Chapter 15: Soulsworn
Yelping, I turned to dash back up the stairs, nearly stumbling in my haste. Deciding to risk a glance backwards, I was shocked to see a purple sea of creatures quickly filling the room.
Were they just sitting by the portal, waiting for the signal?
Why were they even waiting on the other side of the portal? Why not just come thr-
I nearly tripped as I realized my mistake. Those planes of red and blue force weren’t for keeping people out, they were for keeping these creatures in.
The scrape of claw on stone right behind me keyed me into the fact that despite my high dexterity, I was not faster than every creature chasing me.
Channeling blade manifestation, I spun around just in time to slam my spell into a mid leap dog-like creature. I completed my spin and continued my flight up stairs, the pack of creatures at my heels. While I might be able to outpace the canine creatures on the even footing the stairs provided, I was not certain I'd be able to do the same when we reached the room at the top of the staircase.
Sure enough, as I reached the top of the stairs and started sprinting towards the pedestal, I realized the canines would intercept me well before I reached my destination.
Whipping around, I scanned the horde. A surge of hope kindled inside me as I realized the stairs had acted as a choke point, and only half a dozen monsters had made it up the stairs.
I side stepped a lunge from one of the three doglike creatures, inspecting it as it flew by.
{Abyss Hound}
HP: 49/49
MP: 14/14
Type: Abyssian
Level: 6
Lore: Often found in packs of three to twelve, these canine aberrations are often domesticated by tribes of semi intelligent abyss dwellers for their skill in tracking.
If I could disable or kill the three hounds before the rest of the horde caught up, I was certain I'd be able to activate the barrier. As I began a casting of blade manifestation, one of the unknown creatures near the top of the stairs launched a volley of spikes at me. Abandoning my channel I lunged to the side, avoiding all but one of the spikes. The pain was relatively minor, but as I pulled out the spike with my free hand, my hand nearly slipped from the coating of slime covering the spike. A red square flashed in the corner of my vision.
Drowsy (Debuff): Action speed reduced by 5% every second. Upon reaching 0% action speed, fall asleep.
Panicked blossomed in my chest as I frantically evaded the pack of canines. The pedestal was still dozens of yards away, and I was unsure if I’d make it even if I ignored the hounds.
With no other choice, I turned, determined to take as many of the aberrations down with me as I could.
Behind you. Directly to the left of the large circular rune with the x in it is a small L shaped engraving. Press it. Have your sphere ready.
The voice echoed inside my mind, sounding strangely like a… butler? My mind was foggy, and every moment I spent deliberating, it grew even more so. Overcharging a blade manifestation in my weapon, I stumbled over to where the voice had directed me. When the scratching of paw on stone grew too close, I whipped around to launch my spell at an incoming hound. Leaning against the wall, I scrabbled at the stone next to the circular rune. With a sucking noise, a section of the wall vanished a yard to the left. Stumbling forward, a hound yelped as its gnashing teeth met the stone wall rather than my neck. As I crossed the threshold, sphere in one hand, I spotted a pedestal directly inside the now uncovered room. To my dismay, as I laid the stone inside the recess, a hound dove past the threshold.
Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.
A lime colored wall sprang into existence just behind the creature, obstructing my view into the now aberrant flooded space.
Toppling over as much as dodging, I barely avoided the hounds probing bite.
Give me your oath!
The same voice spoke, this time urgent.
For the first time, a prompt obstructed my vision during combat. My unfocused eyes could barely make out the words.
Calre.. has initiated.. Soulsworns.. Oath.
Warning! You will lose acce … Not reversible.
An oath sworn between…Partnership.
Accept or Decline
The hound bunched its legs, preparing to charge.
“I Accept!” I said frantically as my Drowsy debuff accrued its seventeenth stack.
The faint sound of rhythmic chanting broke the silent stare down between the hound and I.
The fog slowly encroaching upon my mind was wiped away without a trace, my mind sharpened, and I felt another presence inside my.. Soul?
My Drowsy debuffs red square had been replaced with a blue one depicting a glass sculpture, curious, I checked it out.
Glass Heart Incantation(Buff): Action speed increased by 20%, Mental Acuity increased by 20%, immune to disables, damage taken increased by 100%.
Duration: 5 seconds
The lunging hounds fang filled maw appeared just a little more threatening as I eyed the massive damage taken increase. As I prepared to make a split second dodge, I realized the hound was moving significantly slower.
“Do not take a hit, Locke.” a voice said from inside my head.
I startled, having completely forgotten the strange butler-esque voice that had guided me to safety.
“Calm yourself. You have all the time in the world. Focus on your fight.”
It was child's play to evade the hounds glacial attack while returning one of my own. I lashed out, scoring another cut against the hounds purple flank. I took a quick step towards the beast as it attempted a counter, and slashed the creature's neck. The buff I had received in combination with Peerless Rhythm made the difference in our speed insurmountable. Reminded of Peerless Rhythm, I realized the thumping heart pounding rhythm was no longer present. In its palace, A gentle angelic humming now filled my mind. Remembering my opponent, I cast out all extraneous thoughts.
In only a few more exchanges, the hound lay dead on the floor, and I had not taken a single point of damage. My incantation wore off, and I suddenly became noticeably more sluggish.
“Well done Locke. Oh, by the way, I’m not a butler.”
So it could read my thoughts as well. Great.
“Only those you allow me to perceive.”
“Who are you?” I thought towards the entity.
“My name is Calrexos, but you are welcome to call me Cal. I am now your sworn spirit, which means you are now Soulsworn.”
“What?” I asked, unable to comprehend what I was being told.
“Allow me to explain. I am a spirit bound to a physical object. Upon noticing your precarious position I guided you towards me, and then initiated a soul oath in an attempt to give you the power you needed to survive. When I offered the oath, I was not aware of your mental state.
“So are you bound to me now? I asked, aware of my status as a “physical object”.
“Hah, No. Our agreement did not bind my soul to your body. Only the most vile necromancers would ever attempt such a thing. My soul tether is the crown over there.” he replied.
He accompanied this thought with a mental nod towards the far end of the room. The sensation that allowed me to interpret the direction he meant was an extremely unique feeling.
The “crown” he referenced was a tightly woven band of iridescent shards. Some of the larger shards formed the tips of the crown, and they shimmered in the blue light the wall engravings provided.
The crown hovered at chest height above an unidentifiable purple mass. I walked over to the crown, noticing hairline fissures running across each of the shards. As I laid a hand upon the crown, an alert rang out.
System Alert: Locke has claimed the Unique item Soulsworns Legacy. Unique items are dropped on death!