Silver Lord is an old and experienced zombie.  His own convoluted path through his evolutions and cultivation has seen many up and downs.  He has missed opportunities, but have gained just as many. After centuries of diligent work, he’s finally at the stage where he can do almost anything he wants.

Power is all that matters in this world.  Rather that power be in the strength of arms, the roar of magical arts, or in pure and unknowable information.  With power you could do whatever you want in Limbo and beyond. Without it you can only suffer.

Silver Lord in this case is powerful.  He has worked for decades to leverage his unique evolution and magical skills in order to build up his Silver Key Magic Society.  Devoting large parts of his efforts and personal wealth on raising up those far younger than himself. To teach them the proper steps in order to avoid the pitfalls he himself fell for.

While also advancing his own area of study.  Or his crazy experiments, whichever one fits better.  Hahahaha.

That said, the current situation has left Silver Lord is somewhat of a slump.  Holdt, a nearly three-year member of the Silver Key and a pupil with a decent enough talent, is currently smoking quite badly while laying on his back, very much unconscious.  Thankfully there doesn’t appear to be anything actually wrong with Holdt, besides some minor internal damage that is already well on its way to healing up.

On the other hand, the first class newbie is in a far worse state.  A brand new recruit sent to him via a courtesy call from a Kriti of rather high standing, the lad was every bit as crazy as Silver Lord himself is.  Just in different ways. Utterly unafraid to try new things and learn skills far above his means.

Which is why the newbie is now a nearly broken soul trapped inside of the magical glow of an active ward.  A bit of foresight that Silver Lord is very happy to have had, as the Soul Cage ward had caught the poor boys soul before it could scatter.  That said, even Silver Lord cannot help but shudder at the memory of that hellaciously painful scream the newbie had issued just before exploding.  Or imploding, really.

Hells, it not only looked painful, but sounded painful as well.  Which is just too much for Silver Lord’s poor heart. Or would be if his heart was beating and all that jazz.  Being an undead has its advantages.

Still, the damage is done and thankfully contained.  Although there is a little bit of guilt involved, Silver Lord himself is actually quite happy with the outcome.  His ‘All-Seeing Gaze’ had captured quite the show, which will no doubt push forward his research by a great amount!

Hmmm, what should he name the study?  ‘Interpersonal Cultivation of disparate Skill Levels causing Soul Energy Deviation’?  No, too unwieldy. How about: ‘Separated Spirit Form Backlash - A Cultivation Study’? Hmm, no, that doesn’t work either.  Naming things had never really been Silver Lord’s strong suit.

“Blast it all…”  The old zombie finally mutters, his attention coming back to the present.  Especially where his glowing silver eyes focus upon the swirling soul held within that magical cage of his.

“Not sure if I should be happy the failsafe worked or be sad that he had to experience that.”  Yeah, okay, so maybe there was a bit of compassion under that maniacally crazy exterior. If only a little.

Especially when the old zombie pulls the captured soul into his hand and starts to toy with it like a squishy ball.  Thankfully the ward is quite powerful, and doesn’t even break when Silver Lord starts to tug on it, pulling on it to stretch it like a piece of putty.  If the newbie were awake in that state, he’d have never had let it happen. If only.

“Well, one more experiment won’t hurt.  Hehe. He might even thank me later!”

Oh yeah, if only.

~{+}~ | ~{+}~ | ~{+}~

[You have survived: 09 days in Limbo!  Have a nice day!]

The usual welcome message was there when I finally opened my eyes.  I could tell because of the glaring blue against my vision, yet for the moment I cannot concentrate on it enough to actually read the words.  I just hurt too damned much.

And by hurting I mean HURTING.  My everything hurts. My body hurts.  My mind hurts. And I’m pretty sure I can faintly hear my soul crying somewhere in the background.  Which is really annoying, because it faintly sounds like some woman who was ravished then casted aside.  Not exactly a cheerful feeling to wake up to in the morning.

Not that I should be waking up anyway.  I’m already supposed to be dead, and the dead don’t sleep.  Ugh. It doesn’t help that my memories are fuzzy on exactly why I was asleep anyway.  If you can count unconsciousness as sleeping.

“Looks like you are alive, that’s good!”  

A far too cheerful voice suddenly booms in my ears, making me wince at the sudden pain that shoots through my head.  Freaking Hells.

“Oops, sorry.”  The voice says then in a far softer tone, which I’m thankful for.  At least until a blurred silver figure appears above me. I just can’t seem to focus my eyes properly right now.

“The disorientation should pass here soon.  I, uh, may have kept your soul outside your body for longer than I should have…”

Silver Lord.  Old, silver, and crazy as a bat.  Yeah, that’s the one. I’m not sure why it’s taking so much effort to actually think, but whatever.  At least I know who to blame.

“Tsk!  Don’t glare at me like that.  I may have played,” cough, “experimented,” cough, “with your soul while I had it in my grasp, but I’m sure you’ll thank me soon enough!”

Oh shit.  Those words really snap me awake, and I sit up with a jerk that just about makes me double over with a groan of pain.  But this time the pain starts helping to clear my head and my vision comes into focus. Which is when I realize that I’m no longer in the same body I was in before.

Even for generic run-of-the-mill zombie bodies, there are slight differences between them.  Height, weight, general looks, and even the lengths of the fingers and toes are all different.  And my hands right now are way too big compared to before.

That and the distinct stitches of black thread are dead giveaways.  Which is odd, because I’d never seen a zombie stitched up before. They are all generated with perfectly whole bodies unless they were munched on by a shambler or ghoul or something.

“This body…”  I start to say.

“Ah, yes, another experiment.  It was the perfect opportunity to see if you’d set properly into an altered body!  Hahaha. And it seems to have worked. Feel anything wrong?”

“Besides hurting far more than I should, no… Now what in the damned Hells happened?”

Okay, so the pain is making me more snappish than usual.  Which should be understandable, given I really hadn’t had to deal with true pain all that much since awakening a little over a week ago.  Being dead doesn’t lend itself to physical feelings like pain or pleasure all that well. Discomfort, sure. But not right out pain.

Silver Lord, on the other hand, is grinning like an idiot when I finally work my head up to actually look at him.  That just leaves a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. As does the fact that I finally notice that I’m no longer in my cultivation chamber.

In fact I’m in what could be called a torture cellar.  Nicely. At worst it might be called a madman’s laboratory.  Which really does not inspire confidence.

If it weren’t the vast and myriad number of wickedly sharp tools, hammers, chisels, and weapons hanging from the walls, then it is definitely the number of restraining racks sitting in all sorts of positions around the room.  Or the number of large workbenches, each of which have a number of contraptions and gadgets and gizmos that I cannot even recognize sitting upon them. Oh, and that ghastly green-white light that covers everything from a set of glowing orbs hanging from the ceiling.

