‘Rune’ was a semi-persona Luke had decided to take on. He’d only enter dungeons with the mask on from now until the tower.
The black metal mask made his abilities look unlike any class in existence. Or of any Luke knew of himself. Indeed, he appeared less of a spell sword than before.
‘Rune’ liked to be less reserved about killing other thinking beings of the four races. Especially the type to rob, steal, and needlessly murder. He existed to wage further war against the crime lords in the future. And possibly delve into the Runic Enchanting business. He would see.
To those who threatened his family and put her in a birdcage?
Rune didn’t like those sorts at all. No, he hated them with passion. If he wasn’t able to live in peace due to their presence, then why not play tit for tat? Take these five pieces of garbage, wanting to rob him. For what, exactly? Because he appeared to be a decent target and alone?
The five would have to pay quite the ‘fee’ to avoid collection. Luckily for them, they weren’t on his shit list by being associated with the underbelly of Sylen. To Rune, they were regular ascended hunters with piss-poor perception.
Much like that Kelic tora fellow.
Breathing in a full gulp of air devoid of the coming sanguine scent, Rune spoke, “Speak, Compass.”
Wayfinder’s voice emanated from the gray orb necklace illusion, “Oi you no fur, short tail kitty cat. Your mum’s waiting to warm me gears in the bed. Did you come for tea with your new grandpa Wayfinder first?”
“I thought you were into lady compasses?” Rune asked.
“Aye, but cat eyes doesn’t need to know that, lad.”
The Tora eyed Rune, “Approach this crazy bastard with caution. Who are you speaking out loud to? Trying to act like you have other party members around? You could try to hide the insanity a little better, masked one.” The two elves and monics inched closer together with the tora.
Rune discerned the details of their gear based on the bows and wands they wore. The only warrior type was the tora. This party would have no front line if Rune could get past the Tora for any length of time.
With that assessment in place, Rune unsheathed Xera, “Rune.” He said.
Confusion flashed on the tora’s face. He loosened for a second, and Rune made his move with that opening.
Considering the distance, Rune used Frost Fall Reave and controlled the abrupt explosion of ambient frost, guiding it to layer Xera and his body. A ‘shadow’ Essence Fissure opened behind him, and he used the pressure to cannonball to the other side.
At the zenith of the Fissure’s pressure, Rune willed it to stop applying to him and commanded the ice gathering around him to shatter and accelerate him further. Sooty gripped her tendrils, which were actually her talons in reality, onto his shoulders. A thin frost layer connected her place at Rune’s control.
Blurring past the tora man, Rune crashed into one male elf archer. The archer smashed against the flooring, becoming extremely dazed. Rune summoned an Essence Lance and shattered it to pelt two casters beginning to chant in the back, interrupting them. He unsheathed Whispering Edge and used Wraith Wail on the last unaffected party member, a monic bloodmancer, putting the healer in horror. The slow effect spread to the hostile hunter party, including the tora nearby Rune.
Rune threw Whispering Edge with such vigor it skewered the bloodmancer through the chest, sinking into the corridor’s walls. In an ironic twist, the 1 second silence effect activated.
The masked menace activated Polar South, the slick ice underneath the tora, and two casters exploded at their feet, causing them to be interrupted once more. Rune took Xera into a double-handed grip and cut off the archer’s hand beneath him.
Losing an appendage made the elf archer delirious with pain. Rune kicked the side of the elf’s face, and the hunter went unconscious. Ignoring the roaring tora behind him, a line in the Interface face flashed red but then went white.
[Yelaris has used provoke on you. The Spectral Heart nullifies the effect]
Rune brought Xera behind him and vaulted forward, using her as a backweight. Correctly calculating the distance, Xera struck down the Bloodmancer Healer as he landed. Rune clasped a hand on the healer’s throat and then applied frost to the area. The raging snowstorm from Frost Fall Reave ruined the visibility for the two mages. With their enhanced tier 1 senses they managed to lock on regardless.
