Xavier took a step back as the beast—the spirit from the Otherworld which he’d summoned through the bridge using Soul Sacrifice—emerged into the Mortal Realm.
A sinuous, scaled body came through the rift between planes at an almost unimaginable speed. There was a roar that shuddered the very trees around them, rustling the leaves and making birds high up in the branches take flight. Fire and ice streamed from the beast’s giant gaping maw as it intercepted the Raphick.
Xavier knew that roar, and he knew that spell. The spirit before him was one he recognised—he had summoned it to this world before, though he had never seen its form as corporeal as it was now.
The first spirit that came from the bridge was the Spirit of Vengeance. A massive, deadly dragon that relished in the kill. There was a deep, guttural laugh as its teeth clamped over the enemy beast’s head.
Rhaalir, Xavier noticed, stood far off to the side, his eyes opened wider than he’d ever seen them. There was fear in those eyes, Xavier was sure of it.
Ever since he had assimilated all of those beast parts, he’d been able to sense fear—see it, smell it, even taste it in the very air—and despite the fact that Rhaalir wasn’t technically in this world, Xavier could sense it from the spirit quite clearly.
Why would Rhaalir be afraid of the Spirit of Vengeance?
The fight did not last long. The Raphick had none of the advantages that other beasts who had faced the Spirit of Vengeance had possessed—and the dragon was not the only beast to come through the bridge, though it was the most powerful.
Four spirits tore the Raphick limb from limb. Each of those spirits were that of a beast. One resembled an incredibly lean, muscular bear. Another looked like a hyena melded with a finch. And the last was a beast Xavier recognised, a wolven. He wondered how common those beasts were in the Greater Universe, for him to keep encountering them.
These spirits left the Raphick more shredded, destroyed, and feasted upon than the carcasses of the wolven that it had killed.
Xavier’s stomach did not turn at the sight of the carnage. If anything, it made his blood rush faster through his veins. A sense of excitement settled over him.
When the Raphick died and the chaos abated, Xavier expected the spirits to return through the bridge.
They did not.
In the shock at seeing the Spirit of Vengeance emerge through the bridge, Xavier had neglected to consolidate the information in his split minds. He had one mind constantly reading and digesting the notifications that came through to him, but the two minds were so separate that the part of Xavier that was staring at the spirits hadn’t known what the notifications were.
He caught himself up on them.
You have successfully attracted a spirit from the Otherworld! As you have sacrificed {100 Souls}, the bridge will remain open for 10 seconds.
The counter had started the moment the first spirit came through. Ten seconds was stretched much farther when you could move as swiftly as Xavier and perceive the world that fast.
The spirits you summon will remain in the Mortal Realm for as long as the bridge is open.
The instant the enemy beast had been slain, the spirits fled through the forest. Xavier had no idea where they were going—they went in different directions, and they were already too far away for him to trap in his time dilation field.
He tapped his foot on the ground and looked at the one spirit that had not fled.
Though ten seconds was a long time in battle, it was an awfully short time for a conversation. Xavier cast Time Alteration, encompassing the dragon that was the Spirit of Vengeance inside of it.
Ah, young Denizen, thank you for bringing me a meal of this calibre. The dragon’s tongue shot out and licked its lips. There was a sinister grin on its face.
The spirit looked so much more solid than any other time it had been summoned that Xavier almost felt as though it was actually here, but if he looked close enough he could see that the beast was transparent—shards of sunlight that cut through the trees went in one side of the spirit and out the other. The beast cast a shadow, but it was a mottled, weak shadow.
Xavier took a step toward the dragon.
I did not expect to see you here.
I felt the sacrifice of souls. Thousands of them streamed into the Otherworld and I was there to devour my fair share. The dragon took a deep breath, almost as though it could feel the air coming into its lunges. Ahh. It feels good to feast on such.
The dragon tilted its head to the side.
You have learnt the art of performing rituals. That is good.
