61 Creeping Darkness (1/2)

Kara awoke as she felt a hand touch her back. But more so by the small transmittance of Mana eliciting a small moan from the Wolfkin and a mumble from the perpetrator.

Eyes still closed, Kara moved a bit getting comfortable as she felt Luna in her arms. Whenever Rainer left the bed, the Fairy had a habit of moving closer to her, not that she minded. The magical being that Luna was left her body at a pleasant temperature. Though, ever since she had grown to her full size, her transferring Mana in her sleep had become a bit of an issue along with the problem of controlling her now far stronger flame.

Kara opened her eyes as she looked at Luna, only seeing the silver hair of the violet-eyed Fae as she buried herself in the half demon's chest. As she looked at her, Kara thought over the relationship between the three of them.

Ever since her conversation with Rainer, Kara had thought over just how to accept the current situation, one she understood may be inevitable, lest she decided to leave. The one thing that made it easier for Kara to accept, while certainly not okay with sharing, was that Luna would be as much hers as Rainer's.

It wasn't hard to like the easy-going Fae, and it helped that Luna was by far the most loyal and held the most faith in the man she loved than even begrudgingly herself, but it didn't fix everything. Kara only sighed as she returned Luna's sleeping action with an Aura-infused kiss to the top of her head. It wasn't as effective but seeing the Fairy shudder brought at least some sense of payback to the Fairy that always woke them up at night.

Kara glanced up a moment at Rainer who stood in concentration; it wasn't strange for him to wake up at night with a sudden revelation related to Magic. Wondering if their little dragonling, Lesha, was with Rainer, the Wolfkin waited for him to finish what he was trying to do.

She was just about to call to him, only to witness a clawed hand reach out from a spatial tear and take him with it. Not even able to react as her love was taken from this world, Kara could only watch in shock as the hole sealed itself.

Her eyes wide, she immediately shook Luna awake, hoping the Fae bonded to Rainer could confirm that the worst had not in fact happened.

Only the violet light of armed [Arcane Bolt]s lit the seemingly endless tunnel. Nothing but the sounds of running feet against the hard stone echoed. Until the footsteps of countless others joined in.

An [Arcane Blade] lashed out, ending the [Deviling] that sought to consume its caster in but an instant. Rainer surged forward under the violet light of [Arcane Awakening]. He suddenly spun around as his blade cleaved the [Deviling]s. Part of him suspected there was truly no need to kill these wretched grey-skin things. That they would simply arrive in larger numbers so long as something brought them forth. They ran on a mix of two and four legs, with sharp claws that cut through even his constitution strengthened skin. Even if it was only ever so slightly.

Armed [Arcane Bolt]s unleashed themselves and were soon replenished as Rainer made his way deeper into the tunnel. However, he found himself reaching a large drop. He had only a moment to extend his [Void Detection] before suddenly his hilt was jolted out of his hand. Lashing out at the attacker, who simply disappeared as quickly as she attacked, the hilt already fell out of Rainer's summoning range.

Casting all his armed [Arcane Bolt]s at once, a [Cone of Arcane-Fire] erupted from his hands, as he walked forward, setting the vile creatures ablaze.

He cut the spell and turned his back toward the abyss. He used [Void Detection].

And reached out behind him.

[Arcane Awakening: Might]

His body cracked as he grew a foot in height and his muscles and bones strengthened as his hand gripped a shadowy figure. His assumption on the strange being felt with his [Void Detection] had been correct. He would not make the same mistake again.

[Devil, Female, Shadowborne lvl 21]

Apart from the darker skin and longer ears, the figure looked no different than the hideous, sharp teethed [Deviling]s. Rainer didn't spare her even a moment before his powerful hand crushed the figure's skull.

He glanced out towards the next wave of [Deviling]s. They were not a mindless horde. But Rainer saved that thought for later. [Arcane Bolt]s formed on each of his hands, as he unleashed the cheap but powerful spell on the horde, constantly replenishing his Arcane Power. No longer the controlled subdued bolt of concentrated power, it instead exploded with Arcane Energy on impact.

While not as strong as an [Arcane-Fire Bolt], it was far cheaper, not having a Mana cost. And with the Arcane Energy he drew from beyond feeling far closer than ever, the [Arcane Bolt]s power did not seem like the tier 1 spell it was.

The breaks between the waves were all Rainer needed as he assaulted the horde, nothing but the unintelligent [Deviling]s present.

