If this undead bear is here, its necromancer can’t be too far. I searched the area looking for some signs of other enemies. As I scanned the scene, I noticed some rustling in the bushes near the tree line.
THUMP, KNOCK, SCRATCH
The undead bear’s attack was picking up intensity. I did my best to ignore it as I studied the brush. Three green skinned creatures about three feet tall stepped out of the bushes. The two held clubs and wore crude leather armor that looked more like scraps from an unknown animal. The third one held a wooden staff taller than he was and was wearing some kind of dark robe.
My System returned an identification for each of them.
Goblin
Level 5
Description: Goblins are semi-sentient creatures with aggressive tendencies. As they level, goblins can evolve into different subspecies or gain classes. Their race has no qualms about eating other sentient beings which tends to lead to an attack first ask questions later approach to diplomacy. Typical alignment can be evil or chaotic. Powerful Dark aligned forces will use their race as general fodder to grind against their enemies.
Goblin
Level 6...
Gr’ex
Goblin Apprentice Necromancer
Level 18
Description: Goblins with some higher level of intelligence compared to their peers may sometimes gain a class in service of their master. This goblin has been granted access to the necromancer class and has gained access to Dark and Death magics.
‘Well, there’s the necromancer. How powerful are these three that they took out that mutated forest bear?’ I thought in resignation to how screwed I was right now.
“Go help my new minion you two fools! Our portal may have opened right in its path, but it was worth the almost complete loss of our entire war party of over twenty for me to gain such a powerful servant. Do not make me feed you to my new pet! Ugh, how the two of you were the last to survive I do not know! Now, go! I sense life within.” Gr’ex commanded.
“Yes, great Gr’ex!” The remaining two goblins said in unison.
‘Oh, well if it took them over twenty men to take down the bear these guys might not be as powerful as I thought. The bear is still a problem as I’m sure the apprentice necromancer is too.’
I started to formulate a plan. If I opened the door the bear would charge in, buuttt... if I removed the firing panel, I could shoot my assailants. Yes, that’s right, Paul thought of everything. He set up metal panels that could be slid open to use to fire weapons and defend the cabin.
I had a few rifles and handguns that my System interface told me would still work as long as fire magic wasn’t being used in the area. Such mana fluctuations with fire magic could accidentally make the gun powder explode. A possible tactic I could use later but for now I could at least use it on the goblins.
Grabbing my rifle, I slid open the panel closest to the door and took aim.
CRACK!
CRACK!
I fired both shots. One was a clean headshot and made the Level 6 goblin’s head explode like a smashed watermelon. The second shot ricocheted off some kind of energy shield the necromancer had protecting himself.
I reloaded and the necromancer dived for the bushes while the level 5 goblin just stared in shock as his companion’s body dropped to the floor.
“Move you fool! They are attacking us!” Gr’ex called as the goblin caster ducked behind a tree and bushes.
That yell seemed to spark the primitive part of their brains that told goblins to follow the orders of their superiors in battle. The level 5 goblin turned his head and began to move but there was nowhere he could easily use for cover. Sadly, for the little goblin my reload and aim was faster than his sprint to the front porch.
CRACK!
CRACK!
The first shot took it in the left leg, causing the level 5 goblin to lose his balance and face plant into the ground. The second was a clean head wound that ensured the goblin wasn’t getting back up.
That left the giant undead bear which I doubt very much my rifle would do much damage to and the necromancer hiding behind a tree and some bushes.
I turned to look at my arsenal of weapons and as soon as my eyes fell on the elephant gun, yes, I owned an elephant gun, and you would too if you ever watched one of the Tremor movies!
I grabbed the weapon and took aim. Unlike any living enemy this undead creature would keep coming. I needed to reduce its mobility.
BOOM!
The first shot took out its right front leg and claw.
BOOM!
The second shot took out the right back leg causing the undead bear to flop to the ground with an earth-shaking thud.
For whatever reason the right side of the bear had more exposed bone than the other side. I did my best to hit those weak spots. Practically point-blank range helps at times.
I knew the thing could still attack one handed and its left side was far more intact, so I didn’t trust the effectiveness of the elephant gun. Time to see how effective my one offense spell, Lightning Bolt, can be. I began charging the spell, I hoped the extra mana would give the spell more kick. Feeling like I couldn’t hold on any more I released the spell again almost point-blank right at the undead bear’s head.
ZZZAAAPPP!
The lightning bolt hit the bear right on the forehead and knocked the bear back and as I cleared the stars in my eyes from the bright flash, I noticed the head was gone and the remains of the undead bear’s body were smoking.
