Chapter 117 - CITY OF THE UNLIVING

- Carter City Interterritorial Airport -

Red-eye flights in and out of Carter City tended to favor the sparse side of life. On this particularly dark night, that feature was more pronounced than usual. The few flights coming and going were nearly vacant, their seats bought out at the last minute by a proxy AI specialized in clandestine operations. This further reduced the airport’s foot traffic to the borderline of abandonment.

As if they could scent the threat in the air, the airport’s employees huddled in their uniforms with heads down, pretending to be consumed by their AR displays. When the scant eyes capable of prying reached their deepest lull, five figures wrapped tightly in shadows exited one of their organization's many personal jets. Mysteriously, the overhead lamps that would typically drive away such gloomy obfuscations failed to fully illuminate the group.

They entered the nearest terminal with business-like strides. Unfortunately, skipping the mandatory identification check would garner significant attention, necessitating the extra steps and credits required to clear the public facility.

An oblivious woman glanced up from her display. She was caught by ruby, glowing eyes that seemed to pierce directly into her soul. The shadows clinging to the figure stretched unnaturally, filling her vision with nightmares given life. She clutched her chest moments before fainting. Her colleague rushed to her side. He cast about for help, catching the same figure’s ire, then promptly pissed himself. He curled into a ball and clutched his head, not daring to move again.

A few paces short of their destination, the group came face-to-face with a trio wearing the unmistakable sleek, black bodysuits that marked them as members of the most renowned and feared agency in existence: PsyCore.

A puff of mental energy swept outward from the PsyCore agents, and the clinging shadows around the group of five were banished. They stumbled back, surprise and more than a little concern marring their revealed features.

The lone female in the PsyCore trio was a slim younger woman who would have been pretty if not for her fiendish expression. She felt the groups’ desire to draw their weapons hidden away beneath baggy clothes, weapons favored by only one profession: assassins. A malicious smile stretched her full lips thin, and a pink tongue snaked out to lick them with primal hunger.

The central PsyCore figure—a tall, well-built man—snapped his fingers. “Enough, Angel.” The girl instantly relaxed, her features turning neutral, though her penetrating brown eyes never left the assassins. The lead psychic looked at each assassin in turn before picking one, “Purpose in Carter City?” He didn’t wait for a response, snapping off several questions in rapid succession, “What will you do if you find him? Who hired you? Potential collateral damages?”

After pulling the answers he wanted from their thoughts, the PsyCore agent waved in a dismissive backhand, “Very well, you may go.” The assassins released a round of sighs, not daring to stick around. Against their will, they stopped after a single step as the psychic’s voice penetrated deep into their skulls, “You will report to me at the Notlih Hotel once your job is complete. If there are casualties, your… Origin of Sin will pay the price.”

The assassins nodded vigorously. Freed, they left in a hurry. Angel watched them go, then turned to her leader with pursed lips. Knowing he would hear her thoughts, she didn’t bother voicing them. 

Anything interesting?

“Possibly. Curious that a backward little city like Carter has someone the Tafells are willing to pay so much to silence. Keep an eye on them. It’s possible their target stole a technique from the Phoenix Clan.”

Angel gasped, eyes flying wide. If Johnathon’s guess was correct, and he was rarely wrong, this no-name little city could end up wiped off the map.

We haven’t been here an hour and already stumbled into a mess. I knew your unit was the right choice.

Johnathon shook his head at her youthful excitement, “They're chasing a ghost. Whether they're successful or not will depend on little more than luck. Besides, it has nothing to do with our task, and we will keep it that way unless it becomes necessary to step in. This is your first mission; it's supposed to be boring and routine.”

Aww. No fun! Angel pouted. With her vindictive nature still visible, she wasn't as cute as she thought.

Johnathon's expression slackened, his tone eerily lacking inflection, “If you want to have fun, I can always send you back to the ranch.”

Angel waved her hands defensively, “Boring and routine sound amazing. When do we start?”

Raine KongRu

- Unique Raid Instance: Caves of Quindimire -

Raine watched from on high as his raid group sprinted across lavender-stained soil. Above, angry clouds roiled in a crimson sky. The overwhelming stench of death was receding now that they drew closer to the unknown city. Its tall walls and structures were made of dark stones—clearly not designed by or for the current demonic denizens.

Raine scratched his chin, wondering why a demonic invasion heart would create a humanoid settlement. There was an obvious reason, though he didn’t voice it to his companions. Raine was currently several dozen meters above them, riding atop the shoulder of his charmed Greater Rahk Glahm—dubbed Rocky: Pounder of Demons. As the raid's leader, his voice would have easily reached his allies if he willed it. The reason he remained silent had nothing to do with the distance; they needed the experience.

