The gates creaked open slowly, the noise even more disquieting due to the muted nature of sound in the Boundary. The inside of the graveyard seemed darker than the surrounding nd, the umbral light seeming to almost be alive, pooling in the shadows between family graves and the few skeletal trees that grew beside the bone-white gravel paths.

  “This looks like a se from a horror film.” I whispered softly, as I slowly entered, feeling like an intruder. A lesser spirit drifted towards me out of the dark, vaguely human in shape. Quickly abs its ether I tinued, feet g gravel underfoot. More followed, mostly humanoid, but some were avian in structure, fast and darting around swiftly. One mao strike me below the eye, sending a shockwave of pain through me. Aether drained from me, but I was able to quickly snatch it bad the spirit dispersed. Still, these seemed far mile and dangerous than the lesser spirits outside.

  I tio walk along the path betweerees, the cloaked guide behind me, ears straining to hear every sound over the faint ch of gravel underfoot. There was an eerie wind blowing through the trees, smelling of decay, and in the distance I was sure I could hear the rustli of wings and the ominous g of crows.

  I do not like this. I do not like this. I repeated it to myself like a mantra. At this point taking my time grinding lesser spirits seemed a wonderful pn. The feathery touch of a nearby brany back made me jump, a squeal leaking from my lips. I thought I was good with horror, but I guess living through a horror movie is a little different to watg or reading about one.

  Steeling myself I pushed forwards, passing through the graves. It was getting darker as I went, and now I could see barely a dozen paces ahead. Lesser spirits still drifted from the shadows, and as I had less time to react I was finding it hard to drain them before they could strike me. Still, the f glow of the increasing orbit of ether around me ushing back the encroag gloom. Ahead of me a faint red glow was shining, throwing out long shadows. I hope that isn’t a dragon or something outndish like that…

  “You will be from iigating that site.” The cloaked figure spoke for the first time in a while. “That is the glow of aherite.”

  “Etherite? Sounds like it has something to do with ether.”

  “You surmise correctly. In areas of deher flow such as where the Boundary and lower Astral intersect, aherite ore may form rarely. They be broken down into substantial amounts of ether or used in higher level Territorial strus. They also have many other uses and are a valuable currency amongst more powerful Astral beings.”

  “So it’s like ether is a hundred-yen , accepted and useful everywhere, but Etherite is rge bankhat makes sense, I think.” I o myself. “Well since I’m looking for a thousaher quickly I guess that I do … but I bet it's guarded.”

  Creeping through the darkowards the red light, I crossed between several mraves. I murmured my apologies to any of the dead I disturbed as I passed through. The red glow was getting brighter, and after a few more dozen steps I came across a glowing red jewel the size of a finger lying unattended between the roots of an old cherry tree.

  “That is aherite ore. The closer the colour tends towards violet, the more valuable it is for the more ether it tains. Red Etherites usually tain upwards of a huher. As they grow more e they tain up to twice as much, and the yellows four times that, and so forth. The rarity of such finds increases dramatically as well. Anything above blue is vanishingly rare, and even the upper Astral sees a violet ore but on a thousand years, being so scarce as to be nearly a myth. Those with intelligence who dwell withiral will oftehem out. You must seize such windfalls when they present themselves.”

  Nodding, I moved forwards, pig up the Etherite. It radiated warmth, merely by holding it I could feel how much ether it possessed. I sidered keeping it, but right now more than a ten-thousand yen note I needed a lot of small ge. trating ily on feeling the flow of ether within, I felt pressure building up i, stronger and stronger, until with an audible crack the Etherite shattered into a host of glowing white stars. They joihe orbit around me, and the darkness ushed back.

  Your Territory Anchor will cost 1000 Ether. You currently possess 384 Ether.

  My wrist fred silver as it advised me of my current supply. I had steadily been increasing it, and the Etherite had afforded me a rge boost. However, there was a long way to go, and time assing. As I made to turn away, I spotted something ing towards me through the dark, obscured by the shadows cast by my ether lights.

  Taking a defeance I made ready to drain it of its ether, only to freeze in shock at the sight before me. It could only be described as a zombie, a dead man, face pale and waxy, hands curled up into twisted cws. It shuffled towards me with surprising speed, causio back up against the tree. Opening its mouth it let out a strangled roar and its speed picked up armingly.

  “Oh shit…” I leapt out of the way as it barrelled into the tree behind me, dead fists flying, ripping into the bark. I forced my mind to trate on drawing out its aether, as I did with the lesser spirits, but it was as if I was trying to tear down a wall with my fingernails, it was imperable.

  The zombie turned, r again, and it seemed even more enraged, as if my efforts had insulted it. This time I was too slow to dodge and I cried out in pain as a fist smmed into my side. I spun away, feeling as if my ribs were broken.

  “That bloody hurts!” I cursed, as I stumbled away, narrowly dodging another wide swing by dumb luck. “But I don’t feel it draining my aether…” I was going to say more but the zombie swung a leg up sharply, hammering into my guts, doubling me over.

  My mi bnk. When I came to my sehe zombie was looming over me, bck spittle leaking from its dead lips. I needed a on. What worked against the weak and feeble lesser spirits would not be enough against a real, actual monster. Casting my gaze about, I couldn’t see anything. Rolling to the side I dodged by a hairsbreadth as the zombie smmed down his foot where my head was but a moment before.

  “Shit! Shit! Shit! I don’t want to die here….” I cursed, searg for a way out. I could bst it with fire again… it would burn, right? But would it be enough? Maybe a sword, to strike the head…?

