Ethan lingered in the depths of the forest, relentless in his pursuit of mastery over his newfound abilities. As the sun dipped below the horizon, casting an eerie darkness over the surroundings, Ethan's heightened wisdom allowed him to perceive the faintest of details in the pitch-black night.
A sense of foreboding washed over him as he caught a glimpse of movement in his peripheral vision. The sensation of impending doom grew stronger with each passing moment, and a chilling realization settled in—Ethan was being hunted. The once confident hunter now found himself in the role of prey.
Fear gripped Ethan's heart as vivid images of colossal creatures closing in on him flooded his mind. His body trembled uncontrollably, unaccustomed to being on the receiving end of such primal aggression. The hunter had become the hunted, and the experience threatened to overwhelm him.
But amidst the terror, a stirring awakened within Ethan, a force as powerful as it was dark and insatiable. It was a negative trait inherent to his bloodline, an aspect that demanded acknowledgement and mastery. The hunger within him called out, resonating with the primal instinct to hunt, and feed.
Negative trait discovered:
Negative traits are inherent to any bloodline origin. The stronger the origin the more negative and powerful traits can be discovered. It is down to the wielder to overcome these or fall when they are overcome instead.
You are hungry, and blood is your sustenance. You hear the call of the hunt and can not turn away. Once in a fight you are unable to walk away until blood has been taken or death has been delivered. You must hunt regularly or awaken the beast within becoming a mindless animal until blood has been satiated. Wait to long and you won’t be able to return becoming a mindless animal forever until you are put to death.
The tremors subsided, and fear became a distant echo in Hemalith's subconscious. No longer just Ethan, he embraced his true identity as a Hemalith, a force to be reckoned with. Standing tall and defiant, he glared at the approaching monsters. How dare they hunt him? He was the hunter, not them.
Drawing upon his intermediate skill in Blood Manipulation (Level 1/10), Hemalith crafted a bow with swift precision, his eyes locked on the rapidly approaching creatures. He patiently awaited their arrival, calculating the perfect moment to strike.
As the monstrous ant-like creature entered his range, Hemalith's heart sank. It was a nightmare come true—a wolf-sized monster with razor-sharp mandibles and countless eyes, straight out of a horror movie. But Hemalith refused to yield. The audacity of this creature to approach him, the hunter, ignited a fire within his soul.
With a steady hand, Hemalith pulled back on the bowstring, conjuring an arrow made entirely of pulsating blood. He waited until the power within him surged to its peak and then released.
BOOM!
An explosion rocked the vicinity as the arrow found its mark, lodging itself in the creature's face and obliterating half of its head. Hemalith felt the rush of triumphant energy course through his veins, fueling his growth. A grin formed on his face. He could definitely get used to this.
With a quick turn, Hemalith spotted more monsters closing in. Undeterred, he continued to unleash arrow after arrow, but the relentless creatures showed no fear, marching forward like mindless drones, even after witnessing the demise of their kin.
Suddenly, a surge of danger rippled through Hemalith's senses. Swiftly dodging, he narrowly avoided an enormous ant-like creature that had appeared behind him, catching him off guard. Despite his agility, he suffered a deep gash on his right side. Hemalith retreated, his focus on the blood trickling from his wound. Manipulating the crimson fluid, he molded it into a spear and launched it towards the charging ant, impaling it in the abdomen and ending its life in an instant.
The distraction created allowed more of the creatures to advance, closing the gap for ranged combat. Discarding his bow, he once again invoked his intermediate Blood Manipulation (Level 1/10) to shape a deadly blood dagger. The wound on his side continued to bleed profusely, leaving him in a dire situation, but his negative trait demanded that he stand and fight.
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Drawing strength from the depths of his powerful soul, Hemalith exerted a force against the encroaching ants, making their blood boil and eliciting agonizing screeches. Seizing the opportunity, he sprinted towards the nearest creature, leaping onto its back and repeatedly thrusting his blood dagger down until it met its demise. This pattern repeated itself as Hemalith continued his relentless assault—running, jumping, dodging, and stabbing. Despite his impressive agility, he couldn't escape unscathed. The enemy's strikes landed, testing his vitality, but his unwavering determination pushed him forward.
