"Son of Darkness?" Vox whispered. "That can't be true... You're messing with my mind."
His hands shook so violently the sword slipped from his grip, clattering against the stone floor.
The thing inside Vogoh's skin—didn't flinch. That mad, frozen smile remained. "What is it, Son of Darkness? Afraid of a little heritage hint? Or did your mother hide you from the curse of evil?"
Vox forced himself to breathe. He clung to one thought, 'I am in a game world. This is just a game.'
He looked at the creature, his voice barely audible. "What are you?"
Ogrhon motioned for the other Dwarfs to stay alert. Then was about calling out, "Vogoh—"
Before getting interrupted.
"Enough with the name-calling," the creature snapped, kicking the edge of his boot with his sword.
"Vogoh this, Vogoh that. Spare me. Don't you know a puppet when you see one?"
Ogrhon's brow furrowed. "Then, what are you? I sent messengers to every house... including Vogoh's."
"Yes, you did," the creature said, snapping his fingers. "But poor Vogoh was ill. He sent his son to deliver his word. Sadly, the boy didn't make it. Bad things happen on the road, don't they? At least he turned to stone quickly."
Ogrhon's face contorted with rage. "You killed his son!"
"Don't think bad of me, He wasn't a boy, He was a man," the creature mocked.
"You aren't Vogoh," Ogrhon yelled, his hand white-knuckled on his hilt. "You're a Corrupted! Give back his body!"
The creature chuckled, a dry, hollow sound. "If I left, this shell would be nothing but dust and stone. You know the rules, Ogrhon. Once the Corruption takes hold, there is no going back."
The bald Dwarf at the table slammed his fist down. "Enough! Speak your name! Who are YOU?"
The Corrupted shrugged. "And why should I tell you?"
Ogrhon stepped forward, his eyes locking onto the monster's. "They might ask again and again, but know this... I won't. Who. Are. You?"
"So desperate for answers," the creature sneered. "So needy—"
Ogrhon didn't let him finish. He pivoted, using a heavy wooden chair as a stepping stone to launch himself into the air.
He snatched his fallen sword beside Vox from the floor in mid-flight. With one brutal, blurring motion, he pinned the Corrupted to the wall, driving the blade straight through the creature's hand.
The monster didn't scream. He just smiled at his pinned limb. "You'll get nothing from me... But since you tried so hard, I'll give you a name." He looked at Vox, and a wave of unnatural cold washed over his skin, when he heard it say. "I am Mirthless, the Corrupted."
Ogrhon hissed through his teeth.
A name wasn't enough, He needed to know about its motive.
Vox watched, trying to know more about how to get information from Mirthless. He remembered the Nightbat in the mines—how a tab had appeared when attacked it.
"Does anyone have a knife?"
The Dwarfs hesitated, confused why they were even listening to an Elf, but Ogrhon grunted, "I am a Dwarf of many weapons." He drew a short, jagged blade from his belt and tossed it.
Vox caught it and approached Mirthless, who watched him with hungry eyes. "You wish to hurt me? How sophisticated."
Vox didn't answer, he knew answering characters like this was simply a waste of the minute in one's life.
He slashed the knife across the creature's trapped arm. And just as he thought, a blue tab appeared:
[RANK D/S: MIRTHLESS, THE CORRUPTED]
Vox thought. 'But what is D/S? Is D his rank and S the max?'
He turned to step away, but at that moment Mirthless twisted his pinned hand, the flesh tearing as he forced himself off the blade.
Before the Dwarfs could react, he lunged, snatching Vox by the throat and pulling him close.
"Don't move!" Ogrhon commanded, staying the other Dwarfs' hands. "He isn't harming the boy, yet!"
Mirthless pressed his face against Vox's ear. His breath smelled like old graves and stagnant water.
"I am Mirthless," he spoke up, the words meant only for Vox. "I was bred in the Abyss of the Dark Lands, raised by Darkness itself. I am the one who twisted the minds of the Titans, I am the rot inside the Mooneater."
He pulled Vox even tighter, his voice dropping to a gravelly crawl. "I will tell you something. As these Dwarfs march into the mountain, they march to their graves. When the Mooneater rises, it will cover their moons in blood and erase their kind from the realms."
Vox's heart hammered against his ribs. "Wh—"
"And when this realm falls," Mirthless continued, "it falls into the hands of the King of Darkness. The God of Death, Misfortune, and Decay... My Lord. Your Father."
Vox's pupils dilated.
The world seemed to tilt, when he heard that name, "My father?"
"Your Father and your KING!" Mirthless shoved Vox back, but kept a grip on his shoulder. "Forgive me, Son of Darkness, for my disrespect. I shall show you what it means to see the dark... but not to stay in it. I will do this to help you."
Before Vox could blink, a sharp, cold weight drove into his gut.
He looked down.
Mirthless had grabbed Ogrhon's sword and driven it through Vox's stomach.
[CRITICAL HIT! HP: 1/30]
[PLAYER MUST INCREASE HP! CONSUMPTION TO HEART ORBS/HEALING POTIONS NEEDED!]
Vox staggered, his vision slowly started blurring. The pain radiated to his fingers and toes. He felt himself falling.
To his shock, it was Ogrhon who caught him. "Hey! Boy! Stay with me!"
Slowly, the world turned dark, the feeling he felt had happened to him before.
Mirthless laughed one last time. "Feel the sweet cold grip of Death!"
Before the Dwarfs could strike him down, he gripped his own head and twisted it violently. A sickening crack echoed through the hall as he beheaded the body he was inhabiting.
The body of Nogoh turned to grey, cold stone.