ã€ŠIcarus Awakensã€‹


 Chapter 1: Fallen

    Daniel groaned softly as both breath and consciousness returned to him. The fact that he couldn¡¯t see wasn¡¯t his greatest concern. Most troubling was the impossibility in his mind, thoughts darting as he tried to get his bearings. There was something layered over his recent memories, a singular sensation that made no sense. Falling.

    He was driving to work, and plummeting. Glancing idly at his phone late at night, while wind whipped around with him in blind panic. It seemed like a delusion, a false memory glazed over his normal life combined with a distortion to time. There was no immediate sense of when this intrusion began, but it grew stronger as Daniel worked his way forward. Yesterday, or what he assumed was yesterday, was almost entirely blotted out by the terror of free fall that clashed with what few memories made it through.

    He¡¯d gotten a call from someone? The details were hazy and a dull headache now crept into the tortuous mental landscape. Trying to focus on his last memory only heightened the pain without offering additional insight. He begrudgingly surrendered, and the fog that was parting rolled back into place.

    The young man only a few years out of high school briefly wondered if this is what it meant when life flashed before your eyes. If he really was falling to his death. No, Daniel thought. He felt solid ground beneath him. He was face down, a fact made clear as he struggled to breathe and choked on dust. Propping himself up by his elbows, Daniel dusted off his face and opened his eyes. What he saw made him scramble back, bumping into something hard.

    ¡°It¡¯s an island,¡± Daniel said breathlessly, clutching at the tree he¡¯d backed up against. He¡¯d been prone near the edge, looking over it as he¡¯d opened his eyes. It wasn¡¯t water that met his gaze but open sky. Normally Daniel would have assumed he¡¯d landed on a cliff, but that would require the land he was on to be connected to anything. Instead, Daniel only saw empty air surrounding him. He briefly considered if there was a column supporting the island where he couldn¡¯t see it, but there simply wasn¡¯t anything under him. ¡°It¡¯s a floating island?¡±

    That was ridiculous. He laughed despite himself as an image of the stereotypical deserted island flashed through his head. It was almost there, a single tree, barely enough land to pace around. The tree wasn¡¯t in the exact center of the island and contained no coconuts, however. The farthest the edge went from it was a dozen meters at most. All that was missing was the water and an unusually charismatic volleyball.

    Daniel frowned as he took in his meager surroundings. Not only was this island nonsensical, but it was also odd. He could clearly see where he had landed, if falling was how he¡¯d come to this strange place. There was only dirt around the tree, no grass. Two swathes of dirt had been burned, arcing out from the area he¡¯d fallen. It was a familiar pattern, but Daniel couldn¡¯t place it amid the absurdities that were assaulting his mind.

    He sat against the tree and stared out at the sky around him. It wasn¡¯t a poor sight. The unmasked golden light of sunset, or perhaps sunrise, was something to behold. More than that, how often do you see clouds from above? For Daniel, only once every few years. The last had been the plane trip to his father¡¯s funeral, and he¡¯d had to take a sedative for that.

    His eyes fell to the ground around him, and another oddity was discovered. The roots of the tree were visible. This wasn¡¯t uncommon for large trees. Surface roots could dive up and down across the surface in search of nutrients. These looked similar, but the smaller offshoots were exposed. All around the base of the trunk roots had been lifted out of the ground like a careless giant had tugged on it for a moment before moving on.

    Daniel¡¯s breath quickened as a rise of panic shot through him. It wasn¡¯t the phantom giant, but the realization that he was trapped truly hitting him. Claustrophobia was always one of Daniel¡¯s weaknesses. It didn¡¯t matter if he was trapped by walls or open air, it was the obvious limits on his freedom that got to him. In this case, there was no sign of that changing.

    There was nowhere to run. He was already as far from the edge as he could go. The tree at his back provided a measure of support, but it couldn¡¯t shield him from the oppressive sky. Daniel was frozen in fear, stunned even as a knot of the tree dug painfully into his back. It was a vicious cycle between the need for escape and the world¡¯s denial to him of any avenue. He closed his eyes and waited.

    ¡­

    Eventually, the terror faded. Daniel hadn¡¯t triumphed over his fear but had finally questioned his assumptions. Was he trapped? Was he even here? He couldn¡¯t explain what had happened to his memory, outside of being drugged. As for this island, it could be an elaborate projection. Were his surroundings just screens showing a sky, making him believe he was kilometers up in open air while pixelated reality was right under him? He wasn¡¯t sure if he liked that explanation more, but it meant there was probably someone watching him.

    ¡°H-hey!¡± he shouted, glancing randomly upwards where he assumed the hidden cameras were, ¡°What the hell is this? Let me out!¡± A gentle breeze was all that answered him. Fans, Daniel assured himself. They¡¯re using fans to do that. He ignored the fact that the air would have had to come from somewhere, and the ¡®walls¡¯ around him were unbroken.

    Daniel planted a hand on the ground and stood up, pressure on his back instantly relieved. It didn¡¯t help anything else. He glanced at the ground again on his way to the edge. From the impression he¡¯d left while unconscious, it almost seemed like he¡¯d been reaching out for something. Whatever it was is gone now.

    ¡°Damn it!¡± Daniel patted his pockets. He didn¡¯t even think about his phone. Of course, it was gone, as well as his wallet. Everything besides his clothes was gone. The shirt and shorts were the last ones he remembered wearing. Oh, and his necklace, that was still there. Whoever put him here had taken everything else, but Daniel wouldn¡¯t have traded that last item for his phone if he¡¯d had the chance. He had a suspicion he wouldn¡¯t have service, even if he did have it.

    Daniel glanced over the edge. Height had never really bothered him, at least as long as there was a path back to the ground instead of just a fall. Large clouds lazily rolled by, obscuring everything below. The underside of the island was almost pyramidal, with the roots of the tree sticking out like a scraggly beard. It was impossible to tell how high up he was. If this was fake it was impressive. Daniel had seen theme park attractions do something similar, though this was another level.

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    ¡°Someone better start talking to me, or I¡¯m going to do something stupid,¡± Daniel challenged, not looking up this time. He was pretty sure he¡¯d fall a few meters if he fell off. Maybe 20 if there was as much distance below him as there was above to accommodate the tree. He held a foot over the edge, then brought it back. ¡°Or maybe I¡¯ll do something smart,¡± he said to himself.

    Whatever had happened to the island¡¯s tree had broken off a few branches, scattering them on the ground. Rather than throw himself off the island to uncertain futures, Daniel decided one of those would make a better proxy. ¡°They can¡¯t keep this up once I prove I¡¯m onto them.¡± What exactly would happen when the branch bounced off the screen below him, Daniel wasn¡¯t sure. He¡¯d settled on some sort of illicit survival scenario as his best bet. Someone with enough money had brought him here for the entertainment value. Best case, he¡¯d be drugged again and brought back home where no one would believe his stories. Worst case?

    The branch was in his hand, held over the edge. If he was right, dropping it would end things one way or the other. If he was wrong, then he simply had no idea what was going on. Daniel was under no illusion that things weren¡¯t bad, but he had a way forward. A way out. He let go of the branch and it fell. It passed the bottom of the island, falling further and further, until it vanished into one of the clouds below.

    Rational explanations were suddenly at an all-time low in Daniel¡¯s mind. The only things that could fake what he was seeing were more ridiculous than it all being real, and he was standing on a floating island. He¡¯d dropped three more branches off the side to be sure, each one falling into the cloud directly below the island before he lost sight of it.

    ¡°This is insane.¡± Sheer incredulousness was edging out the lingering fear. It did nothing to slow his heart rate. He still couldn¡¯t make sense of his memories. He couldn¡¯t make any sense of this. How was an island flying? The tree looked like it had been pulled up, but there wasn¡¯t a hook attached to the top or anything.

    Daniel¡¯s priorities had shifted from provoking his presumed captors to finding a way off this island. He circled the edge, careful not to get too close lest he trip on one of the snaking surface roots and fall. All he saw below him was the large cloud moving slowly off toward the sun. The tail end was almost clear of the island¡¯s shadow, and in other directions, there were gaps enough in the cloud layer to see through. There was land below, so far below that he could only make out a faintly green blur painted between the orangish-white of the clouds.

    Daniel returned to the tree and lightly thumped a fist to it. It was no volleyball, but he was beginning to warm up to the tree. It offered nothing to him but a break in the ground and the absence of a threat. Considering his current circumstances, it was all Daniel could ask for. ¡°I wonder If I should,¡± he mused, looking at the large interior branches that supported the smaller blooming ones. This tree had an almost perfectly leafed dome of a kind he hadn¡¯t seen before. The trunk was the normal brown-barked kind, and Daniel was almost certain trees like this existed somewhere. They did here at least.

    ¡°You don¡¯t mind, do you?¡± Daniel grabbed one of the knots on the trunk, testing his weight before looking for another. He didn¡¯t know what climbing it would achieve other than keeping him busy, which is what he needed. The closest branch was only a few hand-holds away, thicker than his arm and sturdy enough to hold him. From there, its evenly spaced brethren offered an easy path to the top.

    A strange sensation washed over Daniel¡¯s arms as he climbed. He¡¯d expected to strain with the effort and he did. Rather than burning with it, his arms grew tense. It felt like he was lifting himself with flawless form, belying practice he hadn¡¯t had in arboreal elevation. ¡°This weird I can take,¡± he said as he reached the first branch.

    Daniel¡¯s brown hair poked out from the top of the green dome, the rest of his body braced below. He frowned as the effort yielded nothing but greater self-confidence in his physique, but if he was honest there were no changes there. It was probably adrenaline.

    The sky around him was nothing but clouds and the setting sun, now almost below the horizon. He panned his gaze around and raised an eyebrow. Not every cloud was beneath him. Some were above, and some he could see by just looking out. One on his level appeared quite large. Before he¡¯d considered it just part of the background, though in the hour or so he¡¯d been running around this small island it had grown massive. Daniel felt his mouth grow dry and he realized the cloud was bearing down on his island.

    He forced a laugh to break the fear threatening a resurgence. My island? he thought. If anything, it was Mr. Tree¡¯s island. It might even be nice to see the inside of a cloud. The climb had left him with a building thirst, and Daniel wondered if you could drink just by breathing in a cloud. He realized that same reasoning would mean the cloud would drown him, and spent a few seconds designing a leaf-based filter mask in his head before scrapping the idea. He¡¯d always been good with tinkering around a problem but lacked anything to do it with. If he was wishing for supplies, he might as well wish for a way to make a parachute. Or just wish for a parachute.

    The cloud posed problems for Daniel. On one hand, it offered a change of pace. On the other, probably for the worse. It was another strange sensation that made Daniel eye the cloud with suspicion, something he couldn¡¯t explain. It was like he knew the cloud was trouble, hiding danger behind its wispy fa?ade. He probably shouldn¡¯t be in the tree when it hit the island. Ducking beneath the leaves provided a sense of security the same way a blanket resolved a child¡¯s fear of monsters. If there was something out there, he¡¯d prefer steady ground.

    Daniel regretted his decision as he found himself face-first on the ground for the second time today. One of the larger branches had given way on his descent, almost throwing him off the island as he tumbled down. He was on the side opposite the scorched earth that marked his original resting place, surrounded by scattered foliage. ¡°Sorry about that,¡± he groaned, seeing a new hole in the tree¡¯s leaf dome.

    He turned over to look out to the approaching cloud. It was moving deceptively fast. When he¡¯d climbed the tree it was far enough to not be worthy of notice. Now it was bearing down on him, an ethereal locomotive threatening to rush over the tree¡¯s peaceful island. Daniel stood and brushed himself off. Small cuts from his fall, but nothing broken. Good, he thought, that¡¯s the last thing I need.

    The cloud was a few minutes away. Daniel could have occupied himself by dropping his freshly acquired sticks off the island again if he needed a reminder of how real the situation was. He simply piled them instead. The leaf parachute idea hadn¡¯t completely left his mind. It¡¯d take a while, but he didn¡¯t have any other option.

    Darkness converged on Daniel from two directions. The setting sun would eventually usher night, but the fog of the cloud screened out its fading light and got there first. Embarrassment colored his fear as he remembered his drowning concerns. People walked through clouds all the time in the form of fog. It just didn¡¯t occur to him due to his logical side being busy with the idea of a floating island. It did mean he needed to find some other source of water. Thirst would be his most pressing drive soon.

    The cloud finished its assault on the island, fully enveloping Daniel in a dense fog. Standing by the tree, he could barely see the edge. If he¡¯d woken up in this, he¡¯d probably have walked off the island without realizing it. ¡°I need to find a way out of here.¡± As if in response to his voice, there was a purple flash deeper in the cloud bank.

 Chapter 2: Sparkbat Swarm - (1)

    It had only been for an instant, but he knew what he¡¯d seen. Daniel had his back to the tree again, opposite from the lightning. Then he reconsidered. Weren¡¯t you supposed to avoid trees during a lightning storm? Did that matter when he was inside the stormhead? Moving away from the tree meant moving closer to the edge, a tricky prospect with his vision restricted. He was glad he¡¯d piled up the sticks at least, fewer things to trip over.

    Another flash of lightning in the distance, looking more like an orb as the fog diffused the light. Still purple, which piqued Daniel¡¯s curiosity. He¡¯d always thought of lightning as blue or yellow. Purple lightning was more in the realm of magic than a natural occurrence. Like floating islands.

    Another flash. It was getting closer. The calm wind had completely died. The only sound was Daniel¡¯s rapid breathing. Magic lightning? Then there was the ominous sense he¡¯d had of the cloud, had he intuited it somehow? Another flash, now it looked more like the traditional lightning shape. Fuzzy, but a distinct line.

    Two questions made Daniel grasp for one of the larger branches on the ground. Why was the lightning only getting closer, and why were shapes flitting around it? He¡¯d seen them after the latest flash, something fast was flying in front of the lightning arcs. Daniel and the tree faced whatever lurked in the fog back to trunk. His chosen weapon was gripped like a bat despite its length making it unwieldy. Fear was back in full force. Trapped on an island was one thing. Trapped on an island with a lightning monster stalking him was something else.

    The first hint of what he was facing manifested as a sensation across his leg. It was like a fish had brushed it while he was swimming with all the unpleasantness that entailed. A flailing swing caught only the ground leaving him off balance. It also put him just under a line of lightning that charred the wood behind him.

    Shapes were darting at the edges of his vision. Fast, but not so fast that he only lost sight of them as they dipped back into the fog. It was a swarm of something small. No larger than a bird, though that category included albatrosses. Daniel felt something brush against him again and instinctively dodged. A cry of pain left his lips as his second attempt was less successful and the arc of lightning touched his arm. Rather than scream, Daniel''s body locked as the electricity coursed through him. He recovered almost immediately, but the arm itself was taking longer to wake. If it had hit his dominant arm he may have dropped his weapon.

    ¡°Bad.¡± Daniel could only grunt. He was in more pain than he¡¯d ever experienced. He should have passed out from it, he¡¯d expected to. Instead, he focused and found the gears of his mind still turning efficiently. They¡¯re shooting me with lightning? he thought. What the actual hell? A shape darted towards him and he swung out, managing to catch it despite his injured arm. It had approached from his front instead of the side, giving him more time to react.

    Lightning suddenly struck the creature as it was knocked away. Daniel was aghast as what looked like a cross between a butterfly and a carnivorous fish was wreathed in purple light. He was even more surprised when it ducked below the island and out of sight, no worse for wear.

    It was starting to make a strange sense, as long as Daniel discarded his notions of how the world should work. They¡¯re shooting themselves with lightning and trying to catch me in between, he mentally corrected. But also trying to make contact with me first? Why? Daniel was out in the middle of the island. If these creatures arced lightning between them, they could hover along the edge and spam it until he was done.

    Then he remembered the tree. It wasn¡¯t in the dead center of the island, but close enough. The first blast had been wholly arrested by the trunk that now bore the scar proudly. They can¡¯t. They have to get close. He¡¯d just finished the thought when he saw one coming from the right. He swung out at the creature and made another connection. His left arm was recovering but not at full strength, and the demonic fish-butterfly survived the hit. Something else slipped past his waist. The flock had begun adapting their tactics.

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    A set of small, sharp teeth met Daniel¡¯s gaze as the enemy glided up to the level of his head. The intent behind the movement was obvious. Light ringed the creature as his eyes focused fully on it. Time slowed as Daniel waited for the inevitable blast of lightning that would either kill him outright or leave him defenseless to further attacks.

    Nothing happened. It was then Daniel noticed something different about the light surrounding the flying piranha; it was red. It wasn¡¯t just that, the light was cleanly outlining the creature. The fog should have been making it at least hazy even at this close distance. He tried to look around him, only to find he couldn¡¯t move his head. Words also formed from the same red light in mid-air, directly above the creature.

    <hr>

    Sparkbat Swarm - (1)

    <hr>

    Based on everything happening, the only guess Daniel could make was that time had stopped. He would have returned to his earlier theories of this all being elaborate stagecraft if that and everything else happening wasn¡¯t blatantly impossible. And sparkbat? The hell this thing is a bat. The thing in front of him had a cylindrical body that reminded him of an eel. Spines the same vibrant purple of the lightning shot off perpendicularly from the main body with nearly translucent webbing between them to form a set of fin-like wings. The only other features he could make out were a set of sharp teeth and a flap of skin off the top of the head that looked like a broad antenna.

    As a purple glow started to overlap with the red outline, it became clear time was gearing back up. The swarm had targeted his head this time and used a decoy to distract him. Their numbers, range, and adaptation would grind down what little defense he had if he didn¡¯t start chipping away at those advantages.

    In an instant, the world was moving again. Instead of dodging, Daniel brought his branch down hard on the sparkbat and slammed it into the ground. Lightning arced from it to somewhere behind him, passing through his legs instead of his head. Its body lay broken before him. It seemed like a solid hit was all he needed.

    The change of the battle¡¯s pace was night and day, even if the darkness and the fog still clouded his vision. Daniel didn¡¯t know how he¡¯d done it, but he¡¯d bought himself enough time to think about his situation. More so, every other creature in the swarm now had a red outline he could track through the fog. The sparkbats¡¯ ability to dart in and out of his vision had been one of their trump cards. Another fell as it attempted to sneak around the tree, unaware he could see it not only through the fog but solid wood.

    Daniel¡¯s branch was beginning to crack from the repeated heavy strikes. His head was twitching side to side as he desperately tried to keep track of each creature. Their flight wasn¡¯t as erratic as he¡¯d first thought. It was more of an amicably paced glide until one moved in for the kill and they rapidly descended towards him. There were a dozen now, which was still enough to keep him guessing. Another two sparkbats, and his branch, were destroyed before Daniel made a mistake. The red figures dancing around him had drawn his attention. Worse, he¡¯d grown arrogant. He thought he¡¯d figured them out, solved the pattern, when from out of nowhere a shot of lightning hit him square in the chest.

    Nothing had been behind him. He knew nothing had been behind him. Daniel collapsed as his body seized up and he saw his downfall. The body of one of the grounded creatures was faintly glowing with spent energy. Of course. I¡¯m an idiot. It seemed the swarm¡¯s fallen could still serve as tethers for the lightning. Had they baited him into the right position, or did they simply wait until he¡¯d moved there himself?

    All at once the remaining sparkbats descended on him. 10 points of pain seared out as their teeth tore into him. I should already be dead. Daniel was reeling from the blast. Even so, he knew he shouldn¡¯t have been able to take a shot of lightning to the chest and live. One of his hands twitched with the fading electricity before suddenly reaching out for the sparkbat digging into his neck. He felt his hand, unbidden by him, crush the creature.

    ¡°Ah, aaaAA!¡± Daniel screamed as his voice returned to him. There was no time to think about his alien hand syndrome. He was being eaten alive. He made his second mistake then, trying to roll the sparkbats off like he was on fire. The wild motion threw him first into the battered tree before bouncing him in the opposite direction. He¡¯d already fallen off the edge before the thought of stopping occurred to him.

 Chapter 3: First Descent

    Daniel¡¯s lungs emptied themselves as his continued scream was lost to the rushing air. He shot out of the fog and into the open night sky. Moonlight shone from above to turn the clouds silver, blurred from the rapid twisting in the air. His entire body was locked up, partially from fear and partially from the lingering stun. The only thing that broke into his consciousness was an intense pain in his clenched hand that deadened the arm.

    He passed through another cloud. Time, was the first coherent word that came into his mind. He¡¯d slowed it down before, even if he didn¡¯t know how. Stop! Halt! he thought, no breath to speak the words. Freeze? Slow down! Nothing worked.

    Daniel caught a glimpse of what was causing his pain. Lightning was streaking out from his fist from the sparkbat¡¯s body he still clutched. It was like holding a live wire. Skin was blackening, and the worst was from the spines that seemed to project the lightning. With his muscles seized up, he couldn¡¯t release it.

    Daniel¡¯s gaze tilted upwards as he toppled out of the second cloud. The continuous beam of lightning arced into the cloud to several points, connecting with red outlines still concealed in the fog. His arm was cast out towards them as if he were smiting the sparkbats with divine retribution. The violent spinning had slowed enough to see that the cloud above wasn¡¯t shrinking as fast as it should be. Did I do it?

    No, the speed of the descent still pulled at his burning clothes and skin. Time still flowed undisturbed, but Daniel¡¯s fall was being arrested. The continuous electricity pouring into his arm had dulled the sensation until his eyes saw it happening. Somehow, the sparkbat¡¯s corpse was resisting gravity while firing out an impossible amount of untamed current.

    The lightning was starting to freeze his entire body again, doing little for the pain. Death from falling was replaced by slow torture. I can¡¯t breathe. He¡¯d been winded from the screaming and finally driven to the point of his body forcing him to take in air, only to find that he couldn¡¯t. Guess they¡¯ll get their lunch after all, Daniel thought grimly before the pain, oxygen deprivation, and tingling numbness forced his world to grow dark.

    ¡­

    The sun was halfway to the apex of its rise when Daniel¡¯s stuttering coughs broke the silence. He was face up this time. That was about all he had going for him.

    The first bolt of lightning hadn¡¯t hurt nearly as much as it seemed it would. The one that hit his chest had, but only now did Daniel truly feel like he¡¯d been struck by lightning. The right side of his body pulsed with an ache, pain lingering in spots along his arm and hand and doubling when the tide resurged. There was also the feeling of something soft and gooey in his hand. Had the skin melted together?

    Daniel opened his eyes and recoiled at the glare of the sun. Shielding them with his good hand, he sighed with relief as he looked at the other. The crushed remains of the sparkbat had congealed to his fingers. They were blackened and in need of immediate treatment, but permanent damage had been avoided. He hoped.

    Daniel sat in the grass as he waited for strength to return to him. The large fluffy clouds of yesterday had gone and been replaced with stringier cousins. It was hardly worth guessing what they looked like. The only thing of note in the sky was a land mass a fair distance up. The island, he thought. He¡¯d landed almost directly below it. It was quite a distance up, and from this side, the tree wasn¡¯t visible. How am I alive?

    Lifting his head, Daniel painfully looked around. The ground he was lying on broke into a sharp fall on all sides. It was another sky island, though a bit bigger and more lopsided than the original one. He wasn''t sure how far he had left to to go to reach the ground, but it felt like he''d fallen a good chunk of it. The corpses of several sparkbat were littered near him, the only sign of those that had accompanied his descent. Whatever had killed them had left them more intact than the one he crushed. If any had survived, I¡¯d be dead. Daniel gulped. There was grass here, short and manicured. A few of the tree¡¯s twins stood together. They were the same, leafy dome and all, though that didn¡¯t count the damage he and the sparkbats had done to the first one. There was also a calm pond below the trees. A low wooden bridge spanned the gap, floral patterns painted along the side. A bridge? Water!? Thirst budged its way to the forefront of his mind.

    Standing would be a mistake, that much he could guess without trying. Daniel had enough control over his mangled arm to hold it to his chest while he awkwardly dragged himself to the water¡¯s edge. Several of the dead sparkbats glared at him during the journey, and one was directly in his path. The corpse was intact, though the cylinder of its main body had branching burns crisscrossing around it. Overloaded?

    His arm was no better. Beyond the mess of his hand, similar burns wrapped from the wrist to just under his shoulder. It would have made a fair tattoo if not for the price paid to acquire it. The sleeve of his shirt was just gone with the rest faring little better. I¡¯ll go to a tailor after freakish lightning bats stop trying to eat me, he chided himself bitterly.

    Daniel never thought he¡¯d be the kind of person to enjoy drinking straight from the ground. Camping was straight at the bottom of his preferred activities, if he didn¡¯t count falling from the sky. He looked at his hands, one pooling water from a murky pond and the other half blackened and coated with dead monster flesh. ¡°I¡¯m just a guy.¡± He¡¯d wanted to say engineer, but that path had been abandoned before college.

    That part of his life was painful, but thinking about it distracted him from the real pain in his arm. Of the many differences in the Brant family, the largest had been between the scion and the patriarch. Garret Brant was a man of the woods, a park ranger who had given up his eight-year tenure to settle down. Daniel knew from an early age he hadn¡¯t inherited his father¡¯s love of the outdoors, but that didn¡¯t stop him from being dragged on numerous ¡®adventures¡¯ once he was old enough to walk.

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    Garret had ribbed Daniel about it in the past. Claustrophobia and a preference for the indoors wasn¡¯t strictly hypocritical, but that hadn¡¯t stopped his father. His last trip had. Daniel¡¯s father had been on a solo journey through the mountains along the Pacific coast when he¡¯d just vanished. That had been four years ago, when Daniel was 18 and preparing for college. Initially, his father had pitched the trip as the final father-son outing before he left for college. He¡¯d opened with a two-week trek, expecting Daniel to counter with 0 and compromise on one.

    There just wasn¡¯t time. Daniel was riding high on reaching adulthood, yet to realize what it fully entailed. He¡¯d stood his ground, his father left, and had never returned. After the search was called off, the family had decided to hold the funeral near the mountains. That had meant a flight across the country. Daniel shook his head. ¡°Not my fault,¡± he muttered, wincing as he¡¯d unthinkingly stood with both of his hands and losing control of the movement. Instead of pushing himself upward, he¡¯d thrown himself into the pond. The pain in his arm only grew worse as water aggravated the burns. ¡°Owww,¡± he groaned.

    There was something in the water. Something familiar? Stinging pain distracted him as the bits of monster began dissolving to reveal more sensitive flesh. At least his hand was clean. Turning his gaze back to the object, Daniel saw a rounded corner sticking out of the silt of the pond. Displeasure crossed his face as the soaked man rose and then reached down. His expression changed utterly when he pulled the object free.

    My phone! Daniel turned it over in his hands. My phone? The device was different than he remembered. Its case was gone, as well as the logo. It retained its original shape, though the side was also smooth. No buttons, no camera, and no charging slot. Also no audio port, but the disappointment of missing that had come with the newer model. Without those distinguishing features it just looked like a black rectangle with one reflective surface.

    Confused, Daniel tapped at the screen and it lit up. It had survived its bath at least. Rather than his normal lock screen, it projected a red word on a white background.

    <hr>

    Password?

    <hr>

    Password? Daniel¡¯s phone had a passcode, not a password. Nothing about the device in his hand seemed right, but he had a strange sense it was his. Not that it recognized him; the device still queried for a password. It didn¡¯t offer a number pad or keyboard, though. ¡°217753?¡± Daniel asked the phone. The screen remained unchanged. Password? Daniel thought again.

    In Daniel¡¯s world, most had what could be considered a common password. Developed early and carried on through life, slightly adjusted to the whims of those who required it, the common password was used and reused for many years. Only the fastidious created entirely new passwords from scratch whenever one was needed. Daniel was not such a person. His common password was ¡®Buildingblocks¡¯. As that phrase crossed his mind, prompted by the screen¡¯s word choice, the unlock symbol appeared. ¡°Hey, I didn¡¯t say that. How did you know?¡± He paused as more text flashed across the background before his phone fully unlocked.

    <hr>

    Focus v1.0

    New Functions Added:

    ?  Function: Encyclopedia

    ? Function: Maps

    ? Function: Music

    ? Function: Settings

    <hr>

    Though the lock screen had changed, his background image mercifully hadn¡¯t. The photo was taken a year before his father¡¯s disappearance. His home mountain range, the Appalachians, dominated the background. Framed by the distant blue and green was the Brant family. His mother, father, and two older sisters had reunited for the photo after being separated in one way or another.

    Kara, his mother, was in her scrubs. When she had to work, the hospital took a lot of her time. That day she¡¯d come home late despite their plans and had decided to just skip a change, since scrub bottoms weren¡¯t entirely different from sweatpants. While the extra hours were a pain, what she made as a doctor provided for the entire family. The twins Alex and Ami, three years ahead of Daniel and in their college sophomore year at the time, had made the then scandalous decision to attend rival institutions as their sweatshirts loudly declared. They had the good kind of competitive sibling drive that pushed both of them to succeed while rarely leading to actual conflict. His father was the closest to the camera, the hike to that spot having been his idea. Daniel was in the picture too, but he rarely glanced in that direction. He hated the look of displeasure that broke through the fake smile.

    It was the last good photo the family had. Normally it was more obscured, but only four squares covered the sky in the photo. ¡°Ok wait. Wait.¡± Daniel pulled himself back to shore, glancing from the phone to the dead monsters on the ground, then to the sheer drop-off that ringed the island¡¯s edge. His heart raced. ¡°Wait.¡±

    None of this made sense. He¡¯d fought flying lightning fish-bats, but it was his phone that finally broke Daniel. The piece of home he¡¯d hoped to have found had just been another reminder of how wrong things had become. How had he gotten here? What was wrong with his memory? How had he survived, and how was he now not a broken mess on the ground considering how much pain he was in?

    The phone vibrated in his hand and he glanced at the screen.

    <hr>

    Alert: You are under Effect: Fear

    <hr>

    What? This thought prompted a new notification.

    <hr>

    For more information on Effect: Fear, consult Function: Encyclopedia

    <hr>

    What!?

 Chapter 4: Focus

    Curiosity got the better of Daniel. His phone, in addition to having been hacked, could now read his mind. ¡°Are you magic now too?¡±

    <hr>

    For more information on Concept: Focus, consult Function: Encyclopedia

    <hr>

    Some of the words, ¡®Concept: Focus¡¯ and ¡®Function: Encyclopedia¡¯ in the most recent notification, had a blue text color that would normally indicate a hyperlink. That, plus the mention of an encyclopedia, drew an obvious conclusion that did not pay off at all. Touching the blue text only made the notification go away. Slightly confused, Daniel investigated a little more. Encyclopedia was one of the four icons on the screen, an open book on a brown background. Tapping it brought him to an image of a bookshelf, the spines of four books displayed.

    <hr>

    ? Lore

    ? Monsters

    ? System

    ? World

    <hr>

    It wasn¡¯t immediately obvious which would lead to information about his ¡®Focus¡¯ or the fear effect. That being said, the world book should be able to tell him more about where he was. He pressed on the book and it opened with just a disappointingly short paragraph inside.

    <hr>

    Information on the world you are inhabiting is limited. Magic exists. There is a strong likelihood you are not on World: Earth. The means of how you found yourself here is unknown.

    <hr>

    Not Earth? Daniel sighed. He¡¯d guessed as much but hadn¡¯t wanted to acknowledge the suspicion. Some encyclopedia. This just tells me what I already know. Like the notifications, some terms were blue. Would they lead to a new page or just get his hopes up again? Another alert came through at the top of the screen.

    <hr>

    For more information on Function: Encyclopedia, consult the encyclopedia

    <hr>

    ¡°Great, thanks,¡± Daniel said sarcastically. He tried tapping the hyperlink on the alert itself, but it went away as soon as he touched it. The world book didn¡¯t have much to tell him, and he was guessing the lore book was similarly scant in detail. Of the other two, System seemed more promising.

    Daniel returned to the bookshelf and selected the system book. Instead of opening, it revealed a long menu. ¡°Abilities, advancement, attacks¡­¡± Daniel¡¯s eyes ran down the long list and settled on one that seemed most helpful. ¡°Index!¡± That led to an even longer list, though it had a search bar at the top. Encyclopedia was his first choice.

    <hr>

    Encyclopedia (Function: Artificer, Domain: Knowledge, ???)

    An artificer Focus function that stores all information known to the user in an accessible and orderly fashion. Knowledge displayed may include information the user has forgotten and/or information they could, but don¡¯t, know, so long as the user has directly encountered the subject matter.

    This function is a Magical Power. Magical Suppression prevents new knowledge from being recorded until the suppression is removed. Knowledge already stored may be accessed so long as the vessel can overcome the suppression.

    <hr>

    ¡°That¡¯s more helpful. Magic.¡± Daniel¡¯s tone was pensive. It was the simplest explanation for this insanity. The text was displayed in a familiar way, describing things like he was in an role-playing game. Further, this Encyclopedia seemed to function like an in-game knowledge base, adding entries as he discovered more. The part about having information he could, but didn¡¯t know made a bit more sense in that light. Videogames usually gave help text on new abilities to help players understand them.

    ¡°This is a game.¡± Daniel looked around again. ¡°This is a game?¡± He saw his reflection in the rippling water, burned arm prominently displayed. ¡°I¡¯m bad at this game.¡± An attempt at a self-deprecating chuckle was made, but it died in his throat as he was reminded of his pain. Still, he felt better.

    <hr>

    Alert: Effect: Fear on you has ended

    <hr>

    ¡°Huh.¡± Knowing he was in a game helped frame things. Games always had a way forward, when they didn¡¯t softlock at least. Since he¡¯d just gotten here that would be unlikely, and it would also make this whole area the tutorial. ¡°Normally the sky levels are end game. Act 2 at least.¡± His complaints did not have any meaningful impact on the surroundings.

    The alert on his phone timed out. The hyperlinks on those didn¡¯t work anyway. Focus seemed like an important topic, so he looked that up next and was happy to find that hyperlinks in the Encyclopedia worked as expected.

    A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    <hr>

    Focus (Concept: Item, Domain: Universal, ???)

    The item through which Powers: Class are channeled. A focus¡¯ nature is unique to its bearer, though similarities exist within classes. Focuses may physically evolve as their bearer Advances, and can gain new Functions from awakened powers. Non-Intrinsic foci may be lost or destroyed, and must be remade for powers reliant on them to be restored.

    You are an Artificer. Your focus has taken the form of a smartphone. No current Abilities require your focus to function. No current Attacks require your focus to function. No current attribute-enhancing Effects require your focus to function. No Familiars are bonded to your focus. You have one or more Spells that require your focus to function. Use of Function: Encyclopedia, Function: Maps, Function: Music, and Function: Settings require a functioning focus.

    ???

    <hr>

    The last paragraph was a wall of text and hyperlinks. It was overwhelming, though the gist of the ability was easy to understand. His phone had somehow become a nexus of whatever abilities he¡¯d woken up with. He had a suspicion about at least one of the spells his Focus provided him and asked a more pressing question. ¡°How did I get these abilities? Wait, no, how did I get here?¡± Daniel looked at his phone expectantly.

    <hr>

    For more information on Classes, consult Function: Encyclopedia.

    <hr>

    Class was a hyperlinked word near the top of the Focus entry, allowing Daniel to reach the page despite the notification not linking there directly.

    <hr>

    Classes (Concept, Universal, ???)

    ???

    <hr>

    Daniel tapped the question marks, confused.

    <hr>

    Unidentification (Concept: Effect, Domain: Illusion, ???)

    Unidentification prevents Creatures and Domain: Knowledge Powers of the same level or lower from accessing designated information. This effect cannot remove knowledge known to intelligent creatures, but sufficiently powerful unidentification can prevent them from remembering it.

    Your Function: Encyclopedia currently possesses unidentified knowledge requiring a power of Level: 10 or higher to identify.

    <hr>

    Is that what happened to my memories? He placed the phone gently on the ground. I could spend all day reading this stuff, but that won¡¯t help my arm. In the real world, there was plenty of time to study a game, dig into its mechanics, and come out with the best build possible even before character creation. That¡¯s how Daniel played at least. In this world, he had an arm with cracked flesh and a constant dull ache that distracted him from even the holes in his mind.

    He picked the phone back up. ¡°Last question for now. Can you heal me?¡±

    <hr>

    For more information on Domain: Restoration, consult Function: Encyclopedia.

    -

    Restoration (Concept: Domain, ???)

    ???

    Recovery of injuries occurs at a natural rate dependent on a Creature¡¯s physiology and Attribute: Endurance. Recovery rate may be increased, decreased, negated, or otherwise altered by the use of Powers.

    ???

    <hr>

    ¡°Time to find a cleric then.¡± The sheer drop of the island¡¯s edge casually reminded him of its existence. ¡°Right.¡±

 Chapter 5: Electric Icarus

    The island holding the lake was larger than the first and oblong instead of roughly circular. Daniel had landed on the largest stretch of land, which was covered in grass with a dirt path leading to the bridge across the lake. Each of the trees had the same pulled-up appearance, with small branches scattered below them. Short tan reeds grew on the far bank. It almost looked like a park, and the path continued right up to the drop-off.

    He stored that insight for later and investigated the ledge. The land below had more detail than he had been able to make out earlier, both due to his lower elevation and the lesser cloud cover. Green predominated in rolling waves, suggesting low hills. Directly below him, however, was a large brown mass that looked like a crater. On the horizon was a massive line of mountains that filled the sky. If the sun worked like it did on Earth they were to the west. Even more impressive was that he could barely make out the taller peaks from his position, and Daniel was already high up. All of this was something else to keep in mind, but there was nothing that immediately helped him.

    Daniel dropped another branch off the island and watched it fall. No cloud intercepted it, but the height was far enough that it still slipped from his vision before it landed. ¡°How do I get down from here?¡± he asked his phone. No notification showed up. ¡°Can I fly?¡±

    <hr>

    Flight (Concept: Power, Domain: Enchantment, Domain: Transmutation)

    Flight is inherent to some Creatures, and naturally beyond others. Flight may be temporarily or permanently granted by various Powers.

    You possess no powers capable of granting flight. ???

    <hr>

    ¡°More Unidentified knowledge. Perfect. I¡¯ll need to find a ¡®level 10¡¯ something to fix that then. Right after a set of wings.¡± The dead eyes of a sparkbat glared at him again. The pain in his arm pulsed. They had wings, though they weren¡¯t big enough to glide on even if he could fix them to himself. Still, they had saved him from falling to death somehow.

    ¡°Wonder what the monster tab has to say about that.¡± The Encyclopedia had things he hadn¡¯t explicitly known but had experienced, so it stood to reason it may have some sort of explanation. Enough time had passed that he had to unlock his phone again by the strange process of thinking his password instead of typing his passcode.

    The monster tab of the Encyclopedia was just as unique as the others. Like the world tab, the book opened. Like the system tab, it had a search function. Unlike both, its content was displayed as an image and name of each monster, further text filling in underneath when he tapped on the icon. Only one monster was visible, a lone sparkbat ringed with purple electricity that connected it to smaller sparkbats in the background.

    <hr>

    Sparkbat Swarm ¨C (1) (Monster, Elemental: Air/Lightning, Flight, Swarm)

    A flying Creature that hunts in packs, stunning prey with electricity before devouring them. Sparkbat swarms tend to hide in clouds to utilize ambush tactics and disguise their natural Affinity: Lightning. To attack, sparkbats descend to build a charge within their bodies that may be discharged towards another of the swarm.

    <hr>

    ¡°Huh.¡± Most of the information wasn¡¯t useful, but the part about building charge was. It certainly explained why the bolts of electricity had turned into a stream when he¡¯d fallen with one. What it didn¡¯t explain was why the rest of the sparkbats went with him, since at least some should have been thrown off by his wild flailing. He hazily remembered the swarm being a good distance above him during the fall.

    He kneeled beside one, careful to keep his injured arm steady. In death, it was far less menacing. The main body was a wreck, melted in some places and charred in others. Only the purple spikes of the wings had survived unmarked, but the webbing between them was completely gone.

    A sparkbat corpse was added to the things Daniel had thrown off of floating islands. It was a prestigious list with just two previous entries, if he included himself, though this was nudged off by his foot instead of held in his hands. As the body fell it glowed with electricity and slowed down. Daniel was sure it wasn¡¯t gliding, the wings were ribbons. Something about its power to gather charge was affecting its relation to gravity.

    ¡°Maybe I could just ride one down like last time?¡± The body exploded in a powerful flash of light a few seconds later. ¡°Uh¡­¡±

    The setback didn¡¯t slow Daniel down. Fighting monsters and falling off islands wasn¡¯t his forte. Improvising was. He had a clear goal and an idea of how to accomplish it, all there was left was figuring out the fine details. Roughly a dozen sparkbats had been enough to slow his fall to the point that his legs hadn¡¯t broken when he landed on this island. He hoped what he had left would be enough, but there was still the problem of them electrocuting him on the way down.

    His earlier leaf parachute idea came back to him and he shook his head. It would have been almost impossible to pull off. With the sparkbats, he wouldn¡¯t have to worry about the material shearing or the branches snapping. The exploding sparkbat was another roadblock, though he guessed it was an issue of the monster¡¯s strange anatomy storing too much energy. Alone, they couldn¡¯t discharge it.

    ¡°A parachute harness? I have branches.¡± Daniel talked himself through the process. ¡°I can¡¯t tie it on though. What about a hang-glider?¡± Neither was something he¡¯d made before. ¡°Might as well make a helicopter.¡±

    He prodded one of the bodies with a stick, creating a sickening squelch that tore the main body as its poorly cooked flesh fell apart. ¡°Dammit, I can¡¯t waste these.¡± He had intended to impale the creature to make a handle that wouldn¡¯t shock him. The other bodies could have been kicked off just before he jumped so that he could fall with them.

    Unfortunately, it seemed the sparkbats hadn¡¯t handled the fall as well as Daniel. The one he¡¯d poked was more of a smear than a solid in most places. He brushed it off the island and waited for it to explode. Instead, the body of the sparkbat fully disintegrated as the turbulence in the air acted as a blender. Bolts of lightning jumped between three close points after a delay, illuminating the air as they fell past where the previous one had exploded. Because of the lightning, he was able to follow their descent longer than the stick. While he didn¡¯t see them go all the way, he also didn¡¯t see any explosions. Daniel thought for a moment, then nodded. ¡°That¡¯s it. I know what to do. I¡¯m getting out of here.¡±

    Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

    The next few hours were spent making what he could see in his head. The device would take advantage of the magical properties of the lightning spines, as he decided to call them. They were the true source of electricity he¡¯d been shot with so many times. Evidence of this was lines of greater damage to his arm that matched with where the somewhat tapered, purple rods had been pressed against the skin. They may have required the body to work, but after that last ¡°experiment¡± he¡¯d concluded that it was just the spines generating electricity. If it had depended on their biology, he reasoned, the effect would have likely died with the monsters.

    As to what he¡¯d figured out? In short, the spines generated some kind of cumulative antigravity effect along with the lightning. There were two thresholds he had to be wary of, the one at which the spines started shooting lightning, and the one they exploded at. From his two accidental tests, it was clear that when the spines couldn¡¯t discharge lightning to another, they would explode even if their fall speed slowed down. This also told him that lightning spines in close proximity counted as one unit, even if they weren¡¯t directly connected.

    The second test showed that spines that could arc electricity to another wouldn¡¯t meet this second, deadly threshold. It wasn¡¯t immediately clear why, but Daniel guessed that the transfer of electricity was just inefficient enough to cause the electrical buildup to plateau before the kaboom point. His last important observation was that lightning spines connected by electricity attracted each other. It was the only reason he could think of as to why the rest of the swarm hadn¡¯t just flown away as he¡¯d fallen with their dead friend. That aspect wasn¡¯t needed to create something to allow Daniel to survive his next fall, but he could think of a way to make use of it.

    Fortunately, the island had what he needed, and only just what he needed. When the time came the sun was lower, he was exhausted, and his arm still hurt. Not being able to use it without causing a spike in pain had caused delays at times, agony in others. Either way, it was done. The ledge invited him to test his theory.

    Even without a strong fear of heights, he hesitated. Someone normally needed a great amount of confidence in their net to jump from great heights. Daniel looked at his net with only a middling amount. There was no way he could do a test run. What Daniel had made amounted to several large branches tied together into cords. The reeds had proven to be stringy enough to use as rope, though each individual reed wasn¡¯t long enough for his purposes leading him to crudely tie and weave them together.

    The largest wooden cord was tied to Daniel¡¯s back, while the smaller two were placed on either side of the ledge. Reed rope connected those to one of each of his wrists, and during the fall they¡¯d be above him to channel electricity away. ¡°This is insane,¡± he said, standing on the ledge. ¡°Maybe if I fall and die, I¡¯ll wake up? This could just be a really weird dream.¡± The pain in his arm told him otherwise.

    A bird flew some distance away. It was the first passive creature he¡¯d seen in this world, not counting the trees. ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s that easy.¡± He tried to psyche himself up. ¡°Just have to ignore the fact that I die if I¡¯m wrong.¡± The wind whipped around him as he continued to stall. ¡°I know I¡¯m right,¡± he whispered. ¡°I just have to fall.¡± He put one foot over the edge, spreading his arms out as if they¡¯d sprouted feathers. ¡°I¡¯m not an Icarus, I¡¯m a Daedalus.¡± He stepped back. ¡°Would¡¯ve been nice if I did have an Icarus to test this out though.¡± He went back and forth along the edge and sighed. ¡°Alright, I¡¯m the Icarus.¡± He stepped further back, then ran forward.

    He tried to stop again out of instinct, but this time there was enough momentum to finish the job. For the second, or possibly third time, Daniel screamed as he fell through the air. He had just cleared the bottom of the island when lightning flashed out to the cords that had followed Daniel down.

    Not needing the entire body to accomplish what he needed to, Daniel had bound three clusters of thoroughly washed spines into the middle of one cord of wood after messily separating them from the corpses. Grouped together, the spines didn¡¯t discharge to each other and acted as one unit. The cords, however, were far enough to allow the lightning to flow and prevent an explosion. The only real flaw in the plan was that the lightning would eventually combust the wood and reeds. It was a race between that and reaching the ground.

    Daniel¡¯s scream was cut off in a grimace as both ropes pulled taut at his wrists. He¡¯d considered attaching ropes to his legs instead but needed the control. It was the last idea he¡¯d had. By pulling one rope closer to his back, he could increase the lightning arcing to one side compared to the other. Moving one cord closer than the other effectively allowed him to unbalance the lift created. What this gave him was a rudder on the ship he was piloting towards the ground. If he wanted to stop turning, then he only needed to stop pulling on the rope and allow gravity to overcome the weak attraction, which would otherwise make the task less strenuous. The closer cord would return to the maximum distance of the rope, and he should even out. The price of that ability was blinding pain in his injured arm.

    The flashing lightning turned into a continuous stream spreading from his back to the cords tied to his wrists. If Daniel could see himself from above in this moment, it would look like he had wings. Janky lightning wings, but wings. Daniel¡¯s back was growing hot, but that discomfort was bearable. The island was a distant sight above when he slowed enough to be able to control his movement. There was no danger of flipping over, though he still needed to pull at the ropes to steer or else he could land in the crater. That only made him feel slightly better about the ring of fire around his wrist.

    Strange tension filled his arms as he continued to pull down. It was just like when he climbed the tree. Pulling against the wooden cords technically went with gravity, but the property of the spines within them resisted the movement. The force of his pull startled him. Sure, parts of his job involved lifting, but pulling the ropes on his wrist should have been beyond him. It felt like he was pulling a truck.

    The streams of lightning began to arc more towards the cord above Daniel¡¯s left and he turned like a drunk bird in the air. Several floating islands drifted below him, but he repositioned to avoid the nearest one. He didn¡¯t trust himself to drop off again if he made an early landing. The ground was his goal, and it was approaching at a quick but survivable rate. Daniel was close enough to begin to appreciate the scale of the crater below him. He¡¯d dropped off an island close to the center, and after minutes of gliding, he¡¯d made it about halfway to the outer ledge. Getting there was important as he didn¡¯t know if he¡¯d be in a state to climb anything after this.

    Smoke began to trail the falling man as fire sparked to life. The largest branches were incorporated into the cord tied to his back and burned slower. The water they¡¯d been dunked in also helped. The smaller guide cords weren¡¯t so fortunate, and his wings were now of lightning and fire. The reeds were the fatal flaw in the plan, even though they¡¯d been dunked in the pond too. The one on the right snapped first, the left quickly following. The rope binding the cords together was thicker, and the draw of the lightning kept them close enough to prevent the one on his back from exploding.

    Trees were distinguishable now. Beyond the lip of the crater were rolling hills broken up by more of the dome trees. They varied in number from small copses to a few forests. The majority was open ground and a road led directly into the crater. Several roads, Daniel thought as he examined more of the countryside. What happened here?

    Daniel jerked violently midair as the right cord burst open and lightning spines freed themselves from their wooden tomb. They floated free of each other to make their own small swarm. The stream of lightning from his back arced wildly between multiple points as they spread out and burned the air. He was close, he was so close. He¡¯d made it out from above the crater, his wings just needed to last for another minute.

    The second cord tore itself apart. A storm without its cloud formed above Daniel as his pace accelerated. Lightning was now arcing between the two spine swarms as much as to him, throwing his abuse of their attraction mechanic into chaos. Worse, the lightning was more spread out and hit parts of the main cord that hadn''t been damaged so far. The last strap on his back burned away, jettisoning the rest of the spines and catapulting him forward. His device has lasted some time, and yet he hadn''t even reached the top of the trees. It¡¯s too fast, he thought as the ground rose to meet him.

 Chapter 6: Hagain Village

    The village was like most settlements near the Crest. Small, sparsely populated, and containing little of value. It existed solely to exist, to be a handhold with which mortal kind pushed against the limits of the world. Each of the region¡¯s villages was a seed cast to the wind with the hopes that it would one day grow past its meager existence. The fortress city of Eido had stood as their guardian, a rallying point and bastion of society until the day it disappeared.

    A map of the region lay on the table. A few days ago, it had been an accurate one. The armored figure examining it looked up as another entered the room. ¡°News from the border regions?¡±

    ¡°Yes, Headman Murdon.¡± The face betrayed nothing, but the tone implied well-controlled fear mixed in with the familiarity. There was also an inflection on the title, which was odd in and of itself. They knew Murdon well enough to make formality pointless.

    The first sighed. ¡°It might as well be Commander now.¡±

    ¡°You''re assuming that position?¡±

    Murdon tapped the map with a claw, indicating their village. ¡°This is the largest town. Biggest of anything, now that Eido is gone. Roost¡¯s Peak is there but that headman¡¯s just a miner. I¡¯m guessing help isn¡¯t coming?¡±

    ¡°They assured us they would welcome any refugees.¡± The other frowned. ¡°No other aid was offered.¡± His garb was less metallic than Murdon¡¯s, though the flowing robes hid a lacquered undervest offering a surprising amount of protection.

    ¡°Not in so many words.¡±

    ¡°Oh, of course not,¡± the robed man laughed. ¡°In fact, Aughal has promised to send a force in the winter to secure new settlement sites if we can hold out that long. No one I reached seemed to believe the Spoke was gone. Threst, well, I couldn¡¯t ask for clarification when Soraso just replied that he would ¡®think on it¡¯. I can¡¯t imagine that windy bastard would just leave us out to dry, but I also can¡¯t ask. We¡¯re out of stones to throw through their windows.¡±

    Murdon looked to the blazing summer sun and spat out the window. ¡°Lograve, tell me, do we have enough to make this work?¡± Murdon was already confident he knew the answer, but it never hurt to consult someone with greater intelligence.

    The smile didn¡¯t fade from Lograve, but the eyes became serious as they glanced off to follow Murdon¡¯s. ¡°I think you know already. Only a fraction of the Eido garrison is expected to have avoided the devastation. Those on assignment, mostly. All combatants of level 4 or higher are gone. Well, besides Kob.¡±

    ¡°Small mercy, but can we do it?¡±

    Lograve shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s a matter of what you wish to do. Survive? You could fight your way to Aughal without much issue. Save everyone in the region? We¡¯ve already failed that,¡± he chuckled.

    ¡°Lograve!¡±

    ¡°Right, sorry.¡± His smile finally faltered. ¡°I knew people there too you know.¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t act like it.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t have the heart of a stoic like you. In my mind, it¡¯s hard to see reality as anything more than a cruel joke after what we witnessed.¡± He paused. ¡°Who do you want to save?¡±

    Murdon raised an eyescale. ¡°What kind of question is that?¡±

    ¡°An important one. Command here is all but ceded to you, and no one alone is strong enough to challenge that. Not that anyone would try. Kob¡¯s the only one with a reasonable chance and we¡¯d know how that would go.¡± Lograve fiddled with his collar. ¡°You could gather up every Blessed here and make a break for it. Maybe save a village or two, but not everyone. Not everyone left.¡±

    ¡°What do I do if I want to save everyone?¡±

    ¡°Gods Murdon, you aren¡¯t responsible for the entire Octyrrum.¡± Lograve put a hand on Murdon¡¯s metallic shoulder. ¡°Nothing. I told you, that ship has sailed. Now, if you want to save as many as you can? That it is a simple matter of optimization and logistics. A problem of mathematics.¡±

    Murdon closed his eyes and nodded. He¡¯d come to the same conclusion. ¡°Octyrrum save us if it¡¯s come to that. We do it, then. Fortify this town and send out teams to give evacuation notices. Anyone who¡¯s foolish enough to resist might as well be left behind.¡±

    ¡°I imagine most are already headed our way. Any other obvious edicts now that the entire region bends to your will?¡± the lithe man asked sarcastically.

    ¡°We buy time, and we hunt.¡±

    ¡­

    Outside of the former Headman¡¯s house, the first preparations had already begun. Lograve had known the outcome of the conversation before they¡¯d had it, though nothing he¡¯d done was irreversible should Murdon have defied his expectations. The village of one hundred had swelled to thrice its number in a blink of an eye. Tents commandeered from the general store had been set up on freshly cleared ground. Rationing implemented. Guards posted. Martial law enacted.

    It was enough to host those who had arrived. As more poured from the region into Hagain Village, it wouldn¡¯t be. The village was the closest to the border regions and the mountain ridge that divided them from safety. It was a funnel for the fleeing masses, but not the last step. Braving the Thormundz pass was.

    When the settlement of the region had been planned, some had suggested placing the city that would become Eido in the pass itself to secure the route. Fates and other diviners assessed the location from afar and came to a disheartening conclusion. The gate to the Thormundz region was heavily populated by monsters, and not even a Spoke might survive the long process of completing itself if placed there.

    The region was known for its strong affinity for air and lightning, a trait inherited by the things that spawned there. The mountains were infested with them. The defenses of a finished Spoke could suppress native monster growth to enough of a degree to allow mortals to keep populations under control, but setting up there in the midst of them was impossible. Rumors of level 6 monsters lingering nearby the tenuous bridge almost scuttled the proposal to break through the enormous mountain range here. The Eido garrison was enough to secure regular passage, though it had required escorts and regular patrols. The absence of the majority of empowered individuals left only dregs to bridge the gap.

    Tlara was one such dreg, a volunteer among others sent to scout the route ahead of the first convoy. Successfully evacuating the region would require defending Hagain Village and regularly escorting refugees through the pass. The latter posed the most problems. Not only did it expose the convoy guards to monsters both ways, it gave them an opportunity to not return.

    This was the reason Tlara had joined the initial expedition. She¡¯d always thought herself an opportunist. She¡¯d come to the Thormundz region to exploit the access to new monsters, and because becoming a Beastmaster had led to certain difficulties back home. As a Beastmaster, her strength came from the creatures she tamed and the novelty of their abilities. Her set of tools would make or break her since practically all of her powers depended on the creatures under her control. With the Eido''s Spoke gone, it was now more likely she¡¯d be consumed by the stronger beasts she wished to dominate.

    Her current companion was a level one ringcat. It wasn''t even a specialty of the region. Tlara had brought it out to set in reserve her rarer, more valuable finds. It was a lithe creature, four-legged and long-toothed. Its fur was said to be marked by the Octyrrum due to the blue-tinged white circular patterns spiraling across its brown fur which were faintly reminiscent of the shape of the world. Its nose and ears were its greatest value. Otherwise, it was unable to fight something at Tlara¡¯s level.

    The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    Each of the expedition knew combat was inevitable. Death for some was probable. The leader was the headman of one of the first villages to retreat to Hagain, a strong level 3 Martialist whose powers mostly favored the bow. His eyes were the sharpest and his total attributes the highest of the group.

    They¡¯d already made it through the first section of the pass. It was a gently rising section of ground that comprised the foothills of the Thormundz ridge. It led into a wooded section that grew sparser as the altitude climbed. Some had chosen to live out here or had had this chosen for them. Among those who came to new regions to find new lives for themselves were those who had committed crimes bad enough to earn exile but not quite execution. At the outer limits of mortal kind¡¯s settlement in the area, Tlara¡¯s group had found their bodies.

    ¡°Damn, already?¡± the headman muttered, coming across the charred remains of another ruined hovel, ¡°I¡¯d hoped at least one¡­¡± He trailed off. No one else felt like commenting. In Tlara¡¯s case, she was keeping a close eye on her companions. Some were here that shared her goal, and if she wanted to avoid the sting of the headman¡¯s bow when she made her move, she¡¯d need their help.

    Her ringcat kept watch of the surroundings, its leonid ears and stance flattened. A short grunt returned it to her side. ¡°Nothing,¡± she reported, eyes not meeting the headman¡¯s.

    ¡°Let¡¯s keep moving then.¡±

    No survivors were found amidst the fading woodlands. Not every ruin had corpses, and hope remained that they had crossed the pass. Now, they were at the highest point the road went, and the most dangerous. The only clean break in the mountains suitable for mass passage was right in the path of a large lake. Mortal structures offended the wild beasts of the region, as they did themselves, inciting destructive rage. An obvious bridge across would not have survived long enough to be worth the effort of building or guarding. Magic was called upon for a solution.

    ¡°Eyes on the sky,¡± the headman warned. His bow was drawn, an arrow in the other hand. The lake was in the center of a bowl, ringed by craggy mountain walls. Ideal lurking grounds for airborne creatures.

    As he led the group, he walked towards open water where the path ended. A few meters before he reached it, shimmering platforms ten meters to a side rose to meet him. Tlara and her ringcat walked closely together near the middle of the group. Both were tense, though not from fear. The expedition had planned to reach the center of the bridge before returning to Hagain Village to make sure there wasn¡¯t a serious threat lingering at this point.

    She intended to set her ringcat on the headman when they reached there, and run. On her side was the group¡¯s only Arcanist, two other Martialists, and a Totem Warrior. Loyalty had been forged through whispered words passed during the ascent. With half of the expedition ready to run, she doubted the rest could stop them. After the bridge, it was a shorter and safer descent to civilized land and fresh opportunity.

    ¡°Here,¡± the headman said without prelude to the Arcanist, who gave her a brief look as if to say, ¡®what did you expect?¡¯ before he used a power. The water still clinging to the freshly risen section of the bridge grew immediately cold. The ringcat let out a yelp as its paws were frozen in place, the rest of the would-be betrayers joining it. Only one of the sections had been affected, and only Tlara¡¯s faction, as the ice hadn¡¯t reached the headman. Those Tlara hadn¡¯t approached had remained behind on the previous platform, suggesting all of this had been planned despite the care she¡¯d taken to watch them. It seemed she wasn¡¯t the only one that had been scheming during the ascent.

    The headman¡¯s bow pointed at Tlara, provoking the impotent ringcat. ¡°What are you-¡±

    ¡°Do I need to explain?¡± he cut Tlara off. A green light flashed over his arrow for a second. An ability, but she didn¡¯t know what it did.

    ¡°We don¡¯t need to die for one man¡¯s suicidal plans!¡± One of the Martialists pleaded, not bothering to go for his sword. Behind them, the Arcanist and others loyal to the headman were ready to react if they did anything.

    ¡°You do,¡± the headman said calmly. ¡°A trickle becomes a flood. Everyone must know what will happen to those who desert the evacuation effort or we will bleed capable men through this pass.¡±

    The Totem Warrior scoffed. ¡°I am no deserter. I am a free woman.¡±

    ¡°Sympathies others share.¡± The headman was not as self-righteous towards the animalistic woman, who had triggered some of her transformative powers. She didn¡¯t try to break free of the ice though, as the first person who did was getting shot. ¡°Something that must be smothered. I have one hundred of my own to shepherd. A thousand, perhaps, among all the villages who will need us to brave this pass again and again until there are none left to save. Your freedom is a bitter price to pay, but I will collect it for the good of the many.¡±

    ¡°Tyrant,¡± was her short reply, unchallenged by the headman.

    ¡°It is simply mathematics,¡± the Arcanist said sadly as he sustained the ice effect. None of those bound were resisting, though Tlara was constantly looking for a chance to do something. They were only a short way into the lake, no way she could make it to the far shore.

    ¡°Those of you who have plotted escape have but one chance,¡± the headman intoned gravely. ¡°Return to Hagain and you will live. You will be barred from escort duty across the pass and dispersed amongst the hunting parties. Serve honorably, and you may join the last convoy out of the Thormundz.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a death sentence!¡± the first Martialist cried. ¡°There are level 5 monsters in the region. Without the garrison or the Spoke to keep them controlled they¡¯ll tear us to shreds!¡±

    ¡°You refuse?¡±

    ¡°I-¡± his words were cut off by an arrow. It had moved faster than Tlara could follow and struck with lethal aim. Martialists were on the tougher end of classes and reliably awakened defensive powers, but low-level mortals could hardly survive being shot in the throat. The other Martialist and the Totem Warrior glared but raised their hands. The Arcanist who had frozen them all frowned, looking at the dead man, but did not free them.

    ¡°And you?¡± the headman asked, knocking another briefly green arrow. Neither the threat nor the casual murder had phased Tlara. Another chance would come for escape. She would have surrendered if her ringcat hadn¡¯t covertly alerted her to what the others hadn¡¯t noticed.

    ¡°Dragon.¡± Her whisper screamed fear and the slightest awe.

    ¡°Drop the ice,¡± the headman ordered instantly, not offering Tlara any doubt.

    Ice cracked apart across the platform as the dead Martialist dropped from his forced stand. The other grabbed his fallen companion¡¯s sword and held it with his own in a dual-wielding stance. ¡°Back to shore! Double Time!¡± He quickly overtook the rest as they tried to run, shouting an echoing incantation as he did.

    Above them, a shape cast its shadow across the lake. The shadow was what the ringcat had seen, like a shark moving below the water. The real danger was overhead. Lightning, true lightning, danced across the white scales of the dragon barreling towards them. The primary source was a blue horn on its head that bled electricity, though its claws and the tip of its tail were secondary sources. Its wings beat powerfully, augmenting the speeding descent to a terrifying pace.

    It was an impressive feat that the headman fired twice before the dragon reduced him to a bloody smear on the platform. The Totem Warrior was cut in two by a claw strike, and the Arcanist was skipped across the water when the tail batted him as an afterthought. The fly-by attack had lasted seconds. Lightning coursed through the platform from the brief contact the dragon had with it, though this was mostly neutralized by the remnants of the ice. If the Arcanist hadn''t frozen the platform, Tlara would already be dead.

    Tlara spoke in a clipped, guttural voice. The tongue she used to command her beasts was like a second language, able to convey complex instructions in a heartbeat. This one was only: ¡®distract¡¯. The ringcat¡¯s devotion was absolute and magically enforced. It let out a challenging roar that echoed across the valley. The dragon, ascending for another dive, released an ear-splitting thunderclap in response. Tlara was deafened and could only feel the release of mana in her Focus as the ringcat was grabbed, lifted, and torn in half. She had other creatures at her disposal, but no time to use them.

    Three of the five Hagain loyalists were the dragon¡¯s next victims as it swept the front of the retreating group with a blast of lightning. It hadn¡¯t hit them, but the platform they were on had water instead of ice to carry the lightning. Enough for a fraction of the bolt¡¯s terrifying power to pass to those standing on it. Three devastating attacks in just under a minute and every one lethal. That left Tlara, the second Martialist, a Berserker, and a Cleric. She didn¡¯t like the odds of surviving the next attack.

    A voice boomed through the ringing of her ears. ¡°Go!¡± The Arcanist had survived. He was standing on top of the lake¡¯s surface away from the bridge. Water fell like reverse rain around him, collecting into a splinter of ice circling the human¡¯s head. It grew into an arrow, then a spear, then something comparable to a ballista bolt before being fired at the dragon.

    The headman¡¯s arrows had annoyed it. The ice spike evoked a growl of pain that shook the pass once more. Tlara couldn¡¯t help but be impressed, it was the least she could do for the person actively sacrificing himself for her.

    The mist thrown up by the dragon¡¯s collision with the water reached well beyond the lake¡¯s shore to the surviving four. The Arcanist was surely dead but he¡¯d baited the dragon into the water. Its own lightning now stormed through it uncontrollably. Anything in the lake, including a fair number of fish, died instantly. The dragon wasn¡¯t immune to its lightning when channeled this way and would be stunned for long enough to let the rest flee.

    Tlara paused once she¡¯d reached the tree line. The others looked at her in confusion, until motes of dust spilled from a pouch on her waist. They collected onto the ground as a dust storm, which then parted to reveal a large beetle creature with sparking mandibles. She mounted it, gave a moment¡¯s thought to the others, and left them behind as the beetle charged through the forest. The feathers of her head and arms were puffed up in an instinctual reaction as she fully came to grips with what she¡¯d just escaped, as well as what it meant.

    With a dragon guarding the pass, everyone in the Thormundz region was already dead. She was just the first to know.

 Chapter 7: What Doesnt Kill You

    The avatar of pain arose. It had vision but did naught with it. Instead, it felt. It felt the world burning around it. It felt the breaks in its form. It bore torment no living creature was meant to sustain. It remembered its name.

    Daniel lay sprawled under the trees, the underbrush around him soaked with his blood. His legs had hit the ground first and had paid the price. Bone was visible through one thigh, and the other was bent at an unnatural angle. His long-suffering shirt was drenched in red, mostly from where he had been impaled on a small fallen branch. Mercifully, his head had avoided mortal wounds. That only allowed the world to continue its attempts to shatter his soul through blinding, unbearable pain. It occurred to Daniel as it had before that he should have died long ago. He wished for it. He prayed for it to find him.

    Death did not visit Daniel. Eventually, sleep came instead.

    ¡­

    The predator stalked in the night air. By mortal standards it was a child. Nature played by crueler rules. The beast had been forced closer to the mortal settlements lest it be hunted by others. That had meant lean days, hiding from the packs of hunters far more powerful than itself. It needed to survive to adulthood. Only then would it Grow strong enough to challenge those who had driven it from the wilds of its spawning. When it had Grown stronger still, it could finally feed the hatred within itself for the thing in the center of the valley that had oppressed it by presence alone.

    Only, in an instant the hunters had vanished. The oppressive force in the air was gone, yet its presence was still there, like a wound that had stopped bleeding but had yet to heal. It was at least safe to stalk without fear of slaughter, though the beast still shied away from anything stronger than it. Its normal fare had become as oddly scarce as the walking creatures. The absence of the yellow hares and tasty moles it had gorged on left it with a fierce hunger it was no stranger to.

    Blood in the air drew its attention as the wind shifted. Yes, faint but an intense scent. A large spill some distance away. The flared nostrils divined the wind and deduced its source almost instantly. What¡¯s more, it didn¡¯t sense anything else nearby. If its prey was dead, it would feast. If it was alive, then it would still feast. Not even the monster could save itself from its own instinct.

    ¡­

    Elsewhere in an office, a man held his head in his hands. A day had passed since the initial expedition and only one had returned. The woman hadn¡¯t said much about what occurred in the pass, only that anyone who hadn¡¯t made it back was dead. Murdon felt the wound more deeply as the loss of Eido. The team had been assembled with variety and experience in mind. Jonus and Lograve had been two of his strongest allies, each intended to play a vital role in the evacuation. More so, the Arcanist had been a close friend when they¡¯d traveled to the region together in the initial settlement wave. Now, he was dead.

    The path out of Thormundz was closed. Whatever had wiped out nine Blessed was a force to be reckoned with and couldn¡¯t be tested with innocents in tow. There was still the problem of the monster spawning growing in strength, and without the pass as an escape route the pressure would crush them all eventually.

    Murdon furrowed his brow and knocked the map off the table. That damned Crest. The Octyrrum would never be safe until it was finally pushed back to the darkness, but the cost had never been as painful as it was now.

    ¡°Commander,¡± a confident voice called from the other side of the door, insensitive to his mourning. ¡°Gadriel Cross, I¡¯m with the Felitz survivors. I was told to report to you.¡±

    ¡°Enter.¡± Murdon watched the human as he walked in. He knew of the man by no fault of his own. Like Bards, those of the Hero class tended to make names for themselves as they went. Their methods varied wildly, but those classes shared more than either would like to admit.

    Before the disaster communally named the Upswell, Gadriel had been working his way up through the Hero class the traditional way: quests and monster hunting. Fierce competition for assignments wasn¡¯t uncommon when multiple Heroes were in the same area. ¡°I heard you could use some help. I stand ready to assist.¡±

    ¡°How many?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry?¡± Gadriel look put off, expecting more than a terse question to his generous offer.

    ¡°How many do you bring with you? What supplies? What classes, and their levels? Do you bring criminals in need of supervision? Any injured or sick that need immediate attention?¡± Murdon took a deep breath and halted his rapid questions. The man in front of him looked like he¡¯d been firing arrows instead of words. ¡°Can you answer me or are you just here for empty posturing? Well?¡±

    Gadriel recovered after a few seconds. ¡°I see you are busy and under immense pressure. My apologies for interceding on the headwoman¡¯s behalf, she was securing berths for our most vulnerable. I can carry these questions and any other you may have so she is better prepared for her meeting with you.¡± He spoke with a humble, apologetic tone, mixed in with a particular way of speaking Murdon was familiar with. Not that he had the time nor desire to ask more. What Murdon didn¡¯t know was what kind of Hero Gadriel was, or if the apology was even genuine.

