Unbound

Chapter Six Hundred And Forty Three - 643

Some time later, Archie sat himself a fair distance from the central glowstone; far enough away that he didnt have to listen to Beefs incessant questions, but close enough that he wasnt tempting some monster to sneak up and eat him. It was a delicate balance. Yet the longer Beef spoke to the Chanter, the more Archie was tempted to walk off into the dark and hope for the best.

Hed left the conversation when Beef got into talking about necromancy. The guy loved it, apparently. Everything Archie knew about it was from movies and old video games he barely remembered playing. Necromancers raised the dead, from skeletons to zombies. It made him uncomfortable, especially in the hands of what was clearly a teenager.

I was a piece of shit as a teen. Id sooner jump off a cliff than trust my teen self with so much power. Archie toyed with a dagger. The same one that had been pulled out of his shoulder. It was big enough to seem like a short sword to Archie, but then he was barely four feet tall in the first place. The dagger wasnt nearly enough to deal with Beefs Risen, if the Minotaur turned against him.

If any of them turned against me, Id be dead in seconds. Legless or not, even that old warrior would probably wipe the floor with the thief. What have you gotten yourself into, Arch?

The longer Beef had talked about magic and core spaces the more Archie found his Mind wandering. His feet followed soon after. The Ruin sounded scary as hell at first, especially the way those rock robots talked about it. Archie could admit their descriptions had driven a cold wedge of ice into his spine that had been hard to shake loose, so hed asked the questions he could about it. Yet the more the Elf talked the more he found the whole thing laughable.

The guy couldnt answer a single question with certainty, claiming most information on the Ruin to have been conveniently stolen by the Ruin itself. Instead, the Chanter just talked more about the Hierocracy, how they summoned Archie, Beef, and Felix to fight the Ruin on their behalf. The Elf also spoke of the Titan, explaining again how she was the only one the Hierocracy had gotten their hooks intothat caught Archies attention. He shifted stay away from the redcloaks a little higher on his priority list.

The last thing he wanted was to end up like her.

The TitanArchie breathed hard through his nose. The Titan was strong; there was no denying that. Hed missed a lot of the battle in the vault when blood loss and Pits explosive transformation knocked him out, but she had hunted him through cities and mountains and snow-clogged forest. He knew what the lady was capable of, knew before hed heard the whispers of what occurred, when the tide turned on their small party and Felix had to bring out the big guns to even knock the Titan down.

Shed still gotten back up. They didnt win.

Theyd just survived.

Blindsense is level 74!

END +2!

Archie swiped away the old notifications. Hed earned them while tunneling with Felix. Apparently his stats were shit compared to everyone else, because he was the only one whod stumbled into this cavern sweaty and trembling. Archie narrowed his eyes as he watched their leader reading from a small book. I havent even seen him sleep, once. Just how high is his Endurance?

Gains were gains, though, and that latest Skill level meant his entire Mind was on the cusp of Adept Tier. Just two more Body Skills and hed be fully Adept, which would hopefully make up a number of his deficiencies. Hell, hed even gained two levels! Archie hadnt gained a level in months. As bad as things were, shit was looking up.

Core space isfine, I guess. Archie considered his hands. Could be better. The way Beef had been talking about his weird bug-house made Archie feel like he was missing something. Maybe I could ask the spear lady to look at it. If she can help that kid, imagine what she could do with me.

A sharp shattering broke the silence, and Archie flinched.

Haha! You missed! Beef crowed, lowering the immense bulk of his ice hammer.

The Homunculus bowed slightly at the waist. You shielded yourself with the hammer head. Very good. Again.

Beef rushed the tiny creature, hammer lifted high. Hallow zipped forward almost faster than Archie could follow, ducking below the first swing and popping up onto Beefs chest with two daggers made of blackened-green crystal. The kid jolted, but instead of panicking he threw himself down onto the ground, chest first. Hallow hissed and leaped away, daggers unused, while Beef rolled back to his feet.

Hmph. Archie got up and walked away from the pair, distancing himself from the pointless violence. Fighting was for chumps, especially the way those two did it. Pummeling one another, taking hits that would crumple a car back home. Its stupid. The key to fighting was in avoiding it entirely. And if you were truly pressed and without options, you had to win them with a single strike.

