Somewhere in the Wanderlands of the Waste…
South of Faulmuth…
A few miles from the border of the Territory of the Dead Men Ship…
A barren stretch of scorched rock and sun-bleached mountains sprawled beneath the yellow sun. Hidden in plain sight among jagged cliffs was a cave entrance, leading into a narrow corridor and a stairwell that descended deep into the earth.
At the base was a long hallway. On one end stood a large oakwood door leading to the observatory. On the other—a set of reinforced glass doors, behind which an air purifier hummed quietly. It sterilized and pressurized every inch of air that passed through, stripping it of microorganisms.
Beside the door hung a standard-issue biohazard suit and gas mask. Next to it, however, was something newer—a long pole fitted with an electric taser tip.
It wasn't standard gear. But after the recent escape... it became necessary.
These weren't normal beings they handled. They were monsters—once human, now unpredictable.
Ever since Subject A107p had broken free other subjects had started resisting. Reclaiming slivers of free will.
They'd had to increase the serum dosages.
Inside the lab, a woman in full protective gear examined a vial of serum. Its color pulsed faintly. She walked to one of the subject containment pods, filled a syringe, and raised it toward the observation deck.
"This is the first vial of the M-x343 serum. It enhances strength, speed, and reaction time to unprecedented levels."
Behind the reinforced glass stood a tall man in a black suit, fiery red hair catching the low light. His name was Corinth Ransthrol, second son of the Flame Fist Emperor, Enasto Ransthrol.
"Alright, Luna," he said with a smirk. "Let's see if this prototype lives up to the hype."
"Yes, Lord Corinth," Luna replied. She activated the recording crystal. "Test 32.8. Beginning infusion now."
With a few keystrokes, the serum was injected into the gelatin-filled containment pod. The fluid stabilized SE fluctuations in the subjects—at least, it was supposed to.
At first, there was no response. Then came violent shaking.
The subject awoke.
It thrashed, bones breaking and reforming. Muscle mass expanded grotesquely. Its skull twisted, eyes dulling into soulless voids. Jagged teeth erupted in multiple rows. Its spiritual energy dipped below readable levels… then resurged—twisted, corrupted, without threshold.
"Luna, step back!" Corinth warned as the creature slammed against the glass.
"It's alright," she replied calmly. "That's Stein Sand glass. It can withstand even ten Peak Denkei strikes."
She smiled. That was the last expression she ever made.
The beast screamed. The glass exploded in a wave of sound.
"Get Lord Corinth out of here!" a guard yelled.
Another charged in to stall the creature. Corinth struggled, watching helplessly as Luna vanished in a haze of shattered glass and blood.
Then the beast spoke.
"#!!:;↑℅—w':*—akhh… Ah. So this is the right language frequency."
It appeared in front of the fleeing men.
Enraged, Corinth stepped forward, pushing past his aides.
"How dare you, degenerate—"
"Hold the insults, big guy. She started it first. Do you know how much we've endured?"
"I care nothing for your suffering. You killed Luna!"
Corinth charged. The monster barely avoided decapitation.
"You mean this toy?"
It lifted Luna's body using a thread of SE. A rune glowed on its head. Her wounds began healing, her eyes slowly reigniting with life. Then, without ceremony, it flung her into Corinth's arms.
"What… are you?" Corinth asked.
"I should ask you. After all, you made me. But… call me Dementor."
"What do you want?"
"The same thing you do. Chaos."
"That's not the purpose of our experiments."
"Hah! You don't believe that. You kidnap children with rare traits, fuse them with beasts, and you call us the monsters?"
Dementor traced the scars on his body.
"I'll help you. I'll help make more of your monsters."
Corinth stared at Dementor for a few seconds wondering what it wanted. And that strength it has just displayed. It shouldn't have anything remotely related to that. Not even some of the most experienced heroes could access that power.
The power of Runes.
He had never heard of a being capable of using them only once after gaining knowledge of them.
"And what do you want in return?"
Dementor smiled wildly as he heard Corinth, a smile that made Corinth regret even listening to the beast before him. He wondered if he had just made a deal with the devil.
"Blood. Fresh blood."
---
Elsewhere...
Night cloaked the heart of Brandish. A man, hidden behind stacked crates, waited as guards passed. His purple hair shimmered faintly in the wind.
Once the coast was clear, he darted across the courtyard to a mahogany door. As more guards passed where he had just stood, he exhaled.
He could kill them—but that would raise alarms.
Instead, he placed his hand on the door and turned it—and himself—into shadow.
A whisper of dust passed through the crack. He reformed on the other side.
He was out of time. The Bloodmoon Stones had to be retrieved before the moon reached its peak. Another six-month cycle wasn't an option.
He weaved past more guards, deeper into the sanctum, toward the sealed room that held royal artifacts.
---
A few days earlier…
A cloaked man entered a blacksmith's shop.
"Anything you need, sir?" a dwarf asked gruffly.
"Looking to forge something special."
"What kind?"
"Studded center. Refined like dragonhide."
The dwarf froze. That was code.
The real conversation had gone somehow like this:
"What information do you seek?"
"The blood moon stones. The ones tied to the Black World."
The two locked eyes. The dwarf flipped the sign to "Closed" and retrieved a chest. Inside, a scroll.
"500 nuggets," the dwarf said.
The cloaked man summoned a shadow, handed him a pouch, and left with the box
---
If the dwarf's intel was good, the stones were here. And with them, he could reach the Black World. He could save the friend trapped within.
He just prayed this time… the outcome would be different.
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Spiritual Energy (SE)
Spiritual Sea (SS)
Spiritual Signature (SST)
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