Chapter 142 – Bone Zone
Jack leaned against the windowsill of one of the houses that sat nearest to the entry gate of sector five. The houses themselves were “better” after Hannah upgraded the sector's infrastructure, but they weren’t very accommodating. Blocks of concrete with a few empty rooms was as generous a description as Jack was willing to give them. If you took the time to clear out the zombies usually packed inside, they made halfway decent hiding spots but that was currently all they were good for.
Today was the day they made their push into sector five. Jack took a quick glance at his status sheet while waiting for his group to show up.
Statistics / Quests / Tower Store / Achievements / Blessings
Name: Jack Atlas
Race: Human Ascendant [Rare] [+4 SP per level]
Floor: 1st Floor
Level: 16
Class: Executioner [Epic] [+5 Str, +3 End, +3 Vit, +3 Dex per level]
Core Type: [Error: No Core detected]
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Stats —
Strength: 39 - [Adept - High]
Endurance: 26 - [Adept - High]
Vitality: 21 - [Adept - High]
Dexterity: 109 – [Journeyman - Low]
Focus: 23- [Adept - High]
Willpower: 53 - [Novice - Low]
Free Skill Points: 4
Achievement Points [AP]: 732,435
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Abilities [5/5] —
Lightning Centipedes Bite [Uncommon, Novice - Low] [Error: No Core detected]
Storm Step [Rare, Novice - Low] [Error: No Core detected]
Lightning Engine [Legendary Epic, Journeyman - Low] [Error: No Core detected]
Chain Lightning [Rare, Novice – Low] [Error: No Core detected]
Final Strike [Epic, Novice – Low] [Error: No Core Detected]
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Passives —
Multiverse Common Tongue [Non-Upgradable]
Storm Stance of the Lightning Executioner [Rare, Journeyman - Low]
Sneak [Uncommon, Novice-Low]
Mana Condenser [Rare] [Incomplete]
Mana Channels of the Transcendent Berserker [Epic]
Throwing Weapons [Common, Adept – High]
Mortal Wounds [Passive, Rare]
Blood Scent [Passive, Rare]
He had managed to eek out only one level in the past three months. The options they had for questing weren’t great in this sector, and it was likely to take another six or so months before they could start rolling out quests that were actually worthwhile. He technically didn’t even earn the level while in this sector, but on a scouting mission in sector five of the city.
One of the few upgrades he had managed was his storm stance. Not only had he improved the mastery. He changed it.
Storm Stance of the Lightning Executioner
[Rare, Journeyman - Low]
A stance reforged in the crucible of the storm, blending chaos with death's certainty.
*****
The blood of the Lightning Centipede surges within you, a tempest of raw power and chaotic fury, threatening to consume all who stand in its path. Yet, you have harnessed this chaos, forging it in the crucible of your will, sharpening it with the unforgiving edge of finality. The storm's fury echoes in your every step, but it is a controlled storm - its destructive power wielded with unwavering precision. The winds carry whispers of your approach, heralding a new tempest – one with a singular focus, a storm born of righteous judgment. You are the Lightning Executioner, the harbinger of Lightning Centipede, the embodiment of the Storm King's terrible verdict. Your presence weighs upon the hearts of your foes, a premonition of their inevitable demise.
Jack couldn’t help but grin at the ability. Part of him had been hoping it would bump up to epic but that had been too much to hope for apparently. Still, several curious things happened when the ability changed—the fighting style and information inside his brain changed with it. Or he got a lot more additional information he should say. He still understood the nuances of Storm Stance of the Lightning Centipede, but there was new information pertaining to the direction he wanted to take the stance. He had thought he was forging his own path, so when the Tower shoved a bunch of info into his head he was confused. The description implied this was something he had created, yet the Tower seemed to have a path already laid out for him.
Jack took a quick look at his Lightning Engine ability.
Lightning Engine
Ability – [Legendary][Epic]
Fuses condensed lightning mana together to create the Lightning Engine—a mana generator greater than the sum of its parts. Generates Elder Lightning.
*****
A favored force mastered only by the Storm King. Harvested from the heart of the first tempest. An ancient force of supercharged destruction. Bear witness to the fury of the final storm.