    ¡°That will do,¡± he said evenly, leveraging authority in his voice. ¡°What of you? To come in her place, she must trust you. What level Hero are you?¡±

    Gadriel rallied at the mention of his class, as if it wasn¡¯t obvious. ¡°You¡¯ve heard of me! I expect a man such as yourself would be familiar with most in the region,¡± he offered, tempering his enthusiasm at being recognized. ¡°Level two, but a potent one. The next step is within my grasp.¡±

    Murdon nodded. His impression of the man did not improve or worsen, merely solidifying into a less nebulous shape. ¡°Our first convoy will be delayed, so we will focus on the defense of the village first. Are you in an established group?¡±

    ¡°Not anymore. They were in Eido.¡± The man¡¯s buoyant fa?ade crumpled again, this time under its own weight.

    ¡°I see.¡±

    ¡°They had always questioned my choices. Extra assignments, less focused advancement. It is black humor my dedication would take me from them when they may have needed me most.¡±

    Murdon sighed internally, reminding himself that he wasn¡¯t the only one who¡¯d lost a friend. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s no need, Commander. It¡¯s what Heroes do.¡± In the smile he gave Murdon, Gadriel revealed exactly what kind of man, and what kind of Hero he was.

    ¡°That is what they say. As far as your role it is undecided. Many of capability have lost allies and just as many teams need replacements. Those whole enough to function are already leading hunts or being sent to secure the outlying villages to get them moving. When they return, I will have the replacement teams ready to go out while the first groups recover and advance.¡±

    Gadriel didn¡¯t hesitate with his reply. ¡°I¡¯m ready. Send me where you need me.¡±

    ¡°Right now, I need you to go and find that headwoman.¡± Murdon sat wearily in his office chair, ¡°We will have much to discuss. You can expect deployment at week¡¯s end. Until that time prepare for the work ahead.¡± He¡¯d expected the conversation to end there.

    ¡°If I may have a moment more of your time?¡± Gadriel asked.

    ¡°What is it?¡± Murdon¡¯s low growl indicated the time was given begrudgingly.

    ¡°Did Kob survive? I heard a rumor one of the level fours remained, and the description certainly fit.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± Murdon had no reason to hide the fact. If Gadriel went and told everyone, that should only boost morale. There wasn''t much left to say and Gadriel recognized he''d reached the end of his patience. When he was alone once more Murdon fell against the back of his chair and closed his eyes, wishing for time to rest he knew he wouldn''t get. After learning of his friend''s death it seemed every minor inconvenience added a weight to his mind nothing would take off. Stress shouldn''t kill him at his level, but this was a time for exceptional events.

    He was only able to sit like that for a minute before there was another knock on the door. Accepting another burden on his soul, Murdon shouted for them to enter.

    ...

    Daniel felt the softness under his arm as he woke half-dazed. Blanket? His eyes were heavy and he made no effort to open them. He¡¯d had nightmares before, death by the closing walls of a trash compactor being among the most frequent. Immense pain always woke him only to fade with the black dream, so what he¡¯d just dreamt wasn¡¯t too out of the ordinary.

    His blanket sensed him stirring and licked his face. Daniel¡¯s eyes struggled to open against the light bearing down on him. When his vision cleared, there were giant teeth right in front of his head. He scrambled away and cried out as damaged limbs remembered their injuries. It was all real again as the teeth and the angry eyes glared at him. Daniel¡¯s legs were unsteady, but not as nearly injured as he had deliriously thought before passing out. He was standing, so they weren¡¯t broken. The pain had also improved from torturous to very unpleasant.

    The beast slightly smaller than him made to stand on four legs of its own. Claws flared out from its paws, it bared its long fangs, and then started glancing around it. Can it see me? The fur on the back of its neck was raised. It looked anxious, even frightened but still terrifying in its fear. The monster relaxed and padded towards Daniel. His weakened legs wouldn¡¯t have outrun it if he had the will to. It brushed against him, turned around behind him, and nuzzled against his limp hand.

    Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

    It was basically a cat, Daniel realized. Like a jungle cat, but broader than a leopard. Like a lion, but without a mane or tuft at the end of its long tail. Fangs jutted out from the upper jaw that would have immediately made him think sabretooth tiger if not for the other details, like its fur. It was covered in a spiraling pattern of overlapping blue and white circles of various sizes over the golden fur, covering maybe a third of the area. Its coloration clashed against the green of the trees and grass but might be more suited to blend into rock or open dirt. The fur was soft, where it wasn¡¯t matted with dirt, and just deep enough to make his fingers disappear beneath it.

    Something happened when he inspected the creature at his side. Light ringed it, similar to what had happened with the sparkbats, but green instead of red like the normal text of his phone. Words formed above its head from the light.

    <hr>

    Young Ringcat ¨C (0) (Charmed)

    <hr>

    That didn¡¯t make sense. The ringcat, as the tag named it, was right there. There wasn¡¯t ¡®0¡¯ of it, unless that number meant something else. The word after it was a change from last time too, but relieved Daniel. It certainly explained the obvious carnivore¡¯s affection for him. ¡°I should make sure this won¡¯t wear off soon,¡± he told the ringcat. ¡°You look hungry.¡±

    His phone had survived the journey with him. He¡¯d stashed it and his necklace in a pocket, and then tied the pocket to his leg. That hadn¡¯t proven necessary, but he would have hated to lose either. A notification was waiting for him and he vaguely remembered feeling a vibration as he woke up that had been ignored due to the teeth.

    <hr>

    You have accomplished Feat: Invention.

    This has unlocked potential for growth. Two Advancement Potential have been awarded. You may assign them with Function: Settings in addition to expending potential through normal methods.

    <hr>

    ¡°Feat? You mean like a quest?¡± His phone vibrated with a notification. ¡°I get it, I¡¯ll check it in the Encyclopedia when I know when this murder cat doesn¡¯t want to eat me. You could just tell me in these alerts instead of making me look for myself.¡± He balefully tried to direct his thoughts at the hyperlink that was included in the ringcat''s tag, but that didn''t work either. Sighing, Daniel thumbed through to the index of his Encyclopedia.

    <hr>

    Charm (Concept: Effect, Domain: Illusion, Mental, ???)

    This effect alters the target¡¯s perceptions and impressions of one or more Concepts, Creatures, or Items. A charmed target will behave friendly toward the source of the effect until it ends, or if the target is threatened by the source of the effect.

    <hr>

    ¡°So I guess I just shouldn¡¯t hit the murder cat.¡± Daniel idly scratched the ringcat¡¯s ear. To his surprise it began purring, even if there was a conflicted rise of the upper lip around the long canines projecting out of the mouth. ¡°How did I charm it?¡±

    <hr>

    You may review your current Abilities, Attributes, and Features in Function: Settings.

    <hr>

    The Settings icon on his phone looked the same as the original programming. Its contents were anything but. It opened into a humanoid silhouette with six circles connected to points on the body. They were labeled: ¡®Strength, Dexterity, Endurance, Wisdom, Intelligence, Charisma¡¯. Daniel was a little put off that this important information had been hidden by a misleading title, but he was also taken by what these words implied.

    ¡°This is like a role-playing game. Except, why is constitution different?¡± The numbers looked right for most systems. He had 15 in strength and intelligence, a 14 in endurance and wisdom, an 11 in dexterity, and a whopping 8 in charisma. That¡¯s probably fair. Below each score was the number 1, except for charisma which was 0.

    ¡°High strength and intelligence? Weird build, but not too out there for an Artificer.¡± It wasn¡¯t what he¡¯d expected his attributes to be based on his past life either. Sure, he¡¯d begrudgingly hiked with his dad years ago, but Daniel was a long way from frequent exercise. He thought back to when he climbed the tree and maneuvered the lightning wings. ¡°I guess I¡¯ll take it.¡±

    The four corners of the screen had buttons. One obviously returned to the home screen, one was an up arrow flashing green, one had a list icon, and the last was three question marks. Oh come on, those are everywhere! He tapped the fourth button but nothing happened. Got to get someone to look at that. And everything really. He glanced at his body, covered in healing wounds.

    Before investigating further, Daniel rested against a tree. The ringcat curled up against him again, keeping close to his side. The warmth of its fur was slightly stifling as the day grew hot, but he didn¡¯t mind the company. The cat¡¯s stomach rumbled and Daniel grimaced empathically. They both needed to find food before one became the other¡¯s meal. ¡°I¡¯ll keep this quick,¡± he assured the ravenous carnivore that kept following him.

    Tapping the flashing green button removed the others and added plus marks to the six attributes. The button itself was replaced by the number four. A greyed-out ¡®Confirm?¡± button sat next to a red ¡®Undo¡¯ button at the bottom of the screen. He tapped intelligence, and it increased by one. The confirm button was now green.

    ¡°Woah, I can increase my stats by 4?¡± Daniel was surprised. The systems he was familiar with capped stats at 20, at least for normal people. Gym rat strength aside, Daniel was pretty sure he was the same person he had been before the weird memory thing happened. Either way, he could get one of his attributes to just under that maximum right now. Then he noticed something else. ¡°My strength also went up by one?¡± The green number in the corner had only decreased by one, so it hadn¡¯t been a misclick.

    Daniel spent a minute experimenting. His strength and intelligence seemed tied together. Similarly, as he increased his endurance, he also increased his wisdom, and vice versa. Charisma and dexterity only incremented alone and still cost one point to increase. Daniel exercised self-control and undid all the pending changes. ¡°I still don¡¯t know what¡¯s going on here,¡± he explained to the ringcat as an apology for staring at his phone for a whole minute while it missed breakfast. ¡°I¡¯m just supposed to hit buttons on my phone and suddenly I¡¯ll get buff? It sounds like this world is trying to sell me microtransactions. First one¡¯s free and all.¡±

    The ringcat yawned. Daniel almost felt foolish for ignoring it. Sure it would probably eat him if whatever effect was keeping it at bay broke, but this should have been amazing. He was sitting against a tree in some far-off forest with an animal companion. He was like a ranger, covered in battle scars and acting like it was nothing. That thought brought the pain back to the forefront of his mind. He scratched the cat¡¯s ears again to distract himself from it. ¡°Ok, at least you¡¯re pretty cool. Just don¡¯t eat me.¡±

    He needed to find people. The city-building kind and not the highway robbery kind. Someone had built the bridge on the second floating island and made the dirt roads he¡¯d seen on the way down. His lack of money did worry him. He¡¯d hoped to find his wallet transmuted into some kind of bag of coins after finding his phone, but nothing resembling currency had appeared so far.

    The two other apps on his phone were Music and Maps. Music didn¡¯t seem helpful now, but Maps?

    <hr>

    Welcome to Maps.

    Your Focus can store acquired maps and display your location on them if appropriate. A local map of the immediate area is generated by this Function when it is first acquired. Additional maps will require discovery or purchase.

    <hr>

    ¡°Wait, my powers do have microtransactions?¡± The map feature looked like the inside of a drawer with green felt lining it. Only one scroll was contained within. The creature at his side nudged him, and he angled the phone so they could both see it. The ringcat probably didn¡¯t get anything from it besides distraction from the light, but any distraction from hunger was good news for Daniel. ¡°Don¡¯t worry boy, I¡¯m looking for food.¡± He thought for a moment. ¡°Boy, right? I can¡¯t tell and I don¡¯t want to look closer so let¡¯s stick with that.¡± The ringcat didn¡¯t seem to care.

    The map was displayed as if it were made of physical paper. What he immediately noticed was the giant crater in the center. There was no depth to the map, but he could see smaller overlapping circles indicating the flying islands. The crater was named ¡®Eido Ruins¡¯. Ruins? There was barely anything left if there was something there. Did that place get nuked? It didn¡¯t seem a good option for food, and Daniel had already been there anyway.

    A white shimmering barrier clipped the eastern part of the map. On the side Daniel was on, there was detail. Outside of it, there was nothing. Its label was The Crest. There was a hyperlink on the label, but when the Encyclopedia was brought up there were only question marks. The rest of the map detailed a valley, ringed by a mountain range that connected to the shimmering barrier at the north and south. To the west was a road that led through the mountains.

    Daniel found himself as a small blank flag south of the crater. He was about a fifth of the way from it to the mountains, but there was no scale to tell him the exact distance. ¡°Another world. I guess that should have been obvious with the fantasy cat sitting next to me, but this is really happening.¡± Daniel continued to analyze the map to keep himself busy and made another discovery. House icons on the map were dotted around the crater. The closest was also the first off the road coming from the mountain pass. It was called ¡®Hagain Village¡¯.

    Daniel stood and the ringcat came to its feet as well. ¡°Got a direction. They¡¯ll hopefully have food. I don¡¯t know if charity is a thing here but here¡¯s hoping.¡± The creature padded by his side dutifully. ¡°I feel like I should name you. Do you want a name?¡±

    The ringcat answered with an alert expression. They were moving, and vulnerable, and the injured pack member was drawing attention to them. And it was still hungry.

    ¡°No? I think that¡¯s a no? Or do you already have a name and don¡¯t want another one?¡± The expression went unchanged. ¡°Ok, how about one growl for yes and two for no?¡± It didn¡¯t growl. ¡°I¡¯m talking to a panther-lion with huge fangs like it can understand me and isn¡¯t just magically prevented from mauling me, aren¡¯t I?¡± he asked in a fit of self-awareness. This did elicit an annoyed growl, but Daniel didn¡¯t count that. He shut up and started walking faster towards civilization, only to stop when he noticed something on the ground.

 Chapter 8: First Contact

    Night returned to the world, though the two traveling paid it no mind. The ringcat was nocturnal. It had missed most of its daily rest, but the dimming of its surroundings sang the song of a fresh hunt to its voracious soul. More to the point, it could go days without rest if need be. To Daniel, it was the steady progress they made on his map that drove him. He¡¯d found a road right where the map suggested one was. It was a little out of the way, but even ground made for faster walking versus the inconsistent hills.

    More importantly, Daniel didn¡¯t have shoes. It hadn¡¯t occurred to him before with everything else going on but made itself known at the start of the trek. The thought of the hidden things in the underbrush he might step on made his skin crawl. At least the dirt of the road was soft and uniform.

    During the journey, he¡¯d taken a chance to examine the last option of the settings app on the road. The fear of a predator finding them made him hesitate to take his eyes off his surroundings until he remembered the one at his side and said to hell with it. The last tab in his Settings app was a character sheet, only missing the attributes on the previous screen. It was primarily a list of powers, which he could expand or minimize the descriptions of to save space. Given he had no idea what was going on, and, hey, magic powers, Daniel felt more information was better.

    <hr>

    Artificer ¨C Level: 1

    You are an artificer, a Class that embodies the Ideals of innovation and creation. Your primary Attributes are Endurance and Intelligence. Upon taking this class your current Dexterity is halved. Your artificer Focus will take the form of a magical tool.

    Artificer Features:

    Arcane Creator (Feature, Intelligence, Domain: Enchantment, Level: 1): You possess the Power to form magical constructs from suitable physical material. Known Formulae: Enchanting of your level can be effortlessly reproduced given appropriate time and resources. Experimentation outside of known formulae may produce variants of them or entirely new formulae. This is a passive power that does not require Mana outside the requirements of formulae.

    Identify Creature (Feature, Wisdom, Domain: Knowledge, Level: 1): You possess the Power to identify detected Creatures and their temperament towards you. When targeted by this feature, the creature¡¯s location, level, and name will become known to you if it is possible to possess this information. Hostile creatures will appear red, friendly creatures green, and neutral creatures gray. Sentient creatures of a higher level than you are inherently resistant to this feature. Other conditions, such as Magical Suppression, may prevent this feature from functioning. This is a passive power that does not require Mana.

    Focus Enhancement (Feature, Intelligence, Domain: Enchantment, Focus, Level: 1): You possess the Power to alter your focus to provide additional functionality. If an altered focus is lost or destroyed, the benefits will also be lost until you regain your focus. This is a passive power that does not require Mana. Functions granted to your focus may or may not work in an area of Magical Suppression. Current focus functions:

    - Maps: Displays maps you have acquired, and your location on them if applicable.

    - Music: Allows creation of an audible Illusion based on sounds you have previously heard.

    - Encyclopedia: Allows storage and indexing of knowledge known to you.

    - Settings: Allows visualization of your Abilities, Attributes, and Features. Additionally, this allows you to commit Advancement Potential instantly.

    Artificer Abilities:

    Moment of Clarity (Ability, Intelligence, Spell, Domain: Time, Level: 1): You possess the Power to briefly slow your perception of time while remaining conscious for a moderate Mana cost. You are unable to move while in this slowed state, but may Designate your next desired action before the effect ends. The duration of the effect can be extended for a low mana cost per second once activated. This is a Magical Ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression.

    <hr>

    As far as magical powers went, these were middling. Daniel only had utility powers. Stopping time was amazing, though the inability to do anything during that time kneecapped his enthusiasm for it. More illuminating was that he had mana. ¡°I don¡¯t feel like I have mana,¡± he remarked to Ringcat, whose species he¡¯d started internally capitalizing for lack of anything else to call it. ¡°I do feel like I¡¯m going to die if I don¡¯t eat in the next day or so. Oh, and there¡¯s the fact that half of my body still hurts. That could be edging it out.¡±

    The formulae he possessed for his Arcane Creator feature were similarly disappointing, as was his phone¡¯s continued refusal to display detailed information outside of the Encyclopedia. At least the hyperlinks in his character sheet worked. The only entry for formulae detailed his lightning wings.

    <hr>

    Lightning Wings (Formulae: Enchanting, Construct, Domain: Enchantment, Quality: Shoddy, Level: 0)

    A wearable construct made from wood, rope, and scavenged monster parts. While using this Item, the wearer¡¯s maximum fall speed is reduced, and they have a limited ability to control their descent. Use of this item does not grant Flight. The construction of this item is of shoddy quality and is likely to break upon first use.

    Creation of this item requires no Mana or significant time beyond assembly. Use of Special Item: Lightning Spine required in sufficient quantity to create this item.

    Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    <hr>

    The shoddy quality tag would be insulting if the Encyclopedia wasn¡¯t a representation of his own knowledge.

    ¡­

    Later in the night, the two stopped when the road crossed a wide stream. Another bridge was built here. It was sturdier than the floating island¡¯s bridge and far less decorative. No paint, more supports. Still, Daniel could recognize similarities in the make. ¡°The same people built this,¡± he told Ringcat as he guzzled water. He¡¯d found out he could dismiss the green light around him after thinking how obnoxious the constant illumination at his side was at night. The beast didn¡¯t mind either way.

    He continued to talk to it, hoping the thrilling conversation would influence Ringcat¡¯s instincts if he ever broke the charm effect. ¡°You didn¡¯t see the first bridge so you wouldn¡¯t know. Also, you¡¯re a cat so I doubt you noticed how it looks like they just drove the bridge supports into the ground. That wouldn¡¯t normally work well without reinforcing the base with something, not for a bridge this large, so there¡¯s probably magic involved. The surface is also all solid wood somehow? No planks, it¡¯s just one piece. If they could do that, why need supports at all?¡±

    Talking about the bridge helped Daniel make sense of the world. It told him there were people here who thought about construction and design. It suggested that their worlds shared similar thought processes, with magic adding interesting dimensions. The people here walked and weren¡¯t so much bigger that their construction dwarfed him. They even had networked villages whose names he hoped hadn¡¯t been translated by his phone. A language barrier on top of everything else would be too much to deal with.

    ¡°You could just swim across, so you probably don¡¯t care about the bridge.¡± Ringcat licked his jowls, finished drinking. ¡°Get enough?¡± Nothing but an anticipatory gaze. ¡°If that charm ever falls off I hope you spare me at least a second for all the weight I¡¯ve been pulling in our conversations.¡± Ringcat¡¯s shining eyes stared into his with a mixture of hunger, pain, and impatience. No hostility, though Daniel had to check first with his power.

    Ringcat¡¯s head snapped to the far side of the bridge, and in the following silence, Daniel could just make out a sound a few moments later. It was coming from the far side of the stream. The arch and siding of the bridge hid the other approach from Daniel at his position by the river bank. Had he been keeping an eye out he might have seen whoever it was on the bridge, but he¡¯d been too busy talking to his barely restrained murder cat. Should I call out? he wondered. What will Ringcat do if it¡¯s a person? I can¡¯t make my first impression attacking a farmer with a wild animal. He sighed as he realized it wouldn¡¯t matter. Daniel could maybe, maybe squeeze under where the bridge met the shore to hide. All Ringcat could do was try to blend into the open ground.

    He stepped towards the bridge, extending a palm in Ringcat¡¯s direction in hopes the creature at least understood hand signs. ¡°Uh, hey! Hi, I mean.¡± He stumbled as he caught sight of the approaching figure. They had red hair that was hard to see through the darkness and a cowl framing the head. Their form was generally hard to distinguish due to the choice of a thick leather coat. Not made for winter, but defense. Hilts peeked out as shifting gaps in what Daniel assumed was armor revealed themselves. Something was also slung over the shoulder.

    He was a human. It was something Daniel wasn¡¯t sure he couldn¡¯t take for granted anymore. The man was moving with a calm, stealthy stride. Only the rattling of the wood under his boots had given him away. This looked like the kind of person who should be roaming the countryside with a ringcat, though they also reminded Daniel of his fears of highwaymen.

    Daniel followed his greeting with Identify Creature. The figure was outlined in gray light, but no words appeared over his head. ¡°Hold there,¡± the man said in a way that made Daniel wonder if he¡¯d landed in Texas for a moment. ¡°We¡¯ve got someone and their familiar on the other side of the bridge. Hurry up!¡± That was directed as a shout behind him.

    I can understand him! The probability he was about to be robbed was still on the table as Daniel didn¡¯t know if his feature only counted intent to kill as hostile. It wasn¡¯t like he had much on him anyway. He¡¯d happily have traded the torn shirt off his back for the ability to talk to the man in front of him if someone had offered moments ago.

    Ringcat growled hungrily, but it stayed where it was. The pack member had happened upon a hunter, but it was keeping it at bay for now. It wanted to flee like it did whenever hunters were this close. It couldn¡¯t abandon its pack member. It knew that but didn¡¯t know why it knew that.

    ¡°It, he¡¯s not a familiar, I just have him charmed,¡± Daniel warned the man, who at first had given Ringcat a suspicious glance. He drew one of the knives on him following the warning. ¡°Don¡¯t attack! He¡¯ll-¡±

    ¡°I know. This is just fang for fang.¡± The man gave Daniel a strange look as if he was seeing him for the first time, before his eyes widened. ¡°Quala, get up here! Gods, how hurt are you?¡±

    Do I look that bad? Daniel had known he should be hurt worse than he felt. The dull ache and sharp pains in his arm would have pushed him to rest if not for the wild animal that could become unfriendly at any point. At least it hadn¡¯t been as bad as his nightmares had suggested. He certainly didn¡¯t see bone sticking out of his leg now, so he shouldn¡¯t look like he was on death¡¯s door. Then he remembered his clothes were caked in dried blood and singed in places.

    Two other figures crossed the bridge up to the point the first had reached and stood beside him. One held something similar to a torch, but its burning light was made of magical sparks instead of fire. Daniel¡¯s earlier expectations were met by the new arrivals and in more ways than just that. Both had a mostly gray hue under the Identify Creature effect and like the other man, their names were hidden from him.

    The second individual on the bridge had a crown of feathers falling from his head to where it met armor sturdier than the first¡¯s. The feathers were glossy, primarily dark green and white, and reflected the light from the held torch. The armor was latched on in a way that made it clear this individual didn¡¯t have wings. His face peaked in a short beak where the nose and mouth should be, and talons touched the ground instead of toes. The front of the bird person¡¯s armor had a sigil of a cupped hand with smoke stylistically flowing from it. Somewhat encouragingly was the fact that his aura, for lack of a more concise way of saying ¡®ringed with light¡¯, had traces of green.

    The third was completely alien to human form, though it took one. Daniel¡¯s first impression was some sort of plant monster made of swarming vines. When it came to a stop its mass settled into limbs, a torso, and a head. It had eyes where it should, but nothing else in the way of facial features. Even those eyes were plant matter, taking the appearance of acorns.

    The avian spoke. ¡°He looks injured, but not critically.¡±

    She? Daniel corrected his first impression. The voice¡¯s tenor was feminine and had a song-like quality to it. There was no indication this woman was trying for that, so it was probably how she naturally sounded. Additionally, either her armor was covering certain attributes or there wasn¡¯t anything to see.

    ¡°Is that someone else¡¯s blood?¡±A tinge of red drove into the aura around the bird, chasing away the green. This echoed in the others a second later.

    He shook his head. ¡°No, I, it¡¯s been-¡± Daniel didn¡¯t finish the sentence as he didn¡¯t know exactly how to describe it in a way that made sense to him, no less the three in front of him.

    ¡°Understand,¡± the voice came from the vine man as a noise similar to creaking wood, bent and made to emulate speech just as its form mimicked a humanoid shape. The voice¡¯s lack of apparent gender was entirely appropriate. ¡°Upswell. Survivor.¡± Each word seemed to exist as an individual sentence, a long pause passing between each one. The other two were able to fully comprehend, at least. A rally of green routed the red out of the auras in front of Daniel.

    ¡°A survivor? Make way,¡± a fourth voice called from behind the group, full of concern and passion. Daniel swore a light breeze kicked up just to twirl the approaching man¡¯s cape and long blond hair. It was another human, wearing armor similar to the bird woman¡¯s but without the insignia. A sword and shield were strapped to his body but he seemed only to bear goodwill. Daniel¡¯s identification of him showed a full green aura and name tag. The tag had hyperlinks and to Daniel¡¯s surprise, focusing on the name brought up more ephemeral words. This was the only one that reacted though, increasing Daniel¡¯s slight annoyance at the inconsistency of his powers.

    <hr>

    Heldren Storm ¨C (Human, Hero - 3)

    Active Abilities:

    ???

    Active Features:

    Mantle of Inspiration

    Underbrush Step (external)

    ???

    <hr>

    Daniel¡¯s ability didn¡¯t mention anything about revealing active powers on a creature, but neither could he deny what he was seeing. He¡¯s level 3? I shouldn¡¯t be able to know anything about him. Is he letting me see this? The winning smile Heldren gave him when they were at arm¡¯s reach set him at ease.

    ¡°These are dark times friend, but fear not. Mortal kind will always find champions in those with the will to overcome adversity.¡± Daniel should have been put off by how clich¨¦d the speech had started, but the delivery made all the difference. A firm hand was on his shoulder that carried a promise that everything would be alright. ¡°There is a fire in our hearts that no disaster will extinguish! Rouse your fighting spirit and-¡±

    Ringcat growled. The strongest hunter was next to the pack member who now stood frozen. It didn¡¯t like that.

    Heldren¡¯s monologue was interrupted as the Hero seemed to register the beast¡¯s presence for the first time. ¡°Ah! A boon companion of yours. It need not fear those who serve justice unless it intends malice against the innocent!¡± The motivating energy was still there, though the momentum was gone.

    The man Daniel presumed to be the group¡¯s scout spoke up. ¡°Heldren, we¡¯re needed at Roost¡¯s Peak and we¡¯re pressed for time as it is. Maybe save the theatrics for the monsters?¡±

    ¡°Of course, William my dear friend.¡± The space above the scout filled in with his name as Heldren addressed him. Daniel remembered that William had also called one of the other two ¡®Quala¡¯ and made a guess, magic proving him right as the name appeared over the bird woman¡¯s head. In the meantime, Heldren continued to monologue. ¡°We must carry on in our duties and I fear you are too wounded to keep pace. Seek Hagain Village and destiny will carry you to your appointed role!¡± He walked off without waiting for a response, cape still billowing in the wind.

    The others moved by, though Quala paused. ¡°Even if Heldren can be... excessive, Hagain Village is where you should go. I¡¯m afraid you¡¯re not injured enough that I could spare any time or mana, but there are more healers there. Do you need direction?¡± Once again Daniel was taken by the voice. It had a calming effect on its own like Heldren¡¯s, though in a different way.

    Is that a power, or are they all just like that? Daniel knew it wasn¡¯t the time to ask. ¡°Just down this road, right?¡± Seeing her, and the ambulating vine man, up close was more disconcerting than Daniel had expected that was working against the voice. It was the uncanny valley effect, the two were just human enough to pass from a distance at night, but up close the differences were stark.

    She nodded. ¡°It will be a few hours, but from here there are no threats beyond the one accompanying you. If you can¡¯t control it, you would be better off leaving it here.¡±

    ¡°That would make sense.¡± He glanced at Ringcat. It did make sense. He should have left the murder cat on its own a while ago. ¡°We, uh, I haven¡¯t eaten in some time. Is there anything¡­¡± he couldn¡¯t finish the sentence. Hunger had pushed him that far in the request, but shame held him from going further. Begging didn¡¯t come naturally to Daniel.

    The woman glanced at her companions, getting further away. She sighed and pulled two of something from a bulging pouch at her waist, handing them to Daniel. ¡°Our rations are lean, but this will get you to the village. Just you.¡± Her green eyes locked with his to emphasize the point. The pupils were normal. It seemed the part of her that was closest to human. ¡°That creature may feel like it¡¯s keeping you safe, but a charm can¡¯t keep a monster from tearing your throat out once it has the chance to escape. We need everyone right now, even level 1 Totem Warriors.¡±

    ¡°Right,¡± he affirmed, though indecision clouded his voice.

    Quala left, getting far enough away that she didn¡¯t hear Daniel¡¯s question. ¡°Wait, Totem Warrior?¡±

 Chapter 9: Finally, Civilization

    ¡°I hope she won¡¯t be too angry if she finds out about this. Just please don¡¯t attack anyone,¡± Daniel told Ringcat, as the building dawn of the early morning shone on the village in the distance. He¡¯d been walking longer and farther than he¡¯d ever gone with limited food or water, and in severe if improving pain. Some of his minor injuries had also completely healed, whereas a small cut on Earth could take days to completely fade. It was very clear that magic had improved his body even if it didn¡¯t appear that way.

    The changes hadn¡¯t done anything to his appetite, and neither had Quala¡¯s gift. The food he¡¯d been given was so close to an apple that he¡¯d just considered it one. A different variety than what he was used to with two stems on both ends and a fibrous core instead of seeds. It had tasted good enough. Ringcat had eaten the other wholesale, though it only seemed to make him hungrier as the murder cat digested the meager meal.

    They were both exhausted too. The ringcat was coming up on day three of its tribulation from when it had first set out on its hunt and continued only on feral might. Its paws ached just as much as Daniel¡¯s feet. It dimly thought back to the prey it had found before finding its pack member. It had seen the wounded hunter. No strength left to resist, an easy meal. Then, a pack member had come out of nowhere. The pack member had been wounded, just like the hunter. Wait. The pack member was the hunter? Ringcat¡¯s growl was inaudible vibration as the contradiction aggravated the beast. Like most things, it just made it hungrier.

    The pack member, the hunter, the two-in-one, sensed its distress. A hand came down on its head to scratch it. Hands that did that to feral ringcats were normally torn off, but this one was not resisted. The action faintly reminded the ringcat of its progenitor¡¯s grooming. It was one of the only interactions it¡¯d had with its kind before it¡¯d grown large enough to be considered competition instead of offspring. For whatever reason, it hadn¡¯t been welcome in the pack after that.

    At the same time, Daniel took in the sight in front of him as he gauged his approach. The village reminded Daniel of a wild west town. His mental image of one, not having encountered a real-life version. A river bisected the collection of wooden buildings that topped out at three stories. He wondered if that river fed the stream he¡¯d encountered before, but he had no way of knowing. Then he remembered his map and checked, confirming that it did.

    Beyond the main collection of houses were tents that stretched around the village proper. This assortment was less ordered and ubiquitous than the village¡¯s construction that they completely ringed. Space was only made for two roads that led to the buildings and the river itself. Smoldering fires lit gaps in the tents and places along the exterior of the throng where men stood to guard them.

    That¡¯s where I should go. Daniel thought. In a story, this would be the part where he walked to the mayor¡¯s office and was handed a mission to save the world. It seemed like there was already a Hero on that job, and all he wanted to do was find a place to sleep. There was some kind of disaster response effort being organized here, and the bird woman had implied he was valuable enough to be worthy of aid, though he still wasn¡¯t sure what a Totem Warrior was. It seemed like a class by the way she¡¯d said it, but his Focus had said he was an Artificer. To be fair to Quala, he didn¡¯t think he looked like an Artificer right now. My phone, not my Focus, he reminded himself retroactively, trying not to let his Encyclopedia corrupt what little he had that was familiar to home.

    ¡°Ok,¡± Daniel said wearily to Ringcat. ¡°When we walk down there, what are you going to do?¡± It stared back at him hungrily. ¡°Nothing, right! Just don¡¯t hurt anyone and I¡¯m sure we¡¯ll get you some more apples or something.¡±

    The guard that observed Daniel and the ringcat amble down the hill clutched at her weapon, but didn¡¯t otherwise move as Daniel walked down the slight hill. The way she was ready to react to him doing something aggressive might have made him turn back had Quala not explicitly told him to come here.

    ¡°Who are you?¡± the guard asked Daniel. She was another human, unarmored but holding a spear in one hand. She looked like any other medieval guardswoman but spoke like she was in a suit and touching one ear with two fingers while scanning rooftops.

    ¡°Daniel Brant,¡± he answered. ¡°I¡¯m a survivor.¡± You didn¡¯t just tell people you were from another world and expect to be treated as a sane individual.

    ¡°Is this your familiar?¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± he lied, hoping it didn¡¯t show. Quala had cautioned him about keeping Ringcat when she¡¯d known he was only charmed, and while Daniel did need healing, he didn¡¯t want to just abandon the ringcat if he didn¡¯t have to. He then added some more information based on how the guard was holding her spear. ¡°My connection to him is weak and could break if he¡¯s attacked.¡±

    The blow that knocked him down was sudden and caught him off guard. The haft of the spear drove into his stomach as the guard lashed out with the nonlethal end. Ringcat gave a menacing stare but didn¡¯t leap to his defense in what was probably a wise move. Daniel identified the guard and only saw a gray outline. Her name was Janice and she was a level one ¡®Martialist¡¯. He couldn¡¯t see her powers, though the name appeared as a hyperlink. ¡°You just lied to me,¡± she said evenly as he wheezed. ¡°Answer my questions honestly.¡±

    Daniel fought to drive the breath back into him. ¡°He saved my life, I think.¡±

    Stolen story; please report.

    ¡°What? He?¡± Janice turned a confused look to Ringcat, giving him a second look. She turned back to Daniel and noticed his necklace. ¡°Oh you¡¯re one of those,¡± she sighed and emphasized the last word.

    ¡°A Totem Warrior?¡±

    ¡°The crazy kind. How long can you keep the ringcat under control?¡±

    Daniel didn¡¯t know. He did know lying was currently a painful activity. He settled on telling her a version of the truth. ¡°He hasn¡¯t attacked anyone or broken free since I found him.¡±

    That was enough to satisfy Janice. ¡°It¡¯s your head if it hurts or kills anyone.¡± She offered him a hand and he took it.

    ¡°T-thanks.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t thank me for compromising our security. Do you have anything to report? Status of your village, strange occurrences, nearby monsters?¡± She looked at the ringcat. ¡°Present company excluded?¡±

    ¡°No, I¡¯m just a traveler. Do you think there¡¯s a chance we could-¡±

    ¡°See that red banner over there?¡± she said, guessing what he needed and cutting him off. Daniel¡¯s eyes followed her finger and nodded. A plain red cloth was suspended from a long pole. It looked like it had been a tablecloth at some point before being poorly dyed. ¡°Take it there and get it fed. Then see yourself to a green banner to get yourself looked after.¡±

    ¡°Thanks, Janice,¡± Daniel repeated, more earnestly than the first time. He realized his mistake moments after he¡¯d made it.

    The spear¡¯s tip was leveled at him now. ¡°How did you know my name?¡±

    Daniel froze. Besides the sparkbats, this was the first time he¡¯d been directly threatened. It was sudden. Janice had gone from gray to red in an instant and Ringcat did growl this time. ¡°Identification feature!¡± he forced out.

    The red faded. ¡°My apologies, sir. I thought you were in my head for a moment.¡± She did look a little regretful and Daniel decided to accept the apology without further comment, considering she was still holding a spear. ¡°Everyone¡¯s on edge lately, be mindful of that.¡± Daniel stood frozen still. ¡°You can go now.¡±

    The red banner led Daniel to an open area within the tents and a horrid smell. It was wild, with strong overlapping scents competing for recognition that still eluded him. Pens had been set up in this space, with an opening that led to the exterior of the tents ending at a gate. There were a handful of ringcats, and they were all bigger than Ringcat. More exotic creatures as well, mixed in with exotic humanoids.

    On the way, Daniel had seen a handful of the vine people, more of the avian race, and a lot more humans. He¡¯d thought looking like he¡¯d just come from a blood bath without toweling off would make people wary of him. On the contrary, no one seemed to pay too much attention to him, only making way for Ringcat as they walked the narrow paths through the tents.

    Once at the stables he had a guess as to why. The village had proper monsters like the sparkbats in addition to those faintly reminiscent of Earth creatures. The largest had six long legs like a spider¡¯s, though its body was more mammalian. Two chitinous arms protruded from under a neck connected to a spider¡¯s head to make eight, while a tail covered in large spines familiar to the sparkbat¡¯s pushed out the back. That was flexible enough that it could curl around the chimera, and it made use of the spines jutting from it while spinning a thread around the area it had been penned in.

    ¡°Assistance?¡± A vine man had pulled himself along the wooden fence before solidifying in front of Daniel. Its voice was oddly distinguishable from the other he¡¯d met, but Daniel couldn¡¯t express how it differed. The exact coloration of the vines, and how they flowed as the man moved and spoke, was likewise strangely unbalanced with the image of the prior one.

    I guess they have to have some way to tell each other apart, he thought, before answering the living foliage in front of him. ¡°Uh, hi. I was told to bring Ringcat here for food? How does that work?¡±

    ¡°Care.¡± The vine man¡¯s way of speech made understanding its precise meaning difficult. It still got the point across. Daniel considered identifying him to try and learn more, but Janice¡¯s reaction made him realize that was probably impolite.

    ¡°Do I need to pay anything? I don¡¯t have any money.¡±

    ¡°Community.¡± Another one-word response, although this time a depressed space formed in its head that could be taken as a smile.

    ¡°Oh, thanks! I just come back here when I need him?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± It was the closest to a full sentence he was likely to get.

    Ringcat was frozen while the two talked. It sensed things beyond hunters. Things that considered him prey. So many dangerous scents intermingled. Worse was the gloss of apathy over most of them. It didn¡¯t understand this. Its instincts told it to run, overriding even the hatred that spiked from every mortal and structure it saw. But the pack member was here. It couldn¡¯t abandon it, or do anything that would bring them harm.

    ¡°You¡¯ll be fine, right boy?¡± Daniel asked Ringcat, oblivious to the beast¡¯s woes. ¡°Some food and some sleep. I need to get some of that too.¡±

    ¡°He?¡± The vine man seemed like it would have raised an eyebrow if it had one.

    ¡°Is he a girl? I honestly couldn¡¯t tell.¡±

    The vine man shook his head and just said, ¡°More?¡± The faint satisfaction he¡¯d sensed from the vine man had inverted over a few seconds. No extreme emotions either way, but it made Daniel feel like he¡¯s slightly failed a charisma check.

    ¡°Uh, no.¡± Did he insult the vine man somehow? He seemed intent on getting back to other duties. ¡°Thanks again! Sorry, it¡¯s been a long night.¡± The vine man opened the fence and glanced to the ringcat expectantly. ¡°Go on,¡± Daniel urged.

    Ringcat didn¡¯t want to. Its pack member was insane, but it was its pack member. And Ringcat had picked out the scent of food. It smelled mole and hare, as well as the flesh of larger creatures it could have never taken down alone. Following the hunter was the way to food? Impossible. But it was true. Instinct fought against hunger and lost.

    ¡°Good boy!¡± Daniel said as Ringcat padded forward. It was the first time he seemed to have directly followed an order. Progress. The vine man¡¯s eyes, the same acorn replacements as the last one¡¯s, gave him another enigmatic look. ¡°Thanks again.¡± Daniel then decided to head for a green flag before he fell over and had to be dragged there.

    As he was walking away, the entity at the gate spoke one more word as a whisper, like a curse, not quite reaching Daniel¡¯s ears. ¡°Spiritualist.¡±

    ¡­

    Murdon was in the middle of debriefing a scout when they were interrupted. He¡¯d managed four hours of sleep the last night and was grateful for each one. There was more time available but coming in and out of his armor took time. That didn¡¯t stop him from putting it back on come morning. He needed to appear at all times ready for battle. No one could question his ability to handle the situation.

    He turned to the intruder. One of the camp guards, Janice if he recalled correctly, was out of breath at his door. She spoke three words, and suddenly Murdon only had one priority.

 Chapter 10: Medic!

    The green banner stood above some of the only tents set up in orderly rows. The hospital Daniel¡¯s mother worked at never had a take your child to work day, and he¡¯d been fortunate enough to avoid seeing the inside for other reasons. Nevertheless, the site gave him the impression of a field hospital. Unlike its red cousin, the green banner was an unfurled tapestry with the sigil of a cupped hand. The avian woman had that same sign on her armor. It was a pure guess, but she had a kind personality he¡¯d associate with a healer. That could make her a priest or something, and the sigil religious.

    A human saw him walking towards the tents and was the first to react to his obvious injuries. ¡°Guy? No, but- Hey, stay with me!¡± The young man, who appeared not much older than Daniel¡¯s 22 years, wore a simple shirt and drawstring pants. Something metallic hung from his waist, although the way he ran made it hard to make out.

    ¡°I¡¯m fine, I¡¯m fine!¡± Daniel repeated as the man rushed over. ¡°Just tired and hungry.¡±

    ¡°Crest you¡¯re fine. Look at you, you should be dead!¡± He easily overpowered Daniel and tried to lift the shirt, only to find it stuck on like a dried bandage. Then he noticed the arm. ¡°Are these lightning burns? Were you part of the expedition too?¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s just been a long day?¡± Daniel ventured, hoping it would placate the almost vibrating healer.

    ¡°And here, it looks like your bone was sticking out!¡± The man was examining him from head to toe with the vigor of a crate of energy drinks. ¡°How long has it been since that was healed?¡±

    ¡°Healed?¡±

    Despite his protests, Daniel was dragged into the tent the healer had just left. Another human was resting on a bed and mostly covered by a blanket. He looked up when they entered but the healer¡¯s face told him there wasn¡¯t time for curiosity. ¡°I¡¯m only a level 1,¡± he continued telling Daniel. ¡°You''re not higher than that, right? Otherwise, I can''t do anything.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, but really, I¡¯m fine,¡± Daniel continued protesting. ¡°My arm still hurts but less than it did. I just need sleep.¡± He didn¡¯t mention the falling out of the sky part. The excitable medic may have had a heart attack if he heard that bit. ¡°Hey! There¡¯s someone else here.¡± He weakly fought as the medic renewed his attempts to get Daniel¡¯s shirt off.

    ¡°I need to treat you!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll just turn the other way,¡± the third man said with a friendly smile that disappeared when he shifted to his side. There was something off about the face, but Daniel was more concerned with the person trying to undress him.

    ¡°I don¡¯t believe it,¡± the healer said as he managed to get the shirt off. ¡°There¡¯s scars here but no injury. Do you have a self-healing power?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Daniel thought for a moment. ¡°They did seem to heal after I slept next to Ringcat.¡±

    ¡°You did what!?¡± It was practically a shout.

    ¡°Next to! Next to!¡± The third man didn¡¯t turn but was stifling pained laughter. ¡°I passed out from the pain and woke up next to him. The worst of the injuries were healed, that¡¯s it!¡±

    The healer, whom Daniel had finally identified as the level one Cleric Thomas after the man had felt it fit to invade his privacy, calmed a little. ¡°You might have just gotten a healing power and haven¡¯t figured it out yet,¡± Thomas explained. ¡°Your endurance could have advanced from surviving these injuries if you had any potential on you. The part about the ringcat doesn¡¯t make sense but at least you aren¡¯t at risk for disease. I¡¯ll check with someone, but I think Totem Warriors can get rest-based healing at your level. You seem fine overall, so I¡¯ll just leave you to get some more and check on you later. It¡¯s just a shame Quala isn¡¯t here, she¡¯d know for sure.¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s the-¡° He stopped since he didn¡¯t know what to call the bird people. ¡®Bird people¡¯ by itself would probably be offensive. The Totem Warrior part was something else entirely that he wasn¡¯t getting into now. ¡°Green eyes? Left town last night?¡±

    ¡°Ran into her then?¡± Thomas looked Daniel over again. ¡°You sure she didn¡¯t do anything?¡±

    ¡°She gave me an apple? But that was after I healed, I guess.¡±

    ¡°Apple?¡± Daniel described the fruit. ¡°Oh, that¡¯s a cord fruit. I¡¯ve never heard of apples before.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not a local thing.¡± Daniel sat on the bed. It was more like a cot, but at least it was off the ground. Far more comfortable than the flat ground he kept finding himself sleeping or unconscious on.

    ¡°I¡¯ll leave you to it then,¡± Thomas said. He then turned to the other man whose back was still facing him. ¡°How are you feeling?¡±

    ¡°Better than dead. You should see the other guy.¡± The older man, perhaps in his early forties, sounded in pain but still presented a light-hearted face to it.

    ¡°It¡¯d help more if you did tell me what did this, but you¡¯re healing fine. Get some rest, both of you.¡± Thomas left, and Daniel closed his eyes to do what the good doctor had ordered.

    Daniel¡¯s tent mate¡¯s voice pierced the encroaching sleep. It was jovial, not mean-spirited. ¡°Slept with a ringcat? I knew some Totem Warriors were out there, but that¡¯s something else entirely.¡±

    Daniel opened his eyes again. He needed to sleep. He also needed to know why people kept calling him a Totem Warrior. He needed to know about the world he was in and why Thomas was so high-strung. This man seemed friendly enough, and there was no telling if he¡¯d be there when he woke up again. With his luck, it would be Janice instead.

    ¡°Why does everyone think I¡¯m a Totem Warrior?¡± he asked the man. Daniel could see his face now. There was an area of skin from the left chin to the nose that was in the process of making itself into a scar similar to the one on his arm. Like the pain he was in, the man didn¡¯t seem to mind the disfigurement. There was an amused light in the coppery eyes that could see a punchline before anyone else. Other than that, there was the blanket that concealed what other features he had.

    ¡°Well, stranger, allow me to count the ways.¡± The man pulled his hands out from the blanket. They had lightning scars too, even worse than Daniel¡¯s. ¡°One,¡± he counted on his finger. ¡°You have a Totem Warrior¡¯s focus. Two-¡±

    ¡°No I don¡¯t.¡± Daniel pulled out his phone.

    ¡°Is that a mirror? I was referring to your necklace.¡±

    ¡°My necklace?¡± Daniel glanced down at the item he''d put back on his neck once on safe ground. It was one of the two things from his world he¡¯d kept safe, and the only thing that hadn¡¯t changed. It was fairly simple. A preserved eagle feather hung on a cord along with a few beads. His father had worn it at first, replacing the original cheap leather strip with something more durable when it had broken off, and then given it to Daniel when he¡¯d turned 18. Garret had said it was a piece of nature to carry with him wherever he went and had made him promise never to lose it. Since Daniel had lost his father instead, he¡¯d decided it was the most precious thing he¡¯d owned.

    ¡°Classic Totem Warrior. Animal part? Check. Wearable? Check. The Totem to your Warrior, as it were.¡±

    ¡°Huh.¡± It didn¡¯t make sense. His Encyclopedia clearly said he was an Artificer. His character sheet said Artificer. He was an Artificer, as strange as that was to think.

    ¡°Two.¡± The man extended a second digit, which had faint burn lines. ¡°It sounds like you came into town with a ringcat you recently acquired. Common among Beastmasters, Rangers, and Totem Warriors to be accompanied by monsters, but you only have one versus the many known to accompany Beastmasters.¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t say that.¡±

    ¡°Well.¡± The man smiled and didn¡¯t cede the point. ¡°I¡¯m still right aren¡¯t I? Three, your Regeneration. You¡¯d be dead without that power if my eyes don¡¯t deceive me. A couple classes could give you that, but in combination with points One and Two, you are a Totem Warrior. A fairly paranoid one. How¡¯d I do?¡±

    ¡°Well enough, if you ignore the fact that I¡¯m an Artificer!¡± He flourished his phone again triumphantly. Or at least, he tried to. Fatigue spoiled the gesture. He tapped the screen meekly to light it up.

    Genuine interest radiated off the man. ¡°May I see it? I¡¯m hardly in a state to run off with your Focus.¡± There was a smile again, a glint in the eye. Daniel envied his easygoing nature and handed the phone over after locking it, just in case this stranger tried to mess with his attributes. ¡°Marvelous. It is a construct.¡± The man rotated it to glance at all angles, somewhat slowly given his injuries. ¡°I haven¡¯t seen its like before, but Artificer is a rare class. I have only met a few. My apologies, my good Artificer.¡± He said it like he was dramatically bowing, though he just had the strength to weakly pass the phone back. ¡°If I may, does it have any special functions? I¡¯ve met an Artificer that built a suit of armor as his Focus that serves as a potent guardian.¡±

    ¡°It''s fine,¡± Daniel said. ¡°It doesn¡¯t do much, I¡¯m only level 1. It pretty much keeps track of what I know. Pretty stingy about letting me see it outside the Encyclopedia though.¡±

    The man froze and looked at him oddly. Daniel didn¡¯t know what, but he¡¯d clearly said something wrong. Again. ¡°Sorry.¡±

    Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

    ¡°No no, my apologies.¡± The man emphasized the words like he¡¯d been caught stealing. ¡°I was merely captured by my thoughts. And my apologies again for the misunderstanding. I¡¯ve had quite a day. Well, days.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re telling me.¡±

    ¡°Oh!¡± The man rose in his bed with a chuckle. ¡°No, I think I have you beat in that regard. I was¡­¡± He trailed off. ¡°Never mind. Not something for your ears, I¡¯m afraid.¡±

    The last thing Daniel wanted was knowledge he¡¯d get in trouble for having. There was something else he was curious about. ¡°What happened, exactly?¡±

    ¡°Like I said, I can¡¯t-¡±

    ¡°No, what happened to Eido?¡± It was a guess. Public disaster plus a large mark on his map labeled ¡®Eido Ruins¡¯ made it an educated one.

    ¡°Oh.¡± There was a full minute of silence before the man spoke again. ¡°I suppose you haven¡¯t heard everything yet, just finding your way here. I don¡¯t entirely understand myself but the city, it just vanished three days ago. Pulled into the sky, if the eyewitnesses can be believed. It happened right when everyone was celebrating the completion of the Spoke. No survivors, by the sound of it.¡± The man¡¯s vibrant personality sank and Daniel was sorry to see it go. ¡°That just doesn¡¯t happen.¡±

    There was another period of silence, longer this time. Daniel was conflicted. He must have either survived whatever happened to Eido or had arrived just afterward. His unclear memories gave no insight into which it was. People were clearly in danger. Telling this man what he¡¯d been through might help someone, but could he trust him? He didn¡¯t even know his name.

    Daniel never made good choices when under a lot of pressure. It¡¯s why he¡¯d been a clerk up until a few days ago rather than the engineer he¡¯d dreamed of being. Sleep deprivation was making it worse. Still, he felt letting the conversation end there was a mistake. He¡¯d have to find someone to trust eventually. ¡°I was there.¡± He kicked himself for saying it like he¡¯d watched someone not throw a ring into a volcano.

    ¡°You saw it happen?¡± The man¡¯s eyes were back on him.

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure? My memory¡¯s a little, I don¡¯t know. All I know was when I woke up I was in the middle of-¡±

    The tent¡¯s flap exploded inwards as a large armored shape rushed in and threatened to take the entire tent with him. If Daniel had more strength he¡¯d have thrown himself off the bed. Instead, he shrank into the blanket as if it were a canopy that would protect him against carnivorous bats. Something with sharp teeth and a tail bellowed a word, its meaning lost to Daniel.

    ¡°Calm down you brute, you¡¯re terrifying my guest,¡± the man said sarcastically while beaming. ¡°Don¡¯t you have something better to do than bother me?¡±

    ¡°You bastard, this is beyond the Crest!¡± The other speaker was male, and huge. Counting the metal surrounding him he had to be the better part of a meter taller than Daniel. It was the heaviest armor Daniel had seen yet. Practically a full knight¡¯s suit, minus a helmet and a spot out the back for the man¡¯s tail. That itself wasn¡¯t unarmored as leather and rings of metal wrapped around it. Only the head and the hands were unprotected, though the multi-colored scales challenged that assumption. The male lizard creature was predominantly black, with small clusters of colors scattered across. It gave the impression of a Renaissance painting of the night sky. He didn''t have any hair but thicker scales on top of the head, and above the eye which served as a replacement for the normal brow.

    ¡°We all have to advance somehow Murdon,¡± the bed-bound man answered, his earlier bright nature returning with the strength of a supernova. ¡°I have a feeling I¡¯ll get something good out of this.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ll get death out of this if you keep it up Lograve! What exactly did this to you?¡±

    Lograve looked confused and worried despite his smile. ¡°Did no one else make it back?¡±

    ¡°A Beastmaster, but she didn¡¯t say much. The only thing she said was that those who didn¡¯t return were gone.¡±

    ¡°Oh, her.¡± This brought the first look of discontent Daniel had seen from the man. ¡°She- I¡¯m sorry, but what I have to say is for your lack of ears only."

    Murdon seemed to register Daniel¡¯s presence for the first time. Daniel saw the clear exhaustion in his expression and felt its twin echo in his soul. ¡°I don¡¯t recognize you. What is your name?¡±

    ¡°Daniel,¡± he hollowly told the man resembling a starry dragon knight and mentally updated the list of new races to keep track of.

    ¡°Daniel, it is very important I speak to Lograve privately. I must ask you to move to another tent, but I can find you one before we move you.¡±

    ¡°Nonsense.¡± Lograve slowly swung his legs over the side of the bed. He was tall, though not as tall as the dragon man. Murdon, as he was called, was taller than anyone Daniel had ever seen, including people from Earth. ¡°I¡¯m no lame duck, Lograve. I can walk back to your office.¡±

    Daniel saw concern and humor mix into a strange palette on the lizard¡¯s stretched face. ¡°You just called me by your name.¡±

    ¡°Did I? Well, my legs work fine.¡± He stood unsteadily. Without the blanket, Daniel could see the man was wearing only a simple shirt and cloth undergarments that could pass as shorts. Lightning burns were everywhere. His face had been bad, but from what was showing it was like he had bathed with an electrical transformer.

    ¡°Lograve.¡± Murdon¡¯s voice was quiet as he saw this.

    ¡°I told you I¡¯m fine!¡± Lograve staggered, and corrected, ¡°I will be fine. Let this man rest, he needs it more than I do.¡±

    Murdon was taller than Lograve despite the human''s above average height, so throwing an arm under Lograve¡¯s shoulder made him hunch awkwardly. Still, it looked like he needed the support to move more than a few steps. Murdon turned to Daniel again. ¡°I can¡¯t promise you more than a few days¡¯ rest, but that you have earned. Thank you for keeping Lograve company. I imagine it was a heavy burden.¡±

    ¡°Heavy? You¡¯re twice my weight in that metal barrel you call armor,¡± Lograve protested from where he was being effectively carried and lightly tapped a knuckle on the chest piece.

    Daniel merely nodded. The two were having a moment that he was third-wheeling. The armored man struck him as someone important and he was not in a state to manage conversation with someone like that. He¡¯d happily quit while he was ahead.

    ¡°Rest. There is work to be done,¡± Murdon said in parting, helping Lograve out of the tent. Daniel watched them go, glanced to the empty bed, then back to the opening in the tent. Outside was bright. It was almost noon. That would have normally kept him up, or at least forced him to close the tent flap, but it had all been too much for that. Daniel¡¯s last thought before fading to sleep was the hope that Ringcat was getting along with the other monsters.

    ¡­

    We have two things to talk about. Lograve did not speak to Murdon but reached out with his mind to form a Telepathic Link between them. Telepathy was a useful power when discussing important matters covertly, though it had annoying limits that wouldn¡¯t be solved until he reached level four. This secret did not rise to the level of critical importance as the other, which he would only speak, or think, of when they reached Murdon¡¯s office. It still merited caution. One matter I have just learned of, though it is of lesser importance.

    What is it? Murdon responded in kind

    That man in there is an Artificer. He is also a Totem Warrior. Lograve¡¯s mental voice still carried the normal inflections of speech, the words just appeared in Murdon¡¯s head instead of going through his ear holes. His friend caught the intrigue behind the otherwise innocuous statement.

    Multiclasser? That¡¯s not too uncommon. He doesn¡¯t have the look of an Artificer though, and they¡¯re a rare class.

    That¡¯s what I said. Lograve laughed softly to accompany the thought. But I saw his Foci, both of them. He¡¯s a true Artificer, and there¡¯s no way he survived without also possessing Regeneration, which isn¡¯t known to awaken in the Artificer class. Unless there¡¯s something I don¡¯t know about him, or he has a similar power that is otherwise unknown to my records, that doesn¡¯t add up.

    How long did you two talk? I¡¯d just heard you¡¯d returned a few minutes ago.

    Came rushing to my aid, Murdon? I might blush.

    There was a low grunt from the giant man. Stop that. Why did you bring this up?

    Even if he is something other than a Totem Warrior, it doesn¡¯t make sense. He¡¯s level one, Murdon.

    Murdon took a moment to digest the point. That¡¯s not possible. Who or what is this man?

    I don¡¯t know. I don¡¯t think he knows either. He was adamant he wasn¡¯t a Totem Warrior, that much I can tell you. There¡¯s something else. He was about to finish the sentence when you came bumbling in. It sounded like he was going to say he was in Eido when it happened.

    That got Murdon to stop. Did he arrive with anyone else? Did he mention any other survivors?

    I don¡¯t know, came Lograve¡¯s exasperated mental reply. You barged in and started tossing me around before I could press further. He¡¯s hardly in a state to answer us now. A thoughtful look crossed his face. Actually, he did mention he arrived with a ringcat. I doubt that¡¯s important.

    Two impossibilities. The Upswell, and a level one multiclasser. Could he be responsible?

    What, are you planning on having him killed in case it happens here?

    Maybe. Murdon was serious.

    Lograve was troubled. It¡¯s an awfully tenuous connection to base execution on. Murdon, Jonus killed someone at the lake and I didn¡¯t like the look in his eyes when he did. I think he might have been going Tyrant.

    These are extraordinary times. I wouldn¡¯t say we don¡¯t have reason for suspicion. One of the border guards mentioned a suspicious human with a ringcat had just arrived after telling me you hadn¡¯t left the Wheel quite yet. He¡¯d tried to pass it off as his familiar, instead of telling her it was charmed.

    He lied? Why?

    Could he have been lying about not knowing he was a Totem Warrior? Trying to pass himself off as a lowly level one to avoid suspicion? Artificer is a rare class, and combination with Totem Warrior is rarer still. I don¡¯t know if I¡¯ve ever heard of an Artificer multiclassing at all, even by accident.

    Wait. Lograve was the one to stop, managing it despite Murdon half-carrying him. Are you suggesting he¡¯s powerful enough to have caused the Upswell? That would be level nine power, Murdon. Maybe higher than that. Are you thinking he¡¯s a Proxy now? I just don¡¯t see it.

    You¡¯ve talked to him longer than I did, and I normally trust your judgment. However, if he is that powerful, he¡¯d be able to deceive both our senses and disguise his true level.

    Circular logic there, Murdon. He can deceive us because he can do anything, and because he can do anything he can deceive us. Multiclasser, Artificer, and level nine. Lograve counted the three out on his fingers. I honestly don¡¯t know if that combination has happened before. I don¡¯t know of any multiclassers that make it that far period, and I cannot place him as a Proxy. Why would he bother with all of this if either were true? He could annihilate us without this deception if he wanted to. I suppose we could go back and watch that level one Cleric heal him to satisfy your fears, but you would just dream up another inane explanation to spite me, wouldn''t you?

    Murdon didn¡¯t have an answer for that. He was troubled by his friend¡¯s demeanor. Undercurrents of a deadly seriousness dampened the constant cheeriness. It had been due to the shock everyone had experienced following the Upswell, but after the pass, it had gotten worse. Sure, Lograve had been nearly fried and he''d never been more hurt, but he¡¯d also faced a dragon in Aughal without letting his natural quirkiness suffer.

    They returned to Murdon¡¯s office in the headman¡¯s building and closed the door. ¡°Stranger aside,¡± he said, shelving his other concerns. ¡°What happened at the pass?¡±

    ¡°First of all,¡± Lograve said out loud, returning to audible discussion for a moment. ¡°That woman that returned is a flight risk. Not a joke!¡± he addressed Murdon¡¯s raised eyescales. ¡°A few of them tried to run on the bridge and I think she was the ringleader. That was a joke. Come on Murdon, she was using a ringcat,¡± he added in frustration as that didn¡¯t draw a response. ¡°Fortunately, they didn¡¯t account for my Telepathy. Then?¡± He paused and drew in a breath. It¡¯s a dragon, Murdon. A level six lightning dragon, and it looks like it¡¯s claimed the pass as its own.

    ¡°Oh.¡±

    ¡°I almost hope that young man¡¯s a level nine. We¡¯ll need him.¡±

 Chapter 11: Roster

    Daniel slept for a day and a half. His rest went uninterrupted by other tent mates or the ministrations of Thomas. The medic had nearly worked himself into a fit after being told to keep the tent free of others, but now was not the time to defy the orders of Commander Murdon. It was a dead sleep.

    Despite the orders, Thomas at least laid eyes on Daniel from time to time. He barely moved, and the Cleric was worried. In addition to his apparent coma, Daniel hadn¡¯t had any food or water since he¡¯d come under his care. He¡¯d looked like he could have used both when he¡¯d first gotten there. Then again, his boss had assured Thomas that Regeneration would see to his health burns or no, though he might take longer to heal because of them.

    They were right. Thomas couldn¡¯t visualize the mana at work, but every time he checked on the slumbering man his wounds had progressed days of healing in hours. That¡¯s all well and good, the Cleric thought. But when he wakes up he¡¯s going to be insatiable.

    ¡­

    Outside of the headman¡¯s house was a notice board. When Eido was more than a memory, it was a community resource. Villagers would post local concerns and requests for Eido¡¯s garrison that Murdon would pass on if appropriate. Those trying to advance into a class would seek mentors, and mentors sought those who showed promise.

    All the space on the board was now taken up by evacuation business. As the disaster had struck unexpectedly there were plenty of people missing in addition to being presumed dead. The left side was dedicated to these postings. Everyone who made it to the village would find themselves in front of the board at some point, either to see where their family was staying or to make their own posting. The other half of the board was for those with class levels, the Blessed. The Commander was still in the process of organizing teams and assigned tasks, leaving blank spots. Among the listings were easier assignments such as guard duty or assisting in the medical tents. The real danger were the hunts, scouting, or other duties that involved travel and fighting. A few paled as they saw their name on those lists. At the very least these duties weren''t constant as breaks were scheduled to give them time to advance.

    Without fail, a large crowd would pile out at dawn to observe the Roster. It was when new assignments were posted and the heroes that would save them appeared. Today was different. A new team was posted on the board among the others with no particular fanfare. It was almost an insult to the only member listed. More would be added to it before the team was deployed. Either way, the name at the top would ensure the team would succeed at whatever they were assigned.

    Kob. Whispers spread the news as the first noticed the name. Someone had been going around claiming to have heard he¡¯d survived from the Commander himself, but it wasn¡¯t real until it was on the Roster. A level 4 remained in the Thormundz.

    They were here. The crowd parted like fish sensing an approaching shark. A mountain moved through them. They were over twice the height of some, and their hands could easily wrap around the head of any. Kob didn¡¯t wear armor, or any clothing at all. They didn¡¯t need to.

    The giant glanced at a Bard who hadn¡¯t moved away like the others. She returned the gaze evenly, adjusted the accordion on her back, and continued searching the lists of people who¡¯d made it to Hagain. Kob issued no challenge and observed their side of the Roster. Minutes passed but no one else dared approach. Eventually, Kob found their name on the second row of posters from the bottom. They¡¯d had to kneel to find it. Three days. Kob was departing on their mission in three days. The blank spots on the list would be filled out before then. It didn¡¯t matter who it was that accompanied them. Kob had their assignment.

    The ground trembled as they walked away.

    ¡­

    It was with a mix of refreshment and malaise that Daniel woke from his deep sleep. The tent was empty, save for him. The flap was also closed so someone had checked in on him since he¡¯d passed out. He couldn¡¯t tell how long that¡¯d been, but it also didn''t matter. His arm was healed! Daniel looked in amazement as the blackened limb had completely recovered. Even the lightning scars were gone. Daniel wanted to jump out of bed and run around, which was when the hunger cramps fully hit.

    The sun was low in the sky, but bright through the parted tent flap as he moved it. Daniel took his hand away and waited for his eyes to adjust to the light in the tent first. He needed food, but not so desperately that he¡¯d blind himself in search of it.

    Thomas intervened before that happened. ¡°Guy, you¡¯re awake!¡± The human was wearing the same simple shirt and drawstring pants Daniel had first seen him in, although they¡¯d been washed since then. That was probably a bad sign.

    ¡°Were you watching my tent?¡± Daniel asked. It had only been half a minute since he¡¯d woken up.

    ¡°Not all the time,¡± Thomas said like it was nothing. ¡°I have to rest you know. Geez, look at that arm!¡± He moved far closer than he should have to take a look at it. ¡°Amazing! I wish all my patients were like you, Guy. All I had to do was watch you sleep.¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡± Daniel took a step back. ¡°How long exactly?¡±

    ¡°About two days. It¡¯s morning, by the way.¡±

    ¡°I can tell.¡± His stomach grumbled. ¡°Food?¡±

    ¡°Right!¡± Thomas dashed out of the tent. He reappeared instantly but without any tray or plate in hand. ¡°Don¡¯t leave the tent, please.¡± It was spoken like someone else¡¯s order that Thomas had to relay.

    ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°Dunno. The Commander wanted to talk to you right after you woke up. Mysterious aren¡¯t you. Oh, by the way, Kob survived! Seen by the Roster, at least that¡¯s what people are saying. No one else on their level though, they really are the last one.¡±

    ¡°Is the Commander that-¡± Daniel again struggled to think of a way to describe the dark lizard person he¡¯d seen without inadvertently causing offense. ¡°Person that got Lograve?¡±

    ¡°Yeah! Know why he¡¯s interested in you? Totem Warriors are hardly anything to work yourself up over if you don¡¯t mind me saying.¡±

    Daniel took note of the man¡¯s pressured speech and thought, That¡¯s hardly stopping you. And I¡¯m not a Totem Warrior! He could have debated the point, but he was too hungry to. ¡°Any chance I could eat before then?¡±

    ¡°Right, sorry. But don¡¯t leave the tent.¡±

    ¡°If I do you won¡¯t come bring me food.¡±

    ¡°Fair enough!¡± Thomas sprinted off again.

    Daniel thought about how he¡¯d healed while he waited on food. Long resting in some role-playing games could fix anything, but he was starting to suspect he¡¯d been wrong in assuming this world worked like an actual game. People kept telling him that his healing was unusual. It had to be a specific power, but his character sheet didn''t have anything like that on it.

    He checked to be sure. There were no new notifications, though he did worry he might have missed some while he slept since they weren¡¯t stored anywhere. He did still have those points he could assign to his attributes, but it would be best to wait until he had a grasp of what was going on before using them. Like I¡¯ll ever know, he thought bitterly. The tent was filled with silence as Daniel let himself space out. He was hungry, and that made him think of Ringcat. There¡¯d been others of his kind there, so Daniel was sure he was doing fine.

    The tent burst open again. ¡°Right, gotta run!¡± Thomas said in greeting. ¡°Poke your head out if you need more water. If nature calls just use one of the corners but don¡¯t-¡±

    ¡°Leave the tent, yeah.¡± Daniel didn¡¯t feel any urge, his body was focused on other matters. He looked at the tray in front of him in surprise. It was well made, with handles on the side for carrying. The slop he¡¯d been dreading was instead a roasted leg the right size but not shape for a chicken, accompanied by a couple of what Thomas called cord fruit. Unlike the ones he¡¯d first seen, these were connected by the stems and clued Daniel into their name.

    As he crunched into them, he was inspired to see what they looked like on the branch. Daniel assumed they grew on branches, though vines were an appropriate option as well. Maybe they grew on the vine people? He paused eating and decided to turn his attention to the leg until that mental image was gone.

    The meal was finished in minutes. On Earth, Daniel would have been a little slower and more askance of the unidentified if faintly familiar meat leg. It tasted too good to worry about that. Hunger is the best spice. It occurred to him as he drank the last of the water that being confined to his tent could be seen as a bad thing. In other circumstances he would have been terrified, but this was hardly a prison. Sure, if they kept him here for days he¡¯d be clawing at the walls, but Thomas didn''t have the sense of a jailor. The worst thing he could do was give the only people who might help him a reason not to. He could probably get away with opening the front of the tent.

    He did. It was a nice enough day, with sunlight painting the ground as it passed through tents. Daniel sat on the edge of the bed and watched people pass by. It was more entertaining than television in a grim way. Injured were being brought in and treated, while the dead were being confirmed as such. Death might have disturbed him if he still didn¡¯t have trouble thinking this was all real. It all felt like a scene in a war movie establishing that the good guys were in dire straits before moving to the front lines for the real action.

