Edward waved his hand, and the faux boulder obstructing the hidden pathway became visible once more. With a soft sigh, he climbed the rest of the rocky amber steps until he reached the precipice.
A small flattened area of stone, overlooking a large swathe of the Wastelands. The sun overhead warmed the place to a degree that may be uncomfortable for most, but just relaxed the demon. His usual grin faded away as his face became slack and neutral. From within his jacket, he withdrew a white rose.
“Been a while, my dear.” He stepped forward and kneeled to place the flower in front of a small gravestone. “Seemed only fitting I’d come to the place I was most emotionally vulnerable.”
A further sigh, and he moved his long legs around to sit on the dusty ground.
“There’s a chance we may be together again soon. Or at least the same state of being, which is good enough for me.” A small smile curled at the corner of his mouth. “I know you’d forgive me for carrying on without you. You always believed in my Master Plan.”
His eyes went out to the roving sand dunes and small settlements. “You’ll be pleased that I’ve made peace with that fact that you are no more, yet I continue to persist through every attempted death. While it was something I long struggled with… I’ve found some rubes who now share my curse. You... would have liked them.”
Edward stood once more and dusted his slacks down. Perhaps he should have taken up Chuck’s offer of having a bench installed here… but he never came with the intention of staying for long. Wasn’t healthy to dwell on the past, but keeping certain memories alive was important.
The demon gave the gravestone a respectful nod, his eyes closed as he exhaled. Could have just teleported here and away, but the arduous task of walking up and down the mountain was part of the process. Gave him the chance to litter along the way, too. She would have liked that as well.
His brow furrowed, and he spun around, sword bursting into red energy as his eyes met a shadowy figure standing right behind him. Looking down, blood was already soaking through his suit.
“You’re quick,” he murmured, before there was nothing but darkness.
----------------------------------------
Dent frowned. “Anything on your end?”
“No.” Chuck shook his head. “Video is clear. Edward is still there paying his respects. Nothing untoward about what I am currently monitoring. Yours?”
“Hmm. Most are normal, but there was a brief spike in… check out screen two point eight.”
The Architect swiped his hand through the air to switch around some of the graphs and moving data crowding his vision. “That’s… unusual. It doesn’t usually spike like that when… wait.”
He stood from his chair and swiped away the screens to replace them with a much larger one in the middle of the room. The video feed was at the forefront, with a handful of small lines representing certain information running along the side.
By all appearances, it looked as though Edward was still standing there.
Then the image flickered and started to fade.
The graphs dipped or swerve off course, as different sets of data fell away or vanished completely.
“Shit,” Chuck said, and vanished in a wave of blue light.
Dent sighed and rubbed at his face. After spending most of the day with either Norah or Jackie chewing him out, it was nice to have a little peace. Maybe he could offer himself up next. His eyes went back to the video feed, which now showed a visibly angered Chuck.
Seems their kidnapper had a way to delay the decay of the System’s data. Clearly, this wasn’t their first rodeo. What a difference it could make when their enemies had more than two brain cells. None of the tracking could pinpoint where Edward currently was, although…
On the Visualizer, a faint line had started to form. The kidnapper looked to be orbiting Sanctuary. Small answers paid with the loss of another Outsider.
But when was the tipping point?
----------------------------------------
Edward opened his eyes, blinking away the odd sleep that had overcome him. Hand went to his stomach to find that he had been healed. Standing now, in some manner of tube.
His aching blue eyes went over to the side to see the static figure of Fran barely illuminated by a dim light. Just past her was another tube holding Lucius. He ground his sharp teeth together. Dead? Didn’t look it, but they weren’t moving.
“Usually, I would kill them, zero-zero-three.” A sharp-edged voice came from the darkness.
As he turned to see the speaker, two orbs of white light stared back at him from the gloom.
“But the little magic circle you helped make let’s me keep them alive. Isn’t that right, pet?” A hand raised into the air, a squirming rat barely picking up the light from Edward’s tube.
He crossed his arms, eyes blazing with fury. “May I at least know the name of my captor?”
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“Eck.” The held rat lowered back into the darkness. “I don’t like talking to my collection, but very well. In the universal language, I am known as Ash’var.”
“My thanks. Perhaps I may offer you two nuggets of information in return?”
“Oh? Maybe it is the joy I feel to have yet another of the illustrious Outsiders in my possession… but I will allow it.”
Edward grinned. “The first is simple. You will die.” He held up a hand. “That is not a threat, but a statement of fact. Going against the Outsiders was a mistake in the same way as building a house on the side of a volcano, assuming it is dormant.”
The two eyes continued to stare unblinkingly. “Yawn. I say this as a word as I do not have the capability to do the action. Oh, pet can, can’t you?” There was a brief squeak and the crunch of something before silence.
“Second thing,” Edward continued, licking his lips. “You may take away the Chat and Skills that the System provides, but you cannot take away my birthright as a demon. Let me show you your true folly.”
[Domain: The Inevitable]
The greens and pale whites of the shadowed room became more vibrant and garish as the power of the Domain washed throughout the surrounding area. With the extra light, Edward was able to pick out more detail from his captor.
Chitinous armored plates that rose up behind them, giving them an oval shape. Insectoid mandibles and short antennae. The hand that held the broken rat was segmented and a deep brown in color.
“Enough talking,” Ash’var said, clicking two of his four hands together.
A calming feeling washed over Edward, and his Domain faded away, along with any desire to do anything at all.
