Stumbling Up: A Loser's Guide to Progression - Chapter 43: What Remains

Richard was not amused.

Which made the laughter all the more satisfying. Rhi must have thought so as well, as she hadn't killed me yet. The fires of her throne danced with each chortle. I wiped the gritty tears from my eyes, glancing at the rest of my companions. Meredeath and Tandy were not amused.

Leo, however, arched his eyebrows, whispering, "Good sign, hitting it off with the in-laws." He grinned as I choked on an errant bit of saliva, giving me two thumbs up.

Coughing, I turned back to the [Lich] to find her mood had flipped. She sat in her throne, long fingernails tapping on the stone armrest. It was as though my courage had evaporated with my laughter. I couldn't bring myself to say anything. I just stood there staring at her.

Meredeath stepped forward, her boots and corset jangling. She must have handed Richard off to Leo or Tandy, because he was no longer wrapped around her neck. She looked up at Rhi, her pendant still glowing from the [Corrupt] water hound fight.

"I have come to seek your assistance," Meredeath said. Her words echoed in the silence.

Rhi Voss moved. She moved inhumanely, as though time passed differently for her. She was sitting and then standing before her throne in a blink. Her hands were out with blackened nails angled towards us as though she was going to attack. Face bare, she looked every bit the swamp terror of my childhood.

Meredeath matched her energy, dropping into a crouch. Her claws coming out, she was prepared to meet an attack, no matter how outclassed. Purple lightning crackled between Rhi's fingers as though energy was building for a strike. I was frozen by some sort of [Fear] skill, unable to do anything but watch.

S-T-O-P! You unregulated [Lich]! Richard yelled in our heads, leaving no doubt he'd considered an alternative to [Lich].

His shout did nothing. No self-respecting goddess of the undead listened to a banana slug, fanged or not.

"He's engaged to your sister!" Leo shouted, pointing at me.

The purple lightning dimmed. The wisps that were Rhi's remaining eyebrows knitted together.

"Wh-what? The grave robber is a gold digger?" Her confusion was evident.

I guess it was my turn. I looked down at the blue stone on my finger.

"I'm not really engaged to Lael," I said. I opted for the truth despite the anxiety-laden look Tandy gave me. "But she did give me her ring."

I held my hand out. In a blink, Rhi was before me. I bit back a shriek.

Everything about her was worse up close. Her skin was a collection of flaky layers that were too stubborn to fall off. Her teeth were yellowed and sharper than they should be. She smelled of vinegar and ash like she'd soured with age. My expression must have given away my thoughts as she moved even closer.

"See if you look half as good at my age," she said with a raspy voice. "Tell me again, boy, why do you wear my sister's ring?"

"She gave it to me-"

"I don't sense falsehood in your statement; however, I don't see how this can be true. She's been dead for over." Her hand moved, and she booped me in the nose with each word, "six-hundred-years."

She looked into my eyes. Fear had me pinned in place. Her eyes were dark, fathomless pools. Her body might have faded over the centuries, but her eyes held her soul. It was like looking down into a deep well and having something in the darkness look back.

"You are not nearly old enough," she said with finality. In a blink, she was halfway up the stairs.

My mind raced, knowing what was going to happen once she got back to her throne, when she assumed a position to pass judgment on us.

"Nonetheless, she gave it to me to help me kill her [Companion]." At my words, the [Lich] froze. It was as though I'd reflected her own [Fear] skill back.

Not facing me, she whispered, "He's dead?"

I prayed to the Everbear that I was reading her correctly.

"Yes, he's finally at peace." My words had the effect I was hoping for. The stiff-backed woman hunched as though the air had been released from her body.

She kept her back to us as she walked, almost like a normal human, up the stairs. The tension in the room released. The flickering fires of her throne muted their promised threat by softening. Ter Lance, her skeletal commander, lowered his sword, responding to an unspoken command.

As she turned around to face us, the world twisted.

The darkness faded. The flames blinked out. We stood in the palace, but it wasn't the conjured nightmare. It was old, bleached with age, ruined. The ceiling of the palace was missing. The room was hollowed out except for a few empty stone tables and the throne itself. It held reliefs decorated with scenes of battle, but the throne was made of solid granite. The battles celebrated great victories.

The room smelled not of death and ash, but of dust. A faint breeze whistled through a crack in the wall.

Ter Lance stood before us, not the bone minion of an undead queen, but a commander in shining armor with a greased mustache. He gave me a slight nod of recognition as though acknowledging he was still him.

Rhi, herself, had changed. She looked not much older than any of us. Her hair was glossy and black, her skin human, her teeth hidden behind thin but functioning lips. The only thing that hadn't changed was her eyes.

"Behold the truth," she waved at the empty room. "I know not what assistance you come seeking, but my power is not what it was. The Incursion comes for us all. Even me."

I gazed at the once ominous, once beautiful palace. Rhi Voss sat alone on her throne, the undying queen of a dead civilization. My heart ached for this stranger at the understanding she'd granted us.

The Incursion is here?

Richard sounded concerned, but I wasn’t sure about what. What was this Incursion?

