Vae Victis B2 Chapter 1 and Update! (Patreon)

Hello! Sorry for the wait, but I come with news! I've signed a contract with Podium for full publishing of Vae Victus, which is one of the reasons for somewhat slower chapter releases up until now. I had to rework the ending of the Ish Vimza arc since they prefer books to be less than 150k words long. And my original plan was for around double that, the same as Infinite Realm, as I didn't plan for the end of book one to be the return to Earth. But I've shuffled somethings around and gotten we are starting a new book and a new arc!

Enjoy the chapter!

Book 2

Chapter 1 - Alone

I sat on the cold wooden floor, my head leaned against the wall behind me and my knees raised up enough that I could lean my hands and chin on them. I listened to the sounds around me, to the cries of birds as the sun rose above me. I could feel it crawling across the sky, and the sensation was not pleasant at all. I wondered what the other vampires were doing right now, I wondered if they even knew that the sun would not hurt them now.

The fear of the sun was so ingrained in us that I couldn't imagine anyone just testing it, even if they felt different while the sun was out. I knew that if I hadn't woken up with light striking my face a month ago, I would've never let it touch me for fear of burning up from the inside.

I had rested, a couple of hours as Saia told me. It seemed to have been enough to help me feel rested again. I hadn't had a chance to really rest since before I fought with the pack of kiji. Saia's field protected us from any animals that might've been alerted to our presence, though I hadn't noticed anything other than the birds. I assumed that the field was working as it was supposed to on Earth's wildlife. The jungle around the estate had always had animals, with snakes probably being the most dangerous thing that I could encounter. Though a jaguar or a bear wouldn't be out of the ordinary.

I knew that I had to be careful, especially after the encounter with the boa. I didn't know how the Source had affected the Earth's wildlife, but all of it was changed.

From what Shadow had said, the year that the Earth spent isolated would also come with an accelerated gain of investment. A boon that the Grand Spell allowed for the newly integrated worlds, allowing them to somewhat catch up to the rest of Kirios.

Though Shadow had said that it was unlikely that many people would cross the Fourth Investment. Apparently, there was a set amount of the extra potential Investment assigned to the new world. And the higher people reached, the more it would get depleted.

I had an advantage compared to the rest of the world, and I had to make use of it. Not only had I survived the most dangerous place on Kirios, I also knew what was happening. The majority of the world would still have no idea. The two moons in the sky might give them some clues, but ultimately the world would be in the dark. Though that would change soon, the other twenty nine Exemplars had returned to Earth, just how I had, if they survived their ordeals at least.

What worried me the most was that my skills were yet to return. The only thing that I knew was that using my skills in conjunction with my Mask put all of the ones that I have used on a long cooldown. I had no idea how much time that was, and it had already been days.

"Saia," I started, as an idea occurred to me. "Can you use that [Mask Reader] engram for me? I wonder if it will show any new information, maybe it'll give us an idea of how long my skills will be down."

The tiny dragon AI that was bonded to me, tilted her head, then her eyes flashed and text appeared in my vision. I blinked at the sudden appearance, but then focused and started reading. Immediately, I noticed a change.

"Uh, Saia, my name did you change that?" I asked.

"Feedback: I did, was I wrong to?" Saia responded.

I looked at the text where she had changed my name from the one I had held for the most of my life, Marianna Rojas, to the one given to me by Shadow. I shook my head.

"No, you weren't," I told her, then read the entire list.

The Star That Dances In Blood Beneath the Light of the Broken Moon

---------------------------------------

Mask of the Blood Invoker (Weave, Esoteric):

1st Investment; 3rd Carving

Ornament of the Revelator (Weave, Esoteric)

No Investment; 4th Carving

Ornament of the Student (Physical, Weave, Esoteric)

No Investment; 8th Carving

---------------------------------------

Attributes:

Physical: C

Weave: F

Esoteric: C

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Skills:

P1-Beast bonus

[Mist Step]

[Lesser Strength]

[Debilitating Wave]

P2-Beast bonus

[Sonic Screech]

[Lesser Impale]

[Quick Claw]

[Swap Profile]

[One Truth Verified]

[A Lesson Remembered]

[Practical Learning]

There was nothing in the list indicating how long my skills would remain on cooldown. I sighed, even though I didn't really expect there to be anything. Then I took another look at everything. My Mask had gained three Carvings just from drinking Shadow's blood, which was the same amount that I had gained from the Sikiri. Though since at the time I drank Shadow's blood I was on a higher Investment, it meant that his blood was more potent, since the Investment requirements increased with Carvings. Still, I was just a tiny bit disappointed that I hadn't gotten a new skill.

