Dark Fate, Chapter 212

Chapter 212 – Tier

I closed my eyes as the same silver mist I’d seen before rose up around me. I took a breath, to steady myself. I didn’t want to miss something by being too anxious, after all. When I opened my eyes, I saw the first of the expected System messages waiting for me.

Tier 3 Subrace Options

Greater Void Incubus (Super Rare) – A very rare subtype of the incubus line that is specialized for living in space, or traveling between systems. Features reduced susceptibility to System disruption and the ability to survive in the void.

Unlocked by: Spending 90% of the time since last Tier ascension not on a planetary surface.

Greater Juggernaut Incubus (Rare) – A rare subtype of the incubus line specialized in physical combat. Features increased size, strength, and durability, in exchange for a reduction in shapeshifting capability.

Unlocked by: Primarily using melee attacks in battle. Not taking more than 10% damage in any combat encounter the entire Tier.

Greater Corruptor Incubus – The incubus establishes a connection between himself and anyone he engages in carnal relations. This connection allows him to influence behavior and bend them to his will, reducing inhibitions or moral objections, but not compelling behavior.

Unlocked by: Using [Carnal Arts] specifically to influence the behavior of more than 100 people.

Greater Apocalypse Incubus (Super Rare) – A very rare subtype of the incubus line. The Apocalypse Incubus’s coming is a herald of either disaster or salvation. Which it is depends on whether you stand with him or against him.

Unlocked by: Having the Genocider title. Directly combatting at least three threats either planetary in scale, or involving creatures in a higher tier than you.

Greater Incubus – Retain original Greater Incubus race, with no subrace.

Having four choices for a subrace was pretty good, all things considered. Especially since I hadn’t even considered the possibility of unlocking one. And each of them was interesting, in its own way. Well, except just staying as a Greater Incubus. That wasn’t happening.

Void and Juggernaut were both pretty straightforward options. Neither one looked bad, per se, but I couldn’t exactly call them ‘good’, either. Void would be most useful if I was actually out with my fleet, acting as an Admiral, rather than directing things from Ceres, but I was a strategic-level commander, not a tactical one, which meant surviving in the void and recovering quicker from using a stitch drive wasn’t as important for me. And Juggernaut was a straight melee combat monster, by the looks of it. I used melee combat over other things not because I loved it, though I admit it was fun, but because it was usually more efficient, especially with my stats.

Corruptor was an interesting one. Not a rare, but I could definitely see uses for it. However, that could also backfire hugely on me. Female leaders outside the Kingdom (and now Empire) were wary of me, simply because I was an Incubus, and my Charisma and skills made it very hard to say no. This subrace was better for a spy, or someone working behind the scenes. For better or worse, I was too public to truly make use of this subrace’s strengths.

Which left Apocalypse. And, I had to admit, I was digging it. From the brief description, the Greater Apocalypse Incubus was a herald of Apocalyptic change, for good or for ill. Defender of their people, and bane of their foes. And only unlocked by doing things that others couldn’t, or wouldn’t, do.

The unlock conditions were interesting, though. Obviously, my actions in the Middle East got me the title, and my fight with the Giant Kraken was the third of the threats I faced, but the other two threats? The only things I could think of were my leading the defense against the pirate fleet, and wiping out the Incux over Ulora. I guess those counted as planetary-level threats, given the situation.

Greater Apocalypse Incubus

The Greater Apocalypse Incubus is more than a spymaster or mastermind, as the Greater Incubus is. Born leaders, they typically arise only in times of crisis. As harbingers of the Apocalypse, they can call forth the flames of the Abyss itself, or charm even the most steadfast soul. More importantly, they lose any weakness to Holy power, heightening their effectiveness.

+40 CHA, +20 INT, +20 CON

Gain +10 CHA, +5 INT, +5 CON, +2 Attribute points per level

Gain Seduction, Diplomacy, and Intimidation as racial skills

All Charisma-based skills 25% more effective.

