Seras, Thomas and Robert travelled through the fields that surrounded the heavily fortified town until they came across the entrance to the maze. The giant rock wall stared them down, its imposing red spikes in jagged contrast to the peaceful space they had just left. They passed through the entrance into the new ecosystem as if it was through a portal to distant landscape. The sun immediately beating down on them like the hammer of a flame-god.

Further into the desert they saw most of the plant life was dead, if not severely wilted. The landscape drifting from the savannah and then to the barren Martian-red.

Robert was still staring into his books and occasionally muttering to himself in exclamation.

"Reading something interesting?" Thomas asked.

"You interested in a bit of lore?" Robert replied.

"Hit me."

Robert smirked as he began to explain, while still continuing to read. “Well, apparently there are elves, and they also used to be human.”

Seras looked towards him. "Shit, those stuck up assholes? I heard they live in some fancy city and keep all of us lower people out."

"Something like that," Robert replied.

“So, you’re pretty into that reading now?” Thomas asked.

“It’s like I can sink into the world of books. Everything is so much more interesting and sticks in my memory, like I don’t even need to try.” Robert replied, without even taking his eyes from the book. His eyes grew wide and even the hairs on his head seemed to perk up as he came across something even more interesting.

Seras had no trouble climbing over the obstacles they came across, even in her heavy armour. The only problem that arose was waiting for Robert to put down his book just so he could use his arms.

They walked until they came across a strange black weed. The almost glass like plant was wafting in the wind, exhibiting a sort of spore-like aura around sharp shiny purple blades of grass. Robert went over to examine it.

.-Mutated taint weed.

A plant that has been mutated by the taint that covered it.

“I haven’t seen anything like that before,” said Seras.

“It's like what happened to the grass we gave you before it turned to mush. But when we found it, it was more like normal grass covered in a slime,” Robert added.

Robert went to reach for the plant. The spores appeared to react to him coming close: a part of it extended towards him, and like a gooey tentacle it wrapped around his hand. On instinct, he vaporized it with a small puff of flame and it all disappeared. The plant shivered and retracted, taking on the look of a mundane speck of grass.

“What the hell was that?”

“Fire?” Robert said.

He was ignored.

“It's a bit like the stuff on the goblins?” Seras chimed in.

Robert looked up at her. “I don’t think we've seen any of the goblins with this.”

"The black stuff that grows on them, there was always more on the crazier ones, but it never seemed to develop too much and it had never infected something else before... If it's spreading and turning into something like this, there’s no telling how much is out there.”

Thomas patted Robert on the shoulder and said: “Well, I’m glad you’re here.”

Robert just grunted.

Thomas whispered to Seras;

"He's turning into a bit of an ass isn't he," He got an awkward smile in reply.

They carried on further, and as Robert moved towards more plants, they moved away in response. Soon they arrived in a small enclave of grassy vegetation covered in a profound layer of the black ooze with many sections having transformed to that of the glassy mutated variant. Many developing strange characteristics and clumped together in a writhing mass.

Robert put down his book and held out his hand, shooting a burst of fire towards the oozing plants of death. He tactically blasted different locations, meticulously generating the most efficient spread of fire. The fire flicked burning tentacles as the cursed taint began to move in dismay.

“No,” Robert cried out. A tainted tentacle had jumped out as the fire enveloped it, making a lick of flame fall onto the book he had just put down. He quickly ran to it and started patting it out. The fire had only singed away part of the cover, and Robert sighed in relief as he saw it was just the image of Kurt’s face.

Thomas and Seras gave a snicker until they met Robert’s glare.

Seras turned to face the burning plants. “This can’t be good.”

"Looks like the taint is spread further than we thought," Thomas replied with a wink.

“I guess we have our work cut out for us.”

Robert walked forward into the burned plants. Smoke still rising off the ground. He found the dead bodies of a wolf and goblin, next to the remnants of a broken barrel. He kicked the heap and the animal carcass flew out. Its eyes had dissolved, and fur had melted away. Its teeth protruded from its face like disfigured spikes. A few broken spears appeared to be jutting out of its side but still some wreathing blackness appeared below the surface seeming to retreat into the shadows.

