Chương 7

As he sank into the alien silence on the misty slope, his Enhanced Senses expanded. Kirk released a breath of relief. Every interaction with another person was one where he felt that although they spoke the same language, there was an undercurrent of meaning that he missed. His boots crunched on the slope. A low wind meandered between jutting rocks. Compared to that confusion… the concrete world didn't worry about communication: it simply was.

Whether he could read the natural world was a challenge Kirk Albion was very willing to undertake. Kirk's gaze swept back and forth. To his disappointment, the rift dropped him in a different location than previously. He was still on the stone slope, with cobalt mist above and swirling forest green mist below, but he could not find his crack. Kirk grunted as he hefted up his pack. He had stuffed it until the leather bulged, intending to attempt a full week's stay.

But without a safe place to store the pack, he had to haul it around and then drop it when encountering a geo. It was… inconvenient. He peered at the mists, weighed where in the wind cycle they were. Then he picked a direction and began hiking along the slope. Such activity was within his physical ability. But this first eight hours was almost as exhausting as the previous two full days. Eventually, his luck turned. He saw a large rent in the stone that led to a shadowy divot.

He could see enough room for him to store his pack. Yet still, Kirk crouched by a nearby rock, examining the area, allowing his Heightened Senses to stretch out and cover it. There was a small problem. The bottom of the rent was very near the forest green mist layer. In addition, several vein trees stretched out of the other end of the crack, adding another wrinkle to the possible space. Sighing, Kirk settled down and waited. His senses combed back and forth.

He regulated his breathing, even as a part of him wondered whether his training would matter. It reassured him when he felt, even through the green mist, geo's approaching. As he had detected, two geo-3s came out of the mist, growling back and forth at each other. His eyes narrowed. Two at a time? He set down his pack and leaned forward. Then he exploded into motion. Ignoring the first geo, Kirk raised his shield and slammed directly into the second one.

The monsters had been walking along the side of the crack, so with a yelp, it was knocked into the hole, safely delayed from fighting for a time. Kirk pivoted to face the other, the smaller of the two. Even as it wheeled around, he already had his spear raised, had chosen his attack angle, and thrust. He stabbed directly toward the vulnerable area in its middle, that he had steadily learned about from his previous fights. Kirk felt the smallest feedback through the spear, different from usual, as he attacked.

The geo-3 froze, shivered, and then popped. Even as wet gore hit his face, the rest of the monster became swirling ash and mist, vanishing. His band vibrated. Before he focused on that, he faced the second geo-3, which crawled up from the rent and roared to find its fellow defeated. But because it had to snap at him from below, Kirk was able to leverage the range of his spear. He carved deep furrows in its front shoulders, then lanced through its neck when it realized its weakness and tried to scrabble up.

After it had died, he kicked the corpse into the hole in the ground and then hurried back to his pack. He crouched there and waited, catching his breath. Only when a few minutes passed without another monster appearing did he glance at his band. Feat Gained! One Strike Kill ✷✷ Kirk grinned.

"Helps to kill them fast, huh?" Kirk still didn't quite understand the meaning of the stars, but more was probably better. He settled in for a few more minutes, making sure nothing changed. The winds remained constant. No other geo-3s appeared, drawn by the noises or the smell of blood. Only then did he pick up his pack and head to the rent. He pursed his lips, glad he didn't rush, when he discovered a geo-3 below, gnawing through the flesh of the second geo he had killed.

Kirk kicked a rock down to clatter and distract it, then jumped down and drove several swift stabs into its flesh. After a frantic ten seconds, the geo coughed and collapsed. Kirk rubbed his chin, thoughtful, as he considered the wounds he had inflicted. He set his pack down and scanned the thin fold in the stone, looking for any more foes. Compared to his prior base, this one was worse. A more elongated space, sure, but one end was filled with the thread-like 'trunks' of vein trees.

And there was no overhead cover. The other end of the crag narrowed down too much for Kirk to pass through, but he worried a geo could squeeze in.

"Better than nothing," Kirk sighed. After he had recovered and took a drink of water, he pulled out his knife and began butchering. When he finished, Kirk settled back on his heels and examined the fleshy bodies. He nodded, understanding slowly forming. I killed the first geo in a single strike by just hitting and exploding its core. The best way to kill geos without destroying that core is to cut into the flesh around the core, cutting the rest off from its animating energy. But what about bodies without cores?

Were they just so small they dissipate, or were they damaged by the attacks? It would take more experimentation to discover the truth, but Kirk was pleased to find that one of the cores felt like fire to him. He stored both away and settled down to wait. The days settled back into his routine. The only issue was that he had underestimated the amount of water he would need. Even as he tried to think about stretching his water skin, he, at most, would only last five days. You might be reading a pirated copy.

Look for the official release to support the author. Kirk clicked his tongue. But there was really nothing he could do. He had found no water sources other than that first cave. In his down time, he practiced the enunciation of syllables. Both improving his Summon Ember Rune and perfecting the cultivation of fire method. He even improved the Rune enough to use it against geos.

It took too long and too much concentration to activate mid fight, but by speaking with the barest of breath, he could create a burning ember that would sizzle the flesh of a geo-3s leg, incapacitating it even before the conflict had begun. He harvested more cores. He had meals. He listened to the wind amongst the mist. He grew more experienced in combat, relying on ambushes to make sure his own wounds were only small and glancing. It was on the fourth day that a new development occurred.

