“Is anyone else getting Sweeney Todd vibes?” Bell asked as we stepped into the freezer.

  Piles of tattooed skin lined the frozen shelves neatly folded and stacked as if they were any old commodity, the likes of which could be found at your local supermarket. It was sickening.

  “Looks like we’ve hit the jackpot, human,” Asmodeus declared. “This is a venerable treasure trove of power. You should absorb it.”

  I looked hesitantly between him and the skins. I had a quest which wanted me to absorb map pieces, a quest I’d vehemently ignored so far.

  “What about you?” I asked Bell, “you’re an outworlder too. You have just as big of a stake in this as I do.”

  “Not interested,” she replied casually. “If I could rip my tattoo off and give it to you I would, I don’t want to be a part of this rat race for the heavens. I’m no hero.”

  “Neither am I,” I replied with a sigh.

  “I disagree,” Rex said, placing a huge crimson hand on my shoulder. “It was you who commanded us to help the people of High Rock, you who selflessly heeded my cry for help back in Cali Port, you who rescued that woman from the burning building.”

  “Actually,” Asmodeus said, “that was me. And Cali Port was a disaster.”

  “But you only did so because Kaleb wanted her saved. You have no interest in aiding mortals, you only helped because he wanted it done. As for Cali Port, the end result may not have been preferable, but I firmly believe Kaleb’s heart was in the right place.”

  Asmodeus didn’t respond, instead opting to glare sheepishly at the ground.

  “If anyone is deserving of this power, it is you,” Rex said, nudging me towards the stacked skins.

  I was unsure.

  On one hand, this power could be exactly what I needed to finally bring my family to Celestia. On the other, I would literally be absorbing other people’s skins. They had died for possessing these tattoos and if nothing else, I’d be painting a pretty large target on my back… literally.

  Unlike last time when I absorbed Brad’s tattoo after I’d accidentally killed him, this would be a conscious decision. One born of understanding instead of the ignorance I’d had back then.

  Yet, despite all that, a part of me wanted to claim them. A part of me wanted to see where this road might lead. I didn’t want to kill and flay innocents for their skins, but that heinous act had already been committed. All I was doing was preserving their sacrifice in the hopes of using it to do something good.

  At the very least I’d be keeping it out of the hands of those who would use it to hurt people.

  “It needs to be unanimous,” I eventually said, looking at each of my companions in turn. “If I do this then Dissident Flame will officially be in the running to claim the Celestial Map. Even if I never absorb another skin again, people will hunt us for these.”

  “They already were, kid,” Panda said gently, placing a paw on my hand. “You and Bell have had tattoos from the start. Hell, we met in a cultist camp after you’d been captured specifically for your tattoo.”

  “He’s right,” Bell added, “the two of us will be hunted for our entire lives anyway. May as well piss the bastards off whilst we’re at it, right?”

  “Your quest for power is the source of my admiration,” Asmodeus said slowly. “We are bound together, yes. But your tenacity is what has earned you my respect. Take this power as your own.”

  “You respect me?” I asked.

  “No.”

  “But you just said…”

  “I take it back, do what you want, stupid human.”

  “There you have it,” Rex said quietly. “We’re all with you, this doesn’t change anything.”

  With a silent nod, I took a few steps forward and placed my hand on top of one of the piles on the shelf. A notification popped up in my HUD.

  Do you want to absorb 521 Celestial Map pieces?

  Y/N

  I mentally asserted yes and my dragon’s eye stung with the sudden eminence of bright, blinding light which filled the room, enveloping me in pure mana.

  A moment passed and then the light was gone.

  The shelves stood empty and I felt a burning sensation on my back. 521 pieces. 521 dead people. I shivered.

  “Let’s take a look then,” Bell said enthusiastically and I unequipped my torso armour.

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  “Wow, it kinda looks like code. Like if you asked a computer to draw the way it sees data, but more artistic,” Bell said.

  “I can’t even imagine what that looks like,” I replied.

  “Runic,” Panda said, “runic, but with numbers. It is a language I’ve never seen before. Though it now spreads across your shoulders and the backs of your arms. It’s a good job you never usually take that armour off. There’ll be no hiding what you are going forward if you do.”

  I re-equipped my armour and Rex led us out of the basement. As we walked I couldn’t help but check on my oldest active quest.

  The Celestial Map

  Collect all the pieces of The Celestial Map. Upon completion of this quest you will unlock another quest.

  Objectives:

  Map pieces collected 523/10,000

  Reward: Vast Cosmic Power

  523/10,000 wasn’t a lot in the grand scheme of things. I was pretty certain there had been a lot more skins in The Morningstar Collective’s basement than in this freezer.

  However, it was still too many.

  522 lives had been snuffed out for these tattoo pieces. 522 people from Earth, just like me. Who had been transported to Celestia against their will, just like me. Who had died in agony, hunted by malicious gods and organisations for the arbitrary reason of power. It just as easily could have been me.

  “I guess now I’ve absorbed these, we’re truly in the rat race aren’t we?” I said, thinking aloud as we followed Rex back through the broken building.

  “We always were, kid,” Panda replied soothingly. “But if we’re going for it, at least we do it together. This team you’ve built, they’re really something.”

