235: Nephilim (Patreon)

Roland had a lot of crap to process and very little time to do it in, so he set aside the wall of notifications and focused on his immediate issue. He was still in the Nightmare Realm – his sharpened senses identified it without activating a Skill – and the Dullahan was getting up, fully recovered from the explosion that had followed the awakening of his second Bloodline.

Did I get that from the Acosta side of my family? Roland wondered as he advanced on the monster, who appeared to have shrunk down.

Except the monster hadn’t gotten smaller, Roland quickly realized. Roland had grown bigger. The trees still loomed over him, but not as much. Using the twelve-foot monster for comparison, Roland guessed he was a bit over ten feet tall and maybe a thousand pounds soaking wet. His clothing had resized to fit him, or he’d be walking around with skintight purple briefs like Bruce Banner.

A Bloodline of (angelic?) giants was at work. He only hoped there was a resize option, because having to squat down to pass through a door would get old very quickly.

“About time you picked on somebody your own size, Jasper,” he said as he attacked with his naginata, which had resized itself to the length of a Texas courthouse flagpole.

His stats were still throttled down, although his gigantic size came with extra Strength and hit points. Even better, he was fully healed and his lost limbs had been restored by the transformation.

On the down side, his step-slash combo turned into an ungainly stumble right into the monster. Moving in this oversized body was going to take some getting used to. The bigger, heavier body generated a lot of momentum.

The Dullahan didn’t waste the opportunity, grappling Roland with two arms while attacking with three others. In short order, Roland took a stab to the guts, a machete chop on the upper thigh, and a chainsaw slice on his shoulder.

“Fucker!”

Sometimes profanity was unavoidable. His gigantic body was more durable, though, even under the bizarre rules of the Nightmare Realm. None of the wounds were fatal or even disabling; he still couldn’t access the System Interface but if he had to guess, he’d lost maybe a tenth of his Health.

Roland dropped the naginata and began punching the World Boss in the two faces he could reach. Jasper’s mask caved in under the first impact. The next one ended with Roland’s fist smacking on the back of the monster’s skull.

Jasper’s head and his trademark hunting knife disappeared. A familiar-looking alien with dreadlocks replaced it as an arm holding a crescent-shaped double knife grew out of the monster’s shoulder and tried to stab Roland in the neck.

I’m wasting time here, Roland realized.

Even without access to his energy pools, he was getting the hollow feeling that meant his Vital Energy was almost completely used up. Deathless Shroud was still up in the real world, and the monster had burned through it. He needed to get back there.

Going through his notifications to find something useful was going to be hell while in close-quarters combat with a monster that still out-massed by a wide margin. Instead, Roland used his instincts. His Bloodline came from an entity known as the Adjudicator. A fancier term for judge. Roland had been dispensing justice for some time now; it had been a part of his nature even before the System, and only gotten stronger since.

Tyr’s Smite!

The Feat shouldn’t work without a firearm, and Roland was currently holding nothing but fistfuls of monster skin as he struggled with the Dullahan. His gut told him that Tyr had given him so much because the god had recognized a kindred spirit, maybe even sensed Roland’s second Bloodline hidden beneath the Reaper’s Pattern and Class Core.

An explosion of divine rage went off in Roland’s hands, searing off a good fifty pounds of Dullahan flesh. The stench of overcooked pork that had been well past its ‘best by’ date filled Roland’s nostrils. It smelled like victory.

Tyr’s Smite!

The Feat had a cooldown of one minute. He tried to use it again right away, and a new notification popped up.

You have awakened a Bloodline Skill: Final Verdict (Action, Celestial, Beginner 1)!

Final Verdict!

He didn’t have time to read the Skill description, so he just spammed it. The burst of burning energy was very similar to Tyr’s Smite, but with a golden hue and perfectly usable with his fists and probably any weapon he cared to wield.

I see you! Raven shouted in his mind. Oh, ho! You have grown taller, grasshopper.

Yep. Can you help me get out of here? Roland asked as he pummeled the monster into a pile of burned meat and bones.

The remains went up in smoke, just like Jasper’s had. And Roland didn’t go anywhere, which probably meant the monster was still alive and kicking.

You don’t need my help, mighty Nephilim. You just need to read your damn notifications.

“Oh, yeah.”

Hopefully the time it took the Dullahan to recover from destruction would be enough to find an answer in the long list of notifications.

Nephilim Bloodline (Adjudicator Lineage): The Nephilim are the progeny of humans and entities known by ancient cultures by such names as the Anunnaki and Elohim (the latter term is discouraged by the System due to its religious significance). The Anunnaki are a Post-Ascended species that primarily inhabit ultra-dimensional space, also known as the fifth dimension or Svarga.

