[Jōbun/Junkitsu's POV]
I opened my eyes to be greeted by dark red sky. Howling winds blew over me and pushed clouds lightly tinted with maroon overhead.
'Where am I? Feels so cold and eerie here.'
I got up and looked around to see only open space, wisps of clouds and jagged boundaries of the land.
'Fingers crossed, I hope that nothing comes swooping down on me.'
I walked towards the edge and looked down. There's nothing below. Just more clouds. I'm basically standing on a floating piece of land.
'Hahaha, I'm in danger...!!!'
I immediately jumped away from the edge and sprinted to the place where I was lying and sat there, hugging my knees in.
'Man, that was hella scary! I thought I was going to fall off. I need to find a safe way to get down.'
I recollected my observations in the vicinity and thought for some time. There are no signs or clues about anything. It's just plain ground here. Then, a horrible thought came to me.
'What if the only way down... is to jump?'
One glance at the edge far away put me in fear once again. There's no way alternate plans don't exist.
I slowly calmed down and checked around the boundaries. After mapping the boundaries in my mind, the land appeared to be in the shape of a flying vehicle.
'An airship?'
Then it hit me. 'If the left and right edges are wings and the back part is the tail, then the front part of this land must be the nose. That means, around the front area, the cockpit is hidden. Or rather the controls. Now, how would I search for it?'
As I was pondering about theories or methods for searching the controls, a voice echoed in the distance. I turned about towards the tail and saw a bird flying towards me. On coming closer, it revealed itself to be an amber-colored eagle, happy to see me. I stretched my arm out so that it could land and perch on.
"I'm surprised that you haven't jumped at all, Jōbun! I was ready to eat your words and all..." The eagle felt relieved as he said them.
"King? Is that you?"
"Yeah! But call me Mokkun!"
"Mokkun?" This is new.
"Yeah, every guide or mascot has a cute name. So, I thought of having one for myself!"
"Sounds good... but we should stick with our names when it's just us, okay? Also, what's with this form? I thought you'd be like me, bipedal but... with wings and all."
"Regarding my form... long story short, I'm penalized and doing community service." His answer gave me more questions and casted disbelief within.
'Penalized? Community service?! This guy's definitely pulling my leg...'
"Bullshit! You look like you have no heart to hurt even a mosquito. After all, you're a nervous wreck! There's no way you have the gall to do such things."
"Oh, thank you very much..."
'Why is he grinding his beak like that?' I steered the topic away, while he perched on my left shoulder comfortably.
"Uhh... do you have some ideas to get down?"
"Yeah, I do! But it's upto you, though. What do you know about Aura?"
"Hmmm... it's this life force featured in many martial arts stories, right? Some call it Ki, Qi, Tao, internal energy and so on."
"Right! Cultural differences aside, it is fundamentally the same, but it leans more on the mental side of things. Now, you must learn to feel the force and channel it around your body."
"So I need to meditate like the sages or something?"
King laughed at my question. "Sorry, that was funny. Well, you can meditate, but being minimally aware of the energy flowing within and around you is utmost priority. So, what you have to do is stretch your hand out and focus."
I followed his instruction and started to focus on my hand. Initially, there was nothing and my impatience grew by the second. But then, I started to see faint waves of energy ebb out from my fingertips.
By instinct, my vision became sharp and I could see my body enshrouded with energy. Wisps of ambient energy hover around the distance. I could basically see the unseen!
'This is so cool!'
[Passive Skill: Aura Sense obtained]
[Aura Sense: Channel and release a pulse of aura around the vicinity to detect traces and tracks of ambient energy. The stronger the pulse, the larger the volume of detection.]
'Okay, so this skill lets me charge the pulse if I want to sense things far away. This should help me train in fine control.'
"You did it!" King congratulated me for the achievement. "Now, see if you can sense anything around you."
I let out a pulse beneath my feet. Distinct markings started to shine wherever the pulse covered. I guess these markings are like circuits on a motherboard, designed to let the user's Aura to flow through this airship and power it.
I then noticed a concentric structure near the nose-end of the airship. After walking over there, I knelt down and knocked the ground on a whim. Suddenly, a column of stone shot up in front of me, which startled me a bit. I examined it and found a circular hollow on the top.
'This must be the yoke of the airship, and the hollow must be the power inlet. I guess I need to feed my Aura into it.'
I covered the inlet with my left palm and concentrated a while. Slowly, the energy gathered around the palm and I let it grow to a considerable amount. Finally, I discharged it into the hollow, causing the airship to wake up. Now, I can travel across the sky freely. I'm not a fan of extreme heights, but I'm kind of starting to like this.
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[Mokkun/Kingumo's POV]
'Wow! This guy plays better than all of the people I was teamed up with, so far! Looks like my life's gonna turn for the better!'
