NBB2 - The chaos rifts - chapter 8

Moving towards the usually busiest part of town, they came across groups and pockets of undead, standing together and discussing things. The buildings around this part were heavily damaged, but a group of skeletons were moving from building to building, and where they left, the buildings were mostly repaired.

"The bonemenders will have a lot of work before everything is fixed," Solus said, as they passed a small pocket of zombies that looked at them before continuing their discussion.

"As soon as the barrier is fortified, I'll have the ones working on that help out," Drys replied.

The buildings became worse the further they went until they came to another open square. An enormous building dominated one side, fully made of stone; it only had a few scrapes and looked oddly fine amongst the destruction and rubble.

Many undead, mostly zombies still in their first evolution, stood close to it's three large entrances, looking around the city. In soft voices, they discussed the safety of leaving and. As soon as they saw Solus, a hushed silence fell across them as they looked at him wide-eyed before turning their gazes to Drys.

Solus stepped towards the center opening, a large oval topped entrance and ignored them as they stepped out of his way. He was almost through when one of the zombies finally seemed to gather his courage.

A small, thin zombie, his arms so emaciated he almost looked like a skeleton, scraped his throat before spitting some phlegm on the street.

"Solus, do you know what these things were? Are they a new sort of undead?" His voice was surprisingly pleasant, and somehow it made Solus feel inclined to answer him.

He turned to the zombie half his size and nodded. "We are calling them chaos-undead for now, and they come from rifts-" he couldn't get another word out when the small zombie perked up, his voice rising in volume and causing the hushed conversations that had just started to fall quiet again.

"I saw one of those! Completely black, with edges like a shattered rock. A dozen dark skeletons with long black thorns all over their bones ran out of it. Those were responsible for the destruction around here, well, until Vingria and Derin got to them together with some of the Ragers!"

The zombies began chipping in, seeming incredibly excited as they began talking through each other about the feats they had seen. Within a second, Solus couldn't stand it anymore and was about to shout for them to shut up when the small zombie raised his voice, much louder than his small body would suggest he be capable of.

"Pipe down you lot! How can I hear myself talking like this?" A sort of song-like quality came to his voice, and like someone removed their vocal cords, all of the other undead fell quiet.

"Much better," the small zombie said as he turned back to Solus. "Are there going to be more of them? Do we have to flee?" The last part came out a bit weaker than the rest.

Solus shook his head, turning to Drys. The tall undead only had eyes for the small zombie, a calculating look on his face. Realizing the other wasn't going to be much help, Solus cleared his throat, removing some of the restrictions he put on himself so he wouldn't destroy things around him. As he spoke again, his voice was a deep low rumbling that caused the undead to step back with a start.

"The wall is being improved, and soon none of the rifts will be able to appear in the middle of the city. That will make the city the safest place anywhere until we figure out how to stop the rifts from showing up. I want you all to prepare. Soon the pattern-building will be giving away better patterns without requiring mana-orbs. Start thinking about the pattern you would want, and go around to tell the others you can find."

The zombies had stopped backing up and were now staring at him with glistening eyes. Most of them had stopped going outside after getting their first evolution, and the chances for them becoming stronger than they were now had been very small.

Drys pointed at the small zombie, who had backed up with the others and fallen silent as he listened to Solus.

"You. Go around and use that voice of yours to spread what Solus just said. Tell the others the pattern-building will start handing out patterns starting late tomorrow. Those who can show the most mana-orbs will be helped first."

The zombie's mouth fell open, but he nodded fervently. He moved away, pushing the others away as his voice rang out, almost singing.

"Listen to me, you rotheads, for I have news! Tomorrow there will be free patterns handed out at the pattern-building!"

Solus watched the other undead look at the undead leave, his voice somehow drawing them. They seemed more confused than anything else. A movement from the door entrance drew his attention.

Norg stood in the entrance, staring after the shouting zombie with raised eyebrows. When he noted Solus staring at him, he grinned, his eyes glimmering mischievously, and beckoned him inside while turning and walking away.

Solus walked after him, into the gate. The building's wall was far thicker than that of any other, and it almost felt like the wall around the city, and it ended at a staircase that led down and around. Taking two steps at a time, it still took a while before the staircase ended in the main room.