“BOOM BABY! That was awesome!” I cheered.
I knew the fight wasn’t over, I still had a necromancer to deal with.
“NOOOO!!! My minion! How dare you!” Gr’ex cried out.
The goblin had stepped out of his cover. He had rushed to his previous undead minion and had a look of utter loss on his face.
“Do you know how much mana I had to use to make this minion mine?!” Gr’ex said, as his focus was solely on his dead minion.
I decided to answer him with a Lightning Bolt. The necromancer must’ve dropped his magical shield or lost concentration, I wasn’t sure how the defensive magic worked. What I do know is that the force of the blast lifted the goblin off the ground and flung him hard into the tree behind him. This had the added benefit of knocking the caster out.
I wasted no time and removed the bars from the door, flung it open and rushed towards the unconscious goblin with some lasso rope that was hanging on the wall. What? Again, if you ever watched a Tremor movie you would know that lassoing is a life skill.
The caster had dropped his staff by the bear’s remains, but I quickly patted the goblin down and removed a necklace and his robe. That left him in a loin cloth and not much else. I tied the goblin caster up and took out a handkerchief from my pocket and used it to gag the guy. Yep, no way I want that back even with my ability to cleanse things.
I gathered up the enemy caster’s things and brought them inside. I then took out my hunting knife, that reminded me of Crocodile Dundee’s blade, and began to cut into the bear. I was looking for the bear’s core and after some digging, I found it.
Mutated Forest Bear Core (Corrupted)
Magic Types: High concentration of Death. Low concentration of Nature, Life, and Chaos magics.
Description: This core has been corrupted with death magic. Any of the creature’s original abilities are lost. Warning: Corrupted cores can only be absorbed if you possess a strong enough affinity to the magic within.
‘Interesting. I wonder if I could purify the core?’ I thought after reading the item notification.
I heard my captive starting to stir. Putting the usefulness of the core mentally to the side, I picked up my prisoner and threw him onto the porch. This had the benefit of helping the goblin to finish waking up.
“Wakey, Wakey, hands off snakie! Oh, that’s right you can’t move, oh so sad.” I taunted Gr’ex.
Was it petty of me? Sure. Did I care at this moment? Not at all. I was more focused on killing him the moment he tried anything.
“Mmrrr, mmrrr.” Was all I got back from Gr’ex as he was still gagged.
“I will remove the gag but if you try anything you’ll regret it.” I warned.
I slowly reached over and pulled down the gag.
“Curse of Agony!” Gr’ex yelled out.
SMACK!
THUD!
I backhanded the little jerk.
“I’ve kept my pimp hand strong so any time you test me I’m going to bitch slap you!”
‘Good thing my immunity to curses works. Thank you, God! That made me realize I had understood what this goblin has been saying all along.’
I mentally asked my System, “How am I able to understand these guys?”
Query Accepted
Your System interface has a built-in automatic translation function.
“My System interface?”
Query Accepted
Yes, your System interface was upgraded to a higher version as a reward for selecting this option for how humanity will interact with the new world. Your version contains additional functions and greater information packets including language translation.
The term ‘Enlighten Self Interest’ came to mind. I wanted something that would help me, and others understand what was happening. This made the most logical sense. Nice I was getting a bonus for it.
Turning my attention back to the goblin. “So Gr’ex, shall we try this again?”
“Very well huemon. It is clear my gamble failed. How I do not know but Gr’ex has not survived this long being a fool. What is it you want to know?” Gr’ex replied.
“To start, how do you know what I am and how did you get here?” I asked.
“We were told of the dominant species of this world and our people have experience dealing with huemons before. We call you long pig as you can be tasty over an open fire.” Gr’ex grinned evilly.
SMACK!
I backhanded the annoying jerk.
Stolen novel; please report.
“Owe! What was that for?” Gr’ex groaned.
“For being a jerk and straying off topic. Back to my questions.” I responded as I raised my hand again.
The system had told me that goblins respected strength and cunning above all else. That meant I had to be much harsher than I might be normally.
“Alright, alright, don’t get your loin cloth twisted. You look like every other huemon we have encountered, but that crazed look in your eyes is scarier. As to how we got here... we entered through a portal.”
“Um, System, want to tell me more about this portal.”
Query Accepted
As the realms merge portals from different realities will open allowing monsters and other creatures to enter your world.
“Is there a way to close these portals?”
