Leveling up the World

MEMORY FRAGMENT

Beneath Nerosal, 13 Years ago

The decision to join the Star cult was the easiest Arthurows had made. He was smart enough to know that the man was selling him a line, but at the same time was telling the truth when it came to the consequences to come. The festival was one big display of fakeness, but while it went on, it provided security. No crimes were committed, but also no crimes were punished.

Naturally, Arthurows had tested the theory by attempting to leave the city. It wasn’t the first time he’d do so. As a member of Drunkard’s End, he had occasionally assisted in carrying goods in and out. Everyone knew that the things carried were contraband, but didn’t care. This time, when he got near the city gates, the guards stopped him. They didn’t even try to hide it, telling him flat out that he was on the overseer’s list of people that were not to leave the city until the end of the festival. Normally, it would be the other way around, suggesting that some sort of punishment was in store. As a result, Arthurows had gone back to the cultist and agreed to join on the spot.

The first thing that the cultist gave Arthurows was a blocker ring. The items, while expensive, weren’t exactly illegal. Quite a few awakened used them to obtain some privacy. The Mirror Pool used them non-stop, as did all the good pick-pockets. This was the perfect way to go about the city undetected, as well as reaching places Arthurows didn’t know that even existed.

Initially, they had gone to the arena. With the amount of people preparing for the official fights, it wasn’t at all difficult. From there, things changed. Arthurows followed the cultist along a series of stairs and corridors to a dead end. There, he had used a ring to enter the realm of the arena and—after traveling for a few days—emerged on the other side.

“I thought that you always return to the same place after leaving a realm,” Arthurows said as they walked down a winding stairwell.

“Normally, yes. Having a Vermillion ring changes things.”

“Breaking the rules.” Arthurows smiled.

“Just using shortcuts. You’ll get one as well when you officially join.”

“I thought I already did.”

“No, you’re just a hopeful. You’ll get void skills soon enough and then you’ll have skills and trinkets you’ve never dreamed of.”

He’d been saying that way too often. One didn’t have to be a genius to know it was bullshit. Even so, Arthurows nodded. It was all a game of lies and leverage. The cultist was offering too much not to ask for something in return.

“Talking about trinkets, won’t the overseer know that something isn’t right? Disappearing just like that can’t be explained away.”

“There’s no way she’d notice unless you point it out to her actual form. Blocker rings do more than make someone invisible to guardians. They make the guardians not notice the change as well.”

“How does that work, exactly?”

“I can’t begin to explain. That’s the Star’s domain. You’ll understand soon enough.”

A series of tunnels continued on from the bottom of the stairwell. Even with his high perception trait, Arthurows was barely able to see what was going on. All the light the cultist had brought was a small, glowing pendant. It would have been extremely fashionable in a nightclub, though a torch it wasn’t. One thing that became more and more apparent was that the architecture was very different from the surface of Nerosal. In fact, it was so different that it didn’t seem to be built by humans.

“What’s this place?” Arthurows asked after a while. “Catacombs?”

“City ruins. Once, there was a city here that made present day Nerosal look like a village. Originally, it was built by the copyettes.”

The name sent shivers down Arthurows’ spine. He had been hearing rumors about the creatures since childhood. Said to be one of the banished races, they had the ability to assume any form, which they had done in their attempt to take over the world. Even now, it was said that a few had managed to escape their banishment, and were living in cities, killing people and taking their form on a whim.

“That’s the reason this area is so abundant with ancient items and artifacts. Nerosal owes it existence to generations of scavengers who’ve dug through ruins to obtain that which they no longer can create.”

“Why isn’t that forbidden?” Arthurows felt the rage inside of him light up. “That’s what got me in trouble in the first place.”

“Artifacts are just objects. You, with your devices, are someone who’s bringing back dangerous ideas to the world. After your death, the artifacts will be highly valued, I’m sure. They’ll be sought after a lot more than they are now.”

That sounded like a very lawyerly way of looking at the world. Somewhere, somehow, the Moons must have degreed that it was forbidden for people to bring dangerous ideas into the world. However, nothing was said about the items themselves. Following the logic, any ancient artifact was fair game, since the knowledge regarding its creation had been lost. The moment someone successfully reverse engineered them, though, the Order of the Seven Moons would swoop into action.

“All banished races had technology that appears magical to people now,” the cultist continued. “What few know is that they only achieved that by copying the Star. Things like railway systems, glass-metal alloys, neon-lights…”

“You’ve made all that?”

“No. I don’t even know what the words mean. I’m just saying them out loud, because I know you do. As I said, the Star also comes from another world. People from Earth are the only ones who’ll understand him.”

So that’s what you want, Arthurows grinned to himself.

By joining the cult, he was going to become an assistant of sorts, or maybe just a person with whom to chat about the “good old days” back on Earth. That made sense, although it still wasn’t a guarantee that the sect would have more nefarious things in mind.

After half an hour of going through a maze of tunnels and stairways, they finally arrived at a double stone door. It was massive, rising twenty feet high, entirely covered in intricate carvings. Just as the underground’s architecture style was different from the surface, the door was different from either of them. Looking closely, Arthurows could almost swear that the masons had carved the workings of a giant circuit board.

“Is the Star a giant?” he asked in the form of a joke.

