Dark Fate

Book 14 – Quel’thalas

Prologue – Trade Chat

(Internal Discussion Forum, CRN Mercurial)

**SECURE FORUM. DO NOT LINK TO EXTERNAL SITES.**

WrenchMonkey, Sulu, Trapper, Goddess, Critter, Bookworm, Shinobi, Snake, Skipper, Bloodsucker, Bobcat, Kitten, Heretic, Puritan, Charmander, Professor, Anonymous1, Rerun, Doc, ThoughtSo, BadGirl, CallMeDaddy, Hentai, and Chatty are in the chat.

WrenchMonkey: Fortunately, we were far enough back from the actual fighting that Mercurial didn’t take any shots. Fighter crews weren’t as lucky.

Bloodsucker: Yeah, but the flight ops managed to get a few escape pods, so not all the downed pilots died. A couple are still in medical, but at least they’re alive.

Critter: Still, losing anyone hurts. It isn’t a game out here. We have to be at our best, and even then the best isn’t always good enough. But Beast Squadron will bounce back from this. Scuttlebutt says there are no more engagements foreseen between now and us getting back to Ceres, so hopefully we’ll be back at full strength before our next fight.

Professor: It is just weird, knowing that they were here yesterday, and now they’re gone.

Puritan: But there are six billion people on that planet that are alive because we were able to take out those ships, and burning out the surface defenses allowed the boots on the ground to kill off the local Queens. They still have a bunch of cleanup left, but it looks like Ulora is safe, for the moment.

Charmander: That’s what I’m holding on to. But doesn’t make it easier. I knew Padawan my whole life. We went to the same school, and everything. Now he’s just… gone.

Anonymous1 is now named DarkLord.

DarkLord: There are two things you can do for the fallen. Live your life that much more, so that their sacrifice meant something, and turn your wrath upon the enemy, so that they do not have the chance to take from you ever again.

Bloodsucker: Wait, DarkLord? Isn’t that the Admiral’s handle?

DarkLord: It is. I had intended on just lurking, but I figured this was a topic I should weigh in on. It is a fact of command, and of war, that you will lose people, even if you are perfect. Eventually, the overall losses become statistics, but when the individuals you know dying no longer moves you, then it is time for you to step back, away from the front line.

BadGirl: So, it doesn’t ever get easier?

DarkLord: Yes, and no. As I said, the individual losses hurt, when someone you’ve known for years dies. When those losses stop hurting, you’re on your way to becoming little more than a monster. But the wider casualty numbers eventually become less painful, less traumatic, like a dull ache or cracked rib instead of a gaping wound.

Professor: “The death of one man is a tragedy. The death of a million is a statistic.”

DarkLord: Yes, the famous Stalin quote. Each of those individuals in the million is a personal tragedy for someone, but you should not feel bad if the million as a whole leaves you numb. That is just human nature.

DarkLord: And I will remind you all that the Chaplains and Counselors are available. There is no shame in getting help processing this.

Bobcat: Hope this isn’t too forward, but did you ever get therapy? You said you’ve been in multiple time loops, right? That has to have been crazy.

DarkLord: The first time through, I did not. Didn’t have the time for it, when pirates were taking over Earth and things were literally burning to the ground. I was thrown into the forefront of an army built from scratch, desperately trying to throw out the invaders. I didn’t have time. If I had made time, or at least confided in someone, perhaps I wouldn’t have been betrayed, or at least I would have seen it coming. Who knows?

DarkLord: As for now? Well, I do have a session every two weeks with a counselor back on Ceres, but these are old wounds for me, and I’ve worked hard to ensure I do not make the same mistakes again.

Chatty: Really? I mean, you usually seem all put together. Not saying this right, but y’know?

DarkLord: That is because I’ve had a bit more perspective on things. And, as a Greater Incubus, having a healthy sex life keeps me balanced and thinking clearly.

Hentai: So, you literally fuck your problems away? Damn! That sounds awesome!

Heretic: What he isn’t saying is that when an Incubus or Succubus doesn’t get enough sex, they have a tendency to spiral out of control more easily.

Puritan: Oh, Heeereeetiiic! What have you been up to? Iceman and I saw you and Goddess slipping out of the cantina with a yummy bit of man meat sandwiched between you. And Trigger saw you coming back to our berths this morning. Did my favorite Catholic schoolgirl get naughty?

Hentai: Ooh, Heretic and Goddess tag teamed some lucky guy? Damn, I wish there was video of that!

Goddess: No, there is no video!

Kitten: But something definitely happened, hmm?

Critter: *laughs* Might as well get it out in the open, girls. I don’t think these louts are going to stop until the tea is spilled.

Heretic: Well, um, yes, we did hook up with a guy. Together. And spent the night in his quarters.

Skipper: Not just ‘a guy’. I do believe I saw you heading through Officer Country when I got off shift. *chuckles*

Sulu: Wait, the Skipper knows who it is? What do you say, boss? Got details for us lowly scrubs? Did you go picking up pilots last night?

Skipper: Oh, I’m happily married, but I did see them, and heard a couple things this morning, while I was doing paperwork. I think I’ll let these three decide what, and how much, to tell.

Bookworm: Paperwork? Ooh! Did you get hitched? Is there going to be a shotgun wedding?

Goddess: No! I am not getting married. Though, um, there was a bit of ‘change in status’.

Heretic: Yes. It seems that, while our date was fucking us senseless, he asked us something, and we agreed.

Puritan: So, there was some three-way fucking going on! Yes! Now, we just need a name so we can see who won the pool!

Goddess: You were betting on whether we hooked up with someone?

Puritan: Oh, there were a couple people who betted against that, looking for the longshot, but most of the bets were on WHO you got with. Current leader is Lieutenant Yokota, or Sulu as he’s known on the forum.

Sulu: What? I’m a helmsman, and I was Asian-American before I became Ceresan. It fits!

ThoughtSo: He’s also not the guy, because he was in MY bunk last night, thank you very much!

Puritan: Damn. That leaves Chief Engineer Thomson as the next most likely, at 2 to 1 odds.

CallMeDaddy: Who is the longest odds?

Puritan: Longest odds is the Skipper, at 45 to 1. Followed closely by DarkLord himself, at 40 to 1. They’re both too important to go slumming in the cantina, after all, so someone would have noticed them.

DarkLord: Unless, of course, they were able to shapeshift or use glamours.

BadGirl: Wait, so you mean?

DarkLord: Just because I have a normal ‘human’ guise does not mean I can’t take on other looks. After the excitement of the day, I needed a good meal.

Puritan: All right. So, there was only one vote for DarkLord… and it was by DarkLord. Damnit, why didn’t I notice that!

DarkLord: Probably because I placed the bet electronically.

Puritan: Bah, cheating bastard! *pouts* Fine, sending your winnings along.

DarkLord: Thank you for the lovely contribution. I’ve already set aside some of the funds to ensure that the cantina is well stocked when we hit our next port.

Snake: So, if DarkLord won the pot, what was the change of status Goddess mentioned?

Goddess: Well, um, we have a Master now.

Hentai: OOOH! I’m coming over now! TELL ME EVERYTHING!

Chapter 131 – Arrival

(Flag Bridge, CRN Mercurial, Quel’thalas System)

“Report.”

“Yes, sir,” Lieutenant Ferranti said, her breath a bit ragged, but otherwise recovered from the transition. “Stitch completed four minutes and fifty-seven seconds ago. We arrived at the L2 stitch point for the main planet Quel’thalas, as predicted. All ships accounted for, with all systems green.”

I nodded slowly as the nausea began to fade. It had taken three stitches to get to the capitol of the System Commonwealth from Ulora. Even with a drive that could cover twenty light-years in a blink of an eye, space was vast, and Quel’thalas was almost fifty light-years from Ulora, and sixty from Earth. “Very good. How’s the system look?”

“Busy, sir. Lots of traffic, going all over the place. Mostly civilian, by the IFF markers.” She brought up a map of the system. Fairly standard, for the most part. Nine planets total. Three rocky inner planets, with four gas giants in the outer system. The only outlier was the twin planets third out from the sun. The two Earth-like planets actually spun in a tight orbit of each other as they twirled around the star, forming a binary system. What was remarkable about them was that they were somehow not only roughly the same mass, with the secondary planet, Quel’danas being roughly three fourths the mass of Quel’thalas, but were in a stable orbit. Magic had to be involved.

Tearing my gaze away from the confounding display of astrophysics being turned on its head, I looked at the rest of what the plot had to show me. Every planet and moon in this system had some kind of settlement or station around it. Even the gas giants had mining stations set over the atmosphere. This was what a modern developed system under the System was supposed to look like, not like Ulora, which had been devastated by the Incux incursion.

A stream of civilian shipping and shuttles dashed to and fro, crossing the gulf between worlds. I saw some ships stitch out, heading to other parts of the Commonwealth. Everything I saw said that this was a healthy, thriving system, rich with opportunity, if one knew how to work the system.

There were also, naturally, quite a few naval vessels and defensive stations to ensure the capitol of the System Commonwealth did not fall. The ‘Home Fleet’, as Captain Presxalim had called it, numbered four hundred and eighty-six ships, and was further reinforced by the System Guard, comprising almost a hundred corvettes, and nearly a thousand system patrol craft, about the size of our Renegades. And every planet had fighter squadrons to help protect them, in addition to those on the navy’s ships.

“Sir, we’re being hailed. Ship identified as the CNV Talanas Windrunner. Classification: Super-Dreadnought.”

I recognized that name. Presxalim had said that it was the largest ship in the Home Fleet, easily twice the size of other super-dreadnoughts. It was named after a famous general, apparently, who had dedicated his life to defending the people of Quel’thalas, before the formation of the Commonwealth. Ever since, the Windrunners had been major players in the Commonwealth’s power structure. “The Windrunner, hmm? Well, I suppose it is a sign of respect that we get a call from their Home Fleet’s flagship. Put it through here.”

The screen in front of me came on, and a proud knelfi in a uniform that was far more decorated than Presxalim’s had been appeared. “I am Grand Admiral Giramar Windrunner, Supreme Commander of the Commonwealth Fleet. On behalf of the System Commonwealth, I welcome the representatives of the Kingdom of Ceres and the Ceres Royal Navy to Quel’thalas.”

I nodded my head respectfully. “I am Admiral Zayn Green of the Ceres Royal Navy, and ruler of the Kingdom of Ceres and all her territories. I thank you, Admiral, for your welcome. May this be the start of a friendship that benefits both our peoples.”

Admiral Windrunner nodded once, and his demeanor shifted. “Excellent. Now that the formal bit is out of the way, let me inform you that the records of your battles so far from the Neverending Duty and Light’s Hope have caused quite the stir. However, the more… reactionary types have been silenced by the way you have proven yourselves through deeds, rather than just words. Repairing the Neverending Duty and aiding in the defense of Ulora, even when Incux reinforcements showed themselves? That won you more than a few friends, and more who are willing to wait and see how negotiations play out.”

I chuckled. “Well, I would be a liar if I said that I did not think something of the sort would happen when I set that course. However, just like Captain Presxalim had a reason that would stand up to pragmatic scrutiny for chasing the hiveship, while holding a more altruistic motive for his actions, I can say that it was more than mere pragmatism that drove me to act. Everything I know about the Incux says that they are a scourge, which must be wiped clean from the worlds they inhabit, or else they will desolate the entire galaxy.”

“True enough. It is always good when duty and righteousness walk hand in hand. And I did see the recording of that speech you gave to your people, with Presxalim. That definitely won you some respect in the Navy, if nowhere else.”

“I don’t doubt that Presxalim and his crew would have done everything in their power to take down the hiveship, even sacrificing themselves to destroy it. The fact that they did not have to does not change the resolve they set out on their chase with. That deserved to be honored, and as a warrior who has looked death itself in the face more times than I care to think about, I could not let it go unmarked, even if it hadn’t been politically advantageous to do so.”

“Well said,” the Admiral nodded. “I know that you are likely going to be busy in the next few days and weeks, as the diplomats try to do their thing, but if you can find time, my aunt, President Windrunner, is hosting a party at the family estate three days from now, and she wished to invite you personally.”

A subtle way of asking me to attend a gathering with the person who was, according to Presxalim, the leader of the Commonwealth as a whole, and certainly the key power figure on Quel’thalas. “I can hardly say no to such an invitation,” I said with a smile. “Please inform the President that it would be my delight to attend her party. I will make sure to keep my schedule clear for it.” Though I doubted that any of the diplomats would actually schedule anything to compete with the party. Even if they were in rival factions, they had to know that an invitation from the President could not be easily cast aside, especially if it was offered first.

That, of course, was likely the reason why the Admiral had made the invitation, while being the first to contact us. There was no room for any other group to get in ahead of her, so the President could mark out the time and place without other considerations. In addition, the party being a few days from now allowed the stodgy parts to be handled, and for her to get a better read on us, and on what other factions might be approaching us. Which could alter her strategy for the meeting.

Clearly, this President knew how to navigate political waters. That was both useful, and potentially quite troublesome. Useful, in that I wasn’t going to be dealing with some idiot who thought of pomp and circumstance and their own sense of self-importance. Someone like that would have demanded that their party be on the first night, and would likely have pushed through a call themselves, to show how very important they were. This way was far more circumspect, which showed at least a semblance of decorum and strategy.

Which led to the potentially troublesome bit. An idiot was easy to either outmaneuver, or shut down. Especially when you were not going to stick around to deal with the fallout. A strategist, however, made plans, and that meant it was harder to work around them. More importantly, if they were the spiteful sort, they often had plans on how to make refusing them hurt in ways that an idiot simply couldn’t manage.

It would, at the very least, make for a very interesting night.

But Admiral Windrunner was continuing the conversation. “I understand from the transmissions that the Light’s Hope sent ahead that you would prefer having all your ships docked together, or at least in adjacent parking orbits, rather than separating out military and civilian areas. There is precedent for that, when dealing with official delegations, so there shouldn’t be any problems on that end.”

“I am glad to hear that, Admiral. Not that I distrust the Commonwealth, or its people, but my people have an old saying that it is better to keep the cookie jar out of reach, rather than just telling the children not to touch it. Cookies being a sweet pastry that are near-universally beloved by children, who often dislike their parents telling them not to overindulge.”

“Haha,” the Admiral laughed. “Yes, we have similar treats, and sayings, as well. Some things, we’ve found, are universal, and it seems that is true, even in places that are without the System.” A beep on his end caused him to look away from the camera briefly, but he was smiling as he looked back. “And it would seem that System Control has cleared a path for you to a parking orbit near Farstrider Station, with a docking port at the station itself for the diplomatic vessel, and there are shuttles ready to ferry crew to the military side of the station for shore leave. And clearance has been granted for diplomatic shuttles, with a small escort, to land at the Sunwell, the primary starport on Quel’thalas. Transmitting the information now.”

I checked my screen, and saw the various parking information, transit routes, and port procedures coming up on my screen. The parking orbits gave the Mercurial and Demon’s Roar coverage of Si Vis Pacem’s docking port, and the approaches. A good compromise, in my opinion. “Very good. My complements to your people, and to System Control for such quick work. From what my scanners show me, they certainly have enough on their plates as it is, so we won’t take up more of their time than is necessary.”

“It is only expected. This is the heart of the Commonwealth, after all. Things have actually slowed a bit, with a replacement fleet leaving to reinforce Ulora and the front lines against the Incucx. But I should let you get back to your ships. Until we meet again, Admiral.”

“Until we meet again.” As the connection cut off, and the screen turned back to a plot of the system, I looked over to my aide. “Lieutenant, ensure that the parking information and port procedures are sent to all ships. All captains are to work out a rotation for shore leave. But no more than one half of the crew off ship at any time, save for emergencies.”

“As you say, sir. What about the delegations to the surface? Will you leave now, or wait until after we reach orbit?”

“The brats over on the Si Vis Pacem will throw a fit if I shuttle down without them, and the Princess is there, as well. She’ll be the worst of the lot if we leave her out of this. No, we’ll hit orbit, and then I’ll make my way to the Si Vis Pacem, and go down with the rest of the diplomats. But do call down to the flight bay, and get Beast Squadron to arrange a flight to escort the shuttles down.”

“It will be done, Admiral. What about the CAP?”

“Friendly port levels. A pair from Angel Squadron, with another pair on standby. That ought to be enough to keep people from violating restricted space, without being too aggressive. We’re guests, after all. Wouldn’t want to make it look like we’re trying to claim ownership of anything.”

“As you say, sir.”

Chapter 132 – Foreign Soil

(Shuttle ‘Ceres One’, Quel’thalas Orbit)

“Daddy!”

I laughed as Lilith rushed into my arms the moment the shuttle door opened. “Well, Lilith, have you been good? Not tormenting the diplomats too much, I hope?”

She chuckled. “Oh, don’t worry, Daddy. I only played with them a little. Got to know our Ambassador, and really got to know the Chinese and American ambassadors.”

Lee Mendoza

Dwarf Male

Level 25 Scholar / Diplomat

Titles: Silver-Tongued, Sly, Ambassador

Attributes: <Redacted>

Market Value: 35000 gp

I looked over her shoulder, where a dwarven man was standing. Lee Mendoza had been a diplomat for the US, back in the day, but had quit in the early 2000s, hoping to retire. The Apocalypse gave him his youth back, as well as turning him into a Dwarf. Unfortunately, the Scholar class was not well suited to combat, meaning a life as an adventurer wasn’t in the cards for him.

Thankfully, when we revealed ourselves to the world, Mendoza decided that this was his chance to take on challenges the likes of which he’d never dreamed of. Not to mention that he would get to satisfy a boyhood dream of actually being able to go to space. Even if it was no moon landing, getting to head out to space? That was a dream come true.

So, naturally, I decided to put him to work as being my Ambassador to the Systems Commonwealth. I’d be a fool not to use someone of his talents, after all. And I was many things, but a fool was not one of them. Not this time through the Apocalypse, at least.

“Mendoza, good to see you again,” I said, holding out a hand to shake. He returned the gesture with a firm grip. “I hope Lilith hasn’t been causing you any trouble?”

The man chuckled, and shook his head. “Oh, no, your Majesty. No trouble at all. In fact, she took it upon herself to go and speak to the American and Chinese ambassadors. They’ve been far less confrontational since their private chat with her. So much easier to deal with.”

“Haha, I’m glad to hear it. And what about the others? Not too much trouble, I hope?”

“No, not at all. Once you sent over that message at the start of the trip, they all got nice and quiet. Most of it was showmanship, anyways. The diplomatic equivalent of saber rattling. Sometimes it can get you in an advantageous position, so it is worth trying, but there wasn’t any real animosity behind it.”

“All right. The shuttles are all prepped, and our escort fighters are already on station, so let’s get everyone on board their shuttles, and get down to the surface.”

That much was easy to say, in theory. However, in practice, there were a few kinks to work out. We had two shuttles for the diplomats, each capable of carrying twenty people in relative comfort. Each delegation was allotted two slots on the shuttles for this first round: the ambassador or chief of mission, and one aide. Each shuttle had four marines to guard it. That only came to sixteen people, so it wasn’t overcrowded.

Of course, the issue came in dividing which delegations went in which shuttle together. More jockeying for position and clout. I’d settled the issue by deciding for them, and informing anyone who complained about the company that they could stay on the ship if they didn’t like it. That ended the squabble, and fast.