Or they would’ve, but a writhing tendril mass appeared, duplicated, then wailed in terror at them. Their ears bled, and before they knew it, each had a tendril strike through their chest. A shadow feather hung protectively around Rune. He applied Siphon to Yelaris through vision, hoping this would extend his momentum for an additional move set.
With the accumulated frost, Rune reared Xera and saw the healer’s eyes widen in fear. Xera chopped off his head at the same moment. Yelaris hefted his axe at Rune while protecting himself with his shield. Rune deftly maneuvered around the tank. The slow from Wraith Wail, boost in speed from his shoulders, and frost in the area simply made Rune untouchable by a tank specialized in strength.
The entire party appeared slow in Rune’s eyes through the elevated agility stat. Not to the point of literal slow moment, but as if everything were delayed. Rune went to assist his companion, and once there, ‘Lilith,’ who was Sooty, sent her shade to occupy Yelaris. A mage managed to conjure a desperate blast back and hit Rune, but his boots forced his body to stay in place. Admittedly, he did feel his leg muscles tear. Strangely, the Iron Feather rotating around him did not break from the attack.
A pure knockback ability, quick to cast, but in return, no damage? Similar to Essence Fissure in some ways.
Rune shelved the needless thought. He whirled to the mage with Xera, using timed miniature frost explosions to rotate faster. Once Xera connected to the mage’s flesh, he ripped through the mage’s chest. Then kicked out with the remaining momentum, causing the mage’s knee to shatter.
The caster cried out, and Rune thrust Xera into the mage’s vocal cords to silence him. With the mage in total submission, he froze over their body, encasing them in ice from the neck up.
Looking over, Rune found that his companion had subdued the other mage. Subdued was putting it lightly. He was dead. Gesturing with his head, the two-faced Yelaris together. Who was still entangled with the summoned Shade from Shadow Wing. Frost Fall Reave had yet to end, and ice crept and grew with every step Rune took. Lilith continued to wail and whisper madness on his shoulder. The blue wisps from Rune’s mask shook Yelaris, and he opened his mouth. “We can come to an agreement, great warrior. The tora always respect the strong. Spare my life; on my pride, I can be more valuable to you alive than dead.”
Rune built up frost around the tank, slowing his movement further. He eyed his companion, who floated off his shoulder and levitated mid-air, facing Yelaris. Rune sauntered to the elf, currently screaming himself awake from the pain, and stuffed conjured ice into his mouth.
And then cut off the other hand.
Tears streamed down the elf’s eyes, a baleful glare formed. Rune understood his hatred for crippling him. But targeting the wrong person has consequences.
Yelaris tried subtly moving, only for Lilith to stand in his way. Rune returned to the last mage alive. He commanded the frost around the mage’s head to melt away from his mouth.
Immediately, the mage started incessantly begging for his life. Rune grasped the mage’s tome and wand and destroyed them. For good measure, he came out to where Whispering Edge was lodged, ripped it out of the walling, and brought it with him. He picked up the mage, letting the frost melt at his command.
By Rune’s assessment, the mage’s and archer’s spirits had broken. But he was tired of taking chances on people. He threw the mage against the archer, and they both collapsed on the floor. Rune formed ice on their arms, connecting them. The mage’s hand went over the archer’s wrist stump. Rune thrust Whispering Edge through them both and twisted. The torturous pain descended the two into pleading madness.
Yelaris dropped his weapon and shield from that display, collapsing to the ground, groveling. Rune confidently walked up to Yelaris, his head slowly tilting as he inspected the tora tank. Rune emoted through Reaver’s Link to have Lilith keep the two other barely living hunters company.
Rune said, “Speak, how are you worth keeping alive?”
The tora scarcely looked up to Rune, not daring to meet his eyes. He yelled, “We were desperate, great warrior. We could not see the power you hold. If you let us go, the three of us will swear on a magic contract to never retaliate for as long as we live. And we can give you whatever you desire from our spatial bags.”