“Oh that.  You suffered severe backlash while cultivating because Holdt inadvertently sucked all your soul energy from you.  My Soul Cage ward caught you though, so that’s great! On the other hand I’d never had the chance to toy,” cough, “experiment with an awakened soul before!”

Thus Silver Lord starts going off on the various experiments he’d conducted on my soul.  Mainly with how mutable it was. Or how it could fragment and be regrouped in controlled conditions.  Also rather it could be ‘implanted’ into other things outside of (un)living bodies.

From all of that I only got one thing: the old bastard tested just about anything he could personally think of outside of outright destroying me.  Which is good, cause I really don’t want to die again. Then the bad, because he’d kept at it for over an entire day. Thus the whole ‘kept you out for so long’ bit.

By this point though I’m just in too much pain to really care.  Or I’ve just gone numb to the craziness. Perhaps a bit of both.

That doesn’t stop me from raising my arm up and back only to slam my fist into his proud, gloating face though.  It really was fitting that my first act of violence would be to this old bastard as well. I really do feel violated at this point.  Ugh.

Sadly my punch does nothing much.  In fact it was like I’d slammed my fist into a metal plate, complete with a soft ‘dong’ sound.  Which does absolutely nothing to help the pain I felt coming from the hit.

That said, my hand is really large at the moment.  Big enough to close Silver Lord’s mouth and leave him looking somewhat stunned.  At least until he starts laughing again!

“Hahahaha!  You’ll have to try harder than that to hurt me, brat!”  He cannot help but brag, looking even more smug now than before.

“I get it though.  I may have gone overboard… In fact Holdt has been waiting this entire time too…”

No sooner had Silver Lord spoke up that someone starts banging on the door.  Which is impressive, given that it’s another stone thing, and the sound of it is like someone slamming against it with a battering ram.  Or several somethings, from the multiple booms echoing into the chamber here.

“Oh dear… Stop, stop!”  Silver Lord suddenly starts to fret, running off toward the door with a speed I’m hardly able to follow with my eyes.  Old bastard can really be fast when he wants to be.

“Stop banging on the enchantments before you break something!”

He’s yelling even as he hits the switch to open the door, only to backpedal several steps as not just Holdt but several other people storm into the chamber as well.  I recognize a few of them, although at the moment I cannot really remember their names. My head hurts just too much.

Yet there are others I haven’t met at all at this point.  A group of sixteen, all of them wearing the garments of the Silver Key Magic Society.  And all of them looking quite peeved and angry.

Each of them hold their prefered weapons and look ready to actually use them as they stare at Silver Lord and me and the room in general.  Too many eyes to keep track of at this point. Yet for all of that they slowly relax once Holdt waves them down.

“What in the Hells’ have you been doing, Sir Silver Lord?  You know that messing with Awakened Souls’ is seriously Taboo!”  Holdt starts yelling at Silver Lord, the first time I’d ever seen the zombie yelling at his leader.  Or yelling at all, in fact.

“Not even the Fallen Gods would approve of it!  Much less Agamemnon should he hear of it! We do not need the City Throne investigating even for hearsay here!  We have enough problems with the Wizard’s Tower!”

That finally seems to tire Holdt out, although several of the others with him are nodding or adding words themselves.  Ugh. It’s hard to keep track of it all, but it really does seem there’s more going on with the Silver Key than I had known before.

“Alright, you all can stop now.  I’m not -that- crazy.” The old man finally speaks up there, holding up his hands before motioning to me.

“I didn’t directly cause any damage to his soul, so no harm done,”  Silver Lord says then, only to point at me with another proud, gloating look on his face, “In fact I gave him the Fragment!  Hahaha!”

Those words wipe off the angry and aggressive looks on the crowds faces in an instant.  What replaces those looks are equally vivid ones of surprise and horror. Neither of which mean anything to me, because I have no idea what this ‘Fragment’ is.

“By the Pits, Aremis!”  One of the others yells then, a magic user by the name of Tretis that I’ve trained with before.  He’s actually one of the oldest Silver Key members, and likely one of the few that’d ever use Silver Lord’s real name.

“Insane, utterly insane… You gave the newbie the Fragment of Divinity?!  How?! We’ve had that thing for over a century but have never been able to use it!”

Woah.  Did he really just say ‘Fragment of Divinity’?  Like, what in all the Hells is that? The fact that it sounds really impressive and all sorts of important doesn’t help my scrambled thoughts at this point.

“Haha!  That’s the point!  It’d only work on raw souls, but not just any raw soul.  It required an Awakened Soul. Hehehe.” It doesn’t stop Silver Lord from dancing a little jig, even while being watched by a various assortment of eyes.

“Trying to use the Fragment on raw souls just caused them all to collapse and absorb the bits into itself.  We knew that while trying to use it before.” The old man starts to explain then, having stopped his crazy dancing, thankfully.  Not sure if I want to even keep that memory, it was just too absurd.

“But when I brought his Awakened Soul in here in the Soul Cage the Fragment actually responded!  Nearly broke out of the containment enchantment we’d set up. Hehe.”

Those words just cause a whole bunch of groans from the crowd, while Holdt has actually sneaked out of the mass of people and made his way over to me.  He looks pensive yet relieved, and is only partially listening to Silver Lord or the others.

“Glad to see you are okay, boy.  Silver Lord really could have gotten us all in deep trouble this time.”

“Yeah, I can see that.  Don’t remember any of it though.  But I hurt right now, which isn’t normal.  This body is also weird.” I say just as quietly back to Holdt, holding up my hands to show off the stitches and whatnot.  And the fact that they are way too big for this bodies’ arms.

“We’ll take a look in a bit, lad.  You should listen to this though, it’s important.”  Holdt says, motioning to the crowd and Silver Lord again.  This just makes me perk up my ears while I watch.

“I reinforced the enchantment to keep the Fragment contained before starting my experiments with the raw soul.  Fairly standard stuff, you know. Any Necromancer or Spiritualist would have done the same…”

Like anyone really believed him at that point and I cannot help but grimace.  The old man had already told me what he’d done, but it seems he’s really hiding some details from the others.  Rather that’s out of his own sense of shame or guilt I cannot say though. I just think he didn’t want to get into any more trouble than he’s already caused.

“I finally had to go back to the Fragment afterwards and decided to put it to use.  We never would have gotten another chance… Hehe. And I’m so glad I did! I got so much data in the process!”

Then suddenly Silver Lord is right in front of me again, grabbing me by the arm and pulling me up.  He motions to me with his free hand almost wildly, still grinning like a madman.

“He’s just fine!  I kept him together with several Soul Cage wards and energy from soul stones,”  Silver Lord says then, almost fast enough to cause spittle to fly. “Go ahead and check your message log, boy!  Let us know what it says!”

Yet even before I could say or do so I pick up Silver Lord muttering to himself: “Please, please be worth it…”  Yeah, really a lot of confidence there. He’s just good at hiding his faults, apparently.

[-Message Log-]

[You have been exhausted! (x*****)]

[Your Soul has dispersed!]

