Newfound Strength

A surge of energy courses through Cyrus' body as the shackle had attached itself to his wrist. His limit on his stats was removed and now his stats were able to be slotted once again. It didn't take him long to decide what to do with them, as he had been thinking about what to do once his stats were opened up again. He slotted points into all stats, but more into INT and STM so he had more HP and energy points to work with. The auto boost from acquiring a level in a shackle increased his stats by 3 from Fenrir's Shackle being level 3.

[STR: 25]

[DEX: 25]

[STM: 26]

[INT: 29]

His HP had reached 98 points, while his energy points reached 107. He checked his skills and found one that increased all his already boosted stats and gave 20 points to his HP and energy pools. Every stat point in each stat now added 3 points instead of the 2 per stat increase. Cyrus felt stronger by comparison even before the boost and added points. Just from the increase alone he felt much stronger than before. His body felt incredible as clenched his right hand and looked at the new shackle.

It's golden color and green glowing symbols read, "Sin of Greed," across it. Cyrus was starting to understand how he gained new shackles. He thought he had to kill the Aberrants to gain their power, so did Fenrir and Fafnir. But when he took the ring, his system reacted by resisting the tempting curse of Andvari's ring. Allowing him to take the burden from Fafnir and claim the power that held the dwarf and make it his own. This was his guess, but he surmised that taking an Aberrant's burden or punishment is how he gains shackles.

With this information, Cyrus decided he would dig into history books on cultures that depict someone who is punished or burdened with a great curse. Fenrir's was his power, his hunger for it, while Fafnir's was his greed. He wondered what other creatures he'd gain power from if they allowed him to take their burden and make its power his own. But for now, he was happy to have gained more power and unlocking his stats from obtaining the shackle.

That's when the shackle glowed and all the gold in the room started to be drawn to the shackle. The rush of clings and clangs ringing throughout the cave as he could see his Rune Coins begin increasing. He watched the numbers climb and climb, reaching 100,000, 300,000, stopping at 534,721 coins. It seemed the conversion of gold to coins was a lot. Cause the gold was definitely more than what was in his current total. Meaning the payout for just one coin was more than what is worth of a gold coin.

He didn't know the exact math, but he guessed it was almost 50 to 1 ration, as his best guess. With the now fat wallet he was carrying around he smiled, knowing he could enter the Dragon's Greed form if he needed to 5 times max. Knowing how much it apparently cost to enter the form, he decided to wait till he leveled up the skill though how was the question. He looked at the shackle and wondered how he could change the shackle back to Fenrir's if he needed those abilities. Cause his sight, hearing, and smell had returned to normal.

"Huh, it seems like I haven't reached the right shackle level to unlock that ability. Or maybe it's just special to Fenrir's shackle?" He pondered the thought for a moment, then remembered he had gotten Fafnir as a summon. Quickly he decided to summon the dragon and what surprised him was that when did Fafnir appeared to be only just as tall as Cyrus.

Fafnir blinked and looked about getting a bearing of his surroundings. "Eh, was I always this short?" When he looked at Cyrus he widened his eyes, "Oy! How come ye be as tall me? Or..." the look on his face seemed to be utter disbelief. "No, no this can't 'appen to me, Fafnir the dragon who protects his horde!" He sat down and covered himself up in his wings and then reverted back to his dwarven form. Which to his surprise remained the same.

"Well at least you look normal this way," Cyrus commented. Which got a nasty look from Fafnir.

"I used to be fearsome, terrifying, a true threat to humanity and Aesir alike. Not a wee dragon who barely knows how to fly or hunt for himself." He crossed his arms and scratched his glorious beard. Braided with golden bands holding the woven strands together. A smoky brown color that went well with the armor design he had. Purple in color and covered golden accents and fur. He was short in stature but his body was built like a fortress, or rather like a sandcastle made from stone.

Cyrus smiled a little, "Well at least you don't have to have either form permanently. You get to change freely, though it doesn't appear on your skill list as far as I am aware." Fafnir scoffed at Cyrus for saying something ridiculous.

"Boy, ye better believe me when I say that I can do many things rather than whatever your list thing says." He waved his hands and appeared in his hand a warhammer and shield. "I was a warrior dwarf who fought for me father before Andvari decided to make such a cursed item. The deeds I had done while under its influence is fresh in me mind since day one." He held a finger out to Cyrus to emphasize the point.

Cyrus shook his head while looking around the cave. Whatever the shackle did, it cleared the entirety of the cave after it sucked up all the gold, this also included rings, keys, or weapons and armor. Though he refrained from asking for any from Cyrus or attempting to take the Rune Coins to add to his collection. But since his collections is gone, he smiled and rubbed his hands together.

"Well, I think we should head back. Take out the Keystone I gave ye and we can return to where ye were last." Cyrus did so and then read the phrase again. The Keystone glowed and opened the similar portal that opened for him when he was in the forest. Fafnir had disappeared in golden light as he returned to the shackle. Stepping through, Cyrus found himself back at the same spot he used it originally.

