Sickening crunches plodded along with heavy thuds, bodies dropping amongst a veil of fluorescent smoke. There were ten standing figures in the rural town, all of the cowering Inhabitants having been killed.
The reason why? The skeleton rampaged everywhere in the vicinity, the fear-laced sweat dripping down its attackers' muscles. But unfortunately, their collective attention wasn't enough to hold it, and the skeleton quickly broke their encirclement with its erratic and irregular movements.
Creaking noises snapped in their ears as its fingers loomed in their vision, hanging above them as if they were a guillotine. They had little guesses as to why they were slated for execution, and the skeleton lacked the capability to explain.
For every moment their eyes weren't affixed to its path; it slew one of the cowering Inhabitants. Soon, its crooked spine erected as it flicked droplets of blood off its bones.
Many insults rained down upon the skeleton, but it couldn't care about them. With each footstep, liquid splashed, washing against the walls and seeping into the ground.
It kicked off the terrain with a leap, falling into a crowd of gleaming edges. Arms wide and hands taut, it was as if its two hands had taken the guise of spears.
Lithely bending its visible spine in midair, it avoided each and every protrusion as its bunched digits slashed. First, lodging its glistening bones into their nose bridges, it ripped through flesh in a path that went up and over, ending at the back of their neck.
Screams of pain were but cursory noises that didn't even register to the skeleton, drowned out by the clattering of its bones and the knocking of weapons against each other.
Then, turning its wrists, it dug even further into the necks of the dying Inhabitants. Bony fingertips jutted out the other end, and the little skeleton swung the two bodies as it used them as shields.
It forced the Inhabitants to end the lives of those they lived with by their own hands. None were clean, and all were imbrued in the massacre.
Blink.
As Walker briefly looked at a figure in the distance, he turned his head back to the action once again. Slicing wounds appeared as crunching noises resounded, and somehow all the figures were dead.
Glancing at the weapons stained with gore, Walker's face formed a knowing look. One of understanding and reminiscing.
"The depression was too much, huh? These game things really do act like people."
The skeleton stood alone amidst the fumes, unknowing of the threat that was attracted by the rich stinging scent of iron.
"Well. Should I make my entrance?"
...
Overcast by the shadows of the rustic building, the skeleton slowly lost its vigor. Though the concept of exhaustion was foreign to it, it felt deprived of the energy that flooded the confines of its bones just a second ago.
Its bones wobbled and tugged downwards, the skeleton barely able to keep itself standing. Then, feeling its spine careen over forwards, it staggered toward a wall slick with falling liquid.
Tak.
A singular hand propped the little system of bones upward. It wasn't allowed to rest, however.
Because the quickening sound of heavy steps echoed with leaden stomps caused its bones to jostle.
Its neck bones rubbed together as the skeleton weakly swung its head over, seeing the blazing level indicator above the overwhelmingly tall monster's head.
[LV 10 Lord of the Howling]
A lupine figure with the head and fur of a wolf, jowls gleaming with overflowing saliva. It was covered in bulging muscles and even more prominent veins as if it had worked out from the womb.
Briars topped its head, appearing as a makeshift crown. Eyes that looked like sapphire radiated pure hatred and brutality, and its claws were covered in dingy-looking darkness.
Clad in makeshift apparel woven from the skin of various animals, it wasn't an exaggeration to call it the lord of The Wettened Woods. And it was drooling, the blood lingering in its widening nostrils.
Yet all it saw was a group of bones to lay its teeth upon.
"Hey, doggy~! That's not a chew toy..."
A sonorous, confident voice stamped out its reverberating growl, an alluringly handsome young man with a wide grin and narrowed eyes standing beside it. His sharp brows overlooked his angular eyes that were veiled by thick sandstone orange eyelashes.
Mauve purple irises casually directed their gaze to the big, drooling head in its fingers. One that looked identical to the one of the 'Lord of the Howling'...
The skeleton briefly saw two heads, one of a confused werewolf and the other of a shocked werewolf. A shockwave sounded not even a second later as the former head disappeared, leaving only the second to remain.
Walker moved so fast, both the skeleton and the werewolf were unable to perceive what happened. For a split second, that werewolf really did have a spare head!
Crunch.
The head and the body were simultaneously reduced to sapphire fumes lined with black. Walker wiped his hands on a nearby building as he approached the skeleton.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
The skeleton was scared out of its wits, adrenaline surging through the pitiful amount of mortisim it retained. Running at the fastest speed it had ever run before, it tripped over and landed squarely on its face.
Yet it doggedly kept moving, crawling at a surprisingly swift speed that prompted the man to laugh.
Fwoosh!
Tap.
Walker's image blurred and distorted as he appeared right before the skeleton's head. Then, tapping the surface of its scalp-bones, he raised the skeleton's head upwards as shadows lined with rich hues of darkened purple wreathed around its neck and upwards.
"...Want another try?"
The man gestured the other way as the skeleton struggled to skitter rearward. But it could not break the mysterious silhouette that held it in place.
"Tsk, tsk. This won't do. That fear..."
The skeleton was eclipsed in endless darkness as a dull thud bade it to slumber.