[You have died.]

[You have been resuscitated!]

[Your Soul has been forcibly stabilized. (x*****)]

[Your Soul has been refined with precious materials!]

[Integration of ‘Fragment of Divinity’ proceeding.]

[‘Fragment of Divinity’ has been consumed.]

[Exhaustion Resistance II has leveled up! (x6)]

 

[New Perk gained: Expanded Soul!]

[New Perk gained: Strengthened Soul!]

[New Detriment gained: Solid Soul!]

 

[Expanded Soul - Perk.]

[Your soul has been expanded through the refinement of precious materials!]

[Your soul can now hold Soul Energy inside of itself as a reserve.]

[10% increase to Soul Energy absorption rate.]

[10% increase to Soul Energy refinement rate.]

[+100 maximum Soul Energy.]

[+10 maximum Soul Reserve.]

[0/10 Soul Reserve.]

 

[Strengthened Soul - Perk.]

[Your soul has been strengthened through the refinement of precious materials!]

[You can now maintain your Spirit Form with no Soul Energy cost.]

[Your soul is more resistant to destruction through damage or dispersion!]

[+100 maximum Soul Energy.]

[+10 maximum Soul Reserve.]

[0/20 Soul Reserve.]

 

[Solid Soul - Detriment.]

[Your soul has been solidified through the refinement of precious materials!]

[Your Spirit Form is now your true body.]

[Physical bodies now require additional cultivation in order to reflect your true stats.]

[+100 maximum Soul Reserve.]

[0/120 Soul Reserve.]

 

[Feat performed: Soul Refinement!]

[Feat Limit reached.  Pending!]

 

[New Title gained: Crystal Soul, Rank I.]

 

[Crystal Soul, Rank I. - Title.]

[5% increase in Soul Study effects.]

[5% increase in learning Soul based Abilities and Skills.]

[+1 Soul Points per Rank up.]

[+1 Soul Points per evolution.]

[This Title can be evolved.]

 

[+250 maximum Soul Energy for repeated Exhaustion! (MAX)]

[Your physical body has base stats of 10 points.]

[You are recuperating.]

 

It takes me several minutes to read through the log, reading it aloud for everyone to hear.  It isn’t a common thing, because no one wants to reveal so much about themselves. But in this case I don’t really care about revealing these things.

In truth I need help, because I barely understand what my message log is telling me.  I’d gained perks, a detriment, and even a new title. Yet they really don’t make much sense to me right now.

Part of that is from how crappy I feel, but I don’t understand what it means about ‘refinement’ or even ‘Soul Reserve’.  These are things that I’ve never touched upon before, and I really don’t think most of the others have either. They all look as confused as I am.

Even Silver Lord himself looks a little pensive, his hand coming up to stroke that beard he doesn’t have.  At least if his thoughts are on this issue then I don’t have to worry about not figuring it out. For all of the old man’s craziness, he at least is knowledgeable enough to come up with a theory.

Of course it doesn’t help that the others outside of Silver Lord and Holdt had yet to see my Spirit Form before.  That in itself is already a brand new ability, unique to me. That and raw souls are supposed to be unable to contain Soul Energy anyway, which makes my new Soul Reserve just all sorts of crazy in and of itself.

“Well, it looks like we have more experimenting to do!”  Silver Lord yells then, making me grimace in pain while the others give a series of lackluster chuckles.

Yeah, way to ruin the mood there old man.

~{+}~ | ~{+}~ | ~{+}~

[You have survived: 17 days in Limbo!  Have a nice day!]

 

More than a week has passed since the ‘Soul Incident’ and the entire Silver Key Magic Society has become a madhouse.  All the Society members, except those in critical positions or posts, have been recalled to the headquarters. This swelling of the ranks have filled up the entire place and nearly every day I’ve been introduced to one or two members I hadn’t yet gotten the chance to meet yet.

It’s actually pretty amazing, because even though the Silver Key is considered a small to medium sized Society as far as Helen City’s various groups go, it still has some 200-odd members at last count.  Many of them already over a century of age as well. At that age they are naturally powerful enough to wander the outside world on their own and pursue their own subjects of interest.

Those interests are very wide in scope as well.  Cooking, alchemy, blacksmithing… Even a guy who happily works as a lumberjack in a place called the Black Forest.  From what he told me, the Black Forest is almost smack dab in the middle of the distance between Helen City and the city of Zeus’ Rest far to the east.  It’s quite the distance, which took him a while to get back here when the summons went out.

The reason for this recall of Silver Key members, surprisingly enough, is me.  If mostly for Silver Lord to show off his new brightest pupil. Ugh. On the other hand the various skills and abilities the members take it upon themselves to teach me is a major bonus.  Not that I can use most of them yet, but that’s beside the point.

In fact, the training offered has gone from the useful to the crazy and back around again.  Like seriously, why would I ever need a skill like ‘Chess (Game) Strategy’? Sure, the game is fun, but outside of amusement I don’t think I’ll ever play it in a serious way.  That’s just one example of a nearly useless skill that I’ve been taught recently.

By this point though it feels more like the whole of the Society has turned out in order to spoil their little brother.  It is heartwarming, as far as it goes, but it is getting into embarrassing territory here. Sure, I’m willing to let them show off then try to learn what they have to offer, but bloody Hells’ are these guys as crazy as Silver Lord in their own ways.

Part of that is probably because of the fact that Silver Key doesn’t have many rules.  Most of those are centered around ‘Do Not Harm Your Fellow Members’ and ‘Do Not Cause Trouble for the Society’.  This lax set of rules has bred a family feel to the whole Society, while the hands-off style of administration means that everyone can go do their own thing so long as they respond to a call from the Silver Hand in times of need.

Or just getting together to have a damned party.  Really, I didn’t know that the dead could hold such a bash.  With all sorts of foods and drink and a 21-piece band of Society members playing a wild and rhythmic set of songs.  Shit, I didn’t know the dead could get drunk either!

Thankfully I stayed away from the alcohol, although I tried a bit of everything else.  I didn’t need to eat or drink in order to live, but really some of the options are really delectable.  The in-house produced ‘Fizzy Orange Soda’ was really good, for example, and was made by a female zombie who used to make it back in the living world above.  She’d missed the taste so had worked to reproduced it down here, although it has taken her quite a while. The current batch was #359. Haha.

Outside of the party-like feel though, everyone is really serious when it came to my unusual status within the Society.  This all stems from the unusualness of my own personal ability and the fact that I received the Fragment. Of which I finally got the full story out of Holdt after several days renewed testing Silver Lord and others had put me through.

So I came to find out ‘Fragments of Divinity’ is a literal name for shattered pieces of an Old Gods’ soul.  The sort of shattering that happens upon their death and destruction. Which is a really big deal, as far as Gods go.

