13-13. Finding a Way
Elijah crept closer, his body low to the ground. Despite his confidence in Guise of the Stalker, he kept to the shadowy crevices cutting through the valley. Hopefully, the combination of his skill and the terrain would suffice to keep him hidden.
He had chosen to leave Benedict behind, much to the other man’s chagrin. He didn’t regret it, and he knew it was the right choice. Without a stealth ability of his own, Benedict would have been entirely exposed. And given that they had no idea whether the native hunters were hostile, that was a risk they couldn’t afford to take.
Instead, Elijah had left him behind at a campsite they’d established a few miles away. Benedict’s frustration with the situation was palpable, and even if Elijah felt confident that he’d made the right choice, he couldn’t help but feel a little pity for his often-surly companion.
But for now, he pushed those thoughts aside and focused on the battle in the distance.
He and Benedict had watched the group of natives from afar, quickly establishing that they were hunters on the trail of big game. And now, they’d found it in the form of a hulking monster the size of a house. The creature was all tentacles, too many legs, and more eyes than Elijah could count, but it was also covered in a dense layer of blubber that made it look like an obese worm who’d been taken over by some alien parasite.
Whatever the case, the hunters had displayed the ability to plan ahead by establishing a runic circle that sapped much of the monster’s power. That was when they’d pounced, peppering it with restrictive abilities and ranged attacks that slowly whittled the thing’s defenses down to nothing.
Now, after hours of steady fighting, the monstrous beast was nearly dead. By contrast, none of the hunters had fallen, which just proved their prowess. Elijah hadn’t gotten close enough to truly gauge their strength, but the monster was obviously on the verge of or just past the demi-god level.
Even Elijah would have struggled to put it down without using his full suite of abilities, which he was loathe to do deep in hostile territory. What would happen if he exhausted his potential, only to be ambushed by some powerful predator? Nothing good, he was certain.
So, he’d long since established a conservative approach to power usage, relying instead on his oft-reusable abilities and the strength of his natural weapons.
Still, even hampered by that plan, Elijah felt confident that he could have eventually killed the thing. It would’ve taken a long time, though.
He watched as the hunters finally killed the creature. The second it was dead, they fell upon it with massive, cleaver-like axes. In minutes, they’d managed to completely process the creature, wasting nothing but the offal. Once they were finished, the natives stored the bundles away in what were obviously spatial crates and readied themselves to depart.
That was when an old man stepped forward. Like the others, he was dressed for battle. His black armor was leather, probably made from monster hide, and he carried one of the tall spears his people favored. It was at least ten feet long and would have been entirely unwieldy for anyone without superhuman strength or coordination.
The armor – including a crested helmet – hid their features entirely. Not a patch of skin was visible, but tangled beards poked free of some of those helmets. Elijah pegged the old man – identifiable by his white facial hair – as the leader, though that was probably just because he was different than the rest.
From a pouch at his waist, he retrieved a set of square stones, which he placed around the site of battle. It took Elijah until he was finished to recognize that the old hunter had created a ritual circle. He knelt and placed his hand on one of the stones. Ethera surged from the man, swirling around the circle, then flowed inward.
The offal burned.
Every ounce of life was consumed by dense, white flames that were hot enough to turn the rock to glass. It only lasted a few seconds, but when the fire died down, there was nothing left of the monster or the battle.
Elijah was close enough to hear voices, but he couldn’t discern the meaning behind them. It was then that he realized just how much he’d depended on the system’s translation feature. But apparently, it didn’t work in the middle of the abyss, which meant that their language was entirely unrecognizable.
If he chose to make contact, communication would be an issue.
After the old hunter gathered his ritual plaques, the entire group set out. Clearly, they were alert for any additional predators – as they should have been – but for the first few minutes, they traveled in peace.
That ended a mile later, when they were attacked by a swarm of tentacle-roaches. They fought the creatures, brutally slaying the aggressors and displaying a style that blended the strict formations of armies like the Iron Legion and more tribalistic hunting methods reminiscent of early humanity.
It was effective, though.
Elijah watched, waiting for an opportunity to help them. Not because of altruism, but rather, because he believed that he would be better received if he came to their rescue.
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The time never came, though.
They didn’t harvest the tentacle-roaches, probably because the creatures offered too little nutritional value for the work. Instead, the old man once again incinerated the remains in an obvious effort to cover their tracks.
Soon enough, they were once again on their way.
The next attack came after more than an hour. This time, a mutated, nine-headed worm monster erupted from the rocky ground. They destroyed it utterly, though in this instance, they did take the time to harvest its thick corpse.
So it went for more than a day. The hunters continued to show their efficiency and caution, killing one attacker after another. By the end of that first day, they were obviously exhausted, but they barely showed it. Just slumping shoulders when they thought no one was looking. A few deep breaths after a battle. A look that lingered on the horizon a little too long.
Elijah had done the same often enough that he recognized the signs of intense fatigue. But they didn’t let it affect their performance. Instead, they engaged every battle with the same stoic purpose, and the results followed suit.
