A/N: Hello, I have been working on my other stories and getting a lot of big things together so I am not sure what the update consistency is going to be like for the next few months. What I will say is that when I do drop it will be across all my stories over the course of a few days while I am trying to figure out what is the best writing style for me. All that being said enjoy the chapter cause it's my longest one yet. Words: 4,933
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(Shantel Shoal: Earth's Rank #1 POV)
** DAY 7 **
Shantel sat upon her new throne, contemplating the changes that had occurred to her within the past week.
For a moment she could almost laugh at the sheer absurdity of it all. Just a week ago she had been preparing for her Uni exams.
Now here she was, contemplating how to find her missing parents. Not to mention she had been dropped into this Eternal Well shithole and made into some kind of Ruler.
Shantel sighed, at least she had gotten a decent makeover out of all this.
Her hair trailed down her wooden throne, its brilliant hues shifting in a mesmerizing pattern of silvery gold that cascaded to the ground behind her.
She idly held a strand of it to the light peeking in from her new office window. She watched her hair glitter like woven diamonds.
Her golden eyes started changing to an almost amber light as her thoughts became darker. All these new powers, yet none of them was helping her situation right now.
Her breast tightened with worry, her body feeling jittery with nervous energy. Shantel knew her parents were fine. She had been told as much by the system when she'd requested a way to get in contact with her family.
The fact the system had thus far given no information about her family despite readily confirming their current safety gave her an ominous feeling
It didn't help matters that her only connection to her parents seemed to be this strange bloodline that gave her more questions that answers.
With no way to get in contact with her family, Shantel decided to focus on the mysteries she could do something about.
Her first move had been to get a better understanding of the System that seemed to permeate the Well. She had found few things of note so far, but she had made a discovery.
The system only showed the basic status of an individual, the current floor location, and the percentage of discovered and controlled land.
Finding out that she was supposedly the number one talent of humanity had been a major shock to her.
But finding out that she wasn't entirely human to begin with had left Shantel feeling like her heart was about to explode as her anxiety peaked.
It had only been thanks to the monotonous System the skills and bloodline it had 'unlock and upgrade' as part of her first-place perks that she had managed to keep control of herself.
Even now, a full later Shantel still felt a subdued sense of wonder at the seemingly omniscient powers of the system. and
It had taken only a moment for the system to take everyone and everything in the world and incorporate them seamlessly into its existing ecosystem.
And what a crazy place this was turning out to be. By the time she had left the system space she was astounded to find herself appearing inside of what appeared to be some sort of Egyptian throne room.
Flowing sands of silver and black surrounded her in cascading torrents around the white and gold themed throne. As she took in the sights around her, she was stunned.
Just then, a voice she really wished she could ignore spoke up.
"This is way too excessive for us. We should really downsize and use this space to help more people!" A loud, upbeat voice seemed to emanate from thin air.
"God damnit! Can't you see I'm trying to catch up on my beauty sleep?!?" A similar yet distinctly softer and colder voice rang out.
Following which the space above Shantel's head seemed to ripple as 2 distinct figures appeared.
The woman on the left was garbed in a Greek toga that was highlighted with golden symbols that hurt to look at.
Light bloomed in the air around her, white feathers bursting into existence as they surrounded the angel.
A soothing hymn seemed to echo softly in the surroundings. This was Isis, the living representation of Shantel's Holy power.
The woman on the right wore a similar black toga with deep crimson highlights. She also wore a crown of thorns that seemed to drip a black substance that disappeared into her clothes and skin.
Her surroundings darkened from billowing smoke. A freezing chill filling the air as black and white speckled flames popped into existence.
This could only be Michele, the embodiment of Shantel's Demonic powers.
While they had inherited her memories, they were also created with knowledge and understanding from their respective aspects of her bloodline.
While not as naturally powerful as her main body, Isis and Michele had their own uniqueness. They were able to use powers exclusive to angels and demons that Shantel herself could not access.
