Mask of Humanity

The next day found Nicolai stood just outside the crypt for the first time in a while. The radio host had said that the Chosen were increasingly active, their numbers growing day by day, and after being chased by them the day before, he was wary of a follow up encounter. If he kept going out there whilst they had guns and drones in their hands, he would get into trouble.

That morning he’d woken up the moment the light had come on and ventured out through the Gauntlet, into the hidden tunnel where he’d stored all the skulls he’d taken, and quickly worked to smash them then fed their wisps to his Seed. It had increased by three percent, which brought it out of balance, so he’d then fed it two Oma crystals.

User Interface 376 | Player #53,217

- Cultivation

> Seed Progress

Soul: 21%

Oma: 21%

That early on no hunting groups had gotten to the living quarters, but as soon as he was done Nicolai had gone back through the Gauntlet to safety. After considering his options and most especially his dwindling supply of Oma crystals and the increasing difficulty of finding them, he concluded that now was the time to investigate the prison, and more importantly, the mines. According to Kleos the mines would be full of Oma crystals, and undead to kill for souls.

He held a burning stick of wood as a torch. It wasn’t very effective. In a sack he carried a few more similar sticks of wood. He also carried some pieces of flint-like rock along with a little airtight metal box filled with small chunks of charcoal and charcoal dust from the fire, a crude tinderbox.

Other than that, he was dressed in the same ragged clothing as always and he carried the metal baton and a singular knife. He’d left practically everything else, including the ring of flight, the Soul Trap, the fat man’s staff, his store of Oma crystals and points tags, with Kleos.

The tunnel was long and dark and quiet. Nicolai’s paranoia kept him tense and on edge, always expecting something to jump out at him. But as time passed he progressed forwards into the endless dark without issue, the burning chunk of wood gradually shortening as it burned down. In due time there was light at the end of the tunnel.

Drawing closer, Nicolai put out his torch by scraping the end on the ground, then tucked the stick alongside his bag of sticks, the tinderbox, the flint and the knife against the wall.

He continued with only his clothes, his metal baton, and his Seed in his mouth. He would have left the Seed, too, except he couldn’t. He’d tested before leaving. He’d put it on the other side of the room and sat there for an hour watching it, and had seen it gradually weaken until it stopped moving, then he’d darted forward to pick it up. It had perked up immediately in his hands, but the cultivation menu had thrown up a new warning:

Seed is suffering from separation. Too much time apart from your Seed will lead to its death. Look after your Seed.

Its soul count had decreased by one percent, which had upset him, but it was necessary to test these things.

Reaching the end of the tunnel Nicolai peered out to see a rusted metal balcony before him, running left and right, clinging to the walls, curving slightly. Below, there was a long, expansive room that was more like a wide curving tunnel. He couldn’t see anyone around, nor any movement, but he remained within the shadows of the tunnel regardless, taking his time as he took in the area.

On the ground floor, the walls on either side were sliding metal bars with small rooms behind; prison cells. Each was open and empty. Up top on the balconies it was much the same. Poking his head out revealed that the side his tunnel opened onto was identical to the one across the way, cells either side of him.

It was as though he was on the outside of a big circular area, based on how the tunnel curved.

The area was intermittently lit by the typical torches, which burned a bright yellow when they were present, casting great circles of illumination. Sometimes they continued in lines for a distance, keeping things lit. Sometimes one was missing, a dark spot. Sometimes many were missing, stretches of darkness.

He couldn’t see a way down to the ground from where he stood.

Nicolai crept out and headed to the left, and the metal beneath his feet let out a hollow ringing. He slowed his steps until he was silent. He’d not gone far when he heard a faint clinking noise. He slid into the nearest cell and lowered himself slightly to lie on the ground, half-in, half-out the cell, his eyes just peeking over the edge of the metal walkway to look below.

