Chapter 133: Homeward

DISCLAIMER: This story is NOT MINE IN ANY WAY. That honor has gone to the beautiful bastard Ryuugi. This has been pulled from his Spacebattles publishment at threads/rwby-the-gamer-the-games-we-play-disk-five.341621/. Anyway on with the show...err read.

Homeward

Your level has increased by one! Your level has increased by one! Your level has increased by one! Your level has increased by one! Your level has increased by one! Your level has increased by one!

The sun rose high into the sky illuminating the battle-scarred and silent plain. Everything that had once called this place its home were either dead or were wise enough to avoid drawing attention to themselves—not that staying silent did much to hide the creatures that called this place their home from me. Everything I thought worth targeting had learned that first hand.

Shortly after I'd begun my full scale assault, the Grimm of the plains had come together, presenting a united front against me. Those capable of flight had taken to the air and tried to swarm me whilst those restricted to the land around us had organized quickly. Through a series of echoing cries, they'd gathered until the sheer quantity of them seemed to hide the ground beneath them—and then they'd attacked as one. The wings of the Rukh's conjured up storms while the jaws of the creatures beneath me unleashed waves of furious power. When a convocation of Rukh's managed to force me closer to the ground, the gathered creatures leapt for me and tried to tear me apart. A pride of Nemeans, a quiver of Basilisks, a Sounder of Calydons—even a cast of Karkinos that seemed to bubble up from the river and form suits of living armor for the mightiest creatures. As the night deepened, a parliament of Strix arrived to aid in the battle, armed with what I briefly thought were nets of barbed wire until I spotted the clutter of Arachne skulking in the distance. The avian Grimm took to performing sweeping formations with the webbing held between them, trying to herd me where they wanted.

With the sheer number of creatures gathered beneath me…two weeks ago, before Conquest and everything else, I'd have been certain I was a dead man. A week ago, I'd probably have focused on escape. Two hours ago, I'd have probably thought I was facing long odds indeed.

But things change, especially in time—and my new skills helped see me through. I held nothing back as I fought, shedding power at a pace that would have been reckless for anyone else, pushing myself far beyond my previous limits. I fought far beyond even what the breadth of my Aura should have allowed and kept going without a care, because things were different now. I was different now, in a ways that weren't easy to point out or describe, but which were now as much a part of me as my beating heart.

The first—at once obvious and subtle—was the change in my Aura and how every bit of it seemed filled to the brim with power. It went beyond the increase to my MP capacity, beyond the normal feeling of power an Aura conferred. My Aura had been altered on a fundamental level and it was a change in substance, rather than size.

It was, perhaps, the greatest of my new skills.

Humilitas (Passive) LV1 EXP: 0.00%

The quality and purity of spirit that comes not of thinking less of oneself, but of thinking of oneself less, this ability represents the quiet Humility that surpasses even the most ostentatious displays of Pride. This skill denotes an enhancement and refinement of one's Aura, such that it is capable of producing and supplying a greater amount of energy per unit.

Reduce the MP cost of all skills by 50%.

Above and beyond the increase granted by my increased MP, the reduction in price had changed the game. All my persistent skills had adjusted automatically, but this opened up new options for me. For skills like my Acceleration, where I could increase the effect by adjusting the cost…well, halving the price opened up plenty of new resources for me to play with.

And there was more, as my new skills combined to form a greater whole.

Industria (Passive) LV1 EXP: 0.00%

The effort and passion that succeeds where Sloth might make one falter, this ability represents an inherent quality of persistence within the Aura of its wielder. As a result of this skill, the Aura of the user displays a natural integrity that allows it to better retain its structure over a period of time.

Skills possessing a duration last twice as long as normal.

Skills which require upkeep over time now double the length of time between payments.

Armed and empowered by my new abilities, I threw myself into the fray. By halving the base cost and doubling the time between payments, I was effectively paying only a fourth of the initial cost per minute, which further freed up resources for me to make use of. Add to that the simple increase in MP that went with increasing my Intelligence and…well, I found myself easily Accelerating to speeds I'd only briefly touched during the battle against Conquest, even after improving my Aureola as well. Furthermore, all my persistent skills, most of which had a negligible cost to begin with, were reduced to only a vague strain upon my power, even as my increased INT and new skills improved their power.

