GENESIS STATE DETECTED.
ERROR_ENTITY_NOT_IN_NODE.
No Resolution Available…
GENESIS HALTED.
You have died.
You have been resurrected.
You have suffered a level penalty.
Level penalty capped at level floor (25).
Your health is critically low.
You require healing.
Kaden opened his eyes and spat out the dead rat. He opened one eye. The other eye wouldn’t open, and his skin cracked as he tried to speak.
“Don’t you dare say a word.” Yep, that was Eve.
The other sounds were too muffled to make out, but there was definitely an argument going on. An ugly one. A terrible one. His HP began to rise, both from Eve’s healing and Sara’s title. Yeah, she was nearby.
And apparently, given that half the ranting was in Vichorean, so was Ashi. His health remained pegged at twenty three, ticking up and then back down, and his mouth still tasted of ashes, probably because his tongue felt blackened and cracked.
“Those are mana reinforced wounds,” Eve said. “It’s costing me twenty points of mana just to raise your health one point. Healing potions won’t touch it, and you look like a piece of meat Trinity cooked. Ashi, he can hear now.”
“Kaden Birch.” She spoke his name like a weapon.
“Ashi.” Her tone was far too sweet. It didn’t mesh with what he’d heard before. “It’s good to hear you. I can’t really see yet. Where are we?”
“It is good to hear me? You are the most frustrating man to ever live! Do you have any idea how I felt when I received Sara’s message? When you said you were going, I thought, good. He will tie her to the bed. He will make her scream with pleasure. Instead it is a different kind of screaming. Not the good kind!”
“Excuse me,” Eve said. “If you’re going to yell at him, would you mind doing it in a language I understand? I can’t join in if I don’t know what you’re saying.”
Kaden used [Mana Well] to dump mana into Eve, and in return, his health ticked upward another fourteen points. His tongue shed a layer of ash that he choked on and spat out. “First off, I don’t tie people to the bed unless they ask, which she didn’t. Secondly, we were just doing a little night hunting and got ambushed.”
“Distracted.” Sara spoke clearly. “We were distracted because Kaden was helping me kill a Kalarak herd for XP. The boss snuck up on us, but the fault is mine.”
Kaden shook his head. “I’m at my level floor. There’s literally no harm in taking risks to help you all reach twenty five, too.”
“No harm?” Ashi shouted. “Do you care nothing for your party? Does it not matter to you? If you do not fear me, then perhaps you will enjoy explaining to Mother. She says you agreed to be useful, and yet, you may die without doing so. There is no harm, so let us go and speak with her.”
Now that was something that gave Kaden pause. “If there has to be a report, you handle that.”
“You think I did not already?” Ashi leaned in close so her breath tickled his ear. “You have a duty. Sometimes fate will be against you, and you cannot help how death finds you. For the sake of your Core, make better decisions.”
“I was hoping for something much more entertaining,” Eve said. “Was it really worth it? Sara would have reached twenty five not long after I did.”
That made Kaden happen. “Twenty Five?”
“Out! Out! Out!” Ashi shouted. “Not you, Evelyn. I have come to appreciate your company. You conduct yourself with care and dignity. Please stay and continue the healing.”
A chair nearby creaked.
Kaden consulted Dominion. They were in the farmhouse, probably in his bedrom. “You want Sara here. Her title—”
“Won’t do a thing until the Mana Reinforcement is healed. I give you credit for trying,” Eve said. “Seriously, you’re covered in burned skin, Vip might get sick if she lickes it and I won’t tolerate that. So close that mouth and heal.”
Kaden summoned the [FalCrow].
“I love the smell of burning meat,” It said in Sara’s voice.
“Shoo! Shoo!” Ashi said. Flames whooshed and the world grew brighter, then dimmer. “Whatever you have to say, I will send a mana dragon.”
That gave him an idea. “I was going to ask Sara for a favor. My Inventory is full of Kalaraks and dead beetles. I was thinking, she could take Neganta’s Larder, go to the Guild with Eve and buy some mana potions to help Eve regenerate.”