That said, the Fragments can be found all over Limbo and even beyond.  They are rare, but not really useful in most cases, and can be found in Dungeons or out in the wilds.  Unawakened creatures here in Limbo seem to like to collect them due to their powerful auras, so groups can gather them with some regularity.

To most people though they are just shiny baubles.  Expensive shiny baubles at that. The Silver Key had gotten theirs while exploring an old ruin in the search of something else, but they hadn’t been able to use it in over a century.  It just remains completely inert to most stimuli.

Now though the Silver Key knows how to put the Fragments to use, but only under extreme circumstances.  The oldest members and Silver Lord actually went out and bought another Fragment to experiment with, only to find that none of them could absorb it either.  And this was done after conveniently extracting several of their Awakened Souls to try.

The reason for this is the Perks I’d received when I absorbed that first Fragment.  Perks are hard to get, either through the Voice or through buying them with Soul Points.  The relative increase in strength caused by gaining them though is worth far more than what a Fragment actually costs on the open market.

All of which has left Silver Lord and the other stumped.  Silver Lord’s original hypothesis that it required an Awakened Soul didn’t work, thus they are all now focused upon me.  That said, even I cannot absorb the second Fragment.

It gave a weak response in my presence, but it was nowhere near as strong as Silver Lord had seen the first time.  No one can figure out why that is, either. My own personal thought is that I’d need to either Rank Up or Evolve before I can take in another Fragment.

That theory though cannot be tested yet, since I’m still in my Newly Dead period.  So instead of waiting around and doing nothing, all the members decided that I should be their training buddy instead.  Or their captive test subject, as the case may be. Gah.

At least I cannot complain about the results.  Especially where my ‘Bane’ is concerned. Hehehe.  I’ve learned far more about being able to slip out of all sorts of restraints, which is surprising fun, truth be told.

 

[-Personal Statistics-]

[Name: -Locked-] [Status: Civilian]

[Displayed Title: Unpressured, Rank IV]

[Racial Type: Dead | Zombie/Spirit Form] [Rank: F | Level: 10 (MAX/UP)]

 

[-Spirit Form Stats-]

[Soul Energy (SE): 750/750 (+)] [Soul Reserve (SR): 150/150] [Soul Points (SP): 5 (Locked)]

[Body: 10/10 | (MAX)]   [Mind: 10/10 | (MAX)]   [Soul: 10/10 | (MAX)]

 

[-Physical Body Stats-]

[Soul Energy (SE): 750/750 (+)]

[Body: 10/10 | (MAX)]   [Mind: 10/10 | (MAX)]   [Soul: 10/10 | (MAX)]

 

[-TITLES-]

[Unpressured, Rank IV (UP!) | Magus, Rank I. (Locked) | Purifier, Rank II (UP!)]

[Maximizer, Rank I | Separated, Rank II. (Unique). (UP!)]

 

[-FEATS-]

[All-Seeing Gaze - Rank II (UP!) | Terror Resistance - Rank II (UP!)]

[Exhaustion Resistance II - Rank IX (UP!) | Overdrive - Rank III (UP!)]

[Magic Overload - Rank IV (NEW!) | Getaway - Rank III (NEW!)]

 

[-ABILITIES-]

[Charge - Rank III (UP!) | Body Reinforcement - Rank V (UP!)]

[Study II - Rank IV (UP) | Active Meditation - (Locked)]

[Spirit Separation II - Rank VII (UP!) | Spirit Touch - Rank IX (NEW!)]

[Shield Bash - Rank II (NEW!) | Power Throw - Rank I (NEW!)]

[Aimed Shot - Rank I (NEW!) | Power Slash - Rank I (NEW!)]

[Dispel - (Locked) | Hide - Rank IV (NEW!) | Sense Trap - Rank I (NEW!)]

 

[-ACTIVE SKILLS-]

[Energy Manipulation III - Rank IV (UP!) | Concentration II - Rank IX (UP!)]

[Cultivation II - Rank VI (UP!) | Magic Chanting - Rank IX (UP!)]

[Chantless Casting - (Locked) | Material Processing II - Rank VII (UP!)]

[Alchemy - (Locked) | Athletics III - Rank I (UP!)]

[Lockpicking - (Locked) | Blacksmithing - (Locked) | Locksmithing - (Locked)]

[Contortion II - Rank III (NEW!) | Knot Slip - Rank IX (NEW!)]

[Ward Breaking - (Locked) | Cypher Decrypting - (Locked) | Disenchanting - (Locked)]

[Cooking - (Locked) | Gambling - Rank II (NEW!) | Negotiation - (Locked)]

[Mapping - (Locked) | Light Armor Use - Rank IV (NEW!)]

[Light Weapon Use - Rank V (NEW!) | Throwing Weapon Use - Rank III (NEW!)]

[Shield Use - Rank II (NEW!) | Magic Weapon Use - VI (NEW!)]

[Enchanting - (Locked) | Wards - (Locked) | Runecrafting - (Locked)]

[Carving - Rank I (NEW!) | Writing - Rank II (NEW!) | Mathematics - Rank I (NEW!)]

[Drawing - Rank I (NEW!) | Painting - Rank I (NEW!) | Stealth - Rank VII (NEW!)]

[Trap Making - Rank II (NEW!) | Trap Placement - Rank I (NEW!)]

 

[-KNOWLEDGE SKILLS-]

[Scholar - (Locked) | Sorcery III - Rank II.(UP!)]

[Thaumaturgy - (Locked) | Herbalogy - (Locked) |  Soul Study - (Locked)]

[Knots III - Rank I (NEW!) | Mechanics - (Locked) | Spatial Study - (Locked)]

[Rune Study - (Locked) | Material Sciences - (Locked)]

[Necromancy Study - (Locked) | Chess (Game) Strategy - Rank I (NEW!)]

[Combat Stances II - Rank III (NEW!) | Martial Study - (Locked)]

[Geography - Rank II (NEW!) | Written Languages - (Locked) | History II - Rank III (NEW!)]

[Artistic Mediums - Rank I (NEW!) | Artistic Techniques - (Locked)]

[Stealth Techniques - (Locked) | Trap Techniques - (Locked)]

 

[-PERKS-]

[Newly Dead]  [Expanded Soul]  [Strengthened Soul]

 

[-DETRIMENTS-]

[Newly Dead]  [Solid Soul]

 

There you go.  All of it requiring me to scroll up and down on that damned blue screen that shows up in front of my eyes.  It’s a far cry from the simple set of text it used to be, and while it leaves me feeling accomplished, I’m really getting annoyed with the length of it.

Sadly there isn’t anything I can do about the full status.  It’s only going to get longer in the future too. Ugh. At least I’ve learned the trick on pulling up just the information I want though.

 

[-Physical Body Stats-]

[Soul Energy (SE): 750/750 (+)]

[Body: 10/10 | (MAX)]   [Mind: 10/10 | (MAX)]   [Soul: 10/10 | (MAX)]

 

That, for example.  Which by itself just speaks volumes of how different things are at this point.  Like the fact that my -body- has its own set of stats in comparison to my real ones.  And how I had to purchase those stats instead of inheriting them from my Spirit Form.

