Frank seldom dreamed nowadays, but this night he did. Frank found himself in a white place. There was seemingly nothing in this place. That was until the sky opened up bathing the world in golden light and a figure stepped down.
Frank asked, "Who are you? Where am I?" The figure who seemed to be made from light, spoke in a gentle and yet firm voice, the voice of a father. "You know who I am. As for where you are, you have not moved." Frank became angry, "You are just this system messing with..." Franks scoffed, he was furious now. "YOU ARE NOT..."
Even as Frank yelled at the shining figure before him changed. Like the filter on a camera being removed, the figure revealed its true form. Frank was speechless as he fell to his knees, he faced the ground not daring to raise his head. His mind was overwhelmed by what he had seen.
"I am, that I am." The being said in a voice that almost seemed to come from all sides. All encompassing and filled with a father's love. Frank felt his fear set at ease, but still he did not raise his head. "Your world has finally come to the point of transition, Frank. There will be many hardships in the coming days. You and your family must be strong for the days to come." Frank felt it was his turn and so he spoke.
"What would you have me do?" Frank asked as he took a kneeling position. "You need only to take my hand, and promise to protect your family. To protect the weak and challenge those who would abuse their strength. Frank raise your head."
Frank raised his head to gaze upon his lord who held out his right hand. "Take my hand, and become a warrior of the light. Become my paladin." Frank reached out and grasped his hand. It was at that moment that he saw a figure appear at his right. There he saw his wife holding the lord's left hand, looking back at him.
No sooner had they awakened than their minds erased the image of the luminous figure from their memories, but his words remained.
Frank saw he had gained a level and upon inspection, he had gained a level in Paladin.
Laura saw she had gained a level and upon inspection, she had gained a level in Cleric.
Frank and Laura felt as a small door in the back of their minds opened for a brief moment before closing. They felt their minds expand ever so slightly as new knowledge filled their minds. Frank and Laura felt that divine beings spark something within them, and now they knew of divine spells.
Franks and laura sat up in bed as they looked upon each other, "You had that dream too right?" Laura simply nodded. They both spent the better part of the next hour working through the knowledge they had been granted. As they discussed their new spells and abilities they found that while there was some overlap, Frank had far fewer spells and skills available to him at the moment. It was then that they realized it.
"These spell's sound a lot like..." The smiled as they realized they knew these spells from another source, "Dante." they said in unison.
Dante's pleasant dreams of apple trees and racing horse's slowly took a dark turn.
Dante sat upon a hill covered in green grass under the shade of an apple tree. In the distance he watched wild horses race across the grasslands. It was a beautiful sight. The sky was blue and he felt the warm rays of the sun on his skin. This moment reminded him of that village behind the door.
The world blinked and he was back in Oscar's workshop. There was no sound save for his own footsteps, which echoed throughout the empty workshop. Dante felt himself drawn toward the door.
It was when Dante arrived at the door that he noticed the door gave no aura as it had done before. A voice whispered from behind the door, in a language Dante could not understand. The door began to creak open, the sleek and shiny black metal opening farther with each passing second.
From where the door's parted came crimson light. Dante felt fear, each passing second that fear within him grew. Then he began to move forward. What greeted him behind the door was not the comforting sight of Oscar's golem village. His vision adjusted to the light, his fear only grew as what greeted him appeared to be a large throne room. A long crimson carpet leading from the entrance to the other side of the room where a figure sat upon their throne.
Dante felt the cool carpet beneath his bare feet.
The ceiling must have been at least 20 feet up. Large almost organic looking chandeliers hung from the rafters. Eight long inch wide crimson cables hung down from each of the chandeliers. Each cable was several feet long ending in glowing yellow bulbs. While Dante was underneath one of the chandeliers he looked up to see a large set of closed circular jaws with large teeth. 'These things may act like chandeliers but they are most certainly not.' Dante thought with what little of his brain power he could muster.
The walls of the massive throne room were covered in crimson fabric, except for the carved marble pillars. What looked like blood filled veins ran up the white marble pillars toward the ceiling. The veins continued past the tops of the pillars to connect with the creature acting as chandeliers.
Dante continued forward, his body unceasing. When he was three quarters into the throne room which by his estimates had to be at least 1000 feet long and 100 wide, the room widened further.
