B1 — 27. The Harvest Moon
Rachel began counting down the seconds as the clock ticked for Conner, sweat beginning to gather on his bronze skin as Dionysus gave him an unamused look. The lesser god’s voice was far from entertained as he stared at his squirming champion.
“Choose a location without a moon.”
“I can’t…” Conner hissed, knowing he would choose a nasty monster for her to face. “If she dies, I die.”
“And you will die in ways you cannot fathom if you do not select a moonless day!”
The angel’s face creased with Nia’s boos, grating against the lesser god’s nerves.
“That hardly—”
“Your turn is over!” Dionysus swept him away to his seat with an enraged flick of his wrist. “I don’t need a little angel to tell me what is—”
“Location,” Conner stated, grimacing while keeping his focus on the screen as it struck the single digits. “A sparse forest, mixed with random vegetation and grainy fields… under a random moon.”
A tense silence overcame the throng as Rachel sallied over and held up a hand to the resigned Legend. “Oh, c’mon, don’t leave me hanging. Be a good sport!”
Conner groaned, forcing a smile and slapping hands in a high-five. “We’re going to die.”
“Welcome to the team!” Nia chimed, giving a grinning peace sign to Dionysus, too furious to even speak.
The arena under them segmented into a vast field of trees, crops, and vineyards, spotted amongst a forest. A giant lunar sphere and a thin veil of fog fell over the scenery, tinting the world a haunting orange.
“What’s… happening?” Conner whispered, stepping away as Rachel’s mirth grew; this wasn’t a unique moon, but it certainly seemed like a rare event or stronger than a normal moon.
The leaves started to color, the crops grew, vineyards became wild, and trees twisted. In the harrowing stillness of the stadium, Conner’s manic laugh came as a whisper when the stage name popped up in front of him, eye twitching. His god gave the explanation after watching his champion and her come together.
“A Greater Harvest Moon, when the terrors of the night twist the real into horror… Conner.” Dionysus’ voice was low—without heat—as the vines and flowing wine settled; the Legend’s face tightened, looking at his god. “You’ve chosen your side.”
“Which is life,” Rachel chuckled, watching a low, howling wind pass over the grain and forest. “It’s the only option you gave him, genius. I don’t think you’ll last much longer as the Arbiter like this.”
Insanity still swam in Dionysus’ eyes, but Rachel was already anticipating the surge of Halloween-charged energy this moon would fill her with, and Nia could store it. However, the lesser god’s rage had simmered into a cold smile that said when this was done, he would have her in the same position she’d snatched Nike out of.
Rachel’s gaze shot to the VIP area as Eostre was snatched by vines and dragged back into her seat, tightening around her frame and making her wince; he would be cutting off communication between them moving forward as he took away any advantages she’d manipulated out of him.
He pointed up at the clock as it ticked down. “You’ve been aiming at me this entire time. It’s never been between Conner and you, has it? All you’ve done is try to make a fool out of me… manipulating things with that sense of misfortune to distract me. Well, I hope you love Halloween because things do go bump in the night.”
Nia’s smile widened, eyes narrowing as they challenged the Greek god. “And we’re about to join them.”
“We shall see…” The screen of potential monsters centered on a pulsating black heart within an ancient tree, and the mist surrounding the forest thickened. “Creature: The Hateful Heartwood within The Creeping Forest. Enjoy your Hallow’s Eve.”
Without blinking, the world melted away, leaving Nia and her on the haunted grounds; the hair on the back of Rachel’s neck prickled as the cursed land seeped into her, and the pulse of it lifted her lips into a toothy smile.
[Fright of the Greater Harvest Moon: Active]
[Horror Embodiment VI - become the embodiment of horror, spreading the concept and conveyance of fear to those that see the user, warping their perception of who they face.]
[Fear-Dependent Immortality IV - The user cannot be harmed so long as the user’s prey fears them.]
[Hollow’s Eve Trail VI - Become one with the twisted harvest, discovering paths unseen and enjoying the company of the cursed and damned.]
[Psychosis Inducement VI - Twist the minds of those you torment to join the harvest, breaking their thoughts, inducing paranoia, and spreading terror whenever perceived by the user’s prey.]
[Cursed Frostfire VI - Frostfire that refuses to be extinguished, slowly burning its victims while tormenting and corrupting the victim’s mind. Deals frostfire damage.]
Nia mirrored her, running her fingers through her braid to unfasten it. Her ears, tail, and locks dyed pumpkin and vermilion orange, cursed flames lighting in their eclipse eyes and spreading across their hair. Hissing bled through the veil, and candles emerged from the mist, unseen spirits churning the tinted mist into a beautiful rhythm.
Instead of fright at the thought of something lurking behind the shadowed trees or creaking wood, things creeping through the whistling night, and whispering spirits, the bright orange celestial sphere gave her a sense of home. This wasn’t a fright-filled horrorfest of panicking humans but a battle of monsters.
Rachel walked through the gentle fall of discolored leaves, Nia walking beside her; the tension was like honey on her tongue, and she could hear the moving forest awakening around her. Soon, the trees would be on the move, communicating—hunting. Despite that, anticipation bloomed within her breast, and coral-cursed frostfire flames erupted along their free-swaying hair.
A joyful hum was in her voice as she spoke to Nia, their words vibrating the air in the oppressive night, and her body began to flicker, showing her angles that she could step through, taking her to new locations.
“Buy me time so I can go through my Feats and Stats. We’ll swap places after.”
Nia gave her a two-fingered salute, skipping ahead and doing a slow spin to step through the twisting paths visible to the creatures of the Harvest Moon. “Catch you soon, Captain.”
“Happy hunting.”
Rachel stepped behind a nearby tree, the scene changing to a tall wheat field that rustled with the threat of danger lurking just beyond sight, and the misty forest disappeared. Curiosity filled her as she saw the winding breeze passing through the grain, something in the air, calling her to dance with the spirits.