Until, at last, something changed.
Elijah almost missed it. The sudden shimmer in the air, followed by a slight decrease in the abyssal taint. The missing corruption was replaced by an antiseptic undertone that reminded Elijah of a hospital. It didn’t smell any different, but he felt it all the same.
Though it was a welcome change, it was also an alarming one. For the next few moments, Elijah searched for a cause, only to find the culprit in the form of a half-buried paving stone beneath his feet. A few seconds later, he felt another one only a few feet away, and it didn’t take him long to recognize the pattern.
It was a circle, very similar to the ones he’d found in various ruins.
But unlike those, it was obviously active, and its purpose was clear. It was meant to filter the ambient corruption from the atmosphere.
Still in the Shape of the Scourge, Elijah suppressed a reptilian sigh of relief. If these people had taken such pains to suppress the abyssal taint, then perhaps they were unaffected. And if that was the case, maybe they could advise Elijah on how to find a way home.
With his heart beating out of his chest, Elijah continued to follow the hunters. Despite being within the circle, the group did not relax. And a few minutes later, it was obvious why. The attackers were airborne squid-like creatures that moved like lightning, and their preferred method of assault involved them wrapping their tentacles around their prey and injecting venom from the fangs lining said tendrils.
Elijah had fought their like often enough.
But the hunters never let the monsters get close. Instead, they diced them up like they were mere nuisances.
Only a few moments later did Elijah realize that even if the monsters had a familiar form, they were far less powerful than the ones he’d fought in the past. Clearly, the giant ritual circle had robbed them of their strength.
The next few miles brought more of the same. Not necessarily in the types of monsters, but rather, in the results. And then, they passed another circle. Predictably, the ambient corruption dissipated even further.
Seven more concentric circles followed until, at last, a city came into view.
Or judging by its size, it was more like a large town. For Elijah, who’d spent the last few months trekking across the world and investigating ruins, the architecture had a familiar cast to it. The buildings were less impressive. Far smaller, as well. But the design philosophy was similar enough to establish a throughline with the much older structures he’d found during his travels.
The natives clearly preferred curved surfaces, because Elijah didn’t see a right angle anywhere. The buildings weren’t exactly flowing. Rather, they reminded him of a blend of atomic age structures and Soviet neo-futurism. Wide, squat buildings, ribbed domes, concave curves, and a distinct lack of grace – abandoned in favor of utilitarianism – characterized the buildings he saw.
In short, while it wasn’t a pretty settlement, it was purposefully built.
The ruins he’d found had followed some similar design principles, but on a much grander and far more elegant scale.
What was even more important was that by the time they’d passed the ninth ring, Elijah felt that the atmosphere had become clear enough that he could have deactivated his Mantle of Authority without detrimental effects. And judging by the power coming from the low wall surrounding the settlement, he suspected that the air inside the town was entirely clear of that taint.
Somehow, these people had established a foothold in the middle of the abyss.
More importantly, Elijah saw something else that brought absolute joy to his heart.
Crops.
Fields of them, stretching for more than a mile outside the city. In the desolation of the abyss, the greenery was absolutely jarring. But even from miles away, Elijah could feel the dense vitality emitted by those verdant fields.
The hunters were obviously less impressed, and even when they reached the fields, they ignored them. They also ignored the workers, who in turn paid them no mind.
Elijah found them very interesting, though.
For the first time, he caught sight of the survivors without the concealment of armor, and he was both horrified and awestruck. And those two emotions weren’t so distant that they didn’t mingle.
The people were human. Perhaps a little slighter than was typical on Earth, with slightly larger eyes and limbs a touch longer, but they could have easily blended into any population on Elijah’s home planet.
Or that would have been the case if they weren’t horribly deformed.
Some looked like the product of intense inbreeding, with sloping foreheads, misshapen eyes, and pockmarked skin. Others sported massive tumors. Arms and legs of different lengths. Hunchbacks. And every other deformity Elijah could imagine.
They were the least affected, though.
Others had obviously been touched by the corruption of the abyss, as evident by waving tentacles growing from arms, legs, and backs. Elijah even saw a man with a vestigial and undeveloped arm jutting from his hip. Most of the corrupted people featured patches of rubbery, black skin as well.
Elijah had no idea how to look at those people.
They didn’t seem to be slowed by their deformities, and in fact, they moved with the steady assurance of people who’d gained a few levels. When Elijah drew close to one – a woman who resembled nothing so much as Quasimodo from the Hunchback of Notre Dame – he felt no real corruption inside of her.
To his senses, she was just a healthy, normal human being.
The mutation went no further than a cosmetic effect.
It was still disturbing, though.
But at least the crops were pristine and blooming with so much vitality that Elijah felt like he’d stepped back into the grove. The plants weren’t nearly as powerful as those native to his island, but after spending so long in a vitality desert, they certainly felt like it.
Elijah lingered there for a few hours, just basking in the sense of life. He would have remained longer if the workers hadn’t finished their day and returned to the city. Elijah reluctantly followed, eager and a little trepidatious to find what lay within.