Chapter 2: Chapter 1: Learning

I am met with stunned, awestruck silence in the wake of my proclamation. I wait, taking a beat for a split-second, before chuckling lightly, which breaks the odd tension in the room and causes one of the women to dart forward and hug me.

The woman in question is a truly stunning redhead dressed in odd, diaphanous silks. She has a remarkably petite body and is almost paper thin, but her striking red hair and jaw-droppingly gorgeous face both more than compensate for her lack of curves on an aesthetic level. I am stunned by the abruptness of her actions for a moment, but quickly compose myself and hug her back, obeying instincts that I know are mine even if I can’t remember how I developed them.

“There, there… It’s okay, I’m here now…” I tell her, softly, trusting in my own strange instincts. She does not sob, but she does silently weep into my chest. Dark clothes cover my body, vastly unlike the almost transparent silks which cover hers. The scent of her hair fills my nostrils, and I am surprised at how incredible she smells.

Her closeness to me, coupled with both her scent and the sight of her slim body awaken desires in me that stir my second head to life, but I easily ignore the desires. This woman, apparently someone who cares about me a lot, is undergoing a sort of emotional catharsis. I want her to let out whatever she is feeling. At the same time her companions regain their wits and one of them, a raven-haired beauty, begins to speak.

“Master… You said you were missing valuable information? What information are you missing? If you let me, perhaps I can... retrieve it for you.” She asks and then offers, gently. Her voice is soft and just hearing it delights me. A part of me even feels safer after she speaks, which is a strange feeling but not one that I mind given my current circumstances.

“I know… the basics of our current situation. I know that I am a ‘Sanguinarch’, which is something akin to a dark god of vampires and other undead beings, I know that you all are servants and companions of mine, my ‘Dark Brides’ and my ‘Vampire Spawn’. I also know that I am a resurrected being. Other than that, there is… painfully little that I know.” I explain, opting to leave out some of the other things my “Essence” told me. The woman listens to my explanation and when I am done speaking she nods, understanding my plight.

“So you’ve lost your memories, have you? Hmm… But you at least know the big things. That’s a start. Hells, it’s more than we would have dared to hope for, had we had time to hope in the first place. I can feel in my bones that time has passed, but in our eyes, it’s only been moments since your death and you are already standing before us once more.” The raven-haired woman tells me. She approaches me and then kneels before me.

“My lord, I am Verona. I am the oldest of your ‘Dark Brides’, and one of the first vampires you rescued from death’s cold grip before turning me and my sisters into something vaguely like you.” The woman says, reverentially. She gazes up at me worshipfully, and I can feel her devotion, her earnest love. The blonde woman standing to her right also steps forward and kneels once Verona finishes speaking.

“Master Warren, I am Marishka. I am the middle sister of your ‘Dark Brides’. You rescued my sisters and me at the same time, following our second deaths in a world named Earth many centuries ago. You resurrected us, pulling us from the pits of a fiery afterlife known as ‘Hell’, and remade us, filling us with vestiges of your ascendant might.” Marishka, a beautiful blonde woman, explains to me.

As soon as she finishes speaking she looks downward, not daring to make further eye contact with me. The redhead in my arms looks up at me, her scarlet eyes making contact with mine.

“I am Aleera, the youngest of your dark brides. You freed us from the foul influence of a powerful vampire named Dracula in the world of our birth, resurrecting us after he fell to the same vampire hunter who slew us, a strange being named Van Helsing. We joined you, and together we have explored the multiverse.” Aleera explains, softly.

“Each of us is capable of using one of the three ‘Foci’ of sanguinarchs. ‘Foci’ are powerful sets of related abilities, and you are a rare sanguinarch who possesses all three ‘Foci’; the ‘Dominating’ focus, the ‘Savage’ focus, and the ‘Cultured’ focus.” Aleera tells me, and as she does I feel knowledge flow directly into my mind.

