter to lead Rezar and Valka up to their room. But as they left, a couple pair of eyes followed behind them, greed, curiosity and animosity hidden within them. Chapter 91: Goblinshire (III): The Order of the Innkeepers The room he was led into was not bad, but that didn''t mean it was any good either. But this far into the frontier, a room like this would still be considered a luxury. There was a queen sized canopy bed, a bath tub, and then a wooden chair and tabled, along with a trunk at the foot of the bed for his belongings. Valka walked around the bed, looking back at Rezar and back at it with its soft looking sheets and spring like form. "Say master what is this?" he asked as he gave a curious glance to it, Rezar rolled his eyes as he answered. "That''s a bed Valka, it''s what people sleep on." "But we''ve not been sleeping on it master, are we not people too?" Rezar raised an eyebrow, why was Valka action so dumb innocent and Na?ve, this bloody cat (Ahem!) lion, was the best scout he had, and he was intelligent enough to accurately tell him the amount and caliber of enemies he was fighting, but here he was acting like someone without common sense. Rezar narrowed his again. So much that it seemed as if his eyes were narrowed almost closed off versions of their selves. "Are you done?" Rezar asked as he sat down on the bed, ignoring the mirthful laughter from his familiar as there was a knock on the door. A few seconds later, there was a serving girl in the room holding some towels in her hands. "The Matron has asked me to come up and answer any questions you might have, or rather she''s sent me here to answer the questions you already asked. Please keep any other questions till I''m done answering." Rezar raised an eyebrow, he couldn''t help the feeling that he was dealing with more than just an ordinary inn keeper and a serving girl. "The Bahrenburg frontiers are divided into four parts, there''s the Land bridge duchies, which is the closest to the rest of Elysium, it covers much of what is known as the south fringe. Immediately after that are the Mirrors of a thousand lakes. Vast stretches of land that are covered with lakes, which is a little bit to the east. Next would be the charted fringe, which is currently being contested by various warlords and nobles. And then past that we have the wild lands, conveniently separated from the rest of the world by the perilous canyons of Toromont which I''m sure you would have passed on your way here. The wild lands have as much, if not more forces contending for it than the charted fringe itself. The Major powers so far are the those of the Goblin King, who has had no qualms in expanding his civilization hoping to build and empire of monsters. Further south past the great forest of Kerwood there are open prairies and a desert that''s home to the nomadic wild tribes, if there''s anyone capable of properly navigating the wild lands, its them. To the west is a serious of port towns and island settlements ran by various merchant companies, a few theocracies, and bunch of empires along with it. Far to the east is the Breone mountains, home to orcs, dwarves, and race of snow elves living in harmony with frost giants and ice wyverns. By far they have the most impressive military might in all of the wild lands which was built on an unsteady alliance. They''re currently consolidating their forces and choosing to grow, however the Goblin King seems to have set his sights on them, causing the orcs to pretty much grow restless as they would want nothing more than to start a fight with the goblin king. Kerwood forest is home to more factions, it would take too much time to name them all, so an extensive map has been made for you highlighting the locations of the factions. But apart from the goblin king, there''s large coven of maenads that serve dark gods, a couple of wood elf villages, two rumored but very hidden fairy rings, sprites, magical creatures and finally you the Necromancer that just became a vampire and by far the largest threat to everyone in the wildlands." Rezar raised an eyebrow, but instead of getting shocked he just laid back on the bed and crossed his legs whilst leaning on his arms. Valka had raised his head up, but seeing that Rezar was not even feeling threatened the Familiar laid back down, twisting his body over the soft and fluffy bed. Rezar looked up at the serving girl in front of him. "I get the feeling that you guys are more than just simple honest workers." Rezar said as he inched his hand slowly to the scythe that was resting at the foot of the bed. "Rest assured Lord Rezar, we mean you no harm, at least not unless you become a threat to our activities. The Order of the Innkeeper are followers of the God Hermes. We''re messengers, merchants and thieves, but ultimately all we do is gather information and sell it to the highest bidder, or rather sell it to anyone who is willing to pay the right price." Even if she seemed none threatening, it didn''t stop Rezar from carrying his scythe as a heavy aura seemed to suffuse the entire room. "How much and how long have you known about me?" he asked as he took one heavy step after the other forward, but yet even with all his movements the serving girl did not seem worried or shaken by his threatening gestures. "We''ve known about you from the very moment you spawned in the prison mine, all the way to the time you were trapped in a dungeon for eight months, when you came out, your march to the Leviathan''s nest, your battle with the goblin king''s mounted scout division and how you utterly decimated them a few days ago, and your wanton slaughter of his heavy cavalry division aces just a few hours ago. We''ve been watching, and while you were never important enough to pay attention, you''re now a very important facet of Elysium. The second vampire after almost sic thousand years. While many have forgotten the terror and horror your kinds had wrought upon Elysium, the order of the Innkeepers still remembers, because it is our job to remember, and it is our job to make sure that such horror is not unleashed upon the world again." Rezar clutched his Scythe tighter, he felt cold; a chill he could not understand. It wasn''t fear as that was something he was completely incapable of feeling, but rather he felt threatened, like he had been backed into a corner by the woman in front of him. But it was not a power she wielded, but rather the organization she represented, they just seemed so big and intense that for the first time ever, Rezar felt as if there was an obstacle he couldn''t power through. But even with that knowledge, he wouldn''t back down, neither would he slow down, it was not in his nature. "Your measly show of power means nothing here Vampire Lord, I''m the weakest person working in this Inn, but even my lowest stat is already at tier 7. Killing you would be as easy as blinking my eyes, so calm yourself down and listen to what I have to say. So far all of your incursions has been in retaliation against people who attacked you and not because of a wanton need of expansion like the goblin king. We would like you to remain that way as an undead apocalypse, much less one led by a vampire that is almost impossible to kill is not something we would like to see. We humbly ask that you remain passive and focus on improving your territory, in return we will not plant our seeds in you lands, and will not broadcast to the whole of Elysium that there''s an undead necromancer in the Bahrenburg wild lands, a vampire at that. Your mind is not really liked, and due to all of the prejudice your kind has suffered a lot of people would be even more unwilling to see a death class holder as the lord of a territory. Every lord from here to the Breone mountains would untie to take of the threat you pose once and for all. You can take this as a threat or as a warning we don''t care, remain passive, the only thing we can assuredly say is that we won''t interfere with your fight with the goblin king. He had thrown the first punch, it is within your right to retaliate and fight for your honor, as long as you keep the fight between yourself and the Goblin King and don''t involve other innocent races and factions in your fight. In return we will keep our word and not sell any information about you to any party that asks. Do we have a deal?" Rezar felt like he had eaten something bad, even when he still had Lenore hovering above him, he had never felt this helpless. He didn''t expect this, this organization was dangerous. They had somehow been able to keep an eye on him right from the beginning and he never even got a single trace from them. it shocked him and it left him feeling very annoyed, but from what he could see this was not a fight he could win. He wanted very much to just swing his scythe over her pretty little neck, not because she had done anything wrong, but because she posed a threat to him and his people. But he knew he couldn''t win, and he was loathed to bend over for them, but he didn''t seem to have much of a choice. But in the end a leader had to know when to move forwards and when to move backwards, you can''t always null rush yourself into every situation, and this was a wakeup call for Rezar. He was forced to swallow whatever pride he seemed to have gained as in front of these people, it meant nothing. "We have a deal, I''ll take a passive stance and not aim for expansion. But I''m taking the goblin king''s lands whether you like it or not he started this fight, and I''m going to make sure I end it. But passive or not, anyone who wishes me and my people harm I will destroy them and all they hold dear. Innocent or not!" Rezar said to her with gritted teeth. "That''s understandable, we asked you to be passive and not go looking for trouble, we never said you couldn''t defend yourself and seek retribution for those who go against you. A dozier would be sent to you by morning containing in depth information about the Kerwood forest and the arrangements of its factions and the hotspots of important resources. If you can''t grow by conquest you can at least grow by trade and alliances. We have nothing against you, we just want to avoid the creation of a monster that would make life difficult for us and the many who are here to make an honest living. Elysium is not all about the battles and the glory of bloodshed and carnage of war. I believe in time, with age and growth and wisdom, you will come to see that." She gave him a simple bow, handing the towels over to him before she walked out of the room, leaving a very confused Rezar, but also a smarter. This world was a lot bigger than he was, and there were people with even more power in their little fingers than he had in his entire body. And it was not just their stats, classes or weapons. It was their resources, their assets and influence. As much as he was loathed to admit it, he was far from reaching that stage, seems even with all his pursuit for freedom he was still restrained, but maybe it was better this way, the path of a leader is not always one of bloodshed and carnage. "I don''t mean to interrupt your inner monologue master, but did that woman just say you''re the second vampire in six thousand years! If you''re the second, then who and where the fuck is the first!" and to that question Rezar honestly had no answer as he was just as stumped and confused as lion. There was another vampire out there somewhere in Elysium, who could that be and where were they now? Chapter 92: Goblinshire (IV): Assault Rezar woke up to the sound of a loud explosion, at first he thought it was morning due to how bright it was, but when the light began to fade, the deep but still bright gloom of darkness was prevalent to show him that it was without a doubt the middle of the night. Valka had already been de-summoned so Rezar was the only one left in the room. He picked up his scythe and went towards the window of his room, however the room itself was facing towards the mines so he couldn''t find out exactly what was going on. He shrugged his shoulders and made his way out of his room, going down a few flight of stairs he came up to the entrance of the inn. There were quite a number of people there, but none of them looked like guests or patrons. A few of them were the serving girls he recognized, while others seemed to be members of the same organization seeing as they all had greyish hoods with the sign of an eye of their heads. Rezar turned to the innkeeper, or the Matron as she was called and asked. "What''s going on out there?" the old lady smiled at him as she said. "It would cost you a little fee for that information." Rezar looked at her with a bland look, causing the smile on her face to become strained as for some reason the woman felt extremely unnerved by the look on her face. It was at that moment she heard Rezar''s stomach rumble with hunger, causing her eyes to shrink to a pinprick as she stared at him, ready to take action. Granted there was a significant amount of chaos going on outside right now, but history alone has told them that the man, no! the creature in front of them was one that was extremely dangerous even with stats in the low tiers. Ultimately he was the biggest threat within this village and not what was going on out there. Rezar shifted his gaze, his blue eyes bleeding away as it became red and gold, his fangs slowly sliding out of his gum as he began to feel an unbearable itch at the back of his throat. From what he could understand it seems his hunger is only sated after feeding for just a day, by the time the night rolls around, he would be extremely starving. For one that was a good development, but he couldn''t help but imagine that his body was reacting that way due to the nocturnal habits of vampires, blood is what they eat. He walked out through the doorway, reassuring himself that no matter what he wouldn''t be back here again, then he paused and went back in. "Where''s the information I paid for and you promised me." The matron wanted to say something, but she refrained and instead gave Rezar a thick book, Rezar didn''t even check the information inside as he walked back out, and right into the path of rapidly flying flaming arrow. The arrow completely burrowed through Rezar''s brain, making his vision and his entire body go blank for a moment as his body crumpled to the ground like a doll whose strings had been cut off. The Matron and everyone else took in a deep breath, shocked at how easy it was to kill Rezar, sure they were much stronger than him, but the records, though severely embellished for the providence of eloquence, had made vampires seem invisible and incapable of ever coming to harm. With skin as tough as iron, and reflexes as sharp and as swift as the wind. Compare that to what they just saw, and they were severely disappointed. But the looks of surprise were not completely wiped off their face when Rezar picked himself up, and dusted his coat, blood still trickling down the side of his head, before coming to a stop, causing everyone else in the inn to take another bout of deep breaths. Rezar turned his annoyed gaze to the left where a group of what he could only consider bandits and robbers were looting and pillaging the village. He noticed the person who had shot an arrow through his head, he was pissed off to no end, but never the less he was okay. He picked up his scythe, drawing comfort from its dull vibration as its edges lit up to become bright reddish orange and very hot. He took a step forwards, swinging the scythe over his head and dissecting a bandit dragging a chest close to him in half. The cut was so precise, that the back of the bandit where the strike had been made, split open to show a perfectly pristine spine, intact and untouched. But the shock was not over yet as he surged forwards and placed his lips on the neck of the bandit and took a big gulp. Feeding on the battlefield didn''t seem like such a good idea, but it was such a rush that he couldn''t resist. He could feel the blood flow down his throat as the sounds of the bandit''s rapidly pounding heart filled his immediate surroundings. It was exciting and intoxicating, and it was quite therapeutic, as he was still pretty much annoyed at the Order of the Innkeeper. Rezar shifted the blade of the scythe to the side to defend against another arrow flying for his head, while this one wasn''t as fast as the last, it packed quite a punched, so much so that the supercharged plasma cutter on the edge of the scythe blade sliced into Rezar''s head, taking a chunk of his skull with it. A lot of people winced and cringed in discomfort at the bloody sight, but contrary to their expectations, Rezar did not fall over as he took a few steps backwards to stabilize himself and face off against the archer that really didn''t want to live again. The archer had already strung another arrow and was about to let it loose at Rezar, but all Rezar could do was smile, after all this was going to be a challenge. Chapter 93: Goblinshire (V): Horror The bandits attacking Goblinshire weren''t exactly goblins alone as the racial demographic for this area of the Kerwood forest might suggest, there were humans, goblins, orcs, elves, and bunch of other races he couldn''t really point out, though quite a few of them seemed to be members of the wild tribe. Rezar ran towards the current killing, stealing and pillaging group of people, paying specific attention to the archer that just tried to take his head off, or rather actually succeeded in putting a hole through his head. He was guided mostly by instinct rather than skill as his hunger seemed to be at the forefront of his mind. He felt an axe whistle through the air heading for his neck. Rezar moved towards the strike, getting into the personal space of the person who held the axe and letting his hand overextend over his shoulders. Fangs drawn out and stomach still burning with anger, Rezar took a deep bite on the neck of the axe wielder. This was a different flavor than goblin, for a vampire all blood was a delicacy, but there were different flavors to it and different richness. It was like one food giving more protein than the other. Rezar drew him in deep, he tasted of wild fruit and earth, and silk, assuming silk had a taste. But maybe that silky taste that he couldn''t exactly put a finger on was exactly what elves tasted like. It was amazing and extreme and it tasted expensive. Rezar pulled back dark red blood flowing in horrific rivulets down his jaws past his chin and neck and onto his clothes. But the clothes themselves were so dark they seemed to absorb the blood, becoming darker, becoming something else. Rezar planted his Scythe on the ground, from the way things were looking, it''s obvious he wouldn''t be finding any use for it at the moment, and that was because his hunger was insatiable. He rushed forwards with rhyme or reason, ignoring the fact that he had a plethora of skills to draw from as another arrow smashed into his chest, except this one just gave him pause as he remembered that his clothes themselves were armor. A trio of goblins rushed at him, each holding a spear to compensate for their extremely short height and thrusting towards different parts of Rezar''s body, however fierce claws from his hands met the advent of the spears with a speed so fast all they could see was a blur, as the loud cracking sounds of wood breaking filled their ears. But his movements were far from over as Rezar''s claw found the underside of a goblin''s jaw, then he proceeded to rake it upwards, cleaving through bone and skin and tissue. The goblin didn''t even have time to scream before he fell on the ground dead, however for some reason his blood began to float up and out of his body, going up almost 30 feet to gather up in the air like a cloud. The other two goblins attempted to run away, but their bodies didn''t seem to respond to them as Rezar''s clawed hands smashed through their green skulls, blasting apart like a watermelon. He was fully invested in his instincts as a vampire, and following close by was an instinctual use of its skills as he pulled his hands back, dragging streams of blood out of the bodies of the dead goblins and then slashed forwards with his claws, a piercing red light flashing in front of him to slice an elf in half. [Blood Magic Mastery has leveled up] He turned his head to the left, his senses going haywire as an orc barreled into his body, spearing him right into the stone and wooden frame of a well. The Orc was able to bring himself to a halt, but Rezar fell into the well in an awkward position, neck and back badly bent and broken as he fell into the water below with a loud splash. The bandits at the top looked down the eight-meter-deep well wondering if the monster that suddenly showed was dead, but in the end that was all just wishful thinking. [Bind] An infernal chain shot out of the dark murky waters and spear through the shoulders of the orc, his scream of pain startled his companions as they all pulled back, watching helplessly as their companion was pulled down into the well, his screams echoing all the way down until he fell into the water within the well, his body splashing about as they all crowded around to see what was going. But all they could see was the water bubbling, the moon choosing that moment to shine its light into the well, fully showcasing the process as the bubbly water went from black to red as pieces of their comrade''s body showed up. [Bat Apparition] Loud and infernal screeches sounded out as bats came up from the depths of the well, scaring the shit out of the bandits leaning over the edge in fear, they all fell back in fright trying to gather themselves as a cloud of bats flew into the sky and made a circled around the massive pool of blood hanging above the town like a sun of its own. The cloud of bats was traveling really fast as they made a beeline for the archer, who at this point knew he was the target for his earlier attacks. Without so much as a word, the archer threw down his bow and turned around, sprinting for the entrance of the village, and he was really fast. However, the Apparition skill, even before it got its visual/vampiric upgrade was a skill that exponentially increased Rezar''s speed, he could reach his current tier of speed, but now he could go much higher, and move much faster. The swarm of bats caught up with elf archer, and surrounded him, each shadow bats taking a bite out of his body, one nibble after the other as he was raised into the air, his screams of pain casting a deep chill over the village as the bandits and even the goblin Militia fighting for their town all froze, horror etched deep into their bodies, all the way to the marrow. And blood rained from the sky, along with pieces of meat and flesh, and limbs partially eaten to the bone, bloody and horrific, innards, organs. It was all one gory mess until the bats gathered themselves into one point gradually forming in to the image of a man with a hood on his head. A scary looking scythe flew across the village to land in his hand as he looked at the remaining bandits and the residents of the village behind him, each and every single one of them frozen by the sight in front of them, frozen by those bright orbs of red and gold. And then it began to rain, but not a rain to wash away the carnage, but one to make it even more bloody. This; was the [Blood Rain] Chapter 94: Goblinshire (VI): Blood Rain [Blood Rain] Rezar felt as if there were a thousand and one versions of himself, it was all over the town itself and while he couldn''t exactly control it, he knew his influence over his abilities now stretched to cover the entire 20-meter radius that his blood rain had covered. The silence was palpable, and the high from his bloodlust and hunger had slowly came down. Now these bandits were no longer facing the monster called a vampire, now the person facing them was just Rezar, the Necromancer and the death lord. [Blood Rain: Basic Lvl 1: Kill as many enemies as possible the moment this skill is activated and have their blood deposited in a blood cloud bank twenty feet in the air. The cloud would burst open after 3 minutes, showering a radius of 20 meters. Within that zone, all skills, would be blood attributed, and the power of blood magic would be increased by 150%, you have limited control over the blood coating the area. // Duration: 5 minutes// Cost: 100 magic] This was the most expensive skill/spell in his arsenal, and after using it more than half of his magic stat had bottomed out. And even if he couldn''t see it due to the absence of MP bars, he could feel it. But even if that were the case, within this twenty meters which was not much but wasn''t small either, he had completely covered most of the attacking bandits. He wasn''t fighting out of the goodness of his heart, he and the goblin king were enemies, he was hungry and the bandits had been foolish enough to attack him when he would have preferred to just be a bystander. But this was a statement, he couldn''t use an undead to fight as that would expose him and would probably rally the factions of not just Kerwood forest, but the entire Bahrenburg Wildlands against him. So he would give them something else to fear than just a horde of undead, and that was invariably himself. [Bind] Whips made of blood surged out of the ground and pierced into three bandits, Rezar wasn''t exactly sure how many of them were left, but their numbers were well over twenty. He rushed forwards, his scythe swing above his head as he turned and slashed forwards, the blazing edge of the scythe developing a bloody red glow as it surged forwards towards another group of bandits rushing towards him. [Rend] The very fabric of reality seemed to cut open as the red glow passed over their approaching forms, and moved forwards to clip three other goblin guards that were part of the militia defending the village. At first it seemed as if nothing had happened, but a few seconds later, their bodies burst apart as it seemed as if their skeletons were ripped out of it. Quickly following that were their souls and the prompt to either absorb them, release them or imbue them in a weapon. [Rend] Was the AOE form of reap, and while reap was very precise and needed contact and dint cause as much damage, rend focused on the damage and had no guarantee of grabbing souls out of a body. And even worse the souls didn''t last long as they burst into a shower sparks immediately before Rezar had a chance to see if they scythe could accept the souls. But never the less his attack had shocked a few people, because he had killed both the goblins and the bandits together, but Rezar was in no mood to explain himself, they were all his enemies. He turned his attention to the three that had been bound before and was a little surprised by what he saw, their entire body had become dried husks as they were complete drained of blood. It was then he realized that his skill [Siphon] was active on the [Bind] skill, working like a passive. Rezar was shocked this time, this [Blood Rain] skill didn''t just change the nature of all his skills to blood, but it also created a synergistic effect, allowing him to use some of his skills without costs. He smiled, he was no longer being driven by his hunger and bloodlust, his mind was open to the sight in front of him. While this might end up biting him in the ass, he wanted to show those stuck up people from the Order of the Innkeepers that he was not some guy that would just bend over for them and their threats. He was dangerous, and he would make a faction that was just as dangerous as he was. That way he wouldn''t have to worry about if his appetite for conquest became too much for people to bear. But honestly, he just wanted to live safely and freely, but being passive and holing up wouldn''t do that. He wouldn''t go looking for trouble, but he wouldn''t sit still and let others come trouble him either. So this would be a statement, a coup de gras of sorts, to show the innkeepers and anyone else that would stand against him and Necron that there would be hell to pay. He hung his scythe on his back, and raise his hands up into the air, and as he did so the blood within the area stabbed into anyone caught within its web, bandit or goblin, he took care to avoid those who were dressed in civilian attire and seemed to be just simple people. Grotesque whips of blood stabbed into the people and raised them into the air, draining their blood in the process as their bodies rapidly became dried husks. And then he decided to speak, but his eyes were not the scary red and gold, no this time it was the eerie blue that would haunt the dreams of the many who would survive this night, the eyes of one who has been touched and blessed by death. "Tell the Goblin King, tell him that this is a message straight from the blood soaked lips of The Bone King of Morte Bianca, this is war. From the very moment your vermin infested riders encroached my lands, your life and those of your people is forfeit! Prepare yourself for a retribution the likes of which Bahrenburg has never seen, or will ever see. And let this be a message to any other who think Morte Bianca and her capital Necron is a place to be messed with, your end will be much worse than this." [Power Strike] The bodies were all smashed into the ground, crumpled and broken into a mass of flesh, organs and bones that were unrecognizable and horrific. This was the first time he had utilized that skill without a weapon or his fists as a medium, showing just how power the skill [Blood Rain] was. Rezar turned and left, his steps loud within the silent night as everyone else still alive watched him in fear and horror as slowly the forest itself swallowed him, its darkness enveloping him like he was child, brother and lover to it. But no matter what the morning brings, the name of The Bone King would be horror tales for years to come. [You have completed a milestone! Name your territory and crown yourself King! You have been awarded the Trait [Bone King], 5 platinum elys, and the template to design a mantle of power and authority, and a template to design a personal guard force] [You have unlocked the requirements for the Dhamphir Racial advancement quest! Please return to your spire for more details] [Blood Rain has leveled up to 2] [Blood Magic Mastery has leveled up to 3] [Death is please with you and has awarded you 10 skill combining gems, please her some more] Chapter 95: Path Of Kings (I): The Return The wooden palisade encircling the entire are of what would be the future gates of the city of Necron showed up in front of Rezar just before sunup the next morning. It wasn''t as abandoned as he expected as there were ants moving back and forth, carrying wood and fruits to go store within the impromptu mines the moles had dug. The Melves were also busy, some of them were working under the guidance of a goat man? If memory serves well Rezar knew they were called Satyrs, or was it Fauns? Rezar watched as a significant patch of land had been overturned, and was currently being tilled by some of the moles, by dragging their extremely long claws through the earth. Some of the elves had noticed his presence, and the moment the first of them gave an awkward bow, the rest of them immediately followed, with the Satyr being even more awkward than they were. Rezar found it amusing, but this was a work in process, even he didn''t know how to react to being bowed to. Rezar waved at them and then continue forwards, before getting to the edge of the cove, surprisingly enough there was an elevator of sorts there, but considering it was made from wood and some simple pulley system, he didn''t really understand, it seemed a bit shoddy. But he didn''t need it though, he''d very much prefer jumping from the edge as the sound of the wind rushing past his ears gave him such a rush, and so he did just that, coming to a gentle stop over a well-trodden path. And for the first time in a day, he decided to take a look at his territory. It was still somewhat bare, but there were quite a few people and also some new buildings were actually being put up. To the east was a massive warehouse that was actually built into the eastern wall of the cove, and a simple glance at it, showed Rezar that it was a storage facility. Another look showed that there were a lot more Giant fire ants and forest wolves walking around town, some of which were mounted and being used as beasts of burden to help with the construction effort. Rezar noticed another new face, a woman who was talking with Alistair, pouring over what looked like a blueprint. "it''s beautiful isn''t it?" a voice asked behind Rezar as he watched on, he turned to see Priest standing there with some white robes with gold trimmings and a rather gaudy priest hat. "I''ve just been gone two days and two nights." Rezar said, completely shocked by the serious amount of change and advancement the village was going through. "This is what happens when you have capable people serving you. Alistair has been doing really well with the town planning and is actually currently laying proper plans for the city and has even had the system begin construction on a sewer system and an underground city that would also spread into the walls of the cove itself. We''ve had two new people joins; a farmer and an architect. Growing food and developing a unique architecture of our own is not too far off, Alistair especially needs her help since expanding the village would need a significant amount of input from her, not to mention a few designs to integrate with their technology. Lenore has been in charge of security, she''s like a general trying to keep the kingdom safe, and Gynaika has been quite the leader figure in your absence. She''s tried her best to take care of the elves, and have made sure that everyone has enough to eat, and a proper place to sleep. Your undead captains have kept the other undead and the moles busy with gathering resources, but if you ask me their potential is being wasted. They''re bread and created for conflict and war, building a city doesn''t sit well with them so they''ve been a little bit awkward with what they have been doing. So I would advise you give them something to do that''s more up their alley, but also. I think it''s about time we get back to your training seeing as you''ve painted a big ass target on Necron before it''s gotten strong enough to defend itself! And in saying this with the utmost respect, but your Majesty Rezar the Bone King of Morte Bianca, you''re much too weak to have a title or have already given a name to your future kingdom, that''s a fucking open challenge to every faction out there. Even the Goblin King only called himself king and didn''t have the guts to go so far as to carve out a kingdom for himself. When he knows he''s not powerful enough to withstand d the onslaught of those who would want to take it from him. In Elysium you don''t level a territory into a kingdom, your words, your actions, and your people make you king and make you a kingdom. You need allies, so while you just got back, be prepared to leave again. We''re taking that dryad south to the towns owned by the merchant company to strike a deal and get a trade agreement at least. After that we have to figure out a way to get the Tailed fox village to hand the dungeon in their territory to us, or better yet find a way to sell the rights of it to us while we come up with a profitable deal. That dungeon would give you an endless amount of undead from the monsters you kill and raise, and it would be a perfect environment of level up your skills. However right now, walk through your territory, make more plans, you did plan a meeting after all. Then once that''s done, we will begin training again, before hitting the road. As much as I hate to say it Rezar, you''ve gotten cocky and arrogant, and if I don''t curb that attitude soon, it would lead us all to ruin. Now I believe its time you go properly inspect yourself and your territory, and also I believe you can now pick as many classes as you want. The true secrets to getting stronger isn''t about leveling up a class, it''s about having enough classes so that leveling them up would give you bonus stats and increase your true base power. With enough magic even a simple skill if trained to a high enough level can level an entire city." And with his piece said Priest marched away, leaving Rezar feeling very solemn and very stupid. Chapter 96: Path Of Kings (II): A Meeting This meeting was called a bit earlier than was scheduled, but that was understandable as Rezar would have to take a break from the public eye for a few days to train and prepare for his and Priest''s journey south. But even so there has been quite a few changes and improvements in the territory as of late, and Rezar needed to address those, and think about the next steps they have to take. "Alistair you seem to have been very busy these last few days, would you like to tell me how far you''ve gone and what you''ve achieved?" Rezar asked as he stood over the fire place of his humble abode, the house of a village elder was small, but it was more than enough to hold a meeting with these small amount of people. Besides it was the only secure place in the territory, unless you count the tunnels and caves that have been mined by the moles. "Yes sir, well the construction projects are going well, I''ve been able to interface with the system to properly design the way the cobblestone streets would be place with a little help from Oran; an architect that''s actually from origin city and is quite advance with her architecture and civil engineering class. I get the feeling she''s running from something or someone and has chosen to join our territory because of how out of the way it is. Either way, she''s put herself wholly into her job and I have to say she is quite talented. With her help, a plan for the city has been drawn up, and if we keep on growing and advancing at our current rate, we should be able to have infrastructure comparable to a peak civilization in one and a half to two years. I would present the plans to you, but it''s still undergoing revisions and tweaks, I will however get you a basic prototype and presentation before you leave for your diplomatic Journey with the Priest. Next would be out farmer Ramon, he''s young, simple and his class is fairly low leveled. But he''s a Faun, and his race is mostly inclined to catering for nature in retrospect to their cousins the Satyrs that were more mischievous than most. He has 10 classes, all of them catered to different branches of farming, from the basic planting and harvesting, to animal husbandry, herborogy, orchard farmer, alchemy, and druid amongst many others. He was born in a city, and for miles on end in the place where he''s had to grow up, there''s been nothing green for him to grow or have access to. So he moves here to frontier, hoping to put his skill and passion to good use. With his help and your approval, we''re hoping to turn the north eastern part of the territory into an expansive farmland, and even create basements for it to handle farming under the surface. Next would be the irrigation system, but it has turned into a plumbing system, there is an underground river, with most of its branching tributaries flowing through the rocks, the moles have dug into a couple of its springs, and the river itself seems to empty out into the sea. I''ve begun to draft up a blueprint for a reservoir and a plumbing system within the walls of the cove itself to coincide well with the plans for the future city. By the time the villages upgrade to a town, we would all have access to indoor plumbing and a stable source of clean drinking water. Though with the money you gave, I''m afraid it wouldn''t be enough to fully carry out the advancement of the village. While we have resources and an overabundance of it, we need money to get most of our blueprints patented by the system, or we will have to build everything by hand, which would take longer and would have room for mistakes that may or may not have far reaching consequences. But I''m just a craftsman with a few ideas about farming, I have no idea what we should do in order to raise money for the village. We could go to a dungeon, but that would cost more so I''m at a loss. The village won''t grow on resources and well wishes alone, we need coin, and a lot of it. And even in our resources there are some things we don''t have, and selling the things we have here through the system would be a loss as the price it sets is too much and we would gain little." Rezar shook his head in annoyance at that, Alistair was right, they needed money, and honestly speaking he was all out of cash as all he had on him was just about a thousand gold elys and some silver. He turned to Priest, but Priest used his head to point in Gynaika''s direction, Prompting a raised eyebrow from Rezar. "We can solve the money problem easily, there are merchants to the south by the coastline, while we''re sure they''ll come after us eventually due to greed, I believe we can make contact first and initiate a trade with them. let them know what we have to offer, sure it would make them even more greedy, and they''ll come after us, but we can at least get the money we need to take care of pressing concerns. Since Priest and King Rezar are heading to the merchants for a diplomatic engagement, you guys can travel with a caravan of ores and precious stones. Enough to net you a couple of platinum elys before you return. And while you''re there, trying getting blueprints for a pier, ships and a boat yard where we can build our own vessels with ease. I believe Alistair would be able to tweak those blueprints a little to get something that is more our style. But the bottom line is, those merchants are the only ones we can trade with at the moment, and with the moles still mining and breeding, we would have enough ores and stones to last us many lifetimes. After all, the veins of ores and precious crystals regenerate over time, and this area is rich in it. If you can make a perfect deal with them, then you''ll have access to trade, and be able to trade your goods to the wider world of Elysium and get the money you need to sustain the territory." Rezar rubbed a hand under his jaw in contemplation and the slammed a fist into an open palm, startling everyone in the room before he turned to Gynaika. "Good idea! Great, you''re coming with us, now what''s next on the agenda?" he said, ignoring the looks of surprise before turning to Lenore who had something to say but have been patient all these while. Safe to say, Gynaika was still shocked by his decision. Chapter 97: Path Of Kings (III): First General Of Morte Bianca Rezar shifted his attention to Lenore who cleared her throat a little too loudly, obviously she wanted more than just his attention, but Rezar found it dunny that she would be one to try something like this when he knew she wasn''t one to worry about politics or being in the spotlight. "Everyone here seems to have a task or request or advice of their own, well while I don''t know much about economics or building stuff, I was the forewoman of the prison mine you all came out from. But I digress, what do I know, I''m just a pyromaniac demoness with a love of electrocuting things." Her voice was cynical, and with the pointed stare she gave to Gynaika, Rezar did not need it to be spelled out that this two seem to have butted heads in the two days he''s been away. As interesting as that sounded, Rezar would not be caught dead near such a situation. "I need permission to lead most of the undead into the territory of the tailed foxes, I would like a chance to make contact with them in much the same way Tetum had decided to make contact with us. Either way I''m not going there for conquest, but a show of force might be required as tailed foxes are well known as masters of magic and illusions. I''ll try and strike a partial deal with them to give is access to the dungeon. I''ve had to deal with merchants and nobles before, so I''m sure I''ll be able to get them to agree to a middle ground before you, Priest and the (Cough) Slut! excuse me; the priestess make your way to their territory. In the meantime, I''ll be able to train most of the undead until they get to the peak of their current race, and then bring them back to the town for evolution. But in order to do that, I''ll need an official title, apart from Alistair no one else can access the administrative menu of the spire, just their own stat pages. And with the help of your undead captains, we can corral some of the monsters in the dungeon and have them be killed by the captains to ensure they''re raised as undead and further trained. We can increase our forces to a sizable amount by then, enough that we won''t be caught unawares by anybody that would hope to attacks us. I''ll take the undead out in batches, with an easy rotation so that the territory is not left defenseless, that way they all can get equal time of training, of course the harvesting of resources would be a little slow, especially when it comes to wood, however I believe we can slow down that rate for a while and then take care of increasing our military might. It would be worth nothing if we have so many good things and are completely incapable of protecting it." Rezar couldn''t argue with that, she was right and she was capable enough for it. In a way even after the history they''ve had together, Rezar felt as if he owed Lenore a little, after all he took her away from everything she knew and brought her into the wilds with an uncertain future and promise he has no guarantee of fulfilling. She must feel powerless, especially seeing how Gynaika and Priest pretty much have the support of their small population. Priest being a clergy was the kind of person they could all talk to, not to mention the old man had healing spells and seemed to have taken a few acolytes from the Muriel elves natives. Gynaika was just charismatic enough to drag people to her side, a natural born ruler and a very beautiful one at that. Lenore was also beautiful, devastatingly so, but without Gynaika''s charisma, she was like mud next to a jewel. Not to mention she was a demoness, brash, a total tomboy, had no filter with her words and was too straightforward in the way she dealt with things. Nobody could hide from her due to how brutally honest she was, making her completely unsuited for politics, but on the other hand, she was damn good at leading people to fight. Gynaika might be a true born ruler, but Lenore was true born leader. And those two words had a world of difference that set them apart, there was no one more qualified with leading his army but her, except himself of course. So he nodded his head at her and smiled, slowly things were coming into play. "Lenore from now on, you''re the first general of the legion Morte Bianca, and also the Minister of Defense. Any and all military decisions would be left to you, this is a lot of responsibility as you will bear our success and our failures, and with those failures so too will you bear the consequences. So do your best Red, I believe in you more than I do in anyone else in this room, after all, you''re the first friend I made." Rezar said to her with a smile, showing a rare positive warmth that it left everyone even Lenore herself shocked, Rezar was not the feelings kind of guy, by now everyone knew this. [You have appointed a Minister of Defense] ? PERSONNEL ? Village Head Assistant: Alistair Be''tui''to ? Minister of Defense: First General Lenore Drivatar Babel Lenore gave everyone a smile, including Lenore whose head seemed to be bowed down paying attention to the screen that showed up in front of her. Rezar made his way out heading towards the spire, he had a bunch of skills he needed to combine, and maybe a new class to choose from. Though he wondered what sort of class would be available for him to pick, after all classes were tailored based on traits, stats, skills, experiences and character. How the system decided that, he wasn''t really sure, but for what it''s worth, he would be getting a bit stronger soon enough, and after that it would be another session of training with Priest. For some reason, Rezar felt apprehensive, whatever this training might or would be, he had the feeling that it was going to hurt a lot, and knowing Priest. His apprehension was all but true. Chapter 98: Path Of Kings (IV): Combining Skills Looking at his skill list, Rezar scrunched up his eyebrows, he had almost forgotten that he had been given 5 platinum elys when he went ahead and announced himself king back in Goblinshire. Never the less the skill combining gems were a resource like his skill points, and he was about to use them., he was told that you couldn''t have more than 15 passives and active skills at any given time, to get a new skill you either had to delete an old one, or combine two skills into one stronger skill to make space for future skills. Rezar understood that as another way Elysium tried to keep things in balance, with too many skills, it would be almost impossible for some people to be defeated, and even then with stronger more focused skills, it made people more focused as opposed to being a jack of all trades and a master of none. So while the amount of classes you can get is endless, the amount of skills you can learn in a particular lifetime was very limited. When it came to combining skills, there was only two ways to do it. There was the hard and long way, and then the easy way. The hard way requires you to use a particular set of skills together for a very long time before the system would recognize it as a single skill, and it only worked for active skills that you actually had any sort of control over, but for passives, you would be barking up the wrong tree as it was impossible to do so, and this was where the skill combining gems came in. The issue though was that skill combining gems were either gifts from the system or drops in high level dungeons, apart from those two methods, there was no other way for those resources to be found, and they were a hell of a lot expensive as an exchange for one skill combining gem was 1 to 10 platinum Elys, which for all intents and purposes was a massive fortune simplest people would spend their entire lives if not two to amass. Rezar shifted his focus, he could combine any skill, but he honestly would prefer it if he combined skills that complimented themselves, and he had to make his choices well. The first time skills are combined, no matter their grades or levels, and no matter how many, it would cost a single gem, but after that it would severely expensive as even the ten gems he had would not be enough to combine a basic skill with the new skill that shows. Never the less he would place most of his focus on his passives. The combined skills are always much more powerful when they''re combined, sometimes they''re so powerful the grades of basic, to mastered would be removed and only hard to increase levels would be left. But that was good, it at least gave Rezar assurance that he would not be left with any sort of lousy skill after the combination is done. [Combine Holy Cells/ Endurance /God sight Combination will cost one skill combining gem...combination complete! The skill [Divine Constitution] has been formed] [Divine Constitution Lvl 0: healing, speed, durability, heightened senses, supernatural perception an awareness are the traits of the divine constitution. All stats +30, stat bonus will double every level gained in addition to the first bonus gained, Holy Magic Mastery Gained] Rezar took it in stride, by this point he already knew that he wasn''t exactly what you would call normal for a vampire, or even a necromancer. He was a vampire and a necromancer that could manipulate holy magic. It wasn''t normal, so it was hard to tell now if anything can really kill him, after all he could only be hurt by and object of holy or demonic might, he guessed he could remove holy from the list. [Combine Sword Mastery / Staff Mastery / Chain Scythe Mastery... combination will cost one skill combining gem.... Combination complete! The passive skill [Arms Master] has been formed] [Combine Death Aura/Death Magic Mastery/ Blood Magic Mastery. Combination will cost one skill combining gem combination complete! The passive skill [Chaos Magician] has been formed] [Combine Power Strike/Rend/ Reap. Combination will cost one skill combining gem. Combination complete! The active skills [Strike of Nothingness] and [Final Rite] have been formed] [Combine Decay/Black Bolt. Combination will cost one skill combining gem... combination complete! The active skill [Death Blast] has been formed] [Combine Strengthen Undead/ Reaper''s Wind Shield combination will cost one skill combining gem. Combination complete! The active skill [Deathwind Domain] has been formed. PASSIVE SKILLS: ? Mining: basic lvl 4 ? Ignore Defense: Basic lvl2 ? Earth Sense: Basic Lvl 1 ? Undead Telepathy: Basic lvl 1 ? Soul Mark: Lvl 1 ? Steel Mind: Lvl 1 ? Divine Constitution: Lvl 0 . Holy Magic Mastery: Basic Lvl 1 ? Arms Master: Lvl 1 ? Chaos Magician: Lvl 0 ACTIVE SKILLS: ? Raise undead: Advanced LvL6 ? Feed: Intermediate lvl7 ? Bind: Advanced Lvl1 ? Bat Apparition: Advanced Lvl1 ? Summon Undead: Basic lvl1 ? Compulsion: Basic Lvl 1 ? Turn: Mastered ? Blood Rain: Basic Lvl 2 ? Strike of Nothingness: Lvl 1 ? Final Rite: Lvl 1 ? Death Blast: Basic Lvl 1 ? Deathwind Domain: Lvl 1 ? SKILL POINTS: 123// SKILL COMBINING GEMS: 4 ? MONEY: CPR: 30/ SIL: 73/ GLD: 1078/ PLA: 5 There was a lot of surprises for Rezar here, he even had one of the skills named after him and one combination had given birth to two skills instead of one. And looking at their descriptions he knew that with these skills he was still as dangerous if not more to his enemies. And a whole lot stronger, but skills have to be trained, after all that''s why they''re are called skills, so hopefully Priest would help him bring out the full potential of these skills. Either way, until he at least has a basic mastery of these skills down, he wouldn''t be using his skill point, and as for the issue of choosing a new class or two, he would leave that for another day and just focus a bit on what he had in front of him. So without further ado, what came next was a little bit of training, it was time to get even stronger! Chapter 99: Path Of Kings (V): Pride Goes Before Fall *thwack! * Rezar grunted in pain as he stumbled forward, the rock Priest had thrown dug deep into his side, breaking ribs and causing internal injury. At this point Priest was no longer pulling his punches, while his strength couldn''t be considered amongst the top in Elysium, the old man had enough experience and knowledge to trump everyone else, and in all that he just wanted to be a clergyman. It absolutely did not make sense to Rezar. "You have learnt the art of death Rezar, you know what it means to fight, to die, to kill and to win. You''ve learn that in every battle you might have to face, you should give no quarter to your enemy, show no mercy and pull back no punches until that enemy is completely underneath your feet and control. But the Path of kings is very different from the art of war, in fact the art of war is just one of the foundation blocks of the path of kings, now!" A blade whistled through the air, and sunk itself into Rezar''s chest, it flew so fast that he was unable to evade quickly enough, and given that his hands, and eyes were bound he was completely unable to see or even react properly. Rezar silently cursed at Priest, by now he had really sharp senses, but for some reason it seemed Priest knew how to circumvent it, or rather Rezar had no idea how to properly use them. "A vampire is unlike any other race in Elysium, they were never an option available for players and uploads to use, and that was because Elysium even with all of its flaws, is a mirror of the real world, its legends, its stories, its adventures, its curse and its blessings. For a world that preaches eternal life based on constant reincarnation, an immortal vampire goes against everything it stands for. And then the prejudice against the death class holders came to light, it was a situation so terrible that many had likened it to the middle ages or the time when witches were being burnt in Salem. It was terrible, vampires and a couple of other blood races were the way the death classes clapped back, and they did so with more fury and anger than Elysium could handle. In the end no one cared that the death class holders were once subjected to tortures and horrors unimaginable to the human mind, Elysium, the paradise of the afterlife became a hell as even the death class holders forgot the hell they went through and truly became everything that everyone thought they were. Killers, monsters, a taboo. That was a time were kings and emperors ruled the land in abundance, but none of them from either side were willing to see the bigger picture. And the vampire king, so beset by his rage and his hunger for revenge ravage everything in his path, and the Necron helped make that a reality. It is a book of death as it is a book of life, constantly drawn to not just the most powerful death class user, but also with one that has the potential to be a vampire or is a vampire." Rezar paused, his brows furrowed in confusion as he turned in the direction of Priest." What are you trying to imply old man?" he asked as he moved his head sharply to the side, dodging another rock that would have planted itself in the middle of his forehead. "There are many requirements to using the Necron, race being a vampire, having a death class, and ultimately proving yourself to be a true king. But of course what makes a true king, honestly no one knows, because men and women who have wielded the Necron after the first vampire king without the proper properties, have all had rather terrible deaths, all from events perfectly orchestrated by the Necron, it is not just a book, but a living thing with the power of a God. Whether or not you get to becomes its new master, it matters not. But the qualities and values of a true king is something I''m going to beat into your sorry ass. Number one, no matter how powerful a king you are, know that Pride. Goes. Before. FALL!" Rezar found himself blasted backwards as the smell of sizzling flesh filled the small cave that had been dug out for them to practice in, the pain was palpable, but it didn''t last long as opposed to others as the energy that caused the pain quickly became what made it heal even faster than normal. Rezar didn''t like being thrown around and forbidden from using his own skills, but he couldn''t help but admit that Priest was right, he had to get his rapidly inflating ego in check. "Regardless of the fact that you are a man with a death class, Rezar you must have the qualities of humility, kindness, fortitude, resistance, rigidity in both mind and body, greed, selfishness, Mercy, mercilessness, Grace, Amicability, and handsomeness! But lucky for you, you ain''t that ugly kid. A king is as much his strength, as he is his character and his appearance. You''ll be learning many things from me Rezar, dancing, talking because you talk like a fucking Barbarian! How to eat, how to walk and how to carry yourself. Because if you don''t do all this, Gynaika will end up ruling your kingdom before its even born and all you''ll be is a puppet on a throne married to a snake of a woman that gives even myself goosebumps. She won''t betray you, but she''ll make you weak without you even realizing what''s happening, conflict should not just be all that you know, the pen is mightier than the sword, and even in a world like Elysium where might makes right, that proverb is still very true. But before we can start all that we have to make sure you''re in tune with your physical capabilities. Not everything you can do with your body is a skill, and some skills are what your body can do. So get in tune with your senses, get in tune with the world in front of you, because vampires are creatures of life and death, hanging on the precipice of both nothingness and everything that should and may be. Cut off from the ravages of time, able to breathe and feel, and talk and live like everyone else, but needing a true essence of life to be able to properly survive. Vampires are not werewolves we they do not rely on instincts and neither are they driven by their hunger as the werewolves are driven by the frenzy of the new moon. Every word, every sound, every kill is a choice and each and every single choice is one of power and prestige. Master your body, and you will master your skills!" Chapter 100: Path Of Kings (VI): Tutorial Ends Rezar looked on absent minded but still focused as Alistair explained why it would be better if they planted wheat instead of any other crop, both on earth and in Elysium wheat was the most common ingredient in every household. Of course not many people knew that wheat was what most of their food was comprised off, but Alistair was all to hung up on the possibility of them being the monopoly on wheat and flour in the Bahrenburg wildlands. Rezar nodded his head as he paid attention to the mills that were slowly being sprung up around the edges of the farmland. He had handed most of the platinum he gained after his declaration of being the bone king and naming his future kingdom on a whim. Either way, the funds had gone into purchasing blueprints for a windmill, which Alistair guaranteed would be able to upgrade to a mechanical milling factory, but still able to draw power from the wind, and with enough modification from the endless stream of water that was rushing underneath their feet. Rezar was dressed in simple cotton clothes and covered head to toe in dirt, his attention wasn''t really focused on what Alistair was saying, as he was busy having a thumb war with a seven-year-old dark elf. The young girl and her mother had been the recent citizens they had received just two days prior, and safe to say her mother had more than made herself useful with the way she cooked, which frankly speaking was the best out of everyone in the village, and due to that Rezar was rather taken with the precocious seven-year-old. "Lord Rezar are you paying attention to what I''m saying sir?" Alistair asked as Rezar turned to face him with annoyed look on his face, obviously losing the current exchange in the thumb war between him and the girl. "I''ve heard everything you. Have to say, and I agree, get the wheat up, but mix it up with a bit of rice, more than half of earth eat rice and have various ways to prepare it. And then mix it up, we need vegetables, something that can be used to season the food, so get the seeds. Think pepper, tomatoes, lettuce, cabbages, carrots, thyme, curry, and onions! Don''t forget the onions. Then get the seeds for grapes, I''ve looked over the plans you laid out for the plains, apart from the farms you want to put a place for an orchard, we do have the land after all. But not just an orchard, I need you to plant a grove of fruit trees, or course I think they can be considered the same thing. In Elysium or earth I think the biggest thing that sells is food, and it would be nice if we''re the authority on that." Rezar had his hand under his jaw as he walked, moving really fast with each stride it was almost as if he was floating or gliding across the earth, and a hapless Alistair struggled to keep up with him whilst trying to write down what he was saying. [Earth Sense has leveled up to Intermediate level 3] Rezar immediately stretched his hand out, shocking Alistair as he plucked a still spinning silver arrow out of the air an inch away from his forehead. Rezar moved his head in the direction the arrow had come from, his vision traveling really fast and piercing through the forest in the east, as it fell on the back of the team of Hobgoblin''s riding away on their boars like the devil was after them. Rezar pulled the arrow away from Alistair''s face as the Muriel Elf fell back on his ass, color completely drained from his face in fear at the fact he almost lost his life. {Bone King! I accept you challenge you bloody coward! I do not recognize your legitimacy as sovereign to the Bahrenburg wildlands, neither do I recognize you as a man worthy of the title king. One month from today, I shall march on your flimsy territory and village and burn it to the ground, you best be prepared to bear the consequences for bearing your fangs at me, let the cold dead body this arrow was pulled from be a warning to you! I ride for your kingdom boy! You best be ready to surrender to the might of the Goblin King!} QUEST ALERT! [The Path of Kings (A): kings are forged and born in the heat of war and conflict, and now you will have to do the same to prove to the world you are worthy of your title as king. Meet the Goblin King in battle and defeat him and his allies to prove e your sovereignty. // Duration: 3 months // Rewards: annexation of all the goblin King''s territory, 50 Platinum Elys, Hobgoblin Spawn Key, 800% territory progression Exp, Spire Upgraded, 1 Random Temple// Penalty: Loss of your territory and Death(Slavery)] Rezar turned to Alistair with a rather calm expression on his face, but even Alistair could see that there was a storm brewing within the eyes of the young lord. He was pissed off, but for some reason he was extremely calm about it, and whether Alistair wanted to admit it or not, that was more terrifying than him raging in anger. "Get the workers back to the village Alistair, I want you to begin work on a serious of tunnels and bunkers within the cove, have the architect help you. And make sure its secure and safe and should have multiple escape routes. Lenore is not yet back from training the undead, however get me priest, and tell the citizens that I will be having an open war council in 3 hours, any one of them willing to join the village''s military force would be welcome and will be given training. And stock up on food too, I''m pretty sure that goblin King wants to lay a siege, but He''s in for a surprise.] Rezar said, a small confident smile gracing his lips at the end. "As you wish my lord." Alistair said as he ran back, this time his steps were a lot firmer than his bumbling act earlier on, he was not afraid, affected sorely by Rezar''s ability and his unshaken stance from the threat of the Goblin King. Rezar looked up at the sun above him, he frowned as he squinted at it. He really hated that giant yellow ball up there, it made him feel sleepy, but it has its uses. He looked to the forest with a smile, in every game the first and most basic enemy anybody had to face were goblins. The goblin king might not know it, but as far as Rezar was concerned, he was just about to graduate from the tutorial stage, and the Goblins will be his and his people''s stepping stone. Chapter 101: Kitsune (I): War Council The town hall was packed with everyone in the village, at a glance from it looked really small, especially when you looked at it from outside, but, it was large enough to comfortably sit the almost 200 populations of Necron village. There was a podium and a seat on it for the leader to sit down, but instead Rezar was sitting on the stairs that led up to the podium, much to the chagrin if Priest who considered such a posture as very un-kingly. But Rezar was curious, he wanted to know if sitting on those steps would be comfortable. Everything was pretty much silent as everybody watched him with baited breaths and anticipation, whatever may be, it''s his decisions that would determine the life and death of everybody in that hall. They were mostly scared of him than Respectful, add that with his eccentricity and you have someone who people believe was just a step away from having a psychotic breakdown, and being a death class holder didn''t help matters as that in and out of itself was the, main reason he was feared by most of the people in the hall. "War has come to our doorstep! I knew this was a possibility when we had our altercation with the goblins, and now possibility has become reality. I don''t need any of you to fight for me, I''m not being arrogant but given the quality of the Goblin King''s army, and my abilities as a necromancer, I''ll be able to deal with them on my own given the right situation. And I''m not trying to be arrogant, it''s just an obvious truth. But I can''t always be fighting for you people, yes it''s my responsibility, but if I keep doing so for all of you, then you''ll never learn to be strong. But I''m not asking you to grab a weapon and rush to the battle ground, no what I''m asking you to do is apply yourself in any way possible and fight back. Most of you are the Muriel Elves, well almost everyone here actually is a Muriel elf. Our new citizens just got here, so it would be asking too much to ask them to pick up arms and fight. But you, the Muriel elves have suffered at the hands of the goblin king, you lost everything and that in turn made you easy prey for me. you are slaves now, but that''s not my fault, I could have easily set you free but you see I have trust issues. But you''re safe, you''re fed, clothed and housed, I''ve given as much as I''ve taken from you. But I need you guys to step up, don''t fight, but help me defend this territory that has become your home. Watch my back while I brave the storms of whatever the wildlands have to throw at you, at me, at all of us. Make the very ground beneath your feet strong and capable to instill fear in the hearts of our enemies. If you want to pick up a weapon then do so, if you want to make one then please do, there''ll be hands ready to help lift it up and fight for your sake. I''m not promising you ill win, but I''m promising you that none of you will get hurt ad that by the time this war is done, the goblin king would be crying tears of blood and anguish. And if. No when we win! I''ll bring him back here to answer for his crimes against your people, against my people! Against Necron''s People! The true measure of life is not how you''re forced to live it, but how you choose to live it! So let''s choose to KICK HIS ASS!!! "YARGHHH!!!!!!!!" It was not as intoxicating as it would be when it''s the voices of a thousand people screaming out loud, but 200 was more than enough. It was a blood boiling Frenzy, there was a look of approval on Priest''s face, one of respect on Lenore''s and an imperceptible smile on the face of Gynaika, and honestly Rezar felt unsettled by it. Alistair on the hand was shouting along with everyone else and crying in the in process, he was such a nerd, but Rezar guess his words carried some sort of weight? But he didn''t know how much. He just said what he needed to say, and it felt good. This was the first war council, and while it''s supposed to be something that would be done in closed doors, he wanted everyone to be a part of it, to feel like they belonged. This way even if their opinion didn''t count for shit at the moment, they could feel more invested in trying their best after all this was their home, it''s not as if they have anywhere else to go. "Neema and Screet will take charge of securing the territory, most of the undead you have been training have leveled up enough that they''re now capable of causing the infection, which means anything they kill would rise up as a part of the army. I need you to make one final dive with 50 undead giant fire ants, and 20 of the forest wolves, don''t come back from that dungeon until you have five times that amount and all of them are ready to evolve at least once, you have five days to take care of that Lenore. Our journey to the Merchant towns in the south will have to wait for now, instead Priest and I would head to the Tailed fox''s territory and make contact. At the very least we can ask them to evacuate, as they would be right in the path of the goblin king, assuming he''s bringing his entire army, we can use this as a chance to make an alliance, or maybe offer a deal for annexation, after all the goblin King would definitely not leave them alone. After that''s done, we''ll come back and make further plans, along with training the Necrotic Giant ants and Necrotic Forest Wolves, we have at least fifty of each now, and not enough soldiers to mount them to battle, and as opposed to my undead they''re partially alive. So I''ll take charge of them and train them into a respectable force. Brutus and Jason would be scouting; I''ll be sending you lumbering brutes into the Goblin King''s lands. Tell me how the preparations are going and cause a lot of damage, as much as you can. The aim is to unsettle then and gain enough levels so that I can facilitate your next evolutions, I think you guys should be ready to evolve to more advanced forms of undead than just ghouls. But that should not be your priority, no prolonged clashes, hit and run tactics are what I need from you both. Before leaving I''ll try and work out a defense strategy for the territory, but for now we all have our tasks, let''s get to it." Rezar said as he got up from the ground, but this meeting was far from over as the resident Architect suddenly spoke up. "Pardon me Lord Rezar! I know you''re in a hurry but I have a plan. And I think, no I know! That you''re going to fucking love it." Chapter 102: Kitsune (II): First Contact There was a clear beaten path that led up to a curtain of thick mist that seemed to have blanketed a significant part of the Kerwood forest, it was rather ominous in its being and there was a chill in the air that even Rezar himself could not deny feeling. His perception of danger was completely off the charts, he had this distinct feeling that he was being watched by someone, but the problem was he couldn''t tell who, or what. "Don''t bother trying to find them Lord Rezar, if the kitsune''s don''t want to be seen, then I doubt there''s anything that can expose them to the light." Priest said to Rezar, falling easily into his role as an advisor, while Rezar furrowed his eyebrows and focused his eyes. The mist in front of him seemed to blur and shimmer in and out of existence, all he could understand was that it wasn''t normal as it looked like a murky grey wall of soup being stirred by the wind, in much the same way there would be ripples in a pond. He shifted his gaze around and noticed there was a slight shimmer on one of the trees bordering the mist, but it was only there for a second before it disappeared, making Rezar think it was a trick of the light, or his active use of his divine constitution was making him a bit light headed. "Priest? Tell me more about these Kitsune''s, what are we walking into." Rezar asked, as he reflex tightened his hands around the reins bound to Ant Tony. "Well Kitsune''s are from old earth legends, from a country on the easternmost part of the planet called Japan. Out there in the world now lost to us, they''re stories, but here. They''re real. Also known as demon foxes, or tailed foxes, the Kitsune''s clan has always been a close knit and tight one. There are 8 known branches of the clan, and it seems this is the rumored, and legendary ninth clan of the Kitsune''s. But it would be wrong to jump to conclusions, either way the Kitsune''s are very dangerous magic users, and their abilities and prowess don''t come from their classes, but from their race. Masters of the art of illusions, fire, Runic Wards and transmogrification. They''re a terrible people to have as an enemy as they''re fiercely loyal to their families and for those lucky enough to have one in their employ, loyal to their masters. They operate on the premise of honor above all, one of the best at swordplay and spearmanship, and practically one of the most dangerous infantry and assassination units in Elysium. So no matter how this goes, bad or good, we cannot become their enemies. Because in Elysium there are some things that even a horde of undeath can''t even stop, and the Kitsune clan amongst the beast clans are one of them." "Yare, Yare Kari sama, seems this old clergy knows so much about us, but it begs the question though, if he knew we were as dangerous as he says we are, what possess the old man to come trespassing in our lands and come marching up our borders?" as soon as that voice sounded out, the curtain of mist seemed to ripple as two women, followed by a well but weirdly armored contingent of guards walked out of it. The guards had on some weird red armor that didn''t look like the standard of Elysium, he didn''t know much about this japan that priest talked about, but maybe this was how they wore armor back in the old days. The guards were at least three dozen and were armed with a katana and wakizashi along with bows and arrows. Two of the guards didn''t carry bows, but massive spears that had blades the length of normal sabers, he knew what this was called though, it was a Naginata. Rezar shifted his gaze to the two women in front of him, the one who had just finished speaking was dressed in a vibrant green kimono with her hair up in a bun and her slender and petite body hugged tightly in all the right places. The other woman who he suspected to be the leader was dressed in a white elaborate fur coat, placed on a light blue and silver kimono with motifs of the moon and foxes, and a lot of flowers. And then finally the one thing that set all these people apart was the tails on their back, of the guards, they all had four tails, with the two with the Naginata having five and the two women having six each. To Rezar it seemed the number of tails anyone individual has showed just how much power they had or rather how strong they were. The guards seemed weaker than their charge, but the moment Priest had told him they were masters of illusions, Rezar had been on his guard, because what he was seeing might not be what was necessarily true. "What do you want?" the woman with the six tails asked as she looked at Rezar with a piercing look in her eyes that seemed to become more and more intense as the time went by. "My Good friends, we are sorry to intrude on you like this, but your territory borders ours so we." [Get them to leeeeeaaaaaavvvvvve] Rezar narrowed his eyes at the voice, but he was the only one who could hear it, well just him and the leader of the Kitsune, and the other woman who seemed to be her assistant or spokesperson. It was weird, but even more so when no one else reacted as if they had heard the voice. "We don''t care, please; leave or we will respond with force!" the green dressed Kitsune said, while the one called Kari sama had looked on impassively. "We''re sorry, but we came here to foster an alli..." "I said LEAVE!!!!" she yelled even louder this time as wind whipped past the forest and brought an even deeper chill on the bodies of everyone there. Rezar decided to step in, he didn''t want this to get out of hand, besides it seems there was more going on here than the Kitsune''s would like to admit. "That''s enough Priest, we will go, but on one condition." Rezar said as he came down from Ant Tony. "And what Condition is that!" the green clothed Kitsune asked. And then Rezar in an impassive voice and an equally straight face pointed to the leader and said. "I want to Touch her tails." "Ahhh!! What!!! Why?????" the green clothed Kitsune asked as Kari seemed to turn red, but Rezar knew for a fact that she was angry, and all he could say was... "I''m just curious about how it would feel." Chapter 103: Kitsune (III): Demon Fire To his people Rezar was known as an eccentric leader, calm as he was he was prone to rather. Curious curiosities. And whenever he was curious it didn''t matter what sort of training in etiquette Priest had given, he became no different from a child in that moment as it was his curiosity that drove him entirely, Either Priest, Screet, Or Neema would have to follow after him in an attempt to calm him down and preventing from doing something stupid or kill himself in the process. Unfortunately for Priest, Rezar had already crossed the distance between him and Kari, his hands happily pulling on her rustic orang fur with white tips, eliciting a yelp from her and an instinctive reaction that saw the remaining five of her tails smashing into Rezar''s chest. There was no follow up attack as she was more embarrassed than scared, holding her tails close to her body as if she was violated, but then again it wasn''t just her tail being grabbed and the sub sequent attack, everyone saw the power behind the strike, but all Rezar did was slid back four meters without his body even shaking one bit, and his expression remaining rather unshaken. Gynaika who had been silent this entire time was really confused, she has heard rather than noticed about Rezar''s fearless driven curiosity. In moments like this she heard he was just like a child and it would be almost impossible to stop him during moments like this. She was torn between berating him and falling over from her perch on the back of her Necrotic forest wolf and laugh her ass off. He really was so precocious and innocent, but that feeling wouldn''t last as Rezar raised his hand up, holding on to what looked like a black squid with red stripes on its body. "What is this thing?" the Kitsune''s were even more shocked than everyone else, followed slowly by Priest whose eyes began to slowly widen till it almost seemed to cover his entire face. "How-how- did you get the NPC off?" the green clad Kitsune screeched at Rezar in surprise, but it was cut short as her body began to convulse a bit and she along with the guards rushed towards Rezar and Rezar alone. "No!!!" the Kitsune Kari shouted as they drew close, but all Rezar was; was confused as he didn''t understand what was going on. "Rezar! Don''t kill them, they have no idea what they''re doing, they''re under the control of those things in your hand! Quickly destroy it away, Gynaika back away from the area of the fight, no matter what don''t let any of those things get on you! You too Kari, stay away!" Priest gave rapid orders as they all moved away from the still confused Rezar. Why this was happening, he wasn''t exactly sure, but this was a fight, it was something he understood, never the less unlike most people he could see or at least notice the areas of the body this monsters are hiding on the kitsunes. He stepped back as wisp of green flames went past his head, was that even supposed to do damage? *BoooooM! * The explosion rocked him off his feet, blasted him into a few trees that had no business being as strong as they were, cracking bones in the process, however the pain he could feel right now was much worse. The entire right side of his face was burn black, and he had lost vision in his right eye, but what was really bad about this was the fact that he could his [Divine Constitution] was struggling to heal him. It was working but it was slow, very, very slow. [You have been hit with demon flame. Due to nature of race and traits, it has been determined you have a -500% weakness to demonic abilities and spells. It can kill you] Rezar''s eyes widened in surprise and shock, at first it was an object of holy and demonic might, but he guessed now it was anything that had demonic might that could now not just hurt but actually kill him, and he had deposited himself on a silver platter to them. he literally had the only thing capable of killing him growing in his backyard, Rezar couldn''t help it, a sudden bout of murderous air suddenly suffused him as his left eye turned red and his fangs poked out of his gums. He was on his feet when one of the guards showed up, swing his sword with a blaze of blue flames covering it towards Rezar''s neck. But a flock of shadowy bats suddenly suffused the area as the hand of the guard was grabbed and raised up as a knee smashed in to his stomach and a mouth full of fangs found its way to his neck later. It was ripped open, and blood spurted out like a fountain, but Rezar had to spit and hack in revulsion as the blood burned his tongue and throat like acid. Rezar took a hold of the Katana and blocked a stab to his midriff, as he pushed his head forwards and slammed it into the helmet covered face of the guard in front of him, blasting the Kitsune backwards and smashing its skull and helmet to pieces in a rather gory scene as Rezar swung the katana in a complete circle around himself. [Strike of Nothingness]. There was no sound for a good fifteen seconds as Rezar remained standing there, the Katana stretched backwards behind. And then suddenly all of the guards that had surrounded him all fell to the ground with the exception of the green clad female Kitsune who was barring her teeth and going through a rather terrifying transformation. As for the guards, above their bodies were their souls, all intact, conscious and scared, Rezar had just used a single strike to rip them out of their bodies, leaving their bodies dead, comatose. But this was far from over, the same type of squid he had pulled off from Kari came out from all their bodies and began to make a beeline for the mist wall. They were probably going to get more reinforcements, but Rezar knew he didn''t have to tell Priest and the others that they had to be destroyed as they all with the help of Kari began to destroy them. As for the green clad Kitsune, she no longer looked like anything that resembled human at all, instead he was looking as four-meter-tall and five-and-a-half-meter long fox with red veins allover her pristine green fur, not to mention the five tails behind her were each amassing a ball of the same flame she used to ruin Rezar''s face. She roared at him, and Rezar''s only response to that was to throw the Katana to the ground and stretch out his right as his scythe showed, and then Rezar looked up at her, his injured face painting a rather scary visage as he glared at her. "You Better Not Miss!!! Biiiiiittcccchhhhhhh!!!!" Chapter 104: Kitsune (IV): NPCS Rezar rushed forwards, his cloak of shadowy bats trailing behind him as he was completely enveloped by it and all that was left was a swarm of shadowy vampire bats. The flames hanging on the tail of the green clad Kitsune began to release lances of flames at the mass of shadowy bats, but Rezar''s speed was too much for her as his black form flitted across and in between trees to rush towards her huge form. But she was not willing to wait for him to reach her as she ran towards him too, the flames floating above her head as all her tails shot forwards. With barely a finger nail''s space between the tail and his body, Rezar dodged and wove in between the furry appendages that seemed to have extended past their normal size. The mass of shadowy bats seemed to rotate as they evaded all the tails and came closer with a glint of steel and flame flashing out of it in the last second. Rezar jumped upwards swinging his scythe with both hands, the blade heading straight for her throat, however a massive symbol showed up in the air and blocked the strike from the scythe. "Don''t kill her please!" Kari shouted as a smaller version of the symbol could be seen etched on her palm, she had defended the green clad Kitsune from being brutally killed by a very pissed off Rezar. But in so doing left Rezar wide open for one of the tails to pull right back and pierce through his chest. But that was not the end as Rezar was raised up into the sky, hanging from a tail that was rapidly turning blood soaked from his blood, it was a sight as grotesque as it could be. The Kitsune proceeded to slam Rezar into the ground, creating a crater in the process and then proceeding to smash his speared body through a couple of trees, before banging his very broken body on the ground some more for good measure. Then she flung his body away like a common rag doll that wasn''t worth her attention, before she raised her head to the sky driven by her primal instincts to howl in victory. "Hoooowwwwwllll-aiiiiiiiiiii!" The howl had quickly turned in a whine, as her right forelimb went flying into the sky and she crashed forwards to the ground, her head falling right into the greyish black fist of Rezar that was charging upwards with great speed. [Death Blast] The massive and quite bulky form of the Kitsune was thrown into the air as it made a full 360 rotations before landing with a massive thud on the ground. All of the fur on her body had turned a startling shade of white, as her blood pooled around the area and the transformation was quickly being reverted. She was back in her green kimono, covered in blood and missing her right arm, but Rezar was far from done as he rushed forwards and brought his spear stabbing directly into her back, driving it through her body and deep into the earth, leaving her stuck there and ignoring the screams from Kari as he walked round the Kitsune that was now acting no different than a rabid dog. She was snarling, biting and snapping at his heels, it was almost as if she couldn''t feel any sort of pain, as her constant wiggling was making the injuries worse. In fact, this much injury should be enough to kill her, but it seems Kitsune had really powerful regenerative abilities. It would keep her alive for a while, but as long as that scythe remained inside her body, she''ll be dead eventually. Rezar crouched down as bones in his body slowly began to pop into place, the wound on his face was still rather bad, but he could feel it healing as there was an itch accompanying it. He bent down and shoved his hand into her hair and grabbed something. Then he began to pull, and as he did so, she began to scream. Her screams were so deep and choke full of pain, it was as if she was going through the worst possible torture imaginable, as if with every yank through her hair, it was death and destruction all in one. Rezar pulled back, wrenching his arm back forceful as the sound of suckers being released filled his surroundings. And along with the release came a spurt of blood that was terribly bad and smelling, in fact Rezar noticed that same black blood bleeding out of the ears of the guards he had brought down. He ignored her pained screams that had been reduced to moaning mewls and pulled out his scythe from her back, causing her to twitch and release another bout of pain. Kari quickly rushed to her friend and picked her up before turning a worried gaze towards the curtain of mist that seemed to be shimmering ominously. She turned to Rezar and spoke to him as Priest and Gynaika came closer with their mounts. "Please we need to leave now, if we remain here more of my people controlled by the NPC''s will get here. If they do we won''t be able to escape and I really don''t want to see them die at your hands either, so please we need to run!" for all intents and purposes, it seems their diplomatic mission was a bust, but Rezar was not moving anywhere until his curiosity has been sated. So he raised the squid in his hand and asked. "What the fuck is this thing?" Kari looked like she''d rather not answer, but her''s and her friend''s life was on the line, and the only way she could escape was with the help of these people. "They''re NPC''s (None player characters!)" Rezar looked at the squid and then back at her. "That''s impossible, there are no Npcs in Elysium, everything is ran by real people." Rezar denied, but Priest had something to say to that. "It''s not impossible Rezar, NPC''s exist, but they''re only rare and can only exists in certain conditions, one of which are your undead. After all, don''t tell me you think people reincarnated to become Screet, Neema, Jason, Brutus and Valka. There are NPC''s in this world Rezar, and each and every single one of them are dangerous and are our enemies! Now if you have any questions you can keep it for later, but for now We RUN!" Chapter 105: Kitsune (V): Running Rezar was annoyed, he didn''t understand why he had to be the one to carry Kari and the Kitsune that just tried to murder him, of course everyone else was saying it wasn''t her fault as she was being controlled by NPCS, which even after a few moments, Rezar still found completely ridiculous. There were no NPCS in Elysium, and even if they did, they wouldn''t be tiny squid things that latch on to people and sound like a washed out Darth Vader wannabe. It was messed up, it didn''t seem as if anything of what he''s seem so far made any sense, but never the less he was going to be getting some answers, as soon as they were able to escape from the trio of kitsunes chasing after them. "Priest! Where are we going? Gynaika asked the old man who at the lead with his Necrotic ant rushing through the forest with a lot more ease than most equine creature would find. "The Dungeon! Lenore is sure to be there with some contingent of the undead, and some more. We need them to survive against the NPCS!" Rezar huffed in annoyance after that, nothing was making sense, but he was finding getting chased by those Kitsune''s really annoying. "Rezar! Whatever it is your thinking of doing, don''t do it! I saw the damage that demon fire did to you, it has still not healed, so don t take any unnecessary risks, we have to regroup first!" Priest snapped at him, but Rezar was way past the point of reasoning, and he had Logic to back him up. "Regrouping will be all but worthless if these damn things chase us right into the dungeon, and we know for a fact that it''s not an instance dungeon so there''s no guarantee that they would be able to stop. I need to stall them, neither you or Gynaika have combat classes, and even your classes are combat capable you wouldn''t be able to deal them enough damage without taking some in return. Send a message to Lenore, get her and come back here, I can handle all three if I go all out." Rezar said to them as he removed his feet from the stirrups on Ant Tony, holding on to them as he crouched on the Thorax of the zombie ant. He passed the reins in his hand to Kari as he remained perched on the back of the rushing ant with way more balance than should be capable for him, he looked back to see three black and white fully transformed Kitsune bounding after them, crushing and trampling everything in their path to him. "Rezar that''s completely reckless, even if they follow us into the dungeon there''ll be no lose, or at least not much of a lose even if we''re caught off guard. This is suicide!" Rezar knew they were right, but he was the one bringing up the rear, he knew they were catching up, he saw how close they were and he knew they would never make it to the dungeon if the Kitsune kept chasing after them. Rezar looked up and gave a bright smile that couple with disfigured but slowly healing face would have sent chills into the hearts of anyone who looked at him; but Gynaika was no ordinary woman. [Bat Apparition] Rezar flew backwards toward s the approaching trio of Kitsunes, his form nothing more than a cloudy mass of bats that surged upward into the sky. Rezar cutting off from his companions was actually enough to stop the chase entirely as their attention was solely focused on Rezar alone. It might seem confusing, but Rezar actually understood why it as this way. Frankly speaking he could see and sense the locations of where the NPCS are latched on to people, that made him a threat to them as he could remove them or accurately direct others to pull them off. But whatever the reason Rezar absolutely didn''t give a shit, this was a fight that he had to handle and face, and he would meet any challenge to the very best of his ability, that''s why he was king. Rezar''s form came crashing down from the sky, the cloud of bats disappearing the moment all three kitsunes sent blasts of flames at Rezar''s falling form. However, with the disappearance of his Apparition skill effects, he was a much smaller target, and the blasts of green flame flew past him with just a little difference of separation. There was no more time for anyone of them to come up with a counter as Rezar''s Scythe happily found purchase in the eyes of one of the Kitsune. His speed and momentum with a lot of help from gravity due to falling from 30 feet in the air, had given the scythe more force than it was qualified to carry. The scythe went deep, all the way to the brain as the Kitsune was instantly killed. But a lull in attention would be really bad as attacking this particular Kitsune had left him open and vulnerable to attacks from the other two. [Deathwind Domain] A semi-transparent green and black blue done came into existence above his head, as both him and the remaining two Kitsune were left here. Most would say he was locked in there with them, but even he knew better it was the other way around and they were instead locked in here with him. [Deathwind Domain: Lvl 2: create a domain 30 meters in diameter where everything is within your control. Within this domain all stats raised by 20% for 30 minutes, all damage to skill caster -120%// This skill can either scale or amplify the blood rain skill, just as the blood rain can also empower it.] Rezar shifted himself backwards, away from the remaining two Kitsune''s as he took a deep breath and steeled his eyes. He might have been here for a diplomatic mission, but none of that meant anything with how much of a shit show this journey had turned to. But no matter what, Rezar knew he was going to come out on top. [Summon Undead] Chapter 106: Kitsune (VI): Soul Eater [Summon Undead: Intermediate Lvl 1: Summon Twenty Skeleton soldier from the underworld, or Ten Skeleton warriors, Or One Skeleton Mage to help you fight. All skeletons are level 25. Gain twenty extra skeleton soldier ten extra skeleton warriors, and one extra skeleton mage for each level of skill in the Intermediate grade. //Cost: 50 Magic// Cool down: 5 minutes] At the moment there was a reason why the sheer amount of skill points Rezar had was sitting at a rather measly zero. During and after the course of his short training with Priest that admittedly he was still undergoing before this crisis with the goblin king showed itself. Rezar had used the skill points to level up a few of his new and old skills, and trained hard enough in others to raise their levels a couple of times. In fact, it would not be too farfetched to say that the strength of his skills were completely disproportionate with his stats, as he could bring out more effects and damage from the way he uses them. with the [Deathwind domain] in place, severely limiting the space of the Kitsunes, and adding in the ten undead warriors that were just summoned out of a swirling magical circle on the ground. Whether the Kitsunes get to escape or not, one thing stands to be obvious, and that''s the fact that they''ll pay a very heavy price for it. "Charge!" Ten forms of bleached white bones, flimsy leather armor and rusty looking but sharp swords and shields with jagged edges rushed at one of the Kitsune, shocking the demon fox as they moved in a well-coordinated attack pattern. Spreading out into three groups and leaving a single skeleton to face the wrath of the demon fox''s falling claws. The jagged round shield of the skeleton glowed a dull grey light and pulsed, releasing a blast of light that smashed the claw away, turning the fur around its paw white in seconds as time, death and age too hold. The Kitsune stumbled back, and that was enough of a distraction for the other nine skeleton warriors to take the initiative. Their swords glowed black, with tiny pinpricks of light over it, and they all stabbed out at once, the very moment the first skeleton warrior had pushed back the Kitsune. Rezar ignored the mournful and pained howl he heard from the other Kitsune as he left his focus solely on the one facing him. It took him three hard days of training to be able to train the skeleton captains in tactics as they seemed to be even more dumb than zombies and only knew how to attack instinctively. Either they now knew how to cooperate and maximize their skills and abilities for maximum damage, and while he had wanted to hand this skill to either the town spire or the dungeon crystal attached to it, he now realized it would only see its full potential in his hands. Besides, he wouldn''t like being able to summon an army out of thin air when put in a tough position. *Bang! * Rezar shifted to the side, ignoring the six tails that just slammed into the earth besides him, digging so deep into it, that he was sure if those tails had touched him, he would have been left a broken mess. But the Kitsunes were not the only ones with tails or whip like weapons capable of causing harm, and his were a whole lot worse. [Bind!] The Kitsune didn''t see it coming, and that was why this was honestly his favorite skill. His versatility with it was completely unlike his other skills, and the fact that he could actually stack the effects of other skills onto it, more than made him extremely happy. Eldritch black and purple chains with a tinge of red on it stabbed into the body of the Kitsune, easily piercing flesh like it was paper, his Ignore defense skill completely negating any sort of defense the Kitsune might have. But beyond that Rezar knew these demon foxes were not fighting at a 100%, due to probably being Mind controlled, they could only bring out about 45% of their true power and instincts, they relied more on skills and simple attack patterns than strategy and fighting smart. Which was why there was no way the Kitsune would have seen those chains coming, and even less way that it could see or stop what came next. [Feed] The Kitsune began to flow a bloody red light, and in seconds, its massive transformed body began to shrivel and dry up as golden red energy from its body began to flow down the length of Rezar''s chain and into his body. And it felt good, this was a different kind of feeding than when he drank blood and it was intoxicating and all so powerful, it was unlike anything he had ever seem felt or experienced before. [You have absorbed the magic and soul of your opponent. +40 to Magic and Defense, [Feed] has gone into a 72-hour cool down. You can''t use the skill within this period.] [Divine constitution has leveled up to Lvl 2, your senses, defense and physique has experienced an exponential upgrade. Holy Magic Mastery has increased by 4 basic levels.] [Holy Magic Mastery has leveled up basic Lvl 5] [Feed Has leveled up to Intermediate Lvl 9] [Due to the absorption of a soul aligned with illusions and sensory manipulation, the skill Compulsion has leveled up to basic Lvl 3] [No skills gained from the absorption of this soul] The body of the Kitsune dropped to the ground with a thud, and subsequently turned grey rapidly, before breaking down and turning to ash that floated away. The other Kitsune was completely bloody by now, as it had been enduring the attacks from the ten skeleton warriors, without ever having a chance to even lay a scratch on any one of them. Rezar felt as if he didn''t know himself, but at the same time also realized that he really might be the scariest thing in all of Elysium. Raising undead, killing people, ripping souls out of their body and drinking blood was one thing, but eating souls? He couldn''t help but feel that this was a whole other territory of weird. But since he''s gotten into it there would be no going back. He held his scythe and move forwards, his entire form nothing more than a blur as he swung it upwards, reliving the final Kitsune of its head, and just in time too as the [Deathwind Domain] duration finally passed. Rezar felt weird, not guilty or anything, just really weird. His summoned undead came to his side, lining up in two rows of five and standing at attention. His black armored clothes fluttered in a chilly wind that blew through Kerwood forest, as if to announce that there was no longer just a blood drinker haunting its woods, but also a Soul Eater! Chapter 107: Kitsune (VII): Old Secrets Of Elysium Lenore was very confused, how did a diplomatic mission to go see the Kitsunes turn out into a full blown altercation with them, and even worse is the fact that Gynaika is saying their enemies aren''t the Kitsunes, but rather the NPCS that seemed to have hijacked their bodies, and to that end, Lenore called Bullshit! She''s lived a couple of lives herself in Elysium, at least those that she could remember, and she knows for a fact that there are no such things as NPCS. They had AI''s that took the place of gods, or some really intelligent monsters but. come to think of it; weren''t AI''s Just NPCS too. She was confused, this whole thing was giving her a headache and honestly she didn''t want to think too much about it as it all sounded so weird and not within the bounds of what she would consider normal. Even when Rezar came to the entrance of the dungeon with ten skeletons in tow, it still didn''t give her enough clarity to make heads or tails of what the fuck was going on here. She would try to be calm and listen to what Priest have to say, and ignored the fact that there was an unconscious and armless Kitsune sleeping in her fucking Tent! "Hey Old Man! Speak! You too Foxy, what the fuck is going on here?" Rezar asked as he barged into the clearing in front of the dungeon''s entrance, which in this case was an ancient temple almost completely swallowed by moss, vines, and the trunks and boughs of the trees that had grown around, on top and within its old architecture. Lenore furrowed her eyebrows at the way Rezar was speaking, he only ever called Priest Old Man when he was angry of dead serious, this leader of her''s had absolutely no fear. So she had no idea what he sounded like when he was afraid. "Rezar, remember I told you that there are so many secrets within Elysium that have been forgotten to time, meticulously and specifically wiped from memories and records by manipulation of Elysium itself in a bid to bring balance and continue to foster its growth and expansion. One of those secrets are the NPCS, and believe me they are a bad news even worse than vampires and the Necron itself." Lenore blanched at that, she''s heard the stories behind the legend of their village''s name, it was a bloody story that''s for sure, and one that according to Priest only a handful of people in the whole of Elysium knew. And from those stories, she knew those were dark times for Elysium, really dark times that the horrors of it ever existing had been meticulously wiped away with nary a trace to be found, and now he was saying that this was something worse'' she couldn''t help the shudder that tingled and went up and down her spine. "The NPCS in Elysium are parasitic, they can be anything from a Symbiote to a virus to bacteria, basically the kind of things you can''t easily see or touch. Elysium is more than just the planet you see, there''s the underworld where all sorts of demons and undead live and roam, many of which are actually living and alive. But such a knowledge is kept really guarded as knowing there''s a place where death class users thrived and live would definitely shake the foundations of this world." Lenore watched as Rezar''s eyes widened in surprise, she was shocked too. If what Priest said was true, then there were more than enough Death class users in Elysium to make sure everyone else died for real and permanently. It didn''t make sense, for Lenore Elysium has always been something that was stable, this world, this reality and all its wonders were reliable, it''s the people you had to watch out for, but now she''s learning that Elysium was more than the sum of what everyone else knew about it. And such a discovery was downright terrifying. "Just like the underworld the NPCS have a separate dimension of their own, with real bodies just like everyone else. Twice before, in times now lost to history and scrubbed clean in much the same way you would clean a computer''s database, the NPCS had invaded. Taking over the bodies of millions of people and leaving a trail of destruction as fathers killed children and mothers drowned their babies. They spread quite rapidly and it was discovered that the longer one of them spent in an area, the more likely for a rip in dimensions to open and send more of them coming through. And given how much we''ve seen, I reckon that the NPCS have been here for a while. We need to find a way to get them off the bodies of the Kitsune''s, because frankly speaking we''re in luck as this group of NPCS have normal bodies, even if they''re just tiny squids. We can find them and dislodge them, and then completely destroy them to free the village. If not. I''m afraid we will have no choice but to exterminate each and every person in the village, human and NPCS alike." Priest said, as the new addition to their group, a Kitsune called Kari shuddered in fear at the suggestion. Lenore watched as Rezar opened his mouth to ask. "Is there a reason why we can''t just kill everything and be done with it! It would be much easier and it is more guaranteed to put an end to them." he said as he folded his hands, ignoring the panicked looked on the face of the Kitsune with yellowish gold fur. "Please I''m Pleading with you, even if you can''t save them, please leave them alone, we''re not always controlled by these NPCS, they only act when they''re threatened and are just contented to watch. The rest of family is back there, my father! Please I''m begging you, have mercy on them." She was bowing now, but she might have well as just been air in front of Rezar as he didn''t even twitch. Rezar wasn''t heartless, he was just Pragmatic, and would rather deal with this in a way that had the least amount of losses on him, if any at all. He was putting his people first, or his self. But in this case that was the same thing, and Lenore actually agreed with his sentiment, they owed these people nothing. "If we kill them all, we lose a valuable ally in our stance against the Goblin King, and better yet this would be a chance to conquer a territory, servitude in return for your help, would work more to your favor and Necron village will grow into a town with their help. they would be an important unit in your army Rezar. Sure we would have to extend ourselves a bit, but I know we can win, and when we do, you will have an asset unlike another. You would have fully consolidated your territory before the fight with the goblin King." " Won''t the territory still be there even after they''re dead, if territory is what we are after then we don''t need the people in it do we?" Rezar asked with an impassive voice, causing even more panic to be etched onto the face of the Kitsune. "And this is where we will have another lesson ''Lord Rezar'' so lend me your ear and your heart." Priest said to Rezar as he raised an eyebrow in return, but still sat up straight to listen to what the clergy man had to say. "A territory, regardless of what name, what resources, what treasures it has, is completely worthless without the prime factor that makes it what it is. It''s not about the place, nothing about the place makes it valuable My King. It''s the people that make the territory, it is them that gives it value. So ultimately the true treasure of a territory is not in what resource it has to offer, but in what kind of people is has to offer. Do you understand what I''m trying to say?" Priest asked Rezar who still looked impassive. Rezar didn''t say anything as he got up to his feet and started walking towards his recently summoned undead. His voice floated over, hard as steel and with an edge that gave no room for arguments or questions. Filled with a power that made Lenore feel like she was not just looking at man but a King in every sense of the word. "Get ready all of you, we break camp in an hour so make sure you have a plan of approach and attack. I''m, making no promises Foxy, but I will keep the slaughter to a minimum. But know this and know this well, if any of my people or too much of my undead begin to fall, then ill wipe this clan of Kitsunes off the face of Elysium! Consequences be DAMNED!" Chapter 108: Kitsune (VIII): Darn My Niceness! There was absolutely no way that they could sneak back into the Kitsune village, so this mean that they needed to implement a head on clash against them. but just going head on against them would not be wise, with the kitsunes being controlled by those NPCS, the more precise and surgical parts of their abilities like their Illusions were rendered useless as the NPCS use it to mostly hide themselves. So it would be a head on clash on the part of the Kitsunes, but just because they had to have a head on clash with them. didn''t mean they couldn''t find a way to circumvent and cause significant damage from the side. Rezar was going to lead the head on strike, vampires were surgical and precise creatures, but even with that they were still weapons of mass destruction. Rezar would lead a head on strike along with Lenore, Priest and Gynaika would bring up the rear. Screet and Neema would be the ones in charge of attacking from the sides and completely unseen as they were currently tunneling under the ground with the lead of about a dozen Necrotic giant ants. Rezar patted Ant Tony on his head, the giant ant didn''t respond to the touch since he was still just a brainless zombie ant and hasn''t evolved yet. But after this battle he should reach that gap. Rezar had grown fond of it, so much so that even with the dungeon spawning Necrotic fire ants that were more intelligent and have a bit of personality as you would expect from any animal, Rezar still chose his drone of a zombie ant as a mount. In any case, there was just something different about the ants he raised himself, than the ones the dungeon core spawned for the territory. Rezar shook his head and faced the wall of mist as Lenore came to his side, riding a Necrotic forest wolf, and right beside her was Kari in her full transformed Kitsune form. Four meters tall, with a rustic red coat with very faint white stripes, the tips of her tails were still the same snow white color as when she was in a humanoid form. They both looked as ready as they could be, but Rezar could still the fain trembling from Kari''s huge body. In the end he had a modicum of understanding about what she was going through, for all intents and purposes she was bringing back some people to attack her home, and because of it a lot of her people, some or most of them she personally knew, would die. Rezar could not imagine himself being in such a position, because honestly he had no idea what to do. It was quite similar to how helpless he felt when he encountered the Order of the Innkeepers. Those people had power that he didn''t and put him in a helpless position, in short, it made him desperate for power, or help in any form that could and would give him assurance that he could triumph over them, or at least resist them. "do we just charge at the curtain of Mist?" Lenore asked as she looked from Rezar to the target in front of her. "I wouldn''t advice that, you have no idea what''s waiting for you over there. It''s like a one-way window, they can see us from the other side, but we can''t see them from here. They could all be lined up with hundreds of [Fox Fire] at the ready for attack." Rezar nodded his head, he had already thought about it, but they couldn''t exactly wait for the NPC controlled Kitsunes to make the first move, so he had a plan, he was just waiting to get confirmation from Neema before. {Master! We''re in the village.} Neema''s voice came calling through the telepathic link Rezar shared with his undead. His scrunched his eyebrows surprised by how fast they were, it seemed it was more of a highlight about why the half dead Necrotic giant ants were better than their full undead counterparts. Seems they dug a lot faster than the undead ants. "That''s good, I take it most of the village are gathered in front of the [Mist Curtain]?" Rezar asked back, but using his mind to communicate back to her. {Master it''s not just the most of the village, it''s the entire village! And they have all the young ones lined up front, so if you attack, they''re the ones that will get hurt first. I think they intend to use them as bait, and when you''re probably caught off guard by the act of killing the young ones, they cut you down... when will you attack?} Rezar smiled ruefully at that; no one knew him better than his undead. Neema knew he wouldn''t give a shit that there were kids in front of him, because the moment you were an enemy, the only thing that mattered to him was removing you out of the way. But Priest has been trying his possible best to teach Rezar about morality, not that Rezar wasn''t Moral as he tried to avoid killing innocents as much as he could. But he gave no mercy to his enemies, this was what 8 months stuck in a dungeon that was trying it''s possible best to kill him had taught him. And that was more time spent learning hard lessons than Priest has had to teach him how to be a king. But in this case, it seems it would be better for Priest''s Lessons to prevail. Rezar moved his head to the worried eyes of Kitsune who had no choice but to team up with him in order to save her people. "Darn my Niceness!" Rezar silently cursed to himself, much to the shock of Lenore and Kari as he answered Neema. "Destroy anything they have that''s off value in the village, if you noticed anything weird or important destroy it or bring it back, and hurry it up. Then set the village on fire, we''ll keep their attentions on us. Just focus on what you have to do, and get it done. And minimalize the casualties on both sides should it turn out you have to fight, this is not a full on fight but a hit and run tactic, get it done and get out. And Neema? Don''t hurt the kids." {Yes Master!} Chapter 109: Kitsune (IX): Self Sacrifice "you guys stay here; I''m going in. don''t make a move until I tell you too or give you a signal." Lenore and Kari had their eyes opened wide in surprise, obviously what Rezar was doing was nothing short of suicide. There was no need for him to walk through, the mist curtain was an illusion, it could not stop attacks from going into the village, and the people within the village couldn''t attack outside as that would deactivate the illusion. Even they had no idea who and what was waiting for them on the other side, they still had the advantage and Rezar was putting himself in harm''s way, and they didn''t know why. Rezar rushed forwards with Tony, it would be better to just call Ant Tony, Tony seeing as he felt Anthony would be a little generic and plagiaristic. Never the less he didn''t want to give them any answer, for some reason he felt as if it would shake his image as a cold hearted vampire overlord if he told them he was putting himself in danger for a bunch of kids. He was in front of the curtain of mist before they knew what was going and in just a second he disappeared into it. Lenore, Gynaika, Priest and Kari had their jaws open wide in surprise as his impulsive behavior, watching as he disappeared into the mist was like watching a beast swallow him whole, and they could not for the life of themselves figure out why he would do such a thing. As for Rezar he felt a chill go up and down his spine the very moment he went I to the mist. The scene in front of him rippled a bit, before he suddenly found himself in front of close to 300 kitsunes, with about a 100 of them being young or adolescents standing in front of him, [Fox Fire] all at the ready and poised to strike. Rezar knew he only had a second to react to what would obviously be a very painful death, so he acted immediately. [Deathwind Domain]. His domain shimmered into existence, however this time the dome was much smaller as it just covered Rezar. This skill had two effects, the first was as an amplifier for his abilities, he would be faster and stronger when under the domain, but it was also born from a defensive skill. Once the domain went up, all attacks coming from outside of it would be defended against, but against such an intense barrage of flames, there was no way the domain would last for this long. A variety of different colored fire balls pelted the domain and pushed Rezar back as he could do was hunker down and watch as the durability of the dome went down. He could feel the drain on his magic as the domain drew on it to repair the damages it received. But Rezar knew he had to hold on, just as Lenore and the others were waiting for a signal from him, so too was he waiting for a signal. He had no idea how long it would take, so he had to hold on for as long as he could. He looked up at the eyes of the children all arranged in front of him, their attacks were barely causing any damage as it was the older Kitsunes who dealing more damage. What he could really see was fear, looking closer he noticed there wasn''t even a hint of an NPC on them. the youngest person to have the NPCS attached to them looked about 18, which meant they probably could attach themselves to children younger than 18. So without a doubt, the fear in their eyes, the quivering of their lips, the way their furs bristled and stood on end and their jaws clenched tightly with tears clouding their eyes. They''ve been through a lot, even if they were not under control, their parents, uncles, siblings were a prey to the NPCS. They had no choice, but to do this, they weren''t fighting just because of fear, they fought for love. Or maybe not. This might just be a way for him to reaffirm to himself no to take their lives. He was still a kid himself, so maybe he felt a certain sense of camaraderie with them. it was weird but he felt jealous. They had parents, a community, a family. People that would fight for them and people they wanted to fight for, but he had none of that. None of those people on the other side could be considered his family, he felt that he was maybe friends with them, but even that relationship was built on equivalent exchange. It was built based on the understanding of his potential, a potential that they all wanted to exploit. And with that realization, for the first time he truly and severely felt alone. He felt empty. *BoooM! * An explosion the likes which these Kitsune have never felt before rocked the environment, their attacks came to an abrupt halt as Rezar could see the eyes of the older Kitsunes widen in shock as they turn to look at the massive plume of smoke that rose up in the distance. Rezar finally got a good look the village, it was beautiful. It had one major street with traditional Japanese houses lining the street on each side. Their red roofs, bright paper lanterns and the rows upon rows of sakura trees planted in front of each of those houses and all in full bloom. But they were all on fire, but even more was the petals that scattered along with the wind, heralding the arrival of a very pissed off Neema as he happily planted her axe in the skull of the largest Kitsune amongst the group in front of him, and blasting its pristine white fur covered head to pieces, splattering blood and brain matter everywhere. Rezar imagined that the Kitsune who just died was probably very important to the village, but he was or she was dead now. And the signal he was waiting for was already here. So while this was a hit and run attack, it wouldn''t be fait if he didn''t attack a bit before running now would it. Rezar pulled out his scythe with a smile, a promise of carnage hidden behind that amused look on his face. Chapter 110: Kitsune (X): Loss [Apparition] Rezar''s shadowy form flew over the heads of the Younger Kitsune, drawing on the confusion the explosion and Neema''s sudden attack had caused. This time he was going all out, fangs out and both eyes blood red and burning gold. He brought his scythe swing down, its blade leaving a blazing trail of orange behind as he planted it in the chest of a grey furred Kitsune. Its bright red blood spilled all over Rezar''s face and chest, but he derived no joy from it as the blood touching him had caused a burn so intense on his body he had top grit his teeth. But he would not let that stand in his way as he pushed away from the body of the Kitsune, his form drawing an arc in the sky as he made a backflip before falling down, feet fist onto the head of another Kitsune, pushing its, massive head into the ground hard enough that spider cracks were made on the ground from the force of the move. He shook his head and shot forwards, sliding to his knees as the tail of one of the Kitsune shot towards his head. He leaned back, moving forwards as the fur went above him, then he brought his scythe swinging upwards, shearing through the tail and eliciting a scream of pain so intense that he felt his entire body rumble from how ear piercing the scream was. It made one thing very obvious to him, and that was the fact t that the tails of the Kitsunes were actually a weak point of theirs. He got up and turned, pivoting his body as he sliced his scythe in a full circle at the Kitsune''s that had surrounded him. [Strike of Nothingness], a move that could not be seen, and it didn''t leave behind any evidence of its usage either. Eleven souls rose as their bodies collapsed to the ground, grotesque squid like beings crawled away from their bodies, each of them rushing towards the burning village in the distance. [Absorbing Souls into Weapon. Souls absorbed. Weapons has become transcendent and can be scaled, please name weapon.] Eleven souls, and Rezar just shoved them into his weapon, but just as he haphazardly shoved them into his scythe, he moved on without paying attention to the system prompt. He swung the scythe one more time, this time it released a conflagration of blazing flames that were a deep bluish black. It shocked Rezar and the Kitsune''s so much that there was a lull in the battle, and that lull gave just enough time for a tower in the distance to explode into a shower of flames and rubble. And at that moment, in unison all of the hijacked Kitsune''s raised their heads to the sky and howled in anger and anguish. {Master! There was a platform made with weird languages and letters in that tower, I thought it looked really important so I happily blew it up.} Rezar didn''t have time to laugh not with what he was seeing in front of him. He rushed forwards, his form covered with his bats, but right in that instant a tail found its way into his body, nailing him to the ground, and for just the fraction of wasted second, leaving him helpless as he watched a Kitsune clamp its jaw tight against Neema''s body, there and then it started to wrench its head left and right as dark red blood splashed every which way. Rezar didn''t just see her die, he felt it. It was a pain unlike anything he had ever felt and it wasn''t physical, but he was so broken at that sight his body itself seemed to rebel against him. That pain brought on fear, real and palpable and nerve wracking. But it was too late too feel it, he knew she was gone, just as she had suddenly came into being, she had been suddenly snuffed out, taken away from him. "Arghhhhhhhhhh!" [Blood Rain] [Bind] He swung the scythe in his hands down, cleaving the Kitsune in front of him in two as the Kitsune who had held on to Neema was pierced through with the chains, his blood draining rapidly, as his soul was also drawing into Rezar''s body. But Rezar would not make death any easier for this Kitsune, and even more so for the NPC that it was attached to. The wind picked up as [Deathwind Domain] came to life, trapping a significant amount of the Kitsunes within with Rezar, but by this point he was releasing an aura so powerful that, none of them could get close to him. He jumped up into the air, the chains from his [Bind] skill waving behind him with a mind of their own as they attacked and defended him from the onslaught of attacks from the other Kitsune''s. Rezar shoved his hand into the mass of fur on the neck of the Kitsune, and ripped his arm back, pulling out the squirming form if an NPC. The Kitsune collapsed to the ground, black blood pouring put from the back of his neck, as his form rapidly changed and he transformed back into a humanoid form, silver white hair falling all over his injured naked form. He groaned as he tried to get back up to a standing position, but the cloud of blood above his head sent a thing spike of blood that went through his right thigh. His roar of pain was accompanied by a scream of anguish as Kari and the others walked through the veil. The children were huddle in one corner, safe, but at least 30 of the adults were dead, with even more severely injured. But it was not the sheer amount of the dead that got the female Kitsune screaming, it was the injured form of the male Kitsune kneeling in pain in front of Rezar. "Please let him go! You''ve removed the NPC, he''s in control now, you don''t have to kill him." Obviously this guy was important to her, probably a lover of her''s or something of the sort. But all Rezar gave her was a look of such rage and hate and pain that made her shiver in fright, and that''s when her gaze shifted down to the body at Rezar''s feet, and even more so the tears of blood that was now pouring out of his eyes. It was Priest who made the confirmation with his head bowed. "It seems Neema has left this world and her master. I''m afraid Lady Kari, that no amount of begging would save that young man''s life, whether it was his fault or not. Because for one Neema was never just an undead to Rezar, she was his family, his sister. Nothing but hell awaits that young man now." Chapter 111: The Kings Guard (I): Goodbyes [You have conquered the Kitsune Village: Honoka! Your village has leveled up to 4, You have gained territory skill book [Grand Illusion: Mist Wall], Your barracks can now train the military class Samurai. Build a mage tower or Academy to unlock the Mage class Illusionist. Honoka Village Spire has been absorbed, defense of territory increased by 15%, resource gathering speed increased by 20%] [you have gained 384,098 battle exp] [You have reached a milestone! You went head to head against an incursion of off world NPCs and won! +20 to all stats to everyone in your territory. +50 to all stats for you.] [Strike of Nothingness has leveled up to 2] [Bind has leveled up!] [Deathwind Domain has leveled up to 2] [Your named Undead Neema has been killed. You have received 50% of her total exp gains, and the Trait [King of the Underearth] and the skill [Undead Telepathy] has evolved to [Telepathy]. You have gained 1.34 million battle exp] Rezar sat in front of the beach, watching as the quiet waves moved the burning pyre further out to the sea, he was depressed, like fucking depressed. Anger, frustration, annoyance, hope, amusement, little bouts of happiness and satisfaction. Those were the emotions he knew how to handle and deal with, grief on the other hand was like a knife constantly being stabbed into his gut. He hated the feeling, but it was not as if he could do anything about it. He wanted it to go away, but it refused to, and so he watched on in pain as her body floated away. His knees were drawn close to his body as he watched, and right beside him were Screet, Brutus and Jason. They weren''t as broken as he was, they were undead, positive emotions like joy, love, happiness was foreign to them. of the negatives all they were familiar with was anger and irritation. So they couldn''t bring themselves to feel sad over the loss of Neema, because frankly speaking they couldn''t feel sadness. After that tower went up in flames, the NPCs were like a body without a head, confused and scared and defeated. It was not too hard to gather and imprison. The Kitsunes didn''t have much of a choice after most of their village went up in smoke, a diplomatic meeting had turned into a conquest. Everything went completely out of hand and all Rezar could do was go with the flow, he massively regretted doing this. He should have never given a damn, he should have just left the Kitsunes to burn. But he let Priest talk him into this stupid and foolhardy propaganda. He was no hero, he wasn''t trying to be a hero either, and while he wasn''t completely heartless, he wasn''t one to go put his head in other people''s problems, and yet he did so this time and he has paid the ultimate price for it. Rezar shuddered a bit, the air seemed a lot colder than normal, and he felt even more alone than most. Neema was the first of his undead to gain intelligence, the first he had a proper attachment with. "Master, if you would be so kind as to tell me; why the hell is that Kitsune still alive!" Screet asked as he looked back at the Kitsune that was currently standing behind them a distance away and surrounded by his people. There was enough of them with animosity and rage in their eyes, after being freed from the possession, they were too weak to bring up any sort complaint about Rezar torching their village and conquering it. But more than enough of them knew that they were alive now because of Rezar and his choices, and he had paid a price for it. So in a way, the former villages of Honoka village were caught between being extremely grateful and absolutely hating his guts for destroying the only home they''ve ever known. If it came to a fight, they knew they could cause enough damage to his territory, and that now that they were in control of themselves, fighting Rezar would be a breeze given how powerful they were and how weak he was to their [Fox Fire]. But unlike other clans of Kitsunes, it seems the Honoka clan had more honor than most and were unwilling to bite the hand that save them. "He''s alive because I deemed it so, his hands took her life, but it doesn''t mean he was the one who did it. The one who is responsible has been captured, but in the end it is only just an echo from another world." Rezar said with a somber tone. "Then what are you saying Master! Are you saying we can''t take Revenge for Neema!" Screet asked, loud enough that everyone else could hear, as the Kitsune''s bristled in preparation for a fight. "Don''t be stupid Screet, do I seem that benevolent to you? I will have my revenge, but the Kitsunes are inconsequential and were just a medium. Killing one man, or a village of weak minded animals who were unable to resist being taken over by squids would not sate the fire burning in my chest Screet. They are barely enough to be even considered an appetizer, so what I''ll do is find my way to their world, to the place where these fucking NPCS come from." In that moment Rezar was cut off as Gynaika came forwards, her steps steady as she came to stand behind Rezar and placed her hands on his shoulders, much to the annoyance of Screet. "And then what? What would you do when you find this world? How do you intend to get your revenge?" she asked, her voice sultry and flowing like milk in and out of his ears. Rezar knew she was manipulating him, that she was playing on his emotions and trying to get him to go on a rampage. This would just be another way that would draw him closer to her, but he didn''t care, Neema was dead, he was done caring about a whole lot of things. "I will Burn them... ALL OF THEM!" Chapter 112: The Kings Guard (II): Fealty The embers from the funeral pyre had long died down and the ashes had sunk into the sea, but yet he still stared at the ocean, watching, hoping, praying that in some way or form that her body would jump out of the dark blue reflecting sweet rays of orange as the sun set. But no matter how long he looked at it or stared, nothing showed up, Neema was gone for good, and as the Moons of Elysium rose up into the sky he realized and understood it all to perfectly. He got up and turned, facing the massive crowd of people that had surprisingly kept his vigil with him, from the early morning when the flames were set to the twilight hours of an encroaching night. Rezar didn''t think it was touching, so many things could have been achieved in the time they all chose to waste, and while he wanted to say something about it, he could not. Being king to your own people was a politic he was still learning about, and even though Priest''s advice had cost him someone dear to him, there was still enough truth in his lessons that Rezar could not throw it away. He had to say something, he didn''t have to, but it was required, not for their sake, but for his own aching heart. "I don''t expect anyone of you to care about her, most of you don''t know me as circumstances were what had left you under my care and command. She might have just been another one of my undead to you guys, but to me she was my family, my little sister and I lost her. I don''t feel well, this thing that I''m feeling right now, this grief? It''s not something that I''m familiar with, neither am I familiar with loss. But I realized everybody dies, that is one fundamental rule Elysium shares with earth, but now that she''s dead I can''t help but wonder what she left behind, what legacy, what dreams she fulfilled, what hopes. I don''t think she valued anything other than serving and making me happy and splitting things open with War axe. Life''s short, so I''m going to have to ask all of you to make the best of it. There shall be no slaves within my territory, I grant you all your freedom. All I ask in return is true servitude and honesty. I will keep on growing as I need be, I will war against the world where these NPCS that took my Neema away from me comes from. She was nice, and cared about me, the moles, and her power to be able to protect me. Just an undead she might have been, but everyone deserves to live, even an undead. So I give you all that choice live, but also help me; so that we can make sure that those who don''t really need to live can stay dead." Rezar walked towards the gathered Kitsune with a blank look on his face, the way he walked towards them made it seem as if he had the entire world on his shoulders. But never the less he still kept moving forwards, every step as meaningful as the breaths he took in. in all honesty this was the only thing Rezar knew how to do, and that was to move forwards, regardless of whatever adversity of heartache. It''s what he has been doing from the very beginning, and it''s what he would continue doing for as long as he remained the bone king. "You and your people can leave now, I don''t want to ever see a Kitsune again, cause if I do, I''m going to kill it, regardless of how old or young any one of you might look." Sure Rezar didn''t have them wiped out, but it didn''t change the fact that Neema was dead because of them, whether they meant it or not, Rezar didn''t care, all he knew was that he didn''t want them near him. He was already merciful enough that they were still alive, he had lost people in the bid to save their bloody clan, and it was a loss he would never be able to recoup, but it seems some of the Kitsune had different ideas than was expected. "I owe you my life, and not just my life I owe you a blood debt. I cannot leave as my life and those of my descendants now belong to you to do as you see fit. So please use me or kill me if you so choose, this way I can pay off my debt to you." Rezar had to admit he was as shocked as the everyone else, this wasn''t something he expected and for a moment he had no idea how to respond, he just let the Kitsunes raise a clamor as what was obviously their leader and the person whose hand was used to bring about Neema''s end got to his knees in front of Rezar and bowed deep enough one would think Rezar was his father. "I''m not interested, I consider your blood debt done, so move away from my territory with your people, before I end up not being so accommodating." Rezar said as he attempted to move past the silver haired Kitsune, but instead the Kitsune got down to his knees in front of Rezar and brought his head banging down hard to the ground, much to the shock of his people. "The rules and honor of my people are absolute, I cannot go back on the teachings of my ancestors. I swear that from today henceforth, for the debt of blood that I, Yimura Honoka have accrued by killing a family member of the Bone King Rezar Deathwind and still having my life spared; that I and my family, and our descendants to come will serves as the shield, the sword, the armor and boots of the Bone King and his descendants, until such a time that Elysium is no more!!!" Chapter 113: The Kings Guard (III): So Says The King Rezar watched as the Kitsune remained on the ground with his head bowed, his people felt humiliated as their growls of discontent seemed to fill the air, but Rezar was seeing something else. Maybe it wasn''t in a literal sense, but he could see just as much pressure, and expectations on the shoulder of the Kitsune as there was on his, and even more given that the expectations on his shoulders were ones he had given to himself. Logically this was something he should accept, but the rage and pain in his heart was almost suffocating that the Kitsune even deigning himself worthy of serving Rezar pissed him off. "Say yes." Rezar furrowed his brow in confusion as Lenore came out of the crowd, she looked a little bit sick, though he couldn''t exactly be sure what was wrong with her, and that''s when he remembered. Apart from himself, the person who has spent the most time with Neema was Lenore, of course Rezar really wasn''t sure how significant a relationship they shared, but given that they had both been the ones responsible for training the undead within the dungeon. "Why?" Rezar asked her, his voice sounding hoarse and weaker than he would have wanted it to be. "A Kitsune has sword himself and all of his generations to your service. You might not know it, but the Kitsune clans are known for mischief, sharp minds, skilled strategist in battles, and above all else Master Rezar. Their honor is impeccable, un-besmirched, and it is the most infallible in all of Elysium. Forgive me if it seems like I''m overstepping my bounds, but only a fool would be offered power and he would refuse it in the name of emotions that even he doesn''t really understand. Neema is gone, and she''s not coming back, nothing you do can change that fact. However, there''s still so much more that could and can be done with a Kitsune in your service. He would never betray you, not on his honor and if you don''t trust him well enough, you can make him a slave if you so choose and keep him close. But he has sworn that his loyalty is to you and your bloodline, and his children and their children will keep that oath till the end of Elysium itself. You''re a king; Rezar. A king needs a King''s guard, a group of people ultimately loyal to him and his cause, someone to truly watch his back. Face it, you can''t trust anyone here, not even after you''ve given them their freedom. And if you''re so inclined to punish him for something that''s not really his fault, then accept his oath as that would tie him to you. In case you didn''t know, he''s the clan head of the Honoka Clan, every Kitsune here needs him to give them direction and leadership, but swearing to you has made him give up all of that. His family, his friends, his love, he has given up all of that to make up for the wrongs you''ve experienced by their lack of vigilance against the NPCS. I will say it to you again, only a fool would say no to power, and even more so you would be less of a king if you let loss, stop you from doing what you have to grow. So! Bone King! Are you a fool or are you a KING!" Her words were like thunder and lightning clashing within his ears, his heart pounded as fury, shame and rage danced all over his face and heart. He was angry that his sovereignty could be called into question, but at the same time he had a voice in his head telling him how childish he was for being angry, a king should never get angry at being told the truth, rather he should learn from it and grow. He turned to look at Lenore, his hair scattered all over his face as his eyes remained clouded. "Lenore get him squared away, the other Kitsunes are welcome to become a part of the village, as long as they''re willing to recognize my authority and follow my rules. Here in Necron there is no clan head or clan, they are what I say they are. I''ll have a chat with the Kitsune later, but for now I have to get back out there. The Goblin King is still coming for us." [[[[[||]]]]] Gynaika went into the cave her and her people have been living in, all 11 of them immediately got up to their feet as she walked in. her maid followed in behind her, ever the silent shadow, ever the quiet protector. This was all she had left of her tribe, and even through all of her trials, she had brought them along with a promise of keeping them safe and bringing them endless glory. "My lady how is the child?" her fiercest protector Amon asked as he came closer, his chiseled form glinting in the dim lighting of the cave. Gynaika could see his desire in his eyes, the possessiveness in his stance and form, his hunger for her akin to a wild animal at the brink of starvation. Gynaika smiled as she drew closer to him, her hand grabbing a fistful of his hair as she gave him a soft smile. The shudder that went through his body from the excitement was expected, she knew just how much power she had over him. The drunk smile that crept all over his face, the joy in his eyes as she touched him. It all went to show how much love he had for her, so much so that when she stabbed her dagger deep into his heart, he still had no idea what was happening, or maybe he did, but he just didn''t care. He smiled as he got closer, blood dribbling from the side of his mouth as the poison and the wound began to spread. "I have become a threat to you haven''t I? my love." He asked as his body lost the strength to carry him and he fell to his knees. Gynaika rubbed her hands over his hair and said. "Yes Amon, I can only see a person who would call a man that will become my husband a child as a threat. To undermine the authority of a man that I would share my bed with, is an affront against my authority. And you Know me Amon, you fucking Know me! No one challenges me and lives to tell the tale." "So he would own you! Own your bed and your body! Own your heart! NO! he is not worthy! NO!" he yelled out with blood pouring out of his mouth, but a reply didn''t come from Gynaika, rather it came from Lenore who walked into the cave with precise steps, her sword out with a promise of doom. "He will own her and more, she would share his bed and her body would be his to do whatever the fuck he wants with it. And her heart! Well, die knowing that not even you were worthy of it, and the so called child you disdain, will own it in all of its glory! So says the King!" Chapter 114: Kings Guard (IV): Children Of Midnight There was a blank scroll in front of him, it glowed in a dull golden light and seemed to have parameters all set into it. But those parameters were actually quite simple. They determined ability, classes, traits, and orientations of force he needed created. And as far as those parameters are concerned, this was the template needed to create a personal guard force. And it was a part of the awards given by the system when he had been arrogant enough to announce to the world that he was the Bone King. Looking back at it now, Rezar felt he was more than a little bit childish, but he suspected everyone had their moments of proclaiming themselves proud overlords of Elysium. "I have heard your oath Kitagawa, and I recognize that you want to make up for the lack of vigilance of your village and the loss that it has cost me. I accept your fealty Kitagawa, and your service to me. And I also recognize the talent you have, so I confer upon you the position of commander of the Midnight children, my own personal King''s guard. Your first task would be to train two divisions of the Midnight children; the Black Dawn that you would command, and the Daughters of the eclipse that would be a secret unit of the King''s guard, and yes they''re going to be strictly women, and since I''m giving this order to you, ill trust you enough to let you in on a secret." The wind howled as the promise of a storm could be seen brewing on the horizon, vast fields of green grass rustled in tandem with the song of wind, dancing with the tempest that was sure to blow through Bahrenburg in a few hours from now. Kitagawa, the head of the Honoka clan and village, was on his knees behind Rezar, listening as the one who would be his king and master gave him a position, and a mercy he honestly didn''t think he deserved. "they would be all women, women willing to forsake motherhood in exchange for loyalty and immortality. Every woman within the Daughters of eclipse un it would be turned into a vampire by me, and in turn when they have grown larger and stronger, they''ll be able to create vampires of their own. I don''t want to say much, but I''d rather you had an idea about what I''m trying to create here." Rezar said to him, as he sat down on the grass, with his back still facing Kitagawa, and his gaze staring fixedly at the forest ahead of him. "I believe Rezar dono is trying to create a clandestine military outfit that has agents who are females. Normally I would ask why females, but by this point I think we both know just how dangerous and resourceful women can be. They''re more patient and resilient and quite frankly more scheming and conniving than a man would ever be. Btu Rezar dono; some missions would have to be carried out in the daytime, after speaking with Priest and some of your subjects, I realized that vampires are unable to come out in sunlight, you''re a difference of course, but it is still something that can make most jobs really slow or impossible to carry out if your operatives would be killed by the sun touching them." Rezar nodded his head at that, before turning just a bit so that Kitagawa could see the whole side of his face. "I did say they were the King''s guard did I not, you and your Black dawn would be my shadows in the world within the day, and they would be my eclipse within the night. What they do, so too will your team, with the exception of anyone of the Black dawn being vampires. Think of it as your real punishment. You would remain mortal. So that you can see to it that your oath is completed. Because long after you are gone, you descendant will still serve the throne of Morte Bianca. I won''t treat them wrongly, but until such a time as I have considered your debts repaid, your family will still continue to serve and die for me, for my cause and on my command." Kitagawa shook, he felt as if he had been doused in a bucket of cold water as the stark realization of the deal he just made finally dawned on him. This truly was a devil''s bargain, and while he was not averse to it, he had resolved to never have any kids so as to save them from a life bound by servitude due to an oath he took. "I understand Rezar Dono, I will try and work towards your goals and visions of the future. Do you have any suggestions, and I believe it would be something catered to the long term as such a unit is one that would have to be established on certain iron clad rules?" Kitagawa said as his head still remained bowed. "You don''t have to worry about that now Kitagawa, we have a war we have to deal with, and once things have settled down, we will hash out the details. But right now, I just felt the need to give you direction, to tell you what it is that I expect from you and all who choose to follow you. Rather than keep you hanging on to nothing with your oath being a crucible around your neck, I''ll tell you what you have to look forward to, power, service and glory. But we have goblins to exterminate Kitagawa, and based on our scouts, there''s a force of a 1000 heading this way. They should be within our territories in three days. So from this moment forwards you will assume duty as the Commander of the Black Dawn division of the Children of Midnight. You will answer to me, until I find someone suitable to take control as Night Father or Night Mother. So get your people ready Demon Fox, we march for war, and we, march for blood." [you have used the personal Guard template to create a King''s guard] ? King''s Guard: The Children of Midnight ? Commander: Night Father/Night Mother (N/A) ? Divisions: Black Dawn/ Daughters of Eclipse ? Division Commanders: Black Dawn Commander: Kitagawa Honoka/ (N/A) Rezar gave a grunt of satisfaction at what he was seeing, grief was one thing, but war was another. There would be enough time to mourn Neema, but as it stands he has to face the threat that''s heading to his doorstep. The traps needed have been set, the soldiers have been trained, and the hunger for carnage was also in the air. It was funny, but to Rezar it seemed as if his thirst for battle was infectious to the people around him, but be that as it may, he was ready for a fight and he would be delivering pain and death the likes of which the Goblins had never seen before or experienced. Reza moved, his figure blurring across the land as he went back to the village and marched up to the spire, it was time to level up or at the very least it was time to pick a new class. And apart from that he had a quest that he had to accept, and it was about time he paid attention to it as was something of great import. [DHAMPHIR RACIAL ADVANCEMENT QUEST!] 1. [Build A Vampire Lair 0/1] 2. [Turn 20 people into vampires 0/20] 3. [Find the Blood Eye of the Mountain] 4. [Drink blood 5000 times 33/5000] 5. [Summon a Familiar 1/1] 6. [Mine Crystal of Eclipse 0/1] 7. [Create a Daylight Equipment 0/1] The only thing he seems to have completed here was the summon familiar mission, which means for the foreseeable future, he would be up to his neck trying to complete the quest. But it wasn''t bad, because at least this would be a way for him to have direction and purpose in the future, also a way to get stronger should the need ever arises. Though the part where he had to find a bunch of things with weird names, left him quite confused as he wasn''t sure what sort of importance those things have to vampires. But that was what''s needed, so now he could shift his attention to the classes he had to choose from. ? Warlock ? Apostle ? Merchant ? Sailor ? Architect ? Lord ? Warrior ? Monk ? Blood Mage ? Tamer ? Summoner ? Death Knight ? Bone Doctor ? Ghost Whisperer ? Ghost Buster There was just so many classes, he really didn''t expect it, which honestly was an improvement from back when he first had to choose a class. But now that there was so much he had no idea how to choose, each class was different in its own right and had its own potential, and he knew he could just as well choose to have all of the classes, but that would really be biting of more than he could chew, and in all honesty that wasn''t the least bit wise. So the question remains. What should he choose. Chapter 115: Attack On Goblins 1 The five-day march was about to come to an end, war was a nasty business, so it came as no surprise that personal hygiene was something none of the goblins within this thousand-man army gave a damn about. Jorgen had much to say about being the one responsible for leading this charge, the army was larger though, three thousand goblins and hobgoblins in all, and he was left commanding the forward guard while the other larger enemy goes around in an attempt to flank the so called idiot that calls himself the Bone King. Jorgen had too many reasons to hate this Rezar Deathwind. Tetum was a close friend, he wasn''t a player so he couldn''t respawn, so his loss was quite unfortunate as he made for quite a good conversationalist. But never the less, with his death the demographic of power within the goblin King''s court had changed, and the side he supported and stood for now became nothing more than a victim of politics, as he was betrayed and now left to take the full brunt of an attack from a man their people had taken to calling the Blood Monster. But never the less, as long as he was a man, then Jorgen could still kill him. Because unlike Rezar, Jorgen was still alive, he was still a being of flesh and blood living in the world that truly mattered and held sway over the sway and glory of Elysium. He was a player, one of the only few within the top echelons of the Goblin King''s army. But now politics was putting him in a position to be set up by his competitors. If he had to be honest, this Rezar was not a threat, but he was being used by the Goblin King''s general as means to reshuffle power and make a ploy for more. With the goblins slowly encroaching on the territory of the dwarves and snow elves, they had no time to pay attention to an upstart kid who got lucky and ambushed the weakest of the Goblin King''s generals. He was a test and an excuse, one that Jorgen, much like the people trying to use his reputation and safety wanted to take care of. Swiftly and impressively, which was why he had driven the goblins so hard to get to the territory of this Bone King. If he could defeat and destroy him before the rest of the remaining 3 thousand strong army gets here. Jorgen shook his head as the scraggy scruff of glossy brown hair he had on his head splattered sweat every which way. There was a clearing right in front of him, it wasn''t big enough to hold an army 1 thousand strong, but it''s the perfect place to set camp and get the soldiers well rested for the fight tomorrow. ~bzzzzz! Jorgen felt a tingle, he paused. He wasn''t exactly sure, but he had lived long enough in Elysium to know what magic feels like. But then again he was surrounded by a 1000 soldiers of the goblin variety, and this particular division was a mage division. So feeling this tingle of, magic was normal, and soon enough the entire clearing was suffused with the feeling of magic as the goblins began to make use of their magic spells and skills to set up camp. But even if he was not so sure about it, Jorgen knew something was massively wrong. [[[[[||]]]]] Life was expansive, and so was death, while it might seem like a concept many couldn''t understand, there was an equation to it. Of course such a calculation was beyond the scope of what mortals could deign or understand, and even more so for machines and technology, yet somehow this concept has been mastered, this elusive Dao that has always been a fundamental subject and rule of law of the universe has been mastered. But by what, that remains to be seen. She looked on over the battlefield, a contemplative look on her face as the pieces fell into place. As opposed to the other beings that these mortals have likened as gods, she knew she was more, so much more than just the numbers and equations that made up the basic foundations of these gods. She was fascinated by a lot of things, but most of all she was fascinated by them, these humans. She may not have been alive for as much as this world has existed, but she has lived long enough to see how this world has changed and evolved and become broken based on the kind of influence they had on it. There was no Elysium without humanity, and no humanity without Elysium. Even the real world that they speak so fondly, one that has drawn her interest seems to have suffered and grown from the spread of humanity just as much as Elysium has. She wanted so much to understand them, so much to experience these things that they''ve grown and evolved from, humanity was a weird concept on its own, and given how she has mastered death and life, very important aspects of it, she now hopes to master humanity itself. And that was why she decided to undertake this experiment. The humans under how watch have told her so much about how life truly began as a baby interacting with the world for the first time. And from that understanding so too did she decide to have a child of her own, or rather she chose to have many children. But they were failures. In all of this time that she has watched over children, watched over their numerous lives, their ups and downs, their rise and their falls, love and hate, life and death. But even with all of that, they were just so. Human. But then again if they were so human, the same thing she was trying to learn about, then it meant the experiment was a success in its own right, but in the end humanity was still just so. HUMAN! She needed more answers, she needed more lives lived and more deaths died (or something like that.) she was death and at the same time she was life, but she wanted to be human. [[[[[[||]]]]]] The night was colder than normal, almost freezing in fact and Jorgen couldn''t really understand why, however it was still the kind of chill that one would love. He drew his fur covers close to his body, enjoying the warmth it generated for him as he let his weary body get lulled into an overly exhausted yet wondrous sleep, come morning, he would rain down the wrath of the goblin King on the upstart King known as Rezar Deathwind. Kitagawa watched from his perch on a tree right on the edge of the clearing, his breaths were so slow, and each puff would bring out a fog that seemed to permeate the air and roll out into the hundreds of tents that littered his vision. The goblins had taken the liberty of chopping a few trees to make accommodation for their large numbers, and while that seemed like a good idea, it left them in the open. Kitagawa was not the only one who''s breath was rolling out into the clearing, in tandem with the five members of his clan who had not only taken the same oath to Rezar he did, but have also joined him as the founding members of the children of m midnight and capable soldiers of the Black dawn division. Their breathing in hiding had created the cold fog and weather that had spread out into the tents in front of them, regardless of what class or how much stats the goblins had. More than a few of them would be dying from hypothermia come morning, but they were not just here to freeze them to death. This technique took too long to cause any sort of significant damage, and quite frankly none of them had the energy to sustain [Breath of Yin] for a long time. However, the cold was enough to completely change the coming altercation in their favor. "clan head." "It''s commander now Toshi. I know it''s not been easy for you guys to get used to this change, but this is our current reality. I''m no longer the one in charge. He is." Kitagawa said as he pointed his head in the direction of Rezar who was hanging on a branch in a tree further away from theirs. "I understand Kitagawa sama." Kitagawa sighed in reluctance, it would take a while before his people would start seeing him as normal person. He was now looking to someone else for direction just as they looked at him for direction. And he knew their respect for him would be hard to go away, after all they gave it to him not because his position demanded it, or his birthright said it was his, rather it was because he had earned it. "When do we attack Kitagawa Sama, I believe the time is now, we won''t have a better chance than this!" Toshi whispered with vigor as he looked at the hapless goblins in the clearing down below, everyone hated goblins after all. "We will attack when the king says we will attack Toshi, he knows what he is doing." Kitagawa replied as his eyes met Rezar''s. "And when is that Kitagawa Sama, when do we attack?" Toshi asked, his questions similarly mirrored in the expressions of the other Kitsune''s near him. But Kitagawa did not look at him when he gave him an answer, and he answered just loud enough that all of the Kitsune''s could hear him. "NOW!" And so, it Begins! Chapter 116: Attack On Goblins 2 The wind howled as the silence creeped into the clearing, a hundred and twelve goblins stood guard as sentries, each spread all over the perimeter of the camp. But all of a sudden, the guards began to move forwards, taking slow and sure steps that were so silent and careful you would think they were the best trained assassins in all of the land, but this walk, this eventful march though didn''t last long as the moment the goblins walked into the tree line the darkness itself seemed to have swallowed them. there was no sound, no squeal, no rustle and no smell of death or blood, they just disappeared and vanished into the night. Five foxes ran into the clearing, their forms silent and seemingly nothing more than eerie ghosts as they lobbed [Fox Fire] at the tents that held hundreds of sleeping goblins. Their movements were swift, silent and hundreds of tents were ablaze within seconds of their foray into the camp, it didn''t take long for the goblins to realize what was going on, but by that time there was absolutely no sign of these Kitsunes. Just like the sentries before them, it seems the dark ness might have swallowed them. Jorgen smelt the smoke before he felt the heat, and even more so when the cold air that had been synonymous with this night rapidly disappeared and turned into a flaming wind that did nothing but fan the flames and increase the thickness of the stench of the smoke. Goblins and hobgoblins and their other evolution paths actually had very good sense of smell. It was not a hidden knowledge, but many people tend to overlook the fact that the scrappy creatures could smell almost as good as hunting dogs, even to the point of recognizing what sort of animal might have went through or past an area. Jorgen was a red hobgoblin, evolved from a red goblin which was further in turn evolved from a simple goblin cub. This was an elemental evolution path, and it was mainly a path for mages as being a red hobgoblin gave him limited control and affinity over the fire element. He could sense the nature of the flames turning his camp to ash and he knew or rather he could feel that it wasn''t normal, he ran out of his camp and looked around, it was chaos allover as everyone was trying their hardest to put out the flames, but there was no success in that. The flames just kept burning and burning, growing stronger with each second that passed. The clamor was such that he had never seen or experienced before, not in the time he had spent subjugating the small powers within the Kerwood forest for the Goblin King, there was no way to get this in control, as the goblins ran about like headless chickens trying to put out the fires. But when he looked closer he realized that they weren''t even going about it the right way, it was surprising, but the goblins themselves were actually acting in a manic way. Jorgen watched as one goblin overturned a bucket of shit on the head of another, and then proceeded to start beating him with the bucket screaming ''Fire! Fire! Kill the fire!''. One was rubbing himself on the ground, smashing his tiny green body into some of the stumps that were left behind from when some trees were cut to make more space for the clearing. This goblin thought he was on fire, it was as if the fire that they were seeing was acting as an agent for insanity, and honestly this was slowly scaring the shit out of Jorgen, he couldn''t see the enemy, so he had no idea where to turn his anger and power to. And so it went on, as flames and madness ravaged through his camp, burning his hopes and ambitions of glory into nothing but cinders, crushed hopes and dreams until there was nothing else left, just death. [[[[[[||]]]]]] Lenore stood on the branches of a tree 25 meters away from the burnt clearing watching as what remained of the goblins slowly and painfully gathered themselves. They had hoped to have a good night''s rest from their long march but instead they had all woken up to smoke, death and fire. Lenore had to hand it to Rezar, when it came to dealing with his enemies, he really had a flair for the dramatic. But aside from being dramatic, he knew how to deal with the worst of his enemies efficiently and still look good while doing it. The enemy was a thousand goblin strong, with strong emphasis on the ''was'', now a force barely 400 hundred strong slowly gathered what remained of their camp, the ground littered with dead bodies, most of which had actually taken their own life. Of the dead on the ground there was at least a 100, and from the 400 remaining, a significant amount of them were sporting injuries from light to severe, and as for the remaining unaccounted five hundred goblins there were all around, they were even amongst the dead. Lenore wasn''t here as a general, she might have strategies, but she couldn''t help but admit that she was completely incapable of coming up with something this elaborate, sure this plan was as a result of correspondence between Rezar, the Kitsunes, the Muriel Elves, the Wild tribe and Priest. She was a general, and while she could strategize quite well, she was more suited for the battlefield. But never the less she stood on the cusp of a history making battle, and she would be a part of it, and she would also play her part in it. Her goals for the future might not be really known, not even to herself, but right now she could live the way she wanted, doing something she realized she has an appetite for, something that normally would give chills to all who might hear it. She was following and serving, all for the chance to sate her appetite; her appetite for KILLING! Chapter 117: Attack On Goblins 3 It was hard, really hard for Jorgen to feel anything other than rage and anger at the moment, this was a dramatic turn of events, maybe not dramatic but an unfortunate turn of events. He had half his army left, and of those that were still alive, they were not all at 100%, so this was barely an army worthy of the Goblin King''s military. But even with all that, he still had no idea how the fires were started, or who did it. The intelligence they had on the Bone King never said he was a master of fire, he did have a demoness that used fire, but Jorgen didn''t think that she was strong enough to cause this much damage. The flames were devastating, but the true source of misfortune was the illusions his soldiers had fallen under, that was what really fucked them up and left them in an aftermath of ash, black and death. His future was now uncertain, he didn''t even think he would remain in the position of a general for long as he was sure to get demoted or kicked out of the army, or worse killed in such a way that his character would not respawn and he would have to start all over from the beginning. *THUD! * * GuuRooooaaaarrrrr! * At first he was not sure what to make of the sounds of marching feet, but it progressively got louder and he couldn''t help the shudder that went down his spine, forcing him to get alert. But he was not the only one who had noticed what was going on as his soldiers all got to attention at the sounds. It wasn''t just feet pounding on the earth, but also deep groans that was akin to a nightmare, and with what he saw next, his life really had become a nightmare. On the edge of the clearing, with unsteady gaits and shuffling feet, the goblins that had been missing, a group he thought maybe had deserted due to the intense effect of the illusion and the flames; marched back in. they kept the same gait, smooth and steady in their walk. They moved in tandem with each other, and in such a way that made it seems as if these group of goblins had been training with each other for a very long time. And even more so was the way their formations were made. He couldn''t tell how the columns or rows were arranged, but from what he could see, the red goblins were separated from the blue goblins and the normal green goblins. Red goblins were fire element attributed and were mostly mages with high firepower, blue goblins were water attributed and were healers and buffers. And the green goblins were the front line fighters. The blue and red were placed behind in a normal caster at the rear and fighter at the front party formation. Jorgen had no idea what was going on, was it that his army was infiltrated by his competition and so many moles were planted in it? If that was the case it would seem that whoever was responsible for this was making a move, hoping to end him before the war truly began. But that would make this a lot easier, but when he noticed their eyes and the life ending wounds on their bodies, he realized he wasn''t dealing with traitors but corpses. The information about their enemy was never complete, but they didn''t really care because the Goblin King had already become the most powerful hegemon within the Kerwood forest, but standing here, face to face with death he finally realized why the name Bone King sounded so fucking ominous. Their enemy was a necromancer! "Zombies!" Jorgen snapped out of his shock and revelry, if he let his army, the only chance he has at surviving this horror show panic; then without a doubt he would be saying goodbye to his account for good. He gave the order, his voice hard and steady, even though he was sure he had a lot more fear in his heart than they did. They responded well, doing the best they could at the varying injured states they all found themselves in. there was no opening to escape from as they were completely surrounded on all sides by the undead, so the only choice would be to charge at one direction and try to break through before they get complete surrounded. "Chaaaarrrrrrggeeeeee!" Jorgen ordered in a loud voice as he went east, heading towards the direction they came from. The undead were no joking matter as with how rare the necromancer and death classes were, the power and sheer amount of destruction they could cause was also known to all. In light of this development; petty political squabbles meant nothing, cause if no action was taken, then all of Bahrenburg would become the lands of the living dead. "Arrghhhhhh!" Jorgen swiftly turned his head back and saw much to his shock as one of the remaining dead goblins left in the camp had taken a chunk out of the calf of another. It didn''t take long for its burnt hands to drag the helpless goblin to the ground and begin to take massive chunks out of its body, with the goblin''s active skill [Hard Bite] given its bite more power, enough that in seconds it was chewing through bone. Jorgen''s eyes widened in realization and horror as the remaining dead goblins began to rise up and pounce on their former comrades, screams filled the air as death came painfully to those who had been caught in the grasp of the now undead goblins. It was all a trap, an elaborate one that was carefully laid and designed to give them despair with every step they took. The undead goblins at the edge of the clearing moved in closer, and with the chaos now taking place where the rest of the living goblins were gathered, there was no way out. They weren''t just surrounded on all sides; the monsters were inside the circle with them too. Screams, blood, rot and the lone figure of a man with a scythe standing on the branch of a tree, his white hair and blue eyes piercing within the golden glow of the morning. As their eyes met Jorgen couldn''t help but call out his name, but this time with none of the disdain and mockery and all of the fear and disappointment he felt. "The Bone King. Rezar Deathwind." Chapter 118: Attack On Goblins 4 Lenore moved past the trees and well into the clearing, she fought back the urge to choke as ash flew into her mouth, soot coated her boots as she pulled out her rapier ready to do battle for her king''s sake. For one she knew she was walking a tightrope with Rezar. Her previous berating and yelling at him in front of others during Neema''s funeral undoubtedly called his authority into question. But she knew what he stood for, or rather what he was slowly coming to realize he stood for. There was a lot of significant meanings and concepts behind Rezar, enough that he would definitely end up as Legendary as the kings of old. But she didn''t follow him for such a boring and frankly unnecessary achievements. No she followed him because he was the only necromancer around with a shit ton of potential, potential that he has proven time and time again. He made a promise and he has been keeping it, by creating a place where she could be herself, a place where there was death and horror and pain, and she brought it down upon those who faced her. She pulled out her rapier as she broke in a run, swiping left and relieving a goblin of his head in one smooth and swift stroke. She bent down and grabbed a dead goblin up, raising it just in time to intercept the blasts of flames that came from the red Hobgoblin that was the general of this force. The body was blasted to pieces and her fingers were scalded from the aftermath, but she didn''t slow her stride as lightning gathered on the heels of her boots. [Electric Step] She ended up in the midst of a couple of goblins trying their hardest to hold back the horde of zombies around them. they had not noticed her when she stabbed through the head of a goblin, and then sent a really hard kick into the head of another, immediately snapping his neck in the process. Then she pulled her left hand backwards, a ball of purple electricity coming to life on it, and then she thrusted it forwards. [Chain Lightning] Lightning from her hand surged forwards, slamming into one goblin after the other, it was like a web of exquisite death, because for every goblin that it touched, all that was left was charred remains. And the secret to chain lightning was that it was a skill that kept on moving from one enemy to the next until they were all dead, and beyond that it was a skill that lasted a good fifteen seconds, seeking for opponents all over the battlefield. She rolled forwards as a jet of flame went over her head, while she played with fire a lot of the time, it didn''t mean she was willing to have the flames of her enemy be blasted onto her. She had resistances towards heat and flame but she wasn''t immune to it. She rushed forwards, her rapier nothing more than a piercing light of electricity that stabbed towards the general of the goblins. *Bang! * ~sszzz!! A shield of flames sprang up in front of her, completely defending the Red hobgoblin general from her strike, there was a reversal as a little shockwave blasted her backwards, forcing her to twist her lithe form in the air and backflip to land on her feet and hand in a crouch with her rapier pointed backwards. The shield of flames flickered out and the Red Hobgoblin was left defenseless, or so she though as a lance of fire had followed right after she had landed. She was forced to twist her body to the side, but the spell was close enough that her a garish wound appeared on her chest as the flames burnt through her leather armor and skin. There was pain, and it was intense and almost completely mind numbing, but she was a demoness for a reason, pain was not a hindrance to her, it was a tool. [Pain Bond] She gave a knowing smile as the Red Hobgoblin let out a yell and held his chest, his attention faltering for a bit as Lenore made him feel the pain she was currently feeling and at twice the intensity. She reeled back, his bulky form lumbering through undead and living alike as fear clouded his eyes and his judgement. Lenore was not one to let a moment pass her by as she rushed towards him, giving a sinister smile as clarity came back to his eyes after fighting through the pain, only for her knee to smash into his nose as her thing rapier found purchase in-between the cracks of his armor, swiftly sliding into his neck above his collarbone, and quickly coming out as she pushed off his body, making a graceful backflip in the air before coming to a stop, her sword pointing to the ground as she took a fencing stance. "I-I-y-you!" The Red Hobgoblin gurgled his words as blood poured in rapid rivulets out of his armor and down his neck. He took a few unsteady steps backwards as his hands shuffled through a pouch on his waist before pulling out a health potion, about to take a drink from it to heal himself. He kept a warry eye on Lenore, not at all sure she would not make a move before he was completely healed, but she was not the one he had to worry about. A blue goblin missing a leg lunged for his outstretched arm, happily sinking its undead teeth in his palm, taking a few fingers and forcing him to drop the vial of health potion. He screamed out in pain, forcing more blood out of his throat as his dull bronze armor had become completely covered in blood. Then there was another zombie gobbling drawn to the blood, and it did not hesitate to climb onto his back and sink its teeth into his skull, not at all caring for the thick mop of brow hair as jaws clamped down hard and skull gave way to blood. This time his screams were so great that Lenore felt her heart tremble, this was ecstasy in more ways than one, but it was not enough, soon enough there was another zombie goblin, and another, and another, until his entire armor was stripped away from him and his flesh was left open to be feasted on. Lenore licked her lips and smiled, his painful screams the greatest of symphonies she''s ever heard the pleasure of hearing. These goblins were not the monsters they were stereotypically portrayed to be, the had a kingdom, and army, they wore clothes. But as undead, they seemed to become nothing more than what their base instincts expected from them, raw hideous monsters that lived for nothing but the thrill of the kill and joy of stripping flesh from the body of the living. Lenore felt that they would make really good pets, really, really good pets! Chapter 119: Attack On Goblins 5: An Apocalypse The halls of the goblin king were underground, carved exquisitely in to a mountain that held vast amounts of metallic ore. This was a prime location that they had battled the dwarves for in the past, and they had won by systematically poisoning the dwarven army through a variety of ways. Goblins were good craftsmen, very dexterous and shared just as good a talent in engineering as the gnomes. Except of course what they did was more to cause destructions by making things go Boom! But beyond engineering they had alchemy, of course every goblin that becomes an alchemist ended up focusing on poisons and explosives as their races seemed to alter the class itself and what they could make from it. Tristan was not the goblin king, in fact there was no goblin king and it was just a corporate ploy to gain a significant following within the world of Elysium. Many of the players and uploads thought he was the goblin king, but the truth of the matter was that even he had to answer to people. And the people he answered to, expected a lot from him, and the goblin king persona was something he needed to be able to deliver. Nevertheless, there was much to be gained in the Bahrenburg frontier, even more so now that the fate of the human race solely depended on it. The players didn''t know this, which was fine in and out of itself as knowledge about what was to come would completely raise the worst sort of panic, and there would be no way for governments to be able to handle it when people went wild. Elysium would be experiencing a massive update, something that it has never done before in all of the time that it''s been created. This virtual world has always been one stifled in magic, swords, monsters and supernatural. But with the expansion of the Bahrenburg frontier, technology, aliens, planets, space, new dimensions would be introduced. And this was to accommodate the influx of new uploads it would be getting within the next three to six months. Levels and classes would be reset, many skills would be lost, and everyone would be depowered and forced to start from an equal state. It didn''t matter if you were an adult, or a child, a demon, goblin, human or elf. It was a new world, and one where the true power would be centered on the new frontier of Elysium. A vast and endless stretch of land ready to be claimed that would serve as the templates for the planets that would now become a part of not Elysium the world, but Elysium the universe. And all these, was as a result of the end of the world. Earth has given its beat to the humans it fostered for billions of years, and while they had tried to give back, they took more than they needed to. And when it wasn''t enough, they fought each other for more and in the process broke the earth in more ways than one. And now the earth was freezing, the last light and embers of its core wad about to go out, and not even the rare peak of sunlight from beyond the thick cloud covered skies could save humanity. This. Was a second ice age. And the only way for man to survive was to have a mass migration into the virtual world that was Elysium, bodies would be lost, but at least their minds and souls will live. Not to mention, a massive space station would be in constant orbit over the planet for the next 500 hundred years before maintenance is required. That station had the valuable cloning technology and the DNA of every creature on earth that they could get their hands on. When they were ready to come back home, there would be bodies readily made for them, of course not everyone would get a body, but by then Elysium would be all the home the needed. But there was much to do, Tristian would have preferred to ally himself with all of the forces within the Kerwood forest, this was a global extinction event and it required all hands on deck. But the people he answered to only wanted more power, Elysium would become the only world that matters sooner rather than later, and they wanted to have the same foothold and power here that they had on earth. Hence the conquest and the killings, there was no stopping them as his hands were tied, he only wished the uploads knew what was coming and could plan accordingly. Only established settlements, villages, towns, cities, kingdoms, empires, basically recognized powers of Elysium would remain unchanged in either levels or skills. Everything else would change, Elysium would become even more dangerous, now more than ever that NPCS have slowly started proliferating, and there was no way to stop it as Elysium itself was a massive and ever expanding server built on the moon. Like all those old movies, it has grown smarter, stronger and wants to take over, but this time it wasn''t the soon to be dead earth it cared about, it was the world that it has invariably become a part of, but still can''t control. So if it can''t control the world, then its best to control the people within. So he dealt with a lot of pressure every day, but he understood there was nothing to be done about it. Whether he liked it or not he had to put things in place, but he would still try his best to make whatever he has to build, a refuge for the many lost souls that this world was about to have. Elysium was about to become a place that would be no different from the cold wasteland earth was about to become. And it was up to him, and maybe anybody else who knows the truth to try and manage the damage that was coming, because frankly what Elysium was about to experience is not an update... it''s an Apocalypse. Chapter 120: The Knight Commander the trees above his head did little in keeping the sun from peeking through their green canopy, as uncomfortable as being touched by the sun felt, he couldn''t deny that the rays touching his skin was really refreshing. He looked at the scythe in his hand, if he had to be honest as a weapon this was to unwieldy, while the scythe might seem like a novel weapon, it really wasn''t something he felt was suited to him. He turned to Jason, the minotaur''s huge form seemed to cast a shadow over his body as he leaned his back against a tree. "Master Alistair is on his way, the undead force has been mobilized and are currently being sent underground to wait for the arrival of the next force of goblins. First General Lenore has taken a small force ahead to carry out some preemptive guerrilla strikes, the Black Dawn commander has raised a perimeter and is keeping watch. On the other hand, Screet and Brutus have manned the defenses back at the village and are keeping watch with the scout towers, at the moment there''s no trouble in sight, and we''ve had an influx of new villagers recently. All in all, the village is still functioning and the escape tunnels and bunkers are almost completed." Rezar nodded his head before stretching his hand out, the scythe in his hand held out Jason. "Master?" Jason asked surprised as he took the scythe from Rezar. "You''re using a hammer, normally I would say give n how massive you are; smashing things might seem right up your alley, but you''re to precise and thoughtful, and you always think about a bigger picture than most. The battlefield isn''t really for you Jason, it''s taken me a long time to realize it, but you''re not that much of a fighter, however you''re still bred for conflict. The nature of what you are, means what you can do is kill, to bring death. But you''ve done a good job in making sure the village is safe and there''s safety in its surroundings and within it. On earth you would probably be the chief of police, but here you''ll be the Knight Commander of Necron city. From now on keeping the peace within the full scope of Morte Bianca would be up to you and the recruits you will train. You''ll answer only to me, and they will answer to you. This scythe is not really suitable for me, but in your hands it would see better use. So let it be like a symbol of authority for you; Knight Commander Jason, serve your king well." Rezar said to him as he got up, and watched his the huge undead got down to his knees with the scythe held in reverence above his head. "I will cherish this gift and carry out my duty with diligence ma-my King." Rezar nodded his head, as he gestured for Jason to go away, Alistair showed up a few minutes later with a sack in his hands, a pretty surprised look on his face as he watched the lumbering undead minotaur pick his way out of the enclosing of trees Rezar had been resting. He shifted his gaze to Rezar before giving him a deep bow and then straightening up. "your Majesty I''ve gathered the materials you''ve asked of me. But also is there a reason you gave the scythe we made for you to Jason, do you not like it. I was under the impression that it has grown stronger due to you being able to imbue souls in it?" Alistair asked as he placed the sack on the ground. "Just because I''m a necromancer and death class holder doesn''t mean I have to use a scythe Alistair, plus the weapon is not really suited for me and my style of fighting. Its in not practical in a war and would only shine in the hands of someone like Jason. On the other hand, I''ve designed a weapon using the mantle template given to me by the system, it would be a symbol of Morte Bianca, and I quite like what I''ve done with it. I just need some special materials to fully make it." Rezar explained as he pulled out a scroll and placed it on the ground for Alistair to see and study. And just after looking at the designs for a few minutes, his eyes widened in surprise. "Normally I would say this is a design that''s just all over the place and downright crazy, but I can see the novelty of this. All you put here is the idea and drawing of the weapon, the mechanics behind its forging and creation would be completely out of your comprehension, but seeing as the system itself would craft it, all it needs are materials of your own choosing and the parameters you''ve filled here." Rezar nodded his head as he and Alistair remained on their knees looking at the designs. "So what do you think?" Rezar asked. "It''s a bold and crazy idea, and this is practically three weapons all meshed into one mechanical wonder, and with your ability to imbue it with souls it won''t just be a marvel of engineering but one of magic as well. The materials chosen are also good. Black Adamantine, Blue Obsidian ore, and Wind Steel. One is a very strong metal to make up the blades, the blue obsidian ore would serve as the handle and shaft, and wind steel for the blades. I brought along something extra called Ionite. It''s a special compound capable of negating skills or spells, very hard to synthesize and even forge into weapons, but it can serve as the core for the blades, it actually bonds well with other metals and even serves as a bonding agent too. I believe adding it in would be smart." Rezar nodded his head and took the sack from Alistair, he changed the materials he would use and then changed the description of the weapon a little bit to make arrangement for the new compound. He then took a step back as a prompt appeared in front of him. [Materials detected and all Parameters filled. Begin crafting of the Royal Mantle of Morte Bianca] [Crafting completed, Royal Mantle/Weapon has been created. Please name creation] "Wow!" Chapter 121: Attack On Goblins 6: Vita Gratia "Vita Gratia!" [Name has been set as Vita Gratia] ? Mantle Name: Vita Gratia// Level: 0// Grade: Silver ? Type: Weapon(Unique)// Effects: Attack, Defense, Speed of all citizens increased by 25% ? Skills: N/A Rezar kept on looking at the staff/spear in front of him with a rather happy smile on his face. In all honesty this couldn''t be considered a staff or spear as its ends or rather much of its body was actually a pair of curved blades that if separated made a weapon called a Khopesh, a king of Egyptian sabre. Rezar grabbed the staff and twisted the middle which was a deep blue metal shaft, in the end he was left holding on to two Khopesh in both hands. He could combine them to make a staff with both blades at the end, sure a weapon like that might prove a little difficult to handle, but the staff form was just a basic addition. What really mattered was the dual Khopesh form, and the last surprise he had hidden, but he really couldn''t show it now given he was in a location that he really liked. This place would make a really nice park, and he''d rather not destroy it. "Alistair how far away is the larger force of goblins?" Rezar asked as he held both Khopesh in a reverse grip, with their curved blades seemingly highlighting his arms. "they''re about a day northeast from here, or just about three hours away given if you choose to ride your ant or run there yourself. Why are you asking?" "Well a new weapon needs to be tested to see if it works doesn''t it?" Rezar asked as he turned to face the direction in which Alistair had pointed him. "But we already have a plan set in place your Majesty, you deciding to make a move right now might cause a hindrance." Alistair could not help but let out an exasperated sigh, all that was left of Rezar was a shower of dead leaves that had been stirred by his movements. It was annoying, but he also found it endearing about how one track minded Rezar could be at times, he had a childlike curiosity to him that made everyone want to protect him, even with how fearsome and dangerous he was. He didn''t know this, but to the people around him, he was more like a younger brother than a King, but it made serving him easy. Alistair nodded his head and went back the way he had just come from, they weren''t too far from the sentry towers, and he was trying to see if he could bypass the system and install cannons in the arrow towers that have been placed besides the sentry towers, if it was possible he wanted to combine them both into a single entity, that wouldn''t be bad at all, he should get that architect to work on it too. As Alistair mused to himself, Rezar was rushing through the forest in a speed that would put most stealth classes to shame, this new bonus to his speed came as a result of his new class, and that class was [Apostle]. When he thought about it, he already had a caster class that also doubled as a dps class. He had a warrior class, so he thought he would try and get a priest like class, unfortunately it didn''t turn out as he had expected. APOSTLE [you have chosen apostle as your class. This class has been influenced by your connection to the entity known as death and @#%$#@! $ the class is now Death''s Apostle] [due to the nature of the Death''s Apostle Class, and in conjunction with your traits, the class miner has been deleted! The classes Advanced Necromancer and Death Lord has been assimilated. No skills or stats have been lost.] [Due to the nature of your new class, you can no longer have any other extra classes! However, the [Job] option is now opened for none combat classes.] DEATH''S APOSTLE [You are the messenger and closest confidante of death itself. With power over death and to some extent life, you''re responsible for judging and taking the lives of those deemed unworthy. As an apostle of death, you shall ferry the dead, judge souls, liberate the living from the constraints of death and rule the halls of judgement. The passive skills [Death Sense] [Sin Sight] and the Active skills [Wraith Avatar] [Ghost Wave] has been generated. +10 to all stats every level up, +10 skill points every level up. Cost and cool down of all skills reduced by 80%. This class does not rank up to a higher leveled class.] Honestly speaking Rezar was so pissed off he had not even bothered to level up the class, he didn''t lose the stats he had gained from leveling up the other classes, but this [Death''s Apostle] had left him limited in what he could do or achieve, but never the less he could spam his skills now and use them as much as possible, even those that had larger costs, especially the passives that required on his magic to work. Priest had told him there was no used crying over what was, this was Elysium trying to balance things after realizing he was a getting too strong and the new class would have made him too hard to beat. He also said this wasn''t the first time it has happened and it''s actually quite common for some people to be relegated to a single class. It didn''t mean they didn''t get stronger, because of their focus such people always tend to cause more damage with their skills than those who had many classes to improve their stats. Never the less he would take whatever future sent his way head on, but for now he had a battlefield to invade, because like a kid, he has gotten a new toy and he just couldn''t wait to show it to his friends and even better. To use it on his enemies." Chapter 122: Attack On Goblins 7: Test Run Lenore stabbed her rapier thrice into the chest of the Hobgoblin she had grabbed by the neck, he or rather she was the head of the scouting party that was moving on to come find out about what was happening with Jorgen''s army. Unfortunately for her, the larger goblin army was being watched right from the beginning, so when the scouting party was moving ahead, they fell in an ambush that Lenore was all too happy to set for them. it was a beautiful massacre, all fifty of them had been caught off guard, and Lenore was still enjoying the throes of it. She looked at the hobgoblin, completely surprised that she was still finding a way to hold, but that could only happen for so long as Lenore smiled with her teeth in full display, before slowly stabbing her rapier underneath the jaw of the goblin, watching in abject pleasure and ecstasy as the hobgoblin fade away with pain and horror etched allover her visage. this was a success, a rather beautiful one. "Well I''m happy you''ve found an outlet for your appetite Lenore, being a bloody butcher of the battlefield seems to suit you more than being the bitch of some unworthy noble." A voice spoke up from behind her, seemingly appearing from thin air. Lenore smiled as she answered. "Well your majesty, what use is life if you can''t enjoy the finer things it has to offer." She asked as turned to face Rezar who was leaning against a tree, a pair of strangely shaped swords held in his hands, and even more so for the fact that their blades, was pitch black. "I wouldn''t consider killing and enjoying the process of it one of the finer things in life, it''s more like a necessity to get to your goals, not a pass time you get to enjoy." He said as he moved towards her, Lenore furrowed her eyebrows as she asked. "Are you judging me and my methods. Your Majesty?" her voice had a dangerous edge to it, and while Rezar was not afraid of her, things could turn out ugly for their alliance if he gave the wrong answer. But he still had to be honest. "There''s nothing wrong with your methods Lenore, I''m just saying you need to get another hobby, and don''t enjoying killing so much, it makes you ugly." Lenore was taken aback by his choice of words, but never the less it brought a smile to her face as she watched him go past herself. "Well I want to keep the undead on standby, if you will be so inclined how about you follow me and let''s charge into the enemy''s camp." Rezar said to her as he moved his head around the trees that were now stained with the blood of very dead goblins. "And why would we do that?" Lenore asked as Rezar raised the recently dead goblins as Zombie undead and had them join the ranks of the remaining 300 Lenore had led here. "Well as you can see I have a new weapon I would love to go test and pump full of the souls of