"Shield is off and invisibility is enabled," I stated to the others.

They were all strapped into the other chairs, not that it was needed for this part, and the house barely even rocked.

Breaking through the remaining rock above had taken a bit of effort but I had prepared the area, making it easier to crack apart. I inspected the sensors that were installed. Altitude, wind speed, direction, all thanks to a donor plane, and hooked up to a mana generator. They weren't perfect but it was far better than just guessing.

I also uncovered the remote viewing device. All I could see was a plume of dust surrounding the area. I rotated it, making sure no part of the fortress was visible. Everything looked good to go.

"Ascending to maximum height, hold on."

I cranked the output to the max, sending the fortress careening into the air. We were pressed into our chairs as the building rose. It was much more responsive than I thought it would be. When I checked the altimeter, it read five hundred feet. That was easily triple what we were capable of with my old design. I checked the mana draw, it was about double. I would need to get another mana heart to supplement it at a later time. In the meantime, if it ever ran out it could draw from the other two crystals. I figured it was much more important to stay in the air than be invisible or have a shield.

While the structure didn't have a front or back, being round, I still chose to think of the door as the back. At least while we were flying.

I rotated the fortress until we were facing east, then I engaged the drive plates. It was a slow start but once it picked up speed it was far faster than the house had been. Being not a flying brick probably helped in that regard. In less than ten minutes we were cruising along the coast at forty miles an hour. At this altitude, we seemed to be immune to the effects of the terrain below us, which was a godsend. No more bobbing up and down with every little hill.

"Everything seems to be running smoothly. Martin, see if the charging port works."

The charging port was just a mithril line that ran to the main crystals. There was one for each station, this allowed anyone in the seats to charge the crystals.

I watched him place his hand on the one for the cloak. As he fed mana into it I watched it slowly fill the device.

"It worked, but it doesn't seem to be as efficient, not that I'm surprised. Try the others."

He did as asked and they all worked. I had Ska try his, using a charged mana stone, since he didn't have much mana. That worked as well. Good to know if we got into a bad situation. It wouldn’t cost a whole lot to stock charged mana hearts and leave them in the secure storage for emergencies.

"Alright, that worked. Ska, hold off on using those stones unless we are in serious trouble. Martin, please keep the cloak topped off, I will do the main power."

Both nodded.

***

We coasted into the secluded beach where the dwarves resided sometime after sunset. The speed at which we could cover ground was impressive.

"We're here," I said, locking the controls and standing up.

Being the control center, this room was near the center of the structure on the bottom level. I did make one adjustment before we left. A tube led straight out the bottom, covered by a plate that slid over it.

"Why are we stopping?" Martin asked, eager to make sure his sister was safe.

I didn't share his eagerness. "We are at the dwarven stronghold. Initially, it was my idea to attack them under the cover of darkness but I threw that plan out the window seeing as we have more pressing matters."

"Okay... then why are we here?"

"It’s too dangerous to let them continue preying on locals. So I came up with another way to attack them." I pulled out one of the bombs, setting it into place above the tube. "This and three other bombs will be dropped They will release a poison gas that should deal with them. By the time we return they should be dead or severely weakened. Then we can finish them off once and for all."

Martin looked a little pale, I couldn't blame him. He hadn't seen the shit that I had seen.

"You sure that is the right thing to do?"

"It's either that or keep letting them dictate the terms. From what Fiona told me they are attacking other people now. Whether or not we caused that change, I can't say. What I can do is stop them."

"Then why tell us, why not just drop it and go?"

"Because, If the three of us do this together, perhaps the system will split any experience. I wouldn't suggest this if we didn't need all the help we could before taking on the Black Dragon."

Ska hissed in disapproval, "Ska wants no part in this. There is no honor or glory in it."

I couldn't argue that point. I turned to Martin to see what he would say.

"Fine, but only because getting stronger might help me protect my sister."

He walked over, looking nervous. "Uh, what do I do?"

"Just wait there, I have to arm it first."

I spun the three disks until they lined up, creating the correct runic-pathway. Then I pressed my hand against the activation plate.

"Ok help me lower it over the opening."

The bombs weren't all that heavy and we got it into place.

"On three, let go."

I had a brief moment of self-doubt on whether I was doing the right thing as I counted down. I shoved that thought to the back of my mind as I finished the countdown and released the weapon. The world would not give me a second chance if I was weak. Besides, these fuckers signed their death warrant when they attacked us. How those deaths came about was irrelevant.

I watched as the weapon fell through the hole and was accelerated by the levitator field below the ship. I had a moment of panic as the object rocketed down at speeds it wasn't built to handle. Thankfully the design seemed to slow it down, then its own field kicked in just before it punched into the ground.

We moved and repeated the process three more times, alternating who actually activated the weapon. I didn't know how the System was going to determine who earned the experience but figured it couldn't hurt.

