Redmane quelled a stirring of panic.
He wasn’t truly Level 55. Not anymore. Unlocking the Seal of the Manticore put him on this thing’s level, or so the numbers suggested.
He could fight it.
[First Generation Imbued] Marked as Prey
Blessing of Might
Rockskin
Gnosis: 980
Redmane felt the Gnosis flow into his muscles and harden his hide.
The Sicarius fixed Redmane with an unblinking gaze. It approached at a slow walk, the point of its sword held low and to the side, its other hand free. A stance which invited attack.
Redmane tested its reflexes.
Flame Breath
Gnosis: 960
A gout of flame shot from Redmane’s open maw. The Sicarius leapt to the side gracefully, arcing its jump so that it circled forward and moved laterally at the same time.
There was a flash of silver. Redmane’s eyes widened and he ducked to his right.
The Sicarius closed the distance in that one leap, slashed with such alacrity that Redmane didn’t even register the sight of its sword moving. Only the flash of moonlight glinting off its blade. He evaded with less than a heartbeat to spare, and the sword sheared off a lock of his hair and a corner of his weathered cloak.
Redmane had a feeling that sword would hurt.
And he didn’t have much Corpus at the moment.
He hadn’t anticipated a fight for his life so soon. But the fight was on him, so he fought with everything he had.
But the Sicarius had an answer for everything. And it was fast. It kept up with Redmane’s flurries of claws, sometimes weaving a defensive web of steel with its sword, sometimes evading so swiftly it left him clawing at empty air over and over. But it was having similar problems. Redmane caught its slashes and thrusts, sometimes barely, blocking with one claw only to counter with the other.
This too was a game the Sicarius had more than a passing familiarity with.
When it wasn’t evading with the grace of a dancer, it would block his claw with its blade and riposte with a punch, or a kick, or a sword hand to the neck. The blows didn’t do much harm, but they weren’t meant to.
Redmane pushed through them. His claws were Defensive and he had Rockskin up, so he leveraged that extra durability to make himself the focal point of their duel. The rock upon which the waves broke, over and over again.
Unfortunately, this would do more damage to the rock than the waves on a long enough time frame.
It hadn’t touched him, but he hadn’t touched it either.
Perhaps it was time to risk a trade.
Already they danced at inhuman speed. Claws and blade slicing through night air, clanging as one blocked the other at the last instant, again and again. Every attack was a daring move, every parry a desperate effort. The Sicarius showed no emotion. It wasn’t even breathing heavily. Redmane began to wonder if it even breathed at all.
His eyes snapped to the Sicari’s descending blade. It liked that move. It had used it several times now.
Redmane chose now to make his trade.
Instead of blocking, he caught it.
The instant its blade touched Redmane’s palm and drew blood, something inside him flared to life. A red hot fury.
The Beast Within.
Rage Fueled Might
Redmane saw red.
Lion’s Lunge
Gnosis: 945
His left claw came down so fast the Sicarius couldn’t even see it, let alone react. That claw came with double Redmane’s Might and double the armor penetration. It rent the Sicari’s cloak, tunic, left shoulder, then the arm beneath. In one swipe its whole left arm came off and fell to the tall grass with a thump. Then the enhanced impact of the Skill knocked the Sicaruis away, sent it tumbling through the grass.
Bleeding (4)
Unfortunately Redmane had lost his own right hand in doing so. The blade of the Sicarius sliced cleanly through it as if his Rockskin were paper. What he had left was a wrist, half a palm and half a thumb.
Corpus: 1654
He knew that would hurt. But all considered, the trade looked like it favored him.
Redmane glared at his half severed hand, willed it to regenerate with an explosive splatter of blood.
The Sicarius had rolled to its feet, and was now looking down dispassionately at its severed right arm. It still held its sword in the other. Black blood flowed down its pristine white tunic and breeches. In a moment it returned its soulless stare to Redmane and eased into a ready stance, the tip of its blade aimed squarely at its opponent.
The ink black ichor pouring from its wound didn’t smell like any blood he’d ever smelled before. But it stirred Bloodlust all the same.
Redmane flew at the Sicarius with all the speed he could muster, plus the extra burst his Skill afforded him. It blocked and evaded as competently as before, completely unphased by the fact that it was missing a whole appendage.
But the exchanges were closer.
It was barely keeping up before. Now it came down to a hair’s breadth.
All he had to do was push just a little bit harder, flurry a little faster…
Or perhaps there was another way.
