Gleam of Darkness

by Elian Tars

  “What is that? Please tell me!” I asked in a hopeful voice.

  “It has a charge that lasts for ten hours, allowing you to walk freely through the territory of Decay and preventing any attacks from creatures of your level and below. Costs only a thousand,” the merchant grinned as he finished speaking.

  “Yeah...” that was the only word I could say.

  “In general, if you don’t need to go into the decaying lands, and you’re just looking for a way to protect yourself from the creatures running through our own, then the best option is to get a dog.” Tayon casually pointed at a cage. “They aren’t completely impervious, but still have some immunity to Decay. That’s what they were bred for. However, their price will also be too steep for you — two hundred and fifty gold coins. You can save up, but...” he said with a predatory smile. “We also take points.”

  “What points?” I blurted out in confusion.

  “Stat or skill points, whichever you prefer,” chuckled the caravaneer. “I pay fifty gold coins for the former, and a full two hundred for the latter. Have you got any unspent points?”

  “No,” I shook my head in surprise, digesting this valuable information.

  “Well, maybe if you get to level 16 by tomorrow, you can get both. Then come back to me, and you’ll be able to buy yourself a dog. Well, isn’t that a great offer, my dear client? What do you think?”

  Chapter 11

  Faith Points

  I stood in front of Tayon, frantic, wondering what to say. Getting a pet with resistance to Decay was exactly what I needed. With its help, if my personal immunity paired with my regeneration allowed me to be in a dead part of the forest, I would be able to scout out Jason’s hidden cache. In addition, I wanted to believe that Tranquility of Darkness would be able to heal these little black dogs as well…

  Selling a point of my stats and skills seemed like a good bargain.

  On the other hand, it would be stupid to squander rare resources. Besides, if I remembered correctly, it took two skill points to get a skill to level 3... Well… If my pet suddenly died in a fierce battle, then I would be left with nothing.

  “Your offer is very flattering,” I forced a smile onto my face, “but unfortunately, I can’t accept it.”

  Tayon chuckled and didn’t look upset at all.

  “You’re a smart guy, my dear customer. Good for you! Spend your points on yourself, and even better, buy them from other people. “

  Well, that was another interesting statement, although it was just what I had expected.

  “Is it expensive to buy some?” I asked.

  “Twice as expensive,” said the caravaneer. “If you save up enough money to become my real client, then feel free to come back. Who knows, maybe I’ll even give you a discount.”

  “Thanks,” I nodded, and then asked another question: “Do you also sell “everyday” and “personality” points?”

  Tayon winced and shook his head.

  “There’s no such technology in our region. All right, stop poking your nose into places you’re too young for. Instead, tell me, do you really want a dog?”

  “Yes,” I blurted out immediately.

  “Have you got at least twenty-five gold coins?” the caravaneer continued to smile.

  “I do,” I nodded resolutely, trying to hide my confusion. Why was he asking? Would he sell me one ten times cheaper!?

  “Then I’ll tell you something: one of the breeders has a defective dog. It was all right at first and then it caught an effect of Decay that can’t be removed, which is slowing down the recovery of its health. Healing magic and potions also don’t work on it. It’s not very suitable for protecting you on the road. But if you think it might still be of use to you, I will tell you where to look for the breeder.”

  “That’s interesting,” I nodded readily, sincerely hoping that I got lucky this time.

  “You’ve agreed too quickly,” Tayon said distrustfully, furrowing his brows. “Don’t even think the breeder will sell you normal dogs cheaper than I would, if you go directly to him. He wouldn’t want trouble with a regular customer for a one-time benefit.”

  “No,” I raised my hands in a conciliatory gesture. “I’m just happy! I really need that kind of a dog... Its slow recovery is not a problem. I just won’t take it with me all the time, and will leave it at home sometimes…”

  After staring at me suspiciously, the caravaneer scratched his nose and said:

  “Let’s just say I believe you. I’ll tell you where to go, so you can leave in the morning. Do you have any money left besides the gold you’ll need to pay the breeder?”