It was an enormous, chaotic room with tables and chairs spread across different elevated platforms. Ladders and staircases led up and around these plateaus that all circled a deep pit in the middle of the room. With a grey sandy bed, marred with puckered spots of green bile and white goo, it had walls that showed the enormous forces of those that fought inside. Holes and dents with cracked edges, some so deep you could barely see the end marred the wall of the pit.

Staring at the pit, Solus grinned. He remembered the first time he had been in one of those and the work he had to do to fix the building afterward. Taking a look around, he knew that besides him, nobody else would be able to lay this building to waste. He hesitated for a second before correcting himself. Uran and Drys might be able to, but one wasn't allowed in the city, and the other had never shown an interest in beating others over the head.

At the far side of the cavernous room stood one plateau, larger than the rest. A sitting area with enormous stone benches and chairs surrounded a crooked round table with an odd look. It was hard to see from this far, but Solus knew it was the head of a Wyrm, and the first Vingria had managed to slay by herself. It marked a turning point because she had become the third in Skulltown to ever accomplish it, after Solus and Skull.

Vingria was lying across one of the stone chairs; her long muscular arms crossed her armored chest as she stared at the trio walking up the stairs.

"So, are you here to tell me how braindead I was?" She growled without getting up and glaring at Solus.

Solus pushed back his rising anger. Somehow the sight of her still managed to rile him up.

"Do you want me to?" He shot back as he stepped up the platform and moved towards the largest of the chairs.

He dropped his body down with a loud thud that echoed through the room as he enjoyed the fact that the stone didn't budge or relent under his weight. The chair was of his own making and held another type of rock that he had only found one time at the bottom of a large cavern beside a mountain. He still didn't know why he had brought it, but according to Drys, it might have been something that fell from the stars. Solus cared little as he moved until he sat comfortably. He had been able to make a bed and a chair from it that could easily hold his wait and trashing.

"This isn't the time!" Drys shot as he sat opposite Solus.

Norg dropped on one of the long benches, sprawling his long green form across it. He grinned widely, his wickedly sharp canines poking across his upper lip for a moment.

"Finally evolved Drys? It took you long enough. I don't recognize the whole look, but is that Solus' skin you have there?"

Drys nodded, prodding his own arm with a finger. "Yes, and some bits and pieces that increase my intelligence."

"So, why are you here if not to be angry?" Vingria snapped, ignoring Drys and Norg.

Solus gripped the armrest of the chair and squeezed it. A soft howling sound filled the room as the material compressed a little, and even Vingria instinctively backed off a bit, pushing her body as far away as she could.

"I am going to have to fix your mistake. We need the information that Scathia can give us, and seeing as you've just ended her vessel, I have to go to her and find out what she knows about these rifts and how to stop them!" As Solus spoke, his voice became louder and louder until the room started shaking, small cracks appearing everywhere.

Vingria and Norg had their hands across their ears, looks of pain on their faces. Drys just frowned and placed his hand on Solus' arm.

"Calm down!"

Solus felt his ability to morph stone disappear for a second, and it was enough to snap him out of it. With a blink, he looked at Drys, who pointed at the fissure that ran through the wall behind him.

"Remember what we talked about? Quiet, and in control!"

Nobody said anything for a while, as Solus took deep breaths, his eyes closed as he tried to keep his swirling emotions at bay. When he opened them again, he saw Norg look at him worriedly.

"It feels like you are acting more and more like a zombie again sometimes. What is wrong?"

Solus shook his head. He knew the other was right, but he didn't know what was going on. It had been happening since he came into the city, but not all the time. It was as if at times something was enraging him, and he didn't understand why. But Norg was right; it was getting worse.

"That's a problem for later. Right now, we need to decide who stays here and who comes."

This caught all of their attention, and Norg practically jumped to his feet. "Wait? You are not going alone?"

