[Ability Activated: Soul Usher (F)
Harvesting Soul Essence…]
The undulating mass of silver energy still floated above the bear as I caught my breath. Peering around, I came to find that the others couldn’t see it. Or, at the very least, they pretended not to notice the large obvious-as-fuck piece of—what could be nothing other than the bear’s spirit or soul—appearing above the corpse.
They went about their tasks, Norton healing Francis, Huwett moved towards us from where she had been firing from the treeline. Vasquez moved towards us as well, already looking as though he was wanting another fight already.
Barry was still recovering his breath and his attention was on Norton’s attempts at healing Francis. Yet, his gaze should have easily included the glowing spirit.
What the fuck?
I focused my attention on the soul and it suddenly shot toward me at a speed that I couldn’t have dodged even with my massively heightened dexterity. The ball of light slapped me in the face with its speed, blinding me entirely.
When it receded I was blinded once again by a notification. What I read in it, I knew, would be the key to me becoming the most powerful Rift Hunter on Earth.
[Soul Usher (F)
Soul Essence absorbed: 5
Essence to next Ability Rank: 5/1000
Options Available;
Consume Stats (Available)
Consume Experience (Unavailable)
Assimilate Skill (Unavailable)
Assimilate Ability (Unavailable)
Dominate Essence (Unavailable)
??? (Unavailable)]
There was only one option that I was allowed to choose, but seeing the other options listed, the possibilities that would some day be tapped into. It would mean an amazing amount of power, it almost felt like I was cheating.
Stealing stats, experience, and more… something began to build in me as I thought about what I could do with this ability. I suddenly wished to be back in the Tutorial with the goblins at the end of my sword.
How many points would they give? Is it based on level? Do beasts give less than sentient races? How much would killing another person get me?
I found myself looking to Francis and Norton not far from the bear, even looking at Barry and Huwett. How much would they get me? How much would they all get me?
“Adam?”
My eyes flickered back to Barry as he said my name.
“You okay?” he said.
My attention went inward, looking directly for what I needed.
I knew what was happening, my switch had been on all day, longer even. I couldn’t remember the last time I had turned it off. After some time it had side effects, problems that affected my thinking, and my decisions.
I turned it off and the world came rushing back into my senses.
Normally, it felt like things were simple. But, it muted the color of the world, and now the full spectrum came back into reality. I could feel once more, and all of the emotions pushed aside came crashing back.
The fear of standing before Death, the anger at Barry for shoving me aside, the confusion and disappointment with myself as I realized he had a larger plan that I didn’t see. The shock of it all.
I shuddered, keeping my eyes closed as I breathed in deeply. My heartbeat had climbed sky high and I had to focus to bring it back down. I could feel my hands trembling slightly, my legs twitched in rhythm to them.
“Adam—”
“I’m okay,” I said, opening my eyes once more and giving Barry a smile. “I just… that was close, thank you Barry, I think you saved my life.”
“You might have had it, actually. Sorry about that.”
“No, no, you did the right thing. I over-extended, underestimated it.” I said.
“You’ll be okay there friend, easy,” Norton’s deep tone boomed over the clearing as he pulled Francis back to his feet. The large warrior still wore a grin on his face, a shit eating smile of someone that seemed to enjoy getting his ass kicked by the large ursine hand of god.
“Those cast times are pain, really wish I hadn’t missed that first shot,” Vasquez grumbled.
“All good man, we are all learning how to use our new abilities here,” Barry waved a hand and flashed a reassuring grin.
Abilities…
my attention drifted back to the notification. I still had a choice to make, well, there was only one available option. I mentally made the choice and the System responded.
[Soul Usher (F),
Consuming Stats: Essence Cost 5.
Beast Spirit (Forest Bear) consumed, allocating gain based on beast’s highest stat.
+1 Strength gained
Soul Essence absorbed: 0
Essence to next ability rank: 5/1000
]
There was a lot of information baked into that one notification screen. The first being, using the ability costed soul essence. So I had to think of it like a resource and use it accordingly.
The second thing was that the ability would seemingly differentiate a beast’s soul from other souls. Did sentient souls work differently? Were there beings without souls that my ability wouldn’t work on? I’d have to find that out.
Also, it appeared that I gained stats based on the creature whose spirit I was consuming. For the bear, it meant I got strength. I’d have to keep that in mind when deciding my options regarding spending my accumulated Soul Essence.
Lastly, it looked as though I could rank up my ability. Killing more, absorbing more souls, would potentially make my ability grow stronger, maybe accessing the rest of the options that had shown as unavailable earlier.
It was a lot. But it was all potential power that was at my fingertips.
[Loot, Forest Bear: shares allocated: +5 Copper credits]
I looked up to find that Barry was crouched over the bear and looting it. That was good, I had nearly forgotten about looting the kill given everything else happening.
