The Land of Vargbunden is a vast forest wilderness encompassing many of the lands west of BriarThorn. It was once an area brimming with life in its natural and magical states, from animals and lesser Fey to Spirits and Elementals. All creatures here practically worshiped the land they lived in; according to history books, this land was directly blessed with prosperity by several of the Gods.
All the books previous to the last five years gave strange accounts of these creatures being close to others in a way unseen elsewhere. Elementals worked with Feytouched Beasts to defend against otherworldly intruders. The spirits of the land helped grow and harvest crops when the people of Vargbunden fell ill. There is even a record of the Throne summoning the entire power of Vargbunden against one of the Generals of Ari, the last Demon Lord, and fighting them back.
Vargbunden was filled with a large population of Dark Fey and Half-Fey creatures, long ago banished from their home. They settled in this land and devoted their lives and talents to defending this new home. No one is sure what happened to their old home, and their near-immortal Elders are unwilling to discuss the matter. But the Dark Fey are not known for malice or evil, only for their unwillingness to stand in the bright sunlight when they first appeared in Rosengard.
The Throne was a mighty power to wield, the power to command the natural and unnatural in the forests around them, and the Dark Fey was long-lived and magically powerful. But in the several thousand-year history of Vangbunden, there had never been a struggle for the Throne. Succession had always been determined clearly by the Throne itself.
All of this was bound to the Throne of Vargbunden, the surrounding lands projecting the Ruler’s personality and will into the lands around them.
Appearing in a burst of dark red light, Colin furrowed his brows at the devastation that stood before him. The books and descriptions he read before coming here said this was a beautiful place with flora and fauna, magical and mundane, that did not exist anywhere else, adding an otherworldly beauty to the forest. But what he looked at was nearly the opposite of everything he had heard.
Trees that were supposed to be full of life and magic were now either desiccated or twisted, their presence seeming like terrible impersonations of healthy trees. Animals roamed around the foliage, all touched by some outside influence, appearing familiar and alien simultaneously. And every Elemental and Spirit he found were evil mockeries of their original forms; Root Elementals were empowered with semi-vampiric properties, soaking in blood from a fresh kill at a prodigious rate. Air Elementals became Death Mist Elementals and a Night Tree Spirit resembling a Jaguar with a human hand attempting to nurture a sick tree.
It looked like the magic in the Throne was not allowing Vargbunden to become either a thoroughly blessed land as its history suggests or a cursed and vile forest of doom.
“It gives me the creeps,” Rielle shivered. “The entire land is covered in a mist that produces nothing but misery. Are you sure we should go in here?”
Colin shrugged, looking Rielle in the face. “Yeah, I am. Though I wish Hautley had mentioned this area’s condition, I would have felt better knowing what we were entering. I could have prepared for this,” he gestured to the cursed and haunted forest.
None of them wore their Anonymity Armor; the main feature of the armor would be unnecessary upon their arrival, and they weren’t going to kill Players. They wore armor leathers that Colin had enchanted himself while they gathered supplies. It was nothing legendary or built for oblique purposes like some of his other creations; these were designed to enhance their performance.
“Oh really? How?” McKenna asked, grabbing Colin by the arm.
Smirking, he bent his elbow to allow her a better hold on him, then tapped at the vanbrace she wore on her forearm. “I could have given these an enchantment that boosted your Natural Health Regen in high curse environments.”
“Oh, that would have been… pretty cool,” she said, disappointed.
“I don’t think I would have given you that enchantment anyway; I think it would have given you a good reason to be more reckless in fights. I saw you when we were fighting other players; your Berserker Subclass choice is apt,” Colin commented.
“Why did we come here suddenly anyway,” Rielle asked. “We still had a lot we could have done in GrimHold. We could have helped more Outworlders keep them back, and we still need to find out how to kill Limbocytes. This quest could have waited a while,” Rielle stated, curious about Colin’s response.
“You are right, we could have stayed,” Colin agreed. “But we cannot help the Goblins right now. We are not at high enough levels yet. I have some ideas about the Limbo problem but need some levels and tests.” Colin grinned as he looked at the Death Fey, “I would rather not risk our lives or the lives of the Goblins to test something.”
“So,” Larry drawled. He took up the rear, walking backward to watch their behind and because it was amusing him, most likely. “Are we going to fight these things or try to find a safe way to the city?”
Colin thought about it for a moment. “Rielle, what do you think? As a Druid, would avoiding or fighting these things be better?”