I knew better than to expect it as Shadow had explained that a single Investment tier granted anywhere from one to a handful of skills, with two being the average. I had already gained three skills in my first tier from my Mask, my three [Empty Slot] skills. And I already gained a skill from my 1st Investment, the [Swap Profile] skill. I could expect one more at least, if my last tier was anything to go by.

My Ornaments had advanced too, but neither had given me a new skill, nor were those skills able to help me in combat. I could tell that they at least were available to me, and not on a cooldown. Though I still didn't know how exactly my [One Truth Verified] skill worked. I would need to experiment as soon as I had the chance.

I settled down to wait as the sun moved across the sky. Some time later, the boredom got the better of me and I looked back at Saia.

"What are you doing?" I asked. The tiny dragon was smaller now than she used to be when we first bonded, she hadn't consumed enough matter to create a bigger drone. Right now, she was about the same size as a sparrow. I remembered the body of the boa I had killed, We should probably go back for that. I made a mental note to get her some more biomass to consume, our bond had grown stronger, and I had gotten stronger, which meant that I could sustain a larger drone.

"Feedback: I am reviewing and attempting to rebuild my Engrams. So far I have had no success with any of them."

"So Shadow's gift didn't help that much?" I asked.

"Feedback: Not so far, it has given me an idea of which Engrams might be more likely to still work under the rules of this reality."

I grimaced, it was unfortunate for sure. From what Saia had told me the Engrams that she was capable of using would've come in handy. I shook my head, it was no use lamenting about what we couldn't change.

Then, something else occurred to me. "Hey, couldn't you just like create a weapon that doesn't need Source to be used? Like how you make your drone, or turn into weapons for me?"

"Feedback: There is some number of weapons that the Ke Erzi utilized that wasn't reliant on the Source-Weave. And I am capable of recreating them, though not at this time."

"Why not?" I tilted my head.

"Feedback: Because I lack the necessary ingredients to make them usable. I believe that the word you would use is ammunition. The material I am made out of, ferosim the living metal, is incredibly conductive to Source-Weave, which allows me to arrange my inner matrix in different formations to enable Engrams. It cannot substitute any other type of resource."

I nodded in understanding, that made sense to me. Saia's drone was made of a metallic substance that I wasn't familiar with, but it was obviously strong and versatile. Though she had sustained injuries in her drone form, which showed that the material wasn't invulnerable. Still, it was definitely tougher than steel.

"So if we find any of those resources, you could make weapons?" I asked.

"Feedback: I could, with sufficient biomass and materials, yes."

"So what would you need? What even can you make?"

"Feedback: A variety of light based weaponry as well as some defensive items that the Ke Erzi used in conjunction with the Armor form of this Unit. The materials that are necessary are mostly a silica based crystalline minerals. A few would be suitable, but the ones that would be the most effective are: enes, shikha, and brils."

"I don't think that we have anything like that on Earth," I said as I heard the unfamiliar words. The Grand Spell's translation would've translated the words if Earth had the same minerals.

"Statement: It is unlikely that the minerals are present on your world. While the minerals are not inherently very conductive to the Source-Weave, they do possess some qualities linked to it, as all materials on Erzi did. Your world had no source."

"So these materials might manifest themselves now? Or some of what is already present might change."

"Feedback: Change is almost guaranteed, whether materials will become something new or something that I am familiar with, I do not know."

"Maybe it would be a good idea for you to start testing materials we come upon, you can detect their properties right? Maybe we can find replacements?" I asked her.

"Feedback: I have some capabilities in that field, yes."

I nodded, adding one more thing to my mental checklist.

