I watch the ruined city as the sun goes down. I'm pretty sure that there's a nightmare creature everywhere too. I start walking along the length of the wall. I'm not sure where to go exactly. If there are people in this place then they have to be in the city. The most prominent place in the city is the castle so I assume it's there.
That and the lights on in the castle. Although I've never heard of this place before. So it's likely nobody has ever gotten out of this place. That doesn't mean there's nobody, it just means we're cut off and unable to leave.
Which, how lucky they got a divine aspect user..... who am I kidding here, nobody because nobody is here. I am not skilled or strong enough for this. I'd say its above my pay grade but I am not being payed.
I sit down on the wall watching the castle lights until all go out. I'll start moving when day comes around, its not like I can see in the dark after all.
I make an ice dome and I go to sleep on some snow. Maybe when I get there I'll have an actual bed and maybe my own room. How nice that would be, although I doubt it will be nice, a place like this never fosters anything good.
The next day I start moving through the city, slowly of course, avoiding everything with a large heat signature or anywhere without any at all. It takes a whole day until I get to the castle.
I see human people, uncorrupted human people. I'm probably pretty damn lucky to get here, I almost got caught a few times. I walk around for a bit. I notice a guy who seems pretty knowledgeable about the place and I decide to ask him about it. He's a taller guy with a memory armor that's a bit dinged up.
"Hey.... I'm new or whatever, why are there so many people out here and not in the castle?"
The man looks me up and down
"You have to pay a soul shard to live in the castle. You're definitely new around here. Ask away kid I'll answer your questions"
I get annoyed for a minute at being called kid. I am not a child, its annoying.
"Why does one need to pay a soul shard to get into the castle?"
He sighs
"Gunlaug is in charge of the whole place and that's what he demands. Simple as that"
Gunlaug, I've never heard that name before. It's probably a tyrant kind of situation. That seems really annoying and inconvenient but not shocking, when put into a prolonged dangerous situation humans flock to strong or charismatic people. I nod
"So there's no gate here right?"
"That's right there isn't a gate here, the gates in the crimson spire, it's being defended by a fallen terror."
I grimace, I was having trouble killing awakened beasts and I have a divine aspect how in the hell is someone meant to kill a fallen terror?
"So what's up with this city? The monsters here seem stronger."
He nods "Yeah most nightmare creatures here are of the fallen rank."
I nod slowly. I dig in my bag and I give him one of my many soul shards.
"Thanks for the information and all that."
He stares at me dumbfounded. I walk away, and I decide to check out the situation in the castle, one week shouldn't be too bad.
It was in fact that bad, it was everything I hate in social interactions. I have to constantly act and play some role. It was so clear everyone was lying in some way just to get by.
No more then lying everyone was actually scared, probably a say the wrong thing, maybe die maybe worse kind of thing. At the end, I'm absolutely exhausted by it. At least I got good cooked food and some healing.
All that did was give me time to consider my plans. I'll probably join an outside hunting group, my aspect isn't the best for being a team player but I'll manage. I'll also ask for no soul shards, just food... and that food to be cooked for me. I don't want to go back to eating what I "cook." That guy from the start seemed to be a hunter. I had run out of meat not long before I got here anyway.
"Hey, you're the guy who answered my questions. Are you a hunter?"
He looks over at me confused for a second before he speaks
"Yeah I am, why?"
"Can I join your hunting party? I don't need any soul shards, just meat and.... someone to cook it for me"
he stares at me dumbfounded
"Uh do you have a combat aspect or any weapons?"
I summon my daggers I roll my shoulders, it's nice to be able to do that. He stares at them
"You know what sure you can join just stay in the back for now"
I nod, I'm probably going to be a bag carrier for now but food is food.
"That's fine with me. I'm going to go choose a house to live in bye"
I walk away leaving the confused man behind. I decide to choose a little hovel closer to the edge. It may be more dangerous but I'm left alone and it will be less loud.
It's falling apart but I'll deal.
A few hours later the hunter from earlier, whom I've mentally dubbed as leader, comes to my little hovel because they're about to start a hunt.
"Hey kid its time for a hunt, that is if your okay with coming"
I tilt my head, I joined the hunting party so I could hunt with other people why wouldnt I be
"Yeah I joined for a reason. I'll go out on a limb and say I'll be a bag carrier for now"
he looks surprised for a few seconds before he composes himself
"I mean i little, just until you get a hang of things"
I dont get why hes so surprised it was pretty obvious.
"Well then let's get going." I get up summoning my daggers.
I watch as the hunting party jumps an awakened monster, they said it's called a carapace centurion. They're quite well prepared and knowledgeable about the area and the nightmare creatures. I stand to the side watching everything. I'm unfortunately unable to help for now, I'm not skilled enough nor do I know how to properly use my aspect in a team.
To be fair I've been fighting alone this whole time. When they finally kill the thing leader gestures me over.
"Hey, newbie do you know how to butcher one of these?"
I nod
"I'm aware of how to butcher nightmare creatures although I only dealt with the iron spiders in the labyrinth"
he hums. I summon my daggers as the group starts to butcher the crab-looking nightmare creature. As we do they point to places showing weak points.
"These guys might be fast but they have a pretty big blind spot. If you're lucky and you catch them by surprise you might be able to kill them in one hit."
I nod, I file that away as important. I'm not paying too much attention, I'm hungry after all. When we're all done butchering the thing I make a sled pulling it along with me easily. I had gotten the idea from something I saw in the outersettlement.
The group talks with each other like old friends, although they're all pretty quiet with their talking careful not to get any unwanted attention. I don't say anything for a while. The group notices and slows down to include me. The tank is the first to talk
"Hey newbie you good with carrying all that?"