ZionLine had barely been out a week, though, for its players, that time was closer to a month. His friends and allies were some of the highest-level players, but that leveling speed came at a potentially deadly cost. They lacked in many regards: Control of attributes, tactics, awareness, expertise in skill usage, and more. Their foundations were a mess, and it was mostly his fault.

It couldn’t be helped. Raine needed to complete this raid to start his guild, so they had rushed here with little preparation. There would be time in the future to shore up their deficiencies. Yet there was no reason to wait. Every moment was an opportunity for self improvement, which is why he was having them race toward the distant city while dodging Rocky’s footfalls. Afterward, he would guide them through a crash course in the deadly traps that ZionLine employed.

With each of Rocky’s pounding steps, the group was forced to jump lest they be subjected to the ground heaving beneath their feet. The added difficulty did little to hinder Mel and Rhino, who were currently in the lead.

Celeste won the previous competition of killing the most demons—by a slim two kills over Rhino—earning herself a deadly new weapon.

[Staff of Demonic Incineration: (Marvelous Gold - LVL 25) (EP +150) (DEF +35) (AS -.25) (PHY +60) (CNC +60) (Durability 200/200) (Innate skill - Demonic Infusion: Convert any conjured flames to those of demonic origin granting viscosity that deals 100% damage over 5 seconds) (Uses: 100/100 refreshes at midnight)]

Seeing the joy in the redhead’s expression and coming so close to winning himself had motivated their youngest member like never before. Still, Mel and Fizgore were no pushovers when it came to pure speed. Raine’s promise of another raid drop to the first to reach the city had them pumping their legs and injecting Discipline into their muscles with wild abandon.

The rest trailed far behind, though were no less motivated after his promise that whoever came in last place would be first into the scary demon city. By the final kilometer, Fizgore ran out of Discipline and fell behind. Now that Raine was forcing him to wear his armor, the heavily muscled tank could no longer compete for the fastest.

Mel and Rhino were neck and neck. They leaned so far forward they could have trailed both hands through the soil. Their legs a blur, each impressively utilizing their own strengths. As a front-line damage dealer, Rhino had the advantage in Finesse and Potency; his arms and legs moved so fast they were a blur to all but Raine’s eyes. As a touch healer, Mel had significant Finesse as well, though her highest attribute by far was Connection. With it, she loosened the air before her while solidifying the soil beneath her feet for purchase.

Seeing how close it would be, Raine stood from his cross-legged position. He leaned forward, falling off Rocky’s shoulder. When his torso was parallel to the ground, he kicked off with both legs. Since Raine’s Finesse was more than double his Acuity, his sight failed to keep up with his raw speed, and the ground stretched, elongating into a streaked haze.

With a thought, Raine accessed the controls of his most powerful item—a fingerless glove on his right hand connected to five rings by dark purple chains. By triggering its second fraction, his Finesse and Acuity were further boosted. The blurring landscape became clearer, and when his feet hit the ground, Raine held back, only pushing himself to the limits of his motion perception.

[Heart of Plutus (Accessory - Ring): (Heavenly Amethyst - Damaged) (All attributes +15%) Contains the last remnants of the fallen celestial Plutus. Through it, fractions of his power may be brought to bear. Only one fraction may be active at a time (Cooldown: 10 minutes)]

[Fraction of Grace: (FNS +20%) (ACU +20%) Upon command embody the Grace of Nirvana increasing Move Speed by 400% and Attack Speed by 150% for 15 seconds (Cost: 200 Discipline) (Cooldown: 5 minutes)]

At just over half speed, Raine overtook Mel and Rhino in a flash. On the way by, he looked closer at their movements, and his brows rose, impressed. Both were close to sixty percent attribute optimization. Considering how many levels (and attributes) they'd just gained, it was miraculous they were already moving so well. Raine had trained hundreds of thousands over the years and knew that most people in their situation would still be having trouble running at all, let alone all-out sprinting across soft soil.

He stopped a few paces short of the city’s intact, closed metal gate. With a chop of his hand, a sliver of harsh wind cut a furrow in the ground to mark the finish line. 

The two kicked up waves of dust in their wake. Mel’s was noticeably smaller, showcasing her superior control over her Connection. Both were sweating profusely, experiencing extreme exhaustion due to their dwindling Discipline pools. Neither slowed from the fatigue, Raine’s lessons earlier that night paying dividends.

In the final seconds, Rhino dug into the last of his Discipline, pulling ahead by a hair. Seeing his back for the first time, Mel smiled. With only twenty meters to go, she jumped and spun, round-house kicking the air beside her. Connection caused a small block of atmosphere to firm, and the force from hitting it was enough to trigger a Lunge that sent her hurtling past Rhino. She failed the landing, tumbling end over end through the dirt.