“That’s a suprisingly good idea coming from you,” Eve said. “I need mana anyway, health regen isn’t going to help Kaden, and Sara and I need to talk.”
“Go,” Ashi said. “I will stay and make sure no one attempts to crawl off and go hunting with one eye and burned fingers. In case he tries.”
The bedroom door opened and Sara came in. “I’ve got the Larder. Start emptying Kalaraks.”
One by one, he handed them over. “Take them to Dervish?”
“Of course.” Sara waited, then collected all the pieces of the [ScaraStorm]. “Do you have anything else you want me to sell?”
Sara Scylla is attempting to share information with you. Accept? [Y/N]
[Sara Scylla, Summoner]
Level: 25
HP: (1550/1550)
Mana: (400/400)
Skills: Summon Beast (2:1), Scheduling (2:1), Accounting (2:1), Lyre (2:-1), Negotiation (2:1), Hoe Strike (2:1), Blunt Weapons (2:1), Edged Weapons (2:1), Ranged Weapons (2:1), Siege Machinery (2:1), Resist Poison (2:1), Trap Sense (2:1), Resist Fire (2:1), Resist Crushing (2:1), Resist Acid (2:1). Contract Management (2:1), Party Tactics (2:1), Archery (2:1), Gardening (2:1), Private Conversation (2:1), Mana Quiver (2:1), Chain Lightning (2:1) Crippling Strikes (2:1)
Talents: Charming, Vicious Senses, Fast Summons
Profession: Business Manager
Titles: Herald of Life, Party Leader
[Fast Summons]
Your summons will regenerate at a rate twice as fast as normal, and any mana cost for summoning will be halved.
[Lightning Bolt]
Send a blast of lightning at a foe with a small chance of arcing to a second target. This will affect conductive targets or those with Water Mana more effectively. Interaction with Fire Mana may be explosive.
This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.
[Gardening]
It’s not just a matter of putting seeds in soil. You have an innate sense of what plants need, and the ability to use your mana to infuse plants. This ability will grow as the skill levels. At higher levels, growing plants faster, restoring plants, or guiding specific effects is possible.
[Charming]
There’s a certain something about you that others find irresistible. Your attempts to convince, bargain, negotiate, or seduce will succeed much more often.
Permanent Summons:
Crawling Horror, Cosmic Horror Spawn
Rarity: Mythic
Level: 1
HP: Not Applicable
Mana: Not Compatible
Skills: Carrion Crawl, Dissolving Maw, Blasphemous Flesh
ERR_ENTITY_NOT_NAMED, Cosmic Horror
Rarity: Mythic
Level: 11
HP: Not Applicable
Mana: Not Compatible
Skills: Devouring Maw - Whatever goes in is exposed to the eternal hunger of that which cannot be named. Keep your fingers and toes outside the maw at all times, folks and no matter how tempting it might be, don’t even thing about [CENSOR ENGAGED.] At higher levels, the nature of what can be devoured will expand. (8), Anthem of the End (6), Nether Vomit (3)
Talents: Blasphemous Flesh - The flesh which forms a Horror is not of this reality and is resistant to all but the most powerful attacks. Creatures who consume Blasphemous Flesh are afflicted with 9,999,999,999 [LETHAL] damage.
[Anthem of the End]
Consume Mana to sing the end of everything. This song is not of this world, and damages all who hear it. Spellcasting is not possible while Anthem of the End is active. The damage scales the longer the song continues. It will kill enemies, allies, and the host equally.
[Nether Vomit]
Consume both matter and mana to vomit out the hunger which resides within. This counts as a contact attack and may only be dispelled through application of mana. Consuming more matter will cancel the current application of Nether vomit.
“You got another summons!” Kaden shouted, though his skin cracked and his lips bled. “Ranged? Mobile? Mythic? Another Mythic?”
“I was certain you weren’t sorting Inventory,” Eve said. “A second Mythic summons seems deeply unlikely. And it already has levels. And skills?”
