Jado drew in a deep breath, his eyes wide opened and his limbs frozen. A second later, the sandstorm passed over him in a roaring cacophony, powerful gusts of wind pushing him off his feet. The grains of sand pierced the young man's skin, stinging him in every part of his body that wasn't covered by clothes. That's at this moment that he began regretting ripping parts of his clothes off to use as bandages, wincing as sand got into the wound in his side, burning him to a scald.
He tried to cover that part with his right hand as best he could, his other in front of his eyes as he tried to see through the storm. He could barely see the Autel and winced when he discovered it was much further away. Somehow, the wind had pushed him off enough to get ten feet away from his original hiding place.
Hoping to take refuge behind the tough stone Altar, he struggled to walk forward, the thick opaque curtain of the sandstorm making it impossible to see his path. Jado opened his map, seeing that it was completely scrambled, the position of the Altar changing every second in a weird blink. He closed his map, gritted his teeth, and pushed forward, sweat pearling down his body. The wound on his leg caused by the hyena the other day that was supposed to be healed reopened, and he almost fell forward from his leg giving in under him, but he stood straight, ignoring the pain.
Coughing from breathing in the sand, he kept on going, fighting the sand and the wind, finally taking shelter behind the stone Altar. Jado couldn't hear anything because of the thunderous winds that surrounded him, but he could almost swear he heard the worried hiss of his small snake companion. Or, perhaps it was just his fever creating a few hallucinations, he couldn't tell, he never had any before all this damned hell fell on his shoulders.
In the distance, a blurry humanoid shape appeared, strangely familiar to him. It raised its hand toward him awkwardly, before waving the same way she used to–
"NARI!!" He yelled, but the figure didn't move and kept on waving its hand awkwardly. Jado was about to stand up to go after the figure when he blinked because of the pain in his eyes. Once he reopened them, the figure was gone, disappeared in the storm.
Damn it, was that a hallucination? I...I have to doubt everything!
Sand began accumulating on his body, so he brushed it off to avoid getting buried under it. A more powerful gust of wind than the other pulled him out of his hiding place, making him levitate for a few seconds in the air before letting him crash down back on the ground. The shock made him cough even more, blood being mixed with the sand this time. He couldn't find the Altar anywhere anymore. Jado couldn't even see further than his nose right now, anyway. Finding his way back with his dysfunctional map was impossible, so maybe the only thing he could do, right now, was...wait, and get through it. Grit his teeth, and take it. He didn't have any choice anyway.
Another gust of wind almost pushed him up again, but he took his Desert Fang out of his inventory and planted it on the ground. Thankfully, there was something solid under the sand, and he managed to hold on by grabbing tightly the chitin handle of his weapon. He pushed it further down in the ground, crouching with it to form as little resistance against the winds as possible. His hands were red from getting hit by the flying grains of sand, and his whole was itching, burning, and irritated. And he didn't even want to try thinking about his wounds. Somehow, the adrenaline pumping into his veins made it more bearable, but the young man had no idea how much time he would be able to hold in this storm.
A howl in the wind, different from the natural roar made him turn his head, squinting his eyes to try and see something in the curtains of yellow particles. A black bolt of lightning lit up the darkness of the sandstorm, revealing the shadow of a giant creature that was shaped like a cross. Jado felt his eyes burn when he saw the shadow, and he coughed more blood in his hands, staring in horror as the blood squirmed alive, like worms. He jerked his hand off in fright, and let the squirming blood fly away in the winds.
What was that?!? He screamed in his mind, unable to open his mouth so he wouldn't fill it with sand. A powerful thunderclap blasted over the dunes, blowing sand in an explosion. Jado closed his eyes, not wanting to see whatever he wasn't supposed to see. The clothes on his body were mostly ripped apart by now, with his sleeves practically gone. Blood was drizzling done his limbs after some small wounds had been opened by the sharp sandblast.
His ears ringed, making him wince in pain, a hot liquid flowing down his ears, informing him that his eardrums just burst, making him pretty much deaf. By now, most people would have given up and let the wind carry them away, but Jado held on. Jado held on, because now the only thing he could see was the image of Kale transforming into an abomination, and the face of the woman he loved, Nari. Those two images gave him the strength to fight against the winds, fight against the sand, and fight against his fated death.
Silence and calm suddenly replaced the chaos, the wind falling and the sand stopping its relentless assault. Jado slowly opened his eyes, shaking the sand in them off.
