open my eyes and look at the endless fields of the world I find myself in. Immediately I notice some changes. Both to me and the world around me. Where were once flat plains are now rolling hills. Where once only fields of grass grew I saw bushes and trees standing proudly around the area and a faint wind was rustling their leave. It made things seem more…natural. If not for the still very empty sky above.
Walking slowly up a hill I also take note of my regained youth. The old hunched form that I had been wearing for ten years was gone through a momentary thought reveals that yes, I still had the elderly form available to me. I am momentarily tempted to don it again. I admit I liked some of the habits that the elderly form gave to me. My frame was weaker, having to be supported more by the cloak of shadows that was my vampiric powers, but the weakness felt…humanizing. It made me feel less like a Vampire. I understood why Alucard was enamored with it.
"Welcome back," my benefactor says, appearing before me, its glittering helm gleaming in glittering colors. "I see you are doing well."
"Yes," I reply without missing a beat. "I'm glad that my experience in that world is over. I thought the 80s action movie world was overdone when it comes to world ending threats. The DC Earth is worse."
"Indeed," Alucard says, rising from my shadow and standing beside me. He was once more wearing his iconic red trench coat and fedora. He glances around at the vast plane we found ourselves in. "I believe that this is the first time we meet. You are the Jumper's Benefactor yes?" he asks as he gives a rather formal bow. It was still strange seeing Alucard like this but this was the mannerism when he was in his original form, still very much holding the old formality of royalty.
My benefactor gives a slight bow in return, an arm splayed outward in a flourish. "Indeed I am. It is nice to meet you this time Alucard. I will admit that I was somewhat disappointed that I had to retrieve your coffin that time. But never mind that," it says as it turns back to face me. "It is a good thing that you did not grow too far into this foray."
I quirk a brow. "Oh? Is my gaining too much strength an issue?" I know that I was being given purposely weak jumps early on, but I thought that was supposed to be passed with the initiation that he gave me over. "I didn't think that was still an issue."
My benefactor waves it off. "Oh it isn't. Not entirely, but the rules that were established when the chain was created set up rules on which jumper were and were not acceptable. Power level played a great deal of it. For example under the rules I can't send you to a world that gives world breaking power like Dragonball Z this early in your chain. We have to build up you see."
"And Justice League Dark doesn't give world breaking power?" I question. "I know numerous things that would have made me nigh-omnipotent already if not for my own caution."
It nods. "Indeed. In hindsight it was a miscalculation that would have resulted in changing things to better fit the chain. Worse comes to worse you would be given an early End Jump and the entire affair would restart with us more…aware of the possibilities."
That alarms me. "What? I'm only finding out about this now?" I ask. "That would have been nice to know beforehand." I was not going to be ending this chain until I knew I could match any threat that I've found so far and considering that I tried to contend with Darkseid once that was a lot.
The masked figure shrugs. "You know now. Really it was meant to stay secret. A pattern that you would have intuited eventually when you go up enough in power. Do rest assured we will try to limit things in the future and worst comes to worse I will warn you."
"What is the point of limiting the power of the jumps anyway," Alucard asks, having been nodding along during the conversation. "Based on what the Jumper has told me it couldn't be a threat to you."
"Inspiration," my benefactor says. "The chain was set up for a reason and early lead up to extreme power is counterproductive. But enough about this. You will be able to find out more in the future. Let us get your next jump started. The next jump is Skullduggery Pleasant. Do you remember it?" it asks me pointedly.
I nod, "Yes," I state, "But I've never really stayed afloat of it."
"Then it is a good thing that you hold the records then," my benefactor says before passing me a slate.
Looking through the documents I quickly make my choice. Honestly with my skills no other origins don't really appeal to me so Drop In is chosen. Pick a Name, Any Name is chosen to give me what I need. True Naming was a powerful magic. I knew numerous spells that could take advantage of it and having a protection over all forms of it was a god send. I take Tailor Made for the utility it given I didn't really have much in the way to enchant clothing besides the basics. What really catches my eye though is the most expensive item provide. God-Killer.
I look up. "When the God Killer Weapon says that it can kill anything that means anything right?" I ask.
My benefactor nods. "Yes. Anything that is cut by the weapon is killed though that is the operative word. If you cannot cut the target then the weapon cannot take effect. Be careful of unwoundable opponents."