    He saw those whose injuries were the most severe were being brought to one of the many tents around him. Eventually, they had to be placed in the shade when there was no more space inside. The empty bed next to him stood out and worried him a little. It felt like Daniel had been singled out, which in fairness was what Thomas had told him. Neither he nor the empty bed told him why.

    He continued watching. Most people brought to the tents were saved in some way or another. Thomas and a collection of vines seemed to be the ones with healing abilities, while others used more mundane methods for people who weren¡¯t actively trying to die. Daniel didn¡¯t see any new races among the crowd, nor did he see one that looked like the Commander.

    A thought struck him. ¡°Hey phone, what kind of race is Commander Murdon?¡±

    <hr>

    For more information on Race: Draconoid, consult Function: Encyclopedia

    -

    Draconoid (Race, Varies, ???)

    Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

    A race of intelligent life that takes the form of tailed, scaled humanoids. Subraces exist that correspond with each primary Variant: Dragon.

    ???

    <hr>

    Not much he couldn¡¯t guess, though there was more Unidentified knowledge. It seemed to have infected his Encyclopedia like a cancer. At least he knew what they were called. ¡°What about the other two?¡±

    <hr>

    Avianoid (Race, Air/Wind, ???)

    A race of intelligent life that takes the form of flightless humanoid avians.

    ???

    <hr>

    ¡°Let me guess, the other one is ¡®Vineoid¡¯?¡±

    <hr>

    Gestalt (Race, Varies, ???)

    A race of intelligent life that takes the form of an Elemental. Subraces exist for each Element: Primary.

    ???

    <hr>

    ¡°So, they¡¯d be earth Gestalt? It is a better name than vineoid.¡±

    ¡°Admiring your reflection, Guy?¡± Thomas poked his head through the tent¡¯s opening, making it look like he¡¯d been beheaded.

    ¡°Gah!¡± Daniel almost dropped the phone. ¡°It¡¯s my phone. My Focus,¡± he added when that made no headway.

    ¡°I thought your necklace was your Focus. That doesn¡¯t look like something a Totem Warrior would use.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t you have other people to help?¡± He was growing tired of people insisting that, and Thomas could grate the nerves with repeated exposure.

    ¡°That¡¯s an odd way to thank someone who brought you clothes.¡± The rest of Thomas was revealed and a bundle was thrown his way. They looked similar to what Thomas was wearing. ¡°Can¡¯t have you meeting the Commander shirtless a second time.¡±

    Daniel chastised himself mentally as he picked up the bundle. I always do this, he thought. His mother had been the one who had patiently coached him to where he was today with other people. He had been much worse. Daniel¡¯s problem, one of Daniel¡¯s problems, with people is that he thought too far ahead and assumed too much. No one liked trying to talk to someone that was one conversation beyond them. Wait that makes me sound like an arrogant jerk. I just suck at talking to people. ¡°Sorry.¡±

    ¡°Look, Guy, I deal with sick people for a living. ¡®Fuck you¡¯ sounds close enough to ¡®Hi there¡¯ as far as I¡¯m concerned. Just don¡¯t leave the tent open when you change. Make it fast though, there¡¯s a gawper here for you.¡±

    ¡°Gawper?¡±

    ¡°You know,¡± Thomas mimed what seemed like a turkey. ¡°That kind of guy.¡±

    ¡°Sure.¡± Daniel almost let the conversation end there, but he forced himself to speak as Thomas was walking away, ¡°Hey, Thomas. Thanks again!¡±

    ¡°Yep!¡±

    The clothes didn¡¯t fit too well, more one size fits all than something that came with a chart. They weren¡¯t too scratchy and what he had been wearing was unrecoverable anyway. The shirt had been ruined, and both his pants and undergarments were torn and bloody. Going from four pockets to one small one was a problem. His phone didn¡¯t fit, and he had something else to store. Just before leaving where he¡¯d landed in the forest, Daniel had noticed one of the lightning spines lying on the ground. He only found a dozen, but they¡¯d been useful enough to gather.

    Shrugging, Daniel tore some cloth from his ruined shorts and used that to bind them into a stack. He wasn¡¯t going to wear them again. The stack fit in the pocket though it stuck out. The phone, he¡¯d have to carry.

    As he stood by the now open tent flap, someone among the throng took notice and approached. A cape fluttered in a wind that didn¡¯t seem to exist for anyone else. Daniel¡¯s first thought was that Heldren had returned, but it wasn¡¯t him. The man in front of him was human, though the hair was shorter, a lighter brown than his, and the face a few years younger than Heldren¡¯s mid 30''s-ish. The clothes under the moderate armor were different too. Still, both men carried themselves in the same way.

    The man walked up to Daniel like an explosion would go off behind him. Not in a panic, but with measured steps and a self-assuredness that called for a pair of sunglasses. When he was near the tent, the man introduced himself with a winning smile. ¡°Gadriel Cross, at your service. The Commander has bade me accompany you to your meeting with him. The pleasure is mine.¡±

    Daniel was shaking the man¡¯s hand before he registered that it had been offered. Heldren Storm and Gadriel Cross, Daniel thought. Do they pick hero names when they take the class? ¡°Thanks. Are we going now?¡±

    ¡°Indeed! I have a feeling this will relate to our Roster assignments. I hear murmurs that Kob¡¯s team is being formed as we speak!¡± Gadriel began walking, confident Daniel would follow him.

    Kob, Daniel thought as he followed Gadriel. Thomas had just mentioned whoever that was. ¡°What do you mean, Roster assignments?¡±

    ¡°Ah, I see you haven¡¯t been brought up to speed. Allow me to explain.¡± Gadriel gestured out to the tents around him. ¡°What do you see here, Daniel?¡±

    ¡°Tents?¡±

    ¡°Yes, tents! And within them are the innocent, and within the innocent are hope and dreams of the future shining like the jewels of a crown. It is the duty of those with the ability to protect these treasures to do so.¡± Gadriel was gearing up for a speech in the exact way Heldren had back by the bridge.

    Daniel made an educated guess. ¡°Do you have the Mantle of Inspiration feature?¡±

    Gadriel looked surprised and the building momentum faded away. ¡°Y-yes. You have heard of me!¡± he puffed up.

    ¡°I met someone named Heldren Storm who had it too.¡±

    ¡°Sir Storm.¡± Gadriel fully deflated.

    ¡°It¡¯s impressive!¡± Daniel tried to recover his latest fumble. Gadriel didn¡¯t seem to think highly of the man.

    ¡°It is but one of the tools at my disposal!¡± In a flash, the sword at Gadriel¡¯s side swung through the air. He¡¯d tossed it, though it flew like his arm was still attached and fell quickly back into his hand. Gadriel grinned at Daniel. ¡°A Hero faces many dangers on his path. Powers alone are not enough to meet every challenge, and should we travel together, you shall find my talents run deeper than my class.¡± The crowd around them took notice.

    They continued to walk after the light applause, Gadriel¡¯s confidence fully restored. ¡°I am curious,¡± Gadriel said, making conversation out of what would be a boring walk. The field hospital had been near the edge of the camp, and their destination was the center of the village. ¡°What developmental strategy do you prefer?¡±

    Another foreign concept to Daniel and a chance to put his foot in his mouth. Honesty was usually the best policy, except in cases where people didn¡¯t like the unabashed truth. Situations like these felt like he was walking a tightrope instead of talking with someone. ¡°Sorry, is that something specific to the Hero class?¡±

    ¡°No! It is in fact something every man, woman, and child should take seriously, should they not hit their wall before awakening a class. It determines your fate in this world.¡± He flexed one arm in what seemed an unconscious gesture. ¡°I follow the path of balance. I am only level 2, but each of my attributes are 28. There have been a fair few who had underestimated me by level alone.¡±

    28? Daniel thought, astonished. If this is some kind of covert role-playing game, that¡¯s insane. He thought for a moment. His focus told him his core abilities were endurance and intelligence, both of which were in the mid 10s. Gadriel was level 2 and had loudly declared his attributes. Is that how levels work? ¡°I haven¡¯t thought about it, this is all new to me,¡± Daniel answered, continuing to walk the line.

    ¡°You should consider your path. Does Totem Warrior come with any attribute penalties?¡±

    Again with that nonsense. ¡°It halved my dexterity when I took it, but otherwise no.¡±

    Gadriel frowned, ¡°Is that so? I thought, well, in any case, that is good news! Many classes affect your attributes in trade for the powers they bestow. Those with an initial penalty seem the worst, though if you don¡¯t multiclass, which you should doggedly avoid, that initial penalty will soon smooth over. The true bane comes with those classes that affect your ability to advance attributes going forward.¡± He pointed a thumb at himself. ¡°The Hero class has no such weaknesses.¡±

    Advancement, attributes, penalties. The Hero beside him was throwing around terms Daniel was only tentatively familiar with and not at all in this context. Half of what he thought he knew was probably wrong. Not knowing what Gadriel was talking about was something that would draw suspicion, and he could hardly act as clueless as he was. All the same, Gadriel was eager to espouse his views on leveling which was an excellent opportunity to gain more information. ¡°So it¡¯s best to advance everything together? It sounds like people should focus on what their class is best at.¡±

    ¡°Ah, that is the path that leads many astray. Granted, it is the key to short term power, but it comes with its inevitable downfalls.¡± Gadriel sat on a bench and gestured for Daniel to join him.

    ¡°Don¡¯t we have a meeting to attend?¡±

    ¡°Ah, but you see, this is important! Destiny would not cross our paths sparingly. I suspect they are considering us for the same Roster assignment.¡± Daniel sat. He didn¡¯t know the way and would have to let the Hero talk himself out before they¡¯d be back on track. ¡°It comes down to variety and level disparity. You are aware that you awaken powers based on the attribute you advance, yes?¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± Daniel said, now aware of this fact. It¡¯s working!

    ¡°So naturally, one who focuses only what their classes provokes them to will find themselves with powers too focused on one aspect of themselves. As a balanced Hero, the powers I possess allow me to use the full breadth of my being!¡± He flexed both arms in a wide position and Daniel got a better sense of what the word gawper meant. ¡°It is a strategy that gazes onwards to the peak of what mortals may attain!¡± Gadriel basked in what was now the noonday sun. With his pose, the golden rays looked like a spotlight.

    ¡°What about level disparity?¡±

    ¡°Yes, sorry.¡± The Hero was dragged back to Earth, or whatever the name of this world was. ¡°Say you could shatter a mountain with a strike of your fist. What problem might you have?¡±

    ¡°Running out of mountains to punch?¡±

    ¡°Ha, quite so! But in point, a person who does not balance their attributes will find that strength unwieldy without appropriate dexterity. You will often see this problem in Arcanists who focus on their mental attributes. Even at high level, these individuals are quite weak due to their low endurance and can have problems channeling mana if the disparity is great enough.¡±

    ¡°Being unbalanced makes part of you weak at higher levels, but you wouldn¡¯t know that initially when it¡¯s all upsides,¡± Daniel surmised.

    ¡°Precisely my good sir! You can find yourself in quite a chasm later on with little to dig yourself out of it. Advancing attributes becomes more difficult the higher you level, and it is no better for those you neglect. Hit your wall at the wrong time and you shall be permanently crippled.¡±

    Something occurred to Daniel. ¡°How do you know what your attributes are?¡± He only knew about his because of his phone, and the enhancement feature made him believe that was a special property.

    ¡°You might as well ask how I know my age.¡±

    ¡°Oh.¡± Daniel unlocked his phone and held it out. ¡°I was just curious because my pho- my Focus displays them.¡±

    Gadriel looked at the outstretched screen in surprise, ¡°This is your Focus? But I thought?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know why people keep saying it, but I¡¯m not a Totem Warrior. I¡¯m an Artificer.¡±

    The Hero raised an eyebrow. ¡°An Artificer? I am well aware of how aspersions to one¡¯s character can travel faster than they. My apologies for the assumption.¡± Gadriel bowed his head and then looked at the screen again. ¡°I¡¯m afraid I can¡¯t read the text here. What language is this in?¡±

    The one we¡¯re speaking? Damn it, one thing at a time.

    Daniel explained what the numbers meant and Gadriel snapped his fingers. ¡°Ah! See, your charisma is far too low for your level. Do you have trouble communicating clearly?¡±

    ¡°Somewhat, yeah.¡± Daniel cleared his throat. ¡°I mean, yes.¡± He hadn¡¯t considered increasing his charisma to be a way to make him less awkward, even though it was obvious now that he thought of it.

    ¡°My suggestion would be to get that to level one as soon as you can. Do you have any advancement potential in you?¡±

    Daniel just clicked the upper right button in response. Gadriel turned to him, waiting for an explanation. "Oh, sorry. I have four. I can increase my attributes now but I wanted to wait until I understood things better. I guess that time is now.¡±

    Shock colored Gadriel¡¯s expression. ¡°Four? You have four? My good sir, that is fortunate. I commend your patience. I doubt we have time to commit those advancements before your meeting, however.¡±

    ¡°My Focus mentioned this. It, uh, stores knowledge too,¡± he explained. ¡°I can instantly advance. Also, there¡¯s this weird thing with my attributes, see?¡± Gadriel looked on in increasingly mute horror as Daniel increased his attributes, reset the change, and reapplied the improvement to different ones while explaining all the while. At a certain point Daniel noticed, but it was too late.

    Gadriel stood, his expression strange. ¡°I cannot let this stand!¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    ¡°You wish to make a mockery of me with this absurdity? This illusion? You must have been informed of my history and have been playing me a fool! Clearly you have conspired with Sir Storm. My tolerance on many things is great, but I will bear no insult.¡± He took on what looked like a fighting stance and Daniel grimly remembered his sword shooting through the air.

    ¡°Mr. Cross, please I didn¡¯t mean anything. I¡¯m, that¡¯s,¡± he fumbled again. ¡°It¡¯s just an Artificer thing.¡±

    ¡°Cease your lies! We have tarried too long and the day grows short. I have a duty to complete.¡± Gadriel angrily walked away without further word, expecting Daniel to follow.

 Chapter 12: Face Off

    Lograve entered the headman¡¯s manor, waving off the guard posted at the door as he almost tripped on the small rise in the floor. ¡°There¡¯s already enough broken eggs to be walking on more shells,¡± he murmured angrily to himself. It was an emotion that came to him more often than he let the world believe, though recent events were making that control slip. The fact that he had not fully recovered yet despite having level three endurance was another aggravation on top of everything else.

    To be fair, everyone in the village was under some amount of strain. Only the hermits hadn¡¯t lost anyone they¡¯d known. At least Murdon¡¯s control over who knew about the dragon was keeping morale high at the moment. Still, I can''t help but feel that secret will hurt us in the long run. Murdon looked up as Lograve entered the office. He didn¡¯t normally have so many visitors and recent events were causing his scaly neck to develop a crick. One of the draconoid¡¯s hands was shaking slightly. The other noticed but said nothing. The weight of the Octyrrum is the hardest on him, Lograve thought.

    ¡°Is Kob in position?¡± Murdon broke the uneasy silence.

    ¡°Yes, though I hardly find this farce necessary. You¡¯re taking this too seriously.¡± Lograve clicked his tongue and added, ¡°No, you¡¯re taking the wrong thing too seriously.¡±

    Murdon glanced at the closed window. ¡°The dragon isn¡¯t in my village.¡±

    ¡°The dragon is a dragon is a dragon. And it¡¯s a real son of a bitch, I can tell you that much. That young man could be anything, and of those things, he is likely just a human. Remember all that math I tried to fit in your head at the start of this disaster? Remember how I told you throwing away people on missions with low survival odds was a bad thing?¡± Lograve tapped the table with a long, scarred finger. ¡°We aren¡¯t in a position to start randomly killing Blessed because you have a bad feeling about them. Or anyone at all for that matter! Crest, Murdon, that¡¯s how Tyrants think.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re not killing him unless we have to.¡±

    Lograve glanced in a direction that met a wall and hid something larger behind it. ¡°You told me to have Kob respond to any sort of fighting in the village with lethal force! What do you call that?¡±

    ¡°I told you to prepare him as a worst-case intervention. Is that what you told them to do?¡± Concern and grim amusement colored the words.

    ¡°Oh shit.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± Murdon stopped his friend from running out of the room with a hand. ¡°Kob is smart enough to know what you meant. Besides, they should be here soon and there¡¯s more to discuss.¡±

    ¡°Will it change anything or do you just want to stop me from questioning your morality?¡±

    The concern remained as amusement faded. ¡°I¡¯m starting to question your supposed recovery.¡±

    ¡°I fought a dragon and lived, what more do you want?¡±

    The rasp Murdon let out wasn¡¯t of anger but defeat. Those unfamiliar with his kind commonly confused the two. ¡°He¡¯s a Spiritualist.¡±

    Lograve blinked. ¡°Murdon you¡¯re right. My injuries are more severe than I thought. I fear I¡¯ve just blacked out and missed the careful explanation you made giving context to that statement.¡±

    Better, Murdon thought. Though I shouldn¡¯t have had to bait out sarcasm. ¡°I made a more thorough debriefing of Janice yesterday and she mentioned something else. Daniel was calling his ringcat ¡®he¡¯.¡±

    ¡°Oh,¡± Lograve took the point.

    ¡°A gestalt in the stables confirmed it. I think.¡±

    ¡°So he¡¯s insane. There are a lot of crazy people in the world Murdon. Some of them spend hours talking to gestalt when they should be saving lives.¡±

    ¡°That right there.¡± Murdon rattled the desk with a fist. ¡°You keep defending him. Why?¡±

    ¡°Because you¡¯re blowing this out of proportion!¡±

    ¡°Or you were affected by a level 9 charm power.¡±

    ¡­

    The rest of the walk was awkward. Gadriel kept his gaze fixed fully forward and constantly walked fast enough to be ahead of Daniel while not breaking out in a run. It doesn¡¯t make sense, Daniel thought. Sure his charisma was terrible, but it shouldn¡¯t be bad enough to provoke a Hero into fighting him.

    Also, charisma is weird when it¡¯s a stat you have instead of just a concept. I just bump up my numbers and I¡¯m suddenly attractive? The fact that he¡¯d easily climbed a tree after acquiring a strength score made him consider dumping every point he had into the sixth attribute. He hadn¡¯t exactly left anyone special behind after what happened happened, and he could use all the help he could get. He considered advancing charisma now but decided against it. Not in front of the angry incarnation of justice.

    They crossed into the town proper without much fanfare. The tents were generous enough not to be staked to the permanent structures, but it was a close thing. Similar to the bridges he¡¯d seen before, every building in the town was solid wood. Like a statue carved from marble, it seemed like they¡¯d been cut from a larger block rather than assembled from smaller planks. The houses had porches on the front where people loitered, this area no less crammed than the tents.

    Gadriel walked past a store that caught Daniel¡¯s eye. Its sign indicated a general store, with a painted on addition marking it as permanently closed. That wasn¡¯t the surprising thing, it was the language. Each character had either a swirl or full circle somewhere, giving the text a bubbly appearance. It wasn¡¯t English, and yet as long as Daniel didn¡¯t focus on the fact that he was reading another language he could understand it.

    ¡°We cannot delay for shopping!¡± the Hero¡¯s gruff voice called out from down the street. He¡¯d walked so long without noticing Daniel¡¯s absence that he had to shout.

    ¡°Sorry!¡± Daniel started walking back and pointed to the sign. ¡°What language is that?¡±

    ¡°We have no time for your pointless questions either.¡± Gadriel had calmed slightly, though the Hero was in no mood for idle chat.

    Daniel held his tongue for about a minute. ¡°I don¡¯t get what I did wrong.¡±

    ¡°As I said, no questions.¡±

    ¡°That wasn¡¯t a question and it has a point.¡± He was out on a limb, on one of the farthest branches, but in that minute Daniel had remembered Gadriel was a Hero. He wouldn¡¯t publicly execute someone in the middle of the town. Probably. Unless having the Hero class gives you a license to kill. It was too late to back out, Gadriel was looking at him for the first time since the bench with a displeased expression. ¡°Something I did insulted you and I apologize. I just want to know what it was so I don¡¯t do it again.¡±

    Gadriel¡¯s focused expression targeted Daniel. It unnerved him to the degree that it might have been a power, something that put opponents off balance in the lead up to a strike. One came, but it wasn¡¯t physical. ¡°You will not have me playing the fool again.¡± The sentence was like a belt of daggers, each word individually thrown at him. It was only curiosity from the thought that this too might have been magic that split Daniel¡¯s attention from the forceful personality trying to knock him over.

    Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

    People were gathering. It¡¯s a standoff. The thought made the situation too ridiculous to take the scene seriously. Daniel suddenly found himself unwillingly squaring off against an armored knight in a town that looked like it had a saloon instead of a tavern.

    There was an appraising light to Gadriel¡¯s glare now. ¡°You have spirit to resist that power at level one. Is your will to make a mockery of me that great?¡±

    Is this guy a hero? Daniel thought. Like, as a person and not a class. Heroes shouldn¡¯t care what people think about them, or at least not enough to murder someone for it. His thoughts were torn away when movement caught his peripheral vision. The crowd was on all sides and their gaze was focused on him. They expected a verbal tennis match and the ball was in Daniel¡¯s court.

    He tried to stutter something and that made things worse, as Gadriel was now incredulous. ¡°Have you no words for your actions? Must you continue to play the innocent!? Confess your sins!¡±

    Those last words had a resounding quality to them. There was an urge, a rising impulse to shout something. Gadriel expected him to tell the crowd whatever he¡¯d done to offend him but Daniel didn¡¯t know what that was. He still would have done it if the crowds pressing in hadn¡¯t left him breathless with fear.

    It wasn¡¯t the sight of Gadriel drawing his sword that made Daniel faint. It was catching sight of the thing taller than the houses approaching at a run. The giant¡¯s gait was awkward but its steps made Daniel¡¯s vision quake. It was a massive figure made entirely of stone that by all appearances looked like an animated statue. Its mouth opened in a mountain-sundering, drawn out shout as it reached an intersection.

    ¡°Kooooooooooooooob!¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°Amazing, Sir Cross!¡± one of the avianoids in the crowd said as the rest made way following Kob¡¯s warning cry. ¡°You¡¯ve willed him into submission!¡±

    Gadriel frowned and cautiously approached Daniel. It was no trap. The man breathed but did not move. ¡°To correct you, good man, that wasn¡¯t me.¡± He then glanced up. ¡°Greetings Sir Kob. I am humbled to find myself in your presence. What do I owe the pleasure?¡±

    ¡°Help.¡± A nearby window wobbled as Kob spoke. They only had a meter of clearance on either side of the street.

    ¡°This charlatan has done himself in it seems. Though my duty remains.¡±

    ¡°Help.¡± The word was repeated.

    ¡°Are you in need of my assistance?¡±

    Kob pointed a finger as wide as Gadriel¡¯s legs at Daniel. ¡°Headman.¡±

    ¡°Ah,¡± Gadriel patted Daniel¡¯s cheek with an armored hand, but the Artificer didn¡¯t get back up. ¡°You are offering to carry him.¡±

    ¡­

    Two axes were gripped in Murdon¡¯s hands. They looked the same, but looks were deceiving. Both were of good steel and fine make. These two qualities in combination were important as a poor Smith could ruin good steel, and a good Smith could only do so much with poor steel. In the best case, nonmagical metal could make for a fearsome weapon even without the additional attention of an enchanter. Every advantage helped when fighting for your life, but dual-wielding was an odd choice for his class. For that reason, as well as the cost, Murdon had only gone to the trouble of having one enchanted to improve it to second level. The shield he normally used with his offhand was nearby but not on him. There were two reasons Murdon had the second ax, for when his shield was knocked away mid-battle, and if he wasn¡¯t expecting the battle to last long enough to make use of it. If they were facing the dragon in the pass here and now, he would have an ax in each hand.

    The helmet on his head was in two pieces, not one. The point of his snout made this a necessity and a weakness. If its straps were cut it would fall away instead of hang loosely like helmets that fit onto other races. His scales, bolstered by an endurance in the high 30s, deflected most light physical attacks in any case. Given its weakness and difficulty in donning, Murdon only wore his helmet for an immediate crisis. Such as the dragon in the pass.

    ¡°You look ridiculous.¡± A snarl of annoyance answered Lograve. The helmet was specially made to amplify the draconoid¡¯s voice, though it also made him sound like he was halfway down a well. A small sacrifice for clear communication during a fight. Lograve wasn¡¯t unprepared either. His lacquered armor had been ruined during the escape from the dragon he called a fight and needed replacement. Armor wasn¡¯t unheard of for Arcanists though it was uncommon. Lograve¡¯s had been acquired from the specialized crafters in Threst and the only one who could think of providing a replacement had been in Eido.

    Instead, he had frozen ice to surround his vital areas. It looked like a formal suit but would provide the same protection no matter what it looked like. Aquakinesis was his most versatile power and the only reason he¡¯d survived the lake. It was cold, but that kept the discomfort from the healing bruises and burns in check. The mana cost for heightening the feature from level two to three was the real pain.

    In the distance, Kob briefly became visible through one of the alleyways. ¡°Assume they are an enemy.¡± Murdon couldn¡¯t whisper normally, and the helmet made it worse. ¡°If they aren¡¯t dead, it means they are charmed.¡±

    ¡°While Kob is fairly weak to such effects, you¡¯re still an idiot.¡± Lograve flicked a shard of ice which bounced harmlessly off of Murdon. ¡°What are you going to do when Kob hands you a dead body?¡±

    ¡°I would hate myself.¡± Murdon¡¯s armored head turned to Lograve. ¡°But I would not regret my actions. His nature is too suspicious to allow for our guard to be dropped.¡±

    ¡°Fine. But when I¡¯m right you¡¯re going to remember this.¡±

    ¡°Like you¡¯d let me forget.¡± Lograve could sense the half smile behind the helmet and drew some comfort from it.

    Kob turned onto the street directly leading to the Headman¡¯s manor. It was next to the river and to one of the village¡¯s two main streets. Kob still dominated the road but didn¡¯t quite press up against the houses. Distant onlookers continued to observe the strange happenings, children shadowing Kob as they feared them the least. Gadriel walked a slight distance behind them. Few people had the bravado to risk walking in front of the ambling giant and the Hero just missed that mark. His expression was primarily of confusion but his pace was steady.

    The giant stopped a few houses away from where the headman¡¯s manor stood alone in a small clearing. Kob had seen Murdon and Lograve prepared to meet them in force.

    ¡°Where is he?¡± Murdon spoke in a guarded tone. Daniel was nowhere in sight.

    ¡°Sleep,¡± Kob said in a rumbling voice. Enough time passed that they spoke again. ¡°Fear.¡± Opening one of their hands, they put Daniel on the ground. The hands had the consistency of stone. It would have been easy for the young man to have been scraped during the bumpy journey yet not a mark was on him.

    ¡°I regret to report that there was an incident of which the blame entirely falls on this man¡¯s buffoonery,¡± Gadriel declared, stepping out from behind Kob and seeing a fully armored Murdon. ¡°Commander, sir? Are we under attack?¡±

    ¡°What do you mean, buffoonery?¡± Murdon didn¡¯t lower his axes. Lograve thought to intervene but didn¡¯t. If Murdon was asking for information instead of charging, that was a good thing.

    ¡°Well,¡± the Hero blustered. ¡°He had the gall to draw me into a conversation about advancement and my Heroic philosophy, only to attempt to make a total mockery of my path! I suspect those with knowledge of my history may have put him up to it. Someone like Sir St-¡° Gadriel stopped himself from making a formal accusation and vented most of his frustration, delivering the rest of the report evenly. ¡°He denied it, repeatedly and in front of witnesses. Honor bound me to reveal his lies.¡±

    The axes did lower with that. Lograve guessed that this didn¡¯t match any of the worst-case scenarios running wild in Murdon¡¯s head. The Arcanist sighed softly. Kob had told them all they needed to know at the start and in far fewer words. ¡°Was your use of some sort of inquisition-type ability right before Kob appeared?¡±

    ¡°What of it?¡±

    ¡°Do you know what happens when an innocent person is subjected to those powers and cannot resist it?¡±

    ¡°They, oh.¡± Gadriel looked down at Daniel¡¯s unconscious form and then looked back at Lograve. ¡°I still hold that he was trying to make a fool of me! Perhaps he just believed the lies,¡±he scoffed. ¡°Though he said that he could advance his strength and his intelligence at once without penalty. Impossible. I take many things in stride, but not such empty arrogance.¡±

    Lograve¡¯s expression calmed. ¡°Well, that proves it Murdon. He can¡¯t fake that.¡±

    ¡°Explain.¡± The echoing distorted it, but it was an offer instead of a challenge.

    ¡°This young man, Daniel, was afflicted with the fear effect by an inquisition-type ability being incorrectly targeted,¡± he said with a pointed look at Gadriel. ¡°Then he sees a giant level 4 Berserker, er, what were you doing Kob?¡±

    ¡°Congregation.¡±

    ¡°Ah,¡± Lograve nodded as if that explained everything. ¡°Investigating the disturbance at what I assume was a healthy speed. Fear heightened to the terror effect which caused him to pass out. You can¡¯t fake that unless you¡¯re actually afraid of what¡¯s going on.¡± He looked to Murdon expectantly.

    There was a pause as Murdon thought. Idle chatter from the crowd filled the background as speculation on the day¡¯s events rambled on. Anything that involved Kob drew attention and this standoff would be the subject of gossip around the village for days. Gadriel tried to ask a question, but he was ignored. Murdon lay one ax on the ground, the normal one, and approached Daniel.

    He¡¯s not going to, no, he wouldn¡¯t, Lograve thought. Murdon is not becoming a Tyrant. He was caught off guard when the armored knight brought his ax down on the prone figure. Even Kob¡¯s stony face registered surprise.

    Blood was on Murdon¡¯s ax. He looked at it and his shoulders slumped as something left him. Daniel was on the ground before him, unmoving, with a thin gash on one of his arms. ¡°The sleep effect,¡± he explained, some self-hatred apparent in the voice. ¡°He would have woken if he¡¯d used that to fake what you suggested. This seemed too convenient an outcome. A level nine could have orchestrated the events to deceive us. He still could have-¡± Murdon cut himself off and shook his head. ¡°Alright Lograve, I believe you, but he still needs to explain himself.¡±

 Chapter 13: Explaining Yourself

    ¡°Well?¡± A voice called out to Daniel as he woke up. It was a slow, echoing whisper that ended in a sigh. He opened his eyes to see a cloud before him and thought he was back on the floating island.

    That lasted for only a moment. He was sitting in a padded leather chair for one. The quality was surprising to Daniel given the society he¡¯d found himself in was a far cry from anything industrialized. That doesn¡¯t mean they can¡¯t have fancy chairs, he mentally compromised. There was still a cloud in front of him. They were in a humanoid shape and moved like one too, which would have completely thrown him if it were a week ago. Air gestalt? he guessed, and wondered why he hadn¡¯t seen another. ¡°Uh.¡± They had said something like it was an expectation. The last thing he remembered was squaring off against Gadriel as the man grew more and more insensible, and then a giant had run at him. ¡°What happened?¡±

    The figure turned their head to the side. They were mimicking human form fairly well with even a bump on the face for a nose. Blue orbs replaced the eyes and appeared as if they were open sky amidst the white. ¡°Health?¡±

    Daniel looked around the room for context. His first impression was that this creature was some kind of nurse. Instead of a medical tent, he was in one of the village¡¯s buildings. The room looked like a small hunting lodge with weapons and stuffed heads predominant on the walls. He recognized a ringcat among them, displayed less prominently among the parts of stranger creatures whose whole forms he could only try to imagine. Not Ringcat, thankfully. The weapons were interesting, though not all were obvious in their method of death. A pair of gauntlets with a bulky box above each wrist, solid and smooth metal disks, and two staves connected by a large chain stood out among them.

    The sky of the gestalt¡¯s eyes was still fixed on him. Daniel didn¡¯t feel unwell and that was probably what they were asking. ¡°I think I¡¯m good, thanks. Where¡¯s my phone?¡± He wasn¡¯t holding it. There was a small table next to the lounge chair but it was empty. The lightning spines were gone as well, otherwise they¡¯d be poking into the chair.

    It took the gestalt a couple of seconds to think of a reply, and it was another question. ¡°Possessions?¡±

    ¡°Yes, could I have them please?¡± Like Thomas, this individual didn¡¯t seem like a jailor.

    ¡°Meeting.¡± The gestalt nodded to accompany the word. Is that supposed to imply additional meaning? Daniel was sure there was something to gestalt he hadn¡¯t figured out yet. The one he¡¯d seen in the forest seemed to communicate with no issue to those that accompanied them, while he¡¯d had all sorts of trouble.

    It could just be me though. Oh, and the meeting, right. That had been the impetus for the Hero happening to him. The chair he was sitting in did feel like should belong to a Commander. ¡°How long exactly?¡±

    ¡°Discover.¡± A pause longer than should separate words drifted in the air before the gestalt continued. ¡°Here.¡± Then they departed. With nothing else to do, Daniel decided to look at the cool weapons someone had mounted like crossed swords. The gauntlets weren¡¯t bolted to the wall, but it didn¡¯t matter as they were too heavy for Daniel to lift. Even with magic supplementing him, they were made for someone draconoid-sized and at an odd height for him to move without really trying and endangering the wall.

    He could at least make out some details. The box on top was part of the rest of the metal, seamlessly sloping up from the top side of the gauntlet and ending just before the wrist. Whatever the box was, he guessed it was a weapon of some kind. Magic flamethrower? he hoped.

    The cloud returned a few minutes later to the room to find Daniel looking out of the room¡¯s window. ¡°Assistance?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m just thinking.¡± After the gauntlets, he¡¯d noticed people moving around outside. It was late afternoon, packed streets turning into crowded ones. The Roster was a disruption in this flow like a rock in the stream. An avianoid child was one of the few who had noticed him and the only one who had waved. Like they thought I belonged here.

    There were too many questions and too much to ask questions about. The world, attributes, powers, Thomas¡¯ high blood pressure, the giant, dragons, and insufferable Heroes. And murder cats. Daniel was in the center of a whirlwind, topics flying by so quickly he couldn¡¯t pin one down long enough to think before another displaced it. He had to pick something, even if it was at random. ¡°Why do gestalt only speak one word at a time? If that¡¯s not rude to ask,¡± he quickly added.

    ¡°Grafting?¡± the cloud said as if it should have been obvious. Their tone was hard to distinguish but it came through that time. ¡°Unknown?¡±

    Daniel shrugged. ¡°I¡¯m still figuring a lot of stuff out. I know a lot of people have it rough right now, but I¡¯ve had a bad week.¡± Has it been a week? he thought. Most of one at least. Or, not, it¡¯s just been three days. Damn.

    ¡°Disaster,¡± the cloud agreed. It was odd watching them talk. The sound just emanated from inside. There was almost an assessing tinge to the word too, making Daniel worry the gestalt was picking up his nerves.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on with that anyway? It sounds like everyone¡¯s moving here for something. There¡¯s the pass out of the region, so it¡¯s an evacuation?¡± Daniel was mostly talking to himself. He¡¯d always been his best sounding board. ¡°But why? Is no one coming to help? It seems like there are a lot of people here and you have a stone giant. I guess it could be that no one¡¯s close enough to help before something happens.¡± He would have guessed at what exactly, but Daniel could only do so much with what he knew.

    The cloud didn¡¯t respond and Daniel turned back to the window. The child was gone but the crowds remained. The sun was setting behind the mountains and casting them into shadow. ¡°Traveler?¡±

    ¡°Oh? Uh, yeah you could say that.¡± Daniel didn¡¯t turn, which might have been rude but he was having a moment. ¡°This place isn¡¯t anything like where I¡¯m from.¡±

    ¡°Realm?¡±

    Realm? Daniel thought. What? That made him turn around. Maybe the gestalt was doing something to contextualize that? No, they were just standing there. Well, floating there. Were they asking if he was from another world? He¡¯d have to make sure that was the case before just giving that little secret away. ¡°Sorry, I don¡¯t understand.¡±

    The sky in the gestalt vanished as they blinked. ¡°Home?¡± it tried.

    ¡°That¡¯s pretty far. I honestly don¡¯t know how to get there from here actually.¡±

    ¡°Sorry.¡±

    ¡°Thanks.¡± Daniel had dodged the extraterrestrial implications, at least. He thought about asking the cloud if they normally lived in the sky, but stopped himself before he insulted someone he was making headway with. ¡°I¡¯m Daniel. They might have told you that but it¡¯s generally better for people to introduce themselves anyway.¡±

    ¡°Ashier.¡±

    Is that a word I don¡¯t know or their name? Daniel thought. I¡¯ll go with it. ¡°Nice to meet you, Ashier.¡± He remembered to smile a few seconds too late but it seemed to still go over well. He then remembered why Ashier had left in the first place. ¡°Did you find out when the meeting¡¯s happening?¡±

    Ashier was about to speak when someone else did. ¡°Now.¡± The answer was one word, but it came from behind the cloud and it seemed to surprise them. Lograve stepped into the room. ¡°Sorry for the wait, Mr. Brant. The Commander is a busy man who has spent a lot of time recently on a shadefur hunt. Thank you Ashier, I¡¯ll take him from here.¡± Daniel followed the tall man out, noting that while he seemed better, his scars hadn¡¯t faded away like Daniel''s had. At least the light gray robes covered most of them. The gestalt remained, and so did a feeling within Daniel that the gestalt had wanted to ask him something else.

    The rest of the house reminded Daniel of mansions old movies had. There was more space than he¡¯d think something from a small village would have and everything was sparkling clean. The color of the rugs was vibrant, a few paintings graced the walls. An open stairway led from the foyer to the front door where more of the comfortable chairs were placed for waiting guests.

    ¡°What happened after I passed out?¡± Daniel asked as he followed Lograve.

    ¡°Kob carried you here. Apparently you offended Sir Cross,¡± the tall man responded, putting a sarcastic spin on the title. ¡°Heroes,¡± he scoffed. ¡°Never know if you¡¯ll get a bad one.¡±

    ¡°There are bad Heroes?¡±

    ¡°Well, you have met one.¡± Lograve grimaced but didn¡¯t continue.

    ¡°Something wrong?¡±

    ¡°Oh, we have mountains to climb before that. Not literally, not yet.¡± He sighed. ¡°There¡¯s going to be some hard questions coming, Daniel. The Commander is a busy man and doesn¡¯t have time to beat around the brushstalker. We also just finished a rather aggravating conversation but that doesn¡¯t have anything to do with you. Answer honestly and you¡¯ll be fine.¡±

    Daniel¡¯s pace slowed. ¡°Am I in trouble?¡±

    ¡°Not necessarily. There have just been some irregularities. Murdon¡¯s jumping at shadows with all the pressure on him.¡± He lowered his voice. ¡°I don¡¯t think he¡¯s been sleeping most nights.¡±

    ¡°Does his endurance let him ignore sleep?¡± Daniel guessed.

    Lograve narrowed his eyes as if Daniel had just guessed his middle name. ¡°Don¡¯t encourage him! And no, not to the point he¡¯s taken it.¡± The two had climbed to the top floor now. In that time they hadn¡¯t encountered anyone else, and all the doors had been closed. It seemed like the house was protecting itself from Daniel and would actively resist his passage if not warded off by Lograve.

    The heart of the mansion was the office. Lograve opened the door to reveal Murdon sitting at his desk, still in his armor. There was a window, a bookcase, a chest, and not much else. The draconoid didn¡¯t rise but gestured to the seat in front of him. He spoke in a measured voice with the barest hint of danger behind it. It made Daniel think of a teacher reminding a class about academic integrity. ¡°Please have a seat. I am sorry you finished your journey here unconscious.¡±

    ¡°That giant carried me?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± Murdon watched Daniel as he took a seat, and placed a few items on the desk. His necklace, phone, and the bundle of sparkbat spikes. My necklace! Daniel thought. He hadn¡¯t realized it was gone and felt guilty about that. ¡°I believe Lograve warned you about the nature of this meeting, so I will get started. I am curious about these items.¡±

    ¡°I-¡± The tone the draconoid used wasn¡¯t accusatory, but the mere presence of the giant man was intimidating. An ability, or just the fact that I¡¯m talking to a freaking half-dragon? ¡°Can I ask a question first?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± That time Daniel detected some gristle in the response, something that told him he was walking the line.

    He should only ask one question. One question out of a sea of questions that roiled within him and threatened to spill out if he didn¡¯t keep them down. Murdon¡¯s dark, serious eyes helped with that. ¡°What¡¯s the ¡®Crest¡¯?¡± He¡¯d been thinking about the map after his conversation with Ashier, if you could call it that, and remembered the white wall that formed a border to the northeast. ¡°It seems like everyone¡¯s moving away from it.¡±

    If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    The irises, so dark that they might have been black, expanded as Murdon¡¯s slit white pupils shrank. ¡°The Crest? You don¡¯t know what the Crest is?¡±

    ¡°My pho-, my Focus had an entry on it, but I couldn¡¯t see the information.¡±

    ¡°An entry?¡± Lograve asked, and Murdon shot him a glare. There must have been some agreement as to who was doing the talking here and the Arcanist had quickly broken it.

    ¡°This is your Focus, then?¡± Murdon pushed the phone towards Daniel with a scaled finger and he picked it up. ¡°You are aware that a non-intrinsic Focus is something distinguishable from ordinary objects?¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Daniel answered honestly.

    The Commander had been leading Daniel into a trap, only for him to jump off a cliff first. ¡°You don¡¯t? Regardless, we can tell this necklace is a Focus and it is bound to you. You have multiclassed, yet by all appearances you are level one. Explain this.¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t. I-¡± A strong breeze was blowing on Daniel as he navigated the conversation, threatening to tip him over. He took a calming breath but it didn¡¯t help steady his voice. ¡°Look there¡¯s something you need to know.¡±

    ¡°We know you¡¯re a Spiritualist,¡± Murdon said, guessing incorrectly. ¡°It¡¯s not a crime so long as you don¡¯t do anything. It¡¯s just strange.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Daniel remembered the word but not where he¡¯d heard it. ¡°No, I¡¯m not. Well, actually-¡± Is that what they call people from other worlds? It doesn¡¯t make sense, but did they already figure it out? ¡°What does that mean?¡±

    There was a snarl from the draconoid. It could have been aggravation or just a sigh, but Daniel couldn¡¯t tell. ¡°Your peculiar attitude towards monsters?¡±

    Now he was really confused. ¡°Is this all about Ringcat? Did he do something?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re not here to debate theology Murdon,¡± Lograve headed off the tangent. ¡°Do you remember what you were speaking of back in the tent?¡±

    ¡°Please don¡¯t interrupt,¡± Murdon growled. ¡°But now that we are here, you claimed you were in Eido during the Upswell. What do you remember?¡± Daniel clutched his phone under the desk. He didn¡¯t need to read the notification that popped up to know what it said. He couldn¡¯t answer, his mind was preoccupied with the various ways these people probably tortured aliens. Murdon sighed again, the deep raspy noise not doing much to settle Daniel¡¯s nerves. ¡°If you were truly there then we need to know what you saw. Nothing like this has happened before in the history of the Octyrrum.¡±

    ¡°Octyrrum?¡± Daniel was falling again, this time in his mind. He could have gotten that from context but he¡¯d blurted out the question before taking a second to think. He had time now as the silence stretched and both stared at him. Daniel panicked in place for a few moments until suddenly, he wasn¡¯t afraid anymore. It was like after the first few moments of flying with the lightning wings. This conversation was going somewhere fast, and now he just had to guide himself as best he could and make it to the ground intact. ¡°Is that what the world¡¯s called?¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± both exasperated men said at nearly the same time.

    Well, I¡¯m screwed, he thought. Might as well lean into it. Is it too late to say ¡®take me to your leader¡¯? Probably. ¡°That¡¯s cool. Mine¡¯s just called Earth.¡±

    Lograve cut in again, and Murdon didn''t stop him this time. ¡°Are you from a distant region? Or, perhaps, did you grow up in one of Aughal¡¯s villages? Your view of cosmology is rather uninformed.¡±

    Daniel wasn¡¯t listening, he was on his phone. ¡°Here.¡± He handed it to Murdon. The Encyclopedia page for the world was open. It was titled ¡®The Octyrrum¡¯ now, and there was a little more on it, but Daniel didn¡¯t bother reading. That was Murdon¡¯s job.

    ¡°What language is this?¡± the draconoid asked, after glancing over the text.

    ¡°You can¡¯t read it?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    Daniel rubbed his face. ¡°It wouldn¡¯t be that easy would it.¡± Both men were looking at him with concern now. Do they think I¡¯m crazy? Is that better than being an alien? Then he remembered the current crisis and what would likely happen to him if they thought him unhinged. ¡°I can¡¯t explain it, but three, no four, damn it, some number of days ago I just woke up on a floating island. My world doesn¡¯t have those so I¡¯m pretty sure this isn¡¯t it. Has this kind of thing happened before?¡±

    There was a grating sound as Lograve pulled a chair close to the table, sat backwards in it, and started closely inspecting Daniel. ¡°I don¡¯t see any curses or aberrant mana, though I wouldn¡¯t detect any effect stronger than my level,¡± he commented. ¡°Nor can I see his mana flow if that¡¯s the issue.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not cursed or crazy,¡± Daniel said flatly. ¡°I take it this doesn¡¯t happen?¡±

    ¡°No!¡± Murdon said in a half-roar. ¡°There is only the Octyrrum and the darkness beyond it.¡±

    ¡°As much as he¡¯s been wrong recently, Murdon¡¯s right.¡± Lograve spoke with a calming tone, keeping any sense of mirth out. ¡°Look, if you¡¯re trying to avoid talking about what happened-¡±

    ¡°You want to know what happened?¡±

    ¡°You wouldn¡¯t be here if we didn¡¯t.¡± Now Daniel could tell the difference between Murdon¡¯s exasperated and angry snarls. Since he¡¯d asked for it, and Murdon looked like he¡¯d eat him if Daniel didn¡¯t comply, he got on with it and prayed for a soft landing.

    The story started with Earth. Daniel knew enough to cover the beginning of the universe while only going slightly awry from humanity¡¯s collective understanding, but in this conversation, he was still falling. He had to get to the point before the metaphorical ground got to him. Several questions were thrown at him at the start. They were mostly manifestations of incredulity and after a few minutes, they just let him talk. His knowledge of Eido gave him time, but if he started there they¡¯d be back to thinking he was crazy without the motivation to keep listening.

    So, he talked about his home in the mountains. The country hospital his mother worked in. The necklace, where it had come from, and what had happened to who¡¯d given it to him. Dropping out of college after growing distant from his family and falling into a tailspin, growing isolated from most of society while he worked a dead-end job. The absolute lack of magic, floating islands, or giant sabretooth cats. He then meekly added that last one had existed but was now extinct.

    Finally, he reached the point of waking up on the island and the strange corruption of his memories. That was something that drew fresh questions and his repeated assertions that he wasn¡¯t cursed, at least as far as he knew. The sparkbats and lightning wings ground the retelling to a halt as he had to keep explaining what he¡¯d discovered.

    ¡°It must have been a power from the Artificer class,¡± Lograve eventually concluded. ¡°I don¡¯t think anyone normal would have had the idea to strap monster bits on themselves before jumping off a cliff. Well, they might try, but I doubt they would succeed. Even for those with enchanting powers outside the class, the process requires magically receptive material.¡±

    Daniel pointed to the spines. "These wouldn''t count?"

    Lograve picked one up and held it to the light, frowning. "Not likely. It is faintly magical, but I am speaking more of rare metals, wood, and so on. I believe Artificers have a way around this, though I wouldn''t call what you described actual enchanting. You took a risk trusting that shoddy construction."

    ¡°It¡¯s not like I had much of a choice. I looked up flying powers on my phone but I didn¡¯t have anything. It was the next best option.¡±

    Murdon was sitting back in his chair now. He¡¯d gone through a journey of emotions that had been nearly indiscernible to Daniel, unfamiliar with how giant lizards expressed them. He guessed the draconoid had arrived at tired and pensive. ¡°What happened after that?¡±

    ¡°Well-¡± Daniel was going to go back to his long form explanation but Murdon clearly wanted a summary. ¡°I almost died from falling, found Ringcat, and came here. Oh, I did run into Heldren, Quala, and William on the way. There was a gestalt with them but I never got their name. That¡¯s it.¡± He glanced out the window and saw the night sky again. It¡¯d been that way for about an hour now.

    A scaled hand rubbed Murdon¡¯s temple as his eyes closed. ¡°You¡¯re either one demented storyteller or you¡¯re telling the truth. At the very least nothing you said contradicts what has happened.¡±

    ¡°Can I ask another question?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± That was a tired sigh, Daniel thought. The trick to decoding Murdon¡¯s vocal expressions was ignoring the snarl entirely.

    ¡°What language are we speaking? I don¡¯t think it¡¯s English. You couldn¡¯t read my phone, and I saw a sign that I could read that¡¯s a different language I¡¯ve never seen before.¡±

    ¡°How are you understanding a language you don¡¯t even know the name of?¡± Lograve asked, and Daniel gave him a weary smile.

    ¡°That was my next question.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s Greater Forlothan. Most of this Realm speaks it, though it¡¯s not a universal tongue.¡±

    Murdon cut over the side conversation. ¡°I¡¯m sorry but I have no more time for this. Mr. Brant, if what you are saying is true then I suppose one impossibility befits another. I do not think you are a threat and I don¡¯t have time to get to the bottom of this. If you''re not lying, well, you¡¯ve come to this world at a perilous time and place. The divine construct that kept the darkness of the Crest at bay in the region vanished shortly after you arrived, along with our strongest hunters. Without it this region will become more and more unstable. In all honesty, nothing like this has happened in the history of our world. I cannot guarantee your safety, but I can make an exception to your status. I am not of the mind to believe you constructed a tale this insane to avoid responsibility.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t feel like I know enough to decide that. What¡¯s going to happen here? Is help coming or is this a full evacuation?¡± It was the thought of just waiting out everything in the town that turned him away from agreeing immediately. Being a bystander in the bottom holds of the ship while a storm raged outside didn¡¯t sound appetizing to Daniel, even if the alternative was fighting more flying lightning piranhas. He needed to know how bad it was on the top deck. ¡°Sorry, I should keep myself to one at a time, but what could I do to help?¡±

    Lograve answered him, showing the weight of his past teamwork with his friend by taking the heat off of him. ¡°To your first two questions, we can¡¯t tell you. Fear has a way of twisting information and we,¡± he looked at Murdon to make it clear who had really made the decision, ¡°decided it was best to only inform the public that there is a plan. On that last note?¡± He paused in thought. ¡°I may have an idea. Murdon would need to agree, among others. You can stay at my home tonight and I can give you some reading to answer the more basic questions. Could Ashier bring him to the foyer while we discuss?¡±

    ¡°Ashier!¡± Murdon called out. Not in a demanding tone, but the volume might have woken people across the street. The cloud entered the room by way of the door gap. ¡°Guest, downstairs, wait.¡± there was a series of motions accompanying the words, ending with a nod at Lograve.

    ¡°Absolutely.¡± Ashier gestured with a limb for Daniel to follow. He left, and the postures of the two remaining relaxed as they gave each other a complicated look. Lograve knew that trying to make sense of what they just heard would take even more time and they both needed rest.

    ¡°I¡¯m always amazed by how well you two communicate,¡± Lograve remarked, introducing some small talk to forestall the deeper conversation. ¡°I¡¯ve tried that before but it only leads to more confusion. Don¡¯t even get me started on Telepathy.¡±

    ¡°You have to understand how they see the world, and that it¡¯s different from how we do,¡± Murdon explained. ¡°Frustratingly it¡¯s also different for each one. It¡¯s almost like learning a cipher for each individual gestalt. You can talk to them without it but both sides have to be constantly decoding what the other¡¯s saying. Ashier¡¯s been my assistant for so long it just works. I may even call us friends, though I don''t have a bond with Ashier like I do with you.¡± He shook his head and got back to the matter at hand. ¡°What do you want to do with him?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re still planning on a group of ten for Roost¡¯s Peak?¡± Murdon nodded. ¡°I want him in on it. Assuming he agrees.¡±

    ¡°Then it¡¯s done, assuming he agrees,¡± Murdon echoed the words.

    Lograve froze. ¡°Just like that? You¡¯re not going to ask me why I want to take a young man either fresh out of his world or completely insane, or both, monster hunting? No arguing about how he could still be a level nine secretly plotting to read our diaries?¡±

    ¡°What? No, no,¡± Murdon chuckled. ¡°I went off the deep end of paranoia and ignored you trying to pull me back to shore. It¡¯s the least I can do. He has the spot, no questions asked.¡± Murdon frowned, then added, ¡°Well, one question. He is an Artificer.¡±

    ¡±We don¡¯t have the ability to make use of him that way,¡± Lograve sighed, seeing Murdon¡¯s point without him having to specify. ¡°For one thing, I¡¯m fairly certain there¡¯s no cross-pollination between Arcanist and Artificer formulae. As we¡¯ve never had an Artificer in the region before, we¡¯ve also never had a reason to stock the recorded versions of those pesky things. I use we as a general term by the way, even if we did have something like that-¡°

    ¡±Eido.¡± Murdon nodded. ¡°But he can create formulae, at least he claims to be able to.¡±

    ¡±I¡¯m not sure they are proper formulae, at least as he describes,¡± Lograve replied carefully, making it clear he wasn¡¯t confident in his answer. ¡°They almost sound half-baked. I know Artificers have methods for developing new formulae, but I wouldn¡¯t trust anything he makes not to explode until we get a better measure of his craft. As well as the man himself.¡± Murdon thought Lograve would leave it there, but the Arcanist added, ¡°There¡¯s also material concerns. Proper Artificer formulae requires magically charged material. Sticks and reeds won¡¯t cut it, which gives me another reason to think his formulae aren¡¯t all there yet. But Roost¡¯s Peak-¡°

    ¡±I see. You think any is there?¡±

    ¡±If not, we¡¯ll hope to trip on something. There¡¯s also the point to consider that what he makes is capped to his level. If we can get him to at least 2 through some quick training, all the better.¡± Lograve spread his arms. ¡°Now that you¡¯ve approved this ¡®no questions asked¡¯, mind if I take a nap?¡±

    ¡±Go, go,¡± Murdon said good naturedly. ¡°I am expecting something good if this plan of yours works.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m going to leave then, and you¡¯re going to get some rest before you accuse the next mail courier that makes it here of being a seventh Realm spy.¡±

    ¡°Tomorrow,¡± Murdon waved him off. ¡°The revisions will be finished and the Roster will be done. Tonight I have to double check their assignments, both for personnel and target zones.¡± He opened the chest and brought out a heavily marked map of the region. ¡°Roost¡¯s Peak.¡± Murdon tapped the map, to indicate the mountainous fort as Lograve walked over. ¡°The other team assigned that area will be the last to come back, but they were on escort duty. You¡¯ll be there for at least a month to clear monsters from the area. We need to hold the fort for as long as we can.¡±

    ¡°We can only do these controlled burns for so long. Without the Spoke we¡¯ll start seeing higher and higher level enemies out there, and closer to populated areas.¡±

    Murdon looked to the distant pass nestled in the mountains to the west. He couldn¡¯t see it through the wall, but he could feel the coming trial like it was the red glow of a distant fire. ¡°Then we¡¯ll just have to level faster and hope it¡¯s enough when the time comes.¡±

 Chapter 14: Library

    People were sleeping on the porches of Hagain as Daniel trudged by Lograve. The night air was calm and cool. It reminded him of the long trek he¡¯d made with Ringcat, and he was surprised to be nostalgic of the memory. It seemed more real compared to the drudgery of his normal life. Even the dangerous things that had happened to him were a form of emotional high. Daniel realized he¡¯d lived more in the past half week than in the last four years of his life.

    He also realized he was hungry again. The results of the standoff with Gadriel left him unable to partake in the village¡¯s evening meal, assuming they even had one and weren¡¯t severely rationing their supply. It was far too late to eat anyway.

    After a short walk, Lograve stopped in front of a building. A library, according to the sign he could somehow read. ¡°You live here?¡±

    ¡°Indeed. Before all of this, I was the village¡¯s librarian. I still am, although my collection of hats has improved significantly. Does your world have libraries?¡±

    Daniel inspected the building. The same melded wood construction with larger windows on the bottom floor than normal. The first floor seemed taller than the second compared to the neighbors. A different blueprint? ¡°Yeah, but normally no one lives there.¡±

    ¡°What if someone needs to access information during the night? Or do your librarians work in alternating shifts? Larger settlements can manage that but my staff of one is rather lazy.¡±

    ¡°Well, there¡¯s-¡± Should I tell him about the internet? Eh, why not. ¡°So my world doesn¡¯t have magic, but we have technology.¡± He held up his phone. ¡°In my world, this can contact people anywhere, look up any knowledge we¡¯ve collectively stored in this kind of- you know, I don¡¯t entirely get how that works. Let¡¯s just call it a worldwide library. And it can record video. Whatever happened to me seems to have changed it too, though.¡±

    Lograve wasn¡¯t looking as shocked or impressed as he¡¯d hoped. It was more of an analytical gaze taking apart his claims to make sense of them. ¡°Interesting. Is everyone in your world an Artificer?¡±

    ¡°We don¡¯t have classes.¡± I definitely shouldn¡¯t tell him about video games. ¡°People can just learn to work on that kind of stuff. Some do it as a hobby. Does your world have anything similar?¡±

    Lograve unlocked the front door and ushered Daniel through. ¡°Nothing as versatile as that device. High level Artificers might be able to replicate something with those functions, but not this worldwide network. The church of Torch stores and disseminates knowledge in what you could call an ¡®Octyrrum-wide¡¯ library. My collection isn¡¯t as impressive as theirs, though it does contain some editions theirs doesn¡¯t.¡±

    The two rooms directly adjacent to the front door ran the length of the building. Shelves lined the outside walls while reading tables filled the space between them. Makeshift beds were placed between them and on some of the tables, though none slept there. Lograve preempted Daniel¡¯s next question. ¡°The village isn¡¯t so full that this space needs to be used, but we¡¯ve prepared it. Soon I¡¯ll have just as diverse a collection of people as books.¡±

    The books were everything Daniel had hoped for. It¡¯d take him weeks, maybe less, to read them all. He could imagine waiting out the doomsday here, but Lograve said he¡¯d had something else in mind. He turned back to the tall man and a question came to him. ¡°Why aren¡¯t you more skeptical of what I¡¯m saying? For that matter, why are you trusting me?¡±

    ¡°What reason do you have to lie?¡± Lograve asked back. ¡°You¡¯re strange, certainly. You could be exaggerating your world to impress me. Fabricating it entirely is unlikely, given the scope of what you¡¯re suggesting. If you knew me better you¡¯d know that¡¯s completely pointless, and I suppose that¡¯s my point. I am an even-keeled joker. Or at least, that¡¯s what others call me. As far as trusting you?¡± he continued, beginning to walk the shelves and take books. ¡°If you are the level one Artificer you appear there¡¯s not too much damage you could do before you¡¯re stopped, and I¡¯m admittedly too curious to just stick you in a tent somewhere until we get out of here. But onto business.¡± The inside of the house was poorly lit until Lograve also took a candle from the shelf and lit it.

    Daniel stared at the magical glow. It wasn¡¯t a flame, instead it was like a lightbulb without the bulb. The torch the earth gestalt with Heldren carried had been similar. The books were far less impressive.

    Lograve noticed the disappointment. ¡°Unfortunately, I have to assume you know nothing, and what you need to know first is often taught to young children.¡± The books he handed to Daniel were brightly colored, thin, and had more pictures than words. ¡°If you¡¯d take my advice, swallow your pride and start with those. Don¡¯t go rummaging through my library or you¡¯ll just throw off my ordering and find a topic you don¡¯t have any bearing on.¡±

    ¡°Is it ok if I read these now?¡±

    Lograve nodded. ¡°I¡¯d prefer you do. You¡¯ll need to decide on something soon I need to know that you understand what you¡¯re agreeing to. I¡¯ll explain that later. For now, read, rest, and try not to anger the invisible Hero that watches my library. He¡¯s Gadriel¡¯s brother.¡± Daniel didn¡¯t even flinch as the corner of Lograve''s mouth had irresistibly risen with the delivery. ¡°Ugh, I¡¯m too tired for this. If you need anything I¡¯ll be upstairs. Try not to interrupt my rest, though. I need to restore my mana, and if I don¡¯t recover by the time we set out it will be Murdon hounding me about not getting enough sleep.¡±

    ¡°Mana? I was wondering how that worked.¡±

    ¡°Books,¡± Lograve said, mimicking a gestalt. ¡°Read. I sleep.¡±

    ¡°That last one was two words. Can gestalt say more than one word at a time?¡± Lograve just rolled his eyes and climbed the staircase.

    ...

    It took Daniel about an hour to finish the dozen books. He could have read them in a few minutes but closely inspected the depictions in search of things the text didn¡¯t explicitly state. The Octyrrum, according to books, was the only place where life was. It was flat and divided into seven territories or ¡®Realms¡¯. They functioned like continents on Earth, separated by their space on the Octyrrum instead of an ocean or other natural border. Instead of all meeting in the middle, the center of the Octyrrum was taken up by the seventh Realm that made up the center of the six wedges surrounding it. All the Realms had a symbol on them. The one resembling a hand caught his eye as familiar, and there was also a stylized torch that matched Lograve¡¯s offhand comment about another church.

    The notification on his phone from that discovery had immediately drawn his attention.

    <hr>

    Alert: You have acquired Crude World Map. This has been added to the Function: Maps.

    <hr>

    Unfortunately, it was just as brightly colored and poorly labeled as the one in the book. He did learn he was on the second Realm¡¯s outer border by the flashing marker that was too imprecise to tell him anything else. This Realm didn¡¯t have the hand symbol, but rather something that looked like a regal hammer. His marker sat next to the Crest, a topic with a history that bridged into theology.

    According to the books, which Daniel reminded himself were aimed at children, the Octyrrum was a benevolent primeval force in addition to being a world. Another book had described individual gods as aspects of the Octyrrum, and there were seven of these as well. These beings were agents of the Octyrrum¡¯s greater will, but at some point, they¡¯d fought and neglected their stewardship of mortal kind. Something, the books were unclear, had then caused a great catastrophe known as the Collapse.

    What the prefix of Octyrrum implied didn¡¯t escape Daniel. Whether the weird translation thing affecting him had just shoved the proper noun through without adjusting it and it was a coincidence, or the missing eighth god and Realm were symbolic, he couldn¡¯t tell from the books. Not wanting to interrupt the rest of someone no doubt higher level than him, and his only lifeline in this village, he shelved the insight and moved on.

    The Crest was this world¡¯s Satan and Hell combined into one. It had eaten into the Octyrrum from its edges and killed the majority of life when it first arrived. The territories not immediately engulfed became monster-ridden. To one familiar with science fiction, it seemed more akin to a cosmic horror than a religious one. The societies of the Octyrrum eventually found a way to fight back by spreading Spokes, though only after being pushed to the very center of the seventh Realm. These Spokes stabilized sections of the Octyrrum and pushed back against the Crest. Slowly, they were reclaiming the world, as every planted Spoke strengthened the Realm they were in. The Spokes themselves were not described in great detail, and there was no sense of time besides ¡®deep history¡¯ and ¡®slightly less deep history¡¯. Daniel had no idea how long they¡¯d been at it. Centuries at least.

    If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    That knowledge accounted for half of the books. The rest covered immediate concerns: classes, mana, powers, and advancement. Some of it he¡¯d been told or had guessed but the books filled in the gaps. With a similar mystical air, the books described how the Octyrrum had granted some kind of blessing to allow mortal kind to improve beyond their feeble nature. This became the classes, which predated the Collapse. There were some caricatures of several classes included with the educational bedtime story. A noble Hero, an Arcanist ringed with magical light, and what looked like the first half of the front cover of a book where teenagers gained the power to turn into animals. That one was titled Totem Warrior. Cool, am I some kind of werewolf? Wait, I¡¯m not a Totem Warrior!

    Attributes were mostly in line with what he¡¯d discovered, and advancement was indeed the way to make them better. The topic was complex enough that the books only had a graphic similar to a thermometer, leaving out the mechanics of the process. Levels were on the left and a range of attribute values on the right. It started at 0 for both sections, with a golden line separating level 1 and 10 on the attribute scale. Levels continued to climb until 9, incrementing at every 10 points of the attribute scale as Daniel had guessed earlier. A Hero accompanied the rise in power, growing stronger and acquiring flashier gear as he climbed. Daniel swore the one at level 2 was glaring at him.

    Powers were only mentioned as fantastical things of magic that the blessed were allowed to wield. How and why people were chosen, it didn¡¯t say, but there was a nice reminder that even those who couldn¡¯t gain a class were still loved by the Octyrrum and could help society in other ways. This was followed by an illustration of several people working in fields, smiling up to the air where every symbol of the gods collected in the rough pattern of the Octyrrum.

    Mana was the last topic he delved into and it was described in flowery language. The Octyrrum was responsible for distributing mana to the ¡®faithful¡¯ during their rest, although this could only happen if they were asleep. To Daniel it sounded like some kind of Santa Claus allegory, but he wouldn¡¯t complain about free mana if it didn¡¯t recharge naturally. This is kind of like spells refreshing after a long rest. Speaking of, it had to be past midnight. Long nights weren¡¯t unfamiliar to Daniel. Being terrified by stone giants and interrogated by draconoids was. He was exhausted and out of things to keep him awake. As he settled into one of the library¡¯s beds, he wondered what kind of dragon Murdon was supposed to represent.

    ¡­

    The next morning, Daniel awoke to find Gadriel glaring at him with a sword raised to split him in half. His scream slowly died as Gadriel didn¡¯t move. Mischievous laughter echoed from behind him. ¡°Really?¡± Daniel¡¯s withering tone faded as he peered closer at the Hero. ¡°Wait, is this an illusion?¡±

    ¡°Sorry, I couldn¡¯t resist.¡± Lograve put a plate of food on the table as a peace offering. More cord fruit and meat, though it was a kind of breast now instead of a leg, ¡°And I had to make up for last night.¡±

    ¡°So you are a wizard. Uh, Arcanist,¡± he corrected.

    ¡°I see you¡¯ve been learning.¡±

    Daniel nodded as he reached for one of the fruit. ¡°I¡¯ve got a basic sense of things. The books didn¡¯t go too much into advancement.¡±

    ¡°That is a rather complicated topic for a children¡¯s book and requires live instruction. I thought it best to discuss over breakfast.¡± He gestured to the false Gadriel. ¡°This clod mentioned you had four advancement potential?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. He said I should try and keep things even.¡± Daniel briefly went over his attributes, grimacing when he reached the last one. ¡°I guess I should just put everything in charisma?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not as simple as Gadriel makes it out to be. He¡¯s something of a fanatic about his development path. In truth, there is no superior path. Or, if there is, we don¡¯t have the evidence to show which one it is.¡± Lograve began drawing on a board lying on another table, a surprisingly normal set of blackboard and chalk. ¡°From one point of view, advancing your attributes together means you have a wider variety of powers and fewer weaknesses. What that ignores is how advancements are earned.¡±

    Lograve drew a curve. It started sloping upwards at a fair pace but then leveled off. The chalk pointed to the start of the curve. ¡°Mortals unlock the potential to increase their attributes by pushing their limits and accomplishing feats through the use of their powers. Before they gain a class, this can include anything from cooking, to studying, to fighting. Once you gain a class, those tasks will relate to the ideals underpinning them and the powers they grant. However, if the task is too simple compared to your level and power, you won¡¯t get anything out of it. Worse, there are diminishing returns for repeating the same task, and some people can lose the ability to gain advancement for no discernible reason. The sole exception is combat, specifically slaying monsters.¡±

    Lograve waited a moment to see that Daniel had understood. He continued in a completely serious tone, and Daniel realized he hadn¡¯t joked at all after dismissing the illusion. ¡°Advancement requires time and a state of focus on the attribute you want to improve. However, mortals can¡¯t advance beyond 10 until they do take a class. Perhaps it is better to say they gain their class when they reach an attribute score of 10, and can¡¯t get that high without doing so. Now, the problem with a zealous path of balance is-¡±

    ¡°I think I got.¡± Daniel indicated the chalk, and Lograve gave it to him with a quizzical look. Daniel drew the same curve but started the rapid sloping again halfway through. ¡°If you stick around in one level for too long, you run out of things to advance quickly with and get stuck. Level up sooner and you can continue with some disparity to fix, but you don''t get stuck.¡±

    ¡°Exactly!¡± There was a familiar pride shining in the man¡¯s eyes and no sign of whimsy. ¡°Of course, there are other benefits. If you level one of your core attributes early enough, you awaken all other powers at a higher level even if the source attribute itself is lower than that. One common strategy is to rush a core attribute while others are in the middle range of your current level so that you acquire better powers without making it too difficult to correct the disparity.¡±

    Daniel looked around and put the pieces together. ¡°You¡¯re a teacher too?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve got me all figured out, haven¡¯t you?¡± He took the chalk back and drew a solid line to block off the first solitary curve. ¡°Gadriel is near the high end of level two. At this point, it will take fierce battle with monsters or extraordinary deeds to get him the attributes he needs to level up. Only then can he attempt tasks appropriate for level three. Or, rather, that would normally be the case. By all accounts, Gadriel is known for being aggressive with his advancement.¡± Lograve erased the drawings but didn¡¯t immediately replace them. ¡°Heroes typically advance by taking formal quests in addition to hunting, by the way. It¡¯s more open-ended than most classes, but if they aren¡¯t careful they can get locked into an impossible one and there goes that method.¡±

    ¡°He mentioned level disparity, though. Wouldn¡¯t leaving an attribute or two alone be bad?¡±

    Lograve nodded at the point. ¡°You certainly shouldn¡¯t leave your charisma at level 0. Kob is a prime example of why. Their strength and endurance are somewhere in the 40s but their dexterity is still level two, which is below even their mental attributes if the rumors are accurate. Quite honestly, they could kill you with one strike. If you were as nimble as them you could negate all that power by simply dodging. In the case of your charisma, left alone you wouldn¡¯t be able to project your personality with the grace and aplomb expected from someone of levels such as I. Attributes are as much for defense as offense as well. Attacks that target your sense of self can be resisted if your charisma is high enough, but a weak charisma makes for a sword that swings at allies.¡±

    Daniel thought about it for a moment. His mind was moving back and forth between the two sets of curves taken from the chalkboard into his mind, pondering his path. The obvious bait was something in the middle of the two extremes, but that neglected the merits of either end. Neither of those seemed right either, and there was also the fact that some of his attributes advanced together. Nothing he¡¯d read had mentioned that being possible.