"Not this time. It has come to my realization that there are a lot of things out there that might end me if I am not careful, and I don't know how to guard against all of them. Going out there, far beyond where I have been, is dangerous, and I don't feel like getting myself ended. But those rifts are dangerous…"

Solus imagined for a moment a world where the rifts continued to spawn, more and more of the chaos-undead spilling out and overrunning the wasteland and what lay beyond. He would be able to stop some, but could he end all? He was not ready to be ended yet! He wanted to grow more, learn more, evolve more!

"So, can I go?" Norg said, jumping up and down, the long and toned muscles under his green skin rippling like snakes.

"Are you going to leave me here?" Vingria hissed, causing him to stop mid-jump and fall backward on the bench he had been sitting on before.

Solus and  Drys watched on as Norg seemed at a loss for words. Then he turned around to Solus, a glittering in his eyes.

"Vingria can come, right?"

With a groan, Solus put his head in his hands, but before he could think of a way out of the predicament, Drys spoke up.

"Solus, I think you should not bring any of us. Without you anywhere close by, we will need Vingria and Norg here. Combined, they are almost a match for you, and if we add Skull and me, we should be able to stop anything you could."

Solus frowned at this, questioning for a moment if they could best him if they worked together. Then he remembered how fast Norg was and that Drys could block his abilities and seemed only marginally annoyed by his loud voice, and he shivered. They might be able to; if he let his guard down. Looking at Vingria, he saw a calculating look on her face, but she turned her gaze away when he looked at her.

Solus suddenly didn't feel at all comfortable with having her come along. He knew she probably wouldn't do anything foolish, but he wasn't sure anymore.

"I agree. I will bring Sig, Domain, and one of the Blackguards, " he said, looking at Drys to see what the other would say.

Drys nodded, his long hair bobbing a bit.

"Also, bring one of the better hunting groups with you. Those have proven good at staying alive, and some have complete groups of twice evolved undead."

Annoyed at the prospect of bringing such a large gathering, Solus finally nodded reluctantly. "Fine. I am going to check on Domain. Go talk with Basil about a good team."

He took another look at Norg and felt a pang in his chest, something that didn't happen a lot. The initial prospect of heading out with the tall mutated ghoul had seemed great. Although Norg still had a tendency to talk if he got nervous, it was a far stretch from his initial chatter mouth self. Then again, if he brought Norg, he would have to bring Vingria and that he had no desire for.

Getting up, he beckoned Norg. "I'll head out tomorrow after I wake. Before that, I need to discuss something with you." He didn't wait for any reaction but moved away. Almost in hindsight, he focused on the cracked walls around him. The cracks and fissures shrunk with a grating noise until they closed, leaving behind a slightly marred wall surface.

As they moved through the building and up the stairs, neither spoke, and Solus felt his agitation rise again. It almost felt as if something was prodding him, poking him, as if something-

Solus stopped mid-step and spread his senses out as fast, and as far as he could searching for any movement, any minute tremor in the stone-bodies around him.

There!

Far above at the top of the building adjacent to the inn, he sensed something; a minute shimmer, no more than as if some little pebble slid aside. Focusing on it, he didn't find anything more, but a sense of trepidation kept him focused on it.

"Solus?"

Norg's voice shattered his concentration, and as he automatically withdrew, he thought he saw something shoot away. Stretching after it, he failed to detect anything, the top of the building quiet and still once more.

Solus shook his head, his short green hair waving around as he turned.  Norg was scrutinizing him.

"I think there is still a chaos-undead in the city…" he said before the other could ask anything.

Norg's eyes widened, the triangular black pupils, changed after Drys had mutated his pattern a year ago, gleaming as he swirled to look all around.

"I don't see anything, " he hissed.

"Not here! Somewhere outside. I couldn't get a good sense of it."

Norg looked up for a while, but when nothing happened, he shrugged. "I'll go and find it! Was that what you wanted to talk to me about?"

Solus sighed. For a while now, he had found that just speaking his mind was getting harder. Having to keep track of how his words affected others made it a chore.

"It's about Vingria. I want you to try and keep her in check while I am gone."

Norg sniffed and shook his head.

"I'm not sure that's possible. Ever since she started the inn, she has been changing back to her bossy self." His ghoul-nails ran across the wall, causing a harsh screech, as he looked at Solus. "But I don't think she will try anything, it's just how she is.