I nod. "That is good to know," indeed while a good way to kill unkillable opponents invulnerable opponents would still be an issue. But the unkillable was always an issue for me given the sheer prevalence of regeneration in the enemies I hunted. "For the import can I have it apply to my Holy Bayonets?" I ask.
It shrugs, "I don't see why not. The synergies discovered across the chain is one of the points of the chain in the first place. Yes, you can create an unlimited amount of God Killer Bayonets," it says amicably. "But don't expect it to keep the properties if you do something like melt it down like what you did for Alucard's guns."
"Noted," I state before I select the item. Moving on I select the import option for Alucard. "Alucard make your build," I state, passing him the slate.
The century old vampire nods and gingerly takes the computer, his eyes moving back and forth across it before he makes his decision and passes it to me. I glance down at it. "Oh? You sure you just want that enhanced necromancy? I think we already have magic that covers it."
The vampire shrugs, "I presume for much the same reason that you selected Teleportation for you magic despite already having the House of Mysteries and I don't really trust the magic of that world. Too volatile."
"Fair enough," I state as I look at the drawbacks. I needed 300CP. Like Edward and Bella is selected if only because I was sure I could handle the stalker rather easily and A Ghastly Appearance is chosen because I really did not care for what I looked like. The difficulty in female attention was difficult to swallow. Close to two decades of celibacy due to a combination of either being undead and busy or being too old was difficult to maintain after all. But needs must as the other drawbacks were simply too much.
Finalizing my selection I give it back to my waiting Benefactor who takes it. I node idly that Alucard has already walked away, staring intently at the endless expanse of white that was this world's sky. Glancing down at it my Benefactor nods. "Very well the choice is finalized," it says and the tablet vanishes in a puff of smoke.
Spoiler: build
Skullduggery Pleasant
Location: Dublin, Ireland: Home of the Irish Sanctuary, and where the plot kicks off. Also a Cradle of Magic - a country with a high propensity of magic. Most of the series takes place here.
Age: 18
Origin: Drop In: No new memories cloggin' your noggin', but also no new memories to help you out in this world.
Perks
Pick a Name, Any Name (900): See, here's the thing: in this world, nearly everyone has two names - the Given Name (the name you were given at birth) and the True Name (a secret, even to the person in question, It's very hard to find out your or anyone's True Name, and learning your own grants godlike power). Normally, a Sorcerer can use either of these to compel a person to obey them. However, any proper Sorcerer has a third name: the Taken Name. The Taken Name is a name chosen by a sorcerer that seals your Given Name so that it can't be used to control you. Now, you'd be able to do this even without this perk, but this comes with a few extras: First, this will also seal your True Name, which is a much more difficult and dangerous procedure than this. Second, it makes it so any name you choose, no matter how ridiculous will be accepted by everyone with a straight face. Finally, it makes these effects carry over to future jumps, making it impossible to compel you with your name and allowing you to become known by whatever stupid name you can cook up. Oh, and you can change your Taken Name as many times as you want.
Real Nice Hair: Your hair is always amazing, and you can style it however you wish - even in ways that shouldn't be possible. Want some spiky anime hair? Go for it; this'll even keep it from looking absurd. Your hair even seems to be magical enough to keep itself from becoming too dirty. If the rest of your is covered in mud, your hair will still be as lustrous as if you just walked away from he stylist.
Tailor Made (800): You have the knowledge of how to weave magic into clothes, making them incredibly durable and protective. They're capable of protecting the wearer from most things, including bullets, knives, magic, extreme heat, and large amounts of blunt-force trauma. They also look damn stylish.
Magic (1000): Teleportation (400): Exactly what is says. You're capable of teleporting to anywhere you can see or have been before - or you will be, eventually. At first, you can only teleport a few miles at a time and only take one person with you, but eventually you'll be able to repeatedly teleport entire rooms of people anywhere in the world. There are a couple of things you should be aware of, though: teleporters tend to be disliked due to people being afraid of their ability to simply appear wherever they wish and as teleportation is an inborn ability, there are only a handful of teleporters in the entire world, making finding a teacher somewhat difficult. Also, the plot of one book involves killing off all but one of them, so you may want to watch out for that.
Items
Money (350): Whether magical or muggle, it makes the world go round. And now you have the equivalent of $50,000 USD in whatever the currency for your starting location is.
