3.17: The Power of Friendship
Gehenna’s coordinates led us to a forest of creepy mutated trees that looked like a hybrid of pink fleshy membranes and dark brown bark. The further into the darkened forest area we walked, the more the ground became fetid and marshy. After a few minutes trudging into the stinking swamps, we came to a towering gate made of thousands and thousands of humanoid skulls, with two immense wooden doors covered in all sorts of faintly glowing runes. We studied the gate for traps before Bray and I moved towards the large doors and pushed on each one. A rush of air that reeked of rotted meat and the stench of death blew past us. The gate opened up to a large stone staircase that led down deep into the ground. We readied our weapons and slowly descended down the stairs.
We walked down the spiral staircase for a few minutes when my boot crunched down on something loudly. I looked down and saw that the stairs ended in a floor that was just layer upon layer of bones. I indicated for the others to hold at the bottom of the stairs and I spread my wings. I flew about 50 feet, but as far as the eye could see was a carpet of bleached white bones. As I hovered in place and turned back to face my clanmates, I was suddenly surrounded by walls of flowing bone. I focused on my demonic speed to try and escape from the rapidly shrinking bone prison, but somehow the swirling mass of bone kept up with me and I was quickly enveloped. I was being pressed in from all sides, and as the pressure rapidly increased
I could tell that if I didn’t do something quickly I would be crushed to death in this sea of bone. With my lungs being compressed and not wanting to get a mouthful of bone, I knew I couldn’t use Spoken Word to cast any of my spells; instead I charged up each of my hands with a [Corrupting Fire] spell. Everything surrounding me instantly burst into a brilliant flame, and I pushed forward with my demonic strength to try and break free. One of my fists managed to find an opening and I cast my [Demonic Chains] to try and grab hold of something to pull my body free. I felt the chain attached to my hand go slack, and I groaned in irritation. I was about to try again when I felt a sudden tug, followed by something immensely strong pulling me out of the burning column of bone.
My head and most of my upper torso managed to make it out before more bone swirled around me again and began to pull me back in. I was caught in a deadly game of tug-of-war, with my body being the rope. Both sides pulled with an equal amount of strength, so if I didn’t do something quickly I was either going to end up being ripped in half. I managed to get my head free for a few seconds, but that was all I needed.
“Power Limiter Release: 50%!”
Despite the intense pain I was feeling from being pulled in two separate directions and the razor sharp bones swirling over my body, every nerve suddenly tingled in pleasure as a surge of power filled my core. I tried pulling myself free again using my demonic strength, and this time I was strong enough to break out of the tight confines of the mass of flowing bone. When I was finally back in the air I quickly turned around and held my hands up.
“[Blastburn]! [Blastburn]! [Coldfire]!
I cast spell after spell after spell until my MP was almost completely out. When the dust settled and the smoke and fire cleared, I was able to see small bits of blasted bone littered across a scorched and partially frozen stone floor. Bray and the others had retreated back to the stairs and I slowly descended to the ground and landed hard on my side. My entire body felt sluggish like it was being weighed down. Despite almost using all of my MP, I wasn’t sure why I was feeling so drained all of a sudden… unless…
I opened my menu and looked at my current status effects. I had over a dozen negative effects from various hexes, all of which were listed as tier 4 spells. As I read their descriptions I saw that each hex had a timer that was ticking down with every second. I looked up at the other three who had circled around me and groaned loudly.
“So… apparently someone wants me sitting out this round. I have sixteen Tier 4 hexes all with a 20-minute timer. As irritating as it is… I think it might be best if I just chilled here until you guys get back.”
The others reluctantly agreed and said if it took them longer than 20 minutes they'd come back to get me. I moved back to the first staircase and sat on the edge of the bottom step as they soldiered on deeper into the dungeon. I let out a long sigh as I realized that this forced respite was likely a certain someone's flimsy excuse for me to sit stationary while I pondered something that person obviously wanted me to think about. Hooray for plot devices!
My skin bristled in irritation as I thought about how despite being extremely powerful and still the highest level player in the game, I had to constantly release my Limiter to almost 100% sometimes just to be strong enough to fight certain foes. Gehenna had beaten me soundly with only 80% of her total power… And at 100% she had beaten almost an entire squadron of high leveled enemies by herself.
“The fact that you still consider levels to be an accurate judge of power tells me all I need to know.”
Gehenna's words ran through my mind, and I considered how I could become more powerful if levels weren't the key to doing so.
OK… Let's see… How did I get as powerful as I am now?
First it was Mellic turning me into Allexus. I quickly leveled up thanks to how strong my enchanted body was and was able to beat Mellic with my clan's help. I gained a bunch of XP from that, and even went on to win the clan tournament undefeated, not including my own forfeiture.
