After putting Leela back in the ground Jack turned to the survivors of the Judgment, almost all the elves with some of them injured, some with bodies that were in a little starved and some were with parts missing loke eyes, fingers and even limbs but their situation improved in varying degrees: some had parts of their bodies recreated, or at least part of them, most of the injuries were healed and those who were starving or in the process of starving received some sort of energy that Jack didn’t knew but filled their bodies as if they ate a full meal.
But contrary to expectations there were also some demons who survived and the only punishments that they received was a little of their life energy being sucked when some elves died from the quantity of life energy that was sucked from them which surprised Jack, but he quickly understood why when he read the information about the reasons they were punished from the information that Judgment passed to him: they were or hybrids born from captured women on those demons considered broken that didn’t want to do the things that the other demons liked to do, so they were treated as slaves.
Strangely Jack felt more connected with the hybrids than with the “broken” demons or with the elves, but he quickly dismissed this feeling and walked toward where all of them where, took “Flamma Imperial” and infused it with energy so he could give it more fire properties to burn the things that bound the elves and the demons ando also to improve its attack speed temporarily to an absurd degree and cut everything that bound the elves and the demon slaves and, in a moment, he felt a sudden dizziness that quickly vanished. Since he didn’t knew from where this energy came he decided to ask to the system after this situation is settled but first things first so he turned to Leela and asked her an important question.
- Which one of them is your brother? – He asked since he didn’t saw him in her memories.
Leela didn’t answer right away, she searched for her brother in the middle of all the elves but with each passing second she became more and more worried, then she turned to Jack with a face of utter worry – He isn’t here – She said with tears starting to run down her cheeks.
- Let’s ask the other elves if they saw what happened – Jack said and then walked to the elves while holding Leela’s hand – Now you should see if any of them saw him saw him – He said to Leela thinking that she was too lost in her grieve that she wouldn’t think right.
- Oh, ok – Leela said and then started to ask the elves if they saw her brother while Jack went to the hybrids and to the “broken”.
- Hi – Jack said trying to be friendly – So… how was your life with other pure blood demons? – He said trying to gain information on how the demons work and also because he has no idea of how to ask if they saw Leela’s brother.
The demons looked at each other and then one of the hybrids came in front of the others, one who has a dark skin, a broken horn in the left upper side of his head, eyes of different colors and little claws in his finger but he still had scars that proved that him was treated as a something worse than even slaves – Thank you for setting us free, but why you are asking about this and not about what your companion is asking? – The hybrid asked trying to probe Jack’s intention to see if he should shout for his “brothers” and “sisters” to run or not.
- Ahahaha…. – Jack laughed awkwardly and then said – Well, I truly don’t know how the person she is looking for is so if I just tried to asked if you saw him and you only saw someone similar there is a chance that I wouldn’t even noticed so I thought it would be best to know a little more about all you – He said truthfully thinking that this way he would earn their trust.
- Why would you want to know more about us? – The hybrid asked already prepared to try to hold Jack so his colleagues could run in the worst case possible.
- ….. Sigh, I don’t really know – Jack said sighing because he himself didn’t understand why, he told himself that it was because he wanted to know how things worked with the demons but he knew that it isn’t only this – I felt some sort of connection with you and the other hybrids but I don’t really understand why, so I tried to start a conversation with you – He said without realizing that he seems like some crazy guy that just liked hybrids.
The hybrid didn’t say anything after hearing this because his brain just, stopped, after he heard this explanation and after his brain started to work again, he stepped back thinking that Jack was some kind of closet pervert or sick guy.
- But I truly want to know how was your live with the demons – Jack said serious – I never saw a hybrid between two races nor a demon who doesn’t want to do things that others demons want so I am curious about who your life was, even if for what I see it was terrible – He said demonstrating that he is serious about his questions.
- Ok… - The hybrid said but before he could conclude what he was saying Leela appeared crying.
- The elves said that the same elves that attacked us took my brother – she said crying a lot which made Jack, who had already recovered his energy, try to summon a book from Babel’s Library telling where those elves are taking Leela’s brother and in the book it said: “The Rebels, the elves who decided to use the power that they most despise to their own favor, are taking the prince to their base in the Under-Realm” – It can’t be… the Under-Realm? – Leela muttered with despair in her voice and the lightless eyes, the eyes of someone who lost hope.
