The Fool's Freedom

The tunnels flowed up and down, never making it apparent which way they were leading. Alan believed that being a Dungeon, he would not reach a dead end or an obstacle he could not pass unless it forced him to go a different route. However, there was also the possibility that he was being led astray by his preconceived notions of Dungeons from the games he had played so long ago. Time and time again the System had proven that such memories had no place in his understanding of it, and one singular experience that was mostly traumatic was hardly a guiding point he could rely on.

To roam the underground world soon became a chore. He avoided fights with the jadari warriors wherever he could, as he felt somewhat guilty of killing so many of them. Not the ones that had fallen in combat, but those swept away by the [Hateful Mist Cut] were just unfortunate casualties. It didn’t weigh on him that much, and yet again it had made him think on a deeper level. Alan was starting to hate thinking. There was shame in not being able to look at his opponents before taking their lives. The Quest was somewhat of a damper on that, of course, but a part of him had grown dissatisfied with his enjoyment of slaughter, once again leaving him in a weird state of mind.

It seems I’ll never decide what I want to be or do. I can just be everything at once though, isn’t that the whole point of it? I should stop moping around for once. All of them will be coming back to life once the Dungeon resets anyway.

He took a thin tunnel that seemed to go straight up and was flabbergasted as it soon led to a small lake in a large cavern with no other continuation apart from a square tunnel to his right, that was blocked off with wooden barricades. Wood had to be taken from the surface, or deep roots. It was probably made by the jadari. But why? The barrier didn’t look sturdy at all. Enough to stop a simple animal. Alan wasn’t sure there were simple animals out there. Perhaps on more normal worlds?

There was a plop of something falling into the water and Alan turned sharply. He only caught a glimpse of wavy circles on the surface of the lake. Something had certainly fallen though.

The ceiling of the cavern was dark, and even his improved eyesight had trouble making out anything up there. Whatever light lit up the cavern was coming from beneath the edges of the water – as if some of the jaderin ore was placed around the edges of the lake. It did little to light up the middle of it or give a glimpse of its depths.

He took out a candlestone and making a long staff of shadows to place it on, brought it closer to the high ceiling. It lit up light a Christmas tree as strange wiggling forms reflected the lights in many different colors as if they were made of expensive crystal.

There were more of them just beneath the surface of the water. The lake glistened like a mountain of jewels and Alan took a moment to appreciate the beauty of it all. The moment the candlestone was put away, the glimmers disappeared. The soft light of the ore was perhaps not enough, or the right type, to enact such an effect. Yet another curiosity that made no sense.

With soft and careful steps Alan approached the lake’s waters and using his staff as the base, just in case, made something like a giant net of shadows. Forming something intricate was slower and harder, but it was also good practice.

Whatever he caught, was heavy. At first, he thought it was some sort of a jellyfish, but as he plopped it on the ground and once again took the candlestone out, he was surprised. A translucent crystalline creature that looked like an overgrown bug wiggled before him. It was difficult to see, especially in water, but it glistened under the light like a jewel. The creature didn’t fight back, nor try to escape. Its crawling was slow and purposeful, as it tried to go back toward the lake.

Are they rearing those? Alan used his shadows to obstruct the creature’s path and stop it from escaping.

You have slain: Crystalmeat Caddis (32)

What?! He hadn’t done anything to it, other than pull it out and play with it a bit! Few cracks appeared on the shell of the creature, making it more visible, as it plopped down on the stone floor of the cavern. The inside was full of red marbled meat that looked almost like beef, although the colors were many times more vibrant and almost unnatural.

Alan placed a hand on his face. He had infused parts of his will in the shadows by instinct, and being absent-minded he had also let them wreak havoc on the weak creature’s psyche and body. It was a shame, although the sight of the succulent meat made him rethink things.

Fuck it. With a sight, Alan gathered a few more of the creatures and quickly killed them, before placing them in his shadow space. He didn’t need food or water, but he still enjoyed them and noticed that each drink or piece of food he consumed was turned into mana. A highly positive effect, even if the absorption was minor.

After making sure there was nothing more of note in the cavern, Alan hesitated but ultimately decided to press on. Not before creating a curse mark though. There could be some more interesting creatures lurking around, and killing Cole so soon, without even being there to see it, would be sad.

The wooden barricades were weak and rotten from the accumulated moisture in the cavern. He moved slowly down the rocks and about twenty minutes later stopped and surveyed his surroundings. The tunnel had widened quite a lot, turning into yet another strange cavern. This one was filled with Jaderin Ore piles – it was mined, and put on carts similar to the one he had seen the kobolds push. There was no one mining though, and some of the shadows looked funny.

His own passive shield of shadows blocked the first trike and Alan turned sharply to send a shadow slash using only his finger. It worked decently as a tiny shadow blade shot out and crashed into the jadari Warrior who had somehow snuck up on him. The panther-man managed to block in time, but a [Void Pierce] made a hole into his torso a second later. The jadari Warrior dropped down, but it didn’t like the wound was enough to finish him off. Alan didn’t hesitate as he swung his staff and turned it into a polearm mid-swing – separating the head from the rest of the body.

Many other jadari walked out of the shadows or dropped down from the nooks and crannies they were hiding in the next few moments – there were about a dozen or so. They didn’t seem at all upset that he had killed one of their own.

Behind them, from yet another continuation of many tunnels, stepped out a large panther-woman, if she could be called that. The humanoid body contrasted sharply with the twisted visage of what was a feline face with three eyes and features that could make the worst monsters feel pretty.