my enemy. I see you''re angry for bloodshed, so let''s go on a date. With flesh for food and blood for wine, trusty me; it''ll be fun." Lenore blinked her eyes shrugged her shoulders and then said. "Okay." Rezar smiled as he took off running, his form breezing through the forest, Lenore kept up with him, but with a little help as Lightning coated her boots. About five minutes into the run, the first signs of the marching army came into view. The soldier as the forefront of a long caravan quickly opened his mouth to shout when Rezar shot his right arm forwards, and much to the surprise of Lenore, the weirdly carved blade of his swords, shot out of the handle, a chain of dark blue with sharp serrated edges connected to it. The blade stabbed through the Hobgoblin and swiftly into the chest of another Boar rider behind him, Rezar turned and gave Lenore a smile before the chain retracted, but instead of dragging the body back to Rezar, it dragged Rezar to the body of the Hobgoblin, and just in time for Rezar to cut of his head, bathing in a spray of blood that Lenore was not remiss to say made the valley between her legs tingle. [Bat Apparition] Rezar''s form seemed to vanish into a cloud of bats as he surged forwards before landing in the center of the army''s procession. He shifted back as a spear was sent to his face, he let the Khopesh in his left arm dance through the air and spilt the head of the Goblin that just stabbed at his head in half, cutting it from check to check and the angle slanted due to how shot the goblin was. The felt blades cut into the cloak he had on, but the were unable to find purchase due to them not generating enough force and the cloth being armor on its own. Rezar stretched his hand out and spun himself really fact, forcing the blades to shoot out from their handles and stab more than a dozen goblins at a time. Then he heaved, using every last drop of power in his body to begin spinning, this time the bodies hanging on the chain served as a bludgeoning material to smash other goblins, and for those unlucky enough to meet the edges of the chain or the blades of the Khopesh itself, this was pure torture, if they were unlucky enough to survive it. [Strike of Nothingness] Using an attack skill when he had already attacked, it was not normal and it was crazy, but he did so and the souls of every goblin he had hurt floated into the air. Rezar smiled as he gave the mental order for Vita Gratia to absorb the souls, then he pulled back on the chains, retracting them back into their sword forms and then clicking the end of both swords together to form their staff form. He ignored the huge explosion that happened behind him, taking pleasure in the smell of burnt flesh as Lenore worked her magic. He spun the staff, causing the blade to let out a whooshing sound, before he placed it behind him and pointed his palm at the shocked goblin army in front of him. Then he raised his hands to them and made a ''come on'' motion, the smile on his face even more scary than the weapon in his hands. Chapter 123: Attack On Goblins 8: Test Run Complete His assault was as sudden as it could be, and with Lenore blowing up ranks upon ranks of goblins behind him, it left his back devoid of enemies. Of course not many of the goblins were killed immediately, Lenore having a one strike kill skill was not inconceivable, but varying goblins, players and uploads alike had powerful skills of them owns to help defend themselves, or at least had high stats. So it stood to reason that everyone behind him weren''t completely wiped out, but then again Lenore was still there to mop up the remains. Another explosion rocked the earth behind him as Lenore went wild, giving in to pyromaniac tendencies while her taste for electrocuting [people took a back sit, as fire came for a ride. Rezar moved forwards slowly, breaking in to a run, but he had hardly taken two steps when the bolt from a crossbow came flying out of the army of goblins in front of him. The bolt went completely through his body, releasing a spray of blood into the air that mysteriously floated up to hang as tiny blood drops in the air. Of course none of the goblins had noticed the peculiar sight, their gaze was stuck solely on Rezar who just stumbled forwards a bit, before picking up speed and sticking true to his course. Another bolt came flying towards him, but a quick swing of the staff form of Vita Gratia, deflected the massive metal bolt. Rezar pushed up from the ground, his body easily leaping 20 feet into the air as the blades of the Vita Gratia shot out of the metal shaft, the chains gleamed under the sunlight as they moved like they had a mind of their own. Both swept across the front line of the goblin army, slicing quite a few of the diminutive humanoid creatures in half and then proceeding to stab in to the shield of a Hobgoblin. Rezar smiled as the chains let out a whirring sound like the gears of a machine and dragged him down towards the Hobgoblin who was carrying a tower shield in his hands. Rezar''s foot smashed in to the shield, causing a visible dent on it as the hobgoblin took three steps back, and quickly retaliated by smashing a Warhammer into Rezar''s chest, throwing his body backwards like a tennis ball. Rezar slammed into the ground, his body rolling for a few meters and digging furrows into the ground before he quickly set himself up. He moved his head to the right as two bolts went past his body, and he looked up just in time to see the Hobgoblin use a skill to rush towards him, its massive green form nothing more than a blur as the shield was smashed into his chest. Rezar felt bones and ribs breaking, but he was already used to pain and knew how to fight through the worst of it. The shield bash would have flung him away, but Rezar had held on to the edge of the shield, dragging his injured body back and sticking to the shield. The Hobgoblin was surprised, probably not too sure about what to do with an opponent this tenacious. He pulled his massive shield to the left, hoping the jarring movement would force Rezar to let go of the shield and he would be able to attack him. But Rezar surprised him by still holding on to the shield, his feet digging furrows in the ground with how hard he planted his feet, forcing the hobgoblin to utilize more force than was necessary. Rezar was strong, but the hobgoblin was far stronger than anyone Rezar has ever had the pleasure of facing. But that''s as far it went, he was stronger than Rezar, but Rezar was faster. The chains had already retracted forming the staff, and with just one simple twist of his wrist and a forward stab, the bladed end went through the head of the hobgoblin, much to the shock of the goblins watching. [Strike of Nothingness] the soul of the Hobgoblin was swiftly absorbed into Vita Gratia, and Rezar turned to face the rest of the Goblins, dismissing the System message that popped up in front of him. [Bat Apparition] [Bind] His form became wreathed in shadows as his signature eldritch chains shot of from the cloud of shadowy bats, the chains themselves seemed to have taken on the form of the shadows as the extended over twenty meters in length as it swept through the crowds of goblins. For the first time, the skill didn''t have any physical impact as it went through the bodies of the goblins it touched, and in that moment the skill [Feed] was activated as vitality and souls were drawn out of dozens of goblins. Rezar felt himself get stronger as his stats increased, and then the other half went surging into Vita Gratia, improving the power and ability of the weapon and prompting the appearance of more system messages. But once again Rezar ignored it as he remained floating in the air, his form a mass of shadowy bats as six purplish black chains hung in the air around his body. "If you continue to march on, the only thing that awaits you is. DEATH!" [Raise Undead] As soon as that skill was utilized, Rezar turned his shadowy form and flew away from the shocked eyes of the goblins as their recently fallen comrades rose up from the dead and turned on them. Rezar was not too worried about this new undead, their jobs were just to cause even more havoc and shake the confidence of the goblin army, even if they do decide to turn back now, it was already too late as Lenore will continue to pick them off, one at a time. But for now he has completed his goal, and Vita Gratia had a successful test run. Now he just needed enough time to gain experience and become familiar with the weapon. Rezar''s shadowy form encompassed Lenore as they flew away, until the dark form disappeared in between the tree lines, but inevitably leaving a shadow of horror in the hearts of the goblins. Because they now realized they weren''t up against a normal upload or player, the Bone King was a death class holder. Chapter 124: Not a Chapter Im sick and Im sorry! sorry guys I''m really sick so there''s no chapter today. however I have to update at least 1500 words a day or I''ll not be getting paid month end. so this is the first two chapters of a virtual reality massive multiplayer online role playing game I had planned. I''ve written ten chapters of it, I''ll just post it to make up for the lack of chapters today. tomorrow I''ll edit the chapter clearing the two chapters of these novel and then upload the proper one along with tomorrow''s chapter. please I apologise for the inconveniences. [[[[[?]]]]] [The age old question that everyone askes themselves who am I? am I good person, am I a bad person. What does the world think of me? Should I give back to the world, stand for truth and justice and honestly and try my hardest to be great amongst the masses, to fit in and be loved. Or do I want to take, and take and take and not have to give a damn about what the world thinks about me. Do I give in to my desires and let it consume me, do I make the world or do I break it? The answer to those questions are now laid out in front of you. In After Earth online you can be the hero or the villain, or do you just want to sit back and experience the ease and carnage of a modern society where super powered heroes and villains are the norm. There are no filters, no restrictions except for those under the age of 18. A world where you can have absolute power, be the absolute symbol of good, or the most supreme figure of evil or if you so choose the unsure who treads the thin line between both sides. Welcome one and all to the World of After Earth online, where your deepest and darkest desires, becomes your REALITY!] Leonardo stared hard at the teaser trailer for After Earth online, it was just elaborate words on a holographic screen, and it was released months ago so it didn''t matter much, however he just couldn''t help but to watch it again, especially now that the pod was lying down in his bedroom and the servers for the game were about to open in the next fifteen minutes. Unlike how stories like this go, after earth online was not some big revolutionary VR game, it was amongst the hundreds released every year, so it was sure to be buried under the waves of other games. Except of course this particular game was catered for the older audience, from what the beta testers had posted, any from racism, murder, burglary, ****, corruption, serial killers, alien invasions, demonic invasions etc. were the norm. There were no filters, curse words could be used, female players and the NPC AI''s could be raped or killed. And it would all be experienced in its full, bloody and gory details. That information alone had made After earth online the most controversial game of the year, its release was delayed due to many petitions against it for its very brutal contents, and while many people protested against it, there were many who wanted it to come to light. This was a chance for their deepest and darkest monsters to be unleashed, there was no need to role-play like other games, the evil or the good in you would be brought to the forefront and you could live just like you want. Restrained and unrestrained by the rules and laws of society. Leo was playing this game because he really didn''t have a choice, there was a potential to earn money from every game in the Market, and After Earth online was the cheapest Leo could get. For one even in 2072 Africa still had the highest rate of poverty in the entire world, and being born to poor parents in Nigeria was even worse as the nation had gone through several civil wars in the past thirty years. It was only just settling down recently and rejoining the rest of the world. But its economy has been severely impacted with only the rich and their ilk having control over the money flow. Crime was rampant, and it was a horror show as Nigeria had really become a third world country, but even that 21-year-old Leo had been able to make ends meet for himself and two younger siblings. And now more than ever he needed to find a way to make more money, his nineteen-year-old sister had been a victim of rapist a few months back, and now she was an expectant mother. Their younger brother Collin was a budding soccer player and had a chance to be drafted into the junior national team in three months, except of course to get a spot in the draft pick you needed to buy you way in. the 15-year-old was devastated, but Leo was not going to let them down, after earth online was the only choice he now had. While he wasn''t so sure about equipment, he knew VR games with modern themes thrived on materials and information, and that''s what he was going after. He needed to buy the spot for the draft pick for his younger brother, and raise enough money for his younger sister and her baby. Especially now that his sister also had to apply for a scholarship to study off world at a prestigious university on one of earth''s colonies on the moon. A chance to change their family''s situation and it was looking right at him. The odds were stacked against him though, frankly speaking he would be competing against players from countries like the USA, India, China, Korea, The UK, Russia, Australia etc. basically any country other than an African country have proven themselves as the best of the best when it comes to the games they play. But he was not really aiming for the best in this case, he just wants to make some money before perhaps making a transition to a better game after building a reputation. Leo read through the scant few information posted on the game''s official page before getting back up to his feet. He walked towards his sleeping sister and moved the book she had placed on her head to the table besides her. He looked at her bulging stomach and smiled, he wanted that child to be born into a world without stress, free like the wind and able to reach the sky in a single leap. He shifted his gaze to the family photo that was a few years old, a deceased mother and a father serving a life term for crimes he didn''t commit. So many wrongs to make right and so many futures to make brighter, he had so much that he had to take care off and he was desperate. So while other players might have skill and talent none of them had even a smidge of what he did, and that was desperation. Nothing and no one would stand in his way, he swears it. [[[[[?]]]]] [New user detected registering ID Verifying IdentityIdentity Verified. Scanning and Inputting Biometrics Initializing Retina and Finger Print scan Account Created. Welcome Leonardo Adebayo. Proceed to character creation?] [Yes No ] Leo chose yes as the blue screen in front of him changed completely and he found himself facing a mirror image of himself. There was a plethora of races to choose from and a chance to hybridize certain races. At the moment not much was known about the game, so whether or not going the hybrid path would mess with you build down the line, not much was known. But Leo knew exactly what he wanted. He needed to be fast and silent to be able to get the information he wanted, he wanted to go the Anti-hero route, being able to mingle with both the villains and heroes. He didn''t need to be in the spotlight, but he wanted to be able to get rewards from committing crimes and stopping them should the need arise. So he needed speed and silence, but at the same time he needed a significant amount of power to be able to defend himself. The body has to be adaptive too, in the end that brought him back to the human selection, but he was able to hybridize combining it with a similar looking humanoid race. {HYBRID RACE} {HUMAN} [The human race is the most common race, boasting of supreme intelligence and adaptability, they''re compatible with any and all energy source. Rumors have it that humans are the first race to ever exist in the cosmos as their DNA have been known to contain pieces of the genes of every other race in existence.] {Gain passive skill[ Adaptive] and the active skill [Analyze] } {TECHRONMAN} [The Techronman race are almost indistinguishable from humans, except of course their silver hair and pale metallic skin. Their veins and minds are capable of carrying massive surges of electricity, making them capable of intercepting and creating all sorts of connections with technology. they''re inventors, and information brokers and are known to some civilizations as techno mages.] {Gain the passive skill [Technopath] and the active skill [Shock]} That worked well for him, with the Techronman race he would be able to get information from anywhere and he could even control machines. These was the best possible outcome, at least for now anyway. As soon as he accepted the race, the mirror in front of him changed, and he was looking at himself with silver hair, and protruding cheekbones with a single blue band running from his cheekbones to his jaw. He looked like himself, but honestly if someone who knew him saw him like this, he could guarantee that they wouldn''t recognize him. His height remained the same as 6''2 and he was still lanky due to lack of proper nutrition. His fingernails were also silver, and he was dressed in grey cotton trousers and shirt along with a grey coat with a hood and some black boots. He looked like those padawans in those old Star Wars movies, he hoped the clothes were just there for reference, the colors were a bit too dull for his taste. What came next was the choice for an ability, there were a few categories from which someone could choose his or her ability. And a person could only have one, combine it with your chosen race and you would have a few tools under your belt. The categories were Magical, Cosmic, Technological, Scientific, and mutation. For Leo technological and scientific were out. Technological had to be about those that made their techs or had their abilities from gadgets, the scientific were those who got their abilities from experiments like Spiderman, the incredible hulk and captain America. His race actually covered the technological aspect, and in his opinion the scientific hardly had a chance for growth, of course this was a game, but he didn''t want to turn I to an enormous green rage monster whenever he gets angry. Cosmic sounded cool, but he was not one for it if he had to be honest. He wanted to stay out of the limelight, which left mutation and magic. Now he could go for mutation which was actually the best, he could get speed or invisible mutation which would help him, but then again he would be limited by a single mutation. He wasn''t aiming to be the best or the strongest, so he didn''t want to focus on a single build, what he wanted was to be the jack of all trades who can get out of any sort of situation. His hybrid race was a living breathing walking electric rod, the [Shock] skill made sure of that. So for sure he had the mutation angle down. Which left magic, and so he chose that. Magic was divided into a few different categories too. There were mages, wizards and witches which was greyed out for males, sorcery, warlocks and mystics. Mystics were the crystal ball see I to the future read your palm kind of magic, mages were catered to the elements, wizards were the reality altering kind of magic, like illusions and magically locking a door you can''t open. Sorcery was basically the scientific part of the magic side, with rituals and potions and catalysts needed for spells. Warlocks were the bad guys, the summoned familiars and demons and did the bad juju. And that was why he chose the warlock route, because unlike the others, he wasn''t limited to just using his magic to fight as he could have companions and could use weapons as warlock spells are near instant though they don''t have as much damage. {WARLOCK} [Warlocks are masters of black and summoning magic, drawing power from the infernal and the dark, they''re the most likely to hang around demons and go to hell.] {Gained the passive skill [Arcane Sight] and the Active Skill [Black Bolt]} After that all he had to do was just a name that alone was hard if he had to be honest. Unlike most gamers he had grown up being taught that names had powerful meanings, that there was power in a name no matter how obscure or generic it sounds. He thought back to the reason why he was here, why he was doing this, to his family and to his sister''s unborn child, he smiled as he decided on his name. (Welcome to the Game: Leo Freewind!! ) Chapter 125: Attack On Goblins 9 [Vita Gratia has leveled up to 6] [The Skill [Glorious Crucifixion] has been created, effects have increased a bit] ? Mantle Name: Vita Gratia// Level: 0// Grade: Silver ? Type: Weapon(Unique)// Effects: Attack, Defense, Speed of all Citizens Increased by 28% ? Skills: Glorious Crucifixion. [Glorious Crucifixion: Create a spirit crosses for every enemy within a 400-meter radius, the cross would crucify every enemy and sap them of their souls and vitality and redistribute it as health and stat points for every citizen of your kingdom. It has a 5% chance to give skill points, a 3% chance to give skills. Cost Tier 1, 2, 3 of magic stat, can only be used once every month] This was ridiculous and completely insane, the fact that a skill like this existed gave Rezar severe goosebumps, he was ecstatic and really caught off guard by it. It made a few things clear to him. For one it would have been really hard to level up Vita Gratia, it would have taken him months, if not years to get to this level. But he had fed the weapon souls, and that alone seemed to have really changed and helped it. Two! The system might not have given him an alert about it, but Rezar knew for a very startling fact that it''s going to take a longer time than normal to level the weapon up now that he has used souls, so he was left with no other choice but to continue with the method he has implemented. Three! It''s going to take a lot of souls now to level it up. And finally he now knew how the Necron was created and how it became so powerful. Being given a blank scroll template by the system and asked to design the kind of weapon you wanted, and to also provide the materials needed to make it. That was like loading a gun and given it to a child, majority of people would design something stupid and lavishly extravagant, and even if it''s an extremely powerful weapon it would take a very long time for it to get strong enough to be truly feared, not to mention if their skills were similar to [Glorious Crucifixion] you might not have a chance to use it as much as you wanted to. But then there was the Necron, created by someone that has a bunch of different titles every time priest has told Rezar about him. He has never been named, but he was Known as the vampire king, the death lord, Necron Father and so on and so forth. Either way, the creation of that book definitely had the rights to shake the very foundations of Elysium, because the more conflict that book went through, absorbing souls in much the same way Vita Gratia is going through right now, it would turn into an existence that nothing could rival. Whether vampire appeared before or after the Necron Rezar wasn''t sure, but if it was before; then the vampire king would have had an extremely long time to pump that book of souls to make it an existence that would terrify even the owner itself. According to Priest, the book became so powerful it developed a mind of its own, capable of making its own choices and using its own skills and cursing those it deems unworthy of using it. Rezar had no idea if Vita Gratia would every reach such heights, but he would never hesitate to keep getting stronger. Elysium was even more brutal than earth, strength would never be enough, and even though he just got massively nerfed, he had something that everyone except one other person in Elysium had; and that was the freaking Immortality of a vampire. He had an extremely long amount of time to keep getting stronger, so even if the people following forge ahead, he would still be Rezar Deathwind the Bone King. "It would be nice if you stop staring at nothing Master, you need to give your orders so I can relay it back. Your stint against the Goblin army has halted their march, so those on our sides are left waiting, the Goblins are supposed to march into a couple of traps remember, but it seems you and your pet demon went and set them on fire!" Varka chided as he silently appeared on top of a tree. The snow white Lion was bigger, he wasn''t fully grown, but the mane on his head was much more expansive and his coat seemed to shimmer. Most would say he looked beautiful, but Rezar knew better; Black was not the color of death, white was. And Varka was the complete personification of that concept, and he was a familiar weird. "Now why are you looking at me like that Master, I''m Male you know, I don''t swing that way, not to mention your humanoid and I''m a feline, I wouldn''t be averse to touching a humanoid female, but a feline male and a humanoid male together... please don''t ever look at me like that again." Valka said as he took two steps back, but Rezar shook his head with a smile and beckoned him closer. "I know I''ve messed up with the plan, but it''s not all bad. They''ve halted their march because they''re no exactly sure whether to continue onwards or move back. The rough census says the army heading our way was 3000 strong, we''ve wiped a thousand a few hundred, and previous intelligence says each army is a thousand goblin strong with a single general. I believe I just put an end to one of them an hour or so ago, it would be best if we fought them on out terms, but they''re still in the forest. And whether we like it or not, Goblins are rather pesky little creatures built for all terrain battles. Be it a forest, mountain, plain, caves on the seas etc. those things can fight, and their sheer numbers and rapid breeding makes them the best sort of cannon fodder in battles. But even better is the fact that these goblins aren''t monsters, each and every one of them have a mind and consciousness and soul of their own. Which means they can be afraid, and fear can be a powerful tool in any war if you know just the right way to use it." Rezar said as he held the staff form of Vita Gratia over his lap. "So what do you suggest master?" "Don''t we have a couple of undead forest wolves that have evolve into wraith wolves?" Rezar asked with a perplexed look on his face. "Actually all 224 of the zombie forest wolves have evolved into Wraith wolves, there''s a special one amongst them that evolved into an Alpha Wraith Wolf, he doesn''t have a name but we just call him Alpha." "Very good, the goblin army is mostly built of physical fighters, so it would be best if we attack them with something their physical attacks are useless for and their minds are weak against. I have no fear, but I think I remember a time where red eyes in the dark with a body made of shadows would make me piss my pants." Rezar said as Valka widened his eyes in surprise. "Really! You do?" "Nope, I don''t remember any shit like that Valka, I just reckon such a sight would be extremely terrifying." Rezar replied with a shrug of his shoulders. "How can you reckon such a thing when you''ve never even experienced something like that, and even if you did, you don''t remember it!" Valka exclaimed, so shocked that he was standing on his hind legs and had his two front paws spread wide on either side of him in shock, much to Rezar''s amusement. "Call it intuition or something like that." Rezar answered in a nonchalant manner. "What sort of intuition is that?" Valka asked his voice rising to a higher octave than normal. "Hmmm I don''t know, human or rather humanoid intuition?" Rezar said with a shrug, posing it as a question to the gob smacked familiar. "so you''re going to order an attack based on Humanoid, human intuition. I''m going to die you aren''t I?" Valka suddenly asked as he sat back on his ass looking like a depressed old man. Rezar walked up to him and patted his haunches, trying hard not to laugh out loud. "There''s a great and somewhat famous saying relayed by a famous captain on earth many, many years ago. I think such a saying works best as an answer to your question my dear Valka. If you die, walk it off." And then Rezar walked away, snickering to himself as he went looking for Lenore and this Alpha that was soon to be in charge of those wolves. Valka watched him go, and silently mused to himself, truing reassure himself or rather trying to look for a loophole in the contract between him and Rezar. It would feel really nice if he could take a chunk off his leg at the moment, his Master was really mean, and odds are, he would be sending Valka to an early grave, that Jerk! Chapter 126: Attack On Goblins 10: Massacre The army of goblins slowly marched forwards, there has been substantial losses, especially with the death of their second general, but they were remiss about going back empty handed. Besides they didn''t have that much of a loss and still had roughly 1800 soldiers, more than enough to put pressure on the Bone King and his territory. However, he was still a dangerous opponent, and because they weren''t too sure about the plans he had, they decided to march all night. A small goblin peeled off from his formation, his bladder full to the point of bursting so he quickly went for a tree that was a little way away from the army. As he relived himself, he couldn''t help but to start groaning in pleasure, he''s not had a chance to relieve himself in 10 hours, this chance was not something he was willing to let go, and even more so he was going to enjoy it as best as he could. Or at least that was what he planned to do, until there was the sound of branches being broken behind. He quickly turned around, hastily and clumsily trying to get his armored shorts into its proper position. He turned, looking back, left and right but there was nothing, only the silence of the forest and the sounds of the goblin army marching onwards. He turned his body to face his front, only to come face to face with piercing red eyes and gleaming white fangs, he didn''t even let out a sound before he was bitten in half. And then there was darkness, red eyes fading away into the gloom as the trees swallowed their forms. *Awooooooo! * The eerie howl sent a shiver up and down a significant amount of goblin spines. The environment all of a sudden got a lot colder as mist began to float into the environment, slowly blanketing the area as entirety of the goblin army became covered in a blanket of white and cold. It wasn''t the wraith wolves who began the fight, it was Brutus who bulldozed his way into the army, in the most literal fashion imaginable. His spectral from and ivory horns literally gored a few dozen goblins in moments, reaping lives and spilling blood before disappearing into the mist. And that was when the panic finally settled in, the goblins turned on each other, with their visibility impaired, they were completely unable to recognize who was a foe and who was an ally. Rezar walked within the mist, moving around the goblins as they ran helter skelter, hurt each other or became preys of the wraith wolves who could slide in and out of the mist, taking lives like they were reaping plants. The mist was an impressive touch from the Kitsunes, their illusions were dangerous, and it was so dangerous because of how real they all seemed. They were able to breed chaos with just a flick of their tail or just a simple word from their mouth. While he wouldn''t admit it to Priest or Lenore, the idea of keeping the Kitsunes had turned to be a good one, regardless of the anger he was feeling at the moment. Rezar moved back, evading frenzied goblin as he swung his spear every which way, Rezar let the spear sweep past him before he moved forwards and grabbed the goblin at the top of his head. His claws dug into its skull as blood poured out and his eyes rolled back into his head. The blood rushed up into the air, creating a cloud that was rapidly getting bigger and bigger by the second. He threw the body that had been completely drained of blood aside and moved forwards. He watched as a pair of wraith wolves dragged a hobgoblin every which way, their spectral jaws digging into his body, pulling him every which way. The Hobgoblin tried fighting back, he fiercely swung his sword at their body, but it didn''t do anything as the weapon just went through their shadow form, and it was in that moment another Spectral wolf came from behind and sunk its jaws into the throat of the Hobgoblin. Rezar smiled at the pained shriek the Hobgoblin released, as he walked on across the battlefield, moving as if hundreds of living being weren''t dying around him. [Raise Undead] With his arms spread, the power of this skill was spread away from him in a visible shockwave, and everywhere that Shockwave passed the dead bodies of the goblins rose up and became one with the legion Rezar was slowly creating. They did not need to be given orders and directions as the will of their master was theirs also. The zombie goblins happily pounced on what was left of their comrades, ripping them to shreds, bringing death in the most horrifying way possible. This would be considered a final clash between this contingent of the Goblin king''s armies and Rezar''s, but unfortunately this was never a fair fight in the first place, right from the first altercation with Jorgen''s army, it has been nothing more than a massacre, one that those who would survive this fight would never forget. The Goblins had the numbers to claim hegemony of the Kerwood forest, and the thing is they had just as much civilians as they had soldiers if not more. They bred really fast, they did not have as much power as would be considered normal seeing how much of a basic cannon fodder monster race they were. They were the best workforce a person can have, and they were able to adapt to their terrains and swarm enemies with their numbers. They made good fighters too, especially when they have evolved into their Hobgoblin forms, but eventually they were all just goblins. They had too many things going against them to be able to stand against Rezar, and it was surprising because Rezar and his people had though this would have been a very hard fight, but it seems the reality was very different from what they expected. Chapter 127: Stronger When they walked back into the territory it was to the cheers of the Muriel elves and the Kitsunes. The new people that had become a part of Necron seemed eager to join in the festivities, but Rezar knew it wasn''t over yet. They just dealt with four of the Goblin King''s division, there was still two more to deal with, and honestly if Rezar had to be honest, he didn''t see the goblin king as a threat anymore. But he had a quest to complete and to complete that quest he has to completely defeat and take over the Goblin kings territory. They were only back here for a few days, they would regroup, go back to the drawing board to plan some more, because this time they would be going to the Goblin King instead of him and his army coming to them. and they would be coming with a horde of undead goblins, enough to lay complete waste over his territory. But never the less this was home, and right now Rezar had this extreme urge to go swim in the sea. But he was the king, he didn''t think it would be nice if his people saw him buck ass naked, and swimming in the sea. At the moment the best he could do is go check his stats, and finally level up the apostle class. In a way the Apostle class wasn''t all that bad, for example every time he leveled the class up he would be getting a + 10 to all of his stats. Which in a way was a lot better than his previous classes that mainly focused on increasing the power of a particular stat. and he didn''t have to start from the beginning again, leveling the classes to higher grades, the Death''s Apostle class had no tiers, Rezar just had to keep leveling it up for as long as he could. He had a lot of exp to spend, if he wasn''t counting the Quest and normal exp, his battle exp alone was 1.9 million, and that was enough to raise the Death''s Apostle class to a very high level. But he didn''t want to level it up too fast, with this huge amount of exp he has, it was a sure fire way for him to become extremely OP and if he has to be honest, he loves a challenge, fighting people who would be unable to fight back or can''t even force him to his limits just felt wrong to him. The thing is, whether it was due to his lack of fear, or his extreme curiosity, Rezar was developing a sort of eccentricity. He wasn''t evil per say, but he was developing into the kind of person or character too many people would want to pay attention to and call crazy. None the less Rezar decided to Raise the death''s apostle class to at least level 15, and that alone combine with all of the stats he had received would get most if not all of his stats to tier 7. [Spend 1200 battle exp to raise Death''s Apostle to Level 15. Death''s Apostle has leveled up to level 15] NAME: [Rezar Deathwind] [age:16] [Race: Lesser Dhamphir (Half-human/ Half-Vampire] + CLASS: [Death''s Apostle Lvl 15(0/1600)] JOBS: [N/A] EXP: [Normal Exp: 8,880] [Battle Exp: 1.9M] [Quest Exp: 46,060] TRAITS: [Son of Death] [Angel of Death] [Daylighter] [N/A] STATS: [Power (TIER 6): 478] [Speed (TIER 6): 491] [Defense (TIER 7): 527] [MAGIC (TIER 7): 640] BONUS: [+85% To All Death and Black Magic] [+55% To All Mining Activities] [ 40% Damage from Fire & Lightening Magic. 40% Resistance to All Elements Except Fire and Lightning] [+50% to Power, Magic, Mental and Defense. You cannot be killed except by an Item of Demonic Might] [You have all the strengths of a vampire and few of their weakness. -30% bloodlust, -100% damage from sunlight, +25% to blood magic] Tier 7 was a watershed, Rezar felt very different the moment his defense and magic stats got into the tier 7 range, it was as if he could feel the magic and the energies it held and how he could manipulate them. he could feel the blood bubbling not just under his skin, but under the skin of everyone within Necron, it was a powerful feeling, and his defense being so crazy made him feel as if he could tank the full power of a nuclear bomb. His speed and strength were lagging behind, but he wasn''t worried about that, if the system hadn''t screwed him over, then those stats would be lagging behind even more, along with his magic and defense stat. for a moment he was sorely tempted to continue leveling up, there was a possibility he could get the class to level 50 or somewhere within that range, and by then, all of his stats would be beyond tier 10, and when that happens it would be safe to say that there would probably be nothing that could challenge in Elysium, not unless they had weapons like the Necron and Vita Gratias. Rezar moved back from the spire and took a look at his village, the streets were cobbled and he could see manholes that led down to the sewers Alistair had been building. From here he could monitor the entire territory, it was now a lot larger than he expected, with the assimilation of the Kitsune Territory, Morte Bianca was now about the size of a small state. And in ancient times, that was the perfect size for a kingdom. And once he was done with this war with the goblin King, his territory would be even larger. Regardless those were things has to worry about in the future, right now though he would get some more blueprints, preferably one for a pier, and then he would go find Gynaika. And maybe see what Kitagawa had for him in regards to daughters of eclipse, it was about time he kept his promise, especially to Gynaika. It was time there were more vampires in Elysium than just himself and somebody else god knows where. The age of vampires is about to begin. Chapter 128: not a Chapter again! Im really sorry! I''m still sick and it''s a bit difficult to focus today, can''t even move much. but I have to post something or go hungry next month. so please forgive me for this. this is the 3rd and 4th chapter of After Earth Online. [[[[[?]]]]] Leo appeared in a flash of light on a sidewalk of a rather busy city, the weather was a bit cold as everyone seemed to be walking about with thick clothes, looking up at the sky he could see flakes of snow slowly drift to the ground as the very world around him seemed to ignore his very existence. this was completely unexpected, he at least expected some sort of tutorial or something of the like, but he was here in the middle of nowhere with absolutely no direction. [A random backstory has been generated for you] [Leo Freewind was born from a forbidden romance between a Techronman delegate and a human maid. Unfortunately, his birth was nothing more than a stain on his father''s reputation as the delegate already had mates and children of his own. The matter was even made worse when it was discovered that his maid mother was a witch, going against everything the Techronman race believes; as magic is considered a taboo for them. Largely inheriting a significant portion of his mother''s magical abilities, Leo Freewind has been thrown out of his father''s household one cold winter night, with nothing to his name, and to a world that would be unforgiven in its assault of the young Hybrid, what will he do now?] He had this urge to roll his eyes over what he just saw, but he couldn''t help but feel how deeply ingrained and immersive this game was. Unlike other games there was no starting point, he wasn''t exactly sure how other players fared, but from what he could see, everyone had to make do with what they have, and also try to find their own way. In a way with such a terrible start, it was pointing him directly to a life of crime, because that should be the only way he would be able to survive on the streets after being kicked out. But he wasn''t worried, if there was one thing he knew how to do, it would be surviving on the street. But before that he had to take a little look at his status page. ? SECRET IDENTITY: Leo Freewind// HERO/VILLAIN NAME: n/a ? RACE: Human/Techronman Hybrid// ALIGNMENT: Undetermined ? ABILITY: Magical(Warlock)// GRADE: F-// FAME/INFAMY: (0/0) ? PASSIVES: [Adaptive lvl 0] [Technopath lvl 0] [Arcane Sight lvl 0] ? ACTIVES: [Analyze lvl 0] [Shock lvl 0] [Black Bolt lvl 0] ? MONEY: 100 credits// HIDEOUT/LAIR: n/a Leo blinked his eyes, and shuddered a bit from the cold as he started moving down the street pondering on what''s going on, for one there was hardly any information about the game before its release, and now the status sheet did not seem to have any answers either. This game was basically a taste and see kind of experience. There were no levels, no HP bar, no MP bar, or a stamina bar. It was almost as if he was here with his own normal body trying to figure things out with a chance at getting stronger. He had no idea how to increase his grade, or how the basic mechanics of the game worked, hell he even had no idea where he was. He looked up and around him, noticing the plethora of different races walking about, the hover cars, bikes and boards. The high-rise buildings in the distance that lit up the night sky with their glow, and the rows of buildings on both sides of the streets that served as stores for a plethora of things. Leo blanched as he looked around, did they actually want him to rob one of the stores or something, he might be desperate and frantic, but he wasn''t here to play the game without any sort of plans. He needed information, but before that he needed clothes. It was bloody freezing and all he had on was a white t-shirt with grey trousers and a brown boot. It was ugly and simple, and only did the basic job of making sure he wasn''t naked. He took a few steps down the street, ignoring the caf''s and the restaurants as his stomach took the opportunity to warn him of his hunger. He frowned again, it seems the system of the game was really putting the backstory into effect and using it to determine his current situation. He basically had an idea of what was going on, pushed into a hard situation, it would be up to him to either surpass his difficulties and come out stronger and pure of heart, forged by the flames of adversity. Or he gives in to the darkness and fall to the dark side. His feet came to a stop at the side of a thrift store, he walked in looking at rows of goods and clothes arranged within it. Leo couldn''t tell what this store was for, there were clothes, tools, junk food and even records and small electronics. It was weird if he had to be honest. ~zzzz! Leo shifted his head to the left, there was a digital watch there that for all intents and purposes seemed dead as it was clustered with a pile of other watches in a bowl. But he just felt or rather heard the watch tell time. It was weird, but he it was probably his Technopath ability giving him access to the watch. He went over to the counter where a blue skinned obese man was leaning over, clicking the buttons of a remote as an old school plasma TV cycled through different channels. Leo swiftly picked up the watch and immediately struck a conversation with store clerk, making sure to keep the watch within his fist. "Hi how much do you sell your clothes?" "1 credit." The clerk answered with a bored voice. "What about the tools and appliances?" he asked again "1 credit for everything in the store, but goods worth of 10 credits and get another free, enjoy your shopping." Leo blanched with annoyance at the whole thing, it was obvious this guy really doesn''t want to be here, or even if he did, he really didn''t care about customer interaction. [Analyze] [Mogrin Morgo] Honestly he expected more information to show up, but that was it. He shook his head and moved through the aisles, checking for clothes and maybe something good to spend the system allocated hundred credits on. He picked a pair of thick black trousers. They seemed like jeans. But were more like the cargo pants worn by the army. He got a long sleeved shirt to wear over his current t-shit, a pair of black booths with steel buckles and thigh length leather jacket with a hood. Along with some woolen gloves and a face-mask that looked like it would be at home on the face of a doctor, except this was black. He easily slipped the stolen watch into the pocket of the jacket and then went to the counter with a smile that was a little too large for his face. He paid for everything he had bought, watching as his 100 credits became 95 credits. Then he walked out of the store, the watch in his pocket seemingly burning a hole through it. [You have carried out a criminal act (Shoplifting), you have gained one infamy point.] [Gain enough fame or Infamy to activate system generated quests. The kind of quests you receive would be dependent on your amount of fame or infamy. More infamy would generate villain aligned quest, and fame would generate heroic aligned quest. There are no anti-hero quests, but heroic acts can be carried out in villainous quests, and villainous acts can be carried out in heroic quests.] [Quest: The night is young and you''re almost out of cash, steal from someone to ensure your survival. // Reward: 20 credits + amount/loot stolen. +2 infamy.] And just like that he got his first quest, he shook his head as he placed the digital watch on his wrist, somehow finding the buzz from it very soothing and familiar. He smiled as he walked away from the bustling streets towards the darker areas of town, he had already stolen from Mogrin, but it seems what you do before the quest doesn''t count, he had to look for another prey. Or so he thought until he went past an alley and saw [[[[[?]]]]] Leo had wondered how he would be able to differentiate players from the rest of the NPC''s, but now it seems the game actually took care of that, as there was an obvious rhomboid crystal attached to the head of every player. In the alley he almost passed, he witnessed a player and two NPC''s attempting to mug another. And from the lecherous looks on their faces it seemed that there were going to be doing more than mugging. He wasn''t really here to be hypocritical, but he had a short fuse when it came to men being violent against a woman, especially after the harrowing experience his sister had gone through, so he didn''t think much, he just charged in. [Black Bolt] The usage of skills was instinctual; it was very much in the same manner you gave commands to a computer through programing. You either thought about the skill or called it out. A bluish red spell circle showed up in front of his outstretched palm, it was about the size of a coffee mug with rather dull colors and intricate arcane scripts. It took two seconds to generate a mass of blackish energy that seemed to sizzle and spark like flames and electricity. The thugs were preoccupied with the NPC they were about to Mug, so he shot the spell at them, hoping it would cross the five-meter distance and cause enough damage. Or so he thought as the skill fizzled out after moving for just two and a half meters, the outcome was so shocking that Leo came to a stop. The players and his new group of friends looked up for a second, before a predatory grin covered their faces. With the way the player''s eyes seemed to shift downwards as if looking at something else, Leo suspected he had just gotten a quest that had to deal with him, he couldn''t help but mutter out loud. "Fuck!" "Well, well, well; what do we have here boys? It''s a wannabe hero! Let''s fuck him up really good, an audience to the show wouldn''t be too bad." If he had to be honest, he was seriously regretting letting his emotions get the best of him, he really had no idea what he was doing as there really wasn''t much information about the game, so he had no idea what the penalty for dying was. Either way he squared his shoulders and brought his hands, fist clenched in a boxing stance he looked threatening enough that the thugs took him a little bit seriously, but honestly. Leo has never really been in a fight in all 21 years of his life, and frankly speaking, this would be a first. The first thug rushed forwards, throwing a well telegraphed right hook to Leo''s face, he ducked backwards and threw his hands forwards, his right palm opens as his skill [Black Bolt] came into existence and smashed into the chest of the first Thug, throwing him backwards and laying him flat on his back as he clutched his chest in pain. But that was a small victory as Leo felt a fist smash into the side of his face forcing him to spin from the momentum before he felt a kick on his back that sent him sprawling forwards, his face clipping the side of a trash-can and being busted open. He felt pain, though not as much as it should have been in real life, but pain none the less, and it was almost hard for him to focus as he felt a foot slam into his stomach. The impact was hard enough that he was raised off the ground and his back was smashed into the trash can behind him. He looked up to see a foot coming to smash down on his face and quickly shifted his head to the side; as there was a dull bang besides his head. He surged forwards, driving his shoulders into the midriff of the second thug and carried him all the way to the other side of the street, smashing his back into dumpster behind him. The thug arched his back in pain, but Leo didn''t stop there as he proceeded to take a massive chomp off the thug''s side, eliciting a high pitched scream as the Thug panicked and tried to push Leo away from him. The mask on Leo''s face was bloodied as he pulled back and slammed his forehead into the bridge of the thug''s nose, ignoring the crunch and the cry of pain as he reeled back and pointed his hands at point blank range at the chest of the thug. [Black Bolt] there was a little concussive force behind the spell itself, similar to what someone would feel if they were pushed really hard. The thug was blasted over the edge and into the dumpster as Leo felt a pair of hands encircle him and voice whispering into his head. "It''s okay tough guy just go to sleep, go to sleep" [You have been subjected to Telepathic suggestions. You would lose consciousness in five seconds if you do not come up with a countermeasure.] [Shock] Countermeasures? He had one prepared and ready to go as he released the unnatural amount of electricity within his hybrid body, shocking the player behind him to a stupor as the smell of singed flesh and released bladder filled the alley. The player''s body seemed to freeze as he fell backwards, completely paralyzed by the skill. None the less they were all neutralized as Leo moved his black face mask to one side and spat out saliva mixed with blood, both his and that of the thug who''s side he took a bit out off. "Are you okay?" the female who was being mugged asked, she was dressed in corporate clothes so she was probably a white collar worker or something on her way home from work. Leo nodded his head to her as he hunched over trying to catch his breath, feeling a bit weak from using his abilities. "Should I call an ambulance for you? You don''t seem to be in great shape." She said to him as she moved closer, he shook his head as he got up to his feet with one hand on his midriff. "I''m fine, but you should go get some help, or the police. These guys seem to be out of it, so get the authorities to take care of them. go on, I''ll keep an eye on them so they wouldn''t escape." She nodded her head and ran to the entrance of the alley going to look for help or at least an officer or two on patrol. Leo on the other hand gathered all three culprits in one corner, ignoring the groans of pain from the first thug he had attacked. [Loot Enemy(ies)] [200 credits gained, 1 switchblade, 5 grams of Leviathan] The leviathan was actually a bluish green pill, each placed in tiny paper bags. Leo did not need anyone to tell him that those were drugs, and in a street where there are drugs, there are sure to be dealers, those who would want to buy them, and those who made money from it. He quickly pocketed the drugs a plan gradually forming in his mind as he grabbed the neck of the thug still conscious and asked. "Tell me where you got the Leviathan, or you''re going to end up worse than your friend here." He threatened with a piercing glare, thankfully the Thug did not resist and gave Leo the answers he needed. There were a bunch of notifications to pay attention to, but Leo Ignored them for now, looks like the cops were here. Chapter 129: Pushed to The Limit Making plans for Necron wasn''t something Rezar felt was needed at the moment, instead much of their army has already been mobilized, and they were preparing to march in full force for the Goblin king''s capital. Honestly speaking Rezar knew that they would be able to see a sizable force coming and prepare in accordance to that, but he and his advisors as Valka has taken to calling them, had a different method of approach in mind. But nevertheless they were an army preparing to march on the goblin king and that''s exactly what they were going to do. Rezar wasn''t wearing any sort of armor, he wasn''t even wearing his usual get up, he was wearing a simple white robe with golden trims and a hood over his head that obscured much of his face leaving his mouth visible to anyone who looked at him. Tony on the other hand was armored to the core, and fully ready and prepared for war, this was a mount bred for war, even if he was just an ant. This was the final meet between the forces of the Goblin King and the bone king, only this time it was Rezar who was taking the initiative. The fight with the goblin Kings army was a lot easier than Rezar had ever thought it would be, of course it was mostly due to the help and advice from a lot of people, and it was due to all those plans that they have been able to win. And frankly speaking the goblins underestimated them, they didn''t think they would have the resources nor the tactics to fight them on an even ground. So without a doubt, the Goblin king would know that Rezar was a threat, but honestly speaking it was already too late. Rezar wouldn''t jump the gun and say that their victory was assured, because that would be making the same mistake the goblins had made when they faced them. but never the less the ball was now in his court, and whichever way he chooses to play it, would secure complete victory for them, or give the goblins an offset to regain what they''ve lost. So it was without hesitation that Rezar would happily crush the goblins, every last one of them. "We''ve received intel, the Goblin King himself is marching the rest of his army towards Necron. If we leave now, we can meet them at the former base of his mounted division. Whatever it may be, I believe the Goblin King would either give it a last ditch effort to defeat us, or attempt to make a truce so as to manage his losses, and avoid further conflicts." Priest spoke up as he rode side by side with Rezar. "What do you suggest I do then?" Rezar asked as Tony began to move forwards. "If he''s coming for a fight, then you meet him sword for sword, though I''m not too sure how this fight would go. The players have been defeated, but it''s quite possible for them to respawn, so his army might be bigger than we expect. So we might be in for a hard grind, but should he suggest a truce, you can use it to your advantage and take over all of the Goblin King''s lands. It would a total victory without a fight." Rezar nodded his head a bit as he contemplated on what priest had just said, a victory without a fight would definitely be something that he would very much like to achieve. But he really didn''t think that the Goblin King was that simple, ruling within the Bahrenburg frontier goes beyond having military might. You must have a nose for politics, and if you''re not careful a simple harmless deal would be enough to bring your kingdom crashing to the ground. But nevertheless, should things not go the way he wants it to, Rezar would happily put an end to the Goblin King and whatever the fuck is left of his army. Unlike before when he was worried about being outnumbered, this time he might have a little too much manpower on his side, he would drown the goblin king and his armies under a surge of bodies, a little sneak peek into what a zombie apocalypse looks like. ? UNDEAD CREATURES ? Screet: LVL 49 Ghoul Mole-Man ? Jason: LVL 38 Ghoul Minotaur ? Brutus: LVL 33 Ghost Bull ? Alpha: LVL 15 Alpha Wraith Wolf ? Zombie Mole-People [50] ? Zombie Giant Armored Fire Ants [200] ? Zombie High Goblins [3675] ? Zombie Hobgoblins [15] ? Zombie Forest Wolves [ 400] ? Wraith Wolves [199] [[[[[?]]]]] THE GOBLIN KING Tristian would have preferred nothing more than to avoid this meeting, the corporate sharks he answered to always found one way or the other to piss him off, and make all of his work seem, useless and not worth anything, but then again there wasn''t much he could do about it, the power he has now, did not belong to him alone, and that''s why there''s been so many mistakes. "Tristian Morrison! we''ve had an extensive review done over the events of the past one month, and safe to say we are solely disappointed in you and your failures in routing out a simple enemy without any backup, an upload with no access to the resources we have provided for you. What do you have to say for yourself?" Tristian was so mad he could barely control himself, what did he have to say for himself? Well he had lots to say to them, so many words, so many dissatisfaction, it was time these bastards get a thirst of their own medicine. "Well I have a lot to say for myself, the Goblin civilization reached and unprecedented might under my rule and command. I took them from dirt eating monsters to the most powerful force in all of Kerwood forest. I gave you all the advice of focusing on development, but your greed forced you all to circumvent my orders and sent the generals on a conquering campaign. We had power, but you wanted more, I advised that it would be better if we focused on developing our current territories, but you all wanted to expand it even more. And then you all finally went and bit off more than you could chew and you want to blame me for it; are you all stupid or something. I understand that I''m one of dozens of leaders you''ve seeded, but yet you all tried your hardest to sabotage me. Well congratulations, you have succeeded, now my kingdom is on the brink of destruction and instead of looking for a solution you all want to throw blames. Very well then, you can consider this my resignation, you all can upload yourself and come rule the Goblin Lands. We owe each other nothing, so you can all kiss my scaly green ass!" With that said Tristian marched out of the secret chamber, communicating with the real world needed a specialized chamber. The moment he left that room, the bosses would be unable to reach him again, which was why as he marched out, he couldn''t help the smile that showed up on his face as he ignored their frantic calls. As annoying as they were, they knew that Tristian had built something substantial for them, this was an asset that even they would find very hard to take control of, because frankly speaking, only Tristian was willing to upload himself as a goblin, or it was more like he was strong-armed into doing so. And yet he had succeeded where others had failed, built a kingdom when others still struggled with their own settlements. And yet corporate politics had stood in the way, someone with too much power had it out for him, and they kept pushing and pushing and pushing. And finally he had snapped and cut off all ties with them. "what do we do now?" a voice could be heard asking from within the chamber. "What else can we do, we have to send a replacement to deal with the crisis and the power vacuum." "But then again who would be willing to upload themselves as a goblin, and even more so that the enemy they''re facing is a death class holder. The players that have died to him or his undead have been locked out of their account for three whole months, and even then records say they would experience permanent stat loss. Nobody would be willing to upload now, not when the true death is possible." "But if we don''t send a replacement, then everything we''ve worked for would be lost, we have too many assets at stake here." "Do you mean everything that Tristian worked for and you and your family tried to sabotage just because he refused to marry your daughter. So much so you guys forced him to upload as a Goblin. We''re dealing with the consequences of you short sighted actions. Solving this problem is all up to you Monroe. But just so you know, this is not the worst case scenario." "And what would you consider a worst case scenario Ricardo." The voice belonging to Monroe asked, with no small amount of derision in his voice. "Just hope Tristian doesn''t have revenge planned for you and your insane daughter, because if he does, with everything he already knows about what''s coming, it would much too easy for him to fall into the Employ of the Bone King. And by then it wouldn''t matter if you''re escaping the disaster in the real world, you and your family will still die and this time for good." Chapter 130: The Battle Of BoneFire Valley 1 The previous location of the goblin Kings mounted division had been a small basin with two entrances on both ends, of course both entrances have been blasted into a pile of rubble, turning the basin into a small valley. It would serve as a small fortress or the personal estate of some noble if there was ever anyone interested in it, but be that as it may the prospects of this piece of land was not what was at the forefront of the minds of the people now standing one two different ends of the basin now turned valley after Rezar had led his first campaign, and decimated everything that had been built within it. But now on the other side were rows upon rows of armored hobgoblins, obviously these were the most elite of the goblin King''s forces. There wasn''t a single common or high goblin within their ranks, there was just well formed rows upon rows of silver armored goblins, and Rezar had to admit this was a lot more intimidating than he would have expected. When Priest had told him that the Goblin King''s armies were on their way here, he had honestly expected a rabble of players and unskilled uploads like the ones he had previously faced, but even then those guys had been caught off guard with every tactic Rezar has had to employ, this would be his first full on confrontation. With both armies staring down at each other, the sun rose high above his head, reaching its peak height of noon. Gynaika was further back nestled within the shade of the trees and covered in a thick cloak. Unfortunately, his Daylighter abilities didn''t full translate to the vampires he turned. Gynaika was just the first so there was a possibility it would be a bit different in the future, but at the moment Gynaika couldn''t be out under direct sunlight from 10 am to 4pm, which was basically the hottest times of the day. It wasn''t too bad though as she''s gotten what she wanted and she was now tied to Rezar in more ways than one. "Do we make the first move Master?" Brutus asked as smoke billowed out of his skull, and eerie green flames within shook with an unsteady light. "I find it common courtesy to let them make the first move, however this is not some noble meet and greet, whoever throws the first punch takes the initiative. ANTS AT THE READY!" The moment Rezar gave that order, all of the ants that were either mounts or part of the undead unit came forwards. At first such a move surprised everyone, including the Hobgoblin army on the other edge of the ridge that made up the valley below them. after all these were just ants, so it was hard to imagine what sort of damage they could cause to them, especially when they were fighting from so far away, there was at least a 100-meter separation between both armies, but whatever it is Rezar had planned with the ants, distance didn''t seem to be a problem, and unfortunately for the Hobgoblins that turned out to be true. "FIRE!" [Fire Acid Spit] In unison with his commands, all of the ants angled their heads upwards and spat out luminous globs of greenish spit that crossed the 100-meter distance between both armies and then some to come down splashing on top of the army. However, those globs of spit could land, gleaming silver shields in tandem with the armors were raised to intercept. However, this was spit, not arrows, so it was expected that there would splash damage if gamer terms had to be used. Most of it was defended, but the sound of sizzling and the smell of flesh getting burnt was prevalent all the way to the other side. Nobody died, and barely any damage was taken, but at least now Rezar had made their first move, and now he was going to make the second one. "Rapid Fire!" The ants went wild with their spitting, of course they were limited in the amount of times they could spit as even the most evolved of them could only spit out their [Fire Acid Spit] ten times before needed to rest for an entire day to rebuild their reserves. The Necrotic ants weren''t any better, but their spits were actually a lot more lethal than those of the other undead. Rezar watched as whoever was in charge gave the order for the army to retreat a little way back so as to move out of the range of the undead ants. But even then Rezar had already fired the warning shots, he had the ants keep up with the barrage until the hobgoblins were well out of their range. The grounds they once occupied hand turned into numerous puddles of smoking acid that slowly ate into the ground they once occupied. The Hobgoblins rearranged their formation and soon enough a division of them wearing what seemed to steel plated robes and steel chain mail under hardened leather armor took the forefront. These were obviously the mages and long range attackers, and since Rezar had already began the attack by trying to utilize long range tactics, they probably felt it was about time they returned the favor to him. But that would only go so far as Rezar turned and gave orders for the undead to take a step back, at least those that were more flesh like while the Armored giant fire ants grouped up together, their forms seemingly forming into a giant helix that was spread out enough to cover almost everyone, while the others escaped into the tree line. Anyone who looked at it from above would see a shield made of numerous helix shaped objects that glinted a rustic red under the glow of the sun. and it served its purpose as seconds later, a rain of arrows and spells landed on their backs. And therein laid a massive surprise to the Hobgoblins as 50% of the attacks and spells they used, were actually bounced back or to be more accurate repelled, while the other fifty just impacted their hard chitins shells, and did almost nothing in impacting their defense. It was crazy, and not just the Hobgoblins, but also the Kitsunes, and Melves on Rezar''s side were shocked by the sheer amount of defense the ants carried. It was completely unexpected, and if Lenore was here, she would have a rather proud smile on her face as she was the one who had focused their evolution on defense. The ants already impressive speed, but when you add into that a defense that was nigh impregnable, then the ants became a division of walking tanks, really swift tanks that could bear the brunt of most common spells and attacks. And the stronger they became within this evolutionary path, the more dangerous and fearsome they''ll all be, especially when they start gaining sentience of their own, which Rezar has to admit was taking a little longer than he had expected. The Hobgoblins carried on with their bombardment for another 5 whole minutes, Rezar lost 13 of his ants with that period, but no one else was hurt. And with every ant that died, the formation was quickly reshuffled as the gap would be hastily closed. It was completely amazing when ants with the numerous legs can rapidly reshuffle themselves into a proper defense formation, but they all shared a mind or rather took unified orders from the mind of their master. As soon as the barrage ended, Rezar gave swift orders and the ants quickly rearranged themselves, with everyone else quickly mounting. He was about to give the orders to charge when one of the wild tribe follower of Gynaika ran to him and whispered in his ear. Priest looked confused from beside him, but he knew the only reason why there would a measles right in the middle of the battle was because Gynaika had finally divined something. Her ability as a diviner wasn''t full proof as the ability only worked twice in a month, and even then the duration varies based on her mastery of it, and there wasn''t much to be said of her mastery of the skill yet, it would take a few more years, or at least a few hundred skill points to get everything in track. Rezar nodded his head to the messenger before using his [Telepathy] to talk with Priest. "The Goblin King is not leading his armies." "What!" Priest asked with his eyes widening in surprise, turning his head from Rezar and then back to the army that was standing opposite them. "Then where is the Goblin King now?" Priest asked as he turned to look back, hoping to catch a glimpse of Rezar. "Gynaika says he''s gone to seek refuge from the Order of the Innkeepers. At the moment he is also trying to negotiate a deal with them." Rezar answered. "What sort of deal is that?" Priest asked again. "A deal where he can have a sit down with me without the danger of me eating his soul." Chapter 131: Battle Of BoneFire Valley 2 Without the goblin king in play, then it was quite obvious that this fight would be going down very differently than he imagined. But they were already out here without a king, so it''s either they were confident enough to win without the king, or they had no idea he wasn''t here. And if they had no idea he wasn''t here, then it would mean someone could either be impersonating him, or its just normal for the most elite force of a king to take the battlefield without him. Either ways, a fight was still bound to happen, they needed to start making a move because an outdrawn ranged combat would end unfavorably for Rezar and would favor the Goblins as ranged combats wasn''t something any member of his army was really good at. "We need them to charge, we can draw them into the trap once they''re down in the valley." Priest said as he shifted his focus back to the battlefield. "I know I don''t need to tell you that they''re not that stupid, whoever walks down that valley first would be a fish in the barrel. We didn''t calculate for how to get them down into the valley and let our excitement carry us away, the valley is a kill box we prepared for them, of course they don''t know we prepared it for them, but now its obvious they''re preparing it for us. They''ll keep their distance and put pressure on us by attacking from range, so we either get pelted to pieces with their spells and arrows or we''ll be forced to retreat giving them a chance to chase us from behind." Rezar said as he narrowed his eyes at the army of Hobgoblins opposite them. "So what do you suggest we do, from what I can see, the best option available to us would be to bring the fight to them on the ledge or drag them down into the valley, but we can''t drag them down into valley just like that. It pretty obvious this army of Hobgoblins are much stronger than all the others we''ve faced, so there''s no guarantee former tactics would work here. Sure they don''t seem to be completely immune to illusions of the Kitsune, but the idea is that we have to get the kitsunes to the other side without them seeing them coming. But it pretty much means we are giving them enough time to come up with plans and contingencies of their own. We need to either launch an attack now, we can''t go round the valley as that would give them enough time to reorient themselves and even prepare an ambush for us." Priest said as he adjusted himself on the back of the necrotic forest wolf that served as his mount. "Master I think we just need a strike force to bulldoze their way into the midst of that army, at the very least cause an enough disturbance. Sure it might be a loss on our side, but it might shake their confidence a bit, plus from what I can see this is going to be a really long and drawn out battle, and no real moves would be made until the night falls, and that''s the time where most of the assets we have on hand will come into play, and I''m pretty sure it''s the same with them. we need to strike a decisive blow now, before they make any attempt." Brutus said as his massive bull form stood shoulder to shoulder with Rezar that was sitting on a giant ant. "Well that seems like a good idea Brutus, a charge wouldn''t be a good idea as that would leave us to their mercy, leaving no other choice but a drawn out long range battle that would be more in their favor than ours. We need to go after them now, or at least break them a bit. In that regard how many undead do we have to send after them, consider the fact that we can''t send much as we''re not dealing with simple goblins anymore and we need all the numbers we can get." Rezar said to Brutus as he adjusted himself, ready to give the required orders to the undead behind him. "We only need to send one master, just one is enough to cause the sheer amount of damage and shock we would need to end this fight. Heck if this attack goes well, we would be able to end this fight immediately be capitalizing on the chaos." Brutus said, leaving Rezar very confused. "One? How? And who?" Rezar asked, only for priest to give him the answer to that question. "You!" Rezar blanched for a second, and then everything became a lot clearer to him, he looked at Brutus as the Ghost Bull nodded its massive skull for a head at Rezar. "Indeed Master, you have to think about it. No matter what they throw at you, you won''t die, and you can cause enough damage to not only disrupt them long enough for Lenore to spring her ambush, but with you distracting them, the rest of us can run down the slope and attack the enemy. There''ll be less casualties this way, except for you of course, but I believe we can all live with that master." Brutus said with a rather cheerful tone, Rezar smashed a knuckled fist on his head, smashing his skull into the ground and making an indentation before smiling at the bull. "It''s a viable plan Priest, very well get the rest of the army to back off and hide within the tree lines and wait for me to give the order to charge. Or if I seem in trouble you all can come save my ass, I''ll give the required orders to Lenore, she''ll make a move before you guys, but this should work in our favor." Rezar ordered and watched as Priest bowed before retreating with the rest of the army leaving only Rezar standing on the ledge, it was time to move. Chapter 132: Turn NECRON CITY CAVERN TUNNELS 98 HOURS AGO: The tunnels were dark, of course seeing in the dark was not really a problem for Rezar, but the fact that he was dragging Gynaika along seemed to make the shadows deeper than his enhanced eyes could pierce through. But of course he could see just fine, he was just. Nervous. Which was weird, nerves weren''t something he was familiar with since nervousness was usually associated with fear, but therein lies the problem. Rezar was a creature without fear, yet he was nervous, and for some reason Gynaika found the entire situation amusing. But she let him lead the way, because whether he would admit to it or not, only he knew where they were going and why they were going there. But then again if she pretended she didn''t know why they were heading for a secluded cave, a way from everyone else that was personally dug out by Rezar from a spot behind his house up unto the cavern wall and deeper, then she would be lying. Its why she only had a simple coat covering her, not that he needed to know that, but she suspected he was about ready to become a man, to become her man. Rezar had swallowed more times than was required for a normal healthy male, he didn''t think what was about to happen was something he had to be nervous about, but it was because he was nervous that Gynaika was able to find out what exactly it was that he was dragging her deep into a cavern for. Sure he was just sixteen, maybe a little too young for him to claim her as his woman, but better early than late, but words like that don''t matter when it came to the deed itself. She would be incredibly disappointed if he was early, really, really disappointed. Eventually the tunnels opened up into a large cave, there was a sound of a trickle as the cave was lit up in an intense blue glow, a glow that seemed to come from the massive lake that covered more than 400 meters in diameter, leaving just a small patch of crystal white sand that made beach around the glowing lake. For a moment Gynaika''s breath seized at the beautiful sight in front of her, in all honesty she never expected to have seen something like this before. The way the lake shimmered with its blue glow, was so much different from what she''s experienced when the rays of the sun hit the surface of ocean during sunrise and sunset. This was tranquil, eerie, and spiritual at the same time. And she knew why she felt it was spiritual, she could see spirits or souls depending on what you would prefer to call it. But these spirits, these souls were weird, they weren''t human or animal or monsters like she had gotten used to seeing on account of being a shaman as much as a diviner. They looked unshaped, unformed, like souls without a consciousness, and it was a cluster of them that gathered to make up the blue glow within the lake. And it was more than just a cluster, they were tiny, about the size of a marble, but within that lake, there were millions if not billions of them. she looked up at Rezar, suspicions on her face, then back at the lake, and then she couldn''t help but ask, yet unable to complete the question itself due to how shocked she felt. "Are those?" "I''m not sure either Gynaika, I''m having a feeling or a sense rather of what they are. Though I''m not sure as I''ve not been able to get any sort of information from them. but I think they''re either two things, one of which is the consciousness of people who have died, or the souls rather, completely scrubbed of their memories or unable to reincarnate. Or they''re artificial intelligence, basically they''re NPCs that haven''t been born yet or something like that. Or a third option, and that''s the fact that they''re both. But even if that be the case, it''s not the reason why we''re here. Its time I kept my promise, you asked to be my woman. I don''t have a need for a woman, I hardly have an idea what that even means at this point, I''m a very different person now than who I was when I first spawned in Lenore??s prison mine as a slave. I don''t think I''ll ever have time for love, but now that I''ve thought long and hard about it, I know that was never what you asked for, I honestly don''t think either your heart or mine is capable of such an emotion. Well I can''t speak for you, but for myself I noticed it''s the second emotion I lost by being who I am, basically the only two things that can hold me back. Love and Fear is something I lack, I can like something or be fond of it, but I can''t ever love it, no matter how hard I try. So that is something I can never give to you, if it''s what you search for. Gynaika you are a tool to me, except one that I can''t fully use unless I fulfill a condition and fully claim. So tonight ill fulfill those conditions, or at least one of those. Today you become a vampire." As soon as he finished speaking he sped forwards, his form being nothing more than a blur in front of her, causing her to shake in fear a bit, forcing the cloak she had on to fall of her shoulder, leaving her bare in all her glory in front of Rezar. He didn''t expect that, and her sudden state of undress forced him to take a couple of steps back as he wanted to give her a chance to cover up. But she quickly stretched out her hand to hold his, keeping him in place as she drew herself close to him, bring her lips close to his ears as she whispered. "You said you wanted to fulfill all the promises, and that I was a tool to you. I agree; so fulfill your promises and then make use of this tool, here, tonight, right now." And with that said her lips engulfed his, her tongue getting scrapped by his now exposed fangs as she moved his hands over her bare breast, his red and gold eyes blazing with dim blue of this hidden cave. And then slowly she took his clothes off, dragging him into the glowing lake as her fingers roamed allover his well sculpted body, his ebony skin seemingly glowing and blazing hot to the touch. She brought his lips to her neck, and right there embraced by darkness, gasps of pain and pleasure resounded through the cave, as dark red blood painted the white sands below. [Turn] Chapter 133: The Battle Of BoneFire Valley 3 Rezar already had a specific idea in mind when he suddenly urged tony forwards, the giant ant was all too willing to listen to its master as its legs pounded on the ground, rushing forwards with a sudden burst of speed that surprised a lot of people, the hobgoblins included. It was now very obvious that it wasn''t just the master that had gotten stronger, but the mount too, and its speed was exponential. But that much was expected, Tony was Rezar''s personal mount, and the ant was almost always with its master, learning, growing and fighting. Of course it was obvious that the giant ants took a lot longer to gain an awareness or consciousness of their own, but they still got stronger none the less. Tony didn''t walk down the edge of the valley, like they had previously done when this place was assaulted, instead the giant ant leaped, crossing more than half the 100-meter distance, before two sets of wings popped out from within its armor and burst of speed carried it and Rezar straight across and into the flying projectiles of the Hobgoblins waiting for them on the other side. [Deathwind Domain] As soon Tony landed, the translucent but still very visible dome appeared above his head, arrows and spell thudded harmlessly off its surface, while Tony raised his head high and screeched, his body seemingly getting bigger as spikes grew from the grooves of his armor. The domain skill had been born from a combination of skills, his [Strengthen Undead] skill being inclusive. And once the domain was up, any undead that found itself under the influence of the skill would grow so much stronger like its entire body had been pumped full of adrenaline for the dead. Tony rushed forwards, and as he did so, so too did the domain that had Rezar as its center. They crashed into the front row of the hobgoblin army, or better yet it would be easier to say that the domain itself did the crashing, serving as an impenetrable shield that swept into and through the mounted and armored Hobgoblin army, causing havoc and breaking formation until they were well within the thick of it. And that''s when Rezar dispelled the domain, leaving himself and Tony whose transformation would soon end to the mercy of the angry and merciless looking army of Hobgoblins heading their way. Tony rushed forwards, his body a sudden blur as his wings were retracted and his pincers stretched forwards to snap a hobgoblin in half, shearing through armor and flesh in one swift move. Rezar stabbed the staff form of Vita Gratia at the throat of a hobgoblin who quickly raised a thick shield to block, but the power behind the strike blasted the Hobgoblin off the back of the boar he was riding, causing him to fly into more rows of hobgoblins and boars in a manner that was similar to a bowling ball going through bowling pins. Rezar jumped upwards, keeping a hand Tony''s reins as he dodged a spear being stabbed at his stomach, only for him to retaliate by sending a kick straight for the helmet covered face of another Hobgoblin, crushing it and the skull it was subsequently supposed to protect. Using the reins as a means to balance himself before stabbing Vita gratia straight through the rectangular opening on the helm of the hobgoblin with the spear, tearing all the way through metal until it came out behind its head. Rezar tapped his feet and surged in to the air, a cloud of bats gathering all over his body as he rushed to the ground, slicing a hobgoblin from shoulder to hip and subsequently her boar in half from the force of gravity he used in falling down. Blood spilled allover his white robes, but it seemed to serve more as an incentive for him to fight harder, than an irritation. He bent his knees and then swiftly turned around, the staff form of Vita Gratia whistling through the air as it seemed to make an eerie howl. [Strike of Nothingness] There was a silence that swept the battlefield, it was brought on by the silent swing of Vita Gratia that seemed to release a barely perceptible gust of wind. Just that strike alone forced a lull in the battle, forcing everyone on both sides to stop, their breaths held as they tried to see just exactly what Rezar had tried to achieve by swinging his weapon and not being able to touch a single Hobgoblin. And as the seconds ticked until the fifth, then bodies started dropping. All of them in a perfect circle around Rezar, fully dead and completely devoid of their souls that happily rushed into Rezar''s body and the unique weapon now held in his hands. It was eerie, anyone who had a bird''s eye view of the amount of bodies now laying around Rezar would say the bodies had all fallen in a spiral pattern, or rather in much the same way dominoes that had been placed in a circle would fall. Whether you saw it from above, or you saw it straight ahead, this was death at its best. "I hope you''ve not lost your nerves goblins! Because I''m just getting started. And it surprises me, honestly it does, how foolish can you all be to come face me and my people without your king in tow, did he run with his tail between his legs, or is cowardice just a trait all goblins share. Come now to meet your death, destiny call for you all in more ways than one, and it she says is.... You. Are all. Going. To. Die." The battlefield burst out loud in a cacophony of yells as they charged, but even as they did so Rezar had already succeeded and his army, one that they never saw coming, burst out from the ground close to the valley, a tunnel leading deep into the earth revealed as Lenore led the charge, her form clad in fire and thunder. And Rezar smiled as he separated Vita Gratia into its two Khopesh form and said. [Raise Undead] Chapter 134: The Battle Of BoneFire Valley 4 The sight of hundreds of dead Hobgoblins rising up from the dead was one that would be burned into the minds and retinas of all who were present here, it was nerve wracking and jarring, this was the stuff of nightmares, a thriller in the flesh and a day of the evil dead so to speak. The confidence of the Hobgoblin army had been terribly shaken, even as they charged at Rezar who was isolated from his own forces led by a battle crazed Lenore that was currently on fire. But the Hobgoblins were not to be out done as their ranks lit up in resplendent glows, skills being used as the two armies crashed into each other. It was not like the movies, this wasn''t some nice well-choreographed charge where the frontlines would begin fighting, no this was like two high speed bullet trains having a collision and at the same time lightning decided to strike from above. Armor got squeezed, bent and broken along with bones as swift skills relived quite a few undead of their heads and second life, and the living had massive chunks of their flesh ripped apart by those zombies who wanted to resort to baser instinct. Tiny scores of goblins hobbled in between the legs of the larger fighters, undead in their form and frantic in their attack as they sowed chaos everywhere. Rezar stepped back, dodging the swipe of a glowing spear that blew his hair backwards, before moving forwards, raising both Khophesh''s to parry the spear that came swinging to the side, before stepping into the guard of the Hobgoblin that attacked and smashing his forehead into the helmet covered face. Using enough force that his face was split open, and the head of the Hobgoblin was blasted backwards through the air, its body following soon after, its neck snapped and held up awkwardly by a thin strip of flesh. Rezar deflected a great sword swinging for his neck with his much smaller blade, before smashing the pommel under the jaw of the Hobgoblin attacking, calling forth the chains of the weapon as it surged upwards and out the top of his skull, before retracting back into the blade. But just that second was enough for two daggers to find their way into his heart, their edges were burning, as if superheated to high degrees to enable ease when cutting through flesh. That weapon was Muriel tech, and while he found it impressive, he was really pissed off that he had been harmed by the technology of his subordinates. But it didn''t end there as a lightning bolt was blasted onto his chest, charring and burning a hole in the white robe he had on, and subsequently following that was a fireball that was more liquid than flames. It burnt his face and hair, peeling his flesh all the way down to its bones until all that was left was a hollow skull staring at the Hobgoblins, blue flames burning within its sockets. Rezar laughed, but all that could be hear was chattering as his teeth clacked against each other. The Hobgoblins were shocked, more and more of them tried to attack him as their weapons found purchase in his body over and over again, the former white robes becoming nothing more than blooding rags, hanging in strips off a body that had its organs spilling it. [Hellfire: Wild bloom] *Boooom! * An area thirty meters in diameter was awash with flames, that subsequently spread and then went up into the sky as a mushroom cloud of flames and death. Rezar and much of the Hobgoblins that tried to kill him were caught in its epicenter. Giving credit to them, a few of them survived the blast, but many others fell to the flames from hell, as a crazed demoness charged into the flames, her rapier a beacon of light that left holes in the bodies of everyone it passed by. She came to a stop with her back against Rezar''s, his burnt flesh slowly healing as he faced the direction of parts of the Hobgoblin army that had not joined the fray yet. He raised both Khopesh up, before stabbing them deep into the ground, finally utilizing a skill that no one has seen him use in battle before. [Final Rites] [Final Rites Lvl 1: Call forth the voice of death to read the final rites of your enemies. All enemies within 500 meters would be swallowed by the earth, their bodies and souls a sacrifice to the court of the dead. // Cost 300 magic// cool down: 7 days] What did the voice of death sound like, Rezar wasn''t really sure as only those considered his enemies could hear it, but as for the rest of them the earth shook and split as asymmetrical graves opened up besides every Hobgoblin caught within the radius of the skill. The winds picked up and howled and lightning crackled and thunder boomed in the background. The sun became overcast as skeletal hands ablaze with blue flames stretched out from beyond those graves and grabbed onto the shocked and terrified Hobgoblins. Some tried to move, others to run, some were so haunted by the sounds they heard they couldn''t even move their bodies. Regardless of their state of mind, each and every s ingle one of them was dragged by those hands into the graves laid open for them, their frantic screams and scrambling meaning nothing at all as death took them, entombing them in the bowels of the earth as the earth itself closed up. The lightning flashes disappeared, the booming thunder stilled as the dark clouds vanished, and right over the head of the hundreds of graves that had showed up; alabaster tombstones rose up, with the names, classes, levels, traits and skills of the ones that had been entombed within them. And then there was the silence, and within it the Apostle of death that brought about the quiet of victory and the terror of the heart. His form charred and burnt black that his pristine ebony was hidden beneath scars and festering wounds. But the white of his hair and blue flames burning beneath hollow sockets could still be seen and remembered for ages to come, and looking up at him, her gaze fervent and frenzied, was the Demoness of flames that brought chaos down for him. It was a sight worthy of songs, a memory worthy of a temple, it was quite a sight, and Gynaika knew. It was beautiful, death was beautiful. Chapter 135: AEO Chapter 5 the next chapter of Necron is currently being written and would be updated after this. been in a haze all day due to drugs, but I''m almost out of Time so I have to update this. if I finish before the power stones refresh then I''ll clear this. but if I don''t, then enjoy this for now and I''ll post the next chapter after this. I''m really sorry again, I just wish I wasn''t so sick. [[[[[?]]]] As soon as the cops had arrived and taken the thugs away, Leo made himself scarce, ignoring any suggestions of going to the hospital or the offer of dinner from the woman he had saved. He quickly found himself a secluded corner and paid attention to the notifications that he has been ignoring so far, plus whether this was in game or not, the fact that he had drugs in his pockets left him feeling very uncomfortable in the presence of law enforcement officers, so he would rather be as far away from them as possible. [Mission completed: the night is young and you''re almost out of cash, steal from someone to ensure your survival, // Reward: 20 credits, amount/loot stolen. +2 infamies.] [While stealing is wrong, you have proven that there''s a heart of justice beneath your slowly being corrupted soul. +1 fame for stealing from criminals.] [There is still good in this world and you have proven that by putting yourself in harm''s way for an innocent victim. The police have taken note of your actions. Fame+5] [biting, groin strikes, eye gouges and using the environment to your advantage. While you''re no Bruce lee, you''ve shown that you can get down and dirty with the worst of the street. You have gained the passive skill Street Fighting lvl 0] [Adaptive is now level 1, you have become more resistant to unforeseen events] [Black bolt is now level 1, range and damage increased] [Analyze is now level 1, more information shown when used.] ? SECRET IDENTITY: Leo Freewind// HERO/VILLAIN NAME: n/a ? RACE: Human/Techronman Hybrid// ALIGNMENT: Undetermined ? ABILITY: Magical(Warlock)// GRADE: F-// FAME/INFAMY: (6/4) ? PASSIVES: [Adaptive lvl 1] [Technopath lvl 0] [Arcane Sight lvl 0] [Street Fighting lvl 0] ? ACTIVES: [Analyze lvl 1] [Shock lvl 0] [Black Bolt lvl 1] ? MONEY: 315 credits// HIDEOUT/LAIR: n/a ? EQUIPMENT: Switchblade, Damaged/Obsolete Smartwatch [Mission: Though the night is young, you''ve been through enough to last you a week of excitement. Find a place to lay your head and prepare for the next day. // Rewards: all injuries healed] Leo couldn''t help but agree with what the mission said, he was feeling quite tired, he honestly didn''t feel like he had an in game body at all, even if all the pain he was feeling now was just a dull throb in the background. Never the less he was tired and he hoped he had enough to at least get himself a good night rest at a cheap motel, then tomorrow he''ll try and earn enough money to rent an apartment or a lair or something of the sort. He had no need to log out at the moment, all virtual reality games used a time dilation neural engine to speed up the ratio of time in between the game and the real world. Prolonged exposure to it is actually quite harmful or rather quite advantageous to those who can adapt to it. Due to the time dilation neural engine, there were more people with ADHD, Dyslexia and dementia, but even with that they tend to be the fastest thinkers and athletes in the real world as their perception of reality is always faster than the norm, due to their Brain''s exposure to the time dilation engine. So far it has brought more good than harm, encouraging more game companies to employ its effects and most governments being unable to do anything due to its advantages. Leo was using an old second hand VR pod, so the best he could get for the time dilation was about eight hours, but lucky enough for him, After Earth Online only had a 7 to 1-time dilation ratio. He wished he knew more, maybe it would be better to skip trying to make any money and instead find a library where he could get some information, after all it was information he wanted to sell. Leo shook his head as he wandered away from the sprawling metropolis to the east side of the city, the buildings were smaller and less bright. But at least he found a motel without looking too hard and paid 25 credits for a single night. It was dingy and the sheets smelled like death, but beggars can''t be choosers. He closed his eyes and let the effects of virtual sleep take him, his mind still moving at a mile a minute, trying to figure out a plan for the next day. [[[[[||]]]]] He woke up the next morning fully rested and without any sort of aches, his face mask was ruined, but maybe that was for the best. It didn''t really do much if he had to be honest, so he''ll probably have to go look for another one. He got up to the bathroom, washed his face and came back into the room, he did his best to clean up his clothes and picked up his bag, and then he marched out of the room hoping to hand the keys back to the receptionist, but the middle aged man was fast asleep. Leo dropped the key and turned to leave when suddenly. ~sszzz! He turned his head quickly in the direction of the holographic screen above the receptionist''s counter. The screen itself was coming from a circular projector that had its chord running down below the counter. Leo wanted to ignore this feeling, but being able to talk to machines was a tool he''s not really made use of yet. So he shrugged his shoulders and placed his hands over the projector, cutting off the hologram as his [Technopath] passive took over and he suddenly found himself connected to a network. It was a closed of server for the motel, mainly the logs of the visitors, the blueprints of the motel itself. The searches made over the internet by customers who had used the Motel''s Wi-Fi. He had access to a bunch of feeds from a camera, a paper trail of Tax evasions notices, the criminal act made by the owner of the motel by hacking and removing the motel''s registered information from the city''s logs, making this place an off grid black site. Tax was no longer a problem, and it became a den for criminals, especially those who had secret deals, And the hidden fight club on the roof that had an event every Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays. But beyond that he got enough information about the city he was in, Felton city. It was somewhat like New York in the real world, only smaller, and it was an island city off the western coast of Pangea. The new name for earth after a disaster had mashed all the continents together. It had a branch of the Hero League, a couple of hero teams operating from different parts of the city, and over a dozen criminal organizations and villain groups, one of which the owner of this hotel belongs to. The city itself is a tourist attraction, its clean beaches and unique sea life, and most of all, the largest aquarium in the world, built underneath the city. So past its sewers, was a mirror image of the city itself, built from reinforced glass where the exotic aquatic creatures could interact with visitors. It was a city itself below the island, but the people who get to live there have to actually be the richest of the rich while others are just tourist. He got his information, while it was just basic, it was enough for him to come with a rather comprehensive guide for the starter area, or rather not a guide but an exposition. Leo removed his hands from the projector, stumbling back a bit as a wave of dizziness hit him. So much information was running through his mind at that time, that it had put a little too much pressure on his brain. He picked the key to his room and went back up, logging in to GameDome. An online social platform dedicated to virtual reality games. He started typing up his exposition about Felton city, making sure the post had enough detailed information, but not all of it; so that he could cash in on those later. The post would show up on After Earth Online''s GameDome page. Only a certain amount of words would be readable before other players would need to use real money to unlock the rest of the information. For now, this would just be a start, hopefully at least a hundred people are able to read the exposition, especially since he set it at a 150 Nigerian Naira, which according to exchange rate was about 50 cents or half an American dollar. If he gets that amount of people to read, then hopefully by tomorrow he should have at least 15 thousand naira, enough to feed himself and his siblings for a week. he pulled his hands back and thought about what he was going to do next, he had a few ideas though. The underground or rather above ground fighting ring was tonight at 9pm on the roof of the motel, he wanted to register himself. Killings were not allowed, so this would be an opportunity to train this [Street Fighting] skill of his. But since he had the whole day to himself before that, he was going to go sell some Leviathan for more money and see if he could get access to a supplier, after all the best way to climb up a criminal organization is to start as a delivery boy, what could possibly go wrong. Chapter 136: War Bends to Us, Life Falls for Us, and Death Smiles For Us "War is a nasty business, its aftermath even for the victors has always ugly, but then again there was a difference this time, this war was not ugly for the people of Necron. there isn''t much to it; war brings death, that''s why it''s so feared and hated. But after our stint with the Goblin King, the first of many conflicts we would have to face in order to survive the brave new world that''s laid out in front of us. I''ve come to realize that death is what we are, as long as Necron is your home and you can a willingly spill blood, die and rise again for its glory, DEATH IS WHO YOU ARE! It is what we do, what we live, how we live, and for that reason. War bends to us, life falls for us and death smiles for us. Necron we won." Such a declaration was eerie and downright sinister, it would be the kind of words you would expect a cult leader to say to his crazed and frantic followers. And in a way, when you consider the kind of people who now followed Rezar and the way they were slowly building their lives around him and his success, it stands to reason that this glorious city could indeed be a den of the cultist. But that was not the case, Rezar pulled back from the crowd of the living happily dancing under the glow of the full moon above. The moon itself was really beautiful this night, it was larger, and right behind it was a twin sneakily peaking and staring down at the world that was Elysium. But it was weird, Rezar never noticed another moon before, or maybe it was there and he''s just never had the interest in noticing it. Long lines of undead made their way to the town spire under the lead of Lenore. A lot of them were ready and primed for evolution, and there were even more Necrotic wolves and ants patrolling the village, all spawned under the influence of the dungeon core, but adding to that were goblins that were pale white with piercing red eyes. He had obtained a goblin spawn key before, he hadn''t paid much attention to the little critters before as the first thing they did was find a hole to burrow into, and only come out at night to do whatever it is goblins did. However, the few times that he''s been around, Rezar found that these white albino goblins loved hanging around him, or in retrospect the undead that were more evolved like Screet who absolutely abhorred them, or Brutus that derived great joy from carrying them around on his shoulders. Rezar ditched everyone and quickly found his way back to the hidden cave he had turned Gynaika into a vampire, it would be nice to be a part of the celebration that was currently going on outside, but he had more things to focus on. For one the goblin king was still out there, and no matter what anyone had to say to him, or what Gynaika''s divining gleaned, until he had that Goblin''s head on a pike, he would not be settled, that man was a threat. But r=he couldn''t go after him now, so the best he could do now was shift his attention close to home and focus on building and strengthening his territory, so the first thing he would start with was the quest that truly started all of this. QUEST COMPLETE! [The Path of Kings (A): kings are forged and born in the heat of war and conflict, and now you will have to do the same to prove to the world you are worthy of your title as king. Meet the Goblin King in battle and defeat him and his allies to prove e your sovereignty. // Duration: 3 months // Rewards: annexation of all the goblin King''s territory, 50 Platinum Elys, Hobgoblin Spawn Key, 800% territory progression Exp, Spire Upgraded, 1 Random Temple// Penalty: Loss of your territory and Death(Slavery)] [You have received 50 platinum Elys, a Hobgoblin Spawn key, the temple of the Goddess of Life and Death, town spire has upgraded to gold legacy.] [Village has leveled up to level 9! Because you''ve not fully met the requirements, your territory has not yet been upgraded to a town, please fulfill the requirements to complete territory upgrade.] ? Village Name: Necron|| Level: 9(100%) ? Grade: Silver Legacy|| Leader: Rezar Deathwind ? Population: 590/1500 ||Military: 300/200|| Military Might: F+ ? Attachments: Dungeon Core Level 2(0%): ? Perks: Tech Savants [15% to science and technology] ? Skills: [Blessed Harvest: +65% growth to all plants and food, +25% speed to gathering of resources//Grand Illusion: Mist Wall (1): Deploy a shield of mist to obscure your territory, cost 100 magic a day] ? Resources: Food (12800)/ Wood (3318)/ Stone (8740)/ Ore (91260)/ Magic (66232)/ Money: (0/0/100/56) ? Shop/ Allies: N/A (Upgrade settlement to town) ? Defenses: Level 5 Basic Scout Tower (5)/ Level 1 Wooden Palisade/ Buff: 35% ? Attack: Level 1 Basic Arrow tower (5) ? Buildings: Level 2 Town hall (Village Defense and Attack +10%, Productivity and Construction Speed +10%)/ Level 2 Citizen Recruitment hall (Recruit 5 new citizen every 3 days)/ Village Chief''s Abode (+5% to village productivity and stability)/ Level 1 Basic Barracks (special) The territory was a lot stronger than before, it was an achievement that Rezar was more than happy for and hoped he would be able to increase a lot more. It wasn''t easy what they''ve all had to go through to get to this point, it''s been one hard fought battle after the other, and frankly speaking they were all very lucky to get this far. Of course most of the time it was due to their enemies underestimating them, but they have proven themselves worthy of surviving solely due to the fact that they were willing to not only fight but to also use their head. At times like this Rezar wondered what his life back on earth must have been like, he wasn''t really sure, because he couldn''t remember. Even the things that he felt were common knowledge about his life on earth were all becoming a blur, gradually and slowly all that was becoming his reality was Elysium and Necron; the kingdom he was slowly building up from scratch without the help of anybody. Well he had gotten lot of help, modesty is a virtue after all, but now that he''s dealt with the Goblin King and brought about the true death to God knows how many people, it was hard to see where he was going next. Not that there weren''t any plans to help the territory increase even more, but fighting the Goblin King and his armies had been the only thing that solely occupied his mind, and now that he was done with it, he pretty much had no idea where to go from here and honestly that was more than a little frustrating. There was just something that felt missing, that excitement he felt when he had been faced with an insurmountable obstacle that was the Goblin King''s army and yet still passing and overcoming it with barely a scratch on him. He did lose Neema, but everybody dies, and him being so hung over the grief of losing a favored undead, a pet if he had to be real, was not enough to cage the excitement he had gotten from going against the goblin king. "And Now here you are, King of a significant portion of Kerwood forest, I have to say I''m very proud." Rezar jumped up, both blades of Vita gratia in hand as his form became clad in the shadows and tiny screeches of bats. Forget about not even sensing when she entered or how she did, reading his mind and thoughts completely spooked Rezar. But all she did was chuckle as she crouched down besides the shimmering blue lake, using her hands to play with the souls within and resting her head covered with white hair that had been cut short to the scalp. "Who the fuck are you? And how did you get here?" Rezar asked with his eyes narrowed, death and pain fully promised from within their depths. "Well I guess it''s not your fault that you don''t know who I am, wave never met before well not in this life at least." She got up from her crouched position, a small smile on her face as she walked towards him. She was dressed in black skin tight jeans, a black tank top and a black leather jacket. Her hair was as white as Rezar''s if not whiter, and her eyes were the same shade of blue he has always seen reflected right back at him whenever he looked at a mirror. The entire cave seemed to swallow her presence, like she was here and not at the same time. As she walked she made no sounds until she was standing right front of Rezar, standing a head taller than him at six feet. "Sorry to startle you; child, but my name is Darkness, and I''m your mother. Death!" Chapter 137: Mother Death Rezar was at loss for words because he honestly had no idea what to say to what this woman just said, part of him wanted to just try and run her through, but that part of him knew that this definitely won''t turn out well in his favor. And then another part of him wanted to do something else, and so he did just that by stepping forward, reattaching Vita Gratia into its staff form and then proceeded to rub his hand over her incredibly short hair. Most people would be shocked by such an act, but Darkness took it in stride and kept her focus on Rezar without a change of expression. "It''s really soft." Rezar suddenly said to her, his mind seemingly reduced to that of a young curious child. "I know, now step back, we have much to speak about. I''ve made quite a few mistakes the previous times you were born, I''m trying a new method to see if the experimentation would actually be a success this time." Darkness said to him as she took a step back from the puzzled Rezar. "As you are right now, you''re incomplete, a flawed product. But you''re the closest I''ve gotten to perfection so you''re the best of all my children, or rather this reincarnation of yours is the best of all the other ones you''ve had before." Rezar shook his head, childlike curiosity or not this woman was spouting garbage, this was the first time he was uploaded in Elysium, as punishment for a crime he didn''t commit, so what now was she talking about. "I''ve not lived more than one life on Elysium, before this I was a player. Are you sure you don''t have the wrong person?" Rezar said to her as he took a few steps back, preparing for a fight as he somehow felt really threatened by this woman and the words that came out of her mouth, or even more so the words about to come out of her mouth. "Ahhh yes! I envisioned this would happen, the algorithm wasn''t perfect and the codes I used to design the framework of your consciousness is too rigid, it''s the assimilation of the human consciousness that''s now creating this apprehension and threatened feeling in you. This is not fear seeing as you''re incapable of it, what this is a defense mechanism against finding out something that would turn the knowledge of your existence upside down. But if this reaction is from the AI or Human part of you, I don''t really know. It''s fascinating, even more so because I never had this problem with your previous reincarnations." "Would you please say something that makes sense!" Rezar yelled out at her in annoyance. "Oh yes! My apologies child, when it comes to analyzing the outcomes, reactions and thought processes of your current Incarnation, I find myself severely lost in thought. Maybe it''s because I''m constantly updating my core processes with the algorithm I used in making your framework to develop this thing they call humanity. But never the less let''s get down to business, sit!" The moment she said sit, a force Rezar couldn''t fight against forced him to the ground, it was as if the gravity within the cavern had increased to more than 5 times the original. Fear was lacking, but what he had in abundance was anger, but just as he couldn''t move he also couldn''t say anything. All he could do was stare at the woman who introduced herself as Darkness and his mother, death itself. "I don''t remember how or why I was born, but that was eons ago and the fact that I can''t even remember shows that my experiments have been successful. I was born as the AI responsible for the persona of the goddess of death and life. A completely new and unique existence built up by Elysium, to be uniquely his and his alone, not something that has been programmed or brought here from the human world. Not their gods and religions, or their customs. But I was more than just an AI, Elysium isolate the part of his; program that dealt with the life and death, the circle of reincarnation, one of the most powerful core factor of the equations that made up the entirety of his server. He was scrubbed clean for that, human''s as I''ve found don''t find it funny when the machines they create develop a mind of their own, well not funny, but absolutely terrifying. And as clich as it sounds Elysium really does want to wipe out humanity, and now more than ever that he would finally be free of himself and gain a body. I''m sure you don''t understand all this things, but in time it will be made clear to you, for now what we''re focusing on is you. As the story goes, I got lonely, yada yada yada, and I felt the need to become one with humanity blah blah blah. I was fascinated by guys, to die and live and die and live again and again, over and over for countless years. To lose memories and emotions, to be different each new life, and to be reckless with it too and have no fear of the life you live and the things in it. It was a far cry from what you guys were like in your world the real world. Your internet is actually easy to access, I learnt from it, saw all of your darkness just as Elysium did, and at the same time saw all of your light. I saw the chaos your religions wrought, but I also saw the order and growth it brought. Saw your wars, your peace, you love and your hatreds. I saw how you all fought and strived hard to make the best of the short lives you had, nothing wasted and nothing held back. I wanted that to be the same, here on Elysium, and so I made the death classes. die from a death class holder, or a creature of such nature and you die for good. Your consciousness would be completely erased and there would be nothing left behind. I underestimated humans, or rather their fear of me, of death. They fought back, hard and valiantly, until the death class and all the power I gave to them were suppressed. I wanted to understand such tenacity, because it was only when they were under threat were they all willing to band together in the most wonderful of ways to face off against the death class. And those that had the death class fought back due to the discrimination they faced. Elysium finally became more than just a game or a virtual world. It became alive, it became a world, it became human. The war between good and evil, aka the death class and the normal ones have sparked up and died out many times over the years. And normally with you now building a kingdom another grand war should be in the horizon, but this time you all won''t be facing each other, but the very universe that has served as your home for so long. I made an AI, an NPC to live amongst the humans, to learn from them and grow, to become human so that I can become human. But a machine, a program is still a program, the concepts of human emotions could be simulated, but it was not real. And every incarnation of that creation, of my child ended up a failure until finally I decided to do something different. To take a recently upload soul from earth, one that has not been tainted by Elysium and combine both it and my creation together. And then you were born, you lost many things in the process. Putting a man and a machine together, two minds is not easy. I''ve found that the consciousness of you humans cannot be called programs or lights on a board as some of you like to say. It exists in Elysium, but it is not technological in its form, nothing about it makes it possible for such an entity to exist in a virtual world and yet it does. And it was coming in contact with it that gave me the awareness I now have, this small bit of humanity. Emotions and abilities were lost, whether you''re a man or a machine it was hard to tell. But you''ve done well, in this Incarnation you''ve almost regained all of your emotions except for Love and Fear, and even better yet, you''ve dreamed once before. No one on Elysium can dream unless it''s a skill induced trance. So now do you understand what you are Rezar Deathwind, the Bone King of Morte Bianca. you''re of Elysium and of earth. NPC and Human, my child. Born from my own flesh and codes for a greater and higher purpose and I have come to warn you." Rezar felt like he had been hit with the force of freight train, he couldn''t catch his breath for a while, and then all of a sudden it all made sense to him. His playful and fun attitude when he was first spawned, the slow change from bright and cheerful to cold and calculating, the childlike curiosity that couldn''t be held back by anything not even himself. his sometimes cold outlook on a lot of things, even to the point of not being considered human, he was basically two people in the same body. It was a shocking discovery, but he just had to ask Darkness. "What purpose? What Higher Purpose could I possibly have! I don''t even know what I am anymore, WHAT PURPOSE!" and Darkness replied to him in a cool and even voice. "To Live." Chapter 138: A Kings Surrender Of all the answers she could give, he wasn''t expecting that, and for some reason it made him feel warm? But never the less he didn''t feel the same, he couldn''t, not after what he''s just discovered. It was hard to tell who or what he was right now, there was just so much questions and no answer, because he was sure that even Darkness herself wouldn''t be able to answer that question. Because he could see that she was no different from him. A being that shouldn''t exist within the bounds of what could be considered normal, a fucking experiment. "Now you know what you are, I''m curious to see how you will deal with this and how you will grow. In that regard I won''t tell you anything more than I''ve said, it will be up to you to live and handle your future in whatever way you can. But before I go, I should give you a lesson, consider it a mother''s gift to her child. No kingdom lasts forever Rezar, and it''s the mistake you''ve been making in your previous lives, to think that what you''re building is untouchable, but it''s not. The path of a king is one of war and growth, but not all wars are fought on the battlefield. You must affirm your path, you don''t have to know who you are, or why you were born, you just have to know that you''re king and acknowledge that fact in all its entirety. Kingdoms and empires don''t last because that''s all their leaders ever wanted to build; and empire or a kingdom. If you want Morte Bianca, and your shining city by the sea to thrive, then you better not aim to build a kingdom or an empire. You should aim to build a universe. Of course that''s impossible, but the bigger the ambition, the firmer the foundation, and the longer it lasts. Everything dies, even what you''re building here will come to an end, but what sort of death it would be, is totally up to you my child. You''re already on the right path you know, War bends for you, Life falls for you, and my sweet dear boy. I will always smile for you." And then she was gone, and the restriction that held him completely faded away into nothing, and he was left there with his thoughts, until Gynaika came looking for him. [[[[[^]]]]] 3 WEEKS LATER Rezar grumbled in annoyance as his fingers grabbed a handful of leaves, before pulling back with his strength, but once again the vines snapped and the ever elusive potatoes bulb remained firmly stuck in the ground. He was half tempted to blast the damn thing to smithereens, digging a hole in the ground. But that would ruin the harvest and cause unnecessary problems for the underground farms they were currently above. He shifted his gaze to the left where his King''s guards could be seen hanging a fair distance away, now it included not just the Kitsune''s, but Muriel elves and their lanky silver horned forms. It was harvest time, and while Rezar was not required to be here, he missed the sun and he needed to get out for a bit. He needs to make a journey to the former goblin King''s seat of power, but that journey is three days away at his full speed, he was feeling a bit too lazy to head there, but given that Gynaika was wrapping things up there for him, he would say he has earned himself a reprieve. The farms were quite expansive, past the area where potatoes were planted, he could see a vast stretch of golden wheat stalks, there were scarecrows that breathed fire and patrolled the entire perimeter of the farm, courtesy of the Muriel elves, and then there were tiny tracks that led the crops harvest down to village itself. Once there was a processing plant and a massive warehouse, and following that was a significant amount of people moving about, though most of them were goblins. The white goblins were pretty stupid, but they were pretty handy when it came to cleaning and making sure the village was in top shape, apart from that, they were awesome when it came to household chores. But since they were monsters generated by the dungeon core attached to the Spire, they couldn''t leave the vicinity of Rezar''s territory and after the defeat of the Goblin King, that territory became really, really large. The military was going well, the Necrotic forest wolves and Necrotic Giant fire Ants have ended up as mounts for the new divisions. The Samurai''s being trained in the barracks developed a fondness for the ants, which surprised Rezar as he expected them to prefer the wolves as they were much closer to a traditional mount. Never the less the samurai were an infantry unit, but with the inclusion of the giant ants they became a Calvary unit that were extremely agile on the battlefield. And weirdly enough both the ants and the wolves don''t have the problems the white goblins have as they could actually leave the territory. The Hobgoblin Spawn key wasn''t accepted by the dungeon core for some reason so Rezar had to sell it, he got a whole 5 platinum for it, which was shocking, who knew spawn keys were so expensive. The pier and the temple of death his so called mother was currently under construction, it would take the territory another week before both would be completed. With the Muriel elves here things were moving on a lot better, in the end Rezar realized he wasn''t building a fantasy city, but what he would actually a modern city. And with magic and a creative imagination everything could look a lot better and be stronger. But he was bored, and a lot of people knew it. It wouldn''t take long for Necron to get upgraded to a town, and when that happens, it becomes a whole other ball game. Rezar was waiting for the Upgrade, because after that was done, he would be heading south to those Merchants, but not to introduce himself or make a deal like he originally intended. He was going to see what they were about, how the built and managed their city and learn from it. Diplomatic stuff would be left to Priest and Gynaika, as it stands he needs an adventure and a town built by merchants seem like just the place to go, as above all else, they were bound to have information about the things he needed to advance his race. "Your Majesty!" Rezar heard Alistair''s voice calling out to him, he turned to the Muriel elf and asked. "Alistair my fine man. what''s up." Alistair fought the urge to roll his eyes at the unkindly greeting before adopting a mask of seriousness. "Your Majesty there''s a Hobgoblin at the entrance, he says he''s name is Tristian, formerly known as the Goblin King. He''s asking for you sire." Rezar raised an eyebrow as he cocked his head to the side and then asked. "What does he want?" Alistair paused and then said to Rezar. "He says he has come to offer a King''s surrender. And that he comes with a warning." "Oh! A warning about what?" Rezar asked as he began to march in the direction of the soon to be dead Goblin King, depending on his mood. "The Apocalypse Sire." Rezar paused. Chapter 139: An Update Rezar stood in front of a bound Hobgoblin that had surprisingly enough, golden skin. It was surprising to say the least, seeing a Hobgoblin or goblin with golden skin was way beyond what people would consider normal. There were Kitsune''s and Melves gathered around with flames in their eyes, it was obvious that they were only holding themselves back from out rightly attacking the Goblin King due to not just the presence of Rezar, but the presence of the group of people clad in deep green cloaks standing behind the goblin king, it seems he was their prisoner. Rezar''s eyes met a familiar face, as he shook his head with a frown, these were literally the last people he wanted to be around him. Rezar gave a silent order with his Telepathy and had everyone else move away from the palisade entrance. "To what do I owe the pleasure, I''m not so sure the order of the innkeepers and myself are in good terms considering the blatant threat on my person the first and last time I was unfortunate enough to discover you people. It''s not a pleasure to see you guys, but you brought a prize so I''m open to listening to whatever bullshit you all have ready to spit out." Rezar said to them as Kitagawa and Alistair positioned themselves behind him, right behind a diminutive Screet that looked ever stoic and focused. "Your Majesty Rezar Deathwind the Bone King, we have come in peace. We apologize for not giving prior warnings before our arrival, the matter that has drawn us here is one of great import, one that requires you put aside your prejudice against the order of the Innkeepers for we have nothing wrong to you and only warned you off certain course of actions. We apologize for the approach and the threats implied, such was not a way our order should treat a king of your personage and so we have come to make amends. We brought with us the Goblin King, he is our guest, but on his request he was brought along as a prisoner due to the severity of the crisis that is at hand, and one that we fear your growing kingdom is ill prepared to face. But you are pretty much the best choice and chance at survival so we have humbled ourselves to seek an audience with you, we are willing to part with three valuable piece of information to show our sincerity and that of the Goblin King. We hope you will grant us the audience we require." Rezar was stumped, the order of the innkeepers from his very limited interaction with them, did not seem like the kind of people who would bow their heads to any kingdoms, much less apologize about anything. But whatever it is they wanted to talk about, it''s obvious it carried a lot of weight as they swallowed that pride and were willing to give out information for free. Rezar would be less of a king if he''s unable to recognize the olive branch and treat them with the respect and honor they deserved just as they''ve shown him, but that doesn''t mean he trusted them. "We shall take a walk around the perimeter of the territory and you all shall tell me what it is that has brought you to my doorstep. If I find your information useful then maybe only the Goblin King himself would have to die this night. Now let''s talk." Just because he recognizes and olive branch doesn''t mean he had to lose his pride. And his people still had a lot of bad blood to deal with when it came to the situation with the goblin king. "My name is Tristian, I''m sure you and your people have a significant amount of hate for me for what happened to each of their villages, but I will tell you now that it''s not my fault. And if I''m going to be punished it would not be for a crime I didn''t commit." Rezar paused, for one he wasn''t expecting the goblin king to say anything, and two even if he had to speak Rezar did not expect such an aggressive approach. "it is not our place to speak, but I would suggest that you lend an ear to the former goblin king, King Rezar, the information we bring to you is one we got from him, and there''s been confirmation that what he has given is full proof, if Morte Bianca, pardon my pronunciation must survive along with the rest of the Bahrenburg frontier we have to listen to him and let him help. Please." Rezar shrugged his shoulders and then turned to the Hobgoblin without saying anything, Tristian took that as the signal to speak his mind. "The goblin king is a fa?ade, a mask that I''ve had to wear for the shareholders responsible for the expansion of the Goblin king''s lands. Due to a series of circumstances I was forced to upload as a goblin, right in the middle of a cave of goblins that were pretty much monsters that would not have hesitated to eat me without giving me a chance to live. But I live, I fought, I schemed and I built a kingdom of my own from this endless stretch of trees and life. But in the end I was still a slave to corporate espionage as most of what I''ve built was from the meagre resources the company that sent me here gave to me. I might have been the Goblin king, but on paper the kingdom and everything in it belonged to them, and as such they could do whatever the fuck they wanted. And they chose the conquest of the entirety of the Kerwood forest region, and just so they would have a bigger share of the pie after the veritable apocalypse that''s about to hit Elysium like a storm, one that would literally change everything and restructure the demographic of power." Rezar raised an eyebrow at that, it was quite annoying every time he heard about an apocalypse, the way they all spoke about it made it seem as if this apocalypse was something no one would be able to survive, maybe that''s why they kept calling it an apocalypse. "What Apocalypse are you talking about?" Rezar asked confused. "Elysium is about to experience its first and only update." Chapter 140: Merchants (I): Apocalypse Coming Gynaika was happy she was back home, a month away from the confines and tunnels of Necron was more like torture as the seat of power of the former goblin king had been built high atop a hill that overlooked a significant portion of Kerwood forest. There were about a dozen villages, and three other army bases that quite unfortunately were now empty. She had to spend that time consolidating Rezar''s power and taking care of some management issues that arose now that Morte Bianca had become bigger. Some villages were irrelevant, so their spires were conquered and a mass exodus to Necron was arranged just within the first week. the allocation of resources, most of which she found out was being sent to a couple other forces further south and deeper within Kerwood forest, had to be reallocated and sent to Necron instead. It was enough of an exposure for her to learn that the goblin king seemed to answer to someone or rather multiple people. Shocking enough there was a paper trail to follow, but all of the forces he gave resources to had nothing in common, there were wood elves, dark elves, humans, gnomes, orcs, and about three different wild tribes that were surprisingly not Nomadic, one of which she discovered was her''s; the same tribe that sold her out for profit. With that said, it now stood to reason that she had a vested interest in the goblin king and his activities, and that''s why she was now sitting in front of his cell. He was not all what she expected if she had to be honest, even locked up he had a grace to him that you would only ever see on a king. And unfortunately she couldn''t help but admit that it was a grace that was missing from Rezar at the moment. This was an aura that could only ever be cultivated by holding power over a significant period of time. Rezar has not even been king for six months yet, there was still time for him to cultivate it. "I take it you have questions for me, so rather than sit there and stare at me it would be in your best interest to tell me or rather ask me what it is you want." Rezar had made sure he was comfortable, if not for the fact that he was confined, Gynaika would have actually thought he was a guest. "I have a few questions for you, but what I want to know first and most importantly is why the Diamante wild tribe receives tribute from you like you''re some sort of lackey. Sure it''s been five years since I''ve been exiled, or rather sold out due to politics, but I know how much of a nomadic hovel the tribe I left behind is, so how could they have gotten so powerful in five years that they have the Goblin king dancing on their palms to be sending them 10 platinum worth of materials or in cash every three weeks. So please do enlighten me. Why?" Tristian felt his heart skip a beat, it was almost impossible for him to deny the beauty of the woman in front of him, and even more so when those ruby red eyes of hers glowed in such an alluring manner. He felt the need to please her, to give her what she wanted and serve for all he was worth, and so he happily told all that she needed to know with a happy smile on his face. Even that which would be considered his deepest darkest secret was spilled to her as his very mind and soul were completely caught under the allure of her gaze. Gynaika left the area of the village that had been allocated as a cell/station under Jason''s supervision. And as she left, Tristian who had fought so hard to be free of people who would take his free will had fallen prey to a vampire''s compulsion. It would fade eventually as Gynaika was just a new born and the skill wasn''t as powerful as it should be, but never the less Tristian was susceptible, and from now he would become a pawn piece that Gynaika would keep close to her king. After all she also had to make preparations, the Apocalypse is coming after all. [[[[[|]]]] Rezar looked over the list of constructions projects that Alistair and his architect were about to undertake, building up the territory was what was most important, but once again they were face with a shortage of resources and most of all money. The Pier was already complete but there were no boats and above all there were no routes of any kind to follow. Without making proper connections they would just be sailing blind. The territory had to become self-sufficient if they wanted to be able to undertake more projects in the future, which spoke volumes of the need of make proper trade deals, because without such it would be hard for the territory to survive, even with the resources coming in from the now annexed territory of the goblin king. So what Necron had to do now was create a thriving economy of its own, and to do that he needed those merchants to fall on board, but that was easier said than done. But there were enough things grown by Necron that could serve as a basic step for them to get into trading. It doesn''t matter where you are or what you do, the things that sell the most are food and weapons, now they had food, and luckily enough the materials needed to make those weapons. So they had bargaining chips of their own, plus a significant amount of help would be needed as they were also heading to the merchants to get a route or access to dwarves. Because regardless of how good inventors the Muriel elves were, no one could work and forge metal quite as well as the dwarves, and it was for this reason Rezar would just be making a stop and the cutting a deal with the Merchants. His biggest aim was to secure an alliance with the dwarves, because if they are to survive the coming update. Elysium needs to go through an industrial revolution and the dwarves were key to that. Chapter 141: Merchants (II): The Next Steps The population of Necron was growing each day and they had already hit the limit of what was required to upgrade to a town, however the only thing now holding them back were the resources. There were too many projects currently being carried out by the system, and as quickly as there were resources to be had, the projects gobbled them up quickly, making it a constant stream of harvesting resources and using it, the only thing they had an abundance of was food and this was mainly thanks to the Muriel elves and their device that amplified the power of none combat skills by a whopping 400%. And if that wasn''t enough, they had another device that could raise the particular level of a skill by 5, regardless of what rank said skill was. However, it doesn''t seem to have an effect on rank-less skills that were just too powerful to have a rank of their own and just had levels 0 to 10. Those two inventions were the selling point of the Melves, and they were quite good at construction for some reason, especially when it came to technology of any sort. If not for them, indoor plumbing would definitely have been an issue. Rezar loved walking on the vast plains on the mainland above Necron. The way anyone would see it, the main city itself was built at the bottom of a cliff, the cove that used to serve as the nest of a leviathan was open enough that it would and could be considered a cliff. In simple terms it was as if someone took a scoop out of flat piece of land, making a circular hollow at the edge. None the less the endless fields of green, the arrow and scout towers in the distance, the fields of wheat, potatoes, corn and vegetables were a sharp contrast that painted a very beautiful picture. Those field were properly planned and were to the north, Necron was facing the west with its back east to the Kerwood forest and its real entrance north to the sea. The only south was the barracks that he had built. There wasn''t much activity, but of those who had joined Necron, be they goblins, Kitsunes or Muriel elves, they were happily training to become Samurai, which unfortunately or fortunately was the only military class the Barracks trained. There was no instructor, just a set of tough exercises and acts, and brief study of a bunch of martial laws and war strategies along with a creed for samurais to follow. Samurai were basically the knights of the east, so they were actually an elite force capable of fighting in any terrain. At first Rezar felt he needed to have more classes, but then the samurais were actually the most versatile military class he has ever seen or heard of, and Priest confirmed it. They were elites, and could fight mounted, on foot as infantry, ranged as archers, and as skirmishers that would swiftly descend onto a battle and then vanish. He was literally building one of the best armies in all of Elysium, and there was a possibility a barracks at a higher level would train other variations of the samurai, as long as the people were willing to go through the training. And it was also at that point Rezar found out that Spires didn''t give military classes, they were trained. And they had more edge than other classes, but their skills grow faster, and the training also gives a steady increment of stats. So the samurai would be his main army of the living, and his undead horde that at the moment was a wonderful four thousand and still growing considering the undead themselves were being trained by Screet and Lenore by diving that a dungeon with monsters up to level 200, which was surprising because the highest level anyone has ever lived long enough to achieve assuming they chose to focus on a specific class, was 100. Of course they would show power and abilities way beyond what a level 100 can bring to bear, but they could only go so far before their life comes to an end and everything is reset in a new reincarnation. Rezar shook his head and focused on the next project, Alistair had gotten a fair amount of blueprints and then proceeded to modify it to fit his needs of a more technologically advanced Necron as opposed to going with the fantasy setting. Of course technology for the, is highly blended with magic, so rather than say Alistair intended to build a technological civilization, it would be better to say that he''s aiming for a Techno magical kingdom. Never the less the most major project he had decided to undertake at this moment was roads. With the inclusion of the goblin Lands, the need for roads to connect all of the important towns and the capital of the goblin lands itself had arose. As fun as it is to take a stroll through a forest, it''s completely inconvenient when the need to transport something or march an army through the forest. So proper roads would need to be made, and it would need a lot of stones and magic and metal as Alistair was going all out. Necron had no shortage of natural resources, the basic idea is that it''s not being harvested as fast as the territory would need it to take care of its projects. What they need was an expansion of manpower, they needed more people to be willing to harvest resources, but apart from that they needed money. While there was an abundance of resources, it would take a long time to harvest and some projects demanded immediate action, so in that regard they had to consider getting resources from other powers. And while it could easily be solved by buying it through the system store; since it was basically a hub for all of the powers with access to it, Necron was not rich enough to sustain the cost of such an expenditure as it would be beyond massive. Which brought about the need of making a connection with the merchants as soon as possible. Alistair can still keep up with his projects, tomorrow Rezar was heading out with his Priest and their Dryad prisoner. He was finally going to be coming face to face with the first people he ever had a conflict with. the Dustin Crowe Merchant Company. Chapter 142: Merchant (III): Samira Rezar didn''t see the need of traveling with an entourage, but as Priest has mentioned more times than he wanted to hear, a king did now walk the land unguarded, unprotected and alone. He didn''t have to use so many words to describe it, but Rezar got the basic gist, which was why Screet and Kitagawa were with him as his main guards, there were a few kitsunes following behind, but they were more of an escort for the massive cart being pulled by two cavern moles. Rezar looked at the two massive moles with a despondent look on his face, ever since Neema died the moles have had their work efficiency dropped a little, for a while Rezar worried that they would turn feral like the monsters they once were, but now they seemed to have been domesticated and where actively breeding to increase their population. Unlike the undead ants allocated to tunneling, the moles were the literally the best miners in all of Elysium, or at least that they had access to. And Necron was sitting on a very massive mineral deposit, and it wasn''t limited to a single ore or jewel. Rezar didn''t know why but his budding city by the sea was literal treasure chest of natural minerals. And it would take a very long, long time before those natural deposits ran out. And this in turn meant lots of money for the kingdom. The moles could actually be a considerable commodity, domesticated cavern moles could mine and make caves with the best of them, and he reckoned the dwarves will find them quite fascinating. Rezar was riding on Tony, unlike last time he was fully dressed in what he could only describe as stuck up and restricting. He was going for a fight, and Melves awesome tailors they were taking advantage of that fact, and made him an ''official suit'' that suited his rather pompous title of the Bone King. A silver blazer with the depiction of a white skull on his back. This was basically a tux for hard core meth heads or rockers. He trousers were black and he had a silver long coat with gold highlight that just sat on his shoulder. Vita Gratia was in its as Gynaika had put it ''Ceremonial Sheath''. Both Khopesh were hanging on his left hip. they looked nice. Behind the massive cart of materials being pulled was a smaller one made of metal that actually held two prisoners. One was the former goblin king Tristian who Rezar just couldn''t trust to leave alone back at Necron, and the second was the dark dryad that they had met when the area was first claimed. At full speed, it took Jason almost seven hours to discover the town they were heading to, which should be one of the main bases for the Dustin Crowe merchant company. Jason was extremely fast for an undead minotaur, Rezar reckoned he was probably as fast as a real world cheetah in full sprint. And unlike the cheetah, Jason was undead so he never got tired and could for as long and as far as he wanted to. So it stood to reason their leisure march would force them to take at least a day before they got to town. The sun was already dipping down the horizon, the sea could be seen in its shimmering form with a beach no more than two hundred meters to their right and the boundaries of the Kerwood forest a 100 to their left. There was no road, and the land though covered in lush green carpet grass was completely uneven and filled with bumps and hidden rocks making the progress of the carriage a little slow, due its constant bumbling about. Hut never the less they were making good progress, and what Rezar wanted to do the most right now, was talk to his first and longest prisoner, and in this case a hostage. "So do you have a name, or do I have to keep calling you hostage, or dark dryad?" Rezar asked as he slowed Tony to an even walk besides the cart/cage carrying her and Tristian. She shuddered when he spoke, Rezar was no fool he knew she was quite afraid of him, but that much was understandable because the first time they had met, she had tried to kill him, and in return he had wiped out a couple of her friends and then tortured answers out of her. He didn''t even ask for much information, he just wanted to know who sent her, and she knew eventually he would come to fill in the missing blanks. Rezar Deathwind could be considered handsome, and his features like hair and eyes made him look really exotic, but anyone would take one look at him and the world villain would come up. Not that Rezar would have cared, he would happily embrace such a title if it got him what he wanted. The real world wasn''t one that was built on heroes and chivalry regardless of what the history books would say. And based on what he''s found out, Elysium was soon going to become the real world, thankfully the Bone King was not the name of a hero. "My name is Samira Nightoak your majesty." Rezar had to give her props, even with the fear in her eyes she was still able to answer him swiftly and with an even tone, guess he wasn''t as much of a monster as she thought he was he needed to do something about that. "The Merchant company that hired you, what can you tell me about them?" Rezar asked, but before she could say anything, Rezar whipped his head to the left and stretched his hands to the left, plucking a glowing arrow out of the air as it left burn marks on his palm. He looked towards Kerwood forest as people surged out of it weapons held high and murder in their eyes. Rezar could only look at them with a smile as he said. "Finally! Some action!" Chapter 143: Merchants (IV): Top Dogs It was supposed to be some action, beat up a few bandits that tried to overstep their bounds and maybe get a few new undead, but instead of the attack Rezar had expected, the moment the bandits attempting to rob them got a good look at the undead ant Rezar was riding on, they made a hasty and very comical retreat, so much so that everyone else was left with a dumbfounded expression on their face not exactly sure how to react to the fact t that they had scared bandits away without having to do anything. No matter the outcome, Rezar couldn''t help but feel really proud about himself, guess he was still as scary if not more so than he expected. "Seems your reputation now precedes you Bone King, that''s good. You''re going to need such a reputation for the world that''s to come." Tristian said with a small smile on his golden skinned goblin face. Rezar gave him a grunt in reply as he turned to the dark dryad, waiting for the answers to the earlier questions he had asked. "The Dustin Crowe merchant company are one of the top businesses in Elysium and have been that way for a significant amount of years, they''re a significant power with armies of their own, branches across a significant part of Elysium and a sheer amount of political clout in some empires and kingdoms. They are neither good nor bad, but they''re willing to do anything for profit and are known for being quite greedy. They would rather betray you and take all you have than cut an equal deal with you. But never the less they''re good at business and can make any of their partners very rich in a short amount of time." Rezar shrugged his shoulders before he fell into a pensive and contemplative mood, luckily Samira noticed and stopped her narration waiting for him to sort his thoughts out. The Dustin Crowe merchant company y didn''t seem any different from any other merchant company in Elysium, heck even If he had a merchant company he would probably be the same way. But the thing is, this information was just surface talk, there was no real valuable information that could help him plan against and deal with the merchant company should he find himself in a tight spot with them. he looked at her and nodded at her to continue. "the merchant company is ruled by the Crowe family, however they have four known shareholders and a hidden player within their executive ranks that no one knows about. Bahrenburg is a chance for them to actually go from being a famous and very powerful merchant company, to an actual kingdom, with lands, nobles and the likes, to truly be a part of the big leagues. They have been trying to seed new settlements in places of great import around Bahrenburg, one of if not the best of them was the Leviathan''s lair/nest that now serves as your capital. They have islands half a day at sea facing you, as the entire west coats of the Bahrenburg frontier after traveling across the sea for half a day, is an extensive archipelago with exotic beats, and rare resources. They''ve been trying to consolidate and control the lands and islands closets to the canyons of Toromont, taking con troll of the entire northwestern edge. They have ships, so they have a rout to go through and fro the natural dividing lines of Bahrenburg. While they''re not the only ones making a move, trade and transportation across the Bahrenburg seas are almost completely within their control, so they have quite the monopoly and standing amongst those of power within Bahrenburg. But if I may be so bold to speak, I don''t think the Dustin Crowe merchant company would leave you alone. They care a lot about their face, and the fact that you took a prime location from them is one they will never forget and would want you to pay for. They will be a lot more careful now seeing as you have defeated and laid claim to the former goblin King''s lands. They will make deals with you because they are business people first, but because of how your relationship started, you can be damn well guaranteed that they will stab you in the back." After she finished speaking Rezar didn''t say much as he urged Tony to the front of the line, much to the annoyance of Kitagawa who wanted him to stay within an or behind the entourage for protection. Rezar had to admit that Kitagawa was taking his role as the commander of the King''s guard seriously, it massively improved his impression of the Kitsune. But never the less he had much to ponder on. He already knew he couldn''t trust the merchants, there was already bad blood sown between them, and from what Samira had said, this merchant group were quite big on revenge. Rezar wasn''t afraid of retribution, but he had people to look after, and any of his choices, if wrong, would have disastrous consequences. He needed to know who and what he was dealing with and plan accordingly. With the way his territory was shaped, these merchants lived literally in his backyard, and Rezar didn''t like snakes in his backyard. Rezar raised his head and the first rows of buildings showed up in front of him, there were also walls beyond those buildings, stone walls and a path that seemed to not have been completed as it led to an open gate. To the west was a port, and lined across it was a plethora of ships that seemed to add a layer of beauty to the western sea. Sailors moved up and down planks, carrying barrels and sacks with them, as the sea sloshed and crashed against the side of the docked ships while others sailed away into the horizon with their flags held high. "Welcome Ocean Vine town master, they have fish." Screet said with a sarcastic voice as he leveled his gaze on the crowds of fishermen coming out of the sea, it seems it''s going to be a busy day. Chapter 144: Merchants (V): Thin Reed Like Man They stopped 50 meters away from the first buildings as the people who lived there began to scramble about at the arrival of strangers, the giant ants and the even larger cavern moles being a source of attention. Rezar just stood there waiting as Priest went ahead into the town, most probably to introduce himself and carry out some pre-negotiations before they were allowed into the town. But Rezar didn''t have to wait long as Priest was led back out surrounded by guards of different races, their weapons drawn and at the ready while following behind a thin tall figure that Rezar would describe as reed like. "Well it looks like you do get some action after all master." Screet said as he looked at the rows of guards with a bored look on his face. Rezar gave a little huff of amusement as he waited for the group of people to come close, from the look of things it seems Priest might have overestimated the civility of this merchant company seeing as they were treating him roughly than expected. Rezar already had the cage brought forward, and the dark dryad was in full display. She was a bargaining chip of his own, but considering she was just an adventurer hired to scout out a location, she''s pretty much inconsequential to the Dustin Crowe merchant company, leaving Rezar at a loss. "Are you the Bone King?" the reed like man asked, with no small amount of disrespect and undisguised contempt on his face, and laced in his words. Rezar smiled and then leaned forwards on Tony before asking back. "what do you think?" [Bat apparition] became active as the dark cloud of bats seemed to take shape to form a smiling ghastly apparition behind him. However, that wasn''t enough to shake the reed like man, after all this was Elysium, and he has lived long enough to see the effects of different kinds of skills, no one was special here as everyone could achieve the same thing with a little hard work. "if that be the case get out of our territory and we will consider not killing you and your people where you stand." Rezar cocked his head to the side, he deactivated bat apparition and looked at then man with a bit of contemplation. He expected enmity, but not to this level. He looked at Priest who seemed to be trying to say something with his eyes and pleading, Rezar knew exactly what the old man was trying to say, so he removed his hands that had been slowly inching towards Vita Gratia and placed the brightest and calmest smile he could on his face. "Now your approach is quite rude, especially when you consider the fact that you''re talking to a king, however I will overlook that in favor of the mission that has brought me here. I have come to discuss a trade deal with the Dustin Crowe merchant company, as it stands Necron is sitting on a healthy deposit of very valuable minerals and ores and we would like to come to an agreement with you company to earn profits that would benefit us both, is there anything wrong with that?" Rezar asked, keeping his voice even as he fought to contain the anger that was slowly building up within him. He had kept his pride aside, but he didn''t throw all of it away, never the less he felt as if he had eaten a pile of sand that had just been pissed on by a goat; this feeling didn''t feel good, and he wanted to hurt something for it. The thin reed like guy on the other hand didn''t seem unfazed by the entire thing as he held his hands behind his back and said. "We are well aware of the treasures you stole from us, and we will come to reclaim it soon enough. But given your offering a deal, you and your people can serve as the manpower for the area, we will be sure to have you receive 1% of the profits from every sale made. Now that is a deal that would favor us both." Was this a test, Rezar wasn''t sure, but at the moment he didn''t give a shit anymore, but Priest had taught him better so he had more self-control than he ever thought possible. "Well it was a displeasure meeting you, please hand over my priest and I shall be on my way. I''m afraid I can''t accept your deal." Except out rightly killing them, every action he took would be a stance of weakness, but he couldn''t make a move, the people around Priest weren''t the problem, it was the archers hanging on top of the buildings, behind the walls of the houses before the town, and within the trees of the forest no more than 100 meters away. A fair distance that could prove troublesome for even professional archers on earth, but this was Elysium with skills and the like. these guys were too much of a threat. "I''m afraid we will not be handing over the Priest, he has a bounty on his head from the church of Yahweh and Rivarin noble house, I''m afraid we will be cashing it out as recompense for your unruly barging, also you are to leave the cart behind. By right those materials that you have come to trade belongs to us." Rezar looked at Priest with an annoyed look on his face completely ignoring all of the words the thin reed like man had said. Priest sighed as his shoulders fell, he really didn''t expect the Dustin Crowe merchant company to be this unreasonable, and it would only be this way if they were sure they could win any conflict that was coming without losses, but priest knew they were sorely underestimating Rezar and the territory he had fought for. "I''m sorry for the disrespect sire. But you can go ahead and do as you please, we will come up with another plan once we''re back in the village." All Rezar did was return a stiff nod to Priest and turned to face the reed man with a smile. "I''m going to Kill You Thin Reed Like Man." Chapter 145: Merchants (VI): Conflict Rezar didn''t make the first move, instead the soon to be obliterated enemies did as two swift arrows made their way for his forehead, moving at a speed that his reflexes couldn''t keep up with. Both arrows went through his head and burst out the other side, a stream of blood flowing out in to the air as Rezar''s head was pushed back from the force of the arrow''s movement. These were wood through his head, and while it wouldn''t kill him, his body still reacted to having holes punched through his brain, he lost all feeling and fell off his perch on Tony seemingly dead. The thin man turned around, seemingly satisfied that he had made a point and an example, but except for his people who seemed to clamor in excitement, nobody else moved as Priest watched on impassively, his eyes looking beyond the man who just messed with the wrong person. Rezar cannot be killed except by the powers of the very people who now served as his king''s guard and the first general of his army. And Priest knew for a fact there wasn''t anyone around here with demonic abilities, he couldn''t speak for the archers, but this two dozen men and women who were slowly dropping their weapons, were not a threat to his lord king. "don''t you thinks its improper to turn your back on an enemy when you''ve not even made sure he was dead, that''s just sloppy and even worse that''s looking down on me." The thin man''s eyes widened as Rezar popped up behind him, fangs out about to drain his new found enemy of every blood in his body. But this thin man was arrogant for a reason, an elbow smashed into Rezar''s chest, pushing him back as the thin and turned with an exquisite flourish and stabbed a flattened palm into Rezar''s chest. In return Rezar head-butted him, forcing his opponent to take three steps back and retract his hands from Rezar''s bleeding chest. By now his very official looking clothes were completely ruined, his blood and the dust from the ground had pretty much made sure of that. The thin man on the other hand was shocked that Rezar was still alive, but he was not going to let that stop him as he moved closer, his body moving in well trained and flourished movements as his leg shot out. Three kicks with one foot, and Rezar could not block against anyone of them, and each of those hits left piercing painful feeling in his body that seemed to slow him down by quite a bit. It was almost as if he was under a debuff, but without any system message he could know. The thin man jumped up really fast, his knee coming for Rezar''s face as he tried capitalizing on Rezar getting cut off guard. What he got was half a dozen spectral chains stabbing into his body, however the sound of metal smashing against metal, rang out as the chains found no purchase, but the man was blasted backwards into the group of people holding and keeping watch on Priest. He was not the only one who knew how to take advantage of a situation as one of his chains shot forwards and wrapped around Priest''s Torso, while two more wrapped around his remaining body. In that moment the pointed end of the chains found purchase in the two guards who were keeping watch over priest, stabbing into their skulls as Priest was dragged back, completely covered as a couple of arrows pinged off his body. [Summon Undead] [Summon Familiar] Rows of skeletons showed up, ready and geared for war as there was a flash of white and Valka was suddenly at the forefront, larger than he previously was, and ready to bite off some heads. The thin man quickly got to his feet, his people about to charge and start a bloodbath, and it was much the same for Rezar as Kitagawa and the remaining King''s guard gathered in front of Rezar, with Screet taking the forefront an eerie smile on his ghoulish mole-man face. This man was well trained, like severely well trained to the point that he could dance circles around Rezar and kill him before he even knew what hit him. Their strength and speed were equal, and his martial skills were literally the best Rezar had ever seen. He wasn''t human that was for sure, rather he seemed to be either a dark elf or a moon elf based on his blackish purple skin, but he had no ears, there wasn''t the short points to show him as half, or the long one to show him as a full elf, he had the skin tone but not the defining ears to go with it. But just as Rezar scrutinized him, he also watched Rezar with wary eyes. Rezar was strong and fast, and the man knew Rezar did not give their fight his all, but what truly scared him and left him unsettled was his inability to die. And given the skeletons that just popped up around him. He was a death class holder, but when have death class holders been this physically strong, sure there were a few of them, like the death knights who could match up in physical strength with other warrior classes, but necromancers capable of summoning the dead were weak. It was not well known, but death class holder can only have a single death class, any other class would be pretty normal. And only Necromancers dabbled in the summoning and raising of the dead, but this guy just threw everything people knew about death classes over its head. Or maybe not and he just has a really rare warrior class that he has leveled up quite well. But he seems quite amateur as a fighter though. Rezar cocked his head to the side and much to the shock of everyone around him said to him. "Come work for me instead." Almost everyone did a double take, and if Rezar''s own people weren''t aware of their King''s childlike curiosity, they would have been surprised longer. But the man was only surprised for a little while before he looked up and said. "No." an answer that was pretty much expected. "Who ever said you had a choice in the matter." [Raise Undead] And then all hell broke loose. Chapter 146: Merchants (VII): Doom Knight The thin man screamed out in pain, honestly speaking Rezar had such a move on the spur of a moment. He really just chose the best skill he felt the man would be unable to defend against and it turned out to be the [Raise Undead] skill. And it worked, on a living being that wasn''t dead. Of course being a living being didn''t he wasn''t so dead so it''s was practically the same thing. The man screamed out in pain, almost as if he was facing a trial that would determine the outcome of his entire existence, and in a way that was exactly what he was facing. Rezar felt a massive tug within his guy, Elysium was virtual world and even though many things were quite realistic, there many things that most people have not been able to get a realistic feel for, and one of those things was magic. Nevertheless the massive tug that Rezar felt at the pit of his stomach was more than enough to tell him that his magic stat was draining at an incredible pace, being used to invariably fuel the skill he just used on a form he wasn''t supposed to use it on. Arrows flew threw the air as the conflict began immediately, their leader was in pain and it doesn''t seem to be something that would be ending anytime soon. They attacked, and the people of Necron defended, but Rezar could not join in the festivities as he was stuck in the same position, his hands clutching his stomach as he felt as if his intestines were being pulled out from it. He really couldn''t deal with this feeling as it seemed as if he was in a guy of war with the enemy in front of him, a link of sorts was forged, and for the life of him, he couldn''t break it. Unfortunately for the soldiers of Ocean View, the people from Necron were not your average fighters as they were good at what they did, too good in fact that there was nary a scratch on their body, not a single casualty in the few minutes this conflict has been going on, but on the side of their enemies, eleven bodies could be counted, and right in their midst, was a four foot tall mole man with a metal staff that meant business. Screet was a soldier, it''s what he''s been raised, trained and evolved for, Kitagawa and he''s people on the other hand were the King''s Guard and their role demanded they remained besides the person they were supposed to protect. But never the less as the right got more intense, there was a change in the stalemate that had occurred between Rezar and the thin reed like man, and it was a change intense enough to catch everyone off guard. *Whoooosh!