The Fool's Freedom

Congratulations! You have learned a new skill: [Sacrificial Attack] (Epic)

Sacrificial Attack [Epic]

To forfeit part of your own life only to hurt another. Is there another such action that encompasses hate and vengeance so well? Or just maybe you sacrifice in order to protect? Ha!

Sacrifice a portion of your Vitality permanently to produce an attack stronger than most at its level.

The more of your life you sacrifice, the stronger the attack becomes.

Well, that’s horrifying. And why the fuck is the description mocking the idea of sacrificing to protect? Is that personal? The fuck?!

A voice echoed in his mind making Alan stop focusing on the new suicidal skill he had just gotten.

“Bastard human fool! Answer me! Are you alive?! Did you fry your pea-sized brain?!”

“I’m fine, Xil. Just bit a bit more than I can chew off.”

“You don’t say? Tell me, is it me or do you have a death wish? ‘Cause as far as my demon ass is concerned, you’ve been trying to off yourself since we met, and maybe before that! Or… and hear me out, maybe you are just fucking stupid?”

“Aw, do you care for me that much?” Alan teased. He couldn’t get mad at the demon anymore. It was one of two constants in his life after the apocalypse. He and Ashlyn. He had to admit there was even a sense of friendship there. Both were broken in their own ways, and both raged against that fate.

“M-Me? Care? How about you shove—”

Alan tuned the demon out and let him rant. Something was bothering him… something was missing. He quickly turned toward the exploded body of the creature. The dark onyx stone was there giving off a faint glow and the shattered pieces of the monster that looked like broken glass were slowly creeping toward it. The movement was almost imperceptible.

With less than a small amount of enthusiasm Alan decided to consult the demon again, interrupting his rant.

“Hey, Xil, shut up for a second. Do you know anything about this?”

“Don’t— huh, curious. Try to pour some of your intent into the stone. Some creatures with powerful regeneration can live even if a single piece of them survives. Or so I’ve heard… somewhere.”

“I see.”

Alan carefully picked up the stone. It was cold to the touch and very smooth.

“What do you mean pour some of my intent? Like mana?”

“Ugh, I keep forgetting you are like a child. Mana is energy and using it makes your own. The one fueling your skills is different than the one outside as it is uniquely yours. It is like your signature. Learning to sense and manipulate the intent or will that makes the mana yours, so to call it, is an entirely different matter and might lead to unique results. Well, it’s different for everyone. Knowing you yours might just make you drop dead ‘cause I know that’s what you want deep down, you fucking pussy.”

The damned demon was frustratingly useful. Still, that was good to know. Alan channeled some of his mana into the stone and concentrated. There was a faint response and for a brief moment, he could sense something else there. However, it was quickly drowned by his mana and extinguished.

You have slain: Void Risen Parasite (52)

Level up!

You have reached level 32 in [Warlock]!

+ 3 Attribute Points

+ 1 Mind, Will, and Magic

Alan grinned. This journey was shaping up to be a very welcome surprise. The stone remained in his hand and there was still a lot of energy inside, although it felt very strange. Alan pocketed it, figuring that he might eventually find a use for the thing.

Next, he checked out the marks left on the mountainside from the life force he had thrown at it. They were deep and strange with no similarities. There were large crushed pieces of stone that had been turned to dust, leaving gaping holes in the mountainside. There were also blade wounds as if an insanely sharp sword had cut the stone like butter. The [Shadow Slash] would certainly not have been able to do that much damage. It was a powerful new skill he had gotten, but it had a high cost too.

That left the question open. What exactly was Vitality? His wounds were still healing, albeit slower than a normal person’s – a problem resolved somewhat by [Warlock’s Body Mastery]. His stamina was absolute shit and it was certainly dictated to some extent by the attribute, but that too was covered by [One Mind, One Body]. Sure, the skill allowed him to have the endurance of an average healthy human at best, but that was still worlds away from what he had had on Earth. It was also getting worse the more his physical attributes were growing, which was bad but made sense. Being stronger and faster probably required more energy.

Which meant that the stronger he got, the faster he would tire.

