Herald of death

"What are you doing?!" The scream reaches Ethan's enhanced ears. He spots the scared figure through the rocks. Someone—a man with elongated limbs and a crooked frame—swings a blade at him. They are close; if Ethan has to kill someone to advance, better it be a would-be murderer.

'Silent steps, Strengthening,' Ethan thinks. He leaps above, landing next to the attacking man. He swings Phantom Reaver, his landing and presence muffled by Silent steps. The blade carves the man's back, cutting from his shoulder to his hips.

The attacked young man lies seated against a rock, three deep lacerations apparent on his chest. Death Ether clings to him, withering his skin by the instant. His fingers seek a potion in a satchel attached to his belt, the glass vial slipping from his bloodied grip.

The Wolf, his fur already apparent, leaps to the side. He comes back at Ethan as if his wound isn’t affecting him. He swings his blade, a Draugr's short sword coated in death Ether. Ethan deflects it and slashes the man's chest, cutting his liver, ribs, and right lung deeply.

The assailant descends on all fours, running away like a beast. Ethan bends to burst after him but senses a tug at his pants. The wounded man has grabbed them, his touch withering the fibers. Ethan stops himself, fearing he might tear off the man's wrist with his strength.

Ethan summons his suppressed M4 and shoots, hitting the Wolf in the legs, back, and shoulder. He leaps from one rock to another, barely bothered by his wounds. Russ leaps after him, only stopping as Ethan orders, 'Heel.' The Wolf vanishes in the distance.

Ethan summons the Abyss Watcher lantern, dispelling the death Ether surrounding the young man. He kneels to his level, lifting the potion to his lips. The man swallows it all in pained gulps, his bright purple eyes locked on Ethan.

The edges of his wounds flare up with dark green veins. They don't heal and keep spitting blood on the ground. He gags on his own blood; tears drip on his cheeks. "I am going to die here. I shouldn't have come… I thought it was my chance to be someone great. And now I'll rot in this forsaken place."

'He got both his lungs,' Ethan thinks. The wounds he suffered are filled with death Ether the lantern doesn’t affect. Ethan peers into the man with predator's sight. 'They are collapsing, and he has several internal bleeds. These are catastrophic injuries. I still have a potion, but I'd need to draw the death Ether out of his body. Even if I succeed, I don’t know if I can expel it from mine; I have nothing to consume death Ether.'

"Medicine leveled up. You obtained the Human Hunter title. One characteristic point has been granted," the voice announces.

"If I asked you to kill me, would you do it?" His voice is barely a whisper, fueled by the little air his lungs can move. He stares into Ethan's eyes, his filled with tears. "Forget it; I'd fail to ask it… I tried once before, years ago. It’s fear that stopped me. Not of pain, just fear."

"It is natural to be afraid of death," Ethan says. "It doesn’t have to be rational. It’s your body doing all it can to continue existing."

"Are you afraid of death?" the boy coughs. "The only good thing it gave me was the sight to see the emotions of others. You are blank, like I’ve never seen."

"Emotions are a luxury I don’t permit myself," Ethan says. A dying man wouldn't denounce him anyway. The conviction he says it with, along with the immediacy of his response, makes him ponder. 'Do I, or is it just my heightened Willpower? Lucian lives by this statement, but it’s not as if I never felt fear. In the last month alone, I feared for the sanity of my soul, and I was afraid that Russ might die. It is a strange thing, knowing no fear for mythological monsters or my own demise, yet being scared for another's life.'

He coughs blood, distracting Ethan from his thoughts. "It’s getting cold," he mutters. Ethan summons his black coat and drapes it over his shaking frame.

"Is there someone you wish to inform of your fate?" Ethan asks. Tombstone can send anonymous, untraceable messages, and this wouldn’t be the first time.

"No," he coughs. His body arches forward as his strength leaves him. "I had a girl until last month, but besides her, they are all long gone."

Russ lies down near them, watching the area. "What is your name?" Ethan asks.

"It doesn’t matter," the man says, his eyes losing their color. "I never mattered, and no one will remember me when I’m gone."

