A furious clash was occurring in the tunnels far outside the city of GrimHold. Five players fought a group of four people in dark armor. Colin had spent some time enchanting these to keep others from getting any information from them. They were only reading anonymous or redacted in their scans.
“Here comes the Boom!” yelled Larry, throwing a conjured HellRime Hatchet. The weapon flew end over end past the skirmishes between their target party and his group.
It impacted with a heavy thunk into the Destruction Mage’s chest, interrupting his spellcasting and knocking him on his ass. Colin hurried over to attack the mage with his new Aspect Harvesting Cane Sword, stabbing into his joints and neck to expedite his bleeding. That mage’s Level was reasonably high, and he had put more points into his Build Attribute than most mages would typically. But Colin stayed with him until he died.
Rielle struggled against their tank, A Warrior and Priest combination called a Flagellist. She wore a robe that was open in the back and tied tight to their body with heavy bloody bandages to reveal a scarred and raw back. She held a slender curved sword in one hand and a multi-tailed whip tipped with sharp thorns in the other. She was a beefy woman covered in Rielle’s Heavenly Blight, slowly whittling down her health.
The Flagellist took the damage with little care as she moved in after Rielle. She was healing herself by flagellation, the healing applying with each self-inflicted hit. Then after each hit, she hurried in with her scimitar to attack Rielle with renewed speed and special buffs that came with the flagellation.
She didn’t move fast enough to avoid their attack, the Flagellist cutting her four times in quick succession. She took a lot of damage, her Level insufficient to tank damage on this Outworlder’s strength. While she wasn’t untouched before the injury, those four hits knocked her health down to below a quarter. The effect was immediate as Colin’s head spun to look at Rielle and the Flagellist attacking her.
“Mortias!” Colin yelled over the din, sending out orders. “Go for the one attacking Fey. I’ll be there in a moment to kill her. Fey, back off and heal!”
Larry reacted with the efficiency and timing of a soldier, summoning a massive round shield and activating a skill. “Intercepting Shield!” he announced, his body blurring into motion. He moved past McKenna’s battle with a man wielding a chakram as large as him and a Spell Archer, and she was forced on the defensive, mostly weaving around to keep from getting shot while they whittled down the party. The Demon finished with himself positioned with his shield between Rielle and the Flagellist.
“Redeem yourself!” the Flagellist screamed with a fervor that sounded like fury. The skill activated, the cat-o’nine tails igniting in red-gold light as she brought it down on Larry’s shield. The tailed whip ignited in a small detonation, the holy violent reaction blasted the Demon back a step, but both Larry and the shield remained intact.
“Foul creature!” the Flagellist proclaimed. She raised the scimitar to her side and smiled with her fury as she said, “Through pain comes purity!”
Sweeping her sword in a horizontal slice, the blade glowed as if coated with divine power. And when the edge struck the massive shield, it began to cut through the HellRime Shield, shattering and cutting it in equal measure.
“Oh shit, I haven’t seen that before!” Larry shouted with no small amount of glee. “Have you seen this before?! Shattering Rejection!”
His shield broke entirely instantly; the broken shards flew toward the Flagellist along with the kinetic force the Ability needed to shatter it. The Flagellist took the impact on her quickly crossed arms, but Larry reacted before she landed on the ground. Conjuring a spear, he aimed and threw it at the Flagellist to knock her back further instead of killing her.
The spear impaled her through her lower abdomen and to her knees as the HellRime began to freeze her internal organs. Looking down at the spear, she grabbed it, snapped the ends off to allow her more effortless movement, and groaned as she held the stump of the lance. She looked back at them with a bloody grin and began to rise again when a step immediately behind her caught her attention.
“Aligned Strike!” Colin shouted, thrusting his cane sword into the middle of the Flagellists spine. When she collapsed to the floor without dying, Colin announced again, “Aligned Strike!” again and stabbed down into her heart through her back—piercing her spine again and wrecking her internal organs with the extra damage of Aligned Strike.
When he was sure the Flagellist was dead, he pointed at McKenna and yelled, “Help Honey! I need a minute,” Colin ordered, taking a breath while bending down to pick up the Aspects of Violence that his Cane Sword created from their deaths.