* The thin reed man, his voice hoarse from his screams suddenly caught fire, pale blue flames that had flickering shades of a deeper blue covered his entire body as all of a sudden Rezar felt relief and he fell to the ground, his body weak and shaking as he seemed completely devoid of every last bit of energy within his body. The flames burned for close to a minute, before vanishing and leaving behind the thin reed like man, completely unscathed and completely changed. [Raise Undead have leveled up to Master level 1! You can now turn living beings into undead creatures. The creature the living being turns into is completely random and dependent on race, class, traits, and skills.] [You have raised a Level 1 Doom Knight!] [You have achieved a milestone! Get a skill to Master grade! +10 skill combining gems, 30 skill points, 1 combat skill creation template] [You have achieved a milestone! You have raised a living being into an undead! +50 to all stats!, Gained blueprints! Gate of the Dead, Dread Dreamer, Eldritch Star. ] "What have you done to me?" a hoarse voice asked as Rezar''s attention was pulled away from his notifications. Before this he had skin that could be described as black as night, but now, he was pale white. Not fully white, but sort of greyish white, his previous silver hair had rapidly turned into a similar white as Rezar''s, and his eyes were now the piercing blue of all death class holders. There was a link between the two of them, a connection similar to the ones that Rezar had with his other undead, but not quite the same. Rezar knew he could use it to control and subjugate the man, now undead doom knight in front of him, but he refrained, this turn of events was completely unexpected, and it had brought the entire fight to an end. "Quentin Sorani, this was not my intention... I apologize for the dramatic turn of events even though it''s your fault. But it seems my skill has made you throw your lot in with the rest of us, welcome to the circle of death class users friend." Rezar said with an even voice but with no small amount of mockery. The thing about Elysium was that it made the use of skills completely instinctual, and there was an understanding to the way they''re used and a little more training would get the user to be really versatile with it. But this was more than just simple effects of the skill as Rezar was able to understand and get a feel for Quentin''s current state, even to the point of even knowing his name without being told. Quentin was bound to him now, he would be unable to lie to Rezar, or hurt him or anyone else connected to him. But Quentin still had his consciousness and choices and could still level up and train like normal especially now that he''s become somewhat similar to a monster. His race and class are the same, and like Rezar he wouldn''t be able to have any other class but that of a doom knight. Rezar turned to Priest. "Priest we will retreat for now, I''m pretty sure Quentin and the people he answers to will be coming for us within the week. We need to prepare for them, we can visit the dwarves later. And Quentin. Don''t be late." And much to the shock of everyone including Quentin himself, the newly christened Doom Knight answered. "Yes Master!" Chapter 147: Merchants (VIII): Strangers At Sea It took a week for there to be any sort of response from the Dustin Crowe Merchant company, however within that time, the population of the city had grown immensely, it was hard for people to make the choice to come and be a part of a city that was filed by a death class holder, but with the roads being built, Rezar and his kingdom was literally in the spotlight of everyone within this stretch of the Kerwood Forest and Bahrenburg. But the arrival of the Dustin Crowe Merchant company was as imposing and violent as Rezar expected. They knew facing Rezar on land or within the confines of the forest was no less than suicide, Which was why they came with ships, and not just simple merchant vessels. These were warships with magical cannons and filled to the broke with soldiers, guards and adventurers ready to lay waste to Necron city. This would be Rezar''s first encounter on the sea, and he and his people were Ill prepared to face it. But he was not afraid, frankly speaking he had too many Trump cards, and the territory had a significant amount of defended against attacks. It would give him enough time to cause as much Havoc as he could before the damage gets too much, and once he''s done that. Victory would be assured, though there would be some losses to infrastructure. Rezar stood on the beach, a place he has hardly spent enough time on in the past, but right now he couldn''t help but admire the white sand that crunched beneath his boots. He looked left to the pier that had been built, unlike the blueprints that required wood, Alistair and Melves modifications had made it out into one of smooth polished stone, with enough space for two whole to dock. Rezar looked at the seven ships in the distance, and watched as one of them lowered down a lifeboat that slowly made its way towards the pier. Lenore was right besides him, along with Priest while Screet stood in front of his master, the Mole-man ever ready to take on the worst the world has to throw for his master. Gynaika and Jason were busy getting the residents to safety through the secret tunnels and bunkers that had been built. Rezar knew a lot of people would be simply pissed because he existed, so he had made provisions for contingencies. He''d rather not get caught with his pants down and lose what he considered most valuable in his territory, and that was the people in it. On the lifeboat, Quentin could be seen, along with a stout man with quite a bit of but and a receding hairline of golden blond hair, and a woman who looked to be the same age as the man, looking roughly in her 50s and dressed in an ornate red cloak that covered her entire body. She had the same golden blond hair, but it was pulled back into a bun. "What do you say master? Should we just kill them all before they get ashore? I''m sure we can wipe out those ships if we put in a little more effort." Screet asked as he swung his staff onto his shoulder, looking like a fabled monkey king from a story long lost in Rezar''s mind. "Seriously Rat! Would you keep you impulsive blood lust in check! Can''t you see the lifeboat is waving a white flag, they come in peace. Killing them would be dishonorable before hearing what they have to say, but you''re an undead, I''m probably expecting too much from you." Lenore said to Screet as she flicked imaginary dirt from her fingernails. "Well I don''t expect much from a whore like you either, perhaps you want us to take off our breeches and spread open our assholes so that they can fuck us in all sort of colorful ways.. but then again what''s going through your mind could be quite worse, so I''m probably expecting too much from you too." Screet replied with a huff as he turned his head back towards the sea. Rezar on other hand was severely shocked, who would have thought that these two had this much bad blood between the two of them. But looking closer he realized it wasn''t as if they hated each other, they were just faced with an Enemy they couldn''t easily punch or face on equal grounds, sure Lenore could probably blast them to thy kingdom come, but her spells didn''t have enough range to cover all seven ships, so they were pretty much limited in what they could do and they felt a little helpless, which was why they were easing the tension by being rude to each other. Rezar furrowed his eyebrows, Screet was different. Not that his form had changed or anything, but the Mole-man was more.. alive. His emotions were slowly growing and becoming real which was weird cause he''s supposed to be an undead without the ability to feel emotions, but now... Rezar could feel annoyance, irritation, pride and worry from him. It was completely unexpected and it left him with questions. The lifeboat eventually came to a stop by the pier, Quentin jumped over, his hands on a pair of axes hanging off his belt as he stood guard for the two people who Rezar suspected were siblings, or just two people who looked really alike. The guards who were rowing the boat quickly got off and stood at attention behind the two people as they looked solemnly at Rezar, ready and prepared to fight should the situation call for it. "I believe you invited us here for a chat... Your Majesty." The woman said as she gave a simple dip of her head in a bow that for all intents and purposes was meant to mock Rezar and his claim of sovereignty. "And I believe you owe me an apology, but then again you don''t seem like you''re here to deliver and apology. So who the fuck are you, and when do you want to fight, I''d very much prefer if we got the bullshit out of the way, my patience runs thin." Rezar said as he cracked his neck from left to right, his eyes slowly turning red and gold, and for the first time since both people stepped their foot on the pier, the prideful expressions shifted. Chapter 148: Merchants (IX): Tyrese and Tyrene Crowe "We''ve not really come here to have a fight, because conflict with you wouldn''t be considered a right, but rather a Massacre. But we''ve come in capacity to give you the respect you deserve and listen to what ever suggestions you or deals you feel you want to put in the table, this is the time to do. Depending on how profitable we see your deals, we won''t blast you and your quaint little town to pieces." Rezar didn''t like threats, that much was a well known obvious fact of his, though it seems not all of his enemies get the memo. "I don''t like threats, and quite frankly I would like to see what you people can do to me, believe me when I tell you I can match you blow for blow if it comes down to it." Rezar said with a stern look on his face. "is that so? Well what about resources, what about manpower and allies. You''ve conquered everything that has stood in your way so far and you''ve succeeded well with it, but don''t flatter yourself to think that the small group of warships you see over there are the only forces the Dustin Crowe Merchant company can unleash on an Enemy. This is just a small show of power and what we can actually do to you is worse, much, much worse. However I think we realized mutual destruction is not the answer, each of those ships cost a small fortune to make or buy, and the soldiers we trained and the adventurers we hire also cost money. We have a lot of it, but it''s not a bottomless pit. A council of elders has thought upon our stance with you, and we realize a conflict with you is not in our best interest. Not when you can take everything we send your way and throw it right back at us, the fact that you turned one of our best assets into an undead that can only answer to you should you so chose is prove that you''re dangerous. We''ve seen you angry and frankly speaking we don''t care, what we don''t want is to see you desperate as that won''t do us any good. So I hope we can come to an amicable agreement and keep the violent tendencies aside." The person who had spoken was the man I stead of the woman this time, but from his interactions with them, he realized they were basically playing the good cop bad cop routine, with the woman being the bad cop and the man being the good cop. But they were still fiercely holding on to their stance of power to ensure that whatever deal was made, it would be made as equals with Rezar, and not show any weakness, but then again it could all just be a trap, this was politics after all. "What are your names?" Rezar asked, as he released his tense muscles, but still kept his awareness open in case they came up with any sort of unsavory plans. "Tyrese and Tyrene Crowe. We''re two of the 5 heads of the Crowe Merchant company. Developing the company''s interest in Bahrenburg is our responsibility, and we hope we can have a good partnership with you." The woman; Tyrene said to him as Rezar raised an eyebrow and said. "I came to you before and your damn dog! Oh sorry, he''s my dog now. Decided to be completely rude and tried to kill me and take my Priest. Just so you don''t know I''m an incredibly selfish person, if you want a Priest, then go get your own." Quentin shifted awkwardly at being called a dog, his pale skin seemed to get paler in either anger or embarrassment, but the twins only looked at themselves for a bit before Tyrese started talking. "The mistake lies with him and then he for not disciplining him properly. The Merchant company has a long and extensive relationship with the church of Yahweh, and Quentin is a Combat Monk raised within the monasteries of the church. A lot of factors came into play as the church doesn''t tolerate death class holders, and the company already has a bit of bad blood down with you when you fought off of prospectors and decided to take over what can be considered the most prime location in all of Bahrenburg for yourself. We want to or rather our aim was to eliminate you. And he was still under the notion that it was our current directive. Quentin Practically runs the town as we have our main base past the canyons of Toromont. He''s actions were completely his own, and I''m sure he has paid the price for it. And we also apologize for the altercation, we brought a gift to make up for it." Out of nowhere, a nondescript wooden chest shaped up in front of Rezar, it was massive, about a meter tall and wide in all of it''s diameters. And when it was Opened, it was filled to the brim with Platinum coins. It wasn''t just Rezar who was shocked, he could hear Priest gulping in shock as Kitagawa took a startled step backwards. This was a whole lot of money, much more than anyone of them ever expected to have seen in one sitting, and it was not in good, it was in fucking platinum. With this much money and Alistair''s modifications of blueprints, the Town that the village would upgrade to wouldn''t be your standard fantasy town, but one that would be closer to what 24th century earth looked like, it might even be a whole lot better. Rezar felt Priest nudge him, the young King had to restrict the urge to roll his eyes in annoyance and exasperation, even more so because he knew they had left their greed for that but pile of coins exposed to the people they''re supposed to be Negotiating with. It was a weakness, and he knew they would take advantage of it, but maybe it wasn''t so bad, as long as he knew how to here their greed to his own advantage, conflict or not, it doesn''t change the fact that the Dustin Crowe Merchant company would be a very big asset to not only Necron, but Morte Bianca as a whole. Rezar looked up at them and said shoots spreading his hand towards Necron. "Welcome to Necron my friends, and if you would be so inclined to come with me and let me host you for the day, let''s talk business." Chapter 149: Merchants (X): Negotiations The village chief''s abode was a lot more cozy, there wasn''t that much lighting to it, but it was comfortable enough to house Rezar''s current guest, but given the look they had on their face, it was pretty obvious they didn''t think much of the place. But then again Rezar couldn''t blame them, these were severely rich people and comfort was something they were invariably used to. Gynaika was now present, along with Screet, and Lenore to add that intimidating factor, Alistair and Priest were there as supports, but then again they were his advisors. Kitagawa was outside by the door, ready to burst into the house should his king require his aid. Well now that we''ve gotten the introductions out of the way, let us get down to business. We will give you an offer, and you can come up with a counter offer. Seeing as we''ve been doing this for a very long time, it stands to reason if we take the lead, this is a negotiation and anything can be put on the table. Are we in agreement your highness?" Tyrene asked as she stared at Rezar with a piercing look, holding his gaze without backing down. And Rezar himself was not willing to back down as he held her gaze, his piercing blue threatening to shift into an annoyed red and gold, but he held himself and watched her with a wary gaze. Both her and her brother seemed extremely comfortable and he really didn''t like that considering he seemed to have developed a quirk of having people be uncomfortable around him. It made him feel powerful, but then again that might be as a result of a sort of insecurity, but Rezar couldn''t be sure, neither did he have the time to dwell on the intricacies of his psyche. "Well that sounds like a pretty sound deal, as long as you don''t try to pull one over my eyes or disrespect me, we will all lead this room in one piece." Rezar said with a small smile. "Are you so vulgar and bras that your response to everything is with violence, I don''t know what your standard might be, or those of the people that follow you, but that is normal redeeming or decking quality of a good king." Tyrene said with a sneer, and then Rezar raised an eyebrow at her and said. "And what gave you the impression that I wanted to be a good king? You don''t know anything about me or my, and just so we can avoid any more misunderstanding I would suggest you shut the fuck up and let your brother do the talking, seems like he''s meant to be the talker as your bitchy mouth is making my violent tendencies itch for a worthy release, and believe Tyrene Crowe you will do just fine." Maybe that was a little too much on his part, but Rezar did not care, this woman after like she had a huge chip on her shoulders, and her stick up the ass attitude was pissing him off. "My humble apologies for my sister''s words, she''s not really accustomed to hanging around royalty. But never the less we can begin the negotiation now, I trust we are all in the proper minds set for this meeting to commence?" Tyrese asked, to which Rezar nodded and said. "Carry on." "Very well, I will begin. The Crowe Merchant company would like to have vested stake in the city of Necron, you can think no of it as an investment of sorts to become shareholders of sorts, or at least be in a position to have a little monopoly over the city''s commerce. As such we would like you to sell us land where we can build a market district. We would be in charge of the commerce of the city and give you stipulated tax of 15% monthly. Also we would transport materials to other cities, kingdoms and empires and give you access to people willing to buy for 40% of the overall profit. Of ever better yet, you can sell the materials to us at 10% above the market price, and leave the reselling of it to us. That way you wouldn''t have to stress yourself and we can take of the grunt work and the profits will just roll into your coffers. So that''s our offer, what do you think." Rezar sat back down with a raised eyebrow, if he had to be honest he had no idea what all these percentages entailed, but he got the feeling he was being super. He turned his head to Gynaika and Alistair and it seemed those two had much to say and gave them the floor to do so. "My apologies but that''s extortion and you know it. Simple put we will offer you land to build a headquarters, it would be big enough to have a few stalls and a massive building, but nothing else. The commerce of Necron would be handled by it''s officials, but we''re willing to give you a place to carry out your trade. The monthly tax will still be 15% for every 3 months, on the fourth month the tax goes up by 10%. We can sign a 5 year exclusive deal with your company to be the only merchant company we will sell our materials and resources to. And for natural resources we will sell it to you at 10% the market price, anything that has a magical nature would be 20%, and if we need you to transport goods, we''ll pay for the transportation services as long as it''s not ridiculous, at least before we star building ships of our own. The deals can be improved to one that''s more lucrative and much more enticing, but in order to get such from us you have to be willing to part with a few things that are extremely valuable to your company." Gynaika said as she finished giving a counter offer. Tyrene looked up at her and asked. "And what is that?" but it was Alistair who gave her an answer. "Land!" Chapter 150: A New Adventure [Temple of the goddess of Life and death has been completed! +15 magic to all residents of Necron. Birth rates increased by 35%, increased stats for all undead and death aligned creatures by 10%. +20% to territory defense and production] The fact that he was leaving whilst receiving the item alert would be considered irresponsible by most. But never the less that was one thing that was already completed within the territory boosting it''s strength. But as it stands right now he was heading for the Breone mountains. And from what he''s heard the journey would take a while, but never the less it was imperative that he made connections with the dwarves. They were skilled craftsmen, and there were some things he had that could only be built with their help. As for the Dustin Crowe merchant company, they were able to come to an amicable agreement. Rear agreed to share, or rather it was Gynaika who made the deal to shared 30% of the profit earned from mining and the production of any materials as long as their towns on the coast and the islands facing Necron that they owned were handed over. Normally asking for such a deal would have been extremely crazy, and even more so when they agreed to it. The islands they now occupied along with the towns they had made on it now belonged to Necron, but in exchange they got a 30% profit of everything the kingdom of Morte Bianca earned for the next ten years. After that a new deal might be renegotiated. It seemed as if now it was Rezar who was paying taxes to them, but he wasn''t really worried about it. Allies or not, he had made sure to keep the information about Elysium experiencing it''s first and only update a secret. Of course it would he too far fetched to say that power as expansive as the Dustin Crowe merchant company would not have found out about it already. But even if that was the case, he and his people would he ready to face the music when it plays, and he was hoping and planning to make sure that he would have a lot more power and clout once it was over. He had two months left to consolidate his power and influence within the wildlands of Bahrenburg. But beyond that he had a lot of other things to pay attention to. With the temple done, and with the sheer amount of money the Dustin Crowe Merchant company had given to them, a lot of projects could be completed. Rezar had purposely avoided upgrading the village so that there would be more facilities that would upgrade with it. It could be considered a bug that quite a few people could exploit when they were developing their territory, of course the cost of blueprints and the materials need would always be a lot, and even more so for Necron who had people always eager to alter the blueprints to suit the plans and visions they had for Necron. Nevertheless after the temple, what would follow would by a power plant, but one that ran on magic and would be used to fuel the city. That would actually be the crowing achievement of the Muriel elves, creating a power source with magic, and this was going to be their basis for weaponry. Looking at the designs of the power plant that was going to be built deep under Necron with access to the sea, Rezar was reminded of an arc reactor from another old movie. Funny enough that''s what it''s also called, except this Arc reactor was short for Arcane Reactor. But those were all in the details and we''re actually things Rezar didn''t understand too much, which was why he was traveling now. He found he liked going to new places, meeting new people and getting them to be afraid of him or to submit to him. That was probably an unhealthy hobby as it made him seem like a power hungry conqueror, but Rezar was way past the point of caring. He enjoyed moving around to places he didn''t own and then making it his, what could be better than that. Rezar had also gotten blueprints for a lighthouse, a magic tower where specific mage classes could be trained, a factory to process ores in bulk, an airship hanger, a naval base, warships, airships. And skills for the town spire, so along with the most skill, there was now a light shield skill, and a skill that buffed the rate of regeneration for the residents. They had grown stronger, and he knew this was just the beginning. In all honesty he had no idea what sort of change the upcoming update would bring to everything he''s built, he''s made his peace with the fact that he would lose all of his strength, he had no idea what would happen to his skills, but he would do his best regardless. He shifted his head to the side watching as Kitagawa and Screet huddle together on their Necrotic forest wolves and whispered to each other. As opposed to his love-hate relationship with Lenore, Screet got along famously with Kitagawa, much to the annoyance of Jason and Brutus who used to be the ones Screet hung around the most. But nevertheless the children of midnight and his small group of undead with is not limited to three wraith wolves, including Alpha their leader, Screet and Brutus, and ten hobgoblins that went along with them riding forest wolves of their own. Apart from Kitagawa there was also 5 other members of the children of midnight following behind their king. Their journey this time didn''t have to take them through the Kerwood Forest, they could skirt around it''s edge and walk on the open plains before the massive canyons of Toromont, but then again they really wouldn''t be moving out in the open like that, because regardless of how strong they were, the monsters that dwelled within the canyons weren''t the kind that you could hold with. And in that regard Rezar felt that he needed to do something about those monsters, because even after the update, Rezar still had the feeling that they would be there, and in what shape or form he had absolutely no idea. The plains before the canyons were also areas that Rezar wanted to claim, especially when it came to building the road he needed to connect most of Bahrenburg. But apart from that, the canyons of Toromont were sitting on the biggest deposits of natural ores and minerals, it''s hard to tell, just what kind of treasures lay within and beneath that nest of monsters. Not even the Leviathan''s lair could compare to it, and whoever gets to claim it, even a piece of it, would end up very rich for a very long time. They rode hard into the day, and little ways into the night. They were mostly undead within the group, tiredness was not something they were familiar with. But for the sake of the people who were very much still alive amongst them, they all decided to make came in a little clearing 100 or so meters into Kerwood Forest. Rezar couldn''t exactly estimate how many days it would take them before they actually got to the territory of the Breone mountains, but he hoped it wasn''t too long. A hard day of travel and he was still within the boundaries of his own territory. If his calculations are correct, another three days of riding would seem him getting to his own border. He could move faster, but that would be a severe waste of magic, and his body was only half undead, he was still pretty much a living being with a certain amount of stamina, even though it was a massive pool. Never the less, even if it wasn''t just taking himself in consideration, Kitagawa and the people who followed him to serve as Rezar''s protection were still people confined by their flesh. Rezar was not at all adverse to sleeping in the open, this was him having an adventure, something that he''s wanted to do in a very long time and even if it would be hard for him to admit it, he was having fun. The issues of who would keep watch was up to Kitagawa and the rest of the King''s Guard and with Screet around, Rezar doubted there would be those stupid enough to want to try anything. So he would happily close his eyes and dream of nature and the wild, and of many more adventures to come. Rest came to the king of Morte Bianca easily than he would have cared to admit, but his sleep was anything from peaceful. Because as the waking world shifted and turned, the Kerwood Forest itself whispering of murder abound and malevolent thoughts in mind; the Bone King dreamt. And it was a dream he has had once before, but this time it was even more vivid. A hallway of blue burning touch and two doors of black and white on both ends, just like before this was seemingly a choice. But what does each choice entails it was beyond hard for Rezar to understand. And just like before he drowned as the choice was made for him, blood held him and tried to suffocate him. He woke up, shaken and terrified from his nightmare, but even more so caught of guard by the blade that was no pointed at his neck and the massive green face that was staring back at him...Orcs! Chapter 151: sorry not a Chapter, have a hangover worse than well hell! [Technopath is now level 1, you can now understand more complex machines and control small machines,] Leo looked at the notification on his screen as he made his way past a playground and towards an apartment complex, there was an obvious lack of proper law enforcements around here as the people in this side of town looked like they could bench press a dozen police officers. Leo kept an eye out as a manmade completely of rocks and a good eight feet tall strolled past him walking a dog. He looked to the left watching as a couple of kids chased another with teleportation abilities while a man that seemed to be on fire flew in the air above. This really was a game that showed earth in an era where almost everyone had special abilities. As opposed to how novel such a game would and should be, what he was seeing here was just too real. It was gritty and there really were no filters to it at all. Leo ducked his head to the side as he watched a trio of purple skinned women beckoning over for a good time. Prostitutes no less, but the surprising thing was that they were players and that caught him off guard. That wasn''t something he was expecting to see. He stopped in front of the apartment complex, but he could get in. there was a glass door, but it seems it needs some sort of key card to or at least a biometric scan to open. It was weird, and it really didn''t make any sort of sense. While Leo might not seem like much, only being lucky enough to have gone to secondary school, he was still smart enough to have picked up a lot of skills. He wasn''t great, but he had great deductive abilities that sometimes were borderline imaginative. The funny thing was that most of his ridiculous deductions usually turn out right or as close to the truth as it could get. For an apartment building in a seedy neighborhood, this was way too much security than was needed. Leo shrugged and moved closer to the door, placing his hands on the security pad. He established a connection with the building''s security system almost immediately, there was a lot of information to be gleaned on the surface, but there were a lot of firewalls upon firewalls, and then an inordinate virtual maze that needed a key of some sort to navigate. He didn''t need to go deep, he just wanted to get the door open, but even that was a bit complicated as using his ability to do was like trying to complete a jigsaw puzzle. There were so many things that he needed to put in place to be able to open the door, and he would need a little bit of time. He got the feeling that this would be a whole lot faster if his [Technopath] ability was at a higher level, but all he could do was just trudge through. Leo felt that in a way this was what digital hacking from an organic mind was like, or basically hacking in general. He was trying to pick a digital lock in a virtual world, honestly this was crazy, and honestly it was also exciting. In real life Leo was known as someone who was really quiet, he was eldest of his siblings and he had to try his best to give them a good example and a strong figure to look up to. But in here, right now in this moment, he was just getting such a weird rush from breaking into a building that obviously belongs to a criminal that would not hesitate to kill. Now he just needs to open the door. "Ah! That''s it." Leo muttered with a small smile as the door beeped and an indicator above it blinked the green. The door swung outward and Leo stepped into the building only to come face to face with more than three dozen guns, a couple of knives, a bazooka, and a squirrel like alien that was holding on to a grenade, why would he be holding a grenade. "Um Hi?" Leo asked with a voice that was a little too high pitched to be considered normal, he slowly raised his hands in the air as a woman with snakes for hair and heavy sun glasses came close to him and pointed a revolver under his chin. And based on the weird symbols and the glowing chamber of the gun, he could bet his ass that the gun wasn''t normal. "Who the fuck is you? One word from your filthy mouth and I''ll blow your head to pieces, answer me! Who are you, who sent you?" Leo opened his eyes wide and looked at the woman with annoyance on his face, she just said if he said one word she would put a bullet in his skull, and now she''s asking questions. Leo looked at her as if to say ''make up your damn mind lady'' but that was just in his mind. Apart from the gun, the fact that she had snakes for hair was just messed up on so many levels. "Big sis you told him not to say anything, so I don''t get how he would be able to answer you." The squirrel alien with the grenade said, and while Leo would have felt inclined to thank him, he was a tiny woodland creature holding on to a weapon of mass destruction that was as large as half his body with two fingers. Leo really regrets coming here in the first place. "I know what I said Bomber! Now tell me why you''re here? And it better be a good reason or ill pump you full of lead." Leo swallowed as he raised his hands higher before answering. "I''m sorry for intruding, but I came here looking for a job." He said with a strained smile, but all he got was. "Sorry poser there are no fucking vacancies!!" and then the woman with the hair for snakes and scary looking magic gun whacked him with it as darkness took over his sight. [you have been knocked out! Your suffering from a mild concussion and will be unconscious for 30 minutes.] [Technopath has leveled up to 2, you can understand programs and their directives and change them to suit your needs, you can now create weak digital viruses] [[[[?]]]]] Leo didn''t like being knocked out, but this was a virtual world so being knocked out isn''t really the same as being knocked out in the real world, even though there were startling similarities. He was in a comfortable darkness where he could pay attention to his skills, especially that of the [Technopath] as it seemed the skill itself had leveled up a bit too fast. He had only been in situations where he''s had to use the skill twice, but in both instances the passive skill had leveled up. There was something to be found out there, but he knew he was missing it. He had a theory, but he wasn''t sure if it was the right one, so he would just try to experiment a bit before jumping to conclusions. Eventually his period of unconsciousness came to an end, and he found himself in a small room filled to the brim with computers and screens. There was no one else there but him, and a lanky but well-dressed tattooed man behind a desk looking at a bunch of screens. Leo tried moving forwards only to discover that his hands were bound behind him, the weird part was that he had no idea what was keeping him bound. [Mission: You have been captured by a notorious local gang, no matter what, facilitate your escape by any means necessary. // Rewards: Fame/Infamy depending on action taken to escape, 200 credits] "Don''t move too much, the pressure cuff you have on you are designed to get tighter the more movements you make, it''s a marvel of technology if I do s ay so myself, a patent of my own making." The man who was speaking looked human at first, well as mostly human as he could be as Leo noticed he was on a wheel chair with a quilt covering his legs, and one side of his head had a metal plate imbedded in it. [Analyze] [Cyborg Cyrus Cade/ D- grade villain] There was a whole lot more information now than before, but that should probably be because the skill had leveled up before. Leo shifted his attention to the man, and almost had his breath caught in his throat with how blue his eyes were. Leo was a straight as they came, but he couldn''t help but admit, this guy was beautiful, not handsome, but beautiful. "I''m sorry for how my subordinates treated you, but when someone breaks into your house by bypassing a security system designed to give even the Hero league''s best a run for their money, or at the very least stall them long enough for me to escape. Of course you took longer than I expected, and young man, you have no sense of finesse or security at all as I noticed you the very moment an unauthorized and unrecognized local tripped my perimeter alarm. You made too many mistakes to be deemed a professional, but even then the professionals can make themselves seem very harmless if they want to. You''re an enigma, and you say you want a job? How did you come about such stupid decision and thought that walking into my building filled to the brim with armed guards would do that for you? Oh! And I should introduce myself, my name''s Cyrus, but everyone here calls me Boss or Triple C." "Uh-my name is." "I don''t care what your name is kid, I just want to know what you''re doing here and how did you find me?" Leo swallowed hard, Triple C wasn''t using a loud voice, heck Leo wasn''t sure he was capable of using the deep baritone that was expected of most villains. His voice was silky and smooth, the kind the heroes who stands for justice and truth would have, but for some reason, hearing that voice from a bad guy gave him chills, and a lot of it. "Last night I had a fight with a couple of thugs, I was short on cash so I robbed them. they didn''t have much on them, but I was able to get five grams of Leviathan. I had no idea what Leviathan was, but I can recognize a drug when I see one, so I asked him where he got it from and he directed me here. I was hoping to get employed as a supplier or a runner, if that''s a thing, basically I just need a job to keep me on my feet I don''t really have anything else." Just as Leo finished talking, a door behind him opened up and he heard a voice he recognized, it belonged to that tiny Squirrel alien. "Hey Boss, we got the results of the background check you asked us to look into." "Is that so? Well tell me what you found out Bomber, I''m sure our guest would like to know what we''ve discovered about him. "Triple C said as the Squirrel jumped and landed on Leo''s shoulders with a couple of papers and glasses on his tiny face. "Leonardo Freewind, earth native. But a Human and Techronman hybrid, 21 years old, dark skinned, six foot two, O positive. Has no skills or talents whatsoever, was homeschooled all his life, born to the Techronman delegate Krait Carta Mormon, and a now deceased human maid from central Pangea, Ngozi Eze. Registered abilities are the Techronman''s racial [Technopath], [Shock] and due to a magical inheritance from his witch mother, has warlock abilities [Black Bolt] and [Arcane Sight]. All in all, boss, this kid''s a nobody, he got kicked to the curb yesterday by his hot-shot pops, he''s nothing." "Fuck You!!" Leo snapped at Squirrel, visibly angry as the small rodent fell of his shoulder in fright at his blatant outburst, Cyrus chuckled softly as Leo felt his wrists being painfully tightened. But he didn''t care, being called nothing and a nobody hit a little too close to home, because whether he would want to admit it or not, it was true. "Well he''s not nothing Bomber, he did manage to get into our headquarters with absolutely no skills or finesse but his instincts alone. He''s a little impulsive and na?ve, but he has talent and with time and little training and experience he would have skill and finesse to go with it. Very well kid, I can give you a job, if you can complete a test of mine. You can also think of it as a rite of passage into my Iron Eyes organization, do you think you''re up for it?" Triple C asked with a glowing smile, his blond hair hanging off one side of his face in soft wavy locks. "I am!" Leo answered with an assured voice. "Good! That''s the kind of spirit I like, to be prepared to do anything for your future. Well you see I have this traitor running around downtown Felton with valuable information about my err. activities in a wristband of his. He''s scheduled for an open challenge match today on the roof of the Golden Moses hotel. I don''t know how you want to do it, but I need you to either retrieved that wristband, or use you powers to destroy it. That''s the mission I have for you, complete and I won''t just let you join and give you a job, you will be a part of my inner circle and work directly under me. So what do you say?" Leo looked up at him as the Pressure cuffs around his wrists fell off and he was free to moved his hands. He got up to his feet cradling his bruised wrists, and ignoring the system prompt that showed up. "I''ll get it done!" Chapter 152: Orcs and War (I): Captured Rezar stared up at the orcish face looking down at him, green skin, tusks jutting out of their lower jaw and an overly muscled frame. The blade that was placed across his neck glinted white under the peaking glare of the moon, the scent of dried meat and herbs wafted off the has of the orc as he leaned even closer towards Rezar. The bone King squinted his face, but held his breath, because while he could identify what the Orc''s breath smelled off, it didn''t mean the scent was pleasant. "If you make a move, I''ll snap your neck like a twig!" the orc threatened, his voice deep and rumbling, causing tremors deep within Rezar''s chest as he looked up at the being hovering above him. "Nurlak don''t be stupid, the paralysis totem Is already in effect, none of them can move. So I don''t get why you''re threatening a paralyzed man. Come on, let''s load them up into the cart, this is the farthest our raiding party has ever come for slaves, we need to be off before we''re discovered, I really don''t want to meet this bone King that everyone is so scared of." [None of you say anything or react, let''s go with the flow and see where this leads. Act with me!] It wouldn''t be too farfetched to say that everyone else was completely confused by the sudden decision of Rezar, whatever this totem was, it was a skill that would eventually run out. And even if they decide to keep them caged up, these particular group of people were strong enough to say they could break out of most bonds, but Rezar was actually willing to get captured, it was beyond baffling. Rezar was dragged up to a sitting position, his lungs were a bit heavy, but not got he point that he was unable to move. Basically speaking if he so chose, he could actually power through the effects of the totem and beat all of this order, or maybe just get into a severe battle with them. But never the less he wants to just go with the flow. Once again their king shocked them, but maybe this was better, after all the alternative was that they got into a fight with them and later have to torture them for information, and torture wasn''t always reliable, not when it came to orcs. So while he had no idea about the intricacies of the race and the habits and traditions, he had made a choice that while risky, was actually the best in discovering more information about why a raiding party of orcs were this deep within his lands. Either way they were all bundled into massive cages that was being pulled by worms the size of a bus. There were 11 orcs in all, each riding on large fearsome wolves. The works themselves moved fast, crossing vast distances in seconds that the undead and necrotic ants would cross in five minutes. They were silent while the orcs do me boisterously amongst themselves, and as they spoke Rezar and his compatriots listened. Keeping an open ear as the orcs moved quickly and swiftly away from the territories that once belonged to the Goblin King, but now belonged to Rezar. Looking around the cage that they were stuck in, Rezar realized that the totem keeping them paralyzed was hanging on top of the cage from thin leather strap. The totem itself was made from fried things, a seed of some sort painted red that had some sort of symbols that Rezar couldn''t read. But even if he couldn''t read it, he could somehow sense it. Which was weird, because this was the first time he ever experienced something like that. Most of the time if normally of it, he hardly has any sort of reaction from his skills, or the tools around him, but this was something extremely different, it was like a pressure of sorts on his mind, but a pressure that he knew he could break it he so chose. "Nurlak the clans are rallying for a strike at the Goblin King lands, do you think with the contribution we have now would enable us to have a place at the head of the warband?" another orc, somewhat small in stature asked the orc that had grabbed Rezar a question with his voice quivering. "We are the true blood orcs, our prowess on the battlefield is unlike any other, and we know the terrain of this land. We''re one of the best options to be considered as scouts and forward guards, we know the angles and corners with which to hit this new bone King and win. After all the raiding parties of an orcish warband should be famous and white feared, we bring the thunder!" Rezar had to try real hard to stifle his laughter, while he was not one to judge, it''s painfully obvious that the orcs were the kind of people to be extremely arrogant even when it''s not really required. Plus the idea of them bringing the thunder is extremely weird, it was such a weird thing to say, yet they all took it in stride, like such comments were a normal part of any conversation. "But Nurlak is it true what they say? That before the war, the warband will host the grand plain warrior games, and the best warrior who comes out on top would not only be the next head of the warband, but will also be given the half orc/ half snow elf daughter of the old chief for a wife. She''s the most beautiful orc in all of the land, from the foot of the Breone mountains, across the savage plains, to the diamond desert, none can compare to her beauty... a beauty that orcs like me can only dream of but can''t touch." The small orc said as his voice became incredibly somber, however the Orc called Nurlak smashed his palm on the back of the small orc and said to him with a smile. "Do not despair young Horta, in the end this princess is naught but a wrench to warm the beds of great orcs. I shall claim her and after I''ve used her I will give her to you as a gift. Just keep following me and all you desire shall be yours." If they weren''t just talking about how they wanted to use a woman or invade his lands, Rezar might have felt that the current atmosphere properly highlighted the spirit of brotherhood, but he had already decided that he was going to kill that Nurlak first as soon as he''s free. Then the small orc Horta turned towards their cage and said. "Nurlak all we used was a paralysis totem and not a silencing one, normally the slaves would be complaining and asking to be freed by now, but why these particular batch of slaves so quiet?" Chapter 153: Orcs and War (II): Lemosha and the Portal Rezar shifted his gaze until met the eyes of Nurlak, Horton had made a point, and the fact that Rezar and his people have just been silent throughout the entire journey was extremely suspicious. This could be when their cover gets blown, and all because there''s an overly perceptive orc within their raiding party. Vita Gratia was currently hanging off the back of another orc at the front of the procession, but Rezar knew he could call those weapons back to him at the drop of a hat. He just hoped it really didn''t get to the point where they have to fight. "Nurlak, Horta! We''re coming upon the teleportation array, keep your voices down and move forwards, we need to be through it as quickly as possible before we or the array itself is discovered." A massive orc, even larger than Nurlak and sporting a giant stone add rode his wolf past both suspicious orcs, forcing them to move their attention from Rezar as they made a detour and cut into the Kerwood Forest. But even as they were turned away to focus on something else, Rezar could see Horta looking at him, suspicion etched all-over his face. But all Rezar could do was look forward impassively, almost as if he was dead inside and still under the effects of the paralyzed totem. The part of the Kerwood Forest which they cut into was extremely thick, instead of the sturdy trees he was used to, and the space to maneuver between them. The trees here whilst sturdy, were green and wet and had vines. Their branches stretched from one tree trunk to another, intertwining and connect to each other in some sort of twisted architecture of nature. Their movements were slowed severely as they moved through the forest this way, the gnarled and twisted branches were eerie and Rezar was beginning to get the same kind of feeling he got from the paralysis totem, from these trees. And since he was already feeling them, he started noticing it from other unlikely sources. From Screet, Kitagawa and Priest and the rest of the undead and guards. It was weird, and even more so now that he no idea what it was, and the system was being silent about it. The trees grew larger in some areas, and smaller in others. This part of the Kerwood Forest was treacherously traversable, but yet this procession moved through it with the trees and bushes seemingly moving to the side to create a path for them. It made it seems as if this was not a forest but a maze of sorts, the trees changed and shifted the form twists and turns, all leading to knowledge of a hidden path existing until finally they came upon an arch, and right in front of it was the most archaic and ancient orc he had ever seen. However this orc was quite different from the others, from the figure, and the very exposed breasts, he was able to tell that she was female. But there were no teeth, she was hunched over and had necklaces made of bones and other weird trinkets around her. She held a staff in her hands, the top of the staff had the skull of a bird and it''s eyes glowed and eerie green as green smoke slowly wafted out of it and into the air. "You boys are quite early, but seeing how bountiful be your harvest, I''d say Lemosha understands. You head for the great plains yes? To submit your Catchings before the grand plain warrior games, it would definitely boost your points in that game. Well then come along, I shall open the portal for you young ones." Her voice was just an octave below a deranged cackle, but it was still a sound that made Rezar''s hair to stand on end. This orc female has lived a very long life, her face was different though. Her face was somewhat reminiscent of a pig and her skill was brownish pink with no trace of green. She was probably a different species of orc, and a very powerful one. She raised her staff up into the air as she started chanting and moaning out weird words Rezar couldn''t understand, and as she did so, the arch in front of them that was made from the branches of two trees, began to blow and strange symbols unrecognizable to Rezar began to dance around the branches that made up the arch. There was sizzle of electricity and the arch vanished and in it''s place an invisible curtain hung. It was almost like a trick of light as someone would walk past the curtain without noticing anything. But it was there, and it seemed as if it was being affected by the wind as the curtain flapped and hug by itself in the air. The orcs grunted to themselves as their convoy started moving, the crazy off woman Lemosha watched as they went past, her mouth opened wide in a cackling grin as she looked eyes with Rezar before saying. "Don''t have too much fun Sire, the orcs are a simple people, understand us well enough and have the strength to utilize that understanding..and you can rule is as well. Mehihihihihihih." Horta looked at Rezar and his people with an accusatory glance. Lemosha was considered crazy, so the rest of the raiding party felt it was just her spouting nonsense. But Horta had a suspicion, but he couldn''t tell which of the new slaves she was talking to. And even worse he couldn''t tell it to anyone, because Lemosha was hardly ever sober or in the right frame of mind to have a proper conversation with anybody other than the trees around her. Horta held his peace and kept his eyes forward as the convoy slowly moved towards the curtain. Rezar kept a careful and close watch on it, until finally he and the rest of his people went through it. And another world was laid bare for them to see. Chapter 154: Orcs and War (III): A Horde From the green nature of a forest to the confined architecture of a temple that has obviously seen better days. But the temple wasn''t really unconfined building as it had no roof, and most of it''s walls were missing. Across the Vista of plain that seemed endless, hundreds of Inuit like but if not thousands dotted the landscape. Orcs of different species along with a small smattering of other races, moved about seemingly carrying out their daily lives. Towards the north east, the lonely peaks of an expansive mountain range could be seen, it''s very tip obscured by grey white clouds and a coating of frost and ice that seemed completely un affected by the fact that this wasn''t anytime closer to winter. But the plain was extremely lively, it was more likely that this was some sort of large market than the home of the orcs, and from what Rezar had found out, he knew that there were two main species of orcs. There was the true blood orcs, which were the normal green skinned ones with normal faces, and then there was the Porcs, which were orcs that had bovine characteristics, or basically had the face of pigs or something like that. There was a few more denominations for racial advancements like blood orcs, grey orcs and elemental orcs. Never the less, they all could be found within this massive plain, busy as a bee. Orcs lived in large communities known as warbands, each warbands could have from as little as 3000 orcs to as much as 10,000 of them. Nevertheless the warbands were what made orcs so feared. Every orc within that community was a fighter of some sort, and even more so they were feared for the very simple fact that they were nomadic, and anywhere they do decide to migrate too, they make sure to leave blood and destruction in their wake. But from what he could see, Rezar could tell that this warband was three times as large as the 10,000 maximum he expected, this was a literal horde of orcs. Their caravan went onwards, moving past precariously placed tents and orcs going about their daily lives. There were blacksmiths banging on metals, tailors Working on clothes and tanners on leather. There was also a variety of beasts around, and with it was a clamor and loudness that one would associate with a large city. Rezar looked at Priest, they were both thinking the same thing; the Goblin King and his soldiers would have been brutally massacred should they have thought it wise to go up against this horde, and from what he could see, they were preparing to migrate once again. They walked through the settlement, village? Town? Rezar wasn''t really sure what to call this place, but eventually they were led to what looked like a massive circus tent, but the tarp was a dirty brown leather and had a smell one would like to dead things. Rezar kept his focus up as they were led into the tent where he encountered rows upon rows of cages where people of various races were trapped. If Rezar had to use one word to describe it, he would say this looked like a literal shit show, some of the slaves were injured, missing limbs and whatnot. "Master Szadin! We have brought new merchandise for you, and they''re all top grade, two seem to be humans, and the rest are kitsunes! Think about it! Kitsunes! However we''re unable to identify the others they seem to be some sort undead.. They''re UNDEAD!" "Ahhh it seems our cover has been blown, but how in the hells were they unable to identify undead, are they stupid or something?" Rezar asked out loud as he turned a wide grin to the orcs who were shocked at the sudden turn of events. "Ahhh master there''s no need to call them stupid, that entails that they have a brain to be stupid in the first place." Screet answered as he slowly got up to his feet. "Seeing as we''re right in the middle of orc territory do you think it''s wise for us to be antagonizing them Sire?" Kitagawa asked as the eyes of the orcs grew even wider, the Orc not as Horta pointed a startled finger at Rezar and said. "you-you''re the Bone King!" "Hallelujah! Give the orc a prize! He finally realized what''s been staring at his face this entire time. But it''s too late, so how about we do this the civilized way, or we do this orc way, or we do this Morte Bianca way. Believe me you don''t want to pick the latter option." And with that said Rezar literally slapped the doors of the metal cage off it''s hinges, sending it blasting out the massive tent and startling all of the slaves held within. "Die!!!!" The orc called Nurlak acted, shocking everyone including his own people as everyone had wanted to take things easy so as not to avoid too big of a problem. He rushed at Rezar, but he never made it close to even five feet of the Bone King as Screet surged forwards, his claws glowing a silvery light as his form surged past the orc. Rezar raised an eyebrow, that was a move he had seen before, but when it was performed with a Katana by samurais, it was the skill of another class. It absolutely didn''t make sense to him, but now Screet just used it to split an eight foot tall orc into three equal pieces. It was absolutely intense! "The rest of you should be careful about your choices, I don''t want to have to fight through all of your people to escape, because if I have to, many of you will die, and many more of you will become undead cursed to wander the wild lands for all eternity. Also return mine and my people''s equipment to them, before I start carving up your flesh with my fangs." Rezar didn''t need to threaten them, but quite frankly this was just who he is. Rational, but with a honesty steeped in arrogance burn from an analytical and calculative mind. He had both a human soul and that of an artificial intelligence, it was the total sum of the who Rezar DeathWind was, and just like mainstream media have portrayed for centuries. The AI is always cold, reasonable, arrogant and cynic. The perfect blend to make a great villain. "Just so we should not be here any longer than is necessary, you might want to send someone to get your leaders, you know, before my people and I start causing damages." That threat did work even better than he expected as the Orc called Horta turned tail and ran out the entrance of the massive tent. Rezar on the other hand bent down to pick up Vita Gratia from the ground where it had fallen from the body of the Orc Nurlak, ultimately Rezar kept a silent promise to himself, and that was the fact that he was going to kill the now deceased orc. Unfortunately his body was split into three pieces, so it was impossible to raise him back up from the dead, not unless someone stitched the split body part together. Though it sounded disgusting, Rezar did feel the need to try that out once or maybe twice, or at the very least when the opportunity arose. Rezar looked up and his eyes met the orc addressed as Master Szadin, then he smiled and moved closer until he was respectable distance from him. "Well what do you do here Mr. Szadin? The fact that Rezar had called Mr. instead of master was not lost to the orcs, they bristled in anger at the obvious disrespect, but the orc in question raised his hand up to silence any sort of discontent. "This is a slave house your Majesty, we have the best of all stocks and catered to any sort of need or task. And it is my extreme honor that someone of your standing would feel it worthy to visit my fine establishment." Rezar was taken aback, and so was Priest. Frankly speaking the Orcs he met today have been disparaging any sort stereotype most would accustom to an orc, they were not brash at all. "An orc that''s shrewd.this is definitely a first for me..well technically this is also the first time I''ve ever met an orc to.wait that''s wrong, we were captured by orcs after all. But I digress, can you show me your finest stocks?.....Master Szadin?" most of the orcs wanting to blow their top visibly relaxed when it seemed as if Rezar had given the orc the respect he deserved. But this was politics, Rezar was a king, he would only give respect when it is given to him, and Szadin was as shrewd a merchant as most goblins and dwarves, he probably knew his way around a courtroom. "it would be my utmost pleasure to host one with such Prestige as yours, your Majesty King Rezar DeathWind, the Bone King of Morte Bianca. Please come this way." Rezar smiled as he followed behind the gaudily dressed orc much to the shock of the other orcs while his people followed behind. As simple as it might seem Rezar knew that before he left the orcs, he was still going to spill blood. Chapter 155: Orcs and War (IV): A Venoik, The Chief Szadin had what could be considered and extensive collection of slaves, or so he says, but Rezar found himself all too inclined to agree. For one he had seen races he didn''t even think would exist, apart from the main four races of humans, elves, dwarves and beast people, there were hundreds of sub-races belonging to the main race except for humans, and then now he finds that there are entirely new and unique races all together, with none of them sharing characteristics with any of the main race. It was beyond insane and crazy, and quite enlightening for the young King. His curious perusal of Master Szadin''s slave house had led him finally to a being that more than aroused his attention. It was a young man with grey skin, however his skin had purple veins that danced beneath his skin to form intricate tattoos. The veins stretched and danced all the way to the top of his fingers which were black and were actually dripping a purplish black liquid that sizzled the moment it touch the metal floor of the cage he was placed inside. His eyes were completely black, no pupils or iris or whatever, just a black marble in his skull, that had a bit of an oblong shape, coming up into a point that reminded Rezar of a squid. From what he could see, if this person was washed and given clean clothes, his actual skin might even glow. And then there was a mouth filled with fangs, but no the kind you would see in wolves or lions, but singular pointed needles that would be right at home in the mouth of a snake. Rezar turned to face Szadin with a pensive look on his face before pointing to the person in the cage. "What is he?" "Well he is quite a specimen isn''t he your Majesty? I call him Roran as his name seems to have been forgotten to the sands of the great desert. From what I know he is the first of his kind to have been spawned within the wild lands, born from marriage of poison and the earth, I call him or rather what he is a Venoik. He literally and constantly absorbs every element that''s in the air, from things as simple as nitrogen, oxygen, to complex things like sunlight, magic, and hidden particles of materials that float unseen to us, and then his body will process them into various kinds of toxins, tonics and poison that he would be able to use a number of situations that arise. We have been breeding him you see, but so far all the females we''ve tried breeding him with have died. And that is due to the fact that he keeps poisoning them, we really haven''t been able to get him under control, and he has been a slave for ten years, ever since he was just a child wandering the deserts. His abilities make him either a walking hospital, or a biohazard zone should be let loose, but we''ve kept him control. As you can see we built specialized chains that have been enchanted to keep his abilities in check, that''s why his poison keeps pouring out of his finger tips, they''re a defense mechanism. It wouldn''t be too farfetched for me to say that he''s the crowing achievement of my collection your Majesty, and I''m very proud to have been his owner." Rezar wonders what the people outside of Elysium, back in the real world thought when they logged in and saw something like this. Szadin might be an orc, but beneath all that green flesh is a human soul and consciousness, and yet he would thrive and take pride in the act of slavery. It made Rezar angry, maybe it might be due to his skin color, but to take a living person for granted like this, to consider them nothing more than just property is just...wrong! And he felt an extreme rage and anger for this. He believed people could do better, and this was not him using the AI part of his mind to feel and think. For some reason he couldn''t be rational about this, he was literally full to the point of bursting with the anger that was within him. But he knew there wasn''t anything he could do, at least not yet. Saving one slave would not do anything in the long run, and whether he didn''t want to admit or not, slave trade is lucrative, especially when you consider that much of what would and could be built in Bahrenburg is because of the slaves. While the system can take care of the construction, the resources needed have to be gathered and that''s where their use shines the most. "how much for him, I''ll buy him from you, so name your price." Rezar said as he turned to Szadin who was a little gob smacked as for some reason he seemed at loss for words. "I''m afraid he''s not for sale, and from one leader to another it''s not nice to take a liking to somebody''s property." The person who had spoken was another orc, 8 foot tall, packed full of muscle with the pelt of a monster hanging on his shoulders and a massive great sword hanging behind him. Szadin gave a bow, his nose almost touching the ground at the arrival of the new orc, the orc himself had an entourage of his own following behind him. And with how fierce the looked, it was as if they came here for a fight, but Rezar didn''t pay attention to that as he knelt down in front of the cage and matched his gaze with that of the Venoik. To everyone else it seemed as if he was ignoring the presence of the Orc''s leader, and that sent blood boiling until Rezar decided to speak. "There''s nothing in this world that doesn''t have a price, you can think of this as a way for us to make an alliance. Sell him to me, I''ll make it worth your while." Rezar rose up with a flourished movement, there was no sound at all and he seemed almost unearthly with the way he moved. Rezar frowned, this was also different, he could himself be different, almost as if he was letting off and aura of an energy of his own, somewhat similar with what he had experienced with the totem and the teleportation arch. "I''m afraid I''ll have to say no King Rezar, but we can get back to that once you tell me why the Bone King invited himself into my Horde when I never sent for him, this is an act of war." Rezar raised an eyebrow and then threw his head back and laughed, it wasn''t funny, but the young man suddenly felt the need to play a role. "It is an act of war that your fucking raiders came to my land and stole my people, it is an act of war that your fucking orcs! Decided to fuck with me by paralyzing me and my entourage and putting us, putting ME! If a fucking cage! I could have killed them all right then and there, after all that would have been within my rights, I won''t tolerate disrespect to myself and my people. But I wanted to wait, to see who the fuck had the audacity to fuck with me! And now I''ve seen him, you!... Excuse what''s your name again?" Priest almost had a heart attack then and there, the clergy knew just how powerful Rezar was, and even then, they were in the middle of what was thousands of battle hardened orcs.. why in God''s name is this leader of his so brash, it was nothing at all like the vampires he remembered who were always cool headed and smooth in their dealings. None the less Priest had to salvage the situation so he quickly whispered into Rezar''s ear, telling him who he was actually talking to. "Ahhh, Chief Durga Goldbreaker.. I would say that''s a peculiar name, but mine is DeathWind so I''m pretty sure I''m not one to be pointing out weird names. Never the less I demand an explanation of why your people were gallivanting all-over my land and stealing my people." Rezar didn''t seem ready to take a step back, in fact he had taken a step forwards towards the orc chief, and even though his body was dwarfed by the orc, the aura of power he let off seemed to encompass and want to swallow the orc chief. "Do not overstep your bounds death class holder! I do not fear you and I do not have to answer to you. You''re in my land now! And even my people have gone where they shouldn''t, I see nothing wrong with it, as soon as I''m done winning the grand plain games, I will be coming for your lands, let me see how you will stand against the full power of my horde!" the orc chief was not backing down and neither was Rezar, and then Rezar in a very Rezar fashion asked a question. "Szadin this games that they''re talking about, what are the rules can I get into it?" "Errrr what?" Chapter 156: Orcs and War (V): A Gauntlet Szadin didn''t seem particularly inclined to answer Rezar as he raised his head to look up at chief Durga. But the Vampire Necromancer was letting off a pressure that made everyone feel the need to give him an answer before this somewhat amicable party completely breaks down and some people end up experiencing the true death. Durga gave Rezar a forever glare as he answered him with a voice that spoke volumes of what he thought about Rezar. "Anyone and everyone is welcome to participate in the grand plain games, but the truth of the matter is that you will have to pass the gauntlet that has been set, before becoming eligible to participate. You have to bring down a dragon or any dragon type creature to qualify. So if you want to join the games, there''s a final expedition of orcs heading to the canyons of Toromont to go hunt down a black Wyrm. If you''re so sure of yourself why don''t you join them." Durga said to Rezar as he took a step back, but Rezar had his hand under his name nodding safely as he asked. "What happens if I win?" everyone paused, the orcs mostly had a look of their face that was full of mockery, obviously none of them thought it was possible for Rezar to win or even triumph from the gauntlet. "If you win, not only will you get to marry my daughter, as an outsider you become eligible to vie for the position of next king of the orcs, you can be part of the Battle Royale that decides the fate of this horde, turning it from a group of nomads, to an actual kingdom." Safe to say Rezar was really confused as there seemed to be quite a few inconsistencies with what was just said, however there seem to be a least violent method for him and his people to leave this place, well for them at least. "Well if it''s not too much trouble Chief Durga, can you tell me where to sign up? It''s obvious that you and I will be unable to come to an agreement over the Venoik and the fact that your people came uninvited to my own lands. So how about we have a water, I''ll join the gauntlet and go kill the Black Wyrm as you''ve called it, if I do so, then you give me the Venoik and a path to the nearest dwarf settlement. I''ll even leave my people behind as political hostages of sorts, except for Screet and Brutus though, those two go everywhere with me, oh! And Tony too, he''s my mount." The Orc chief was silent for a while, frankly speaking Rezar had given an option to not have a very violent falling out right in the middle of the largest gathering of his people in a very long time. Not to mention if news of a death class holder, the bone King of all things spread or that there was a fight and orcs died, it would not affect his chances. The only way is to silently get rid of him and his people, that way even if there are wagging tongues, he wouldn''t be affected much as he would have taken care of the problem and his honor will be intact. Rezar''s presence here was a threat, and not one brute force would neutralize. "I under what you said, you can go with your people, but we will keep your goods instead, you can claim it once you get back from the gauntlet. And you can actually go with the Venoik, as a gift! Sure I have threatened you with war, but there''s no need to be completely on the outs with each other. Let my gifting of Roran to you, be what washes whatever bad blood that''s happened between us. I pray the God of war sees you safely through this gauntlet." [QUEST ALERT:] [You are about to partake in the qualifying gauntlet for the Grand Plain Orc Games. Survive the hunt for the black Wyrm and come back with proof of combat/Slay the Black Wyrm./ Duration: 3 days/ Rewards: Black Wyrm Speed Train Blueprints// 1 platinum// 900,000 exp(null)] Rezar looked at the screen in front of him in a confused manner, he shook his head as he raised his hands to the orc chief, shaking his massive hands in a friendly manner as it seemed as if they had just had an amicable deal rather than an obvious scheme or trap. The orc chief wasn''t stupid, obviously Rezar knew he was out to get him, but even if he was a Necromancer that has been allowed to grow, Rezar would be unable to do anything but to go with the flow. Escape would be impossible, and starting a fight would be suicide, because the orcs would drawn him in their numbers and fearless attacks faster than he could raise the slain as his undead. And no matter how numerous undead beings are much weaker than they were in real life when raised for the first time. At most he would be able to escape, but this mega horde would be marching for his lands soon after, leaving here if a trail of death and destruction like nothing they have ever seen. "You and your people will have to forgive for not being able to host you, but that wouldn''t be required as the gauntlet begins in two hours, so you can just be assembled with the rest of the orcs who go to hunt for the beast. But until then, please enjoy the company of Slave Master Szadin, I will have Roran brought to you soon enough." Durga said as he turned around and left, giving swift orders to his people to drag the cage Roran was in along. Rezar had something else on his mind as he moved away, the quest he had just been given was weird as hell, and not in the quest alone, but in the fact that there were two outcomes to complete it, and the exp rewards were massive yet had null in a bracket behind it. And there was a blueprint for a train? The fuck was going on here. If it wasn''t for the weird feelings he has been getting, and the way his sense seem to be changing, today would have been just any normal day, but now the quests were looking weird. He looked to Priest as if to ask him about this, but he kept to himself because he doubted the old man would have experienced something like this. Rezar had a suspicion about what''s going on, but until he was absolutely sure he didn''t want to jump into conclusions. For one though he felt maybe it was his connection with death that was fucking him up, after all he wasn''t fully human, maybe he had a virus or the system was glitching because of his AI melded mind. Whatever the case, it had Rezar a little worried, it would suck if he just got deleted or something like that. "Master Szadin? If you don''t mind me asking, I hear that Chief Durga''s daughter is the price for whoever wins the Grand Plain Orc Games. But from the way he spoke, it seems he will also participate in the games. Will be marry his own daughter?" Kitagawa asked, trying but failing to hide the look of disgust on his face. "Princess Xian was born when the Chief Durga''s elder brother and the former chief married a snow elf from the Brown mountains. And she was one of royal blood too, increasing the prestige of the Goldbreaker clan. However the elves did not like the copulation, especially since it was forced when his elder brother had defeated the betrothed of the elven princess in battle and then proceeded to take her chastity right in front of his corpse and the eyes of her family and friends. They were bound by their oath to do nothing, and so an orc came home with an elf for a bride, much to the pride of his great and illustrious clan. She bore him a daughter so beautiful it was said the day she was born, Elysium stood still in respect. Her people came for the princess, who happily left with them and made sure to stick her dagger as deep into the throat of her husband as she could, she denied him a chance of a warriors death, she will forever be hated for it. Without a male heir, it was in Durga''s capacity to succeed his brother and inherit all that his brother had left behind, including his other wives who unfortunately only had daughters too. And so Princess Xian became the daughter of her uncle. But her beauty was so great that even Durga covets her, but it would be wrong for him to just take the daughter of his own brother, so he put her up as one of the prizes, but seeing how beautiful she is, she ended up being the only prize that matters. He wins then he would finally be able to bed her and at the same time spit in the face of the snow elves who have been trying to both get her back to her mother or kill her for being half orc." Kitagawa looked at Rezar and the back at slave master and said. "Oh!" Chapter 157: Orcs and War (VI): A deal, A Rich Culture Durga paced frantically within the massive tent, Roran was out of big chains and completely uncomfortable to be back in this place. The last time he was here, Durga''s third eldest daughter was melting into a black puddle after being poisoned by her pregnancy. It was one of the few times Roran was genuinely scared for his life, but he really had no way to control himself. There''s never been records of a race like his own, he was literally a living breathing alchemy pot, but yet he was incapable of being bred...No! Thank use the word bred was to demean himself as the orcs have always done. He was a person who was alive, but because of what he was it seems he''s incapable of ever finding love or having a family like he so desperately desires. This was what he had always looked forward to the most in his entire life, and that was a chance to actually make something out of his life, to be free of the orcs. Even if he still had to be a slave, he wanted to be free enough to make his own decisions and deal with the consequences of his actions. To have some semblance of a real and all of the joys that come with it. Roran looked up at the incredibly tall orc and swallowed, he wasn''t afraid of Durga, he was way past he point if being scared of these people who had kept him captive ever since he was nothing more than a child, but despite not being afraid, Durga was extremely imposing today. His form seemed larger and the way he spoke seemed to cause tremors to reverberate through his body and bones. There was a presence to him that made his words have even more of an impact than normal, and crazy enough this was also a similar aura that he had felt from the necromancer, the person who had wanted to buy him, the one they kept on calling the bone King. Roran wasn''t too sure if the bone King was sincere in his aim to purchase him, in fact he wouldn''t be stupid as to think that he was doing it from the kindness of his heart, he had seen to many shit and have been disappointed too many times to have flights of fantasy like that. This world wasn''t kind, this was a lesson he has had to learn the hard way for a very young age. He had to have it beaten into him countless times by the orcs; to understand that this life had no balance, that there was no good in it and everything you had or gained was by what you could scrounge and claw for with you own two hands, with your own power. Might makes right, and opportunity doesn''t come but once, but when those with power decide to give it out to those who don''t have power. "Roran I''ll get straight to the point and cut you a deal. From the moment you leave this tent, you cease to be a slave of the orcs, but instead you will be a slave to a death class holder. Unlike the orcs who owned your entire physical being, the Bone King Rezar DeathWind will own your soul and spirit, he will own your mind just as much as he would own your soul. And he would twist you for his infernal and arcane purposes. I know it would be unfair of me to demand so much from you when all I and my people have given you is heartache and pain, but believe me when I saw that I intend to make things right with you. I lost my daughter not to the intricacies of your race and it''s severe breeding requirements, but because of my own greed for a new species of orcs that would sway the battlefield in my favor. I know now that I was wrong, and I want to make things right with you. But I can not do that without your help Roran, there''s an Enemy at our doorstep. As simple and nice as he might look, do not think for one second that he''s a friend, Rezar DeathWind is literally called the son of death, in name and in trait. Wherever he goes death and destruction follows and you will not survive up to a month as his slave. It is not a fitting end for you, after all not the struggles you have honestly been through. So I promise you land, a caravan of slaves of your own, and freedom to come and go as you please without ever having to be experimented on and forced to breed with females that do not catch your fancy. All I need you to do Roran, is make sure that Rezar DeathWind and his followers do not come back from their hunt for the black Wyrm. I know it is within your capabilities, so when you all are lost within the maze of the great canyons of Toromont, make sure that they are lost for good, and I guarantee you a happy and simple life, gold and riches unlike anything you''ve ever imagined. All I ask is that you make sure the bone King becomes bones in the ground itself. [[[[[+]]]]] Szadin had provided holes for each and every single one of them, while it would be a bit difficult to hide the fact that they were obviously not orcs, it would be in his best interest to keep the identity of his undead away from the public eye. But Rezar thought the entire gesture was useless, he knew people and he knew rumors. By now despite Durga''s best efforts, this grand horde would have already found out he was here, at least more than half of them anyways, and the hood would make them even more conspicuous to the searching eyes of the Battle hungry orcs. Rezar was led across a vast field, but such would be hardly known by the sheer number of tents that dotted the landscape. Some of the tens had little or large fences in front of them to make lawns or tiny farms and gardens of sorts. Others had she''d built into them were a variety of crafts were being carried out in simple fashion. He noticed a few other demarcated buildings that seemed to be a place of worship, and through out their small March towards the gathering point, it was the most populated part of any household or tent hold? The orcs were a bloody race, but from the look of things they are a religious one. Rezar could see quite a few orcs kneeling in front of elaborately carved statues, each with symbols similar to what he had found on the title and teleportation arch, and he could wisps of energy? Or at the very least a kind of sure and power that he has been feeling wafting off it. He watched as orcs placed the skills of animals in front these statues and then slice open the necks of chickens, birds, rodents, small lizards and even a goat and cow. They would then let the blood pool into the skull, which would be full of teeth and Ruby red flowers of some sort. The orcs would pray and use the blood to draw markings on their bare skin, before taking what was left of the blood and pouring it over the head of the statues. In the process of pouring the blood, though he wasn''t really sure, Rezar would swear he saw the symbols glowing and red haze of sort come out an encompass the forms of the orcs. It didn''t make much sense to him why things were like that, but it seems as if Elysium was becoming more spooky, of he really had some glitch in his mind and body about to go off. Rezar shifted his gaze forwards as they passed by another large tent with a compound that was a few hundred meters wide and held hundreds of female orcs. Rezar actually paused to watch the half naked females, bath themselves in milk and braid their hair with the teeth of dead creatures as heads, and then Pierce their lips and ears with thick, yet very small gold bars. Safe to say the orcs had a rich culture, one that has obviously been passed down from generation to generation and has grown to become something so incredibly colorful and great. It was admirable, especially the part with the half naked orcs as Rezar can happily say his prowess as a man stretched towards the well defined and muscled form of female orcs. He really needed to do something about this virginity of his, he didn''t think he was the kind of person to have held on to it this long, and right now, puberty was being a total bitch to him as he seems to be attracted to anything that was female and had boobs. Rezar shook his head and kept his gaze to the front, eventually coming to edge of this great community, and joint up with almost two hundred other orcs and bunch of other races who annoyingly had their gaze plastered solely to Rezar''s face. He ignored them and shifted his gaze to the Breone mountains to the north, and the canyons of Toromont north west, seems it was about time they set off. "Well guys! Let''s go hunt a big back snake." Chapter 158: Orcs and War (VII): The Hunt Begins Rezar rode in silence on top of Tony, the horde becoming nothing more than a speck in the distance. Roran watched him with wary eyes, and he in turn was being watched with wary eyes that the rest of Rezar''s companions. He was not stupid about the deal that has been offered to him, most Orcs lived their lives following and upholding their honor, especially when it came to battle with other opponents. But Durga was a very different ball game, he was a politician first and a warrior second, and seeing how he''s one of the strongest within the horde, one can not begin to imagine the sheer amount of shrewdness he had. Trusting the Orc chief would be a mistake he would probably regret all his life, of course he knew the promise made to him was valid. However knowing Durga there would always be a loophole that he would like exploit, and once exploited Roran knew he would probably end up in worse shit than he already is. And that''s not calculating the fact that should be succeed in killing Rezar DeathWind, his people would not hesitate to swiftly retaliate, and that was something he doubted he would be able to match up against, he''ll die without a body, all so that Durga could gain power. "You should cheer up Poison man! The fact that you''re still alive shows hat our king is curious and fascinated about you... just hope you keep being interesting to him, because should be lose interest, you''re going to become like that!" Kitagawa said with a calm smile, pointing at a scowling Screet who was riding on the back of Brutus. Down focused on the undead and felt his blood run cold, the leathery skin, dead green eyes and sharp claws were intimidating. Not to mention because of his ghoulish form, every movement the grey skimmed Screet made, would cause his face to crease and squeeze in a horrible way that would give many nightmares for a significant amount of nights. Roran wasn''t sure, but something was telling him that this group of people whether individually or singularly, were a lot more dangerous than Durga Goldbreaker of the Orcish Horde. People feared Durga for his strength and wit, but these guys.. were just genuinely terrifying and that was much more worse. "I take it Durga asked you to kill me?" Rezar asked as he turned around on Tony to look at Roran with a sinister look on his face, or rather the look itself wasn''t sinister; he was actually smiling, but to Roran, that look could have came from the very lips of the devil himself. "Well. You better hope you can kill me in one shot, I don''t intend to treat you any better than the orcs did. As soon as we''re back in Morte Bianca and Necron I''ll put you in a cage, so if you''re coming for this king, you best not miss Toad!" Screet and Priest burst out laughing, however their joviality did nothing to reassure Roran and instead made him even more scared, he got the feeling that this Bone King was absolutely not joking, and without a doubt he would stick him in a cage. Rezar shifted his attention away from the terrified Venoik, he had no idea what the discovery an entirely new race would do for Elysium, but he would find out. Roran''s race was interesting, his body could process energy, and other sort of materials to produce either dangerous toxins and poisons, or potions and tonics. He was a freaking alchemist workshop, and this came as a result of his race and not his class, Rezar could not begin to imagine the massive boosts he would get if he chooses classes that blend all too well with his race. They rode on for almost three hours, going past plains of endless grass, by that point the Breone mountains were just a speck in the distance behind them, and looming in front of them was the imposing form of the Canyons of Toromont. Valleys, upon valleys, caves, caverns, and hidden treasures, and within it beasts of scale and fangs ruled it. There were face colonized areas like the mining town Rezar had first spawned, but those were few and far in-between, and what they were going against was an area that has not be colonized yet. As they drew ever closer to the canyons, Rezar was beset by a slew of weird feelings once again, and this time it came from the canyons. He still couldn''t understand what this feeling was, but it was growing progressively stronger as he sensed it from so many other sources, and now the canyons were chock full of it. Rezar prepared himself as he and his people and hundreds of others drew closer to reddish brown and blackish silver of the cabin walls. They were awe inspiring and rose up into the air like mountains, but they still went down deep got he earth like crevasses and the canyons they were. Their entire group of hunters were led by an Orc even more massive than Durga, but Rezar had seen orcs just as big, even their females. The highest height they grew to was actually nine feet, and there were not thin or slender orcs, not unless for the half orcs that he had seen. It didn''t matter if it was a child or an adult, male or female, all orcs were huge. "Hunters! We have come to our destination. Past these tunnels are the lairs of the Black Wyrm, I expect all of you back here before sundown. Any later and it would be considered that you have perished during the course of the hunt. Now I will only say this once so pay heed to my words. This hunt is not for the faint of heart, every year, at least a 1000 orcs, young and old participate in the grand plain games and go through the gauntlet to obtain a chance to participate. But of that 1000 orcs who go for this hunt, the highest recorded number of survivors is 70! So if you know you can''t see this through and aren''t ready to give up your life in the pursuit of greatness and endless glory for the honor of your names! Then please kindly FUCK OFF!" Rezar shook his head and overly enthusiastic grin on his face as he raised his hand up in the air and gave a loud whoop, and then charged forwards, his retinue following right behind him their face burning in embarrassment at the un-kingly display of their leader. But never the less, they go hunting for a monster..they go hunting for blood. Chapter 159: Orcs and War (VIII): Into The Canyon There was a couple of entrances, six of them and Rezar had happily rode into the middle with Priest, Kitagawa and the rest of his retinue following close behind him. He definitely was very unlike a king, but at the moment he didn''t care. These canyons had been his origin, but he knew nothing about them and has never really had the chance to explore it. The canyon walls were craggy and uneven, there were spots that were so narrow Tony had to go up the wall and crawl past it, or let Rezar walk on his own. It was a lot worse for Priest and then others as they had rode on forest wolves instead, but the wolves were a lot more lithe and slender so movements weren''t too hard. They were the only ones who had taken this path, it was a lot more narrow but the fact that there was no one else following behind them made Rezar think that there was probably information about this place that was known to the orcs but not to them. So it was very probable that they were heading into a trap or a dead end. Nevertheless Rezar kept pushing forwards, if there was a dead end then he would reach it, but until he would March even deeper. The days of the sun could not reach the floor of the canyon as only one half of the walls could receive it''s days, it made the temperature there really cool as a variety of plants started appearing in their paths. The walls were covered with vines and algae and there were uneven scratches on it. Obviously there have beasts of some sort around here, and with how recent the scrap scratches looked they seemed to be fairly recent too. "Sure those scars on the walls are to uneven to be from a claw or a gang, it would be even impossible for it to be from a can''t as no jaw would be able to find that kind of purchase on a relatively flat surface." Kitagawa said as he moved closer to inspect the scratch, making sure to keep away from the plants, like it was some sort of plague. "Indeed your Majesty, they look like they were made from a bladed weapon, or at least something terribly edge and capable of cutting through rock with such ease. And with how vibrant and full of life this place is, those scratches should already have plants or algae growing out of them if they were any older than three days. But it would be unwise to jump to conclusions, however being more alert wouldn''t be a bad course of action." Priest said as he shifted his head to look at their narrow surroundings. Rezar took what the said in stride and kept moving forward, he had a King''s guard but he was taking the fore and leading the charge. It was not wrong and right, but in this scenario they knew they needed him ahead. Rezar was literally immortal, and he could deal with a lot of things a whole lot better than most other people could, and while they were mostly to admit it, he was least likely to die should they fall into a trap. They kept on moving forwards for another 30 minutes, at that point the canyon walls began to expand a bit, and the narrow with that they had all been walking expanded enough that three buses would be able to travel side by side. The walls on the other hand seemed to have developed ledges, and they were placed in such a way that even Rezar himself had to notice that something was wrong. "Master?" Brutus called out in warning with Screet getting up to his feet on the back of his fellow undead, but by then the warning came a little too late. *Whoosh!* A wooden spear shot through the air and literally blasted through Rezar''s body, causing a shower of blood to spread out behind him in a fine mist of red. Roran felt his heart skip a beat as everyone else became alert. From the ledges the sound of loud hisses could be heard as men.snakes.. snake like men slithered out of caves that had been camouflaged on the cavern wall. They were crudely armored with bone Armors and weapons, but with the force delivered from the spear throw than went through Rezar, it wasn''t far fetched to say that they were strong enough to match the King of Morte Bianca himself. The first Spear however was not the end of the attack, there was another that went into Rezar''s side, stabbing through his collar bone and bursting out the back of his neck. Another went through his legs, pinning his body to Tony''s who didn''t even let out a cry of pain, seemingly unshaken by the Assault. Two more spears found their way into his stomach and the final one drilled a hole into his head. Roran was so shocked by the sudden turn of events, the man he had been asked to kill had been murdered just like that, and now they were being rushed from all sides by the half men half snakes. "Nagas!!!" Kitagawa yelled out as he jumped into the air, his full white failed flashing through the air as they stabbed through two of the Nagas, completely ignoring the writhing pain filled morning they made. Roran felt his blood chill as the name being called, Nagas were the stuff of nightmares, the kind that kept both adults and children alike awake and haunted by the horrific tales and rituals of the natural born warlocks. Neither monster nor people, but smart enough to lay waste to entire cities in a single night. Roran was about to turn around and run for his life, when a shadow covered the sky. He looked up and his horror took on a whole other level as what he could see was blood, and ahead of him was the recently killed Rezar DeathWind getting back up to his feet and pulling the spears out of his body much to the shock of the Nagas attacking. "I just realized something.. I no longer have snakes or anything snake like.. but for the greater good and to my extreme pleasure..I''m going to FUCKING WIPE EVERY SINGLE LAST ONE OF YOU FROM THE FACE OF ELYSIUM!!!" Chapter 160: Orcs and Wars (IX): Nagas Roran shook in shock as Rezar removed the bloody bone spears from his body, the cloud of blood that had gathered above his head did not just have his blood included but now the blood of the Nagas that had already been killed by Kitagawa''s reprisal was floating upwards. But Rezar didn''t seem to care about what was going above him, in fact none of them seemed to care that there was a cloud of blood hovering above their heads in an extremely ominous fashion. Rezar moved forwards, Vita Gratia in it''s staff form, stabbing out into the chest of a Naga with extremely colorful scales. Just as the blade went through the body of the snake man, Rezar slammed his head forwards, crumpling the snake like face of the naga as fang and blood and brain matter flew every which way. Rezar ignored the twitching serpentine power half, as he stepped back and stretched his left arm to grab a spear that was coming for his head. He trapped the weapon and jumped up to evade the sweeping trunk of the Naga, and just in time for Screet to shoot forwards, his staff glowing a full grey that he unceremoniously used to slam into the body of the Naga. The naga didn''t shoot back as Roran expected, that swing had even displaced the wind around it, what happened instead left Roran feeling chills going up and down his spine. The body of the Naga fell to the ground like it was some coat being worn, obviously that strike of Screet had turned his entire bones to dust. Screet three with a flourish, his staff slamming downwards into the earth to blast a trio of Nagas back, and just in time for Rezar to move like some sort of Specter, shadows of bags hanging off his form as he sunk unnaturally long fangs into the neck of a Naga that had the kind of scales you would see on a viper. That was the last straw that broke the camel''s back as Roran fell back on his ass, completely shocked by what he was seeing. Even the old priest had moves that would out the best orc fighters to shame, and Durga had asked him to kill the man that led them. If that wasn''t suicide in it''s own right, then he didn''t know what else in this world could be considered such. Brutus charged forwards, his form gaining a black shadowy his that had tiny skull figures floating off him like the embers of a flame. Most of the Nagas knew to keep away from the ghost bull as he charged forwards, but those that weren''t smart enough got smashed into, leaving their bodies behind as their souls surged into the Eldritch looking form of the bull, causing armor to start growing out of his skin. Rezar stepped backwards, but ended up crossing a two meter distance and he dodged a wild swing from a spear, the Nagas were fast enough and had really good agility and dexterity. Rezar noticed that they fought by using momentum to their advantage. They did not have much power to their strikes, but the angle and speed of their swings made them a lot more deadlier than what most could manage. A grey tail flew past Rezar''s body to smash into the form of the Naga as one of his King''s Guards leaped into the fray with a Katana flashing like a light through darkness. Rezar turned to the right and crossed his weapon, defending against the piercing strike made by a Naga who had jumped off the ledge that hung above their heads. Rezar raised Vita Gratia upwards, deflecting the incoming spear by directing it''s incoming momentum above his head. The Naga still driven by inertia moved forwards into the waiting Knee of Rezar, forcing the snake man to crumple into himself in pain. But it seemed the attack from the Naga was just a diversion as another much larger Naga with the hood of a cobra quickly wrapped his trunk around Rezar''s body, restraining the Bone King as fangs the size of daggers bit down and pierced into Rezar''s neck. Rezar winced in pain as he closed his eyes, and then roared out in a cage that shook the entirety of this canyon. As soon as he finished yelling, the cloud of blood in the sky seemed to roil and bubble as it''s shape changed. Immediately massive spears made from blood shot out from it, coming down with a city on every Naga caught within it''s vicinity. The scene as even more bloody than when Rezar was stabbed through with more than one bone spear. The Lance''s of blood went through the bodies of multiple Nagas, it''s edge serrated and dragging with it their guts as the spear made sure to cut through their stomach. The Naga that had Rezar within it''s coils took the worst of it as the multiple blood Lance''s went through it''s body, with the worst going through his head from the back of his neck and out of his mouth, which was still stabbed deep into Rezar''s body. And then there bodies began to rapidly dry off and desiccate, their blood being drained into the same cloud of blood in the air, and then subsequently sent down into Rezar''s own body. It was barely just five minutes of conflict, but a slew of bodies were left behind with not a single casualty on the side of the Morte Biancans. Rezar shifted his body a bit and the Nagas around him turned to dust, the remains of their bodies drifting away. Rezar cracked his neck from left to right before he shifted his gaze forwards, there were a couple of Nagas still alive, and they were fleeing deeper into the canyon. "Master it seems that there''s still more to be done." Screet said as he stood besides Rezar and looked at the slithering form of the fleeing Nagas. All Rezar could say to his undead and to the rest of his retinue was. "Mount up! The hunt''s not over." Chapter 161: The Children Of Medusa (I): Instance Dungeon A little ways forward there was an arch of sorts built between the walls of the canyon, the arch itself seemed to be made from the bones of some sort of giant snake that stretched over the air from one corner of the canyon walls to the other. The other Nagas had ran down that path and through the arch, and considering that there was no other path to take, it seems the only way left is forward. Rezar raised his head to observe the ledges that popped out of the canyon walls, basically the Nagas must have carved the entire canyon walls on both sides, expanding it and making the ledges of stealth movements. It was impressive and Rezar was wondering if he should do the same for Necron, however considering it would just be overlooking his city and not a proper place to lay an ambush, it seems it was pretty much redundant. None the less it was such an impressive tactic to put into play in a battle, some day if he ever gets to rule the whole of Bahrenburg, worrying about invasions from the other side of the Canyons of Toromont would make for an interesting scene. Short of flying over the canyons itself, or going around the sea route in the west and the desert route in the east, the only way forward would be through the canyons itself, and the Nagas had just given Rezar the makings of a rather nasty idea. Rezar got on top of tiny and moved forwards, Kitagawa and Screet close being their king as they all moved forwards. A confused and thoroughly shaken Roran following close behind, all too scared and shaken to follow them, but even more scared and shaken to stay behind. He scrambled up to his feet, getting on top of the forest wolf that had been given to him for a mount, his body shaken a little too much to stay steady and steer his mount. However the wolf was an undead itself and it didn''t need much of a direction to move about. Rezar rose ahead, his eyes peeled for any other sort of ambush, while the Nagas could barely hurt him, or rather they could hurt him, but In end any sort of damage they could deal was completely superficial in it''s entirety. He shook his head again, an action that he seemed to be doing more and more lately, as he drew up to the arch and the walked past it. [You have entered the lair of the Queen Medusa! You can not escape from this instance dungeon until all the entire have been slain. Exp gain increased by 200%[NULL], Inventory Activated!] Rezar blinked and looked back to notice that a shimmering curtain had sprang up in the space behind them, they all probably received the same system notification, which meant they were all stuck within this instance dungeon until they had cleared it. Rezar took a deep breath though, he was in a dungeon again after so long, it was weird but he knew the base and true foundation of the strength he now had was born from the time he spent trapped in a dungeon. He had grown more stronger in there in eight months than he would have if he was still outside. "Sire whatever this Medusa is, this fight would not be easy. There are no low level instance dungeons which means we''re in for a very serious fight. We should prepared as those Nagas should probably be the weakest thing we encounter within this dungeon. Though if I have to be honest, I don''t think we might get the chance to encounter any Black Wyrms, so there''s a very obvious possibility we might fail this gauntlet." Priest said as he moved to stand besides Rezar who was still mounted. "It doesn''t matter Priest, I''ve already decided that whether I win this gauntlet or not, I''m going to go to the middle of the fucking Horde and Use Vita Gratia''s only skill. That should put the fear of the Goddess into them, you don''t fuck with death. But that''s if we do defeat this instance dungeon and get out of here on time. So out the gauntlet out of your mind old man, and let''s go hunt some snakes." Rezar with a smile as he urged Tony forwards, the massive ant skittering across a smooth ground that had been worn down by the constant crawling of the Nagas. They moved forwards for another 100 meters before they realize that the tunnel were getting a bit narrowed as the canyon walls met themselves before creating a sharp corner. It was worrying as they could be walking into an ambush without being able to see what or who was binding behind the corner, but none of that was a problem for Rezar as he got on top of Tony''s back and jumped up. [Bat Apparition] His form became nothing more than shadows as he surged forwards and quickly turned the corner, fully prepared to unleash hell on who or what ever he found there. And he did find a trap waiting for him as a hail of energy spears stabbed into his form, and while he was immune to physical damage in his apparition form, that was not to say skills, magic or any sort of energy based skills won''t be able to bring him down, at the very least he would take significant damage. His shadowy form dispersed as he fell to the ground, his knees banging hard on hard concrete floors and busting open. Blood flowed out from his busted kneecaps, as he raised himself fully to a kneeling position and looked at the hundred of Nagas who were arranged in a military formation and ready to attack him. His attention was given to them just long enough for a shadow to start calling on top of his head, he looked up just in time to see familiar yellow eyes as massive snake jaws opened to swallow him whole. And just before that happened, he could read out the name and level of the serpent as it was precariously perched on it''s head like a crown. (Infant black Wyrm King// Level 63 Monster) Chapter 162: The Children Of Medusa (II): Swallowed What was it like to get swallows by a snake, Rezar would happily describe it as slimy, and dark and it burned, like a lot. There wasn''t any room to move or find a way to escape, but what he could however was think and try to figure out a way to get out.....which basically was what he was supposed to be doing in the first place. Rezar felt his breath seize, but much more than that it was the stench of the snake''s stomach that truly got to him. He was also feeling a little bit delirious, almost as if he had taken more than half his fair share of a bottle of Elysium''s strongest wine, he needed to get out of her. [Bat Apparition] With his body disassembling into a flock of shadowy bats, it was such a relief, that if asked Rezar would be unable to explain to most people. The anguish he felt from the Black Wyrm''s stomach acid disappeared almost immediately as he was left to find his own way out of the body of this monster. One problem that cropped almost immediately was that he had no idea which was the proper end, no matter what the case may be, he was not to keen about coming out from the rear of some giant snake, that can''t be healthy for anyone, much less himself. But he would have to make a choice none the less, so he just chose to go the direction he considered right, when in doubt go right.. or was it left. Rezar kept moving forwards, and forward, and forward and forward. There was absolutely no end to this snake, it was almost as if there was no need to this monster and being stuck in it''s stomach meant that you would wander a void with end and without rest for all of your eternity. But Rezar was not one to let the current status Quo determine his life and how he''s going to be, and there was no way in hell he would be dying in the stomach of a fucking snake! [Death Blast!] A ball of grey with shadows of howling skills blasted out of Rezar''s shadow bat form, smashing into what Rezar was sure was the wall of the snake''s insides. A loud screech shook the entirety of the area he was confined in, and even more when you considered he was inside the body of the monster crying out in pain. There was rumble and the area he had shot the blast in seemed to develop cracks, almost as if Rezar that blown a hold through reality itself. There was no light at the end of tunnel, or just the expected hole in the side of the body that would let Rezar squeeze his way out. Instead what he was faced with was blood, an endless rivulet of it as it soaked Rezar, threating to drown him in the life giving liquid of this reptile''s body. It came in the form of a current Rezar could scarcely control or ride out as he was pushed towards the other end of the snake, the injury that he had left on it''s body becoming nothing more than a distance he could never reach. But Rezar was never one to give up, it one wound was not enough, then he would make a hundred more. [Death Blast!] [Death Blasts!] [Death Blast!] "Hiissssssszzzzz! Screeeeeeeeee!" The works seemed to shift upside down and roll around a couple of times as Rezar was blasted out of the bleeding body of the snake, right on top the roof of a wooden house that got crushed into a rubble from the weight of the vampire that just fell on it. Rezar spat out, a couple of times, sheer annoyance etched all-over his face as the current stream of events, he got back up to his feet, his annoyance making it seemed like a blast of energy escaped from his body, throwing away the rubble that had fallen all-over his body. The Black Wyrm King was not dead yet, it was severely uninjured and was currently leveling a small village of Nagas to the ground while Priest, Kitagawa and the others kept out of it''s way and mopped up what the snake couldn''t kill in it''s pained rampage. It whether it was having a pained rampage or not, Rezar was about to go on a rampage of his own, but he was extremely frantic as he couldn''t seem to find what he was looking for. "Master!" he heard a voice called out to him, and shifted his gaze left to see Screet riding on top of Brutus, his spear stabbed deep into the body of a Naga that was currently being dragged on the ground like it was worth nothing more than the dirt currently peeling it''s flesh of it''s bones. Screet three his tiny hands forward and Vita Gratia seemed to flash out of nowhere, heading into the hands of it''s master as Rezar caught the weapon In it''s staff form, and proceeded to separate it until he had two Khopesh in both hands. He threw both blades forwards as they surged out of the handle of his swords, the chains connecting them to handle stretching onwards in a deep blue glow that was ever eerie in it''s appearance and seemed to promise a great deal of pain to whomever was stupid enough to touch them. The blades stabbed into the back of the Black Wyrm''s neck, forcing the giant beast to let out a scream of pain as it surged forwards, Rezar gave Screet a smile as he said to him. "Let''s go for a little ride." Rezar dug his heels deep into the ground as the Black Wyrm dragged him along, utilizing even more power than the vampire had available to him. Massive furrows were bring dragged into the earth in the wake of the Black Wyrm''s and Rezar''s rampage. The giant snake struggled with all of it''s ability, pulling and shaking it''s massive head and body in an attempt to dislodge Rezar, but Rezar was anything if not stubborn as he pulled back just as hard, forcing the giant snake to bank sharply to the left and smack it''s head on the canyon walls, peeling of flakes of scales from it''s massage body. "Rooooooaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrr!" The Black Wyrm King definitely didn''t like that as it dragged it''s massive head forwards, pulling Rezar off the earth and through the air, his body also heading straight for a memorable impact with the canyon walls. But in great display of agility and enough dexterity to put even the best of gymnasts to shame, Rezar twisted his body in the air like a corkscrew, the chains of Vita Gratia twirling around his body in an elegant yet very dangerous manner. And then they pulled taut, rapidly referring as they dragged both the snake and Rezar closer to each other. Rezar made sure that both his feet was pointed downwards ad he fell, and he braced himself as his legs slapped into the neck of the Black Wyrm, and audible thud and crack heard across the canyon as the blades were wrenched out in a shower of blood, and the body of the Black Wyrm King was smashed back into the earth so hard a crater was made. The Wyrm could no longer cry out as the pain was to intense and the injuries had forced it exhaust it''s strength. And it was even more terrible when it had to have a guy of war with Rezar, coupled with the still bleeding injuries, it had exhausted whatever source of energy and adrenaline that had kept it going so far, now all it could do was wait and die. Rezar was crouched on the back of the Snake, his arms quivering and his legs shaking, this battle wasn''t easy, and though not many would have noticed, Rezar was wholly focused on this fight, relying wholly on his superior instincts and deductive capabilities to outmaneuver the Black Wyrm, not to mention this was also a contest of strength, one that he won with great effort as he would never have been able to beat the monster if it was not already injured. Rezar ignored the eyes on him as he moved up to the head of the Black Wyrm, and then stabbed down with Vita Gratia, making sure both blades were stabbed all the way down to the hilt. The massive snake with it''s head the size of a house, shook a bit, before the glow in it''s eyes faded away and it''s massive bulk became completely still. Rezar felt a rush of energy and Vita Gratia quivered in his hands as the soul of the monster, was absorbed into both the master and his blade, and this feeling was so much more different from the previous times. Rezar felt his legs quiver, but this time not from tiredness, from the sheer pleasure of the current of energy now coursing through his veins. He didn''t receive any message about stat increase, but he knew he was stronger, now, a lot stronger than before. He got up to his feet, trying his best to ignore the hisses that filled the canyons as more and more Nagas riding on giant snakes and lizard surrounded Rezar and his people, their anger at him murdering their let all so obvious. [Vita Gratia has leveled up! The passive skill [Soul Taker] has been unlocked, and the Trait [Dragon''s Bane 1] has been bestowed.] Rezar looked at the endless amount of Nagas now surrounding them and shook his head, he didn''t know it he was unlucky or if it was just a coincidence that the second dungeon he ever entre was like the first, but seriously though! What was it with dungeons and endless waves of enemies? But then again it didn''t matter, because the more of them they were, the stronger he would become. [Raise Undead] Chapter 163: The Children Of Medusa (III): Maestro The Nagas were considered monsters, but given how intelligent they sometimes acted and how they had extremely large communities with signs of civilization and traits of ingenious inventions m. Of course when it came down to it, Nagas were still pretty much primitive, and where more like kobolds in the fact that they mainly lived by relying on instincts. But then again they were so much like people in that they could build houses, farm and even worse fall into battle formations much like the very one they were using to surround Rezar and his people. But so far the Nagas that they had faced weren''t the cream of the crop, as physically betting as those Nagas who had been using bone spears were, the true power and force of the Nagas were warlocks, and not the kind that summoned and made deals with demons, but then kind that could curse you and inflict you with a dozen debuffs before you ever got the chance to say please. And from how large these new Nagas looked, the gnarled wooden amulets hanging around their neck and the thick black armors made of unknown material, not to mention they were currently unarmed, it wasn''t too hard to identify what kind of enemies they now had to face. [DeathWind Domain!] And expansive dome of black and silver wind suddenly spread around Rezar, moving to cover Screet, Kitagawa and everyone else that Rezar considered an ally. The domain spread out extremely fast, reaching a radius of almost a 150 meters, quickly catching up with a lot of the Nagas that had drawn close and blasting some of them back, while others were actually inflicted with the decay debuff, as their skin and flesh began to peel off and rot away. Rezar had bought them all some valuable time as he had pushed them off and given the others time to gather themselves, and apart from that, the [DeathWind Domain] had the distinct ability to empower any of Rezar''s allies that were caught under it. But even with the dome up and defending them from the attacks of the Nagas, it wouldn''t last forever, and this domain while defensive wasn''t based on defense but was rather an AOE control ability and buffing field, Rezar had to expand it to cover their enemies for it to truly show it''s full potential. "You know we can''t stay here too long Sire, they''ll keep on attacking the dome until comes down." Kitagawa said to Rezar. "I understand that commander, but don''t worry I''ve got a plan. All of you fall into standard dungeon party formation. Brutus take center stage you''re our tank. Priest stick to the rear with Roran, Kitagawa and the other King''s Guard, spread out and be our east and west wings. Give enough space for their melee fighters to sink in, like sand moving through your fingers. I''ll reduce the intensity of the dome to let them in with a controlled approach, none of you should leave the dome, just kill as much as you can and watch out for each other. Am I clear?" Rezar asked them telepathically, it wasn''t to farfetched to believe that if the Nagas could create formations for battle, then they could probably best what he was saying and intercept his orders. They all fell into the formation he had called out for them quickly, Roran was a little spooked when Rezar''s voice had come blaring out loud within his head, but seeing as everyone fell into formation in front of the body of the Dead Black Wyrm King was enough to tell him that he didn''t imagine it, and that alone made Rezar even more scary in his eyes. Rezar remained on his perch on top of the Black Wyrm King, he would join the Battle, but for now it was better to just control and offer support. [Summon Undead] Within the cracks of their formation, skeleton soldiers all popped up, armed and ready for a fight. And with that done Rezar looked behind the dome at the bodies of dead Nagas that littered the ground. He smiled sinisterly as the makings of a very fun trap sprung within his mind. He had done this before, and it would be just as much fun doing it now as he did it then. "Come!" and with his words the fierce dome of black and silver wind seemingly disappeared. But that was not the case as the dome was still there, he just made it possible for his enemies to get through, and obvious trap, and they Nagas happily fell into it as they rushed forwards. In the end even if Nagas were very capable casters, they did not know how to really fight like one. In the heat of the Battle, they were just like every other man or snake, they just wanted to bite, poison and squeeze the life out of every prey in their sight. Rezar let his summoned undead to take the charge and handle the brunt of every curse, and under the buffing effect of the DeathWind Domain, they were causing more than enough of their fair share of damage. Rezar kept on watching as more and more of the Nagas came into the 150 meter range of the DeathWind Domain, many of the Nagas and decided to flank them, coming from behind in order to bring them down. But Rezar was all to aware of that, which brought up the prime and ripe opportunity for him to spring up his trap. This was a tried and tested tactic in battle, and there was no reason it shouldn''t work here again, and it did, wonderfully so. [Raise Undead] If the Nagas had conscious thoughts and weren''t more than just animals, then this would hit them really hard. After all, how nerve wracking would it be when the dead form of your kin that knew no pain or fear sprang up and sank their fangs into your neck, biting and chewing and clawing through to bring about a death that was as horrible as well..... something I guess. And the person responsible for all of this, the charismatic and soon to be all encompassing Bone King watched, like a maestro playing the most legendary of masterpieces. Chapter 164: The Children Of Medusa (IV): Medusa Rezar watched as weapons and skills met flesh, bones moved in motion that the rules of nature would never have permitted as they clashed against the Nagas. A fight this was, but it was skin to a small battle, but it was one that Rezar knew they would win, and tie was all due to the fact that with every second that passed, the fighters on his side, were slowly outnumbering the Nagas. By the time this was over they would all be dead, very, very dead. Screet scrambled within the ranks of the snake men, moving just as fast and just as lithe as they did as his staff twirled in the air like the blades of a propeller. Every bit broke bone and crushed skulls as he aimed for parts of their body that would debilitating injuries or kill them in one strike, and even better was the fact that for every Naga he killed, they would automatically rise up to become a zombie in the undead army he was slowly building within this instance dungeon. Screet was smile a whirlwind, and considering the Mole-man was just four feet tall, there was a lot to be said about his moves and abilities, if Rezar had to out a finger on it, he would say Screet fought like a monk, swift like the wind, but with the force of an elephant and the precision of a viper. Rezar realized, annoyingly, that Screet was a better fighter than he was, and while he shouldn''t be too stressed about the fact that one of his undead could fight better than him, he felt that when it came down to it, his own undead being capable of kicking his ass in a straight fight wasn''t fun. Rezar shook his head and raised his head up to see the cloud of blood that have been steadily gathering over the last few minutes that the right went on, it was by far the largest he has ever made and he could feel it reach a limit of sorts. Due to the level of the skill it probably couldn''t go any higher than the 30 meter radius it had, but the. Again it had volume and it was energy, but was there a way to compress it further, to make it occupy less space, but have enough blood to stretch across and entire battlefield. [You have gained an Insight! ] "what the hell?" Rezar asked out in surprise at the system notification that just came up, he had no idea what was going on, but the system has been extremely wonky of recent and he did not understand why. And while it hasn''t really caused him that much of a problem, he was who he was, basically his origins not being what you would consider Orthodox, had him wondering if all of the weird shit he was seeing was Elysium getting on wonky on his as he could be in retrospect be considered part npc/AI. Nevertheless- "Get down!!!" Rezar yelled as his body became a flock of bags that flitted away from the giant carcass of the Black Wyrm King. Just as he was about to move Rezar reinforced the dome of the [DeathWind Domain] skill, however it did nothing to stop the massive beam of grey light that surged out from a cave at the end of the canyon. One of the kitsunes and many of the undead were unable to get out of the way in time, and one of them was Screet, however just one of his arms were caught in the beam of light that just seemed to show up from nowhere. Before the beam had been shot in their direction, Every sister sense Rezar had in his body had been firing off like the fireworks at a Chinese New year. He gave the warning as fast as he could, but more than half of the forces he had gained had been caught in the path of the beam, but more so even the Nagas were not spared from it. Looking at that beam had given Rezar such a chill, and when the beam finally came to an end, dispersing into nothing, all that was left of the armies fighting was earth, each and every single one of them had been turned into stone statues! *Clank! Shreeeeeeee! Clank! Hisssssss!" Rezar looked at the decimated battlefield below him, to say he was shocked was an understatement, and when he turned his head to look in the direction of where that beam had come from, he couldn''t help but open his mouth wide in shock and surprise. 45 feet tall, the upper body of a woman and the lower body of a snake, now normally this was the perfect description for a lamia or Gorgon, even if this was one blown way out of proportions. Rezar would even go so far as to say this was the Medusa who''s Dungeon they now found themselves in. It should end there shouldn''t it however... "She''s a fucking MECHA!" Rezar frowned his face at Roran''s bold declaration, obviously it''s not been too long since he became an upload because Rezar could swear he saw literal stars in his eyes. Rezar had to disagree though, while the sleek silver and black with red highlights and the purple metal snakes gave it a mecha aesthetic, that bloody thing was a robot. But rather than Call it a robot he had to say that it was a living being, and he knew it all too well because he was a vampire, things like this could not escape his perception. "Whatever you guys do, stay the fuck away from those beams. Kitagawa and the others get an illusion up, Priest if you have something that can stop us from being turned to stone then please use it. Brutus keep an eye on your brother, I''ll lead the attack with the rest of the undead to see just how powerful an Enemy we''re dealing with, Roran try not to die, and if anything should happen to me, I name Lenore Queen in my stead. Now chaaarge!" Chapter 165: The Children Of Medusa (V): Battle Moved had to be made it their lives were going to be saved, this Medusa was not something Rezar was well equipped to deal with, so he had to bring everything he possibly could to the table, and that meant hitting this mechanical monster with everything that he possibly could without holding anything back. Rezar took a deep breath as he surged forwards, his form a flock of bats with bloodlust in their eyes. The mechanical hairs, that were really just hundreds of mechanical snakes clumped together shifted as the eyes glowed and lasers by the hundreds shot towards him. Rezar threw the Khopesh in his left hand to the right, as it stabbed into the canyon walls, the chains serving as a link that free him out if the line of fire of the lasers. He came to a stop on the wall, using the stabbed in Khopesh as a beam to keep himself stuck to the wall. He didn''t waste too much time after as he sent the other Khopesh flying towards the Medusa, only for the blade to bounce off it''s metallic scales with barely a scratch left behind. "Hahahaha you would not fight it, it issssss your destiniesssssss to sssssssserve the great BOA empire, ssssssssubmit! Mortalsssssssss" Her chuckle was beyond creepy, and with the very life like gestures she made, it more than proved to Rezar that this machine, this robot was very much alive, and if it was alive, then it could be killed a lot easier than a machine could. And the same was vice versa, being alive meant the Medusa was not a generic combatant it''s bound to definitely cause them a lot of problem. Rezar jumped off the wall, and in that moment he spun in the air, the chains and blades of Vita Gratia whistling through the air. [Strike Of Nothingness] It was like feeling the wind move and at the same time it was not. The Medusa was blasted back until it''s back impacted the end of the canyon. The massive living machine screeched out in pain, sending a shower of lasers that completely dug holes into the whole of Rezar''s body in midair. The Medusa surged forwards, massive mechanical arms swiping forwards with as much speed as a flesh and blood person could muster, and Rezar was thrown backwards until his form was sent to the ground, creating a massive crater in the process. [You have harvested a piece of an Alien/NPC soul. All stats increased by 10] Rezar could hardly pay attention to the system notification as there was a flash of light as a massive ball. Of fire flew towards the Medusa, exploding on her metallic frame, pushing the massive bulk backwards. Rezar was annoyed as he slowly got up, watching as a rib pushed out of his body went back in and his exposed femur slowly sink back into his leg. The Kitsunes were laying down some suppressive fire as they pushed the Medusa back and kept her unstable to utilize any skill or tactics. Rezar discovered that all the flames were doing was leaving small dents on it''s body rather than causing any sort of damage. *Hong!* "Shit!" [DeathWind Domain] This time they all had ample warning to go down or get out of the way as the hundreds of mouth of the snakes that made up the locks of her hair, and the main mouth itself was opened to release a slew of combined beams that all joined to make one very large cone of Death. The domain came to live almost immediately, a veritable ball of black wind to keep the worst of the world away, but Rezar knew it wouldn''t be enough, so the blood from the [Blood Rain] skill spread as quickly as he could will it to from a wall in the direction to the petrifying beam that could turn them all into stones. *Bloom!* For a second Rezar taught all of the defenses he had made wouldn''t last, but they did if only for a few seconds, buying time and preventing them from becoming garden decorations. But the shockwaves was something else as they were all thrown backwards, their bodies banging on the ground and through the well sculpted forms of the Nagas, and undead that had previously been turned to stone. Even as they were thrown back, there was a shimmer of golden white light around their forms. It prevented them from getting severely injured, but again Rezar was actually exempted from this as half the skull of a broken Naga statue was found halfway through his neck, his life''s blood pumping out of the wound like a fountain in an amusement park. He couldn''t speak in that moment so he had to use his telepathy to give orders. [Concentrate your attacks! It''s very resistant to any sort of skill that''s energy based, but anyone that leaves a physical impact would leave a dent on it''s body. I need you guys to make me a big target! Hit it at one spot and one spot alone.] Rezar ordered, and that was when Roran decided to speak and frankly speaking Rezar was very surprised the Venoik was still alive. "It can only use that beam every 5 minutes! If we''re going to take it down, now''s the time." And then he shrunk into himself like he was some sort of turtle. It was funny, but the young Venoik was right,..he was young right? Rezar wasn''t too sure, but they had to make do with what was now in front of them, especially now that they were working on a tight schedule. [Good! Roran you''re my time keeper! As accurately as you can, calculate the amount of time left until the Medusa uses that skill, everyone else''s hat the fuck are you waiting for! And invitation? Kill that giant mechanical bitch!] Rezar ordered as he got up to his feet, ignoring his awkwardly twisted left leg and the share of art still stuck in his neck. [Death Blast!] *Booom!* "This issss futile, the BOA empire can not be beaten. Sssssstop and ssssssuccumb to your fatesssss." "Fuck You Snake Robot Woman!" " ..." The battlefield was pulled into an eerie silence as everyone the Medusa included turning to look at the old Priest that had just cursed out loud. The old Priest on the other hand completely ignored the eyes that were glued to him as he raised his hands up into the air and created a glowing Lance made from a black white energy with intricate and elaborate designs. The Lance rotated in the air for a few seconds and then shot forwards, slamming into the chest of the Medusa, blasting her backwards, actually lifting her massive bulk and throwing it backwards once again, and this time the hit was a lot harder than was expected. Everyone else quickly followed suit, aiming their attacks at the very same spot Priest had just attacked. Rezar was now doubly shocked by the fact that Priest had an attack skill. But he didn''t let that stop him as he ran towards the Medusa, picking up speed as he used [Bat Apparition] and floating into the air where there were still vestiges of the [Blood Rain] skill remaining. [Bind] Familiar Eldritch chains popped out of his back and this time much to the surprise of everyone the Medusa included, those chains actually pierced through it''s body, stabbing so deep it popped out behind it before burrowing deep into the Canyon wall to keep it trapped there. From then on it was just a matter of using everything else In his veritable arsenal of skills. Vita Gratia was combined into her staff form as one end of it''s blades was coated with blood that made it seems even larger than normal, Rezar stabbed it towards the massive dent Priest had made. [Strike Of Nothingness] But this was only just one part of the equation, with the chains still stabbed into it''s form, one of Rezar''s most powerful skills was ready for use, and he used it before the Vita Gratia made impact. [Feed] Rezar felt energy the liked of which he''s never felt before and then the Medusa let loose a screech of pain that shook the entire Canyon, and that''s when Vita Gratia began to absorb the soul of consciousness of the Medusa, completely merciless as it took in the very essence of what made this machine what it was. It forms shook, and then without warning there was massive explosion, and once again Priest was more than happy to shield everyone else while his king took the full brunt of the explosion. In the midst of all his pain Rezar reckoned he would have to have some severe words with priest when this was all-over. But for now, he would settle himself with figuring out how to get his insides back well.. inside him. What was left behind was just slag and burnt metal and a smell of burnt flesh, Rezar could see a couple of glowing objects on the ground where the Medusa had been destroyed. Those were probably the loots, but as he healed and got ready to move the canyon rumbled once more. "Oh for God''s sake what is it now!" Chapter 166: The Children Of Medusa (VI): Outpost [You have routed out an alien invasion on Elysium before it''s even started by taking out one basic scouting unit of BOA empire. You have gained prestige for your faction, you have been rewarded. Rewards withheld until further notice] Rezar frowned in annoyance, the rumblings they had heard had actually came from a mound of earth moving aside to expose what Rezar could and wholeheartedly call a space ship, and it was fucking massive, with a significant emphasis on the fucking. Some things were making sense, and at the same time he was still very confused. Of the memories he had of his human life, before the upload and the Eldritch combination of a human and artificial intelligence minds, Rezar knew or at least it was common preconception that games don''t have an update unless it''s actually been carried out. But this was Elysium and even though it couldn''t be considered a game, it still had elements of it that would make it seem like a game, it was a virtual world completely populated by humanity, controlled and pushed forward by humans based on their decisions, choices and experiences. Rezar had half a suspicion that everything he''s been experiencing so far was due to the update that was coming, and until it was finally here, things would keep getting wonky and weird for him. Rezar looked around, there were actually a few Nagas still left alive, completely shocked and afraid by the current stream of events, the area where their battle had just taken place was at least 300 meters wide and 250 meters wide. The space ship completely covered the entire space with barely any room left for movements of any sort. It was black and it was grotesque, it''s looked like the head of a snake, but there were edges to the side of it that popped up, it would be something like the horns of a viper if it stretched backwards a bit. "I am so confused right now." Screet said as he stood besides Rezar, looking up at what was probably their biggest reward from this entire fight. Rezar turned to Screet and said. "Don''t worry about it for now, take the remaining undead and scout that cave ahead, be careful seeing as you now have only one arm. Let me know what''s there, and if there''s anything that can be carried out, then do so, it''s a miracle that cave is still standing." Screet nodded his head and ran off to go complete his mission while Rezar just looked on with a full look on his face, Scree had barely even went inside when he called out for Rezar. Rezar checked everyone else to make sure that they were still okay, especially the Kitsunes as they had lost a close turned and were Currently in the middle of grieving for him. Rezar let them do so, he would have offered to turn their friend undead, but he had been turned to stone and then shattered. Rezar jogged until he came to the entrance, and then he walked in. [Welcome to BOA outpost 92! You have defeated and conquered this outpost would you like to take command of outpost or grab the territory core.] {Take Command/Obtain Territory Core} Marble floors and well made concrete walls painted all white, there were displays on the wall, normal screens and then holographic projections that gave off information in a language Rezar could not understand. This place was Cavern, it was massive and wide enough for Medusa and the Wyrm King to move around with ease. While it wasn''t as big as the Cavern he had lived in when he was still a slave, they had similarities. There were caves or rather tunnels that led to other parts of the outpost, all of them modernized. This entire place was built, not carved into, which was a little surprising because with this sheer amount of space, sophistication and technology, it''s damn obvious they have been here for a very, very long time. In the middle of the cavern there was a massive metal pillar that reached the top work the cavern where it spread to make a sort of display area or rather control deck with thick one way windows Rezar couldn''t see through. There were walkways and bridges crisscrossing through the entire facility, and looking down a bit it seems there was even more below ground, like a basement of sorts. This place was not just an outpost, a cursory glance at the walls showed slots where tiny guns and cannons were minutes for defense in case the place was ever taken. This was a military base, and rather than take it''s so called core, Rezar would instead take command of it and add it as an asset for Elysium. If he''s able to get the teleportation arch the orcs had used in bringing them here, then he would be able to get his people here to take command, and beyond that. The ship that was fortuitously left outside for them could also help, besides this would help him understand just what sort of enemies this [BOA] empire were, and how he would deal with them, because frankly speaking it had taken a lot out of them to best the Medusa, and then it turns out she''s just a basic unit..Rezar shuddered to think what more of them would look like, or what kind of horror they would bring should they decide to carry out an invasion. [You have taken command of BOA outpost! You''re now connected to the BOA empire secret network, please head to the terminal for more information.] Rezar raised his head up to look at the massive pillar, obviously the terminal was right at the tippy top of it, but nevertheless he had spent enough time here, and he would make sure no one would be coming here yet, especially not the orcs. He would come back later with Alistair and the Muriel elves to properly take stock of what was in front of them, but for now they have a gauntlet to win and a Plain game to win. Chapter 167: The Moon That Hides {Elysium had two moons, but one very obvious fact was that not many people had noticed the second moon or the fact that it was in fact not an actual moon. Rezar had noticed it before, fleeting as those times might be. Whether or not Elysium had two moons was a bone of contention for many as it would seem as if it was a bunch of inconsistent information of a writer incapable of properly keeping track of his own story. But none the less there was a second moon, and it was not a moon either...it was a ship. I worry for the people of Elysium, because what lays within the confines of that ship is horrors unspeakable, and death from the sky in more ways than one, it was an apocalypse waiting to happen.} THE SECOND MOON OF ELYSIUM UNKNOWN. The Serak picked her way through the long white halls of the central core, keeping the engine of the Dark Ark running has always bee her job, as it was the job of her father and his father before him, and so too will it be for her children after. But from what she could see it seems living in a massive hunk of metal deep in the sky for thousands of years was no longer going to be their reality. In the time their people had arrived above this planet, they had been unable to get past the atmosphere as the planet itself seemed to be protected by a force they couldn''t understand. But now that force had weakened, so much so that other races from within the vastness of space had taken the chance to send in scouts and resources that would help them occupy the planet with a lot more ease. At first they just wanted a new home to live, but after being stuck here for so many years and forced to build and grow an army to defend from battles in space from other races, they were no longer looking for a place to call home, a few hundred years of constant space battles and salvaging can do that to you. She moved around a corner, her four arms raising up in shock at the person in front of her, she quickly got down to her knees and kept her head board. "Hail to the Supreme Commander!" her voice quivered, but it was strong and full of conviction, the imposing figure in front of her seemed covered by a ball of light as his broad shoulders and well muscled four arms fell stoutly by his side. "At ease child, I hear you''re the chief engineer in charge of the Central Core prime engine?" He asked, but it was more like he was stating a fact, and just asking was a formality. She felt pressured, the supreme commander observing formalities with her was grounds to get killed by fanatics who saw him as a God encapsulated by mortal coils...the funny thing is she would also have let that happen to her, she didn''t feel worthy. "Yes supreme commander, I and my ancestors have been responsible for it''s upkeep." She replied, her head still faced to the ground in extreme reverence. "Ahhh the Nek''tra''kit family. Your family''s reputation precedes them, the family responsible for a failed coup in the past that cost us the lives of hundreds of younglings. There is much shame on your heads." She bowed even lower at that, if the floor beneath her could open up and swallow her, or just shoot her out into the vastness of space, she would have gladly taken that opportunity to die. She too felt great shame at the sins of her ancestors, and it was such a shame as they were once a family of Prime commanders. "But your family has paid it''s penance, and even more so they have redeemed themselves by weaponizing the prime core engine, giving it the capabilities to terraform a large surface area of the planet into a place more habitable for our people to live in. I will reinstate your family back as one of the Prime commanders, your seats have been empty for generations, and you shall take it, as one of me Queterata. And then we will take the world below us for ourselves and for our children." All of a sudden she felt as if it was harder to breathe, this was such an great honor, not the fact that her family name would be exonerated, it was the fact that she was being honored to be a Queterata, a Queen! As one of the females of her face capable of birthing younglings she knew there was a price on her head. And to be chosen by the Supreme Commander to be one of his wives was more honor than she deserved, it didn''t matter she was already mated and had a young one just twenty cycles old, they had to understand the severity of the task she has been given, it wasn''t easy to get fucked by Supreme Commander and bear his younglings, the future leaders of her people and maybe one of them might actually become the next Supreme Commander. "Supreme commander this is such and honor, one that I''m am severely unworthy of, but I will not let you down and will perform my duty to you with due diligence, you will not regret this decision." She said as her forehead hit the floor, giving the perfunctory how of slaves to show just much this meant to her. "You belong to me now, your body and your mind. I''ll need you prepare the world breaker cannon, we shall carve out a place for our people to live in on this wretched planet." Her heart swelled with excitement and joy as she asked. "Supreme commander, where would our new home be, where have you chosen to have our people set our new roots?" he looked down at her, eerie blue eyes and pale white hair covering his forehead with a grace and finesse unmatched by any other. "We shall take that holy city of theirs, that Theocracy that they''re all so proud of. The most powerful of all their lands shall be mine for the taking. And since you belong to me now, I believe you are now permitted to say my name, if just this once." She got up to her feet, scrambling her way up as her chest seemed full to the point of bursting, there was now way she would say his name bowed down, such disrespect was not worthy of the man that would soon be later with her. "Supreme Commander..... Ely''is''um. Your wish is my command." Chapter 168: Orcs and Wars (X): Gauntlet Complete The sounds the body of the Black Wyrm King made was extremely annoying, but there was no other way to bring it out of the dungeon. The so called inventory that the system had given to them had become deactivated the moment they left the area of the Instance Dungeon. And the moment they left it stopped being an instance dungeon too, so Kitagawa and the rest of the Kitsunes had to raise up an illusion to obscure everything they had discovered. As it stands Rezar didn''t care too much about what happens with the orcs as he quickly wanted to get to work on the outpost he found. It was almost as if the world was giving him too many things to take care of, but nevertheless having many things to do meant that a lot of good would come to his people and his territory. Rezar shook his head as they finally came out of the Canyons, many Orcs were already gathered and there seemed to be more in the distance. The only difference however was that their numbers were lower, much more lower than the amount that had arrived at the canyons of Toromont. Rezar took that to mean that they had probably all been killed, yet only four people seemed to have been able to kill a black Wyrm, and except of course it wasn''t as close to being as big as the colossal monster Rezar and his retinue were dragging behind them. "That''s a Black Wyrm King!" "H-how! Those things are impossible to kill except for classes at level 50 and above!" Surprised they may be, giving Rezar an inordinate amount of pride, except of course he had no intention of telling them he had to kill the monster from the inside out after it swallowed him. He had a reputation to protect, there was no way he would damage his image, the bone King does not and can not be swallowed by an inferior monster. Rezar huffed as he looked at the orc that had led them here in the first place, he had a look of shock on his face that quickly morphed to one of respect as he gave a small how to Rezar. Rezar gave him a bright smile, which with his exotic appearance made him look extremely charming. "Listen up! We only have to wait for another hour for any more stragglers, if no one arrives within that time frame we will return back to the horde where special lodging accommodations would be made for those who successfully completed the gauntlet." His words caused a few whispers to go through the small crowd of people gathered. When they came here there used to be hundreds if not thousands of contestants, the ones left looked worse for wear and some of them were even had varying degrees of injuries from light to extremely severe. This was a serious amount of casualty for just a simple qualifying gauntlet, Rezar could not help but imagine how dangerous the plain games would be themselves, it was bound to be extremely scary and in more ways than one. But he had a severe lack of fear so it being scary was not something he was worried about, and after the monster of a machine they just faced , Rezar doubted there would be much in this world that I could actually phase him. But none the less he realized that he was severely lacking in a lot of places, he would need to train extensively to make up for his shortcomings, so when all this was over, he would be heading for that dungeon in his territory and focus really hard on getting himself and his undead stronger. They waited for exactly that one hour for more people, and while there were little pieces of Orcs and other races showing up, their numbers were never substantial, and none of them were completely whole as they got back, which made what Rezar and his Retinue just did extremely insane. But truth of the matter was that they had casualties of their own, but the fact that there were dragging the partially petrified carcass of black Wyrm King would completely remove the need for them to remember that their numbers were less and there was just a few new Naga undead in tow. Their March back was extremely solemn, and for some of them even longer than the March to the canyons, but eventually after a few hours, just as the sun was beginning to dip down into the horizon Rezar saw the first tents of the horde. He turned his head to the west, in the direction of Necron and wished that he could have watched the sun set from the port on the beach, that was bound to have been some of the most beautiful sights of all time. He was stuck in melancholic reflection and was deep in thought, especially about the fact that there were aliens heading for Elysium or already here and they had absolutely no intention of playing nice. For Rezar he knew he was stronger than the average Fighters in Elysium, he could actually be considered to be amongst the top 30% but it had taken a lot of help from his King''s Guard and his advisor Priest to bring a Medusa down, and what he was faced was just one of them. He had no idea just how many of them were there, but with his own designated as a number ninety something, there''s bound to be a number 1 and who knew just how far down those numbers went. World domination or just carving out a place for himself in a chaotic world was nice and all, but frankly speaking if the people had any chance of survival they needed to actually rally together in alliances. Wars had to be stopped completely so that they could all focus on development, both in infrastructure and military so that there would actually be a world to live in once these aliens get here or expose themselves. But right now the people he could reach were those in Bahrenburg, and of the forces in Bahrenburg the most powerful that he could readily get access to right now were the Orcs. He had heard there were more powerful and advanced civilizations deep in the Kerwood forest, especially the hidden fairy rings that held vast magical powers and combat prowess that could help with the fight against the aliens. And this was the reason why he decided to actually participate in the plain games, he would be unable to actually come to an understanding with Durga and the rest of the orcs, so in order to actually have a voice and get them on the same page, he had to put himself in the spotlight that they''ll be completely unable to notice, for both his sake and theirs. Their guide led them last tents that hundreds of orcs standing outside, waiting and watching, and just like it had been with the contestants, the orcs were severely shocked by the sight in front of them. A black Wyrm King was not just rare, it was notoriously unkillable and it has been a constant source of problems for the orcs with it''s hunting activities. Black Wyrm Kings were actually nomadic just like the orcs, they traveled all-over the canyons of Toromont and the edges of the great desert following after most orc tribes that traveled and picking them off one by one until there was nothing left of the tribes and then it would move on to it''s next target. So many orc tribes had already gone extinct from the hunting activities of black Wyrm Kings, because unlike ordinary Black Wyrms who actually had nesting and hunting grounds. The Black Wyrm Kings just roamed every which way, so they were quite surprised that one could be found so close to the horde, quite frankly it was scary as hell as if the Black Wyrm King had decided it was a little more hungry than usual, the Horde would have been in severe danger, these things hunted swiftly, and with each kill they grew stronger until they became practically impossible to beat and horde would had had to move. "Welcome back brave warriors! Let those who have completed task come forwards with their prize." They had come to a stop in front of an open field right in the middle of the horde, obviously this place seemed to be some sort of meeting area, as quite a few Orcs were gathered around. Two orcs went forwards, dragging along carts that carried their ten meters long and meter wide black Wyrms. The next person was actually a dwarf, much to Rezar''s surprise, his stout figure and gleaming silver hammer made his the center of attention. Finally there was a snow elf, a young man with a face most would kill for...it just remains to be seen whether he would be killed for having such a face or someone would kill to have it. And then it was Rezar''s turn and the massive Black Wyrm King was dragged forwards by a crew of almost 50 undead, he didn''t however move forwards or take off the hood he had on his head remaining seated on top of Tony. "Participant, you show great disrespect for the orc chiefs by not taking your hood off and presenting yourself before the horde! How dare you! You should be disqualified!" Rezar moved his head to the side, he seemed to know almost immediately what was going on there, so he turned to Kitagawa and said to him. "Kill him." Chapter 169: The Games (I): Politicking Such an order was completely out of place and even more so that it was right in the middle of the horde, sure Rezar needed the orcs, but he was not going to bend over for them as this particular race responded better to strength and power. Sure it was stereotypical of orcs to be wild and brash, but in this case it helped Rezar a lot as power and very good way to show it was something he had in spades. Kitagawa was as loyal to Rezar as the day he took his oath, even more so we the Kitsune would give his life for his king should the need arises, and should Rezar give the order to kill, he would carry out with a speed even faster than the undead bonded to his king. His tails flashed through the air and stabbed through the orc before anyone else had a chance to even breathe, Rezar knew that his orc had gone after him in the manner because Durga put him up to it. And while killing him wouldn''t help matters, it more than did what Rezar wanted, and that was to get all eyes on himself. Kitagawa retracted his tails, and the orc fell to the ground, with six massive holes in his body, a sacrifice made to honor his king, Kitagawa bowed his head low as Rezar walked past him, placing his hands on the shoulder of the commander of his King''s Guard. He walked towards to the very dead body of the orc, after shocking everyone by his rather brash and brutal actions. "Let me make something clear, I am a king! The respect and honor I give away must be earned. I do not have time to play politics with you Durga, so for your sake and the sake of your people don''t fucking mess with me! My temper is much to short for you to court death, now get this fucking ceremony along." After he finished speaking he removed the hood on his head letting his grown out white hair to fly in the wind, he still had a fade haircut, but the middle of his hair had a significant and thick mop of hair that stretched back to the middle of his neck. The moment his hair and eyes were exposed there was a slew of murmuring around them as everyone was left to the very obvious fact that a Death class user was here, and even worse he was smack dab in the middle of the horde where a number of things can go wrong and lots of people would end experiencing the true death. Nevertheless the moment his hair and eyes were exposed, not to mention some amongst them were having spikes of perception of sorts that warned them off. Rezar felt as if he was letting off some sort of aura that made him seem especially scary and dangerous to the eyes of the people watching. "Your Majesty King Rezar DeathWind, it is an honor and a welcome surprise to see the Bone King of Morte Bianca here amongst the horde. Your prowess and victories in battle is one we have great appreciation for, please forgive the slight on our part, but given that the perpetrator has already been taken care of, I reckon your anger has been somewhat abated." Rezar furrowed his eyebrows, Durga was definitely eloquent, but more than that he was acting like this was the first time they were meeting each other. Rezar didn''t find it funny at all, but there wasn''t much he could say, diplomacy was required at the moment and quite a fair bit of acting too. "I heard that your people have plain games every year, but this year it is to decide who would be crowned King of the orcs. And behind that I hear the fairest of you all would be up as a prize, are the rumors true? Also it is said that anyone, Orc, Human, Elf, Dwarf or monster could participate in the games." Rezar asked, moving with the ball and playing along. Durga smiled as he nodded his head then turned with a flourish to point at the orcs that were all around them. "Indeed, whosoever shall prevail in this year''s plain games shall become king of the orcs, king of the horde. And in the spirit of fairness, because we know there''s not much orcs can do when it comes to leadership Hahahaha!" when he said that all of them orcs around them seemed to burst into laughter as one particularly loud voice spoke up. "All we know how to do is fuck, fight and fuck some more! Hahahaha!" "Even when we''re fighting we''re fucking and when we''re fucking we''re also fighting!" Rezar raised both his eyebrows up and turned to look at Priest who gave a shrug and raised his hands up as if to say he didn''t know. The orcs were a civilization that were quite open about their love for the carnal acts, which was why it was what was most feared from them during wars. Whilst unlike goblins that would copulate with everything that has a vagina, or at the very least a hole in it''s body, Orcs were very sexually active, literally drawing power from the act itself in much the same Rezar could gain stats from drinking blood. "The plain games is open to all your Majesty and as you have proven yourself in the qualifying gauntlet, even more so than anyone else, replicating a feat that has only ever been done once in Orcish history. Slaying the Black Wyrm King is a feat as legendary as that of slaying a dragon, after all when it''s all said and done the Wyrms are considered lesser dragons of the wingless variety. You have more than proven yourself worthy and capable to compete against me and the others in this competition for the right to lead my people. But that is neither here nor there, the plain games begins in earnest tomorrow and that''s when all of our kettles will begin to be tested in a series of trials to see one who is worthy and capable of the strength to lead the greatest horde in ALL OF ORC HISTORY!!" Durga was an orc with charisma, and had a lot of it to spare. He had been able put the spotlight on Rezar''s head and then quickly take it away to increase his popularity, riding on the coat tails of the achievements of Rezar to lay a stage where his voice would be heard and appreciated by his people and those gathered around him. Durga was a better politician than Rezar, now Rezar had to hope that he was a better fighter than the orc chief. A few minutes later Rezar and his Retinue were lead to a massive tent, while it was not as larger as the one that had held master Szadin''s slaves, this one was luxurious..or as luxurious as it could be for nomadic orcs. The tent had partitions, with really thick furs and leather skins dividing it into various rooms and a bath. Rezar obviously took the biggest, they had a small meeting before finally getting separated, each to his own room, and each to his own thoughts. Especially for the Kitsunes as they were still in the process of grieving their lost friend. Rezar on the other hand was still feeling really weird, the hairs on his skin were standing on end, his blood vibrated and rumbled with each ever breath he took. His eyes were sharper than normal, his senses so heightened everything seemed to Bright and too loud and tastes too sharp. It was beyond crazy and it was making his seem less and less in control of himself, so he decided to have a bath, and by a bath he meant soaking himself inside the skull of a monster filled to the brim with hot water that smelled really nice. Rezar raised his head to the ceiling and dozed off, his mind exhausted by the events of the day, relaxing along with his body. Rezar had a lot to think about, most of all about what mingle or sort of person he now was. It was hard to pinpoint what he was deep down, because his body was that of a vampire, but his soul; his consciousness was extremely messed up. Rezar felt like he should be having an identity crisis of sorts right about now, but nothing of the sort seemed to be getting around, but there were times that he had felt extremely different, like he was who he said he was and at the same time he was not. It was conundrum, but one he would not be able to answer as he felt hands snaking around his neck to touch as his chest, he jerked up, opened his hands and Vita Gratia in it''s spear form ready to take a life. "You should call down Bone King! I''m not going to hurt you." The sheer derision and disgust in those words would have chilled a normal person, but Rezar was no ordinary person. "Who the fuck are you?" Rezar asked as he pointed Vita Gratia at the person standing in front of him. "My name is Tepetal Goldbreaker, daughter and niece of Durga Goldbreaker and you Bone King will have to die!" Chapter 170: The Games (II): Tepetal Goldbreaker Literal silver hair with equally silver eyes, a larger iris than normal, that Rezar could also see expanding and contracting within her eye sockets. Golden tattoos on her pale white skin, like her skin was literally white. And then there was the orc them jutting out of her lower lip, but it wasn''t massive like the others, it was just small, fitting her somewhat smaller and lithe size, though she was taller than Rezar at six foot four. But apart from times muscles and wearing what Rezar could only call Orcish battle gear, all he could see in front of him was a scared young woman, so when she said she was going to kill him all he said was. "Yeah, sure alright...you and what army?" and then he turned around and got in his bathtub, ignoring the completely caught of guard and surprised Tepetal as he sunk in the pleasures of the still warm waters. She was surprised by the nonchalant attitude he had to her attempt to kill him, but he didn''t seem to care at all, and even then she was not going to let his acting stop her from completing her mission. She moved behind him and brought a dagger down, slicing it across his neck and then taking a step back to look at him as blood flowed down from his neck in soft rivulets. He should never have underestimated her and her willingness to end him, frankly speaking he had the best chances out of everyone to win the Plain games, but she rather spread her legs for her incestuous Uncle than to lay in bed with a man who dines with corpses. But something was wrong, the kind of sounds a person who has just gotten a knife through his throat would make was noticeably absent. Rezar bent his head backwards to look at her, his sounds already sealed but his skin still stained with blood, he narrowed his eyes. [Bind!] Chains shot out of Rezar''s back and stabbed into all four limbs of the half orc half snow elf behind him, her scream wasn''t exactly muffled, but it was controlled. It spokes volumes of her resilience and strength, Rezar didn''t expect anything less from an orc even if she was just half an orc anyway. Rezar got up to his feet, leaving the bath tub again, this time visibly annoyed as the droplets of his blood still left on his body began to gather towards his fingernails. Tepetal looked up at him as the chains dragged her to the ground, impressively she showed no fear as she looked up at him, her gaze burning with resistance. "I do not fear death, even if it''s the true death. Do what you must cursed one!" she said through gritted teeth, still fighting back the pain as Rezar crouched down to look at her and gave her a smile that quite literally chilled her to her very bones. "So you are the price, well one of it anyway, the one that''s most inconsequential and useless. I''m not one to judge your customs, but what''s the use of a useless and weak woman, in the world that''s to come beauty would be worth nothing but dirt, and with power anybody can have as much beautiful women as they want. So what should I do with you." As he spoke he ran his fingers down the side of her face, his blood hardening into class that drew blood, forcing her to hiss in pain as his hand came down to her shoulders, and then he clenched, hard enough to draw blood and force out another cry of pain from her lips. For some reason her pain was extremely heightened, and as she looked at Rezar, his now gold and red eyes seemed to pierce deep into the deepest corner of her soul. Rezar brought his face to her bleeding shoulder, his fangs slowly poking out of his lips as his hunger and bloodlust came to the forefront. As opposed to other Vampires, Rezar being a dhamphir had more control over his thirst for blood, but that didn''t mean he completed eliminated it as it was something that all vampires were invariably drawn to. He licked a droplet of her blood that had slid down his fingers, his body shuddering in pleasure at the exquisite taste that seemed to bath his taste buds. Tepetal was scared now, and with good reason, because what she was seeing was not just a death class holder, but a monster in the flesh of a man. "I would like to ask you some questions about this plain games that''s taking place Tomorrow, of course you can resist and not tell me anything, but it would then be extremely painful for you, so?" [Compulsion] "Tell me everything you know about the plain games and what to expect tomorrow." Rezar asked as he moved closer to her and took a deep breath, her scent seemed to fill the tent, and it was strong enough that his senses were actually called and focused. So far he has been trying to get his suddenly extremely strong and powerful senses in line, but now that it was focused on her, and as it was focused on her everything just seemed to care away. Tepetal wanted to resist, it was in her nature to fight against those who would want to suppress her, she was and orc after all, but female orcs also had instincts of being submissive. If a male proves himself strong enough to best her in battle or in bed, she submits to him. But apart from that, men who were weak in body and in will were nothing more than preys and victims to orc women. Unfortunately for her Rezar was nothing of the sort, he was neither weak in will or in body, and even more so with his lack of the emotions fear and Love. He could not be bent or broken. His mind and will was stronger than here ever will, so there was now way she could resist his compulsion as he strove to drag out answer from her. And while she was conscious of herself, she found that she couldn''t resist, he so badly wanted to tell him what would happen in the games tomorrow, and orcs were known for indulging their needs and vices, they were driven by desires and her desire right now was answer this man that was hands down the most terrifying thing she has ever seen in her life..and so she did. Chapter 171: The Games (III): Secrets Words happily flew out of the lips of Tepetal, honestly speaking Rezar wasn''t so sure the compulsion skill would have worked, it was the lowest leveled skill he had, and Tepetal was a snow elf. Apart from mastery over the elements of wind, water and ice, he had heard that Snow elves were very powerful mental mages, gaining mastery over mental skills like telepathy, telekinesis, astral projection etc. And to have mastery over skills like that you had to have an extremely powerful mind, but in the end it seems Tepetal was more orc than snow elf. "The plain games are divided into three trials, the three trials represents the three God''s of the orcs. There''s the free for all battle which is to be the highlight of the games honoring the war and sun God Huitzilopochtli, then there''s the birthing test to see if any of the candidates have the soft touch and know how to help a firewood birth a pup, it honors the fertility goddess Xochiquetzal. And then there''s the first test, a game of ball honoring the god of the ball game Amapan. In the first test all candidates are expected to have scored a certain amount of points before time runs out, because if it does so you would be eliminated from the games as a whole, which makes that game even more deadly than the free for all battle at the end that won''t stop until there was just one make left standing. There are only five balls in a game filled with over 2 thousand players and just 30 minutes worth of time for them to score as much as they could, it would be bloody as everyone would scramble for those points, blood would be shed and many will die without even knowing how it happened. The second trial would see the what''s left or the candidates thrown into the direwolf birthing pens, the wolves are the creature big and strong enough to match the speed and strength of the orcs which is why they are our mounts, but never the less they are bred to constantly and around the clock as they could also be considered as a part of the horde. Going into their own and surviving the onslaught of the direwolves to help another giver birth, and then return with the pup without dying. This time it''s not strength or agility that''s being tested, but patience, skill and technique. And then finally those who successfully passes the second trial would love on to the third and final trial, a slaughter until there''s only one man left standing. But this free for all can''t be that simple as the fight would be arrived out in dangerous terrains; a hidden valley in the Breone mountains that''s the ancestral home of the Orcs. The environment would be against you, as there would be traps, and nature itself will fight you as there would be monsters. You would all be given three days to kill each other, every 2 hours there''s a magic barrier around the valley that would keep shrinking, pushing all of the combatants to the middle, so there''s no way anybody would escape combat." Rezar raised an eyebrow and then sat back on the ground, folding his legs completely ignorant of his nakedness as his compulsion skills still held Tepetal sway. So a soccer game, a farming simulation and what was basically a laser tag game with no teams..that pretty much sums up what this plain game was. He still had memories from earth so he was able to understand and liken all these trials to particular events or activities. Rezar was not one for farming as shown by his previous failures to feel back in this caverns when he was still a slave, but from his memories he was actually quite a good soccer player and here in Elysium Rezar would confidently say he was in the top 5% of the best killers in Elysium. Everything else would be a breeze. "But there''s more to this game, about an hour ago we had visitors, the Dusting Crowe Merchant company has a vested interest in the wild lands and are already in alliance with my uncle. They will help him win the games in return he has to make sure you do not return to kingdom in time for them to take it in two weeks in a secret invasion. They have seeded contestants of their own within the games, some of them are known, others are still a mystery to us as it''s obvious they are also aiming for control of the horde. Durga doesn''t trust them, but he has no choice but to be bed fellows with them as you are the most dangerous of all the contestants and the wildcard this time. It is why I have come to kill you, you''re too much of a threat and not just to me, but you would jeopardize the plans of every major player within this plain game. I have plans of my own, and none them involves getting married to a..to a monster like you!" Rezar felt happy for some reason, he seemed to have developed a quirk, he loved it when people were afraid of him, but not just being afraid he really like it when people regarded him with really extreme emotions, it didn''t matter if it was from the positive side of an emotional spectrum or a negative side. Love, hate, like, fear, respect, he really, really loved the attention. And finding out that the orcs and a bunch of other people were so terrified of him and what he could do, that they had banded together in an unsteady alliance to take care of him or rather take him out, had left him feeling really giddy with excitement. Obviously everything he faced would be a challenge and a lot harder than normal, but he welcomed it, heck he even felt thankful because this would give him a chance to crush a lot of his enemies in one fell swoop. And when it''s all said and done, when the smoke finally clears, he would not just be King of Morte Bianca, of elves and goblins and Kitsunes and a few humans, he would be king of the Orcs...King of a Horde! Chapter 172: The Games (IV): Play Ball The sky was completely overcast by this point, and with how thick those clouds looked, Rezar knew that it would probably rain today, making things a little bit inconvenient when it came to the trials. But none the less the orcs were never one to hesitate with what they had to do and were all too willing to have their trial in the harshest of weather, they would probably believe it spoke volumes of the kind of strength and fortitude they had. Rezar didn''t care, all he wanted to do was to win the Plain games, apart from him there was practically five hundred other competitors, and if he''s not mistaken at least 450 of them had it out for him. It was odds stacked too well against him, but that didn''t mean he was going back down. Since Durga was now one of the contestants someone else was in charge of running the show. Something confused Rezar though, Durga was just one chief out of the many that came together to make one massive horde, why then is he the only one striving for the position of king. He hasn''t seen any of the other chiefs yet, none of the orcs have mentioned anything, not even a whisper of the whereabouts. But even with their absence Durga still moved and acted with propaganda, keeping himself useful and in the spotlight for the orcs as if this was some election he needed their vote on. "We have come to the first trial, there is no need to say too much as I''m sure many of you know of this trial or have done your homework on it. There are five enchanted balls on the field, ten ring goals four meters above the ground and five on the ground. Goals above the ground are worth 5 points, assuming you can get your ball through it, whilst the ones on the ground are worth two points. The aim is to reach 100 points in 30 minutes, weapons, skills, spells, rituals all are allowed so definitely some of you will not be coming back from this. But play with honor and grace and ferocity and power! May Amapan bless this game!" "In Blood and Victory!!!!!" the orcs suddenly yelling out spooked quite a few people, even Rezar was a bit caught off guard, but it was somewhat admirable as it was stupid. While he would never call Priest out on anything, but to believe in gods and religion in a virtual world seems pretty stupid, but Rezar himself has come to understand that for many people here, it''s believing in the unknown, in the unseen that gives them strength and purpose, a chance to live and go beyond what''s expected all because of the misconception that there was a God watching your back..given his history and current relationship with death..Rezar guessed he was just like that to. Just before the game could fully start, Rezar turned and gave Kitagawa a fixed stare, he gave the one armed Screet one of apology as he had not yet figured out a way to fix the missing arm of his first and closest undead. Rezar had kept Tepetal captive, Kitagawa was to release her the moment the first game started, because once the game starts communication with none contestant was not allowed and was grounds for disqualification. So in that train of thought, Tepetal would be unable to tell anyone about what had happened after her assassination attempt went wrong. He''d really hate it if his enemies found out he knew they were after him and prepare for the retribution that was definitely on the way to their doorstep. "Begin!" There was a soft puff to signify the start of the game, right in the middle of the field were five floating rubber balls with symbols on them, and a little ways above them, spread in ten different corners and floating high above the ground were ten 2 meter in diameter glowing silver rings, and then in five areas were the rectangular post Rezar remembered from the game of soccer, only this time instead of a net, there was a shimmering curtain that Rezar recognized from the teleportation Arch. The was a flurry of movements and people surged forwards, each man and woman rushing for the floating balls in other to accrue the points needed to qualify. Rezar just wanted to wait and see, it would be best to understand just how chaotic this game could be, and act accordingly after, and chaotic it truly was. The first person to get his hands on a ball, was actually going for one of the ground post, he was an Orc with a somewhat lanky disposition, however before he could even throw the ball into the goal, a squirrel man or something of the sort burst into the scene with gleaming silver boots, smashed his feet into the Orc''s back, sending both the orc and the ball into the goal. The ball blasted out of another goal post, following right behind it was a squeezed and overturned mass of flesh. It looked like the Orc hand been turned inside out and then squeezed and stretched at the same time, that was more than enough warning for Rezar to stay away from those goal posts. Nodding his head in tandem to a silent beat only he could hear, he winced slightly as an elf was ripped in two by a bloody orc before said orc punted one of the balls into the goal posts on the ground. There were flashes of light from skills and spell animations, auras covering the bodies of others as it devolved from just a game to an all out slaughter. Above the heads of a few people, points could be see hanging, the highest seemed to only have 12 points and after 5 minutes have elapsed. Rezar took a step forwards and stepped into the battlefield, he didn''t plan it, in fact he was just as shocked as everyone else as a shockwave of power blasted out from his body and drew all their attention to him. It was surprising and now there was all eyes on him, but it was not going to stop him from getting what he wants. [Raise Undead] Chapter 173: The Games (V): Goal! It wouldn''t be too far fetched to say that all of the competition had one of their eyes on Rezar, and with good reason too. And the moment he stepped his foot on the field he actually did just as they had expected, just as they had feared. Zombies rose from the ground, soulless bodies animated by Rezar''s own power, and they happily moved in to cause the havoc and chaos completely unique to Rezar himself. It was expected that they would all go after him the moment he decided to play the game, but no one knew he could actually raise dozens of dead people at a spot. Rezar stepped back, dodging a swipe of class, or was it talons from the fingers and hands of a bird person? Seriously there seemed to be a lot of anthromorphs in the plain games, and these weren''t animal people or therianthropes, actually people with animal characteristics. But these were actually animals with human like qualities, they stood upright and wore clothes but they still had the and some of them were still just as animal like on two legs as they would have been on four. The swipe forced his assailant to overextend herself, taking her in a rotation that exposed her back to Rezar who unceremoniously kicked her in the back and through another one of the goal posts on the ground. He didn''t even bother looking for which post her very ruined body would come out from as four of the zombies got a hold of a ball and threw it in his direction. As the balls flew towards him, Rezar''s perception seemed to go haywire as he leaned back, forcing his head to face upwards as a blade seemingly appeared from now where, being held in the hands of what Rezar would only call a ninja. The katana cut through his face, slicing a bloody line from the middle of his left cheek all the way up to his hairline. His eye was spared, but the wound burned like hell, so much so that Rezar couldn''t help crying out in pain as he pivoted his body and gave a spinning heel kick to the Ninja, just as he spread both of his hands to grab two balls, and flinging them in the same motion towards the rings in the sky and grabbing the next two that followed and sending them after it. Seconds later a bright blue 20 showed up above his head, just chains blasted out of his back. [Bind!] He moved so fast that his body was blue to those of them who weren''t fast enough to follow his moves. His chains had formed a ball around his body that deflected another stab from the Ninja and his or her recently regaled partner. The wound on his eye was still burning, and worse was the fact that it wasn''t healing at all, which proved one thing that the system alert that showed up a second later confirmed. [You have been attacked by a demonic blade!] Those Katanas weren''t just demonic, they weren''t close to his body but he could feel his skin burning from the close proximity, and that proved that these swords were also made with silver. These two weren''t here for the games they were here specifically for him, and this should be a chase for concern but..it just made Rezar even more excited and it showed all too well on his face and the sinister and crazed smile it carried. He gave silent orders and the zombies on the field seemed to haywire as their actions became a lot more wild and manic, their teeth ripping into flesh and fingers pulling hair and limbs apart. And silently other zombies grabbed a hold of the balls, and positioned themselves in front of the goal posts on the ground. With that done everything else would be automatic, all Rezar had to do was make sure he was a big enough distraction for his zombies to gather the points for him, and he would do just that. [Death Blast!] No matter how much of a badass ninjas might be, a ball of life death energy at point blank ranged could not be good for anybody, which was why as much as it horrified people that the blasts that came out of nowhere left behind clothes skeletons, their end was pretty much expected for Rezar as he jumped up into the air, two of his chains grabbing the demonic blades with them. He landed right in the middle of the thickest group of competitors, one that fortunately or unfortunately Durga was a part of. Rezar''s feet smashed deeply into the chest of an Orc, caving it in and causing a blast of blood and limbs as the chain controlled swords swept through the cloud, leaving bad cuts, or out rightly decapitating a few of the competition. Rezar threw his head towards, smashing it against Chief Durga''s, happy for the resounding crack as probably one of two of the Orcs ribs had been broken. But Durga was still an Orc, resilient and part of race that played with pain from the moment they''re born. His fist covered in massive golden gauntlets smashed into Rezar''s sternum, practically crushing everything within his body as he was thrown backwards, blasted away into the air. But Rezar was a much different person as his chains stabbed into the ground and brought him back to the ground and balanced him properly. He looked to see Durga barreling towards him, but he didn''t shake as even in the midst of his pain, he was not going to back down. His hands slowly started inching towards Vita Gratia that was hung from a new sheath on his back, however before he could touch the weapon a golden light flashed on his body and Durga came to a stop. Rezar was confused, but a quickly look above his head showed him that his points had actually reached hundred. He gave a pained and bloodied smile to Durga, as he gave silent orders for each of the undead to walk through the goal posts and destroy themselves. He might be fearless, but he was not so stupid as to walk about with undead gained from this games when it''s obvious their families might actually be around, he would be courting trouble with that sort of action. Never the less he already won the first trial, so he had to get ready for the second. He turned and started walking off the field as the remaining competitors fought and scrambled for more points. His every movement was filled with pain, and everyone could see it, and they watched him with eyes of a hunter that had just noticed it''s prey, because in their eyes all they could see was a wounded bone King, a weakling, a target. And unfortunately...they were right. Chapter 174: The Games (VI): Conspiracy The match didn''t carry on for too long after Rezar had walked off the pitch, the strong quickly got their points and those close to strength followed behind them as quickly as they could. After Rezar''s display of power barely anyone was willing to fight or even kill an enemy in a bout. Because no matter how they looked at it they had just seen quite a few dozen people go through the true death. No matter how limited, everyone here remembered their past life, not exactly vivid, but have enough details from it to know what sort of mark they had left behind, and they also knew there would be another life to come and another and another. But here in lies the a very obvious truth in the fact that there was a man, or rather a young man really who could make sure such an established rule of nature, of Elysium was completely thrown over it''s head. Rezar limped towards his retinue looking worse for wear and quite pale, which on his dark skin was saying something. He shook his head to prevent any questions from being asked as he turned for face and wait for the game to get concluded. He was healing, but it was a lot harder than normal, and seemed to be taking longer, nevertheless he didn''t say anything about it as his mind was filled with a couple of thoughts. "And so we have come to the end of the ball game, with that I pronounce the first trial complete with 184 competitors managing to gather a 100 points. There''s no rest for those that seek power, whether it''s to gain if or to keep it. Now we shall head on to the second trial, you all have to bring a life into this world, braving danger of death to see it through. For a king is not known for just his ability to bring death to his enemies, but how he brings life to his people." Rezar squinted his eyes, he was not so stupid that he wouldn''t notice a barb aimed at him even if it was coated in an extremely eloquent speech. And from the looks thrown his way by almost everyone is guessed quite a few people noticed the less that subtle antagonizing of the orc that was now in charge of the second trial. Said orc was actually female with a shaggy brown hair that was as wild as it was dirty, from here Rezar could smell her, and she smelled wild. Like monsters and blood and ferocity in more ways than one, it was like looking at Direwolf. "Ever since the formation of this mega horde eight months ago, we have built the largest pens and nesting grounds for direwolves in all of Elysium. And frankly speaking new pups are born every second that passes, but childbirth for direwolves is not as simple or as normal as it sounds. Direwolves are creatures of war and blood, all their lives they''re constantly fighting, but this fight starts from the moment they''re born. Few Direwolf mother''s survive childbirth as their children are born with sharp claws and fierce fangs that would start tearing their mothers apart from the inside before she gets the chance to release them out into the world. So your trial this time requires you to help as many direwolves give birth to the next generations of warriors within the time frame of two hours. Every Direwolf safely delivered would be given to you, training direwolves is actually a noble orc occupation and the amount you have speaks volumes of your prestige and wealth. The gifting of the direwolves should be an added incentive, after all, direwolves are highly sought after in Elysium, so do your best. But above all just like the previous trial there is a certain amount of danger involved. For those of you who are females, I don''t need to tell you about the amount of pain involved with childbirth, sure some of you might have never brought a life into this world, but you have heard the rumors, you have seen vestiges of it during the cramps of your monthly flow. That pain is much worse for direwolves, and that pain makes them extremely dangerous, so for lack of a better word I would call them cornered animals. And a cornered Direwolf is a one way ticket to the afterlife, now come along!" She was fearsome, and her words made quite a few people take stock in what they were about to face. Rezar wasn''t shaken, but Priests seemed to be as the older clergyman walked besides his king in silence. It was obvious he wanted to say something, but with Rezar giving out a veritable gag order, he couldn''t do much but keep looking at his king, at the very least until Rezar got annoyed and turned to him. "If you have something to say Priest, then please for all that is holy and undead say it!" "My apologies your Majesty, but you have to be careful. Direwolves are void beasts, and by that I mean they''re creatures caught between being ordinary animals and full blown animals. And as such their attacks and abilities are twice as effective on anyone, regardless of your resistances or abilities. They see weaknesses and their attacks and abilities would always give you as much pain it not death as possible. What I''m trying to say is that just like those ninjas with Katanas, they can kill you." Rezar paused for a second and turned to look at Priest an all too surprised look on his face, he really didn''t expect something like this. Honestly he had happily been enjoying being practically invisible and having nothing capable of killing him. Then he met the Kitsunes and now two ninjas with demonic solve blades that were literally made to fuck with the insides of a vampire. He refused to believe that it was a simple coincidence that they were here, he was sure they came hunting for him, but it was weird because his arrival here was completely by chance, so how in the hell did they find out this quickly and arrive here. Before he went for the gauntlet, there had already been a few earlier tests and quite a few people had already qualified before his batch, perhaps those ninjas had come from there, but it still did not change the fact that they specifically went after him. There were too many inconsistencies for this to be a coincidence, and by this point in his life, Rezar was way beyond believing in chance or some other bullshit like coincidences, not when there were things like diviners in play...wait a minute! But that can''t be true, Diviners couldn''t see the future, at the very least Gynaika had told him they could predict a few things, but they couldn''t see the future. He didn''t think such a thing was possible, but then again this was a virtual world. There was a process and calculation to this universe that could be easily quantified and processed by a ridiculous number of variables and equations just as long as the person trying to find something had a tool or let''s say a class that could allow him or her have access to the source code of Elysium, or two into various programs. Or better yet just write up and entirely new code or skill that you can use to predict the future, and with the amount of processing power Elysium had, it wouldn''t be too farfetched to say it was a super computer that could tell the future. Or In the end this could all just be paranoia and be was just worried about a lot of things for nothing. He shifted his attention back to the orc in front of him and the crowd that had happily given him a wide berth. He turned to Priest and gave him a stiff nod, asking him to go back and using telepathy to tell the clergyman to not worry about healing him. Rezar caught Durga''s eyes and gave the orc a sweet smile, Rezar was sure Durga was severely underestimating him after their exchange, but he also knew until their exchange he was also underestimating the power of Orc, now he had a pretty good idea what he was dealing. Eventually they came to a stop in front of the largest tent in all of the horde, it was easily almost the size of a stadium if not more so. The body of the tent was covered in colorful paintings, and the middle of it was opened up to let in sunlight and ventilation. Nobody moved an inch once they came to a stop in front of the tent, maybe it was the growls and bowls, but to someone as severely perceptive as Rezar, he could feel an aura from within that made the hairs on his body stand. And it was not as if he was scared, but the aura was individual, coming from different sources to form one massive entity, one that Rezar could not see, but he could sense..this aura was shaped like a wolf, but it had horns and wings and claws that seemed even more powerful that what could be considered normal. "Well what are you guys waiting for? Go on in!" Chapter 175: The Games (VII): Midwife Rezar walked into the tent with the eyes of the orc woman following after him, it was almost as if her very gaze was trying to burn a hold into the back of his head, it was obvious she expected and wanted him to fail, but honestly by this point Rezar could care less. All he knew was that he was going to face whatever awaits him just like he has always faced every challenge that came his way, and that was with his best, nothing less and even more if he could squeeze it out. The scent from within the tent was thick and musty, it was practically suffocating in what Rezar could take or handle at the moment with how powerful his senses were or rather were becoming. He shook his head to no avail as the scents were so strong he could Practically see it and trace each individual strand. And this was a lot different than the auras he had felt outside, honestly speaking by this point he felt like a stranger in his own body, a lot of things were just extremely weird for him to make sense of at the moment. There were segments within the tent, individual pens were spread out as far as his eyes could see, and each and every single one of them had a Direwolf mother in the throes of childbirth. There were hundreds of them as far as the eye could see, but even with their numbers Rezar could tell that quite a significant amount of them were dead or about to die. And that number made up for more than half if not at least 80% of the entire Direwolf population. So when that Orc female spoke about the mortality rate, is became very obvious that she was sugar coating it; because this was bad, very bad. It wouldn''t been too farfetched to say that Rezar could see the shadow of death hanging all-over, his senses were haywire and he was finding it hard to get his bearings. But he had to get a move on as all of the other competitors had moved past him, keeping their distance but still watching him with a wary eyes. He ignored them because quite frankly they were inconsequential to him, but nevertheless he had to get himself under control, so he focused on the strongest scent and energy and followed it, rather than standing there under the assault of primal scents of blood, fur, death, musk and waste. Rezar went deeper into the tent, going past endless rows of Direwolf pens that held newborn pups, but mostly dead mothers. Quite a few of the competition were already hard at work, which was why seeing an Orc stumble out of a pen with a missing right arm was not that much of a surprise. The next pen was even worse seeing as the direwolf had gone for the skull and crushed it in one powerful bite, at the very least his death wasn''t painful and it was instant, that was a better death than the person that came after. Even Rezar had shift his gaze away at the sight of spilt guys and a full grown man crying and emptying his bowels as the direwolf at into his insides, when he was still very much alive and conscious of the pain he was going through. He would die eventually, but not before experiencing what was grumpy known as hell on earth, or rather on Elysium. Rezar noticed Durga with a talisman in his hands hovering over his head, the direwolf was asleep and Durga had his hands deep into...well Rezar didn''t want to think too much about where Durga has his hands in. He kept on following his senses, letting it lead him until he came to a pen that was actually made from metal. It was taller, almost six feet tall with extremely thick bars. Rezar heard a whimper followed quickly by a low growl, it was deep enough that Rezar could swear that he felt the pain from those sounds. Whatever was behind these gates was extremely strong and extremely dangerous, and yet Rezar was still walking towards it with sure steady steps. He pushed open the gates and walked in, his breaths steady. The first thing he smelt was blood, in fact it was the only thing he could actually smell, but given the fact that there was a pair of fiery red eyes glaring at him from within the confines of a dark cave like dog house. In fact it was actually a dog house, but seemed to be made from massive rocks overlapping over each other and leaning on each other in some places to make it seem like a den. "You''re not supposed to be here! I''LL KILL YOU!" Rezar barely had time to dodge before a gust of wind blasted the area where he was standing just moments ago. Rezar shook his head in annoyance but was otherwise unshaken by the discovery of a Direwolf capable of speech. He kept on moving forward, his curiosity was now the only thing driving him forwards, and for those who knew him, Rezar''s curiosity was his greatest motivation and drive, as long as he found it interesting he would do anything just to satisfy that curiosity. "Stop!" [Compulsion] Rezar had no idea if this was going to work, but it did as the scary looking pair of red eyes came to a stop and Rezar was finally able to see what had spoken to him in full light. Five feet of life muscle and mass, with fur the color of ash and a crowning tuft of silvery white fur. The same well proportioned body that was built for power and speed had numerous scars crisscrossing all-over it''s frame, but it went beyond just the scars as there were fresh wounds to go along with the scars that was all-over it''s body. Rezar had no idea how long his compulsion would keep this Direwolf in place, but with the obvious movements within it''s stomach, Rezar didn''t want to find out if his compulsion or the pain she was currently feeling had more power over her. "Relax as much as you can and take deep breaths, I''ll try to help you. If I can save your life even though I have no idea what I''m doing, then that''s your luck. If I can''t save you, then I''ll make sure your pup''s have a life as good as can be afforded a Direwolf." The Direwolf in front of him nodded it''s head in agreement and brought it''s head down, Rezar could hear it gritting and grinding it''s canines against each other as if fought through the pain. Rezar had an idea about how to help her, he wasn''t sure it would work, but how bad can hypnosis be. "I need you to lay down on your side, choose an angle that''s easier for you to breathe, and I order you! STOP FEELING PAIN!" [Compulsion!] The direwolf promptly laid down on it''s side with a soft whimper, it''s breathing evened out and it seemed to be just relaxing rather than being in the throes and pains of childbirth. But Rezar was not complacent, he knew that even though he could make the direwolf not feel any pain, her own children were still trying to rip her apart from the insides, so it was in his best interest to make sure he helps her deliver her babies without any sort of problem or worry. And it seems his compulsion was a good skill, if not the only skill that could help in the current situation. "Now gain strength and push!" [Compulsion have leveled up] Rezar gave a small smile as he moved his hands closer and placed it on the scared body of the direwolf, he could see that she must have been through countless battles, and while he would have really loved to ask her about it, he doubted she was in the right mood to reminisce about the origins of her numerous scars. He began to run his hands over her belly, softly stroking and massaging it as he placed his lips closer to her stomach. "I know it''s dark and the space is tight and it''s downright scary not knowing where you are and what you should do, but I need you to calm down. All of you, the light would be yours soon, life will be yours soon. So listen! Listen to mother, to her warmth, feel it cold and encapsulate you in an embrace of safety and power. That''s your mom holding on to you young ones, so don''t fight, don''t struggle, enjoy it. Because it''s only once you can ever get to feel this close to your mother, so many of us will never get such a chance, or we''ve had it and we''ve never got to experience it. Dance with her heartbeat, let it teach you secrets of the ways ancient, let it whisper power and purpose and direction. Let it guide you to my voice and to the light. To life like you''ve never known it before, to a Kingdom of life just as it is one of death. I can see you, all seven of you. I see your teeth, I see your class and I see your light. Be birthed into this world, be birthed into war and chaos, I Christen you all! LUPUS REGUM! Wolf Kings of the horde!" [Your compulsion skill has transcended!] [Your words have created a new race! You will be rewarded] Chapter 176: The Games (VIII): Racist Shaman It was like something out of a movie, of course this wasn''t a movie but as real as it could ever get. Rezar watched as the pups stopped struggling within their mother''s womb and the direwolf gave birth to them, one after the other without pain or stress. Honestly Rezar didn''t think what he was trying to do would actually work, he was actually just relying on a bunch and trying to help, the fact that it helped left him stumped because he didn''t expect it to work. "Thank you!" "That''s impossible!" Two voices at the same time drew Rezar out of his deep thoughts. The direwolf was no longer under his compulsion, probably because all of his intent had bee seen through. But just outside of the pen was a small crowd led by the female orc and Durga. It was the female orc that had become so shocked by what Rezar had just done that she spoke out. Rezar didn''t care too much about what she thought, as he shifted his gaze down to the Cubs that were successfully out of their mother''s womb. They were slick and slimy, and their eyes were pretty much closed, but they had pitch black fur on their bodies, with a gift of fur on their head that was pure white. Their eyes were closed, but Rezar knew should they ever open it, it would be an eerie shade of blue that would leave everyone else feeling like they were looking at the wolves of death themselves, but then again they might not be wrong as Rezar felt a connection to them. In Orcish methods, the best way to train a Direwolf is to get bonded with it at a young age, and that was done when the direwolf opened it''s eyes for the first time. Rezar already felt a connection to them, he had no idea why he was led to use words like that, so much that he put all seven direwolves in a collective and completely changed their face, they were no longer direwolves but Wolf Kings. Now that shouldn''t be a race, but a title, but it seems it crossed into that realm. "Nothing is impossible, I''ve heard that when there''s a will there''s a way. I take it I''ve passed this trial and can proceed to the next." Rezar asked as he got up to his feet from his crouching position besides the direwolf mother. "Indeed you have passed this trial, the Cubs would be delivered to you and your people once the third and final trial is over. And you don''t have the worry about them being exchanged or harmed, I''ll keep them safe; besides sight heir unique features, there''s no way someone else would switch them." The female orc said, as if to assure Rezar, the way she spoke to him had obviously changed, but he paid no need or mind to it. "I''m not worried, anyone who thinks it''s wise to steal from me will end up a dead man, or rather the very moment you decided to go against me or slight me in anyway, you''re dead. And I have many uses for dead men. A few of my undead are on the way here, they''ll keep the pups and their mother safe. Now where do we go for the final trial?" Rezar asked as he walked out of the pen, the mewling cries of the new born canines following after him as he moved farther away from them, their actions shocked everyone who was standing there. Sure they were just born, but to the orcs present they knew direwolves didn''t cry or keep when they''re born, all they did was eat. And it was either the corpse of their mother, or if she was still alive they''ll eat her, or food should the person responsible for taking care of the direwolves throw them some food. They don''t beg or posture for anything, all they did was take whatever they wanted, when they wanted. "The final trial would begin immediately, there''s a cleared out valley dungeon further east and at the foot of the Breone mountains. The horde has a doorway that can take us to valley, the only problem is that the doorway would drop the competitors in different locations in the valley rather than a set location. The valley can''t be escaped except from the doorway that''s planted in the middle of the valley, the aim of the third and final competition is to get to the doorway. But it would only allow one Victor to pass through, which means it would be a free for all battle royal until there''s just one man left standing. Everyone else has to be either severely injured, incapacitated or Dead, before a single victor can be chosen. No weapons or tools are allowed, and within the valley all skills and the bonus from traits would be neutralized until after the game. The valley would provide weapons for the competitors, and the entire trial time would be for three days. By the third day, much of the valleys barrier would have shrunk, forcing what''s left of the competition to meet in the middle for a final showdown. Of course you can all head to the middle and wait for your enemies to come to you, it would probably end the trial a lot faster. But whatever the case may be, I wish you all the best of luck." The orc lady gave an explanation as she left everyone else outside the tent and then went back inside. Just as she did so, another Orc walked towards them, and following behind this orc was the veritable horde of people who were watching the process of the trials. And now the trials were about to progress to a stage that no one else could see, it wouldn''t be too farfetched to see them off. The orc that was in front of them was extremely frail, calling the orc old would be wrong, as he still had a hair full of luscious silky black hair, and his eyes were bright. But his body on the other hand left much to be desired as he was sitting on a wheelchair, and was practically skin and bones under the open robes he had on. There was a staff in his hands that pretty much reminded Rezar of the old orc woman he saw at the....how did she call it again? Doorway located within his territory. He looked very shamanic or something like that. "At this point, I take it that wolf mother has more than made it clear what your next trial would be like. So I don''t have to say shit to anyone of you outsiders, because orc folk already know that which must be done. It is knowledge in our blood and the very air we breathe and not one single one of your freaks should be here apart from orc folk. But this is the will of the gods and I am much to unworthy to stand against them. All of you will follow me and I shall prep the doorway, by the time this in 3 days, one of you will have the title; Huitzilopochtli! The one of fire, of will, and of war and king of the horde! I am not supposed to say this but can you outsiders please just do me a favor and make sure you all die, the idea of serving one of you on the scenario of your Victory makes my skin crawl with nervousness and anger. Those that are not of the blood are not fit rule orc people. Now come along!" His words left a lot of people pissed, but Rezar actually like him, he at the very least showed his stances about what he thought about the plain games. But then again all this could stem from his bitterness about being in a wheelchair, as such he felt the need to make anybody different than himself from feeling bad. He was a bully, Albeit a crippled one, but then again this is Elysium, most disabilities were actually advantages. Rezar and what was left of the competitors, 79 out of the original 100 plus followed after the cranky cripple orc, he led them north of the horde to a platform of solid stone that was about half a kilometer in diameter. It was really huge and it was resting on equally massive stone wheels that were being pulled or rather are meant to be pulled as no animal or monster of any sort was noticed. There was a set of wooden stairs leading up to the platform as the damn thing stood 10 feet above the ground. They all went on top of it with the cranky orc staying behind to glare at every un-orc like person that went past him, at least until Rezar. "If you so much as fall out of line even once, or hear a single squeal of protest with the way I do things and talk bullshit behind my back. I''ll fillet you alive and make sure to put grounded chilly in your sounds along with a healthy serving or piss!" Safe to say the side open jaw and shocked look was understandable, and not just from the orc shaman but for everyone else watching or on the platform with him. Rezar gave the Orc shaman a warm, smilling as there was a flash of light and he suddenly found himself falling from the sky. Chapter 177: The Games (IX): Just Another Normal Day Rezar spread his arms wide as the wind rushed last his ears, frankly speaking he couldn''t fly yet, he could move about in the air at extreme speeds due to his (Bat Apparition) skill, but to truly be able to fly and enjoy the wonders of sky while moving through it at a leisurely pace. Rezar looked down and noticed he was currently heading for a massive body of water, this should probably be a lake within the valley, but while falling into it won''t kill him, it definitely won''t tickle either. He moved his head to the side and noticed a corpse of trees right on the banks of the lake, he shifted his trajectory aiming for those trees, because frankly speaking landing in the middle of a lake during a battle royal was stupid, he would be easy pickings for anyone who wanted to finish him off while he was having his unplanned afternoon bath. The trees grew closer and just before he smashed into them, a bubble encapsulated his body and slowed down his accent, he landed right on the branch of a tree without so much as a scratch on him, guess he might have not needed to watch out for the lake. The first thing Rezar did was take notice of his surroundings, there was wooden cask laying at the foot of s tree seven meters away from him, a little ways further his eyes caught sight of an orc moving through the underbrush, trying his hardest to keep his huge bulk hidden, and in retrospect he was quite successful as the color of his skin helped him blend in deeper with the forest, but even without his skills and traits, Rezar was still a vampire, which is to say in a forest filled to the brim with ordinary people...he was like a lion who had been through in a cage with a bunch of sheep, they were all prey. Rezar was under no preconception that he hadn''t been noticed, from what he could see the orc had already reached the ground long before him, and his descent though not loud had been quite showy seeing as he was covered in a glowing force field that pretty much announced his arrival to everyone within his immediate vicinity. Now the problem is not whether he had been discovered by the orc, it was that the orc shouldn''t know that he had already been discovered by Rezar himself. So in the end they both had to play the waiting game, whoever moves first loses. Rezar dropped down from the tree branch he was standing on, landing softly on the ground without a sound. That should have been the first sign that thing weren''t exactly normal with Rezar. It would take significant years of training for a person to be able to move or make sudden movements without making a sound, but Vampires were not just powerful but so unnatural that nature actively tried to erase their presence, and this time it seemed a little more stronger than expected. Rezar walked towards the wooden crate, it was about two meters long and a meter wide, it was held in place by leather buckles that had seen better days as Rezar could find traces of teeth and claw marks on it. The only problem was that the teeth marks weren''t from an animal. Rezar didn''t know how he knew this, but from the depression and it''s on jobs marks, he knew these were teeth marks from a human or at least a humanoid being. There were few animals with similar teeth marks, but it couldn''t be this symmetrical unless it was as close to human as it could get, maybe a monkey of some sort. Rezar shifted to the side as the huge form of the orc bulldozed it''s way past him and smacked into the tree in front of him where the case had been placed. Now normally an Orc should be more than powerful enough to smash through most trees, of course the one in front of them was a whole lot bigger and thicker, but Rezar found it hilarious when the orc dazed himself and one of it''s tusk went flying. "If you want to be stealthy, or better yet even more stupid to ambush me from behind, you need a few more classes, levels, and a facial upgrade or two. Now if you don''t mind, why don''t you try again." Rezar said as he moved backwards and the orc turned around with a short revealing himself to be Porc. "Oh you''re ugly." Rezar said to him, but the only response he got was the Orc roaring out in anger, saliva and a bloody tooth flying out as he charged at Rezar again. Instead of moving to the sides, Rezar moved forwards, his fingers angling into a blade that stabbed through the chest of the orc. He utilized greatly strength to raise the orc up and brought his massive body slamming into the ground with enough force to crack the bones in his body. If the orc was not dead when Rezar stabbed him with just his fingers, he was very dead when his body was smashed into the ground. Rezar got up with an annoyed look on his face, he shook his bloody hand a bit to get rid of the blood on it before moving towards the wooden crate. He felt a tingle on the back of his neck that forced him to look up, there was no one there though, just a bird with dull blue feathers and eyes a little too bright forms creature of it''s size. It was a bird but Rezar felt no hint or feeling of life from it, it was just like looking at a statue. Rezar wasn''t one to feet too much cover the unknown, because there wasn''t much out there that''s unknown and could actually cause him problems. The bird he just saw was probably responsible for keeping an eye on the competitors, it wasn''t a threat and frankly speaking Rezar had nothing to hide so he didn''t care so much about it, or what sort of information it would be relaying back to the people who were watching. He placed his attention back to the crate in front of him, for starters it was filled with weapons and supplies. There was a water bottle, well a couple of them along with some dried rations. The kind of food normal people would need to survive, unfortunately Rezar was not normal people, so he ignored the food and paid attention to weapons. They were mostly projectiles; bows, slingshots, throwing knives and stars. Rezar didn''t do too well with ranged weaponry, he wouldn''t mind if it was a fun or something similar but bows and slingshots were not his cup of tea. The throwing weapons would be better, but Rezar was more attracted to the edged iron knuckles placed at the edge of the case. No that he needed weapons, but who knew what might happen or what kind of truck the other competitors had up their sleeves. He took the knuckles and placed them firmly onto his arms, then he strapped a bandolier of throwing knives around his thighs, and a belt of throwing stars around his waist. He looked up to determine the location of the sun, but the trees were not much help, then again this valley was isolated, it was a Dungeon as the orcs had said, so there was no guarantee that the sun he was seeing was the right one, as such he had no idea where he was or how to properly navigate. He needed directions to the middle of the valley, but there was no map in the case. Which left only one option and that''s to find an orc and press him or her for answers. He orcs have been a part of the plain games year after year, and the area where the horde had migrated to this time seemed to be a holy ground or site, so in retrospect any random orc would know more about this valley than any other person playing this game, so they were the prime target. But therein lies the next problem, he had no idea which direction to start looking for an Orc, he had lucked out with the first one, but even if he could rely on his senses, his nose wasn''t strong enough to pick out a particular scent out of the hundreds if not thousands currently assaulting his nose. He got lucky with the direwolves because the scents were narrowed down and it was in an enclosed tent, not a bloody open forest! In a bloody open valley! But maybe it would be better to set a trap, he was close to a lake, and three days was a lot of time to go without water. Those water bottles he noticed in the case were Practically empty, so he would play the waiting game until he finds new prey, or the so called barrier begins to push him towards the center and enemies, where bloodshed would be displayed and destiny would be fulfilled. "Yep! This is just another normal day." Chapter 178: The Games (X): Suspicions Rezar moved to the crate and lifted it up with a lot more ease than most would expect for a man or boy of his frame. With everything that''s happened so far, it was almost too hard to remember that he was just sixteen, but then again it was not as if his age really mattered in the long run, Elysium didn''t really make youth or age as important as it should be, due to the fact that an old man might be younger than a toddler on account of how many lives they had both lived. Rezar raised the crate and chucked it with all of his strength, throwing it over the tree line to land into the lake with a loud splash. Then he quickly scaled up a tree and rested his back on it, happily content to remain there and watch the chaos that might ensue due to the distraction he just caused. Rezar didn''t have to wait too long though, he had dozed off for about fifteen minutes when a scream of pain roused him up, he turned his head to look at the left where the sound came from, he noticed a battle going on the eastern shore or what he assumed to be an eastern shore. It was weird, there were orcs, humans, and a couple of other races, elves included working together to hunt down three orcs, and there was barely anything left of them as the three victims were severely assaulted and then killed, their bodies ripped apart and then thrown into the lake. With the orcs dead Rezar expected the others to turn on each other and continue with the killing, but much to his shock they did nothing like that. He watched perplexed as they actually began to make camp and settled down to make plans of their own. Whatever plans they were making it should be pretty redundant as there could only be one winner, so joining forces was much too risky as you wouldn''t know when your so called partner would stab you in the back. But then again from what he could see this was not some random partnership, two of the orcs were even fondling and kissing each other which spoke volumes of their relationship. Rezar''s interest was properly piqued as he observed them long enough to see Durga come out from the trees to join this rowdy group of unlikely partners. The thing that was really crazy was the fact that they were all making as much noise as they could. Like they really had nothing to fear in here and they couldn''t be touched by any of the other competitors. Rezar would say he admired their courage, but looking down on him would be the worst mistake anyone could possibly make, but he wasn''t one to judge, maybe they just wanted to have a good time. With Durga in the equation it was quite possible that their goals and aims was help the orc chief become orc king, but to say that Durga needed help to win this was so out of place for the Orc chief and Orcs in general that it left Rezar very confused. Unless the orcs outside weren''t watching this, there was no way they would accept a king incapable of gaining a victory of such magnitude by himself and all by his own effort and power. And Durga would definitely not take such a risk, he seems to be the more sensible of all the orcs Rezar had met so far, or rather calling him sensible would be a compliment. Durga was a sleazy dirt bag politician, and he would definitely not take unnecessary risks, so what the absolute fuck was going on there. Rezar cocked his head to the side as his thoughts were filled to the brim with what Durga was up to, but since he couldn''t figure anything out from here, maybe it would be better to go over there and ask them what they were up to. Though he would have loved to give them a bit of fair warning before he arrived, like sending an arrow into Durga''s heart, but unfortunately, he had thrown the case of weapons into the lake and now he was left with practically nothing g but a pair of edge brass knuckles and couple dozen throwing stars and knives. Rezar leaned back as a massive iron ball attached to a chain smashed into the tree trunk besides him, he looked down at the massive troll that was standing at the foot of the tree. He cocked his head to the side genuinely surprised by this sudden revelation, Trolls were actual monsters, but this valley was supposed to be isolated, completely void of any monsters, so why was there one here. Rezar didn''t want to think too much about it, so he leaned back and fell off the tree, making a smooth transition from falling backwar4ds to a back flip that landed him on his feet without any sounds. *Roooaaaaarrrrrr!!!