Book 4, Chapter 11

Sitting on the hard metal plating in her room aboard the small smuggler's vessel, Zee cleared her mind. She scanned over the cracked yellow pages of the book the old geezer gave her for perhaps the hundredth time, wondering if her idea was feasible.

Sadly she couldn't ask anyone aboard the ship as none of them were proficient with rituals and didn't have time to wait until they returned to Tartana.

Despite all of her efforts to stave off the poison, she could feel it. The miasma was creeping through her energy channels and blood, slowly corrupting her body one inch at a time.

It was not looking good. If things kept progressing this way she would die and become an undead, which was not a pleasant thought.

She had no idea how the process actually worked. From what she head, becoming an undead was supposedly like dying, only when you died, your body would be taken over by another consciousness.

Was it a spirit, or something else? It could be a hive mind, with the consciousness forcibly implanted by an undead. Or it could be something completely different.

Either way, Zee didn't want to find out if she would lose her mind when she turned. Also, she had no desire to have her body possessed by some undead spirit.

Letting out a breath, she flipped to the first page of the blood rot cleansing ritual and started things off. Thin wisps of energy seeped through her aura, blossoming around her, forming complex energy constructs.

Sweat rolled down her back, her brows knit together as she guided the energy. She formed the framework for the ritual slowly and steadily, adding some parts not on the ritual, and removing others.

Given that she was the center of this ritual, she had to change the trigger sequence, but that wasn't too hard. The hardest part would be changing what the ritual targeted inside of her body. She needed to pull out the miasma, and not her blood.

The air in her room shuddered, as the ritual snapped taught around her. Taking her time, she examined the ritual closely, making sure she formed the intricate energy constructs correctly.

Even after ten minutes, she couldn't find any major flaws that might kill her. Still, that didn't make her feel any more confident. She was not exactly an expert in rituals, so she might be missing something.

Zee wished Dern was here, to make sure the ritual didn't have too many flaws. Sadly he was still unresponsive, so she had to do this by herself. She supposed she could ask Kur Zul for advice, but she didn't trust that ghost as far as she could throw it.

She exhaled sharply. Well, here goes nothing. There was a loud snap, and a ripping sensation as the ritual activated, swirling down and seeping into her skin.

The miasma clinging to her wounds flared to life and was dragged from her body, forming a ball of darkness above her head.

The darkness roiled, and morphed, as if alive. All of the miasma was drawn from her body, coalescing into the pitch-black orb of darkness, letting off a deathly chill.

Finally, the first part of the ritual was over, but then something unexpected happened. Her eyes widen, but Zee couldn't move, bound to her seated position by the ritual as the ball of darkness fell towards her.

She desperately struggled, but that ball of darkness didn't falter, entering her skin at her collarbone, and climbing up her neck. She swore internally, as a bitter chill spread through her throat muscles, numbing her skin with the chill of death.

Chattering from the sudden cold, Zee focused inward, frantically searching for the invading presence.

The malicious ball of death was climbing up her neck, towards her brain. Oh no you don't! She thought.

Zee didn't wait around to see what it intended, unleashing waves of mental energy to form a five-layer cage around it. That should hold it for a few seconds while she prepared an attack.

If this thing was anything like Kur Zul she was in for the fight of her life. With a mental thought, she focused on her racing heart, and guided a river of flames through her veins, ready to incinerate the invader.

The heart of fire was more than willing to donate enough of its flames to char boil the unwanted guest. Her neck muscles spasmed from the energy overload but she had no time to worry about the damage as she prepared to strike. At the last moment, she paused, cocking her head.

What the? Was it just her imagination, or was the death spirit trembling in fear? Curious, she gave it a mental poke. The death spirit recoiled, trying to escape, but failing to so much as break through her innermost mental barrier.

Huh, how interesting. She thought this was going to be more challenging. What now? Did she destroy it, or absorb it, adding a third to her repertoire? She chuckled to herself. No thank you, she had enough problems with two spirits in her body.

But maybe…. With a bit of mental nudging, she coaxed the deathly spirit through her body, towards her left hand.