Immunities – Immune to Corruption, Fire, Hellfire, Poison, and Disease

Abyssal Flame – Can summon and manipulate Abyssal Flame, as well as the lesser Hellfire. All skills and abilities that they had with Hellfire can be used with Abyssal Flame.

Wings – Able to fly with batlike wings. Must be able to extend wings to fly. Cannot carry more than a light load and maintain flight.

Sensual Recharge – Engaging in acts of passion can increase MP and HP regeneration. More involved acts may transfer MP and HP from your partner to you.

Shapeshifting – Able to shapeshift into any humanoid form. Attributes do not change in new form, though may gain physical qualities of the new form (lizardfolk’s scaly hide providing armor, etc.)

Oh, my. That was better than I had expected. Sure, nothing much changed, on the face of it. But eliminating one of my key weaknesses was no small thing. On top of that, I just got a HUGE boost to several attributes, since those changes worked off my current level, like others of its type. At the peak of Tier 2, I was basically level 100, which meant I’d gotten, for instance, an extra 703 CHA, just from this one subrace! And that didn’t count my access to Abyssal Flame, which sounded like an upgraded version of Hellfire.

Tier 3 Class Options

Soulbinding Abyssal Mindbreaker (Super Rare) – The demonic warlock having already shown talent in binding souls and breaking minds walks further along that path. Few are the souls that he cannot bind to his will, and fewer still are the minds that he cannot crush. Even those with defenses against such things are not safe from his power.

Unlocked by: Enslaving or otherwise binding over 1000 creatures. Using Mental magics on over 1000 creatures.

Abyssal Deathscythe (Super Rare) – A warlock with demonic ties, wielding a scythe in ways that defy belief, even when one sees it with their own eyes. The Deathscythe carves through his foes like farmer harvesting grain. All lives are his to take, or spare, at his whim. Not even a difference in Tier can save those who find themselves in his scythe’s arc.

Unlocked by: Killing over 1000 enemies with a scythe. Dealing over 100,000 damage to a creature in a higher tier with a scythe.

Master of All He Sees (Super Rare) – The Master of All He Sees is a rare breed. A charismatic leader with a true understanding of Domination, he crushes all those who would oppose him, and they thank him for the privilege. Magic and Martial Prowess he may possess, but his true strength is in those who swear to his banner, and they are strengthened in turn by him.

Unlocked by: Must rule a Kingdom. Must have added a new kingdom to your domain, whether through force of arms, diplomacy, or treachery. Must have over 5 million followers.

Greater Demonic Seducer (Rare, Racial) – The Demonic Seducer continues on their path, further focusing on the melding of demonic powers with a warlock’s gifts.

Unlocked by: Greater Incubus or Greater Succubus race (or higher-tier versions). Must be Demonic Seducer class.

Soulcager (Super Rare, Racial) – Beyond even the normal bounds of a Demonic Seducer, the Soulcager’s magics focus upon the soul itself. Not just in crude magics like controlling their mind, or binding one as a slave, but in actually harnessing the power of souls themselves. Every person killed by a Soulcager has their soul stolen, and their power becomes his. When the Soulcager orders others to fight in his name, his soldiers harvest pieces of the souls they kill, empowering his arts.

Unlocked by: Using magic to manipulate or control over 1000 souls. Must have Demonic Seducer class. Must be responsible for the deaths of over 1 million people.

This was a tough decision, with not a single choice below Rare. Greater Demonic Seducer was fine, as it was a straight upgrade to my current Demonic Seducer class, but I could already tell it was a case where I’d only take that if nothing else was available. There were far more ‘Tier 3-ish’ options on that list, after all.

Abyssal Deathscythe sounded cool, but it was clearly almost entirely martial-focused. I’d be the absolute most badass guy with a scythe, but my abilities as anything other than that would suffer accordingly. Not that I’d lose any power, but I wouldn’t be actively gaining power in those fields. If I were an adventurer, this would be a clear and easy choice but I had stopped being ‘just’ an adventurer before I hit Tier 2.

Soulbinding Abyssal Mindbreaker was a heavy name, and I could see it being a very powerful class. Unfortunately, It was a lot harder to explain away than ‘Demonic Seducer’. This class actively sought to break people’s minds, which was something people were likely going to be none too happy with.