Kirk sat hunched in his little crack, eyes closed, observing the area with Heightened Senses. Repeated combat had made him value these moments of stillness. Plus, he had just killed his 25th geo, earning a third star in the Solo Kill Feat. Which also meant that five more kills would bring his Beast Archetype to Ascension. Yet even as Kirk was satisfied, his eyelids flickered. He frowned, listening more closely. Then he slowly opened his eyes. Something was coming. Four somethings.

He released his breath in a low hiss. Moving quickly, he ripped off a chunk of bread and chewed it and then took a swig of water. Even with budding confidence, four geos at once were too many. He would need to wait until they passed before venturing out again and he didn't want to suffer from a dry throat during that time. But the closer the four disturbances came, the more worried Kirk became. Because one of them felt different. A geo-4?

From the depths of Kirk's heart, from the memories of his previous life, came a surging current of dread. His memories wouldn't produce proof, but from the feeling, it seemed all but guaranteed that Kirk had encountered a geo-4 in the past. An experience that marred his soul, even after it had been largely wiped away. Kirk took a steading breath and checked his equipment. He slid his arm into his shield and attached the bag of jingling cores to his waist.

Worse comes to worse, I'll just ditch the rest of the pack and run. He sat there, ready for action, for another minute. But the closer the foes came… the weirder the noises became. They were fighting. Kirk rubbed his thumb against his spear. The three geo-3s were harrying the geo-4? Finally, the leading, largest figure burst through the mist above. Kirk could hear its breathing- He blinked. That's not a geo. That's a person. He peeked up out of the rift.

A woman with dark skin and short, curly hair staggered forward, practically dragging a large weapon behind her. A split second later, the green mist erupted again and three geo-3s followed hot on her heels. Gritting her teeth, the woman paused and whipped her saber around. The blade ripped into the flesh of the leading geo, causing it to whimper and stagger. But it gave the other two enough time to circle around and cut the woman off. She sagged, her face haggard.

With only his eyes above the edge of the crack, Kirk enunciated.

"Tet Ah Coon Eh Pah." The geos didn't even notice. Only the woman's eyes flicked sideways, to her detriment. As the rune swirled together, one of the geo's leapt at her moment of distraction. She brought her large saber around, but the movement was slow. She managed to get the weapon between her and the geo, but that gave the third the opportunity to growl and pounce forward- Or it would have, had not a fist-sized ember sizzled through its back leg. The thing screamed in pain and collapsed.

The first geo, which had been cut by the saber, paused and glared toward Kirk. He ignored it, released a breath, and began again. The syllables flowed smoothly. The geo shifted in his direction, recognizing him as a threat. His heartbeat quickened, but Kirk didn't let that affect his pronunciation. The same syllables flowed out. Even while the geo hurried across the distance, the ambient energies in the air swirled together.

Another ember formed, slightly smaller than the previous one, likely due to a defect in his pronunciation. But it was enough. It shot forward and exploded against the geo's face. Kirk took that opportunity to scramble up and set his feet, but he needn't have bothered. His eyes widened as he watched the woman grunt, lift her fist, and then crunch in the skull of the geo attacking her with a thunderous punch. Then, with another grunt, she lifted her massive saber and swung the weapon around.

She bisected the first geo Kirk had burned, pivoted around, released a breath, then hacked down and cut off the head of the second one, still stunned by the point-blank ember.

"Thanks," She said.

"I'm Zuri. A pleasure." Then she collapsed forward, unconscious. Kirk blinked several times. He examined the Rune in the corner of his vision, which had pulsed mid-fight with his improvements. Feat Gained! Runic Castor ✷ Feat Gained! Crisis Assistance ✷ Kirk glanced around. The geo corpses seeped blood onto the ground. Only a short distance away, the forest green layer pulsed. Now, more than ever, he regretted this hiding spot. The mist muffled the sounds of approach from below.

And the clash would have attracted a lot of attention. As gently as he could, Kirk carried the woman down into the crack. When she was safely stowed, he peered around and listened. He could hear more geos in the distance, their talons clacking against stone. Shaking his head, he left the geo-3 corpses up there and went back down to the woman. She had several deep wounds. Kirk got out bandages and began covering them as best as he could.

The disturbance in the green mist continued; something had happened down there, that this woman was probably a part of. But no new enemies approached, so gradually Kirk's tension eased. He left the crack, examining the saber, which he was barely strong enough to drag back to his hideout, and the corpses. She must have a Tier I Archetype, Kirk glanced back in the crack, where the woman slept. He pulled out his knife and began the butchering. However, the results were disappointing.

"No cores in any of them?" He frowned.

"I've always butchered fresh, I supposed. Do they just dissipate if they are left for a time?" The mystery didn't just end there. Kirk realized, as he returned to the crack and observed for a time, that these bodies didn't dissipate. Kirk rubbed his chin. So, the cores soaked out into the flesh, so now it stays? I suppose that's why I saw that there were places buying materials from geos, back at the base. But does this mean… Kirk's gaze grew curious. His stomach gurgled. I can eat them?

The Beast Archetype phantom manifested and licked its lips. Kirk looked at the Archetype, feeling rather helpless.

"I don't have the materials to make a fire. We- no, I- would need to eat it raw." The Beast flicked its blurry tail at Kirk. Of course he would eat it raw! What other way was there to eat prey?! Kirk rubbed the bridge of his nose. But… his stomach growled. He squinted at the geo. A vague impression from his past life recoiled. Yet compared to the world that Kirk experienced.

"I should at least try." Kirk muttered.