As I mentally gaze at the new information entering my conscious mind I realize that just hearing the words is enough for me to vaguely recall at least decontextualized knowledge. Hearing of the “Foci” of a sanguinarch is enough for me to remember some of my strange, old powers. I don’t gain any actual, concrete memories, not even ones of me actually using these new abilities, but I still gain a clear, almost encyclopedic knowledge of the powers the foci confer to those who master them.

I sense myself regaining the ability to use my foci, each of which grants me at least one helpful ability or trait, be it the super speed of the “Savage” focus, or the charisma boost given to me by the “Cultured” one. Sadly, I am also instinctively aware that what I have regained is not my powers at their height, but a weakened version of things like the mighty super strength I once possessed. I take a deep breath as I quietly adjust to the pleasant but strange sensations of gaining a portion of my vast power back.

“It seems that even just… hearing that word is enough for some of what I lost to return to me. I know what ‘Foci’ are, precisely because I heard the word. I can feel my foci again… Not fully, mind you, but enough. More than enough.” I explain, cryptically, though also honestly. I don’t quite understand what is happening either, I just know that as soon as I heard that word I began to regain some of my lost power. And what I regained is incredible.

“Really? Just the word? Hmm… ‘Dominion’, ‘Essence’, ‘Feeding’, and ‘Major Sanguine Powers’.” Marishka says, almost as soon as I finish speaking. And once more, with each of those uttered words, I feel strange things awakening within me, in my mind and in my heart. Knowledge fills my mind, even as powers cause my chest to tighten.

“Whoa…” I remark, softly, as I suddenly find myself armed with powerful knowledge. I know about things like the terrifying list of “Major Sanguine Powers” I possess, abilities which I can use freely as a sanguinarch and which can also be used by my dark brides, aside from the ability to create more of themselves. The ability to create dark brides is a major sanguine power itself!

 Other knowledge flows into my mind as freely as knowledge about the primary abilities possessed by sanguinarchs. I gain a scholarly, academic understanding of essence, a bizarre energy source that sanguinarchs can tap into and use to fuel empowerment of themselves or even to do virtually anything they want from performing resurrections to annihilating entire planets. I also gain knowledge of how to gain essence, since Marishka said "Feeding".

 This is incredibly neat, but essence itself is a resource that when spent does not replenish itself over time so usages of it need to be strategic until I can easily farm meaningful amounts of the stuff. Fortunately, that may not be particularly difficult because my dark brides transmit small amounts of the stuff to me each second they exist, due to the nature of the connection that the four of us share.

“How neat!” I utter, as I give myself a second to completely incorporate the strange, alien knowledge that now lurks in my mind. I walk forward and gently grab the book on the floor of the odd basement my allies and I are in. As soon as the document is in my hands I open it and information contained within the thing begins to flow into my mind.

Even the first pages of the book are chock-full of valuable information. I flip through the early pages of the handbook and I am able to lay my eyes on things like labeled world maps, lists of different organizations present in the world, and even a time line of major historical events. It is quite handy, as is my perfected memory which means that all I need to do is even momentarily glance at a page to memorize it.

 "This is a cute device..." I say, to myself, thinking aloud even as I begin to gain odd, clearly supernatural senses. In the back of my mind I can clearly feel a small but steadily growing amount of essence slowly flowing into me. Essence feels like a steady amount of adrenaline flowing into the back of my mind, and I know, unconsciously, that if I were in pain the essence in me would dull the pain I'd otherwise feel.

 "Hmm... Thank you my dears." I exclaim, as I turn my attention back to my dark brides, who smile at me, unsure of what I am thanking them for.

 "Master... Why are you thanking us?" Aleera eventually asks, being the first of my brides to speak in the wake of my seemingly random declaration. I look into her scarlet eyes and smile.

 "I can sense the essence that you all are giving me. I can feel it filling me, like air fills my lungs when I elect to breathe. It feels good, my loves. I am thanking you for that." I explain, gently.