“All these monsters and spirits are an abomination to the natural order,” She said with spite in her voice. “The Spirits in my Spirit Pocket are not happy with the natural corruption in this land. And also, there’s something else,” she trailed off. “I think it’s my career; I think I’m sensing things I can use for it.”
“I think that made our decision for us then,” Colin chuckled. He remembered her reading of her Career’s description and its primary ability to him, and he had to admit, he was intrigued.
SpiritCrafter - There are many types of crafters in the world. Some create with the force of their arm to shape steel, others use words or instruments to shape a room, and others use magic and the fabric of reality to move the world. You have chosen a path that aids you in creating items created from creatures of pure Spirit. It is a discipline from the Old Fey Shamans, who learned how to keep dead spirits anchored to this world for use in their craft. Some immortals in the world refuse to get within ten miles of a SpiritCrafter, fearing what some have managed in the past.
Halt Spirit Decay - If a spirit is slain, its bodies naturally and rapidly return to the world so that the essence that made up its entirety can be reused. This stops this decay of any Spirit creature within 10 feet multiplied by half your Charisma. Dead Spirits begin to decay again if they leave your Area of Effect or if they are farther than thirty feet from you for more than one hour.
Tier 1 Spirit Crafting - Spirits have an inherent instability that makes them a hard material to craft with. But this does not mean it is not worthwhile to create with their bodies; other creatures, like dragons, have pieces that are valuable for creating, and so do spirits. This power allows you to touch Spirits and “Extract” the pieces of them that are usable for crafting and creating Tier One Spirit Items.
The possibilities were intriguing, but Rielle needed more materials to make anything with the Career choice. Spirits are neither rare nor expected, but they don’t appear just anywhere, according to her. So, the fact that there are so many dark spirits here for them to use for their materials is perfect.
Colin was also curious how his enchanting could affect her creations.
But that did not matter yet. For now, it was time to kill some spirits.
“So what do we need to know to do this, Rielle?” Colin asked. “How do we kill these things?”
“Oh, that’s the easy part,” Rielle told him with a smirk. “Magic is needed to harm spirits. They are immune to all physical damage and only take a little from elemental attacks. Planar energies are better but only a little better.”
Colin looked at his Ravenous Mythic Xiphos and sighed. Patting the handle, he drew and activated the Trench knife he had enchanted in the Demon Dungeon in BriarThorn. The curved blade evaporated and became a pillar of light that only vaguely looked like a blade with no sharp edges or real dimensions. The Lesser Infernal Blade was akin to a red lightsaber and did not humm so much as hiss as it ignited.
“Uh, Colin,” McKenna harrumphed. “I don’t have any magic damage weapons?”
“What? I don’t have a spare, and Enchanting one will take time,” I’ll get you one later, okay?” Colin placated. “Will that work for you?”
“No, I want to fight these things too.”
“Holy Magic counts as Planar Energies, McKendra,” Rielle told her, taking a step back. “Do you have a bless weapon spell or something?”
“Oh, yes. Yes, I do,” McKenna chirped happily. Taking her War Gaff in both hands, McKenna channeled her holy magic into the weapon and said, “Bless Weapon. True Strike. Embers of Heaven.”
The polearm she carried began to glow a soft, almost gentle white light that Colin’s weapon hissed and rejected. The soft light was quickly joined by a series of falling gold-red embers that fell off her weapon like a cheap torch.
“Well, alright then,” Colin said, nodding. “We’ll work on the weapon, but it looks like you’re good,” Colin laughed, shaking his head at the absurdity. “Of course, you had this figured out already. You just didn’t know you had the tools. It reminds me of when we went to Tia Juana for that job, and you forgot what a collapsible knife looked like.”
McKenna walked up to Colin and got right up in his face. She glared up at him while raising a finger in his face. “Shut up. It was a strange case; it was my first time seeing one like that. And you know that!” she accused me angrily.
“Okay, okay, honey.” Colin chuckled defensively. “I’m sorry, look,” he gestured to the forest. “Stuff to kill. Would you like to go kill some stuff?” He asked, his tone light and happy as if he was trying to console a small child.
She nodded, turning toward the seven varied spirits with a huff. She looked at the Spirits that wandered, seemingly aimless, around the devastated forest, and her posture loosened, and her weight shifted from foot to foot, heel to toe.
Larry stepped up next to Colin and patted him on the shoulder, “Hey, Master, you forget about me? Aren’t you going to make sure I can do something?” He asked indignantly.
“Okay, can you?”
