"Kratos…. Kratos! Just… just let me stand you have your kid to see to… these fuckers are swarming from all the realms because of the fates… so just go… they've had enough of me shit…"
"Boy, you can hardly breathe and stand! How do you expect to handle the army coming after us?"
Pulling a vial of what the Dwarven brothers liked calling "Berserker Brew" from the remains of my armored coat I swirled the vial at the aging God of War.
"Last vial… it'll heal me up but once it ends all the injuries will return and certainly kill me once they do explosively return… on top of the ones I'll be adding onto myself… so once you're through where you need to get to… seal it… destroy the branch if you have to Kratos… this is the end of the road for me… it was a pleasure knowing you… Ghost of Sparta…"
"Boy… You are mad."
"Pfft… I'm only mortal… an unfortunately fortunate mortal that got to meet you and your son… You've got God's to kill and Atreus to raise… so goodbye Kratos…"
Slipping from the God's arm easily enough given he wasn't trying to restrain me I popped the cork and downed the vial's contents. Throwing the empty vial to Kratos as he kept on walking with his son in one arm still. Chuckling as the giant of a man caught it with his free hand while trying to not crush it, a growl emanating from his throat. Stretching out as my wounds sustained healed up for now, I grabbed the remains of my hatchet and turned around. Marching towards the incoming enemies which I noticed now were a mix of Dark Elves, Draugrs, and Ancients with a few Soul Eaters and Soul Devours mixed in. So the Dark Elves couldn't do the job and thus they wove the others into killing me.
Chuckling as I felt my mind eroding slowly as I remembered my forgotten equipment from this adventure. It all served me well, but now it's just my axe left and even that was broken now after so long of traveling with Kratos and Atreus since I ended up involved with myths. I still don't know how it even happened, I just remember walking through the woods one day then next I knew I was involved with the two and couldn't go home. Now I'm going to die because of three Goddesses being anal about fate and not changing it even slightly. I wanted to cry but that wasn't going to help me now or then so I just chuckled.
Slowly starting to run as red clouds my vision I swung the remains of my hatchet violently burying it within the skull of a Draugr before ripping it out. These actions repeated until eventually I only saw red and just gave into a controlled but violent berserk state. My flesh mending slowly but surely or quickly depending on the amount of blood I stood amongst of fallen enemies.
\\// Kratos POV //\\
I have lived a long time since Sparta has fallen. I've seen and met many Mortals and Gods during this time, met my wife and had our boy. Yet meeting the boy who had decided to follow us after stumbling upon us and losing his way back home, had reminded me of Sparta. The boy wasn't fit or strong, he was fat and lazy by nature due to his more academic nature like that of Athena's own nature. Yet when he was forced down this path he took any training I had thrown his way with unyielding stubbornness to complete it. My boy had even taken to following his lead even if Arteus would last longer than the boy, my son would continue to push himself because of the older boy who would push his limits under my gruff guidance.
Arteus… Liked the boy and would learn with him or teach him things such as archery and what little magic he knew. So when he stayed behind to face his fate divined by the fates for changing our own fates, I felt annoyed. DISPLEASED. That the Gods of fate have set a respectable mortal upon the path of certain death for meddling in their plans not by his own choice.
"Dad… Where's Dakota?"
"The boy is facing the end of his journey behind us. The Gods of Fate have decided to prune his interference from our fates. He has accepted this…"
"Can't we help him any…?"
My body fell asleep once more as the wound on his chest caused him to lock up in pain. Thinking on his request, my steps slowed until I turned around to find the mortal boy. Seeing the corpses of his slain enemies falling off the branches of the tree, I found the boy eventually in the midst of the chaos of battle. His axe long gone, an arm missing, swords and spears piercing his body in fatal places. Yet the mortal fought on under the effects of that potion, his fate sealed once it wore off entirely. Grimacing, I decided to make his last moments worthy of his deeds and our bonds together. I blessed someone for the first time and it was catastrophic for the boy. Flames of hatred as strong as my own consumed him and the surroundings, the Tree of Life seemingly reacting. A wind strong enough to wipe everything in that area off from the branch along with the flames. Yet I felt the boy's life burn brightly with no regrets until he and the deceased or soon to be deceased fell into the void between realms. Staring at where he had disappeared, I still felt our connection due to the blessing so I knew that he lived.
