Black light enshrouded both Eradin and Farah. It was the power of the Abyss. Eradin was only enshrouded momentarily, then a permanent extremely thin layer of what he could only assume was the aura of the Abyss started to glow around his equipment. It was almost skin tight and barely rose above his body. A feeling of darkness and death basically further weakened Eradin's already weak signs of life although he was perfectly healthy. The best that the aura could be compared to was a skin tight cloud that was the color of pitch black ink covering his already black equipment. Eradin didn't know what to think upon hearing the term Abyss, he didn't even know why it accepted him as its lost child.
Is the Abyss an existence equal to that of the Void? Or is it another form of energy birthed from it? Was it because I managed to change my fate to a different destiny from the one that I was originally headed towards the reason I recieved its blessing with Farah. Or is it because of the blood contract tattoo saying I am a cursed sovereign since apparently they were masters with complete control of darkness and curses while the Abyss is the origin of those things. There is much to learn. The only way I can do that is to keep trudging forward and gain the power to enter the Abyss myself and find an answer.
While Eradin was thinking such thoughts, Farah finally was no longer enshrouded by the power of the Abyss. She had taken much longer as it directly fiddled with the magic and cells that made up her body, changing her to an Abyssal Race, the Abyssal Elf. Once the light died down, Farah looked similar to her previous form but with some key differences that would cause someone like her father to not notice her unless he looked closely at her face ignoring the changes and only focusing on what hadn't. Farah's body became much more refined because of being enshrouded in what Eradin thought was divine power the same as how his body was body-casted. Her silver hair remained but one strand was a pitch black streak of hair which only served to make her look more attractive in Eradin's opinion. Her golden eyes also changed color, perhaps the Abyss had a sense of humor because they were different colors. Her left eye was a lavender purple like Eradin's while the right eye became silver but with a weird twist, it seemed to be shrouded in a flame-like dancing navy blue aura with tints of black that became more visible if it was focused upon and almost invisible if it wasn't payed any attention. Her figure for the most part was the same but more refined. Farah's skin became slightly darker instead of the pale white it used to be. Covering her body was no longer the green armor that was basically a mix of leather and chainmail. It was virtually the same as Eradin's armor but made for a female warrior, it looked like the War Goddess Armor before it changed to a male form to suit Eradin. It was black scale-like armor and had plate areas covering the chest. However instead of leg plates, Farah had a purple scale-like skirt that also had leather mixed in ending a little more than half way to the knees. Her boots were black plate and went up to the knees. The gloves were also black plate going up to the elbows. Strapped to her sides were two swords. A long sword that was dark blue with black streaks running through it and a black short sword with dark blue streaks running through it. Chained to the front of her waist, situated in front of the right leg was a black tome that had gold edges and blood red text that was titled Abyssal Night Tome. In Farah's hand was a staff that was black and had gold rings melded into the wood. Towards the tip, it changed to a bowl shape with pillars coming up around the sides. Situated inside the space was a purple flame that had streaks of black, blue and gray within it dancing wildly and would sometimes take different horrifying shapes of beasts that Eradin could only describe as abyssal beasts since he was just blessed by the Abyss. Farah had a black cloak and two earrings both crimson colored. Lastly it seemed she was covered in the same Abyssal Aura that Eradin was, although maybe because they were both blessed as the Abyss's lost children he didn't sense her life aura being weakened although she looked perfectly healthy.
Cautiously Eradin approached Farah, taking everything into his eyes, he could come to one conclusion, she was stunning to him. The most attractive being out of any he had met past and present. Even the love goddess couldn't compare to her, although that should not be the case but because the moment Eradin was cursed by her he purposefully began imagining her as a wrinkled old hag since she was the whole source of the problem and the reason he was the way he was now.
Slowly words began to tumble out of Eradin's mouth, "How do you feel suddenly having everything about you changed. Is there anything wrong? Is there any way I can help."