The dragon lowered its head, staring deeply into Xavier’s eyes. Xavier saw the eyes of a true predator—no… something more. Something even deadlier.
That skill will serve you well if you truly desire to bring me forth into your realm for good.
Xavier hadn’t considered that.
He knew that there were abilities he’d been missing that he would need if he were to bring forth the Spirit of Vengeance into the Mortal Realm for good. It wasn’t just a vessel that he needed to acquire—he needed to ensure that he had other things, but those things were not yet clear to him.
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He supposed the Ritual skill was one of those things.
Xavier raised his chin, looking up at the dragon. I did not realise you could come through the bridge.
The Spirit of Vengeance glanced over at the corpse of the Raphick beast.
When you open a bridge to the Otherworld, any manner of spirit could wonder through it.
That was when the dragon’s gaze settled upon Rhaalir. The spirit was standing outside of the time dilation field. Xavier hadn’t intended to trap the spirit outside of the bubble, but it was interesting to know that he could freeze it in time if it was far enough away from him.
The dragon’s eyes narrowed. You made a contract with this spirit? There was something in the beast’s tone of voice. Xavier wasn’t sure what it was.
I did. It was the only way I knew to progress my Otherworld spells. This elf—Rhaalir—knows how to help me.
The dragon gave a deep rumble. It took a moment for Xavier to realise that it was saying, “Hmm.” If that is a step you need to take to bring me to this realm, then I applaud it. However… The dragon swung its massive head back toward Xavier’s, its piercing gaze skewering him. Be wary. Spirits are often only out for themselves. The dragon chuckled, as though he’d made some kind of joke.
Xavier looked over at Rhaalir. He wasn’t at all surprised by what the dragon had said. He had felt that from the very beginning. But there wasn’t anything to be done about it—he needed the elf’s help.
Xavier paused. Gazed at the dragon. Should I have made a contract with you for this purpose?
The dragon shook its head. No, young Denizen. I know some of what an Otherworld Summoner can do, but that is only because they summon me, and their powers concern me. I would be no teacher. It would be like a boy apprenticing as a blacksmith with someone who’d only ever watched another at work at a forge, and never participated in that work themselves. I simply warn you to be wary.
Xavier inclined his head in thanks. You have a name, don’t you? I keep thinking of you as the Spirit of Vengeance, but that is merely a title.
The Spirit of Vengeance seemed to consider this for a long moment. It was strange, having a longer conversation with the beast. There usually wasn’t time for such things. Now, time wasn’t an issue at all.
My name was once Volkarin. I have not used that name for many years. The dragon’s head lowered. I have not even thought the name. It is a strange thing, giving up what you once were… I still feel the urge for revenge, for what was done to… The dragon drifted off, leaving something unsaid. But much of my life is a haze. Dreams of a dead beast and nothing more.
Xavier had never seen the bloodthirsty dragon melancholy before. It made him uncomfortable. He shifted from one foot to another.
May I call you Volkarin?
If you summon me to the Mortal Realm in a corporeal form, you can call me whatever you wish. The spirit paused. But yes. You may call me Volkarin. Now, I grow weary of this conversation. Deactivate the field. Let me return to the Otherworld.
Xavier had expected the Spirit of Vengeance—Volkarin—to hang around longer than that. He sensed he had brought back memories the beast did not wish to dwell upon in company. Xavier did not hesitate to bring down the barrier, deactivating his Time Alteration spell.
Rhaalir glanced over at him, then blinked and frowned. It was clear the spirit noticed that something had changed. The elf also knew all about Xavier’s abilities, so it likely knew what had happened—why one or both of them were standing in different positions than they had been in a split-second ago.
Rhaalir disappeared then reappeared a few feet away from Xavier. The spirit’s eyes weren’t as wide as they had been when he had been staring at Volkarin, but clearly the spirit knew something about the dragon.
And Xavier still sensed fear wafting off the elf.