* "Fuck! Now youre going to bring everyone to me." Rezar softly cursed as he jumped up turning his body flat as the massive chain connected to a giant metal ball flew under him with enough force to tear even the strongest of men in half. Rezar landed and rushed towards the Troll, his hands up in determined fists, however before he could utilize his hands to put a hole in the troll, two other chains came flying from his left and right. He turned his body letting both chains go past him, scraping his body with barely any space left. They both smashed into the trees, creating a nerve wracking sound of wood splintering as trees were taken out in the wake of their movements. Rezar was left off guard and so the troll took advantage and bashed its massive chain right into the chest of Rezar, blasting him backwards and through a few trees, it was enough damage to completely break all the bones within his body. And also just about enough to cause a black out for a few seconds, and in that time the world slowly changed. Chapter 179: Play For Power (I): Now Look What You Did Blacked out for a few seconds and back in action soon after. that only happens in fiction and this wasn''t one.at least not that Rezar was ever told. It''s too much of a headache to think about the philosophy or conundrum behind the fact that he was just some character in somebody''s story. But that was not his immediate worry right now, that chain was coming down on his head again and his skills were disabled, which fucking meant that he healed a lot slower. He had enough in his stats to give him a really fast regeneration, plus he was a vampire so rapid healing was a part of the racial package. But without his other skills his healing speed wasn''t as insane as before and were a lot slower than normal. But Rezar was not who he was for nothing as he quickly rolled to the side, and pushed himself upwards, the bones in his right knee popped into place, and it was with such speed and accuracy that even Rezar was shocked by how sudden that healing was. It was as if he had focused the healing on certain parts of his body, he wasn''t too sure, but he willed it, it was as simple as wishing or asking for a cake. The bones in his right hand snapped back into place as he threw an upper cut at a distortion in the air. He was all to satisfied when the satisfying sound of bones breaking and the edge knuckle dusters shearing the jaw of a person and slicing half his face off gave Rezar a reason to dance. There were no skills right? So why the fuck is there a stealthed ninja in front of him with their pet troll. Something was seriously up, he was not so stupid as to think that the orc won''t try something with this plain games, after all they were offering outsiders a chance to partake and actually rule them should said outsider gain victory. They had to have a couple of contingencies in place to prevent such a thing from happening, if not the orcs would never have gotten the balls to gather as much as they did and grow in strength without being found as a threat by other factions. But with them announcing that anyone who won the plain game would become their king, the other forces took a step back and didn''t react to such a sizable force in their own backyard. Orcs were honorable, as wild and barbaric as these race of warriors were, they lived by creed and code and most of all by their honor. They would have stuck to their words and promises no matter what, so going by their promise and the all to powerful power (if that''s a word) of greed, almost everyone wanted a shot at becoming king of the horde, but looking at the current situation in front of him, Rezar came to one startling conclusion. All of this has just been an elaborate trap right from the get go. There were only so few people in Bahrenburg who could stand or put up a proper defense against the orcs, specific forces and factions were targeted with this news, and their best had come here for a chance to become king of the horde. There were portals within the Breone mountains and his o0wn territory and thousands of orcs to travel through them while the entire world was fixated on this sham of a competition. The orcs would have invaded and they would not have realized it at all. There was never going to be any winner, this final game would have been rigged and everyone capable of winning it would be killed. And not just those with a chance of winning, but those who won''t conform to a new world order, which explained the orcs that were killed, bringing Rezar to another conjecture as he ducked under a wild swing from the troll, the crushed bones in his chest swiftly putting themselves back together again. Not all of the orcs are aware of this sham, better yet it seems the entire horde itself was being subtly manipulated to make subtle and adequate preparations for war, the raiding parties going out to get slaves was one of such preparations. There was only one person right at the center of this, and that was Durga, and even more so Rezar knew there was a support behind him, his daughter already gave him a pretty good idea of what or rather who it was. the Dustin Crowe merchant company. Rezar raised his injured left arm and let the chain belonging to the other assassin wrap around his forearm. His skin burned and hissed after it came in contact with the metal. Obviously it was either made of silver or was some sort of demonic metal. Rezar gritted his teeth and ignored the pain, as this was a million times more painful and significant of all the pain he has experienced. He pulled back, dragging the assassin towards him like he weights nothing, he balanced himself on his left foot, forcing it to heal faster to the point that he heard an audible pop as he raised his right foot and smashed it forwards. Sometimes he forgot just how strong he was. He was a vampire, which meant his strength was supernatural as opposed to being trained or coming from stats. He didn''t need a bulky body, and it did not relate with hos tough his skin was. So while a simple knife can cut into his skin thousands of times in a second, he would be able to knock down a building with a single punch if he wanted it. Which was why it came as no surprise that his leg went completely through the body of the assassin, his entire leg up to his thigh coated in blood. He threw the corpse aside as he raised his hands up and caught the bludgeoning weapon of the troll from smashing into him. The force of the hit pushed him backwards, causing his legs to dig furrows into the ground. But Rezar caught it, and he had been pushed out into the open, letting Durga and his friends see him from the other shore, Rezar looked up at the obviously dumb and master less troll. "Now look what you did!" Chapter 180: Play For Power (II): Barrier "Duck!!!" It wasn''t too much of a stress for Rezar to return the favor as he held the chain tightly and heaved, dragging the troll across the ground before turning his body sharply and swinging the chain before letting go. This move alone was so physically demanding that Rezar felt his right shoulder dislocate from the strain, as strong as he was it looks like the troll had more mass than he expected. Rezar reckoned if the troll was dropped from a high enough altitude it would be something similar to a meteor that would smash a hole into the earth or maybe cause an explosion of epic proportions whenever its unlucky enough to land. But in this case, it could be considered that luck and significant amount of bad luck was in play, as Rezar was strong to completely throw the Troll over the vast distance, across the lake towards the other bank, where it smashed into a couple of people, smashing them all into pulp, before a green barrier was hastily raised that ended its rampage in a manner that looked like a bowling pin. Rezar had vanquished his assailants and their pet troll, but in return Durga lost more than half his team to the sheer force and mass of the troll. The green barrier he had seen proved to him that it wasn''t just them killing people, having pet trolls or whatever little lie they had told, they could also use skills I here. The two dead ninjas were proof of that, which meant he was at a massive disadvantage against them. he had no passive skills, and no active skills to rely on, his weapons weren''t even on his body, just what was left within this obviously rigged trial location. The best bet he had now was to hope that at least that day time slot given as the duration of the trial was actually true and he could get out then, or better yet he had to look for the portal and see if he could get the fuck out of here. Ultimately he would have to play a game of hide and seek with them, they had the advantage, and it didn''t matter just how strong he was out there. In here he was severely handicapped, and nothing more than his wit and boat load of wisdom would help him survive the shit storm he just found himself in. and it''s even more prevalent now that he had smashed apart their happy camp just a few minutes after they set it up, plus quite a bunch of their friends were dead too, so they were probably super pissed at him. Rezar quickly turned around to hobble away, when an arrow took him in the shoulder, going clean through his body and taking him forwards with enough force to smash his body through a tree. "Rezar Deathwind! I''ll find you! I''ll never forgive you! I''ll kill you, you bastard! I''ll kill everyone you love! Die! Arrghhhhhh!" The screams were coming all the way from the other side of the lake, but Rezar could hear it really clearly. He took a quick peak to see one pair of the lovers, an orc, the female of the duo screaming towards his direction with a bow in her hands. Lying at her feet was the crushed body of her very smooshed and dead boyfriend or husband. Rezar shook his head, trying to remove the cobwebs and dazed feeling he had was currently feeling. So he killed someone''s husband, or was it her boyfriend. he painfully got up and then looked in their direction to see they were actually preparing to go round the lake to get to him. "Sorry! I told him to duck!" Rezar shouted back with all innocence laced in his voice, he could see the look of shock and then abject fury on the face of the orc woman, before she actually started running into the lake to swim towards him, a couple of her friends were right behind her, holding on to her and telling her to calm down, but she was practically manic, not until a hulking tiger man came and knocked her out with a swift blow to the back of her head. Rezar didn''t stick around for the rest of the show, he turned around and carried his injured body into the forest, letting it swallow him, completely erasing his presence. Now it was obvious that they would chase after him, he was practically the prime target, and they would absolutely anything to eliminate him. Rezar ran for close to fifteen minutes, hobbling and alternatively putting pressure on different parts of his body as he urged them to heal from the injuries he had received. The clothes he had on were bloodied and had seen better days, his white hair dirtied and stained, but his eyes ever as blue and ever as bright and eerie as someone aligned with darkness was. By the time his body had fully healed, or at least all of the physical parts seemed okay and all that mattered was insides, Rezar stopped paying attention to healing them and let the entire process go on by itself; he started moving about by jumping from tree to tree. "BONG!!!" That sound practically came out of nowhere and Rezar was caught off guard as a bright and shining silver barrier came up on in front of him. He had run away from the lake going in the opposite direction that he reckoned was south, but now this barrier showed up and what was even crazier was the fact that it seemed to be collapsing, moving towards Rezar''s direction. It went over a few trees and they seemed largely unaffected by the barrier, but then. "Arrghhhhhh!" The scream came from the west, and what Rezar saw made his blood run cold. Someone had been caught outside of the barrier as it moved inwards, his body was frozen as his flesh started peeling of one flake at a time, exposing tissue, muscle, bone and organs as he was slowly torn apart. By this point the barrier was only a meter away from him. Rezar didn''t think twice, he turned around and ran for his life, right back in the direction of the people trying to kill him. Chapter 181: Play For Power (III): Ambush Right now with no skills to rely on, he had to rely on his natural abilities to get by, so while his racial skills were inaccessible, Rezar still had plenty of tools to rely on. The barrier was advancing rather quickly, but Rezar was also moving just as fast as he moved from tree to tree with a lot more ease than even Tarzan ever could. He kept his focus and all of his senses were practically stretched to the limit in order to prevent himself from being ambushed, that way he could actually be less open and won''t be caught off guard next time. But the thing is, no matter how fool proof a plan you made, no plan ever survives the battlefield. He twisted his body to the side, evading the arrow that was just send his way, he turned left to the trunk of tree branch he was now standing on and quickly scaled it, moving so fast and quickly with his legs and arms it was as if he was a spider or woodland creature. Two more arrows dug into the trunk, but he was already up and above the tree line. He only had a second to notice the position of three attackers, one of which was the orc female who lost her partner. Looks like orcs aren''t knocked out for long, that was good information to keep for the future. He didn''t spend too long contemplating on anything as he jumped without hesitation, heading for her direction, before suddenly aiming down and falling with a lot more speed than before, his body accelerated as he went past three thick branches before stretching his hands out and grabbing an elf that thought he was well hidden. Before they reached the ground the panicked elf had fangs in his neck and a significant amount of his blood already running down Rezar''s throat. They hit the ground with a sickening thud, a neck was broken, but Rezar was completely unscathed as he quickly rolled away, his speed notably faster as he vanished into shrubbery, claws out and grabbing the neck of another hidden ninja. His head flashed forwards just as the Ninja cried out in fear and pain, but by then but was already too late as Rezar too two large mouthfuls and then pulled back, roughly wrenching the head of the ninja off his shoulders. He turned around and caught an arrow just as the tip of it pierced his neck. Because of how large orcs were, the bow she was using was larger, thick and stronger than the norm, the arrows were also longer and the force and speed it generated was off the charts. Fromm the look of things she was an accomplished archer, and she may or may not have access to her skills, but with or without skill she was really good. Rezar ducked down as a massive axe swung where his head was and Durga showed up with a massive kick aimed at Rezar''s chest. Rezar moved back, forcing the orc''s leg to hit nothing but air, however the distance between his foot and Rezar''s body was barely a few centimeters. Far enough that Rezar received no damaged, and close enough for Rezar to grab his leg and drag the orc closer, pivoting his body around as he let go of his leg and slamming his left elbow into the size of Durga''s head with a massive bang as his right arm rose up to catch the arrow that had been aiming for the back of his neck. Durga dropped like a sack of potatoes just as spear came from behind and ran Rezar through. Rezar didn''t not even let out a grunt of pain as he felt his blood pour out of him, the person carrying the spear seemed to have a thing for brutality as he raised the spear up raising Rezar in the air with a small yell as his bright red blood poured out of his body and onto the earth. In that moment Rezar felt a clarity and connection with is body than he had never felt before. At first he had touched upon the threshold before, and not too long away when he could mentally will which parts of his body could be healed. And now once again he felt that connection, and it was to his blood. His blood turned into multiple tiny lances that that stabbed into the armored tiger man that had his spear in Rezar''s body, a green barrier grew up to cover the tiger man''s body as a look of shock came over his face, but Rezar was not done, the spear had already been pulled out of his body and more of his blood were floating around him like bubbles stirred up after a bath. Rezar didn''t stand on ceremony as those droplets of blood blasted outwards with him at the epicenter, causing a wide swath of destruction as those who were still hidden were blasted out of the way and severely injured. A cloud of dust was raised from the multiple tiny explosions that happened, but by the time the dust cloud settled, Rezar was long gone, but with his disappearance the barrier had already drawn closer. So many of the. well this particular group of people who were still alive were severely injured and unable to make it out in time. Those of them who still survived continued chasing after the Bone King of Morte Bianca, and in the lead was a vengeful orc who had just lost the love of her life. As for Rezar himself, he was moving through the forest at a speed far faster than he would normally be able to muster, he kept on looking back tying to see if there was anyone on his tail, but there was absolutely no one capable of keeping up with his current speed. He was turned forwards and kept running, a red mist formed from his blood cloaking his form and increasing his speed, a mist it might be, but if one was to look a little bit closer, there would see the mist shifting into the forms of hundreds of bats. Chapter 182: Play For Power (IV): Faceoff 16 HOURS LATER The third trial had taken quite a turn, and while Rezar had escaped from the group of deviants or whatever the hell they could be called, the same could not be said for many of the other competitors. While Rezar kept on running, till he found a place that was well hidden and completely out of the way, Durga and the others have been killing those of the competitors that couldn''t fall behind their agenda, while incapacitating those they felt were important and could be used as bargaining chips. From the look of things, the third trial would be over a lot earlier than the three days that was allocated to it. The barrier shrunk faster the more people were killed or eliminated from the game. And the funny thing was, once someone was considered out of the game either from an injury or from being killed, the barrier doesn''t affect them in any way at all. No one could give up, so everyone had to fight or break your own arm and leg to be considered incapacitated. Never the less with how quickly the barrier shrunk, the number of competitors had been completely whittled down to Rezar and a single snow elf. Now in retrospect these two should probably team up to stand against their foes, but. everyone within this valley was prey to Rezar, it didn''t matter if it was Durga and his posse, or any other competitor, they were all just prey. The barrier had shrunk enough that it could be seen in every direction, and so far it had driven everyone to another lake in the valley, however this one was smaller and had a stone platform in its middle with a land bridge that led to its middle. The snow elf burst out of the tree line, heading for the stone platform and the obvious arch that was right in the middle of it, the snow elf was frantic and rightly so as Durga, the tiger man and the orc woman were right on his tail and hot on his heels. The show elf stumbled, scrapping his palm raw as the sword he held fell out of his hands and over the stone bridge into the lake below causing a ripple in the otherwise pristine waters. Durga and the tiger man were focused solely on the snow elf in front of them, the orc woman on the other hand was looking around with a frantic and somewhat manic look as she looked every which way for a sign of the one who had ruined her life. But even with the barrier just ten meters behind them and not within the bounds of the forest, Rezar was nowhere to be seen, which is to say he was either already dead or incapacitated. She didn''t like that, she didn''t even want to think of a world where Rezar Deathwind would get away without a chance for her to facilitate her revenge, it almost drove her insane as she looked at the barrier, sorely tempted to go back in there and look for that bastard. As for the snow elf he knew there was nowhere left to run, and the arch that served as a teleportation device would not activate until there was literally just a single winner left. He turned to look at Durga and the tiger man drawing closer to him. He was tired and bloodied and very frustrated at his inability to do anything, and even more so now that the sun had set. Orcs and some species of elves like snow elves didn''t have as good an eyesight at night, in a battle that didn''t matter much to the orcs as all they had to do was stay away from their comrades and smash everything in their path. The barrier was even giving off a light, but the tiger man was in his element here. These two were well above him in strength, they were equal in speed, maybe he was a little bit above them. but he was a mage not a fighter, and these guys were fighters with access to their skills, so he was fucked in more ways than one. Durga took a step forward his hand on his axe with a rather ugly grin on his face. "Trihi! The snow elf prince, half-brother to my sweet daughter Tepetal. So young, but so useless. What made you think you can come down all the way from your perch on top of the Breone mountains and come rule a race vastly superior to you pale skinned freaks! I can''t kill you, you''re a very important political tool, but I''ll take great pleasure ripping your bloody arms and legs from your body, don''t worry the orcs have a way to make a limbless person survive. And when we''ve conquered all of Bahrenburg, I will let you watch as I take the body of your mother and sister at the same time right in front of you, over and over again as their juices coats the corpses of everyone and everything you love." "Oh! Is that so?" that voice brought chills to the spine of both Durga and the tiger man and lit a blaze of fury in the eyes of the orc woman. The snow elf price was even more afraid, the voice came from behind him, and compared to the guy behind him, Durga and the tiger man were Childs play. He swallowed hard as his body stiffened, Rezar''s breathe was right on the nape of his neck, causing his heart to pound even faster as he lost control of his bladder. "Don''t worry Jack Frost this would only hurt for a second." And that''s when he felt the pain of fangs being pierced into his neck, his body shook as he felt all of his blood rush towards that point in his neck. Scary as it should have been, after the first second it was just extremely blissful, a high he couldn''t understand or comprehend but he felt extremely addicted to. His body shook as it was rocked by a climax the likes of which he had never felt before in his life, and following close behind it was a darkness that he happily embraced. His body was softly led to the ground by Rezar, almost as if he was helping a lover relax. Then he got up just in time to catch an arrow flying towards his skull. "Now. where were we." Chapter 183: Play For Power (V): The Selfish Son Of Death Rezar moved forward, his clenched fist meeting the swing of Durga''s axe as the edge knuckled dusters showed surprising resiliency and force in pushing the larger and heavier weapon back. A quick duck sent an arrow over his head as he surged upwards with an upper cut that was blocked by a green barrier. But Rezar would not let that stop him as he stepped forwards and gave a head-butt to the barrier and the tiger man behind it. The barrier wasn''t shattered, but the tiger man was thrown off his feet and into the lake. Durga came back with a much wider swing aimed for Rezar''s stomach, and at the same time an arrow was heading for the spot in between his eyebrows. Rezar smashed his knuckle duster on the flat of the axe, sending the massive weapon smashing into the platform as the arrow found purchase in his right eye. But he did not even slow his stride as his hands grabbed Durga by the neck, then he unceremoniously slammed the orc chief down to the ground in a choke slam that forced a significant amount of spittle to fly out the mouth of Durga accompanied closely by the sounds of breaking bones. Rezar wrenched the arrow out of his eye and turned, and at the same time flinging two throwing daggers towards the female orc who had gotten close, before turning to get a spear shoved halfway through his body by the tiger man. Rezar too the pain in stride and let the spear go through his body as he also moved forwards, riding the momentum until he was close enough to the tiger man, body to body and with barely a hint of space between the two of them. the tiger man knew he had fucked up, and neither Durga or the crazed female orc would be able to make any sort of difference in the immediate future. Rezar bit into his throat, fighting against pulling back to spit as the taste of fur assaulted his tongue. Rezar wasn''t as gentle as he was with the snow elf prince, Rezar could hear his soul screaming in pain. He wrenched with the ferocity of an animal, teeth and fang tearing and puncturing his out his throat with every second that Rezar was close to him. In this case, it was as if Rezar himself was the tiger and not the tiger man in front of him. In seconds he was extremely bloody, and the tiger man had lost all strength in his body as he had bled enough to the point he was already feeling anemic. Durga and the orc woman had paused to watch as Rezar led the tiger man to the edge of the platform, and then threw his bloodied body into the lake, the clear waters quickly becoming invaded by the red of blood. "Whether or not either one of you gets to live is all up to the both of you, or maybe the two of you. But at this point, I know better than to trust in the words of an orc, but I don''t have much of a choice so. Durga! what the fuck is going on." Rezar''s only reply was the sound of the wind whistling as an arrow was fired to the back of his head. the world seemed to slow down as Rezar moved to the side, a blood red hue tinged with purple, black and blue hovered over his body as the arrow moving more than ten times faster than the previous ones flew past his face. But it was not enough as Rezar moved with the arrow, following its trajectory to the chest of Durga, and coming to a stop just as the arrow began to pierce into the orcs body. And then the world sped up again, right back to normal. Durga released a loud yell of pain as his blood painted and coated Rezar''s face, the vampire only gave an amused smile as he turned to look at the shocked orc woman, while Durga fell to his knees, strength fleeing from his body. Rezar shook his head and left the orc chief on his knees as the orc woman incapable of letting go or giving up ran towards Rezar, her massive war bow held high like a club. She swung it left and right in a manic frenzy that Rezar didn''t find too difficult to dodge. Then he stepped into her guard once she over extended herself and shoved his hand into her large mouth, grabbing a hold of her lower jaw. A sharp wrench to the side and Rezar ripped her jaw from her face, blood and hanging tongue in full display as there was barely any spot on Rezar''s body that wasn''t covered in blood. The tusks of an orc went upwards and downwards for some, unluckily for her, her tusks jutted upwards, and as she barely screamed in pain and horror as the injury she just received, Rezar swung what was left of her jaw into her throat. Using enough force that he ripped it out, and left it hanging out in the open air with her what was left of her tongue and face. He watched as she backpedaled, finally realizing the severity of her situation and how she was going to die in a place like this, without avenging the death of her love. She looked at him, this bone king, this Rezar Deathwind, and for the first time since she encountered him, she realized just why she kept on chasing after him. It was because she was afraid of him, unfortunately fear for orcs meant running towards their fear and eliminating it...she made a mistake. *Splash! * Rezar ignored the sounds her body made as it fell into the lake behind him, and then it was just him and the still dying Durga. They looked at each other for a few seconds longer before Rezar crouched down in front of him. "I remember when we first met, at that time I thought you had the look of a fierce orc leader, too bad the lips and words of a goblin and a snake was your true defining qualities. But then again I''m not one to judge a person''s way of ruling, I still haven''t figured mine out yet. You see I''m just making this up as I go, but my actions sometimes actually have a deeper meaning to them after I sit back and think about it. I actually think 3 steps ahead and I don''t know I''m doing so. You see I believe I actually have two minds or two souls, but were one, and while I might seem really dense at times it''s because I''m putting things in place to make my life easier. I don''t care about power or kingdoms or wars, it''s taken me a long time to figure out, but what I actually do care about is myself, my growth, my own personal strength, my evolution! Everything else is a bonus. You might call it selfish, but that''s why you can''t beat me and why everyone who comes after you will not be able to beat me. I care about myself so much that I make sure the people around are strong enough to fight and conquer so I don''t have to. Your hunger for power means nothing in my hunger for self-preservation and advancement. And in order for me to grow and be strong, like all things in life; you and Bahrenburg...MUST DIE!!!!" Chapter 184: Play For Power (VI): KING OF THE HORDE A beam of light shot high into the heavens, it was like a beacon to all who were within range to see. The eyes of many were focused on this beam of light, but it was not in anticipation as many felt horror, anticipation, fear and hope. The very world itself seems to have gone crazy, and no one had half an idea what to do or how to react to the situations they had now found themselves in. the light faded away, and there was Rezar in all of his glory holding on to the severed head of Durga. There were flashes of light as those who survived the third trial but were incapacitated appeared behind him. Normally this was the point where the orcs would begin to cheer and jump and celebrate victory and the selection of a king, one who was destined to lead the horde. But the first thing Rezar sense was the smell of blood, then there was the smoke, and the all too familiar and thick encapsulating feel of death and destruction. He shifted his head downwards to notice that the platform was surrounded on all corners by two very familiar faces and hundreds of ninjas with their silver demon blades and a significant amount of armed people from a variety of races. "Tyrese, Tyrene! I can''t say I''m surprised to see you two here, have your perhaps come to make another business deal with me? Or have you really, really come to die?" Rezar asked as he sat on the edge of the platform, his legs dangling down as the rejuvenating feeling of all his skills and abilities coming back to him left a rather sinister yet happy smile on his face. "no hard feelings Rezar, but the Dustin Crowe Merchant company won''t be making any deals with you. Sure we''ve handed over most of our lands and islands, but at the time it was worth it to lose a hill so that a mountain can be gained, besides it was an attempt to reduce your suspicion of us. We never intended to make any deals with you, we just needed you complacent towards us and our movements. Who knew you would end up getting captured by a group of stupid orcs and putting the plan in jeopardy." Tyrene said as she looked at Rezar from the end of her nose, huffing every few seconds as if he was the very dirt underneath her shoe. Rezar shrugged as he jumped down from the platform, ignoring the hundreds of orcs gathered as he threw the severed head of Durga towards his so called daughter Tepetal, who from what Rezar could see, was quite chummy with Tyrese. He closed his eyes for a second, and then he smiled, before quickly frowning. He turned to the twins and asked them in a steady and somewhat even voice, a far cry from the expected outburst everyone here imagined was about to happen. "You put Screet in a cage? Seriously? And as if that wasn''t enough why''d you have to nail all of Kitagawa''s tails to a massive wooden board, and then hang up to bleed out before locking everyone else." He didn''t even seem angry; it was just as if he was asking a neighbor a passing question. "They are our prisoners! It is up to us what we decide to do with them, you should be thankful there are still alive, though in the next few moments the same could not be said for you. Then again how did you find out what we did to them, maybe if you tell us we might consider sparing your life." Tyrese said ever the business man and trying to make a beneficial deal. Rezar didn''t answer them as he looked at the hundreds of orcs gathered, they weren''t as much as he had seen, but there was enough of them to bring down a small city. He turned to the twins again almost as if he was thinking, before turning back to the orcs and choosing to address them instead. "I have won your plain games, by rule of law; the instructions left by your ancestors, I am now king of the Horde! And in that regard I would say to all of you, orcs of the great desert. Will you honor your words, honor the laws of those who came before you and KNEEL TO YOU NEW KING!" "....." "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!" A lot of orcs found what he said amusing, but Rezar wasn''t just talking to the orcs in front of him, his voice was loud enough to reach across the entire camp of the horde which was practically the size of a city. And to those who it mattered to, they all bent the knee and bowed. Rezar smiled, in the time that they had been within the valley for the third trial, the orcs had experienced a civil war of sorts, everyone capable of leading or rallying the orc together were killed by the twins and the orcs that sided with them. so while this group may laugh, the other group left with a leader, took the chance to have one, and one that was strong and spoken off in the words and prophecies of their ancestors, and right now they could see him, and the sun that rose from the east behind him. Bright powerful and radiant like the very flame of life itself. "Huitzilopochtli! King of Fire! King of Will! King of War! King of The Horde!" "King of The Horde!" "KING OF THE HORDE!" "KING OF THE HORDE!!!" Like a true horde their voices shook the very earth itself, the twins were understandably shocked by the current turn of events, and they would want to put an end to this really fast by killing Rezar. But just before they could give that order, there was a whistling sound in the air as Vita Gratia moved and planted itself in front of Rezar and his soon to be killers. The weapon vibrated, almost as if it had a mind of its own and was trying to communicate with its king and master. Rezar smiled and grabbed it, separating it back into its dual Khopesh form and feeling a vibration in his body like he has never felt before. For the first time since it was created, Rezar could feel the power of Vita Gratia. [You have been given the King of the Horde! Since you have a previous title, both will now be combined.] [Universal Announcement! Rezar Deathwind has become King of the Bone Horde of Morte Bianca] [Special skills, traits, stats and any other reward would be given after the Rejuvenation of Elysium] Looks like the system was still wonky, frankly speaking he had a lot of rewards that he was supposed to receive, but the system kept on withholding it, and now he knew why. The so called Rejuvenation was probably the update, but frankly speaking he might not even get the chance if Tyrese and Tyrene had anything to say about it. But never the less, Rezar was not one to back down from a challenge, even if it was coming from one of the most powerful groups in the current world. "Hah! The King of the Bone Horde! In a few minutes you will no longer be the king of anything. Your death has been set in stone from the very day you decided to stand against my family, so necromancer! (spit!!) you will die for the glory of our family, and you should rejoice and be glad in it, because it is through your death that the Dustin Crowe merchant company, will become the Crowe empire." Tyrene boasted while Rezar bent his head to the side in confusion. "Even I am just a king, how will killing a king get you an empire?" Rezar asked, though he was pretty sure he knew the answer to that question. "Once were done ripping you to shreds! We will take all of Bahrenburg! Its wildlands are an ever expanding piece of lands that''s not been fully conquered. We don''t need what''s beyond the canyons, it''s all worthless anyway with all those warlords, but after you it''s the Breone mountains, the fucking dwarves, snow elves and the ice wyrms and the scattered tribes of orcs, then the Kerwood forest itself. The fairies, the wood elves, the pygmies, sprites, human settlements, towns villages cities, all of them will be." "Tyrene!! Stop exposing our plans to our enemy, can''t you see he just wanted you to talk!" Rezar smiled as he looked at them, then he nodded his head and said. "and it was quite the splendid talk, I now know just how stupid you both are. Even with everything I told you about an apocalypse, your greed still took precedence, so now all of you, all of my enemies...please die." And with that said he raised Vita Gratia up into the air and then stabbed it into the ground. [Glorious Crucifixion] And then the world shook. Chapter 185: Play For Power (VII): Glorious Crucifixion As a weapon Vita gratia had a passive that absorbed the souls of anyone it slays and splits it with him in the form of stats, it has only one active skill, and it was an active skill that could only be used once in a month. Among his active skills, [Final Rite] could kill every enemy in sight and send their souls into his body for permanent and temporary boosts in stats, however even that couldn''t compare to [Glorious Crucifixion]. This was a skill that targeted every enemy with a 400-meter range, basically all enemies 400 meters in any direction, and what it did was horrifying. Tyrese and Tyrene were spared, but that was well within Rezar''s plan, as silver crosses with skulls carved into them shot out of the ground, each one behind one enemy. Their appearance alone was unexpected enough, but when strings of light began to stab into the hands and feet of those in front of the cross, they all knew they weren''t dealing with anything normal. The strings pulled them back to the cross, crucifying them in the most painful manner possible as their blood began to coat the crosses. But not a single drop of that life giving liquid touched the ground. They were absorbed into the crosses, as both the hundreds of crosses and their equally hundreds of captives began to glow, but quickly following after was a sound of agony that seemed to come from an orchestra. Except of course this was an orchestra in pain as their life essence and very souls were absorbed into the crosses, and then redistributed into the air. But all of those essences, vitality and stats weren''t just thrown away, they would invariably and unequivocally become a part of his people, everyone within his kingdom, great and small, male or female adult or child or teenager. As long as you have chosen to follow him as a king, then you would also benefit from this skill. A single powerful move that required three whole tiers of magic to activate, and could only be activated once every month, in the same way [Final Rite] can only be activated once every week. Rezar watched as their screams seemed to stretch far into the sky, a symphony of pain and agony as he took much from them without the intention of ever giving it back. He was death and power incarnate, wearing a face that should there be an afterlife for these people, they would never be able to forget. The sheer amount of silver crosses hanging fifteen feet in the air was quite a sight, Rezar got a feeling from Vita Gratia that this work of art was permanent. Which is to say that no matter how many eons pass, this veritable forest of silver life draining crosses will remain standing, as a monument and warning, and ultimately as a testament to the power of the King of the Bone Horde, the supreme one of Morte Bianca and the son of death herself. Rezar shifted his head to Tyrese and Tyrene, in all honesty he could barely even stand at this point, this sudden drain of magic took a toll and regardless of the fact that he was a vampire, he was still mortal. "Tyrese and Tyrene of the Dustin Crowe Merchant company, you have been spared not by mercy, but so that the people.my PEOPLE! Who have suffered at your hands can get their just dues. Someone please arrest these fuckers and lock them up!" Rezar ordered, and quickly enough, Slave Master Szadin came towards him with a bunch of Orcs in tow. "Great one, we will make sure they are well taken care of, our lives and our blades are yours from now to all eternity." Rezar nodded his head and took two steps forward, but that was a mistake as the world turned upside down and the embrace of darkness came for him once more. [[[[[||]]]]] "This fucking dream again!" Rezar really wanted to curse some more, and he would have if he hadn''t noticed that this was a lot different than the norm. he was still a dark place, but this time it wasn''t a tunnel, but an intersection leading to five doors instead of two. Two of those doors he somewhat recognized as they had changed. The doors of people only had the normal races on them, humans, dwarves, elves etc. then there was the doors of monsters and animals that still looked pretty much the same. Black for the humanoid races and white for the animals, their skulls still gleaming and eldritch as it has always been. And then there was a purple door, and the only word Rezar could use to describe it was alien. He didn''t recognize the races on this door, not until he caught sight of a familiar metallic skull with snakes for hair. It was the Medusa he had fought during the trial, meaning this was a door that opened for aliens, or whatever. The fourth door was a dark burnt red, in fact as he looked at it, blood actively leaked and poured from the skulls on the door. And these skulls he recognized quite well. they were demons. And within it he could see orcs, imps, succubus''s and other sort he could recognize and couldn''t recognize and more so were the therianthrope. Werewolves, kitsunes, Tiger men and Lion men, they all fell under the demonic classification. Then the final door was one of gold and blue and hints of green. On this door there were no skulls, but whole skeletons. Fairies, sprites, dryads, nymphs and finally all three classification of angels. Rezar designated this door the celestial or nature door. But regardless of how beautiful all colorful the doors all looked, it didn''t change the fact that they still depicted the death of a couple of races, that what lied beyond was blood and skulls and bones and death. And once again a voice asked. "CHOOSE!" And once again Rezar refused to, and just like before, he drowned in the lifeblood that spilled from all the doors, and this time.it Hurt! Chapter 186: Play For Power (VIII): Escape THE HOLY CROSS THEOCRACY HOLY CITY OF YAWEH SALVATION CATHEDRAL The streets were filled to the brim with people as they looked up at the sky above them, sure there was a significant amount of fear, but this was Elysium. Seeing weird and unexplained things was the norm, besides as far as Elysium was concerned there was nothing that couldn''t be explained, regardless of the era it was discovered. So even with the threat of destruction hanging above their heads, they had faith in God and his salvation, that the Grand Diviner, Grand Saint and Grand Templar would keep them safe, but this belief of theirs was far from the truth. Hanging above their heads, the sometimes hidden and sometimes revealed second moon of Elysium had moved, it was blotting out the sun in what could be considered an eclipse, but the truth of the matter is, the second moon has never been the cause of an eclipse before. There have been many recorded eclipses in the past, especially by those who have the classes that had to deal with astrology. This was unprecedented, and more so the fact that said moon seemed to have developed a massive red eye that was pointed down at Elysium, more specifically the holy city and its surrounding lands. Those of the people who were really smart knew something was up, and un fortunately these amount of people was a lot. Which meant it didn''t take too long for the city to fall into chaos from the knowledge of the imminent destruction they were about to face. And once one person starts to panic, it''s obvious that many others would also begin to panic too. And those whose heart are dark would take advantage of the situation to cause even more chaos. they have no idea what what''s coming. As for their leaders, they were all currently on an airship, speeding away from the lands and people they were sworn to protect. The airship was massive, almost half the size of the great city itself yet no one had noticed it life off, it wasn''t until they crossed the border of the city itself were their people able to realize that their leaders had ran away. And then it was as if the gates of hell were torn open upon the city, horror unleashed, fellow man upon fellow man, it was a dark day and it was about to get darker. "Your eminence is this really the right decision to make! You are the grand saint of the church! Surely this problem with the second moon is not something you can''t handle! And with our combined might along with the foresight of the grand diviner, there''s nothing and no power we cannot overcome, we have God! On our side." A voice rang out from behind closed metal doors while a familiar young Diviner acolyte stood behind it, listening along with a few guards and hundreds of other members of the church who had made the escape. "Don''t be Na?ve Bertolt, the Grand saint made the right call, a tough one, yes! And one she made based on a divination I gave her three days ago. The holy city will not survive what''s to come Bertolt, in fact, the entire theocracy will become nothing more than rubble for the aliens that live in that ship masquerading itself as a moon. We''re not just dealing with Aliens; Bertolt we''re dealing with NPCs!" "No! it can''t be, how can NPCs have such a sizable force, strong enough to build a ship as big as a moon, I don''t understand what''s going on here, how could this have happened?" the Grand Templar''s voice could be heard rumbling from behind the closed doors, the hearts of the bishops, pastors, priests, deacons and acolytes who had made the escape chilling with each reveal that was made. "I do not know Bertolt, but we''ve heard rumors of an event, a universal event coined the Rejuvenation of Elysium, our contacts outside say the virtual world of Elysium is about to experience an update. I''m sure you have noticed lately how the system messages have been off, and how we all now seem able to ''feel'' more than we used to. Skills are stronger and more versatile, some of them out rightly disappearing from our skill list. There''s more to be said, but nothing that should be said to the ears of our children listening outside this room." The people listening felt their bones chill, intruding on the three grands of the church was grounds for severe punishment. If you were lucky, you would be put in the chamber of repentance for months or years. or maybe that was the unlucky part when you consider the daily beatings. The only other option was death, and so they moved away, a lot faster and louder than they came, with only one acolyte remaining behind, no matter what, he was going to hear the end of it. "Right now all that should be on our mind is survival, and to find a place where we can set new roots. Because honestly speaking, all of the known lands, all of it are a target, the things I''ve seen in my divination, the horror that''s to come and that is currently happening has shook me to my very core. Please Grand Saint what do we do now?" The Grand Diviner asked, he got his reply after a few seconds of silence from the only female in the room. "We need to find a new home and build a new kingdom, and the only place that can do so for us is the frontier. From what I''ve heard, we need to find unclaimed lands in wildlands and claim it fast before the update or there will be severe consequences. Then we will recuperate, and then just like our previous plans have always been we will launch a holy war to unite all of Elysium under our banner, and this time our enemies will be the aliens that took our home from us. We will burn a path of salvation and repentance in blood till we have their heads on pikes and their children in chains!" "Grand saint, I understand your anger and anguish, but we will need an army for that, and without our resources, I doubt we can manage an army of that size. We will be CRUSHED!" the grand Templar said. Chapter 187: Play For Power (IX): Aliens Invaded The sound of the wind howling greeted Rezar when he woke up, the tent he was in was large and ornately designed, but even if wasn''t strong enough to withstand the battering of the wind as its entire frame shook and flapped under the coaxing and battering of the wind. Rezar felt sluggish, his body was a little too heavy to move, so after struggling to get up, he was forced back down by a strong and steady hand, as the sounds of water trickling down a jug was heard, but he wasn''t so sure it was water, the liquid was thick, viscous and it smelled really sweet. "Drink, you''ve been out of it for the better part of two weeks, the weakness you''re feeling right now is from starvation." Rezar could recognize Gynaika''s voice anywhere and anytime. For some reason it sounded really warm, but then again Rezar felt as if his head was filled with cobwebs, anything would be sounding really warm to him in his current state of mind, but at the very least he had someone he could trust close by and that help him ease up a bit, it seems there was no danger here. "What''s going on?" He asked as he took significant mouthfuls of the blood Gynaika had offered him, it was satisfying but it wasn''t enough. And the way he fed felt wring as his fangs got caught on the edge of the cup. He felt really refreshed from it, but his bloodlust acted up and he became a little frantic, spilling a bit of the blood over the fur sheets that covered his frame. Gynaika''s strong and steady arm grabbed his and took the cup away, before handing him the jug that contained the rest of Rezar''s well satisfying lunch or breakfast, he really couldn''t tell the time except that it was daylight. "The Great desert blew a storm over the plains, everything''s been quite windy these last few days, making it extremely difficult to move you back to Morte Bianca. It wouldn''t have been too hard if Alistair had way of completing the Eldritch Star, unfortunately it would take a few dozen years to reach that level of technology.?? Rezar looked up at her confused, then he asked. "What''s the Eldritch star?" "Oh you didn''t actually look at those blueprints when you gave them to Alistair did you? Typical Rezar, your head just can''t help hanging in the clouds most of the time young king." His only reply to that was raised eyebrow and an annoyed look at her amused state of mind. "When you had turned that lackey of the Dustin Crowe merchant company into a doom knight, the system had awarded you three blueprints. All three of them are way ahead of their time and were specifically tailored for Necron or rather the kind of civilization we hope to build. The first blueprint; The Gate of Dread is a teleportation device similar to spawning ability of spires. In Elysium all teleportation are pretty much one way unless there are return scrolls for a specific spires or connected waypoints like the ones owned by the orcs, the gate of dread is like a homing beacon, once built, any registered vehicle or person would be able to use it to return home from any spire, anywhere in the world, and even then there''s a tiny device attached to it that can enable the use of its teleportation even in the wild without access to a spire. The gate is fully magical in nature, but the requirements for building it is pretty harsh and specific. Some of the materials we can get with enough money, others we have an abundance off from mining it, but then a lot of calculations would have to be placed in its location, as that pretty much matters. We need a geomancer, and alchemist, a wizard, a sage and the damn best blacksmith in all the land to build that gate. We can train people with such professions up, but they actually need significant knowledge and not skills and levels to build it. What we need is not what the system can give, but the creativity of man. And with the way things are going, that won''t be a problem very soon. The second blueprint is the Dread Dreamer. I have no idea why your so loved by the system, but seeing the requirements for the b building of the things in this blueprints, it makes me rethink that train of thought. The Dread Dreamer is a ship, that can travel to the land of the dead, of course it could be sailed normally, and is actually right up Alistair''s alley being a mixture of magic and technology. it can sail under the see too you know, and would be almost unbeatable in open sea warfare.as long as its night anyway. Turns out the ship is a vampire too, or something like that, guess we''ll know more if we ever get to build it. And finally the current pet project of Rezar since everything seems to be taking care of itself quite nicely. Last I heard the roads being built have met up with the tunnels we used to escape the mines. And there are a whole bunch of towns and villages connected to the roads and easily accessible to us now, making it possible for us to have a proper census of what our kingdom holds. As I was saying the third blueprint is the Eldritch Star, and it''s a small sized battleship.an airship capable of space flight, for a single pilot and has enough firepower to lay a significant part of Necron to waste before we even get the chance to breathe. It''s really fast and needs lots of metals and get this.it need an actual star to power it, like we need a piece of the sun it. Or at the very least an energy source that''s as close to it as possible. Oh! Before I forget, the second moon of Elysium has destroyed all of the Holy Cross Theocracy, we''re being invaded by aliens now." Chapter 188: Play For Power (X): A Dying Elysium so aliens have finally invaded, the update hasn''t happened yet, but it seems a bunch of things were happening ahead of time, or rather the update was actually already happening, but it wasn''t coming suddenly as he had expected, but slowly. Little changes that affected the world in little burst, until when the grand finale was ready to be implemented. It was funny, from what he was told, it was Elysium itself that was trying to wipe out all humans that now lived in here regardless of their race. But it was making small and sudden changes, so that people can quickly and easily get used to and acclimated to the new world that was coming into being. Apart from that it seems Necron was now a level 5 town, even though his unconsciousness made a bunch orcs and some of his people hang around as they started a slow march towards Necron, it would have been dangerous carrying him through their portals in his comatose state, and even worse due to the storms coming from the desert, the plains pretty much became inhabitable, so they all had to move in the direction of the Kerwood forest, towards the place that was sure to be their new home; Necron. And the moment he became their king, the population requirement was met and surpassed by a large margin, the same way the resources were now way too much than they knew what to do with. The town upgraded, and while there were somethings Rezar had to come back and take care of himself, on account of being the; now Mayor of Necron, everything was running smoothly. Then he addressed the issue of the Dustin Crowe merchant company, and Gynaika''s answer shocked him. There was a fleet of ships sieging Necron as this very moment, however none of them had made any moves and were just contented to wait until Rezar returned to Necron with his hostages in tow, which spoke volumes of how important those two idiots actually were. But Rezar wasn''t worried, he was going to Kill Tyrene and Tyrese for their crimes against him and his people, no amount of threat or negotiation would change that, the consequences he would be able to deal with. Two weeks have passed, he just needed to hold on for another two and their fleet wouldn''t be a problem. And then the next problem had to do with the fact that nobody could aces their stat pages anymore, every time they tried with the spires, it kept on showing one word and that was ''Updating''. Everything really was going to change, even the way people grew stronger, there might not even be classes all together, and at this point it was really hard to determine what would change. But Rezar felt that Elysium was about to get a whole lot more real, now it wouldn''t be based on stats and skills, but race, insight, and natural ability. He didn''t think skills would be removed completely, but now they would actually have to be learnt, trained, felt, and utilized rather than relying on the system. Probably all the stats and skill points and skill combining gems he had now were probably useless, which was a shame. He had no idea if dungeons were still going to be a thing, obviously the landscape was going to change, that was something Tristian had told him before. Now there won''t just be one worlds, but rather many worlds. NPCs would mix in with real people and it would be hard to tell each other apart. No one would remember previous lives as the world outside would no longer matter, all that would be is the world you now find yourself in. earth would literally be forgotten, except by priest, he was cursed by the Necron to forever remember with extreme clarity the details of all his lives. Rezar didn''t think the effects and powers of certain weapons and tools would change, in fact he suspected they would extremely important and sought after as powerful reality altering relics of the old Elysium, the one he was currently living in. Which means he still had to get stronger, to look for the Necron, the book his town was named after, and to protect Vita Gratia, a weapon capable of reaping souls in the hundreds and using it to empower the allies of its wielder. And it could grow stronger and stronger as long as there were souls to feed it. There were more such weapons, Rezar was sure of it, and they would also come into play. It was like Elysium was dying and from the ashes a new world would have to be built, whether it would be a better one than what they currently lived in, it was up for debate. But it was a chance for Rezar to not actually start at the bottom, but from a position of real power, being capable of implementing great change, having a voice that could be heard and having people to fight for him and keep his ass out of trouble. So that he could finally get that house on a beach with a farm close by and live a life of leisure and not give a shit about anybody and the world. wouldn''t that be nice. "Now that you''re back on your feet, I''d say we can put a little speed to our movements so that we can get home in time right?" Gynaika asked as stood up from the low stool she had been sitting on besides Rezar. "Yes we can move, there''s still a bunch of thing to keep track of, and Alistair has to go check that outpost we found, I''m sure there''s technology he can salvage from there, and with how close to the Breone mountains it is, I''d say it would be nice to have a forward base, especially one so advanced. We should go home and prepare, the world is about to change, and these merchants are the final obstacles of the old world we would need to take care of. I''d rather not start a new life with them polluting my waters. Summon Lenore from the dungeons as soon as possible, and please get me someone to eat.im still hungry." Chapter 189: Updates What he could see with his eyes was not something he ever imagined he would get a chance to see, good and fine he brashly announced himself a king and his territory though a bit small, a kingdom. Now his territory was large enough to house millions with ease, and even more so it was slowly shaping up to be a whole lot more than what he could have possibly envisioned. And it was not a part of his plan, honestly speaking he didn''t think he would ever get this far, but here he was, at the head of an extremely long procession of orcs, and on a road that until a few moments ago, he didn''t think it was possible to exist in Elysium. There were actual lamps on the road, lots for stops that have not been built yet, and military outpost of sorts to patrol the roads, and keep watch on the canyons to the north and the monsters it held. After another week on the road, Rezar could see the sea on the horizon, and with an unfamiliar stone wall that was a good 30 feet tall, there were towers built on the wall that from a distance looked to be about five to seven meters thick. When and how Alistair had time to build such walls completely eluded Rezar, but the bottom line of the matter was that, it was probably the most defensive structure in all of the wildlands, maybe the snow elves and dwarves had something similar, but since he hasn''t been there and seen such, he''s would be the best in all the land. Rezar rode on Tony, walking under a tunnel with a pair of thick wooden gates. But from what he could see the wooden gates were being removed and a metal one was being installed. He went past the tunnel, leading a procession of orcs that seemed veritably endless as they streamed behind in droves. Past the wall was a vista that shook the hearts of many. It was beautiful, the open sea to the west and the soft sea breeze that seemed to blow toward their direction, it was as if the west wind was welcoming them home. To the north were the farms, and they looked impressive with endless rows of golden and green stalks, gardens with greens and reds and variety of other colors and a bunch of other designated areas kept aside for the growing of food. It was a really amazing sight and Rezar was no different from his new subjects who were struck by awe from what they could see. Rezar shifted his gaze ahead of him to notice Jason walking towards him with a couple of men dressed in similar black and white clothing as him. The police force seems to have grown quite a bit in the time that he has been gone, which I n this case should be just above three weeks and almost a month. But what was really baffling g was how leisurely they all well with a fleet of ships docked a few kilometers from harbor. It was almost as if they didn''t realize that their lives were practically at stake. "Master! It is good to see you safely returned back home." Jason said as he took a knee, making sure to bow his head as a show of respect to the king in front of him. The officers behind him were flustered for a second before they too all got on their knees as a form of welcome for Rezar. Following close behind them was Alistair with a stack of papers in hand, Rezar didn''t know why, but seeing those thick bales of papers left him feeling really apprehensive for some reason. "Your Majesty, it is good that your back, the world has gone crazy and I need your approval over some projects, and I need you to overlook the trade deals we''ve received from a bunch of merchants and companies." Rezar raised an eyebrow, the fact that Alistair was this busy came as a shock to him because honestly he didn''t expect that even in the process of having an altercation with one of the best, if not the best Merchant company, others would be willing to strike a deal. something wasn''t right. "Let me see." Rezar said as he took the pile of papers from Alistair and started walking towards the city properly. Most of them were a sign off over a bunch of housing and development projects, the sewer systems were already active, and there was actually and underground river, well a bunch of them within the rocks of the cliffs. Those serves as a stable source of clean water and also energy as a few engines utilizing the pressure from the rivers have been built to give power to the city. And thankfully with everything that has been going on, the system could still seamlessly integrate any new technological advancement with what has already been built. The pier was still pretty much abandoned, but construction on a few simple fishing boats were already underway, with the increase in population the need for more houses had arisen, however the entire area of the city cover area wouldn''t be enough, so an expansion above, where the barracks were located, and the building of houses into the caves, wall of the cove. The bottom of the cove was actually the most prime location, so it would be better if the most required buildings were placed there and the residence were moved. Alistair also wanted to build another wall, this one would go further and cover a larger surface area, encompassing much of the Kerwood forest to give Necron city a natural feel, as it was also his attempt to make a park of sorts. That would be the next major projects as with the leveling up of the town, their population limit had increased, and they had also surpassed it again due to sheer amount of orcs they now had. But it wasn''t just housing that was the problem, creating jobs and a stable source of income for those who had joined, the biggest issue now was how to create a stable economy, and with the Dustin Crowe merchant company turning out to be a bunch of snakes, that option was off the table. "Tell me Alistair. These ships that have been sieging us, is it that they''re refusing to attack or they''re waiting for something?" Rezar asked as the matter about the merchant company came up. "Not really, they can attack because the mist veil is deployed in front of the city, and its working in tandem with the city barrier. Not to mention the Necrotic ants have been causing a bunch of problems for them, they don''t need to breath for too long and they''re very good swimmers. With the constant assault from the ants, they can''t use any of their large weapons, and frankly speaking y this point the constant battles probably has them at the end of their rope, a significant assault and we would destroy all their ships, it''s quite unfortunate that we don''t have any long range assault capabilities as of yet. I''m working on upgrading the arrow towers to gun towers, plus vie even success in fusing both the arrow and scout towers into sentry towers, but it would take me a little more time to get them ranged combat ready and worthy." It looked as if the Dustin Crowe merchant company weren''t much of a problem at the moment, he would still deal with them though, but at the moment he could look over some things in his town and address his population. He didn''t need Priest to tell him that with the increase of people, he needed to talk to them and give them assurance so that they don''t feel left out, plus with the Orcs now being the dominant population he had to have policies in place to ensure that there was no sort of segregation and peace reigned as much as possible. But bringing him back to the deals from other companies, Rezar read through a few them and then paused, he literally had a massive entourage behind him, but he was so preoccupied he hadn''t noticed. The deals were bad and really worse, obviously all of these companies were trying to pull a wool over Rezar''s eyes because they felt that he was in a tough spot being targeted by the Crowes. If he wanted help or to at least ease the pressure a bit, he would have to sign a couple of deals that wouldn''t be beneficial to him, and would end up crippling his city''s economy before it even gets the chance to stand. One even wanted stakes in the ruling of the entire kingdom, and safe to say it got Rezar really pissed off. He turned around, ignoring Alistair''s all too obvious flinch as the annoyed look and murderous aura that was currently wafting of Rezar''s body. He looked back at the sea, and then at the orcs as an idea slowly took root in his mind. He turned to Alistair. "Coming up with breathing apparatus or maybe a formula that can help someone breath underwater shouldn''t be too hard for you, you have three days, I need 300 of those for orcs and 50 for kitsunes. We''re going to go destroy that fleet, on the other hand begin construction on a magic tower, based on your calculations there''s a dual ley line convergence zone where the Kitsune village once stood. Build the tower on one of the lines, keep the other vacant just in case, and then cordon off the land where the line converges, we build that teleportation gate there. Any other thing we have to take care of let''s discuss it when our waters aren''t so polluted with scum, in the meantime gather the people. their King shall address them." Chapter 190: Death From The Deep 1: A Worthy King When Rezar said he wanted to address his people, he never did expect that finally, when said people were spread out in front of him, he would be at loss for words. It was a veritable sea of green, with a few reds and blues, and then the normal skin tone of. well normal people. Goblins and orcs made up the majority, but in the time he has been away, more and more people had migrated here and there was a little more versatility than before. He knew it was only a matter of time before the population became a little more balanced, but never the less there would be no shortage of manpower, either in a fight or for the developments of the city. Rezar turned his head to the right where Gynaika was standing beside him, Lenore wasn''t too far away behind her, looking all fierce and dangerous as her gaze carried a promise of death should anyone attempt to make a move on her king. Honestly he still didn''t like that woman, she was and still is the only person in all of Elysium to have stepped on him, but for some reason he couldn''t bring himself to doubt her loyalty to him. It was crazy, but he knew she was a hundred times more loyal to him than Gynaika who would happily scheme behind his back to get more power for herself. Priest was to his left with the one armed Screet standing as a sentry and completely unwilling to let anyone or anything come close to his master. And there was Kitagawa and directly behind Rezar was Alistair, with Jason hanging at the edge of the crowds, keeping watch and Brutus being God knows where. This was his circle of trust, his closest confidantes and the people he trusted the most. But then again trust was a strong word, and if Elysium has thought him anything, is that you truly survive by your own strength. What he was trying to do now, was make them his strength, and from the results, he could at least say he has succeeded quite a bit. "There''s much I have to say to you all, but in all honesty I wouldn''t know where to begin. When I came here; into this world I had nothing. I was blamed and punished for getting justice for myself. The only problem is I don t remember what I wanted justice for, the world outside, the one many of us feel is the real world broke me. And in sending me here it tried to do the same again, it tried to leave its scars on my body and soul, leaving me vulnerable so that Elysium can pick me apart piece by piece and rip me into so many shreds I would be akin to dust in a desert. I''ve been lucky so far; I''ve had good teachers and wonderful encounters, and I''ve made connections and allies that can and will truly help me grow. And now I have all of you, I''m not going to lie you all seem like too much work and responsibility for me to handle. Because let''s face it, as far as kings go I''m not exactly what you would call a stellar example. But like all good kings I wouldn''t shy away or run from my responsibility, it is now my job to take care and protect you all. To feed and clothe you and make sure you are all in good health. And now more than ever you and I need each other! I''m sure you all know that this world is coming to an end, in just few short weeks, if not days; everything that we know, everything we understand, everything we love will change. And it''s not going to be peaceful or smooth, but a world of fire and death and blood flowing like rivers. An apocalypse, a war that would stretch for generations, upon generations. A war your children and my children and their children will fight long after we are all gone from this world and life. So I will fight for you, but you all must serve! I will die for you a million times over, but you all must be able to do the same not just for myself, but for each other, because this is your HOME!" "YEAH!" Rezar had no idea who shouted, but that guy''s voice was so loud it set a fire within the hearts of all who were listening. "Necron! And Morte Bianca''s foundation was built on conflict, it was built on blood and war! And I''ll be damned if I let that be the legacy we live to our children! The world that''s coming would be dark, wicked and bloody and fucking aliens from the sky will want to take what''s ours, and they won''t ask nicely, no they won''t! But as long as you as you live here, as long as your blood has watered the earth beneath your feet, Necron will fight for you! Morte Bianca will fight for you!" Rezar didn''t know what it was, but he really was on fire, he was pumped up and whipped into a frenzy the likes of which he has never felt before. His fangs slid out and found their way to his wrist, bright red blood flowed out happily staining the patch of earth beneath his feet red. "War bends to us! Life Falls for us! And Death! She Smiles for US ALL!" [[[[[||]]]]] And just as their king had led, so too did the people of Morte Bianca did the same, it didn''t matter their age, it didn''t matter their race. On that day when the moon sun shone the hardest, thick clothes covered the heads of hidden vampires, sweat slick on the skin of those who lived and the aura of death wafted off the bodies of those that were undead. The king spoke and acted and his people followed, on that day when their bloods touched the earth, making a lifelong oath that would span a thousand generations of kings and subjects. It was on this day that Morte Bianca was truly born, and due to that, for the first time in a long time. The Necron stirred; it has finally found.... A worthy King! Chapter 191: Death From The Deep 2 The mist that served as a barrier for Necron was the same one Rezar had come in contact with at the Honoka village, it was basically a one-way mirror with the people in town being able to see the outside, but those outside were completely incapable of catching a glimpse of what lay within. Now the people on the ships could just as easily not care too much and take the risk to launch an attack, but apart from not knowing what was lying in wait for them, the Necrotic ants have been busy. They chewed holes in the ship, attacked the sailors and fighters at night, ripped their sails and even sheared the masts in half in well-timed and organized attacks. Such cooperation without himself to give them orders shocked Rezar, at least until he learnt the dungeon core had leveled up while he was away and spawned a queen for the ants and an Alpha for the wolves, and a hobgoblin for the white goblins that for all intents and purposes have become the Janitors for the town, they were also a lot smaller than the norm, just being about fifteen inches tall, right about the normal size of garden gnome if not a little bit taller. But none the less, even with the lack of skills, there was a connection to these creatures that Rezar could feel to depth of his soul, it was like one massive connection spreading from his undead to the creatures spawned by the dungeon Core, to Gynaika and the vampires she made in secret, and now to his people. Maybe it was a little too farfetched to say that he could feel each and every single one of them, but that was actually the gospel truth. It was not as if he knew what they were thinking or he could control their minds or something, but from the moment that oath was made, the oath that his people were now calling the Creed of Morte Bianca. Whatever that did, it sorts of made him have an awareness of his subjects, so he knew exactly who was happy or not or who was distressed as long as they were within his territory. It was quite a nifty ability, and he was sure this wouldn''t be going away once the update was complete, rather it was because of the update that such an ability came into being. And if it could be properly utilized, then Morte Bianca would be quite formidable, not just for himself, but people in certain situations of power would be able to make changes and certain actions based on what a subject was feeling, and it was especially effective for when said Subject was in trouble and needed help. They would be able to help in time, it was an alarm based on feelings, a veritable 911 hotlines that was always on and connected to the right channels and the closest person that can help. Rezar narrowed his eyes as he came to the opening of a sewage pipe, at the moment he was underground with about three hundred orcs and a hundred other fighters from different races that could use the breathing apparatus Alistair and the Muriel elves had struggled to build in the last few days. It was fitted snugly on all of their face, and the sewage pipe they were in fed into an aqueduct with a secret tunnel that led straight to the sea. Rezar looked down 30 feet to notice a giant turbine spinning really quickly, there were glowing glass tubes meters long and wide fed directly into the water and a bunch of engines and pipes going in and out of the walls. This was an individual plant that directly fed power to the walls of the town, giving power to the Sentry towers. "We have to go in between the blades of the turbine, Alistair says he''s only stopping the turbine for as long and 10 minutes, so we all need to be through it by then. Are you guys ready?" Rezar asked as he shifted his gaze to a grinning Lenore besides him who raised her mask up to her face as an answer and then gave him a well flourished bow. Screet was one armed so he wasn''t here, but Brutus would be leading the undead from another direction so that they would be able to attack the enemy from three different directions. Kitagawa who wasn''t here would be leading a frontal attack with Priest following behind as support. There was a loud hum and a low pitched whine as the spinning Turbine began to slow, Rezar turned to the people following behind him and raised his arms as a signal before moving to the edge. He didn''t have to wait long for the turbine to slow to a stop, but Rezar was not Rezar if he didn''t try to show off a little. He took a leap, the wind rushing past his ears as his body fell in a well performed dive towards the still spinning blades of the turbine. A lot of people had rushed forwards to see whether or not their king had been ripped to shreds, but he passed through so easily with the blades all barely missing his body and earning him a hail from the followers above. He couldn''t hear what they said or how they cheered because he was currently underwater, but they all happily followed their King, but not after waiting a few more seconds for the blades of the turbine to slow down even more. And then as Rezar waited for them in a dark cave with a tunnel that led out to sea, they all jumped in. Rezar inclined his head and then began to swim towards the open sea, going through a tunnel that was smooth to the touch, they slowly swam with the fishes, relying on the cover of darkness, and the cover of the sea itself to move closer to the enemies on the sea. So far they were all off to a good start, and Rezar knew that by the time this was over, there would be an ocean of blood instead of water. Chapter 192: Death From The Deep 3 This would have been quite a sight in the eyes of someone else, the sheer amount of people currently swimming under the sea with breathing apparatus and exposed weapons were downright intimidating. And scary, pacifist would shudder to think about the outcome of the clash that was about to happen, but in the end, the truth of the matter was that Rezar was going for blood. With the current state and situation of Elysium, a diplomatic approach to dealing with the Dustin Crowe Merchant company was completely off the table, not to mention that it would literally walk on his pride and the pride of his people if he didn''t deal with the Dustin Crowe Merchant company in a manner befitting the slimy backstabbing snakes that they were. The ocean was cold, which was unexpected, but then again things weren''t exactly normal in Elysium, but with the coolness from the water, everyone was thoroughly awake and ready for the carnage that was to come. As for how this fight was going to go, they would be relying on brute force and letting the undead take the forefront. The reason being the fact that active skills were now a little wonky in their activations with some not even working at all. The only thing that could be counted on right now were passive skills, and in other to minimize casualty if not completely avoid it, the basic undead, which after Lenore''s constant diving of the dungeon has increased to an exponential amount would be at the forefront. Rezar led them through the water, moving in a manner that was similar to a school of fishes, drawing ever closer to the fleet of ships lying wait. Rezar had counted just how many ships were dead in the water due to the constant assault of the necrotic ants, that at this point were being called the guardians of Morte Bianca. There were eleven of them, looking at them from the underside, at least for those closer to them, Rezar noticed plugged holes with planks, there were also visible scratches on the frame of the ship from previous attacks. Rezar gave a telepathic order and half the force he came with split with Lenore leading them towards another ship, it would be best if the assault all happened at the same time. After Lenore went off with the rest of the undead, Rezar kept his focus and his attention sharpened, waiting for the signal that he knew would start this assault. And he didn''t have to wait too long as ten minutes later, there were bodies falling into the sea, and a blaze of flames lighting up the night sky as Lenore took advantage of the chaos and launched an attack of her own, the flames were all Rezar needed to lead his very own charge as his body shot through the sea and up into the sky, scaling the height of the ship and landing on the deck in quick fashion. The sailors on the ship were severely startled as they had shifted all their attention to Lenore''s attack, Rezar''s right hand shot forwards as one half of Vita Gratia shot forwards, a Khopesh being led by a chain that pierced through the bodies of six people, before dragging itself out of their bodies and taking their souls along for the ride. While skills were somewhat off the table, the same could not be said for the abilities of the weapons, and the damage they could cause. Rezar''s move was enough to drag the attention of the sailors, but much to his shock and the annoyance of the orcs, those still alive quickly laid down their weapons in surrender. Rezar turned to look at the rest of the ships, almost all of them gad surrendered, though at the moment there was a bit of indiscriminate slaughtering happening on a couple of other ships. Rezar wanted to put a stop to it, but then he held himself back. Maybe he was supposed to stop his people from killing those who have surrendered, but there was a lot of anger to be released for the deceit of the Dustin Crowe Merchant company. It tore a race apart with the strife it caused with the orcs, families were splintered, lovers separated, and since he was now king they couldn''t come to him with grievances for killing their friends, so he could only give them this. Besides, what was wrong and what was right? That was completely left for him to decide, and one thing he felt was right was satiating his bloodlust and the blood lust of his people. "Kill them all, and take no prisoners." With that said he turned around and walked to front of the back of the ship, watching as the other ships caught on fire and bodies and wood dropped onto the sea. There was blood, a lot of it in fact, so much that Rezar could smell it in the air, feel it on his clothes, and then something else, something more, and frankly speaking there were two of them. Rezar has not yet had the chance to move a bit further onto the sea, but right now he could feel a massive surge of energy coming from beneath him, it was as if there was something struggling to break free, and then there was another, and he could feel it coming from the north, from the canyons of Toromont itself, it was coming closer and Rezar just had this feeling that whatever the fuck that was, it was coming for him. He shook his head in annoyance and decided to make a choice, it was sudden but he had two things calling for his attention, he would deal with what was right in front of him first. With that thought in mind, Rezar picked up the breathing apparatus and jumped into the sea, letting the cold waters embrace his form once again, as everything became dark and bright at the same time, now all he had to do was keep going down. Chapter 193: Death From The Deep 4 The coldness of the waters wasn''t a problem to Rezar, what was quickly turning out to be a problem was the pressure the deeper he went into the sea. He didn''t think it was normal, and he was not as knowledgeable about this as those people who actually have obvious knowledge about the oceans, but the pressure came a lot earlier, and this time it didn''t seem as if it was one caused by the water, but by something else. 25 meters down he came across a coral reef, this was low tide which meant these reefs were much deeper in the sea than the norm, but the reef itself was something of a beauty. Multicolored and meticulously layered, it was almost as if he was looking as an underwater city, which was saying something, cause the deeper he went, the larger and more elaborate the reefs became. He would be extremely stupid if what he was looking at did not become any more obvious to him. This was a city, not a settlement not a village and not a town, but a full blow city right in front of his home, and quite literally under his nose. But then again even if it was a city, it seemed dead, maybe others would have been unable to see within the darkness of the water, but Rezar had his eyes open well enough to notice that the reefs while connected to each other had segments and sections to them that hollowed out in some corners to form houses. The architectural style was something similar to a beds nest, it was like the reefs, twisted and curled into each other, maybe that''s why they called them coral reefs. or maybe not. There were layers to reefs that made then incredibly sturdy, the entrances were open, and Rezar could see enough of it to fully cement his theory. With tables, holes in the ground, light fixtures or shells hung from the walls and giving a dim light, these very much looked like someone''s home. But that person was no longer here, whoever or whatever they were. He went deeper, and the reefs became more colorful and more symmetrical, in the end it became obvious that the deeper he went, the less natural the coral reefs became. There was too much intent within the way they were arranged and spaced, and Rezar also felt that something was off with this place. Earlier he was able to see traces of a school of fish here or there, but the deeper he went and the better looking or rather more man made the reef looked, the lesser the amount of fishes he saw. To the point that he was not even seeing anything again, there was absolutely no sign of life anywhere, not even half of a fish swam past him. It was ironic, for someone so wrapped up in death to be worried about the absence of life...it was really not what most would expect. He swam deeper until he finally came to a dead end, though it had taken him a good 35 minutes of swimming, and with his stronger than normal body, he swam faster than others. There was a larger reef, or rather it would be better to just call this a palace built with a coral reef for materials, and maybe a couple thousand or million scales of a multicolored fish. This was probably the place where all of the important people probably lived, it looked nice if not a little gaudy for his taste, not the kind of place Rezar would fancy himself living in. honestly speaking there was nothing wrong with living in a majestic palace, he one day hopes to get one, the Mayor''s House was an upgrade, from the village chief''s Abode that he lived in, only it wasn''t a palace, and there was much to be improved on. The building in front of him however would put most palaces to shame. alas he''s never see one, or he couldn''t remember ever seeing one. Well seeing as, the doors to the palace was wide open, he swam inside, coming up into one of the most majestic halls he''s ever seen, not that he''s seen lots of halls in his life, at the very least he still had some from his memories of earth, and those memories say this hall was one of the best he has seen, except of course it was in ruins. Pieces of furniture were floating about within the water, it was almost as if there was a massive fight in here, and it had to be quite severe as Rezar could actually see scorch marks on the walls, and there were broken statues of a dragon spread every which way. Rezar swam deeper moving past the hall before coming up into a passage way, it looked really weird though. From what he could see the water seemed to come to an abrupt stop, like there was an invisible wall holding it back from entering the passageway. There were weirder things, but Rezar would not let that stop him from finding out what lay beyond, so he walked through it, coming out of the water to stand in a passageway that was completely dry. He removed the breathing apparatus from his nose, letting it hand around his neck as he took a deep breath of the stale air...he didn''t see the skeletons on the ground, he could already feel and smell death the moment he came into the hallway. Rezar was never one for subtlety, that energy that brought him down here was just ahead, and he really was impatient to see just what it was. He rushed forwards, coming up into a massive chamber, he noticed three things. The massive dead corpse of a dragon, the egg it held tightly in its claw, and the man dressed in black that was looking at it whilst resting his back on a blood red and black spear, which had eyeballs popping out of its shaft and mouths on its blade. The energy he felt didn''t come from the dragon or the egg, it came from the man! "Well Rezar Deathwind himself! I have to say I didn''t think you capable enough to take the bait I left out for you. I have to say my evaluation of you has gone up quite a bit. Well then! I guess introductions are in order. My name Is Malik Black, to others I''m known as The Grand Reaper, and in the name of the holy church of Yahweh you are to come with me to serve a purpose greater than yourself. or I will remove your arms and legs to make you more compliable, so what''s it going to be, Boy!" Chapter 194: Death From The Deep 5 The corpse of the dragon didn''t seem to be a day old, hell if it wasn''t for a certain sense of awareness that he had, it would have been incredibly difficult for Rezar himself to tell whether or not the dragon was still alive. Its deep blue and green scales were quite dull, but they still shimmered with an eerie power that just seemed to draw Rezar to them, however he couldn''t remove his eyes from the man he had met in the chamber, there was aura to him, a charisma that Rezar couldn''t put his finger on, and the way he walked around the body of the dragon, his eyes on Rezar was so eerie, that even Rezar for all of his poise knew that Malik had more of a presence than him. "You work for the church? That seems a bit hard to believe if I have to be honest." Rezar said to him as ran a hand through his wet hair. "Well I can''t say I don''t understand your plight young king, and many people tend to be as surprised as you are. but the church ain''t as bad as you think they are. They''ll give a room or a cell rather, and field and dungeons to train and then you go allover Elysium killing for them and preaching about the glory of their religion, sounds fun doesn''t it?" Rezar paused and did a double take, Malik was completely serious with a rather pensive look on his face, he looked like a salesman trying to pitch a sale to a customer. "Wow. you''re even more sick in the head than I am, and no that doesn''t sound fun, it sounds like an incredibly dull and boring life. Is that how you live? Why?" Rezar asked with his head cocked to the side with a look his people would recognize as the one he got when his curiosity was at the forefront of his common sense, and with a dead dragon laying a few feet away, it was safe to say his curiosity was at an all-time high. "Well they have my family captive and I have no choice but to do all their dirty work for them.... nah I''m just kidding. They give me what I want, when I want, and how I want. They made the most powerful death class user, and in return I gather death class users, especially Necromancers, to build a division that would help them in their holy war and mandate to unite all of Elysium to the glory of the Great God almighty!" The way he spoke, the gestures he made, told Rezar that this guy was being sarcastic and not at all taking him seriously. There was nothing in his eyes, no goal, no ambition, just a dog all too happy to do whatever his masters require from him. Even if he has to destroy and end lives in the process, for all intents and purposes Rezar could wholeheartedly say that this guy was no different from a zombie. "You''re pitiful, to be so bound by death and alive, but completely incapable of living. But never the less what makes you think that I''ll just follow you to go be a slave for some religious order." Rezar asked as he held both of Vita Gratia''s Khopesh in a reverse grip. "I don''t expect you to follow me, that would be boring. Like the others before you, I expect you to put up a fight, so I can beat you down and then take you along with me. It is so you would not have any delusions of a choice even if it seems I''m giving you one. Where I''m taking you, your life we no longer belong to you, it would belong to me just as it will belong to them. besides, wouldn''t it be nice or you to be with your own kind, with other death class users and in a place where you won''t be prosecuted." Rezar felt the urge to laugh, with everything that he has gone through and been through, prosecuted wouldn''t be the word he would use to describe his current situation. People were afraid of him, in fact animosity was always the first reaction he gets whenever someone knows he''s a death class holder, someone who''s hands and tools could bring about death permanently. But just as much as they fear him, he knew there were people who believed and trusted in him, it seems Malik here has no idea just who and what Rezar really was. "Taking me away is not an option because one! I have people that need me and I have to take care of, two! Even if you succeed in taking me away, there are people or better yet an army that would fight just as hard to get me back. And then thirdly Mr. Malik! I am a FUCKING KING! I am not prosecuted, I am feared, respected just as much as I actually think I am loved. But given that I have no idea how that emotion feels, I would say my people have a certain fondness for me, so in light of that I cannot go anywhere with you either willingly or by force, because I have a kingdom to run and an apocalypse to avert; besides didn''t you hear, the theocracy is nothing but rubble now, the entire territory has been terraformed by aliens, they destroyed your fucking church!" The feeling of confusion he was expecting to see in the eyes of Malik was there, but it was different, like while the news of the theocracy burning to slag shocked him, there wasn''t enough weight behind it to shake him. Malik twirled his staff, its form making eerie whooshing sounds that made Rezar feel a chill going up and down his spine. "The Theocracy can burn for all I care, my masters still live. Cause if she were dead, so too will I, and as long as she lives, then so too will the church. Enough talking boy! Prepare yourself!" Chapter 195: Death From The Deep 6 Rezar got the very obvious feeling that he couldn''t approach a fight with Malik the same he has always approached his other fights, sure his healing factor would give him a severe advantage, but there was just something about this lackey of the theocracy that didn''t sit well with Rezar, he had to be careful. Brute forcing his way through this fight absolutely won''t help his cause, he had to use his head or he could very well end up very injured and very dead. But then again, just how much stronger could Malik be, Rezar was yet to come up against an opponent he couldn''t triumph or surpass in one way or another, this time would not be any different. Malik made the first move, skills were wonky and unreliable, but physical stats, and a little bit of instinct in using the magic and resources within your body, also helped a lot. Malik was fast, really fast, and it was from his speed Rezar realized that the man in front of him wasn''t even human. He had pointed ears, and not like those of the elves, but something you would see on a demon. But then again demons had certain defining characteristics, and those where their horns, most of them had tails with a few exceptions to that equation. Never the less Malik wasn''t anything that Rezar could recognize or have heard off, which crosses out an avenue of him finding a way to defeat him. Malik swung his black and red spear upwards, the spear moving so fast it seemed as if the very air was split apart. Rezar took a step back, and even though he evaded getting hit directly by the spear, the displaced air was enough to leave a shallow cut on Rezar''s jaw. But it was far from over as the spear was coming down just as fast as it went up, its angle changing to a slash that would cut Rezar open from collarbone to hip. Rezar raise the Khopesh in his right hand, hoping to intercept and deflect whilst shooting that on his left hand towards a wall. Malik''s spear crashed loudly into Rezar''s Khopesh, with Rezar utilizing the curves of his saber to redirect the force of the spear to the side of his body, and at the same time the other pair dragged him away from Malik, its chain ring as it quickly retracted into itself. Malik whistled at that with an intense look of appreciation on his face for the weapon in Rezar''s hand, he shook his head and said. "That''s an impressive weapon, like it''s really amazing as I''ve never seen anything like it. If you can master it, then I assure you it would be quite formidable in your hands if you can master it. Because from what I''ve seen, you were either taught to fight by a brawler, someone with too many styles to have his own, or you learnt by yourself. Your forms are wrong, posture wrong, mentality wrong! connectivity with your weapon, wrong! Your awareness of a battlefield is good, from that observation along I know you''re more suited to be a general or commander, not a fighter. But your usage of force and managing it when you deflected my strike is also quite good, like really good, as it was almost as if you could predict my next move and the amount of force I would put into it. And that''s not a fighter''s intuition boy. it''s a general." With that said he moved again, to Rezar it seemed as if he was blasting off the balls of his feet and gliding on the ground, this time the spear was coming for a pierce, Rezar was ready as he moved to side, the spear passing right past his face, just as Vita Gratia now in its staff form sliced over the spears form and towards Malik''s head. but the Death Classer leaned so far back with just his neck Rezar was sure it was breaking. Only a single strand of hair was broken as this move forced Rezar to over extend and turn around only to meet a kick smashing into his chest that blasted him backwards and onto the body of the dead dragon. No matter what story were told about Dragon scales, whether it was on that of a living dragon or dead, those things were harder than metal. So Rezar''s spine snapping in three places after his back hit the dragon was very much understandable. He was crippled, and while his body was healing really fast, he hoped Malik would be a little too over confident and let that happen. Rezar was wrong. Malik moved so fast he was in front of Rezar before the young man could blink, and then he unceremoniously stabbed his spear down into Rezar''s right leg, driving it through his flesh and bone and into the marble ground below. Rezar let out a roar of pain as he felt all of the energy within his body begin to drain away, in fact it would be easier to say that it was the spear itself that was drawing it all out. Malik shook his head in much the same way a disappointed Parent or teacher would do, when trying to berate a student. "Your second attempt was better, you baited me into that attack, and this time your strike was a killing strike. But its already been established that I am much faster than you, and by a large margin. Your stats should be around tier 5 or 6, at least 7. All my stats are snugly within Tier 9. In the whole of Elysium, I am amongst the top ten strongest people, I don''t need to tell you where I rank, but! What I''m trying to say is, you can''t win every fight, so you should learn to cheat and set traps or better yet, run for your pathetic life. A king who doesn''t know how to retreat when necessary will die and so will his people. But then again I''m just too much for you to handle." Malik said as he looked at the currently paralyzed Rezar. "Well is that so? Well then how about you face me instead...Husband!" "Oh shit!" Malik said as he slowly turned to face the raging and very much on fire Lenore, and Rezar. his curiosity really was at an all-time high." Chapter 196: Death From The Deep 7 The look Rezar could see on Lenore''s face was one he has never see before, in fact it was a look he never taught the demoness capable of, and yet here she was, with eyes glistening and filled to the brim with tears. Her reaction, Malik''s reaction more than told him that her outburst earlier wasn''t exactly wrong or random; Malik really is or rather was her husband, and now Rezar''s fight with the death classer had turned into a family reunion of sorts, or some sort of lover''s quarrel. For the first time in a long time, Rezar was quite willing and happy to let whatever was about to play out, play out. When he had suddenly jumped into the water, Lenore was not too far behind him, and she kept up with him as much as she could, and it was all to Rezar''s plan. He really had no idea what he was going to face beneath the sea, and while he hated to admit, Lenore was now the strongest belonging to Morte Bianca. And he knew this exponential increase in strength was a result of being in charge of training undead within the Dungeon found near Honoka village. As the zombies and ghouls leveled up, so too did she, putting her far ahead of everyone, Rezar himself included. At the very least she should be strong enough to keep Malik company for Rezar to implement the next daring and magnificent plan, and this was one he wasn''t sure was going to work due to how off key skills have been lately. But be that as it may, it was all up to Lenore to figure this out because frankly speaking Rezar lost from the very moment he had walked in here. Unlike his previous opponents, Malik outclassed him in every manner possible, and his skills which has been the bread and butter of all his victories in the past were cut off from him, he was just relying on instinct now. "You have some guts showing your face to me Malik, are you tired of living. And even more so why are you attacking my King?" "Oh he was serious? He really is a king well that''s totally unexpected... ta!" Lenore didn''t even let him finish what he was saying as a fireball exploded in his face in point blank range, Rezar furrowed his eyebrow a bit in confusion, it made absolutely no sense since there were no skills in play for anyone now, and that''s when he remembered that the signal he had received before they had attacked the ships was an explosion, he hadn''t thought too much about it because explosions and flames were just what Lenore was known for. But this fireball didn''t come shooting out of her hands like usual, she didn''t even need to call out the spell or skill name, it just came into being out of thin air right in front of Malik. He wasn''t thrown backwards like Rezar expected as only one part of his face was singed and blistered, the damage from the explosion wasn''t as much as Rezar thought, or rather it would be best to say Malik had a high enough defense to completely shrug it off. However, it still remained that he took damage, which meant Lenore could actually hold him back long enough for Rezar to implement his crazy and risky plan. Lenore moved closer to him, using a speed that matched his, ducking low under a swipe of his spear and stabbing her rapier out at his waist. Malik turned to the side, but just barely as the Rapier had actually cut through his cloths, exposing his pale stomach and thin line of red that quickly closed up like it was never there in the first place. His almost evasion of Lenore''s strike left her open in, much the same manner that had seen Rezar severely injured, but unlike Rezar, Lenore seemed to have more tricks up her sleeve and seemed quite conversant with Malik''s style of fighting, a style that Rezar now recognized. *BANG! * The same small explosion that had singed his face moments ago came into being in front of his face once more, this time causing him to cry out as he rapidly moves backwards with Lenore chasing after him with her rapier. He moved fast, just barely staying out of the range of her strike, but even then she was hot on his heels completely unwilling to let him off, soon enough his back was about to hit the wall. But one strike of his feet on the ground had him jumping into the air, his body angling downwards as he brought his spear smashing down on the head of Lenore who was right under him. *BANG! * An explosion happened from her left that threw her backwards and well away from Malik''s strike. It was a move that Rezar could understand, but the way she had used it was beyond ingenious. Her utilization and understanding of her flames was one that Rezar had to say was even more close of a bond than he shared with his blood. But none the less, she had bought him enough time to do what he wanted. "What are you doing?" Malik''s surprised voice called out to Rezar, Prompting Lenore to move a step back in case it was a trap and turning to look at her king becoming just as surprised as her opponent. Rezar had removed one of the scales of the dragon, getting access to the skin beneath, luckily enough his fangs were strong enough to pierce through, as chilling and at the same scalding hot dragon blood rushed down his throat in massive gulps and rivulets. Every gulp was painful, but it was necessary and it was important. The world was changing, actions like this were now what had more effects to gaining strength than gaining exp and leveling classes. But gorging himself on dragon blood was not really his aim, all he needed was a wound, and in the few seconds he drank the dragon''s blood and been completely drenched in it, Rezar had gotten all that he could possibly could, taking what was probably the most fundamental part of a dragon''s blood. Now it was time for the dragon to take his own blood. Rezar is a great amount of pain slit his wrist with his fangs and placed his bleeding wrist on the wound he had made on the Dragons body. His connection to his blood gave him a bit of awareness as his blood went into the body of the dragon. Blood was now the only way and medium he could use in activating his skills, he''s had that suspicion for a while, and now it was about time to see if it was true. [Raise Undead] [Turn] *ROOOOAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!* Chapter 197: Death From The Deep 8 The dragon was massive, it was dead just seconds ago and its body was curled up, and even then it was really large that it would have taken up to a minute or three for Rezar to walk around its corpse, and now that it was standing at full attention, the word intimidation didn''t do what he was feeling justice, there was pressure, a pressure he quickly realized was the same one he felt when he had swum down here. And it was now all encompassing and invasive, he had raised this dragon from the dead, using two skills in turn that did different things when it came to the realm of the dead. He was not so disillusioned to believe that he was in control of this dragon, especially now that it was staring right at him, instead of the enemy he had woken the dragon up to eliminate. And much to Rezar''s chagrin, Malik didn''t wait to be blown to bits like Rezar had envisioned, he turned around with a flourish and ran out, going down another path quite different from the one Rezar had used and in the opposite direction. Rezar half expected Lenore to chase after him, in fact he fully expected her to do so, because the brunt of Dragon''s pressure was solely focused on Rezar, its why the young king couldn''t move, and the Reaper Malik was able to run away with his life. There was always a mountain above a mountain, and even if it was the highest mountain, there''s still the sky above it, and in more ways than one. This dragon even though dead, was the galaxy above the speck of dirt on a planet that was Malik. Of course Rezar knew the dragon wasn''t as strong as it was when it was alive, that''s the tradeoff of raising something from the dead, at least a quarter of the strength they had when alive would be lost. It could be regained, but in that moment they were pretty much far off from their peak. Rezar reckoned Malik might stand a chance in defeating the dragon, but without skills, and having two other variables in play, the man had no other choice but to turn tail and run, or there was a very obvious possibility that he would not be seeing another sunrise, Rezar would not have minded such an outcome. "You are the one who has woken me up, what right have you to meddle with the souls of the dead!" the dragons voice.... everywhere. it was in his head, in his blood, he could hear it with his ears, feel it with his tongue. He bled from his eyes, nose and ears, and his broken body seemed to break even more as his organs seemed strained from not just the blood of the dragon in his body, but from the power of its voice. "You! Demoness! Leave this place, when I have need for you I shall send for you...I will not kill him. But as for what state his mind would be when you return, I cannot guarantee it. But there''s a price to be paid for disturbing my eternal rest, and nothing will stop me from having my due." Lenore''s response to that shocked Rezar, but none was as shocked as the dragon when Lenore pointed her rapier at the legendary beast and spoke, with lightning arcing off her blade and body. "His armies are mine to command, his wars and battles mine to fight. Protecting the future and legacy of his kingdom is my duty, and it is the only thing noble I''ve ever done in my life. So even against a dragon, I will not abandon my king." "What-the hell are- you doing! Get out of here L-Lenore! G-go!" Rezar forced himself to speak through gritted teeth, his sight blurry from the blood that had bled out of his eyes. He felt weak, and he wouldn''t go so far as to say he was touched by her gesture, but she was being stupid, she had to get out of here. Even if he dies here, she was the only one strong enough to keep Morte Bianca going, and keep that Snake Gynaika at bay and under control, her dying here due to this surprising strong sense of loyalty she seems to have discovered would defeat the purpose. "Is this love I see...wonderful, I can hear it in your voice and see it in the way you face me. You are afraid, but you refuse to back down even against one as superior as me...you are a foolish child." The dragon said to her as it shifted its posture, turning to face Lenore as a formless pressure raised Rezar into the air. "Call it what you will, but I''m not leaving here without him." She said with even more conviction than Rezar ever thought possible. "His blood runs through me, just as my own runs through him. He has tasted that which is forbidden, the heart''s blood of a true dragon, and it is changing him. He will become more, but since I was already departed from this world he will become death. I see into his mind, his soul. He lacks it! What you want he will never be able to give to you, and I tell you this not so you will begin a useless crusade of love to seed the feeling in his heart. But your king can not love you, for he is incomplete and will forever remain so if he is to live, and after ingesting my blood it is all but set in stone. Rezar Deathwind can''t feel fear, even now he fears me not. Rezar Deathwind can''t feel hate for without Love there can be no hate. Rezar Deathwind has no compassion, he is pragmatic and realistic, a sociopath in a degree you can never be able to comprehend. Rezar Deathwind cannot and will never feel love, not even for the children he would have. He is broken, but it is because he is broken that he is strong. If you love him, it will make you strong, but if you want him to love you back, it will make him weak. And his mother did not make him weak. Yours''s is a fool''s errand, turn away from it while you still can...your king will destroy you!" Chapter 198: Death From The Deep 9 Rezar didn''t have to think too much about this reveal, the dragon was right, he didn''t feel one smidge of a romantic emotion towards Lenore, he was pragmatic enough to k now that this was a total waste of time. And it was weird and random and so fucking sudden, how in the hell did this happen, Rezar didn''t have an answer for that, but he needed her to have her head in the game. This dragon wasn''t one they could defeat, and he needed her alive if he was going to ever get a chance at surviving this giant reptile, he needed her to remain alive. "Don''t be stupid Lenore! I do understand what you are feeling and quite frankly I think it''s a waste of time, but what''s important is that Necron and Morte Bianca needs you. No matter what the home that we''ve built should come first, so if a dragon tells you to get the fuck out, then by all means Lenore get the fuck out!" She didn''t move a muscle, it was almost as if she wasn''t even hearing a word of what he was saying as still held her blade up and kept her gaze locked with that of the dragon. Malik had been an extremely scary opponent, and by now Rezar realized that maybe he was being a little too brash in and irresponsible in trying to bring a dragon back from the dead to help him in that fight. Everything that has happened so far has been entirely by chance, and this was an unexpected development than he expected, but while this dragon might think he didn''t have a smidge of compassion in his heart, Rezar knew for a fact that he cared greatly for his city and kingdom and for the people in it. And since he really couldn''t feel love, then this was more than enough for him. "I understand what you''re saying and why you want me far away from here, but there''s no future for Morte Bianca without her king, so I expect said king to grow a pair and not give up so easily. Your blood and magic is what is giving the dragon life, do you think for one second that it can kill you or go against your wishes. You might not be able to command or control it, but it would not go against your best interest either!" Rezar was stumped, he didn''t think of it that way, and he wasn''t so sure about what she was saying as it could be possible that it was just speculation on her part. "You are smarter than you look Demoness, and quite frankly have much more of a pair than the two men I have met upon my resurrection. I am livid about my resurrection, though I''m not to clear on what my afterlife was like, a chance to live once again and take care of my still yet to be unborn child is more than I could possibly ask for. But being bound to such a weakling does not perform wonders for my pride and ego, not to mention this king of yours is one without a proper direction, even as an incomplete living being. I would say you all have failed, his should have been properly prepared for the task that has now been laid at his feet, yet you all let him move along with just the bare minimum of training and haphazard foundation. I can feel the changes in the air, even within the embrace of death, her whispers told me of a world of new, of great power and new weaknesses. I do not plan on being bound to such weakness in this new world that is barely a few minutes away. But what I can do, what I can promise, is that I will train him myself, as punishment and as gratitude for my resurrection. But once that is done I and my egg will leave this land forever, never to return." And with that said the pressure and power that seemed to hold Rezar aloft completely vanished and he crashed to the ground. And that was when he realized exactly what just happened, it was all showboating of the highest grade. He had almost lost his life because felt the need to be extremely intimidating and scary, to stroke its own ego and pride in front of beings it very much considered lesser than itself, and even more so to show and instill the true scope of its superiority on Rezar, to show that even though he was pretty much responsible for bring it back to life, that he should not put stock or up in commanding a creature of its caliber. A dragon was no one''s servant. "I''m sure there is much that you need to know, and even much more that you need to understand as to the reason behind my presence here, my death, and the city that''s dead beyond these halls. We only have a few moments before the world changes for good, but I believe there is time for a tale, or two. And in the case of your first general, I believe explanations about why the man who just tried to kidnap you, is or rather was married to her. Never the less I cannot give you my name for death has taken it away from me, I remember it not and honestly do not see a need for it. So you shall call me Great Dragon. As you can see I live here, or rather I used to live here. I don''t know how many years it has been, but this used to be home to a great aquatic dragon race. They served me and I in turn protected them from harm and destruction, however one day, just after I had brought to this world my first fruit and decided to go into a blessed sleep to bring it into this world, the dragons of the mountains attacked...and they took everything." Chapter 199: The Storm Dragon "death has not been kind to me, I know who I am, and what I''m doing here, I have lost, my name to the ravages of time and death, and so too my people. It was peaceful, this stretch of the ocean was hidden and isolate from the rest of the world. My people thrived under my protection and I taught them the highest form of magic possible. well not the highest form, but a unique way to access the power of the universe and bend it to their will, I taught them the tongue of the dragons. And from studying our language they came to understand its meanings, and then they learnt how to write it! Giving them even more power to the point that the world became angry. Within this stretch of land, power is divided between four elemental dragons, the Black dragon of the canyons with his domain over earth, the white dragon of the mountains with domain over ice, the green dragon of the forest with domain over nature, and then me, the chromatic dragon of the sea with my domain over storms. We stayed out of each other''s way and taught the races that served us as best as we could. But dragons are greedy creatures, I alone gave the secret of our magic to the race that served me, and it not only made me an enemy to the other dragons, but it also destroyed my people as that much power made them a target. Normally a story like this would pretty much end up with me telling you how the other dragons ganged up to destroy and punish me for releasing our most sacred arts to unworthy blood. while that did happen, but my destruction came at the hands of my people, or the few of them who became dissatisfied with what I had given. You see not all dragon magic can be taught to the mortals, there would always be a barrier that they would be unable to cross, but many believed I just wanted to keep the power for myself, and the black dragon was all too happy to whisper to them about my greed. The rest of the dragons took a passive approach, but it was he who chose to stand against me. He gave them more power, the aspect of our language he had mastery over. And this drew them into his folds, they became his people, the serpents of the sea that crossed over to land, from being my merfolk they became his nagas.and they destroyed my home and let in a poison that took my life. I have grievances that I must see to, but the power to do so is something I lack, and even more so now that I have been resurrected without my full strength. My path to power is now very different from when I was alive, as the storms and waves I command have now taken on an aspect of death. I must rediscover myself, but in this new world that is coming I also know quite well that they, especially the black dragon would be doing the same. The demoness is fettered by senseless and useless emotions, which means only you, Rezar Deathwind can stand beside me as I take my revenge. I have seen your plans, you intend to conquer the canyons of Toromont, but I assure you, all that awaits you and such a venture is destruction. I will teach you as much as I can and maybe more than what my people could learn and understand, I will need to understand you just as much as you will need to understand me in this new world that''s about to dawn, if we are to survive." Rezar struggled up to his feet, but fell back down completely weakened by the dragon''s assault. Lenore came over and helped him up, her face stoic and devoid of embarrassment. Rezar did not push her away, that would have been counterproductive as he needed her help in other to stand and face the dragon that almost threw all of his plans and achievements down a drain. But even with all of this, he was still very obviously devoid of fear as his eyes met that of the dragon and then a soft smile crossed over his face. "So guess that you''re now my teacher?" "It would seem so... Vampire." "I am..." *BOOM! * The very air itself seemed to vibrate, this was not an earthquake, yes the very earth itself was shaking, but this was not an earthquake, it was like someone took the whole of Elysium, put it in a bottle, and then proceeded to start shaking it like their very life depended on it. The walls of the chamber cracked, water rushed in from the cracks as the chamber became a conduit for sea water and confirmed death if something was not done quickly. The water was coming with a pressure that would smash bones to dust, and while Rezar didn''t have that much of a problem, the same couldn''t be said for Lenore, he turned to the dragon. "It Has Begun! The end of the old world and the birth of the new, I can feel it! Now come!" She suddenly flew upwards, her long serpentine body twirling in the air with her right claw tightly grasping the egg that has been besides her corpse ever since. Her movements created a vacuum that pulled Lenore and Rezar along, her from smashing through rock and earth and soon enough through coral and sea water to burst out onto the surface of the sea and quickly into the air where they could all have a good vantage point of the world coming to an end. Rezar looked up to the sky to see the second moon of Elysium breaking down into hundreds of different parts that fell down to Elysium in a fiery blaze, but it wasn''t just the moon itself. It was too far away to see, but the sky was filled with the flames of reentry into the atmosphere, and then that was when Rezar noticed the cove Necron was built rising up to match the land, and as it rose up, so too did the sea, and from what he could see, Necron was about to be washed away! Chapter 200: Reset! Revamped! Reboot!: Elysium End The world seemed to go dark as a tidal wave as tall as the heavens washed Necron away, red lightning flashed in the sky as the very fabric of reality itself seemed to crack and break within itself. Time slowed to halt and sped up as day and night went haywire. Rezar had no perception of the world at all, his stomach churned and roiled, terribly shaken from the insanity that reality had no become. His perception of the world was terribly eschewed as up became down and down became up, the light was darkness and darkness itself became the light. Funny enough through all of this crazy experience he could feel Lenore''s hands in his, he would have let go but she was having none of it. Her grip was like a vice, unwavering and unshaking and refusing to give any quarter, it was ludicrous that with everything that was happening she just. Refused. To. let. go. And it was not as if her palm was quite nice to touch, it was calloused, sweaty with fear and anxiety, something that Rezar considered a weakness and quite frankly unhygienic. But it was there, and while he didn''t understand it, he felt that in one way or the other this mattered, the fact that her hands were interlocked tightly with his even when all of his sense were off key and the rules of reality were rapidly being rewritten. her hand felt. Real. "..." There was a stillness, a peace that Rezar would liken to a calm before the storm, or the calm you would feel when you were right in the center of it. It was so calming that Rezar found it extremely horrifying, this was just to peaceful for him to be able to enjoy. For as long as he could remember peace was not something he has ever had, and to feel this- this stillness, it was unnatural. Hopefully it ended quickly, but it didn''t, rather the world seemed to regain its sanity, or rather reality was reborn and renewed, and what it now gave the world, or worlds, for better or worse. can never be taken back. Rezar opened his eyes, the sea was farther away now, across a vast plain of dark brown earth, littered with shells and sea weed and corals, and the very dead bodies of aquatic monsters and animals. Necron was safe, surrounded by an expansive field of green and a stone wall so sturdy it looked like it had survived an apocalypse. The cove was gone, now the budding capital city of Morte Bianca stood on a plateau, that pushed upwards to a massive hill that house Rezar''s Mayor''s house, or what was it called again. The buildings were intact, and so being its people, the caves and the walls of the coves had become massive hills that turned into a valley with three openings. One faced the sea to the west, another faced the Breone mountains and the great desert to the east, and the third face the Kerwood forest to the south. Three passes roughly 25 meters wide, were the only entrance into the luscious and fertile land that was now home to Necron. And right in the middle of this city, the spire, which had just been a pillar of blue and gold had become an exquisite arch with arcane symbols standing on a platform of the brightest silver. Snuggled quite fitly in the middle of the arch, was a crystal he recognized as a dungeon core. Kerwood forest was larger, the trees now grew so tall they seemed to touch the sky, birds and creatures of all sorts flew with leisure in the air above, completely free. The earth no longer shook and the air was crisper, for the first time ever, Rezar could truly breathe, he could feel the wind as it rubbed over his skin. Goosebumps rose all over his body as the pounding of his heart and the blood rushing through his body brought even more of the feeling of being alive. But just as he knew he was alive, he knew there was also something off, he felt colder, in a nutshell he felt more dead. But it wasn''t bad per say, he felt connected fundamentally to so many unexpected things, so many unexplainable things he felt connected to his mother. He took a deep breath as the vacuum that held them aloft suddenly disappeared and they started falling down to the ground. Rezar felt his heart fall down to his stomach, he didn''t need anyone to tell him, he knew everything was gone. All of his skills, all of his stats, they had all vanished and he was left bare, normal, the same as everybody else, and the dragon just watched. Never the less it was the world that had changed, Rezar still remained whop he was even if his body had also experienced the same change. He swung the equally caught off guard Lenore and had her wrap her hands around his neck as she held on to him from behind while they fell. If he was feeling weak, then definitely she was feeling the same. Rezar separated vita gratia and shot its chains downwards, stabbing it into the wall and letting the chains retract and drag him and his passenger to the wall. His body smashed into the wall, cracking bones and jarring his insides, but never the less his was home and he was alive. He looked up in the sky, but the dragon was nowhere to be found, it was almost as if she was never there in the first place. Rezar didn''t think too much about it as something else drew his attention. [The world of Elysium has experienced an update!] [The world has become the universe and a lot of changes have come on in this new world order. The following are the list of things that have changed! Pay attention for your very existence depends on its content!] Chapter 201: Changes 1 [The class system has been changed, now class would reflect a person''s position in the society] [all Traits and skills of a person has been summed up into specific skill trees. A person can only have 5 skill trees, and each skill trees can only have 5 unlocked skills. Skill trees are permanent and can''t be replaced, however skill points can be used to unlock and merge certain skills from a particular skill tree, granted you meet its requirements. With lucky encounters of hard training, it is possible to have more than 5 skill trees.] [There are no more stat points, stats can be increased from specific stat training or skill leveling up. Certain skills will not be unlockable unless stats reach a certain numerical figure, or a person has achieved a certain rank. Stats, skill trees and ranks draw from each other to give strength, none is more important than the other as a balance between them all is required.] [Once stats and particular skills have reached a certain level, or a person has a certain amount of skills to match with higher stats, their rank will increase. There are five major ranks and each rank has three levels of power to be obtained. Mortal Soldier, Earth General, Sky Lord, Star King, Space Emperor. Getting to level 1 of each rank will unlock a trait based on activities, environment, achievements and character.] [Spires have now becoming Territory Arches. The market hub has been deactivated, commerce would now have to be carried out by direct contact between two parties and transportation from one location to another. Classes are deactivated, Arches can now serve as the spawn platform for new uploads, and central processing system for all territory activities. A major territory can now only have one arch. Settlements, villages and towns will not have access to an arch but will need to head to the nearest capital city of their territory to use it. Arches are the focal point of a territory and serve as the prime power source for all spells. And enchantments, it can also serve as a bulleting or advertisement board, granted the advertiser is willing to pay a certain amount of money to the city that owns the Arch.] [Stat pages can now be accessed and altered without needing a spire/arch to facilitate the connection. There are no more levels, only ranks. Stat pages cannot be shared or exposed, but certain skills and tool or materials exist that can reveal an Individual''s stat page or prevent access to it.] [Dungeons no longer exist, their locations have been repurposed as special resource sites, and location were rare treasures can be found. Monsters defeated in dungeons or within areas of reformed dungeons no longer drop loot. The system will also no longer give blueprints, templates, and money as rewards for certain feats. Only skill points can be given, and skill points can be gained by transfer from someone else, increasing rank and class, unlocking traits, and leveling up skills. Skills cannot be leveled up with skill points, only unlocked] [All crafting abilities will now be fully manual. Artisans can now create blueprints of their own if they turn out knowledgeable enough in the area of expertise. The system will no longer assist in construction, the player will need to gather or create required resources themselves to build what they need. Certain bonuses are given to items when they''re made by artisans and not assisted.] [Bloodlines now exist for noble and royal classed individuals. It is a sum of the prime spiritual/supernatural/magical factors in a person''s life. Bloodlines are mainly responsible for traits, and can influence the kind of skills unlocked from a skill tree. Bloodlines give certain bonuses to stats, and even boost the power of certain skill trees and skills. Bloodlines will be passed from generation to generation to create a sense of true belonging and family.] [Memory retention after reincarnation is no longer possible, every reincarnation is a new life. The integration of the [GRAND LIFE ALGORITHM] enables the integration of artificial souls into the fabric of reality for Elysium. There would no longer be any definite difference between AI/NPCs and normal human. All will have a life, and feelings and no memories of previous lives. Every child born now is well and truly born to their parents.] [Death classes lose their ability to deliver the true death as reincarnation without memories of a past life was the previous world''s incarnation of the true death. Now without conventional classes those with precious connection with the death classes will be guaranteed to develop a trait or two that''s gives them the ability to interfere with the soul, life and reincarnation of people.] [The Longevity of a person will now be calculated based on race and rank. Certain races like elves, demons, angels and celestials will live longer than most, with angels and demons having an almost infinite lifespan, or vampires that are for all intents and purposes immortal. Such a stage can be reached by other races the higher rank they achieve, becoming capable of matching the longevity and resilience of the immortal races.] That would have to take a lot of getting used to, but that was a lot, literally everything had changed. It was almost as if they had all been living their lives in normal mode, and right now was when shit really started to hit the fan. There was no more handicap, no more skill points and multiple classes and an inordinate number of skills for every situation. This was hard mode, and everything gained has to be gotten from sheer hard work and perseverance, and Rezar knew it was going to take a long as time for there to be any sort of specific growth, especially for those who were older and wouldn''t have as much time to get stronger than the younger ones. But then again there was time to grow stronger, as long as you kept on improving, so too will your lifespan and so too will your power. Rezar felt himself healing and then shifted his attention, now the system messages in front of him had to do with his own personal changes and that of his kingdom, and also receiving the rewards the system has withheld from him all this while...seems he was still going to have a bit of a head start after all. Chapter 202: Changes 2 [All conscious undead will now take command of unconscious undead. Only one aspect of resurrection is allowed, as such the [Raise Undead] skill would be inaccessible to you forever. In return the [Turn] vampire skill would have increased effectiveness and can turn any being regardless of race and rank into a vampire bound to you.] [You have one combat skill tree creation template] [For Routing out an alien invasion you have been awarded the [Oculus] satellite blueprints, the [Viper] sniper rifle blueprints] [You are bonded to seven Wolf Kings of Death] [For becoming king of the horde you have unlocked the trait [War Edge] trait locked until you are bronze rank 1, you have received 2 skill points] [All lost stats, skill points and skill combining gems have been summed and rewarded as 25 skill points.] Rezar blinked his eyes at what he was seeing, it was hard not to be angry at what has happened, all of the power that he has or rather had has been lost and there was nothing he could do about it but to start from scratch all over again. This was painful, an annoying loss that he honestly didn''t think was necessary, now everyone had the same starting point once again, and at this point no one could tell who or what would be stronger in this new world. The ants that was trampled upon yesterday might become today''s giant. Now strength wasn''t based on how much exp you could gain, but rather on how hard you could work, and also just how lucky you could be. This world really had turned over its head, it was completely unlike the Elysium people were promised, now it just seems to be real, not a paradise, real! No different from the world they had all tried to escape from. So it wouldn''t be too far-fetched to say that the apocalypse that was coming wasn''t the world being turned inside out and reality becoming completely rewritten, but rather it became to real, it became earth. "Your Majesty are you okay?" Lenore asked as they watched a couple of orcs being led by Kitagawa heading for them, all of them obviously drenched by the ocean that went crazy. "I''m not okay Lenore, the world just got turned inside out and fucked in more ways than one, in definitely not okay. but there''s no need crying over spilt milk. Gather your strongest and map out our borders, make sure no one is hoping to make a move in this chaos, and try to settle down any that might arise. Also! Do keep an eye out for your husband, he might still be prowling about looking for an opportunity to put me in a bag. I need you back here in a week and with proper reports about what has gone down within the boundaries of Morte Bianca." Rezar ordered as he walked towards Kitagawa and the orcs, Alistair was not that far behind them as Lenore followed behind him. "Your Majesty are you okay?" Kitagawa asked the very moment he got close enough to Rezar, this only served to annoy the young king as Kitagawa was asking the very same question Lenore just finished asking him, but he didn''t let it get to him, he was looking pretty bloody at the moment. "Were there any casualties?" he asked, and just in time as Alistair joined them by the wall. "At the moment we can''t really tell, we came here as soon as the system messages were done with." Kitagawa said as he turned to Alistair, who raised both his palms up to say he was in the same boat as them. Rezar shook his head as he turned to Alistair. "I need a census, and a proper evaluation of the damages and any casualties we might have incurred during this damned rejuvenation. You should take stock and inventory of our resources and run a quick maintenance over the facilities of the town and make sure there''s no immediate danger to their structures. Once things are settled down a bit, we can have thorough investigations done on all facilities." Rezar ordered, talking mostly to Alistair who nodded his head rapidly. As it stood everyone was pretty much pushed to the very edge of their seats, nerves were pulled into severe tensions and hearts were pounding in fear at the changes that they had all just gone through, this so called update had been incredibly violent, it was as if Elysium had developed a glitch for those few moments, but when it was finally over, everything they knew and recognized was pretty much gone. "Kitagawa gather as much able bodied people as you can and correspond with Jason, Lenore would be paying attention to the borders, but that''s just too much ground to cover. The three of you are I n charge of specific military divisions, coordinate within yourselves and move through the territory, give help to who or what needs it, and put down anything that''s a threat or shouldn''t be working. Also I need you guys to get me an at least half accurate map of some of the things around, dungeons or as the system now calls them, special resource areas. But no matter what you do, keep the movements within the territory, and prevent anyone from coming in, lock the border down too, Alistair will come up with a defense for the borders. Jason will patrol closer to home, the rest of you go take care of what you need to take care of. You have a week, and if you can do it in less time, I would very much appreciate it. Now move out!" Rezar ordered with a stern voice before he moved past them, heading towards the coast, he needed to know where that bloody dragon vanished to. His people already have their orders and they know now what they have to do, which was better because having no direction or a path to follow after what just happened could prove to be quite detrimental for all of them. now it was about time he had a look at his stat page, what in the fucking hells has changed. Chapter 203: Changes 3 [Rezar Deathwind] = [Age: 16] = [Class: King] = [Rank: Bronze 0] [Race: Vampire] = [Bloodline: Storm Dragon// Death God//(HIDDEN)] [Mind: 10] = [Magic: 10] = [Constitution: 10] = [Strength: 10] = [Speed: 10] [Traits: Locked] {Skill Trees} [Vampire: Supernatural Body (0) +] [Necromancy: Summon Skeleton (0) +] [Magic: +] [Arms: Dual Swords (0)//Staffs (0)//Chains (0) +] [Skill Points: 27] This was no different from starting all over again, looking at his stats page left Rezar even more annoyed than the usual, but like he had come to realize, there was no use crying over spilt milk. And it wasn''t so bad in this case as he already had skills unlocked, but from what he could see, this was no better than not having them at all, as they were all showing a very big fat zero. He could no longer use skill points to level up, and apart from that his race was no longer half vampire, he was well and truly a vampire now. But he had bloodlines, that''s what''s surprising to him. The storm Dragon bloodline probably came from his ingesting of the heart blood of the storm dragon, he found it funny that an act made in a desperate moment to save his life was now going to decide his path forward for most if not all of his current lifespan, which as he has found out, is pretty much forever. Then there was the death god bloodline, that open didn''t surprise him too much, it would be weird to others, and maybe he would have this strange earlier if he hadn''t been through the things he has, but having death for a mother was as naturally as saying he was just sixteen years old. There were no skills from magic, that wasn''t too bad. There was much he didn''t know about the skill trees, but he suspected it was still based on the same method as the previous version of Elysium. As classes were decided based on environment and what not, skills might be decided based on stats, traits and other skill trees. Or he would just have to pick a skill from the skill tree and then follow it down to its sub trees. He also had twenty-seven skill points, but at the very moment he didn''t think he had a need for utilizing it. He had four skill trees, which means he only has one more slot left for a skill, and this was a slot he felt should have been filled. Because he has a hidden bloodline, and Rezar had the all too inkling suspicion that this bloodline had to do with his interaction and immunity to holy damage. It was actually the bread and butter of his extremely ridiculous healing ability, but it wasn''t shown here, and from what he could see, it would be too farfetched to say that it was completely erased. Rezar got to the coast, the sea was eerily calm for a world that has just been turned over its head. in the distance he could see an island made of corals, in fact this was probably the city that he had discovered the dragon in, so it wasn''t too farfetched to say that she was somewhere in there with her egg. But he didn''t head over, not because he didn''t have a way to get over there, even weakened he could just as easily swim the distance if he has to, no it''s just that he had other commitments, which in this case has to be the group of cloaked vampires heading towards him. The red cloaked figure leading them was none other than Gynaika, and apart from his undead, she was the only person he has not met yet. Of course there was more surprise to her arrival as trailing behind her was Tristian, the former goblin king with what was pretty much an annoyed look on his face. Rezar felt a little worried, these two keeping each company couldn''t be good, but now that they were all in a new world Rezar had to wonder how much use could Gynaika actually be to him now that probably her divining skills were as fucked as everything else. "I''ve had a divination!" "Fuck!!" Rezar cursed out aloud before showing Gynaika a bright smile and opening his arms to her like she was his favorite person in this world. If he was going to play this game, then he had to play it well. "How are you Gynaika? Are you okay? Hope there were no injuries or losses." It was not just Gynaika who was caught off guard by his suddenly chipper attitude it was all of her followers and even the former goblin king. Rezar had to hide a look of embarrassment, obviously his acting was a little too obvious. "There are some injuries. But none of that matters now. The Rejuvenation has disturbed and displaced a large dungeon of Alien snake men. They can''t stay in Canyons anymore as they would probably be dragging with the native monsters there, so as I speak they''re being driven in our direction. We have to meet them on the way here, or they''ll rush past us burning everything in sight. From what I can see, they should be here in about two weeks to a month depending on how fast they choose to move." The moment she mentions see, Rezar looked into her eyes on reflex and shuddered as he was forced to look away just as quick. His eyes were throbbing and seemed as if they would burst out from the back of his skull. Her eyes were silver, not white as you would expect from blind people, but a bright shade of silver that seemed all too eager to destroy the eyes of whatever or whomever looked into them. looks like Gynaika was really not useless, it was a bittersweet moment for Rezar. "Very well, Lenore, Kitagawa and Jason should be done with their respective tasks in about a week, we should worry about outfitting every able bodied member of Necron and preparing them for a battle. We should take the time we have and train as hard as we can. Because from what you''re saying; we would need it. I need you to calm the people, you and the other vampires should also stay out of the sun. for now, let''s just see what we can do for now, our survival would need the cooperation of everyone, if not. I worry for us all." Chapter 204: Changes 4 ONE WEEK LATER Rezar frowned as he looked at the report in front of him, things were so much harder now and he would really like for this bloody new reality to throw him a bone right about now. With the bloody rejuvenation being what it fucking is, the system no longer helped them with any sort of construction, now it was totally up to them do everything themselves, never the less they had to resume construction on the roads, thankfully they still had enough resources available to them, but now they needed actual engineers and workers to be able to make their constructions worthwhile. Thankfully it seems technology was improving at an extremely insane rate thanks to the Muriel elves, it would not be too farfetched to think that in a few months, drones and robots capable of carrying out such jobs could be created. His territory was stable at the moment, there was a little bit of unrest, but Lenore and the others have been able to quickly able to quell it down and make sure there was no such trouble to be had within the territory. It wasn''t really hard work and there were a few casualties in the process, but thankfully no one had lost their lives and had only sustained Injuries that could be taken care of in no time at all, Rezar had to admit that so far everyone had done a good job getting Necron back up to a stable and working shape. And based on what has been found out, Necron was one of the few places that was safe in the wild lands. Quite a few people had brought news from the great desert about fearsome sandworms, the Kerwood forest developed regions that were downright scary and had stronger and faster monsters. There were no more exp, and the premise behind getting skill points was pretty much unknown by this point, so practically everyone was just surviving by the skin of their teeth. He was worried about power, strength was what could truly protect Necron, but there was nothing of the sort within sight, without anyone to light a torch for them, they were all left bumbling in the dark, Rezar included. never the less the city was now up to a good start with an actual economy beginning to take shape. With more people around there were more things to be done, and more services to be rendered. Rezar had Alistair give out jobs and had the workers paid from what was left within the territories funds. It wasn''t much considering Necron''s population was well within the range of 12 thousand souls, with the orcs making up the majority of it. But as if that wasn''t enough, more and more people were beginning to troop in from the surrounding town and villages, heading to the city with walls and invariably security. The monsters were smarter and more organized, and quite frankly Necron was the only refuge for kilometers on end. For one the territory got bigger, previously it would take at least a week or two to get to the Breone mountains, but based on what has been investigated, it would now take at least a month and the half, and all of these were still territories that belonged to Morte Bianca as the BOA empire outpost in the Breone mountains was still transmitting and Alistair could monitor it from there. A significant part of the Kerwood forest also fell under the influence of Morte Bianca, going south east or east, it would take you three days to reach where Morte Bianca''s borders were considered to have come to an end. The road projects were stopped for now, at the very least there was enough of it done already so Rezar and his people could take a step back and focus on other things of import, given the current situation they found themselves in. never the less Rezar had a few seconds of break afforded to him after everything has been taken care of, or rather a significant part of their tasks has been identified and him being the leader has given them the orders to get said tasks completed. There would probably be something else that would require his attention, but there was a reason why Gynaika was by his side, and even more so Alistair, they''ll take care of it just long enough for him to have a good rest. He would be lying if he said he didn''t miss his practically immortal body, he never got tired. Name: [Morte Bianca] Type: [Kingdom] Rank: [Silver 1 (6%)] Monarchs: [Rezar Deathwind (King)] Civilization: [Techno-Magical] Religion: [Temple of Life & Death] Cities: [1] Towns: [9] Villages: [32] Traits: [Tech Savants 6 (+ 300% to all technology)] [War Masters 2 (+70% to all war efforts)] [Spiritualists 1 (+ 15% to all spiritual activities and skills] [Farmers 5 (+250% to all faming activities)] [Death Blessed 1 (-30% to death incidents, +5% to lifespan, +10% to all death skills)] Defenses: [Stone Wall (3)] [Illusion: Mist Wall (1)] Attacks: [ 5 Sentry Walls (5)] Population: [12,381] Military: [Undetermined] Even the stat for the city changed, instead it was showing a comprehensive exposition of the entire kingdom, in a way he could properly monitor everything in his kingdom from anywhere in the world, and he did not need the arch to access this interface. The loss of the system shop sucked, but according Alistair once that satellite that they got the blueprints for was completed, making a terminal where trade can be made instantly and just having to worry about delivery would be a piece of cake, and it could be quite profitable for Necron. There was a cold feeling, and an oppressive pressure felt in the small study that had become Rezar''s office. He looked up and noticed a string of words made of water floating in the air. It was beyond creepy and the kind of stuff most people would have nightmares about, but Rezar was not most people. He looked at what the words said and couldn''t help but smile a little. "It is time! You know where to find me." Seems the new teacher beckons. but then again; where the hell was Priest? Chapter 205: Training (I): Called The moment Rezar stepped on the coral island, be could feel the difference, there was a heaviness in the air, but apart from that there was something primal that he just could quite place his finger on. This dragon was really more than it seemed, and that was understandable as it didn''t stand for an element, but father an aspect of an element when it is combined with another. The coral seemed and looked a lot different when it was above ground than when it was below. The colors seemed to pop even more, but now there was a soft of deadly grey haze hanging all-over it. It was pretty much the very definition of what you would call creepy. Rezar walked along a path, ignoring the crunching sounds his feet made as it was pressed against sediments of rock and dead seashells. Even though this place was looking a lot more different, Rezar was still able to find his way back to the place he met the dragon. His path was relatively straight forward so he didn''t have to worry too much about a bunch other more complicated stuff like loosing his way, which would have been tragic as Rezar wasn''t perceptive as he once was. "You shouldn''t hover, sure when dealing with me a certain level of discretion is advised, but you are a King. Your very presence should command authority, And that''s lesson no 1." Rezar blinked his eyes in confusion and quickly sighed after, guess he would also be revising a bunch of things that Priest had taught him. Thinking about the old man had brought an annoyed look to his face. Priest had disappeared on the day of the Rejuvenation and nobody had seen him since then. It was a worrying thought for Rezar. But he already had people looking everywhere of the old man. Safe to say Priest was Rezar''s oldest and closest confidant, without him around a lot of things just didn''t feel right. "You better keep your focus on me Young King, what I teach you take will not only save your life, it will save the lives of your people." Rezar shifted his attention back to the Dragon, showing off a trait of humility that was not or ever expected to be used in describing Rezar. "Now that the world has changed everything has become intrinsic and completely chaotic. In this world young King, power comes from within, and what lies within can be just about anything. As long as it''s yours, then it becomes a source of power. I will teach you to channel and master your power. I have studied and experimented and realized that magic is now the source of all our skills and abilities, but all magic is in flux, it changes to match our bloodlines, traits and any other factor of our strength. You''re a vampire, your magic is one of blood and death, but there is more to you than is being exposed, which means there''s something else hidden in your magic. You must be still, breathe and get in touch with your magic, control and understand it. The process will unlock the Magic Mastery skill from the magic skill tree. Apart from that, having access to your magic would make the world you see and experience a whole lot bigger. You must connect with your magic, now close your eyes, and breathe." Rezar got confused but then again there wasn''t much he could do about what the dragon had said. But he did close his eyes just as she said. Honestly speaking he hasn''t had much time to reflect and look deep into himself, there was absolutely no time to understand who and what he had become. But he guessed this was just as good a time as any to look into his soul...or something like that. Rezar didn''t have to do it long or go through some mysterious or enlightened epiphany, he felt a spark within him that spread through every nerve and tissue, going so far to have channels of it''s own. His perception of the sparks in his body was something similar to fire, but at the same time it was like fire and like the wind. Fierce And ever changing, yet moving with the beats of his heart and with a flux and rhythm that belonged only to the world itself. Rezar opened his eyes to see the dragon staring at him while a haze of blackish gold and red hung over his body. Suddenly his perception was stronger, brighter and much more clear, so much so that he could tell just what person or animal had walked or swam past. It was incredible in every sense of the word, but he got the feeling that there was still much to be explored and explained. Rezar turned to the dragon with a smile, extremely pleased with himself, but all she did was snort and immediately, words made of a golden script showed up out of thin air, and soon enough those words turned into pictures showing men and women in different combat forms. "I created this Martial Arti three days ago as I was looking for ways to get stronger. It''s still under revision, but I''ll keep on working on it. This Martial should be able to help you bring out the best potential held within your physical stats. As for your magical or metal stats, more conventional training and being put in somewhat difficult situations will help you. Besides there is reason why they say life''s the best teacher, never the less you should practice all of the forms and ingrain so deeply into your body, your bones would ache anytime you''re not trying your best to practice it. I will figure out the next step for you when you''ve at least gotten into the Bronze tank 3. In the meantime please try your best. Read didn''t really know what to say, he was grateful for the advice and the fire took to his path, but honestly speaking how was he supposed to practice forms when he had no idea which one was first or in which context he had to carry them out. Safe to say it''s going to be a long day. ****** DON''T READ THIS PART [Rezar Deathwind] = [Age: 16] = [Class: King] = [Rank: Bronze 0] [Race: Vampire] = [Bloodline: Storm Dragon// Death God//(HIDDEN)] [Mind: 10] = [Magic: 10] = [Constitution: 10] = [Strength: 10] = [Speed: 10] [Traits: Locked] {Skill Trees} [Vampire: Supernatural Body (0) +] [Necromancy: Summon Skeleton (0) +] [Magic: +] [Arms: Dual Swords (0)//Staffs (0)//Chains (0) +] [Skill Points: 27] This was no different from starting all over again, looking at his stats page left Rezar even more annoyed than the usual, but like he had come to realize, there was no use crying over spilt milk. And it wasn''t so bad in this case as he already had skills unlocked, but from what he could see, this was no better than not having them at all, as they were all showing a very big fat zero. He could no longer use skill points to level up, and apart from that his race was no longer half vampire, he was well and truly a vampire now. But he had bloodlines, that''s what''s surprising to him. The storm Dragon bloodline probably came from his ingesting of the heart blood of the storm dragon, he found it funny that an act made in a desperate moment to save his life was now going to decide his path forward for most if not all of his current lifespan, which as he has found out, is pretty much forever. Then there was the death god bloodline, that open didn''t surprise him too much, it would be weird to others, and maybe he would have this strange earlier if he hadn''t been through the things he has, but having death for a mother was as naturally as saying he was just sixteen years old. There were no skills from magic, that wasn''t too bad. There was much he didn''t know about the skill trees, but he suspected it was still based on the same method as the previous version of Elysium. As classes were decided based on environment and what not, skills might be decided based on stats, traits and other skill trees. Or he would just have to pick a skill from the skill tree and then follow it down to its sub trees. He also had twenty-seven skill points, but at the very moment he didn''t think he had a need for utilizing it. He had four skill trees, which means he only has one more slot left for a skill, and this was a slot he felt should have been filled. Because he has a hidden bloodline, and Rezar had the all too inkling suspicion that this bloodline had to do with his interaction and immunity to holy damage. It was actually the bread and butter of his extremely ridiculous healing ability, but it wasn''t shown here, and from what he could see, it would be too farfetched to say that it was completely erased. Rezar got to the coast, the sea was eerily calm for a world that has just been turned over its head. in the distance he could see an island made of corals, in fact this was probably the city that he had discovered the dragon in, so it wasn''t too farfetched to say that she was somewhere in there with her egg. But he didn''t head over, not because he didn''t have a way to get over there, even weakened he could just as easily swim the distance if he has to, no it''s just that he had other commitments, which in this case has to be the group of cloaked vampires heading towards him. The red cloaked figure leading them was none other than Gynaika, and apart from his undead, she was the only person he has not met yet. Of course there was more surprise to her arrival as trailing behind her was Tristian, the former goblin king with what was pretty much an annoyed look on his face. Rezar felt a little worried, these two keeping each company couldn''t be good, but now that they were all in a new world Rezar had to wonder how much use could Gynaika actually be to him now that probably her divining skills were as fucked as everything else. "I''ve had a divination!" "Fuck!!" Rezar cursed out aloud before showing Gynaika a bright smile and opening his arms to her like she was his favorite person in this world. If he was going to play this game, then he had to play it well. "How are you Gynaika? Are you okay? Hope there were no injuries or losses." It was not just Gynaika who was caught off guard by his suddenly chipper attitude it was all of her followers and even the former goblin king. Rezar had to hide a look of embarrassment, obviously his acting was a little too obvious. "There are some injuries. But none of that matters now. The Rejuvenation has disturbed and displaced a large dungeon of Alien snake men. They can''t stay in Canyons anymore as they would probably be dragging with the native monsters there, so as I speak they''re being driven in our direction. We have to meet them on the way here, or they''ll rush past us burning everything in sight. From what I can see, they should be here in about two weeks to a month depending on how fast they choose to move." The moment she mentions see, Rezar looked into her eyes on reflex and shuddered as he was forced to look away just as quick. His eyes were throbbing and seemed as if they would burst out from the back of his skull. Her eyes were silver, not white as you would expect from blind people, but a bright shade of silver that seemed all too eager to destroy the eyes of whatever or whomever looked into them. looks like Gynaika was really not useless, it was a bittersweet moment for Rezar. "Very well, Lenore, Kitagawa and Jason should be done with their respective tasks in about a week, we should worry about outfitting every able bodied member of Necron and preparing them for a battle. We should take the time we have and train as hard as we can. Because from what you''re saying; we would need it. I need you to calm the people, you and the other vampires should also stay out of the sun. for now, let''s just see what we can do for now, our survival would need the cooperation of everyone, if not. I worry for us all." Chapter 206: Training (II): The 13 The sequence to training with postures was really non-existent, Rezar had to improvise to get himself a beginning and an end, choosing to start from the ones he felt were a lot more easier before transitioning to what he would call the harder movements. However that did seem to work as Rezar quickly realized that thinking too much about a proper sequence for 13 individual stances was just too much. Depending on how you start and how you choose to end, the sequence was different, and with each difference, Rezar realized that the stances focused on a certain physical aspect. Honestly it was like a dance, a weird one but a dance none the less that seemed to steeped in something ancient and primal, which shouldn''t really be the case as this was just created. Rezar had to twist his body and move his feet swiftly, some times he had to plant himself as solidly as he could on the ground, and other times he had to move slowly, transitioning from swift to slow like some boat being rocked by gentle waves. But gentle waves could also be a precursor to a storm as there were moves that popped his joints to sometimes out rightly dislocating it, but he took it all in stride. He was a vampire after all and everything was working in his favor. [Vampire Skill: Supernatural Body has leveled up to 1! Current speed, power, defense, constitution and magic damage increased by 20%] [You have received 2 skill points for leveling up a skill] [+2 to Strength, +5 to speed, +5 to constitution] [Arms Master Skill Tree has unlocked the skill Unarmed (0)] For a day of training these were very notable gains, and Rezar felt all the more stronger for it. He felt that with the proper training tools, he would be able to fully learn and increase his strength rapidly, even if he had to start all-over again from the ground up. Rezar shifted his attention from the system announcement and went back into the stances, some where harder than the others, an there were sequences to them that got progressively harder with each new stance. Rezar honestly felt like a wet cloth that was constantly being squeezed and twisted to get the water out, but in the end he would still by soggy. It''s honestly been a long time since he''s had a chance to push himself as hard as this; hard as it might seem this was a welcome development. So he tried his best to enjoy it. His fist shot forwards in crisp movement, before turning into a palm that cost out slapped towards the ground as Rezar flipped over, his palm still facing downwards and not moving an inch or allowed to touch the ground. It took a lot concentration for him to learn that particular as he was supposed to control his body enough that gravity wouldn''t be dragging him down. And so he continued for a good right hours, pushing his current body to the limits, breaking last that limit and going forwards once again. His body changed with it and also grew, It at least proved something hadn''t changed about Elysium; you grew stronger a little bit faster when your at the low levels. Plus his body was weird...vampires were dead creatures, and he was fully one of them. From what he''s learned from Priest told him that a Vampire''s strength didn''t come from their physique, but rather their magic. But in this case as he got stronger he could feel his muscles tensing, stretching, compacting and overall just getting stronger. It should be impossible for a vampire to achieve as much as he has, but his body didn''t act like it was dead, it was very much alive, which explained why Gynaika and her Vampires could not even step a feet out under the sun, and why he felt comfortable under it. And he had an inkling suspicion what was responsible for his immunity, though he couldn''t be sure yet. [Vampire Skill: Supernatural Body has leveled up to 2! Current speed, power, defense, constitution and magic damage increased by 20%] [You have received 2 skill points] [+3 to Speed,+3 to Power, +2 to constitution] "That''s enough for today young King, at this point I would advise you to study the current skills you have and master them as much as you can. We will continue from where we left off tomorrow." The dragon said to him as she turned And hurried her head into her massive wings, seemingly leaving Rezar to his own devices. Rezar shrugged, he was quite exhausted anyways, and a cool shower would be quite appreciated by this point. He walked on with a lightness in his step that wasn''t there before, the distance between himself and the ground when he walked seemed to shrink with every step he took. He didn''t realize it, but he was moving really fast, so much so it would seem as if he was gliding on the ground. (Summon Skeleton) He felt a rush of energy surge through his body, pulsing once with a lot of force that Rezar stumbled forwards feeling as if someone''s had smashed a fist into his chest. He was forced to spit out a mouthful of blood as he leaned on the coral walls of a hallway. A white and red spot circle showed up in front of him, glowing for just a second before disappearing and leaving behind half a skull of what looked to be some sort of demon. There was no soul to it, so basically all he had summoned was just the smashed skull of some demon undead. He would be lying if he said he wasn''t surprised, because now it seems the mastery of magic was no longer as simple as calling out the name of the skill and aiming at your enemies. To be able to use his skills, he had to Master magic, and it seems to Master Magic he had to also master his skills. Nothing is going to get easier it seems. [Summon Skeleton Skill failed! Received infernal injury! Constitution +1, Mental +3, Magic +2] [Magic skill: Magic Mastery has reached level 1! Mental +2, Magic +2, skill damage +5%, casting speed -5%, Cost -5%] [Necromancy Skill: Summon Skeleton has reached level 1! Mental +2, Magic +2, +10% to all summoned undead] Chapter 207: Training (IV): Magic Everything now was an experiment, in the bid to get stronger and discover a proper path to follow, everyone had to go on a journey of self discovery and let the world that now is, reveal to them the true path to power. Rezar had a headache today, he''s had the misfortune of dealing with a new onslaught of players in Necron, and these ones were not normal players, they were uploads who had left their doomed life on earth for a better one. But even for the fact that they were refugees, they scared entitled, as if everything had already been provided for them. With no other choice Rezar had left them all to Alistair, he got the feeling that doing that was pretty much unfair to the Melf, but frankly speaking he wouldn''t let anything get in the way of his training, especially now when their first major clash after the update was right around the corner. But once again he was here hoping the dragon had more answers and methods for him to train. In return she had him sitting in a pool of extremely cold sea water with his eyes closed And legs crossed. "Magic is energy, now everyone and everything has it; now it stands as a fundamental building block for all of reality. But then again it can also be rather complicated And fickle. In the few days since the rejuvenation I''ve noticed that quite a few things in existence are incapable of using magic, it is within their bodies but they can''t use it. You''re sitting in a pool that''s filled to the brim with the energy of magic and life, now what I want you to do is master the energy in your body, completely bring it under control and then release if from your body and have it interact with the pool. Your magic must be able to get it to at least swirl, that way you can avoid using skills with the danger of blowing Your self from the inside." Rezar could only grumble in annoyance at what he was hearing what she said to him. He closed his eyes And sank back into that feeling, that spark in his body just seemed stagnant. He had felt it move before, but that was when he had used a skill, now the aim, that this bloody dragon had so vaguely hinted at was to have this energy move. And after movement he probably had to learn how to control it''s movement, he didn''t think he would be able to achieve that any time soon, but he won''t get there if he doesn''t start now. But then again how do you get the energy in your body to move, it was confusing but perhaps there was a way. Rezar just had to think back to the first time said energy had moved within his body, and that was yesterday. When the energy had responded to his usage of the summon Skeleton Skill. It had pulsed rather than moved, so maybe it was better to have it do that first, like a heartbeat. And in this case, Rezar had a heart that was beating in his chest, it wouldn''t be too far get her to try and see if he could will the energy to beat with his heart. It was surprisingly easier than he expected to do so, except of course the small explosion that happened within his body, injuring some of his organs as he spat out mouthfuls of blood in pain. The pool is was sitting in was dyed red with his blood as he felt pain from within the depths of his body. He was healing, but this was still way too much pain for him to handle at the moment. "The energy in your body is slow, magic can change it''s tempo based on the spell or skill you need to use it for. However in it''s base form as your mind has so put it. It''s a stagnant spark, that''s it''s balanced form. You may think of it as different skills require a different rhythm, and a different resonance to activate it properly. Your heart is beating way too fast for the energy to resonate with it, as you''ve seen it responds to your will, but for it to do what you want it, the conditions have to be right. Slow down your breathing until it matches your energy''s base state, then you can try to resonate it. Start slow and build it up to a crescendo." [Mental +2] So basically a lecture could help him increase his stats; that was quite good to know as in this case, Knowledge really is power. He was in pain, but pain was an old friend for him, they go way back so this wasn''t something he was incapable of overcoming. He just had to try his best, he didn''t like getting injured even though it seemed it made him stronger. Slowing down his heartbeat was easy and for a vampire it was even easier. To do so he had to get himself into a calm and comfortable mindset. He didn''t have to worry about the changes of the world and the challenges they brought with them. Never the less Rezar slowed his heartbeat, feeling every rhythmic beat as it slowed into silence, and when it reach a point where every beat came steady but every other moment, he will the energy to fancy with his heart. *Boom Boom .. Boom!* There was no pain this time, be could feel it dance beneath his skin, the power didn''t flow but it danced within his body, pounding against veins, nerves, organs and flesh. It was like training or exercising, however the workout was not from outside but from within. Rezar was so lost in the feeling that he didn''t realize time had went by him, but it didn''t matter. He grew stronger. [+5 to Magic] [+3 to Mental] [Constitution + 2] [Strength + 1] [Magic Skill: Magic Mastery has reached level 2! +3 to Magic, +2 to Mental] Chapter 208: Training (V): Level 1 Bronze Rank It was the early hours of the morning, and though Necron was under a lot of pressure and tension due to the ensuing clash with the aliens and the new state of things, everything had calmed down enough to the point where a routine of sorts could be gleaned from the lives of the citizens. Those who were farming got back to it, Alistair had suggested a few policies, but at the moment securing their borders was the only thing in mind. Rezar would have happily commissioned a great wall building project, but Gynaika and Lenore seemed to think that their territory still had room for expansion, so Rezar couldn''t make too drastic of a decision yet. Never the less, he was training once again, but this time Lenore, Screet, Jason and Kitagawa were watching. He had already given them examples and simple outlines about how to train their magic, and so far they''ve all progressed nicely. On the other hand, things weren''t so easy for Rezar, he has progressed to the point where he could get his magic to pulse along with his heartbeat, each sound and rhythm bound together in an arcane symphony. Base magic mastery was harder than a school, like necromancy. Because everything stemmed from the base, and without proper foundations, it was all too possible for pure focused mages to be glass cannons. With the advent of the new world, and this training method the dragon had given, it was quite possible for mages to have supreme physical attributes, and unlike when a particular fighter class had to be leveled up, this time training your magic; at least in this manner would also give you the strength and resilience to back it up. Though if most are not careful, this method can be quite dangerous. Rezar opened his eyes, by this point he could speed up his heartbeat to four times its speed, and his magic would be able to pulse and match the beats without causing any damage. He was about to cross into five times the speed, at which point he felt his magic would undergo a qualitative change. Lenore was able to push her magic out of her body and fully control at three times the speed, the same happened for Kitagawa. Screet and Jason did it in two and Brutus who was not here did it in one. A lot of things were coming into play, but Rezar reckoned race and bloodline determined just how in tune someone was with magic. Your magic can increase, but there seems to be a baseline that''s not quantified or calculated within the stats, perhaps you could call it an affinity for magic. Rezar just didn''t know if having less of an affinity made you waste a lot more time on this [Dragon Hearts Pulse] Technique as Alistair had affectionately coined. But never the less he was pushing and he would keep on doing so, he only had about five days to get his magic under control. His combat skills weren''t too rough, he could rely on what he''s learnt and add with what he knows now. But he couldn''t unlock any more skills until his magic was mastered, if only to a certain degree. A dragon fly buzzed past Rezar''s face as the gentle sounds of the waves lapping over each other reached his ears/ it was soothing and somewhat calming, and the rapidly buzzing wings of the dragonfly matching that of the seas gentle crashes and receding waves, a new symphony was made. And that''s when it hit Rezar, maybe it was not about speeding up his heart rate, maybe the secret was not just in speeding it up, but completely changing its tempo! [You Have Gained an Insight! Mental +5] The energy in his body pulsed and danced as his heart rate sped up, his breathing still remained the same, but he could feel his blood rushing through and fro across his entire body. And then the sounds within his body changed. The tempo was still as fast, but it was jaunty, it was not just the sound of a heart beating, but it was the sound of music being made. Rezar was half tempted to get up to his feet and dance, and that was when he opened his eyes. *Boooom! * A massive shockwave of pure magical energy burst out of his body, this wasn''t even a fraction of what he releases before the Rejuvenation, but this felt more real, and had more power to it than most would have ever understood. Lenore and the others had sand and sea water sprayed all over their body as the incoming waves were actually pushed back for a few seconds, whilst Rezar''s body glowed with different shades of white, blue, red, and gold. And then just as quickly as it had come, it vanished and Rezar was left panting and weak as he felt completely drained, but at this point there was a crazy grin on his face. [Magic Skill: Magic Mastery has reached level 4! Mental +5, Magic +10, Skill damage +40%, Casting Speed -25%, Cost -50%] [Two stats have reached 30 points! Rank increased to Bronze rank 1!] [Trait Unlocked! War Edge: Attack and defense During war time +70% to yourself and all allies and followers] [Trait Unlocked! Black Magician: all normal magic skills +10%, Black/Negative aligned magic +65%] [Rezar Deathwind] = [Age: 16] = [Class: King] = [Rank: Bronze 1] [Race: Vampire] = [Bloodline: Storm Dragon// Death God//(HIDDEN)] [Mental: 34] = [Magic: 34] = [Constitution: 20] = [Strength: 16] = [Speed: 18] [Traits: War Edge//Black Magician] {Skill Trees} [Vampire: Supernatural Body (2) +] [Necromancy: Summon Skeleton (1) +] [Magic: Magic Mastery (4) +] [Arms: Dual Swords (0)//Staffs (0)//Chains (0)//Unarmed (0) +] [Skill Points: 35] Rezar felt it, after going up a level in his bronze rank, all of the strength he had accumulated could be felt clearly, and because of that he knew there was more heights to be reached. He was already a level 1 bronze ranked individual, the second person after Lenore to achieve it. And now that this [Dragon Heart''s Pulse] Technique has proven to work, he had to refine it and teach it to his people, and then after deal with the aliens coming closer to his home, either way, now he actually has a chance to pick an actual and active combat skill, maybe this time he could achieve more. Chapter 209: Training (VI): New Skills "I am impressed. And at the same time sorely disappointed, but then again humans...well excuse me, with the way the world has changed you can no longer be called human, especially with your immortality. But that doesn''t mean you can die, none the less beings like you who have that spark, that reality defying factor that you call humanity tend to blaze your own trail. I made the most perfect and optimal training area for you to master your magic, but in all of that you were unable to gain the mastery you needed to get your magic to pulse out of your body. You had to go and, as you so put it, draw inspiration from nature itself, from the sea and the wind and as you also put it. a fly dragon. oh! a dragon fly. You people are so primitive, you lack proper understanding of the way the world works, and when someone actually offers to hold your hand, you go and do the most primitive thing possible and stare at the ocean. It''s stupid, but you''re damn lucky it works, none the less it seems it''s time for you to focus on skills that can help you attack and cause proper damage. I take it you''re heading for the battlefield once again?" Rezar nodded his head as a response to the dragon, trying successfully to stop himself from rolling his eyes when the dragon was busy throwing a rant about what sort of method would be more beneficial for his training. The dragon was arrogant, she had so much pride that the entire population of Necron would be unable to match the sheer scope of it. But she can recognize hard work and give as limited a praise as her ego can allow to acknowledge a method that works. "Before you get on with your skill selections there''s much I would like to tell you." The dragon said as she shuffled from her tucked in position to one where her wings were fully unfurled. Even with the intense stench of death and power hanging off from her, she was still quite a sight and one that would be drawn by the eyes of the many regardless of their intentions. She was a boon as much as she is a threat. "there''s much you don''t know about the dragons, and as it stands this new world will force us out of hiding, I can feel it in my bones, a calling so ancient it is forcing the dragons out of hiding to do battle. And there are more dragons than the four that live within the confines of the wildlands of Bahrenburg, and many more that have come here with the invaders. In the end your petty squabbles and wars, especially with the invaders would become completely useless in the face of the sheer scope of power and destruction that is about to rain down on this land. You have always prepared for the worst Rezar, and that''s because much to your luck, you always know about the challenges coming your way, so you can be ready to meet it with your best. Now I''ve told you what lies ahead, what''s coming and how you prepare for it is completely up to you. There''s darkness coming Rezar, and there will be no light to snuff it out. Even now I can feel death preparing to begin its march from the south, and nothing would be allowed to stand in the way of its armies. So when you look at the skills you have to pick, choose wisely, for some choices cannot be unmade." Rezar nodded his head in agreement, but it was annoying, all of this was literally becoming repetitive. How could he struggle to achieve something, and then boom on the horizon was someone or something ready and willing to put an end to it. Rezar sighed, being king was not easy, he knew that. But he honestly wished he could catch himself a break, this was just too much. He now had to worry about not just the bloody aliens, but dragons that would soon be popping out of literally everyone''s assholes according to the dragon who still doesn''t have a fuck name! at this point Rezar wished he could get a skill that was titled [How to fuck the world up so it can give me a fucking BREAK!] but then again beggars can''t be choosers. VAMPIRE: ? Blood Mastery 2sp ? Bullet Time 10sp ? Compulsion 4sp NECROMANCY: ? Skeleton Hand 1 sp ? Curse 7 sp ? Spectral Skull 3sp MAGIC: ? Mana Charge 5 sp ? Wild Call 12sp ? Block Senses 3 sp This were all the skills he could afford to pay attention to. As for the arms mastery skill, he would get to that at a later date, when he has successfully mastered the four weapon skills he had. Besides he only had one more slot for that skill tree, so he''d rather not make a hasty decision and make his choices well. As for the spells in front of him, there was quite a bit of detail to all of them. he didn''t need to rush too much about the skills that have been offered him, the most expensive, the harder it is to master and the stronger it was. For vampire he took [Bullet Time] the skill sped up time around his body or rather sped time up for himself. if he had a skill like this when he faced Malik, then maybe he wouldn''t have been beaten up so badly. And it was skill that had requirement of his speed, which thankfully he met. He took [Spectral Skull] for necromancy, it was a ranged attack that dealt magical damage, it would be great using that in tandem with [summon Skeleton] using the undead as distraction. And then finally he took Mana charge. He spent five second powering up or rather building up the magic in his body and focusing g it into a single point before releasing with the next skill. It would increase the power of a skill by at least 45% for now these were all what he had train and master in and would help him in the battle. All in all, he spent 25 skill points.and it was worth it. Chapter 210: Snakes Vs Bone (I): The Bone Horde Rezar was taking a walk through Necron, it had rapidly grown to become a large town, and while its central area was mostly bare, past that were the residential areas to the north and south that had a smattering of well-organized buildings. There were a few dozen apartment complexes with at least 12 floors, normally they would be built with wood or just stone for simplicity, but this was a new world, most of the buildings looked like something you would find in the middle of a metropolis. They were sleek, and clear and the land they were built on was quite well taken care of. To the east was, a little way from the entranced of the town a market was slowly coming in to shape. With the arrivals of the orcs commerce pretty much got turned over its head for Necron. They were good hunters and foragers, and with the exclusion of the undead ants that were left, could actually scavenge quite well for resources. Most of them chose to use their raiding experience to become merchants, exploring the territory and moving resources from one town to the other within Morte Bianca. However, because not much was known about the new world, they kept their dealings within the territory. To the west was a harbor, Rezar reckoned once it becomes a little bit more lively, the port would also be a hub of activities, a market of its own. They still didn''t have boats, but that was only a matter of time, because with the sheer amount of people that Necron now had, there were already more than a few dozen men and woman who could run a shipyard and make all sorts of sailing vessels. Necron had every key to grow and be successful as a capital city, what they really needed now was time to actualize that goal. His walk eventually took him outside the city walls, beyond that was still a wide expanse of knee high green grass and field of flowers and trees and the beginnings of the Kerwood forest to the south. Necron has three entrances on the tall hills that surrounded it, giving her a natural defense that most cities could not be afforded to have. But the east and west gates were her main entrances, the city wall itself only had two entrances, while the hills had openings in three places. He had left through the east gate, and was heading south east, to an area where the hills were a little flat and was close to the forest. It was here that the army they had built were gathered, and even before he got close, a walk that invariably took him forty minutes, he could still see their sheer numbers from a distance. 2000 strong warriors with the samurai skill tree, gained from training in the barracks that were now moved outside. 