Unbound

Chapter Seven Hundred And Forty One – 741

Chapter Seven Hundred And Forty One – 741

"Fuck you," Felix growled.

Title: Bondbreaker Is Active!

Your Oaths Cannot Be Touched!

The burr of his Nemesis Title fell away and the pain faded just as Felix swiftly rejected the restoration request and ripped his hand off the Altar. Chunks of ice came with it, and his fingertips tore beneath his claws, leaving a small splatter of blood on the Altar. Much to his surprise, however, the blood swiftly absorbed into the stone itself.

"Uh, that's not normal," Archie observed.

"No. No it's not," Felix banished the Title notification. "Siva probably booby-trapped her Altar somehow."

Archie backed up. "You're alright though, right?"

"Yeah, I'm fine.”

Quest Updated!

Really? He brought up his Quest list, and one was flashing at him.

Origins Of The Breaking!

You have discovered your third Shrine to the gods! Unlike the others, this one was preserved and only recently demolished by your own hand. Within the Shrine of Avet you found a clue toward the origins of the gods and the war that changed everything. Find the others and uncover what was Lost, Ascendent.

3 of 7 Found

Reward:

+Varies

+Title

+Orichalcum Chest

The Quest was mostly unchanged from before, except for a few words acknowledging that he'd found Siva's Shrine and promptly broke it.

Felix frowned. "Look at the Altar, Archie. Tell me what you see."

The man didn't get any closer, but he squatted down and peered at the side of the sagging, box-like stone. "I see a bunch of people. A Minotaur, too. Lots of pointy ears and sharp teeth.”

“What are they doing?"

"Carrying things. Baskets of food, I think. That might be money, maybe. Or...looks like tree branches, I think."

"Are there any cages?"

"Jesus, yeah. Yeah, there are. People and kids. What the hell is this?"

"If I had to guess, it's a record of sacrifices."

Archie's eyes widened. "The blood, it soaked right up. Are you saying people were sacrificed to...give the gods power?"

"Nope."

Archie narrowed his eyes. "How does it work?"

"No clue." Felix laughed. "But I can try something if you'll let me. I need your permission first."

Archie frowned and opened his mouth, only to stop, close it, and bite his lip. "This isn't, like, a sex thing, right?"

"Jesus! No! You idiot.”

“I'm just asking! Look. Someone says they want to link with you. I'm just, you know..."

"It's okay. I don't need to hear any more of that. I don't know how exactly it’s gonna work, but it’ll probably hurt."

"Ugh. Alright. Let's get it over with."

Felix knelt on the ground and reached inside of himself, to where the bundles of connections existed atop his Void Sanctuary. His Linked friends were easy to spot, not by any visible difference, but by a certain ineffable sensation. A vibrancy. The strand of connection to Archie was similar to Beef's, if smaller and duller, and he grasped it firmly. “Brace yourself."

Archie tensed up and closed his eyes.

Felix pressed his hand against Archie's chest, nearly covering it with his dark claws, and willed a portion of his power to the man. There was a large amount of resistance, like shoving peanut butter down a garden hose, but Felix's Will and Intent were not to be denied. Inch by inch, a piece of his Mana, Essence, and significance flowed through their connection, until, with a pop, it swirled into Archie's core space.

The Delven gasped and stumbled backward, nearly tripping on the broken flooring as he went. Felix watched him cautiously. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah." Archie looked down at his chest, feeling at it like he expected a wound to be there. "That hurt. Still hurts, damn it. Feels like the worst heartburn I've ever had.”

“Did you get a notification?"

"No, all I have..." Archie blinked. "Oh, there it is. 'Do you accept this power,' it says. Fuck me, yes. I'm not doing this again. Oh." Archie swiped at something, and a notification rotated into Felix's view.

Attempting To Establish Sympathetic Link...

Tier II Link Already Established.

Essence Redirection Allowed.

Tier II Link Advanced To Tier IV!

Huh. The others were Tier III, and the Primordial's power only boosted them to VI. Does that mean I'm stronger than the Primordial Withering Dust when I first met it?

“Oh, oh jeez. That feels weird. The heartburn's gone, but there's something in my core space. This, uh..." Archie had closed his eyes, but opened them now, and a look of confusion twisted his face. "It's a light?"

"Yeah, that’s my influence. It shouldn't affect you too much, since you didn't take that much power from me.” I think, he amended silently.

Felix stood up. He was happy it had worked more than anything else, and wasn't about to worry about all the tiny details. "Now I can boost you up when the time comes. I want to test it out the next time one of you is at the edge of some breakthrough, or Tempering. So, make sure I know about it."

"Glad to be a guinea pig," Archie said, sarcasm just about dripping from his teeth as he rubbed at his chest. "If there's nothing else, though, I'm going to bed. I've only been up a few hours, and I'm dead tired again."

"Actually,” Felix said with a lopsided smile. “Do you think you could help me with one last thing?"