Remains of a Titan

The two twisted, broken limbs twist about in the golden glow of Arduelle’s healing mana. Unwinding, as the bone quickly finds itself back where it’s meant to be, and the flesh unknots and heals itself back into proper shape.

There is no pain to the change, but I can’t hold back the disgust erupting from deep in my guts. A feeling of unacceptable wrongness that I simply can’t come to terms with. My body shouldn’t be like this. It shouldn’t twist like this; it shouldn’t bend like this.

The disturbing sensation doesn’t settle until my flesh is back to what it should be.

The noble who’s been carrying me about—not Shrelle unfortunately, she’s still dead—lowers me to the ground on my newly healed legs. The armour is still whole, and I can’t see anything underneath, but it seems as though I’ve been fully healed.

The flesh and bone certainly takes my weight as it has before, and nothing feels off, but until I can fully and clearly see the inside of my flesh I can’t be sure that everything is as it should be.

I shake the disturbing thoughts from my head and turn to bow my head to Arduelle. Growing up in a rather corrupt democracy, I’ve only ever seen my political leaders as, at very best, my equal. Most are quite simply just scum, that could be compared to lesser life forms.

That’s to say, I’m not well suited to bowing or giving respect to those worthy of it.

“Thank you for healing me, and sorry for my rudeness.” I say, straightening and trying to hold a smile, but for some reason it doesn’t feel right, and a sour taste fills my mouth. Perhaps a side effect of my insides being rearranged.

“At least you’ve finally come to realize that politeness to your superiors is a necessary thing. Now you merely have to learn how to be polite.” She says, giving me a small nod and a smile, her wide brimmed straw hat keeping the sunlight off of her face.

“If I might ask, why are you taking such interest in me?” I ask. “I doubt that I’ve stolen your heart, or anything else so ridiculous. So for what reason does an ancient and powerful being like yourself bother dealing with someone like me?”

I take a few more experimental steps on my freshly healed legs. They’re not crumbling, or melting underneath me, in fact it feels no different from the last time I took a small stroll. Though the image of the twisted limbs still sticks in my mind, making me hesitate just slightly each step I take.

“Why is it that you think I’ve sent you here?” She asks me, walking apace with me as the scaled, feathered noble stays back. She gazes at the dungeon with conflicted emotions. Horror and honour blended together in her wide-open eyes.

“To deal with pests, no?” I ask, “That was the pretext as I recall it.”

“What do you think of the task?” She continues to press.

“The pests? I’ve been running around trying to find them, and I think I have an answer, and a potential solution. Though, I’ll have to ask you a favour.”

“An answer?” She asks, tilting her head and smiling at me encouraging me to go on.

“The real pests are the friends I’ve made along the way.” I say. “The rebels. Selena allows this civilisation to continue as it has, thus the rebels seeking to change things, or move elsewhere in the dungeon are the pests.

“As a potential solution, I’d like to bring the rebels home with me, to join my bourgeoning empire. I’ll have to ask you to teleport them, though. If that’s alright with you?”

“An interesting request. Not at all what I had in mind for you, but I can’t say I’m surprised. You tend to find new playthings everywhere you go.”

“Wait, do you mean they weren’t the pests?” I ask.

“The rebels?” She asks, “I can understand why you’d think so, and in a way, they are something of a bother, to a lesser degree. The pest was this creature that I brought around to give you a little scare and teach you a little respect. Though, perhaps it has also made you stronger. Unexpected, but not unwelcome.”

“Wait, you brought this thing here?” I ask waving to the giant crystalline mountain that crushes the forest before me. “Selena didn’t mind?”

“As you’ve noticed, the rebels have been troubling her lately. A proper raid or two from beasts such as this, helps to keep everyone in line.” She says, “It’s not really much trouble to find a titan like this, Frey has quite a few beasts bigger than this hidden about here and there.”

“Huh, so you unleashed the titan to keep these people in check?” I ask, looking about at the soldiers that have returned. They gaze at the corpses of their fallen brothers and sisters with a certain weariness, there are rather few who weep.

“It seems rather cruel to me.”

“As is all of life.” Arduelle replies, waving her hand disinterestedly. “Pain and suffering are simply the other half to existence. Without this they’d grow and expand until they bother the wrong beast and find themselves suffering the same regardless.”

“Well, it’s a good thing I never properly considered you a goddess.” I reply. “I don’t think I could worship you with that sort of opinion.”

“Yet, you cause others suffering and are yet to fully secure your people a safe haven.”

“Not yet.” I reply. “Give me time and strength.”

“And then you’ll make an imitation of the Unified States of mana,” She replies with a distant smile. “A space where natures rules are overcome, supplanted by your own rules and ego.”

“Sure, let’s just say that.” I reply with a sigh, “How did we get to this topic?”

“There’s something I want you to do for me.” She says ignoring my question. She meets my eyes, and adds weight to her voice.