That was how Shuttle Two had the US, Russian, Japanese, Cuban, North Korean, and French delegations on it, and Shuttle Three had the Chinese, UK, German, Venezuelan, Egyptian, and Malaysian delegations. Of course, Ceres One, which was what any shuttle I was on got designated, had my delegation, which was me, Lilith, Mendoza, and his aide, along with eight marines. Not all those marines were going to be guarding the shuttle, obviously. Four of them were an honor guard for Lilith and myself. We were royalty, after all, so some appearances needed to be maintained.

Thanks to all of that, it only took ten minutes for the delegations to board their shuttles, and launch back into the void. Four fighters from Beast Squadron flanked our shuttles, escorting us down to the planet. They were joined by another four fighters from the Commonwealth Navy, taking up formation with our shuttles.

The Commonwealth fighters were small, dagger-shaped things. The cockpit was tight, but large enough for two people, a pilot and gunner. According to the scans, they sported two turrets, one on either side, allowing the gunner to shoot in any direction. The size of the turrets meant that they were only good for point defense, or taking on other fighters. There was also a heavy plasma blaster at the front of the fighter, but that was locked forward. That thing could be used against ships, if what I was reading was correct.

It was an impressive little design, though I could see weaknesses in it. For one thing, requiring both gunner and pilot to operate effectively meant that you needed more personnel for half the machines. It was something I’d dealt with, myself, with the Renegades, but these fighters didn’t have anywhere near the punch of my beauties.

Another problem was that there were no missiles. Sure, they saved on weight and space, since they didn’t need to carry physical ammunition, but the fighters lacked the versatility that missiles offered. Their weapons were all energy blasts or plasma bolts. They didn’t run out of ammo, but they also couldn’t track targets, and were relatively short range. Range advantages and tracking capabilities were good things in a fight, as my fighters had proven when going up against the Incux swarmfighters over Ulora.

On the other hand, they had used the space they did have effectively. The engines were probably ten percent more powerful than the ones on my A-pattern Interceptors, with shields equivalent to the ones on the X-pattern fighters. That gave them significantly more speed and durability than their size implied, which was always an advantage for fighters.

I was drawn away from my thoughts on fighter design as we approached the capitol of Quel’thalas. Looking on from above, the city seemed to reflect the sunlight everywhere, as brilliant white and gold contrasted against beautiful reds. Graceful towers rose into the sky, and I could see glimmering crystals in places, floating in the air. According to the System, the capitol’s name translated to Silver Moon City. While there wasn’t much silver, as far as I could see, it certainly had the beauty to live up to such a name.

There was no trouble as we landed at the starport. A large landing area had been cleared for us, and our escorts. The four Commonwealth fighters peeled off as we landed, as did my fighters, returning to the Mercurial. There was no telling how long we’d be on the ground, so it didn’t make sense to have the pilots sitting in their craft the whole time. The shuttle pilots and their guards could rest in their shuttles, and they had plenty of food, but the fighters were not designed with such luxuries in mind.

As the shuttle doors opened, a new bit of theater commenced. The four guards for each shuttle marched down the ramp, each of them in their full kit, each one in perfect synchronization not just with the others on their shuttle, but with the guards of the other two shuttles, as well. Even knowing that they were using the HUDs in their helmets to synchronize their movements, it was still an impressive display. There was a reason why everyone said that putting on a show was the second-best thing the Navy was good at, and the Marines were no exception to that.

Once the guards took up positions flanking the bottom of the ramp, I stepped off the shuttle, with Lilith at my side, and Mendoza and his aide behind me. The four honor guards marched behind them, in dress uniforms instead of full battle armor. They were very much armed, though, as each held their rifle, and had a sword at their side.

Facing us was a welcoming committee. Twenty guards in stylized armor of red and gold stood in perfect formation, holding tower shields in one hand. They were all knelfi, though there was a mix of men and women in their ranks. In their right hand, they held what might be described as a two-bladed scimitar. Stylized curved blades were on either end, and they practically glowed with magic. Clearly, they could be used one-handed, like a normal blade, or in two hands, allowing for some combination of staff and blade techniques to be used. I would have to see if I could acquire one of these weapons, if only to practice with.

In front of the guards were a knelfi man and woman, both dressed in highly stylized (but highly practical) armor. Both had ornate blades at their side. The woman’s was smaller, one-handed, but she had a shield as well. The man’s blade was longer, and the pommel had a great golden orb at its end.

The man stepped forward, and offered a bow. Not subservient, but at least acknowledging our presence. “Greetings, your royal majesty, King Zayn Greene and honored guests. On behalf of the Systems Commonwealth, welcome to Quel’thalas, and to Silver Moon City. I am Ranger-General Lathlaeril Theron, leader of the armed forces of Quel’thalas. With me is Lady Liadren, Matriarch of the Order of Blood Knights, the ancestral defenders of Silver Moon.”

I nodded my head regally, and said, “Well met, General Theron, Lady Liadren. May this meeting be the first of many, as we take on the scourge that is the Incux.”

“Well said,” Liadren nodded. “If you will come with us, we have prepared transports to take you to the Capitol, where representatives from the Senate would like to meet you, and the other delegates. A reception is planned, as well, to honor this first meeting.”

The transports were luxurious red vehicles, that were essentially flying cars. They were clearly marked with the symbol of the Systems Commonwealth, indicating that these were government vehicles. So, perhaps these red aircars were the local equivalent to a black SUV? They were certainly defensive enough, if the strength of the wards was any indication. There was so much magic running through the protective wards that I could feel my teeth tingle as I got into the car with Liadren and Theron.

Once the door closed, Theron leaned forward. “So, I know you must get tired of answering these questions, but, when I heard that there were multiple timestrikes in your system, I had to know more. Timestrikes are rare, for a reason. That is not magic to play around with. People who have survived one, much less multiple timestrikes are all but unheard of. What happened in your system?”

“Ah, well, the first timeline I was a part of, not long after the System came online, I stumbled upon the lair of a mad alchemist. He was a pitiable sort. The System turned him into a Lesser Incubus, which gave with it the hungers, and drawbacks, of that form. Unfortunately for him, prior to the System, he was only attracted to men.”

Liadren winced. “Oh, I have heard of tales where someone was transformed by magic or curses, and they had trouble adjusting to the instincts of their new form. It is one of the reasons that young vampires or were-beasts have so much trouble controlling themselves until they’ve had time to adjust. To have something like that, while not knowing about the System until just then must have been torture for him.”

“Yes, it drove him mad. Unfortunately for everyone around him, however, the class the System gave him was Puppet Master.” There was a scowl from Theron, which I answered with a nod. “We did not know anything about the System, so no one knew how terrible an insane Puppet Master and Alchemist could be. At the time, I was a Lesser Angel, and a Swordsman, and had some silly ideals about becoming a hero, like out of old stories. Unfortunately, the battle was worse than I had expected, since I had to fight through his minions to get to him.

“I almost died. In fact, I would have died, had I not picked up a random potion in desperation, looking for something to knit my body back together, and keep me from bleeding out. What I found was not a Healing Potion, however, but a Unique Potion, created by the Alchemist in his madness. The potion cursed me, taking away my race and class, and turning me into a unique being called the Black Knight.

“It was not long after that when pirates invaded, seeing a world ripe for the taking. Governments, already weakened by the cataclysm, fell, all around the world. Warlords took over large swathes of territory, raping and pillaging as they pleased. It was hell.”

I paused, and said, “So, as the Black Knight, I took up my sword, and began to raise an army of other survivors to try and throw off the invaders. Unfortunately, I was still blinded by stories from my youth. I was betrayed, by those I trusted most. In spite and wrath, I unleashed the power of two artifacts that I had gathered, and unintentionally created the first timestrike, coming back with my memories intact. After that, well, I tried to do things differently. But I was not the only one who remembered.”

Chapter 133 – Senators

“Ah, your Majesty! Such an honor to meet you! I hope that you are enjoying this little reception?”

The person speaking was just one of a number of seemingly unimportant senators that made up the legislative body of the Commonwealth. Oh, not that Senator was an unimportant position, not in the slightest. It was just that, in any organization, there were those with true power, and those without. Of course, someone that may seem powerless on the face of things might be different beneath the surface.

I smiled at the corpse-like man in front of me. No, not corpse-like. He was an actual undead, from some human-like race. I didn’t know whether he was a naturally arising undead, or created, and such things were considered rude to ask, in most situations. That didn’t matter to me, anyways.

I, of course, was in my ‘formal armor’, which was really just my normal gear, since it looked ornate enough. For this party, I’d decided to come openly as a Greater Incubus, rather than hiding behind my usual glamour. Not having the wings made getting in and out of cars easier, of course, but for making an impression on politicians being an actual demon was far more effective.

“Senator Putress! Yes, I have to say that it is a lovely party. My talents lie more towards the battlefield than high society, I’m afraid, but it is good to get a chance to see some of the movers and shakers in a group that I’m hoping for friendly relations with. You’re one of the ones I was interested in meeting, actually.”

“Really? Well, I am honored, of course, but surely you would be more interested in the Orkad senator, Go’el Earthbinder? He was a warrior, back in the day, before he found religion and became insufferable to be around. Or perhaps Cairne Bloodhoof, of the Minos? He is a powerful warrior, and has not shed his ways. Though he does complain about his son having a tendency to just sit around and do nothing so much that one forgets he even exists.”

I chuckled, and shook my head. Putress’s words sounded cheery, even joking, if you just listened to the tone, but there was venom in them. This man was a viper, coiled to strike, and just looking for an opening. These were the people you needed to know, either so you could cut off their heads, or you could safely direct them to targets you actually wished destroyed.

“Yes, but neither of them are the senator overseeing the Science and Magic Development Committee. I may not be a researcher myself, but I have always appreciated the efforts of those who are. Especially when they come up with new ways of destroying my enemies.”

“Ah, so you heard about that little test I arranged on Halcien IV, did you? I must admit, that was some of my better work. Even if I didn’t achieve complete eradication, leaving only two percent of the Incux on the planet alive while still preserving the majority of the biosphere is a triumph that few have been able to match.”

“Yes, General Theron looked at it with some distaste, but he’s a military man, and he understands that sometimes one must do terrible things in order to win a war. Especially when one’s very existence is at stake.”

“But according to the reports, you have some interesting weapons in your arsenal, as well, your Majesty. Weaponized negative matter? And nonmagical guided munitions? Those are concepts we have not seen before.”

“Well, the munitions are really just an adaptation of something that Earth has had for quite some time. Without the System, humans were forced to get creative to solve a bunch of problems. There was no magic to fall back on, so we advanced our science accordingly. Interestingly enough, those munitions, which we call ‘missiles’, can be modified to carry different payloads. Including chemical, or even biological payloads, like the Plague you developed.”

“Really? How interesting. That would open up all new options for dealing with the Incux. Perhaps even allowing ways to clear out and capture some of their hiveships or even a swarmship!”

“Yes, that was my thought exactly. And humans have developed many sorts of missiles, of various types. Some of the most feared, before the System came to Earth, were intercontinental in range. And the first ventures we made off our planet were on what were basically missiles with people inside them.”

“Fascinating! And you did all this without the benefit of the System, or any magic at all? Your materials science must be quite advanced. It is little wonder you weaponized negative matter, then.”

“Ah, those weapons were actually the brainchild of someone I picked up off the Minion Market. Unfortunately, her particular brand of genius frightened those around her. They enslaved and sold her off so that she wouldn’t be a threat to them. All the better for me, since she was eager to prove her capabilities.”

“Really? And where did this minion come from, if you don’t mind me asking? If her people are so willing to throw away talent because they are scared of what they come up with, there might be more gems to uncover in the Minion Market.”

“She is one of the Fimaazro. A feline race. According to the System shop, their homeworld is in another arm of the galaxy entirely.”

“Ah, yes. I have heard of them, and seen some of them in the Market before. Clever workers, and very dexterous with their fingers. But a little too flighty for any concentrated research, in my experience. Pity. You must have found a special case.”

“Well, she certainly is special. But perhaps we can work out some kind of trade in the future? Your Plague is a good weapon to have in one’s arsenal, and missile technology would have benefits to more than just its deployment for you.”

“Hmm. That is an idea. Unfortunately, trade deals are not in my purview. Apparently, they believe that having a researcher make trades is problematic. So I have to go through the Trade Council, so they can get the best price and all that, meanwhile I am left waiting for resources so that I can continue my research. It is terribly annoying, I tell you.”

I chuckled as I scanned the room, and smiled. “Well, it looks like your Senator Gallywix is speaking with my Ambassador Mendoza. Gallywix is head of the Trade Council, isn’t he? Perhaps a mention to them about the Plague and the missiles would start that ball rolling?”

“Excellent! That blasted Govlin doesn’t care for anything but coin, but the mention that there is a possible trade to be made will send him scurrying to hurry up and make the deal. Yes, I will go speak to them at once! I simply must have this new technology for my studies!”

I shook my head as I watched Putress head off, intent on forcing a trade into existence at the soonest possible moment. Academics were all the same, no matter their field. Their research was the most important thing in the world to them, and nothing else mattered. That made them easy to push along and guide, so long as you weren’t trying to keep them from researching their passions.

“Ah, Daddy! I have someone you absolutely must meet!”

I turned my head to see Lilith approaching, in her full glory as a succubus, with another demon on her arm. He was tall, with purple skin and great black horns on his head. Like me, he had wings sprouting from his back, and he was wearing a breastplate and other armor pieces that were certainly functional, despite their ornate appearance. Unlike me, this was no Incubus, not even a Greater Incubus.

Instead, he was a type of demon known as a greater dreadlord. While more powerful in combat than an incubus typically was, a dreadlord was still a manipulator and corruptor at heart. They did not seduce, but rather they would possess hosts, and directly manipulate organizations. A very dangerous foe to have, and an even more dangerous ally. For the dreadlords were all said to serve one master, no matter what they were doing out in the world, and their loyalty would always lie there, rather than with you.

That one was here, on Quel’thalas, in the heart of the Systems Commonwealth, was interesting enough. After all, according to the System, they were concentrated more towards the Core of the galaxy, where many of the oldest and most powerful civilizations lived. For one to be so far out was not unheard of, but it was rare. After all, there was little to be gained by manipulating events on this lonely spur of a single galactic arm, far from the halls of galactic power.

“Daddy, this is Lord Varimathras, an envoy from his people. He’s been here for quite some time, without seeing any others like us. Apparently, there aren’t many demons in this part of the galaxy, unless they are summoned.”

I nodded regally to the demon with a smile. “Lord Varimathras, it is a pleasure to meet you. I’m afraid I’ve never met another dreadlord before, in this timeline or the last that I remember, but I have heard many stories of your people. Some of them may even be true.”

“Yes,” the demon said, eyes glittering with cold amusement. “The cattle who roam about the stars do like to spread fanciful tales about my people. If you were to believe them, then we are all the creations of some long-forgotten scion serving a primordial power which has been secretly behind events all the way to the beginnings of life itself.”

“Well, it is a habit of the weak-minded to see conspiracies and greater powers moving behind the scenes. The idea that something is happening because of the great and powerful manipulating things in the shadows is more comforting to them than the idea that some things are simply beyond their control, or, worse, are their own damn fault.”

“Of course,” Lilith said, sweetly, “that doesn’t mean that there aren’t conspiracies in the wider galaxy. But so few of the actual conspiracies look like what the people who come up with the stories think they do. In my experience, it is more likely that, if some organization is behind events, it is less a grand master plan at work, and more a case of trying multiple things simultaneously, in hopes that, whatever the outcome, something happens that advances their cause, or can be used later to boost their agenda in some way.”

“Well, well, well,” Varimathras said. “I noticed before that Princess Lilith was not of the normal sort, and it seems she comes by that through you, King Zayn. This is a pleasant surprise indeed. There are only a few people in this Commonwealth that I have found to be truly worth my time, and not mere cattle to be prodded along, but I am glad to add to that list. Matching wits with the witless is so droll, you understand.”

I sighed theatrically. “Sadly, I am all too aware of that. There are also those who think that their position, representing someone of importance, makes them important, which is simply not the case. And those people, are the most contentious and irate when you do not immediately give them the respect that they feel they deserve. They like it even less when you treat them as they truly deserve, however.”

“True,” the demon nodded, “but it can be all the more entertaining to watch them as they try and cause some small measure of trouble for you in return for their wounded pride. Only they realize too late that their efforts simply decrease their own worth, and make others realize their foolishness. When done right, a person will simply destroy themselves, without you ever needing to lift a finger to push them over the edge. Ah, happy times.”

“Yes, I make it a hobby to play with those types. I actually had to deal with a couple incidents on the way here, as spoiled children tried to throw a tantrum. But they quieted down once I threatened to pull out the paddle.”

Varimathras laughed. “Yes, and they probably hated that all the more, which makes it even more delicious. You know, if you are heading out to the President’s party later in the week, you might stop and have a chat with her consort. He is not what you might call an amicable sort, but he is never one to inflate one’s ego, so any praise he might give is well-earned. He is slavishly loyal to his lady, but he is also one of the few who might sway her, once she has chosen a course. Something to consider, no?”

I chuckled. “Indeed. Something to consider. I find myself looking forward to that party more and more as time passes.”

Chapter 134 – Consort

Taking the demon’s advice, I asked around, and was pointed to a balcony looking over the ballroom where the reception was being held. Stepping away from the press of people was slightly difficult, since I was the center of attention, but all it took was a bit of creativity and the unknowing help of the Japanese and North Korean dignitaries, and I was able to slip away while they both started talking about their governments, and the kinds of things they had to offer in trade, both looking to draw in some trade deals early.

Once I was out of the main press of the party, getting through the corridor and up the nearby stairs to the balcony was simple enough. There were guards in the halls, but they were there to provide some protection, as well as keep anyone from going out of the public areas. The balcony might be out of the middle of things, but it, and the stairs leading to it, were still open to the public. No one stopped me as I brushed the curtain aside to step onto the balcony.

“Ah, so the triumphant hero of Ulora deigns to grace me with his presence.”

The sole occupant of the balcony did not even turn to look at me as he spoke. His words were cold, and full of mocking scorn. Instantly, I could tell that this man was not impressed by my titles, or by my actions so far. He certainly felt no need to fawn over me, or even be respectful. I hadn’t earned that, in his eyes.

Honestly, it was a bit refreshing. When you’re a king, everyone tends to fall all over themselves to be respectful and do whatever it takes to keep you happy. While that definitely wasn’t a bad thing, since it meant I could do whatever I wanted, it did get a bit tiresome after a while. It was like playing one of those MMORPGs where everyone in the world calls you ‘hero’ or ‘champion’. It sounds nice, the first twenty thousand times you hear it, but after a while having someone who wasn’t buying your hype can be a welcome change. Clearly, this consort of the President was just such a person.

“Well, a demon suggested I have a chat with the President’s consort before heading out to her estate later this week for a party,” I said, shrugging. “When I asked around, the staff pointed you out to me. You are Nathanos Marris, yes?”

The man offered a long, put-upon sigh, and turned to face me. He looked human, though I knew that his race was actually that of a High Lordaeronian. The alien race looked human enough, but there were a few key differences, mostly in the speed and strength departments. The race was a Tier 2 evolution of Lordaeronian, much like how Incubus was the Tier 2 evolution of Lesser Incubus.

He was dressed in leather armor that was both practical and ornate enough that it could serve as formal wear. Probably a dexterity-based combatant, like a rogue or ranger, if I had to guess. I did not see a weapon on his person, but that meant nothing when the System was a thing. Spatial pockets existed, after all, and when you weren’t traveling through dead magic or System-less areas, were far more convenient than simply keeping a weapon constantly at your side.

