The Fool's Freedom

Zirida listened with rapt attention. She seemed interested in everything involving blood and [Ritual: Enchanted Bones] involved lots of blood. After all, it used it as a tool to dig up the bones much like she was doing with her swords and the rocks. Alan didn’t want to reveal the waterbags of werewolf blood he had taken from the dungeon yet but noted in his mind that they might be useful for trading in the future. The information on the dungeon would probably also be something of value to Zirida, and Alan briefly entertained the notion of taking her along.

The good news was that according to the cleric, there was a chance that he could use the ritual on other people, but few would subject themselves to something like that. The bad news was that the one performing it would most certainly have to take complicated and very binding oaths that would ensure the prolonged well-being of the one receiving the treatment. Plus, there would be witnesses present from both sides for a further guarantee that nothing untoward was going on.

It sounded like too much work. Alan was barely using his class as it was supposed to be used due to his commitment issues, and the oath he had given to that shitty dungeon Doctor was enough to ruin his sleep. Not that he slept much anymore.

She also noted that he could probably find all the mana crystals he needed to complete the ritual in the outpost, and he could get them by trading void cores. Different cores acted as fuel to specific skills and rituals and were worth a lot to the right person or faction. They were also used as a cheaper alternative to pure mana stones to sustain large formations around settlements such as the outposts on most large fractals, or the private residences of strong individuals.

Alan was very grateful for all the information and help, but he still didn’t fully trust her. He just couldn’t bring himself to. Zirida seemed a bit wary of him, but she was freely answering many of his questions. To her, it was probably common knowledge but to him it was gold. If she was a more self-centered person, she could have demanded payment… Something Alan wasn’t sure he wouldn’t do himself if the situations were reversed.

Maybe that simply meant she was a better person than him. Or more naïve. Not that he was about to backstab her as the demon had often proposed. It was lucky she hadn’t decided to check what he was carrying on him while he had been unconscious next to her. Alan wasn’t keen on finding out what attitude followers of the ‘approved gods’ had toward demons.

Many places in the chasm were hard to traverse and Zirida often had to cut at the stone with her swords of blood. They seemed to slice through the black stone as if it were cardboard.

After waiting for Zirida to widen a particularly tiny passage into a wider one, he also updated his attributes. He had a total of 33 free attribute points from 11 new levels and he put 15 each into Will and Mind, figuring that [Ritual: Enchanted Bones] would soon boost his Magic attribute to new heights. Plus, Will and Mind had a direct effect on his physical attributes too, so it was a priority for now. 3 attribute points were left just over in case.

INFORMATION:

Name:

Alan Morgan

Race:

Human

Class:

Warlock

Level:

43

Insight:

Flow;

Titles:

First Pathfinder; Madcap; Slayer; Friend of the Spirit World; Enlightened

ATTRIBUTES:

3

Strength

59(OBOM + 39.3) +5 [15 base

Dexterity

59(OBOM + 39.3) + 5 [15 base

Vitality

5

Will

170(+39.3 from %) [131 base

Mind

149 (+5) (+13.1 from %) [131 base

Magic

126 (R: EB +22) [104 base

TRAITS:

One Mind, One Body; Limited Vitality; Tongues of the Four Corners; Broken One’s Will; Shadow Mind; Oathbound

SKILLS:

Warlock’s Body Mastery; Synaptic Failure; Shadow Weapon; Ritual: Enchanted Bones; Mortal Peril; Monochrome Armor; Curse: Stolen Life; Mana Zap; Sacrificial Attack

BODY ENHANCEMENTS:

Shadow Space; Rune: Myriad Tongues

The thirty percent bonus to Will was starting to shine, and it would only grow from here. Hopefully, it would help him with bending and transforming his current arsenal of skills into something fierce.

He liked Zirida’s way of using blood. It was reminiscent of the way that God-worshipping bastard had used the flowing chitin, although hers seemed to be much more focused on creating swords and daggers.

The thought of Wuros ignited a spark of rage inside of Alan. He couldn’t wait to become strong enough and kick the ass of the bastard. The reward seemed awesome too. Still, he couldn’t rely on getting to it first considering how many weird and special people there were.

