[Welcome into existence! The quest system has integrated and has generated the following quests! If you wish to see the summarization of your abilities then simply think status.]
Hmm that was good to know for later but for now I’d finish with the other notifications that I’d somehow unconsciously pushed to the back of my mind. I continued pulling up the next one.
Getting Started (First quest!)
You’ve been given a great gift that would be the envy of all godlings unfortunate enough to have to start alone. While the gift in your hand can be accessed it’s greatest gift cannot be taken advantage of until a certain few conditions are cleared. If you desire to try and access the gift then please step into the open archway and clear the quest within first.
(Middling completion condition) – Open and use the Domain Core
(Advanced completion condition) – Enter the Archway and complete the quest “Meeting the mortals” before using the domain core.
(Superior completion condition) – Reach the next stage of racial evolution before using the core.
Meeting the mortals. (Second Quest)
?????
I felt my brows draw closer as I stared at this one. How was I supposed to finish this second quest when there wasn’t even anything written for me to follow to finish this quest. It left me fuming and I was about to pull up my status to see this supposed summarization of my being when I heard a loud ‘Thwomp!’ from the archway dais.
I turned to stare as the very first archway on the left from were one walked onto the dais had filled in with a strange swirling portal. Patterned in streaks of black with splotches of purples, blues, yellows and oranges.
I shook my head and stood walking halfway through the path between the central dais and the archway one. My mind on the first quest’s advanced completion condition made me think this was related. If each quest had these three conditions to finish it I was going to strive for the superior completion conditions whenever possible. Sas’seshkaneth’s warnings at the forefront of my mind and a part of me, the part that felt kinship with her, wanted to help her out of her situation. The other part of me wanted to grow as strong as possible simply for my own sake, if power would prevent me from feeling that helplessness from the conscious void then I’d claw my way to the pinnacle to never feel that way again.
My trailing thoughts on the other hand were interrupted when a ‘pop’ sound came from the portal and into my domain stumbled a skinny malnourished human dressed in rags.
I stood there maybe a few steps away from entering the dais proper staring at the panting human in the middle of it. It started to speak but I was starting to feel something rise up within me, indignation and rage at this… this defilement of MY realm!
I felt the rumpling growl emanate from me which made the human flinch and turn frantically in my direction. His and it was a he with the thing posing as a beard on his scraggly face I now saw staring in open wonder and worship towards me.
Then he started to babble in a guttural tongue which grated on my ears and my rage overflowed.
“SILENCE!” I roared, feeling the tears on my face open to the jagged maw that opened on my face.
The man fell backwards but didn’t get much chance to scream as his ears and eyes bled from the effects of my voice as I was on him as quickly as I’d spoken. My instincts guiding me to devouring the man’s organs while he was still alive to scream his agony, a fitting punishment for daring to enter my domain uninvited and unwanted.
I started on his kidney after holding the weak man down and plunging my hand into his frail and pathetically weak body to rip it out. He lived through both kidney’s and part of his liver though I ended then with his heart as I threw him into the portal while tearing into the heart in my hand. It felt filling but still unsatisfying somehow, part of me knowing I really didn’t need sustenance the way a human would at least.