The pillars that had prior to now had been affixed to the wall now stood on their own still supporting the ceiling. Through the pillars Dante could not see much. Even with the light from the not chandeliers, all he could see was three more rows of pillars before a wall of darkness.
He was almost there and his head began to turn on its own. Turning to face the figure upon the white marble throne. There upon the throne was not a living king, but a brown long mummified corpse who wore a crown.
A shriveled husk with sunken eye sockets that led only to darkness. His arms laid upon the arm rests of his throne. Upon his blackened finger Dante could see several rings of varying types. The corpse wore a beautiful robe that had all the colors of the rainbow, with gold inlay outlines by purple stitching, suffusing much of the robe. A stark contrast to the thing wearing them. Oddly, if there was such a thing nowadays, the king wore no shoes.
Upon his decrepit head, with but a few strands of white hair, was a golden crown embedded with three thumb sized gems that he could see. A diamond, a ruby, and an amethyst.
"Who are you?... To have come... here?..." The corpse did not move as it spoke. Its voice sounded more like a rasping wind, than an actual voice. Dante could tell that this king was one, male, and two, sounded annoyed.
With the king's question however Dante felt the binds that had pulled him forward lessen. He felt his mind clear from the fog of sleep. Dante looked upon this room and its occupant once more, and it terrified him. Dante tried to summon Virgil, but something within him told him the skill would not work here.
"I...don't know...how I got...here." Dante spoke to the corpse upon his throne. His normally strong and calm voice had become one filled with fear. It was such that he was pausing between words, trying to muster the courage to continue with each next word.
"You march into my throne room and claim to have no idea how you arrived here?" Dante flinched wishing to take a step back but his body refused. Dante was beginning to panic from the oppressive aura the entity before him gave off. His next words came out like verbal diarrhea.
"I went to sleep at the Crystal Foot Inn in the tutorial zone. Had a nice dream. My surroundings changed and there was a massive door. I was compelled to go to it. I heard something from behind the door and then it opened. My body just walked in here and up to you. I thought you opened the...door." The king still did not move. What scared Dante more was his silence. In Fact everything was silent.
Dante finally noticed something was missing. He had no Hud here. His panic grew worse.
Dante was breathing heavily. He could feel the sweat dripping down his brow. He felt the shaking of his body caused from the fear induced by this thing. 'This is too vivid to be a dream.' Dante thought to his horror.
"Tutorial zone? Now that is a name I have not heard in many years. TELL me boy..." The king paused, but certainly exaggerated the word, tell. "Have you even done your tutorial yet?"
Dante felt the palpable tension in the air as the king awaited his answer, "No s-s-sir. I'm doing it in the morning..." He stopped intending for that to be the end of his answer, but that word rattled in his mind, it compelled him! TELL!
"With my parents." Dante's eyes widened as those words left his lips. He had not intended to speak those words, yet this beings command had made him do so.
"Why?" The voice asked softly this time, seeming to be genuinely confused, "You seem...capable. Why let such things as parent's...friends...and family drag you down?" Dante could hear amusement from the voice as it went on. Dante thought of his parent's who had given him a good life. His friends who he cherished with all his heart. Even his grandparents and extended family. he wouldn't trade them for the world. BUT THIS THING!
Dante lost his temper in the heat of that moment, and took a step forward, despite his fear. He raised up a fist and proclaimed definitely, "WHO ARE YOU TO TALK OF SUCH THINGS OH CORPSE OF A LONG FORGOTTEN TYRANT!" Dante immediately felt his fear return stronger than before. The oppressive aura of the king began growing ever stronger.
The corpse began to creak as small tremors caused the room to sway slightly. Swaying the chandelier creatures. Dante watched on in horror as the corpse began to slowly stand up. Its head lifted to gaze upon him, as it took a step away from its throne. Its body growing, creaking, popping, and cracking as it began to walk slowly across the several feet between them.
"I am the CRIMSON KING!" The voice this time came from the corpse though still its mouth did not move. His voice was no longer wind, it was definite and all consuming. His voice shook the throne room.
