Awaken Online (Book 3.5): Apathy

by Bagwell, Travis

  Eliza screamed a warning, and one of the men whirled, his sword in hand. He slashed at the sporeling, his blade slicing easily through the mold creature and carving a furrow in its arm. However, the blow also released a wave of spores that sprayed the poor man’s face. He immediately breathed in the fungus, letting out a gurgling scream of pain before toppling over. Then the sporeling was upon him, latching onto his body with its corrupt arms.

  Brian turned to help the downed man, but Eliza grabbed his arm. “You can’t,” she yelled. “He’s gone. We need to keep moving.” The other men glanced at her with fear-glazed eyes, but they didn’t move immediately. “Run! Now, or we’re all dead!” she yelled, forgetting her own nervousness in the heat of battle.

  As they kept up their headlong dash, Eliza spared a final glance back at the downed shepherd behind them. The mist was slowing the infection that was spreading through his body, but it wasn’t enough to stop it entirely – merely prolonging the agony. With a hollow pit in her stomach, Eliza shifted the mist, keeping it with the group and uncovering the infected man. He was immediately overtaken by the mold as her protection left him.

  She didn’t have time to dwell on his death.

  The other sporelings were charging again, and a wave of fire was visible in front of the group, signaling that they had nearly come full circle around the compound. The shepherds fought off the creatures as best they could within the mists as Brian set the final barrel. The men tried to cover their faces and skin, but it was no use. Even the smallest scratch would cause the sporelings to expel a cloud of mold and Eliza’s mist was continuing to lose its efficacy. The creatures seemed to have no sense of self-preservation and would lunge blindly at the shepherds, making it hard to avoid their attacks.

  Brian ignited the final barrel, and it exploded in a shower of flame. The heat pushed back at the creatures and created a small opening around the group. Eliza could now see a wall of fire encircling the farm, the flames darting into the sky and incinerating the spores that drifted on the wind.

  Meanwhile, an army of sporelings was approaching through the pink mist toward their injured and tired group. They were now taking their time, as though they knew that their prey was trapped. The creatures’ gangly, corrupted bodies jerked as they stepped forward slowly and their hissing wheeze mingled with the roar and crackle of the flames behind the group.

  The massive bell tower framed the oncoming horde of sporelings in the distance. Its surface had continued to mutate in the time it had taken the group to make their way around the compound. The wooden beams had long since been devoured, and a gigantic glowing blue bulb now rested in its place, the plant stretching nearly thirty feet into the air and blue veins riddling its surface. The skin of the bulb seemed to throb and pulse ominously.

  As Eliza stared at the oncoming sporelings and felt the heat of the fires at her back, the thrashing sensation in her stomach finally settled, only to be replaced by a heavy weight. They had succeeded in walling off the mold, but now they were trapped inside the farm without anywhere to run.

  Brian looked at Eliza, his eyes glazed over with fear and his chest heaving. “What do we do now?” he asked frantically. Only Joe and two of the shepherds still stood nearby, sweat trickling down their skin and reflecting the glowing inferno behind them as they faced off against the oncoming creatures with their weapons raised.

  “I-I don’t know,” Eliza gasped, watching as the sporelings descended upon the group. “I just… I don’t know,” she repeated in a whisper.

  Chapter 32 - Evolved

  Eliza’s thoughts raced as she saw the sporelings approaching through the mists. The heat of the flames on her back was almost oppressive, yet it didn’t seem to deter the mold monsters as they continued forward, each ponderous step another nail in their coffins. The sporelings didn’t seem to be affected by her mist any longer, the vapor only causing a thin layer of mold to peel away from their bodies.

  The remaining shepherds and Brian clutched at their weapons, preparing to make a last stand as Eliza stared at the oncoming monsters. In the distance, the enormous sapphire bulb pulsed with a disturbing blue light, the entire structure vibrating slightly and causing the ground to tremble and shake.

  No brilliant plan materialized.

  No epic music played.

  No one was coming to their rescue.