Ethan stays silent as he senses that the man has only seconds left. He grabs his shoulder, stopping him from falling face-first to the ground in his last moments, and places him on his back.

His body turns into coal-like dust, flowing through Ethan's fingers and into the ground. A large, bronze coin remains in his palm, heavy. A skull is molded onto it. Ethan turns it around as he stands back up, wondering if the man was real or a servant of the labyrinth.

He waits for a moment, expecting the system to tell him something. After seconds of silence, he grabs his coat and places it back into his inventory. 'If it is a reference to Charon's obol, I might be able to move forward now. He should have told me his name; I could’ve thanked him properly.'

Unnatural howls echo as ten heartbeats and pairs of running feet rush towards them. A larger, bigger man with a strong, slow heart leads their pack. They exit into the clearing, clad in Draugr's armor and bearing their weapons. They may have been men once, but they stand as crazed, hunched, near-monsters. The look in their eyes screams hunger and hate, like that of rabid wolves.

They expand, forming a line behind their de facto leader. "Give us the coin, and we’ll let you leave with your life," he says. His sentience surprises Ethan.

"You can talk; I thought you were too far gone already," Ethan says. Despite his conviction that he’s far stronger, he’d rather spare his stamina and ammo from a pointless fight. "Leave this place; if you don’t, you will die painfully, like countless others before you."

Their leader hurls his axes at the ground, letting out a growl. Russ swells in size, curling behind Ethan, his head reaching his master’s chest. He growls louder than the half-monster, making the other Wolves step away.

"Get me their coins!" he roars. The ones behind him burst forward, hefting their rusted swords, axes, hammers, and spears. The one that fled is among them, his wounds healed into scars.

'Stop,' Ethan orders. Russ stays where he is, growling. He summons his combat shotgun and shoots sabots at each of them. The projectiles pierce their skulls, hearts, and lungs with ease. Seconds after they charged, they now lay on the ground.

The four he headshot turn to dust, each leaving a coin and their belongings on the ground. Bones crunch as those whose brains are intact move. The rare sabot that stopped in their flesh falls and bounces on the ground as they stand up. They morph, their bones elongating as they move further away from humanity.

Ethan unsummons his empty shotgun and manifests Phantom Reaver. A Wolf jumps at him; Ethan sinks his blade into its guts. He grabs the writhing beast by the throat and throws him away in time to cut another’s lunging claws. The Wolf holds his cut fingers in pain, opening himself for Ethan to cleave his head.

The first beast rolls to the ground and rushes towards Russ. Russ growls and snaps at him, remaining in his spot as commanded. Ethan orders, 'Kill.'

Their leader hammers the ground, swelling in size as white fur rips out of his shirt. He breaks into a four-legged rush, crushing the ground with each stride. He leaps into the air, diving towards Ethan.

Ethan summons Skysong under his arm and supports it with the ground. It impales the beast, and Ethan summons fire, coiling it along the spear. The white Wolf bursts into flames, clawing at the air in desperation. Ethan throws him to the side, unsummoning his spear.

Russ whines. Ethan turns to see him biting down on the Wolf's throat, but the mad beast twisted his dismantling neck to bite Russ'. A hammer hits Ethan in the chest, sending him beside Russ. He spins mid-air, skidding on his feet to slash the biter's head.

Russ coils and whines. Something burns under his fur. Aetherian sigils carve themselves on Russ' back. He bends to lick them, whining and squealing in pain.

The Wolves recoil, their legs shaking as Ethan's aura seeps past his ring. It comes in blasts, each sending waves through the Ether. The threads whip their skin and fur, sending burning shards of Ether into their flesh.

He feels his life force extracting from his heart, outside of his control, drawn by his wrath. Ethan unsummons Phantom Reaver and calls Tatiana's Blade.

Zhiznezhret (жизньжрёт)

This saber made of an alloy of wyrdium and steel can grow into a great sword when fed Ether. It eats away the life force of its victims, turning it into a plume of red anyone can absorb.

This weapon is enchanted with [Shift - Great sword (C)] and [Soul eater (C)].

