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---   Orion   ---

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I trudged over to the cooking tent, exhausted and tired from the miseries I’ve had to go through today, leaving me uncaring enough that I was still wearing all of my combat gear. I joined the back of the que and glanced around the person in front of me to see who had cooked dinner today.

Becky, good. I still remember the ashy taste of Gin’s attempt at making a soup. How do you even burn a liquid?

I dodged a little glowing ball flying by my head, the spell Elio got from his levelling today allowed him to cover the campsite in little fiery orbs. Much better at lighting than torches and the magic covered the campsite with fairy lights.

I shuffled forwards a little when the line moved up, noticing that the person in front of me and behind me were giving me a wide berth.

Hmm, they must still be mad at me after Elio’s rant.

I still don’t get what went wrong.

I shot the arrow, and it saved Elio’s life, and I know that he must at least have figured out that much. But why did he have a tantrum about it?

Even when I picked up that baby drake, he considered it a risk and kicked it off a cliff?

It was a wild animal and I’d treated it ruffly, of course it bit me.

But I didn’t even get a chance to explain.

A pang of miserable regret went through me, realising that I’d probably doomed the little thing by finding it, not saving it.

I sighed and clenched my jaw, recalling my father’s favourite line.

You’re a warrior, strong, brave and true.

And like most emotions, I pushed it down into my chest and tried forgetting about it.

“Orioooon, is that you buddy?” Becky giggled, I glanced up to find that I’d already gotten to the front of the que, and that Becky was laughing at me with her usual grin.

“Who else could I be?”

“He-he, yup, that’s Orion all right. bowl please!” Becky happily asked, I felt a bit of confusion at her joke before passing my ivory bowl to her. What’d she mean by that? Of course I’m Orion, she said my name when she asked?

She handed back my bowl, my stomach rumbling as I saw the floating bits of drake meat floating in the bowl, it smelt divine. But as I turned to go find somewhere to eat, Becky grabbed my arm.

“Wait a second, E-L-I-O, has something to say to you” She called out, and as if waiting for his que, Elio stepped out of a tent with a miserable expression on his face.

“So, Elio. Didn’t you have something you wanted to say?” She said through gritted teeth, a scary smile stretching her lips.

“Uh huh, So I have… a few things, I’d like too-oo-o-o… Ap-A, Aplo-” Elio struggled to force out, I wondered if he was choking on something, but then Becky grabbed his shoulder, and her smile became even more strained.

“Okay okay I’ll do it, ss-ist-, Becky stop!” Elio cried out, and I glanced between the two with concern, wondering what’d gotten into them as Becky bug her thumb into Elio’s shoulder. Elio let out a breath of relief as Becky let go, rolling the damaged shoulder with a wince.

“Orion, I’d like to a-a-a-apologise, for some of my decisions and words that were unreasonable and uncalled for.” Elio recited, as if he’d been given a script to read.

“it’s just that you seemed, uninterested in hunting the monsters down here, and that you didn’t talk with anyone, so I thought that you didn’t want to be down here and that you were leaching EXP from people who needed it.”

“I got… annoyed, when you kept on doing things that went against my decisions because it seemed like you didn’t care about my instructions, which could’ve been dangerous in the wrong situation. Like-shooting-in-the-dark.”

“As your leader, I humbly apologise.” Elio monotonically said, reminding me of an apology a company made when they were found to be poisoning the local lake with chemicals.

“That’s fine”

“WHAT! Wha-, you’re not bothered by it?”

“No, I am, but your reasoning isn’t flawed, I did go against direct orders.”

“And I think you might be right about not wanting to be down here.”

“You don’t like hunting monsters?” Becky interjected with a frown.

“No.”

“I just think I’m not suited for this group.” I decided, knowing that even if Elio had decided to forgive me, there was still everyone else in the group, and they still seemed to be angry at me. It’s just easier to go by myself than try and repair all these relationships.

“What!” Becky shouted this time, quickly covering her gaping mouth with a hand as she regained her composure.

