Shadow of the Abyss

Dark Chapter

"That bitch!" Cedric Vandel roared, cutting his knuckles across the stone wall of his hotel. Stones reeled through the air, falling onto the ground like rain. He glared at his door, where three navel officers stood outside. They had arrived before first light, with the order barring him from leaving, under the direct Command of the Admiral.

The humiliation was not something he'd ever face. And for what? Speaking out of turn? "Wretched bitch," he growled, with a belly of fire. "How I loathe that whore." he said, collapsing on the couch. Cedric reached into his coat, pulled out his datapad, and padded away.

Soon, an image appeared.

"Can you talk?" he said to the hologram of static, distorting the image.

The voice went silent for a second, followed by a fiddling sound. "Of course, uncle."

"Good. Have you made contact with Altair?" Cedric asked flatly.

"I've met his whore,' The voice snapped. "And she's as vile as that low-born sow. She nearly tore my arm off, killing me."

"I saw," Cedric grimly said. Reese had been one of the finest soldiers he'd ever trained: smart, cunning, wielding the best potential to be a high-rank warlock. Yet he was taken down in a few moves. Poor luck from what he saw. "Have you seen her since?"

Reese snarled. " No. But you should know. Aren't you watching?"

"I've been banished to my quarters," Cedric informed him and poured himself a drink from the decanter before him and down a glass or two. "Is Vadi with you?"

"He is… Though I don't understand why you assigned him to me." Reese replied. "The boy has less use than a whores cunt."

"I know." Cedric did not need reminding. "You only need to do as I command," he said, filling his glass full of whiskeys. "Though you'll need to figure out how to deal with the girl."

"I'll deal with that whore, uncle," Reese replied darkly. You've my word."

"Good… Then listen to what I've to say… "

***

[Ding]

[Shadowcat Felled. Exp Gained.]

[Level Up]

Touching the shallow gash cutting across his cheek from where the Shadow Cat caught him with his cruelly sharp talons, Altair winced sourly, with blood filling the gaps between his fingers. He stood up, gasping for a bit of air, and glared down at the Tier Three criptid felled.

The shadow cat had been large as a lion and bore a deep resemblance to a panther, to its black coat. Powerful it was with the speed to match sound if given the time to focus its power.

"He got me good," He laughed, allowing The Hands of Nirvana to shimmer its golden light. A cooling sensation simulated his nerves, bringing a smile to his lips. "How are you?" He asked, whirling to see Ren with a concerned expression.

"You let your guard down," she said, bonking him on the head.

Altair removed his hand from his cheek, revealing his untouched blemished, and smiled. "It was merely a flesh wound. You've had a few too, if I recall, yesterday's battle with that skeleton knight." He reminded her with a laugh.

They had spent the following few weeks locked in constant battle, honing their skills and level from Dawn well within the hours of twilight. Occasionally, Altair would peer through the eyes of his shadow, with Olivia and Laros to catch up on schemes and so on, before receding back into himself.

Name: Altair (Snow)

Mana Circle:[Third Circle 0.041%]

Physique: First Vale Star

Class: [Prince of the Vale Lv 4 → 7]

Strength: 29

Dexterity: 34 → 37

Constitution: 55 →61

Wisdom: 57 → 63

Charisma: 57 → 63

Mana: 28

Name: Reina Of The Moon

Mana Circle: [Third Circle 0.09%]

Class: [Blood Nephilim Lv 1 → 7]

Strength: 42 → 54

Dexterity: 30

Constitution: 33 → 39

Wisdom: 52 → 64

Charisma: 52 → 64

Mana: 25

Cutting out the hearthstone within its chest, Altair swallowed it whole without a second thought. His skin flashed red hot for an instant before streams of mana sprung from out of his pores, billowing with the winds. He began refining the onslaught of mana, filling his Mana Circle with a bright smile.

[Mana Circle: 0.041% → 0.069%]

"We ought to hunt more Shadow Cats," Altair suggested.

"Would if we caught, Master," Aurora said. "But most would rather run than engage in a battle of life and death. Though you could try your luck with the Plesiosaurus, Tier Four—"

"Pass," Ren said in his stead. " With our shitty weapons. We'll be lucky we can penetrate the hide of a Tier three monster." She lifted her cracked greatsword, its edge dull after nearly two weeks of use. "Not to mention, none of these weapons can handle mana."

Aurora looked at her funny. " My Lady, you realize no Second Circle can enhance weapon sharpness and power like you and Master? Most gain that ability when they reach the third circle, where they gain a higher level of control over their mana. These weapons were made with that idea in mind."

