Liam, Artem, Blair, and Roman slowly and cautiously made their way through the fog. They kept their guard up as they walked, making sure nothing caught them by surprise. They could feel the tension in their bodies as they moved, scanning for any sign of life or movement. However, no matter how far they walked nothing appeared.
Every now and then Liam noticed Roman stop and place a hand on the ground. A frown formed on his face as he looked confused each time he did this. Liam wasn’t sure what he was doing, but the more he did it the more he had a feeling he was trying to listen or feel for something on the ground.
After a few attempts, Liam finally asked in a whispered tone, “What are you doing?”
Roman looked at with that same puzzled expression he was getting before finally saying, “I’m using the gift I received from Eri. It’s called Vibrant Earth. By placing a hand on the ground and focusing I can feel for movements on the ground or even under it within a certain range. It’s how I was able to tell when those creatures were coming earlier.”
“Vibrant Earth, huh?” Liam repeated the name. After hearing about it, it kind of felt similar to Cindy’s Echo magic. Although it was an earth based magic, it was still pretty handy. He then came to a conclusion after coming back round to something Roman said. He looked at Artem and Blair and asked, “Did you guys get something too?”
Artem and Blair grinned as they nodded.
“The others did as well,” Artem replied. He then placed a hand up and informed, “We’re not going to tell you what theirs are. That’s for them to tell.”
Liam let out a quiet chuckle before asking, “Okay, then what are…”
“I’ve got something,” Roman suddenly interrupted.
The three looked over at him. Liam was impressed that he was able to find something.
“What did you find? Are they underground?” Blair asked, a frown on her face.
Roman stood up and looked each in the face. “Not underground. At least, I think it’s not underground.”
“What do you mean you don’t think?” Artem asked.
“I mean I can feel the vibrations above ground, but at the same time not above ground. It is strange. That’s not the only thing strange either,” Roman stated.
“What else is strange?” Artem asked as he stared at Roman.
“The vibrations are strong. Usually when I feel vibrations across the ground this strong it means there are a lot of creatures. However, I don’t think that’s the case right now,” Roman continued as he strained to focus. When no one replied to what he said he looked at them and noticed they were still confused. He let out a sign before adding, “That means it’s only one creature. One really big creature.”
Liam’s, Artem’s, and Blair’s eyes widened.
“Are you sure?” Artem questioned.
“I’m only seventy percent sure,” Roman answered honestly. “You have to remember that I don’t have this Earth ability that high in level. I’ve been going off of guess work and the rhythm of the vibrations. This time too I’m going off of what I just said. The rhythm of the vibrations haven’t changed, and the power of the vibrations have been constant as well.”
“If you’re going off of that then could there be a chance that there are more monsters, and they are just moving at the same pace?” Liam asked.
“I thought about that as well, but there are some indications and a certain fact I’m going off of when saying its one monster,” Roman answered.
“What are your indications and the fact?” Blair asked.
Roman brought a finger up as he started, “First, the vibrations have been constant in that this creature hasn’t moved from the spot they are moving at. This tells me that it’s a single creature and it is trapped or stuck.” He brought a second finger up. “Going off the first, if there were more monsters then there would be separate vibrations made from their movements on the ground.” He brought a third finger up as he finished, “And the fact…Have you ever heard of monsters moving at the same pace before? That would be military level focus. Unless these spider creatures are militaristic, which I highly doubt with what we’ve seen so far…”
Blair and Liam nodded their understanding.
“Which way is the vibrations coming from?” Liam asked.
Roman pointed in the direction he felt the vibrations coming from. “There’s still some distance, but we should be arriving there soon. You should be able to start to feel the rumblings soon the closer we get.”
Liam nodded. “Alright. Now that we have a direction, let’s start moving. Proceed with caution though and let’s try not to make any noise if we can. We don’t want to alert anyone to our arrival.”
The others nodded as they started to make their way in the direction Roman provided. It didn’t take long for them to start to feel some rumbling on the ground. At first it was light, and Liam had to really focus to make sure that what he was feeling was real and not something the mind was playing tricks on him with due to the fog. However, the more they walked the stronger the rumbles had gotten.
It had gotten to a point where Liam started to think that if they got even closer it would be hard for them to walk normally. That was until after a couple of minutes of walking when the rumblings stopped.
Liam and the others had stopped moving and looked at each other. Looks of confusion had washed over them the moment the ground stopped shaking. They weren’t sure what had changed so they looked at Roman to see if he had anything to say about the matter.
He was already hunched over with a hand pressed on the hard dirt. A frown formed on his face as he concentrated. After a few seconds he looked at the others and shook his head. Liam didn’t like that. With the sudden change it felt like they were walking into a trap.
The others looked at him for guidance. He thought about what to do, but after thinking it over there really wasn’t much they could do, but continue to press on. Maybe by arriving to the location the creature was at they would get answers. He motioned them to continue and after a couple more minutes, the fog had started to lift. It was light at first, but as they continued it was gradually disappearing replacing nothing but a dirt path with dark decaying trees with spiderwebs hanging from them and black foliage scattered about.