I stared angrily at the open archway’s portal while I feasted on the heart like it was some fruit to snack on as I waited to see if anyone else dared to enter my domain but when nothing happened and the orange of the portal faded I decided to pull up this status of mine before going into the portal myself. I’d make sure they knew not to do this again
Name: Kainaat Mors Alta’farud
Titles: [The Dweller from the Void]
Minor titles: [Father Death] [Mother Life]
Physique: 10
Agility: 10
Wisdom: 10
Toughness: 10
Reflexes: 10
Willpower: 10
Resilience: 10
Perception: 10
Presence: 10
Free Points in reserve: 0
Race
[Void spawn lvl. 0 / 5]
Classes (0/4)
[Locked]
Professions (7/7)
[Alchemy (b) lvl. 0] [Blacksmithing (b) lvl. 0] [Necromancer (b) Lvl. 0] [Druid (b) Lvl. 0] [Smith (b) Lvl. 0] [Shadow Adept (b) Lvl. 0] [Tailoring (b) Lvl. 0]
Skills: Skill points in reserve: 0
Racial Skills (3/5)
[Eldritch energy Manipulation: Basic lvl. 0] [Manifest Physiology: Basic lvl. 0 (The Seed)] [Eldritch Brain: Basic lvl. 0]
General Skills (03/05)
[Invocation: Basic lvl. 0] [Void Flare: Basic lvl. 0] [Mental Fortitude: Basic lvl. 0]
Class Skills (0/0)
Profession Skills (0/0)
Traits:
Racial Traits (1/3)
[Alien mind]
General Traits (3/6)
[Threshold of The Caliginous Sanctum] [Profane Soul – locked] [Esoteric Knowledge – locked]
Energy Mastery
Aether
Chi
Eldritch
Mana
Mastery Rank
Basic rank 0
Basic rank 0
Basic rank 0
Basic rank 0
Internal Stage
N/A
Core (b) – 0
Heart (b) – 0
Pool (b) - 0
Energy Affinities
All Affinities are currently locked at 0% Unlock affinities at energy mastery of late apprentice rank.
This didn’t tell me much and it was rather strange that everything was at level 0 too. Did I have to level up my race to gain access to any of the skills I had. The fact I had seven professions already was a surprise but something told me I wouldn’t ever gain more.. the number seven seemed rather prevalent around my being…
“Divine number…” I muttered to myself as I realized the correlation and the rather heavy emphasis on this very number in my realm too. I ended up simply shaking my head and looking towards the portal. I needed levels and with hindsight I’d felt a bit of energy trickle into me after the human had died… was that how I did it?
My tear of a maw turned upwards as I realized something. I’d much rather live up to the title of [Father Death] towards these rude humans than the other for now. With that resolve I stepped into the portal ready to give them a piece of my mind.
I screamed as I felt both stretched beyond my limit while being compacted horrifically at the same time. The pushing, pulling, stretching and crushing sensations filling my mind beyond thought only for it to end far too soon as I felt spit out of the portal after being thoroughly chewed out. The portal closing behind me.
As my back hit the strangely lumpy and hard ground I realized once more with hindsight that I was an idiot. I had no idea if I could even return and I’d foolishly stepped through the gate. I groaned in my disappointment at myself before I slowly began to pick myself up.
My ears picking up soft whispers behind me as I stood and stared at the crudely carved archway that I’d exited through. My brows knitting together as I turned to take in the sight of the space I’d ended up inside of.
The space gave me the impression of the word cavern, yet it was made of metal, both forged, corroded and warped. Interspersed with rock and soil all of which was covered in what seemed almost a close to becoming alive layer of grime, rust and corrosion.
In the centre of this huge open spaced cavern was a thrumming single coil generator letting of electric arcs that hit the ceiling above while blue fire burned in the centre like a furnace. Lightning rod appearing twisted iron stalactites above the cylindrical thing to catch each arch of lightning as it was released. To my confusion there appeared to be a walkway that took one to the middle of the open flames in it’s centre were two more malnourished humans threw the corpse of the intruder into.
The energies it gave of washed over me and tickled my eyes making me long for it.
The generator made me think of a central altar for some reason and this was only reinforced by the dirty and rag wearing mass of malnourished humans surrounding it. One of their number standing at the walk way wearing some sort of red ceremonial robes or coat.
Then my eyes moved from them down to the three humans staring at me with dumbfounded expressions.
Deciding not to speak I simply pointed at the archway behind me angrily and then crossed my hands hoping they’d understand not to do that again. They decided to scream and alert all the others.
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Their language annoyed me to no end with how harsh and primitive sounding it sounded but I had no idea why I thought that way. The one I thought of as the leader of these people looked up and locked eyes with me, his eyes fervent and mad.
“A sacrifice worthy of our gods!” He bellowed pointing at me with unbridled glee on his face and I blinked.