Farah was currently in awe, but frankly she didn't feel anything was abnormal, the only thing that she would miss was being able to communicate with the wind spirits who had aided her since she was a child. But for the most part, she didn't feel like she became something worse than a High Elf but rather a sub species of the Elves that was of a higher ranking. She innately felt in her blood that a High Elf was significantly below her in everything, from looks, to innate power if they were the same level or social standing. Really, all that mattered was she remained an elf, it didn't matter the sub species to her, but she had heard of people that evolved to a different race from some action they did and hated it although it was rare and very little information was written on the subject in books. The only difference in her eyes is that she suddenly became more powerful and had been granted a power that would bring out her talents to the limit even more so than her previous class, race, and powers. When she was once again level forty, she had no doubt that she would have more than double the strength she used to have. In Farah's mind, evolving into a form that brought out your talents was not a bad thing. She was originally talented in magic, but because there was no melee fighter in Wisdoms Fallen, she had taken on such a role as the melee fighter and the leader always entering into the danger first before her companions. Now she could take on a role with more magic in it because Eradin was strictly a close combat fighter for now until he learned magic. To which Farah decided she would eventually teach him while traveling around the continent with him.
Farah simply looked at Eradin and smiled, "I am fine, if anything, I may have lost levels and strength, but in return I have gained a much more solid foundation upon which all my talent can be utilized to its limit rather than what I had been before as a melee fighter who was more talented in magic, although I was quite the vicious fighter as well, if you ever forget that, I shall pound you into the ground under the pretense of a training session. As for changing race, honestly I don't see a problem as I remained an elf, I am much higher class if you ranked elves based on race. If my previous race of High Elf was tenth best then as an Abyssal Elf I am ranked first, does that make sense? I evolved into a better version of myself. Although I am not truly ranked first, I feel from the very essence of my blood that I am tied with multiple elf subspecies that are equally as powerful for first although I don't know what they are. Now come, let us hurry towards the center of the forest." Farah started briskly walking ahead not waiting for an answer from Eradin.
Eradin was happy that she felt better instead of worse. Quickly following Farah, they arrived at the body of water that Eradin had found once before. The objective was the small island in the center of what could be described as a small lake in which the other side could be seen easily from a distance, it was the most secluded and probable place to find the demi-god because the most monsters and beasts were gathered here before and it was the deepest part of the forest. The sun was dipping below the horizon as they arrived at the shore. The water was not clear at all and was so dark that you couldn't see a hand only slightly submerged below the surface.
From within Farah's spatial ring, she withdrew a small rickety rowboat onto the waters surface. She sat at the bow and simply pointed towards the seat the oars were connected to with a sheepish smile at Eradin. And as the full moon rose, under Farahs directions, they paddled out to the island. Roughly twenty minutes later they landed on the island to immediaely be assaulted by a heavy pressure. Eradin at once channeled his sensory skills to the limit. And at the very edge of his all seeing perception, there was a figure directing it's bloodlust directly at him alone. Through the outline, Eradin could tell what it was. A mighty being he had read in fantasy novels from Earth was now making it's appearence, and it truly was every bit as terrifying as described in legends. It was the monster known as the Hydra, and from Eradin's inner vision, he could tell that it was large, far larger than the ogre he originally fought. This was the true Lord of the Forest, Eradin currently didn't have a way to confirm whether it was the demi-god or not. The only way to tell is if his godkiller attribute activated like it was supposed to if he fought anything with the traces of a gods powers. However, based on the pressure being emitted from it, Eradin was sure that it had to be the demi-god, it was as far as he knew, the strongest entity in the forest. Withdrawing the Death Gods Scythe, the [Cursed Star] appeared before Eradin.
[Only Option]
[Curse: Sever Divinity 1: Every attack is aimed at the very essence of the divine entities existence. Every attack that lands will temporarily bring it closer to the existence of a mortal. Reducing all damage they deal by .5% for every successful attack up to a maximum of -25% until you fail to attack within 10 seconds. WARNING: All existences that are considered divine entities have this power although each individuals form of severing divinity is different.]