Between the improvements Humilitas and Industria gave my skills, I was more lethal than ever. My speed swelled as the cost of my attacks shrank and I unleashed Magic Missile after Magic Missile at everything that got in my way. It was a testament to the might of the Grimm, then, that it took me the entire night and much of the following morning to defeat the horde arrayed against me. Despite the time it had taken, however, those who faced me died—a fact that those that watched from beyond my decided upon range must have realized, because they simply waited and observed, red eyes intelligent and aware even as the last of my enemies fell and leaving quietly as the battle drew to a close.

I considered pursuing, but I could already tell that they were headed for a more advantageous position, more Grimm gathering in a dark line over the horizon in a mass that dwarfed even the one I'd just faced. Behind the line, I could already see movement as the Grimm prepared for another round and another attack. It was a grim reminder that however many Grimm we slew, there were always more. I'd stayed close to my initial position, focused on clearing my ten kilometer sphere, but what were ten kilometers to creatures that owned this world? They ruled almost the entirety of every continent, dominated the seas, reigned freely in the skies above our heads and the earth beneath our feet.

For now.

Closing my eyes with a smile, I let myself fall to earth, hands falling to my sides.

"Adam," I spoke, letting Levant carry the words even as I began to collect the items my defeated enemies had dropped. "You ready to leave? We have business in town later today."

"Wouldn't mind taking a shower," He admitted as he stared into the distance, towards the approaching line. He'd stayed close at my command, remaining where I could heal and restore him as needed while also wading into the fray. Putting his improved stats to use, he'd slaughtered the lesser Grimm with the ease of a Master Huntsman and worked with me to deal crippling blows to the stronger creatures as opportunities presented themselves. He'd come a long, long way in just a few days, especially with an equal division of experience.

The Beast

LV82

Adam Taurus

"I wouldn't mind you taking a shower," I answered, making myself sound disgusted. "You reek, Adam. I'd tell you how much so, but most of the analogies would be racist and I don't want to injure your delicate sensibilities."

"Did any of these Grimm drop something you can go fuck yourself with?" He asked. "And you smell like shit, too."

"That's where you're wrong," I stated lazily, clicking a nail against my armored hide. "I don't sweat when I don't want to, because I have heat vents to do stuff like that for me. Add in some help from my Elemental friends to clean me up and I smell wonderful, as usual. So while you waste time doing stuff like bathing, I'll be doing something of value with my life. Speaking of which, when are you going to stop wasting time, Adam?"

"Piss off," Adam snorted, lifting his shirt to wipe away the sweat dripping from his face, proving my point. "Let's just go before those Grimm start sandwiching us."

I lifted an eyebrow at that.

"Do you mean in an anthropophagic sense?" I asked. "Or is there something you want to tell me about?"

"Either or," He replied. "While you were fucking with those birds, a pair of Nemeans followed the smell of badass right to me. Things got kind of awful for a bit when they flanked me—before I knew what was going on, they were the bread and I was the meat."

"Oh, that," I nodded. "Yeah, I saw it, but I knew you could handle it."

"Thanks for the help, then," He rolled his eyes.

"Hey, someone had to distract the rest of the army," I answered with a smirk and a shrug. "And I healed you afterwards, didn't I?"

He grunted, casting another glance towards the approaching army.

"Also," I continued. "Anthropophagic means people-eater."

"I know what it fucking means," He lied with a scoff, making me smirk.

"If you say so," I answered. "Hey, maybe a trip to Haven would be good for you. You never did finish school, did you?"

"Neither did you," He answered.

"Yeah, but I went a lot further. You were, what, a primary school drop out?" I asked.

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He showed me the middle finger of each hand, waving them back and forth for emphasis.

"Will they stop after we leave?" He asked, nodding towards the monsters without lowering his hands. "Or do you think they're feeling motivated?"

"We're about to find out," I replied with my arms full of books and masks. "If they look like they'll keep going towards Mistral, we'll just prolong our trip to walk up and down some asses. But I'm pretty sure they'll stop when we vanish."