 Upon hearing this Aleera is satisfied and places her head on my chest once more, happy to be in my presence, and quickly adjusting to the reality that I am here with here once again, even if I have been left changed by my resurrection. She closes her eyes and relaxes.

 As she relaxes, my other brides look up at me and their faces subtly shift as they begin to think about what to do next. At the same time I can feel alien knowledge flowing into my mind, even as a strange, automated-sounding voice begins to emanate from the book in my hands.

 "Alert: Assimilation beginning. You are gaining a number of [Perks]. [Perks] are skills, abilities, and powers, afforded to you due to your newfound ability to evolve whenever you enter a new universe. From this point on, your nature as a sanguinarch will mix with the omega lord aetheric energy within you, allowing you to evolve more and more as you travel from universe to universe." The book utters, causing the eyes of my companions to widen in shock and delight. I look at the thing and decide to question it.

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 "Player Handbook, can you explain to me and my party where we are?" I ask, curiously. As soon as I ask that, however, I am surprised when words appear in my mind's eye, and reality itself slows around me but doesn't completely stop.

 [Alert: Advanced Setting Uncovered

 Would you like to create a [Party]? [Parties] are groups of individuals who share a common purpose. Additionally, by creating a [Party] you can confer some of the benefits of the [Essence of the Player Handbook] with your allies.]

 I inform the strange [Alert] that I would like to form a party with my brides and the spawn, and as soon as I do it asks me to select a level cap for them, explaining that while I can [Level Up], increasing my power with each level up, endlessly, they cannot. I elect to give them the highest level cap I can, which at the moment is 99, so that they can all grow as powerful as possible.

As soon as I do that I am surprised when I see images of their faces appear in the top right corner of my mind's eye. I also learn the names of my vampiric spawn: Rosemary and Gregory.

My companion's eyes widen when they sense themselves being added to my [Party], but they say nothing and instead seem to read something that appears in their mind's eyes. I am not sure, but if I had to guess they have probably just gotten textboxes of their own to read. A second later, the book I possess begins to speak.

 "Response: You are in a [Generic], mostly [Mundane] world. This world only has minor supernatural elements, and thus it is a suitable place for you to spend some time while you adjust to the effects of your resurrection. By engaging with this world you may well gain further abilities, but for now you have a grab bag of perks that are designed to help you in generalized ways." The book informs us, before pausing as if to catch its breath, and then abruptly continuing to speak.

 "Continued Response: As an example of the sort of perks you have picked up, take the [Cantrips] perk. This handy thing affords you the ability to use simple magical spells. You can cast spells such as [Eldritch Blast] which is a surprisingly powerful burst of arcane energy, or [Detect Magic] which allows you to detect both ambient magic and true spells in a range of sixty feet around you." The book adds, causing me to chuckle.

 I attempt to take stock of my own perks, turning inward and silently questioning if there's a place where I can see the perks I possess listed out. I am not surprised when my vision is suddenly subtly changed and my perception of reality suddenly includes a list of a range of perks, laid over other things I can see.

 The list before me is surprisingly extensive and is organized in a strange way. I can see three separate families of perks, one of which is called [Generic First Jump]. The other two families are [Generic Convention] and [Generic Video Game Developer]. All of the perks from [Generic First Jump] are unlocked and visible to me, but none of the perks from the other two are, which is strange. I study the things before me silently for a second, before I hear a beeping noise and an alert fills my mind's eye.

[Alert: Explanation For Perk Categories

 You have an [Explorer's Soul]. This is due to your new nature as an ascendant who has the power to become an omega lord, due to one's sparks mixing with your ethereal essence. Because of this, you will gain access to perks as you engage with the reality you are in. You have [Generic First Jump] perks, because of the nature of your resurrection but if you wish to unlock the other perks you could access in this universe you need to actually engage with this universe.

