NBB2 - The chaos rifts - chapter 6

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Sitting on the roof, the shade stuck its head through the ceiling of the building the dangerous one had entered. It didn't dare follow inside the dead-thing, propped up like a tower, but the stone held no danger.

The thing watched as the confrontation between the one who had slaughtered its brethren and the dangerous one unfolded. They would fight; he just knew it. One would be destroyed, its essence stone taken and absorbed by the victor, leaving him with one less thing to worry about.

Squinting its grey eyes, it followed the dangerous one as it moved.

~~

"Stop being so angry. She wouldn't have helped you! She only wants one thing, controlling everything around her, and becoming stronger!"

Vingria's grumbling voice followed Solus as he stomped through the city, back to his tower. Norg kept hovering around them as if he was afraid he would do something to Vingria. He wouldn't! Not that he hadn't had to resist the temptation to knock her through a wall, but it wouldn't help. Besides, if he had to go, Skulltown needed as many powerful undead to guard it as he could find. The trip through the city took longer than the way there, and his mood soured even more as he looked at the cracks in the ground and walls from where he had rushed through. He fixed the stone ones where he could, but he could do nothing about the bone buildings.

"Are you going to act normal again or what? You know-"

"Quiet!" Solus snapped, his voice a bit louder than normal and causing a circle of dust to ripple away from him. "Go to the school and find out how things are going there. Then go into the city and find all the remaining things that came through the rifts and end them!"

Vingria seemed ready to continue her tirade when Norg placed a hand on her shoulder. She glared at him, but when he shook his head, she took a deep breath and turned away.

"Fine!" As she stomped off, Norg looked between her and Solus.

"Go with her and make sure she doesn't do anything stupid."

Norg grinned and ran after Vingria. Solus didn't bother to watch them leave but continued towards the tower.

When he got there, a tall, gaunt shape stood in front of the door, striking it with a fist and muttering. Bone plates covered most of its lower body, leaving its thin upper body bare except for where the long black hair fell across his shoulders. Its skin was grey like the wasteland with bulging veins running below, throbbing with a hypnotic rhythm.

One of those undead from the rifts? Staring at it for a second, Solus prepared himself.

"Stop hanging around there and come help me open this thing. I need to talk to Domain." Drys' dry voice rang out, much more controlled and mellow than before startled Solus.

Walking to the other, he had to look slightly up, something he couldn't recall having to do since evolving last. Two sharp black eyes set in an angular face stared back at him, a silvery light glowing inside, while the thin lips curved in a smile.

"You were right. I feel much better now. Can you open the door now?"

Solus focused, causing the stone tablet to sink back in the ground, and he followed Drys inside.

~~

The shade looked at the two undead moving into the dead-thing building and backed up. It didn't dare follow inside; it was too dangerous. Besides, where there was one dangerous one, now there were two! How had the weak one changed so fast? Drawing the lines was a gamble, and it rarely paid off. Something, a secret?

It turned and rushed back towards where the tall, new dangerous one had gone before changing so massively. It would find out what was going on!

~~

As they marched up the stairs, he kept looking at the other. Something about its grey skin and black hair seemed familiar.

"Still haven't figured it out?" Drys sounded slightly amused before turning back to Solus. His body suddenly floated up, and two crackling green orbs formed in his outstretched hands.

An image of a red-figure with long black hair that flew around throwing energy balls at him made Solus snarl. "Him? Of all the things you took, it had to be that obnoxious…" He grumbled as he walked on, and Drys dropped to the grown before following him.

"Not exactly like him, of course! Apparently, I was somewhat annoying in my previous form, and Domain helped me mix two patterns." As he fell in line with Solus, he muttered something Solus only just heard.

"Two? Didn't you say that mixing patterns was impossible before?" He felt somewhat annoyed. Although he knew his elemental stone form was powerful, especially after mutating, it wasn't without weaknesses—his inability to catch flying adversaries being one of the most notable.

Drys didn't seem to notice his mood.

"Yes! That one, he was something called a Vampire Fledgling, and a part of your pattern!" At those words, he raised his arm and patted the grey flesh.

Solus realized that was why the other seemed somewhat familiar; he had the same thick solid skin as he had! Curiously, he made a small amount of stone morph from a stair and change into a small tree that blocked their way.

"Can you do that?"

