Chapter 56

Congratulations, your Storm Crow has Evolved into a Harbinger Volture.

Compare stats? Y/N

Henry read the message on the screen, as he stared, dumbstruck, at what had appeared when the Storm Crow evolved. He’d been expecting a similar transformation to what he’d seen the Drakeling go through. Just perhaps, a larger, more intimidating variation of the avian D.E.D. That, however, was not the case. That was not the case at all.

“What the actual fuck?” JJ said as Henry stood there motionless. His best friend stepped up to Henry, leather bound journal in hand, as he flipped through it frantically. “What in the nine hells is that thing?”

Henry tilted the phone towards JJ so he could see. He knew that leather journal JJ carried around had a lot of Demon Hunter knowledge, but it seemed even the more experienced of the two was pulling a blank.

“Guessing this wasn’t what you expected?” Henry was still trying to take it all in.

The storm crow, previously, had been just that. A large crow, with electricity floating around it. It was simple. It made sense. And other than the electrical discharges and storm clouds it would call up occasionally, it was pretty normal. Minus the whole, screaming in Henry’s mind thing.

This, this was different. What’s worse, this wasn’t something Henry recognized from any myth or legend. This creature was completely new to him.

“Bro,” JJ said, placing a hand on Henry’s shoulder. “You don’t even know.”

The evolution before him, this, Harbinger Volture, was giant. Each wing was at least six foot, probably closer to seven, meaning it had a wingspan of 14 feet. The entire body of the creature was covered in midnight black feathers, so dark it seemed as if you were looking into an abyss. However, as it spread its wings, Henry, and JJ, could easily make out the glowing traces of what appeared to be the outline of eyes, appearing in short bursts of electricity.

The rest of its body was probably five or six feet from tail to top of the head, and it had thick, powerful legs with deadly talons that seemed to be made of pure, condensed electricity. The beak was easily able to chomp a hand, or possibly an entire arm or head, and the eyes on the creature shown with power. As his D.E.D. tilted its head to pick at a few feathers, it seemed to shake and shiver, and the outlines of eyes on its wings shifted to that of skulls. They shifted again, as the bird continued to prune itself, flashing through a variety of disturbing images.

THE PATH HAS BEEN CHOSEN. The voice said in his mind. WHAT HAS BEEN STARTED, MUST BE FINISHED. Henry really, really didn’t like that. THE END DRAWS EVER CLOSER.

He did his best to ignore the ominous warnings. He already knew what was coming, thanks to the Storm Crows earlier information. Was that knowledge somehow linked to the transformation? Did it have to do with the urgency, or perhaps, doom related nature of their pact? The fact the Storm Crow had bonded with him, even with full knowledge, and belief, that the world was coming to an end?

Whatever it was, it was clear this was something new and unexpected for JJ. His best friend was a mixture of confusion, excitement, and something more. This strange instance had taken the Demon Hunter by surprise.

Henry selected the compare stats option, figuring they could sort everything else out later. For now, he was interested to see just how much more powerful his D.E.D. had become. After all, that was why they’d even gone through this process.

Previous

Storm Crow (Uncommon)

Lightning Type

Level 25

HP: 97

MP: 92

D.E.D. Cost: 92

Current

Harbinger Volture (Rare)

Lightning Type

Level 25

HP: 144

MP: 306

D.E.D.: Cost: 150

Skills Upgraded

Skills Gained

Passive Acquired x2

“So, uh, it’s got two passives…” Henry trailed off as he flipped through the information to pull up the passives. The Harbinger Voltrure had definitely gotten stronger. Sure, it was still kinda squishy, having less life than the Bladed Drakeling had before evolution. However, that mana pool, was intense. And, he confirmed, it had not one, but two Passive’s gained.

Passives:

Doomcaller

Death Charge

“It, what?” JJ said by his side. “I don’t think I heard you right.”

“It has two passives.”

“Bullshit.” JJ said, grabbing Henry’s hand to pull the phone towards himself. “You’re…” his best friend went silent, his eyes looking at the two.

“Dude.” JJ let go of Henry’s wrist as he flipped through his journal. “Dude.” He said again.

“You going to finish your sentence anytime soon?” Henry pressed. Was this that big of a deal?

“Dude.” JJ said for a third time. “You, what the hell. You and me, were going to have a talk tonight.” He said as he put his journal away. “Message me immediately when you’re off shift, and I’ll head over.”

“Why?” Henry asked. He noticed JJ’s skin, which had usually been slightly pale, was even lighter in tone. “What’s going on?”

JJ shook his head. “Not here, not now. Tonight, at your place. You’re going to tell me what the hell it is you know. That thing,” he pointed at the Harbinger Volture, “those passives. Something big is coming. It’s the only explanation.”

“I don’t know-“

“Cut the shit.” JJ said. “Don’t insult me. Tell me, tonight, what the hell is going on. Your Harbinger is just that. That thing, feeds on doom, destruction, and death. And while yeah, the exorcists are shit, there is no way in hell you should have been around and experienced the level of…well, shit…that needs to happen for those passives to trigger in something.”

“Oh.” Henry went quiet, thinking about the implications of that. First, his Storm Crow had gained what he figured was a unique evolution. Or at least, an extremely rare one. So rare, that not even JJ knew about it. On the other hand, it seemed JJ, at the very least, did know what the passives did. Which would be helpful to know.

“Alright, alright.” Henry gave in. “I’ll hit you up when I’m off shift. But you’ve got to tell me what those passives do. It’s important you know.”

“Deal.” The still paler than normal JJ said. “Doomcaller makes it so any D.E.D. your Harbinger Volture hits with a skill, will take more damage from all sources. Death Charge, on the other hand, empowers your Harbinger Volture based on every D.E.D. it helps kill. Every D.E.D. the Harbinger Volture helps defeat, will result in a permanent boost to its HP and MP, dependent on the strength of the defeated D.E.D.” He shook his head. “That thing literally feeds on the death of others.”

That wasn’t what Henry had wanted to hear. But, given what he knew, given what was coming for them, and given what he knew he had to do to get ready, he didn’t care. Those skills, were guaranteed to help him on his quest towards power. Even if it meant the possibility of leaving a trail of dead D.E.D. in its wake. After all, those they defeated, were ones who were either too weak, or unwilling, to pact with Henry and help him on his quest. He would shed no tears about their losses.

“Word of advice buddy,” JJ said as he moved further away from Henry. “Emelia knows of what you’ve got. She’s going to ask you questions too. And if its just her, I’m sure its safe. But whatever you do, don’t let others know about those passives. Your D.E.D. are getting strong, and the fact you’re able to have those three out at once, means you’ve got an impressive amount of potential as well. But as it stands now, there are dangerous individuals out there that will, and I stress, will, kill you to get access to the D.E.D. you have.”

Before Henry could ask him what he meant, JJ’s form just disappeared. One second, he was there, the next, gone. Which left Henry with even more questions. Questions, Henry figured, which would have to remain unanswered until after his shift was finished.

“Well,” he said to no one in particular as he looked at his three D.E.D. Combined, they were taking up 358 of his current max of 520 D.E.D. points. “Guess it’s time to get back to work.”