Query Accepted
Depending on the type of portal, yes. The portal the goblins entered from is called a contested portal, meaning it is not part of the realms merging and instead is allowed as a separate process to create challenges for humanity. If you can defeat the challenge the portal closes and those who participated can gain additional rewards and experience.
Contested portals can be closed primarily in two ways. The first is to defeat all the enemies that come through the portal. The second is to enter the portal and destroy the focusing crystal or casters responsible for keeping the portal open. Once the source of the portal’s power is destroyed you have a small window to return to the other side before being trapped in another realm or world. Please Note: There is technically a third way if you have access to spatial and reality or Planeswalking magic. You can use this magic to enter a contest of wills and force the portal to close.
‘Well, I’m going to have to try to figure out portals at some point. Add it to the list.’
“Is there a way to know how many enemies remain before the portal closes?”
Query Accepted
Yes. When you enter an area under an active challenge your quest log updates. This new quest will track the remaining enemies on this side of the portal.
“Great. Please display remaining enemies.”
Quest: Defeat the Detachment of Goblin Invaders
Description: Goblins under the control of a powerful necromancer have opened a portal near you. If they are not stopped, they will bring devastation to the area. Defeat the detachment of 25 goblins to receive additional rewards and experience.
Remaining enemies: 1/25
Well, that was helpful. I now knew Gr’ex was the last remaining member of his unit. I wonder what constitutes defeat, do I have to kill him?
“Are you done staring off into space huemon? How someone such as you bested me I do not know.” Gr’ex complained.
For some reason killing the little weasel sounded better and better as time went on.
“Yes. I was just checking my quest log. You are the last survivor of your group. Don’t prove useful and you die. Got it?!” I said the last part giving him a wicked grin.
The goblin visibly gulped. “Understood.”
“Now who do you serve?” I asked.
“My clan serves the great Kit’erak. He is a powerful necromancer and agreed to claim this area of your world as his future dominion. He is also working with others in the Dark to spread zombies and other undead across your world. As one of his lowly apprentices, Kit’erak would gloat about how easily some factions of the Dark agreed to his proposal of sending and seeding undead in your world.”
“Seeding?”
“Yes. Portals are temporarily opened as rituals are cast to use death magic to create a miasma that can increase the chance of the dead rising from the grave to wreak havoc. Some undead minions are sent through, but the portal is always closed. The minions succeed or are destroyed, it matters not to my master.” Gr’ex expressed glee as he thought about all the destruction.
“Then why is your portal contested?”
“Our clan is not undead. Though he may treat us as meat for the grinder, Kit’erak still needs us to establish multiple beachheads in this world. Opening portals can be costly, it takes time and resources. Our clan agreed so we could establish a new home here in a world about to be overrun with magic and conflict.” Gr’ex explained.
“Well thanks for the info.” I said as I withdrew my hunting knife. “Know that you are of no more use to me...”
Gr’ex interrupted me. “Wait! I can be of service! I know dark and death magic. I can teach you what I know.”
“And how could I even trust you after you tried to kill me?”
“A magical contract and oath! I will pledge my power to teach you what I know and be a good necromancer. I know how to serve.”
A prompt appeared in my vision.
Gr’ex is offering a magically binding contract and giving an oath balanced on his power. The agreement is as follows: Gr’ex will teach you his magic and be a good necromancer. Do you agree to the terms as stated? Yes, or No? Please note: You can modify the terms of the agreement.
Well, this is an interesting turn of events. I doubt very much what Gr’ex considers to be a good necromancer would be the same way I would consider a good necromancer. Either way, I knew his proposal had large enough holes in it to drive a semi-truck through it. I mentally selected the option to modify the agreement.
You have sent Gr’ex a modified agreement. Under his oath he will teach you magic, serve you, never strike or attack you himself, and has to be your ally in combat... Gr’ex has accepted your agreement.
A light flowed down and seemed to settle on Gr’ex. Shortly after I received a few more prompts.
Congratulations! You have defeated a contested portal! As the first person in your world to do so the rewards will be increased. For being the sole survivor, all rewards will be tailored to your needs.
Congratulations! You have gained the title World’s Champion for being the first to defeat a contested portal on your own. This title grants you +15 Strength, +15 Dexterity, +20 Constitution, +20 Intelligence, +25 Wisdom, and +30 Charisma. Other titles and perks will gain increased bonuses and rewards. In addition, when fighting in contested portals your stats are increased by 25% and rewards from successful completions are increased.