"No, it doesn't work that way. I had to change the racial pattern so I could use skills from different races and classes. I chose the skill that gives you your durability. The other skills, strength, and your loud voice wouldn't fit on my field. I did try to take that stone shaping ability at first, but with that, I wouldn't be able to take any of the other abilities I have now..."

So I still have to create all the houses, Solus thought as he shook his head, both relieved and sad at the same time. The mixture of emotions, finally something besides the recent days' anger and annoyance, was fresh and strong. He almost closed his eyes as he enjoyed them.

After a second, he realized something. "And the third one?"

Drys continued up without speaking, staring straight ahead.

"Drys?"

"Silt.."

This time Solus froze and grabbed the other's shoulder. "You didn't! Are you mad? What if you change into something like him!"

Drys shook his head and stared back. "It doesn't work like that! I only took a small part of his class pattern, nothing else."

Solus took a deep breath; his emotions were roiling too fast for him even to pick them apart. "Can you do what he can?"

"Yes and no."

Solus squeezed the other's shoulder, feeling how the tough flesh only slightly compressed. "This isn't a time for jokes!"

A look of focus came to Drys' face, and suddenly Solus shivered as he felt the connection to the stone around him vanish. His body felt heavier, but it wasn't as bad as he remembered.

Drys quickly took a few steps away, and the feeling ebbed until it disappeared at three stairs distance. When Drys took a step back, it returned.

"I only have a low-level version, so I can't cover the entire town as he could. He had an odd class that let him spread it like that. Domain called it Mana dampener."

Solus felt slightly more comfortable now. Although he trusted Drys a lot, more than anybody but Norg and Skull, the idea of him flying overhead while blocking Solus' powers made him more than a little uncomfortable.

As they continued up, Solus finally calmed down enough to ask another question. "If not for his ability, why did you choose a part of his pattern?"

"His intelligence was A++, the only one I have seen so far."

Solus stumbled, kicking against the side of a staircase and knocking a part flying. Drys shouldn't know about things like intelligence or rankings. "What? How?"

This time Drys chuckled, and he pointed a hand forward.

"Status!"

The word made Solus gape, but then he grinned and shook his head. He should have known Drys would find a way!

Drys made an odd hand gesture before continuing up the stairs. "Why didn't you explain this to me?"

"And how do you presume I would have done that?" Solus said, wondering how much Drys knew now and who else had this specific inscription.

"By telling me that it was similar to the small version I had made based on it, and explaining what it could do?"

"Would you have believed me?"

Drys was quiet for a while before sighing. "Probably, but it wouldn't have helped. We didn't have a chance to copy it without one of these AI spheres."

"So why didn't you choose one of the more advanced inscriptions?" Solus asked as they came up to the end of the staircase.

"Because he didn't have the option!" A loud, slightly familiar voice replied from the middle of the room. Stepping inside, Solus stared at the Blackguard, who was standing beside the sphere that seemed oddly inert. Its surface wasn't shining but dull, and the persistent humming was gone.

Drys stepped past him and looked around the room before lowering his stance as he stared at the Blackguard.

"Domain?"

The Blackguard took a theatrical step forward, making an odd gesture with his hand as he curtsied. "At your service!"

"Where is the Blackguard?" Solus hissed as he stepped forward, his fists clenched and trying to keep himself from striking out. His emotions had been going up and down for the better part of a day, and he almost felt like a zombie again.

"Still here, fear not! This is nothing but a test which Hastra was kindly willing to assist with."

Solus was confused for a moment. Hastra? Then his mind started working again as he realized that must be the name of the Blackguard. He had never bothered asking, and the Blackguard had never given it.

Drys stepped past the Blackguard, patting the sphere while keeping an eye on the changed plate covered skeleton. Solus immediately realized what he was planning, and he stepped forward to draw Domain's attention.

"What have you done?"

"I tried what I told you about! My program is now written on Hastra's mana-field, allowing me to exist without being chained down by that infernal metal contraption!"

As the Blackguard spoke, parts of the armor plates curled at the edges, their pristine black color turning a dull grey. Domain raised one of his arms and stared at it.

"It's a shame that this body just isn't powerful enough. Perhaps if I had removed the original patterns, the space would have been sufficient…"

Solus felt a surge of fear at the idea of the AI sitting in his own mana-field, ready at any moment to take over his body.