The wheat only seemed to grow taller as she moved, yet the beams of the giant orange globe overhead reflected off the stalks, filling her with anticipation for the fight to come. It was a little bit heartbreaking that she was facing another denizen of the Harvest, but she was far from adverse to the challenge of striking fear into another monster.
Her fingers passed over the bending wheat as she came upon a path, the stalks folded over to lead the unassuming prey of the night into a maze that was the only way out of the endless field as she followed Misfortune to the best spot to meditate.
Nia engaged the creeping trees, swimming through the night in a blaze of coppery flames. The bunny soldier wouldn’t last long, even if they had an elemental advantage against the endless sea of branches and roots, but Rachel didn’t take her time.
She took twelve right turns, folding in an impossible angle as she delved deeper into the shimmering labyrinth. A single left brought her to a large brass bowl of orange fire—cursed frostfire. Rachel could have taken the unseen paths, yet that would have tipped off The Hateful Heartwood where she’d gone.
Sliding her finger around the bowl, she saw her creepy, fake smile reflecting off the polished metal. Anyone who saw her would perceive a rather terrifying visage of a monstrous hare, yet this was starkly different than the Black Moon; for one, it wasn’t nearly as powerful.
Rachel stared up at the mango-tinted moon, hovering overhead as if stalking her, whistling a joyful tune and dropping into a sitting position. Her presence warped and changed reality to suit her hunting style, everything rearranging to her thrill of the hunt.
The honeyed mist closed in around her as she drew inward, opening up her inner world to a wealth of Halloween-themed decorations in a pumpkin field dotted with scarecrows. Crows lingered on posts and in the sparse trees that spotted the endless zone.
Her thoughts on the frightmare hummed with the clicks, screams, and howls that occasionally broke the whistling night. Unlike the singular Black Moon or normal lunar spheres, this was a themed moon, situated between the two. Everything about this Legend’s Quest had been quite educational, helping her to understand more about the secrets hidden beyond dimensional veils, and even the gods were caught up in the mystery.
The Harvest Moon wasn’t an embodiment of nightmares that fed off hope, but it was similar. Where the Black Moon brought nightmares to life, trapping its victims in an endless nightmare from which, normally, there was no escape, the Harvest Moon was all about terror and feeding off the fright of those it terrorized, reflecting that power onto its denizens.
This phenomenon was a companion to the creatures of the night, sharing in the feast of blood, soul, and negative emotion. It gave her a sense of torment and thrill in the climax of fright that was what she thought shooting heroin straight into her veins might feel like.
Rachel went over her many options, deciding where to place her four Skill Points. If she was going to get another weapon, she needed to be more dexterous and controlled in its use, and she was already quite high in those areas.
Her choices were fairly obvious, but Penetration caught her gaze. She decided to put one in it with another in Power and Quickness. If she was going to get a weapon, it would help to have extra raw punching power to break past defenses, like Conner’s.
One of the new Equipable Feats made her chuckle, and she swapped [Lunar Burst I - E-tier] for [Lunar Spike - F-tier]; if she consumed 25% of Nia or her Lunar Pools, then she could flood her body with that type of energy for thirty seconds.
She could see it useful for these themed or unique lunar spheres, and [Lunar Burst] was good for a big hitter, but it had proven to be a tad less useful than she’d hoped thus far. Perhaps it would have its uses in the future.
Making her choice of Extension, Rachel opened her eyes to the orange rays bathing her in light. She got up and flipped the blazon bowl over, spreading the cursed coral flames to the field; ice spread across the soil as the wheat lit up the night. It had been worth the trip.
I’m done, Nia, she said, peering through the winding paths of the burning fields to see herself from a back angle; her ghoulish smile widened as she watched herself peer backward, head tilting while walking into the fire. How goes the night?
“Wonderful, I see you’ve started the fire.” The bunny flipped out of the misty sky, a reaching, gnarled branch recoiling at the fire Nia landed in, her ripped skirt and military coat showing signs of damage. “They’re persistent. We’re going to take our time to fill up our pools. Oh, you’ve been caught? Haha. Watch out for the tree creepers, Cap!”
Rachel’s ears twitched to the side as a quivering root shot out of the ground, coiling around her foot. The world flipped upside down as she was whipped into the air. She wasn’t concerned, having expected the roots to try and feel their way toward her, but this did force it to come into contact with the cursed and burning field to expose itself.
Plus, now she had a glorious view from the sky, allowing her to see the writhing vines, roots, and trees that closed in around the flaming wheat.
Unfortunately, [Lunar Spike] didn’t get an Extension for her to reduce the cost like she’d hoped to tap into the Blood Moon.
[Divine Lunar Surge I - D-tier] worked, though, which provided her with an increased 130% Power and Toughness Stats multiplier at max Lunar Cap, and it was currently full. Judging by how well she took this skyward adventure, she was making progress in her defense.
[Divine Lunar Surge: Extra Kick] - Consume 50% of Lunar Pool to provide an additive 75% boost to Power and Toughness for 30 seconds.
Her wide field of vision caught sight of hobgoblins, zombies, and werewolves that broke away from the trees, providing a field of wood-based monster impersonations. Nia darted into the blazing field to find her own safe place to make her own upgrades.
Well, Rachel commented to the bunny, having done her job. I’ll take it from here. I want to see how much I’ve improved since that first Quest.
Her big and bright orange eyes drifted to the left as vines shot out of the distant treeline to spear her. [Mental Acceleration II: Activated]. Fingers touching the nearest spike, she twisted her body, using it as leverage to twirl around it.
[Cursed Frostfire] would be the easiest way to counter the Hateful Heartwood and the wooden creatures of the Creeping Forest, but Rachel opted not to use her Harvest Moon abilities to see how much she’d grown at Level 9.