  Eliza didn’t know what to do, and their backs were quite literally pressed against a wall of fire.

  “Stay behind me,” Brian said, pushing her toward the rear of the group. He spared a momentary glance at Eliza, and she could see the fear in his eyes. Despite that, he was still trying to protect her – the person who had caused this entire mess and killed all of these people. Guilt swiftly colored the chaotic whirlwind of thoughts spinning through her mind.

  The sporelings didn’t wait for her self-recrimination. The front line of creatures struck the shepherds. It was a massacre. The men tried to swing their weapons, but they were ineffective against the insidious creatures, each blow simply launching more deadly spores into the air – which either landed on exposed flesh or were inhaled into the shepherds’ lungs where they ate away at their organs.

  Eliza watched as a creature latched onto Joe’s legs, a warning catching in her throat. Pinned, Joe was unable to react, and another sporeling leaped at his chest, curling around his upper torso. The creature then lifted a single arm, the mold spores shifting and tumbling erratically, before plunging the extremity into the shepherd’s throat. His eyes bulged, and his limbs flailed helplessly, but it was already too late. The mold immediately began eating at his insides, green veins appearing on his skin before exploding through his flesh and forming another thick cocoon.

  Finally, only Brian stood in front of Eliza, swinging his sword wildly and barely managing to keep the horde of creatures at bay. A handful of spores had already landed on his arms, and Eliza could see his flesh beginning to boil and peel away under the corrosive fungus. Despite the pain that she knew must be wracking his body, Brian kept fighting, refusing to give up his position even as his friends died around him.

  Eliza stood frozen watching the young man. He was dying. She could see that clearly even without the system UI. And what was she doing? Standing there watching? Frozen in indecision while these men gave up their lives for her mistake? Doing what she always did? Backing down – wracked by indecision.

  Brian stumbled to his knees, losing his balance as a sporeling snatched at his legs. Another creature loomed over him, preparing to deliver a death blow even as dozens of sporelings hung around them in the mists.

  Is this how they would die?

  Then a small flare of anger bloomed in Eliza’s chest. Why did it have to be like this? Why was she being backed into a corner again? This time it was the Hippie and Lord Baen. But didn’t she always do this? Allow other people to pressure her? Her parents. Her classmates. Is that who she was? Just a pushover? A punching bag that just blindly accepted others’ blows?

  In the back of her mind, a voice whispered, you don’t have to accept this.

  She wouldn’t. Not again.

  All at once, mana flooded her body in a rush. Eliza’s hands began moving of their own volition – dancing through an intricate series of gestures. She gave up thinking about what spells she was casting and gave herself over to the strange feeling that permeated her body. Shards of ice appeared in the air all around her, racing forward with terrible force and slamming into the body of the sporeling that stood over Brian.

  The creature reeled backward under the barrage, but Eliza didn’t relent. Dozens of glowing sapphire circles began to form around her and Brian as she continuously cast Cold Grasp. A moment later, massive spikes of ice erupted into the air, creating a formidable barrier between the pair and the horde of sporelings. However, she could already see the creatures beating against the barrier with their gangly limbs and the flames behind her beginning to melt the wall.

  Her eyes flitted to Brian where he lay on the ground
. Mold spores clung to his skin, his arms and hands little more than mangled stumps. He gurgled futilely, his eyes wide and panicked as he stared desperately at Eliza – pleading for help but unable to speak. She rushed to his side, dropping to her knees.

  I have to save him, she mentally screamed at herself.

  A part of her already knew that it was too late, but she shoved that doubting voice away, abandoning all reason as she ripped open her pack and grabbed at jars and vials. She applied the few remaining drops of Ferntail directly to Brian’s skin, but the herbicide barely blunted the mold. Then she used her healing potions, forcing him to swallow the crimson liquid and drenching his arms. The contents of dozens of enhancement potions of all shapes and sizes soon followed, sloshing against his body in a rainbow of colors. She used anything and everything at her disposal to slow the effect of the mold.

  It still wasn’t enough.