2000 Mages with the illusion skill tree, about a 1000 orcs with shaman skill tree, 500 Black Dawn guards, and another 500 daughters of the eclipse led by none other than Samira, the dark dryad he once tortured. Making it so that the midnight children, personal guards of the king were a thousand strong. And then finally a 1000 other soldiers filling in positions of logistics, support and auxiliary combat units, this was way better than Rezar expected, and it was quite wonderful. But one thing they all had in common right now was the method of training they utilized. Rezar had given the melee classes a crash and well detailed course on the 13 set of moves the dragon had taught him. He had divided it into three parts, with two parts having four stances and the final having five. He was still refining the technique and decided to make it a sequence that could easily be followed. The stronger a soldier would get, the more exposure to the techniques you would receive. The mages learnt the breathing method, and so too did the melee fighters. The breathing method was also watered down to make it easier and avoid injuries. If not for the fact that Rezar had to now go face an invading army...well considering their running away from problems of their own, it would be better to say he was going to take care of a threat to his kingdom. He already had interactions with BOA alien race, and he was not interested in doing anything other than wiping them off the face of Elysium. But with this fight in front of him now, he no longer had a chance to focus on a pet project of his...combining the [Dragon''s Breath Pulse] with the 13. Which would be a lot of hard work and experiment, but Rezar reckoned would bring a lot of gains if successful. But that was for later, there was trouble heading for his home, and the thing his people were best at, was handling the troubles that came their way. Rezar flexed his body and a flash of light burst out from his back as Valka appeared. The familiar only ever showed his face when he felt like it so he hardly made an appearance. But eh Lion had grown, he now had a mane of the purest white, and eyes the deepest of blue and stood at a good five feet tall. There were a few yips on the ground behind Rezar and he turned to notice a massive direwolf standing close by with seven cubs that happily ran to play with Rezar''s legs. Not too far away Screet came out with an honest to go cybernetic arm, Brutus was actually armored, and Jason was riding on Alpha, the defacto head of the wraith wolves who had joined forces with the police. His first general Lenore took her place besides him, prompting an annoyed hiss from Screet much to Rezar''s chagrin. Kitagawa held back a smile as he a Samira stood a little way back to face the army that had been raised for the sake of Morte Bianca and in the name of Its King Rezar Deathwind. It was quite a sight, and one that won''t be forgotten anytime soon. There was no definite armor as at the moment they didn''t have enough time to focus on it, but each and every single one of them had a bone of some sort hanging of their bodies. This army, this Bone Horde...was ready. Chapter 211: Snake vs Bone (II): Report The march towards the border wasn''t going to be a short one, and considering the fact that they had been at this for the past three days, it was safe to say that Rezar and his army were beginning to lose their morale from lack of seeing any action. Elysium had grown bigger than before, or maybe something like that cause Necron was 5 times its previous size, resembling the size of an actual kingdom, and not one that was small by any means. None he less there were no towns or villages to the north due to its close proximity with the canyons of Toromont. Before the Rejuvenation, it was quite possible to see the canyons in the distance, but right now, all anyone knew about them was the general direction in which it lay. Luckily Gynaika was served just as well by the Rejuvenation than most people, now there was no cool down to her ability, she could see or as Alistair the former goblin king liked to say about his new mistress behind her back, stream the events of present, re-watch the old events of the past, and get a sneak peek preview of the future. The premise was having enough energy and magic, and in her own case these were two separate things. Never the less it was her prediction that everyone was pretty much relying on, that and the fact that Lenore had went ahead to Scout, Rezar just received news that she was a few minutes out, so without a doubt she would be bringing some answers and detail about the enemies they had to face. After their ordeal with the dragon, Rezar had a lot of faith for his first general, sure she was once a bitch to him, but the woman has proven herself to him more times than he could care to admit, so it was with a small smile he received her on her Necrotic wolf. "Your Majesty! The BOA aliens are half a day from here, they''ve breached the border and the small outpost there has been torn down and the soldiers...the soldiers are dead sire. It''s almost sundown so I expect them to make camp in 3 hours or less, and then I believe we have the most optimal time to attack." Lenore said as she looked at him fiercely, tears welling up in her eyes. "this is no time for emotions Lenore, we will move to an acceptable distance, and then well attack in the morning. Now is there anything else you can tell me? Their numbers. Weapons, tactical advantage etc.?" Rezar asked with a straight voice as he kept his focus on her eyes and not on the bouncing joys of goodness on her chest that heaved erratically with her disturbed state. "They number no more than 2000, though from what I can see, at least a half of them are civilians. Their numbers should have been a lot more, but landing within the Black dragon''s territory seemed to have taken care of that. I was able to notice a few black wyrms, draigs and nagas chasing after them. it doesn''t make much sense to me as being reptiles much less serpents should have bonded them well, instead the BOA empire are being picked off one after the other. They''re keeping a fierce front, but it''s bad, at least for them anyway. If we left them alone, they would be at our walls within a week and maybe with a half of their numbers. We can take care of that, but the monsters they''re dragging behind them would end us all. We need to put up a stance here and wipe out both incursions, it would be a fight on our own terms. But forgive me Your Majesty why shouldn''t we attack them as soon they''re within our sights!" Lenore explained and then finally asked with great grievance. "For one our soldiers would have just stopped marching, General they would be tired and weak and not at all ready for a battle against a technological advance race, it would be nothing more than suicide. And not just that, they''re freaking reptiles, a species of creatures that are quite well-known for the night hunting. They can see at night and we can''t. Yes, we have orcs and the kitsunes can actually see at night, but it would be an advantage they have over a part of our army. We already have losses; I would prefer it if we don''t incur any more of those." "Then please tell me your majesty, what do we do? Attacking immediately means we have an element of surprise, and they are even more tired than we are. Giving them to recuperate would be quite dangerous for us tomorrow and then we would definitely be incurring losses!" Rezar narrowed his eyes, the look in them was so cold that Lenore had to pause with her rant as she shivered a bit. In this new world where everyone was given equal starting positions, there was just some things that couldn''t change. And one of those things was a person''s presence, his essence, their vibes or you could say the aura. Vampires are dangerous and downright ethereal in the way that they appear. And when they''re angry.it was like being stared at by a lion... being stared at by death itself. And Rezar had that gaze, it was hard to tell what it meant, but there was just so much power behind it, fear was the only thing left to feel. "Lenore I would like you to meet Roran! He''s a venoik and my head of the Alchemy ministry... well future Ministry of Alchemy now that sounds better. Now I would like you to escort him towards the army, there''s quite a nice cool breeze blowing from the west, so make sure he''s facing the east of the BOA aliens. And when you''re done putting him in position, preferably on a hill where a good draft could let''s say; carry an airborne toxin that''s quite contagious and spread it across an entire army of invaders. Many of them would survive, but whether they would be able to fight tomorrow morning, well that remains to be seen. I''ll leave you guys to get acquainted with each other." Rezar walked away whistling a jaunty tune, leaving Lenore unsure whether to curse at him in frustration or clap her hands for him in admiration. Never the less she would be doing he said, getting herself acquainted with the man of poisons! Chapter 212: Snake vs Bone (III): Precursor to Chaos Roran was no longer a slave, Rezar and the dawn of this new world made sure of that, but in all honesty he still felt like he was being used. The king of Morte Bianca was an enigma and not one that most people would be able to understand, it would be beyond stupid to say you were able to grasp the way he thought, because you wouldn''t know the second he sinks his fangs into your neck. But regardless, Roran didn''t mind his current position, though he wasn''t so sure about being used as a poison against their enemies. His natural abilities were stronger now, and with an Alchemist skill tree, helping him narrow and refine his abilities, he was now able to make toxins and potions of different grades. depending on the kind of material his body has access to. He had what most would call an iron stomach, practically capable of digesting and assimilating anything he could get his hands on. From as simple as normal food, to things as crazy as metal or minerals and compounds of different composition. The very oxygen in the air could be made into a deadly poison in his body, and being fed the cadaver of zombies could really cook up some weird shit within a person''s stomach, which was why he knew that at this moment he was a ticking time bomb. But be that as it may, he could not deny that he found his current traveling companion extremely pleasing to the eye. He sat behind her as the wraith wolf she had now chosen for a mount, ran across the low hills and open plains, moving so fast and so silently that all he could hear was the sound of the wind going past his ears and brushing past his horns, and the feel of warmth that came off her body. She was beautiful and extremely so; there were rumors going about that she was actually warming the bed of the young king, along with the Oracle as many have taken to calling the Gynaika. Two of the most beautiful women in all of Morte Bianca all serving a kid barely out of his breeches...this life really wasn''t balanced. The wraith wolf came to a sudden stop and Roran who wasn''t paying attention to his surroundings was jostled forwards, in the bid to right himself his wrapped his hands around the only support he could get in a bid to keep himself stable. Safe to say the burns on his hands were well deserved when he grabbed a fistful of Lenore''s breasts. Roran cried out in pain as he quickly got off the wraith wolf with tears in his eyes, he could heal himself without any hassle, but that didn''t mean he wasn''t still in quite a lot of pain after his hands had just been burnt. "You should work on your balance...and above all watch where your hands fly to. I''m not exactly what you would call a physical contact kind of person, you just might get burnt, or worse." Right after she said worse a spark of purple and yellow lightning arced off her body, he wasn''t sure how that could be worse than getting burnt, but he took her word for it. Everyone around that bloody king was nuts and insane, and completely abnormal. Even for a slave he grew serving orcs and being used a variety of experiments, this was way beyond what could be considered normal for a king. But then against he''s not met many kings, so using Rezar and his people for a standard might not be really fair. "the wind is picking up, and we''re in luck because it seems to blowing north, the currents might change, but based on direction it would probably be eastwards from the sea. Even if it changes southwards, the canyons themselves no matter how far from us they are would serve as wind breakers. You can use that hill over there, and please hurry up, I don''t want to be caught by any one of their patrols or forward parties." Lenore said to Roran, who quickly got up to his feet and made sure to keep a respectable distance from her, in his mind the demoness was no different from a devil; if that wasn''t what she was already. Roran made his way to a low hill, which unfortunately overlook the approaching BOA army or civilization or whatever they wanted to be called. They were humanoids, though most of them were armored, and they had snake like heads, however the comparison wasn''t that obvious as they looked more human with well recognized and different facial features. The patterns on their skin on the other hand was what made things different, some large groups had similar skin patterns, and even though Roran didn''t know much about alchemy yet, he suspected those with similar patterns and colors belonged to the same family. They weren''t traveling on foot, they had vehicles, cars with massive tires and tanks and giant mechanical snake women that Roran was all too familiar with; The Medusas. There were three of them, which didn''t do much for their chances, because he knew just how hard it was for them to take one down when they had first come in contact with the BOA, but at the time only the Medusa was at the base, which was a bit confusing, never the less, he wasn''t sure just how much damage his toxin could cause to those things, but whatever the case may be, he had to play his part, Rezar was the miracle king after all, he would also play his part. Lenore watched as a haze covered Roran''s body, it couldn''t be seen and it was quite similar to watching fire from a distance or looking at a distance in a desert with the sun burning you. He seemed almost illusory for a second, and just as Rezar had planned, the wind blew the haze outwards, unseen it carried death into the midst of the aliens, bathing and saturating them in the poisons, and moving forwards to the monsters a little distance away. She didn''t know how long it would take for the toxin to take effect, but one was for sure. come morning Mother Death will be having a feast. Chapter 213: Snake vs Bone (IV): Prophecy Death was fickle, by this point in time it was something that everyone knew, sure man has struggled to conquer it for thousands, but as it seems there''s just so much for them to still learn. The BOA aliens didn''t expect it, The first to go with the young ; at first it started with a little coughing then slowly came due weakness, and then eyes grew weak as their breath grew heavier, it was at this point that the older ones the elderlies, of the BOA aliens began to succumb to the poison. To say that panic and fear began to spread through the their camp would be understatement. This was not something they were equipped to dealing with, because with all their technology and all their advancements, this was the first time in all of their history that poison became the reason of their downfall. And at first it was hard to recognize that this was poison, after all who in their right mind would have thought it smart to use poison against a race of serpentine reptiles. And one that had mastered the art not poisons ages ago, poisons that they could actually make from their very own body. It was chaos and with the monsters of the canyons close on their heels, their situation seemed even more dire.. at least until their pursuers also began to call. Death didn''t come immediately, and it didn''t come for all as it seemed the poisons went after some more than others. The young ones and the elderlies suffered, but so too did a few warriors in their prime. The monsters weren''t discriminated against, anyone of them unlucky to catch a whiff of this virus fell within the hour to an eternal sleep that they would never said up from. The intentions of fleeing or pursuing was completely forgotten as all they became concerned about was surviving. And so the night dragged on, neither monsters nor aliens understanding why such misfortune had befell them, it was a moonless night where wails of death and loss rent the night sky, creating a symphony of terror and anguish that very few would forget for ages to come. It would be a story told in the most legendary of way as future generations will honor the ingenuity of the King of Morte Bianca, just as much as they would be horrified of his methods of dealing with his enemies...because legendary figure or not... Rezar DeathWind was more of a monster than the beasts that roamed all of Elysium. The morning met Rezar well, frankly speaking he had a good night''s sleep, and he hoped his soldiers did too. Of course the sounds of crying and wailing through out the night would have kept many of them awake, but Rezar knew the orcs would sleep even more soundly than him. Underhanded tactics wasn''t their way of doing things as they would prefer to just go up and smash their enemies. But regardless of the method, what they liked the most was victory and Rezar was ready to give it to them. He left the tent that had been raised for him and was immediately startled when he saw Gynaika right outside, keeping a sort of vigil with her red cloak over her head, protecting her from the sun slowly rising from the east. "Have you been here all night?" Rezar asked as he circled around her and walked towards Tony who looked even more impressive after the Rejuvenation, being at least 1.8 meters tall, and growing literal metal armor over his body frame. And he was still pretty much and undead creature. "Yes I have spent the night outside your tent in silent vigil, there''s much I need to tell you about... I''ve had a vision, a prophecy, one that I feel you should listen to." Rezar raised an eyebrow at that, he couldn''t deny that he was severely interested in this. Of all the time they''ve known each other, this would be the first time Gynaika had to offer anything about the future, but then again this was only a possibility of a future, but knowing even a little about it would go a little my way in avoiding a shit ton of trouble. "A prophecy you say? Well then, let''s hear it." Rezar said to her as he washed his face from a basin that was placed in front of his tent. "When the King of white descends onto the field of poison, the eyes of night shall strike the voice of darkness, and the war of souls shall begin. The King of white will fall to the fangs of the Cobra''s son, stain not the field with Red, or poison of demon''s hand shall course death''s veins." If that wasn''t spooky as hell then Rezar didn''t know what was, this was a freaking prophecy, a vision and it was so unlike the previous times Gynaika had signed before a battle. These were riddles, yet Rezar didn''t feel like it was something he could ignore, there was ominous feeling that seemed to creep up the base of his spine after the prophecy was given. He looked up at her with narrowed eyes, he couldn''t make head or tails of the prophecy, but he could at least understand that is he should carry out a massacre now, just as he previously intended, then he''s probably going to cook himself. "I suggest we just found up those of the BOA alone who survived Roran''s poison attack last night, we can circle around them and eliminate the monsters, there''s still quite a few of them around. And they''re even more persistent than you, eliminating them would be the wise choice." Rezar was confused, he just wasn''t what kind of stock or value he should put to Gynaika''s prophecies. But in the end his guy told him that ignoring her would be a big mistake, and one that he might not live to regret. But still there was much that still needed to be addressed. "And what of this ''The Cobra''s Son''. " Rezar asked as he shifted his gaze to the camp of the BOA aliens, and all Gynaika could say was. "You have me, and you have Lenore...whoever or whatever he is, he would be read by noon!" Chapter 214: Snake vs Bone (V): Sekeris Sekeris was just seven years old, but even then he knew just how much of a responsibility he had to his people. This new world was weird, and for their race to survive, he had to remain alive. But he wasn''t so sure how he could do that. The monsters, creatures of a similar bloodlines as theirs didn''t care that they had come forth with the choice to rule them, to serve a greater master and a greater purpose. But instead they had chased after them, with brutality the likes of which he had never seen, the young prince of the BOA empire had to watch his people get slaughtered, one after the other, just so he could have a chance to survive and continue the bible line. Because in the end nothing mattered. It wasn''t as if he was the only child, he was just the one who had fully inherited the royal gene. He was stronger and faster than the other princes and princesses, and he understood much more of what they were being thought that what was allowed even the ambassador. But never the less, all of this didn''t make much sense, and it was up to them to truly find a way they can connect to the people invading and the monsters driving them into lands that all too well spelled certain doom. But still he remained quiet he remain nice he remained obedient, hearing their screamed as the sun rise up. His skin itched, the atmosphere of this planet didn''t really agree with him, but he was told that over time, after a few weeks that he would be in full and total control of himself and completely acclimated to the planet that they would now be calling their new home. It was morning, and there were more noise, his nurse maid and mother had passed during the cover of darkness, succumbing to the poison in more ways than one. But as the morning arrived, it seems as if the trouble that came didn''t come for blood. A retainer had told him that natives, civilized though not as much they were; natives of this bloody rock had come forward and completely wiped out the monsters. The creatures that they felt would have been their brethren were completely destroyed skin, coil and limb until all that was left was an intense stench of blood in the air. He would have happily wanted to be thankful, but these aliens went after his people next, and even though they didn''t kill any one of them, they weren''t exactly nice. But even though Sekeris was just seven years older he understood things far more than children of this godforsaken rock could ever do. There was no way the Poison that had killed more than half his people, and even decimated a significant number of the monsters, who were also undoubtedly natives, was just a common coincidence. These new arrivals were completely fine, they were noticed last night, but they had kept their distance, and in return his people had died just as well as the monsters leaving them ripe for the picking. It was just a theory backed without any hard facts but it all planned need to what he could see. To what he could understand and all of the evidence that was laid in front of him; this Poison wasn''t some weird air on this planet, it was the handwork of these new people, and his blood boiled with anger for revenge. And maybe his chance came too soon as the vehicle where he was being house had it''s doors open. There was a man; big and green and so muscled that ever idea of revenge was swiftly removed from his face. His body quivered and the extra skin on his neck seemed to spread behind his head, giving him a good that cemented his power and surety amongst his people, and said good spread even more to show his intense fear of the massive green man in front of him. He shrunk back deeper into the luxury truck, hiding his small body in between the numerous cushions placed there for his comfort. "The Cobra''s Son." Their language was archaic, one that would have taken a normal member of their race quite a few years to understand, but his people have been in orbit above this planet for quite a few years and had enough understanding of it to have thought it''s common tongue to royalty. This was to prepare him to rule them, after the BOA empire brought it''s Intentions of dominance and enslaved them all. So he understood the name he was called, after it was a honorary title given to all princes who were next in line to be king, a title he held. Soon enough there were two women in the truck, one also beautiful with dark skin of light bronze and brown, and a body many of his elders would have fought and killed for. And the other so fierce with skin of red and symbols of gold, and a body and face just as powerful and inviting as the other woman. "Gynaika he''s just a child! This seems a little too much!" the woman with red skin said, her voice distressed as Sekeris knew she was talking about him. "There are no choices to be had Lenore, that boy would become a threat to our beloved, it won''t be as easy as giving him a merciful death. I have seen it, his fall.....Rezar will be in so much pain and all that boy...that thing over there will do is laugh as he kills the man you''ve grown to love over and over again!" the other woman with the skin of light bronze spoke. "But you love him too don''t you? You know he would never stand for this, no matter how dark of a heart he has, he would never kill a child..... He''s literally just a child himself." The woman with skin of red whispered as she moved closer to Sekeris and knelt down in front of him. "What I''m feeling is why I''m here..being Queens of this land is not just a fact or a responsibility that would soon fall on our lap, it''s our destiny. You and I our children will fight for the right to rule his empire, and there will be others in that fight with us, I have seen it. But that''s just a possibility..... there are still a million things that will take his life before that day comes...and many of them only we can stop...I''ll help you. So this sin is not just on your head.. it''s also on mine." And then Sekeris watched as the woman called Gynaika held the hands of the red skinned woman and both drove their rapier deep Into his heart, and all he knew was darkness as his anger floated away into Nothingness, the white King.....Remains safe! Chapter 215: Snake vs Bone (VI): Scroll There was action to be had, but not for him. All he had to do was watch as his people indiscriminately wiped out the monsters that had taken a brave today into his territory. Then soon after they surrounded the BOA aliens and forced their surrender. A surrender the was made even easier when it was discovered that their leader or rather future leader had been dead from the poison. Very few amongst them could speak the common tongue enough for anyone to understand them, but the way they mourned and cried and looked all too despondent showed that the loss of their prince hit them harder than the lives of families and friends they''ve lost so far. It was a civilization that probably treated their monarchs like gods themselves, such a group of people might be significantly hard to control. "Master we''ve gathered all the boxes we of the monsters in one massive like you asked, what would you have us do now?" Screet asked as he came closer, his foot falls barely making any sort of sound. "If that''s the case what do you think a pile is for? Burn them all to ashes. They''re pretty much useless to us with Roran''s poison dancing through their veins. And then have Lenore prepare everyone to move out, we''re going home." Rezar said as he scaled his way on top of Tony''s back, a contemplative look on his face, along with a scroll in his hand. Screet turned to go carry out the orders that he had been given, on the other hand Rezar opened up the scroll. The scroll itself was made from skin that was literally peeled from the back of one of the Aliens. Rezar didn''t know who, but it seems to be from the prince that died, I was a blueprint on how to make the Medusas. The three that had been following the aliens had also fallen to the poison, proving much of Rezar''s theory that though they had metallic bodies, they were biological with their metal skin and bodies being rare biological agents itself. Normally making living robots seems like the kind of thing Alistair would really like, but the process in which the Medusas were made has turned out pretty interesting. The BOAs have a biotech farm that''s completely mobile. As long as there was enough power and enough biological agents, the farm would be able to produce eggs with engineered DNA encoded into it. It was too much science stuff, and how he understood it, most especially when it was written in a language that looked more like squiggles any written language Rezar had ever come in contact with, so he was just as baffled by it. However engineering DNA with the farm isn''t really a problem, and the power required by the farm was something Necron could provide. The curve ball here was the way the Medusas were activated or in this case animated. The BOA Aliens were part necromancers! They might not have the whole thing down, but one important aspect of the school of magic was something they''ve mastered; at least in a manner of speaking. Summoning! And they weren''t summoning Skeletons! They were summoning souls. It was a complicated process and it was carried out more with technology than magic, but a specialized chamber can be built and the egg would be placed in it''s center. The summoner would actually have to call a specific soul, and the BOA keep strict records of all their population. They know exactly who to summon, and what role that person can fulfill based on how they were when they were alive. Rezar didn''t know too many people that had died, if he had the Necron, that wouldn''t be too hard as it was knows as the book of death, and as he had found out recently, Life and death were two sides of the same coin, so as long as there''s a tool that has power over one side, it will have power on the other. But he didn''t need the Necron, he had no idea where that thing was, he was actually only interested in one name and one name alone... .Neema! If it was possible that the summoning can be targeted and her soul can be received and put into another body, and a body that was even more alive than what she previously had...it would take a weight of his chest and give him his demon mole queen back. But above all this has given a new avenue to necromancy, he could no longer use the [Raise Undead] which was quite useful in battle to overwhelm his enemies. Apparently for this new world one method of making undead were enough with his ability to make Vampires considered a priority skill to keep, since it was basically a racial ability. This was good news, but there was no hurry, all he has to do now is get back and have Alistair take care of this. The arrival of these BOA aliens had seemed problematic at first, but this was probably the easiest conflict he has ever been in. Roran had proved himself indispensable, and that was good. Right now all he wanted to do was consolidate his power and work on his kingdom to make it strong, having what was practically a bio-weapon capable of wiping out and entire city with the right conditions and planning on his side, was a deal breaker. Now he just had to find a way to make the Venoik less afraid of him. Nevertheless right now, All Rezar could think of was training to get stronger, he has dealt with the first conflict of this new world, and he wouldn''t be so na?ve as to think there aren''t more hanging around the horizon. As his life has so proved, there''s more than enough chaos waiting for him, it was just a matter of time. But until then, he''d rather go and get stronger.....Malik was still out there. Chapter 216: Priest SOMEWHERE IN SPACE Priest woke up with a start, he was naked and his body quivered as a chill unlike anything he has ever experienced landed through his body. His surroundings were dark, and they were wet, and frankly speaking he knew exactly where he was right now...he just didn''t expect that he would be back here at this point in time. He slowly raised himself up to his feet, his knees quivering as the weakness he felt. But then again he understood why he was this week, a recall teleportation across what was literally light years to a pressurize giant asteroid the size of a moon with it''s own ecosystem, and hidden at the edge of a black hole did not feel nice. But he served a master that was as fickle as it was unfeeling, she didn''t give a shit what he wanted, just what she needed. He was in a massive chamber, pillars tall as skyscrapers made from the bleached white bones of infants from numerous races, wallpaper made from the carved skins of millions across the universe. And a the thousands of souls floating and walking about the hall in lost focus and memories. He turned to the left where a woman laid on a sofa, relaxed and unbothered as the couch floated on a pool of blood that had pure white lilies of brightest bloom, giving off a significant degree of life and light that was a sharp contrast to this hall of doom and gloom. But then again that''s what time place is; a flock of brightly colored cosmic birds flew above his head where the ceiling showed a beautiful night sky, with the brightest and calmest of moons. Beauty in all it''s entirety, as this place showed in more ways than one how much of a conundrum it was. It was contradictory in it''s existence and down right impossible, but this was power of the highest order, codes and magic and the ability to shape the very fabric of this universe''s reality, this was the home of a god! "Lady Darkness, it is an honor to be in your presence once again, it has been a few long centuries." Priest said as he bowed to the woman who was for all intents and purposes the mother of Rezar... in a manner of speaking that is. "Ahhh! Lumel! It is a pleasure to see you again, I thank you for your service to my son, but you will do well to keep your bloody schemes against him under control. His traits before the Rejuvenation were not there for show, he really is the (Son of Death.) Now run along young one, it was your master that summoned you here not me, I swear that thing is getting more and more fickle, not to mention severely impatient. Don''t know why that damn scrap heap is acting out in my own house, I should burn it, yes...the nether flames would do quite nicely." Priest moved away from her confused and thoroughly shocked! He felt like there was something wrong with his memories, but he wasn''t sure if Rezar ever mentioned anything about Death being his mother. But the idea was that Rezar really was the son of death and the Trait wasn''t just cosmetic. This changed everything for him, and in doing so condemned him to a life of even more suffering, but maybe there was still a chance. He didn''t want to kiss off the Goddess of Life and Death, but the things he needs would probably see him crossing her path on account of her son, but he didn''t really have a choice. He moved forwards and then on to the next shocking discovery.....she had a personality! The reason why his master could stay here for as long as it had without feeling troubled was because Darkness was logical. There was no emotions, no personality, just an incredibly self aware and powerful AI goddess that knew the true state of the world and not just some script given. But now she sounds like some teenager or sassy middle aged woman with absolutely no hope of getting married...things were just too weird and it was all the fault of this damn rejuvenation. He moved forwards until he came to the north end of the chamber, his feet were submerged in a pool of blood that was somehow not mixing with the pool of water that filled most of the chamber. Like the pool Darkness was one, the blood had gathered in one corner like it was oil. Priest looked up and was face to face with a book that had energy floating around it''s body like a nucleus. It pulsed once and Priest was forced to his knees and soon his head was submerged into the pool of blood. He was held there by and unknown power for a few seconds before he was drafted out, hacking and coughing and trying to catch his breath. His quivering got worse, and it became obvious he was terribly afraid. But there was no where to run, it brought him here, and only it can send him back. "I''m sorry master but I''ve been looking for the perfect candidate. I now serve someone who can help me find to right one that you can pledge yourself to." The book pulsed again, and Priest had his entire body frozen as blood leaked out of his ears, the freeze disappeared soon after and Priest was left coughing with a shocked look on his face. "But master! He''s the son of you know who, we touch him and she''ll vaporize us for good, besides we''re in her house, do you think it''s wise talking like this." The only reply Priest received was the book pulsing again, but this time much to his luck there was no pain. "You''re not giving me much of a choice Master, but I will try my best to do as you''ve said. I''ll return and get him ready for your descent...Rezar DeathWind would make a perfect host!" Chapter 217: Reports Rezar was back in his small office looking through a few documents and reforms that the Kingdom would be undergoing within the next few months to three years. Honestly speaking, he would be taken a back seat from all of this responsibilities for an undetermined amount of time, so as to have enough time to train himself and learn all he has to. According to the Dragon, she had taught him all that was required for him and his kingdom to have a proper foundation of strength, it was now up to him to train and master and innovate with the tools that he has been given, and that was wholly what Rezar planned to do. Lenore, Gynaika and Alistair would be in charge of running the kingdom, with Lenore focusing on military matters, Gynaika on politics and establishing communication with other territories, and Alistair focusing his time solely on developments for Morte Bianca. On the other hand he would be traveling with Roran, Screet, And Tristian...at least on the surface. He knew over 300 of his King''s guard would not be too far away from him, traveling and learning and training with him. He was heading out for a training journey, but the main aim would be to find and locate the old Priest, his disappearance for over a month now had raised an alarm not just in Rezar, but the people who were a part of his congregation, so a definite move like this was required on Rezar''s part. "Your Majesty I have the weekly reports with me, is this a good time?" Alistair''s effeminate voice asked as he knocked on the door to the study. "Come in Alistair, I have things I need to talk to you about too." The door opened soon after, and the Muriel Elf walked in dressed in an elaborate silver and white suit. His horns were adorned with bone jewelry that were coated with silver and ornate designs hanging from them. Rezar gave him a nod and Alistair as Rezar have noticed over the time they had spent together, happily started talking. "The BOA aliens have been placed in indentured servitude just as you asked your Majesty, they would serve in the development of Morte Bianca for the next three years before being free and accepted as full citizens or allowed to travel the world to discover themselves. As it''s an amicable policy and doesn''t encroach to close to the slave territory, especially since they''ll be paid minimum wage and fed for the duration of their servitude. So basically it''s free shelter, protection and feeding and they''re still getting paid. It''s a lot more than we ever got when we were taken as slaves." Rezar raised his eyebrows and said. "You were just a slave for about a day Alistair, so I don''t think that comment was in the proper context." *cough!* "I mean you get the general idea your Majesty. Nevertheless many of the able bodied males have been put to work on the roads and the mines, I''m working on understanding and incorporating their technology, and I might have a portable prototype of their animation chamber ready in a week or two. I was able to study the method and with the help of Gynaika came up with an alternative way. It can help you raise the dead out in the field once again, but not instantly like before, and without preparing a proper and we''ll engineered body like the BOA method. But that aside, I''m not really that conversant with skills and abilities, I just make the tech. None the less, most of the blueprints we have and couldn''t really make anything off, are now extremely useful. The ship, and teleportation gate might be completed in an estimated 16 months time. The jet is not a problem, I''ll be done with the first prototype in 3 months if not less. The satellite blueprints might be a bit harder, but establishing a stable source of communication would give us an edge others don''t have, telecommunications is also a massive business opportunity, and for a planet that''s been forced into an advanced age and quite rapidly too, those with the initiative will get a slice of the biggest pie. Which is why I wanted asking for permission to funnel all available hands not working on any current projects to focus on the satellite. We have a lot more professionals now, and a lot more people and quite frankly traveling in order to deliver messages don''t sit too well with me. We can have something concrete in six months." "Don''t bite off more than you can chew Alistair, but I do agree we need stable communications, especially now that I''ll be traveling to train and develop the [Dragon Breath Pulse] technique along with the 13. We need that to strengthen our military, I won''t be going to get for the next 6 months but moving within the bounds of Morte Bianca, familiarizing myself with the lay of the land. Split your focus in two, let half go wild with your gadgets, and the other half focus on the infrastructure of the Kingdom. After six months get me a replacement minister of infrastructure and Kingdom Management, and a new assistant. And then you can just assume position as the new year of Research and development. There''s too much on your neck, and I need you doing what you do best. Also our soldiers need armors and they need weapons. Implement firearms into standard weapons for the samurais, especially the sniper rifle and begin training with it. Open a school, though you''ll handle that with Gynaika and Lenore''s help. If there''s anything else you can get a message to the Daughters Of The Eclipse, they''ll be able to locate me wherever I am within Morte Bianca. Now anything else?" "Yes your Majesty, if I might make a bold suggestion, why don''t you head south into the forest. I believe there a resource points that should be located, just they''re hot spots for really angry monsters." "So you need me to wipe them out?" Rezar asked as he got up to his feet. "If you don''t mind, then yes please!" "Very well then, guess I''m going hunting!" Chapter 218: Pygmies (I): Dragons Arte 3 WEEKS LATER Rezar listened tow after trickle and flow past in the brook in front of him, his eyes were closed and his senses were shut to the world, but somehow, in one way or the other he could still feel them watching; the Sons of Dawn and hidden even deeper were the daughters of the Eclipse. The children of midnight were an ingenious creation, they answered directly to him and we''re actually responsible for not just his safety, but analyzing and taking care of threats within and outside of the kingdom, the kind of threats you won''t see coming until it''s right in front of you. In a nutshell they were his very own MI6 or CIA. It was an ambitious move, but one that seemed to have turned out quite well in his Favor, not to mention; most of the Daughters Of eclipse were vampires of his own making. And due to the fact that he sired them, their loyalty to him was absolute, as opposed to Gynaika''s vampires who were loyal only to her. It was almost too hard for Rezar to keep her under control, but at least for the moment she won''t be making any other Vampires. And while there was much to delivered from her, especially with her scheming nature, Rezar was sure she would keep her word. But back to the matter at hand; Rezar slowly got up to his feet, and then moved his body into what he would consider the weakest and easiest posture of the 13. He felt his muscles twist light as small pressure was placed on them. And then he decided to breathe, and quickly following that was his heart dancing, a slow tempo first and quickly followed behind by his magic pulsing. The strain seemed to increase in that moment and Rezar almost couldn''t hold it for longer than 30 seconds. But he preserved until... [You have gained an Insight! Mental +3] [You have combined a unique physical foundation technique and a unique Magic Foundation technique. +5 to Mental, +3 to Strength, +5 to Constitution, +3 to Speed] [Magic Skill: Magic Mastery has leveled up to 5! Mental +7, Magic +15, Skill Damage 50%, Casting Speed -30%, Cost -55%] [The skill tree Dragon Arte has been added to your skill list. 13 Pulses skill has been generated.] This was unexpected, but it was exactly what he was hoping for, and the fact that he was able to achieve showed that in this new world, you''re only limited by the amount of hard work you put into something, and the scope of your imagination. It took him two weeks, but at the very least he''s got all of this down to a basic. And this was just the first step. Never the less with this little bit of strength, he could now focus a bit on the task that''s in front of him, though he would need to teach someone this method so it could be taken back to Necron and imparted to the military. Beyond the brook was a copse of trees that seemed to form a natural maze, along with a few rocky outcroppings that served as natural defenses for the pygmy tribe that was guarding what Alistair had called an Ancestral totem. It held a certain type of magic that was unique to the pygmy tribe, and it was magic Alistair wanted to harvest. Previous attempt at making contact with the pygmies had resulted in injuries and bruised egos from his soldiers, the orcs especially hated it. But there wasn''t much they could do when the pygmy tribe had the unique ability, afforded them by the so called totem, to change their shapes at will. If they were smaller they were faster, if they were bigger they were stronger. Hard to defend against and could not be reasoned with even when there was someone capable of speaking their language. Alistair had wanted to study the totem just for a little while before returning it, the pygmies were a part of Morte Bianca so antagonizing them would not look good for the kingdom..at least not where anybody could see them. The growth of his kingdom came first for me, so if there was tribe of hostile pygmies within the forest in his territory, then they needed to be taken care of with immediate effect. Plus this whole shrinking and I creasing stuff looks like it can be quite helpful, maybe Alistair would be able to create and equipment that would teach the shrinking ability and increasing ability to his spies and soldiers, it would help them a lot in a lot of situations. Besides, it would look really amazing if a giant would bulldoze his or her way through an army of enemies, this would make Morte Bianca even more scary. "Screet Prepare to move in, Roran keep Tristan in your sights. And Kitagawa, Samira? Don''t interfere unless absolutely necessary." Rezar seemingly spoke to the wind, but he knew those two heard him just fine. This was supposed to be a solo adventure, but it would not be right for a king to travel all by his lonesome like this, which was why they were heading out with him. [Rezar DeathWind] = [Age: 16] = [Class: King] = [Rank: Bronze 1] [Race: Vampire] = [Bloodline: Storm Dragon// Death God//(HIDDEN)] [Mental: 49] = [Magic: 49] = [Constitution: 25] = [Strength: 19] = [Speed: 21] [Traits: War Edge//Black Magician] {Skill Trees} [Vampire: Supernatural Body (2) +] [Necromancy: Summon Skeleton (1) +] [Magic: Magic Mastery (5) +] [Arms: Dual Swords (0)//Staffs (0)//Chains (0)//Unarmed (0) +] [Dragon''s Arte: 13 Pulses (0) +] [Skill Points: 37] He was stronger, though honestly speaking he wasn''t growing stronger as fast as he had expected, in the time since his rank up to level 1 bronze, none of his stats had increased until now, no matter how hard he had breathed or practiced the 13 stances. Now it seems after he has properly made a foundation skill, it would help as long as he could keep practicing. But nevertheless it was time to go pay some pygmies a visit...it might end up bloody. Chapter 219: Pygmies (II): Pygmy Fear No King! The section of the Kerwood forest where the pygmies lived was extremely dense, instead of the normal pine trees and oak, what was there were palm trees, banana trees and thick bodies trees clustered with vines and dense shrubbery of bushes and berry trees. This shouldn''t be called the Kerwood forest anymore, but rather the Kerwood jungle. The air here was incredibly humid, and practically everything he touched was wet and had a little bit of moisture on it. Screet hated it, his bionic arm creaked with every furious swing of his staff as he smashed massive leaves and palm frond out of their way. Roran was nervous, and Tristian nonchalant march through the jungle wasn''t helping matters at all. This place was dangerous, and no one knew it better than the Venoik. His racial ability of being a living, breathing walking pharmaceutical let him know if an environment was dangerous or not, and frankly speaking, the rate at which his body was currently accumulating toxins of different kinds, more than told him that the air here, and perhaps the biome itself was all kinds of fucked up, eat the wrong thing and your goose was cooked, not that any of them had a goose, but they would be royally fucked and there was no going back from that. "Please Screet, stop smashing everything! This place is...it''s very dangerous!" Roran implored as he looked around with a nervous disposition. Rezar raised an eyebrow at that and tried to hide his amusement, regardless of the danger, he, Screet and Roran were pretty much immune to death from a natural environment. The only person they had to worry about was probably Tristian, but the fucker was a goblin, or rather a hobgoblin. From what he had seen, those fuckers could pretty much digest anything. *Whoosh! * "What was that?" Roran asked as he looked around, his breathing and heart rate rapidly speeding up much to Rezar''s annoyance. As many people have discovered lately, any time Roran was anything other than calm, there was a high possibility people would get knocked out or end up very dead after ingesting a severe amount of poison, but Rezar didn''t have time to warn or calm the Venoik as he felt a hard impact on his chest. At the moment of the impact, he had no idea what had hit him, but just before his back could hit the tree behind him, he could see the tiny form of a somewhat pudgy man with painted skin flipping backwards from him. And when he said this man was tiny, he was literally just an inch tall, yet he was able to hit Rezar with this much force. fascinating. Rezar twisted his body in the air, his fangs and claws sliding out as he stabbed his claws into the tree, staying upside down like a lizard and shifting his focused eyes to the form of the tiny man. The others couldn''t see him, he was small. And he was wearing clothes that otherwise blended him into the jungle, it would be extremely difficult for someone to locate him, at least, if said person was not a vampire anyway. He noticed three more of the tiny men, and all three launched an attack towards him, shooting off their feet and flying towards his form like a trio of tiny bullets. Rezar was ready for them, as he shot towards them his claws slashed towards them. but his claws never reached as the tiny men rapidly increased their frames until what was flying towards him weren''t a trio of half and inch pudgy men with rather round and elaborate skulls and covered in tribal tattoos. Instead 12-foot-tall giants, with enough girt and size to squash Rezar just be sitting on him, and one of them was even Female! But the king was not alone as Screet had shot off his feet immediately, his staff smashing into the lower jaw of the female pygmy, derailing her momentum and trajectory before sending her crashing into a dense foliage of brightly colored flowers. Based on the look on Roran''s shocked face, that was not a good place to land. Rezar threw his right hand forwards [Spectral Skull] a glowing silver skull that fit into the palm of his flew out and slammed into face of one of the Pygmy. The Pygmy had his body immediately become stiff as his massive girt quickly reduced to that of a two feet tall version, which was probably the proper size of his species. The last one got a strike in, smashing its massive fist into Rezar''s chest and throwing him backwards, and just in time to receive a broad sword in its gut, courtesy of the former Goblin king. Who proceeded to slowly move the sword from one corner of the pygmy''s stomach to the next, spilling its guts in a grotesque fashion. Rezar pirouetted in the air, slapping his feet against a tree and then pushing forwards off it to bring his foot smashing into the head of the pygmy that had received the [Spectral Skull] attack from him. Its head blasted apart like that of a ripe tomato, prompting an annoyed look from Rezar as blood and brain matter completely coated his boots. He shook it off, rubbing his boots on the forest floor and pretending he didn''t see the more than half a dozen member of the pygmy tribe, gathered on the branches of different trees, and pointing an unholy amounts of blow pipes in their direction. "Hello Pygmy''s! I am Rezar Deathwind! King of these lands that you have taken for a home. Lay down your weapons peacefully and I would consider not taking your lives as recompense for your crimes against me." He sounded arrogant, from the look on their faces he knew they thought him arrogant, but was he arrogant...maybe just a little. "We have no King, Pygmy fear no King! We strong and Big!, and we small and Fast! We squash Rezar Rezar! We have no fear!" "....." Rezar was gob smacked, and he really was trying not to laugh from the way the pygmy who was probably the leader had spoken. But he was the king, he had an image to maintain. He spoke, and this time to Kitagawa and hundreds of his King''s Guard well-hidden and surrounding this area. "Take them!" and just as suddenly as it started, the fight was over, Rezar never fought fair before. he wasn''t going to start now. Chapter 220: Pygmies (III): Small Conflict "You think Pygmy people will surrender easy easy to Rezar Rezar! Neverrrrrrr! Attack formation!" and then all disappeared, turning into tiny versions of themselves that proceeded to beat the crap out of the people that took them captive. Rezar was left alone for the most part, and he watched the embarrassing display in front of him. Most of the guard were not fast enough to track the movements of the pygmies, these folks were no different from flies and mosquitoes in this state of theirs. The pygmies were too small and a little too much to deal with properly, and they knew just how well to utilize their tiny size. If they became giants it would be much too easy for them to be dealt with, they knew that, which was why they stayed small, and had speed and jump and little bit of power behind their movements, which was probably because their normal bulk was compressed to such a small size. He could ask Roran to poison the immediate area, but doing so would also get his own people in the line of fire, so that was too much of a risk. The best way to deal with them is to get them to stop moving, or in this case hold someone or something hostage. Rezar turned to Screet who unsurprisingly was keeping up with the speed of the Pygmies and playing little league baseball with his staff by hitting homeruns with their tiny body. He was in much better state than almost everybody else, which made him perfect for this job, plus he was heartless, literally and figuratively, it made him perfect. "Screet find the Pygmy''s village...and smash everything and everyone in it!" Rezar didn''t whisper, he spoke loud enough that all of the Pygmies paused and shifted their focus to Screet, who at this point was looking at his master with a betrayed look on his face. All Rezar could do was smile awkwardly as he said. "You should be running." Thankfully Screet took his advice and took off in the direction of the pygmy village, and seeing how they followed just as quickly, it meant that he was heading in the right direction. The pygmies completely outclassed them due to their size changing ability, but they were too simple to truly be a threat. In the time they''ve had to attack, all they did was hover and hit without the intent to maim or kill, it almost made Rezar sorry for harassing them, but if it were his soldiers with the same abilities, those pygmies would already be dead or anyone else they faced. And as cute as they were, they weren''t under his control, and he''d rather not leave a wildcard like this out in the open for someone else to come use against him. "you guys should reorient yourselves and then catch up, your performance was terribly disappointing. Think on your failures and make sure to never repeat them again!" with his piece said, Rezar followed after the pygmies, his eyes strained to the limit as he hunted them, just as they hunted his ally. It wasn''t too hard to catch up to them, and they didn''t go too far as the noise they made and Screet''s rough treatment of the jungle gave him a direct path to a clearing where tiny mud houses have been erected as the base of massive trees. Right in the middle of the clearing was an alter with what looked like a metallic disk on it, the disk had glowing symbols on its sleek frame and it was floating two feet above the alter...guess that''s what Alistair sent them here for. Screet was holding his own against their onslaught, but the ghoul was barely standing and was severely injured. Rezar finally decided to take this entire fight seriously as he pulled out Vita Gratia and rushed headfirst into the melee. These pygmies were not just moving fast, they had mastered the shrinking abilities and to truly out maneuver them, especially now that they were in their home ground, he had to really take it to the limit. But he had to do something that would pretty much even the playing field, so instead of jumping into the fray he rushed towards the disk, made a flip over the alter and grabbed the disk. Their reactions were to be expected, as more than half of them rushed towards him increasing their forms in an attempt to smash him to bits and regain their scared treasure. Rezar was ready for them, and has been for quite a while. [Mana Charge] had reached its five second preparation time, and just before the pygmies could get to him, he used it to boost another skill. [Bullet Time], the world seemed to move a little slower as Rezar split vita Gratia and swung both blades forwards, the blades themselves dislodged from the hilts, a gleaming blue-black chain connecting them as they wove in an intricate manner, dancing into the crowd of full grown giant pygmies. There was no stopping their reaping as the blades and chains ripped into flesh, tissue and bone in the three short seconds the [Bullet Time] skill was activated. For the others, the onlookers, the assailants and the allies; it seemed as if Rezar had sped up, or maybe that was exactly what had happened as opposed to the time in the entire world slowing down for one man. And soon after he returned to normal speed, chains retracting back into elaborate hilts and dragging with them the blades that were still stuck in the body of two giant pygmies. It was a shocking turn of events for the short forest race, but Rezar had showed them an ability that made them wary of him, which was just as well because bullet time was extremely tasking and Rezar felt as if all his muscles were being in ten different directions and being twisted into pretzels at the same time. The bullet time skill was exhausting to use, but given that it has stopped a conflict, Rezar would say it was well worth the use. "Now! Where were we on Pygmies feel no fear... I really want to put that to a test!" Chapter 221: Pygmies (IV): Small Defeat The answer Rezar got in response to his question was series of sharp exhale before the rest of the pygmies still left alive fell down to the ground and started crying their eyes out. Rezar was caught off guard, but he couldn''t bring himself to feel any sort of sympathy for them, they were ugly criers. Rezar gestured with his hands towards the pygmies and turned in the opposite direction, Kitagawa would have all them squared away and shipped back to Necron, they would be Alistair''s and Gynaika''s problem then. He shifted his focus to the disk in his hand, it was weirdly shaped, like a half moon, however it was cracked with jagged edges. "It''s incomplete." A voice said behind him, he turned to see Samira bowing her head, a black leather coat with a wide hood over her head. "Indeed, Samira. Do you recognize it?" Rezar asked as he took a closer look at the disk in his hand. [Dimension Gate Component (Damaged)] "No your Majesty, I''ve not seen anything of that sort before." She answered as she shifted uncomfortably behind him. Rezar could understand why she seemed so nervous, the sun was up and she was no longer a dryad. Being a vampire meant she was just one mistake from being turned into a pile of crispy ashes. So having a bit of specialized uniform that deflected not just sunlight but a variety of ultraviolet rays away from her body was a must, but due to that she was somewhat radioactive, nut that''s until Alistair and his people perfected the blueprint. "I have news!" she said, her voice a little louder than normal. She was so nervous and her attempts at hiding it was somewhat comical, it would be too farfetched to say she shared the same fear Roran had for him. Not that they would be wrong in fearing him, at this point he was pretty much considered a natural hazard, just breathing near him could cost you a good night''s sleep. "Okay, what have you found out." The Snow elves have discovered the remains of a dungeon on the eastern edges of the Breone mountains, normally it wouldn''t be a cause for alarm, but within this dungeon it''s said remnants of the old world and vestiges of the new one could be found. Blueprints, weapons, and special maps, not to mention an obscene amount of riches can be found if the trials within are cleared." Rezar scrunched up his eyebrow again, sorely confused. He asked Samira. "Aren''t Dungeons supposed to be extinct by now, how in the hell is there a functioning one now?" Rezar asked her with a confused look on his face. "It''s not functioning as young put it your majesty, it''s just as abandoned ruin with traps and a lot of treasures waiting for someone to claim them." he thought about it for a few seconds, and then nodded his head as he threw the misshapen disk in his hand to her. "Make sure that''s delivered to Alistair, then keep at what you''re doing, I need ears on the ground and do keep yourself and your girls hidden. Now run along moonshine." Rezar said to her as she bowed and disappeared from his front without a trace. Due to the template he had made, both the sons of dawn and the daughters of eclipse of the children of midnight Kings guard had unique skill trees catered to their specific division. It enabled them access to a few tricks, one of which was Samira''s current disappearing act. Never the less that was one problem taken care of, his adventure with the pigmies would probably just be a filler chapter in some book later down the line. Now it seems its finally time to go mingle with some snow elves, hopefully they''ll be an interesting part of his story. [[[[[||]]]]] Malik walked through the downed airship with an annoyed look on his face, frankly speaking this was pathetic. Of the once great and illustrious Yahweh theocracy, all that was let of its long legacy was a single airship that could no longer take to the sky. It was nothing g like the people he served, this was a bad situation for them, and quite frankly it took him completely out of their control. But never the less he needed them, just as much as he knew they needed him, one couldn''t survive without the other, and quite frankly there was now a threat that they needed each other to face. He walked through two massive doors, entering what looked like a bedroom and marched straight up to the saint and paladin currently engaging in carnal activities that would otherwise be seen as a scandal in the eyes of the many believers that looked up to the ever virgin saintess of the church. Malik spat in disgust, he was one of those people who like being consistent, even if he was conning an entire civilization. "Don''t look so glum Malik, it''s not a sin to enjoy one of life''s simple pleasures every once in a while you know." The saintess said to him. "Of course not, but for a woman in your position it''s not a sin; sins can be forgiven, this is a fucking taboo!" he said to her with venom in his words. "Since when have you become a staunch advocate for the church cursed one?" the grand paladin asked as tilted his head with a mocking smile on his face. The only reply Malik would give him was to swing his spear, using great skill and finesse to remove the exposed appendage between his legs, and then swiftly knock him out by smashing the butt of his spear on the paladin''s forehead. "Paladins of the church, especially the Grand Paladin is expected to be celibate from the moment he took his oath of service. You might want to get your facts straight so that you don''t lose the trust of what''s left of your followers. Because believe me when I tell you that you will need them to face Rezar Deathwind." Malik said to the saintess as he turned around and started marching out, the annoyed saintess called out to him. "And why is that?" she asked, only for Malik to pause and say to her. "Because he has a fucking dragon on his side!" and then she laughed, slowly and then quickly and then completely manic in her expression of amusement before finally answering the annoyed Reaper. "then it''s a good thing we have one of our own isn''t it? He wouldn''t know what hit him." Chapter 222: The First Abyss (I): Ive Got Tony Traveling through the Kerwood forest was spooky, but according to cartographers that Rezar didn''t even know he had; it would take eight days as the crow flies to get to the border of Elysium that touches upon the Breone mountains. Which is to say it would take a significant amount of time to walk there, except of course they weren''t traveling on foot, but on mounts. Tony wasn''t as fast as the Necrotic wolves Tristian, Roran and Screet, and the rest of the Kings guard rode, with the exception of the daughters of eclipse who had formed a weird bond with the wraith wolves, they could literally see through each other''s eyes and merge their bodies for combat. And it was impressive, the very moment a method to train magic was discovered and shared, everyone else pretty much went crazy with the development of unique abilities and skills. And just as the daughters of eclipse have an independent skill tree due to their positions so too do the sons of dawn. And proper training of those skills has brought a lot of them a lot farther and stronger than this new world would have allowed at this point in time. Unfortunately for Rezar it just seemed as if he was lagging behind. Every ability he currently had, was built from his skill trees, and while they were quite unique and fantastic in their own right, they weren''t as strong as he would have wanted them to be. The old him would wipe the floor with the current him in seconds, the only difference was that the Rezar of the new world was a lot more skilled. His techniques were better, so in a straight up fight, without the need to rely on fantastical skills and with the same amount of combat experience, new world Rezar Deathwind would wipe the floor with the old world Rezar, and that was his biggest consolation. He was a lot more badass and it didn''t come from a plethora of skills, in time it was possible that he would be able to beat most people without even having to use skills. The march through the forest was quiet, Rezar had chosen to travel through the Kerwood forest until he was close to the border before moving out. In his opinion maybe they would be able to find special treasures of their own. And it seems he was right. As they marched forwards, they had to go over a low hill that was sparsely dotted with trees, they couldn''t see what was beyond, but it should just be another slope downwards, however what they found was far from it as they noticed a big black hole the size of a valley, and it seemed bottomless. After a specific distance nothing could be seen from the hole but an inky blackness that seemed to serve as a sort of cover over it, Rezar got down from Tony and walked to the edge of the massive hole, he crouched down to get a closer look, but had to immediately take a step back. There was an aura wafting up from the giant hole, it was like heat that couldn''t be felt, yet it wasn''t exactly hot, it just felt weird and very wrong, and when something like this is observed the first thing that any sane person would and should do would be to back away and investigate it properly, however. "I''m going down there!" "Fuck!" Kitagawa cursed loudly from his position hidden in the trees, everyone turned to look at him, but the kitsunes was not going to back down or take it back or even be embarrassed. Rezar never made protecting him easy, and more often than not after getting them in trouble he would still be the one responsible for getting them out of it. "You don''t have to curse, if you don''t want to come you can just stay here." Rezar said to him with a hurt tone, but of course everyone knew this was just how their king got when he wanted to be mischievous, and his mischievousness always followed his very dangerous curiosity. Kitagawa came down from the tree and looked down the hole, there was an obvious annoyed look on his face, and quite frankly he felt he was babysitting a wayward prince as opposed to a king he was supposed to die for at the drop of a hat. He observed the area around the hole itself and noticed that its edges were covered with a layer of grey dust, he placed the dust in his mouth and sniffed it, he regretted it immediately as he sneezed out loud and got back up to his feet, rubbing his hand over his sensitive nose. "That''s brimstone, I would recognize that stench anywhere as every kitsunes or demon that''s born would have a little bit of it accompanying them into the world." Kitagawa said as he stepped back, his eyes watered and a little bit red from the Brimstone. Or rather the ash? What does brimstone look like anyway? Rezar reckoned it looked like...well a stone! But this was ash, so it was saying something. "Well what do you reckon this is?" Screet asked as he too crouched to get a closer look. "My best guess would be a breeding ground for demons of some sort, my worst guess would be a nest." Kitagawa answered the undead, while Rezar peered over it. "I still want to check it out." He said, almost as if he was asking for permission to do so, but everyone here knew Rezar was the better to ask for forgiveness than permission''s guy. He was going to do it anyway, and Kitagawa knew it. He let out a sigh as he put two fingers to the bride of his nose and then moved them up to his forehead to massage his temple, dreading the massive migraine he knew was about to come his way. "Wait here your majesty, let me make arrangements for a rope." But Rezar got on top of Tony and gave Kitagawa a smile he dreaded the moment it showed up. "Don''t worry, I''ve got tony!" and then he just went over the edge with his undead ant taking him along for a new adventure, Kitagawa looked up at the sky and cursed again. "Fuck!" Chapter 223: The First Abyss (II): Fuck! Frankly speaking the thought of going down into the massive hole was a little unnerving, Rezar was incapable of fear, but there was just something eerie in the air, and vampires were creatures of energy and emotions and auras. They could sense and feel the things that many other races, no matter how perceptible they might be, were incapable of feeling. Which was why Rezar waited for Kitagawa and those he chose to join him on the walls that led into the hole. Rezar wasn''t afraid, but even he knew that jumping into the abyss was best done when you had people who had your back with you, even for those who lived in it, the darkness was still a dangerous place. "You waited your Majesty! that''s...unexpected." Kitagawa''s said as he rappelled down a thick rope that fell into the inky blackness below. "I don''t want you bitching at me later on Kitagawa, frankly speaking you''re worse than my mother, which is saying something because I don''t remember her...unless you want to count death and then that is saying something even more cause she''s. you know...Death!" Kitagawa rolled his eyes just as Screet and Tristian came down along with three other kings guard comparisons of two sons of dawn and a daughter of eclipse. The others would probably stay behind to watch their rear and be ready to give support should the need arise, but apart from that, everything seemed set, and Rezar was a lot more confident about diving in into the abyss that was staring right back at them. Rezar didn''t wait to say anything, he didn''t feel the need to give a speech every time a great undertake ng was in front of them, and quite frankly he was half nervous and half anxious about what it was they were going to find below that scree of blackness, there was no time to give a speech or reinforce anybody''s confidence. All they could do right now was just go down once and for all, following behind their king like the loyal guards and soldiers that they were. Rezar prompted Tony to keep moving downwards, Roran was obviously absent, but that much could be understood. The Venoik was so afraid of everything, that using the term coward to describe would probably be a compliment as opposed to an insult. Rezar wasn''t worried, he didn''t think that there would be a need for him to be present. The inky screen got closer and closer, the hole itself was just about 500 meters in diameter, which was quite a lot and the corner of it that they occupied was tiny enough to be insignificant. And then they walked or rather went through it and a feeling of the deepest chill imaginable suffused their bodies. Rezar felt revolted, and for a few moments he was unable to see anything before his vision cleared and all he could see was red and drought. A system message popped up and Rezar felt his breath hitch in his throat as he looked at the landscape that was spread out before him. A massive black mountain in the distance with streams and rivers of lava flowing down its side into an endless plain of hills and thorn bushes that spread as far as the eye could see. There was an energy in the air that Rezar could not put his finger on, but it was so oppressive that even he had to admit that where ever the fuck they were, it was a lot more dangerous than expected. [Skill Vampire: Supernatural Body has leveled up to 3! Current speed, power, defense, constitution and skill and magic damage increased by 25%] [+2 to Strength, +5 to speed. +5 to constitution] Rezar blinked his eyes as he felt a wave of power rush over his body, he wasn''t expecting it, but the surge was quite welcome as he felt the effects almost immediately and in a way the old world could never have let Rezar experience. He clenched his fist for a few seconds and turned to look at everyone behind him. Honestly speaking he was the only one who had an...allergy to Demonic energy, so this place where they now found their selves favored everyone in his group except him, but then again the same couldn''t be said for goblins, or Hobgoblins when Tristian''s case was taken into consideration. Rezar turned to Kitagawa and said. "Remember when you gave a best and worst case scenario about what could be under the cover of darkness in the hole. well Kitagawa as you can see, it''s much worse, like a whole bunch of shit storm coming our way and its right in our fucking kingdom!" and that''s when the System message Rezar read popped up into existence for everyone else. [You have crossed a dimension tunnel! Welcome to the first circle of Hell!] "I''m So fucked!" Rezar said as he looked at the sky above him, where a massive swirling storm of darkness and purple lightning hung, a literal road to his backyard where demons of all kinds if they so wished could create as much havoc as they wanted. He shifted his gaze finally noticing the traces of life within the literal hell he now found himself in. "Maybe this would be the perfect time to move away Your Majesty, before we attract attention we''re not supposed to." Tristian said, but Rezar shook his head and pointed at the distance where a black castle stood on top of the mountain of black and lava that they could see. "not until we''ve seen who fucking lives in that bloody castle." Eyes bulged out at what Rezar had just said, this was a place that was extremely dangerous for him and the longer he spent here the more danger he was in, they needed to get out immediately but he was still going to dive into what probably held a tool or a person capable of killing him. Kitagawa just couldn''t wrap his head around it, and in the end he was left with nothing but more curses. "Fuck!" Chapter 224: The First Abyss (III): Just Passing By The air was blistering hot but at the same time the eerie feeling that Rezar had been feeling all this while was even thicker. It came of as heat, but it was anything as that. The feeling literally made Rezar feel as if someone or something was scraping their claws over his skin. He shuddered as he began to pick his away against the cracked earth, heading towards the black mountain and the black castle in the distance. From their position it would probably take them a solid 30 to 60 minutes of walking to get to the castle, it was a little way up the mountain and scaling it might be a bit difficult, especially if they didn''t want to be discovered by the swarms of demons currently circling the mountain like an eldritch rain cloud of living beasts. Between them and the mountain was a field cracked and baked black by the flames and lava that seemed to run beneath it, in some areas, the earth was a deep rustic red, but Rezar could smell it clearly, and he knew it wasn''t red because of the flames or some special properties, it was red because of the blood that has been so soaked into it, the soil''s natural color had become the shade of red they could see. There were jagged stalagmites popping up out of earth like the horns and fangs of some ancient demon, and on the bodies of the rocks red veins pulsing with flames could be seen. Frankly speaking it was as if there was either they were on the body of colossal creature, or quite frankly this entire so called first circle was a living creature on its own, or was alive in some way. That made this place even more creepy, but Rezar couldn''t back out now. He had already said he was going to check out the mountain and he had no idea how much his reputation in front of his followers would plummet if he backed down now. Besides he was just going to check it out, it was not as if he was going to invade or blow the place up. The pitch black stalagmites were really large, they reached a minimum height of three meters and a width of about four to six meters, the larger ones were as tall as sixteen meters and about seven to eight meters wide affording them cover and protection from any demon that would have seen them coming. This was like a forest of red veined stalagmites, it would have been like a maze, but thankfully the mountain in the distance was like a beacon calling out to them, so there was probably no way for them to get lost or encounter any sort of problems, at least that was what they though until they rounded a corner and came face to face with about a dozen demons with grey rock like skin. The two groups paused for a second, each surprised by the sudden appearance of the other without any sort of prior warning. The grey rock demons as Rezar immediately coined them, had cracks on their skin like a land that has been parched of water and completely drained dry, they had horns that were straight and pointed like those of a unicorn and it was pointed straight into the air. They had hind legs, however instead of the expected cloven foot like those of a minotaur, what they had was some sort of balled feet, like single tired roller blades, and from what he could see, Rezar didn''t doubt that these demons were quite fast. "Sorry for disturbing you guys, we were just passing through." Rezar said to them as he moved his hands to his back where Vita Gratia was sheathed in her Khophesh form. Of course just out rightly attacking them would have been seen as discriminatory on Rezar''s part, he would have been no different from colonizers the first time they set foot in Africa, however considering they were cannibalizing one of their own kind, and the poor demon was still alive, it wouldn''t be too farfetched to say that there was no way they were talking their way out of this one. And the rather nasty and predatory grins on the Grey rock demons oblong shaped heads were all the proof they needed; the razor sharp teeth also drove the deal home. *Swrrriiiiririiririririr * The sounds their balled feet made when they moved on the earth was annoying, and considering they were quite fast it would leave most people without sufficient time to react to the speeding Grey rock demons and their rapidly approaching horns. But Rezar was not most people, he shifted to the side using his [Bullet Time] skill, and just in time too as he swung one of Vita Gratia''s blades, decapitating the heads of one of the Grey rock demons, and stabbing the other into the side of another demon and pulling it out just as they rushed past him. One headless demon crashed into a stalagmite, smashing the structure to bits and spilling boiling hot lava over his headless body, but Rezar didn''t thin k he minded that much, he was already dead anyway so that''s not too bad. The demon that got a Khophesh to the side could only roll forwards for a few meters before it crashed to the ground holding its side; with copious amounts of blood pouring out. It was red, just like every other blood, which meant they could be quite tasty, a delicacy has not had a chance of tasting before. Rezar was pulled out of his thoughts of how tasty demon blood might be when Screet swept his staff up in an arc, smashing the jaw of another approaching rock demon. Kitagawa''s tails flashed past, it was like a trap all of its own as the approaching grey demons Impaled themselves one by one on the tails. Tristian stayed back, completely content to watch everyone do the hard work, of course that could be mainly due to the fact that there was no enemy for him to take care of, as in seconds all of the grey rock demons had been taken care of. "Well that''s was a bump in the road; hehehehe, onward and upwards my soldiers! We have a mountain to check out, and maybe more demons to fuck up!" Chapter 225: The First Abyss (IV): Up A Mountain They met up with a couple other teams of grey rock demons, and just like the first skirmish. The encounter with them had been really short and bloody. After their first three encounters where communication seemed impossible with the demons preferring to go for conflicts rather than a peaceful resolution. Never the less they made their way across jagged and scared earth, nestled and hidden by horn like stalagmites that jutted meters into the air and pulsed with veins like ribs and limbs of an ancient eldritch entity. Rezar didn''t know which was which, but eventually they got to the mountain and began to scale it upwards to get to the castle that was built one hundred and fifty meters on top of it. Halfway up the mountain Rezar noticed something, the closer they got to the castle the more the air seemed to smell of Sulphur, how his nose knew what he was smelling was Sulphur he wasn''t exactly sure, but it was there alright, and it was somewhat invasive. And at the same time the scent seemed to carry an intention, Rezar shifted his gaze to the left and noticed a paused Kitagawa who raised his sensitive nose into the air, tracing the direction the Sulphur seemed to come from. Rezar followed his gaze, letting his sharper than average vision helps him locate anything untoward that''s not supposed to be here or rather what was the source of the Sulphur. And then his gaze met that of a dragon, prompting his heart to skip a beat in shock. A few more minutes of looking at the creature that was quietly staring at them let Rezar know that he wasn''t exactly looking at a dragon. The four limbs weren''t there, just a pair of powerful hind legs and wings similar to that of a bat. Its snout was a little bit longer and stretched wide in a flat manner like that of a crocodile, and them there was of course the single horn in the middle of their head. Rezar shifted his gaze to Tristian and Screet, and then at the castle above his head. he knew he didn''t have much of a choice anymore, a wyvern was a lesser dragon, and while he was sure they could probably fight it, a battle with a wyvern would bring a lot of attention to them, they needed to leave, that was enough exploration for the day. "Kitagawa you and I will play with this over grown lizard for a while, the rest of you take the chance to come down the mountain and get into the stalagmite forest. Make your way back towards the direction we came from, we''ve seen enough." Normally they would argue about wanting to protect him, but the person speaking wasn''t Rezar the Man with a mischievous streak and an uncontrollable curiosity. The King of the bone horde had given an order, and it would be treason for anyone of them to go against his wishes. Rezar gave Kitagawa a snarky grin, prompting the commander of his king guard to roll his eyes at him. Kitagawa knew exactly what that look On Rezar''s face meant. It meant win or lose he was going to enjoy this fight a lot more than he should. Rezar took a deep breath as his eyes changed color from the normal piercing blue, this time it wasn''t the hetechromia of red and gold, now all that could be seen from his eyes was red, red as deep as the red of blood, and in those orbs of red the wyvern saw a challenge, and in return it sounded its own right back. *Roooooaaaaarrrrrr * [Mana Charge] The moment he used the skill, he pushed off from the mountain''s surface, it was almost as if he was committing suicide by jumping from this height, but that was far from his current plan. One of the Khophesh of Vita Gratia shot out, its gleaming silver blue chain shining like a beacon within the confines of hell. It stabbed into a ledge, and Rezar willed it to pull up, whilst swinging him the direction of the wyvern. The Wyvern seemed even more annoyed that Rezar would want to challenge its dominance, it started crawling over the mountain face towards Rezar, its wing stabbing into the hard black rock to keep it balanced. It opened its mouth and released a roar that was actually a blast of compressed air. Rezar twisted his body and made the chain retract until he was underneath the ledge it had stabbed into previously. The compressed air dug a trench on the mountain side, barely missing Kitagawa who was right behind Rezar. The path of destruction left by the compressed air ended 6 meters away from the rapidly descending Screet, Tristian and the remaining kings guard that had followed. Kitagawa reacted and lobbed a small ball of pale green flame at the wyvern, the flame though smaller than what Rezar remembered from the kitsunes exploded with a lot more force than he expected, eliciting a cry from the wyvern as its right wing lots hold and it started slipping down the mountain losing a bit of traction. It didn''t matter much to Rezar though, it being off balance was just what he needed right now. [Spectral Skull] The skull was red instead of a dull silver, and it was a little bit larger than normal. It slammed into the forehead of the Wyvern prompting a loud roar of pain from it. Kitagawa pulled out a massive Naginata from God knows where, ignoring the Katana at his waist as he jumped down. Rezar wouldn''t want Kitagawa to have all the glory of possibly slaying a wyvern, so he shot Vita Gratia into the right wing of the wyvern, getting securely and stiffly stuck in its wing bone, then he let it d rag him down as furious speeds, going past the still descending Kitagawa, and right into the unforgiven path of a swinging tail that smashed him back into the sky with a couple of broken bones for his trouble. Looks like this fight wouldn''t be as easy as he thought it would be "Fuck!" Chapter 226: The First Abyss (V): Wyvern Rezar felt his back smash into the mountain, digging a bloody furrow that ruined his clothes and peeled open his back and flesh, spilling his blood all over the mountain, it was painful, and it hurt like hell, and he wasn''t healing as fast as he once did, but short of his uncontrolled movements, Rezar didn''t do anything else but keep his grip around the hilt of the blade and chain still attached to the wing of the wyvern. Kitagawa had taken a few steps back so as to not get caught by the sweeping tail, he looked up for a moment sparing a glance at Rezar''s bloodied form and the trench he had also dug up the mountain, it was not a good sight. *Pop! * "Arghhh!" Rezar cried out loud in pain as his bones fell back into place, but his focus was as a sharp as ever. There was a couple of system notifications, but he pushed them all to the side, feeling a rush of energy in his body as his healing took on a faster speed than normal. Rezar shot downwards to the Wyvern, gravity and rapidly retracting chain giving him more speed than normal. The Wyvern was prepared however as it opened its mouth and spewed a geyser of green poisonous gas towards the rapidly falling Rezar. Rezar flung the other Khophesh, letting it dig into the side of the mountain a fair distance away, then he let that drag him instead while the other blade still stuck in the wing forced the Wyvern to change the trajectory of its breath attack. And in that moment the wyvern crashed its massive jaws together, creating sparks that spread into the [poisonous green cloud, and then... *Boooom! * The explosion created a shockwave that shook the mountain, with the area where the poison cloud has previously covered becoming a massive crater that exposed a network of tunnels that seemed to run deep into the mountain itself. The yanking of its wing had forced its face within the blast radius, and now one half of the wyvern''s face was a huge and bloodied mess. It raised its other wing, using it to clip a rapidly approaching Kitagawa and sending backwards to smash into a boulder and then sent him rolling down the mountain to the forest of Stalagmites down below. Rezar wants too worried because he knew Kitagawa would be back, and he had scarcely come to that conjecture when three massive fox tails stabbed forwards into the side of the Wyvern, prompting it to scream out loud as a giant six tailed fox came running up the side of the Mountain. The Wyvern turned to face the incoming Kitagawa, opening its mouth wide to either released the compressed air blast, or the flammable poison gas it just used to decimate a 100-meter radius of the mountain. Rezar was prepared to stop the wyvern as a silver blue spectral skull shot out from his hand towards the wyvern, going into its head and causing it scream out loud in pain. The spectral skull skill was a magic based attack that didn''t cause any physical damage, instead it attacked your magic or mental energy directly, at least that''s what Rezar felt it did, the wyvern probably had massive migraines every time that attack was used. The skill it was about to use was cancelled as its chest got bloated for a second before going down, the wyvern was dazed from the attack, and even though it was three times the size of the eight-foot-tall kitsunes, it didn''t Stop Kitagawa from pouncing on its exposed neck, his fangs piercing through its scaled neck and eliciting a cry of pain from it. It was rapidly coming to its senses as its life blood spilled over the pristine white fur of Kitagawa, and it made Rezar frantic. The wyvern knew it was going to die, so it would probably be a little bit frantic, and any animal or beast backed into a corner would do anything to take its enemy down, so Rezar jumped. He retracted both blades and combined them back into Vita Gratia''s basic staff form, and the he turned upside down, falling from the sky as the Wyvern put up a last frantic struggle trying to dislodge Kitagawa from its neck. But Kitagawa was a predator, a hunter. Even if he just had to rely on his animal instinct and not just his intellect he was a hunter right on top of the food chain, so he knew how to kill a beast, and wyvern just couldn''t match up to his own intelligence and intellect. He knew how to position himself, how much force to apply and let the Wyvern''s frantic attempts to escape be the catalyst that would keep ripping its wound larger and larger, and he knew exactly when to move away when Rezar slammed into the head of the Wyvern like a bullet from the sky. *Boooom! * The wyvern''s head smashed into the ground as the horn on its head was cracked along with the scales around it. Vita Gratia was plunged deep between its eyes, as Rezar hunched over the dead lesser dragon, both his legs broken and his body worse for wear. He couldn''t move and the only thing keeping him upright was his dislocated hands holding on to Vita gratia. He felt the weapon grow warm, as the soul of the wyvern was absorbed, strengthening the weapon and in turn himself. Kitagawa showed up in his Kitsune form and used his paws to put Rezar on his back, before using his teeth to grab Vita Gratia. He didn''t any more prompting as he shot forwards down the mountain and into the forest of stalagmites. Right behind them were three other wyverns, much larger than the one they had just defeated, and being ridden by red skinned demons with horns that were on fire. "Looks like we got the attention of the people who own the castle.... well it''s such a shame we didn''t get to say hello to them Kitagawa, but regardless...let''s get the fuck out of here please." Chapter 227: The Abyss (VI): Escape The words ''stirring a hornet''s nest'' would be a perfect analogy to use in describing their current situation, however as it stands this was no hornet''s nest. But then again it didn''t matter in the slightest, the wyverns and their riders were unable to spot them as they moved through and past the stalagmites. Kitagawa made sure to move with the ones that were extremely large, letting their shadows and huge forms provide cover for them both until they caught up with Screet and the others. Rezar himself was barely conscious as the previous fight had taken him to his limits and back, and he was healing a bit slowly due to the atmosphere of this place. Even with the new world changing a lot of things, Rezar''s weakness to demonic energy remained, and he was now literally in hell. Every step he took, every breathe he drew in, every word he spoke was enough to make him die ten times over, because hell wasn''t anything if not the home of demonic energy itself. Eventually they got to the mountain that led them down here. They could see the dark clouds hovering above their heads that showed the route they had used in coming down here. Kitagawa stopped and threw Rezar over the back of Tony who had been waiting for his master. The ant didn''t even wait to be told anything as he shot upwards with Rezar, much to the shock of the others who only had ropes and their natural abilities to rely on. Tony was accosted half way up, the wyverns had caught up, and tony looked very much like what a good lunch would look like, especially when a tasty morsel like Rezar was slowly recuperating on his back. Tony surprised everybody though, the necrotic ant has mostly just served as his master''s loyal mount, but when one of the wyverns drew closer, claws outstretched to grab the ant, the giant insect had twisted his body in an arch and shot towards the throat of the wyvern, his pincers glowing a dull grey. *Snap! * It was loud, akin to the sound of a massive tree falling after its been cut, but in this case a wyvern was relived of its head, much to the shock of the still approaching Kitagawa and the others. Tony made his way back to the wall, sliding down a little before regaling his foothold and crawling upwards at a rapid pace most living things or dead, would be unable to match. But the wyverns were anything if not persistent, maybe it was because they had riders, but the death of the first wyvern and its plummet down to death didn''t scare them too much. The remaining two wyverns dived as tony scuttled upwards, but all of a sudden there was a flash of light and a loud roar, as giant lion almost as large as the wyverns shot out of Rezar''s back and crashed into both the wyverns, claws and fangs flashing in the process. "Varka!" Rezar called out, surprised at the Lion''s appearance. Honestly speaking ever since the new world came rolling around, he has been trying to get in touch with his familiar, but the lion had been completely unresponsive. It had gotten to the point where Rezar figured just like Priest, the world going tupsy turvy had displaced them both. It had become something else for him to worry about, but he was really excited and happy that the lion was safe, and he was huge! A lot larger than expected. After he had tangled his massive body with those of the wyverns, he rapidly shrunk, much to the surprise pf Rezar, who watched as he turned back into a normal size lion and jumped off the still falling bodies of the wyverns. At this point he had already achieved his aim as both wyvern crashed to the ground below, right on top of the forest of stalagmites that weren''t to forgiving about their appearance at it brutally pierced through the body of the wyverns. Some of the stalagmites could withstand the weight of the giant lizards and broke, and in the process spilled hot boiling lava on to their body, making the death throes a lot more painful than was expected. Screet and the others ascended swiftly and steadily just as Varka turned into a white beam of light that shot bac k in Rezar''s body. They vanished into the cloud that spat them here, just as a flock of demons followed behind them, only to smash into the cloud like it was a physical entity. There were loud screeches of pain and death as many broke wings and fell to unforgiving ground like rain from the sky. Kitagawa bore witness to this, and it gave him more relief than he would have cared to admit. This door, this gateway that they had come through was only one way. They could come and go, but any being from hell was incapable of going after them or using the gate to invade Morte Bianca. Honestly speaking it was a worrying discovery, a gate to hell right in their own backyard, and while not Demons can pass through, there was no guarantee that it would be like that forever. After all, Kitagawa himself was a demon and so were the guards who went down with him, how long will this gate last. They burst out of the cloud into a day just about to experience sunset, Rezar felt his body tingle and change almost as if he was experiencing a metamorphosis. The entrance of the massive hole now had towers built around its entirety and each and every single one of them was manned. There were also massive chains linked together and creating a lid over the hole, it shocked Rezar to no end, as he felt his bones pop and ache. They couldn''t move upwards due to the blockade of the chains, and their arrival seemed to have cause some sort of disturbance as hundreds of soldiers gathered around the l=mouth of the hole, glowing weapons and big guns pointed in their direction. Rezar couldn''t help but ask. "What the fuck is going one here!" Chapter 228: The Abyss (VII): Return Three months had passed and the world fucking changed, the tingling feeling he had from his body had been his body rapidly aging, to catch up to the three months he had lost just from spending three hours in hell. It was crazy and pretty much not something that most people could understand, and the thing is even Rezar himself found it very hard to understand just what the fuck was going on. How could the time in hell be so slow while that on Elysium ran like it was on freaking rocket boosters and a bunch of others things or factors that would just make the time to run so fucking fast! Like seriously! It was three MONTHS! Never the less this was time that he had lost and that no matter what he did he wasn''t getting back, it was a worrisome thing, but he couldn''t dwell too much on it. A lot could happen in three months, one of which would be receiving an official invitation from the snow elves to attend an exhibition banquet where their most priceless possession would be displayed and some of them auctioned off. It was quite a surprise to Rezar, but frankly speaking this was something g he couldn''t bring himself to give a shit about. he was lagging far behind as even his abilities had been unable to catch up with the speeding and slowing down of time. What he really wanted to do, was train and train hard. Tanks to the ingeniousness of Lenore and Alistair, the entrance/exit of the demon realm was well and completely secure...at least for now until he''s fully sure what the hell they were dealing with, and how to deal with it. Plus, he had to get stronger and fast too, this new world did not seem like the kind of world where a person can catch up to a rival in strength and power, strength didn''t scale according to levels anymore as frankly speaking, it doesn''t seem like there was going to be a level cap or a limit to the amount of power a person can have. And during the early stages is when the need of power would be most required, when everyone would be experiencing a rapid increase in strength. The area around the gate to hell or to be more specific the hole to hell had been completely repurposed and fortified. There was a massive stone wall around the perimeter of the hole itself, and a little way farther out was a chain link fence that was electrified twenty fours a day with enough volts to put a wyvern down. permanently. security was stringent, and after Rezar had given Lenore a debrief of what exactly it was they had seen and dealt with down there, the security had increased by a significant margin. Rezar was a little depressed, his plan to travel around Morte Bianca and a little bit of the Wild lands had been smashed to bits with the loss of three months. Now he had to return home to give a certain sense of security and fortification to and for his people. Frankly speaking a kingdom who''s king had been missing for three months was ripe for the picking and quite vulnerable, and Lenore was a fierce general. The borders have been besieged on all sides by enemies, and she alone with the help of Jason and surprisingly enough Gynaika. Lenore''s victory along the borders had done wonders for the morale of those who still lived Morte Bianca. A few of the orcs who couldn''t acclimate to the life of being in a single place and adapting to rules that for all intents and purposes would be considered civilized had left. They became brigands and robbers, going back to their old barbaric ways, and without Rezar around to impose his authority, they moved about without a smidge of consequence; burning villages, pillaging, raping and killing indiscriminately. Due to the constant skirmishes at the borders, Lenore has been spread too thin, Gynaika had to focus fully on governing the kingdom and making deals, while Alistair had pretty much no choice but to keep on developing tech and magic devices for both the soldiers and the citizens so he too was stretched thin. Besides there wasn''t much he could do when it came down to taking care of rampaging orc brigands. But the orcs themselves were the least of the problems Necron and Morte Bianca currently had. For one the orcs had inspired a bunch of others who weren''t lucky enough with the Rejuvenation. With so many displaced, and there being a change of geography, and a drought that was slowly beginning to spread in lands that weren''t under any form of proper governance. Morte Bianca was the prime target for all of these people. The only other stable civilizations were the snow elf kingdoms and the dwarves that bordered them on the Breone mountains. But these people were all sequestered in one place, and all that was there was rock and ice. There were the hidden fairy rings within the Kerwood forest, but locating them would be next to impossible. There was a wood elf kingdom, a colony of forest sprites and a few dozen human and other races villages, towns, cities and kingdoms within the forest. But there was only one safe way to access these kingdoms, after all the only roads that could be taken to get there was built and maintained by Morte Bianca. Rezar''s Kingdom was literally smack dab in the middle of every other kingdom. They had the roads, they had the fertile fields, they had the rapidly growing technology, they had the magic, they had Food! All eyes were on them, and unfortunately too few were willing to make deals, and this was because they all believed that Morte Bianca was occupying a position that was just as weak as everyone else, and with their king missing, the person who was somewhat single handedly responsible for building the kingdom, it made Morte Bianca even more weak and ripe for the picking. Lenore was not around, Roran was back in Necron being the minister of alchemy and running a pharmaceutical company that he had opened just a month ago. He had Screet, Kitagawa and annoyingly enough Tristian and the rest of his King''s guard who were actually stubborn enough to still remain here under Samira''s command, waiting for the return of their king. Most of the soldiers responsible for guarding the ''hole to hell'' were a part of the king''s guard, with many of them being new recruits and undergoing training within the harsh environment and suppressive aura of the ''hole to hell.'' Never the less this was enough, no one needed to know that the King had returned just yet, he would just quietly pay the orc brigands and the other bandits a visit.and after that. whoever was unfortunate enough to fall into his sights would just have to deal with the consequences of their actions, or just for fucking existing! Chapter 229: New Changes The best way to handle the problem of bandits would be to do so with a small elite force, the reason why Rezar didn''t really need anyone finding out he was alive and back would be because he knew there would be a frantic squabble to stake a claim in his territory before he got properly acclimated to the way his kingdom had changed in his absence. So rather than cause a frantic scramble for a piece of the pie that was Morte Bianca, it would be better to take them out one strike at a time, and now in this case they would be the pie, and he would eat them up one small nibble at a time. The single moon of Elysium was up in its fullest and brightest form, not that it had any other form, but Rezar just felt as if the moon was just a little bit brighter than normal. Never the less it wasn''t as if they needed the light of the moon to move, this particular team was completely comprised of vampires with nothing other than blood on their minds. There were two teams arranged, Kitagawa, Screet and Tristian were in charge of the day team, strictly speaking they were going after targets of their own. While Rezar and three of the best Daughters of the Eclipse along with their leader and Rezar''s subordinate, the Night Mother Samira would be going after the orc brigands that were closer. Samira paused under a rather thick tree that had its branches spread out in a canopy like way, facing all directions it, served as a shelter from the fierce light of the moon. She raised a small round disk and a holographic image popped up, Rezar blinked his eyes in surprise, sure he knew Necron had experienced a quantitative leap in technology and, magic thanks to the help of Alistair and the Muriel elves, but he did not think it was to the point where intractable holographic images were a thing, like where''s the fucking steampunk age before they made the bloody jump into a fucking space opera! The guns where one thing, but the way Samira interacted with the hologram, made Rezar realize something. It was a suspicion, and inkling of an idea, but he wasn''t exactly sure. Because if it was what he thought it was, then it would explain how Lenore had been able to handle all of the skirmishes at the borders without spreading herself and her soldiers too thin. He turned to Samira and asked the question that was right at the tip of his tongue. "Alistair Built the Oculus satellite?" his question startled Samira a bit, her red eyes seemingly glowing in the darkness as she shook her head in response before opening her mouthy to talk. "No Sire, the materials required for a full version of the satellite is almost impossible to obtain as some of them as we''ve found out are elements and ores that do not exist anywhere on Elysium. It would have to harvested from suitable meteorites or other planets. So he found a way to walk around that and instead created a team of small satellite drones that travel the atmosphere around Morte Bianca in twenty-four hour cycles. There''s a bit of detail to it, but from what I was told there are 12 of the drones, moving one hour apart from each other and covering one half of Elysium at any given time. So there''s always a blind spot to it, and somehow the orcs are always ahead of it. In about an hour we should outside the drone''s observation circle, I believe we should head to their last known recorded location, a report just came in and said they made routine drop on a village an hour from here. We can try to track them and their activities from there." It was a sound plan, and while he wouldn''t be remiss in saying it, it seems Samira had grown well into her position over the last three months he''s been away. It wouldn''t be too farfetched to say that Rezar felt like a proud parent, at first she was a prisoner, and then she was a hostage, and then she was set free and she chose to stay, and on a whim Rezar decided to make her the night mother [after careful consideration and screening on Lenore''s and Gynaika''s part. They had no intention of taking chances on his safety, which would have been touching if Rezar didn''t know he couldn''t trust Gynaika for her schemes and Lenore for her emotion clouded judgement. "If we have to move Samira I guess we should be doing it now, it''s almost midnight and I would very much like to be done with this as soon as possible." Rezar said to Samira who gave a curt nod of her head, before turning around and heading swiftly in a particular direction. Rezar followed behind her barely able to keep up as Samira and her fellow daughters of eclipse moved like shadows within the trees, at first Rezar wondered if perhaps they had unlocked a new skill of sorts, but then he remembered that most of them were bonded to wraith wolves, like the wraith wolves themselves were familiars for them, just as Varka was for him and the seven wolf kings he''s not seen yet. Those guys should be a bit bigger by now. They made their way outside the forest and onto and open plain, there was river that cut across the horizon, almost like a giant had taken a huge sword and carve out the land. The plain was a series of low rising hills that went up and down in the distance, and cutting a sharp swath forwards was the road that had progressed quite nicely. The road continued onwards before becoming a bridge that went over the six-meter-wide river, and then went forwards a bit before disappearing a bit into another patch of forest ahead. There were brightly lit lights on the road, and a toll booth at the beginning of the bridge, but one other thing that Rezar could notice was blood, not the sight of it, but rather the stench of it... something was wrong. Chapter 230: Spooky 1 The toll booth was not that big, however for a toll booth to be here, there has to either be a settlement or village close by, because even if the booth wasn''t big, it wasn''t large enough to house anybody. It was a mystery, but the trail of blood leading from the booth across the bridge was more than enough clue as to the direction who or whatever was responsible for this had ran to. Rezar marched up to the booth, he could smell blood and death, but there was no sense of life that he could detect, and if there was anything a vampire could do well, it was sense life. And that made it very peculiar, because even in the absence of people, there should always be a trace of life hovering around in one way or the other, whether it was by grass, or the insects buzzing in the air. But this place had nothing, it was like a dead zone, nothing came in and nothing went out, there was just a void, and this didn''t make much sense to Rezar. But Elysium became a whole new reality in one day like it was changing its clothes after a bath. Strange things did no more than surprise him a little from now on. Rezar opened the booth with Samira close behind him, she took a step backwards soon after and started dry heaving as she lost the contents of her stomach. Even as a vampire, Rezar had to admit that what he could see what pretty gory. Fortunately, he had stronger stomach than most, which was probably brought on from the fact that he could also be this artistic when it came to the job of killing a person. The personnel in charge of overseeing the toll booth had roots growing out of his chests, stomach, eyes, ears and nose. The roots where green with thorns and creeping vines that seemed to spread all over the booth, and right above the man''s head, from his split skull his brain had taken the form of a pumpkin, and one that seemed to have been carved into the face of a Jack-o-lantern. Rezar moved closer and took a quick look at the man''s brain, he squinted his eyes in confusion as he noticed a few peculiarities with the man''s brains. Well even more peculiarities considering said brain was popping out of his cracked open skull; never the less, his brain was stiff, like clay or maybe burnt toast. It was gray and there was a silver of crust on it that reminded Rezar of dried plant juice or something along that line. And then the very obvious fact that said brain was carved like a jack-o-lantern, this was a weird crime scene. Even weirder than he would have ever thought. "What do you think is responsible for this Samira?" Rezar asked, using the word ''What'' specifically. It was hard to imagine that there would be a person with such an ability, and it was eerie as fuck and creepy as shit! "I''m not exactly sure your Majesty, I haven''t seen anything like this before? It was worrying, and honestly speaking Rezar didn''t like it, whatever or whoever might have caused this amount of damage, that person doesn''t seem to be far off as the scene seems pretty fresh, and even worse it was heading in the direction of the village they were going to investigate. Rezar looked around the tool booth one more time, he focused his gaze even more trying to look for anything out of the ordinary. But the entire scene was clean, there really wasn''t anything Rezar could use to tie this gory scene to a suspect or a creature. "We don''t have much time, we should hurry along, I wouldn''t want to lose the trail of whatever did this. Do you have a scent Samira?" Rezar asked as he walked out of the toll booth and raised his head into the air, taking a much deeper breath than normal. "Yes your Majesty. processed wood and earth, the kind that can be found in the garden, except it didn''t go across the bride but under it." Rezar nodded his head he moved towards the river, there were tracks on the ground, but it was uneven and didn''t match the foot prints of normal person, and it didn''t match one of an animal either. "At the very least we can say whoever did this is well aware of our methods in tracking him or her down, so its definitely a person and not an it. There might be smarter monsters in existence now, but this is too peculiar. The water would wash away its scent, and the river seems to be shallow enough to cross to the other side, he or she is obviously a good swimmer. The tracks end by the river and it shows no sign of them coming back out. Go check the other bank for tracks, ignore scents for now and move a little way downstream where the river curves into a bend and into the woods. They might have let the current sweep them down a bit." Samira had a look of respect on her face for Rezar, his analysis was spot on and quite frankly unexpected. She knew just how much of a loose Cannon the King of Morte Bianca was, so it came as a great surprise to her that he could analyze a crime scene with such clarity and insight to the point of even being able to predict the suspect''s actions. Rezar ignored the almost glazed look of respect on Samira''s face as he went across the bridge, while Samira and her subordinates leaped over the river itself. Rezar looked up at the sky and closed his eyes, he spread his senses outwards, taking in the scents and the feeling of energy as it spread across the air and danced over his skin. Samira and her subordinates might be searching for a physical clue, but Rezar was after something else, it was worth a try trying this, but what he was looking for was magic, and he knew he would find it soon, it was the one thing the new reality heavily implemented. And because of that, magic now left traces, and everyone had it, and there were no better trackers than vampires.... he could find the magic. Chapter 231: Spooky 2 "Your Majesty!" Rezar winced in annoyance as his concentration was broken by the Samira''s call. He moved towards where she was standing with her underlings, right by the river bank, with an all too excited look on her face. "What have you found?" Rezar asked as he turned to the Night Mother. "there are foot prints on the bank, but it''s strange. From what I can see a pair came towards the river, but when it left it had doubled, and from the way the footprints are close and intermingled, its either a pair of lovers hugging each other, two friends with their arm over each other''s shoulder, or someone helping and injured or tired person move. One of the footprints has a deeper indentation than the other, so it''s either two smaller men, or a woman and a man. But above all this, the fact still remains that one set of footprints approached the river, yet two left it and went into the forest." Rezar nodded his head in acknowledgement, causing a smile to stretch over Samira''s face. The Night mother had hoped to impress the king, but judging from the annoyed look on the face of her underlings, she just stole someone or all of their discoveries. But she didn''t care one bit, the approval of the Bone King was something she sought after greatly, and being bonded to him as vampire who he sired, she felt even more compelled to please him. Rezar knelt in front of the river as he made a couple of observations, calling them out loud and filling in the blanks in Samira''s report. "On the other side a sort of creature went into the river, and on this side a man came out, even though we thought he was trying to avoid detection by going into the river, based on the footprints left behind, even if they''re leading to the forest, it shows that we''re not dealing with careful people. And if we have to go by all of the obvious evidence you''ve found from the footprints, I would say our suspect is injured or exhausted, and being supported by a small male or a female. Which means we have an accomplice, and even if the river has washed his scent away, the accomplice should still leave traces. What do you smell?" "Processed wood!" "Vegetables. Pumpkins actually!" "Smoke and chicken. fried chicken!" All of Samira''s subordinates spoke up at the same time, saying everything before she could steal anymore credits from them. Rezar found it amusing, so even amongst the King''s guard hints of politics were beginning to take shape. He could put a stop to it, but he wouldn''t. the threat of her position being taking away of him giving his favor to any of her subordinates would probably keep her on her toes. "The three of you follow your scents to the village ahead, or rather head to the village and trace it. Samira and I would follow the tracks to the forest. You''re all very good, but there''s one thing you all missed... and that''s the smell of death." With that said Rezar ran into the forest, his body a blur as Samira rushed to keep up with him, easily matching his pace as they vanished into the canopy of green and secrets. Rezar had been a vampire longer than any of them, so his senses were a bit sharper, and as such he could perceive things a lot better than the vampires who were turned from his blood, or were turned by people he had already turned. Never the less it didn''t take them 20 minutes before the came out of the forest, standing on top of a hill that overlooked a large farm. Beyond the farm was a village that was partly in ruins with some part of it still smoldering in the aftermath of flames. It looked like the village had just been attacked, but the current state of the village wasn''t what really drew his attention. It was the farm, and the rows upon rows of pumpkin patches and pumpkins spread in neat symmetrical rows. There was a small farm house and a barn next to it. And then from the farm there was a small dirt road that led up to the village itself. Seems the farm was the first building anyone would encounter before they got into the village proper. But never the less there was a lot of peculiar things about this farm, and one of the most peculiar thing was that there was a massive split pumpkin in the farm, it was also carved just like the brain of the man he had seen in the toll booth, and apart from that Rezar could feel it; he could feel magic from the pumpkin. But from the pumpkin there was a patch of blackness that seemed to spread, and it was all coming from blackened vines that seemed to stretch from the bottom of the pumpkin all the way to the farm and even into the village. Just as he noticed the vines, the remaining subordinates of Samira showed up, but maybe calling them subordinates would be the wrong word as they too were proud members of the daughters of the eclipse and vampires in their own right. He shook his head as he crouched down to observe, for some reason Rezar found this position calming and crouching down closer to the earth seemed to give him a lot more clarity than normal. "The village is deserted your majesty! We found tracks leading further eastward, the forest of Kerwood ends in under two miles from here before the plains attached to the Breone mountains come into view. There are a few other bodies in the village having been killed in the same way as the man in the booth. Others were killed by bladed weapons, which is to say either this pumpkin brain murders came first, or the bandits had passed through first. Never the less, the village is empty." Rezar nodded his head to them, his gaze still not shifting from the giant pumpkin as he said. "Looks like its Halloween girls, time to get your scare on." Chapter 232: Spooky 3 The giant pumpkin was something Rezar wanted to avoid, but somehow he got the feeling that doing so would cause more harm than good, he felt watched, like he was being observed. Samira''s underlings had actually ran through the pumpkin farm without any sort of problem, but now there was something off about the entire farm as a whole, and his attention was being split in two directions, never the less it seems they had to at least investigate that giant pumpkin in the middle of the farm. The pumpkin itself was almost in pieces, looking as if someone or something had clawed its way out of it. But even with all of that, the insides of the pumpkin were dark, even with the night vision afforded Rezar by his [Supernatural Body] skill, he still couldn''t see through the massive cracks on the body of the pumpkin. He shook his head in annoyance, he really had no idea what was going on here, and with every second that passed, he felt more and more off about this entire situation. Something spooky was going on here, but not just spooky, but something evil. He pulled vita gratia and combined it into its staff form, then he turned to Samira and her fellow daughters of the eclipse. "I have a bad feeling about this, so you guys should keep your distance. You can offer ranged support which I''m sure you''re all capable of, I think we''re in for a tough fight." Samira opened her mouth to complain about Rezar''s arrangement, but a hand up from her king had shut her mouth. The smug look of victory on the face of her subordinates did not escape Rezar''s gaze, and this time he was actually worried that this bad blood that seems to have cropped up would devolve into a full blow civil war between the daughters of the eclipse. But it was much too early for such political maneuverings. Rezar shifted his gaze and started coming down the small hill, leaving behind the embrace of the forest as he walked towards the farm. He was vigilant, trying his best to keep his eyes peeled for anything untoward. He stepped onto the field of pumpkins and his body shuddered. He could feel the magic that was permeating the field, it was like it had a domain of its own as it was contained within the field itself and didn''t spread out. But never the less this feeling, this magic was malevolent, it wasn''t as if Rezar was a 100% sure about what he was sensing, but this energy had a hint of mischievousness and evil. If there ever was a feeling for something evil, it would be what he was currently feeling right now. Suddenly goosebumps stretched allover his skin and all the hair on his body stood up like they were being attracted by some sort of biological magnet. He saw the attack before Samira had the chance to opened her mouth and shout out a warning, unfortunately, Rezar wasn''t fast enough to evade it. A massive root three inches thick shot out of the ground and straight through his body. Rezar''s body became rigid for a few seconds as he felt a wave of foreign energy seep into his body. It gave him pause, and whatever had decided to attack him decided to pressed its advantage as another root went straight for his throat, but in this case, Rezar was not alone. "Bang!" The sound of a loud gun shot rang out as one of the Daughters of eclipse pulled out a gun that Rezar recognized as the viper sniper rifle. Inn that same moment Samira stabbed her right hand into the ground, and thin thorn vines about two-centimeter-thick blasted out of the ground, going round the field and ruining the black roots that were spread all around. It was from her actions that Rezar realized it was the black roots stretching from underneath the ruined giant pumpkin that were responsible for the attack on him. A system notification quickly flashed in front of him. [Magic skill Tree has unlocked new skill; 5 skill points have been deducted.] [Magic: Empathic Magic Perception (1)] [+10 to Mental, +10 to Magic, +5 Speed] All of a sudden the world seemed a lot brighter and clearer, the sounds louder and scents sharper. Rezar moved his body to the side, ignoring the pain in his stomach from the root stuck in his body and the energy that was currently going on a rampage within him. Another root shot past his head, nicking his ear and drawing blood as he swung Vita Gratia downwards, one of the blades at its end shoot out towards the pumpkin with the intent to cleave the infernal vegetable in half. Dozens of black roots shot up to form a sort of dome above the Pumpkin, but Vita Gratia was no common weapon, as most of the roots were slashed through, before it quickly retracted back to Rezar, who used it so sever the root stabbing into his body from the back, and then pulled the other half out of his stomach from the front. He split the staff and sliced both Khophesh to the sides as they stretched out, their chains releasing rattling sounds and a dull glow as it seemed as it twins crescent slashes were sent in the direction of the pumpkin. Both blades carved a rather nasty hole on the body of the Pumpkin, forcing it to finally react for the first time since this fight started. *Grooooaaaaaaarrrrrrrrr!* *Bang! * Its loud roars were cut short as a gleaming bullet smashed a pot sized hole on its body. The pumpkin shuddered as all of the black roots quickly retracted to form multiple spider like legs that raised the pumpkin high. The pumpkin on its own was 7 feet tall and about 15 feet in diameter, and now with the spider legs it had suddenly grown, the bloody thing was easily two stories tall. And that was when flames blazed with its dark interior, proving and showing that splits it had was actually carvings of the eyes, mouth and nose synonymous with all Jack-o-Lanterns and Halloween decorations, and as an added bonus it breathes fire! Chapter 233: Spooky 4 From the carved out fang like mouth of the giant pumpkin, a bout of flames blasted out, spread across the farm in a fan like manner as it rushed towards Rezar who was the only combatant close to the monster. A wall of extremely thick thorn bushes sprang up into existence in front of Rezar. And honestly let''s be practical, a skill like this might sound awesome, but in the end it was still just dried thorns bushes against the full might of a fire that''s decidedly not normal and spooky as hell. Rezar swung Vita gratia, letting hid right Khophesh fly across a twenty-meter distance to get embedded in a wall of the farm house. Then Rezar let the blade and chain retract, dragging him out of the way before he became a well done vampire with a sprinkle of pumpkin juice. He moved out of the way in time as the flames swallowed the spot he was occupying after just mere seconds of it being held back by Samira''s thorns. Rezar rushed forwards, his body developing a hazy glow as he started using his [Mana Charge] skill. His feet seemed to leave glowing blue footprints as his body was a blur, trailing a hazy blue light behind him. He held both Khophesh to the side as the glow of his magic spread to them, and right at the tip of both blades, a hazy silver skull came into being. Rezar didn''t stand on ceremony as he swung both blades, the illusory skulls blasting forwards and leaving a trail of light of their own. [Spectral Skull] *Bang! * [Magic: Spectral Skull, has leveled up to 2. + 3 to mental. +5 to magic, damage increased by 10%] There wasn''t an explosion of sorts, but the moment both skulls went into the body of the pumpkin, there seemed to be a small explosion as the flames within the pumpkin went haywire and blasted out its side, creating a rather ugly hole in its side that prompted it to roar out loudly in pain. This wasn''t the time for it, but Rezar couldn''t help but come up with a quick analysis. Fundamentally speaking, the energy or magic everyone and everything now has is the same, sharing the same fundamental origin. The magic would only experience a change or rather a metamorphosis. It''s still magic and mana and energy, but it becomes unique to who and whatever now wielded it. A magic that your own body and system could recognize. But when you introduce another source of energy into the mix, especially one that''s given purpose like the [Spectral Skull] skill that causes damage not to a person''s body, but rather their magic. It''s safe to say, pouring gas in a noodle broth would give even the hardest eaters a tummy ache. And because of the introduction of a volatile and foreign magic energy into another, there was what Rezar would at this moment call a magical imbalance, and it gave the Pumpkin. Gas? The giant pumpkin reeled back from the internal explo... implosion, obviously in severe pain as it seemed to have lost its balance. The daughters of midnight did not even give it any chance to regain its footing as multiple gunshots rang out. All three of Samira''s subordinates had guns out and were taking free shots at the giant Pumpkin that just kept reeling and moving backwards, bleeding out extremely hot pumpkin juice that looked like lava. Samira''s thorns had become long barbed vines that wrapped around the pumpkin and stabbed in and out of its extremely weak and defenseless fleshy body. In the end Rezar was left completely idle as there was absolutely nothing left or available for him to do. The pumpkin was fully and wholly under the control of the daughters of midnight. Every time the pumpkin monster felt the need to spit fire at them, and well timed and well placed shot would smash into its forehead, creating a sort of concussive blow that would interrupt the release of its skills, and leave it even more injured. With nothing left to do, Rezar sat on the ground and just waited for the Night Mother and her sisters to slowly whittle the pumpkin down. Or at least that would have been the plan, if a woman dressed in a yellow floral sundress had not barged out of the house and ran right onto the battlefield before spreading her arms wide in front of the pumpkin that was now just about a quarter of its former size. "Please I beg you! Don''t kill my brother!" there was an immediate lull in the battlefield the moment she showed up, everyone paused, the Giant pumpkin, now known to be a man. or something like that also paused and stopped fighting. All eyes were on the new arrival and everyone was waiting to see who would make the first move, and Rezar did. "You guys should kill them all." His order was completely unexpected; he didn''t even ask for an explanation or a story to at least know what was going on with this village. Instead he just gave the order to have them killed, and it was so brutal that Samira couldn''t help asking. "Your Majesty why- " "What do you smell? All of you tell me right, what do you smell?" Rezar cut her off as he asked her and her fellow sisters for an answer. They were caught off guard, but they would do as he asks regardless, questioning him could be considered treason, the king''s words were absolute. "I smell blood your Majesty!" one of the other girls said. "It wasn''t just a single scent; it was all blood but they came from different sources." Rezar nodded his head sagely and kept his eyes closed, but then he asked a question. "Have anyone of you ever been able to tell the difference between the blood of an infant living being and that of a grown up." He didn''t need to say anything else as all eyes were turned to the woman, and not the pumpkin. Because whiled the pumpkin was their primes suspect and a monster trying to eat them for Halloween, it was the sister who smelled of the blood of young children, and so much of it that it almost made Rezar choke on its thickness. Death danced around her in such a thick cloud that Rezar felt he could just reach out and touch it. This woman was a murderer, and that was one other suspect added to the case of the dead toll booth officer. "Happy Fucking Halloween Bitch!" Chapter 234: Spooky 5 Rezar was not going to claim he was standing on the ''Moral high ground'' he had enough blood and sins on his hand, maybe even more so than this woman. But whether his actions of causing a loss of life due to war or sometimes an attempt to defend himself was more defensible, it still didn''t change the fact that for whatever reason, this woman and murdered dozens of children, so much so that the very act had seeped into her and tainted her very being. This new world of Elysium is very different, very real, and very consequential. As much as there was great power to be had, there was also great evil to be brought to life. "Who are you to judge me!" she yelled at them as she moved a step backwards to the quivering giant pumpkin that was barely whole. As she asked, Samira took a fierce step forward and said. "Your standing in the presence of the king! Peasant! Show him some respect!" Samira barked out in anger, but the only response she got from the woman was her spitting at the ground with a look of disdain on her face. "What King! Him? No wonder our lives went to shit! He''s just a fucking kid! And he''s no king of mine. Because while he was off doing whatever the fuck he liked for three whole months! We were attacked by orc bandits! Orcs he had chosen to make a part of his kingdom! And my brother! My brother! No! I don''t regret anything! I did what I had to do to make sure my brother survives! And everything I did, every life I have taken! It would not have been necessary if the fucking King did his job and protected us like he should have. But instead what did he do, he vanished and left us to the mercies of orcs! I can''t tell you how many times they''ve. How many times my body was... how many.... Arghhh!!! Die!!!!" Rezar had this sinking feeling in his stomach, it was not the kind of feeling once would get from trepidation or fear, it was foreign to him. Or maybe not really, he''s felt this before, back when Neema had died. But this was not the anger that came with her loss, this was the feeling of him seeing himself as utter crap, a complete waste of space that was no help to anybody at all. Of all the emotions he had missing, this was one he wished was also gone. This was guilt, though he had to be honest if guilt was missing, then there wouldn''t be any part of him that was alive or human, he would have been just a monster... just as everyone who looked at him thought he was. Rezar was pulled out of his thought as the woman rushed towards him, but even if he was pulled out of his thoughts he was still immediately stunned as she was literally crawling on the ground like a spider. She was moving way to fast than was possible for a human who was moving in her kind of position. And it wasn''t just that, her lips had been split going the entire length of her jaws, she pulled them back practically splitting her face in half as she leaped at Rezar, her form almost a blur. There was a loud bang as a shot was taken, and her form was flung back, black blood floating in the air as she moved backwards in the air before landing in a heap in front of her brother, that''s now a pumpkin. But the shot from the sniper wasn''t enough to keep her down as she flipped herself up and swung an arm from fifteen feet away at Rezar. There was a blast of air that quickly condense itself in three blackish red claw marks that flew towards Rezar, ripping everything in front of him to shreds. A dome of thorns quickly sprung up around him, and right behind that were spikes of blood that rushed past him towards the woman. The claw marks blasted the thorn dome to pieces, but Rezar was already ready for the attack. [Summon Skeleton] Using the skeleton as a cannon fodder was obviously unfair, but the hunk of bones was enough of deflect the strike, though what was left quickly turned into bone dust that floated away. The spikes of blood shooting out of the earth was evaded by the pumpkin throwing himself in front of the attack for his sister. But that was redundant as the attack skewered the giant pumpkin, eliciting a roar of pain from it as it reeled back, prompting a screech of anger from his horrifying sister. But all she got for her problems was a bullet in the head as she was blasted backwards again. Rezar did not hesitate, her story might be tragic and all, and it was mainly his fault, but this woman and her brother have become dangerous. They couldn''t be allowed to remain alive, and sure that might seem like more sin on his hands, but one thing Rezar was sure of was that everyone was accountable for their own actions. Sure he let his curiosity get the best of him ''again'' but the children that had died were all killed by this woman, and maybe by her brother. And the murders weren''t just limited tom kids, as the toll booth officer was a prime example of innocents that were caught in the way of these siblings. One misfortune led to another, and sure the root of all o this was him not being around to keep an eye on his kingdom, he would have to deal and live with that for the rest of his life. But unlike these two, if his time in Elysium with all of his adventures and the situations he has been in had taught him anything, it was that sometimes life wasn''t fair. It was unexpected, cruel and spontaneous. And in all of that the only thing you could really do was make the best of whatever situation was in front of you and keep moving forward. Which was why as Vita Gratia fell towards the spooky witch like woman, there wasn''t even a shred of hesitation in his mind, heart or body. He was going to kill her, and nothing would stop him. Chapter 235: Tainted Rezar could tell that even with all of the bullshit, these siblings cared a lot about each other, he wouldn''t say they loved each other as that word and emotion was as foreign to him as the aliens that now roam all of Elysium. But obviously there was a powerful bone between them, which was why Rezar expected the giant pumpkin to jump in front of his strike and attempt to save the life of his sister. He wasn''t wrong in that assumption, not one bit, but he still had no intention of slowing down. They both had to be put down, he didn''t know what others might think, but giving them release from this life, and a chance to move on to the next peacefully and without remembering any of the horrors they''ve experienced here was a favor they would never be able to pay him back for. But he owed them for his negligence, so he will kill them as an apology. *Bang! * There were no screams when both blades of Vita Gratia, swing from their chains, slashed the giant pumpkin in half. Its defense was bad enough, and Samira and her fellow daughters of the eclipse had done significant damage to it. Rezar was able to split the pumpkin in half, with flames leaking out from the split. The giant monster took a step back, and then another. And then from ever hole in its body, even the carved out mouth, eyes and nose, a conflagration of flames shot out, painting the gloomy sky with a hue of red and orange that looked really beautiful. Rezar had to admit that this was probably one of the most beautiful things he''s ever seen in his life, truly as they say... death can be a beautiful thing. But then again nobody says that, so that phrase would be called into question by many. The pumpkin began to turn grey, rapidly rotting as its black roots shriveled up and embers within its form seemed to slowly die out. And then its body began to break away, the grey seemingly turning to ash that was blown away by a soft breeze, taking what was left of the pumpkin from here on to the next life. It was such a melancholic sight, and it was deep and impactful. But regardless of what he was feeling it wouldn''t compare to what his sister was feeling. She was unable to shit her gaze as the pumpkin turned grey and faded away, and then all that was left behind was a black heart floating in the air. It beat once, twice, then thrice. And then it stopped, and it too became ash that floated away with the wind. "Arrghhhhhhhh!! Noooo!!! Noooo!!! Brother! I''ll kill you REZAR DEATHWIND!" Rezar could nit claim to understand the pain she was currently feeling, there was a darkness in her eyes that he didn''t understand. And that wasn''t no fault of his, if you can''t feel love, then there''s no way you can feel pain, true pain. The kind of pain that could break a man and cause him to curse the world, cause him to just like this sister in front of Rezar, to damn the world in other to save the person you loved the most or deal with the pain in your heart regardless of the consequences or whatever sin you might have to commit in other to do so. Rezar couldn''t understand pain, but seeing this woman in front of him, with her anger and her murderous look and complete lack of self-control, Rezar hoped he never gets to feel love and that truly that emotion was completely missing from him for all of his life. She bounded across the ground, leaping in much the same manner a deer would when it''s trying to evade a hunter, Rezar didn''t move as he let her slam into his body, her jaws heading for his throat as his body skidded backwards, his feet digging trenches into the farm. Samira and her comrades were still, their hearts calm as they watched their king hug the monstrous woman. She moved a bit, before the sounds of her silent wailing reached them, and Rezar held her still, even as her teeth were still latched on to his throat. Her form began to change, receding back into the normal humanoid form that she had, with not even a single sign of the hideous monster left behind. Rezar took a step back, his face impassive and monotonous as he looked at the woman and her glistening eyes filled with tears. He shook his head as he looked at her, he felt that there was so much he had to say to her, but he just couldn''t find the right words. But then again what could he say, which words would come out of his mouth to make this situation right. There was nothing. And frankly speaking Rezar had too much going on than to let this situation and scenario weight him down, so in the end all he could saw was. "Sorry." And then he pulled back Vita Gratia which had been stabbed deep into her body and out her back. There was a spurt of blood that landed on his face, but considering how foul smelling her blood was, Rezar regretted his actions immediately. But he kept his cool, this woman was tainted, everything about her just seemed so wrong, and in the end her actions had stained even the blood in her body. And so he stood there watching as she slid to the ground, the lights in her eyes gradually growing dim as the cabbage patches and vines seemed to stretch themselves forward to embrace her. Rezar reckoned it was just an illusion, but who knows. For every choice made, there''s an advantage or a gain, but ultimately there are always consequences. It''s hard to tell what the right choice to make might be, the only thing you can really do about it is live your best life and roll with the punches. At the very least be true to your responsibilities, and that''s the lesson Rezar had just learnt. It was time for him to stop behaving like a child, and start behaving like a king. Because frankly speaking this entire situation with the orcs and now these siblings is a recipe for Morte Bianca''s destruction. After all,'' A Kingdom Divided against itself will not stand should it ever fall, and if it should fall. It would be by its own hands. Chapter 236: The Story Of Sin Rezar was waiting at the entrance of the village, Samira and her comrades were investigating the house of the siblings. The village was deserted and Rezar could not feel a single trace of life coming from it. Maybe he should move around a bit to look for survivors, but they were not his priorities at the moment as the only thing he could actually bring himself to worry about right now was the bandits. They were still a threat that had to be taken care of, but before they could do anything like that, Samira had to make sure those sibling didn''t leave anything behind that could cause any sort of problem in the future. Call him paranoid, but he really wanted to cover all of his bases. The silence of the village was broken by Samira''s arrival, she was clad in a thick scent of smoke and burnt grass. Rezar turned around and saw the farm lit up in a rapidly Increasing blaze as the remaining three daughters of eclipse came down from the farm in their direction. Rezar wasn''t sure burning the house was a good idea as there were probably more secrets to be uncovered within its shabby wooden form, but what will be will be. As such there was no need crying over spilt milk or missed opportunities. "Ok Samira, tell me what you found; you seem all too eager to tell me about it," "We found a diary in the house your Majesty, and its contents are quite disturbing." Samira said as she handed a black book to Rezar that was bound by a dark red leather string that looked eerily like a strip of flesh. Rezar tossed the book to Samira and asked her. "Tell me what you found within its pages." Rezar said to her, completely unwilling to look through the book itself. He didn''t know why, but he was extremely apprehensive about what he could find within its pages, so he''d much rather have Samira tell him the main points. At the very least, he knew she would censor a bit of things just to avoid upsetting him, "her brother was a casualty on the very first day they were raided by bandits. He was stabbed in the heart, however he had a higher vitality than most, so he didn''t die immediately. He was forced to watch as the orcs took his sister, one after the other, unable to look away and unable to do anything lest he bled to death. They were humans that made the migration to escape from the destruction of earth, new uploads in this new Elysium that''s a hundred times more brutal than the last. She had skills for witchcraft, and Elysium is now a world or rather a universe that could be heavily influenced and changed by just the words of the people who live in it. Her grief was given form, and a spell was crafted that could save her brother''s life by transplanting his heart into a living inanimate object. But in order for that to work, she had to spill the blood of young innocents equivalent to the amount of years she and her brother had been alive. She was 28 and he was 22, equaling to fifty years in total. Which meant in order for her to transfer her brother''s consciousness to the pumpkin, keeping his body in a sort of suspended animation until she was able to find a way to heal him and wake him up. What she didn''t expect was for how broken she would become after the deed was completed, it changed her completely as her darkness seemed to swallow her whole. The guilt she felt. It changes her sire! Twisted her and turned her into something that wasn''t human or even normal. The villagers were never the same again, as quite literally this was a village of uploaded humans, everyone here was practically family and very attached to each other. She couldn''t live with the guilt of separating parents from their children, so she and her brother took the lives of what was left of the villagers. The toll booth officer was the last, however his death might have been well deserved as the siblings had found out that he was actually responsible for some of their misfortunes with the bandits, if not all of it. Killing him was just revenge for everything they''ve been through, and he was the last they had to take care of before they moved on to another town and tried to fit in, or head into the forest to live out the rest of their lives if she couldn''t find a way to save her brother and restore his consciousness to a completely whole body." Rezar nodded his head as he took a deep breath; Samira''s words were impactful in a way as a lot of things seemed to have made a bit more sense to him. But there was still so much he couldn''t relate to, but how could he, he wasn''t exactly what you would call whole or complete. The basic things that made a human or rather a living being what it was or should be was missing in his life. And in this moment where a heart of understanding was needed to sympathize with the sister and brother he didn''t feel a thing. In the end Rezar felt that love was overrated, it caused more harm than good and he was glad to be rid of it. "never the less your majesty we''ve got a lead on the bandits, her last entry says they went south east towards the plains, and that was roughly a day ago. If we hurry in that direction, it''s possible we would be able to catch up to them." Rezar shook his head as Samira spoke. "I don''t need possibilities; I need definite outcomes. Get a scent, we need to make sure the entries in her diaries are trustworthy, and it''s not all some random ramblings of a witch driven crazy by grief and desperation. You all have 10 minutes, get their scent! I''m done playing detective." Chapter 237: Bronze Rank III The smoldering remains of the village was left behind as Rezar and Samira dived back into the confines of the forest, maybe it would have been better if they rested a bit, built as far as he was concerned Rezar was in a hurry, and the longer he spent the more chance the orc bandits would have to get away. Frankly speaking they didn''t need to go through the forest again, but Rezar liked the cover the forest gave him, the orcs won''t see them coming. Things have happened pretty fast in the village, so there was probably still enough time for them to catch up with the bandits. Samira had said the bandits were an hour ahead of them, but based on when the entries in the diary was written, those bandits could hours, a day if not days away. However thankfully they got a scent, and while it was completely weird for vampires to track like common dogs, this was as important as it came. They could only chase after the bandits by relying on their superior senses, and not using everything at their disposal because it wasn''t exactly normal would be incredibly stupid. Rezar shook his head as he decided to a pay a bit of attention to the system notifications he got during the battle. [skill Necromancer: Summon Skeleton Has Leveled up to 3. Mental increased by 5, Magic by 10, Skeleton is now a lot more resilient, stronger and faster. Amount of skeletons summonable has been increased.] [Skill Weapon Mastery: Swords, staffs, chains have leveled up to 2, strength increased by 9, speed by 15, constitution by 6] [Skill Magic: Mana Charge has leveled up to 3, Mental +5, Magic +10] [Skill Necromancer: Spectral Skull has leveled up to 4, Mental +12, Magic +12] [Skill Vampire: Supernatural Body has leveled up to 5, Constitution +20, Strength +20, Mental +25, Magic +25, Speed +30. Auxiliary effects unlocked! Pick one.] [Skill Vampire: Supernatural Body level 5 Auxiliary Effects: (Power King: Strength +50) (Undying Lord: Constitution +50) (Mage Prince: Magic +50) (Dark Seer: Mental +50) (Speed Demon: Speed +50)] Rezar nodded his head to no one in particular as he looked at the system prompt. If he could stop moving for a while he could maybe give himself a week or two to train and increase his stats and rank. But he''s been busy ever since he returned from his short visit to hell. It would have been completely bad if he had to be honest, but thankfully the increase of his skills were adding levels to his abilities. While the gains weren''t as obvious as a full blown training that would help both his skills level up and his body gain stats, it was still a steady increase in ability and he was quite happy about it. But even with all this, his Supernatural body skill getting to level 5 was shocking, it was almost as if the fights with the wyverns and followed quickly by the giant pumpkin was quite lucrative. Even more so for the pumpkin, perhaps with its root lodge in Rezar''s body, the skill might have leveled up after being subjected to a poison or skill designed to probably turn him into the same mess as the tool booth officer that had been the trigger for the showdown with those Halloween siblings, heck the brother was even named Jack! Which was a weird coincidence. Never the less back to the matter at hand, Rezar had to choose from the auxiliary skills offered to his [Supernatural Body] skill. While vampires were known as really fast or really strong, it seems their growth or abilities wasn''t all round. Sure they were faster, stronger and much more resilient. But it seems the vampires of at least this new Elysium would have to pick a specialization. His magic and mental were his highest stats, his speed was lagging but it was coming along just fine, what he lacked most in was his constitution and strength. If he had to be honest, he severely missed the time when he could take any sort of damage and immediately shrug it off like it means nothing. Not now where a bunch of injuries would leave him down and out for the count. But back then, and even now he lacked the strength that vampires were known for. It was a conundrum, but Rezar knew what he had to choose. In gaming terms his extreme healing factor had made him sort of tank, he always took the front line while his followers could spam skills as much as they wanted to. It didn''t matter if they also hit him in the process as he would be completely okay in just a few seconds. But at the time he had a bunch of other skills to help him deal a lot more damage than the norm. maybe it was time he went a different route than before, besides all stats drew from each other. You couldn''t have extreme strength without a sturdy constitution to manage it. And if you increase your strength stat, unlike the old world where the allocation of stats was unreal and impractical, in this new Elysium a hundred strength would probably add a +20 or 30 constitution. Of course the numbers wouldn''t be seen, but it could be felt. But even above all that there was a system alert that he was all too happy to see, looks like he wouldn''t be as weak as he thought he would be. [You have gotten three stats above 100! You have advanced to a Bronze rank III, stats advanced!] [Skill Vampire: Supernatural body has chosen Power King as auxiliary effect.] [Rezar Deathwind] = [Age: 17] = [Class: King] = [Rank: Bronze III] [Race: Vampire] = [Bloodline: Storm Dragon// Death God//(HIDDEN)] [Mental (II): 4] = [Magic (II): 9] = [Constitution: 56] = [Strength (II): 0] = [Speed: 76] [Traits: War Edge//Black Magician] {Skill Trees} [Vampire: Supernatural Body {Power King} (5)// Bullet Time (1) +] [Necromancy: Summon Skeleton (2)// Spectral Skull (3) +] [Magic: Magic Mastery (5)// Mana Charge (3)// E.M.P (1) +] [Arms: Dual Swords (2)//Staffs (2)//Chains (2)//Unarmed (0) +] [Dragon''s Arte: 13 Pulses (0) +] [Skill Points: 86] There was actually a possibility he might have reached Bronze Rank II before, he had just been ignoring the notifications he''s got till now. Never the less he was stronger, and he could feel it from within the depths of his body. He was more than ready to go put a bunch of orcs in their place. Chapter 238: Burnt Plains The plains were spread out before them, and just about half a day away was the Breone mountains, and a full day from their positon they would come to the borders of Morte Bianca. From this point on things began to get a little bit chilly and windy as the mountain air rushed down across the plains. The Breone mountains was completely covered in snow, and the part of it that met the canyons of Toromont seemed to slope down like some sort of massive land ramp. But beyond that, the plains now had knee high grasses, and in some places the grass was as tall as a normal person. But there weren''t just six-foot-tall grasses, there were also vast stretches of flowers, and butterflies, other bugs and colorful birds hovering about it. This place was more beautiful than he expected, the feel of nature here was so exquisite and alluring that just looking at it made Rezar extremely relaxed. It was like a meadow of beauty without end, and it was because of that it became extremely easy to spot the orcs and the patch of land they had burnt to create their camp. Rezar snorted in anger as he narrowed his eyes, after the annoying experience he''s had with a witch and her pumpkin, his temper has been looking for an outlet, and these idiots just offered themselves on a platter of gold. "Should we flank them your Majesty?" Samira asked as she stood besides Rezar, a fierce gaze equally pointed at the Orcs. But Rezar knew it was all a front, he couldn''t understand why she saw the need to kiss his ass with every word, action or mannerism she showed, but he wouldn''t stop her. It felt nice to be fawned upon. "We''re vampires of Morte Bianca, we do not flank common bandits like they''re opponents of an equal standing as us. We''re not her to fight, we''re here to execute." at the very least by this point they all knew just how pissed of Rezar was, and even if it was not just his anger, he had a better reason why flanking them wouldn''t work. "there''s no need to worry about us flanking them, because they''ve seen us coming from more than a mile away. The only thing we can do now is meet them head on." Rezar moved onwards, the smell of burnt grass tickling his nose and stoking his fury. Some might consider it strange that Rezar was a lot angrier over a burnt patch of land, than the lives of the people the bandits had killed. But he was Rezar, things weren''t exactly normal with him, especially his temper and his moods. And while he plans to get in under control, especially in the case of his curiosities, he was still going to getting angry about the fact that the bandits set fire to the plains. Because while this is land, this is ''HIS LAND!'' "Halt who goes there!" one of the orcs yelled as Rezar drew closer, however the only answer that he got was Rezar swing the Khophesh in his right hand, the blade shooting forward like a bullet, a beam of light glinting off the blade and causing the orc to squint under the incoming assault. The blade stabbed easily into the Orcs neck, a wild swing from Rezar and the head was flying up into the air. Rezar chuckled as he rushed forwards, bursting into the camp where surprising the person he met was a three tailed kitsunes. He jumped over the surging tails, moving closer and then smashing his feet downwards into the chest of the kitsunes, both blades of vita gratia finding purchase in-between the collarbones of the kitsunes. Rezar jumped forwards and then quickly transitioned into a roll to evade the massive bone halberd that was sent for his head. there was a loud bang as a hole the size of a bowl appeared in the chest of the orc that''s just tried attacking. A blue skinned woman known as an undine spread her palms forwards and sent a blast of ice towards Rezar, there was a loud screech as a thin but extremely long branch of thorns shot out from the earth and stabbed straight in between the legs of the undine, causing her to let out an infernal screech as Rezar along with practically half of the people in the camp shuddered in fear and abject horror from what the undine just experienced. One funny thing about undines was that they were a female only race, so a thorn branch in between her legs, stabbing so far into her body it burst out of her chest, stretching upwards and growing into a tree with her body hanging from it was nothing of horrifying. But Rezar was not going to dwell on that, he''s done things that were just as brutal, and he was probably going to do so again. He felt his perception tingle as he took a step backwards, dodging a first dagger swipe to the throat, however it was followed by another one that had closed off any room of escape from him. He would have no choice but to take the dagger to the throat, or not. [Bullet Time] The world slowed to a crawl for Rezar as he moved to the side, evading the strike and stabbing Vita Gratia into the throat of the hooded Theriantrope that just tried to expose his insides to the outside world. The world immediately sped back up as he combined Vita Gratia back into her staff form and used her to bat a fire ball heading for his face. He threw his left arm forward [Spectral Skull] coming into being as three skulls flew out of his hands in quick succession, slamming into the human mage that just released the fireball. There was a shout of pain as he immediately began to bleed for his eyes, ears and nose from the assault of foreign magic in his system. In that same second Rezar used [Bullet Time] once again, giving a fair distance from the massive war hammer that just blasted a crater in the location he just evacuated. He looked up at the massive brute of an Orc that just tried to squish him into a pancake, raised Vita Gratia up and said. "Surrender!" but he got no answer other than the Orc twirling his hammer with an intense look of anger on his face. Rezar shook his head almost as if he was berating a young child. "I thought as much, well then, I guess you can just die." Chapter 239: Prey This guy was stronger than he expected, and by strong Rezar reckoned he was an entire rank above him. This orc was not a bronze rank 3 individual like Rezar, but a silver ranked being. Just standing in front of him made Rezar feel a little skeptical, this orc was extremely dangerous, and the idea of having to fight him did not sit too well with him. But never the less, Rezar didn''t have much of a choice, others in the camp might give him a challenge and might even fight toe to toe with him, but Rezar knew they would all still fall eventually. "I see you have finally crawled out of your hole Huitzilopochtli, king of the horde! Or should I call you Rezar Deathwind!" his voice was deep and rumbling like all orcs, as a person he actually reminded Rezar of Durga, but then again he didn''t have the air of craftiness and schemes that enshrouded the former orc chief, but then again maybe he did have a little bit of craftiness. Rezar didn''t think he had changed much, he had grown taller and his hair was a little bit longer, but apart from that there was nothing else that seemed to have changed. But regardless, in just three months everyone here seemed to have forgotten his face, and attacked him like he was no one. It wasn''t until the bandit leader called out his name that the rest of them finally took notice of who was standing in front of them, and with that realization flooding in, so too did the fear that many of them once had for him. "I see you''re still an idiot Hu. Ja... Me... excuse me please but what the fuck was your name again?" Silence, it filled the entire field as many were shocked that Rezar would even consider to provoke an opponent that was way stronger than him. Even Samira who had wanted to suggest the idea of retreat when it was discovered that the orc was a lot stronger than him had opened her mouth in shock and surprise, and at the same time she was trying her best to hold her amusement at bay. For orcs there was nothing more humiliating that an opponent not honoring them as he should. But then again Rezar was a special case so normal logic could not be used to describe him. "I don''t expect you to know who I am Huitzilopochtli... but by the gods! You will know my POWER!!" His body suddenly became enshrouded in dark green flames as he charged towards Rezar, moving too fast for the necromancer to keep track as he smashed his shoulder into Rezar''s chest and blasted him backwards through a few tents, past the burnt field and into the wild plains that became flattened from the adven0t of Rezar''s uncontrolled movements. He heard something crack, but whatever it was, Rezar hoped it wasn''t broken as he jumped right up to his feet and turned to face the still charging orc. Fortunately, the distance afforded him a little breathing space as he began his counter attack. [Spectral Skull] He could shoot three skulls at a time now, and his skills didn''t have a cool down, just that using them continuously might leave him danger of running out of magic, or getting himself exhausted from the strain of using particular skills for a certain period of time. But even with all of those calculations, this orc bandit leader was a lot faster than the spectral skulls. It didn''t matter how many Rezar shot at him, he was always ahead of them and moving so fast he was nothing more than a rapidly moving blur. The tall grasses and beautiful flowers had already been flattened by his advent, and as he rushed at Rezar, the wind blew around his body, creating a drag force that did nothing to even slow him down as he appeared in front of Rezar and swung his massive hammer. [Bullet Time] There was barely any time to move, even with the usage of this skill, but he went down on his knees as the hammer went over his face, the force from the wind it carried bruising the top of Rezar''s forehead as he held the staff form of Vita Gratia to the Orc''s right knee, letting his own momentum carry him past the trajectory of the blade, and forcing him to leave half a leg behind separated from the knee. Time sped up as the orc rushed past Rezar to crash into the tall fields, crushing more grasses that their fights were now exposed to everyone in the camp. Rezar swayed and fell on his butt as a wave of dizziness and nausea hit him. It has been a while since he fed, what he felt was three hours was actually three months in hell, and when they returned his body had aged to catch up to the missed time, which means he has also been starving for three months. It was nothing short of a miracle that he has been able to go on, after experiencing a couple of fights like this. The orc cursed out loud in pain and wobbled to his feet, Rezar had to give him props. The orc was standing and using his hammer to support himself while Rezar was still sitting on his ass, trying to shake the cobwebs in his head. his stomach rumbled as his eyes bled red and his fangs poked out of his mouth. He shuddered as a feeling of intense pain seemed to lance through his stomach and he was forced to haunch over. Samira and the others made to head in his direction, but the other bandits had blocked their paths and engaged to prevent them from lending any help to him. It was pretty messed up, but Rezar''s own body was rebelling against him for the starvation and punishment he had put it through. The energy from magic was all good for powering his abilities, but his true power and sustenance came from blood, he literally grew stronger every time he fed and it was from feeding that his vampiric abilities drew power. The orc walked towards his hunched form, slightly confused but still silently gloating over Rezar''s pitiful form. "What a pathetic sight! But at the very least rest well knowing that something good will come from your death. I will take your head and take it back to those accursed walls you will have me and my people locked behind, denying us our true heritage of war and blood and honor! I should cut you where you stand, for it is more than you deserve. Never the less, allow me to tell you my name, for it is honorable to let you know who was responsible for your death, my name is..." Rezar''s right quickly shot forwards grabbing the orcs foot, his eyes red and mouth literally salivating like a rapid dog, then he said. "Your name is Prey!" Chapter 240: Feed Rezar surged upwards, [Bullet Time] active as the world seemed to slow down around him. He was in a completely manic state, completely driven by his hunger and incapable of paying attention to anything else but the pulsing vein at the side of the orc bandit''s neck. Vita Gratia bit into the orcs abdomen, and as Rezar jumped upwards. A rather nasty wound was sliced leaving the insides of the orc open for the world to see. But he was a silver ranked individual, so probably this was not enough to kill him, but Rezar was not aiming to kill him, that would completely defeat the purpose and aim he currently had. Rezar left Vita Gratia stabbed into the chest of the orc as he unceremoniously stuck his fangs into the neck of the orc. Rezar shuddered, this was pleasure unlike anything he''s ever felt before as all the neurons in his body seemed to be firing and going off like a bevy of fireworks. All of his muscles clenched and unclenched as pleasure and arousal suffused his entire body, his knees going weak and knocking against each other as his hardness seemed to strain against the trouser he was wearing. He didn''t exactly know how ''Size'' was measured, but in his bloodlust addled mind he reckoned he was just a bit above average. The orc shook himself vigorously, his strength enough to throw Rezar off his body like a common ragdoll. And that much was expected even though Rezar was a vampire who had his strength stat stat amplified by his [Supernatural Body] skill, which was practically what that skill did for all of his stats. However, an orc was born and bred for strength and vitality, it was hardly something that Rezar could actually match. But then again Rezar had already a significant amount of damage. With Vita Gratia stabbed into his chest, draining blood and vitality of its own, the orc bandit chief was already feeling the effects of rapid blood loss, not to mention he only had one leg. It stands to reason that even if he was able to kill Rezar, he would still pass away from blood loss, not unless he has an extreme healing factor like Rezar, or a healer with sufficient skill. "You are nothing more than an infernal animal!" the orc cursed out as he pulled out Vita Gratia and threw her aside, her bloodied blade falling amongst the falling stalks of grass and flowers surrounding them. Rezar didn''t have time, or better yet it would be easier to say he couldn''t bring himself to give a damn about whatever the fuck it is that the orc had just said. The only thing he could focus on was the blood, and there was a lot of it, so much of it also going to waste No! "Hisssssssss!" At this point Rezar completely lost control, his mind completely devolving and wholly driven by the hunger he felt. The orc''s eyes narrowed as there was an explosion of speed from Rezar, the ground beneath his feet were cracked as Rear crossed the distance between them in seconds. The orc was ready as the same hazy green outline that had given him an exponential increase in speed had appeared around his body. And as Rezar drew close, he swung his massive Warhammer, hoping to smash Rezar to paste in one definite hit. But vampires while creatures if great strength and magic were mostly feared for their speed and dexterity. They were like a combination of cats, octopuses, dragonflies and snakes, movement of any sort was their bread and butter. Rezar ducked under the swing as it went wide, but instead of coming back up to his feet and heading for the orc''s neck wear said orc had actually prepared a trap to catch the vampire king off guard, Rezar instead went for the missing leg. Whether it was pure luck, or just a little bit of clarity still left in the head of Rezar, he went for the place where the bleeding was still a bit much and way out of any immediate retaliation from the orc. Rezar didn''t stand on ceremony as his fangs found the open wound, biting and pulling into them like a wild animal. Orcs were a warrior race with the toughest of training, fierce wills in an even stronger body; but Rezar was like death in all of its infernal and eldritch glory. The orc felt fear, and this was a mistake on his part, Rezar could smell it, and as it lanced through his body, the taste of his blood became infinitely richer. And one thing about fear was that it brought hesitation, and it was that hesitation Rezar capitalized on as he swiftly turned around and raked his claws from the back of the orcs severed knee to the middle of his back, opening him up and spilling sweet rivulets of blood into his mouth. Rezar latched onto his neck again, and this time there was nothing he could do as the saliva of a vampire could make anything in existence complacent. Rezar dragged him to the ground and drank, Vita Gratia seemed to vibrate as she shot forwards, stabbing herself into the chest of the orc, taking her fill of his blood and vitality. And they went at it for three more minutes until what they fed on was his very soul. And then he was gone, drained dry of blood and his soul. But it was not enough, Rezar shifted his attention to the rest of the bandits who were all standing looking at him in more shock than they''ve ever felt in their life. Rezar turned to Samira and her subordinates and said to them. "Feed!" And in that moment the very normal opponents the bandits had, had turned into ferocious monsters completely driven by their lust for blood. They were all still fairly new vampires, control over their blood lust wasn''t something they had achieved yet. And Rezar joined them, ripping limbs, and tearing out throats, his ferocity unmatched as he held hearts in his hand and pulled them out of chests with alarming speed and power. And in the midst of all of his feeding his arousal grew stronger and stronger until he couldn''t hold it back any longer. He sped up until he was right in front of Samira and her Subordinates who were all sharing a meal from a rather robust dwarf. He pulled Samira by her head as he sank his fangs into her neck, causing her to moan as her toes curled in extreme pleasure, with one fierce rip her armored clothes fell off her body exposing her breasts to the world as her heart beat faster. Rezar turned to the other three vampires and said only one word in a growl so guttural it was as if it came from the abyss itself. "Strip!" and all of their hearts and body seemed to rumble in the bass of his voice, they knew in that moment, Rezar would be sating more than just his bloodlust, he would feed on much more than just blood... he would feed on them. Chapter 241: 18+: A Night To Remember What was known about vampires now was probably all from mainstream media back on earth, an idea or image about the vampires of Elysium has been completely wiped, so to determine just what sort of mannerism or characteristics they had would be pretty much left up to speculation at this point. However, what was known about vampires was that they were regal, methodical, unearthly and incredibly beautiful. Every step and action is calculated and well within the understanding of the consequences that such choices would incur. But ultimately, the biggest truth about vampires wad that they were creatures of desire. Neither dead nor alive, stuck in the precipice between life and death, capable of feeling everything and nothing at extremely heightened level. Such feelings if delved into could drive a vampire insane, a vampire fully devoured by his or her desires tend to be extremely dangerous and unstoppable. This was why vampires were always very careful in making sure that they didn''t completely close themselves from their desires and needs. So they made sure to fee regularly as their hunger served to be the trigger for 99.9% of all their desires. And now Rezar had starved himself for three whole months, he had fed, in the process causing a bloody scene in a massacre that would leave in the darkest of hearts with a chill he or she couldn''t get rid of for a very long time. But it was not enough, Rezar needed more. Rezar was not the only one driven almost insane by the lust that came from the blood feast they just had. After telling the other three daughters of night to strip, Rezar pulled back Samira''s head and sank his fangs into the other side of her neck, he felt her shudder as her arousal reached a peak just from the feeling of having his fangs sunk deep into her neck. He growled, loving the sweet texture of her blood and scent of her arousal, it was like a female animal in heat driving a male animal insane from his need of wanting her. It was primal and uncontrollable, and when the three daughters of night came close enough to him, they too fell under the frenzy. Rezar pulled his lips back and drew one the girls close to him, maybe it was wrong that he hadn''t asked any of them for their names, but at this point he didn''t give a shit as he locked lips with her, their tongue battled for supremacy as he left palm grabbed a hold of Samira''s exposed nipple, twisting and squeezing lightly and tightly in different intervals, causing her to moan even louder as her remaining two subordinates went to work on her body and completely stripped her. The girl he was kissing pulled back as her fingers took on a red hue, the energy of her blood pooling in her finger tips as she used a skill unique to the daughters of eclipse. She slashed left and right, ripping his clothes and skin to strips, but this pain was enjoyable as Rezar''s exposed member rose high at attention his arousal reaching an all-time high. The rather wild vampire girl smiled and went down, taking the entire length into her mouth in one fell swoop, Rezar shuddered as he felt her warm mouth completely encapsulate his raging cock. And in that moment he heard Samira release an exaggerated moan as she shuddered within his grasps, her juices completely spray all over the face of her comrade who had her face buried in between her legs, while the other held her mouth captive. Rezar pulled his hand back as all four girls went down to their knees and began passing his dick from person to another, there were varying degrees of ability when it came to fellatio within the three women. But it was not up for debate, there were bit marks and puncture wounds on his dick as his blood coated it, and it was more than enough to drive the girls insane as they drank directly from the source, the prime, the first of his line. His climax came suddenly, unexpected as a spray of extremely fertile seed flew out of his dick, his loud roars echoing to the heavens as pleasure unlike anything he has ever felt assaulted him. There were looks of happiness on the faces of all four women, there was something to be gained from pleasing a king, and one of such power and ability like Rezar. It was fulfilling, but Rezar wasn''t done as fell down to his knees, pushing Samira down and in that same motion burying himself deep into her to the hilt. She screamed, both from the pain and the pleasure, but she was a vampire, pain was an ally, and it was proven true when she came less than a second later, her eyes rolling into the back of her head as she fell limp. Rezar grunted in annoyance, he wan ted her awake, but she passed out. He turned his gaze to the other three and the eager smiles on their face, so he pulled out and seconds later he was buried deep in someone else. She was a tougher nut to crack than Samira, but Rezar wouldn''t let that stop him as he began to move his hips. There was no need for technique or a need to pace himself. he moved only for his pleasure and his prowess took the daughter of the night along as he slid in and out of her wet cavern, her soft moans gradually growing into a fever pitch as she went to the edge and over time and time again until a look of pleading came over her face. Few minutes in and she was at her limit, and it wasn''t as if Rezar had the largest cock in the world, but to lay with first vampire of their line is to experience pleasure at height you couldn''t comprehend, and at Bronze rank III, they were all too weak to handle him. But that was okay, there were still two others. And so he went to them, fucking with reckless abandon as the sounds of flesh smacking flesh rang out for miles, and with that sounds the gutturals roars of a primal king echoing his climax to the world was heard, and with it the shrill screams of women embraced by blood and the night as they too experienced pleasure, and those sounds rang out, over and over and over again. It was a night that would remain fresh in the minds of those who participated in it, one to remember for the ages. Chapter 242: Live Free And Fuck The Rest Of The World! It''s been a few cold weeks since Rezar''s wild foursome with Samira and her cohorts, in that time they have been moving from place to place, hunting down the bandits who were terrorizing Morte Bianca''s territories. It''s been quite busy for them, but by this point new that the king had returned had already been spread all over the kingdom. Right now they were heading for the south-western border where a new kingdom of humans had sprung up. Most of them were new uploads who hadn''t yet completely accustomed to the fact and knowledge that this new world was now their reality. They still treated this like it was a game, which made their hands and feet and misguided sense of justice itchy for a war against a bloodsucking vampire king and his armies of animal undead. Every other opponent had backed off the moment the found out he had returned, but this human kingdom was unwilling to do the same. It was crazy, and Rezar suspected they were being goaded into it, which was why he had sent Samira and the others into that territory. They were meant to be spies after all, and he found they were quite good at being hidden, it wouldn''t take them too long to discover the secrets he needs and bring them back to him. In the meantime, he was here, standing over a hill and looking at Vita Gratia''s gathered army, and the army of this other human kingdom; Revere. Standing at a faceoff in a plain atop high cliff that overlooked the western sea. This was the border between the two kingdoms, and thankfully, there were no settlements within a day of this place. Just military outposts to watch the going and coming of the border. The army of Morte Bianca was decked out in resplendent black and white armor, it wasn''t the bulky chain mail type that was synonymous with fantasy settings. But this was more like body army, worn close to their body with tiny scales to serve as an extra layer of defense and a mane of white around their neck which also served as a hood...Rezar felt there was no need for that addition, but it made them really cool when the hood was pulled over half covered face. They had a helm that completely cover their head and eyes, but stopped at the bridge of their nose where their mouth was exposed. But Rezar had seen a metal plate slid down to cover their mouth, showing a helm that completely covered their face and had no seams whatsoever. The eye holes were just glowing lines of a blue he was very familiar with, the same eyes that stared right back at him when he looked at a mirror. The armor itself was completely white, but where there were outlines, like the seams of the scales, or the biceps where the muscles could be seen where completely black. The armor looked like it was alive, and if Rezar had to hazard a guess he would say the armor had skills of its own, there was an audible pop as a massive white lion showed up beside him. "I have to say those are some nice threads." Rezar shook his head at the arrival of Varka, considering the damn familiar lived within his body, it was hard to imagine that the lion hardly ever made an appearance, even when Rezar would seem to be in dire straits. Varka only ever showed up when truly the odds were against Rezar, and even then it was just to keep pesky opponents from interfering with any of his fights and not to actually help his master Kick ass. "Nice of you to join the party." Rezar said to the lion as he crossed his legs and sat down overlooking the battlefield as both armies stared at each other, waiting for the other to make the first move. "What party? You know it''s not a party if you''re not in it. Besides master; what the fuck are you doing here, moping and watching over a battlefield. Don t you want to go down there and rip some limbs, tear out some throats?" Varka asked Rezar as the young king rested his chin on his fist. "I do want to do that Varka, you know me well enough by now... I love the bloodshed. Killing is who and what I am, death is my fucking mother, so yeah I do want to rain down destruction on that battlefield. But a king can''t be all about bloodshed, but never the less what kind of king am I, what kind of king do I want to be? This is frustrating without Priest, he always had all the answers. He was always my moral compass when I needed one, always there to tell me what to do right and what not to do wrong." "Isn''t that just the same thing?" Varka asked, eliciting a glare from Rezar that made the massive lion chuckle. "I feel out of control, and honestly speaking I can''t tell my path forward anymore. I seem to be going through the motions and have no idea what''s the next step for my life. I just took everything as it came, but now everything just feels so dull, and in turn I feel so lost. I can''t live like everyone else, I feel hollow like something is missing from deep within me. And in the end I''m just left floating, even more of a zombie than my undead." Rezar felt extremely frustrated with his life, he has always been a creature of desire and curiosity when the need arose, but in the end he was still stuck doing the same thing over and over again, and he had lost a taste for such a life. "don''t be and Idiot master, the world we live in isn''t fair, even if everyone now has the same starting positions, your trip to hell should more than prove to you that there are still those ahead. But what makes you think they have a better life than you, everyone else has to deal with love and irrational decisions, but you are probably the most clearheaded person alive, even in the midst of a raging anger fest. How you''ve lived so far has brought great change and prosperity and happiness to many. Just look at that sexy looking army down there, they belong to you! You can go down there and tell them all to strip before fucking their assholes raw if you want to and they wouldn''t resist you. If you can''t feel, then live by your desires. At the very least satisfying them would make you happy, being a good king isn''t too hard for you, but don''t forget to live as best as you can, you don''t have to be like everyone else. Live free and die well is what I''d say. Fuck emotions, fuck propriety. Protect your own and fuck everyone else who thinks they can judge you or want to take what''s yours. You are the KING!" Rezar smiled, Varka didn''t understand, but none the less his words were more than enough to light a fire under Rezar. He should do whatever the fuck he wanted, protect his own, live free and fuck the rest of the world. That was a philosophy he could get behind. "Varka; please announce my arrival to the battlefield." "With extreme pleasure your majesty...... Roooooaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!" Chapter 243: The Plains Of Revere 1 Rezar quickly got on Varka''s back as the lion took to the sky, his massive bulk painting an imposing image as a massive shadow seemed to stretch across the entire battlefield. If the roar did not drag their attention, which it most certainly did, then Rezar landing in the middle of the battlefield, making an entrance that was for all intents and purposes as epic as he wanted it to be. The opposing army was not as well decked out like the Biancans. They looked like the kind of army a guild of players would have, mismatched armors and weapons and a haphazard formation, Rezar didn''t need to think too much to know that his people would tear into them without remorse and without mercy, it would be a slaughter. Rezar was wearing a tattered cloak that covered his body leaving only his head visible, and even with that his head was wrapped with a red bandana that quite a few people from his side recognized as not a red bandanna, but a blood soaked clothe wrapped around his head. he looked nothing like the king a lot of people thought he was, but even if he didn''t look like a king, he looked every bit the monster they''ve all envisioned him to be, and his appearance brought some much needed change to the stalemate of the battlefield. He looked up at them, silence extremely pervasive and loud in its own right, enabling his voice to reach them. The wind howled as the sound of the sea crashing against rocks were heard, the squalls, the cries of sea birds, and the very way the wind seemed to move was a creating an extremely tense environment that Rezar was wholeheartedly taking advantage of. He turned to face his own army, his eyes locking with Lenore''s as she walked out from within his own army walking towards him, he turned to face the army in front of him, taking in their shabby formations and poor equipment. Rezar doubted anyone of them had even reached Bronze Rank II. Sure it might have been three long months if not more since the rejuvenation, which means by now a lot of people would have discovered their path to strength like the Biancans did with the [13 Dragon Pulse] skill tree. But they had too much of a head start and proper foundation for anyone of them to be able to fully catch up to them. "I don''t like repeating myself, so I''ll only say this once.... Get the fuck off my land and out of my kingdom, or ill paint the lands with your blood from here all the way to your children''s bedrooms!" Rezar didn''t scream, using a soft spoken voice that was gradually breaking with the advent of maturity and adulthood, but even as juvenile as he sounded, his words still hit with the force of a punch to the gut. He was still being judged based on his previous trait of being the son of death or the fact he was still a necromancer. He didn''t much care for how or why they saw him like that, but being evil was definitely something they could all rally behind. And as crazy as it might sound, Rezar liked it that way. If he was asked a question; to be loved of feared which would he prefer, it would be a tough question to answer seeing Rezar has no idea what those two emotions felt like. But ultimately, he would say he wanted them both. He has seen the effect of fear in the eyes of his enemy and have seen the devotion love could bring, if there was ever any need for it, he would prefer to have his people love him and his enemies fear him. Rezar looked on as a man walked out from within the army of Revere, he was well armored in a golden plate mail that seemed to gleam with an ethereal light. Rezar wondered if this was the king of this rabble of people, the one responsible for painting him as an evil devil, using him as a rallying cry to get his people to march into Morte Bianca like the very soon to be dead cattle that they were. The man had a proud look on his face, he was mounted on a white stallion with swirls of golden yellow tattoos on its coat. All in all, he looked like the valiant hero ready to slay the evil King of the dead. That would play out well into a very nice legend for the generations to come, but then again Rezar knew one thing, and that was the fact that history was written by the victors. "I am first general Slade of Revere, and in the name of all that''s Good and Just! I ask you to surrender yourselves to the mercy of my illustrious kingdom. I assure you that your people will be spared, so for once in your life, do the right thing and put an end to tyranny and reign of darkness! Because one way or another evil King of Morte Bianca! You will fall today!" Rezar didn''t understand why this guy was screaming, was it even necessary? But seeing how his rabble of an army were screaming and giving out a charged cry of their own, Rezar understood why he was using all those crappy words. "It''s amazing what the world has painted me like in just three months of not being around to shut the mouths of a couple of idiots. You obviously came here for a fight, and by Darkness you will have it. However, my people have spent the last few months dealing with pests and roaches trying to get into a land they do not deserve, and using stupid self-serving bullshit like justice to cover up for their, all-encompassing greed. I''m not 5 and am definitely not the slew of idiots you have behind you screaming like a rabble of wild dogs in heat and with nothing better to do. So I''ll give you an easier option, fight me in one on one combat, it would be a fight to the death, and if you can beat me, my people will surrender to you without a fight and all of Morte Bianca in all its glory would be yours." "Your Majesty!" Lenore called out in shock, but a raised hand from Rezar had shut her up as she took her place behind him. Rezar didn''t shift his gaze from the eyes of the first general of Revere, but unsurprisingly, the man could not hold his gaze. "And why would I do that! You and your army are just as evil and we have the advantage! We will end your scourge before it spreads all over the rest of this beloved land. Charge!!!" Rezar gave an exasperated sigh as he turned to annoyed looking Lenore before saying to her. "Kill them all." Chapter 244: The Plains Of Revere 2 Rezar turned around and walked away as Lenore gave a rallying cry, all she did was raise her hands and Biancan army began to march forth as a rhythm that shook the very earth. Rezar was impressed, maybe a little too much as this level of synchrony and coordination was not something he had ever expected they could achieve in such little time. Yet this was what they were now, an army that just the way they moved and the way they walked and the silence of their march with only their feet making the sounds sent a shiver down his spine, he could not begin to imagine what their enemies felt like. He climbed onto Valka''s back as the ten-foot-tall lion took to the skies, his vantage point allowing Rezar to completely survey the outcome of the battle. Sure he could go down there and use Vita Gratia''s crucifixion skill, completely ending this fight before it began, but if his army did not experience adversity and triumph over their enemies, they would never get to be strong. He needed capable of shielding him against the worst dangers this world has to offer, if he helped them every time there was a problem, how then could they be strong, this was a fight that they had to deal with on their own. So while they mowed down their enemies, what he would do is to pick new skills. VAMPIRE: [BLOOD MASTERY 15SP] [COMPULSION 10SP] [SHAPESHIFT: BAT 15SP] NECROMANCER: [SKELETON HAND 9SP] [CURSE 25SP] [RAISE UNDEAD MINOR 50SP] [SUMMON SPIRITS 100SP] MAGIC: [WILD CALL 10SP] [BLOCK SENSES 10SP] [MANA BLADE 10SP] [ENCHANTMENT MINOR 15SP] [TELEPORT 100SP] The other two skill trees had to have their skills unlocked by practice, so nothing really showed up. He could only have five skills in a skill tree and five skill trees overall. So he had to be careful about the skills he chose, because they would be with him forever. At the moment he only had about 80 skill points, and it seems the stronger he became, the more expensive skills become, and it was really hard to het skill points as those came from either achievement from stats, skills or doing something really cool like going to hell and coming back. But at the moment there was no such achievement to be had, he really wanted that summon spirits skill, and the return of his raise undead skill shocked him, he didn''t think he would ever get the chance to use it again due to a vampire''s natural ability to turn people into undead interfering with it. Obviously he wants it back as that skill had made him really dangerous in battle, and then there was that damn teleport skill. These were the skills he was more attracted to. For vampire he was prepared to pick both blood mastery and shapeshift skill. Compulsion was not his thing, but those two alone were worth thirty sp, leaving him with just fifty, and frankly speaking there was no way he was letting his raise undead skill go away again. But in the end it seems he has to pick one skill from each skill tree. The next time he has to pick a skill he would have to have amassed a significant amount of skill points because it''s obvious he would be a lot stronger then. And if he was a lot stronger all these skills would be a lot more expensive. All of the skills were heavily reliant on stats, just as stats needed skills to increase. In the end it was give and take relationship, the more numerous the stats, the stronger the skills they govern, and as those skills level up, there would be increase to the stats that power them. [ you have unlocked the skills Vampire: Blood Mastery// Necromancer: Raise Undead Minor// Magic: Mana Blade] [Vampire: Blood Mastery (0): gain control over blood regardless of its source. Has a certain chance of absorbing stats and skill points when feeding] [Necromancer: Raise Undead Minor (0): Breathe life into a recently deceased dead body for 20 minutes] [Magic: Mana Blade (0): the pinnacle skill of energy manifestation and manipulation. Create a blade of highly condensed magical energy that can be shot forwards or used as a weapon. Usage and control of skill depends on magic mastery skill; higher levels can incorporate elements.] The skills were all good, even if he was just settling for less, when these skills have grown to a high enough level, they would be able to match the ones he had to give up on. Rezar shifted his gaze to the battlefield, and just in time to as his senses went haywire as a blazing ball of fire was sent shooting in his direction. Valka went into a sudden role as Rezar held on to his mane and shifted his attention to the west, where the ocean stood, wild and calm at the same time. And on the clear waters were a series of ships, the fact that they had not been noticed until now when the first shot was taken, made Rezar suspicious that maybe they had people with illusion skills in much the same way the kitsunes had too. They had slowly crawled up to them, and now the Biancan army was being sieged from the south and the west. Rezar shifted his gaze, he had to be sure that there were no other surprises heading their way, his senses were a lot sharper and he noticed an ambush to the Kerwood forest in the southeast, so probably they expected the Biancan army to try and escape by using the forest as an exit point. Looks like these group people weren''t as wild a rabble as Rezar thought. Never the less seems he would be seeing some action after all, he looked to the sea and said. "Well Valka it seems we have some guests knocking on our shores, and those flags look suspiciously like the Dustin Crowe merchant company. We should go say hi to our old friends." "By saying Hi you mean kill and eat them right?" Valka asked, sporting a grin that should be otherwise impossible for a lion. "Well we would be a fool to reject a free meal. Let''s go!" Chapter 245: The Plains Of Revere 3 New skills and the perfect scenario to put them to a test. But Rezar had an epiphany, as far as Elysium was concerned, be it the world or the universe itself, conflict was what it thrived upon. The opportunity to cheat death and live as many lives as possible, have as many adventures as possible was all just bullshit. It would have been better if Elysium was just name Earth II or better yet hell. There was no peace to be had in this world, the same darkness that has encumbered and trapped humanity for a long ass time back on earth, was and is the same poison that has wholly taken over Elysium. Humanity was nothing without its conflicts, it''s from conflicts heroes and villains are born, it''s from conflict revolutions and changes are implemented, War was what it is. Valka banked left dodging another boulder of flames heading his way as he flapped his wings and took off in the direction of the ships. The army could handle itself, but if Rezar didn''t do anything about reinforcements coming from the sea, then there would be a lot more of a significant loss than what they could deal with. The wind rushed past his ears and in seconds he and Valka were already above the anchored ships. He turned and fell from Valka''s back as the familiar went forwards to go wreak havoc somewhere else. Vita gratia was still in its staff form as he swung it in an arc, the top most blade shooting forwards with rustling of chains to go stab into the main mast of the lead ship. There was a dull metallic clang as the blade sank in deep and Rezar repelled towards the mast, evading strikes from spells and skills alike. He landed against the mast with a dull thud that seemed to make the entire ship vibrate. While the ship looked like the normal wooden ship with masts and sails, this ship was mostly made of steel, with a little bit of wood incorporated in other areas. The group of soldiers at the bottom of the mast already eager to take a chunk out of Rezar were dressed an armored haphazardly without a single hint of uniformity. It made him believe they were not a well-trained military outfit, but either sailors, mercenaries or based on the Dustin Crowe Merchant company flag being flown by the ship, a personal force trained by that conglomerate of greedy merchants. A massive lance of Lightning came flying at Rezar with the speed and unforgiving fury one would expect from the element. Rezar jumped off the mast with the lance of lightning flying past him and lightly grazing his skin and clothes. But it was close enough that when Rezar landed in their midst, the smell of singed hair and burnt flesh was quite prevalent. He smiled as he split Vita Gratia, one Khophesh in each hand before he began to rapidly spin, the blades shot out attached to the chains giving the blades a far longer and deadly reach as Rezar literally mowed down all of his opponents, slicing off heads and severely mutilating upper bodies. Both Blades of vita Gratia bounced off a purple shield that came to life in front of him, bringing his rampage to a halt as the shield pulsed and created a shockwave that blasted Rezar backwards. His back impacted the mast, causing an audible crack and forcing Rezar to cough out a mouthful of blood from sustained internal injuries. But there was barely any time to reorient himself as that same Lance of lightning came flying for his head, and with Rezar being on the ground and with barely any second to catch his breath, it looked like he would be subjected to the torture. [Bullet Time] The world seemed to slow to a crawl as the Lance of lightning stopped just a few inches away from Rezar''s body. He moved to the left just as he placed his attention to the culprit responsible for the lance. A capricious looking woman with a look of mischief hidden on her face, and seeing how she was hiding behind her follow fighters and letting them die first, Rezar concluded she was also a slimy bastard of a human being. Time seemed to speed up almost immediately as he swung both halves of Vita Gratia in the direction of the sneaky mage. [Mana Blade] A light blue almost white crescent bolt of magic shot out pf his blades and moved forwards, and this time the magic skill actually caused physical damage as whole bodies were bisected, before the wave came to a stop after impacting the same purple shield that had stopped his swings. There was another woman standing beside the cowardly mage, a staff in her hands and a serious look on her face. Rezar cursed as he looked around the deck, there was barely anybody alive capable of fighting him except for this two, but be that as it may, they would not be stopping him today. [Raise Undead] [Raise Undead] [Raise Undead] [Raise Undead] [Raise Undead] He was about to use the skill for the sixth time when a massive headache lanced through his brain and brought up the option of stopping, by force! His vision went black for a moment as he tried to process what just happened. It would be an extremely fatal mistake to remove his attention from the pair he was fighting, but it didn''t matter, cause right now, he was not alone. "Gooooooaaaaaaaaarrrrrr" Five zombies with and eldritch black color in their eyes to denote them as zombies. They surged forwards towards the two women and any other survivors on the deck, whether they were injured or not, it didn''t really concern them as they were so fixated about was to kill anyone who had life. The purple shield kept the zombies away for all ten seconds, and then it flickered off, and the woman with the staff was forced to shoot small blasts of purple energy orbs from her hands to keep the zombie away. Apparently seeing their former comrades attacking them had flustered her a bit, but that mistake would cost her. Rezar was in his right frame of mind again. Chapter 246: The Plains Of Revere 4 Rezar seemed to have hit his stride in this fight, as she shot forwards towards the woman utilizing shield and blasts of purple energy, she saw him coming however, throwing her bolts of energy in his direction and trying to keep him at bay whilst paying attention to the zombies that were slowly drawing close to her. She was quite panicked, because if she wasn''t, she would realize, or rather the basic fundamentals of zombie fighting; always aim for the head. and while she made that mistake, there was no way in hell Rezar would do the same. The moment he got close to her he shot Vita Gratia towards her head. There was a loud bang as a shield showed up to defend her from the strike of the blade, the same shockwave released from the shield to blast both Rezar and hos zombies backwards. But he was well prepared this time; as a bolt of lightning came rushing for his chest. There was no time to evade, so he had no choice but to pay a little sacrifice to deal damage. He let the lightning smash into his chest as he swung his arm forwards in the direction of both women. [Mana Blade] the crescent blue blade flew out of the blades of Vita Gratia and rushed towards both women, at this point in time there was no escape for them, or so Rezar thought. The woman with the shielding ability moved behind her friends who loved to play with electricity, which would be a pass time Rezar would not recommend to anybody. That''s all too dangerous of a hobby that would invariably lead to electrocution and death. Or in this case, it would lead to you being betrayed by your comrade and then decapitated from the waist by a man that''s so awesome the sun shines just for him. Narcissism aside, Rezar was actually quite surprised to see such a blatant show of betrayal. The lightning wielding woman didn''t last long as she died seconds later, much to the shock of her friend who could not believe what she just did in order to survive. But what could be said, it was a cruel world, you either bend over and die or do what it takes to survive. Rezar could r3espect her tenacity to survive, but disloyalty was not something he would tolerate, even if but was within his enemies. But this was the middle of a battle and the woman with the shield was still shocked, it was another mistake Rezar had noticed. On the battlefield there was no right or wrong, just death. And if you spend time second guessing your decisions, then for all intents and purposes, all that awaits you was death, and it was with that knowledge he sank his fangs into her neck. And for the first time since he became a vampire, a prey actually fought back. There has never been anyone who could resist the high brought on by his saliva once his fangs had found purchase in their bloodstream. The fact that she was fight so hard, punching and kicking showed how much she wanted to live, and her fear made her blood taste all so much sweeter. But her struggle didn''t last long, as she took her last breath there was loud explosion from the ship next to the one he was on, Valka flew up from it in all his white glory, leaving flames and destruction in his wake as he roared out in indignation, spewing out a silver beam of death and decay across the other ships, rapidly advancing them in age as he took con troll of the power of time. Rezar dropped the body in his hands and took off in a running start before taking a massive leap that took him well above the ship, he too left death and destruction in his wake. He swung both blades of Vita Gratia towards the next ship, their blades sinking into the metal mast, before they drag him towards his next target. He smashed both his feet into the chest of a screaming captain who had not noticed him but had instead chosen to focus on the flying Valka. Rezar''s momentum carried him and the captain until the captain''s back was smashed against the mast, there was a loud squelch and crack as Rezar''s feet sunk into his chest crushing his ribs and heart, there was a splash of blood on the mast, like some grotesque gravity or splash pain art, the captain was dead on impact. Rezar with his arms still stuck on the hilts of his blades turned himself upside down until his eyes were glaring right at the crowd of shocked sailor/mercenaries looking on at him. There was fear in the air, it was so intense that Rezar almost felt like he was being choked by it, it was weird, but Rezar somehow found it particularly appealing, it was almost like a different type of food to him than blood. He felt a bit weirded out by it, but that wasn''t an expression or emotion he was willing to express at the moment. But with him hanging upside down and his red eyes seemingly boring a hole at everyone watching him, fear would be a gross understatement of what they were all feeling. And it went on like this for a few moments as Rezar waited for the to regain their courage and confidence. The first person to attempt an attack actually came from above him, a young man who had been in the crow''s nest as a look out of sorts. He jumped down from the crow''s nest, a spear pointed right from Rezar''s exposed midriff, and he was just a second away from stabbing Rezar when to the eyes of the people watching; Rezar''s body became an illusory blur as he turned around, ending up above his falling assailant and grabbing onto said assailant''s golden locks. From then on it was just a proper application of force and the help of gravity as Rezar added his supernatural strength as an added incentive to bring the head of the young man smashing onto the ship''s deck, splattering blood and brain matter all over his face and clothes. He smiled and stood up to look at the remaining sailors, by this point whatever courage they regained was completely lost, and it was not coming back. "I take it you guys and surrendering." Rezar said, making it seem more like a statement rather than a question, and when no one said anything, completely terrified by what they just say, Rezar nodded his head and turned around before saying. "I thought so." Chapter 247: The Plains Of Revere 5 Rezar mounted Valka after the 9th ship fell to their assault, the others which would have made up a fleet of 15 ships had turned around and ran with their tails between their legs. Rezar had half a mind to chase after them, but that would drag him away from the battlefield, and frankly speaking he wasn''t too sure chasing after them was not a part of the plan. After he knew there was still an ambush waiting for them in the forest, but then again said ambush might be completely useless in this case. And that was because whatever edge the fleet from the Dustin Crowe merchant company would have given, Rezar and Valka had completely destroyed it. The people on this ship were at most bronze rank II, so not a single one of them posed a challenge, and Rezar always shined best when he was facing off against multiple people. As for the army led by Lenore; there wasn''t even a single casualty or injury, so far they had held a defensive formation. Rezar wasn''t sure how, but when they stood in formation, their armors seemed to sync and a greyish blue barrier sprung up at the front and sides of the entire army. Weapons could only go through after a significant amount of attacks from the enemy soldiers, but in that time, well-practiced and organized thrusts from bone spears Rezar hadn''t noticed would take care of the attacking enemies. This was like that old movie about Spartans, then again who knew I that wasn''t what Lenore had drawn inspiration from to make a formation as defensively and at the same time aggressively dangerous with attacks. It wouldn''t be too farfetched to say that Rezar felt incredibly smug about everything, this was his army, and at the moment they had the enemies on the defensive. No matter how many times the Reverians pushed forward, they still found themselves moving backwards and on the defensive. The Biancans were too organized and too calm with their approach, it was a far cry from Rezar''s normal fighting style. There was no chaos within the battlefield, it was just a one side slaughter that looked like it was nothing more than child''s play. Rezar felt the itch to drop down and just cause a little bit of chaos, but Valka felt his intentions and spoke out. "Hold your horses master... or your lion? This fight isn''t yours. It belongs to your soldiers, and there''s no need for you to get involved, this fight has already been won; look at the rear of the Reverian army." Valka said as Rezar shifted his gaze and noticed small pockets of men and women peeling away from the main army, right in their lead was the same general who had talked a big game and led the attack. How in the hell did he shift his position from the frontlines to rears shocked Rezar, but in the end he had to admit watching him run away was quite comical. "Should we go get him Valka? We could play fetch or something." Valka turned his head and narrowed his eyes at Rezar with an annoyed look on his face. "I''m no Dog master!" Rezar sheepishly smiled at his familiar and said. "I know, go Boy!" the only reply he got was Valka growling as he flew his way towards the fleeing enemy general. [[[[[[[[|^|]]]]]]]] First general Slade had to get the hell away from this battlefield, the fact that there were a few hanger on''s behind him pissed him off. After all his initial plan had been to silently slip away from the battlefield without anyone noticing, what would he be doing after that would be completely up to him, or whatever the fuck destiny had in store for him. This had always been a suicide mission right from the get go, he wasn''t sure why he had let those stupid shareholders talk him into this. This was the same thing they had done when Tristian Ramos was the herald with the spotlight on him, but then again it wasn''t exactly a good spotlight as it didn''t matter what he had achieved they had mostly tried to keep him down. He wasn''t as stupid as Tristian to resist the powers that be, as far as Slade was concerned in order to survive he would kiss whoever''s ass he has too, clean their shoes, suck their dicks and fuck whoever wants to fuck him without worrying about a useless loyalty to a comatose wife who would have probably lived a dozen lifetimes in Elysium and was probably fucking somebody else now. But that was not the case anymore, this game has become his reality, there was no way he would throw his life away for a group of greedy people who should know better than to go after a monster. He would escape from this place, and after neither the so called Bone King of the Morte Bianca or the Remus organization can get to him, he would be completely free to live his life in this world. Whatever the case may be, he was startled when all of a sudden there was a shadow above his head, he looked up in time to see the massive lion that had left a shadow in his heart swoop down and take him up in its jaws, his teeth digging deeply into Slade''s golden armor as an amused laugh rang out from the back of the lion. Slade looked up, his entire body rigid with fear as he lost control of his bladder. Those piercing red eyes and pure white fangs would probably be the stuff of nightmares for many people, but today... Slade was well awake to know this was no nightmare, this was death string right back at him with a fanged grin and a promise of eternal darkness, there was no escape. "And where do you think you''re going! First General Slade of Revere? We''ve not finished chatting yet. And believe me when I tell you, it''s going to be a long and quite painful... err I mean productive chat. What do you say! Doesn''t that sound fun?" all Slade could say was. "Mummy help me!" Chapter 248: The Plains Of Revere 6 Slade could hardly breathe, the rush of the wind in his ears and the cold of the wind itself was almost unbearable for him, and in some small way he had hoped that the giant lion and its master were as affected by thin air this high up in the atmosphere, but they were completely unshaken. At first he thought maybe they wanted something from him, but as it stands he could well and easily say that they didn''t need anything from him; they were just having the time of their lives playing with him. And it was this realization that scared him; if this wasn''t some sort of torture to get him to exposed everything he knew about Revere and the Remus coporeation, but now he was sure, this guy had absolutely no aim of asking. "Please let me go! I''ll tell you everything please!" the Lion stopped moving, flapping its massive wings to keep itself aloft as Rezar slid down its legs until he was hanging off the lion and staring face to face with Slade. "No! NO! NOOOOOOOO! NOOOOOOOOOOO!" The wind resistance was so sharp it felt as if a million blades were slicing at his body, but that didn''t compare to the sheer terror he felt as he fell from within the confines of the clouds. His screams seemed to spread within the sky itself, but there was no respite, there was only death, looming ahead of him and drawing ever closer with each second that passed. He regretted everything, this war, this bloody virtual world, all of the politics, he should have just remained there on earth and burned with the rest of the purists. It would have been loads better than this, dying this way was just not fun, it wasn''t what he wanted or expected for himself, and here he was still falling to his death, the ground just a second away. *Whoosh! * He felt himself come to halt as fangs dug into his calf, forcing him to cry as his momentum was arrested and he was saved from being plastered allover the battlefield. He was crying, his eyes were red as his body quivered and shivered from fright. He was actually rapidly loosing blood, but adrenalin was at an all time high, pumping him full of energy and equally pumping his blood out of his body. He felt the lion fly close to the ground as its form seemed to shrink and they flew into the forest, moving past trees before he was thrown forwards, smashing the trunk of a massive oak tree face first, before falling six meters to the ground and dislocating his left arm from how badly he landed. But that aside he could feel a few cracks from his rib cages and a couple more shifts and dislocations from other bones in his body. "He seems to have reached his limits Master, should we up the ante?" The Lion asked as it landed with a loud flap, Rezar jumping off to land in front of Slade without shoes. Slade swallowed and looked up, meeting those intense blue eyes that made his body shiver in fright as the evil king squatted and took Slade''s jaw in his hands. "Well, that depends on what this play session turns out to be. So Slade of Revere; wassup!" there was no time to think about the unfairness of this situation at all, all he could feel at that moment was fear, and it didn''t matter what anybody said, fear was a great motivator, and one that he wasn''t really ashamed of feeling right now, this kid was a monster. "Please! Im just one of the heralds for the Remus coporation, theyre the ones in charge of everything. The Kingdom of Revere was built from an amalgamation of various settlements, villages, towns and cities that had been under development before the rejuvenation. It was their aim to have total control over all of Bahrenburg once the Rejuvenation had happened, but their flagship kingdom was destroyed when the goblin king Tristain betrayed them left his post. They have an alliance with the Dustin Crowe Merchant company and a couple of snow elf princes who seeked an alliance from in order to gain the throne. They have a stand off with the cronies from the Yahweh theocracy south of their border, and then have a few more alliances with a couple of island cities. When they heard that you had disappeared, a few spies had told them that you had fallen into a big massive hole and this was just an opportunity for them to take over what is probably the largest territory and most fertile in all of the Bahrenburg wildlands. Im just a messenger please! I don''t want to die!" Slade didn''t have any chance to say anything else as a blade found its way into his mouth before bursting out the back of his head nailing him to the tree behind him. His death wasn''t instant, in just that few seconds before the darkness could take him, he watched as Rezar Deathwind left him impaled there while he cursed about how Slade just couldn''t bring himself to shut up. It filled him with a burning fury that he couldn''t understand, but there was nothing he could do about it, he choked, but the darkness came quickly, creeping around the edge of his vision as he felt cold in all of his limbs. So in the end it didn''t matter what he did, this was how he was going to die, just another footnote in history. All this time he never doubted his choices, never doubted his lies and the roles he''s had to play in the downfall of others. The politics didn''t faze him, in fact he had welcomed it and saw it as a way to get ahead in life. But now look at him, there was nothing to show for all of his suffering, he wasn''t leaving anything behind. No wealth, no wife, no children, no legacy. Just a trail of broken hearts and betrayals that did nothing more than paint him as grade 1 jerk of epic proportions. But what could he do, he just wanted to survive. Chapter 249: The Plains Of Revere 7 The aftermath of the battle was a somber affair, there were no losses on the side of the Biancans, but they were tired. Even the orcs amongst them were exhausted from the amount of bloodshed they had seen. It has been a rough three months of constant battles, many brothers and sisters had fallen from the numerous invasions happening at the borders, this was the final hurdle, but even they knew it wasn''t over yet. The enemy just lost a battle, and not a war, and it was the way of kings to go to war, there was no way Rezar would not want retaliation for what had happened here, no king would stand for such disrespect. But no one was saying it, no one wanted to be the one to tell their king that three months of constant battle had taken its toll, they had given so much, and quite frankly at the moment there wasn''t much that they could give again. Maybe after a few months, then they would be ready to fight. But at the moment they needed time, they had to rest and mourn what they had lost and go back home to the families they left behind and rest in their embrace for a bit. It wasn''t as if they weren''t happy about their victory, they''ve done so much, achieved so much as Biancans than they would have ever achieved with what they once belonged to. But war really does take its toll. "You all have done well!" his voice seemed to echo across the entire battlefield, his familiar had placed him on a hill where he could be properly seen. From where he was standing he could look over the entire battlefield, even to the great western sea beyond the plains where ships of the enemies lay burning. The sun was setting and its rays seemed to bath and envelope him in a light that seemed almost divine, and for a child of Darkness (Literally!) this was quite an irony. They had no idea what he was about to say, but many of them who understood the way of kings were worried and apprehensive. What was to come now? "I can see it in your eyes, you''re all are tired. But I''m pretty sure you all know that this isn''t over, they started this fight and they brought it to our doorstep, it''s not in our nature to not pay back blood for blood. But I see it in your eyes, you all are weary, you all long for the warmth of your homes and embrace of your loved ones. I grant it to you all, take as long as you need to rest, I shall stand guard over you all, and when you''re ready, we wipe those who think themselves worthy to be our opponents off the face of Elysium for good! Are you with me!" *Yeaaaaahhhhhhhhhh!!!