Enigmatic Crusade

Valen came out of the water slowly. Pushing some essence out of his hand a dim white glow of holy light emitted from his palm. The passage he had found days ago was still there. Smooth rock underfoot sloped upward.

 

Moving up the cold stone he marveled at the glow coming from his hand. Like his own miniature sun it emitted some heat but was just simple light. As if he was holding a Retribution back from firing by a hair's breadth it was a great exercise for controlling his essence output. 

 

Excited to try his luck with shadow he had still not figured out the trick to use Leech Life without a living target. Ready to do some major testing he squeezed through the crevice to find a very thin path.  

 

“Thank whoever I’m not quastrivobic?” He asked, unsure of the word for fearing small spaces. He had known it at one time. “Afraid of tight spaces,” he said since he couldn’t remember the word. Only a few days from people and he was already forgetting words. In the grand scheme of things he guessed it didn’t matter. He was gaining money and levels at a speed he once thought impossible. 

 

Moving between more rocks he kept going. His essence constantly channeled into his hand as he forced his way through. The thin tunnel was almost too narrow. He had to take off the spacial spacial bag and hold it as he forced his near naked body through.  

 

It took time but the passage did eventually widen.  Now about four foot in height, he noticed that the tunnel was about the height of the kobolds. Curious if they made the tunnels a while ago but abandoned them he crouched as he walked in the dark tunnel until his foot sunk into what felt like thick water.

 

Caught off guard for a moment he almost propelled forward but caught himself. Hopeful he didn’t step into another trap he angled his hand downwards to reveal a green liquid at his foot. His mind going blank for a moment he looked around him to see the green goop was actually in a wide area around him. 

 

“What the-“ he cut off as a wave of dark ooze had risen up and was coming at his face. With a yell he fell back a few feet as the Holy power dimmed and he cast Identification in the dark green ahead. 

 

Green Ooze

Level 7

 

“Fuck!” He yelled. He had been too focused on kobolds to think there would be oozes as well. The Black ooze he fought the other day had been level 3 but didn’t move. This was a lot stronger and began to bubble and draw closer to him. In a panic Valen cast Retribution straight ahead, but kept the power low. The white light didn’t go far before striking the ooze that was inching its way toward him. He noticed that it was a dark forest green this time. The ooze gurgled and a piece of the faceless monster stretched out to touch his foot again. 

 

Valen felt the burning immediately. Focusing both of his hands he shot out the retribution, but the gelatinous ooze didn’t seem to notice the attack. The white holy energy splashed across it and died away. Panicking that he didn’t have enough essence for another attack he pulled back his leg with all of his power. All the while his leg continued to burn in pain. 

 
He could feel the ooze begin to move toward him more, but finally his foot got through the gunk and he was stumbling backwards. Crawling away like a crab Valen ignored the pain in his foot as the raw skin struck rocks. He had taken his clothes off to swim, which he now regretted. It wasn’t until the back of his head hit stone that he stopped scrambling backwards. 

 

Risking it he used the last of his Essence and shot it straight ahead. The ooze was nowhere in sight and he was alone once more. Breathing in and out heavily. Valen considered going back to his cavern to recoup but forced himself to calm down. Slowly the Essence in his core increased in quantity and he felt more confident as his power came back. 

 

When his heart rate had calmed down enough Valen thought back to the short encounter. The green ooze had been stronger than the black. Which had allowed it to move and grab onto him. He hadn’t fully recovered his essence before setting out, which was a mistake. Valen needed to remember that this was an unfamiliar place. Danger could be lurking around every nook and cranny of the tunnels. 

 

Leaking out a little holy light from his hand he caught a glimpse of his foot. It was red and hairless. Thinking on it he assumed that the green ooze was actually acidic and related to nature. Since his class quest wasn’t going to be as easy as he hoped, he healed his foot and thought about how to do better in the fight against a stronger ooze. He had run from the Red Ooze in the dungeon. Which was now missed experience. He needed to know how to deal with this foe. 

 

A part of him wanted to leave it be, go down a side passage he had noticed. Yet a bigger part of him was enjoying this. All alone he could spend his time thinking on his abilities and figuring out how to fight. This monster was stronger than what he faced before, but it was also slow. No teeth to gnaw at him; it was the perfect tempering tool for his skills. 

 

“I need all of my essence,” he said. Hoping to recharge his core fully Valen wanted to try again. See if a strong Retribution could affect the monster. So he decided to wait. 

 

Long minutes passed and he closed his eyes as he focused. Trying to identify where exactly the essence was coming in from as his Core was recharged. It took almost a whole hour, but eventually he felt that the Core was full. With a gulp he headed back the way he had come, toward danger for once. 

 

The path was as he remembered, no big change as he counted his hand falls in front of him. When he was closer he risked it and cast a tiny Retribution. This time the power stayed in his palm, just a trickle like he wanted. White light seeped out of his palm and illuminated the green slime ahead. 