He knew his lifespan was also very limited, and that was the biggest drawback. That, and the fact that the attribute was going down on its own from time to time when he overstrained his body. Did that mean that each time he healed or boosted his physical abilities with mana he was shortening his life? Because if so, the year he assumed he had left was probably down to a few months at best. How did losing and gaining points play into that?

The extra vital energy he had gotten from the creature had almost killed him. He could still feel his flesh being shifted by growths that shrunk and expanded and branched out in his body. Was it a mutation or tumors? The experience had been disgusting and terrifying, but at least now he had a way to expel the energy if it happened again, which he certainly hoped it wouldn’t.

“Hey Xil, what do you know about the Vitality attribute?”

“Eh, not much. Figured everything was in the name and never paid much attention during… huh. I’m sure I was slacking somewhere. I think… some skills make use of it as energy. Ah, shit.”

Well, he couldn’t know everything. A demon with amnesia was still better than being completely alone. It did give a certain sense of comfort. Now all that was left was to use his 24 free attribute points a get a good boost.

He climbed up to his previous hiding spot and sat down. Xil was once again put on watch duty, while Alan contemplated his attributes. Will and Mind had a base of 97, while Magic was at a base of 96 before all the bonuses were applied. He hoped that bringing them all to a base of 100 or over would give him something extra. Maybe the smartest guy in the new world or something? A trait?

It would take him exactly 10 points to do that. Or maybe 13, if he wanted to bring all to 101 and have 11 more points to play with.

Ah, screw it. With a thought he put all 8 points in each of the attributes, bringing Will and Mind to a base of 105 and Magic to 104. It annoyed him a bit, but the bonuses ruined the evenness anyway.

The change was almost palpable this time. The most obvious was the mana pool, but there was an overall change in his mind. No titles, achievements, traits, or anything else though.

His new Status screen was shaping up to be quite the sight.

INFORMATION:

Name:

Alan Morgan

Race:

Human

Class:

Warlock

Level:

32

Insight:

Flow;

Titles:

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

ATTRIBUTES:

Strength

51(OBOM + 31.5) +5 [15 base

Dexterity

51(OBOM + 31.5) + 5 [15 base

Vitality

5

Will

136(+31.5 from %) [105 base

Mind

120 (+5) (+10.5 from %) [105 base

Magic

126 (REB +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;

The best part was he hadn’t had to waste any points to raise Vitality again. He also currently had 9 skills, which was quite a lot, but most were not even that usable in a fight. [Mortal Peril] was simply there due to his trait, which didn’t exactly explain why the will manifestation wasn’t.

Learning about skills and if he could combine them in some way or advance them would be good. Keeping track of them all would be exhausting in the long run, especially if he kept receiving one every few levels.

Skill Stones also changed things a lot. There were probably many rare and insane skills out there just ripe for the picking. Was there even a limit?

“Xil?”

“What now?” the demon grumbled. If Alan didn’t know better, he would say that Xil was sounding mighty tired.

“I was just wondering if there is a limit to the amount of skills one can learn?”

“Dunno how it is with humans, but for us demons it might be different. Then again, we typically depend on our bloodlines and the type of demons we are to learn skills, so I guess that could be determining the number. And I’ve told you before, sometimes less is more. Take fire skills for example. You can hurl spears, bolts, balls, pebbles, and all that, and each would be a separate skill with different strengths. However, if you have a skill that could manipulate fire at its core, you could get rid of them all and still be able to cast the way you like.”

“That makes sense. So, if I get more shadow skills, at some point I might combine them all into one super powerful skill that will do all they did and more?”

“Theoretically. I don’t remember the details.”

That was another very interesting piece of information.

“Thanks, Xil. Are you tired or something? Want me to put you away in the shadow space?”

“Nah, I am good. I’ve been trying to examine the weave of the prison and find where exactly the breeze is coming from. I’d rather stay outside. Plus, I don’t want to miss your death.”

“Well, I hope we can get you freed before that so I can punch your dumb face at least once.”

“Please, my face is not dumb. Not that I remember it… I am sure that however I look like would be a thousand times more handsome than what you have going on. That hair on your face is looking scruffy.”

“It’s called a beard and it's mighty awesome.” He had yet to shave.

Just in time, something thundered in the distant skies interrupting their banter. It approached fast and soon reached his position.