Robert clenched his hand around the wolf carcass, burning it in his hands. He held it further until the entire body decided to glow a different color. Tendrils of purple light were drawn out of it until the corpse deteriorated to nothing. Robert looked disappointed as only a miniature purple crystal landed in his hand. Trying again with the goblin, he grasped the decomposing head. It seemed to slowly disappear in the same light and concentrate an essence into the creatures tool, even sapping away the energy from the crystal he held in his hand which promptly disappeared.

He picked up the tool, two notifications appearing in his vision.

New schematic:

Shiv

Acquired item Quality

Taint-forged shiv Poor

Special effects:

Chance to infect with taint.

Robert furrowed his brow and focused fire in his hand, dissolving the weapon.

"What was that?" Seras asked.

"Getting the loot?" he replied.

"I, what?"

"You didn't know? its like the system and mana control. Tell it to work on dead stuff and it gives you goodies," Robert said.

Seras furrowed her brow in turn. “No, I didn't know that, since...what the actual fuck dude."

"Did the gremlin thing not tell you?"

"Kurt is a little shit."

Robert and Thomas laughed at that.

Thomas inspected the ground where the mutant wolf was. “Whatever happened, this stuff doesn’t just affect plants.”

They carried on further, dissolving away all that was tainted along the journey.

“Pass me some food, Robert,” Seras commanded.

Robert gave her a puzzled look. “I don’t have any.”

“Then what the hell is in your pack?”

He opened his bag and angled it towards her. it was filled to the brim with books. Seras rubbed a hand over her face, massaging her temple in a futile attempt to rid herself of her annoyance. “Then let's find something to eat.”

“We found some berries on the way before,” Thomas said.

"Of course you did," Seras replied.

They came across a few more bushes, and Robert and Thomas collected as many berries as they could. The odd technique Robert used of connecting the trees mana helped him find and remove the best fruits without damaging them.

Robert looked around for more evidence of mayhem. Bits of broken wood from the barrel seemed to have scattered along a path where the passageways forked.

“I can see a trail,” Seras said.

“Where?”

“It’s a system-based skill” she explained. “There’s a path that shows me a rough outline of the tracks and the size of the things that went along it recently.”

The two followed Seras as she inspected the path and bush to find the occasional footprint, broken twig, or rock. She seemed to know exactly where to go, as though she was following the shadow of the creature that had created the tracks.

Thomas began checking the things Seras had inspected, trying to see what she saw to no avail. Eventually, he could tell to some extent what creatures created which marks on the ground, and after something appeared to be calibrating across the side of his awareness, he grew a notification.

New kill!

Tracking

You can identify tracks of those you have seen, and perceive their lingering essence.

They followed for a while, clearing out anything tainted along the way. They came across a solid trail of black tar along the ground that seemed to lead into a cave. A splash of the tar was clearly visible along the side of the entrance.

Thomas felt a rush through his eyes and mind; the path seemed to highlight prints and splashes of tar along the entrance of the cave. It was almost like his brain was overloaded with a sort of trial and error testing to see which animals could make which prints. As his vision returned and the headache ceased he saw a shadowy afterimage appear around the tracks they followed shifting slightly between possible shapes as it fit with an image he had in his mind.

“Goblins,” he said.

Seras smiled. “Nice. Tracking is a hunter's best tool.”

Thomas gave a slight smile and they carried on following the trail. Within the cave, little was visible. Robert managed to find a dead tree and broke a branch off, which he fashioned into a torch so as not to risk running out of mana. They walked inside, listening out for any noise.

They hadn't gotten far before they came across the corpses of goblins: decrepit and mutilated carcasses, torn to pieces by something. The smashed remnants of another two barrels lay next to them. The black substance was splattered along the cave side and floor around these barrels. Thomas went to inspect it, pressing his finger into it.

*Refined Taint*

He lurched, back pushing his hand into the fire and seeing the ooze catch. It began to bubble as suddenly a slither of a tentacle lurched from the barrel. The tar within the container almost erupted before Robert shot it with his cleansing fire, neutralizing whatever was in the cursed taint with ease.

The sound of collapsing rocks echoed in the cave. There was silence as the group braced, trying to find out what that was. Then cascading thumps, growing ever louder, forced them to defensively turn to face the noise. They looked around, searching, then suddenly a blood-curdling roar reverberated against the walls. Out of the darkness, illuminated in the flames of torchlight, a troll’s face emerged, wretched and disfigured by a black tainted fungus coating its facial features.