“Yes, yes, I can,” Larry said with self-satisfaction. He conjured a HellRime Shield that was circular and around four feet in diameter. Its edge was thin and sharp to the point of ridiculousness and looked improbable to wield in battle.
Then Larry lifted the shield to his eye line; he intoned, “Demonic Negative. Demon Heart Gate.”
The red tint that the ice typically had on Larry’s Shield increased severely as demon magic grew exponentially. But Larry’s change was more intense; there was a burst of gore and a spray of Hellish magic, and a deep red gash appeared on his chest. Colin moved in front of him to heal the wound but found that the gash was more like a tear to the center of his flesh, where a pitch-black hole was nestled comfortably with his organs inside him.
“Okay, uh, Larry, what is that?” Colin asked, trying his best to remain calm. The two ladies came around to take a look, and each cringed at the sight.
“That, Master, is the Demonic Heart Gate Spell. It is a staple spell of the HellRime Knights. It is a portal to the Inferno that-” Larry cut off Colin’s interruption. “Only allows energy to pass. Giving the Knight who uses it a massive Infernal Magic Boost to Spells and Attacks.”
“And you’ll be fine?” McKenna asked. “You don’t look like you’ll be fine.”
“Bah,” Larry said. “I can’t be permanently killed. Master may have to resummon me, but that is not a big deal.”
Colin took in one exasperated breath. “Larry, are you telling me that you use a suicide spell without talking to me first.” He was tapping his foot, trying to keep from exploding at the idiotic Demon, who had no idea how to communicate. “We will have a real discussion about this later. How long until you die?”
“The spell wears off in five minutes,” Larry answered solemnly but with a small smile.
“Demons, making me regret not taking that Shadow Monster as my familiar. Okay, let’s go before the Demon dies,” Colin instructed. All of them rushed into the forest.
Rielle applied her Spirits Plea Skill to her Longsword, summoning a spirit from her Spirit Pocket and igniting the weapon and herself in the Rose Astral Spirit. She was the first to engage a spirit, diving headlong towards the nearest Spirit and using her Spirit-empowered sword to cut through it.
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The sword bit neatly into the strange thing; the Spirit looked like an odd mix of an owl and a gorilla. The attack met resistance like she was cutting through water with her one swing. Then, the Spirit flesh slowed the power of her swing, and she felt the water analogy kick in. It was impossible to keep cutting through it like she had hoped. Spirit skills and abilities were some of the few to damage spirits evenly. Magic damage was the second most effective, followed by planar magicks, then elemental. Regular swords just passed through.
Pulling her sword back, she could cleanly sidestep a thin ray of spirit energy that the Spirit released from its mouth in a roar that shook the trees around them. The beam did not damage the surroundings, but Rielle felt something inside her shiver at that energy expenditure; her soul resonated with that attack slightly. She did not want to get hit by it, so she avoided it.
She rushed in, swung her sword, and ignited with Heavenly Blight alongside her Rose Astral Spirit. Unlike her previous strike, her second blow cut through the spirit-like paper. Rielle looked to the next Spirit she was to attack and found the next one a split second before Colin pounced.
His blade was ignited with his Aligned Strike Skill, the undefined line of infernal red light gaining depth, edge, and weight. It cut through the moss monster spirit thing with an ease that surprised Rielle, and he kept moving, sprinting towards the next Spirit with a fierce determination that she knew was his own.
She moved forward and gritted her teeth as she saw the half dozen spirits left in his wake. The combination of his sword and the synergy of his Aligned Strike was undoubted.
What made Rielle upset was McKenna’s efforts. From what Rielle knew from her time with the Fey Courts before Colin got her and what she learned from her skills, Spirits had no weaknesses. They had things that affected them as if they were ordinary flesh and bone, things that affected them less, and things that did not work on them.
If the Fey had to deal with Spirits, they got Druid Classes focused on Spirit Powers to deal with them. Their powers could break even with the Spirit’s resistances, unlike everything else known that would have their damage reduced. But despite that, McKenna was thrusting, hooking, and blasting the Spirits with her War Gaff and some weird pink energy. She claimed that it was due to a spell-like skill called Femme Fatale that gave magic-like techniques. Whatever the heck that was.
It was only slightly comforting that her attacks did not appear as effective as Walker’s. Unlike his one-to-two hit kills against the Spirits, she took a half-dozen strikes to kill one. But each of those strikes was filled with holy sparks and light layered over an ominous pink glow.