Redmane began to notice patterns in the Sicari’s attacks and defenses, of a sort one did not usually see. Highly trained fencers still adapted and improvised, still surprised an opponent with something they came up with to answer that opponent’s particular style and level of aggression.
The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.
Not this thing. Its overhand block was the same each time. Its turning sidestep was the same each time. There was an inflexible logic to its attacks, defenses and movement. It blocked, parried, evaded and countered as if consulting a chart in its head, and answering with identical pre-planned techniques.
No wonder it didn’t speak or show emotion. The Sicarius was merely a living machine.
He charged behind a lattice of claw strikes, forcing the Sicarius to raise its guard like he knew it would. The Sicarius hopped to its right, to reset, and thrust forward. All according to its inner script.
Redmane’s eyes narrowed.
If he could make it repeat an entire sequence, he could land another blow. Just one more application of Bleeding would give him a decisive advantage in speed. It would make the battle his.
This time Redmane leapt away, making space it knew the Sicarius would close at a slow walk before swooping in for its turn on offense. They went through the paces again, a lightning fast exchange of slashes and dodges, resulting in another net gain of zero on either side of the ledger.
Redmane raced in behind a flurry of claws, just as he’d done a moment ago.
And the Sicaruis flickered and vanished.
Flicker
It appeared behind Redmane and ran him through.
Corpus: 203
Redmane coughed, and blood flowed from his mouth.
He looked down and saw the shining blade sticking out of his chest, dripping bright red blood.
A boot struck him in the back, at the same time the sword slipped out of him. He fell face first onto the grass, dizzy and bloodied.
But there was no time to just lay there.
He rolled to the side and death missed its mark. The Sicari’s blade swept across the grass, shearing the foliage cleanly in half instead of the back of Redmane’s neck. He kept rolling, sprang backward to evade another slash by a hair’s breadth, and the instant he had enough breathing room he burned more Gnosis.
Shaman’s Heal
Corpus: 953
Gnosis: 445
He felt better, but not much better.
The expenditure was a snap decision. He should have spent more, perhaps. But he couldn’t stop to consider it. He had to defend himself from a sequence of blindingly fast slashes and thrusts. The Sicarius kept advancing, corralling Redmane’s attempts to move laterally with horizontal slashes, keeping him backpedaling with thrusts that came terrifyingly close to finding their mark, again and again.
Redmane saw openings, but he second guessed himself.
If he leapt in, he might take another one of those vanishing backstabs. And he didn’t think he’d survive the next one.
At least he wouldn’t survive in any state he cared to exist in.
No more helplessness.
The thought of it raised his hackles. Cleared his mind. Gave him focus.
A growl rumbled in the back of Redmane’s throat, even as he backpedaled, blocking and ducking the sword of the Sicarius.
He could bring surprises too.
The Sicarius pressed forward without pity, or remorse, or fear. It pushed Redmane right to the edge of the riverbank, until his heels touched the water.
It thrust at Redmane’s face, and Redmane hit the floor face first.
But not quite.
Carnivorous Metamorph
Gnosis: 435
Redmane dropped to his hands, and the tail of the Manticore struck the Sicarius square in the stomach.
Venom (5)
It stared at the wound, the way the venom stained its white tunic purple, and for the first time Redmane noticed it emote.
It frowned.
Redmane lunged like a wolf.
From all fours he launched himself forward into his own non-stop offense. And now the Sicarius was not only Bleeding but poisoned, its vitality slowly draining away, holding its own for the moment. But very soon its ability to keep up with Redmane would be gone.
All he had to do was make sure the thing couldn’t do anything but defend itself.
Flicker
Redmane was ready for it this time. The instant he saw the Sicari’s figure blur, he looked over his shoulder, turned his profile sideways and struck the air with his tail.
It landed perfectly.
The Sicarius appeared on top of the tip of that tail
Venom (10)
Redmane wheeled around the rest of the way, leading with a wild claw.
Bleeding (8)
Then another.
Bleeding (12)
And now it was over.
Bloodlust lent him savage speed, even as Venom drained the Sicarius ever so slightly, but enough to tip the scales and keep them tipped.
Now its scripted defenses fell apart. Redmane knew what they were, he’d seen them. Only now they played out at a speed he could reliably catch.
The Sicarius walked into claws, sidestepped too late, raised its guard too slow.
Soon its white tunic was soaked all over in black blood.
But no matter how drained, no matter how outmatched, its eyes shone like obsidian. Unflinching, all the way to the end. All the way to the point where a claw struck its arm in half, and all it could do was look down at its own sword in a lifeless hand.