Alan instantly activated the chameleon ring and looked up. He saw the clouds bubbling and dispersing in a straight line. A large blurry shape passed over the mountain pass leaving a trail of black spatial tears that made [First Pathfinder] sing in Alan’s mind. It was as uncomfortable as it had ever gotten, and came with a warning of danger much stronger than he had experienced even in the spatial tunnel he had fallen through.

The clouds acted like living beings as they rushed toward the cracks and enveloped them. Alan gaped as slowly space was returned to normal and the uncomfortable feeling buzzing in his soul disappeared.

“I might be dying sooner rather than later if that thing comes for me,” Alan said while staring at the distance where clouds were rolling and working tirelessly to fix the damage.

“Can’t wait,” Xil replied. “Your new skill can create a link with a creature and drain it of life, right? Imagine if you could mark something like that. It probably won’t even feel your leeching ass, and you will have a constant source of life.”

Alan hadn’t shared details of his new skill with the demon, but apparently, Xil was way more perceptive than he had given him credit for. The idea was one of the first that had passed through Alan’s mind, but getting close and cursing something of that strength seemed like a death wish. Not that it wouldn’t be awesome.

“I should probably prepare a curse mark, just in case. Then we start moving.” Alan said. The journey to this world was not anticipated. He still had some food in his shadow space but quickly took inventory. There was some alcohol in the endless flask of Mr. Muge, lots of werewolf blood, a bunch of kobold herbs that he hadn’t gotten around to checking out, the vials with bloody tears from the dungeon with unknown use, his daggers, some spare clothes, and his ritual tools.

“You do that.”

The process was less draining this time around. At least Alan felt better after it and he wondered if there was still some excess vital energy in his body, because it took him mere minutes to feel like he hadn’t just lost another large amount of blood.

Another plus of almost dying by making his body too alive.

The curse mark still looked as sinister as the last time. It would be a good trump card to have if he fell into a shit situation. He could theoretically drain a creature of its life force and pour the excess into [Sacrificial Attack]. The description of the skill was quite vague as to how precisely the attack manifested, and trying it out would be one of the dumbest things in the world to the current him, but it was still a good option when his back was against the wall.

With everything prepared Alan took a swing of Arley’s beer and stood up. It was time to explore this so-called Fractal Battlefield and find out how the fuck he could go home.

Hopefully, figuring that out would come with a slew of levels and good loot.

TITLES

Title: First Pathfinder

To walk among the stars, to visit worlds and fractals long lost in the dark void, to search and find a path where others cannot. To explore, to yearn for adventure, to dream of the impossible. There will be many others, but you were the first.

You are very sensitive to spatial energy, phenomena, and passages between realms.

You are very adaptive to spatially unstable environments.

Title: Slayer

You have done what few can do, killing an enemy much stronger than you before choosing a class, earning you the title of Slayer.

You are more resistant to effects causing fear.

+5 to Strength and Dexterity.

+10% to Will.

Title: Madcap

In a short period of time, you have experimented on yourself, jumped recklessly in danger’s way, participated in forbidden ancient rituals, and almost guaranteed your death to the best of your ability multiple times. Yet, despite being your worst enemy, be it due to blind luck or cunning, you still live.

+5 Mind

+10% Mind.

You have met so many times with death that you have developed a sense of when you are in mortal peril. You have been granted the skill [Mortal Peril]

Title: Friend of the Spirit World

You have met a powerful being from the Spirit World and lived to cherish the memory. For better or for worse that experience has left its mark on you.

Spirits can sense the mark and will treat you accordingly.

LOCKED

Title: Enlightened

Few are those who dig deep enough to sense the world around them, much less to understand it. Being one of those who have glimpsed into the fabric of reality is an achievement unmeasurable by Level or Class.

You can sense others who have touched upon the building blocks of existence and wield their power.

TRAITS

TRAITS

Trait: Tongues of the four corners

You understand most widely spoken languages in the merged worlds.

Trait: Broken One’s Will (Epic)

You persevere through hardship and pain, dancing between life, death, and disappointment and holding on only due to your strong will to live. Your path has left you scarred and broken, but you do not succumb. Wear your scars as weapons.

+20% to your Will attribute.

Mental attacks affect you less the closer you are to death.

It takes more to kill you than it would a regular human.