  “Why? Do you have anything else to offer me?”

  “I do. I have one more thing for gloomy wimps like you. One moment!” The caravaneer disappeared into the tent, leaving me alone for a while, but returned soon. “Look!” He smiled, stretching out his arms and revealing a black, shapeless cloak with a deep hood.

  The Loner’s Cloak

  Unique item

  Intelligence: + 3

  Endurance: +3

  Stealth: +1

  Requirements: “Gloominess 1”

  “Well, do you like it? Just what you need, am I right?” Seeing that I was interested, the merchant spoke fawningly. “I’ll give it to you for just... fifteen gold coins! Now give me the money,” he pushed the cloak into my arms and stretched out his hand.

  “Wait a second,” I shook my head. “What does that last line mean?”

  “What?” Tayon didn’t understand. “It means you can wear it, but there are no bonuses if you don’t have Gloominess. But you clearly have it because you’re so nasty! So take it and remember: without the cloak, the effect of Gloominess is not complete.”

  I didn’t refuse; instead, I began to bargain. We agreed on twelve gold pieces. I exchanged my father’s money for the local currency and sold some stuff to the local merchants as Tayon refused to “buy trash”. After making sure that I had enough money left for the dog and any incidental expenses, I returned to the caravan and bought the cloak that had been put aside for me.

  “Congratulations on your purchase,” the merchant shook my hand.

  “Thank you.”

  “Then I’d better not keep you for long. I guess you don’t have any more money, my dear client. Or are you interested in something else, for the future?”

  Actually, I was interested in something. To be exact, I was looking for the ability to remove the negative effects of Halfway Toward the Light. So far, I hadn’t abandoned the idea of continuing to leave my enemies alive, but the occasional failures in casting spells of Darkness and the feeling of disgust toward my own element was driving me crazy. Something had to be done about it. However, that begged the obvious question: what else could I do, aside from no longer sparing my opponents?

  “For the future...” I said thoughtfully, putting on my newly acquired cloak. “Tell me, do you have, um... sedatives?”

  “Excuse me, what?” Tayon asked in surprise.

  “Maybe some herbs,” I spoke quickly, “To help me stop doubting myself, to get rid of my bad thoughts. To help me feel... whole!”

  Tayon frowned and shook his head.

  “Trikuni’s baron doesn’t allow us to sell weed that can make life easier in his city. You can look for it in other towns. But I’ll tell you the truth, kid; I’d suggest you go easy on that. You’d be better off going to a tavern, getting yourself a strong drink, and rinsing your brain thoroughly. You’ll feel much better!”

  Did he just presume I was a drug addict, or an alcoholic? Although, what else could you expect from an uneducated medieval man…?

  “So you sell no magic potions that help people accept themselves, right?” I clarified just in case.

  “I’m telling you, my dear client, they sell it in taverns. Why would I compete with them?”

  After saying goodbye to Tayon, I went to look for a tavern to get a room for the night, not for some strong drinks. Trying to drown the negative effects
of Halfway Toward the Light in alcohol would’ve been a very strange decision. Maybe it could’ve helped, and I would’ve stopped “pissing myself off by 50%” after drinking. However, I was afraid it would only get worse in the morning.

  “Wow, what a sourpuss,” a woman’s whisper reached me.

  “Quiet! Turn around, don’t look at him,” a man hissed in response, barely audible.

  The couple who had just discussed me began to examine the nearest two-story house. Forgetting about me, after a few seconds, they were already discussing the pattern on the closed shutters.

  People mostly turned away from me in silence, while some would look at something right next to me, seeming like they haven’t noticed my existence.

  The average level of the citizens wasn’t above ten, which was maybe why they were more influenced by Gloominess, while the craftsmen, the guards, and especially Tayon, had reacted to me differently. Yes, they had turned up their noses at me, but, on the other hand, they would see me up close without looking away.

