Homestead Survival

<13 August 2024, ???? , S+>
[Aflara Karzun]
As the sun set on the world that Gurndin the Darksmasher called home, Aflara approached a massive gate set into the base of a mountain that looked as if it would breach the atmosphere.

A Guard plated in an alloy of unknown metals stepped forward, dropping the point of his halberd towards Aflara, and then spoke in Dwarvish. "Halt there, lass. State 'yer business."

"I am Aflara Karzun, acting as messenger for my grandfather Patriarch Karzun." Aflara bowed slightly, glad for the practice in this guttural language, "I have orders to speak to Gurndin Darksmasher. Please direct me to him at once."

After a brief moment that Aflara assumed was to use a skill to communicate with someone else, the guard nodded, "Aye, follow me."

Aflara followed the dwarf through a door into a room that started dropping. For five minutes, the room sank deeper and deeper into the planet. Finally, it opened upon a room that was gilded in gems, gold, and metals Aflara did not have names for.

In the wall was a metal door that seemed to absorb light. The dwarf pointed at the door. "Lord Darksmasher is through there."

Aflara thanked him and stepped up to the door. When she pushed it open, she expected the opulence of the outer room to continue. What she got instead was a rough-hewn cavern lit by the glow of magma coursing behind shimmering magic.

Gurndin the Darksmasher stood with a hammer in hand, sweat coursing down his brow into his beard. On an anvil in front of him shimmered a blade that Aflara instantly knew would be worth more than anything she had ever owned.

Gurndin looked up and spoke in Dracish, "Just a moment, please."

Aflara watched as the dwarf picked up the blade and plunged it through the magical barriers into the magma. He held it there, his hand in the molten rock as well. After a few moments, he withdrew the blade, which glowed white, and placed it down on the anvil.

"Cover your ears, girl." He said, and Aflara did. Then she watched him raise the hammer, a pulse of magic forming in the handle and growing as it traveled to the head and to the striking surface just as it hit the blade. The force of that blow hit Aflara nearly fifty feet away and made her feel as if she had just been kicked in her chest by her older brother during a spar.

Gurndin struck seven more times. He hummed to himself as he flipped the blade from one side to another. Each time, the blade seemed to absorb a lion's share of the energy. When he was done, the blade was nearly invisible due to how clear it had become, but when he held it at the right angle, Aflara was nearly blinded by how dazzling the blade was.

Gurndin grunted, and the blade disappeared, replaced by a rag that he wiped his brow with as he turned to Aflara. "The guard said you are here on behalf of your grandfather. What does that old lizard want?"

"Patriarch Karzun wishes to inform you of an event that took place," Aflara said, dismissing how the dwarf disparaged her grandfather. "A system Error occurred and will result in Primordial Flight. This event is taking place on Y-7F63C-3."

She continued speaking, relaying all the information her grandfather had asked her to relay. Gurndin nodded, his eyes remaining locked onto her as she spoke. When she was completed, he nodded again. "Understood, is there anything else?"

"No, Lord Darksmasher," Aflara said, bowing her head in respect.

"Tell the guard to see you to the spacekeeper." Gurndin said, "She should be able to see you to your next destination."

"Thank you," Aflara said, turning to leave.

"And tell that scaly old bastard he should come drink more often," Gurndin chuckled. After Aflara left, Gurndin let out a long sigh and then walked through a door that was crafted to blend perfectly into the surrounding rock. "Guess I need to get ready then."

<14 August 2024, GRAND MESA OF SUMMER , A+>
[Theo and Julia]

>Local Message: Challenge Begins! Fight!

The five spirits had formed into one, where they had each held a level higher than Theo; now there was a single entity in front of him.

{[Corrupted] Spirit Amalgam, Level 07, S-}

Theo rushed forward and Taunted the being, while Julia began spamming her Glimmer Branch. The Spirit Amalgam pulsed a skill, and suddenly, Darkness fell around them, deep and impenetrable.

"Theo!" Julia cried out as she watched the orb of Darkness fall over him.

Theo said nothing, having started to channel his Penitent Strike as soon as he could not see. He felt four hits strike him. Each one making his head ring. He also felt heat from Julia's active healing.

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When the skill ended, Theo swung wildly in the dark and felt the rod connect with something, and a shriek of agony from something very non-human confirmed he had landed a hit. Theo staggered backwards, holding the metal rod up wardingly.

He left the orb of Darkness and almost tripped over Julia. He spat a gob of blood out. "That fucker hits like a god damned truck."

Julia pulled out the Rod of Lesser Healing and was about to use it when Theo stopped her. "Save it, we can hang out here for a moment if you don't mind making sure the Ward runes are up."

Theo looked out at the Spirit Amalgam in time to see it separate into the five distinct spirits.

They came forward, and Trelni snapped its fingers. The Orb of Darkness hovered over the Ward runes for a moment before several of them flared, the Darkness shattered, and Trelni was hit with one charge of Retaliate per Ward rune that was triggered.

Trelni hissed and fell to the back, where Saariel used a beam of sickly grey light to heal the rips in the smoky image of Trelni.

Theo took in all five of their opponents.

