“Some survive a few days and think they know everything there is about the Void and the creatures it births. Nothing could be further from the truth. I have lived longer than most, and there is still so much I don’t know.
The Void is vast, maybe even infinite. Mysteries and new Voidlings are hiding at every corner, just waiting to be discovered. As such, even though I have said it a million times, I will say it again.
Be wary of your every step, sleep with your eyes open, guard your soul, and fight with everything you got in the face of the Void. Because trust me, the Void will hold nothing back.”
–Into the Abyss by Lone Traveler
Leo entered a large room just a few steps after Dylan. In the past, this might have been a living room where families gathered, but now it was nothing more than a shadow of itself. Pieces of broken furniture lay scattered everywhere, while Vetilim had already consumed most of the walls.
Gotta get used to those sights. This is the new normal now. He frowned and let his gaze wander to the corner of the chamber. A single candle illuminated the area, throwing light on a collapsed couch that was claimed by an unknown person.
Laura, his mind supplied.
Even though Dylan and Tyler slightly blocked the view, he had no problem taking in the girl’s most prominent features.
Short blonde hair, unkempt and tangled from lack of care, framed her pale face. Her breathing was shallow and labored, and if it hadn’t been for the glimpse of her blue eyes behind her almost closed eyelids, he would have assumed she was asleep.
Just from her facial expression alone, it was obvious that something got her good. Yet the moment his gaze wandered lower, to her bare right shoulder and arm, he no longer needed to look for the source of her suffering.
Leo grimaced as he drank the sight of sickly and deformed green flesh. If it weren’t for how thin Laura’s arm now looked, it wouldn’t be that much different from his own cursed limb. Just green instead of gray.
Something ate through her skin like acid. If the Voidling didn’t run away, I would have said it might be a variant of a Maniac. But no, it just doesn’t match… Fuck, why would it leave after scoring a hit like that?
“Laura, hey.” Dylan’s voice brought him back to reality as the man knelt beside the prone girl. “I’ve got some good news, lass. The street is clear now, all thanks to our new friend here. Lad pretty much killed all Voidlings alone and decided to join up with us. As soon as you get better, we can leave for the trainyard.” The man turned to him. “Come on, Leo, meet our archer.”
Archer, hmm? His eyebrow rose a bit even as he stepped forward.
The girl’s head slowly drifted to the side, her lips pulling into a pained smile as her eyes landed on him. “H-hey,” she stuttered out, her voice quiet and shaky. “Th-thanks for helping us. You have no idea how much it mea—”
Suddenly, a shudder ran through her body, painting a grimace on her face. “S-sorry. It has been hours now, but the pain just won’t go away. I’m starting to think that maybe you all should just…”
“No!” Tyler cut in, squeezing her hand. “We’re not leaving you. Don’t even think about it. A few more hours and you will feel better, Lu. Just give it time.”
“Quite so, lass,” Dylan quickly added. “Listen to your cousin. We’ve got this.”
Leo smiled when the girl slumped deeper into the couch, the strength to argue leaving her before it could have even been used. There was no use fighting with a concerned family, a fact he understood pretty well from experience.
Maybe…
He kneeled on the other side of the couch and looked at girl and then at her sickly shoulder. “Can I?” he asked softly.
In the corner of his vision, Tyler and Dylan tensed, the former’s mouth opening before Laura could even process the request.
“Hang on a minute!” the warrior all but shouted. “We have already tried all we could, and nothing worked. Even the System refused to help. What makes you think you can do anything? You are a reporter, for fuck’s sake!”
“Bloody hell, Tyler,” Dylan hissed, although his gaze barely left Leo. “He’s part of our group now, and he’s been nothing but helpful. Quit with the attitude.”
All right, enough of that. We are wasting time. Even if I can understand where this reaction is coming from…
Leo faked a chuckle, gathering the trio’s attention. “Don’t worry about it. I would have reacted the same if it were my cousin. Still, do you think I can take a closer look? I swear I won’t do anything to harm her.”
This time the answer came from Laura after she shared a look with Tyler. “Why?”
With a sight, he raised his cursed arm, not even reacting when her eyes widened. “You could say I have a unique outlook on anything that comes from the Void… and I have a few more levels than the three of you. Who knows, I just might find something you have missed.”
As soon as he finished speaking, he thought the girl would panic for a moment. However, just then, Dylan placed a hand on her other shoulder and smiled. Hesitantly, she turned back to Leo and nodded.
“All right then,” he muttered, slowly bringing a single claw closer to the deformed flesh. “Let me know if it hurts, okay?”
With another nod from the girl, he shut his eyes and softly closed the remaining distance between the arm and claw. Laura inhaled sharply, but he paid it no mind; his entire focus was on the Essence surrounding him. Or rather, the energy that poked at his claw.
It was wild and familiar—so very familiar. Even though it was muffled and weaker, the anger and hate were still there, swirling around his touch.
Just like the energy in the Planetary Gateway. Only it’s not attacking this time. Why? What is your purpose?
