convert survival

"Who said that?" Derek spun around, assuming a pathetic defensive stance.

"Oh… it's not Master Ichl?"

Derek heard the voice again, but there didn't seem to be anyone nearby. A wave of dread washed over him as he struggled to pull the mace from the sand. He swung it wildly, hoping to connect with some elusive, invisible figure lurking in the air, but he miscalculated the mace's weight and lost his footing, falling to the ground with a pitiful thud.

"Stop wielding me like a spoon, you bastard! This is a smear on my dignity!"

He heard the voice again, and this time, its meaning clicked into place.

No way… it's the mace talking.

Derek stared at the shining purple weapon adorned with crystals, it wasn't nearly as large and imposing to him as it used to be .

As soon as he looked at it, he felt the sensation of having someone stare back at him. A rush of anxiety rushed over him, but he steeled himself and held his grip firm, the weapon didn't try to inflict any damage anyway.

Surely enough, Derek's senses weren't teasing him as he felt the weapon speak again.

"I won't ask twice: where's Master Ichlarux?" the mace demanded. Derek could almost feel a grimace on its surface.

Derek knew that the one the mace was looking for was the colossal skeleton whose corpse was casting a long shadow over them, and telling the mace that he had eaten and digested its master was definitely not the best course of action at the moment. So, Derek decided to massage the truth a bit.

"Uhm, if you're speaking of that colossal skeleton, well, some guy knocked out his soul core earlier and took off with it."

With a deep sigh, the weapon grumbled to itself,

"It seems the rebellion has begun. I need to find Ichl fast, before they kill him."

"Good luck, Mr.… Mace. I'll be on my way now."

Derek quickly replied, dropping the mace to the ground and practically fleeing. He had barely wormed himself out of a web of conflict woven by seen and unseen horrors, and he had no intention of plunging headfirst into yet another one. Besides, he knew that the mace would never find its master again, since he was safely being digested inside Derek, and he didn't want to stick around for it to find that out.

"You have the same aura as Ichl. You can also hear me without touching me. Only Ichl is supposed to be able to do that… Who exactly are you?"

Derek didn't reply, and he kept walking. The truth was that he didn't really know who he was anymore.

"Fine, suit yourself then. No matter who you are, I doubt, with your laughable strength, you'll be able to make it till nightfall."

Derek's eye twitched, and he quickly retorted, "You say that as if you can help. You can't even move an inch from where you're sprawled, like a pile of useless junk."

The mace's voice rose several octaves in exasperation. "What do you take me for? My master and I have wandered this realm for centuries! I've slain monsters that would make your heart seize, and I've roamed the deepest, darkest, and most vile lands of this realm, while you're probably some inexperienced, foolish Convert who just spawned here and is probably still naked!"

Derek looked down at himself and sighed. He really was naked and dirty. He could probably use the help of a century-old sack of experience to find his way around.

Derek turned around. "Fine. I know you want me to help you find your master. I'll help you… but you have to help me in return."

"State your demands," the mace replied sullenly.

"..."

"There. That's it?," Derek said, staring at the pile of rotten, metallic armor in front of him.

"Are you kidding me? I asked for something to wear, not raw materials for blacksmithing!" Derek retorted.

"Shut up, you ignorant bastard! This is armor that even the full power of an Awakened couldn't dent, and you call it scrap metal? Xeyre used to be invincible in this thing! It's either this or nothing. How many other decrepit houses do you see around here where we can actually find good stuff?"

Derek sighed, they had truly been walking for hours and he hadn't seen anything to cover himself with, all he met so far were monsters or humanoid creatures that wanted to treat him apart at first glance, he had gotten tired of running around and he was seriously weak, he really couldn't go on for another search and he hated seeing himself naked so he gave up.

"Fine… fine…" Derek muttered, interrupting the nagging mace. He moved closer to the skeletal remains, turning over the armor.

He heard a clank as something rolled out, a familiar ruby-like orb. Its radiance was pale compared to the ones in the cave or the one Auror extracted from Ichl, but Derek was fairly certain it was the same kind of thing.

"What are these shiny orbs, by the way?" Derek asked the mace.

"What? You don't know what soul cores are?" the mace responded incredulously. "They're like, the single most important and versatile things in this realm! You can use them to trade for good armor and weapons, or you can consume them to gain power and essence for yourself."

"Wow, that's nice," Derek said, he was desperately low on power so he tossed the orb into his mouth and swallowed it.

The mace's voice rose in enthusiasm. "Hey! Where's the soul core? Place it on me so I can feel its rank and class."

"What core?" Derek replied, dropping the mace to the ground as he prepared to don the rusty armor.

"Didn't you speak of some orb-like substance you claimed to have found just now?"

"Oh, that? I might have eaten it," Derek replied.

"Eaten it?" The mace's voice was a horrified growl. "You fool! That's dangerous! You were supposed to crush it and absorb the essence before this realm does so. No one goes around swallowing soul cores, you idiot! If the core is more powerful than yours, it can actually displace yours and possess your body!"

"Oh…" Derek said, his face falling. "If that's the case, then 'consume' was the wrong terminology for you to use! Besides, this isn't the first time I'm swallowing a… core, so whatever."

"You are so naive, it's infuriating!" the mace growled.

Derek eventually finished donning the armor. It was heavy, but surprisingly comfortable to wear.

"Hey, Mace, how do I look?" Derek asked, a nasty grin spreading across his face.

"I don't have eyes, you retard."

"Neither do you have a mouth, but you can speak into my mind, no?"

The mace harrumphed in reply, seemingly at a loss for words.

"Say mace, how long till we get to the nearest settlement" Derek prompted.

"For overlords like Ichl, it would take say, few hours but for you, I'm afraid we'd have to spend over a month on this journey"

Derek's shoulder slumped, it's definitely going to be the longest month of his life.