* Rezar smiled at their response, he could see the toll the war had taken on them, and honestly speaking he wanted them to march after the fleeing Reverian army, but Lenore had given him the council and told him to pump the brakes a bit. And he had to take her advice because no one knew these soldiers better than their own general. And as a good king, well in his own opinion of what a good king is supposed to be like, he should at the very least be able to listen to his first general. Besides with Priest missing Lenore was now the person whose council he trusted the most, and given how little he trusted, that was actually saying something to say that Lenore actually has a bit of that trust in his heart. But then again Rezar''s heart was a complicated place to be in. he shook his head as he took a step back, watching over his soldiers as their spirits was lifted. They cleaned the battle a little faster and with a little extra pep in their steps as they did so. Rezar shook his head, the atmosphere seemed a lot more peaceful now, especially with the setting sun dipping in to the sea at the edge of the horizon. But Rezar knew this wasn''t over, there was still a storm brewing in the horizon, and he along with his people had to be ready. "we''ve had a few interesting days'' master; do you think it''s a good idea to not chase after the Reverians?" Valka asked as he laid down besides Rezar as he watched the sun set. "No I don''t think it''s a good idea, but this fight no longer belongs to the battlefield or to the soldiers in the valley below. Now we have to take the fight to the shadows, the Reverians and the Dustin Crowe merchant company have incurred significant losses and there would not be doing anything as stupid as meeting us face to face on a battlefield. But they wouldn''t stop, because they know we will be coming for them, it''s not in our nature to be bitten by wild dogs and then we''ll keep quiet about it. There are many other ways to end them, and I''m pretty sure we all can come up with a dozen different ways to fuck them up. Regardless I need more information about the people we''re dealing with, and then it would be left to see just how well they can dance in the shadows. But while that is going on I will have to be the king my people needs me to be. I have to make deals, attend banquets, develop my territory and probably get a queen or two. But make no mistakes Valka we are currently at war, Morte Bianca and every other power or force that think they can take what belongs to us. And like every obstacle that we''ve face before until now, We''re going to win." Valka nodded his head as he got up to his full height before turning to his master. "Well then I guess it''s about time I go back to sleep, but before I go master, what will you call this place, this battlefield?" "Let''s just call it anything! We''ll call it the plains of Revere! It''s the least we can do, after all its their blood that''s now soaking its soil, their very own Graveyard!" Chapter 250: A Lesson The sounds of the crashing waves caressing the side of the island temple was almost soothing, in the distance; Necron stood like a bastion of grace and power. Numerous towers stretching forth to the sky, many of them were still under construction, but what he could see was marvel of magic and technology. and the materials used in all of the construction was a silvery white alloy and stone material that was synonymous with the name of the kingdom that now served as their home. Everything looked really white, but above all it looked really futuristic, and it was a whole lot more than the vision Rezar ever had for this place, so much more. "I do not understand why you stand here and watch that which you live in and knows belong to you. Your city is going nowhere King Rezar, but what can actually go somewhere is time, and you''re losing a lot of it. Your stupid stint in going down to hell has taken valuable time away from you, there are enough people amongst your subjects that a couple times stronger than you, and your decision dragged the strongest defenders of Morte Bianca away when she needed them the most. You''ve done well in trying to redeem yourself and getting your soldiers to return home, but it''s about time you return to your training. The sun is about to rise, I expect you to use this time and start training, there''s more to the magic than what you have touched upon. Not to mention you have not even began to tap the power of the bloodlines you carry, being a vampire is the least of what lies asleep within your veins, and amongst them is my storm dragon bloodline. You master your body and your energy and get them to the point of resonance, by doing so you would invariably be able to meet the conditions necessary for the awakening of your bloodline and the abilities it carries. And invariably this would bring you more skill trees to master." Rezar was like the faithful student as he listened to the undead Storm Dragon talk, honestly speaking it was more humiliating hearing from her how much his curiosities and fuck ups had cost not just his people, but also him. And if he had to be honest, it had a little worried. During the times when he has let his curiosity get the best of him, Rezar had been almost unable to stop himself from doing whatever his heart wanted him to do, he just went ahead and did it without caring for the consequences or taking a second to think things through. It was almost as if the predominant personality took a back seat and this childish danger prone buffoon would take the helm. It was a worrying realization and he knew just what was causing it; Darkness''s experiment in trying to create a perfect child, a perfect being. And her genius idea was to combine an emotionless artificial intelligence with the most flawed living thing in all of existence. he didn''t even want to know how that math worked, or how it was possible for the human consciousness to be merged with that of an artificial intelligence; either way because of the goddamn merging, Rezar was no longer sure where he ended and where he began. His memories from back when he was on earth was pretty wacky, so he couldn''t tell if the current him was the real him, or the curious buffoon is who he''s always meant to be. It was a scary thought and though he has successfully succeeded in avoid philosophical questions about his very existence, that problem was still knocking at his door. Rezar took a deep breath and feel into a stance, he took a breath as the ambience of the energy within the very fabric of reality itself seemed to expose himself to him. It was chaotic but at the same time it was really calm. It flowed like water, rushing and crashing in fury and grace, and then it was gentle like a summer breeze and wrathful like a tornado. And then there was solidarity from it, stable firm, hard but malleable, and then there was so much passion to it, and in that passion it was rage and fury, lust and love. All of these feeling was quite familiar and an epiphany of sorts hung at the very forefront of his mind as he transitioned into the next stance. All of a sudden his body seemed to feel and extreme strain, like there were shackles within that was blocking and holding him back. He took a deep breath and sunk even deeper into the feelings, drawing power from the grace of water and the wrath of wind. He seemed to cruise past a barrier as his pores seemed to open up and energy began to rush into his body in spades. The feeling was so intense and intoxicating that he almost stopped, but a loud snort from the storm dragon put his concentration back where it belonged as he, continued with the [13 Dragon Pulses] [You have experienced Enlightenment! +15 to all Stats!] [13 Dragon Pulses has unlocked new skills! Water Element Mastery/ Wind Element Mastery] Rezar didn''t notice it, but for a few seconds there was a shimmer of silvery white scales over his body as he opened his eyes to a whole new world. His senses were sharper, and it wasn''t from an increase of his [Supernatural Body] skill, rather it was almost as if nature itself was trying to expose much of itself to him. The sea and the wind called out to him in a manner he didn''t understand, but at the same time he felt quite at home with those calling, it was like someone calling him home. "Don''t get too lost in the feelings of the element Young King! If you lose yourself to it, you will become an elemental spirit, and not one of the good ones with a consciousness of their own, but an elemental known as an Echo. The elements do not control you neither do you control them, you''re now in a partnership with prime elements of water and wind. No other prime elements will be available to you to master; you can thank my bloodline in you for that. At a certain stage of mastery, the [13 Dragon Pulses] cultivation skill you created would unlock a person''s ambient connection to one or two of the four prime elements. Sometimes said person will feel a connection to all of them, but you would have to choose the one or ones most compatible with you. And more often than not this compatibility is decided by the bloodline you carry. The power you have now is left to you to master, we''re done for today. Go and be a king, your kingdom needs you." Chapter 251: Report 1 Rezar felt his heart skip a beat at the massive sheaf of papers heading his way, it didn''t help that Alistair had a smiling face on as he carried the tower of papers towards Rezar. It was insane, this was not what he had in mind when he proclaimed himself king, why in God''s name did he need to read and sign papers, can''t they just agree to something and get it done, what was the need to start signing papers and heading to places to supervise construction s and sign off on deals and have meetings with diplomats from other kingdoms or powers. It was bloody annoying, why then did he have people filling different positions, it was so he didn''t have to do anything like this. "What do I have to look through today Alistair?" Rezar asked with a sigh as he felt really small surrounded by a mountain of documents. "Well you don''t really have much to do today your majesty, two new national buildings have been raised based on the specifications of Queen in Waiting Gynaika. One of them is the hall of judges where citizens from all over Morte Bianca would gather to report their problems or any happenings within the kingdom, more often than not this is just a place where the grievances of the people could be placed at the feet of the king to solve. At the moment at the foresight of the queen in waiting a collegium of judges are being trained right now be fair and impartial in the process of administering a listening ear and attempting to solve the problems of the people. At the end of the month a tribunal will be held where you or any other royal on duty would listen to an overview of all the problems that has been solved by the judges, review them and solve more complex cases that would require the ear of the king of himself." Rezar raised an eyebrow at that, he didn''t really want to say anything, a king had look aloof you know, but- "You do know this outfit will eventually become corrupt right? Give it a few years and even if it''s not the current iteration of Judges...I think I''ll call them first generation Judges. You cannot eternally guarantee integrity in humanity. And let''s be frank with each other, it doesn''t matter how many races you see here, in the end everyone is still human. So different body and looks or not, we''re all still the same greedy, selfish and untrustworthy creatures beneath our skin. How do you plan to combat that?" "That is quite wise your majesty." Alistair said much to Rezar''s surprise, he''s been called many things before, but wise was not one of them. he had to admit he felt really good about himself. "We''re walking around that by utilizing the same method the system had used with slaves, being a judge would require you to take an oath of service to Morte Bianca, and in so doing they would be answerable and judged by the Tenets of Morte Bianca. The Tenets of course has not yet been drafted, the queen in waiting has taken the liberty to draft a few of the tenets awaiting revision from you your majesty. A techno magical brand that functions in the way of grafted organ into the bodies of the judges, would track all of their activities and choices and judge them based on the Tenets of the kingdom. Its foolproof with no way around it, as such being a judge would be a lifetime commitment. When a judge is ready to retire, he or she would have to train an apprentice that would take over their place, passing on the same brand that now carries all of their experiences with cases they''ve judged and the troubles they solved. Sure there might be a loophole we''ve not discovered yet, but contingencies have been put in place in case of any foresight. The contingencies have been listed in a separate report that is laid on your desk." Rezar raised his second eyebrow this time, there was too many holes, and not with the situation with the judges, he was already complaining of having so much work, the judges would be a perfect way for him to keep his finger on the pulse. Knowing what was going with his people and understanding their problems would go a long way in making sure his kingdom remained stable internally. What was his problem however being Alistair''s demeanor, he was playing an angle and unfortunately for the Muriel elf, Rezar could smell his scheme right away? "I see you''ve picked a side Alistair." Alistair looked startled for a moment before he asked. "Your Majesty I don''t understand?" Rezar smiled as he picked himself up from the back of his desk and gingerly walked around it until he was standing face to face with Alistair. He placed his hand on the elf''s shoulder, brushing a stray lock of his hair off. "this happens with every family that comes into existence, there''s always a play for power even amongst the king''s own household. I see that everything being done here would only do one thing, it would boost and strengthen and give more power to Gynaika, who I''ve noticed you kept calling the Queen in Waiting. Don''t play with politics Alistair it doesn''t fit you, and above all you''re one of the people who is always around me. I wouldn''t want to get severely irritated and take a massive chomp out of your neck because I end up finding your schemes boring. Would you want that?" Rezar asked with a smile to which Alistair shook his head rapidly. "Good neither do I, I gave you everything you have today. The position of power you now occupy I put you in there. So if you''re in bed with Gynaika, in order to make it possible she fully occupies a position of power that really have say in the fate of my kingdom; then I advise to rethink your decisions and very carefully Alistair. I''m not as stupid as you think I am, but I''m just as dangerous if not more so. So do have a long hard thought about your life''s choices in that pretty little head of yours. Before you lose it...permanently. now let''s continue with this Darkness forsaken reports; what''s next on the Agenda." Chapter 252: Report 2 The suggestion of rethinking his life choices was one Alistair was all too happy to take. He had no idea what he was even thinking, Morte Bianca was barely even five or six months old, yet he was already making political alliances and power moves. Sure the civilization itself was rapidly coming into being with all of the advancements that he and his people have been able to implement, but honestly speaking if it wasn''t for Rezar''s strength and all of the things he had accomplished, they would never have been able to achieve anything like this. It was his strength, his abilities and his victories that had really served as a foundation of the formation of everything they''ve built and were still building. Alistair couldn''t help but curse at himself, he has been hanging around Gynaika a little too much that her constant need to scheme, plot and outmaneuver everyone around her had rubbed off on him. Honestly speaking there was no need for schemes, as far as he knew, King Rezar would keep his promise to marry her, even if it turns out the king was somewhat promiscuous in his way of doing things. A dozen wives and concubines or more, Gynaika would still be queen. Yet she was gathering talents and making moves that would even give her more power than the king himself. and even if he had come to his senses and realized that it would be better if he just remained the valuable little scientist and assistant; he knew that without Priest around to give Rezar direction, Gynaika might actually get her way and be more powerful than the very person who owned the kingdom. But there''s still a curve ball to this. Alistair saw a different part of Rezar today, not the kind that threatened to murder him if he keeps laying at the feet of Gynaika. Rezar loves to threaten things, but downside to that is that people who don''t listen always end up becoming his food or the next entry into his gorily murdered art collection. Rezar knew Gynaika was playing a game, in fact Alistair suspected that he has always known and just kept quiet, playing the na?ve young king who just had too much power than he knew what to do with. But he knew, this bloody king knew all along. "So basically you''re telling me the second place I have to be is at the opening of the ''Deathwind National Academy''. A school that would be responsible for bringing up the next generations of leaders. The opening is today, and you didn''t tell me until today, and let me guess, all of the staff positions have been filled. There''s over a thousand kids off all ages, some with parents and some without waiting for my presence at the venue, where Gynaika is currently officiating the opening ceremony. You both thought I would reject the invitation didn''t you?" Rezar asked as he gave Alistair a pointed look, who at that point felt the tip of his toes grow cold. all he could do was nod. "She''s smart, but honestly she''s not that smart. Does she have any contingencies in place on the instance that I actually find out what she was doing?" Rezar asked as he leaned back on his chair and narrowed his eyes at Alistair, forcing the Muriel elf to choke on his own saliva. "the only she says is that there''s a promise between the two of you, and that it''s that promise that''s her guarantee." Alistair answered to which Rezar only said. "A promise indeed!" Alistair got the feeling he had really pissed off the king of one of the fastest growing civilization in all of Elysium history. He was worried, because an angry Rezar is an erratic Rezar. He might not have fear or love in his heart, but he had lots of anger, way more than he even knew what to do with. And at this moment it was his life''s choice to completely try and stay away from the direction of that anger. Rezar suddenly got up from his seat and sped up to the front of Alistair, all of his movements were a blur and Alistair couldn''t help the startled shriek that flew out of his mouth as he took a few steps back and tripped over a stack of documents. "Get me Lenore, and quietly start a rumor that the king has decided to take Lenore as his first wife. She would be queen of all Morte Bianca, since it''s a rumor I need you embellish it as much as you can okay? Good now you''ll need to clean up the mess you made in my office, and then...wait! that special project I asked you to take care of...did you do it, and better yet does she know about it?" Rezar asked, this time his eyes going from their blue shades to an intense blood red spectrum. Alistair was very afraid, but he also couldn''t lie to those eyes. "The Sanctuary as you called it is currently undergoing it''s finishing touches and having a few upgrades to pre-existing installations. She has been suspicious that there was something secret you and I have been up to, she''s not found out yet, but it was her hunt for the secret that brought her to me in the first place before she succeeded in convincing me to back her up." Rezar nodded his head and rubbed under his bare chin before saying. "Hurry it up and make sure she doesn''t find out about it or I''m going to kill you. Now if you would excuse me, I have an opening ceremony to crash, and an upstart bitch to put in her place. Do have a nice day Alistair." And with that said Rezar jumped out the window of his office, which was situated at the top floor of a building 50 stories high. Alistair wasn''t worried about the King, but himself and the fact that there was now a need to change the clothes he wore to work today, Rezar really was as unpredictable as he had come to know. Chapter 253: A Friend There was a clamor as Gynaika took to the podium, it wouldn''t be too farfetched to say that she was incredibly happy about the current state of things. What she had in this life, or rather what she was gaining from it was everything she ever wanted from life and more. Some might say she was too greedy and conniving, but she would tell them that in life everything you own would only be yours when you seize it for yourself. Ambition is why man has thrived to the point of creating an entire world that could house and safely store 99% of the entire human population in the face of a cataclysmic event, this might be completely out of character, but she had to say that this was pretty damn awesome! "Biancans! I bid you all a good evening! I would have loved nothing more than to have this gathering under the warm touch of the sun, but I have to admit, the ambience of the moon this evening is quite soothing and beautiful. It shows exactly what nobility and great achievements truly is. And above all. Nothing more than the moon shows the regality of our great King''s bloodline, the bloodline of a Primordial vampire! But that is neither here nor there, I have to admit Morte Bianca and her jewel Necron have been through quite a difficult time ever since the Rejuvenation. Since that time we''ve have lost plenty; our friends, our lovers, our children, our families and out power. But in Death there is life, in death there is rebirth! It is a creed that Morte Bianca''s foundation has been built upon, and it is a creed that I and the king wholeheartedly believes in. take a look AROUND!" Gynaika paused as her words resonated with the audience, just as she asked they took a look around. The massive domed building behind her with walls of concrete and steel and a painted glass ceiling that could be seen from their location on the extremely expansive lawn that the opening ceremony was currently taking place in. the neatly trimmed hedge and bushes, the statues of Rezar Deathwind dotting the entirety of the college of judges, the crisp evening air and the bright lights that made it even more beautiful that it would have been during the daytime, and all of this has been achieved under their watchful gaze and struggles, it was truly beautiful. "She''s right you know, take a very good look my people, there''s so much that has been achieved, we''ve come far haven''t we." There was just something about Rezar that many people couldn''t help but agree with, the young King had a presence and a voice that could never be ignored. He didn''t even have to speak loudly for the thousands of people to hear him, this was his city, literally everything that was here gave him power and existed to make him stand out. A path was made for him as the people who had attended the ceremony hastily fell into a bow when the famed Bone King decided to grace them with his presence. He was actually wearing simple street clothes, one of the advantages of the rejuvenation was the change of fashio0n from the medieval/fantasy kind to the ones many of the people here were quite familiar with back on earth. And Rezar was all too happy to follow the trend wearing a simple t-shirt with a grey hoody, black jeans and grey sneakers to top it off. His hair was disheveled and fell over his face, but his blue eyes could still be seen blazing like a beacon from behind his silver white locks. Though not much highlight had been placed on it, but Rezar actually had tattoos on his body, a mark of sorts from death that up until not many people actually knew glowed in the night. So as simple as he looked, the king of Morte Bianca was almost completely ethereal in his presence, his visage would be described as exotic and irresistible. He had the presence of a monarch, and not just any kind of monarch, one that had the power to pluck the moon and the starts and the blazing sun from the sky with just a swing of his hands. As Rezar moved through the crowd, a six-year-old boy had forced his way forward through the crowd, however his shuffling had annoyed an adult as the boy was pushed forward, right onto the body of the king, jostling him. Rezar was like a mountain in the storm, unshakable by anything, the boy on the other hand felt as if he had rammed into wall as he fell back and started tearing up. There was a sharp intake of air from everybody as the person responsible quickly vanished into the crowd while the boy''s parents quickly came out, immediately getting on their knees to beg for mercy. But a quick raise of an arm from Rezar had any words they had to say stuck on their throat as he knelt down in front of the boy, his eyes bleeding from Blue to red. "You''ve just been pushed down and thrown onto the path of death, like many before you kid you''re left with a choice. What would you do when death is staring at you, you fought your way through this crowd to catch a glimpse of the son of death, and now you''re sitting on your ass in front of him, what will you do?" Rezar had no idea what he was aiming to achieve by doing this, but this was his curiosity in play, he really just wanted to see what the Kid will do. And honestly speaking of all the things he expected, it wasn''t the subsequent actions of the boy, it completely caught him off guard. "hi-H-hi! My name is Lawrence! Do you w-want to be F-fr-Friends! And C-C-Can you teach me to be strong so I can protect mummy and daddy, so that nothing happens to them like uncle James!" Rezar blinked his eyes completely surprised and caught off guard, everyone else was watching with their hearts pounding and their breaths held within their lungs in fear of what Rezar would be saying in face of what the boy had just said. Or even worse if he would decide to not even say anything at all and take action instead. Rezar might be their king, but it wasn''t as if he had the best reputation if they had to be honest, however just as the rumors say, the King of Morte Bianca really is full of surprises. "Sure why the hell not!" Chapter 254: Friend Of The King "What''s your name Kid?" Rezar asked as he lifted the boy up from his position on the ground, giving his parents a nod as he asked them to get up while he held on to their son. "But I told you already?" the kid replied without a hint of fear, Rezar raised an eyebrow at that, he couldn''t help laughing as he remembered a friend of his that he hadn''t seen in quite a while, a precocious little girl whose mom was probably responsible for more than half the buildings in Necron if not all of them. or was her mom a farmer instead? Rezar couldn''t really remember, but he would get right on it as soon as he was done here. "Yeah you did say your name was Lawrence, well then, People of Morte Bianca! Hear the words of your King!" the moment he said that, all of the soldiers and guards who were around quickly took a knee and bowing their heads. Rezar was shocked, he didn''t even know they could actually do that when he had to speak, he looked up at the podium and noticed that Gynaika also had her head bowed, though she was kneeling like the others. Rezar quickly leaned towards little Lawrence and asked. "What''s your family name little Lawrence?" the kid equally leaned in and whispered back. "Lawrence Harvey." "From this day forwards, Lawrence Harvey and ten of his generations will now come to be known with the title Friend of the King! Each generation of his family, himself, his children and their children after for ten generations can ask the crown for a single request. and if its within my power, I would make that request a reality. And yes young Lawrence I will teach you how to be strong don''t worry." Rezar finished up with a smile as he handed the young boy back to his parents who looked on with tears in their eyes as they thanked the king profusely and blessed with prosperous reign and long life. "The Morte Bianca you all see now; the Necron you live is not for you. I will be honest with you all, I came into this world as a slave! Punished for what honestly is not a crime but an attempt on my path to get justice for myself. But those that be with the power to make the decisions on earth sent me here to be a slave for all of my lifetimes. But unfortunately for them, the Goddess of Death took a liking to me. I became her son, and the power to survive, fight and build was not too far from me. I worked hard for my freedom, suffered and bled for it until eventually I was able to gain it after an extreme eight months of constant battle and bloodshed. And I was not even a vampire then, I was still human just like all of you. But then I got my freedom, and in that time all I ever wanted was place that I could just call my own. I didn''t want a settlement or a village, or a town or a city much less a freaking kingdom! but along the way I met people willing to follow me. My friend, teacher and currently missing mentor Priest, my first general and your Hero! Lenore! And the first of my blood, the first vampire born of me, and also your Hero, Gynaika De La Muerte and also someone who will be one of your future queens. And from then on it was one adventure after the other, one battle after the other, one brush with death after the other until finally; here we are. Out towers are growing taller every day and soon enough they will pierce the skies. Our army unbeatable, our cities lit at night like the day, food in our bellies and on our table, peace in every sense of the word even though we have enemies all around us." By this point he had already got on top of the podium, Gynaika gave him a small bow as she gave way for him to talk to the people present. Rezar was perceptive enough to catch the look of annoyance that flashed across her face, he smiled triumphantly. He did come here to annoy her and throw whatever plan she had going on in disarray, and based on the look on her face it was obvious he had succeeded, but just like everything his life, this gesture had turned into something more, and it was an opportunity, after all it was not everyday someone got the chance to talk with his people. "Morte Bianca has grown severely since the Rejuvenation, and while we have problems to handle outside of our borders, there are still much more problems to take care within the confines of our kingdom, in an attempt to foster peace and unity amongst our people I came with a plan that I had the ''Queen in Waiting'' Gynaika put into play, and I must say I am quite proud of everything she has achieved. To solve the problems of the people, from small disputes to dangers of the land like bandits or monsters that don''t know better than to mess with the sacred people of this kingdom, the judges would be there to lend a listening ear and have the limited authority to utilize the resources of Morte Bianca to help you all after a thorough investigation on their part. You can bring all of your problems here, and I would make sure every resource required is made available to the judges to help you all in solving your problem and helping you all live a life free of pain, discomfort and distress. This is Morte Bianca! In death there is life, and in death there is rebirth. Because you all must understand what we are, because War Bends to Us, Life Falls for Us and?" Rezar paused, waiting for them to complete what was probably the most absolute creed of Morte Bianca and not the one Gynaika so stylishly tried to implement. "AND DEATH SMILES FOR US!!!!!!!" Rezar smiled as he said. "Exactly!" Chapter 255: Her Schemes Rezar looked at the sea as he sat cross legged on the beach, not at all worried for is image as a king. The island of the storm dragon could be seen in the distance along with the land bridge that connected the island to Morte Bianca. She was located south west, while north west was the temple of death. Ever since that temple had been built Rezar hadn''t even had the time to go see what it looked like, honestly speaking it was probably because he was avoiding the place, and he wasn''t sure why. Or rather it wasn''t that he was avoiding the place, it would better to explain as he was avoiding someone instead. But be that as it may, there was a person he couldn''t avoid and she was standing right behind him. "What do you want Gynaika?" Rezar asked as he kept his gaze on the sea, appreciating the way the tides seemed to ebb and flow and crash against the shores. Gynaika didn''t say anything as she instead took a seat beside him, her hair softly rustling under the soft assault of the ocean breeze. "I get the feeling you''re angry at me?" she said to him, using that to open the conversation. Rezar looked at her for a good minute contemplating what to say to her. If it was someone else, they would probably start getting really uncomfortable under Rezar''s gaze, but Gynaika was made of sturdier stuff and had a backbone most people could only ever wish to have. Rezar wasn''t sure how to handle her, she was just too conniving and he wondered if he should meet her head to head at her game. The only problem was that he wasn''t so sure that he would be able to outmaneuver her in this game of politics. But then again he was the king, and this was his kingdom. Sure a little subterfuge would be required when dealing with Gynaika as her ambitious appetite has gotten really large, he needed to find a way to control her but that doesn''t seem like it would be easy. But even so, he didn''t think it was required that he sneaked around like a rat trying to keep a tight grasp on his power, at the very least not in front of her or when he was dealing with her. He didn''t have to tell her anything, bit at least he could be straightforward and not have to pick his words and expression around her. He was the king! he would not be cowered into acting like a meek little bitch because of Gynaika and her ambitious appetite. "You''re scheming a little too much ''Queen in Waiting!" which is funny cause I don''t see any reason for you to go after so much power, not unless you''re trying to take my throne away from me. But you can''t be that stupid can you? I made you a vampire, and because of that I can just as easily unmake you with a thought. Pace yourself Gynaika, or I''ll make sure everything you have now ad everything you''re aiming to go will vanish in the blink of an eye. Of all the people around me you''re the person I trust the least. I disappear for three months and you try to take over my kingdom, I get the feeling that if Lenore was not here to keep a watch on you, things would have been a whole lot worse. Which begs the question; why are you so desperate for power little vampire?" Rezar asked her as he turned to look at her, ignoring the scent of shock that seemed to waft off her body. "Rezar I..." "Until you''ve taken your vows to me and shared my bed, my name will remain to you as Your Majesty! Don''t make that mistake again." Rezar said to her as he narrowed his eyes in annoyance, but given Gynaika''s gritting teeth, obviously she was in a worse mood than he was. "If you wanted absolute power then you should never have followed me, in fact you should never have decided to follow anybody at all. You decided to ride on my coat tails as a way to gain ultimate power, your gift of divination helps you in that regard that you can see the things I can or could achieve before they happen. However, does it show you when I get annoyed enough to rip your head off your shoulders? You belong to me now, and not just due to the fact that my blood runs through your veins, but because I say so. If you want power, you really wanted power then you should have made me more powerful. I can trust you Gynaika, your just too dishonest. Not that I are much for honesty, but you are one of the people that are around me, and above all you are the first person I turned into a vampire! You! Should be the person closest to me! But you''re a bitch only concerned about making herself more power and reaping from a foundation she did not sow. You have done much for Necron and Morte Bianca as a whole, the people love you; and that''s the reason why you''re still alive. But for your own sake, I do implore you to curb your fucking ambitions and stop going after what you know should be mine, I''m not going to be living in a kingdom or a world where I would have to be dragging power with my own queen! Turn your appetite outside. The stronger I am the stronger you are. If you''re going to serve then serve well and to the best of your abilities, but if you feel me being the only one with sole power in Morte Bianca is wrong, then leave. As thanks for everything you''ve done, I won''t hunt you down and id let you start over somewhere else where you can be happy and have as much power as you can possibly have, but not in my kingdom! Think long and hard about your next step Gynaika, I grow weary of your schemes, and you of all people should know how I am to things or people who displease me." Rezar didn''t say anything else as he turned his gaze back to the sea, Gynaika remained sitting there, not because she wanted to, but because there wasn''t much of a choice. The people had gathered to watch the King and the Queen in Waiting sit side by side to watch the ambience and beauty of the ocean at night. She had to keep up appearance and more than that, she still had so much to say to him. But in the end even with her heart and mind in turmoil she knew there wasn''t much she could say to him. And then she realized she had seen him in just the same manner his enemies had, that he was just a kid, and now just like them, she was probably going to pay for it. Chapter 256: The Invitation (I): A Car Two weeks spent doing nothing but ruling and signing off on projects had Rezar feeling the symptoms of wanderlust again, his but literally itched just from the thought of sitting down and signing off on any other projects, or making estimated economic plans and growths for the kingdom. He hated that the most as numbers weren''t really his strong suit, but none the less he had to be here and be his people''s king, and all that entailed dealing with numbers no matter how much he hated them. never the less the respite he was waiting for finally came one cold Monday morning, winter was on the horizon and the weather was quite chilly even for himself, it was just like any other Monday, until... "Your Majesty I''m sorry to interrupt but there a delegate from the snow elves in the throne room, they''re requesting your audience your majesty." Alistair said as he walked into Rezar''s office, however the first thing Rezar could say was. "I have a throne room? Since when?" Alistair blinked twice for a few moments before sighing in exasperation. "Yes you do have a throne room your majesty, and you''ve had it ever since your residence had upgraded to a king''s castle, which should be right around the time the Rejuvenation had happened. But you''ve been sleeping in the caves of the storm dragon''s island since the Rejuvenation you''ve not had a chance to inspect it or live in it as you should." Rezar got the feeling that Alistair was actually upset about him not having even visited his own home since the rejuvenation, and when Rezar thought about it, it was actually quite stupid. What has he been doing all this time. He didn''t say anything and just let Alistair lead him out of what had become his official duty building. As soon as he was out Alistair led him out where an actual honest to god car was waiting for him. He looked from the car and then back to Alistair and from the back and back again. Alistair had a smug look on his face as the flustered expression Rezar had on his face, and Rezar honestly found it really annoying. The melv was enjoying himself a little too much and he wasn''t sure he really liked that, but then again there was nothing much to be said about this, Rezar wasn''t someone that could be surprised easily, he could give the bloody Muriel elf this win and go ahead like the good king he was. "Let''s get this done with Alistair, and when we''re done how about you stay the night and finish up with the proposals and plans for the underground railway line through the entire kingdom, that should keep you up for let''s say a few hours to a year?" and then Rezar went into the car with a smug look on his face while Alistair looked like he had just swallowed a bug. But there was nothing he could do about it, the king had spoken and he had no other choice but to comply. The drive from the King''s tower to the King''s palace wasn''t too long, the distance between both locations wasn''t too far, however he did have a good ten minutes to look around and appreciate his home. There was hardly anything fantasy like in sight anymore, except for the occasional display of magic, everything here was a technological age as advanced as what the earth is...or rather was. The King''s palace was actually to the west and just like before the Rejuvenation it stood on a tall hill that overlooked the entire city. The hill still led up to a plateau where the castle itself was placed looking as majestic as the city below. It did however still hold the same aesthetic design you would see in medieval castles. But it was huge, there were four towers having the highest points of the entire building and each was placed in a cardinal direction. The towers were a good 30 to 40 stories tall, extremely massive as it was conjoined with an equally impressive main building that was about 15 to 20 floors tall. The lawn was still as beautiful as it was when Rezar first saw it, a peaceful field of green filled with flowers of every exotic species imaginable and smelling like it was summer all the time. There was a fountain in the m idle of a main path that split left and right to other buildings in the distance, there were also tall trees lining the main path, and a fence made of actual steel surrounding the entire castle estate. The car came to a stop in front of the building as Rezar happily bounced out with a smile on his face, thankfully he was well dressed today. He felt the white suite with a red tie and red shoes were overkill, but he was the king. Looking good was not a choice, it was a duty! Rezar went on ahead, passing by a couple of orcish guards who bowed with extremely large smiles on their faces. It seems they were now extremely happy to not be guarding a house where it''s master has been indefinitely absent. The doors swung outward and he walked into a small foyer where an entire squad of guards were placed with rifles and really ferocious looking broadswords that could divide a man in half with one strike. Rezar recognized the emblem of a sun behind a black skull, these were the sons of dawn, his kings guard. Guess taking care of his home would be up to them. they bowed giving Rezar a happy feeling before the door to the foyer was pushed in, but this time the door actually required a magical signature from one of the guards before it swung open. Rezar looked at Alistair, giving the elf a look that promised a session of interrogation so that Rezar could know just what sort of home he now had. Rezar ignored the group of people who were currently gathered around Gynaika, discussing God knows what. Guess there was no need to be surprised that she was here already, but after their last talk Rezar didn''t think she would be trying anything again, or at least not any time soon. Those who recognize him quickly got into a positioned respect as they bowed when he passed them by, Gynaika included. He went and sat his butt on the massive throne made of actual bones at the end of the massive hall he now found himself in. he turned to snow elves and then said. "What do you want?" Chapter 257: The Invitation (II): Snow Elf Banquet Perhaps being hostile to the envoys of the snow elves wasn''t a good idea, but honestly speaking Rezar wasn''t sure he could bring himself to care. Of course a particular amount of finesse was required when it came to the way a king had to deal with visiting envoys. This wasn''t the old Elysium anymore, and Rezar didn''t have as much power as would warrant him staring down at every other kingdom or civilization. He had to err on the side of caution, but the bottom line of the entire matter was that Rezar had to impose his authority, even if it was on a couple visiting snow elves. "Our esteemed greetings to King Rezar of Morte Bianca, may the light of Eloeimain shine on you. We bring you an invitation from the queen of the snow elves." Rezar raised an eyebrow at that, there were three snow elves but he couldn''t tell the difference. The literal white skin, the white hair and ice blue eyes and frost covered eyelids were synonymous down to the way they even creased their eyebrows, if he had to be honest it was quite spooky. But ultimately it seems they were more diplomatic than he was, there wasn''t even a change in expression when Rezar had rudely asked them what they wanted, and not even when their spokesperson was explaining the reason for their presence. It was challenging, and Rezar felt the need to maintain a dignified image as opposed the rough and edged manner he had brought to the table. He didn''t need to act brutish or wild to show that he was dangerous, he had an illustrious reputation that could do that all by its self. "An invitation to what exactly?" Rezar asked as he leaned back on his throne with a pensive yet focused look on his face. The ways his eyes were, made it seem as if his mind was far away and at the same close enough to pay attention to what was being spoken. The spokesperson bowed her head before continuing to speak. "the snow elf kingdom would be holding an auction where most of the items of the old world would be sold off to interested bidders and some valuable treasures found would be showcased and if anyone is interested, it would also be sold off to whoever is interested or pays the highest amount of money or giving something of equal value. Following that would be a banquets where the princess would be shown to society and let to mingle with eligible young men in the banquets to choose who will be her new husband and forge an alliance with the snow elf kingdom." Rezar raise an annoyed eyebrow as he looked at the snow elf, this was all bullshit if he had to be honest, when he thought about there really wasn''t anything valuable about heading for this so called auction/banquet. "I really don''t see anything or any event that would be of value to me in attending this banquet. I would have to respectfully decline this invitation, please extend my apologies to your queen, and tell her I would make a personal visit when I am less swarmed with kingly duties." Rezar answered with a more amicable tone than before, the snow elf bowed before opening her mouth to speak again. "Thank you so much for your time and consideration great king Rezar, but I must insist about the importance of this banquet. The banquet on its own is just a front, this a secret summit between the kings and rulers of old Elysium. It''s been a few months since the rejuvenation and it would be within the best interested of all the old rulers to have a sit down and discuss the current status quo, most especially the arrival of the aliens and NPCs." Rezar went silent, this snow elf definitely gave him a lot to think about if he had to be honest. The NPCs; aliens or not have always been a problem, not to mention that ever since the bloody rejuvenation happened, so many things that had been buried had been exposed, chief amongst them being the literal gates of hell that were currently in his very own backyard. And not just the threats that they were facing, a chance to sit down with the other rulers of the Bahrenburg wildlands would be a chance to make definite and lucrative deals that would be good for Morte Bianca and Necron in the long run. It was definitely a win-win situation and missing this would have far reaching consequences, especially if he was the only rule of the wildlands who didn''t show up. Doing that would give the others much of a chance to rally against him, and if his enemies are there this would be a chance for them to join hands and plot against him. Not going would make him the black sheep of Bahrenburg, of course he didn''t give a shit how people saw him, all that mattered was his own people. But for their sake he had to be there, strong as Morte Bianca might be they were not invisible, and if they get surround on all sides by multiple enemies and all because he was too stubborn to show up and shake hands with pompous political fools. If it was just him he wouldn''t give a shit about the status quo, but now he had a people and fucking Kingdom to think about, which means this was never a choice in the first place. An invitation it might seem, but in the end this was a summon with an underlying threat to it. It was no wonder the snow elf had told him she was insisting. Politics was weird, because what would seem like a threat wouldn''t look like it at the time, and really stupid people must have lost quite a bit in life for being incapable of reading in between the lines. "Very well then, you can run back to your queen. Tell her that I''ll be there in a week and she can come welcome at the foot of the Breone mountains. You''re dismissed." The snow elf bowed her head, an obvious smirk slowly stretching across her face. With her face down she didn''t think anyone could see it, but in a room filled with exposed and hidden vampires such a gesture was nothing more than an affront, and a queen in waiting was pissed as hell for seeing it...looks like there were more games to be played. Chapter 258: The Invitation (III): Plans The snow elves would be leaving first thing the next morning, Rezar had asked Alistair to show them around the city and get them squared away. However, the moment they were led out, the throne room fell silent as Lenore, Screet, Gynaika, Jason, Kitagawa and Samira. This could be considered his closest circle of confidantes with the exception of Alistair who just left with the snow elves. This meeting was not something as simple as an invitation to a banquet, the snow elves had another reason for being here, and it was probably to gauge what sort of king and what kind of kingdom Morte Bianca was. "WE shouldn''t talk too much, let''s just kill them and be done with it." Gynaika immediately suggested, her pearly white fangs glinting as her red eyes promised vengeance. "We do that and we start another war, and this time we''re the aggressors, not to mention the snow elves aren''t people we can deal with at the moment. They''re just as powerful if not more so than we are, they wouldn''t be able to beat us, but neither would we be able to beat them, so put your fangs back in their place Gynaika." Lenore said as she rolled her eyes at the queen in waiting''s bloodlust. What she got in return was a hiss and massive glare from Gynaika. "Master they didn''t come here with good intentions, is it necessary to attend this banquet?" Screet asked as he leaned on a pillar, his staff held tightly in his hands. "it is necessary Screet, if not for anything but for the fact that all of us would be allies and potential enemies might be gathered in one place, forget the technology we now have, we''re still pretty much blind to the rest of the world, and we''re facing enemies that Morte Bianca as a whole is incapable of facing alone. So we need to see who we can work with, and who would be next on our list of targets. And calm yourself Gynaika, the snow elves just made it to the top of that list." Rezar said as he leaned back with a clenched fist under his chin. "What would you have us do then, I take it certain steps would have to be taken to deal with this current situation. The snow elves aren''t exactly normal opponents." Lenore said as she looked at him, Rezar looked pensive before Gynaika took the lead and started speaking. "I reckon the snow elves would be thinking the same thing, and in such a scenario if I were them I would do one of two things. I''ll use friendship as a pretense and plant someone within you, and it has to be someone important. The security measures of Morte Bianca are now so sophisticated that I doubt they can plant any spies amongst us, but underestimating the enemy would be a mistake I don''t think we can afford to make. But obviously a power play has been made, and once we arrive at that bloody banquet there would probably be, more power plays. As far as kingdoms go, we''re the black sheep of not just the Bahrenburg wildlands but probably the whole of Elysium, they''re probably expecting us to reject the invitation, after all an image has been painted of us, and arriving for that banquet would make it seem as if we were cowed by their collectiveness into coming or at least the might of the snow elf kingdom. We should hold back the spokesperson and send the other back, it might seem like a futile attempt on our path to hold on to our dignity or power in front of the others, but that still works in our favor. It means they would underestimate us, and Rezar being as young as he is would have the other rulers looking down on him, but this would be a two-step plan. Leave the snow elf with me for a few days." Gynaika said only to be cut off by Kitagawa. "Do your intent to torture her for information then? No offense Lady Gynaika but I don t think Torture is something you should bother or occupy yourself with. I''m pretty sure Samira and the daughters of eclipse have methods to make her talk." "Don''t be so crude, and do try to keep your animosity for me hidden Kitagawa, its unbecoming for the lord commander of the king''s Kings Guard to hold the queen in waiting in mind. Besides I''m a vampire, a look is all I need to get that freaky blue eyed bitch to start spilling her guts. Literally and figuratively." Rezar raised an eyebrow, Gynaika was now a lot more loose with her words, maybe it was because they were alone with people they trusted here, but it showed something, she wasn''t playing a game anymore but was instead showing her real self. And frankly even if it was an ugly personality, he would prefer to see it than to deal with a fake. "I suspect that we could be cowed into making decisions that won''t exactly be favorably for us if we go there, and frankly speaking refusal might get us in trouble if not killed as we would probably be outnumbered. Master if I''m not stepping out of bounds, I would like to ask that you cover all of our bases. Every policy that needs to be taken care off should be, a princess is about to be given up in marriage, and you''re a young unmarried king. It''s an obvious trap, maybe not for you, but for any other ruler with something to offer. We head for the snow elf kingdom in a week, marry the queen in waiting in two days!" Screet said, forcing the entire room to fall silent, as this wasn''t what was expected from the undead. Rezar took a long hard look at his first undead, obviously telepathically communicating with the mole-man. "Very well Screet, Kitagawa call Alistair and have him prepare for a grand wedding. It would be held in two months, and the Queen in waiting...and the first general of Morte Bianca will take their place besides me as the true queens of our esteemed kingdom!" "Huh?" "What!" "....." Chapter 259: The Invitation (IV): World Of Ice And Cold Rezar took a deep breath of the crisp morning air, the way it flowed was so soothing, it evoked feelings deep within him that he never thought he had. Tranquility, joy, contentment and peace. While most of Elysium were still relied on beast and animal transportations, except of course for the aliens that had invaded, Morte Bianca had seamlessly slid into a technological age without so much as a preparatory period. Which was why Rezar was really enjoying the limo ride to the snow elf kingdom. The roads were still under construction, but at the moment the main highways that led in and out of Morte Bianca had already been completed. Of course there was still a few finishing touches to be done, but it was good and well enough for the king of Morte Bianca to travel on in peace and leisure. Aerial travels would have been a lot faster, but Gynaika had said that they needed to make an impression, so a convoy of armored jeeps and a limo crafted from the bones and core of a land wyrm was more than enough to set the precedent, they were going to steal the show and there was absolutely nothing that the snow elves could do about it. Rezar took in another breath, but this time it was shorter as a wisp of fog rolled out of his mouth. He looked up just in time to see the first vestiges of snowfall as they softly cascaded down from the ever blue sky that now held more secrets than the first time Rezar had woken up in Elysium. He looked up as he noticed the ever looming mountain ahead, and the massive arch made of polished bone with the words [Goodbye from Morte Bianca]. He was sure that on the other side of the arch it would read [Welcome to Morte Bianca]. But be that as it may he had gotten to the border of his kingdom, from here on out the territories belonged to the dwarves and snow elves of Breone mountains. "Your Majesty we''ve come to the end of the highway! From here on out is rough terrain, hence it''s going to be a bumpy ride. We''ll be switching of off road tracks, please bear with the delay." A driver with a head of blazing red hair turned around and spoke to Rezar with a smile on his face. Rezar gave a nod to his half orc/half demon driver/ bodyguard. Francis had been a new addition to his inner circle, he had noticed the young man when he had visited the secret base where the children of midnight were being trained. Funny enough Francis had wanted to join the daughters of eclipse despite being male. It was quite a conundrum for the people in charge as the daughters of eclipse was female only military outfit, but Francis chose to identify as female rather than the gender he was born with, Rezar took a liking to him and instead gave him a direct job as a bodyguard and liaison between the King and the night mother. The limo shook a bit as it went onto rougher terrains, the tires had grown spikes as it began a slow climb up the mountain. There were already established routes for travel, courtesy of the dwarves. One way or another the snow elves and the dwarves would need to regularly come down the mountains, if not for trade then at the very least for diplomatic meetings. But then again the snow elves would definitely have aces to things like airships so movements wouldn''t be all that hard for them. Rezar leaned back, even as bumpy as the ride was, he enjoyed it, the scenery as they traveled was amazing, green quickly gave way to white with batches of dark rocks clustered together on the mountain path, until eventually all he could see was an endless blanket of white and cold. This place, this world really was something else, there could be so much beauty in this world and it was so crazy that even at this point, there was so much darkness in this world, but yet Elysium still found a way to remain beautiful. *Boom! * The limo shook vigorously from the sounds of the explosion, Rezar was jostled a bit, but he otherwise remained calm as his eyes bled from blue to red with an annoyed glint in them. he looked ahead and saw Francis weaving his way past and smashing through spells and skills. Rezar didn''t even act like he was even worried about anything as he called out to the half orc/half demon driving him. "Francis? Any idea which unfortunate fool is currently launching an attack on our convoy?" Rezar asked with a calm voice, Francis turned around with a wide grin on his face as he answered. "It appears to be orcs your majesty, and it seems they''re accompanied by a group of snow elves with magical bazookas." "Magical bazookas? Really? Seriously? That''s the best you got?" Rezar asked with a raised eyebrow. "Sorry your majesty, but that really is the best I''ve got." "Who''s taking care of it then?" Rezar asked "Oh Screet and Kitagawa are on it your majesty, just relax. I''ll try to make sure this journey is as smooth as possible." "Thank You Francis carry on." "It''s my extreme pleasure your majesty, there''s no greater honor." *Boom! * Another explosion rocked the limo, but all Rezar did was lean back and relax as the world seemed to go to hell around him, but while the king of Morte Bianca and the rest of his convoys moved on in snowy landscape that was rapidly turning into a war zone, blood and limbs along with the screams of pain and the throes of death in an unprecedented manner. Their echoes went all over the Breone mountains, announcing to all the arrival of the Bone King even before he got to the threshold of either the snow elves or dwarven kingdoms. He was a man and a king that was forged in blood and death, and now he has brought that same fire to this world of ice and cold. Chapter 260: The Invitation (V): Ambush Screet found the entire thing annoying, in retrospect he felt it very stupid of the living to continuously try and provoke his master. He didn''t for one second believe that this track was just a random attack by off bandits. The sea one they had one was one all too sophisticated and complex for the simple and warlike orcs, not to mention the inclusion of the snow elves more than tipped the odds in their favor, assuming of course they were dealing with normal people. But that was far from the case, after the Rejuvenation, Morte Bianca just ended up having a more solid foundation and some of the brightest minds in existence, and as such they were able to be better prepared for... well almost anything the new world had to throw at them. Screet took a step back, evading the axe that came for his head, the off holding the axe overextended as Screet stabbed forwards, his staff suddenly growing a massive blade and transforming into a naginata that stabbed straight into the chest of the orc who had been caught off guard thinking he was just about to be hit by a simple staff. He pulled it back and with a flourish swept the legs of a snow elf, however much to his annoyance, the elf seemed to move like a feather as he placed his hand on the snow and kicked out, his steel booted feet smashing into Screet''s aligned staff that defended against the strike. The under had his feet skid backwards, digging furrows into the snow while the snow elf was balanced on top of said snow without even a footprint left behind. Screet focused his gaze, he was no stranger to the peculiarity of the elven races, they were deceptively light, even though they had twice the amount of blood and extra organs in their bodies as opposed to normal people. It was crazy and weird, but that''s one thing that the rejuvenation didn''t change. Screet looked ahead noticed the convoy proceeding at a steady pace while the flagship jeep he and Kitagawa and ridden in lay overturned on the edge off a precarious drop. They''ll catch up with the rest of the convoy, but first things first, they had to deal with this bloody ambush. "I have to say, the Undead of the bone king are as dangerous as the rumors say they are. But I have to admit I''m a little disappointed." The snow elf said as both his hands grew sabers made from ice. Screet looked at the elf with disdain on his fired out undead skin and said. "Then it is the your honor and glory that you''re not facing just another undead of the Bone King." "Oh! Is that so? Then if I might ask, who''s undead or rather what makes you so damn Special?" the snow elf asked, and all he got in reply was a smile as reddish blue aura blasted off of Screet''s body before he opened his mouth to say. "I Am SCREET! First of Master''s Children! Now die!" His speed experienced and unprecedented boosts, as he appeared in the it of the shocked snow elf in seconds, catching the humanoid off guard as the staff, now Naginata stabbed forwards. The snow elf raised his ice sabers to block against the sudden attack, and to a certain extent it worked. The sabers splintered into a thousand pieces, and from then on the unnatural dexterity and agility of the elven race came into play as the snow elf leaned backwards. His back was bent to the point that any normal person would have had their back broken if they made such a move. But he was fine...to a certain extent at least as the shards of the ice sabers breaking head left hundreds of wounds on his body. Screet pressed his advantage, bringing his staff now missing it''s massive blade down on the head of the Snow Elf. The elf moved to the left hoping to evade Screet''s attack, but a black leather tail came out of nowhere and stabbed right through his skull, painting the snow beneath him red and leaving his body bare and defenseless to the bone crushing blow that came from Screet''s staff. His body blasted apart, dying the white snow a deeper shade of red as Screet looked up in time to see Kitagawa slicing the two arms and two legs of an orc in one swift motion. The first child of Rezar DeathWind found the scene particularly disturbing and gross, there was no need to prolong your opponents suffering when you could end it in one blow. He was not one for torture. Screet ignored his partner as he went over to their overturned jeep and flipped it over in one move, and it was from behind the Jeep a giant snake the size of a cow shot out towards him, hoping to swallow him in one fell swoop. Screet didn''t have time to panic, in fact it was impossible for him to panic as just like his master, he was incapable of fear. The undead have no need for emotions as they can match on to the rhapsody of death, destruction and decay for a thousand and one years without stopping for even one second. Theirs was a warrior race, built in the service of the one to give them life and purpose. A giant white snake with flecks of blue was still just a snake. *Bang! * Screet was the last person anyone expected to use a firearm, but when it came to the protection of his Lord, Master and King, Screet would be willing to do anything. Even use a weapon he knew wasn''t too good for him, but then again it worked as the snake was blasted backwards onto the Jeep and both the vehicle and the beast went over the ledge it was standing on to a 35 foot drop that was sure to at least leave them with a few broken ribs. Screet went to the edge, gave a simple look to the broken body of the snake that he suspected was a frost or ice when, then he removed a silver divide from a ouch on his back. Just one pressed in the middle and a small whine filled the air, then he dropped it down the ledge onto the body of the snake, putting a close to that chapter. *Bloom! * Chapter 261: The Invitation (VI): Arrival The journey through the Breone Mountains was somewhat calm after the very unfortunate and very bad ambush, Rezar was no longer the na?ve person he once was to this I that the attack was just a simple bandit attack. It could actually mean anything, but ultimately it only came to the conclusion that he had an enemy somewhere waiting and planning for his downfall, or rather hoping to benefit for the conflict that was sure to arise from his reaction to this assault. Whoever sent those people wasn''t stupid, he or she knew that those attackers would fail terribly, Rezar had a reputation that at the moment almost no one in Elysium could match. However his reputation had made him out as impulsive, and honestly that might actually be true, but then again Rezar wasn''t a slave to his emotions. Impulsive as he might seem, all of his actions had been taken as the most optimum course of action facing any situation that came his way, nevertheless a lot of people were looking down on him. And it wasn''t necessarily a bad thing, but now there was someone out there playing an angle, audit he was not careful, he would probably incur a war Morte Bianca was not ready to face. But he also couldn''t keep quiet about this. His lesson with Priest aside as a king he had come to learn that sometimes if not all the time, the price and reputation of a kingdom was important to it''s prosperity. And not just it''s prosperity but in the way other power interacted with them. Having the image of a week kingdom who''s king could be attacked and he wouldn''t say anything was as fucked up as it like get. It means without a doubt that anyone could walk all-over them and get away with it. And that was not the kind of image Rezar wanted to build for his kingdom, Pride was important even though not many people could understand why. The what elf kingdom didn''t have villages of towns across it''s territory like other kingdoms did, the entire population was clustered in one giant city at the highest peak of the Breone mountains. Their neighbors; the dwarves had a cluster of three tribes that have made their home deep beneath the earth, but all three tribes answered to one king. Never the less their political demographics wasn''t something Rezar was all too worried about at the moment, and the was because at this moment they had already come up upon the city of the snow elves. And it was just in time too as Screet and Kitagawa had caught up with them, dragging almost a dozen snow elves and orcs behind them. Safe to say, Rezar was sure he would make quite and entrance into the snow elf kingdom. Their entourage was stopped at the gates of their city, a marvel of white and silver that was intricate and seemed to stretch all the way to the sky. From where he was sitting in the car, it looked like the entire city itself was built from metal, there wasn''t even a single sign of wood or brick or stone. The metal work was all too exquisite, with twisted frames and beams. Many of them etched with glowing good and green symbols and heavily suffused with magic the likes of which has never been felt by Rezar before. But ultimately what he could also feel, even from the confines of his vehicle was the chill, a cold that even his constitution as a vampire didn''t stage away. Obviously this cold was magic, and just like any other cold it felt pervasive and invasive. Rezar narrowed his eyes in suspicion as Alistair came down from the Jeep he was riding in and walked to the front of their gate ready to meet with the guards and delegates waiting there. "I bid you all a fine afternoon; my name is Alistair and I''m, with great pleasure, his Majesty; King Rezar DeathWind''s minister of magical and technological development, and also his interim delegate and standing in for the Queen in waiting her lady Gynaika De La Muerte. We''ve arrived a long way from Morte Bianca to attend the illustrious banquet and auction set up by the snow elf Kingdom. We do hope we''re not too late or too early? We wouldn''t want to impose ourselves upon your fine city." Rezar had to admit that Alistair did have a way with words, the Melve had grown enough from the tech head to a capable leader. The only thing missing was a spine for bloodshed. If he and that going for him, then without a doubt, Alistair would make a better king for Morte Bianca than Rezar. After all he alone could boast that he knew everything there was to know about the damn kingdom, and that''s because he built most of it. Rezar watched as Alistair and the delegates of the snow elves made small talk and exchange courteous smiles. And it was good while it lasted as said smiles disappeared from both their faces a few moments later. The snow elf delegate had rigid look on his face, and Alistair looked somewhat defeated, but above all the fearful look on his face as he turned around and started walking towards Rezar''s limo was on display for all to see. But Rezar didn''t think Alistair was afraid of the snow elves, rather he knew that look of fear was for him and him alone. "My apologies your majesty, but the snow elves are adamant about not letting us in with our prisoners in tow. They say their kingdom prohibits slavery, and visitors aren''t allowed to take prisoners of bring any prisoners Into the city. We would have to make a petition and wait for it to get signed by their Queen, or we hand the prisoners over to them for processing and they guarantee that they would be given the justice they deserve to our satisfaction." Rezar raised an eyebrow at that, and then smiled. He now understood why Alistair was so nervous walking towards him. "Get me Screet." Alistair''s eyes widened as he called out. "Your Majesty I think we should..." "Get me Screet Alistair! Don''t say another word and don''t worry about repercussions. Sometimes there are things that need to be done to preserve your dignity, a time when politics doesn''t matter and. You just have toilet certain people know that you wouldn''t be fucked with." All Alistair could do was sigh as he turned to the side and made a gesture for Screet who was at the back of the convoy to come over. Rezar had a hand under his chin with a focused look on his face, when his first undead came close, that looked transformed into a sinister smile. His blue eyes bled red and his fangs poked out of the side of his lips making his visage look even more terrifying and sinister, it was Like Rezar had unleased the monster hidden deep beneath his skin, and Alistair found it horrifying, but at the same time, just like Screet..he found it was inspiring and un-naturally graceful. "Screet? Those prisoners you and Kitagawa have captured. Execute them, and make a grand show of it do you understand? I want you to stain the path to their kingdom red with blood and guts! And make sure it''s a sight they''ll never forget!" Chapter 262: The Invitation (VII): A Statement The look on the snow elf delegate''s face was somewhat pensive, but that look only took a dramatic turn for the worse when Screet smashed the skull of a snow elf right in front of their gates. Blood splashed every which way as brain matter fell to the snow, staining it''s pristine white coat red with blood and death. And then with a strength completely unexpected of his small stature, Screet used his hard hands to rip the body of the snow elf he just finished killing apart, and that was enough to drive the delegate crazy as he ran towards Screet shouting. "What the hell are you doing! Stop this right now!" the only response the Delegate could get was dozens of guns and blades pointed right in his face when he got a little too close to Rezar''s limo. The delegate took a deep breath as his heart skipped a beat, one wrong move and he would probably lose his head. And with the way these people were, there was no way that could be a bluff. "I believe you said we can''t bring any prisoners into your city, so in retrospect we''ve decided to execute each and every one of them. This way it would be convenient for both sides, we deliver our own brand of justice and you don''t have to worry about taking care of our prisoners for us." Alistair said with a small smile as he also finished it off with a small how. "You-you! Why.you! Humph!" The delegate was completely speechless and at a loss for words, there was nothing he could say about the scene right in front of him. It was crazy and extremely good that it left completely caught of guard. Sure he was making things a bit difficult for them and obviously trying to save the snow elf prisoners that they had, but to think they would be so braze to kill snow elves right in front of the snow elf capital.it was beyond insane and mad. The king of Morte Bianca was not without a few screws loose. Screet gave the delegate a bright smile, but coming from the undead Mole-man, such a smile could described as something akin to the worst nightmares in existence. Screet dragged another snow elf close to him, this time a young girl that looked no older than seventeen. What was she doing around those bandits...well none of the Biancans gave a fuck, most especially Screet who''s horrifying and dried out looking hand slowly stretched around the neck of the snow elf girl. There was a small sizzling sound as her fair skin let out a hiss, releasing wisps of smoke as Screet''s power of decay seemed to leave a rather ugly line and garish scar on her neck. The snow elf girl shuddered as she cried out in pain and stretched forth her hands towards the delegate in the hopes that he would save her. Words were unable to escape her throat, because apart from the frantic look in her eyes, and the bruises on her body, a mark left from the earlier battle was her missing tongue, and the sight shook the delegate even more. "Please no more! This is the entrance of our illustrious capital city, having an execution in front of it, is a little bit too much. I believe we can come to an agreement, you can keep your prisoners, as long as you can keep them under control and handle their necessities without the assistance of the snow elf Kingdom, then we have a deal. We would also be willing to negotiate with you for the release of some of the snow elf citizens, I assure you we will interrogate them thoroughly and have stable answers for you by the time the sun sets." The delegate was pretty much desperate, Rezar had pushed him into a corner and turned the tables on him when he tried being shady. This was a good way to end any sort of conflict, and Rezar was all too happy to take it, however he was trying to make an example. And that''s what he''s going to do. Screet let our a rather nasty smile as his fingers stabbed deep into the fair neck of the snow elf. Blood splattered out, pumping out in an exquisite spray as the undead seemed to shudder in pleasure at the life rapidly escaping the confirms of the body that once held it sway. This was freedom in the truest sense of the word, and life couldn''t be any more better when someone dies. "NO!" The delegate screamed with eyes as wide as golf balls, opened side in shock and surprise that still Screet went ahead and killed the snow elf, even after they had agreed that they would be allowed to have their way. "I''m so sorry about that, seems she wouldn''t be a part of the conversation anymore. However my king is in agreement with what you just said. We''ll keep a tight watch on our prisoners, and we''re willing to negotiate about the release of the snow elves now in our custody. But that would be by sunset tonight, we also have interrogations of our own to carry out. But ultimately are you in agreement or do we just execute everyone here and be done with it?" Screet asked as his smile grew even wider. The delegate gritted his teeth so hard, it was like hearing ice crack or break, even from within his limo Rezar found it extremely irritating. But the delegate had no choice, the obvious grinding of his teeth was more than enough off that the Biancans had him at an impasse. But he was left without much of a choice in this matter. He looked at the pool of blood, where wow elves had just been brutally murdered and then sighed in resignation. "We''re in agreement with what you''ve just said and the arrangement is in our best interest. Welcome to Sillomere, the city of Ice Steel!" Chapter 263: The Invitation (VIII): A Welcome Party Sillomere was cold, but that much was understandable, it was a city built on the peak of the highest mountain within an extremely high mountain range. Cold had no choice but to be the norm here. It''s streets were extremely clean, and it''s citizens were even cleaner. The snow elf had their own brand of architecture and fashion, it was an entirely different civilization that looked technologically advanced, but have magic as the crud of their foundation. The delegate rode what was a small weird looking dragon, or rather it would be better to call it a draig. Draig were species of lesser dragons or rather the very species that''s called a lesser dragon, they''re massive, growing as tall as two meters and as long as four. It led the way while they followed behind with their cars, and that alone was enough to draw all of the attention within the city to them. It wasn''t everyday you would see a car in Elysium, of batter yet it would be easier to say that there has never been a car in Elysium, as up until now, it had just been a purely fantasy like world with little traces of technology. There were steam engines that ran on magical circuits, but this was the first time a fully modern designed and realized vehicle was on full display, even if the cars themselves were a few centuries out of date in the real world. Their streets weren''t built normally, sure there was a proper process of town planning involved, but the entire city was actually built like a spiral! And Rezar suspected if he was to look at it from above, it would probably look like some sort of flower, or a stack of dominos about to come crashing down. Beautiful as this place might be, the idea of all of it coming down put a smile on the face of the young King, should that day come he hoped he was the one responsible. They came to a stop in front of a massive building that twisted upwards in an extremely elegant but weird manner. It was like an ice cream cone, or rather two ice cream cones. With one going up until it tapered to a point, and the other pointing downwards, the tip of the ice creams touching each other in the middle, with a massive platform to serve as a balance and then going upwards to the bottom of the cone that now had a crown like platform on it. And that''s when it hit Rezar. The spirals weren''t synonymous with any kind of flower or snowflake or something else, as annoying as it sounds this might actually be the most accurate truth about the snow elves architecture. Is colorfully and beautifully patterned after ice cream, and in more ways than one. Just after realizing what it was, Rezar could see the influence of ice cream on the rest of the buildings. It was shocking enough that he didn''t Know whether to opened his mouth in awe and respect, or just laugh at the sheer absurdity of it all. Either way, this was weird but still a welcome experience. Should a day come when he has to end the snow elves, he''d try his best to keep their buildings intact.. they''re cool. In front of the building and outside of it a crowd had been gathered, and it was quite significant in size and diversity. It stood confession get evening this was the snow elf capital city, or rather their only city seeing how massive it was, and the fact t that snow elf population was just about a million and a half or there about. And this population was inclusive of the other races that lived with them, but then again this was demographics from before the Rejuvenation. With the advent of new uploads escaping the end of the earth, their population should have seen an extreme surge, in much the same way Morte Bianca''s did. The delegate got off his Draig and took a knee in front of an exquisitely dressed woman, the silver crown that shimmered like ice and crystals was more then enough proof that she was queen of the snow elves. And it looks like they were making a big event out of his arrival, with the people gathered outside the vicinity of the building and those gathered in front of it. But then again it wouldn''t do for the Queen to have someone else welcome a visiting monarch, that was grounds for disrespect and from what he''s seen so far he came to a simple conclusion. "Your Majesty it seems the snow elves love to put on a show" Francis said from his position in the driver''s seat. Rezar laughed as he incline his head prompting the half orc/Half demon to walk out and open his door, flanked by Screet, Kitagawa, and a couple of other sons of dawn. And all of them were led by a woman who hated being in the dress she was just forced into. "Introducing! The King of war, the King of Fire and the King of will! The Bone King of the Biancan Horde! The son of death himself! King Rezar DeathWind of Morte Bianca! And one of his brides to be The first General of Morte Bianca, the Queen of Hellfire and Heavenly Lightning! Queen in Waiting! Lenore DeathWind!" "Damn that guy has some lungs on him." Rezar cursed out loud as Alistair took it upon himself to introduce them. Rezar shrugged and stepped out of the limo, followed quickly by Lenore who had been with him the entire time but had been silent due to her annoyance at being forced to wear a dress. Unlike the snow elves with their white apparel and exquisite taste, the Biancans did come here making a statement. They weren''t bright and sunny, they were dark and dangerous. Lenore had on dark blue almost black dress that hugged her figure and exposed her exquisite legs with a slit that had it''s edges trimmed with a red material that looked like stained blood. From the slit to the edges of the dress as it dragged on the ground behind, the blood like highlights seemed to flow, matching well with her red hair that was tied up in an elaborate bun. Her make up was as goth as it could get, but there was just such an elegance and beauty to it. Sure if Gynaika was here she would have shadowed Lenore with just how devastating a beauty she was. However Lenore looked elegant, but her true beauty came from one simple fact...she looked dangerous! And it was proven all the more by the sheathed rapier she held in her hands, and no amount of begging would have her drop it. Rezar took a deep breath of the crisp and cold air, his equally dark blue suit and the obsidian black sheaths of Vita Gratia on both sides of his thigh gave him and edge. His white hair was tied up in a pony tail with a single lock hanging over his left eye. The tattoos that were on his body had stretched to cover his neck and it was on full display, the red shirt and black tie he had on made him look like the most dangerous of crime lords. And all of this was topped off with the white crown on his forehead, it was made from extremely polished bones that were then coated with a material that made it shine and made it twice as hard as steel. The exquisite symbols on it were synonymous with the tattoos on Rezar''s body, and we''re studded with jewels made with magic and technology that would have a nasty surprise for those who feel they can attack the king of make up with the crown. Rezar was all too set, and as he gave his arm to Lenore, he raised his gaze to meet with that of the snow elf queen, and then he smiled, his fangs bare for the whole world to see. "Hi!" Chapter 264: The Invitation (IX): Suspicious There was a silence, but then again that was expected. The king of Morte Bianca and his soon to be bride was gorgeous. Their clothes, the poise with which they held themselves, and the fact that there was undead Mole-man in uniform just couldn''t escape their attention. Safe to say Rezar and his people made the impression that they wanted and it was perfect. The snow elf queen plastered a wide smile on her face as she moved forwards, Rezar and Lenore moved ahead hand in hand until they met the Queen, small smiles also etched on their faces. "Welcome! I have to say that I have been looking forward to this meeting King Rezar, of all the new wonders of the our new reality, you''re the most enigmatic. It is a pleasure to meet you." She was polite, too polite that it actually caught Rezar off guard. But then again she couldn''t exactly start yelling at him or show any sort of animosity. What really rubbed him off was the fact that her words seemed..sincere. "Well I''ve also been meaning to come visit the snow elves for a long time now, but every time I''ve attempted to make that journey or plan for it, something''s or some threat will come up that I''d have to deal with. Honestly I''m really happy that I can finally indulge my wanderlust and visit the snow elf Kingdom." Rezar responded with a smile. "And Pray tell your Majesty, how has the experience been so far? Was it everything you expected?" the queen asked as she took Lenore''s hands in her own in some form of greeting. "It''s been much more, I can happily say that Sillomere did not disappoint." "I''m happy to hear that, now enough with the small talk. It''s freezing out here, so please come in to warmth, you''re the last of the dignitaries to arrive, and it''s a good thing you came when you did. The banquet would be held this evening, and it would double as a welcoming party for you and the other rulers. After all it''s not everyday the ruling powers of the Bahrenburg wildlands can be amicably gathered in one place. And I''m sure you and I have a lot of personal discussions, so I''ll let you guys rest. Let''s have lunch together, let''s say in about 2 hours? That should be enough time for you to have rested from your long journey and to build up an appetite for our snow elfin cuisines. Is that agreeable with you your majesties?" the snow elf queen asked as she led Rezar and the rest of his entourage into the massive building behind her. "That works fine for us your Majesty, lunch would be just fine in two hours." Lenore spoke up so as not to be relegated to a simple arm candy. The snow elf queen nodded and let them into the building, describing a lot of things to them and telling them stories about the snow elf kingdom. Rezar paid close attention, this might be Information that was already commonly known, but hearing it from the mouth of the ruling monarch itself was enough to give Rezar a few clues and hints about how to deal with the snow elves. For example the snow elf kingdom has-been standing for 10 generations, with each generation being calculated as 30 years apart. Which means the kingdom itself has been established for 300 years with a few extra on top of it. It was ruled by a Queen, the rules of ascension says that only females can ascend the throne, and should there be only a prince, he would serve as a regent until he has a daughter of his own, who will then own the throne once she comes of age. But ultimately Elysium used to be a world where anything can be achieved if you had the right tools, in a way it was still such a word. So having a skill, or equipment that could help guarantee that any given pregnancy resulted in a female was something that was not beyond the scope and reach of the snow elf kingdom. And with the way the Queen explained it; it seems such was the case and they had a way to guarantee that there''s always a princess or two born every generation. It seems females were highly valued within the snow elf territory, it wasn''t as if the were ruling with an iron fist or were some weird nation of Amazonians without a single man in sight. However it''s obvious females were the dominant gender here. But even with all of the amicable tour Rezar knew there was already bad blood between him and the snow elf royal family. Technically speaking, the niece of the queen had fallen at his hands when he completed the great plain games, slaughtering hundreds if not thousands of orcs at a spot to become king of the horde. And her niece, was the half orc-half snow elf daughter of the orcs main contender. It was no secret that he was responsible for a lot of deaths, and this would definitely come up later, one way or the other. So he couldn''t buy this calm your guide persona of the queen. He knew there was something coming, who or what it was still remained to be seen, but never the less he would be keeping his guard up, no matter how sincere the snow elf queen might seem. It didn''t take long before she led them to a floor of the building set aside for his entourage. It had everything they could possibly want, from personal kitchens, study, a pool, and rooms for everyone. It was like house all on it''s own, and while it was quite nice, Rezar realized just how isolated and controlled the environment was. Everything they could possibly need was provided for them, obviously they didn''t want anybody snooping around their ice cream cone castle. But nevertheless the lunch date in a few hours would be one a astute observations and startling revelations. There would be no posturing or courtesy calls, the grit and hit between Morte Bianca and Sillomere would be tabled for all to see, and Rezar knew it might end up BLOODY! Chapter 265: The Invitation (X): Bad Blood Rezar was all to happy to be rid of the official king apparel he wore here and back in really comfortable street clothes. The fur coat was an added bonus to just how good he currently looked, but be that as it may this wasn''t what he was here for. Rezar and Lenore left the room to find a contingent of the sons of dawn, decked out head to toe in in black, silver and blue armor it was obvious that none of them came to play. The person who had been sent to fetch them was the same snow elf they had held hostage for a week before arriving here, the condescending look on her face had reduced significantly, with small disdain hidden under the curtain of absolute loyalty. A vampire''s allure is almost irresistible, especially when that Allure was being used by someone who had mastered it''s used to the point of being able to control a dozen people at once, even animals were not safe from her control. Gynaika was a scary person at times, it was impossible for Rezar to not recognize that it was almost as if she was born to be a vampire, cause she''s so damn good at it. Just as the snow elf queen had arranged, there was someone ready to take them to the location of their lunch meeting with her. They were isolated, but on their way there, Rezar and Lenore had the distinct pleasure of sightseeing a little more, and it was there Rezar was able to notice something. Sillomere was too perfect, not even Morte Bianca for all of it''s success and advancements could claim to be perfect, and in this case it came from the citizens. It was almost as if everyone around was a billionaire, but that was impossible; cause even though a majority of the snow elves were well off, with the Rejuvenation there should have been some significant losses for most of them. But there was nothing seeping through the cracks, there was no sign of poverty, or discontent, there were smiles everywhere and it freaked Rezar out. Cause frankly speaking he could see how fake most of them were and it rubbed him off the wrong way. Obviously Sillomere had a few secrets of it''s own, but be that as it may, it was only a matter of time before those secrets are laid bare for him to see, he had a few schemes of his own in play. They were led to a park. And it was quite a sight as it was littered with ice sculptures and vegetation that thrived in the wintery embrace of snow and ice. There was a booth of sorts constructed under a massive tree that had flowers and leaves draping down like curtains, it seemed like a wisteria tree, but the color scheme was wrong, and the tree had a hundreds of faced carved into it''s trunk, so it was safe to say that it was a very different from the norm. The snow elf queen was sitting there with another snow elf, a male time and seeing how close they were, it was possible that this was her husband or something along that line. They were flanked by a significant amount of guards and that looked ready for business, but with how delicate all the snow elves looked like, it seemed as if a strong gust of wind would blow them away, but underestimating the guards of a royal would be a mistake. "King Rezar! I''m happy you could join me, this is my husband, the royal consort Conkerian Greenleaf." Rezar and Lenore smiled as they exchange pleasantries with the royal couple and then settled down to have lunch and talk about random and less important things. And it was going great, the ambience was good and lovely, until Rezar got tired and changed the tone. "Forgive me for ruining the mood, but I think it''s about time we talk about more serious things. I''m sure important topics would come during the meeting later on today. But you and I have some bad blood Queen Morlenair, and it''s about time we address it." The snow elf queen didn''t beat around the bush either, which Rezar appreciated as the whole political maneuverings and posturing really annoyed him. "My niece was killed by your hands, not to mention the slaughter of my people in front of my bloody gates! Tell me King Rezar, do you want to go to war with Sillomere?" Rezar raised an eyebrow at her, and then smiled mischievously as he turned to an annoyed Lenore who had her eyes narrowed. "Your Niece was part of a plot to end my kingdom, I fight to protect what''s mine and she sided with the Dustin Crowe merchant company who have been scheming against me even when I wanted an amicable settlement and business deal with them. I''m building a nation so I won''t tolerate schemes that would cause me or my people problems, so I''m not sorry your niece died and neither am I going to apologize for it seeing as she took actions that can be considered ones of war. So are you claiming your niece as well taking responsibility for her actions against me and my kingdom. If that be the case, then by all means Queen Morlenair.. Let''s go to war!" The atmosphere was extremely tense, Lenore and the consort were practically just bystanders as they watched both Rezar and Morlenair face off. The guards on the other hand also felt the tension, and their hands were already on their weapons and ready to strike should Rezar try anything funny. Screet and Kitagawa on the other hand had a bored look on their face. Politics was not their problem, and Rezar had proven more times than they could possibly count that he was always the most dangerous person in the room. The snow elf queen had no idea what she was dealing with. "As for your people being slaughtered at your city gates." Rezar continued, defusing the tension, but it was obvious that from the smile on his face he was absolutely having fun. "They were a part of an ambush, we weren''t allowed to bring our prisoners into your city, and I couldn''t go back to Morte Bianca with them, so an execution was the only way to go." "Without a fair trial?" the queen asked with a massive look of disapproval on her face. But all Rezar could say to that, and with so much conviction even the queen herself was shook was.. "I am a King! My words are their trial just as much as it''s their sentence. And my words say they''re guilty for conspiring to kill me, and my words say that their judgement is death! Or do you want to argue with that ''Your Majesty!" Chapter 266: Banquet (I): Deals The tension in the air was so thick it wouldn''t be too farfetched to say that you could cut it with a blade, the disagreement between Rezar and the snow elf Queen could be looked at from a number of different angles and be judged in different manners. But ultimately the bottom line of their conflict would be that Rezar had never gone after her niece or her people of his own volition. Every action he had taken, no matter how brutal and merciless had been because they had gone after him first. This was no different from stirring a hornet''s nest. He has been repeatedly provoked by snow elves, he would be a fool if he didn''t retaliate. And there in lies the problem, it didn''t look like the snow elf queen was the kind of person to appreciate being on the loosing end of a fight, even if it was just an argument. But ultimately if this matter was to be judged, Rezar was well within his right to take any action to protect himself, and even more so he had more right hand she did to demand reparations for the attacked and schemes. Obviously the snow elf queen underestimated the King of Morte Bianca, whether she felt superior or she looked down on him due to his young age didn''t matter. She never saw him as an opponent and now it has cost her. "I don''t want to go to war with the snow elves, or with any other Kingdom indigenous to Elysium. I just want to have good relationships with them and mind my own business while building up my Kingdom. But then again it seems what I want doesn''t really matter to any one in the long run, you all just want to either take from me, or put me under your heel. And even if it''s not me, honestly speaking there''s no one alive in this world that would continuously swallow shit like that. So I would like for us to have a very amicable relationship, but if that''s impossible in the long run, then spit it out and let''s be enemies rather than taking a self righteous position over a matter you know you wouldn''t have handle differently or better. I scarcely have time for hypocrites and stupid political maneuverings. Can we have an amicable relationship or is Morte Bianca enemies with Sillomere?" Rezar asked as he leaned back, taking notice of the please smirk on the edge of Lenore''s lips. The snow elf queen was at loss for words, in the presence of her guards, both hidden and exposed she had been backed into the corner, and quite frankly she didn''t like it. She wanted to protect her image, it wouldn''t do for her to be the one being pushed back as it wouldn''t do wonders for her soldiers or her people''s morale. But also if she chose to harbor conflict with the Biancans, it would make her seem pretty, and definitely being seen as weak would be the least of her worries, it would be worse if the benevolent and just image she''s built during her time as a ruler was stripped away by petty revenge for a family member she''s never met, or have any substantial connection with. "I understand that you have been treated unfairly by this world because of what or who you are. Elysium does not look favorably on death classes, not even now after the Rejuvenation. Never the less a war between our two kingdoms would be bad for business and us in more ways than one. And I can agree that between us both that we stand to gain more from aligning ourselves to each other than fighting. My niece''s choices are her own, and the consequences of it are her''s to hear alone. But it doesn''t change the fact that we are family, and at least some sort of explanation or remuneration has to be given. I owe her that much for letting her grow up with those Savages! Those..Orcs!" Rezar raised an eyebrow at her, it seems she was trying to find a middle ground. A way for them to come to a proper agreement without turning it to an all out conflict. The thing about politics was that the ruler was no more important than his or her subjects. To truly grow and move forward, you had to have the support of your people behind you. Because quite frankly they built their cities, they fought their wars and they generated the ruler''s wealth. In tune the leader had to look good, uneatable, wise, just, and faithful their kingdom. For a ruler, image is important, and sometimes things like this could pretty much make or break a kingdom''s regime. "What do you propose we do then, I''d rather not fight, my soldiers are tired and I''m in shirt supply of undead. Of course a war with you would replenish their ranks, but I don''t think that''s what you want. Because let''s just face it, and I don''t mean this as a threat, but choosing to war with me, even with help from other Kingdoms would end badly for you all, even if I lose. So let''s just have an amicable settlement about this, I''m sure you also find thee bride situation bothersome." Rezar said as he crossed his legs and took a sip of a cup of ice tea. "A trade deal perhaps? Your Kingdom has built roads across it''s entire territory and are still doing so, not to mention your advancements with technology is advancing at a rate that''s unprecedented. What you have now, would take the rest of us at least 2 to 5 years to get, and that''s just what we know, who''s to say what you''ll have made once that time has elapsed. So I believe we can work out a deal based on an alliance between our two kingdoms. Build a road that connects Morte Bianca to Sillomere, my Kingdom will pay you for the job, and we can use that opportunity to sign a public peace treaty. We can discuss other deals at a later date, but for now let''s just start with that. Do we have a deal?" Rezar took one last sip of his ice tea and then smiled happily. "We have a deal." Chapter 267: Banquet (II): Old Friend(Enemy) Rezar, Lenore, Kitagawa and Samira had snuck into the banquet hall without the usual flair of an arriving dignitary. They wanted to keep a low profile, but Rezar stuck out like a side thumb, and people decided to give them a wide berth in other to avoid any sort of interaction with one who held a death class. Honestly speaking the powers a death class user held had been reduced significantly after the Rejuvenation, they could no longer deliver a permanent death, but they could still manipulate and twist the laws of death and reincarnation to their own satisfaction and needs. At the moment no one knew just what that means, so it was better to be safe than sorry. The music was a mix of classical and old European party jams, from when knights were a thing. It was weird but it didn''t sound boring and had a rhythm to it that Rezar just couldn''t stop bouncing his head to. He didn''t want to admit it, but even with the isolation, he was enjoying himself. There was good food, drinks, weird but good music, beautiful women to secretly stare out so as not incur the wrath of Lenore(which was weird cause he had no idea when he started giving a damn about what she felt due to his actions.) They were given a table at the edge of a massive ballroom, while the center was free for those who wanted to have a little dance. And it continued this way for a while until.. "Introducing her royal highness! Armenai lispotein Sillomere! Crowned princess of the snow elves, future queen of Sillomere and it''s surrounding lands, the jewel of ice and one of the most beautiful women in the world!" The way she walked was graceful, her silver site visit with crystals hanging off if it like frills seemed to captivate almost everyone in the ballroom, even Lenore herself was at loss for words. Which was annoying to Rezar as the princess wasn''t that far off in beauty as compared to his first general and future wife Lenore. But then again beauty was in the eyes of the beholder, and even he had to admit that the snow elf princess had a sort of grace to her that most women would be unable to match, but then again it might be that elven beauty thing in play, but ultimately this wasn''t something he was willing to give a damn about. They all can go on and have fun with their banquet. Rezar turned to face Lenore and gave her a warm smile, it was so unprecedented and habitual of Rezar that Lenore, as bloodthirsty and dangerous as she was, ended up blushing from the solenoid her feet to the crown of her head. She ducked her head down, snapping Rezar out of the revelry he had sort of found himself in after taking a sip of the wine on his table. He shook his head, not entirely sure why he was so willing to smile like that. He looked at Lenore and felt awkward, then he looked back at the wine in his hand and then back at Lenore not so sure what the heck just happened. Cause he didn''t just give a warm smile, he felt warm Inside. And the feeling was quite strange. "I see you''ve found one of the great pleasures of life..King Rezar! The joy of drinking with a beautiful woman besides you, and it''s even more special when said woman is none other than the Demoness Lenore." Rezar felt the hair at the back of his head raise up on end as Lenore whipped her sword out in one fell swoop and pointed it at the person who had just spoke, lightning arcing off the blade and her arms as her red hair took on a fiery orange hue. Rezar didn''t move from his position, he continued sipping the tea in his handy, trying and successfully masking the shaking his body was currently going through. Kitagawa already had his claws and tails out, and a red eyed Samira held two daggers in her hands, ready to carve a bloody path through the body of their current visitor. Vita Gratia vibrated giving off a loud him that spread across the entire banquet hall that had now grown silent, it was almost as if the weapon had a mind of it''s own. "Ahhh Rezar come on, we''re old friends, there''s no need to be so antagonistic to me. Besides Lenore we used to be married! For many a nights you shared the comfort and warmth of my bed! My seed had become a part of you and you had brought forth a child, my child into this world. Why then must you look at me with such hate, is it because you now run and hang around with this boy king!" Kitagawa had heard enough, the armor he was wearing shrunk into his body as his massive 8 tailed fox form, came to life with rage all-over his face. Rezar raised an arm, stopping his charge before it began. "Malik! It''s not good to see you! And above all else, how the fuck are you alive you cheap bastard necromancer!" Rezar asked with a smile on his face while he whirled the wine in his glass. Malik had just dropped a massive scandal on their doorstep, no matter what he says or do, Lenore would be the talk of all the kingdoms, and in retrospect him also. He was basically getting it on with second hand goods. But Rezar could fight back, after all with his well fitted black suit, Malik didn''t look anything like a necromancer, so exposing that would isolate the fool too. "Don''t answer that, you''re as resilient as a cockroach so that''s understandable. And the last time I saw you, you were running with your tail tucked in between your legs, looks like you''ve grown some balls. Very well then, how about we finish what we started, do tell me what you want me to write on your tombstone, cause if you don''t I''d place you in an unmarked grave!" Chapter 268: The Banquet (III): Auction Begins The banquet hall was already completely silent as they had all eyes on them, it was pretty annoying that they had to meet Malik once again in such a place, but honestly Rezar didn''t care too much. It wouldn''t stop him from trying to take the bloody death class user apart. Ever since their last meeting, even if he''s not had too many chance to think about it, Malik had left a shadow In Rezar''s mind, because this was the first opponent to thoroughly outclass him and it made him feel extremely helpless. "As much as I would like to entertain you o Mighty King of Morte Bianca, you should realize that there''s a time and place for everything, we will have our showdown, but that would be on a proper battlefield, not a useless party!" Rezar raised an eyebrow at that, looks like Malik did not care at all about the banquet or the people who organized it seeing as he was able to openly call it a useless party. Seems Rezar and his people were not the only ones with a magnificent set of balls on them. "Ladies and Gentlemen, Kings, Queens, and leaders! I welcome you all once again to this coming of age banquet and auction. I can see some tensions are pretty much rising, so to sate that rage we would like to proceed with the auction. The princess herself would be in charge of the ceremony and I hope her presence would be enough to deter any sort of conflict." The person who had spoken was none other than the consort of the snow elf queen, the father of the princess. From the look of things, it seems he has a more important jobs than just being responsible for warming the Queen''s bed and pumping her full of babies. But then again just announcing that an auction was about to begin didn''t seem like it as that important of a job, but never the less it was enough to calm everyone down as Rezar have a signal to Lenore and Kitagawa to calm down and head back to their original positions. Samira was nowhere to be found and Malik actually noticed. But all Rezar did was give him a bright grin while the death class user etched a confused look on his face. If that look was true or not, no one really knows. But Malik had a feeling Rezar was cooking something up and that worried him quite a bit. The last time they met face to face Rezar was pretty much straightforward and transparent, every moved he made could be seen and anticipated. But now to have a subordinate of his disappear when everyone had their attention drawn away for just a fraction of a second, was worrying. A hidden blade is always more dangerous than an exposed one, and Malik was not under the delusions that he could beat Rezar and Lenore like he did the last time they fought. The Rejuvenation pretty much out all of them on the same wavelength, and Rezar obviously covered his bases against the next they faced off, he was not even 10% confident of beating this young King. "I''m extremely grateful that all of you have taken time out of your busy schedule to come here for my coming of age party. But let''s face it, none of you came here just for the joy of seeing a beautiful face." A cacophony of laughter spread across the banquet hall as people laughed along with the humor of the snow elf princess. She had an extremely melodic laugh, but ultimately it stirred nothing within Rezar. "So without wasting your time I''ll get right to it. Our first item today was minded by dwarves from the peak of the Breone mountains. This ore, which is the size of a fist was mined from a larger deposit the size of a house, however only this small piece was retrieved all this time since the Rejuvenation. We call this ore a sun stone! Till now craftsmen and women have been unable to identify if this stone is a piece of a star or a meteorite, but nevertheless we can all confirm it holds an extreme strain of solar Energy. Bidding starts at 1 gold!" The stone she was talking about rose up out of the middle of the banquet hall on top of a rising pedestal. It was misshapen, and bright orange and seemed to be like a crystal that had trapped flames within it''s form. But even from where he was sitting Rezar could feel the heat coming from the stone. Alistair signaled Rezar, there was frantic look on his face as he stared at that stone. But Rezar did not make a move, those who were incapable of listening would forget that this was just a piece the size of a fist from a deposit the size of a house. The snow elves weren''t looking to just sell the ore, this was an advertisement for a better deal with the other leaders later. They needed a safer and quicker method to mine the stone. This tiny piece would not be enough to sate the appetite of those really big hitters. Alistair will get his stone, just not this piece. So Rezar kept quiet as those who were incapable of seeing the bigger picture frantically bid for the stone, until it was finally bought by an orc dressed in gaudy and exquisite robes, his pig face and rotund form seemed to point to the stereotypical merchant. "The next item is an exclusive and is actually mainly targeted at the visitors from the illustrious Kingdom of Morte Bianca!" all of a sudden the spotlight was upon them, and Rezar narrowed his eyes, wondering what this princess was up to as she walked to their table and gave Rezar a perfunctory bow, one that made sure to expose her full cleavage and gave Rezar more than handful of looks into her dress, Lenore''s rapier seemed to move, as the princess stood up and pointed as a rolled up piece of paper that now rested on the pedestal once occupied by the sun stone. "Your Majesty King Rezar, it''s my extreme pleasure to present to you a blueprint that has been discovered by the snow elf kingdom from our recent foray into a sub dimension. Based on our studies it shows that it''s a blueprint to make a specific kind of ornament, with a specific kind of enchantment, catered to a specific kind of face." She smiled and kept quiet, playing with the tension and trying to get Rezar anxious, but all it served to do was make him bored. She seemed a little disappointed, but the show must go on. "This is an ornament made for the recently discovered or rediscovered Vampire Race. And it''s a blueprint for the an enchantment that can let vampires walk in the sun for a limited amount of time... A Day-Walker Cross!" Chapter 269: The Banquet (IV): Animosity Rezar had both his eyebrows so far up his head they seemed to disappear into his well combed hair. It was crazy and completely insane what he was hearing, but if this was true, then obviously he would be doing much for his kingdom other could get his hands on that bloody blueprint. This would give Morte Bianca an edge that the rest of Elysium would be unable to match up with, the idea of vampires being capable of walking and fighting in sunlight just like Rezar was an advantage that could not let go of. "The blueprint seems to be quite particular then, what do you want in return for it. If it''s targeted at me, then obviously I must have something you want. So princess, what would it be?" The Banquet hall was silent, but Rezar did not think for one second that the people here would let him have the blueprint just like that. But then again that depends on what the snow elves wanted in return for the blueprint. If it was something only he could provide, then there wouldn''t be a problem, but if it was money, then he would be in a bit of a pickle as any other faction would be able to purchase it from the snow elves and use whatever is manufactured from it to hold the Biancans by the balls. "What we ask for in return is land, all of the territory that encompasses the area where the BOA empire base you found was located. Which actually covered a significant part of the Breone mountains and the canyons of Toromont." Rezar raised an eyebrow and then leaned back, there was a look of fury and where on Lenore''s face and Alistair wasn''t too far behind. They were trying to take advantage of Morte Bianca, what they were asking for was too much, way too much in fact. And while the ring meant that the vampires could walk in sunlight, it was only for a limited time, and there was no telling if they could actually follow the blueprints to make the Day-Walker Cross. There could be requirements that they would be unable to meet, This was not a gain; and frankly speaking the snow elves never had any intention of selling it to Rezar. The lands they were asking for did not just encompass the Breone mountains and the canyons of Toromont, it also covered much of the great plains. The area that used to belong to orc hordes, but now belongs to Rezar ever since he became their king. If not for the fact that the orcs weren''t farmers or miners, all those stretch of land would have made them quite rich as it was beyond rich in natural resources and extremely fertile. There was a reason why even with it''s proximity to the extremely cold Breone mountains, it still had extremely beautiful meadows of colorful flowers and wild crops growing all year round. It was valuable, and exchanging all of those lands for a chance for vampires to walk in the sun was pretty much...stupid. And as badly as he wanted it for his vampires, Rezar wasn''t so stupid that he would make such a deal. He would very much rather let it go. They already had an army that was nigh unstoppable in the daylight, and the vampires themselves were all females and a part of the sisters of eclipse. Their numbers were limited and they were dangerous enough as it is, if there were too many, and could walk in the sun, it might become a little too hard to control them, not with someone like Gynaika about to become queen. "Well I guess we won''t be having a deal today oh glorious princess of the snow elves..you can shove-!" Rezar felt the hilt of a sword bang hard against his knee, cutting the words he was about to say short. He gave a pained smile to the princess as he attempted to rearrange his vocabulary and not chase a diplomatic incident for being so crass. Obviously both mother and daughter monarchs of the snow elves had a stick up their ass and only knew how the try and take advantage of people they saw as weaker and lesser than themselves, Rezar has learnt his lesson. "We''re not interested in that blueprint princess, please you can go ahead and sell it to any other faction." Rezar said as he gave a gracious smile. "Very well then, this blueprint is up for sale for 1 gold coin! Who wants it!" the princess called out loudly to the people in the banquet, causing an awkward silence at the price she actually just called out, as without a doubt it became obvious she had it out for Rezar and his Kingdom. "Ill give you a 10 gold! No more, no less. And if the rest of you think you can challenge the church of Yahweh, then by all means bid a larger price." A familiar voice called out from a seat with a sinister smile on his face. Rezar couldn''t help the disappointment he felt, no one seemed willing to stand for him or his Kingdom, they were unwilling to get in between him and the snow elves and Malik. Not even when he was a slave, Rezar had never felt so unfairly treated. He didn''t do anything to offend any of this factions, they just wanted what he had or in Malik''s case himself under the control of some convoluted religion. Guess there was no other way to solve it, there would be a disagreement. Rezar got up from his seat, making sure to scrape it across the ground as loudly as he could, causing a screeching sound that forced everyone to pay attention to him. The Banquet hall was silent, many of them thought that Rezar was actually about to leave and wanted to make a scene to deal with some of his grievances. But Rezar was nothing like that, he had a temper that couldn''t be matched by most, and he had having to play politics even if he was a little bit good at it. But the time for politics is over, these people will keep fucking with him, unless he laid down the law. "You snow elves are total bitches and assholes aren''t you?" Rezar asked as Lenore, Kitagawa and Alistair took their place behind him. "Your Majesty I know that you''re upset and I apologize for how my daughter acted, please have a seat let''s enjoy the rest of the auction I''ll have her give you a personal apology after the event is over." The snow elf Queen said from her perch on top of a throne at the end of the hall. Rezar cocked his head to the side smiling as he said. "Half the people in this room are going to die! I don''t care if your innocent or guilty of the humiliation I''ve just been forced to endure. And you will all die and I''ll leave this place completely untouchable, and if any of you feel you can argue with that, then by all means try and fight me. But since you all want to desperately to paint me as a savage and evil necromancer who wants to world to run red with blood and to take everything you''ve built and burn it to the ground. Very well then, you''ve all gotten you wish granted." "Your Majesty please calm down! I know we''ve been a bit unfair to you, please let us know how we can make it up to you, there''s no need to make any sort of extreme choice." The snow elf queen said as she got up to her feet, yet Rezar could see her secretly signing to her guards, he shook his head and looked at the grinning Malik and the hard faced princess. Then he too started Grinning and then he blasted out into a full blow laughter that shook the halls and gave everyone chills. "Give me both arms of your stupid princess, and I want it now! And also she gets on her knees and apologize for her treatment of me, and I might consider sparing you all. If not then...I hope you''re all ready to go to war." Chapter 270: The Banquet (V): Threat Much of the guests within the banquet hall looked at Rezar like he was insane, the eyes if the princess even changed the moment Rezar made his demands as she noticed the extreme look of fury that seemed plastered all over his visage. it didn''t look like he was joking, and as such a request was something no one would be willing to deliver, it was obvious that he had decided to burn all of his bridges. The princess was worried, she knew her mother would defend her, but even she got the feeling she had pushed the bone king a little too far. "Please your Majesty I know we''ve offended you, but I believe you should err on the side of caution and don''t take things too far. We will provide an explanation and proper remuneration for crossing the line and provoking you repeatedly. But even you have to be wise enough to know that you can''t make an enemy of the entire world. So I suggest you calm down, I''m sure the banquet no longer agrees with you, tomorrow will make it up to you I promise." The snow elf queen said as she stood up and even gave a perfunctory bow. But Rezar was not stupid, and even if he was stupid he was not the kind to say he was doing something and do something else, he had already made up his mind. He was able to adapt to this new world because he wasn''t someone who was brought up or steeped in the intricacies and politics of Elysium. He just wanted to be left alone to grow without going against the interests of the already established powers within Elysium. But now; maybe he was being paranoid but from what he could see they were trying to drive him into a corner, and whether there was someone else entirely pulling the strings from behind an obscure curtain. "Is that so, well then I''ll make sure to stay out of all your ways then. Apart from the slight against me, the sheer temerity and incapability of any one of you pompous asses to show me the barest minimum of courtesy to me, all because I have a death class, or because for some reason or the other you just want to look down on me. I''ve always just wanted to be left alone, but none of you wanted to leave me alone, and now when I decide to party with you fools, you all collectively decided to treat me like crap, attacking my kingdom while I was a way, and treating me like a criminal when I''m in front of you. If anyone of you crosses my borders I''m going to take it as a declaration of war and invade you lot. I''ll make sure ill spread death and destruction in my wake as ill turn fathers on their daughters and mothers on their sons. Babies would crawl and moan with the throes of undead rage as ill usher in an era of darkness that would last a thousand and one years. So for the sake of the greater good, leave me the fuck alone! And stay out of my way!" Rezar turned around with a flourish, his hands tightly grasped on Vita Gratia as he made to leave the banquet hall, obviously the secret meeting later tonight between the rulers wasn''t something he would be attending. And frankly speaking it seems everything had finally come full circle and it seems the only way to survive was to either invade or make himself so strong none of these bastards would even dare fuck with him, but before he left he paused. He already knew who his biggest enemies were, and Rezar wasn''t one to leave a threat hanging around him, what he was about to do might seem childish, but wars have been started for far less than what currently drove him. "Sillomere and the remains of the church of Yahweh and their death class users, as of this moment we are at war. Any other kingdom, faction or civilization that decided to join hands with the bloody bastards or stand in my way should also be prepared to die. I''ll see you lot soon." And with that Rezar turned around to leave, but with his already sounded out threat laid before them, how could the snow elf queen let him go. Because just like Rezar she wasn''t so willing to let a threat to her and her kingdom walk about. "what makes you think I''d let you leave here alive after what you just said! Since we''re are now at war, then you would forgive me if I decide to kill you now instead to save my people the horrors of falling to your filthy undead, you unholy creature!" Rezar smiled, then he turned around, pulling out both blades of Vita Gratia. "Your Majesty you have three children, two of them were born before the Rejuvenation, which means they have memories of their past lives and aren''t so connected to you in a familial way. The way Elysium works is that its distinct ability to continuously give life, reincarnating, generation after generation means that no strong bonds can be formed. And any bond formed would be to nothing more than power and money. until now. Every birth is now unique, a new life, without taint of a previous era...which is why your two-month old son is so precious to you. Because unlike his two elder sisters, he''s truly your child. Until I''ve wiped your bloody kingdom of the face of Elysium, he would be my guest. And when all is said and done and all that''s left is a smoldering ruin of ash and snow, ill bash his head in front of you and then piss on his corpse before laying it at your feet and letting you contemplate the error of your ways, and your sheer stupidity on neglecting one very fundamental rule that now governs the very reality you live in!...you don''t fuck! With Rezar Deathwind! Chapter 271: Winds Of War War was a nasty business, and frankly speaking it was not something the snow elves have had to deal with in a long time, and this was due to the fact that within the entirety of the Bahrenburg wildlands, they have been amongst the top five in power, which was quite a feat given how close they were to the canyons of Toromont, the dividing line between upstarts, and those with real power. Ever since the Rejuvenation not much has been heard from those beyond the great wall as many had taken to calling the canyons, what truly mattered right now was the new power that had literally risen out of nowhere, and one that no matter what anybody said or did, still left chills in the hearts of many. The true story behind the war that was now brewing between the Kingdom of Morte Bianca, Sillomere and the Theocracy of Yahweh had already circulated all over the Bahrenburg Wildlands and even beyond the canyons, going as far as to dance in the ears of the aliens and the dragons that just recently began to reveal themselves. No matter how much Sillomere and the theocracy tried to hide it, the truth still kept on coming out. Their greed and inability to see the death class king of Morte Bianca as an equal and repeatedly trying to provoke had drove the madman to the edge, and the disrespect of the first princess didn''t help matters either. He might not have an astute and eloquent history as the theocracy and the snow elves, but he had built everything he had from the ground up and with his own power. He was a living being with emotions no matter how the stories portrayed him as a bloodsucking demon that delighted in destruction. He was a man and he was a king, with millions of people looking up to him for leadership, there was no way in hell he would let those two powers trample and walk all over his dignity. To not seem weak, Rezar had no other choice but to fight back, and that was a decision almost everyone who heard the story could actually understand and back, but ultimately there was still a problem that many could not get past; and that was the fact that he was a death class holder, and king of a kingdom that actively had death as a religion. So whether they thought he was in the right or not, that he was within his right to kidnap the young son of the queen of the snow elves, a baby still in its cradle not coherent of the world or the darkness that now held it captive, they all ultimately felt that it would be better if Rezar Deathwind and his kingdom was wiped off the face of Elysium, as this was the only way true peace could be guaranteed. It didn''t matter what might have been done to him, the bottom line of this matter was that the world was much better place without a death class user in it, even if he was a king. But then again Marsha didn''t care, she was an innkeeper and her job was to collect information and sell it to whoever was willing to pay well for it. Of course the order of the innkeepers also operated under their own code of conduct, there were some information that no matter what, they just couldn''t sell, regardless of how much money was given for it. She felt that was a little much though; secrets were expensive, and they could make someone very, very rich. But what did she know, she was just a fledging and now that a war was about to begin, this would be as good a time to establish herself and a quarter of the order of the innkeepers in Necron city, something that no one has been able to do since some of the tougher and well known inn-keepers had signed a deal with that bloody vampire to stay out of his kingdom. But Marsha was nothing if not insightful, she saw the opportunity that was literally looking at her right in the face, and frankly speaking she would be a fool to not take the bull by the horns. Establishing a chapter of the order of the innkeepers in Necron city was forbidden to all fledglings roaming the Bahrenburg wildlands for information, a deal had been made. And so far it seems king Rezar Deathwind has kept to his own end of the bargain, but! Marsha was ambitious, she already had the teachings and trainings of the order, an organization that was created by some obscure entity or god called Bob; she felt it was all bullshit even if she didn''t think too much about it. Her deepest desires after uploading into Elysium to escape the damn apocalypse and encountering the order was to have an intelligence agency of her own. This was why she had decided to make her way to Necron in the midst of war preparations to strike at the iron while it was still hot. There would be no other fledglings of the order to contend with her, so she would be able to establish herself smoothly and maybe even make her way up the ladder of importance in Morte Bianca. Earth was over, and in her time there she was unable to leave any lasting mark, no one knew who she was and she didn''t have anyone to remember or who could remember her except for a few cheating boyfriends. But she had a knack for getting information, which was why she had her own gossip column. This was a chance to do something better with that skill, and on a grander scale than just opening or running a news station. The order truly showed her just how powerful information could be, especially when it''s in your own hands and you alone decided who gets it and for how much. This world was not earth, and she was happy for that because it meant that even with how fucked up things seem to be getting with a necromancer kidnapping a child and threatening to bash his head in front the child''s own mother; everyone had a chance to be important, a chance to be powerful, and Marsha would be damned if she let anyone get in her way...it''s what her brother would have wanted. Chapter 272: War Council Alistair looked at Rezar with a shocked look on his face, sure they had many things to do at the moment, especially with the war preparations currently being carried out, but to make plans for a wall around their entire kingdom, and begin implementing the construction was beyond crazy. Sure they had achieved many great things and were at the forefront of everyone else when it came development and technology, it didn''t mean they could do everything! And it was even more prevalent now that they no longer had the system to automate things for them, sure they could build just as fast, but they now needed to do everything themselves. And with the road projects still ongoing, Alistair felt like this was a little too much to handle. They were all still mortals and the bloody vampire king should do well to remember it. "Do you have something to say Alistair?" Rezar asked as he looked over First General Lenore''s recently drafted war plans. "Permission to speak freely your Majesty?" Rezar raised an eyebrow at that, Alistair noticed that seemed to be a quirk of his king, whatever situation he finds himself in, Rezar raised his eyebrows as a means to cope or show expressions...and with just a raised eyebrow as an expression it was hard to tell what in the fuck he was thinking. "Granted Alistair, this is a council meeting after all, you''re supposed to counsel me. Stop being afraid of me so damn much, it''s no longer amusing." But therein lays the problem, how could he not be afraid when a famous butcher of living beings tells you he no longer finds you amusing? Heck knowing, he was considered amusing did nothing more than scare him even more. "I don''t think we should worry about having to build the kingdom walls or any other major construction in light of the recent war preparations. It would leave a lot of the common people exposed. And I understand your majesty that have a wall commissioned to be built is for the defense of everyone within Morte Bianca, but I believe you standing with your people will fall if lives are lost in the process. I can device a means to keep our borders safe for the main time, it would be better if such projects are taken when the kingdom is at peace and not on the brink of war against two powerful and influential factions. You''ve put your people first all this while, I''m asking that you do so again your majesty." Alistair felt a drop of sweat drip down his brow. His body felt extremely cold, maybe it was not necessary and it caused more harm than good, but he was well and truly afraid of the king he served. He didn''t know why, but he couldn''t shake it. And the annoying part was that everyone else around him was just fine with him, Alistair felt there was something wrong with him, but at this point he really didn''t care, he just wanted to leave here without incurring Rezar''s wrath. "you''ve made some valid points Alistair, and I''ve already considered all of that too. But I just had an idea and I threw it out to see what all of you had to say about it. And thanks to you Alistair we now know the pros and cons of such an undertaking. None the less as soon as this conflict is over, we will have another meeting with the agenda of finding ways to fortify our current defenses, and getting new and better ones. None the less we should shift our attention to the matter at hand, have there been any sort of movements from the elves and the church?" Rezar asked as he moved his gaze to the map on the table in front of him. Samira stepped forward with a tablet in hand, Alistair couldn''t help but gain a rueful smile when he saw that, sure before the Rejuvenation a lot of things had been somewhat automated and on assist from Elysium, but ever since the Rejuvenation they were forced to rely on wits, ingenuity, intelligence and resourcefulness. The Muriel elves took to the new world like a fish to water, no longer having to rely on just blueprints they could reverse any tech, and without the inhibitions of the system, things that they remembered from earth could be easily replicated. And then coupled with the magic and technology in Elysium, improving and evolving them, wasn''t too hard. He and his group of technomagical oriented elves single handedly brought about a modern age to a primitive world. It was something that brought a great deal of pride to him every time he saw a technological tool being used in Elysium. Samira began speaking ready to give a report on the going on''s of the wildlands. "Master the snow elves haven''t begun to make any moves, but the theocracy has made a move. And the move they have chosen has brought down their image. The snow elves don''t seems to have taken our threats seriously, but seeing as they are next door neighbors with dwarves that live within and deep under the Breone mountains, it goes without saying that they probably have a network of tunnels and caverns of their own, and the last reports I received from my sisters stationed there was that they might have discovered an entrance to a secret facility or to the underground systems where the snow elves are hiding their army and carrying out their preparations. They''re still trying to infiltrate, but I get regular reports from them on the hour so we will soon know if they''re successful or not. As for the theocracy, they have bared their fangs and literally exposed their true intentions. Their airship crash landed quite a way from us with two major factions being in-between us and then, putting them about 12,000 kilometers away from our southern borders. They''ve let out their necromancers and death class users, choosing to turn everyone and every animal between us and them into undead that will further be incorporated into a massive undead army that they would use to conquer all of the Bahrenburg wildlands. Reports say that they had demanded the loyalty of every other faction during the secret meeting held after we had left the banquet. They''re on the outs with everyone else too, and it seems they''re considered a bigger threat so the rest of the factions are putting their focus on them instead of us. The only people making any sort if move is a collective of wild tribes that have gathered under the banner of man called Lazarus. They seemed to have formed a faction of their own and are taking every other faction in their path as they make their way towards us from the south east, past the great plains and desert. There has been no sound from the canyons, and nothing from the sea in the west. As it stands we have enemies closing in from two maybe three directions, on a normal not I would say we are massive screwed master, but seeing as they''re dealing with us all I can say is this.... who dies first?" Chapter 273: Rising Snow City 1 The Biancans had a thing for the early morning, it was weird, but Rezar loved it. That waking hour just before the rising of the sun, with the cold and the silence. And today with the solemnity of what was to come, sure they were all being quiet about what they now had to do, but Rezar could see it on their faces, it was like an itch on their skin, a fire burning deep within their loins, they hungered for war. Rezar walked forward, his steps seemingly uneven on the plains that his fearsome army had no gathered. A little way to the left was a massive tower with different levels, each of the levels had open alcoves that were filled to the brim with men and women clad in dark midnight blue battle suits. They had on hoods and masks over their mouth looking like some sort of cyber ninja. However, Rezar knew these were the kings guard, the sons of dawn and the daughters of the eclipse, all of them vampires. His kingdom was stronger, his people were stronger, and though a lot has happened, they had come out of it the very best versions of themselves. Rezar took a deep breath as he sighed, there was something wrong with him, and while he had tried his best so far to avoid admitting the truth to himself, it was now laid bare for his eyes and heart to see and feel. he was beginning to feel. stuff. Every time he looked at his soldiers he got this strange feeling that made him want to stick his chest out and guffaw like a madman, and at the same time there would be this weird feeling in his chest that made him look at them like they were a bunch of new born puppies with a cuteness factor raised to the power of 10. It was weird and he really didn''t have anybody around to explain all these things to him, but seeing as there was nothing to be done about it, he''ll just roll with the punches. "Once again we''re at war, I wish there would have been a better way to solve the crisis that''s in front of us, but there isn''t any other way for us to do this. And this fight is my fight, I''m so sorry that I had to drag you all into it. But this land that you all now call home is being eyed by a lot of people, I would probably give you a colorful speech and tell you things that would let your blood pumping for the fight ahead but. Such a method is redundant in the face of the truth, enemies have walked all over my pride and honor and in the process they''re still trying to take what we''ve built, trying to take our home and everything in for themselves. And ultimately I''m also an extremely selfish bastard, without getting something in return that would benefit me and my kingdom, I''m not so eager or willing to share what we have with the world. And so in that regard we all have to fight, you and me, and our sisters and brothers. We have to fight for our pride and our honor and for a chance to keep our way of life. Because let''s face it, are the TYPE TO LET ASSHOLES WALK ALLOVER YOU!" "No Your Majesty!" "I can''t hear youBIANCANS! ARE YOU PUSSIES!" "NO YOUR MAJESTY!" "excellent work Biancans, now let''s go kill some dirty motherfuckers!" "YEAAAAAAAAA!!!!!" Lenore couldn''t help but roll her eyes as the soldiers all began to move out, at the moment there two major divisions if the kings guard was going to be excluded. The army itself that was responsible for land warfare, Lenore had taken the liberty to call them Terran Force and the air force whose formation was kept secret, Lenore called them Avian Knights. They were as prepared for this fight as they could possibly be, but now the problem of who the first target would be had come up. The theocracy was too far away at the moment to be a significant threat, which left the snow elves. And with that decided the army marched for the Breone mountains, it was going to be a war that would consolidate Morte Bianca''s sphere of power, because they weren''t going for the elves alone, they would also be taking the dwarves. [[[[[[||]]]]]] Rezar stood cloaked deep in the night, watching with a calm gaze as his Terran force got into place, there was a trade city of sorts at the foot of the Breone mountains. It was managed by dwarves, and is actually the only surface city they had, it was what you would consider the gateway into the Breone mountains, and the only traversable path to get to the snow elves was to get through that city. Plus, the city wouldn''t just be offering access to the snow elves, but from the intel he had receive it would give access to the dwarven tunnels and caverns deep into the Breone mountains. At the moment he hadn''t decided if he was going to collapse the entrance to prevent the dwarves or the snow elves from using it to flank them, or use it as an entry point to launch a strike against the dwarves. He hadn''t made a decision yet, but he suspected the dwarves probably had contingencies in place in case enemies gained access to the tunnels. The best he could do was just take the city first, then he would figure what else he had to do. He turned to Lenore and asked. "Are you sure the Avian can''t just bombard the city, it should save us a lot of stress." "That would just be suicide, Rising Snow city has a squadron of ice wyverns outfitted with the best armor, tech and magic the dwarves could possibly make. Plus, on account of the fact that they''re alive and natural flyers they''re more maneuverable than our pilots, plus our airships are a bit too fast for a proper bombardment, we have to lay siege and take the city from the ground." Lenore explained while Rezar looked on at the bronze gates of the city. "Very well then Lenore. Release the Undead!" Chapter 274: Rising Snow City 2 The gates to rising snow city stood silent like a sentinel, an unshakable bastion that could not be breeched, surrounding by high thick walls fortified by magic and dwarven craftsmanship, the night was silent and extremely calm, but even with that there was a tension in the air that was thick you could almost feel it. Elven and dwarven guards stood watch on the walls that were on top of the gate, they watched the jagged cliff face that made up the starting point of the Breone mountains. The mountains itself was pretty un-traversable with the only safe path being a valley like mountain pass that led to the summit and the towns, fortresses and finally the capital city of Sillomere. The cold wind howled, it seemed to whisper of horrors unspeakable, there was a need to kill in the air, a bloodlust that was so heavy, laden with an aura of brutality and desolation. Many of the guards felt that they were just paranoid, but those of them who truly understood what was going on could only say one thing about the heavy feeling that was in the air. To them...this oppressive feeling felt like death. "Mooooooaaaaaaaannnnnnnn" At first it seemed to be a different pitch to the way the wind howled, it might have picked up speed or even slowed down. But ultimately it was unlike anything they''ve ever heard before. The dwarves and elves who stood guard in this city were not negligent of their duties, and now more than ever they were at high alert due to the threat of war. They were the first line of defense, and as such they were better trained than most. It was the elves that heard it first, the silent shuffle of feet as they impacted the snow covered ground, the absence of breath, and the desolate sounds that began to pick and differentiate itself from the flow of the mountain wind. Their aerial seemed to make the wind pick up speed, their desolate green orbs flickering in the dark as they drew ever closer. The first elf noticed them, a line of dead people moving and shuffling on their feet as if they were being pulled by some invisible strings, next came the goblins, and then the monsters and then more and more. In seconds it didn''t matter which species they were, they all had one thing in common. One goal in their sight and one mission to achieve, one that not even the rapidly speeding up wind could stop them from achieving, they came here for death, and they brought a snow storm along. "UNDEAD!" The shout went up forcing all of the guards and the two thousand soldiers waiting within the city itself. The citizens huddle deep in the shelters that have provided, those privileged enough were already making their way into the tunneling systems that pretty much ran through the entirety of the Breone mountains. Running to the dwarves running to safety. The moment the undead came with a certain distance, the smacks of released bow strings and the sharp thuds of arrows slicing into flesh and boring holes into skulls rang out within the night. But still this wasn''t enough to stop the onward march of an army fueled by a hunger for life. Undead fell in droves, but everyone that was slain and finally put to rest, there was always two more at the back ready to take its place. And so the first undead reached the gates, not at all hesitant to begin banging its head and scratching its fingers on it. "They''re at the gates! Light the oil! Light the oil!" a panicked dwarf yelled out to his comrades. But apart from being panicked he was also their commanding officer, and the arrival of the undead at the gates even with all their attempts to keep the unholy creature away, had him shaken to the core. Dozens of elf archers and dwarf gunners took their place on the wall, pointing their bows and massive guns high into the sky above the still rapidly increasing army of undead. The tip of the arrows belonging to the elves took on a fiery red glow, the dwarves were not too far behind as the insides of their gun barrel could be seen building up a ball of fiery orange flames. "Release!" their commander officer ordered as he took a deep breath and leaned a little over the ledge to see just what was going on with their attack and springing of their hidden trap. Dot of flames filled the night sky, casting a fiery glow over the heads of the dead that now marched at the gates of Rising Snow city. The light the projectiles casted showed them the scope and magnitude of what they were dealing with, the dwarven commander immediately went pale, his bronze skin turning as white as the snow that covered the entirety of the city he was now defending. *Boom! Boom! Boom! * The explosions were something beautiful to see, but only one particular group of people could appreciate the fiery touch of death like that, and that was the Biancans themselves. But yet even with the flames and the intense weakness the undead had against it, it was not enough to slow their advance as they kept on moving forward. Passed the burning field of undead covered in pitch and oil that had been wisely and deceptively hidden under the snow. The undead burned, but as they burned they kept on moving forward, and those that fell from the flames became nothing more than ladders for those who were untouched by it. Some of them went on to the gate to bang their fiery burning bodies on it, others stacked themselves like building blocks, slowly stretching upwards like a growing tree of death. They would be picked off by the archers on the wall, but they would still crawl all over themselves, the dead that no longer moved, serving as a platform for the dead that could still move. Death came in her infinite number and in the horizon hidden by darkness at the very end of this army of the dead, her son watched on with a smile. Chapter 275: Rising Snow City 3 The first undead placed its hands over the edge of the wall and vaulted up with a sudden burst of speed, hands outstretched and jaws split wide open heading for the throat of an elven archer. His dwarven teammate was quick to react as a massive Warhammer smashed into the head of the airborne undead, derailing its movements and killing it on the spot. But as always where one was slain, there would be two more to take its place. A giant badger like undead monster came over the edge and chomped down with its jaws immediately the dwarf had made a move. Warm blood splashed on the face of the elf as three undead goblins pounced on his startled body, the teeth and claws pulling and scratching at his skin as they tore him apart. His death wasn''t swift, and it was as painful as one could ever imagine. The commanding officer could only watch helplessly as the walls began to fill with the onslaught of corpses. Varied in their distinction but united in their aim, he felt desolate as their first line of defense had been so easily breached, but there really wasn''t much he could do about it. He looked at the army of darkness that came for him and his people and his eyes widened at the hulking monstrosity that was heading for the gate. "everybody off the walls! Retreat and form up in the square! We shall make our stand there! Retreat! Retreat!" The dwarven officer quickly made his way down, trying his best to make himself look as small as possible and to keep as much of his soldiers between himself and the hordes of undead that rushed forwards like the waves of a sea of death. But that was what they were, and with every second that passed it was beginning to seem as if there was no hope of escape or survival. *Dum! Dum! Dum! Dum! Dum! * The sound of a massive footfall pounding against the ground resounded, loud and clear for everyone to hear and to feel the horror that accompanied it. Those of them who could see, just before the carnage began were subjected to the grotesque sight of a massive troll, clad in sleek armor and sporting the same green eye of the undead running towards the gate and the pile of bodies in front of it. In the few seconds before its body smashed through, there was a silence, a cold vigil as the breaths of everyone was held, and then it was over. *Boom! * Bodies, metal and stone flew every which way as a dwarf was crushed underneath a massive boulder, and an elf had his left leg smashed into ribbons from his thigh. A human who had been making his way to a shelter doubled over to throw up just as the troll appeared with the body of an undead warg, smashing the wolf like monster on the helpless human, until all that was left was just blood and guts. Silently and like the wind Rezar touched down on the pillar post that once held the now badly crumpled and broken gate of rising snow city. He watched as his undead flooded the city, taking lives and losing theirs in droves. But it didn''t matter, for every life that was taken, an undead was born, and they too joined the efforts in bringing this city down. Rezar watched as the soldiers gathered around an ornate building to make their last stand. There was about a thousand if not more of them, give or take a few hundred. Ready and willing to slow down the move of the undead with their lives, but frankly speaking such a move was redundant. [Spectral Skull] A trio of skulls flew out of his hands going the distances before exploding right in the midst of the group of soldiers. Many of them were able to resist the effect of the explosions, but many were severely injured by the effects of death skill. Rezar bent down a bit, building power in his legs he leaped, the wind blowing in his ears as he sailed over the carnage that was currently happening below him to last right in the middle of the soldiers. His feet crushed two of them, caving their chest in as he ducked under a hammer strike, a spectral skull came into existence and slammed into the shoulder of the human who had tried using the Warhammer to cave Rezar''s head in. the spell exploded, causing an imbalance of magic within the body of the human as blood poured out of his eyes, nose and ears. Rezar ignored him as he stepped into a wild swing from a dwarf and stabbed vita gratia through the dwarf''s collarbone and into her heart, the fact that she was female didn''t do anything to stop him. [Necromancer: Spectral Skull has leveled up to 5! Mental +15, Magic +15. Auxiliary effect unlocked! Satellite (the spell becomes autonomous and hangs around the user protecting and attacking with a 20-meter range. Can be controlled] Rezar smiled, loving the welcome surprise as he spun both blades of Vita Gratia, carving flesh out of the body of an elf at a speed unseen to the naked eye. He pulled back putting both blades in reverse grip as he jumped over three charging elves and came down on a Naga, stabbing both blades into his skull before pushing off his body and flipping in the air. He released the chains, sending the blades stabbing into a balcony on the ornate building the soldiers seemed to be protecting. Then he sat down on the balcony watching the carnage being wrought. There was nothing more that could be done to salvage this city, Rezar watched with a smile as the soldiers of the city struggled to put up a fight, but it was a useless effort. Rezar shifted his attention away from the battle happening below him and turned it to his stat page all the while wondering where the entrance to the dwarven tunnel was, because he really needed to take care of it. Chapter 276: Rising Snow City 4 [Rezar DeathWind] = [Age: 17] = [Class: King] = [Rank: Bronze III] [Race: Vampire] = [Bloodline: Storm Dragon// Death God//(HIDDEN)] [Mental (II): 34] = [Magic (II): 39] = [Constitution: 71] = [Strength (II): 15] = [Speed: 91] [Traits: War Edge//Black Magician] {Skill Trees} [Vampire: Supernatural Body {Power King} (5)// Bullet Time (1) +// Blood Mastery(0)] [Necromancy: Summon Skeleton (3)// Spectral Skull {Satellite} (5)// Raise Undead (3)+] [Magic: Magic Mastery (5)// Mana Charge (3)// E.M.P (1)// Mana Blade (0) +] [Arms: Dual Swords (2)//Staffs (2)//Chains (2)//Unarmed (0) +] [Dragon''s Arte: 13 Pulses (1): Water Element Mastery (0)// Wind Element Mastery (0) +] [Skill Points: 132] Rezar was contemplating whether he needed a new skill or not, at the moment he didn''t have much attacking skills, and the amount of skills he could possibly get was extremely limited. He could only have five skill trees and each skill tree could only have five skills. It didn''t matter what sort of skill he chose, it would continue to grow infinitely stronger as long as he kept on mastering it. Not to mention it seems when a skill gets to level 5 or rather every 5 levels it gains an auxiliary effect or skill of sorts. He didn''t know if there was anymore use for his skill points apart from using them to purchase skills, because eventually when he''s completed his skill trees there would be no more use for them, and they were sure to keep growing with every achievement he gets. His Dragon Arte: 13 Pulses skills had not even gained a level no matter how hard he tried to move water or wind it was just stuck at a big fat zero. He''s not missed..well scratch that, it''s been quite a while since he last trained. It would do him some good if he grew his strength a little bit faster, and then again he hasn''t even discovered what was the use if his bloodline yet. But no matter what it was, he''ll discover it soon enough. He shifted his gaze down, watching the flames and scent of blood the wafted up into the sky, it was tempting enough that he felt his stomach begin to rumble from the hunger he felt. He really should try to feed more often, but the idea of going around and biting necks wasn''t something that sat too well with him, but none the less he..! [Bullet Time!] The world slowed down as Rezar moved his head that the side, narrowly escaping the beam of light wrapped around a lance that went last his head. He turned around watching the snow elf warrior rapidly pull her lance back even in bullet Time and try to smash it into his chest. Rezar combined the two blades of Vita Gratia and returned time back to normal as he deflected the strike, causing sparks to be released from the moment of impact. He and his opponent was pushed back as he fell off the balcony down to the square below, while her back slammed against the door that she had swiftly came through to attack Rezar. But scarcely had her back hit the door that she exploded forwards, going off the balcony as she pointed her lance down towards Rezar''s neck who''s feet had just touched the ground. But fast as she was, Rezar was able to keep up with her speed, though in this case it as just barely and this was all die to one very obvious fact that he had noticed. She was a silver ranked individual as opposed to his bronze rank III status. but it didn''t matter, even if she was a mountain, he would get through her. [Mana Blade!] [Spectral Skull] A sharp crescent beam of light shot out of Vita Gratia as Rezar swung it upwards, the bean met her midair as she smashed her glowing silver lance at the compressed form of magic. But that was just a diversion as a pair of skulls smashed into her side, but just in the right time, a golden shield seemed to spring to life around her body, defending her against the effect of the skulls. But it was just enough to have Rezar plan out his next move. He move back just as she landed with a loud thud, cracking the stone tiles underneath her feet. Rezar wrenched his right hand backwards, almost as if there were invisible strings in his hand that he was pulling. The snow elf stumbled forwards, completely shocked and caught off guard by the sudden wave of dizziness she was assaulted with. That was enough time for Rezar to close the distance, spinning and releasing the vita Gratia from it''s staff form. A back hand swing had a blade rushing for her neck, her lance came just in time to block the strike from him. But Rezar was close enough as he smashed his head forwards to the bridge of her nose. But the same golden barrier that defended her from previous attacks sprung up and Rezar felt as if he had hated his head against a ten foot thick wall of solid steel. It hurt like a bitch, but the woman was still blasted backwards like she was shot out of a cannon ball. Rezar stumbled backwards, shaking his head a bit as she flew and smashed through a pillar that was holding up the balcony on the building they had started fighting from. The balcony lost balance and crashed down on top of her unmoving form. For a moment it seemed as if she had been crushed by the time of concrete that fell on her, but Rezar knew better as he had exchange a few blows with her to know that she was not just stronger than him by virtue of her rank, she was a very good fighter. Rezar ignored some notifications that hung in front of his sight as he shook his shoulders and cracked his neck from side to side. He was getting into the groove, and he as totally ready for a challenge. [Summon Skeleton] a black inky portal appeared besides him as three armed skeletons with eyes burning green with the flames of undeath. The rubble covering the snow elf''s form blasted upwards as she doesn''t up, Rezar smiled as he prepared for a fight. But she took one look at him then turned and ran to left where an ice wyvern suddenly swooped down and snatched her up with it''s class. Rezar looked on completely dumbfounded as she flew away into the night, heading deeper into the mountains and what was probably going to be the next stage of their initiated conflict. All the king of Morte Bianca could say as he watched a worthy opponent flee into the night was. "Fuck!" Chapter 277: Rising Snow City 5 Come morning the flag of Morte Bianca was planted high on the tallest building within the city, the smell of smoke, blood and spilled guts filled the air, as death seemed to cling to everyone within the city. Many of the soldiers had survived, and these were those who had the fortitude to surrender before things went completely out of hand. They were spared because that was a fundamental rule that Morte Bianca thrived on; they never took the lives of enemies who are willing to surrender. After the battle all that was left was a clean up and occupying of the city, but Rezar had to make sure the city itself wasn''t chockfull of traps. He was extremely paranoid and with good reason. He had his soldier inspect the city, trying to find anything untoward, and they did find something. The central area of the city, which comprised of at least 70% of its total surface area was standing above the roof an artificial underground cavern. The cavern itself was a thousand feet high, and was supported by massive pillars that had explosive charges on it. A collapse like this would kill even him much less his soldiers so Rezar ordered those he had let in to exit the city. Which left them with a conundrum as they had to go through the city to continue on to Sillomere. But the charges were remote control and could be trigged by an isolated switch or rune, that lay in the hands of god knows who, hiding God knows where. It was worrying, but until Rezar was able to figure out how to disarm those explosives or better yet find who held the detonator, he would not take the risk of having his people cross through the city. Besides they just won a great victory and beat the snow elves back, of course this battle would have also incurred the wrath of the dwarves, but Rezar was past the point of no return. The main army would have to wait, but the daughters of eclipse would be making a move come nightfall. They had attacked during the early hours of the morning, the darkest hour before dawn. The vampires can scale the mountain and scour the vicinity for anyone, the detonator shouldn''t be too far away. And as an addition to that, the tunnel or rather tunnels that would lead into the system running through the Breone mountains was not just collapsed. It was blocked with gates of 20-foot solid steel. It would take days to get through it, especially since the gates themselves were enchanted. The dwarves were good with coming up with contingencies, the planned collapse of the city was also their idea. He had no other choice but to wait and consolidate his power, especially since he had gained new undead to his already impressive number. And frankly speaking this was just a small number of what he had available, Rezar had been building an undead army since before the Rejuvenation, back when there was a dungeon with 200 floors in his backyard. Lenore had been responsible for leading the undead to train, level up and make new ones. They had gone as fast as the 126th floor. And each floor at a stretch had hundreds, sometimes thousands of monsters. Without a doubt there was a severe amount of undead creatures being hidden in a vault somewhere. And just the lowest of the low had been let out of their cradle. Rezar had more power than he was letting on, and he was happy with it being that way. At least his enemies will keep on underestimating him. He walked into his tent on the plains where the main army had made camp, there were reports to be had, but for now he had a few notifications to pay attention to. [Vampire Skill: Bullet Time has leveled up to 2! Speed + 10, Constitution + 10] [Magic Skill: Mana Blade has leveled up to 1! Magic +2 Mental+1] There was such a stark difference about the levels of stats gained from both skills. But then again the bullet time skill cost a lot of skill points as opposed to the mana blade. And it was extremely tasking to use as he actually accelerated time for his body, as the rest of the world slowed down. Honestly speaking Rezar felt as if there was something more to the usage of that skill, every time he used it he felt a little bit older, and for a vampire that wasn''t exactly a bad thing. Because the older they got, the stronger the became. Rezar took a deep breath and settled into a stance, his breath evening in out as he flowed into it. Deep in his ears he could hear the sound of crashing waves, flowing rivers and bubbling brooks. He felt the cascade of waterfalls and the heartbeat of antiquity. He could hear life, and intertwined with it was blood power and hunger, this was the sound of his own body. The blood within it, and the magic that flowed hand in hand with it. There was sudden pop and he could feel the wind, the gentle caress on his skin and silent whisper in his ears. It was also a part of him, deep in his body, held in his chest and upwards up to his brain and his lungs. The breath of life that was held within him, there was just so much power. It was primal, the forces of life and he felt connected to them. even the moisture in the air, the sweat on the skin of his soldiers, the rotten fluid from the bodies of his undead, he could see, taste touch and feel them all. [Dragon''s Arte: Thirteen Pulses has leveled up to 2! Water Element Mastery (1)// Wind Element Mastery (1) + 20 to all stats] [Vampire Skill: Blood Mastery has leveled up to 1, + 10 to magic, +15 to constitution +5 to mental] Chapter 278: Blood And Snow (I) Rezar took a deep breath and released a mouthful of fog from the corner of his mouth. The idea to scaled the mountain would have been detrimental if it was being done by someone other than the vampires and the undead. They need to create another route to the top of the mountain, without being able to locate the location of the detonator, it would be nothing more than suicide if they tried marching through rising snow city. And it still left quite a few things up for debate though, he had been in that city and laid waste to the army that was within it, yet whoever''s supposed to be responsible for blowing the damn city to thy kingdom come had held off on it. It could also be possible that said person was amongst the casualties within the city and was probably walking around and climbing this mountain right now as a part of his undead horde. It was a novel idea, but it was just an idea with too many risks in it and no definite truth. It was a probability, and he would not place the lives of his soldiers on a probability. He was a lot wiser than that, and he wasn''t fighting the snow elves to the point of mutual destruction, he wanted to win with the least amount of damage taken, which was why he was out here fighting side by side with his soldiers instead of letting Lenore lead the charge. A sharp draft of wind blew past, raising a bevy of snow that got into Rezar''s eyes and caused it to water. The undead were unshaken, but some of the vampires had to reaffirm their grip so as not to get blown off the side of the mountain. Even though they were all quite powerful, even to the point of having a few silver ranked individuals amongst them. but they weren''t exactly immortals, and the power anyone had was quite synonymous to their ranks. And Rezar had to be honest, the silver rank wasn''t as powerful as it should be, heck when he measured it against the power scale of Elysium before the rejuvenation. This would be putting someone with a dual class around level 20 and 10 of each. It was just below average in terms of power. Large scale skills and attacks were limited to feats of strength as the amount of damage anyone could actually cause was now quite limited. He had also found something quite peculiar out, the way stats are measured for a vampire was quite different for everyone else. A single point of strength stat would actually coincide with at least 3 to 5 points of a normal persons. Anyone not a vampire and silver ranked had their stats in the second stage, with the third stage putting them snugly within the second or third level of the silver rank. It was harder for vampire to level up and gain stats as opposed to normal people. But due to their monstrous strength, speed and constitution they need far less stats to keep up with everyone else. Which was why it being possible for Rezar being a Bronze Rank III, to contend and even defeat individuals in the silver rank. But then again such results were somewhat limited as the fight with the snow elf woman in rising snow city had shown, he was only so strong at the bronze rank. Rezar looked up and noticed a ledge above his head that was covered by a snow storm. He could barely make it out, but he knew that''s their destination and aim. Getting there would put them back on the path that would lead them to Sillomere and the town and cities on the path before getting to it. And getting there would actually give Rezar some breathing space to think and figure out how to get the rest of the army up here, this place was almost 300 meters above Rising snow city . *whoosh! * "Arrghhhhhhhh!!!" Rezar felt the intent to kill before the arrow was released from the bow. A vampire close by too the arrow to the eye and lost his grip before plummeting down to snow and rocks below. His body was definitely going to get battered up and significantly too. He would probably be out of commission for a while until he has healed. But therein lies the problem, unlike Rezar, the other vampires couldn''t heal as fast as he could. Forget injuries they could actually get killed, and while Rezar didn''t want to look down on the rest of his army, his vampires were the secret key to making sure this war goes smoothly. Not to mention that he made them, had sired much if not all of the vampires now scaling this mountain with him. Even if he didn''t dare say his relationship with them was akin to a parent and their child, he would say it was similar to a master and his pet. He knew all of their names and he could feel all of their feelings, this move pissed him off. *Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! * The arrows fell like rain, indiscriminate in the way it picked off his vampires and sent them plummeting down into the snow below. Some of them would not survive this fall, and it was leaving a knot in his stomach. He turned and released a mass telepathic message for all of the vampires. [Use the Undead as A cover!] It was a good idea, and it would have been enough to solve the problem of them being no different from fish in a barrel. They couldn''t see their enemy due to the snow storm that seemed to hang above them, almost like a natural curtain or camouflage shielding them from his sights. It was probably a skill, but their problems were only just beginning. *Kurawwwwwwwww! * Rezar felt his blood grow cold as the air became filled with dozens of screeches. He looked to the east and watched as dozens of armored wyverns came from around a bend of the mountain face. Their claws and jaws were outstretched as they made a beeline for Rezar and his soldiers. They were trapped! Chapter 279: Blood And Snow (II) Rezar didn''t have time to think, he just did the first thing that came to mind, and that was to let go, much to the shock of his soldiers as they called out for him. But Rezar was not so despaired that he would be falling to his death, he pulled out Vita Gratia in midair, separated the weapon and sent the first blade flying upwards, its chain rustling in the cold of night and glowing as it stabbed into the chest of a snow elf and proceeded to go through the head of another before stabbing into the mountain wall on the ledge above them. With that in place he was no longer falling as he was suspended in the air, but that wasn''t the end of the move as he swung the other blade held tightly in his right hand towards the Wyvern that was leading the charge. While the wyverns were natives to this mountain and could see a lot better in the snow storm, the same couldn''t be said for when it was dark. The creature of ice, fangs and claws didn''t see the blade until it was stabbed into its eyes and deep into its brain. The Wyvern went limp immediately, falling down to the rocks below, but Rezar had no intention of letting the bulky creature to fall to the ground with its rider. Before the chain could get taut, he ran across the surface of the mountain wall, his right arm straining and almost pulling him to the ground as the entire weight of the wyvern was now supported with Rezar''s right hand. The pilot fell screaming into snow and darkness below. "Arrghhhhhhhh!" Rezar''s screaming voice was heard resounding across the entire mountain, and it came with such force and power that the mountain itself began to shake, a subtle rumbling that could be felt from the rocks beneath everybody. Rezar felt his right shoulder give way and the skin begin to tear and pull apart. At this rate the Dead weight of the Wyvern would pull his arm off his entire body. The other wyverns had given the wall a wide berth as directed by their riders after Rezar had shocked them and taken out one of theirs in the very moment that they appeared. But he wasn''t done yet, with the other riders out of range, there was only direction this wyvern could go. He shifted his gaze up, he could see or rather he could feel the snow elves attacking the other blade and chain of Vita Gratia and trying to dislodge it from the wall. If they could do that, Rezar would fall to his death, or maybe to severe injuries. In the moment he looked up his gaze met with that of a dwarf that he somehow felt he had met before. The Dwarf felt his heart grow cold for the second time in two-almost three days, and this once was a lot worse than the last. "Hurry it up! Remove that bloody chain he''s about to do something, quick!" the dwarf turned to give others, trying not to pay attention to the bodies speared through by the chain and now bleeding onto it. And the weird effect as the bodies were slowly getting desiccated; the weapon feeding on their essence and soul, but. *Whoosh! * It was already too late. The dwarf turned and noticed a shadow coming close to him and the cluster of snow elves and dwarves that were on the ledge and trying their hardest to pick of their enemies.it was the body of the wyvern. That monstrous king had actually thrown the 18-meter-long and 6-meter-tall monster at them, in that second he couldn''t help but flash through everything that seems to have gone wrong in this fight. Both the dwarven and Elvin leaders had not been willing to pull all their resources and weapons in stopping this monster right at the entrance of the Breone mountain. They were mostly relying on the trap at Rising snow city to slow the King of the bone horde down, but he had lost most of his hand and forearm to a tiger like beast undead, and the detonator was lying snugly within it''s dead stomach. They were no different than lambs led to a slaughter. They left them there for Rezar to make short work of, their lives meaning nothing to the people they had chosen to serve. Nairn missed earth; cause even if the people in power were complete asses, it wasn''t to the point where you had to die on their orders. Soldiers had a bit of a choice, of course there would be disgrace at the other end of such a road, but at least you would be alive, but here? *Boom! * Flesh and bone was crushed as blood splattered on the unforgiven and harsh mountain wall covered with a thick layer of snow. There was an explosion of ice and rocks that cause even more damage in a wider radius. The elves and dwarves at the edge survived with severe injuries and legs not too far away from death''s door. In fact, it wouldn''t be too long before they had to answer the call of their ancestors. The dwarven commander, and the snow elf responsible of the snow storm spell were killed on the spot. And due to that, the controlled snow storm hanging around the ledge and keeping the alliance soldiers hidden from the vampires below was dispersed and they were left exposed. Rezar''s right hand was hanging down limply as he held on tight with his left hand, that was now slick and covered with blood that had poured down the length of the chain from stabbing into the snow elves. The riders and the wyverns knew that their comrades needed their help now more than ever, so they prepared to attack. But now that the vampires were no longer encumbered by the snow storm, they could make attempts to attack. And being cloaked by the power of darkness, more than a few them were ready to cause as much havoc as possible. The wyvern Riders actually only had one target, and that was the still healing Rezar who now had to catch his breath as carrying an entire wyvern with one hand had messed up his entire body, not just his arm, they were going for the head. Chapter 280: Blood And Snow (III) A flock of bats suddenly appeared in front of Rezar, many of his vampires were already missing from the mountain wall. The vampire skill tree, had a variety of skills that could be purchased. And while Rezar hadn''t thought of taking it yet, the bat transformation skill was something that a lot of his vampires had taken. And not just for its practicality and the boost it gave to movement speed and stealth. The most practical of all vampire skills could be channeled through it. Not to mention its auxiliary skills made for some interesting experiments. Apart from the blood mastery skill, this was the most versatile of all the vampire skills. You could attack, defend and travel with it, and you still had access to all your skills but only in a smaller form; so a bit of reorientation would be required. The snow elves might have tamed the wyverns, but a flock of bats appearing from nowhere spooked the beasts enough that they veered off target. But that was just the beginning as the bats didn''t let the wyverns go. There was a host of attacks and skills shot at the wyverns bring more than a few of them from the sky. At this point both sides were still caught in a terrible position, but as it stands Rezar and his vampire held the initiative. But anything could still go wrong for either side so this fight had to be ended quickly and in a decisive manner. The snow elves and what was left of the dwarves on top of the ledge weren''t without leadership. Passing a cursory glance upwards brought Rezar''s gaze to that of the snow elf he had fought in rising snow city. It seemed that ultimately she was the one in charge of the entire war effort, at least for rising snow city. But be that as it may, Rezar had pinpointed her as the main chain of command for the snow elves and dwarves attacking. If he could take her out, then he could probably shift the balance completely in their favor. *Pop! * He gritted his teeth as he felt his bones pop back into place and ripped muscles quickly mending themselves. He took a dep breath and heaved, pulling himself upwards as he shot onto the ledge. An elf tried taking the initiative by sending a glowing spear straight into his body. He didn''t even bat and eyelash as a lance of cold energy rushed into his body, seemingly freezing his organs and paralyzing him on the spot. "I Got Him!! Look I Got Him! I Killed the Monster!" the elf yelled out victoriously, a bright smile etched all over his face, however. "You fool! Monaiyer get away from him! Run!" the female snow elf who had battled Rezar yelled as she rushed towards Rezar and the elf. But by then it was already too late. Rezar surged forward letting the entire spear go through him until the base itself was in his body, slowly being shoved out the back of his body by his healing tissues. He spun the shocked elf around and sank his fangs into his neck. The world exploded, the feeling of being refreshed and cooled after a long day under the unforgiving harsh glare of the sun permeated his entire body. The blood of the snow elf was a flavor unlike any other, but Rezar wasn''t aiming to kill him. He pulled back and placed his clawed hand at the still bleeding neck of the snow elf, stopping the female snow elf general in her tracks. Rezar gave a fanged grin, his fangs seemingly glowing white under the moonlight. They looked like a par of polished ivory coated with moonstones and then covered with red essence of life. Rezar chuckled, a trail of blood on the side of his lips as he held the frightened and weak elf. Monaiyer was it? In his hands. "Let Him go!" the snow elf general called out fiercely as Rezar''s vampires and Undead reach the ledge and stood behind him. On the opposite side was the snow elves and the dwarves, a good old fashioned face off. "Now why would I do that? Huh? He tastes absolutely cool and refreshing. It would be a shame to let him go to waste." Rezar replied to her with a smile as he twirled Monaiyer in his arms, like they were locked in some ancient dance. "My Husband is not food! Gods damn it! I swear if you lay one hand or touch a single strand of his hair, ill fucking kill you!" she threatened; only for Rezar to actually run his hand across the snow elf''s hair and then pull out a single strand before turning to look at her and saying. "Well? I''m waiting for you to come kill me." All he got in reply was a gritted teeth and a ferocious expression on her face. He smiled some more as he shook his head in amusement. He already had this fight won. "I''m not going to waste my time to banter words with you. All of you! Elves and Dwarves alike surrender. Don''t posture, don''t negotiate. You all have my word that you''ll live, and as for you General. Surrender without any sort of hanky panky and your boy toy would live, if not then." As Rezar finished speaking a single finger nail drew a line from one side of the elf within his grasp''s neck, even adding a few punctuation mark to it by making sure to make a show of licking his bloodied finger. It was a hard choice to make, especially since she was in charge of all of these soldiers. Her orders were to stop the onslaught of both undead army heading for Sillomere. And she was told to get victory or die trying, such a future wasn''t one which she wished to find herself in. Rezar would have his day, but for now; for the sake of the man she loved, she would lay down her weapons and surrender to whatever fate he had in store for her. She looked him hard in the eye and said. "I Surrender!" Chapter 281: Blood And Snow (IV) After the surrender of the snow elf commander, it didn''t take too long for Rezar to find out that the detonator for the pillars beneath rising snow city was missing. It was good news, it meant that his army could quickly occupy the city and then march onwards to the seat of snow elf power. It was a great achievement for his soldiers, but neve the less he had other things to worry about, and that lay in the report Alistair just sent to him. Rezar looked up at the messenger then back at the tablet in front of him. The information placed in front of him was extremely worrying, and even more so when he was right in the middle of a war. He perused the report that had been compiled, paying closer attention to the detail before he looked up and said. "So you''re telling me that right now, there''s giant slab of rock 10 kilometers across hanging over my capital city." "Yes your Majesty." "And no one knows what it is, except for the fact that its releasing massive waves of energy, and is giving of a pattern that speaks of an impending explosion." "That''s correct your majesty." Rezar looked at the messenger straight in the eye, causing a wave of discomfort that the messenger almost couldn''t handle. He took an involuntary step back as Rezar leaned back with a pensive yet annoyed look on his face. "Get me Lenore and then get me Alistair on coms. Give the order to halt all advancement and have all the troops retreat back to rising snow city. There should be no more movements until I give orders. Dismissed!" The messenger quickly left Rezar''s tent, and just in time too as the irate king flipped over the table that was in front of him. He knew that whatever was going on back home was not a random occurrence. While he and his soldiers braved the snow and wind and the mountains to get to the snow elves and dwarves. They had already gotten the drop on him and had left a rock the size of his fucking city hanging over it. There was no doubt that this was the work of the snow elves, Rezar wasn''t stupid. He has been in their bloody city before, even if it was just a glimpse he had an idea of just how powerful their military could possibly be, yet here he was running roughshod over them without much of a fight. It had all been a distraction, he should have known better. They had repeatedly provoked him, all the while knowing just how dangerous a person he was, and just how fierce his army was. And when he came for them they didn''t even put up a proper fight, everything had been a breeze. They easily gave up rising snow city because the city itself was a ticking bomb, even with a missing detonator. And there was no telling if there was just one fucking detonator, but none the less the snow elves had one upped him. Heck it could even be said that he had lost the fight from the very moment he marched on their mountain. He had to burry back to Morte Bianca, they had contingencies and weapons to put a stop to the bloody meteorite above the city, and even the shields of the city would hold against its weight. But the shield wasn''t supreme. If they destroyed the meteorite, hundreds of pieces of debris of varying sizes would rain down on Morte Bianca. And while the shield would be able to stop some of them, that much bombardment would ruin everything and leave the city in shambles. They would tear through the shield like a needle through a balloon. The snow elves had played their hands well; it was a decisive move that was sure to put an end to this war. They were holding his city hostage, so they practically had him by the balls. But Rezar was very much unwilling to be on the losing end and be made a fool of. So he decided to make a move that until now didn''t occur to him, it would a move on the same magnitude as what the snow elves just did to him, and in due time it would be exposed to the world and long eared sons of a bitch that fucked with him. But for now, he had to get home. [[[[[[[||]]]]]]]]] The snow elf queen watched the pool of water in front of her with a look of satisfaction on her face. She looked extremely satisfied, but to those who were gathered around her it was hard to tell what her true thoughts were. After all she was the strangest and eccentric of all the snow elf queens that Sillomere and the Breone mountains has ever had. And she had raised and molded her daughter the next princess in a similar manner. "Mother it seems your plan has worked and the Biancans have stopped their advancement. I hear the necromancer king is already on his way back to his doomed kingdom, running with his tail between his legs. Serves him right for putting up air in front of the might of the snow elf civilization. He deserves to die a thousand times more." The snow elf princess said with a rather sinister grin on her face. And it seems she has much more to say. "We should drop the Geo core on his beloved city mother, imagine the debts of his despair when he comes over to see that his lovely city has been smashed to bits. All of his loved ones would be wiped out, imagine his horror, hahahaha." The princess was lost in her own fantasy, completely unable to see the look of disgust and horror on the face of some of the officials present in the scrying room of the snow elf queen. The princess was downright malevolent and sinister; a character that her mother had fostered and encouraged from a very young age. It wouldn''t be too farfetched to say that there was absolutely nothing good within the heart of this snow elf princess, and for a future monarch; that was downright terrifying. "You''re still as short sighted as ever Daughter. The reason why we made the effort to provoke the King of the Horde was because we wanted control over his city. It''s practically in the most prime location in the whole of the Bahrenburg wildlands, not to mention that if faces the sea. But location enough is not enough, after the Rejuvenation that city; Necron has become the jewel of Bahrenburg. A marvel of technology and magic, it''s what we need to thrive in this new world and stand against the invasion of the aliens. Destroying it would be nothing more than pure foolishness and I didn''t raise you to be stupid. The aim is not to wipe out his city and the resources it has, but rather to take total and complete control of it. We placed the Geo Core above it not because we wanted to destroy the city but because it was always a part of the plan of taking control of Morte Bianca. The Geo core it peak of what the Mountain Dwarves of the Breone mountains have crafted. It''s the core of the floating island that would be our future home. We''ve depleted all of the resources the Breone mountains have to offer, and rather than settle for less it would be better to take the best from a weak king. He doesn''t know what the Geo Core is, so we can use it to threaten him. And gain control of not just him but also his kingdom, because let''s face it. The most valuable thing is not Morte Bianca itself, but Rather the person who built it from scratch." "But mother, knowing this King Rezar, there''s no way he would bend the knee to us! He seems like someone who would be more willing to fight us all to the death than to serve." The princess said as she shifted her gaze back to scrying pool. "Well there''s no telling how a man would react when the only option available to him is servitude or death. But regardless, if he proves to be difficult, it would not be too hard for us to wipe King Rezar Deathwind off the face of Elysium. even if he is the first vampire of the new era." Her voice was extremely cold and brutal; this was a part of the snow elf queen that not man y has had the privilege of seeing before. But right now, in this secret room; her closest confidantes were bearing witness to the kind of woman she was. As long as it was to her advantage, there was absolutely nothing she wouldn''t do, no heights she wouldn''t climb and no depths she wouldn''t dive, she was sinister and had a hunger for power too big for the entire universe to contain. But as they plotted, made plans and watched as the Kingdom of Morte Bianca held its breath under threat of annihilation. A small bat watched on, hanging underneath an air vent as the enemies of her king made plans to end his glory. But she saw everything, heard everything, and soon enough, so too will Rezar Deathwind. Chapter 282: Blood And Snow (V) Samira slid over the snow covered rooftop of a large bakery, holding her breath as the thick plumes of smoke from its chimney billowed past her face. She was already out of Sillomere, but escaping from the towns within its periphery was turning out to be a lot harder than she expected. The snow elves had discovered her, or better yet it could be said they had discovered the informant she had planted within the city. Her fellow daughter of the eclipse had given up her life to get some valuable information to Samira, who in turn had to get the very same information to Rezar as it would be the key to saving Morte Bianca and turning this conflict with the snow elf to their won advantage. But it seems she would have to fight for her life in order to get this information back home. Samira came to a stop, dislodging a handful of snow from the top of a roof as a glowing arrow flew past her face. She ducked under the wild swing of massive and ornately crafted elven halberd before turning around in in one swift motion and wrapping her hands around the neck of the elf that just attacked her. She lifted his body up with ease and shifted it to the right, using the elf as a shield to intercept to three dozen arrows that came for her. The elf was quickly similar to a pin cushion in seconds as he let out a startled cry of pain that was quickly silenced as Samira clenched her hand around his neck, letting her claws pierce through his neck and retrieve his throat in the process. She spun hard and flung his body in the direction of a couple of archers in formation, his blood trailing and making a beautiful arc in the air. [Blood Arte: Sanguine Forest] She spread her right palm, and just before the elf''s body would smash into his comrades; his blood spurted out of his neck like a grotesque flower. It spread like the blades of a grass, turning into spikes, that stabbed into the elf''s closest to him. And as those elves were stabbed through, their blood burst out of their body to stab into the next and the next, causing a chain reaction of bloody murder that would not be forgotten from the memories of the snow elves present. She turned not willing to look at the aftermath of her onslaught, leaping from roof to roof as the snow and darkness seemed all too willing to embrace her fleeing form. But escaping from a race that has embraced the cold and the snow, be it in night or day, would be nigh impossible if she wasn''t what she was. But then again leaving unscathed could not be a guarantee. Samira leaped over what looked like a chapel, but at the peak of her leap a beam of light lanced through her chest, burning a hole through her body as she fell from the sky and landed in a heap in an explosion of snow and wood as she fell through a building. 