Like black tar, it oozed from her hand forming a ball of intent above her open palm. It was strange, she felt no malicious intent from the spirit, the opposite in fact. She could feel its intense desire to help, which gave her second thoughts about killing it.

It was so weak, harmless even. The sword on her waist hummed softly, and she glanced down curiously. It was hungry, and it didn't take a genius to figure out it wanted to eat the death spirit.

Well now, that was a stroke of fortune. She reached down and placed the death spirit against the pommel, where it eagerly slipped inside, melting into the metal. That was odd. Didn't the death spirit seem a little too eager to go into her sword to its death?

Her eyes narrowed on her sword, as it rattled in its scabbard. She could sense a battle for supremacy raging inside, as the spirit in her sword and the death spirit fought.

Zee drew the sword and watched with some chagrin as the blade's red streaks turned black, with shades of turquoise. Well, that was unexpected. As it turns out, the little death spirit was a lot stronger than she gave it credit for.

Zee wasn't sure how to feel about this unexpected development. First things first. She took a healing pill from her spatial storage and put it in her mouth. Cooling energy flooded through her body, and for the first time in a week, her wounds began to close.

It was a relief, though she didn't relax just yet, something was happening to her sword. She poked at it with mental energy and got an excited response. It wasn't the weak response she usually got from her sword.

No, this time, she got something completely unexpected. That weak little death spirit sent her a mental jolt of excitement, overjoyed at its success. How in the hell? Did it just kill the spirit in her sword, and replace it?

Zee sighed, running an open palm down her face. What a pain. This death spirit had pulled a fast one on her, and now, the former spirit in her sword was killed, or possessed.

Zee wasn't sure how to feel about this new development. She didn't particularly like the previous spirit in her sword, but she didn't hate it either.

Now she was stuck with this scheming death spirit. On the bright side, at least her wounds were healing, and she was no longer infected by miasma. Small victories.

Her brows furrowed, as she wonder what to do now. Did she try to kill the death spirit, and risk her sword breaking? The bloody thoughts directed toward the sword made it send back fearful emotions.

It was a good spirit and only wanted to help. The door hissed open, interfering with her thoughts of murder. Wait, could you even murder a sword spirit?

An anxious Captain Skern peered in, backed by Bastion and Greg. His relief was evident, though his bug-like eyes narrowed as they locked on her sword. Not wanting to deal with uncomfortable questions, she quickly sheathed her sword at her hip and smiled.

"See, I am all better now, nothing to worry about," Zee said doing a graceful spin on her heels. There had been a lot to worry about, but she decided they didn't need to know that.

"So you are. I'm glad to hear the ritual went well. You should rest and recover, we will arrive back in Tartana in three days." Skern said.

She nodded, "I will do that," Skern said. Looking a bit awkward, the captain left, the door hissing shut behind him.

"What happened to your sword?" Bastion asked, eying her sheathed blade curiously.

Zee scratched the back of her head, flushing at his question. "Well, I sort of messed up, and now my sword is possessed by a helpful death spirit," Zee said.

Bastion glanced at Greg, who gave him I told you so look. Bastion grimaced and tossed Greg two Ether crystals. The large Arminian caught it with a wide grin that split his curly black beard.

"Were you two placing bets?" Zee asked, her eyes narrowed.

"No, of course not, we wouldn't do something like that," Bastion replied, with feigned sincerity.

She raised an eyebrow. "That's exactly what you two would do. Have you no shame, I could have died," Zee said.

"Don't be like that, love. Come, let's go to the mess to get a drink and celebrate your success," Bastion said.

Her stomach growled loudly, reminding her she hadn't eaten in days.

"Well, alright, but you two are not off the hook," Zee scolded.

The ship docked back in Tartana three days later, and they disembarked. They received their pay from a surly Nanut, before taking a gondola up the canal.

The wind rustled her hair, cool on her skin, filling her lungs for the first time in over a month. Thousands of twinkling stars filled the night sky, the slosh of water against the prow filling the otherwise tranquil silence.

