7 Retribution
In a cellar somewhere in the castle of Highever Nero was sitting crosslegged on the ground and only dressed in some black linen underpants. The other clothing was far away from him at the side. But that was not the main focal point.
His body was completely free and a slightly reddish tint could be seen everywhere on his skin. Not only that but glistening sweat was running down his body from above the shoulders downward along with the well-chiseled muscles from all the hard undergone training.
Nero's breath was haggard and rapid as if he had been running nonstop on a marathon.
The reason for the exhaustion and increased body heat that showcased itself in his blush all over the body could be explained by the glaring deep dark blueish glowing tattoos that contrasted the red and ran along his arms, legs, and other parts of his body and looked like some blue skeleton bones drawn upon his body.
Along those tribal lines were also circles formed at all his joints and it made the picture of a skeletal figure even more real.
But what was especially eye-catching was the pair of wings drawn on his back that lightly enveloping part of his shoulder blades.
"URGH!" Nero groaned and now his face distorted slightly from the otherwise tranquil meditation he was performing inside what looked like a magical circle.
Breathing in quickly and calming down again the glow of his tattoo slowly faded and only a charcoal-colored dark blue color remained. Even the magical circle that was drawn on the ground faded from red to white ink.
Nero seemed to breathe out in relief and tried to stand up but his legs were shaky and he planted himself back on the ground with his face looking up to the cellar's ceiling.
One could see the exhaustion on his face now but for some weird reason, there was also a massive grin on his face.
He raised his right arm and clenched it into a fist. "Yes!" A victorious word was quickly said before said arm plummeted back to the ground.
"I finally...made it...Though...My body...Hurts...like hell." With each breath, he said something else. The pain still throbbing through his body. Still tearing at his existence.
Then after a long deep sigh, he closed his eyes for a short moment.
'Status...'
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--*Status*--
Name: Nero Cousland
Race: Human (STR+1, CON+1, DEX+1, CUN+1) / Nephilim (Sealed)
Age: 15
Main Class: Warrior(STR+2, CON+2), Rogue(DEX+2, CUN+2), Mage(WIL+2, MAG+2)
Sub Class: Rune Knight (MAG+5, M.DEF +10%, P.DEF + 10%)
-Attributes-
HP: 510
MP: 700
Strength: 46 (+3)
Dexterity: 41 (+3)
Willpower: 68(+2)
Magic: 80 (+7)
Cunning: 38 (+3)
Constitution: 48 (+3)
--Skills--
Devil Trigger (Passive/Active) LVL-Sealed: Your demon heritage grants you power. Random bloodline is generated after the first activation.
Adaptable Body (Passive) LVL- MAX: Your body is adaptable to anything. Passively increases users' understanding of the martial realm.
Acrobatic Body (Passive) LVL - 5: Your training was balanced and gifted you with a lithe and strong body. Reaction speed and the chance of evading blows increased by 25%. All rogue-related skills +10% success rate.
Lyrium Enchanted Body (Passive) LVL - MAX: You poisoned yourself with unrefined Lyrium in liquid form and branded your body with refined Lyrium runes. Your affinity with the Fade increased by 50%. Your body and soul are now knit closer together. You exert part of your willpower and magic as spiritual energy that infuses itself into your attacks dealing a bonus of 50% of the damage as spirit damage. These attacks have an inherent armor piercing of 50%.
Lyrium Wraith (Toggle) LVL - 1: Fuel your mana into your very being and let the Lyrium enhance your powers even further. All Stats + 1 %, M.ATK + 10% and SPEED + 10%
-Combat/Physical-
Swordsmanship (Passive) LVL-18: The ability to handle a sword effectively. Increases damage dealt with swords by 90%. When the sword is used in Lyrium Wraith mode it has a 45% to critically hit.
Spearmanship (Passive) LVL-8: The ability to handle spears effectively. Increases damage dealt with spears and polearms by 40%.
Axmanship (Passive) LVL- 5: The ability to handle axes effectively. Increases damage dealt with an Ax increased by 25%.