“Really, you don’t want to party with us anymore? But there aren’t any others like us y’know” Becky reminded me, I knew that there weren’t any other people from earth around here, but it really didn’t matter? Humans are human no matter where you go.

“Once we complete this dungeon, I’ll do my own thing.” As I said my peace, a couple of emotions I couldn’t recognise flickered in Becky’s face, eventually settling on a sad smile.

“Well, until then, I hope we can work together well.”

“So do I”

And with that I turned and left the kitchen area, leaving Becky and Elio by themselves.

“So Elio, you should probably find that magic dagger of yours, can’t image what the priests will say once they learn you’ve lost a sacred relic of theirs.” Becky loudly laughed as soon as I left, and I decided not to bother thinking about it as I entered the main eating area.

I took a quick look around to see nothing but angry stares back. Hmm, this place wouldn’t make a nice place to eat.

I grabbed a left-over stool and started walking away from the campsite, passing by Gin on the way out, the burly women being still suited up in her thick plated armour.

“So, you’re leaving huh?”

“Yes, once we’re out of here.”

“Well good luck then.” She nonchalantly said, waving me goodbye as I continued walking out of camp, setting my stool down by the cliffside and sitting down, staring off into the black abyss in front of me. I was glad that we chose to set up camp around the entrance to the drake’s cave, the large platform at least allowed me a bit of space to eat without anyone next to me.

“I wonder if that little girl is still alive down there?” I depressingly wondered, talking out loud as drop in front of me reminded me of that little drake.

“Maybe I should go start a farm somewhere…” I considered, a place to call home would be nice. Maybe a little log hunting cabin with a pet dog, away from everyone.

I glanced back down at my food, poking at it for a bit before eating a chunk of meat.

Huh, the rumours were true, drake meat does taste like rich beef.

As I slowly finished my meal, the activity behind me in the campsite slowly calmed down, the mass of little fairy lights slowly dwindling through the night, until there was only enough light to barely see where you’re walking, like a faint nightlight.

I considered getting up and going to bed once I’d finished my meal but decided otherwise. I found that staring into the abyss was comforting.

Knowing that death could always be a step away.

It’s nice to be reminded that anyone or anything can die in this weird fantasy world.

But as I stared out into the darkness, I heard the sounds of boots slapping on stone, someone was walking towards me.

“Who is it?” I asked, not bothering to turn around.

I frowned slightly, wondering who it is and why there weren’t bothering to answer me.

“Did you hear me?” I asked again, twisting in my seat to look at the stranger and seeing someone I didn’t recognise. They’re heavily disguised, wearing a thick brown cloak that hid all bodily features, that and a mask hid any hints of who they might be.

They quickly stomped up to me as I stood up in confusion, wondering who this person was. When we came here, the city of the sun guarded the entrance and was preventing anyone else from coming in.

So, that’d mean it was someone I knew.

“Hello-” I started to ask, the masked person quickly stepping forwards and putting a finger on my lips before I could react. They’re shorter than me, meaning they had to stretch to reach my lips. I slightly raised an eyebrow in confusion, wondering what all this cloak and daggers business was about.

I admired the mask they’re wearing, the ornate golden patterns across the ivory white mask were breath-takingly gorgeous, like the masks those stage actors wore. It was twisted into a smile and the expression seemed forced, the mouth unnaturally stretched across the mask.

But while I was appreciating the artwork in front of me, I noticed their robes shuffling with a bit of movement and I glanced down at the place where the clothing shifted. And then before I could even flinch, the tip of a blade sprung out, tearing right through the robes and into me, embedding itself a handspan into my abdomen.

I grunted in pain, not even able to cry out properly as the blow caught me when I was breathing out, and the pain left me barely able to inhale, making me wheeze in agony.

The person, without having said a word this whole time gave me a little push, sending me stumbling backwards and I tried to throw out a hand behind me to catch myself.