She laughed, feeling like a ballerina or gymnast as her nimble and quick fingers found their hold on the skyborne assault. Between her sharp vision and calculating mind, she could spot the trajectory while her acute and divine-enhanced hearing made her aware of distant attacks.
Misfortune smiled on her in this battle, but it could swiftly shift course if she let it go on too long. Monsters aside, her worst enemy was her own poor Endurance and Stamina. A rush of exhilaration filled her belly when she activated [Attack Perk - Curse: Karma] on the forest assaulting her; it spread to every wooden entity. Any damage she took would be returned.
She jumped high into the air, drawing her free locks around to hold in front of her arms as she held them up to take the brunt of a root that struck out; the blow recoiled, shattering the bark while whipping her toward the forest, but she’d angled herself to land near the wooden creatures.
Flipping back, her square heel landed against the face of a wooden werewolf, yet its roots kept it planted as she repositioned. Kicking off, she landed on a trunk and ping-ponged to the ground with the forest in pursuit. Her forearms smarted a bit from the previous attack, but that was the extent of the damage.
She pivoted, with a roundhouse kick meeting a slow goblin’s face. They were all so slow. Wood caving in under her blow, Rachel could feel her increased power in contrast to the Blood Moon. There was no satisfying crunch or resistance against her fist under the liquid crimson sphere like the grit she felt under her heel right now; the Blood Moon tempered her love for battle and made it a somber chore.
The hobgoblin’s feet ripped out of the earth, propelled by her momentum-charged kick. Limbs tried to intercept her, yet it was too easy to use even the thinnest roots as rails or stepping stones to get to her next target. In the next second, she was gliding through the air, making short work of the wooden army.
It wasn’t like she could win this way, which likely had Dionysus cackling from on high. He’d cut off her mid-match cheerleader, Eostre, but MoonMoon was probably dancing across the seats right now.
Rachel just wanted to see how much she had grown without these Singular Lunar Event hacks, and under the Harvest Moon, she was practically immune to fear or surprise. Everything felt like a wonderful dream while dancing through the horrific forest.
Typically, the Creeping Forest would welcome her with open arms if this were the real world, yet it had been taken over by the Hateful Heartwood, which was her true opponent. Dionysus, being the very knowledgeable entity he was, had managed to wrap the environment and monster into one super monster.
Of course, there was no way he would be able to tell how the Harvest Moon would affect her, and the cursed frostfire was certainly one fascinating addition that gave her a way out of this.
Nia popped up from a cloud of orange fog beside a tree, wearing a thoughtful grin as she skipped back, defending herself from a volley of projectile thorns, vines, and the closing in twisted trees. “Need help, Cap? I decided not to select any Feats until we can coordinate. Something new might pop up on the Grade V Advancement.”
Rachel chuckled, catching a few scrapes and cuts that Karma sent back; she could be harmed through [Fear-Dependent Immortality IV] since the forest wasn’t afraid of her—at least, not yet.
Having tested her physical improvements enough, and not wanting to waste any more of her stamina, Rachel’s hands sparked to life with vermilion flames as she dove into a tree hollow; it bowed in to spike her inside, only to find her gone.
Take care of our fun little forest, Nia; let’s put the fear of frostfire in its heart!
“Roger that; smoked pine coming up!”
A shiver ran through the forest as Rachel peered through the lunar beams and winding paths the Harvest Moon shared with them; Nia took the offense, cursed flames coating her hands. She busted up the wooden creatures, having a harder time of it than Rachel, given her reduced stats and their synchronization level.
Hmm. We’re going to have to work on our Sync Union so you can share more of my strengths.
“I think—heh, I’m doing fine right now… Don’t tell me you’re afraid I’ll get a few scrapes or expose a bit of your skin?”
Rachel nodded as she turned away. The living denier took the vicious step of tossing the burning kindling she started through the misty routes, spreading it far and wide. It didn’t take long for the forest to give up on them both, with the dead leaves now catching flame, a layer of ice creeping over the earth that the flames touched.
“Dionysus!” she sang, holding her burning hands behind her back as the forest began to part and run away from the growing inferno. “Clever move with the environmental and hidden heart in a forest, but… what if the forest runs away? Haha.”
Nia soon exited out of a misty cloud ahead of her, the bunny chasing the now terrified wooden constructs as she vanished in and out of the haze. “Aww… Hehehe. You’re so cute, running away from me; you know you can’t escape! Am I a little scary now?”
Creaking wood and wooden creatures attempted to dig out ditches to stop them, only for a grinning Nia to appear behind them, hair dangling to the side as she leaned over to wave at them. “Is this really going to work? I don’t think it will.”
Their soft whistles and harvesting flames only grew higher, the smiling orange moon gleaming and glistening under their rampage. Black sap bubbled and froze over in their slow and constant hunt, slipping into the mist to appear in a dull flicker that trailed after their hair and fists, but their little horror story had only just begun.
With them skipping about, hunting the Creeping Forest, the vibrant vineyard merged with the frostfire, pumpkins growing out of the grapes to take on sinister lantern shapes, overcoming the wheat fields and abandoned forests. With the haunted vineyard’s growing strength, more attractions emerged, scarecrows coming out of the conquered golden fields.
Nia and her no longer needed to dodge the desperate attacks the Creeping Forest made, its fear making them invulnerable to its attacks, the unlucky woodland only further igniting upon contact with the horrific hare and rabbit figures it contended with.
The nightmarish frostfire couldn’t be stopped, and the strangling vineyard was now their ally; after all, monsters hunted the weak. Under the vermilion moon that had abandoned the predator-turned-prey, the Hateful Heartwood could only wait and shiver for its cover to be scorched away, the fertile hoar-frosted ground bringing the reaching vineyard ever closer.
