Taking over the Abyss

23- Cool Wizard Orb

While journeying out of Dragonspine and towards the general direction of the Wangshu Inn, you checked on your skills out of boredom. You paused at the sight of new skills you damn well knew weren't there before.

[Abyss Sorcery Lvl. 6] [Hydromancy Lvl. 13] [Dark Descent Lvl. 5] [Dimensional Rift Lvl. 8] [Abyss Resistance Lvl. 43] [Pain Resistance Lvl. 3] [Abyssal Authority Lvl. 7] [Poison Resistance Lvl. 14] [Draconic Strength Lvl. 6]

You blinked. Were the two new ones a gift from Durin?

[Poison Resistance]

[Lvl. 14]

[The ability to resist poison.]

... well that was fairly straightforward.

[Draconic Strength]

[Lvl. 6]

[The sublime strength wielded by dragons.]

That one was straightforward too. You could tell exactly what they did, just from the name. But you still checked just to make sure. From behind you, Leiptr had his hands clasped together in prayer, having seen you waving your hand about through your menus and assuming you were preforming some sort of miracle. You just left him be.

Your journey was once again stopped by the figure of somebody you recognized but hadn't had the chance to meet with yet. Leiptr broke from his prayer to begin glaring, also recognizing the blond man as he stood facing a cliff.

"Milady, I suggest we leave him be," Leiptr stated, holding a hand to his chest, "That man is nothing but a pain in the back."

"But he looks like Dimitri from Fire Emblem," you reasoned. You liked Dainsleif. He was cool. He was also somebody who could possibly help you, as well become a powerful ally. Leiptr nodded in agreement.

"Very well then," he bowed his head, leaving you with his well wishes before dismissing himself into your shadow, "I wish you luck with negotiations, milady."

You approached Dainsleif, a bit excited to finally meet him. Hearing your footsteps from behind him, Dainsleif turned his head to meet your eyes, staring at you with cold neutrality. Upon seeing your uniform, his eyes widened slightly. When you were standing just a few feet away from him, he turned to face you.

"You..." he trailed off, staring at you in disbelief. After a brief moment of shocked silence, Dainsleif's expression softened into something more pleasant, "It's... relieving to see one of my own people."

Dainsleif was precious, you decided. He deserved to be happy. You smiled at him, "That it is. My name is (Name)"

"I am Dainsleif," he introduced himself, before taking a moment to think, "(Name), that name sounds familiar..."

You frowned, well that couldn't be good. Dainsleif's eyes widened in recognition.

"You're the one Aether told me about," he said. Dainsleif stepped towards you, desperation and wonder evident in his eyes, "The one who was an Abyss Mage, right?"

"Yes, that's me," you said, not too surprised that Aether had told you about him. How far in the story had Aether progressed by now?

Dainsleif cracked a small smile, "... I see. May I ask how you attained this form of yours?"

He was smiling? You were shocked. You couldn't remember if Dainsleif had ever smiled. Then again, given your situation and his situation, you could understand a fraction of his relief. He must have been very lonely.

"I'm not quite sure exactly how it happened, but I developed a resistance to the Abyss' corrosive power," you explained, watching as Dainsleif's eyebrows furrowed in thought. Unsure how exactly to explain how you ended up with a more human form, you did your best without having to explain that he was a video game character, "At one point, I... became strong enough, and suddenly felt like there was a ton of pressure on me. I passed out, and then when I woke up, I was like this."