As I looked him over, I could see him doing the same to me. His eyes trailed over my armor, appraisingly. While I did not detect any kind of skill in use, it was clear he was making the same kind of judgements as I was. He wanted to see what kind of a threat I was, and possibly decide whether he should try and eliminate me now, before I could get close enough to his woman to do any damage. Clearly, he was more than a mere consort. Bodyguard as well, no doubt, and an assassin, when the situation demanded.

I could respect that role, and his motivations. It wouldn’t stop me from killing him, or at least trying, should things turn hostile, but I could respect it. That kind of loyalty was hard won, and never freely given.

Even I didn’t have anyone like that. Not really. Oh, Lilith was utterly loyal, but she was my daughter, and I had clearly done a good job raising her in the old timeline. The rest of my inner circle were all slaves. They had no choice but to be loyal, and to do as I commanded. That was not the same as the kind of loyalty I saw on display here.

Finally, he answered me. “Yes, I am Ranger Lord Nathanos Marris, consort and bodyguard to the President and former Ranger-General, Sylvanas Windrunner. And you are the so-called King Zayn Greene of the Kingdom of Ceres, a newfound kingdom comprising all of a single dwarf planet. Hardly someone to roll out such a spectacle for.”

I shrugged, and said, “I had similar feelings about this reception, but, sadly, sometimes the burden of leadership means one has to give the political animals what they want, if only so that they are nice and distracted, where they can’t cause any trouble. Worse, it is easier for those types to cause trouble when you have not yet fully established yourself as a power, as they start thinking that maybe they can push you around and get away with it. Even when it doesn’t work, you have to spend time and energy on combatting their foolishness. You’re lucky, in that your President has already well and truly established herself, so the scavengers looking to get scraps or wounded prey are easier to deal with, even if they may be more numerous.”

For a moment, the dour expression cracked, with a hint of a smirk arising, before it fell back into that typical sneer of his. When he spoke, however, there was just a touch less venom in his voice. “Hmph. Well, at least you aren’t completely useless. Whether there is actually any use to you is another question. Fortunately for you, that is not up to me to determine. The last time I had to determine someone’s usefulness, I sent them out to clear out the monsters that gather near my old home on Lordaeron.”

The slight shift suggested that, while I was far from impressing the man, I had, at least, passed some kind of test. Probably with how I admitted weakness without looking weak, or sounding like some pathetic wretch wanting protection. Confidence without arrogance, and pride enough that I would not beg, but not so much that it blinded me to reality, perhaps? Nathanos felt like a warrior of some sort, and being able to objectively read your own abilities, as well as those of others, was key in winning battles.

I nodded slowly. “Combat trials, then? Or a test to see how much scut work the mighty champions will do, just because someone in charge told them to, and dangled a bit of reward in their face?”

Now, a small smirk actually made its way to Nathanos’s face, and stayed there. “Oh, did Varimathras go and spill my secrets? Or did you manage to figure that out all on your own?”

“I’ve dealt with that kind of thing before. Once you’ve experienced it, you learn to pick up the signs ahead of time. Well, some people do. Others are practically blind to subtext at the best of times. They’re often best kept doing menial work where they can’t hurt anything important.”

I didn’t say that my experience with this kind of behavior had been in video games. It wasn’t terribly common, mostly because developers knew that players enjoyed having the characters in the game stroke their… ego every time they met. However, there were times where quest givers would send you out on seemingly random tasks to build reputation with a faction and just generally show that you were on their side.

“Yes, well, it seems that you may prove to be somewhat useful after all. So, what is it you hoped to accomplish here? Please don’t disappoint me and say some drivel about wanting to make a difference in the galaxy, or some foolishness like that.”

“No, nothing of the sort. Though I may use a line like that when talking with the people who are dumb enough to believe it. There are stark limits on how much the Kingdom of Ceres can actually do. Our ships have abilities that outstrip their size, but that doesn’t mean we could take and hold a planet, for instance. You need actual troops on the ground for something like that, and while necromancy, robotics, and other ‘cheats’ may allow someone to make up the difference in the short term, they all have critical weaknesses, and I dislike the idea of weakening myself like that.”

“So, you intend to do nothing? That seems a tad cowardly, and at odds with the reports I’ve heard of you.”

I reached into my inventory, and pulled out a leather-bound book. It was thin, but then, the contents wasn’t some novel, but something far more important. I offered the book to Nathanos, so that he could read the cover.

“The Art of War? I have never heard of this book.”

“It was written on Earth, some twenty-four hundred of our years ago, while we were still without the System. About twelve hundred Galactic Standard Years. It is attributed to Sun Tzu, though scholars now believe that name was a fake, perhaps used as a euphemism or just as a way to deflect undue attention. Either way, despite technology advancing significantly in that time, the strategies held within have formed the inspiration for some of the greatest military minds in Earth’s history.”

I paused, and said, “I took the liberty of having it translated into Commonwealth Standard before we left Ceres, and have several copies which I intend to offer as gifts, to those who would best use them. Partly to share culture, naturally. However, the real reason is because much of the wisdom of the book is not in the tactics of individual battles, or in the best techniques to win a fight one on one with another warrior. Instead, it is the thoughts on strategy which transcend time and culture, to the point where they might be called universal.”

“And what bit of ‘wisdom’ did this book have for you in this situation, then?”

I smiled, and took a breath, before reciting a passage from memory. “Sun Tzŭ said: The good fighters of old first put themselves beyond the possibility of defeat, and then waited for an opportunity of defeating the enemy. To secure ourselves against defeat lies in our own hands, but the opportunity of defeating the enemy is provided by the enemy himself. Thus the good fighter is able to secure himself against defeat, but cannot make certain of defeating the enemy. Hence the saying: One may know how to conquer without being able to do it.” I paused, and then continued. “Thus it is that in war the victorious strategist only seeks battle after the victory has been won, whereas he who is destined to defeat first fights and afterwards looks for victory.”

That caused the man to pause, and look at the book with a bit more respect. “And this book is full of such sayings, then?”

“Yes. Another favorite, which is still quoted by many to this day, even if they have not read the whole of the book, appears just before that section I just quoted: If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.”

“Hmm. I will have to share this with my Lady. She will be most eager to read this book, I think.”

I produced a second copy of the book. “Then here is one for her, personally. I thought to gift it to her directly, but if she should read it before we meet, I would be happy to speak of its merits with her, if she is interested.”

“Hmph. I will see it reaches her. Now, you must get back to the party, ‘your Majesty’, before people wonder where you’ve gone.”

I chuckled, and nodded, once before taking my leave. “Of course. A pleasure to meet you, Ranger Lord. Until we meet again.”

Chapter 135 – Military Agreement

The next two days were full of meetings, as one might expect. Ceres and the other delegations from Sol were all accorded the status of unaligned Associates of the Commonwealth. That basically gave us the right to have embassies, and opened the door for travel and trade, though traffic in both ways would be restricted and monitored, since we weren’t actually part of the Commonwealth. Nothing ground-breaking, honestly, but good to have.

Lilith and Mendoza were working on more mercantile deals, trying to get some industry or cultural trades going. There were a lot of potential avenues for building Ceres up into a major power, economically, but I knew that we were competing against the various nations of Earth for that, as well. Fortunately, as the group that controlled the asteroid belt and the outer planets, that gave my people a bit of an edge. I had no doubt that they would secure us some kind of trade deal, and that it would benefit us greatly.

My meetings, however, were more military in nature. The Commonwealth Navy, especially, was more than a bit interested in the shipyard and repair facilities Ceres had available. With the facilities around Ulora in disarray and many needing to be rebuilt, as well as sending new fleets to reinforce the front line against the Incux, their existing infrastructure was taxed to its limit. Having even a small repair yard capable of handling military vessels closer to the front would be a major boon, enabling ships to get back to their formations faster.

Of course, I wasn’t going to just let them build a Commonwealth naval base in Ceres space. Not only would that cause… issues with Earth, but it would start people thinking that Ceres was subordinate to the Commonwealth. And that I could not allow.

Another thing I wasn’t going to allow was the spread of the weapons tech the Ceres Royal Navy had available. The stuff we developed from the Great Horde dreadnought Lilith brought back from the third timeline was off the table. If anyone from the Great Horde made their way out here, and saw what we had, I could make an easy argument about timestrikes giving us the tech, and our just iterating or copying it. But selling that tech? That would bring the wrath of the Horde down upon us, because they were petty bastards like that. Better not to risk it.

Also, the pulse torpedoes, and other, more dangerous designs that my mad scientist ship designers were coming up with were not going to be up for sale. No worries about outside parties getting pissy about our making a buck, here. No, this was all down to the fact that those weapons legitimately scared the hell out of me, and so I didn’t want anyone other than me, or those who were bound into my service, being able to pull the trigger on those things. You did NOT play around with antimatter!

However, some things were easily agreed to. Allowing Commonwealth Navy ships to come to the Ceres Royal Shipyards for refit and repair and charging them rates barely above cost was an easy thing. The Commonwealth Navy got a place to repair ships in an emergency, closer to the front lines, and Ceres would get a great deal of traffic from the crews on shore leave, which would only spread tales through the fleet, and spark tourism.

Another easy win was allowing Commonwealth Navy scout ships to use Ceres as a forward operating base and resupply point. These ships were typically corvettes or sometimes light frigates, which were designed primarily for speed and stealth. Their mission was primarily to scout out behind enemy lines, looking for where the next Incux advance would come. Eventually, when (or if) the Commonwealth was able to mount a counteroffensive, they would be the ones searching out targets, and looking for weaknesses in the defenses.

Honestly, up until this point, the Commonwealth Navy had been just trying to keep the front together. Ton for ton, a Commonwealth Navy ship was stronger than an Incux ship, but the Incux always had numbers on their side, and they could replace losses faster. Not just losses in ships and materiel, either. With the quasi-hivemind they had, raw recruits were just as good as experienced warriors!

This meant that a war of attrition was going to go only one way, and it wasn’t in the Commonwealth’s favor. The Navy knew this, and so did the leaders of the Commonwealth. Unfortunately, their technological lead wasn’t wide enough that they could overcome the numbers problem, and diverting forces from the already strained front lines was… problematic.

Getting a few scouts behind enemy lines was one thing. If they pulled enough forces for an actual offensive, they risked the entire front breaking down, and dozens of systems would be at risk. And yet, everyone knew they needed to do something. It was almost to the point where they were considering suicide missions.

Which is part of why I was now in the middle of Commonwealth Naval High Command, along with Grand Admiral Windrunner and a few others. The existence of the Ceres Royal Navy, and our capabilities, changed that calculus of war. Beating back the forces at Ulora had given the Navy room to breathe, and our ability to punch above our weight class meant that there were new possibilities that could be explored.

Admiral Windrunner looked over at me, and said, “So, you see our dilemma, Admiral.”

“Yes,” I nodded. “As things stand, you might be able to stave off defeat, for a time, but it is just delaying the inevitable. And, up until now, you’ve had no allies that you could call upon. Unfortunately, there are limits to how much support the Ceres Royal Navy can supply. What we brought with us is half of our total fleet. While we are actively expanding, it will take time before we are in a position where we can take and hold systems, even with the aid of Commonwealth ground forces.”

Admiral Amedee Farel, a knelfi woman who was in charge of the Commonwealth Navy’s logistics corps, nodded. “And, after reviewing the data from the battles you’ve had, we agree that it would be foolish to ask the Ceres Royal Navy to undertake such a role. Moreover, we don’t have the supplies to support such an endeavor, even if we had troops to spare for an assault.”

“What we do have,” Admiral Windrunner continued, “is an opportunity to try and weaken the Incux front. Thanks to the efforts of our scout fleet, we’ve managed to determine key resource worlds that are supporting the Incux advance, as well as supply nodes that their logistics flow through. While their ability to grow troops and ships on site simplifies their logistics, there is one universal constant that any military in the field will not be able to source enough of, especially after battle scars the land.”

“Food,” I said, simply. “There is an old Earth saying, that ‘an army marches on its stomach’. No matter how much things change, or how great technology advances, that remains true, right?”

“Indeed. And because the Incux are obligate carnivores that complicates their supply lines even more. They may break down plant matter and other such things for biomass, but they need to consume meat to survive. Preferably the meat of sapient beings. Our scout ships have spotted regular shipments from ‘cattle worlds’, dedicated to growing and maintaining the ‘livestock’.”

Admiral Beddir Bonechest, the dwurgen admiral in charge of the Scout Fleet, nodded. “Early in the war, we tried going after those cattle ships with commerce raiding. Unfortunately, while our scouts are armed, and can hold their own in a fight, there are problems with interception. There is the issue of the cattle being alive, after all. Killing off our own citizens by destroying the livestock transports was not great for morale, to say the least. However, that problem was manageable, just by pointing out that a quick death in an explosion was better than being eaten alive.

“The main problem, however, is that the cattle ships don’t travel without an armed guard. Not anymore. The guards are usually just a couple ships similar in size and capabilities to a corvette, but they are tough enough that a lone scout wouldn’t be able to take down the convoy before reinforcements showed up. And we already have too few ships as it is.”

It was plain where this was heading. While it might not be as flashy as what we had done at Ulora, commerce raiding was a key part of winning an interstellar war. If the enemy couldn’t get food and supplies to the front lines, then they were going to be starving and ineffective. And the only way to combat commerce raiders was to pull back forces that would otherwise be fighting on the front lines. Meaning less of a numerical advantage for the Incux on the major battlefields.

“And the Ceres Royal Navy is uniquely suited for taking on ships far outmassing us, especially with first strike or surprise tactics,” I nodded. “That would likely be the best way our limited forces could add to the war effort. But what about resupply? Even if we launch from Ceres, rather than Commonwealth space, that leaves ships a long way from home, without any possible help or places to run to.”

Admiral Bonechest looked at the Grand Admiral, who nodded once. Turning to me, he said, “What I’m about to say is not exactly secret, but it is not common knowledge, outside of academia.” When I nodded my understanding, he continued, “You know, of course, that stitch points in a system tend to form at gravitic confluences, where the gravity of two objects cancel each other out. There are some exceptions, but that is the general rule. However, these confluences don’t just form between bodies within a solar system.”

Gravitic confluences was obviously their term for LaGrange points. And, yes, I did know that most of the stitch points in a system correlated with LaGrange points. I’d never bothered to research why, of course, since I’d always had better things to do than bang my head against the wall that was hyperdimensional FTL physics. But, confluences outside a solar system?

My breath caught as I realized what that meant. “You have mapped out some interstellar stitch points, haven’t you? In deep space, light years from any system. And, what, you have space stations there?”

“Exactly,” Bonechest confirmed. “We have a small number of stations in the interstellar space between systems. None of them are terribly large, since the larger a station is, the more likely that someone would notice, and think it is something other than a typical navigation hazard. Interstellar space is empty, but it isn’t THAT empty.”

“Makes sense. And these stations haven’t been discovered by the Incux? What kind of facilities do they offer?”

“Each station has a permanent crew of twenty-five, on shifts of two galactic standard years. While we do screen for types who can handle the relative solitude, the presence of a System Shop on each station, as well as a System Mailbox, goes a long way to combatting some of the logistics concerns of supplying those bases, and gives them a way to communicate with home. Paying for a nonstandard deployment of a System Shop was probably the most expensive part of each station. Oh, and there is a slight lag in the System Shop and interface when you’re between systems, but that’s all. The bases each have basic repair facilities, medical facilities, and a recreation area. All fairly rudimentary, but it is enough to stabilize ships and injured crew, and give those who might be getting tired of small spaces a bit more room to stretch their legs.”

The admiral paused, taking a breath. “As for discovery, that is why the standard procedure for going to one of these stations is always a double-stitch jump. Impossible to track, since there’s no hyperspace wake to follow, and the second stitch hides its signature with the first. The process is complicated, and increases the maintenance needs on the drives, but is generally worth it.”

I breathed out slowly. A double stitch was theoretically possible, if your computers were programmed well enough. But with how the Stitch Drive normally left people unresponsive after a single stitch, I could only imagine the effects of a double-stitch, one right after the other. And it probably wasn’t any better for the engines, either.

“That… is an impressive bit of dedication. I can see why these bases still haven’t been discovered, then. So, my ships would be able to dock and use these facilities, if needed?”

“Yes,” Grand Admiral Windrunner said, authoritatively.

I nodded. “All right. This looks like a good way for my forces to make a meaningful contribution to the war effort, rather than a ceremonial one. I’ll need whatever intelligence you can give me on these cattle worlds, and the routes the livestock ships take. Once I return to Ceres, I’ll send out the first raiders.”

“Excellent,” Windrunner said. “I’ll make sure the files are physically delivered to your ship before you make your return. For now, however, we should adjourn, as I believe both you and I are expected at my aunt’s estate for her party in a few hours.”

“Yes, I’ve been looking forward to this, ever since I met Ranger Lord Marris. I’m expecting quite the interesting affair.”

“Ah, you met my aunt’s consort, then? Well, at least you’ll be prepared for the scandalized looks that will be thrown around. Amongst the highborn knelfi elite, the idea that she would take anyone but a knelfi as her consort was shocking. But my aunt never cared about what the nobles thought of her, so long as her rangers had all they needed, and the people she defended were safe.”

“Interesting. Then this truly will be an interesting meeting. I can’t wait to meet her in person.”

Chapter 136 – The Party

The President’s party was held at her family estate, out in the countryside. It was a lovely mansion built into and on a precipice overlooking the sea. Windrunner Spire, as it was called, was simply stunning to walk through. I resolved to make sure I could build something similar for myself at some point. Of course, I would need to have a planet or terraformed moon to really do it justice, and that wasn’t likely anytime soon.

I shook my head to clear those thoughts away. The future would come when it came, and I would react accordingly. The best I could do at this point was make sure that any sudden changes wouldn’t overwhelm me. Well, as much as I could, at any rate. There were still possible futures that I would not be able to overcome, like if the Incux made it to Sol in force.

That was one of the reasons I was actively pursuing these diplomatic talks. My ships hit above their weight class, sure, but they were still not that many of them. I had no illusions about what would happen in the event of a full assault by the Incux. If the Incux invaded with enough force, then the Ceres Royal Navy would fight valiantly, but, in the end, they would all die, crushed under the weight of numbers beyond measure.

Simply put, my navy was currently designed around scouting missions and ‘first strike’ capabilities. They could brutally take down ships that outmassed them, especially when multiple Renegades took on the same target together, but they lacked the numbers to truly change things. Ulora was the perfect example of this. If another swarmship had been there, then the battle would have almost certainly gone the other way, as my fighters were overwhelmed by the sheer mass of fire, resulting in the Renegades becoming prey before they had a chance to make their attack runs. Just one ship could mean the difference between victory and defeat.

The Ceres Royal Navy could not stand against the entire universe alone. But, if I made a few friends, then we might have a chance at pushing back the Incux. Maybe even taming the pirate kingdoms out there. It was a big dream, sure, but not one outside the realm of possibility.

“Announcing His Royal Majesty, Zayn Greene I, King of Ceres, and Crown Princess Lilith Moonchild.”

I’d been running on autopilot, but snapped back to reality as the herald announced our presence. With Lilith on my arm, dressed in our ‘formal armor’, we swept into a ballroom that was at once lavish and understated. The flawless white stone used in its making caused the space to feel more expansive than it already was. Every curve and line of the ballroom was elegantly made, obviously the work of master craftsmen, and there was gold filigree tracing simple shapes along the walls. The craftsmanship and materials alone spoke of wealth and influence, of being able to get the best, because you could afford it.