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to decide on your path now,¡± Lograve said after the silence extended. ¡°You may not have to at all. If you disappeared from your world without notice then fate may find you sent back in three, two, oooone,¡± he counted down on his fingers. Nothing happened when he reached zero. ¡°Anyways, we natives of this world have years to ponder the question of our path. You¡¯re low enough level that you won¡¯t do any real damage if you go one way and then decide on another later. There are only two things that permanently prevent you from reaching level nine.¡±

    Lograve looked at him like he expected Daniel to know the answer. To be fair Daniel had been ahead of the game several times. This one stumped him. ¡°Dying?¡±

    ¡°Well, yes, I suppose. There¡¯s also multiclassing. It¡¯s not common, but some choose to take a second class when they reach level two or three. It trades the heights of power you may one day reach for greater versatility and niche potential today. Not everyone has the will or expectation to reach the highest levels and adjusts their path accordingly. For most people, they can¡¯t advance at all into a class, though that is another topic entirely.¡± Lograve shook his head to dismiss any questions on it. ¡°Until today it appeared that the total class level one had couldn¡¯t exceed the level of their highest attribute. You are a vexing exception.¡±

    ¡°Wait.¡± Daniel now kind of got why Lograve and Murdon had been so confused about what he¡¯d said. ¡°You¡¯re saying I glitched into a multiclass?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know what that word means. I am, however, quite curious to see what happens when you reach level two. You are a rather interesting bundle of mysteries.¡±

    Daniel decided not to advance any of his attributes that morning as he still needed to think about it. Lograve stacked a few more books on the table before departing for business of his own. No mention was made of the idea he¡¯d had last night, only that they¡¯d talk about it in the afternoon.

    These books were more Daniel¡¯s speed. The text was Greather Forlothan, like the others, but still inexplicably legible. There were three books in total. One on features, one on abilities, and one on monsters. ¡°Now we¡¯re getting somewhere,¡± he said, as he cracked open the abilities book and saw a depiction of an ability called ¡®Twin Blazing Blades¡¯. It was far better illustrated compared to the children¡¯s book. Two stabbing blades of molten rock cut into something just off frame as their wielder stood afar. ¡°Encyclopedia, I hope you¡¯re hungry.¡± His stomach grumbled, not fully sated by the meal. ¡°Because I am.¡±

 Chapter 15: Charming

    Early afternoon light spilled through the front of the library and warmed Daniel¡¯s back. He¡¯d been reading for several hours at a breakneck pace, jumping from book to book instead of finishing one before moving on. Each was like an encyclopedia of its own detailing information from levels one to three, though the books didn¡¯t seem to be complete references. Artificers weren¡¯t mentioned at all, and one of the forewords warned that rare classes didn¡¯t awaken frequently enough to properly study. He did find an entry on the Totem Warrior¡¯s Regeneration power, which was shared by a ¡®Berserker¡¯ class. Like everything else he read it was absorbed into his phone and displayed in a way he better understood.

    <hr>

    Regeneration (Feature, Endurance, Domain: Restoration, Mana Burn, Level: 1)

    You possess the Power of a Healing factor, improving your natural healing rate and expanding what you can recover from. This effect scales with endurance.

    - Mana Burn: Healing rate is increased during rest, scaling with the amount of consumed Mana required to fully restore you.

    - Level: 2: Improve passive healing increase by 50% for a minor mana cost.

    - Level: 3: Improve passive healing increase by 100% and grant modest resistance to Disease and Poison for a small mana cost.

    <hr>

    Additional layers of complexity were piled on as he continued his way through the books. Mana burn and feature heightening seemed to be competing concepts. By now, Daniel had discovered that features were passive powers that did not cost mana to function, whereas abilities were more on the level of fireballs: burst effects with a direct mana cost. Abilities didn''t have any way to improve themselves beyond attribute scaling, but features were another matter.

    Heightening a feature required being a level greater than the feature¡¯s base form and unlocked additional power. This required mana, and spending it this way also capped your maximum mana. This process allowed something awakened at low levels to be relevant even as someone climbed higher. A feature could be heightened at any time as long as you had enough mana and didn''t have to be raised all the way up if you were multiple levels above the base version. This lasted until mana was restored at dawn, which reset everything.

    Mana burn, on the other hand, rewarded a conservative approach by disposing of mana left over at the end of the day for a positive effect. His general impression was that this was stronger than what heightening could do, at least out to level three, but required careful use of mana to effectively deploy. Most powers didn''t have this auxiliary effect, though Regeneration did. It fit with when his wounds had and hadn¡¯t healed on his journey to Hagain Village. I could have healed my arm on the second island if I hadn¡¯t spent all my mana on the time stop. What it didn¡¯t explain was why his phone wouldn''t show the power on his character sheet. The conundrum of his development path only grew more obscure with the knowledge of the books, not less.

    As Daniel continued to read, he considered the powers he knew he had. One¡¯s pretty useless without any formulae and I¡¯m not too keen on using the one I have. That was a lie. Flying through the air on wings of lightning would be a dream, he just needed to solve the many problems of its current design.

    He heard the front door open and was surprised until he remembered this was supposed to be the public library. People should have been streaming in and out of here with the concentration in the village at an all-time high.

    ¡°Are you the librarian?¡± In an instant, Daniel knew the voice belonged to someone beautiful. Unlike the avianoid Quala, this person was putting effort into sounding as alluring as possible. He turned and gaped at the most recent arrival that stood in the light coming from the windows. It was impossible for her not to have a class. Instinct told him that, yet she was unarmored and unarmed. The only thing that could be considered a weapon was a strangely reinforced accordion on her back. The face was human and had the only completely clean skin he¡¯d seen since coming here. She looked like she was passively using an app filter by the marbled appearance of her cheeks. That was normally something Daniel found distasteful, but with her full focus on him, it played differently.

    ¡°My name is Evalyn,¡± she continued as if she expected the stunned silence. ¡°I¡¯m hoping there¡¯s a better record of the survivors here than the Roster.¡± She winked and added, ¡°Maybe you could help me find it?¡±

    Bard? Daniel numbly thought. His phone buzzed with a notification that he ignored. The books he had read included explanations of common Bard powers, but at the moment he couldn¡¯t remember anything besides her. ¡°Uh-¡± It was just like when Gadriel had tried to make him confess. Something was pressuring him to divulge information he didn¡¯t have. At least this time the experience was more pleasant.

    She frowned as he didn¡¯t answer and turned to the shelves. ¡°Sorry for bothering you.¡±

    ¡°N, no it¡¯s fine,¡± he mumbled. Suddenly, his mind cleared.

    Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    ¡°You need to work on your charisma,¡± she laughed with her back turned, not unkindly. ¡°That ripped through your little heart like it was a leaf. It¡¯s a shame, you¡¯ve got potential. Not many men here care about their skin.¡± Not many men spent a lot of time indoors or practiced regular hygiene either, Daniel assumed, but he didn¡¯t mention that point. Three books were dropped on the floor as she continued to search for what she needed.

    His blush remained despite whatever had affected him coming to an end. Women didn¡¯t need mana to make him flustered. She, like many people, provoked questions. Was the instrument her Focus, or was it intrinsic in her voice? Why was she looking for survivor records? Did she have a boyfriend or husband? The people here didn¡¯t wear rings so it was hard to tell. She probably does, he thought, and then had another one. Oh, damn. I hope those last two questions aren¡¯t related.

    Evalyn didn¡¯t find what she was looking for before Daniel could find his courage. ¡°Well, thanks anyway. Maybe I¡¯ll look you up next time I¡¯m here.¡± Her smile haunted him long after she left.

    ¡­

    Daniel¡¯s next visit came as the light from the windows stretched to the back wall. They were just as friendly as the first, though not as attractive. ¡°Hey Guy!¡± Thomas said, carrying two trays into the library.

    ¡°Thomas!¡± The man wasn¡¯t who Daniel was expecting. The medic was also moving with something that could be considered a walk instead of his normal pace of a half run. ¡°Uh, thanks.¡± He accepted the tray. Still the strange braised meat, but the fruit had been replaced by a steamed grain. ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°The librarian sent me. He¡¯s a bit more than I would¡¯ve expected.¡± He took a sedate bite of his meal.

    ¡°Are you alright?¡± Daniel asked.

    ¡°Yeah. Why?¡±

    ¡°I just.¡± He thought of the best way to say it. ¡°You always seem like you¡¯re going at max speed.¡±

    ¡°Oh, that.¡± Another long bite accompanied by a lax wave of a hand. ¡°You¡¯ve only seen me on the job. I was the only healer in my village before all this. I had to get things done quickly with all the idiots going off fighting monsters and getting hurt. Some at their wall were even trying it to get a class that way. Idiots.¡±

    Daniel nodded and took a bite of his own. ¡°So, you¡¯re on break?¡±

    ¡°Reassigned actually. Our other healers like Quala are coming back to switch out with us.¡± Thomas lazily scratched the back of his head. ¡°Kinda surprised they¡¯re sending me with Kob since I didn¡¯t want to fight in the first place. Not like I can heal most of the people on the team, but our new Commander insisted and you can¡¯t say no to him, can you?¡±

    The books Daniel read today had expanded his understanding of general healing powers in addition to his own. Clerics like Thomas could receive restorative powers more often than other classes, though they didn¡¯t have a monopoly on them. Healing abilities were also more common than features like his Regeneration, with a notable exception. Healing Hands was a Cleric only power that provided a passive healing factor weaker but akin to Regeneration and worked on whoever they touched. Based on how handsy Thomas had been that first day, it was reasonable to assume he had that.

    When determining how much an ability healed, the level of the user and the target were both important. A higher level caster could heal a lower leveled individual more than one of equivalent strength, and could do nothing for one above their level. Clerics like Thomas, Daniel thought, pondering on how real religion seemed here during the conversation.

    They were halfway through the meal, the talk up until this point being one-sided in Thomas¡¯ favor as the cleric relayed several points of gossip. Not about anyone he had directly treated, that seemed to be against some code, but telling second-hand stories about who was caught in a tent they shouldn¡¯t have been in was fair game.

    ¡°I have a question if you wouldn¡¯t mind,¡± Daniel said when there was a break.

    ¡°Go for it.¡±

    ¡°Do you just worship one god or all of them?¡± He asked the question carefully. Daniel knew religion could be a touchy subject, especially when said religion excluded the possibility of other worlds like his own.

    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t worship that much.¡± Thomas leveled the half-stripped bone in his hand at Daniel. ¡°I¡¯m no preacher. Not to say I¡¯m an apostate or heretic, of course. And, just the Hand. I¡¯m in it to help people, no one needs my help finding a god.¡±

    None of the books had gone into great detail on the gods, but Daniel could¡¯ve guessed the sigil that belonged to the Hand. He¡¯d only seen it on Quala, with the medical tents, and on one of the Realms. ¡°Is that one associated with healing?¡±

    ¡°The Hand is responsible for the restoration domain,¡± Thomas confirmed. ¡°Don¡¯t know much about Clerics do you?¡±

    ¡°Not really.¡±

    Thomas glanced around at the books. ¡°Well, one of these would probably tell you, but I don¡¯t mind, Guy. Lograve said to wait until he got back so this topic¡¯s as good as any to pass the time. It¡¯s down to what specialty you want if you want one at all.¡± He pulled out a metallic emblem suspended on a chain from beneath his clothes. It had the sigil of the cupped hand on it and was probably Thomas¡¯ Focus. ¡°I always knew I wanted to help people, I just didn¡¯t know how until I got my class. Heh, that''s an entire other story for another time. Anyway, picking my church wasn''t hard. Scythe was out, obviously. Destruction domain,¡± he clarified. ¡°And no one¡¯s crazy enough to choose Hourglass. The church to that god in my home region only had one follower. People who don¡¯t want to follow any specific god just worship the Octyrrum, but they don''t really have a church like we do. Not a common choice.¡±

    ¡°Is it responsible for the universal domain?¡± Daniel asked. His encyclopedia had contained references to it.

    Thomas shrugged. ¡°I guess you could call it that. There¡¯s no formal name as far as I know. Octyrrum Clerics get variety but no specialization. To each their own.¡±

    ¡°Huh.¡± To Daniel, it sounded like there was far more depth and control in the Cleric class than others, if you could get predictable power sets by bowing to the right statue. He actually felt a little jealous considering he was an Artificer without any way of getting more formulae. It was possible he could buy them, but that just brought him back to the sinking feeling that the game he was in was in the mobile genre. ¡°Are people going to be good without you there to heal them?¡±

    ¡°Oh yeah, don¡¯t worry Guy.¡± Thomas leaned back in his chair and put his feet up on the table, giving a quick look to the door to make sure it was just the two of them. ¡°We¡¯ve got other Clerics, and normal people who know blood¡¯s not supposed to be oozing out of someone. Crest, even if we didn¡¯t have that, Quala should be coming back and she must be the strongest Hand Cleric left in the region.¡±

    As with everything magical he experienced, Daniel¡¯s mind produced far too many questions to ask at the same time, and he had to pick one to start with. ¡°Can people be brought back from the dead? I don¡¯t have anyone who needs that, but it doesn¡¯t look like the books cover that kind of power. Is it really high level, if it exists at all?¡±

    Thomas gave him an odd look, half-suspicious of something, and Daniel worried he¡¯d once again set off someone who was once friendly. It could be that bringing people back from the dead was impossible or related to something distasteful like necromancy. He was dealing with an alien culture, even if it was close enough in other areas that he could interact with people without endless confusion. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s a thing,¡± Thomas said eventually, uncharacteristically falling silent as he picked up one of the discarded bones and drummed it against the tray. He didn¡¯t seem angry at least, and Daniel decided to leave it at that. After another minute of silence, Thomas launched back into his earlier stories as if nothing had happened. Daniel relaxed as the tension eased and his background thoughts turned once more to wondering what the arcane trickster had in store for him.

 Chapter 16: To Choose Your Fate

    Lograve arrived back at the library an hour after Thomas had. Following the awkward silence, the Cleric had led the conversation to his recently abandoned village of Verlund and mostly complained of those who frequently visited him. The stories reminded Daniel of his mother¡¯s and he¡¯d listened nostalgically, glad Thomas at least didn¡¯t overreact to innocent questions.

    ¡°What are those doing out of place?¡± Lograve asked, noticing a set of books stacked on one of the tables.

    ¡°Oh, uh,¡± Daniel stammered nervously. ¡°A Bard came by looking for something on the survivors?¡±

    ¡°The library is closed! The sign on the door said as much.¡± It seemed one of the few things that made Lograve angry was an intrusion into his home. ¡°Did they take anything?¡± Daniel shook his head hurriedly. ¡°Well, that¡¯s good. Who were they?¡±

    ¡°She said her name was Evalyn. She was looking for more information on who survived the Upswell. I couldn¡¯t stop her, sorry.¡± Thomas was watching Daniel¡¯s face with interest as he blushed.

    Lograve relaxed. ¡°Oh. She shouldn¡¯t have intruded but I suppose I understand, given the circumstances.¡±

    Stop thinking about the Bard. Daniel forced himself to focus on something else despite Thomas clearly wanting more information. ¡°Isn¡¯t the library always supposed to be open?¡±

    ¡°A lot has changed recently. Thank you for coming,¡± Lograve addressed Thomas.

    ¡°No problem.¡± Thomas grinned as Daniel painfully remembered his penchant for gossip, but he held his tongue too. For the moment at least.

    ¡°You said you had an idea as to how I could help,¡± Daniel desperately changed the topic. ¡°Does Thomas have anything to do with that?¡±

    ¡°Yes. His presence here goes beyond spreading the word of your new flame to the rest of the village.¡± Lograve shared a shark¡¯s smile with the Cleric. ¡°Ah but don¡¯t take it too hard. I assumed she charmed you? It¡¯s practically second nature to a Bard.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, she-¡° The books in front of him prompted a question. ¡°Wait, advancement can come from accomplishing feats related to your class, right? Can Bards advance with-¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± Lograve cut off the question before it increased the age rating of the conversation. ¡°Like anything it has diminishing returns.¡±

    ¡°Is it ok for them to use their powers that way, or at all on someone they¡¯re not fighting?¡±

    ¡°The charm powers of Bards are based only on attraction. It is gray, morally speaking, but it¡¯s not outright, uhm.¡± Lograve paused and tried to put it delicately. ¡°Those kinds of powers won¡¯t make you do anything you wouldn¡¯t willfully do under the right circumstances. Perhaps we should discuss the assignment I have in mind instead?¡±

    ¡°No no, this is getting interesting,¡± Thomas interjected, still smiling. "Hey, Guy, wanna see who can turn her head first?"

    Daniel turned away from him entirely. If it¡¯s going to be like that, I¡¯m putting you both on pause. He needed to clear his head and from what he¡¯d learned, spending mana this close to night was safer than earlier in the day. He wouldn¡¯t need the mana burn effect of Regeneration unless he was attacked in the next few hours, which seemed unlikely.

    His eyes were fixed on the building across the street with Lograve in the peripheral. People were beginning to settle in for the night. Crowds moved about as villagers took advantage of the last chance to socialize before curfew restricted them to their assigned quarters. The first time he¡¯d used Moment of Clarity he was too panicked to make sense of it or realize he¡¯d even used magic. Now, he could faintly sense the mana within him dwindling. He had about two minutes, give or take, before he¡¯d run out. The ongoing drain wasn¡¯t too bad, but initiating the ability had taken a chunk of the magical energy. He suspected the descriptors ''moderate'' and ''minor'' mana cost in the Encyclopedia entry referenced discrete quantities relative to each other, but he had no idea of the numerics involved since his only sense of his mana was an abstract pool that shrank with power usage.

    Half of the time he¡¯d bought was spent finally driving the specter of Evalyn from his mind, leaving the rest to actually think. Roost¡¯s Peak. Thomas joining Kob¡¯s team and then coming here. Assignment. What Lograve wanted him to do seemed obvious in hindsight. Does Moment of Clarity improve my intuition, or did I just need time without any chaos going on to get my head straight? But monster hunting? Sure, he beat a sparkbat swarm, but only by jumping off a cliff. He didn¡¯t even have the stick he¡¯d used against them.

    I do have Ringcat, he thought, finally remembering that there was a murder cat out there with his name on it. I don¡¯t think he¡¯s even level 1. Kob¡¯s level 4, so anything we fight¡¯s going to be out of my league. Everything is out of my league.

    Mana was burning up within him. Daniel¡¯s senses were growing more attuned to the new source of magic, but only slightly. I could just stay here and read. It¡¯d grow more crowded, but it¡¯d be safe. What does Lograve expect me to do? He remembered Thomas complaining when he¡¯d first entered the library, provoking another question. Wait, what would Thomas do?

    A few seconds passed and he understood. Depending on the team¡¯s composition, we¡¯re either cannon fodder or trainees. If this is Lograve¡¯s idea I doubt it¡¯s the former, so they¡¯re trying to cheese advancement? Taking part in destroying high level monsters would logically give Daniel the means to level up even if he only took a small part in the fight. The drawback, what he guessed the drawback was based on how experience worked in role-playing games, was that the strategy would inversely impact the rate of advancement among the higher-level members.

    Lograve did say he wanted to know what happened when I reached level two. I guess he wasn¡¯t going to leave me reaching it up to chance. There was conflict in him, but as the last seconds ticked by he made a decision.

    ¡°I¡¯ll do it,¡± Daniel said. To the others, it appeared a sudden declaration without the minute and a half he¡¯d spent thinking. In that time, he¡¯d forgotten the last thing that had been said.

    ¡°Really?¡± Thomas almost squealed. It was night and day with him when he was off the job.

    ¡°No.¡± Daniel fixed his eyes on Lograve. ¡°I¡¯ll join Kob¡¯s team. It¡¯s some kind of training run, right?¡±

    The Arcanist looked floored, as if Daniel had pulled every book off the shelves around him and burned the pile. ¡°Did Evalyn or Thomas tell you?¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t know myself.¡± Thomas offered, recovering from the crack in his voice and beaming at what Lograve had implied. ¡°That does make more sense than taking me on as a primary healer. I should have thought of that.¡±

    ¡°I had a lot of time to think about it today. There were clues, I just put them together.¡±

    Lograve coughed at the simple answer. ¡°Well, that¡¯s well deduced. I thought I would need to talk you into it and brought Thomas here for moral support. I see that was misdirected.¡± The look Lograve gave Thomas was only mildly stern. He couldn¡¯t be too upset at a kindred spirit.

    ¡°I-¡° Daniel paused and also looked at Thomas. ¡°Should I mention how I got here in front of him?¡±

    ¡°No. Just leave that out and I¡¯ll know what you mean,¡± Lograve said over the Cleric¡¯s protest.

    ¡°In that case, my home is pretty boring, Lograve. It¡¯s probably hard to believe, but something like this is what I¡¯ve been waiting for.¡± He took a seat and supported his head with a hand. ¡°Not falling out of the sky or lightning bats, but if I¡¯m already here? This kind of mission seems like the way to learn how to use my powers. It''s that or wait around here to be attacked. At least this way I''ll have someone strong looking out for me.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sure the fact that Evalyn¡¯s on the team helps right?¡± Thomas ribbed him.

    ¡°Yeah, actually. I¡¯m not going to deny it.¡±

    The others laughed, and Lograve added, ¡°Oh, you¡¯re going to have to be careful around her. Bards can be just as sharp as they are soft.¡±

    ¡°Who else is on the team, by the way? I don¡¯t suppose there¡¯s another Artificer I can learn from?¡±

    ¡°Well, no, you''re the only one in the region.¡± Lograve¡¯s tone grew hesitant as he continued. ¡°There¡¯s ten total. You¡¯d know yours truly, Kob, Thomas, and¡­ Gadriel.¡±

    Daniel choked on his spit as he fell out of the chair. Sputtering, he cried out, ¡°No, oh no, no way!¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°Assistance?¡± the gestalt in front of Daniel asked as he found himself under a red banner. It was the next day, early morning. The village and camp surrounding it bustled with renewed activity. The next wave of hunting teams were departing throughout the day and final preparations were being made. Three of the stablehands behind the gestalt were guiding the giant mammalian spider called a silk shocker to someone that Daniel was grateful wasn¡¯t on his team.

    He wasn¡¯t sure if this was the same gestalt he¡¯d spoken to before or not but tried to be familiar either way. ¡°Hi! I¡¯m here to pick up Ringcat.¡±

    ¡°Return?¡±

    Are they asking for a receipt? I didn¡¯t get one. How would they even read that if they¡¯ve got some kind of weird language processing difficulty? Daniel watched another monster whose knees extended above the rest of its body amble of its own volition towards someone at the edge of the fences. Oh. ¡°I can¡¯t, would you mind if I looked around?¡±

    ¡°Care.¡± The gestalt opened the gate and Daniel passed through.

    Ringcat had not had a pleasant experience in the village. Everything besides the hunters was bigger than it but behaved like prey. The docile nature struck it with more fear than anything else. Whatever happened to them was wrong and there was no escape from it. This made the furious hatred towards the hunters and all they made grow ever worse, kept only at bay by the concern of what lashing out would do to its only ally here.

    It still sensed the pack member near and would have escaped to find it if not for the hunters. They would surely kill it before it could reach open ground and make full use of its speed. The meat given to it was the one positive. Ringcat ate more in those few days than it had in the past month.

    Strength was rising within it. Growth was near. The hunters were slowly giving Ringcat the key to its escape. By the same feral instinct that made it fear the other beasts around it, Ringcat knew a change was coming that would enable it to leap the fences in a single bound and clear the tents before a weapon could reach it. Only, the pack member found it first.

    ¡°Ringcat!¡± Daniel called out as he spotted the green outline among the rest of the gray. Identify Creature was proving more useful than he¡¯d first thought and he¡¯d wished he¡¯d kept it on the beast in the first place so he could have kept an eye on him. ¡°I hope he hasn¡¯t been too much trouble.¡± The gestalt¡¯s vines grew taut for a second before it unhitched the pen Ringcat was in.

    ¡°Fortune.¡± They gestured back to the front gate.

    ¡°Thanks, you too! Come on Ringcat. Uh, please?¡± he added as he didn¡¯t move. The murder cat then reluctantly padded to his side. The cat¡¯s eyes were locked on the gestalt next to Daniel. ¡°Thanks again!¡± Daniel waved as he left.

    ¡°Spiritualist.¡± The curse would have been spoken under the gestalt¡¯s breath if they had any.

    ¡­

    Tlara''s most treasured power was the Stasis Pouch function of her Focus, though it was a topic of debate among the few Beastmasters she knew. Storing her tamed creatures in her Focus removed much of the upkeep that would otherwise eat into her funds. The less money she had to spend on her tools, the better. There were downsides to such a radical power, of course, but she was far from someone who liked having all her monsters follow her around.

    She idly picked at her arm and pulled a tick out from under the feathers before tossing it into her beak. It was only fair to feed on what would feed on her. The parasites were a fact of life for her class and an opportunity as an avianoid. Opportunities were how Tlara saw the world. The blank spots on Kob¡¯s team had screamed to her when their name first appeared on the Roster. That was just before the guard had approached her and ¡®encouraged¡¯ a discussion with the Commander.

    Stolen novel; please report.

    While Daniel had been passed out in the manor¡¯s lounge she had pounced on another opportunity. A negotiation, in fact. Murdon had intended to intimidate her into keeping the dragon under wraps. Tlara didn¡¯t see the benefit of informing everyone else that they should be as cut-throat as her, but Murdon wanted it kept secret and that gave her leverage.

    If anyone was going to survive in this region without the protection of Eido, its garrison, or the Spoke, it would be the strongest. That was Kob and their team. She was on the higher end of level two and had enough experience to justify her presence there. More importantly, she had a bargaining chip and not much else to cash it in on.

    Kob¡¯s team was assembling a few minutes walk away from the town before they¡¯d set out for Roost¡¯s Peak. A lone tree amidst the grassy hill was chosen for lack of more appropriate meeting spots. Their destination was to the north and built into the foothills of the massive mountain ridge. Its closer position to the Crest and the dangerous mountains meant it needed walls and its own small garrison even when the Spoke was providing its protective effects. Heldren¡¯s team had gone ahead to support part of the garrison as it protected the withdrawing civilians, leaving the rest behind to fend for themselves.

    The team Tlara joined was going to slaughter everything in the area to allow the remaining garrison to hold the fort. As she understood, Roost¡¯s Peak was being used as a holdout to stem the tide of monsters from the north. The longer it could stand, the safer Hagain Village would be. Only it doesn¡¯t matter, she thought. It¡¯ll get bad when people realize that.

    She needed to be stronger and to be in the company of the strongest. Fortunately, her wisdom, the attribute paired with endurance to be core to her class, was 27. The ongoing penalty to advancing her strength would make catching that up difficult, but overcoming monsters with raw force was what Kob was for. All of the potential she earned during this trip was going straight to wisdom. Once she reached level three, she¡¯d discard her current set of tools for those of higher quality. She¡¯d be strong enough to survive and justify her presence with the titan.

    That was the double-edged blade of the Beastmaster. Their strength was inherent to those creatures they tamed and their powers were mostly suited to enhancing their tools over themselves. What direct offensive powers she had were mostly focused on weakening enemies, monsters in particular, or enhancing the attacks of her tools. Beastmasters were tremendously potent in times of peace, but in her current situation, it would be harder for her to adapt than other classes. Precisely why she needed to be in the company of the strongest. Crest, Kob could just tie up level three monsters for her, as long as she could get the point across to them.

    Four individuals and the titan that was Kob were waiting by the tree when noon arrived. Herself, another avianoid, another gestalt, and an insufferable human who was making her gender very clear to the world. A Bard, Tlara thought. Great. If there¡¯s another of them or a Hero, we¡¯re doomed. At least there was another avianoid. Their diets differed slightly from humans and were completely distinct from gestalt, which didn¡¯t have one. Having at least one other meant they weren¡¯t packing special food for just her. He had the look of a Totem Warrior and she was relieved to find he carried an earth totem focus. Avianoids who took an air totem practically shouted their unoriginality. She needed allies who could think.

    Kob was another matter entirely. Their expression was as solid and dull as their false hide. ¡°Wait,¡± the rumbling voice responded to her glance.

    ¡°Yeah, yeah. Just feeling exposed out here.¡± A strip of longer feathers on the outside of her upper arms raised, similar to the skin of humans when they got goosebumps. It was hard to suppress the reaction due to the level disparity. Her charisma was just under level two, neglected along with strength for more appropriate attributes.

    The other avianoid seemed grateful for the silence to be broken by someone else and spoke up. His feathers were almost entirely brown, the severed paw he wore blending in well. ¡°I am Tak. You are a Totem Warrior, like me?¡±

    ¡°Beastmaster, obviously.¡± She scoffed. The intelligence penalty of his class was making itself known and it seemed her initial impression had been wrong. It didn¡¯t occur to her that not having any of her beasts out might make one tend towards another assumption.

    ¡°Do I sense a flame kindling?¡± the human added unhelpfully. The charm effects she showered on others might have made Tlara tolerate her more if she didn¡¯t despise Bards. The woman could force an ability through her weak charisma if she wanted to, and knowing that grated on Tlara¡¯s nerves. Both avianoids looked at the human. Tak¡¯s expression was lecherous compared to Tlara¡¯s spiteful one. ¡°I can already tell this is going to be a fun team,¡± the Bard laughed, and no one in the group was able to tell how she¡¯d faked the easygoing chuckle.

    ¡­

    Lograve had told Daniel that he should approach the meeting point alone. It would be better to be seen as an individual and not someone attached directly to his puppet strings. That¡¯s how Lograve put it anyway. He¡¯d also been warned not to mention the whole ¡®from another world¡¯ thing. According to Octyrrum theology, there were no other worlds except the hell that was the Crest. Any hardline believer would take offense if Daniel claimed otherwise, especially with the disappearance of the Spoke making people scared and vulnerable.

    Just what I needed, zealots. He and Ringcat had gotten close enough to the meeting tree to make out who¡¯d already arrived. Upon seeing two of them he pulled out his phone and shakily tapped it. Daniel had imagined his first advancement would be a special moment, maybe the night after his first monster hunt. Instead, he used all four points on charisma before he¡¯d be face to face with a hot woman and a Hero who hated him. His entire body tingled.

    <hr>

    Your Charisma is now 10! Advancing it beyond this point will allow you to awaken Powers bound to this Attribute as determined by your Class. ???

    -

    Your Charisma is now 12! You have gained Feature: Bartering.

    <hr>

    Daniel felt buyer¡¯s remorse. What was he thinking? He was about to go off to fight monsters, the last thing he needed was the ability to- wait, what did Bartering even do?

    <hr>

    Bartering (Feature, Charisma, Domain: Knowledge, Level: 1)

    You possess the Power to improve your haggling when trading or making other business deals related to your primary profession. This effect scales with charisma, and Intelligence to a lesser degree; inversely scaling to the opposing Creature¡¯s charisma. Sentient creatures that possess a higher Level than you have a significantly higher chance to resist this effect.

    <hr>

    Useful if I¡¯m ever somewhere that uses money. Damn it! He realized Ringcat was looking at him oddly. The emotions the murder cat had shown so far had been hunger, exhaustion and hunger, fear and hunger, and today fear and complacency. This was something else. It¡¯s almost like I can sense him? Like I can tell what he¡¯s thinking instead of just guessing.

    ¡°Can you understand me?¡± he asked. The thought that he was embarrassing himself in front of the distant team was pushed aside. Something important was happening. His instincts told him that even if he couldn¡¯t describe it. The answer to his question was no, he realized. Ringcat couldn¡¯t fully understand him because there was an ephemeral barrier between them that Daniel could now perceive. And break! He had that potential now. He had that choice. ¡°I don¡¯t know exactly what this is but it feels like it¡¯ll do something to both of us. Do you want that?¡± he asked Ringcat.

    Ringcat was confused. The pack member had started shining in its mind¡¯s eye. The light was warm and comforting and terrible. It knew it was the same force that had dulled the minds of the others in the stables and it wanted to slash and kill the pack member before it could wield the terrible light against it. However, the pack member was its better and it could not resist them.

    Daniel felt an emphatic ¡®No!¡¯ from Ringcat, the response strong enough that it broke through the wall. ¡°It¡¯s ok boy,¡± he said sadly and patted Ringcat¡¯s head. ¡°It¡¯s probably something weird anyway. I¡¯ve got a few things going on and that¡¯d be just another to add to the pile.¡± He looked at the people on the rise ahead of him. ¡°You know, I have some friends now. At least two! You helped me when I first got here, or, at least, you didn¡¯t kill me. I don¡¯t know if you can understand me or not, but if you want to be free then you should be free. If I let you go, will you just run? No biting?¡±

    Ringcat sensed the hunter in the dual creature show itself. There were other hunters behind, and many, many more in the village below. Its instincts told it to attack the hunter/pack member if it had a chance, but it didn¡¯t want to. The hunter/pack member was at times as meek and defenseless as when it had first spawned, though there was also a strength the dual creature hadn''t yet realized that the ringcat could appreciate. More than that, it felt as though this creature could truly see it in a way no other had. Even with a dark presence in the back of the ringcat¡¯s mind urging it to rip open the soft mortal¡¯s neck before him, there was something else there that pushed back and quelled the killing instinct.

    It had happened before Daniel consciously registered it. In his soul, he¡¯d wanted to release Ringcat if he wouldn¡¯t harm him. The agreement was made and the charm on the creature was removed instantly. Afterwards, Ringcat didn¡¯t flee. Instead, his phone vibrated with two notifications.

    <hr>

    ??? has evolved into Feature: Beast Friend*. This Power Evolution was triggered through the rejection of the original Power by your Soul. The original Ability has been lost and cannot be regained.

    -

    Beast Friend* (Feature, Charisma, Domain: Universal, Level: 1)

    You possess the Power to create and strengthen a Bond: Friendship between yourself and Creatures of Type: Beast that are not currently Charmed, Tamed, or Dominated by another. To be affected by this feature, the beast must be a receptive target and of a Level equal to or lower than this feature when it is used. After this feature is used, it cannot be used again unless the original target dies or the bond is willingly severed by both Entities. Additional benefits may be granted depending on the nature of the creature and the strength of the bond.

    *???

    <hr>

    The light had changed! The illusion of the pack member had fallen away from Ringcat¡¯s eyes to reveal the hunter that lurked beneath. Yet this hunter had denied itself the yoke it would put on Ringcat. It was showing mercy? The light coming from it was still warm and comforting, but there was no longer a soporific taint that would dull Ringcat¡¯s mind when eclipsing it. The ringcat felt no magical compunction to defend this individual, but the strange part of itself pushing against its normal instincts was winning out and preventing it from attacking.

    Daniel sensed once more the wall between Ringcat and himself. He still had the power to break it down, though now that would only create an opportunity instead of forcing the power¡¯s effect to work. ¡°Well so much for no more weird stuff. An ability I didn¡¯t know I had turned into a pun so bad my Focus gave it an asterisk.¡± He reached out a hand to Ringcat as if to shake a paw and cringed internally when he remembered the rest of the team was still watching him. Too late now. Guess I¡¯ll embrace it. ¡°So what do you say Ringcat? Beast friends?¡±

    The handshake went further than the physical realm. Ringcat sensed the hunter reach out to it with the light. The deal could not be undone once it agreed. This hunter was different. Was it a hunter at all? Its instincts told it so, but its instincts would have seen it kill the hunter in its sleep, kill this hunter right now after biting off the hand. For a third time, a part of the beast it hadn¡¯t noticed before pushed against that impulse. There was something different about this ringcat. Something that had been there, sleeping until circumstance had woken it. Ringcat was a feral beast that suddenly realized it could be more.

    The world changed slightly, a minor shift for all but the two on the outskirts of Hagain Village. ¡°Well I felt something happen,¡± Daniel said to Ringcat brightly before checking his phone. To his surprise, no notification came through. He shrugged and pocketed it, turning his attention back to his new friend. ¡°I guess that makes us beasties. Ugh, I¡¯ll stop that. Thanks for not killing me, and for doing whatever it is we just did. I hope it¡¯s not going to turn out too strange. You feeling alright?¡±

    Yes? came the mental reply, snarling and confused.

    ¡°Oh good, glad to hear- wait what!?¡±

 Chapter 17: Off on an Adventure

    Meeting new colleagues was always stressful. It was worse when they were armed, said work was monster hunting, one already hated you, and another was passively seducing you. It was unbelievably awkward when they had just watched you yell at a wild animal that was now talking in your head.

    Hunters are danger, the voice of a snarling beast silently spoke to Daniel. He couldn¡¯t block it out, now on the receiving end of a deal that could not be broken. At least he could reply in kind.

    They¡¯re going to be hunting with us. Well, it¡¯s kind of the other way around, he thought to the beast and then asked, Can you hear all the thoughts I¡¯m having?

    Do not think? Do not like this.

    Well just handle it for now please, I have to talk them into thinking I¡¯m not crazy. Oh hell, I have a murder cat in my head. I¡¯m already there.

    I am murder cat? The concept of a name was foreign to Ringcat. Expressing anything above instinct, and then communicating that to another creature, was foreign to Ringcat. It was a very confusing time to be Ringcat.

    Stupid feature, Daniel thought pointedly to himself, not entirely sure if he was safe doing so. I thought it would just let me ride Ringcat into battle or something cool like that. He shifted his thoughts towards Ringcat as a test after there was no challenge from the beast. I¡¯ve kind of been calling you Ringcat but if you want a better name we can workshop it. Just follow my lead for now and we can talk, er, think about this later?

    Fine. Daniel felt a presence in his mind leave him and sighed in relief as that confirmed the telepathy wasn¡¯t always on. Ringcat was done thinking to him for now.

    ¡°Are you alright Guy?¡± Thomas asked as he joined the group. His voice had that inflection people used when they specifically weren¡¯t trying to mention the long-toothed elephant on the hill. ¡°We were waiting for you.¡±

    ¡°Do you have that thing under control or not?¡± an avianoid in the group that he recognized as female by the voice asked bruskly, overriding the Cleric. ¡°Most powers don¡¯t need you to yell at a creature to get them to behave.¡±

    And now two people hate me, Daniel thought. Gadriel¡¯s silent glare confirmed the count. Maybe now that my charisma doesn¡¯t suck I can try and fix things with him. I still feel like it¡¯s all a misunderstanding he¡¯s too stubborn to explain. ¡°He¡¯s fine, don¡¯t worry.¡±

    ¡°He?¡± The avianoid gaped, turning to Lograve. It was an odd expression for someone with a beak. ¡°Oh Crest, you''re bringing a Spiritualist with us!?¡±

    Both Daniel and Lograve winced as more hostile glances were directed towards Daniel. For Lograve¡¯s part, it was the realization he¡¯d forgotten to mention something crucial. Only the other avianoid in the group, Thomas, and oddly Kob didn¡¯t look affronted.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know what that is. I¡¯m-¡°

    Hunter pack! Danger! Ringcat blared an alarm in his mind, the presence pouncing on his mind.

    It¡¯s fine, don¡¯t do anything to provoke them! ¡°I¡¯m-¡° he tried again, struggling to keep up both conversations.

    ¡°Our tenth member here is no Spiritualist, no more than I am a flying duck, haha,¡± Lograve cut in, attempting to salvage the situation. The humor was forced and the quality showed it. ¡°Daniel is just fond of his companion. Your views don¡¯t extend to all monsters, right Daniel?¡± It was a question with only one answer.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Daniel nodded. It wasn¡¯t far from the truth depending on what ¡®views¡¯ Lograve meant. Some in the group relaxed. Gadriel and the female avianoid didn¡¯t. He identified them just to be sure they weren¡¯t planning to-

    Light?

    You can see that?

    Yes. What is?

    Explain later, Daniel thought, then put himself on private mode to scream internally.

    ¡°Well, if that concern is addressed we should start moving,¡± Lograve said with a hint of sternness. ¡°And if there is any confusion on that point, bring it to me and not Mr. Brant here. Kob is nominally lead given they are the highest level, but they have ceded operational command to myself.¡±

    ¡°Agree,¡± Kob nodded their massive head.

    ¡°Just so we¡¯re clear,¡± the female avianoid seethed, ¡°If this man is a Spiritualist, I will do what is necessary to defend myself.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not!¡± Daniel protested. ¡°I¡¯m here to train like everyone else. Sorry we got off on the wrong foot. Or, eh, talon. I guess foot would still be appropriate? I should stop talking.¡± That seemed to soften the avianoid¡¯s glare, but only because she thought he was an idiot. That was better than hatred and he¡¯d take it.

    The ten began moving through the grasslands of the Thormundz. Of their number were six humans, two avianoids, and two gestalt. The ringcat that followed Daniel was omitted from this list as it had not yet passed the probationary period for sentience. It went where it willed, which just so happened to coincide with Daniel¡¯s path. The pack beast Tlara had summoned was barely considered as a thing and best listed among the group¡¯s possessions.

    Roost¡¯s Peak was a four-day journey away, and most of those days would be spent walking. Fighting was not a foregone conclusion yet hope remained the roads were still clear. That wouldn¡¯t be the case forever. The survivors of the village should intersect with them at the halfway mark, assuming they left as scheduled. Long distance communication magic existed, but Lograve had explained to Daniel that it was a niche ability only reliably acquired at higher levels or in the rare Fate class. None were left in the Thormundz that had such a power and any items that could produce a similar effect had been spent uselessly trying to call for aid.

    Lograve was at the back of the group and had dragged Daniel out of immediate earshot of the others. ¡°Sorry, I should have mentioned that before now. It honestly slipped my mind.¡±

    Daniel grunted as he shifted the sturdy weight of his pack. Both he and Ringcat had been loaded with rations and supplies when the group set off. The female avianoid had summoned a creature similar to a rhino with a giant sparking purple spine for a horn and three huge legs to serve as a pack animal. Daniel also had weapons now. Real weapons, not the discarded branch of a dome tree. Two daggers, a short sword, and a crossbow slung over Ringcat''s side. Armor that felt like a very stiff jacket wrapped his torso making the summer¡¯s heat a threat without reliable hydration. While they made him feel more comfortable taking on monsters, it didn''t balance out having made instant enemies of two in the group. ¡°What¡¯s a Spiritualist?¡± he whispered back, hoping to at least resolve one of the blunders.

    ¡°Something like a hornet trapped in a jar. Mad and dangerous if let out, and even worse if you let them build a nest.¡± Lograve paused for effect. ¡°A core belief of the Octyrrum is that sentient creatures have souls, while monsters are spawn of the Crest and are only evil incarnate. There are also the normal animals, but none of them try tearing your throat out with arm-length teeth.¡±

    ¡°Is this like the belief that there aren¡¯t other worlds?¡±

    ¡°Well, yes,¡± Lograve conceded. ¡°But this is one I give more credit to. There are thousands of people with the Beastmaster class, if not more, and you''d think someone would have noticed odd monsters. Spiritualists, on the other hand, believe there is an intrinsic quality to all monsters that is akin to a soul but different. A spirit, and thus their name. Most people know someone injured or killed by a monster so it is not a popular opinion, made worse by the radical Spiritualists that will attack people trying to hunt, though they are far less common. A giveaway that you¡¯re talking to a Spiritualist is that they¡¯ll refer to monsters as if they have a gender, whereas biologically that is not the case.¡±

    ¡°Oh. Fantasy animal rights group then.¡± Daniel thought for a moment. ¡°So how do monsters, you know.¡±

    ¡°When a monster grows powerful enough by consuming others, it can spawn another of its kind by itself without needing to pair up.¡± Lograve grimaced at the thought. ¡°It should be said that while some monsters have the habit of forming loose groups to protect developing young, only one is required to reproduce. They can also spawn from the Crest to any part of the world, so it is impossible to completely cull the monster population in a region.¡±

    ¡°Weird, but ok.¡± He still feels like a he though, Daniel thought privately. And I¡¯m still not checking to be sure. ¡°Then Ringcat shouldn¡¯t be able to talk to me?¡±

    Lograve took in a breath as if he had to open a jar someone had stuffed live hornets into. ¡°Strange question. No, it should be less conversant than a bucket.¡±

    In Daniel¡¯s experience, trusting Lograve had worked out so far, and he needed to spread the weirdness out a little. ¡°He, uh, does talk to me.¡±

    Lograve stopped, stung. ¡°What!?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re drawing attention.¡±

    ¡°Oh let me tell you about drawing attention,¡± he started, then sighed and modestly lowered his volume. ¡°What happened exactly?¡±

    ¡°It was right before I met you. I improved my charisma, there was this power evolution, and suddenly the murder cat was talking to me.¡±

    ¡°What!?¡± The others had stopped now too. ¡°We¡¯ll catch up, go on!¡± he called out. ¡°Broken strap!¡± After the rest of the group had passed on, the Beastmaster shaking her head, he whispered conspiratorially, ¡°Think they bought it?¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Daniel said with a mournful tone. ¡°So about that power, when it evolved I couldn¡¯t see the original one. I guess that confirms I¡¯m a Totem Warrior too? Or at least I have some of that class'' powers somehow.¡±

    ¡°Do you even know what power evolution is?" Lograve didn¡¯t wait for Daniel to answer. "It is very rare! You might as well have told me you¡­ came¡­ from¡­¡± he trailed off. ¡°You are a very strange man, Daniel.¡±

    ¡°So what exactly is power evolution?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s when you intrinsically reject a power your class gives you and remake it to better accommodate your inclinations. It''s less an upgrade and more changing something to better fit your desires. But,¡± he raised a finger. ¡°Anyone with a class usually accepts the powers that come with it. Major life changes can alter someone¡¯s preferences enough that they clash with some aspect of their class, though an evolution can only occur if the power wasn¡¯t awakened before the change occurred. It''s very hard to grasp a power enough to reject it before you reach the point of intrinsically understanding it.¡±

    ¡°How do you know all of this? Actually?¡± Daniel gave Lograve a suspicious glance. ¡°You¡¯ve had an answer for almost everything I¡¯ve asked.¡±

    Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    ¡°I¡¯m a teacher, it¡¯s only natural. And studying can grant advancement potential to Arcanists,¡± he added dismissively. ¡°Probably Artificers too. But it¡¯s impossible for your ringcat to talk to you. Biologically, if nothing else.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s my bad. It¡¯s more like a telepathy thing.¡±

    Feh, telepathy, like you could do that, Lograve thought towards Ringcat, forming a Telepathic Link with the ringcat for the Crest of it even though nothing would happen.

    What? Who? Daniel watched Lograve¡¯s tanned skin turn impossibly white as Ringcat replied. It even got the scar tissue.

    ¡­

    The rest of the day passed uneventfully. Daniel felt like a new kid in school that the teacher had singled out as untouchable. The comparison wasn¡¯t too far off. The hike had been hard but his endurance was lessening the strain on his body. That didn¡¯t mean he enjoyed it. From the village, he¡¯d been supplied decent shoes and a pack that didn¡¯t quite cut into his back, but ten hours of walking would leave anyone with some form of sores. Figures, Daniel thought as he looked around him. I get shot into a fantasy world and I end up camping. I guess I should have gone for the cyberpunk one instead.

    Three fires were lit in a small forest and various social circles formed around them. High society flocked to Kob who neither minded nor participated in their company. This included Gadriel, Evalyn, and an earth gestalt that incorporated throwing weapons into their mass. Lograve could have been included in this number as defacto leader but he was elsewhere.

    The two avianoids had formed the core of the second fire with Tak providing the literal spark. He¡¯d dogged after Evalyn all day, but when camp came high society circled their wagons and shunned him. A heavily armored human and Tlara¡¯s spark rhino completed the four.

    The last fire had been lit by Thomas and shared by Lograve, Daniel, and Ringcat.

    ¡°It¡¯s not good that we¡¯re so fractured,¡± Lograve commented. ¡°I¡¯m hoping the first battle will sort that out.¡±

    ¡°I could go apologize to Gadriel again,¡± Daniel offered, hoping Lograve would say no.

    ¡°Nah Guy, don¡¯t do that. You¡¯ll just look like you¡¯re trying to suck up to the Spireborn,¡± Thomas interjected with an odd turn of phrase. ¡°You¡¯ve got to earn his respect.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s right. Show you can handle yourself and people will believe you¡¯re not just riding my coattails.¡± Lograve ruffled his robes for emphasis. ¡°Get some rest. We¡¯ll be farther out from Hagain and more likely to run into trouble.¡±

    ¡°Well, night Guy,¡± Thomas said, turning away from the fire and settling into a bed roll. It was summer, but the nights were chilly. The fires had been set to burn out on their own without intervention or risk of spreading and would provide warmth enough to make for comfortable sleep.

    Daniel settled into his pack and Ringcat padded to his side.

    Tall hunter knows. The voice came as the cat settled next to him.

    He¡¯s a friend. That hadn¡¯t stopped Lograve from briefly panicking when Ringcat wouldn¡¯t stop being sentient. Whatever happened to the beast allowed him to communicate telepathically to anyone who could touch his mind, and Lograve had a power that did just that. Ringcat couldn¡¯t begin the conversation like with Daniel, but he could respond like any other thinking creature contacted by the Arcanist.

    You said explain. A low rumble vibrated Daniel that wasn¡¯t entirely unpleasant.

    Right. Daniel closed his eyes. What do you want to know?

    Name?

    You have an idea?

    No. Yours?

    Oh. It was very weird introducing yourself to the murder cat you¡¯d already been traveling with. Daniel did it anyway. Daniel Brant. Just, uh, just Daniel is fine though.

    Light? Daniel identified Thomas, who now had the sleeping effect on his tag. Yes, that.

    It¡¯s a power I have. It lets me, and you somehow, know if people are good or not. Green is good.

    Green is good, Ringcat repeated. Power?

    It¡¯s like your claws, but different. Sorry, that doesn¡¯t make any sense. Do you know what magic is?

    No.

    Daniel opened his eyes again, looking between Thomas and the creature beside him. He dismissed the identify effect. Try doing it yourself. Maybe if you can see the light you have access to my powers?

    How?

    I don¡¯t know. The identify creature power didn¡¯t have a chant, arcane hand signs, or even require pointing. Daniel just wanted it to happen and it did. Wait, let me try something else. I¡¯m curious if it¡¯s just this power or all of them.

    While Daniel had been banking on Regeneration¡¯s mana burn effect to heal the sores the day¡¯s walking had brought, he felt he could spend some mana on Moment of Clarity in the name of science. His perspective of time froze and he was about to reach out to Ringcat when the beast did it for him. What? Can¡¯t move! By the sound of Ringcat''s voice, the absolute panic the power caused would have had the murder cat jump out of his fur if he could.

    Oh sorry! Shoot, should have warned you. Daniel didn¡¯t dismiss the effect, not wanting to waste more mana on the startup cost. It''s another power. We can¡¯t move but we can think. To each other too apparently, even though time¡¯s stopped.

    Can¡¯t¡­ breathe¡­ The words were drawn out like Ringcat was dying, and Daniel couldn¡¯t help but find it a little comical.

    Do you need to? That thought hadn¡¯t occurred to Daniel the last two times he¡¯d used the power. Time is frozen so we shouldn¡¯t. Again, sorry, but I want to test something out. He willed his Identify Creature feature to function on his resident test subject Thomas, and the Cleric was ringed with light again. Time resumed its normal course.

    Do not like. Ringcat didn¡¯t rampage but did audibly growl. Thomas stirred, but the sleeping effect remained on him.

    I can¡¯t do it too often, but imagine being able to sense every enemy in a fight and plan a move while they¡¯re frozen. Doesn¡¯t that sound useful?

    No. Up until now the voice in his head had been straightforward, guarded, and feral. The response was still feral, but now evasiveness tinged it.

    You don¡¯t have to admit it, Daniel laughed internally. Thomas the night light was turned off again. Now you try. Not the time stop thing, just the light. I can¡¯t explain it, but try willing him to be tracked? That sounds closer to something you would normally do.

    There was a pause that stretched long enough that Daniel was willing to abandon the attempt and call it a night, until his phone buzzed.

    <hr>

    Alert: A Creature you have a Bond: Friendship with is attempting to access Feature: Identify Creature. You may allow or deny access to this feature. Only one of your Powers may be shared at a time.

    <hr>

    Benefits? You didn¡¯t tell me about any benefits. Daniel pressed the allow button that accompanied the alert, though he felt the permission could also be mental. Thomas lit up again without him having to do anything.

    Strange, Ringcat thought pensively.

    Hey, that was great! Your senses are probably sharper than mine too. Woah! Daniel softly whistled as wildlife suddenly lit up around him. He''d never have imagined how much life was around the seemingly empty countryside. Gray animal shapes filled the darkness of the campfire¡¯s edge. Daniel saw squirrels, nesting birds, something called a spark mole digging through the earth, and creatures he had no earthly reference for. The red outlines of monsters were present as well, but far enough away that their auras almost blended into the background.

    Gray? Red? Ringcat was rotating his head like a radar dish.

    This is amazing! You can sense really far out. A kilometer, maybe more? Having all of this tagged is kind of distracting though. Daniel¡¯s vision was filled with the shapes in the distance, but he refrained from removing the light from any. He was about to go to sleep and Ringcat could have his fun. Red is dangerous, things that want to hurt you. Gray is something that isn¡¯t your friend or an enemy.

    Prey.

    Not necessarily! Daniel objected, noting most of the team members had a gray aura. Still, I could see you hunting a lot of this stuff.

    I will. Ringcat stood on his four powerful legs.

    Now? Aren¡¯t you tired?

    Will hunt. Feed. Return. Rest. Ready for tomorrow.

    For a level 0, your endurance is impressive. That didn¡¯t draw a response. Ringcat¡¯s green outline began to stalk through the underbrush. Watching the jungle cat at work by way of aura vision kept Daniel awake for another thirty minutes through intrigue alone before the toil of the day finally brought sleep.

    ¡­

    The late night antics made Daniel the last to rise. Ringcat, true to his word, was at his side when dawn came. ¡°You do sleep with that thing Guy,¡± Thomas greeted with a grin.

    ¡°Don¡¯t knock it til you try it. It¡¯s like having a fuzzy blanket.¡± Daniel let the gentle ribbing go, still glad to have a friend on the team. The travel pains from yesterday were also gone. His Regeneration worked even if he spent a fair amount of mana on Moment of Clarity. ¡°I guess she doesn¡¯t do that,¡± he nodded to the Beastmaster he now knew was named Tlara. Ringcat had identified the entire team for him last night. Even though she should have resisted the name revealing effect due to her level, someone must have mentioned her name in passing and that was all it took. Wish I had that on Earth.

    ¡°Yeah, the tit without tits just had it lay down away from everyone else.¡±

    ¡°Try not to antagonize the lady with the murder rhino,¡± Daniel laughed, glad they were out of earshot. There was a charm to Thomas that made Daniel wonder what his charisma was. It couldn¡¯t be too different from Daniel¡¯s as they were both level one, but Thomas got along much better with everyone but his patients. I guess attribute score isn¡¯t everything.

    ¡°You¡¯re ahead of me there. You¡¯re a nice enough guy but you have a strange attitude towards monsters.¡±

    ¡°Ringcat¡¯s just special.¡± He brushed his hand against the beast¡¯s neck. Ringcat tolerated this.

    Thomas went to pat him as well but was met with a growl. ¡°That¡¯s one way to say it. Oh, Lograve wanted me to pass along our training team assignment. We¡¯re far enough away from the village that they want a plan ahead of time.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean? We all aren¡¯t fighting together?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Thomas shook his head. ¡°Not unless something really bad finds us. Or vice versa. Otherwise, we¡¯ll split into groups of 5 so it won¡¯t be hard to keep track of everyone. It¡¯ll be me, you, Lograve, the gawper, and Tak. He¡¯s¡­¡±

    ¡°I know.¡±

    ¡°Perceptive, aren¡¯t you guy? I don¡¯t think he introduced himself to you.¡±

    ¡°I have my ways,¡± Daniel responded mysteriously, keeping a brave face to hide his wariness of the Hero.

    The ten continued north, departing the small forest and coming to a wide expanse of unbroken grassland. Besides the road, the grass grew tall to flowering in places. Daniel would have feared what could be lurking in the fields of grass if he didn¡¯t have Ringcat. To limit distractions, Daniel had asked the beast not to tag anything that could be considered prey while they were moving, but to alert him to any threats.

    Murder cat radar! Nice, Daniel thought as he saw a red outline in the distance move away and out of sight. Hey Ringcat, we still need an actual name for you. Any thoughts?

    I am me, came the grave response.

    I¡¯m not going to call you ¡®me¡¯. People would think I¡¯m even crazier than they do already. What about Daniel Jr.?

    Joke? Ringcat asked.

    Yeah, that would be weird too. Well, let¡¯s just keep thinking. Something like Murdercat or Murderclaw would be too on the nose, but it¡¯s better than ¡®me¡¯.

    Tak had approached Daniel while he was in silent conversation. A question was asked, though he didn¡¯t register it until it was repeated. ¡°You are an air Totem Warrior?¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Daniel sighed, tired of the old joke but in good spirits. ¡°Well, probably not. I¡¯m an Artificer. Wait, air Totem Warrior?¡±

    ¡°Hmm,¡± the wirey bird sighed with a beaked grimace. ¡°First Tlara and now you. I have been so off lately.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know about her, but a lot of people have been confusing me with one lately. It¡¯s fine.¡± Daniel noticed a large feline paw hanging from Tak¡¯s waist that looked oddly similar to a ringcat¡¯s. ¡°You¡¯re one?¡±

    ¡°Yes. Level two.¡± Tak beamed with pride. ¡°I had a question for you, human.¡±

    ¡°Daniel.¡± He offered a hand and the two shook. ¡°I¡¯ll answer if you answer one of mine after.¡±

    ¡°Fair trade. The Bard, Evalyn.¡± Tak enunciated each syllable of the name. ¡°For humans, what approach would you recommend? My charisma is not the best and I have not had much success so far.¡±

    Nervous sweat joined that from exertion. ¡°I¡¯m, uh, not the best to ask.¡±

    ¡°I am only looking for pleasure, if you had a similar goal.¡± Tak said that like it was reassuring. ¡°We do not need to compete.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve probably been with more humans than I have Tak.¡±

    ¡°I have not been with any.¡±

    ¡°Then it¡¯s a tie.¡± Tak blinked at him. ¡°Look, you¡¯ve got this whole primal look going on pretty well,¡± Daniel assured. ¡°And from what I¡¯ve heard Bards will jump on anything that moves. Maybe you¡¯re just making it too easy on her?¡±

    ¡°A predator needs to hunt its prey.¡± Tak nodded thoughtfully, and strangely Ringcat did too. ¡°I will make a fresh attempt tonight.¡±

    A like mind. Ringcat purred in Daniel¡¯s head.

    Yeah, you seem like you''d like him. A little too unabashed for me but he¡¯s friendly so I¡¯ll take it. ¡°Well, good luck! I did have a question too.¡±

    ¡°Ah. We did have a deal.¡±

    ¡°Air Totem Warrior? Are there different kinds?¡±

    ¡°Yes. You seem like one. Similar Focus at least. Totem Warriors can choose different elements. I chose earth because earth Totem Warriors are stronger than most. Evalyn will discover this tonight.¡±

    ¡°Right.¡± Daniel let the awkward conversation end there, mostly content with how it had gone.

    A few minutes later, there was a shout in Daniel¡¯s head. Pack! Massive! Ringcat alerted Daniel as a sea of gray filled the air ahead of them as individuals crossed into Ringcat¡¯s detection range. Most had names.

    It¡¯s ok, we were expecting them. Keep close and it¡¯ll be fine.

    ¡°Everything alright?¡± Tak asked, still walking close by.

    ¡°The survivors of Roost¡¯s Peak are close.¡±

 Chapter 18: Prelude to the First Hunt

    ¡°Lograve, we¡¯re coming up on the survivors!¡± Daniel called out. Tak peered at the road ahead, but couldn¡¯t see through the rolling hills.

    The group tensed and did the same. No one had expected Daniel, at the back of the group, to have noticed first. ¡°How far?¡± Lograve asked.

    ¡°Two kilometers, maybe? I don¡¯t know how far this goes yet.¡±

    ¡°Sir, I challenge that claim. No man of your level can sense that far, power or no.¡± It was the first time Gadriel had spoken to Daniel on the journey.

    ¡°It¡¯s Ringcat. I¡¯ve got a power that can mark things and he can use it.¡±

    ¡°Is that an Artificer power, or a Spiritualist one?¡± Tlara rounded on him as well.

    ¡°Not a Spiritualist and I don¡¯t think that¡¯s a class, so it¡¯s gotta be Artificer.¡± Daniel held his ground. The murder cat at his side helped. Then his knees began to quiver as the murder rhino joined Tlara. ¡°Look it¡¯ll be obvious soon. If you don¡¯t trust me trust your own eyes.¡±

    ¡°An acceptable wager,¡± Gadriel said with a hint of menace. Daniel hadn¡¯t bet anything but he knew he was right, so what was the harm?

    Fortunately for Daniel, they confirmed his sighting a few minutes later. The ten saw a reputable caravan in the distance, carts and all. Gadriel had a less fierce expression on his face now. ¡°You are owed an apology, sir. Forgive me, your early escapades give me pause to believe further absurdity from you.¡±

    It didn¡¯t sound like an apology but Daniel took the olive branch all the same. ¡°Thanks! I took your advice, by the way. My charisma is 12 now. Is it helping?¡±

    ¡°You accomplished this through your instant advancement?¡± The tone was back to challenging.

    ¡°Other people have to have that, right? I mean, do you know every power that exists?¡±

    ¡°Not as such.¡±

    Daniel paused in surprise. He¡¯d scored a point. Walking the line seemed easier all of a sudden as level one charisma began to pay for itself. ¡°So is it hard to believe I can do it? You can swing a sword around like a yo-yo and that¡¯s hard for me to believe.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t entirely understand your meaning. Yet, upon reflection that is a fair argument.¡± Gabriel looked down, and then back at Daniel with renewed daring, ¡°But your claims of this ¡®dual advancement¡¯ is an affront to the foundations of attributes!¡±

    That¡¯s what this is about? Daniel took a deep breath. Gadriel¡¯s bluster had bowled him over before. Now, his new charisma seemed like a shield against it. He tried to mimic the hero¡¯s formal speech. ¡°Sir Cross, I can honestly say there are things about myself I don¡¯t understand. I have only presented my personal truth. The expression of the world as I see it.¡± Let¡¯s see if flowery language gets the job done.

    ¡°You swear this?¡±

    ¡°I do.¡± Daniel puffed out his chest in case it would make a difference.

    Gadriel looked at him for a while, studying his face. The team had the time. They were taking a break to wait for the caravan to reach them. His aura hadn¡¯t been fully red at the start of the journey, but a fair amount had bounced back and forth across the gray like a lava lamp. It drained away. ¡°You are a man of your word, it seems. After our initial encounter, I discovered you were not consciously aware of your earlier tomfoolery. There is an enemy of mine who makes it a habit to torment me by proxy and I assumed you were his, witting or no. You, sir, have earned another of my rare apologies.¡±

    Thank god. Or is it gods now? Wait, I never asked Thomas if praying was still a thing here. Can they hear my thoughts? He realized he was blowing his chance to make nice with Gadriel and refocused. ¡°I appreciate the generosity. Ringcat and I will have your back.¡±

    ¡°The creature does appear an odd example of its kind. Befitting of the master. I will hold you to your word, though as your superior in level and path, I will temper my expectations.¡± Gadriel put a hand to his chest in some form of salute and walked away. His aura was now solid gray, so, progress.

    It took half an hour but the survivors caught up to them, leading the hunting team to split up as Lograve sought a status report. Daniel had no interest in interfering with whatever discussion was happening between Lograve and Heldren Storm, who had been swaggering at the head of the survivors. He did see a very charged look pass between Gadriel and the other Hero, and after thinking back on their first conversation it was clear who Gadriel had meant by an old enemy. He guessed there was some kind of backstory there but had no intention of getting in the way in case Gadriel started throwing swords.

    On the other hand, he was interested in talking with Quala. Picking out her semi-green aura from the rest of the caravan was fairly easy, even though some of the people he''d never met had an initial positive impression of him. He¡¯d bemoaned his powers early on for their lack of flash, but was now appreciating their usefulness, especially Identify Creature. Aided by the force multiplier that was Ringcat, he''d made what was meant to be a simple query tool into a god-like detection field. On the way he clued in Thomas, who''d mentioned Quala in passing several times. It turned out to be a good move as the Cleric was already heading off to find her.

    ¡°You kept it.¡± Quala¡¯s greeting briefly dipped into disapproving surprise but recovered to the gentle wisdom she¡¯d had at first. ¡°You are standing taller than the Totem Warrior I met last week.¡±

    ¡°Oh yeah, he¡¯s the best Totem Warrior I¡¯ve ever seen,¡± Thomas said quickly before Daniel could correct her. Daniel nudged him but that just made the Cleric¡¯s smile brighter. ¡°Great to see you, Quala! Anyone here need help?¡±

    ¡°No, thank you, Thomas. You should conserve your mana for the road.¡± The two seemed more familiar than Daniel expected.

    ¡°Was she your mentor?¡± he interrupted. ¡°Thomas told me he was the only healer in the Verlund village but didn¡¯t say where he was before that.¡±

    ¡°Indeed. He was my apprentice for two years in Hagain Village before taking to his own. We both came here from Aughal following, well, it¡¯s best left unsaid.¡± Thomas grew serious as the two shared a look.

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    Daniel wasn¡¯t going to touch that. ¡°Wow, just two years? Where I come from doct- uh, Clerics can spend five times that learning their trade.¡± He was about to say magic probably made the process easier but shut up about other worlds. These were exactly the kind of people he shouldn¡¯t mention that to.

    ¡°Yeah, Guy says things like that but he¡¯s not too bad otherwise,¡± Thomas answered Quala¡¯s confused look. She raised an an eye at the way he addressed Daniel, though Thomas continued on before she or Daniel could ask. ¡°I think he had an improperly healed head wound as a child.¡±

    ¡°Well, in any case, it is good to see you as part of a training team. Level two will do wonders for your practice, believe me,¡± Quala laughed. It was the first time Daniel had heard an avianoid laugh. Hers had a pleasant song-like melody that made him feel better for being near it. Avianoids probably had an advantage when it came to bedside manner since their voices were a step above the other races he¡¯d met. Well, except for Tlara. She somehow found a way to ruin that natural advantage.

    ¡°And how was your journey? Any advancement potential?¡± Thomas asked.

    ¡°No, it was there and back mostly. We¡¯ve left the monsters to you two. Three.¡± She nodded to Ringcat. ¡°It seems to have warmed to you after all. New power, a taming one perhaps?¡±

    ¡°You could say that,¡± Daniel answered, deciding to store the revelation that Thomas had given him a nickname for later.

    Not tame, Ringcat growled in his head, and the anger underlying the words fully pushed the other matter out of his head.

    I know but I can¡¯t just tell her that.

    Why?

    I- The world¡¯s treatment of Ringcat suddenly seemed just as unjust as it had Daniel¡¯s. I shouldn¡¯t need to, but if I do it¡¯ll make things more dangerous for you.

    Fine. Ringcat¡¯s presence left his mind and left Daniel troubled in its absence.

    ¡­

    The caravan and its hundreds of people passed by the eleven as they followed the road. Their arrival would stretch Hagain¡¯s resources but not to the breaking point, not yet. Daniel watched the distant auras disappear as Ringcat obligingly removed the marks. They¡¯d yet to find a distance that the marks would fade away at and could have tested it here, though having a grey blob on the horizon was ruled as too distracting by both. Daniel found sadness accompanied the departure of Quala¡¯s aura. Ringcat may not have murdered him in his sleep, but she was the first person who had shown him real kindness in this world.

    The eleven were in high spirits when Ringcat gave his second warning of the day to Daniel. Enemy packs!

    Daniel was about to ask if they were more people until red outlines lit the grass to his left and right. By the size of the auras, he could tell they were about halfway within Ringcat¡¯s maximum range. The auras were also of ringcats. Why didn¡¯t you tell me sooner?

    They stalk. Hidden. Maybe more.

    ¡°We¡¯ve got company!¡± Daniel said like he was bracing an assault rifle to his shoulder. I don¡¯t suppose you can tell them not to attack us?

    They hunt us. No.

    ¡°Where?¡± half of the people asked together, drawing weapons. The earlier doubt about his detection power was gone.

    ¡°Two ringcat packs to our right and left pincering us a kilometer out. Looks like¡­¡± Daniel counted quickly. ¡°Thirty-ish each. Mostly level ones, but both groups have level twos my power says are ''Alpha Ringcats''. Could be more.¡±

    ¡°Impressive nose,¡± Tak complimented Ringcat. Daniel wasn¡¯t sure if the Totem Warrior had more insight into their relationship than he let on. Ringcat¡¯s impression of the bird man only improved, at least. ¡°They must have followed the caravan to pick off the weak who fell behind. That is us.¡±

    Lograve took command. ¡°Convenient that they split their numbers into two groups. Break into the formations we discussed. Trainers take the brunt, but let your trainees get some hits in so this counts for something. Go off the road and clear a space to fight!¡±

    Kob¡¯s team pounded away to the right while Lograve led Daniel and the rest left. His heart was racing from more than the running pace. Everything that had happened to him, not counting the sparkbats and all the falling to his death, hadn¡¯t been too dangerous. Now three dozen bloodthirsty murder cats were coming to rip him to shreds.