- What is the Under-Realm? – Jack asked fearing that for the people of Veritas this is a dumb question.
- The Under-Realm is a subterranean world that is the realm of a powerful being that know everything that happen there – The hybrid explained seeing that the situation is worrying for his rescuers – This being only allow those that make a sacrifice to it to enter his realm – He said – But how you know that the people who took her brother are going there and why it said that he is a prince? – The hybrid asked but then noticed that it would be best if he doesn’t know so he prayed that Jack would tell him and his prayers were answer when Jack tried to see if he could discover where the Rebels base is but…
“You don’t have enough authority to search for information about Titans and their territories in Babel’s Library” was what appeared in the book but this didn’t made Jack give up and pouring his entire energy and will in this desire but this didn’t mean that he would manage to fulfil his desire so easily and, to show this, from each of his pores blood started to leak until h became covered in his own blood but even with this happening he didn’t gave up, relying on his new regeneration he tried to continue with this madness.
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ATTENTION!!!!!!
The Titan is forcing his way into a higher level of Babel’s Library than his authority allows
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ATTENTION!!!!!!
This action can damage permanently the Titan’s body
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ATTENTION!!!!!!
For the Titans safety the system is taking him out of Veritas so he can’t access Babel’s Library
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When Jack saw the last message he felt his body starting to fade and his connection with Veritas to slip, so he tried to hold firm into the feeling that his body parts that weren’t fading yet gave. He tried to feel his body and how it connected with Veritas, it was strenuous task, mainly because he started to feel even more strongly his bloody coming out of his bodies and now, he noticed that the blood was also coming from his organs that were rupturing, but he still decided to continue even while feeling his organs rupturing but with each passing second that he tried to understand more of this link he became even more aware of the pain.
When he was beginning to think about giving up he felt it, how his body connected with Veritas: his body, the body that he uses when he enter Veritas, works like an anchor and a container for his mind so each part of his body work both as a container for his mind but also as a seal so his mind doesn’t wander in Veritas so he tried to do something that most would think foolish to do when in a game: try to control his blood like he did with his fire even without any ability nor card to help him do it, but he still tried to do it.
He imagined the sensation of holding the elements that he creates but with the feelings that comes from his body, specifically his blood, and did the same process that he did when creating spell with his other elements. He imagined chains that bound him stopping the system to take Jack out of Veritas, chains that perforate his flesh so deep that it reaches where his mind touches his body and, doing this, he felt something inside him something big and powerful but he didn’t manage to feel it right because his chain managed to do it right but before his mind was sucked back to outside his body he did manage to “see” it, he saw a sea, a sea almost so big that it Jack didn’t even saw its end.
When he came back to himself all the blood that leaked from his pores, even the blood in his clothes, became chain tattoos that covered his entire body and, in those tattoos, he felt the power binding him to Veritas, but this wasn’t all that Jack saw, he also saw Leela, the elves, the slaves, Bjorn and even Garuda that came out of his shadow stupefied faces, and he didn’t even knew that an eagle could make an stupefied face, but that became even more stupefied when two cards appeared in front of Jack:
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Blood Control
An ability that even the most powerful blood user wishes
It provides the ability and knowledge on the best way to control blood and not be harmed by it
Passive/Spell Card
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Blood Chains
Chanel your own blood to bind someone so throughtfully that even its mind is bound in place
Spell Card (Newbie Stage)
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If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.
- Yes!!! New cards – Jack said excited – But I didn’t manage to gain the information that I wanted – He said depressed remembering why he did this – Sigh, I guess we will need to gather information the old way – He said and then started to think on how he could do this but his thoughts were cut short when Leela held his shoulders and asked exasperated.
- What happened? You started to leak blood from all over your skin, then your body started to fade, then your blood became chain that entered your flash, then… then… - Leela said worried after her brain started to process everything she saw and she became awestruck when she remembered that two cards appeared after Jack recovered – Cards appeared for you and you weren’t even surprised… - She said surprised.
- Well, these aren’t even my first cards – Jack said forgetting that cards are the peak of abilities in Veritas.
- What? – This time it wasn’t Leela but the hybrid – From what I see you are an elf but you said that this isn’t even your first cards so how old are you? – He asked thinking about how difficult to create a card so he thought that Jack must be really old to have more cards.
