"Error system interface running on minimal settings."
"Damn, still not working."
Just then, a system prompt popped up.
"System message: a dungeon spirit would like to open communications."
"Y/N"
'I have nothing to lose; I'm gonna die in this dark cave. There is no food or water, not to mention blood loss.' Dane thought.
"Yes"
"Hello, fragile human, my name is Khronos. I am the spirit of the dungeon and the personification of time. I have a request for you." The dungeon spirit's voice boomed in my head.
"The spirit's nature is to bond with a monster and supplement their affinities. Unfortunately, the fate of any space and time spirit is not to create that bond; no monster has such an affinity. It is too late for me. However, my offspring is still young. Will you meet with them and see if they can form a bond with you? "the ancient-sounding spirit said.
"I don't know what does the bond do for me?" He questioned.
"You would fuse with the spirit, becoming one. However, in your case, I am not sure what would happen. Spirits do not bond with those of the ascended races. I am sure you would have some benefits. Meet with my child before you make a decision. A bond should be formed on compatibility, not benefits. Diastima, please come out where the human can see you."
A majestic ball of spectral purple light arose from the floor. Dane half expected this tiny ball of light to start saying, "Hey, listen." It was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. As he lay on the floor, the light came closer to Dane's face, brushing his forehead gently. When the light touched him, he saw a vision of a beautiful woman dressed in a flowing silk gown, her face and body pitch black, with orange and blue nebulas within them; she was in an evergreen forest.
"What's up, dude? Do you got a name?" the beautiful woman said with a dumb valley girl accent. The only thing missing was the smacking of chewing gum.
"Yeah, it's Dane," He said hesitantly, still shaken by the dramatic entrance.
"Where's the rest of you?" The woman gestured to his hand and legs.
"I'm a little bit accident-prone," Dane said, trying to hide the wince from the painful memories.
"That sucks, do you mind if I rewind them? As much as I want to bond with a cripple, you're not my type unless I don't have to bend over to look you in the eye." She said in that ditsy tone.
"Um, what does that mea..." Dane couldn't finish before the crazy woman waved her hand. Excruciating clawed up both stubs that Dane was passing off as legs; her magic reconstructed the legs. He watched them as they went from mashed-up ground beef, snapping and popping as the bones reformed into their original shape before the fall.
"Hmmm, that's weird. Why didn't your hand grow back? When did you lose it? Never mind; I'll rewind you until it comes back, " she said, truly confused.
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The feeling was strange. Unlike his legs, Dane's body felt better when she began to do her spell. He looked down at his arms and legs; they grew fuller, and he felt stronger. He was able to stand up on his own again. It wasn't until the end, when the hand came back into existence, that he felt the familiar pain snapping and popping as it reformed and healed from the fight with Skeleman. But now that he was in his old body, the pain was easier to deal with.
"There you go, all better, but I had to go so far back, I feel like a pedophile. Can we stay friends?" Dia said
"What is your name?" Dane pushed down a tear welling up. He couldn't contain the joy that he felt.
"I am Diastima. But my friends call me Dia. It's nice to meet you, Dane." She said in genuine kindness. Dane let one of his tears escape. It had been too long since someone talked to him like a person.
"What are you?" He asked
"Me? I am a dungeon spirit; Dad says we are just mana deposits that gain sentience." She pointed at the crystals that Dane was familiar with, as he had been mining them for two years.
"Is he even your dad if you are just collected energy?" He questioned, genuinely curious, how they formed their dynamic.
"Well... Usually, I would have formed by myself, but my dad collected all of the mana that created me. He even put it in some of his stores to give me the time affinity. In a way, we aren't related, but he taught me everything he knew about the world and some of his magic. If he isn't my dad, then at the very least, he is my uncle, " the spirit said with an answer that sounded like she was explaining something she had never questioned once.
"How will we know if we should create a bond?" He felt like a fish out of water with all the spirit stuff that had never been taught in his primary school.
"We can't. Or, um, I should say couldn't. To form a bond, you have to match affinities perfectly. You don't have much affinity for time magic, but are exceptionally strong in space, with me dumping most of my time affinity in that rewind. I'd say that we are a perfect match. I have one question: What will you do with your life?" She waited silently for the reply.
Dane wanted to leave the dungeon and return home. He tried to live a peaceful life; all the training was to buy his freedom. Caring for his little sister was always his ultimate goal. But the rage and fire inside of him refused to yield, someone needed to answer for the last two years.
"I am going to get stronger. I will kill everybody who had a part in throwing me into this dungeon. And when I am done, I am going to kill the emperor and free my world from their tyranny." He said more as a vow than a statement.
"I'm in," She said with a slight grin.
With both of them in agreement, they returned to the platform where Khronos spoke, now back in the cavern and out of Dia's mind space, returning to the caverns that he had despised after a tranquil forest was jarring, reminding him only of bad memories. He watched the purple bubble draw a magic circle with plenty of rune magic made entirely of the ethereal mana. Dane watched as the circle began to pulse, the faint lines becoming solid with each beat.
"Dane, stand in the circle," His spirit said
He moved to a spot that felt right. He began to feel warm for the first time since he had been brought to this dungeon. Dia floated across from him, and after the pulsing of the magic circle stopped. He felt a tug that pulled him towards the spirit; she floated closer to him, eventually touching his head. He was oddly calm, having spent years overthinking each worst-case scenario, quailed by the spirit's embrace. The raging storm in his heart was still.
System notification: Slave collar must be upgraded to resume suppression effect.
Title earned: First of my kind
Description: You are the first of the ascended races to bond with a spirit. Spirit magic is unlocked; other magic pathways are now closed off
+50% amplifier to all stats
+25% boost to space and time magic cast by the user
Race: Human (Modified)
Rank: F
Name: Dane McAllister
Exp: 0/100
Level: 1
Stats: Strength: 9 Dexterity: 8 Constitution: 8 Charisma: 3 Stamina: 9 Intelligence: 9 Willpower: 15 Unassigned Points: 0
Skills: (Common)
- Unarmed Combat LVL 5/25
- Axe Proficiency LVL 24/25
- Small weapons LVL 3/25
- Identify LVL 1/10
(Uncommon)
- Haste LVL 3/5
(Rare)
- Danger sense 1/1
LVL 1/100 HP 10/10 MP 100/100 Stamina 10/10