Thankfully it seems I get a discount on purchasing the stat points though.  They only costed 50% of what they otherwise would have. Which in itself is an exciting bit of information, when coupled with my recent studies into the magic of Necromancy.

Necromancy itself is both looked down upon and yet highly useful here in Limbo all at the same time.  For one thing, there are all sorts of bodies around. Rather they be full corpses, skeletons, or even wandering ghosts.  It’s a Necromancer’s paradise when it comes to materials.

Then there’s putting all those bodies to use.  In the Living World above, it takes a good bit of magical power to raise a corpse into a simple zombie or skeleton.  That and magical materials holding Soul Energy, which tend to be fairly rare and expensive. Yet here those things aren’t uncommon at all.  Hells, every single person in Limbo cultivates Soul Energy, so there’s no need to buy those magical materials anyway.

Thus all that is required is a body and a bit of know-how.  Which even I learned manually, the ‘hard way’. Which wasn’t all that hard in comparison to the other magics I’ve been learning.

Inject Soul Energy into a readied body, cast the control spell you want to use, and BAM!  A newly risen undead worker completely under your control. Hahaha.

Okay, so it’s a bit more involved than that.  For one thing most manifest bodies here in Limbo are weak.  Like, between 1 and 3 stat points weak. Which is the difference between a bug and a newborn baby.  And without the boosting that [Newly Dead] gain to offset it.

Controlled undead produced in such a manner aren’t hardly able to stand or walk under their own power.  They just flop around like a fish out of water. Amusing to watch, but definitely not very useful.

So the whole other research branch of Necromancy is the strengthening of such bodies in preparation for granting them their un-life.  Far more complicated, it often requires pumping great loads of Soul Energy into the body as precisely as possible in order to ‘forge’ them and increase their stats.  Different techniques produce different results with different efficiencies as well.

It can take thousands of Soul Energy points in order to raise a body up to the 10 point limit for a Rank F undead.  In the Body stat, at least. Getting Mind up to 10 points is even harder and more costly, while actually upping the Soul stat is nearly impossible.  Heh. True undead don’t have souls anyway.

That, it turns out, is why us Awakened are simply called ‘Dead’ races instead of ‘Undead’ by the way.  All undead are under the control of Necromancers, because they are produced instead of being birthed by Limbo.  Well, outside of ‘frenzied’ awakened, but that’s a whole different thing.

Producing usable bodies to create undead is the hardest part of the whole process.  It’s the most time consuming and arguably the most expensive too. Necromancers will actually fight over pristine, high-spec bodies just to cost some time and effort off the entire process.  That or actually sell the ones they’ve been working on.

Now this is where my new odd ability comes in.  Because I can slip into the body, and up it’s stats fairly easily by buying them directly with my Soul Energy points.  As you might have guessed, it is a total cheat, because the time required and the efficiency are both great. Hahaha.

Then I just leave the body and it goes back to being inert and powered up.  The stats the body gains do not go away once I’ve left it. They remain and thus can be augmented again later.

In fact it is such a handy ability that other members of the Silver Key that dabble in Necromancy or study it as their primary occupation have started paying me to actually power-up bodies for them.  Which is naturally a nice windfall for me, even with me only getting about 50% of what they’d pay at other traditional ‘Body Parlors’. Which comes out to about 500 soul stones a body.

That’s a whole lot of money, in fact.  That’s 5,000 soul shards a pop. In truth I don’t even know what to do with all that money yet.  It doesn’t stop them from paying me though, although the large sack of soul stones in my cultivation chamber is getting rather heavy at this point.

I have been using the soul stones, as well.  Containing so much soul energy inside of them, I naturally use them to replenish my own soul energy points while ‘working’ in this way or training.  Hells, I haven’t been in an Exhausted state since I started carrying some around with me. Which is exactly why they are used as currency to begin with.  They are just endlessly useful.

On the other hand, what really gets me is another aspect of Necromancy.  Simply called ‘Sculpting’, it’s the science of changing the physical appearance of the undead in question.  Like, the mish-mashed body that Silver Lord had put me in several days ago was a test of his Sculpting of the body, if in an extreme way.

Using the same techniques as improving the bodies stats, a Necromancer can change the look, gender, and size of the undead.  This is actually where I have a problem, because I’m wearing the body already and cannot affect it in the same way. Thus I have to study this side of Necromancy myself.  That said it is all up to personal preference for the Necromancer.

For all of that though, the other members of the Silver Key are very supportive.  Some of them even want me to open up a business using this ability, although I’m naturally weary of doing so.  I’m nowhere near naive enough to believe that I’d be left alone if I started stepping on others toes, after all.

On the flip side, I’ve also recently started actual combat training.  Outside of my obvious skill for magic, I was put through several tests to see what sort of fighting style I’d naturally be inclined to.  Turns out I’d be good as a ‘magical rogue’ as my trainers put it. Light armor, light weapons or ranged attacks. Short, fast, and penetrating attacks.

Assassinations are the next step up, but I haven’t gotten there yet.  That sort of training requires advanced skills and more abilities than I can gain at the moment.  Plus I’m not even sure if I want to go through all the effort just yet anyway. I really enjoy learning magic far more.  Heh.

All said my time here at the Silver Key has been very rewarding and prosperous.  I’ve gained far more than I ever could at the Guide’s Guild or by joining one of the major groups in the city.  I’m especially happy to not have to spend centuries being a lowly peon at the Wizard’s Tower. Haha.

It does seem however that my time is coming to a close here though.  While most of the members of the Silver Key have been called in due to my presence here, it seems the outside world has continued moving along.  A spot of trouble has actually come up in an area controlled by the Silver Key outside of Helen City in fact.

Which is why myself, Holdt, a ranger by the name of Lusov, and a woman ‘Healer’ named Agatha are on our way out of the main gate of the Silver Key Magic Society.  The three others are all armored up and carrying large packs strapped to the back. Not to mention the assortment of weapons, both visible and not.

As for myself, I’m carrying my sack of soul stones and a simple wooden staff.  Besides the decent enough clothing and a pair of heavy but comfortable leather boots, I don’t have any other equipment or supplies.  We’ll be picking them up before we leave the city, actually.

“Okay lad, we are going to make a run to the bank before we hit up the various stores on the way out of Helen City.”  Holdt speaks up, even as I glance up at the huge gate above our heads.

“It’ll be good not to have to carry around all of these stones, that’s for sure.”

“No doubt lad.  Carrying that much wealth on your person is a very bad idea in most cases.  Normally I’d say just to stuff them all into that ring of yours, but it’s already full.”

That was definitely true.  My Ring of Inventory was full of a wide assortment of stuff.  Most of it is equipment or materials used in magic or alchemy.  Hells, even stacked on top of each other there’s a literal tonne of stuff in the ring.