Truly, misfortune was on their side, and this Challenge Rating 1 fight wasn’t even a contest when adding these powerful celestial spheres, yet it was this that enticed the crowd. They wouldn’t show it, but within their hearts, they wanted to see Dionysus fall, and that chapter was closing in.
She and Nia sat on the ground, the last tree pincered between them with an endless graveyard of pumpkins, oversized grapes, scarecrows, and cackling jack-o-lanterns closing in on the rejected monster, shunned from the pack. Cracked with blackened wood and filled with a fit of terrified anger, its Creeping Forest guardian fallen, all the Hateful Heartwood could do was wail as it was torn to splinters while they watched its destruction.
Rachel didn’t know how much time had passed as she bid the Harvest Moon goodbye with her fellow monsters; it had been fun, and the slow strangulation of their shared prey had been a good bonding experience.
Unlike a normal moon, a themed or singular moon could last as long as its hunger was met, so she couldn’t say how long this trial had lasted. Long enough for Nia to get fat on the energy, filling an entire pool.
Nia smacked her lips. “I can’t explain it, Captain. Don’t you feel… what’s the word—satisfied?”
“I am,” she whispered. The haunting laughter of Hallow’s Eve faded with the vanishing world to show them in the middle of the extravagant stadium under the frigid stare of Dionysus; cheers came from the audience, which was all that mattered.
Rachel’s shimmering vermilion eclipsed gaze centered on the lesser god. “I hope you enjoyed the screams. Who knew monsters could fall so far?”
“Is that so?” Dionysus mused, leaning against the side of the chair he now sat on while appraising her; he hid what bubbled underneath well behind a cold exterior, sipping on his wine. Conner was up, and the Greek god was no longer supporting him, yet the man still tried to put on a show as Dionysus passively tossed his die. “I look forward to seeing you demonstrate that in the next round. In fact…”
He lifted his hand to the sky, making Conner’s eyes widen as the Challenge Rating went up to 2. “Interesting thing is… once you accept it once, I can return to it whenever I want. Isn’t that fun?”
Rachel rolled around her neck, her hair returning to its normal glow as Nia sucked out her Lunar Pool to fill it back up with the white moon she’d slowly extracted; with the Harvest Moon’s light gone, her fear-induced love slipped away, yet her smile did not. Nia was proving to be quite the item, capable of storing her Black, Blood, and Harvest Moon energy for later.
“Wonderful! It means we’ll get better rewards. Playing right into my hand again, Dionysus. What will it be, Conner?”
Nia huffed as she was pushed off to Eostre’s side to be out of the limelight, so she went to check on the woman. “Yikes, uh… his vines are slowly going to some not-so-nice places, Rach! She needs our help if we’re going to save her from some trauma.”
Hmm. Rachel tossed her own die, the lesser god not even hyping up the crowd anymore. He was now looking at her as a true threat, which meant she had to drop his feet out and let him hang by her next contest. We need to help Conner now if we’re going to survive this. We just need to distract him. If we focus on Eostre, it will only make it worse for her.
She smirked as they landed.
Conner: 12
Rachel: 15
Dionysus: 14
Crowd: 7
“Location: Gaia’s hallowed sanctuary with the blessed water of… Neptune.”
Dionysus’ fingernails dug into his chair, splitting the wood as Conner looked at her as if she were crazy. “Monster: The Magma Dragon.”
“Item Selection: The companion constellation Delphinus.” Rachel could feel the pressure mounting as Conner’s fingers trembled, staring at his former sponsor. “I will win.”
A pink-furred cat yawned and rubbed her eyes, fixing her witch’s hat before looking up at the options. “Mmm… Restriction: Five minutes use.”
“Dammit!” Conner snarled, yet he was already transported into the fight without warning. “Haha! Okay. I’ll do it in four! Let’s go, Delphin—”
Rachel sat on the VIP box edge, observing the lesser god. His cold eyes were fixated on her, or perhaps his focus was on Nike within her outfit. Nia took the opposite side, studying Eostre’s trembling fingers, the vines creeping up her legs, into her dress, and down her throat. Neither of them was too intent on watching Conner’s unironically gripping fight.
“Hey, Rach,” Nia whispered. “If I don’t make it out of this. I just wanted to say thank you for saving me. And you know what I mean, so don’t go downplaying what you did. I can’t believe you’ve actually stepped up to a lesser god… No, I can see it; I’d do it in your position.”
Rachel’s chest shook with silent laughter, holding a knee to her chest while her other dangled off the edge. I feel something special coming for our dear friend Dionysus. Much like that story about the boy who got too close to the sun, he is playing with forces he doesn’t understand.
She turned to give Moongmor an encouraging smile as he appeared on his mistress’ lap, ears pulled back and looking up at the tulpa, the woman trying to show a brave face. Eostre had tried her best to support her, going so far as to send her private messages that could get her in trouble; there was steel in her underneath the frightened exterior that Rachel recognized.
A sadistic spike pricked her heart while turning back to leer at the Greek deity. Next challenge, everything comes to a point. Every string of misfortune and careful manipulation I’ve tugged will either snap around his golden throat, and we’re all dead, or… I will have killed a lesser god.
Nia’s ears pulled back in an impressed stare and prompted Rachel to clarify. “What’s gonna happen?”
Well, I don’t know, and ‘I’ am not going to kill him, but my contributions to things in that general direction will make something happen. Everyone helped. I just had to make the proper tweaks I could see. I don’t quite fully understand it myself.
The bunny’s fist balled up before giving her a thumbs up. “Glad to know I’m helpful, Boss. We definitely are going shopping after all this, though. I need to stress eat.”
Finding a certain level of satisfaction at how things had progressed, Rachel could feel victory nearing. And maybe much of this had been Nike’s support from the shadows, calling out for help. She was a derelict of war without Athena and needed to find a new home.
You’ve got yourself a deal.