“Die.” I growled and watched the people fall to the ground gripping their bleeding ears at my response. Yeah, I decided these disrespectful humans all needed to die.
I moved in to rip limbs off or to use other humans as bludgeons against their fellows but it quickly turned out to be my own arrogant folly. The bastards swarmed me and all I could do at the end was wave a severed arm at them to keep them all back.
Then one of the witless things had the brilliant idea of pulling the ring out of some sort of strange lump of metal in its hands and charged me.
I managed to decapitate the charging idiot somehow with the repurposed arm I’d picked up though it was useless pulp afterwards.
Then the lump of metal that had landed at my feet exploded and my world went white and filled with the noise of screeching metal and shattering stones as I fell down into what appeared to be more caverns bellow the one I’d entered.
Then blessed silence and blackness welcomed me as I lost consciousness.
-
Ezekiel the prophet of the mad gods was scowling at his flock. The sacrificial explorer into the realm of their gods had been tossed out dead and missing a few organs. His face stuck in a rictus of pain and terror. His scowl helped as he simply pointed at the thrown out corpse and to the eternal engine as his flock did as he commanded. The corpse would fed to the eternal soul-fire of the generator that powered their great haven within the Maelstrom.
The portal now letting out harsh green sparks that had mutated one of his flock to get to close. He moved to stand at the top of the generator with the plank leading to its centre behind him as he preached to his flock while the corpse was disposed of.
“My children! The gods were slighted by our intrusion to their realm. We need a better more worthy sacrifice so that we can enter their halls and be saved.” He spoke fervently as he was starting the opening to whipping them up into a frenzy. So he could send them out of the Maelstrom to find other sacrifices, he would appease his gods weather anyone else liked it or not.
A scream stopped him and he looked to its source staring wide eyed at a child of their gods in all it’s glory standing there staring at them curiously. Appearing like the stretched out androgynous mannequin of a five year old to the proportions of a ten year old. It’s taught skin a near shiny black with the only features on an otherwise muscle sculpted featureless body being its strangely elongated ears, that sort of reminded him of a bats and those mesmerizing eyes.
“A sacrifice worthy of our gods!” He bellowed pointing at it with unbridled glee on his face, if they sacrificed one of the god’s children they would be pleased. They demanded children most after all. The child however blinked confused for a moment at him as if not expecting him to bestow such glory upon it before its brows furrowed in anger.
It was strange to him to see such an act from the creature before it spoke. It’s voice, he knew deep in his bones, would haunt him for the rest of his days. For the creature didn’t speak like the others before it, it didn’t mewl or hiss, screech or click in the language of his gods but spoke in a clear and crisp tone, a single word.
The voice though he could only describe as the unholy sound of death itself, the roar of a singularity and oblivion given voice.
He watched on as some of his flock, the mentally damaged ones, fell to their knees babbling and drooling as their minds broke. Others fell on their backs screaming as their eyes and ears bled from the voice’s effects and two even died outright.
It startled him to his core before the ungodly creature moved and started to rip his flock apart and beat them with their own severed limbs.
His flock quick to frenzy swarmed the creature quickly but it took several of his people down before one idiot decided to self detonate with the creature. His idiotically valiant effort sent the creature tumbling down the large rent that was made into the floor. The last he saw of it was the hateful glare it sent them as it fell.
He gulped, somehow knowing that if that thing had survived they were definitely on it’s shit list. So he could only pray that it died while he and his flock left the haven for a while. To gather weapons and sacrifices, they would prepare. The other creatures, cults, madmen and aliens that called the haven home would hopefully take care of it while they were gone. He hoped and prayed to his gods he was right.
-
I groaned as I pushed a flat three finger thick slap of stone off of me when I came too from the fall. I ached all over but a new goal was now burning within me, those people would die by my hand if it was the last thing I did in this shit stain of a universe.
I slowly got to my feet, wincing and starting and sudden and painful aches that flared as I moved the parts they related to. Even my ears felt pained and I had to sit down once I’d gotten out of the rubble that had tried to bury me from my fall. Then I felt it, in the back of my mind, a notification, waiting for me to view it and so after looking around the strange hallway I was now in the middle of to see if anyone was around I pulled it up.