He opened his eyes, brow furrowed. “I’m gonna try something, okay? It might sting a bit.”
This time, the girl didn’t hesitate to agree, and Leo pushed his claw a bit deeper. Only to stop when the girl let out a weak hiss. That has to be enough. At least for now.
He took a deep breath and concentrated fully on the one ability that just might help here. At this point, the feeling of Drain was as familiar as the beating of his heart, and he knew precisely what he had to do.
Intent, will, and control. Just like with the Pulse.
With a single command, the tainted nature of his claw tugged on the Void Essence inside Laura’s arm. Come on, slow and steady. The cursed energy trickled into his hand like an almost dry stream, but he didn’t try to force it, happy to just slowly let his arm consume it.
Out of the blue, the flow reversed, tugging at his own Essence like an angry demon. The pull was weak, barely strong enough to take a bit of the energy he had consumed back. Yet when he broke the connection and tried the same tactic again, the wild energy snapped at his own, refusing to be controlled.
“Shit,” he muttered, opening his eyes.
“What on earth was that?” Tyler whispered, looking between his cousin and Leo. “Something glowed in the spot where your hand touched Laura. What did you do?”
Nonetheless, he ignored the younger man completely, watching as some color returned to the girl’s pale skin. Even the greenness on her arm faded a bit.
So it worked, at least to some degree.
Dragging a hand through his hair, Leo finally addressed his temporary patient. “How do you feel now?”
The blonde girl blinked, shakily raising her injured arm. “Better,” she murmured. “It still hurts. I can feel it burning underneath my skin, but now it is a bit weaker? Subdued?”
He nodded, expecting as much. “In that case, I have good and bad news.”
“Good and bad news?” Dylan shook his head as he sat down on the floor. “That’s never good to hear. You’ve got to explain, mate. From the beginning, cuz I have no idea what you just did.”
With a sigh, Leo settled down a short distance away from the mage. “As you already know, unlike you three, I’m a Tainted Human, and this”—he motioned to his left arm—“is the source, or result, of my special race.”
“While I’m not really complaining anymore, there is still one drawback to my condition. Negligible as it is at this point,” he continued. “If I don’t consume Essence from defeated Voidlings, the curse will spread until it takes over my body. Like I said, it isn’t a problem currently, but it was in the beginning.”
Dylan nodded, a thoughtful look on his face. “Understandable, mate. A bit morbid, but it’s the kind of thing this apocalypse could bring about. Still, what does it have to do with Laura?”
“A lot,” he answered before looking at the girl. “Your injury, and don’t ask me how, has plenty of unique Void Essence residing inside it. It’s wild, angry—hateful, even—but there is one crucial similarity between it and any other Void energy.”
For now, let’s leave the subject of Planetary Gates out of this conversation. Same with the Rift… No one needs to know about that. No one.
Putting his claws on display in front of everyone, he finished his explanation. “I can drain it. The System gave me an ability just for that. Well, not exactly, but you get the point.”
Silence fell upon the room for a moment, yet just like he expected, Tyler quickly broke it. “That’s good, right?” he asked, his gaze glued to his cousin’s arm. “Lu already looks better.”
Leo sighed. Here came the bad part. “It would be good if I had managed to drain the entire thing… or if I could drain the entire thing.”
Tyler froze. “You mean…”
“Yeah. There is still plenty of that Essence inside her arm, and I can’t do anything about it. At least not as I currently am.”
“So that’s the bad news,” Dylan grumbled. “I’m not going to lie, mate. For a sec there, I hoped you were like our private messiah. Ready to solve every problem we had.” He chuckled bitterly. “Stupid of me to even think someone like that exists in this fucked-up world.”
“I…” he began, only to be cut off by Tyler.
“You said ‘currently,’” the younger man pointed out, fixing his gaze on Leo. “That means you can just get stronger. Mate, you are already ahead of the curve. What are a few more levels?”
Leo grimaced at the pure desperation seeping out of Tyler’s mouth. “It’s not as simple. The Syst—”
“What? Why?” Laura’s weak voice reached their ears, reminding them of the fourth person in the room—the one this entire conversation was about.
Let’s get it over with. No reason to hide this, he thought with a mental shrug, even if the constant questioning began to slightly annoy him. This conversation would have already been over if they hadn’t been cutting him off.
“I can’t level up,” he explained, keeping his voice even. “The System blocked me a few hours ago because my current race can’t handle any more power. It’s gonna happen to you too, sooner or later.”
“Right then, mate,” Dylan said, quickly catching on. “If your current race can’t handle any more strength, then evolution is the obvious option, right? Why haven’t you gone for it yet?”
“Safety and my family.” Leo specifically avoided looking at the trio and kept his gaze on the cursed arm as he spoke. Take the hint. Safety is obvious. Family, even more, when you look at me.
Tyler’s almost silent “Oh” confirmed that at least he understood. And when he raised his head, the expressions on Laura’s and Dylan’s faces told him the rest.
Thank the Void for small mercies.