He had upgraded his Static Overdrive ability and turned it into the Lightning Engine. Static Overdrive had been something he had created himself. Judging by the description though, Lightning Engine was something that already existed and was used by the Storm King, whoever the fuck that was supposed to be. He wasn’t quite sure how that worked. It felt like he had used the wrong equations to get the right answer. Now though he was taking his storm stance, something the Tower had given him, and creating something new, or so he thought. So he wasn’t sure how the Tower was giving him information on the new stance. How the hell did it know? Only one person in his faction seemed to have anything close to a real answer.
“The Tower has been around for Eons little lightning bug. You think it can’t figure out your plans and cobble together a suitable path for you from its vast sea of resources?” Gaiju cackled at him.
The answer made sense, he supposed. He just didn’t like it. He wanted to destroy the Tower. Burn it to the fucking ground. Could he really hope to do that if it was spoon feeding him every technique and ability?
Still, an upgrade was an upgrade, and he could let future Jack worry about the rest.
Jack took another quick glance at his stat sheet, plugged his four free points into strength and closed out of the screen. He could hear combat down the road which meant one thing. It was time to get to work.
Jack jumped out of the windowsill and down to the ground. Everything was already, courtesy of him. He walked up to the gate and leaned against it, waiting for his party.
Hannah emerged with a small group in tow.
“You look different,” she grinned.
“I’ve started doing Pilates and Kegels. It’s done wonders for my health,” Jack grinned back.
“You sure you want to do this? I don’t think we need to rush things this way. It’s going to cause a lot of trouble-“
“Yeayeayea,” Jack interrupted as Hannah made one last attempt to slow him down. “I already told you, no ones ever managed to take control of the city because they spend so much fucking time preparing and either lose their momentum or just flat out die to another faction while sitting around with their thumbs in their asses. We need to Blitzkrieg these motherfuckers.”
“Do you even know what the word means?” Hannah challenged.
“Is everyone else ready?” Jack asked, ignoring her challenge.
“Should be. Devin and his party left two days ago because they had to get to the opposite side of the sector. Everyone else left yesterday.”
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Jack nodded. The raid on sector five was a bit nuanced. They couldn’t exactly march an army in there less they wanted to signal to the rest of the city a raid was happening. People were already pretty pissed that three sectors were under control and everything was kind of a nightmare. Word was that the upper sectors had been thrown into chaos to some degree with how unmanageable the monsters had gotten. A big part of that was due to the fact that no one really stuck around on floor 2 for any length of time, so the fighting force wasn’t that great. Taking over another sector and upgrading the danger levels of the city was bound to piss a lot of people off. Instead, Hannah devised a plan where their elites each went through a separate entrance,and would meet up in the sector and take out the counselor as quickly as possible. From there, they would have their faction waiting on standby to rush into the sector and help them defend it while they got a base established.
Jack glanced through the people in his party spotting a small gnome.
“You!” he pointed at a skittish gnome hiding behind the leg of one of the warriors.
Lexor stepped out from behind the warrior and walked toward Jack with his head down.
“Lexor, please tell me you figured it out.”
“Eh… Uhmm… Sort of?” the gnome mumbled, still not making eye contact with Jack.
“Sort of?
Lexor sighed and pulled a small pouch out of his void sack, handing it to Jack. “These are all the successful attempts.”
Jack reached into the sack and pulled out a bullet, inspecting it.
Bolt Shot
Type: Spellshot
Tier: Uncommon
Enchantment Slots: 3/3
[Lightning Bolt- 3 Slots]
Shoots forth a bolt of lightning
*****
Black powder infused with lightning mana and condensed down into a bullet. Crafted to be used with a magic pistol.
“Nice job,” Jack started, but then frowned as he rifled through the rest of the pouch. There were only seven more bullets inside. “What the hell?”
“It’s difficult! Lightning is a nightmare to work with for crafting purposes and I’m no craftsman, I told you that!” Lexor protested.
“So, eight shot’s is all I have?”
“Not exactly…” he mumbled once more, pulling out another much larger sack. Jack pulled out another bullet from the new stack and inspected it.
Unstable Bolt Shot
Type: Spellshot
Tier: Uncommon
Enchantment Slots: 3/3
[Lightning Bolt- 3 Slots]
Shoots forth a bolt of lightning
*****
Black powder infused with lightning mana and condensed down into a bullet. Crafted to be used with a magic pistol. Warning, this spellshot has not been properly crafted and results may vary.