[Void spawn level up! Level 1 achieved!]
[You’ve gained the following for this level. +4 (+5) stat points and +1 (+1) skill point gained!]
If I could I’d be smiling devilishly, seeing the effect of my title already paying dividends giving me almost more than doubled the usual rewards I was to have from levelling up, had me giddy.
The first thing I tried was to put a skill point into the skill [Manifest Physiology] only to be greeted by a strange response from these tablets in my head.
[Error! Incompatible point used, skill requires bio points to upgrade. Unable to use skill points.]
I’d frown at that too but thankfully the point wasn’t wasted, the tablets had some mercy it seemed to help me from my ignorant fumbling around. With that I had to think and study my sheet while I made sure I was still alone in the hallway by glancing down either end every so often.
Then what should I spend them on? On instinct I used the stat points in a three per basis instead of my first idea of raising everything up by one. Starting with physique, toughness and resilience. Feeling the muscles swell ever so slightly, my frame growing a centimetre or two and my skin showing a bit more of the scale pattern underneath it. It felt invigorating and I basked in the feeling for short while. Needing it to calm down while I tried to figure out what skills I had to use to survive in this crazy place.
No matter how hard I tried I couldn’t get the tablets to tell me anything about my skills so I was in the dark with only their names to go by. I pondered and agonized over the decision before I finally decided on two. [Eldritch brain] and [Void Flare]. Though when I spent the points the effect had me falling backwards onto my back as I convulsed and screamed as pain unlike anything I’d felt before ravaged me, fire in my veins and electricity frying my brain as the skills came to life within me.
My mind expanding beyond the confines of my skull and music from deep within my core ringing in my ears. I caught glimpses of memories feeling like they were my own but so ephemeral I couldn’t catch them in my mental grasp. Slipping through my mental fingers even as I caught them.
I know thought I knew what [Eldritch brain] and [Void Flare] did and I was ecstatic at the possibilities the two skills brought to the table.
[Eldritch brain] not just expanded my mind beyond the borders of my head but I’d be able to pick up surface thoughts, or so I suspected if loud enough, as well as speak to others without using my voice and it’s consequence as well. I hoped. This being just the first taste of the skill it already made it seem worthwhile to me. I’d hopefully be able to get some answers if I just ravaged the minds of those humans to find out where I was and how to get back.
Meanwhile [Void Flare] allowed me to fire a black bolt of rippling and roiling energy as a ranged attack. The first level didn’t tell me much of the nuances of the skill’s future. But having a ranged attack was essential to properly utilize my surroundings or even as a simple opener or probe to a fight. I had to figure out it’s limitations and utilization quickly.
With that in mind I stood up and looked down either end of the hallway, deciding which way to go.
Only to pause as [Eldritch Brain] began to show other effects to my mind. I was capable of partitioning my mind somehow, splitting it to have a bit running in the background to ruminate and try to figure out something I couldn't focus on fully. I knew this because I already had a tiny bit partitioned off in the deepest corner of my mind which unbelievably I couldn’t access.
It frustrated me and I tried to partition a small piece of my expanded mind to try and crack that partition only to realize I couldn’t. ‘So just one extra partition for now?’ I thought to myself as I felt the growing frustration over my current situation and the distinct lack of any answers or guidance from the supposed quest system.
With a grunt I went down my chosen path through the hallway. My fingers flexing and twitching as if in anticipation to rip those humans to shreds for their audacity. I somehow knew that what they’d done was unforgivable, blasphemy to my station and outright arrogant stupidity that could not be forgiven.
A sentence bubbled up from that mysterious partitioned off section of my mind which caused me to halt in my tracks from the unexpected suddenness of it. “You don’t fuck with the elder gods.”