Shielding (Passive) LVL 10: The ability to use a shield effectively. Increases the chance to block attacks and reduces damage received by 10% when the shield is used.
Archery (Passive) LVL 15: The ability to use a bow effectively. Increases the damage done with bows by 75%, the chance to hit critically and stun opponents for a short amount, by 7.5%. When the bow is used in Lyrium Wraith mode, it gains a boost to its critical chance by 37.5% and gains a freezing AOE burst on contact that slows enemies down.
-Combat/Magical-
Fireball LVL 4 MP: 40 -- A ball of scorching heat that explodes at contact.
Telekinetic Blast LVL 10 MP: 25 -- By sheer force sent your opponents flying.
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"Good...very good...Don't you think so as well?" Nero now moved his head to the side and right at that moment, a ghostly figure appeared beside him looking at him.
The ghostly white dead eyes without any pupils at all were running along his body and trying to find out any flaws in the process that happened a moment ago.
"It surprisingly really worked. I had my doubts that you would survive such a volatile substance. Not that I would care if you endangered yourself...", echoed a voice out from the mouth of the ghost.
Nero smiled now. "See, I told you with your help it will become an easy matter."
The ghostly figure only snorted lightly. It clearly was pleased by his comment but let it remain at that statement.
"If you don't need me then I will rest inside your body for a while. Handling that substance and imprinting those foreign runes on your body took a lot of effort while possessing that girl..." The ghost talked again after looking over to an elvish girl lying soundly on the ground. It was Syllia.
"Am I hearing complaints from the legendary smith of the one ring? Where did your confidence vanish? Should this not be an easy matter for you?", smirked Nero and revealed the identity of said ghost standing near him.
"The magic in this world is different...And not only the magic. You should be happy that I am intrigued enough to forget about our conflict...I could as well just keep silent. After all your body is something like a prison to me now."
"Exactly. Without my sayso, you will not do anything at all..." Nero then slowly rose up and felt his joints crack when he moved them to ease the soreness.
"That is your fate and the punishment of your betrayal. To me...and to your own self. Your very own world was burning for your greed and arrogance. Now, you will remain the prideful spirit that you are. But in this world, you will be bound to me until I decide to free you. For now, why don't we just work together like we used to? Maybe...And that is a big maybe. I may even find a way to give you a little bit of what you desire...", he added with a solemn face.
"You are pretty confident about that while clearly not having such powers...But very well. I won't hope for much...", replied the elvish ghost.
"If I was there once, then I can go there again. I am pretty sure about that..."
"Time will tell." Said the ghost with those last words, the ghostly figure then approached Nero and merged with him until the ghostly energy around them completely passed away inside him.
"Man, that was a lot to digest." Stretching himself and looking up, Nero grinned. "I beat your asinine test and I am quite happy about the reward. Now you won't be able to complain, right?" He was talking to the air but he himself knew the being he talked to was probably watching and hearing him.
After all, not too long ago he was abruptly pulled out of Thedas back to the white room of nothingness with the humongous white orb that represented that mentioned being.
God or whatever one could call the being was unhappy how Nero was slowly taking advantage of his adaptive body and tried to take it away - again.
He still remembered it as clear as day.
**Flashback**
"Huh? What the?" Nero looked around in confusion. He was inside his laboratory just a second ago and was studying his own magical aptitude where he had finally reached some progress in manipulating his mana.
And now he stood in this huge white room.
"So we meet again, child. I have been watching you and decided that I truly should take your gifted body back.", echoed a celestial voice from above.
Nero looked up and saw a white orb floating there and his expression soured instantly.
"Oh, it's you. Really? After 14 years you actually want to take away my stuff now? Is that not petty? Are gods really that petty? Boohu~", commented Nero with a somewhat annoyed look.
Silence was the only response from the orb and that weirded Nero out. Should the entity not just do it and be done with it?
"Very well, I will give you a chance. A test. Should you manage to survive it, then, by all means, keep the body. But if you don't, then you will reenter the cycle of life once more."
