CHAPTER 16 – BEAUTY OF THE MOON, REBIRTH AND TRADGEDY

Umbra Mortem – Erebus

***

L’Sana M’Ras, Grave Scion, #4 in the World Rankings and Champion of Liestra, one of the most powerful Goddesses in the Multi-Verse sat upon the roof of the Fortress of Umbra Mortem between the two sky reaching Towers of the Moon and the Storm staring up at the small window through the bleak gray sky at three moons and a blanket of stars with little Shira leaning back against her stomach between her legs. It was lonely yet beautiful.

She’d thought she’d lost him and she still might. Every healer in the Settlement, which was single handful, led by Ari, were in their room attempting to bring him back from the brink of death. She couldn’t even stomach looking at him that fucked up. She’d never seen him that torn to shreds and she’d seen him pretty fucked. He was missing entire chunks of flesh. Luckily all his limbs were still attached but whole sections of scales were gone along with some of the flesh underneath. The worst part was being helpless.

She wasn’t anywhere close to being a healer and it was sad that Ari was probably the Settlement’s most powerful one and she wasn’t even really a healing Class. This moment made her understand in perfect clarity they needed to remedy that. She would ask Unra to do her best to recruit at least one Rare focused Healer. She looked down at Shira, her heart breaking. The little girl had passed out from all the stress and screaming her little lungs out. She knew Shira loved her but she had a special place in her tiny heart for Gideon, maybe because she’d never known her Father. It didn’t matter.

Please Liestra, if you can do anything, anything at all, save him.

She felt a warmth and Spirit caress her soul and heart. She didn’t know if it was an answer but she’d take it. The sleeping Shira shifted, nestling further into her stomach as L’Sana’s hand absently soothed her Daughter’s head and hair. That was what she was now, right? After Gideon’s declaration right before he’d left she’d been getting her head around it. The settlement and the System itself had recognized it as well. It wasn’t as if Shira started calling her Momma. She still referred to her as Sana but slowly L’Sana’s mind had shifted to the first steps of looking at her as a Daughter, not something she’d ever imagined before meeting Gideon. That made her mind go directly to what she’d been doing her best to avoid, Gideon.

Her eyes drifted once again to the beautiful moons above. They should name them since they were probably one of the few on planet that actually had an opening through the gray slate fog that her planet had contributed to the new world. One was huge with a silvery sheen while the two smaller ones circled it. One of the small ones had hints of silvery blue and the other darker, shadowed. Her vision next drifted to the vast blankets of stars that littered the night sky.

She’d never seen either in her entire life. She could and had literally sat here for hours just taking it in. In fact one of the most beautiful memories she had obsessed over when she’d been slowly coming to accept that Gideon was gone was when they had sat up here together, no talking, just her leaning into him like Shira did now, staring at the moons and stars.

She sighed heavily which caused Shira to shift and mumble. She caressed her head and she quieted. The last seven weeks had been the most trying she’d ever experienced in her life. Even all the years of abuse she’d been put through as a slave/soldier came nowhere close to the gut wrenching of coming to terms that Gideon was dead. She’d thrown herself into getting stronger, more powerful, so nothing could ever be taken from her again. She’d hit Iron and kept going, Ari by her side as always. She’d even several times brought old Unra to power level.

They couldn’t have the head of their entire Settlement be weak. Well, she’d always be somewhat weak but getting her to Iron and at least a Path and Sub-Class was high on the priority list. Unra hadn’t wanted to by any means but L’Sana gave her a look, a haunted angry not going to put up with shit look, one pulled from the anguish of holding onto a hope that was dying piece by piece, day by day. Unra had just bowed her head and gone along with it. They’d gotten her up to Level 24, Peak Copper. She just had to get some of her Skills to hit Level 24 and she’d be good and she only had like three or four so should be doable.

Most of the people that survived the last Monster Wave were close to Peak Copper as far as Levels but many of those were woefully short in Slotted Ability Levels. She knew Dori and Iona were doing their best to organize small groups to take into either the surrounding woods or the city ruins to help them get there and the two themselves had already hit Iron themselves but the Settlement as a whole was woefully short of Elites at the moment. Orin and Virasa had also hit Iron mostly due to Virasa yanking her Husband out of his workshop and forcing him to grind.

