Nightmare Realm Summoner

Alex awoke to golden letters buzzing above his eyes like angry flies. The corners of his eyes were crusted shut and his mouth hung slightly askew as if he'd been snoring. There was a persistent, dry prickle at the back of his throat and his neck was at a slight angle, supported by something neither hard nor soft.

He blinked. Fuzz tickled his mind and swallowed his first thoughts. The light from the letters shimmering above him pierced into his skull like an angry glare. He blinked again, then squinted up at them in confusion as they slowly came into focus.

Title Fragment Acquired.

Spawncamper: Granted to one who claimed a world's first kill on a Region Boss before it can finish harnessing its army.

[1] Mythic Boon and [5] Legendary Boons has been earned. They may be spent at your Town Core.

Alex rubbed his eyes. Then he bolted upright, a sharp breath shooting in through his lips as his memories came crashing back.

He sat in the shade of a log hut, a bed of moss and old blankets surrounding him like a bird's nest. His heart pounded in his chest as he remained there, frozen, for several seconds.

The Region Boss was dead.

They'd won — and he'd already gotten quite a haul from its death. 5 Legendary Boons was already nothing to laugh at, and he'd gotten a whole extra Mythic Boon as well. That wasn't even to mention the title or any of the monster parts they could harvest from the Gorgonaga.

A slipped out of his lips. It came all the way down from his chest as he doubled over, his laughter intensifying.

I'm fucking rich! Hell yeah.

He only managed to get a hold of himself several seconds later. All the aches and pains that had been plaguing his body had vanished in the wake of his sleep. He didn't know how long it had been since he'd passed out, but it had clearly been enough to fully recover from the ordeal.

Alex rose to his feet. Then he paused. Something odd had happened during the fight with the Gorgonaga. He could have sworn he'd seen his Visualization for a brief moment. Magic had, for lack of a better word, bent around him.

What the hell was all of that? I thought Visualizations were only for making your mind palace stronger? Do they have other abilities as well? I'll need to ask Finley.

He brushed the dirt and moss off his backside, then slipped out into the surrounding camp. Stopping the Region Boss didn't necessarily mean everything else had been saved. There was still a small chance that the monster's troops had wiped everything out while he'd been unconscious. Sure, that chance was small, but he wasn't going to get his hopes up too early.

It only took one moment after emerging for Alex to confirm that was not the case. His town still stood all around him. The buildings were largely undamaged from what he could tell, though one cabin had been split clean in two by what must have been one of the Gorgonaga's attacks.

Sunlight bore down from above, enveloping the forest in its embrace. The destruction from the fight was now nothing but a memory that had been carved and painted across the ground in blood.

A streak of scorched dirt devoid of any foliage about the width of a human arm span ran all the way up and through the house, leaving its two haves leaning in opposite directions in wait for a strong wind to blow them over.

Alex wasn't the only one awake. Campers moved from building to building as they ferried damaged materials and broken stakes away from the center of the camp. There were… definitely less of them than Alex remembered.

That brought a sharp pause to his celebrations.

How many people died? Did Claire survive? What about Aaron and May? Orchid? Mite? Abby? Hell, what happened to Finley? Surely the monsters didn't figure out a way to take him out, right?

A ripple passed through the air to Alex's right. He glanced in its direction just as Rhyss materialized beside him without so much as a noise. The Advisor had the same calm indifference that he always seemed to bear upon his face, and his lone eye bore into Alex like a spotlight.

"Welcome back," Rhyss said.

"Rhyss," Alex said, a slight note of relief entering his body. It was good to know the Administrator hadn't died. "It's good to see you. Give me an update. How many dead? Anyone—"

Anyone I cared about?

Alex cut himself off. His stomach turned. Maybe it wasn't wrong to wonder if his friends had died… but that was a step too far. Too many had already died. He still hadn't forgotten Valley Ford.

There were thousands of people dead because of him. Perhaps he hadn't been the one to deal the killing blow, but if there was an afterlife, then his name was written as cause of death for every single one of them.