Drys stared at Domain's back with a look of disgust on his face, but he didn't move any closer yet. Instead, he shook his head with distaste as he spoke. "You need to release him, or he will fall apart!"

Domain sighed, and his shoulders slumped. "I know, but you two have no idea how it is to be locked in something, unable to move around!"

Before either Solus or Drys could reply, the Blackguard slumped to the ground as a blue beam shot back to the sphere that lit up with a pulsating blue light. A few beeps accompanied the pulses, and then the sphere returned to its previous shiny metallic state.

Jumping forward, Solus kneeled beside Hastra, quickly inspecting the Blackguard. He was motionless, but the plates on his body had stopped dulling and curling at the edges.

"If you have any mana orbs, I suggest you give him some."

Solus looked up in consternation, but to his surprise, Drys grabbed an orb from between the plates covering his lower body. It looked like it had some sort of pocket at the side. Drys tossed the orb to him, and he snatched it out of the air before placing it on the Blackguard's chest. For a moment, nothing happened, but then the orb glowed gently.

Solus got up, glaring at the sphere.

"Don't worry. He will be fine."

Drys moved beside Solus, his thin form-fitting twice in Solus' wide-shouldered figure. They shared a look, and Drys nodded.

"What is your goal?" Asked as he looked at Domain.

Domain's voice lifted in pitch as he spoke with an odd accent. "What kind of odd question is that? I want to be a real boy, of course!"

Solus blinked. What is wrong with him? Did his mind break? Before he could ask, Domain spoke again in his normal voice.

"Don't be so confused! Isn't it obvious? I want to be able to walk around, do things, and not be stuck in this form forever!"

Drys stepped forward, appearing to have finally lost his patience. "And you are willing to take someone's body to get what you want?"

A blueish beam shot out of the sphere, and a pattern appeared on the wall behind it. It was intricate and far more complex than even that of Solus.

"Yes, but not like what you seem to think. I can not do this by myself, so trying to take either of your bodies would be a silly exercise in futility!"

Solus thought back to before when Domain had asked him to let his program be inscribed on his mana-field. So you say… he thought before putting his attention on the pattern.

He barely recognized anything. Everything was foreign and angular, and the only thing it resembled was the small dense pattern that was his status window. Drys seemed totally absorbed by it, even going as far as to step towards it and tracing small parts of it with his long finger.

"So, what is this?" Solus finally asked when Drys started mumbling.

"This is me, or at least my program. I need a mana-field large enough for it to fit on."

Solus frowned and barely resisted summoning his own field. The thing on the wall could fit in one segment of his mana-field.

"It's not that big." He muttered.

"This is a thousandth of a part of it…" For a second, the pattern shrunk, the density increasing while more of it appeared around the edges. It continued until the individual parts weren't readable anymore, and the whole wall was filled with a dense amount of dots.

"Your mana-field is big enough to engrave the smallest version of my program on. What I need is an even bigger mana-field, at least ten times the one you have."

"And why should we help you?" Drys said, echoing the thought that popped up in Solus' head.

"Because, if I do this, I will lose most of my knowledge. I can only take enough with me to stay myself. Before I turn, I will help you create a library without equal, containing every pattern in my databases!"

Drys' eyes illuminated from the inside, silvery light radiating outwards and causing the whole of the grey and white room to brighten.

The look of rapture on Drys' face told Solus the other would not take kindly to a no from his side. Not that he didn't like the idea. There was a more simple problem.

"And where do you suppose we find an undead with such a giant mana-field? And if we find one, how do we even get it to comply in letting you take it over?" Solus said dryly.

"From the rifts! I don't know exactly what is beyond them, but that one we met on the road was easily as powerful as you."

Solus barked a laugh. "I ended it without that much trouble!"

"Because you had the advantage! If he hadn't let you come so close, how would you have fared?"

As he remembered the battle with the bramble shooting undead, Solus became uncomfortable. Domain was right, and he knew it. He might have still won, but it would have cost him a lot more effort.

"Are you suggesting there are even more powerful ones in those rifts?" Drys sat down with his back against the wall, his eyes staring at Domain.

"Isn't that obvious?" Domain said derisively. "The thing we need to know is, how strong are they and when are they coming out! Luckily, we have that oddly named undead, Scathia the Litch, to tell us."

Silence reigned in the room for a while as Solus resisted the temptation of running through the city to find and throttle Vingria. He ignored Drys's curious look.