Takeshi-san managed to activate the Sky Plateau. I taught him to control the Plateau and he had gotten used to it. Later, he descended through the clouds and got shocked by the scene before him.
It was basically, aesthetically Hell below the clouds. Lightning storms swirl frequently across the horizon, shining light over tall, black buildings. These buildings were erected everywhere Takeshi-san and I looked.
There was no ground to even look at. Instead, thick bromine-colored smoke cover the bases of the black buildings, stirring storms beneath.
"What is this place...?" Takeshi-san asked with confusion as his ears flapped down in horror.
"This is Trova. Or what's left of it. According to the lore, you're in a post-apocalyptic period. The red miasma you see down there is called Neth-Aura. It corrupts everything it touches, turning all beautiful things into monstrosities."
"Then, what about me?!" He panicked.
"You're fine! According to the lore, you're immune to the effects of the miasma."
"How, exactly?"
"Inheritance from your ancestors. After escaping from the disaster with the help of Sky Plateaus and adapting here, they dedicated their lives to perfect the cultivation techniques. As a result, Caelonauts (players) are blessed with bodies that could withstand Neth-Aura and also manipulate your own energy easily."
"I see... then what are these buildings?" Takeshi-san pointed at some of them.
"Well, those are called Dungeons! These structures are the reason why the world is in this state, but these weren't like this from the beginning. These got corrupted by Neth-Aura now and spew out monsters outside without control. This led to multiple Outbreaks, making your ancestors flee to the skies here."
"So, how do you enter one?"
"Patience. Some are them are extremely tough for a novice like you. So, let me handle the selection." I guided him around the dungeon and finally found the dungeon suitable for him.
'A white-star dungeon!'
"Takeshi-san, you should dock your Plateau on top of this dungeon. The top has the entrance. Quick, now!"
He immediately pulled up and landed on top of the dungeon. The centre of the Plateau opened up, making a chute-like exit for a safe landing. He jumped into the chute and got down. Then, the Plateau started to shrink into a small flat airship-shaped stone and flew into a slot, which was jutting out from the balcony. This will initiate a barrier to form around the dungeon, to prevent anyone from entering in. This is called Booking. A big ethereal gate stood in front of us, with white energy swirling around its borders.
"King, a quick question."
"Yeah?"
"Why is this dungeon marked with a star?"
"Good question! Stars indicate the complexity of the dungeon, whereas the star's color indicate the difficulty, increasing from White to Black. Since you're a novice, it's safe to say that this dungeon is solely, just for you!"
Takeshi-san understood what I said, but he kept on trying something from the beginning. Throwing out signs and gestures from his hands. Although I asked him before, he told me not to worry. Even I thought he has some kind of tic. But this nosy feeling of mine needs to stop.
The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
"What are you doing?"
"Nothing much. You don't need to worry." He tried to reassure me but I'd be an idiot if I ignore this further. My Guide senses are screaming to help him, so I couldn't help but shout at him: "That's what you said the last time and you kept on doing some weird things! I'm a Guide, you know! The least you could do is ask me for help or a hint."
Maybe that came out a bit harsh on my part. But I made my bed and now I've to lie in it.
"Sorry about that. I just wanted to open the Stats Window and Inventory Menu on my own. But it'd be embarassing to ask your help for simple stuff." Takeshi-san rubbed the back of his head as a way of apology.
"Hahahaha, you should've told me sooner. First, make a fist and tap your chest. Then stretch your arm out and open your hand. Now, try it out."
"Like this?" A screen came out in front of us, surprising him out of his fur. Although he did not show it, his bushy tail wagged like crazy. He swiped the screens like a child in awe. Ah, the nostalgia...
I took a look at his stats along with him.
Name: Jōbun
Lvl: 1
Title: ---
HP: 150/150
MP: 450/450
Stat Points :5
XP: 0%
STR: 9
RFL: 12
LUK : 5
FRT: 12
COG: 12
Passive Skills
Pacifista Lvl 1
Battle Vision Lvl 1
Aura Sense Lvl 1
Active Skills
Vulpine Jab Lvl 1
Vulpine Claw Lvl 1
Vulpine Tackle Lvl 1
Burrow Pounce Lvl 1
'Woah! Such Beginner's luck! With a Unison like this, he can make up a well-balanced stat build in no time! Also, he's better suited for a magician or a rouge, though time will tell for his potential. I can't wait to see his gameplay!'
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[Jōbun/Junkitsu's POV]
'Hey! My skills from PvP got carried over! This is nice.'
I'm still not well-versed about how skills cross between the modes, but that's something I can check out later. Now, for my active skills...