You are granted a one-time opportunity to choose from a section of rewards. In addition to the experience you will receive, you may choose three from the following list below:
· Magical weapon
· Combat skill to Adept rank
· Utility spell
· Offensive spell
· One random monster core
“Umm, huemon can you untie me now? Huemon? Master?” Gr’ex kept trying different ways to get his new master’s attention.
“Hold on a minute I’m choosing my rewards.”
“It is letting you choose, that is most uncommon.” Gr’ex commented.
“The notification said I am the first person to complete a contested portal on my world.” I replied.
“Ah that is why. Get anything good?” Gr’ex inquired.
“I can choose from a magical weapon, combat skill to adept rank, utility spell, offensive spell, or a random monster core.” I replied absently as I re-read the list of options.
“I was not expecting you to actually respond. I would recommend the combat skill to adept rank.” Gr’ex advised.
“Why?” I asked.
“Do you know how long it can take to get a skill to adept rank? Some battle-hardened warriors do not even achieve such a thing in their lifetime. A combat skill does not exactly mean melee, it could be anything. That one reward is worth more than the others.” Gr’ex explained.
“Well, I get to choose two more from the options.” I said as I mentally selected that option for my first reward.
“Three of them?! How did you get so lucky huemon?!... Of course, the world’s first. You are lucky the mutated bear took out almost my entire unit and I was low on mana from turning it into my minion.”
I realized the goblin was correct. I’m not sure if I could’ve beaten 25 goblins all at once.
“If you want more advice, I suggest ignoring the magical weapon as an option.” Gr’ex recommended.
“Why is that?” I asked.
“Simple. Whatever magical weapon you get now you will quickly outgrow.” Gr’ex answered.
That threw me for a loop, so I inquired further. “How do you figure that?”
Gr’ex shook his head and started speaking like he was talking to an idiot child. “Simple. Contested Portal Quest rewards are determined at the point and level you are at completion, before you gain the experience from the start. You will gain a massive amount of experience from completing a contested portal quest by yourself. They are meant to be completed with a small to midsize force. The longer they are open the higher the difficulty will ramp up to close it. Our portal was one of the first opened to this new world, my previous master saw to that.”
“So, the weapon I get would be for me at level 1 but as soon as I finish, I should be several levels past that meaning I would need a new weapon shortly after. Plus, the fact that the combat skill I get may not work with the magical weapon I get as a reward.” I summarized.
“Exactly.” Gr’ex said as he rolled his eyes.
“Okay, magic weapon is out. That leaves two spells and a random core.”
“I would have suggested the core of it was not random. I would recommend taking the utility and offense spells.” Gr’ex advised.
“Why the core if it wasn’t random?” I inquired.
“It’s simple. Magic cores that are the same magic type as your core are precious. They allow us to grow our own core. You can even gain additional experience and new spells, skills, or abilities. However, cores not of your alignment are of minimal use. It can be dangerous to try and absorb them, but they can come in handy for crafting.” Gr’ex once again explained his reasoning.
His thought process made sense. What he didn’t know was that I had all magic types so no matter the core it would benefit me. That left me to decide either a utility spell or offensive spell. As I couldn’t take both I would have to choose.
I already had my Lightning Bolt spell, that had worked pretty well as an offensive spell. I did have my ability to cleanse things, but I figured the more utility I had the better in the apocalypse. My final choice was made; I confirmed my selections.
Flash of light and new prompts filled my vision.
You have gained +150 experience for killing a level 5 goblin.
You have gained +175 experience for killing a level 6 goblin.
You have gained +11,500 experience for killing a level 20 undead mutated forest bear.
For completing the first contested portal quest on your world and doing it alone you have gained +25,000 experience plus an additional +25,000 experience for a total of +50,000 experience.
Level Up! Congratulations! You have reached level 10! +13 stats points per level. Total stat points to distribute: +117!
Congratulations! You have learned the combat skill Weapons Mastery at Adept level... Your combat skill level has been upgraded to Master rank as part of your one-time bonus!
The flood of knowledge brought me to my knees as I cried out in pain from the information overload. “AHHHH!”
“What is it, master?!” Gr’ex expressed confusion.
“The combat skill is Weapons Mastery... So much information...” I gritted my teeth try to get the words out as more and more weapons and fighting styles flooded my brain.
“You have got to be kidding me?! You get the one skill that is at the core of a weapons master class?! It takes grueling years of battle and practice to master multiple weapons skills. After that you must get them to merge into that one skill! Then you must level it up again to one day hope to reach adept!” Gr’ex explained in frustration with how lucky his new master was.
