Mask of the Wolf - A wooden mask carved from a powerfully magical and unknown source in the shape of a wolf. Improves the wearer’s overall passive dexterity, speed, and reflexes by a moderate amount. The wearer has improved eyesight and can see in darkness up to 60 feet. All skills improve by one stage. The wearer’s movements become sharpened and use less energy by a small amount.
*When under dim light, all mask effects are increased by a moderate amount.
*Additional effect: ???
*Cursed: Sunlight sensitivity - direct exposure to sunlight will physically harm the wearer.
Additional cursed effect: ???
This item is a soulbound item. Once donned, it cannot be used by another.
This item is 1/4 of the God Beasts set. Collect all masks to unlock its true power.
Mask of the Lion - A wooden mask carved from a powerfully magical and unknown source in the shape of a lion. Improves the wearer’s overall mana regeneration and magical strength, and reduces spell cast time all by a moderate amount. The wearer has improved eyesight and can see in darkness up to 60 feet as well as magical effects with an inherent understanding of their function. All skills improve by one stage. The wearer’s mind is sharpened and all spell cast times are reduced by a small amount.
*When under the effect of a beneficial spell, all mask effects are increased by a moderate amount.
*Additional effect: ???
*Cursed: Magical blindness - when not wearing this mask, the wearer’s eyesight is reduced by a small amount.
Additional cursed effect: ???
This item is a soulbound item. Once donned, it cannot be used by another.
This item is 1/4 of the God Beasts set. Collect all masks to unlock its true power.
Mask of the Bull - A wooden mask carved from a powerfully magical and unknown source in the shape of a bull. Improves the wearer’s overall strength, endurance, and power by a moderate amount. The wearer is able to be healed by absorbing other’s energies, whether through mana, life, blood, or other means. All skills improve by one stage. The wearer’s body is improved with their skin toughening and being resistant to all damage by a small amount.
*When enraged, all mask effects are increased by a small amount.
*Additional effect: ???
*Cursed: Hunger - you possess an unnatural hunger. If your hunger is not satiated, your life will be consumed instead.
Additional cursed effect: ???
This item is a soulbound item. Once donned, it cannot be used by another.
This item is 1/4 of the God Beasts set. Collect all masks to unlock its true power.
Landon found it difficult to tear his eyes away from the mask, but reading the Mask of the Wolf’s description in his parchment gave him a new level of excitement. Each line made his desire to put it on right away grow, but he paused when he read the curse.
He knew the masks had curses. They discovered that when they first found the Mask of the Bull, though most of its description was hidden. Just seeing one of its effects as being cursed is what them hesitate to use them to begin with. The wolf mask, though? Sunlight sensitivity didn’t seem so bad. Why not just use a cloak or hood or something? Or just go out when it’s not sunny. Easy solution. Then the mask would basically be used as a ridiculously powerful item with all of its other benefits.
But Landon knew there was more to it. It was the only thing preventing him from turning it around in his hands and putting it on his face. Now that they had three of them, more of their effects were revealed, and they were truly powerful. Fitting for their title of God Beasts. Added with the fact that there were only four of them in the group? The masks were practically made for them. Once the group discovered the artifacts, Landon knew it was fate that they held and used them. There was no other explanation.
As he stared at the mask, he felt a strange pull. It was alluring and fulfilling, like it pulled on his soul. He could sense the magic within the mask personally, as if it was an heirloom or a long lost artifact created specifically for him. Silent whispers breezed across his mind, begging him to just put it on. The power of the mask was tangible. Physical. Palpable.
“I don’t understand,” Octavius said. He held the wooden lion mask in one hand and one of his parchment pieces in the other. He sat on the edge of his cushioned seat in Jane’s apartment with the rest of the group. “These effects are outrageous! How did they expand from before? There wasn’t that much description before!”
“We found more of the set pieces,” Jane said. She stood beside her brother who held the bull mask. He was staring intently at it while she was studying the parchment that held the mask’s description. “Like other magical items, the more set pieces are equipped the more a set bonus is given.”