[Godkiller Attribute:1 Activated: Very few gods, usually gods of war and combat or certain true gods can have such a power. Even demi-gods do not have this power to so openly defy gods. As a demi-god who has inherited the body of the last four true gods fused into one, you have unlocked this for waging war on the Divine. All statuses are increased by 20% when fighting anything with divine power. Even among those with this attribute,you alone have the power to steal the power of the Divine upon killing them and use it to further increase your strength. WARNING: If you fail to kill an entity of divine power and didn't die after this attribute has forcibly activated, your total level will decrease to compensate for the cost of activating this trait before you are a god in place of the divine power that should have been absorbed to stop your level from decreasing due to this trait activating before godhood. Kill Divine Existences to level this trait. Will only activate when you formally enter combat with a divine existence, whether intentionally or unintentionally.]
"What bastard came up with this system! What if I encounter a divine existence I can't kill because I am severely under leveled! Well whatever, I don't care anymore, this is all a load of shit anyways, I am probably the only person to ever have a trait that loves and hates me at the same time. Farah I need whatever blessings you can give me. Don't get involved if you don't have to, this is my fight, no matter what happens, if I can't kill this demi-god who is probably the weakest of all of them aside from me then I have no right to even attempt for revenge and should live my life in shame."
Farah completely understood Eradin's feelings; she was perhaps the only person aside from the four true gods who died to allow Eradin to live that understood him. What he felt was apprehension and the need to prove to himself that he could take the first true step onto the path towards his destiny. She would gladly wait at the side if it meant Eradin could get even a little bit of self esteem and courage from this fight. But if it truly went downhill for him then she would step in and aid him for if the party ended with his death then it meant death for her as well. Taking out her Abyssal Night Tome, Farah began to chant in the runic language sentences within the tome to bless Eradin.
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
[Blessing of the Abyss recieved: 10% increased defence and endurance]
Recieving the blessing Eradin felt empowered, for once he wasn't just itching for battle because of the Blood of the War Goddess, but he wanted to delve into it on his own as well. This caused his blood to boil even more. So much so to the point the scent of blood could be smelled coming from Eradins [Asura Aura]. Visibly he began to change as well, his entire demeanor became that of a war mongerer that lived for battle. Slowly he waited for the hydra to arrive. Through his inner vision, Eradin kept track of it all the way until it was on the shores of the small island that would contain their battle. Once it entered into the clearing, through his inner vision, Eradin was now able to clearly make out the hydras level at 33. Next to it's name was also the word raid. So it was the equivalent of a raid boss and not just a regular boss monster. That was easy to understand as it was half god.
The Hydra had three heads, probably because it was leveled in the thirties. It was completely covered in sky blue scales and the size of it's body was somewhere along the lines of twenty meters, probably only a juvenile. Each head had a different pair of eyes. One was green and secreting what looked like venom from its fangs. Another had blue and frost could be seen from its breath while the last head was colorless and appeared to be creating a gust of wind every time it took a breath. But what was most noticeable to Eradin was that he felt traces of a true dragons aura from the hydra. It was probably a descendant of the dragons and as for how it became a divine existence, Eradin didn't know. But every one of these things, he was able to sense from inner vision. This would be his hardest fight and without his sensory skills active and his eyes closed, Eradin wouldn't be attempting such a fight right now. Especially as it was a raid level boss monster. meaning it probably had abilities close to that of someone in the forties levels.
Slowly Eradin began to break the stalemate and approached the hissing hydra. In not even a second, it began to attack. raising all three of its heads, the hydra prepared a breath attack. It spewed venom and frost at the same time while amplifying them with the wind from its third head. Eradin spun the Death Gods Scythe as fast as he could while now sprinting at the hydra. Diving beneath its body, Eradin chained multiple attacks into one continuous attack that mixed in a single [Cursed Slash]. [Petrifying Soul Gaze] was attempted but it seemed that the Hydra was only slightly affected as it onlly stopped moving to stare at him for a millisecond. Coming out at the end of its tail, Eradin slashed as hard as he could into the joint connecting the tail to the body, but only superficial damage was taken.
