Whispers of a Dead Empire

Oi, the event is over! Thanks to everyone who submitted a contest submission! Voting ended in the discord today, so I will be posting voting here! Check the bottom for more information!

“You would be correct,” Came a pretty lively response from a pile of walking bones.

I sank into my chair with a sigh and cleaned up the skeletal battleground.

You have gained a new item template:

Human Bone Dust Lesser Quality

I’m going to go off on a limb and assume that I use these specific items for treasure chests and loot drops; eventually, I will have to set it up. But first things first. I need to work on getting my class in order and start working on the domain redesign. I stood up and motioned for my bosses to follow me. “Kharon, can they teleport as well?” I asked as I adjusted my shirt since it was bundling up. Really, I have to create new ones at some point.

“No. However, you can teleport them to an area if you need them there.” I glanced at my map and looked it over. Ah, yes, there it was. I should probably read before I ask another stupid question. I selected the two bosses and told them to wait for us and then teleported them out. With that out of the way, I placed my hand on Alessia’s shoulder and teleported. Perhaps I was just a little biased towards her, just a smidge.

Once we arrived, I had everyone gather around the ruined fountain. I pulled myself onto the ruined wall so I could see everyone. “Alright, so, Rikard. Your job at the moment is to make sure the zombies stay in line. I will need you to lead them once construction starts. In the meantime, I will teleport you to the mines. Make sure the mobs there wrap up their work while we pull in the last of the materials.” He let out a grunt of acknowledgment, and I teleported him away. I’m sure that Kharon appreciated that. I sure would; if I had to deal with those zombies and skeletons, I probably would want to off myself. At least the Ghosts are easier to work with.

“Aaron, your job will be to help the skeletons and zombies finish gathering the last bits of logs. Once that is done, I want you to gather them all and pull every single thing of use out of the outpost. We will remodel the entire area soon, and I want to make sure that we are using everything that we can. I want everything stacked as neat as possible by this fountain.” I emphasized the word neat and then summoned a team of ten more skeletons for him to assist with completing the project. It was okay to be a little more liberal with this since I got some essence as a reward earlier. Aaron chittered out a response and quickly led the group of freshly gathered skeletons over to the working camp.

I cast a glance at Alessia as I tried to figure out her role in things. I didn’t want her to leave, but I had to get everything ready. “Alessia, gather all the ghosts in the domain and try to evolve them to the best of your ability. “She nodded and vanished without a trace. Leaving just Kharon and myself.

“I enjoy the fact that you issue orders with no hesitation.” He said as we watched the skeletons help the zombies carry the last bit of logs into the pile.

“It comes with the territory, I suppose. I used to work in a kitchen, so if I wanted stuff done, it had to be fast and clear. Besides, if everything goes as planned, I might get to go back home one day.” I shrugged and crossed my arms as I watched them. I wasn’t sure how building the outpost out would work, but I would do my best.

“It’s a wonderful trait to have. Anyway, would you like to start your training?” I nodded my head. I would be lying if I were to say I wasn’t eager. He made a quick motion with his head as we walked through the courtyard, He gestured to an empty spot on the ground, and I sat down. He followed shortly after and crossed his boney legs.

“Now, this class you chose will not be an easy one. I hope you are aware of that.” I slung my sports bag from across my back and laid it across my lap, and rummaged through it for my notebook and pen. Maybe I should consume my spare and a pen, so that way I would forever have them.

“I’m ready,” I told him as I cleared my throat and adjusted my hair. I wish I had my hair tie, but I had no idea where it went.

“Good. The first thing about this class is that you need an item that holds great personal value. Do you have something like that?” I thought about it for a moment, and I quickly went through my bag and pulled out my cell phone. Its screen was still pitch black and cool to the touch. I tested out the power button once more to see if it would work. I knew it wouldn’t, but I still wanted to try.

“What is that?” Kharon asked as he eyed my cell phone.

“It’s a device that can do almost anything. I can talk to people across the world or play music on command. Take pictures, or have a light source.” I explained as I clenched the phone in my hand. I sometimes forget that he doesn’t know what Earth is or know of the technology there.

“I have never heard of such of a device.” He mused quietly to himself as he stroked his pointed chin with his finger. “May I see it?” He asked and stretched out his hand.

I hesitated for a moment since I didn’t want to part ways with my phone. But I caved and handed it over to him. I placed the phone into his hand, and the metal tinked in response to hitting the bone. He pulled it back and looked it over for a few moments. He reached down with his other hand and tapped the screen a few times with the tip of his finger, and shrugged as he handed it back to me. “It looks useless to me.”

I took my phone back and felt my eyebrows twitch at that comment, “I’ll have you know that this is the latest model and cost me a fortune! It’s not my fault that coming here ruined it.” I huffed out as I pulled the phone out of view.