The bushes weren’t small. They stood taller than Artem and were spread out, covering their vision on whatever was behind them. They stared at one that rested between two dead trees. They were going to turn and walk away from them until Liam noticed a light peering through the thick inky black leaf-like objects. He looked at the others and made a hand gesture that told them he saw something.
He slowly approached the strange plant. Making a disgusting look, he slowly reached a hand out and tried to push one of the leaves aside. He had believed the plant would have tried to attack him or leave some sort of Debuff, but nothing of the sorts happened. Instead, the leaf moved with his hand easily revealing the location they had been searching for. What they saw shocked them.
What he had believed to be some sort of hill turned out to be a small mountain. The side they were staring at though had a good chunk of the environmental structure carved out. Bulit within the mountain was a building made out of stone. There were four stories with steps that lead up to each layer. Besides the ground layer, several openings were visible on each floor. A few had thick spider webbings covering the holes while a few others were cleared of them. Stands with Yooperlite Stones rested on each layer as well as the pathway of stone flooring all over the ground closest to them.
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The stoned pathway didn’t just lead to the building built on the side of the mountain. It also reached out to smaller buildings that rested on the right and left side of the mountain. Not only that, but there were two massive graveyards on each side near the smaller buildings.
The entire area looked old, like it belonged to some civilization from a different era. Liam felt a chill run down his spine as he stared at the entire layout. That chill formed not just from the fact that the graves in the graveyard were dug up, but also from the only opening on the ground layer of the building. It was tall and wide. It looked like you could fit a two story house and still have room for a little more.
Liam looked at the others and whispered, “Let’s go.”
“Are you serious?” Artem hissed.
Liam turned and gave him a confused look. “Yeah. How else are we going to get out of here? You heard Eri. We need to figure out what’s causing the portal issue before we can leave,” Liam argued as quietly as he could.
Artem let out a muted groan as his watched Blair and Roman step out and follow Liam. Artem waited a few seconds as they stared at him, waiting for him to join them. Throwing his hands up, he caved and complained in a whisper, “Fine.”
The four turned and slowly walked onto the stoned path in front of them. They stopped after reaching the circled part of the path that extended from left to right and towards the building built into the mountain.
Liam activated his Mana Sight before looking at the smaller buildings on both sides. He didn’t see any signs of magical abilities being used from those areas. He turned to look at the building in the mountain and saw two areas with massive amounts of mana glowing. The first area came from the entrance to the giant whole on the ground level in front of them and another came from one of the smaller holes on the second floor.
An eerie light blue leaked out from the entrance. At first Liam thought the color of the mana represented Water Mana. After thinking about it and feeling it out, he realized it was not Water Mana at all. It was something more…apathetic. The more he concentrated on it the more he felt sluggish and tired. He had to shake his head to shake the sudden strong feeling off.
Not wanting to feel that again he looked up to see what the Mana Type was in the other area he saw. That one had a more familiar color. One Liam could instantly recognize. It was one that represented Crafting Mana. However, there was something else mixed within it. That color was hot pink.
Liam didn’t know what that color represented. It was faint and wasn’t as strong as the eerie light blue color, but it was there. It mixed well with the Crafter Mana, but at the same time it wasn’t really blended with it. it was separate from whatever was going on in there.
The others looked at him as he looked at the mana colors. He was about to tell them what he saw, but before he could open his mouth a loud blood curdling scream flew out from the giant opening in front of them.
Liam and the others swiftly covered their ears to stop the scream from deafening them. Liam went to close his eyes as he covered his ears but stopped as he saw something familiar fly out from the entrance. It was four Soul Orbs.
Liam quickly deactivated his Mana Sight and activated his Phantom Sight. He watched as the Soul Orbs floated up and make their way to an opening further down than the one that had the Crafting and Hot Pink colored mana. That was where he saw the ghastly green Spirit Pool energy he saw earlier.
As the Soul Orbs floated for that opening, Liam made a decision. He quickly summoned his Spectral Lantern and muttered the words,” Soul Harvest.”
The glass door on the lantern swished open and called for the Soul Orbs that made their way to wherever they were heading for. The four Soul Orbs stopped right in front of the opening. Liam watched as they moved back and forth almost like they were stuck in a game of tug of war.
Liam focused hard as he stared at the Soul Orbs. He didn’t want to allow them to go to whoever was calling them. After a few seconds had passed and much concentration was made, the three of the four Soul Orbs shifted and made their way towards Liam’s Spectral Lantern. The last Soul Orb continued inside the opening.
After the three Soul Orbs entered the lantern, the glass down closed shut. He released his grip of the lantern, and it disappeared after reaching his hip. The others stared at him for a long moment before giving him a What were you thinking kind of look.