“Yes, sir, Boss man!” Larry yelled, turning on his feet and sprinting towards Mckenna. He watched while he moved and timed the subsequent activation of his intercepting shield so that he could hopefully stop the Ring Blade one especially. Then he activated the Ability and deflected the heavy attack of the man attacking her and starting another of his tricks.
“Flux State!” he said as the blade tried to shear his HellRime Shield but found it too hard. Instead, the HellRime melted upon impact with the sword and forcefully coated the weapon in the melted infernal ice. Seconds passed, and the fluid remained on the weapon, and then, in one instant, it reverted to the red-tinted ice again, nearly doubling the weight of the strange and already unwieldy weapon.
All while Larry we encumbering the Warrior, McKenna deflected an arrow mid-flight and activated her Enrage Skill. The skill heavily boosted her Physical Attributes, which included her speed, which was why she used it, not to mention that it gave a morale boost to the rest of the party. Using that improved speed, McKenna sprinted towards the Archer that was loading various spells upon his arrows. Many of which, so far, had been relatively simple-minded. Explosions of ice and fire, cutting winds, poisoning darkness, and debilitating light all bombarded her person while the massive Chakram man fought her. Now able to focus, she could avoid the arrows fired at her and close in. But that was when he changed tactics.
Now he aimed not directly at her but near her. The first arrow plunged into the earth ahead of her, spikes of hardened roots shooting up in a broad patch ahead of her. The second arrow detonated upon the roots, coating them in white flames that ate at the roots. And the third arrow fired trailed a green line of smoke that was a toxic fume aimed at her directly.
McKenna considered how to respond to the obstacles in her way, doubting it would kill her but would slow and heavily damage her. The difference in their levels guaranteed significant damage.
But she merely followed her rage-induced instincts to smash her enemies into a pulp and sprinted through, activating one of her healing over time spells to help keep her alive longer. The goal here was not to kill them but to weaken them and distract them until Colin killed them; if he killed them, his Player Killer Ability would grant them Experience since they were a party.
McKenna took careful steps to avoid what damage she could from the inferno-engulfed spikes, but the damage found her.
White Hot flaming Spikes harm you, you take 149 points of damage.
White Hot flaming Spikes harm you, you take 151 points of damage.
Holy Light works to keep you healthy. You heal 30 points of damage.
White Hot flaming Spikes harm you, you take 141 points of damage.
And then she was through, her health ticking up thirty points every five seconds.
“Shower of Magic Arrows!” the Archer announced, raising his bow towards the sky. He pulled back and began pulling back on the bow without loading any arrows, but shafts of crystalline light formed anyway. Then he released, and the arrows disappeared in a blur.
McKenna only glanced up instantly, unwilling to lose sight of her opponent. But that quick look told her that she was in trouble. Above her, reflecting and sparkling in the sunlight, were arrows that were being conjured and falling upon her position. She kept moving as whistles from their falling reached her ears, unable to sprint any faster.
When they fell, they missed her by feet in some cases and inches in others. But as long as she kept moving, it seemed that the arrows would miss her. McKenna found her rational mind wondering why he used this Ability against her when she saw him aiming at her again.
“Multiply Arrow! Quick Shot! Mirage Arrows! Ensnare Arrow!” he announced, putting Ability upon Ability upon that one shot. And it was an impressive suite of powers. The arrow launched from the bow faster than it had any right to and immediately multiplied mid-flight. It then duplicated, and each of the dozens of arrowheads opened up into a wire mesh net that blocked her progress. She knew some were not real, but which ones were or weren’t?
She had no clue, and it did not matter that this skill was less harmful than others; the Shower of Magic Arrows would pincushion her into respawn as soon as she stopped moving.
She promised Colin and Nox to keep the powers from her Necklace, the Void Edict, a secret, but using it was better than dying. Onyx Defenses!” she proclaimed, activating the Ability that initially came with the Artifact.