They were also not restricted to their current power and could train to become stronger. All in all, Shantel was almost entirely satisfied with her powers and these 2 new 'sisters' of hers.
If Shantel could find a way to have Isis and Michele work together, her power could even increase exponentially.
As it stands, she would be lucky to get them to breathe the same air peacefully for more than 5 minutes.
Shantel sighed, getting ready to mediate when she felt something click into place. She had only got that feeling once before, when she awakened new abilities.
Before she could check her status to see if anything had changed, a tremor passed over her. She felt her heart shudder, her bloodline resonating with something impossibly vast and powerful.
Her eyes were blinded by an explosion of black light that seemed to somehow dazzle with an all-encompassing brilliance as the darkness took up her whole vision.
When her eyesight returned, she found herself floating in some glowing substance. Lights of so many colors and hues they were impossible to name floated all around her.
The light concentrated here in a strange manner that began to blur her vision. The colors twisted and turned, giving Shantel the feeling she was blaspheming a sacred image.
Her entire being, or rather the light and dark energies making up her new body froze. Extreme pressure closed in on her, while a wave seemed to wash over her.
She vaguely 'saw' a figure shrouded in twisting shadows and writhing blood. The figure held something she couldn't determine, but radiated a surprisingly gentle, if cold aura.
All at once, the light seemed to shrink in on itself, leaving Shantel in complete darkness for one impossibly long moment. Before she could think, another explosion of light and sensations reached her.
She was consumed by the brightness and feelings of awe. Blinking her eyes, she realized she was back in her throne room.
Her avatars, Isis (The Angel) and Michele (The Demoness) were standing in front of her with somber expressions. "I'm fine, I just got pulled into a Trance by the Nephilim Origin."
Shantel explained to the shocked Aspects. "I didn't even know it was possible for someone to be drawn into the Origin Sea by force." Michele spoke, horror and wonder warring across her features.
"This place has very strange rules, and I fear there's more that we have missed. The only thing we can do for now is to grow and secure our territory and increase our strength."
Isis spoke while pulling out a white and gold encrusted journal, seemingly from thin air. "Main body you need to pick a fighting style to focus on for now.
Me and this Leech," Isis paused to dodge a shot of corrosive darkness, "will take care of the territory expansion and safety.
There should be no problems on this layer at least that would require your direct attention right now." Isis paused again to write a new idea down in her journal.
Michele took the lull as a chance to add her thoughts, "Don't randomly pick any weapon or style. There are an infinite number of ways to Kill.
The important part is finding the method that best suits you. Over time you will master many if not all styles, but the first is always the most important."
Michele waved her hands, darkness congealing into a Staff in one hand and a Saber in the other. "Say you wanted to start training with weapons, the first question would be blunt or sharp?
Beyond that, you would need to decide whether you wanted a short, medium, or long-range weapon." Michele dispersed the weapons, waving her right hand to bring forth floating balls of magic.
"You could also start with elemental magic. As a Nephilim you have access to a wide array of magic, especially Dark and Light magic."
She was about to start explaining the different principles of magic, but seeing the overwhelmed look Shantel was giving her, she decided to wrap things up here for now.
"There are plenty of things to learn, and you will end up mixing and matching them until you form your personal style. I would recommend starting with some form of magic."
Michele waved a hand dismissing all the conjured items, leaving behind the 2 floating balls of Darkness and Light Magic.
"While everything else can be decided later, you must master these 2." Michele brought the two magics to her open palm with barely a thought.
The balls hovered, visibly rejecting being brought together. "As you can see, Light and Darkness are inherently opposed to coexistence.
Through your training you will learn all about the elements and their nature. For now, you will focus on mastering each element by itself.
In time, you will become capable of mixing and matching the elements to make your own composite elements.
It would be best to pick Darkness to start. You can then focus on Light magic afterwards. It seems counterproductive but I assure you that it will make learning everything else exponentially easier."