The cultist didn’t laugh.

“Just a safety measure. Only someone with a high enough body trait can open the door. It’s a crude method, but quite popular at the time.”

“So I just open the door and that’s it?”

“No. I’ll open the door after you’re sure that’s what you want.”

Standard manipulation technique: create fear of missing out and make the target believe it’s their choice, Arthurows thought. Even so, he had to admit, feeling curious.

“You can’t have said that when we were above?” he feigned stupidity.

“It’s the rules of the Moons. You must acknowledge what will happen and then proceed, if that’s what you want. Same as passing through an awakening gate.”

“Is that something the Moons stole from the Star as well?”

The silence suggested that not to be the case.

“Okay, tell me the terms.”

“By joining the cult, you’ll gain void powers, allowing you to create shortcuts. You won’t be able to increase your level, but you’ll be able to acquire the effects of higher levels. Trait levels, abilities…” The man waved his hand as he enumerated. “Strictly speaking, they won’t be yours, but the void, and you’ll have the power to control the void.”

“Oh? Interesting.” That sounds sketchy as hell!

“You won’t be able to obtain items unless they are given to you. Of course, you can manipulate void matter in such a way as to create anything you wish. In time, you’ll even be able to command and even create the beings that roam throughout the wilderness.”

“Monsters.” Arthurows clarified.

“If you prefer. They are just tools with massively destructive potential and yours to command.”

Subtle. Just a moment ago, the cultist had said that Arthurows could obtain the power to command then, but now was talking as if it were a given.

“I take it I won’t be able to step in a building of the Order, either.”

“Why not?” The cultists looked at him, confused. “You’d have no reason to, but you can still go there.”

“What about the awakening altars? Will they harm me?”

“No, but you can’t level up there. You can’t destroy them either, just have others do that for you.”

Arthurows was starting to see the pattern. Joining the cult was pretty much changing one sort of rules for another. He’d gain “void abilities” for lack of other worlds, but would lose everything else. So far, it sounded like he was given the power of copying, as long as someone else was willing to share. All that was required was to convince people to do so.

“Do I get a way to make people do what I want?” he asked.

“Nice to see you catch on fast.” The cultists cracked a smile. “You can’t force people, but other than that, you’re free to use the usual methods. Lying, bribing, intimidation at your own risk. There are a few exceptions, but you’ll learn those details later. Finally, if you do really well, you’ll gain the ability to invade awakening domains.”

“Wow. Talk about shortcuts.”

“All awakened can invade realms after a certain point. In your case, it’s different. You can’t conquer the domain, but rather enter it.”

“Like a limiting echo.”

“Yes, like an echo, but you’re the echo.”

“Can I leave echoes there?”

“No, you can’t create echoes. That’s one of the things you’ll lose.”

It still sounded too good to be true, which made Arthurows think that it wasn’t. He was undoubtedly gaining a lot, but by the sound of it, he’d give a lot more. He didn’t like that the cultist had “forgotten” to specify a limitation until asked. And that was even if he could take his word on face value. For all he knew, this would all be a lie.

“Any other limitations I should know about?”

“A few. You’ll learn all about them once you step, though.”

“Does that mean that if I don’t like what I hear, I can still change my mind?”

There was no immediate response. If this was a trick, it would have been easy for the cultists just to agree so as to get Arthurows to enter. The obvious hesitation suggested that he remained subjected to certain rules.

“I’m not sure,” he said at last. “Some have left without joining the cult, others have stayed… I don’t know what happens inside. I’m just to lead people to the door.”

“So, this could be a trap.”

“It’s not a trap.”

“How do you know since you’ve never entered?” The banter was amusing, but Arthurows had pretty much made up his mind. At the end of the day, it came down to a simple binary choice. What was he willing to risk: finding out what was beyond the door or the fate expecting him once the festival was over?

“Will joining the cult get the countess off my back?” he asked.

“There’s no changing the past. You’ll still get punished, but if you join, it won’t matter. Even if your powers are sealed, you’ll still have a way of boosting your traits. Oh, and one final thing—you’ll never grow old.”

“Well, now that you say that, I might as well enter.”

“Are you certain?”

“Yes, I’m certain,” Arthurows sighed. “I understand the terms and conditions and am willing to hear out the real offer beyond this door. Is that enough?”

The cultists stepped to the door and pressed his hand on the surface. Black ink seeped out of his hand, filling in the grooves. Even in the faint light, it was mesmerizing watching the liquid spread until both sides of the door were completely covered. Once that was done, the door cracked open; not fully, but only enough for a person to squeeze through.

“The Star is expecting you,” the cultist said.

I bet he is, Arthurows smirked and walked through.

The room he entered was completely dark, but even so, he could see everything there. All objects and furniture were somehow even darker, standing out from the “standard” darkness. The sensation was alien, making Arthurows’ stomach churn.

“Nice of you to have joined me,” a voice said. It had no accent or distinguishing features. Listening to it, Arthurows couldn’t even tell whether it was male or female. “I take it you’ve accepted the offer?”

Arthurows opened his mouth, but before he could make a sound, strands of blackness shot out from everywhere, piercing his body like a pincushion.

“I truly hope you enjoyed the time you spent so far.”

YOU HAVE BEEN CONSUMED