 

At first he didn’t notice it. Thinking the slime was a smooth stone, but it leaked out of a small outcropping of the cave as if in its own sidehall. Seeing it made him panic a moment and he lost the hold on the trickle of Essence causing it to wink out, but he knew what to do this time. 

Grabbing a rock Valen threw it blindly ahead. Sitting there for a moment he didn’t hear the ooze move and he risked moving forward again. Just a few paces and he threw another rock that echoed on straight ahead. This time he heard it, a gurgling sound.

Feeling he was right he pulled out some essence into his palm and this time he was met with a huge mass of ooze bubbling up and slowly moving toward him. Bringing his two wrists together he cast a huge blast of Retribution straight ahead. Just as he practiced, but a little less controlled since he was actually attacking something instead of shooting retributions off randomly in the cavern.

 

His aim was off causing the beam to strike the wall to the side of the ooze. Redirecting it as the light illuminated the cavern he focused it on the ooze’s center mass. There was a reaction this time as the strong blast hit it. White light caused the green ooze to bubble, Valen thought he had it for a moment, but then the ooze rushed forward. 

In a panic Valen stopped channeling the essence and crawled back, but the ooze had a hold of him. Both naked feet inside of it this time, they began to sizzle and Valen felt his body pulled forward, toward the Ooze. 

 

“Fuck!” He cursed, his hand shooting Retribution into it, but the holy power seemed to be ineffective. The pain in his feet began to worsen and Valen cried out. But he had been replaying this in his mind as he refilled his Core. There was a perfect skill for this sort of enemy. He cast Euphoria on himself and everything calmed down. 

As if a wave of pure ecstasy radiated from his center, Valen felt the pain disappear. His mind clear he knew he was being pulled more and more into the ooze, but it didn’t matter. Nothing hurt, he wasn’t scared anymore, and for the first time he saw it all clearly. 

 

He had defeated the Black Ooze from inside the main body. These strikes had been glancing blows on the perimeter of the beast. Like attacking extremities that didn’t matter. Before he must have been attacking the center of the ooze, where it’s mind was. Maybe the core itself. That’s what he needed to do again. 

 

Letting his hands go, Valen stopped fighting the pull of the ooze. He felt the cool touch of the beast, but no pain as his own core emitted bliss. All Valen had to do was wait and he would be able to attack the beast where it was truly important, inside. A blob of dark green drew closer, the ooze began to roll over him, engulfing his entire body. A sense of pain hit him, but Valen pushed it back. He had to focus. Euphoria continuously making his mind clear and focused. 

 

Closing his eyes Valen tried to wait, let the important part of the monster come to him. Long seconds it took for his body to sink in as he was dragged into the pit of this ooze. The knowledge of his target getting closer with every second was his only focus. Then as if a switch turned off the pain flowed into him. 

 

His core stopped expelling Essence to his body and he felt the fear again. His skin was burning far more than in the Black Ooze, despite his increased stats.  Euphoria had passed and only panic left in it’s wake. Valen began to kick and scream inside the ooze, allowing the burning monster inside of his mouth causing him to scream harder. 

 

He tried to cast Euphoria again, but he didn’t have enough Essence. Valen cursed himself for not trying the technique more. He had been too impatient waiting for his Essence to refill. The skill must have cost a huge amount of essence.

 

Valen tried to reach back into his pack for a knife or something, but his hands wouldn’t budge in the higher level ooze. It was like trying to move in molasses, and the miniscule amount he could move caused a huge wave of pain to assail him. 

Desperate, Valen felt at his core and knew he had enough for a weak attack. Just enough to cast a Retribution. He had to save it. There was no way to absorb more Essence, he was dying and could only do one attack. But he had no idea if he was attacking the right thing. He needed to get the center of the Ooze where it’s mind was. 

 

Valen’s mouth shut around the ooze. The burning feeling all over him he ached to cast Euphoria again but left it. He needed to push through. If he could sense the Essence moving in his own body, he should have been able to feel it in the ooze as well. He was inside the beast, it had to be there. 

 

A million fire ants biting him all at once Valen tried to feel it. That familiar sense of power at his middle. Panic washed over him and he barely kept it back as he continued to be blind to the essence of this beast. 

 

Long seconds that felt like minutes passed. The burning of his skin seeped in further, attacking his muscles. His chest heaved with pain as the last of his air was held inside. He wanted to scream and rage at his misfortune, but again he was the only person he could blame. 

 

A wave of calm passed through him and to his surprise he felt a pulse. Not his own, but outside of his body. Not overly much but there like a fading calling close to him. Valen focused on it and the pulse became louder in his mind. As if it were a growing fire. It moved ever closer, inch by inch, toward his own center. A hail mary played through his mind, hoping it was his target. 