He nodded without questioning me, waiting patiently until I'd stored my rewards and then following me as I began to walk away.

Just in case, it was probably a good idea to take the long way home.

Adam and I moved quickly—far more quickly than before, now that Adam's speed had been so improved—and stayed out of sight, hidden underneath my illusions. Just to be on the safe side, we spent several hours watching the Grimm, making sure they didn't show any signs of heading towards Mistral, which they thankfully didn't. The dynamic of the plains had changed, however, and those that remained moved carefully and in groups. Not simply groups of the same species, either, but what were almost teams of creatures. Avian Grimm watched from above while serpents and arachnids crawled over massive Nemean forms, keeping a look out with an array of different senses.

It was an interesting tactic, especially since none of these creatures had actually fought against us—this was all learned behavior but, more than that, it was stuff they'd managed to pick up just by watching us from a distance. It was to be expected, I supposed; Grimm as massive as these creatures couldn't be anything but intelligent. Intelligent enough, in fact, that they could probably make the connection between humanoid attackers and the nearby human city, which was why I watched them as carefully as I did, but nothing came of it. I chose to accept that as a good thing for the time being, odd as the behavior was.

As we kept an eye on them, however, I took the chance to look through the rewards I'd taken from my fallen foes.

You have obtained the item 'Maahes.'

You have obtained the skill book 'Cithaeron Hide.'

You have obtained the skill book 'Claws of Regulus.'

You have obtained the item 'Garuda.'

You have obtained the skill book 'Bane of the Prometheans.'

You have obtained the skill book 'Flight of the Vimana.'

You have obtained the item 'Astika.'

You have obtained the skill book 'Shedding of the Serpent's Skin.'

You have obtained the skill book 'Gorgon.'

"You look happy," Adam noted, sitting on a rock I'd drawn from the earth. "That everything?"

I cast my gaze across the masks and texts I'd obtained as they floated in a loose circle around me.

"More or less," I replied. "A few pieces of equipment, too, but…"

I shrugged. Just in case, I flipped the books open and flipped through the pages rapidly, making sure I got a glimpse of each page. Then, one by one, I devoured the texts and took a deep breath as windows notifying me of my new skills appeared. Even without the windows, I felt the knowledge settle into my mind and felt as certain of my new skills as I was of my ability to walk.

All that left was the masks.

"Everything but the Arachne and the Strix, huh?" Adam mused, looking between them.

"No Neith showed up," I answered with a shrug. "And I didn't see an Ascalaphus, either. Maybe next time."

Adam snorted as I slowly drew mask after mask from my Inventory, until the entirety of my collection floated around me in a wide circle. I'd collected a fair number of the things since I'd begun all those months ago, but most I'd never worn—partially because I was usually able to rely on one of the stronger masks, when I chose to wear one.

But more than that, I was just uncertain. Worried, even. Not of what the masks could do to me, personally—I had plenty of faith in my power's ability to keep me safe—but ever since I'd fought Conquest and learned of the power behind the Grimm, I'd been forced to wonder. What were these masks? I'd wondered several times about the items created by my power and whether they were completely original creations or, like the skill books, had been modeled off things that had existed. The description of Kronos, the necklace I wore even now, tilted that towards the latter, but if that was the case…

Had these masks existed once? And if so, for what purpose? I couldn't be certain of exactly what effects they'd have if worn by a normal person, but close observation, careful consideration, and the possession of a fucking brain told me that anyone who put them on would probably regret it. But if they had been real then, presumably, someone had put them on and likely experienced that first hand. Given that the masks looked exactly like…well, Grimm masks, the implications of that were rather concerning.

Could these masks be tied to the origins of the Grimm? It was…worryingly easy to imagine those who put them on transforming into horrific monsters, but it didn't quite fit as the source of the Grimm—unless, of course, there were a metric fuckton of masks and an endless supply of people stupid or unlucky enough to put them on. The Grimm could produce more of themselves. Hell, with Naraka, I could produce Grimm and in enormous quantities. Whatever was responsible for their creation, it couldn't be limited just to masked mishaps. But there had to be some connection, surely, or why were there so many connections?