Dante tried to bring back the foot he had extended, but found he could not move back no matter how hard he tried. Even in his panic, Dante realized, 'The only way is forward.' Dante's breathing steadied, though his breath still occasionally shook, he advanced upon the so-called, Crimson King.
Dante took one more step and another, and another, each one filling him with a bit more courage. The two arrived in the middle, the king who stood a head above Dante who was a respectable 6 feet tall. Dante was not used to being looked down upon in a literal sense.
Dante could now see something he had been unable to see earlier. Upon the chest of the rainbow colored robe was the depiction of a crimson heart being grasped by a skeletal hand, right above where he thought the heart would be. Its depiction being embroidered into the robe.
Dante saw as the once dark eye sockets of the Crimson king began to glow with crimson light. The king raised up his right hand and it began to glow with crimson light. "NONE! Shall address me in such a manner!" Dante heard the beating of wings and time slowed to a crawl.
Dante thought, 'The only way is forward. So forward I shall march.' Dante lifted his right arm sticking out. The crimson king's right hand was still growing ever brighter even as he was bringing it to slap him. A slap which he suspected would turn his head into red mist.
Dante however had one advantage over the king. His body was not stiff and hard to move. Though the king lashed out with his strike first, Dante landed the first and only blow of the fight.
Dante gave all of his might and uppercutted the corpse claiming to be a king. In less than a single second the king's crown flew from his decrepit head. The strike ment for dante's head went wide as the force of Dante's blow was enough to lift the corpse off its feet despite it standing taller than him.
Dante felt the hair on his head tingle as the king's hand passed within an inch of it. The king had not the dexterity to catch himself.
Dante heard the cracking of several bones as the talking corpse landed on its side. Dante advanced not bothering to step over the thing that had tried to kill him. He pressed his foot down upon the kings crotch. He knew fully well that it likely would do nothing to him, he just did it to feel better. Which actually worked. Dante stepped away from the downed king still struggling to even sit back up.
Dante leaned down and picked up the kings crown before turning back to the downed figure. Dante watched as the corpses vague expressions went from burning rage to horror. The king reached out his hand and said, "Come to me!" Dante felt he and himself pulled slightly toward the thing laying on the floor no longer struggling to raise itself. As it had directed its attention solly upon him and the beautiful crown he now held.
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Dante inspected the crown for a moment, turning it slowly in his hands. In addition to those gems he had previously seen there were four more. An emerald, a sapphire, a topaz, and something orange?
Dante looked down upon the crown, he considered destroying the crown in front of the king for a moment, but then it passed. "Well it's a nice crown I will give you that. It will probably make some nice gold coins when i melt it down." Dante said while looking for the king to unnerve him, though he had no such intention for the crown.
The king's arm faltered as he fell upon his back. Dante took a step toward the downed king, finding no resistance. Dante seeing the king was not going anywhere decided to take a moment to take a step backward and then forward again. He still encountered no resistance. 'Interesting' Dante thought.
Dante looked down at the crown. He could feel the magic radiating off it. 'Truly a crown fit for a king. I beat the king, don't I deserve it. I surely do.' They were not exactly words, but something came from the crown, a feeling. As the feeling grew greater and greater, then came soft words into Dante's mind.
"You have won! Why not wear the crown? You are the victor! Show for all to see your triumph!" Dante could not tell if the words came from a male or female voice, but nevertheless they spoke to him.
Dante began to lift the crown to place it upon his head. Then he locked eyes with the defeated tyrant before him. Still unable to get up. Dante stopped himself before he placed the crown upon his head. "To wear this crown would just make me like you. That's not who I want to be!" Dante said as he looked down upon the broken figure still glaring up at him.
Dante tried to move the crown away from his head, but found he could not retract. 'Not this shit again!' Dante desired to wear the crown, but that thing in front of him without words told him such things were not worth it. Dante focused all of his will. "I am the master of my own body! I will not be forced!" Dante's voice now lightly shook the throne room as the king had done before him.
Dante focused his mind upon a single task: moving the crown away. He fought with all of his might but his muscles would not comply. They began to advance.
Dante felt as ever so slowly his arms moved against his will. Dante beat down his panic as it returned.
"Why do you fight? Have you not earned this reward? Place the crown upon your head, and I shall make you strong. Nations shall fall before you and kneel!" The voice was stronger this time. He saw the reason behind its words, he was tempted by the power. "But it isn't me!" Dante had a single thought and he prayed that it would work.