Alex didn't regret his decisions. The Outworlders had started this fight. People should have been working together to fight against the monsters, not each other. But that just wasn't the case. He wasn't delusional enough to think he could change the way the world worked.

If he was stronger, perhaps that could be different.

No. Not if.

When.

I'll eventually be strong enough to protect the people that don't want to be in this Apocalypse. We need them. No society can live with only warriors. But I'm not that strong yet. And until I am, I have to be ruthless to protect the people that do depend on me. That's the responsibility I've taken on, and I won't let my perspective get warped by the System.

"Three deaths," Rhyss said, indifferent to Alex's thoughts. "None of whom number among the list of those you have shown significant interest in."

A spike of relief shot into Alex. It was followed by a wave of shame.

"I didn't ask that."

"It was going to be your next question."

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

It was.

Alex wasn't sure how he felt about Rhyss knowing that. He certainly wasn't happy that people had died. His fists balled at his sides. There was no blaming anyone for these deaths. The Outworlders hadn't killed these people.

He hadn't killed them either. Even as Alex's stomach twisted, he knew that to be true. Everyone at the camp had chosen to be there. To fight for their lives. These deaths hadn't been worthless. They had been lives to save what all of them fought for.

"Three deaths was a small number to pay for a fight as uneven as this," Rhyss said. "By all means, this victory should have been nearly impossible for a group of your Stages."

"What were their names?" Alex asked.

"Jake. Morgan. Serena. All of them were warriors that fought within the mist. Jake was killed moving a non-combatant out of the way of a monster's blow. Morgan and Serena went down together in an explosion created by the Region Boss. There were five other serious injuries. None remain in critical condition. Claire used the healing pills in your ring."

Alex drew in a breath and let out slowly. He savored the taste of the morning air as he let it out. He — the town — still stood. Not just because of his efforts, but because of all of them. Every single Camper who had fought had earned this day.

Jake. I remember him. He was close to my age. Kind of mouthy during training.

Now he's dead.

The other two… I don't remember who they were, but I won't forget their names.

Jake. Morgan. Serena.

Alex gave himself one more moment. Then he nodded. "Thank you, Rhyss. Other damages?"

"Some damage to housing. All monsters from the Labyrinth were killed and it is now regenerating power once more. The Region Boss went down yesterday, and you have slept until the morning."

Alex nodded once more. All things considered, they really had come out well. "And the body?"

Rhyss pointed to the side.

Alex turned to follow his Advisor's finger. Poking over the treetops and the tips of the houses was a large, black-scaled bump. It was hard to believe he'd even managed to miss it the first time around.

"Mite is dismantling it. It is not on town property, so I could not interfere."

"That's fine. It'll probably start rotting if someone doesn't do something," Alex said as he started in the direction of the dead Region Boss. "I — wait. If the monster was on town property, does that mean you would have been able to interfere with Mite?"

"Yes."

"Could you interfere with other people as well?"

"I am not a combatant. Any influence I have is contained entirely to those who believe themselves to be citizens of your town, so long as you have accepted them."

Ah. There goes that idea.

"Noted," Alex said as they headed toward the Gorgonaga at a brisk pace. "Anything else I should be aware of?"

"Not with regard to the town."

Another question was starting to build on Alex's lips when he stepped out from the line of houses and got his first look at the hydra's corpse. Or, more specifically, at the air in front of it.

His eyes went wide.

Floating above the monster's skull — which was now notably missing its eyes and all its teeth —was a huge Soul Flame. It was an obsidian black and almost glasslike in texture. The flame flickered and danced in a mesmerizing pattern before him, drawing his attention invariably to it.

[Region Boss] Mid Grade Adept (Gorgonaga)

"Whoa," Alex breathed.

The Soul Flame of a Region Boss. That was going to be good, no matter what he used it for. The fact it was still here was a blessing. Alex didn't know where it would have gone… but he wasn't about to complain.

He strode forward, moving as if the Soul Flame was about to vanish, and pulled a Spatial Mirror from the box at his side. Alex grabbed the massive flame with his other hand, letting out a grunt as freezing cold energy drove into his palm. He hoisted it into the air and pressed it into the surface of the mirror.