However, there was not the gaudy, ostentatious display of wealth, like you would see with people who were ‘new money’. The paintings on the wall were all hung in wooden frames. Ornately carved wooden frames, lacquered to have a golden sheen, but wooden all the same. Where a person less secure in their own position would try to prove themselves by making the frames of precious metals or enchanted in some way, these were of simple materials, but done by a craftsman’s loving hand.

Looking around the room, it was easy to see who had actual power, and who was just trying to pretend. Like the room it was in, the people who had true power did not need to wear costumes and caricatures of outfits. Those in the military wore dress uniforms, and the true movers and shakers wore outfits that, like the room they were in, were well crafted without being overblown. The pretenders, on the other hand, tried to do as much as possible to draw attention to themselves, with extravagant jewelry or outlandish outfits. I saw one man who had to be extremely careful as he moved through the hall, since he had a cape trimmed with green flames!

Thankfully, the ‘formal armor’ that was standard for my Kingdom followed the same ideals. It looked, in some ways, like ceremonial armor, but it was fully functional. Plus, my [Shadow Armor] spell added a long cloak to the outfit made of pure shadow. I stood out, yes, but not in the same way as those who were trying to convince others of their wealth and influence did. My clothes, my gait, my presence, all of it was designed to convey that I was a warrior, first and foremost, and the other things fell by the wayside.

As I snagged a glass of wine from a passing waiter, I spotted a small group at the other end of the hall. Admiral Windrunner was there, along with a woman on his arm that was likely either his wife or mistress. Nathanos Marris was with him, standing stiffly, as though he would rather be anywhere else in the world than here, dealing with this mess of nobility. However, it was the knelfi woman by his side that caught my attention.

She was beautiful, with golden hair and a figure that spoke of long hours in training. When she moved, it was like a stalking cat, prowling through the trees. This was a warrior, no doubt. Like recognized like, after all. That had to be the President of the Commonwealth, Sylvanas Windrunner. For a moment, her piercing blue eyes met mine, but I had to look away as a group approached me.

“King Greene, such an honor…”

I tuned most of what the man was saying out. He was some kind of business mogul, wanting to try and cut a private deal. He had some kind of widgets that were supposedly all the rage, and wanted to explore expanding into the Ceres market. I was polite, and gave him a line about how official trade deals should be talked out with our Ambassador and his staff, and gave him their contact information. Obviously, consumer goods were not my area of expertise, and yadda, yadda, yadda.

I was charismatic enough, thanks to my racial boosts and skills like [Sense Motive] and [Diplomacy], that the man seemed happy, even though I did not agree to anything right this moment. He believed that he had a foot in the door, so to speak, and apparently that was a win in his book. Either way, he did not mind as I excused myself and continued to mingle.

A Krud woman in a Commonwealth Navy uniform sporting captain’s rank was the next to approach. Captain Chask Khotu was the ‘Commonwealth Standard’ version of her name. The Krud’s native tongue involved a lot of hisses and clicks that were… uncomfortable at best for people without their reptilian facial structure to replicate, especially if they wanted to avoid calling someone several unfortunate slurs on accident. So, her people often adopted names that were close enough to their true name, but could be spoken by those who knew Commonwealth Standard language.

Khotu was captain of a heavy cruiser in the Commonwealth Navy. It seemed that she got her invite to this party because she was in system for an awards ceremony, where she was awarded the Commonwealth equivalent of the US’s Navy Cross for her actions in battle against the Incux on another part of the front. Her ship, the CSN Wrath of Takix, was docked in the shipyards, since the damage was still being repaired.

We talked shop for a bit, with her, Lilith, and I all sharing stories about some of the fights we’d been in. She was especially interested in some of the battles I’d fought in the first time loop. When I told of my betrayal by my so-called friends, and how I dealt with it, she laughed. Apparently, she greatly approved of my resolve to make sure that, if I was going down, I dragged my enemy into the grave with me.

Almost as soon as Captain Khotu stepped away, I found myself faced with a socialite of some kind. A knelfi woman, she was dressed up to show off all her best ‘assets’. This conversation was a lot more interesting, since she was obviously looking for gossip and scandal. Unfortunately for her, being completely open about my lifestyle meant that I was effectively immune to scandal, for the most part. It was cute watching her ears turn red in embarrassment as I described the family dynamics of an Incubus/Succubus household.

While the businessman’s sales pitch showed that I was open to talking business, and the captain’s chat showed I was willing to swap stories with other fighters, my conversation with the socialite thoroughly broke the ice. Well, at least with those who had more liberal attitudes. There were some stodgier types, who looked like old money nobility, who looked at me with a bit of distaste, but I could care less about them. After all, I owned everything I did, and didn’t do anything I was ashamed of. So why should I care what some old farts thought about me? It wasn’t like they could harm me in any way.

Lilith and I were the center of attention, of course. We were the new and shiny things on display for everyone, after all. And the tales were certainly enough to pique people’s interest. A planet cut off from the System for so long that entire civilizations rose and fell without ever knowing of it? That was the kind of thing out of fantasy stories! And with me being a warrior-king, who carved out a kingdom and had the ships to defend it, in so short a time? Well, a bit of attention was only natural.

A hawkish-looking knelfi man with white hair and a warrior’s poise managed to get to my side, despite the ring of people who were all eager for stories of Earth before the System. His name was Siveril Miaro, and he was a mercenary. Retired from active work, but he still owned and ran a mercenary company called the Crimson Blades. We spoke briefly, and, while I did not think hiring mercenaries to fight for us was the right move for Ceres at this time, I did give him my aide’s contact information, so that we could possibly work out a consulting or training deal. Someone with deep wells of experience fighting with the System would be invaluable to getting my people ready for the battles ahead.

That was the benefit to me. His company obviously would benefit by getting paid, with minimal expenditure of resources on their part. And he could learn the weapons and tactics of Earth. Once they were adapted to the System, some of the weapons would definitely change the weapons and tactics in the wider galaxy.

One small example was the concept of automatic weapons. The two most common types of personal shield spells or effects were the ‘ablative’ shield and the damage shield. The ablative shield held up against a certain number of hits before dissipating, while the damage shield was able to withstand a certain amount of damage before breaking. Both would stand up very nicely against powerful, single-shot weapons or spells, but could quickly falter under a barrage of rapid attacks.

My [Shadow Armor] spell was one of the less favored types of protective spell. Yes, it offered better protection overall, but it was far more expensive, and it relied on the person already having large stores of mana to fuel it. There was also the fact that I could only cast it on myself, and not others. The ablative and damage shield spells, on the other hand, were comparatively cheap to cast, and most could be cast on others, as well, making them far more useful to most people, but automatic weapons fire would quickly overwhelm them, which was a surprise I was sure the rest of the galaxy was not going to enjoy learning.

“Excuse me, your Majesty, my Aunt would like a word in private.” I looked over to see Admiral Windrunner standing there, smiling. With a smile, and a nod, I followed him, eager to see how this meeting would play out.

Chapter 137 – Private Audience

I was led to a smaller chamber, clearly a private conference room. The décor was different from the rest of the mansion. Oh, the artistry of the building’s construction was the same. It wasn’t like they stopped the gilded baseboards and cornices or sloping arches that featured in the rest of the building. However, there were no paintings and tapestries in this room, and the only furniture was a table with several chairs around it, and a projector in the center.

The message was crystal clear, without a word needing to be said. The mansion was as much residence as it was status symbol and required for someone of her family’s prominence to properly entertain. This room, however, was all about business, and nothing else. By bringing me here, in private, the President was signaling that she wanted to talk without all the frivolities that people in our positions often had to include when others were watching.

I approved immensely, of course. While I did have to endure the showmanship and political gamesmanship of statecraft, given that I ruled my own country, that did not mean I had to like it, or enjoy it. I much preferred the battlefield, where, even when tricks and deceptions were involved, everyone’s motivations were far more honest.

Nathanos was there, standing by the side of a knelfi woman that I instantly recognized from some of the portraits in the halls, thanks to her golden hair and piercing blue eyes. This was the President of the Commonwealth, and reigning matriarch of the Windrunner clan, Sylvanas.

“President Windrunner, it is a pleasure to meet you, at last.”

“I can say the same, King Greene. Your arrival has changed the Commonwealth more than you might expect. Just for the way you’ve shaken up the stodgy old nobles and their games is a welcome reprieve. Even without the rescue of Ulora, that would be enough to win my praise.”

“Yes, political animals are the same the galaxy over, it seems. Even when there is not an established nobility to fuss over things, it is the unfortunate truth that bureaucrats, business moguls, and other such ‘worthies’ will step up to fill the void. More’s the pity,” I shrugged. “But shall we get to business? If your choice in consort and champion is anything to go on,” I nodded respectfully towards Nathanos, “then you are much like myself, a being of action, who prefers the battlefield to holding court.”

The President chuckled. “Yes, Nathanos mentioned that you managed to raise his opinion of you to ‘not useless’. Which, from him, is high praise, I assure you. And the gift you sent with him has been an enlightening read. This Art of War parallels some of our older martial texts, but most of them focus on using some aspect of the System to overcome disadvantages in level or attributes. It was intriguing to read this book that had no concept of the System, and the ways that it could both limit and expand one’s options.”

“Then I will count that exchange of culture a roaring success,” I grinned. “So, to business?”

“Yes, to business,” Windrunner nodded, as we moved to sit at the table. “I’m sure you’ve heard enough from the captains and admirals you’ve met by now to know that the war against the Incux has not been going well. Jenka for jenka, we can match them, even overmatch them. But they always have the weight of numbers on their side, and with each victory the biomass and materiel they consume adds to their forces, allowing them to replace their numbers far faster than we can. This scourge is driving us back, and it is only through the courage and skill of our commanders and troops that we’ve held them back this long.”

I nodded. I had, after all, heard all of that. “The Incux are not a threat that can be fought in half-measures. However, while the Kingdom of Ceres is willing to lend what aid we can, we are currently the largest force in space in the Sol system, and the only real defense that Earth has. There is a limit to how much of the Navy we can deploy abroad, especially since our forces are still barely more than a handful of ships and a few squadrons of fighters. If you were hoping that the Royal Navy can come and win the war, I’m afraid I’ll have to say no.”

“No, nothing like that,” she shook her head. “The Commonwealth Navy has already considered that, and rejected it, based on what Captain Presxalim on the Neverending Duty had to say in his report about what he saw on Ceres. And they’ve also agreed that purchasing that ‘pulse torpedo’ technology would be inadvisable at this time. Adding those to existing ships would be a major refit, requiring additional training for the crews and taking critical hulls out of the line of battle, which we can ill afford.”

“Of course. So, what did they suggest?”

“Well, the most critical thing they asked about was whether the Navy could use Ceres as an advanced logistics and repair hub. The geometry is a little odd, but Sol is closer to the front than any of the surviving naval shipyards. If there was a place for refit and repair nearer the front, ships would spend less time off the line, and so on.”

“Yes,” I nodded. “That is certainly something we have considered. The facilities would be run by the Kingdom of Ceres and the Ceres Royal Navy, due to political considerations back in Sol, but we can put together a resupply depot, and open up the Royal Shipyards to Commonwealth Navy vessels. Obviously, it wouldn’t be something that we could do for free. But my advisors have said that we can price repairs and other such services at twenty-five percent less than the System Shop listings, and still be able to cover costs in resources and man-hours.”

“Hmm. That’s definitely more reasonable than my analysts expected.”

“We are trying to build a new friendship here, Lady Windrunner. Friends do not exploit their friends just because they can, nor do they just go blindly forth and expect your friends to follow behind you on a crusade. That is how you find your so-called friend eagerly sharpening a blade for your back, because they know that you are not actually friends. It is better for us all if we build a strong foundation, from which other agreements might be made.”

“Personal experience there, I see,” Nathanos spoke up for the first time, smirking. “Were you the bender, or the bendee?”

“I was the fool leading a crusade, who then found a knife in my gut, put there by those I trusted.”

“Clearly they didn’t do a good job of it, since you’re still here.”

“Oh, they did a plenty good job of it,” I chuckled. “They simply were not prepared for the levels I’d go to deny someone victory over me. I broke two artifacts and combined their powers in a timestrike. Of course, I had only meant to blow up them, and everyone around, but instead I was cast back into the past, and changed my fate.”

President Windrunner nodded slowly. “I had read Captain Presxalim’s report, but to have confirmation is something else. According to information gathered from the System Shop, the number of systems where a planetary-level timestrike has occurred number in the low hundreds. Out of dozens, if not hundreds, of billions of stars. The number of systems where there have been multiple confirmed planetary-level timestrikes is fewer than a dozen. In the entire galaxy.”

I simply shrugged. “Sometimes, when you’re stuck in a no-win scenario, the only thing you can do is to flip over the table. Maybe the board gets reset, maybe it doesn’t. Either way, you ensure that, even if you end up losing everything, your enemy loses everything, too.”

“A dangerous philosophy for any leader.”

“It is a human concept, I guess, especially since we came from a world without any of the benefits that the System might bring. Humans were not the biggest, strongest, or fastest. However, we did develop something called spite, which can best be summed up as saying, ‘there’s room in this grave for you, too’.”

I chuckled. “We even developed it to the point where there were national policy decisions made with that in mind. MAD, or Mutually Assured Destruction, is a very human concept which has, so far, kept a third World War at bay, thanks to the fear of weapons that could have wiped all life from Earth several times over if they were all used at once. The whole idea was that the two great powers, and their allies, would launch first and ask questions later if the report came in of an all-out enemy attack.”

“An admirable goal, from a self-defense or even planetary nation-state standpoint. Unfortunately, it takes a lot more resources and weaponry to scale up to ensure that anyone who tries to destroy a nation as large as the Commonwealth ends up dead alongside us. That is a peacetime building project, and I would quite rather have the Incux be wiped out while our people and the Commonwealth live on.”

“Yes, well, MAD is never plan A, or even B. But when it is always a plan you have access to, then it makes it easier for people to pull back and deescalate before things pass a point of no return. Wouldn’t work with a species like the Incux, that doesn’t fear, so long as the hive survives, but against normal foes? It is a very effective way of giving peace a chance.”

Sylvanas nodded. “Then, in the spirit of ensuring that the war is won, so that peace has a chance, I’ll keep the focus of this little meeting on the military, and its needs and desires. The ambassadors and business moguls can work on the trade deals and science transfers sometime later, at their leisure.”

“That’s fine, as I’m a warrior, not a businessman, although I own a few of my own. So let those who know about such things wheel and deal, and let the warriors deal in war. What is the next issue?”

“The Renegades, as you call them.” She held up a hand to silence the protest that was already on my lips. “I know you won’t sell them, and so do the admirals. They also know that you only have so many of these torpedo boats and their crews to go around, and that your own defense must come first. However, they did mention that a squadron of these torpedo boats, if deployed properly, could significantly disrupt the flow of Incux ships to and from the front.”

“You mean commerce raiding? Do the Incux even have an economy to destabilize?”

“Not that Commonwealth Intelligence has been able to discern. However, they still have ships carrying reinforcements to the front, and supplies back towards where we believe their core worlds to be, so neither the front nor the rear are entirely self-sufficient. We’ve had some limited success in our raiding efforts, but those have simply forced the Incux to use convoys defended by hiveships, which are not so simple for the Navy to take down. And even if they take down the escorts, that gives time for the civilian ships to flee.”

I nodded, seeing where this was going. “A squadron of Renegades could hit fast and hard, are stealthy enough that they would be able to lie hiding before setting ambushes at stitch points, and so on, and then escape before any reinforcements could catch up. They would be risky missions, but the Incux would have to slow their offensive operations. Either they lose shipments, causing reinforcements in the field to be undersupplied and leaving factories idle, or they devote enough firepower as escorts, taking ships off the front, and giving your people breathing room.”

“Practically point for point how my military advisor mentioned it.”

“Hmm. It is an interesting idea. While the Renegades are able to operate for some time on their own, you’d need a deployment of at least a month or two at a time to really make a difference. Which means the need for a carrier of some sort. Not a full fleet carrier, perhaps, but something so that the crews aren’t stuck together for too long.”

“Perhaps a joint venture? The CNV Victory is a stealth carrier design, originally for use in pirate hunting. There would only be room for twelve of those Renegades, plus a half squadron of Commonwealth Navy fighters. And we would have someone from Commonwealth Intelligence to help pick targets.”

I nodded slowly. “That sounds workable. I’ll need to speak with my commanders, and see which squadrons might be best for this. But I think it would be a good way to strengthen ties between our forces, and help change the shape of the war.”

Chapter 138 – Duel

We had just finished working out the details of how the joint strikes into Incux space would work when a knock came on the door. Given the looks on the faces of the President and her consort, this was not an expected, or welcome, interruption. A simple look from his lady got the Ranger Lord moving to the door, to see what was happening.

A moment later, he returned. I noticed, however, that there was a slight smirk on his face. “My lady, unfortunately it seems that there has been a disturbance in the great hall.”

“Damn nobles. Can’t be in the same room with each other without causing trouble. Who is it this time?”

“Lady Orileth, the first daughter of one of the more conservative nobles, has apparently given insult to the Crown Princess over the parentage of her child. In response, the Crown Princess called for an honor duel, in front of the entire party. Suffice to say, tensions are running a bit high.”

The President looked to me. “I do not know how it is under Ceresan law, but, by knelfi custom, a woman who is with child, or any noble who is not trained in combat arts, may have a champion fight for them when an honor duel is called. Once called, the fight must be to the death, to discourage uncivil tongues in the future.”

“I see. And what does the victor gain, other than vindication?”

“The victor gains the personal possessions of the vanquished, of course. If a champion is vanquished, then the one who called them is also enslaved to the one they insulted, so that nobles cannot hide behind their champions and give insult without consequence. Suffice to say, these forms have forced most nobles to find other means of resolving their issues than calling duels.”

I stood, a smile on my face. “Then, that is fine. We will, of course, abide by the local custom for this duel. Perhaps it is time to show to the nobles what it means to be a warlord and king.”

Returning to the great hall with my hosts, I was not surprised to see that a circle had cleared out in the middle of the floor. In the center were a knelfi woman and Lilith. Lilith gave off an aura of condescension as though the one who insulted her were a bug, or worse, which only caused the woman to get more annoyed.

When the woman spotted moving me through the crowd, she smirked, and said loudly. “Oh, here comes the mighty king, probably about to use the President to get his daughter out of the duel she called!” Clearly, she thought I was about to weasel my way out of the duel Lilith called. Too bad for her, I wasn’t that kind of man.

“No,” I called back. “I merely came to serve as my daughter’s champion, since she is with child. I’ve been informed of the customs of this land’s duels, and agree with them. Tell me, wench, are you trained in combat, or are you going to summon a champion for me to fight?”

You could have heard a pin drop in the hall as the weight of what I just pronounced hit the onlooking crowd. An honor duel was one thing. One involving a newly found country, with the head of state fighting? That was something else. And, clearly, it was beyond the girl’s estimations.

She drew herself up, trying to put on a brave face. “Very well, then. Once you fall, my champion will be the new King of Ceres, it seems. Ryul!”

Ryul Beiyra

Knelfi Male

Level 10 Puritan Blade / Devoted Guardian

Titles: Stalwart

Attributes: STR 72, DEX 100, CON 70, INT 42, WIS 120, CHA 120

Market Value: 230,020 GP

The knelfi who stepped forward was dressed in armor that looked functional as well as classy enough. My Appraisal told me that he was Tier 2, but his stats weren’t all that impressive. Well, they were about average for a Paladin of his level. A focus on DEX, rather than STR or CON, was interesting, but probably meant that he favored nimble weapons or ranged attacks, rather than weapons that required heavy blows. The twin rapiers he wore at his hip only reinforced that assessment.