    Ringcat sensed Daniel¡¯s fear. Flee?

    I can¡¯t.

    Pack large. Death.

    Lograve fought something worse than them and Tak seems to be itching to fight. They¡¯ll be fine. He tried to sound more confident than he was. You¡¯re not going to run, are you?

    No. Ringcat didn¡¯t elaborate.

    Just stay close. I don¡¯t think either of us should be fighting these hand to hand. Claw to claw, whatever. He looked at the shortsword he was holding. He¡¯d drawn it without realizing. Not through practice, but an instinct to grasp at anything when predators were at large. He carefully sheathed it and went for the crossbow on Ringcat instead.

    What is? Ringcat watched Daniel sight the weapon. The crossbow had a tough string and was capable of firing bolts just shorter than his arm was shoulder to wrist. Daniel had chosen that over the bow when asked about ranged weapons, knowing the latter required practice that he didn¡¯t have. Young Daniel, however, had had a lot of experience sighting down arcade guns. This should be similar, right? It¡¯s a long fang, I guess.

    Longfang. Ringcat accepted the poor explanation at face value.

    Daniel, Ringcat, Lograve, Thomas, Tak, and Gadriel stood in grass that went up to their waists. Everyone could see disturbances in the plants ahead drawing closer. Daniel could make out the predators hidden in the movement. They would be on them in a minute. Lograve concentrated for a moment and then waved his hands. Two scythes of ice appeared from the moisture of the air and started harvesting the grass around them to make a clear circle.

    ¡°Is that Aquakinesis?¡± Gadriel asked.

    ¡°Yes! I just heightened it to level three. Now listen up if you don¡¯t want to be cat food. Thomas and Daniel, remain in the center of the circle. As long as you strike the enemy a few times you will most likely earn advancement potential. If you can manage a kill or two then all the better, but do not overextend!¡± He pointed to Thomas. ¡°And you, do not rush to anyone¡¯s aid! These beasts can¡¯t fatally wound someone level two or higher unless the pack gets on top of them.¡±

    ¡°What about the alphas?¡± Tak asked.

    ¡°Leave those curs to me.¡± Gadriel leveled his sword at one of the largest disturbances in the grass. ¡°I shall strike them down.¡±

    ¡°No theatrics, Hero. The three of us will form the points of a triangle surrounding the other two. The pack will likely attempt to get around us so stay alert. Of us three, my powers are more ranged focused, so don''t mind me if I let you two take all the glory up front.¡± The tails of the first ringcats were now visible amidst the grass. The beasts knew they¡¯d been spotted and rushed their prey with abandon. They had numbers. They had alphas. They had instinct driving them mad, rushing them towards the hated mortals they vastly outnumbered.

    Any insight from your beast? Lograve privately asked Daniel on the way to the back of the formation. Now that he¡¯d accidentally revealed the power to Ringcat, there wasn¡¯t any reason to hide it when they needed to discuss sensitive information.

    It wasn¡¯t too hard for Daniel to keep a straight face as he replied. He¡¯d been getting a lot of practice with talking in his head recently. We wouldn¡¯t have known as quickly as we did if he didn¡¯t say anything. It¡¯s alright if I keep him with me?

    Definitely. That ringcat is more valuable than you with its scouting. It¡¯s not looking for a new master, is it?  He seized both of Daniel¡¯s shoulders. Hey! That was a joke, so smile! Seriously, Daniel, you fought a sparkbat swarm and survived your first day here. Keep your head steady and you¡¯ll be fine. With that, he left.

    ¡°What was that?¡± Thomas asked, unable to follow the conversation and unaware of Lograve¡¯s Telepathy. He¡¯d only seen the physical contact.

    ¡°Nothing.¡±

    The Cleric gave him an odd look but didn¡¯t press. ¡°Ready Guy? You sure that cat isn¡¯t going to go turncoat?¡± Thomas asked.

    ¡°He won¡¯t-¡° Several snarls cut him off. The time for talking was over.

 Chapter 19: Alpha Ringcat - (2)

    Gadriel and Tak faced off against the rushing pack, about ten meters apart from each other. Tak concentrated in a way similar to Lograve and then grew massive claws and odd fangs that sprouted from his beak. Daniel was reminded of the children''s book''s image of transforming Totem Warriors. He was impressed despite the rising fear he was doing his best to control. Werewolf powers, cool. Too bad I don¡¯t have any.

    In front of the two vanguard was a short distance of open ground. Daniel and Thomas stood next to each other behind the warriors at the front, and Lograve stood a distance behind that pair. Soon after they''d all gotten in position, the grass in front of them parted. The enemy pack attacked with its youngest member first, their only level 0 and an almost identical copy of Ringcat. Gadriel disemboweled it by ducking under its leap, gleaming sword held upwards to run along the monster¡¯s length.

    The exchange hadn¡¯t even lasted a second as blood stained the field. This seemed to be what the rest had been waiting for. Six of them pounced on each of the front warriors. Daniel called out as both alphas and a detachment of level ones started edging around the side.

    ¡°I see them!¡± Lograve responded. Ice covered his torso now and he twirled the air around him to form darts. He had other powers, but the battle had called for heightening his Aquakinesis. With that in play, the Arcanist reserved his powers to preserve mana.

    The two men in the front continued killing, heedless of the circling predators. It was breathtaking. Tak, for his part, fought like the animals around him. His actions were guided by nothing but brutal ferocity. Occasional roars, probably an ability that dramatically altered his voice, startled his attackers long enough for claws to slash arteries and fangs to tear off limbs.

    The Hero was a cut above, despite being on Tak¡¯s level. Gadriel made use of his sword-slinging to strike at distant targets, but that was only one of the many attacks he used. When the sword was flying, Gadriel boxed the monster cats with his free hand and shield. It looked like he was a character in a fighting game, maneuvers chaining into each other with machined tempo. When the sword returned Gadriel would quickly use it to make an opportune slash, only to send it flying again.

    He¡¯s juggling the sword! Daniel realized incredulously. He also noticed Thomas was firing shots at the ringcats peripheral to the two brawls and remembered he wasn¡¯t just an observer. The two up front were doing fairly well keeping any from breaking through, so Daniel decided to maximize his chances of hitting something. Can I steady my aim on you? he mentally asked Ringcat.

    What?

    Just lay still and trust me. Ringcat complied with some growling, clearly not fond of being on the ground while aggressors were nearby. Daniel placed the crossbow on Ringcat like he was a sandbag and sighted down to Gadriel¡¯s fight. He had promised to watch the Hero''s back. Daniel put his finger on the trigger as the Hero was about to pull off a ridiculous wrestling-style move of picking up a ringcat and hitting another with it. Daniel sighted his crossbow and froze time.

    Do. Not. Like! Ringcat was a roar in his mind, anxiety from how he was being used combining with a severe aversion to this power. The emotion carried clear through the words, though even after they faded from his mind Daniel still felt an echo of it from Ringcat.

    Sorry, I just need a moment, Daniel soothed. He couldn¡¯t move the point of the bolt while Moment of Clarity was active, but he could anticipate the small adjustments needed to hit the target and designate them to happen as soon as time started again. Daniel assumed hitting with the crossbow required good dexterity, which was currently his lowest attribute. He wanted the first shot he¡¯d make with this fancy weapon to hit.

    Time snapped back into place. The crossbow kicked, but his decent strength attribute and bracing position on Ringcat¡¯s back kept it steady. The bolt hit the enemy ringcat slightly off center when it was above Gadriel¡¯s head and punched through. He must of hit a lung because the struck monster made a gasping wheeze.

    The Hero looked at the bolt, sword returning and cutting off the injured ringcat¡¯s head on the way. ¡°Were you aiming for me?¡±

    ¡°Combo move!¡± Daniel shouted back as he trembled. His fear was gone, replaced by excitement. The only thing that marred it was what it had cost Ringcat. Are you alright?

    Good, was the short, terse reply. Ringcat didn¡¯t like his role in this combat so far, but Daniel reasoned that he¡¯d just stand back up if this was truly bothering him.

    Daniel fired four more shots to join the first and only hit twice more. He made these unaided by his ability to spare both his mana and the long-suffering Ringcat. In the time it took him to pull the string back Thomas could fire three arrows. That being said, one of Daniel¡¯s hits had shattered a leg to cripple his target while Thomas¡¯ arrows could only hope to slay the enemy by wearing it down or getting lucky.

    Lograve wasn''t idle either. Some ice shards joined the volley, but most were directed into the brush. The alphas were the true threat. Still, the normal ringcats, all larger than Ringcat himself, were taking their toll on the frontline defenders. Tak was not as armored as Gadriel and did not carry a shield. Long slashes ringed his body, and a wound from a lucky bite drooled blood from his leg. The avianoid didn¡¯t seem to care and just kept fighting.

    Gadriel had been injured himself, but nothing so severe. The Hero wasn¡¯t even panting from exertion and continued his efficient moveset of death. Daniel¡¯s fire support had been focused on his fight and the two had developed a system. It was fairly simple. Daniel would yell when he was ready to fire and Gadriel would throw a target up.

    The group of stalking ringcats chose to strike during his eighth shot. As the crossbow recoiled, Ringcat audibly growled. Daniel turned to find both alphas and two level one ringcats charging his position while two others went to harry Lograve. Perhaps a warning would have come sooner, but Ringcat had been very preoccupied with stopping himself from doing something that would upset Daniel.

    Time froze again as a significant amount of Daniel''s remaining mana was spent. Hate this!

    Shut up we don¡¯t have time. Fear was back in full force. These alphas didn¡¯t want to fight Daniel, they wanted to grab him in their maws and carry him away to feast on. The alphas were at least twice as large as both he and Ringcat and could easily do it. Crossbow¡¯s empty. Sword, no time. Stupid, stupid Bartering!

    Daniel needed an attack or an escape. No, Thomas was with him. He couldn¡¯t abandon him, but he couldn¡¯t fight off four enemies. The only other thing I can do is play music on my phone! Damn it! He knew there were three others nearby, including the level three Lograve. It wasn¡¯t exactly clear to Daniel just how far the power gap was between levels. If Gadriel was any sign then Lograve could easily take both alphas, there just wasn¡¯t time.

    I want you to run, Daniel told Ringcat as his mana continued to burn away. You¡¯re probably faster than them and we¡¯ll slow them down.

    No.

    They¡¯ll kill you faster than me! I have armor, maybe that will buy enough time for the others to help.

    No. Daniel friend. A tear would have formed in Daniel¡¯s eye if he weren¡¯t frozen. The murder cat had called him his friend. The bond they shared made it obvious, but this was the first time Ringcat had acknowledged it.

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    Daniel still had a little mana left to prolong the freeze, but with death bounding towards him, what was the point? Time restarted, and there was an immediate noise behind Daniel. Thomas had dropped his bow in the grass and raised both hands at the coming predators. ¡°Nova!¡± There was a resonance to the voice that belied a spell, similar to when Gadriel had tried to make Daniel confess. Force spilled from the Cleric as sunlight eclipsed his green aura, a wave of force following it. Daniel and his Ringcat were knocked down and the charging enemies were stunned.

    The alphas recovered in seconds. Precious seconds. A flying sword came from the left and cut a gash in the side of one while from the right a spike of ice as long as Daniel¡¯s arm pinned the other to the ground. The free alpha still charged, until another of its kind collided with it.

    Gadriel had been strong enough to use ringcats as hammers. Tak was strong enough to use them as projectiles. The delay bought even more time as a red ring formed under the sprawled alpha and another normal ringcat. Runes of Greater Forlothan formed along the edges, then erupted in a bonfire that incinerated the level one foe in a way that would seem gruesome to Daniel if it also wasn¡¯t saving his life.

    Still, the alpha recovered. Half the fur was gone and its side bled into the charred grass, but no wound it had been dealt was immediately fatal. It moved towards the weakest mortals it could sense, maddened by an all consuming rage. Daniel¡¯s mana was all but gone and Thomas looked like he was recovering from the spell he¡¯d cast. Gadriel¡¯s flying sword was in the return of its arc and Tak had both hands occupied by the three ringcats left around him. No further help would come before the wounded alpha reached him.

    Daniel¡¯s short sword was out of its sheath. He hadn¡¯t even tried reloading the crossbow while his team bought him time. Holding the sword in front of the charging alpha murder cat, it numbly occurred to him that he could have also used the time to run. Too late now. Ringcat was behind him, prepared to pounce when Daniel struck. Maybe with both of them, it would be enough.

    The alpha was taking leaping strides in its final approach. It managed to dodge a smaller ice spike Lograve sent as the Arcanist rallied more moisture to him, landing close to Daniel. It feinted one direction drawing the point of the sword there, and then reversed course to pounce from the other. Its claw raked into the leather armor and skin as it knocked him down, then bit into the muscle of his torso. Organs were spared by the armor and Ringcat leapt onto the back to tear into the alpha. Daniel dropped the sword in pain and panic.

    Daniel had no weapon in his hand. He could punch the alpha if he felt like getting one last hit in before death. He tried to activate Moment of Clarity in desperation, but there wasn¡¯t enough mana left for the initial cost. The alpha prepared a follow up with its jaws, intent on ripping out Daniel¡¯s throat.

    The moment before its head came down, something extremely odd happened. His hand shot up of its own volition and into the beast¡¯s mouth. Daniel had neither willed it nor expected it. He certainly never would have thought of feeding his hand to the thing that was about to kill him. What the hell? Daniel thought, wondering if he truly had gone crazy right before the end. The alpha lurched and he felt something happen to his hand. Resistance, then breaking through. He could only see what was sticking out of the alpha¡¯s head because he knew where to look. The very tips of talons where his fingers should be had penetrated all the way through the top of the skull. Ringcat, still on the monster¡¯s back, also noticed and his internal shock was faintly mirrored in his friend¡¯s bestial eyes.

    Daniel would have gagged as he pulled his hand free if adrenaline hadn¡¯t kept his stomach in check. Brains were clinging to his hand and his hand was a clawed thing with leathery scales. It looked like an avianoid¡¯s, only more terribly feral, like the taloned foot of a giant eagle had been grafted onto his wrist. As soon as he fully pulled his hand out, the change melted away and he felt fully in control of his limb again.

    Less than a second later, the gleaming star that was Gadriel fell on the dead beast. The Hero had covered the distance between them in a single bound. He knocked Ringcat away with a knee as he two-handedly swung his sword to behead the larger monster. The fatal wound had been internal and went unnoticed during the decapitation. Gadriel landed in a three point stance while holding the sword out behind him. His light hair appeared golden in the sunlight, and his torn cape flowed freely in the air. ¡°Sorry to keep you waiting.¡±

    He has to have a quip power, Daniel thought in stunned appreciation, the sight momentarily taking his mind off of what had just happened. That magnificent bastard.

    Tak and Gadriel had adjusted their formation quickly. The feral avianoid dragged his combatants over to Gadriel to ensnare both groups while Gadriel dropped his shield and leaped to the trainees¡¯ defense. Now free of his other duty, Gadriel squared off against the alpha that had just freed itself from the ice spike. ¡°I was wondering if I would find a challenge today. Lograve! This one is mine and mine alone.¡±

    Thomas knelt by Daniel as the Hero made his declaration. ¡°Oh thank the Hand the armor held.¡±

    ¡°Held?¡± Daniel asked in weak indignation as lines of fiery pain burned across his chest.

    ¡°Stop whining and watch that glorious gawper work.¡± Thomas put his hands on Daniel¡¯s chest and concentrated, the skin tingling as it was healed. The Cleric¡¯s power, in addition to Regeneration, was enough to make the cuts begin to close.

    Meanwhile, Gadriel didn¡¯t throw his sword at the alpha but held his position. The last alpha was alone and the rest of its pack was fleeing or dying. It didn¡¯t give up. There wasn¡¯t enough danger to counter that incessant impulse to kill, even though it was almost guaranteed death. As they squared off like the Hero had against Daniel a few days ago, Gadriel began to monologue. ¡°I suppose it is fair to inform you, beast, that I will not use mana to destroy you. You are injured and I offer this to level our fight. Only the strength of my body and the cunning of my mind will be used to undo you. Come meet your death!¡±

    To Daniel, Gadriel looked more injured. The alpha didn¡¯t care, it just roared back at Gadriel¡¯s challenge and charged. This alpha attempted a feint, similar to the one that had fooled Daniel, though Gadriel didn¡¯t even answer with his sword. He stepped to the side as if he were dancing and punched the cat in the head. The strike was offhand and had to be angled up given the height of his foe. The alpha¡¯s head still snapped away from the force and it emitted a yowl of pain.

    ¡°I can¡¯t believe he¡¯s still boxing,¡± Daniel wheezed weakly.

    ¡°Shut up! You¡¯re still losing blood.¡± Thomas pressed harder on his chest for emphasis.

    The alpha¡¯s tail came around as it recoiled and bashed into Gadriel. That lithe limb of the ringcats hadn¡¯t impressed Daniel until then, when it threw the hero off-balance. The blow didn¡¯t create an opening for the alpha to attack but to escape. With Gadriel holding his sword juggling, both combatants needed to be close to harm the other. This brought a brief pause.

    Another three exchanges occurred, twice on the alpha¡¯s initiation and once on Gadriel¡¯s. The Hero used a combination of pugilism and swordplay to draw surface wounds but failed to strike decisively. He acquired larger gashes and the winning smile turned into a flat look of determination. Gadriel prepared to charge again, and then?

    Gadriel slipped, losing his grip on his sword in the process. Blood was everywhere and covered cut grass to create a slick surface. The alpha pounced with jaws extended for a bite, but the Hero planted two hands on the ground as he fell backward. Gadriel reversed course into a flying kick that cracked one of the alpha¡¯s fangs with his heel. The massive weight of the alpha and the momentum of its leap were turned around as it was now Gadriel falling on the beast. Somehow, the sword he dropped was back in his hands as they flew together. Still falling, Gadriel pierced the alpha¡¯s neck with his sword and buried the point into the ground.

    The battle was over. Tak had finished with his part of the battle and watched the duel with the others. ¡°No mana?¡± His words were the first that broke the silence.

    ¡°None.¡± Gadriel nodded in accomplishment and flicked the blood off his sword. ¡°Are you alright, Daniel?¡±

    Daniel didn¡¯t know. His chest burned, but the wounds were slowly closing as Thomas concentrated. His hand. His hand was¡­ his hand. This was the second time it had acted of its own accord and the first that it had changed into something else. He couldn''t deny that it had been the heat of the moment anymore as he would have never thought to go for the kill like that.

    ¡°Guy¡¯ll be fine,¡± Thomas answered when he didn¡¯t. ¡°He¡¯s just stunned by the awesome.¡±

    Daniel¡¯s phone buzzed in the next moment and he removed it from the pouch on his waist. Thomas glanced at it and then away when the Cleric realized he couldn''t read the words.

    <hr>

    You have accomplished Feat: Slay Monsters.

    This has unlocked potential for growth. Two Advancement Potential have been awarded. You may assign them with Function: Settings in addition to expending potential through normal methods.

    <hr>

 Chapter 20: Aim Hacks

    Hand? Ringcat had waited until camp to broach the subject.

    I know. I, I don¡¯t know. I didn¡¯t do it but I¡¯m glad it happened.

    Don¡¯t understand.

    You¡¯re telling me.

    The campfires had been reduced from three to two. This was partially because they¡¯d camped in a smaller forest with less available wood to burn, though each training team had also bonded as Lograve had hoped. With time, everyone in the group may mesh together.

    Daniel regretted his internal word choice as he saw a series of glances pass between the groups. Right after Lograve finished reviewing the day¡¯s fight and offered his suggestions, Tak stood and started walking away. Evalyn quickly followed. Their outlines faded as the identify effect on them was banished by a mortified Daniel.

    ¡°Huh.¡± Thomas watched them go until they were lost amidst the trees. ¡°I was sure she would snag someone the first night. Wonder what took her so long.¡±

    ¡°Bards.¡± Gadriel said the word as a curse. ¡°What if they were ambushed?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s nothing dangerous around,¡± Daniel reported, not looking up.

    Thomas laughed and looked at him with a mix of interest and apprehension. ¡°Wait, Guy, are you watching them right now?¡±

    ¡°No!¡± Daniel said emphatically.

    ¡°Is Ringcat?¡±

    ¡°Crest no,¡± Daniel answered, adopting the curse. ¡°It¡¯s an aura I can put on people. Looks kind of like that Nova ability you used to save my life but with color to distinguish friend from foe.¡±

    ¡°Quite a strong ability for a healer, if I dare say,¡± Gadriel added. ¡°To disrupt level two foes.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d be dead if you¡¯d run Guy, so we¡¯re even. That ability takes a lot out of me.¡± Thomas looked at Gadriel. ¡°And that flying sword thing, just amazing.¡±

    ¡°All in a day¡¯s work.¡±

    ¡°Speaking of,¡± Lograve broke into the conversation. ¡°I¡¯d neglected to ask earlier. Who earned advancement potential?¡±

    Thomas and Daniel raised their hands. Tak was absent from the poll and Gadriel declined. ¡°Good. We¡¯ll need to hold on commitment until we reach Roost''s Peak, but this means we¡¯re going at a good pace.¡±

    ¡°Everyone save Daniel and his supposed instant advancement.¡± Gadriel almost sounded jealous, which was better than his earlier reaction. ¡°Have you committed your potential yet?¡±

    ¡°Not yet. I was thinking dexterity this time. It seems like that¡¯ll be helpful for the crossbow and it¡¯s my lowest attribute right now. I can see why the balanced path is so powerful, you were a monster out there Gadriel.¡±

    ¡°If I have your measure correct, our resident showoff is only a few points below me in total attributes,¡± Lograve admitted. ¡°It¡¯s why you¡¯re on this team. Together we balance out Kob on the other. Tak is certainly proficient although I have noticed he can be, well, single-minded.¡±

    Gadriel ignored the compliments and gossip. ¡°I wish to see this instant advancement, if you would oblige?¡±

    Daniel almost flinched when he looked at the phone in his hand. It wasn¡¯t the phone, it was the hand. The hand that had changed and punched its way through brains earlier today. The others didn¡¯t seem to notice. He opened the settings app and tapped dexterity twice. Tingling flooded his body as he committed the potential.

    <hr>

    Your Dexterity is now 13! You have gained Ability: Snap Shot.

    <hr>

    ¡°What happened? I cannot read this language,¡± Gadriel said with squinting eyes.

    ¡°Hang on I have to look it up. Can¡¯t just go straight from the notifications, no. Stupid Encyclopedia. I got an ability though.¡±

    <hr>

    Snap Shot (Ability, Dexterity, Attack: Ranged Weapon, Domain: Destruction, Level: 1)

    You possess the Power to improve your aim. Activating this ability while targeting a Creature shortens the duration required to correct aim and ensures greater accuracy. This effect scales with dexterity. Use of this ability requires a minor amount of Mana and a ranged weapon you are able to use alone. This is a Magical Ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression.

    <hr>

    ¡°Hey, it is an aiming ability. I might not need to use Ringcat as a sandbag anymore.¡±

    ¡°Strange,¡± Lograve commented. ¡°I would have expected something more affiliated with magic, crafting, or commerce for an Artificer. Congratulations all the same, you needed something to use in combat. Your ringcat was pulling all the weight.¡±

    Ringcat grumbled and Lograve glanced at him from the corner of his eye. The Arcanist still had no idea what to make of the sapient beast.

    Daniel stood to grab his crossbow, then realized he¡¯d done it without using his hands and in a far smoother motion than normal. The others had noticed too and must not have expected this level of change from a small improvement to his attribute. ¡°Uh, get anything else Guy?¡± Thomas asked.

    ¡°No, but it feels like it.¡± On a whim, Daniel attempted and completed a cartwheel while still wearing his pack. ¡°What the heck?¡±

    Lograve wore a knowing smile. ¡°Did you forget how people normally feel after advancement? We don¡¯t all get a mystical mirror that tells us our heart¡¯s desire. In the absolute best case you hire someone with an identification power if you get stuck. Otherwise, most people just need to feel out the difference. There¡¯s usually a guiding instinct, though you would not believe what it took to make me realize I had Aquakinesis. Perhaps you¡¯ve missed something in your Encyclopedia. Getting two powers with two advancement potential is lucky, by the way. On average, mortals gain one every other potential spent in the early levels.¡±

    ¡°These strange advancement powers of yours. I still would not believe it had it not just witnessed you.¡± Gadriel narrowed his eyes again, though there was an analytical element to the look rather than a hostile one. ¡°You are not consciously using whatever this power is, so it must be a feature. One that improves balance, it seems. Aptly, there is one named Balance that I suspect we share. Useful both in and out of combat.¡±

    Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

    ¡°Just what kind of class is Artificer?¡± Thomas wondered aloud and turned to Lograve. ¡°Are other ones like him?¡±

    Lograve shook his head and gave another cautious glance to Ringcat. ¡°No, I don¡¯t think anyone is like Daniel.¡±

    ¡­

    After Daniel had spent some time joyously acquainting himself with his new aiming power, nailing several trees with his daggers, Tak returned. Everyone was still awake and it was impossible not to notice as he strode back to the fire. There wasn¡¯t exaggerated confidence at least, and Tak didn¡¯t appear the kind of person to show off. He stopped by Daniel on the way to his bedroll to whisper, though. ¡°Good advice. Put in a good word for you too. Maybe tomorrow?¡± Daniel¡¯s mind was too preoccupied to be completely flustered, though his face reddened slightly.

    ¡°Uh, thanks,¡± Daniel said and tried to look away to hide the blush. ¡°Can I ask another question?¡±

    ¡°You have more than earned one.¡±

    ¡°You grew what looked like ringcat paws when you fought today. Would an air Totem Warrior grow something more birdlike?¡±

    Tak tilted his head slightly. ¡°Yes? Why ask?¡±

    ¡°No reason,¡± Daniel said lamely, looking at his hand.

    After a long time spent staring at his hand, caught between musings on the past and future, Daniel settled into his pack. Ringcat¡¯s voice came to his mind in the haze just before sleep. I will hunt.

    Good luck!

    The ringcat didn¡¯t leave immediately. After a pause, he thought, Growth soon.

    Growth? What does that mean? For some reason, Daniel got the impression that Ringcat was capitalizing that word. He doubted the murder cat knew why and didn¡¯t ask any more questions since he had a lot on his mind already.

    I will Grow.

    Is that like advancement? Do you advance like we do?

    Do not know. Will just Grow.

    Will it happen tonight?

    Maybe. Do not know.

    Any thoughts about your name?

    Like Longfang.

    Daniel stifled a chuckle. You can¡¯t be named that, that¡¯s the crossbow¡¯s name. But it¡¯s good you have a preference. Maybe we should name you when you Grow? It sounds like leveling up so we should celebrate with a name.

    Will think. Ringcat silently departed.

    ¡°You do that buddy,¡± Daniel whispered to the night air.

    ¡­

    ¡°Guy, she looked at you again,¡± Thomas said with a hint of his on-the-job personality as they walked. The eleven were semi-climbing up the road now as it crossed into the foothills. The real struggle would be tomorrow, but that would be a shorter journey that would end in Roost¡¯s Peak around midday.

    Evalyn had been doing everything short of using her powers on Daniel over the day. He didn¡¯t know what Tak had told her, but he¡¯d been the best- Don¡¯t do it, Daniel warned himself, before folding instantly. Tak had been the best wingman he¡¯d ever had. ¡°It¡¯s kind of weird that you¡¯re more excited about this than I am,¡± Daniel rebutted.

    ¡°Not really. She¡¯s working her way through the group which means she¡¯ll get to yours truly soon enough. Who do you think¡¯s next? Actually.¡± Thomas pulled out a red coin. ¡°Let¡¯s bet on it. Two bronze?¡± Daniel looked in surprise at the metallic coin. It was the first sign of currency he¡¯d seen. ¡°What, no bet?¡±

    ¡°I lost my wallet during the Upswell. No one¡¯s been using money so why bother trying to get more?¡±

    ¡°Ah, shame. A gentleman¡¯s wager then? I¡¯m thinking she goes for Tlara after you.¡± Thomas peered surreptitiously at the avianoid walking next to the spark rhino. ¡°She¡¯s mopping up the Totem Warriors so the Beastmaster is the next logical step.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not a Totem Warrior.¡± Daniel¡¯s response was automatic, but he¡¯d stopped believing it.

    ¡°Keep telling yourself that, Guy.¡±

    Trail conversation continued as the day continued into late afternoon. Group dynamics were mostly confined to the two set training teams. One exception to this was the heavily armored Sigron¡¯s newfound disdain for Tak. Daniel could see small splits forming that could crack holes in the team and wondered if the Bard was doing it on purpose. That did nothing to smother his anticipation of tonight.

    ¡°Are you alright?¡± Lograve quietly asked, later in the day.

    ¡°Uh.¡± Daniel brought his mind back to the present. ¡°Well enough I guess.¡±

    ¡°From your story, the whole story,¡± Lograve emphasized. ¡°I had the impression that was the first time you were in a fight. Aside from when you arrived here.¡±

    Daniel looked at his hand again. Tak¡¯s powers had seemed so intriguing until his hand had morphed into that thing. Only Ringcat knew about it and Daniel wanted to keep it that way for now. Sure, trusting Lograve had worked out so far, but this was too close to home. ¡°As far as almost dying goes, I¡¯d give it a seven out of ten.¡±

    ¡°You were never in any real danger. None of our team has worked together before but we¡¯ve all had hunting experience.¡±

    ¡°I saw how you all handled the alpha¡¯s charge. Well, I guess I should say I saw it and then realized what happened a few minutes later. In the moment though it seemed like we were, you know, done.¡±

    ¡°Those alphas probably thought so too until Gadriel decided to start prancing about.¡± Lograve wasn¡¯t entirely using his customary sarcasm as he said this and Daniel noticed the difference.

    ¡°He doesn¡¯t seem as unworkable as back in the village. Are you sure he¡¯s a bad Hero?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re just saying that because he¡¯s mildly impressive,¡± Lograve sulked. ¡°Though seriously, there¡¯s no way of telling. A good Hero would save you because it¡¯s the right thing to do, while a bad Hero would do it for fame and standing. He might have honestly made up with you, or he¡¯s doing it to try and recruit you as a toady.¡±

    ¡°Why would he do that? I¡¯m just a level one and he only knows half the crazy stuff that¡¯s going on with me.¡± Lograve eyed him suspiciously.

    ¡°By my count, he knows more than that. The remainder is your past and that possessed thing you let walk beside you. What else are you hiding?¡± Lograve could have asked Ringcat what was meant by the growl that followed but didn¡¯t want the beast in his head again. ¡°Anyways, just be careful.¡±

    Lograve made to walk away, but Daniel could tell by a quick backward glance there was something else on the Arcanist¡¯s mind. ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°If you want the question then I¡¯ll ask, but don¡¯t feel like you need to answer.¡± Lograve sighed. ¡°It¡¯s the kind that can be revealing and I don¡¯t want you to assume you have to tell me everything I want you to.¡±

    Is this about Evalyn? Daniel¡¯s spirits sank. Is he going to tell me not to see her for the good of the team?

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you run when the alphas charged? If you were frozen with fear you would have never drawn your sword. You had the chance.¡±

    Being wrong about the topic did nothing to help Daniel¡¯s sudden trepidation. ¡°I told Ringcat to run but he didn¡¯t want to.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not an answer, unless your loyalty to him runs that deep.¡±

    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t just abandon him! But, that¡¯s not it,¡± Daniel admitted. ¡°I guess it¡¯s not just because of one reason. On,¡± he lowered his voice, stopped, and looked at Lograve pointedly.

    What?

    On my world, there are animals that are more likely to attack if you run.

    These were already attacking.

    Y-yeah. But I also had the chance to see you guys covering for me even when you were being attacked. Everyone, even Ringcat, was doing something in that fight to help me. What would I be if I didn¡¯t do something in return?

    If Gadriel hadn¡¯t been as fast, then that would make you alive.

    Right. There wasn¡¯t as much agreement in his thoughts as there should have been. And Thomas or Ringcat would have died instead. I don¡¯t know if I could live with myself if I let someone else die for me. That¡¯s actually it. Daniel blinked. I have to live here. I have to sleep on the ground, eat meat I don¡¯t recognize, and have a talking murder cat. Maybe that last one isn¡¯t so bad but what it adds up to is that I can¡¯t be the guy that runs away. When I think about the person I was back home, the person I still am now? I like the thought of being some brave, confident monster slayer who can talk to people without tripping over his words. I can¡¯t get there if I don¡¯t improve myself.

    Lograve nodded to the rest of the group. ¡°You almost sound like Gadriel. Sure you¡¯re not hiding a third class in your shoe?¡±

    ¡°Might as well at this point. Look, if I had run, would I still have advanced?¡±

    ¡°Probably,¡± Lograve replied thoughtfully, which wasn¡¯t at all what Daniel expected. ¡°The Octyrrum rewards bravery and prudence evenhandedly. It¡¯s been shown that as long as you don''t just run but do some fighting you can gain potential for survival alone, even if your target doesn¡¯t die.¡±

    Daniel made a faint sound from the back of his throat as he considered exactly how much his earlier bravado was justified now that he didn¡¯t get more magical points for being brave. He shook his head. ¡°The point is I¡¯m not going to sacrifice people for personal gain, and if I start running now that¡¯s all I¡¯ll ever do.¡± Daniel frowned. He did sound like Gadriel. A less medieval Gadriel, but Lograve had a point.

    ¡°Stick to that answer and you¡¯ll be a great Artificer. Assuming you stay here, and assuming that answer doesn¡¯t change. If it does change then that is no reason for shame. You¡¯ve seen one battle on this expedition so far and the odds were with you. You never really know yourself until you face an enemy you aren¡¯t meant to beat.¡± There was a far off look in his eyes and Daniel looked at the scar that took up almost a quarter of Lograve¡¯s face.

    ¡°Are you ever going to tell me what beat you up?¡±

    ¡°So about young Evalyn,¡± Lograve changed the subject.

    Aw come on, he is isn¡¯t he?

    ¡°I wish both of you a pleasant evening.¡±

 Chapter 21: Opportunities for Growth

    The warmth of summer day carried uncharacteristically into the normally cold night when the eleven made their final camp of the trek. Daniel didn¡¯t care that the remnants of the sun shone only on him.

    No forest shielded the twin campfires, whose wood was collected more laboriously from lone trees. The waist-high grass was long gone and gravel broke through in spots of gray. The fires were set on the open ground off the side of the road. More care would have been taken if the eleven hadn¡¯t grown to trust Daniel¡¯s scouting power. Its range had suffered as they transitioned into rocky terrain and Ringcat¡¯s senses were less tuned to the new environment, but still gave enough warning for people to sleep.

    Evalyn made him wait an hour until she stood up, looked at him, and walked away from the camp. The thought that the guy had done that the last time occurred to him, but he didn¡¯t care. You feel like hunting, Ringcat?

    Yes. Ringcat sniffed at him. Anxious?

    Just go nuts and meet me back here in an hour. No, two. Wait. He couldn¡¯t make up his mind. I know we haven¡¯t figured out the range of this telepathy yet, but wait two hours and I¡¯ll tell you if I need more time. Don¡¯t identify me or Evalyn in the meantime. He hastily stood up and looked blankly at the thumbs up Thomas was giving him. Normally he¡¯d try to figure out if there were other hand signs the two worlds shared, but he didn¡¯t have the time for that.

    Ringcat didn¡¯t give him any physical sign, but he felt the confusion from the beast as he left. He was starting to realize there was a very weak emotional connection between them when they were close together, an echo of the moment their bond had formed. Daniel was very glad it didn¡¯t carry over long distances.

    Without the concealment of a forest, Daniel had to follow the Bard for a few minutes before they found privacy. She was keeping just far enough ahead that he had to half-run to keep up. It reminded him of when Gadriel had led him to the Murdon¡¯s manor, an image he immediately burned out of his mind.

    The outcrop Evalyn eventually found pointed the wrong way to see the sunset that hid behind the mountains. Its absence severely harmed the romantic appeal as the only other features were a single tree and patchy grass. If the cliff was cut from the side of the hill and suspended it would have made a passable twin for the first sky island.

    ¡°I almost thought you¡¯d bring your pet. It follows you everywhere else.¡± Evalyn put a hand to the tree and traced around the width of the trunk. From behind it, he heard Evalyn continue speaking along with a rustling sound. ¡°Tak says you can peer into the hearts of women. What does mine tell you?¡±

    There had existed a small doubt in Daniel¡¯s mind that this was all an elaborate joke. If she¡¯d been sent to his world instead of the other way around, she could have had it made on a modeling career alone. That was without the magical abilities that would catapult her into the ¡®beloved dictator of a small nation¡¯ category. Suffice it to say she was as far out of his league as he was his world.

    ¡°You don¡¯t have an answer?¡± That doubt was erased as the Bard completed a half-circle around the tree. Her shirt had been lost somewhere along the way leaving only the undergarment beneath. ¡°Maybe you need a better look.¡± Daniel didn¡¯t move. He couldn¡¯t. He didn¡¯t even feel the vibration from his phone as it alerted him to the charm effect she''d just hit him with. Evalyn laughed at his red face and leaned against the tree in a relaxed way. ¡°Most men would be all over me. Don¡¯t tell me your charisma is so high you¡¯re immune to my charms now?¡±

    ¡°Definitely not.¡±

    ¡°The man of stone speaks!¡± she laughed. It was honest, not deprecating, silly, or at Daniel¡¯s expense. Evalyn knew she was in control but didn¡¯t seem to be using that to his disadvantage. She did start walking towards him and took her time doing it. ¡°You had me worried you¡¯d pass out from holding your breath.¡±

    Daniel laughed with her. ¡°Well, either way, you¡¯d be giving me mouth to mouth.¡± He answered the brief confusion that crossed her face without thinking, ¡°It¡¯s something from my world.¡±

    ¡°Your world? How intriguing.¡± She was standing right in front of him and whispered into his ear, "What else can you show me from your world?¡±

    ¡°Well¡­¡± Daniel beamed. In the very back of his head, the only suave part of him screamed that this was just banter. At that same time, there was actually something Evalyn might like. He¡¯d looked at the music app to see how it worked but had never had a good chance to use it without drawing the ire of the locals with his otherworldly music, imagining them as stereotypical Amish hearing rock music. Now, though, was the perfect time to break out the function.

    There was surprise on Evalyn¡¯s face as the first simulated saxophone to grace the Octyrrum played out into the open air. She backed up a step and looked Daniel up and down. ¡°Are you a Bard?¡± There wasn¡¯t cruelty in her voice, but a lack of gentle teasing and interest made it seem that way.

    ¡°No?¡± Now it was Daniel¡¯s turn to be confused. It had all been going so right for once in his life. He¡¯d made friends, been successful in hunting, had grown his list of magical powers, and now had a shot at a covert encounter. She was a Bard, she should like music! But there was a look of conflicted disappointment in her eyes now that made him want to die. ¡°If you don¡¯t like it I can stop it,¡± he said and hurriedly paused the song.

    Evalyn didn¡¯t respond immediately as she seemed to be debating herself. Daniel awaited the verdict as a man of stone once more. This time he was holding his breath, and almost did pass out before she spoke again mournfully. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I can¡¯t do this.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡± Daniel blurted out indignantly as he felt the charm on him end. The effect was like an ice bath of rejection, exacerbating his immediate disappointment. That same fraction of himself deep in his mind grew worried about how much anger was mixed in but was again ignored.

    ¡°Do you know what happens when you mix oil and water?¡±

    What? What the hell does that- oh. ¡°You¡¯re saying we¡¯re too different?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m saying that¡¯s what I want.¡± Daniel would have interjected if she hadn¡¯t hit him with another question. ¡°Do you know the first rule of being a Bard?¡±

    ¡°Sleep with everything that moves?¡± he asked with a slight shred of hope that this was a joke.

    That made her smile, but it was a sorrowful one. ¡°You¡¯ve heard what everyone says about us. Ever think about what happens when a Bard tutors another and the kind of position the student could find themselves in? The first rule of being a Bard is that when we make music, we don¡¯t play in harmony. Bards don¡¯t sleep together,¡± she clarified.

    ¡°I¡¯m not a Bard!¡± Why, god dammit! Why do people keep doing this to me!? Do I have to wear a sign that says ¡®I. AM. AN. ARTIFICER!¡¯? ¡°Even if I was, don¡¯t tell me no one breaks that rule.¡±

    Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

    ¡°They do. I don¡¯t, or at least I haven¡¯t yet. I¡¯m sorry.¡± She looked down, and if Daniel had been more aware in that moment he might have seen glimpses of the emotions Evalyn had been hiding so well since the Upswell. ¡°I¡¯m trying to give you an answer. This was a sudden change of heart for me, I wasn¡¯t trying to lead you on.¡±

    ¡°So am I just not good enough? Why Tak and not me?¡± Daniel was being ugly now and he regretted the question as soon as he¡¯d asked it, but the denial was cutting deeper than the alpha he¡¯d killed.

    ¡°Because with him I¡¯m oil and water. We joined and separated easily.¡±

    ¡°I could do that!¡±

    ¡°No,¡± she shook her head. ¡°I don''t think you could, Daniel. Not if I didn¡¯t pull away completely.¡±

    She still wasn''t making any sense to him. ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°You know what we¡¯re facing. It sounds like you almost died yesterday and that was the first hunt. I¡¯m not saying you¡¯re weak,¡± she preempted him. ¡°I¡¯m saying these are dangerous times and we¡¯re all just trying to get through this. It¡¯s a time for smiles in the night and steel in the day. I need oil and water in my life right now, not water and water.¡±

    He stared incredulously. ¡°You¡¯re saying you like me too much to date?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m saying I can¡¯t afford to split my attention. I¡¯m level one like you and I need to get stronger. With the way my class works..." she trailed off and redirected, "Before we came here you were an odd man who gave an avianoid dating advice, someone who I could have a brief encounter with without that leading to anything. But another world, if that¡¯s possible-¡±

    ¡°You couldn¡¯t do it,¡± Daniel summarized. It wasn¡¯t that he actually got it, but his suppressed rationality had staged a coup and kicked the part acting like a teenager out of the control room. Damn it. Right after I talked so much about being a better person I make an ass of myself. ¡°I could just be someone making things up to get with you, instead of an alien,¡± he added weakly, knowing they''d both already come to the same conclusion.

    ¡°I think you¡¯re both.¡± Her smiles were poison to him now. ¡°I think the man who brought a ringcat to heel without Beastmaster powers could at the very least get a claw into me if I let him. I¡¯m not some avatar of love immune to attractions of my own. I like a little mystery, too much in this case. Honestly, I didn¡¯t do this before the Upswell, but everyone needs as much potential as they can get.¡± She sighed with that, some regret for the current circumstances clear in her voice. ¡°This isn¡¯t the time to get into anything complicated, and the only clean break we could have is not needing one.¡± She looked back to the tree, no doubt thinking of her shirt, and sat so that she wasn¡¯t presenting too tempting an image. ¡°I can''t imagine its fun to be charmed only to be rejected. I shouldn¡¯t have used the ability.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not your fault.¡± Daniel was shutting down, cringing as some of the words he¡¯d just spoken replayed in his mind. It sounded like the kind of thing the jock villain would shout in a high school movie. The fact that he''d spilled his big secret was the last thing on his mind. ¡°I¡¯m sorry I said¡­ I¡¯m just sorry.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not a no, it''s a not right now.¡± Evalyn started to reach for his shoulder and then thought better of the gesture. ¡°Crest, I shouldn¡¯t do that.¡± She brushed at her hair self-consciously, and with a small amount of concern asked, ¡°Are you going to be alright?¡±

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Daniel said blankly, unsure what exactly he was feeling. Disappointment sure, but it was now directed towards himself.

    ¡°It¡¯s probably for the best if we don¡¯t return right away. We could sit and talk more if you¡¯d like.¡±

    He considered what would be more painful, her going or her staying, and decided he wasn¡¯t in any state to be good company. ¡°I think I just need to think for a while.¡±

    ¡°Alright.¡± Evalyn stood, returning to the tree and coming back fully dressed. ¡°If anyone asks, I¡¯ll just say a Bard never tells.¡±

    Thomas can never know, he thought without any real humor. ¡°Yeah.¡± She left, and Daniel sat alone to ponder the darkening skies. He looked at his hands. Time passed. He¡¯d told Ringcat to give him two hours and had no intent on returning to camp before his companion did. He didn¡¯t know if he was going back at all.

    With no fire and no armor, he soon grew cold. He walked over to the tree and looked out to the fields below the ledge. A large green shape regularly intersected with gray ones that briefly turned red before their aura died with them. Ringcat had started to only highlight the creatures he was actively hunting, so the light wasn¡¯t overly spoiling his night vision.

    Daniel looked at his hands again. Talon, he thought. His right hand was birdlike in an instant. The change that mortified him earlier was just something to occupy himself with now that his emotions were shot. His hand turned back to normal after a few seconds. Talon. The talons were sharp. He unleashed the formless turmoil inside of him on the tree. The talons shredded the bark just as easily as they¡¯d pierced the alpha¡¯s palate before they changed back. Talon.

    The skin above the wrist turned rough as well. Not like dragon scales, but a tough leathery substance similar to what birds had on their feet. He hadn¡¯t brought any weapons to test its durability, though he thought it might resist a blade. Talon. The change wasn¡¯t even unpleasant. It was just a stretching sensation, and the novelty faded fast with repeated use. Talons. Both hands changed now. In the altered form they had four larger fingers instead of five and the talons were half as long as the fingers. He still had thumbs, but holding the crossbow would be awkward if not impossible like this. Talons. His feet didn¡¯t change with his hands. It was probably for the best, otherwise he would have just ruined his shoes. Talons.

    He punched the tree. It hurt, but not as much as it would have barehanded. Talons!

    He punched the tree again, creating a depression in the trunk. It appeared there wasn¡¯t just misdirected and unjustified anger augmenting his strength. Whatever ability this was added a good deal of force to the strike.

    Then he realized he¡¯d probably just killed the tree and was sad again. Talons, he thought robotically. Talons. Talons. Talons. He watched his hands change again and again until his mana ran out.

    He didn¡¯t even flinch when the level one ringcat slowly walked up behind him. It was as big as the others had been, the top of the head coming up to where his neck would be were he standing. What surprised Daniel most was the name that accompanied the green aura.

    I guess you Grew. Looks like you¡¯ve already picked your name.

    The creature he¡¯d named Ringcat circled to his front, inspecting him closely. You are sad?

    I got friend-zoned by a Bard and I didn¡¯t react as well as I should have, Daniel lamented, still just as down on himself as he¡¯d ever been. But you look amazing. No, really. There wasn¡¯t much feeling behind the words. Why that name?

    Is it bad?

    No. Daniel shook his head. It¡¯s decent. It sounds a little like something a guy would name a Doberman he bought just to show off, but it fits. Besides, it¡¯s what you want to be called. I guess you weren¡¯t serious about ¡®Longfang¡¯ earlier.

    The ringcat couldn¡¯t exactly explain why he had chosen the name he did, other than it felt right. He was aware his new existence was due in part to the friend in front of him. Neither of them were what the ringcat had first thought they were. Borrowing the title he¡¯d applied to Daniel¡¯s kind seemed right in a way that he would call poetic if he was familiar with the concept. Finally, the ringcat responded. That is the crossbow¡¯s name.

    Right. He would have laughed if he had it in him. Instead, Daniel just lay down sideways and closed his eyes.

    Return to the rest?

    Not tonight buddy, Daniel thought. The ringcat could almost surround him with his longer length and he tried to. Rest came mercifully fast.

    ¡­

    ¡°Hey Guy, we were worried about you,¡± Thomas said the next morning. ¡°Lograve was about to send someone after- woah, is that Ringcat?¡±

    ¡°His name¡¯s Hunter now,¡± Daniel responded, his Grown friend following behind him.

    ¡°What, is one of Tlara¡¯s monsters already named Killer?¡± Thomas asked sarcastically. The Cleric seemed oblivious to Daniel¡¯s inner struggles.

    ¡°I don¡¯t name my tools,¡± the avianoid shot back and fixed Daniel with a glare. He ignored her.

    Evalyn was standing near the back of the group. He glanced at her and felt a shot of shame. Despite her sudden change of heart and odd reasoning, she¡¯d tried to handle things well and continued to do so when he hadn¡¯t. He did his best to put on an apologetic look and hoped she noticed.

    Tlara stormed up to him when she caught where his eyes moved to. ¡°Did you spend all night celebrating your conquest by taming a new ringcat?¡±

    ¡°What? No.¡± Daniel couldn¡¯t say Hunter had picked his new name. ¡°He¡¯s just Hunter now.¡±

    ¡°Tamed monsters can¡¯t Grow,¡± she said condescendingly. ¡°You already fucked the Bard, no need to play yourself up.¡±

    The simmering frustration Daniel hadn¡¯t fully rid himself of found a new target. Talon, he thought, turning one of his hands avian with the mana he''d regained at dawn. He clenched the hand into a fist, then extended his middle talon to just in front of her beak. ¡°Go fuck yourself.¡± Was he still being childish? Sure, but this time it was worth it.

 Chapter 22: Roosts Peak

    The fortified village sat as an empty shell, surrounded by the rest of the small pass it occupied. The way it guarded did not lead into the wider world beyond the Thormundz but into the mountains. In the past weeks, Roost¡¯s Peak had moved from the second-most populated settlement in the Thormundz to the first, to the ghost town it now was.

    The evacuees had taken much with them when Heldren¡¯s team emptied it, but the walls remained. They stood on a rise within the pass which itself had been augmented magically through the effort of a team of Builders. Unlike the western theme of Hagain Village, the structures of the city were stone, blocky, and identical like hollowed out stone pillars. Each had a winged emblem carved into the stone by the main entrance. As Daniel had learned the day after coming here, one of the bordering regions had sponsored this fort and the weapons that defended it. Large enchanted siege ballista stood on the walls, and every single one was angled upwards. The greatest threat to Roost¡¯s Peak wasn¡¯t encroachment from the mouth of the pass, but from above.

    Life remained to resist the elements that sought to undo what mortals had wrought. Each of the defenders had at least one level, though the average was below level two. Most had already hit their wall and could no longer advance. The outpost¡¯s ability to divert creatures from Hagain was only one reason to justify such a commitment of personnel. The mine was the other.

    Daniel had almost forgotten his phobia amidst the very real dangers of being eviscerated until he was confined to his room. Of all the things that had happened to him in this world, being grounded was the second worst thing to get under his skin. Well, grounded in the ¡®stay on this side of town or you¡¯ll be killed by the demented beast trainer¡¯ sense. That restriction had been placed three days ago when they¡¯d arrived.

    As it turned out, the society in the Octyrrum was 1 for 2 on Earth hand sign translation. Thumbs up was roughly the same thing, but giving someone the bird just provoked confusion. He didn¡¯t know this by how Tlara reacted but by Thomas asking him if that gesture was how he made his hands transform, after the fact. In the moments after his admittedly immature outburst, she had tried to kill him with the spark rhino. That was probably because he¡¯d used an offensive ability rather than an offensive gesture right in her face.

    In hindsight, Tlara had told him she had a hair trigger when they¡¯d first met. The sudden fracture in the team¡¯s cohesion ended with Kob hoisting both Hunter and the spark rhino away from each other, while Gadriel and Sigron respectively held Daniel and Tlara back. Everyone had been shocked by the development, except Tlara. She¡¯d ranted about how she¡¯d told everyone he was a Spiritualist and that this had been inevitable.

    Lograve had been forced to break the team up into its training groups, sending Kob¡¯s ahead while asking Daniel exactly what he¡¯d just done. His explanation hadn¡¯t satisfied the Arcanist, especially because he¡¯d refused to answer when the topic eventually came to what had happened with Evalyn.

    Now, Daniel could see Tlara pacing back and forth by the eastern side of Roost¡¯s Peak. Her aura was bright red. To their credit, the rest of her team remained neutral with a smattering of green in Evalyn¡¯s case.

    I do not like this cage, Hunter thought. He and the ringcat outside of the abandoned house could see each other¡¯s auras and were close enough to still communicate. While Identify Creature had an insane range, their telepathy was limited to about a hundred meters.

    Sorry Hunter. It''s that stupid Beastmaster''s fault, that was a total overreaction. Daniel vaulted through one of the window sills and landed neatly on the ground one story below. Whatever feature he¡¯d unlocked alongside Snap Shot was akin to a parkour power that he would have loved to test out in the small city he¡¯d found himself in, if Tlara hadn¡¯t summoned a flying dinosaur to patrol the skies. It stayed to her side of the city, but Daniel didn¡¯t trust the lightning coursing across its spines to respect the boundary.

    One of the guards in the remaining garrison looked at him with a combination of interest and respect as he landed. Thomas, the damnable scamp, had been retelling the brawl to anyone who would listen. His version of events was more charitable, though he hoped Evalyn would understand the assumptions Thomas had made about their night together.

    He glanced up, looking at the tall mountain walls that surrounded him. Enormous red outlines sat still beyond the lip of the far cliffs. Identify Creature didn¡¯t tell him everything about people at a higher level than him, but monsters weren''t immune.

    <hr>

    Skyshock Wyvern - (4)

    <hr>

    There were a dozen of them in Hunter¡¯s range, if you counted the young level three variants. The ringcat¡¯s Growth had compensated for the terrain penalty on his senses, so this wasn¡¯t as dangerous as it first seemed. Still, neither he nor the defenders could completely relax. One was actively perched just before the ledge as if waiting for a moment to strike.

    Comparing their outlines and the image in his Encyclopedia to Tlara''s pathetic man-sized bird monster, he could tell they were truly fearsome. Electric spines traveled the length of their wing arms that could be used to fire orbs of electricity. Their biology didn¡¯t make sense when compared to the sparkbat swarm whose individuals exploded when they flew alone, and he was very interested in seeing one fight Tlara so he could watch what would happen.

    The chance wouldn¡¯t happen here. Roost¡¯s Peak had weapons designed to handle these enemies. The use of the ballista was the first clear indication Daniel had seen of context driving advancement. The guard who manned them barely advanced even though they regularly gunned down level three and fours. At least in the hunt on the way here he had directly participated with a great deal of risk to himself. That he had gained two potential was likely only due to killing one of the alphas, even if his hand had done most of the work. With Daniel and Hunter as an early warning system, their job was made even easier. The knowledge that he could see the raiders from the sky approaching quickly won over the guards¡¯ favor and made Daniel¡¯s side of the city quite inviting. Think any will attack today?

    Not unless they wish to die.

    Daniel smiled. He¡¯d finally thought to ask Hunter to share his attributes with him and regretted not doing so before the ringcat had Grown. So long as Hunter willed it, he could see additional information in Hunter¡¯s identification aura, similar to the one he¡¯d seen on Heldren so many days ago. Hunter had started putting together complete sentences and Daniel knew his intelligence must have improved, even if the actual number wasn''t that high.

    <hr>

    Hunter - (Ringcat - 1)

    Attributes:

    - Strength: 19

    - Dexterity: 14

    - Endurance: 16

    - Wisdom: 12

    - Intelligence: 9

    - Charisma: 8

    Abilities:

    - Fearsome Roar

    - Springing Strike

    Features:

    - Identify Creature (external)

    - Keen Senses: Hearing/Smell

    - Terrain Affinity: Grasslands

    - Underbrush Step

    <hr>

    It was a lot of green and blue text, likely including everything that would have been listed on Hunter¡¯s character sheet if he had one. Similar to his notifications he couldn''t ''click'' on anything other than Hunter''s name to bring up the additional information. As far as he could tell the hyperlinks only existed outside of his Encyclopedia to let him know there was an entry. He¡¯d tried the same with Thomas and Lograve, but they¡¯d refused despite expressing some curiosity. Exposing all of their powers and attributes in one fell swoop appeared to be an equivalent measure of social trust as revealing one¡¯s browser history.

    Another of the garrison passed by, one of the handful of air gestalt that remained in the Thormundz. From what he¡¯d heard, Eido had contained most of the earth and air gestalt in the region. If you could, would you talk to them? he asked Hunter silently. You¡¯ve almost got four syllable words down.

    You are obnoxious.

    Nearly there, he laughed. With his new intelligence, Hunter was fully becoming the friend his power suggested he could be. At times he even forgot he was mind melding with a murder cat. Don¡¯t you hate her? Tlara, I mean. If there¡¯s anyone I want you to talk to it¡¯s her, just to see the look on her face. So what if her beasts are dumb, that doesn¡¯t mean all monsters are.

    Unwise. She is stronger than us.

    For now. Daniel was more focused than ever on leveling up. Gadriel¡¯s balanced path was nice, but too slow when a bird of prey was making herself busy digging your grave. He wasn¡¯t sure if Hunter¡¯s Growth was capped to his current level, but seeing as the ringcat wouldn¡¯t level up himself without the ability to hunt there wouldn¡¯t be any improvement until they were back fighting monsters.

    Two auras stood out among the odd hundred of the fort. Lograve was approaching with Gadriel beside him. Daniel¡¯s initial misgivings about putting Identify Creature on people had faded when no one seemed to be able to tell when it was on them. Besides, he could always blame it on Hunter if they did notice. Daniel stood against one of the buildings next to the street corner and attempted to surprise the two. It had worked the first two times but by now they were on to him. ¡°Will you cease these petty games?¡± Gadriel¡¯s voice called out.

    A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    ¡°I thought this was a training team. Just keeping you sharp.¡± He turned the corner to find both were not amused. Lograve¡¯s expression was more foreboding than Gadriel¡¯s. Not just because of the level difference, but also through the lack of his usual charm.

    ¡°Is the city in any danger?¡± Lograve asked.

    Daniel looked up. ¡°No, they¡¯ve mostly been keeping back since one of the ballista nailed a wyvern before it took off.¡±

    ¡°That power is quite unnerving,¡± Lograve replied, still keeping his true emotions hidden. ¡°Especially for a level one.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s just good synergy. I couldn¡¯t do it without Hunter¡¯s ears and nose.¡±

    ¡°You have been far more help to this place than I could have imagined. Have you considered a permanent role here?¡±

    Daniel froze. The suggestion had come out of nowhere and was spoken like the decision had already been made. The walls of the city suddenly seemed as high as the pass. ¡°You¡¯re kicking me from the team?¡±

    ¡°The upheaval between the Beastmaster and yourself has imperiled group dynamics,¡± Gadriel explained stiffly. ¡°Leaving both of you on the team, even separated, endangers everyone.¡±

    ¡°Then throw her out! She¡¯s the one that sic¡¯d her slave on me.¡±

    That troubled Lograve. ¡°Spoken like a Spiritualist.¡±

    Glare at him for me, will you? he asked the obliging Hunter. Lograve had questioned the ringcat after the incident in hopes he was incapable of lying. Instead he had been further discomforted by Hunter¡¯s improved diction. Now, the Arcanist met the gaze of the ringcat and Daniel frowned. ¡°I¡¯m starting to think they¡¯re not completely off, but I will admit I have every reason to hate her. Either way, that doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯m the one that should be punished. She tried to kill me!¡±

    ¡°She is of higher level and more value to this team,¡± Gadriel argued. ¡°Despite my convictions, which do not entirely align with yours, her removal would do more harm.¡±

    ¡°Additionally,¡± Lograve said as if introducing the carrot coming gift wrapped with the stick, ¡°Your staying here would drastically improve the city¡¯s defenses. You would not level as quickly, but by identifying every creature slain you will have earned some progress towards it. To say nothing that it will be safer for you here.¡±

    The walls of the city crowded around him. People could feel trapped in many things, from a marriage, or a job, to a floating island. A besieged fortress surrounded by monsters he could see at all times wasn¡¯t that big of a stretch. No, he couldn¡¯t stay here as a glorified radar dish. He couldn¡¯t let one mad woman take his friends and his new life away from him, just when it was starting to go right.

    ¡°What if I refuse?¡± he asked, prompting Lograve to lean towards him.

    ¡°The opportunity for special treatment was offered and denied,¡± he whispered with a hint of danger. It was completely unlike the cheery mage he¡¯d first met in the tent, and Daniel remembered the aftermath of the field battle where multiple ringcats had been impaled with giant spikes of ice. His blood froze as if one struck him now. ¡°I suppose you are still ignorant of certain facts. I will correct this. Few of my level would tolerate impudence from someone of yours. Here and now, the circumstances require special considerations. Elsewhere, in some cultures, Tlara would have the right to kill you should she have believed she was threatened. If I need to remind you, I am a level above her. You will stay here.¡±

    Lograve stepped back. The aggression he¡¯d displayed had even muted Hunter. Gadriel hadn¡¯t heard what was spoken but looked in surprise as Daniel turned pale. ¡°It is for the best,¡± the Hero told him uneasily.

    He couldn¡¯t refuse the Arcanist. Daniel couldn¡¯t muster the courage, nor could he deny that both men in front of him could kill him if they had the slightest inclination. This world suddenly seemed far darker and dangerous than he could have imagined. The conversation he thought was between friends had rapidly turned to walking the line and being pushed off the tightrope.

    No cages or masters, Hunter broke into the miasma of his fear, sensing it through their bond. No fear or uncertainty. Fight or die, that is life.

    You got a four syllable in that time. Daniel weakly grinned despite himself. ¡°No.¡± Lograve was about to intimidate him again, so he stopped time and thought to himself. Hunter protested as always, but not as much as when he was level 0. ¡°No!¡± Daniel repeated with confidence. ¡°It makes more sense for Tlara to be removed from the team.¡±

    ¡°And why is that?¡± Lograve challenged.

    ¡°The whole point of this is to train the low levels. That¡¯s me. Taking me off the team defeats its purpose, and you can¡¯t tell me Tlara can¡¯t scout for monsters with that pterodactyl of hers. Sure she can¡¯t tag things, but she¡¯s level two. That means she¡¯s better than me at it right?¡±

    ¡°What if that doesn¡¯t matter?¡±

    ¡°Then none of this makes sense. You¡¯re just taking me off the team for the sake of-¡± Daniel¡¯s expression soured. ¡°Oh, you suck.¡±

    Lograve turned to Gadriel. His imperious expression melted into a wry smile. ¡°I told you, he¡¯s more cunning than you give him credit for. You can¡¯t exactly blame me, Daniel. You ruined my previous ¡®prove you have the will for this¡¯ exercise back at my library. I¡¯ve been waiting for an opportunity to see if you truly had determination.¡±

    Daniel felt relief mix with the aggravation this game had caused him. ¡°That was all an act? Was anything you just said true?¡±

    ¡°You tell me,¡± Lograve said without a trace of sarcasm. ¡°But there is a cost to this and a reason I needed to know you wanted this. As you said, this team¡¯s purpose is training. You¡¯ve been among friends in battle, now you need to work with those you despise. If you can¡¯t handle that, you might as well stay here. Life doesn¡¯t always let you choose your companions.¡±

    He got the point before Lograve said it out loud. ¡°You¡¯re putting me on the other training team? She¡¯ll kill me. Her, or her little friends.¡±

    ¡°An agreement has been reached that serves two purposes. You and Evalyn will switch for the time being, and Tlara will not harm you.¡± Lograve raised a qualifying finger. ¡°I will add that you will face increased scrutiny and expectations. One condition is that you follow her orders, within reason.¡±

    ¡°Like one of her ''tools''?¡± Daniel crossed his arm.

    ¡°It¡¯s her way or Roost¡¯s Peak I¡¯m afraid. Look at this like an opportunity to bed the other woman on the expedition.¡±

    ¡°I need to know what kind of orders I can refuse before I agree to this,¡± he quickly stipulated.

    ¡­

    Daniel was already regretting his decision as the arch of the city¡¯s gate passed overhead. He knew Tlara would be unbearable, but he didn¡¯t think about the rest of the team. Kob was a titan towering over the group. As it turned out, they were earth gestalt, like the smaller one not covered in stone. Daniel could have guessed that had he not assumed there was some kind of stone giant race. Kob and the other gestalt on the team barely said anything, and when they did it was incomprehensible.

    That left Sigron, the man covered almost entirely in metal. The one exception was his padded helmet, which looked like a reinforced version of the old football kind. Aside from Hunter, he was the only possible ally of the five. That didn¡¯t change the fact that Daniel would have told Thomas what had happened with Evalyn if he could swap the Knight for the Cleric. Sigron wasn¡¯t bad, he was just quiet. Kob spoke more than he did. It wasn''t until being placed on the other team that Daniel realized the man hadn''t spoken at all during the trek. That meant the only real conversation he could have was in his head.

    Daniel kept Hunter close. Tlara seemed to despise the ringcat even more than she did him, and he didn¡¯t trust her enough to include what she saw as his possession among the ¡®do no harm¡¯ clause of their arrangement. Her aura also remained cherry red.

    The five adventurers were accompanied by Daniel¡¯s ringcat and a large gecko-like creature that was Tlara¡¯s third monster he''d seen. The spark rhino¡¯s carrying capacity was no longer needed now that the training teams could use Roost¡¯s Peak as a field camp. Instead, the level 2 shock runner was wirey and could cling to walls while discharging from four lightning spikes embedded just above its webbed paws. Its skull reminded Daniel of a hammerhead, with bulbous eyes attached to either end.

    The fact that so many creatures here had lightning spines didn¡¯t escape Daniel. Hunter¡¯s lack of them was glaring, but he liked to think of it as a distinguishing feature. Lightning spines were useful, though. Daniel¡¯s lightning wings were only one example.

    The crossbow¡¯s quiver, or belt, or whatever word was more appropriate, had come with twenty bolts. Tlara¡¯s spark rhino had carried extra ammunition, and Roost¡¯s Peak had a stockpile. During a hunt, Daniel would be restricted to those twenty shots before relying on the sword he was hardly trained with or the mysterious chicken hands he hadn¡¯t fully tested.

    A few additional bolts were also carried in Hunter¡¯s pouch, but these were special. He¡¯d had the idea knocked into his head after seeing so many of the local creatures wield lightning with their spines. No one else he''d met had picked up on the fact that they could be used postmortem. Whether he was just crazy enough to consider it or his class was prompting him, Daniel had been using the days stuck in Roost¡¯s Peak well.

    ¡°Have that thing scout ahead.¡± Tlara interrupted his thoughts with a rasping, yet melodious command. Avianoids had to try hard to make their voices sound unpleasant. He had to give it to Tlara, when she set her mind to something she fully committed to it.

    ¡°His name is Hunter. And I¡¯ve already got everything within two kilometers tagged, roughly.¡± The momentum of his earlier defiance with Lograve stopped dead as he was suddenly aware of how isolated he was from anyone who cared about him, both Octyrrum and Earth-bound.

    The feathers that ringed Tlara¡¯s head perked up. It seemed like an instinctual reaction that did not connect to happiness. ¡°Tools don¡¯t have names, they have a purpose. If you''re here to learn then fucking start with that. Send your tool out and forget its name.¡± The aura around her reddened further when he didn¡¯t respond. ¡°Do you need me to fucking remind you of what you agreed to?¡±

    Daniel glanced towards Kob and sighed when the giant didn¡¯t say anything. As the actual team leader, over even Lograve, Kob could override Tlara if she ordered him to do something insane like kill himself. Kob didn¡¯t see fit to speak now.

    Can¡¯t stop me from thinking it, he sulked. I¡¯ll turn around right now if you don¡¯t like this, Hunter.

    Nothing dangerous is close. Besides her. Hunter showed his teeth to Tlara. The feathers on her arms started spreading out to form pseudo-wings and relaxed when the beast padded off.

    She saw the worried look and Daniel¡¯s face. ¡°What? If it dies just tame another. I had a ringcat just like it last week. Want to know what happened to it?¡±

    ¡°You pushed it off a cliff?¡±

    ¡°That would have been a waste.¡± Tlara did something with her beak that was probably how her race snickered. ¡°I fed it to another monster to cover my escape. It fucking died.¡± He¡¯d expected a cruel smile, an evil gleam in the eyes, but there was just nothing. Tlara¡¯s complete apathy chilled him more than anything else she could have expressed.

    ¡­

    The two training teams were here to improve their levels, but also to purge the monsters from the countryside. Skyshock wyverns were far too tough for one team to take on without losing people, but the city¡¯s defenses could handle them. They flew too high for anything but the ballista to reach anyway. The sides of the pass held better targets. A network of valleys ran through the nearby mountain and created cracks in the pass walls. The wyverns mostly ignored these unless something drew a lot of attention. Beating back any threat on the ground would allow Roost''s Peak to focus fully on the sky.

    The first hunt was planned to be three days long. One day for scouting, the second for fighting, and the third for the return journey. Assuming there were advancements to commit, everyone besides Daniel would need a day or two in town before setting out again.

    The first night found Daniel¡¯s team hunkering down in a small cave to escape from the rain. The two gestalt were speaking to each other with what sounded like the ambiance of a haunted forest. Even if you could understand the words that occasionally broke through the noise, the conversation was unintelligible. Topics like nature, weapons, the team members, and food were referenced in no discernable pattern or context.

    ¡°I see a group of level twos,¡± Daniel reported from the collection of tags Hunter had placed, trying his best to be professional under the circumstances. ¡°Rock elementals? Huh, not a lightning monster this time.¡±

    ¡°Fuck that,¡± Tlara replied, not even looking at him.

    ¡°No?¡±

    ¡°We need a group with at least one level three. I¡¯m here to advance, not to babysit your ass.¡±

    ¡°Level three? I almost died when we fought level twos!¡±

    Tlara cocked her head to the side. ¡°Huh. Shame you didn¡¯t.¡±

    Daniel sighed and turned away, knowing that Kob would end up choosing the target. His thoughts returned to those two and the strange language barrier between all gestalt and other mortals. Are you following any of this? He asked Hunter. The ringcat had finally been allowed to rejoin him after spending all day skulking the narrow crevices and forested valleys that ran through the mountain like a horizontal ant colony.