His thoughts once again returned to Turtle and the god he had claimed was whispering in his ear. The man had grown very spooked once he had been made to bleed and Alan didn’t remember seeing him after that. Living forever seemed like a great goal though.

“There is something up ahead,” Zirida suddenly whispered.

Alan didn’t know how to feel about that. It was becoming quite tedious to crawl around pressed by black stone from each side. Maybe the sight of how easily Zirida cut them apart had given Alan additional anxiety that they would simply decide to fall on their heads.

He remembered watching videos of people who would crawl into tight dark caves where they couldn’t reliably even turn… for fun. The feeling of anxiety he felt now was similar to the one his short venture into that online world had given him. He didn’t have magic then, which helped a little bit with the nerves. And Zirida seemed almost excited, rather than worried; like a kid going on their first adventure, which made no sense for someone like her.

Who knew what her life had been and what she had suffered considering all the scars? There would be time for empathy later.

They crawled out of the tiny tunnel Zirida had made barely wide enough for passage and exited in a massive cavern. Thick darkness obscured the ceiling. The light from the two candlestones was barely enough to reach the points of massive hanging stalactites. Below, the cavern was a rolling mess of platforms that looked like they would crumble under the lightest of pushes. Their weights rested over a wide chasm, that Alan didn’t feel like thinking about.

The safest way seemed to be an edge seemingly dug into the cave wall, creating a narrow path that skirted around the fragile-looking islands resting at different heights in the middle, and disappeared into the darkness ahead.

“Maybe we should turn back?” Alan half-heartedly suggested as a wave of nausea suddenly washed over him. He did not like this place. A hand clapped on his mouth faster than he could react.

“Shut up you stupid bastard. Look around!” Xil’s voice sounded at almost the same time.

Zirida made a shushing gesture toward him, and when he nodded, she finally removed her hand from his mouth. Her skin smelled vaguely like iron.

Or blood.

Alan was about to ask Xil what his problem was when Zirida pointed. He looked toward the nearest platform and stared at it. It took him a few seconds but he finally noticed an odd pattern in the rocks resting above the chasm.

They were littered with cracks as if made of many different segments and looking closer, parts of them would twitch from time to time. The tiny movements allowed for the dim light of the candlestones to reach what was in between – wooden flesh.

Was this a nest of Treant Shifters? What the fuck was this shit?! What sort of sentient tree would live underground in complete darkness?

Slowly Alan motioned for them to enter back into the tunnel so they could speak without worrying. Thankfully the creatures hadn’t reacted to the light, or his dumb suggestion. It was a close call though.

“Should we try to find another path?” Alan whispered. Zirida came so close he could feel her breath.

“I cannot dig out the whole mountain.”

“Oh. It just looked easy for you.”

“Ease comes from the amount of control and concentrated energy it takes to create blades that can cut with silence and precision. I cannot do that constantly.”

So, it functioned like his charged shadow blades, only hers was a more permanent version. [Shadow Weapon]’s name in no way implied he needed another weapon. The effect of the enchantments was a great addition, however, there were times he might not need to use his daggers. Or he might not have access to them. Or maybe his shadows could gain additional effects with his growth. Maybe this ‘will’ thing would come in handy.

Another thing to consider when he managed to find some free time in a place devoid of dangers.

Like that will happen any day soon.

“What then?” Alan asked.

“We sneak around the edge and hope for the best. Isn’t that what an adventure is?” Zirida smiled. Alan felt a certain amount of fear looking at her smile. She had been calm and collected before, oozing an aura of cold rationality. Now, as her walls were coming down, she was turning into a child set loose in a playground. If only the playground wasn’t littered with various sharp objects that could end his life at a moment's notice.

There didn’t seem to be many other options though.

“Xil, you might have to make us quiet.”

“Oh, and how will you explain that to the divine bitch? Huh?” Xil retaliated. It was a good point.

“Well, I could always say it's an artifact. Or a skill? Though, with her sensitivity, she can probably realize where the effect is coming from.”

“Sure. Listen, you are dumb but I prefer your company instead of falling into the hands of a religious bastard who would free me only so I can get exorcised with an axe.”