Is it finally over? He thought with an ember of hope in his heart, an ember that quickly died out, replaced by despair and dismay. His raised eyes discovered a hole in the sky, where no cloud blocked the light. This was only a respite in the storm, a small pocket of peaceful air where he could catch his breath. Jado let go of his weapon, his hands shaking with blood dripping from them. He had been holding so tightly he had ripped his hands open, no flesh left on his palms and fingers. On his knees, his eyes flew around, desperately trying to find a way to save himself. They lit up when he saw the body of one of the trampled spiders, the size of a golden retriever. The young man ran over there after grabbing his Desert Fang back, ignoring the pain in his whole body.
Not thinking twice about it, he pierced the spider with the end of his twin blade, using the makeshift skewer to throw the corpse into the inventory. He noticed a few other corpses, and repeated the procedure, piercing them to ensure they were dead, using the twin blade as a lever to pick them up and then storing them. Some were bigger than the first, some smaller, but he didn't care. He reopened his map, the ember of hope suddenly brazing brightly once again in his heart, the lull allowing him to use it once again. He was probably a minute away from the Altar. Usually, a minute was nothing, but right now, it was as long as an eternity for Jado.
He stopped picking up corpses and ran toward the Altar, his lungs and heart burning, all the while blood poured down his wounds and mouth. His eyes, bloodshot, were still resolute, determined to get through this ordeal. They couldn't cry anymore, having expended any water they had left, but they still worked, so that was all that mattered to him. With the storm in his back, Jado arrived in front of the Altar, roaring in relief savagely. He stuck the Desert Fang in one of the cracks of the Altar, holding tight onto it while dropping spider corpse after the other on the Altar. The winds picked up again, pushing down on his back, but he held on.
Do you want to sacrifice—
"YES!!! DON'T ASK ME AND DO IT!!!" Jado screamed, his sanity barely holding on. Sand rose around the Altar, a different kind of sand to the one that made up the storm. That was only now that he realized, that it was indeed different. Usually, whatever sand there was in the desert, it was just...well, sand. Instead, the one that rose each time to devour the sacrifice was different. It was powerful, old, almost ancient, but most importantly...it was alive. The sand fell back down, creating ripples on the ground. The young man felt the ground rise up and down as if a wave just passed under his feet.
That doesn't make any sense–
A pillar made out of weather stone rose from the ground, blocking the sand from attacking Jado, who was witnessing the event with widened eyes, despite them burning painfully. Another pillar rose, then another, and soon enough the circular Altar was surrounded by eight ancient stone pillars. Walls rose between each pillar, creating a circular structure around the young man. A roof grew out of the pillars, connecting the walls and closing the space. A singular opening stood right behind Jado, who turned just in time to witness a stone gate rise from the ground to serve as a door.
The sand under his feet trembled before getting replaced with red crackled bricks that seemed to have drunk blood for thousands of years. The Desert Fang flew out of the Altar by its own will, landing in Jado's arms, who was standing there speechless, forgetting to even breathe. The Altar transformed slightly, fixing itself. The cracks in it filled up, and the engravings cleared out of any debris or sand in them. The ones that had disappeared after being weathered out reappeared magically as if someone was engraving them once again. A cloud of dust rose in the room, before getting vacuumed out of the new building. A small second of silence passed before the young man fell to his knees, gasping for air.
The Desert Fang made a clanging sound as it crashed down onto the ground, bouncing off it in a metallic sound a few times. The adrenaline that fueled Jado finally stopped pumping, leaving him exhausted and unable to think. He looked at the now repaired Altar, a sense of dread washing over him.
"Dune!" Jado rushed over to the Altar, touching it to see if there was any opening or any cracks, but it was completely repaired. It looked old but in a perfect state. Did the little snake fuse with the stone during the repair?
"No, no no no!" Jado yelled, rage and despair in his eyes. He had received something friendly in this damned desert, something that brought a bit of warmth to his heart in this hell, and it was gone because he made a rushed repair? Why?!?
A hiss stopped him dead in his tracks, and he turned back slowly to see that Dune was standing there, his tail in the shape of a question mark. Even without that, the young man could see that the snake was confused. A small smile appeared on Jado's blank face, and he let out a small chuckle despite himself.
"Hah." The small chuckle transformed into a laugh, while the young man picked the snake up, hugging it tightly. Finally, he burst out in hilarity, tears of happiness and relief streaming down his face. His stress disappeared as his brain came to a last realization.
He was finally safe.
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The King opened his eyes, already weary at the coming day. He blocked the light entering from the window from hitting his eyes, his wrinkled hand weak and slow. The corners of his mouth curled up despondently, and he rubbed the tiredness off his face. As great as he was, oldness would affect him as much as it did the others. His small and stick-like legs got out painfully of the bed, allowing him to sit at the side of the bed. His side had long remained empty, and he was the only one in the bed. How much time had it been already?