The air fractalized and crystalized with black and purple light for an instant, a detail that McKenna had no idea if it was a flavored effect or if it meant anything else. Either way, she kept moving forward, swinging her War Gaff hook end first as the nets reached range. It did little to affect the trajectory; their power was too strong, and the defenses did not stop them from entangling her.
She stopped moving, stumbling without falling as she struggled against the bindings. The rest of the Mirage arrows and multiplied arrows vanished into the ether. But then the rain of arrows fell upon her, and McKenna was glad she activated the Onyx Defenses.
Arrows upon arrow landed on her person, only to shatter against the Void Edict’s conjured armor. She knew from experience that it could take a beating but had never tested it against anything this repetitive or this strong. Mostly, she had used it against mobs and a few other players that wanted the item. She could see the air around her crack ever so slightly as if reality was shattering, and beyond it was darkness.
But then three arrows punctured the Archer’s chest, quickly followed by a flash of red-white light. The arrows falling on the armor stopped almost instantly, and McKenna looked to find Colin in his Anonymity Armor with his new cane sword thrust into the Archer’s back.
Everyone took a moment to collect their breaths as the Prompts appeared. This was the second party they had slain, and the only one who seemed to have a problem with it was Rielle. Her moral compass kept telling her that killing Outworlders AND people who did not attack them first was wrong. She did not like it, even with Colin, McKenna, and Larry’s assurances that they would return to life in a few hours.
But Rielle’s eyes widened as she read her first Prompt, eyes widening at the information.
Your party has slain another party, and an exception due to a Party Member’s Ability has given you Experience. You have gained 392,852 Experience points!
Level up! You are now Level 20 and have gained 5 Attribute points to spend. You now have 134,635/256,914 experience points until level 21.
Congratulations on reaching Level 20! For attaining this height of power, you can now gain a Career! Careers are an additional route to power, offering unique choices that could effect your growth and help to specialize your growth even further. Be warned that once you choose a Career, you cannot change your mind for the choice will alter your soul. To Choose your Career, say the words; I call upon my guidance counselor.
Your Heavenly Blight Skill has reached level 16. The Holy Fire Damage per second has increased by two percent. Applying the Heavenly Blight to ranged projectiles deals an additional four percent of damage per Level.
Your Archery Proficiency has reached level 22. Ranged Accuracy has increased by two percent. Critical Hit Chance has increased by a quarter of a percent. Quiver draw speed has increased by five percent.
“Oh, oh my,” Rielle said, covering her mouth with her hand to stifle her shock, ignoring that she was wearing her dark anonymity armor.
Colin looked up at her, helmet turning, “what?”
“I hit level 20; this is incredibly fast!” Rielle exclaimed. She smiled as she thought about her progression and how fast they moved. She immediately skipped past how often she almost died and to the result, which was the important part anyway. “I- I can get my Career!”
“That’s great!” Colin whooped. Walking up to her, he raised a hand in a high-five. She immediately leaped up and slapped his hand; the pain that reverberated through her hand was pleasant, given the circumstances. “Do you want to do it now?”
She nodded excitedly but then looked at where they were before shaking it, “Yes, but we better wait. I would rather not have to be protected out here while my head goes… elsewhere.” she said, making vague gestures within her armor.
Colin nodded, the player’s bodies were already vanishing from the tunnel, but the fight was incredibly loud. The battle was likely to attract something, whether it was more Players or monsters from deeper in the tunnels. Either way, Colin was happy if one got a level from this battle. Fighting higher-level players was proving its worth. Steadily, he was due a level, probably with the next fight.
“Alright, let’s head back,” Colin announced, clapping his hands once to get their attention. “We can tell the Commander that we got the Outworlders for them. Earn some reusable credit with them.”
“And, with any luck,” McKenna started. “We can finally get some of that Deep Steel!”
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Nodding, Colin was equally hopeful for that as well. His Enchanting Skill had become much more interesting with the creation of this armor and Cane Sword. Using a Cane Sword was whimsy primarily, but it was also due to the blade’s composition. The handle and sheath was made from Iron Wood, and the blade and other metal parts were made from Deep Steel. Wood was scarce here, let alone something as rare aboveground as Iron Wood. And Deep Steel was a controlled substance that could only be made with permission, given its high magic conductivity.