"...It's unbecoming. Well. Let's get this show on the road, shall we?"
With those words, the little skeleton was easily slung atop his broad shoulders.
...
Where the light dared not to tread, the boughs of the crooked trees were overflowing with drooping bunches of rufescent leaves.
The glow in this place was laced with amber at the center and roiling waves of black and rich hues of violet at the outskirts. It wasn't an extensive area, only having enough space for seven adults to stand shoulder to shoulder.
Sitting with his legs crossed, the one emitting both of the glares was one man. Walker.
It was the first time the skeleton took the time to pay attention to the features of someone. Of course, this was due to the fact that it was on edge, the tyrannical figure's mere breaths striking it with intense fear.
Continuing on from the description of his face, he had fine features and lustrous pale ivory skin. He was handsome even amongst the most attractive of men, his features seeming eerily perfect and almost divine. His gaze was both hot and cold, giving the vibe of one who was carried by his whims no matter what may come.
He was a very decisive man in his early twenties and stood at 6"3 in height. He had broad shoulders and muscles that were rigid yet lean. The body was optimized for streamlined movement and explosive power that one wouldn't expect if they judged him by his frame alone.
He wore a tight, black shirt with monastic robes overtop; the robes fitted with various zippers and chains that ended in expressive attachments of an odd-looking flower. On the back of the shirt was a large pattern depicting a cigarette underneath a metal fence, a demon with a wide wingspan perched atop it. Beneath this image were the words "Gargoyle's Bane" in a striking font.
His pants were slacks with belled ends; his shoes were grieves lined with broken skull shards that converged to form a grieving face. His overall vibe was one of a lone rose dropped in an area curtained by screams and surging darkness, a spotlight the solitary illumination.
Yet even that so-called brightness was murky, but it was just enough to draw those in. It was a pity that those smitten by the rose would never be seen again.
"Hey, you. Got a name?"
The man spoke as he opened one eye, his gaze locked on the faint trembles of the skeleton. The second he articulated, it lay even flatter somehow.
It tried to play dead, to no success. What a pity, it really was dead.
"You are 23 years too young to fool me, 'Skelly.' Now, let's get that cute face of yours off of the ground! Come enjoy the little slice of paradise I made, just for you."
Walker leaned forward, propping his head up on the backs of his hands. As seconds went by, his gaze intensified, even boring a hole into the ground right before the skeleton. When a minute passed...
BANG!
A dark explosion jolted the "dead" skeleton right awake!
Scrambling on its rear, it leaned back just in time to avoid the detonation. Or rather, Walker allowed it to escape his explosion.
He wasn't the kind of guy that missed a target, not when he meant to hit it.
"Did you sleep alright? How's your head, apprentice?"
The skeleton abruptly cocked its head to the side, looking around the small area for someone else. Then, upon sensing no one--and trust me, it really searched hard--it directed its tilted gaze back at the man with a dangerous grin.
It pointed a single digit back to itself, visibly confused.
Walker clapped as if he had just seen something awe-inspiring.
"Amazing, so you really can understand me? That makes this easier...anyways. You. Yes, you. You will be my apprentice. Now, could you tell your lovely system to stop flooding mine with messages?"
With a sweep of his hand, a screen composed of light materialized above his wrist, bearing words.
************+397 messages above.
Mara: If you don't tell your host to get your hands off my kid, I'll rearrange your organs ♡
SYS-899: I-i-i can't just tell him to stop! He never listens!
Mara: I-i-i-i shut the fuck up and make it happen, you stupid sonnuvabitch
SYS-899: I would if I could, esteemed madam; however, we don't have any control of our hosts, so...
Mara: I'm heading over in 5
Mara: 4
Mara: 3
***********+1 message below
The skeleton was confused again, funneling mortisim to its fingertips once again as it drew a little question mark in the ground.
Walker saw this as he held his chin, propping up a brow before releasing a sigh. Then, after his lungs fully deflated, he had a sudden idea.
"Anyways, you don't have a name, right? Why don't I name you, my apprentice? A master's gift to his student~"
He got very close, the skeleton only subtly scooting away. However, Walker was partially satisfied by this, as it showed that its innate fear was lessening.
"How about...Teret. It means burden, muahahaha..."
The skeleton raised its arms up in the air, its hands bunched into fists. It actually seemed to like this name, an eager vibe emitted by its countenance.
"OK! Teret it is...wait...huh. Oh, your mom doesn't like that. Hey, what's this suggestion...Usuku for day? What the hell...oh?"
The skeleton pumped its arms again at this, seemingly satisfied with both names. Then, as if the words took either right or left, it leaned either way but ended its movement with it in the middle.
"Oi, your mom says she wants first. But I'm calling you Teret, so I guess we can arrange your name like how they do it in Eastern Asia? The last name first! I like this idea, so let's go with it, huh? Huh?"
The skeleton brought its fist level to its sternum as it nodded, seemingly in agreeance. Then, as Walker read the last message, he pointed at the skeleton with a sole finger.
"Alright, Usuku Teret! Do you take me as your master?"
Teret reluctantly nodded.
"Good! Because you didn't have a choice in the matter!"