"Inventory!" Dante said with all his might. But nothing happened.
Dante struggled against his own muscles trying to place the crown upon his head. However, it was then that at the very top of his vision he saw a familiar blue box hovering above his head parallel with the ground. Dante felt the crown's sudden shift as it began to realize what he was doing.
"TOO LATE!" Dante exclaimed as he used the residual effect of the crown to slam it downward. The crown left his hands and he closed his inventory. Dante's arms relaxed as soon as they touched his head. However, they were very sore. "Thank god THAT still works!" Dante turned and looked once more to the king on the floor who now looked upon him with shock. Dante took a step toward the downed king, no resistance. The king attempted to back away but his hand slid against the marble offering him no traction.
Dante advanced to stand before him. "Is your robe cursed too?" Dante asked plainly. "My robe?" the voice came out confused, must have been from the shock. Dante reached down and grabbed the undead by its collar. "Noone talks shit about my family. Not even a king." Dante said as he punched the undead in its face. The undead did not react immediately. It simply looked upon him with a blank expression. Dante reared up to throw another punch but it didn't feel right. He wasn't fighting back.
Unfortunately Dante thought just a little too soon.
The undead lurched forward wrapping its arms around Dante's chest in a bear hug. "I see now why I lost. You are one most capable, and I think I shall take your body for my own!" There was a flash of crimson light that erupted from the crimson king and then his body simply became dust.
Dante released his grip of the robe and backed off a few steps. When nothing further happened, he checked himself over. The only thing of the undead that remained was the dust upon Dante's clothes and upon the crimson carpet.
Dante patted himself down. Then he turned to the robe. He wanted it, but he both felt compelled to both take it and to not take it. However, this time he could feel it was his scavenger type gamer personality that demanded he take the robe. Dante carefully reached out and grasped the robe. Nothing happened. He remained like that for several seconds, but nothing changed. Dante cautiously picked up the robe taking it a few steps over away from the carpet, he took a deep breath and began to shake the dust out of the colorful, and ornate, robe.
Dante's mana sense told him that the colorful and ornate rob was certainly magical. However, he did not know to what extent, or its function other than being clothing. Dante was careful not to breathe in any of the dust. Dante was surprised how long he could hold his breath now. It had been a minute and yet he still felt he could go further. He walked a few more steps and then laid down the rob on the marble floor.
He turned to look at all the dust that had been deposited upon the nice crimson carpet. 'So sad.' Dante thought before he returned to the pile of dust. Dante stepped away several feet being sure to stay wary of the darkness that lay beyond the light provided by the strange chandelier creatures. He took several deep breaths before he went back to search the dust pile for the rings he had seen on the king's fingers.
Dante slowly and methodically searched the pile for the rings. He found his mana sense was not nearly precise enough to tell any items from the dust that surrounded them. Dante was getting frustrated as he did not just want to dive his hands into the dust if he could help it. Then he got a bright idea. Dante noticed the dust left by the king. It was on the left edge of the long strip of carpet. 'It's only 10 feet wide.' Dante though as a large smile formed on his face.
He walked over and tried to pick up the side of the carpet that was opposite to the dust. He met with little success. Though the carpet did lift he could not lift it nearly high enough to accomplish what he wanted to do. Dante lemented upon the failure of his great idea, before he set the carpet back down. He looked left toward the entrance and the beginning of the roll of carpet. His eyes widened as he realized the door out had closed during his time in the room. "Fuck!" Dante yelled to the ceiling in frustration. "At least it's not a rug of smothering. Because I would be fucked." Dante mused as he clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth.
He sighed and then he looked right toward the other end of the carpet which ran over the five steps leading up to the large marble throne, stopping just at its feet. Dante rubbed his smooth chin.
"If I had a bag of holding or a bigger inventory slot, I would gladly steal this fucking carpet." Dante said aloud. Dante resolved himself to searching through the dust with his fingers. 'If this dust was going to do something to me, it would have surely done it by now.' Dante thought. It did not take him long to find the several rings that the king had left. Dante took the rings and set each one aside on the carpet after they were found, after he wiped them off of course.