Enchantments would hold better in Deep Steel and have added effects if Colin understood the Goblin Smith correctly.
Everyone moved close to Colin, who held the item that would return them to GrimHold. Removing it from his Dimensional Bag, Colin felt McKenna take his other hand and saw Rielle and Larry grab hold of her. The item was a small cylinder with a flip-top lid near his thumb. Flipping it open, he found a red button and checked to ensure everyone was holding on to each other.
Group Teleportation Trigger. Item Weight: 491 grams. Durability 500/500. Item Quality: 9. Item Type: Wondrous Item.
(Historical, Crafting and other contextual information purposefully blocked by the creator.)
An Item that enables teleportation over vast distances, but only back to a singular one. Shares the group's mana to fuel the teleport. The destination for this item is the GrimHold Teleport Receiving Room 6.
Colin was slightly annoyed to have his Appraisal Skill blocked, but he could do little about it. Other Career abilities could overrule Career Abilities, so he may get one allowing him to bypass this. His Career was based on his Knowledge Skills, after all.
And without further thought, Colin pressed the button. There was a lurch of color, the sensation of his stomach falling, and a stretching sensation, but it was over in a moment. Teleporting was always disorientating; going from one place to another without seeing the transition took a moment to figure out. But then, the moment passed, and Colin recognized where they were.
The room was an empty portion of a tunnel carved away for this purpose, large and big enough to fit an entire factory floor. This made sense; all of these rooms were built to teleport companies of Goblin Troops back here after specific missions. And he still had yet to learn why Commander Rulfinch had to walk back to the city after the Limbocyte was destroyed, and he did not believe that they had a limited amount of the items.
Walking out of the room, they met an attendant who wanted the Teleportation Trigger back. And while Colin was hesitant, he handed it over. It was more about the utility of the item compared to actual greed.
The attendant checked it against a device on his belt and nodded, “Excellent. Oh, the Commander wanted to see you.” He said, pointing to the conference room. “He’s in there with someone named Nox right now; said you could just walk in,” he informed them and left the scene. His job was quick, simple, and he did not waste time with idle chatter. Colin could respect that.
Walking down the hall towards the aforementioned conference room, Colin was sure this place was too quiet for his tastes. The entire city was built into the surrounding tunnels or carved into the rock itself; it felt like it should have been louder than it was because of the echo. But all he caught occasionally was a passing echo or a bit of ambient noise, something like what he would have expected from this place. But maybe it was different in other tunnels, but most of the ones he had been in were like this to some degree.
The conference door stood out and was made of stained redwood. Colin could hear people talking from the other side, but it was mumbled and faded. If he had to guess, it was a privacy enchantment, but he could not see any carved symbols.
Opening the door must have broken the enchantment's power because, suddenly, he could understand them perfectly.
Nox was a welcome sight, sitting in one of the Goblin-sized chairs in his leather duster and cowl, looking incredibly menacing. And standing across the long oval table from him was a figure that he recognized, High Commander Greant. If Colin was a judge of that sort of thing, he was an old Goblin. The top of his head was devoid of any hair, and a great white beard hung down his face. He stood straight, proudly displaying his uniform, which might have counted for armor with the sheer amount of different medals. A large smokeless fire lit the room, which Colin could see was empowered by a specific rune arrangement about the fireplace.
“Surely someone as accomplished as you can do it?” the High Commander pressed, his voice filled with wisdom but words of desperation.
“And I told you I cannot unless you can get me the requested ingredients. Even then, I would be hard-pressed to kill more Limbo creatures. Maybe another Limbocyte without more ingredients, but my class is a crafter, and I need them to work more efficiently, " Nox sighed. “I’ve told you now once, I told High Commander Horice twice, and I have told the Lord Commander every time I see him, because he asks that often, that I cannot do much without my Alchemical reagents or specially blended bombs and potions,” Nox told him wearily.
“I am not the answer to all your problems,” he said, then added a bit of steel into his tone. “So please stop asking me, or I won’t help at all unless you can find a way to make it benefit me. Do you understand?” The shadows in the room bent and twisted, elongated and deepened with Nox’s growing and now pointed ire.