 You will be rewarded for engaging with the reality you are present in, and you will not be rewarded if you refuse to participate in whatever worlds you find yourself exploring. The key to becoming stronger, for you, is to involve yourself and be present.]

 I chuckle as I read that alert, and realize that it's not wrong. My enhanced intelligence, a byproduct of my possession of the "Cultured" focus, lets me immediately begin to strategize about how to best use my powers to steadily explore this world. If I want to maximize my powers, and gain the most I can gain from this universe, I need to explore this place and participate in it... Hmm...

 I return my gaze to the book in my hands and I continue to flip through it. As I do I see more and more of its functions and features, which range from things like affording me access to many large skill trees that I can invest points from [Level ups] in, to access to some [Quests], which offer me level ups and points as awards if I complete them.

 A glance at the skill trees that I can access if I either [Level Up] or otherwise acquire points to spend on it reveals that the thing includes access to other essences like the Player's Handbook one, and can even bolster my sanguinarch abilities if I get far enough in it. It is worth investing time and energy into, even if doing so may seem strange to my allies and servants.

 I look back at the list of quests that I can currently accept, and I decide to accept a simple one entitled [Introduction To Conventions], which asks me to attend a conference and gives me an address that I instinctively sense is not far from where my party and I currently are.

 "Alright, as abrupt as this may seem... I have accepted a [Quest], and we are going to complete it. Doing so will allow me to access new perks which is probably the shortest, simplest, and sweetest pathway to power currently available to us." I tell my party, all of whom look at me and nod respectfully.

 "Come, friends. Let us go towards a new destination." I remark, even as I turn inward and activate both [Shadowblank] and [Spectral Form], two major sanguine abilities I possess to turn invisible and to turn incorporeal at the same time. I allow my allies to see me, but keep anyone else from doing so and my brides mimic me. My vampire spawn, on the other hand, disincorporate and transform into gaseous mist, ready and eager to follow me.

 We are currently in the basement of some apartment building, and as I take a second to consider where to go I feel my senses growing stronger. I am able to hear distant conversations, smell various scents, and even taste the strange air of the dense city just waiting for my faction to reveal itself. I eventually glance straight upward and begin to float toward the ceiling of the basement. I am followed by my brides and my spawn, though my spawn takes a different route and floats towards a small door located atop a tiny staircase.

 When I phase through the ceiling of the room I find myself in a small foyer occupied by a lone doorman behind a small desk. He is reading some magazine with a shirtless muscular man on the cover and humming some song to himself. I elect to ignore the man, he's not doing anything harmful and he doesn't seem to have noticed my companions and me while we were downstairs, despite the array of televisions hooked to security cameras behind him so there's no reason for me to engage with him in any meaningful way.  

 I turn my attention to the door leading in and out of the building and make my way to, and then through the thing. When I do I find myself in the middle of a busy sidewalk in the heart of a bustling city.

 I flip the handbook I possess to a specific page in the section of the thing filled with labeled maps and notice that an area on the map is emitting a pink glow. I touch the area and abruptly sense information being uploaded into my mind, including that that is where I need to go to complete the quest. My brides look at me curiously and I simply nod in the direction we are going, which causes them to turn in that direction and wait for me to take the lead.

 "Alright, let's get going." I remark, chirpily. I am excited to engage with the odd mechanisms that allow me to grow in power and have thus far made me strong enough that even my own death was but a setback. A significant one, but still nothing more than a roadblock. And engaging with the mechanisms that allow me to grow stronger requires that I engage with this odd world and that I participate in things like "Conventions", which is odd, but I'm excited to see where this all goes.

 I begin to walk down the road, toward the "Harbor City Convention Center", which is my destination for my first-ever convention.

A/N: With the [Explorer's Soul] we don't have to focus on the numbers aspect of jumpchains. I personally dislike the numbers heavy aspects of jumpchains, which is why I tend to ignore them, but I prefer to have a narrative reason for that... Hence, the Explorer's Soul.

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