  I smiled at him, thankful that no one else had heard my soppiness. A sudden calm washed over me and I felt like I needed to meditate. Instructing the others to carry on without me, I dropped to the floor in a meditative pose with only Panda to watch out for me.

  Delving into my soul view I saw the usual things before me: my thick red rope of health which twined around my skeleton, feeding into my muscles and the very sinew which held them to my bones. I saw my stamina coil, vibrant and buzzing, ready to strike at a moment’s notice.

  Then, I looked towards my soul core.

  The dense ball of black and green energy which laid dormant in the pit of my stomach. A terrible power waiting to be unleashed. I had used it twice before, both times to devastating effect. However, the backlash on my body was horrendous and I had promised Panda that I would keep it locked up until I was strong enough to use it without the fear of hurting myself.

  As I gazed at it, a venerable abyss contained within me, I felt something. It tugged my conscious towards it and I slid deeper and deeper into the black and green surface.

  My soul power, it felt… stronger.

  Gazing into the abyss I saw the green colouring running around the black core like a sliver of gold in a mine. I focused even harder as it willed me to see it.

  Then I realised.

  The green parts of my soul core looked like a runic code.

  I was pushed out suddenly, violently and I opened my eyes back into the real world with a jolt. A strange realisation tingling inside my head as I struggled to comprehend the magnitude of what I had just discovered.

  My soul power was linked to the Celestial Map.

  What did this mean? How could I use it? Questions spun around in my mind as Panda raised a single quizzical eyebrow in my direction. I informed him of my discovery and he stared at me, wide eyed, whilst he considered this revelation.

  “I don’t know what this means, kid.” He said slowly and quietly, “but I think you know what you have to do to find out.”

  I nodded solemnly.

  ***

  We left the house a short while later and caught up with Rex who was commanding his mercenaries to continue cleaning up the fortress, rescuing survivors where they could.

  “There should be more,” he muttered to himself as I walked over.

  It was strange seeing him with bright white fur and crimson paws. He looked like a completely different person: fierce, a leader. Yet when I spoke to him, he was still the same old Rex I’d been travelling with. The lycanid who loved cooking and stuttered when Bell flustered him with lewd provocations.

  “Should be more what?” I asked lightly as I approached.

  “More citizens,” he replied, “we’ve combed this half of the town from top to bottom but there are barely any people around. It doesn’t make sense.”

  I agreed and remembered one of the quest objectives which had been added as we explored the fortress.

  Discover what has happened to the residents of High Rock 0/1

  “One of the quest objectives mentioned something strange,” I said.

  Rex’s face lit up with sudden remembrance. “You’re right,” he said. “But like I said, we’ve turned the town inside out and found nothing. Where could they be?”

  “Have you checked the sewers?” Panda asked casually.

  “So far we haven’t found any.”

  “A town without sewers?” He replied, “your men aren’t looking hard enough Rex. All towns have sewers.”

  With a roar, he commanded Broken Sheild to begin looking for entrances to the sewers and they took quickly to the task. All we had to do was wait.

  “What are your plans now?” I asked Rex in a low voice.

  He looked at me quizzically and I continued. “Well, you’re the leader of Broken Sheild now and I doubt we can fit a hoard of lycanid’s into the camper. I guess I was just wondering what you’re planning to do…. I’d understand if you needed to leave the party.”

  “Oh Kaleb,” he smiled a fangy grin. “You won’t be rid of me that easily. We still have a quest to finish and you need a cook. Besides, Broken Sheild still have plenty of work to do fixing High Rock. I’ll add them to my chat interface and command them when needed, but for the most part I just want them to clean up this mess and await orders. I was hoping that they might be of use to you somewhere down the road.”

  I felt my face light up, I didn’t want him to leave. “Are you sure that’s alright? I want you in my party but I can’t be responsible for you shirking your duties to pal around with me.”

  “What duties?” He laughed, “they may be a little rough around the edges but each and every one of them is a well-trained and fully grown lycanid warrior. They don’t need micromanaging. I simply need to set them a task and they’ll do it, with or without my interference.”

  “They didn’t seem too well trained when they were running with their tails between their legs screaming as arrows and fire rained down on them,” Panda remarked sceptically.

  “Can you blame them?” Rex replied, taking the jibe in good humour. “Who wouldn’t be terrified to see acidic arrows raining over their heads. We had them surrounded and at a severe disadvantage. Besides, Gorthak had lost his nerve and the commander’s ability is paramount in battle.”

  “Exactly,” I added. “And their commander will be travelling with me.”

  “Which means they won’t be engaging in any battles for the time being,” Rex replied assuredly.

  I nodded back at him and gripped his paw in a shake. He seemed pretty sure of himself and I was happy to have my team member back. Besides, having a pack of lycanid at my beck and call could be useful.

  “Sir!” A wiry lycanid shouted as he sprinted towards us from a side alley. “We’ve found the entrance and have posted guards for your inspection.”

  “Very good,” Rex said, patting the lycanid on the head affectionately. “Well then Kaleb, shall we go see what lies in wait for us in the sewers?”

  “Kid’s an expert on that,” Panda muttered.