Michele smiled gently, amusement clear in her shadowlike eyes. Shantel could barely wrap her mind around all this.
She wanted to scream, run away, or maybe just break down and cry over the death of her world and everything she had ever known, but she was a woman on a mission.
"Alright, let's get this crazy shit show on the road. You better make sure this doesn't waste my time, or I swear to whatever deities are here I WILL make you pay."
Shantel's eyes glowed with a deep silverish light as she spoke.
Michele simply smirked, extending her hand with a flourishing bow as a door made of darkness materialized. Shantel stepped towards the Door, pausing for just a moment, before yanking the surprisingly solid door open.
A gaping abyss of blackness revealed itself to her, making Shantel shiver. A strange anticipation rose in her heart. She just knew she was going to enjoy this.
"Well let's be on the way," and with only that as warning, Michele shoved the girl who had still been observing, into the Darkness, skipping joyfully after her as the door began to dematerialize.
(Jaime POV)
**DAY 3**
It was to be expected, Jaime thought, that his new race and abilities would have some impact on his mentality. But as he watched the life drain from a wolf-like monster, his own calmness unnerved him.
The casual disregard for life his bloodline gave him was a slippery slope. If he wasn't careful, he might become the heartless monster his new clan seemed to be infamous for.
Thankfully, he seemed to be the leader of a new branch that had only his inherent qualities 'actively' influencing him. The instincts and knowledge he gained seemed to be just that.
Still, Jaime could tell that he would have to find a way to monitor any other changes he might go through.
It had been 3 days since he had 'officially' taken over this Subregion. The native flora and fauna had reconfirmed the alienness of his new environment.
The only way he could describe it would be scientific. The city he had found himself in after leaving the tutorial space had a vibe that mixed Sci-Fy with the flair of a magical revolution.
There were hovercars flying next to cyberpunk themed broomsticks. A hard light projection of an A.I. flashed on a giant neon sign offering discounts for quantum entangled magic theory.
Apothecaries popped up in empty spaces along the streets, only to disappear in a flash of teleportation as a mecha pet repair shop took its place.
All in all, the place was a culture shock that Jaime was sure he would love to explore later. He was especially intrigued by the different weed strains he could see.
Making a mental note, Jaime finally understood the truth really was stranger than fiction.
After being forced to give an address to the denizens of the First Layer, Jaime had quickly escaped the area with Revira's assistance.
While intrinsically different, the Black Sun powers Revira possessed seemed to have some functions like her old shadow powers. Including, it seemed, a shadow travel ability.
They had made their way to the Emerald Sea, hoping to find a secluded place to understand Jaime's circumstances and how to proceed.
The plains acted as a barrier to his subregion, enclosing the southern half in an ocean of green. The place had gotten its name thanks in large part due to the wild grass in the area.
It grew remarkably fast, even for this new reality of magic and was especially dangerous to anyone visiting for the first time.
Combined with its innate magic resistance, the grass had grown to have varying depths, mostly determined by how much magic the grass had absorbed.
There were also large areas of the plains with wildly different elevations. Due to constant explosions these areas have been deepened over time.
The depressions formed eventually got filled with more grass giving the impression of an even area. Only for those unlucky enough to wander near and fall in.
Few escaped from those areas, and even fewer have successfully explored them. The little info that has been made widely available says the monsters and plants there are different.
What exactly those differences are vary based on the area. The only common trait was that anything not hunting was probably getting hunted.
All this gave people a feeling of standing amidst a shining emerald ocean, spotted by silver 'islands' made of essence metals boulders that naturally attracted each other and moved around slowly but constantly.
The ambient energy in the area was highly concentrated, making it a decent place for Jaime to begin his real training in earnest.
More importantly, it had a plethora of beasts and monsters while being large enough to prevent anyone from finding him easily.
Jaime had wanted to test his combat skills in real fights and hoped the creatures would provide a decent challenge. He knew he was adapting remarkably quickly, mostly due to his bloodline and skills.