  So, should I upgrade “Gloominess” further?

  With the cloak I got a new everyday skill, Stealth, which worked perfectly with Gloominess and increased my chances of blending into the crowd or just hiding from people. In addition, it would amplify Blind Eye. But by how much? Unfortunately, there was no information about that.

  Thinking about all this, I stopped in front of the wooden veranda of a local tavern, which had been named without any imagination — Meat and Bed. I climbed the stairs and went inside.

  The place was almost empty, only a couple of tables were occupied by some old men, who, after shooting hostile looks in my direction, squinted and then returned to their mugs and conversation.

  “What do you want?” The tavern keeper — level 21, by the way — growled not very hospitably, standing behind the counter, clearly bored.

  “What your tavern’s name promises,” I chuckled.

  “A room and three meals a day are twenty silvers a day,” he replied, becoming slightly livelier.

  “I need a room until morning. Two meals will be enough.”

  “Fifteen, then,” the man grimaced for a moment. “And not a coin less.”

  “Agreed.”

  The tavern keeper called over a young waitress, who took me upstairs. The small room was rectangular with a single bed, a massive table, an old chair, and a wardrobe by the wall opposite the window.

  “Would you like to visit the bathhouse?” The girl asked timidly, when I inspected the room. I agreed, and she ran off. Fifteen minutes later, she returned, offering for me to follow her down into the basement.

  The fancily termed “bathhouse” was actually a tiny room with a tub of warm water. What a pleasure it was just to have a bath! Filling my stomach after a bath and sitting at the table in my room in silence, was the best thing that had happened to me lately.

  It was getting dark outside, and I haven’t asked if I could light a torch. I got under the covers instead. It seemed like I hadn’t slept in a bed for years. Eh... How tired I’ve been for these past few days…

  As soon as my body relaxed, I fell into a deep sleep.

  ***

  “Do you think you have time to sleep, boy?” A familiar voice asked me from the all-encompassing Darkness. “Do you really think you should be spending the night on this?”

  I jumped to my feet and began to look around. I saw nothing. Where was I? I was in the tavern; light should be shining through the window. So why…?

  “Answer me, boy, what are you doing?” he spoke again. A tired, croaky voice sounded simultaneously from everywhere.

  “Who are you?” I asked instead of answering.

  “Don’t waste your time asking stupid questions. We don’t have time to waste. I promised I would find you again if you could survive. So here I am. I’ve come to tell you not to ignore the Darkness. Darkness is your...our strength. You have to be in it to comprehend it. Do you understand, boy? The night is the best time to communicate with the Darkness. Don’t waste it on sleep.”

  “What should I do…? I mean…exactly?”

  “Look for the Darkness. Be with the Darkness.”

  “Can you tell me more?”

  “No. Time...is running out.”

  “Any other advice?” I asked quickly.

  “Follow your path. I approve of your desire to control the Light... Devour it...” The voice was fading. “Absorb it. Dissolve...in...yourself… “

  I opened my eyes in amazement, sat up on the bed, and stared out the open window.

  Had all of that been a dream?

  No, it hadn’t.

  Quite suddenly, I remembered how I had gotten lost in the woods long ago. How I had run into an old man in the dark, and how I had been able to see the way home through that same darkness.

  The voice of the old man from my childhood had been very similar to the voice of the Darkness I had heard speak to me just now.

  Perhaps it was all my imagination. Maybe the voice was similar, but not identical... Why would the character’s voice be the same as the voice of a real person I had known?

  My head almost burst from the heavy thoughts that were beginning to scare me.

  Stop. Had I seen a new entry in the logs when I had woken up?

  “Show me the latest logs!” I spoke clearly.

  “Call of the Patron” has been activated.

  50 faith points spent.

  What the hell were faith points? I had never seen anything like that in my stats before.

  “Hey, show me information you have about faith points!” I said loudly, but then stopped short. I needed to calm down and pull myself together after such a stressful awakening.