- I not old – Jack said – For human standards I have only eighteen years – He said without thinking about the implications of someone being so young and still managing to have “so many” cards when for this world someone having a single card is already so much that they can be considered the master of masters in that field.
Now everyone who heard it became astonished, even Bjorn, like they heard something absurd, because for them it is!!!
To prove that he was speaking truths he conjured his Control cards even “Nature Control” and “Weather Control” which shocked everyone but made clear to Leela, and consecutively Roddin, clear about how Jack is so good at handling and creating Fire and darkness.
- Now can we try to go back to the search for your brother? – Jack asked trying to bring the situation back on trails.
- Oh, okay – Leela said noticing that they were far from the main theme of this entire situation.
- Let me test something – Jack said and started to imagine a map showing their location and the location of the Rebels and thankfully, or not so thankfully since they weren’t in the Under-Realm, it worked – Come with me – Jack said and jumped in the shadows with Leela, Bjorn and Garuda that came back to his shadow and leaped across the forest until he found them, but he became surprised when he noticed that the boy he assumed is the prince is running with the Rebels without being forced which surprised Jack but surprised Leela even more.
- Why he is with them? – She asked dumbfounded.
- We can ask it to him – Jack said and emerged from the shadows in front of the group while spreading the “Silent Darkness” in the area while trying his new “element” while imagining an infective blood that when it fall into someone it infect this someone and start to transform the organic matter in the zone to his blood, so this way he can easily control the blood and use it to cast “Blood Chain” and then he spread the blood through the “walls” of the shadow zone.
Then Leela emerged from the shadows too – Miel Why you are with these people? – She asked.
- Sis, why you are here? – He asked not understanding how his sister emerged from the shadows.
- Wait she is your sister? – Asked the first elf that attacked Jack and Leela – But they killed Aldir! – Said the elf outraged.
- If you are talking about the second elf that attacked us, he was just knocked out – Jack said – We didn’t want to miss your track so we just left him there – He said.
- You just left him there?!?! – The elf shouted irate.
- And you just attacked us – Jack said ironically which left the elf wordlessly but still anger.
- Can you deal with this later? – Miel asked – Sis, how do you know this man? – He asked thinking that it is strange for a random guy beat two elite warriors from the Rebels and can appear from the shadows while taking Leela with him.
- Well… I asked for his help to deal with the situation regarding our uncle – Leela explained.
- But what if he is one of our uncle’s men? – Miel asked skeptical.
- This is impossible – Leela said with conviction – Our uncle is too power thirsty to try to recruit him – She said.
- What do you mean by that? – Miel asked and then thought about something that would mean the end of the royal family – Does he want the throne?!?! – He asked prepared to attack Jack at a moment’s notice.
- What? No! – Leela said laughing a little – Miel, I introduce to you Aragorn, someone who can use fire as no one else and can even use the legendary “Imperial Flame” – Leela said which surprised jack.
- Wait, the “Imperial Flame” is something legendary? – Jack asked stupefied.
- You can use it and you don’t even know this? – Leela asked incredulously.
- I can just use it, it’s not like I know it’s origins – Jack defended himself – And don’t forget that I can create different types of fire so… - He started to explain but then remembered something – I never created the “Imperial Flame”, I just started to use it – He said almost a whisper but that entered the ears of Miel.
- You must be joking – Miel said with the voice of someone who just didn’t want to believe in something, but when he saw that his sister was with a serious face he shouted – There must be some proof!!!
Seeing that the situation wasn’t the most favorable Jack just decided to show to MIel that he isn’t some farce, even if he himself doesn’t knew what farce, so he decided to use “Imperial Mantle” and in that moment all the present elves felt an invisible pressure emanating from Jack as if they were in front of some great being, but the pressure quickly vanished when Jack uncast the “Imperial Mantle” because he noticed that something is strange here but couldn’t quite understand what it is.
- I see, now I understand why it you said that – Miel said calmer and with a smile in his face – It is an honor to meet you sir – He said while bowing to Jack who became worried that he messed up badly when thinking about the name and element that he chose to register himself as.
- So why are you with them? – Jack asked trying to change the subject.
- I knew that I couldn’t do anything myself so I tried to search for help and then I found them – Miel said pointing to the Rebels.
- But they use something do evil as corruption – Bjorn said emerging from the shadows in human form but letting his aura leak from the rage that he was feeling.