For all of that though, Holdt and the others also have their own Rings’ of Inventory.  All of them far bigger than my own. It holds all their personal or prized possessions.  Naturally they could carry their loaded packs in them too, but for the moment it’s more ‘natural’ for them to carry them around.

“I’m surprised though.  I mean, who’d let Goblins actually run a bank?  Aren’t they supposed to be nasty, greedy creatures?”

That was one bit of information I learned just before we left, and I’m still scratching my head over it.  Goblins are the pests of the monster world, after all. Rather it be here in Limbo or the upper living worlds.  Tribal, weak… you really wouldn’t associate them with a bank.

“Hahaha!”  This time it’s Lusov that starts laughing, although he’s also nodding his head.

“I was the same way the first time, lad.  Sadly Limbo doesn’t have gnomes or dwarves in the traditional sense.  And I definitely would not trust my money to Dark Elves. Or my life, for that matter.”

The others grunt in agreement as we start walking down the street, heading toward one of the main roads in order to get to the center of the city.  Just getting through and then out of Helen City is expected to take all day, so we aren’t in any hurry to rush.

“These Goblins are Contract-bound by Devil’s, so there’s no worry there.  Since they are suppressed via their Contracts, their greedy natures actually work quite well.  They keep impeccable records… although only they can read them. Goblin script is damned wiggly-worms for all I can tell.”

Huh, well, you learn something new every day.  I’m naturally not really the biased type anyway, so I’ll just shrug and go with ‘Eh, it’s Limbo’.  Just another weird thing, one of many I deal with on a daily basis.

Once out on the main road heading east-to-west, I’m once more reminded of just how crowded Helen City is.  It’s the same sort of crowds that I experienced getting to the Silver Key in the first place. Only this time I’m not being carried along, as the steady presence of the other three in our group opens up a path all its own.

Part of that is because we are all wearing the mark of the Silver Key plainly for all to see.  The civilian population doesn’t want anything to do with organized groups like us, if only out of fear.  Many societies and organizations aren’t as friendly as the Silver Key is; especially the big ones. Arrogance is the natural byproduct of having power.

So the actual travel down this main street is a far more relaxing experience than it was the last time.  In fact, it got rather boring after a while. Not only am I stronger than I was before, I’m also much calmer and more confident.  The heavy pressure from the first time just isn’t around to keep me satisfied, I guess.

“Why don’t you guys tell me about Helen City and the shops or whatnot?  All this walking in silence stuff is getting to me.”

Okay, so I finally break down and start asking about which shops are good, who owns what, and which streets to avoid.  Subjects that any streetwise kid would know growing up, much less a (figuratively) adult that’s just new to the city in general.  And I wasn’t disappointed.

“Helen City has countless organizations within it.  Many are craftsmen groups, banded together in search of profit and protection.  Not every craftsman is a good merchant, after all. Just about no one without support can survive either.”

To my surprise it was actually Agatha that speaks up, introducing the details I’d either missed before or just simply were told.  Like how medium-sized groups like the Silver Key actually tend to own the entire street they are based upon. Or that the criminal underworld is just as flourishing here in Limbo as it is anywhere else.  It really does seem that any place that has laws naturally has those that break them on a regular basis.

“Large freight wagons are only permitted on the main streets during the early morning and late evenings, as well.  This gives the street sweepers, usually undead under the control of necromancers the chance to clean up before the civilians start their day.

“You see that zombie wearing the black and red tunic?  That’s the colors of the city, marking him as an official working for the Thrones’ administration.  A low ranked one though. Higher ranks are outlined in silver and then gold.

“That side street right there is known as Cobbler’s Cob.  The entire street is owned by an association of cobblers that produce some of the best footwear in the city.  You’ll really appreciate those boots while out in the wilderness.

“Daisy’s Inn there may not have the best rooms in the city, but they definitely have the best deserts.  Be ready for pay for them though, as importing refined sugar and other ingredients is expensive!”

On and on Agatha talks, pointing out just about everything in the direction we are walking.  An oblique glance reveals wry looks on the faces of Holdt and Lusov, which tells me they hadn’t been talking just for this very reason.  No doubt Agatha is all sorts of competent as a healer, but she is definitely a chatterbox. Wish someone had told me beforehand though.

“... and over there is…”

“That’s enough, Agatha.  We are almost at the bank.”  Holdt finally interrupts, which I am thankful for.  I’ve met some chatty people since awakening in Limbo, but good Gods.  That woman can talk. Heh.

Thankfully though I don’t have to wait and see the bank in question.  It’s big enough to be spotted well down the street. For good reason too.  I don’t think I’ve ever seen so much gold and crystal in one place before.

Gaudy would definitely be the word, because the bank is a massive six story tall edifice of chiseled and smoothed black stone that’s then clad in gold and vibrant blue-green crystal.  Even in the grey light of the Limbo day, the building reflects a nearly blinding array of colors. It even makes my damned eyes sting looking at it.

“Seriously?  Goblin-run be damned.  Who raided the dwarven mountains?”

Yeah, okay, so maybe I should be more creative in my cursing, but Hells.  I was expecting something much more austere. Maybe a fortress, or a hole in the ground.  Not the shiniest damned building in all of Helen City!

“Haha!  Thankfully the inside is nowhere near as bad.”  Holdt gets a good laugh out of my reaction, while I shake my head.

“It wasn’t the goblins who designed it though.  It was the banks’ backing, although I cannot tell you exactly who.  Probably a collection of Fallen Gods’ of Wealth or the like. In that way it’s as much a temple as it is a place of business.”

Okay, that makes much more sense, but still annoys me something awful.  I’ve grown accustomed to the black stone and sharp edges of the usual Helen City constructions.  Sleek looking and functional, I’d call it.

Actually getting into the bank proved to be both simple and annoying at the same time, if only because of the vast crowd moving in and out of the several set of doors.  The crowds are constantly moving, which is good, but the lines are just too bloody long to make it a quick process. It was like, like… Hm. I cannot think of anything to compare it to, although what I want to think is right on the tip of my tongue.

In fact I’d noticed that I haven’t been having so many memory slips anymore, either.  Strengthening my Soul stat had really helped solve that problem, although I cannot help but wonder if that’s really a good thing or not.  At least the bits and pieces from before left me with a concrete connection to my past life.

Well, except for that last big one.  I never want to feel such pain or dispair again.  Once was enough, thank you very much.

With such thoughts bouncing in my head we finally get through the doors, and I am glad to say that the interior is far easier on the eyes than the exterior was!  In place of the usual shiny black stone is instead grey tinted granite, lactured over in some sort of wax that kept it spotless and shiny even with an endless parade of feet walking upon it.  Slim and elegant pillars hold up the vaulted ceiling above.

The walls though are lined with dozens of chest-high booths of stone and topped with a wooden flat top.  Above them hang enchanted chain meshes, which can be dropped at a moments notice to protect the bank tellers and everything behind them.  Tall stools are required though, given just who and what those bank tellers are.