“Not this one, though. We haven’t equipped them! And they don’t have set bonuses, they have multiple lines of text of bonuses, like the mask itself grew with power! It doesn’t make sense!”
“It’s likely from how they upgraded their rarity,” Jane added. “Which also shouldn’t happen. I haven’t heard of it happening, at least. I wonder if we find the last one they’ll upgrade to orange rarity?”
“Does it matter?”
“Of course it matters! Their power is easily orange rarity already, even with the curses. That’s not something to ignore. I have a feeling it’ll likely happen since it’s already happened once.”
“You don’t know that for sure. Like I said, it doesn’t make sense.”
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“It doesn’t have to make sense,” Landon said. He continued staring at his mask as he talked. “All I know is that we’ll find out their true power once we find that fourth mask. All of this speculation now is just wasting time.”
Octavius shared a look with Jane. She shrugged, and he felt his stomach churn. He hated conflict. But he also didn’t know if he could keep his opinion to himself.
Jane read him like a book and sighed. She knew Vi nearly as well as her brother.
“Landon,” Jane said, her voice low and flat. “We nearly killed ourselves finding the third one. It’s powerful. They all are. But the odds of us finding the fourth -”
“We have to find it,” Landon said, his voice ragged and distorted. He caressed the mask with his hand, closely examining and feeling every inch. “It’s our only purpose now.”
Jane furrowed her eyebrows but didn’t flinch. “Whether true or not, it’s an impossible task. Which is what I was going to say. There are four days left in the season and all we’ve done for the past four weeks was look for those masks. Soon the tower will change, and then we’ll lose every possibility of finding the fourth. It just isn’t for us.”
Landon finally looked away from the mask at the Witch. Anger rose inside him at first, but then it began to ease away. The whispers in his mind calmed as he lost his focus on the mask. He gently set it down and stood up, pacing the room.
“We have to at least try,” Landon said, his voice calmer. “I’ll never forgive myself if we don’t give as much time as possible for at least that much.”
“I get it,” Corbyn said. He felt power in his fingers while holding the bull mask, as though his hands could punch through stone. But the strange tug in his mind while he held the wooden item gave him worry. He sat it down and looked away. The tug eased. “I can feel its power. But we’ve been running ragged. I’m exhausted. I can tell Jane and Vi are, too, and you’re likely hiding how tired you really are. We’ve never pushed this hard for anything.”
Landon stopped pacing and nodded his head. “I know. But the possibilities of wielding this power are too great! We could do whatever we wanted! We could likely get to the final tier with just us four. Maybe even complete the whole damn thing!”
“No,” Octavius said. “That’s not what I signed up for. You know that. I don’t want power, Landon. I want money.”
“Power nets us money, Vi,” Landon pleaded. “Climbing the higher floors will give more money than your family would ever need. Your goal was enough that they never had to work again, right? All six of them? Imagine splitting the reward only four ways clearing out a floor in the third tier with the power from this mask. You could make enough money in one climb that one person in your family would make in an entire season! You could cover enough wealth for not just your family but your extended family! Your community! Your children and their children, too!”
“Not if I’m dead, I won’t. What if those curses are binding and last forever? What if the additional curse effect is something that will get me or one of us killed? This mask says the wearer will lose their sight. Their damn sight! That’s insane!”
“And the entire point of why we shouldn’t be using them just yet,” Jane added.
“Exactly.”
Landon walked over to Octavius and put a hand on his shoulder. Octavius slightly shied away, unsure of what he was going to do. But Landon only squeezed him gently, emphasizing his words.
“What would you do to ensure your family’s wealth? Sacrifice your health? Risk your life? You’re already doing that being a Climber. This would just expedite the process. Wouldn’t that be for the benefit of your family and you?”
Octavius shook his head. Landon wasn’t exactly wrong, but he hated being manipulated. He wanted to climb on his own terms. Not be led into even more danger than he already was in every time he entered Alistair.
“And what if we sold the masks? There would likely be some very interested buyers and then I could earn that money right away. No harm done.”
Landon’s face grew hard, and his hand squeezed Octavius’s shoulder much harder. Octavius batted it away and pushed him. The man barely moved.