Zee hadn't realized just how much she missed being on land until she was confined to a ship for weeks on end. After that last trip, she wouldn't be going out again any time soon, if at all. Zee had no desire to be cooped up again, deciding to find ways to make money here on the planet.

The gondola bumped into the pier, and she stepped off, her boots thudding softly on the cobbles. The others followed close behind her as she strode down the street. It was dark out, but she had no trouble finding her way, her excellent night vision easily able to see by the light of the stars.

It took about half an hour until they arrived in front of a large warehouse, with a newly installed sign over the front door. The sign read Grey wolf company and even had a brightly painted logo, of a ferocious-looking wolf on the sign.

"Yukna's been busy," Bastion commented.

"Yes, she has, do you think she is awake?" Greg asked.

Zee let her sensory skill expand into the building, and she paused. There were not just one, but three people in there. Given that the door was locked, she let herself in and opened it for the others.

Zee ignored the silent array that went off, entering the dark interior of the large warehouse. As expected, it didn't take long for the people inside to come to greet the intruders. Sand roiled through the room, surrounding them on all sides, just as the temperature in the room turned sweltering.

The room lit up as white-hot fire sparked across the concrete floor, threatening to turn them to ash.

"Who are you, and what do you want," asked a familiar, cold voice.

Zee turned slowly and reached up pulling back her hood to reveal her face.

She grinned, "Hello princess, and is that Maldy too?" Zee asked.

The sweltering head quickly faded, and a lantern flared to life as Allison stepped from hiding amidst pile of wooden crates. The princess held her longsword in one hand, the lantern in the other, her grey eyes filled with doubt.

Her silky white hair was disheveled, and she looked like she had just gotten out of bed, tossing a rumpled nightgown on. Even barefooted and in a night gown, Allison still looked menacing.

"Zee, why is your hair black?" Allison asked, cutting through the silence.

Zee laughed, running a hand through her hair.

"I dyed my hair keep hidden obviously," Zee replied.

The princess nodded in approval, giving Bastion and Greg a casual once-over.

"I see you two have been busy. You both ranked up while I was gone too." Allison commented.

Bastion smirked. "Of course we did. It won't be long before we leave you in the dust," Bastion said.

"Speaking of dust, where is Maldy, I swear I saw his sand," Zee said, glancing around.

Malden took that as his cue, and appeared in a storm of sand, right in front of her. He loomed over her, an accusing expression on his catlike face.

"You owe me a bed," Malden said, threateningly.

"It's good to see you Maldy, how have you been?" Zee asked with a bright smile.

Malden's black ears twitched, his slitted yellow eyes narrowing as he glared down at her.

"Oh no you don't. You can't get out of this by changing the subject. That was a one-of-a-kind bed. You owe me," Malden said.

"No need to get heated. You are the crown prince, I am sure you found a suitable replacement," Zee replied, calmly.

"No, I bought that bed here on Tartana. Those planks with mattresses back home don't even qualify as a proper bed. They are a travesty," Malden retorted.

Zee rolled her eyes. "What do you want as payment? I have lots of money," Zee asked, patting her spatial storage.

"You know exactly what I want…." Malden replied dryly.

Zee laughed and patted him on his furry shoulder.

"Alright, fine... I guess I do kind of owe you. We can start the process whenever you like, just remember, it's going to be smelly, so bring clothes you don't mind burning after." Zee said.

"I know, I was there when you taught Allie, remember," Malden replied.

With that out of the way, she pushed passed Malden, and walked over to the princess, giving her a hug.

"Good to have you back princess," Zee said.

The princess's usually cold façade faded away, and a smile tugged at her lips, as she returned the hug. "I'm glad to be back. I hope you didn't cause too much trouble while I was away," Allison asked.

"Trouble? Me?" Zee asked, with feigned innocence.

Behind her, Bastion piped in, "Don't let her pretty smile fool you, just last week she was almost converted into an undead,"

Allison raised an eyebrow. Zee released her embrace of the taller woman and took a step back, waving a hand dismissively.

"It wasn't that bad, Bastion is just being overly dramatic," Zee replied.

"Uh, huh. I definitely believe bastion over you," Allison replied dryly.