Turning around once more, my trek resumed. I knew if the boy ever needed my guidance once more that we would meet in some form.
\\//\\//\\//\\
Catching the piece of chalk thrown at my head by my college professor. I gave the fifty year old man and leveled an unimpressed glare at the old shit. I placed the chalk on my table and drawled out my question lazily because this was the sixth attempt in five hours.
"Yes Professor Faraday? What can I help with this time?"
"Since you seem more distracted by your phone, then why don't you explain to everyone what's so fascinating to you on your phone?"
Glancing one last time at the scene happening in the back of class through my phone screen, I put my phone into my pocket.
"You'll see in three… two… one…"
Getting up from my seat and walking down the isles to head out of class, one of the students in the far back started to eat someone else. Opening the door while everyone was still in shock at what was happening I simply walked out of the room. Closing the door behind me then breaking the lock and sealing at most twenty infected and one hundred eight people in the room. Pulling my phone back out from my pocket and turning it on before entering the call section. Tapping something on my phone after I was a good distance away from what would happen. An explosion ripped through lecture halls behind me as explosives inscribed with an actual Fire Bolt cantrip went off.
Took me a whole month to plant those after the first report of zombies was posted then removed by the government or military. Twenty-five years alive in this world and I just managed to avoid dying, all while exploring the CYOA that had been given to me after I met a dead god in the void between realms. Turning the corner and sprinting a little bit past some classes filled with screaming I stopped by a random out of the way door. Grabbing my bag from the small behind it that was a disused janitor's closet before the hallways filled up with chaos. As not everyone seems to have realized what's going on yet or is already dead in class. I pushed open a nearby fire escape door and left the campus building. The world pauses just in time for me to see a flaming Professor Faraday fall from a window. The old man being almost entirely charred black his throat torn out.
Shrugging at the sight my vision soon filled with a Dungeon and Dragons character sheet. I was pleased that I was halfway to level three already when I saw my character sheet. Selecting certain spells and such preemptively, pleased seeing the choices on my sheet now.
[Kaiser Lockart | Warforged Human | Druid, Warlock, Artificer | Far Traveler | Chaotic Neutral |Level 2 540/900
— — — —
Status:
Armor Class: 16 | Proficiency +2
Strength: 18, +4(mod), +4(save) | Intelligence: 22, +6(mod), +8(save)
Dexterity: 19, +4(mod), +4(save) | Wisdom: 16, +3(mod), +3 (save)
Constitution: 14, +2(mod), +4(save) | Charisma: 14, +2(mod), +2(save)
— — — —
Abilities:
Strength: Athletics 4
Dexterity: Acrobatics 4, Sleight of hand 4, Stealth 4
Charisma: Deception 2, Intimidation 2, Performance 2, Persuasion 2
Wisdom: Animal Handling 3, Insight 5, Medicine 3, Perception 5, Survival 3
Intelligence: Arcana 8, History 6, Investigation 8, Nature 6, Religion 6
— — — —
Spells:
Cantrips: Fire Bolt, Mending, Thunder Clap, Spare The Dying, Mold Earth, Eldritch Blast, Sword Burst, Chill Touch, Find Familiar
1st LVL: Purify Food and Drink, Identify, False Life, Ray of Sickness, Unseen Servant, Comprehend Languages, Goodberry, Speak with Animals, Jump, Catapult, Witch Bolt
— — — —
Racial Features:
Within 120 feet of you, treat dim light as bright and darkness as dim light
Ability Scores increased by one
Light Fortification: Whenever a sneak attack or critical hit is scored, there is a 25% chance that the extra damage is negated and damage is rolled normal
Tireless: Immune to Fatigue and Exhausted conditions
Automatic Languages
Partial Inorganic: You do not require sleep, you only require one meal and water every two months
Pain Tolerance: Unless it's intentional self inflicted pain you do not feel it
— — — —
Artificer Features:
As an action, use tools to give a tiny object a visual, auditory, or olfactory effect.
