Drake was caught up talking with Regurd and Licht when he spotted Seth entering the hall. He quicky began waving Seth over while the others turned toward the newcomer. Drake hadn’t known Seth for long, but he could tell that the easy-going smile he just threw on was accompanied by a shadow of annoyance.
“Something wrong?” He asked with a hint of concern. Seth waved him off with his onyx hand.
“Nah, it just seems I might be more of a drama queen than I originally thought.”
Drake’s brow furrowed and he was about to question further when Blair interrupted him.
“Are you finally done screwing around? I have the next set of matches queued up, so let’s get this going.”
She was sitting next to Licht at a console, both of them looking impatient. Drake held his hands up to calm them down. “Wait up a second guys, I wanted Seth to meet Regurd.” The golden paladin beside him patted him on the shoulder.
“No worries, I understand the impatience to fight after such a harrowing loss.” The large man claimed while wiggling his eyebrows at them all.
Drake laughed at the joke before playfully slapping Regurd’s hand away. “Just you wait my friend, the next time we fight, Seth won’t be the only one getting a good shot in.” Drake led Seth over to the console with Licht and Blair so they could sign up for the matches. Regurd pointed a gauntleted hand at Seth as he leaned over the console.
“It was nice to meet you outside of the battlefield Seth. Though I should warn you, Jackson wasn’t very happy about getting his ass handed to him by a tier two. You might have a duel on your hands soon if you’re not careful.”
Drake smirked as Seth’s face became slightly awkward. “It’s not like I beat him in a one-v-one, he had my entire team to exhaust himself on before fighting me in a tricky situation.”
The four finished signing up for the matches while Drake waited a moment to start them up. Regurd shot him a thumbs up before walking out of the hall.
“Unfortunately for you, he doesn’t see it that way.” He called over his shoulder as he disappeared around the corner. Drake held back a laugh as he heard Seth grumble something about fake stereotypes right before he started up the matches.
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“Seth swap with me. Blair, hit it with a concussive spell so he can get close.”
Drake’s commands echoed across the coliseum as both recipients nodded in understanding before jumping into action. Blair quickly muttered out a spell that hit the large porcupine-like creature with a wave of dense air, causing the monster to rear back with a squeal as a flurry of its own spines fell to the ground. Seth wasted no time and dashed forward with his speed that eclipsed any tier two Drake had seen before. Licht covered his approach by deflecting any stray spines, and Seth used the cleared path to carve a vicious streak directly through the monster’s midsection, nearly bisecting it outright.
As the monster staggered back with it’s entrails beginning to spill out, Drake didn’t let up and leapt over Seth to deliver the final blow. He activated the blessing given to him by the dragon slayer Umbra: Sigurd. Glorius white and gold flames crawled across his scimitars and caused the air around him to sizzle with heat. In a split second, two golden lines were drawn through the monster, causing it to fall into flaming pieces on the ground.
Drake went to call for the only one of them with a looting ability. “Se-!” He turned around with a start to find Seth already crouching next to him. Jeez, I forgot how stealthy he can be!
Seth soon gave him a thumbs up, signaling his success. The team quickly regrouped before the coliseum reset and the next match began. The seconds counted down and Drake quickly addressed the group.
“Good job again guys. This next one makes the twentieth and last match of this iteration. Blair and I have already hit tier three, so we’ll try and set the two of you up again this match. We’re not going to help out that much this time, so both of you make sure to stay on guard.”
The two looked confident, so Drake left it at that. The final seconds passed and the environment shifted, giving way to a slight sense of distortion. As the next match began, Seth and Licht took charge and started toward the shadowy figure on the far side of the coliseum. Drake and Blair followed slowly behind them while bantering quietly. It seemed this match only had one monster, which was kind of odd given the circumstances.
Since Drake and Blair hit the third tier, the matches slowly began to ramp up in difficulty. Now, instead of flocks of tier twos, or one or two tier threes, the matches have turned to multiple large tier threes, or flocks of smaller ones. It seemed this match had a peak tier three monster, which Drake would suppose justified the singular enemy.
They shouldn’t have any issue with the one opponent, no matter how strong it is, it’s still just a tier three.
Drake watched the two finally approach the monster still too far in the shade to identify. He was about to start talking to Blair when something finally occurred to him.
Wait, the coliseum doesn’t even have a ceiling, how is there any shade? OH SHI-
Drake’s thoughts were interrupted as a scream ripped across the sand arena. He turned as fast as lighting only to find Licht flying through the air in a trail of scales and blood. He slammed into the sand and didn’t get up afterward, but Drake breathed out in relief when he saw his chest steadily rise and fall. It seemed he had used multiple of his scale shields to soften the blow of whatever hit him. Blair cussed loudly next to him before taking off toward Licht.
“It’s a tier four! Go help Seth!” She called over her shoulder.