The mistake nearly cost her the race. Even though it was close, Raine didn’t have to check the VRVod he’d been recording to see that her stretched-out arm clearly crossed first. Mel slid to a stop. Rhino collapsed beside her, both heaving and delirious. 

Raine stood over them, holding out a necklace that shimmered with a dark blue glow, “Congratulations, Mel.” She didn't have the wherewithal to respond, so he dropped it on her chest.

[Voidheart Necklace: (Lustrous Blue - LVL 25) (Elemental Power +95) (Celestial Power +95) (Demonic Power +95) (CNC +47)]

Rhino tried to curse, but all that came out was a wheezing groan. Not wanting the boy to grow unmotivated, Raine handed over the item he’d been saving for him.

[Shimmering Star: (Chaotic Gold - Spirit Weapon) Binds to wielder upon equipping, matching their level and growing with them]

Rhino grunted when the heavy glaive landed on him.

Raine kept his eyes on the city wall. Instead of stating the obvious by answering the question, he told Rhino why he lost, “You applied Discipline to too many muscles at once, increasing the cost of each boost. That’s why you couldn’t utilize your last two points. Don’t do your whole leg; target individual muscle groups. Also, don’t slack on controlling your Connection; it's the primary reason she beat you. If you had even a tenth of her control, you would have smoked her.”

“How?” Rhino grunted.

“We'll have a Connection crash course with the whole group at some point. For now, activate that weapon.”

Rhino nodded absently, and his fatigue quickly receded, giving way to amazement when the weapon flared bright gold interspersed with arcs of black lightning. When the light show ended, Rhino knit his brows, not understanding why the glaive spirit weapon was suddenly Dull Trash grade. Its blade was rusty and dull, and the metal shaft was full of holes. It looked strong enough to crumble into dust at any second. By the time he read to the end of its description, he was groaning again, “I have to feed it twenty Dull Trash spears?”

Raine whistled, “That's going to get expensive. Here.” He opened a trade with Rhino, offering him twenty spears and another thirty Common Gray spears as well. Raine answered the question before Rhino could ask it, “It should take fifty percent more each tier. Go ahead and feed it. I'm curious what will happen.”

Contractually, Raine owed the kid a lot more gear over the next two years. Handing out these few low-level pieces to grow Rhino's combat power was definitely the best use he would get out of them.

Rhino squinted his eyes, suspicious, but did as he was told, “Thanks.” Pulling out each weapon one at a time, he pressed them against the glaive. After the twentieth, the weapon shone a matte white for a few seconds. When they could see it again, the flat blade was still rusty, but at least it was sharp now. Rhino suddenly perked up, looking over his shoulders with consternation, “Did you hear that?”

Raine shook his head, hiding a smile, “Nope, didn't hear a thing. How are its stats? Little better?”

Rhino hopped up and moved further from the demon city's large metal double-door gate. Checking the weapon, he nodded excitedly, “Wow, it's a lot stronger already.” He happily allowed his new black hole to consume thirty more weapons. This time, the light show was nearly as pronounced as its original one. The Lustrous Blue variant had a serrated reverse blade to match its wickedly sharp, half-moon-shaped main blade. The rust was a thing of the past, and the weapon glistened with a silvery sheen.

It was a gorgeous weapon, and Rhino immediately threw it away, releasing a terrified shriek. The glaive vanished before hitting the ground, reappearing in Rhino's hands. He threw it again, terrified, “No! Don't come near me! Get out of my head!”

Raine chuckled, enjoying the kid’s reaction to the talking weapon more than he thought he would, “Stop panicking before you pull half the demons in the city. It won't hurt you, and you can't get rid of it. You should play nice.”

“C-can't?” Rhino stopped and turned terrified eyes on Raine. He tried to put the sentient weapon in his inventory. The voice only he could hear was clearly still there because he cringed so hard that his face completely morphed.

Rocky’s rumbling approach gave Raine a convenient excuse to let the kid figure out the rest on his own. He bent his legs and charged a Leap, blasting twenty meters into the air. A mental command had Rocky extending a hand, which Raine smoothly landed on.

Looking into the city, he carefully examined the single-story, squat structures, wide streets, and maze-like layout while waiting for the others to arrive. Unsurprisingly, Kevinsbakon was the last. As a tank in heavy armor and not yet an official martial, he was at a significant disadvantage. In truth, the lanky twenty-year-old could pass the test at any time. Raine’s training had brought Kevin’s combat standards up to a passable class two martial disciple.

Raine hopped down to join the group. Most of them had caught their breath by now. In ZionLine, one’s fatigue was proportional to their current Discipline, so a few minutes of rest was all it took to recover to one hundred percent. Not that fatigue lowered attributes. It merely simulated the same exhaustion one felt in reality, which was enough to convince the brain they couldn’t go all out.