  Brian’s chest rose and fell feebly, and the creatures continued to slam against her makeshift, frozen wall. Yet she couldn’t think of anything besides saving the young man who had smiled at her. That grin was burned into her mind. She wanted to salvage something – anything – from this mess she had created. She had to. She stared at the cocktail of potions streaming down Brian’s skin. She just needed more, but she didn’t have any other potions or ingredients.

  Then a crazy thought occurred to her.

  In her desperation, Eliza began casting Accelerated Growth. Dewy drops of liquid mana formed around her fingers, but it wasn’t enough – not nearly enough. She poured her entire mana pool into the spell, feeding it every ounce of power she had left. The droplets on her skin thickened and solidified until they formed a solid coat of liquid mana. Then she pressed her hand to Brian’s chest.

  The effect was incredible. His body practically exploded, flowers and stems of all shapes and sizes blooming directly from his skin. Eliza couldn’t even track the number of herbs and plants that were present, and she numbly realized that the plants must represent every ingredient in the potions she had poured on his body, each lingering plant cell responding to the effects of Accelerated Growth.

  Vines and roots appeared along Brian’s arms, arching into the air and spiraling back down toward his body. His flesh and bone melted away under the changes, only to be replaced a moment later with a bark-like substance. His muscles turned into knotty ropes of vegetation. And, through it all, Eliza stayed beside him, her hand pressed to his chest, and her mana coursing through her body – even as she watched Brian’s eyes close and his face melt away under the changes.

  Then Brian’s body gave a final explosion of growth, throwing Eliza away. Her back slammed into the ice wall, causing cracks to radiate outward from the impact and the wind to race from her lungs in a whoosh. She fell to the ground a moment later, struggling to stay conscious as her vision swam and danced and red notifications appeared in her peripheral vision.

  “Brian,” she croaked, crawling back to his body as the ice walls around her finally began to crumble – the wheezing gasps of the sporelings filling the air once more. She inched forward until she could see him again.

  He was no longer human. That much was clear. Brian’s body was now a roiling mass of plant-life, woven together in such an intricate pattern and containing so many different species that Eliza couldn’t tell where one plant ended and another began.

  “Brian!” she shouted, her heart beating frantically and her water mana still flowing through her veins in a torrent.

  Then he opened his eyes. They glowed a brilliant blue. They weren’t the eyes of a human person, but they still looked at her with intelligence – with a sort of recognition. She clung to that.

  “Brian, it’s me. It’s Eliza,” she gasped at him, tears blooming at the corners of her eyes.

  “E-Eliza?” the Brian-creature murmured, its voice coming out like the whisper of rustling of leaves.

  “Yes,” she replied, not sparing any attention to the crashing sound of ice around them. Flames licked at the last remnants of her ice wall, and the rumbling continued to rock the ground around them. “It’s me.”

  “W-what…?” Brian tried to say, raising his arm to touch her face. He froze, his glowing eyes focusing on the branch-like appendage that was now his limb. “What is this?”

  “I… I had to save you,” Eliza choked out. “I had to!”

  She expected horror, anger… something. But what she received instead was a smile. Brian looked at her and smiled, despite the chaos around them and the deformed monstrosity that he had become. Time seemed to still for a moment, and Eliza just stared at him in confusion. The look he gave her was almost grateful.

  Then time sped back up as the wall finally crumbled, and the sporelings raced toward them, their limbs flailing wildly and a thick cloud of spores filling the air. Brian’s gaze turned toward them, and angry azure flames curled away from the orbs of energy that now made up his eyes.

  “No.”

  In a flash of movement, the spiraling branches that made up his arms erupted – growing at a tremendous rate and racing outward in a circle. The spindly appendages promptly ripped the sporelings apart. The tendrils tore at the creatures’ bodies, ripping and shredding them in a frenzy until a thick cloud of spores filled the air. However, Brian protected Eliza from the onslaught of fungus. His chest exploded, forming a shell of vegetation that blocked the malignant mold and seemed to absorb it into his very flesh.