At that point I get my first real surprise, because the goblins working at the booths are not what I would have expected.  Instead of green or brown skinned, these goblins are almost as white as weathered bone, and appear far more elfin than usual.  Not quite beautiful or even pretty, but far from the ugly monstrosities their race usually brings to mind. Their ears though are very slim and pointed and very tall, pointing into the air over their generally bald heads.

Thankfully they aren’t wearing suits or the like, or I may have really had pitched a fit right then and there.  Instead they are all wearing clean robes of grey, brown, and yellow. None of them have any sort of markings, but each of the goblins wear a stone and bone piece necklace, probably denoting their tribes or something.  Each necklace is different.

“Come on lad, no use in staring.”  Holdt finally breaks me out of my surprise, and I sigh as I follow the lines to one of the nearest tellers.

The goblin behind the booth barely even glances up from where he’s scribbling on a very, very long scroll.  The total disinterest actually amuses me for some reason, and I have to keep from grinning a bit. Holdt though just seems used to it.

“Name?”  The goblin finally speaks, in a surprisingly mellow tone.

"Holdt Kyfer, Silver Key Magic Society.  Here to sponsor a newly awakened for a Limbo Access account.”  At least Holdt seems to know what he’s doing, although I still cannot help grumbling a bit to myself at not having a name.  It is rather inconvenient, to say the least.

“A newbie?”  This time the goblin actually looks up for longer than a second, glancing at me before nodding his large head.

“Registration will be 1,000 shards.  This fee is non-refundable.” The goblin starts saying then, obviously by rote.  No doubt he says it every time someone registers here at the bank.

“The Limbo Access account is our premier account type for all sorts who may wander the lands of Limbo.  Both your wealth and your goods may be stored at any bank branch in the entirety of Limbo, free of charge.  Withdrawals over 500 shards has a 5 shard fee, while any over 10,000 shards is a 10 shard fee.

“Conversion of soul shards to soul stones or to coinage is free of charge for the Limbo Access account holder.  We also offer financial consultation, low interest loans, and stock options for this associated account type. We also provide the best security of any banking institution in all of Limbo.

“Any questions?”

Wow, okay, a total spew there of banking jargon.  Thankfully I’m not that dim-witted, and thus am able to nod along with the goblin.  In fact the account sounds really good, if a bit expensive. However if Holdt has decided that this is what I need, then I’m not going to gainsay him.

“Sounds good.”  I finally say after a moment's’ thought.

Even before the goblin could ask me to pay the fee or anything else I’m already lugging the large sack up onto the tabletop in front of him.  The bag spills a bit, but I’m not too bothered by the rolling stones falling out of it.

“2,500 soul stones to be deposited.  Just take the fee from it.” I say in as grand a way as possible, grinning as it raises an amused series of chuckles from Holdt and the other two behind me.

The goblin though just stares for a moment, before clearing his throat in an entirely too rough a manner.  That, and the stare of wonder and greed on his slightly wrinkled face is a bit cute when he picks up a few of those spilled soul stones.  Heh.

“Ah, yes, right away!”  The goblin actually jumps down from his high stool then and rushes off to who knows where in the back.  At that point Holdt finally lets full his own grin of amusement and a laugh.

“These goblins are all the same.  They see such large amounts of wealth on a regular basis, yet they still cannot help but become excited.  It’s fun to watch if nothing else.”

That I can agree with.  Thankfully it doesn’t take long for the Goblin to return, carrying a few objects piled up high in his thin arms.  Shoving them up onto the tabletop was even more amusing, before he finally regains his seat that puts him at roughly chest level with the rest of us.

Then the goblin starts pulling bits of what he’d carried over apart and sets them down neatly beside my bag of soul stones.  The objects include a small silver-metal colored chest, two gold cards, and a spindle-looking device on a stand tipped with a wickedly sharp needle.  Also a diamond-like tipped engraving pen, which the goblin picks up last and holds onto.

“Thank you for waiting,” the goblin says then, “Now I just need a drop of your blood.  The Blood Dias here is a magical tool used to bind your bank card to your person and your account, and will be absolutely painless.”

It’s at that point that Holdt gives a grunt and interjects into the conversion.

“Excuse me, but a blood binding won’t work on the lad here.  He was awakened as a weird variant of the ghost type, so the body he has currently is not true one.”

Holdt’s words both confuse me and yet make sense, although I do have to wonder if variants like he described really exist.  I’ve yet to see anyone outside of the norm myself, at least as newly dead are concerned. All the same though the goblin ends up blinking at Holdt with his large black eyes, before looking at me.

To the silent question I simply shrug and hold up my hand, willing my spirit form to separate from this body.  My ghostly hand rises up out of my arm at the elbow, although when I go to wiggle my fingers both hands respond all the same.  A neat trick, if nothing else right?

“I see…  Let me go grab the proper tool then.”  The goblin teller didn’t seem all that impressed, but that isn’t a problem for me anyway.

Waiting a few more minutes leaves me tapping my foot on the hard stone floor however.  I was quite impatient at this point, and the others could tell and thus try to regale me with bits of conversation.  I wasn’t really biting, but I appreciated their efforts all the same.

“Here we are, a Soul Extractor.”

The goblin finally makes it back, only this time he’s with four others that are hauling a large contraption along on their shoulders.  Just looking at the heavy, boxy thing makes one of my eyes twitch, although a glance at Holdt shows him being as stoic as ever. Ugh.

“The Soul Extractor will take a small piece of your essence in order to use it to bind your Bank card and account properly.  Just lay your ghost hand in the slot for a moment.”

Finally we can move along!  I follow the instructions after willing an arm to come out and lay my spirit form hand into the contraption.  Almost as soon as my palms and fingers rest inside of it the box buzzes with power, and I can feel a sort of tingling sensation assault my fingertips.

The noise and the feeling becomes progressively stronger though, and even my goblin bank teller and the others who’d hauled the device start to stare at the thing.  Especially when it starts to light up in a bright silver color. The noise and the light also attracts all sorts of attention our way.

Then I feel a sharp jab into the palm of my hand, making me grit my teeth before the device suddenly stops.  I yank my hand out of the damned thing, staring at the neat ‘hole’ it had punctured in my palm. Thankfully there is no blood or anything, but it still stings and is only slowly healing over.

“Interesting… Your soul must be very tough there, brat.”  A voice suddenly calls out from behind the goblin teller.  That voice is odd however, distant and whisper-thin yet loud in the ears all at the same time.

“Lord Bank Manager!”  My goblin teller shudders at that voice, and jumps down from his seat only to hit the floor with his knees and his forehead at almost the same time.  The other goblins are the same, bowing to the figure who slowly steps out of the shadows behind the booths.