Kaden’s health ticked up again and this time, he could see, as a crust broke free from one eye and his joints loosened. “That helped.”
Sara stood near him, and now he understood how different the second tier looked. She wasn’t much taller, but she was slightly wider and thicker, her muscles more prominent. She’d never been svelte but now she was formidable.
“You look amazing.”
Her smile hadn’t changed at all. “Well, I have to keep up with you. I’ll send Eve back with the potions. Mr. Dervish is going to want to talk and see and...probably Mom would want to know.”
“See you soon.” Kaden struggled to sit up, then slid his feet off as Sara and Eve left. His skin was charred from chain lightning. The loose clothing over him kept him ‘modest’ in front of people he didn’t really care about modesty with.
Ashi looked at the burn tracks on his body. “You really shouldn’t be wearing anything heavy. How many lightning bolts did Sara hit you with?”
“It was the chain lightning. It multiplies across targets, and honestly, that boss was going to kill and eat us both. The mistake wasn’t going out hunting. It was getting so involved in killing the herd that a wandering boss snuck up on us.” Each word made his jaws ache.
Ashi left and returned holding the [Assistant] “Activate this with me here. If it should be malfunctioning, I will handle it. You have given it more than enough mana.”
Kaden could power it easily now in just a few days. He grasped the [Attendant].
Activate [Attendant]?
No clue about what it would do. He selected yes, and tensed as the crystal began to glow like a miniature dungeon core in his deep aqua. Then it rose up and flickered through different illusions. A gnome, which was just terrifying. A ghost, not too terrifying. A small ape with golden fur. Then it shifted, becoming a translucent women with minature wings and the crystal visible through her skin. Two feet tall, she shifted over and over, becoming more and less detailed, until her hair had actual definition and her body was more like a sweeping dress covered it.
*Attendant is initializing.*
*Analyzing [FangWood Dungeon Complex]. Requires: 7,13 more [Attendants.]*
*Reducing Scope*
With the thought came a much smaller outline - the area surrounded by split rail.
*Requires: 2 more [Attendants].*
Again, the outline shrank to only the farmhouse, and without another word, the [Attendent] spun and drifted to a window, spraying it with raw mana, and then following up to clean.
Ashi, rarely impressed, watched it work and then approached to press a finger on the freshly cleaned window.
The attended buzzed, a sound like an angry [Dagger Wasp], but it zipped back to touch up the print. And Kaden was certain it kept its eyes on Ashi as it drifted up to burn away cobwebs with a puff of flame.
“I did not expect this. In Vichor it would be a mighty guardian, but the mana is so thin here, perhaps this is all?” Ashi stared as it worked its way through the eves, then cleaned the corners.
Kaden called to Vip, who whined and barked as the [Attendant] floated past—then drifted through the wall like it wasn’t even present. “Is that normal?”
“It will take time to know the needs. It is nice, to have something of home present. Can you make it tend my tower?”
Kaden thought about it, and the [Attendent] broadcast acceptance as a feeling. “It’ll be there soon. Can you help me outside? I want to move. I want to go do something.”
“It was not a joke, that you would need to explain yourself to Mother. There are few Dungeon Masters who reside outside of Vichor. They may come and tend their dungeons via arch, but live here?” Ashi shook her head. “And though she will never say so, you pleased Mother. She will not take lightly to you throwing your life away.”
“What’s she going to do? Make the ScaraStorm spit me out, resurrect me, and wag a finger I can’t see at me?” Kaden hoped for an smile.
He got a scowl.
“I will not touch you because I do not believe there is a place unwounded. But when you are healed? We will discuss this further.” Ashi cast her [Hover] on him, and gently moved him out into the living room, then to the porch, where he could sit and watch the [Farmer] working crops.
As time passed, the quiet calmed him. This death hadn’t shaken him the way others did. “I didn’t mean to scare you and Eve. I didn’t mean to die. I was thinking we’d level Sara to twenty five and with two of us, we’d be twice as effective helping you and Eve.”
“And never did you ask ‘Could I call Ashi? Would she not help me?’”
“I said I was sorry.”