Not bad for a bodyguard. Of course, my stats were higher, across the board, despite my being only in Tier 1. However, that was because I had retained much of my power from when I was the cheating existence known as the Black Knight. I couldn’t say that this would be an easy fight, but I was supremely confident in my victory.

I stepped into the ring, and kissed Lilith on the cheek. When I spoke, I spoke loudly enough that everyone around could hear. “I’ll win you a new pet soon enough, Lilith. Be sure to decide what you want to do with her, yes?”

“Of course, father. I already have some ideas that will be most delicious.”

As Lilith and the noblewoman backed out of the circle, I summoned my scythe, the blade wreathed in hellfire, showing that I was ready for the fight to begin. In response, the Puritan Blade drew his rapiers, which glowed with holy light. That would be problematic, since those blades would do more damage to me, but they would only be a problem if they hit.

Nathanos stepped forward, from the side, and said, in a formal tone, “A duel of honor has been called, and champions decided. This battle will be until death. The vanquished shall forfeit their life, as well as all their possessions, to the victor. Should Lady Orileth’s champion prevail, then Crown Princess Lilith Moonchild of Ceres shall be enslaved to her. Should Crown Princess Moonchild’s champion be left standing, then Lady Imryll Orileth shall be the one enslaved. Should either party wish to withdraw their challenge, then now is the last chance.” When none spoke, he simply nodded, and said, “Then let the duel commence.”

The moment the last word left his lips, I was in motion. Ryul was only a bit slower off the draw than I was, but that was to be expected. I had far more battle experience than he likely did, despite the difference in our levels and tiers.

My blade slashed in a whirling arc, scything the air around me. While not to the extent of a polearm, the reach of a scythe was not inconsiderable. The wide, sweeping strikes also meant that I controlled a significant portion of the battlefield, and a scythe was not an easy weapon for a rapier to parry or block, meaning that he would need to dodge the blade and time his attacks accordingly to get in striking distance of me.

The man was not unskilled, I could say that much. However, as we traded feints and blows, I could tell that his focus was primarily defensive. Specifically, defending against groups of assailants. This made sense for a bodyguard, and would serve him well, even against a normal fighter in a duel. However, against a heavier weapon like my blade, it left him at a disadvantage, unless he could compensate with magic.

“[Holy Armor]!”

As expected, once I came close to cutting him a couple times, the bodyguard used a paladin spell. Holy Armor was like my Shadow Armor spell, providing damage mitigation and defense. However, the paladin’s mana pool was dramatically lower than mine, given the difference in our INT scores, meaning that the effect would be lessened.

I charged forward, on the offensive. The shaft of my scythe parried a thrust heading for my heart, but the other blade slashed my arm. I felt the heat of the blow, and knew that it had managed to do damage, despite my defenses and it just being a glancing blow. No matter. My blade cut across, and the man was too close to avoid it, earning a deep gash on his side.

HP: 39000/39300

HP: 39300/39300

A quick check of my MP said that I had taken three hundred damage, after Shadow Armor’s mitigation, but the vampiric effect of my scythe’s attack siphoned the health back to me, closing the wound almost immediately. The damage, at least from such a superficial wound, was not enough to break my Shadow Armor, meaning that this fight was all but over, so long as I didn’t get cocky, and do something stupid. I could heal from his strikes, and his ability to heal himself was going to be limited by his MP.

No, I could win this ‘fairly’, but it would not send the same message. I wanted to dominate this fight, so that everyone understood that, despite my only being in the first Tier, I was more than a match for them. Just like with my Navy, I wanted these nobles to understand that I fought above my weight class.

“[Affliction of Weakness].”

A bolt of green light jumped from my finger tip and struck the paladin. For what seemed like an eternity, but was truly under a second, the spell fought against his magical resistances, and I could feel the effect be reduced by half, and then halved again as I was fighting someone above my Tier. But even that fraction of the effect was enough.

Affliction of Weakness

A temporary curse which reduces the target’s STR for 1 minute.

Cost: 150 MP

Target: Creature within (CHA/2, min 5) meters

Duration: 1 minute

Reduce target’s STR by caster’s CHA for 1 min. A creature reduced to 0 STR falls prone and is considered helpless. Multiple uses of this curse on the same target do not stack. Instead, the duration is reset, as though cast by the caster with the higher CHA.

My CHA was 393, with the items I wore. Even at a quarter strength, that was a STR drain of 98, which was more than enough to reduce the paladin’s 72 STR to zero. He fell to his knees, his swords dropping from his hands, and then collapsed to the ground, barely able to turn his head and keep from breaking his nose upon the marble floor.

With deliberate slowness, I took ten seconds to walk the three paces between us, and raised my scythe high, looking the noblewoman in the eye as I did so. Her face was horrorstruck as she realized what was happening, but her brain clearly had not figured out any way to escape, especially when the crowd was gathered close behind her. And interfering in the duel would have worse consequences.

You have defeated Ryul Beiyra!

100% XP Bonus for defeating higher Tier opponent!

You gain 572,000 XP.

My blade swung low, and I reaped another soul. Such was the way of things, after all. Of course, slaying someone, even in a duel, granted me XP. I expected that much. I even expected a couple levels out of the mix. I did not, however, expect that there was an XP bonus for defeating someone higher tiered than you were. But then, I’d never personally seen someone pull off that feat before.

You have leveled up!

You are now Level 39.

You have leveled up!

You are now Level 40.

…

You have leveled up!

You are now Level 50.

You have 1275400/1275000 XP to reach Tier 2.

+84 CHA, +12 INT, +12 CON

48 Attribute Points to spend.

24 Skill points to spend.

Tier 1 Level 50 complete.

Initiating Tier 2 ascension.

Calculating options…

Tier 2 Race options locked. Reason: Tier 3 Race.

New options available for Class and Profession. Advancing to new options will offer new abilities and skills, but may close off other courses of advancement due to specialization. Tier 2 Classes and Professions are generally more powerful than Tier 1, but are typically more focused on individual aspects of a Tier 1 class or profession. Skills or abilities already gained are not lost, however.

Do you wish to advance to a Tier 2 Class?

Yes / No

Do you wish to advance to a Tier 2 Profession?

Yes / No

Silver mist began to rise around me, and I felt power swelling within me. Distantly, I heard gasps of shock, as people recognized this for what it was, the ascension from one Tier to the next. Last time, all options on my ascension had been locked out, due to me being the Black Knight. If I wasn’t frozen in place as the System compiled my options, I would be salivating at the thought of what I could possibly be offered this time!

Chapter 139 – Tier

The mist rose up, and silver gave way to darkness. But I was not afraid. I’d gone through this before, in another timeline. This was how the System allowed people to make a true choice, even if they weren’t in a situation where they could easily stop and make a decision. The same thing had happened on a planet-wide basis when Earth was first brought back into the System, but without the mist.

That mist was actually just a visual effect of the System, as it altered the flow of time around someone. It allowed someone to ease into the timeless space, rather than just being thrown into it, like we were when the System came online. Unfortunately, the emergency activation measures meant that the System prioritized getting everyone into the timeless space, to eliminate potential paradoxes of people not having the System.

Tier 2 Class Options

Hellfire Adept – The warlock, having already shown a talent for using hellfire to destroy his enemies, learns to further control and enhance his hellfire spells and abilities. Using hellfire comes as naturally to him as breathing, and he can ensure that the flames burn only who and what he wants them to.

Unlocked by: Killing over 1000 creatures with hellfire.

Hellblade Warlock (Rare) – Most warlocks stay away from melee combat when they can, as they lack the defenses of more robust classes. Not so the Hellblade. With their weapons wreathed in hellfire, they are able to dominate the battlefield. Hellfire Armor also augments their defense, making them a force to be reckoned with. However, their ranged attack abilities fall behind those of other warlocks.

Unlocked by: Killing over 1000 creatures with hellfire. Killing over 1000 creatures in melee.

Soulbinder Warlock (Super Rare) – Whether through familiars, binding rituals, or slave magics, the Soulbinder Warlock is adept at binding the souls of living beings to his will, whether they consent to it or not. While not as powerful offensively or as robust defensively as other classes when taken on its own, the Soulbinder Warlock knows that every enemy is simply a tool that has not yet been picked up and turned to his use.

Unlocked by: Enslaving or otherwise binding over 1000 creatures.

Mindbender Warlock – While it is not as spectacular as warlocks who specialize in brilliant attack magics, the Mindbender Warlock is rightly feared by those who know what he can do. After all, shields and armor are little use against a foe who can attack your mind directly, and bend it to his will. And their weaknesses are easily compensated for by bringing mind-controlled minions to bear.

Unlocked by: Using magic to mentally manipulate or control over 1000 creatures.

Demonic Seducer (Rare, Racial) – While an Incubus or Succubus is far from rare, those that walk the path of a warlock are. The Demonic Seducer focuses further on melding the demonic powers they have with the fell powers they gained from being a warlock.

Unlocked by: Lesser Incubus or Lesser Succubus race (or higher-tier versions). Must have seduced over 1000 creatures. Must have slain over 1000 creatures with warlock abilities.

That… certainly sparked questions. Oh, I wasn’t upset with any of the choices. They all looked well-tailored to my methods. However, it did bring to mind the question of why only those five? After all, with all I’d done, I ought to have more than just those classes unlocked, right? Unless some of my actions closed off paths?

That would make sense, actually. There were too many branching paths for any mortal mind to fully comprehend. It only made sense that the System would pare down options to just the ones with the best fit. After all, if someone wanted to change classes later, they could always go to the System Shop and find the one they really wanted.

Looking back at my choices, I was surprised to see rare classes in the mix. A Rare, Racial Rare, and Super Rare, all in one group? I was definitely in luck, especially considering that I hadn’t been trying to aim for any of those classes. And Super Rare and Racial Rare classes were supposed to be roughly equal in power. Which was good, since they had the most stringent unlock conditions. The number 1000 came up a lot in those conditions, I noticed.

Hellfire Adept and Mindbender Warlock were out immediately. While they were both good, solid classes, I would be a fool not to pick one of the rare or better ones. After all, the rarer classes offered more power, and I always needed more power.

Hellblade Warlock was the next on the chopping block. While I really liked the idea of the class, especially since it perfectly fit my fighting style, there was more to me than just combat. While some things could be balanced out with a profession, and having suitable minions, I really needed something more general than a pure combat class to succeed as King.

Which left Soulbinder Warlock and Demonic Seducer, and I knew that it couldn’t be Soulbinder. While I didn’t doubt that the Soulbinder would offer me a great deal of power, the moment anyone heard about it, they’d never want to be in the same room with me. To say that it had a bad reputation would be like saying Mt. Everest was a fairly big rock. While not ‘wrong’ in the grand scheme of things, it was far from the honest truth. The only reason they weren’t outlawed entirely, like the Puppet Master, was because their abilities typically left the person’s identity intact, instead of turning them into mindless puppets, and removing the binding was actually possible.

Demonic Seducer Abilities:

+10 CHA, +10 WIS

+5 CHA, +5 WIS per level

Spells and abilities 50% more effective whenever you have engaged in intercourse in the last eight hours.

Seduction and Charm abilities and skills are 50% more effective.

Immune to mental manipulation and charm spells and effects of your Tier or lower (50% reduction for higher-Tier spells and effects).

Immune to social interaction and manipulation skills of creatures your Tier or lower (50% reduction for higher-Tier creatures).

That was huge! The attribute boosts were going to be a huge boon. CHA was obvious, since it would also boost things like my armor’s defense and my spell damage, but the WIS, combined with my new immunities or resistances, would allow me to have a much better chance of standing up against even a higher-Tier being if they tried to manipulate me.

Tier 2 Profession Options

Royal Slaver (Rare) – Slave Masters are common. Slave Masters who are also royalty are far more rare. The Royal Slaver is capable of taking an entire nation under his brand, and ruling over them. The Royal Slaver need never fear revolt or rebellion in his lands.

Unlocked by: Must be recognized royalty of a nation. Slave Master profession. Own at least 100 slaves.

Harem Master – Harem Masters are lords of debauchery, gathering all the pretty flowers they see, and taking them all to their bedchambers, to properly enjoy them all. While Harem Masters may vary in character and the number of harem members they take, all are united by the fact that they care more about the harem as a group, and the pleasures it offers them, than the members as individuals.

Unlocked by: Having a harem of at least fifteen members.

Hedonite – Hedonites not only enjoy the rush of throwing themselves into sensation, but they gain power from it as well. A hedonite gains power from the acts they commit, and gains further powers of persuasion in bringing sensation to those they meet.

Unlocked by: Making at least 10 people climax 1000 times each within a galactic standard year, through action or by setting the conditions for the action.

Despoiler of Virtue – Many villains out there have rampaged across the land, but the Despoiler of Virtue always takes time to taste the sweetest unplucked fruits, or taking otherwise virtuous people and turning them from their path. There is no depth of depravity to which they will not sink, if they believe there is entertainment to be had there.

Unlocked by: Violating (or causing to be violated) 25 virgins within 1 galactic standard year.

Demon King (Super Rare) – There are demons who are kings. There are kings who are called demons. But Demon Kings are the best (or worst) of both. Possessing great martial and magical might, as well as the authority of ruling a kingdom, they are able to dominate all in their ranks.

Unlocked by: Any Demon race. Must be the ruler of a kingdom. Slay at least 1000 creatures with magic. Slay at least 1000 creatures in melee.

Warlord – A Warlord is one who takes power by force, and leads his troops to victory upon the battlefield. The Warlord may not gain victory every time he takes the field, but even in defeat he forces his enemy to work for their win. Woe to those who stand in his way.

Unlocked by: Lead a military force. Not part of a recognized nation’s military.

High King (Super Rare) – The High King is also known as King of Kings. For he is not just a king, who rules a nation, but a leader that even those of other nations must pay heed to. Though he may not rule an empire, yet, the High King is destined for more than ruling just one land.

Unlocked by: Must be the king of a nation. Charisma over 300. Must have diplomatic relations with other nations.

These choices were even wilder than the class choices I’d been given. A Rare, and two Super Rares? All with royalty mentioned in the mix? I hadn’t expected that, honestly, though perhaps I should have, since my being a king would affect the choices I was offered.

Again, I decided that the non-rare professions weren’t worth considering. Warlord was nice, but there were better options. The other three normal professions would have been nice if it was just me, and my harem, but they wouldn’t give me the boost I really needed to advance as a king, or keep my kingdom afloat. I needed to be more than my own personal power if I wanted to keep Ceres strong.

Royal Slaver was interesting, but unless I chose to make my entire realm into slaves, it was a bit of a dead end. Sure, a good portion of the population of Ceres were slaves, but not all of them. And I still needed immigration to make my kingdom grow. If anyone who joined the kingdom became a slave, that would sink any recruitment efforts I made. Not ideal.

Demon King and High King looked to be two sides of the same coin, to be honest. The High King basically set me on the route to empire, ruling through diplomacy and coalition-building. While that was probably more socially acceptable than other choices I had, it also meant I would have to put up far, FAR more political bullshit. And I was not a fan of political bullshit, unless I could deal with it with the blade of my scythe.

Demon King, on the other hand, looked as though it would put me on the path of conquest. In stories, a Demon King ruled his land with an iron fist, right up until some plucky hero came along to kill him. I already ruled my kingdom with an iron fist in a velvet glove. Ceres was MINE, and everyone knew it, but there were enough things put in place that people were content with being ruled as they were. Becoming a Demon King in truth, rather than just being a demon who was king, would only bring benefits, from what I could see.

Demon King Abilities:

+10 STR, +10 INT

+5 STR, +5 INT per level

Immune to damage from weapons below your Tier.

All attacks ignore armor and defenses below your Tier.

Spells are 25% more effective, and no longer have diminishing returns against higher-Tier opponents.

All demons within 5 kilometers feel your presence (though they do not necessarily know your distance or direction), and know your power relative to theirs. You feel the presence (though not necessarily the location) of all demons within 5 kilometers, and their power relative to yours.

A crown of hellfire floats over your head. This crown can be hidden at will, but cannot be stolen, lost, or destroyed.

My eyes widened as I saw that. This was MASSIVE! Any weapon not made by at least a Tier 2 craftsman, or using Tier 2 materials would not hurt me, and my weapons would ignore any armor or defenses that weren’t at least Tier 2 in nature. My spells were more powerful, and I did not have the reduction that I did until now. This profession, combined with my already formidable powers, turned me into a BEAST! It really would take a Hero to take me down, unless they found someone on my level to fight me!

And then I was back in the ballroom, my scythe in hand. I felt the gentle (to me, at least) warmth of hellfire above my head, letting me know my crown was there. Instantly, I felt Lilith’s presence, and the child within her. There were other demons within my range, including some in the room with me.

My gaze met theirs, and their glamours faded, revealing their true forms. A Succubus, a balor, and a few other types, mostly amongst the retainers and bodyguards. As one, every demon in the room, including Lilith, knelt before me, as though compelled. And, as one, they cried out, “All hail the Demon King!”

Chapter 140 – Aftermath

To say that my ascension to Tier 2 was an unexpected capstone to the party would be an understatement. I was happy to see that, while I was no longer a Blood Warlock or Slave Master, I had not lost any of the abilities or skills I’d gained from that class and profession. As evidenced when I did Lilith the courtesy of marking her new slave with a [Slave Brand], and then transferring her to Lilith’s ownership, causing the brand to change accordingly.

Of course, everyone saw this, since Lilith asked that the brand be placed on the noblewoman’s forehead, so that she never forgot her lesson. And, more importantly, her disgrace was also going to be a message to anyone who thought they could push us around with their dominance games. That disgrace was only cemented when Lilith commanded her new slave to strip naked in front of the entire party, and kneel by her side. Well, my Lilith didn’t have the Dominatrix class for no reason.

I didn’t have much time to think about that, as my ascension caused people to come forward and congratulate me. Most of them were just trying to earn my favor, of course, but there were some who were genuinely impressed. Killing a higher-tier opponent in single combat was not impossible, obviously, but it wasn’t typically seen too often. The fact that I got the super rare Demon King profession from it was only icing on the cake.

Of course, a class like that being at Tier 2 left me with questions. Shouldn’t something like that be higher level, and harder to unlock? Fortunately, a balor that had been here as a bodyguard was able to fill me in on some of the details.

“Ah, your Majesty, it is not so simple. While any one of the unlock conditions might seem easy, the number of individuals who can satisfy all four are relatively few in number. There are only so many kingdoms to go around, after all!”

The balor laughed, and then continued, “But the truth is that many of those who seek out the Demon King profession run afoul of circumstances beyond their control. They tend to be too heavy-handed, which causes other powers to unite against them, often resulting in their death before they can even ascend.”

“Ah, that makes sense. So, the whole bit where everyone bowed to me?”

“System compulsion. Any demon race in line of sight to a Demon King upon his ascension has to do that, apparently. But the records say you shouldn’t need to worry about that going forward. As you can see, none of the demons here are being forced to bow anymore.”

Any reply I would have made was swallowed up by the press of people about me, and their questions. “Oh, your Majesty! You simply have to tell us how you managed to defeat Beiyra! While he wasn’t the greatest fighter in the land, or anything like that, he was still in the second Tier, and known for his skill. How did you defeat him so easily?”