B1 — 27. The Harvest Moon
Rachel began counting down the seconds as the clock ticked for Conner, sweat beginning to gather on his bronze skin as Dionysus gave him an unamused look. The lesser god’s voice was far from entertained as he stared at his squirming champion.
“Choose a location without a moon.”
“I can’t…” Conner hissed, knowing he would choose a nasty monster for her to face. “If she dies, I die.”
“And you will die in ways you cannot fathom if you do not select a moonless day!”
The angel’s face creased with Nia’s boos, grating against the lesser god’s nerves.
“That hardly—”
“Your turn is over!” Dionysus swept him away to his seat with an enraged flick of his wrist. “I don’t need a little angel to tell me what is—”
“Location,” Conner stated, grimacing while keeping his focus on the screen as it struck the single digits. “A sparse forest, mixed with random vegetation and grainy fields… under a random moon.”
A tense silence overcame the throng as Rachel sallied over and held up a hand to the resigned Legend. “Oh, c’mon, don’t leave me hanging. Be a good sport!”
Conner groaned, forcing a smile and slapping hands in a high-five. “We’re going to die.”
“Welcome to the team!” Nia chimed, giving a grinning peace sign to Dionysus, too furious to even speak.
The arena under them segmented into a vast field of trees, crops, and vineyards, spotted amongst a forest. A giant lunar sphere and a thin veil of fog fell over the scenery, tinting the world a haunting orange.
“What’s… happening?” Conner whispered, stepping away as Rachel’s mirth grew; this wasn’t a unique moon, but it certainly seemed like a rare event or stronger than a normal moon.
The leaves started to color, the crops grew, vineyards became wild, and trees twisted. In the harrowing stillness of the stadium, Conner’s manic laugh came as a whisper when the stage name popped up in front of him, eye twitching. His god gave the explanation after watching his champion and her come together.
“A Greater Harvest Moon, when the terrors of the night twist the real into horror… Conner.” Dionysus’ voice was low—without heat—as the vines and flowing wine settled; the Legend’s face tightened, looking at his god. “You’ve chosen your side.”
“Which is life,” Rachel chuckled, watching a low, howling wind pass over the grain and forest. “It’s the only option you gave him, genius. I don’t think you’ll last much longer as the Arbiter like this.”
Insanity still swam in Dionysus’ eyes, but Rachel was already anticipating the surge of Halloween-charged energy this moon would fill her with, and Nia could store it. However, the lesser god’s rage had simmered into a cold smile that said when this was done, he would have her in the same position she’d snatched Nike out of.
Rachel’s gaze shot to the VIP area as Eostre was snatched by vines and dragged back into her seat, tightening around her frame and making her wince; he would be cutting off communication between them moving forward as he took away any advantages she’d manipulated out of him.
He pointed up at the clock as it ticked down. “You’ve been aiming at me this entire time. It’s never been between Conner and you, has it? All you’ve done is try to make a fool out of me… manipulating things with that sense of misfortune to distract me. Well, I hope you love Halloween because things do go bump in the night.”
Nia’s smile widened, eyes narrowing as they challenged the Greek god. “And we’re about to join them.”
“We shall see…” The screen of potential monsters centered on a pulsating black heart within an ancient tree, and the mist surrounding the forest thickened. “Creature: The Hateful Heartwood within The Creeping Forest. Enjoy your Hallow’s Eve.”
Without blinking, the world melted away, leaving Nia and her on the haunted grounds; the hair on the back of Rachel’s neck prickled as the cursed land seeped into her, and the pulse of it lifted her lips into a toothy smile.
[Fright of the Greater Harvest Moon: Active]
[Horror Embodiment VI - become the embodiment of horror, spreading the concept and conveyance of fear to those that see the user, warping their perception of who they face.]
[Fear-Dependent Immortality IV - The user cannot be harmed so long as the user’s prey fears them.]
[Hollow’s Eve Trail VI - Become one with the twisted harvest, discovering paths unseen and enjoying the company of the cursed and damned.]
[Psychosis Inducement VI - Twist the minds of those you torment to join the harvest, breaking their thoughts, inducing paranoia, and spreading terror whenever perceived by the user’s prey.]
[Cursed Frostfire VI - Frostfire that refuses to be extinguished, slowly burning its victims while tormenting and corrupting the victim’s mind. Deals frostfire damage.]
Nia mirrored her, running her fingers through her braid to unfasten it. Her ears, tail, and locks dyed pumpkin and vermilion orange, cursed flames lighting in their eclipse eyes and spreading across their hair. Hissing bled through the veil, and candles emerged from the mist, unseen spirits churning the tinted mist into a beautiful rhythm.
Instead of fright at the thought of something lurking behind the shadowed trees or creaking wood, things creeping through the whistling night, and whispering spirits, the bright orange celestial sphere gave her a sense of home. This wasn’t a fright-filled horrorfest of panicking humans but a battle of monsters.
Rachel walked through the gentle fall of discolored leaves, Nia walking beside her; the tension was like honey on her tongue, and she could hear the moving forest awakening around her. Soon, the trees would be on the move, communicating—hunting. Despite that, anticipation bloomed within her breast, and coral-cursed frostfire flames erupted along their free-swaying hair.
A joyful hum was in her voice as she spoke to Nia, their words vibrating the air in the oppressive night, and her body began to flicker, showing her angles that she could step through, taking her to new locations.
“Buy me time so I can go through my Feats and Stats. We’ll swap places after.”
Nia gave her a two-fingered salute, skipping ahead and doing a slow spin to step through the twisting paths visible to the creatures of the Harvest Moon. “Catch you soon, Captain.”
“Happy hunting.”
Rachel stepped behind a nearby tree, the scene changing to a tall wheat field that rustled with the threat of danger lurking just beyond sight, and the misty forest disappeared. Curiosity filled her as she saw the winding breeze passing through the grain, something in the air, calling her to dance with the spirits.