Realization dawned on Drake and he began running toward the now visible monster. He felt the aura of the tier four wash over him, causing him to flinch. The monster was a large feline creature with a huge alligator shaped maw and bladed tentacles that whipped around it’s back. Wisps of shadow clung to it’s rust colored fur as it loomed over the much smaller figure standing in front of it. Drake swore at his own hesitation as he continued his dash toward Seth.
Thankfully I can’t feel any conceptual aspects in the beast’s aura, but Seth still can’t beat a tier four alone. Damn! Why did I let them get so far ahead of us?!
Drake couldn’t help but wish for Seth’s speed as he watched from hundreds of meters away with helplessness. Licht was thrown pretty close to them, which showed just how strong the monster was. The fourth tier was known for being hard to scale, as it was centrally an evolution stage, but Drake guessed this one to be around the lower to mid stage of strength. This spelled trouble for Seth, as jumping tiers was difficult for a number a reasons, and this was even more true for a tier two shaper and a tier four monster. Even at the Configuring Stage, a two-rank difference was not easy to overcome, especially given the inherit resistances that the higher rank granted.
As Blair finally reached Licht, Drake continued watching in heavy panic and slight amazement as Seth barely kept up with the huge monster. Although Seth had superior speed when it came to others of his tier, this was not the case against a tier four. His previous agility that used to give him an advantage had now turned into the only thing allowing him to keep up. Finally, Drake got to a distance that would allow him to use at least one of his ranged spells.
Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.
“Conjoin upon my enemy oh whispers of fire.”
Drake’s Ablaze Environment merged with his Umbral Blessing, Holy Ignition, to create a blanket of white gold flames that clung to the entire monster’s body. Although he didn’t expect the spell to hurt the monster very much, Drake hoped that it would stall it for a few vital moments to allow him to join the fight. As the flames descended, the monster thrashed and roared under the coat of heat. All of its tentacles lashed out blindly, and a couple ended up striking Seth. They weren’t enough to send him flying, but the sharp protrusions at the end of them ended up raking across his body, one even tearing through his cheek, causing his teeth and jaw to become exposed.
Drake couldn’t tell if Seth was grinning or not, due to his grisly visage, but he thought he could see some excitement in the older boy’s eyes. He was almost close enough to let loose the rest of his abilities, but suddenly, Seth held up a hand toward the still writhing monster. Drake didn’t know what he was trying to do, but he was practically bleeding out where he stood.
“Seth get back and heal up! I got this!”
Unfortunately, the other boy didn’t seem to be listening. Drake’s fears were soon realized as the monster activated an ability, causing the hulking beast to be covered in a sea of shadows that quelled the flames and seemed to heal its wounds. The feline quickly regained its bearing then began to lunge toward Seth in a wave of darkness.
“Let your sins consume you.”
Before the monster had the chance to get any closer, a shapeless mass of black oil erupted from a new myth at the end of Seth’s hand.
Within a split second of coming into being, the huge onyx bulk shot toward the monster like a homing missile. Despite the new development, the monster was completely unfazed and tried to bat the mass aside with an empowered claw. Upon contact, the mass latched onto the cat’s appendage as if it were alive. Black tendrils crawled up the monster’s leg like a fast-spreading disease, causing the monster to roar with pain. It quickly began to scratch at the growing mass, trying to free itself from the ability’s hold.
As the monster descended into a wild frenzy, Drake couldn’t help but stare at the scene. He had finally arrived next to Seth, only to discover the other boy was swaying woozily. Drake heard him mumble about something being mana hungry before he plucked a low-quality recovery potion from thin air. Seth’s eyes regained some of their lucidity, allowing him to notice Drake standing next to him.
“I don’t think that’s going to be enough. Blair should hit it while it’s distracted.” He stated.
Drake’s mind kicked back into gear as he signaled for Blair to attack. It didn’t take her long to get herself in range, to which she swiftly began drawing lines through the air. The monster continued to kick up sand as it bit and clawed at its own skin, only succeeding in shedding small amounts of the black sludge that relentlessly burrowed into the beast’s body. It wasn’t long before its roars of anger turned to yowls of pain. As Blair finished her ability, the sounds of agony were silenced as a large slash of light ended the creature.
Drake traded glances with Blair before Seth dashed for the new corpse. He began sheathing his weapons while he watched Seth go about looting the monster. Drake didn’t know what exactly his ability was, but any type of looting ability was quite valuable regardless. The seconds continued to count down, but Seth hadn’t gotten back up from the monster body yet. Blair walked over to where Drake was currently watching Seth inquisitively. He had his hand out in an odd manner, as if he was trying to harness something. His body was practically shaking with effort as well. The process seemed to finish just before the last seconds ran out, teleporting all of them back into the main hall. Upon arrival, Blair went about treating Licht while Drake went to go check on Seth, who was still bleeding plenty. He walked over to his crouching figure, only for Seth to turn around before he got there. His face was contorted in a large grin, marred only by the large rip in his cheek.
“Now that’s what I’m talking about!”