I get confused for a second
"Yeah? If I weren't I would have said something."
The leader nods
"So how much do you know? Things like don't look at nightmare creatures directly or how to figure out weaknesses"
I look down
"I don't know much about nightmare creatures. I only took wilderness survival"
the group starts explaining general knowledge about nightmare creatures.
Later when the whole group is back they sell some of the spoils of the fight. They keep most of the meat for themselves though. I stay at the leader's hovel though.
"I already said I don't want any soul shards I just want cooked food."
He keeps just staring at me dumbfounded
"Why would you only want cooked food, Don't you want to be stronger?"
I stare at him unimpressed and I shake my head
"Isn't this a better deal for you?"
He looks me over as if trying to figure something out
"Yeah it is. If you insist on it I guess."
We, more like he, get to cooking. I'm mostly just watching him, I'm unfortunately completely unable to comprehend how he's cooking. In the end, I'm get some cooked meat, I do a thumbs up as I leave.
He slowly nods still confused. I go to my little hovel. I lay down on my shabby bed eating. I make an ice wall and I start practicing throwing knives again.
Now that I'm thinking about it I've never actually tested the upper limit of my ice. I probably shouldn't test it though. I'm able to be in fire without getting burnt so maybe I could help kill fire-based nightmare creatures or ice ones.
That could be cool or something. So I shouldn't look right at nightmare creatures that's a fact I didn't know. It's going to take a while for me to be capable of navigating the dark city alone but I could start participating in fights in a few hunts.
The next day I lay in bed for a while that is until my cohort enters my hovel. I look over tiredly, and mildly annoyed.
"Hey, newbie you got to train with us. You being a bag carrier is useful and all but you'll be more useful if you can fight with us"
Tank is the first to speak, she seems like the loud type. Leader seems exasperated, mage seems pretty amused.
"Only if you help me fix this place up."
"HA, you're on newbie."
That's how most days go, once a week we hunt. Every other day we hunt between then we fix my little hovel up to a liveable condition.
Tank is the first to warm up to me although she never stops calling me a newbie her aspect is a barrier she can put up along with her shield she can stop most hits.
Leader is the oldest and has been here the longest, for 3 years, he acts like an older brother he kept trying to show me how to cook, but it stopped after a month, his aspect gives him very high speed letting him hit faster and harder with his halberd.
Mage is the last to warm up to me, he normally calls me by my name, he's the least likely to participate in any shenanigans the group gets up to but he seems quite amused by it, his aspect lets him control light to a degree, normally to blind enemies.
I normally end up as the ranged attacker after I got okay with the ice throwing knives, that and a surprise attacker. Honestly, it's not a bad team. With us slowly getting more memories and soul shards/ ice Fragments we get slowly stronger and stronger.
We sneak through the city quickly finding a awake blood fiend. Rare but as long as we aren't hit this should be a easy hunt. Mage blinds it. The scream it let's out is still too human for my liking. Leader moves next cutting its back open, it swipes at him but tank blocks it. I come from behind stabbing it in the neck. I let it fall forwards onto the ground.
[You have slain an awakened monster, blood fiend]
[You have received a memory]
"I got a memory guys"
Tank grins at that "You're a lucky one aren't you"
We converge on the dead monster, I make an ice sled as normal, this time we decide to take the whole thing with us. I drag it with me. While we walk I desummon the daggers and thread.
"So ■■■■ what did you get anyway?"
I decide to check my runes to see what I got
Name: ■■■■
True Name: heat seeker
Rank: Dreamer.
Soul Core: Dormant.
Ice Fragments: [174/1000]
Memories: [Armor of Ash] [Snow and Ash Daggers] [priest's notebook] [silk thread] [silver cutlass] [feather boots] [blood drinker]
Echoes: —
Attributes: [Crown of Snow], [Mark of Divinity], [True Cold] [Being of Cold]
Aspect: [Child of Cold].
Aspect Rank: [divine.]
Aspect ability: [frozen over]
Aspect Ability Description: [All you touch is turned to ice it is capable of great destruction and great creation]
Aspect Description: [You are the child of a law of this world, of the cold left behind by the death of a god. You long for heat for warmth yet never will you find it. You take the heat from the world yet stay as cold as the grave.]
I summon the blood drinker it's a necklace with a little vial. It has nothing in it
Memory: [blood drinker]
Memory Description: [When the city fell some resorted to drinking blood when they could not get any water slowly they transformed. This Memory drinks the blood of the fallen slowly filling with blood each kill makes its user faster 0/200. This Memory makes its users' blood poisonous]
"It fills with blood making me faster with each kill and it makes my blood poisonous."
Leader tilts his head
"so basically my aspect but you have to kill to get it"
tank laughs and nudges leader
"wow a memory can take your place, careful we might dethrone you"
mage snorts
"Yeah we'll make a memory our leader, more soul shards for us"
tank slings her arm around me before she jolts back
"damn your cold as hell!"
I grin slightly
"Maybe don't touch me then, maybe next time I'll freeze you"
I had been in this hell for about 2 years, I've been hunting pretty damn successfully with my cohort gaining memories and ice Fragments slowly getting stronger and stronger.
At this point my hovel had been fixed up quite well, I had filled out many pages with drawings of the nightmare creatures I had hunted, and I had gotten really good at throwing knives too. Although I haven't been training much in the way of larger ice constructs.
Overwhelming destruction wouldn't work too well in the ruined city. At this point, I had filled the blood drinker to 40/200. It still needs to be higher to get a better effect but it works pretty well so far.