“Master...” I gritted out.
By now I was on my hands and knees struggling to breathe and stay upright as all the information kept hammering into my brain one weapon and form at a time. The constant movements were triggering a vertigo effect.
“Yes, you gained the Weapons Mastery skill at adept... or are you saying I forgot to address you as master. If that is the case...”
I cut him off and did my best to grind out the answer. “No... One... time... upgrade from adept... to master rank.”
The last thing I remember was Gr’ex exclaiming, “You have got to be the luckiest son of a troll I have ever met!”
It took a while for me to come to and I only knew that because it was pitch black at night. I was laying on my back.
“Welcome back master. Can you please untie me or at the very least take me inside? Your world is being saturated with wild mana. Anything could be out hunting tonight. As I am currently tied up and I have limited ways to defend myself.” Gr’ex complained.
“Sure.” I said as I got to my feet on unsteady legs.
I picked up the goblin who felt much lighter than before. I brought him inside and shut the door. I plopped him on the floor and put the bars over the door for added protection.
That was when the next wave of information hit me and brought me right back to my knees.
Congratulations! You have learned the spell Create Water! This spell grants you the ability to create up to 50 gallons of water in a single cast. This one-time reward has been upgraded to Create or Destroy Water (Greater). This advanced spell allows you to create or destroy up to 100 gallons of water in a single cast. The less water created or destroyed the less mana used.
I had the advanced spell shoved in my mind and once again I felt like I was trying to drink from a fire hydrant.
“New spell?” Gr’ex asked.
“Yea. Advanced version of Create Water spell.”
Gr’ex shook his head.
“What?” I asked.
“The utility spell you received can provide enough water for a small community. That is no minor utility, it is a lifesaver!” Gr’ex replied incredulously.
“Well, I guess that is over.” I commented.
Just as I said that a rather large spherical object appeared into existence next to me with an audible POP!
“You chose the random core? Of course, you did. With luck like yours, why not? That core is huge! It is literally bigger than I am! What did you get?!” Gr’ex commented as he shook his head.
Gr’ex was right, the magical core was huge. The core was probably about 4 and a half feet tall and wide, or to translate that into something the rest of the world will understand was roughly 1.33 meters tall. The core glowed with bright colors shifting from starry nights to golden hues of white, it was breathtaking.
A prompt brought me out of my revelry as my System identified the item.
You have found an Ancient Celestial Dragon Core!
Description: Ancient Celestial Dragons are some of the rarest of all dragons, only second to Omni-Dragons. Celestial dragons will travel the cosmos as they seek to unravel the mysteries of the universe. Each celestial dragon will begin to embody the aspects of the fundamental forces it studies. When a celestial dragon reaches ‘Ancient’ status it radiates the very power it sought to understand. This core came from an Ancient Celestial Dragon that embodies the fundamental forces of Time, Space, and Gravity. Warning: Absorbing an Ancient Celestial Dragon core can overwhelm your own core and result in death!
“System, this thing can kill me?”
Query Accepted
You Divine Infinitum will be able to absorb the core. However, it will take it time to fully assimilate the power within. Warning: the process will be potentially extremely painful and could have unforeseen side effects to your body.
“Well, shit.” I exhaled before I turned to my new companion. “Sorry Gr’ex, but you’re going to have to remain that way for a while longer. If it makes you feel any better, what I’m about to do is going to hurt a whole lot.”
“You know that does make me feel a bit better.” Gr’ex answered.
I deserved that. I was going to keep him bound until after I was done. Sure, we had a binding agreement, but I didn’t trust the creepy jerk as far as I could throw him... You know in this new reality I could probably throw him pretty far. I shook my head realizing I was just distracting myself from the inevitable.
I placed both my hands on the Ancient Celestial Dragon core and selected ‘Yes’ when asked if I wanted to integrate the core’s power.
Power flooded into me. I could feel it going directly into my Divine Infinitum. At first, I thought everything would be fine. It felt like I was holding on to a storm or live ball of electricity, yet it was contained... until it wasn’t. I screamed as the energy flooded my channels, only my PURITY!!! ability kept the power from ripping all my channels to shreds which would’ve crippled me in this new reality.
Even with my new ability the celestial power leaked from my channels and hit several of my organs. I felt the orb and I lifted off the ground hovering and the magic continued to flood my system. As it exited my body, for the first time I felt a tangible connection to my soul and spirit as the energy infused my soul and then it hit my brain and I blissfully blacked out.