'These are only good for critical damage and takedowns. I seriously need some gear to increase my strength. By the way, let me equip the title.'
"King, let's go." He and I stepped inside the portal and ended up in a wide well-lit aisle, with torches fixed in the pillars. Strangely, the space around the aisle was dark. Perfect place for an ambush. I put my guard and walked carefully.
After a few steps forwards, a snarl fell on my right ear and I saw red eyes glaring at me from the dark. The red eyes lunged at me with a dagger, aiming for the bridge between my eyes. I immediately dodged aside to avoid the attack, but my cheek grew warm suddenly. I touched to see blood. It was a small cut, but the pain, the sting--- it felt a bit too real. I wiped it away and took a look at my first enemy.
Out in the light, there was a rat in a black hood, with a hunchback, holding the dagger towards me. The snarls it let out were feral and filled with bloodlust.
'Ugh, that thing's nasty! I'm gonna be sick...'
I got into a stance, waiting for it to attack me. Luckily, it took the bait and dashed towards me, lunging again for another stab. I was quick enough to grab its wrist with the dagger and tried to disarm it, but my grip wasn't strong enough and it broke free.
On the next lunge, one side-step to the left and a downward elbow to the back, dead-centre. That's all it took to bring the rat down to the ground, falling flat horrendously. It also let loose of the dagger, but the rat was not giving up, trying to reach for the blade. So, I kicked the rat and it flew to the pillar, back first. After this, I picked up the dagger. Now, although I'm happy that I got a dagger for self-defence, that feeling was short-lived. Why? Because that bozo rat just let out a call! Soon, a number of rats came out of the darkness and I'm surrounded. Thoroughly.
On second thoughts, it's better for me to stash the dagger, since I'm not good with it yet. I glanced at King to see how he's doing. He was panicking about this situation. I waved my hand to let him know that I got this, but that somehow freaked him out more. I signalled him to perch somewhere while I deal with this hunchback and his cousins.
'[Aura Sense]'
I sensed two presences jumping down on me, ready to dig into my skull, but I quickly rolled back, missing their daggers. I grabbed their tails, used them as makeshift athletic hammers against their comrades. Occasionally, King would swoop down for an opening, either scratching their hands or biting noses and tails. Like this, we killed eight rats, including the ones in my hands. The last rat ran away from me, but I threw the dagger right at its head, ending the ambush.
[Congratulations! You have leveled up!] x2
[4 Stat points have been rewarded] x2
'Right on time! But first, Loot!'
Just then, King rammed into my face, with his face contorted with panic and worry. He constantly apologized and asked me whether I was okay, to which I assured him and help him calm down.
"I'm glad you're fine, but those Bandicoots belong to the lower floors. I wonder why they're here." King frantically and meticulously checked for something in the map.
"Bandicoots?! I thought they were rats!"
"Yeah, I also thought the same as well. They're actually called Bandicoot Dacoits. These pesky jerks are a bunch of thieves, who will attack you and then loot your body once you're dead."
"They look more feral than an average one..."
"Exactly. Also, they have short, hairy tails. By the way, they're not good in terms of loot but the weapon drops show promise."
"Like what?"
"Daggers, but they're affixed with either Poison or Bleed. Now, let's go check them out!" King flew over the places where the bodies are. Except, loot occupies their space. He immediately segregated the loot and rubbed his wings in joy.
"OK, Takeshi-san! Follow my words! Show your hand towards the loot and close it!"
"Okay..." I did as he told and suddenly all the loot disappeared. Subsequently, I got a notification to open my Inventory. And lo and behold, all the loot is in there! I couldn't help but laugh at this. This is just wonderful!
"And that's how you take it all!" King stood proud.
I danced and showered my praises on him out of gratitude when suddenly, we heard a beeping noise from his map. I checked along with him. Two new dots spawned in close proximity to the dungeon we're in. Concurrently, the room around us rumbled. The vibrations here grew more, akin to that of an earthquake. The ashen color of fear painted over King as he gazed at me with horror, as if he had realized what's happening around us.
"Takeshi-san, grab the pillar and don't let go! I repeat, don't let go!!" He yelled at the top of his lungs as the room broke in pieces and we were swept away in a storm. I grabbed the pillar and King, keeping him close to me tightly as we're braving within the storm, hopefully that the rubble does not hit us. Among the whistling winds and flashes of lightning, among close calls and near-misses, I could hear a whisper, filled with fear, disbelief and... remorse?
'Not again' These two words looped around King's tongue. I felt awful seeing him in this state and hugged him tighter to the pillar. I also dared not open my eyes until this whole disaster stops.
I didn't how long time had passed, but I still don't want to open my eyes.