But there was nothing to worry about; she smiled and looked around her at the corpses of the spirits that were not decaying around her. As her Career power details, as long as she was close to the bodies, they would not evaporate back into the world. Due to her SpiritCrafting Power, she knew how to create stuff with Spiritstuff.
She looked at the Spirit she had taken down and got an idea; it was simple, but that simplicity would make it quick to create. She extended her hands towards the corpse of the owlbear thing and channeled her magic through the Career Power. With a little bit of its help, Rielle could feel the aspects of the Spirit she killed—the essence of the thing that she could mold into something else. Spiritstuff was somewhat malleable, so she took the main essence she wanted from the Owl-gorilla spirit and forged it into a simple shortsword shape.
The process took about twenty seconds; the magic was intuitive and flexible to her will. When she stepped away from the corpse, it crumbled into pale blue dust and disappeared into the earth.
Leaving Rielle with an extremely rough-looking shortsword that was disturbing to look at. The entire thing was pale gray and had a grain that looked vaguely like bone; the whole length of the blade was stylized like the Spirit she took it from. Even more unsettling, an eye in the pommel swerved and moved as if looking at her.
She turned in time to see Larry taking on one in particular that was massive. It was an abomination of the natural world if it ever was natural. It was a twisted blob, a mass of writhing flesh, moss, and fetid greenery that had no solid shape. The only persistent detail of the beast was its massive maw; it was lined with large shafts of wood that extended out of its mouth like splinters.
The hole in his chest oozed a vital red mist that was a deeper magic than infernal or fire. The Demon’s life force, or its facsimile of life force, kept it tied to this plane of existence. With that mist, the Demon conjured weapon after weapon, the HellRime that made them up, shattering with each swing. And with each shattered weapon and mighty swing, the Demon dealt damage that sprouted more tendrils of plant and flesh. These new protrusions swing around and try to strike anything within range.
“Okay, I am done playing this game!” Larry shouted at the beast.
Rielle looked at the beast and swallowed as the Rose Atral Spirit power that enveloped her flicked out. As she approached the monster, a Prompt appeared in her vision.
Vargbunden Shoggoth, Young.
Boss Monster of Vargbunden Forest.
“A Shoggoth?” she questioned the Prompt as it blinked away. “No, not an Eldritch Spirit,” Rielle quietly begged as she stepped away from the beast fighting Larry.
“What’s a Shoggoth?” Colin asked as he walked up behind her.
“I can’t believe RosenGard has Shoggoths,” Mckenna stated, shaking her head.
“Shoggoths are beasts of horror and madness,” Rielle stated as she took another step away. “In the myths, they were created as beasts of burden for older, more alien masters before they mutated into… half-spirits,” she said the word as a curse.
“Need help, Larry?!” Colin called as he crossed his arms. “So, one of these being a mini-boss is strange, bad, not good, what?” Colin pressed for more info.
“Bad,” Rielle answered. “These things are attracted to life; I heard one that an Elder Shoggoth killed an entire city to devour their life and use that life to spawn more of its kind. They live by killing others.”
Colin looked at the thing, “wish Nox was able to come with us,” he mused. “Really could use his opinion on what I am thinking.”
“What?” Rielle asked as Larry leaped back and HellRime spread out from his landing point. The Incubus stood straight, rolled his shoulders, and popped his back with a smile as he stood straight.
“That this thing kind of looks like a Columbine Mutator,” Colin mused. “It is a bit more tame than the one I fought in the Antagonist Trials, but how its mass shifts around reminds me of it.”
Before Rielle could unpack that statement, Larry spoke up.
“Hey, Master, I think I can create a proper opening for you. Would you like to kill this thing?” the Demon asked. “I won’t get experience from killing this thing!”
“Actually, I think Rielle should do it,” Colin looked at her, then down at the crude-looking sword she was holding. “That thing looks intriguing. Would you like to test that thing on that guy?”
She looked between the sword she held and the Shoggoth; the latter poured towards them like a sentient liquid filled with gross bits and pieces.
“I am going to show you all something that there had not been a good call to show you since I got it. Create HellRime Construct!” Larry announced as he pulled his arm back, and an ice-blue arm covered in pale armor faded into existence. He threw the fist in a savage right hook as if he were shadowboxing, and the construct mirrored him. The punch slammed into the Shoggoth, and HellRime spread out from the sight of the impact.
Even this construct shattered into fragments with the Demon’s increased power. But again, the Demon crowed, summoned a large guillotine blade over the Shoggoth, and dropped it.