Liestra had been strangely quiet during it all but L’Sana knew it required a lot of her energy or Divine Levels, she seriously didn’t understand how it all worked, for her to connect with L’Sana enough to send her actual voice. All she’d gotten was small pushes of emotion, love, sympathy and a dream once that said hope was not dead and to have faith. It had kept her going but even that hadn’t been enough.

Most of Umbra Mortem thought him dead and lost. The thousands they’d taken in since he’d been gone through the recruitment process out of the Network had no clue what he meant beyond the Statue and the fountain and the stories told to them from the remaining survivors of the Monster Waves, especially the Shador who included the Tutorial in their stories. It had irritated L’Sana when she’d heard them. They always talked of him as if he was gone, the fallen hero and founder of Umbra Mortem.

She looked down at Shira and pushed her hair out of the way of her scarred face. L’Sana would do anything to get rid of the scars. She knew how much they hurt Shira, how much she was scorned by the other kids because of them. Declaring she was their child now and heir apparent made the scorn turn to whispers but it was still there.

Her breathing caught in her chest again. Gideon was back. Ari would heal him, she knew it in her heart then he could make the Moon Mask the small girl dreamed about every day. It was the one constant that came out of her mouth. Even when L’Sana’s belief that he would come back faltered, this little girl would give her a hug and start talking about how he promised he would make her a mask and Giddy doesn’t break promises.

She’d at least accomplished a good running jump on the getting stronger part but still only #4 on the Rankings though there was a part of her past the sad heart that was gleeful, the whore, the slave/soldier, considered the fourth most powerful person on the planet. She’d also gotten her Path and it was beautiful. She was pretty sure it was influenced by her Champion Title and the amazing Liestra who she was beginning to understand truly believed and cared for little old her.

It was Ranked A- and called the Path of Ancient Tombs. It gave her more boosts, +15% in Strength, Body, Will and Faith and gave her an Ability she could use once every twenty-four hours called [Ancestor’s Strength] that would boost any Ability by a full rank for one minute. Some of her Abilities she couldn’t imagine it doing much but who knew, they’d already changed a bit moving into Iron. [Wraith of Eternal Ending], her Movement Ability, now if she wanted, it shot a burst of necrotic energy upon activation and when she reappeared. If it went up a rank who knew what it would do?

The more immediate Abilities she could see it helping would be [Memory of Tombs] and [Teeth of the Long Dead], both her Offensive Abilities. And none of that was touching her new Sub-Class and the three Slots it gave her. She hadn’t filled them yet but it would…her mind fractured.

Normally all this stuff would be sending lightning down her spine with excitement but part of that was sharing it with Gideon and then giving him shit when she thought she had him beat in something. A smile crept up at the image. She’d gotten excited when she had her Sub-Class selection and wanted so much to have shared all the choices with him, gotten his thoughts on what she should choose like a, like a real husband or partner, like a normal woman would do with their other half and then it had soured when she realized.

That was the final crest when she felt she’d lost hope, when she’d teetered to the final misstep into the beginnings of acceptance that he wasn’t coming back. Then Freddie and he had reappeared on the Party interface, those two grayed out names that had been ghosts in her vision for coming up on two months had suddenly lit back up followed by the message from Freddie that Gideon was critically injured and on the doorstep of death, to come now!!!

From loss to hope rekindled to terror to fury all within a few breaths. She’d been talking to the suspicious Uncle that had shown up at their door a few weeks prior when the only word out of her mouth was Gideon’s name before she tore herself towards the stairs transforming to her panther form in less than a breath escaping her lungs and Ari flying right past her, silver energy at the tip of claws.

The memory still twisted inside her pushing forward a mixed bag as she sat gazing at the sky. She was about to wake the little one when the message came from both Freddie and Ari at the same time.

He’s awake and healing Sana.

Princess Arizelle once again showed she is the most amazing Princess ever ever. He’s asking for you Lady L’Sana.