“Father,” Lilith’s voice cut in, causing me to turn to look at her, and the silently weeping slave by her feet. “Before you answer that, my new pet Slutmuffin has informed me that she has never had relations with a man before. As an apology for the disturbance, I had thought to offer up her holes to any who wanted to use them. However, since you were my champion for the fight, I thought it only right that you get the first go, if you wish.”

“Come, now, Lilith. I am in the middle of speaking. It would be rude to bend the poor slut-in-training over right here, when I couldn’t give breaking her in the full attention it deserves. Just have her whipped until she begs to start serving everyone here with her mouth. We can break the other two holes open when we get back to the ship.”

“My apologies, Father. You are right, it would be much better to let her enjoy taking on all the men of the Ceres Royal Navy for her first time. As for whipping her,” Lilith smiled wickedly, and pulled a nine-tailed scourge from her inventory. “I have just the thing. The pet is only Tier 1, and not a combat class, but she should still be able to hold up under this for a while, at least.”

“Yes, that’s fine, Lilith. Put on a good show for these nobles. Pay special attention to that group over there,” I pointed at a group of nobles in one corner of the room who were giving me death glares. “I think they know your new pet, so they should be eager to see her in her new role.”

“Oh, yes, my little Slutmuffin told me her parents were here. Come along, Slutmuffin. We should let your parents say goodbye to you, at least, since you’ll be coming back to Ceres with me.”

The crowd followed Lilith, eager to watch the confrontation that they knew would happen. Seeing a rival noble family humiliated, and their not being able to do anything about it was a rare treat, apparently, so everyone was eager to find out what would happen now. Thankfully, that also meant that I could slip to the side, unnoticed.

I didn’t try and escape the ballroom, or anything like that. However, I did find a nice, quiet corner with my drink, and opened up my Status screen. I spent the attribute points I had earned, doing my best so that my attributes did not become too unbalanced. That was easy enough. The problem was that I had 24 skill points to spend, and there were some really interesting choices in the mix.

Available Skills:

Note: Your available skills are based on your Race, Class, Profession, and activities.

Racial Skills:

Aerial Defender – Gain 10% to Defense while in flight.

Summon Demons – Summon demons to your side. Demons are not bound, and must be either bargained with or otherwise subdued. (Costs 2 points to take)

Aura of Lust – Project an aura of lustful energy, causing all creatures within (CHA) feet that can see or hear you to be overwhelmed with lustful feelings. Can only have one active aura up at a time. (Costs 2 points to take)

Aura of Sloth – Project an aura of indolence, causing all creatures within (CHA) feet that can see or hear you to become listless and uninspired. Can only have one active aura up at a time. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Aura of Envy – Project an aura of energy that whispers in the mind of creatures within (CHA) feet that can see or hear you, making them yearn for what they do not have, and attempt to take it for themselves. Can only have one active aura up at a time. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Aura of Gluttony – Project an aura of hunger, causing all creatures within (CHA) feet that can see or hear you to become ravenously hungry, devouring any and all food that they can find, even if that food is the flesh on a living person’s body. Can only have one active aura up at a time. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Aura of Greed – Project an aura of greed, causing all creatures within (CHA) feet that can see or hear you to obsessively horde every item or resource they can, spending the bare minimum of those resources (including MP and ammunition) necessary to achieve their goals. Can only have one active aura up at a time. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Aura of Pride – Project an aura of pride, causing all creatures within (CHA) feet that can see or hear you to become supremely prideful and overconfident. Can only have one active aura up at a time. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Aura of Wrath – Project an aura of wrath, causing all creatures within (CHA) feet that can see or hear you to fly into a murderous rage, attacking anyone who is the least ways hostile to them. Can only have one active aura up at a time. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Class Skills:

Blood Plague – Any enemy who touches the Blood Warlock’s blood is infected with a magical disease, draining 10% of their CON per day and causing them extreme pain. The disease resists magical healing, and spreads to other creatures at a touch. (Costs 4 points to take.)

Blood Curse – By taking some of another creature’s blood, the Blood Warlock can lay a curse upon that creature’s bloodline. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Rejuvenation of the Blood – Whenever the blood warlock consumes another creature’s blood, they regenerate MP and HP at 400% the normal rate. This accelerated healing can repair broken bones and regenerate missing organs. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Blessing of Blood – By anointing another creature with his blood, the blood warlock can grant them a portion of his power, giving them a bonus to one attribute equal to 50% of the warlock’s score in that attribute. This blessing lasts for 24 hours. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Enticing Fluids – The Demonic Seducer can turn his bodily fluids become addictive aphrodisiacs, enhancing sensations. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Sexual Overdrive – Engaging in acts of lust increases the Demonic Seducer’s stats. The size and duration of this boost depends on the act(s) involved. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Profession Skills:

Mind Shaping – Able to create training regimens that will increase mental attributes over time.

Artisan Slaves – Slaves designated as Artisans gain +1 INT or DEX per level (chosen at designation).

Adept Slaves – Slaves designated as Adepts gain +1 INT or +1 WIS per level (chosen at designation).

Group Submission – Slaves bearing your brand become even more submissive when in groups of other branded slaves, making it easier to control large groups, and reducing the threat of rebellion. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Aura of Blissful Obedience – Slaves bearing your brand receive pleasure whenever they follow your commands. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Motivated Slaves – Slaves bearing your brand take pride in being your property, and seek to be the best slaves that they can be. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Sacrificial Slaves – In the end, slaves are meant to be used by their Master. A Slave Master can transfer some or all damage dealt to him to any of his slaves within 100 feet.

Command Obedience – A Demon King can command the obedience of any demon within line of sight, provided they are of the same Tier or lower. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Demon King’s Might – A Demon King draws strength from his army. Every demon, subject, or slave of yours within 1 mile increases your power. (Costs 4 points to take.)

General Skills:

Autopsy – Imparts knowledge of autopsy procedures, as well as the knowledge of how to search for and diagnose cause of death.

Harvesting – Increases your ability to harvest useful reagents and materials from corpses. May replace automatic dungeon loot.

Forgery – Increases your ability to make convincing forgeries of documents and other items.

Savagery – Killing an enemy in an especially brutal way may demoralize other enemies who witness the act.

Diplomacy – Increases your ability to interact with governments on an official level.

It looked like, just as my ascension to Tier 2 did not remove any of the class or profession abilities and skills I already had, they also didn’t remove any of the available skills I could take, which was nice. However, I only had 24 points to spend, and most of the new skills I had access to cost 2 points to acquire. Some cost 4! So, I was going to have to pick and choose carefully.

I already had [Tame Demon Familiar], even though I hadn’t actually taken a familiar yet. With that in mind, [Summon Demons], [Command Obedience], and [Demon King’s Might] were all obvious picks. I could summon a powerful demon, make them obey me, and, if I liked them, I could turn them into a familiar. And [Demon King’s Might] would boost my power while they were near.

Given who and what I was, [Aura of Lust], [Enticing Fluids], and [Sexual Overdrive] were also easy picks. As a literal sex demon, things that improved my sex demon powers were nothing but good things. Adding in [Motivated Slaves] only added to how well my slaves would fight and serve me. And since my party was literally me and my slaves, that would be a big boon in my personal battles.

I next picked [Aura of Greed] and [Aura of Wrath], to give me more options in combat. While neither fit as closely with my being a Greater Incubus, the Greed aura could force people to ration their spells, any ammunition they used, consumables, and so on. And the Wrath aura was a great way to just jump into a bunch of enemies and potentially get them to start fighting each other. At the very least, they would have all their attention on me, which would let my girls have free reign to attack them without consequence.

That left me with four points to spend. [Blessing of Blood] would give me a great way to buff individuals temporarily. Considering my stats were all well above normal, that would be a huge boost. With two points left, I picked up [Savegery] to give me a way to potentially end battles without killing everyone in the room, and [Diplomacy], so that I wasn’t relying just on my overwhelming charisma when dealing with other countries.

For killing an enemy in a higher Tier, you have gained a title:

Ant Kills the Elephant

You have proven yourself against a foe that should have destroyed you. Higher Tier creatures gain no bonuses against you based on Tier.

I also picked up a title. It was going to be of very situational use. Really, how useful it was depended on whether I made a habit of fighting higher-Tier enemies. Since I didn’t plan on doing that, as a rule, its main usefulness would be to keep me from getting completely overwhelmed by those enemies when I did meet them.

“Well, that was most impressive.” I turned, to find Nathanos standing there, an actual smile on his face. “I haven’t seen such a splendid display of upsetting the nobility since I became my Lady’s champion.”

I chuckled. “Well, sometimes the great and powerful need a reminder that things don’t always go as they want. The little brat is going to have a bit of an awakening, I assure you.”

Looking back out to the dance floor, I saw the newly renamed Slutmuffin dancing under Lilith’s whip to the consternation of her parents. “Still, I think it is good that we only intended to stay for a few more days. The permanent diplomats will be able to do their thing, and I can go back to preparing for the time the damn bugs finally come to Sol in force.”

“Indeed.”

Epilogue – Elsewhere

“Welcome back to SystemShock.exe, your weekly-not-weekly podcast about all things gaming, whether it is online, offline, or out in this new game world we call life! I’m your favorite cyberqueen extraordinaire, SHODAN 2.0!”

The speaker on the screen was a woman behind a digital avatar, not exactly an uncommon thing, especially since there were crazy people out there who would track down people from the internet. However, this avatar wasn’t the usual anime girl or furry creation. Instead, it looked like a being made of lines of streaming digital code, which took the shape of a very shapely (some would say bimbo-esque) woman who was barely kept inside the site’s Terms of Service by a digital schoolgirl’s uniform, complete with a skirt that was almost too short to be considered anything but a belt and a blouse that had two buttons holding on for dear life trying to contain her oversized rack. And whenever she moved, it became clear that loving care had been put into the coding of the jiggle physics.

“And I’m her bestie of besties, GLaDOS the Second! For those of you joining in for the first time, we cybercuties bonded over the shared lament about some publishers not being able to count to three. Now, we bring you all the news you need to know from around the world!”

Joining her was another female avatar. This one looked more like a robot with black machinery covered in white plates. She was slimmer than the other avatar, but only in that she was more ‘Playboy model’ than ‘bimbo schoolgirl’. Despite being a robot body, she was dressed in a simple blouse and pencil skirt, with a lab coat over it, and glasses on her face. For some reason, she had black straps that kept her arms bound behind her back and locking her knees together, forcing her to point with her head and body whenever she wanted to bring attention to something.

Before the Apocalypse, SystemShock.exe had been a podcast about gaming. Specifically, it had been about adult games, or adult-themed mods for existing games, though they’d covered general gaming news and themes as well. Their Mod of the Week section had been very popular, for obvious reasons. Of course, they always made sure to edit in faces of ahegao girls from hentai games and doujinshi to cover up anything that might get them in trouble with the TOS, with an uncensored version on their patron-only site. Suffice to say, they’d gotten quite a following.

With the System Apocalypse, however, they’d changed their focus somewhat. They still did all their old content, naturally, but now they also had news and highlights people sent in regarding the System, and different things that you could do with it. One of their highest rated episodes of all time had been when they confirmed with ThankYouDaddy, a Lesser Succubus living in Las Vegas, that the literal sex demons could heal their wounds and get virtually unlimited stamina and mana the more sex they had. And, after they revealed the existence of the [Carnal Arts] skill, and that it could be purchased in the System Shop for what was then the equivalent of eight thousand dollars? Well, a LOT of people suddenly got interested in going adventuring.

“We’ve got something special coded up for you today. Right, Gladdy?”

“You know it, S-Mommy! We are here, doing a special LIVE watch-along of the Ceres Slavefight League’s opening night!”

“That’s right! As you know, the CSL is the brainchild of the Ceres Crown Princess, Lilith Moonchild! While she had to leave and go handle stuffy affairs of state with the sexy space elves who came chasing the space bugs, she left the league Chief of Operations, Tamaki Haru, in place to make sure everything is running smoothly.”

“For those of you who don’t know, Tamaki-dono is the legendary organizer of the underground sensation that was the Chiba Fighting League!”

“Exactly, Gladdy! For those of you who don’t know, the Chiba League was an underground fight club featuring exclusively female fighters that you could only see in person by knowing someone ‘in the know’ and having them vouch for you. Even then, tickets cost a whopping SEVEN HUNDRED THOUSAND YEN! That’s roughly five thousand US dollars, before the System! But you naughty denizens of the dark web got to see the live streams on their pay-per-view site!”

“Yes, indeed. Of course, the price was well worth it, because all the fighters were beauties, and while they all started off fully dressed, it is amazing how clothes get ripped and torn during a fight! But that wasn’t the best part!”

“Mmm, no kidding! See, you delightful degenerates, the price to get into the Chiba League in person wasn’t so you could watch the fights! No, the price was so that you could fuck the losers! That’s right, each fight, the winner would get enough cash to finance whatever dreams they had, and the losers were stripped and gangraped in the middle of the arena until they collapsed!”

“I don’t know, S-Mommy, that makes it sound like the losers were the real winners here!”

“GLaDOS you irredeemable slut!” SHODAN 2.0 laughed. “You’re as bad as our degenerate viewers!”

“Tee-hee!”

“Anyways, with such a pedigree behind him, and with the blessing of a literal sex demon and crown princess behind him, in a place where the rules can best be defined as ‘don’t piss off the king’? You KNOW that the new CSL is going to be the can’t-miss event of the year for all the perverts and fight enthusiasts out there!”

“And since I know you’re all wanting to know, here are the rules for the CSL! Rule One is ANYTHING GOES! The arena is surrounded by a barrier to keep the audience safe, and mages are on hand to do repairs using magic, so as long as the attacks are not powerful enough to overwhelm the barrier, nothing is off the table!

“Rule Two: there’s a System restriction in place, with the Duel system being used to regulate the fights. This means that, no matter what attacks are used, the fighters won’t die! Even instant-death magic attacks will leave the loser at 1 HP, after which the System will restore them to full health, and clear away any poisons, bleed damage, or the like, so fighters can go all out!

“And they better go all out, because Rule Three is that, like the Chiba League, the slave that loses is going to ‘enjoy’ the company of the entire crowd! No holes off limits, no condoms, no birth control. And each slavegirl is given a drug that makes them extra fertile for twenty-four hours! So, if they don’t want to experience a breeding gangbang, they better win!”

SHODAN 2.0 nodded. “That’s right, but don’t forget, the slave owners aren’t out of the woods, either!”

“Far from it, S-Mommy! Rule Four is the best part, in my opinion! Sure, anyone can have sexy sex slaves slap each other silly for the salacious sensitivities of the slavering souls watching their fight, and gangbangs are everywhere on the internet. But the losing slave owner, in addition to only getting half the prize money that the winning owner gets, has to face the Wheel of Torment!”

“Yes, GLaDOS, the Wheel of Torment, an invention only possible thanks to the System! The Loser is forced to spin the wheel, which is full of unpleasant fates which can range from forced transformations to body-swapping with their slave. While the torments are meant to be temporary, that is where round two of the game comes in!”

“Ooh, the Masters’ Challenge! In this section, the Winning Master wagers one-third of their winnings on the Losing Master failing the Wheel’s challenge. In addition, they can wager a further one-third of their winnings to either make the Losing Master spin a second time, and suffer both torments, or to make the torment permanent! If they wager all of their winnings, they get to add a second spin, and make both permanent!

“However, the Losing Master isn’t without hope. They start off wagering one-half of their winnings that they can withstand the Wheel, but they can wager the rest of their winnings to remove either the permanent effect, or the second torment. But they can’t do both! Meaning that if the Winner is sadistic enough, they can force the loser to choose between suffering a double torment, or a permanent one!”

“But where does that money they wager go, GLaDOS?”

“If the Losing Master can endure the torment or torments for the prescribed time without suffering the ‘fail’ condition, then they win the wager, and collect the spoils. If they fail, then the Winning Master receives the wager.”

“Sounds like you’re saying that an unlucky, or overconfident, Master could walk away from this with absolutely nothing to show for it. Is that right?”

“Sure, on the face of it. But the System awards XP for the duel, and for the challenges the losers face afterwards, so, depending on what they face, slaves and masters can still walk away with something. And don’t forget, one slave will definitely be walking away with a baby in their belly, so even in the worst case, the losing side still gains something!”

“Well, now I’m fired up! And it looks like Tamaki-dono is coming out to open the League for the first fight! Let’s see what legends in the making get to open up the CSL for the first time ever!”

Dramatis Personae

Zayn Greene – Greater Incubus Male Demonic Seducer/Demon King. Once upon a time, he was a hero, but he was betrayed. Now, disillusioned and intent on not making the same mistakes as he did last time, he is a Warlock who seeks to conquer his way through the post-Apocalyptic world Earth has turned into with the System’s activation.

The Black Knight – Zayn Green’s former title and persona, in the last timeline, when he was a hero. A formidable warrior, he was deceived by those he trusted, and betrayed at the moment of his greatest triumph, the destruction of the Demon Lord.

Jessica Meadows – High Human Radiant Sorceress / Enchantress. The Black Knight’s childhood friend and lover. She betrayed him after he had slain the Demon Lord. As a Sorceress, she helped him fight against the Demon Lord.

James Masters – The Black Knight Dark Paladin / Soldier. The former Black Knight’s friend and confidant. As a Priest, he provided necessary support to help him in his fight against the Demon Lord, until he betrayed him with Jessica. He was forced to drink the [Black Knight’s Cursed Potion], changing his race, class, and profession.

Talia Skinner – High Elf Female Battledancer/Entertainer. Zayn’s former next-door neighbor. In an attempt to change his fate, he forced himself upon her, and, following the System’s activation, enslaved her to his will. She is now his obedient servant.

Hibari Kayumi – Human Female Ninja/Alchemist. A 42-year-old housewife, the System has granted her a far more youthful appearance, and increased her physical abilities. Unfortunately, that was not enough to save her from being captured by the goblins that killed her husband and son. She submitted to being Zayn’s slave in return for protection, and being released from the dungeon the goblins imprisoned her in.

Rachel Adams – Human Female Priestess/Enchantress. Talia’s roommate. She returned to the apartment building where they lived, only to find that Talia had been enslaved by Zayn. Following her boyfriend’s duel with Zayn, she now is the warlock’s property.

Shadraus – Elder Lich Male True Eldritch Summoner / Supreme Merchant. Formerly a merchant who followed the Black Knight’s army. Was sent back in time following the betrayal. Currently runs the System Shop for Atlanta.

Zarina Morillo – Beastfolk (Cat) Female Diviner / Scholar. Worked at Bill Turner’s house as his live-in tutor, secretary, and fucktoy. Enslaved by Zayn after she got on his nerves when he turned up to his new house.

James Bay – Human Male Ranger / Groundskeeper. Former US Army Ranger, retired ten years ago. Has worked for the Turner family since then. While he is in his 60s, he has been rejuvenated by the System Apocalypse. Now serves as both the groundskeeper and the lead defender for Zayn’s base of operations.

Luna Varela – Elf Female House Mage / Cook. The cook for Bill Turner, she was abused by her former employer. Her class gives her a wide array of utility around the house, but is not, generally, offensive in nature. She serves as Zayn’s cook, now.

Sameera el-Niazi – Human Female Rogue / Maid. A foreign student at Bill Turner’s college, she was tricked into going to a party where she was drugged, and photographed in compromising situations. Threatening to tell her conservative parents, he blackmailed her into coming to work for him, using her as both a maid and bedwarmer.

Shiva Azari – Human Female Fighter / Maid. Formerly a soccer star in the US on an education visa, Bill Turner got her kicked off her team, and forced her to come to work for him as a maid.