He knew that would not last forever. The strange shadow Devil had shown him as such.

Rainer stared down the tunnel Jor charged forth minutes ago. Bodies lay dead all around him. A gentle hiss echoed throughout as the accursed blood of the Devils spilled from the broken body and affected the grey-stoned ground. Though many more corpses were beyond just bleeding. They were burnt or destroyed beyond recognition.

Spreading out his [Void Detection] Rainer looked over the cliff, only to discover it wasn't a cliff at all.

With a small flare of [Arcane Awakening], Rainer walked through the Void and stood at the top of a staircase. He glanced upward, a large distance from here to the where he had been. The staircase had been destroyed.

He void-walked once more, feeling the enchanted item that was his hilt in the large chasm in place of the stairs that should have led to the top. He grabbed the hilt as he took in his surroundings. The stairs had not simply been destroyed but removed from the ground as well as a large portion bellow.

Rainer frowned for a moment as he looked at the missing stone. There was no reason for the staircase to be hollow beneath, and the remaining bottom portion certainly wasn't. His eyes widen in shock as he stared at the partially spherical chasm. It was as if half a sphere had disappeared from the rock, taking the staircase and what was below with it. He ventured the full sphere would be at least 300 feet in diameter.

He felt the stone, untouched by most elements within the mountain. It was smooth, too smooth.

A Void Call?!

Rainer suddenly thought. It would fit. Why, even someone with magic like his was at most considered a fledging Void Lord by that [Devil King]. Originally, Rainer thought it nothing more than blind arrogance. Even with a smaller Mana Pool for the Devil to continually treat him as he wasn't a real threat would require stupidity, or perhaps a huge misunderstanding.

He let out a sigh. At full strength, he could call forth the Void perhaps a quarter the size of himself. Though a bit smaller, when taking account of the spherical shape. And that was at great pain and personal cost. Rainer Void-walked away once more. There were many magics that may do such a thing, and it was pointless to just jump to such a conclusion just because of a [Devil King]s mention of Lords of the Void, as much as he hoped for such power in the future.

Though in the back of his mind, he envisioned his own [Void Call] not only reaching but surpassing such a power.

As he walked on, the newfound silence let Rainer retreat to his thoughts, thankfully allowing him to ignore the growing uncomfortableness of the sweat and dried blood on his body, and the tears on his clothes. It was easy to take Luna's flame for granted in a world that lacked the amenities of his previous. He supposed he was quite lucky in that regard. No fantasy novel he'd ever read truly prepared one for the realities of dealing with a lack of proper hygiene.

Though, he was never one for casual reading that only made him lament his pitiful magic at the time.

He missed her sleeping spell too, for now, his only option for entering [Sleep Learning] forcefully, as Jor tended to the horde behind him, was to smash his head into the wall. Something he only considered in mocking.

Above all else, he missed both the calming and mood improving presence the Fairy had by simply being in his pocket. Or just around him. Though, he kept this particular longing deeper than the more practical ones. He could remark how much he missed just Luna's presence alone in person rather than to himself. She would certainly enjoy it.

Back to his current situation, he coughed a bit at the Miasma he was breathing. Though the cough was more from annoyance than a need for with a flash of [Arcane Invigoration], Rainer cleared his body of the minuscule amount of Miasma that was building within.

[Miasma Resistance has reached level 2]

He noted a bit of his hunger and thirst disappearing with the dose of [Arcane Invigoration]. He was quite thankful as apart from the poisoned wine and [Draconic Essence], he had little else. With his basic needs assured, Rainer thought over that massive chasm, unable to keep it from his mind.

Lords of the Void…

Rainer in part hoped once more that was a display of the power he might wield, and not some other form of power. He then ventured these more mindless Devils sought him for the same purpose as the [Devil King], for his ability to Void-walk, like these so-called Lords. Of course, not realizing that his ability was, in fact, a spell, and as far as he knew, consuming him would do nothing for them.

His mind focused on the upcoming Trial, assuming he could even find the so-called Abyssal Dungeon. With the time dilation, he had some leeway before he truly needed to rush back to his party, and so he planned just what he needed to accomplish before taking his next Trial. A tentative look at his bond with Luna still showed nothing he needed to worry about.