God-Killer Weapon (-250): Hoo, boy. You've somehow managed to get your hands on one of the weapons used by the ancients. This magical weapon - be it a sword, a bow, or some entirely different, if similarly primitive, weapon - turns anything it wounds to dust. As the name implies, it can kill basically anything, including normally immortal beings such as gods. Normal people and items can be turned to dust with a single scratch. You may import a melee or missile weapon you already possess to gain these qualities.
Import: Holy Bayonets
Companions: Old Pals (-300): Alucard – Detective – Age: 19
Perks
Pick a Name, Any Name (500): You really know how to make an entrance - or an exit. Whatever the case, you can almost always find a way to enter an area that instantly draws everyone's attention, and serves as a momentary distraction. Just be prepared to pay for the property damage you'll inevitably cause.
Doors are For People with No Imagination: You really know how to make an entrance - or an exit. Whatever the case, you can almost always find a way to enter an area that instantly draws everyone's attention, and serves as a momentary distraction. Just be prepared to pay for the property damage you'll inevitably cause.
No Skin, Just Bones (200): Doot doot. Like a certain gentleman detective, you seem to have something of a condition. With this perk, you're now a living skeleton being animated by magic. Of course, this means that you no longer need sleep, food, water, or air. Also, if you get pulled apart, you can pull yourself back together again. And as long as you have most of your bones, no part of you is actually essential; lose your head? No problem, just stick another one in its place and go back to kicking ass. Oh, and post jump, you can shift into a skeletal version of any alt-form you may have. Just make sure it actually has a skeleton, because I have no idea what would happen if you tried to use in on a jellyfish form.
Magic: Necromancy: You now have the magic of necromancy, which functions by you storing your power in an object and using that as a focus to manipulate shadows. You can use the shadows to attack, defend, create various solid shapes and constructs, and teleport a few hundred meters or so. Necromancers can also sense death around them and draw on it to increase their power. If your object is destroyed or if you wish to create a new one, the power returns to your body, mostly useless until you create a new focus. (If you purchased No Skin, Just Bones or Color-Coded Cleaver, then your status as technically dead greatly enhances your necromancy. You can control many more shadows, teleport more than a mile, imbue corpses with a fraction of your power to create zombies, and gather shadows around your body to allow you to fly. You won't start out on their level, but someday you could be a match for the likes of Lord Vile or Melancholia St. Claire, at which point you'll be able to perform a "Death Bubble": a technique which lets you expand your power and awareness for about a city block around you and then pull it back in, ripping out the life force of beings caught in it and using it to empower yourself)
Items
Magic Dampener (0): Whether it's a ring, a bracelet, a set of handcuffs, or something else, you have a small item that, when worn, prevents magic from being used. The person wearing it can't remove it themselves.
Drawbacks
Like Edward and Bella (-200): You've got an admirer. They follow you everywhere like a lost puppy. They constantly wax poetic about their love. They watch you while you sleep. It's all very romantic. They may not take a breakup so well, though.
A Ghastly Appearance (0): Due to a curse, your body is covered in horribly unnatractive scars. They won't actually physically impede you at all, but they're really ugly and can't be healed, no matter what. Good luck getting laid
Master there is a guest at the front gate," Or'gul says fading into my office . "It is Alucard," he says.
I nod. "So he's finally made it here eh? Good. I was getting antsy about having that magic beacon set up." I push my chair back and walk towards a random door. Over the years my office had become lined with dozens of doors leading to nowhere. It made getting to wherever I wanted simply enough without the disorientation of the house simply changing my environment.
Opening it I enter the porch and grin at the skeletal man in a red suit. "So," I state with joviality. "How is it like not being a drop in. I know my first time involved a good deal of adjustment."
The skull's jaws shift with discomfort. "Difficult," Alucard admits, already moving towards me. "I have two centuries of memories. Like you said. Completely different background but it has the same end result. It is…strange."
"You'll get used ot it," I state cheerfully. "Though now that you're here I think its time for us to enact the plans I've thought up," I state as I gesture for him to enter the house, the house itself already beginning to shudder slightly from the impeding change of locales.
Alucard quirks a brow, having returned to his original form. "Oh? SO you will actually be more proactive here?"
I shrug, "I'm tired of hiding."