She sat there stunned for a moment for two reasons. He was awake, he was gonna be alright, and the first thing he did was ask for her. Tears birthed in her eyes and ran a river down her face, an ocean. She stood as she grabbed Shira who squeaked from the abrupt awakening. her pudgy little fingers darting to her broken knife before she realized where she was and who was holding her in the air, crying and whooping in joy.

“He’s awake and healing Shira. We have Gideon back!!!!”

Little Shira joined her in the tear river rapids then screamed and screamed and screamed in joy, a hard turn from the screams of the morning. L’Sana laughed then set her down activating [The Beast Within] shifting to her panther form. She leaned her neck down allowing Shira to climb onto her back then carefully and slowly made her way off the roof making sure to keep the Little One safe. She landed on the third floor balcony not too far from their suite. As soon as she got within she let go of her beast form holding Shira in her arms as she tore the last bit of distance to the man she loved more then she’d ever thought she was capable of.

***

Gideon Sho – Umbral Scion

***

Gideon was having trouble keeping his eyes open. He glanced at his Health and it flickered in High-Red but slowly went up. He felt his cloak around him and he knew it was hurt itself, shredded keeping him alive against that beast. It would eventually heal just as he would. That in itself was a revelation, being alive. He was much better then he thought he would be. He thought he’d’ be dead by now.

Ari looked exhausted as she lay on his chest as did Unra who sat on the end of the bed and another lady he didn’t know who stood awkwardly against the wall near the door to the bedroom. She was an older Beastkin woman and he assumed a healer of some type, possibly?

He had no energy to use [Identify] to figure it out. He could feel the tightness of a shit ton of scars pulling and knew those would be permanent fixtures but it was fine. His Father would say Scars are the road maps to our existence and our strength.’.

He remembered giving Ari a hug, pressing her to his chest when his eyes had first opened and asking for L’Sana followed by scanning the room for Shira. Flashes of his horrific battle with the Elite Alpha Behir flashed through his head but he pushed them back, limbs shaking which caused Ari to stir on his chest. The anger causing his limbs to shake was real.

The System, the System had gone so close to breaking its own rules to kill him it was beyond his understanding how it wasn’t considered breaking them. That creature had been Iron, Elite and an Alpha. He didn’t even know something could be an Elite Alpha until he went against it and Freddie had pointed it out. He figured it was the only reason why his master plan hadn’t killed it outright though it had at least fucked it up enough to give him a shot. He’d in the end taken that shot and won but seriously had been so fucked up he didn’t think he would make it. His last thought had been the Quest Complete Notification then nothing.

His eyes just started to shut his consciousness on the edge of black when the door burst open snapping them back open in time to catch the older lady leaping out of the way of the swinging door as L’Sana, face streaked with dirt and tears came in, Shira in her arms with the same emotional ocean of muddy scar torn cheeks and glistening eyes. Ari had pulled herself back up as well, joining the old lady in jumping out of the way of the charging ladies who gang hugged him, L’Sana pressing Shira between them. He grunted as his barely healed wounds were still heavily bruised but he didn’t give a shit. He gave them both a weary smile.

“My two ladies. Missed you. I should take a few days off more often.”

Everyone in the room looked at Gideon. Freddie’s voice broke the shock and silence.

“Uh, Gideon, since we arrived I have synced back up with the System and it seems to be that the System added another wrinkle to mess with your Path on the slim chance you survived. We existed in a Time Bubble. It has been seven weeks since we left as opposed to the 3.233455 days it has been for us.”

Freddie’s words hit not only Gideon like a hammer but everyone in the entire room before the same room erupted with everyone, including him, cussing, bitching, and various other activities and the only thing that gave him a lifeline was the severely scarred but still beautiful Shira pressing herself into his chest with her pudgy little arms and tears in her eyes.

“I missed you so much Giddy.”

It was the exact anchor he needed.

***

Umbra Mortem – Next Day – Erebus

***

After pushing the anger to the side and actually embracing that he still lived and was back with those he cared for and who cared for him, all the rest was worthless. It was what it was. After holding Shira for a while until she fell asleep after which L’Sana had taken Freddie, her and Ari to their own room he spent the rest of the short night holding his woman. They didn’t talk much though she did mention his Uncle, Marcus, now some kind of cold eyed killer. It was a twist in his gut, happiness he was alive, then a bitterness from the life of emotionless uncaring bullshit he’d put a grieving young kid through.