  Exhaling slowly, I inspected the meager lines that flashed before my eyes:

  Faith points are accumulated by the “Followers” while honoring the elements of the Patron and interacting with them. Faith points can be used to communicate with the Patron and discover new aspects of their elements.

  How many of these points did I have? I had “calmed down” a lot of wolves thanks to the power of Darkness, after all.

  “Show me information regarding my faith points,” I mentally commanded.

  Faith points: -50

  Great! It turned out that my Patron, or simply put, the Old Man, contacted me at my expense and put me in the red. What a convenient subscriber tariff, but…

  I was still glad that I had talked to him. Something had been cleared up, although new questions had also arisen. First of all, and most importantly, I had been clearly advised not to interrupt the streak and keep upgrading the achievement of the Light. I was supposed to get the power and soak it up. My ambition had been approved. Then, could I assume that I had been asking Tayon the right questions? And secondly, now I knew how to unlock the other Dark skills. After all, that was surely the only way to interpret the phrase “new aspects of the elements”, right?

  It’s settled! I had rested a little and now I could go and grind the faith points. Like the Old Man had said, this was no time to be sleeping. Night was a great time for self-improvement and great achievements.

  I stood up, got dressed, drank some water, and quietly opened the door. There wasn’t a single sound coming from the first floor. The tavern was sleeping.

  I tried to walk silently and almost cursed when a floorboard creaked under my boot. Fortunately, no one ran out of the neighboring rooms to check what had happened.

  Approaching the stairs, I crouched, trying to see the main room. All the visitors had left, and the waitress was sleeping at the counter. It looked like she was on the night shift.

  I descended gently, activated Blind Eye just in case, and a few seconds later, I was near the door. It opened with a squeak, but I jumped out into the street before the girl had managed to raise her head.

  I dashed to the adjacent building and slipped around the corner.

  Well, I was out on the street, as my Patron had told me. What was I supposed to do next? What would I need to d
o to gain faith points?

  Simply put, I needed to get close to the Darkness. To put it more seriously, I needed to become the Darkness. Simply using the Dark spell hadn’t helped. So I ask again — what am I to do?

  Maybe I should jump out of the darkness and scare the guards on the walls? Hah, what utter bullshit... Dammit! Why were there so many mysteries? I wouldn’t have minded having a quest helper or a forum.

  I heard a rumbling to my left. Blind Eye hadn’t reset yet. I looked around. I noticed a small tree in front of the neighboring house and rushed to it. Reaching it, I hid between a wall and the trunk. I wasn’t a hundred percent sure, but in the darkness of the night, I had to be completely inconspicuous in a black cloak with a hood.

  Holding my breath, I began to wait. The footsteps were approaching, and I soon saw a guard making his rounds. After getting close to me, the whiskered man turned his head, examining the tree.

  Actually, I wasn’t violating any laws. But on the other hand, how would I know how people in Trikuni reacted to strangers prowling the streets at night? They would hardly approve.

  The guard passed by without stopping and turned away, looking across the street. I remained still, thinking about whether hiding in dark corners was considered an interaction with the Darkness? After all, I had gone unnoticed due to the fact that my element went hand in hand with the night.

  I remained motionless for another minute. When Blind Eye was almost off cooldown, I quietly walked along the row of houses, catching up with the guard. I decided to test my assumption and continued to hide in the darkness. What was the point of playing hide-and-seek if there was no seeker?

  For some time, we moved almost synchronously. We even turned together at the intersection to another street. He walked in front of me, looking around with a sense of importance. I crept a little behind him, almost clinging to the walls of the houses. I checked my faith points once more. They were still the same, at -50. But I hadn’t been doing this for long, right?

  A loud crack made my heart sink. As if in slow motion, I saw the guard turning around. Fortunately, my brain worked at maximum speed, and instantly commanded that I use Blind Eye. I became transparent and froze in place.