Eradin was able to sense to the front of the hydra was ravaged ground that remained of his original location. Poison that was almost like acid had spread everywhere and frost so cold that even rocks broke had turned the area where Eradin was originally into a sea of death because the area of effect was amplifed by the head that spewed gusts of wind.
But in the end it didn't surprise Eradin, it was a raid boss level monster after all, so why wouldn't it have synergistic abilities. Eradin used [Cursed Slash] while avoiding the Hydras heads, and fierce combat ensued, a deadly dance of attack and retreat between the true Lord of the Forest and the one that was attempting to usurp its throne. Every time Eradin dodged a sweeping atttack of the tail or avoided the heads, adrenaline would kick in to its limits. Constant small cuts appeared everywhere on the Hydra but Eradin wasn't so lucky to get out unscathed. One second during the deadly dance of the divine was enough for him to suffer a blast of frost directly to the front of his body.
If I get hit by such an attack then i'll definately take serious status defects and damage. But it's only taking minimal damage, just how hard are the scales? Please don't tell me I will have to chain attacks under the [Rage of the Dragon God] in order to put any serious damage into it. That would just be a pain to deal with.
[Abnormal Status Gained: Frost 1: Movement speed / Attack Speed is slowed by 10%, you take bonus damage of the frost attribute from attacks]
[Trait Gained: Frost Resistance 2/10]
[Hp: 1105/1240]
[Hp Regen: 80/min]
Eradin was freezing cold, but once he gained the [Frost Resistance] trait, it eased a bit. This time, Eradin didn't get angry to the point he used his hidden skill. He wasn't going to die anytime soon, not while he had a blood contract to fulfill. A promise was a promise whether specified in a contract or not. Quite quickly Eradin learned through the multiple exchanges for over five minutes now that the Hydra also possessed a regeneration skill weaker than his own but, the damage Eradin was applying was small enough that it could regenerate quickly.Even though he was severing it's divinity. It was still fifteen levels higher than Eradin. The highest difference he had ever faced, and it was even above a boss monster in rank at the raid class.
The hydra was also an intelligent entity, all divine existences were. Slowly it was beginning to understand this opponent didn't have the ability to seriously harm it. With such an outcome, it would surely win. However it also realized that the very existence of its opponent was on a higher plane than itself. If it could sever its divinity and eat it, there was a chance that the body parts might merge with itself and allow it to evolve one step further on the path to the divine. Although the chance was insanely small as absorbing divine strength that was not specifically yours was virtually impossible. However if its opponent was allowed to escape then it could quite quickly grow strong enough to slaughter itself in perhaps a year, maybe earlier, that was something it couldn't let occurr. Raising its heads to the sky, the Hydra began to spew frost into the sky, letting it become a cloud, then after it was created, the hydra spit it's venom into the cloud as well. It was the domain skill that it had. [Domain: Acidic Rain of the First Poison Dragon] that was within the very few inherited memories it had from it's ancestor the true dragon of poison.
It began to rain, this much Eradin understood quite easily, and he knew that if he touched even a drop, acidic poison would severely hurt him if he didn't take proper precautions. So Eradin couldn't hide it anymore, every three minutes when [Rage of the Dragon God] came off of cool down, he would have to activate it to raise his physical stats and resistacne enough to fight seriously with the conviction to kill. Two minutes down time were when he was in the most danger would happen multiple times. But this was his plan, and if he really couldn't kill the hydra alone, Farah could hopefully heal him and then aid in combat with her new powers.
The black phantasmal image of the Dragon God began to appear behind Eradin, his muscles bulged and he began to crack the ground under the pressure that was being emitted. Staring right at the Hydra, Eradin and the Dragon God image released their most powerful dragon cry yet while using [Petrifying Soul Gaze] before charging at the Hydra and dodging all the acidic rain due to his physical stats being forcefully risen.