But as my arm landed on the stool, the flimsy wooden chair fell over with me, easily pushed backwards and was sent off the ledge behind me. Time felt like it’d slowed down as I watched the stool fly off the edge of the cliff and into the darkness below, and I knew that’s where I was stumbling as well.

I glanced back up at the person who’d stabbed me, that smile on their mask resembling a cruel smirk as the dagger connecting us was pulled by me falling backwards, the metal clinging on my flesh as it stubbornly remained lodged in me.

I silently screamed, all of the air left in my lungs slipping out as I felt my insides get tugged by the blade. But I barely managed to get a squeak out as the golden hilt was yanked out of the mysterious persons gloved hand, the stranger desperately trying to snatch at it to stop it from coming with me into the void.

But their efforts were useless as I ran of rock to stumble on, feeling a damning sense of vertigo as I tipped backwards, unable to do anything but watch as the masked stranger stared at me through the two pinholes in their mask. Making me stare into their brown eyes with wordless hate, unsaid accusations, and a desperate need to know why.

But I didn’t get a chance to voice any of my questions, because I quickly sank into blackness below the cliff as soon as that quick and fleeting moment before gravity took hold ended. Leaving me to fall for what felt like forever, feeling nothing but the air pelting my skin and hearing nothing but the roar of wind in my ears.

Even though I couldn’t see anything I closed my eyes, the sound of wind in my ears slowly getting drowned out by the beating of my heart pounding loudly. I could feel my awareness retract into myself, desperately trying to ignore the fact that I was falling to my death.

I could feel myself start to vibrate and shake with fear, the very thought of hitting the bottom of-

I breathed in and held it, not letting the air out even as I felt my chest and abdomen violently palpitate with emotions I didn’t like.

You’re a warrior, strong, brave and true.

You’re a warrior strong brave true.

You’re-a-warrior-strong-brave-true.

You’re-a-warrior-strong-brave-true.

You’reawarriorstrongbravetrue.

YOU’RE A WARR-

 

 

 

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I woke up feeling like I’d died and had fallen all the way to hell, my eyes slowly opened and I barely noticed, as I quickly realised I was in pure blackness. I slowly regained some feeling in my limbs, feeling cold rock pressing against my back and limbs, leaching the heat from my body.

My body felt numb and unwieldly, I could feel that there was something stiff and aching near my neck, I ignored the implications of maybe damaging my neck during the fall and focused on something more important.

With painful grunt I slowly propped up my loose body with an elbow, habitually searching through his clothes to find one of the first things my dad ever gave me, an old BIC lighter.

“Fire makes light, warmth. Fire can cook food. Fire is man’s first and most important tool to stave off the night.” my father whispered, his voice coming from somewhere in the darkness.

I let out a shuddering breath, unable to stop myself from glancing around. I knew he wasn’t here, and I knew that I was in a bad way. I pulled the little lighter out of my pocket and tried to get it to light up.

*tch*

*tic*

*tfsh*

I let out a sigh of relief as a little flame appeared, the little lick of light illuminating my body and the surrounding area, revealing nothing but a stone wall that was next to me and the scattered wood chips of what was once a stool.

I winced when I saw that the blade that I’d been stabbed with was still in my stomach and realised that it was Elio’s magic dagger, the one that’d gone missing.

I shook my head to get rid of the forming conspiracy theories, knowing that surviving was the first thing on my list of things to worry about.

I shuffled myself over to the stone wall and propped myself against it, using it as a backrest as I grabbed the bigger pieces of scrap wood that I could reach, putting them into a rough pile.

I carefully lowered the lighter to ignite the varnished wood, and after almost burning my thumb, the little pile went up in flames, providing relief for my hand that’d been cramping from holding down the lighter button.

With the first task done I finally took a proper look at the wound on my lower abdomen. The blade was in the lower left side of my abdomen, just below my ribcage. But the wound felt strangely easy to bear, much easier than most of my other injuries I’ve gotten in the past.

Even though I knew that this numbness in my body meant something dire, that my spine was definitely injured.

