“This is a glorious day,” the dark priest announced. “Our master shall feast well on the offered souls. Make haste, High Priest , the master’s patience is waning.”
“Fine.” I gazed up at the five concerned-looking kobolds. “I’m really sorry. You don’t deserve this. I wouldn’t have managed without you. But if I renege on my promise, the entire clan will suffer in return.”
Rickss took a step forward. “We underssstand, Chief,” he said with a hissing voice. “The clan musst come firsst.”
At his beckoning, the other four kobolds followed his steps toward the blood-stained altar.
“I’m afraid that won’t do.” Kuzai’s mirth was palatable. “The deal was for all eight .”
Inwardly, I heaved a sigh of relief that Lirian wasn’t mentioned, but the meaning behind the demented priest’s words was daunting enough. “You’re not serious.”
Bek looked from Kuzai to me. “Clan brothers give life for clan. They should stay in rest.”
Bek’s confidence had risen considerably. Not long ago, he wouldn’t have dared to speak against the other high priest.
Kuzai let out a burst of evil laughter. “The master demands his due.”
“Shadow-crap.” I closed my eyes. He was right. Nihilator wasn’t a forgiving deity and wouldn’t settle for half measures. With a mental gesture, I connected to the Cemetery Interface and brought back the three slain kobolds, paying the measly cost of 900 EP.
Shikasha and the other two kobolds materialized out of the air and moved to stand next to their kin. They knew why they’d been brought back, and as their comrades had, they bravely accepted it.
I swallowed hard, put my hand on the hilt of my sacrificial dagger, and moved toward them.
“Wait.” Shikasha stepped forward. To my surprise, instead of objecting or trying to talk me out of it, the small reptilian man held up his palm, displaying a small ring. “The lasst commander dropped it. I picked it up jusst before you ordered uss to retreat, but the other ssoldiers got me before I could esscape.”
My hand trembled as I took the ring from him and dropped it into my inventory without inspecting it. Even when he was about to die by my hand, the kobold was still loyal to me. “Lie on the altar,” I said, my voice cracking.
Shikasha did as he was told, quietly climbing on top of the blood-stained altar. I approached him, my trembling hand holding the dagger high in the air.
Kuzai’s eyes were alight with zeal. “Do it.”
“Do it,” the two goblin adepts repeated.
Bek didn’t speak, he only lowered his head.
I looked at the kobold lying before me, his chest exposed for the dagger to pluck his life.
“Do it!” Kuzai’s voice lashed at me like a whip.
I lowered my hand.
I couldn’t do it. It was one thing to sacrifice nameless, unthinking automatons, but quite a different matter to kill those I knew, who’d fought alongside me. They had a name and a will of their own; they deserved better than that. Every molecule in my body screamed against the travesty of it, and I realized something profound about myself. I was a monster, yes. I’d accepted an ancient, evil creature as my god and committed horrendous acts in his name, yes. But there was a line I refused to cross. Even the feral side of me agreed. Blood and clan spoke louder than words.
I stepped away from the altar. “No. There must be another way. We can–”
“Weak-hearted fool,” Kuzai spat. The demented priest teleported, appearing next to the altar, and sank his sacrificial dagger into the kobold’s heart.
I froze in my place, hardly believing my eyes.
An ethereal form flew out of the kobold’s corpse, shrieking and howling in unearthly agony. But Kuzai didn’t stop there. With a gleeful chuckle, he teleported next to the other seven kobolds, killing them one by one with a single strike to the heart. None of them offered any resistance.
It was over so quickly I barely had time to process what was happening. The dead kobold souls soared into the air and joined the first one, howling as they circled the altar.
“No!” I shouted. I reinforced my body with mana and tackled the smirking dwarf, flinging him across the cathedral’s floor. I was shaking with rage as Kuzai rose to his feet, brushing off his robes. “You evil bastard!”
The priest glanced at the tormented souls, and his lips pulled back, revealing his needle-sharp teeth. “It is done. Our master has received his due.”
“No,” I said again. “I’m the high priest, it was my call to make. You crossed a line.” With a flick of my hand, Shadow Webs formed around Kuzai, binding him in place.
The demented dwarf snorted and, with a rush of his mana, simply walked out of the dark substance. “You are a fool,” he hissed. “Too soft-hearted to be our masters’ head priest. I did what had to be done. What you consented to do. Your precious clan would have been finished had I not.”
I gritted my teeth, resisting an urge to throw a direball into his smug face. “It was not your call to make.”
The tormented souls continued to howl as small motes flaked off their translucent bodies and were sucked into the altar.
“Yes, it was your call,” he agreed. “And you chose to stand there and let me harvest their souls. You could have stopped me if you really wanted to, but you didn’t.”
I stared at him. There was a grain of truth in his words. Some deep part of me was relieved the choice had been taken out of my hands. But that was only a small part of the reason I let Kuzai kill those kobolds. Had he given me more time to think, I would’ve stopped him. “I’m going to make you pay for it.”