Archie walked close to where the Eidolons had gently laid down their burdens. The old man was nearby, his legs newly bandaged and that Dwarf hovering over him with her hands all glowing. There was also a number of leather satchels, each of them filled to bursting with gold and treasures stolen from the Vault of Nine Kings. Despite his tiredness, he couldnt help but feel a tingle of anticipation in his fingers as he drew closer.

You do not approve of their spar? asked a voice, and Archie just about jumped out of his skin.

Wha? Yintarion, that talking snake thing, sat coiled atop the molten core theyd stolen. God, you scared me.

The Wyrmling tilted his head, white goatee fluttering in the air. Youve poor Perception for a thief.

Archie snorted. Youre hard to spot.

True. I cannot blame you. Dragons are only noticed when they wish to be.

The golden snake settled atop the boulder-sized core, cozying up to its orange-brown light. Bits ofsomething rose up, coiling around Yintarions crystalline antlers before wafting into his nostrils. It wasnt something Archie could see with his eyes, but his Blindsense picked up a lot.

Are you eating that thing? he asked.

I am.

Why?

To push myself to Evolve.

Right. Beef had mentioned that, said his Hallow worked in a similar waybut different because it was his soul? Something like that. Archie wasnt sure how much to believe. That kid said some weird stuff sometimes.

Is that whats happening to Felixs dog?

The Chimera? Yes. His own Evolution is being fueled by the Mote of Frenzy he consumedthough I worry at how long it has been taking him to settle.

Archies stomach twisted. Worry? Why?

A great many things can push a monster to Evolve. Consuming flesh, cores, and natural treasures are the surest waysbut the process is unpredictable. I have designed my path toward Evolution through many Ages of research and contemplation. The Chimera is a child, if a powerful one. He did not know what might happen when he consumed the Mote, and had I been present I would have stopped him. Its power is immense, perhaps more than this core I stand upon now, but it is also chaotic. Contradictory. Too many elements, too many permutations to compress into ones core. The Wyrmling wriggled in a snake-like shrug. I fear the tenku might never wake.

Guild stabbed at Archie, but he shoved it away. It wasnt at fault. The dog had asked him to open the box. He didnt know what would happen. Archie looked over at Felix, still reading calmly, but for the occasional small wince. Somehow their leader carried the dog in his chest; Archie could hear it, if he listened close enough. Vibrations shook through his Blindsense, and they felt like earthquakes inside the man.

Hey, you two. Busy flappin gums when we could be trainin? Evie walked from the deeper shadows, one hand gripping the chain around her waist. She jerked a thumb toward Beef and Hallow. Why not spar with me?

No.

Psh, too busy suckin on that oversized marble, eh?

Indeed.

Then that leaves me an you, thief. Fight me.

There was a dangerous glint in the girls eyes, and it set alarm bells ringing in his head. Ill have to pass. Fighting isnt my style.

Evie looked up over slowly, and that dangerous glint grew into something uglier. I shouldve known. Willing to risk everyone to steal somethin, but cant be bothered risk yourself.

Evie.

The spear lady showed up, though Archie didnt see where she had come from; shed simply appeared. Evie didnt look at her. What?

Walk with me. I think Ive found a small nest.

That got her attention. Monsters? Good. She unraveled her chain and twisted it, setting it coiling around her left forearm. I need somethin to hit.

The two vanished, off toward the far end of the cavern. Archie let out a small, relieved breath.

Yintarion shook his head. Watch yourself, child. That one is angry at everything right now.

Archie wasnt stupid; he knew she was pissed off, and he knew why. I didnt ask them to follow me onto the Undermount. And I didnt ask them to help me in the vault, either. All I needed was the array to go home.

How was it his fault that her dad got hurt? Uncle? Whatever. It didnt matter. Archie wasnt ever gonna fight herhe had no desire to be cut up into little pieces by that chain of hers.

Archie had spent months learning to survive in this stupid world. Hed crossed cutthroats in the gutter and in ballrooms. Time after time, he faced death by butchers and cops, but every time he got away. Hed taken every advantage he could, eking out a life in this hellhole they called the Continent. For a long time, survival had been enough.

That time was over.

Archie needed to escape for real. Back home. To Earth. He eyed Iiana, sitting in a circle with her fellow Eidolons. Inside of her was the array hed worked so hard to steal. His way out.

He just had to bide his time.