“What can I possibly do for someone as powerful as you?” I ask. “I’m not delusional, I can’t really compete with you in any which way.”

“Not yet, at least.” She says. “I need you to kill someone for me.”

“That sounds like even more of a dubious request.” I reply.

“It’s someone you’ll have to battle eventually if you don’t wish to give up your aspirations.” She replies. “I’m simply going to try and increase your odds of success when the time comes. A shared enemy, and an alliance of sorts. Though it’ll be some time before your strong enough to be considered a proper ally.”

“And what sort of god is this being that you can’t deal with them yourself?” I ask. “I’m assuming I’m just going to be fodder that you throw at them from somewhere safe?”

“It’s an old man that I need you to kill, I’ll give you more details if you ever get to the point that you’re worthy of them. Your chances of surviving are dependant on how much effort you put in, so keep up with your training.” She replies. “For now, just know that I’m going to be keeping an eye on you.”

“Does that mean that you’ll be willing to bring the rebels back for me?” I ask, setting aside this god-like old man that she apparently wants dead.

“So long as the king, and the rebels themselves agree with it.” She replies, with an uncaring wave. “Call for me when you’re finished here.”

“So, there’s nothing else you wanted me to do here?” I ask.

“Well, since you’ve learned a little bit of humility, perhaps you could ask the king for a tutor to teach you how to properly address those who are your superior.” She says, “It would be a shame to put so much effort into raising you, only to have you insult another dungeon, or anyone else truly powerful.”

“I get it. I get it.” I say, rubbing at my temple. “That’s all?”

“If there’s anything else, I’ll come contact you.” She says, with a smile. “Ensure you put some effort into your growth. I’m taking a gamble on you, and I never put down coins unless I’m using weighted dice.”

“What do you think I’ve been doing?” I ask, feeling the mana seeping out of my skin as I try to compress my newly changed mana form as much as I can. It’s a familiar sensation, but it’s still rather strange to feel the dense liquid core shards wondering through me. It’s an unsettling sensation, they cut through me in strange ways, quite unable to settle down properly.

When I look over to Arduelle, I see that she’s already gone. I’ve simply been too focused to notice the bright flash of mana that comes with her magical teleportation.

My focus returns to the king who stands atop the mountain that is the titan’s corpse. Shimmering black crystal shines in the light of midday, as the blood gathered from the corpse weaves into a tight red ball above the king’s head. The deep red blood flows fast amidst the wind, slowly draining away from the mountainous corpse.

The tall, feathered, reptilian king waves his arms about in the air, thousands of threads of thin blood attached to his upper body connecting him to the flows of blood above. From the dense mana within, and the way that it all flows, I can guess that he’s using it to transmit his blood magic.

I leave him to his business while I inspect the rest of the titan’s body. The black crystal covers most of it, but there are a few parts where it’s been shattered, most clearly, where its neck has been severed. There is still flesh inside so apparently it’s not like Ria and the other crystalline beings that I’ve met, the crystal plating it covering the organic flesh, bone, and organs that make up it’s true body.

I still need to acquire some gifts for when I return, and I doubt anyone will be interested in receiving a desiccated monster heart, but some of the dark crystal just might do. The various shards around me come in many different shapes, though the sharp spear is most common.

Interestingly, even though the beast is dead, the mana doesn’t seem to be leaking from the crystal, and at the same time, it’s easy enough to move the mana about inside of it. Maybe Ria could use this for her mana batteries?

Even if not, polish them up and they could make for some nice jewellery. The deep shifting darkness contained within, while ominous and somewhat evil seeming, sits well with me. In fact, if I ask nicely enough, perhaps I can have a large chunk of it gathered together for me.

I have a plan for what I want to do with it, though I won’t get my hopes up until I can make sure it actually happens.

“I hope you girls like it.” I whisper, knowing that at least Vii is going to be watching this moment through the recording Skill that I have restarted since my mana has returned. Even though they’re not with me, it’s a comfort to know that I’m not entirely alone.

The blood gathers above the king forming into a massive orb, large enough to cast a shadow over the entire mountain of black crystal. The large orb of blood, glows with mana still stirring as it’s touched by the king’s magic. Gazing upwards at it, he raises a hand to touch it directly.

Mana erupts all around us, flooding out of the king and into the air and earth all around. But somehow it isn’t simply spreading into the atmosphere, instead it’s absorbed into something beyond the land and the air.

The dungeon.

Selena.

He’s feeding the mana to his goddess.

“It’s our way.” The noble woman says as she stands by my side as I watch.

“What about feeding on the people of the peaks?” I ask, recalling the vampiric nature of these nobles.

“We feed on the mana of the citizens, gathering their strength for use in defence of our home, but also to keep them from growing too large and powerful for our home in the peaks. Excess mana is gifted to Selena herself, in the same way as the king is now giving the beasts blood to her, allowing her to grow and to protect us evermore.”