"Have you been asleep so many years?" Her eyes shifted to Richard. "It presses near. [Corruption] in my dogs. They ate through most of my remaining kin. It’s gotten older and hungrier.” Her voice caught on the word as though this hunger scared her. “It won't be long now."

"Is there something we can do to help?" Tandy surprised me by asking.

"You, child?" Rhi said, her voice not unkind. "You are talking to one of the [Immortal Legends] of the fifth age, and you're asking what you can do to help? I appreciate the gesture, but I think I’ll be two ages too old before long. No, I don't think there's anything," she paused as though using [Analyze] on us. "[Your Mom's Party], really? I don't think there's anything your party can do to assist me."

"Cole slayed the [Corrupt] tidemaw." Tandy's statement sat heavy in the silence. Tandy always had this way about her. She’d just state the truth, not caring about the ego-crushing consequences.

“Yes, he slayed an ancient, nearly toothless tidemaw. I’d give him a trophy, but my sister beat me to it.”

Rhi looked at us again. Her head was shaking. Then she looked at Richard. It was as though she couldn't marry the fact that we were [Your Mom's Party], newly minted [Adventurers], and yet had defeated a [Corrupt] tidemaw. Or that we had Richard in our group. It pained me to admit it, but it did seem like Richard was someone important and possibly [Immortal]. Stupid banana slug.

"What are you doing with them? Last I knew of you," she frowned as though trying to remember where in her cellar she'd left the potatoes. "Last I remember, I had you trapped. When I felt you wake up, I trapped every banana slug within ten miles of your resting place."

I escaped and bonded with Cole.

She studied Richard and me, likely using another examination skill.

"I suppose I should let the other slugs go. Hmm... You're not bonded now. Did he get fed up with you that quickly? That's a new record. A new low for you, Richard, trying to bond with someone so young and still failing. Almost like Randal, isn't it? You remember how that ended, I hope you get a different outcome here. Why were you here, again?" Rhi's words danced around almost too hard to follow the thread. I wasn't sure which question to answer or who should answer it.

I looked at Richard, and he looked chastened, tentacles down. He wasn't going to respond.

"I am here seeking you as a [Sponsor]," Meredeath said, her back straight and her voice strong.

Rhi's eyes narrowed as they snapped back to Meredeath. As though she was reevaluating the woman she'd dismissed out of hand.

"You need a [Sponsor]? The algorithmic windbag valued you that high with his imaginary rubric?" She looked at us like we were a puzzle she hadn't figured out. To be honest, I empathized.

"Can you explain that? I'm not from this world, dimension, whatever it is. I'm not from here, and I’m not sure why I need a [Sponsor]. Why was I even required to be an [Adventurer]?" Meredeath said.

I was shocked she'd just told the bone lady she was an off-worlder. Like this was just a common occurrence, it had a magical effect on Rhi. Her haughtiness drained from her face as she looked at Meredeath. It was replaced by compassion? Pity? It was hard to tell.

"[Sponsor] requirements come from a very old philosophy. It predates the [System] in fact. In the past, high-potential individuals entering one of the colleges had to be sponsored by an elder. It was a way to mentor and control. They did love control. Now it is the [System's] way of attempting to increase the survivability of high-potential [Adventurers]. Survival has become increasingly difficult in the fifth age.” Rhi’s voice trailed off as she studied Meredeath.

As though she’d made a decision, she continued, “Come here, child. Let me take a look at you.” Meredeath started climbing the stairs, her boots jangling. “An off-worlder.” Rhi’s voice whispered in wonder.

Meredeath kept climbing until she was on the platform with Rhi. Considering the [Lich] we'd just been face-to-face with, I found this very brave.

The two talked on the dais, but their words were garbled. Rhi had used some sort of [Privacy] skill to keep her words secret. What wasn't secret was the outcome. We watched as Rhi reached out and touched Meredeath's forehead with her thumb.

As Meredeath turned to us, I saw a glowing imprint where Rhi's thumb had touched. Meredeath's face had changed. Her features had grown less cat-like, her eyes and face rounder, her nails less sharp. She had let go of something she’d been and tethered herself to Rhi Voss. Tears traced down her pale cheeks, as though a cost had been paid.

I wondered what [Class] she’d been offered.

“And you, Cole. Do you need a [Sponsor] as well?" Rhi's voice whispered in my ear, even though her lips hadn't moved. Her words were meant for me alone. "You have earned it. I couldn't bring myself to kill Tilly after Lael's death."

I looked at Rhi. She looked sad, sure, but beautiful. The long-forgotten queen could grant powers beyond death itself. She had hundreds of years of wisdom to bring to bear. Her offer was tempting.

I looked at Richard. His yellow skin had an unhealthy, dry look to it. His tentacles drooped in the way they had since I broke our bond. He sensed me looking at him, two eye stalks lifting. We looked at each other with different motives. I was trying to make a decision critical to the course of my life. He was trying to figure out why I was suddenly staring at him.

I saw the moment he figured it out. His tentacles dropped in a way I associated with a forfeiture of hope.

I looked up at the sister of the blue-haired Lael, Rhi Voss, the undying [Lich], queen of Niyatgra, and gave my answer.