He stared at me for a moment before shrugging and clearly choosing to ignore my tantrum. “Anyway, what we are going to do is activate your class. While most classes would be active the moment you select it, the Soul Catalyzation class requires you to make a medium.” As I listened to him talk, I deiced to drop my indignation at his comment. This war far more critical than getting mad over a phone that doesn’t even work, anyway.

“So what do I need to do with it then?” I asked as I set the phone on top of my notebook and leaned forward.

“You have to combine a part of your being to your medium and mold it as you desire. However, be warned that once the medium is formed, it is forever bound to your body.” As he said that, I realized what I had to do, I grabbed my phone and looked at it for a moment, and a wave of apprehension coursed through me. I really didn’t want to destroy something that I put so much money into. Well, part of it was about the money; the rest was the sentimental value it held to me. It had all my pictures, and it’s been through a lot with me, hell in a way, it was one of the last ties I had to Earth.

“Do I have to destroy it?” I asked and placed it back down on my notebook and brought my knees up to my chest.

“Who said anything about destroying it? Indeed, it won’t be the same item that it once was, but it won’t be destroyed. It will just be changed to better suit your needs and will forever be a part of you.” Damn, he had a point, even if it was a little rough around the edges. Besides, I shouldn’t be too materialistic. If I ever get back to Earth, I have uploaded it all to the cloud, so it will still exist in some capacity. I shoved away my feelings and nodded my head in agreement, though my heart was still in turmoil.

“Good, I am glad you understand. Now, here is the hard part. You have to fracture your soul and impart it onto your medium.” I snorted and choked for a moment at that revelation.

“I what now?” My words sputtered out as I tried to comprehend his words.

“You have to fracture your soul.” He replied with that same monotonous voice. Either he knew I was being sarcastic and messed with me, or he couldn’t tell that I was.

“No, no, I got that; it was just too crazy to believe in, was all.” He stared at me unflinchingly with those red eyes and slowly bobbed his head.

“Various forms of undead surround you, and you find fracturing your soul too crazy to believe in? Oh, he had me there.

“I can’t really argue that. I just never really believed in the concept of a soul. So hearing you say something like that raises questions that I’m not sure I want answers to.”

He nodded his head and shifted his legs around a bit. “The things that govern us change between worlds, so what you may know to be true may not be so true anymore. However, I won’t push you into knowing things you are not ready for.” He reached forward and placed his boney hands on top of my shoulder. The feeling of bone was strange. Mostly cause they were cold, even colder than ice. Even though it was an odd gesture, I appreciated the kindness.

“Thank you, Kharon. Anyway, what do I need to do?” I pulled away from him, not cause it creeped me out, but cause his hand chilled me to the bone, even through my clothes.

He pulled away unperturbed at my dismissal. “Well, the first thing is, I need to teach you a skill. However, it will be considered an auxiliary skill and count towards your limit.”

“Uh, I have no clue what any of that means,” I replied and grabbed my notebook, ready to take more notes on the matter.

“So, the system has three categories. You have primary skills, which are directly related to your class. You have auxiliary skills, which are specific skills that are not immediately essential to your class. Then you have a third tab where your resistances AND class modifiers go.” I jotted that down and shot back with a question of my own.

“You said it would count towards a limit; what limit would that be?”

“Well, for primary skills, there is no true limit. Once you get access to the tree, you will see that. You can branch into any path that you would like. However, for Auxiliary skills, the maximum is seven total. For the resistances, the only limit is what your body can take. The rest varies; you are free to take on however much you want in the way of proficiencies like swords and hand to hand combat; however, active passives cap out pretty quickly.” Oh boy, more stuff to figure out. I jotted it and set my notebook down.

“Well, Kharon, I am ready; teach me what you know,” I told him as I cracked my knuckles and steeled my resolve for what was to come.

Here are the top contenders! Along with one of my favorites! Cast your votes! I will end the poll in a few days!

1) Anotreants

Strenght:3/10 Vitality:4/10 Magical affinity:1/10 Speed:6/10 Dexterity:5/10 Fortitude:4/10 Intelligence:1/10 Perception:5/10

Key traits:

Dependent: This unit cannot do anything alone, they must be at least two to act. Territorial restricted: This unit sprout from zone that are infested by vegetation only and cannot leave the area Vegetal mimic: This unit can mimic nearly every creature/animal that they been in contact with and gain 1/7 of the stats of the mimicked creature/animal (need the appropriate amount of vegetals to replicate the size) Veggie meat: This unit can produce a very strong raw meat odor to lure carnivore animals or creatures Single-minded: if the group have 50 or more individuals they will all share the same mind and won't attack mindlessly anymore. Intelligence grows with the number of individuals. Wet: This unit has a resistance to fire due to his constantly wet body but grows weak and dry if deprived of water for an extended time Parasite: This unit can deploy parasitic spores to take the control of weak creatures/animals like rats, bunny or ferrets

Description: Anotreants is a mutated species of treant that we can call an anomaly. They are born in places with a lot of magical power and treants corps. Even if they are naturally weak and dumb, they can outspeed you easily and rapidly increase in intelligence if they grow in number. When they have the right amount of intelligence, they tend to transform into small animals like rats to ambush you and turn you into fertilizer for them. They don't have an original form so they like to take the form of small green animals. If more than 1000 individuals are linked together, they can have a IQ of nearly 230. 