And thinking about that made me think about the quest I'd received so long ago to collect these masks. No, more than that—to collect every mask. And with a name like 'What Lies Beneath—What is Hidden?' on top of that…I'd wondered several times if completing that quest would lead me to understanding the origins of the Grimm and it would be a damn lie to say I didn't want to know that.

But to an extent, I already knew where the Grimm came from—namely, their asshole of a creator. And if this quest was leading me to him…

That was a fight I wasn't sure I was ready for. In fact, this entire quest sort of reminded me of the lead up to an ungodly motherfucker of a Bonus Boss. Despite my power, reality didn't necessarily act like a game, but this was a quest my power had generated and I had to beat at least one major example of every species of Grimm, apparently including the Riders, so…yeah. And, come to think of it, I hadn't gotten the quest after collecting my first Grimm mask, Lenore, but rather after I killed an Alpha Beowolf. And that monster was the first time I'd noticed the odd behavior in the Grimm that I'd later associate with their maker.

Maybe it was just me, but this felt like it was leading up to something bad. And powerful as the masks were, that made me worry. If the masks had existed in some sense before my power manufactured them and if this quest to collect them was somehow tied to the creator of the Grimm, then…what? It seemed safe to assume the maker would be aware of the mask's existence, in that case. Could he sense them? Could he do something to them or the person who wore them? When I fought Conquest after getting infected, the mental effects of the disease had run headlong into the Gamer's Mind and splattered all over it, but that hadn't stopped Conquest from getting at me physically, transforming my body into a Pandora Shell. I was pretty confident that none of the masks could get into my head, but they might not have to if the maker played his cards right. If it was as simple as attacking my body, I could escape my own flesh with Bai Hu, but…it was something to keep in mind, if nothing else.

On the other hand, I had another question, and one I'd been hesitant in experimenting with because of my other concerns. Just as I was now forced to consider what dangers might lie in the masks, I was also able to see the potential within them. They were Grimm masks, after all—and I'd recently come into the ability to transform myself in very Grimm ways. What would happen if I did that while wearing a Grimm mask? And even if it made no difference, with the power I now possessed, unlocking the full potential of some of the masks should be within my power. If I did that, who knows what I might find? New power, intimate knowledge of the Grimm, or maybe more.

It was tempting as all hell to take a mask, put it on, and see what happened. It's just that there was also a chance of it being dangerous as all hell, too. A slim chance, perhaps, and probably a long term one that wouldn't screw me over until the worst possible time, but I couldn't ignore the fact that I'd be playing with weapons that my archenemy not only knew far better than I did, but had probably fucking created. It was worth at least some consideration. Testing, too, if I could do so safely.

Which sure as hell meant I wasn't going to do it with my best friend standing right there, so I put the masks away after another moment of observation. If some dark being chose to seize control of my body and turn it against me, that would kind of suck, but hey, I could manage. What I couldn't do was expose a friend to that type of danger just to satisfy my curiosity, especially when I could easily test this later, in the woods or the ocean or another dimension.

"So…" Adam drew out as I put the last of the masks back into my Inventory. "I assume you can't get constipated so are you…what? Trying to create diamonds right now?"

I could, however, probably throw Adam down those friendship stairs Shani mentioned. Or maybe a friendship cliff. He'd leveled up a lot recently; he could take it, no problem.

"It's called thought," I answered. "You should try it sometime, Adam."

"I do every now and then," He replied easily. "But I'm so strong, handsome, and talented that I keep losing sight of the fact that I'm smart, too. It's hard to juggle so many blessings; you wouldn't understand."

"Sounds rough," I acknowledge. "But yeah, I really have no idea what that's like. Unlike some people, I can multitask. Speaking of which, the Grimm aren't moving. It should be safe to go now."

"About fucking time," Adam stretched and rose from his seat. "I thought about going to sleep, but I kept imagining myself waking up surrounded by nothing but hideous monsters and Grimm."

"Sleep is for the weak," I replied. "Now hurry up; tomorrow we scope out Haven."

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