Chapter 21: The Chains of Fate
Ryo Aelren stood in the dim light of his inn room, his steel short sword balanced across his knees, its edge gleaming with quiet menace. The seventy-two silvers in his pouch were a hard-won fortune, but the Rift Memory's visions—a Rift as a prison, the System as its chains, a godlike force stirring—eclipsed all else. The System's voice thundered: The key is forged. The cracked mana crystal in his pouch pulsed, its rune-like glow a tether to the Rift's awakening. With Rift Memory Progress: 15/Unknown and his new Rift Bind ability, Ryo was no longer just a key—he was a catalyst, poised to unlock or doom the world.
The guild's paranoia hung over Varnholt like a storm. Adventurers whispered of mana storms ravaging the countryside, Rift branches collapsing, and the council's ruthless hunt for answers. Dren's scrutiny had branded Ryo a threat, and Gav's accusations—linking him to the surges—fueled the fire. Calen's team—Mira, Brom, Elara, Jorik—was his lifeline, but Veyra's vanishing with the rune fragment left a void of doubt. Her words—The prison's end is yours—were a challenge Ryo couldn't ignore.
His Status Screen glowed, a chronicle of his rise:
*Name: Ryo Aelren
Level: 3
Class: None
Stats:
Strength: 6
Agility: 8 (+15% in combat, Survival Instinct)
Endurance: 7
Mana: 0
Skills:
Survival Instinct (Passive): Boosts agility by 10-15% when threatened.
Basic Strike (Active): Increases single-target attack damage by 6%.
Danger Sense (Passive): Heightens awareness of imminent threats.
Weak Point Strike (Active): Increases damage to vital areas by 11%.
Rift Sense (Passive): Detects Rift-based anomalies.
Rift Pulse (Active): Emits a mana pulse to disrupt Rift-based entities.
Rift Bind (Active): Temporarily seals Rift-based entities' mana.
Experience: 200/400
Rift Memory: 15/Unknown*
Level 3 had forged his body into a weapon, and Rift Bind—a skill to seal Riftspawn mana—felt like a direct counter to the Rift's awakening. The Rift Memory's visions—of ancients binding a godlike entity, their betrayal shattering the seal—suggested the System was both protector and prison. Veyra's knowledge of the archive, her cryptic promises, made her a dangerous ally. Dren's threats, Gav's vendetta, and the guild's fear were a tightening noose, but Ryo's scars burned with purpose. He'd find the truth, whatever the cost.
A heavy knock shook the door, and Danger Sense flared sharp. Ryo gripped his sword, his voice low. "Who's there?"
"Dren," came the enforcer's gravelly voice. "Guild council demands you. Now."
Ryo's Rift Sense hummed, sensing no immediate attack but a deeper peril. He opened the door, revealing Dren in his plate armor, flanked by four Rank A guards. "No tricks," Dren said. "Move."
Ryo followed, his steel helm snug, his reinforced leather vest and greaves grounding him. The guild's council chamber was a stark room of stone and torchlight, five figures seated at a high table. Their leader, a gaunt woman named Syla, fixed Ryo with a piercing gaze. "Ryo Aelren," she said. "Your actions—runes, relics, surviving Rank S missions—defy explanation. Speak, or face confinement."
Ryo's Danger Sense spiked, but he kept his voice steady. "I'm a survivor," he said. "I see patterns, act on them. That's all."
Syla's eyes narrowed. "Gav claims you're a catalyst for the surges. Veyra's involvement implicates you further. Prove your loyalty, or we'll assume the worst."
Before Ryo could respond, Calen burst in, his scar stark. "He's with my team," he said. "Rank S mission, core rupture, rune-etched sanctum. Guild's orders. You want him, wait till we're back."
Syla's lips thinned, but she nodded. "Go. Fail, and you're ours."
Outside, Calen gripped Ryo's shoulder. "That was too close," he said. "Rank S, core rupture, hundred-fifty silvers. It's a slaughter waiting to happen, but the guild's out of options. Veyra's leading—council's desperate. You in?"
Ryo's Rift Sense roared, the voice clear: The key is forged. The sanctum could be the archive's heart. "I'm in," he said. "When?"
"Midnight," Calen said. "Gear up."
Ryo spent twenty silvers on a rune-etched steel pauldron for his sword arm, leaving fifty-two. The pauldron's weight was a shield, its faint mana hum syncing with Rift Sense. At midnight, he joined Calen's team at the Rift Gate. Mira's bow was taut, Brom's satchel heavy, Elara's staff glowing, and Jorik's spear gleamed. Veyra stood apart, her black cloak stark, the rune-etched scepter pulsing. Her eyes met Ryo's, a silent dare. "The sanctum is the prison's gate," she said. "Will you open it?"
Calen's glare cut her off. "Core rupture, neutralize the sanctum. Rank S Riftspawn—expect death. Stay tight."
The portal opened, revealing a Rift branch of shattered voids and glowing magma. The sanctum—a towering rune-covered pyramid—pulsed like a dying star. Rift Sense screamed, guiding Ryo past mana traps. The voice thundered: The key is yours. The team advanced, but the air was a furnace, the runes blazing.
Inside the sanctum, the core—a rune-etched obelisk—radiated blinding mana. Guarding it was a Rank S Riftspawn: a colossus of shadow and crystal, its form a writhing mass of rune-carved tendrils, eyes glowing with divine fury. Calen charged, his sword sparking. Jorik's spear pierced a tendril, Mira's arrows bounced off, and Elara's lightning fizzled. Brom's ward shattered, and a tendril grazed his leg, drawing blood.
Ryo's Survival Instinct boosted his agility, and he flanked the colossus, Weak Point Strike targeting a glowing rune on its core. His steel sword cracked it, drawing a scream. Experience gained. Level 3: 300/400. The colossus's eyes locked onto Ryo, and Danger Sense screamed. He activated Rift Pulse, the mana wave disrupting its runes, then Rift Bind, sealing its mana. The colossus staggered, its tendrils slowing.
Veyra reached the obelisk, her hands tracing runes. "It's the prison's gate!" she shouted. Ryo joined her, Rift Sense locking onto a central rune. He struck with Weak Point Strike, shattering it. Rift Memory Progress: 16/Unknown. The voice roared: The gate opens.
The colossus swung, its tendril grazing Ryo's pauldron. Pain flared, but Rift Bind held, weakening it. Veyra grabbed a glowing rune shard, her eyes blazing. "The entity wakes!" she hissed. "Join me, Ryo, or be its enemy."
The sanctum shook, runes exploding. Calen yelled, "Portal!" Ryo guarded Veyra as they fled, the colossus's tendrils tearing stone. They dove through, emerging in Varnholt as the branch collapsed. The guild paid a hundred-fifty silvers, Ryo's share thirty-seven, bringing his total to eighty-nine.
Veyra vanished, but her words lingered: "The entity's time is now." The System chimed: Rift Memory Progress: 17/Unknown. The vision clarified: the entity was a primal force, bound by the ancients, now stirring as the System's chains broke. Rift Bind was Ryo's weapon, but Dren's glare and Gav's shadow loomed. With Level 3 and his steel sword, Ryo Aelren stood at the edge of fate, the Rift's gate his destiny.
To be continued…