It was only after spending the last 3 days in almost nonstop battle against the monsters that called the plains home that Jaime finally admitted to himself that he was no longer a human in any appreciable way.
Unsurprisingly, the revelation didn't bother him too much. His skills and power were too intoxicating for those thoughts to really affect him.
With a loud *POP* the mutated wolf corpse deflated drastically as a silvery red orb rose out of the beasts open mouth.
Jaime held out his hand, the orb shooting to him with speed that would make a bullet look slow and floated quietly, waiting for another command.
"It's so strange," Jaime muttered. He grabbed the Condensed Blood Pearl (CBP) as his bloodline identified it and could feel the intense vitality and sharp spirit of the slain beast.
"I am certain that I could ingest this and get some benefits, probably more if I combine all the pearls together. But Revira, you could probably use these too, no?"
Jaime asked the small black sun with gold and red eyes that were surprisingly expressive. Shortly after arriving at the Rolling Plains, Revira had found that her normal form required too much of Jaime's energy to be sustained.
After an afternoon of tests, they had found that she could take this baseball sized sun form while using barely any energy.
She could still talk and provide support with weaker skills, but her combat potential was much weaker in this form.
If needed, she could draw more power from their connection to rapidly enter her 'combat form' without Jaime having to waste time summoning her.
"While I could use it, I think it would be better for you to start refining your blood army. These creatures have Living Metal in their blood."
Seeing the blank look on his face, the little sun dimmed for a moment, and Jaime got the distinct impression that Revira was annoyed with him.
"Your lack of intelligence is worrisome...Sighhh, in any case Living Metal is not a simple mineral, even at qualities as low as G tier, much less the F tier materials you have.
You honestly were quite lucky to encounter those monster packs. If you didn't have such a strong perception we probably wouldn't have encountered many monsters with such rare resources."
Revira spoke with a ponderous tone. She had a vague idea that living metal was extremely precious to every one of the Blood Origin, but she couldn't recall all the details.
All she knew for certain was that Jaime would be able to maximize the use of these condensed blood pearls using it.
Following that intuition, she would test the effect and adjust their actions based on how useful the results were.
Jaime thought she made sense and knowing that she had been correct about everything else so far, he decided to follow her advice.
Jaime stored the orb in his familiar space, next to all the other orbs.
He was still slightly concerned with the idea of having a giant space inside of his body even if it was cool as fuck, but he pushed those thoughts aside for now.
He started back towards his temporary shelter, deciding to test the orbs when he was in a safer place.
As he made his way deeper into the endless rolling waves of green and silver, the already sparse evidence of people vanished entirely.
Giant half-metal wolves roamed in hunting packs; their 6 foot (1.82m) tall bodies entirely covered by the swaying grass. Only giant moving patches and faint metal scratching noises marking their positions.
Whipping Vines, long crabgrass like patches of faux grass that would constrict and shred prey with their metal infused leaves covered large patches of ground.
Jaime witnessed a pack of 10 wolves get crushed instantly by a particularly large vine. The soft looking grass enveloping the pack like a Venus Fly Trap.
After another 10 miles (16km) of cautious hiking, larger silver balls started appearing among the grass. They clung to the tips of giant flowering weeds, waiting to bloom.
Jaime had learned quickly not to touch or go within arm's length of the deceptive plants. The buds would explode with hundreds of metallic seeds like shrapnel when disturbed even slightly.
While only 3 feet (91.4cm) tall, the buds ranged in size from 2 feet (61cm) to over 18 feet (5.4m) in diameter. There were probably larger ones, but Jaime was in no hurry to verify that.
When the sharp emerald sea became spotted with giant silver boulders that acted as giant Bomb Flowers, Jaime chanted a quick blood spell to summon his pen.
The surface of the foot long (30.5cm) pen flickered like a dying flame, while a red substance bubbled like magma in the center leading up to the gold tinted tip.