"Wait, what? Okay, I am sorry about being pissed at you. Let's just forget my comment and you just take the gift back? I should be fine without it..."
"Too late...good luck." And with that said Nero disappeared into black smoke that engulfed and dragged him away.
Not much time passed and only a few seconds later another dark smoke appeared and revealed a haggard person with the utmost sickly skin one could ever see.
The person looked more like a vampire than anything else and his eyes were glowing blood-red. The sclera of the person's eyes where complete black and dark veins could be seen underneath the white greenish sickly skin-crawling away from the eyes all over the face.
The person was kneeling and slowly raised its head looking up to the orb. The gaze of the person from underneath its hood landed on the bright glowing orb. Seeing its brilliant glow the individual that donned a cold armor and tattered cloak reached out its left arm towards the orb.
Then with the other hand, it reached for its own left hand where a ring with a red glowing ruby sat at its finger.
Grabbing it, it pulled it off and threw it far away from itself to the side where it vanished into nothingness. Then a fit of coughing started coming from the person and a wound slowly opened up at the throat. Dark blood slowly trickling down from it.
"I....did not...give up..." Said the person and coughed some more. The strength was leaving the male and he went on all fours.
More time elapsed and the person became agitated. "WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR!? I DID WHAT YOU WANTED! I SURVIVED, DID I NOT!!?" He screamed as much as he could and collapsed on the ground, looking upward.
"Well...At least this...will be over..." At that moment white energy enveloped him and healed all the wounds. Even the corruption spreading inside his body slowly vanished away.
"So it did, Child. For your perseverance, there will be a reward. You will know what it is when you wake up...Let our next meeting be a happier one."
**Flashback End**
The next thing Nero knew after that was only him waking up in his laboratory.
The wounds and corruption from the Ringwraith had also completely vanished from his body and mind.
It felt so refreshing to have full control of one's own actions again. Gone are the whispers that were constantly demanding his obedience. And even though he was overwhelmed after years of constant battle, his will and soul still sought for freedom and control.
Nero felt sickened by the concept of domination. Being a simple pawn seeing everything unfold without being able to act was suffocating. He was lucky to have held even longer than the canon Talion did.
But even he, at some point, had no more strength left. It was either death or the fight against the influence of the ring. And the ring just won. At least with the death of Sauron, his will was still strong enough to take back control and avoid his otherwise certain death.
And right at the moment when he stood in front of a peaceful world again and slowly kneeled to pick up a certain other ring, he was catapulted back to god.
Speaking of a ring, he looked at his left hand and saw a golden ring on his index finger.
Unlike its counterpart that was engraved with the dark speech, this one was glowing alluringly with whitish-blue Quendian text on it. The old tongue of the elves from middle earth.
It was the reward that he got from the divine entity.
The maker of the rings was now under his very own command and his will, unlike before, was his own. Celebrimbor has no other choice now. He is the one kneeling and serving now.
And if he truly tried anything, Nero would destroy him. He had his own more powerful body back. He had no need to rely on this ring's powers.
But it truly felt frightening to have a mortal human body. It made him understand why people craved power beyond their reach. And now he knew he would never give up his body nor mind - never again.
Even though this ring was now on his finger and brought bad memories it also still had its perks.
The elf did not know how he was imprisoned inside the ring he created and how he ended together with Nero in this world. But he had to accept it.
His wrath was also still freshly relighted after Sauron died.
Nero and Celebrimbor. They would not be friends anytime soon. Not after Nero had to relive Talion's point of view.
The elf also only obeyed his commands begrudgingly while not wanting to.
What was more interesting is that Celebrimbor also noticed that he was now slightly bound by the laws of this world and could not directly use his former inherent powers. That may be the new ring's fault. But if he had a host with mana that he could use as a medium, it was still possible to smith and use his old powers.
That was also why Syllia was unconscious right now. He exhausted her mana supply. Having all his knowledge at his disposal it actually still has some value if not great one later on. For that is basically why Celebrimbor still lives...