The wheat only seemed to grow taller as she moved, yet the beams of the giant orange globe overhead reflected off the stalks, filling her with anticipation for the fight to come. It was a little bit heartbreaking that she was facing another denizen of the Harvest, but she was far from adverse to the challenge of striking fear into another monster.
Her fingers passed over the bending wheat as she came upon a path, the stalks folded over to lead the unassuming prey of the night into a maze that was the only way out of the endless field as she followed Misfortune to the best spot to meditate.
Nia engaged the creeping trees, swimming through the night in a blaze of coppery flames. The bunny soldier wouldn’t last long, even if they had an elemental advantage against the endless sea of branches and roots, but Rachel didn’t take her time.
She took twelve right turns, folding in an impossible angle as she delved deeper into the shimmering labyrinth. A single left brought her to a large brass bowl of orange fire—cursed frostfire. Rachel could have taken the unseen paths, yet that would have tipped off The Hateful Heartwood where she’d gone.
Sliding her finger around the bowl, she saw her creepy, fake smile reflecting off the polished metal. Anyone who saw her would perceive a rather terrifying visage of a monstrous hare, yet this was starkly different than the Black Moon; for one, it wasn’t nearly as powerful.
Rachel stared up at the mango-tinted moon, hovering overhead as if stalking her, whistling a joyful tune and dropping into a sitting position. Her presence warped and changed reality to suit her hunting style, everything rearranging to her thrill of the hunt.
The honeyed mist closed in around her as she drew inward, opening up her inner world to a wealth of Halloween-themed decorations in a pumpkin field dotted with scarecrows. Crows lingered on posts and in the sparse trees that spotted the endless zone.
Her thoughts on the frightmare hummed with the clicks, screams, and howls that occasionally broke the whistling night. Unlike the singular Black Moon or normal lunar spheres, this was a themed moon, situated between the two. Everything about this Legend’s Quest had been quite educational, helping her to understand more about the secrets hidden beyond dimensional veils, and even the gods were caught up in the mystery.
The Harvest Moon wasn’t an embodiment of nightmares that fed off hope, but it was similar. Where the Black Moon brought nightmares to life, trapping its victims in an endless nightmare from which, normally, there was no escape, the Harvest Moon was all about terror and feeding off the fright of those it terrorized, reflecting that power onto its denizens.
This phenomenon was a companion to the creatures of the night, sharing in the feast of blood, soul, and negative emotion. It gave her a sense of torment and thrill in the climax of fright that was what she thought shooting heroin straight into her veins might feel like.
Rachel went over her many options, deciding where to place her four Skill Points. If she was going to get another weapon, she needed to be more dexterous and controlled in its use, and she was already quite high in those areas.
Her choices were fairly obvious, but Penetration caught her gaze. She decided to put one in it with another in Power and Quickness. If she was going to get a weapon, it would help to have extra raw punching power to break past defenses, like Conner’s.
One of the new Equipable Feats made her chuckle, and she swapped [Lunar Burst I - E-tier] for [Lunar Spike - F-tier]; if she consumed 25% of Nia or her Lunar Pools, then she could flood her body with that type of energy for thirty seconds.
She could see it useful for these themed or unique lunar spheres, and [Lunar Burst] was good for a big hitter, but it had proven to be a tad less useful than she’d hoped thus far. Perhaps it would have its uses in the future.
Making her choice of Extension, Rachel opened her eyes to the orange rays bathing her in light. She got up and flipped the blazon bowl over, spreading the cursed coral flames to the field; ice spread across the soil as the wheat lit up the night. It had been worth the trip.
I’m done, Nia, she said, peering through the winding paths of the burning fields to see herself from a back angle; her ghoulish smile widened as she watched herself peer backward, head tilting while walking into the fire. How goes the night?
“Wonderful, I see you’ve started the fire.” The bunny flipped out of the misty sky, a reaching, gnarled branch recoiling at the fire Nia landed in, her ripped skirt and military coat showing signs of damage. “They’re persistent. We’re going to take our time to fill up our pools. Oh, you’ve been caught? Haha. Watch out for the tree creepers, Cap!”
Rachel’s ears twitched to the side as a quivering root shot out of the ground, coiling around her foot. The world flipped upside down as she was whipped into the air. She wasn’t concerned, having expected the roots to try and feel their way toward her, but this did force it to come into contact with the cursed and burning field to expose itself.
Plus, now she had a glorious view from the sky, allowing her to see the writhing vines, roots, and trees that closed in around the flaming wheat.
Unfortunately, [Lunar Spike] didn’t get an Extension for her to reduce the cost like she’d hoped to tap into the Blood Moon.
[Divine Lunar Surge I - D-tier] worked, though, which provided her with an increased 130% Power and Toughness Stats multiplier at max Lunar Cap, and it was currently full. Judging by how well she took this skyward adventure, she was making progress in her defense.
[Divine Lunar Surge: Extra Kick] - Consume 50% of Lunar Pool to provide an additive 75% boost to Power and Toughness for 30 seconds.
Her wide field of vision caught sight of hobgoblins, zombies, and werewolves that broke away from the trees, providing a field of wood-based monster impersonations. Nia darted into the blazing field to find her own safe place to make her own upgrades.
Well, Rachel commented to the bunny, having done her job. I’ll take it from here. I want to see how much I’ve improved since that first Quest.
Her big and bright orange eyes drifted to the left as vines shot out of the distant treeline to spear her. [Mental Acceleration II: Activated]. Fingers touching the nearest spike, she twisted her body, using it as leverage to twirl around it.
[Cursed Frostfire] would be the easiest way to counter the Hateful Heartwood and the wooden creatures of the Creeping Forest, but Rachel opted not to use her Harvest Moon abilities to see how much she’d grown at Level 9.