“Does she really protect you? I mean…” I wave over the dead beast, trying to get her opinion on how things have turned out.

“It is how we show our faith to her.” The king says, the blood that he’s gathered now seeping into the ground, mana-less as anything on Earth ever was. “She has bestowed on us this land, protected from any real dangers. Yet, she does not wish us to spread as a plague. These beasts keep away the ambitions of our youth.”

“By killing them.” I reply, gazing back at the fallen fortifications.

“It is our way.” The king replies solemnly. “It is the way Selena has made for us, and we have no right to choose any other path for ourselves.

“We do not grow, but we do not wane. Those who realise the nature of our lives here are enlisted as noble warriors to defend our civilisation. Some thrive, others do not. Yet we all hunt the beasts that come to our lands, keeping them in check, just as they keep us in check.”

This is what I hate.

Choices made for me by those more powerful.

I despise it, but thankfully, this time I’m not bound by the same rules they are. I simply must ensure that I’m never forced into the same servitude that these people live with.

“What do you do with the rebels that want to leave?” I ask. “No, actually I don’t need to know. I’d like to offer; I’ll take them off of your hands. Arduelle has already agreed to transport them for me if both you and the rebels are willing to accept my offer.”

“Is that so?” He asks, thoughtfully. “For most, a titan attack like this will be enough to settle them from their aspirations, but perhaps… I suppose we can spare them. If a goddess has offered to take them.”

“Good.” I bow my head slightly, trying to hold onto some politeness.

Watching him battle against the titan earned him much respect in my eyes, but seeing him bow so easily to the dungeons, with no aspiration to stand as their equals, bothers me far too much for that earlier respect to linger.

“For today, we must restore the defences and see our dead buried.” He says, looking back towards the stone of the fallen fort. “The titan must also be properly butchered before it takes to rot.”

“About that.” I say, “I’d also like to ask for a chunk of this crystal if that’s alright with you.”

“How much are you requesting?” He asks. “There is plenty here, so I wouldn’t be loath to your request so long as you aren’t asking for more than can be spared.”

“Just, this much.” I say, slapping a large crystal by my side. It seems to be about my height in all of its dimensions and is certainly more than I can carry, but that shouldn’t be an issue if I’m borrowing Arduelle’s teleportation magic. “If that’s alright with you, Arduelle?”

She doesn’t appear, so I have to guess that she’s fine with it.

“Are you sure you don’t wish for more?” He asks.

“I’ll accept anything extra that you’re willing to offer.” I reply, “So long as it can be transported, which somewhat leaves the decision somewhat up to Arduelle.”

“Very well.” The king bows slightly in respect, likely more to the dungeon listening in than towards me. “Veralia could you prepare parts for the travellor to take with her?”

“Of course, your highness.” The noble to my side bows respectfully.

“Arduelle also wanted someone to teach me manners, do you think there’d be someone like that among the rebels that could help?” I ask, looking back towards the soldiers who are sorting through the stones and the corpses.

“Doubtful, their nature tends away from respect. Veralia, would you be willing to accept that role?”

“Your highness?” The lizard noble freezes looking up at her king in shock. “If it is your wish.” She says begrudgingly.

“Then so be it.” He says, heading away. “Take Veralia and whichever soldiers wish to abandon their duties. I doubt you’ll find so many that it would leave us vulnerable.”

“Thank you, your highness.” I say, bowing slightly and trying not to cringe at his attitude. He just casually gave me a free selection of his people, so long as they are willing to accept my offer.

Let’s grab as many as I can and leave before he changes his mind.

“I’ll be just over there.” I call to the lizard woman who is apparently going to be working with me. Maybe Arduelle would be willing to send her back here when she’s done teaching me proper manners.

“I’ll… I’ll get right to this, then.” She says, staring up at the massive corpse of the titan. I can tell that she’s restraining a sigh. She’s a good girl.

“Alright, thanks, be back soon!” I shout, racing towards the familiar young rebel who’s currently talking with John, Hawk, and the three others with them.

“Hey, you guys wanted to leave right?” I say as soon as I’m close enough for them to hear. “Well, have I got an offer for you. If you accept now, you can come home with me. I have food, water, shelter and infinite potential for future growth.

“Who wants to come with me and take over the god damn universe?”

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Skills & Stats

~Mana Form:

Current mana density: 1943 units

~Mana distribution:

Defence: 0/33%

Offense: 0/57%

Mana sense: 0/73%

Recovery: 30/30%

Gluttony: 0/26%

Misc.: 0/42%

Efficiency: 30/100%

~Favourited Skills:

-Chip Shredder

-Multi-mind

-Tag

-Mana surge movement

-Reactive defence

-Fire burst punch

-Annihilation magic

-Charged casting (Annihilation)

-Mana form flow fixer

-Branching magic