Liam shrugged as he looked apologetic. That look disappeared as someone suddenly called out, “Fazil, Licary…why did only one Soul Orb make its way up here?”
Liam recognized that voice. He had a feeling she would be here, but at the same time he was hoping she wouldn’t be. He stared at the opening, waiting…knowing she would make her way out here. It didn’t take long.
“Are you fools fucking around down there? You know that this will take longer if…Oh?” the woman called out as she walked towards the ledge. Her sentence was cut short as she looked down and saw Liam, Artem, Blair, and Roman staring up at her.
“Well, well, well. I see you finally came out of hiding Liam,” Lucy started as she grinned at him. “I must say you are one hard to find person. I almost thought you to be dead. What are you doing here?”
“Hello Lucy…,” Liam called back. “I think the real question is what are you doing here?”
“Me?” Lucy questioned as she placed a hand over her chest. “You don’t have to worry about why I am here. That is something you don…”
Liam let out a sigh. He really didn’t want to play the back and forth game so instead he interrupted her by saying, “Let’s not play the back and forth game. Don’t try to play stupid either Lucy. If that is your real name.”
Liam noticed her body tense for a split second before she raised a brow.
Lucy pushed her tongue against the inside of her cheek as she took her glasses off. She looked at them as if she was contemplating what she was going to say next. A second later she looked at Liam and said, “You know I must say. Out of all the New Arrivals that came to the island for the past few years, you were the most cautious. You were the slipperiest, and…the strangest.”
Lucy started to walk along the edge of the second floor. “I thought I had you pegged at the beginning. However, you kept doing things that was different than the others I gathered.” Her movements went from a strict office secretary type of walk to a seductive saunter. Her hips started to move in a more provocative manner as she continued, “You have no idea how hard it was to try and gain your trust. However, each attempt ended in fail. Granted that idiot Morshire made things even more troublesome thanks to his pride and misunderstanding.”
Liam noticed the scowl on her face as she stopped and turned to face them from the second floor. That scowl was quickly replaced with a wry smile as she stated, “However, even with his attempts of trying to kill you, you kept coming out alive. Even that mess with the Zombified Hobgoblin Warrior in the Goblin Forest Dungeon, which I must say that I am impressed you were able to kill it and make it out a live while keeping that Cindy girl alive. Congrats on that.”
“I don’t need any congratulations from you,” Liam said as he narrowed his eyes.
“Whether you need it or not isn’t what matters right now,” Lucy continued. “What does matter is what comes next.” She stared at him before realizing there were others with him. Her head tilted a bit as she took in the three newcomers. “I don’t think we have met. Who might you guys be?”
“We’re his teammates,” Roman stated.
“Teammates?” Lucy repeated before looking at Liam. “Again, you surprise me…I didn’t think you had anyone in this world and yet here you are with people claiming to be your teammates. A kitsune, a Dragon-kin, and a…Orc? Now that is a rather unusual group right there…Oh well. Not like it will matter in the end. You all will just end up becoming fuel for the spell to complete.”
“The spell?” Liam questioned. “You mean that Soul sucking spell. The one collecting the Soul Orbs? Are you saying that a Lich nor a Necromancer is working that spell?”
Lucy’s smile widened as she stared at him. She bit her lower lip as she started giggling to herself before saying, “You know the more you talk the more you just fascinate me. I must ask, how do you know so much for one that hasn’t been in our world for more than a couple of months?”
Liam shrugged. “Don’t feel like telling you.”
Lucy’s body vibrated as a maniacal laugh escaped her lips. “Oh…you are going to be fun to break. You know what…you’re right about what you said earlier. Well you were right about two things.”
“Oh? And what were those two things?” Liam asked.
“First, we shouldn’t play this back and forth game. The more I try the more my sin is stirring. And let me tell you what. I haven’t met someone who made me want to toy or break their will as badly as I want to do to you. And let me tell you. After having to suppress my Vice for so very long, I am just overflowing with anticipation of freeing myself,” Lucy said as she placed a hand over her stomach while the other was placed in front of her mouth.
“So I’m guessing the other has to do with me implying that your name isn’t really Lucy?” Liam asked, starting to feel a bit uncomfortable.
“You’re absolutely correct. It isn’t Lucy,” the woman started as the air around her started to shimmer and ripple all around her like a calm pond being disturbed. Her blond hair that was wrapped up in a bun had darkened to a hazel brown and waved wildly behind her back. Her green eyes lightened and vibrated into a hot pink color. Her two horns that poked out from her head and arched a bit at the top had thickened and curved over her head. Her business like dress had smoothed out and turned into a skin tight mini dress that revealed a more lustrous body, especially with the cleavage she revealed. Her feet were covered with thin laced high heels. A thin tail poked out from behind in between a pair of demon-like wings that expanded from her hip area instead of her back.
“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me,” Liam swore under his breath.
“My real name is Calythtis,” Calythtis announced. “A follower of the Immoral Vice of Lust.”