His maniacal grin only widened, and he gestured at the hovering, shrieking specters. “All pain and grief are a delicacy to the master. Do your worst, High Priest.”
I stormed out of the cathedral, not trusting myself to answer.
Vic said,
You’re right, I don’t want to hear it right now, I snapped.
I took out the ring Shikasha gave me, trying to distract myself from thinking of what had just happened.
Akzar’s Commander Ring #1
Description: A magical ring, part of a set. Complete the set to unlock the full power.
I drew out the other two rings and, one by one, slipped them on the same finger. The rings twisted and meshed together, forming a single whole band.
Akzar’s Overlord Ring
Description: The seal of Akzar’s army overlord. Allows the owner to communicate telepathically with any of Akzar’s forces, know their exact position, and bolster their fighting ability.
Type: Ring [finger]
Rank: Rare
Effect I: Telepathy and situational awareness of all forces.
Effect II: +5% to damage and defense for all soldiers.
The Earring of the Warlord I was wearing already conferred the ability to send telepathic messages to my troops. Still, it was a nice ring, but it would be put to best use in the hands of my general.
Nihilator just devoured their souls, I said darkly.
Do we need to repeat the conversation I had with Ordiel when he tried the same tactic to console me of Bob’s death?
Thank you, I said dryly.
I snorted in annoyance, but he had a point. I still had responsibilities I couldn’t ignore.
I teleported into the Dreamer’s Lodge and stood there, staring in dismay at the huge pile of Viridium spheres that waited for me. Even with the presence of the Enchanter’
s Gem that allowed me to duplicate an enchantment ten times, I was still looking at hours of work ahead of me.
“Better get started,” I sighed and got to work.
***
Hours later, I wiped the sweat off my forehead as I finished enchanting the last golem bead and turned my attention to the Viridium casing Duladeen had delivered.
I had a serious obstacle ahead of me. I’d assigned about 150 of the beads for Aidanriel to replenish himself and have some spares, which left me about 600 beads to use for a new golem. The problem was that, outside of using a VI, I had no way of transforming a golem into a conscious being. I could always ‘steer’ it myself using Dark Mana, but it would not be nearly as efficient, and the concentration required would prevent me from using my abilities in combat.
That’s not a bad idea , I admitted. I could infuse my clone into the golem body, effectively making it into an extension of my own body. And since I was going to power the core with a powerful void crystal, I wouldn’t even have to spend any of my mana to maintain it.
But I hesitated. Operating a high-level golem was undoubtedly more combat-effective than keeping my clone around, but even with the game’s ‘autopilot’ aid, that was still going to be distracting. I wanted to somehow man the golem while keeping my clone free.
Vic sent me a mental shrug.
I brightened up. Vic was right; the adepts, and Kuzai especially, were proficient at manipulating darkness-based energies. I grinned as a fitting punishment for the demented priest began forming in my mind.
Vic chuckled.
Oh yeah. I felt some of the pressure on my conscience lifting. I checked the internal game clock. There were still a couple of hours until I had to return to Woodhaven. Plenty of time.
I grabbed the Viridium casing and started enchanting.
***
“It has returned,” Kuzai said in greeting.
The kobold souls still shrieked as they circled the altar, their ethereal forms slowly being eaten away.
And the demented priest still looked smug at the stunt he had pulled on me. He glanced at the goblin-sized Viridium sphere I’d teleported along with me. “What is that?”
“That is a golem core,” I answered pleasantly.
The dwarf snorted. “Another soulless creation? At least it can reap lives for the glory of our master.”
“Oh, it’s not complete yet; it still needs a conscious will to guide it, and what do you know … I just realized a priest of darkness makes an excellent candidate for the job. How would you like to spend the rest of your life as … how did you put it … ‘a soulless being?’ ”
Kuzai took a step backward. “You wouldn’t dare.”
I dropped my carefree attitude and scowled at him. “I’m the head priest, remember? I call the shots around here, and now it’s time to teach you a lesson.” I reached into my inventory and drew out an especially large void crystal. A level 20,000 one I’d gained the first time I killed Terdamesh, Akzar’s ex-head shaman.
Kuzai took another step back and growled, “You can’t do this. I’m the master’s faithful servant.”
“I will do what I want,” I snapped. “And I want you to pay for what you’ve done.”
I directed the full force of my will at the demented dwarf. Dark mana clashed with dark mana as he struggled to fend off the intrusion. But it was no competition. I had a whole boss tier over him, deeper mana reserves, and my Dark Mana skill was higher. Kuzai dropped to his knees, his hands grabbing the sides of his head as darkness leaked out of his mouth and nostrils.
I raised the void crystal and pointed it at his prone figure. “Observe. I don’t want you to miss a thing.”