Alan gulped at the sight. While the strength was probably not enough to make him worry too much, the newcomer's sheer visage was terrifying enough.

She screamed – an unearthly wail that made Alan’s mana churn in discomfort. He could feel something was wrong, but the fight began in the next moment. Thoughts of mercy and the futility of slaughter left Alan’s mind as they had come, and he focused on the whispers of his trustworthy shadows and the guidance of his bloodlust.

With a grin that was half his, half his suppressed madness, Alan met the charge of the jadari Warriors. His staff was a double-edged polearm and he swung with abandon, trying to stick to what he had learned in his few training sessions with Zirida.

It was difficult, and he cursed at himself for neglecting the learned. The fight still happened. The jadari were fast and capable of absorbing his skills, so he tried to overwhelm them with speed and remember some of the lessons Zirida had so painfully imparted to him.

Learning to fight didn’t seem that important with skills there for the taking, but for some reason, he knew that [Hateful Mist Cut] was a skill born out of skill – sheer mastery – among other things. He knew even [Shadow Creation] would improve and serve him better if he fought better.

And for that, he needed proper experience, devoid of the cheat-like skills he had gathered.

However, his plan didn’t work for long. The panther-men were slower, mostly due to the discrepancy in tiers, but they were much more adept at using their bodies and speed than Alan. Just like in the previous fights they slowly overwhelmed him. Nevertheless, he tried to keep up, creating shields of shadows and letting his passive [Shepherd’s Shroud] bear the brunt of the attacks he couldn’t dodge.

The clumsy dance lasted for a few minutes before the female jadari screamed again, and every single one of the panthers grew more vicious. It had been a different type of scream, but considering the increased danger, it was probably a buff.

Alan didn’t know who was the first to use shadows and shape them as a blade just like he was doing, but as the attack came at him the sight made him unreasonably angry. They were copying his skills! He had seen the copy of the shadow slash earlier, but his [Shadow Creation] too now? It was a mockery – a weak imitation no longer than a forearm, but it was something he couldn’t let go.

His pride as a Scion flared up, finding an opportunity to take over for just a moment, and the shadows of the cavern moved.

Alan decided enough was enough and used [Void Step]. Or tried to. His eyes widened as he felt the sluggishness of his mana. The skill took a few more seconds to activate than usual, resulting in his shield being broken by an empowered attack, and one of the imitated blades stabbing him in the side.

He was gone in the next moment and retreated with full haste before stopping, but the searing pain remained. Was he cursed? Debuffed? He tried to cast [Void Pierce] on one of the enemies, but it took a whole of three seconds to go off; his target had long fled.

What the fuck?!

Shadows raged around him and he felt himself lose the thin thread of control holding him back from wasting the opportunity for training he was given. This was getting dangerous. His mana was already working on his wound, but it was a slow process and any more would probably lead him to death.

It was preposterous. Dying in such a place, against such weak enemies. He was a Scion, and moreover, he was an inheritor of a legacy whose terror knew no bounds. The shadows raged and their whispers once again became voices urging him to let go. A piece of foreign will wormed itself into Alan’s psyche.

We slaughter. We slay. We BREAK.

That was right. Alan was the [Shepherd of the Broken] and apart from carrying all the lost and dead remnants along for the ride, he was also the best person to break the spirits of those who opposed or mocked him.

He had done it before.

A ball of shadowy mana, mixed with a hint of the void element appeared in his hand and some of the jadari that had neared him stopped in their tracks. The large female warrior screamed again, and this time Alan felt it – an intrusion. No, a skill, affecting him like a parasite latching onto his very core. It disrupted the flow of mana and stopped what he had been inspired to do. The mana and the Will gathered in them dispersed.

With a yell, Alan threw his staff to the side and the shroud of shadows enveloped him. His Will spread again like a raging wind and the whispers of the shadows grew stronger. The jadari seemed worried, but as the colorless world washed over them and nothing happened, they resumed their attacks.

Among the voices, one laughed louder than the rest, before it spoke. “Anger, even unbridled and uncontrolled, can be a fuel. Use it, and bathe in the blood of your enemies. Skills are there to make the path to power easier, but they’re not power itself. Use each resource you have.”

Alan wanted to curse it out. This was not the time for lectures or bullshit about the higher truths and whatnot.

His mana was in disarray, but nevertheless, the shadows slowly obeyed his demands, and making note of the delay of his skills, he got to work.

[Void Step] activated five whole seconds after he had cast it, during which he was busy blocking attacks and clumsily dodging swipes from crystalized limbs and claws. The panther people’s ability to steal was too limited for him to care too much, but their nimbleness was a problem.

His charged shadow nova went off a second before [Void Step], pushing the attackers to the side. He appeared only a few steps from the large female jadari, leaving the rest of the warriors at his back. The horrific monstrous face did little to dissuade him, and Alan rushed in a straight line for her. She took his attack easily and threw him to the side of the wall with a hit of her own.

But not before the red mark made contact with her skin.

A whole new world of lifeforce appeared in Alan’s mind palace moments later, and as he got up, he started drinking from both available to him. If mana wasn’t on the table, then lifeforce would have to do.

His daggers glowed with the glow of the strongest [Sacrificial Attack] so far, and his shadows took on a red hue. Just like he had done so long before, he held onto the force of the skill and didn’t let go, no matter how painful it was.