For a moment, the flame resisted. Alex pushed harder. The edges of the Soul Flame trembled. Then, with a final crackle of disapproval, it popped into his mirror.

"Is something wrong?" Rhyss asked, examining Alex curiously.

Can he not see the Soul Flames? I guess I'm the only one that can now that I think about it. Huh. Interesting.

"No," Alex replied as he returned his Spatial Mirror to his side. The Soul Flame marked yet another reward they'd gotten from the Region Boss. He'd gotten the monster's body, the energy from killing it, a Title Fragment, and Boons thus far.

Even if this is the extent of things… we've certainly gotten quite the reward for this fight. I remember how much energy I got from killing that thing, and it was a lot. The System certainly isn't holding back on us.

Something squirmed at the Region Boss' side. Alex stiffened, his hand shooting down to his deck in preparation for a fight.

Mite popped out from one of the Region Boss's legs, a delighted grin on his face. He spotted Alex and raised a hand in greeting.

"Yo! You're awake! Have you seen this thing? It's got so much shit! It's awesome! I'm rich!"

"We're rich," Alex corrected. "That isn't all for you. We'll discuss distribution of the parts later. Some of it will go toward improving the town. Some of it will go to you — and some of it will go toward everyone that helped us fight. If they want to donate their bits to you, that's up to them."

Mite's grin faltered. Then he let out a huff and nodded. "Fair enough. This ain't it, by the way. There's more than just the body."

There weren't many sentences Alex liked hearing more than that.

"Where?"

"Here," Claire said.

Alex spun. He hadn't even heard her coming.

"Claire! You're okay?"

"Okay enough," Claire replied with a small smile. The angry red marks from her Trial were still on her neck, though they had faded significantly. "How much has Rhyss told you?"

"The gist of it," Alex said. "What's the other reward Mite mentioned?"

"Rewards," Claire corrected. She reached into her pocket. Her hand came back out and turned over, her fingers unfurling to reveal a napkin. And, nestled within the center of the napkin, was a single white gemstone.

Alex's eyes widened as words shimmered into the air above it.

Aspect Gem [Mirror Aspect]

"An aspect gem," Alex breathed. "But what was the Gorgonaga doing with this? It didn't have…"

And then a frown pulled at his lips. The Gorgonaga had mentioned the Mirrorlands during their fight. It hadn't displayed any mirror-based powers, but if this gem had dropped from it, the monster must have had them.

Did it not get strong enough to unlock them? How odd.

"Yeah," Claire said. She held the gem out. "I had much of the same thoughts. I figure this suits you better than anyone else though."

Alex swallowed. The third and final Aspect Gem he needed to begin creating his Domain. There was no point being humble. He reached out and took the gem from her. The moment it touched his skin, it vanished with a pop.

"Thank you," Alex said. "The other reward?"

"A Visualization," Claire replied. "Mite's got it for now. I'm letting him hold everything so I don't have to deal with it. He's smart enough to run off with it. He wouldn't get far."

A Visualization? Oh shit. That's pretty damn good. Anything from the Gorgonaga is going to be strong. But I've already got one. Who would use this? Claire, maybe? Hmm. We'll have to see.

Mite's face paled a shade. "I wouldn't run! You guys are my ticket to the big league. I'm mooching off you for the rest of your lives. Which may or not be very long, but still."

"That is not the best way to suck up to someone," Alex informed Mite.

"Sorry."

Alex just shook his head. "It's fine. Where are the others?"

"With Orchid," Claire replied. "She's got them clearing up the town and re-constructing barricades. Said it was the best use of time until you woke up. There's no promise other monsters won't attack us while we recover."

"That's true," Alex said with a nod. "I suppose we should meet up with them. I think we all need to have a talk about the future of the town from here."

"That would be best," Claire agreed. Her hand fell on Alex's shoulder. "But there's one thing you should know first."

"Hm?" Alex blinked. "What is it?"

"It's Orchid," Claire replied. Her eyes darkened. "She knows that we aren't from the Starfallen Family."