“Nox then turned to look at Colin and waved an arm at him, “Now, I have never had to explain the same thing to him more than once. He always just trusted my knowledge and that I knew what I was talking about.”
“To be fair,” Colin started, moving around the table to stand near Nox. “In the beginning, you almost let me die from a Root Elemental and only kept me alive so you could escape the Dungeon that resurrected you. I was trying to avoid pissing you off.”
The Goblin bared his teeth in a feral smile. “As one does against those who outclass them so thoroughly. How did the hunting trip go?”
“Pretty well,” McKenna answered, moving next to Colin and leaning against the table. “They were fairly high-level Outworlders, but nothing we could not handle. Oddly, I don’t care how uniquely qualified we are for fighting; fighting people ten-plus levels over us and winning seems unusual. Defies the logic I understood.”
The High Commander nodded. “I concur with the logic, so I asked the attendant to send you here when you arrived. You have all been fairly helpful so far. I have nothing but good things to say, with one exception. You associate with Gnomes, and we do not like that. At All,” he clarified.
“But how is she doing?” McKenna asked. “Last I heard, Milma was working hard to build her reputation with you guys. She wants you to accept her.”
“And that,” the High Commander said with a sigh, “is one of the reasons I called you in here. I wanted your opinion on a question I will ask, so please, think it through. We have not had any Outworlders enter our tunnel entrances in a long time. Most of our defenses have been built up over a long time to keep the Limbocytes in here and the entrances hidden. Then you all showed up.”
“He wants to know if the Gnome had any reason to leak where the city was located,” Nox shot out. The High Commander glared at him, and Nox sneered back, “You were taking too long to get to the point. Talk faster.”
Sighing, High Commander Greant rubbed his face momentarily, attempting to clear his tension before speaking. “He’s not wrong; given the timing, we believe someone has leaked the city’s location to the outside World. Given the timing, we are left with few suspects. Most of those options being you four, but we doubt it.”
“What makes you think this isn’t an isolated incident? Isn’t there always the possibility that this is just a case of random chance and accident?” Rielle suggested.
“Maybe, if it wasn’t for this being the fourth incursion into our tunnels. Wait, let me rephrase that. This is the fourth team that has attempted to enter the Tunnels. Several of those teams have died and come back to try again. This trespass that you dealt with is the fourteenth in the few days since you arrived here,” the High Commander confirmed.
“Okay, but that does not prove she did it,” McKenna stated. “For all we know, uh,” she stammered, thinking of any other possibility. “Oh, we appeared here through a portal the Lady Kore had made. Maybe someone tracked its destination with a skill or Ability.”
The High Commander took a moment to consider the possibility. “Maybe, maybe not. But we have another reason to assume it was her. And a pretty damning one as well. One of the Outworlders spoke of her by name; they were looking for her.”
McKenna looked at Colin with a meaningful look; she then looked at the High Commander and asked, “By any chance, do you know what their names were?”
He nodded. “Yeah, there were three people in that group. They were named Thore, Gran Rae, and Thera-Flae. Do you recognize their names?”
Colin let McKenna answer the question, to which she immediately said, “Nope, not in the slightest.”
“Is she lying?” the High Commander asked Nox.
“Nox shrugged, “Who’s to say?”
Colin knew both were lying, McKenna because they were with her and Milma when they arrived in BriarThorn and Nox because he witnessed the whole thing. He knew that Nox was lying to enjoy the chaos. McKenna, he could only guess. Perhaps to ask Milma herself before they told the Goblins if they told the Goblins at all.
“Not that it should matter,” Colin stated. “Why don’t you welcome them in with open arms? From where I sit, these Outworlders could help us deal with your problems. Just offer them a reward and let them deal with the Limbocytes..”
“No,” the High Commander thundered. “We cannot trust the Outworlders.”
“And why not?” Rielle asked, putting fists to her hips and looking at him with accusation. Colin had never seen her raise her voice like this. Usually, she remained in the back, trying to blend into the background to avoid being seen. “These two are Outworlders. Are you saying you don’t trust them.”