“You could get someone else to do it for you. Why can’t I steal your spatial bags for myself?” Rune was unconvinced.
A puddle of sweat started to form under the tora’s face, “The items inside get lost to the Ether permanently if we die. You can snatch the bag, but the previous contents will be wiped away.”
Rune started to talk to Xera, “What do you think? Slice him apart some to get him to sweeten the deal? Right now, the headache doesn’t feel worth it.”
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Xera spoke excitedly, which no one else but Luke’s party could hear, “A little stab or two couldn’t hurt. He’s a sly one. The tigers always seem to be scheming to me.”
Wayfinder broke in, “See what you can squeeze out of him, lad. The Information these no code slags tend to have can be worth more than gratifyin’ and sating a rash impulse.”
Xera said, “You shouldn’t slash-block me compass.”
Unperturbed, Wayfinder said, “Remember lass, as an artifact, your first worry is to keep your master alive. At least if you can stand the bugger. Havin’ one you despise is a fate I’d not wish even on you.”
That made Xera drop the subject immediately.
To Yelaris, Rune came across as speaking to an inanimate dull sword and orb. With that influence, Yelaris changed tunes, “The monsters here won’t spawn again for three hours after they’re defeated. Cale, the mage you’ve spared, should have magic contract paper on him.”
Rune raised an eyebrow no one could see, “Why would he have something that specific? Your group goes around half-forcing people into unfavorable circumstances with them?”
Yelaris stared down at the floor, not answering.
Clamping a hand on Yelaris’ head, Rune brought it up to look at his eyes. They were ones of a deceiver. One not desperate for another, but for themselves. Selfish to the bone and always scheming.
These were not eyes Rune could respect. But they could be worth allowing to live. Rune set about finding out, starting with terms. First, he backpedaled to the archer and mage on their last legs. He froze them from the neck down, which brain froze them back to consciousness. They struggled to move, but the layered ice was too thick to break.
Or perhaps they were too weak to exert any real strength. With his thumb, Rune pointed to his companion, “Make any move my companion, Lilith, disapproves of, and she shall end your life. Your party leader and I are in the midst of a negotiation. But that’s not why I brought you back from a deathly sleep.”
Rune put Xera inches away from the mage’s eyes in one fell swoop, “Answer truthfully, do you have magic contract paper on your person?”
The mage became a bobblehead, nodding up and down repeatedly. The archer began to scream in pain again, and Rune stuffed his mouth with frost as a gag.
Solving that, Rune whirled around back to Yelaris. While he’d spoken to the mage, he never neglected to keep his senses on the tora warrior. Rune got to the point, “What can you offer me that is more valuable than erasing you permanently?”
Yelaris locked eyes with both his party members, fear colored their eyes, “Can you spare the three of us?”
“If you make it worth my while. Let me lay out a condition, and you’ll add what you can to it. This is how we shall begin. Understand?”
“Yelaris of the tora understands. State your terms.”
Rune thought. This guy’s tune and speech changed significantly once I trounced him.
“If you leave here today, you are to tell every hunter contact you know about me. Exaggerate my ability, lie, steal, cheat, whatever is in your power to give me a reputation as an unhinged, powerful, murderous madman.”
The tora warrior blinked in confusion, not saying a word, but the body language gave off the sense of: why would you want that?
“Yelaris, speak plainly. If I had party members beside me, would you have targeted me today?”
The tora warrior rapidly shook his head, “We would’ve had to assess your team before making a move.”
“Exactly. I rarely team with others. And constantly having to get other hunters off my back is a waste of time. With this, a greater deterrence should appear for me. It will also help me with another agenda you have no need to understand.”
“If that is your wish, great warrior. Are there any other demands you have of us?”
“All your gold, health potions, and bandages shall be traded to me.” Pausing, Rune added two additional desires, “Any common equipment items and enchanting materials your party possesses will also be provided to me. Lastly, I shall take the spatial bag your two dead party members previously owned.”
That last mention caused rage to flash on Yelaris’ face, yet he did not object. “Would that be your final terms, great warrior?”
