by Ryan DeBruyn
With Joe’s pleading eyes on her, Sela was forced to shrug, as she was just as lost as the rest of them. “I honestly have no idea what is wrong. It seems like the Ether rain is attacking their bodies. Since any healing Rocky offered is Ether-based, it isn’t helping. We are all out of Health Potions, and trying to bleed out the ‘rain’ seems like a bad idea. I think we have to wait and see what happens. None of them claim to have any debuffs that would help us understand what the ‘rain’ is doing.”
Joe swore again and stalked off to gather reports from others. Rocky looked at Sela and wearily whispered, “Get some rest. With that outer door closed and the storm outside, we can’t do anything right now. Let’s at least take the break this will offer us. I’ll keep an eye on the sick and check on Zippo.”
Then I’ll probably find a nice comfortable stone…
Sela smiled wearily, probably guessing his internal thoughts, before moving off to join the rest of the survivors and continue organizing everyone. Rocky glanced again at the survivors and then over to a semi-lucid Zippo. Rocky moved over to the young man and cast another double stack of Dark Mend.
Instantly, his face unclenched a little as the numbing properties of Rocky’s spell removed some of the pain. He looked up and muttered, “Thanks, Rock.”
Rocky lowered himself to the ground and smiled. Seeing the boy hurt broke something in him. Maybe that was why he chose to try to talk to him about the distance he was creating around himself. As soon as he opened his mouth, he was unsure what to say. So, he mumbled out, “Listen… Zip. I don’t know if I’m the best person to be having this discussion, but I think you need to hear it all the same.”
“No one really knows what you’re going through. Not even me, who also lost them. Loss is unique to every person, and each of us handles it in our own way. All I can tell you is that closing yourself off to others your age isn’t going to help you.”
Rocky clenched his jaw at the conversation and realized that this was probably another reason he had been avoiding having this particular discussion. He recognized his own coping method for the death of two young men, who were part of his adopted family. Rocky was also in denial about his own family, and talking about it was forcing him to confront that as well. He felt a lump in his throat and swallowed; maybe this was good for both of them.
Rocky continued, “It was my fault. I should have sent you all back as soon as we heard the gunshots. I shouldn’t have asked you and Oliver to go secure the school. If I would have left you all behind, we could be making this trip together.” Rocky reached up and brushed an errant tear from his cheek and looked over at Zippo.
What he saw was a young man fast asleep. As soon as Rocky had removed the pain that was keeping him awake, the exhaustion from the last few days had hit him like a sack of bricks. Rocky felt the tears flow from his cheeks freely now that he didn’t have to hide them anymore. His body convulsed angrily as he held back the sobs that wanted to accompany them. Just because no one could see him cry right now didn’t mean that if he began bawling uncontrollably, they wouldn’t hear it.
Guess I’ll count that as a practice run.
His thought lightened the mood enough that he was able to wipe his face and stand up. He first went to go look over the healthy survivors. Walking by the large group of huddled and scared people who were mostly all asleep was somewhat disturbing. The whole cave was silent other than the collective inhales and exhales of a large group of humans, but every sleeping form twitched and moved in the deep throes of nightmares.
It’s strange that this Dungeon hasn’t spoken again since everyone came inside. Wonder why that is…
He continued his trek around the cave and smiled when he saw Sela fast asleep amongst a group of women. A few moments later, a group of perhaps fifteen militiamen stood to attention and saluted him. He awkwardly nodded back, hoping to allow them to sit back down, which they tiredly did as he continued his slow circuit of the cavern.
As he finished his initial circuit and returned to being back near the wounded, he immediately tilted his head and gazed at the group. Something was definitely off with the group. All movement had ceased, even the tremors that had been plaguing each individual. For a moment, he breathed a sigh of relief. Then the noise of his breath caused his skin to break out in a cold sweat. The group wasn’t breathing!
Garth Fekind
Level 6
Apprentice Time-Warp
Irradiated-Ether Mutation
Moderate Analyze failed to provide additional information.