When he felt it only a few inches away from his chest, Valen didn’t bother to move his hands. Instead he forced his last bit of Essence straight from his core into the burning flame close to it. Pure white light escaped his chest, so bright he could see it from his closed eyelids. Pouring all of the Essence out of him he focused on that flame and let out all he had. 

 

Pain still assailed him after he used his last bit of essence and he passed out from lack of air before he could try again. 

 

—

 

Valen woke up in another pit. His core was filled with essence and he immediately cast Retribution out of his hand. The flash of light showed his new pit was a lot bigger than the one the black ooze had resided in. Getting a sense of himself he knew he was alive. His mind slowly recovering he cast a trickle of Retribution out and his holy light showed that he had survived again. 

 

No bones around him he found the core of the Green Ooze sitting next to him. 

 

Nature Core

Grade: F

 

This marble sized sphere was a deep green like the ooze had been. He let out a sigh, having beaten his second ooze monster solo. This one much stronger than the last, and had been a true test of his capabilities. He couldn’t believe how stupid and lucky he had been. Shaking his head as he chuckled he did another cursory glance but noticed that the acidic ooze had eaten away at everything useless that got stuck inside it. Even most of the few clothes he had been wearing. Valen cursed, knowing he would have to buy more from the store later. 

 

Standing up, his body had been healed already and his core felt full of essence once more. Since it must have been hours he guessed that his body naturally cast Heal on himself despite being asleep. He was pleased to see that his body wasn’t the flesh and bones like he had feared. Although all the hair on his body was burned away. 

 

Rubbing his hand on his head he felt that the hair there was gone as well. With a defeated sigh he mumbled, “At least I’m alive.” 

 

Looking up to the top of the pit he considered how to climb out of this one, but was stopped as he noticed some notifications. Curious, he brought the first one up and was pleased to see his Body and Class had leveled again. As he reviewed the other screen though another section of his status screen was filled. 

 

Shadow of Death:

Death almost got a hold of you.

The God of Death has decided you are worth keeping an eye on.

Reward:

Blessing of Death:

Fate +2

Vitality +3

Anima +2

 

Valen had heard of Blessings of course. Many were received when someone began worshiping a god. But all had prerequisites, randomly gifted to people after some threshold was past. Like achievements. He was excited at having his own, but was uneasy about the prospect of almost dying. Since he had passed out from lack of oxygen, maybe he had been stuck inside the ooze for some time before it eventually evaporated. Either way it was a huge gain. 

 

He brought up his status screen to see that the Blessing tab had a new note. He also manipulated his stats. Mainly focused on strength and some agility to help him move through the underground, he also raised his anima to keep it the highest stat. It had been helping him so far, at least he assumed it had, and it felt wrong to let his vitality to be the highest class stat for some reason. 

 

Name	Valen	Class	Priest
Level	7	Level	7
Race	Human (Low Tier)	Faculties	Holy, Shadow
Law:	Solitude I
Blessing:	Death
Stats:		Stats:
Strength	11	Vitality	15
Endurance	10	Defense	12
Agility	8	Charisma	6
Dexterity	8	Comprehension	9
Intelligence	10	Empathy	9
Wisdom	12	Psyche	9
Fate	6	Anima	16
Free Points	0	Free Points	0
Skill	Identify	Skill	Heal
	Sense		Retribution
			Leech Life
Aurous	12 chips 19 scrap		Euphoria

 

After reading it a few times he wasn’t sure about this talk of gods, but free stats were free stats. Fate still felt like a useless one, but Vitality would give him a bigger pool of health and he was starting to suspect Anima was more important than he originally thought. Maybe it was related to death in some way? 

 

After a moment he really did feel that his core became a little…not stronger but clearer. As if he could attribute more essence to it. Either way he brought up his last notification. 

 

Congratulations:

You have developed a skill prior to the system granting it to you.

Skill:

Sense

 

Confused for a moment he used Identification on the Skill for his body.

 

Sense:

Feel Essence around you

 

Valen whistled lowly. He had really made his own skill. Or at least figured out how to use a skill prior to being given it. He vaguely remembered feeling something at the end of the ooze fight. An almost…calling outside of his body. A little surprised that it had only taken a short while for him to generate the skill he then remembered that it took a near death experience for him to learn it, so he had definitely earned the new skill. 

 

Curious, he closed his eyes and thought about using Sense. Nothing happened at first, but as his mind cleared he got a sense of…something all around him. As if there were tiny motes of power here and there. Not enveloping him, but there nevertheless. A sporadic feeling of something reaching out to him he tried to open his eyes to see the essence, but it was invisible to him. Only his Sense skill knew that they were there. 

 

Leaving it alone for the time being Valen wanted to get some food in him and rest. Looking back to the top of the pit he started to map out how to climb out. He was feeling better every moment. Power coming to him with each fight he wanted to see if there were more oozes in the underground. Maybe he would get lucky and find some more Black ones to help finish his Class quest.