You gain Manifest Will (Unique) – the unique ability individual to whoever wields it. Project one’s will upon the world. A manifestation of one’s true self.

One Mind, One Body (Epic)

To pursue the perfection of one’s will and mind will also improve the flesh and blood. You have achieved a balance between your inner self and your physical self that few throughout history have come close to.

You cannot assign attribute points to your Strength and Dexterity.

Your Strength and Dexterity have a base cap of 25.

30% of your base Will attribute is applied to your Strength.

30% of your base Mind attribute is applied to your Dexterity.

You can replenish your stamina by consuming mana.

Trait: Limited Vitality (Epic)

The effect of raising your Vitality is greatly lessened.

Your Vitality grows weaker with time. Straining your body will speed up this process. If Vitality reaches 0 you will die.

Shadow Mind (Rare)

Your mind is a fortress, giving you protection against mental attacks. The strength of the shield is determined by your Will attribute.

You can send back a horrifying vision to anyone who attacks your mind.

SKILLS

SKILLS

Warlock’s Body Mastery (Rare)

A Warlock who had taken a step on the Path of Flesh and Bone knows every muscle fiber and drop of blood in their body, allowing them to slightly aid movement and the natural processes of the body by consuming mana and stamina.

You are now able to slightly strengthen specific muscles with mana for a few seconds. Builds fatigue.

You can aid digestion by redirecting your natural mana regen

You can slightly improve natural healing by consuming mana and stamina

Synaptic Failure (Rare)

Cause temporary synaptic failure to your target, affecting motor skills, casting, and cognitive thought. Cannot be used in quick succession. Casting time depends on the Mind attribute. Effect on non-physical entities varies.

Shadow Weapon (Rare)

By using a weapon as the base, you converge the shadows giving them mass and form, extending the weapon’s base form, and boosting its cutting ability.

Enchantments belonging to the original weapon are transferred over to the shadow version.

You can still cast [Shadow Slash].

Shadow Slash

Slash with your weapon, sending a blade of shadows that travels a short distance before dissipating.

Ritual: Enchanted Bones (Rare)

You change your bones, making them stronger and allowing you to store mana in them.

Monochrome Armor (Epic)

A shadow can move and recover in but a moment. Become a shadow.

Adopt the trait of the shadowless for up to an hour as your shadow becomes one with you and seeps through your body and clothes, raising your speed and offering protection against physical and magical attacks.

Your speed is based on your Mind stats plus 50% of your Dexterity for the duration of the skill.

You are protected by an armor of shadows. Unless fully destroyed it can be repaired by consuming mana.

A portion of your mana pool is locked while the skill is active.

The skill cannot be cast if you have no shadow.

Duration: 1 hour for the first cast of the day. Each subsequent cast lowers the duration by fifteen (15) minutes.

Warning! Regular use of this skill may lead to physical changes.

Curse: Stolen Life (Epic)

All life is there for the taking. Why else would it exist, if not to enrich your existence and make your strength grow?

Perform a spell ahead of time and prepare up to three curse marks that need to be used within 24 hours or they will disperse. Place them on your unknowing foes and steal their life, making them weaker and more prone to fatigue.

Only three marks can exist at a time.

Each mark can only be placed upon a target by the touch of the user.

The placed marks disappear only when dismissed, dispelled, or when the target dies.

The marks are painless and invisible. They integrate with the target's body and transfer vital energy over to the caster as a constant stream.

The strength of the curse can be controlled by the user.

The curse is not limited by distance.

Mana Zap

Create a tiny concentrated explosion of mana. It does minimal damage and can disrupt channeling effects if used wisely.

The range increased with the user’s Mind attribute.

Sacrificial Attack [Epic]

To forfeit part of your own life only to hurt another. Is there another such action that encompasses hate and vengeance so well? Or just maybe you sacrifice in order to protect?

Sacrifice a portion of your Vitality permanently to produce an attack stronger than most at its level.

The more of your life you sacrifice, the stronger the attack becomes.

BODY ENHANCEMENT

Enchantment Augment: Left forearm - Shadow Space

Your enchanted bones have been fused with a spatially attributed treasure. You can access a personal pocket space attuned to your shadow mana’s signature. Its size and properties can be enchanted with more naturally formed spatial treasures.