“Rielle, do you want to, or shall I?” Colin asked gently, seeing the fear on her face.
She quickly shook her head, “No, I- I got this.”
Gritting her teeth and gathering up her courage and resentment for her companion’s lack of fear in the face of a horror like this, she activated all her skills and spells.
“Rose Astral Spirit. Nature of Violence. Deft Strikes. Bleeding Cuts. Follow Through. Cheap Shot. Heavenly Blight,” Rielle said, loading up her body for the attacks she was preparing and hoping that even with the reduced damage that Larry had inflicted, it was enough to make this count for more than the sum of its parts. Either way, this new Spirit tool was unlikely to survive this encounter.
With the blade held off to her side, Rielle sprinted towards the nightmare of many civilizations. With Nature of Violence, she felt her physical Attribute increase and quickly entered its reach. Deft strikes made quick work of the lashing tendrils and raking claws of wood and flesh. Her spirit blade was empowered by Heavenly Blight and the Rose Astral Spirit, which made the beast scream.
Follow through increased the cutting potential of her sword and Bleeding Cuts created large wounds that weeped and gushed unholy blood. Finally, when Rielle had reached the main body, Cheap Shot, combined with all her other increases, helped her achieve a vital spot. Screaming, the Shoggoth flailed about and rolled its gelatinous flesh mass around to dislodge Rielle from its back.
And then Rielle activated her Spirit Weapon.
The weapon was made from a lesser spirit burned from three different sources. The Rose Astral Spirit, the Heavenly Blight, and the weapon burned white with the spirit power within. It cracked audibly as the weapon released all three sources of the contained power into the Shoggoth’s body. Pink spirit fire pitied against green-gold flames, detonated by the shaft of Spirit Magic that the thing she made this blade had created. The blade shattered with a detonation that injured Rielle’s hands, dealing damage, but not enough to worry here. The took was a low-level Spirit item; it was fine.
Rielle was breathing heavily; that attack had taken most of her Mana Pool, and she felt it, but exhilaration filled her simultaneously.
“Get off it!” Colin yelled, sprinting towards her as she stared at him in confusion.
“Why? Isn’t it dead?” Rielle asked as a leathery tentacle went up lash at her with the speed of a whip and the force of a freight train.
You have taken 210 points of damage.
You are dazed from the Shoggoth’s blow. You are suffering from Shoggoth’s Malady.
Rielle took the hit and flung away from it in the opposite direction from which Colin approached. She slammed into a tree and broke several branches before tumbling to the ground and groaning.
“You okay, Miss?” A man said from nearby her, his voice reverberating inside a metal helmet. She shook her head as she tried to look up at the man talking to her to no avail. “No, she took a hit too hard. It looks like she may have also contracted the malady. Horst, take her to the gates. I’ll get her friends,” the man said as Rielle struggled. A man in metal plates, leather, and a whole bucket helmet appeared in her vision, jogging towards the Shoggoth with a giant axe.
“No, I gotta help them,” she said as she pounded into the metal back of the man who carried her over his shoulder and was jogging.
An explosion of flame and shattered earth made the men around Rielle stop in their tracks and curse.
Standing above the Shoggoth stood a massive creature that appeared out of nowhere, fire spreading out from its eight needle-like legs. A Spider made of obsidian chiton and melting iron loomed over the beast. The torso of a red-skinned humanoid stood up from where the spider’s head should have been.
Fire flowed around the Demonic Arachne’s hands as fire and wind created a spear for the creature. A spear that plunged into the Shoggoth.
At the same time, Colin appeared around the side of the Shoggoth as its attention turned to its assailant.
Rielle heard Colin as he approached the man carrying her, “One chance, what are you doing with her?”
“Getting her away from the Shoggoth, just like you should too. Come on,” the man waved an arm and pointed away from the battling Eldritch Horror. “The City of Vargbunden is this way,” the man said, as Colin followed behind him as they jogged.
"Good, we were passing through your forest on our way to the city. If you are taking her there, we are coming along too," Colin told him. "Please, lead on."
The man nodded and led them towards the city.
Rielle felt relieved that Colin was with her, that she wasn’t being taken from him unwillingly. She knew he was saving all his Miniaturized and Chimerized Monsters for something special or shock and awe, so she regretted her failure to kill the nightmare. So, as she passed into unconsciousness, she vowed to herself that she was going to kill that Shoggoth. Then, use its Spirit to make something worthy of the Demon Lord Candidate.
Then, she used whatever remained to make herself useful to him.