She laughed, feeling like a ballerina or gymnast as her nimble and quick fingers found their hold on the skyborne assault. Between her sharp vision and calculating mind, she could spot the trajectory while her acute and divine-enhanced hearing made her aware of distant attacks.
Misfortune smiled on her in this battle, but it could swiftly shift course if she let it go on too long. Monsters aside, her worst enemy was her own poor Endurance and Stamina. A rush of exhilaration filled her belly when she activated [Attack Perk - Curse: Karma] on the forest assaulting her; it spread to every wooden entity. Any damage she took would be returned.
She jumped high into the air, drawing her free locks around to hold in front of her arms as she held them up to take the brunt of a root that struck out; the blow recoiled, shattering the bark while whipping her toward the forest, but she’d angled herself to land near the wooden creatures.
Flipping back, her square heel landed against the face of a wooden werewolf, yet its roots kept it planted as she repositioned. Kicking off, she landed on a trunk and ping-ponged to the ground with the forest in pursuit. Her forearms smarted a bit from the previous attack, but that was the extent of the damage.
She pivoted, with a roundhouse kick meeting a slow goblin’s face. They were all so slow. Wood caving in under her blow, Rachel could feel her increased power in contrast to the Blood Moon. There was no satisfying crunch or resistance against her fist under the liquid crimson sphere like the grit she felt under her heel right now; the Blood Moon tempered her love for battle and made it a somber chore.
The hobgoblin’s feet ripped out of the earth, propelled by her momentum-charged kick. Limbs tried to intercept her, yet it was too easy to use even the thinnest roots as rails or stepping stones to get to her next target. In the next second, she was gliding through the air, making short work of the wooden army.
It wasn’t like she could win this way, which likely had Dionysus cackling from on high. He’d cut off her mid-match cheerleader, Eostre, but MoonMoon was probably dancing across the seats right now.
Rachel just wanted to see how much she had grown without these Singular Lunar Event hacks, and under the Harvest Moon, she was practically immune to fear or surprise. Everything felt like a wonderful dream while dancing through the horrific forest.
Typically, the Creeping Forest would welcome her with open arms if this were the real world, yet it had been taken over by the Hateful Heartwood, which was her true opponent. Dionysus, being the very knowledgeable entity he was, had managed to wrap the environment and monster into one super monster.
Of course, there was no way he would be able to tell how the Harvest Moon would affect her, and the cursed frostfire was certainly one fascinating addition that gave her a way out of this.
Nia popped up from a cloud of orange fog beside a tree, wearing a thoughtful grin as she skipped back, defending herself from a volley of projectile thorns, vines, and the closing in twisted trees. “Need help, Cap? I decided not to select any Feats until we can coordinate. Something new might pop up on the Grade V Advancement.”
Rachel chuckled, catching a few scrapes and cuts that Karma sent back; she could be harmed through [Fear-Dependent Immortality IV] since the forest wasn’t afraid of her—at least, not yet.
Having tested her physical improvements enough, and not wanting to waste any more of her stamina, Rachel’s hands sparked to life with vermilion flames as she dove into a tree hollow; it bowed in to spike her inside, only to find her gone.
Take care of our fun little forest, Nia; let’s put the fear of frostfire in its heart!
“Roger that; smoked pine coming up!”
A shiver ran through the forest as Rachel peered through the lunar beams and winding paths the Harvest Moon shared with them; Nia took the offense, cursed flames coating her hands. She busted up the wooden creatures, having a harder time of it than Rachel, given her reduced stats and their synchronization level.
Hmm. We’re going to have to work on our Sync Union so you can share more of my strengths.
“I think—heh, I’m doing fine right now… Don’t tell me you’re afraid I’ll get a few scrapes or expose a bit of your skin?”
Rachel nodded as she turned away. The living denier took the vicious step of tossing the burning kindling she started through the misty routes, spreading it far and wide. It didn’t take long for the forest to give up on them both, with the dead leaves now catching flame, a layer of ice creeping over the earth that the flames touched.
“Dionysus!” she sang, holding her burning hands behind her back as the forest began to part and run away from the growing inferno. “Clever move with the environmental and hidden heart in a forest, but… what if the forest runs away? Haha.”
Nia soon exited out of a misty cloud ahead of her, the bunny chasing the now terrified wooden constructs as she vanished in and out of the haze. “Aww… Hehehe. You’re so cute, running away from me; you know you can’t escape! Am I a little scary now?”
Creaking wood and wooden creatures attempted to dig out ditches to stop them, only for a grinning Nia to appear behind them, hair dangling to the side as she leaned over to wave at them. “Is this really going to work? I don’t think it will.”
Their soft whistles and harvesting flames only grew higher, the smiling orange moon gleaming and glistening under their rampage. Black sap bubbled and froze over in their slow and constant hunt, slipping into the mist to appear in a dull flicker that trailed after their hair and fists, but their little horror story had only just begun.
With them skipping about, hunting the Creeping Forest, the vibrant vineyard merged with the frostfire, pumpkins growing out of the grapes to take on sinister lantern shapes, overcoming the wheat fields and abandoned forests. With the haunted vineyard’s growing strength, more attractions emerged, scarecrows coming out of the conquered golden fields.
Nia and her no longer needed to dodge the desperate attacks the Creeping Forest made, its fear making them invulnerable to its attacks, the unlucky woodland only further igniting upon contact with the horrific hare and rabbit figures it contended with.
The nightmarish frostfire couldn’t be stopped, and the strangling vineyard was now their ally; after all, monsters hunted the weak. Under the vermilion moon that had abandoned the predator-turned-prey, the Hateful Heartwood could only wait and shiver for its cover to be scorched away, the fertile hoar-frosted ground bringing the reaching vineyard ever closer.