Most importantly, he'd need to assure that he actually advanced to a proper 2nd tier class. [Grand Voidwalker] or something similar would not do in getting back home. The second issue was actually advancing. Having only a single half-leveled subclass left him feeling inadequate, even with Jor's help.

The serpent's assistance being the only thing that gave him confidence in taking the Trial so early. Even the mirror image in his [Arcanist] Trial that mimicked him and Luna did not mimic Jor. And in the Serpent's current state, something that was likely achieved from the various things that were consumed, Jor was far different than the tiny transparent creature of the past.

Dealing with the horde of Devils chasing him along with whatever else this plane held for him was another issue. One he hoped to use to level up proper subclasses once he was sure removing [Void-Walker] wouldn't spell his death. And that the Abyssal Dungeon was similar enough to a World Tree Branch, in allowing him to change his class.

Brought out of his thoughts by the sight ahead of him, Rainer stared with interest. A large metal door now blocked his way. Blocked, however, was a loose term as there was a perfectly round hole in the center of the door. It was clean and ignored the still enchanted metal entirely. But feeling the weakness in the Magic of the enchantment, Rainer knew it wasn't long before it faded. And with [Arcane Sight], he could see the enchantment itself was a step above any strengthening he read about or practiced.

Even a common enchanter could refill the magic in a strengthening enchantment, something not possible with most enchantments, so whatever had occurred here, likely happened before he was born.

He easily jumped through the hole, being only a foot above the ground.

For once, the ever-encroaching horde behind him gave him hope in a different way. That whatever caused this destruction was no longer here to scare them away. They already proved themselves cowards, staying far away during his fight with the [Devil King]. Why Rainer himself didn't inspire such fear, he had no idea.

He grinned ruefully, understanding that perhaps his small pool of Mana once more made him seem less than he was.

Oh, how wrong would his pursuers discover their thoughts, instinctual or not.

Rainer found his eyes growing heavy as he cleaved yet another [Deviling] in half. And soon Jor appeared once more and gave him a reprieve. It was already the fifth time Jor had come out since visiting this plane, meaning he traveled and fought on and off for about a day, adding on his four hour nap, one he hoped to take again soon.

He breathed heavily as he expended some Mana to Void-walk several times, deeper into the tunnel Rainer convinced himself might as well be endless.

He left just enough Mana for emergencies before collapsing against the wall. Bringing his hand to the invisible Rune that Jor oft hid in, Rainer realized preparing for his advancement wasn't the only thing he needed to do.

Jor is taking longer to recover each time…Why does Jor need to recover, Jor uses half of my Arcane Power when Jor's out? Is Jor resisting whatever force tried to drag Jor back in the Trial at all times? Or does Jor need to exist in me, no different than when Jor had been a Trial Magic Beast?

Rainer thought. Several means of blocking the horde came to mind, but all carried too great a risk. Collapsing the tunnel, while possibly a good idea, proved too risky. He knew too little about the structure of the place to not simply bury himself and have to make a mad Void-walk to the surface. Which in turn would leave him Manaless against a possibly larger grouping of Devils.

He found himself momentarily turned to rage at the [Devil King] that brought him here. At the Devils who clearly held intelligence in their last fight organizing this assault. A small nip on his finger brought him back, and seeing the perpetrator any thoughts of anger vanished instantly.

”Alright, alright. Instead of getting angry I should just pay attention to my little girl?” Rainer said picking up Tiamat, who had left his coat unnoticed. He took out one of his numerous vials of Draconic Essence before feeding the little dragon. He noted she seemed to be growing, far too visibly. He wondered what effect the Miasma in the air had for the [Eldritch Dragonling] that breathed it in so greedily?

After finishing the essence, Tiamat nudged herself deeper into his arms. She had no interest in returning to the coat. Rainer glanced down at her. In part, glad to have a companion, however quiet and in another, he stared at her with [Arcane Sight]. The power in her body and most clearly, her blood, intrigued and drew his sight.

”I hope I can still hold you like this for a bit longer. Who knows how big you'll get,” he whispered.

The Dragon opened one eye and seemed displeased with Rainer.

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”Good point. I'll just make myself larger,” He added, causing the black-scaled dragonling to resume her rest. Laughing lightly, he wondered just how much Tiamat understood beyond his tone.

He sighed, leaning his head against the tunnel wall, as he did his best to fall asleep quickly. Not only did he have to prepare for his Trial, but he also needed to prepare something to deal with the horde on a more permanent basis.