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Seth gazed at the new screen in front of him, having completely forgotten about his injuries.
-Shade Predator anima stolen.
-Shade Predator anima can be slotted into the sub-aspect: Anima Prison.
-Slotting a tier four anima into Anima Prison will grant a physical boost based on the highest attribute of the anima.
-Would you like to slot Shade Predator anima?
Seth mentally assented with earnest.
-Shade Predator anima has been slotted, Xtrey Hound anima deposited back into Anima Abyss
Anima Prison:
-The item can use the power of the anima it holds. (Current Inhabitant: Shade Predator (Tier Four) Current boost: Twitch Speed)
Not only had Seth been able to try out his new ability, but he also got a solid raise in reflex speed as well, not that he needed it. Unfortunately, he hadn’t been able to tier up in the last fight, but the gains he did get were good enough for the time being. Not to mention, Blair and Drake had reached tier three during their matches. “Hey man, you’re leaking.” Seth looked up to find Drake pointing at the floor where a small pool of crimson black blood had been piling up. Instead of tending to his injuries, Seth nodded towards where the other two were standing.
“Don’t worry about me. Check him out.”
Drake turned toward where he was gesturing to find Blair holding Licht with a surprised look on her face. He was currently glowing from the inside with a silver light. So you tiered up after all? Good on you mate. With everyone watching Licht, Seth quietly pulled a black book from his cache and placed it on the growing pool of blood.
Waste not want not.
As his blood soaked into the pages, he watched a large cloud of purple energy drain into Licht from the environment. The vacuum lasted for a few more moments before dissipating, leaving a still unconscious Licht with a new taste of power around him. Now it appeared Seth was the only one yet to hit tier three. His weaker aura now felt isolated in the room full of tier threes, somewhat dimming his excitement. A few sets of eyes focused on the unconscious Licht and the rest of the group. Drake noticed this and herded the other three away for their post-match meeting.
Before long, the three were chilling in Drake’s room with a now lucid Licht. Just like before, they began going over each fight with an almost surgical precision. Now that most of the group was tier three, it was time for them to start re-analyzing their combat styles to factor in the changes of their abilities and attributes. This part of the challenge was almost his favorite, second only to actually fighting in the matches. The insight the others had was more valuable than anything he could buy in the store. They had what Seth needed most: the mindset of a shaper. As they poured over the details of the fights, Seth was gathering all the information he needed to fill in the blanks of the best shaping strategies. To sweeten the deal, the other three also gave opinions and advice on Seth’s own fighting style.
“Before we actually go further with defining your fighting style, tell us what that new ability of yours was. I’m guessing that was the new ranged attack you were talking about getting?” Drake asked after rewatching the match.
“Also, did you say something about sins?” Licht piped up, having been knocked out during his actual use of the ability. Seth nodded in embarrassment before briefly explaining the ability.
Black Mass:
-An ability unlocked by Presence of Doom; Deliver absolution to those that sin. Grants Sin of Satan, Sin of Astaroth, Sin of Beelzebub. (Extreme DE cost)
Sin of Satan
-The injury inflicted by the user cannot be healed by any item or ability lower than one tier above the user. (Current Limit: Tier Three)
Sin of Astaroth
-The injury inflicted by the user will continuously drain energy and transfer it to the user.
Sin of Beelzebub:
-The injury inflicted by the user will continue to fester until healed.
The ability was extremely strong and even scaled as time went on. It was a huge boon for his flexibility though, as a ranged attack that constantly distracted the enemy would allow him to deliver some huge blows while concealed by his illusions. The only downside was that the ability itself was relatively slow and cost almost all his energy. He also had a personal issue with Black Mass.
“Why does it mention sins so much? It makes me sound like a priest or something.” Seth pouted.
The other three thought about his explanation for a while. Finally, Licht spoke up. “I don’t think it has anything to do with actual sins or whatever you might be thinking. I believe it’s just a case of your ability development manifesting in way that would seem familiar to you. I’ve only read a little about it before, but it is a common case amongst Mundanes. Due to the fundamentally different way that you all perceive existence, your Foundation reflects that belief through an easy to understand medium.”
Seth rubbed his chin at Licht’s claim while he re-read his abilities. “Yeah that makes sense, I remember an acquaintance of mine mentioning that The Chrome had a huge amount of abilities documented, but they keep getting new ones all the time. If people needed familiar concepts to understand the Foundation, then new abilities would crop up everywhere.”
But as he thought more about it, Seth’s face scrunched up again. “It still doesn’t make sense though. I’m not religious or anything, so why didn’t it appear as something else? Also, it’s supposed to be familiar to me right? Why didn’t it pick some other religion or mythology from my world? There are so many cooler ones to have picked from!” Seth grumbled to himself.
“It most likely wasn’t random. I believe it probably based them off of your previous subconscious thoughts to some extent. For example, sins represent something evil or sinister in your culture.” Licht looked slightly guilty as he hypothesized.
“Perhaps your abilities are of that nature.”