Rocky blinked rapidly, trying to understand what he had just read. That’s when vibrant blue eyes snapped open, and one of the survivors shot herkie jerkily up to a sitting position with a feral expression and howled.
Crowded hells…
Chapter Five
After the first unbreathing, blue-eyed, corrupted survivor sat up, it was like watching prairie dogs as more eyes and heads sprang into sitting positions. Rocky took a deep breath, and like a scene from a horror movie, the noise of that made all of the eyes triangulate on his position. He gulped. He made a quick decision and felt himself frown; unfortunately, he had to warn everyone, and he had to do it now!
So, he steeled his resolve and shouted at the top of his lungs, “Wakethecluckup! Hurrythe– Gwahh!” As he screamed, the horde of at least a thousand undead survivors sprang to their feet and began closing the ten-foot gap in a slow, plodding mob. The good news was that they were moving slowly, and it didn’t look like they had any intelligence behind those inhuman, blue, swirling eyes.
The bad news came a moment later as they all opened their mouths in unison and screeched into the semi illuminated Arena. The rounded roof and walls reverberated the sound around the room, and Rocky fell to his knees as a debuff floated to join his laundry list of others.
Remorseful Cadence
You have been forced to feel the emotions attached to the death of loved ones. This call affects one living human for every newly risen undead in the horde. Current affected in Raid party 1125. Lasts until the one linked with your call has met their final death.
+50% more powerful emotional response
-3 Strength
-2 Stamina
-3 Wisdom
-3 Charisma
Rocky felt the same loss and dark depression he had when his father had died. Then he felt a surge of cold anger begin to rise up from deep in his gut. Something inside of him bellowed with every emotion he could ever remember feeling.
You cannot force me to feel this again!
Then what he called his inner demon came fully awake with its anger amplified. Rocky stood up slowly and drew his sword as smoke poured off his shoulders. He reached up, touched his ear, and felt his nano under armor cover the lower half of his face. He kissed the flat of his Soul Sword, currently in the shape of a katana, to his forehead in respect for the fallen survivors and shot forward.
He took the head off the leading creature with his first strike and then was forced to backpedal as hands shot into the forming Dark Cloak questing for his flesh. He grimaced and pulled a throwing dagger from the bandolier slung around his waist. He let fly and struck a Zombie uselessly in the shoulder. He grimaced and reminded himself that he needed to practice with the ranged weapons.
That was when the military formed up behind him, and around one hundred laser rifles took aim. Rocky glanced back and noticed that most of the remaining army was on the ground, rolled into fetal positions and crying. The group hesitated for a split second, not wanting to shoot the images of people they had known and protected a few hours ago. The moment of hesitation stretched on.
Rocky screamed at them to fire, but only a few tensed trigger fingers, the laser bolts tearing through undead flesh but not killing enough of them. The horde continued to plod forward, and Rocky felt his anger surge hotter as he continued to scream and fought desperately to keep the crowd back from the militia.
Sela, in human form, joined him a moment later, and they still wer
en’t able to make any headway, as they were forced to strike and retreat or be overwhelmed. Azoth’s roar sounded from across the cavern, but the Chimera wasn’t fully unparalyzed as was evidenced by only his front feet working to try to drag his massive, two-ton carcass into battle. Sela and Rocky continued to scream at the militiamen who let off occasional gunfire. However, the majority held their fire right up until the first creature reached the line and bit savagely into the man’s bracing arm that held his rifle.
The man screamed, and then all hell broke loose. In amongst the healthy survivors, undead began to rise. Some of the initial group had been too scared to admit they had the strange bruising patterns of the spattered rain. They didn’t wish to be quarantined away from their loved ones. Now they bit savagely into those same loved ones’ flesh.
Joe finally overcame his own debuff as his men and his charges began dying, and he shouted out, “Kill them, damnit! Fire now, you maggots!” That was when the military started unloading into the plodding horde, and the waking, healthy survivors scattered or attacked the corrupt members in their midst.