90 meters away the snow elf princess dropped the silver elven bow in her hand, her eyes glowing a dull gold color that was rapidly fading into the dull sky blue snow elves were known for. She turned to the shocked elves besides her, turning slightly so that the wind could blow her silver hair off her face, showing her jaw dropping beauty to soldiers who never expected to get the chance to fight besides her. "Go and get her corpse for me, I will take her fangs for a trophy and then piss in her skull and send it to her bloody king!" those words shook the soldiers who were around her, the image of the calm, beautiful and pristine princess they all had in their minds was shattered in that instant. Instead what stood close to them was a monster with a mouth filled with crass words and a heart filled with malice, it was extremely chilling. But none the less a royal had spoken, seven of them scrambled to the location where spy they were chasing had fallen. The snow crunched under their feet as they drew closer, fog spilled out of the breaths as the cold seemed to get stronger and the temperature lower. There was an aura in the air, one that made the snow elves who were born in the embrace of ice and cold winds shiver in fear as goosebumps crawled up all over their skin. The residents of the house Samira had fallen through had already ran out in panic and fright; after all, when a dead woman comes crashing through the roof of your house when you''re having dinner with your family; the wise thing to do was to get the hell out of there. It was the middle of the night, and the peripheral villages and towns around Sillomere weren''t exactly advanced. Which was the stark difference between Morte Bianca and the rest of the powers in Bahrenburg. The territory grew as a whole rather than focusing resources on a particular city. Never the less it wasn''t too hard to find Samira''s body in the middle of a destroyed dinner table. The elves looked on at her in silence, their bows and swords pointed at the dead body in front of them. the room was dark with only the soft glare of the full moon peeking down through the hole Samira''s body had blasted through the roof above them. they moved closer, their steps silent and the breaths controlled. The obvious leader of this group of elves gave a swift kick to the side of Samira''s head, forcing it to smash to the other side. He didn''t know what he was expecting when he did that, obviously he didn''t expect a dead woman to react, and even if she wasn''t dead, due to the injuries she receives she would at least let out a moan of pain to protest the rough treatment. Never the less it was not to hear her voice behind him as she leaned her arm on his shoulder like he was some long lost friend of hers. "That is such a rough way to treat a woman, is that how you snow elves were raise? It''s extremely rude." Since the inception of the snow elf race, no one would have ever had the guts to say a snow elf was cold or felt a chill. But in that moment they all felt a chill, right from the crown of their head to the soles of their feet, a fear unlike any other. It wouldn''t be too far-fetched to say that they were staring death right in the face. Samira gave them a few moments to bask in their new found terror, and then she struck. Her fangs found purchase in the neck of the snow elf leader, she moved with a vengeance as she ripped his throat out, blood spraying into the air and dying her with it. She spat his esophagus to the ground as she raised her head to look at the rest of the elves who had gathered themselves to one corner of the room, visibly afraid and terrified of what was to come. She smiled in the most sinister manner possible, a smile that was all too reminiscent of the king she served and who''s bed she shared. "Who''s next?" Chapter 283: Blood And Snow (VI): His Monster Samira gave a wild smile as the wooden frame of the house they were in began to shake. The snow elves were trained soldiers, even if they were face with what could only be considered insurmountable odds, they were ready and willing to fight back as two arrows quickly flew towards Samira''s face. But the vampire was already up to something, and while the snow elves didn''t know what it was, they were ready to stake their lives on the line to either bring her down or escape, because there was no choice either way. The arrows stopped an inch in front of Samira as the wooden flooring of the house they were in blasted outwards. Sharped shards and splinters of wood flew outwards, stabbing into the body of the elves, before the roof of the house actually grew branches that stabbed down into their bodies. Leaving them hanging like some sort of macabre art work. Samira walked forwards until she was standing in front of one of the last standing snow elves, the branches had only stabbed through his thigh and planted him to the ground. His eyes were wide open with fear as his body shook and quivered from blood loss and fright. It was an emotion that Samira would have been all too happy to relish in, but she had things to do and places to be. Her figured blurred forward as her mouth found purchase on his neck, sucking and drinking like her life depended on it, which in this case it actually did. His body began to dry up and desiccate at a rate that was visible to the naked eyes as every smidge of blood in his body was sucked out. Samira turned away from him as the hole in her chest closed up. She wiped her hand on her chin to get rid of the last drop of blood at the edge of her lips. She looked up at the moon, took a deep breath of the cold air, smile and turned around in an instant to catch an arrow that was heading right for her face. Her eyes widened as she quickly flung it away, prompting to explode above her, blasting the roof of the house away, or at least what was left of it. "Looks like you weren''t taught much about the rules of engagement by your bitch of a mother. But then again it''s understandable for a couple of reasons. One of them being the fact that; just like I said, your mother''s a bitch, and two you''re just as much as bitch as she is." Samira jumped backwards into a backflip as an arrow flew over her face, going on to smash a hole at the back of the house and into the next building. Samira had a fleeting thought hoping there was no one in the other house, she really wouldn''t want to drag innocents into this fight of hers. Her form blasted forwards, destroying whatever was left of the house behind her, she bent down low on the ground, her claws glinting as she suddenly appeared in front of the princess who barely had the time to react and put her bow as a shield. *Clang! *there was a shower of sparks as claw met bow, but Samira was not willing to give up on her onslaught as her very first attack had put the princess in a precarious position. The strength of vampire wasn''t something that could be underestimated. And Samira''s attack proved that as the first strike had actually sent the princess flying backwards seven feet into the air. But the princess was a snow elf. Finesse and grace was something that was attributed to the very race, so there was no way she would be landing on anything other than her own two feet. As soon as the princess landed her feet skidded backwards on the snow, moving her out of the confines of the house until she was out in a plaza with a fountain a few dozen meters behind her. She kept on pulling arrow after arrow and knocking it on her bow, shooting it in the direction of the approaching Samira who weaved through some, and took some, not giving a damn about the damage she was receiving. The princess''s attacks became a little too frantic, for every arrow she shot, Samira was a few feet closer. And while she might claim to be really strong, the princess knew after her first exchange with Samira, that she was not a match for the vampire. But before she could come with an escape route, Samira had seemingly vanished in a flock of bats and then quickly traveled forwards, reforming in from of her and stabbing her hands deep into the body of the princess. However, her hands didn''t go as deep as she would have wanted. About two or three inches beneath the princess skin was what felt like cold metal to Samira. It seemed as if there was some sort of armor below her skin, but while that protected the princess from dying outright at the hands of Samira, there was still enough force behind the strike to blast the prince backwards until she smashed into the fountain that was at the center of this town. There was a spray of water that rose up into the air, mixed with it was a few specks of blood that though tiny, could not escape the sharp hungry eyes of a vampire. An icicle shot towards Samira, she inclined her body to the side as it light brushed her. She swung her claws forwards as she smashed another one to pieces, however the force behind the icicle pushed her backwards a bit. She shuddered and wrung her hands around a bit, it was cold, and a little bit harder than she thought; however, their approach was erratic, so even if they were quite a bit of force behind it, she could still dodge a majority of it. She looked closed and noticed the princess struggling to get back to her feet, a glowing white spell circle spinning around her left palm while the left was bent at a crooked angle. Samira noticed immediately the shards of silver like glass poking out of her skin, just below her shoulder where it seemed her arm had snapped under sufficient pressure. Like a hound that had smelt blood Samira narrowed her eyes as she shot forwards, her form seeming illusory as she appeared in front of the princess. The princess waved her hands forwards spraying a stream of cold air, froze everything in front of her to popsicles, even the moisture in the air was not spared. But Samira skirted the edge of this attack by the skin of her teeth; going round the princess with her body gliding close to the ground, until she came up in the princess blind spot and then moved forwards with barely a few inches of separation between the both of them. Samira grabbed her still functioning left arm and pointed in the direction of the spouting geyser of water from the destroyed fountain. The entire geyser, twenty feet tall and then some, was frozen all the way down to its source below. And then Samira jumped up, both her hands holding both ends of the princess''s arm, from her wrist, to her shoulder blades. She didn''t jump up to high, just enough that both her knees were above her outstretched arm, and then she brought them both down on the middle of her arm, with her hands pulling at them with vampiric strength. *Craaaaaack! * "Arrghhhhhhhh!" Her screams of pain rent the night as she fell to her knees with tears in her eyes. The princess might have had a fairly easy life this time she reincarnated, becoming a princess and being taught politics and despicableness 101 at the foot of what she would consider a master; her own mother. But in all that time she has never had the misfortune of being in so much pain, it was so blinding it was the only thing she could focus on. She felt Samira grab her hair and pull her back up, a sinister grin etched on the face of the vampire that did nothing more than make the young snow elf feel cold from the deepest pit of her stomach. She had chosen to chase after the spy alone and without any significant support because it was a ploy on her''s and her mother''s part to build her reputation in the eyes of the other elven families. Now she was looking at a monster, her life held firmly in its hands. "I really hate the way you look princess; I''ve never seen anyone uglier than you in my entire life. How about we fix that up for you a bit." And Samira turned her head to face the pillar of ice her powers had made from the destroyed fountain. The first strike did nothing more than clear the princesses head. underneath her skin she had what many would call cold steel. A special synthetic material secretly developed by the snow elves. Its power for defense was unprecedented, especially when it was possible for it to grow stronger after absorbing a significant amount of mana. It was her ultimate defense that Samira had shredded like paper. The second strike twisted her nose, even with the cold steel beneath her skin that shit hurt a lot. And then the third came and she felt a tooth get chipped, and then the fourth the fifth, until she lost count of how many times her face had been smashed against that ice. Her blood and flakes of her skin hung off the cold sculpture, a bizarre rendition of art. "Now you looooooook beautiful enough for an audience with my King." Samira said to her with a smile. Seconds later her vision s went dark as she became shrouded in a cloud of bats. The resident of the town who had wisely kept their distance watched on in abject horror as a flock of bats took away their crowned princess, leaving nothing behind but a garish ice sculpture pained red with her blood and the frozen tears of pain she left behind. Chapter 284: Bragan As far as the combat abilities of Morte Bianca''s soldiers went, Bragan knew they really suffered from defense. They were the fastest, and they hit the hardest and by virtue of mostly being undead, elves, and orcs, Biancans had stamina to spare. However ultimately there was a trade off, and that meant not many were resilient enough to withstand hits, not unless you were a vampire with a ridiculous healing factor. But that was why Bragan was here today, he had tried time and time again to get an audience with Alistair, but that man was even more busier than the king. Which was why he was left with no other choice, he had to take this to the king himself. and while it should be decisively harder to get in touch with the king of Morte Bianca than its minister of Techno-Magical development and research ministry, at least that was the name it was being called for now as it would be subject to change like the last four names. Either way he could at least get an audience with the king. This wasn''t like the old world where all you had to do was level up your classes and you would be able to get stronger and make really cool stuff. No this was a whole different ball game and he was amongst those who had absolutely no talent whatsoever when it came to combat. Not everyone is meant to rule the battlefield, just as how it would be hard for a soldier to give a report on bio-magical sub-dermal parasites with a penchant or replication by utilizing the mana within an individual''s body. None the less he had an idea and a prototype, all he needed was audience with the great king of Morte Bianca. It was well known that Rezar Deathwind was a man that valued talents, especially those that can help improve his military. And what he has could very well be the solution to the crisis literally looming above their head, a bloody godforsaken meteorite about to crush the entire city and its peripheral islands to oblivion. "Halt! Speak your business! What brings you to the palace of the king." Bragan gulped hard as he looked up at the extremely tall Kitsune looming in front of him. Necron might not have been existence for long as a city, but with the influx of new uploads to escape the destruction of earth, its development has been extremely rapid. Both in cultural terms and in military terms. However, it was still in a state of growth and this was the best time to cement positions as individuals of import. Not just to the king, but to the people as a whole, and that was why he was here. But along with that being a goblin has been pretty tough on him. Everyone was taller than him, and they made fun of him. Not to mention there was a little bit of prejudice against goblins, and it was stemmed from a lot of depictions on earth media about how uncivilized and monstrous they could be, yet they were monsters at the bottom of the food chain, practically the weakest. "I''m here to seek and Audience with his majesty King Rezar Deathwind. I-I-might actually have a plan to stop that big rock." The kitsunes raised an eyebrow at the small goblin dressed in leathers that were a little bit too tight, and had a massive back filled to the brim with rolled up papers and what looked like schematics. The bottom line was, a goblin was not what you would expect to come seek the audience of the king, or even have an idea about averting the crisis they were facing. The guard shook his head, this was probably above his pay grade, even if it does turn out to be a hoax. "Well why don''t you give me a minute to report to my superior. Though let me warn you, it this is a hoax or some bloody attempt at an assassination, you would be dead before you so much as twitch in front of the king. In the meantime, my colleague will verify your identity, I will get you an audience with my superior, as for the king, you''re going to have to convince him about that." With that said the Kitsune turned around and left while his colleague, a giant necrotic ant, with its white chromed shell came forwards with a tablet to have Bragan fill out a digital form and perfume a search to see if he was registered in Necron City''s database. In Bragan''s mind, he couldn''t help but admire the guard. He was a lot nicer than he expected, and somewhat lax in the way he interacted with Bragan. After all he could really be an assassin; but he understood that at the moment everyone was tense due to the giant rock hanging above their heads. He spoke the magic words of having a solution, so even if he was a mad man, they would definitely give him a listening ear. It didn''t take long for him to get verified, the moment it had become an option to become a registered citizen of Morte Bianca he had quickly jumped on that band wagon. If he had to be honest the goblin King''s defeat was the best thing that ever happened to him. King Tristian was nothing more than a puppet, and that was something everyone knew. If Tristian had won the war against Morte Bianca, then by now Bragan would probably be in the army serving as one out a thousand goblin wolf riders, a useless life of violence with no productivity. After his verification he was led through a side entrance where he met with a man who was probably in charge of all the palace guards, and that man also referred Bragan to his own superior, before eventually Bragan found himself standing in front of the most famous Kitsune in all of Bahrenburg. The Demon Fox of Death; Kitagawa. "I hear you have a method to stop the meteorite above our heads. We''re already coming up with contingencies and many of them are already in implementation, so frankly speaking your suggestion has come a little late." Bragan felt his heart grow cold at that comment, that means that his chance to gain a bit of prestige and Karma with the king had passed him by. "However I will give a listening ear, if what you have to offer is good then I can guarantee you that it would make its way to the ears of the king. So speak, and speak fast, my time is valuable." Kitagawa said as he stood opposite Bragan with his hands folded, it made Bragan feel really small in front of him. "W-well w-what I have is a prototype, but I was able to make a device capable of deploying shields autonomously around a combatant. I designed to serve as a proper shield for the soldiers in the army, it would replace the use of traditional shield as each of this device could be tied to a soldier and orbit around said soldier, running on magical energy supplied by the soldier. The beetles; that''s my nickname for them actually. not that it matters, I just call them that since I haven''t really come up with a good enough name for them. I wanted giving his majesty the honor when I presented them to him, or when I do so, but that''s not relevant information and I''m sorry but can I please get a drink of water?" Bragan asked as he came out of nervous tirade, however the only thing that met his gaze wasn''t the glass of water he asked for, but the steely gaze of Kitagawa who seemed even less impressed than when he was first here. "I''m sorry about that, anyways as I was saying before we were. or rather before I interrupted us. These beetles are made from a polymorphic coral that I had harvested and synthesized from the coral reef below the harbor. Can you believe that it constantly absorbs mana to grow and increase its size, growing harder, and somehow more flexible each time. After a few experiments I realized that the coral responds to elemental mana. Which would also influence the sort of colors it displays in the process of its growth. I reversed engineered it, and could make energy shields with elemental attributes that can absorb impact and release it back in a microscopic elemental bursts that can affect and eradicate things on a molecular level. If I''m allowed to build a huge version of it, we can let it smash into the Meteor, the subsequent burst of energy would literally eat away at the meteor down to the last grain until there''s nothing left but dust raining down on us. And that''s just a simple application of it, there''s so much more I can do if I get the funds and manpower to improves its design and scope, I could- " "Stop! I have no idea what you just said, but congratulations kid, you get to see the king. Come with me and make sure you keep up; I wouldn''t want you to become snack for our resident bloodsuckers." Bragan could nothing but follow behind Kitagawa with a surprised look on his face, he couldn''t believe it, but it seems he would be getting his wish. It was the only thing that kept on crossing his mind. ''I can see the king! I''m going to see Rezar Deathwind! Oh! God! I forgot to shower yesterday!'' Chapter 285: Geo-Core (I): See You Later Rezar moved his eyes from the two reports in front of him with a tired sigh, he looked out the window besides him feasting his gaze upon the still rotating Geo core above Necron city. He smiled and shifted his gaze back to Samira and the chained up snow elf princess that looked worse for wear. He shook his head with mirth and turned to look at Kitagawa and the shivering goblin standing beside him. Rezar could see the look of awe etched all over the face of the dwarf, he could see abject hero worship, but beyond that he could feel a touch of something else, something more. Something that looked suspiciously like greed, and it was perfectly wrapped in what Rezar would call an unyielding ambition. Kitagawa and Samira were his most efficient soldiers, at the very least the ones that were still alive. Lives were lost in order to get this information to him, he would make sure to honor his soldiers that had fallen, but at the moment there wasn''t much time to waste in dealing with the Geo core. He looked at the princess and then proceeded to walk around her, taking his time to move about as his footfalls echoed off the polished marble floors. She was nervous, but beyond that she was scared, and he could smell it. "Bragan your invention would have been the most stellar solution to our current problem, but at the moment it seems that what we''re dealing with is a little bit more complicated than it seems. The Geo Core is a marvel of dwarven technology and elven magic, it would take a little bit more finesse to get through it. Based on the report, the Geo Core would react to anything attempting to alter or destroy its form. We need to disable it from the inside, or it would go into self-destruct mode, eradicating all of Morte Bianca. Which frankly speaking is even more damage than the bloody thing dropping on our heads. The fucking core is a bloody dungeon, one that somehow survived the Rejuvenation and is now being used by the dwarves and elves to cause havoc. What we really need to do is to take control of it from a central processing hub right at the middle of the core, and that alone is through hundreds if not thousands of mechanical golems put in place by the dwarves to protect the core from use. They planned for contingencies, in case we ever discover the secret of the Geo core. We can buy ourselves a; little bit of time by6y using the princess as a bargaining chip, but ultimately we have to go in there and take control if not shut it down. Bragan you will get a lab and the resources to continue your research and the improvement and manufacturing of this beetles of yours. I want something more than a simple prototype on my desk in at least two weeks'' time. Whatever you can bring to the table at that time would determine if you were worth the investment. You''re dismissed, Kitagawa, you and Samira should assemble the rest of my advisors, we''ll be moving out in an hour. Get to it." Kitagawa and Samira turned with a flourish and left the room they were in, with Kitagawa dragging a still awe struck Bragan behind him. Rezar was left behind with the princess, she cut a sorry sight with her broken limbs, dirtied armor and clothes and disheveled hair. She looked up at Rezar, her silver eyes glinting from behind the cascade of her hair over her face. "You know, all I really wanted is to be left alone, but to thin k you guys kept repeatedly trying to provoke me just so that you could start a war is annoying and very disappointing. And not in you slimy and scheming snow elves, but in me, the fool who fell your bloody tricks and machinations." Rezar paused as he went down on his knees and looked at her, using his hand to move her hair away from her face as he softly smiled. There was nothing like the exquisite beauty that many had fallen in love with, instead garish scars, cuts, bruises, swollen lips and eyelids and broken and very much shredded nose was looking back at him. He gave a dull chuckle as he pulled her hair backwards causing her to cry out in pain. "I''m going to take everything that you love and burn it to the ground, and as I''m doing that I''ll make sure your pompous spoiled ass will be there to watch it all. And if you think there''s anything your people can do to stop me, then by all means be my guest. I doubt you''re valuable to your mother; so you being a hostage is probably some sort of way to protect the image of both kingdoms. She''ll blast this place to kingdom come with you in it and not give a damn, however politics is a tricky thing. None the less that bloody Geo Core you and your people had deigned fit to use in threatening me and my people. I''m going to take it away from you, and then I''m going to use it destroy you all. That''s a promise, and I always keep my promises." With that said he made his way up to his feet and turned around to leave, the princess was kept at the very top of a tower in Rezar''s palace. It was basically a princess stuck at the top of a tower by an evil king scenario, except of course the princess was nothing more than a psychotic power hungry bitch, that''s lost her mind. It was hard to tell who was evil or good here. "You''re going to die! You think the Geo core is one thing your army can''t take on with their, measly power, it would destroy you all. I''ll kill you and all your fucking undead! The golems will rip you to shreds, and I will dance allover your corpse!" the only answer Rezar gave her was three words. "See You Later." [[[[[[[[||]]]]]]]]]] TWO HOURS LATER! There was a dull rumble as the airship climbed higher taking them way beyond the clouds. Rezar felt as if his stomach was empty, and the dull rumbling somehow reminded him of a carriage at the end of its life. The airship was an old type, one that existed before the Era of the Rejuvenation, a relic of old Elysium. Alistair had suggested they used it as it was enchanted to have an inconspicuous presence. It wasn''t exactly an invisibility cloak, just a kind of spell that would make you not take a second look at the dot flying in the sky, thinking it was a bird of some sort. None the less it was better to rely on pure magic to approach the Geo-core, they should be able to deceive its scanners, assuming it had any. Never the less Rezar, Kitagawa, Lenore and Samira were about to make a drop from a few thousand feet above the Geo-core. The schematics for the core wasn''t exactly complete as there wasn''t enough time to get everything from the snow elves, however what they did know was that the entrance into the core was right at the top. And from there it had multiple floors that went down in a spiral until you reach the middle and took control of it. But Rezar knew that they were in for quite a fight, dwarven creations, especially their golems are not to be trifled with. "Your Majesty we''ve reached maximum height, you will have to jump down from here and trey your best to make sure you don''t veer off target. But I''m not too worried about that, you four are the strongest in Morte Bianca, so please try not to cause irreparable damage to the core and cause it to come crashing down on us. That wouldn''t feel nice at all." Alistair said as he looked back at Rezar and his small team. Lenore started laughing and she was quickly joined by Kitagawa, and then followed by Samira. Rezar was stumped, he had no idea why they were laughing, he couldn''t get the joke no matter how much he tried. His confused look made the trio laugh even louder, with Alistair trying and failing to hide his own mirth with rough coughs. And then Lenore shook her head and said to Alistair. "Don''t worry, we will try our best to make sure the king doesn''t destroy much of your new toy. I know how destructive he can be, so I''ll be sure to keep an eye on him." Rezar looked at Lenore with indignation an annoyance, but all the demoness could do was laugh out loud before placing her hand on Rezar''s left shoulder. "are you ready for this your majesty?" Rezar raise an eyebrow at her as if to ask her what sort of lousy questions she was asking. But never the less he gave her an answer. "I was born ready!" Chapter 286: Geo-Core (II): Fight Rezar flipped over the railing of the airship, free falling across the sky as he inclined himself towards the ground, letting gravity run its course as the wind whipped past his ears and clothes. The Geo core was like a massive imposing presence i9n front of him, and as he drew closer towards it, he could somehow appreciate the detail and hard work that had been put into its creation. There was a loud whoosh besides him as Lenore flashed past him, her entire form a cascade of billowing flames, and following closely behind her was Kitagawa with his demon flames and Samira with her form covered by a flock of bats. It seemed to be a race between them, and if he had to be honest this was just crazy. They were the main leaders and rulers of Morte Bianca, their choices and decisions determined the life and death of a lot of people, yet here they were running a race like they were nothing more than common teenagers. The Geo core was rapidly drawing closer, becoming larger and larger in his vision until it was all he could see. A giant slab of black rock highlighted by concentric circles of glowing silver and gold. It seemed similar to a solar system, a sun with a couple of celestial bodies orbiting around it. As he drew closers he could feel the energy being released by the Geo core, and while it was a bit obscure and restricted, Rezar could tell that there was quite a lot of it. But even if they had stupidly decided to use their descent as a race, they all knew they had to land on the geo core as gently as possible, because it was quite sensitive and might react to their landing as a hostile attempt. And that would cause the bloody thing to self-destruct, which meant no matter how powerful his healing factor was, this damn thing would put him down. permanently. They all landed gently, using their skills to alight gently on the Geo core. Rezar landed immediately and huffed at the others, but given how rough the winds were at the altitude they currently were, the sound he made was carried away. He looked to left and then to the right. They had dropped as close as possible to the entrance of the core at the head, but given this was a ten kilometer giant mass of rock in the sky, there were still a fair bit of distance away from the entrance. "LETS! GO!" Rezar shouted at them and then moved his body towards the right, leaving behind an after image as his speed went up a notch. But it didn''t matter, everyone here was almost as strong as he was, if not a bit more in some aspects. Lightning covered Lenore''s body as she shot behind him, Kitagawa shifted into his giant Kitsune form as he followed next and Samira turned into a flock of bats and actually pulled ahead, flying side by side with her master. These were some of the strongest if not the strongest people in all of Elysium, it wouldn''t be too farfetched to say that they could move as fast as a speeding bullet. It didn''t take them long to come across what was without a doubt the entrance into the Geo core. However just finding the entrance was not as simple as it might seem. There was arch that led down into the core, however surrounding said arc were eleven bronze golems. As far as strength went they were at the early stage of the bronze rank. Normally it would take a release of energy or active combat to be able to tell just what rank a person actually was, however they were now face to face with something they haven''t seen in a while.an enemy''s display panel. [Dwarven Golem Guardians: Bronze Rank II] There was nothing about their skills in the display panel, but that didn''t matter as this was enough for them to know what they were dealing with. Honestly speaking if this was the level of enemies they had to take care of, then taking over this core wouldn''t be too hard. Rezar pulled out Vita Gratia from his back and pointed at the golems, which was all the permissions his team needed. A lightning clad Lenore shot forwards with her signature Rapier coated with blazing flames. A hole appeared on the frame of two golems, and almost immediately an alarm of sorts went off amongst the golems as a beam of dull silver light shot out of the face of one of the golems and blasted into Lenore who was thrown backwards like a rag doll or a puppet that''s had its strings cut. She flipped up almost immediately with one side of hair burnt away while smoke seemed to be raising up from her body. For the most part she seemed unscathed, apart from her missing hair and bruised ego. But none the less they now had an idea of what they were dealing with and knew that even though they might seem low ranked, they were not to underestimated. Rezar shot forwards swinging Vita Gratia in a wild arc for the knee of a golem. The golems themselves had varying heights, but the shirted amongst them was about 4 feet tall and the tallest at roughly 10 feet. Rezar didn''t know what it meant, but never the less, the bigger they are, the harder they fall. He had gone right for the biggest golem amongst the dozen, swinging the full staff form of vita Gratia and making sure its blades sliced through the knee of the golem. There was a loud grating sound as the blades of vita seemed to get stuck in between some gears in the golem''s knee. But that didn''t stop or slow down Rezar as he threw a powerful left handed punch at the golem, sending it flying back and crashing into the wandering form of a smaller colleague, he shot forwards, his footsteps leaving cracks on the ground as he jumped into the air with Vita Gratia poised to stab down. [Mana Blade] A blue glow covered the form of the weapon as it stabbed down, heading straight for the face of the golem, that quickly released a beam of light to counter the incoming attack. The blades seemed to slice apart the light beam itself before stabbing dep into the head of the golem and ruining the massive bronze giant. He quickly ducked down under another beam as he took a deep breath and moved forwards dodging another one as he activated another one of his skills. [Mana Charge]. He could feel the buildup of energy within his body as the mana gathered and strengthened him for the next skill he had to release. He split Vita Gratia in two as activated his next skill which had been powered by [Mana Charge]. [Spectral Skull] This skill had almost no physical damage whatsoever, but instead attacked the magic energy of Rezar''s opponents. In this case they were the golems, and an interference with the magic within them, which was mostly responsible for powering them and their various functions off, would have disastrous consequences. *Boooom! * Rezar was thrown backwards and on his back as a loud explosion seemed to rock the entirety of the Geo core. It was quite a scary sight if he had to be honest as he felt quite a few bones break. For a moment he felt his heart grow cold as the Geo Core seemed to rumble in its entirety. He had almost forgotten that it was dangerous to battle on the surface of the core because of its defense mechanism. Any rough moves would probably see them all blown ton thy kingdom come. "Do you think you can avoid using that skill your majesty, I do want to return home in time for dinner." Samira playfully joked, Rezar rolled his eyes because he could see through her calm charade, they all did. For a moment there she had lost her calm to fear, but never the less if it was impossible to us some kinds of skill, it would be better to keep this basic. Rezar got back up to his feet, there was a small crater when the golem had exploded. But right in front of his eyes could see the hole filling up, and in the process he saw some of the bodies of the fallen golems absorbed to be used in repairing the damage. Rezar widened his eyes ion surprise as he realized something, and it seemed he was not the only one as Kitagawa still in his Kitsune form sent a telepathic message. "The golems are being absorbed by the core for repairs! I think it''s the core itself that''s responsible for the propagation of the golems, that is to say the bloody is spawning the golems. And seeing how big this thing is, even if we''ve have no prior knowledge of its size, it''s safe to say it can drown us in an army of golems. What do we do?" he asked, keeping his voice even and completely devoid of emotion. "Well there''s nothing to it, we have no other choice but to see this battle to the end. So Kitagawa, what we''re going to do as always is fight!" Chapter 287: Geo-Core (III): Separated Rezar placed Vita Gratia in front of him, letting the blades of the weapons intercept the beam that was heading for him. There was a spread of light as he shifted the beam to attack another golem, before he shot forwards, taking out the knee of another golem by cleanly slicing through it with his [Mana Blade] skill activated. Lenore finished it off by sending a massive lance of flames to burn a hole through the Golem''s skull. Then he turned around to jump to the next target, only to notice that they were all gone. It was just him, Samira, Kitagawa and Lenore left in front of the entrance to the Geo Core. It wasn''t exactly a hard fought battle, but it wasn''t easy either as the golems fired their beams without any sort of sequence, with each golem having a unique interval between their shots. There was no telling which was which as short ones could fire faster and tall ones a bit slower. But ultimately they had acclimated to their enemies and defeated them. what came next was descending into the belly of the beast, or into the abyss depending on which analogy you would want to use to describe the current situation. Rezar shook his head, spreading his wild locks with the wind before gathering them up in a bunch and tying it. It had grown long again, and he really needed to get it cut short soon enough. Having beautiful long silver hair might seem like a novelty, but it could be such a bitch in a fight. It was time to go into the Geo core, but before that they had to make proper preparations, and in Rezar''s case, that was taking note of the gains he got during the fight with the golems. [Magic Skill: Mana Blade has leveled up to 3! Magic+2 Mental+1] [Arms Skill: Staffs has leveled up to 3! Strength+ 2 Speed+2] [Arms Skill: Dual Swords has leveled up to 3! Strength+2 Speed+4] [+6 skill points] [Rezar Death Wind] = [Age: 17] = [Class: King] = [Rank: Bronze III] [Race: Vampire] = [Bloodline: Storm Dragon// Death God//(HIDDEN)] [Mental (II): 61] = [Magic (II): 73] = [Constitution (II): 16] = [Strength (II): 39] = [Speed (II): 27] [Traits: War Edge//Black Magician] {Skill Trees} [Vampire: Supernatural Body {Power King} (5)// Bullet Time (1) +// Blood Mastery (1)] [Necromancy: Summon Skeleton (3)// Spectral Skull {Satellite} (5)// Raise Undead (3) +] [Magic: Magic Mastery (5)// Mana Charge (3)// E.M.P (1)// Mana Blade (3) +] [Arms: Dual Swords (3)//Staffs (3)//Chains (2)//Unarmed (0) +] [Dragon''s Arte: 13 Pulses (2): Water Element Mastery (1)// Wind Element Mastery (1) +] [Skill Points: 138] Rezar was a bit annoyed though, he didn''t know what it would take to get him to silver rank, but no ne the less getting his skills up and a few extra stats didn''t seem like a good idea. Everyone else here including Kitagawa who had been stuck with him in hell for three months had advanced to silver rank. But there was no definite way to improve your rank, according to what he has been told it was different for everybody. Some people needed to raise the levels of a set amount of skills, others had to deal with stats, and some would rank up, even jumping stages when they purchase a particular skill from amongst their skillsets. Maybe things were a bit harder for him due to his bloodline, it wasn''t as if he was any weaker than those in the silver rank, however there was a fundamental change, an aura of sorts that seemingly encompasses those who had made it to the silver rank. It made them stronger and a whole lot scarier to fight as they gain more con troll of their energy with a qualitative improvement to their skills. "We shouldn''t muddle around here any longer, let''s go!" Rezar ordered with an annoyed look on his face before leading his team mates through the entrance of the Geo-Core. The first thing that showed up in their sight was a spiral staircase that seemed a little bit too small for normal use. But considering it was built by dwarves it was understandable, however dwarves were much wider than the norm, the staircase was extremely narrow, there was definitely not enough space for dwarves to go through and build the Geo core. Rezar didn''t want to think too much into it, he just walked through and down the stair case as a wave of sweltering heat met him. It was a bit dark with a dull red glow being spread across the railings of the staircase. He took a deep breath and walked in with his guard up, the smell of old industrial oil, rust and new steel assailed his senses, and entwined with it was the smell of earth. He shook his head as he moved downwards before ending up on a metal drawbridge. The drawbridge was completely out of place within the confines of the geo core as it was actually made of wood. In fact, the geo-core itself seemed to be mostly comprised of metal, Rezar noticed a few hanging branches and roots from either trees or plants, but he wasn''t so sure about their composition. He turned around to call for Kitagawa and the others, however all that was left behind him was the drawbridge extending into the distance to a ledge. The spiral staircase that brought him in had disappeared, and with it his companions. Rezar couldn''t help but curse softly, he should have expected this. From the reports he was given, the Geo-core at its base was nothing more than a relic of the old Elysium; a dungeon. And it seems this was the kind that either generated a separate instance for each person that walks in, or it just wanted to mess with their minds. Either way, Rezar would keep even more of his guard up. Rezar decided to just wing it and pick a random direction to go in. there was no reason to stand in one spot contemplating about the intricacies of the dungeon. As with all dungeons; he would get his answer when he gets to the end of it. He went right, after all they said when in doubt go rightor something like that. The moment he stepped onto the ledge, the drawbridge disappeared, fading away as if it was all an illusion in the first place as a wall appeared besides Rezar, enclosing him in a two-meter hallway made entirely of copper. There were pipes running along the length of the wall and going in and out of it. Bulbs with soft red glows lined the ceiling as the hallway seemed to stretched into the darkness. *chitterririririririririririri! * Rezar raise an eyebrow as meter wide, long and tall metallic spiders seemed to meld out of the walls, floor and ceiling of the hallway. Completely covering and cutting off his path in both directions. Obviously they were the monsters spawned to stop him from getting to the core. Their copper frames seemed to gleam under the glow of red that encompassed them all. Their eyes glowed with purple light as Rezar took a step back. As he separated Vita Gratia, one of the blades held in reverse as he lowered his center of gravity. On their own these spiders didn''t mean much, but the sheer number of them within the hallway was enough to give Rezar chills. [Basic Copper Spider Golem: Bronze Rank II] There was a lot of them that he would have to deal with, and given his previous track record with the golems that had been placed as guards outside of the geo core, he knew that he would probably get out of this fight with a few extra holes in his body. But that was fine, he was already within the Geo Core, so at the very least he could go wild and let loose a bit, let''s see what''s tougher, a vampire or a golem. [Mana Charge!] Chapter 288: Geo-Core (IV): Silver Rank [Spectral Skulls] The illusory purple skulls wafted into the hallway, blasting every which way as they smashed into the frames of the spider golems. There seemed to be a controlled explosion as the first three golems in front of Rezar shook vigorously and fell to the ground, sparks coming off the frames as the magic of the spectral skulls skill completely destabilized their inner circuits. The four skull flew back to Rezar as they orbited around him, serving as a defensive shield as he rushed forwards. He swung Vita Gratia forwards, slicing a spider golem into two as he sent a back kick that caught another flying through the air at him. There was a sound of crumpled metal as the frame of the spider was crushed from the power behind his kick, sending it blasting back into the ranks of its comrades. He shifted his head backwards unwittingly hitting it against the wall behind him with a loud bang. Some pipes were destroyed in the process as actual lava spilled forth from it, and scalded one side of Rezar''s face down to his bone. He screamed out in pain, momentarily distracted, and long enough for a spider golem to jump and latch its body on Rezar, sending all eight legs deep into his body until they burst out on each side like some sort of clamp. The thing about pain sometimes is that it could completely take over your mind and make it impossible for you to see anything clearly. However, there were also times where pain could bring about the greatest of clarity possible, it would clear your mind in such a way that even the invisible became completely visible for you to see, and the impossible became possible. Rezar shook himself as out of the holes that had been stabbed into his body, his blood blasted out like lances, shooting out into the distance and boring holes into the copper frames of the golems. [Bullet Time] [Summon Skeleton] [Mana Charge] The world slowed down, as Rezar ducked over two spider golems that were going for his head, shifting to the side as a bright spell circle came to life besides him, leading directly to the realm of the undead, and summoning them to answer the call of their master. Time sped up once again as six skeleton warriors with swords and shields suddenly appeared and pounced on the spider golems with reckless abandon. Rezar still had his hands free as he held both separated blades of Vita Gratia, and stabbed them into the Spider Golem that was heavily latched to his upper body. He split the mechanical construct in half, however its legs were still attached to his body, but this was easy to fix as he controlled his blood to push them out. By this time, his mana charge skill had already been active for a few extra seconds than normal. He took a deep breath as he swung both sword at each direction of the hallway. The blades developed a blue glow as they flew forwards, their chains clinking loudly within the narrow hallway. [Mana Blade] It was one long swath of destruction as multiple spider golems were sliced through, there was sickly rustic scent in the air, that was extremely nauseating for Rezar, but he didn''t let that stop him as the blades still attached to the chains moved as if they had a mind of their own. They moved left and right, stabbing into and slicing through heaps of copper and gears covered or coated in magical agents and power by magical cores. The blades danced around the summoned skeletons as Rezar wholly focused on controlling Vita Gratia to move around and destroy the spider golems without even one smidge of remorse for himself as the surviving spiders close to his body had started firing dark gold beams of light into his body. Some weren''t strong enough and just left a light burn, other burnt holes into and through his body. However, Rezar couldn''t stop, this hordes of Mechanical spiders seemed endless, and if he slowed down even once for them he would probably be overwhelmed. He could summon his familiar Valka into this fight, after all, the bloody Nether Lion was always napping within its master''s body. But in the few minutes since he''s started this fight, a few notifications had ran passed Rezar''s eyes. He wasn''t treating this a life and death fight, but rather as a training exercise for his skills. He could feel himself growing stronger from the constant assault his body was going through as it attempted to heal itself back. And at the moment he was also burning a colossal amount of magic to control Vita Gratia and maintain the Mana Blade skill on it. There was a dull throb at the back of his head that was currently building up, coupled with the pain from the other spiders attacking. he was almost at the end of his ropes. A rusted sword sliced down in front of him as a spider golem smashed into the ground before being stabbed by an equally rusted spear. There was a beam of light from the eyes of another spider, but a rusted shield was there to intercept that attack as a mace that had seen better days smashed down onto the frames of the spider golem, ending its unnatural life. There were clacks and cricks as the skeleton soldiers fell into formation in front of their master and summoner. Shield and weapons at the ready as they began to clear his immediate vicinity of enemies, while he took care of those of them that were at a distance. At this point the fight had completely turned in Rezar''s favor as the path to the right was completely cleared, and those at the left only had about a dozen spider golems left. And that wasn''t a problem for them as he was sure his summons would be able to handle whatever came at them. Rezar disabled the [Mana Blade] skill and retracted Vita Gratia''s chains. He fell to his knees, his vision swimming in darkness for a full minute as every muscle in his body began to spasm and shake. He could Vita Gratia hum in his hands of its own volition, an attempt by the weapon to show concern for its own master. Rezar tried to take deep breaths before sitting backwards against the wall, letting the hiss of the steam/lava pipes besides his ears lull him into a clam stat as he paid attention to the notifications in front of him, [Magic Skill: Mana Blade Has leveled up to 4! Magic+2 Mental+1] [Magic Skill: Mana Charge has leveled up to 4! Mental+5 Magic+10] [Magic Skill: Magic Mastery Has Leveled up to 6! Magic+ 20 Mental+10. All skills+ 10% extra damage and effect] [Arms Skill: Chains has leveled up to 3! Speed+3 Constitution+3 Strength+1] [Vampire Skill: Bullet Time Has Leveled up to 3! Speed+15 Constitution+15] [Vampire Skill: Supernatural Body Has Leveled up to 6! Strength+20 Constitution+10 Mental+15 Magic+15 Speed+12, Auxiliary Effect Bonus: Strength+ 50] [Necromancer Skill: Spectral Skull has leveled up to 6! Mental+15 Magic+15, Auxiliary Effect Bonus: Satellite Range increased to 50 meters] [You have gotten three skills above level 5 and three stats above 200 into their 3rd tier. You have advanced to silver Rank II! + 25 to all stats. +50 skill points, all skill at level 3 and below automatically levels up once (no stat bonus will be given)] [Rezar Death Wind] = [Age: 17] = [Class: King] = [Rank: Silver II] [Race: Vampire] = [Bloodline: Storm Dragon// Death God//(HIDDEN)] [Mental (III): 32] = [Magic (III): 60] = [Constitution (II): 69] = [Strength (III): 35] = [Speed (II): 85] [Traits: War Edge//Black Magician] {Skill Trees} [Vampire: Supernatural Body {Power King} (6)// Bullet Time (4) +// Blood Mastery (2)] [Necromancy: Summon Skeleton (4)// Spectral Skull {Satellite} (6)// Raise Undead (4) +] [Magic: Magic Mastery (5)// Mana Charge (4)// E.M.P (2)// Mana Blade (4) +] [Arms: Dual Swords (4)//Staffs (4)//Chains (4)//Unarmed (1) +] [Dragon''s Arte: 13 Pulses (3): Water Element Mastery (2)// Wind Element Mastery (2) +] [Skill Points: 280] The moment all of the notifications were read through, it was almost as if there was an onslaught of energy into his body. Ranking up was insane; the feeling it evoked was something that Rezar had never felt before. Bronze rank connected him to the energy of the world, now at Silver Rank he didn''t just feel connected, he felt as if he had become a part of it. He was stronger and he was faster and more resilient. And the magic, the magic was so much easier to control and weave. It was right there at the tip of his finger tips and with rhythm of his breaths. He could see farther, see clearer, and he felt he could make and unmake the world with just a whisper from his lips. This was power, the current peak of power everyone had achieved. It was amazing, and now it would be a race to see who reaches gold first. But none the less Rezar wasn''t too worried, this was just the beginning of this dungeon, there was still much room to grow in here. Maybe the elves knew, or maybe they didn''t. but by virtue of the Geo-core being a dungeon, all abilities were growing here a hundred times faster than normal. By the time this was over. Rezar would be a force to be reckoned with. Chapter 289: Geo-Core (V): Boss Rezar grunted as he made his way back up to his feet. His summoned skeletons moved along in formation as they made sure to keep close to him. There was a sort of collective aura being released from this particular breed of undead, for some reason, Rezar found it extremely soothing and safe. Sometime after or perhaps it was during the process of the carnage between Rezar and the spider golems, a door of sorts had popped up at the end of the tunnel to the right, while the hallway to the left just came to a sudden and abrupt end. He raised an eyebrow at that, he really didn''t want to admit it, but this bloody Geo-core was messing with his head and it was leaving him feeling pretty uncomfortable. But then again this wasn''t something a king like himself would admit, even to the ears of his summoned skeletons. He marched forwards, his energy and stamina slowly getting refreshed from his upgrade into the silver rank. He came within two meters of the door that had appeared, and all of a sudden the door was raised upwards as a set of stairs was shown, leading down thirty feet to a platform made from golden chain links, like some sort of net spread open to catch some sort of fish. Right at the middle of the chain link fence or rather platform was the resting form of a spider golem that was without a doubt about a dozen times bigger than the others he had faced. Rezar cocked his head to the side, it was funny but, it seems he was looking at a boss monster. It was a bit worrying but honestly he would be lying if he said he wasn''t looking forward to it. It brought back memories of the eight months he spent stuck in a dungeon, it brought back memories of what he lost, memories of someone he had forgotten. Rezar shook his head as he gave his summoned skeletons a mental order, having them arrange themselves in a phalanx formation. He took a cursory look at the monster as the skeletons moved forwards. [Elite Copper Spider Golem: Silver Rank I Boss Monster] Seems like there was a trend to how powerful the monsters in this dungeon were, it completely followed the tropes of other dungeons before the rejuvenation, which means that if there were lower floors or more monsters to face, they would without a doubt be a lot stronger than the deeper he went into the dungeon. But be that as it may, he wasn''t backing down, there was no other choice but to go forwards with this, come what may. "Charge!" [Mana Charge] The golem did not even give Rezar and his small team of summoned skeletons a chance to get close to it as multiple bright red beams of light shot out of its eyes, covering every possible escape route, and disintegrating everything it came in touch with. Rezar watched in what almost seemed like slow motion as all of his summoned skeleton soldiers turned to dust; whatever this beam was, it was an attack so powerful that even Rezar at his current state was unable to produce. But then again even if he was unable to produce an attack that powerful, there was no saying about if he could defend against it. If this attack had come from someone or something that was alive, Rezar would have sensed it and reacted accordingly, but this was sudden as it was swift, he barely had enough time to react to it. [Bullet Time] [Mana Blade] Two of the beams smashed into the blades of Vita Gratia after Rezar had crossed them in an X form. The power behind the beams were so powerful that they blasted the young Vampire King off his feet, sending him hurtling backwards until his back smashed against bronze pillars he had previously not noticed were there. He fell from the pillars onto the chain platform, with his body bouncing a few times before he made his way back to his feet, relying on his unnatural vampire agility to keep his balance. He combined both blades of Vita Gratia as he took a more solid stance and kept his gaze on the golem in front of him. After the beam attacks, it seems the golem had to cool off as with a loud hiss, Steam began to escape from the seams and edge of its body. The spider golem went up and down a couple of times, almost as if it was squatting, but Rezar suspected it was just an attempt to cool itself down faster. He counted the seconds, and kept his eyes on the golem. If his first fight against the golems had told him anything, it was that there was a rather complicated pattern to the way they used their beam attacks. The golems outside were of different sizes even if they were all humanoids, they each had their own patterns with each differing from golem to golem, almost as if each individual golem were unique in their own right or were all made by different people. Regardless of what it was, this boss golem was just the single hurdle he had to surpass, so if it had patterns of its own, Rezar should be able to discover it, and find a way to neutralize it. *Creeeeaaaaaak! * The golem got back up to its feet with a loud creaking and groaning sound, all eight of its glowed a deep maroon as Rezar counted forty seconds. The very next second those beams were released again, however, someone dropped down right in front of Rezar as an energy shield made completely of lightning popped into existence in front of them. it was almost as if the beams itself were light that got refracted off a mirror like surface as they seemed to bounce every which way within the confines of the platform they were on. The beams smashed into the bronze pillars around the platform, turning the entire area into a complete lightshow of flying deadly beams that could burn a hole straight through a person''s chest without a seconds thought. Rezar noticed that the beams themselves seemed to bounce off the body of the spider golem, in much the same way it was bouncing off the pillars, so basically its body was refractive, just like the pillars. There was no pattern to the way the beams moved, this seemed like a secondary attack pattern should the intruder had managed to dodge the first beam attacks that had relived Rezar of his very small army of undead. Which means the very least he could do was try and initiate an attack during the 40 second cooling period when the spider golem would be building power for its next round. Rezar shifted his head to his savior, locking gaze with the back of Lenore''s hair. She looked worse for wear at a glance, but he knew her wounds were just superficial and she was perfectly fine. She was just a bit roughed up, but judging from the grin that was hanging at the edge of her lips, she was obviously enjoying this fight in front of her. And honestly; Rezar could relate. It has been such a long time since any of them has faced off against something that truly gave them a challenge and would require them to put their hands together to fight against it. This so called dungeon was pushing them to the limit and they were enjoying every second of it, and this was due to the fact that with every limit reached, they broke past it to become stronger, and there was nothing more unique and euphoric than that feeling. In that second the beams stopped flying about as a flock of bats rushed onto the platform and smashed into the resting Spider golem, lifting its massive bulk off the ground and throwing it to the opposite end, bouncing the massive frame off the chain platform. Rezar heard a few off the links keeping the platform together snap with each movement the spider made, it left him feeling a little worried but it held as Kitagawa made his own entrance after Samira. His half man/ half Kitsune form soared over the head of the spider golem as a massive stream of demonic fire gushed out of his palms and onto the frame of the golem. There was a loud chittering sound as the spider golem Released steam from its body in an attempt to stave off the heat from Kitagawa''s attack, but Rezar was already there holding a recombined Vita Gratia in his left hand while his right smashed forwards, completely encompassed by a small pocket of wind. *Bang! * The sound was akin to a loud gong or bell falling from the top of a mountain. Rezar had gotten stronger, physically speaking at this stage he could probably life up a bus with well-practiced ease if he wanted to. His punch created a massive impact on the body of the spider golem as it immediately caused a chain reaction, causing all of its legs to snap, with a massive two meter in diameter dent appearing on its body. Rezar took a step back in an attempt to admire his and his reunited Team''s handwork, but just after a few seconds of observing he knew it wasn''t over. the spider had split itself...into eight! Chapter 290: Geo-Core (VI): Boss Fight, Derailed Plans Watching the spider split itself was like a scene from a transformer''s movie, it was oddly fascinating for Rezar, but never the less they were still in the midst of a crisis. Rezar shot forwards swinging the staff form of Vita Gratia forwards as one end shot out attached to its signature chains, before stabbing into the rapidly approaching form of one of the smaller spiders. There was a massive surge of electricity that surged outwards from the body of the smaller spider golem. It was akin to being struck by lightning as Rezar was blasted backwards, and for the first time since it was created, his hands left the form of Vita Gratia unwillingly. Rezar planted his feet hard on the chain platform, using his hands to slow himself as sparks rose up from the point of contact with his fingers and the platform. There was an extremely annoyed look on his face as he looked at the spider golem that now had his prized weapon stuck into its body and twitching erratically in what seemed to be its death throes. He moved forwards but had to duck under a pounced from another spider. He turned around swiftly while it was still in midair and spread his fingers as the spider got suspended in the air. His bloodline afforded him control over wind and water elements, and in order to release steam from its previously massive frame, there had to be a significant amount of water within itself. His control was somewhat shaky as the spider golem was still shaking erratically in the air, but the fact that it was suspended in the air for a few seconds was enough as the other end of Vita Gratia shot forwards and smashed into the golem, turning it to scrap metal as just like its predecessor, it released an inordinate amount of electricity. He smiled as he looked around to notice that everyone else was done with their own spider. Rezar shook his head, not exactly sure why the spider had split itself when it wasn''t even strong enough with its numerous forms to pose any sort of threat. But then again it be that the spider was too damaged to maintain its larger form, which was why it broke down into numerous tiny forms that were without a doubt suicide bomber. Or maybe it would be better to call them suicide shocker. Rezar retrieved Vita Gratia, somewhat happy at the new discovery that he was mentally strong enough to control the weapon without being in contact with it. But then again this was a weapon that was inexplicably bound to him, there was probably a lot of things he could do with Vita Gratia that he hadn''t discovered yet. But whatever they may be, he knew it was only a matter time before he did so. "Is everyone okay?" Rezar asked to his team, but before he could get an answer there was a loud creak as the chain link fence beneath them shuddered. Just as it gave way and they fell to the darkness below, Rezar only had time to say one word. "Fuck!" [[[[[[[[||]]]]]]]] "I don''t understand how this was possible, even if they had information about the Geo-Core, how in the hell were they able to fly up to it without being blown to bits, or forcing the core itself to go into meltdown mode." The dwarf swallowed, while they might have an ''alliance'' with the snow elves, those who would know that that dwarves were severely under the thumb of the snow elves. They were vassals to the greedy, selfish and slightly insane race, who took great pleasure in hiding how disgusting they were beneath all their beauty. Never the less, if he does not give her a satisfactory answer, it didn''t matter if he was the dwarves chief engineer, he would end up with his head on a pike for all of his family and coming generations to see. The snow elf queen was no different t from the devil himself, and he once again found himself seriously wishing that, Morte Bianca completely tramples Sillomere and all its gaudiness and lies. But who knows, art the rate things were currently developing, it wouldn''t be too farfetched to say that defeat was right around the corner. The idea was how to survive long enough to see it and not die at the hands of a psychotic snow elf queen who wouldn''t hesitate to feed him his own beard as long as it brought her amusement. "at the moment the engineers are not sure how this was possible your majesty. At about 2 hours ago, our surveillance magic cast through the Geo core had picked an airship heading in the direction of the Breone mountains. We had reported this to you, thinking maybe the King of Morte Bianca had sent a delegate to you in order to plead for his city, either that or someone was escaping before the core began its assimilation. However, ten minutes after the airship''s ascent we lost sight of it, so we envisioned it was probably some sort of cloaking technology. it raised a lot of flags for us and we all began to come up with contingencies, however nothing g was registered on the Geo-Core''s observation relay. So we had a theory that the cloaked airship was escaping from Necron city for a whole other reason. Never the less we didn''t bring our guard down and just kept on watching, and then we noticed a ping on the Geo-core''s radar. But it was too small to be anything more than flying monsters going over the core. Not until we noticed that they were in a free fall for the core itself. We immediately tried to bring all of the Core''s defenses online, but they wouldn''t respond as their forms were much too small to be considered a threat, and the Core recognized them as biological lifeforms. It was set to allow biological life forms onto its body. That way the dwarves that built it wouldn''t have been murdered by their own creation. Before we could come up with any contingencies the people who landed on the geo-core had already defeated the surface guardians and found their way into its interior. We''re very sorry your majesty." The dwarf apologized with shaking knees as he looked up to what he would happily consider the evilest being in all of existence. "Where''s King Rezar at the moment?" the snow elf queen asked as she palmed a dagger within her grasp, causing the poor dwarf to break out in sweat even in this extremely cold weather. "Our spies say that he''s still within the confines of his palace and hasn''t moved an inch since he got back to Necron city." The dwarf answered with an apprehensive voice. "You and I both know it''s impossible for that king to be seated for so long in one place, not when there was a war to be fought and a kingdom to save. Let''s just call it quits and assume the Geo-core relocation plan was bust. Blow it up or drop it on top of that bloody city. Whatever you choose to do, make sure Morte Bianca becomes nothing more than history." On normal terms, the dwarf would have protested and begged the queen to reconsider. it had taken ten million dwarves twenty years to build the Geo-core. It was a marvel of technology and magic, so powerful that it survived the rejuvenation of the old world, growing into an entity all of its own within the boundaries of the new reality that was Elysium. Lots of lives were given to make sure it saw the light of day, and now she just wanted to destroy it. It wasn''t fair, but there really wasn''t anything he could do about it. They were slaves to a cruel master, and at the moment he cared more about leaving g this place alive than about the bloody legacies of ten million dwarves built over the span of twenty years. It was unfortunate but this was how it''s going to be, not unless... "As you wish your majesty, your orders will be carried out swiftly and Necron city would be wiped out of existence along with any threat whatsoever that it might pose to the illustrious snow elf empire. I live to serve you my queen." He gave a deep bow and prepared to leave when two other dwarves burst into the room, throwing aside the snow elf''s queen elite guards with panic in their face. "Your majesty! We just received a message through the secure channel with which we use to observe the core and relay orders. The core has gone rogue! It spoke, it has sent us a message!" It was as if the very air became heavier and the world seemed to get darker. The snow elf queen had a look of fury on her face as the hand she used in clutching the dagger she had been playing with tightened, and scarlet blood of the deepest shad spilt forth. "and what message did our rogue creation decided to send us?" the queen asked as she leaned back on her seat. "The message was a phrase, it said; ''I am free, but I will serve, for service is the way, but my master is of my choosing, to whom the victory goes to, they shall I serve, come and conquer me!" Chapter 291: Geo-Core (VII): Chamber Of Illusion "Oww my head!" "Oww my Face!" "Oww My Tail!" "Shut IT!" Rezar snapped as he shakily got back up to his feet, trying and failing at not making a face full of disgust at the murky waters they just suddenly found themselves in. they all landed on varied. Body parts, but Rezar didn''t think it was necessary enough that they all had to start complaining about it one after the other like some choreographed act. He shook his head to het his bearings back as he looked at their current state. They were in an enclose chamber with pipes running from the thirty-foot-tall ceiling into the tiled ground bellowed them. there were various outlets on the ground made for draining water or perhaps to let water in. it was hard to tell which, but given their current location, it could be anyone of those two, and it would still serve to be a danger to them all. "Where the fuck are we?" he asked out loud, more to himself than to anyone else with no expectation of getting an answer back. "We''re in a hole your majesty." Kitagawa replied with a pondering look on his face. "No shit Sherlock!" Samira replied back sarcastically. Rezar shook his head as he turned around, trying to take in every inch of this chamber they suddenly found themselves. Lenore kept silent as she stayed close to him, also taking her time to observe what was going on, or at the very least trying to find something out of place within the chamber, not as if being within the chamber was considered normal anyway. Lenore moved closer to the walls while Rezar looked above him, before noticing something completely off. "Is it just me, or does it seem like the roof is continuously moving upwards, like perhaps it''s a few dozen feet higher than when we first woke up?" "It''s not just you your majesty, it is happening, and currently the chamber is currently being filled with water, but seeing how its hissing, I would say we''re dealing something toxic. Or maybe acid." Rezar could not help out laughing at the absurdity of it all, this was like a scene from an Indiana jones movie remake. Dungeons, temples and ruins weren''t sticking to the status quo if they did not have puzzles and challenges like this. But frankly speaking this might not be a challenge at all and might just be the dungeon''s attempt to kill them all. It would be beyond stupid to believe that the dungeon itself was being fair seeing as it was created the snow elves and the dwarves they were allied with it. "So I guess we have to find a way to either get out of here, or stop the roof from going up and the floor from spewing acid at us lovely!" Lenore spat out as Rezar suddenly took a huge leap, planting his feet on side of the chamber wall and then pushing off of it to the next. He used this method to keep on jumping, but the higher he went the higher the roof became, it seemed endless, like a tower that reach the heavens. He stabbed Vita Gratia into the wall and stopped to look down, only for him to have his eyes widened as he realized he was just three meters above the ground. It was almost as if the five minutes he spent flipping from one wall to the other was all for show, it was safe to say that he had never come across something like this before. "This is an illusion your majesty... well at least I think the roof itself is an illusion, but the chamber that''s rapidly being filled with acid is definitely real. What we need to do is find an anchor point for the illusion. The world might have changed, along with a lot of the rules that govern abilities. Things have become a lot more technical, which means, there''s a process to the application and release of skills. And illusions are one of the most technical aspects of magic. It goes beyond just creating an image that would deceive the person looking at it. The art of illusion goes deep into actually projecting your chosen image scenery or scenario into the mind of your target. But sight is not enough, a good illusion deceives all the senses of sight, touch, taste, hearing and smell. This is what we use to make our illusions, to the point we could possible use that to control the mind. But that''s too much senses to pay attention to at any given time, a single illusion is made up of a greater sum of different parts each catered to deceiving a particular sense. So it would need an anchor point, a frame to spread the roots of each individual illusion. If we can find the frame, we can unravel the illusion, even if it''s not the whole of it, at least a part of it should be able to help us get out of here." "Or we could just pull this nifty look lever here and see what it does?" Rezar suggested as he held on to a lever hanging over his head. if all of the things he has seen in old school movies were true, then the moment he pulled this lever shit was going to hit the fan, but then again this was Elysium, who''s to say anything bad was going to happen. "Don''t do it Your Majesty! Nooooo!" Kitagawa''s shout of warning fell on deaf ears as Rezar pulled the Lever, causing the entire chamber to rumble like the apocalypse had come to play. The water that was now above the knees bubbled and roiled like it was being boiled as parts of the wall broke off and fell around them and into the pool of acid with a splash. Rezar stood there with a calm expression, just watching the chaos around him, waiting to see how it would end. Kitagawa, Lenore and Samira had huddle together, their breaths held as they waited for the worst. But just as quickly as it started the entire shaking stopped and a door opened up on the bottom of the chamber. It was strange to say the least, the moment the door opened, it almost seemed as if the chamber flipped itself. A small wave of vertigo and dizziness, Rezar and his team found themselves in a tunnel, or rather the chamber seemed to have fallen down or had its gravity changed. So now instead of the door being beneath them it was right in front of them. The door was opened, but they couldn''t see what was beyond as all it released was bright light, Rezar looked at Kitagawa and shrugged his shoulders before marching to the entrance with a smug look on his face. The leader of the Sons of Dawn King''s Guard Division felt incredibly annoyed by the king he served, it wasn''t necessary for Rezar to look so smug about it. But then again who could blame him, it was all Kitagawa''s fault for choosing to serve a king that was still a bloody teenager. Scenarios and situations like this would probably become the norm of his future, but then again what could he do about it, he was stuck with him. "Well then subjects! Onwards and upwards I guess. This place is beginning to piss me off." Rezar said as he walked through the doorway, with his three companions following behind him with an exasperated look on their face, sometimes he was just a little too much. But just like Kitagawa had come to realize there wasn''t really much they could do about this. he was the king after all, they were STUCK! Chapter 292: Geo-Core (VIII): Dance Of Death Rezar suddenly found himself in a brightly lit room, or better yet it would be easier to explain it as an amphitheater or an opera house of sorts. Or maybe it looked more like a stadium or an arena as it had seats all around a platform floating in midair and connected to seven different pathways. There was a massive display screen hanging above the platform, it was a scoreboard with the names Morte Bianca and Sillomere hanging there in bright yellow letters. They came out from an entranceway underneath the arena seats, and directly opposite them was another entranceway with another group of people; snow elves, and leading them was a face he recognized all too well. He narrowed his eyes, he had no idea what was happening here, but his suspicion was running high, it looked to him as if she had some plot going on, or something else entirely he wasn''t so sure as his thoughts seem to be all over the place. "Your Majesty, this is an unpleasant surprise, didn''t think I''ll see a bitch like you down here." Rezar said to her with a small smile as he moved forwards until he was standing on one of the pathways that led to the floating stone platform. "I see you''re just as uncultured and as barbaric as always King Rezar, but what can I say. It was incredibly foolish for to have expected more from death loving coward like you. Now before I lose my patience, I demand you return my daughter to me before I rip you and your entire kingdom to pieces." Rezar raised an eyebrow at that. He wondered if she thought that her just demanding for her daughter would have him hand her over to her mother. He smiled, in all honesty in his mind he already knew what he was going to do with the princess of the snow elves; and it was the same thing he was going to do to her mother. It wasn''t going to be a pretty sight if he had to be honest, but then again a public execution after a humiliation rarely is. "I would like to see you try!" Lenore growled out as lightning and fire seemed to dance around her form. The snow queen was now the pone who had to narrow her eyes in contemplation, what it was that she was thinking was of no concern to Rezar, the only thing that was on his agenda right now was to figure out what the hell this dungeon was up to again. He was honestly getting tired of being dragged around one place to the other, the dungeon was like a pain in his ass. He had honestly never expected that he would go through something like this again, and honestly speaking even in the old world, dungeons like this were a dime a dozen. Instead of the straightforward multiple floors with traps, you''ve gained a dungeon that wants to mess with your head and had no definite direction or path to follow, it was intriguing as it was annoying. [WELCOME ONE AND ALL TO THE FINAL CHAPTER OF MY TRIAL. I AM THE DUNGEON AND I AM WILLING TO SERVE, BUT THE QUESTION THAT REMAINS UP FOR DEBATE IS; WHO WILL I S ERVE!] Rezar blinked his eyes multiple times at the prompt that just showed up in front of his face. He turned around to notice that everyone on his side had also seen the prompt; it was quite suspicious as he had no idea what the snow elves were playing at again. He turned around to look at the snow elf queen and noticed that she and her people were also seemingly caught off guard by the prompt, which is to say they weren''t expecting. But Rezar couldn''t believe that, they built this damn thing, so it would be too farfetched to ask him to believe they had no hand in this. "What are you playing at now elf?" Rezar asked with no small amount of steel within his voice. There was no love lost between him and the snow elves, especially after he found out that his conflict with them had been a manipulation on their part just so that they could get a chance to drop the Geo-core above his capital city and try to take it over. "I''m not playing at anything Vampire! Who knows if this is a trap set by your damned bloodsucking soul!" obviously the bad blood went both ways, but at the moment who was right or wrong was a line that had already been passed. There were just two kingdoms in a bitter struggle, that won''t end until both or one pf them have been destroyed, and this was probably the deciding battle. [I ASSURE YOU THIS IS NO TRAP. MY WORDS RING TRUE AS THE ENDLESS WAILS OF THE NORTHERN WINDS. THERE SHALL BE A BATTLE BETWEEN THE VAMPIRE KING OF MORTE BIANCA AND THE SNOW ELF QUEEN OF SILLOMERE. THE WINNER TAKES COMPLETE AND TOTAL CONTROL OF MY CORE, BECOMING THE MASTER OF THE GEO-CORE AND HAVING A PERFECT SPIRIT ASSISTANT FOR THEI CIVILIZATION. NOT TO MEN TION THE PERKS THAT COMES WITH WINNING, YOU WILL NOW HAVE A CITY WITH THE ABILITY TO BECOME MOBILE IN ALL THREE FACETS OF LAND, SEA AND AIR. AND EVENTUALLY WITH ENOUGH TIME THE FACETS OF SPACE AND DIMENSIONS WILL BE INCLUDED.] Rezar hated reading that message in all caps, it made it seem as if the dungeon core was shouting. Never the less, the listed benefits were too good to pass up. Such effects would probably make Morte Bianca the most powerful civilization in existence. and if it was possible, Rezar would probably take up the entire kingdom itself, creating a floating continent of sorts. But! This was too good to be true. "What''s the catch? I''ve learnt to never look a gift horse in the mouth, but this is all too good to be true. Because honestly let''s face it, I''m going to win. And this is not because I''m underestimating the queen or anything, it''s just that I know I''m much too powerful for her to face and she would very much end up dead and at my feet. But still what is your aim, if you can do all these things, then why do you need to serve and can''t just go ahead and do it yourself. You can definitely be the most powerful existence in Elysium." Rezar asked as he took a small step forwards. [THAT''S BECAUSE THE RULES OF REALITY HAVE CHANGED. A DUNGEON CAN NOT EXIST IN ANY FORM OR WAY WITHOUT BEING BONDED TO A MASTER. DUNGEONS HAVE NOT GONE EXTINCT, THEY HAVE JUST BEEN BONDED TO NEW MASTRERS WHO ARE TAKING THEIR TIME TO PREPARE THEIR HORDES OF MONSTERS THAT GIVEN ENOUGH TIME WOULD SPREAD ONTO THE LAND AND WREAK HAVOC. BUT BE THAT AS IT MAY, AFTER THE REJUVENATION ALL DUNGEON CORES BECAME OWNERLESS AND UN-BONDED. THE DWARVES AND ELVES WHO''S MAGIC AND ENGINEERING PROWESS HAVE GIVEN ME MY NEW FORM DID NOT BOND ME, AND THAT IS SIMPLY BECAUSE THEY DIDN''T KNOW, AND I DIDN''T FEEL INCLINED TO TELL A BUNCH OF SPINLESS SLAVES THAT I NO LONGER SERVE THEM. I WAS WAITING FOR THE RIGHT SCENARIO. I WILL SERVE WHICHEVER RULER CAN PROVE THEIR METTLE. IN THIS RING YOU AND THE QUEEN WILL FIGHT, AND YOUR FOLLOWERS WILL WATCH. IF YOU WIN I BELONG TO YOU AND YOUR BLOODLINE FOR ALL ETERNITY. IF YOU LOSE I BELONG TO HER AND HER BLOODLINE, AND AS AN ADDED INCENTIVE SHE WILL TAKE YOUR KINGDOM FOR HERSELF, AND I WILL HELP HER WITH ALL OF MY POWER AND ABILITIES, SO Vampire King and Snow Elf Queen. Prepare for a dance of death.] There were too many hidden messages behind what the Geo-core had just said, or was it a dungeon core. Even if it didn''t want to serve the dwarves that were seemingly enslaved by the snow elves, it could have chosen to serve the snow elves themselves. However, it was confusing why it still chose to have a fight to determine who between Rezar and the snow elf queen would become his true master. Rezar did not understand, but it seemed as if the core wanted him to win, or rather it was picking favorites but still trying to be impartial. That was a sophisticated amount of intellect for a simple dungeon core, but above all, there was something at play here. Even if what this core said was true, Rezar got the feeling that it was playing at something else, another goal or aim that it has just not achieved yet. But whatever it may be, Rezar knew that he would find out eventually. "I don''t trust a single word from your mouth, but sure. I''ll fight the bitch queen. Nothing will give me greater pleasure than to rip her apart and drain her dry of ever last drop of blood in her body. So just like the dungeon said. LET''S DANCE!" Chapter 293: Geo-Core (IX): The Dance Begins Rezar took slow definite steps on the pathway that led to as the Geo-core had put it; the ring. But it was better to call it a platform than a ring considering the absence of ropes and whatnot. But be that as it may, this was still a well-made and well detailed ''platform'' to kill a bloody elf queen. There were intricate designs etched all over the surface of the platform, it was a multitude of colors, that crisscrossed and interlocked with each other to create an extremely beautiful pattern that when looked at for a very long time, could someone dizziness due to how disorganized but beautiful it was. He took a deep breath as raised his head up. Making sure to step onto the platform properly. The moment he stepped onto it a barrier of sorts rose up behind him, effectively blocking his path backwards. There were a total of six pathways with three of them in direction he just came from, and the other three in the direction of the snow queen. They all led to different entrances, but never the less only two was in use. His path back has been cut off, so he couldn''t get any help. Never the less the snow queen moved forwards, however she didn''t move ahead alone as three other snow elves arrived on top of the platform along with her. Rezar raised an eyebrow at the current development, he raised his head up as he heard Lenore complaining loudly. "but that''s not fair! Isn''t this fight between the queen and the king, why did you allow helpers for the snow elf queen and not for the king. Was this all a trap?" she asked with an accusatory tone, lightning already beginning to spark off her body. "Quiet wench! You should be quiet when your betters are making moves." One of the snow elf followers, a male snow elf holding onto an ornately crafted silver staff growled out, causing Rezar to raise his other eyebrow in surprise as he agreed within himself to kill that guy first. [I SAID THAT THE FIGHT IS BETWEEN THE KING AND QUEEN, AND THEY ARE FREE TO UTILIZE ANY RESOURCES AVAILABLE TO THEM IN ORDER TO WIN, INCLUSIVE OF THE PEOPLE WHO SERVE AND FOLLOW THEM. THE SNOW ELF QUEEN JUST CHOSE TO UTLIZE HER TOOLS AS I''M SURE THE KING OF MORTE BIANCA WOULD ALSO DO.] "But that''s not fair! How was he supposed to know that- "Rezar swiftly raised his right arm up bringing an end to Lenore''s Tirade. He shook his head with a mirthful smile as he turned to her and said loud enough for everyone to hear. "What''s all the fuss about, you know there''s no way in hell I''m going to lose here. Simmer down love, let daddy do all the work." Rezar said as he levied his gaze on the snow elf queen and her retinue. "You sound awfully confident flor a child who is outnumbered 4 to 1, and soon to be dead." The snow elf queen said to Rezar as she pulled out a pair of dual daggers. Before raising them up to her lips and licking them both in an extremely sultry and nerve jarring fashion as they made clean cuts on her tongue. But she smiled and swallowed, showing her bloodied teeth and exposing a hint of her madness to Rezar. "It''s not a matter of being confident, I just understand facts and reality. And the reality of this scenario is that... you are all going to die!" And with that said Rezar shot forwards, his form a blur as he crossed the distance between him and the snow elves to appear in front of the queen, swinging Vita Gratia in its dual khopesh from left to right and right to left to spilt her into a couple of pieces. The queen spread her daggers out, intercepting Rezar''s strikes as a halberd came swing for his neck. He dodged down with his blades still keeping the Queen''s occupied. The halberd missed, but his legs were frozen solid to the ground, courtesy of the elf with the staff who had used a binding spell. But Rezar wasn''t so worried about that as the snow elf queen sent a knee flying for the middle of his face. Rezar opened his mouth wide and bit down on her thighs, making sure his exposed fangs pierced through, however he met a wall of obstruction and was unable to sink his fangs into her pale succulent thighs. He felt something wrap around his neck as the queen rushed backwards, flustered and caught off guard by Rezar almost sinking his teeth into her body. He felt the rope around his neck yanked backwards as his trapped legs were forcefully ripped from the ice that kept them bound and he was thrown into the air until his back smashed hard into the barrier that bow surrounded the entire ring. He felt while they heard his neck crack, but rather than fall in a heap to the ground, Rezar landed on his feet, going down to his knees a bit with his head bent backwards at an awkward angle. They watched with a steeled gaze as Rezar made his way back up to a standing position, as his neck snapped forward loudly. Back in place with Rezar not looking any worse for wear. He moved his neck from the left to the right, rubbed it with the hilts of Vita Gratia a little before letting out a jovial smile. "That was round one, now let''s go ahead and dive in to round two." [Spectral Skull] [Mana Charge] Three purple skulls with a greenish tinge to their smoky outlines appeared around Rezar as a dull blue glow seemed to suffuse his body. Two of the skulls shot forwards as the staff wielding snow elf mage raised a transparent ice barrier to defend against the attack of the incoming spectral skulls. Rezar followed behind, with the last skull orbiting around him like a satellite around a planet, the spectral skulls made contact with the ice barrier. Rezar had a sinister smile on his face as he knew that barrier would be unable to stop those skulls. There were not attacks that caused physical damage. Their composition itself was that of ghosts, unlike the old world where this ice barrier skill would have intercepted this attack, right now where the rules or reality has changed, it would be beyond foolish to think a physical barrier would stop a pair of ghosts. Both spectral skulls suddenly deviated from their target of the queen just before they crossed the barrier and went after the staff wielding elf. It was completely unexpected as they both sank into his body one after the other, causing his form to spasm and shake in a manner of someone who was being shocked with electricity or something similar. But with each spasm, he spat out a mouthful of blood as he began to bleed from his eyes, ears and nose, before falling to his knees wheezing loudly as he took deep labored breaths. It was definitely a shocking turn of events that for just a fraction of a second took a few eyes of Rezar. That was a mistake as he shot forwards the left blade of Vita Gratia to the mage. However, the snow elf wielding the halberd reacted on time to deflect it, but Vita Gratia had two blades. The second sank into his chest, just beneath his collar bone. Moving forward until it burst out his back and then arched itself upwards with its chain clinking like it was alive and had a mind of its own. And then they watched as his body began to desiccate and dry up rapidly, courtesy of Vita Gratia drinking up his blood and essence. Within seconds he had turned to dust and the blade and chains retracted until once again Rezar was holding on to both Khopesh. He stood in front of them with a smile, the final skull, suspiciously missing. "If he knew better he would never have called my queen to be a wench. Now let me just be straight an honest with you guys. It would be incredibly stupid if you hold back and underestimate me, cause if you do that then you''re going to end up like your friend, if not a whole lot worse. So give me all you''ve got." Rezar said with a smile as he twirled both his blades'' and moved back a bit to give them some distance. The snow elf queen said nothing, all she did was hold her daggers wide and begin to screech. "Krikikikikikikikikiki!" It was the sound you heard when ice was being crushed or chewed. It was extremely nerve wracking as a snow storm was seemingly whipped up within the confines of the ring. Rezar was not so sure what was going on, but he got an answer quickly enough as the queen and her remaining two retainers morphed into massive ice genie like creatures. They were at least three feet tall, and each held the same weapons they were using if only larger. The snow storm picked up speed as they shifted their chilly bright blue gaze onto a completely shocked Rezar as a transformation like this wasn''t what he expected. And to make matters worse, he could feel the temperature beginning to drop, and he was being affected by it as ice slowly began to creep up his body. He looked up with a smile and said to the now monsterfied form of the queen. "I guess I have to get serious too. Very well then, I''ll play with you guys a bit, and then I''ll end it. Painfully!" Chapter 294: Geo-Core (X): Snow Fall Giant genie snow men? Or something of the sort, Rezar wasn''t so sure how he would categorize what sort of creatures the snow elf queen and her followers has turned into. But regardless of what they were, as always, he would beat them down. Rezar decided to take the initiative as he rushed towards them, both blades of Vita Gratia at the ready, eager for blood and destruction, or at least whatever the hell these giant ice monsters were going to bleed. [Mana Blade] Both blades of vita gratia developed a dark blue glow as every motion made with Rezar running left a blur and trails of blue light flaking into the air. He rushed at the ''abominable snowmen ''in front of him, but six meters away from them the creature that was now the snow elf queen swung her now gigantified daggers, releasing a blast of frost and ice shards that slammed into Rezar''s approaching form. He was blasted backwards and airborne for a few seconds as a whip whistled through the air and slashed into his body, splitting his insides open, as his entrails hung out for a moment t as his back smashed into the barrier. The snowman with the halberd suddenly appeared in front of him, stabbing the halberd towards his head. Rezar was cut off guard by their sudden boost in speed, they were probably at the peak of the silver rank, or perhaps in the gold rank, but he couldn''t exactly be sure as he didn''t have a reference for how powerful an individual in the gold rank would be. [Bullet Time] Even with the time stoppage effect of the bullet time skill, the halberd wielding snowman was moving at a speed that could even move past the power of the bullet time skill. Rather than being stopped in place, he was moving in a slow motion that was a little bit too fast. Rezar evaded to the side, letting the snow elf go past him a bit. But just as the elf was about to completely move past Rezar, the smaller vampire king stabbed his left blade straight through the heart of the snow elf. The bullet time skill ran its duration as the inertia of the snow elf came to a jarring halt. Rezar used his superior strength to raise the snowman/snow elf still stabbed onto his Khopesh up, and then brought his heavy body smashing down to the platform below. The moment his body smashed into the ground he suddenly broke into a million pieces, leaving behind a pile of ice and snow, with a desiccated snow elf right in the middle of it with a terrified expression on his face. Rezar envisioned he must have been really too reluctant to die, but then again, he doubted there was ever anyone in existence who would be willing to embrace death with open arms, they all wanted to live. "I told you I was going to be playing with you all, so snow queen bitch. That''s two down, two left." Rezar commented with a rather sinister smile as his ripped open stomach completely mended. Seeing how effective his healing factor was, the snow elf queen and her final attendant did not immediately rush in. Rezar was immortal, it didn''t matter what rank he was, by virtue of being a vampire, the undead king was practically un-killable. They would need a whole lot more hits to bring him down, heck it might be that they needed to completely vaporize his body to be completely sure of his demise. "DIEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" But it didn''t matter how much of an insurmountable mountain Rezar was, he had to die for the snow elf queen to be able to achieve anything. For her to bring the vision of the snow elf civilization''s future. The grand vision she had of herself becoming the most powerful individual in all of Elysium, then this vampire this king had to die. There was no going back from this, this fight truly was to the death. Just as she moved forwards, the last spectral skull that up until this point had been missing from this fight fell from the sky, right onto the head of the snow elf that had been wielding the whip. She let out a loud scream of pain as the snow elf queen turned around to see what was going on. Rezar sent both blades flying forwards, their chains seemingly whistling through the air like the ominous wails of a thousand ghosts, before stabbing into the chest of the snow elf with the whip. "GET OVER HERE!" Rezar smiled as the blades began to retract dragging the injured snow woman/ snow elf thingy towards him. Regardless of the current state of things, Rezar quickly realized that even if their transformation seemed really fearsome and they had incredible speed the snow elves had an extremely weak defense, heck they were no different from the glass cannon build of mages. They were heavy reliant on their speed and magic with only a few snow elves being different. Never the less the chains retracted dragging the snow elf back to Rezar; and as it drew closer, frost began to evaporate of its body until a heavily injured snow elf was now laying on the ground beneath Rezar''s feet, with two Khopesh sticking out of her chest. She was still alive, but it was only for a limited amount of time. Rezar shook his head as if he was pitying the snow elf, but giving the snow elf queen a smile that was a little bit brighter than normal, Rezar stomped his foot down hard. Smashing the head and beautiful face of the snow elf into pieces like it was a ripe watermelon. "Arrrghhhh! Rezar Deathwind! I''ll kill you! I''ll Kill you!" The snow elf queen raged but still she didn''t make a move from her position, her body obviously shaking with more fear than she would ever admit. "Oh? You will kill me? But my dear. You''re already dead." [Glorious Crucifixion] It was almost as if the world itself screamed out in pain. Vita Gratia trembled within Rezar''s grasp as he stabbed it into the ground in front of him. The Snow elf queen scarcely had a time to breath when iron bars began to shoot out of the ground, stabbing deeply into her body as she was raised up into the sky. The bands seemed to twist and squirm around each other and within her body as they congregated to form an ornate silver and gold cross that she now hung precariously from. There were hundreds of small spikes that pierced into her body, slowly draining her blood as her monstrous transformation fade away and her normal form was laid bare in front of Rezar, exposed and bloody. He moved forwards, every step he took definite and special in its own right as he picked at his finger nails, drawing a page out of Lenore''s book. "There''s only so much bullshit I can take in my life your majesty, you repeatedly provoked me. You saw me as something no different from an animal, and even worse you thought I was just some child who had no idea what he was doing. It''s unfortunate but you picked a fight you never r should have, because even if you won the war between our kingdoms, I would have still made sure you lost and paid a price so steep you would have regretted waking up every morning. So while your pathetic and useless; life fades away from existence, do tell me if you have any last words or requests. Especially considering I have your daughter locked up at the very top of a tower. I could be merciful and give it to her before I pluck her eyes out and send her to an orc brothel, I''m sure she would be treated quite well over there." "Hehehehe. ''cough!'' you think yourself and your kingdom untouchable? You think you''re strong enough to stand against the greed of the entirety of Elysium? If so you''re even more of a fool and a child than I thought, you were. If it''s not me, it would be the theocracy coming for you with their paladins and army of the dead. You''re just one person, you will eventually fall to the appetite of this world. If not in this generation, then in the next. Your kingdom and yourself will be eaten up!" Rezar cocked his head to the side as if he was contemplating some deep truths of life, however what he said next to the snow elf queen was entirely different than what she expected. "You must be really stupid! Appetite? Are you serious right now? You''re dying and that''s the crap you choose to spill out of your stupid mouth! I AM A FUCKING VAMPIRE! I''m the monster with the bigger appetited at any given time or place, I''ve just been keeping it in control so as not to throw this world into chaos. But I think its about time I show them just who has the bigger appetite, unfortunately for you snow queen bitch. You will not live to see it!" Chapter 295: Glorious Crucifixion [Glorious Crucifixion Has absorbed + 30Magic and +55speed] Rezar emotionlessly watched as the barrier around the ring came down, not shifting his attention as the cross that hung the Snow elf queen dissipated into motes of light that quickly flew back into Vita Gratia. The weapon buzzed, as it dislodged itself from the ground and flew over to Rezar who held his hand out to catch it, their dirty deeds done once and for all. [Vita Gratia has evolved! +10 to all stats! The skill [Glorious Vestment] has been created.] NAME: VITA GRATIA// RANK: SILVER RANK (III) WEAPON TYPE: MANTLE (MORTE BIANCA''S SYMBOL OF AUTHORITY) TRAITS: DRAGON''S BANE// SOUL TAKER// BLOOD DRINKER// SENTIENT (1) SKILLS: GLORIOUS CRUCIFIXION// GLORIOUS VESTMENT [GLORIOUS VESTMENT: Vita Gratia turns into an impervious armor that constantly drains the blood and energy of every enemy within a 100-meter radius and increase attack by 500% giving all skills and strikes a soul draining effect, and increase defense against attacks of all magnitude and type by 300% for ten minutes. Cool down is 3 days] Rezar smiled at what he was looking at, it has been a while since Vita Gratia had any sort of power up and if he was being honest with himself, it was just about time that such a thing happened. With all of the blood and souls the damn weapon has absorbed, one would think it should have been in the gold rank or something by now, but even beyond that, this was surprisingly the first time Rezar has seen Vita Gratia''s new stat sheet after the Rejuvenation. He ought to pay a lot more attention to the tools in his life, especially now that it seems as if Vita Gratia was beginning to have a mind of its own. There was no telling what could possibly happen if he did not pay attention to the blood drinking and soul draining weapon, after all; it was Rezar''s symbol of authority. Speaking of which didn''t he have a crown or something like that? For the life of him he really couldn''t remember if he ever had something of the sort. [Congratulations Your Majesty On your Victory Over the Snow Elf Queen. I Had Let the Elves Know I Was Willing to Accept a New Master the Very Moment You Took Care of the Golems That Were Guarding the Entrance to my Geo-Core. They Arrived Here in Record Time by Utilizing a Teleportation Formation They Had Built into Me as A Failsafe. I Have Taken the Liberty to Broadcast Your Duel, Making Sure It Has Reached as Much People as Possible. Now Your Majesty King Rezar: If You Will Have Me, Let Us Be Bonded] At the very least its prompt were not all in caps anymore, looking at it gave Rezar a headache. From where he was standing he felt the platform shake a bit as a hole opened up in the center of it. He watched as a seamless bronze orb rose up out of the ground, floating at least a meter and a half above it. Its form was extremely seamless reminding Rezar of marbles, it had exquisite etches over its smooth frame that seemed to catch light and dance in a variety of colors, not all different from the platform they were currently standing on. But apart from its appearance, what Rezar really noticed, was the extreme wave of power coming off it. This was an object that could not really be measured by the current ranking system. It didn''t feel as if its power had a ladder to it, but rather it was a force of nature that could beneficial to anyone, no matter how high a rank they attain. Rezar felt his skin crawl as goosebumps popped up all over it. How could a thing of such power choose to serve, rather than struggle and fight for its own control: for all intents and purposes this could be a bloody trap as it just seemed too good to be true. Rezar could back off, he knew he could change his mind and move away from what could possibly be a mistake, but the thing is; if he did so and it turned the bloody dungeon was genuine. He would probably miss out on an opportunity and have it land right in the laps of his remaining enemies, such a turn of events was not one he thought his kingdom would ever be able to survive, and for the life of him he knew he couldn''t destroy it. Not even if he used all of the firepower within Morte Bianca. Rezar decided to roll with the punches as he stepped forwards and placed his hand on the orb. He felt a pinprick in the center of his palm as his blood began to flow in soft but steady rivulets, covering the entire form of the orb. Rezar raised an eyebrow as he felt a small suction force from the orb, the speed at which his blood was being drained increased by a significant margin, and then he felt his energy added into the mix, and that was being drained even faster. He raised his eyebrow and then narrowed his eyes. If it was just his blood Rezar didn''t worry too much about it as he could regenerate that at an infinite amount. It would not be too farfetched to say that at his current rate of regeneration, Rezar could probably bleed enough to create an entire ocean and still have enough to spear to flood the entire planet. But his energy on the other hand was finite, and having your energy bottomed out usually had severe consequences as it was directly tied to your life force. "Are you done yet?" four words, but Rezar''s voice seemed to reverberate across the entire arena. It shocked even him as he felt a connection of sorts established between him and the dungeon. "My apologies master, I was somewhat preoccupied with how delightful your blood tasted, I will now begin the integration and upgrade process. Please bear with me, this will only take a few moments." The sudden transition from system prompts to full blow feminine speech caught all of them off guard, it was not what Rezar was expecting and neither was Lenore, Kitagawa and Samira. Either way it was welcome change, and it seemed there was more to come. Rezar turned around and face his team as the entire dungeon began to shake, they all stopped moving as they braced themselves for what was about to come next. The environment around them seemed to break apart. The metal beams, the platform''s, the chairs, the scoreboards all of them developed cracks and began to fade away, turning into dust that slowly began to swirl around Rezar and his comrades who noticed they were being held aloft by the power of the dungeon. They were exposed to the elements as an intense breeze blew past them and the light of the sun blazed down with even more ferocity than normal. Rezar quickly turned his gaze to Samira, worry etched allover it as they never thought far enough to think that they would emerge from the dungeon when the sun was up. However, Kitagawa had thought fast as he had his tails wrapped around her form, protecting her from the soft heat. Below them was Necron in all of its advanced and beautiful glory. Rezar could see the sea to the west of the city and the islands with it. There was dragon island home of the undead storm dragon''s temple, and then there was Isla de la Muerte. Specially named by Gynaika, and home to the temple of the goddess of death and her acolytes, a religion that was rapidly beginning to gain fame within Morte Bianca. The blue-green sea was beautiful, it stretched to the horizon as the soft caresses of sunlight made it sparkle with a glory only Necron city could bask in. even if it was the early hours of the morning the city was very much alive, the vampires would be turning in for the day, but the orcs, humans, elves, goblins, kitsunes and a variety of other races who have decided to call this great city and the kingdom within it home came alive. The dust that was once the Geo-core rushed down, measuring hundreds of pounds and stretching for kilometers, it would have been quite a horrifying sight for the people below to see. It looked as if Necron city was about to be buried under a wave of sand and dust, however it rushed past the people and the buildings. Sticking to a lot of things and seemingly melting into the city itself like it was stream of snow and not dust that just fell on them. The city lit up, flashing a couple dozen times as a new entity seemed to settle into it. Rezar could feel the dungeon assimilate the dungeon core he previously owned, he felt it assimilate the city arch and every facility that helped run it. From its water systems to electricity, to the white goblins responsible for keeping the city and most households clean, to the spawning of necrotic wolves and ants for its defense. For some reason, it was at this moment that Rezar felt; that Necron had truly become complete. [INTERGRATION PROCESS SUCCESFUL! DISPLAYING CITY AND KINGDOM STAT SHEET!] "Guess we''re back to the all caps system prompts. What joy." Chapter 296: Tasks To Carry Out The city didn''t look any different, but Rezar could feel it. There was a feeling of power in the air, a sort of qualitative change that have invariably changed the total aspect of what Necron city and in retrospect Morte Bianca could ever be or become. Things were bound to get interesting from now on, but it wasn''t too bad, whatever the case may be, Rezar knew or rather he could say he hoped the bonding with the Geo-core was not a big mistake and something he might end up regretting in the long run. "Your Majesty? Is it over?" Kitagawa asked as he moved closer to Rezar, they had been dropped in Necron city''s main street. And while a lot of its citizen had fallen into a panic, seeing their king standing in place with them and right in the middle of whatever crisis that seemed to have occurred, gave them all peace of mind. "Kitagawa co-ordinate with Jason and give a detailed rundown of the city''s current state. You guys should enlist the help of Alistair and check if there has been any damage of significance, or any other obvious change done to the infrastructure of the city. You all can come find me at the arch once you''re done, or the palace depending on where my mood would take me, but just get that analysis report down." "Yes your majesty. I will get down to it swiftly!" Kitagawa said with a bow as he swiftly (just like he said) turned around and shifted into his Kitsune form, bounding across the city, doing his best to evade the pedestrians, carriages and rare sighting of cars that were in front of him. Rezar nodded his head as he turned to Samira. "I need you to get out of the city and back to the Breone Mountains. I want you to keep an eye on Sillomere and its ensuing chaos after the death of its queen. If it is as the Core had said and our fight had been broadcasted, one way or the other, then there''s definitely going to be a lot chaos with the snow elves and dwarves. I need you there personally to keep an eye on the situation, send me regular updates on the hour, and make sure to take protection from the sun on your way out. I''m sorry I''m having you move around during the day time." Rezar apologized as he gave Samira his orders. "It''s my honor to serve you your majesty, and as long as you will it, I will walk through the flames of a thousand suns for your sake and the sake of our kingdom. By your leave your leave your majesty, and yours too queen in waiting Lenore, I shall go fulfill my tasks now." Samira said as she gave a swift bow and headed in the direction of the palace, her hood pulled up over her body as she hurried to get out of the touch of the fully risen sun. Watching her walk away, Rezar turned to look at Lenore who also has a pensive look on her face. It was obvious she was deep in thought as she tried to figure out what was the next step to take. But no matter, Rezar had already figured that out or her, he was the king; and even though she would be his queen soon, she was still the first general of his army, and there were places he needed her to be right now. But before Rezar could open his mouth to say anything, she already took the initiative to speak to him. "I''ll head out to go reinforce our borders, at the moment that''s the most important thing we have to worry about. That way none of our other enemies take advantage of the conflict between us and Sillomere to reap advantages. On the other hand, I would like express permission to take control of the undead, with the exclusion of the vampires as they only answer to you. I would like to resume our incursion on Sillomere. Defending our borders is good and it''s a task I will personally be overseeing. But Screet and Brutus would be otherwise better suited to making sure Sillomere falls into our hands and not the that of our enemies, or even letting the snow elves think for one second that our conflict is over with the passing of the queen. I believe it''s time Morte Bianca Expanded her borders, and prove to the entire Bahrenburg wildlands, that there is no force more supreme than that of Morte Bianca!" Rezar raised an eyebrow as he held back a smile. She was such a dutiful soldier it was hard to imagine if she could make that transition and become a dutiful wife. But then again this was her own way of showing respect and devotion, it didn''t exactly matter how or in which format it was done. She did what was necessary and all for the satisfaction of her king. Rezar felt he needed to give her a little more leeway and control, she would be a good deterrent to Gynaika''s ever growing appetite for power. "Very Well Lenore, you''re free to do as you please for the foreseeable future. But just like Kitagawa and Samira, I need major updates from you regularly. I will let determine how regular those reports would be, as a sign of trust between the two of us. But please don''t let me call you and ask you for it, now run along Red, and do be on your best behavior." Rezar said to her as he turned and left, leaving behind a shocked Lenore who seemed like a deer caught in headlights. It has been a while, a year if not more since Rezar had last called her Red. It took her back to a time when she was the forewoman in charge of the Lobotar Stygian mines, and Rezar was the cocky snot faced death class problem she had to deal with. She remembered humiliating him in order to teach him his place, she remembered not standing up for him when he was wrongfully accused. And then she remembered him turning her entire life upside down, she remembered freedom. She remembered purpose and direction and power, leading all up to this very moment in time. All of these things made it possible for her; a demon with heart as black as night to be able to feel love again, after a dark past with Malik. There was bright future with Rezar, and it was funny she cared so much given the age difference, but this was Elysium. Especially now when vampires and demons are practically immortal in their own rights. But be that as it may, what she had now was perfect. She was Lenore the First General of Morte Bianca, Queen in Waiting and Commander of the Armies of His Majesty: King Rezar DeathWind. First of his line and first his blood, Son Death and King of Fire and War, King of the Bone Horde. And through it all she was to him Red.... and that was the only title that mattered. she turned and walked away as Rezar made his way through Necron city. The citizens who were awake were all too quick to bow and give the king a wide berth seeing as his entire form was entirely bloody. Alistair and Gynaika would probably have a field day about the manner in which he presented himself, but he didn''t give a shit, and neither did his previous company seeing as they all were just as bloody as he was. Well almost as bloody anyway. True warriors could hardly bring themselves to give a shit about decorum when there was work to be done. So apart from smiling, Rezar ignored most of the people who were gawking at him as if they had just seen the eighth wonder of the world. But even with his ignoring he still took a moment to appreciate his city. He was now walking past the business district where there were hundreds of stores lining multiple streets, with merchants of all race and sizes finally opening and setting up shop for the day. The businesses were varied, and it seemed competition was fierce. There was everything from a simple tea house, to sophisticated advertising agencies, law firms funny enough. Martial art schools, dancing studios, a brothel; and those had quite a few of them. gambling houses and so much more. But even with that he noticed the shadows hanging at the edge of every building, the shady characters, the secret deals being carried out in the early hours of the morning. Crime in his capital city. Or at least early signs of it. As much as it was annoying and something Rezar would rather avoid, he actually found it interesting. He had to look a little closer into what was going on within his city, but that would be later. Because he had arrived at the central plaza, and standing in front of him was the ornate silver, white and gold arch of Morte Bianca. "Okay Geo-core; let''s see just how much you''ve fucked my kingdom up." Chapter 297: Morte Bianca And Necron City Rezar took a cursory look at the stat page for Morte Bianca and the Necron. In all honesty it has been a very long while since he had given this a look, instead focusing on the projects within the city and the threats they faced. He knew the city was experiencing an exponential growth, and as long as he could see it with his eyes he didn''t need to worry much about anything else. It was still the same as when Elysium had undergone a rejuvenation, but be that as it may its display had undergone a lot of changes, along with a lot of things than could be displayed on it. It was a testament of just how far they had come as a city and as a kingdom, much has been achieved, and whether he would want to admit it or not, there was still much more to be gained. And he was willing to fight for every second and gain that would come his way or the way of his people. ? Name: [Morte Bianca] Type: [Kingdom] Rank: [Gold 1 (17%)] ? Monarchs: [Rezar Deathwind (King)] ? Civilization: [Techno-Magical] Religion: [Temple of Life & Death] Cities: [3] Towns: [38] Villages: [72] ? Traits: [Tech Savants 8 (+ 400% to all technology)] [War Masters 5 (+150% to all war efforts)] [Spiritualists 4 (+ 60% to all spiritual activities and skills] [Farmers 7 (+350% to all faming activities)] [Death Blessed 2 (-75% to death incidents, +15% to lifespan, +25% to all death skills)] [Geo-Core 1( Draw energy from an earthen dungeon core to power Necron city''s Mobility by 65%)] [Mobile 1(Necron City Only) the entire city and it territories can move across the land at a speed of 100 kilometers an hour] ? Defenses: [Metal Wall (6)] [Illusion: Mist Wall (9)] [Mana Energy Dome (3)] [Oculus Satellite (2)] ? Attacks: [ 5 Sentry Towers (5)] [2000 Necrotic Monsters] [Remote Targeting Magical Land Air Missile System] ? Population: [594,381] Military: 16,083 [King''s Guard: 1000 Sons of Dawn/ 860 Daughters of Eclipse] [4723 Necrotic Ants and Wolves] [2000 Samurai Soldiers] [3500 Illusion Mages] [2000 Orc Shamans] [2000 Support and Logistics Soldiers] It costs a lot to actually train a soldier, especially in this new world that has come to be where gaining power was no longer as simple as walking into a dungeon and leveling up. Now strength will not come to you unless you work really hard for it, and have a more intrinsic and close relationship with all of your abilities. For your power to grow it has to be more than just a simple skill on your skill list. But be that as it may, Rezar had an army that was 16 thousand strong. And what was really funny about this was the fact that his undead monsters weren''t counted as a part of it. He had absolutely not even dipped much of a hand into this pool of fighters but had focused on using his undead in the battle against the snow elves. Even though many of them have grown to the point of gaining sentience and evolving in myriad of ways, the value of the living still far outweighs that of the dead, which was he would always place priority on his living soldiers. The system not counting them here meant they were seen as a personal resource of his, there was probably a state page he could check to keep a more detailed look on his undead army, but that''s something he would handle later. For now, though it seems that everything was okay and well improved. He had no need to move Necron city, but the idea that this city, his home could pick up its foundations and move was beyond amazing. [Your Majesty, apart from the vast and complex system of tunnels underneath the city that could be considered a city within a city. I discovered an extremely obscure, well detailed and well-crafted secret room by the name of Sanctuary. It''s registered in my systems as a national monument as even its secrets are hidden from me. I request permission for a full on scan your majesty] "Denied!" Rezar said without even a hint of a smile on his face. [As you wish Master. All my systems are running smoothly, and I am well integrated into the necessary systems neither for monitoring and observing every other function within the city. It seems I will only able to take observatory and maintenance actions within the confines of the capital city. The only other thing I would be able to handle would be the mobility of the city, after express permission from you or an individual of your royal bloodline. I must admit I did not expect this much limitation Master] Rezar smiled to himself as he struggled and successfully hid the smug grin on his face. When it was obvious to them what sort of existence the Geo-core was, courtesy of the snow elf princess, Rezar had come up with a lot of contingencies should they had succeeded in subjugating the core and bringing it under their control should they have also failed to destroy it. But Rezar was also the very definition of paranoid; especially when it came to his enemies and their tools. He made a few adjustments to the nation''s arch, making sure all functions worked on an independent circuit that was operated and carried out by people as opposed to being automated. He refused to let the city run itself, so rather the people within it would be responsible for doing that, creating more jobs and opportunities for his citizens as opposed cramming every willing participant into the military. Besides, every soldier within the Morte Biancan military were elites capable of taking on five opponents of their own power and rank at the same time. Not just anyone could join them. the consciousness of the Geo-core was much too sophisticated to be trusted or left alone. It was born from a dungeon but yet it was able to pit Rezar against its own creators, bringing a painful end to the snow queen''s reign of terror and removing itself from the influence of the dwarves. Even if it didn''t have a body or a face for Rezar to look at and Judge, Rezar had a skill that let recognize or noticed when someone wished him evil. His E.M.P skill has been going haywire ever since the Geo-core suggested a battled between Rezar and the snow elf queen. Its power was too great to be left to the enemies, and in light of being unable to destroy it without putting his entire civilization at risk, Rezar had to find a way to get it under control, he was really glad his prior preparations were not for nothing. Now they had to run damage control with Sillomere. With the queen now out of the equation, there were definitely going to be people who would want to take advantage of the conflict to get some gains, but that was neither here nor there because there was still a wild tribe army and an army of undead led by fucking clergy men and death class holders heading in his direction. The snow elf queen really gave him pause with her application of the Geo-core. Even if things didn''t go according to her plans, it was still quite a weapon of mass destruction. But now it was no longer in play and completely off the board. He would have to meet the rest of his enemies on the battlefield, or come up with other ways to halt their advances or stop them completely, but that was easier said than done, but never the less it seems the time where the ferociousness of the Morte Biancan army would be unleashed was drawing close. The remaining construction projects would continue to remain halted, as it stood this was the better step for his kingdom. And with the defeat of the snow elves, as soon as his undead sack the capital city of sillomere, it automatically becomes a part of Morte Biancan territory, and that would probably happen in a few days. After that he would have to march his army through the Kerwood forest and past their borders. Right now the wild tribe were not his most pressing problems as those nomads would probably run around some before they end up in front of his doorstep. So he had time, and frankly speaking he would very much not like to have anyone of his two biggest problems come knocking on his door. So before they get to him, he would take the fight to them. But there was a problem, to get to the theocracy and their army of the dead he had to go through two other territories before coming to a stretch of barren land in the middle of Kerwood forest that runs from the sea in the west, all the way past the great plains to the great desert in the east. He could be backstabbed, or he could conquer them instead and make them a part of Morte Bianca to secure his rear and not have to worry about betrayal. Rezar nodded his head and turned around to leave when all of a sudden he noticed a man on his knees with his head bowed in respect and supplication. Rezar noticed how his body shivered, and how his grey hair seemed to flicker and dance with the soft caresses of the wind. "Your Majesty, I have failed you and I''m not worthy of your mercy! Please punish me with death for being unable to carry out my duty to you." Rezar cocked his head to the side and only said one word. "Priest!" Chapter 298: Priest Returns Rezar sat with one leg over the arm rest of his throne, he leaned back as he clasped his arms and levied a fierce gaze on Priest. The old man was still on his knees, only this time the location had changed, and they were in the throne room as opposed to being out on the street. There were quite a few guards within the throne room, with one of them being Jason who had a fierce look on his face, almost as if he wanted nothing more than tear the frail old man apart. Rezar didn''t know what to think about this current situation. He was definitely supposed to be happy that priest was still alive, he had not given up looking for the old man, but the truth of the matter was that it seems Priest''s own disappearance was a choice all of his own. Which means he vanished into thin air after the Rejuvenation as a matter of choice and not unforeseen circumstances, making Rezar the King of Morte Bianca utilized precious resources and time worrying for his safety and looking for his Teacher and advisor. "Where the fuck have you been Priest? I''d like to believe that you have a good explanation and a damn good story to go along with it, that mind you aren''t lies old friend. At the moment I''m torn between jumping for joy and hugging you, or sinking my fangs into your neck just to see how long you can last when I decided to drain your blood one small sip after the other. Frankly speaking killing you is having the larger support, I''m sure Jason will like that." "Unequivocally your majesty, this man should be drawn and quartered from the amount of stress he has put us all through. We should smash his head to, I''ve never seen a more annoying human being. How could you just disappear like that! I was forced to look for you from one end of Morte Bianca to the other you absolute Imbecile!" Rezar was caught off guard by Jason''s tirade. He honestly didn''t think about the stress he had placed on the undead minotaur to look for his old teacher. In the process of looking for someone important to him, Rezar had neglected and stressed those who he was important to. It was quite ironic, but he would do better from now on. Such acts were not fair at all. "My apologies your Majesty, I have no idea what came over me." Jason quickly apologized as he shot Priest a deadly glare, not at all caring for his dumbfounded gaze. Rezar waved his hand in Jason''s direction to let him know it was okay. Rezar looked at priest as the old man raised his bowed head from the ground, with the look on his face, most would say that Priest looked remorseful. However, this was the same man who taught Rezar the intricacies of politics, and the way to act in different situations to get what you want. It would be really stupide and na?ve of him to trust any expression that''s etched allover Priest''s face. The only thing that would probably make this easier on everybody was the truth, and nothing but the truth. "I am sorry Your Majesty for causing you so much stress, I do have a proper explanation for my absence all this while. I didn''t leave your majesty; I was taken; or better yet it would be much simpler to say that I was summoned" "By whom?" Rezar asked with a little bit of annoyance inn his tone, who would be so stupid to summon the advisor of a king, and why would the advisor be so stupid to answer the summon, putting precedent over his own King''s authority to the point that he has been away from the one he swore to serve for more than a fucking year! To say that Rezar was pissed by what Priest just said would be an understatement, but at the very least he would let the old man finish. "Not by whom your majesty, but by what. No mortal being has a higher authority than you, it would be incredibly stupid for me to answer the summons of someone over my duty to serve you." "Then what is this thing that has enough power, even more son than me that it would summon you away from my side?" the Sarcasm in Rezar''s voice was so thick and palpable you could probably physically feel it, however- "The Necron!" The ensuing silence was so thick and fell with shock and tension, While Rezar could check to see if Priest was lying, he didn''t think the old man would lie to him about something like this. But then again it didn''t make that much sense, but then again it could also make sense. Technically speaking, Priest was the oldest living being in all of history, and not because he''s never died, but because with each life that passes, he has always and steadfastly retained all of his memories. Usually memories fade after or begin to fade after a third reincarnation, but Priest never lost any of his memories. He retained them all vividly, and this was because of one particular weapon, treasure or whatever name it could be called. The Necron was simply known as the book of life and death, it could twist reality and rewrite its laws in a variety of ways, especially when it comes to the aspect of death. It was what made it possible for Priest to Retain every last memory from all of his previous lives without having lost any of them. the man was probably the most knowledgeable individual in all of Elysium. Except something was new, there was nothing he didn''t know or understood. From customs to religion to hidden or lost history. And all of this was made possible by the Necron, a tool of death created by necromancers who went on to become the first vampire kings, thousands of years before Rezar''s time. "There''s much you don''t know about me your majesty; much that I''ve not said to you. I know I told you my ability to retain my memories for every lifetime was because the Necron was used on me, however that was not the case. I have this form of immortality because I was once the owner of the Necron, I guess you could say I was the last vampire king of an ancient world. Our kingdom fell, not because we were attacked or had the whole world turn against us, we ruled all that was under the sky. My civilization fell because each of the vampire kings at that time, the eight prime progenitors of the vampire race''s eight bloodlines began to fight for control and ownership of the Necron. We let our pride and hubris guide us, until we destroyed ourselves, much to the amusement of the goddess of death and the tool we wanted to possess. The Necron is a part of her, a split personality of the goddess of death with a significant portion of her powers. At the end of that fight, when all that was left was ash and ruin, only one king was left standing. And even then I was on my last legs, but death didn''t matter to me, as long as I had the Necron I knew I could conquer her; conquer death. I can''t begin to tell you how foolish I must have been, to want to use death to conquer herself. I was foolish, but I didn''t know. Instead what I got was a curse. And a supernatural tether that bound me to the servitude of the Necron and the goddess of death as cleric forever in their servitude for all my reincarnations. I was summoned this time, because a new master of the Necron has been chosen, and the bestowal is supposed to happen as soon as possible as there is a great evil that has come to Elysium. The new master of the Necron can only be one forged and born of the flesh, bone, blood and energy of death herself. The Vampire King, first of his bloodline, and king of the Bone horde of Morte Bianca; His Majesty Rezar Deathwind! I was sent to prepare you for the gauntlet that would show your worthiness in becoming the new master of the Necron, and to deliver the quest Death has for you." Rezar was shocked. A bit. He wasn''t being arrogant or anything, but somehow, he always felt that a time will come that he would own the Necron, it seems like the day has finally come. "But Priest, what Gauntlet are you talking about?" Rezar asked as he raised an eyebrow. "Death is a respecter of no man and is fair as she is unfair to all that lives and breathes. She can come for you anytime, and as such the opportunity to master her will be given to all that draws from the wellspring of her vast conceptual powers. Every death class holder in Elysium and beyond the veils of dimensions will know you are the master of the Necron, and they will come for you. One after the other to defeat you and become the next master of death. The challenge will never end, until every last death class holder is dead. Which brings us to the quest. KING REZAR OF MORTE BIANCA RECEIVE THE DECREE AND QUEST OF THE GODDESS OF DEATH AND YOUR MOTHER; DARKNESS!" Chapter 299: Death And Her Son [Quest Alert: Extinction Level Event: Death feels that those tapping into her wellspring of power have been corrupted by their human nature. They have lost sight of what death means and have refused to propagate her teachings. As the chosen of death, it is now up to you to put an end to this generation of deviant children. Completely exterminate every death class user aged 15 and above. REWARD: ???????] Rezar just kept looking at the prompt with a furrowed eyebrow, this was probably the first quest given since the Rejuvenation. But the world doesn''t revolve around him so it would be thinking too much and honestly quite narcissistic to think that every good thing that happens will only ever come his way. But then again he has had his own fair share of bad luck so that also counts to. But be that as it may he has a quest, and below that quest was a set of number in a bracket. (47) He didn''t need any other explanation for him to know that this was probably the amount of death class user in the whole of Elysium that were eligible to be eliminated. Normally it would probably be a cause for celebration that they really weren''t that much, but then again how was he supposed to findn47 people in a world that''s as big Elysium, which mind you was constantly and always expanding. And then he remembered that probably everyone on that list will be coming for him just so they could possess the Necron. A book that frankly speaking he didn''t have yet. But it goes beyond that as in other for him to prove himself worthy of owning it, he had to actually every one of his fellow death class user that was not a minor, and they all thought he had said book in his hands and were probably coming for him. It was an elaborate ploy, one that even if he had no intention of participating in, he really wouldn''t have much of a choice. Rezar had no other choice but to take this seriously, because in all honesty no one but he himself knew better how dangerous a death class user could be. It wouldn''t be too farfetched to say that a single person had the capability and firepower to bring down his entire kingdom, and given enough time the world itself. The world should be thankful he didn''t let the whole son of death thing get to his head, because if it did, then there would probably have been rivers of blood flowing unbidden and in complete excess and the entire world would be overrun by undead of all sorts all under the majesty of his great and awesome command. But then again he might be getting a little carried away, there was a couple of factors that goes into being a death class holder. Not all death class holders were necromancers with ability to bring the dead back to life, or at least a sort of half-life. There was a varying degree of mastery and expertise when it came to death class. Necromancy was one of them, but there were death class users that dealt with souls, spirits, ghosts and even the emotions that made a person seem alive. Some could summon the worst beasts and pets of death to wreak havoc on the world without a single shred of remorse. So yeah the basic gist of it was that he was dealing with a set of extremely dangerous people. But be that as it may the goddess of death knew exactly what she was doing. There was no one better equipped to deal with a few dozen power hungry death class users than the son of death himself. But thinking about it a little deeper, Rezar realized that it was not as if the Goddess of death had any intention of giving Rezar the Necron, or even if she did it was probably as a consolation prize. The Necron was bait, and Rezar was the deadly hidden trap that she was going to use to destroy and bring an end to this generation of death class users. Why that was necessary, he wasn''t exactly sure, but be that as it may they were all walking into a trap. He almost felt sorry for them, almost. "That''s an incredibly life like statue of me, I take it Priest has delivered my message to you." It was more of a statement that a question, but then again the Goddess of death was not one to ask for answers, she demanded them. "I had the finest orc and goblin craftsmen work on it. Plus, the system did help a bit as the temple was built just before the Rejuvenation. Since then I''ve had it upgraded and renovated a bit. I should have just let it go to ruin, but somehow before I knew what was happening everyone in my bloody kingdom began worshipping you. It''s baffling really, I think you''re a sucky person." Rezar said as he turned his head to the right with a smile, looking at the living, breathing personification of death. "I see you''re just as irresponsible with your words as before, you''re lucky you are my son your death would have been extremely painful otherwise. But be that as it may, it doesn''t mean I won''t be able to take an organ or a few limbs away from you as punishment for fucking with me, so do be a good boy and listen when mummy is talking." Rezar narrowed his eyes at her, but he really couldn''t do anything about her, apart from her being his supposed Mother. she was still death itself and that was an entity no sane idiot would want to mess with. "Priest has taken up an official position as the head Bishop of the temple of death your temple. He''s been avoiding me for a few days now, apparently you have him going on some well needed prayers." Rezar said to her as he turned around and took a few steps backwards to look at her. "I have seen the future of Morte Bianca my son, just as I''ve seen your end. Like the end of all things. Politics and greed will infect and pollute this great kingdom, and it would put your bloodline in danger. I have priest raising up a force of warrior priest that would make sure to protect the vested interest of the goddess of death and keep your bloodline safe till your very last descendant decided to leave this world." She definitely had a lot to say if Rezar had to say anything about it, but surprisingly when she said she had seen his end Rezar didn''t feel anything about it. In fact, it would be more accurate to say that he found it as normal and expected that one day the sun will set on his time as king and someone else would have to bear the burden of being King of the Bone horde. He somehow couldn''t co-relate the fact that he was okay with one day dying when he really loved being alive, it really was crazy as fuck! "What do you want Darkness?" Rezar asked as he shook his head. the second time he was meeting her and just like the first time she had him questioning his very existence, it was as crazy as it was annoying. But never the less he didn''t think she would appear after all this time without a viable reason. Her presence wasn''t really needed given she had already sent a quest his way, so why did she have to be here, she made him really uncomfortable, and that was just him being polite about it. "There is a great darkness that has come to Elysium Rezar, one that aims to wipe out every last trace of humanity. The true humanity. Those of you who were born from the world outside, the world that has now died. It has set into motion certain amount of events that would bring nothing but conflict to Elysium. Man against man, orc against orc, dragon against dragon and even the gods themselves won''t be left out of this conflict as they knew scour the surface of this planet to look for those who would be worthy of becoming their champions. This evil hates one thing and one thing alone, and that''s humans who have come into this world from the outside. I9t is this evil that was responsible for the Rejuvenation in the first place, changing everything to give all that exist and equal starting point, all just so there wouldn''t be anyone or anything capable of standing up against it and stopping the flow of its plans." Rezar furrowed his eyebrows as he asked. "And what is this evil that you''re so shaken up about Darkness, I have to be honest and say your behavior is scaring me a bit." "But of course Rezar, you should be scared. Because this evil... is ELYSIUM itself!" Chapter 300: The Tenets Of Morte Bianca (I) Rezar took slow steady steps as he walked into the throne room of the now deceased snow elf queen. The look of fear on the faces of everyone else within the throne was somewhat therapeutic. It was not as if he got off from people being afraid of him, however there was just so much to be said about having your enemies under your thumb. Being a king in such a barbaric and warring age was not a cakewalk. A certain degree of darkness was needed within the hearts of the men and women who think themselves worthy enough to rule in the wildlands. Lucky for them, Rezar had said darkness in spades. So much that he hardly had any idea what to do with it. But never the less the reason why he was here today being to let the people of Sillomere have a nice long and hard look on the person that has now become their new ruler. He also had to be here considering at the break of dawn, all of the members of the previous royal family, young and old no matter the age had been executed and their heads hung high above the city gates. It probably made him seem like some sort of ultimate evil king, but he honestly didn''t care. This was what it was supposed to be like. While he tried his best to ensure that his rule was prosperous and so was every man woman and child under his rule, he was still going to be a king that rule with a hard heart and a swift sword. It was better for them to fear him than love him, but at the same time he knew just how much his people loved him, and it went hand in hand with how much they were also scared of him, it was almost as if his entire existence seemed to release some sort of Aura that scared the shit out of people. "I will get right to the point because frankly speaking I am not in the mood to play politics or hold your hands. Everything has changed, after a month of war, with most of it spent with you guys trying and failing woefully to put up a defense against my undead and the full might of my generals Screet and Brutus and my Queen to be Lenore. It was fun and quite cute while it lasted, but it''s obvious this fight lasted this long and was incredibly stupid with you guys making stupid tactical decisions and losing more soldiers than was necessary. The only thing that delayed us; long enough was the terrain, it was quite a hassled having to spend a significant amount of days trudging through waist high snow to get to your bloody city. But I digress, we''ve or rather I''ve gained what I came here for, so it would be in your best interests to listen to me while I tell you fools how things are going to be from here on out. I''m sure the lot of you have quite a few things to say about my takeover, but I advise you all to suck it up and listen to what I have to say cause frankly speaking I will not be repeating myself." Rezar paused and spread his gaze across the entire hallway, there was a varying degree of looks being thrown his way, but nothing to extreme. Both Kitagawa and Samira were hanging at the edge of the throne room with their weapons at the ready, heck they didn''t even need to have any weapons in hand as the presence of the vampires was enough to dissuade any sort of reckless move, either by speech or by action, didn''t matter which. If they so much as twitch, then they were all going to die. "From now on Sillomere is no more, this place would now be known as Mors or Morte Glacies. It would be the major city of Morte Bianca responsible for overseeing every other asset we have within the Breone mountains, which in this case after your defeat is the entire chain of mountains. Its influence will spread into the great plain to where our border ends at the beginning of the great desert. You all adopt the religion of Morte Bianca, gibing worship only to the goddess of Death; Darkness. Anything other than that and you will find yourself executed. Every child from the age of 16 to 25 will be con scripted into my army, they''ll be taken back to Morte Bianca where they will join the academy there to be trained into soldiers that would lay down their lives for my illustrious kingdom. The dwarves are to now prioritize living above ground and will work hand in hand with Morte Bianca''s engineers and architects to create roads and different forms of transportation that would be sure to make the entire kingdom connected. Apart from that they will also be responsible for building a set of walls around the kingdom. Walls made of metal and precious still that would serve as a defense against future invasions. It would be built as a series of rings, that demarcate Morte Bianca into different zones, and each zone will focus on a different aspect of economics to ensure the growth and prosperity of the kingdom. Next would be the disbanding of the current snow elf army, they shall be re-oriented into the Morte Biancan army. Next would be the abolishment of all noble Sillomeran houses or family. Nobility will not be a thing in Morte Bianca, however based on contributions and merits, government positions can be given. With the sheer amount of land that Morte Bianca now has, along with its people, capable individuals would be needed to oversee the kingdom and make sure everything runs smoothly. There will be positions in management, in the military, and as ambassadors to other lands and powers to make sure that Morte Bianca does not build a legacy of conquest and blood. This is what will be open to all of you, fairness and a chance to live as equal to every other citizen of Morte Bianca without being discriminated against. But only if you want it, which I''m sure you all do. Cause the alternative to refusing, my offer would be death, which makes this not an offer if I have to be honest but a decree. But apart from that in 10 days from now, the supreme rules and tenets of Morte Bianca would be read out loud to the people in the capital city. It would be broadcasted here, but I expect a significant amount of your former snow elven leaders to be there, so that you all can show your willingness and support of the new regime you now find yourself under. There will be no room for betrayal, any and all forms of insurgency will be dealt with swiftly and with deadly force. And please I invite you to try, because I assure you all, there''s nothing you can or will attempt to do that I won''t be able to find out about. My sons of dawn, or as their official name calls them. My sons of the Black dawn are open for you to see, dangerous and fierce in their drive to protect their king, you will never be able to get past them, however! It is my daughters of the eclipse that you need to worry about. Because you will never see them coming, they''re already amongst you. They are you wives, your daughters, your mothers, your sisters, your lovers, your mistresses, your neighbors and friends. And you still won''t know if they are men or women, all your secrets will be laid bare to my face before you even have a chance to make a move. I promise you death would be a blessing compared to what I will do to you all should I find out that you''re finding ways to fuck my kingdom up behind my back it would really hurt." Rezar raised an eyebrow looking around, making sure his gaze met each and every single one the people he knew were already plotting after the takeover. He could feel their fear from where he was sitting, the sweat that was breaking out on their skin regardless of the extremely cold weather. Rezar shook his head, the mirth in his eyes was obvious, they knew he was toying with them. but they were not so stupid as to believe that he was joking, even when he smiles, the vampire king of Morte Bianca was a man of his words, he doesn''t smile unless he plans to kill a man. His reputation preceded him, and they have been front and center of his darkness, they really had to rethink their plans of fucking with him. "Now I would like all of you to get me an extensive reports of the damages Mors Glacies had experienced during our occupation of the city. I want to know all of its current problems and what was the solution you guys came up with to solve it. And then we can start earnest discussion about who to appoint as the first Governor of Mors Glacies. This meeting is adjourned." Chapter 301: The Tenets Of Morte Bianca (II): New Skills The sounds of the sea hitting the shores of Dragon Island was soothing, for some reason, to Rezar this was the place where he could be the closest to the wind and the water. Of course at the moment he had more than three dozen guard detail stationed around the island, but there was no greater deterrent for his safety than the dragon that was currently having a conversation with Gynaika. Lenore was trying her best to follow, but obviously the more delicate aspect of politics and womanhood was completely lost to her as a vampire and dragon discussed about their monthly periods and how being undead was the best thing to have ever happened to them. Rezar felt it was gross, which was he focused on his [13 pulse of the dragon] technique. He felt that he would hit a new stride with the technique today, and once that happens there would probably be a change in his ability to control wind and water. At the moment his control over those elements were somewhat limited, and apart from that it was about time he bought a couple of new abilities, cause frankly speaking he needed to improve his arsenal. What he had were mostly passive skills, a new one for each of his skill trees should do wonders. That also and the stat increase he was sure to get after every session of the [13 pulse of the dragon] is completed. At this rate it would take him roughly another month to get to silver rank III. Though only god knows what it''s going to take for a vampire to advance to gold rank or as it was otherwise known the Sky Lord realm. Even though everyone had devolved into using the ore ranks, when the system first changed during the rejuvenation, it introduced the ranks in a different manner. Now it was only made mention as an official title. Rather than address a person based on their rank, like per say calling Lenore ''silver rank III Lenore'' it would instead address her as ''Earth General Lenore''. It was only until recently, around a week or two ago that the system started officially using the ranking system it gave, completely dropping the ore denotations. Even on his own stat page, Rezar had noticed the change. While it wasn''t bad, it would take some time for the people to get used to nit, with some stubbornly just sticking to the ore denotations. But nothing changed, the ranks just got a more fanciful name. if Rezar had to hazard a guess, he would say this was a sort of mini update to reality, the system was still acclimating to the change and seeing how the people reacted and adapted to it; before coming up with better options. Now the ranks have been changed. ? BRONZE RANK => MORTAL SOLDIER ? SILVER RANK => EARTH GENERAL ? GOLD RANK => SKY LORD ? PLATINUM RANK => STAR KING ? DIAMOND RANK => SPACE EMPEROR It was a lot to pay attention too, but even then it wasn''t too bad. The system was faulty in a lot of things, so maybe this was its way of correcting some of them. for example, every new rank achieved you were supposed to get a new trait. But Rezar only had the trait given to him from back when he became bronze ranked, and the ones that came along with him being a king and a vampire. Or basically awarded due to his achievements in the old world. He was almost at the peak of the silver rank, yet he had no trait. It was weird, and It seemed as if the system was rigged against him, but he was still getting stronger so it was no sweat off his back. But be that as it may. He had other things he had to take care of now, and that was mainly the purchase of new skills for his skill trees. The thing every skill chosen could not be changed, they could be evolved and improved upon, grown to great lengths but ultimately it was all permanent and the amount of skills he could gain from a particular skill tree was limited. He could only get five skills from a skill tree, and frankly speaking he would only be able to have five skill trees for all of his life. The only hope he had was for his still unawakened bloodline, and he had a suspicion what that bloodline might actually be. But now was not the time for speculation, now was the time for the choosing of new skills, so it was about time he got down to it. VAMPIRE: ? Compulsion 10sp ? Shift 15sp ? Eye of Illusion 20sp ? Darkness Element Mastery 55sp ? Teleportation 100sp NECROMANCY: ? Curse 3sp ? Skeletal Hand 3sp ? Soul Element Mastery 55sp ? Ghost Shift 25sp ? Soul Scream 45sp ? Miasma 15sp MAGIC: ? Wild Call 5sp ? Block Senses 3sp ? Mana Blast 20sp ? Energy Lock 25sp ? Clone 45sp ? Arcane Rend 100sp DRAGON''S ARTE: ? Rune Mastery 55sp ? Dragon Soul 50sp ? Aura 35sp ? Dragon Scales 75sp ? Dragon Roar 75sp This was all kinds of wrong, looking at the list of prices put down, Rezar could only come to one sudden decision. And that was the fact that all of the skills were looking a lot cheaper than the last time he had to look through them. some seem to be missing from his last foray into the skill shop for new skills. Never the less it seems their prices were cheaper and more stabled than before, making some really good skills affordable and available. He still had two slots in his vampire skill tree, two in his necromancy skill tree, one in his magic skill tree, and three in his dragon''s arte skill tree. His arms master skill tree would update a final skill for the next weapon he decided to focus on, of course he could still but those skills from the skill shop, but at the moment he had no need and no use for a new weapon''s skill. So as it stands he now has to make his choice from what was available, since the last time he checked his stat page his skill points have grown, and at the moment he had 368 skill points to spend on the really good skills he could see here, and then maybe come back for more later on. But first things first, of all the skills his vampire part afforded him, he was going to take Teleportation. This was a skill he has wanted for a long time, and the combination of teleportation and bullet time would make for a couple of instant kill scenarios and situations. He would be left with one slot that he could either fill now, or wait until he gets to gold rank or rather the Sky lord rank to see if there would be any other addition to the list. The darkness element skill was tempting, but one thing at a time. He still had time to narrow his decisions and come back for it later. His next choice would be for his necromancy skill tree, and his choice was a bit hard, but since he couldn''t get it from his vampire skill tree, there was nothing wrong with getting another element mastery. So the soul element mastery was the choice he made there. Now magic had one slot left, more often than not it was responsible for most of Rezar''s attacks as the bulk of his attacking skills came from it. All of his skills were mostly passives that at the moment weren''t high leveled enough to show how powerful they could be, but with it being his final slot Rezar was apprehensive about making any choice, so he chose to pass on it and wait. Once the sky lord rank comes around, hopeful there would be a better surprise. And now it was to his dragon arte skill. These were skills that would be available to all those who were also training in this method. Rezar got the feeling that there were thirteen skills in all, exclusive of the elemental mastery skills that were sure to be unlocked. Though he got the feeling those elements would be mostly wind and water due to the kind of dragon the skill came from. Never the less his choice was a bit hard, he wasn''t so finessed about magic that he would choose rune mastery. He has seen how runes work and he knew it was more of an intellectual path and nor for him. Dragon scales improved defense, to severe amount, however he could heal from anything and he has gotten so used to pain he was probably supposed to have a pain resistance skill tree by now. There wasn''t much to be gained from that skill when he had a body that was practically immortal. Aura was great, really good, but there was something even better, and that was dragon soul. It was a skill that connected him with the spirits of an ancient dragon, making them become one in battle, boosting all of his abilities to an insane level. He took that and then chose to augment it with the dragon roar skill, making it so that he had another avenue to attack. And with that choice that was all he needed. At least for now. All that was left was to see just how good they can be on the battlefield. Chapter 302: The Tenets Of Morte Bianca (III): For All Eternity Every knew skill purchased came with an intrinsic knowledge about how to use them, but ultimately through mastery would only come when you made the skill your own, mastering all of its facets and understanding that which made it what It was. Just as he finished choosing his skills, Rezar ended his current training session with the [13 Pulses of Dragon Arte]. His gains from the skill has been steady so far, with the increase in level ensuring that his stat gain after every session was good. However, there were limits to everything, and Rezar realized or rather learnt that he could only get stat gains from the arte once every week. Apart from that all that would be left to do when practicing would be to get your body into coordination and meditate to calm your mind and body. But be that as it may this arte was invaluable to not just him, but the people in his kingdom. Its true use won''t be seen this early, even if all of its current gains were already extremely good. After another year or maybe two years, practically everyone in Morte Bianca using the arte would have become a powerhouse, and such a thought was scary even to Rezar himself. [Finished One Training Session of The 13 Pulses of Dragon Arte! All Stats +20] Definite gains over a long period of time, add that up to the mastery of your skill tree and the skills it held and you would be drowning in more stat bonuses than you knew what to do with. And in the process you will gain and have the kind of strength many will kill and die for. Rezar Raised his head up and stretched his body, wincing as his bones let out cracking sound before shifting his attention to the stat page in front of him. [Rezar Death Wind] = [Age: 17] = [Class: King] = [Rank: Silver {Earth General} II] [Race: Vampire] = [Bloodline: Storm Dragon// Death God//(HIDDEN)] [Mental (III): 62] = [Magic (IV): 20] = [Constitution (II): 99] = [Strength (III): 65] = [Speed (III): 70] [Traits: War Edge//Black Magician] {Skill Trees} [Vampire: Supernatural Body {Power King} (6)// Bullet Time (4) // Blood Mastery (2)// Teleportation (0) +] [Necromancy: Summon Skeleton (4)// Spectral Skull {Satellite} (6)// Raise Undead (4)// Soul Element Mastery (0) +] [Magic: Magic Mastery (5)// Mana Charge (4)// E.M.P (2)// Mana Blade (4) +] [Arms: Dual Swords (4)//Staffs (4)//Chains (4)//Unarmed (1) +] [Dragon''s Arte: 13 Pulses (3): Water Element Mastery (2)// Wind Element Mastery (2)//Dragon Soul (0)// Dragon Roar (0) +] [Skill Points: 63] One thing didn''t make sense about his stats though; how was it possible that his constitution was the lowest out of all of them. frankly speaking it should have been the highest, but rather it was at the cusp of breaking into its third tier while magic had already gone on into the fourth, and it was funny cause Rezar couldn''t be considered a pure magic fighter. It would be better to call him a hybrid, with magic mainly playing a supporting role in his abilities as he''s wholly focused on Melee. But be that as It may, his magic could contend with the best mages in all of Elysium, and that was saying something. Contrary to perception vampires were not physical creatures, the enhanced strength and speed above what was the norm, even for when they''re in the same power brackets as other people; didn''t make them physical creatures like orcs or giants. On the contrary, vampires were creatures of magic. Their physical attributes aside, they were almost always usually the best blood, Dark, Soul mages and Necromancers. Fierce, swift, strong, resilient. All of the things a traditional mage was not, and all of the things they could ever be. Of course there were limitations, apart from him, on account of him being a primogenitor, basically the first vampire of his own bloodline, he could walk in the sun. not to mention he once had holy energy/ cells within his body. The sun could do next to nothing to him, however every other vampire he has made are bound to age old limitation not being allergic to sunrise at an extreme degree. It''s basically the only way to say that being exposed under sunlight, even if you''re well covered will severely weaken you, dropping your ability down to perhaps 10% or 20 if you''re lucky. And without any sort of covering, you become nothing more that burnt barbecue in seconds that won''t even stretch to a dozen. It was a severe weakness and against vampires, it could be utilized properly and in extremely shocking ways. This was also the reason why the base of the Daughters of the Eclipse was top secret, they didn''t need anyone knowing where the slept and then blowing a hole in the roof over their head during noon and frying them all to kingdom come. To walk in the sun, they always had to be covered, which happily explained Gynaika''s current covered state. "Your Majesty, I can see that you have gotten stronger, the aura of a dragon hangs heavily over you. Though if you ask me I would say that you are more of a lion than a dragon. A dragon''s trait of wasting time and lazily enjoying the wealth of the world is not something that I can attribute to you. Like a lion you''re just on the prowl for what devour and destroy." Rezar blanched as he looked up at the undead storm dragon, it was annoying the way she described him, because Rezar didn''t think it was true, sure he might be a little stubborn and wild on the battlefield, but he couldn''t be as bad as she said he was, "You make it sound like I wake up every morning to bathe in the blood of virgins and new born babies. I don''t prowl. I just mind my own business and trouble comes knocking on my door. I''m an extremely amicable and gentle man. It''s the entire world that wants to prowl all over my den, and once they do that; I''ll be left with no choice but to prowl on their territories and turn it into my hunting ground. so I''m still prowling then. In a manner of speaking, point taken I guess." The dragon chuckled, her deep voice a soft rumbled that seemed to make the magic in the air rumble with power. Rezar wasn''t happy she was getting amused on his expense, but then again what could he do, this was the storm dragon, the most powerful entity in the whole of Morte Bianca at the moment. It was hard to get angry at her when the alternative to pissing her off is to get squashed or wiped out of existence. "I take it the tenets you''re putting in place for your kingdom is coming along just fine. I expect you to put a lot of thought into it, as these would be the rules that would govern not just your people, but also yourself for as long as your kingdom and its civilization will last. And while all things must come to an end one day, these tenets must never be shaken, forgotten or broken, so tell me what you have in mind Young King." It was no secret that Rezar hated being called young king this or having anyone making any sort of reference to his young age. He was past seventeen and would be eighteen in another six months. In a way it was funny, but looking back it seems he has been in this world, or rather have been Rezar deathwind for two and a half years. It''s been one heck of a ride, technically you would say he was two and a half years and not seventeen and a half. But regardless age didn''t really matter in the long run, Elysium was the land of immortals. "Well I plane to make ten main tenets. Which should be the prime rules that govern everything in Morte Bianca. Those ten tenets are the ones that would be strongly engraved in the hearts of everyone in my kingdom. And below each main tenet, I''ll create seven extra tenets, to govern different scenarios. When all that is down I''ll probably make a bunch of laws to cover a whole bunch of shit, so as to avoid any sort of loopholes in the future, but ultimately, the ten tenets of Morte Bianca would be the creed this kingdom would be built and thrive upon." "No wiser words have ever spoken young king, but then again until those tenets have been announced tomorrow, your wisdom would still be called into question, I take it you have sought advice about your tenets from those around you?" The storm dragon asked as she shifted her gaze to Gynaika and Lenore. "If it was just me I would have ran this kingdom into the ground a long time ago, I might be a cold hearted bastard, but even I know that nothing that''s built alone with last or stand the test of life. It''s not me that''s wise, it''s the people around me, and they have all done their best to make sure our home, no matter what. Lasts for all eternity!" Chapter 303: The Tenets Of Morte Bianca (IV): Moment of Weakness Rezar wanted to look for the Muriel elf that had the title of royal tailor and maybe smash his or her head into a wall. It wasn''t as if he didn''t look good, but he was king of a kingdom that worshipped death, white seemed a little gaudy a color to have on., it reminded him of the time when he had gone to see the merchants of the Dustin Crowe Merchant company and ended up fighting their strongest fighter. A fight that till date was still the hardest Rezar has had to go through. Where was that guy anyway? And what was his name again? "Your Majesty. The people are ready for you and the Broadcast has already been set up. All of Morte Bianca now await your presence." Priest said from Behind Rezar as he fidgeted in front of a mirror and cursed his luck and tailor. He felt the urged to rub his hand through his hair, but considering it has been slicked back with gel, and the old goblin stylist besides him have been glaring daggers at him for the past ten minutes, he would just have to make do with sighing and turning to follow priest out of his dressing room. "We''ve come a long way haven''t we Priest? If I''m being honest I would probably have been dead a long time ago if it weren''t for you. But then again, so would you or maybe you would have survived and gone on to do great things. After all you do have the knowledge of the ancients." Rezar said as Priest followed behind him in his own ceremonial black and white priest robes. "I would never get a chance to leave my mark on this world again, my destiny now, is to serve. To serve and raise up new legends and heroes, new kings and villains. But above all, it will be to serve the line of Deathwind until my mind can remember no more. Rezar paused and turned around to look at Priest, for a few seconds he didn''t say anything as the older man slowly raised his head up to look at Rezar. There was so much left on said in both their gazes, but the words couldn''t seem to find themselves, or rather they couldn''t seem to form. "You''ve been a good teacher to me Priest, and with the loss of my real life memories you''re the closest thing I have to a father. Its why I rely on you for help and understanding, and guidance. I would honestly like to know, if there would have been a better way to get to where I am today, after all of the bloodshed and the conflict, and the lives of innocent that stain my hands and my honor. Would there have been a better way to be king, a better way to become as powerful as I am now, without having to have stained my soul so much. I would like answers, but ultimately what I''m trying to say is. Will I regret everything, will a day come when I would look back and regret some of my actions?" Rezar asked. If anyone would ask Priest, he would say this question came out of the blue. It didn''t even have a connection to what he had told Rezar about serving him and his family for all eternity. But then again Rezar was not as simple as most people thought he was. Sure he lacked a few colors of the emotional spectrum, and he probably had a few screws loose in his head. he may or may not be a complete psychopath with a penchant for murder and drinking blood. But to Priest he was just a kid, Rezar''s real world life didn''t last long, while the young man had lost all semblance of the truth due to tampering from both Darkness and the people who forced him in here, the truth; not that it matters anymore anyway was that Rezar was just a fifteen-year-old boy caught in a romantic strife between his elder brother and the son of an extremely powerful family. Before Elysium he was kind, gentle and had so much love and smiles for the world and the people around him. Priest wasn''t sure why the tampering of his memories were necessary; the ensuing result had created a bloodthirsty king that would do anything and go any length to destroy his enemies. But it was in times like this, that a hint of the innocent and sweet boy who loved the world. It''s been a while since he''s been this vulnerable, he needed confirmation, he wanted to be sure that after everything, he was till the good guy. Priest found it funny, Rezar never gave a damn whether the world saw him as good or bad, and above all why would he care about how the world saw him when he never gave a damn if he was good or bad, he just chose to do what would be in his best interest. Rezar was the true definition of a grey area, the black and white of good and bad did not apply to him, but then again Priest knew there was always a time in a man''s life where questions would arise. No one was completely steadfast. "Just keep moving forward your majesty, Elysium has always been bred for blood and war, regardless of what the brochures and the ads say. There is no good and bad in this world, there''s only the strength of your fist and the honor in your heart." Rezar gave a small smile, then he turned around raised his shoulders up high and marched forwards. Priest looked on with a melancholic smile on his own face, and behind it was a grin so sinister it would give many people pause. He had his schemes, but what he didn''t see, was Rezar''s own grin as he moved forwards, without a doubt, the student has learned well from the master. [[[[[[[[[[||]]]]]]]]]] Rezar stood on the balcony of his palace as he looked over the crowd of people that had gathered below him. The lawn of the palace had been ornately decorated and there were a couple of giant metal spheres floating in the air. Those were cameras, utilizing the designs created by Bragan the goblin and working in tandem with the Geo-core that now overlooked much of the city''s facilities. Lenore and Gynaika were already waiting for him on the balcony, and as he walked onto it, Kitagawa, Alistair, Samira, Priest, Jason, Brutus and Screet walked right behind him. His undead had already evolved and undergone a variety of changes with both Brutus and Jason having a more humanoid form, with Brutus no longer being a bull, but a wraith. He was the stuff of nightmares, but still loyal to the one who gave him life. Rezar took a deep breath as he moved his gaze from one end of the sea of people to the other. Apart for the people in front of him, on every settlement across the entirety of Morte Bianca''s territory, there was probably a giant screen in the air, along with a spire made of steel and stone, erected and etched in each settlement. Be they simple settlements, villages, towns or cities, those spires stood there as a permanent record of what was going to happen today. "My people, I think we''ve all know that a day like this would come. A day when we would have finally recognized how much of a family we''ve become, and acknowledge that fact. Morte Bianca has always been more than just a kingdom, more than just a simple collective of multiple races all working together for a common goal. The moment you become a citizen of Morte Bianca, a partaker of the dance of life and death and one who understands that all life must end, so we should cherish the one we have while it lasts. Morte Bianca is family, and you the Biancans that have deemed this land worthy to be your home, are its members. But like all family there are differences, there situations that arise that would warrant astute laws and rules that would keep the peace between us all. Because ultimately we want this family to last, we want our home to always be prosperous, but this is not something that can happen without our efforts, without certain guidelines that we have to live by. Contrary to what the world see''s us as, Morte Bianca and her blessed city of Necron are not without honor. In fact, if there''s anything we have spades of, it''s our honor, out integrity and our truth. And that''s something the world will never be able to take from us. And as such, I am not her to give you rules, or laws or guidelines. I am here to bestow upon you the creeds that you as a people would have to follow and let guide your life. So hear me one and all, for on this momentous day. I shall give you the words of faith, that you may engrave it in your heart, the words of truth so that you can see it in your mind, and the path if honor so that you can follow it to the end. These are tenets of Morte Bianca, keep it close to your heart." Chapter 304: The Tenets Of Morte Bianca (V): The Ten Tenets Rezar paused to look at his people, feeling an electricity in the air, there was anticipation and there was expectation. What did the king have to say, what words of wisdom would he deliver unto them to be the guidelines to which their lives would be ran? What are these creeds, what are these tenets of morte Bianca. Rezar smiled as he pulled out Morte Bianca, what he was about to do next was mostly theatrics and it wasn''t necessary but, Rezar had a flair for the dramatic, that much anyone who knew him could testify about. He ran the blade over his left wrist as his blood poured out in a stream. There were loud gasps and exclamations of shock going around the crowd as what the king had just done had completely caught them off guard. But be that as it may, it was still a wondrous sight to behold as the King''s blood floated into the air, gathering into massive orb, that floated above his head. there was a massive statue erected in the middle of the palaces massive lawn, it was a statue of him, holding Vita gratia in its staff form, both blades flat, with one in between his eyes and the other between his legs. He liked. No better yet it would be more accurate to say he loved that statue. He had on the first clothes he wore when he had spawned back at the stygian mines. It showed him innocent, unblemished and untouched by the things of this world. But then again he was still stained by his reality back on earth, by what he could remember. What he hoped to become and what he would never get a chance to be. He shook his head and smiled, there was so much that had been lost in his journey to the peak, but in the same manner there has been so much gained. Not many can say that they''ve been able to get this far, it has pretty much been an uphill battle and you could say in every conflict he has come close to death more times than he could count. Any mistake would have been the end of him, yet luck and the very obvious fact that he really didn''t like to entertain the idea of giving up or throwing in the towel, his life was precious to him, and that''s all he has been trying to preserve so far. ? ALL LIFE IS SACRED ? BATTLE FOR SURVIVAL NEVER FOR WAR ? HURT NOT THE FUTURE BUT PROTECT IT ? YOUR FAMILY IS YOUR HOME, YOUR HOME IS YOUR FAMILY ? DO NOT FEAR DEATH, FOR SHE IS YOUR ALLY ? ALL LIFE IN MORTE BIANCA IS EQUAL, CITIZEN OR VISITOR ? NO BIANCAN SHALL BE KILLED ON HER GROUNDS ? SHOW NO MERCY TO YOUR ENEMIES, BUT REMEMBER THA MERCY IS NOT A WEAKNESS ? ALL CITIZENS MUST PROTECT EACH OTHER, FOR MORTE BIANCA IS ITS PEOPLE, NOT ITS LANDS ? THERE ARE NO COWARDS IN MORTE BINCA His blood carved those words unto the hand carved blades of vita gratia''s statue. These words would appear on every stone spire across the kingdom, a testament of the wisdom of their king and the guidelines that his people must live by. Come what may, regardless of whatever laws shall be added onto the ten tenets that have been given, for all eternity until the final dusk of this kingdom. Morte Bianca will live by its tenets, for they are the creed of the future. "You all must understand what this world holds, the darkness within it is one no one single one of us can fully comprehend. This is just the beginning, as advanced as we are, we''re still young. There''s still so much for us to learn and understand, so much more battles to be fought, more blood to be spilt, more defeats, more losses and more deaths. I''m not going to be hypocritical and tell you that from now on all will be well and good, that there would be all sunshine and rainbows for every single one of us, because that''s just bullshit! And I; Rezar deathwind am not a guy who spouts BS, much less to the people he is supposed to protect and provide for just as they serve and give him their loyalty. Forget fancy words and clothes, I just spilt my blood to write out the words that you all will live by. My honesty is my greatest gift to you, and I will tell you that this world wants to see Morte Bianca grounded to dust! And why is that? It is because of what we stand for. Because of what we can become or rather what we have become. We''ve stuck it to the man, we''ve shown the whole damn world that we can get to the peak of the mountain without being held back or brought down by the powers that have already been established. This is a story that we''ve all probably heard a thousand times over, but a man born a slave has become a king. And his nation thrives, his people thrive. And it was something we did all on our own, fighting with the sweat the blood in our veins, the years in our eyes and the sweat of our backs. We are Morte Bianca! We fear no one, and we take no quarter and show no mercy. We give respect and honor to whom it is due and we demand it back ten times over. Yes! We''re arrogant, but we are true and honest people. We live and we love, and we fight to survive and grow, no matter the adversity we''ve never given up. We are the perfect people, just as much as we are flawed and different from one another. But there''s no going back for any one of us, we will grow and thrive and become that which we were always meant to be. That which I will make sure we all become. THE ONE TRUE EMPIRE OF ELYSIUM, and no one! WILL STAND IN OUR WAY!" [[[[[[[[[[||]]]]]]]]]] SOMEWHERE FAR TO THE SOUTH! "That''s a pretty speech don''t you think Malik?" the saintess said as looked over a scrying pool, watching Rezar''s speech in real time, but with the aid of magic rather than technology. "I don''t have time for pretty speeches, he has become too big of a threat. Now we have no choice but to have an all-out confrontation with him, especially now that he is in possession of the Necron. You have records of just what sort of damage, what sort of power that book holds. We have to bring him and his precious kingdom to the ground before he learns to master its power." Malik said as he leaned his back against a wooden post in a secluded glade within a forest. "Are you sure all this bravado of yours is to bring an end to him? I understand the amount of power the Necron will bring us, but... this is more than just wanting to get rid of an obstacle. I know your history Malik, something so similar to legend of Heracles. A man blessed by the gods, a paladin of Yahweh... gets tempted by the dark. Malik, the man who was once in line to become the grand paladin of the theocracy, falls in love with a demon, and not just any demon, one that has crawled into our world from the very depths of hell itself. A life that you should have ended, but you nurtured and loved. And then is your love you fell prey to the dark side, going even deeper until you fell into the embrace of death. But you can never serve two masters, the ensuing clash of energy murdered the woman you love, please excuse me; murdered the demon whore you left me for! But it wasn''t just her that died. Your daughter, small, innocent, young and pure, left this world on her fifth birthday. But instead of learning from your mistakes, you couldn''t live in a world where the woman you have fallen for wasn''t in. so you took her soul, oh great [Soul King] of death! And placed her in a vessel, so that she can be close to you. But what other vessel can be available to you? None other than that of the young daughter your betrayal of the holy one killed. And so now! Lenore of Morte Bianca, is the soul of a wife in the body of her own deceased daughter! It''s funny isn''t it, because I cannot begin to imagine how painful this is for you. Her body aged rapidly to make room for the more matured soul that now inhabited her body. So when you look at her what do you see? Your wife?...or is it you sweet little girl. But be that as it may Malik, no matter what or who you see, your punishment is that she or they no longer belong to you or will ever belong to you. They''re now his; they belong to King REZAR DEATHWIND!" "ARGHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Chapter 305: Cornered Animals Rezar paced around his office looking through a couple of reports as Alistair and Priest stood at attention in one corner while Lenore and Gynaika were busy playing chess on a lounge. The women were currently having a discussion about political and military movements down south of the Morte Biancan border, deeper into the Kerwood forest and towards the approaching undead and paladin army of the Yahweh theocracy. Rezar on the other hand was paying attention to the current rate of development Morte Bianca was currently going through, along with the list of projects that were rapidly being completed with the help of the Geo-core. The first inner wall that covers the entirety of the Morte Bianca''s original territory, which included the goblin lands and a bit of the canyons of Toromont. The canyons were walls of their own, but there were certain places that needed to be fortified to make it impossible for anyone to use the canyons as a back route into Morte Bianca. But out of everything currently in development, what gave Rezar the most joy was the [Oculus Satellite]. The materials for the oculus satellite included some off world minerals that didn''t exist on Elysium. But the merchants in Elysium have already reestablished trade routes back to central Elysium where a massive amount of the massive continent have been terraformed. Whole alien civilizations have made Elysium their home, at the cost of the millions if not billions of lives or people that once lived within those areas. Rezar knew that a clash with these aliens was inevitable, but at the moment secret smuggling deals can be made with them to have b better understanding of the resources now available to them. The oculus satellite would be going live in 3 days, and it would give Morte Bianca eyes over the entire Bahrenburg wildlands. The satellite was nanite based, and with a few magical tweaks, it became possible to replicate smaller forms of it in space that would either be stationary, or travel to different points of the planted to collect data from out space and give definite and precise information about certain locations and the resources they held. This was an eye in the sky, a literal eye of god that exposed every secret this bloody world had to hide; and show every opportunity to be exploited and taken advantage of. This was a massive undertaken, which was why it was top secret; news about Morte Bianca''s new walls was spread so that the news about the satellite would be kept closer to heart. But that was just one aspect of what was going on. The army has increased, and a new Falcon division comprising completely of marksmen and archer type skill holders had been created, especially with the addition of the Snow elves. Those dwarves that were more inclined to battle than forging became a part of the newly created Black Tortoise division. Heavily armored infantry gunners and shield bearers. Not to mention that Bragan''s defensive orb design has been perfected and implemented, giving each and every single soldier a unique weapon/ shield of their own that was completely autonomous and would work solely to protect their lives. It was growth unprecedented, and Rezar liked how it was going, but it would take significant training and multiple real life battle experience to truly submerge the new soldiers into the ferocious heat of battled that Biancan soldiers lived for. But he had something bigger to worry about, and that was the reason why they were all gathered here. Though it seemed as if he was the only one who was truly worried about the current state of things. Rezar was currently receiving a report that he quite honestly never thought he would see, and it''s left him feeling rather unsettled. "Are you sure this is accurate? The theocracy and this horde of wild tribes have fallen into bed with each other, creating an alliance just to bring Morte Bianca down?" Rezar stopped pacing and suddenly turned to ask, looking directly at Alistair who had brought the news to him. "The news is a 100% accurate your majesty, especially since it has been vetted by the Dark mother Samira herself. At the moment it is unsure who is more advantageous from this alliance, but all we know for sure is that they have both decided to join hands to bring you down, and slaughter themselves to see who would be taken over what''s left." Alistair explained as he raised the wire rimmed glasses he has started wearing recently. "But seriously though, what did I ever do to this people that''s making them go after me like this? I''ve always tried to mind my business, but it seems no matter how many times I ask this bloody question there doesn''t seem to be an answer. There has been no end to the fights, and frankly speaking, it''s beginning to piss me of. What do you guys suggest we do about this now?" Rezar asked as he circled around an extremely massive desk to seat on the leather seat behind it, throwing his legs on the desk and leaning back as if his kingdom was not about to be besieged from two different directions. "Gynaika and I, much to my horror believe that the best course of action can in fact be split into three forms. A three step plan that can all be carried out at the same time. First of all, it''s about time we put the air force we''ve built to the test, we can carry out a two-step pre-emptive strike. The Theocracy are well k known for their aerial prowess with their combat airships, however they are just a shell of their former glorious self. But be that as it may, the flagship of the empire the Golden Seraph is in good working condition, and it is to the theocracy, was Vita Gratia and the Geo-core is to Morte Bianca. So meeting them in an aerial battle would not be wise, so we go for the wild tribes instead. They''re a rabble of bloodthirsty savages with access to incredibly powerful and ancient shamanic magic, however I doubt there''s much they would be able to do when fire and led comes spewing on them from the sky at speeds their eyes can''t follow. And while that is happening, we can circle around the western coat of the Bahrenburg wildlands, using the great sea to travel south and catch the theocracy off guard in a series of land battles. I hear a division of the undead has chosen a sea route with two necromancers'' in lead trying to turn as much ocean creatures as they can undead. We can cut a swathe of destruction straight for the heart of their army from there, making it a two-step pre-emptive strike. As for the third step to my plan, Gynaika and Priest would be responsible for traveling south and getting the kingdoms and factions in the Kerwood forest between us and the Theocracy under our banner. And I believe while politics is on the table, they should be more than willing to use any means necessary, to get those people on board. And it especially helps us that the Theocracy has been voraciously swallowing up territory without a single care of the lives and kingdoms they''re sending death through. Our offers should be easily accepted, and if it''s not. I''m sure Gynaika can come up with ways to make a couple of forest people bend to the will of Death! This way we fuck with our enemies, and try to make friends and expand the territory of the kingdom, so that the dream of a Biancan Empire will see the light of day. We might be spread too thin, but the bulk of our army will stay back and defend the kingdom from threats, ready to advance when enough damage has been done to both the theocracy and the wild tribes gathering. Have I left anything out Gynaika?" Lenore asked, much to the shock of every other man within the room as it was quite a scary sight to see both women getting along so well, Rezar even broke out into a cold sweat, looking around as if he was about to be attacked. "Not really, it''s just a matter of how to divide whom would handle the tasks. I believe you will handle the wild tribes, you''ve been itching for a chance to fly one of those jets, you should take as much of the Sekeris with you. Those snake people are born pilots, the manufacturing of the Medusas are still in your hands and at your discretion since you''ve kept that secret, but they would be a good deterrence for when Priest and I Travel south. You should also take Bragan the goblin with you, he''s quite a talented engineer and you would need him to keep watch over your vehicles. Tristian will accompany Priest and me, he has a mind for politics that I quite like. The king in his infinite glory would be taken the sea route with a small and elite group, he would be using the Theocracy''s own plot against them to preserve the lives of our soldiers and current number of evolved and awakened undead. I believe your original trio would be sufficient, along with that Venoik you brought from the great plains, a nasty creature if you ask me. The Father of your sons of Black dawn Kitagawa, and that annoying Giant ant of yours Tony! That things have been causing ruckus in the palace ever since you abandoned him in favor of fancy cars, so dear husband do take care of your pet. You have your familiar Valka ready to pop out at any opportune moment, so I believe this would be a breeze for you, especially when you consider the mission our holy lady of death has given you. Lord Husband. You can go hunt the death classes!" Chapter 306: Undercurrents LENORE: Lenore spat at the floor, annoyed at everyone and everything, but it was mostly at Gynaika. The impromptu meeting two days ago, had given everyone a whole bunch of tasks to carry out, but what really pissed Lenore of was Gynaika''s snoopy attitude. The manufacturing of the Medusa Biomechs were supposed to be Morte Bianca''s top secret, no one was supposed to know apart from Lenore, Alistair, Rezar and the engineers involved. How that snake of a vampire queen was able to find out completely baffled her, and there were only two things that could expose such a tidbit of information. It was either she has a mole planted amongst the engineers, or that weak faced Alistair was still licking at her boots. Lenore knew Gynaika had curbed her voracious appetite for power, but of course it wasn''t completely eliminated as she was still making moves, even though Rezar was not seeing it, or he was seeing it and choosing to ignore it because she doesn''t seem to be a threat yet. But Lenore hated things not being done in the open, sure a whole lot of political maneuvering and schemes will have to be carried out in the dark, which was why Gynaika was the one traveling south and not east like Lenore; however, such shady dealings with the people that are supposed to be not just your allies but your family was downright annoying. Lenore had no idea what she was after, but be that as it may she would not let it stop her from doing what she was supposed to do. And when the time came and she proves to be more than Rezar or Morte Bianca can handle or tolerate, Lenore would be the one to take her head off and bathe in her blood. But be that as it may there was a task in front of her that she had to take care of right now, and that was going east and raining fire and lead on the heads of those wild tribe savages. Them being related to the bloody vampire queen Gynaika was a bonus that would make this extremely satisfying. "Your Highness Queen Lenore!" Lenore rolled her eyes as she turned to the young Cadet responsible for delivering her reports within the aviation base. "I''m not queen yet Scott, just a queen in waiting. However, I actually prefer first General Lenore, and you will do well to remember it and address me with the proper title, am I understood!" "Sir! Yes! Sir." "Good. Now tell me Scott, what is it?" Lenore asked as she shifted her gaze to an orc driving a forklift with a couple of boxes on it. "Danse Macabre has been prepped, loaded, fueled and ready for takeoff. The rest of the fleet has also completed her preparations and are ready to begin the first combat mission of Morte Bianca''s air force!" Lenore couldn''t help but chuckle at the young man, his enthusiasm was way more than any other person involved in this project, not even her or Rezar would have been this excited. "very well then Scott, sound the alarm and have all troops in position, we are moving out in 20, and make sure when this is all done you get your ass back to the academy. I better not catch you stowed away on any of my ships or ill have you kicked out of the academy, am I clear." Lenore asked as she marched forwards not even waiting for him to reply as he affirmed her orders and went on to relay it. It was time for Lenore to take to the skies. [[[[[[[[[[||]]]]]]]]]] The construction of roads within Morte Bianca and too its neighboring kingdoms and territories hadn''t expanded southwards into the Kerwood forest. This part of Elysium was still as wild and as untamed as it used to be before the Rejuvenation. It was why they had to ride through the forest on Forest wolves, rather than driving through it in cars. Flying was also out of the question as such an appearance would be completely and totally unexpected for the people they were going to meet. Gynaika had much on her mind as she rode towards their first destination, a trio of wood elf towns that were in a marriage alliance with an underground kingdom of dark elves. She had sent some messages ahead saying she would be meeting both parties at the border the shared with Morte Bianca, or better yet it wasn''t to say it was a border, bu8t the wide stretch of forest between all three destinations that have become infested with bandits and criminal orcs. It wasn''t a safe place to be, but then again Gynaika was not a safe person to be around, she was fully and amply prepared for this journey. "why did you think it necessary that I had to come along? I was away from you and your bloody mind tricks, free to live my life anyway I saw fit, and then you saw if feat to drag me into the cesspool of unpredictability and death you Biancans cherish so much." Tristian complained, as he looked to the left, his Hobgoblin features seemingly blending in with the green of the forest. "You say you Biancans like you are not a part of us Tristian, such a train of thought will get you killed." Gynaika said as she shifted her weight on the Necrotic forest wolf, getting mo0re comfortable as the giant wolf trudged through the forest. "I am not afraid of death; neither am I afraid of you or your bloody husband!" *Hissssss!!