Ethan's rage pries life force from the depths of his heart, feeding it to his Ether. The saber grows into a great sword, its veins burning with searing red. Blue fire drips from his offhand as he summons a Flame spell.

Their leader stands back up, his fur a carbonized black. He roars, and they charge forward. Using Strengthening, Ethan takes a single step; the force makes him vanish, only for him to appear before a rock, his great sword impaling the leader to it. The sound of his stone-breaking step comes as a delayed, deafening crack.

Strands of red escape the Wolf, seeping into Ethan's body to refuel his lifeforce. He slaps the air before him, hurling liquid fire at the beast. Ethan stares the Wolf in the eyes as his regeneration and the flames fight in excruciating torment.

As Ethan wrenches the blade free, he feels it struggling. He peeks down; Zhiznezhret's edge is chipped in several spots. The likely explanation is that Phantom Reaver damaged it in the fight against Tatiana.

The three remaining Wolves flee. Ethan moves in their way, grinding into the ground to stop himself. He places his second hand on the handle, covering the blade in dripping fire. He bisects the three with a single swing, their bodies bursting in consuming flames.

He moves back to the leader, whose only remains are his head and burning torso. He demands, "How do I break the curse?!"

The Wolf stares him in the eyes, the only sound escaping him a low growl. His shoulder moves, as if trying to claw Ethan with his nonexistent arm.

"Answer me!" Ethan commands. The torso's head snaps and snarls, not a thread of humanity left in it. Ethan lets the fire consume him, ending his tainted existence.

"You leveled up (x2). Russ leveled up. Melee Weapon (Long sword) leveled up (x3). Melee Weapon (Great sword) leveled up (x10). Ether manipulation leveled up. Life force manipulation leveled up (x5)," the system announces. Ethan doesn't listen; he rushes back to Russ' side, diving to kneel beside him.

Russ shrinks down, the bite diminishing to that of no more than a dog. Ethan doesn't dare look at the mark, fearing to trigger the transformation. He thinks, 'Status.'

Russ

Lv.15/20 (Ambush predator) Lichor (Dog)

Bonded: Ethan Reed (Obedience 94)

Strength: 10 Charisma: 6

Dexterity: 23 Perception: 25

Constitution: 12 Willpower: 14

Intelligence: 6

Abilities

Bond telepathy

Camouflage (F)

Growth (F)

Hunter's mark (F)

Poisoned natural weapons (F)

Shadow blend (F)

Silent steps (F)

Alteration

Curse of monstrosity (Minor)

Ethan's heart tightens as he glances at the bottom of Russ' status. He rummages through the Wolves' belongings. Among scraps of food and remnants of water, he finds two vials of health potion. He uncorks one and pours it into Russ' bowl. He orders, "Drink."

Russ licks the potion. His wounds close, forming small scars where fur won't grow again. He stands, prancing on the ground, unaware of his condition. Ethan's worry attracts Russ' attention. He approaches and licks his face, trying to make him feel better.

Ethan feels a pull on his mind. The hateful woman's voice appears again. "You slayed five Wolves, and for this feat you'll be granted a point of Strength, and a point of Constitution. You slayed ten Wolves, and for this feat you'll be granted a bead of evolution."

Red light and smoke manifest before Ethan before forming into a small sphere. He catches the bead of red marble into his hands. It emits a pungent smell of roasted, seasoned meat that waters Ethan's mouth. Russ lunges at it, but Ethan keeps it away. He orders, "Leave it."

Russ continues to jump at Ethan's hands despite his order. He stores it in his inventory, and Russ calms down, a disappointed look on his face. The pull on Ethan's mind recedes.

"It would be a good time to have a vision," Ethan mutters. He walks from one corpse to another, prying the coins from the ground. "Because I don't know what to do."

The coin he holds in his hand vibrates. Whispers, inaudibly low, escape it, shrouding Ethan's mind. A vision of a lake takes him, then it moves through the alleys of the labyrinth until it returns to his eyes. The whispers vanish, leaving Ethan in a daze. He looks at the path it showed and begins walking, Russ on his heel.