"Really?" Ren looked surprised. "Is that why humans seem to drop like flies when they—"

"There they are! Get them!" Voices form from a few leagues away howled.

"GOD!!" Ren swore, turning to Altair. "Can't we kill a few! Please! They just keep coming!"

Altair peered over the great plains to a set of twenty riders on horseback, trotting towards them with a fierceness in their eyes.

"I lowkey wish I didn't send Grey back to the mountains." Ren moaned, glaring at Altair, who'd commanded it. He'd claimed it was to ensure no one reached the great peaks. And seeing that none had since then, she could not deny his judgment was on point, though it didn't help that he was always so smug about it.

Gruff had been the first of many to attack the Young Lord and Lady. For weeks, they had been hunted and tracked, and despite the cruel manner in which they dispatched the hunters, they never stopped.

"What I'd like to know is how they keep finding us," Altair asked.

"I'm sure they've got a clairvoyant," Aurora said. "Or at least someone with a similar skill." she paused. "But I suspect they wish to tire us out. Phase two should be starting in a few days."

Scratching at his hair black as night, Altair cursed. Ren, however, held no reservations about killing a few. Altair had always been too cautious in her eyes, too soft when it came to matters of pride. Though in recent times… she glanced back at him, unsure what he was becoming. But her loins had ached that night beneath the song of Gruff wails like never before.

She saw her prince for what he was then… a demon, a fiend that hid his bloodlust within the shadows of the night.

"Let's just end this." He said, conjuring his Moonlit blades, and watched the symphony of limbs that danced, carving through man and mount with little effort. By the time these hunters had entered a hundred meters of the prince, all that laid bare was their limp bodies.

"Let's go—" Ren was about to say when she saw her prince point, and her jaw opened wide as she watched his Moon Blades begin to peel the living flesh from the hunter's bodies. With the cold precision of a dagger, Altair made sure not to nick any arteries. As he left them howling, screaming, their throats raw, and their eyes dazed.

"In war," He began, looking up at the hidden drones relaying the image to the Lords and Ladies within the High Tower, watching his actions with horror. "To break the will of the people, desperate actions are needed. Whether it's through terrorism, rape, or conquest. Mercy be damn. This was supposed to be a tournament to showcase our skills. Yet you allow bounties to occur.

You have created rules to forbid sexual assault yet have done nothing as Riena, and I are hunted with the sole focus of rape and death in mind." He grinned though his eyes seemed like a vale of death. "Since nothing has been done. You have forced my hands. So I'll leave you with broken soldiers."

He gestured a rune with his fingers, casting Mold Earth, and conjured several pikes from the earth below and smiled as he ruthlessly skewered them from the rear through their throat. And began healing, mending any internal and external injury that would lead to major blood loss in the course of the next few days. He wanted them alive… and screaming.

The screams they bore echoed from the depths of their being like acid upon the ear. Pleeded, they tried but held no tongue to do so.

"Hells!" Aurora cursed, covering her mouth. She felt sick.

"If you believe me a fool, believe me, kind to allow this bullshit. I welcome it. Let's see who wins out. I'll break every last bastard." Altair whirled, taking his leave, unsure what manner of pleasure he was feeling overtaking his mind. But he felt himself on fire.

Reina looked on at the limbless bodies, stripped of their flesh and skewed through, gargling on the pikes, and smiled.

***

The Lords and Ladies, Knights, and Squires watched on with unblinking eyes, their expression pale, shaken with fear.

Scythia had stood up. "Scorpio will be sponsoring your command, Admiral Darkfire, a Three hundred thousand Sols on the premise you have Altair begin raiding at once." She said with haste. " We care little what dungeons it is. New or Old, but we want him at the third circle within three years."

"Sagittarius will match that price," Leon said, standing up. "A fine enforcer he'll make. Better yet, the boy has the potential to conquer," he added with promise in his eyes.

"You're all madmen!" Ser Toval Vandal shouted. "He just… He just—" puking his guts out like so many others around him. He looked up with pale, ashen, colored features. " That boy is a demon!"

None of the twelve saints showed much reaction. They'd seen worse, faced far worse. What Altair had done was no different than draw a line. For two weeks, he had waited whilst being hunted like a dog, allowing the Command to make a decision that never came. And now the young wolf was baring his fangs.

"Pisces will also do the same." Said Lady Sabia, pulling out a Holocube. "I'll transfer the funds this evening. Though, we'd like a meeting with the boy when this little tourney has ended."