'[Aura Sense]'
The pillar, the floor, the entire room was restored. The worst had passed. I slowly slid down the pillar and laid down on the floor, while cradling the eagle like he's a baby.
"Takeshi-san, is it over?" King asked, with eyes still closed out of fear.
"Why don't you take a look, bro?"
He slowly opened his eyes and we saw the same aisle, just with different bricks and dimly-lit. But his look of realization returned, his horror and confusion amplified.
Soon, he was attacked with nervous breakdown, crying and apologizing about jeopardizing my first gameplay. The deeper he sank, the heavier the sadness in my chest grew.
"Hey, listen to me, I'm here with you. Please calm down."
"Calm down?! You don't understand the situation we're in right now!" He snapped.
"Alright, where are we?"
"This is..... the Abyss Cathedral!" His green eyes shone in the dim place, amplifying the spook factor.
"Huh?" I'm confused.
"This is..... the Abyss---"
"I got it the first time, I just don't get the hype behind it."
"Right, you're a novice... Of course, you don't know!" King scratched his head out of embarassment. "There's so much to share... where should I start?"
"I have an idea. I'll tell what I've understood so far, you plug in the terms from the lore. Sounds good?"
"Even better! This'll save some time and I can also track the info dump. Start, Takeshi-san!" Seeing him happy put a smile on my face. I'm glad he cheered him up.
I cleared my throat and started: "So we have Aura, but I can sense some sort of... wavelength in them."
"That's called Signature. It tells us about the quality and intensity of a particular Aura. Imagine it as a soundwave. For example, you and I have different Signatures. With my Sense, I can estimate roughly how strong you are and vice versa."
'Alright, clue no.1 noted.'
"Now, I've also felt different qualities of Aura from the dungeons we passed by earlier."
"Right, even dungeons have their Signatures too. They can give us an idea about what type of dungeon it could be, which are called Aspects. Aspects differ by the number of points in a star. Although there are various Aspects, you should remember three common ones: Resource, Ascension and Nemesis. I think the names are self-explanatory."
'Clue no.2 noted.'
"This dungeon is the result of the merging between three singular dungeons before, including this one."
"Now, this is a very important info. This phenomenon of dungeon fusion is called Assimilation. Think of this as islands clumping together to form a bigger landmass. The criterion is that the dungeons of different Aspects can release similar Signatures. Also, they should be close to each other."
"And this... Abyss Cathedral is one such structure."
"Haaa... I miss this... It's been a long time since I had a teammate talk with me like this." This line almost made me cry. Not only was he punished for something he may hadn't done, but also he's been mistreated by players before me. Still, I should finish this.
"Now that I got the basics down, what makes this dungeon so dangerous?"
"Haha, I prefer the term 'Impossible'. You see, this dungeon is a Black-star dungeon, the highest difficulty. Not one, not two but Three stars, meaning this dungeon has the template of a castle or a sanctuary." King showed me three feathers with an intense gaze. "As for the Aspects, they are Nemesis, Perma-death and Story."
"Okay... Perma-death, very bad."
"Exactly."
"What happens if I die, though? Just asking."
"Well, in that case, you should kiss your hard-earned loot and XP goodbye, 'cause you'll never, ever, ever be able to set foot in this dungeon." King smiled, but his eyes didn't. Something tells me that this is not his first rodeo, though.
"You've been here before?"
"Yeah, 30 times with 30 different players over the span of 2 years. All I got was 30 failures and 30 flavors of foul language, but it's alright. One of the perks of being a Guide is that I'm immune to Perma-death, so I get to keep all my stuff! Too bad I end up starting from scratch, hehe!" I don't know why, but my vision was blurry on seeing King smile at his ordeal like that. His tenacity was like that of a hurricane. I wouldn't mind getting lifted off and thrown into the air by such winds.
"Hey! Why are you crying?! I knew something's wrong! Let me see where I can patch you up." He flew around me trying to find any injuries, but I pushed him aside, trying to wipe my tears.
"King, listen to me. You're my Guide and I trust you completely. Just as I rely on your experience with this dungeon, you also rely on me. For anything, really. We're gonna conquer this dungeon, you hear me?"
He shed tears out of joy that he's worth relying and cheered up: "Takeshi-san, no, brother Jun, I'll help you to my very best! Together, we'll conquer this dungeon!"
We let out a warcry to steele our resolve, but that was a bad idea. Hot air hit our backs. Out of fear and instinct, we slowly turned about and saw a hulking bull with large, curved green horns glowing in the dark. His mooing warcry was so powerful, it pushed us away for a good distance.
"Any idea what that is?"
"That's the Plower, the Earth King! For a buffoon of that size, this'd be a piece of cake to you, don't you agree?" King smirked at me, waiting for my answer.
"Do I...? Watch me."
[To be continued]