Flint groaned as he opened his eyes, holding out a hand to block the sunlight.
A rhythmic thump pounded his eardrums, before he realized that was his own heart.
Flint blinked, and his senses seemed to adapt and lessen in force.
He shifted his body and felt a sudden crack of sticks underneath him. To his right were several large white boulders, each speckled with gray dots. Taking a look around revealed he was sitting in a big bowl of sticks and leaves.
No, sticks wasn't the right word. Nor was big. Enormous branches were impossibly intertwined with each other, leading up to a wall of timber well over 10 meters tall.
The scale of it all made Flint pause in awe as he rested on one of the boulders. Why did he hear a heartbeat besides his own though?
Eyes widened with realization, he examined the boulders. They weren't made out of stone like he originally thought, and instead were slightly translucent, and he could barely make out something moving inside.
He jumped away from the boulder — no, egg. Flint had no intention of getting caught off guard by whatever that thing called a mama. Rushing towards the wall, he gave the branches a hard pull before confirming that they were stable. He pulled himself up with a newfound strength — an effect of being a Hollow.
Taking a breath as he reached the top, Flint sighed with relief before looking down and promptly losing what little food he had in his stomach.
The nest was situated on a massive pillar, with sides of smooth stone. Similar nests could be seen in the distance, with winged beasts dotting the horizon
A heavy burst of wind swept Flint off his feet, and he fell forwards.
Luckily, he managed to catch himself on a branch. Gasping at the shock of the near-death experience, he hung there for a moment before climbing back up.
What the hell was this bullshit? He couldn't even climb down on the stone pillar. Was he supposed to be able to fly?
Flint's eyes lit up. Perhaps he could fly…
Taking a moment to concentrate, he pulled up his Soul Inscription.
Name: Falintin Valerius
Title: None
Rank: Low Hollow
Soul Saturation: 1%
Bloodline: Valerius
Bloodline Link: Limited
Skill: Initalizing…
Essence: 100/100
Inventory: [Frenzied Shard], [Basic Thyran Outfit]
Initializing? The fuck did it mean initializing? In fact… several things were off here.
The Thyran outfit was most likely supplied to him during the artificial Hollowing, and it duly reminded him that he was currently butt-naked.
[Basic Thyran Outfit]
Rank: Low Hollow
Type: Cloth
Enchantments: None
Description: A full-body attire engraved with the Thyran seal, providing the most basic of needs.
Imagining the [Basic Thyran Outfit] covering his body, he instantly felt a relief from the cold when he summoned the Thyran outfit, feeling it wrap against him. Flint felt grateful, even though the amount of protection it offered his body from attacks was… questionable at best.
Moving on to the next item in his inventory, Flint focused on the [Frenzied Shard].
[Frenzied Shard]
Rank: User's Rank {Low Hollow}
Type: Dagger
Enchantments: [Lunge], [Bloom], [Bond], [Inherit]
Descriptions: An ancient dagger with unknown limits. From a set of similar weapons that have been separated for eons.
Flint frowned. Frenzied Shard? Was this the weapon that Vance gave him? He attempted to summon it, and it appeared in his hand instantly.
He sighed with relief as he toyed with the familiar leather dagger. Previously, Flint would have to be in a calm mental state in order to summon it. Apparently his ascension to Hollow removed the need for that.
And those enchantments looked interesting…
Enchantments:
[Lunge]
Rank: Low Hollow
Description: What was between here and there is now here.
Ability: The [Frenzied Shard] lunges forward, allowing the user to lunge along with it.
[Bloom]
Rank: ???
Description: A fruit that ripens with time.
Ability: Grows alongside its user.
[Bond]
Rank: ???
Description: A tether that surpasses any rationale.
Ability: ???
[Inherit]
Rank: ???
Description: What was his is now yours.
Ability: Allows the user to transfer ownership regardless of the new user's rank.
Flint shuddered. What kind of weapon had Vance given him? Nonetheless, depending on how effective the [Lunge] enchantment was, it could be his key to getting out of here.
He kicked a pile of leaves to use a cushion, then while pointing the Frenzied Shard up at the sky, Flint mentally thought of activating the Lunge enchantment.
His body was violently pulled into the sky, before coming to a sudden stop. Flint barely had enough time to regret his decision before he started plummeting back towards the nest, landing on a bundle of leaves he had prepared earlier, saving him from breaking a bone or two. It still hurt like hell, with Flint massaging his bruised shoulder.
Essence: 80/100
Lifting the Frenzied Shard to the sky, he activated the enchantment again. Then while mid-air, Flint pointed the Shard above one of the nest walls, catapulting himself in that direction. Once again, he felt that tug as his speed rapidly decreased and he landed neatly on top of the wall.
Essence: 60/100
Grinning, he moved on to the next point of interest.
Bloodline: Valerius
Bloodline Passives: [Face of a Hero]
[Face of a Hero]
Description: Perception is greater than reality.
Ability: Depending on the deed, heroic acts grant you temporary strength.
Bloodline Weapons: Locked
Bloodline Abilities: [Heart of a Hero], [Mind of a Hero]
[Heart of a Hero]
Description: Heavy lies the shackles of the savior.
Ability: Feel the emotions of those you slay.
[Mind of a Hero]
Description: The tongue can stand before a thousand swords.
Ability: Allows telepathic communication.
Flint scratched his head, questions circling his mind. What quantified as a heroic deed? And who decided that? If it was his Soul, then could he delude himself into believing something completely wicked was heroic? And [Mind of a Hero] felt… out of place of the whole theme that was going on here.
Flint shook his head. He was wasting time here.
Deciding to not use [Lunge] as to rejuvenate his Essence, he climbed down the branches of the nest and walked towards one of the eggs, a grim smile on his lips.
Clutching the Shard, he put his ear next to the egg and listened for the heart beat.
Taking a second to confirm, he raised the Shard and plunged it deep into the egg, foul fluids rushing out of the gap he had opened.
[First Kill]
[You have slain a Griffin Fetus]
If the egg had stopped his blade, he would've certainly died to the mother. Now he knew for certain it couldn't a high Vessel or above.
Flint moved on to the next egg, and the next, following the same process.
After every kill he felt a fleeting sense of distress. A sort of animalistic panic. Was this from the [Heart of a Hero]?
Shrugging off the strange feeling, he moved towards the last egg. As he approached it, it shook as several cracks started to form, revealing a beady eye staring at him.
Waving at the newly born Griffin, he grabbed the Shard and slipped it between the cracks, stabbing it in the head. It bawled before going silent, and instead of feeling distress like from the previous kills, he felt a wave of confusion and betrayal.
Did the little thing think he was his mama? He stared at the dead Griffin, before shaking his head. Who knew how many people he saved by making sure the Griffin didn't grow up?
Snapping back to reality, he wiped the blood off his dagger, crushed up the eggs — making sure the death of the chicks was instantly noticeable. Flint stuck his hand into one of the eggs and covered himself in the fluids of the dead beast inside, slurping some of it into his mouth.
Grimacing at the taste, he finalized his preparations.
Flint dashed behind a bundle of branches and waited. It wasn't long until he could hear something big approaching.