“Unstable? What the hell does that mean?”
“I’m not sure. But Jefferson's gun exploded when we tried to use it…”
Jack narrowed his eyes at Lexor. Wiggleworm peeled off his arm, snatched the unstable spellshot and gobbled it down before Jack could stop her. Nothing happened for a long moment, and then his arm went numb as lightning started sparking all around it. Jack shook his numbed arm wildly until wiggle popped off, convulsing on the ground with lightning sparking all around her.
“You better hope that doesn’t kill her…” Jack said with a concerned glance at his familiar.
Lexor went white as a ghost, staring at Wiggle with wide, panicked eyes. The centipedes convulsing stopped several moments later, and Jack picked up a slightly fried bug. He let out a small sigh of relief as she turned back into a tattoo on his skin.
“This is why I told you to ask before you eat,” Jack chastised. She didn’t respond.
“How about the spark shot?” Jack asked a still shocked Lexor. He quickly produced a third, larger bag. Jack pulled out a bullet and inspected it.
Spark Shot
Type: Spellshot
Tier: Common
Enchantment Slots: 2/2
[Spark- 3 Slots]
Shoots forth a small spark of electricity
*****
Black powder infused with lightning mana and condensed down into a bullet. Crafted to be used with a magic pistol.
The spark shot was pretty nice. When combined with his gun it became the taser shot from hell. If it didn’t outright stop your heart, it was at least guaranteed to paralyze you for a bit. He emptied all of the ammo into his void rings and gave Lexor a nod of dismissal.
The gnome mage was pretty talented, at least as far as destructive capabilities went. When Jack had heard rumors of a lightning mage within the sector, he all but forced the man to join the faction. Lexor hadn’t been opposed because Jack offered to fund all of his training and expenses and anything the mage could possibly need to improve. Lightning was a surprisingly rare element to come by, and Jack knew he couldn’t pass up a chance at a lightning mage. Admittedly, he just wanted someone to create a lightning element spellshot. Unfortunately, Lexor was a shitty craftsman.
Jack inspected the rest of the group that was with Hannah. Two people in particular stuck out to him. Gaiju and Willow.
“Where the hell is Paul?” Jack asked Hannah.
“With Devin’s group. Why?”
Jack tsked in annoyance. Paul was a warpriest and had the ability to enchant weapons with the holy element. This was particularly effective against the undead they fought against, and Jack wanted the buff. Section five was purely skeletons. Seeing as skeletons didn’t have any sort of flesh and didn’t bleed it made his Blood Scent and Mortal Wounds passive completely useless.
“I specifically requested Paul be in my group,” Jack complained.
“He works best with Devin. Besides, we’ve got Willow, I know you like her better,” Hannah gave Jack a knowing smirk.
Jack glanced at Willow, trying to avoid eye contact. Cloven feet. Red skin. Black horns that wrapped around the back of her head. Willow was a succubus, and Jack was yet to have a conversation with her that didn’t somehow result in him being naked.
“Hi Jackie-boy,” she wiggled her fingers at him with a mischievous grin.
“Willow,” he nodded back. Willow was pretty talented. She had managed to become an officer in the guild earning a bounty of 9,000,000AP for killing nine arbiters. That was impressive considering she was a healer. Her class was ‘Witch Doctor’ and most of her abilities required her damaging her opponents to heal her allies. Jack then looked over at her best friend. An orc named Gaiju.
Gaiju was fucking insane. She existed somewhere between camp cook and fortune teller. She often spoke in riddles which annoyed the fuck out of Jack.
“Hi Jackie-boy,” she mocked, waving her fingers at Jack just like Willow had.
Jack ignored the two deviants and turned back to Hannah. “Where’s Nutt?”
“Couldn’t drag him out of his lab. Said he’ll join us when you build him a suitable lab in sector five.”
Jack rolled his eyes at that. “Who are you taking into sector three with you?” he asked, turning to look at the rest of the party.
“Kelsey, Hector, and Jaun.”
Jack inspected the three humans. Kelsey was a warrior and had a large glaive resting on her shoulder. Hector and Juan were a pair of twins. Both rogues. All three of them were cutthroat assholes.
“No healers?” Jack asked, eyeing the group.
