In a dingy corner of a small governmental office in a tiny settlement in the countryside by Pittersville, there was a door; behind it, a little room. A small tablet sat in the center, placed upon a deteriorating pedestal, with four face-down photographs and a paper detailing an encrypted report resting upon its surface.
Legally, every settlement with more than 1000 inhabitants had to have a chamber like this one. The purpose of the ethertech contraption was simple—so that any government officials could contact the central. Naturally, this also applied to any four-star archhumans who had accepted the duty and responsibility of lordship.
Madame Morleppe smiled gently as she placed another small note on the remaining free corner of the tablet. The paper held a code that only she was privy to. Every lord got such a code once a year, and if they decided to use it, their message would immediately become the highest priority. And the highest-priority messages went directly to the supreme ruler of the American Empire—Empress Kaiya.
Once she was done placing everything on the surface, she infused it with her essence, and the stone tablet scanned it, projecting a copy to the central, where it would be forwarded to a higher-up.
She collected the evidence, placed it in her storage ring, and sat on a nearby chair, waiting for the response. Pulling out a cocktail from her ring with a puff of air, she sipped on it impatiently and sighed.
Frankly, she wasn’t thrilled with her discovery. Peter Vane’s father—Matthew Vane—had been brutally murdered, as she had dutifully recorded with her camera. The crime scene hadn’t been concealed so thoroughly that nobody would know what happened, but it had been done cleverly enough to prevent discovery for what had been well over a month at that point.
Was any of this proof of her theory that the man by the name of Peter Vane was actually some form of a double impostor? Not quite. But she didn’t need to prove anything—all she needed was to give the empress a valid reason to take a closer look at what Harold was up to.
The only reason the Kraven Clan had gotten a slot for the expedition was that they could prove that the company was being run well enough that their operations wouldn’t pose any undue risk to Starhold or New Earth.
The evidence she had collected was enough to justify an in-depth audit and investigation of their activities, which would undoubtedly reveal the illegal slave trade they were running, and Basilisk would have to take all the responsibility.
The thought of that made her giddy. Oh, how she craved to see that man’s face wrought in agony and despair. If his image fell far enough, she could even possibly justify challenging him to a duel and killing him before he could attempt to seek revenge.
Or, perhaps even better, she might get priority to buy off the rights for the expedition slot. Reselling them could net her some extra funds.
She anxiously waited for the empress’s response. Naturally, the final outcome would be up to that woman’s decision, and heavens knew she hated being used by quarreling Lords.
Her thoughts were interrupted as the tablet’s surface lit up. She walked over to it and spotted the glowing imprint of a response letter.
HELLO, NARCISSE. The letter started. IT’S BEEN A WHILE SINCE YOU LAST CONTACTED ME. I AM CURIOUS ABOUT THE CONTENTS OF YOUR LETTER. I WANT TO DISCUSS THE ISSUE AT LENGTH. I AM MOMENTARILY BUSY WITH MY WORK IN STARHOLD, BUT I WILL BE RETURNING TO NOVA YORK IN TWO WEEKS.
WE HAVEN’T SEEN EACH OTHER IN QUITE A WHILE, DEAR.
I WOULD LOVE TO CATCH UP.
BEST REGARDS,
KAIYA.
Madame gulped as a nervous smirk quirked up on her lip.
Did I anger her somehow? she wondered and hoped that wasn’t the case.
It was rare to receive a direct invitation to an in-person meeting, and frankly, it was rarely a good thing.
This outcome had been outside her expectations; she would have to cancel her immediate plans. Nobody could reject the Empress’ invitation—not if they valued the thing that kept their head attached to their body.
Sighing, she swallowed the stress cramp that was inching up her throat and headed out of the building.
***
Freddy had been hesitant to reveal Bloodshed to Sophia, but with their lives on the line and her holding much information that could save them from their predicament, he had decided that this wasn’t the time to keep possibly invaluable tools hidden.
But… he had expected quite a bit more from her reaction. Honestly, he had been hoping to see her eyeballs bulge and mouth drop in shock as she spluttered, screamed, and ran away at the sight of a bona fide spirit under his control… but her reaction was quite different.
“Whoa!” she said, inching closer with curiosity. “I had no idea you had a bound spirit! Holy crap, where did you get that ring!? That thing must have cost a freakin’ fortune!”