- Woah, how many people are in your shadow? – Miel asked but then his face changed to a somber one when he heard what Bjorn said – There is not much that I can do now, corruption already spread through these forests and their weapons at least prevent corruption from spreading – He explained.
- He, it seems that you or them doesn’t know the effects of those blades – Jack said in a mocking tone.
- What do you mean? – Said another elf that still haven’t spoken.
- Those blades absorb corruption, that they do, but they also affect their wielder’s minds – Jack said.
- How are you so certain about that? – The elf asked for which Jack answered by activating “Eye of The Sage” and saying:
- The same way that I know that your name is Ritari and that your brother is missing and from some time before he went missing, he started acting weird and always left his blade close to him – Jack said while reading what his “Eye of The Sage” said to him about Ritari.
- How do you… - Ritari was going to asked but was cut short.
- I know a lot of things but I let only some chosen few have this knowledge – Jack said to seem mysterious even knowing that if Leela said she could just say that everything probably was knowledge coming from Babel’s Library – But this isn’t the important thing here - He said changing the path that the conversation was taking – The important thing is that your weapons will do more harm than good.
- But they are the best weapons that we have! – Ritari said – No one resist corruption, not even demons! – Ritari exclaimed.
- What?!?! How can demons not resist corruption??? – Leela asked astonished.
- Strange, isn’t it? – Ritari said – Maybe this means that it wasn’t them directly that created it or that it appeared in their realm but it wasn’t them who made it.
- It can’t be, so why every time they appear in our lands corruption also spread? – Leela pondered.
- I don’t really know but I think this require more investigations – Ritari said.
- Uh… the only reason you think corruption is caused by demons is because when they appear corruption also appear? – Jack asked thinking that this is a dumb reason.
- Well… this and also because they are demons, they always do things that make our world sick – Leela said with the clean face of someone who said the most obvious think in the world.
- …….. – Jack was speechless so instead of trying to talk to Leela he summoned a book from Babel’s Library with the content of what motivate demons and read it aloud:
“What motivate demons can vary depending on their race, faction, what they worship, the state of their mind and even if they are born demons or transformed demons.
If they are born demons, they mostly move based on desires derived the most primitive things like lust, hunger, despair and even in some outstanding cases: hope.
If they are transformed demons they have the mindset that they had before transforming so depending on how and why they transformed they can be pacific or be even more bloodthirsty than demons born of complex desires like massacre or torture.
Most demon factions want to conquer the over world so they use tactics that preserve the ambient or that don’t leave lingering damage to the world, unless they want to terraform the place they are conquering” – After reading this he looked at Leela and Ritari and became surprised because they were making faces of pure shock about one information in specific – people can transform into demons? – Leela asked shaken.
- Yeah, it seems so – Jack said thinking if he could transform into a demon like he transforms into an elf.
- Does this means that elves can turn into demons too? – Asked Miel and to his surprise without the book even vanishing, after just a single thought of Jack, it answered his questions “Almost any being can transform into a demon” – Which beings can’t transform? – Miel asked curious but this time the answer didn’t came “You don’t have enough authority to search for this type information”.