2) Name: Gargarosh the Druid's Bane Race: Telendori (Undead/Plantoid) Lvl: n/a Boss Tier 1: Harvester Path(lvl 10~15) Class: Battle-Mage

Description: Telendori are a type of undead created from backlash, corruption, or a vengeful desire placed upon diseased or dying spiritual natured, planetoid, or awakened plants. It is in part, that due to their planetoid nature, that they come in a variety of shapes and sizes. This is mostly due to the fact that they are a parasitic type of undead, requiring a host or vessel to maintain a moveable or stable form. Their preferred prey is beings with high concentrations of natural energy, an energy similar to mana or soul energy, it is a chief component of the life force. Background: Born in the icy tundra to the North, Gargarosh was an experiment to see what would happen if a plant gained sentience and was permanently isolated. This lichen was subjected to a number of spells allowing for this to occur. Unfortunately, this drove them mad, as expected, what the research facility that housed it did not expect was suicide… who knew plants could kill themselves. However these acts did not go unnoticed, and subsequent slaughter of all on-site personal by two newly summoned hordes of orcs and beastmen was the result. <Don't piss off a certain life goddess with inhumane acts.> Unexpectedly, or not unexpectedly a large number of undead were born from the bloodshed and negativity of the site's victims. After latching onto a corpse of a captured shaman, Gargarosh's rotting wreck of a body moved south stopping only once or twice to feed on Druids and other sources of energy to halt his nonhost body's degradation process. Eventually, they settled in a Dungeon, and thanks to the near-constant source of energy they were able to achieve a better procurement of food, bodies, body preservation skills and techniques, as well as, oddly enough, this worlds closest approximation to blackberry pie… just don't eat it.

Skills and Abilities: Thorn Whip: After absorbing the withered husk of a rose garden, Gargarosh gained the ability to create vines and brambles made of thorns. Damage: 1d4 piercing damage. Constriction: vines can be used to deal an additional 1d8 damage from tightening the vines around the enemy as a spiked rope, noose, straight jacket, or whip. Harvester's Desire: As a Harvester-type boss, Gargarosh is able to manifest their desire to harvest certain materials. For their specialization they chose energy. When low on Health or at the end of combat, Gragarosh can drain his opponents for health or energy. Summon minion: Outside of combat, Gargarosh can create a smaller version of themselves by placing a small portion of their mass inside of a corpse. They can summon a small number of weaker versions during combat. Doom Pie: Gargarosh likes themselves some pie, just don't eat it. Strengths, or Resistances: Undead, Plant, Water, Poison Weakness: Holy, Unholy, Eldritch, Fire Levels up by harvesting life force and converting it to undeath energy. Increases intelligence every now and again when a high enough dosage is absorbed. Boss monster, with a minor mob attached. Think skeletons controlled by rotting plant vines.

3)

Bone Horror Strength: 5/10 Vitality: 5/10 Magical Affinity: 4/10 Speed: 3/10 Dexterity: 4/10 Fortitude: 5/10 Intelligence: 4/10 Perception: 4/10 Key Traits: Bloodless: This unit does not possess any flesh and is immune to bleeding debuffs. Tireless: This unit will not tire. Painless: This unit will not feel pain. Fleshless: This unit is immune to puncture and slash damage. Bone-rattle: This unit will receive increased damage from blunt force damage. Unbreakable: This unit has no sense of self-preservation and will relentlessly attack its target. Tough Bones: This unit has surprisingly tough bones able to withstand heavy blows. Bone Manipulation: This unit is able to manipulate the shape of bones. Bone assimilation: This unit is able to assimilate nearby bones into its massive frame.   Description: The Bone Horror is an amalgamation of bones of different creatures. It is born from mass graves of many different species. Its original shape is eternally unknown to it and therefore has no standard appearance. It is often mistaken for a Skeletal Beast. Every bone in their body is a weapon. It eternally searches for new bones to add to its collection. The quality of the bones in its collection influences its strength. Their connection to bones makes them able to manipulate their basic shape. Its customizable nature makes it especially hard to kill as it can just discard broken bones, and replace them with others. It is therefore highly recommended to not fight them in graveyards or other collections of dead bodies.   Which submission is better?<ul dpmb="yes"> <label dpmb="yes"> Option 1</label> <label dpmb="yes"> Option 2</label> <label dpmb="yes"> Option 3</label>Results are only viewable after voting. You must be logged in to vote.<input type="hidden" value="4254"><input type="hidden" value="1"> Oops! We ran into some problems. View Results: Which submission is better?