He stared at her and blinked slowly. “Do you already know what this is?” he asked incredulously.
“Well… duh?” She chuckled. “I’ve spent a lifetime studying in preparation to become a full-fledged cult member. My knowledge of etherology is way ahead of yours, buddy,” she declared.
He was immeasurably disappointed that his situation was something others already knew of, but he wasn’t surprised. Countless archhumans had lived and died during the past 200 years. Some people must have seen wilder stuff than he could imagine.
Ignoring the bruise on his ego, he squatted down to pet Bloodshed on the head. “If you know what this is, I’d like to hear more about it.”
This had turned into a priceless opportunity to learn more about the nature of the shell in his soul and its connection to the ring on his hand. The thing he wanted to know the most was how he could evolve the power. Bloodshed was no longer growing in strength, no matter how much stuff it killed. If he had a way to empower it, well…
She frowned at him, lifting an eyebrow and slightly cocking her head in confusion. “Uhm… Do you not know what it is?” she asked. “How did you even get your hands on it?”
“That’s a story for another day,” he said.
She squinted at him and growled in frustration. “Ugh, fine,” she said. “Well, not like there’s much to know about it. That ring on your finger is a spirit artifact. It has no powers attached to it other than the spirit that is sealed within. When you release it, it acts as a familiar that fights for you.
“That thing is completely mindless; if you attack something, it will fight by your side, as you must have already learned. Speaking of that, why didn’t you call for it during your fight with the gorels?” she asked with a raised eyebrow. “It could have handled an army of those things without any issue.”
Freddy stared at her, utterly baffled. “Uhhh… What?” he spat, ignoring her question. “No, you’re, like, completely wrong; none of what you said is true.”
“Master,” Bloodshed finally spoke. “You shouldn’t listen to this ignorant woman’s words.”
Sophia’s face suddenly paled. “Did that thing… just… talk?”
A massive, shit-eating grin spread on Freddy’s face. “Looks like you’re not as wise as you thought, Miss Cultist.”
She slowly got up and walked back, sweat visibly pouring down her face. “Liam… I mean, Freddy… listen to me; that isn’t a bound spirit. If that thing decides to attack us, we’re dead,” she declared, whimpering slightly.
“How insolent,” Bloodshed declared. “How dare you presume that I would assault my master?”
“What the f—” Sophia cursed through gritted teeth. “You better explain what’s happening here, or I’m leaving you to your fate.”
He couldn’t stop himself from laughing. “Oh, yeah… that’s the reaction I wanted to see.”
“Liam! I mean Fre—whatever; this isn’t funny!”
“You’re right,” he said, laughing harder, “it’s fucking hilarious!”
“You idiot!” she shouted, preparing herself to run the other way.
“No, no, no!” he yelled after her. “Stop, wait, let me explain.”
She stopped but stayed at a distance from him and the bloody skeleton.
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He proceeded to explain how Bloodshed, as a remnant, became obsessed with protecting him. Then, he vaguely explained how it entered his soul and built a shell around itself and how the ring on his finger could release it.
Sohpia stared at him blankly, completely dumbfounded. “It’s a spirit ability,” she said. “You have a spirit ability in your soul… and a ring bound to the spirit in the shell!? I can’t believe it; how is that even possible?”
“Spirit ability?” He latched on to what she said, half disappointed and half excited that she seemed to recognize what it was.
“Yeah.” She nodded. “And if what you’re saying is true, then the way you obtained it is completely unprecedented. And if it can leave the shell, that skeleton can’t be an ordinary spirit…” she noticed.
He grinned. “You’re right. It isn’t. It's a unique.”
Her mouth dropped, and her eyes bulged.
Freddy grinned harder. “See?” he raised his hand, manifesting Gore Knuckles. “That’s how I got my blood affinity.”
She gripped her head, unable to process what he was saying. “Yup, that’s new.” But her apprehension didn’t go away. “Still, that thing isn’t bound to you in any way. If you can release it, it's just a wild spirit. Are you really, really sure that it won’t suddenly decide to attack us?”
“It’s already saved my life before,” he said, ruffling its bony head. “I have faith that it won’t threaten me.”
“What about me?” she asked.