The first time I fought Gehenna, she had schooled me. I may have pushed her into releasing 50% of her power, but I knew from our second battle that she had been holding back.
Then I changed my character and became the ‘Overlord of Corruption.’ That was when my power had truly skyrocketed. So… [Corrupted Touch] really was the source of my power. It allowed me to corrupt several clan mates and even get an army. It was not only a skill, but my entire specialization.
OK… How does that help me?
The power of that skill and what it could do were the key to figuring out how to make myself more powerful without levels.
I opened my character menu and flicked over to my skill screen. I selected [Corrupted Touch] and read its lengthy description before switching to the description for Corrupted Bond. This permanent Tier 5 enchantment granted to those I corrupted would allow them to fill my Blood Tithe meter. It also gave me limited control over them, like being able to summon them to my side, removing their clothing, and the ability to give them simple commands.
Corrupted Bond. That's the key. How can I use that bond to strengthen myself?
What if I were to be able to somehow gain a portion of their stats? Even at low percentages, it would still make a huge difference in buffing me, especially if I was bonded to a lot of…
I blushed as much as my demonic body would allow as I realized what I was implying. While the idea had merit… It would also require me to sleep with lots of people. I wasn't necessarily opposed to it, although the idea of sleeping with so many guys wasn't exactly appealing. My character may be omnisexual, but I was certainly not. So… That left me with the choices of either only seeking out women to add to the clan or to do my best to take my IRL preferences out of the equation and just let Allexus do her thing.
Eh… this is a lesbian sex story… Right? Probably better to stick with what you're all here to see, I guess.
With that decided, I laughed a little as I realized I effectively just decided to start forming a harem. I mean… I sort of already had one if I was being honest. My fiancée made it abundantly clear she was OK continuing our sexual escapades with Nialla, and adding Jade and Tifa into the mix, even temporarily, was pushing me even further into harem territory.
My mind immediately went to Emily's admission of having a harem kink, and I smiled as I thought about the possibilities. I could corrupt all sorts of women, and then we could all allow my future wife to do whatever she wanted with us.
I suddenly felt a surge of anger flow through me and I felt my lip curl into a snarl. I took several deep breaths to calm myself and thought about what had caused the sudden outburst of emotion. I scoffed loudly as I realized that my demonic body was objecting to the idea of letting Emelia, who was technically my subordinate, dominate me. My brain and all my kinks warred with my body and its apparent need for control and domination. If I was this upset just thinking about letting her dominate me, I couldn't imagine how bad it would be if I actually let her do it.
So… Harem… Maybe. Allexus submitting to Emelia? Not as long as my demonic instincts saw Em as my subordinate…
Next steps.
We need to recruit. Like… a lot. Maybe not hundreds of people, but enough that we get a variety of people and I get a variety of skills. So far I’ve only really corrupted mage types… If I want to strengthen all my stats and not just my magic ones, I would look for warriors, paladins, and other close-combatants. While I do have an in-your-face style, it wouldn’t hurt to add people into the clan that specialize in stealth. Having an artificer type would allow us to cover our bases with that and I don’t even have a clue what benefit I’d get from corrupting them.
Aeryn is right. This clan challenge will offer a great way to gauge players’ overall strength and to really get some quality members. Now the real question is, how would I go about getting something that lets me get a portion of my clan members stats?
Judas seems to know a lot about the skill system in the game. He would likely know a way to come up with something. Or maybe even my Demon Enchanter… although I’m loath to use him unless I have to. Otherwise I can ask Gehenna when she visits during the clan challenge.
Now that I have at least some idea where to go next… how am I going to handle tomorrow with Jade and Tifa?
While I could easily wing it and just see where it goes, I really think having some sort of plan will help me keep things as “an event.”
I sighed softly and considered the possibilities. While I could easily just let my demonic instincts take over, lately they’ve done nothing but cause me trouble. The sex with Em and Nialla was fun, but I could have easily seen how it could have gotten out of hand, especially if Em hadn’t been as into it as she was. One thing I did know for sure was that I was absolutely going to utilize my new throne room. Nothing like a little self-aggrandizing to really inspire intimidation and awe.
As I wracked my brain for ideas… something random and unexpected bubbled to the surface and I scolded myself for not having thought about this far, far sooner. I was able to change from a Demon Lord to the Demon Overlord of Corruption. I changed Emelia from a Demonspawn Ice Mage into a Snow Demon… so would it be possible to take her demonic progression a step further and truly make her my equal? Make her a true mate worthy of being married to the future Demon Empress. The idea tickled my brain and the more I considered it, the more I liked it. It was in absolutely no small part that I made it this far into the game due to Em, and with her literally being my equal… We would be the ultimate power couple in every sense of the word.