----------------------------------------
Sally buckled down to her knees after blocking the overhead strike of the Bandit Leader. A cool-looking sword that she wanted to loot, but now she just felt tired. She watched it swing back for a second blow, intending to split her head open. The tall man then faltered, as a dagger dug into one side of his neck, right before the sharp jaws of Cross latched onto the other side.
As the Bandit flailed and tried to usurp the goblin, Poppy lashed in with her lance skill, disemboweling the System-created.
“Never thought I’d wish for a more Quest-oriented leveling experience,” Sally complained, flopping over backwards on the ground with a sigh.
Archie moved up beside her and ran his fur against the side of her face. “Not as fun when the System doesn’t give you broken skills, you mean?”
“Nothing wrong with being overpowered,” she grumbled. There was the thought that the System knew when someone was destined to come save it, so she just had to let this one know that’s what she was here for. “I get a Class Ability this level, right?”
“Correct, but don’t get your hopes up.”
“I believe in the me who believes in the System.” She grunted and sat herself back up. “Why you all over me, cat? It’s not like you to be needy.”
“No… reason.” Archie stepped away and looked coy.
With more grumbling, the zombie turned her gaze over to Cross, who was now sitting amongst the dispensed internal organs of the felled Bandit. Chewing on the end of one of the intestines, if her rudimentary understanding of human anatomy was correct.
[Poppy: Sorry I couldn’t get there sooner!]
[Poppy: Who uses bolas these days?~]
She looked up at the knight and grinned. “You’re fine, Poppy. I had at least three other ways of getting out of that situation.”
Claude let his own grumbles out as he stepped over to join them. “Were two of those ways bullshit and luck?”
Sally clicked her fingers. “You know me well already, sourpuss. Why don’t you open this chest? I’m feeling lazyyyy.”
He rolled his eyes but went off to do just that. As he passed her, he looked down briefly before continuing. “I appreciate that you use your minions to protect me.”
She grinned.
[Level 5 Reached]
[2 Skills Points to spend]
[Skill Assigned: Undead Squire]
[Undead Squire: Target undead becomes bound to you and receives 40% of your Stats and Skills.]
“Hah!” Sally hopped back up to her feet. “Another piece of the puzzle!” With an outstretched finger, she pointed right at the goblin gobbling giblets. “Cross, I choose you!”
The zombie opened his mouth, the errant end of whatever he was chewing on falling to the ground with a wet plop. He stared at her, but that was the extent of his actions.
Skill points went into Determination and Swordmastery again. “That’s all sorted. What do we have up next, gang?”
[Poppy: There’s a level 6, 8, or 10 dungeon. All fighting.]
[Poppy: 6 would be easy experience, but 10 would be more.]
“But most dangerous,” Claude was keen to add as he walked back over. “Not that it would dissuade you, of course.”
Sally hummed to herself and tapped her foot. She had hoped that the big bad of this world would have shown themselves at this point. Given her some threats or hammed up the experience. “Where is… Pippy?”
“In a Dungeon of his own creation, naturally.” The healer looked off to the far horizon, where tall mountains clouded the view like dark teeth jutting from the island.
“Well, this is untenable.” She crossed her arms. “We’ll need to be level twenty to attack that, I bet?”
“To have any manner of chance, yes.”
[Poppy: Will be a very tiring month, I’m sure ^^]
Sally didn’t have a month. Neither the patience nor appetite for it. She clicked her fingers and stepped over to Archie, jostling him from wherever his attention had been.
“Let’s talk, cat,” she said. “It’s time we show the world what being an Outsider is all about.”
----------------------------------------
“You seem distracted.” Borin slammed his mace down, cracking the tile flooring as the vampire darted around.
“Yeah.” Theo slid across the slick blood and flourished the warhammer. “Something isn’t right.”
The giant raised an eyebrow. “Perhaps the fact that you are still fighting with half of your head missing?”
“Nah.” He twitched. “Wasn’t using that side of my brain, anyway.” With his one working eye, he looked up at the domed sky, still swirling with color.
“Your woman?”
“No. The bond of a brother. Not one of blood, but of kinship.” Theo shuddered as a chill took his body.
“Painful for you to not be able to do anything about it.”
The vampire tilted his head and looked to the side of the platform. One quick leap and he’d have his true death here, respawning back at Sanctuary instead of up by the weapon racks. Edward couldn’t be in trouble, surely? Perhaps they were having another tournament, or an Event the demon actually cared to participate in. Despite the draw of the void… well, maybe he should return to be sure.
[Dent: Hey, Theo.]
[Dent: Daily check-in time.]
[Dent: You’re doing amazing, estimated…]
[Dent: 80% towards acquisition power.]
[Theo: Amazing, salivating at the thought of coming home.]
[Dent: No need to rush - be safe, alright?]
[Theo: You know me :) ]
[Theo: Oh…]
[Theo: Edward okay?]
[Dent: As far as I know. Thought you’d be asking about Sally.]
[Theo: She’s fine, I can tell. Just had a bad feeling…]
[Theo: Perhaps it’s because I’m missing half my skull LOL!]
He grinned and closed down the Chat. The head of the warhammer scraped across the tile as he moved it into an arc before bringing it up ready.
“Hope you’re holding up, Borin. Things are about to get a lot more sperfly.”
“…Sperfly?”
Theo opened his mouth to reply, but instead just fell over dead.