This was no ordinary pen, but rather a solidified magic construct made from blood and living metal, held together by his flimsy runes.
This was among the more useful skills Jaime had uncovered while exploring his bloodline abilities.
These magic constructs could be temporary or permanent, residing in the multicolored Blood Sea of his familiar space.
They were time consuming to make and resource intensive, but they were easy to summon and use once completed.
Taking a moment to confirm the location, Jaime took a deep breath to prepare. He had Revira watching the surroundings as he delved into the Sea of blood inside his familiar space.
He had figured out some of the secrets of his bloodline already. The most important thing so far was the Blood Sea.
There were countless blood crystals in it that held fragments of info gathered by all the previous Progenitors of the Ghoul Bloodline.
By focusing on exactly what he needed, Jaime could draw the most appropriate crystal to himself. From there he would only need to ingest it to gain whatever fragments of knowledge it contained.
There were many limitations for now, but it had already helped Jaime immensely. Especially when it concerned his survival.
Both his magic theory knowledge and the techniques he was learning to wield scythes in combat came from these fragments.
Feeling his understanding grow and seeing the results of his training manifest in his skill usage gave Jaime the confidence to explore his unique situation.
Pushing the errant thoughts aside, Jaime focused on his spell work.
Unlike the Ghoul specific runes he had inherited from his bloodline, the knowledge of the fragments provided required conscious effort for Jaime to use.
Dark brown and pale green magical runes flickered to life in the air around Jaime. Jaime's brow furrowed, his eyes automatically closing as he imagined what he wanted the spell to do.
With a speed so slow it was almost painful, the spell was completed. The runes surrounding Jaime faded, replaced with a giant hole in the ground a few steps in front of him.
Jaime wiped sweat from his forehead, somewhat annoyed by how difficult even simple earth magic was in comparison to the ease of his Blood and life magics.
He entered the hole using the steps the spell created, rapidly descending hundreds of feet every few seconds as the spell secondary effect kicked in.
His mind was already racing, his Primogenitor's Wisdom passively scanning his inherited memories to give him the info he would be needing shortly.
It had been quite annoying the first day if Jaime was honest. If it weren't for the basic description provided by the system assuring him that everything was normal, Jaime might have gone crazy with paranoia.
He still wasn't sure what the talent did exactly. All he knew was that his instincts were improved, and he was pretty sure he had a secondary consciousness now.
Possible mental manipulations aside, the talent was incredibly useful so far. He would never have understood half the info he had if it weren't for Primogenitor's Wisdom.
The complicated theory behind even basic magical runes was enough to make his head spin. It turned out manipulating natural order was harder than it might seem.
While he could brute force many of the simpler spells with less runes, the more complicated spells required a deeper understanding that he simply didn't have.
He honestly thought It was quite interesting to see all the different aspects of magical energy and how it functioned.
Jaime only wished the whole thing didn't remind him of a fucked up pokemon type chart. The only saving grace was that every power seemed to pull from the same source.
It seriously felt like he was getting a preview of some major headaches for the future when he recalled some of the absolutely broken talents and abilities he knew about.
He knew his own bloodline provided a major boost to his talents, further enhancing his ability to sense and manipulate energy alongside a host of other obscure benefits.
As he continued his descent, he carefully tracked his depth. Jaime had sensed something changing within himself ever since he landed in the Well proper 3 days ago.
It was difficult to determine why, but his instincts were adamant that he needed to do this. Jaime was a pretty simple guy who had gotten this far by following his instincts, and he wasn't about to stop now.
Sometime later, Jaime felt the magical path level out its elevation. He estimated that he was about 100 miles (160.9 km) below ground; he could only hope that was deep enough to mask any energy leaking.
He did not want to relive his first meeting with Revira. He had been blessed to meet her, but he didn't want to test his luck like that again.
He waved his hand, halting his rapid descent. With another flick of his pen, he had drawn the runes to fortify his bunker.