"Did something happen?" Domain asked, sounding a lot less sure of itself all of a sudden.

"Someone ended the undead," Solus said with a shrug.

"..."

A blue light scanned over Solus quickly.

"You are not joking…"

"One of the undead knew Scathia. She awoke her apparently, and she got angry, ending her in a fit of rage." Solus said, looking at the wall ahead of him. He was feeling a new emotion, one he didn't at all like. It made him almost unable to look up at Drys. After a second, the sensation abated, and he snorted.

"Great. Fabulous. So now we have to go to her and figure out what she knows." Domain said as another image appeared on the wall.

Although he had never seen it, Solus knew immediately that it was a map. Miniature buildings and a wall surrounded a small red dot in the middle. All around that were hills, but the image cut off there. Only a single, long swatch continued, ending at a vast mountainous area.

"So, where did she come from?" Domain asked.

Solus scrambled up and moved towards the map with heavy thudding paces. He stared at the map and jotted his finger on a spot far to the right in an area that wasn't drawn in yet. "This is where Sig said her city was somewhere… or at least in this general area."

"That's something, at least. So, let's go there and find out what she knows!"

Solus looked at the map for a moment before shaking his head. "I need to think first."

"And how long will that take?" Domain asked.

Solus ignored him and trudged to the far side of the room. With the sphere on his stone bed, he would just have to make due. He lay down below the hammer, his hands behind his head.

"Drys, take Hastra and bring him to the bonemenders. Find out if Vingria and Norg managed to clear the city. Then start the improvements to the wall to keep out further intrusions."

"Alright. But don't do anything stupid, like running off with Domain." Drys said as he effortlessly lifted Hastra off the ground and walked towards the plateau that stretched out between the Wyrm-jaws.

Solus didn't bother to reply but watched as Drys jumped out into the darkness of the night. Instead of falling, he surged forward, quickly out of sight.

I hope I can do that someday…

Shoving the wishes away, he pondered on what to do now. After a second, he summoned his status window, scrutinizing the values.

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

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: 24/34

Wisdom: 20/23

Charisma: 9/16

Manafield: 13900/14000

Physical density: 16900/19000

Skills: 2

Inscriptions: 3/7

Mana generation: 32

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

Although his stats had increased again, probably from fighting all those undead in front of the bone forest, he was far from ready to think about evolving again. Besides, what would he evolve in? Evolutions! He thought loudly, and the status window blurred for a second before showing him a message that still made no sense to him.

> Potential evolutions pending…

> Unusual mutation detected in current inscription, calculating possible paths…

> Time remaining: four days, three hours, and ten minutes

Luckily it wouldn't take that long, and he still needed time to increase all the attributes.

Thinking about Drys adding skills, he frowned at the remaining space for inscriptions. How did he summon his skills again? Skills! he thought, and was presented with a list like those for evolutions.

> Skill choice disabled while calculating.

> Current skills

> Racial skill - Loud voice (Power changed due to race change)

> Passive: Increase the volume of the user's voice to dangerous levels

> Active: Shouting will create a blast attack that pushes back anything not bolted down. Creatures that are light will be blown back. Damages weak enemies.

> Class skill - Manipulate stone+ (Emotional construct merged into class skill)

> Passive: Stone-sensing

> Active: User can manipulate and change any stone within range. Range determines on the size of the mana-field and any natural affinity with earth. Volume of change depends on wisdom.

Only this? Thinking back to his abilities as a zombie, he wondered what happened to his shield summoning skill. He didn't really need it. He could create a shield with stone, but still. As soon as he had a chance, he would need to see if he could choose any more skills.

Summoning his status window again, he frowned as he inspected the values. Now how am I going to increase these things? he thought. A host of ideas began playing through his mind and with them, a plan formed.

~~

The shade dashed between the hundreds of stone tablets that decorated the locked room. The plethora of glowing lines and scribbles around it baffled its mind. Beyond the other rifts and across all the worlds it had been to, never had it seen this. The lines always came from observing others as they inscribed, mostly random, experiments on their fields.

It stopped before an enormous tablet, holding a pattern unlike any it had seen before. The density and size were so enormous it knew it wouldn't be able to put even half of it on its field.

Trying to memorize as much as it could, it continued, barely aware of the time that passed.

~~