Twilight Labyrinth – Slayer Dungeon / No profession. A nascent dungeon captured and enslaved by Zayn before it could establish itself. Its limited sapience makes it a mostly instinctive creature at the moment, but it understands Zayn’s commands.

Zoe Zafieri – Moon Lamia Female Silver Dragonblood Ranger / Explorer. Zoe was changed by the Apocalypse from a human to the character they created for an online erotic RP group, complete with the name change. A natural submissive, even before her change, she willingly accepted Zayn’s brand after seeing him in action.

Ezraekiel Vasquez – Half-Troll Vampire Female Ranger / Hitman. A member of one of the cartels, the System turned her into a half-troll, while her aunt turned into a Vampire. She managed to kill her aunt, but was turned into a vampire herself. She spent the first month of the Apocalypse trapped in the Lenox Square Mall along with her sister and several survivors.

Zarina Vasquez – Human Female Adept / Enchanter. Younger sister to Ezraekiel, she was not involved in the ‘family business’, since she was still in high school when the Apocalypse happened. While her class lacks raw combat ability, she has shown promise with enchanting magical items. Currently living with Zayn.

Rosie Clark – Human Female Spellsword / Guardian – A detective with the Atlanta Police Department. She fell under Zayn’s sway when he charmed her shortly after the apocalypse, and became his contact with the APD. Her fiancé from before the Apocalypse was sadly killed by the Incubus of Avondale.

Patrick Austin – Human Male Justicar / Detective. Detective Clark’s mentor and partner as a detective. An older man, he is a veteran of the APD, and is bringing Rosie up to speed as a newly promoted detective in the wake of the Apocalypse.

Alexis Costa – Human Female Priestess / Guardian. Officer in the APD, added to the recently formed Systems Crimes Task Force, which hired Zayn as a consultant.

Devin Nixon – Human Male Rogue / Infiltrator. Officer in the APD, added to the recently formed Systems Crimes Task Force, which hired Zayn as a consultant.

Mikaela Rose – Elf Female Water Sorceress / Dancer. Officer in the APD, added to the recently formed Systems Crimes Task Force, which hired Zayn as a consultant.

Aura Moonchild – Feytouched Human Female Witch / Diviner. Arcane consultant with the MPD, and helped Zayn open the Prison of the Forgotten One. Also carrying his child.

Nyx – AI. The primary AI of the superdreadnought Black Tear of Night’s Folly. Her exact capabilities are unknown.

Lilith Moonchild – Feytouched Succubus Female Dominatrix / Diviner. The daughter of Aura and Zayn in the future, who came back to the past and was sealed in the Prison of the Forgotten One.

Maylin Gennala – Knelfi Female Fighter / Soldier. A slave bought off the Minion Market to help run the satellite warning system Zayn set up. Formerly key in putting down the 3rd Ykadian Revolt.

Ciliren Fanorin – Knelfi Female Space Mage / Courtesan. A space fanatic that got enslaved to cover debts caused by her obsession. Purchased of the Minion Market to help run Zayn’s early warning system.

Aezrelle – Succubus Female Battledancer / Courtesan. A brothel worker who self-educated herself, and was sold to a military company, who then sold her on the Minion Market. Purchased by Zayn to help run his early warning system.

Character Sheet

Name:

Zayn Greene

Race:

Greater Incubus

Class:

Demonic Seducer

Profession:

Demon King

Level:

1

XP:

1275400 / 1326000

HP:

50200 / 50200

HP Regen:

502 per half hour

MP:

14960 / 18700

MP Regen:

187 per min

Titles:

Executioner, Dungeon Foe 2, Admiral, King, Ant Kills the Elephant

Attributes

STR

106 (136)

INT

157 (187)

DEX

106 (136)

WIS

116 (146)

CON

152 (192)

CHA

452 (502)

Luck

34 (64)

Defense

120 (9462)

+8 CHA, +6 INT, +5 WIS, +5 STR, +1 CON per level

0 Attribute points remaining

4 Attribute points per level

Currency

1200 CP

238 SP

46404 GP

26500 PP

5 diamonds (50gp value each)

Boons

Third-Tier Race

Item Summoning

Minor Creation

Abilities

Racial Abilities

+30 CHA, +10 INT, +10 CON

Gain +3 CHA, +1 INT, +1 CON, +2 Attribute points per level

Gain Seduction, Diplomacy, and Intimidation as racial skills

All Charisma-based skills 25% more effective.

Immunities – Immune to Corruption, Fire, Poison, and Disease

Vulnerability – Vulnerable to Holy

Hellfire – Can summon and manipulate hellfire

Wings – Able to fly with batlike wings. Must be able to extend wings to fly. Cannot carry more than a light load and maintain flight.

Sensual Recharge – Engaging in acts of passion can increase MP and HP regeneration. More involved acts may transfer MP and HP from your partner to you.

Shapeshifting – Able to shapeshift into any humanoid form. Attributes do not change in new form, though may gain physical qualities of the new form (lizardfolk’s scaly hide providing armor, etc.)

Class Abilities

+10 CHA, +10 WIS

+5 CHA, +5 WIS per level

Blood Bolt – The standard magical attack of the Warlock class becomes a bolt of blood-red energy. Deals 50% more damage to living targets, 50% less damage to objects, Constructs, Undead, and Oozes.

Blood Magic – Can cast limited number of spells known to other classes. MP cost is 5x normal. Costs HP equal to the normal MP cost. Number of spells known equal to level.

Blood Control – If the blood warlock has a sample of another creature’s blood, they can attempt to control that creature’s body and mind through magic. The victim’s resistance is 50% less effective than normal.

Bloodthirst – The Blood Warlock has a compulsion to drink at least a cup of blood every day. Failure to drink blood every 24 hours results in their gaining a stacking 10% debuff to all actions, healing done and damage caused for every 24 hours they go without until they drink fresh blood.

Lustful Power – Spells and abilities 50% more effective whenever you have engaged in intercourse in the last eight hours.

Demonic Charm – Seduction and Charm abilities and skills are 50% more effective.

Charm Protection – Immune to mental manipulation and charm spells and effects of your Tier or lower (50% reduction for higher-Tier spells and effects).

Seduction Guard – Immune to social interaction and manipulation skills of creatures your Tier or lower (50% reduction for higher-Tier creatures).

Profession Abilities

+10 STR, +10 INT

+5 STR, +5 INT per level

Slave Brand – Gain the ability to enslave creatures, binding them to your will. Enslaved creatures cannot resist your commands, and gain the Slave title.

Slave Management – Can see your slaves’ Status, and influence it to some degree, depending on level and skills.

Slave Knowledge – Know the direction, distance, and condition of all slaves branded with your mark.

Legendary Resilience – Immune to damage from weapons below your Tier.

Legendary Power – All attacks ignore armor and defenses below your Tier.

Legendary Magic – Spells are 25% more effective, and no longer have diminishing returns against higher-Tier opponents.

King of Demons – All demons within 5 kilometers feel your presence (though they do not necessarily know your distance or direction), and know your power relative to theirs. You feel the presence (though not necessarily the location) of all demons within 5 kilometers, and their power relative to yours.

Demon’s Crown – A crown of hellfire floats over your head. This crown can be hidden at will, but cannot be stolen, lost, or destroyed.

Skills

Racial Skills

Seduction – Increases your ability to seduce individuals. Passively increases your appeal. Active use decreases target’s resistance.

Pheromones – Reduces aggression of all females towards you. May have secondary effects.

Hellfire Magic – Able to cast spells with Hellfire.

Bestow Glamour – Enhance a willing individual’s looks, adding to their CHA, for a price.

Touch of Depravity – Increase an individual’s libido, reduce their WIS temporarily.

Contract Magic – Able to create magically binding contracts.

Fool’s Wisdom – Increase a willing individual’s WIS, for a price.

Intimidation – Increases your ability to frighten or cow individuals. Effects fade when out of your presence.

Diplomacy – Increases your ability to sway others and persuade them. May make friends and influence people.

Desire Reflection – Allows you to project a glamour that makes you look like a viewer’s most desirable romantic partner.

Progenitor – Able to overwhelm barriers to pregnancy.

Kiss of Corruption – Can reduce a person’s resistance to your seduction (and other social skills) with a kiss.

Sensual Violation – Add victim’s HP and MP regeneration to the bonus regeneration from Sensual Recharge when violating an unwilling sentient creature. (Costs 2 Skill Points)

Unholy Violation – When violating an unwilling sentient creature, (Your Level – Victim’s Level) percent chance to permanently drain stat points from the victim and add them to your own. Percent chance is doubled for creatures of the Celestial type. (Costs 2 Skill Points)

Blood Purity – Eliminate genetic defects or diseases from progeny, no risk of inbreeding. (Costs 2 skill points)

Summon Demons – Summon demons to your side. Demons are not bound, and must be either bargained with or otherwise subdued. (Costs 2 points to take)

Aura of Lust – Project an aura of lustful energy, causing all creatures within (CHA) feet that can see or hear you to be overwhelmed with lustful feelings. Can only have one active aura up at a time. (Costs 2 points to take)

Aura of Greed – Project an aura of greed, causing all creatures within (CHA) feet that can see or hear you to obsessively horde every item or resource they can, spending the bare minimum of those resources (including MP and ammunition) necessary to achieve their goals. Can only have one active aura up at a time. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Aura of Wrath – Project an aura of wrath, causing all creatures within (CHA) feet that can see or hear you to fly into a murderous rage, attacking anyone who is the least ways hostile to them. Can only have one active aura up at a time. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Class Skills

Curse Magic – The study of curses and other afflictions that can be used to hinder and hamper enemies. Includes both short-term afflictions, and more lasting curses.

Destruction Magic – The study of turning magic into pure destructive power, for the purposes of destroying your foes.

Summoning – Allows the warlock to summon a demon to his side. The type of demon depends on the Warlock’s level, skill, and any materials used. Some demons may be hostile to summoners.

Demonology – Gain knowledge about demons and demonic entities.

Soulbinding – Knowledge of the art of creating binding magics and contracts.

Mental Resilience – Your ability to resist hostile enchantments, illusions, and other mind-affecting abilities is increased.

Mettle – Increase your resistance to hostile damaging spells.

Sacrificial Rites – Bestows the knowledge of ritual magic involving sacrifices, allowing the creation of rituals.

Blood Rage – Gain the ability to enter a blood rage, dealing enhanced melee damage, but becoming unable to cast spells for the duration.

Fell Magic – Critical damage from Warlock spells (including Blood Bolt and Blood Magic spells) increased from x2 to x3 (x4 if the target is of ‘good’ alignment).

Sanguine Spells – May deal HP damage to self in order to enhance the power of spells or substitute for needed components.

Planar Knowledge – Knowledge of creatures and magics pertaining to other planes of existence.

Force of Personality – Add your Charisma to the spell damage from all spells. Stacks with similar effects.

Corrupting Spells – Able to infuse your spells with corrupting influence, for a price. (Costs 2 skill points)

Tame Demon Familiar – Allows you to use magic to bind and tame a powerful demon, turning them into your familiar. (Costs 2 skill points)

Charismatic Fortitude – Use CHA instead of CON to determine HP and HP regeneration. (Costs 4 skill points)

Curse Resistance I – Curse Effects of Tier 2 are 50% less effective. 90% chance to be immune to curses of Tier 1. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Enhanced Summoning – Summoned creatures gain 10% increased stats. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Enticing Fluids – The Demonic Seducer can turn his bodily fluids become addictive aphrodisiacs, enhancing sensations. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Sexual Overdrive – Engaging in acts of lust increases the Demonic Seducer’s stats. The size and duration of this boost depends on the act(s) involved. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Blessing of Blood – By anointing another creature with his blood, the blood warlock can grant them a portion of his power, giving them a bonus to one attribute equal to 50% of the warlock’s score in that attribute. This blessing lasts for 24 hours. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Profession Skills

Appraise Value – Able to see the level, race, class, and profession of potential slaves, giving you an idea of their potential value. More information provided at higher ranks.

Training – Able to enhance a slave’s learning speed for skills, or teach the slave new skills.

Taming – Better able to calm emotional slaves, and prevent aggressive slaves from inciting rebellion. Also known as breaking or domesticating.

Expanded Appraisal I – [Appraise Value] now includes titles the target has, as well as their largest attribute.

Dominance – Increased resistance to mental or soul influence.

Brand Capacity I – Increase the number of brands you can maintain to 1 per every 4 points of CHA.

Commanding Aura – Branded slaves gain 10% to all actions while under direct supervision of the Master.

Bargaining – Useful for arranging the best deal when buying or selling slaves. Also useful for all types of pacts or negotiations.

Courtesans – Slaves designated as Courtesans gain +1 CHA per level.

Combat Slaves – Slaves designated as Combat slaves gain +1 CON per level.

Tracking – Able to sense the general direction to all slaves bearing your brand.

Master’s Will – Branded slaves suffer -10% to all rebellious actions.

Expanded Appraisal II – Appraisal now includes the target’s attributes. (Costs 2 points to take)

Body Shaping – Able to create training regimens that will increase physical attributes over time.

Improved Training – Reduce the cost for training or granting skills. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Class Training – Can change the class of Slaves. Slave must have attributes appropriate for the new class. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Profession Training – Can change the profession of Slaves. Slave must have attributes appropriate for the new profession. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Command Obedience – A Demon King can command the obedience of any demon within line of sight, provided they are of the same Tier or lower. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Demon King’s Might – A Demon King draws strength from his army. Every demon, subject, or slave of yours within 1 mile increases your power. (Costs 4 points to take.)

Motivated Slaves – Slaves bearing your brand take pride in being your property, and seek to be the best slaves that they can be. (Costs 2 points to take.)

General Skills

Weapon Mastery – Proficient with the use of all weapons (not counting vehicle-mounted weapons or siege weapons).

Armor Mastery – Proficient with the use of all armor types and shields.

Auto-Regeneration – Regenerate HP at 200% normal speed.

Toughness – Decrease nonmagical damage taken by 50%.

Magic Resistance – Hostile spells are 50% less effective.

Carnal Arts – Become more skilled in the arts of bringing pleasure to yourself and others.

Sense Motive – The ability to sense when people are lying to you, and to discern ulterior motives.

Inspiration – The ability to make inspiring speeches to get others to follow you.

Knowledge (System) – Conveys general knowledge about the System, its workings, and its limitations. Includes class evolutions.

Knowledge (Dungeons) – Conveys general knowledge about dungeons, their abilities, the different types, and so on. Helps in recognizing patterns and traps in dungeons.

Knowledge (Bestiary) – Conveys general knowledge about monsters and beasts commonly encountered. While not to the level of Anatomy, or a specialized skill, may provide general insight into strengths and weaknesses of a creature, and help with identification.

Arcana – Conveys some knowledge of magic, but is primarily concerned with altering known spells to use new elements or have new effects, creating new spells.

Leadership – Inspire others to follow your lead, and take direction from you. Enhances ability to manage a group in a crisis.

Police Procedures – Imparts knowledge of police procedures, including evidence collection and handling, escalation of force, and communications protocols.

Contract Magic – Unlocks the ability to create magically binding contracts without specialized materials.

Dancing – Increases your skill with various forms of dance.

Naval Strategy – Increases individual’s ability to conduct naval operations on a strategic level.

Naval Tactics – Increases individual’s ability to conduct naval operations on the tactical level.

Ship’s Weapon Proficiency – Increases one’s accuracy and damage with ship-based weaponry.

Situational Awareness – Increases the user’s awareness of events going on around them, even when the situation is chaotic.

Combat Composure – Increases the user’s ability to remain calm and level-headed during combat or other high-stress situations.

Navigation – Increases the ability to navigate to a desired destination, with and without instruments.

Fighter Pilot – Teaches skills needed to fly fighter-style craft.

Shuttle Pilot – Teaches skills needed to fly military and civilian shuttles.

Small Craft Pilot – Teaches skills needed to fly small craft.

Ship Pilot – Teaches skills needed to pilot starships.

Stellar Cartography – More proficient at mapping and analyzing stars and star charts.

Scientific Analysis – Increased ability to use scientific method and knowledge to analyze a situation.

General Scientific Knowledge – A broad-based, mid-level knowledge of various scientific disciplines, providing a foundation for higher understanding.

Advanced Sensor Training – Able to glean greater data from sensors than with Sensor Training.

Anatomy (Humanoid) – Knowledge of the anatomy of humans, and humanoid creatures. Can give insight into the anatomy of other creatures by comparing organs to human ones.

Medicine – Knowledge and skills needed to treat diseases and ailments that don’t require surgery, with or without magic.

Basic Surgery – Knowledge of surgical practices, giving the ability to conduct simple surgeries.

First Aid – Knowledge of field medicine and first aid procedures, including how to stabilize and resuscitate an individual.

Botany – Knowledge of different plant types, and plant biology, including medical or harmful properties.

Virology – Knowledge of different viruses, and how to treat them.

Sanitization – Knowledge of how to prevent the spread of disease, and how to clean up biohazards.

FTL Engineering – Able to maintain, repair, and build FTL drives.

Systems Engineering – Able to maintain, repair, and build ships’ systems.

Reactor Engineering – Able to maintain, repair, and build reactors.

Damage Control – Able to make emergency repairs to bring systems online. Also able to triage repairs based on what is most critical.

Advanced Maintenance – Increases operational lifespan of machines and systems, reduces rate of part failure, can catch failures before they happen. Improved version of Basic Maintenance.

Mechanic – Able to build and repair basic mechanical objects, up to simple engines.

Fabrication – Able to create tools and parts required for maintenance and repairs.

Jury-rigging – Able to do temporary repairs with substandard materials.

EVA Familiarization – Able to conduct themselves normally while in zero-G, and outside a ship’s hull.

Emergency Training – Training in emergency procedures, for when a ship is under attack, or has taken damage.

Mining Tools – Able to use mining tools to extract material with a minimum of waste.

Remote Operation – Able to use drones or remote-control systems to as proficiently as one’s own limbs.

Metallurgy – Knowledge of different metals and alloys, and their properties

Heavy Machinery Training – Training in the use and operation of heavy industrial machinery.

Safety Training – Training in industrial safety protocols.

Construction – Training in construction methods and tools

Salvaging – Training in how to deconstruct scrap to extract the most usable material from it

Cutting Tools Proficiency – Proficiency with the use of various industrial cutting tools for noncombat uses.

Welding – Training in different types of welds, including which welds are best used for certain jobs.

Fleet Command – Increases abilities at commanding a fleet of ships.

City Planning – Increases efficiency of managing a city, including its resources, infrastructure, and inhabitants.

Rulership – Increases efficiency of ruling a nation, including its resources, infrastructure, and inhabitants.

Heroic Leader – Increases morale of populace so long as leader lives up to their image. May have other effects.

Tyrannical Leader – Efficacy of seditious movements decreased. May have other effects.

Paperwork – Increases speed of bureaucratic tasks, reduces errors.

Warlord – Increases abilities of forces when leading them into battle.

Savagery – Killing an enemy in an especially brutal way may demoralize other enemies who witness the act.

Diplomacy – Increases your ability to interact with governments on an official level.

0 Skill points remaining

Primary Slaves

Talia Skinner – High Elf Female, Level 38 Battledancer / Entertainer

Hibari Kayumi - Human Female, Level 38 Ninja / Alchemist

Rachel Adams – Human Female, Level 38 Priestess / Enchantress

Available Skills:

Note: Your available skills are based on your Race, Class, Profession, and activities.