If I could smile I realized I would be smiling ear to ear as the sentence rang true and right down to the very foundations of my being. Yes. I’d teach those pathetic ragged animals pretending sentience that lesson down to the very core of their souls. The partitioned piece even seemed to thrum with delighted enjoyment at the overall thought processes of my mind and I knew I was right.
With almost a skip in my step I continued to go down the hallway.
Hours and hours of walking and the damnable hallway still seemed completely endless. I’d grown rather bored as it just continued the same on and on, my mind brushing against something beyond the walls when I placed my head against them. Yet I couldn’t understand what my mental fingertips brushed against, using my mind this way also felt somehow alien to me.
I figured it was ingrained instincts acquired when my mind was simply locked away in my head but it was still a very strange thing to get used to. I practised with [Void Flare] by firing small black bolts at imagined humans charging at me down the hallway. I noted that the bolt had a bit of a corrosive effect but so early in its development it seemed to only give the force equivalent of a human punch when it connected.
Might be useful but I didn’t see me blowing heads or limbs off of the humans with it anytime soon. Though the mental imagery of doing so did tickle my fancy. Perhaps I just needed to level it up more?
I came to a sudden halt when my thoughts went there. How many humans had I had to kill to just gain my very first racial level? How did I level up? Was it just indiscriminate slaughter that facilitated my growth? I didn’t much mind if it was just endless waves of those ragged humans to slaughter at my leisure but it didn’t ring true. There had to be more too it than just that.
My occupied thoughts came to screeching halt when I started to hear the first sound that wasn’t the soft ‘tap tap’ of my bare feet hitting the floor of the hallway. It was more scratchy almost… scrambling?
I turned around as I followed my now twitching ears to the source of the noise. It came from behind me and my eyes locked down the endless corridor I’d come from scanning for the source.
When I saw the sound’s source I had the urge to swallow.
Before me was a beast half as tall as I was, wrinkly and hairless with a large snout that snuffled the air. The scratching sounds came from its unsteady half scrambling along the floor on deformed hands. The closer it got the more I noticed it was long and the words that came to mind to describe the thing was naked mole rat, possum centipede.
It’s six beady black eyes fixed on me when it was finally out of the gloom that smothered most of the hallway. It screeched sounding tortured and unnatural as it scrambled towards me as if it was charging me, only not able due to its deformed and twisted body.
I raised my hand and started firing off [Void Flare]’s though my own energy reserves only equated to eight bolts before I felt drained of the energy the flares required. I missed with three of them but the others had the creature spitting and hissing in clear pain and indignant rage as it’s scrambling gait picked up speed after it was hurt. It’s pale near grey pink flesh pockmarked with sizzling wounds as the secondary effect of the flares burned like acidic residue.
I quickly realized the thing was too much for me when I realized it’s length was easily enough to wrap around my entire body twice over and pulled a hasty retreat from it. It screeched at my back as my feet slapped against the floor as I sprinted away from it.
I somehow knew I couldn’t beat the thing as I was, godling or no I was barely above a mortal in my state and that thing sent a thrill of fearful fluttering running through my heart. Whenever I felt my energies had recovered enough to fire another flare I did so, though I missed more than I hit the thing as we continued down the endless hallway at our frantic pace.
I felt as if I'd kept the pace for hours with the thing just not giving upp and hot on my heels. Then my heart sank when I noted a rather familiar place up ahead.
Had I been running in a huge circle?
Was there really no way out of this blasted hallway?
I couldn't go back the way I came since that had caved in and sealed itself with rubble behind me, like a bad patchwork to fix the ceiling.
I roared as I came to a halt at the rubble and started throwing everything at the approaching creature. My longer and surer gait having allowed me quite the head start on the thing but it was relentless nonetheless.
It continually screeched and hissed as it barrelled through the hail of rocks and warped metal I hurled at it. Taking the hits but still it just kept coming ignoring it’s cuts and ugly bruises while the wounds from the flares that pockmarked it had long since stopped sizzling eating only the surface layer of its skin with the acidic after effect of the flare.