"Hey," I continued as another thing occurred to me. "You do know that you don't need to clarify your sentences every time you say something."

Saia tilted her head. "Query: This Unit doesn't understand."

I blinked and opened my mouth to try and explain, and then I paused. What I was hearing was a translation, she wasn't actually speaking in my language. Some words weren't translated, others had meaning attached in the forms of images or sensations. It was possible that it was just a result of the translation from the syntax of the language Saia was speaking in.

"You are speaking in the Erzi tongue, right?"

"Feedback: Correct."

"Can you learn my language?" I asked, wondering how that would even work. How it worked now even. I had no idea how an Ai was hearing translated words.

"Feedback: Of course, this Unit will set aside processing power to learn your language."

I narrowed my eyes at her, noticing something else. The tone of her voice was the same, but I could sense like there was something different. If she was a human, I would've said that her last sentence felt colder. Sometimes Saia would refer to herself as "This Unit" and other times she would simply use "I". There was something more going on with Saia than what I had seen so far. For a moment I nearly asked her about it, but then decided not to push.

I turned my eyes to the window, and looked out through the faint shimmer of Saia's protective field. I turned my mind toward the situation I was in. I had returned to my world, or at least what was now the continent of Earth on Kirios. I came back to the estates that had been my home for most of my life, the place where I had been hanged, and I found it empty. I wondered where everyone had gone to. I could only assume that once the Grand Spell arrived everything went to shit quickly. All forms of communication had probably shut down, satellites were no longer above us after all, at least I didn't think they were.

I tried to put myself in their shoes, imagine what I would do. Probably head back to civilization, seek out people. And the closest thing we had to that was a village nearby. Or perhaps the small town of San Pedro. Eventually, I would head to Medellín, hoping to find safety in the city.

It would be a long trek on foot. I could move fast, but a vampire couldn't sustain that pace for long. It would take me days to get down from the mountain.

I shook my head, there wasn't much that I could do about that. I had to look for people. None of my plans mattered until I found survivors.

By the time nighttime drew close, Saia and I were ready to set out. It had been two days since I put on my Mask, and I still didn't have access to my skills, which worried me somewhat. I didn't want to risk entering my soul space, not yet at least as I didn't know if I would be able to get out again. I knew that I had to experiment, but I was not in a space that was safe enough for me to do so.

I stepped out of my sire's home, fully equipped for the trip, or as equipped as I could be. I wore a woodland camo pants and a simple black tank top with a short jacket over it. On my shoulders I had a backpack filled with the few items I had managed to scavenge. The H-tech Rhino Model 3 revolver in its case, the photo I found of my sire and I, the gourd filled with blood from Ish Vimza, a line of rope that I found in the shifter camp, a few bottles filled with water and some food. The food and water might not do much for me, but I wanted to be prepared in case I found survivors.

A face mask and sunglasses in my pockets in case I ran into anyone, I didn't want people to immediately know that I was a vampire. On my shoulder I leaned the blade part of the serpent-tongue spear, and I had Shadow's dagger on my hip.

The sky was painted in the orange light of twilight as the sun dipped beneath the horizon and the two moons rose above us. I felt myself growing stronger by the moment, and decided that it was time to head out.

"Saia, can you scout ahead? Report back any signs of life you see, animals or people, or anything of interest in general," I told her.

"Feedback: Acknowledged," Saia said and took to the skies, heading in the direction we had agreed on previously.

I took a deep breath and then started jogging down the road. I figured that staying on the proper path would be the best. The road was paved, something that the Cartel had to pay for by themselves as the government had no need to make roads this far into the jungle. Nor did they want to really, they didn't control these lands.

The road was abandoned and overgrown in places. The asphalt was cracked, and plants grew through it. Roots of the trees around the road had bulged in places, raising the road up. Everything was changed, even the plants. I could recognize most of them, but all looked like they had evolved. Larger leaves, thicker trunks, it was as if someone had given every plant some kind of a growth serum. And perhaps that was the reality, Source might as well be a super serum.