    No. At least they aren¡¯t hostile.

    I guess. Daniel then used his speaking voice, low enough to not carry to the gestalt. ¡°Sigron, do you know what they¡¯re talking about?¡±

    The Knight, still wearing his armor even in the relaxed atmosphere, turned to him with a blank expression.

    ¡°He¡¯s fucking mute,¡± Tlara cut in. She was cutting an annoyingly smooth pose leaning against the mouth of the cave. ¡°He can write but he doesn¡¯t seem to like doing that either. Some kind of curse, not that I fucking care about the details.¡± Sigron¡¯s expression blanked in general agreement, though there was a sideways look toward Tlara at the end.

    ¡°So how do you guys communicate during a fight? I wanted to ask about that anyway.¡± He assessed the group with a tactical eye, trying to make the best of the situation. ¡°Khare¡¯s the other trainee, you and Sigron are level two and Kob is, uh.¡± Daniel couldn¡¯t decide on the words to describe the giant taking up half the space of the cave. ¡°Anyways, our last battle the plan was half baked. Shouldn¡¯t we discuss strategy now?¡±

    Tlara started sharpening her talons with a knife as she answered. ¡°It¡¯s fucking simple. We kill the monsters and try not to die.¡±

    That¡¯s just overdoing it. ¡°What about tactics? Formation? What happens if that level 3 frost strangler charges me?¡±

    ¡°Sucks to be you then.¡±

    ¡°Cover.¡± Kob¡¯s tombstone face rotated towards her. He added another word. ¡°Team.¡±

    Daniel heard the avianoid¡¯s musical equivalent of a grunt, and Tlara corrected herself exasperatedly. ¡°Then Kob will rip it to fucking shreds. Or someone else will help you, I guess. Don¡¯t expect me to care about your fucking ringcat.¡±

    ¡°What? But he-,¡± he stopped and chose his words carefully. Daniel had to be the bigger man if he wanted any hope of making headway with Tlara. Or, at bare minimum, if he wanted to get through this without one of them killing the other. ¡°I¡¯d cover for your beasts.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯d put yourself in danger for them?¡±

    ¡°Well if it¡¯s a fight I¡¯m already in danger. Isn¡¯t that what being in a team is about?¡±

    ¡°Fucking Spiritualists!¡± Tlara shouted both of her favorite curses indignantly and ignored his other questions. Daniel sighed, not at all looking forward to the hunt tomorrow.

 Chapter 23: Frost Strangler - (3)

    With yesterday¡¯s scouting over and the arrival of the dawn, the team prepared themselves for the hunt. The others just followed Kob without planning for the fight they were walking towards. They didn¡¯t even pause when Daniel brought up his Encyclopedia¡¯s entry on their quarry and asked if anyone else had information.

    <hr>

    Frost Strangler ¨C (3) (Monster, Elemental: Air/Ice, Stealth, Restraint)

    A monster commonly found at high elevations or regions with Affinity: Ice. Frost stranglers are ambush predators that create suppressive ice Constructs to impede or slay their opponents.

    <hr>

    It wasn¡¯t much, but it was more than Daniel should know. His Encyclopedia was able to draw in information he didn''t directly find according to the description, but the reasoning behind what it chose to display evaded him. Wishing the Encyclopedia would tell him more about itself seemed a self-defeating prospect even if he could do it. This is probably some kind of interaction with Identify Creature, though. You know anything about it Hunter?

    It is very dangerous. I can barely smell it. And it is not alone. Hunter was right. The red, vaguely human outline of the frost strangler flitted about in the distance with level two and one monsters in the nearby area, a small group of young and normal shock runners. Tlara and the rest of the group were looking for a fight that combined at least one level three with enough lower level monsters to give the trainees a chance to strike without being overwhelmed. That didn¡¯t stop Daniel from dreading the cold death he was walking towards.

    ¡°Alright, we¡¯re close enough,¡± Tlara sighed. The group stopped just short of a small split in the rock that opened out into the forested pocket of ground chiseled from the mountain. The frost strangler and its company were ahead.

    She¡¯d summoned the pterodactyl that earlier patrolled Roost¡¯s Peak as her choice of companion. Or tool, to use her word. None of the enemies they¡¯d face were capable of flight and her monster would only be in danger if it got near something tall enough for the shock runners to cling to. What electrical attacks would do against electrical-type creatures, Daniel didn¡¯t know.

    ¡°Now can we go over the plan?¡±

    ¡°We don¡¯t do plans. Just fucking kill something.¡± Again Daniel expected Tlara to show some measure of bloodthirst, but she just seemed serious. ¡°Keep up or die, and don¡¯t get in Kob¡¯s way or you¡¯ll regret it. If you don¡¯t have the instincts for this then you shouldn¡¯t be here. Also if you don¡¯t do what I tell you, you definitely won¡¯t be.¡±

    Daniel didn¡¯t want to ask but knew it would be worse if he didn¡¯t. He forced subservience into his tone in hopes that took the edge off Tlara¡¯s bitterness. ¡°So what are your orders?¡±

    That earned a suspicious look that was significantly less hostile than average. His higher charisma really could put in work when it felt like it. ¡°Have your ringcat stay up front to draw attention. You¡¯re pretty much useless with that sword so I guess you can stay back.¡±

    Burning warmth pressed into Daniel¡¯s cheeks as he immediately regretted his tack. ¡°You¡¯re just trying to get him killed!¡±

    Tlara¡¯s smile revealed the trap he¡¯d walked into. ¡°Sounds like you¡¯re refusing an order.¡± She stood up and airily stated, ¡°I guess that means you can just trudge on the fuck back to the city then.¡±

    It took everything for Daniel not to address his argument towards Kob. Something told him that may as well mean forfeiting the point. ¡°I¡¯m not like you. My friends aren¡¯t disposable and I don¡¯t use them as cannon fodder.¡±

    ¡°I have two answers for you. I don¡¯t care and you do what I fucking say.¡±

    He wanted to use his time stop to cool off, but Daniel couldn¡¯t afford the mana. He¡¯d have to rely on his trump card. The semantics of the deal held a loophole he was sure Tlara hadn¡¯t thought of. Ideally he wouldn¡¯t have used it until later than the second day of hunting with her but she¡¯d forced the issue. ¡°Sure, I do. Our agreement doesn¡¯t say anything about my ringcat following your orders.¡±

    Tlara¡¯s glare told him exactly what she thought about how clever he was. ¡°Fucking really? Just tell it to do whatever I want it to.¡±

    ¡°I can, but he doesn¡¯t want to. I haven¡¯t tamed him Tlara, Hunter is his own person and does what he wants to.¡± Daniel folded his arms and hoped that provoked the right kind of reaction. This wasn¡¯t walking the line, this was sprinting across it while wearing a blindfold. It was worth it. After yesterday he couldn¡¯t continue with a boot on his neck and needed to push the boundaries of the arrangement out. Lograve could say what he would about not provoking people higher than his level, Daniel was confident Kob would stop Tlara from doing anything permanent to him.

    The bird woman¡¯s feathers puffed up again as her voice rose to a volume that threatened to alert their quarry. ¡°Fine. If that broken tool wants to stay with you then both of you fucking march into the forest and draw them out!¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Kob¡¯s voice rumbled like distant thunder. It was the closest they got to a whisper.

    ¡°The agreement-¡±

    ¡°Overstep.¡±

    Tlara returned to a shrill whisper. ¡°He¡¯s just making it up so he won¡¯t have to lose his fucking pet! What would you rather risk, Khare or that thing?¡±

    ¡°Can you prove it?¡± Daniel was beaming, now the one whose trap had been sprung. Taunting Tlara was easier than he thought. She must have a low charisma. ¡°I¡¯m fairly certain you don¡¯t have a truth-detection power, none of you do. You can either argue with me and draw attention, or we can get to work without pointlessly using team members as sacrificial lambs.¡±

    Tlara had no proof but she did have anger. The avianoid would find some way to get back at him, but there was no time before the fight for her schemes. Kob ended the squabble not with words, but by vaulting off the ledge and dropping to the forest floor. The minor earthquake this caused alerted everything to their presence. Red outlines started to move towards them.

    The benefit of not having a previously discussed plan was that Daniel was free to fight as he saw fit. He had no idea how to fight the monsters charging his position other than to draw his crossbow and hope he wouldn¡¯t need to use his talon hands. Khare stayed with him while Sigron followed Kob a short distance away. Tlara was the last to go, glaring at Daniel and raising a hand at her pterodactyl which made it grow slightly and move faster.

    She¡¯s a terrible person, but I wouldn¡¯t mind that kind of ability for you, he thought to Hunter. And if you borrowed it from me, we could buff each other!

    Focus. Look at the walls. We are not as safe here as you think.

    The Artificer gulped as he took the point. The shock runners would have no problem clinging to the side of the valley to bypass Kob and reach their position. Falling back through the crevice behind him would only give him less room to maneuver. Well, it¡¯s a good thing you¡¯re big enough to ride now. If enough of them get here we¡¯ll need to beat it fast.

    I don¡¯t like that idea. Hunter had so far firmly resisted the thought of being ridden which dashed Daniel¡¯s hopes of mounted archery.

    Khare, the level one gestalt Martialist, was also making their preparations. An impressive amount of weapons hidden in the mass of vines were retrieved, with two entire belts of daggers starting to twirl on plant tendrils. It seemed like they could throw all of them at once with some accuracy. ¡°Hey, Khare,¡± Daniel said quickly. ¡°We haven¡¯t talked before, do you have a plan for if the monsters get here?¡±

    The acorn eyes turned to him. ¡°Kob.¡± The tree-like voice was almost falsetto compared to Kob¡¯s earth-breaking tenor, even if it was still deeper than his.

    ¡°Huh. Well, I guess they are level four.¡± Daniel suddenly wondered if there was a reason the rest of his companions weren¡¯t worried about set plans. ¡°I haven¡¯t seen anyone that powerful in action yet. I know I have my differences with Tlara but I just wanted to say we¡¯ve got your back. Level ones have to stick together, right?¡±

    Khare¡¯s grey aura was unimpressed, but gestalt did respond with, ¡°Accord.¡± That was probably a good thing and not a reminder that Tlara all but had a leash around his neck.

    Daniel went prone on the ledge and steadied his crossbow, feeling like he should adjust a scope he didn¡¯t have. Hunter was now too tall to steady himself on unless the ringcat lay on his side, and that was not a position to be in during a fight. Snap Shot made bracing unnecessary, but Daniel wanted all the accuracy he could get. Only 15 of his 20 bolts were ones he was willing to fire. The other five were more experimental and reserved for emergencies. Curved purple spines had been fixed into the metal shaft to poke out from the tip. The process of creating these had actually led to a new, if shoddy, formulae.

    <hr>

    Lightning Bolt (Formulae: Enchanting, Construct, Domain: Enchantment, Quality: Shoddy, Level: 0)

    Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!

    A normal crossbow bolt fitted with Special Item: Lightning Spine commonly salvaged from Monsters within Region: Thormundz. This bolt has been enhanced with Type: Lightning damage as well as the unique properties belonging to the material used to augment it.

    Creation of this item requires no Mana or significant time beyond assembly. Use of special item: lightning spine required in sufficient quantity to create this item

    <hr>

    He¡¯d only tested out one so far given his limited number of lightning spines. The bolt had exploded about 20 meters away, meaning it could deliver a destructive burst if he aimed properly. It seemed any kind of fast movement, not just falling, would build charge in the spines and decrease their momentum in turn. If it hit too soon, however, the bolt wouldn¡¯t reach the kaboom point and would deal less damage due to its slower momentum. Daniel was sure he could make more things with these, but all of his supply had gone to making explosive bolts because, you know, explosive bolts.

    The battle was joined as the first of the shock runners charged at Kob and Sigron. The Knight held up his impressive shield, light flashing across it twice as an ability was activated. Fire sprung to ring the blade of his short sword, held in front of him like a torch. Kob¡¯s readying was far more impressive. A shock wave pulsed from them as cracks began to appear in their stony hide. At first, Daniel was terrified an unseen enemy had damaged them. Then, vines as thick as electrical lines ensnared the shards of stone, and the giant was transformed into a whirlwind of plant and sharp rock. This drew most of the jolts of electricity which harmlessly deflected off the stone wielded by the mass as weapon and armor. Holy shit. I can see why they don¡¯t worry about fights going bad, Daniel thought to Hunter. The first of the lizards was crushed by Kob while the rest scattered.

    Unlike the ringcats he had faced before, the shock runners attacked with the entire group at once. Ten young and eight fully grown came from the trees and along the tapering walls. Tlara was between the monstrosity that was Kob and Daniel¡¯s position. She fought more like a drone pilot than an actual participant in the battle. Her beast did the fighting while she focused on buffing it and keeping herself safe.

    To give the pterodactyl credit, the lightning emitted from the spine on its head did char shock runner flesh when it struck away from the spines of those creatures. On a handful of occasions, Tlara shouted "Elemental Overload", creating an enormous burst that outright killed the level ones she targeted. She didn¡¯t spam this, either due to the mana cost or a cooldown.

    Khare writhed in place, and several daggers flew out towards the shock runner leading the group on the left wall. Daniel sighted the same target, activated Snap Shot through will alone, and felt the ability guide his sights home. The effect was rather powerful since he just had to aim in the general area of a creature and let the ability take over. Not to the level of Kob, not even close, but it was a dramatic improvement to his combat potential. The bolt flew in a clean arc to the creature¡¯s prominent eye with enough force to drive it through the socket, and the monster fell dead off the wall. I just killed a level two, he thought with a sense of pride. On purpose, I mean. That was almost too easy.

    Pathetic prey to have such a weakness, Hunter commented, then looked around sharply. Where is the ice man?

    ¡°Hey, the frost strangler¡¯s gone!¡± Daniel called out as he realized the outline was no longer visible.

    ¡°Stealth ability. Fuck, I can¡¯t sense it either,¡± Tlara confirmed, differences put aside as an enemy greater than them both was roaming the battlefield unseen.

    Daniel couldn¡¯t let it distract him. Shock runners were approaching from both sides and coming right for him. Their lightning was currently directed at Kob, Tlara, and Sigron as they were at a poor angle to hit the two on the rise. The monsters seemed very ill adapted to attacking a target head on but could expertly kite an enemy by running around it. They were also weak towards the front as his one shot kill showed, but that was the only one he''d managed over the new minute. Though some of the shots hit the fleshy orbs, none broke through to fatally wound. Khare¡¯s follow ups often did the job, though the gestalt focused on the left side. Two of Daniel¡¯s crossbow bolts were committed to the right side before the reason for the gestalt¡¯s neglect was revealed.

    The initial pulse from Kob had puzzled Daniel. It wasn¡¯t like Thomas¡¯ Nova ability that knocked people down. It didn¡¯t carry real force or pressure but had struck his senses like a depth charge. Another blast was issued and gave Daniel a better idea of its source: tremendous expenditure of mana.

    The second pulse was accompanied by a contortion of the gestalt¡¯s vines. Some rooted in the ground, while the rest concentrated the stone armor shards into a shell at the other end. In seconds, this mass whipped around twice and then stretched towards the shock runners on the right wall. All there were left broken and smeared.

    Most of the shock runners lay dead and Daniel was just about to think the frost strangler had run when it struck. Sigron had spent the battle tanking the main shock runner force effectively when ice sprung from the ground like a bear trap. If Sigron¡¯s legs weren¡¯t as well protected as his chest it might have taken his foot completely off.

    Kob¡¯s mass instantly enveloped the Knight and left only bloody ice when it moved from where Sigron once stood. He, he¡¯s alive right? It was hard to make out, but Daniel could see Sigron¡¯s aura within Kob¡¯s writhing sphere.

    ¡°Fuck, invisibility!¡± Tlara was running back to Daniel¡¯s position the moment the attack came.

    Invisibility. That terrified the Artificer. Hunter¡¯s amplification of his Identify Creature power had made him feel invincible whenever they weren¡¯t actively fighting. Threats could be detected so far out that he could always run away before getting into any real danger. Now there was something within reach that could kill him without leaving even an aura for him to detect.

    The frost strangler victimized Tlara¡¯s pterodactyl next as a rod of ice shot from the ground, into the air, and closed around its neck. ¡°It¡¯s Aquakinesis!¡± Daniel suddenly realized. Monsters can have class powers!?

    ¡°Wither!¡± Kob¡¯s voice shook the trees. Shard carrying vines were striking the ground at random. No, not at random. It took Daniel a few moments to see the pattern. Grass on the ground was slowly freezing in a trail retreating from the giant. He would have never noticed it, not unless he had hours to observe instead of seconds. Kob, however, had instantly recognized how to track the enemy.

    The trail of death followed Tlara. The Beastmaster was nimble and had the sense to withdraw her monster before it was choked to death. It dissolved into dust that flowed towards her. Daniel didn¡¯t entirely understand how her powers worked, but based on her failure to produce another beast it was unlikely she could before the frost strangler was on her.

    Despite the brutish strength of Kob the frost continued its pursuit. Nothing should be able to survive the giant¡¯s strikes, nothing under their level at least. Maybe it was traveling underground? No, Kob was hitting with enough force to create craters. It was also possible that the frost effect on the grass was delayed and the monster was ahead of where it appeared, but Kob was hitting close enough that something should have happened to the creature.

    Instead, it was gaining on Tlara. She would die, or at least be gravely injured. Do I want that? Daniel asked himself. It was a fair question. She¡¯d probably cut and run were their places swapped. Anyways, what could he do that Kob couldn¡¯t, that anyone else here couldn¡¯t? Damn it. Daniel stopped time and burned about a quarter of his remaining mana in the process.

    What are you doing!? Hunter¡¯s thoughts carried fear and confusion. His new intelligence hadn¡¯t changed how much the ringcat despised being frozen in place.

    I¡¯m the only one who can save her. But I don¡¯t know if I should.

    That doesn¡¯t make any sense.

    It¡¯s a damage immunity. I think. To Daniel, this was a classic ghost-type monster. In most games physical attacks wouldn¡¯t touch them, but magical attacks? Since Hunter wasn¡¯t familiar with video game logic Daniel didn¡¯t explain that part of his reasoning. That thing took out the guy with the fire sword and the lightning bird first. They¡¯re the only ones with attacks that aren¡¯t just physical, that it knows of at least. Kob should be pounding it into sand but their vines are probably going straight through it. I need to use a lightning bolt.

    Why stop time?

    I needed to think, and I¡¯ll need to use it again. You¡¯ll see.

    The lightning bolts were kept in a separate pouch on Hunter made of tougher and thicker leather than normal. Theoretically, they¡¯d be a danger to the ringcat should a creature with lightning abilities target his area. Taking one out took a little longer than Daniel thought, but he still had enough time.

    He took a knee on the ledge and trained his sights to follow the running bird woman. ¡°Tlara! Drop when I tell you to!¡±

    She was using most of her air for running, but managed enough to force out, ¡°Don¡¯t you dare.¡±

    ¡°Oh fuck you too, just do it! And stop moving side to side!¡±

    ¡°Are you trying to shoot me!?¡± The frost was almost at her heels and she was bleeding from ice shards embedded into her back.

    ¡°What do you think?!¡± It was almost within range. Despite the initial intent of the bolt¡¯s design, Daniel wanted the bolt to strike the monster just before it exploded. That meant waiting until Tlara was almost under him. ¡°Now!¡±

    Daniel fired the lightning bolt manually with a short use of Moment of Clarity, instead of using Snap Shot. He couldn¡¯t trust that it would compensate correctly for what was about to happen to the bolt and had needed the other ability to work out where and when to fire. As soon as it was released, lightning began sparking and the bolt behaved differently than the ones before. He¡¯d aimed ahead of where the frost strangler should be, leading the shot for when the bolt¡¯s momentum slowed. If it traveled too far before hitting something, the explosion might have hurt Tlara. That wouldn¡¯t be the end of Daniel¡¯s world but would probably make any reconciliation with her impossible. It also might not be enough to kill the level three monster. Instead of exploding, the bolt buzzed midair. Purple lightning connected with one of the larger spines on the closest shock runner corpse just as the bolt lodged into something invisible, the electrical energy coursing over it giving it purchase.

    ¡°Kob, toss the body!¡± Daniel shouted, but vines were already wrapped around the shock runner¡¯s corpse. Were they anticipating that? he wondered. For someone who appeared to prize brute strength, Kob¡¯s fighting instinct was flawless. Shock runner corpses were juggled one at a time over Daniel¡¯s lightning bolt. Electricity arced again and again into the invisible creature to reach the lightning spine within it. The frost strangler¡¯s endurance must have been low enough that it couldn¡¯t resist the chained stun effect, allowing Kob to continue roasting it into oblivion. It grimly reminded the Artificer of what might have happened if the sparkbat swarm had overwhelmed him back on that island.

    A charred blue corpse suddenly appeared and began sloughing into a pile of viscous jelly. Tlara had scrambled away to watch the execution and had made it outside of the splash zone. Once it was clear there was no threat, vines parted to allow a very injured Sigron to exit. The phone in Daniel¡¯s pouch vibrated.

    <hr>

    You have accomplished Feat: Slay Monsters and Feat: Invention.

    This has unlocked potential for growth. Three Advancement Potential have been awarded. You may assign them with Function: Settings in addition to expending potential through normal methods.

    <hr>

 Chapter 24: Friends, Love, and Monsters

    <hr>

    Your Intelligence is now 18! You have gained Ability: Mark Weakness and Ability: Scatter Shot.

    -

    ???

    -

    Mark Weakness (Ability, Intelligence, Spell, Domain: Illusion, Level: 1)

    You possess the Power to briefly reveal weaknesses in enemies and enable your allies to target them. This ability requires a modest amount of Mana, scaling with the target¡¯s Endurance and inversely scaling with your intelligence. Targeting an enemy with a higher Level than yours increases the mana cost exponentially, and vice versa. This ability reveals only physical weaknesses and does not provide any information on Vulnerability, Resistance, or Immunity to types of damage. This is a Magical Ability that does not function within an area of Magical Suppression.

    -

    Scatter Shot (Ability, Intelligence, Spell: Ranged Weapon, Domain: Enchantment, Level: 1):

    You possess the Power to infuse one piece of ammunition with a secondary area damaging effect. Use of this ability requires a moderate amount of Mana and a ranged weapon you are able to use alone. The range and damage of this ability scale with your intelligence and the primary damage of the attack. Attacks made using this spell beyond its range will nullify its effects. This is a Magical Ability that does not function within an area of Magical Suppression.

    <hr>

    ¡­

    ¡°That¡¯s when she threatened to kill me for the third time. Though it was more along the lines of ¡®do that again and I¡¯ll gut you¡¯ than the usual ¡®I intrinsically despise you¡¯.¡± Daniel leaned back in the chair and sighed. ¡°I don¡¯t know what else I could¡¯ve done.¡±

    ¡°Women, Guy, I¡¯m telling you,¡± Thomas commiserated in between bites. ¡°It¡¯s like Evalyn¡¯s completely shut down.¡± The two were eating together in one of the taverns of Roost¡¯s Peak. There were three in the city and saw the most life of any establishment there. Some of the nearby guards were listening in as Thomas¡¯ reputation as a gossip had spread farther than Hunter¡¯s radar. ¡°Still, sounds like you¡¯re learning some enchanting. That¡¯s great, Guy! You¡¯re probably the first Artificer in the region. I heard of some Arcanists that could enchant but they all went up in the-¡±

    ¡°Upswell, yeah.¡± That was a trend among things that would be nice to have. Daniel pondered for a moment before he asked something that had been on his mind. ¡°Hey, why do you call me Guy? I thought it was just you saying stuff like ¡®hey guy¡¯ at first but I¡¯m the only one you do it to.¡±

    ¡°Oh, that.¡± Thomas looked a little sheepish for a moment, as if he¡¯d been caught stealing a pie off a windowsill. ¡°I can stop, it¡¯s not really anything.¡±

    ¡°What is it?¡± Daniel pressed, not getting the sense that Thomas wanted to end the topic there.

    ¡°I knew this guy back home. Guy Eresal, as in, that¡¯s his full name. Looks a lot like you.¡± Thomas gestured at his face for emphasis. ¡°Not a perfect copy but it¡¯s scary close. We lost contact after I left Aughal almost a decade ago. When I saw you the day after the Upswell I thought, well, it¡¯s stupid.¡±

    This was the closest he¡¯d ever seen the Cleric to getting embarrassed and Daniel found it an enjoyable experience overall. ¡°Guessing you miss him?¡±

    ¡°We were close growing up, but I had to leave and he stayed behind.¡± Thomas looked out a window for a few seconds. ¡°It¡¯s just a dumb thing. I could almost think I was going through this with an old friend, keeping it up. I¡¯ll stop, Daniel.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t mind.¡± Daniel finally couldn¡¯t hide his grin anymore at Thomas¡¯ continued sheepish look. ¡°Really, it¡¯s fine. I¡¯ve kind of gotten used to it. It¡¯s like an inside joke. You would have to stop if you ever found the real Guy though, that¡¯d be confusing.¡±

    ¡°You really don¡¯t mind?¡± Daniel shook his head and Thomas smiled back. ¡°Ah, thanks Guy.¡±

    ¡°No problem Tom,¡± Daniel joked, before circling back to something Thomas had said earlier. ¡°What did you mean about Evalyn?¡±

    The Cleric frowned. ¡°Oh right. We¡¯ve been here a week and she hasn¡¯t so much as flirted with anyone! Guy, why¡¯d you have to go and break the Bard?¡±

    Despite the jovial nature of the conversation, Daniel felt that was a little too far. ¡°Your current dry spell isn¡¯t my fault.¡±

    ¡°Who said anything about that?¡± Self-satisfaction accompanied a mischievous smile. ¡°There¡¯s more than one Bard in the world. Bards aside there are plenty of bored, tense people here with nowhere to go. I¡¯m surprised you haven¡¯t figured that out yet, Guy. If you stayed here for longer than it took you to eat and got to know people you wouldn¡¯t have as much trouble in the love department.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not a people person.¡± Daniel looked away and felt the looks of the dozens in the room centered on him. The themed restaurant suddenly transformed into a high school cafeteria. ¡°If you couldn¡¯t tell by how quickly I won over Tlara, talking isn¡¯t my strong suit.¡±

    ¡°We get along well enough.¡± Thomas poked him with a spoon mostly clean of soup. ¡°Why don¡¯t you hang with me tonight and we¡¯ll see if we can break your dry spell.¡±

    ¡°I-I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about.¡± Thomas¡¯ mischievous smile only grew and Daniel had a terrible thought. ¡°Do you have a lie detector power?¡± Does he know what happened with Evalyn?

    ¡°Yes, I can read your mind,¡± Thomas said smugly.

    Daniel narrowed his eyes. ¡°That¡¯s not what I was thinking.¡±

    ¡°Damn, that usually gets people. It¡¯s just a power that tells me if you¡¯re lying.¡± Thomas said, a little disappointed. ¡°It doesn¡¯t work on anyone whose charisma is higher than my wisdom. You¡¯re an open book though.¡±

    ¡°And how many times have you used it on me?¡±

    ¡°Oh,¡± Thomas mimed Lograve¡¯s finger counting and then waggled his fingers. ¡°It¡¯s always on. You and Khare are the only people I can hit in the team and using it on the plant goes exactly as well as you¡¯d imagine.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know how to feel about this blatant invasion of my privacy.¡± Daniel made to stand in half-mock offense, conflicted between how troubling that power was for him and how close of a friend he¡¯d become with Thomas. While he did enjoy his gossip, the Cleric hadn¡¯t given Daniel the impression of someone who made it their business to zealously dig out someone¡¯s secrets.

    ¡°Come on, Guy, it¡¯s not like I wanted to find out,¡± Thomas replied with a bit of worry. ¡°I didn¡¯t exactly ask the Hand for this power anyways, and I can¡¯t help what I see.¡±

    ¡°Well, you saw something kinda of personal,¡± Daniel said under his breath. He sighed, though, and sat back down. If Thomas was telling the truth, it was a feature responsible for his indiscretion. Daniel himself couldn¡¯t turn off Regeneration, and as far as he knew the Cleric hadn¡¯t told anyone else what he¡¯d discovered. If anything, he¡¯d been feeding the false assumptions.

    Thomas interrupted his thoughts with a half-joking question. ¡°Will you forgive me if I get you laid?¡±

    That threw Daniel down a completely different line of thought. He wasn¡¯t completely over what had happened with Evalyn, but she¡¯d made it clear in both word and action that there was no chance, at least for now. He wasn''t about to wait around for the apocalypse to stop apocalypsing before he looked for something special. An Arcanist at the bar glanced at him while he considered and took a few seconds too long to look away when he noticed. Had she been doing that before or was it just a coincidence?

    Thomas followed his gaze. ¡°See, Guy? That¡¯s what I was talking about.¡±

    What the hell, Daniel thought. Hunter¡¯s busy murdering the local wildlife so I might as well try to have fun too. But this time, I¡¯m going to do it right. ¡°As long as it¡¯s not a personal offer? What¡¯s the worst that could happen?¡±

    ¡­

    Tlara was so close to level three. She¡¯d been near death and nearly killed when that idiot ¡®saved¡¯ her, but it was worth the advancement. If that fight had proven anything, it was that she needed the ability to field more than one of her beasts at the same time. It would happen next level. She just needed one more advancement potential and she could heighten her Stasis Pouch feature.

    She¡¯d spent her time following the return to Roost¡¯s Peak well. The first day was spent entirely in seclusion as she worked on her wisdom. Care had to be taken to avoid crossing into development of one of her other attributes. Accidentally committing advancement potential this way was a risk posed by poor technique, though even the experienced would occasionally slip when they tried for two advancements in one day.

    The isolation was good for Tlara. It was hard enough on her nerves to work directly with the titan Kob, but being forced to shepherd a Spiritualist frayed them near to splitting apart. That¡¯s why. That¡¯s why I almost died, she thought. That fucking Spiritualist is throwing me off my game. It¡¯s like I¡¯m back home. And Kob, backing him! Isn¡¯t that familiar? I¡¯m worth five of him and his broken tool and they side with him!?

    She just didn¡¯t have anyone to rely on. Lograve knew she¡¯d tried to run back at the pass and she guessed Kob had been informed as well. That hardly changed her plan but made trust hard to foster, to say nothing of the Spiritualist making it impossible through undermining her. How had he done it? How had he gotten everyone important on the training team to support him? Tlara wasn¡¯t na?ve enough to pass it off as some esoteric Spiritualist trick but was suspicious enough to question Daniel¡¯s origins. He was an idiot when it came to hunting but there had to be something about him that had gotten him on the team in the first place. If being an Artificer was all it was they''d have stuffed him into a room and turned him into a magic item factory. If he was some kind of exiled young noble from Aughal that would basically confirm the world had it out for her.

    The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    Then, there was the broken tool. The man seemed convinced it wasn¡¯t tamed, and it certainly wasn¡¯t dominated. Only a Beastmaster, or another class that had reached the regional tier above level three, had abilities that could completely rob monsters of their will and bend them to their master¡¯s. Yet as much as she knew it had to be one or the other, Daniel¡¯s ringcat acted with intelligence that belied direct control instead of the softer touches of a taming.

    Something had caused the Upswell. As much as it seemed impossible, could it have been him? The glazed, idiotic expression currently on Daniel¡¯s face told her otherwise. Sometimes her keen insight returned information she could do without. Ugh, first the Bard, and now another one? She glanced around the courtyard. Both training teams were present in full and none seemed to be the object of whatever the Spiritualist was reminiscing about. Small mercy.

    Lograve was in the middle of the formal debriefing, asking for insight into how the teams had fought and going over who had advanced. If anyone had awakened a power from advancement they were encouraged to share, but he stressed this wasn¡¯t mandatory.

    Tlara herself wasn¡¯t sure, but powers granted from the mental abilities were trickier to realize. She¡¯d been able to advance her wisdom twice through the potential from the last hunt, so it was likely she¡¯d gotten a power. At this stage powers came on average of every other advancement, and with her wisdom now at 29, it would be the last level two power she¡¯d ever awaken.

    ¡°I went with intelligence,¡± Daniel was talking. She tried to ignore him and focus on the plan for level three. A frost strangler would be a perfect addition if she could find another one and weaken it without almost dying herself. ¡°I¡¯m still not sure why, but advancing that also increases my strength, so both are 18 now.¡±

    Arrogant bastard. She couldn¡¯t screen him out entirely and clenched her beak. Who does he think he¡¯s fucking fooling? Back to the plan. Frost strangler, and upgrading some of her current creatures to an alpha or higher variant since the titles didn¡¯t always mean the same level between species. The spark rhino was an obvious choice to keep. Finding a level three would mean doubling her carrying capacity. She¡¯d also need a scouting creature capable of outstripping Daniel¡¯s too. Taking away the novelty of that absurd power would help re-establish her prominence amongst the training group. A ringcat was theoretically the best option, but there had to be something else that wouldn¡¯t make it look like she was copying him. And she wouldn¡¯t even be doing that, she¡¯d dominated one first!

    That was all dependent on the team giving her the chance. Kob was a Crest for monsters and she respected them for it, but that made Tlara¡¯s domination powers far harder to use. She needed injured targets, not flattened ones. Daniel would be the hardest to convince given his inclinations and she was counting on that order to not be countermanded.

    Lograve¡¯s voice brought her fully back into the conversation. ¡°Everyone has made good progress. For Kob¡¯s team, your fight should be a lesson to always be on guard against sneaky bastards. You adapted well by all accounts and certain members didn¡¯t kill each other, so your hunt went as well as it could.¡± Tlara couldn¡¯t bring herself to despise the Arcanist''s joviality. How he¡¯d escaped the dragon was a complete mystery to her, but his actions had brought time for her to run. As for the other three she''d left behind, they must have been ambushed by something like the frost strangler on the way back, because she sure as Crest hadn¡¯t seen anything dangerous when her spark beetle had rushed her back. Though, if there had been something that dangerous, why hadn¡¯t it gotten Lograve?

    ¡°What now?¡± Gadriel asked. He was the one Tlara was conflicted towards. There was no possible way Daniel had worked any form of power on him. The Hero had no weaknesses other than in comparison to opponents of higher level, and honestly not to as much of a degree as most. If he ever got angry at her, she was running like another dragon was chasing her. And yet the Spiritualist had turned that enemy into a friend. How, and why?

    Lograve looked to Kob, who was now fully encased in their stone armor again. The gestalt simply nodded. ¡°We¡¯re keeping the teams as is for the moment and planning a longer camping trip. 7 days, three hunts with a day of scouting and rest between them. Now, the guard has asked us to check the mine while they temporarily suspend operations there. For our resident tower¡¯s sake, my team will delve there while the others continue scouring the pass.¡± Thomas and Evalyn looked worried and Tlara saw a look of immense relief on Daniel¡¯s face. Curious.

    ¡°Discord,¡± Kob rumbled.

    ¡°Yes, I was getting there. Tlara, Daniel informed me of what happened during the fight.¡±

    That little shit, she thought. Always running to cover behind someone bigger and telling them whatever they needed to hear to get his way. ¡°And?¡± she asked testily.

    ¡°It sounds like he came to your aid and may have saved your life. Given the circumstances, it seems only fair the probationary arrangement is annulled.¡± Lograve braced for what might turn into a repeat of the ¡®incident¡¯.

    ¡°What?¡± Tlara held her tone in check but couldn¡¯t stop her damned feathers from giving away her emotions. ¡°I was clear on the conditions I would fucking work with him.¡± She couldn¡¯t stop herself from adding venom there. ¡°And I shouldn¡¯t have to argue my side in public after he approached you in private.¡±

    That did resonate with Lograve but Tlara could see it didn¡¯t change his mind. ¡°I apologize. I¡¯d hoped tempers may have cooled. Regardless, I was also informed of certain irregularities just before your hunt that add weight to the decision.¡±

    ¡°How do you know he¡¯s not fucking lying?¡± She knew she was being too belligerent but she couldn¡¯t help but be worked up.

    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t, but Thomas here can verify the truth and Kob seconded him. I hope this won¡¯t be a problem?¡±

    Silence stretched for half a minute before Tlara finally decided. Losing face here would close many doors in the future, but arguing with Lograve could close all of them. She seethed at Daniel for trapping her between two very unpleasant options but couldn¡¯t change the fact that she needed to choose one. ¡°Fine,¡± she shot the word like an arrow.

    ¡­

    Daniel left Roost¡¯s Peak and walked like he was feeling the sun for the first time. Everything was just the way it was meant to be. For one, his old team was doing something spelunking videos on the internet had made Daniel firmly swear off. Tlara¡¯s presence on his new team would have soured the mood if he hadn¡¯t freshly slipped from her yoke and escaped a terrifying assignment.

    Her continued abhorrence of all things Daniel should be a sign his troubles weren¡¯t over but he didn¡¯t care. He was close to leveling up, he had at least two new powers, and he was dating someone.

    Thomas¡¯ suggestion had actually panned out, netting him a night with a level one Arcanist. Claire, like a few others, had grown curious about the identification feature keeping the skyshock wyverns at bay. A few nudges by the Cleric had the two making bets on what he could and couldn''t track. Were he on Earth, or if Thomas hadn¡¯t been there, Daniel would have never found himself on the roof of one of the vacant buildings in town with an attractive woman only a couple years his senior.

    For the admittedly rigged game, she¡¯d used a quick fox. Claire had a familiar feature, in the summoning sense. Her monsters were created instead of tamed and were completely obedient like Tlara¡¯s, just without the moral quandary. Most of what she could summon weren¡¯t monsters but level 0 animals that weren¡¯t passively hostile towards mortals. The tradeoff with familiars, as he learned, was that Claire could only use things below her level and had to expend a lot mana whenever she wanted something.

    Identify Creature had unerringly tracked the fox as it dipped in and out of roofs until the Arcanist wised up and kept it out of sight entirely. Thomas had suggested he only vaguely describe his powers at first and Daniel was surprised how well letting Claire figure it out for herself worked. Of course, the Cleric hadn¡¯t been there to personally supervise, but he had given enough advice at the beginning to carry Daniel through. The game continued until midnight as both took turns demonstrating what they could and giving the other gradual hints, his supposed Totem Warrior powers throwing enough in the mix to keep things interesting. It hadn''t gone further than that, to the rumor-hungry Cleric''s disappointment.

    It was the best date he¡¯d ever had, though to be fair none of the others had involved magic. Daniel wasn¡¯t expecting to have made plans with Claire for the next day, but it had happened. The few relationships he¡¯d tried to start back on Earth had either ended quickly or hadn¡¯t started at all, the mild depression he¡¯d been under after his father¡¯s disappearance and his social awkwardness poisoning his chances. With a fresh start and resolve to improve himself, Daniel had given it actual effort and was surprised to find that paid off.

    The second date started with darts. The game was the same as it was on Earth but played with throwing knives instead. Snap Shot made it easy, so Claire created moving targets with an illusion power. Then it was dinner, drinks, a night¡¯s walk among the mostly empty streets, ending with the two of them alone on the roof from the night before. Nothing that crossed into what would be indecent to openly discuss had happened that night either, and he felt better for taking it slow based on how it had turned out with Evalyn.

    All in all, Tlara could keep her bitterness.

    Thinking about her? Hunter asked. With the tyranny of Tlara over, the ringcat was free to walk within communication distance as they left the city. By now they¡¯d figured out that was a mere ten meters contrasted with the theoretically limitless one of the shared by Identify Creature. They had yet to find a distance that the tags would fall off at, even when they went beyond Hunter¡¯s sensory range. Daniel could even keep track of the other team as they went into the mines, although when both he and Hunter went to sleep to recharge mana everything was cleared.

    Is it weird that you¡¯re asking? I think it¡¯s weird. Daniel wasn¡¯t going to even broach the reproductive gulf between them and how that would inform the ringcat¡¯s opinions. Hunter¡¯s nightly forays had saved Daniel from awkwardness so far and he wanted to keep it that way if things got serious. The stolid presence of his friend was slightly sobering and made it hard to distract himself from the lingering fears of another catastrophic failure happening. At the same time he was a new person, a better person, and if he could risk his life fighting monsters he could risk trying for a relationship.

    You don¡¯t want to talk about it?

    Not exactly. He looked beside him at the two fangs as long as his forearm and patted the murder cat on his head. Like the time stop ability, it was something Hunter didn¡¯t like but had grown to tolerate. Both of them had changed since they¡¯d first met. Hunter was twice as big, and Daniel was twice as much a Casanova. He hadn¡¯t been much of one to begin with, but progress was progress. You¡¯re not jealous, are you?

    No. It was hard to tell when Hunter was lying. Thomas could if he knew the ringcat talked, but Daniel had to guess off of what he knew of Earth cats and the faint emotions that crossed over their bond. Hunter wasn¡¯t avoiding his gaze, so Daniel took that as the truth.

    Oh good. I don¡¯t not want to discuss it, it¡¯s just awkward to talk about dating with a sentient panther-lion. He sensed mischievousness from Hunter and added, You know what I mean. I don¡¯t know what¡¯s stranger, that we¡¯re talking like this or that I¡¯m in a relationship. A very tenuous, ¡®no one has made any commitments and we could all die tomorrow¡¯ kind of relationship, but still.

    Your kind has strange habits. Hunter huffed, drawing a glance from Tlara. The avianoid was keeping as far away from Daniel as she could, which meant riding her sparkrhino at the front of the group. Both Hunter and Daniel glanced back before returning to their internal conversation. And some that are unforgivable.

    Yeah, she¡¯s not the best. Daniel agreed, letting the use of a five syllable word go in favor of something else. But if we could get started on practicing mounted archery it¡¯ll get us prepared for when we need to use it. I¡¯m not saying we buy a saddle or anything, considering I don¡¯t have any money, but- Hunter growled and Daniel laughed. Ah, we¡¯ll get there someday buddy.

    Even the relative quiet of the party¡¯s camp had become relaxing instead of imposing. They¡¯d moved faster through the countryside since the area closest to the city had been scouted and returned to the forest where their last battle had been. The theory was it would be a while before something else spawned or staked a claim to that territory, but Daniel had also noticed the training teams preferred to camp near trees. Free firewood was always a bonus.

    Sigron planted his flaming sword into the woodpile to light it. A Cleric in the city had seen to his wounds and his armor had been similarly repaired. His demeanor still held the signs of near death, the Knight jumping at the slightest sounds and adjusting the straps of his armor religiously. It might have been something to talk to him about if Daniel could. Since Tlara¡¯s hold on him was done, something continually rejoiced, the hardest part of being in the team was having no one other than Hunter to talk to. Khare must have thought otherwise and vine-massed their way to him while keeping clear of the fire. ¡°Level?¡±

    ¡°Oh, hi.¡± Daniel tried to decipher the gestalt¡¯s meaning. One of the many things he didn¡¯t get about this world was why these elemental humanoids couldn¡¯t just speak clearly, and it hadn¡¯t come up in a conversation yet. ¡°Uh, my level or yours?¡±

    ¡°Close?¡± A vine gestured towards him. Discerning the equivalent of hand signs in a swirling mass of them was difficult, but now that Khare was in a human form they had fingers to point.

    ¡°Yeah, actually! If I wanted to I could probably get to level two during this trip. How about you?¡± Khare had said a few words during the debrief in the city but like most things gestalt said, Daniel only had a hazy idea of the meaning.

    ¡°Dexterity.¡± A few knives twirled on the fingers made from compressed vines and Daniel wondered just how many weapons were hidden inside. There were at least more than the volume of the shape would suggest.

    ¡°That¡¯s great! I should probably make mine a little higher if I want to keep using this crossbow.¡± As more knives twirled, they prompted another question. ¡°I haven¡¯t leveled up before and you seem like you¡¯d know. Are there better weapons we should get or does everyone use the same basic stuff?¡±

    Khare tilted their head in what was probably confusion. It was an odd motion relying on shifting vines instead of muscles that looked for more rippling than it should have. ¡°Enchantment.¡± A pause. ¡°Artificer?¡±

    ¡°Huh. Thomas had mentioned something about that and I do have a feature that lets me make magic items. I just don¡¯t know any recipes, or ¡®formulae¡¯, that I haven¡¯t made myself. Without any money shopping¡¯s out of the question.¡±

    A dagger came out of the gestalt slowly, hilt first. ¡°Trade.¡±

    ¡°Oh?¡± Daniel touched the knife and recoiled before fully gripping it. There was the sense of a very low current running through it, so slight that it faded once he held it for a few seconds. He tried identifying it out of curiosity, but all that did was remind him his power didn¡¯t work on items. Still, it had to be magical.

    Daniel unsheathed one of his daggers and carefully rotated to hold it by the tip. Khare shook their head when it was offered. ¡°Improve.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re saying, uh, wait.¡± He thought for a second. ¡°You want me to enchant a better one for you?¡± That got a nod. ¡°I can¡¯t do that right now, sorry. Maybe once I¡¯m level two I might get some formulae for free? I doubt it though.¡±

    Khare patiently waited for Daniel to stop talking and simply said, ¡°Investment.¡±

    ¡°Oh. Oh! I think I get it now. Well, thanks!¡± He put the enchanted dagger in the sheath and looked at the normal one in his hand. ¡°I don¡¯t have something to put this in. Could you hold onto it for me?¡±

    He could swear the gestalt was bemused when a vine wrapped around the hilt and took the dagger back in turn. ¡°Tab,¡± Khare said, and then left.

    Hunter, did you notice that?

    Notice what?

    I think Khare just made a joke. Gestalt can joke?

 Chapter 25: Bonding Experience

    Rushing water filled the air with a low roar as the sudden drop in the terrain turned the small river into a waterfall. It followed a path that looked like it had been cut into the mountain by a giant¡¯s sword angled downward to strike at a rocky heart. Trees and lesser foliage covered the mouth of the ravine before falling off as it traveled down below the rock. The waterfall continued into the darkness.

    Tlara had pushed for this specific target, hard. There were advantages. The two level threes and a scattering of level ones and twos meant Kob could control the major threats while the trainees acted with more independence while overseen by Sigron and the Beastmaster. The identified monsters had no powerful abilities like the frost strangler and primarily relied on their bulk, strength, or numbers to kill.

    But they were underground. I know she¡¯s doing this on purpose, he told Hunter. How does she know?

    Are you afraid of the dark? the brusk voice teased him.

    No, I¡¯m, shut up. He took a steadying breath and sat down on the ledge next to the waterfall. How sure are you that we¡¯ve tagged them all?

    Not. Hunter¡¯s ability to mark all kinds of creatures was impressive, though the repeated scouting runs were revealing the weaknesses. For one, a rogue construct Tlara noticed, but Daniel had not, showed that the limitation against items could be deadly against things not considered creatures. They kept well away from that. Tlara¡¯s mutterings had identified it as something an ¡®incursion army¡¯ hadn¡¯t been careful enough to keep track of, but Daniel was in no mood to poke the murder bird to find out more.

    Then there were things Hunter simply didn¡¯t register to tag, being unfamiliar with this environment and the scents of the inhabitants until they were closer. In addition, disruptions to Hunter¡¯s ability to hear or smell drastically limited his range and made it easier for high level creatures to elude him. The waterfall, the darkness, and the depths made it so Hunter hadn¡¯t noticed the creatures until they were almost on top of the ravine¡¯s entrance. That, combined with the recent revelation about invisibility, made Daniel worry about all the things they could have missed before.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go! Unless you want to stay behind?¡± Tlara shouted over to him. She had no bound beast unleashed, planning to wait until they reached the bottom of the drop before she pulled something out. Behind her, a very tentative Sigron was slowly walking into Kob¡¯s mass through a small opening in the armor.

    ¡°Yeah yeah.¡± Daniel stood, doing his best to hide his anxiety. ¡°You still haven¡¯t told me how we¡¯re getting down.¡±

    ¡°Fucking figure it out.¡± She threw the hand sign he¡¯d taught her and then jumped off the cliff.

    His eyes followed, partially hoping her fall wouldn¡¯t slow. Instead, the avianoid stretched out her arms which turned into full wings. It was Grow Wings, a power unique to the race and something Daniel wasn¡¯t too shocked to learn existed when he¡¯d seen it in Lograve¡¯s feature encyclopedia. He doubted Khare¡¯s power to shuttle weapons about their body could be learned by a human, and the gestalt wouldn¡¯t get too much out of a charm ability. Kob and Khare, for their part, began climbing down the rock face as stone giant and vine ball. Sigron, in his heavy armor, couldn¡¯t have done it himself and had very reluctantly agreed to let Kob shuttle him. That left Daniel and a massive beast to contend with the near sheer fall.

    Hunter growled. I¡¯m not going to like this.

    Like what? Daniel had seen Hunter¡¯s character sheet and knew there wasn¡¯t anything that could help. Springing Strike did have slight fall damage reduction when it hit, but not to the point of tanking terminal velocity. Do you have an idea?

    I can climb down if I¡¯m careful.

    But how will I¡­ His fears of what lay below evaporated. You¡¯re not saying what I think you¡¯re saying?

    Only on the way down. Hunter lowered himself to the ground.

    Hell yes!

    There should have been a helicopter following them to get an establishing shot. With the sun half-eclipsed by the lip of the ravine and the waterfall throwing enough mist to create the occasional rainbow, the scenery was a perfect frame for the four climbing down the rock wall. Khare was making slow progress by rolling down and using vines to stabilize the descent. Kob was a powerhouse and could have been at the bottom by now if they weren¡¯t taking care to keep the imprisoned Sigron stable. Then, there was Daniel and Hunter.

    The ringcat had his claws fully extended to sink into the rock as he descended one leg at a time. Daniel was holding on to the long fur and doing his best to straddle Hunter¡¯s back. His legs didn¡¯t go all the way around, but his newly improved strength was enough to make hanging on the fur a breeze.

    Clinging to Hunter like a baby monkey was a far cry from charging into battle on top of him, but Daniel preferred to think of it as a solid first step. The only downside was the intense animal smell made worse by the dampness of the waterfall, but nothing was perfect. The noise also drowned out any chance of talking, though it didn¡¯t stop Daniel from hearing Hunter¡¯s complaint. You itch.

    That just means we need to do this more so you get used to it! Daniel replied with mental cheer. He sensed a slight unease over the emotional bond now at its strongest, but nothing that couldn¡¯t take a lighthearted poke.

    This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.

    No.

    Aw come on, think how cool we¡¯ll look. Think how cool we already look, Daniel added, mentally switching to the imaginary helicopter¡¯s point of view.

    No! Daniel vibrated as his taxi grumbled.

    Do you think they need measurements for saddles here, or is there a one size fits all? Wait, there was that giant thing back at Hagain. It¡¯s probably some kind of size category.

    I think I could survive if I let go here. The implication sobered Daniel. Most of Hunter¡¯s packs had been left above ground, but a few pouches, including one made of reinforced leather, were still in his possession.

    Not with the lightning spines exploding you won¡¯t! Alright, alright, we¡¯ll talk about it later.

    The bottom of the drop was now visible as a large underground lake. Tlara was standing on the bank that ringed it and was in the process of summoning one of her ¡®tools¡¯. Daniel and Hunter were halfway down at this point and the slowest to descend.

    You know, Daniel thought to himself, There¡¯s enough room on here for two people to ride together. If things go well enough this week maybe I could invite Claire to-

    Stop.

    He blinked in surprise. Daniel was sure that had been a private thought. How did you hear that?

    I felt you thinking about her. Strange emotions, makes it hard to focus. The ringcat continued his careful climbing.

    Is it that weird? Interest was overwhelming his desire to avoid discussion of intimate topics with Hunter. Ringcats form packs, so even if you don¡¯t, uh, date there¡¯d be some commonality.

    Packs are not companions. They are, Hunter paused and climbed down a few meters before finding the right word. Alliances. Made to be broken when there is no need for them.

    Were you ever in a pack?

    No. Yes. No. Hunter chuffed indecisively. When we first met you made me believe I was. Before that, I hunted with my creator before they turned on me.

    So that¡¯s what it felt like for you. Creator? So you have a parent?

    Progenitor.

    Daniel¡¯s whistle was lost in the roar of the waterfall. Big word. Do you feel anything for them? I mean, it sounds like they went gerbil near the end but... he trailed off, realizing what he was being flippant about.

    No. I feel nothing for them and have no intent of spawning others. Not yet, it is not time.

    Do you feel anything for anyone?

    There was another pause. The conversation had taken them to a survivable fall distance. The rest had reached the bottom and Hunter would be there in a minute. You. You are a friend.

    Aw thanks you big murder cat, you¡¯re my friend too. A frown crossed Daniel¡¯s face as he had a worrying thought. You said my ability made you think I was in your pack earlier. Is this like that?

    I chose this, Hunter replied with sudden determination. You could have taken me by force. Tamed me. You offered the choice and the chance to make it, so I chose you. You are my friend, Daniel.

    Daniel¡¯s phone vibrated. It was hard to check in the current arrangement, but he was close enough to the bottom that he could leave a hand free and risk the fall.

    <hr>

    Bond: Friendship with the Creature affected by Feature: Beast Friend* has been further developed! This has improved the benefits derived from this bond.

    - The number of Powers you may share with this creature has increased to two.

    - Mana may be expended to temporarily share the senses of the bonded creature if you are within the range of the Telepathic Link. The bonded creature may also use this benefit at the cost of its own mana. This is a Spiritual Ability that functions in an area of Magical Suppression.

    <hr>

    ¡°Woah.¡±

    By the time they reached the bottom, Daniel had approved Hunter to use his Regeneration as the second shared power. At least, he thought he had. There was a sense it had worked but no confirmation from his phone like last time. There was also nothing better in his power list to share and it made Daniel feel more comfortable bringing him into battle. The talon ability may have improved upon Hunter¡¯s impressive strength enough to be considered. Hunter, as with any thoughts about saddles, completely rejected the notion.

    ¡°Took you fucking long enough,¡± Tlara said snidely, a giant insect with lightning spines embedded in its jaws standing next to her. She and the others had lit the magical kind of torches that wouldn¡¯t burn the gestalt. There were a couple in the packs Hunter bore, but those were left hidden at the top of the ravine. Daniel had been interested in whether he could make these as an Artificer, but with no way of learning the formulae he was stuck just carrying them.

    Daniel ignored the barb and took out the one he had stuffed in his pack before descending. Five sparking lights reflected off the turbulent surface of the underground pond. ¡°You sure these things aren¡¯t in the water Sigron?¡±

    The knight nodded. He¡¯d fought what they were hunting before and had painstakingly written a few short lines about them when they decided on the target. The burrower skabs were another non-lightning creature with scaling variants. Level one was the normal kind, and level three was a ¡®veteran¡¯. They were slow and couldn¡¯t burrow in a fight, but had some form of web or adhesive used to trap prey.

    Red outlines were visible through the rock wall. Two hulking bodies supported by about a dozen legs moved about among miniature copies. Another pack, Daniel thought. I wonder if it¡¯s just ringcats that make them by opportunity. Are other creatures more sociable, and what about higher levels? Hunter became way more talkative at level 1.

    ¡°Move.¡± Water rippled as Kob spoke. Their armor fully broke with another pulse of intense mana expenditure. With their vines free the giant was able to move without as much earth shaking. Sigron and Khare followed on foot, while Tlara mounted her beetle and held on tightly as it walked up the wall and onto the ceiling.

    Cool. Daniel let the thought slip to Hunter.

    No. With the strengthening of their bond, Daniel could better sense the ringcat¡¯s emotions. Not from observing him, but through an innate connection. The wall that had been between them at Hagain was continuing to crumble and he could see more of Hunter through it as it went. He was definitely growing tired of the repeated joke.

    ¡°Come on Hunter,¡± he whispered, giving his friend a reprieve. ¡°Can¡¯t let them have all the fun.¡±

 Chapter 26: Burrower Skab - (1)

    The team fell upon the enemy with decisive brutality. The skabs had noticed their approach some moments before Kob¡¯s charge met them, but there was little they could do against the level four Berserker titan. Daniel brought up the rear to find a stomach turning sight.

    The cavern they were in was some kind of egg chamber. The corpse of one veteran skab dripped green blood from the ceiling it was impaled onto, surrounded by bulbous lumps that filled the cavern. They weren¡¯t perfect orbs but had welts sticking out that squirmed in response to the chaos around them. Smaller skabs were highlighted as Hunter picked up on each level 0 inside, which had the hatchling tag instead of the young tag.

    Kob and Sigron took the center of the fight and the center of the chamber about one hundred meters in length. The giant would never have fit in their stone armor and had to compress their vines to stay under the ceiling only slightly higher than that of a typical room. Tlara was driving across the ceiling and floor of the chamber, picking off one skab and then returning to the surface above where the beetle could run freely.

    ¡°We¡¯ve got your back!¡± Daniel told Khare as they and Hunter faced a handful of level one skabs that the others had left for them. Individually, they were about half as big as Daniel and dwarfed by Hunter. Pores about the size of bowling ball finger holes dotted a domed carapace that ended in fang-like protrusions covering a mouth. Many small legs on either side supported the frame, giving the overall impression of a giant tick.

    Three immediately charged as Daniel fired his crossbow and Khare sent out two waves of throwing knives. The weapon¡¯s long reloading time wouldn¡¯t allow for a second shot. That was its drawback, made more manifest against a swarming enemy such as this. It was fortunate, then, that Daniel had used one of his newer abilities. Scatter Shot was a spell and could be combined with a Snap Shot attack, although he couldn¡¯t use both at the exact same time. When cast, a shimmer of light wreathed his bolt before fading, indicating it was ready. This wasn¡¯t true enchanting and he couldn¡¯t stock up on these bolts, but the trade-off was worth it.

    Upon impact with the targeted skab, there was a burst of ephemeral mini crossbow bolts that caught half of the others. It wasn¡¯t enough to kill them, and using it alongside Snap Shot had added a few seconds to his attack. What it accomplished was leaving mostly weakened foes for Daniel to contend with in his first true melee.

    He went first for his shortsword, panicked at the thought of one of the giant ticks burrowing into him, then steeled himself. ¡°Khare, we¡¯ll take the front! Keep the fire coming!¡± Daniel pulled out his two daggers instead, holding the enchanted one in his right hand. As any nerd from Earth would do, Daniel had practiced swinging his weapons idly during some of his downtime. This would be his first time using them against a creature. One was within a meter of him and kicking up clouds of dust as it was slowing itself down. Why?

    Gobs of amber fluid shot out of the pores of the monster¡¯s back when it came to a full stop. Daniel¡¯s chest and left arm took the brunt of it, though a solid shot landed in Hunter¡¯s fur. The hand immediately locked up like when he fell holding the sparkbat. His armor didn¡¯t particularly seem to care but Hunter¡¯s fur was sticking together. Through their bond, Daniel could sense immense irritation and a desire to kill.

    As should he. His legs were free and none of the glue had hit the knives, so both were sharp. Daniel punched out with a dagger toward the face of the skab, tearing through it and making its aura fade with its death. His use of the blades was different than Khare, who had multiple daggers in a slashing hold in case any skabs got close. Others were being thrown in much the same way they had in the previous battle. That was well and good for someone with the dexterity to use them quickly and keenly, but Daniel currently relied on strength as his higher attribute. He was using the daggers as a sharper way to punch.

    Hunter leapt at another of the skabs. Don¡¯t bite the shell! he quickly warned, and the ringcat closed his mouth. They¡¯ve got more of the sticky stuff in there, you¡¯ll just freeze yourself to them. Instead, Hunter used his claws to tear rents in the hide. Some of the adhesive coated his paws, but it was better than it closing his throat.

    Right. Daniel thought to himself as another approached. It¡¯s a kamikaze. That charge leaves them vulnerable but paints me with the goop. I can¡¯t keep getting hit. God, I¡¯m really fighting them. Firing a crossbow at distant enemies was completely different than dueling them hand to hand. It reminded him of the ringcat brains he¡¯d scraped off meticulously after his fight with the pack.

    Stop thinking! Fight! Hunter screamed at him as another skab in front of Daniel began decelerating. His companion¡¯s warning was too slow and a fresh volley of adhesive was shot at him. It was too late to dodge, and one glob was heading straight for his face. Daniel threw an arm up and saved his eyes. His mouth and nose were not as fortunate and the Artificer almost gagged at the rancid taste. It was like rotten eggs combined with a more clinically chemical taste and it set almost instantly. He couldn¡¯t breathe. He could, and did, slay the creature in front of him, but his airway was blocked off. Had he vomited he would have choked on it and died right there.

    Peel it off! Hunter told him

    C-can¡¯t. Daniel had dropped the dagger in his right hand and pulled at his face. The glue had bonded to his skin in seconds. Leveraging more of his strength just made it feel like he was going to tear off his skin along with the glue.

    Freeze time, figure it out!

    I can¡¯t! I may need the mana to heal later.

    Hunter roared, using his disruptive fear ability to forestall further attacks for a few moments. You will not need to heal if you are dead!

    Daniel agreed but didn¡¯t know what Moment of Clarity would do. He didn¡¯t need time, he needed to breathe. Medical dramas flashed into his mind. Tracheotomy? The knife frozen in his off hand gleamed in torchlight. Hell no. The idea had spawned another, barely more palatable idea. Daniel leveled the dagger at his head and used as much force as he felt comfortable with to stab himself.

    He¡¯d aimed for the glue bridging his lips but it didn¡¯t budge. More force could be applied, but too much could overshoot and lodge the knife in his brainstem. Daniel needed a path for air, and he needed it before the now recovering skabs rushed him. The knife was pointed at another part of his face. Please don¡¯t scar. Please don¡¯t scar.

    The tip ripped into his cheek as Daniel opened a thin line from his jaw to as close to the glue as he could. Pain was only the beginning of the struggle, it was also the instinct to stop disfiguring himself that he had to push through. It was done in torturous seconds and messily repeated for the other side. Blood was flowing into his mouth and threatened to drown him, but so did air. It was like breathing through two straws poked through either side of his mouth, and each breath brought more blood and pain. All that mattered to Daniel was that he wasn¡¯t suffocating anymore.

    Khare intercepted the first skab before it reached the Artificer. Their disparate form was less susceptible to the adhesive. The gestalt didn¡¯t need to breathe, and all the adhesive did was tie knots in the vine mass.

    Daniel picked up the enchanted dagger, thought again for a moment, and tossed it. Ranged weapon meant any ranged weapon, right? The dagger struck a skab near the back and Scatter Shot tore through the rest with smaller ghostly versions. This dealt even more damage than the crossbow shot had, causing his primary target to give the first shriek of pain of any of the enemies. I¡¯ll have to remember to get that. Talon.

    His left hand broke open despite the adhesive. There was pain, but whatever protective effect that accompanied the bird hand¡¯s toughened skin prevented true damage. That hand¡¯s dagger was thrown as well. The application of three area of effect attacks, Hunter¡¯s predation, and Khare¡¯s volleys left all of their skabs dead. About a minute after the hunt started, Sigron and Kob turned from their prey expecting the trainees to need assistance. Instead, they found that side had ended before theirs.

    ¡°Ugh, you look disgusting,¡± Tlara said as she dropped from her beetle to the floor. Daniel was covered in patches of rock-hard glue that shone in the torchlight with a sickly yellowish tint. Everyone, besides her, had been hit by at least some of the glue. Then she noticed the cuts on Daniel¡¯s face. ¡°Crest, but I have to give you points for fucking willpower. I guess you¡¯ll just have to live like that until we get back to town.¡±

    Sigron¡¯s armor was locked in places, but the knight retained enough mobility to walk. He wrote with his sword on the dirt floor: ¡®water¡¯. Daniel and Sigron¡¯s walk to the underground lake looked like two street performers poorly performing the robot. Khare and Kob¡¯s ambling was less torturous as they isolated the affected vines within themselves and used the free ones to move.

    The Artificer was about to plunge his head into the water before he thought better of it. If the glue didn¡¯t come off instantly he¡¯d flood his mouth through the slits in his cheeks. That, mixed with the blood, wouldn¡¯t be pretty. He was the only one that had been hit in the head and the others were able to submerge themselves without such worries.

    From watching the others, it seemed like the glue needed to soak for a few minutes before its adhesion became weak enough to peel off. Instead of dunking his head, Daniel dipped the front of his face in. Soon, he was peeling off the glue like a chunky face mask. He coughed blood and grimaced. The reflection in the water was broken by the stirring of his team and the waterfall, but what he saw didn¡¯t look good. Wanna know how I got these scars? he asked himself despondently.

    The fight had taken a minute. Getting all the glue off, and then getting dry, took an hour. No one except Tlara and Kob was ready to leave the chasm even then. The Beastmaster occasionally glared at Daniel, the look turning into a grin at the sight of his face. He didn¡¯t challenge that, mostly because talking was painful. Sleep would fix his face. Sleep had to fix his face. Retribution could come later.

    In the meantime, there was something he wanted to know about the skabs. ¡°Hey, what do you think you¡¯re doing?¡± Tlara asked as he stood and started walking back to the battlefield.

    Daniel just raised one finger in her direction, though he didn¡¯t do it with a talon hand this time.

    What are you doing? Hunter asked with less malice.

    Hey, thanks for covering for me earlier, Daniel responded. I want to see if they have any of that glue left.

    Why?

    Because it¡¯s glue. Daniel thought it like it was obvious. I haven¡¯t seen anything like that here before and I know firsthand how strong it is. It¡¯s like superglue. I could try making glue bombs, use it in crafting, revenge¡­ he trailed off.

    The egg chamber was in ruins. Kob had done a few sweeping strikes and crushed the nascent scabs. Some bodies from the grown ones remained intact. Most were the level ones involved in Daniel¡¯s part of the fight. The carapace on the back was fleshier than it looked. Still an exoskeleton, but not a hard one like the veteran skabs. It comes from the pores, so maybe it¡¯s like sweat? He used the normal dagger to start cutting into the flesh around one of the pores and was thankful his sense of smell hadn¡¯t recovered yet. If it was still gone in a few hours he¡¯d need to flush his nostrils, but for now it protected him against whatever stench lurked below the skin.

    Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.

    You can wait by the lake if you want, he thought to Hunter. They probably don¡¯t smell good to you.

    No, they don¡¯t, Hunter agreed but didn¡¯t move.

    Experimentation revealed the skabs had some sort of gland below the skin that contained a thick liquid. The pouches were fist sized and easily broke to disgorge their contents if agitated. This was problematic as the glue instantly dried on contact with air and ruined the gland. The glue he¡¯d peeled off had hardened again, but it wasn¡¯t very malleable or adhesive in the hydrated state. If he wanted something usable, the glands would need to be preserved until he needed them.

    That problem wasn¡¯t insurmountable. Sacrificing some of the glands, Daniel quickly figured out how to coat the larger ones he salvaged with the yellow sap of the smaller ones. With a hardened shell, they wouldn¡¯t break as easily. The intact glue in the middle could later be retrieved by peeling it off or cracking it open. After some time, he had a couple dozen preserved glands. The whole process had been like an instinct combined with trial and error. Not until he stopped did he wonder where that inspiration had come from. Is this the Arcane Creator feature, or do I have a monster skinning one from Totem Warrior? Or is this just high intelligence finally showing benefits?

    Either way he had his prize, and the bleeding in his cheeks had slowed. His pack had enough room from the removal of the torch to hold them, and they could be transferred to Hunter¡¯s packs once they were out of this hellhole. It wasn¡¯t until after the tension of the battle and concentration of work was over that the walls reminded him of where he was.

    ¡°That stench can only mean one thing,¡± Tlara commented as he exited the cave. ¡°That insane fuck is- what are those?¡±

    ¡°Glue.¡± Daniel held one up. It still hurt to talk, but he was proud of himself.

    ¡°Crest, why did you spend the last hour digging those out?¡±

    He just shrugged in response and washed glue off his hands in the lake. ¡°Ready?¡± he asked Khare.

    ¡°Yes,¡± the word was drawn out with skepticism. Khare was just as abashed as Tlara but couldn¡¯t express it as well.

    Alright, let¡¯s get out of here, he told Hunter. I need to sleep off these grievous facial injuries. Speaking of, since I am so injured I just can¡¯t imagine climbing out of here by myself. Think you could¡­

    Fine. Hunter lowered himself again. Get on.

    Yes!

    ¡­

    The stale taste of the bread only further soured Daniel¡¯s mood as he looked at his phone. A gray 0 and the throbbing pain in his cheeks defied the earlier good mood that had accompanied the ride up on Hunter. He hadn¡¯t earned any advancement. Despite himself, he couldn¡¯t blame whatever intrinsic force doled them out. Sure, he¡¯d killed some monsters, but he could have performed far better. Could also be because I didn¡¯t touch the veterans, he reminded himself charitably.

    The bread was another matter. What rations he had were those he had been given. His Earth lifestyle after high school had been lean at times meaning he was no stranger to hunger, but what he had to eat now lacked in both quality and quantity. Maybe I could ask Hunter to bring some game for me? he wondered, then took another bite. Not like I could cook anything besides toast.

    ¡°Khare, any potential?¡± he asked carefully to the gestalt sitting beside him. His Regeneration had closed the cuts in his cheeks after an hour but the wounds reopened easily.

    ¡°Ye-¡° Khare started to say when the sound of stirred earth drew both of their attention. Tlara had summoned her spark beetle and was placing her hands on it. It had taken the skab¡¯s glue for her as well as a few wounds from the higher level variants. The sight of Tlara holding her arms out was familiar to Daniel for some reason.

    ¡°What?¡± she asked, feeling their gaze.

    ¡°Healing?¡± Khare¡¯s crackling voice carried a tone of disbelief. That jogged Daniel¡¯s memory. She was laying hands on the monster just like Thomas had on him after the ringcats.