When Redmane pounced and gorged on its flesh, he found the taste familiar.
Level Up
Level 55 —> Level 56
Level 56 —> Level 57
Level 57 —> Level 58
Level 58 —> Level 59
Level 59 —> Level 60
Quality Points awaiting allocation: 5
Corpus: 2017
Gnosis: 772
Divine Flesh. That was the flavor.
There was no Communion to be had this time, but such a thing was no longer necessary.
—
Imbued Skill Learned
Flicker
Rank 1 - Evolution Possible
Active
50 Gnosis
The Imbued utilizes this Skill when it anticipates attack. After using Flicker, the next time the Imbued is struck with a melee or close attack from a ranged weapon, it will be translocated behind its attacker.
This Skill synergizes with any other Skills benefitting backstabs, flanking attacks, or otherwise acting from a position of stealth.
—
Splendid. Here was a Skill he could make use of.
He turned his attention to the carcass of the great bear next.
There was something familiar about it.
Its scent, specifically. In a way it smelled like the Sicarius, albeit faintly.
His mind hot with hunger already, Redmane dove on the fallen bear and ate his fill.
Corpus: 6535
Gnosis: 1009
So the bear was divine as well.
—
Monster Skill Learned
Roar of the Elder
Rank 1 - Evolution Possible
Active
30 Gnosis
The roar of the Great Bear can shatter stone.
The Monster lets out a mighty roar, dealing physical damage, which ignores Armor and Evasion, to all creatures in close range.
All creatures in close and medium range are at risk of being Deafened.
—
Redmane’s eyebrows rose.
He wanted to try this one immediately.
He stood from the carcass of the bear, threw his head back and roared so hard it shook the very stone.
Gnosis: 979
These were fine treats indeed.
But there was more. The Sicarius carried enchanted items. They lay on the ground next to the scraps of its corpse and clothes.
—
Sicarius Sword
Curved Sword (Melee Weapon)
Weapon Profile:
Damage +30
Evasion Negation 10 (Fast 5)
Spirit Touch (Godslayer 1)
Vorpal (Godslayer 1)
Elegant curved sword with an opalescent color. Wielded by the Sicarius.
The blades of the Sicarius are forged from Numantian Star-Steel, an alloy that can slay Divine Flesh.
God Slayer’s Oculus
Talisman (Neck)
Passive
Allows the wearer to perceive incorporeal beings.
Silver medallion inlaid with nine gems, symbolizing the eyes of the Nine.
The Nine brook no insubordination from lesser gods. Their loyal blades find any recusant, no matter where they hide.
—
Now these told the rest of the story.
He had been here in a dream. The dream that overtook him when he’d eaten the corpse of a different Sicarius. The first one.
And the Sicarius was a living machine, a ‘First Generation Imbued’ made of Divine Flesh.
And Aric Morholt hadn’t lied.
The Sicarius here had comrades. One of them fell here, battling this bear. The body must have fallen into the river, only to be carried to its banks and deposited by the Morholts when they were out fishing.
How remarkable, that his freedom hinged on an event such as this.
But it raised questions.
Was the Sicarius waiting for Redmane specifically? Or was it simply guarding this cave, and would have attacked any intruder it came across?
It didn’t seem like the sort which would have answered questions, even if he’d spared it. He supposed he’d never know.
Whatever the case, he had shiny new enchanted items to eat.
----------------------------------------
Jarel Craith watched the blue icon on the map wink out. He leaned forward on his desk and placed his chin on his steepled fingers, staring at its absence. And the other icon next to it.
—
Redmane
Class: Hunter
Archetype: Beast Disciple
Faction: House Redmane
Level: 60
—
A level 60 Hunter prevailed over a level 100 Sicarius.
It was as he’d guessed. It was as he'd feared.
The Blight had indeed originated in this area. By some error of the System, its perpetrator was now Imbued, and it had returned to the scene of the crime or else visited its fallen comrade for some other purpose. Clearly this ‘Redmane’ and the bear demigod were allies, though the nature of their relationship was as yet unclear. Despite the loss of a Neonate, Jarel was pleased he’d posted it there.
But that wasn’t the important part.
Jarel had never seen a malfunction of this sort, never even heard of such a thing. But the proof was right in front of his face.
High level action was required.
He rose from his chair, shoved open the door to his offices so hard the hinges almost broke.
He had to speak to Mecia Porsena at once.