As the sun fully set and the world was thrown into darkness, I became fully alive. The two moons above shone brightly enough that I could see everything. The forest around me was silent save for a few calls of birds in the distance that sounded like nightjars and owls to me.

It was about an hour of jogging later that Saia returned.

"Report: I discovered something of interest up ahead."

"Of interest how?" I asked.

"Feedback: I believe that you should see it for yourself," Saia responded.

I frowned but nodded, and had her lead the way.

A few minutes later, we reached it. I knew immediately, it was hard to miss. The road ended in a sharp line and a forest continued onward. Except that it wasn't anything like the forest I knew should be there. The trees were different, these were not the Cedro trees that were behind me, but something else.

The trees were thinner and taller, the color of their leaves brighter green. I didn't recognize them, though perhaps I did know them. With the changes that the Source brought, it could be a tree I was familiar with, but which had changed.

But that wasn't all of interest here. I walked over to the edge, where the road stopped, and knelt down. The soil that started from the edge of the road was different than what was behind me too. It was brown tinted with orange.

"This shouldn't be here," I said out loud.

"Statement: The entire valley ahead is the same, though I can see that the terrain changes back in the distance."

It was as if someone had picked up a piece of land and just wedged it where it didn't belong.

What Shadow told me now made more sense. He had said that the Grand Spell would take our world apart and then put it back together into a single landmass. That it would change our topography.

I realized that what I knew of Earth might no longer be true. Landmarks, rivers and directions could all be different now. I had to make some changes in my plans. Pieces could be missing, taken like how Saia's home had been, a piece just floating out there for the Grand Spell to use.

I grimaced, then stood up, trying to decide if I wanted to risk going through the unfamiliar area or try and go around it. For all I knew, the places I wanted to check were no longer where they were supposed to be.

Before I could make a decision, it was made for me. In the distance I heard a scream, and immediately I straightened. Someone was in trouble. I glanced at Saia and offered my arm. "Bracelet," I said and she quickly shifted to rest on my wrist. I pulled out my glasses and mask, and quickly put them on. Then I started running as fast as I could in the direction of the scream, gripping my weapon with both hands.

I found them quickly, and took in the situation at a glance.

The source of the scream was a kid, a boy that was probably not older than ten. He was small and scrawny, obviously malnourished. I could smell his fear, the sweat on his skin and accumulated dirt from days of not washing. He wore simple clothes, jeans and a shirt and had a backpack on his shoulders. In one hand he was holding a long stick with a sharpened tip. He was running, and an animal was pursuing him.

I recognized the animal too, even with the obvious changes. It was a Spectacled bear, I recognized it because of the familiar pattern on its snout. The rest of it was... different. Its muscles were bulging, and its fur a lot shorter. The claws on its paws were curvier and red in color. It roared and jumped on the kid, and I pounced.

I felt the ground give beneath me as I pushed off, and in less than a heartbeat I was in front of the bear. I swiped my weapon bellow, bringing it up across the animal's throat, cutting through it cleanly and decapitating the bear before it even had a chance to notice that I was there.

The head hit the ground first, followed quickly by the rest of its body in a loud thump.

The kid took a few more steps, then glanced back and saw that the animal was dead on the ground, he missed a step and tumbled to the ground. I didn't move from my place above the bear, as I just realized that I had to be careful. I made sure to make a show of breathing heavily, as if I had just run a marathon. I couldn't sweat, but the kid would probably not notice, not now at least.

"Oh," the kid said. "Thank God," he closed his eyes and made a cross with one hand before opening his eyes and looking up at me with awe in his eyes.

"Are you an angel?" He asked, and I blinked.

"No," I said.

"Well," the kid whispered, his eyes growing unfocused. "You look like one."

Then he promptly passed out.

I sighed, then glanced down at the blood still pouring out of the bear.

"I guess that I should take advantage of him being unconscious," I said out loud, then knelt to take a drink. I didn't know if the bear had any skills, but I would find out eventually. After taking a big gulp, I wiped my mouth and walked over to the kid, picked him up and started walking. I didn't hear signs of anyone else around us, and I could hear very far, so I assumed that he was alone. I had to find a place to camp. Then, once he woke up, perhaps I would get some answers.