A figure emerged from the darkness down the tunnel to his right. It was a very, very tall and slender figure with legs like stilts and dangling pale arms almost as long. As it came into the light Nicolai made out more details. Pale, dried and emaciated flesh with ribs showing through. It was a zombie, but in relatively good condition. Behind it dragged a long, dark, rustling cloak, which half-wrapped around it. It came another step into the light and the cloak rattled and clanked and Nicolai realised it wasn’t made of cloth but composed of chains, hundreds of fine black chains that wrapped the creature and hung down its unnecessarily long legs and trailed behind it. Its pale, dried out face stared around, toothless mouth gaping.

Nicolai shuffled carefully backwards into the cell, no longer able to see it as he left the balcony. Now he knew what it looked like there was no need to keep watching and risk it spotting him. He would be able to hear once it was past.

In the cell he lay there, and waited, his ears attuned to the sound of the creature as it came closer. It was just about to pass him by.

The sound of staggering footsteps and the rattle and clank of chains drew closer. From where he lurked in the dark at the back of the cell, Nicolai could see its head, tall enough that it rose over the balcony, walking slowly by.

Then the sounds and the movement stopped. The head stared dully forwards for a moment. Then it slowly turned, and looked into his cell.

Nicolai stared at it and it seemed to stare back. From Kleos’ description, it must be a Warden. He was in the dark and Kleos had said they possessed quite poor vision, so he should be hidden from its sight. However, the head had also mentioned that they had a kind of Soul Sense added into their vision, able to spot Imbued, Oma crystals, and other such things easily. That was why he’d left everything. Kleos had guessed that due to the nature of his Seed, so long as he kept it in his mouth it shouldn’t give off much if any signature; that he should be able to hide from these creatures.

Nicolai didn’t move, hoping that this would be the case. His paranoia tensed his muscles and prepared him to jump up and fight or flee. He couldn’t tell if the Warden was looking at him or simply looking into the cell.

He was faintly surprised when the Warden turned away. It swayed back into a walk and passed from view, the rattling of chains over stone dwindling in volume. Time stretched out as Nicolai lay there, staring at the wall, listening as it grew fainter and fainter.

‘Gone for now,’ spoke a voice from beside him.

Nicolai drew the baton in one smooth motion and twisted, striking out, the metal humming through the air. He hit nothing. After this reflexive movement his eyes moved quickly around, searching for threats, trying to work out who had spoken.

‘A little on edge, are we?’ continued the voice, and it chuckled weakly.

It was coming from the far corner of the room, the darkest area. Nicolai’s eyes narrowed as he peered in, and he begun to dimly make out a shape slumped in the corner, sitting against the wall, unmoving.

Nicolai rose, walked to the cell’s exit, checked left and right. He saw that the Warden was gone so, slightly more relaxed, he returned to eye the shadowy shape.

‘Who are you?’ asked Nicolai.

‘You can call me Forgotten, because that’s what I am,’ said the voice. ‘And how do you call yourself?’ The voice was faint, withered, a little scratchy. Nicolai wasn’t sure whether to think of it as male or female, but he leaned towards male. Old or young? He leaned towards old.

‘I’m Nicolai,’ said Nicolai.

‘That’s a good name,’ said Forgotten.

‘Is it?’ Nicolai frowned at the figure. He didn’t see anything particularly special about his name.

‘Suits you,’ said Forgotten, a smile in its voice.

‘Okay,’ said Nicolai. It seemed to him that Forgotten was trying to make a good impression. Win him over.

For a time there was silence. ‘What are you doing here?’ asked Forgotten, breaking it.

‘Looking around,’ said Nicolai.

‘For crystals?’ it asked.

Nicolai considered his words. It had worked that out pretty quickly, but he supposed there wasn’t much other reason for someone to come down here.

‘Yes,’ he said.

‘You’re a Marked. I see it on your hand,’ said the voice.

Nicolai repressed the urge to let out a sigh of irritation. He needed to get a glove.

‘Would you like a quest? It’s a good one. You’ll get something nice as a reward, I’m sure of that. Better still, you’ll be able to complete it alongside what you’ve come here to do anyway. What I want is down there in the mines.’

Nicolai didn’t trust this being at all. Even less than Maric. Much less than Kleos. There was an air of manipulation and calculation to it. But I do want that quest, and I do want that reward.

‘What is it you want?’ he asked.