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

Besides the brief moments of her telling him about Marcus and his decision to leave it for now, they didn’t do anything but hold each other and fall asleep. It was a bit awkward with his cloak still on but he needed the extra healing, everything still tender and weak. So wore her around his frame, pressed to L’Sana and kept the room in the dark allowing her to absorb the pitch and boost his regen.

He left a few hours later with everyone still asleep and still exhausted himself but he had a promise to keep, one which according to everyone had been pushed back now for seven weeks. It was time to fix that.

He moved quietly wrapped in the shadows of his cloak. He wasn’t using [Stealth] but his cloak provided him with enough at night to slip through and over to the crafting area. Everything had changed pretty heavily. The walls were huge and miles upon miles away from the Fortress but with his insanely high Perception combined with [Night Vision] he could still see huge trees standing taller then the walls in every direction telling him the Shadowmoon Forest had gone through a growth spurt or two.

It would take him several days at least to try to catch up to everything and he had less than a week before the World Council and still nowhere close to Iron Rank. At least L’Sana and Ari had gotten there but he hadn’t delved into any of the details or who else before they just wanted silence and to hold each other. He had sent out one message through the Settlement System before falling to dreamland. And lo and behold Orin had come through when he saw the Storage Ring sitting on an anvil in the newly upgraded crafting zone. He grabbed it and kept moving.

To him it had been three days and some change, to everyone else it had been almost two months. No one said it but he could tell by their reactions and what wasn’t said that they had believed him dead. As he sat down on the roof of one of the now three buildings that made up the crafting area he felt a pulse inside him, a welcome back sensation from the Shadowborn.

He accepted it but had no energy to deal with that tangle of hooks at the moment. He had a job and a promise to fulfill but first things first. He had a Notification he’d been ignoring as his mind couldn’t seem to grasp it. It went against everything he’d been told about how the System worked. It only happened right before he’d attacked the Elite Alpha so Freddie besides the initial shock hadn’t had much commentary and he was currently with Ari and Shira in their suite. That was probably a good thing. He pulled it up.

Congratulations Citizen...Error….Error….report commencing...Primordial Shroud Activated.

Congratulations Citizen. You the first ever under the purview of the System to develop a Second Soul-Pillar and under an entirely different Foundational Pillar. Sidhe – Moon. Your Affinity is a 100% with your new Soul-Pillar. You have gained the Title [Scion of Fate]. Continue to grow, dominate, and kill.

He pulled up the Title.

Scion of Fate (Mythical) – Gifts the Ability to intertwine the power of all Soul-Pillars through any Slotted Abilities be they Class or Racial, changing the effects of said Abilities in a myriad of ways.

It was not only his first Mythical Title or Mythical anything really but he wasn’t quite sure not only how it worked but how he would make it work. Granted he had done it and it had been his secret weapon against the Elite Alpha but as usual he did it instinctively not having a clue what he did.

What he’d done in the Proving there at the end he’d basically made it up as he went in a moment where he had no choice if he wanted to not only survive but win which at the time was one and the same. Well the best way to learn was to do as his Father had always said. He had been a big believer that learning in the application of what you wanted to learn was far superior than reading books about it.

For now it would have to be put on the back burner. A promise to get to. First, to get what he needed. He pushed his mind into his Storage Ring sifting with his mind for something he’d had for a long time. It took him a moment to find but find it he did and with a flick of his mentals it came to his hand and he threw an [Identify].

Rodium Copper – Ancient Rarity – Highly conductive for magic. More effective as an alloy mixed with certain metals.

He remembered there had been a mine near the old village of Gritzdek and his people. He wondered if Unra had sent people yet to secure it? If not he would have her do so. He remembered the one-legged man saying there was a multitude of metals within it and it went very deep. They’d only gone down two or three levels before everything went to shit and they had to abandon it. What he’d given him was all they’d found of this particular metal but he hoped the mine held more.