“The Goddess and Lady Kore vetted them!” he yelled. “If the Outworlders see us, do you think they will see us as anything more than more militaristic versions of the Feral Goblins that they fight above ground? NO! They will kill us for what Experience we can offer them. That and we think that some of them will align themselves with Limbo, so it would be best to keep them away-”
“Wait wait wait,” Colin interrupted them. “What do you mean align themselves with Limbo? You can do that?”
Nox nodded, “Yes. While the creatures do not appear to be sentient or Sapient, they can be a conduit for their higher Will. Their Hive Mind. The One above them. Who can say? We only know that Goblins have been swayed to join them. Their race changes to LimboBorn, and they gain so much power that we cannot fight them anymore. It takes special Units to take them down, and even then, it is not certain.”
“You know a lot for someone dead for over a thousand years,” the High Commander stated.
Nox grinned, “I ask a lot of questions.”
The High Commander snorted. “Whatever, it does not matter. What does matter is that we have a problem. Can you imagine an Outworlder becoming a LimboBorn? The result would be disastrous for us. No, we need to keep them from going down. But unfortunately, we do not think we can keep them down for long. Eventually, either they will get lucky, or we will get unlucky. With either eventuality, we will be in trouble of extinction.”
“Why tell us this?” Colin asked seriously.
High Commander Greant let out a tired sigh. “We of the Goblin City-states have been at war for a long time. We fought the Gnomes for a long time, they could have wiped us out with their Higher Technology, but we persevered with our numbers and rate of birth and gestation. We eventually overwhelmed them as we learned about their tools and tricks and with the help of the Goddesses heroes.”
He paused momentarily, looking into the fire as if he could imagine the events he told them about. “But then the Gnomes could have backed off and let us win. The Goddess is not one for slaughter or genocide; she would have stopped us from doing it. But they decided to doom themselves and set off a Doomsday weapon, their portal bomb.”
“Portal Bomb?” Larry interrupted. He sounded more confused and intrigued than anything. “No one has ever said anything about a Portal Bomb.”
The High Commander shrugged, “I don’t know who told you the story, but maybe it was an abbreviated version? Did they tell you what the Gnomes used?”
Colin thought about it, “I don’t think so. I think Kore only mentioned that they activated a Gateway to another dimension.”
“Yes, well, far be it from me to contradict Lady Kore’s words, but she misinformed you. It is not some mechanical door frame that has been sitting open for hundreds of years, letting monstrosities into our tunnels. They set off a Magical, transplanar bomb to tear apart our settlements or destroy the entire continent. And we got a slow death through attrition; we have tried anything we could think of, even funding and raising a unique team of Goblins to level seventy plus to be ready to attack the portal. They failed, and we don’t know why.”
“Ugh,” Nox groaned. “Greant, you are taking too long to explain this to him.”
Glaring at Nox did less good than the Goblin seemed to wish it would, but he kept at it, and Colin was glad it was aimed at something other than McKenna or Rielle. McKenna would lash out angrily, and Rielle would wither, or at least, he thought she would.
“Fine, you want me to give them the short version? We are on a timer, and we have no idea when it will finish,” he practically shouted. “We were always slowly fighting against our end, the Limbocytes are just too much for us, but now with the Outworlders coming here, it is worse. So far, you have been doing things that we would attribute to stronger or more developed Goblins or humanoids.”
“He and the others are intrigued by what you have managed so far,” Nox finished. “He wants to see if you would be willing to fight the Limbocytes sometime soon with a Legion of their troops to see how you fare. And I told them that it was foolish right now. You need time to plan, Right, DevilWalker?” Nox said leadingly.
Colin nodded in agreement, “Oh yeah. We could do something, but I made several of my tools myself. And We will need some time to get a few members of my team a little more leveled before we try things that your Level thirty-plus Goblins could not.”
