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Kernstalion2 - 8: Fight or flight
🕑 Added 2021-05-30 17:23:11 +0000 UTCWith my gaze firmly locked on the hallway through which Ellis and Richal were, I began cooking up a plan to get rid of them.
I felt something inside me struggle as different ways of killing the two primes played through my mind. I'd never been ruthless, but I felt little as I imagined tricking them into a dangerous room or into some trap. Partially this was because I didn't feel like I had much choice in the matter. I had come here because I needed to find a way to disguise my body, and I needed a ranged spell. Besides that, other questions needed answers, and this was the best place to find them. It wasn't as if Richal deserved any sympathy either, he had tried to kill me a few times, and Ellis wasn't any better.
A soft ping came from my status, distracting me and confusing me at the same time. Making sure the hallway was still clear, I called it up.
> Your title, 'The deliverance', was used to describe you
> As this is the first time anyone uttered this title, you gain an extra Karma
> You've gained karma: 2
> Current Karma: 2
What the fuck? It took me a few seconds to close my mouth as I stared at the message. A fuzzy memory from when I had just arrived in Kernstalion floated up. It was when I was in Sart and had killed those Goblins at the wall. I had gained some title, and it had explained something.
What was it again, Guardian at all cost? I was pretty sure that was it, and the description had stated that I'd gain karma if someone used my title. Odd. I was sure I hadn't told anybody about that or about any of my titles. Looking at the message, I knew this was what I'd gained when I got my class.
Another ping came, and more lines appeared.
> Your title, 'The deliverance', was used to describe you
> You've gained karma: 1
> Current Karma: 3
I shook my head in wonder. Was someone repeating my name? No. That didn't make sense. If it was that easy to gain karma, those deities would have people chanting their names constantly. I suddenly thought of some old movies where people were chanting to gods, and I grinned.
A minute later, no more new lines had appeared, and I closed the screen.
I'm going to have to start using one of those titles, I thought, wondering if it would matter which one I used.
Well, there's one way to find out.
I looked at the lines of laden bookshelves around me. All I had to do was find the right books. The information should be here!
With some effort, I pushed the whole karma thing to the back of my mind and focused on the job of getting rid of the two primes. I had no idea how strong Ellis was, but she was the one in charge back at the rift, not Richal. That probably meant she wasn't any weaker, and I had no idea if I could beat Richal in a one-on-one. I still remembered how he had bested-
Barry!
All I needed was enough wood! I could just make an army of monsters! Richal could perhaps best one of my vengeful spirits, but could he best ten? Twenty? I walked to the nearest stone shelf, stroking it to see if it was truly stone. It was.
Well, that would have been too easy, I thought and pulled up my map. The new line I had walked showed on it as if some fog of war had lifted. I zoomed out and examined the map. It looked like the library was probably a large oval as the distance from both all doors I had on display was the same distance from the center. There were tables, chairs, and stairs in the central room, all made of wood. Based on what I could see, the center was a few miles across, which matched with my memory of walking around the central pillar, which had taken a few hours.
I visualized a path towards the far right of the pillar, away from where I had been and far from where RIchal and Ellis were—deciding on the main direction, I grabbed my stuff and began running.
Even at full speed, it still took me hours to circle around before deciding it was safe enough to move towards the middle. Another half an hour later, I was slowly inching my way through the wide corridor that led to the massive pillar in the central library. There weren't any voices, and at the corner, I held my breath and took a quick look left and right. There wasn't anybody, and the tables and chairs looked orderly and pristine.
I left my backpack on the ground and snuck down the staircase, looking left and right for anything suspicious. There wasn't anything, but that didn't mean jackshit. Moving to the closest table, I crouched below it then lifted it above my head. It was massive, probably over two hundred kilograms, but I lifted it with just three hands as easily as a cardboard box. One filled with books. Lots of them.
Ten minutes later, I had carried six of the tables back into the corridor, then from there far enough away, some cutting them up wouldn't draw any unwanted attention.
As I placed the last one on the ground, I cracked my neck and began thinking about what I could make with them. They were large but flat, so it would have to be something flat. Birds? That might work if they could actually fly, which I still hadn't tried yet. Staring at the tablets, an idea suddenly came to me, and I grabbed my knife and started carving.
Even with me trying my hardest, I somehow fell into the zone again, and when I finally snapped out of it, I had no idea how much time had passed. I ignored the finished caring and spun in a circle in a useful attempt to see if someone was watching me.
If there was anyone here, you'd be dead by now, I thought, cursing myself. Why did I keep zoning out if I crafted? It just made no sense! I'd have to ask Agga about it sometimes. I froze. I hadn't thought of Agga in forever, and remembering how much she had done for me, I felt a small jab of guilt at how I'd left.
And again, no time for this, I thought as I focused on the carving amidst the woodchips. It was a coiled-up snake, but not a normal one. Still, there was one thing I hadn't thought of yet, and as I placed my hands on the statue, I prayed to Rathica this would work. I focused and searched for a vengeful spirit. It felt like my mind was alone in space, crying into the void. Seconds turned to minutes and kept ticking when I finally sensed a response. I'd almost stopped and waited as whatever it was that answered came storming my way.
At first, it felt like every other spirit, but as it came closer, it kept becoming bigger and stronger, and a massive malevolent presence started to surround me. Unconsciously I stepped back, releasing my hold on the carving. It didn't matter. The connection remained.
A massive explosion of energy tossed me back and against the nearby bookshelves, the sound almost overriding the status pings. The energy continued to build, and as I crawled up, it felt as if I was standing in a hurricane. The snake statue was in front of me, growing at an alarming rate. An evil, vile feeling hung around me, and without second-guessing myself, I scrambled to my ax and backpack, then turned and ran.
