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SoK Chapter 165
🕑 Added 2025-06-09 15:00:13 +0000 UTCThe minotaurus tribe, because there wasn’t any better way of putting it, had settled in on the eastern banks of the lake. They’d ripped trees from the earth to serve as building materials, and they’d taken what they couldn’t from the growing trees from buildings all around. Remnants of homes, more piles of rubble than anything else, decorated the area. TJ’s first reaction to the destruction was indifference. After all, so many homes had been left empty and forgotten from the Integration. If he had to guess, something like fully half of the human population was gone. Dead in Tutorials, somehow whisked away like he’d asked in his Systemic Audience, or something else entirely, he didn’t know and the System wouldn’t give specifics.
But part of those numbers had been killed by monsters outside of the Tutorial.
Maybe it was hypocritical not to feel this rage towards Acalan the Ahuizotl, but TJ hadn’t seen any evidence of the monster’s slaughter of humans. He could see plenty of evidence of the depredations of the minotaurs. Stains of brown blood persisted through the sheeting rain from overhead. With TJ’s coatl’s command of the rains and now his awareness that it was a possibility, he could see nearly perfectly through the heavy precipitation, though he knew the monsters’ views would be severely limited.
More damning than the existence of browned bloodstains, though, were the corpses. Dozens of twisted remains of humans, people who’d suffered their final moments in an ignominious death to minotaurs. And among them were corpses far too small to have TJ stomach looking at them for more than a split second. These creatures… they would be the source of his next level. A part of TJ wished he had Seth here, to allow the Avenger to help take vengeance for the fallen, but there were countless people whose lives had been destroyed and ended by the Integration. These… would be TJ’s to avenge.
“Lannie.” TJ spoke quietly, fighting to keep his rage cold and calculated instead of all-consuming and stupid. “They’ve killed my people’s young. I’m going to kill them for this.”
is good. are bad creatures. not want make friends. from across ocean, not good here.
“Great. If you would, can I use a Skill on you that will let me share some of your strength as I go hunt them?”
i not strong out water. not strong even in water! but am big and good. can help.
“That’s fine. I just want to take a minute and put a little bit of my blood on you. Would you come out here for me?”
oooh ritual! rituals are big good. make big strong stronger.
“Yeah.” TJ responded as the monster walked close and settled into an awkward, bowlegged stance on the ground. Using his Wendigo Blade, TJ cut his palm more deeply than he needed, spraying his own blood around as he angrily painted the whorls of the ritual onto himself and Acalan. With the aspects of his Skill strengthening the painting of the liquid, the bloody marks covered his body before long, his arms and face reflecting the primal rage that filled him. Then, taking a brief second to center himself and calm the storm inside that was far more furious than the rumbling one he’d created, TJ painted the markings onto the Ahuizotl.
Its skin was somewhat like a frog’s, rough and slimy, but there was also fur, somehow, and TJ wondered just what kind of creature this had been before it was an Ahuizotl. Or, was this a naturally occurring beast? So much of the world had gone to hell in a handbasket, and there was next to nothing that TJ understood about it. And right now, he didn’t want to understand. He wanted to get his pound of flesh. He growled around the distractions and rolled his shoulders as he completed the ritual.
“Now, with your permission, I’ll take some of your HP, MP, and Stamina for myself to ensure that I can kill all of these bastards.”
good plan. is good to leave no survivors. the greek, they come back. must kill all.
What little TJ understood about Greek myths seemed to hold true, but he couldn’t think of any mythos that didn’t promise vengeance on the unbelievers and destruction on the infidel. And, again, that wasn’t anything for him to care about. Instead, he pushed his awareness into Acalan’s body and felt the reserves of his resources.
And nearly lost hold of the Skill he was using. Nearly 20,000 HP, MP, and Stamina lay dormant in the unassuming monster’s body, with thousands that TJ could take to refill his reserves completely, and multiple times. Beyond that, Acalan’s MP, the only resource that’d been depleted at all, was refilling amazingly quickly. Maybe something to do with being in water or the rain? Either way, TJ pulled enough from the creature to restore himself to perfect health. It didn’t flow as freely as it always had before, though, with him needing to enforce more of his will over the monster’s resources. It didn’t seem to even be resistance, but instead just by dint of its status of a higher levelled Copper Elite.
As soon as TJ was ready, he rolled his shoulders, activated Stealth through his cloak, and strode off through the rain towards the encampment. The Ahuizotl reached out and stopped him, just to say one single thing.
kill them. for the young.
“I will.” TJ whispered as he got closer. There, he could see a half dozen of the creatures milling about. While he watched, he finally saw the monsters that’d slaughtered children. They ranged in size from huge to absolutely massive, at least ten feet tall at the smallest, and up to nearly twenty. Though their torsos were humanlike, their heads were like those of the massive bulls he’d seen pictures of, the ones from… Scotland? Furry, with massive horns at least seven feet wide, tipped with wicked points. Their bodies were also furred, though not so much that he couldn’t see the rippling muscles that covered their bodies. Then, their legs were monstrous, furry, and they stood on cloven hooves.