He focused on the ring Orin left for him and within a few breaths piles of normal steel and wood from the Sylvan trees of the Shadowmoon appeared. First things first. Not one but two promises to fulfill then he needed to remake his armor and reforge his poniards. It wouldn’t be any better to wait until Iron for his Rune-Mastery Ability wouldn’t get any better until his Class was at least a Rank Higher which wasn’t till Silver he believed when you got a choice of Evolution if he remembered correctly. Not that it needed it. All the things he’d been able to accomplish with it made it pretty OP broke as is.

He buckled down and activated for the first time in days upon days [Rune-Mastery – Umbral/Moon]. The name. That was new and led to even more brain tremors of paths he didn’t want to walk at the moment. Seven weeks, seven weeks of life under the System he needed to catch up with. It would be days of chewing through it all including the mystery of his new Title, his new named Skill and what it all meant and somehow connecting with the guy he was the Champion for and do his best to get some answers. He’d had enough of the man, God or not, ducking the answers.

He pushed it all to the side as he threaded the ability to his eyes and everything lit up in a tapestry. A sharp breath entered his lungs as his vision took in endless dark runes ruling the shadows and the night but this time, like his dream made reality, silver runes joined them filtering from the three moons above the Settlement. Something had just changed the game on a big bone slot machine pull.

***

The Next Morning – Shira Sho M’Ras – Umbra Mortem

***

Shira opened her eyes to find Ari staring right at her from a foot away but she’d already done this game too many times. Shira was immune to fear like Giddy who some day would be her new Daddy just like Sana would be her Mommy and she would be a Princess. She reached out a tiny pudgy fist and booped her big Sister’s snout. Ari growled then smiled then looked at Shira’s swollen fingers and t’sked. She didn’t say anything, they’d already had that argument. She just raised a claw with silver energy coalescing around it and laid it on her hand. The constant pain and ache faded. Too bad she couldn’t make her pretty again. She would be the Monster Ugly Princess, that’s what they would call her, the big Ugly Monster Princess. The tears almost began but she remembered Giddy was back and that was enough to make it okay.

Ari was still staring at her and turning her head and pointing with her snout off to the side of the bed. Shira followed her eyes and gasped. Sitting there was the most beautiful mask she’d ever seen. It was black and silver and looked like it was perfectly made to cover half her face and it had the three moons that sat in the sky painted or something on it. It had a slight opening in it where it would sit on her lower jaw part. It must be for her mouth? Maybe so she could still eat? Of course she still needed to eat. She liked to eat. The new restaurant had some good food. Sana took her a few days ago. She still liked the stuff they made at the fire pit but the restaurant had more stuff to choose. She shook her head and tried to smile but her stupid scarred side of her mouth made it hard. It didn’t matter, he made her Mask.

It looked like the wood of the pretty trees out in the forest around her new home and had a black silver metal on the edges. She didn’t know though how it would stay on her face? There were no straps just something that would fit on her scars then wrap around the side of her cheek to cover the scars there as well, and would cover her left eye. She didn’t’ know how she was gonna see but she trusted Giddy.

Her eyes caught a belt with a sheathe attached and the hilt of what looked like a new knife. A new knife too? He remembered. It looked so nice but it was twice as long as her old one. She might have trouble at her size using it. She might need both her hands? It was all black and silver to and so pretty. She leapt up with excitement in her heart and a sudden rush of immense love. Giddy kept his promise. Of course he did, he was Giddy, the greatest Warrior and Hero ever. Only Sana was his equal. Ari’s beautiful voice purred in her ear.

“Try it on goofy.”

Then Freddie’s voice sounded our from around her neck where he was wrapped.

“Gideon spent half the night making those for you Lady Shira and I must say it is probably his finest work. You do not have the System yet and I can not ascertain exactly what it does until you connect with it but I do know both items are Soul-Bound to you and Growth Items which to be forthright, should be impossible for him to craft at Copper. I do believe the unique metal he incorporated into both had something to do with that and logic states he could not actually accomplish it without such, at least in Copper but still impressive and awe inspiring, and well deserved Lady Shira.