Minutes passed, and the FarPortal flared as Eve returned. “How did I know he wouldn’t be in bed? And you, you’re supposed to be the PolyMage, ‘Daugher-Of-The-Line-Of-Not-Really-Being-All-That-Fierce-Or-He’d-Still-Be-In-Bed.’”
Eve focused on him, activating [Life Transfusion].
Kaden’s skin began to itch wildly as his health rose. The black paths on his skin flaked and cracked as skin turned red underneath.
“I’m running on empty,” Eve said. “Seven hundred and forty mana fixed thirty seven points of damage. And you’re going to be scarred. Forever.”
“Trella likes scars.” He never minded the ones she got from Alchemy.
Eve pulled another potion out and drank half of it in one go before passing it to him. “Give me an hour. Combined with [Mana Well] I should be able to repair the worst damage. You smell like cooked meat, and as soon as I’m done, bathe.”
Three hours and four potions later, Eve called a halt. “We can’t push it any further tonight. You look mostly clear. There’s a few parts of you I’ve seen way too much of, so you check them out and let me know how it’s going.”
Kaden still felt stiff, but when he walked, pieces of skin sluffed off revealing healed skin underneath. His health had risen to three hundred, and ticked slowly upward on its own. [Guardian of Life] would help the damage heal.
He sprayed water into the bath and sprayed himself over and over until tender skin remained. His armor had healed from ambient mana, but putting it on would provoke Ashi and Eve. In a show of contrition, he dressed in the simple tan clothing the Sisters had gifted him during his prison-cell-based training.
Sara’s green parrot landed on his bed as he tied the front together. “Kaden, I’m on my way back, and I need help. Dominion kind of help. If anyone follows me through the FarPortal, hit them hard and don’t stop.”
Kaden couldn’t run, but he did limp out, gripping Remembrance as he passed through the living room. “Sara’s coming and there’s trouble.”
Without a word, Ashi sprinted to join him. “I will deal with any threat.”
The FarPortal surged upward and Sara stepped through, dressed in her green leathers. Her Horror’s pseudopods flared and showing teeth. In in one hand, she clutched a basket. A basket that wriggled. A basket with teeth. It was like someone had snipped off one of the Horror’s pseudopods, leaving a wriggling nub.
She tossed it behind her on the portal as it flared again.
Two women stepped through.
Kaden didn’t wait for Identify, he dropped Dominion on them like a hammer. “I am the owner of this Holding. Activate the portal and leave. Attack me and die.”
“They’re recruits trying to prove their worth. They were going to kill me if I didn’t agree to join the Cosmi [Faction],” Sara said, as her crawler began to chew on one of the bleeding women’s foot.
The FarPortal pavilion exploded into a ball of flame that grew hotter and hotter. The crystal turned white with heat, and the still the fire grew brighter.
You have helped slay the [Alchemist] Haram Kingsly.
You have helped slay the [Tamer] Sensendi Pavi.
You have gained experience.
The air popped, and Ashi sagged to one knee as she struggled for breath. “To attack you was to worsen Dominion. To stay was to burn. I am pleased they chose the flame.”
The FarPortal Pavillion was no more, but the crystal base that formed the actua FarPortal now glowed orange instead of white. And on them hovered two glowing squares. Loot packages. Kaden waved to them. “Whoever wants the loot, get it.”
‘That’s your kind of thing,” Eve said. “Your Whatever-She-Is just used Dominion and the kind of fire that makes me have nightmares to torch women she never met. And you’re worried about dividing loot? Don’t you have regrets?”
Ashi laughed as she retrieved the packages. “They threatened Sara. Regrets are like Initiates. They burn away easily.”
Sara was shaking. “There will be more. I’m sorry. There’ll be more and they’re not going to stop coming. My summons are Cosmic Horrors. The Centurions are patient. The Initiates are not. In their view, I’m housing a god. If I won’t join their [Faction] they’re better off killing me in hopes someone else will summon it.”
Kaden knew his answer. “Let them come. we’ll kill them all.”