    ¡°From my last advancement. It won¡¯t work on you,¡± she said with disgust, though it wasn¡¯t directed at the gestalt. ¡°Just monsters like my tool.¡±

    Healing was one of the group¡¯s main weaknesses. In fairness, no one in the Thormundz could heal Kob, but Thomas was providing himself and Evalyn a safety net in the other team. Items like healing potions existed, but like enchanted weapons they were in critical supply. If Daniel didn¡¯t have Regeneration the injuries he¡¯d given himself today would have meant returning early to get healed. That Tlara had any healing ability, even if it was limited, changed things.

    ¡°Would you use it on Hunter?¡± he asked, already knowing the answer.

    Tlara didn¡¯t even turn around. ¡°I¡¯d rather die screaming.¡±

    That can be arranged, Daniel thought menacingly, thinking of the glue orbs sitting in his pack. Just one down her throat and, no, too dark. He tried to get his mind off the Beastmaster by picking random topics from his Encyclopedia. The entry on burrower skabs had been updated, the World book was now several chapters long, and the Lore book was keeping track of his journey so far. It could have been a journal if it also didn¡¯t carry entries on people he knew. Tlara¡¯s wasn¡¯t written in a positive light.

    He sighed and put his phone back in his pack. He¡¯d need a week of reading to make a dent in what the Focus had been passively collecting, which discouraged him from trying. Well, it was that and every set of question marks he came across did. I can¡¯t even try out the new bond ability, he thought mournfully to Hunter, who would remain with him until the sun disappeared from the sky before going off on another solo hunt. I need the mana to heal.

    You need to be more careful, Hunter warned him.

    I know it¡¯s, it just got very real very quickly. I didn¡¯t spend most of my life fighting. It doesn¡¯t come naturally like it does for you. He remembered Hunter moving amongst the throng of skabs like a bladed kite on the breeze. The creatures had been far too unwieldy to strike back and the ringcat had been able to use their bodies as cover from the glue even if his paws had gotten covered. I¡¯ve been worried about you so much I forgot that you¡¯re a better fighter than I am.

    Move or die. Today you learned this. Hunter stood and paced as if to emphasize the point.

    Well, yeah, you can say that when we¡¯re by a warm fire. In the moment it¡¯s easy to forget.

    You have a reason to remember now. Hunter¡¯s tail brushed very lightly against his cheek. I could do it.

    Do what? There was mental pressure from the other side of the bond. A request. You want to get into my head? I have to say I don¡¯t feel the best right now.

    I¡¯m curious. I will not need mana for the hunt. The pressure remained. It wasn¡¯t forceful, just a constant poke Daniel could shut out if he wanted to. Daniel stood as well and glanced towards Tlara. The bird woman had a second sight sometimes and definitely wouldn¡¯t like what he was about to do. She was still stitching wounds closed on her beetle though, Khare was ¡®talking¡¯ with Kob, and Sigron was already asleep. Why not? What exactly do you want to feel?

    The presence fell over his body like he was wearing a tight-fitting rain poncho. The ringcat grew still with his eyes unfocused. Standing on two legs is very strange. The voice seemed to come from inside his head instead of from the ringcat¡¯s, even though it had already sounded like that. No, this was like Hunter was using his own thoughts to talk to him.

    Strange is right. He brushed a hand over Hunter¡¯s face and let the fingers sink into the fur. See, you feel nice when clumps of fur aren¡¯t glued together.

    My body. The voice was contemplative, almost to the point that Daniel suspected Hunter of having a religious experience. If monsters had gods, that was.

    Yeah, that¡¯s going to be odd when I get in your head too. You know, this is exactly the kind of weirdness I was worried about when I got Beast Friend. Daniel took a slow bite of bread.

    Bad, and painful.

    Daniel stifled a laugh. It would have only hurt him more. Pretty much. I should be better tomorrow. You should try some of the bread after this and compare the taste.

    No. A low grumble echoed out of Hunter¡¯s slack jaw.

    Woah, can you still move?

    Hunter experimentally lifted a paw and almost fell over. Trying again finished the job. It was like the ringcat was suddenly drunk. It is like, I can not explain. Moving and feeling are separate.

    Not something to use in combat then. Daniel moved over the Hunter¡¯s prone form to make sure he wasn¡¯t hurt. Maybe it¡¯s something we can get used to, but even then I don¡¯t see the point. Unless we get separated or if I want to- Oh! What¡¯s the difference in smell and hearing like for you?

    Like they are not there. Or like the waterfall. Everything is¡­

    Muted?

    Yes. It feels exposing. Everything around me is hidden. I do not like it.

    Hey, this body¡¯s got its perks, Daniel said in mock offense. The presence in his mind was suddenly gone and Hunter stood with vastly improved coordination. Still, I can¡¯t wait for the other side. If that radar of yours is anything to go by, it might be overstimulating.

    Tomorrow. Hunter began to pad off and the emotions from him weakened. Despite the recent strengthening of their bond, the range of their telepathy also remained the same. Tonight I hunt and you heal.

    ¡°What the fuck was that?¡± Tlara¡¯s eyes were focused on him. ¡°You¡¯re not about to tell me you just dominated the ringcat?¡±

    ¡°What?¡± The sudden question threw the Artificer. She¡¯d been paying attention after all. ¡°No, I didn¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°Good, because you definitely shouldn¡¯t have a power like that.¡± The vague answer was more satisfying to Tlara than it should have been.

    His Encyclopedia had explained the difference between domination, the permanent and total method of control Tlara used, and taming, which was something more akin to how animals were domesticated back on Earth only sped up by magic. Charming a monster, what he¡¯d initially done to Hunter, wasn¡¯t considered as permanent control even if he¡¯d been able to keep Hunter under for days by avoiding anything that would have broken the weak effect. The avianoid must have assumed Daniel was using taming after spending this long with Hunter. ¡°Is domination specific to Beastmasters?¡±

    ¡°At your level? Might as well be.¡± The fully healed spark beetle beside her faded into dust that was absorbed into a pouch.

    Daniel wasn¡¯t quite walking the line. There were no stakes to this conversation, just idle barbs from the Beastmaster. In one of the many possible futures, he could gracefully navigate the conversation and persuade Tlara into using her healing ability on Hunter if the need arised. That chance was smothered among the many, many futures that involved her trying to punch through the healing wounds on his cheeks.

    Still, the avianoid was currently more aggressively passive than passively aggressive and he sensed an opportunity to at least learn something about her. ¡°Why did you come here? To the Thormundz, I mean.¡±

    ¡°To rape and pillage the freshly exposed wildlife. That¡¯s what you fucking think of me, right?¡± she asked rhetorically, not giving Daniel a chance to deny it. ¡°You think you¡¯re so fucking ¡®equal¡¯ to that pet of yours, but if it was your life or its? You¡¯d throw it away in a heartbeat and you¡¯d be right to do so.¡±

    ¡°Like you did with yours?¡± he asked slowly. Gears were turning in his head. It was a guess, a hunch, but the timing would be about right. He¡¯d always had a sense that someone in the group was just as suspicious of Tlara as he was and this sudden theory would explain it. ¡°What exactly happened? Was there no other option?¡±

    Tlara pointedly glanced at Kob and spoke in a lower tone. ¡°Nothing you need to be concerned about. I don¡¯t have to fucking explain myself to you.¡±

    ¡°Was Lograve there?¡±

    ¡°He told you!?¡±

    Daniel smiled as he sensed he was on the right track. ¡°No, but you just did. Something big and lightning-based almost killed him.¡± Both gestalt were following the conversation with interest now. His voice easily carried to them. ¡°If you were as callous to your ¡®tools¡¯ as you make yourself out to be, you wouldn¡¯t have healed your beetle tonight. You¡¯d have just gotten another one. You also said you ¡®fed¡¯ your ringcat to the beast. If yours was as big as Hunter, then it would have been massive too. Whatever you fought was so terrible, it-¡°

    ¡°Shut up!¡± she yelled, waking Sigron in the process. There was fear tinging her voice. ¡°Shut up right fucking now and never bring that up again!¡±

    The ferocity stupefied Daniel. Her plumage was fully extended and she was looking at him like he was pointing a gun at her. ¡°What? I don¡¯t-¡±

    ¡°Pass,¡± Kob said in epiphany.

    Tlara would have gone white if she wasn¡¯t covered in feathers. ¡°Look what you just fucking did!¡±

    ¡°Pass?¡± Khare asked, the expression of its condensed face mimicking confusion.

    There was a pause. Everyone looked at Kob, some in fear and some in curiosity. Tlara had a secret they¡¯d just reasoned out. Eventually, the gestalt spoke as if they were sentencing the team to death. ¡°Dragon.¡±

    Daniel joined Tlara in her fear. Dragon was an Encyclopedia entry he¡¯d read already, and with the implication, he finally understood why the evacuation was being delayed.

    <hr>

    Dragon ¨C (Variant: Monster, Elemental: Various, Flight, ???)

    A variant of high level Monster typically found in isolated or destabilized regions. Dragons wield immense physical strength and Weapons: Breath to defend the territory they claim. Mortal coexistence near the territory of most dragons is impossible. ???

    <hr>

 Chapter 27: Devil Root Core - (5)

    Three skyshock wyverns and an alpha descended on Roost¡¯s Peak at once. The leader almost reached the range of its lightning powers before the city¡¯s ballista finished it. That didn¡¯t stop its body from colliding with a building, though the stone of the Peak held.

    Even before the Upswell, Claire had always felt she was a fish at the bottom of a shark-infested sea. Recent days made for more dangerous waters, except for when that man was in town. The wyverns somehow sensed his presence, or perhaps the power he used on them, and now only attacked while he was away.

    A thin smile crossed her face as she turned a page. Claire perched on the wall farthest from the tall mountain ridges to catch the last of the day¡¯s good light. Parduc was working nearby. The sound of grinding stone would be distracting for someone of lesser focus but she blocked it out. Study was a core component for any Arcanist¡¯s advancement. Indeed, many used that method to reach the initial intelligence requirement to take the class and continued the practice through at least the early levels. No small wonder that Arcanists were so involved in the keeping of libraries, even if there was an entire church devoted to knowledge.

    The fading light departed from the botany book and Claire closed it with a sigh. Only then did she pay Parduc attention and saw the draconoid leaning halfway over the wall. ¡°Running out of stone, are we?¡±

    ¡°No, no I¡¯ve got it!¡± the stout voice responded. The Arcanist calmly walked to the parapet to look Parduc in the eye. The man¡¯s scales were primarily blue, belying a water dragon heritage. An uncommon race matched by the man¡¯s somewhat uncommon class.

    Parduc was a Builder, having evolved from the Craftsman class after reaching level two. Favoring endurance and intelligence, the class existed in the realm of utility classes with the Artificer. Where the latter was rare and valued, Builders were less so due to the ease with which their materials were acquired and the constant demand for their services, along with the fact that it was far easier to get the precursor class. This Builder was drawing from the stone floor around Roost¡¯s Peak, which would be used to form ballista bolts to replenish their supply.

    The city had been relying on this method for years now, confident the Spoke would be completed before they would run out of convenient material. They had been right and then very wrong. ¡°You¡¯re going to need another level to keep that up.¡±

    ¡°I was thinking of taking it from inside the walls next time,¡± he grunted, body struggling to lean backward as a boulder¡¯s worth of stone mirrored the motion. ¡°Or, if you¡¯re done befouling that roof I could start there.¡±

    ¡°Gossip, I¡¯ve done nothing of the sort,¡± she accused. ¡°I thought you kept your nose clean.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t much to talk about nowadays that isn¡¯t doom and gloom.¡± A heavy thud shook the wall as the stone fell in a neat pile, cut into long bolts. Parduc dusted off his hands and looked at the nearby ballista. ¡°That¡¯ll hold her through the night. Huff, really drains the mana, that.¡±

    ¡°Doesn¡¯t seem too hard.¡±

    One of the ballista bolts lazily rose and floated over to her. ¡°Want to give that a go then?¡±

    ¡°I thought you were low on mana,¡± she said suspiciously.

    ¡°Never said that, did I?¡± The bolt returned to the ground. ¡°I¡¯m just feeling the burn. Drinks?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m going to stay here a little while longer. You could see Eido from here before, you know? At this time of day the light would still reach it.¡± She clutched at the ramparts with both clenched hands.

    Parduc followed her gaze to the hole in the horizon. ¡°Hammer, Claire, I know it¡¯s been a month, but are you sure it¡¯s still not too soon?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s like you said, I need something more than doom and gloom. Lyander¡¯s¡­ he¡¯s gone. It was hard, but I¡¯ve accepted that. It¡¯s time for me to move on. I¡¯m not saying he¡¯s the one, but how will I find out if I don¡¯t try?¡±

    Parduc rasped, cutting off what he was about to say with a sigh. He put a scaled hand on his sister¡¯s shoulder instead as both looked into the irretrievable past.

    ¡­

    <hr>

    Devil Root Core ¨C (5) (Monster, Infernal, Plant, ???)

    A network of vegetation infused with the essence of Elemental Evil. The central cluster supports a system of lesser Monster: Plant which it controls to defend itself. ???

    <hr>

    Kob was insane. Daniel looked at his phone, at the distant, huge red outline, and back at his phone. He was insane too for not just going back to the city. The bomb Kob dropped shook everyone in the group for different reasons but foretold the same doom for all. A dragon, a flesh, fire, and blood dragon, guarded the only escape route out of the Thormundz. Lightning dragon, Daniel mentally corrected. Blue dragon? Or would it be purple like the spines?

    There was a separate entry in his phone for lightning dragons. Several, actually. Each time he encountered a new level of variant, be it alpha, hatchling, or veteran, new entries were added for creatures he had previously seen so long as they shared that variant. Dragons only had normal and young variants from that list, and both lightning dragon variants were grayed out. I¡¯d want to find out what one looks like if it didn¡¯t mean actually finding out.

    The devil root core was another matter as that entry was accompanied by a picture. Hunter identifying it for him apparently gave the Encyclopedia enough to add the image. It looked like roiling dark and red energy infused into a gestalt and firmly anchored into the earth. Was it a corrupted gestalt? He didn¡¯t want to think that way, but the race seemed to tip more towards monstrous than human.

    Kob had chosen it as their next target. The gestalt only knew about it because, along with the rogue construct, it was on the list of things they should avoid at all costs. The root core was planted in the center of a rock wall, surrounded by lesser plant creatures. They ranged from levels one to three, but the thing networking them was level five and hundreds of meters in diameter.

    If Lograve were there, he might have comforted Daniel by explaining that the devil root core was not a typical level 5 threat. Its power was in its minions, similar to the balance of power with Beastmasters compared to other classes. Swarm hosts like this tended to have relatively weak endurance and limited personal attacks compared to others in their level. That didn¡¯t change the fact that their target commanded an army on impossible terrain, and Lograve would have also demanded Kob choose something else. But he wasn¡¯t there.

    The knowledge of the dragon had changed things and now Kob wanted to fight a level 5. The mass of vines as large as a house hiding in the stone giant wanted to fight a boss from some kind of particularly messed up horror game. Daniel was still walking next to them. At least my cheeks didn¡¯t scar, he thought unhelpfully.

    Tlara, naturally, blamed him for everything and was passively projecting her intense fury towards Daniel. She¡¯d squawked, actually squawked, him down the last time he¡¯d tried speaking. Even thinking to Hunter was dangerous as the Beastmaster seemed to sense when he reached out to the ringcat. They walked in silence, speaking only to adjust course around enemies they couldn¡¯t afford to fight.

    This is like war, Daniel thought. Like everything else before now has just been a game. God, I- he stopped, and Hunter pushed him in the back to get him moving again before anyone noticed. How are you ok with this? he asked the beast. Tlara glared at him again, but the glare had lost its edge through repetition.

    It is the hunt. This is who I am. There was grim resolve in the ringcat¡¯s voice.

    Do you understand what we¡¯re walking into? The level of enemy we are facing here?

    I would not fight it alone. But we are not alone.

    Yeah, we¡¯re with the murder bird. Daniel turned his face into a mirror of Tlara¡¯s, sans beak, and looked at her. What are we supposed to do? Die instantly?

    They will kill. We will watch. Hunter sounded confident with a strange layer of respect directed towards Kob.

    How do you know that?

    They want to Grow, Hunter answered and didn¡¯t elaborate.

    Standing under the infested rock wall felt like being trapped in a spider¡¯s web while waiting to be devoured. The odd cracks that ran through the mountain were always vertical near the top, though this one had an odd slant for the first tenth of the hundreds of meters it reached. The thought of what the network of passes and valleys looked like from above distracted Daniel from what was happening, but only briefly. ¡°Alright Kob, we¡¯re here,¡± he said carefully as blackened vine clusters moved among carnivorous, toothed plants above. ¡°My crossbow can probably hit some of those things, but I don¡¯t see how you expect us to climb after you.¡±

    Kob¡¯s stone pseudo-face concentrated for a moment before two bursts of mana shot out in rapid succession. First, its stone armor shattered in a familiar way and formed into the blades of large climbing axes that bit into the wall. The second sent vines from the main mass sinking into the ground, four small groups shooting for one of each of the party members and a fifth for Hunter.

    Daniel let out a soft scream as plants reached out of the ground and encircled his feet. It felt like standing in a pile of very large worms. Instead of devouring him, they coalesced into a set of writhing boots that extended up the back of the leg and circled his waist.

    ¡°A group buff from a Berserker?¡± Tlara was under the effect as well, though she had her spark beetle out which didn¡¯t need the enhancement.

    ¡°Climb,¡± was all the response she got. Kob attacked the wall with a dozen stone points and soared up like a spider tank. Khare¡¯s form was able to climb up the wall at a slower, but controlled pace, with Kob¡¯s vines intermixed to assist their smaller kin. The rest of the team¡¯s movement was less coordinated. Once the initial shock was over, Daniel realized what was happening. The vines were sinking into the ground to anchor him, and reaching up his back to support it against gravity. Walking was similar to what he imagined space age magnetic boots felt like. Each step had a delay as vines rooted into the earth or retreated to the boots.

    Get them off. Hunter lost the early calm now that all four of his paws were covered in vines. On the ringcat, the vines formed something more akin to mittens that parted to allow claws to poke out. He was close to tearing at them with his fangs as he shook one paw in the air.

    You can¡¯t climb the wall without them. Daniel put a foot against the vertical ground, and then another. The pressure of gravity was spread across his back in a way reminiscent of a climbing roller coaster. Well, maybe you can, but this is faster. We¡¯ll hang back and do enough to participate. He tried to sound confident for Hunter¡¯s sake and failed.

    Stolen story; please report.

    Hunter¡¯s only answer was a growl, but he started climbing as well. The process was laborious but faster than free climbing. It also left Daniel¡¯s arms free to fire the crossbow. Twenty crossbow bolts. All he had were twenty shots against roughly one hundred plant monsters and the giant commander he was ambling toward. Also the four lightning bolts in one of Hunter¡¯s special packs. They wouldn¡¯t be much use here, and if he was close enough to the root core to use them he¡¯d also very quickly die. Better stick to the normal ones.

    The vines on his back adjusted as he brought his crossbow up to his shoulder. It didn¡¯t perfectly compensate, but Snap Shot should do the rest. Daniel placed a hand on the crossbow¡¯s firing mechanism, sighted, and gasped. Kob was now at the first group of plant monsters that were reacting to the invasion. They were like blades of grass against a tree. Another air hammer of sizable mana burning up hit as a dozen were scythed from the rock wall without a break in Kob¡¯s pace. How much mana do they have? Daniel wondered. And if that¡¯s just level 4, what will this thing throw at us?

    Shooting anything near Kob was pointless, it would die well before the bolt hit home. Daniel adjusted further up to the far end, aimed, and didn¡¯t fire. Right, gravity. He¡¯d forgotten the change in axis, but Snap Shot had saved him from wasting a bolt at the cost of a bit of mana. He picked a mid-range target, fired, and internally cursed as the bolt sailed through a vine monster. Damage immunity? Really? His logical mind tried to tell him it made sense in hindsight but Daniel was too on edge to care. Well, if attacking a mass of evil spaghetti didn¡¯t work, the immobile level two piranha plants should make better targets.

    The rock face shook a little as one of the rooted plants was injured. Instantly, a black vine with a red barb shot out towards Daniel only to be torn apart by Hunter. It was hard to tell from this vantage, but it looked like the root core itself was shifting to meet its adversaries. The core was like the head of a jellyfish with vast tentacles. The largest roots had been spread out in a circle which now moved down as if suddenly affected by gravity. From the red outlines, it seemed smaller barbed roots were being fired at the invaders from beneath the earth. ¡°It¡¯s attacking from the ground!¡± Daniel shouted.

    ¡°I told them we needed flight to fight this!¡± Tlara complained back. She had things slightly better as she was mounted, but tendrils were lashing out at her at a higher rate than anyone besides Kob. From that, Daniel made an easy deduction.

    ¡°It¡¯s sensing our movement through the ground! Er, cliff,¡± he added as the directional dysphoria caught up with him. ¡°You could use your beetle to draw fire.¡±

    Even from a distance, Daniel could sense the hostility emanating from Tlara renew through her aura. ¡°If you¡¯re so smart, use your tool!¡±

    The exchange, and chaos of trying to dodge attacks from the ground itself while rooted to it gave Daniel enough time to reload before responding. ¡°Who¡¯s being attacked more? Staying on your mount is just putting you in more danger.¡± Tlara seemed like she wanted to argue, but the root core¡¯s attacks on the beetle made a solid point.

    She carefully dismounted to join Daniel, Hunter, Sigron, and Khare. Kob was too far ahead to catch up to. They¡¯d climbed so far so fast they¡¯d be on the root core in a minute. By the way they were literally mowing down the plant army in front of them, there seemed to be no sign of them being stopped. How is this a level 5 monster?

    That question was answered twice. For the first answer, each member of the plant army stopped trying to intercept Kob at the same time. The rooted carnivores placed like defensive melee turrets couldn¡¯t do much to move, but the writhing vine masses started ambling away instead of towards the hurtling giant. The hive mind of the root core had realized the futility of stopping the engine of death with mere minions.

    Instead, they fell from the sky. Daniel cursed himself for once more forgetting he wasn¡¯t on solid ground. Most of the mobile vine monsters were level one, but several stronger variants were falling towards them as well. The group rapidly approaching Daniel¡¯s side of the battle would have been an appropriate group of enemies to train on with Kob, but they could be deadly without the giant¡¯s protection.

    The only saving grace was that Daniel¡¯s crossbow had just been reset. Guess I¡¯ll use one after all. ¡°Sigron, stop!¡± he called out. The knight had begun working his way to meet the charge as the group¡¯s bulwark. He saw Daniel fitting a modified crossbow bolt into his weapon and nodded. Tlara noticed too and begrudgingly slowed her spark beetle so it would intersect after Daniel¡¯s shot.

    The vine group that was practically a proto-Kob reached out with many vines to slow its collective fall. The action hazily reminded the Artificer of high school biology, similar to how immune cells exited blood vessels. The comparison wasn¡¯t too far off. Almost, he thought, judging the distance. Almost¡­

    Snap Shot could assist his aim, but not the timing of the bolt¡¯s explosion. That Daniel could handle. The real contributor was Scatter Shot, which could be used alongside Snap Shot due to it being a spell and not another attack. Though the cost was less than that of Moment of Clarity¡¯s initial activation, it wasn¡¯t as negligible as Snap Shot. That meant it needed to be reserved for hard hitting abilities for which Daniel¡¯s crossbow was perfectly suited. Now. He fired.

    With no other lightning spine near enough to arc to, the one in the bolt fully built its charge and sparked dangerously in the air. The vine mass swallowed it before it exploded, which caused secondary electrical explosions all around the original point. The effect was like a massive airburst ordinance, throwing most of the vine creatures off the mountain. Those of higher level remained to be intercepted by the distant spark beetle and Sigron.

    Then came the second sign of the root core¡¯s true power. Everyone had taken their eyes off of the major roots. Each was slowly curving towards the surface like a flower closing its petals, all the while throwing minor barbs that harried everyone on the cliff wall. Five of the eight targeted the space above the root core to form a defensive line, whereas the remainder addressed the group of invaders below the main threat.

    There was another shockwave of mana expenditure as one neared the surface, this time coming from the monster. A barb the size of a car speared up and out of the rock surface to impale the spark beetle, immediately striking it dead.

    ¡°Fuck!¡± Tlara cried out as the group was showered with upturned rocks. The large black and red root slowed once more but did not withdraw into the rock face. The body of the spark beetle fell to the ground as the root angled downwards towards her and the others. ¡°You¡¯re on your own,¡± she said flatly and detached from the wall. Her arms had already changed into wings and would secure her safety.

    Daniel quickly ran through his options in his mind as he cursed her cowardice. Crossbow, out. Glue, useless. Dagger, a good scatter could work. Talons? If I have to. He extended his thoughts to Hunter. Slowly move behind us and stop. I don¡¯t know what I¡¯ll do if I see you on the end of one of those barbs.

    Keep your head. You cannot freeze again, Hunter thought with forced calm.

    I know. It¡¯s not as bad as it looks. He was trembling, to be fair, but the Artificer wasn¡¯t stunned with horror like last time. Daniel looked up to where Kob was still carving his way up the mountain like the villain of a horror movie. We just have to hold out for them to colony collapse these guys.

    What?

    Hive minds have their weakness. One big one, really, he explained.

    The two remaining vine monsters with appreciable health would reach them before the massive main root. Sigron planted his sword into the rock and met them with a two-handed shield bash. These vine monsters weren¡¯t as well rooted and the Knight recognized the chance to use gravity against them. The largest was the most affected by gravity, and the level three vine monster fell past the group.

    The level two vine monster was able to detach and land on Daniel before it shared its larger kin¡¯s fate. He¡¯d seen Kob consume Sigron for both protection and mobility. This was more along the lines of straight consumption. The vines pulsed in a motion far too similar to peristalsis and the strength was almost overbearing.

    The talon hand ability and Daniel¡¯s almost level two strength allowed him to resist for long enough for another to intervene. A greatsword, impossibly large for Khare¡¯s mass, clumsily swung out from the vines of his ally and into the ones of his foe. His crossbow had done nothing against these creatures, but the sword was deadly to them. Khare didn¡¯t seem as practiced with it but it got the job done. Most of the vine mass around Daniel fell away. The remnant concentrated on his left arm. It contracted suddenly, and there was a snap. Tearing through the pain of a likely broken arm, Daniel broke the roots off with his free talon hand.

    The exposed primary root sent out another mana pulse and speared toward the group. Sigron was still in front and was the best positioned to take the blow. One, then two, then three flashes of mana burned across the shield still held in two hands. The amount of exposed root that hit the knight was twenty times his length, with far more buried underneath the earth to provide strength. Kob¡¯s vines on Sigron¡¯s back strained against the blow and held. The shield did not.

    A red point of hardened plant mass emerged from Sigron¡¯s shoulder and tore the arm away. It was the knight¡¯s shield arm, so broken armor and limb fell together. There was nothing Daniel, or anyone nearby, could do. Blood was spurting out from a massive gash where the joint had once been and would continue to do so unabated.

    Two huge vines were snaking underneath the ground to strike at them as well. Mana pulses filled the air, three of them in succession, but they were distant, aimed at Kob. Both the giant and the defensive main roots had reached the core. Kob was using stone spears to pummel the cliff wall and reach the heart of the level five when their back was pierced three times.

    Still, the gestalt continued. They dug into the earth, faster and faster against the roots trying to pull them out, until Daniel could only see them by their gray outline. Just like the nights he¡¯d watched Hunter clear out the countryside, the Artificer waited for them to intersect with the red core buried deep in the mountain. He prayed, first to the god of his world, and then to the gods of the Octyrrum that Kob would reach the heart before the massive roots around them won.

    They all waited. There was nothing else to do but for Sigron to clutch at his side and bleed. Kob dug and dug and dug until they reached the mountain¡¯s heart. The cliff wall shook violently once, and then the giant root in front of him grew limp.

    Blood was dripping on Daniel¡¯s armor. Sigron was staggering, trying to reach the ground in a death march. He¡¯d abandoned his sword in a desperate attempt to do something. But there was little to be done, it didn¡¯t matter if he was on the wall or the ground. The only healer capable of treating his wounds was in the city, hours away at best.

    ¡°Fatal,¡± Khare¡¯s gnarled voice was sad and shared the realization of inevitability that shone in Sigron¡¯s eyes.

    Daniel¡¯s phone buzzed. Advancement, he was certain, but he would throw himself off the mountain now if he was even slightly tempted to check it. The Knight was someone he¡¯d never spoken to, and yet he knew Sigron¡¯s measure. Tlara had run at the first sign of true danger, but Sigron? He¡¯d faced a strike from a creature three levels above him and survived. Actions always spoke louder than words.

    Survived initially, at least. His class favored endurance, but it couldn¡¯t entirely replace the need for blood. Sigron was back to where Daniel and Khare stood, still walking woodenly to the ground. It was like the legs were moving of their own accord while the Knight¡¯s life force was-

    Glue! Daniel suddenly thought as the wheel of options spinning in his mind stopped on the right space. He had one orb in his pack. The rest were with Hunter, but that wouldn¡¯t matter. The hardened shell normally required time and water to peel off. Instead, he used a talon hand to crack it with brute force. The sphere was just large enough to cover the torn flesh and while the glue¡¯s direct contact with exposed flesh was painful, it worked as Daniel just got his hand off before he fused it to Sigron.

    Sigron looked from his arm to Daniel and understood. He shakily clasped Daniel¡¯s left shoulder with his remaining arm, causing the Artificer to cry out in pain. The arm was broken, but it wasn¡¯t the worst thing that had happened to an arm today. The Knight¡¯s lips moved in what was an attempt to apologize, which only made Daniel laugh.

    ¡°Y-you,¡± he started but was just as lost for words.

    ¡°Kob,¡± Khare¡¯s voice reported the reemergence of the other gestalt. They were moving slower than they had before and even from this distance appeared injured. Gestalt didn¡¯t have flesh to tear or bones to break, but they did have mass to lose. Kob had shrunk a considerable amount. It didn¡¯t matter, they would recover. More importantly, they¡¯d killed the level five and stopped the roots at just the right moment.

    The massive one in front of Daniel started to flake away as if it had caught fire and been immediately reduced to ash. ¡°Must be because it¡¯s demonic?¡± he wondered aloud. ¡°Or devilish, right. I should look that keyword¡­ oh no.¡± The other two looked at him and found unexpected terror. ¡°We need to-¡°

    The mountain shook again. The devil root core had infested it for years, working itself deep into the stone to bear as armor. Eventually, the parasite had caused enough damage to the structure that its sudden removal had imperiled the rock face. Daniel had seen the size of the roots and guessed too late what was about to happen.

    It started first near Kob. The mountain slumped as a pocket of air opened, once occupied by the main mass of the root core. The channels of the large attack roots were next as stone folded in on itself, and at that point the reaction was self-sustaining. An avalanche of rock hurtled towards the team as the mountain broke itself apart.

    Daniel kicked himself off the mountain. What else could he do? His arm was broken and his mana was almost spent. The reaction was instinctual and instant, letting him realize too late that he was leaving Hunter behind. Jump! he thought, and Hunter obeyed. That was another mistake. The last sight he was treated to before hitting the ground was one of the pouches on the ringcat sparking. The bolts were too close together. They were too close together! It would have been easy to put them in separate pouches and it should have occurred to Daniel every time he withdrew one. Sure, they would be shocking Hunter now, but that was better than what was about to happen.

    The pouch exploded, violently altering Hunter¡¯s fall and sending a spray of feline blood into the air. Daniel¡¯s back hit the ground and he fell unconscious, cursing cowards, Kob, and most of all, himself.

 Chapter 28: Wild Riot

    Commander Murdon looked to the north with a troubled expression. It was not some second sight of the peril his strongest fighter now found themselves in, but the mass grave. Every new arrival to the village brought wounded or dead. Those that couldn¡¯t be saved had to be treated properly and with respect. The problem was that the expanding population of the village was threatening to spill over onto the new graveyard.

    It had been a month since the Upswell and at this point, any village that had yet to arrive wasn¡¯t expected to. Only one had fully refused evacuation through some disillusioned belief that the plan was a conspiracy by himself to amass power. Whispers of that had been circling Hagain as of late and made Murdon regret not taking Lograve¡¯s advice about delegation. At least he had been getting enough rest. Eight hours of sleep was the bare minimum for draconoids. After running the evacuation for days on end he was grateful for it. The Roster practically ran itself after the revisions did away with the weekly rotation. Preparing for the inevitable fight in the pass meant taking everyone with levels and training them as best and as long as he could, so everyone was hunting near the village.

    The only exception was the garrison at Roost¡¯s Peak. They would need to hold out until the empty fortress could no longer sustain itself. Then, Lorgave and Kob would bring them back to safety. Their retreat would signal the beginning of the end.

    A knock on his door. "Ashier?"

    "Dispute," the voice on the other side called, and Murdon sighed. He was the Commander of the Thormundz region, but also still the Headman of Hagain Village. The latter hadn¡¯t mattered much, though as he hadn''t named an official replacement civil matters fell to him to arbitrate. It was only natural something would flare up. Overcrowding and rationing would eat away at any amount of resolve. Two avianoids, neither with class levels but carrying some sort of grudge, stepped into the office as Ashier closed the door behind them.

    ¡°What is the complaint?¡± he asked wearily.

    ¡°He stole my tent!¡± one proclaimed, and Murdon cursed internally. He knew housing issues had been among the foremost. Micromanaging who slept where was an impossibility given the over one thousand people living in the space meant for a hundred. That had led to something akin to musical chairs and no small amount of turmoil. Even his friend¡¯s library was now occupied. Murdon had held off for as long as he could, but they needed the space. Beyond a few key buildings, there was no point in trying to enforce universal rules other than preventing people from stabbing one another over a bed.

    The other piped up with a raspier voice, uncommon to those of his kind. ¡°You know the rules. You left and I found an open spot.¡±

    ¡°Rules?¡± Murdon asked with a raised eyebrow. ¡°The only common rules governing the tents and village proper are those concerning the medical tents, armory, and food stores. Beyond those, the headman of each village oversees allotments of the territories they¡¯ve staked out. Are you both from one such zone?¡±

    ¡°What?¡± the second asked incredulously. ¡°The posting on the Roster was clear! If you hadn¡¯t complained then I would have somewhere safe to sleep tonight!¡±

    ¡°My wife was holding the tent for me!¡± the first argued, adding a nervous glance to Murdon for some reason. ¡°Which is allowed!¡±

    ¡°That wasn¡¯t in the-¡°

    ¡°Stop.¡± Murdon held up a hand. ¡°What are you talking about? I¡¯ve authorized no such posting.¡±

    Both look confused. The second explained, ¡°I saw it this morning along with the others. It¡¯s inconvenient to wake up so early, but if you know the most recent camp rules then you get a leg up over the ones that don¡¯t.¡± He smiled at the other villager who glared back.

    ¡°Show me.¡± Murdon stood, and the others gave him another odd look.

    ¡°Well, they¡¯ll be gone now,¡± the first said.

    ¡°How long has this been happening!?¡±

    ¡°S-sir, shouldn¡¯t you know? Your seal is on them.¡±

    The armored draconoid walked up to the Roster in simmering fury. Someone was playing games with people¡¯s lives and using his seal to do it. It was bold but clever. A Commander¡¯s seal was magically produced and unique, sourced from Rikendia at the kingdom¡¯s center. No one here could copy what had been lost to the Upswell. A headman¡¯s seal, which he had been forced to use lacking anything else, was waxen and more susceptible to forgery. ¡°You there!¡± he shouted at the guard posted at the Roster. Janice. The one that had told him about Lograve¡¯s return. His tone softened. ¡°Janice, I have just learned of fraudulent postings being added to the Roster. What do you know about these ¡®camp rules¡¯?¡±

    ¡°Commander? Fraudulent, I-¡± she paused, grip tightening on her spear. Not in hostility, he would know, but in anxiety. ¡°They had your seal, sir. I found them odd but the instructions were clear. I posted this morning¡¯s list and burned them an hour later when the sun rose, as instructed.¡±

    ¡°Where did these come from? How long has this been going on?¡± This was quickly becoming a deadly problem. Murdon, as a high end level three Knight, had a wide variety of powers. Of those, several features empowered his ability to command and lead. One was reviewing the events of the past few days in a new light and recognizing the conspiracy for what it was. No one forged a Commander¡¯s seal for just a prank. Whoever was doing it had waited until he had started fully resting to initiate this plan. That he found more insidious than anything else.

    ¡°A week today, sir. As far as where they come from, I don¡¯t know. I received the parchment from the night watch.¡±

    ¡°Who specific-¡° Murdon was cut off as he caught the sound of a far off scream. It grew louder as more voices joined. Both immediately began running, prepared to meet whatever was causing trouble in the north camp. Monster invasion? Murdon thought. No, we have scouts. We should have been warned. Unless- ¡°Janice! What rules were posted this morning?¡±

    The spearwoman was having a harder time keeping pace and her labored breath gave it away. Murdon¡¯s armor weighed three times her body weight, and yet the level disparity between them made the greater difference. ¡°Housing first come first serve,¡± she said quickly. ¡°Reduced rations, the-¡° Fresh screams seemed to give her an idea of the most important rule and she skipped down the list. ¡°No stable feed!¡±

    ¡°For how long?¡± Murdon¡¯s tone was dangerous.

    ¡°The beginning. Six days. Well, seven now sir.¡±

    Murdon heightened his Agility feature to level three, a costly expense of near mid-range mana consumption. Janice was left in the dust and the armored knight moved ludicrously fast through the busy streets. Just before he turned the corner, Janice saw him draw the ax from his back. The red banner of the stables was absent from the space above the tents when Murdon charged through their lines. That was a bad sign. He was running against the flow of fleeing people and had to use his free hand to force his way through. Dozens were tossed to the ground, but there was simply no time.

    Tamed monsters were far different from dominated ones. In a way, taming was like an elongated, more durable charm effect. A tamer¡¯s hold over their monster was hard to break, but starvation would certainly do it. For the weeks before their food supply had been cut off entirely, the monsters in the stables were being fed only enough to subsist on.

    Now hungry, angry, and free, these beasts were overwhelming the northern camp. I should have kept them further away! Murdon cursed, but he had! The only fault was not moving them when the tent line reached the stables. How he would have found the people to do that and the time necessary when he was barely sleeping, he didn¡¯t know, but it would have bought people more time now.

    Injured were among the throngs he charged past. Some seriously, some wouldn¡¯t make it to the medical tents. Without breaking his stride, Murdon tore a post from the nearest tent and hurled it at a nearby spark raptor. Agility helped his aim and the target was below his level, so it fell over when it struck. Did it die? Did it matter?

    People were fighting around him. These were from the tents surrounding the area immediately sieged and were keeping the outpouring of monsters contained. Murdon left them to it. The most dangerous creatures wouldn¡¯t be found here, they would be closer to the pens. The stables had held level three monsters and those would seek to feed on other monsters instead of the smaller mortals until hunger was sated and their instinctual hatred won out. Murdon had to stop them before the stables ran out of food and they moved elsewhere.

    Devastation. People were packed too close to run in the first, crucial moments. The density had been an issue, but so had been expanding too far to protect. Had they pushed to the tree line, those at the edge would be at constant risk of predation. But now, now there were more bodies around Murdon than those that lay in the mass grave.

    He leaped and struck a monster dead as he landed. Fighting with his Agility heightened wasn¡¯t something he¡¯d done in some time, but here he didn¡¯t need enhancement of his Fortitude. He just needed to kill as quickly as he could. If there was time, he would even take off his armor if that meant he could stop this faster.

    A hand fell out of the mouth of the creature at his feet. The victim wasn¡¯t moving and Murdon had no time to assess them for survival. The screams had never stopped. He Jumped again, powering the ability with mana, towards the next enemy. Jumping was faster than running, the joints of his unenchanted armor wouldn¡¯t let his legs move as fast as he needed them to even if it was his Focus.

    One of the spark rhinos was his next target. He was prioritizing the level twos, trusting the guards to handle the lesser threats. Many of the monsters running rampant were lightning-based. Those who could tame or dominate had come here for many reasons, but one was to have access to beasts not found elsewhere. Metal armor and lightning didn¡¯t mix well, but that was only if Murdon¡¯s enemies had a chance to use it. The Commander was, without a doubt, the strongest combatant remaining in the Thormundz. Kob was higher level but had too much level disparity to contend with the likes of Murdon. All of the Commander¡¯s attributes were level three, and his endurance was 38. Only Kob¡¯s was higher, and the gestalt had paid for their attributes with an imbalance that Murdon didn¡¯t have.

    Gravity empowered Murdon¡¯s strike as he aimed once more for the neck. The large beast sensed his approach and turned to use its huge lightning spine horn to parry the blow. Murdon had equipped himself with his enchanted ax, and that was enough to carve through the hard, crystalline material in addition to his strength. Still, the spark rhino had saved itself with the maneuver and made to charge away.

    A scaled foot wrapped in metal struck the earth as Murdon used Stomp. The powers of Knights bent defensively, but Murdon was high enough level to have found a few exceptions. Earth rippled from the strike to the creature, dealing little damage but causing it to stumble. Murdon was on it in seconds, finishing the beast with a decapitating strike.

    A leap took him closer to the fallen banner, the carnage of the stables now in sight. One of the level threes, a turbine bellower, had broken away from the primal war there to gorge on the mortals felled nearby. It was more grazer than predator. That didn¡¯t make it any less dangerous or hateful of mortals. It was broad and bulky, supporting the frame with four powerful legs. The turbine bellower was native to the region and was adorned appropriately with lightning spines that poked out like points of a compass from the ball at the end of its long tail. They were jagged and could be used as weapons, though the bellower had another purpose for them.

    As Murdon approached, the beast faced him and the tail began to spin. As it rotated faster, sparks began shooting off while most of the energy was channeled forward. It was fortunate the Knight had heightened Agility, for now he needed to dodge. A spray of lightning emitted from the creature in front of him coinciding with a deep, echoing bray. He leaped up and over the electricity, not fully avoiding it as his armor drew in fringe jolts. Murdon felt the pain as much as the dwindling reserve of mana within him. He had about half left, but it would be enough for what he needed to do at the stables.

    For the bellower, he led with his ax. The creature was as formidable as he was and one strike wouldn¡¯t be enough. Murdon landed on its back and used his free hand to tear into and establish a sturdy position on his prey. The apex of its skull was flat with toughened bone that resisted the bite of his weapon. Instead of fully giving to it, the first blow only cracked bone.

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    The tail swung upwards towards Murdon. He expected that and pivoted with his hand. The ball of the tail struck him, but the spine penetrated the creature¡¯s back instead of his head. That was his next target. As the creature tried to withdraw the tail he drove his ax into it and pushed down. It was moving now, trying to knock him off but there were two points with which the Knight was steadying himself. Both hands occupied, he resorted to Stomping on the area of broken bone until the heel punched through into softness. The bellower stumbled and came to a rest. One of the major threats was dealt with. The rest lay in wait at the stables.

    He Jumped again, landing next to the banner. It had fallen when the post supporting it snapped in half. Which of the creatures in front of him were responsible, if it had been them, Murdon couldn¡¯t know. He observed the crushed fences, blood-soaked earth, and corpses that littered the open space. It looked like a battlefield, or perhaps a colosseum. Nothing within it was mortal, nothing living.

    The Commander¡¯s senses were sharp enough to pick out those dominated creatures acting with coordination against the feral ones. Had their masters been present when the spark had been lit they might have been able to snuff out the flame before it had spread. But then again, if the Beastmasters had died in the attempt, their creatures would be joining the chaos instead of holding it at bay.

    There was only one thing Murdon could do against that many creatures. It would harm those assisting him, but there had been too much death to do anything but end this as quickly as possible. The Commander breathed deeply, shedding the remainder of his mana and drinking it in with his lungs as he did air. Energy writhed within him as it was changed, then propelled by furious exhalation. Writhing black clouds spread out amongst the fighting monsters, streaks of blue and gold flashing within. It was like the night sky had come as a rolling fog to shroud the battle in darkness. Where it intersected with living creatures they decayed, destroying the lesser level zero and ones among the throng.

    The dominated creatures fled and the enraged monsters pulled back. Those that were still able to. The field of shooting stars remained. Red-stained silver armor moved across the churning, sparkling smoke. Murdon, and other midnight draconoids like him, were immune to the effects of the breath attack. Mana depleted, Murdon stood to challenge the assembled beasts with just his ax. One of the level threes, a young skyshock wyvern, was the first to brave the night sky. Hundreds would be dead already if it were older and fully capable of quick flight, yet it could still approach from above the damaging field.

    When speaking in terms of combat, mortals were distinguished from monsters by the variety of their powers above everything else. Even dangerous monsters such as the frost strangler, with troublesome damage immunities and an attack that mimicked a mortal power, did not have the full suite of powers and the mind to use them that mortals did. Standing in front of the charging wyvern, Murdon had nothing but those features already active and heightened and the enormous advantage of making the ground itself his ally.

    The wyvern was fast enough to make running attacks that left the draconoid with little window to attack. Even with its youth, it was able to control the lightning within it and keep it from uncontrollably arcing into any of the multitude of lightning spines that littered the battlefield. The monster could have tried to circle Murdon and used its lightning to overwhelm him, but it lacked the cunning of older monsters. The large draconoid was opposed to it and its struggle for supremacy. He was also a hated mortal and needed to be struck down quickly before its ego fell further. The wyvern circled in the air and kept its wings locked, before coming around and attacking from behind, angled downwards to strike at Murdon¡¯s nape. He was wearing no helmet, and the jaws of the wyvern were strong enough to pierce the skull if it had had a chance.

    Murdon turned and let the creature bite his arm. The plate held and he punched forward to carry the creature¡¯s momentum into the ground. The wings clipped his head during the maneuver but that barely phased him. His other arm drove the ax into the wyvern¡¯s head that was still latched onto him. ¡°Amateur.¡± It was the first word Murdon spoke since he had left Janice. The wyvern¡¯s scales and flesh were melting under the effect of the shadowy smoke. It was held by a steady foot pinning one of its wings to the ground. The beauty of the fog was contrasted by the terrible things it did to the living.

    After that display, none of the other monsters would dare encroach on the mist. That was good, it separated them from the majority of the tents where screams and battle cries fought for the majority of the noise assaulting Murdon. It was more terrible than the monsters in front of him because of what it meant, and because there was nothing he could do to stop them. Murdon stepped out from the other side of the fog and brandished the ax as if to guard the boundary between his domain and the rest of the Octyrrum. The skull of the wyvern was still attached in death to his arm and he shattered the bone away. Every creature there regarded him as the greatest threat, which only stoked their natural inclination to end mortal kind.

    The mix of creatures was primarily lightning-based, though a few oddities such as ringcats were among them. The other surviving level three, an alpha shock runner, kept its distance and allowed the others to wear down the new threat. It instinctively knew it would have to choose its moment, and that without walls to run along it was at a disadvantage no matter its level parity.

    Four struck together against Murdon. Rather than defend himself, he dropped the ax and grabbed two to hurl into the death behind him. One bounced off his breastplate, while the last struck him with a charged lightning spine. The electricity channeled easily into the draconoid and while the stun from the level two creature was resisted, it hurt terribly.

    He picked up his ax and struck both creatures down as the energy only caused his muscles to tremble slightly. Murdon moved forward. This was about drawing the creatures in towards him and preventing them from running away to become a later problem. He would be safe if he remained next to the death cloud, but the village would not be.

    For all he had done to reduce their number, the beasts in front of Murdon were still at least a dozen. He was at the heart of the disaster. All but the alpha shock runner charged by way of ground and sky to overwhelm the lone Knight. Of the classes, Murdon¡¯s was best suited for an overwhelming assault. He fell two and received like in kind. The attacks against him were focused but not coordinated, the actions of mere beasts swarming on the current king of the hill. Had he his shield on the other arm Murdon would have avoided any injury. It was in his office, however, felt unneeded and left unattended.

    Claws and teeth found gaps in the armor through trial and error and scored through the leather reinforcing the metal plate. Normal mortals would have been grievously wounded. In Murdon¡¯s case, the strongest, luckiest hit pierced only shallowly through his scales. The scramble was chaotic and Murdon could only keep a few of the enemies in sight at all times. What made the difference was that his blows were decisive while his enemies only scratched him.

    The real danger to the Knight was the lightning. Some of these creatures were discharging wildly. At the center of the throng, he was positioned to take the brunt of it. His scales could not blacken further, but the silver of the armor was being stained by repeated conduction of the purple electricity. His left arm finally went limp. Even with the difference in levels, the creatures began to wear him down magically where physical attempts had failed. Accomplishing that feat had been too costly for his opponents, however. The last was felled by Murdon¡¯s sure ax arm before he could be critically wounded. That just left the level three shock runner which was-

    Dead. A man, a human, stood over it with a handful of militia at his back. Heldren Storm, known in the local regions of the second Realm as the Storm of Righteousness. You could tell how quickly a Hero had chosen a moniker for themselves by how inane it was. However, in Heldren now there was no sign of that distant youth.

    Murdon expected a speech. Even a line, humble or bragging, would have been the natural follow-up to a Hero¡¯s sudden arrival in a battle that brought about its end. Instead, Heldren looked behind Murdon, past the dissipating dark star field, in indication of the screams still painting the background with noise. He took off without a word and the others followed. The Commander might have taken a moment to rest had he not noticed the distant smoke. It was not from his ability, and it was not among the small fires started in the tents when tarp was scattered over open flames. It was in the village¡¯s center, and Murdon knew exactly what was burning.

    By the time he reached the ruin, the catastrophe was over. Teams were combing the trampled tents for any survivors and evacuating those suitable for healing. None would be found here. His manor, the largest building, had been immolated down to the basement. There was just a hole in the earth where what had been the center of the village was collected as charred wood and stone. With everyone focused on the beast attack there had been no witnesses. None living.

    Bones were among the debris that Murdon inspected. Like every free space in town, his manor had been used to house people. The deaths here hit him the hardest and not just because they¡¯d perished under his roof. Ashier would have been with them if there was anything to leave behind. Fire was as dangerous to air gestalt as it was to earth because of the updraft. An uncontrolled fire such as this would have scattered their essence beyond the point of recovery. Leveled gestalt could gain powers to resist these dangers, but Ashier hadn¡¯t had any.

    He found his shield and his other ax eventually, along with the weapons from his hunting lounge. They, along with his armor, would need repairs that would be simple enough for any Craftsman to perform. Soot and scars could be worked out, but the memory of ashen blood would remain.

    ¡°Sir.¡± It was Janice, again. Her post was the Roster today and with everything under nominal control, she¡¯d returned to it. It had taken her a long time to work up the courage to speak. ¡°The village, everyone needs to hear from you. People are going to need.¡± She gulped, but it had to be said. ¡°People are going to need answers.¡±

    Answers, Murdon thought with cold fury. He wanted to tear through the village until he found whoever was responsible, but he knew that was what they wanted him to do. He smiled, despite it all, because they had made a mistake. The camp rules and the disaster today had eaten away at his reputation and credibility. But this? Burning his house down had been an attempt to send him over the edge, to the point where the other headmen would step in. The fight had taken enough from him that it would be easy if there was a reason. Murdon kept his head. The gesture was also obvious, a targeted action that hadn¡¯t touched the surrounding buildings. No monster did this, no unthinking one that was, and that revealed a conspiracy. ¡°The avianoids that accompanied me this morning, do you remember them?¡± he asked, not addressing Janice directly.

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Do you remember them?¡±

    ¡°Somewhat, sir. Why?

    ¡°One of them has done this.¡± Murdon stared into the ruins of the manor. ¡°The sallower one had I a guess. Revealing the camp rules to me had been timed with the monsters.¡±

    ¡°How did you not know before today?¡± Janice immediately tried to walk back the question, but it was a fair one. He had let his guard down, and even though he deferred delegation, he had not watched the village as closely as he should. Murdon had disillusioned himself into thinking the current crisis would forestall machinations and politics. Should he be removed from power, or should he have fallen to the monsters today, his successor would take all the credit for what sleepless nights had wrought.

    Murdon turned and climbed out of the pit of death. ¡°Gather the headmen. Spread word of the two avianoids and bring them to me if found.¡± Can I trust her to do this? he thought and then decided. She had been one of the original village guards, and she had told him of Lograve. ¡°From today you are absolved of all former duties and are under my direct service. It does not need to be said that we now have enemies within Hagain. Guard your words carefully.¡±

    ¡°I-¡± She gripped her spear tightly. ¡°I understand. Where are you meeting them?¡±

    The Commander looked around like it was obvious. ¡°Here. If any balk, then we know they cannot face what they have done. We will find which one of them has done this, and then you will get your answers, Janice.¡±

    ¡­

    From far away, though not across a regional divide, the observer dismissed the illusion replicating the scene. ¡°Interesting.¡± The man who spoke first was human. They all were, in fact. He was tall, wearing a robe of flowing, iridescent colors as mutable as his talent. His skin was wrinkled, giving off the appearance of an elderly man even though he could have chosen whatever form he¡¯d like.

    The scrying room he and the half dozen others were in was small, dark, and left only enough room around the pool to stand. None seemed to mind the lack of chairs over the hour they¡¯d spent observing. This man spoke first not only on a whim, but because he was the first among the group. The Prime of this shard of the Illustrious. Among the others waiting with deference, he singled out a woman whose robes were fitted with loops to accommodate a variety of magical tools. ¡°Your assessment, Sasha?¡±

    The woman stiffened. She didn¡¯t necessarily fear reprisal for a poor analysis, but this was also a spotlight cast on her with a question outside her specialty. ¡°The godbound are fracturing and our plans are in danger, Master Helioc. Yet, you have not intervened, even when our primary subject diverted from his expected course. In addition, while I do not have your Foresight, it is clear this new Tyrant poses a significant threat to our plans. The halfborn draconoid was meant to take that mantle after the first died, though it seems someone close to him was randomly chosen by the Octyrrum instead. If we risk our secrecy, a surgical strike could excise them to give us another chance at developing the right Tyrant. The current one is quite feeble on their own.¡±

    ¡°No.¡± The one named Mavar Helioc spoke in impartial judgment. ¡°A fair suggestion, but that choice would only lead to further chaos. I entreat you all to use this as an object lesson of unintended consequences even a minor change can make. It is my estimation that the awakening of the second Tyrant was thwarted due to the unpredicted survival of that Arcanist, and we have all seen the consequences of that play out. We will continue to observe, with the exception of one careful adjustment my most recent Foresights indicate is necessary.¡±

    ¡°What of the spirit anomaly? It is my understanding that this also goes against our projections.¡±

    Mavar nodded, acceding to the point. ¡°Merely more randomness affecting our design.¡± The magic in the pool fully faded, reversing the transmutation of the liquid and returning it to plain water. He touched the surface with a finger and it froze in the rough pattern of the current Octyrrum, six wedges with a circle in the center, each with the symbol of the corresponding god. ¡°I, and the other Primes, have had millennia to carefully consider the plans now in motion. Even our combined intellect would fail to account for every eventuality, and no one can fully eliminate chance. We can, however, make it negligible.¡± The ice shattered, the cracks beginning from the symbol of the Hammer. ¡°With any luck, the anomaly will die from its wounds before it poses a threat to our plans. Even should it live I have no great fear of it. Have none yourself, Sasha. Our wider aims are still on course. The gods of this world will learn the price of deceit, arrogance, and betrayal.¡±

 Chapter 29: Bordering Life and Death

    The clean cut through the mountains had broken as if the stone walls were attempting to come back together to close the wound. One side had fractured to send rubble to the floor below where it now lay scattered among the ruins of the training team. Of their original number, one had already died and only one was relatively uninjured.

    Daniel awoke to find his leg pinned by a stone large enough to be considered for use in landscaping. A much larger one was close to his head and had done him the favor of knocking down a tree big enough to prevent its smaller kin from completely crushing his leg. The trunk allowed him enough space to gingerly withdraw his limb, skin scraped in places where the rock protruded.

    He hurt. Not as much as he had before falling, but he was covered in bruises and cuts that were only half healed. His arm felt strange, but it wasn¡¯t agony to touch. Mana burn, he realized. Sunlight still shined on the valley of boulders, but was it still the same day? Then he took in the fact that there was no auras around him. Hunter! he cried out mentally, and then repeated it as a shout. The silent watcher took notice but did not intervene. The lack of response mortified Daniel. The aura from Identify Creature disappeared whenever he slept, or was forced to sleep, though Hunter sharing it would preserve the auras. That there were no creatures visible around him meant the ringcat was unconscious, or worse.

    The phone in his hand had no answers for him. Notifications were only present for so long and there was no history to review. He had three advancement potential available, more than enough for level 2, but all Daniel cared about was finding Hunter. He was also wounded, which meant he hadn¡¯t had enough mana to fully restore himself. In other words, he had nothing to help him find Hunter. Was there even anything to find? he thought, seeing rocks the size of tanks had spilled out around him. No, he couldn¡¯t think like that, not until there was no other possibility.

    ¡°Hunter!¡± He climbed one of the rocks, grateful his body had healed as much as it had. He couldn¡¯t see anyone or anything, not even the other members of the team. Had they found everyone else and left Daniel behind? Were they crushed beneath the fallen rocks? ¡°Khare! Kob! Sigron!¡± he shouted, and then after a pause, ¡°Tlara!¡±

    No one responded. Movement in the distance, but it was just fallen rock settling. Daniel started walking, intent on searching the entire pass despite the fading of the light telling him there was only an hour before dusk. Despite the wyverns that were doubtlessly being drawn by the commotion, and even now could be lining along the ridges far above him. It only took him a few minutes to find what he was looking for. Hunter had jumped towards him, but the midair explosion threw him off course. For one terrible moment, Daniel knew Hunter was dead, until a green aura surrounded the beast. Dead creatures couldn¡¯t be identified.

    Hunter was alive! But, how? Where the pouch had rested against his body there was a charred gouge of flesh missing. It was an uneven, grotesque wound that revealed rib in several places. The ground, covered in dust from the shuffling of rock, had soaked the blood spilling from it and indicated the massive amount Hunter must have lost. Far less had been needed to end the ringcats that attacked on the plains. No blood spilled from the beast now. Had it ceased on its own, or was there no longer enough to spill? Not even the silent watcher, repositioning to get a better vantage, could tell. Neither did it intervene. It wasn¡¯t the time for that yet.

    Hunter! Daniel thought. There was no response. As he rushed to the ringcat, there was a weak breath. The blood-mixed dust smeared onto his knees when Daniel kneeled to place a hand on Hunter. The fur on the side facing him was mostly gone, burned off in the explosion. The intricate ring patterns were present on the hide itself on the parts not broken.

    Hunter didn¡¯t respond, and Daniel didn¡¯t want to press harder for fear of injuring him. The ringcat had to be out of mana, just like him, so the passive healing boost of Regeneration was the only thing keeping him alive. At level one it was a gentle flow of restorative energy. Even with the feature, Daniel didn¡¯t know if these wounds were survivable without the intervention of a higher power.

    The only one in the group that could heal him was Tlara, and she was nowhere to be found. He held his Focus and moved all three available advancement potential into intelligence. It was the only thing that could help.

    Daniel committed the change. It was a strange juxtaposition, the rush of leveling up and the dying friend in front of him. He also felt, for lack of a better word, off balance by the changes. He guessed it was level disparity kicking in, but he didn¡¯t care about that at all.

    <hr>

    Your Intelligence is now 20! Powers acquired with this Attribute will now be level two. Features you have previously awakened from intelligence may be heightened to Level: 2.

    -

    By developing a Core Attribute to 20, you have improved your Artificer class to Level 2! Your Mana Pool has increased, and the Mana cost of Powers below Level: 2 is reduced. You will now awaken Powers at level 2, but will suffer greater effects of Level Disparity when using level 2 powers awakened from Attributes below your current level.

    -

    Alert: Your Strength, Dexterity, Endurance, Wisdom, and Charisma are below your current level. Powers reliant on these Attributes will suffer from Level Disparity until the attribute is increased to your current level.

    -

    Your Intelligence is now 21! You have gained Feature: Quick Mind and Ability: Telekinetic Reach.

    -

    ???

    -

    ???

    -

    ???

    -

    ???

    <hr>

    The intelligence powers didn¡¯t seem like they would help, but Daniel read over all of the new powers his Focus would display in desperation.

    <hr>

    Artificer ¨C Level: 2

    You are an artificer, a Class that embodies the Ideals of innovation and creativity. Your Core Attributes are Endurance and Intelligence. Upon taking this class your current Dexterity is halved. Your artificer Focus will take the form of a magical tool.

    Attributes:

    The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    - Strength: 21

    - Dexterity: 13

    - Endurance: 14

    - Wisdom: 14

    - Intelligence: 21

    - Charisma: 12

    Artificer Features:

    - Arcane Creator, Level: 2 (Automatic): You are now capable of reproducing and developing Formulae: Enchanting up to level two. The Mana and time cost for using formulae of Level: 1 or lower are reduced. This is an automatic Feature improvement that does not require mana or heightening to use.

    - Bartering

    - Beast Friend*

    - Focus Enhancement, Level: 2: Improve current enhancements on your Focus for a minor Mana cost per Function.

    - Maps, Level: 2: Generate a map based on your observed surroundings. This map is retained unless the Focus is lost.

    - Music, Level: 2: Improves the maximum volume of playback by 100%.

    - Encyclopedia, Level: 2: Allows collection of additional information into the Function based on close observation of a target through your Focus. Living Creatures grant more progress towards entry improvement than deceased creatures, as do intact corpses compared to damaged ones.

    - Settings, Level: 2: Allows all Functions to resist Magical Suppression of level: 2 or lower.

    - Identify Creature

    - Quick Mind (Feature, Intelligence, Domain: Knowledge, Level: 1): You possess the Power of rapid thought and calculation. This feature improves your ability to read, perform mathematics, and formulate arcane problems beyond the normal rate for your intelligence.

    - Quick Mind, Level: 2 (Automatic): Further improves efficiency. By acquiring this feature at Level: 2, you do not need to heighten it to gain this effect.

    Artificer Abilities:

    - Mark Weakness

    - Moment of Clarity

    - Scatter Shot

    - Snap Shot

    - Telekinetic Reach (Ability, Intelligence, Spell, Domain: Universal, Level: 2): You possess the Power to interact with physical objects with Telekinesis for a short time. Manipulation of physical objects requires a minor Mana cost, scaling with the duration of the effect, distance, weight of the target, and the target¡¯s Endurance if it has one. Items actively possessed by a creature will be considered as having that creature¡¯s endurance. This mana cost inversely scales with your intelligence. This ability has no direct effect on Creatures with an endurance higher than your intelligence. This is a Magical Ability that does not function within an area of Magical Suppression.

    <hr>

    Damn it. Damn it! Daniel read it three, four times to be sure, but there was nothing. Then he realized how stupid he¡¯d been. If anything could have given him a healing ability, it probably would have been endurance. All intelligence had done was make him better at math. He¡¯d focused too much on leveling up and just assumed he¡¯d get something useful. It was Bartering all over again. But, when he had gotten Bartering, there was a hidden ability far more useful that he didn¡¯t initially see. Daniel placed both hands on Hunter, mimicking Thomas and Tlara. Nothing was happening, but whatever they had used worked slowly, so maybe, possibly-

    Cold. Hunter¡¯s thoughts were slow but free of pain. The return of his consciousness re-established both the telepathy and the emotional link. Even this close to Hunter, Daniel could hardly feel anything through it.

    ¡°Hey, stay with me! You can make it through this! Just don¡¯t die,¡± he pleaded, not moving his hands.

    It took a few moments for Hunter to respond, and a half minute to string together the few words. No. I am dying.

    ¡°You-¡± Daniel was about to say the ringcat was fine, that it wasn¡¯t as bad as it looked, but he couldn¡¯t delude himself that much. His voice was breaking so he stopped talking and thought towards Hunter. Regeneration should be healing you! You, you can¡¯t be dying.

    Share, was the only response. It wasn¡¯t immediately clear what Hunter wanted him to do until the smallest bit of mental pressure was applied against Daniel. Hunter had no mana to share Daniel¡¯s senses, but reaching level two had deepened the artificer¡¯s reserves. Not a full restore, but he had some mana to work with.

    How could he refuse? Daniel¡¯s sense of his body faded as he pushed his mind through the nearly destroyed wall between them. Despite himself, he wondered if he could project abilities from Hunter while doing this, until the feelings that replaced his own body drove any curiosity from him. There had been the expectation of some pain, a deep ache that would survive blood loss and shock, but there was no sensation in the large body he mentally occupied. Vision was hazy and the strength to keep the eyes open at all limited. Air was taken in by struggling lungs that faltered during inhalation, weakening with every breath.

    Regeneration wouldn¡¯t keep Hunter alive, it was only prolonging his death. Daniel knew that now as deeply as Hunter had. The Artificer pulled away and hated himself for it, but the pull death had on the ringcat was far too terrible to endure for one who would not venture with him.

    I¡­ He didn¡¯t know what to say or think.

    No regrets, Hunter thought.

    I killed you. Tears had finally come, now that the inevitable was known. If I¡¯d just separated the bolts or kept them myself you wouldn¡¯t be like this.

    No. Hunter¡¯s head lifted slightly but couldn¡¯t turn to meet Daniel¡¯s eyes. The Artificer abandoned the healing attempt and sat in front of his eyes. No regrets. You gave me freedom worth a short life. You.

    Hunter? Daniel asked after he paused.

    Go. Find another. It will make the same choice.

    I don¡¯t want another. I- He couldn¡¯t complete the thought. He knew how petulant it would sound. That wasn¡¯t how he should behave next to his dying friend. I¡¯m not going to leave you to die alone. The light of the aura was dimming. Everything that they¡¯d fought had died so quickly that Daniel hadn¡¯t made the connection between the aura¡¯s strength and the life force of the creature, thinking it a binary thing. It seemed there wasn¡¯t much time left. He pulled out his phone. Nothing on it would heal Hunter, but something could ease his passing.

    He carefully placed the Focus on a patch of remaining fur and set it to play a song. Most of what he remembered enough to play was thematic or meme music wildly inappropriate for what was happening, but there was a piece of classical music from a recital the twins had played in their senior year. That was when he was 15 and bored, dragged to the event by his parents. There was no name for the track, he hadn¡¯t bothered to remember it. From what his mother had said it was a famous piece. The school only attempted it because Alex was a near virtuoso on the violin and had a solo near the beginning.

    Like the photo on his lock screen, it was another memory Daniel regretted. He¡¯d almost slept through it and had to be nudged by his father on a few occasions to stay awake. Now, listening to his sister play, for it was the version she had played, there was only the wish to be in that auditorium again.

    What? Hunter asked weakly.

    It¡¯s ok. I¡¯m right here. Daniel let the music play and held Hunter¡¯s head in his arms.

 Chapter 30: Helping Hands

    The silent watcher had seen it all and heard most of it before the conversation moved internally. Things had proceeded as it had expected, up until the music. That music. It was impossible and impossibly aggravating. The silent watcher could not hold from making itself known any longer.

    ¡°What, are you a fucking Bard now too?¡± Tlara asked indignantly, shifting her wings back into arms as she landed next to the prone pair.

    ¡°Tlara!¡± For once in his life Daniel seemed glad to see her. ¡°Please, he¡¯s almost gone but with your healing there¡¯s a chance.¡±

    She made one appraising, scornful look at the ringcat¡¯s side and was amazed there was any life left in it. That hardly changed things. ¡°Me, heal that thing? Fuck no.¡±

    ¡°You can save him!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not worth my time. Just tame another fucking ringcat, they¡¯re a copper a dozen. Come on, the others are waiting.¡± She turned, and Daniel finally stood.

    Anger? Grief? Tlara didn¡¯t know exactly what was on his face, but it was overwhelming. ¡°Do you have any empathy?¡± Daniel clenched a fist. ¡°Do you feel anything at all, or are you as dead inside as you think Hunter is?¡±

    ¡°The fuck did you say?¡± Anger flushed through Tlara as she glared back, just stopping herself from using an ability.

    Daniel was unbending in the face of her fury. ¡°You¡¯ve hated me from day one when I did nothing to you. You tried to kill me, you fled like a coward, and now you¡¯re telling me you won¡¯t save my friend because you don¡¯t feel like it?¡± The fist at his side changed subconsciously. ¡°I¡¯m not level one anymore and I¡¯m done taking your shit. You¡¯re going to heal Hunter or I¡¯m going to make you do it.¡±

    Tlara paused. Daniel wasn¡¯t the meek Spiritualist that had initially joined the team, and now that he¡¯d said it, she had a feeling he¡¯d actually leveled. It was just as impossibly real as the music still playing in the background. That didn¡¯t change her greater fighting experience and overall attributes, but the crux was she hadn¡¯t had a chance to summon another beast after the previous one had died. Shocked, the avianoid realized she was actually in danger. ¡°The fuck do you think is going to happen? Even if you could, you can¡¯t catch me and come back before that fucking thing dies. And when the others hear what you did, they¡¯ll-¡±

    ¡°Stop talking, start healing.¡± Daniel raised both transformed fists and Tlara prepared to run. Neither would have a chance to act.

    Vines snaked around one of the boulders and wrapped around Tlara. ¡°Heal,¡± Kob commanded as they finally closed on the noise they¡¯d heard too. The main mass was half its original size, but they retained enough strength to squeeze Tlara to the point that she squawked. ¡°Now,¡± they added.

    That changed things for Tlara. Kob was wrapping around her chest and preventing her from breathing, almost to the point of breaking ribs. Against them, she had no chance. She was terrified of what would happen to her if the ringcat died. Tlara would have protested, spoken of laws and rules but there were none here, just the will of the strongest.

    She could still murderously glare as she walked slowly to the ringcat. It was practically dead and she could finish it faster than anyone else could react. Daniel would certainly try to kill her for that, but would Kob? She was worth more than this thing. She was valuable enough to not be thrown away for some slight. But this was Kob, the only lifeline in the Thormundz. Even if they didn¡¯t kill her here, defying the gestalt would be as good as killing herself in the long run.