Your courage is the stuff of Legend within my mind. The Leap of Umbra Mortem. I have already penned a brilliant rendition of it that I have forwarded to the AI Quartet and I know it will create an endless ocean of fans. I haven’t heard back yet on whether it’s been published or accepted for that matter but I assure you it will be, well if they ever respond to the 1,221,456 queries I have sent. I am sure it is just an oversight…”

Shira didn’t understand most of what her Uncle Freddie was saying but Ari put a small claw to her fingertips and made a ‘sshhhhhoooosh’ sound and he quickly fell to being quiet. It was funny. Uncle Freddie always did what Ari said like he was her personal servent. Ari motioned once again and Shira needed nothing more as she leapt at her salvation. If she couldn’t be pretty she could still be fierce like Giddy and Sana.

As soon as her small pudgy hands touched the mask she felt a jolt of something that made her almost drop it but she gritted her teeth and brought it near her face. The moment it got close it leapt out of her hand as if it was a hungry beast wanting to devour her but before she could even get out a squeak of terror she felt it clamp to her scars and skin. Another jolt of energy but this time deeper, in her chest, a spark, something that had been asleep awakening, then whatever it was returned the energy three-fold and her entire body shook, all her muscles shaking, locked.

She faintly heard Ari and Uncle Freddie say something followed by a flash of silver energy. She couldn’t think, move, do anything and there was pain, lots of pain. It wasn’t even close to the big Baddie and its juice pain but still, it made her remember. She was once more leaping through the air screaming, the only thought in her tiny head was she would protect her family, then landing on the big Baddie and stabbing and stabbing but everything hurting, weaker and weaker, the burning, the green juice killing her. She couldn’t think past the pain only knew she needed to keep stabbing, protect everyone.

She woke to her big sis Ari looking at her with her claw wiping her hair on the other side from her new mask. She didn’t know what happened? She knew though she had her mask on, her left eye seeing everything strangely, a glowing energy to everything. Something was pushing into her vision blocking out Ari’s beautiful scales. She tried to look at it and something popped up.

Full Soul-Bonding forged with a Potential Citizen not yet initiated into the System….Error….Error…..remedy, terminate the abnormality, termination suspended, Primordial Override commencing…..

Welcome Citizen...you have been chosen to become a Citizen and have the opportunity to earn glory and strength. You will be transported to your Initialization into the Multi-Versal System in less then one minute where you will have to face your Proving. Survive and flourish or fail and die. Mercy is forever the mandate of the Multi-Versal System.

Shira was frozen, fear bubbling up. She gritted her teeth and her hand quickly went to her broken knife. Her eyes took it in. That wouldn’t help her. Tears started welling in her eyes and she did her best to grab a hold of her courage like Giddy and Sana but it was so hard. Her scars had been her gift last time. She trembled. She got her mask and Giddy back and now she was going to die. Uncle Freddie’s voice cut in.

“The System should not have done that. IT should not have done that at all. It is against every piece of data I have. Quickly Ari, clasp me around her neck, hurry. The System is initializing a New Citizen protocol. She’s being sent to Class Choice and a Proving and having her entire existence rewritten to accommodate it all. And put her new blade on her waist. We have less than a minute, a lot less. Don’t worry Shira. Uncle Freddie’s going with you. I will not let you be alone.”

She was trying to take everything in. But her brain wouldn’t work and a pain in her chest was starting to make it worse. Her fear was grasping at her thoughts, body shaking and her Big Sis froze for a second at her Uncle’s words but before Shira could blink Ari turned into a dart moving faster than Shira had ever seen her, and she felt Uncle Freddie’s home, the bracelet, being put around her neck then she almost screamed ‘No!!” as Ari went to remove her broken knife, her security blanket, her one thing that calmed her and she saw the gaze of Ari almost start crying before she let go of the knife. She then zipped and grabbed the new knife in it’s sheath on a belt and quickly spun it around Shira’s waist as she was pulled up into a sitting position. Ari’s voice was soft but Shira could feel the same fear in it she fel in herself and a scream tore form her throat as the pain got worse in her chest. Uncle Freddie said something again but she couldn’t hear it. The only thing she could see was Ari’s eyes and tears in them She didn’t wan to see her Big Sis cry. She loved her Ari but then another scream tore from her throat. Ari zipped in front of her eyes, her two claws grasping her face.