-The object sheds bright light in a 5-foot radius and dim light for an additional 5 feet. Whenever tapped by a creature, the object emits a recorded message that can be heard up to 10 feet away. You utter the message when you bestow this property on the object, and the recording can be no more than 6 seconds long.
-The object continuously emits your choice of an odor or a nonverbal sound (wind, waves, chirping, or the like). The chosen phenomenon is perceivable up to 10 feet away.
-A static visual effect appears on one of the object's surfaces. This effect can be a picture, up to 25 words of text, lines and shapes, or a mixture of these elements, as you like.
-Artificer Infusions: Enhanced Weapon, Homunculus Servant, Repeating Shot, Replicate Magic Item: Bag of Holding
Druid Features:
-Druidic: You know Druidic, the secret language of druids. You can speak the language and use it to leave hidden messages. You and others who know this language automatically spot such a message. Others spot the message's presence with a successful DC 15 Wisdom(Perception) check but can't decipher it without magic.
-Druidic Circle of Spores
- Wild Shape
-Wild Companion
Warlock Features:
-Pact of The Undying
Repel attacks by undead creatures
You know the spells False Life and Ray of Sickness
Spare the Dying counts as a cantrip for you
-Innovactions: Mask of Many Faces, Repelling Blast
— — — —
Feats:
Gunner: You are proficient with firearms, you don't have disadvantage when firing at adjacent targets, you can fire the same weapon more than 1/round, and +1 Dex
Slotless: You can cast spells freely, over use though will cause headaches and eventually death
Materialless: Spells requiring materials can be cast without them in exchange for HP depending on the spell level
Spell Mixer: You can combine and mix spells (Self Taught)
— — — —
Proficiencies:
Armor - Light, Medium, Shields
Weapon - Simple, Firearms
Tool: Guitar, Thieves' Tools, Tinker's Tools, Blacksmith Tools
Languages: Common, Greek, Draconic, Elven, Asgardian, Roman
— — — —
Curses:
Frailty: You are more likely to get sick or break bones easily (partially counteracted)
Sociopath: You do not understand feelings, nor will you ever, the only feelings you truly understand are the warped feelings you simulate
Emotional Suppression: You barely register emotions at all when they come to you
Physical Immortality: You can never die, you will always regenerate, the only way you can die is if your soul is destroyed, this is both a curse and a blessing
Insanity: You always see and hear things that aren't there, things which would cause these hallucinations have no sway over you, only your own mind can torment you
— — — —
Blessings:
Tri-Class: You can have three classes at once and level them all together at once
Sparta's Blessing: Your rage is insurmountable, your always tightly lidded rage lets you suppress or ignore affects targeting your senses or were cast by a god
Last Words: Words left unsaid should you pass or leave the world permanently in some way shall be delivered regardless of world rules
— — — —
Soul Bound:
Bag of Infinite Ammo
Steam Deck
Android Phone]
For my artificer infusions I took Enhanced Weapon, Homunculus Servant, Repeating Shot, and Replicate Magic Item: Bag of Holding. Third artificer spell being Catapult. For my two Warlock Invocations I took Repelling Blast and Mask of Many Faces, because I'm more of an assassin and well I don't want to be dissected. Spell wise I took Witch Bolt as my third spell for Warlock. Druid wise I gained Wild Shape, Circle of Spores with Chill Touch as a cantrip, and Find Familiar to summon a Wild Companion without materials. But that point is obsolete anyways as I can do so now regardless, and I took jump as my third druid spell. With my selections done time resumed and I cast Find Familiar instantly. The summoned Spirit Animal being a Beast instead of Fae because I didn't require components. Although I did cough up blood because I used my life in order to summon a beast not a Fae. Because I'd prefer possibly avoiding any of the nonsense of a living Fae pulling something.