  “What is this?” Eliza whispered, staring at the cage of branches surrounding them, flowers blooming along their length.

  “I-I don’t know,” Brian replied in a confused, distracted voice. “I think I can grow my limbs… It feels…”

  He trailed off, staring into space as he focused on something that Eliza couldn’t see. Meanwhile, the ground continued to tremble before splitting open, fissures forming in the dirt. Eliza focused on the epicenter of the tremors and found herself staring at the massive, glowing blue bulb in the center of the farm.

  The plant trembled and jerked, clearly causing the earthquakes that were rocking the compound. Cracks had formed around the enormous bulb and radiated outward through the compound. Eliza didn’t understand what was happening. Acting quickly, she used her Inspection skill.

  Queen Cluster – Level 500 (Boss)

  This creature has mutated to the point that it has evolved semi-sentience. The bulb appears to be preparing to release a massive cloud of spores into the air. So, umm, yeah. That seems bad! Maybe you should start running. Just an idea…

  Health – Unknown

  Mana – Unknown

  Equipment – Unknown

  Resistances – Unknown

  As Eliza skimmed the prompt, she breathed in sharply. She stared at the bulb with newfound fear, the structure towering nearly three stories into the air. It was sentient now? What did that even mean? And why was it trying to release spores?

  Her eyes darted between the bulb and the wall of flames that encircled the compound in confusion. Maybe she was approaching this wrong. If she were a mutant, sentient mold trapped inside a burning compound, what would she try to do? Dread filled her stomach as the obvious answer practically slapped her in the face.

  She would try to escape.

  “What is it?” Brian asked, noticing her fearful expression.

  “I-it’s that bulb,” Eliza gasped, pointing at the towering plant. “It’s about to release more spores. If it shoots them over the walls…”

  She trailed off, but Brian seemed to pick up on the implication of what she was trying to say. His sapphire eyes looked panicked for a brief moment before finally settling into a look of determination. He rose abruptly, the shield of branches withdrawing back into his body. As the barrier disappeared, Eliza could see that the sporelings were all dead, desiccated piles of mold lying around them in a circle.

  “Then we have to stop it,” Brian said, offering her a hand up. As he raised the limb, the branches shifted and twined together, forming something that resembled a huma
n hand.

  Eliza stared at the extremity. How could he have such courage after what they had been through? The death of the shepherds, the destruction of the farm, and the changes that had warped and corrupted even his own body. How could he still look at her with that little grin that curled the corners of the vines that now made up his mouth?

  And how could she back down in the face of that sort of courage?

  She accepted his grip, and he lifted her to her feet. At the same time, she forcefully summoned her water mana once more. If Brian had placed his life and his faith in her – then she would try to live up to it.

  “What do we do?” Brian asked calmly, waiting for her instructions.

  Eliza glanced quickly around them. The pen and barn still lingered nearby although the surface of the structure was now coated in a thick layer of mold. Several barrels of lanolin still rested beside the barn. Fire would probably work – it had certainly done the trick so far. They just needed to deliver it somehow. Her gaze darted between the oil and the bulb in the center of the farm as she tried to think of a plan.

  Brian was watching her closely, and he followed her gaze to the barrels of oil. “I can carry the barrels.”

  Eliza whirled toward him. “No. That’s suicide. There won’t be time to…”

  He just chuckled, the sound drifting from his lips like the rustle of branches. Brian lifted his arms, tracing the twining vines and flowers with one limb. “Don’t you see this body? I’m already dead! You gave me a second chance, and I owe you for this. Besides, as you said before, we can’t let the mold spread.”

  “But…” Eliza began, the guilt in her stomach thrashing like a living thing. He didn’t know that she had caused this; that she was responsible for his brush with death.

  “Don’t worry,” Brian murmured, moving closer and his vine-like fingers brushing her lips. “It doesn’t matter. We all grow and die, only to be reborn anew. I can see that now. I can see so much that I missed before.” His glowing blue eyes peered into hers, and it felt like for just a moment he could glimpse her soul.