Truly, misfortune was on their side, and this Challenge Rating 1 fight wasn’t even a contest when adding these powerful celestial spheres, yet it was this that enticed the crowd. They wouldn’t show it, but within their hearts, they wanted to see Dionysus fall, and that chapter was closing in.
She and Nia sat on the ground, the last tree pincered between them with an endless graveyard of pumpkins, oversized grapes, scarecrows, and cackling jack-o-lanterns closing in on the rejected monster, shunned from the pack. Cracked with blackened wood and filled with a fit of terrified anger, its Creeping Forest guardian fallen, all the Hateful Heartwood could do was wail as it was torn to splinters while they watched its destruction.
Rachel didn’t know how much time had passed as she bid the Harvest Moon goodbye with her fellow monsters; it had been fun, and the slow strangulation of their shared prey had been a good bonding experience.
Unlike a normal moon, a themed or singular moon could last as long as its hunger was met, so she couldn’t say how long this trial had lasted. Long enough for Nia to get fat on the energy, filling an entire pool.
Nia smacked her lips. “I can’t explain it, Captain. Don’t you feel… what’s the word—satisfied?”
“I am,” she whispered. The haunting laughter of Hallow’s Eve faded with the vanishing world to show them in the middle of the extravagant stadium under the frigid stare of Dionysus; cheers came from the audience, which was all that mattered.
Rachel’s shimmering vermilion eclipsed gaze centered on the lesser god. “I hope you enjoyed the screams. Who knew monsters could fall so far?”
“Is that so?” Dionysus mused, leaning against the side of the chair he now sat on while appraising her; he hid what bubbled underneath well behind a cold exterior, sipping on his wine. Conner was up, and the Greek god was no longer supporting him, yet the man still tried to put on a show as Dionysus passively tossed his die. “I look forward to seeing you demonstrate that in the next round. In fact…”
He lifted his hand to the sky, making Conner’s eyes widen as the Challenge Rating went up to 2. “Interesting thing is… once you accept it once, I can return to it whenever I want. Isn’t that fun?”
Rachel rolled around her neck, her hair returning to its normal glow as Nia sucked out her Lunar Pool to fill it back up with the white moon she’d slowly extracted; with the Harvest Moon’s light gone, her fear-induced love slipped away, yet her smile did not. Nia was proving to be quite the item, capable of storing her Black, Blood, and Harvest Moon energy for later.
“Wonderful! It means we’ll get better rewards. Playing right into my hand again, Dionysus. What will it be, Conner?”
Nia huffed as she was pushed off to Eostre’s side to be out of the limelight, so she went to check on the woman. “Yikes, uh… his vines are slowly going to some not-so-nice places, Rach! She needs our help if we’re going to save her from some trauma.”
Hmm. Rachel tossed her own die, the lesser god not even hyping up the crowd anymore. He was now looking at her as a true threat, which meant she had to drop his feet out and let him hang by her next contest. We need to help Conner now if we’re going to survive this. We just need to distract him. If we focus on Eostre, it will only make it worse for her.
She smirked as they landed.
Conner: 12
Rachel: 15
Dionysus: 14
Crowd: 7
“Location: Gaia’s hallowed sanctuary with the blessed water of… Neptune.”
Dionysus’ fingernails dug into his chair, splitting the wood as Conner looked at her as if she were crazy. “Monster: The Magma Dragon.”
“Item Selection: The companion constellation Delphinus.” Rachel could feel the pressure mounting as Conner’s fingers trembled, staring at his former sponsor. “I will win.”
A pink-furred cat yawned and rubbed her eyes, fixing her witch’s hat before looking up at the options. “Mmm… Restriction: Five minutes use.”
“Dammit!” Conner snarled, yet he was already transported into the fight without warning. “Haha! Okay. I’ll do it in four! Let’s go, Delphin—”
Rachel sat on the VIP box edge, observing the lesser god. His cold eyes were fixated on her, or perhaps his focus was on Nike within her outfit. Nia took the opposite side, studying Eostre’s trembling fingers, the vines creeping up her legs, into her dress, and down her throat. Neither of them was too intent on watching Conner’s unironically gripping fight.
“Hey, Rach,” Nia whispered. “If I don’t make it out of this. I just wanted to say thank you for saving me. And you know what I mean, so don’t go downplaying what you did. I can’t believe you’ve actually stepped up to a lesser god… No, I can see it; I’d do it in your position.”
Rachel’s chest shook with silent laughter, holding a knee to her chest while her other dangled off the edge. I feel something special coming for our dear friend Dionysus. Much like that story about the boy who got too close to the sun, he is playing with forces he doesn’t understand.
She turned to give Moongmor an encouraging smile as he appeared on his mistress’ lap, ears pulled back and looking up at the tulpa, the woman trying to show a brave face. Eostre had tried her best to support her, going so far as to send her private messages that could get her in trouble; there was steel in her underneath the frightened exterior that Rachel recognized.
A sadistic spike pricked her heart while turning back to leer at the Greek deity. Next challenge, everything comes to a point. Every string of misfortune and careful manipulation I’ve tugged will either snap around his golden throat, and we’re all dead, or… I will have killed a lesser god.
Nia’s ears pulled back in an impressed stare and prompted Rachel to clarify. “What’s gonna happen?”
Well, I don’t know, and ‘I’ am not going to kill him, but my contributions to things in that general direction will make something happen. Everyone helped. I just had to make the proper tweaks I could see. I don’t quite fully understand it myself.
The bunny’s fist balled up before giving her a thumbs up. “Glad to know I’m helpful, Boss. We definitely are going shopping after all this, though. I need to stress eat.”
Finding a certain level of satisfaction at how things had progressed, Rachel could feel victory nearing. And maybe much of this had been Nike’s support from the shadows, calling out for help. She was a derelict of war without Athena and needed to find a new home.
You’ve got yourself a deal.