"That's the last one. Fiona, can you stick around for an hour to see if the objects worked, then catch up to us. We will pause near that town where we killed those Cartel people."

She nodded, flying down through the bomb chute before I closed it off.

"Alright, let's get moving."

We didn't have to wait an hour or even another five minutes. A scroll of death notifications lit up my feed before I turned them off again. I sucked in a deep breath, pushing aside the fact that I had murdered dozens again. I looked over to see how Martin was handling it. 'Yep, about as well as I thought, which meant not very.'

The rest of the trip was silent, even when Fiona joined up with us again. She simple nodded and we continued on our way.

By morning we had made it past Ska's village. I had reduced our speed during the night so we could get some rest. Not that I was able to sleep with what I had done. Even if I knew it was necessary. I had yet to look at the message blinking in my vision. With a sigh, I clicked on it.

Congratulations you are the first person on your planet to deal over 250000 damage with one attack 250000 XP awarded

I suspected Martin had gotten a few messages like this as well. It gave me a good estimate of how many dwarves there might have been in that stronghold. Too many to take on was the conclusion I came to.

You have reached level 17, modifiers increased by 1, 2 free skill slots available

You have earned the title Reaper. Those you have marked for death cannot escape your grasp. Through concentration, you can pinpoint their direction. The range is limited.

I rubbed my face and sighed. It was an excellent title to have, especially being a bounty hunter. But did the System really have to rub in the fact that I just murdered a bunch of people by giving me a title? I decided to focus on something else, checking my stats since they hadn't changed in a long time.

Paul Fuller | Mantra Enchanter | Level 17

Strength: 13(+2) modifier x18

Endurance: 19 modifier x36

Agility: 15(+2) modifier x18

Perception: 17 modifier x18

Intelligence: 22 modifier x36

Wisdom: 14 modifier x18

Charisma: 11 modifier x18

Luck: 14 modifier x18

HP: 684(752)

Mana: 792

Mana Regen(M): 252

The bump was nice but hardly noticeable at this level. Next, I looked to see what skills I had unlocked. Turns out not much. I got a bump to Rejuvenate. I could now heal a hundred and seventy-five health instead of the one-twenty five from before. That used up one of my free skill slots.

Reverberating Strike: For the next two seconds all of your blows act as if the target is not wearing armor, cost 60 mana, cooldown 4min

That was a no-brainer, I grabbed that skill. It wasn't like my old options were very impressive.

Now that I was done I looked over to Martin, using Identify. He had leveled twice from that attack and was now level fourteen. I decided not to ask him about his skills, imagining that would be a sore subject right about now.

Even Fiona had gained a level and was now fourteen. Turns out she got a reduced amount of experience from whatever I did. Though she didn't get any new skills, she did look more substantial in her visible form. 'That could be a trick of my eyes though.'

After resting and eating a quick meal we got back on the way. Our haste turned out to be in vain though.

***

We hovered over the burned-out remains of Arman. Not even a tendril of smoke remained, telling me that the city had been burned to the ground quite some time ago. The townsfolk had all been rounded up and executed, their heads stuck on poles and left to rot. Martin was standing near the corpse of his sister. She was wrapped in an old curtain after we helped him remove her from the cross.

She had been stripped naked and beaten to death. The words carved into the board, a message meant for me.

This is what happens to those that cross the Black Dragon. If you want to stop this, you know where to find me. You cannot delay the inevitable.

I ground my teeth and clenched my fists in rage. Even though I despised Martin’s sister, she didn't deserve this. After we helped lay the townsfolk to rest we flew to Gok's compound in the desert, what was left of it. Martin was silent, stuck in his head and grieving for his sister.

The walls had been demolished and everyone had been butchered. It looks like they put up more of a fight than Arman though. There was red blood mixed in with the orange blood of Gok's people. There was another message for me.

We will destroy everything you hold dear and any that help you until you face judgment at the hands of the Black Dragon.

As we were burying these bodies, Martin spoke. "We have to stop them," he said quietly.

"We will," I replied with conviction I didn't feel.

"Can we even take them at our current strength?"

Not one to lie about something so critical, I told him the truth. "No, I don't think we could."

He nodded, probably expecting this answer from me. Once we cleared the dead, we flew towards Biloxi.

We could see signs of smoke in the distance but as we got closer it looked like most of the town was still intact. That could mean a few things. Either the Black Dragon was still here or they were driven off. Neither option was ideal so I set the fortress down in the desert, out of sight of the city.

"Stay here, while I check it out."

"I am coming with," Ska stated.

I sighed but didn't stop him from exiting the structure.

We made our way to the outskirts of the city. Now that we were closer we could see the damage.

A large chunk of the city facing Arman's direction had been burned down. A wall had been erected beyond that point stopping the invaders in their place.

"That's new," I mumbled.

"Hmmm smells of ash and death," Ska added.

"Well, let's go say hi."