It swung toward the group, just missing Thomas as he moved out the way. The lumbering giant was not coordinated, and Thomas's recent training engrained a new awareness in him. Seras had charged, and taking a low pose she swung into its side. The axe embedded itself in his upper thigh, before tentacles of darkness wrapped around the axis’s edge, launching up towards her hands. She dropped the axe and moved back, not taking the risk of letting the darkness touch her.

The monster gave out another cry as Robert shot fire in a narrow stream towards it. The troll caught and was torched in a furious fire, shaking away at the flames it thrashed in agony.

Robert stopped, out of mana, and the flames receded from the beast's skin, taking with it the corruption. The troll’s expression suddenly seemed almost cognisant. Its eyes bore colour where before was just dull whiteness. Then the black tentacles of corruption spurted out from newly formed wounds, sprawling over the creature as it struggled in pain.

Thomas had run towards the entrance. He grabbed three arrows and quickly fired them into the beast, doing minimal damage but getting its attention. As it ran towards Thomas, Seras dove into its side and hacked at one of its legs, slicing its thigh. It collapsed onto one side.

Getting up as its wounds rapidly healed, tentacles stitching him together, the troll only seemed angrier. Robert began shooting bursts of fire, bit by bit causing the creature to retch without his mana running out. Thomas fired arrow after arrow whilst Seras swung at its sides, dashing past it so as not to get caught. The creature was slowly being whittled down.

It came slightly into the light of the entrance, staring Thomas down. Thomas was waiting, just past the entrance. He focused on his aim and, with the focus of a sniper, shot one then two arrows into its eyes. The troll was now struggling and losing momentum as the fast-paced Seras cut into its sides. It could do nothing but flail about. The black ooze moved around it, receding then appearing, changing location as the fire was shot into it. Unable to see its surroundings, the troll seemed unable to tell where anyone was. Then Thomas saw an eye materialize within the black ooze, facing Seras as she came in for another attack.

“Get back!” Thomas shouted.

It was too late. The creature reached around and grabbing Seras, began slowly crushing her. The armour around her sides began to ripple.

Robert appeared from behind. There was a fire in his eyes.

He stuck his hand into the creature and let forth all his energy. The troll screamed in pain as flames erupted all around it. Seras took the opportunity to peel herself out from its grasp and collapsed to the ground.

The beast nearly succeeded in crushing her as it fell, but she just managed to roll out the way. Picking up her axe, she executed the final blow, decapitating the creature and letting the head roll away.

“Holy fucking shit,” she gasped.

Thomas let loose a held breath. “That was…so…intense.”

“How did you do that?” Seras asked Robert.,

“I figured it would work better if I burnt him from inside.”

“I saw that, but how? Its skin is so thick, how did you do it?”

“I don’t want to go into details,” he said sheepishly, looking away.

Notification

Slain creature Experience Gained

Mutated ‘taint’ troll 233

Special mutation effect

Increased taint regeneration and spread.

Thomas stepped over to a rock and collapsed on the ground. "Do you want to have the honours?" he said.

Seras looked at the corpse and back to Robert.

She stuck out her hand and grasped the remaining flesh of the troll's neck, focusing her energy and pushing in tendrils of mana. A purple and grey essence seemed to pour from the beast as the corpse disappeared. The head similarly combined its essence into a grey purple gem.

Acquired item Quality

Healing gem high

uses: 3

effect:

Quickly heal non-mortal wounds.

Seras beamed as she stared into the item. "I fucking love loot.”

When going back into the cave, they saw how the remains of the goblins had been entirely split open. It looked like the troll had attacked the creatures when they accidentally stepped into its cave. The barrel next to the body still notably held a large amount of black slime; some was also scattered over the floor.

Robert gathered some of the gunk and inspected it more thoroughly. “This is inert,” he said.

“Come again?”

“This stuff can’t infect people directly; it has to be eaten or changed in some way I think. It’s not like the taint in the mutated plants, it's like it’s safe until people want it not to be.”

“It's the damn goblins, I knew it,” Seras chimed in. They collected some in a vial taken from Roberts bag, and burnt the rest.

They scouted around the cave, illuminating the walls. Robert scoured the cave and shot fire out at anything that seemed corrupt, tearing through the darkness at any slight movement.

It was meticulous work. They found the remains of another two goblins in the troll’s base, and what appeared to be a mess of black bile around his habitat. The cave wasn’t very big, but it was big enough to hold them in constant fear that another troll could jump out at any time.