I was barely through the first narrow corridor of bookshelves when a soft whisper followed me.
"Don't runnn, little Prime!"
A soft woosh came, and I instinctively dropped back mid-run, sliding to a stop and landing on my ass. In front of me, a dark, nearly black snakehead the size of a small car lowered itself from where it lay atop the bookshelves. It had the side of its head turned to me and scrutinized me with two eyes, one large and one smaller below that. The wood texture that made up its body was still morphing, small scales with serrated edges appearing. I gripped my ax as I slowly pushed myself back.
"Afraid?" the snake lisped as it turned and lowered its head to hover a meter before me.
What the hell is that, I thought. The sheen of sweat on my face cooled from the snake's odorless breath.
"Smart!" a soft, wet chuckle followed. "I'd never thought someone would ever create an inhabitable body in this vast empty space. It's not perfect, but it will do!"
I heard a soft scraping, followed by a thud, and looking behind me, I saw the snake had put a coil to block the way back. My mind was racing as I tried to come up with a way to get out.
"Normally, I would have eaten your soul, especially such a juicy one, but…" the snake hesitated for a moment, then sighed. "It wouldn't be proper to kill you before rewarding you. So, young prime, what can I do for you before I consume your soul?"
My mouth opened seemingly by itself, and it cost me all my effort to snap it shut again. For some reason, I was about to say nothing.
The snake hissed, then sighed and shook his head a little. "Bah, such a shame. Almost got you."
I swallowed. Was this thing a demon? It had to be… or some long-dead deity? Whatever it was, it was far more powerful than me. Perhaps after the vengeful spirit summon timed out, it would disappear?
"Well?" The snake hissed. "Answer my question!"
Again my mouth opened, and again I held it shut. This time it had been my own fear, almost asking for it to leave me alive. I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and tried to focus. What had the thing said? What could it do for me? A reward? Would that be anything?
"Gah! So slow... I'm not going to hang around here until you make up your mind. What will it be? Revenge on someone you hate? A long, healthy, and boring life? Pick something!"
The snake was hovering a hand's breadth from my face now, and I could see small particles move around in its eyes, slowly turning them bright green.
It's in a hurry, I thought, staring into the eye. If it had wanted to kill me, it would have, so it couldn't? I felt like I was making some deal with a devil, which meant I couldn't say anything too fast, but time seemed to be on my side. As I realized this, my heart rate slowed down, and just waited. Perhaps it would give some more information if I just waited. If need be, I would ask for it never to harm another being in its entire existence. That should hopefully get me out alive and fix any potential issues of me releasing the thing. Maybe.
Seconds ticked by, and finally, the snake sighed, the massive head lowering a bit.
"You know what I am, don't you? Gah, I wish that Deity of yours wasn't protecting your mind so thoroughly so I could take a peek inside..."
I shrugged and got up. Looking around, I wondered how long it would take for Richal and Ellis to show up. The snake thing had made enough of a ruckus to wake up the dead. Moving to the part where its tale was, I looked at it for a moment, then shrugged and climbed over.
An angry growl made me falter for a moment, then I continued. If this thing was going to kill me, it would have, I tried to reassure myself again.
"FINE!" the snake roared, making my heart jump into my throat.
"I promise I won't kill you. Now just get on with it! Tell me what you want so I can leave this place."
Yeah, as if I believe that, I thought, moving towards the rubble of wood behind it. The tables had shattered, and my ax and bag lay buried below wood splinters. I stuffed a few large pieces of wood inside before summoning my map and looking for the door back to Crouhal. Even if it wanted to, the snake would never fit through the doors.
As I turned and began marching off, the snake watched me with a clenched jaw, gnashing its teeth.
"So. You're just going to up and leave? I might not be able to hurt you, but I can still make your life miserable, you know! Why don't you just fulfill the requirements so I can leave? I've already promised I won't kill you, and I can't break my word."
Uhuh.
I ignored the thing and began jogging away. An angry hiss came from behind, followed by loud shattering and collisions as the snake slithered up and across the bookcases. It was a testament to the strength of the stone, as they didn't budge an inch. Books were thrown around, though.
At full sprint, I moved through the library, and the snake kept pestering me.
When I finally reached the exit, I wondered what kind of maleficent monster I'd drawn into the wooden sculpture. I seriously needed to talk with Rathica about what I could and couldn't do with this skill!
Putting my hand on the doorknob, the snake growled dangerously.
"You can't leave me here! I won't allow it!"
One of the snake's cowls came down, and although I didn't think it could do anything, I wasn't going to take any chances. I pulled open the door and jumped outside, slamming the door shut, causing the roar of fury to be cut short.
The storage room was empty, the crates still shoved away from the doors. I had no idea if people had been here and knew someone had entered the library, so I snuck to the door and put my ear against it. There wasn't any noise, and drawing the door open, I stared into the empty hallway.
Sneaking through the hallways, I didn't come across anyone, the temple empty and still. To my relief, the doors were still open, and I quietly moved out, trying to act as if I was supposed to be there. It was dark outside, and a sleepy guard just burped as I passed, the stink of something alcoholic wafting away from him.
I scanned the now almost empty square. A few stragglers were zigzagging their way across while a few had just opted to lie down and sleep off their stupor on the stones. The street we had come through on our way looked a lot wider now that it was empty. The inn the others would be in was halfway in that street. That was if they managed to get a spot with how busy it had been.
Now here's hoping I can get a good meal and some sleep, I thought as my stomach growled loudly.