“With a sufficient magic contract, it is. One extra detail, however. Tell me why you were so quick to attempt to rob me.”
Before Yelaris answered, Rune commanded the ice around the mage’s hand and spatial bag. He said, “Take out your contract paper, and no more. Lilith will hand it to me for you.”
As the mage went about doing so, Rune came to the headless bloodmancer and spotted a spatial bag on his waist. He pillaged it from the body and put it into the Inventory. He repeated the action with the dead mage further in the back.
He felt Yelaris watching him, and certain individuals would believe it foolish to leave a dangerous warrior behind his back, but Rune was taunting and testing him. If Yelaris jumped up to attack, he’d only have two actors to plan around. Yelaris’ only worth to him was the Tora could speak clearly and was in the right state of mind to negotiate. Otherwise, Rune would’ve slaughtered him then extorted the other two living party members.
Two mouths were enough to spread a reputation, and a third sped up the process.
The tora warrior remained as he was, livid but not fearless enough to face Rune. After retrieving the other spatial bag, Rune checked if Yelaris had told the truth. He reached into the spatial bag, and indeed, nothing was inside.
This confirms it, if you kill someone before taking their valuables, the items are lost forever. Might be why they tried to rob me first instead of going for the kill. Their mistake.
Returning to Yelaris, Rune accepted the magic contract from ‘Lilith.’ Rubbing the top of the shadowy form, Rune overlooked the contract and added in his terms. In addition to demanding all enchanting materials, gold, common quality equipment items, potions, and bandages, Rune included two separate clauses.
1. Yelaris and his team members, hereafter referred to as the ‘party,’ shall harbor no ill intent toward Rune, collude for revenge in any indirect or direct way, or stand against Rune for the rest of their lives. Should this term be broken, the contract link shall immediately stop their hearts.
2. The party shall spread the word of Rune as the contract owner has previously described. They are to make Rune appear as threatening and unpredictable as reasonably able. They are to do so in any matter within their abilities for the coming three months. After which, this clause shall no longer be in effect.
Rune handed it over to Yelaris and allowed the tora to read it over. Yelaris signed it with vigor, grasping onto this chance for life. Rune sauntered over to the mage and had him do the same. As for the handless archer, Rune stared at Yelaris while hinting with his head.
The tora warrior caught on, “I will sign for Kalmarn. You only need him to verbally state he allows me to do so for him.”
Rune spoke to Lilith, “Wake him again for me.” The archer had already returned to unconsciousness. Rune had induced too much blunt trauma and shock.
Lilith spread her tendrils over Kalmarn. Who stayed stubbornly dormant. Then the ‘eldritch’ companion slithered a limb to his eye and prodded it. When the archer screamed awake, Lilith floated back in fright.
Sooty’s personality still comes out, even when she looks like this. I don’t imagine an actual eldritch horror would be scared by a dying scream.
Rune gripped the elf by his jaw harshly, “Will you allow Yelaris to sign for your right to live? If you refuse, you will pay the ultimate price.”
The elf let out a ‘yes’ between screams. Rune took Kalmarn’s spatial bag and pressed it against his face, “Will out all your gold, common equipment items, enchanting materials, health potions, and bandages.” At the same time, Rune used one of his three remaining tier 0 health potions and chugged it down Kalmarn’s throat. It wasn’t out of a sudden sense of benevolence. The constant screams started to get on his nerves.
While he did that, a small pile of items appeared next to the archer. Rune used Reaver’s Link to tell Lilith to put it into her Spatial Feather. Afterward, he brought the contract to Yelaris, who signed for himself and his archer team member.
The mage signed by himself, and Rune extorted all items as per the contract from the three living members. He thought to strip the two corpses of items but drew the line there. More so to have Yelaris more willing to divulge the information he wanted.
“Your life is now guaranteed.” The magical contract created a thin link between the four individuals. Rune thawed all the ice around him, “Before you go, explain to me why you decided to rob me. And I don’t mean because I was alone. There must be more.”