He sighed, trying to give himself some motivation, but as was often the case these days, he wasn't able to muster the energy to fuel this damned day. He weakly shook the bell beside the bed, and two servant girls hurried themselves into the room, picking up the clothes the King indicated with a trembling hand. They didn't dare to directly look at him, a mix of fear and respect inscribed on their faces. They dressed the old monarch reverently, each of their movements carefully planned. They couldn't help but act so seriously, since, after all, this unimpressive wrinkled old man was the King. His presence, even faded, was sufficient to make them want to kneel and lick his boots. Well, feet in the present time, but it was the same thing.
The King shook his head, cracking his back and neck with a few twists. His old body made rusty noises like an old mechanical device. He waved dismissively at the servants, who ran out as fast of the room as they entered it earlier. The old man's gaze stopped on the sword hanging on the wall, a plain, rusty sword broken in three pieces. Each piece was corroded in different manners, the first simply rusty, as if it had been left in the water for a long time, the second with black permanent stains and dull edges as if something made the blade smelt on itself. The last piece was tainted with a purple substance that was pulsing slowly in a disgusting manner as if it was still alive. Even though the King knew for a fact that it was as dead as dead could be, he still felt his instincts getting rattled by this strange liquid. A small wooden nameplate was situated below the sword, "Eclipse" being inscribed there.
He moved his trembling hand near the handle of the broken sword, hesitating for a few seconds, his eyes filled with nostalgia, before finally letting it droop beside his crooked body. Instead, he picked up a light scepter made of ebony inlaid with gold, the head of a sculpted lion making up the pommel. He gave himself a quick look in the mirror, turning quickly his eyes away when what he saw disappointed him. How could he not be when he had lost everything that made him who he was physically? The only things that remained from his past glory were his sharp, black eyes with a golden light shining in them.
He approached the door of his room, picking up his crown on the way. He placed it on his head mechanically, not sparing it a single look. The golden masterpiece, incrusted with beautiful jewels of all colors, was more of a burden to him now, instead of a sign of his power. Well, whatever, he did earn this crown and swore that he would wear it until the end of his days. If there was one promise he wanted to uphold, that was this one, a promise he made to himself so, so long ago. He pushed the doors open, two rows of golden-clad knights standing beside it, guarding it. Once he passed the threshold, the knights turned and took their swords in a harmonious choreography, giving him the walk of honor.
The sound of the King's cane hitting the floor echoed in the silence of the hallway, the gazes of the knights following him with fear and adoration. Those weren't the only looks, though, and there were also some filled with pity, others with sadness. Some knights were holding their tears, some were standing proudly, but all had one thing in common. They stood silently, filled with respect. He walked slowly, coughing a little on the way, his old lungs desperately injecting more oxygen into his blood, until he finally arrived in the throne room. The tinted glass ceiling was letting a delicate light inside the gigantic hall, illuminating the thousands of people standing in rows there.
The old man closed his eyes for a second, breathing peacefully one last time, and headed for the throne. He arrived in front of it, and looked at it for half a minute, no one daring to say anything. He touched the armrest of the golden, majestic chair, almost caressing it longingly. He smiled gently and sat in it. His eyes passed on the audience, a mix of councilors, nobles, knights, but also peasants, merchants, and even strangers. Outside the throne room, even more people were waiting in silence, probably the whole city and maybe more. So many people would have put some pressure on his shoulders before, but it didn't do anything to him.
There wasn't much that could move him anymore nowadays, probably a consequence of having seen everything, experienced everything, and surviving through them all. He turned his head left, giving one last look to the empty silver seat, and another to his right, where his five sons and three daughters were standing, all looking at him with tears flowing down their cheeks. He sighed, and stared at the ceiling, letting the light warm his old wrinkly face.
A loud sound echoed through the throne room as he hit the ground with his cane. He coughed, and stood up in one, last majestic moment.
"Let's..." He took a deep inspiration, his voice gaining in strength and loudness, enough to cover the whole region.
"BEGIN!"
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Jado brusquely stood up, projecting sand everywhere, and scowling as he reopened his wounds accidentally. He was covered in sweat and was still as feverish as before, but at least, he remained alive. He rubbed his face painfully, trying to remember the dream he just got out of. There was a King...a broken sword...and a lot of people...
"What's up with my dreams nowadays?" He muttered under his breath, still struggling to completely wake up. He rubbed the sand in his eyes off, letting him see his surroundings. He wasn't in the desert anymore, and the walls and pillars that surged out of the ground before he lost consciousness were still there, and he still had a roof over his head.