“Alright, Angela, Adam, let's keep hunting. Looks like we got a couple hours until nightfall in here. I don’t think we want to be wandering around in the dark.” Barry said.
“Sounds like a plan to me,” Huwett gave me a nod and gestured toward the far treeline. “Adam, do you want to take lead? I think the System will let you learn my—”
She was cut off as a loud guttural roar pierced the clearing where we were standing. It sure as hell wasn’t another bear, and that assumption was confirmed as four figures came rushing at us from the trees.
I thought they might be another party sent into the rift at first, as they were all humanoid. But that thought was dashed just as quickly as I saw the green tinged skin and pointed ears of the four running over the grass.
“What the fuck!?” Vasquez yelled, bringing his wand up and beginning gestures that looked like the start of a spell.
“Francis on me! Norton get back!” Barry began shouting orders, as it looked like he came to the same understanding that I had.
It was fucking orks!
The four figures were tall and heavily muscled, each one of them. None of them were shorter than Norton who stood a good ways above six foot, and all were jacked like body builders, covered in rippling muscles in places that shouldn’t even have muscles. Their biceps had biceps.
Two held large axes that rivaled Francis’ weapon of choice, while the other two held large swords that they grasped in both hands. I had the strong suspicion that I would meet with my sponsor again rather soon if I were to be hit by any of the hulking freaks.
Huwett’s bowstring twanged beside me and an arrow streaked across the clearing into one of the charging ork’s thighs. It stumbled and fell into the dirt, but wasn’t at all close to death.
“I need ten seconds!” Vasquez shouted.
Norton was already moving back behind me, Francis and Barry running headlong to meet our sudden attackers as if they were excited to try becoming human tartar.
“Fuck,” I tightened the grip on my sword and ran in after them, knowing I couldn’t just let them get killed. I needed Huwett to help track the dungeon boss, and I doubted she would be willing to help me if I just let all our allies die.
Another arrow sailed over my shoulder as I ran, the point of the projectile slamming into the leather-armored shoulder of the lead ork right as Francis reached melee range.
The distraction was enough for Francis to bring his axe down into its midsection, cutting through its armor and leaving a line of blood. But the ork merely bellowed a roar and swung his own axe, forcing the warrior back in a desperate dodge.
Barry had shoulder charged the second ork, and I was surprised to see that he managed to send it sprawling given the Paladin was smaller than even me. I assumed his strength stat was a bit higher than I gave him credit for.
The third ork, carrying one of the fuck-off sized swords, tried swinging at Barry while he was regaining his balance, and I saw him glow a faint yellow for a second before a bubble of energy sprung up around him two feet in all directions.
The sword clanked off the bubble harmlessly, leaving the ork confused, its brutish face scrunched up in what I guessed was a mixture of surprise and anger.
I managed to make it into the fight at that moment.
The ork was looking sidelong at Barry, its posture off from the deflected sword blow it had attempted. It was wide open.
[Ork - Lvl 7; Marked to Die]
The silvery tether between the ork and I snapped into place just as I swung my sword in a vicious downward angle. The blade met its neck and carved through the flesh until stopping after reaching its leather armor.
I pulled my weapon free with a hot spray of blood and the ork faltered on its feet, eyes wide, before collapsing to the ground.
[You have slain Ork Scout - Lvl 7]
“Watch out!” Barry barked.
I dove to my left without thinking, and a large axe blade cut the space where I had been standing. As I rolled to my feet, Barry was already locked in battle with my attacker. The ork he had body checked earlier had already rejoined the fray.
Its axe came down again, screeching across Barry’s shield. I could see the strain in his body, the ork was strong enough to rattle him.
The Paladin swung his own weapon in counter attack but the ork battered it aside with the haft of his axe and sent a kick into his midsection that had the man doubled over.
The whistle of another arrow had me duck as Huwett once more scored a hit, this time in the ork’s arm.
It grunted, the wound forcing it to lower its sword and allowing Barry to recover.
“Help Francis,” he shouted to me as I took a step closer, ready to attack as well.
I spun, seeing the Rage Warrior was locked in pitched melee with the other axe wielder. Each had wounds on them, blood leaking onto the churned grass at their feet. But Francis seemed to have a faint red glow around him now, and I could see his body swelling slightly.
He had activated his class ability.
The warrior roared madly as he swung his axe, the ork bringing up his own to block. The two weapons sent sparks flying on contact, and Francis swung again, and again. Each time he was blocked. It looked like the warrior was winning, but Barry asked me to help him, because he saw the same thing I did.
Francis was tiring. The warrior was throwing his rage into the ork but he was being worn down as the large green fucker was just defending every blow. Eventually, he would run out of steam, and he’d be a goner.