The High Commander did not like that answer. “So what if you die trying, it is not like you stay dead. All of you, except for the Fey over there, are Outworlders; you come back when you die, all shiny and new with only a little lost level progression. And even then, we can offer you rare tools to help keep her alive even if the rest of you fall. Come on, you-”
“Silence!” Nox ordered. A chill ran through the room as the fire, powered by magic, fizzled and died, overpowered by something else. A series of reserve lights kicked on, illuminating the room with pale blue light that flickered and fought against the encroaching darkness. Every shadow in the room twisted and writhed, deforming until each was a wriggling mass of black that spread through the room.
An almost imperceptible wail resounded through the room, its cadence like someone screaming in bone-chilling horror. Then the air trembled as the shadows became more substantial, gaining form and changing from two-dimensional to three, moving like wisps of hair into singular places about the room.
And that was the thing that broke the High Commander. The whole event lasted about a minute, and he was the main one that was forced to feel the terror, the certainty, the darkness where the light ended. Stop! Stop, I am the high Commander of Legions thirty-one through forty. You cannot just-”
“I can,” Nox told him, voice deeper and resounding through shadows. He moved like a wraith in the flickering lights, disappearing between flashes and getting closer to the High Commander every time. “We are not under your command, High Commander. They have assisted you to gain favor with the Legions, and I have been doing a little to staunch the bleeding wound that the Limbocytes are using to infect our World. Do you think I do this for you?! To fulfill some childish fantasy of making you like me? To keep the Goblin race alive?!”
There was a creepy cackle that echoed through the entire room. “No, My time passed long ago. My presence here is one that I dare not push too hard. Otherwise, who knows what the World and the system may do,” Nox growled, voice trembling with unbridled frustration and rage. “So unless you want to see what the system may do to me if I do absolutely everything I am capable of, I suggest you let me help as I see fit.”
Nox appeared immediately, looming over Greant, his eyes empty pits of tar. “So, this will be my last warning to you and the rest of the Goblin Command. Leave me be! Only the Goddess and Lady Kore and ask anything of me. Not you!” he yelled, his voice trumpeting and echoing through everything.
A door slammed open, and a Goblin wearing light leather and a terrified expression hurried in and stopped immediately. He squealed in a frightened voice, “High Commander! I have word from all over the city!”
“What?!” he screamed in panic.
“The Shadows! Monsters are growing from the Shadows!”
At this word, Nox stiffened and slowly backed away from the Goblin. “Shit,” Nox cursed and stepped away from the High Commander. “Leave me be, or you will find out what I can do. First hand,” he said menacingly before vanishing with the next flicker of the lights.
Then another flicker later, all the shadows retreated to their more natural place, two-dimensional and simply the absence of light.
The High Commander was breathing heavily, eyes roaming wildly all over the room, and Colin found that he could not blame the man. He had seen Nox do some scary things, but nothing anywhere near as horror movie terrible as that. And with the effects of it spreading across the entire city, he understood the terror he saw in these few moments.
Colin gave him a moment to ready himself for talking, and when that passed, he spoke. “So, I think he made my point; we will help… soon.”
They all waited a moment to see if the High Commander would say anything, but they only got heavy gasps and whimpers. Ushering them out of the room, Colin sighed and thought about everything going on as they exited the building.
First and foremost, there were the Limbocytes. He figured they would get roped into it eventually, but he had hoped it would not be for some time long enough that he could devote some time to his strengths and learn. Then there were the Players coming to GrimHold, thanks to Milma telling her party where the city was so they could meet up. That would be a steady source of Experience for him, but bad if any met up with the Limbocytes.
Then, there were the less immediate problems of the Quest that he had gotten from Hel, his Career Quest, and the other Demon Lord Candidates.
While Colin liked to be kept busy, this was a little too many things to do.
“So, what now, Bossman? Continue as we were?” Larry asked, raising an eyebrow.
Sighing, Colin was about to answer Larry when he stopped walking and stared at him. Now, this was something that he hadn’t considered before. And from what he could glean with his Demonology Skill, it was possible.
“Hey Larry, can I set an appointment with your cousin? Uh, Hautley, Right”
The Demon nodded, “yeah, I will need to go back to-”
“Do it. Tell them to set it up as soon as possible,” And with a thought, Colin dismissed the Demon to set the appointment.