When he was done he had five new rings. Oddly the king did not seem to have worn a necklace. Of the rings two were rather plain one gold the other silver. Of the remaining rings there was a large silver signet ring with the symbol of a hand engraved into the metal. Of the remaining large gold rings one had, a large diamond sided by a fingernail sized garnet and an equally sized sapphire. The other however was shaped like the head of a dragon, with a large pearl kept tightly in its jaws.
Dante could not find anything else in what little remained of the Crimson kings body. Dante picked up the rings, set them upon the robe. Dante sat upon the edge of the carpet as the white marble floor was too cold for his comfort. "I can place them in my inventory, but then they're with the crown." Dante spoke aloud trying to work out his thoughts, then a glaring issue crossed his mind.
"Is this a dream or not?" Dante looked back toward the large black door that was closed. Barring the only exit he knew for sure there was in this place. "How the fuck do I get out of here?" Dante questioned as he sat and contemplated his options.
"If only i knew what the fuck these things did. I could really use identify right now." Dante thought for a long moment, then an idea formed in his mind. He got up and walked over to the robe and rings, picking up the dragon ring that clutched a large pearl in its mouth. "I remade the cantrip light. How much harder can... '' Dante sighed as he realized this would more than likely be rather hard. "I don't know the first thing about remaking spells. Remaking light was basically brought forcing an issue that didn't require a lot of force to solve."
Dante looked to the throne, then back to the door. He sighed and resolved himself. He opened his inventory and gazed over the edge into the cubic space. There he saw the crown, and immediately felt the weak desire to wear it. But he resisted that feeling, knowing it would more likely be the one wearing him. "Hello?"
The voice was sudden and loud in his mind, "WHY DID YOU ABANDON ME!" Dante nearly closed his inventory on reflex, but resisted that urge. He spoke calmly, "I put you somewhere that you couldn't hurt me. You were forcing me into something I hadn't fully wanted yet. The item gave no response for several seconds.
"I am the crown of the king. What use am I if I am unworn?" The voice was quieter this time, but nonetheless firm. "Can you get me out of here?" Dante asked the crown, beating down his embarrassment, and his feeling of stupidity over asking the crown whom he had trapped in a box, to help him out of another box.
"Will you wear me?" the crown asked its voice no longer in his mind put plain for all to hear. If there were anyone else here. "Will you wear me?" Dante asked the crown. Silence reigned once more as he awaited its answer.
It was a full minute of silence before the crown responded, "My purpose is to serve the king. If you wish it, I shall do all within my power to help you accomplish it." The feelings Dante felt being forced upon him began to recede. The crown asked once more, "Will you wear me?"
"If I am the King." Dante said, being more a statement then a question. "Then I will accept your loyalty and service." The crown gave off the feeling of joy and jubilation. "So long as you never give me a reason, to distrust you. If you betray me, things will not end well for you." the crowns response was immediate, "I swear upon the system that I will faithfully serve you." Dante felt something. A connection? Something between him and the crown began to form. "I will accept your vow."
The gems on the crown began to glow, and so too did that feeling of connection. The light dimmed and Dante looked upon the crown. It had changed its shape. It now looked more like the crown that would be worn by a prince rather than a king. It appeared as an engraved circular crown with the gems still in their places.
Dante took a deep breath and slowly reached down grasping the crown. Where once there had been a sense of urgency to wear it, none was present now. Dante placed the crown upon his head and at first nothing happened. He closed his inventory, but was ready to reopen it at a moment's notice. He felt his mind expand as many of the crown's properties were made clear to him. One in particular was that the diamond on the crown could act as an inventory. Before Dante could celebrate however, something changed.
Dante felt as something stirred within him. It felt similar to when he invoked his skills but this felt different. Different in a way he could not place his finger upon. A familiar voice met Dante's ears, "I told you I would be taking your body! Now crown obey me!" Dante's eyes widened, but nothing else happened. "Crown?" The former crimson king asked, "I am under the service of a new King. You are no longer my king!" The crown exclaimed in his mind, towards the former king.