Although he wanted to rush in and begin slaughtering them all with Wind Manipulation, he was wary of the insanity that his Divine Transformation was, more and more, forcing on him. There was the complete aggression, the need to prove his strength, and given that Lannie was showing that these were creatures to be respected, if not feared, TJ refused to throw himself thoughtlessly forward.
When he Appraised the minotaurs he laid eye on, TJ wasn’t sure what to think.
Minotaurus Plebian (Copper), 7
Minotaurus Plebian (Copper), 8
Minotaurus Plebian (Copper), 8
Minotaurus Plebian (Copper), 11
These were completely unworthy of his full effort, especially considering their titles So why was this other monster so unwilling to attack? Was it just because Acalan didn’t like to fight outside of the water? Or could it be something more? Needing to learn, TJ remained hidden behind the sheets of rain and his Stealth Skill granted by his Shroud and raised his spear in his hand. They were patrolling in pairs, making quiet noises to each other as they walked around their pillaged camp.Then, after taking half a minute to condense a bullet of air at the tip of his spear, he waited for the perfect moment when two of the monsters crossed paths.
With a force of effort, TJ cut down the noise from his ambush, keeping the winds from howling all around. Instead, it was just a low whine as his attack pierced completely through the first and into the second. Though that went according to plan, the second one’s immediate death wasn’t. He’d overestimated their ability to survive an attack like that. Given that so many Skills were working in tandem, it shouldn’t have come as a surprise, but that was life. Even so, the plan could continue forward without too much difficulty. The minotaurs were patrolling, and the others would be by before too long. As such, he pulled back a little, but not so much he couldn’t see anything that might occur down there. The paranoia in the back of his head commanded him to not use Wind Manipulation to scout out the surroundings for now, as it could be a tell to his presence. He didn’t think it was possible that the monsters got that from wind, but he wasn’t going to discount it.
Two minutes passed, and TJ could feel the storm overhead faltering. There was still another hour, but he wanted to be well clear of here long before the buff was gone. He was about to continue ranging around when a moo of… anger, he thought, echoed out. Then, from around a corner TJ hadn’t been watching, came two more minotaurs. They went to their people’s dead bodies, continuing to call out their mourning moo. It was just a minute or two later that another minotaur joined them. This was one of the huge ones, at least 18 feet tall, not counting its horns.
They mooed back and forth, and TJ Appraised the newcomer as they looked in vain for their brother’s killer.
Minotaurus Raider (Copper), 25
A brief moment of understanding crossed TJ’s mind. This wasn’t the monsters’ leader yet. One of their elites, he was sure, but it wasn’t going to be the strongest member of the tribe. That would be their leader. So, for now, his plan would have to be to get his pound of flesh while weakening the tribe as a whole. To do that… TJ allowed himself to sink as deeply into Stealth as he could manage while watching how they would react to being ambushed and having some of their number slain. If they were as stupid as they looked, then this might not be so—
The Raider sent the weaker ones back, to report the specifics to their leader. Not stupid enough to just send everyone out to try to find what’d killed them. Even so, it was stupid enough to leave itself alone against an enemy that was easily able to slaughter it. He wasn’t sure exactly how it worked, with these creatures that had Copper tier earlier, but TJ could guarantee that it didn’t have nearly high enough Attributes to take a single attack from him with Divine Authority, Transformation, and Manifestation working together to make his Wind Manipulation truly deadly.
Just as soon as he’d activated Divine Transformation, the heightened emotions that TJ’d come to expect now surged through him. He grunted as a shiver went down his spine and made his scales softly rustle. The minotaur turned immediately towards him in response, its focus singular. That was fine. With his Attributes skyrocketing from his various Skills working in tandem, TJ sent a crackling blade of wind pulsating with electricity at his prey.
It screamed in an almost human fashion as the lightning-infused wind ripped through its torso. TJ didn’t care as he lunged forward and focused another blade of wind on his tongue. The cow-headed monster tried to do or say something, but even the coatl knew that he was on borrowed time. With a flick of his tongue, another blade of wind bisected it at the waist. It cried out mournfully, and TJ laughed as he bit and ripped its throat out.
“We’re not nearly done.” He whispered to himself as he turned tail and deactivated every Skill that drew on his MP. Instead, he deactivated Divine Transformation and hid behind a mound of rubble. TJ watched as the other minotaurs appeared. Three Raiders, five Plebians, and one… one creature that made TJ’s eyes flash and his smile widen.
Minotaurus Chieftain (Copper), 34
TJ brushed over the creature with his wind, as gently as he could. It didn’t seem to notice, but as it threw its head back and roared anguish and rage, the heavens rumbled in accordance with its emotion. He perked up as he felt the creature attempt to wrest his Divine Authority away, to little effect. Even so, TJ knew that this was his first real possibility to grow his influence and power in this way.
“You’re mine.” He whispered. “I’ll kill every one of you, and I’ll take that Authority to where it belongs.”
As he thought as much, the System sent him a notification.
Your leader has declared war! Factions that you are currently at war with: Tempe Minotaurus Encampment.