Master of All He Sees was powerful. Full stop. However, its power was entirely wrapped up in the power of the kingdom, or empire, now. I was already planning on taking some variation of the Demon Lord profession, which I knew from my familiar was the Tier 3 version of Demon King. That was already going to focus a lot of my power on my empire. Did I really want to double down on that?

Soulcager was calling to me. Sure, it was going to cause problems, like the Soulbinding Abyssal Mindbreaker, but something about it spoke to me. A Super Rare and a Racial, and the way the description looked, it offered more than just mindbreaking people and turning them into slaves. Probably could do that, too, but the whole ‘gain their powers’ thing, or gaining pieces of soul from everyone my soldiers killed sounded like it was something that could improve my own power. But it wasn’t a direct increase, like [Mutual Might] giving me a portion of my soldiers’ XP, but rather, an increase in options. More options was always good. And they did make items which could trick [Appraise] skills…

Soulcager Abilities:

+30 CHA, +30 WIS

+10 CHA, +10 WIS per level

Capture the souls of those you slay in your Soulcage. Soulcage can store 1 soul plus 1 per 10 Soulcager levels.

Souls in your Soulcage grant you access to their skills.

Gain Soulshards from every creature those fighting in your name slay. Each Soulshard can be used to recover your HP or MP. No limit on how many soulshards you can collect.

Immune to hostile spells, skills, abilities, and effects that interact with or manipulate the soul from creatures of your Tier or lower (50% reduction for higher-Tier creatures).

Oh, sweet fuck. That was huge. The Soulcager basically gave me the ability to kill someone and take their skills, at least if I had space in the Soulcage. The description specifically mentioned Soulcager level, not level, so it probably capped out at six captured souls at Level 50 of the tier. Though there might be skills that I could use to increase that, or do more with the souls, or the soulshards. Actually, the soulshards were fucking awesome, too. Basically, health and mana potions, if I needed them, for now. And no limit on how many I could grab. Which meant that, when the fleet hit the third cattle world, I could expect a sizeable sum of soulshards, which would make me DAMN hard to kill! Totally worth needing to hide my class to keep people from clutching pearls.

Tier 3 Profession Options

Demon Lord (Super Rare) – When a Demon King gains power and draws more kingdoms under his sway, he becomes more than just a Demon King, he becomes a Demon Lord Possessing even great martial and magical might, as well as the authority of ruling his lands, they are able to dominate all in their ranks.

Unlocked by: Must be a Demon King. Must be the ruler of multiple kingdoms. Slay at least 1000 creatures with magic. Slay at least 1000 creatures in melee.

Sunbringer (Rare) – You bring the power of the sun to lay waste to your enemies. Those who stand against you are purged in the flames and radiance of annihilation. Cities quake as your shadow falls over them.

Unlocked by: Must have Genocider title. Must have destroyed at least 3 cities with light and flame. Must have killed at least 4 million people.

Timestruck Demon Lord (Unique) – Demon Kings and Demon Lords are rare breeds. Those who cause uncontrolled timestrikes and survive are rarer still. A Demon Lord who has caused and survived an uncontrolled timestrike is so rare as to be all but unique, with there rarely being one such creature at a time. However, that uniqueness brings power, and the beginnings of temporal control.

Unlocked by: Having caused at least 1 uncontrolled timestrike. Having survived at least 3 uncontrolled timestrikes. Must be a Demon King.

Demon Lord of Supreme Decadence (Super Rare) – While it is rare for an Incubus or Succubus to become a Demon King, and rarer still for them to be a Demon Lord, it is not unheard of. The Demon Lord of Supreme Decadence reigns supreme over a realm which devotes itself wholly to sensation in all its forms. Always they seek out higher and higher pleasures and greater sensations, in hopes of one day achieving the ultimate bliss.

Unlocked by: Must be a Demon King. Must be of the Incubus or Succubus racial line.