‘My heart,’ said the voice, and now there was something in its tone. ‘They stuck me in here, cut my heart out and threw it into the mines.’ Its volume had raised slightly and Nicolai recognised it, now, the thing in its voice: Anger. ‘I want it back, that’s all,’ hissed Forgotten, and its voice was pressing, hungry. ‘It shouldn’t be too hard to find. It will stand out.’

Nicolai’s Mark flickered, flaring with gold. In the momentary light Nicolai saw a corpse lying propped against the wall in the corner of the room. It didn’t look much different to any other, except that there was a great gaping hole in one side of its chest. For a moment, he thought he saw movement in there.

His hologram emerged from his Mark and filled his vision.

Heart of Darkness

A being calling itself Forgotten wishes you to find its heart. It says its heart was thrown into the mines.

Retrieve the heart, and return it to Forgotten, or refuse and keep it for yourself, to complete this quest. If you choose to keep the heart, that will constitute the quests reward and you will not receive a reward shrine.

Nicolai read through it then stilled a moment, before suddenly shuffling closer to the corpse. He leaned forwards, and reached out while thinking examine, his fingers touching on wasted flesh.

Old Corpse

An old, withered corpse.

Nicolai sat back, uncertain. He’d expected more information. He considered putting his hand into the hole but his imagination immediately filled with visions of snapping teeth and poisoned stingers, and he opted to keep his fingers out.

‘Satisfied?’ asked Forgotten.

Nicolai’s spine crawled. He didn’t like this creature.

‘What are you?’ he asked. ‘Or what were you in life? What species?’

‘I’m just me, nothing to worry about.’ Forgotten chuckled, then it spoke, quick and assuring. ‘I would like to add that the quest need not be all your reward. That is between you and Heaven. But between you and me… do as I ask, and I can help you in other ways. I am good at gathering information, and I know many things. How about this: bring me my heart, and I will answer any five questions, about anything, absolutely anything. If I don’t know the answer on the spot, I will search as long as I need to, until I find the answer. How does that sound to you, human?’

‘How do you know I’m human?’ asked Nicolai. He’d never said so. The other things here didn’t seem to recognise humans. Even Kleos had been confused by that. He also didn’t miss how the corpse had quickly moved on and even offered him a second reward after he’d begun prying for details about it.

‘I know many things,’ said Forgotten. ‘But information does not come freely. Find my heart.’

‘Why should I believe you? I trust that Heaven will reward me if I complete the quest. But you? There’s nothing guaranteeing it.’

Forgotten chuckled. ‘But there can be, can’t there? Do you wish to enter into a Contract?’

Nicolai considered that. He could only have three contracts, and he was in one with Kleos already. There was no need for him to enter into one with this thing right now. He could simply wait until he’d found its heart, then form a Contract before returning it. That way he would be free to make more in the mean time if necessary, which could be useful if it turned out to be harder to find its heart than it suggested.

‘Not right now,’ said Nicolai. ‘So that would be your guarantee? A contract?’

‘If you do not trust my word, then yes,’ said Forgotten.

Nicolai did not trust its word. ‘We’ll see,’ he said, and he paused, connecting to his Seed. Perhaps he could learn a little more with Soul Sense. The tendrils spread over towards Forgotten, and felt around it. It felt dark and dead. But in the centre, in the hole, there was something else. Something his Soul Sense shifted over without being able to touch, as though he ran it over an orb of slippery glass.

‘You should be careful with these.’ Something grabbed one of his Soul Sense tendrils and twisted it, Nicolai wincing with pain and shock as he rapidly pulled it back.

Nicolai eyed the corpse, his skin prickling. Time to go.

‘Which way to the mines?’ he asked.

Forgotten was helpful enough to give him some quick directions, describing the layout of the prison. It seemed the place was a big circle, as he’d predicted, and in the middle the mine could be found. The prison tunnel he was in was on the edge of the prison.

His route, then, should be towards the centre. He sent one last, gauging glance at the corpse. It simply lay there, slumped, wordless. He stepped out the cell, glad to be leaving the strange, off-putting occupant. Onwards, then.