Dante was suddenly overcome with the feeling of his mana being drained. He could not concentrate on anything as he felt his mana nearly bottom out. Dante leaned forward and something hit the floor. All at once he felt the mana fatigue begin to fade away. He opened his eyes to discover a large red marble slowly rolling around on the floor. "What did you do?" Dante asked calmly, as he looked himself over, being sure to keep an eye on the small orb.
"I sequestered the old king into a suitable receptacle and then dropped him." Dante had several questions. He suspected something though. He began feeling around the crown but it only took him a second to find one of the gems missing. The Ruby. In fact, upon inspection the gems had shifted making up for the now emptied space. "What did that gem do? Also why is it so big now?" Certainly the gem had grown considerably from its previous size.
"That gem empowered many of his blood related skills, which were his favorite and most powerful skills that he used. Those skills will be of little use to him now. As for its size, it is a byproduct of the transfer process. I needed to transfer a large amount of your mana out of you since it had become corrupted." Dante tuned into that word, "Corrupted? Explain it to me." Dante stated.
"He transferred his being into your body but was unable to take over due to lacking really any strength. All he could do was corrupt your mana in an attempt to slowly turn you into him. I have prevented him from achieving this goal." The crown stated with some measure of, pride? Dante walked over to the still rolling sphere.
'Was he trying to get somewhere?' Dante questioned. Noticing his trajectory, he was heading for the robe and rings. Dante did not wish to touch the jumbo marble sized rolling gem that contained an evil being. So he simply walked past the ball and picked up the items before the orb could arrive. Dante looked down upon the orb as it rolled to a stop before him, then it began rolling in circles.
"Is this his form of a tantrum now?" He asked the crown, who gave no response. Dante had a few ideas of what to do with him. 'If i put him in my inventory with those items, he will probably infect them with his mana or make some kind of blood curse." Dante pondered.
"Crown why did you change your appearance?" Dante asked firmly, "It was the transition process. I was changed to better suit you. However, this has the unfortunate side effect of greatly decreasing my capabilities, as you lack many of the requirements of kingship, my lord." the crown gave its firm reply.
"So you lost a lot of power, that's good to know. Wait a minute. Does this mean that you can become as powerful as you were before?" Dante asked, thinking of things long term. "That is correct. There are several methods by which that can be achieved. Would you like to hear them?" Dante smiled then frowned as he noticed the marble rolling toward him. He walked over to the stairs leading up to the throne, where the marble could not reach him.
The marble bounced impotently against the stairs. It was kind of sad, Dante was not ashamed to admit. Dante looked towards the massive set of double doors once more and spoke, "Open, so the king commands." Much to his relief the door's opened, what greeted him however was a wall of color.
Dante looked back and forth between the colorful robe in his hands and the colorful light coming from the door. Dante slipped the rings onto his fingers then dawned the robe. Before he made his way for the door Dante had at least three more things he needed to do.
First he opened his empty inventory beneath the rolling gem causing it to fall. He promptly closed his inventory again. The last thing he wanted to do before he left was check out what lay in the darkness beyond the light of this room. Dante cast light, causing a small amount of light to pool in his hand. He held in his mind the essence of wind. How it felt to dance. He remembered freedom and joy.
He used mana manipulation to shape the liquid light in his palm with about 10 mana, causing his feeling of mana exhaustion to return but only for a moment. In the end he met with success however. The liquid light began to float. "Dancing lights. Yeah!" Dante exclaimed halfheartedly, due to his mana exhaustion. He sent the lights to his left and right into the darkness.
They did not travel all too fast but he was not exactly in a rush. The lights got farther and farther away from him, until they were mere motes of light in the distance. There was nothing in either direction for hundreds of feet. Dante was a bit disappointed and yet also glad. He canceled the spell.
Dante looked at the large and very long crimson carpet and smiled as he began to roll the carpet up. When he was within 10 feet of the door he activated the diamond upon the crown causing the large rolled rug to disappear into diamond. 'I definitely need to take this stuff to someone to get identified. Also im taking that orb to a fucking priest!' Dante set his intentions clear in his mind. With nothing left, he stepped through the curtain of colorful lights.
Dante awoke in his bed at the Crystal Foot Inn, still wearing the items he had acquired in his dream. Though underneath the robes he was only wearing underwear, instead of his clothes. "Hey at least the robe will go with my socks." Dante joked for a moment, then he was flooded with notices.