Racial Skills:

Aerial Defender – Gain 10% to Defense while in flight.

Aura of Sloth – Project an aura of indolence, causing all creatures within (CHA) feet that can see or hear you to become listless and uninspired. Can only have one active aura up at a time. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Aura of Envy – Project an aura of energy that whispers in the mind of creatures within (CHA) feet that can see or hear you, making them yearn for what they do not have, and attempt to take it for themselves. Can only have one active aura up at a time. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Aura of Gluttony – Project an aura of hunger, causing all creatures within (CHA) feet that can see or hear you to become ravenously hungry, devouring any and all food that they can find, even if that food is the flesh on a living person’s body. Can only have one active aura up at a time. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Aura of Pride – Project an aura of pride, causing all creatures within (CHA) feet that can see or hear you to become supremely prideful and overconfident. Can only have one active aura up at a time. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Class Skills:

Blood Plague – Any enemy who touches the Blood Warlock’s blood is infected with a magical disease, draining 10% of their CON per day and causing them extreme pain. The disease resists magical healing, and spreads to other creatures at a touch. (Costs 4 points to take.)

Blood Curse – By taking some of another creature’s blood, the Blood Warlock can lay a curse upon that creature’s bloodline. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Rejuvenation of the Blood – Whenever the blood warlock consumes another creature’s blood, they regenerate MP and HP at 400% the normal rate. This accelerated healing can repair broken bones and regenerate missing organs. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Profession Skills:

Mind Shaping – Able to create training regimens that will increase mental attributes over time.

Artisan Slaves – Slaves designated as Artisans gain +1 INT or DEX per level (chosen at designation).

Adept Slaves – Slaves designated as Adepts gain +1 INT or +1 WIS per level (chosen at designation).

Group Submission – Slaves bearing your brand become even more submissive when in groups of other branded slaves, making it easier to control large groups, and reducing the threat of rebellion. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Aura of Blissful Obedience – Slaves bearing your brand receive pleasure whenever they follow your commands. (Costs 2 points to take.)

Sacrificial Slaves – In the end, slaves are meant to be used by their Master. A Slave Master can transfer some or all damage dealt to him to any of his slaves within 100 feet.

General Skills:

Autopsy – Imparts knowledge of autopsy procedures, as well as the knowledge of how to search for and diagnose cause of death.

Harvesting – Increases your ability to harvest useful reagents and materials from corpses. May replace automatic dungeon loot.

Forgery – Increases your ability to make convincing forgeries of documents and other items.

Spells

Spells Known

Summoning

Shadow Armor – Wraps your body in armor made from shadows, aiding in your defense.

Curse

Affliction of Weakness – Reduce target’s STR by caster’s CHA for 1 min. A creature reduced to 0 STR falls prone and is considered helpless. Multiple uses of this curse on the same target do not stack. Instead, the duration is reset, as though cast by the caster with the higher CHA.

Affliction of Infirmity – Reduce target’s CON by caster’s CHA for 1 min. A creature reduced to 0 CON is instantly slain. Multiple uses of this curse on the same target do not stack. Instead, the duration is reset, as though cast by the caster with the higher CHA.

Affliction of Ugliness – Reduce target’s CHA by caster’s CHA for 1 min. A creature reduced to 0 CHA falls into a catatonic state and is considered helpless. Multiple uses of this curse on the same target do not stack. Instead, the duration is reset, as though cast by the caster with the higher CHA.

Suppress Emotions – A temporary curse that prevents the target from feeling any strong emotions, positive or negative. Can counter and suppress emotion-based effects like a Barbarian’s rage, or spells designed to spark infatuation.

Destruction

Spellblade – Channel spells or magical energy through a melee attack.

Hammerblast – Deals CHA damage to target creature or object. Damage to Creatures reduced by target’s CON. Damage to objects ignores armor.

Hellfire Blade – Use your demonic heritage to channel the fires of Hell itself through your melee attacks.

Arcane Barrage – Unleash a volley of unerring bolts of magical force against your enemies.

Hellfire Barrage – Unleash a volley of unerring bolts of Hellfire against your enemies.

Blood

Cunning Linguist – Use a kiss, with tongue, to learn a language for 24 hours. Only one language can be learned in this way at a time.

Mystic Eye – See magical items and effects, and identify their uses.

Craft Basic Homunculus – Use blood to create a temporary servant.

General

Heal – A more inefficient, touch-range version of a Priest’s basic healing spell.

Mending – A more inefficient version of a Wizard’s basic spell, repairs damaged objects.

Mark Enemy – A more inefficient version of a Ranger’s basic tracking spell, allowing you to keep track of an enemy’s moves in combat.

Shadow Armor

Wraps your body in armor made from shadows, aiding in your defense.

Cost: 20% of Maximum MP reserved

Duration: Until canceled or dispelled.

Defense increased by amount equal to MP reserved. (Stacks with worn armor and other effects.)

Reduces damage received by amount equal to MP reserved.

Receiving damage equal to 2x MP reserved (before reduction) in a single attack ends the spell.

Hellfire Blade

Use your demonic heritage to channel the fires of Hell itself through your melee attacks.

Cost: 300 MP, 300 HP

Target: Melee weapon or natural attack

Duration: Until canceled or dispelled.

Add INT+CHA to damage of melee weapon enhanced by the effect. This damage is Hellfire damage.

Melee weapons enhanced by this spell take 10% durability damage every 5 seconds while this spell is in effect (minimum 10% durability damage).

Becoming disarmed ends the spell.

Spellblade

Channel spells or magical energy through a melee attack.

Cost: 100 MP, 2 MP per second

Target: Melee weapon or natural attack

Duration: Until canceled or dispelled.

Add INT+CHA to damage of melee weapon enhanced by the effect.

Becoming disarmed ends the spell.

Cunning Linguist

Use a kiss, with tongue, to learn a language for 24 hours. Only one language can be learned in this way at a time.

Cost: 250 MP, 50 HP

Target: Creature kissed

Duration: 24 hours

Able to understand, speak, read, and write languages known by the individual kissed for the duration.

Heal

A more inefficient, touch-range version of a Priest’s basic healing spell.

Cost: 200 MP

Target: Self or Creature touched.

Duration: Instant

Heals the target of damage equal to caster’s WIS.

Mending

A more inefficient version of a Wizard’s basic spell, repairs damaged objects.

Cost: 200 MP

Target: Nonmagical item touched.

Duration: Instant

Repairs nonmagical item weighing less than INT pounds. Must have all the pieces of the item, or suitable materials for repairs.

Mark Enemy

A more inefficient version of a Ranger’s basic tracking spell, allowing you to keep track of an enemy’s moves in combat.

Cost: 20 MP

Target: Creature you can see within 30’

Duration: 10 minutes

Creature becomes marked with a magical symbol only you can see. Marked creature does not gain benefit of stealth or invisibility against you. You can track its movements as long as you are on the same plane, even if creature moves out of the initial cast range.

Only one creature can be marked by you at any one time.

Hammerblast

A blast of arcane power, particularly suited to destroying objects it strikes.

Cost: 20 MP

Target: Creature or object up to CHA meters away

Duration: Instant

Deals CHA damage to target creature or object. Damage to Creatures reduced by target’s CON. Damage to objects ignores armor.

Affliction of Weakness

A temporary curse which reduces the target’s STR for 1 minute.

Cost: 150 MP

Target: Creature within (CHA/2, min 5) meters

Duration: 1 minute

Reduce target’s STR by caster’s CHA for 1 min. A creature reduced to 0 STR falls prone and is considered helpless. Multiple uses of this curse on the same target do not stack. Instead, the duration is reset, as though cast by the caster with the higher CHA.

Hellfire Barrage

Unleash a volley of unerring bolts of Hellfire at your enemies.

Cost: 10 MP and 10 HP per bolt

Target: Any number of creatures or objects you can see (or otherwise target) within range, up to the number of missiles launched.

Range: 100 ft + 10 ft/level

Duration: Instant

Launch a number of magical missiles made of hellfire at your targets. These missiles always hit their target, and cannot be evaded, though magical effects may block or mitigate the damage. Each missile does 2xCHA damage to the target. This damage is hellfire damage. Each casting produces 1+(CHA/10, min 0) missiles.

Arcane Barrage

Unleash a volley of unerring bolts of magical force at your enemies.

Cost: 10 MP per bolt

Target: Any number of creatures or objects you can see (or otherwise target) within range, up to the number of missiles launched.

Range: 100 ft + 10 ft/level

Duration: Instant

Cooldown: 6 seconds

Launch a number of magical missiles made of arcane force at your targets. These missiles always hit their target, and cannot be evaded, though magical effects may block or mitigate the damage. Each missile does 2xCHA damage to the target. This damage is force damage.

Mystic Eye

With this spell the flows of magic become visible to you. This allows you to see active magical items, auras, and effects, and gain a sense of their purpose. The information gained is affected by your knowledge.

Cost: 100 MP and 100 HP initially, 1 MP and 1 HP per second to maintain

Target: Self

Duration: Maintained

See magical items and effects, and identify their uses.

Craft Basic Homunculus

The most common use of blood magic, outside of casting spells which one might not possess the qualifications for, is in the use of Homunculi, or Blood Puppets. This spell crafts a simple homunculus to serve you. The caster shapes the homunculus according to their will. The size, toughness, and duration of the homunculus depend on the amount of blood and mana used in its creation. The Basic Homunculus is mindless, but capable of following basic orders.

Cost: Varies

Duration: 1 minute per 32 ounces of blood used in its creation.

The Basic Homunculus is created with 1 HP per ounce of blood used, and has STR and DEX attributes equal to 1/100 of the total ounces of blood used. The Basic Homunculus is created with ablative armor, allowing it to take damage up to 25% of its initial HP before taking HP damage.

Affliction of Infirmity

A temporary curse which reduces the target’s CON for 1 minute.

Cost: 150 MP

Target: Creature within (CHA/2, min 5) meters

Duration: 1 minute

Reduce target’s CON by caster’s CHA for 1 min. A creature reduced to 0 CON is instantly slain. Multiple uses of this curse on the same target do not stack. Instead, the duration is reset, as though cast by the caster with the higher CHA.

Affliction of Ugliness

A temporary curse which reduces the target’s CHA for 1 minute.

Cost: 150 MP

Target: Creature within (CHA/2, min 5) meters

Duration: 1 minute

Reduce target’s CHA by caster’s CHA for 1 min. A creature reduced to 0 CHA falls falls into a catatonic stupor, and is helpless. Multiple uses of this curse on the same target do not stack. Instead, the duration is reset, as though cast by the caster with the higher CHA.

Suppress Emotions

A temporary curse that prevents the target from feeling any strong emotions, positive or negative. Can counter and suppress emotion-based effects like a Barbarian’s rage, or spells designed to spark infatuation.

Cost: 150 MP

Target: Creature Touched

Duration: 1 minute

Prevent the target from experiencing strong emotions. This suppresses natural emotions for the duration. Spells and effects which change the target’s emotional state (like most Charm spells, or things causing a morale bonus or penalty to their actions, or class features like a Barbarian’s rage) are ended immediately and countered for the duration if your Level + CHA is higher than the Level + WIS of the one activating those effects or spells.

Equipment

Account Holder

Zayn Greene

Account Number

13D7b2ĕΨλγΩ

Account Balance

54,486,526 PP

139,471,181 GP

734,149 SP

129,212,234,921 CP

Items Held

Astral Diamond x4

Necklace of the Prophet

Band of Murder

Gauntlets of Stability

Dress of Creation

Ancient Greatcloak of Fire Protection

Cursed Girdle of the Scourge

Steel Greatplate of Demonic Powers

Destiny’s Will, Tower Shield of the Stars

Furious Shoulderguards of Eternal Glory

Kurokishi, Legacy of Dark Fate

Type

Armor Set

Rank

Unique – Scaling

This set of armor has been created by the System for a singular individual. Betrayed by those closest to him, he refused to bow, even at the end. The Black Knight’s Dark Fate has been shattered, and now rests upon those he meets. And yet this legacy remains. Every ten levels, it gains new power.

Soulbound to Zayn Greene

Defense increased by (100 x Level)+CHA

+10 to All Atributes

Defiance of the Fall – 1/Day negate all damage and negative effects for (CHA) seconds. Costs 100% of remaining MP.

Shifting – This armor shifts with the wearer’s form.

Self-repair – This armor will repair itself over time by feeding on the wearer’s MP, even if destroyed.

Absorption – This armor may absorb weapons and armor the wearer owns. This ability allows it to upgrade the materials it is made of, and potentially gain new powers and abilities from the items it absorbs.

Dread Armor – +50% to Intimidation while wearing the armor.

Darksoul Protection – Take 25% less damage from Holy attacks and spells.

Commander’s Aura – Those under your command have 10% increase to all abilities while within line of sight.

Life Support – The armor automatically adapts to counter environmental factors and hazards. The wearer is immune to the effects of extreme temperatures, high gravity, low gravity, high pressure, vacuum, and environmental radiation. It also makes him immune to suffocation, drowning, and airborne toxins or diseases, as well as negating the need for food or drink while wearing the armor.

Voidflight – While in the void of space, the wearer of this armor can fly at speeds of 0.01% of the speed of light (67K mph).

Spellmight Bracers of the Dark Lord

Type

Bracers

Rank

Unique

These bracers, made from tanned angel skin, and dyed with demon’s blood, offer a substantial bonus to any who tread the path of darkness. Those who see these bracers know that they are dealing with one who has embraced the dark side.

Indestructible

+10% Defense vs. Holy Spells and Effects

+20 CHA

+10% spell damage while not in direct sunlight

Chimamire

Type

Exotic Two-Handed

Rank

Super Rare

Damage

CHA+CON

Damage Type

Varies

Chimamire (otherwise known as Bloodbringer) is not your typical weapon. In fact, in its idle state, it appears to be nothing so much as a human spine, set into a long handle, with hand grips at appropriate spaces. When held by a user that is bonded to it, however, the skull at the top of the staff opens its mouth, and a blade of blood-red energy emerges from it, curved like a scythe. This weapon requires a bonding ritual to use, after which it is considered soulbound to the user until their death. Chimamire cannot be destroyed by any known means. Any damage done to it is healed by sapping health from its wielder. The blade has two modes, Bloody Blade, and Vampiric Blade, that can be changed at will, by paying 250 HP.

+20 to all stats except defense.

Bloody Blade – Chimamire ignores enemy armor and resistances, and does slashing damage. User takes damage equal to damage inflicted on target.

Vampiric Blade – Chimamire does necrotic damage. User regains health equal to half the damage dealt.

Replica Katana

Type

Sword (1-1/2 Handed)

Rank

Very Common

Damage

1-10 + STR / + 1.5*STR (2hand)

Damage Type

Slashing

This replica katana was designed to be a display piece, for aesthetics rather than combat. Can be used either one-handed or two-handed Not being designed for combat, it has a low durability.

+10 Attack

STARTER: This item and its sheath are Indestructible.

Sacrificial Dagger

Type

Dagger

Rank

Uncommon

Damage

5-20 + STR

Damage Type

Piercing / Slashing

This enchanted dagger is a thing of pure evil, despite the fact that it is all too common for many beings’ taste. This is because, though it can be effectively used as a weapon, its battle effectiveness is wholly a secondary consideration to its true purpose.

Durability 40/40

Sacrifice - When used to kill a sentient creature, gain 10% of their highest attribute score for 24 hours. If the death comes at the end of a sacrificial ritual lasting at least 1 hour, the gains are permanent.

Ring of Elemental Immunity

Type

Ring

Rank

Legendary

This ring appears to be simply wrought, with four gems set into it. However, the enchantments upon this ring make it a treasure easily worth fortunes.

Immunity to Cold, Fire, Electricity, and Acid damage.

Magic Van

Type

Vehicle

Rank

Common

This panel van has been redesigned and refit to have a hybrid drive system. While in Performance mode, the vehicle uses diesel fuel. While in Economy mode, the vehicle does not use fuel, but has reduced speed and cargo capacity.

Seating: 2

Performance Mode:

Max Speed: 80 MPH

Max Speed with Cargo: 65 MPH

Cargo Capacity: 4500 lbs

Economy Mode:

Max Speed: 65 MPH

Max Speed with Cargo: 55 MPH

Cargo Capacity: 3000 lbs

Knelfi Shadowsoul Transport

Type

Vehicle

Rank

Rare

A personal transport designed to grow with its bonded user, Shadowsoul Transports are rarely seen outside of knelfi space. Shadowsoul transports grow with their users, gaining new abilities every ten levels the user has. This transport has two modes, Performance and Economy. In Performance mode, the transport runs off mana crystals. In Economy mode, the transport is fueled by ambient mana.

Seating: 2

Levitation – Can levitate slightly off the ground while in motion, ignoring penalties for ground condition (though not undergrowth or obstructions). Able to drive across liquids (though will sink if not on solid ground when stopping).

Variable Gravity – Able to change the relative direction (but not force) of gravity relative to itself, allowing the bike and its rider(s) to drive up sheer surfaces, or even upside down. Cannot be used to fly. Normal gravity reasserts itself on rider(s) when they dismount the vehicle.

Performance Mode:

Max Speed: 150 MPH

Economy Mode:

Max Speed: 75 MPH

Hellspawn

Name

Hellspawn

Type

Corvette

Owner

Zayn Greene

Model

Oscuns-Class Shiphunter

Systems

Weapons

Mendelius Point Defense System x2

Y’thran Arms Ion Cannons x2

Imperial Grav-Lance x2

Standard Torpedo Launchers x2 (10 Tiamat torpedoes each)

Hellfire Cannon

Pulse Torpedo Launcher x2 (Dual-side)

Shields

Standard Cruiser Shield System

Armor

Hateforged Warsteel Armor

Sensors

Standard Sensor Suite

Power

Mk. 25 Reactor

Standard Emergency Reactor

Standard Ambient Mana Collector

Drives

Standard Sublight Drive

Standard Warp Drive

Misc

Coolbreeze Heat Sinks

Tokomak Pulse Torpedo Reactor

Multi-Grapple Array

Inhibitor Module

Phased Travel Array

Active Jamming Array

Complement

Crew

50 (9 officers, 1 medic, 40 crew)

10 Passengers/Specialists

Cargo

170 tons

Further Reading

Be sure to read my published works!

Frozen Soul series (Sci-Fi Supervillain story):

Frozen Soul –

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071R125QT

Tales of the Void Traveler - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06ZZ52G37

Memoirs of a Supervillain - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07R9NWS8J

Rules-Free VRMMO Life (Dark Fantasy GameLit):

Volume 1 - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071VPRNDB

Omnibus 1 - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0774T354X

Complete 1-20 - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07R5CHNNP

Into the Black (Sci-Fi GameLit):

Book I - Game Start https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071LT5WGL

Omnibus I - Books 1-4 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B077X2KR7Y

City of Champions Online (Superhero GameLit):

Issue I - Origin Stories https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075SHXQS1

Lewd Dungeon (Dungeon Core GameLit):

Book 1 - Welcome to the Apocalypse https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BB34DHF

Omnibus 1 - Books 1-4 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FBPF6HR

SCI Stories (Dark Supervillain story):

Book 1 - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07RL93VQN

Winterborn (Dark Fantasy LitRPG):

Book 1 - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B082S3S3K8

Dark Fate (Postapocalyptic GameLit):

Book 1 - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B086S35WZ6

The OP Lich is a Returnee (Isekai Light Novel):

Book 1 - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B094YR8JTD

The Kalipshae Affair (A First Contact Short Story): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0739V6R6T