Adriel felt their spear pierce cold earth, as they looked down to see the dying mortal that had been struck through with their spear was now gone. They felt anger roil in their core, stirring enough energy to level the surrounding woodland. Slowly Adriel reigned in their anger, they reminded themself that any blatant use of their might on such a low-tier world would call the heavens judgment. Thoughts began to spin through Adriel’s mind, how could a pitiful mortal with no ties to the heavens call down its providence? Had their preparations been faulty? No, they had spent centuries worth of resources to ensure that heavens gaze was well away from this squalid corner of the universe.
Had the oracles been right then? Did this mortal welp truly have the potential to lay them low? “No matter, I shall find him and finish my task”, Taking a breath Adreil sent their senses outward to find traces of the mortal’s passage… Only to find nothing. “Damnation!!!”, Adriel’s voice boomed out, shaking the trees around them and scaring away any animals still lingering. The damnable heavens must have hidden the boy’s passage from their sight, how would Adreil be able to find him? He could be anywhere in the vast universe and Adreil had no desire to risk their enemies finding out about this boy and turning him into a weapon to defeat them.
As they contemplated their options they heard a whimper, turning their head Adriel saw the troll they had sent to kill the boy limping towards them. It fell to its knees and spoke in a deep yet reverent tone, “Master, forgive this one’s failure”.
“Forgive? Why should I forgive a wretch such as you? If not for your incompetence the boy would be dead, and my time would not have been wasted!” Adreil’s voice seemed to push the Troll further into the dirt.
“Please Master, this one believes he has a way to make up for his failure” the troll replied meekly.
“Very well speak and choose your words carefully, my patience wanes by the moment” Adreil leaned forward on their spear and listened to the troll’s words. To their surprise the troll did have something worth its miserable life, it had cultivated a tracking skill it believed could allow it to track the scent of the boy’s closest blood relative. A wicked smile spread across Adreil’s face; they couldn’t pierce heaven's obfuscation, but a blood connection could allow them to narrow the scope of their hunt. Yes, this would do nicely although they would have to work fast as their protections would not last now that heavens gaze had been drawn to this planet. Another thought came to Adreil as they began to follow their servant, a wonderfully terrible thought.
Victor slowly blinked his eyes open as a chill spread through his body, he looked up to see a night sky brimming with stars. He let out a gasp and saw a plum of frosted air escape his mouth, another shudder of cold wracked his body as he slowly pulled himself to his feet. Looking around he saw a tundra surrounding him as far as his eyes could see, great he thought he’d escaped being killed by that maniac only to be frozen to death. He looked down at himself and saw his clothes had been shredded from his earlier ordeal, his chances of survival seemed to be dwindling by the moment. Just as he was about to lay down and let the cold take him, he heard a familiar voice speak in his mind.
Victor let out a weak chuckle, so whatever godlike thing had pulled him to this place had returned? Great, at least he’d know his miserable end would be witnessed for posterity.
Brace himself? For wha… Victor fell silent as a shudder that had nothing to do with the cold ran through his body. No, it felt like it was shaking the very essence of his being, his legs shook but his stiffening body and the deep snow that went to his knees kept him upright. The cold was quickly replaced by a searing heat and pain, he tried to scream but all that came out was a gurgle as he felt like he was being torn apart. Then it stopped just as quickly as it began, he fell but hit soggy dirt rather than snow as whatever had racked his very being melted the snow around him. Just as he felt his consciousness slipping away the voice returned.
Victor blinked at the screen that appeared before him, trying to sort through the information being thrown at him. Star sign? Blessings? Skills? He was hesitant to accept anything from a being he knew nothing about but given his current circumstances, he needed all the help he could get. With a bit of reluctance, he pressed yes.
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
Victor was surprised, he guessed being plucked from his home and flung across the universe made him a hot commodity. Well, he wouldn’t say no to having options rather than a choice being thrust upon him. As though the voice read his mind a list of names appeared in front of him.
What the heck? Victor was even more confused as he looked over the list of names in front of him. He’d heard of them but besides knowing their names he wasn’t someone who checked their horoscope. However, it seemed those who believed in what he thought of as superstition had some ground to stand on if this wasn’t a cold-induced hallucination. Victor shook his head; he couldn’t get distracted like this he needed to make his choices and find a way back home.
He began to mull over the choices in front of him. Focusing on Virgo he got a sense of warmth and support, that she would ease his pain and the pain of others he encountered. Taurus on the other hand seemed to challenge him, asking him how far he wished to push himself to attain his goals. Libra asked him why he wanted revenge and if he could bear the weight of the justice he sought. Capricorn said they liked his spunk and thought it would be fun to watch his path.
Victor felt his head spinning as the various impressions of the patrons who wished to sponsor him flashed through his mind. As he regained his composure he focused on the last option Polaris, of all the names this one was out of place. Victor remembered Polaris was another name for the north star, who would’ve thought it was more than a ball of space gas? As he focused on the option he didn’t get as much as from the others, all he felt was a thought to turn his head and look toward the mountain range to the east. Wait, Victor was no survivalist and had no idea how to know which direction he was looking in. Then he thought about the description again and remembered the last word used to describe Polaris was guide.
He had a tough choice, he could gain utility from Virgo, strength from Taurus, control from Libra, freedom from Capricorn, or direction from Polaris. One choice stuck out from the others, Polaris promised that he would guide Victor, and while he didn’t know where he did know he would have a hard time finding his way in such a harsh environment. Steeling his resolve, he focused his intent and chose Polaris, a message appeared a moment later.
Victor scratched his head as he read the description of his blessing, so he could ask for Polaris to point him in the right direction? It was a bit vague, but he might as well try, he looked up to the sky and said “Hey… Umm… Polaris. Could you tell me where I should go next?”.
For a moment nothing happened, and Victor felt like an idiot. Then a warmth went through his chest, and he knew that he should head southeast until he saw an outcrop of rocks near the bottom of the mountain shaped like a kneeling giant. Victor blinked as he realized a flood of unfamiliar information had just appeared in his mind, so that was his blessing. It wouldn’t directly help him survive this place, but it was better than wandering aimlessly. As he was about to head in said direction, he heard the familiar voice return a final time.
Victor had been taking most everything that had been happening in stride but this? He had skills, what was he a video game character? Well, anything that could help him was welcomed, he wondered how he could view his new skills when another screen popped into existence in front of him. Filling him with even more questions.