{[Corrupted] Zintho, Level 09, A-}

Zintho was the one who looked like Theo's sister to him and Julia's dad to her. Now that the image of his sister was not trying to deceive him, Theo noticed a distinct lack of thoughtfulness on Zintho's face.

{[Corrupted] Trelni, Level 08, B+}

Trelni was in the back being healed and had a core of energy that seemed to soak up all the light around it. Trelni did not look like a warrior type.

{[Corrupted] Sasharon, Level 07, B-}

Sasharon was the Spirit that had accompanied the storm giant. Theo wondered why, but did not have a good explanation. Sahsaron was distinctly female, as her upper body was that of a voluptuous woman.

{[Corrupted] Velthier, Level 07, B-}

Velthier was a warrior, and as the only one with legs, Theo had noted that his was the form that they combined into. When they combined, they seemed more physical. Theo could see Velthier giving Trelni a dirty look for something.

{[Corrupted] Saariel, Level 06, B}

Lastly was Saariel, the lowest level of the five, but the one that put Theo on edge the most. Whenever Saariel used that healing skill, the sickly grey light he emitted set Theo on edge even at the sight of it.

"I think," Theo muttered just loud enough for Julia to hear, "that we are going to have a hard time here."

"I would agree with you," Julia said just as quietly. "But I do have an idea."

"What?" Theo asked, watching the five Spirits.

"Well, we don't do so hot against one powerful opponent," Julia said, and Theo grunted in agreement. "So why don't we try and trap them in several small Ward rune circles, then you can stand in the middle of them, taunt them, and then eliminate them one at a time."

Theo thought for a moment; he felt one of his ribs that had cracked snap back into place as Julia's skill got him back to tip-top shape. "I like it, but if they turn on you and you look like you are going to get hurt, you Ward your area up."

"Of course," Julia said, kissing his cheek quickly, "wish me luck!"

Before Theo could say anything, Julia rushed from the ring of the Ward runes and sprinted at the nearest Spirit. Theo knew that the closest Spirit had already been within her skill range, but she wanted to get them all.

They all turned, and Velthier tried to rush forward, only to find a line of Ward runes between himself and Julia. As Julia progressed, Ward runes appeared, boxing in the spirits.

Finally, the only Spirit not contained was Saariel, as he was using that sickly grey light he seemed to channel for his skills to wipe Julia's runes away. As Saariel worked towards Julia, Theo finally rushed into action. Standing as close as he could to as many of the spirits as he could, put him in range of three of them. He used Taunt and began channeling.

Trelni, farthest from Theo, let loose an inhuman wail and railed against the Ward runes that Julia just layered over and over. Zintho, Sasharon, and Velthier struck wildly at Theo. Taking damage from each time they breached the wards to strike him. Saariel shrieked and suddenly flooded himself with the grey light, and rushed Theo, fighting through the layered Ward runes that Julia was throwing up.

By the time that Saariel had gotten to Theo, he was done channeling; he was about to swing the metal rod when the Ring of Eternal Mourning was bathed in that sickly grey light. Attached to the middle finger of Theo's right hand, it rushed at Saariel and impacted him, delivering the power that Theo had accumulated.

Normally, Theo would have expected the blow to send Saariel flying back, but instead, the Ring of Eternal Mourning was stuck to him.

The ring let out a tolling sound that Theo instinctively knew was a death knell. The sound stopped all of them from moving, and an eye popped into being above them, as large as the sky, it seemed to focus on them.

A voice spoke, quiet and booming all at once. Theo would have dropped to his knees if he had been able to move.

"One of my own, fallen to such a baser level, and resigned to such a fate. Unacceptable." With that last word, the weeping face on the Ring of Eternal Mourning grew to be several feet tall, and its mouth opened, and a skeletal hand clad in strips of black cloth dangling from it shot out. It grabbed Saariel and pulled him into the mouth.

Suddenly, they could all move again. But no one did.

Julia broke the silence, "Alright what the fuck just happened?"

No one had an answer. Trelni looked fearful, but everyone else seemed unfazed.

Theo stepped up and tightened his grip on the metal rod. "I think that we should focus on the fight, Julia."

With that, Velthier struck at Theo. Resuming the hostilities.

The next hour was a slog with Theo leaning heavily on Julia to provide damage to these more incorporeal enemies.

First, it was Zintho who fell. When Zintho died, a core of shifting fleshcolored energies was all that remained.

Next was Trelni, who left behind a dark, shimmering core that absorbed light.

Theo then struck down Velthier. He had to admit he had some respect for the Spirit warrior, as he had never used his incorporeal nature to his advantage. Instead, Velthier had relied on skill and physical prowess. Now, all that remained of him was a steel colored core.

That left only Sasharon. Sasharon looked panicked and was doing her best to dodge and avoid Theo, but Julia was slowly filling in the Challenge Area with Ward runes, cutting off her avenues of escape, and shrinking the space that would not hurt the Spirit little by little.

Finally, Sasharon was trapped in a circle roughly three feet across. Julia spent a few moments using her Glimmer Branch to finally end the Spirit.

>Local Message: Challenge Concluded, Interference by Non-Challenge entities detected, calculating...

>Local Message: Interference compensation calculated, granting reward to victorious party.

With that, Theo and Julia gathered the cores and hurried back to the safety of the Cabin and the area around it before going through their notifications, starting with a level up.