“I’m sure she wouldn’t do that.” He wasn’t.

“Right. Right. I will cast my skill, just because falling into the bottom of that pit sounds like a fate worse than having to listen to you whine about this and that. And I’m fucking sure you idiots will do something to draw the attention of the tens of creepy vegetables out there and get yourselves eaten. Maybe not the girl, she seems competent.”

“What are you staring at me for?” Zirida suddenly asked.

Alan flinched. He hadn’t realized he had been staring as he was about to let loose some insults toward the demon. Xil had become especially annoying lately.

“I was thinking. I can make us completely silent, but we won’t be able to hear anything either.”

“Sounds great.”

“Alright. Let’s get this over with. We either die or make it, right?” Alan smiled.

“Yep. Fifty-fifty.” Zirida said and started moving.

“That’s not how this works at all. Fucking humans.”

The two neared the edge. There was a small gap before they could get to the ledge but it was nothing worrying for either of them. Zirida nodded.

“Xil?”

“Yeah, yeah.”

The effect of [Soundless] washed over them and Alan watched as Zirida’s eyes widened. Was it the first time she was experiencing something similar? Alan assumed it was not that rare of a skill considering some of the things he had seen before. She adapted quickly and Alan saw her lips move before she smiled and hopped on the ledge.

Alan suddenly had an idea before pointing at the candlestone in her hand. She gave it to him with a raised eyebrow. Alan put away the one he was holding, took out a piece of old cloth, and wrapped it around the lone candlestones. Some of the lights still got through, but it was dim enough that it only gave them vision a few meters around—enough for a slow crawl. It never hurt to be extra careful.

Zirida didn’t protest and took the candlestone as she was the one leading.

He followed her close behind, pretending that there was not a chasm that could swallow a big residential building with no issues just to the right of him. The two walked carefully and a few times Alan stopped Zirida and used his staff to poke some of the cracked and more ‘untrustworthy’ looking parts of the ledge. She seemed fine with letting him satisfy the anxiety bubbling inside of him.

A few times his gaze unwittingly moved toward the darkness, where the tens of weird monsters were sleeping or doing who knows what. While Zirida had successfully killed the ones that had attacked them and it hadn’t taken her much effort at all, he didn’t think she could do the same against a horde of them.

Slowly they proceeded further and further down the ledge, hoping it would soon lead them to a more solid ground. It sloped and raised. There were parts they had to jump over too. The unnatural silence only let thoughts run wilder than ever, and Alan tried to stir them away from the danger lurking all around. The tension was getting to him.

He wondered if there were dwarfs in the universe. Would they get offended if he offered them booze and wanted to sing songs around the forge fires with them? Now that would make all of the bullshit, he was going through almost worth it—another thing to ask Zirida later.

And did dragons have hoards? Would he get rich if he found one? What constituted rich in this Universe? Mana stones? Artifacts?

He almost bumped into the woman who had stopped and was staring ahead. It took Alan a few moments to realize what she was looking at under the dim light, but as he did he gasped.

The ledge had ended. Zirida uncovered the candlestone. A few meters above was the ledge of what looked like a wider platform. It was probably possible to jump with a massive boost, but Alan typically avoided experimenting like that. Zirida looked at him with a raised eyebrow. He nodded back without thinking.

Wait, what did I agree to?

A few red ropes shot out of open wounds and wrapped around Alan before he could react. They were hard as steel and held him close to her back as if he were a backpack. He could feel strength and heat radiating from her scarred skin. It was kind of emasculating, but he forced himself to endure.

Then she made weirdly shaped claws of blood appear in her palms and they were off rock climbing. She moved like a spider upon the wall, easily getting her bladed fingers to stick into the dark stone.

They were almost up when a large boulder broke off from the wall and fell, making Alan’s heart skip a beat. The cleric seemed unperturbed. The falling rock made no initial sound due to [Soundless] and Alan sighed in relief before his eyes widened.

The skill has a range.

“You stupid fucks,” The demon cursed in his mind almost at the same time. The sound returned just as a loud bang of stone crashing into stone echoed from the darkness below.

It was followed by a chorus of screeches that rose all around them.