“Master, what are you—”
“Patience,” I chided her, grinning to myself.
Zagorath Consumed an Iron Poleaxe
Physical Essence +200
Curiously, the amount of Physical Essence I’d earned from consuming Bertha’s poleaxe was far greater than what I’d gained from Gavin’s mace. I pondered this for a moment before coming to the conclusion that absorbing metal yielded much more than regular stone, or even wood.
My plan for Bertha’s new weapon was only halfway complete, so I asked her to lay down her cleaver. The half-troll looked like I’d just asked for her soul, but didn’t hesitate. She placed it where the poleaxe had been a moment before, and I latched onto it.
It was a different blueprint for a different make of weapon. It wasn’t dissimilar to the poleaxe, but smaller, lighter, and designed with another purpose. I made short work of the cleaver and siphoned the essence into my dungeon’s pool of resources.
Then I formed a new kind of weapon requiring only slight tweaks; my understanding of weaponsmithing was rudimentary to say the least, and I didn’t have infused knowledge of anything except a combination of the two weapons I’d consumed. The new design was shining bright and crystal clear in my mind, and I stashed it into my gem’s consciousness using an old memory trick from my marketing days.
The first two-thirds of my plan complete, I started to recall the blueprint for the Swiftness rune, and a notification window appeared.
Weapon Enchantment - Swiftness Sigil
Required essences: Infernal (750)
I poured Infernal and Physical Essence together, swirling them in my consciousness like a mad storm of magic and atoms. I had a single design in mind, and I focused my will on its completion.
The floor of my antechamber turned to liquid for a moment, then a new weapon arose from it. It was the same length and weight as Bertha’s favored tool of death, but the spike at the top was a little longer, and its blade a little wider. The combination of poleaxe and cleaver was something I couldn’t quite categorize, but I no longer needed to when a box flashed across my mind.
Acquired Item!
Savage Halberd of Dark Agility
Rarity: Magic
Damage Type: Infernal
Seals: Swiftness
Swiftness channels the essence inside a wielder and increases their speed.
My jewel glowed as I read the text for the completed seal. I’d accomplished my plan, and here was a weapon that was the culmination of our battle.
Bertha cradled the weapon in her palms and stared at it in wonder. As her hands closed around it, I witnessed her own Infernal Essence sliding into the weapon. The arcane energy continued to fill the rune until the whole weapon brimmed with a crackling and dangerous darkness. Bertha’s face split into a joyous expression that was even better than her savage grin during combat.
“It’s beautiful,” she whispered, almost to herself.
Puck whipped around it and just about exploded with excitement.
“Master, it is beautiful. Your dungeon is ready. We slay and bite and maul all who come to us. We drink them down like blood from a squirrel’s throat.”
I chuckled. “We’re not done yet. Show me the trinket you took.”
Puck displayed the item in his open hand, and it looked so much larger in his tiny palm. His face contorted a little, as though he wasn’t quite ready to give up his prize. With a flick of thought, I regathered my consciousness and focused on the item. It was caked in rust and mold, but beneath was the effigy of a fanged bat fashioned out of a black metal.
I allowed my consciousness to delve into the object’s construction to try and divine its use. As my mind wrapped around the charm’s form, I realized something. It was too complex, far too complex to be a simple thing I could turn to Physical Essence.
“What is it, Master?” Puck asked.
“Something that might be too valuable for you to keep,” I transmitted back.
As I focused on it, appreciating its complexity, I was reminded of something.
It was made of the same substance as the soul forge.
I sent my consciousness to the machine that was holding my gem and confirmed my revelation. “Puck, why do you want to keep the trinket?” I silently questioned my champion.
“It feels familiar. I believe my tribe had something similar in their cave.”
“Something similar?”
“A model of an imp. It is said to be the key to restoring our dwindling population. We knew not how, but that was what they said.”
“Hmm . . .” I ran through a dozen theories in my head before landing upon a single one: if the soul forge birthed monsters, and an effigy like this bat could be the key to restoring a population, then maybe—
I was too excited to even finish the thought. I commanded Puck to bring the bat trinket to the soul forge and place the object into the center of the machine’s open palm. The small effigy almost seemed to sing as Puck flew across the antechamber and into the alcove. While my senses focused on the soul forge, I was reminded of Lilith’s own hand. It almost looked identical.
As soon as Puck dropped the figurine onto the arcane machine, the rusty and moldy outer casing cracked like an eggshell. The newly-revealed bat trinket glistened before my senses, and a new and overwhelming power emanated from its center. It connected with my core, and my gem burst with a crimson brilliance. Rays of light spiraled around the room while the soul forge quaked and trembled like it had just been given life.
Zagorath acquired spawnable minions!
Hellbat
Core: Infernal
Rarity: Common
Essence Cost per minion: 15 (Infernal)
Now my dungeon was ready.
I had all the ingredients to begin Lilith’s mission in earnest.
I’d carve out this entire fucking mountain and fill it with teeth and traps and minions. Waiting in the final room would be my mighty champions—Bertha and Puck. Lounging on a carved throne at the top of an elevated podium would be a grinning Von Dominus.
Zagorath.
My dungeon.
Still so much work to do.
Still so many more to kill.
One step