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"So this wasn't a hallucination..." He whispered, his voice weary and broken. It seemed like the sacrifices healed his body just enough for him not to die, but didn't do anything more. They probably were fully invested in the structural points of the Altar, allowing him to get this nice shelter. It looked more like a temple, or something along those lines. Jado didn't have any ideas of what a temple should look like, as the only deity revered in Araashir was a spirit of good fortune that only had a small sacred circle in the forest where they went each time they had a prayer to give.
The young man never believed in all that stuff, but now that he was getting used to offering sacrifices to some unknown existence, he felt like that might have been a real thing. What did he know? Perhaps there was something similar to the blue window he had for the druid taking care of the stone circle, who knows? Dune slithered around his neck, hissing its small tongue happily. It seemed like the little snake had gotten worried about him.
"Don't worry, Dune. I'm almost dead, but not exactly there yet," Jado reassured him, holding his side while pushing himself up on his feet. He stretched his body and took a look at the small temple he was in. There were eight pillars, exactly like he remembered seeing rising from the ground before passing out, placed in a circular way around the Altar. The walls between each pillar were straight, giving the room a more angular look, and he imagined that the building would look like an octagon from a bird's view. There was nothing particularly interesting, so he decided to check out the Altar's window.
Nameless Altar of the Forgotten Desert Level: Small Shrine Structural Integrity: 124/2000 Owner: Jado Mirak, Servant of the Sand
Current Structural Level: Lowest
Current Supporting Structures: [Null]
"Oh, there is a structural level, now," the young man remarked as he read the updated contents of the windows, "And there can be supporting structures? What does that mean?"
He dismissed the window, taking note of the current structural integrity. He'll have to work twice as hard to upgrade the Altar again, but it didn't bother him, since he understood that the higher the level of the Altar, the better he'll be. He then opened his status window, his eyes widening at the new updates.
Name (Jado Mirak) Rank Lowest Class (Servant of the Sand) Title [The One Who Saw Death] Agility Insignificant Constitution Lowest Intelligence Insignificant Strength Insignificant Skill(s) [Resilience], [Eyes of the Pharaoh], (???) Companion(s) (Dune] Task(s) The Seed of a Kingdom, A Grain of Sand in the Gear of Time (6/?)
"Wow, what happened?" He exclaimed, trying to figure out these new changes. His rank got updated! He went from insignificant to...lowest? Was it better or worse, he had no idea? His constitution did the same evolution, so he supposed it was the first option. Perhaps what the status window meant by "insignificant" was that it was so low it couldn't even bother evaluating it. Maybe his constitution had reached the threshold of being qualified as the bare minimum, explaining the "lowest" rank. Now, what was the reason for such an upgrade?
The only thing he did these past few days was to endure hit after hit and dance the salsa hand in hand with Death itself. Besides his body getting abused to its brink, which, he was sure, didn't improve it, he couldn't see any other reasons as to why it got to the lowest rank. Did that mean to train his constitution he'd have to destroy his body again and again? What kind of nonsensical logic was this? No, there had to be something else...Jado was sure that there was indeed a logic to this status window, and he was beginning to figure it out.
He opened his class window, smiling when he saw that it had been updated.
(Servant of the Sand)
(A long time ago, the Forgotten Desert had a name and a ruler. It was no desert and wasn't forgotten either. Until the sand came and devoured everything, covering everything, ruling everything. )
[The Immortal King died, and what he left was a country that desperately needed him. He was the shield, the sword, and the face of the Empire. With him, they were the absolute rulers. But without him, they were only grains lost in the sandstorm.]
(???)
"The Immortal King...Does that have something to do with those dreams I saw in my sleep?" Jado questioned aloud, rubbing his chin in a captivated manner. It felt like he was revealing some kind of hidden history, and doing so had given him quite an ecstatic feeling. Perhaps, once he progresses enough through those "tasks" as well as upgrading his rank, he'll unearth a mythic saga. He couldn't wait but see what this window had in stock for him.
He closed it and focused on the new tasks he received. He began with the one he was used to, A Grain of Sand in The Gear of Time, leaving the best for later.
A Grain of Sand in the Gear of Time (6/?) You've managed to repair the Forgotten Altar. You're on the right path, but will you be able to walk it? Objective: Improve the Altar from Small Shrine to Simple Shrine. Reward: Sacrificial Armory Hint: The Forgotten Desert is filled with dangers. Being prepared for it is the best way to survive it. But remember, not all sacrifices are of flesh and blood.