A Unique profession option? I almost ignored the rest of the options and picked that one without thinking. I probably would still pick it, since if the System was offering me something Unique, then I’d be a fool not to take it. However, it was foolish to not at least look at the other options.

Sunbringer was out, right off the bat. That clearly was related to my actions in the Middle East and the CRN attacking the cattle worlds of the Incux on my command. However, I did not want to make my Tier 3 profession solely about dropping the power of the sun on someone’s head. Not sure how I felt that such a bloodthirsty class was only rare, but either way, it wasn’t for me.

Demon Lord of Supreme Decadence was out, too. Sure, it sounded tailor fit for an Incubus who became a Demon Lord, but I didn’t like the wording of it. Sounded like an addict always chasing greater and greater highs. That was the kind of self-destructive behavior that could ruin everything I’d built up.

The vanilla Demon Lord was a solid choice. No ominous wording or other problematic bits about it. Just a straight upgrade to my profession, like a Master Alchemist going to Grandmaster Alchemist. Its main draw was that I could guess at the kind of skills and abilities it would have, and what path it would take. It was safe, but still powerful.

Timestruck Demon Lord, however, was calling to me. While some might wonder why I would only now be getting profession options related to timestrikes, I wasn’t surprised. Outside of specialized classes like Diviner (which only touched on ‘time’ by showing people glimpses of the future or past) and Time Mage (which primarily focused on time-related buffs and debuffs, with the most famous being the Haste and Slow spells), Tier 3 was the earliest the System let anyone play around with actually meddling with time. Outside of uncontrolled reactions, obviously. I had to take it.

Timestruck Demon Lord Abilities:

+30 STR, +30 INT

+10 STR, +10 INT per level

Immune to Temporal Attacks.

Can spend MP to negate timestrikes within his domain.

Acts as a temporal anchor, preventing his domain from being affected by outside timeshifts.

Can use Temporal Reversal, turning back their own timeline by spending MP, allowing different options to be chosen.

On the face of it, the profession didn’t seem terribly great. The abilities I’d gained from the Demon King profession were far flashier, since they allowed me to simply walk through enemy attacks if they were below my Tier, and other stuff like that. However, Timestruck Demon Lord was undoubtedly more powerful. The defensive abilities allowed me to ignore time-based attacks, negate timestrikes, and keep my domain from being affected by changes in the timeline. Then, there was Temporal Reversal, which basically let me go back in time by paying 100 MP for every second along my personal timeline I went back. That could be fucking huge, especially in a big fight.

You have leveled up!

You are now Level 2.

5896400/5151000 XP to reach Level 3.

You have leveled up!

You are now Level 3.

…

You have leveled up!

You are now level 9.

You have 5896400/5995000 XP to reach Level 10.

+160 CHA, +120 INT, +80 WIS, +80 STR, +40 CON

76 Attribute Points to spend.

40 Skill points to spend.

Name:

Zayn Greene

Race:

Greater Apocalypse Incubus

Class:

Soulcager

Profession:

Timestruck Demon Lord

Level:

9

XP:

5896400 / 4095000

HP:

234200 / 234200

HP Regen:

2342 per half hour

MP:

90240 / 112800

MP Regen:

1128 per min

Titles:

Executioner, Dungeon Foe 2, Admiral, King, Ant Kills the Elephant, Genocider, Kinbreeder, Emperor

Attributes

STR

837 (867)

INT

978 (1128)

DEX

276 (336)

WIS

956 (1006)

CON

265 (305)

CHA

2202 (2342)

Luck

70 (100)

Defense

120 (35922)

+20 CHA, +15 INT, +10 WIS, +10 STR, +5 CON per level

0 Attribute points remaining

4 Attribute points per level

I shuddered as the weight of all those stats hit me. After distributing the free attribute points, I flickered my [Shadow Armor] off and on again, to account for my new stats, and checked my status. Getting into Tier 3 was definitely worth it, it seemed. My defense was almost 36k, and anything that hit me for less than 22560 damage was just going to bounce, and attacks from Tier 2 or below weren’t going to do anything.

Now, what kind of skills was this going to give me access to?