Aware of the toll the battle was taking on his body, Hemalith understood that he was on the brink of defeat. Yet, his thirst for blood and his innate negative trait refused to let him yield. There were enemies to be slain, and he would fulfil his bloody purpose, no matter the cost.
With his soul strained to the limits Hemalith pushed for a solution to come out on top a way to get more power to become stronger and faster to heal quicker. And he quickly realised that the enemy was literally leaving him with more power laying around him and on him. Blood was everywhere and it was his to control.
Skill unlocked.
Blood Rite: Novice (Level 1/10)
Hemalith's mastery over blood manipulation extends to a potent skill known as Blood Rite. This skill enables him to empower himself by harnessing the blood of his fallen enemies, using it to enhance his own abilities and tap into their life force.
When Hemalith successfully lands a killing blow on an adversary, he can choose to activate the Blood Rite. By focusing his concentration and drawing upon the spilled blood, he absorbs its essence, channelling its power into his own being.
Upon activating the Blood Rite, Hemalith experiences a surge of strength, agility, and vitality. His physical attributes are temporarily augmented, granting him heightened speed, endurance, and resilience. Additionally, the absorbed life force bolsters his regenerative abilities, allowing him to heal wounds at an accelerated rate during the duration of the empowered state.
The duration of the Blood Rite's effects depends on various factors, including the potency and quantity of the absorbed blood, as well as Hemalith's own stamina and control over his blood manipulation abilities. As Hemalith's mastery of Blood Rite increases, he gains the ability to extend the duration and potency of the empowered state, unleashing even greater levels of power and resilience.
However, there is a cost to wielding the Blood Rite. After the effects of the empowered state wear off, Hemalith is left in a weakened state, experiencing a temporary depletion of his own blood reserves. This depletion affects his overall physical performance and can lead to fatigue, decreased stamina, and diminished blood manipulation abilities.
Furthermore, the act of absorbing the blood of fallen enemies carries a psychological burden. Hemalith becomes more susceptible to the dark impulses and urges that come with his bloodline origin. The more he indulges in the power of the Blood Rite, the greater the risk of losing control over his actions and succumbing to a state of mindless bloodlust. This makes it crucial for Hemalith to exercise caution and self-restraint, as the line between wielding the power and being consumed by it becomes increasingly thin.
Hemalith had killed countless enemies by this point and ignoring the warning he killed the last enemy and activated blood rite. A surge of energy coursed through Hemalith, transforming him into an uncontrollable abomination, more monstrous than the creatures he fought. In his manic state, he abandoned the feeble knife, forsaking any semblance of humanity.
Coating his fingers, nails, and teeth with the sinister power of blood manipulation and invoking the skill Bloodbane, Hemalith descended into a frenzied rampage. He tore through his adversaries, rending flesh and shattering bones, a living nightmare unleashed upon them. With every strike, he unleashed the full force of his monstrous strength, boiling the blood within his victims until their eyes burst forth in a gruesome display. Amidst the chaos, he revelled in the carnage, indulging in the macabre feast before him, all the while activating Blood Rite with each life he claimed.
In this unhinged state, wounds that would cripple any mortal closed before Hemalith's eyes, defying the very laws of nature. He became an entity driven solely by his insidious desires, barely recognizable as a man. But as the final foe succumbed to his savage onslaught, a chilling realization dawned upon Hemalith—nothing remained but his blood-drenched figure amidst a field of mangled corpses. His eyes, once filled with the light of life, now glowed a sinister shade of dark blood-red, reflecting the depths of his depravity. A blood-curdling laugh escaped his lips, echoing through the desolate landscape.
Then, as swiftly as the power had possessed him, the grip of Blood Rite released its hold on Hemalith. Fatigue and darkness engulfed him, dragging him down into the abyss. Collapsing under the weight of his monstrous actions, he succumbed to the void, his humanity shattered, and the echoes of his terrible deeds lingering in the air.