I ran forward, and transferred my skill over to my new target.
[Ork - Lvl 8 - Marked to Die]
Francis’ next blow jostled the ork, and one after that sent it back a step. Its eyes widened at the sudden shift in power. It couldn't feel the skill I had used on it. It didn’t know that death now eyed him hungrily.
Moving up to Francis’ side, I waited for the right time.
It didn’t take long, the warrior kept up his barrage of axe swings. He inhabited his inner lumberjack, hacking away as if he knew nothing more than the sheer thrill of chopping. The ork stumbled back on the fourth hit, his weapon wrenched aside by the force of Franic’s attack.
I slipped in right then, bursting forward with my highly pumped up dexterity. My feet cleared the ground as I leapt forward, and brought my sword tip into the eye socket of the ork. We both fell as the ork tipped backwards, me riding on top of it.
As it hit the ground, its head slamming against dirt, my sword was driven further, piercing into his brain with a squelching noise.
Schliiick!
I pulled my weapon free, finding that I had started not to mind the spray of blood as much already.
[You have slain Ork Scout - Lvl 8]
Rising to my feet, I found Francis looming over the dead ork, his breath coming and going in huffs as his chest heaved. The axe in his hand still shook as his fingers tightened down on it. His eyes were just then coming back into focus, whatever ability his class gave beginning to wear off.
He blinked, and looked over at me with a crooked grin.
“Nice hit.”
“Thanks.”
“Barry get back!” Vasquez shouted behind us.
He had just finished his casting, fire already crackling from the tip of his wand which he pointed at the ork that the Paladin was still fighting with.
Barry barely glances over his shoulder before jumping away, his shield tucked against his head as he rolled.
A jet of red flame cut across the field and impacted the ork in the chest. It bloomed outward on contact, surrounding the scout with an inferno of flames and heat with an audible
Klawoosh!
It died away just as quickly, smoke rising away to reveal the ork standing with its entire chest and head burned, cauterized flesh sticking to leather armor and exposed bone.
An arrow whizzed in right after, catching it in what was left of its burned and charred head and dropping it immediately.
Damn, magic really is powerful.
I looked to Vasquez who was smiling to himself, happy to have not missed his chance this time, no doubt.
“It’s running!” Barry shouted, pointing his sword behind me.
We all turned to see the fourth ork, the one Huwett had caught in the leg at the very beginning was now running away back into the treeline. It was limping heavily, but still very much alive.
Another arrow sailed after it, missing its mark by a couple feet at most.
“Shit,” Huwett clicked her tongue loudly.
“I got it,” I said.
I took off at a full sprint, covering distance at a rapid click, in an attempt to run the scout down. My dexterity was much higher than its own, I had no doubt about that, and it had an injured leg.
It made into the trees and I followed, weaving between the brush, my boots slapping loudly against the hard dirt. It wasn’t looking back to see if I was chasing it, I’m sure it heard me though. It was smart on its part, not to waste time looking over its shoulder.
I closed in on it, maybe a dozen feet away when I made a realization.
It’s probably running back to more of its kind. Like the goblins, it probably has a camp.
My steps faltered just a second, as I realized I might be running into another ambush, or headlong into a settlement filled with dozens of these guys. I realized I could die doing this.
I felt my heartbeat spike again, my hand tremble.
No.
I mentally reach in, flipping my switch on once more. The view of my world focused and narrowed, the fear and doubt, the worry in my mind cast aside like leaves on a breeze. And I realized something I had missed before in my panic.
An opportunity.
[Ork - Lvl 7 - Marked to Die]
I stopped running, letting the ork limp into the brush and out of sight.
There was a better way to handle all of this, and I just needed to be patient.
“Did you get it?” Barry asked as I stepped back into the clearing.
“Nah,” I shook my head as I rejoined the team. Barry was standing next to Norton, the healer once more working on patching Francis back up. I felt that would be a rather common sight in the future. “It was going pretty deep, and I didn’t want to run into another ambush by myself.”
Barry looked to be in thought for a moment before nodding. “Good call. We don’t want to lose a party member so soon. Especially not our Rogue.”
“Absolutely, don’t wanna be meeting Lady Death already,” I said.
Vasquez chuckled, “You think it’s a woman?”
“Nothing more deadly than an angry woman,” Huwett grinned.
“For sure, for sure,” I agreed.
“Alright, let's loot, then go set up camp. We need to rethink our plan, these orks are gonna be a problem,” Barry said.
At that moment, a notification hit my vision.
[Quest Update: Hunt down and slay the Lord of the Wood
You have learned that orks inhabit the woods around the Dungeon. Hunt the Lord of the Wood before the orks do the same. If the orks complete The Hunt before you, the quest will be failed.]
1.11 Getting Orky