I held both hands in front of me and pulled on my energies, the long running having given me a rather clear push to understand this attack I’d gained. I tried to take the fully recovered energies I’d allowed to recover when I saw the diminishing returns of trying to fire the flares over my shoulders. These energies I poured into my hands keeping the flare for shooting out as it usually did when I provided enough energy for a single flare as before.
My frantic will keeping it all from firing off on its own until I’d barely been able to hold it together. Realizing that a third of my energies was the limit I fired the empowered flare at the beast.
It hissed as it threw itself to the side and a black line of burbling flesh scored down its side in the flares passing. It slowed and began to roll and thrash on the ground allowing me to try again. My arms shaking with the effort as I poured and fed the empowered flare as much as I could before firing it off again.
To my delight I hit the centre mass of a section of it’s back third which sloughed off a large piece of the creature. It didn’t take it well as its speed suddenly increased dramatically as it’s head slammed into my chest and threw me tumbling down the corridor.
Not allowing me to even get back to my feet it slammed me against the nearest wall when I’d come to a tumbling halt and continued to slam it’s head against me chest over and over again. Pinning me against the wall that began to groan and creak from the assault. I felt no air in my lungs and my body seemed desperate for it, my tortured gasps the only relief between the painful ramming strikes of the creature.
I felt my mouth tear open as I let out my howled roar of desperate anger and will to live as I channelled the energies of the flares into both hands but gripped the creature before the flares could be released. “I’ll not die to you!” I roared into its face as my hands began to sink into it’s flesh and I started tearing into the creature while it writhed and coiled around me.
It’s gambit to crush me also allowing me to sink my hands deeper into it’s wrinkly and sickly looking flesh. My hands gripped onto anything they could inside it and pulled, tore and ripped at the creature as much as I could.
My screams doubling as roars of anger and pain as it bit into my shoulder and it’s deformed clawed paw hands scrambled and scratched at my body. I realized I was going to die and I felt very unwilling to do so.
In the end it all devolved into roars, growls, claws and burbling, sizzling flesh as the little light of the hallway was swallowed in darkness as the creature managed to wrap fully around me. It began to constrict and used it’s disgusting paws to try and hold me still as I continued to kick, slash and rip at it’s underside and insides with the occasional flare I could manage coating my hands or feet for added effect.
Time lost meaning in the scrabble.
Then as I felt too weak to manage more than a token resistance or one final blow I saw its head slither to stare into my angry eyes. Mutual hatred shone in our eyes and we both knew on a visceral level that either of us couldn’t or rather wouldn’t survive the other.
Then the damnable creature opened its maw and readied to devour my head whole in its sickeningly wide and unhinging jaws.
With a final desperation I managed to wrench an arm out of its grip, the creature having weakened its grip as it adjusted itself to achieve it’s goal of eating my head. I shoved my hand into the roof of its mouth and let all the energies I had access to funnel into the flare that I fired managing two sputtering bolts before the creature constricted me even more and bit down on my hand.
I screamed in agony while I clawed at the inside of its mouth while I still could as its jagged mismatched teeth tried to grind and saw through my arm all the while it tried to yank it out of its socket for good measure.
I screamed but the yanking allowed me to free my other hand and it came down on the creatures eyes again and again. My fury keeping me going as I gained my second wind against the creature, my mangled arm in it’s mouth keeping still by gripping tightly onto the creatures tongue while I tried to beat and claw my way to its brain through its eye sockets.
Then finally, blessedly the thing shuddered and went limp when I was bicep deep inside its eye socket. My hand firmly wrapped around and crushing it’s brain. In my exhaustion I passed out coiled and pinned by the corpse wrapped around me though perhaps just to spite me two notification tablets chimed in my head as my world began to slip into darkness.
[Void spawn level up! Level 2 achieved!]
[You’ve gained the following for this level. +4 (+5) stat points and +1 (+1) skill point gained!]
[Through repeated practice and effort you’ve managed to level [Void Flare: Basic] to level 2!]
Then my world finally, blessedly went black and I felt nothing of the agony my body and especially arms and shoulders were in. Some succour at last.