Freddy was about to say she had nothing to fear, but honestly… he wasn’t sure. He wanted to believe that he could tell it to behave, but it had a history of ignoring his commands if it found reason to act against them.
“Fear not, Master,” Bloodshed said as if it could read his mind. “I will never do anything against you or your allies.”
He wanted to believe it. But he could sense that a part of what it said had gone untold. Unless my life was in danger… he mused internally. If hurting Sophia meant saving him, he knew for a fact that Bloodshed would do so without hesitation.
Huh, okay, he decided, mentally shrugging. I can live with that.
“Don’t worry,” he said. “It’s going to be fine. I’ve already introduced it to a friend once, and it didn’t do anything to him.”
She didn’t seem entirely convinced. But she sagged a bit anyway, cautiously approaching the two of them.
“Either way,” he said, "I introduced Bloodshed to tell you about the ability it’s attached to.” He then proceeded to explain in depth how Blood Sacrifice worked.
This time, nothing about his explanation surprised her. “That’s an outstanding spirit ability.”
“Speaking of that,” he said, “what the hell is a ‘spirit ability?’”
“Blood Sacrifice is a spirit ability,” she said, shrugging. “Although usually they’re obtained through quite different means. Have you ever heard of prime spirits?”
He frowned. “Prime what?”
“Yeah, I thought so.” She relaxed a bit as she slowly sat on the ground before him. “Spirits can swap between the Netherecho and the real world. Sometimes, if they stay in the real world for too long, they can get trapped there, turning into prime spirits. They’re similar to prime vestiges, but their shape is irregular rather than perfectly round.
“Just as you can with prime vestiges, you can accept prime spirits into your soul. Then, you get a spirit ability. Essentially, they’re just abilities constructed around the different concepts related to the spirit. The biggest difference between a regular ability and a spirit ability is that they don’t cost essence to use but instead have an entirely different price.”
He scratched his chin in thought. “I’m surprised I’ve never heard of this.”
“I’d have been surprised if you had,” she said. “Not only are they rare, but only a select few are willing to use them.”
“Why?”
“Freddy,” she called his name as she looked him in the eye with a severe expression, “your spirit ability is exceptional. Most of them have a far nastier price attached to their use.
“The most common is setting people’s stars back in progress, but I’ve heard of examples of them cutting into the lifespan, costing entire stars, severely mutilating the users upon use, and even costing the user’s life.” She let the last part sink in. “The leader of the cult I grew up in also has a spirit ability, and he only used it once. It cost him an entire arm, and nothing, not even supreme-quality healing, can grow it back out. Do you now get why Blood Sacrifice is so good?”
He slowly nodded. “Yeah.”
“And that’s not even the whole story,” she continued. “Spirit abilities are fundamentally different from regular abilities. They can’t be removed from your soul through any known means, and having a spirit ability in your soul slows your growth by 33 percent.”
He nearly choked.
“Oh, relax,” she said, rolling her eyes. “That’s more than a fair price to pay for what you’re getting in return.”
But he didn’t relax. In fact, his face looked like he’d just licked a public bathroom toilet seat. “Yeah… Uhm… What would happen if someone—hypothetically—had two spirit abilities?”
She stared at him blankly for a few moments. “Motherfucker!” she screamed. “What the hell are you!? Seriously, I’ve never heard of someone so anomalous in my entire life! You’re like the most cursed-slash-blessed person I’ve ever met! You’re, like, blursed or something.”
He snorted at that. “Is it what I’m guessing?”
“Yeah, it’s exactly what you’re guessing! Your growth is 66 percent slower! Wow, that’s really gonna suck for you later,” she said. “But now… urgh,” she groaned, blowing air through her lips. “What does the other one do?”
He briefly explained how Leviathan's fury worked.
“Damn!” she exclaimed. “That’s also really good. Usually, using that thing would be suicide, but with your talent…” She bit her thumbnail, looking at the ground.
“So…” he started. “What do you think? Do you think Bloodshed can—”
“First, let me ask you something,” she interrupted him. “Usually, bound spirits can’t go into the Netherecho. Can Bloodshed?”
“Yes.” He nodded.
She smiled a bit, nodding excitedly. “That’s great.”
“Do you have a plan?” he asked.