He looked around and found that it seemed like it was night time already. This was concerning for stronger beasts lurked at night and he nearly died to a few of them over his month of leveling up. But from what he was concerned with, he no longer could hear or sense them. This made it difficult for him as he relied on Fenrir's senses ever since he got them. Now that he didn't with this shackle he felt deaf and blind.

Fafnir chuckled, "Ye are worried about not having a way to tell the creatures are near ye or not being able to see in the dark, eh?" He summoned Fafnir and covered his eyes from the flash of gold. Returning to his dragon form, Fafnir looked about the brush and the forest. "I'll be yer eyes and ears for now, but stay close Cyrus for ye may get attacked out of no where." He grumbled and looked about the darkened forest. For he didn't exactly have a complete understanding of his new abilities yet. Though he could feel the power flowing through him. He decided to use his Enhance feature to feel the full power of his stats.

When he did so, his body felt durable, strong, and flexible. He tried to bring out a simple ability like the Dragon Claw, an ability that turned his hands into sharp dragon claws to weaken armored foes. He watched as his hands morphed into golden claws, his fingernails darkened and morphed into talons. His hand resembled a dragon's claw if it were a humanoid form. Closing his hands could feel the strength behind each muscle and bone inside his hand.

"This is different from Fenrir's abilities, but I retain some of the skills I already have which is good." Fafnir smiled and continued to walk for a while. Watching Cyrus grow in strength meant he would too when they killed creatures together. Fafnir kind of did hope they would find something to fight to see how the boy handled his powers. He would get his wish sooner than expected as he saw movement dancing in some bushes nearby.

"Eh, what exactly did you fight here? Cause I think I saw something move over there." Gesturing his head in the direction of the bushes where he could hear clicking and hissing. Cyrus looked in the direction but it was kind of far away so it was hard to see with his now normal vision in the darkness.

"If it's silent rustling then it's a prowler type beast, stealthy, and an ambusher. If it's growling or the sound of digging could be heard, it's an enlarged tunnel spider." He said, and before he could get to the last one Fafnir said the worst outcome.

"What if it's clicking an' hissing?" He asked getting low as he saw something emerging from the foliage. Cyrus didn't like this outcome, for it meant more trouble then he'd like.

"Then that would be the worst kind of sound, for it would be the Tyranopeed." As he said the name, a large multi-legged insect came crawling out of the bush. It's darkened body and ominous green mandibles clicked and hissed in their direction. Cyrus immediately summoned Vexxitiz and Grimm for this fight.

While Fafnir just snickered at the thing, "Ye are worried about an insect? That thing is half the size of my original body, yet yer worried about it?" Cyrus communicated with Grimm to prepare Magnify Gravity as to slow the creature down. While he then looked at Fafnir with a very concerning look.

"Where there is one, there are many not too far behind." He pointed to where it came from and told Fafnir to look at the bush it came out of. When he did, he immediately saw that bush had turned brown and started to ooze a green liquid. "It's just their size that concerns me, it's their speed, durability, their numbers, and their venom. For it rots anything that it touches. They coat their bodies in their own venom as they are immune to it and I have yet to kill one." The Tyranopeed looked at them with its antennae and hissed angrily. Knowing that sound anywhere, Cyrus had Grimm cast the spell as a sudden thud crushed the Tyranopeed into the ground. It's limbs scrambling and trying to fight the area of heavy gravity.

Cyrus led Fafnir out of the area quickly and Vexxitiz had coated Cyrus in shadow armor just in case. They managed to reach his hovel in the tall trees near the swamplands. With his claws he managed to climb up the side of the tree and reach the top in no time. Though he slightly winded but recovered quickly thanks to his enhanced Stamina. Having spent 4 points of his Chaos energy he looked over the forest and tree line that he was now happy to be safe from those creatures.

"Wouldn't they follow us?" Fafnir asked, but Cyrus explained that they were in a type of Safe Zone from hostile creatures. The only ones to enter them were the birds as they delivered fruit to him. He honestly wanted some meat right now but wasn't too upset with the meal cause it did satisfy him. Just the constant fruit wasn't as appetizing anymore. Cyrus told Fafnir to leave the birds alone cause he one time saw the birds get attacked and they turned into ravenous piranhas and devoured one of the less aggressive creatures.

"Wouldn't that make them powerful and give ye more strength for killing one?" Cyrus shook his head and sighed.

"Would you believe that they are actually very weak and are considered the weakest tier of beast?" Fafnir laughed and looked at one of the birds. The Pedaloian blinked and chirped, cleaning its wings. "Trust me, they may be Gamma tier, but when they are in an angry group they become something akin to an Alpha creature. But every single one of them is Gamma and doesn't offer much of anything."

With that Cyrus decided to sleep soundly for the night while Fafnir remained awake. He watched the birds closely and saw their many teeth hidden inside their beaks. It seemed to give him a notion that Cyrus was right. Messing with the birds was a bad idea for even he thought that with his tough hide, he would still get eaten. He couldn't defeat them all for they were small and fast, weak in durability, but strong in their threat of hunger. He was surprised at how docile they were around them. For they even brought Fafnir a pyramid shaped fruit for him. He decided not to eat it and lay down and close his eyes as well. Returning to shackle as he slept.