---
I will admit. Gordon Edgley was a good writer. Reaidng through his books I gained an insight into the magical world without actually reading it. Oh I knew some of them were embellishments but the familiars I had moving through the streets of Roarhaven rapidly reveals that not all of it was. The magical world in this setting was as dangerous as the world I was in. Oh there were less world ending threats. Really it seemed like the various end of the world events that are described in the Skulldugery Pleasant books are the result of a singular confluence of events. IN a way I could understand Fergus Edgley's distaste for magic. To use it in this world was to be involved in a place where murdering a rival was distressingly common despite the activities of the Sanctuary and their detectives.
It made sense of course. Mages lived for centuries at a minimum so most of the true powers in the world were alive before the industrial revolution. It is actually a miracle that their world wasn't subsumed by centuries old grudges perpetuated by millennia old Archmages or Grand mages in this case. But then again the people were surprisingly modern in their thinking. Yet for all the laisse faire attitude many had in this world it was all a pot waiting to explode. Too many dominoes were in motion and too many rogue actors remained free. That needed to be stopped.
"And yet you are about to do something that would see this world's magicians hunt you down," Alucard notes.
I sigh. "It's not like I expect them to be too much of a problem. You've already noticed haven't you Alucard? There are no creatures currently in this world that can be a threat to us," I state with confidence. "At least if we don't act stupid," I amend after some thought.
"Indeed," Alucard nods. "Though a part of me will miss the challenge the last world gives."
I snort, "Only you. I am in no particular hurry to know what it is like dying. Having to use my one up multiple times during that last jump was nightmarish enough." I stop and look. "We're here," I state as I look at the basement wall made of stone. On it was an indent that I knew to be the key to the catacombs beneath the mansion.
Reaching into my pocket I take out the brooch that was bequeathed to one Fergus Edgley. It was rather easy to get it all told for something so precious, but I guess its nondescript nature is what makes it so well hidden for those that did not know. Folding it into the proper form I insert it into the indent and smile when the stone wall shifts to show the entrance. Distantly I could hear the growls and scratching of the various monsters that dwelled within.
They are no threat. Alucard and I glide through the catacombs with ease. The few beasts that try to attack are killed instantly by a single cut from my holy bayonets, a quick test on their effectiveness. Finally we reach our goal. Nestled at the very end of the hand I see the Sceptre, standing innocuously in a rather modern wooden case. Gingerly I reach out and grasp it. A creature roars towards us and black lightning lashes out from the crystal on the tip, reducing it to ash.
Yes this was the right one.
---
"EDIH EM" I state as magic washes around me to make me invisible. My shadows extend and probe the Waxworks Museum that was the front of the Irish Sanctuary. Rapidly enough I find the entrance and slip through the cracks to the door, a shadow. Idly I notice the cleavers stationed at the entrance. They were meant to be rather dangerous things in this world but then again the level of magic in this world was nothing compared to the last.
Walking out of the shadows I finally look at my target. The Book of Names is proudly displayed in the pedestal, its curators confident in the protections set up around them. To be fair for most things in this universe it would be enough. The collective will of 3 of the most powerful sorcerer's in the world was indeed a potent defense in this world. Unfortunately my mind was immune to all forms of mental manipulation. Walking forward I felt something try to press on my mind but bull through it until the book is before me. It was a rather innocuous thing all told. A simple leather bound book. I question why an artifact of the Ancients is a book when they were from a period before recorded history but then again I stopped question the idiosyncrasies of worlds after the time in the last world.
Holding the book in my hand I release the magic hiding me. Immediately I could hear the pitter patter of stomping feet rushing towards the room. So they did have security measures just in case the defenses were breached. A shadow elongates and reveals the elderly form of one Morwenna Crow. Seeing me with the book in my hand her eyes widen. "How?" she says before shadows streak through to try to pierce me. "Cleavers stop him!," she yells making the masked warriors try to stop me.
Of course that failed. The Will of the Elders still very much existed. It was rather interesting actually seeing the indoctrinated guards halt as they approached. To be fair they got close enough to at least attempt an attack before falling back, confusion evident in their body language. Immediately tendrils of black shadow reach toward me. Before they reach I reach out and flick a spark of energy that immediately has the shadows fall apart.
"No need to worry Elder" I state as I reach into my cloak and bring out the crystal tipped scepter which causes Morwenna's widen.. "I was about to finish," I continue as I lift up the scepter and will it to fire. Black lightning lashes out and strikes the book immediately disintegrating it. At the stunned looks of everyone present I could only laugh before teleporting away to the House of Mysteries. That was phase 1 finished.
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