The timer was swiftly ticking to zero. Soon, the bridge to the Otherworld would close and the four spirits that had come through it would disappear from the Mortal Realm and return to their domain.
Volkarin turned and stared directly at Rhaalir. Rhaalir looked up at the dragon, and there was a spike in the elf’s fear.
The dragon chuckled, then disappeared like smoke in the wind.
The elf shuddered. I did not expect a spirit like that one to have appeared.
Xavier tilted his head to the side. A spirit like that one? What do you mean?
The elf lowered his head for a moment. He seemed deep in thought. Then he tilted his head to one said and gave a small nod. He looked at Xavier. That was no ordinary spirit from the Otherworld.
I know. It was the Spirit of Vengeance. I have summoned the dragon several times. I guess it somehow sensed that I had opened a bridge.
The elf’s eyes opened to their widest. He looked incredulously at Xavier. You have summoned that spirit before?
Xavier shrugged. He didn’t see what the big deal was. He turned his attention to the notifications that appeared in his vision, skipping past the kill notification and moving straight to the ranks he’d gained.
Soul Sacrifice has taken a step forward on the path!
Soul Sacrifice is now a Rank 51 spell.
…
Soul Sacrifice is now a Rank 60 Spell.
One cannot walk backward on the path.
Ten ranks, with a single usage of the spell. That seemed like a lot. Perhaps it was simply because the spell had been quite low rank, and he’d used it on a high-level D Grade beast.
Or, perhaps something else had been at play…
He turned his attention back to Rhaalir once more. Have you something to tell me about Volkarin?
Rhaalir took a step back. You know the name of the beast? The elf shook his head. Xavier had never seen a spirit from the Otherworld distressed before. It was a strange sight. What could the spirit be afraid of? The elf was already dead, after all.
The dragon told me its name.
His name. And that does come as a surprise. The spirit you just summoned… he is one of the Seven.
Xavier frowned. One of the seven?
The spirit released a long sigh, which must have been for effect, considering he couldn’t actually breathe. You really know so little about the Otherworld.
I think we’ve established that—that is the whole reason you’re here.
The elf seemed to consider his next words. He licked his lips, nodded to himself, then Rhaalir spoke. The Otherworld is chaos. But it is an ordered chaos. There is a way of things. A hierarchy. That way has been thus for billions of years. And for billions of years there have been seven powerful spirits at the centre of the Otherworld, at the top of that hierarchy, who rule over all others. They, unlike many spirits from the Otherworld, have the ability to destroy other spirits, and they do so at their whim. The dragon you just summoned—Volk—
The elf shut his eyes. Swallowed.
I cannot say the name, even here and now where he cannot reach me.
Xavier tried to take in what the elf was saying. There were seven leaders of the Otherworld, and the Spirit of Vengeance—Volkarin—was one of them?
He wasn’t sure what the implications of that were. He had already been meddling with things he didn’t understand. That fact was only exacerbated now that he had learnt this information.
For a long moment he wondered if this changed anything… then he came to the conclusion that it did not. If anything, he was even more keen to bring the dragon physically into the fold.
If the dragon was one of the rulers of the Otherworld, then that must mean it was even more powerful and knowledgeable than Xavier had ever realised.
That was something he could use to his advantage. He was sure of it.
I’ll take that under advisement.
Xavier would be wary—just as Volkarin had said he should be. He didn’t know if he should entirely believe anything one of these spirits said, but he would still take their words of advice and caution, even with a grain of salt.
He drew in a deep breath, then let it out slowly. But this changes nothing. There are things I must do before the C Grade raid. Goals I must accomplish. We move on from here.
Xavier walked over to the dead Raphick. He knelt by the beast and stared at its scattered remains for a moment.
Then he gathered them up, bit by bit, into his Storage Ring.
More parts for his Assimilation Properties skill—all he needed to do was reach D Grade to use them.