The Hydra was affected to the very existence of its soul. It all of a sudden felt terror from the very depths of its bloodline when it felt the aura the small being emitted. It felt as if it should kneel and prostrate itself from such a divine might. In that split second, Eradin chain attacked more than five times. Constantly attacking without rest for a full minute while releasing [Cursed Slashes] every five seconds. The Hydra only stayed shackled in place for the first [Cursed Slash] before forcefully fighting against its bloodline and attempted to fight Eradin. The fight ensued once more. Eradin constantly attacked to the point his [Sever Divinity:1] was fully stacked. But it wasn't without its dangers. Eradin was closing in on the one minute mark for [Rage of the Dragon God]. In that time although the cooldown began when he used the skill, two minutes downt time with weaker physical stats would really hurt him. In those times he would have to make sure the divinity he severed didn't reconnect to the Hydra and he'd have to rely on his regeneration to heal him when he inevitably was hit by the acidic rain. But at the end of his continuous assault. The Hydra was covered in bloody wounds double the size of its previous ones. And Eradin was able to inflict the curses, [Lower Physical Stats: 2] and [Reduce Physical Damage: 1] with a duration of two minutes and a chance to be refreshed in he landed more [Cursed Slash] attacks. These were his savings grace, the Hydra would be weaker physically allowing Eradin even one more second to recover when he was damaged. All he had to do was constantly refresh his [Sever Divinity: 1] for two minutes without letting it drop off and endure the pain of the Acidic Rain.
Ten Minutes Later
[Hp: 560/1240]
Farah was watching every second of the fight. She was getting a close up look at the power of the Cursed Child when he hadn't released his divine anger. The Hydra and Eradin were both riddled with wounds. Multiple burn and frostbite marks covered Eradins face and he looked physically tired while breathing extremely heavily from three consecutive activations of [Rage of the Dragon God] every time it came off cooldown. Blood was dripping off of the Death Gods Scythe, this blood belonged to the hydra who was also seriously injured. Its poison head had lost a majority of its fangs and one eye was on the ground crushed after being gouged out by Eradin. Large portions of muscle and sinew were carved out of it's body and more than half of it's tail was cut off. Even so it was still alive. Slowly it was regenerating, but it was not enough, the damage was piling up. Both of them were complete monsters figuratively and literally. Even some adventurers close to level fifty would not be able to survive the wounds that the two of them had. Once again, Eradin used [Rage of the Dragon God], he was going to make it his all out attempt, for once he used Spirit of the Death Gods ability to sense someone he was thinking about and whether they were close to death. The ability clearly showed that the Hydra was infinitely close, basically a walking undead at this point even though it was still considered very much alive with the way it was moving.
With a bloody scream, Eradin who was covered in wounds, staggered slightly but sprinted to the Hydra, in a last ditch effort he jumped with all his might even under the effects of the x10 gravity he had from the gravitational laws being warped around him and propelled into the Hydra with all the strength he had left even if it drained ten times the stamina from his body, but with the extra momentum he slammed into the Hydra horizontally with the Death Gods Scythe. Eradin drove the Death Gods Scythe as far as he could into the chest of the Hydra that already had flesh gouged out. The Hydra futiley attempted to use it's breath attacks, but Eradin simply dodged all but the poison breath and didn't even flinch as he mustered through it suffering even more burns as he continually shoved the Death Gods Scythe into it's chest piercing the heart and causing it to dismember into multiple pieces.
Eradin [Hp: 323/1240]
The Hydra went rigid. Eradin backed away and fell to the ground in pain. He retracted the Death Gods Scythe into his body as the Hydra fell down to the ground dead. Many messages appeared but he couldn't notice any of them at the moment. Farah rushed over to Eradin and began using the Abyssal Aura in an attempt to heal his wounds while chanting runic sentences from her tome. As Farah attempted to heal Eradin, a beacon of black light fell from the heavens onto the dead Hydra, Eradin and Farah. Right at that moment, four people clad in battle armor on gryphons entered the scene with dumbfounded expressions. One of which also filled with worry looking for his daughter.