Once the military attacked in earnest, the unarmoured and low leveled horde of undead didn’t stand a chance. Unfortunately, the hesitation had already cost them. They weren’t dead yet, but they were now showing the same symptoms as the original group of the infected survivors had been. Rocky swore and looked at his arm, where he could see blood welling from a bite mark through the Nanoweave under armor.
He quickly glanced at his debuff bar, and an eyebrow raised unbiddenly. He didn’t have any debuffs?
Is this how all of those survivors died? Not sure what was even happening. Not able to see it coming…
He felt frustrated tears well up in his eyes at this world. Not for his impending death but for the deaths of all these innocents that were at his feet. Suddenly, he heard Sela scream his name, and he turned to see a group of at least two hundred Zombies digging at an area on the floor.
He walked over, and the military joined him. They stood poised, pointing their weapons at the undead. The undead didn’t even respond to their presence and just continued to dig into the floor with bleeding and broken hands. They dug with a ferocity that Rocky found unnerving, mouths curled in a rictus snarl and drool dripping down their chins.
“Gladiator! Stop them before they reach and corrupt my core… please!” a familiar voice echoed through the chamber. It was almost unrecognizable as it was filled with desperation and fear. Before it had been professional and announcer-like in its word choice.
Rocky jumped at the sound, then shook his head and told the military to open fire. He wouldn’t allow the undead to destroy the Dungeon that was playing host to the remaining survivors—even if he wasn’t long for this world. A moment later, the cavern had two hundred more corpses adorning its rock tiled floor.
Rocky shook his head sadly at the needless death and told the nearest group of militiamen to strip. Sela and Rocky inspected the fifty individuals and confirmed only one had been bitten. After that, Rocky piped up, “I have also been bitten. Everyone who has not been marked, go and inspect others. Have them form lines and make sure no one tries to hide their injuries. I am not yet showing symptoms. So, don’t assume that people will show symptoms if they are infected.”
As everyone began to leave, he felt a small hope rise in his chest; his head still downcast, he asked, “Sela, this isn’t an illusion is it?”
Since there was no response, he looked up. Sela’s eyes were wet, her lips twisted and quivering. Rocky quickly changed the subject, fighting the forming lump in his throat, fiercely holding back his own tears, “Sela, you go see to the women in the group. Try to keep them separate and private as they might be a little self-conscious of having their bodies inspected. As you clear more ladies, have them help.” Then he turned to look at others, not able to look at her sadness and stay strong. To the group, as a whole, he stated flatly, “Have the infected sent to me.”
As the group left, he sat down with the other infected militiaman. Sela stood staring at him for a time before she too dropped her head and moved off. Rocky turned to the other member of the ‘cool kids' club’ and smiled wanly. “Looks like we get to wait.” Rocky Analyzed the man to at least find out his name.
Joshua Kent
Level 9
Apprentice Deadshot
Health Points 55/100
Joshua opened his mouth, and his voice was trembling, “How can you be so calm about this… sir? I mean, do you not see the debuff that is slowly counting down? It’s ambiguous and doesn’t say we’ll die at the end of it, but evidence suggests…” He gestured at the nearby corpses that were sinking into the ground.
Rocky froze and double-checked his debuffs. No, he still didn’t have one. “Joshua, I need you to tell me exactly what that debuff says.”
“Okay, can’t you just read yours? But yeah—sure, whatever. Irradiated Ether Bite. You have been infected with corrupted Ether by an infected bite that is attempting to change your body. This terrible Ether has latched on to your Ether pool and needs to be cleansed. Otherwise, it will succeed. Time is short.”
Rocky shook his head and tried to understand what that could mean.
Maybe it was because his Ether pool was practically empty and so this foreign Ether hadn’t had anything to grab on to? Worth a shot…
“Do you have any skills or spells that use Ether, Joshua?” Rocky asked, staring at the young man pointedly. The man nodded slowly, clearly unsure where this was going. Rocky couldn’t figure out why the others hadn’t had this debuff.