“Look,” she said, getting up and stretching a bit. Suddenly, the night turned to day, marking one of the shortest nights either of them had seen in this realm. “Well, that was short. Either way, it doesn’t matter.” She raised seven fingers. “This realm has seven passages other than the one we entered through. From what I know of the cult, their plan will probably be as follows:
“First, they’re going to try to crack open every sealed passage they can, including those who have been transformed into delvable realms. This will take a while, perhaps a week or so. Then, they’re going to rile up the gorels, killing every queen until the rest of the workers start running around and causing mayhem. Those gorels will be used as bait for stronger monsters looking for food through the opened passages. During this whole thing, they’ll have kill squads roaming the area and killing off the delvers.”
Freddy stared at her for a long moment. “You were raised beside some crazy motherfuckers, huh?” he asked jokingly but found no humor in his words. The way she was talking about these cultists, she was confident that they wouldn’t be stopped by a handful of delvers—most likely not even the veterans. “So… how do we fight against that?” he asked.
“We don’t,” she said. “My guess is that the strongest member here will be a three-star. By the time they’re ready to open the passages, the more powerful higher-ups will come from the outside to clear out anyone trying to stop the break. But even a three-star is way too much for us to handle, even with your spirit abilities.”
“Are they really that strong?” he asked skeptically. He wasn’t yet willing to share this, but he had killed a four-star elite with Blood Sacrifice, so he knew for a fact that it was capable of taking care of a three-star.
“Freddy, the average age at which a Child becomes a member is 29. Until then, they spend their entire life training. These are elites among elites, and fighting dirty is their primary weapon. Not only that, but they’re psychotic; any one of them is willing to sacrifice their life for the cult’s purpose.”
“So what do you suggest we do then?”
“Once they’re done with step one, we’ll enter one of the passages they open and hide there.”
“Seems easy enough.”
“We have to make it past the guards first.”
“Can we summon Bloodshed to take care of that?” Freddy suggested. “If the realm is swimming with gorels, we’ll have plenty of blood to sacrifice, no?”
“Sure, but how much blood are you confident in collecting?” she asked.
“I—” He froze. “… Shit.”
“Exactly,” she said, sighing. “From what I gather, you will probably also be able to use any blood I spill as long as the two of us are fighting side by side. But even then… we’ll have to fight a neverending swarm. This will be like the fight in the nest, but 10, if not 100 times worse. Theoretically, you could collect enough blood to threaten a good number of the cultists. In practice, we’re going to die in a swarm of monsters before we make it anywhere near that far.”
She was right. No matter how powerful he thought himself, he would eventually run out of essence. Even if he continued fighting without it, his body would give out.
How much blood could he collect before that point?
The last time he used Blood Sacrifice, he had a leviathan’s worth of blood available. Not only that, but that blood was far more potent than gorel blood. No matter how far he made it this time, he doubted he’d have nearly as much juice by the end.
At what point could he say that he’d collected enough? Frankly, he didn’t see himself stopping before the point of near-total exhaustion; by that point, Bloodshed would have to be powerful enough to handle the entire fight on its own.
He blew air through pursed lips and closed his eyes in contemplation. “Bloodshed,” he called the skeleton, “will you be able to fight by our side before I use Blood Sacrifice?”
Sophia perked up at that, looking at the skeleton expectantly.
The skeleton looked at Freddy for a long second. “I could do that, but I believe that will go against your plan,” it said.
“Why do you think that?”
“While I’m outside my shell, Blood Sacrifice is dormant. Any blood you spill during that time will not count toward empowering me when I’m summoned through the ability.”
“Shit!” Freddy swore, growling in frustration and scratching his neck. Given what Sophia said, they had a week until this place was swarmed. “Is there any way we can get more powerful in just a week…?” he asked.
“Well… It’s a little dangerous, but I can think of one way,” she said.
He scowled. “You want to… run into a gorel hive?”
“Hell no!” she spat. “We’re going to run across cultists there. I was thinking of something else.”
He raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”
“You have a pet spirit,” she chirped. “I’m a one-star, and you’re a two-star. I can’t think of a better method to grow our stars but to go fight some things in the Netherecho,” she said with a sly smile.
“That’s insane,” he said. “Even with Bloodshed supporting us, we’ll have to put ourselves at risk to make any progress.”
“True, you aren’t wrong.” She grinned wryly. “But I think I have a way to make it manageable.”