“Don’t even threaten that,” Landon said. “Those masks are ours. We aren’t selling them. And if you ever mention it again -”
“What, Landon?” Jane said, stepping beside him. “It’s a valid point. Back off.”
Landon turned to her but Corbyn was suddenly standing beside him, too, his hand clenched into a fist. The three of them didn’t budge. The tension was palpable. These moments were becoming more and more common, but this one seemed particularly bad. If no one intervented, someone would likely do something they'd regret.
Octavius sighed loudly and stepped between all of them. “It’s fine. Really. I brought up my concerns, and Landon answered them. We don’t have to sell them.”
“Don’t give up so quickly, Vi,” Jane said, not taking her eyes off Landon. “You’re better than that.”
“No, he just realized his own conclusion,” Landon said. “He’s smarter than you give him credit for.”
“Stop,” Octavius said. Complimenting him after threatening him was just too much. He was done with talking about the masks and Landon’s obsessiveness. “Just… stop. We can find a compromise. Please, gods, find a compromise.”
“I won’t stop,” Landon said. “I can’t. With or without all of you, I’m going to look for the fourth one.”
“We’ve been over this,” Corbyn said with a bit of an edge to his voice. “You can’t keep ignoring us! You’re supposed to be leading us but you’re just a piece of shit who does what he wants!”
Landon stepped up to Corbyn and pointed at his chest. “What did you call me?”
Octavius silently cursed. This was counterproductive.
“We don’t have time for this,” Jane said, stepping between both men. “A compromise, then, like Vi said. We’ll use the last few days of the month to look for the fourth mask. Then after, we focus on the second tier next season to make up for it. Vi will get a larger portion of the shares, too.”
Landon and Corbyn both looked to Jane with questioning looks.
“Are you sure?” Corbyn asked. “That’s a big compromise.”
“Leaning heavily towards Vi,” Landon added.
“We’ve been leaning heavily towards you all damn season,” Jane said, pointing at Landon. “At the expense of Vi. That’s more than fair and you damn well know it. Now be good little brats and make up.”
Landon scowled but reluctantly nodded. Corbyn did the same before walking away.
“Thank you,” Octavius said, his voice soft. He appreciated the deal in his favor but was more than ready to leave. He needed some time to himself. Some time to think. To relax.
“Tomorrow morning, then, bright and early,” Landon said. “We have limited time to try again.” He looked to Octavius, hoping for the man’s support. He didn’t want to alienate him. Just prove his point. “And we all need to be there. I... don't want to do it alone.”
Octavius sighed. “Alright. I need some food and rest anyway. Thanks, I guess.” He promptly said his farewells and left.
In the hallway, he took another deep breath and felt his hand shaking. He looked down at the lion mask in his hand. Those whispers in his mind, stronger than before, beckoned him to put the mask on and to find its brethren. The desire was far stronger than before and worrying about what would happen was Octavius’s only defense. He shoved the feeling down and walked away back to his room.
He wouldn’t let the mask control him. Or Landon, for that matter. But every passing moment without wearing the mask felt pained. His was the first they found and he had carried it since. Would Corbyn be called to the bull mask soon since he'd been holding onto it? What would eventually happen to Landon since he was holding the new wolf mask?
He constantly reminded himself of why he was here in the first place. Losing his sense of self would lead him down a road he didn’t want to walk. Storing the mask in his room would likely be for the best. Some time just for him was what he needed.
As made his way back to his room, the internal struggle continued. But he never put the mask back in his pack. As he mulled it over, he didn’t quite want to be rid of it that soon. Landon was a prick, but he wasn’t wrong. There truly was a strange power inside of these magical artifacts. A power that Octavius secretly wanted to see. The moment he wielded it, though, he feared he wouldn’t be able to turn back.
Walking away, he agreed that maybe finding the last mask wouldn't be so bad. At least they could decide what to do having all of them and seeing their final effects. Maybe the mask's lull would lessen, and maybe his mind would be less strained.
Or, at least, he hoped that would be the case. All he knew was that the mask felt more secure in his possession. He could always hold onto it for a little bit longer.