Mel tipped her chin up and fingered the new necklace draped across her ivory skin, “Thank you!” She beamed at him, her smile so beautiful that Raine had to try to pull his gaze away from her.

“You earned it. Keep up the effort.”

She nodded fiercely, clenching a fist. Raine gave them a few more seconds before pointing at Kevinsbakon, “You’ve rested enough. Let's go.”

Kevin eyed the vast, heavy double doors, “How?”

Raine gave him a deadpan look, pointing at the only apparent way in.

“Uhh. Right,” Kevin sheepishly approached the wooden gates. Placing two hands against one side, he pushed with all his might. Despite being skinny as a rail, his Potency was his second-highest attribute. The wood groaned in protest but didn’t budge. He paused, looking back at Raine questioningly.

“Try both at once. Maybe it's stuck on the other?” Richtor offered helpfully.

Kevin nodded and repositioned. Raine sighed, disappointed that no one questioned the strange hinges at the top of both curved gates. If they had, he would have warned Kevin. Unfortunately, some lessons were best learned the hard way. Raine knew that in the future, he would rarely be around to protect them. Now was the safest chance for them to experience firsthand the cost of their inattentiveness.

The moment Kevin placed a palm against both doors at once, the inside of the hinges exploded. Instead of opening outward, the whole gate fell like a rocket-propelled drawbridge.

Raine activated Grace of Nirvana. He blasted forward, solidifying the air behind him while thinning the air in front. He reached Kevin in an instant, yanking him back by the scruff of his armor. Raine jumped, but only half of Kevin cleared the falling gate.

A sickening crunch and scream filled the air as Kevin’s legs were crushed flat. A sizeable floating number flashed above his head. [-482] Raine heaved, pulling Kevin free and tossing him toward Mel. She reached him mid-air, smacking a hand to his chest and activating her most potent heal.

[Healing Burst: (Beginner) Lay hands upon a target to restore health equal to 250% CP. Additional 250% CP health restored over 120 seconds - stacks 3 times - each stack refreshes timer (Cost: 30 CP) (Cooldown: 60 seconds)]

A green shimmering light swept over his body. When it reached his legs, armor and flesh inflated like balloons, returning to their usual form. The short pain he’d experienced had been so lifelike that he kept on screaming for several seconds, lost in pure unmitigable panic.

Unsurprisingly, his shrill voice attracted the attention of the creatures Raine had spotted in the city. An eight-meter-tall cyclone of orange and blue flames rushed toward Raine. The beast made of fire moved with phantasmal grace, rapidly closing the distance. Its form wavered between solid and ephemeral; a saw-toothed maw formed inside an evil face, then vanished in a swirl of flame. The head reformed at the top of the cyclone, releasing a hot cry.

[Unliving Flame (Raid Elite): Level 30 (HP 100k/100k) A spark of the Infernal Rhashkahal. This flame elemental was bestowed fighting instinct by Bahael Ghaap, and now exists as a flickering embodiment of his desire to consume all life]

The fighting instinct of a demonic overlord?!

Anticipation of a worthy challenge coursed through Raine. With Grace of Nirvana ticking, he jetted forward. Bloodlust erupted from his skin in the form of a seven-meter-wide crimson sphere. There was no time to ponder why the range of his bloodlust increased by an entire meter. The manifested killing intent swept over the elite and its fiery form shuddered, though did not pause in its wickedly-fast advance.

[Negative affliction applied (Enfeared): Enemy attributes reduced by 20% (Duration 4.21 seconds)]

The elemental rose large above him. Multiple arms of flame sprouted from within, stretching forward to consume. The desire to fight and kill from Raine's mental ability triggered the roulette of his cursed ring. A shield appeared on his arm. A minute burst of Discipline turned Raine into a blur. He bypassed the arms and swept the edge of his shield through the elite’s fiery body.

The flames parted with the flow of air around Raine’s shield, just as one would expect from fire, negating his attempt to damage the elite. The demonic head reappeared above Raine. It darted toward his head, snapping and releasing a gust of sizzling air. Raine ducked and spun, bringing his shield around for a second try.

This time, his makeshift weapon struck the air before reaching the monster. Rupture released two waves of force; the first intended to strip the creature of its Defense, while the second would deal damage: neither wave succeeded in their purpose. The flames rippled, splitting down the middle and allowing the skill to ineffectually tear through empty air. Its ephemeral body reformed a second later, and once more, the ghastly maw shot toward Raine.

Relying on Grace of Nirvana, Raine bashed his shield into the face. It vanished, blown apart by air pressure. Again, there was no sign the creature took damage. Blistering hot air washed around Raine’s shield and arm. He hopped back before he was burned, hoping to buy himself a moment to think. The flames rushed after him with a vengeance, only marginally slower than his four hundred percent boosted Move Speed.

This… might be tougher than I thought. Fuck yeah.