  I visualised a on, a long, edged bde like in fantasy manga, a aether flow from me. It was a signifit drop, though not as much as when I called the fire earlier. It formed slowly in the air, materialising into a pin silver bde with an unadorned hilt. Grasping it I could feel my aether ected to it, slowly flowing into it.

  “I ’t keep this up for long or I’ll run dry…” I muttered, dug under another wild sweep from the rotting fists of the deg zombie. “Take this!” I suddenly roared, stepping in and swinging the heavy sword with both hands. The jarring impact where the bde cut flesh sent jolts of pain smming through my wrists, but the bde bit deep, slig through putrid flesh down through the shoulder and into bone.

  Damn, missed the head. Oh well, it was heavier than I thought it’d be so no wonder I missed.

  Pulling on the sword I grunted iion but the bde would not e free. Straining my muscles I barely mao move it half an inch before the zombie punched me, the blow skimming ay fad smming into one cheek. Dazed, I stopped trating and the sword shivered out of existence. Another blow caught me, spinning me around into the tree again.

  Coughing up blood that evaporated into the air in fshes of crimson and silver I pulled myself to my feet once mrabbing onto the tree to support myself I watched as the zombie came closer. It was time for desperate measures. Grabbing onto a gnarled branch with a bulbous end I began to exert force, attempting to snap it.

  Curse my pathetic Might. I’m so below average. If I somehow get out of this I’ll start w out, I promise. My arms were burning, and not with the warmth of aether, but with strain. It wasn’t going to work, as the zombie was closing in fast, arms poised to strike once more. With a fsh of insight I had ahat could save me. trating hard, through the fog of pain from my injured body, I drew on my aether and imagihe fme again, this time tight and pact. Red fred and a flow of aether left me, as a wisp of fme, far smaller than I had imagined, but still serviceable, seared through the end of the branch, cleaving it from the tree, charring the end bck.

  Even as I lifted this makeshift club, the zombie on me, blows hammering into my bad narrowly missing my head. It could move quickly, but luckily it wasn’t particurly accurate, and the arm which I had cut with my summoned sword was g power. Rolling with the blows, I turned and brought down the makeshift mace upon the zombie, striking an upraised arm. I swung again and again, until my arms were shrieking with pain. The club lintering under hard use, but I trickled aether into it, imagining, believing that it would hold together, aually the zombie fell to the ground, fractured skull leaking fluid which turned silver and faded into the air.

  Breathing heavily, I leaned on the branch that was serving as my club, watg as the zombie vulsed slowly on the ground. For a few seds it remained writhing, before shattering into a cloud of silver ether, which quickly came to me.

  “Damn, that was so scary. I really thought I was going to die…” I muttered between gasping breaths. Hang on a mihis isn’t the Material world, do I eveo breathe? I guess habit is a powerful thing. As I calmed down the voice sounded behind me again.

  “You were in negligible danger. I would have safeguarded you from any harm that was not instantaneously lethal, as by the terms of reement.”

  Oh crap, I fot about that. I smiled a bit shamefacedly. “You’re right. I should have thought of that. I guess I’m not really cut out fhting.” Looking down I could see that my stock of ether was lower than when I had started the fight, despite having collected what remained of the zombie. “I really o be more eical in using what I have… still at least I have a on now. Of course, something more usable would be better…”

  “Fret not, your ce to accumute more ether has preseself. Make haste and you restore your deficit.”

  As the cloaked guide spoke, another pair of zombies was shuffling towards me, one of which was little more than a skeleton ed in a few tattered rags of flesh and cloth, the other more plete like the first one I had just defeated, yet it was covered in green mould and clumps of fungus.

  “Two at once…” my only saving grace was that they were ing from opposite sides, so if I could deal with one quickly enough… At least I’m in little danger as the guide will save me unless I get insta-gibbed. Making my decision I rushed at the skeletal one, as it certainly looked more fragile. It came towards me with a rattle of bone and g of grinnih. One arm sshed out, but this time I repared for the surprising speed the zombies could dispy in bursts, and so I flung myself backwards. Skeletal fingers grazed me, inflig slight pain, but I was rgely unharmed. Hauling myself to my feet I brought the makeshift club I held down on one arm joint, feeling a satisfying der the point of impact.

  The skeletal zombie shrieked, trying to kick me away but I was already behind it, club smashing down. After a few blows the skull cracked and neck vertebrae shattered, and more ether was around me, replenishing my losses. The sed was closing in now, but with the one behind me down I was a little fident I could ha.

  Several mier I was drawing in more long breaths as the zombie below me disied. Tossing aside my now shattered club I watched as the ether joined me. I trated and some of it turned into aether, to replenish my supply that had been drained by the fierce battle. It was still a profit, but not by much. I still had a long way to go in terms of fighting experience.

  You have gained in strength. Your Level has increased from Zero to One.

  The sudden row of silvery words that fshed in my vision was most wele, and I felt a burst of warmth run through me. Quickly cheg on my status I let out a pleased yelp.

  [Material Statistibsp;[Intangible Statistibsp;Might38 42Fortune2Fortitude35 39Majesty1Intellect67 71Charm1Resilience63 67??? Acrity43 47??? Precision64 68??? Aether85 89???

  [Material Skills] [Aetheric Skills] White CordRank 1 Rank 2First NodeRank 1[Intangible Skills] [Perceptive Skills] Self-ExaminationRank 3 Rank 4Self-ExaminatiooryRank 3

  [Level] 1[Territory Rank] 0