I summoned my Demon Enchanter and forced myself to ignore his appearance. Seeing Mellic still made my stomach churn, and I felt the urge to rip the Enchanter’s throat out just for the fun of it.
“M’lady… What can I do for you?”
“When I first corrupted Emelia from a Demonspawn into a full Demonkin, you seemed to have a great deal of information on that particular subject. I have a question that is in that same vein and I’m wondering if you might be able to help me.”
“I will endeavor to answer any question you have, M’lady.”
“Is it possible to change Emelia’s form a second time so that she is truly my equal? She is not just my mate, she is my wife, my other half. I want her to be as powerful as I am in her own way. But in a way that connects us both. Like… the closer we are to one another, the stronger we are… or something like that.”
The Enchanter studied my face for a moment with a neutral expression, seemingly searching for the intent behind my words. I knew that what I’d likely suggested was something he’d consider “laughable” with how he viewed the idea of anyone being my equal, but given the depth of my commitment to this, I was hoping he’d understand that I was set on doing this. He narrowed his eyes slightly and scoffed through his nose before glaring at me slightly.
“Tier 5 enchantment magic. And… Her body would have to be reset in a similar way as what you did to yours, but… I think that if you were able to use your [Corrupting Touch] on the siphon shard it might produce an effect similar to what you’re describing. As far as her being as powerful as you… there is littl-”
“I have another unrelated question.”
He merely nodded this time and looked at me expectantly.
“Is it possible to alter the Corrupted Bond so that I gain a permanent portion of the stats of everyone I’m bonded to?”
He grinned widely, and his fangs gleamed.
“Now there’s a question befitting a Demon Overlord. Yes. Although the enchantment that allows you to gain blood tithes is a variation of our creator’s original one, yours is unique in that it can easily be altered as needed. See, the effect of gaining blood tithes is in itself a Tier 5 enchantment made for that sole purpose. But your [Corrupting Touch] took that enchantment and perverted it in a way that made it a by-product of who you are now. While it’s considered a Tier 5 enchantment for those who you have imparted it on, on your end it is merely a base level 1 enchantment. So, adding effects on top of that would be quite simple. It will still take a great deal of ethereal energy to enact the change, but not nearly as much as what transforming yourself required. I suspect the next time you corrupt a Demonspawn you’d likely be able to use a lesser powered siphon shard to absorb the required energy. If you’d like I can work on an enchantment that will allow you to gain a steal a portion of your corrupted’s stats.”
I held up my hands in disagreement and shook my head.
“Whoa Whoa Whoa! I didn’t say I want to steal their stats, just basically… copy a percentage of them.”
He cocked his head at me and narrowed his eyes even further.
“Doable, but much more difficult, and the percentage you’d be able to gain would be miniscule in comparison to what you could leech off of them.”
“I’m not going to weaken my friends just to further myself. They are just as much a source of strength to me as my skills and enchanted body are.”
He let out a very loud sarcastic laugh and gave me a look like I had just told him something hilarious.
“It seems you and I have differing opinions on what it means to be a demon, but I won’t argue with you, M’lady. Instead, I will take my leave and begin work on this enchantment if you have nothing further.”
“Mind your tone, Enchanter. You are my minion. You are subject to my will, not the other way around. If I want to focus on the ‘power of friendship,’ I’m damn well going to do it. You’d do well to remember your place.”
The Enchanter’s eyebrows shot up and he bowed very deeply with a look of sudden fear.
“I… I apologize, m-my lady. I truly meant no offense. Sometimes I allow the nature imparted on me from our creator to influence my actions, and I spoke without considering the impact of my words. You are, of course, my Overlord. I would never even dream of suggesting doing something that would be counter to what you desire. You have my word from this point forward I will strive to remember my place and do everything in my power to serve you. If you have nothing further, most gracious Overlord, I will take my leave to begin working on what you requested.”
I gave a single nod in acknowledgement and he shimmered and disappeared. I had to refrain from laughing at just how good it felt to order the likeness of Mellic around and seeing him respond with such terror in his eyes. While I should have scolded myself for handling the Enchanter in a way similar to how my creator would have done, it was his likeness… and per his own confession, he did have Mellic’s nature… so I felt I was more than a little justified.
With that settled, I turned my thoughts back to the “event” with Jade and Tifa. A wide grin that almost hurt my cheeks spread across my face as an idea popped into my head. I had followed the train of thought from Corruption, to Harem, to this event… and I came up with the perfect idea of how to handle tomorrow. I opened my messaging menu and sent a quick message to Emelia and Nialla before checking the status of my hexes. I only had a few minutes remaining of the 20 minute timer, and I stood up and started walking towards the staircase that the others had descended down.