"Well, hello!" the young man exclaimed happily, seeing this new reward. He took a quick look at his current clothes, winced, and determined that his main objective was now to complete this task. After all, as the hint said, equipment was an absolute necessity. And perhaps with this "Sacrificial Armory", he'll be able to get something he'd be able to use more easily than the Desert Fang. Not that he disliked the weapon, but he was just too scared of planting one end in his enemy and the other in his belly. The only thing puzzling him was the last part of the hint. What did it mean, "not all sacrifices are of flesh and blood"? What, should he try to sacrifice sand? He had nothing else, after all. Oh, yeah, also some rations. Well, that'll have to wait.
He dismissed this window and opened the other task, freezing with his eyes wide open, his eyebrows raised comically. His jaw was practically on the floor, and he took a step back, having a hard time stomaching this new mission, and what it implied.
[The Seed of a Kingdom] You're the Servant of the Sand, the only being able to rule over the infinite Forgotten Desert. You're also the only one who can uphold the last desire of a dying king. Objective: Build the Sand Empire back to its former glory Reward: A King's Life, [???] Hint: This task is linked to all the other quests. Complete the other tasks quickly to fulfill this task's objective.
"...W...What?" Jado rubbed his eyes, but the window still stated the same thing. He had to build back the...the Sand Empire, whatever empire that was, back to its former glory? Him? A...A farmer?
"Just...How am I even supposed to do that?" He blurted out in a sigh, almost chuckling astoundingly. The previous logic of the system just disappeared with this new task. This was impossible, after all, he was just one person!
"How am I supposed to build an empire alone?" The young man exclaimed, leaning against the closest wall. Dune hissed disapprovingly, throwing an accusing stare at him.
"Alright, alright," Jado backed off apologetically, "How are we supposed to build an empire with just you and me?" He corrected himself, rubbing the head of the little snake who slithered happily up his arm. This was nonsensical, no matter how incredible and magical the system was, to even make a village work, it needed different people, with different sets of skills, knowledge, or even personalities. So, to do all that by him– themselves was simply stupid to ask. Jado decided to simply put this task away, and forget about it. As long as the whole population surrounding the Altar remained as a snake and a confused human, he wouldn't even consider the mission.
There was one last thing he needed to check out anyway, and that was his new skill, Eyes of the Pharaoh. He had no idea what a Pharaoh was, but it sure sounded interesting. His stomach suddenly grumbled loudly, and he scowled with a shameful expression. Jado opened his inventory, taking out a bundle ration, stopping halfway. His eyes were stopped on the purple crystal he picked up from the big bird's body. The hint of the Altar window came back into his mind, and he suddenly wondered if the not-bloody-sacrifices it was talking about were this kind of thing. But how could he be sure he could even use it as a –
Monster Core Rank: Lowest Origin: [Desert Scavenger] Can be used as a sacrifice.
"Holy...Where did that come from?" Jado questioned, his eyes quickly reading the contents of the new window. Their apparitions were less and less startling, but he'd like it if he could maybe control them slightly more. This seemed to be the description of the purple crystal, even if there wasn't much to it. He pressed on the Desert Scavenger, making another window open.
Desert Scavenger Rank: Lowest [A common beast of the Forgotten Desert, one of the many scavengers living there. Usually lives in packs of a hundred to attack more dangerous predators.]
"Hmm...So that bird was a Desert Scavenger..." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully, shivering at the last part of the description, "They can live in packs of hundreds? And to say I struggled against only one..." Jado shook his head at the work he had in front of him to be able to stand up to at least the lowest-ranked creatures in the desert. He dismissed the window, having guessed that those new abilities came from that new skill, Eyes of the Pharaoh. He took out his food like he had planned to originally do, leaving the matter with the monster core for later.
Eyes of the Pharaoh Rank: Lowest [To survive, being able to identify what's in front of oneself is an absolute necessity.] Effect: You can open the basic descriptions of the most common items. WARNING: This skill is sealed. To unseal it, fill hidden conditions, and upgrade it to receive better benefits.
"Well, this explains that," He nodded, wondering what he could or could not identify, but most importantly, what were those "hidden conditions" he needed to fill. Couldn't they just say what he needed to do like for the tasks? How complicated. The young man then decided to try this skill on everything he owned, by beginning with his clothes and the food rations.
Clothes Rank: Unranked Some plain clothes to wear in the desert. Durability: 20/100
Basic food ration Rank: Unranked A meatloaf and a leather flask filled with water Durability: 100/100
"Hmm, so "normal" items or necessities are qualified as "unranked," Jado concluded, dismissing these two windows. Now, the real thing he had an interest in was his Desert Fang, as it was probably the most precious thing he owned.
Desert Fang Rank: Red A long polearm with one blade on each end. Deadly in the right hands. Origin: Big Black Crab
Durability: 999/1000
Can be repaired with sacrifices of the same rank