Nephilim gain a measure of the Anunnaki ability to access other dimensions and planes of existence, and to manipulate energy at fundamental levels. They also can grow to gigantic sizes.

Your Bloodline originates from the progeny of the Anunnaki known as the Adjudicator, one with the authority to pass judgment on other greater beings. This Lineage grants you additional Perks and has unlocked a sixth Affinity: Justice.

Bloodline and Lineage Perks:    

* Colossal Physique: A F- and E-Grade (Tin and Copper Ranks), Nephilim can increase their height by 50% and their mass by 250%. While in this enlarged state, they gain a 25% bonus to Strength and Health and a 15% penalty to Dexterity. At higher Grades/Ranks, greater increases become available. Time to Change: 5 seconds. Cost: 250 Mana and Endurance to change; the size alteration remains indefinitely at no extra cost.

* Divine Mana: Nephilim gain access to Divine Mana. There are two types of ‘pure’ Mana that is not focused through the lens of a Concept. Common Mana is only encountered in minor abilities like Mana Bolt and Mana Shield, and is far weaker than Concept-attuned Mana. At the other end of the spectrum lies Divine Mana, which embodies all Concepts.

Divine Mana reduces the effectiveness of defenses or resistances by 50%; this is cumulative with other defense-piercing effects and Grade/Rank differences.

* Justice Affinity: Your Lineage has awakened a hidden Affinity for the Concept of Justice at 72%.

* Ultra-Terrestrial Nature: Your Anunnaki heritage gives you access to dimensions beyond the physical and spiritual Realms. Synergy with your Svarga Affinity increases it to 99%.

You have gained two new Skills: Boundless Return (M) and Final Verdict (CEL).

* Boundless Return (Action, Mythic, Beginner 1): Using this Skill in a different Realm than the one you call home, you will return to the same point where you left. Within your own Realm, you can designate a Return point, and you can transport yourself there instantly. Time to Cast: Instant. Cost: Determined by the spatial and dimensional proximity between your location and your destination; cost ranges from a minimum of 20 Mana to as much as 5,000 Mana and 1,000 (Unbound or Monster Core) Essence. Cooldown: (24 - Skill level) hours.

* Final Verdict (Action, Celestial, Beginner 1): Adds a burst of Divine Mana to a melee or missile attack. The attack must strike the target to release the energy. Base Damage is equal to Willpower plus (10% x Skill level). Time to Cast: Instant. Cost: 500 Mana. Cooldown: None.

“You were right,” Roland told Raven. “I should have read my notifications.”

The Dullahan was coming back, and this time it wasn’t walking ponderously towards Roland. It was in its Headless Horseman form, its black mount thundering hooves getting closer by the second.

Boundless Return!

There was a moment of disorientation and vertigo; when it passed, Roland was on his hands and knees on blood-soaked ground. The fight had moved from the spot where the Dullahan had dragged him into the Nightmare Realm.

The World Boss could be in two places at once. While it chased and dismembered Roland in the Nightmare Realm, it had continued the fight with the raid party. The Dullahan was surrounded by the Chosen; Bloodykee flew over the fight on his magic doghouse, tossing black lightning at the monster.

A quick check to his Vital Energy showed him he was on his last two thousand points, and his Mana was in the low hundreds. The Lord Albertus Revenant was still in the fight, but most of its Blood pool was exhausted. Nobody had died but they were on the ragged edge and as soon as the last of his Vital Energy was drained, they would start taking casualties.

An Epic potion took care of the Mana while he gained some altitude and ran through the air toward the fight. Dahlia and Barton had laid down a summoning circle and were calling up something big. Something that might turn out to be nearly as bad as the Dullahan.

Belay that! Roland told the ritualists through Party Chat, which he’d only gained recently and kept forgetting to use.

Finally, Dahlia replied, her dry tone coming through the text message. What kept you?

A remake of Bloody Friday III.

I loved that movie!

Roland’s grin vanished when the Dullahan leaped up in the air and turned into the Headless Horseman.

“So, it’s going to be like that,” he said as he called up the Pale Horse. Chopper versus monstrous horse.

Everyone who could was shooting the bastard, of course. And several fliers were following: Jorg with his controlled leaps, Nkosi, empowered by his Chosen, and of course Bloodykee in his doghouse. This wasn’t a duel, it was a raid.

Still, Roland had a feeling that it would come down to the two of them in the end.