“Listen to me!!! I love you Shira. You listen to Uncle Freddie, you listen to him and when you need to use this blade, you use it, no thinking, no questioning. You use it quick and sure and come back to us, come back to me. Do you hear? Do you..”

Ari’s words faded as her whole world was pain, like the day with the Big Baddie and the green juice, a monster lurking in her heart and mind. Through the eye that was under the mask Ari had a silver sheen around her that was pretty, like the big Moon in the sky. It did nothing to stop her thumping heart or shaking limbs. It did nothing to stop more screams from her already bruised throat but all she could think was pretty.

She gripped her broken knife like a lifeline. Her other hand found her new blade on the other side of her waist. It was almost three times the length of her now broken one. Uncle Freddie was saying something but her mind was a frozen statue. She didn’t want to die. Everything went to gray and she felt herself collapsing and pulled into the black of the void. The tears on her face were fractured into motes of energy like everything else that made up her body and spirit. Her terror still screamed.

***

Gideon Sho – Umbra Mortem – Erebus

***

The new armor felt great. It had the same defense as the previous set as it was still Copper Rank but it just felt good to have some armor back on him that wasn’t shredded remnants barely hanging on him. It also seemed to be more difficult to work as it had leather which seemed to be a greater challenge than metal. He sorely wished he had a lot more Copper Rodium. The mystical metal had been the only thing that had allowed him to go far and above with what he’d been able to accomplish with the blade and mask for Shira but it had used everything he had. This time without the help of a God he’d still made two Soul-Bound Growth Items. Though by putting the intent it was for her as he made it and the image of her and how he felt about her he couldn’t’ [Identify] either one when they were done. He assumed they would have to bond with her to allow it. If he could learn how to consistently create such he’d be able to greatly strengthen their forces.

He’d managed to create his armor and her gifts but had run out of time if he’d wanted to surprise her with it before she woke. He would reforge his daggers later tomorrow or today he guessed would be more accurate.

Only a bit over five days till the World Council. He knew there was no way in hell he was going to hit Iron before then. The System might not have killed him but it had done a number on weakening his position. At least Umbra Mortem itself was the number one Ranked Faction though he thought that had everything to do with its status as the only Prime Settlement and nor even close to going off their military might. The Shadowmoon Forest helped in that arena but as he’d already went through in his head once he’d taken a peek through the Settlement System. They had very few Elites and very few fighters all together. Unra and Orin and Virasa had done wonders as far as recruiting and bringing more people but they had a long way to go. Very few of those recruited were Rare Classes. He still had a lot to catch up on. Most of what he knew was just poking through the Settlement System after he’d gotten done with forging for a few minutes. If his vision he’d had way back when was a true vision and he could figure out how to use the two towers he might add a big pump up on their defenses but that still did nothing to how much force they could apply outside of Umbra Mortem.

His thoughts drifted back to little Shira. He couldn’t wait to find out what she thought of the gifts. It stirred something warm in his heart fulfilling his promise, especially the mask. Hopefully it would bring back the smiles and carefree energy the little one used to always have. Ari had woken when he’d entered their room with her high, now Iron, Perception and Freddie never slept but he’d shushed both of them, left her stuff and snuck back to his own room to catch at least an hour of sleep. L’Sana had woken him up a bit over an hour later and they’d headed to get something to eat in the new mess hall/restaurant Unra had created since he’d been gone.

They’d made it halfway to the place which was a couple miles away and an absolutely massive three story building heading towards the gates to the Settlement when a panicked message rolled across their Party Interface from Ari.

Shira’s been taken!!!!

L’Sana knew how to use the Party Interface to look at the map and see were Ari was which he still hadn’t figured out how to do and was right now heavily regretting his choices. Within a breath she was in her panther form and he was taking off after her, and within a few breaths, Skald was in hand. Whoever had taken her would die bloody regretting every fucking decision they’d ever made.