With a mostly solid white dire wolf now at my side, I made my way through the campus of my college. Pulling a hand axe from my bag along with my concealed carry weapon, a Colt Python. I drove the blade of my axe into a zombie's skull while blowing the brains of an early stage Lurker out before it could leap. Retching my axe from the corpse's skull, I noticed my wolf was busy crushing heads with its jaws or paws. Its rather magical strength helped do so with ease, after it figured out that it couldn't hunt normally. Since the zombies didn't die unless their brain got pulped just enough. Also while it should have low wisdom and intelligence normally, doesn't mean it's stupid.
The ghostly wolf was rapidly learning how to hunt the undead of this world I had been reborn into for a moderate challenge and to test certain things out in relative safety. World War Z as my new world was rapidly proving to be terrifying as the undead were already evolving to better hunt the living. Sliding under the flying form of a leaping sprinting zombie wearing a football uniform I quickly got back onto my feet and ran once more. My direwolf tackling what could be called a Charger, given it was another football armored zombie trying to shoulder check me while running almost as fast as a car, before ripping its head from its body using its teeth.
Running towards a parked car that was currently being swarmed, I threw my axe at the zombies, one the undead immediately dropping dead. Flexing my fingers, runes inscribed into the weapons handle light up before the axe rips itself from the corpse's skull and flies back to my hand. I had to thank those dwarven brothers for teaching me if I ever see them again, again their crafting techniques are handy even now in a new world. Catching the axe that had returned to me I swung at the undead that now noticed me, splitting the head of one while blowing the brains out of another. My wolf took down a few with its paws, teeth, and agility to get around the undead. The person in the car was a sobbing mess in the driver's seat when I decided to get in after shooting the corpse of a teen that was starting to twitch in the back seat through the window.
The door being locked meant nothing to me when I could just break the window and unlock it. Buckling in I slapped the driver, a man in his fifties when I actually took a minute to look at him. Reaching over and slapping the hysterical man across the face I make my demand very clear.
"Sir, DRIVE before we get swarmed."
My wolf in the meantime kept the undead away from the car as I watched the man snap out of it briefly before gunning it suddenly. With the suddenness of the car taking off I hit my head against the dashboard, my wolf jumping through the already cracking back window into the car. Landing on the corpse in the backseat that had half its head blown off before laying there in the seat after nudging the corpse in the floorboard. We drove in relative silence, the older man still a sobbing mess the entire time before eventually he grew quiet from his throat going hoarse from the sounds he made. In the relative quiet I had realized something while fighting the undead.
There were brief moments that the world almost slowed, and I saw the most optimal path. Holstering my revolver, I decided to rummage through my bag finally. Pulling out two palm type firearms, rigging them to my hands I flexed my fingers, the guns clicking empty. Nodding slightly I began to rig up their feed hoses that I pulled from an ammunition bag that materialized behind me. The bag practically sticking to my flesh through my clothes as I connected the feed hoses. Turning the safety on for the palm firearms, I pulled out a brown duster lined with chainmail, plate armor, and metal body armor plates in places. Putting it on, I begin putting on the other articles of armor I had long prepared in my new family's smithy.
By the time I was done I left virtually no space unarmored aside from my head. Even my neck had armor around it as I didn't want something just going for my jugular. My wild companion had at some point also vanished long before the car stopped. The man driving, staring lifelessly ahead without any will to continue living. Looking around, I noticed we're near New York City so I got out of the car. Drawing my revolver once before holstering it, I blow the man's brains out. His head hitting the now crimson window and cracking it, walking far enough away from the vehicle a flaming Eldritch Blast ignited within my hand.
"Enjoy the afterlife you two."
Firing the combined cantrip at the vehicle, the car was engulfed in fire instantly, the side I hit denting while the vehicle was lifted off its wheels. Tumbling the flaming vehicle eventually landed on its roof, the body in the back seat hitting the roof while the driver hung in his seat. Looking away from the burning vehicle I begin walking into New York. My hands glowing with Eldritch Blasts as I clicked my guns off of being safe. Hordes of the undead fighting the living already in view as I advanced upon the city.