But as bad as it was, it made being stabbed… bearable. Hopefully it wasn’t permanent, my talent <Heart of life>, made permanent wounds healable with a bit of bedrest, but I certainly didn’t want to test it like this.

I ripped a bit of cloth off of my ruined shirt, wrapping it in a donut shape and putting it around the sword like a ring on a finger, using it to block the wound a little. And when I pulled my hand back after placing it, I noticed a dark liquid coating my hand, the blood reflecting the campfires meagre light.

That’s not good. My head started to spin, and I felt drowsy suddenly, my eyes aching with the weight of their lids.

I hope… I wake… up.

 

 

 

 

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I let out a stifled scream as pain flooded back into me, my dangerous slumber interrupted by waves of agony coming from my midsection. That numb feeling from before, that encompassed everything from the neck down was gone, and the pain that it’d been supressing returned in full force. My breathing sped up as I glanced down at my wound, realising that it’d gotten stuck against something sensitive, feeling the terrible pain of the blade rubbing against my rib with every breath.

I felt my head roll to the side, feeling like my brain lagged behind, my eyesight going in and out of focus as I felt the dizziness from before returning. But my frazzled attention was dragged away for a moment when I spotted something lazing by the campfire, the iridescent mass of sparkling silver was unmistakable.

It was that baby drake, I awkwardly reached out with one arm, the little thing being just in reach for me to stroke her head. I squinted to get a better view of her, seeing that the poor baby was covered in wounds and gashes, looking as close to death as I was.

I winced when the guilt of what I’d done to her flowed through me, knowing that I had been responsible for most of the miserable things that’d happened to her ever since she’d been born. From killing her parents to hew getting kicked down here, looking like death.

I heard her hum in her sleep as I scratched her head, a sad smile appearing on my face as I found the right spot to pat. I appreciated her beauty, she was a magnificent animal, even with the wounds plaguing her body.

[Congratulations!

You’ve discovered the ranger class’s slightly hidden skill, <soul bond>, you may now perform a soul bond on a creature or monster of substantial sentience when compared to you. You both will become companions through this life and in whatever comes next.]

[Warning: this is permanent for both parties involved and will affect both parties in ways that are unpredictable.]

[Warning: this skill is only usable once, and <soul bond>,  including its subsidiary effects cannot be disabled]

I skimmed through the text, uncaring for the warning as I realised that I could make up for some of my mistakes. I knew that I’d done her wrong and this seemed to be the system’s way of fixing some of those wrongs.

I gently pulled over the little drake and put her in my lap, positioning her carefully so that she didn’t touch the lengthened dagger. I smiled at the cat-sized drake in my lap, happy that I could do something for her.

 

[To use the skill, the criteria must be met:

Must be an infant that isn’t aggressive towards the initiator,

Have no current carers,

Have no given name and be unable to care for itself. Or, be a consenting adult creature.]

I winced, knowing that I’ve cleared most of the conditions for the bond, and then activated the skill.

[To complete the ceremony, blood must be shared, and a name must be given.]

 

“Sally, she’ll be called Sally.” I murmured, letting out a little laugh, the little drake reminding me of a cartoon character I had a crush on when I was younger. ‘Sally the Salamander’, the only show I got to watch as a kid in my rural home, the upright walking lizard becoming my first crush.

I gave a chuckle as I recalled how much my father got annoyed at me for it, kind of wishing I could go back to a simpler then.

But I got rid of the nostalgic thoughts as a reached towards my abdomen, collecting a bit of my blood and letting it pool in my hand. I lifted up Sally’s mouth and forced her mouth open, letting the red liquid drip into it and then I did the same with one of her wounds, tasting the familiar tang of blood as I stuck my dyed red fingers into my mouth.

[bond initiating, as the souls are bound, prepare for drowsiness and other possible side effects.]

I felt another wave of drowsiness wash over me, unable to stop my head from falling backwards and resting against the stone wall.

I gave the sword in my stomach one last look before I closed my eyes.

I’ll… Deal with it… tomorrow…

 

 

 

 

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