Kuzai stared at me helplessly then his eyes bulged as I abruptly turned my hand to the altar. “No!”
I directed my will toward the soaring kobold souls, inviting them to find shelter within the gem I was holding. With my will pressing down on his, Kuzai had no hope to thwart my actions. The shrieking souls flew toward me and disappeared with a flash inside the powerful crystal.
I relaxed my will, and Kuzai stumbled back to his feet, his gray face paled to pearly white. “You dare deny the master’s tribute?”
I held up the void crystal that was quickly changing into a round soul gem as swirling light became visible within. Kuzai was shaking with impotent rage, staring at the escaped souls in my hand. “I bet you wish you could have stopped me, right? Well, you had your chance, but you didn’t fight hard enough.”
“The master will make you pay for this insolence!” he spat.
I chuckled. “Oh no, my debt with Nihilator is settled. I know the ancient dude well enough to know he won’t be looking for me. I’m the high priest, I take what I want. It’s your sacrifice that was snatched away. It was you who failed to appease him.”
The priest’s eyes widened in horror, and the feral goblin in me purred at the anguish and fear reflected in those eyes.
Thanks.
I could feel the information tendrils that saturated the cathedral turn and twist around the demented dwarf, pronouncing our dark deity’s displeasure. Kuzai was in for some bad days ahead.
“Now if you’ll excuse me,” I said with a smile, “I have a golem to complete.”
***
I teleported back into the Dreamer’s Lodge, placing the newly minted golem core in the center of the pile of enchanted beads.
I refocused my thoughts toward the swirling consciousness inside the core. Reach out, feel the beads around you. They are part of you now. Claim them.
The round core wobbled, then a single bead rolled over and attached itself to the core.
Good, keep going, I said encouragingly.
One by one, then a dozen at a time, more beads rolled toward the core, crawling over it, coating it in a layer that grew thicker by the second. A humanoid torso made of beads grew out of the mass, then another one, then another.
“We are Swarm!” the metallic figures shrieked. “We hunger!”
I took a step back as eight torsos emerged from the pile. Bead-made arms flailed around while heads composed of rotating spheres wailed.
You do that, I said distractedly to my unruly VI companion. I redirected my thoughts to the howling golem. Settle down, it’s alright.
Without warning, a giant tentacle formed at the base of the mass and swatted at me. My health bar plummeted by a quarter, and I found myself hurled away, impacting the wall with a force strong enough to send cracks through the tough obsidian. Several more tentacles formed and launched at me like thrown spears.
I fought down the pain long enough to raise one hand and exert my influence. “Stop!”
The flailing limbs froze in midair, quivering as they fought against me, and angrily wailed in my mind, < We are Swarm . We hunger.>
I swallowed hard as I stared at the flailing monstrosity I’d created. “Vic?”
Give me the bad.
“Shadow-crap,” I muttered. “What’s the good news?”
&n
bsp; I had to accept that. Rickss, Shikasha, and the rest of the kobolds had served me well. I looked at the hulking monstrosity of metal they’d become. “I’m sorry for what happened to you,” I said, still maintaining my hold on the flailing limbs. “I will try to make your existence tolerable. If spreading death and destruction is what you seek, then I’ll give it to you. Follow my commands,” I said with a mental surge of dominance, “and I’ll give you war.”
The tentacles slowly retracted while the eight torsos continually grew in and out of the golem’s mass. “We ….” the golem said in multiple, shrieking, voices, “… obey, master.”
I drew back my will and watched the morphing abomination. The golem had seemed to stop trying to kill me, but it writhed around in agitation, looking for something to kill. I could feel the bottomless need it had to deal death and destruction as if it was a tangible thing.
Analyze.
Swarm, Viridium Golem Abomination [Runecrafted]
Level: 75 – 300 [fluctuating,600 total]
HP: 7,500
Attributes: P:600
Skills: Multi-Slam 75 – 310
Traits: Golem (mind immunity, nonliving, +25% HP), Metal Body (Viridium, ignore 20 damage), Hurl, Siege, Storage: 3,000 kg
Resistances : Armor 375 – 1,500, Magic 50%, Fire 96%, Sonic 96%
Core: Base level: 6. Mana capacitor: 200,000/200,000. Mana regeneration: 2 MP per second.
Description : A unique masterpiece melding enchantment with spirit essence. The golem’s core serves as the central control unit as well as its power source. This core has been infused with eight tormented spirits. The poor creatures’ psyches have been partially fused into a single consciousness, though they constantly contest each other for control of more beads, resulting in instability and shifts in the golem’s battle effectiveness. While several minds are in control at the same time, the golem is considered to have multiple levels at once, ranging from several, level 75 beings, to two, level 300.
Each sphere connected with the core adds: 1 level, 1 Physical, 5 Armor, 5 kg of storage
Life Reset: Conquest (New Era Online Book 5) Page 21