"Okay, fine. There was a death spirit, but it's trapped in my sword, and totally harmless now," Zee said hurriedly.

"Another spirit? Didn't you learn your lesson with the last one?" Allison asked, her tone reproachful.

"This one is not like Kur Zul. It is friendly, and helpful even," Zee replied defensively.

Allison let out a weary sigh.

"It's too early for this. Let's go get some rest, we will talk in the morning," Allison said, before walking away muttering something obscene.

"I suppose we should get some rest," Bastion commented.

With the momentary excitement of seeing the princess having faded, Zee was reminded just how tired she was.

"So where are we sleeping tonight?" Zee asked.

Malden gave her a rude gesture. "Don't look at me, I am sleeping on the floor," Malden grumbled.

With that, he strode back to his bedroll hidden in the corner behind some crates, his four-foot-long war hammer swaying in its harness on his back. She scowled at Malden's back. A warm hand rested on her shoulder, and she looked up into Bastion's eyes.

"We have some bedrolls, we can probably sleep on the floor tonight," Bastion said.

She sighed, "Fine, but let's sleep on the opposite side as Maldy, he snores about as loud as a screeching lizard," Zee said.

"Hey, I heard that," Malden said.

She grinned, and saunter towards the opposite corner of the warehouse, unrolling a bedroll that she took from her spatial storage.

She lay down next to Bastion, feeling his arms wrap around her waist as she closed her eyes and cleared her thoughts. She tuned out the world river around her, focusing on her left knee, where the fifth gate was.

With the help of the incredible environment aboard a spaceship, the first four gates had been opened at a shocking pace. The fifth gate was where that should slow down, given the increased difficulty to open the higher gates.

This was the stage where pure energy was no longer enough to break through the inner gates. It required her to infuse insights into her energy to help break through. Later stages were even more troublesome, and mere sparks of insight would no longer be enough.

If she wanted to reach peak E grade, she would need to evolve her spark of compression and spark of ebb and flow to embers. She still wasn't sure how she would accomplish that, but it couldn't be easy.

This was one of the biggest roadblocks that made the vast majority of cultivators stuck in the E grade. Most cultivators were simply unable to attain a higher understanding of their chosen concepts and were forever stuck in the E grade, destined to die of old age after a few hundred years.

Granted, most combat class users never actually died of old age, but that was beside the point. Given she hadn't seen her eighteenth birthday yet, she didn't need to worry about dying of old age for a long time.

That thought paused her introspection. Wait a minute, was she eighteen? That thought caused her to do some quick mental calculations. About six months on Iztara, then about nine months in the planar space.

Well, that nine months was more of a guesstimate, considering that time in the Null realm. Huh. Now that she thought about it, there had been a few times she had been in the Null realm.

That begged the question, just how long had she been gone from home? Considering how the Null realm messed with her perception of time, It could be much longer than she thought.

After some rumination, she decided to just say it had been at least two years. That meant she was eighteen, which didn't really change anything. Her goal was still to get back home.

Or, did that matter? She wanted to see her parents, and brother again, but she also had other priorities now. The thought of leaving her friends to an uncertain fate at the hands of the Terlashar made her stomach clench.

She had been thinking about this for a while now and wasn't sure what to do. Her grandpa might show up to get her any day now, and then her friends would be on their own.

With the undead, and even some rumors of the purgatory church invading the Kelvish dominion, it was very likely her friends would suffer a horrible end.

Even if she stayed here, there wasn't much she could do. When the Terlashar attacked Tartana in force, the undead would likely send several hundred thousand warriors to subjugate the planet.

Given how strong the warriors on the population on this planet were, the undead might send a Celestial-grade warrior or two, with hundreds of D-grade warriors to lead the invasion.

It was a thought that didn't sit well with her. Zee really hoped the world leaders on Tartana and other planets of the Kelvish dominion were preparing for the invasion.

Then again, It was naïve to think the world leaders were going to stay around. She already knew the dark truth. A lot of the nobles in charge were fleeing, using Rin's smuggling network to flee the dominion before the invasion of Tartana had even started.