Yelaris gulped, picked up his gear, and sat with his back to the corridor walling, “Great Warrior Rune, for one such as you, it may be no issue, but to a regular party such as us, Tier one is too competitive a realm. Many scrape for any shred of progress past level thirty. Did you clear the three monster groups that spawn here?”
Rune slowly nodded, and Yelaris weakly laughed, “A true fool I am. I had assumed you could not do such a ridiculous feat alone. If only I thought to ask, all intents to harm you would’ve gone with the hunter’s wind.”
The tora warrior paused to breathe, lowly rambling about his poor judgment, blaming himself for his team members’ deaths, “After level thirty, the experience required to level dramatically increases—as does the difficulty of the average monster. Parties not only have to split experience but tire themselves to clear these creatures.” Yelaris laid eyes on his much lighter spatial bag, “Gaining money is no issue, but the rare items, climbing levels, and keeping our lives becomes more challenging the further we go. It is not only our party like this, Great Warrior Rune, a rotten fraction of all in this tier do so.”
Rune took in the information and synthesized it with his experiences in the Wraith Wing. Those three groups of creatures were quite the jump in difficulty. If I hadn’t reached expert in Elementalization, I would’ve had to pull out all the stops. And none of these hunters appear to have any techniques. Cupping a hand over the lower part of his mask, Rune thought further. If you don’t learn a technique at this tier, you’ll struggle immensely. If this is the pattern, by tier 2, you’ll be dead in the water. Is that why tier 3 combat types are scarce?
“You say competition is fierce, yet it’s been only your party and me who have entered this wing this entire time. There is only one other dungeon and wing available to this tier. Where are all the competing hunters?”
Yelaris spoke, “Great Warrior Rune. Many parties lack the ability to clear out this wing effectively. They cannot touch the Banshees without great preparation or specific magic. If that obstacle is cleared, you must face the oppressing rotting aura this place holds.” Yelaris sniffed the air, “Without you constantly bringing it into yourself, my party would’ve been eaten alive. Many have barely survived a fight here, only to die to the perpetual decay that never ends in the Spectral Wing.”
Rune had Lilth return to his shoulder. He pushed the mage and hunter against the wall, sitting them up. He asked the mage, “Is this true? Does your party leader lie?”
The mage spoke, “Yelaris is understating the issue. The Vampiric Wing is the only feasible spot for all but the most suited or powerful in the twenty-five to forty-level range. Many parties claim a territory and stay to grind. Exploring the whole wing is impossible for groups like us.”
Rune stood up, “And the runts, like your party, have nowhere else to go if all the ‘grind’ spots are taken. Left with no other option, you try the Spectral Wing or rob weaker parties. Why not go to the Beast Divide?”
“There are only so many levels one can gain from the Beast Divide, after level thirty, you gain no experience at all. If you already have the possible drops from Asani and Amarok, the Divide is only useful for gathering materials and gold. You will no longer meaningfully grow.”
Rune dismissed them, That’s their belief. This ‘issue’ only happens if you refuse to try and learn a technique or train yourself. Not that I have any real room to say anything here.
“I see, with Onelius and Selandus both dead, if one can’t claim territory in the Vampiric wing, they are left stagnant. And parties built to handle the Spectral Wing’s unique challenges are rare. I should start a leveling service…” Rune went off topic toward the end.
Tired of their presence, Rune said, “Leave. Fulfill the terms of our contract, I want others to know the name Rune and the price of targeting me. Having to kill half a party every time I enter a dungeon would waste too much time and energy.”
Yelaris and the mage lifted Kalmarn from the floor, the elf archer stuck in a painful haze. Sometime later, the party left Rune’s sight. Regretfully glancing at the exposed hole in the wall leading to the Ferryman, Rune dismissed his latent desire.
Cleaning himself and ‘Lilith’ off with some magic crystal wash, Rune said, “Let’s get out of here. We’ve stayed in this place for longer than I wanted.”