- Sigh, I hate when this happens – Jack said in a annoyed tone – Well, it seems that the question time is over – Jack said but then thought about one thing that he wanted to now: what corruption is, but, well…. Things didn’t go as planned:
“Y̷̺̹̙̪͓̖̣̘͑̌̅͋̉̾͘ö̷̡̹̗̠͎̣̦̞̲́̄̆͋̃̊͑͂̀͘͠ͅ≯̢̡͍̫̳̼͍̺̠̟̺͗̑̈́̀͂͂͗̄͘̕̚ͅ>̷̢̜̙̘̙͖̟̙̼͙̪̹̗̹̫̇͛̋̒͗̾̍ ̴̬̋̾̌͋̂́̈́́͗̈͂́͑̚͠͝͝ḑ̴̢͉͉͓̘͚̙̜̯̙́͋̓͂̄̒̔͑̌͑̈́̿̿́́̾̀̈́͐̏̈́͂̋̕̚͠͝ơ̴̢̫͎͖̤̻͍̞̲̲̦̮̥͖̼̩̠̬̘͚̲̳̼̎̀̊̓̓̒̍͆̿͛̈́͋̆́͛̀͒̀̈͘n̴̰̖̲̱̥͍͈̟̗̹̝̤̠̤̜̹̟̪̬͉͚͗̀̓̐̄͒͋̂̄͠'̵̢̙͍̙̘͎͚̃͆͘͜͝ͅ|̶̯͙̍͑͛̒̾͌̕̚|̸̧̢͔̮̙͇͙̖͕̦͙̣͙̭̊͌͊̊̆̋̎͆͊͑̕͘ ̴̨̡̡̨̼̼̠͓̯͚͍̦͍͖̭̗͎̩̜̘̱̹̝̇͛͊͒̐̆͌̏̈̈̒̏̀̈̇̈́̄́̓͆̈́̅̃̚͜͝H̷͇͋̄͋̾͆̌̒̋̏͌̑́̈́̐̽͑̈́̉͘̚͘̚̕͠͝ḁ̵̧̡̨̞̩̪̗̲̮͔̓̅͗̽̑̾̐͘@̸̦̺̈́̓̅̐̄̅̌́̅̈͋̊̊̋͒̓̍̓̀̋̆̕͘̚͝£̵̨̤̺͍͇̰̭͖̥̓̐͒́̀̑̈͋͘͘͠ ̷̢̢̪̪̗̲̝̲̠̮͕͍͂̃̂̃̿A̶͍̟̻̘͓͉̳͋̑̉͒̍͂̇̒͒̉̂̂̋̽̿́̋͘͝͝͝ú̶̲̣̖̘̞̭͔̦̝̲̽̾̑́͒̌̈͋̑̐̉̚͝ͅt̶̡̢̛̼͙͓̤͍̦̬̩̜͍̟̩̥̥̺̣̰͙̪̩̞̖͇͋̈́͌̔̏̀͆́̀̈́̾̽̊͒̒̄͊̄͛̃̐̕͝͠≠̨̧̖̟̹̥̺̲̹̝̜̙̞̱̞̝̲̿̀̈́̐́̈́}̴̧̨̨̨̢̛̛͇̱̺̯̦̭͚̰̗̦̝͇͓̮͚͔̅̇̉̎̃̓̄͌̿͒̋̋̐̃͐͑͂̐͆̏̄͘͘̚͜͝]̶̦̝̀%̵̟͔̦͒̍͌̿́͆̈̐̆́̏̉͋̿͐͊̆̈́\̷̛̺͈̳̖̰͕̫̀̍̐̉̇̿͂̇́̔̒͆̓̄̌ͅͅͅ'̸̛̮̦͇̤͕̮̘̩̩̈́””
And after reading this message Jack started to scream as his skin started to burst open and the pages of the book started to be overwhelmed by these glitched characters and Jack fell in the ground on his knees while feeling his connecting with Veritas vanishing so he began casting “Blood Chains” to maintain his connection and believing that his regeneration would keep up with the rate that he was losing blood.
While this happened everyone who was seeing this became horrified, even Leela, because Jack’s skin was BURSTING and, in some places, they could see his organs, but one thing that made them even more horrified was that some of his organs were bursting too and from the blood and flesh that came out of Jack chains started to form and bind Jack while entering his body and leaving tattoos in the places and this happened for some minutes but the situation only got worse with even some of Jack’s bones burst and forming bone chains formed and controlled by Jack’s desire to stay connected and don’t let Leela down.
Only after some more minutes off fighting of the system trying to disconnect him that the situation calmed down and in front of Jack appeared four mor cards:
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Flesh Control
An ability similar to Blood Control but that is even more difficult to control
It provides the ability and knowledge on the best way to control flesh and not be harmed by it
Passive/Spell Card
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Flesh Chains
Chanel your own Flesh to bind someone so throughtfully that even its mind is bound in place
Spell Card (Newbie Stage)
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Bone Control
An ability that necromancer desire and fear
It provides the ability and knowledge on the best way to control bone and not be harmed by it
Passive/Spell Card
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Bone Chains
Chanel your own Bone to bind someone so throughtfully that even its mind is bound in place
Spell Card (Newbie Stage)
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Jack normally would be happy to have new cards but he was so tired that he didn’t even notice when another thing happened.
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Your Blood Control, Flesh Control and Bone Control cards are resonating
They are creating a card
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Body Control
The ability to control bodies made of flesh and blood be it living or dead
Passive/Spell Card
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Jack only noticed him falling with his face on the ground and faint from exhaustion and the pain that this time was too much.