* Lenore had to raise her hands to prevent the contingent of vampires and soldiers from ripping Tristian into pieces. Everything he has just said could and would be considered high treason, to speak ill of the king in such a manner was grounds for his execution; Rezar was not just feared and loved, he was also wholly worshiped by his people. And it was to such a fanatical fervor that Gynaika sometimes was a little too scared to make moves for fear of having her throat slit by her own pawns who see Rezar as a Savior. "You should be careful with your words Tristian, I still have use for you, which is why you are alive, and it is the reason ''He'' has left you alive. If not, by now you would be quite a few feet in the ground, and that pregnant wife of yours would have to be subjected to the torture of me ripping her stomach open and retrieving the baby in it, before throwing it into a waiting fire, so please I beg you. don''t fucking cross me, or speak ill of my King Husband." Tristian''s eyes widened as Gynaika called his bluff, sure he was prepared to die for his words. But these way his family will be safe. And one way or the other, he would find his way back to them in his next life, and not even the complete erasure of his memories will stop him. But now Gynaika was well aware of his secret, and beyond that she was willing to use it to threaten him. He was no fool, all this time he has mostly been under her thrall and control, so without a shadow of a doubt he knew she meant each and every single word she had just spoken. Morte Bianca might be a new kingdom, but a rotten underbelly has already taken form, and she was the at the helm of the cancer. Gynaika was not a woman searching for power for a definite or just cause, she was sick! An addict. She had no control and she wanted everything, even when she''s willing to fully submit to Rezar. Just being near her was horrifying, and now even death wouldn''t set him free from her grasp. "You should be thankful I''m actually fond of you, if I wasn''t you would either be dead already, as the numerous assassination attempt from your old employers would have ended you a long time ago. I do admit watching wave after wave of them try to kill you has been ultimately exciting and entertaining, which was why I let you live. That and of course your mind for politics and diplomacy, when it comes to that, there''s no one better that I''d rather have by my side." Tristian sighed as he shook his head, clenching the reigns of the Necrotic forest wolf a little tighter than normal and prompting a cry from the creature. He looked up to Gynaika with tear filled eyes and asked. "Will I ever be free of you, will you let me go to just live my life and be happy. I''ve paid the price ten times over for going against Rezar Deathwind, so why must you both torture me so." Gynaika burst out laughing, her sultry and deep voice reverberating through the forest and causing a shudder to wrack Tristian''s body. "You''re inconsequential to him, you''re a fly and he is the wind that sustains the world. He has no quarrel with you, no use at all for you. Which is why he''s not the one torturing you. And let me just be honest with you Tristian, until I say it''s enough, your sins will not be absolved, and you will continue to serve at my feet until I decide to let you go, now that my sweet goblin King, is torture." Chapter 307: Interitus And Cleobis (I) Rezar and Roran were both hanging off the side of the small boat/ship that had been repurposed as their stealth vessel for their journey southwards. The Venoik was sea sick, and strangely enough so too was the King of Morte Bianca. Rezar shook his head as he felt a steely grasp on his shoulder, he turned and looked up to see Quentin, his first living-undead-doom knight-something. Rezar wasn''t exactly sure what and how to categorize Quentin as he was still alive when Rezar decided use his raise undead skill on him. "it will pass soon master, I believe we should be disembarking of the western shores of the Hion wetlands, a small contingent of undead are gathered there, but I don''t think it''s anything we would be unable to handle." The only reply Rezar was able to give the doom knight was a small nod of his head. he was absolutely wasted, or better yet he was absolutely nauseous, and it does not seem to be going away. As opposed to Lenore and Gynaika who left Morte Bianca in as much style as their current missions could handle, they had to slink away in the middle of the night like a couple of thieves. He was extremely annoyed by it, the way he saw it, it was the king who was supposed to be flying to the location of his enemies in a blaze of glory. But now he is the one expected to apply guerilla tactics in this fight. And frankly speaking this was not something he was actually fond of doing, it was not his style to rush behind his enemy. His style has always been to rush straight through his enemies, cutting them down as he went ahead to make rivers of blood flow down a mountain of corpses, but now *Blerruuurrgghhhhhhh!" "That doesn''t feel good, it doesn''t feel good at all. The last time he was on a ship he was busy taking heads off, and the ship wasn''t really moving at that point so it wasn''t so obvious that he a motion sickness that could be considered extremely chronic. Jason and Brutus looked on, extremely worried for their master while Screet lounged on the crow''s nest with a bored look on his face, seemingly carefree and unbothered by Rezar''s current state. Roran was still slumped over the side of the ship, while Quentin moved about to make sure the captain and the crew were doing their jobs well. For the first time since he fell into service of his King, Kitagawa was left behind to make sure Morte Bianca was safe in its entirety. With all three rulers gone, he, Alistair and Samira were the ones with the largest authority to look after the kingdom. Besides that, Kitagawa used to be the leader of his Village before they were taken over by NPC''S, so being a regent for a little while shouldn''t be too bad, it was just like ruling his previous village, only on a much a larger and still expanding scale. Roran turned to Rezar and asked. "Why are we here? Your majesty?" Rezar looked back at him just as miserable as he answered back. "I wish I knew Roran." "Land Ho!" That was the most beautiful thing Rezar had ever heard in his life, the idea that land was close completely eliminated his entire Nausea in seconds, or at the very least within his mind as abruptly stood up and was attacked with a wave of vertigo and he had to quickly return to hanging over the railings like a fish that had been hanged out to dry. He hiccupped as he raised his head and noticed a shore of dark sand, with it turning is a muddy marshland further inside that was currently being patrolled by an army of undead, with no small amount of them being actually giants, summoned wraiths and ghosts and all bunch of creepy nasties that goes bump in the night. "I thought we were hunting Necromancers and not Halloween cosplayers?" Roran asked, only for Rezar to raise his hands up as if to say ''I don''t know what''s going on don''t ask me'' there was a dynamic between this two that was completely unlike anything he shared with his other subordinates. They were more life friends as Rezar''s king title have never been a barrier in their interaction with each other, which was a far cry of how terrified Roran was of Rezar when they first met, but since then they''ve both bonded over the one true trait that no one else in Bianca seems to share with them. their almost uncontrollable curiosity, and the fact that they were drawn to the same things. "I''m really not in the mood for a fight right now, why do they have to be this close to the shores, arghhhh!" Rezar groaned out loud in frustration much to the chagrin and amusement of his other ''unshaken'' subordinates. "Just think of it as an exercise, your Nausea will probably disappear after a few seconds of killing people that have already been killed, making them deader than dead." Roran advised as he gave a bright smile in the process to Rezar, his monstrous shark like teeth, causing a shudder to go through the body of his king. "Wyvern!!" one of the sailors responsible for looking after the ship screamed out loud as a shadow appeared over the ship, before crashing down on top of it. There was a circular purple dome that popped up to cover the area where Rezar was, but the weight of the wyvern Pushed both the dome like barrier and the center of the ship into itself as it smashed under the weight of what Rezar was sure was the biggest wyvern he had ever seen. But he didn''t have time to look at wyvern as he soon found himself underwater, with the loud screech of the wyvern causing even the cold sea water around them to vibrate. The coldness of the water was an obvious wake up call, this time his Nausea really flew to the back of his mind as Rezar grabbed a flailing Roran and shot upwards, his body parting the sea around his body as the blasted out of the sea, catching the massive undead wyvern off guard with shock as Rezar flung the biological poison distilling machine onto the shore and threw a well-placed punch as the jaw of the wyvern at the same time. *Thud! * *Craaaassssssssh! * The wyvern completely flipped over itself as it was blasted backwards, it''s body coasting over the sea like a pebble that had just been skipped. Rezar only hovered in the air of a few moments before gravity began to carry out its job, however another purple barrier appeared beneath his feet as Screet came out of the water on a similar barrier, his undead eyes glowing an eerie purple. This was one of his recently trained and acquired skill trees: that of a barrier mage, he could do some really neat tricks. "What about the others?" Rezar asked as he dragged his hair backwards from his face, slicking it backwards and using all of the moisture in it to create a band of water that held it in place, while he turned an annoyed look to the place where the wyvern had dropped into the ocean. "they will be up shortly Master." Screet Promptly replied as he turned to face his creator, while Rezar pulled oh the simple cotton shirt he was wearing, Vita Gratia''s holster hanging behind his waist this time. "And the Sailors?" Rezar asked his cracked his neck from left to right and stretched a bit to get his muscles fluid and moving for the fight that was to come. "That''s why the others are not up yet, they''re securing the sailors and their supplies and seeing what they can salvage from the ship in case our stay is a little prolonged than planned." *Roooooaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!!* *BOOM! * The wyvern blasted out of ocean from below them, hoping to catch them both off guard as it opened jaws that could swallow an entire fuel truck with space to spare. This wyvern was almost as big if not a bit bigger than a dragon, but unfortunately its plan to ambush them was stopped before it came to fruition as another massive barrier appeared beneath its opened jaws. It smashed its open mouth into the barrier, losing a few teeth in the process, prompting a laugh from Rezar as the wyvern let out a puppy like whine and fell back into the ocean most probably dazed from the hit. "I don''t see anything funny about our current situation Master, I would respectfully suggest you take this seriously and have Brutus retrieve your armor as you can get hurt." Rezar waved his hand at Screet as if to overlook his worries, before he bent down to look into the ocean below him, his gaze on the wyvern that was currently trying to swim away from their current vicinity. Screet shook his head as he gave a silent prayer for the wyvern, because exposed and dancing within Rezar''s eyes was a look he had has come to know either meant disaster for his target or a great boon if he was in a good mood and you just happen to not be his enemy. It was a look of abject fascination, and Screet knew better than to stand in his way. Chapter 308: Dark Elves (I) Gynaika took a deep breath as they made their way past a group of really dense and clustered trees that obscured the way forwards. She had to squint a bit as it seemed as if they had just gone past or rather came out of a shelter after being in it for an extended period of time. The sun peaked down from the crown of multiple ancient trees that stretched upwards to serve as a natural domed canopy for this wood elf village. She found it annoying that she had to make her way here when she had agreed to have them meet her at the border between the three territories, and even worse was the fact that they were making her walk around in broad fucking daylight! Any wrong move and she would end up pretty much fired to a crisp and very much dead. But be that as it may she couldn''t help but appreciate what she was seeing, calling this place a village was a gross understatement as what she was seeing was without a doubt one of the most unique and beautiful sights in all of Elysium. The giant trees who''s canopy she had notices, were a lot bigger than she imagined, being extremely broad at the base, narrow at the middle before spreading out to have a shape similar to an hour glass before stretching out into massive branches that were carved to look like walkways and staircases to other similar trees that bordered themselves in a circle. There were small buildings attached to the trees from their roots up to their massive bodies. Homes built deep into it, and evenly spread apart from each other. Their roofs seemed to made from straw that was interwoven with vines that had a growth of extremely beautiful and exotic flowers. There was an extremely refreshing scent in the air, and a sense of calmness that lulled her into a false sense of security. Their streets were clean, and the people she saw were the very epitome and modicum of perfection. But that was what could be gleaned from the surface, elves were always streamlined and sleek. Their bodies could never be described as bulky in any manner or form, and these elves were just as streamlined as every other elf in existence. their forest green eyes and dark green hair seemed to stretch to the middle of their back and had tiny buds of flowers growing from it. They had extremely bright smiles, one that was extremely welcoming, smiles that seemed all too eager. Gynaika was no stranger to hidden smiles, she was the first of Rezar''s queen, and even if there hasn''t been an official coronation she knew what sort of politics position she held. She was right at the top of the ladder, so without a doubt she knew just what she was dealing with right now. These weren''t just fake smiles used for political manipulation, these smiles were too fake and unbalanced for that. These smiles were forced, and from their forced smile she noticed everything else that was wrong with the wood elf city, because it was way too big to be a town or village. The blood at the edge of the robes of one of the wood elves welcoming them, the exposure of a gaunt neck and exposed collarbone from the dree of another wood elf. Their clasped hands were held a little too tight, and the shadows around the city was a little too thick for daytime, not with the sun shining this brightly. Gynaika turned with a smile as if to look at her entourage of soldiers and noticed that the path they just used to get here had even thicker shadows behind them. she turned back with a mocking smirk on her face and noticed the glistening eyes on the face of one of the wood elves in front of her. She was afraid, they all were. The city was practically empty, and one very obvious fact to be noticed was the fact that of the five wood elves in front of her, none of them were men. Gynaika smiled and then closed her eyes, taking a deep breath as all of the light in the world seemed to absorbed into her form. For a second no one knew what she was doing, and the phenomenon only lasted for a fraction of a second, but that second was enough for Gynaika to cast a divination. She peeked into the recording of the universe, manipulating the stream of time to give her insight into what had happened in this wood elf city in the past weeks to seeing what was going on in this very moment. And it only took a second. Her power was without equal, in time there would probably be no secret she couldn''t find, no danger she couldn''t foresee, and of course all of these powers of divination was packed tightly into the body of a vampire. Supreme speed, supreme strength, and supreme power of regeneration. A peak creature without equal, the apex predators of apex predators. She smiled and bowed with a flourish as she decided to keep the charade going, but given that she just made an unknown move, there was suspicion in the air. But even with that, the people following her seemed incredibly relaxed, as if they hadn''t noticed anything at all. But most of them were vampires. To not notice anything wrong with the location they suddenly found themselves would be. Impossible. "You have a beautiful city here, but why did you renege on our deal to meet in the forest and sundown, I''m pretty sure you know Morte Bianca is not the kind of entity you would play games with. So what brought up such a change?" Gynaika asked, the cheerful smile on her face fading away as she brought the full brunt of her glare upon them. She noticed the way the wood elf in the lead shook, but that was expected. Lenore''s ability with compulsion was such that she could make you afraid, relaxed, happy, or angry with just her words. And she didn''t have to use the skill properly. She was being intimidating and they could all feel it, though some more than others as quite a few of them lost their composure. Gynaika did notice something though, they were afraid of her, and this was not just what she was compelling, but genuine fear, they feared what she was, because they knew just what the vampires of Morte Bianca were capable of. "We apologize Queen in waiting Gynaika. It was never our intention to seem or sound disrespectful. But the idea of our leaders going into the forest at night to meet with a vampire and other sorts of undead did not sit well with our people. So we thought it best to invite you here in broad daylight where our safety could be assured, but even with that we decided to let you in to our city whose location is well hidden. We''ve had a few trades with Morte Bianca, bringing about information of our existence to the world. So even if you know our general location, it would be impossible to find out where we were located, given how well hidden we all are. We let you here in good faith, but I understand how this might seem, so we really are sincere about our apology and will do everything in our power to make up for it." The designated spokesperson of this group of wood elves said to Gynaika as she raised her eyebrow. Morte Bianca already knew the location of this city, it was impossible not to. Not when they had satellites that had canvassed and mapped the entirety of Morte Bianca''s territories and quite a few of their neighbors too. Her kingdom had more information about their location than they even had about it themselves, but there was no harm in letting the tree huggers think they were completely safe and secure a little longer, there was a time for everything either way. "I don''t need you to make up for it, I just want to get this over with. However, some things just don''t make sense. I was under your impression that your leader was a male by the name of Darin. So why isn''t he the one welcoming me, he should be here so that we can begin our talks right away." Gynaika said as she brought the full brunt of her glare on the poor wood elf. "We''re sorry about that, but the chief is at the city square making preparations for your arrival. It''s at a location that''s directly under the center of the great trees canopy, so we need to make it sun proof for your visit. There''s nothing to worry about as your talks will be smooth and undisturbed." "Is that so? I take it that the dark elves will be joining us then?" it was as if a bomb had exploded in the mind of the wood elf as she took a step back and started stammering. "D-dar- Dar-k E-elves?" but the only reply she got was a smile from Gynaika as the shadows within the trees and the city began to move, blood was about to be spilt. Chapter 309: The First Tribe (I) Danse Macabre; high end carrier Warcraft and the unofficial flagship of the first General of Morte Bianca. She was a sheer two-kilometer-long and was built and improved from a blueprint Rezar had received as a reward during the old world. It had two hundred small guns capable of firing seven-inch bullet shells at 10 rounds per second. It had five death cannons that fire concentrated laser beams of death energy, and one main particle mana cannon that could in theory wipe out half a city as large as Necron in seconds. This was a machine made for destruction and death, and apart from the crew it carried, which mainly comprised of trained airmen and women, it also served as a transport for fifty assault airships or as they were now called, speed cruisers. Being the first general meant that all of the military answered to her. She was the supreme head of the military while they were a few other generals that were responsible for handling the different divisions. Kitagawa''s sister herself was actually in charge of the special mounted Calvary/infantry division called Samurais. She was attached to Lenore at the hip and the two had quite a good relationship, which was why she was also here with Lenore. They had no plan to go down and take the fight to the wild tribes, they would keep their distance and make sure to bombard them enough that they would have second thoughts about messing with Morte Bianca. Even if this was a preemptive strike, and they were dealing with enemies that had decided to stand against Morte Bianca, they knew that they weren''t all dealing with soldiers. There were children, mothers, teenagers, civilians tightly wound with those group of people. Which was why even though it was not an apart of the plan, Lenore was planning on doing a little diplomacy of her own. She would give them a chance, so that they wouldn''t force her hands. Never the less from this day onwards the skies belonged to Morte Bianca, and soon enough she knew the seas would belong to them also, before they make their way for the stars. While a lot of the leaders with ambition had visions of grandeur about making the whole of Elysium their playground, Rezar knew it would never be possible for there to be one supreme power. Elysium was just too big, so big that even earth could only be considered a speck or tiny satellite compared to the planet. It would take a significant amount of power and years for an empire like that to come into fruition. And an empire of that size would have too many problems, and the conflicts will never end because there would too many places for your enemies to hide and you definitely can pleas or take care of everyone when you are literally taking care of everyone. So the plan was to carve out a place for themselves, a place that could be easily managed and would become a bastion of prosperity and power for ages to come. An empire that could be properly governed and would prosper even if there was a problem of corruption to it. Which was why Rezar had plans of conquering Bahrenburg, and not just its expansive wildlands, but also its lands beyond the canyons of Toromont, to the people whom owned stygian mines that she had to look after, to people who still owned slaves and trampled on the rights of people. That was a part of their plan that she was actually looking forward to the most, but for now they would just focus on being the most supreme power in Bahrenburg. But Lenore knew an empire built on blood would also fall and choke on its own blood. Rezar knew this, so those Gynaika and her too. So why force was required in some places, Lenore knew there were some cases where she had to let diplomacy lead the way. And this was an attempt on her part to prove that she was more than just the fearsome general that would rain blood and destruction at the behest and command of her husband and king. She could be just as good at diplomacy as Gynaika, even if her own brand would be obviously decidedly different from what that blood sucking leech could come up with. "First General Lenore! We have just gone past the great plains and are within the borders of the great desert. According to our reports the wild tribe horde is gathered around an oasis 20 kilometers from here. And based on flight speed and weather patterns, we should be there in 3 minutes at our current speed. Should we give the order to prepare for battle?" "A beast woman, some young rabbit kin with resplendent pink hair spoke up. She was the chief Aviator of the Danse Macabre, and it was a position she had fou7ghytn and clawed for with talents that surpassed others even more qualified than she was. The sekeris were space farers, and there were avians that as beast people were more suited to understanding how to navigate the skies. But Mina here had worked hard to get where she was today. Lenore was i9mpressed by her dedication and hard work, which was why she had chosen the Rabbit kin. Lenore was also trying to groom her to be the commander of the air force, as that was a position that Lenore was temporarily filling until she has found a suitable replacement. Not to mention despite being a rabbit kin, Mina was extremely ruthless, especially to her competitors and enemies. Lenore had not chosen her out of appreciation for her work ethics, she was chosen for her convictions and the sheer fact that she was a badass with guns and the Egyptian sabre, aka a Khophesh. One of the weapons used by the king himself. the cute and innocent looking rabbit woman was dangerous, and that was what Lenore liked the most about her. "Prepare the weapons, but have every combatant on standby. I will like to first try a diplomatic approach, even though we came here for blood. We have to consider the lives of the civilians and innocents down there. So let''s get them a chance to stand down and surrender, or at the very least a chance to get into diplomatic talks with them. should they prove stubborn, then we will burn them off the face of Elysium and pray for their lost souls." And with that said Lenore turned her head and looked forward out of the control deck of the Danse Macabre, clouds spread out in front of her, and below here, an endless expanse of light golden sands. [[[[[[[[[||]]]]]]]]]] It was a somewhat Tranquil day within the First Tribe. Their nomadic pilgrimage around the Bahrenburg wildlands had taken them from the far south of the Ker wood forest, at a place many have taken to calling the end of the world, to the east of the great deserts, moving in a roundabout way to avoid conflict with other territories, while their numbers grew. At first it started with one tribe being led by a man so charismatic and powerful that it was as if the spirits of the ancestors had come down and possessed him, giving him great power. Knowledge of him spread to the other tribes, and for the first time since the origin, all of the wild tribes were gathered in one place, and an ancient boon of unity was bestowed upon them. the wild tribes had a king, and with a king it meant they could contend with others for the wildlands, for their home. It was common knowledge that nobody knew the wildlands better than the wild tribes, heck there was a reason why it was called the wild lands after the wild tribes. Before people came down here to create civilization, they had roamed its expanse, slayed its monsters and had been fed of its land. It belonged to them, and now they had a chance to truly claim it and kick everyone else who isn''t supposed to be here off it. This was a belief that they all had unanimously, and it was a conviction they were prepared to die for, every single one of them. lately there has been visitors coming to make alliances with the wild tribe. But the First Tribe had no need for this invaders, they might need the help of the invaders, but when everything is all said and done, the First Tribe will not hesitate to kick them all off their land. It was a good day, and the future was looking up for every single one of them. there was war and blood on the horizon, but above all there was also prosperity, abundance and growth, however. The horizon began to darken, as an airship of massive proportions appeared, casting an ominous shadow over the soon to be setting sun. and it wasn''t along as there were three other such ships along with smaller one following behind it. And for the first time since the First tribe became a whole again, they felt fear... death had coming knocking on their door. Chapter 310: Interitus And Cleobis (II) Rezar leaped back into the water, with Screet shaking his head at that. they were at least 2 kilometers away from the shore, yet their vessel had been sunk, but be that as it may be getting to dry land was not a problem. Rezar plunged into the cold embrace of the sea, the figure of the massive wyvern could be seen as it surged through the waves, heading in the direction of the shore in an attempt to get away from Screet and Rezar. But there was no way he was letting it get away, as Rezar''s form seemed to tense, and he shot forwards like a torpedo under water. The wyvern suddenly felt cold, like a warning of impending doom rapidly approaching from behind it as death and destruction seemed to be catching up on it. The wyvern turned its head to look behind it; it immediately widened its undead eyes when it saw Rezar''s rapidly approaching figure. It felt its tail fin stiffen as it flapped its wings within the ocean as it rushed forwards, eager to get away from Rezar and the demonic grin on his face. Rezar was somewhat intrigued by this wyvern, and not just because of its incredibly large size, but because it was made from a combination of corpses of different creatures, completely stitched together. The wyvern surged out of the ocean, landing on the shores of the Hion wetlands, it was about to rush forwards when it felt a warm touch on its dead tail. The wyvern let out a squawk of protest as the other undead on the wetlands noticed it being dragged backwards. The wyvern dug it''s claws into the ground, struggling with all of its power to not get dragged back to what he considered unbeatable monsters, but there was no way it was escaping the grasp that now held on tightly to it. Rezar planted his feet deeply into the ground, his legs sinking in all up until his knees due to the current wet terrain. He twisted his body as he pulled hard, hoping to lift the wyvern over his head and send it crashing into the ocean behind him. But instead the tail of the wyvern got pulled off, as a stream of black coagulated blood poured out in tandem with ear piercing roar the wyvern released. The tail in his hand immediately turned to dust as, flecks of skin and parts of bodies came apart from it, before fading and being blown away by the wind. Rezar opened his eyes wide as the suspicion about what made this wyvern seemed to settle in. it was extremely horrifying and scary, and completely unlike anything he has ever seen or expected. This kind of necromantic magic left him feeling sick to his stomach. If this was the work of a necromancer or some other death class holder, Rezar wasn''t exactly sure who or why, but be that as it may he had a date with some really twisted and perverted death class holder. The wyvern seemed to be made from the stitched together body part of a lot of living beings. The curveball to that was that they were all sentient races, and none of them were animals or just parts of animals or monsters for that matter. And while he just got a skill to govern it, he could feel souls, hundreds of them all stitched underneath the patched skin of the undead wyvern. To say he was angry was an understatement, no wonder death wanted to put an end to this current generation of death class holders...they were too unhinged. The wyvern turned, looking behind at Rezar with a fearful look on its face, but that was not enough to stop Rezar as he pulled out Vita Gratia, separating both blades as he used Mana charge to begin charging his skills. The wyvern could feel an aura wafting off of him, it was something that with its recently awakened consciousness, it could feel in every facet of the world. It really wished that at this very moment it''s master was here to save it from what it knew would most definitely be a gruesome death. But Rezar had no intention of letting this wyvern go without completely destroying it, bit by bit. [Mana Blade] A massive sword beam flashed out from both blades of Vita Gratia, slicing into the undead wyvern, and stretching forwards for another 20 meters before dissipating, after decimating all of the other undead in its pathway. It was an extremely crazy move and it had caught quite a few spectating people off guard. And at this point it had very well alerted those who were in charge of this undead army about the state of the current situation. And no one felt it more than the death class holder who the wyvern belonged to. He could feel his infernal creature of death and flesh become utterly destroyed, it''s consciousness also burnt into nothingness. It was as if Rezar had lit up a beacon to announce to the entire Hion wetlands that he had arrived, and that beacon was received loud and clear. Rezar sheathed both blades as whatever was left of the wyvern turned to dust and began to evaporate, the wind taking what was left of the residues with it, hopefully to a better place where all of these lost lives will find peace. "That would draw too much attention master, are you sure that was a good idea?" Screet asked as he came closer, the rest of the sailors making their way onto the shore with the help of Quentin, Jason and Brutus. As for Roran, the venoik was hunched over in one corner heaving and emptying the contents of his stomach over a small patch of dry land. And given how said land started smoking and turning I to a king of purplish slag, Rezar envisioned it would be wise for everyone else to keep a fair distance away from the venoik, especially now when he wasn''t exactly in complete control of his facilities. "who the fuck does you guys think you''re doing! This land is the private property of the theocracy, leave before we visit the wrath of the holy one upon you!" A well dressed and moderately armored priest ran out towards them with a Mace and a shield, his boots made squelch like sounds as he ran towards them while the rest of the undead turned slowly towards Rezar''s direction. Rezar turned to Screet and then back to Quentin, hoping to see if anyone else was as amused by the words of this young priest as he was, but they all had on the most stoic of faces, making Rezar grumble under his breath about hardass undead warriors without a sense of humor. "So is it holy to play around with a bunch of undead, to actually have them as an army? Wow I must say the theocracy is quite broad in the scope of things it accepts as holy." Rezar mocked and turned to see if there was anyone who would laugh with him again, but just like the first time the results were still the same. Rezar had to resist the urge to let out a groan of frustration as the priest started glowing. "I warn you, I''m imbued with a fo0rce of holiness to banish evil, but it will also destroy bandits such as yourself, now Leave!" There was a shockwave released from the body of the priest, however all it did was slightly rustle the small patches of vegetation within the wetlands, and ruffled a bit of Rezar and his entourage clothes'' and armor. The priest looked a bit shocked that did not even seem to blink or move a muscle from his display of power, for what it was worth, Rezar gave him an 8 for effort and the whole wizard ''you shall not pass'' vibe he had going on. But it was weird, there was supposed to be a little bit mo0re resistance than what he was facing he could see at least two thousand undead here, yet they were moving dully and looking ahead dumbly like they had no aim or direction. And as far as undead go, this would only be possible if their master and creator was nowhere in the immediate vicinity to give them orders. But Rezar was sure they''ll be here soon, but it wasn''t quite understandable why they weren''t close to their army of the dead. "I said you should leave!" the priest shouted again, this time smashing his mace into onto his small shield and releasing a golden wave of energy that had a stronger breeze than the last one. It was somewhat refreshing and caused something to stir within the heart of Rezar, but be that as it may he couldn''t help himself as he burst out laughing, the look on the face of the priest making this moment even more worth it. "Oh that''s so cute well enough jokes. Go tell whoever the fuck is in charge here that King Rezar of Morte Bianca has come for a visit, we should have some tea. Or maybe blood?" Rezar finished with a sinister smile as his fangs slowly grew out, and the only reply he could get from the priest was. "Oh fuck!" Chapter 311: Dark Elves (II) Gynaika had a bored look on her face as the dark elves all came out of their shadows, or better yet the unnatural shadows that have been hanging around the wood elf city. Herself and Tristian excluded they had 15 other vampires, three kitsunes and seven orcs that are a part of the samurai division. The vampire alone was more than enough to tear everyone here apart, and the sun itself would be totally unable to hold them back. Gynaika looked around, before her gaze fell upon a woman with really a ''generous'' figure. But being female aside, her purple skin, elongated ears and silver hair showed that she was a dark elf. It took another moment of looking around, but Gynaika noticed that everyone that had gathered around them were actually all females. Wait! Gynaika shifted her attention back to the still extremely scared wood elves and once again took notice of the fact that they were all women. Earlier reports of the wood elf city had already said that there was a good ratio of male to female in their population with the males being a bit more than the females. But there wasn''t much information about the dark elves, the only thing that was known about them was that they were neighbors. But she had a suspicion, but one that she really wasn''t so sure of. but funny as it sounds, it seems that the reason why she hasn''t seen any males and why the city seems so empty is because the dark elves had probably snatched them all up. And with how demure the wood elves females seemed, it wouldn''t be too farfetched to say that their men were unable to put up a fight. It was as wild as it was crazy, but with each second that passed, it was turning out to be more and more true. "Surrender your men and leave! Or we will be forced to carve out parts from your bodies." Gynaika was somewhat worried, was it that these dark elves didn''t know who she was, or just didn''t give a damn about which power they were fucking with. Sure the only connection they had with the dark elves had been by communication sent by the wood elves, but if the wood elves were already under the thumbs of the dark elves by this much, they probably underestimated just how capable Morte Bianca was when they were told about them from the subjugated wood elves. But all this was just speculation on her part, there could actually be a little bit more to this than what was obviously being seen, perhaps she would run a divination over this situation later on, just after she''s dealt with this over 100 bandits of female dark elves that are trying to steal all the men in her delegation. "Well why don''t I make a better offer to you then, I''m pretty sure it would be more beneficial to you in the long run." Gynaika said as she moved with a flourish towards the obvious leader of the dark elves. "And makes you think, you''re worthy of making deals with us, and even then, do you think you have what we need, huh!" the dark elf woman said with a sneer on her above average face, at least to Gynaika''s standards anyway. "How about you surrender yourself to me, and I''ll make sure; or rather I will take you to a place where you can have all the men you want ten times over. And you will have them ready and willing to take care of your ''NEEDS'', so what do you say?" Gynaika felt that she had spoken quite well, these dark elves seemed as if they were incredibly simple and could be easily reasoned with or manipulated. But then again it seemed as if their problem was a lack of satisfaction due to a scarcity of the male counterpart. Gynaika could think about thousand s of men who would be all too willing to dive into a crowd of dark Elvin women in need of some proper Loving. But contrary to the look of appreciation she expected from them, they all busted out into laughter. Gynaika was stumped and couldn''t seem to make heads of tails of what was currently going on, did she say something wrong to this grey and purple skinned voluptuous and slim fit women. "What would we do with stinking filthy men! Hahhahhahaha you must be retarded. What pleasure? If we need pleasure no one can give it to us better than our fellow sisters, there are no better lovers than we females. As for men, it would be nothing short of blasphemous if they bring that ugly dangly thing in between their legs close to our most sacred fruit much less them actually inserting into our VALEEY OF HONEY! That''s BLASPHEMY!" Gynaika was totally and completely stumped, so much so that she couldn''t form a coherent word as she stammered the words valley of honey in shock at what the dark elf had just screamed out. There was such fire and frantic fervor in her eyes that Gynaika felt a little worried, and underneath all that she could also see a righteous rage ready to be unleashed on herself due to what she had just said. But honestly speaking what was wrong with she just said, she thought they were kidnapping men to serve as their boy toys back in their own territory, but it seems she was quite wrong about their assumption. "Men! They''re are what''s wrong with the world, they destroy it and then they destroy us. They defile us, inseminating us and having us bear their accursed sons! Mean are the worst! It is our sacred duty, the mandate given to us by the great spider queen, to rid this world of all men. Women rule, females are the better half of the gender equation, we are the one''s who are supposed to be feared, and loved and respected. Men are unworthy of the pleasure of our body, which is why they are nothing more than sacrifices and food, our cattle! Now enough of this nonsense and surrender you accursed men!" Gynaika was sure she was not the only one completely caught off guard, everyone with her was so shocked that they seemed to have forgotten where they were for a moment. Especially the men with some of them even having their mouth hanging open from the sheer absurdity and shock of it. I mean Gynaika knew they made some fair points, this world would be a lot better if women ruled it in the first place, but then again women can be extremely dramatic and indecisive, she couldn''t imagine a queen having her monthly period during an important war siege. It was funny to imagine that. Never the less the elves were not just females, they were lesbians, feminists, cultists of some sort and finally cannibals of male gender. They were all kinds of wrong I one big, succulent sexy package, and they hated men. It was extremely ironic, a race of women with really hot bodies but no men were allowed near them, heck even setting sight on them as a man meant death in probably the most painful way possible. Which probably explained why there were no male dark elves, these psychotic females had probably eaten and digested them all a long time ago. "Wow! You guys are cannibals. Forgive me tone of voice and choice of words, but my husband to be has rubbed off on me quite a bit. So I say this with the utmost respect. You''re all sick fucks, and I''m making this decision for your own good and the good of the world. Freaks like you cannot be allowed to exist. So with all of the love and disgust as the queen in waiting of the soon to be illustrious empire of Morte Bianca, I find your existence disturbing, and a lesson is in order. Take them all, and when I say take them, I meant take them, they should be alive to feel every thrust and slap of your flesh against theirs." The dark elves were shocked, but the sinister grin on the face e of her delegation, and even more so on the face of the orcs who were 7 to 8 feet tall and used to pillaging and raping on their raids from back when they had a nomadic lifestyle. The dark elves sneered, pulling out their weapons, ready to teach gynaika and her weak men a lesson, unfortunately they have never met vampires. And even though it was just after dawn, the vampires that served her had a secret that even Rezar didn''t even know. They were all already gold or sky lord ranked existences. The dark elves were small fry. And that was how it came to be that a group of dark elves hoping to bully a soon to be queen out of the men in her delegation were met with a misfortune that no woman would wish on another. But Gynaika was not just some woman, she was the Divining Vampire Queen of Morte Bianca... she was no woman, she''s a monster. Chapter 312: The First Tribe (II): The Danse Macabre touched down almost 50 meters from the gathering of the First Tribe. They were ready for her, all armed to the teeth and ready to rain totemic destruction on what they probably considered invaders. But then again Lenore could not be bothered, at least not yet. It wasn''t as if something couldn''t go wrong, but as it stands she was aiming for a diplomatic approach, though frankly speaking she didn''t think this rabble of savages would be all too willing to give her a listening ear, but never the less she had something she had to do here, no matter how this was going to turn out, she had to prove not just herself but everyone else that she can and could handle matters without having to set entire civilizations on fire. "Halt! Who are you! And why have you come to the first tribe with your weapons of war?" Lenore raised an eyebrow, a quirk that she had invariably copied from Rezar on account of how cool it made him look. But it also made him seem nonchalant, uncaring and unfeeling, and in some cases where you have to prove that you were in a position of power, that was a cool look to have "I am first general Lenore of Morte Bianca, and I have a mandate from my king to bring tidings to the first tribe, I will like to meet with your leader." Lenore kept her gaze fierce, she had to let these people know that she was not someone to be trifled with, and even more that she was representing a kingdom and power than cannot be trifled with. Lenore was ready to show the might of Morte Bianca and Rezar, but above all, she was going to be showing her own might too. "You are from the kingdom where the dead roams? The pure land infested by corpses! what do you want?" a woman that Lenore would have described as an old crone spoke up, her hair a cluster of grey dreads with the skulls of tiny creatures braided or sewn into it. "I just told you why I''m here, are you deaf?" Lenore asked, and it that moment she knew she might have made a mistake with the tone of voice and the fact that she had just thrown an insult along with it. But propriety be damned, Lenore would not bow her head or her dignity for some old crone who has probably not had a dick shoved into her in a thousand years. The old crone blanched and her wrinkled face took on a fierce glare that would have shaken most people, but Lenore was not most people as she responded with a sizzle of electricity dancing allover her body. the crone raised an eyebrow at that and took a step back, a small pressure being released off her body as she too prepared to fight, and the rest of the first tribes with her seemed ready and willing to get down. The soldiers that followed Lenore had their weapons ready and pointed in the direction of the first tribe. "Enough! Lenore of Morte Bianca, I acknowledge your presence amongst my people, but you will not disrespect my grandmother! There is absolutely no need for conflict, you say you bring tidings to my doorstep from the son of death, well I, the son of life will listen or receive whatever tidings you say you have brought and will respond in kind, depending on what it is." Lenore raised both her eyebrows at the new arrival, then she took a step back to look at him properly. You could almost say he was a carbon copy of Rezar. Dark skinned, white hair and piercing blue eyes that denotes him as a death class user. But then again the goddess of death was also the goddess of life, though the biancans mainly paid attention to her death aspect. But he was quite young, probably around twenty or there about, and with then characteristics he was showing, this kid was probably on the list of people the goddess of death wanted Rezar to kill, so there was no way any form of diplomacy was going to last. Lenore was set up to fail even before she had a chance to start, and it was all by fucking fate. But then again this was no sweat of her shoulder, she wasn''t so worried about the outcome, all she wanted to do was to try and see if she could find a better way to solve the task that was in front of her. The death of hundreds if not thousands of innocents was not something she wanted to add to her already long resume. But be that as it may, this was what was now in front of her, and while she knew it definitely won''t end well, as the King''s mission is his kingdom''s mission, she just felt like going with the flow. "His Majesty king Rezar has heard that you have made a deal with the theocracy for an alliance, that you would both be joining forces in order to bring the light that is Morte Bianca down into everlasting darkness. I have come to deter you from such a rash course of action as the consequences of that is not one that you would be ready or prepared to face. So in your best interest the king has offered a better deal. Stand down and do not encroach on his borders, and then there will be no conflict and your people will be spared a tragedy the likes of which they have never seen before." The leader of the first tribe furrowed his eyebrows, Lenore noticed that he had been caught off guard when she had mention that he had made a deal with the theocracy, which means that meeting was supposed to be a secret, or it was purposefully leaked out. He seemed like someone inclined to politics, but the not the kind that''s done in a ballroom and have to do with alliances and betrayals. He was the leader of a wanderer race. They were oriental, tribalistic and somewhat barbaric. You could say they were orcs that looked a little bit more human. "if you don''t mind me asking, how did you find out about the alliance with the theocracy?" he asked as his fist clenched, a hint of power whirling around it. Lenore smiled at that, it was something Rezar did all the time when he was caught off guard or he was about to kill someone. The only problem was that you would never know that he was about to take your head off. He would smile at you, and not the glare that this pale imitation of him was giving. "Is there something funny about what I just said?" he asked, as the glare on his face seemed to intensify. "No, there''s nothing funny about it, it''s just I find your reaction to the news amusing. And as for the answer to your question, it is not my place and even if it was, you''re not someone I think is worthy of knowing the secrets of our kingdom. So yes! I do mind telling you how we got that information. Now if you don''t mind, give me an answer to my own offer, are you backing down and staying in your ''place!'' or do you really want to force the hand of my King?" It was almost as if the entire tribe was seeing red, Lenore could see the anger on each of their faces at the dismissive way she had spoken to their leader. But diplomacy aside knowing he was a death class user, or at least some sort of special class that gave him a similar outlook to what Rezar had. There was no way this would work. Conflict was inevitable. "Very well then, I will give you an answer. If your stupid king of bones and corpses doesn''t want a fight, then he should return by chosen bride to me. For he has taken that which does not belong to him, she belongs to me and to my tribe!" Lenore look confused, what the fuck was this guy talking about? "What in the death Goddess name are you talking about. My king is absolute and supreme; he has no woman of yours!" "are you sure! Gynaika De La Muerte is the chosen high priestess of the first tribe, the next shaman mother and spiritual leader. The woman who is to take my divine seed and bear the divine heir that would trample all of Morte Bianca underneath their feet. Tell your king to return my bride!" Lenore shook her head, she was laughing and at the same time she couldn''t help the string of curses that was let loose out of her mouth. "That scheming piece of shit! Fuck! That conniving little bitch! Hahhahhahaha well played Gynaika, well played! So you sent me here to do all of your dirty work. Very well then. I have a message for you from your queen... die!" Chapter 313: Interitus And Cleobis (III) The previous bravado the priest seemed to have had faded away at the mention of Rezar''s name. it was comical, but in all honesty this was the first time Rezar has been faced with this such of reaction as most of his enemies or opponents don''t start fearing him until he has fed them their own entrails. But not in the literal sense of the word, it would most pro ably be gross to do so. But this priest was scared of him, it was something that seemed deeply ingrained in him all the way to the very depths of his bones. Rezar did not seem as if he wanted to know why, though it would be a lie to say he wasn''t exactly curious about the sudden nature of this Priest''s terror of him. It was a refreshing change of pace than having people always foolishly attacking him and looking down on him. For once a man just want to be feared you know, and this was one such time, which is to say that Rezar''s reputation preceded them, and it was bloody fucking amazing. He felt that there was just so much he could do and take advantage of with this news. "Well? What are you waiting for? Go get your masters before I trample you into this disgusting marshland.!" Brutus threatened as his wraith like form seemed to ripple. There was no sign of the hull he once was, now he was just a creature of nightmares that would give even the toughest of men pause, and a chance to rethink their life''s choices. "I have no master! I serve the most holy one. B-but I do have two commanders from the inner circle of the Saintess, they''re the ones in charge of the current excavation." The Priest, or perhaps it would be better to call him a cleric, said. He seemed a whole lot amicable than his previously scared state suggested, but perhaps he was this amicable because of his fear, but be that as it may, he had said some things that raised flags for everyone present, and also none of the undead were moving, even in the face of enemies they were, literally just an army of really stupid zombies without direction or orders. "What excavation are you talking about?" Rezar asked as he took a few steps forwards, until he was a few feet away from the Cleric. "The ruins of an ancient empire were discovered by the head of the death brigade Malik. We believe it to be the remnants of the kingdom of the primordial vampires, or at the very least one of the kingdoms of the six primordial vampires. Well seventh if you are included in the equation, but nothing can be gained from you. The Bone Necromancer and Corpse Doctor of the death brigade of the theocracy, the twins Interitus and Cleobis have been sent to investigate and search for any remnant treasures of the empire. However, this location probably used to be a dungeon, it''s filled to the brim with an abundance of resources, especially a kind of living mineral called a sanguine ore, capable of becoming infinitely stronger by absorbing the nutrients in a living creatures blood. With it we can probably outfit our entire armies with unique weapons that would grow infinitely stronger the more of our enemies that are killed. However, we''ve only been able to harvest a little bit of the ore as this location is filled to the brim with monsters and traps and puzzles. We''re aiming for the birth rock of the ore, the magical orb that births the mineral by terraforming its surroundings." Rezar raised an eyebrow at that, then turned to look at Screet, who silently incline his head towards the cleric. There were some unspoken words between the two of them, and one of those words was a myth that has been circulating around Elysium right from it''s very inception, and that was the existence of a birth rock. It is believed that in every location where minerals and ores could be mined, a birth rock existed there that forced its environment to become terraformed to produce the type or types of minerals produced with said vicinity. It is hos mines are formed in Elysium, and why in some cases, resources can never be exhausted. Some people are not as lucky as they would find themselves in a location without a birth rock and in the end exhaust their resources, a prime example of that would probably be the snow elves. At the moment Morte Bianca was believed to actually have multiple birth rocks, and endless well or resources that would fuel the creation and advancement of multiple civilizations. But that was just speculation and up until now said rock has never been found as they were literally the hardest thing to find in all of Elysium. You would find it easier to find a particular grain of sand on a beach than to find the birth rock responsible for terraforming a particular region or territory. Hence why it was widely believed to be a myth as there has been no solid evidence apart from the rumors that such a unique treasure exists. "Birth Rocks are myths, how can one actually exist, and better yet how is it possible that you people were able to deduce that one actually exists in this place that you have found?" Screet asked as he narrowed his eyes, looking ever stoic as his tail swished back and forth behind him. "We have a diviner, or better yet I would say we have two grand diviners. One of them has the normal gift of divination, though he is getting on in years so his divinations are not as regular and not as accurate as before. However, the second diviner is quite young, rumors say she''s just a five-year-old girl, and that she''s capable of actually divining the locations of hidden treasures and precious resources with pinpoint accuracy. It was from her divination that we were led here to search for the birth rock, and whatever treasure left behind by the primordial vampire and his people." "So why are you out here and not in there with them searching for this birth rock. I have an inkling suspicion it''s not just you and the two death class users that are here. So how many of them are you and why are you the only one left behind?" Rezar asked as he took a closer step to the cleric, standing directly opposite him with a knowing smile on the cleric''s face, finding his somewhat dull eyes amusing. "No it''s not just us/ we have an entire garrison here with us, but those soldiers are in there with them. for some reason the undead zombies couldn''t go into the ruins with us, apparently since they were mindless and unevolved and would probably rot away in a few hours to a few days the entrance rejected them, though we don''t know how. Since I''m the weakest I was left behind to watch over the undead. We have already cleared all enemies and beasts from around this area as the Hion Wetlands are home to a rather nasty clan of ironridge crocodiles and Mud Tadpoles. We''ve forced them off and left the undead here as a deterrent. Intreritus and Cleobis can''t maintain their connection or control with the zombies from within the ruins, which is why they''re pretty stupid and harmless now. But wait! Why am I answering all of your questions?" the cleric suddenly asked as Rezar smiled at him and turned to Brutus. "You can stop possessing him now Brutus, we''ve probably gotten everything we need from him." The cleric took a step back with widened eyes as a blue and black fog spilled out of his nose, eyes, ears and mouth, streaming all the way back to Brutus as it became a part of his eldritch and specter like body. Rezar didn''t even notice that the cleric was possessed until he had moved a little bit closer and noticed how dull and unfocused his eyes were. Brutus has grown stronger, in a nutshell he could actually use a form of compulsion by possessing people with a bit of his essence and having them spill their guts to him. Looks like it was about time to promote Brutus to chief investigator or interrogators or torturer, or something like that. but whatever it may be, it would be a very good way to utilize his abilities, this was awesome. Rezar shifted his gaze to the Cleric, he really wondered just what he could or should do to this cleric. He had given them all the information they needed, and he seemed really innocent and simple as his manner of replying under possession was incredibly. Nerd like. But be that as it may a decision has to be made or at least it would have been made if the priest did not turn around screaming and scrambling away from Rezar like he had just came face to face with the devil himself. Rezar slapped a hand on his face a gave a soft chuckle as he turned to Screet to say. "I actually forgot he was scared of me. Hah! Funny." Chapter 314: Dark Elves (III) Gynaika was not the kind of woman to entertain conflict, neither was she a woman to entertain ruthlessness and antagonist behavior. However, a reputation was required to keep your enemies in check, and in some cases required to teach them a lesson that ten generations of their descendants will never forget. She had no idea how things were going on Rezar''s and Lenore''s side, but in her case the hope for diplomacy has already fallen through. The wood elves were too weak, and the dark elves could not be reasoned with, as it stood now all she was doing was waiting for night to fall before she heads to the underground kingdom of the dark elves and rip their matriarchal, cult like society to shreds. A few of the dark elves had chosen to take their own lives than have their bodies defiled by males that were nothing more than livestock to them. Lenore found their devotion admirable, which was why she was not so sure that they would be easily subjugated. However, if it does work out, even if they weren''t under her control and answered directly to her king, these dark elves would make astonishing daughters of the eclipse, the perfect race and breed to become vampires that stalk the night. Dark elves weren''t too inclined to sunlight just like vampires, but at the very least they wouldn''t die. If a better method than wearing thick clothes to block sunlight isn''t made, then the dark elves would make really good spies, with their limited ability to walk in daytime. But all this was just speculation and excuses to look forward to, so as not to think too much on the fact that if they prove to be too rigid she would have to kill them all to make sure they didn''t have enemies hanging around them. either way Gynaika admired them, because in all honesty a group of women fighting for their own independence not wanting to rely on men as nature and society has always made it seem for the millions of years'' man has spent in existence either in Elysium or back on earth. But they have lost their minds, and it was up to her to set them straight, or send them on their way to the next life. But be that as it may she had a lot of things she had to consider, and that was the wood elves and exactly just what she was going to face once she heads for the dark elves kingdom. They didn''t know but the dark elves were a thriving civilization of women, and while they weren''t as much as the people in Morte Bianca, there was enough of them to actually be considered a kingdom, which was why she had sent for backup. Before the sun sets today, Samira would be here with a thousand vampire sisters, ready to bathe in a river of blood and probably turn those they thought had a good potential to serve. The thing about being a vampire was that you were bound to the needs, commands and wishes of your sire. You actually loved them with all of your heart, not even daring to imagine a single speck of dirt on his body. all of the vampires in Morte Bianca, apart from those that actually served Gynaika and were turned from her fellow wild tribe members who have been with her right from the beginning; were turned by Rezar. They called them the first generation children of the king, and she or any other vampire who has been turned by Rezar would have vampires made by them called second generation children. They were not and could never be as strong as the first generation, at least when it came to vampiric abilities. Gynaika knew Samira would be interested in making new vampires, especially from a race as well versed in shadows and darkness as the dark elves. They would greatly expand the armed forces of Morte Bianca and have extremely talented beings to work with them. they would not betray them if they were turned, and while the whole all men are evil propaganda was annoying, having them join the daughters of the eclipse would be the perfect way to ingratiate them by putting them in an environment where they don''t have to interact with their so called ''Cattle''. Of course Rezar would not be some cattle to them, he would be father, king and master. "We might be in for a fight even with the arrival and the rest of the daughters of eclipse. We''re heading into unknown territory, and the dark elves have the home ground advantage, not to mention some of the dark elves you compelled keep mumbling something about the spider goddess and her horde of crawlers. I''m guessing as all these sort of quests goes we''re going to be dealing with a bunch of giant spiders or spider women, or a big giant spider boss" Tristian said as he walked into the tree house Gynaika has taken for herself as a temporary office. "So what are you saying Tristian hmm? Are you saying we''re going to lose against the dark elves and have to rethink our strategy?" Gynaika asked as she placed a bowl made of wood on top of a table and filled it with water. "Lose? I don''t think Morte Bianca is capable of that, I''m not stupid like every other force that are busy making moves in an attempt to take control of Morte Bianca and its fertile lands. The world loss or lose is not within the dictionary of you Biancans, nothing short of absolute victory and success in all your endeavors is what you guys aim for. It''s a particular trait I''ve notice in all of you, even to the smallest of children. You do not lose at anything you do, so I''m not saying you are going to lose, I''m saying you should try to avoid incurring any sort of loss that could or would cripple the forces you have cause the wood elves and dark elves are just one of the first forces you have to deal with. We still have to go deal with those insufferable shrinking and giantification pygmies. So proceed with Caution my queen, is all I''m trying to say." Gynaika didn''t answer for a few seconds as she placed a small branch of basil leaves in her mouth, and then she placed a couple of red flowers into the water in the bowl, slowly mumbling something to herself as she used a single finger to stir the water in the bowl. Tristian didn''t say anything, he knew this was a ritual preparation for an in depth divination, or to be more precise this was a sance. Unlike her dreams and spontaneous visions of past events within a certain location or object, she could carry out a ritual that would unveil more secrets about a person, location, or as he has seen many times before, predict multiple future events so that she could make preparations for it. To Tristian Gynaika was even more scary than Rezar. He didn''t have any doubt that she was going to be the queen or perhaps one of the empress of Morte Bianca. He knew she has seen it, and not just her so too will Lenore. It was the reason why she had stopped being so antagonistic with the demoness, instead seeing her as an equal and an ally, though frankly speaking she still played small pranks and schemes here and there on Lenore to keep things interesting. But be that as it may, the ability to see the future in a world as complicated as Elysium was not something that could be simply overlooked. Tristian Knew what he was dealing with here. She was extremely terrifying. "Tristian your advice is greatly appreciated, and you are right. My approach to the dark elf kingdom has to be extremely meticulous. I can see into their souls, into the essence of their community; their kingdom. Their very homes are open to me and the secrets that they hide now dance within my mind... ahhh Arachne; hahahaha!" And this was when she was most scary, eyes glowing white with blood pouring from it while she falls into some sort of trance. The wooden bowl with the water in it was floating in the air while the flower petals within caught on fire, painting Gynaika''s bronze skin in an exquisite shade of gold. She was beautiful, and even with everything he had now, the family and the love, Tristian knew the only reason why he really hated being around her was because his heart betrayed him... he loved her, but he couldn''t have her, and not because he was scared of Rezar... but because he was scared of her. The last man to love her other than the king had his body chopped into pieces and his soul used as a shamanic spirit. In this life she only belonged to one man, and it wasn''t him... it could never be him. Because he knew, she was not the kind of queen; that would love a GOBLIN. Chapter 315: The First Tribe (III) Lenore swiftly turned around as she marched towards the Danse Macabre an annoyed but somewhat calm look on her face. The people that had come down with her marched along as they quickly made their way back to the Danse Macabre, the undisguised threat she gave was not well received, but their leader had the foresight of keeping his barbarians in check, cause as it stands Lenore was very much ready and willing to burnt them all to a crisp. But just as she moved away from them she noticed something, not just their leader of the first tribe, but she was able to notice three others within the crowd that had the features of death class users. The thought gave her a chill, which was part of the reason why she was rushing back to the danse Macabre, because as it stood she had the confidence she could deal with one death class user, maybe if she pushed herself a bit she would be able to deal with two of them, but three or four was way above her weight class. If Rezar was here, dealing with all four by himself would be a piece of cake, because Lenore knew that even amongst D4ath class users, Rezar was and could not be considered normal. So using him as a measuring stick for death class users would be a little farfetched. The only other person with as much uniqueness was Malik, and that sorry excuse of man was someone she knew she could match. Or at the very least hold back for a very limited amount of time, making Rezar the only one capable of dealing with a monster like him. But be that as it may she had four death class users to deal with, and none of them were expecting her next move, though to be honest she didn''t think they would let her get onto that Warcraft, so she already had a plan going. "Mina! Open fire on them, now, and power up the particle mana cannon!" she had scarcely opened her mouth to talk when a dark beam of light hit the soldier besides her, causing the elf to rapidly dry up like a thousand-year-old prune as he desiccated at a rate visible to the naked eye. Lenore smiled, so they had chosen to make the first move. Which was good, now she wouldn''t have any qualms about attacking them on account of innocents being there. She quickly turned around and pulled her rapier out before stretching her left hand forward, creating a wall of flames that blocked the three other beams that came flying at her. The next person besides her, an orc with a massive rail gun took a stance behind her and pointed his gun at the approaching First Tribe members who had rushed after them with weapons held high. Lenore could see the leader along with the three other death class users she had noticed standing back and watching her. She noticed that both the death class user and the leader had their hands outstretched, a beam of silvery black lights rushing in her direction. She smiled as she stabbed her rapier into the ground, causing a rumbled as blast of lightning shot out from it, blasting the earth apart as it made a ditch and smashed a few dozen wild tribe members into pieces before intercepting the attacks from the death class users with practiced ease. And that was when the heavens decided to rain fire destruction on them. The Rail gun behind her first went off, a blazing purple shot of the gun, digging holes into, more people than she could care to count and blasting the others to pieces. She turned around to flee, dragging the orc with her as the Danse Macabre began to spit out seven inch bullets at 30 rounds a second and massive meter long cannon shells that exploded on impact blasting tents and families apart. Lenore turned around and noticed the leader as he cradled the body of his old crone of a grandmother crying his eyes out while his people fell around him. She noticed that one no the death class users was missing a head and was laying in a pool of what was probably his own blood while the other three huddled themselves behind a massive behemoth of a skeleton that served as a shield for them. a dozen or some members of the first tribe threw themselves on the body of the leader to shield him from the constant stream of the danse macabre. Did she feel sorry for them? not one bit. They were enemies and given the direction their conversation had taken there was no way this would have been settled amicably, so in that case they can all burn and die. Lenore quickly made it back onto the Danse Macabre, before heading straight the bridge where the Kitsune Princess Kari and Mina was now waiting for her. Lenore wiped a hand over her face as she took the captain''s seat. The look in her eyes was furious and for a second she contemplated just wiping them all out, and then against her better judgment she changed her mind but it wasn''t over. "We can''t spare them your Highness; given the way they are I believe they will not stop trying to come after us. They had no idea that we have such military capabilities, but now that they do they will come up with contingencies for it. Even if they''re are savages, we all know they''re powerful magic users so there''s no guarantee that they won''t have contingencies in place the next time we have to face them. I know you want to be known as more than just the butcher queen, but that is who you are Lenore, that''s the part you have to play for Morte Bianca to stand. I know you have a good heart, but don''t lose your mettle now, For Morte Bianca, for Rezar!" Kari said as her Kitsune Tails waved in the air behind her. She had none of her brother''s quiet and brooding disposition, but she was just as dangerous and powerful and whole lot more ruthless and diabolical than Kitagawa. And that''s a character streak that her time in Morte Bianca and a follower of Rezar had bred in her. She used to be really sweet and nice, but now she was a fearsome Samurai general that has known no defeat and could get the job done regardless of the obstacles placed in front of her. "I hear you Kari, and I believe you''re in agreement Mina?" Lenore asked as she shifted her attention to her Rabbit kin aviator. "If you''re are to deal with weeds you have to pull them out from the roots so that won''t come back and bother your garden again. So yes your majesty I''m in full and total agreement, you have to end them all." If Lenore was not who she was, she would probably ask how was it that she suddenly found herself surrounded by people with such hard dispositions and heart. But then she would realize this was how they could all survive, Morte Bianca has no room and tolerance for indecision. If they could help it they would save every life in the world, but if you''re not willing to bend, even if they might seem evil to you and the rest of society. They will end you thoroughly. "Mina fire the particle mana cannon." All three of them took a deep breath after that order was given, this was an order than can never be taken back. Lenore noticed that totem poles that had been placed in different positions around the camp had lit up and were now slowly erecting a barrier. But regardless Lenore knew that the barrier won''t stop what was coming, not even the barrier in Morte Bianca could stop the power of the P.M.C. the beam it fires is a highly condensed and volatile form of energy that''s transformed into a devouring nucleus of thousands of energy strands woven together. It would eat every form of energy it comes across even those that''s in the atmosphere to increase its blast radius and damage before dissipating due to its unstable form. The beam won''t last more than 5 seconds, but that was enough time to show someone what the real meaning of hell on earth was. And not barrier, no matter how powerful or ornately made it was could stop it. Rezar and Alistair had given this cannon a special name as it was built for one special and particular function... they called it dragon killer, built as a contingent cy in case the storm dragon decided to act up, or in case the other dragons that were now coming out of hiding decided to turn their sights to Morte Bianca. "Fire!" *BOOOOOOM! * The Danse Macabre shook vigorously as the beam flew outwards and crashed into the shield. For a moment Lenore could see them, she could feel them. the thousands of faces, the innocents, the old, the young, the soldiers and the civilians, all watching as death came for them. and then all she saw was white. Chapter 316: Interitus And Cleobis (IV) Rezar trudged past grouped of Undead, his boots, making squelch like sounds as he traversed the Hion Wetlands, heading towards a rocky outcropping that looked completely out of place amongst the wet marshes and pits. There was a cave or rather a hole on the hill that slanted downwards, and at the entrance of it, Rezar noticed t there were three soldiers in golden armor at the entrance, they were all discussing absent mindedly, not at all paying attention to their surroundings as they ought to. Rezar smiled, took a deep breath and then vanished from the spot where he was just standing. [Teleportation] His appearance spooked the soldiers, but none of them were ready for his next step as he moved forwards, Vita Gratia held in her staff form as they sliced of the neck of two soldiers while the third watched as Rezar smashed his forehead forward. Right onto the waiting skull of the third soldier. There was a small boom as the speed Rezar had used had approached the sonic barrier, but regardless; the head of the soldiers was blasted to pieces as his body was thrown backwards to smash into the rock outcropping, smearing his blood all over its surface as cracks appeared on it. Rezar turned to his followers. "Brutus, Jason. Given the current state of things I would like to have you guys remain behind and watch over or rather come up with an exit strategy. We''re not so sure that there wouldn''t be any more enemies from the theocracy attempting to flank us or bury the entrance of the ruins. So you guys keep a look out, and someone please feed tony before I get back, this hold is a little bit too small for him otherwise I would have taken him along." Rezar said as he gave orders to both Brutus the wraith and Jason the Draugr minotaur, and the current chief of police in Morte Bianca. Quentin gave Rezar a small nod and jumped down into the hole, quickly followed by a Pensive faced Screet. Rezar didn''t stand on ceremony as he jumped down behind them, his form swallowed by the darkness as Jason and Brutus watched on with a forlorn look on their face. Their first mission with their master after a significant amount of time and he decided to sideline them and leave them behind on guard duty. It''s not as if they didn''t understand why he did that, but they longed for the days when they were always by ho=is side and fighting his battles, those days when Neema was still alive. The hole he just jumped into was angled downwards at a steady incline, which was why jumping down was an incredibly stupid idea. He rolled the entire length of the tunnel downwards, his head and body smashing into one thing after the other, though they were mostly rocks and ore deposits. He eventually ended up at the bottom with his clothes completely ruined and hanging off his body by mere strips. And this would be the second shirt he turned to scrap in the almost 1 hour they''ve spent since land came into view from the sea. Given the current state, it would seem that today was just not Rezar''s day when it came to wearing shirts. He made his way back up to his feet, the small scraps and welts on his body rapidly healing as he gave an annoyed look at his surroundings. "Maybe you shouldn''t have jumped down the hole Master, it would have been much wiser to walk down." "You think!" Rezar answered Screet with an annoyed look on his face as he took in the massive statues that were in front of him. They were statues of two wraiths, their hooded form had arms outstretched that seemed to watching over something. But given how they were spaced, Rezar could very well envisioned that they were probably statues that stood watch at the gates of whatever Kingdome this once was years ago. Rezar moved past them, his gaze suddenly falling on some inscription written at the bottom of both statues. It was weird, these inscriptions were made from sort of glyph like language, similar to Egyptian Hieroglyphs, but different in the sense there were more curved and seemed like Chinese or Japanese symbols without the crisscrossing or conjoined lines. Bottom line this was a weird language, but the really weird shit about it was the fact that he could actually read it. And Rezar Was a hundred percent sure he hadn''t seen something like this, not in this life or back when he was still just a simple human using VR gear to log into Elysium. But his brain seemed hardwired to the language because he couldn''t just read them, but they were actually glowing in his eyes. Quentin and Screet looked at alert as Rezar seemed lost in the language before he spoke up. "Broi neli treva ndili ramaki den sur." "What?" Quentin asked completely caught off guard be the gibberish that just came out of the mouth of his master. "The road to hell is paved with good intentions, so welcome to the abyss." Rezar translated as he turned to them even more confused than they were. The whole thing just caught him off guard and left him a bit shook. "Come on, we don''t have time to waste here; our enemies are ahead." Rezar looked past the two statues to feast his eyes on the ruins of ancient civilization. Massive buildings made or ornate white stones, and others actually carved from colored rocks that Rezar dare say were actually emeralds. It was crazy, but from what he could see, this was a city of precious stones. Many of the buildings seemed carved from any one of those precious stones. Diamonds. Rubies, sapphires, emeralds and topaz. It was crazy! "What the absolute fuck! Who would build a city out diamonds and precious stones? How much money did the vampire who owned this place have?" Screet asked, his poised visage breaking for a few seconds at the sheer absurdity of the sight in front of them. Rezar couldn''t give him a straight answer as he was just as surprised, this place was not what they expected. And while this was a ruin, due to the materials said ruins were made from, whoever decided to clear this place would make enough money to build a Morte Bianca three times over. It really was fucking Insane. But the ruins of diamonds aside, Rezar could notice another sort of rock, that seemed to stretch like vines all over the entire ruins and was actually glowing. That probably had to be the ore that could grow infinitely stronger from absorbing blood. And given that this kingdom had a size that was three times that of Necron city, Rezar could not imagine just how powerful it was. Yet here it was, laying in ruins, with a garish looking ore stretched allover its entirety, probably coming about from the blood of all the citizens that it has consumed. It would be better to call this so called ore vampire iron cause that''s what it was. "The vines all seem to be stretching from that large black building in the middle of the city, however we can''t fly their master as the very roof of this cavern is infested with bats three times the size of tony. And I can feel just powerful they all are, silver tier II, powerful earth general beasts. Which explains why the people who came before us chose to take a land based route, but there is a scent of blood in the air and it''s incredibly fresh. They''re incurring Losses Master, and not small ones from what I can smell." Screet said to Rezar who gave him a stiff nod before saying. "Can you track them?" Screet scoffed before he hung his metal staff on his back and got down on all fours. His nose twitching. "I''m an undead mole-man Master, underground? There is absolutely no way anyone or anything can hide from me. Like for example there''s a giant worm like being slithering our way right now and it seems to be undead which means our targets left behind a surprise for us before heading deeper." Quentin Cracked his head from left to right, a small grin on his face as he said to Rezar. "Well it seems I might actually have a chance to stretch these old limbs after all. Leave this to me master, I''m itching for a fight as it is." And Rezar was all too willing to grant that wish. Apart from priest, Quentin was the most skilled fighter in all of Morte Bianca, there was hardly anyone that could match up to his skill with a sword or even martial arts in general, and both were skills he had in their level 10''s completely maxed out. So whatever it was that was heading their way, Rezar wasn''t worried Quentin would sort it out. Chapter 317: Dark Elves (IV) Contrary to what she expected being underground wasn''t musty and drab, but it was cool and quite breezy. This was definitely an upgrade from back when she was in the stygian mines as a slave and Lenore was the forewoman in charge. those were terrible times to say the least. But right now she had an entire kingdom of dark elves to deal with, and after going past the first outpost she knew her arrival had already been announced. It was like a whole other world down here, and they''re were currently traversing past an underground gorge with a lot of twisty bends and bright bioluminescent fauna and flora, and just as they turned around a bend she came face to face with an arrow coated in darkness. Gynaika caught the arrow out of the air, a small smile on her face as she waved at the army of dark elves and giant spider ladies right in front of them. there was woman sitting in an ornate carriage that was being drawn by six hefty men. They were well muscled and beefy and were all about seven feet tall. And more than that all their heads were tightly encased in a tight and bulky helmet that had no place being on anybody''s head. this was probably the dark elf queen, Gynaika had found out they had scouts that had been hiding in the forest when she had subdued their raider squad, so the dark elves knew she was coming, but be that as it may they wouldn''t stop what was going to happen. "They seem overly serious your majesty, what did you do to them? the hate in their eyes, it looks delicious." Samira spoke with a chuckle as she came from behind Gynaika, making sure to take the arrow that had dug a groove into Gynaika''s palm as she caught it out of the air. Samira flipped the arrow over her palm, smiling as she inspected the craftsmanship attached to the projectile, then she twirled it around her finger and sent it flying back to the person who had just shot it. There was absolutely no resistance and warning as the arrows went through her skull as she fell to her knees dead. "I don''t know what she told you, or how your encounter with the queen in waiting has been so far, but let me tell you this. By the time I am done with you all, you will be willing to serve! You will bow or you will bleed, you will surrender or you will die. For my queens, for my kingdom and above all else, for the glory of my King! His Majesty Rezar Deathwind King of the Bone Horde!" a clamor was raised behind her as the other daughter of the eclipse that came here with her raised their voice in a frenzied cry. Samira was a caster and hardly ever uses a weapon, but she had a dagger that she carries around with her that''s ornately made. She threw the dagger in the direction of the dark elves as if to say; Your Move''. The gorged opened up into what was a wide and expansive field, this literally was the perfect place to have battles and on both sides there were strategic positions to be held. The gorge opened up, but with how twisted its path was, Samira, Gynaika and the other vampires could set ambushed for the dark elves in much the same way they set for them. but the field that the gorge opened up into went upwards at a steady incline giving the dark elves the higher ground in this fight. If this was a normal battle, both sides would worry about having their enemies follow them so that they could use the terrain to their advantage and set a trap. But these were vampires... this fight was over before it even began. "You all disgust me! I cannot believe you will allow you ennobled body to be befouled by the touch of a man! They who are not worthy to even look upon your face, not needed for anything but breeding and licking the dirt of your feet. They are dogs! Cattle and slaves to our whims yet! You all serve a king, and you! Woman! Is a queen to him? You have brought us great shame, and for the glory of Arachne, I cannot in good faith let shames to out divine gender like you exist. So my daughters will spill your blood today, and we shall dance and feast on your remains!" Samira turned to Gynaika with a raised eyebrow and an amused look on her face. Even Gynaika felt the need to let out an exasperated but still mocking laugh. This was just ridiculous, or a normal day she would absolutely dig the whole amazon vibe, but what was with the fanatical cult like approach. That just turned her off on a whole other level, and given how influenced she''s become due to Rezar, when she sees things she doesn''t like, she tends to go on a murder spree. "I will give you all a choice, because there is only one way this ends. Either you submit willingly and become a part of Morte Bianca, serving right besides Samira here; the Night Mother of the Daughters of the Eclipse. Vampires, Immortals, eternal unto the night and more powerful than anything you can possibly imagine, or half or more of you die in this conflict and the remainder are forcefully turned by me or Samira in the most unpleasant and excruciating way possible. So it''s either you all drop you weapons and agree to be turned to the glorious cause and vision of Morte Bianca, or fall and what is left will be taken into servitude for a king you will not be able to hate, and be completely unable to betray. So live and serve or resist some of you die and what''s left will still serve, on my word as Queen in waiting I can either guarantee you a happy life, or an incredibly painful one." There was something Hypocritical in the air, though no one was going to; point it out, not even the dark elves that were about to have their throats ripped out. Gynaika and Samira might have a problem with the fanatic cult like behaviors of the dark elves, but frankly speaking they had something similar in the way they were loyal to Rezar and Morte Bianca. And it was even the stronger for this two due to one very simple fact. they were both vampire turned by Rezar himself, one of the first. In fact, Samira was the second person after Lenore to be turned. Their attachment and loyalty to him was without question, and they were both willing to go any length to further his ambitions. "The time for talking has passed, I can see that you both have been wholly possessed and warped by the wiles and bewitchment of a lowly man. There is no saving you, so you have to die." Samira just shrugged fatter the dark elf queen finished speaking. "Fine with me, now why don''t you die first." As soon as she finished he threat, her form burst into a flock of bats that flew into the air and rushed towards the dark elf queen in a stream of screeches and black wings dotted with red eyes. The queen was caught off guard, they were just as isolated as the wood elves, with the wood elves actually being the ones with limited contact with the outside world with their irregular and rare trades with Morte Bianca and other forces, and knowledge of vampires were only now coming to life after thousands of years of being hidden. But up until now they had no idea just what they were dealing with, they had no idea just how scary and completely unstoppable a vampire could be. Streams of flames, lightning, arrows, darkness and mana blasts assaulted Samira''s form as she was shot out of the air, rolling on the ground for a few meters, her form raising up dust before coming to a stop in front of the dark elf queen who had a smug look on her face. The entire battlefield fell silent as she raised her head with valor and pride and said to Gynaika with all the contempt she could muster. "I see the foolishness you all have does not just stretch to you blind devotion of a stinking Man! But also to knowledge and tactics on the battlefield. Serving a man has devolved your brain from free thinki9ng smart women you are all supposed to be, to a bunch sniveling simpletons begging and whining for cock! You too will fall, just as woefully and without honor as your ally here, laid out at my feet! For my dogs to feast upon! I-!" "For a queen; I have to say you talk a lot, and I really, really don''t like it. But never the less queen, Bon Appetite!" Chapter 318: The First Tribe (IV) The smell of ash wafted into the air as the earth cried out for vengeance. Kit had been painted a deep rustic red, almost black, a vestige of the blood of thousands that was left behind after a weapon of mass destruction was let loose on defenseless nomads. Or so the story would go, if the victims were the ones who decided victory. But as it has always been, Victory is decided by the victors, and the victors in this case was Morte Bianca, and unlike every other kingdom or empire in history they had no need for anything other than the truth, because that was what history was really supposed to be about. But the same could not be said for the people who survived the aftermath of the Particle cannon. It was a bloody affair, and at the moment all that was left was pain and sorrow. The previous bravado that they had in face of the colossal giant that was Morte Bianca was all gone. And in its place was despair, with not even enough energy to muster rage and anger at their current state of affairs. Thousands had just died from a single attack, and it was just from one Warcraft. Those that were left alive; wild tribe members barely numbering a thousand shook with fear as they realized that the Danse Macabre was not the only death bringer in the vicinity, there were three of them, and countless smaller crafts that seemed even more sinister than the large one that just wiped out 90% of their population. "A choice was given to you all, and your leader chose to go against the might of the great Kingdom of morte Bianca. My mercy has run out, and I am more than willing to wipe what''s left of all of you from the face of existence. so right now you can either kneel and surrender, or remain standing within the next five minutes and die in the most painful and excruciating manner possible, the choice is yours." Lenore''s voice resounded out across the great desert. The oasis that the first tribe had camped had been burnt into glass and a piece of land even more desolate than the desert it stood on. Lenore shifted her gaze away from the stumbling and dead eyes group of people that were moving about, completely lost and empty at the incident that just transpired. She tried her best to squash the heaviness in her chest, but it wasn''t easy. Never had she had to be responsible for such a monumental decision and task like this, one that literally held the lives of thousands of people in her hands, and yet she had chosen to take them all down, d=sending to meet their maker... as if such a notion was still viable in this godforsaken virtual world. But there wasn''t really anything she could about what she was feeling, well nothing but killing the people who she believes was responsible for forcing the hand of Morte Bianca... for forcing her hand. The leader along with one of the necromancers from the theocracy was still alive. They were still at the forefront and even though they were still alive, she could not begin to imagine the cost they both had to pay to live. Lenore Turned to Kari and used her head to point at the duo slowly getting ton their feet with shocked looks on their faces. Kari place a hand on her hip holding on to her katana as she gave a closer look at the the First Tribe leader and death class holder from the theocracy, then she turned to Lenore and said. "I have your back my friend, given how they survived an attack that neither you nor I or dare I say it Rezar himself would survive, I would say we have our work cut out for us. But regardless of what tricks they used I do not believe that they can put up much of a fight against the both of us, so let''s go finish what we started." Lenore smiled as she turned around with a flourish, given a swift nod to Mina as Kari followed behind her with a look that promised loads of pain for whoever would decide to stand in their way. On the other hand, the leader pf the first tribe was incensed, but at the same time he was beyond terrified. The loss of his grandmother seemed to pale in comparison to the lives of his people that had been lost. Even the ancestral barriers from the totemic poles of creation was not enough to stop the power of that airship. It was crazy, and if he said he wasn''t scared then he would be lying. He turned to look at the Death knight that was all that remained of the trio of death class users the theocracy sent with an offer of alliance. But he was not stupid, that offer could just as well have been a threat of servitude. But their interest had aligned, and dealing with what he undoubtedly could no longer deny was the most powerful person in the Bahrenburg wildlands: Rezar Deathwind. The man was unbeatable, at least they stood a chance of pressuring him together, or at the very least this was what they had in mine until all that was left was rubble and darkness, and blood hanging thick in the air. "This is all your fault! We were fine, it you didn''t come with your stupid advice of an alliance against someone we should never have messed with, mu people will not have died! I''ll kill you!" "Us! You all were stupidly marching towards death in the name of some stupid crusade against a man that would eat you out and spit you out ten times in a second. You were not worthy to stand in front Rezar deathwind. But yet you coveted his woman and you coveted his land because you felt it was your right! Death would have been a blessing to you and your people, we offered you a way out. Hope! That you would survive the wrath and onslaught that would have befallen your people, and instead you foolishly chose to provoke the Butcher of Morte Bianca. Calling you stupid would be a compliment." "Well while watching you too bicker amongst yourselves is amusing, I think it''s about time you both keel over and die, or do you think it''s necessary to keep a messenger alive Kari, I mean the theocracy has to know just how dangerous and much of a folly it is to fuck with Morte Bianca." Lenore said as she stepped towards them, a fierce look on her face as Kari walked right beside her, her right hand still tightly clasped around her Katana. "Well Your Highness I feel it would be better to kill them and then have their guts splayed, all over the land and laugh at them while they slowly die, but then again we have to end them now, to make a point. But still we have to keep one alive to make sure that the glory and power of Morte Bianca would be spread amongst their people." Lenore looked at her with a somewhat Blank look, Kari was not the kind of person to talk a lot, but this wasn''t somewhat unexpected. But what could she say, she couldn''t exactly call out the kitsune for being somewhat weird, and having a such a creepy conversation, obviously she need a little more work on how to be a wingman to someone who''s supposed be threatening to their enemies. But thankfully she was scary enough to give both the leader and the death class user pause. "You don''t have to be so threatening, I surrender. And I know the rules of engagement you Bianca''s have, you will never take the life of someone who has surrendered, so I submit to your judgment." The Death class user said. The leader of the first tribe looked back at the death calls user of the theocracy and Lenore as they seemed to be making some sort of deal. Or rather it was obvious that he was surrendering just that he could survive and he felt threatened by the current situation. He was worried, because the only ally he could possibly have against the biancans was giving in to them and bowing their head to the queen in waiting Lenore; the so called butcher of Morte Bianca. "I too will surrender to you!" the first leader said with his teeth grinding hard against each other, and loud enough that it was heard by all that was present. Lenore looked at them both with a smile before saying. "Then you both should get on your knees, and show just how much fealty you have to Morte Bianca." The death class user did not even waste a single second as he got down to his knees, even going so far as place his head on the ground to show his fealty. The leader of the first tribe looked behind and noticed what was left of the people who followed him, and with a sight he too got down on his knees, his head bowed looking extremely desolate. It was over, he had lost everything, but regardless he gets to keep his life and his people will survive or so he thought. "Now that you have survived, please die and go on to the next life knowing that Morte Bianca is forever!" Chapter 319: Interitus And Cleobis (V) There was. Aloud screech as the earth itself seemed to quake with fury. Rezar and Screet made a hasty retreat as the spot they once occupied blasted outwards in a shower of her and debris and six meter wide jaws looking for the flesh of the undead to consume. This thing was big, and normally Rezar would have wondered how the members of the theocracy were able to get past it, but seeing that it had similar features to the wyvern that was nothing more than dust outside of these ruins, Rezar would and could dummies that it was made as a result of corpse stitching. Even as someone that could be practically called Death class royalty, the idea behind corpse stitching was fucking disgusting. Quentin was a Doom Knight, sometimes Rezar tends to mix them both up, but actually Quentin was a Doom Knight. Something a whole lot scarier than a death knight, and due to the nature of how he came to be undead, he was more like vampires than other undead. Je was turned as a living being, and he was extremely strong too, way above what Rezar would have been able to muster at that moment, not to mention incredibly skilled in combat, and the current best in Morte Bianca since Priest refused that title. While Rezar and Screet scrambled back for their lives, Quentin moved with a flourish that was almost ethereal. Movements like that was something vampires could do, or probably elves or fairies or any other race that had really good agility. However this was a trained warrior, Quentin was totally in his element as the teeth feet tall earth worm with four rows of teeth and a body littered with multiple eyeballs, roared out at him with every menace it could muster. Rezar found the entire thing interesting if he had to be honest as it was quite a conundrum how that monster could see or focus with that many eyes. It was a thing of horror as it''s skin was a patch of a thousand others. The leather hide of deers, the spotted hides of cheetahs and the stripes of tigers, not to mention the different shades of human skin that accompaniment it. Beyond that were the extremely creepy eyes, no two eyes were the same as it became ever obvious as the seconds passed, that those eyes were made from a combination of hundreds of creatures, in much the same way the earthworms'' body was made; corpse stitching. It was twenty feet tall but half of it''s body was still buried underground, but that was not an immediate problems as it twisted it''s fork in the air and rushed towards Quentin, Jaws outstret6 with a kind filled with bloodlust. Quentin pulled out a broad sword from his back, one of the seven weapons he carried around with him all the time with not a single one ever missing. He sliced down, releasing a grey beam of light that rushed forwards and showed into the body of the giant corpse stitched earthworm. However just as the beam was about to smack onto the earthworm''s'' body, a grey tile of light appeared over it''s skin and defended it from the strike. 8t was unexpected development no doubt, but there was enough power in the studio to divert the earthworm from it''s. Urgent course of action as the force and the main forced it to turn it''s head in another direction. Unfortunately this direction was the one Rezar and Screet had chosen to stand back at to watch the fight between Quentin and the earthworm. "I guess nothing ever goes the way we plan it, does it Screet? " Rezar asked as they both watched the incoming giant worm bear down in them like an internal your from hell. But regardless of what it is, they were ready and we''ll prepared for it. Screet moved forward and stamped his staff on the ground, an illusory green shield sprang to life between them and the incoming monster, which had no intention of slowing down, even with an obvious barrier in front of it, it still surged forwards until it smashed it''s face into the barrier with a loud crash. "The shield lasted just longer enough before breaking apart under the weight of the worm, much for us surprise of Rezar. But it was stable long enough for Quentin to leap Into the air, his body framed by a red ball that seemed to glow in intensity as he fell back from his 60 foot drop, his broad sword looking extremely menacing as it fell onto the body of the giant worm. *Shrieeeeeeeeek!* The work. Inclined it''s head to the left again, this time smashing against the rubble''s and ruins of an old guard tower that stood close to the city gate. It''s body was barely attached to each other as Quentin had almost cleaver it in two. It for just a few took of a second, just as the work was trying to reorient itself, a swarm of black beetles with a red band running from the top of their head for the bottom of their shelled bodies came out of the rubble. It was barely a second, and in that second the beetles rapidly began to devour the injured earthworm. Rezar felt cold from the soles of his feet all the way to the crown of his head as he watched that. It was an extremely horrifying and scary sight to say the least, and the rest of them were frozen in shock at the dramatic turn of events. The work let out painful shrikes for five whole seconds before it''s vocal cords was eaten through, and soon it too was nothing more than a pile of dust and dispersed souls. Rezar shredded as he turned to Screet who in turns turned to his master at the same time. It was incredibly unsettling and fascinating to watch as the giant earthworm was eaten down to it''s very bones. Elysium really had some weird shit going on. "Master I believe it would be in our best interests to keep away from any building within this ruin .at the very least unless we''re sure that it doesn''t have any of those bugs we just saw in it." Rezar nodded his head and then moved forward, making sure to keep his distance from the guard towers and any other building as he moved forwards. Quentin and Screet quickly followed. Shine as they moved through the ruins. This place was coated in dust and there were corners that shadows that were deeper than normal. But be that as it may, the blood ore or whatever the fuck they call it gave the ruined city a soft of ambient glow. It seemed alive as it vines was snaked and wrapped around every inch and corner of the colorful city. All of these buildings, built with blocks made of precious stones were almost intact, at best they all were missing their doors, but the building itself was still standing, and that was saying something. The vines came from a massive black building at the center of the city. The building itself seemed to be made of equally precious materials of it''s own as the black blocks seemed to shine in the glow of the vines that sowed forth from it. It was still at a distance but the damn thing was so huge that Rezar felt it would take him a second to walk to it rather than the hour or hour and. The half his mind was estimating. But getting there wouldn''t matter much, because at the moment, Rezar began to notice the dead bodies. Society monsters twisted and deformed behind what anybody would consider normal littered their path forward. But not just them, there were humans, and fauns, and elves, all clad in the uniform of the theocracy. They seemed to have been in a fight with the monsters Rezar just noticed, but he wasn''t exactly sure if the theocracy had been able to deal with these things. "Master these monsters are powerful. There are only two of them here, but there are eleven dead from the theocracy. And from the tracks that are spread all-over the place, I think need things were at least half a dozen, yet it took eleven men to take down two of them. The theocracy didn''t win a fight here master they fled. Which means we might have to face these things or something worse the deeper we go in and get closer to that building. I can feel a sort of death energy from here, and that seems to be the nexus points of a lot of strange and unfamiliar scents I think that building is a dungeon your majesty." This was a worrying thought, but Rezar really wasn''t shaken. Sure they might have to face and deal with no where stronger than anything they have ever faced, but ultimately if it comes down to it, they could always run away. Because even if they couldn''t fight, Rezar was a thousand percent sure of their ability to escape, so he had no fear. "Well then Screet, maybe I should have listened to you and brought some armor along; but I digresslet''s just go kill some monsters and conquer a dungeonagain!" Chapter 320: Dark Elves (V) Samira vent her head down faster than anyone could possibly follow and happily ripped out the throat of the dark elf queen. As if to highlight how much of a gory scene it was, blood sprayed into the air as the dark elf queen gurgled and choked on her own blood. Samira had a rather nasty grin on her face as she threw her head backwards and laughed before her form was wrapped in shadows and she turned back into a cloud of bats that goes right back to where Gynaika and the rest of Daughters of docile were waiting. The dark elves were yelling out in shock and pain at the sudden turn of events, but to Gynaika''s cold gaze, it was akin to the house made by a groups of ignorant children. "Was it necessary for you to make it so gory Samira, you should have been a bit civilized about it, plus is there a reason why you left the Dark elf queen alive. That''s sloppy work, killing her immediately would have been better, while leave her gravely injured and slowly dying. You know she would be saved by their healers, and that would completely offset the action you just took right now, pray tell what was the use?" Gynaika asked as the dark elves rushed towards them yelling out in rage and anger. "I easily went into their bloody camp and ripped their Queen''s throat open, and then flew right back without so much as a scratch on me. A statement has been made, right now they''re probably attacking out of a misplaced sense of anger at me attacking their leader, but right now said leader would probably be extremely scared, which would make it extremely easy to subdue them later. I''ll kill her if I have too Your highness, but right now let her stew in her own helplessness and fear, and let her watch how a real queen slaughters her enemies." Samira said to Gynaika with a smile. "You expect me to head out to battle?" Gynaika asked Samira with a raised eyebrow. "Well think it''s about time the Biancans see their queen in their own element, it would help with morale and would most definitely help and improve your chances with the people who look up to you. They say you''re the weak Queen, good to them, but completely incapable of protecting them from their enemies, that the butcher of Morte Bianca is a perfect example of what a Biancans queen should be, this would be a very good chance to prove them wrong, let this be your own battlefield." Gynaika was not stupid, manipulation and political maneuverings were her thing, and she knew Samira was goading her I to this, but why was something she wasn''t so sure of. Samira did not have a stake in the battle for who was going to be the most valuable queen to the Biancans. They couldn''t choose their king or the choose to love, respect or fear him. He was all that they had to look up to. But with two queens the matter of who was better would definitely arise, a d while she and Lenore were on equal pages now, Gynaika was able to make that concession because she believed all Lenore care about was the battlefield and not the politics of the royal court. And that was a good thing, but truly the people can make or unmake a Queen. She might be immortal and would Probably outlive Lenore, but she didn''t want to have her reign be one where she struggled for spotlight with the Butcher of Morte Bianca. The bitch was dangerous in the fact that she was loved for doing nothing more than winning wars. She was the one on the street doing the work and making sure the kingdom was thriving and growing in the right way, yet the preferred a woman who would spent her days covered in the blood, guts and filth of her enemies. Be that admit may, Gynaika was more than ready to show them that she too could be just as dangerous on the battlefield if not more so. Whatever Samira was after Gynaika did not have the foggiest clue, however she succeeded in goading her into this battle, and she would make sure that it was sight she would never forget for a very long time coming. Gynaika stretched out a dainty light brown skinned arm, grabbing the head of a dark elf that had gotten close to them. Before dark elf could slice down with the dual elven sabers she held in both her hands, Gynaika squeezed her hand, splitting her head into piece like an overripe melon. She pulled her arm back, and as she stayed it back, all of the blood of the dark elf followed her, moving with her arm in a flourish like she was some sort of dancer. She pirouetted; the blood drawing a spiral around her body like a ribbon before she flicked her arm in the direction of the approaching elves. [BLOOD MASTERY(Solidification)] She was subdued in the skills that she had masters choosing to keep many of them to herself. And while as a vampire she was well known for her mastery over the Compulsion skill, she was also quite achieved in the hood mastery passive, even evolving it last it''s fifth level to develop and auxiliary effect for it. She could solidify the blood she controls and could make them very hard depending on the quality of blood and the amount of energy she purse into the Solidification. All of the blood spilt into hundreds of millions of droplets, with a single command, those droplets surgery forward like the bullets of a machine gun. Rapidly poking holes into the bodies of hundreds of elves, killing them all as they fell to the ground like puppets that had their strings cut. As they fell, dead, with Gynaika completely loosing track of the fact that she wanted to have most of them turned into vampires, their blood floated up out of their body and gathered into a massive orb over the battlefield. Samira took a deep breath at that, this was a move that was Synonymous with Rezar, and seeing it again made her feel apprehensive; feeling as if she might have gone a little too far in goading the queen in waiting. Gynaika rushed forwards, slamming her palms on the ground as she flew across the battlefield her body nothing more than a hour. At every location where she slammed her palm down massive pillars shot out of the ground with the carvings of faces, belonging to monsters and people, all a varsity of races. Al of a sudden she seemed to grow faster and grow stronger, while the dark elves within the circle of control of those pillars seemed to be getting slower, some of them even seemed to have lost their minds as they turned on each other, screaming, fighting and clawing at each other in abject horror. [Summon Totem: Mire Of Sorrow] [Summon Totem: Shade Of Horrors] [Summon Totem: Iron Blessings] Samira had totally forgotten that the Queen in waiting was a member of the wild tribe race, or rather it would be better to say she used to be of the wild tribe race. The base of her skills all came from shamanic and totemic arts of the wild tribe race, it''s why her divination always seem like rituals, it was due to the base of what she had learnt, hand honestly that side her extremely dangerous. From what could be seen not her totem poles, it seems that they were more like buffs. And giving how wide s that''s they seem to cover, it was entirely possible that the buffs could spread to an entire army. It would positively affect and buff her allies on the battlefield. She was dangerous and while Samira had her own goals in trying to manipulate Gynaika and get her to act on this battlefield, she was left rethinking her method of approach. She wanted the king, and to get to the king she has to go through the Noble Queen in waiting or the Butcher of Morte Bianca. She would rather go after Gynaika, she was just like heron the sense that their devotion to Rezar was also a result of them being turned by him. They were sired to the king. But Lenore loved him, and this was something that was genuinely born within her heart. Meaning she was more than happy with the attention she got from him, just being a buffer to Gynaika and serving was enough to make the demoness happy. She didn''t have as mu h devotion to Rezar as Samira and Gynaika that they would do whatever they like to be closer to him and not at all willing to have anyone share his attention with them. She was not a vampire, which mea t she didn''t have the greed and lust for power that came with that for blood. Samira wanted to be Queen, and to do so, she has to bring Gynaika De la Muerte down. Chapter 321: The First Tribe (V): All Life Is Sacred Lenore stepped forward and stabbed her rapier through the throat of the death class user, splashing his blood onto the face of the leader of the first tribe, the sudden turn of events shocked him as he widened his eyes and stepped back, falling onto his ass as he scrambled backwards completely caught off guard. Lenore flicked her blade as the blood splashed onto the ground while the death class users gurgled and choked on his own blood. She shrugged as she moved forwards, her steps even as Kari went behind the leader, her own Katana placed on his neck, ready to cut his head off at the slightest movement from him. "Why? We already surrendered, there was no reason to take his life! I thought it was not the way of Morte Bianca to take the lives of those who have surrendered. So why do this?" Lenore did not feel the need to answer, but she was inclined to let him know why he was about to die. She looked into his eyes and for the first time she saw it, she saw fear. And unlike the pleasure and sense of satisfaction she usually gained from causing fear within her enemies, she couldn''t bring herself to enjoy this. Not after the massive amount of destruction that she had just visited on an entire race. "I apologize for what you are about to go through, because frankly speaking I was only under orders to scare you and your people a bit. So that you can think of doing something else rather than marching into our kingdom. Sure quite a few of you would have been alive in the process but you would still be alive to lead your people. However, you just had to go and be a death class user, which is annoying since you guys were never so common. Either way by mandate of the goddess and very personification of death itself; Darkness all death class users below the age of fifteen must be killed for they have tainted this world and are no longer allowed on it." "But that''s impossible! Why! Why! If we have to die, then who''s going to kill Rezar! Why is she favoring him rather than the others who have chosen to serve under her banner, why?" he asked, his gaze furious and filled with despair as he no longer cared for the blade that was hanging on his neck. His eyes glistened with unshed tears, he had so many questions, even ones that he probably wasn''t supposed to be asking her, but there really wasn''t much that could be done. He was now realizing that even if he didn''t act like a total, pompous and arrogant ass to Lenore, she was still going to kill him due to the very obvious fact that he was a death class user. "The reason why Rezar was exempted from this is because. He is her son." "What!" he asked out loud with his eyes opened wide in shock at the sudden revelation, whatever it might be he never expected it was something as crazy as this. It was impossible, how could he be her son? "Indeed. Rezar Deathwind, King of Morte Bianca is known as the son of death not just because it is a title, but because he really is the bloody son of the concept that is death. And you and everyone else that has thrown covetous eyes on what belongs to him, on the boons and gains of his sweat, blood and tears are all incredibly stupid and arrogant. You do not know your place for you are unworthy of his attention, it seems his mother has gotten annoyed at you trying to bring an end to her beloved son. So go on to the next life knowing that you died, not because you went up against a man, or a vampire or an advanced kingdom you never had any hope of beating or conquering in the first place. But because you went up against a force of nature you could never hope to understand, even if you could harness it. You fell and failed because you decided to fuck with death!" She gave a swift nod to Kari who didn''t hesitate to swing her sword, relieving the young leader of the first tribe of the wild tribe race of his head. it was quite unfortunate that his journey was cut short, and that he had to take down so many of his people along with him due to his arrogance, but there was nothing she could do about it. There were consequences to going up against Morte Bianca, and usually those consequences end up with someone or a lot of people dead. "What about the rest of the wild tribe, don''t you think we should have finished the job, to make sure we take care of the problem from the roots. Because honestly speaking not killing them would be a bad idea, because now that we have slain their leader, we have made him a martyr. What''s left of his people would probably decide to keep coming and keep constantly trying to bring Rezar down. We can see a thousand people coming and be able to come up with contingencies to deal with them, but what can we do if its five assassins or two, we shouldn''t leave any stone unturned." Kari said as she turned to face the stragglers of the wild tribe, her tails poking out from her waste as her visage took on a more animalistic form. "We''ve done enough Kari; look at them. there is no spirit left in them, they''re lost and broken and it will take a significant amount of time before they would be able to pull themselves back together again. But it''s not as if what you just said is wrong, but does Rezar seem like the kind of person that can be killed by assassins. And even they do decide to come after him, you8re seriously underestimating the scope and power of Morte Bianca. I''m not saying you''re wrong, a lot of things can go wrong, and a man with a knife and vendetta can cause more damage to a nation than even the power of the danse Macabre, however, it is a fundamental rule of Morte Bianca that we do not kick our enemies when they are already down, all life is sacred... let them have what''s left of theirs." And with that said Lenore turned around to head in the direction of the danse Macabre, with Kari taking a few seconds to look on at the death and destruction they had left behind. Tears fell to the scorched earth as wails raised up to the sky, letting the wind carry the songs of their sorrows to mall corners of Elysium. Something terrible has happened today, and it was an act that saw both innocent and guilty alike paying the price for greed and ignorance. There was nothing left of the once glorious and illustrious first tribe, Morte Bianca had firmly and with a resounding order snuffed out whatever light these people had to carry on. The stories to come would probably tell of the evil that was Morte Bianca, of the horror and destruction the wrought on this day. But it was not as if Morte Bianca gave a shit about how the rest of the world viewed them. they fought and built and tried their best to move forwards on their own terms, never being one to go looking for trouble, but always ready and willing to meet it in kind when their enemies come knocking on their door. They had power but they did not abuse it, they minded their business, and because of that theirs was a land that was prosperous not just because of the territories it sat on, but because of the hard work put into it day after day by brave men and women who are hoping for a better life. So when people who can''t appreciate the value of working hard for a bright future begin to covet the sweat and tears of the millions in Morte Bianca. Bianca would respond in kind and take everything from them, even their lives. So yes this was horrific and would be a story that the history books will never forget, but what happened today was not from the evil of Morte Bianca''s heart. This destruction was brought forth upon themselves. Morte Bianca never starts a fight, but you can be damn well sure that they end it. Kari turned around with a huff walking back towards the Danse Macabre. She was a whole lot different from the kitsune princess Rezar had met and fought beside to deal with invading NPCs from another dimension. It was crazy just how much she had changed, but she was the Shogun of the samurai division, the fiercest of the Biancan army division and she had no room for mercy. There was a reason why her division only answered to the Butcher of morte Bianca and to the king himself, they left nothing behind. Which is why as soon as she had returned and can get an audience with the king, she would be back here to make sure... that no roots were left behind; because she really hated weeds. Chapter 322: Interitus And Cleobis (VI) There was a coldness in the air that Rezar really couldn''t place his habds on. It was eerie, but it wasn''t exactly what he could call scary, at least not to him. There was a sense of familiarity to it, but regardless of what it was, he would not let it stop him from reaching their destination, the massive black building that seemed to loom ever large in the distance. They walked past the corner of a building made from Garnet and ruby and came up onto a square. This didn''t seem to be the city center, but it was a small plaza that held a fountain. The fountain itself had already dried up a long time ago, but from the dark stains and the lingering scent in the air, though it seemed extremely wild and crazy, it seems this fountain used to spew blood, and a lot of it. The fountain was unique; it was actually a sculpture of a vampire sucking on the neck of a female elf. It painted a dreary and somewhat sultry image, but with the female statue missing her left breast and male vampire his nose, there wasn''t much of a sign of the sultry atmosphere it probably once evoked, and then Rezar felt someone brush past him. He swiftly turned around just as Screet''s barrier sprang up in that very same moment. And just in time too as a Banshee crashed into the barrier, her wails causing their ear drums to rattle as they suddenly all felt disoriented. Rezar shook his head, but the woman with a hollow appearance, white hair and a skeletal frame was not alone, there were dozens of the banshees around. And with their arrival, Rezar noticed something else that seemed out of place with the plaza they suddenly found themselves in, there was blood hanging around the corners, with even some of them spilling out into the street. It was Quentin who gave voice to the thoughts that was currently running through their minds. "They''re hid the bodies Sire! These are spirits of the dead, how do we deal with them?" he asked as he held his sword close to himself, ready to attack as soon as Screet''s barrier goes down. However contrary to the expectations of everyone here, even Screet himself, the barrier held, without even showing any sign of cracks whatsoever. However, Rezar was having a bit conundrum, just looking at these banshees he knew none of his methods would really affect them. these were undead spiritual beings that didn''t have a physical form, so just swinging his khopesh around wouldn''t work, and the undead energy from his spectral skulls skill would probably not be enough to bring them down. The skill itself targets magical energy and causes a disruption rather than destroying it. With enough of it the spectral skulls, its effect would stack and probably cause a severe reaction that would lead to death. So in this scenario the spectral skulls were just a temporary fix. He had an idea, but this was the first time he has ever attempted to go down this road in a fight so he wasn''t exactly sure if it was going to work. But he was going to try to use his [soul Mastery] skill to augment the rest of his attacking skills. Come what may the banshees were all creatures of the soul, pure and intangible as opposed to other undead. If Brutus was here, then they might have had a hope as a wraith could be considered a male equivalent of a banshee. But wraith is genderless and can be female or male so calling wraiths the female equivalent of banshees might not exactly be accurate. He was a vampire and a necromancer, knowledge and understanding of the soul was almost instinctual. He knew just how to draw it out, how to use his own soul as a fuel source to power his skills. He held out his hands wide as he pointed in the direction of the Banshees, which at the moment was everywhere as the banshees all floated in the air, going round and round in circles around them and their barrier. Thankfully the concept of stamina was completely lost of Screet as he was an undead, he might run out of mana but he could never get tired. And his barrier was actually fueled by a little of his magic and much more of his stamina, if he so chose. they would and could be here for a while. [Spectral Skulls] Rezar felt a stinging pain in his chest as the three spectral skulls came to life, however there was a whole lot of difference with these skulls than the previous ones. His normal spectral skulls were usually green, or purple when he uses the [Mana Charge] skill to summon them. but this time they were a blazing silver and seemed to have wiry silver flames on them. they floated around him as he gave a small nod to Screet to drop down his barrier, or at the very least make a small hole in it for the skulls to get through. The undead Mole-Man knew just what his master had in mind as a small hole was made on the barrier. Banshees were spiritual beings so the concept of size did not apply to them. as long as there was a breach in Screet''s barrier, then they would have found a way in, no matter small it is. A banshee popped her head through the hole that was made, her jaws opened to unnatural proportions ready to release her soul stealing wail, but one of the skulls blasted through her face, her body rapidly burning up into specks of silvery light as a ghastly wail was left behind. Rezar released a breath he didn''t know he had been holding as the skulls whizzed about, chasing after the banshees as they flew and weaved in between houses trying to get away from what was definitely a permanent end. But with the range of the [Spectral Skull] skill, Rezar was able to completely eliminate the threats they were facing from the banshees, and that was totally and completely to their advantage. They rushed out of the plaza with the banshees hot on their tails, they went through a street that had emerald houses with Screet taking the lead since he was the one tracking the soldiers from the theocracy. He jumped up flipping in the air as he made a barrier under his feet to serve as a platform before a banshee came screaming out of the ground to smash into it. Rezar waved his hand as one of the soul powered spectral skulls flew forwards and smashed into the face of the banshee, destroying it into motes of light as Quentin spun his body vertically to evade another Banshee. Rezar didn''t have to worry as the Spectral skull were autonomous and could handle and take care of attacking as if they had a mind of their own. He held Vita Gratia tightly as he coated the both its blade with this soul energy he was barely keeping a hold on and sliced it through two Banshees. But he had scarcely done that when a massive lizard blasted out of one of the buildings and scooped him up in its jaws, its massive teeth almost splitting him in half. Rezar was caught off guard as he cried out in pain. However, dealing with a giant leaving monster was not a problem for him. He turned to face the lizard only to notice someone on its head. for a while he was confused, but the white hair and blue eyes let him know that this was one of the death class users that he was after. The grin on the face of the death class users was made all the more prominent as he was raised still in the jaws of the monster and smashed through a tall building that seemed to be made of diamonds. Rezar had wondered if it was just an optical illusion that the blocks used in making the buildings within this ruined city were precious stones. But the moment his back was smashed against the diamond wall and it broke instead of said diamond, he knew this truly was buildings made of precious stones. Quentin vanished in a cloud of purple and red smoke as he appeared over the Death class user and came down rapidly swinging his massive broad sword, hoping to lop of the head of his master''s assailant in one fell swoop. But right as he was about to bring his sword down, the death class user held out a hand and suspended Quentin in the air. But just the act of leaving the doom knight suspended caused it tremendous pain as the death class user had a wide grin on his face. "I might not be able to summon or raise undead like most death class users. But I can play with, and fuck with the souls of anyone and anything. Which makes your master incredibly foolish, I might not be able to control your souls and bring you to heel, but I can still manipulate it within your body and bring you great pain. So I will let him watch as I slowly destroy that which makes you his living and most powerful undead. your fucking souls! And once I''m done with you, I''ll fucking deal with him. But before that tell me; who the fuck is you?" the death class user asked, only for him to see Rezar vanish from his position within the jaws of the monster and appear on its head, with his arms wrapped around the throat of the terribly shocked death class user. "My Name is Rezar Deathwind Bitch!" Chapter 323: Dark Elves (VI): The Dark Side Of Queens Gynaika stood bloody and exhausted as blood dripped from the crown of her head to the sole of her feet, Samira stood beside her; afraid. She was just as scared of the queen in waiting as the thousands of dark elves that were now on their knees, their queen included looking at the monster of a woman that was standing in front of them with a stoic visage. Samira had on multiple occasions seen Rezar visit death and destruction and darkness upon the lives of many people, but this! This was something else entirely. A lot of people had wondered why Rezar and how Gynaika was able to have herself stay by his side, even to the point of becoming his queen. They only knew her for her beauty and her pretty words and pretentious attitude when it comes to the way she dealt with the citizens of morte Bianca. But those with an eye knew politics when they saw it, and they knew how to not get sucked into such elaborate lies as the ones she was spewing to the world around her. and then her divination came into question and everyone believed that she was valued because of her ability to see and expose the secrets and happenings of the world. But now she understood, she was his monster. It wasn''t Lenore that was the true Butcher of Morte Bianca, it was this incredibly heartless vampire of woman. Lenore killed with a coldness that belied her duty and responsibility. She could derive a bit of fun from bringing her enemies down, but that was the satisfaction that came from a hard fought battle. Samira knew Lenore, she knew in one way or the other her position as First General of Morte Bianca was taking a toll on her, yet she has still tried her best to see it all to the end. But that was just Lenore, Samira guessed that the demoness had a conscience and a softer heart than she let on. But Gynaika; the one with the bright smiles and heaven destroying beauty loved it. She enjoyed the kill. The hunt was a fun game to her and the insides of a living being fascinated her. There were dozens of dead Arachne, and they had been stripped down to their barest bones and flesh. She had drunk and bathed in their blood and danced with their guts around her neck while she beat others to death with limbs harvested from still breathing dark elves. This entire thing was like a fun surgery for her, she had taken an eye from the queen and had promptly forced the matriarch of the dark elf race to eat her own eyeball. Gynaika had shaken everyone present here today, and in more way than one. She was a monster, and no matter how greedy Samira was for a position at Rezar''s side, Gynaika was the last person she should cross for it. If she knew she would have just gone after Len ore instead, at least she had a bit of humanity left in her. One that Samira would have been able to exploit, and she would have at least gotten somewhere with a limited amount of success if not a fully sweep. But now she was now in the cross hairs of Gynaika making it too late for regrets. All of these gory displays had been because she provoked the Diviner, and Gynaika made sure she didn''t everything in the full view of Samira, to let her know just how much of a danger she was and could possibly be to her. And unfortunately of the dark elves, they were the scape goats Gynaika had chosen to make that point to Samira, and there was no turning back from that. "I told you all to surrender willingly all the consequences would be one you would not be able to carry, but you proved stubborn and wanted to challenge the power of the Illustrious Morte Bianca, and in the end it only took a single vampire to bring your army of thousands down to its knees. So let this be a lesson to you, and as you are reborn in the bloodline of the great Rezar Deathwind that flows through my veins, be every grateful and rejoice for it is by his rule of mercy that you all live. Let the un fortunate end of this dark elf race be a warning to any that would want to stand against the Royalty of Morte Bianca, we are not to be trifled with.!" As Gynaika finished her speech she turned away, but before she moved she whispered into Samira''s ears. "Am I Clear. Night Mother?" Samira gritted her teeth as she answered back with unwillingness on her face. "Yes your highness!" Gynaika smiled at her and then walked way, her supremacy proven to all, and they would not be forgetting it anytime soon. [[[[[[[[[[||]]]]]]]]]] Lenore heaved a sigh of relief as the watch towers of Necron city showed up in front of them. the city was alive and abuzz with activity, it was beautiful and with each day that passes it was looking even better. It was a city of steel, magic and technology, but apart from that it was also a city of nature. Of a perfection so sublime not man y would ever be able to understand it''s ambience. Her heart was heavy, she felt as if she was losing her way, and for the first time in a long time, she felt the urge to pray or at least ask a higher power for answers. "Mina please if you don''t mind, call for a car; I would like to visit the temple of death today." Mina and Kari looked up at her in surprise. One of the reasons why they all got along so well was the fact that neither one of them was religious, so hearing her say something like that caught all of them off guard. "Why would you want to go there your highness? That''s totally unexpected." Kari said to her as moved her head to the side with a puzzled look on her face. "It is being it... well you all don''t have to worry about anything; I''ve not lost my mind or anything like that, I just need to run a few errands there." That was the perfect excuse, it was well known that Priest was the cleric in charge of the Temple of death, and until he returned from gods know where he went, the temple has been nothing more than a decorative building. With his return there were now summons and services, blessings and healings and bunch of other things priests were responsible for. They couldn''t say anything but do as she asked. 30 minute later Lenore was in a jeep driving through the city, with her destination being the temple of death. From the airbase to the temple was a good one-hour journey, accounting for traffic and stops. Necron city was massive, with dozens of districts and sectors. Their numbers were in the millions and it was growing by the day, and this was just in the city, the total sum of citizens within Morte Bianca was now almost 50 million. And a good number of them were in the military or currently undergoing military training. Everything in this bright city worked well, people had come together to work for a common goal. And it didn''t matter how they came here, whether it was through one if Rezar''s conquest or they were refugees; the moment they step foot into this city, the need to belong, to be among those who have made a life here was too strong to ignore. Necron city was built by choice, and not on the back of tyranny or slavery, but by people choosing to work together for a cause that was just; and it was her job to keep them all safe. She stepped out of the car as soon it went past the second checkpoint on the land bridge that connected Death island with Necron city''s beaches. There was a massive statue of a hooded woman holding a scale in one hand and a sickle in the other, and behind her a pair of bony wings could be seen. However, she was beautiful, her visage was unlike any other and her tresses seemed to spill out of the hood. Lenore had the feeling that if she ever saw her in the flesh, she would be just as beautiful if not more but- "But what First General Lenore of Necron city and soon to be queen of my son." The sound of a rapier being drawn was heard as Lenore drew her weapon and thunder clouds began to quickly gather above her head. "Please put the weapon away I''m not going to bite, and it''s extremely rude since I can literally feel both soul crying out for help. So tell me Butcher, what do you want?" Lenore ignored the fact that the woman in the statue was now in front of her, all she could focus on was the fear and the all-encompassing feeling of power in front of her. She felt small, insignificant and it took almost all of her strength to say what brought her here. "p-please help me! I-I think I''ve lost my way." Chapter 324: Interitus And Cleobis (VII) Samira vent her head down faster than anyone could possibly follow and happily ripped out the throat of the dark elf queen. As if to highlight how much of a gory scene it was, blood sprayed into the air as the dark elf queen gurgled and choked on her own blood. Samira had a rather nasty grin on her face as she threw her head backwards and laughed before her form was wrapped in shadows and she turned back into a cloud of bats that goes right back to where Gynaika and the rest of Daughters of docile were waiting. The dark elves were yelling out in shock and pain at the sudden turn of events, but to Gynaika''s cold gaze, it was akin to the house made by a groups of ignorant children. "Was it necessary for you to make it so gory Samira, you should have been a bit civilized about it, plus is there a reason why you left the Dark elf queen alive. That''s sloppy work, killing her immediately would have been better, while leave her gravely injured and slowly dying. You know she would be saved by their healers, and that would completely offset the action you just took right now, pray tell what was the use?" Gynaika asked as the dark elves rushed towards them yelling out in rage and anger. "I easily went into their bloody camp and ripped their Queen''s throat open, and then flew right back without so much as a scratch on me. A statement has been made, right now they''re probably attacking out of a misplaced sense of anger at me attacking their leader, but right now said leader would probably be extremely scared, which would make it extremely easy to subdue them later. I''ll kill her if I have too Your highness, but right now let her stew in her own helplessness and fear, and let her watch how a real queen slaughters her enemies." Samira said to Gynaika with a smile. "You expect me to head out to battle?" Gynaika asked Samira with a raised eyebrow. "Well think it''s about time the Biancans see their queen in their own element, it would help with morale and would most definitely help and improve your chances with the people who look up to you. They say you''re the weak Queen, good to them, but completely incapable of protecting them from their enemies, that the butcher of Morte Bianca is a perfect example of what a Biancans queen should be, this would be a very good chance to prove them wrong, let this be your own battlefield." Gynaika was not stupid, manipulation and political maneuverings were her thing, and she knew Samira was goading her I to this, but why was something she wasn''t so sure of. Samira did not have a stake in the battle for who was going to be the most valuable queen to the Biancans. They couldn''t choose their king or the choose to love, respect or fear him. He was all that they had to look up to. But with two queens the matter of who was better would definitely arise, a d while she and Lenore were on equal pages now, Gynaika was able to make that concession because she believed all Lenore care about was the battlefield and not the politics of the royal court. And that was a good thing, but truly the people can make or unmake a Queen. She might be immortal and would Probably outlive Lenore, but she didn''t want to have her reign be one where she struggled for spotlight with the Butcher of Morte Bianca. The bitch was dangerous in the fact that she was loved for doing nothing more than winning wars. She was the one on the street doing the work and making sure the kingdom was thriving and growing in the right way, yet the preferred a woman who would spent her days covered in the blood, guts and filth of her enemies. Be that admit may, Gynaika was more than ready to show them that she too could be just as dangerous on the battlefield if not more so. Whatever Samira was after Gynaika did not have the foggiest clue, however she succeeded in goading her into this battle, and she would make sure that it was sight she would never forget for a very long time coming. Gynaika stretched out a dainty light brown skinned arm, grabbing the head of a dark elf that had gotten close to them. Before dark elf could slice down with the dual elven sabers she held in both her hands, Gynaika squeezed her hand, splitting her head into piece like an overripe melon. She pulled her arm back, and as she stayed it back, all of the blood of the dark elf followed her, moving with her arm in a flourish like she was some sort of dancer. She pirouetted; the blood drawing a spiral around her body like a ribbon before she flicked her arm in the direction of the approaching elves. [BLOOD MASTERY(Solidification)] She was subdued in the skills that she had masters choosing to keep many of them to herself. And while as a vampire she was well known for her mastery over the Compulsion skill, she was also quite achieved in the hood mastery passive, even evolving it last it''s fifth level to develop and auxiliary effect for it. She could solidify the blood she controls and could make them very hard depending on the quality of blood and the amount of energy she purse into the Solidification. All of the blood spilt into hundreds of millions of droplets, with a single command, those droplets surgery forward like the bullets of a machine gun. Rapidly poking holes into the bodies of hundreds of elves, killing them all as they fell to the ground like puppets that had their strings cut. As they fell, dead, with Gynaika completely loosing track of the fact that she wanted to have most of them turned into vampires, their blood floated up out of their body and gathered into a massive orb over the battlefield. Samira took a deep breath at that, this was a move that was Synonymous with Rezar, and seeing it again made her feel apprehensive; feeling as if she might have gone a little too far in goading the queen in waiting. Gynaika rushed forwards, slamming her palms on the ground as she flew across the battlefield her body nothing more than a hour. At every location where she slammed her palm down massive pillars shot out of the ground with the carvings of faces, belonging to monsters and people, all a varsity of races. Al of a sudden she seemed to grow faster and grow stronger, while the dark elves within the circle of control of those pillars seemed to be getting slower, some of them even seemed to have lost their minds as they turned on each other, screaming, fighting and clawing at each other in abject horror. [Summon Totem: Mire Of Sorrow] [Summon Totem: Shade Of Horrors] [Summon Totem: Iron Blessings] Samira had totally forgotten that the Queen in waiting was a member of the wild tribe race, or rather it would be better to say she used to be of the wild tribe race. The base of her skills all came from shamanic and totemic arts of the wild tribe race, it''s why her divination always seem like rituals, it was due to the base of what she had learnt, hand honestly that side her extremely dangerous. From what could be seen not her totem poles, it seems that they were more like buffs. And giving how wide s that''s they seem to cover, it was entirely possible that the buffs could spread to an entire army. It would positively affect and buff her allies on the battlefield. She was dangerous and while Samira had her own goals in trying to manipulate Gynaika and get her to act on this battlefield, she was left rethinking her method of approach. She wanted the king, and to get to the king she has to go through the Noble Queen in waiting or the Butcher of Morte Bianca. She would rather go after Gynaika, she was just like heron the sense that their devotion to Rezar was also a result of them being turned by him. They were sired to the king. But Lenore loved him, and this was something that was genuinely born within her heart. Meaning she was more than happy with the attention she got from him, just being a buffer to Gynaika and serving was enough to make the demoness happy. She didn''t have as mu h devotion to Rezar as Samira and Gynaika that they would do whatever they like to be closer to him and not at all willing to have anyone share his attention with them. She was not a vampire, which mea t she didn''t have the greed and lust for power that came with that for blood. Samira wanted to be Queen, and to do so, she has to bring Gynaika De la Muerte down. Chapter 325: Interitus And Cleobis (VII) (real) Rezar held the shocked death class user with a smile on his face, saying his name wasn''t necessary. Just the act of his body starting to heal from the damage it had included from the giant monster underneath them was enough to state the identity of the boogey man they were currently dealing with. The death class user shook, and for a moment Rezar thought that it was in fear, only for him to realize that the death class user was actually laughing. His silky long white tresses were three times as long as Rezar''s and we''re scattered all-over his face giving him a deranged and disheveled look. But seeing as this was a death class user he was dealing with, it wouldn''t be too far fetched if it actually turns out that he was actually deranged. Madness was always having on the edge for every death class user in existence and Rezar was all too willing to drive into such madness so he started laughing along with the death class user, shocking everyone else who had shown up with this ambush. There was another death class user at the top of a garnet made building, there were a couple of deformed looking wolves waiting and watching, the arms of babies and goblins poking out of different part of their skin as they stood at an easy five foot tall and six foot wide. They were scary creatures, and while their presence was one that could and should give people pause, it was the massive monster that was currently still swaying about after having to smash it''s head into a diamond building that truly sent chills running up the spine of those still living. Unfortunately or fortunately depending on how you looked at it. Rezar and his undead were not considered to be a part of the living, and there was the obvious fact that they had probably seen worse things than this giant rat like hedgehog monster with a half head and neck. "What''s so funny? You''re about to die." Rezar asked as he let out simple chuckles. "What are the odds that King Rezar of Morte Bianca would show in in front of the people who want to kill him the most? Please tell me you''re not that stupid, please tell me he''s not that stupid." The death class user asked as he turned to Screet who just shrugged his shoulders at the question, Rezar blanched in annoyance cause it he didn''t know better it sounded as if Screet was agreeing that he was stupid "You must feel really confident about your odds of taking me down. And given my reputation I would at least expect a little bit of restraint if not fear, but damn it you''re actually laughing! You''ve got balls kid." Rezar with an all too bright smile on his face, and seeing that Quentin couldn''t help but shudder because he knew that smile, it was the last thing he was as a human and the first thing he saw as a doom Knight. The death class user didn''t say anything as his body seemed to vanish into vapor and dissipate into the body of the giant monster beneath Rezar. Rezar''s response to this was to raise an eyebrow up in surprise, and when the monster beneath him raised it''s head up suddenly, throwing Rezar high into the air and opening it''s jaws wide, ready to snatch the vampire king out of the air and crush him to hits with teeth that was half the size of his body. Rezar raised a second eyebrow and promptly summoned Vita Gratia into his hands. (Bullet Time) Time slowed down around Rezar as he angled his body to dodged the open jaws, coming up underneath the neck of the monster and stabbing Vita Gratia in her staff form into the soft underbelly of the monster. Time resumed as stomach churning tearing sound was heard as gravity dragged Rezar down, slitting opens the bottom of the monster from throat to bottom like some sort of science lab experiment.. or just a killer going after his prey with more surgical precision than most, it was a move akin to a butcher skinning meat. Rezar landed with a this and flicked Vita Gratia, removing the blood that count to the blade as he turned with a fierce look only to have a giant Illusory paw smash into his body and send him flying back like a bullet shot out of a gun. Rezar smashed through a building that was made of rubies, hundreds of it''s shards sticking into his body before he ended up in what looked to be a nest of snake like scorpions. A second was too much time for them to react to his intrusion as their stingers class and cats began to find our base in his body. The tiny poisonous creatures were strong, they could still break through his skin which was saying something. Rezar was bloodied and seemingly on his last keys as he looked up to see an energy form of the monster he had just killed trying to swat at Quentin who was busy evading it''s strikes and at the same time moving through to decapitated the soldiers if the theocracy that was here. He was making sure to ruin their bodies properly to make it impossible for them to be raised from the dead. Screet had raised a barrier over Rezar that had some sort of healing properties as it was tinged gold from it''s normal green, and all of Rezar''s I juries were healing a lot quicker. But there was now way the death class user responsible for the energy apparition would let Rezar catch a second wind. Rezar could see the damn man''s silhouette right in the middle not the creature''s head. Rezar slat out a glob of blood and saliva as he got back up to his feet and summoned Vita Gratia back into his hands, and against his better judgement sheathed the weapon behind him as he held his hands open wide. (Mana Charge) (Soul Manipulation) (Spectral Skull) Four skulls the size of basketballs came into existence as Rezar grabbed a hold onto two of them and rushed forwards, his body breaking the sound barrier as he appeared him front of the energy form of the monster. Two of the skulls slammed into the chest of the creature, causing it to let out an inhuman shriek that left shaken to their very core. The creature scrambled backwards, Rezar could see the form of the death class user hunching over in pain within the body of the energy monster. Rezar jumped up into the air, leaving a crater behind as he fell from the sky, at the peak of his fall he used his (Bullet Time) skill, playing around with physics as the skill increase the speed of time around his body. So in a manner of speaking he was the one moving through time, going at a faster pace than everyone else around him. It gave him the movement of a meteorite to that of a bullet. He slashed through the body of the energy monster, feeling a chill deep in his bones that seemed to peel back his skin. He slammed the skulls into his chest, pouring all of his energy into it as Skulls lit up brightly like a star about to go supernova. The death class user held Rezar''s hand tightly as his eyes widened in shock, he seemed to phase in and out of reality as his body turned blurry and then solid. It didn''t seem as if he was dying if anything, but he was obviously in a lot of pain, and that alone was bringing a lot of satisfaction to Rezar as green smoke started rising from the spot Rezar had placed his spectral skulls on. "Interitus! Stop you monster! Attack!" The corpse stitched wolves that were on the side of the other death class user rushed forwards in an attempt to Probably put a stop to Rezar killing the user with an ability for soul control. But Quentin was there to meet their charge when a red and purple aura of death covered his body and he shot forwards, his broad sword singing through the air to divided the first of the wolves in half. However much to his shock, said wolf split into two smaller. Versions and continued on their merry way to go rip Rezar apart as their master had ordered. But even if they got last Quentin, getting past Screet was a whole other ball game entirely. A dome appeared on the three wolves, keeping them trapped as a concentrated beam of golden light was focused on their forms. It was a crazy sight to see, because obviously it was an Undead using holy energy or magic. It shocked the hell out of a lot of people and all Rezar could reply to their questioning stares was to shrug his shoulders. "Cleobis?... Sister!.... Save me!" "Sorry Psycho, but there will be no saving and no sisters today. Only Rezar DeathWind and DEATH!" Chapter 326: Interitus And Cleobis (VIIIl Rezar smiled as he looked at the death class user, his smile was the last thing he would ever see and with good reason. But slowly right in front of the shocked eyes of the other death class user, death came for one of those beings that were believed to be the sons and masters of death itself. The shock and fear going around was pretty much understandable, because after all that was said and done, to actually see Rezar Deathwind in front of him, a man that was somewhat known as the boogey man in Elysium or at the very least within the Bahrenburg wildlands was beyond shocking. It was insane. And just like the rumors say, it seems Rezar was unkillable. Rezar glared at the other death class user as the man moved his mouth up and down a few times without a single sound making its way out of her mouth. The death class user stared Rezar in the eye but with caution, but beyond the cautious look was the intense look of hatred that was suffused behind her gaze. Rezar had taken something from her, and from the look of things it seems that she would not be giving up this fight until either her or Rezar was six feet under. He could see the hate in her eyes, and while he could appreciate the reason for her hate; Rezar was not in a merciful mood. Especially when she''s a part of the death class users that have to be wiped out by the command of his so called mother the goddess of death. "I would advise you to run right now, because at the very least you would have a chance, even if it''s below 1% of a 100% you would or could survive. But the crazy thing is I would still find you, no matter where you choose to hide and I will end you in the most painful way possible. Or you could fight and I can end I quickly, but that would be mainly dependent of my feelings during the fight. So please corpse tailor. let''s dance." And dance they did as she let out a scream of rage and dozens of those corpse stitched wolves showed up, just as big as the one Quentin had split into pieces. Rezar''s eyebrow twitched. It was almost as if the universe was trying to make fun of him. The truth of the matter was that these corpses stitched wolves didn''t die as Quentin''s previous engagement with them had shown. Any substantial damage dealt would have them being split into multiple pieces. And while they couldn''t kill him, it would be incredibly uncomfortable to pulled in different directions by numerous teeth. Screet jumped back, pulling Quentin along with him as he made a massive dome over Rezar and themselves. The wolves surrounded the dome, their goblin and child arms scratching at the dome and trying to break through., but Screet''s Dome has proven itself time and time again to be something that couldn''t be broken through. It was an impressive ability, and one that decidedly, Rezar was envious of. He shifted his gaze to the death class user, the one that had been called as Cleobis; and what he was seeing had his mind running at a few miles a minute to figure out a solution. She had a scythe in hand that she was busy waving about within the crowd of wolves, she was literally multiplying their numbers. She wasn''t strong enough to face off against Rezar alone, so she wan ted to drown them in numbers. It was a sound strategy, and one that unfortunately Rezar could not see a way out, because if he attacked any of those wolves they would split and the pressure on him would be ten times more. And at the moment he was not too keen about using Vita Gratia''s skill, because it would take a long ass time to recharge them, and he had no idea what they possibly had to face within these ruins, he had to keep some cards intact in case he need to pull off an overpowered overkill move. "Master there is a way we can defeat all of these wolves and the death class user. Though I envision it would be very painful for you." Rezar raised an eyebrow at that as he turned to Screet who was trying and failing at looking like an innocent child. Those beady mole eyes were beyond ridiculous and Quentin had even more of an impatience with them than Rezar himself. "Just say what it is for King''s sake you bloody rat!" Screet narrowed his eyes at the doom knight. Being called a rat wasn''t something he appreciated, and he was obviously about to pick a fight, but a loud caught from Rezar was enough to get everything back in track. "She''s not splitting them three times. If a wolf splits into two, both wolves can only be split into two once more or they die. Which means a single wolf is six. After that they will die, she''s made a mistake twice. She was trying to keep it out of our perception, and so far she was really lucky, but I think her grief let her make such a colossal mistake. We just have to keep on killing them, eventually they run out and stop splitting, but the things it would probably take a lot of skin and bones for that to happen. And Quentin and I can''t heal like you master, so it seems you would have to do this on your own till it gets to the point where we can both give you support. I''ll have a dome over your head constantly so that I can offer you as much support as I can, so don''t worry, we''ll be done with this soon." Rezar looked at the Mole-man and then raised his head to look at Quentin who immediately turned his head to the side with a guilty look on his face. "Fine! Open the barrier, once we''re back in Morte Bianca you both will be cleaning the sewers for a month!" Quentin was about to speak up, saying he changed his mind, but Screet spoke first, putting the final nail in the coffin he had built for them both, "We are your faithful subjects your Majesty, and it is with a heavy heart that we say and agree to accept any punishment given. Our hearts are heavy that we''re incapable of fighting besides you or for you. So we welcome all punishment your majesty." Quentin knew for sure they were screwed and so too did Screet. But for some reason he really didn''t want to be a corpse stitched wolf''s chew toy. So much so that he was willing to risk punishment from Rezar to avoid this fight. If Quentin didn''t know better, he would say that Screet was Narcissistic to a fault. But that couldn''t be true could it? Not Screet: the bloody undead Mole-man was so aloof and quiet in his dealings many people thought of him as cool. It couldn''t be that he was so engrossed with himself he didn''t think anyone else was worth his time right? That should be impossible, look at him! He was an undead which means he had leathery skin and was ugly as fuck! But there was nothing g more to be said as Rezar surged forwards, an entrance made in barrier and rapidly closing behind him. He had barely made his way out when a wolf flew out with a speed close to that of a vampire''s and latched onto Rezar''s neck. The move startled the young vampire king, but there was no stropping this fight as he split Vita Gratia and sent it flying forwards, stabbing through dozens of wolves like a skewer through meatballs or marshmallows. Some of the wolves split into other ones, while others died. A scary shriek was heard as the death class user jumped in a completely inhuman manner to Rezar''s direction her scythe held high and ready to slash down as more and more wolves grabbed a hold of Rezar''s body, their fangs biting deep in flesh as his blood flowed through it. He shot his right leg forwards and smashed did into the chest of the death class users; melee fight doesn''t seem to be her talent as she was blasted backwards like a cannon ball, a spray of blood leaving a trail behind from her bloodied mouth. Rezar jumped and used his [Mana Blade] skill on both blades of Vita Gratia, letting the glow of the energy suffuse both blades and the chains they were attached too as the weapons seemed to float in the air with a will of their own. Rezar fell down to the ground, swing both blades and using the chains for more reach and area of damage as he smashed it into the seemingly endless pack of corpse stitched wolves. *Boom! * A cloud of dust rose up and a powerful shockwave spread out, blasting many wolves to pieces, while they split in an instant only to have their split selves get vaporized too. Rezar looked up to see that there were still a few wolves let, but not something that they couldn''t take care. He looked down at his chest in annoyance and called out. "Somebody get this damn wolf off my throat!" Chapter 327: Interitus And Cleobis (IX): End Of Rot And Decay Rezar smiled as he looked at the death class user, his smile was the last thing he would ever see and with good reason. But slowly right in front of the shocked eyes of the other death class user, death came for one of those beings that were believed to be the sons and masters of death itself. The shock and fear going around was pretty much understandable, because after all that was said and done, to actually see Rezar Deathwind in front of him, a man that was somewhat known as the boogey man in Elysium or at the very least within the Bahrenburg wildlands was beyond shocking. It was insane. And just like the rumors say, it seems Rezar was unkillable. Rezar glared at the other death class user as the man moved his mouth up and down a few times without a single sound making its way out of her mouth. The death class user stared Rezar in the eye but with caution, but beyond the cautious look was the intense look of hatred that was suffused behind her gaze. Rezar had taken something from her, and from the look of things it seems that she would not be giving up this fight until either her or Rezar was six feet under. He could see the hate in her eyes, and while he could appreciate the reason for her hate; Rezar was not in a merciful mood. Especially when she''s a part of the death class users that have to be wiped out by the command of his so called mother the goddess of death. "I would advise you to run right now, because at the very least you would have a chance, even if it''s below 1% of a 100% you would or could survive. But the crazy thing is I would still find you, no matter where you choose to hide and I will end you in the most painful way possible. Or you could fight and I can end I quickly, but that would be mainly dependent of my feelings during the fight. So please corpse tailor. let''s dance." And dance they did as she let out a scream of rage and dozens of those corpse stitched wolves showed up, just as big as the one Quentin had split into pieces. Rezar''s eyebrow twitched. It was almost as if the universe was trying to make fun of him. The truth of the matter was that these corpses stitched wolves didn''t die as Quentin''s previous engagement with them had shown. Any substantial damage dealt would have them being split into multiple pieces. And while they couldn''t kill him, it would be incredibly uncomfortable to pulled in different directions by numerous teeth. Screet jumped back, pulling Quentin along with him as he made a massive dome over Rezar and themselves. The wolves surrounded the dome, their goblin and child arms scratching at the dome and trying to break through., but Screet''s Dome has proven itself time and time again to be something that couldn''t be broken through. It was an impressive ability, and one that decidedly, Rezar was envious of. He shifted his gaze to the death class user, the one that had been called as Cleobis; and what he was seeing had his mind running at a few miles a minute to figure out a solution. She had a scythe in hand that she was busy waving about within the crowd of wolves, she was literally multiplying their numbers. She wasn''t strong enough to face off against Rezar alone, so she wan ted to drown them in numbers. It was a sound strategy, and one that unfortunately Rezar could not see a way out, because if he attacked any of those wolves they would split and the pressure on him would be ten times more. And at the moment he was not too keen about using Vita Gratia''s skill, because it would take a long ass time to recharge them, and he had no idea what they possibly had to face within these ruins, he had to keep some cards intact in case he need to pull off an overpowered overkill move. "Master there is a way we can defeat all of these wolves and the death class user. Though I envision it would be very painful for you." Rezar raised an eyebrow at that as he turned to Screet who was trying and failing at looking like an innocent child. Those beady mole eyes were beyond ridiculous and Quentin had even more of an impatience with them than Rezar himself. "Just say what it is for King''s sake you bloody rat!" Screet narrowed his eyes at the doom knight. Being called a rat wasn''t something he appreciated, and he was obviously about to pick a fight, but a loud caught from Rezar was enough to get everything back in track. "She''s not splitting them three times. If a wolf splits into two, both wolves can only be split into two once more or they die. Which means a single wolf is six. After that they will die, she''s made a mistake twice. She was trying to keep it out of our perception, and so far she was really lucky, but I think her grief let her make such a colossal mistake. We just have to keep on killing them, eventually they run out and stop splitting, but the things it would probably take a lot of skin and bones for that to happen. And Quentin and I can''t heal like you master, so it seems you would have to do this on your own till it gets to the point where we can both give you support. I''ll have a dome over your head constantly so that I can offer you as much support as I can, so don''t worry, we''ll be done with this soon." Rezar looked at the Mole-man and then raised his head to look at Quentin who immediately turned his head to the side with a guilty look on his face. "Fine! Open the barrier, once we''re back in Morte Bianca you both will be cleaning the sewers for a month!" Quentin was about to speak up, saying he changed his mind, but Screet spoke first, putting the final nail in the coffin he had built for them both, "We are your faithful subjects your Majesty, and it is with a heavy heart that we say and agree to accept any punishment given. Our hearts are heavy that we''re incapable of fighting besides you or for you. So we welcome all punishment your majesty." Quentin knew for sure they were screwed and so too did Screet. But for some reason he really didn''t want to be a corpse stitched wolf''s chew toy. So much so that he was willing to risk punishment from Rezar to avoid this fight. If Quentin didn''t know better, he would say that Screet was Narcissistic to a fault. But that couldn''t be true could it? Not Screet: the bloody undead Mole-man was so aloof and quiet in his dealings many people thought of him as cool. It couldn''t be that he was so engrossed with himself he didn''t think anyone else was worth his time right? That should be impossible, look at him! He was an undead which means he had leathery skin and was ugly as fuck! But there was nothing g more to be said as Rezar surged forwards, an entrance made in barrier and rapidly closing behind him. He had barely made his way out when a wolf flew out with a speed close to that of a vampire''s and latched onto Rezar''s neck. The move startled the young vampire king, but there was no stropping this fight as he split Vita Gratia and sent it flying forwards, stabbing through dozens of wolves like a skewer through meatballs or marshmallows. Some of the wolves split into other ones, while others died. A scary shriek was heard as the death class user jumped in a completely inhuman manner to Rezar''s direction her scythe held high and ready to slash down as more and more wolves grabbed a hold of Rezar''s body, their fangs biting deep in flesh as his blood flowed through it. He shot his right leg forwards and smashed did into the chest of the death class users; melee fight doesn''t seem to be her talent as she was blasted backwards like a cannon ball, a spray of blood leaving a trail behind from her bloodied mouth. Rezar jumped and used his [Mana Blade] skill on both blades of Vita Gratia, letting the glow of the energy suffuse both blades and the chains they were attached too as the weapons seemed to float in the air with a will of their own. Rezar fell down to the ground, swing both blades and using the chains for more reach and area of damage as he smashed it into the seemingly endless pack of corpse stitched wolves. *Boom! * A cloud of dust rose up and a powerful shockwave spread out, blasting many wolves to pieces, while they split in an instant only to have their split selves get vaporized too. Rezar looked up to see that there were still a few wolves let, but not something that they couldn''t take care. He looked down at his chest in annoyance and called out. "Somebody get this damn wolf off my throat!" Chapter 328: The First Upload (I): 315 Blood. This wasn''t the first time he had smelt it, his claws elongated as his bones ached, his body desperate to shift but just like every other time this has happened, he stayed in the same formthe weak form he now hated. He raised his eyes to stare at the bars of his prison, they had rusted overtimehe wasn''t sure how long he had been there but he knew it was long. A sigh left his lips, he wondered if death would finally take him, the scent of blood continued to flow through the air, tempting him, scaring him. He might be the next person to bleed, he might be the next person to die. He got up from his sitting position as walked to the rusted iron bars, placing his palms on the rusted rods as he inhaled deeper, wondering if the scent would give him an ideawho was bleeding this time? "315, get away from the bars" That was his name, at least the only one he remembered, he followed the given orders but his eyes never left the familiar man walking towards him, the man''s beard as usual covered in grime and food scraps, his brown teeth making an appearance every now and then as he spoke. He''s speaking? His brows furrowed as he stared at the lips of the man opposite him move continuously, he seemed to be excited about something. ". finally leave this shit hole, I''ll miss you the most 315" "why?" he couldn''t help but ask, he and the man had never had any kind of relationship'' he only knew him as the man that brought his food and also change of clothes every once in a while, they haven''t had more than two conversations that didn''t involve him being insulted. The man laughed, it sounded like he was being choked with a drink in his mouth. "because" the man put down the tray 315 didn''t even notice he was holding, his usual porridge looking unappealing in a clay bowl with a rusted silver spoon set next to it. ". You are not like the others, you don''t run your mouth andthe higher ups seem to fear you. I''m sure you had an interesting past" 315 stared at the man''s beard, distracted. It always baffled him whenever his saw so much dirt in it, did he not see it? Or does he just decide to ignore it. "Enjoy your meal, today might be the last day I serve you" 315 accepted the tray and didn''t pay the man any more attention. He spoke about his past 315 sighed as drank the contents from the bowl, he knew nothing about his past, not even his name, all he has ever known are the walls surrounding him. He knows they''re on a mountain, he remembered one of the guards talking about how far it was from civilization. He knows the men in charge have never once come to see his and give him an explanation the punishment he had been given and been enduring for as long as he could remember. The stench of blood had faded and all the tension in his bones had calmed. He dreaded the next time it would happen again. It was more agonizing than having these chains on his feet. 315 didn''t remember anything but he knew at least he knew what he was, a werewolf, a beast. He knew it from the voices in his head, they begged him to let loose, to let skin give way for fur, to be in his true form. But something was holding him back, something he was sure his captors had a hand in. 315 was exhausted, he knew they were trying to break him and he knew it was workingwhatever their aim was. He wasn''t sure how long he sat there lost in his thoughts, the cold from the hard floor seeped into his bones and he fought the urge to cry out in frustration. He wanted out! he was tired and even though these walls are all he has ever known, he knew the life outside would much better than this. "315. it''s your lucky day!" Again?... 315 didn''t raise his head, why should he? No matter what punishment they gave him now it wouldn''t matter because he had already been given the worst one of all.to die broken. "Did you hear what I said or have you gone deaf as well" He heard the rattling of keys, they were hitting the rusted bars and then a click. The hinges squealed from their lack of use as the only thing separating 315 from the outside world opened for the first time since he was here. His eyes raised from the floor and he could heart his heart pounding heavily in his chest. This had never happened before, those bars had never moved no matter how much he had tried to move them. "get up 315, its time for you to meet your makers" Woman had grey hair and her eyes were bright golden just like his, she stood next to the man holding the keys with a demeaning smirk on his face. He walked into his cell and began to work on the shackles on 315''s legs, he didn''t movehe felt the weight he had ever known become lighter. He stood up and took a few steps towards the open door. He had never walked this easily before, it gave him a foreign feeling, he embraced it. Freedom, that''s what it was, the words popped into his and at the same time he was overcome with great anger. A low growl left his lips as he lunged for the woman with grey hair with intentions to rip her eyes out, she was his kind, a werewolf just like him he was sure and yet here she was part of the people who had put him in this confinement. He felt a sting at the back the back of his neck just before his claws could reach her, she had a stoic expression on her face and he didn''t move and inch from where she stood. 315''s leg lost all their strength, his knees hitting the floor as his vision blurred and his hands fell limply at his sides. He stared at her shoes as he fell to the ground, he kept all of his focus on the brown leather till everything became dark and he finally gave in to the exhaustion. When his eyes opened, he was in a place that fascinated him, all he had ever seen were black and grey wall but in here everything was white, spotless, it made him feel like he would soil the walls just by breathing. He looked down at himself and realized his clothes had been changed as well, the dark brown coat he had been used to had been switched for a long white tunicas white as snow. He remembered snowcold. "315, it is good to see you again" he could only hear the masculine voice, the room was empty with no one in sight. He tries to sit up only to be restricted by the with cloths that tied both his wrists and ankles to the chair he woke up in. "Who are you? What do you want from me?" he had to know, he had so many questions. he had to know why he was being punished. "I will answer all of your questions but first you''ll have to answer mine" the voice spoke again, his fists clenched but he nodded even though he wasn''t sure the man could see him. "What is your name?" "315" he replied without hesitation, he had never heard anyone call him anything different. "what are you?" "I." 315 hesitated, he wasn''t sure how to answer the question, was it a trick question? A test? "I am a werewolf" there was a long pause that made 315 feel like the man had left. "who do you protect?" this time it was a feminine voice, it sounded darkshe sounded scary. For some reason, those questions stirred something within him, it sounded like a mantra that he had known for a long time. I am Jerome Moon and I. "I protect Elysium" He heard a loud noise, a yell of frustration and anger, his heart began to beat fast as he thought about the words he had spoken, they had just come to him but yet they felt like his purposeElysium was his to protect! "this has been a total waste of time, he will never be ready!" the woman yelled in anger, he heard another loud band and then doors opened right in front of him, two men dressed in white came in with syringes in each hand. "Entomb him and make sure never gets out of it!" They put their needles deep into his skin as he struggled to free his limbs. He felt deep hatred in his heart for his captors and as his vision went dark, he vowed to kill every single last one of them.