Maybe this is a debuff for people bitten, and there isn’t a debuff for the people who got hit by the rain?
He crossed his fingers and continued hopefully, “Whatever that skill or spell is, could you cast it repeatedly until you drain yourself of all of your Ether pool?”
Joshua nodded a little more vigorously, starting to see where Rocky was going. He stood up and picked up his rifle beside him and aimed it at a wall away from everyone else in the cavern. Then he fired off round after round, empowering his skill into each shot. One talent was obvious to Rocky as each shot stuck the same spot on the wall, which was at least one hundred feet in distance. The second skill of the man wasn’t as evident, however, so he asked, “What skills do you have?”
“Deadly Accuracy and Armor Punch. The second is not doing much against that wall over there, but I assure you lasers don’t normally dig furrows into solid stone.” He continued firing, and a moment later, Rocky’s eyebrows rose when each shot began missing the spot on the wall and just leaving scorch marks where they did strike.
“That’s odd,” Joshua looked at his weapon like it was at fault, “I have fifteen Ether in my pool according to my character sheet, but I can’t imbue it into a shot. And I only have ten shots left with this rifle.” Rocky blinked and then motioned Joshua to come to sit with him again.
So, either it was because my Ether pool was already empty or something else was at play here…
He couldn’t go back in time and empty Joshua’s Ether pool. So, Rocky started thinking about anything that could have cleansed his Ether pool. That’s when he remembered what had happened after the second wave of Ether had struck earth. Rocky had meditated and learned a skill called Ether Manipulation. He tilted his head as other afflicted survivors began coming over to sit with the two, all of them with fear on their faces and a resigned cast to their eyes.
Not on my watch!
Rocky put up a single finger toward Joshua in the clear ‘give me a moment’ gesture and then closed his eyes, diving into himself like he had during that second Ether crash. He had forgotten to do any sort of meditative exercises over the hell march, and it showed as his inner channels were sloppy and unkempt. Luckily, they were still circulating his Dark Ether pool. His skin started sweating when he found the foreign Ether attempting to cling to any Ether that was present in his body. While it hadn’t succeeded yet, if it had been left their long enough, it would have.<
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In his mind’s eye, he stopped circulating his Ether and allowed the corrupted parts to latch on to his shifting pool. Then with a vindictive smile, he gathered up his entire Ether pool that remained, forced it out of his body, and dumped it into the ambient Ether around him. He instantly got a massive headache, but when he exited his Meditation, he saw two notices in front of him.
Irradiated Ether Bite
You have been infected with corrupted Ether by an infected bite that is attempting to change your body. This terrible Ether has latched on to your Ether pool and needs to be cleansed. Otherwise, it will succeed. Time is short.
—
You have successfully cleansed Irradiated Ether Bite.
Congratulations! You have learned a new skill.
Ether-Cleanse
Ether Cleanse is a spell that can purge corrupted Ether or Ether-based poisons from your system. This spell is only castable on yourself and utilizes a portion of your Ether to isolate and remove the corruption.
Weak - Each level decreases the amount of personal Ether needed for each cleanse.
Current rank: Weak Ether-Cleanse Level 1.
That was good news and bad news for him. First, he now knew how to save everyone who was already sitting around him and anyone who joined them every few minutes. However, he was under a time constraint. Rocky looked over to the hole in the ground where the infected undead had been digging and queried, “Dungeon, can you please create a stage for me?”
The Dungeon responded haughtily, “My name is Maximus. I don’t respond to Dungeon.”
Rocky blinked rapidly and sucked in a breath, waiting for more. When it didn’t come, he shook his head.
Okay. Moody much!
“Maximus, could you please create a stage for me? I need everyone to be able to see me.” Rocky was rewarded with the sound of shifting stone, and then suddenly, he was flung into the air as the ground under him became a perfect, round pillar and pistoned him up.