Jaime was silently thankful to whoever was up there for the ghoul inheritance, including multiple utility spells for daily convenience.
He chose not to think about why his predecessors would need to create habbitable bunkers hundreds of miles underground. It was helping him immensely now, and that was all that mattered.
Moving to the center of the empty space, Jaime knelt and summoned his engraving pen once more.
He still didn't exactly understand the importance of what he was about to do. All he knew was that his instincts and bloodline both agreed he needed to do this as soon as possible.
His hand moved with an almost automatic precision; runes he couldn't remember learning flowing across the compact dirt as he worked. After what felt like years Jaime felt the trance like state end.
Standing up to admire his work, Jaime was astonished by what he'd done. There was a rose, runic lines twisting in a circular pattern to form vines that were covered in rose flowers.
Looking closer, it revealed that the flower buds were energy gathering nodes designed to help gestate something. Counting them, Jaime found 5 larger and 95 smaller flowers arranged into the runic circle.
The entire circle measured 10 feet (3m) in diameter. Jaime felt a subtle charge building in the air as he took in the complex magic.
The runes shimmered when looked at; a palpable aura of sacredness and majesty spreading out, giving the otherwise plain chamber a more somber appearance.
Sensing the importance of the moment, Revira flickered into existence ready to aid. Jaime smiled at his newest partner then reached out a hand above the runes.
He concentrated, slowly reaching out to the faint connection he felt with his Familiar Space. A tingling sensation told him he was ready.
A black and red crack formed in the air, gusts of wind shooting around from the pressure of space breaking.
A faint black light could be seen leaking out of the crack, and the sound of crashing waves could faintly be heard above the rushing winds.
Jaime was surprised by all the fanfare, but his bloodline said this was all natural. Still unnerved, he decided to focus on finishing quickly.
Thankfully, he could tell there were only 2 more steps to this ritual. The crack expanded and multicolored blood from the Blood Sea spilled onto the runes.
The runes started flashing as soon as the blood touched them, absorbing the blood and starting to brighten.
A few minutes later, the light from the runes had reached a blinding intensity, and the flow of blood from the crack had slowed to a stop. Multicolored light radiated from the area, preventing Jaime from seeing what had changed.
Jaime took a few steps closer to the light, his face sweating profusely. He suddenly paled, body breaking out in goosebumps as he spit up a mouthful of blood essence.
"Jaime! Are you ok?!" Revira was by his side in a flash of black and gold. Her circular form trembling from concern. He swayed on his feet, eyes closing to fight against the sudden weakness but waved away her concern.
"What the Fuck...!" Jaime whispered in pain and confusion; he'd extracted a tiny bit of blood essence to make his engraving pen previously, and it hadn't felt nearly as bad as that.
"I'm fine Rev. I just wasn't expecting that losing that little bit of blood essence would hurt that badly. In any case, I'm glad that the ritual is done, I don't think I could keep that up much longer."
He'd already stopped sweating and trembling, feeling a bit weaker but much better than a few moments ago.
He took a few seconds to catch his breath and hopefully calm the blood boiling sensation he was feeling. Regaining control of his breathing, Jaime knelt to examine the complete runic circle.
The magic circle had transformed into a tapestry of small blood springs. Intricate runes formed into petals of crimson, red enough to appear black. They enclosed the blood springs like rosebuds waiting to bloom.
Faint multicolored light would periodically pulse out of the runic roses. Only 2 of the roses seemed to have any form of regular activity.
Unlike the rest, they did not pulse with random colors but stayed glowing strongly. Both were from the larger roses, giving Jaime a strong anticipation for what would emerge.
His skill told him that the 2 pods were important, but it didn't explain much more than that. He tried reaching out mentally, sending a pulse of magical energy to see if he could notice any reaction.
The feedback his magical senses gave him was vague, but the pods seemed to express excitement and happiness whenever he went near. Satisfied with that, he returned his focus back to the next step of his plan.