Norg's had a stubborn look on his face, and Solus knew it was unlikely he would get any more than this from him.

These fleshy problems, he thought. He could almost understand why Uran wouldn't allow them in. If it wasn't for the joy of feeling emotions, that was.

Seeing Norg's face sour, he grinned and walked up. "Fine, just make sure this place is still standing when I return."

"Nobody will knock anything down while I am here!"

As he stepped outside, Solus shook his head. Norg had been there when the rifts appeared, and still so much had been destroyed. Looking around the empty square, he wondered how much would be left standing when he got back. Then he stomped off, keeping his awareness stretched as far as it would.

~~

The shade hovered high above the building, staring down at the spec that was the dangerous one. Solus… the word bubbled up. Names meant trouble! Only the strongest ever had them, and none of the mindless ones.

It waited until the one called Solus had left before slowly descending. It hungered now. Soon it would need to feed, or it would not be able to stay in this form.

Searching, it saw a group of undead move between two buildings close by. None of the fleshy dead things; just low ranked undead. It's hunger increased, and it faded through the building towards them.

~~

Solus gazed at the unmoving four-legged thing -feline- the word bubbled up, startling him. That hadn't happened in a long time.

"Domain?"

He didn't get a response and looked around the room at his collection. He had time. Perhaps he should prepare. Now that he could see his stats, he needed to raise them, prepare for an evolution.

From non-functioning spheres to rusted metal pieces in different sizes, and oddly beautifully pieces of shaped rock sprawled across the stone tables. A collection of yellow and red metal-scraps lay alone in the middle of a table away from the rest, drawing his attention. He concentrated on a tiny piece of metal the color of his eyes and tried to mold it into the shape of a tree, but it resisted him. The material indented slightly, and he sat down cross-legged in front of the table.

Sharpening his power, he pressed it against the top, feeling the energy drain from his manafield. A string of small pings made him sit up and stop what he did to call his status window.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Name: Os Solus

Age: 1

Sex: male

Race: Pseudo stone elemental

Type: mutation

Class: Stone shaper

Strength: 40/48

Constitution: 34/39

Dexterity: 19/24

Endurance: 69/90

Intelligence: 25/34

Wisdom: 20/23

Charisma: 9/16

Manafield: 13918/14000

Physical density: 16900/19000

Skills: 2

Inscriptions: 3/7

Mana generation: 32

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

He grinned, feeling the wave of contentment surge through him at the sight of his increased intelligence and mana-field. Although not a lot, if he could continue like this, these two stats would increase quickly enough.

Gouging how low his energy was, he prodded the yellow stuff. -Metal, gold-.

This time he stopped. What was going on? He hadn't gotten such clear memories and concepts in a long time. Not since his status-window had disappeared. Almost slapping himself for not realizing, he grinned. His status was back now!  The grin widened, splitting his face in two.

He grabbed the gold from the table, a trickle of information floating through his mind. So, it had been rare long ago, and with the old ones taking most away, it was even rarer now.

He focused on the gold on his hand, the proximity increasing his connection to it. That was something he should have thought of before, he thought. As he stared at the glittering metal, an image of the ancients wearing it as adornments flickered through his mind, and he had an idea. He focused on the gold, creating a mental image and pouring energy into the substance, forcing it into another shape. The amount of power surging out of him was dizzying, and he grit his teeth, grabbing hold of the stone table to keep from falling.

Slowly the metal clumped together, turning into a single large chunk that then began to elongate.

A repetitive series of pings came, but Solus ignored it as the gold wrapped itself around his wrist,  changing into a band. As soon as he felt the ends connect, he stopped, falling to his knees from exertion. He could hardly remember the last time he had pushed himself this hard.

Staring at the small band around his wrist that had the rough shape of a wyrm biting its own tail, he smirked.

So small, yet so difficult, he thought as he probed his remaining energy. It was almost completely drained. The amount of energy he just used would have let him build an entire wall around Skulltown.

"Are you trying to kill yourself?"

A lispy, guttural voice asked. It was hard to understand as if a zombie was speaking with its tongue held.