“Nah. We should be fine. Things might get a little dicey for us after you kill the counselor, but they’ve all got rare classes and are pretty strong. We should be fine to make it to the waypoint,” Hannah said.
Hannah wasn’t coming with Jack to kill the counselor. Instead, she was heading back to the first floor, and there was a waypoint in the third sector she could use to go back down. She just had to make it through two sectors to get there. Hannah was heading back to the first floor largely due to Christopher. He had made a play for power and was now running things down on the first floor. That had confused both Jack and Hannah. He never made any mention of wanting to be in charge. Even more confusing was the fact that he never let them in on his plan to take over. Hannah was going back to the first floor to have a conversation with him, which meant she was either going to kill him, or force him to bring his newfound army up to the second floor to help them. They were both banking on the latter because a betrayal from him just didn’t make a whole lot of sense.
“All right then,” Jack shrugged. “Everyone ready?” Jack said to the party. He looked out across the group of faction members.
The Obsidian Storm Syndicate.
Originally, they had voted to change the name to just The Obsidian Storm, but Devin suggested they add the word Syndicate at the end. Said it would attract all the wrong people. He had been right. Every gangster, cutthroat, and asshole on the second floor flocked to his faction like flies to a corpse. There wasn’t much in the way of rules outside of might makes right and betray me and I kill you.
They didn’t have a great reputation, and it was made all the worse when Jack told them to purge the sector of the Golden Scale—a task which they were a little too excited to perform. Jack couldn’t help but like every single one of them.
“Ready,” his group of maniacs echoed.
“I’ll go first. Give me a few minutes to clear everything out and then you follow through, allright?”
“A few minutes? I thought you were our all-powerful leader?” Willow challenged him with a menacing grin.
Jack stared back at her, then he smirked. “Thirty seconds. Don’t be late.”
Everyone cheered in response, and Jack touched his hand to the gate to sector five.
Sector Five
Sector Controlled By: Rattlespine
Entry Fee: Free
Enter Sector? Y/N
Jack selected yes and was transported into sector five.
Dirt and bones were pretty much all that was inside sector five. Jack inspected his surroundings. There were bones piled up towards the sky like snow covered mountains. Skulls of ancient titans and enormous beasts towered over him in every single direction. Jack tapped his foot impatiently, watching as more bones floated upward and built themselves into skeletal monstrosities. When he heard sector five was skeletons, he had figured it was going to be human skeletons. It was more like skeletons of everything that had ever existed within the Tower, and some things he was positive the Tower created just to fuck with him.
Birds of bone circled overhead. Skeletons with six arms and skulls filled with fangs constructed before him. Giant skeletons ripped free from the bony mountains. Animal-like skeletons roamed in packs along the dirt roads carved throughout the sector. Their hollow eyes bore down on him, and they let loose a screech, raising weapons of every variety as the horde charged him.
Jack breathed in a deep breath as he fell into his new and improved Storm Stance and smiled a wicked smile.
The first five skeletons to reach him exploded. His daggers ripped through them with such speed and power they simply disintegrated. Jack took a single step forward, launching himself into the fray. His arms moved like lightning. His arms were lightning.
Jack had realized his problem on the second floor and why he had been losing. It was a simple, if not annoying answer. He wasn’t taking his fights seriously enough. This had always been a problem of his, and one that he seemed to keep having to address. His last few months of training had been straightforward.
Kill the opponent as fast as possible.
That was Jack’s new mantra. An executioner didn’t dick around, didn’t play with their food, didn’t waste any time. Jack was surrounded by the undead army of skeletons, but that didn’t matter. Gone was the playful assassin of the lower floors. This Jack moved with an economy of motion, every strike a precise execution. Years of training flowed through him, honed by the brutal reality that inefficiency meant death. Wherever he looked his daggers flashed a moment later, and the skeletons exploded showering him in chips of bone.
The fight was over before it even began. Skeletons began retreating, something he didn’t realize they knew how to do. Jack stood amidst a graveyard of shattered bones, his chest heaving, drenched in a fine mist of bone dust. Despite the exhaustion, a grim satisfaction settled within him. He had become the storm, and the skeletons had been its unfortunate victims.
“Thirteen seconds, impressive.”
Jack looked over his shoulder to see Willow smiling at him, giving him small golf claps.