On the first look, this ‘Lord Bank Manager’ appears like an old man, whip-thin and nearly infirm.  His hair is silver and cut short, while his long silver beard is tucked into the simple leather belt at his waist.  Yet his clothing is luxurious in comparison, trimmed in gold and glittering jewels of all sizes and colors.

Yet when I blink my eyes again, what I see is totally different.  I see a glowing golden silhouette, shadowed in a swirling black outline.  Golden skin, silver robes, and eyes that flash swiftly through all the worldly forms that precious gems or jewels may take.  Emerald green one moment, then sapphire blue the next, and so on.

When I blink again though the golden visage is gone, replaced by the old man once more.  Yet that single glance has left me with a piercing headache, and I cannot help but reach up to massage my temples.  With four hands, as I uncontrollably use my ability.

“Ho ho, I see.  It seems that that Silver Lord really found an interesting brat this time.”  The old man, whom I’m pretty sure is one of the Fallen Gods, says then with a slim smile.  “No matter.  Your secrets do not matter to me.  Only your wealth. And I feel that your wealth will be great indeed in time.  Ho ho.”

The headache fades quickly at this point, and I finally raise my eyes to look at the old man again.  At the same time though I glance around at the others with me, only to find them stock still and completely silent.  Staring at nothing in front of them. Like they’d been frozen in time.

In fact the whole of the bank has gone silent and still, and I’m reminded of Holdt’s previous words.  That the bank is as much a temple as it is a place of business. It sure rings true at this point.

“Fret not, boy,”  The old man chuckles at seeing my wild glances, “I am Plutus, a God of Wealth.  I run the bank here in Helen City, though I rarely have cause to show myself.  Your unusual soul strength caught my attention.”

Okay, that explains a bit.  I let out a sigh of relief before bowing to the literal god before me.  No reason not to be respectful, given he doesn’t have any harmful intentions toward me.

“I see, and thank you, Lord Plutus.”  Yeah, real smooth there, me.

“Ha ha.  Don’t worry about it boy.  It is just an idle curiosity.  You aren’t the first -otherworlder- to walk the hall of my bank, and I do not expect you to be the last.  But you have a very interesting fortune, which really is interesting. Hmm…”

For a moment there I could swear that I felt the god peering into my soul.  His gaze was just that sharp and strong, and I’m unable to resist it at all.  Well, except for something buried in the very center of my being, which responds with a slight buzzing feeling.  That in itself wouldn’t have mattered, except for the sudden FORCE that comes slamming down on the interior of the bank, centered around Plutus himself.

That breaks whatever gaze the god was using, and I find myself standing there sweating buckets.  As for Plutus himself, he’s actually kneeling on the floor, his head bowed to the point I’m just barely able to see his grey hair.  Whatever that force was, it was definitely targeting the fallen god way more than it was interested in me.

“Aaaah…  The Voice really doesn’t want to give up its secrets that easily it seems.”  Plutus only says after he stands up again, although now he looks far more tired and a bit fretful than before.

“I apologize, boy.  I hadn’t expected to see that you’d already absorbed a Fragment.  Or that the Voice of the World would care so much about my probing.  None of the others had the same reaction.”

At this point I’m entirely confused, and I’m not above trying to dig out some answers while I have the chance.  Sadly it must have shown on my face, because I’m interrupted before I was even able to open my mouth. Damn it.

“I cannot say more at this moment.  Your Newly Dead status would only interfere anyway.  Once your month is up you will understand. All of you will.”  At this point the god glances around before nodding his head, as if having come to a decision.

“I wish to keep an eye on you, because you will have great fortune along your journey.  To that end I wish for you to accept a boon from me.”

I’m really not able to keep up with this god now, but that doesn’t seem to matter as he walks up to the booth between us and gently touches the Soul Extractor.  This causes a silver-white wisp to rise up from it, which he cups gently in one hand while pulling out a very shiny yet dark silver card from his robe with his other hand.  Seeing the card I cannot help but twitch, because I recognize what the card is made of.

“I see you have gotten quite knowledgeable already.  Yes, this is the fabled ‘mithril’, which is hard to come by here in Limbo.”  The god says then, a smile on his lips as he places the wisp of my soul onto the card.  It’s sucked in as if the card is a thirsty traveler finding water in a desert, and starts to glow faintly before it disappears.

“This is the banks’ Mithril-ranked Bank Card.  Holders of this type of card are waived all fees and are able to access all of the banks’ features at any bank location in Limbo.  Ho ho. At the same time this card is imbued with a bit of my divine magic, so I can keep an eye on you.”

The god explains what it is, before he holds the card out to me.  I hesitate for only a moment before reaching out to take the offered boon.  It really would be far more useful than anything else at this point.

“Thank you, Lord Plutus.  I’m not sure about this ‘fortune’ you keep mentioning, but this will really be helpful.”

“Don’t worry about it boy.  I’ll take care of the details here, but we really should wrap up quickly.  Time doesn’t like to be messed with so much, you know.”

And then everything is back to normal, as the sounds and motions of the world come back into focus in all a single moment.  The goblins on the floor look up in wild-eyed wonder while Holdt, Lusov, and Agatha all stare at the old man who’d suddenly appeared and taken the goblins place at the teller booth.  Only I am left staring at the light weight silver hard in my hand.

“There you go, registered as Silver Key member #515.  Your account is now active and ready for your first deposit.”  Given that it is an actual god doing the work at this point, I cannot help but chuckle a little as Plutus voice draws me back to him.

Yet for all of his godliness, he’s easily able to do the work the goblins had been doing.  Actually he’s quite a lot faster at it, as my entire wealth is soon dumped into that tiny little chest that the goblin had brought along before.  At the same time the card in my hand buzzes, and a number is shown on the top right corner depicting how many shards are available in my account.

That’s a nifty feature all it’s own, and leaves me happy as everything finishes up.  Well, except for the goblins who are still bowing toward the old man. Even I can get the hint though.

“Thank you, Lord Bank Manager.  My apologies for causing such a disruption.”  I say smoothly, not about to blurt out who the old man really is.  He’d frozen time to keep the others from knowing, and I’m not about to break that secret right here and now.

“A small matter, a small matter.  Just be sure to let Silver Lord know that I send my greetings, alright?”

“Oh, absolutely.”

Yeah, I’m really going to have a long, long talk with Silver Lord when I get back to the headquarters.  I’m pretty sure running into a real living god was not part of the job description when I joined the Silver Key.  Nor the fact that said god actually seemed to know more than he was able to let on.

Being called an -otherworlder- is definitely something I’m going to be digging into if I can.  I don’t like surprises like this, and not getting answers until my true awakening just doesn’t sit right with me.  Since I cannot dig into my own memories on the subject, then I’m going to go digging in other ways.

Plutus, as if seeing through my sudden determination, simply grins.  A grin every bit as mischievous as a childs’ that has pulled a good prank.  Even if it meant getting his bottom spanked by the all-powerful Voice of the World in the process.

And it all smells of trouble to me.  Ugh.