    Again, she marveled that the ringcat still clung to life. Its side had been blasted open to the point of directly damaging internal organs. She would have said as much if Kob was letting her breathe, and that she couldn¡¯t be blamed if this thing died despite her best efforts. To make that claim, she would have to try first.

    The bare skin of the ringcat felt odd to the touch, not that she touched many living things. Of all the people in the Thormundz, she was one of the few who hadn¡¯t known any of the lost that closely. To Tlara, that was a strength, it kept her head clear, but if she had been able to make friends as fast as Daniel then maybe Kob wouldn¡¯t be crushing her right now.

    And the music. It was coming from the object Daniel claimed was his Focus. What she had decided was an enchanted hand mirror was somehow replicating the sound of several instruments at once in a melody unlike anything she¡¯d heard. No, not several instruments, dozens at least! Even if this was a power that stored sound and even if this imbecile had been there to hear this music, where and when had this been recorded?

    The pressure relented when the slow trickle of mana passed through her hands and into the dying ringcat. Enough for her to pull in air, but Kob wasn¡¯t completely relenting. Daniel, after seeing what she had been forced to do, was on the ground again soothing his broken tool.

    ¡°I won¡¯t forget this,¡± she rasped.

    Concern predominated Daniel¡¯s face now. Not provoked by her threat, but by uncertainty for his pet¡¯s recovery. ¡°I won¡¯t either.¡± She picked apart the response for any hint of threat in kind or sarcasm, only to find honesty and gratitude. The man looked at the vines around her chest and he frowned. ¡°If you weren¡¯t just so¡­¡± he searched for a word. Tlara let him. She wasn¡¯t in a position to do anything else. ¡°I don¡¯t know. Why did it have to come to this? Why couldn¡¯t you just help?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s just a fucking monster. It¡¯s not even the one you had in the village. Why do you care so much about it?¡± She glowered, not putting too much venom in her words. There was a fear that the gestalt would retaliate if she got too brazen, but the vines remained as taut as they were and no more. Wait, why does Kob care about this idiot¡¯s pet? Crest, are they a Spiritualist too?

    Daniel shook his head sadly as he continued to cradle Hunter¡¯s head. ¡°He is the one I had before. He¡¯s been with me pretty much the whole time I¡¯ve-¡± He stopped talking suddenly.

    What? What was that? Tlara¡¯s sensed a secret, that Daniel was about to inadvertently reveal something he didn¡¯t want her to know. ¡°Since you¡¯ve been what? A Spiritualist?¡±

    ¡°No, I¡¯m not a Spiritualist.¡± He gave her an odd look like he was sizing her up. ¡°Did Spiritualists kill your family or something?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t fucking pretend to understand me,¡± she shot back. Daniel was clearly stabbing in the dark. ¡°You people are fucking insane. Monsters don¡¯t have souls,¡± she said firmly, an old wound reopening. ¡°They don¡¯t have spirits, they don¡¯t think, they just fucking kill and destroy unless you have the power to bend them to your will, and then they are nothing but fucking tools! I was trying to teach you that but you know what, why don¡¯t you test out your theory and go hug that dragon in the pass? You¡¯ll fucking see exactly how much of a spirit that has.¡±

    ...

    Tlara¡¯s tirade washed over Daniel. He was completely numb to it. All he cared about was Hunter, the conversation was just to distract him from the black hole of worry that remained within him. Tlara was at least halting the dimming of Hunter¡¯s aura. Her mana would have limits as much as anyone¡¯s, though, and if she reached her¡¯s before something changed it would still be the end.

    The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    But finally, finally, Tlara couldn¡¯t evade his questions anymore. That hadn¡¯t stopped her from being impossible. She¡¯d even worked in another suggestion for him to off himself. When she stopped her rant, he reconsidered his assumption. Spiritualists killing her parents would have been too clich¨¦ of a motivation. Maybe it had been just monsters and she hated anyone who offered the slightest bit of defense towards them. Had he defended every monster though? Of course not, she just didn¡¯t seem to get the fact that Hunter was special. The ringcat was just as much of a glitch in the system as he was with his dual advancement and hidden powers. Even before he¡¯d started talking, Daniel had sensed something about the ringcat. Having met others of his kind, it was blindingly obvious Hunter was intrinsically different. Daniel finally found something to say. He didn¡¯t expect it to be this though. ¡°You¡¯re right.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Tlara almost squawked again in surprise.

    ¡°I never said every monster was like Hunter. I said Hunter was special. Like I keep telling you, I¡¯m not a Spiritualist. Otherwise, yeah, you¡¯re right, monsters are pretty terrible and I don¡¯t blame you for stuffing some in those pouches of yours.¡± He shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s what your class does.¡±

    Tlara gave him another glare. It felt like her eyes were magnifying lenses that could peer into his soul. He bared it, knowing that his honesty would say as much as his words. The stupefied look that came over her probably meant she¡¯d found that out. ¡°You.¡± She almost took a hand off of Hunter to point at him before her mind caught up. ¡°Even if that¡¯s true you¡¯re still fucking insane.¡±

    ¡°Lograve believes me. Is he insane too?¡± Again, outright honesty proved to be Tlara¡¯s undoing. Maybe her insight is high, he wondered as she spluttered. Or whatever the equivalent thing is here.

    ¡°You¡¯re lying,¡± she denied.

    ¡°I could prove it to you too if you had his Telepathy.¡± Daniel mournfully stroked Hunter¡¯s head. ¡°And if he was talking right now.¡± She didn¡¯t respond to that. Maybe she thinks I¡¯m crazy. ¡°Is it so hard to believe I have an ability that could give Hunter, uh.¡± He paused as Kob¡¯s main body was suddenly next to him, the vines constricting Tlara still dangling through cracks in the heavily damaged stone armor.

    ¡°Grafted.¡± Kob was, well, it was hard to tell what was going through the gestalt¡¯s mind but their voice carried a sense of wonder.

    ¡°No. There is absolutely no fucking way.¡± Tlara seemed to be taking their meaning and was horrified at the implication, whatever it was.

    ¡°What are you talking about?¡±

    Both looked at him with familiar expressions, it coming through even on the gestalt¡¯s false face. Like whatever they were talking about was basic knowledge you would have had to be living in a cave not to know about it. Tlara turned back to Kob and vehemently denied a ¡®grafting¡¯ had taken place. Daniel took the opportunity to try and find what they were arguing about in the encyclopedia. Sure enough, ¡®The Grafting¡¯ was an entry in the Lore tab. If you could call it that.

    <hr>

    The Grafting (Concept, Historical Event, ???)

    A notable event in world history. ???

    <hr>

    Whatever the unidentification hid, these two seemed to know. Tlara was saying something about it being responsible for everything wrong in the world. That was her default opinion on things she didn¡¯t like though, and Daniel made a mental note to ask Lograve about it. He looked back at the two and realized he couldn¡¯t see Hunter¡¯s ribs anymore. The healing was slow, but it was working! If Tlara was able to stabilize Hunter, even while still missing a good portion of flesh, Regeneration would get him the rest of the way.

    Daniel pushed his way into the ringcat¡¯s senses. It was the only way to know for sure, and Hunter wasn¡¯t there to stop him. Terrible, blinding pain was all he felt, enough that he could only hang on for a few seconds. In the first moment he thought Tlara was torturing Hunter as the pain was greatest where her hands were, until it occurred to him that this is what nerves would make of Hunter¡¯s body when they were repaired. The pain was the healing, so mortal the wound that the body would rather die than experience it. Yet, the bound Tlara was forcing it to. And arguing, the voices muffled through Hunter¡¯s troubled sensorium. She wasn¡¯t letting Hunter die, if only because of what Kob would do to her if he did. Slowly, Hunter was moving away from mortal peril. A few minutes, maybe less, was all that was needed.

    ¡°How much longer can you do this?¡± Daniel asked when he was back in his body, slightly shaken by the degree of pain that had shunted him back. He¡¯d interrupted the mostly one-sided conversation, but he had to know.

    Tlara tightened her beak as if to withhold the answer, but relented. ¡°A few hours. Fuck, but we can¡¯t stay out here that long. Wyverns are going to be attracted to this thing¡¯s body and even you can¡¯t fight them right now!¡± she said pointedly to Kob.

    ¡°We only need three minutes, so long as someone can carry him.¡±

    ¡°How do you know?¡±

    ¡°I just do.¡± The estimate was more precise than Daniel had expected, but it had come to him the moment before he¡¯d said it. Quick Mind, maybe? ¡°But that will just keep him from dying. I don¡¯t know how long it¡¯ll take for Hunter to fully heal. Days?¡±

    ¡°Return. Recover.¡± Kob nodded, and Tlara agreed with that at least.

    The absence of the other two team members dawned on him at last. ¡°Wait, where¡¯s Sigron and Khare?¡±

    ¡°Sigron¡¯s a fucking mess but he¡¯ll make it to the city. After what you did to his shoulder I¡¯m not sure what will happen. As for Khare?¡± she looked at Kob, and a small mass of vines climbed to the surface. When it collected on the ground, it didn¡¯t even come up to Daniel¡¯s hip.

    The mass flattened, and the end of a crossbow stuck out. Daniel pulled out his undamaged weapon in disbelief. ¡°Thanks Khare. Are you going to be ok?¡±

    ¡°Recover,¡± Kob said for their kin, and reabsorbed the smaller vines.

    That meant they¡¯d only lost one party member today. Even though she wouldn¡¯t care, he wanted to say the words. ¡°I¡¯m sorry about your spark beetle, Tlara. Not because you lost a friend but because I know what that means for your powers.¡±

    ¡°I was going to replace that fucking thing anyways,¡± Tlara needlessly parried the condolence. ¡°I¡¯ll be level three after today.¡±

    ¡°You advanced? But you ran.¡±

    ¡°The Octyrrum rewards bravery and prudence evenhandedly.¡± Tlara sounded exactly like Lograve there. It was probably a common saying. ¡°We never should have been on that fucking rock to begin with. If you had left when I did then maybe your ringcat wouldn¡¯t be near dead. We were only there because you wanted to know if you could punch above your level.¡± She glared at the gestalt, and realization bloomed on her face. ¡°Wait, you¡¯re making me do this because you feel guilty?¡±

    Kob didn¡¯t have an answer for her immediately. They seemed to take their own measure before rumbling, ¡°Five.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re not serious.¡± The stone head nodded and Tlara¡¯s eyes grew wide. ¡°You¡¯re just going to make your level disparity worse!"

    ¡°Necessary.¡±

    ¡°Fuck that!¡±

    Daniel picked up on the subtext. ¡°That¡¯s what we¡¯re doing. Murdon and Lograve are training everyone to be strong enough to fight the dragon at the pass. You figured out what they want you to do there, didn¡¯t you?¡±

    ¡°Endure,¡± Kob said with a nod.

    ¡°There is no fighting that thing,¡± Tlara protested. ¡°We¡¯d be fighting it on a fucking lake, without cover, and with hundreds of people to guard. Even if we abandoned everyone useless and just fought through, the only people who¡¯d survive would be those who ran while the rest died fighting it.¡±

    ¡°Lograve is smart. He and Murdon have to have some kind of plan,¡± Daniel countered.

    ¡°He nearly died the first time and I still don¡¯t know how he made it out of there. It¡¯s fucking pointless!¡±

    ¡°Then what are you doing? Why not try to make it over the mountains yourself?¡± Daniel looked around. ¡°Maybe there¡¯s a path to the other side here?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d get picked apart before I crossed the peaks. If you go giving yourself enough level disparity that you can be knocked over with a stiff breeze then nothing matters!¡± she shot to Kob.

    ¡°That¡¯s enough,¡± Daniel tried to defuse the situation.

    ¡°The fuck!?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s enough healing,¡± Daniel clarified. Hunter was stirring, and he¡¯d briefly shared the ringcat¡¯s senses again to confirm it. The pain was immense, but the injury on Hunter¡¯s side had been stitched together enough that it wouldn¡¯t fall apart immediately. His Quick Mind estimate still had some time left, but Hunter had reached the bare minimum needed for survival. He looked Tlara in the eyes and held the gaze. ¡°We¡¯ve had our differences, but even if you were forced to do this that doesn¡¯t change the fact that you did it. We don¡¯t have to be enemies.¡±

    Tlara responded with just two words. ¡°Bite me.¡±

 Chapter 31: Meeting the Family

    For the first time, two level five alpha skyshock wyverns attacked Roost¡¯s Peak together. The odd alpha wasn¡¯t unheard of, but never had two attacked in concert alongside a small detachment of level fours. Daniel¡¯s powers had been a blessing and a curse for the city. It had warded away the wyverns, right until he left and they no longer sensed the watchful eye on them. That stopped the frequent, small attacks and combined them into one huge wave. Roost¡¯s Peak was never going to be broken by an attack from the pass. It was fated to fall to something like this.

    What the wyverns couldn¡¯t have anticipated was Hunter¡¯s wounding. The ringcat still tagged hostile monsters as an acquired instinct, but his range was drastically reduced while he healed. Moreover, he was being kept inside and away from the breeze. Hunter could only sense the wyverns when they committed to the assault, just when they¡¯d exposed themselves to the city¡¯s defenses.

    The frantic warning Daniel gave had been crucial, not only in buying the city a few more seconds but in identifying which of the dark shapes in the dusk light were the priority targets. His Mark Weakness ability made the alpha wyverns glow with an orange light around their heads and part of the chest for everyone to see. That had taken almost half his mana per use due to the enemies¡¯ greater endurance, but it allowed the city to hone in on the alphas and bring them down.

    That had been a good day for Daniel. Supplies in the city were tight enough that a successful defense couldn¡¯t be celebrated with libations, though in every other way, the denizens reveled in escaping death. The moments right after an attack were the safest and the only time anyone could truly relax. Daniel had joined in the celebrations, which combined with the near-death experience had caused a breakthrough in his relationship.

    A hand pushed lightly on his chest as he made to rise, prompted by a mental request from Hunter. ¡°I¡¯ll get it this time.¡± Claire gave him a knowing look, aware of the joke she was making. He wasn¡¯t sure what was more surprising, that the trope existed in this world too or that Claire had joked about it in this context.

    She¡¯d gotten her robes on and was already at the door when he thought to ask, ¡°Wait, how will you know what he wants?¡±

    ¡°A mother always knows,¡± she grinned as she entered the hallway.

    ¡°That¡¯s really creepy.¡±

    Claire paused, and through the aura Daniel could see the wince. ¡°It, it is isn¡¯t it?¡±

    ¡°I thought it was fine,¡± he said quickly in complete contradiction of himself.

    ¡°Sure,¡± Claire dragged out the word with suspicion. He could hear that the smile was still on her face. For all the time he¡¯d known her, admittedly around a week, she¡¯d rarely been anything but clever with occasional sarcasm. It drew a certain comparison to another Arcanist that Daniel fervently worked to suppress.

    Claire was walking downstairs now. One of the benefits of living in Roost¡¯s Peak at this particular point in time was that there were three houses for every individual here, and that was without counting storerooms, taverns, and abandoned shops. There was politics involved with the most prestigious housing that Daniel neatly side-stepped by choosing an out of the way two story structure. It was one of the copy-paste buildings that predominated the fortress town. With the notoriety of his, or rather, Hunter¡¯s detection prowess, he could have gone bigger. Daniel simply didn¡¯t want to.

    His girlfriend, or significant other, or partner? Daniel still didn¡¯t know where this relationship was going and was terrified of collapsing the potential futures into one determined one. The sexy Arcanist, for lack of a better title, was not living with him so he only needed space for himself and the healing ringcat. Hunter had spent three days resting in the fort and was still in recovery. Even after burning all of his mana each night to boost the effect of Regeneration, the wounds had only progressed to the state of regrowing tissue and muscle. Two blankets had to be stretched over the area to avoid the sight of it. Things had gotten tense yesterday when infection set in, but one of the city¡¯s healers saw to that.

    The exact mechanics of healing in this world were still something Daniel didn¡¯t fully grasp. The most exposure he¡¯d had was to the slow Healing Hands feature which was specific to either mortals or monsters. There was a difference between people and animal medicine, in other words. But, that didn¡¯t apply to all healing abilities such as the one that cured diseases, but not poisons, and worked on most creatures mortal or not. It was complicated, was the point, and despite the odd hundred in the city the only person that could help Hunter now was Daniel. And Claire, since they¡¯d become so familiar over the past few days. He was curious if she would figure out Hunter wanted the large rug dragged over him as the night chill was creeping in. It was almost comical how petulant the ringcat had become now that he could barely stand, but Daniel indulged him.

    Claire¡¯s aura was in the room with Hunter now. Are you ok? Hunter immediately asked.

    She wanted to give ringcat nannying a try.

    Did you tell her about the blanket?

    No. Daniel snickered. I want to see how long it takes for her to figure it out.

    She¡¯s asking me if I¡¯m hungry, Hunter complained.

    So tell her you¡¯re not.

    Hunter couldn¡¯t send just any sound through telepathy, but he could silently growl at Daniel. I¡¯m cold. She¡¯s trying to pet me.

    That made Daniel¡¯s giddiness falter. He knew Hunter didn¡¯t like other people doing that. The ringcat wasn¡¯t strong enough to do anything lethal, but if he snapped at Claire- You¡¯re letting her? he thought incredulously as he gaped at the auras beneath the floor.

    She smells nice, Hunter thought defensively.

    Who are you and what have you done with Hunter? Wait. His eyes narrowed in suspicion. Are you trying to make me jealous?

    Do you think she¡¯d want to go riding later?

    Daniel stood out of the bed. There was teasing, and there was picking at the crusted scabs of his denied dreams.

    Claire looked up as Daniel strode down the stone steps of the building. All the permanent features were stone and the floor was cold with the coming of fall. The common room of the small house retained some of the furniture the previous occupants had abandoned and not much else. Hunter took up the majority of the space with food and water bowls placed close to his head.

    ¡°I¡¯ve never been this close to a ringcat before,¡± she remarked as she ran a hand through the fur of Hunter¡¯s neck. ¡°Soft. I would have never guessed.¡±

    ¡°You should have seen him covered in glue,¡± he said bitterly to the feigned innocence in Hunter¡¯s eyes. ¡°Even when he washed it out he was still licking his fur until the next morning.¡±

    ¡°Hunter¡¯s fine with you calling, uh, him ¡®he¡¯?¡± she asked, not looking up. Claire had more readily believed that the ringcat could communicate with Daniel than most when the issue had come up. As someone who summoned familiars she was keen to the ties powers could develop between mortals and creatures, summoned or otherwise. Daniel wasn¡¯t sure if she completely bought the talking part of the arrangement, but she humored him.

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    ¡°I haven¡¯t asked, it just felt right. Huh.¡± Daniel looked at Hunter and asked aloud, ¡°What do you think?¡±

    Don¡¯t care. Can you get the rug, please?

    ¡°He wants the rug,¡± Daniel sighed and went over to where the heavy fabric was piled.

    ¡°It is getting colder.¡± She traced one of the circle patterns that intersected with Hunter¡¯s broad ears. ¡°Did you know some consider these creatures blessed?¡±

    ¡°No, I didn¡¯t. Do they have special powers or something? Hunter¡¯s got this roar, but¡­¡± Daniel trailed off. Blessed, he thought to himself. Is that why he¡¯s different?

    Claire didn¡¯t stop idly tracing as Daniel hefted the rug and pulled it over Hunter¡¯s torso. ¡°It¡¯s more along the lines of superstition. Early on, people saw the patterns in the fur and connected it to the Octyrrum since it roughly fit the shape of the world. They were among the first creatures tamed by what would become Beastmasters. Whether ringcats are more susceptible to that, or if they just tried to tame more ringcats as opposed to anything else is anyone¡¯s guess.¡±

    There were so many directions Daniel could go off of that knowledge. Evolutionary theory was his first impulse. Did monsters evolve here? And what about classes, what did she mean by those that would ¡®become Beastmasters¡¯? He settled on a question he¡¯d meant to ask someone else. ¡°Does that have anything to do with the Grafting?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Claire frowned and leaned her head on one of her hands. ¡°No, I don¡¯t think so. History¡¯s not my best subject but that doesn¡¯t sound right. I haven¡¯t seen a mortal race that looks like a ringcat at least.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Daniel blurted out. Where did that come from?

    She turned to look behind her to give Daniel an odd look, ¡°You¡¯re an Artificer, right? Didn¡¯t you study to meet the intelligence requirement?¡±

    Claire, of course, didn¡¯t know about Daniel¡¯s origins. Only two people and one ringcat knew. For the record, she didn¡¯t give off the ¡®kill the heretic¡¯ vibes that would deter such a confession. Instead, he had concealed it in fear she wouldn¡¯t believe him, think he was crazy, and leave him, in that order. It was something Daniel felt guilty about and was working up the courage to admit. Now wasn¡¯t that time.

    ¡°To be honest, things are a little hazy before the Upswell,¡± Daniel lied with the truth, still not entirely sure what she was talking about. ¡°During my last clear memories, I didn¡¯t have my class. Classes, I guess.¡± She did know the part about the Totem Warrior glitch.

    ¡°You have amnesia?¡± She stood and inspected him. ¡°Why haven¡¯t you gone to a, oh, right, the Upswell.¡± Claire shook her head sadly. ¡°Once you¡¯re in a proper region there are healers who can cure memory curses. Depending on the kind of aid they offer survivors it may be free, though I wouldn¡¯t try that in Aughal.¡±

    She¡¯s looking worried, Daniel thought. Please let this come off as charming and not creepy. ¡°There¡¯s nothing I could remember that would change how I feel about you.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s sweet, but stupid,¡± she laughed. ¡°And you¡¯re getting a little too ahead of yourself.¡±

    Crap. It was too awkward for Daniel to say anything after that. The stumble in the conversation dragged out as Claire waited for his reply. She¡¯d caught his clumsy compliment and turned it into something Daniel wasn¡¯t sure about. Was she trying to sense if he was honest in the implication, or setting the expectation early that this, whatever this was, wouldn¡¯t be going as far as he hoped? The possibilities were conversational trip mines Daniel was desperately waddling through to find a safe reply before they went off by themselves.

    A visitor defused the situation instead. ¡°Someone¡¯s at the door,¡± Daniel said a moment before they knocked.

    ¡°Who?¡± Claire¡¯s voice carried a disappointment that made the Artificer certain some kind of game was being played.

    ¡°I haven¡¯t met them before and I can¡¯t identify them.¡± He shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s a draconoid though, and I think there¡¯s only a couple here.¡±

    There was another knock and a loud, slightly inebriated voice. ¡°Claire! I hope I¡¯m not interrupt- oh.¡±

    Claire stood in front of the entrance to find the blue draconoid slouching in the doorframe. Unlike the other Daniel was familiar with, this one wore something akin to lightly armored overalls and a tool belt. There was a bottle, contents unknown, clutched in one hand. Is he drunk? Daniel thought. The Artificer hadn¡¯t seen anyone fully drunk here yet.

    ¡°Parduc?¡± She sniffed. ¡°Parduc! You can¡¯t be serious. If the garrison finds out you¡¯ve been sneaking beer they¡¯ll-¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sneaking nothing,¡± Parduc toothily grinned. ¡°We found a few untapped kegs in a basement!¡±

    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t those go to the stockpile?¡± Claire asked wearily, with a grimacing sniff. ¡°Or the streets, if they¡¯ve been kept improperly?¡±

    ¡°Nah,¡± was Parduc¡¯s simple response, articulated with a swig of the bottle. The draconoid couldn¡¯t exactly sip from it and instead poured some of the liquid down his throat. ¡°And if they do get mad they can take it outta my pay.¡±

    ¡°So you¡¯re here because?¡±

    ¡°Well, we can¡¯t drink it all ourselves! And if there¡¯s any left over people are going to find out. We made a bet on where I¡¯d find you and,¡± he chuckled, ¡°Looks like I won. You should join us! And, uh, he can too.¡±

    ¡°Sounds like it¡¯ll be fun.¡± Claire smiled towards Daniel, and he groaned internally. His mouth got him into trouble enough already and the last thing he needed was to be drunk with the woman he¡¯d just fumbled in front of. But if he didn¡¯t go he¡¯d be lame, and that might be worse.

    Hunter whined in the background and Parduc almost dropped the bottle. The whine of a fully grown ringcat was less high pitch and more snarl, something the unaccustomed would mistake for anger. ¡°I probably shouldn¡¯t leave him alone.¡± Daniel tried to hide the relief with mock concern. It worked for Parduc who had backed out of the ringcat¡¯s sight.

    Claire seemed less invested in the excuse but didn¡¯t express it in words. ¡°Well, if you¡¯re sure. You need to brush up on your history anyways.¡± She made to leave, and Daniel sighed in relief after the door closed.

    Thanks, Daniel thought to Hunter. The ringcat must have sensed the anxiety.

    She is a keen hunter.

    I know, right? And she¡¯s only level one! That¡¯s not fair, Daniel sulked. I should have the advantage here. I do need to read more, though. Isn¡¯t there a library here?

    What is a library? Hunter asked unhelpfully.

    Daniel eyed him and redirected the conversation. You aren¡¯t slowing down your healing to keep getting pampered, are you?

    How would I do that?

    Fair, Daniel acknowledged. It¡¯s still weird that you¡¯re healing so slowly. I guess this is level disparity? He could only wonder because the entire entry on the concept was unidentified on his phone. Guess I should level up endurance. And charisma, if we want to improve the bond ability. And dexterity, if I want to shoot things better, he wearily added. For being level two, it feels like I¡¯m still level one. Are you going to be ok for the night?

    Yes, Hunter answered bitterly. He certainly wanted to be out in the night stalking, but in his state, he¡¯d only be the prey.

    Well, I¡¯m not sure there''s enough time for me to go the library either way. People keep telling me Artificers can advance through studying and it should have occurred to me that that¡¯s exactly what I should be doing instead of fighting murder cliffs. Guess I''ll just turn in. Why did I ever leave Lograve¡¯s library again? Ah well, it turned out mostly ok. Goodnight, Hunter.

    Goodnight.

    ¡­

    ¡°Not much to look at, that one,¡± Parduc said aside as they walked through the streets of Roost¡¯s Peak. There wasn¡¯t a lot of light in the interior of the city, but Parduc could naturally see in the dark and made sure Claire didn¡¯t run into a wall. Even without his help, her eyes adjusted quickly.

    ¡°You don¡¯t like anyone I¡¯m fond of. And you¡¯re drunk. How much did you have to drink to get drunk at your level?¡± Claire lightly pushed him, but the Builder remained balanced. ¡°What can I say? He¡¯s a fresh face and can take my mischief without throwing a tantrum. Not many men in this city can say the same. Present company included.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m nice,¡± Parduc complained.

    ¡°Never said you weren¡¯t, brother,¡± she replied knowingly. ¡°But you were always the one to take things too far.¡±

    ¡°Try growing up with someone who could make weasels steal your tools. Weasels, Claire! They¡¯d run under tables with my hammer and knock everything over. You know, you¡¯re still the youngest person I know to get a class.¡± The thought seemed to sober Parduc for a moment. ¡°Crest, what are you still doing at level one?¡±

    ¡°You know why.¡± Her tone had a dull edge of intensity that didn¡¯t quite cut Parduc but gave the Arcanist enough distraction to swipe the bottle.

    ¡°Hey!¡±

    ¡°You need to work on your dexterity.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not the only one.¡± It was Parduc¡¯s turn to invite darkness with his words. ¡°They¡¯re saying Kob hit level five.¡±

    ¡°What? Isn¡¯t his dexterity only level two?¡± With anyone of higher level gone from the region, rumors had abounded on the giant¡¯s status. The Knight Murdon was leading the evacuation, though to many Kob was the grim face of the effort. The world didn¡¯t strictly sort itself by level, one nearby region was a testament to this in fact, but it was still something to consider. ¡°No one builds up that much level disparity unless they¡¯re a Craftsman offshoot like you.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯ve been other rumors.¡± Parduc¡¯s low whisper only echoed halfway down the street, ¡°You¡¯re more knowledgeable than it, but that plant¡¯s got a higher intelligence than you. They know what they¡¯re doing, and if they¡¯re choosing to cripple themselves for level five¡­¡±

    Claire was quick to the point. ¡°There¡¯s something wrong with the pass, isn¡¯t there?¡±

    ¡°Crest, Claire, the moment the sky swallowed the Spoke the border regions should have swarmed the place. Where are they?¡± He gestured with open arms. ¡°Some are saying the pass is blocked. Some say we¡¯re being quara¡­ quarateed¡­ isolated from the rest of the Octyrrum. Others,¡± Parduc could hardly lower his volume any further but managed a few decibels, ¡°think Murdon¡¯s gone full blown Tyrant.¡±

 Chapter 32: Echoes of Collapse

    The library of Roost¡¯s Peak was built off of the main road that threaded its way from outside the mountain, through the walls, to end at the foot of a small keep. The stern center of the city did not contain the books itself, though the fort did look out over the central square where the library was shelved. After making sure there was enough water, food, and rugs for Hunter, Daniel had set off the next morning for the blocky building. He should have thought of seeking out the library as soon as he¡¯d arrived, but Daniel had death threats, predatory wyverns, and a girlfriend to hold his attention.

    Surprisingly, people were sitting on the stone tables when the Artificer entered. Hunter¡¯s faltering omniscience hadn¡¯t exposed any auras in the building and he¡¯d expected the library to be as empty as the one in Hagain. There were far fewer people here, but on the other hand, those people didn¡¯t have much to do when there wasn¡¯t a monster attack. Only a quarter of the city¡¯s garrison was needed to fully man the ballista, and advancement aside reading could still provide entertainment.

    After making sure Claire wasn¡¯t among the readers, he fully stepped into the building. Unlike Lograve¡¯s house, the interior of the building better accommodated the rows of bookshelves built around stone reading tables. All of the furniture was stone, even the chairs. Again, Daniel marveled at the seamless construction.

    ¡°Who are you?¡± a voice called from his peripheral vision. They sounded like they had caught Daniel sneaking around in their backyard. The aura of the speaker, a male avianoid wearing a light fabric overcoat, wasn¡¯t red, so the animosity wasn¡¯t directed at him specifically.

    ¡°I¡¯m, uh, Daniel.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve never seen you here before. Regardless, there is little here for Totem Warriors. Please leave.¡±

    This again, Daniel sighed internally. Taking off the necklace might help the confusion, but he wouldn¡¯t. Even stashing it in his pouch felt wrong, to say nothing of the fact that removing what was presumed to be the Focus of his Totem Warrior powers from his person could disable his Regeneration and talon hands.

    ¡°I¡¯m an Artificer.¡± Daniel tried to keep his tone even despite the rude welcome. He held up his phone. ¡°See?¡±

    The other man¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°Artificer, eh? Then you would know how long it takes to construct level one equipment with resources on an equivalent level, with no affixes or altering powers?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m a new Artificer.¡± He tried to smile, but the spectacles this librarian was wearing made the pupils ridiculously dilated. The librarian was also older, sterner, and had an air of unironic hawkishness. The fact that he didn''t seem to recognize Daniel despite last night''s celebrations either meant he was messing with him, or rarely left the building.

    ¡°A new, level two Artificer?¡± There was a balance of confusion and suspicion in the librarian now. Despite both keeping their voices low, the handful of readers in the library had started listening. The eyes of a woman wearing robes with a torch emblazoned on the back stood up.

    ¡°Oh, I know that guy,¡± she said. ¡°He¡¯s the one doing Claire Elsemar.¡± A withering glare from the librarian returned her to her book before she could confirm Daniel''s identity.

    ¡°I don¡¯t need a library card, do I?¡± Daniel ventured after an awkward silence had fallen. The librarian had just been staring at him with beady eyes.

    ¡°Show me.¡± The librarian¡¯s voice had the tone of an instructor asking their student to write out the work on a difficult math problem they¡¯d already solved.

    Alright, so Heroes get quips and Arcanists get lecterns? The more I meet people the more they seem to be just stereotypes of their class. Well, not all of them I guess. Daniel¡¯s insight into the librarian didn¡¯t tell him what he wanted though. ¡°Show you, uh?¡±

    ¡°An Artificer ability. It has been some years but I recall the common low level ones.¡±

    That was a problem. Of Daniel¡¯s Artificer abilities, most were combat oriented. Moment of Clarity wasn¡¯t, but he doubted the librarian could sense time stopping. Unless he could, and in that case, Daniel would be so terrified he¡¯d just run out of the building. ¡°I¡¯d need to attack for most of them, but there is, um, one that, uh.¡± That was another unsettling thing. The eyes seemed to magnify just a little whenever he um¡¯d or uh¡¯d. ¡°It could still be seen as hostile? It doesn¡¯t do damage.¡±

    ¡°Use it on the upstart Ms. Glendare then.¡± The librarian extended a talon towards the woman who had spoken earlier.

    ¡°Hey,¡± she protested. Another glare from the librarian silenced her.

    In this place, the librarian seemed regal in the deference given to him. He was unidentifiable though couldn¡¯t be higher than level three. Still, the way ¡®Ms. Glendare¡¯ shrunk made it seem like Kob or Tlara was the one doing the glaring. At the very least she wouldn¡¯t attack Daniel while so affixed.

    With only a thought and a decent amount of mana, Daniel marked the robed woman¡¯s weaknesses for all to see. A bright orange light crowned her head as smaller clusters illuminated the spacing between ribs that could more easily reach the heart. One of the librarian¡¯s eye ridges raised its way out of the magnified frame of his lenses. ¡°That is no Totem Warrior ability, it is true. Though I struggle to place this ability among those I know of Artificers. Regardless, you may dismiss the effect.¡±

    ¡°I, u-¡° he bit off the word before the librarian could react. ¡°I can¡¯t. It only lasts a minute though.¡±

    ¡°Great,¡± the other patron complained, even though the orange aura on her head was somewhat flattering when combined with the torch symbol.

    ¡°Most interesting. And you are the source of the detection power that foiled the latest wyvern attack.¡± It wasn¡¯t a question. The librarian blinked pointedly and coughed. ¡°Unidentification. I can see your level and class, but your attributes are hidden, among other things. One such as yourself shouldn¡¯t be able to hide this from someone above your level.¡±

    Daniel chose to ignore the fact that he¡¯d just been subject to a power, perhaps even Identify Creature, and shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s annoying for me too. I have a power that gathers knowledge but a lot of it is unidentified. You don¡¯t have anything that could fix that, do you?¡±

    ¡°I could try.¡± The librarian said, pulling his hands out of the sleeves of his coat. Meanwhile, the orange light on Glendare faded but her ears remained perked up.

    ¡°Oh wait, sorry. I just remembered, it told me I need level ten identification to reverse it. That¡¯s not as hard to find as it sounds, is it?¡± Everyone did look at him when he said that.

    The librarian, who had eventually introduced himself as Kelwyn, had attempted to dispel the unidentification after assuring Daniel he must have been mistaken. That hadn¡¯t worked, but Kelwyn was confident someone around level five with the proper ability could remove the effect. His repeated assurances that ¡®level ten undentification¡¯ didn¡¯t exist did little to reassure Daniel. Once that awkwardness had been handled, Kelwyn asked what topics he was interested in reading. Despite coming to the library for that express purpose, the question threw Daniel. Should he ask for material on basic topics that would reveal his unfamiliarity with the world, or try to struggle through more advanced fields? To that point, it was hard to know what would be regarded as appropriate for him to be reading and what wouldn¡¯t be.

    The hope had been that Daniel could go about the library and pick out what he wanted. Kelwyn¡¯s bearing made it clear that was an impossibility. Well, let¡¯s just go broad and let the librarian choose what¡¯s appropriate, he eventually decided. ¡°History,¡± Daniel said after a good thirty seconds of silence passed.

    ¡°History?¡± Kelwyn asked slowly. ¡°That is a broad topic.¡±

    ¡°Early history. Before the Crest?¡±

    ¡°Hmm,¡± the librarian grunted with disapproval. ¡°That is a subject plagued with as much fiction as fact. Take a seat.¡±

    Libraries of the Octyrrum could greatly benefit from the organizational structure of his world. That was Daniel¡¯s impression at least. Kelwyn moved from one bookshelf to another as he collected a half dozen books. Still, it didn¡¯t take too long for them to be deposited in front of the Artificer. They were each the size of a novel with a title font suggesting density.

    ¡°You will return these to the front desk when you are done,¡± Kelwyn prophesized, then left Daniel alone at the desk. The silence of the library, broken by turning pages, was the only thing reminiscent of the Earth counterparts.

    Even the books were different. The bubbly text that he could somehow read flowed across each page with roughly the same sentence and paragraph structure at least. The pages were bound with rough string tied to the spine instead of adhesive. Daniel thought of the surviving skab glue in the house and wondered if that could be used to replicate books from his world.

    Anyways, he was here to read and possibly advance. Skimming through the books, he settled on one that transcribed the accounts of a Paladin of the Torch. Both Paladin and Torch drew his eyes. The former was a class he hadn¡¯t seen yet, but the latter was sitting nearby. The symbol seemed to represent the knowledge god of the Octyrrum, and a Paladin of that church should have the most accurate view of the past. That was Daniel¡¯s hope, at least.

    He¡¯d always been a fast reader. Quick Mind improved this, allowing him to chew through chapters without losing any information in his haste. For a feature that didn''t seem to help much in combat, it made reading a breeze. In this case, it was allowing him to quickly pick apart the tales of the Paladin named Artruz. The contention between the gods Lograve¡¯s books had hinted at underplayed the reality of the Octyrrum just before the Crest. Likewise, his Encyclopedia could have gone into far more detail about the Grafting, given the role it played. At its core, the Accounts of Artruz were crusade tales.

    A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    Before the Crest, each of the seven gods commanded a Realm, as they still did today. The basic structure of the world was the same, six Realms surrounding the seventh. Hourglass, the god of time ruled over the center, while the others took one of the peripheral wedges.

    <hr>

    Alert: Crude World Map has been updated with new information.

    <hr>

    Huh. Daniel looked at the cheerily drawn map. Each Realm was now labeled with the appropriate gods following the pattern described in the book. The one his flag stood in belonged to the god of Transmutation, Hammer. That didn¡¯t mean too much, which he learned as he continued to read. The parts before the crusades were disjointedly referenced, but Daniel pieced things together towards the halfway point in the book. The Grafting hadn¡¯t immediately caused war, but it had provided the spark. Mortal kind on the Octyrrum had only been human in the beginning. Along with humans were the lesser beasts his world called animals, and the monsters.

    Classes and levels had been granted to mankind by the gods, each sponsoring their own ¡°ideal¡± that built the foundation of the earliest classes. Paladin was one of these and Artificer was not, confirming Daniel''s suspicion that the classes had developed over time. Each god¡¯s class was spread out over the Octyrrum as information and people crossed peacetime boundaries.

    Societies developed, and the gods became more distant. More hands off, perhaps, to allow humanity to develop along its own course. Religion was still central to society as worship was to daily life. The problems started when the first human hit level seven and Tyrant became the first class to develop outside the original purview of the gods. Unlike the power evolution Daniel had undergone, the Tyrant class evolution could only be reached by a complete class evolution requiring the correct circumstances. They usually developed in times of sudden turmoil, or when the population of a region lost faith in their leadership. It also couldn¡¯t be intentionally triggered like the Builder evolution of the Craftsman class. The first Tyrant had spawned in the god of illusion¡¯s Realm and raised an empire free of divine influence.

    This Tyrant eventually fell, but through its existence, it had revealed powers beyond those originally given by the gods. New classes were discovered, new technology invented, and eventually, new races were welcomed into the world. The Accounts of Artruz did not explain this or the Grafting in great detail, but did mention the topic. According to the accounts, the Grafting was a process a cabal of transmutation specialists called the Illustrious used to create new life. This discovery was accidental, a byproduct of their experiments on the fundamental rules that governed all of magic. The first reference was written so matter of factly that Daniel had to flip back a couple of pages to make sure his feature wasn¡¯t making him misinterpret the book. The old faction had grown so powerful they were eventually able to graft souls into monsters and warp them into new mortal races. To some this was heresy and defiance of the will of the Octyrrum itself. To others, it was just another front in the war for mastery of magic and the world.

    Then, something broke. Whether it was the Grafting making people out of monsters, or level nine classes playing god themselves, something brought the Crest into existence. Monsters, a mostly tamed threat at the time, became insatiable hordes near the border of chaos that pressed against the limits of the Octyrrum. Worse, the gods had fallen silent. Normally a distant guiding force of each Realm that provided direct guidance in the direst of circumstances, they had abandoned their people during the hour of greatest need. Completely directionless and suspicious of everyone, the nations of the Octyrrum fought against themselves as much as the encroaching Crest. This was the time of Artruz, Paladin of Torch, born after the greatest calamity to ever grace the Octyrrum. Daniel thought of the dragon that awaited the survivors of this region and empathized.

    The book ended with the Paladin¡¯s death at a battle near the border between Torch and Hourglass¡¯ domain. The Crest had driven all to the center of the Octyrrum, where they found that the seventh Realm had not succumbed to internal politics. Instead of offering aid, it intended to bar any who attempted to cross into their territory. Artruz led a desperate charge into Hourglass¡¯ border regions, sacrificing his life and those of his companions to allow some to slip through and survive. Through them, his tales had as well.

    Daniel closed the book and looked at one of the windows. Surprised, he found there was still light in the day. He¡¯d read, and at times reread, about four hundred pages of small text in a couple of hours and understood everything. He wasn''t quite sure what to make of the tales. As Kelwyn had warned, when you went this far back, things could get misinterpreted or misrepresented. The tome didn''t seem to have persisted thousands of years on its own, and by the compiler''s admission in the forward these accounts were second-hand at best. At least both the Collapse and the Grafting appeared in other books he skimmed, suggesting those two elements were at least more fact than fiction. As he sat and reflected on his discoveries, his phone buzzed.

    <hr>

    You have accomplished Feat: Study.

    This has unlocked potential for growth. Two Advancement Potential have been awarded. You may assign them with Function: Settings in addition to expending potential through normal methods.

    <hr>

    It had taken a couple of hours instead of a few minutes, but this method of advancement was far safer. Though, if Lograve was to be believed there would be severe diminishing returns. Well, he could worry about that later. For now, Daniel had four attributes to get to level two. He picked up the next book and kept reading from the beginning.

    A sodden afternoon met Daniel three books into the six. Despite continuing to read, he¡¯d only earned the initial two advancement potential. Most of the others in the library had left already and there was a foreboding that he shouldn¡¯t stay here much longer. It could have been that he felt guilty for leaving Hunter alone for so long, or the stalking Kelwyn that had started circling the library, growing ever closer to his table.

    There would be time to read the others, or explore new topics. Compared to the pace he¡¯d read textbooks in high school, using Quick Mind was like beaming the knowledge into his head and the feature was just level two. The thought of what it would do at level nine was inspiring and terrifying at the same time.

    The walk back soaked Daniel as rain fell. Focused on dodging between stone awnings and lost in thought over where to spend his advancements, Daniel didn¡¯t notice Hunter¡¯s aura moving until he reached the house. There were two others in the room as well. He relaxed when Claire¡¯s name appeared with one. Hey Hunter, who¡¯s in the house?

    Not now. The ringcat seemed aggravated. He opened to the door to find Claire and the draconoid from last night sitting on chairs and hiding grins. Hunter was slowly but purposefully chasing something on the floor. It looked like a mouse.

    ¡°And where have you been?¡± Claire asked with mock sternness.

    ¡°Reading. Uh, what¡¯s going on?¡± There was a bit of unease in Daniel¡¯s assessment of the situation, even if Claire had been joking. Most of it was due to how close the draconoid was sitting to her.

    ¡°I was on my way to check on Hunter when Parduc caught me on the street. There¡¯s something he¡¯s been meaning to ask you so I thought we should wait here together and give your ringcat some exercise.¡±

    Hunter put a massive paw on the mouse, only for it to scurry away from under it. Hunter growled in murderous irritation. ¡°Claire, is that an illusion?¡± Daniel asked after seeing this.

    ¡°Maybe.¡±

    ¡°Hunter,¡± Daniel groaned. ¡°What are you doing?¡±

    Hunting, came the mental reply.

    ¡°It¡¯s not real.¡± To the other two in the room, there seemed no mental roar that followed, but they did see the ringcat turn towards Claire. Daniel quickly stepped between them. ¡°So, what did you, uh, want to know?¡± And what does this draconoid want with me?

    ¡°You came from Hagain, right?¡± the slightly burly voice of Parduc asked. Claire had carried her normal mischievousness, but this man was serious. ¡°Did you ever meet Commander Murdon?¡±

    ¡°Oh yeah! Do you know him?¡± That wasn¡¯t nearly as bad as the questions he was afraid would be asked. That didn¡¯t change the conspiratorial nature of Parduc¡¯s next question. He¡¯d even stood, edged around the walls to avoid Hunter, and checked that the door was closed before asking.

    ¡°Do you think it¡¯s possible he¡¯s become a Tyrant?¡±

    Daniel looked at Claire in surprise. She nodded, imploring him to answer. Concern was in her eyes too, now that the question was out there. ¡°What? No, I¡­¡± Could he be sure? Daniel had only just learned of the concept of that class evolution but he knew it was possible. Murdon didn¡¯t seem like an evil overlord, but the draconoid was at a higher level than him. If Murdon was a Tyrant, would he be able to tell? The more he thought about it, the more possible it seemed. ¡°Why do you think he¡¯s one?¡±

    Parduc was about to answer when the door slammed open. Claire backed up to the far wall while the draconoid reached for a hammer on his belt. Both seemed ready to fight, until vines the size of constrictors snaked into the room to herald Kob¡¯s presence. The gestalt had recovered all of their strength and then some, growing beyond their original size now that they had reached level five. ¡°Emergency,¡± the voice boomed as thunder to accompany the rain.

    Daniel had been debating what to spend his advancement from studying on, but after Kob had almost broken down his front wall to grab him he figured he couldn¡¯t sit on the points and made the obvious choice.

    <hr>

    Your Endurance is now 16! You have gained Ability: Construct Shield.

    -

    ???

    -

    Construct Shield (Ability, Endurance, Spell, Domain: Transmutation, Incantation, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to rapidly construct barriers from nearby, unattended material. This ability requires a small amount of Mana, scaling with the size of the material to be affected and inversely scaling with your Intelligence. You must also utter Incantation: Bulwark when activating this ability. This is a Magical Ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression.

    <hr>

    ¡­

    Tak¡¯s body was eerily reminiscent of Hunter¡¯s after the devil root core. The injuries were not from an explosion but from many cuts and crushing injuries. The side of one of his legs was torn off, and the skin showing from plucked feathers was white with blood loss. Yet, he was still alive.

    Daniel could only look at Tak for a few seconds before his stomach threatened to empty itself. Tak didn¡¯t need his attention in any case, there were three healers around the man. ¡°What happened?¡± he asked no one in particular. Kob couldn¡¯t answer, the gestalt couldn¡¯t fit in the small room in the keep.

    None of those working on the Totem Warrior responded. Tak himself was not so limited by the task of keeping himself alive. Before he fell unconscious, he was able to whisper, ¡°Mine collapse.¡±

 Chapter 33: Tyranny

    Inviting the surviving headmen to the village¡¯s center had been a mistake. Murdon had thought himself clever for seeing the trap that had been set and sure of the one he made. While anger was held in check long enough to avoid a rampage, it showed plainly as he interrogated the former village leaders that he summoned. The longer he stamped around the ruins and shouted for answers, for justice, the harder the eyes staring at him grew. No conclusion was reached from the grandstanding. Nothing was accomplished but the gentle swaying of public opinion away from him. Crowd Sense told Murdon as much even without being heightened to level three.

    He did it anyway. He needed to know how much of the village was turning away from him. The word that was spoken most amongst the whispers chilled his already colder blood. Tyrant. Murdon knew he hadn¡¯t gone that far, even if it was possible to become a Tyrant without knowing. The dread class could be seductive, allowing one to deceive themselves about their evolving nature until it was too late.

    He had become Commander of the Thormundz. He had made hard decisions that had no doubt cost lives, but these were not callous acts. It was for the scorched bones that lay below him that he raged against the one that had done this!

    It didn¡¯t change that this was a catastrophe. Murdon was no Tyrant, he knew this, but he couldn¡¯t stop the rumor that had formed. People were scared, and it wouldn¡¯t take much for them to be scared of him. They had expected to leave here with what family they had left and instead found a dead end. Monster attacks shouldn¡¯t have reached Hagain yet, they should have had another month before the village would be in danger, until a knife in the dark had turned the village¡¯s tamed beasts against it. They were wrong to call him Tyrant, but they weren¡¯t wrong to doubt him.

    The only benefit was that the area affected by the attack had just been populated. Nothing besides lives and tents had been lost, meaning the rations available to the city could be extended even further. Doubly so, considering a handful of dominated beasts were all that remained in the stables. A Tyrant would have considered this event a blessing in disguise. They might have even orchestrated it to relax the draw on supplies.

    Murdon would have traded his armor, weapons, even his life if that would have changed anything. Grimly, that resolution comforted him. It assured him he wasn¡¯t what they said he was. The Commander sighed heavily, a mote of dark flames following the breath as a sign of his unexpended mana. He kept almost everything in reserve in case the conspirators made a more direct move. To that point, ¡°Janice, are you sure they aren¡¯t in the village?¡± The Martialist was beside him on the roof of the library. It had become Murdon¡¯s unofficial office. After his own house had been burned to the ground and space had been freed up in the rest of the village, he felt he needed to better preserve his friend¡¯s.

    The woman was as haggard as the Commander. She could last better on minimal sleep due to her race, but had the more physically demanding task of coordinating the hunt for the two avianoids. Martialists didn¡¯t tend to have much in the way of utility that didn¡¯t directly affect weapon use, but she had a tracking power in line with a Ranger¡¯s hunting ability and another, albeit weak, power that helped with lie detection. A trend that befitted an investigator, a path that would well suit the humanoid that had advanced her wisdom further than most Martiliasts her level. That wasn¡¯t to say she couldn¡¯t fight, but it was the beginning of a pattern that could lead to unique specialization down the line.

    ¡°It seems that way.¡± She leaned against her spear with closed eyes. On another day they¡¯d both be asleep by now. ¡°I¡¯m not exactly subtle, sir. Whoever is behind this could be protecting them. Declaring the avianoids as suspects would force them into hiding if they were involved.¡±

    ¡°But if they weren¡¯t,¡± Murdon countered, ¡°Then they wouldn¡¯t be in hiding.¡±

    ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t they be? If you were a Tyrant, sir, I¡¯d run if you were looking for me.¡±

    Murdon rubbed at his face. The thought had occurred to him as well. Tyrants seeking to overthrow an established ruler could make use of their terrifying powers to spread chaos and discord to unseat their opponents. What made the class so dangerous wasn¡¯t just the power evolutions that propelled them to heights their level couldn¡¯t normally reach. It was the insidious charisma and intelligence abilities that could sway even the strongest of opinions if implanted covertly. A Tyrant in power would use this to ruin a potential challenger or propel a yes-man. One who found themselves the challenger would do exactly what was happening to Murdon. ¡°If they are, I¡¯m surprised you haven¡¯t been targeted. I¡¯ve publicly appointed you as my second.¡±

    Janice chewed on that for a second before answering. ¡°The first attack was meant to discredit you, not me. It¡¯s a guess, but I¡¯m thinking the second strike will be the fatal one. As far as what we can do¡­¡± She grimaced. ¡°I¡¯m not Lograve, sir. I don¡¯t have the head or the level for this. We do anything without cause and we only further distance ourselves from the public.¡±

    Trap was not the right word for the situation. Murdon couldn¡¯t think of one that appropriately described the stresses of managing the village, monitoring the hunting teams and rotating assignments, keeping the secret of the pass, and managing expectations of the evacuation. Complicating all of that was this conspiracy. No, wait. Crest. That was an appropriate comparison. He needed to simplify the situation and reduce the number of fronts in this world¡¯s war against him, but Janice was right. There was nothing he could do to change things without losing control.

    Unless¡­ There was one thing he could do. ¡°The truth,¡± Murdon muttered. Janice looked at him confused. ¡°It¡¯s not the best idea, but if Lograve was here it¡¯s what he would suggest. Not this, exactly but.¡± Murdon shook his head and explained what he was thinking. ¡°I¡¯m going to call a private meeting between the headmen outside the village tomorrow to explain why no evacuations are being run.¡±

    ¡°I had wondered that myself,¡± Janice commented. ¡°But why now?¡±

    ¡°I am confident I am the only one who knows the truth here. The only others who do are in Roost¡¯s Peak.¡± Murdon gestured towards the village. ¡°Somewhere out there is our Tyrant. Or just a very clever and opportunistic headman. Even with their machinations, they could not know why the pass was restricted. They will be at that meeting.¡±

    ¡°And you¡¯ll be surrounded by potential enemies without aid.¡±

    ¡°I already am,¡± Murdon said pointedly.

    ¡°Then without witnesses! They could take you out and claim it was a monster attack.¡± That made Murdon pause for a few seconds as he re-thought the idea.

    ¡°They can¡¯t be all in on this.¡± The deep voice was suddenly close to breaking. ¡°When we founded these villages we were friends! We secured each township together, planned the development of the region, and made this damnable valley habitable through cooperation. Jonus and that stubborn Thresha are gone, but the rest are here. They can¡¯t all be against me.¡±

    The sadness was mirrored in Janice¡¯s eyes but she answered with resolve. ¡°What do you need me to do?¡±

    ¡­

    The site chosen for the meeting was the bridge nearest the village. Murdon didn¡¯t know it, but it was the first place Daniel had found intelligent life in this world. The bridge had its advantages and disadvantages. The land around it was clear, making ambush less likely. It was far enough for privacy while also intersecting with the main road, and stood out enough to be easily found. The only real disadvantages were distance from the village, and the implied ¡®us versus them¡¯ dynamic.

    Until he knew which one, or ones, had betrayed him, he could trust none of them. Janice and Murdon stood on the far end of the bridge. Each headman was bringing a second, meaning this meeting would have 16 participants in total. The others approached as a single group a few minutes after the Commander had arrived.

    ¡°Commander Murdon,¡± Rodrick, the former headman of Brach¡¯s Bargain, greeted stiffly. Everyone assembled was on edge. That didn¡¯t surprise Murdon, but the presence of Quala at Rodrick¡¯s side did. She was important to the village, the highest skilled healer they had. And she was of Hagain, why was she his second?

    ¡°My friends. We shouldn¡¯t be away from the village for too long,¡± Murdon said from across the river, climbing a third of the way up the bridge as he spoke. ¡°But it is important that we discuss these matters out of the public¡¯s attention.¡± Murdon¡¯s tone was measured, and his eyes raked across the group in front of him. The Tyrant was among them, he was sure, and he was going to commit each face to memory. Even if they were stronger than they had right to be, Tyrants were still mortal, and they would reveal themselves by reaction to the news. ¡°The pass cannot be traveled at present. Many of you have likely guessed as much. What I am about to say cannot leave this group. It will be obvious as to why, and I hope you understand why this was kept from you for so long.¡± He waited a few seconds for someone to comment, but they all just stood still at the far base of the bridge. Murdon had reached the halfway mark at this point and stopped. ¡°A level six lightning dragon bars the way. Our initial scout of the pass led by Jonus confirmed this at great cost. For this reason, we have suspended evacuation until our people are strong enough to take it down.¡±

    This, this was wrong. Shock, or at least surprise, should be on the faces of those in front of him. Each headman should be asking questions or throwing accusations on their own, but instead, everyone looked at Rodrick to respond. The man, a level two Cleric of the Hammer, sighed. ¡°We know, Murdon. Almost as long as you have.¡±

    The draconoid couldn¡¯t muster a response initially, dumfounded by the claim. Rodrick was not lying, he couldn¡¯t be. The coordination between the headmen and their seconds suggested that they had known, and had come prepared for the truth. ¡°How?¡±

    ¡°Jonus survived, as Lograve did.¡± Rodrick¡¯s Focus was a quarterstaff affixed with a large hammer head, and the man brought it forward. ¡°Unlike Lograve, it seems he was not meant to. Jonus told us what you had planned.¡±

    This is impossible, Murdon thought, reading concealed hostility now being freely bared in those in front of him. I, Lograve said Jonus was the dragon¡¯s first victim. How? Wait, didn¡¯t Lograve also say-

    Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

    Rodrick started walking up the bridge and Murdon reflexively began to back up. ¡°You¡¯ve gone Tyrant, Murdon,¡± he accused softly. ¡°Trying to pick off the second strongest headman right at the beginning, taking sole responsibility for this evacuation, the signs are there. Do you know, or have you rationalized it somehow? No matter.¡± Rodrick tapped the staff on the ground and metallic barbs grew from the wood at its base. ¡°Surrender. That is the only mercy we can offer you. Surrender and we will take you prisoner.¡±

    Is Rodrick a new Tyrant? Murdon was thinking quickly and quickly running out of bridge. Or did Jonus survive? No, impossible, even a level three Tyrant is easily outmatched by a dragon. But then how do they know? ¡°I won¡¯t fight you, Rodrick.¡± Despite his words, Murdon brought his shield forward. ¡°I would try to reason with you.¡±

    ¡°No!¡± Rodrick denied forcefully. ¡°The words of a Tyrant are poison. Speak no further unless it is to yield!¡±

    ¡°Get to Roost¡¯s Peak. Warn them,¡± Murdon said quickly to Janice. She was level one, and they were outnumbered seven times over. He was the strongest overall in the region, but that didn¡¯t let him ignore numbers.

    Rodrick¡¯s skin turned to iron as he reacted. Hammer Clerics were specialists in transmutation, which wasn¡¯t as directly explosive as destruction but was dangerous in its own ways. Were they of equal level, were he without Fortitude, Murdon would have to fear what Rodrick could do to his own body in addition to the Cleric¡¯s. Even as Rodrick charged, the others remained on their side of the river.

    Murdon wondered why as he deflected a strike from the staff. The fight would be longer than if he was facing most level two monsters one on one. Mortals could call upon experience, versatility, and grit to delay the inevitable against a stronger one of their kind or even turn the tables depending on attribute arrays. But Murdon was Rodrick¡¯s better, even if the Cleric could stall out the fight. The Tyrant wants me to kill him, to prove to them I am what they say, Murdon decided, as the repeated strikes onto his shield started warping the metal. It was a contact transmutation ability meant to break or wear down armor. Without enchantments, his equipment was vulnerable to it.

    Murdon had no good options. Heightening Agility would allow him to outrun most of his opponents, but to what end? Should he return to Hagain these people would be waiting for him. His Fortitude feature would allow him to ignore most of what Rodrick could do beyond the armor, though at the expense of a quarter of his mana. On the offensive side, he had abilities that could stun, but were just as likely to kill a lower level opponent.

    Rodrick did not relent. Iron skin rippled as the muscles underneath strained against the hardened flesh. Mana was keeping them whole against otherwise shear forces as they powered the Cleric¡¯s strikes. That¡¯s how I resolve this, Murdon thought, eyeing the staff. I destroy his Focus. He will recover it faster than he will from broken bones. The shield was practically bent around his arm now, the ends of it melting under the continued softening transmutation. The shield was no special thing, a replacement could be easily found, but if his armor was damaged this way he¡¯d find himself as inhibited as he wished Rodrick to be.

    Murdon turned onto the offensive with a swing of his enchanted ax, aiming for the staff. Destroying a Focus was a tide turning accomplishment in any fight between mortals. It wasn¡¯t always an option, some classes like Berserker had a Focus intrinsic to their being. Foci were also stronger than they looked and grew more resistant as their user leveled up. Still, if you could manage to destroy an opponent¡¯s Focus, you would cripple them.

    Murdon¡¯s ax met the staff, and the metal of the gauntlet holding it melted. Damn it! It would have worked if he had struck with a bare fist, but the transmutation effect had passed through the item it was unable to directly affect to soften the armor underneath. Both of his arms were now encased in deformed metal. By going for a decisive, yet merciful strike Murdon had put himself at a major disadvantage. He needed distance. Both duelists had demonstrated melee abilities and Murdon would not get much from range. Unless he wished to bludgeon Rodrick to death the course of battle needed to change. A powered Jump carried him out of the way of a staff strike and meters back, landing unsteadily without the boosted Agility. The other headman and their retinue crossed the bridge to remain nearby, though they still did not intervene.

    ¡°Earthen Shackle!¡± Rodrick incanted the spell, summoning lines of earth around Murdon to prevent further escape. ¡°You will not escape justice!¡±

    In response, Murdon tore off his gauntlets. His flesh was stronger than them when it came to resisting transmutation. As was his ax. Now I can cut it. He needed to destroy Roderick¡¯s Focus before the Cleric did his. A Knight¡¯s armor was their source of power, and Murdon¡¯s was at risk of taking terrible damage. As it weakened, so did the powers dependent on it. Roderick might have been lower level than he, but the Commander hadn¡¯t given the Cleric¡¯s powers the respect they were due. No longer. His ax easily cut through the shackles binding him. Murdon¡¯s strength would have let him burst out without the use of his weapon, but he was taking things seriously. Roderick was a friend no more, now opponent.

    Murdon Jumped towards Roderick. The others sensed the shift in Murdon¡¯s intent and readied themselves. They were expecting a Tyrant and knew it would take more than Roderick to stop him. ¡°Falter!¡± Murdon used his only incantation ability in combination with the strike. Blood ran from Rodrick¡¯s nose and eyes as the disruptive ability overwhelmed the Cleric. Like the monsters of Hagain Village, Murdon fell on Rodrick and severed the Focus in a single strike. Rodrick¡¯s transmutative powers could have salvaged the stave if he could act, but the man was still stunned. Murdon weighed his options, realized he couldn¡¯t allow any chance of the anti-armor ability remaining on the battlefield, and threw a punch that knocked the Cleric a meter back. He would live, probably.

    One of the headman¡¯s retainers, a ranger Murdon hazily recalled as William, spoke then. ¡°Well now, looks like the diplomatic way¡¯s out!¡± Shouts quickly followed as the remaining thirteen coordinated. Several focused as they heightened abilities and others unsheathed weapons.

    Seeing this, Murdon knew he couldn¡¯t hold back anymore. This was the true terror of a Tyrant. He saw his former friends preparing to take him down with an organization that belied strategy. They were not only determined to end him, they had come here knowing how they¡¯d do it. Murdon needed to escape, to reach Roost¡¯s Peak before the influence of the Tyrant did. To do that, some of his friends would have to die.

    He heightened his Fortitude feature. With Agility he could run, but not as fast as some of those in front of him. They would have to be his targets, but this was a waste! What was the mastermind thinking? Inciting this battle would kill or cripple some of the strongest the survivors had. Who led the eventual evacuation wouldn¡¯t matter if they couldn¡¯t overcome the dragon!

    Murdon reached back and pulled out his second ax. Brutality was his only salvation. He spared a glance behind him to see Janice sprinting in the distance, and when he turned back there were several rushing him. Then, a feeling from Crowd Sense, alerting him of the disruption in their pattern a moment before it happened. Quala, near the back of the formation, had been focusing the longest. A spell, no doubt. Given her specialty Murdon was preparing for Rodrick to be brought back into the fight. Healing at range was more difficult, she might not even have an appropriate ability, but he couldn¡¯t discount that chance. Something very different happened. Whatever incantation was spoken drowned in the tide of discordant bird calls centered on Quala.

    Murdon¡¯s ear holes rang. The rest of the combatants were clutching theirs, or writhing on the ground in the case of the present gestalt. Such an extreme ability from the gentle healer left him just as stunned as the noise left his opponents. Then again, he¡¯d never seen her fight. There was a moment¡¯s hesitation before the Commander turned and ran. His Fortitude had given him the ability to recover far faster than his enemies. Why was she helping him when the others had been so taken?

    The Cleric was running behind him, projecting a shield that deflected arrows and bolts from those chasing them. Unlike the scream, this was within her specialty. Not all restoration was retroactive. She was trying to say something, repeating it by the movements of her beak. Eventually, the roaring lessened and her words broke through. ¡°What are you doing!?¡±

    ¡°Running.¡± Murdon peered at Quala and asked the question. ¡°How do I know I can trust you?¡± It was a kilometer or so too late for the question but he still needed to know.

    She flinched from the draconoid¡¯s barrage of near-deafness inspired shouting. ¡°Really?¡±

    ¡°You could be the Tyrant,¡± Murdon replied, lowering his voice to a mere cannon blast.

    ¡°You could be the Tyrant!¡±

    Trading accusations while dodging spells and arrows wasn¡¯t the best use of either of their times. Murdon looked back to see the headmen and their people still following. ¡°We¡¯re not going to outrun them!¡±

    ¡°We don¡¯t need to. Close your eyes!¡± He turned away just before the shield burst with blinding light just before it failed against the last attack. Murdon, now running with his eyes closed, tripped before Quala pulled at him to get up. Their would-be pursuers found themselves now blind and deaf.

    ¡°You call yourself a healer?¡± Murdon asked hollowly.

    ¡°Keep. Running.¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°They escaped?¡± the avianoid asked, miming fury. He was of a slight build, thin even, with feathers patchy in places. Not from youth but poorly-maintained middle age. Kartoss had not taken the failure to acquire a class well, leaving a depression that had haunted him throughout adulthood. Now he had one, and he had work to do. Heldren Storm stood in front of him, discussing with but not looking quite at Kartoss. ¡°How?¡±

    The Hero remained still, shielded from the sun by the canopy above them. ¡°It appears my compatriot, Quala, was not as taken by the power you blessed me with as I thought. Commendable will, but this complicates matters.¡±

    ¡°There is only one place he could go.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± Heldren bowed his head. ¡°Do not worry. I have followed your orders precisely. Lograve and those who follow him should be dealt with by now, or brought to our cause if the opportunity was there.¡±

    ¡°How can you be so sure?¡± Kartoss asked, a taloned hand reaching out to the Hero. ¡°You didn¡¯t anticipate Quala¡¯s betrayal.¡±

    ¡°A failing I freely admit,¡± the Hero conceded. ¡°Yet I have served justly in all other matters. The acting headwoman in Roost¡¯s Peak is ours, and the influence will spread from there. If I recall, it was your responsibility to provoke a tirade following the monster attack.¡±

    Kartoss¡¯ cheeks reddened, but this was mostly covered by the brown feathers of his face. ¡°I didn¡¯t fail-¡± He stopped speaking abruptly, clenched his beak, and then continued. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. The village is against him. Should your service be as just as you claim, so will Roost¡¯s Peak. Murdon is in the wind, but our plan has not failed. We have the people. Who is in control at the moment?¡±

    ¡°The headmen have formed a kind of coalition,¡± Heldren reported evenly. ¡°Fractured and uncertain. They have essentially separated back into the pre-existing villages.¡±

    ¡°I am sure they are in need of strong guidance.¡±

    Heldren nodded. ¡°That I can provide. Should I disguise myself as Jonus and take over? What is your wish?¡±

    ¡°Remain yourself. The fiction of Jonus braving the pass again to go for help is useful in preventing others from trying it themselves. We also cannot risk the chance that your influence over Roost¡¯s Peak has been only partially effective. Rally the headmen to you and take them there as soon as possible. We will follow from a distance. You will, of course, be unable to contact me until it is done.¡±

    Heldren hesitated, just for a moment. ¡°You are certain this is the best course? Were you to bring in others to this circle, then we would be strong enough-¡±

    ¡°No!¡± Kartoss denied flatly. ¡°I will not relinquish control of this region. That fool of a Knight would abandon the work of the gods and throw his people to their doom. I am their only hope. I am the hope of this world. Never has mortal kind been forced to retreat against the Crest, and I will not be responsible for the first failure. Remember that, Hero, and your oath.¡±

    ¡°Of course.¡± Heldren bowed, uncertainty fading. ¡°I will return to the village. Should we send an advance force after Murdon?¡±

    ¡°Let him run. Now that he has escaped, I would prefer him to find what waits in Roost¡¯s Peak. Killing him was only a necessity driven by circumstance. With his retreat, I can spare him. For now. Go, Heldren, and do not fail me again.¡±

 Chapter 34: In Fair Verona

    Daniel knocked on the door again, slamming the side of his fist into the wood as the evening sun shone through the breaking rain clouds. So far he¡¯d been ignored and was steadily working himself up to ramming strength. The first time was meek, he¡¯d so lightly rapped on the door that he didn¡¯t even hear the noise. But now? Tlara could pretend to be away all she liked, she couldn¡¯t hide from him.

    ¡°Tlara, I know you¡¯re in there!¡± he shouted, this time like he was a belligerent ex. Oh god, not on your life, he thought as he banished the mental image. The woman¡¯s aura shifted as his voice joined the banging, but otherwise she gave no obvious sign she¡¯d registered his presence. Her summoned lightning bird did swoop closer to the house. Daniel was sure it wouldn¡¯t attack him. Probably.

    He punched the door hard enough to dent it, but it didn¡¯t budge. It was thick wood set into stone, and even if it was a copy-paste structure it had Builder powers supporting it. Using his talon hands might be enough but would be far too aggressive to make any attempt at diplomacy work. Like that would work anyway, he sulked internally. He just didn¡¯t get Tlara. Sure, some people didn¡¯t get along, and enough had happened that she had no reason to like him, but she didn¡¯t have anyone helping her that he knew of. She was a bigger loner than he was and he needed her help.

    Daniel briefly considered climbing to a window before imagining what it would be like to be punched out of a window frame. Kob could get her out of the building, but the whole point of sending Daniel was the hope that he could make her come willingly. That thought made him pause. Make her come willingly. Is that an oxymoron? Ok, now I¡¯m stalling myself.

    ¡°Tlara! They¡¯re trapped in the mine. Are you just going to sit here and wait for them to die?¡± Apparently so. The woman¡¯s aura turned away from him. He could only tell because she leaned back as if relaxing. Daniel sighed and thought about how their interactions had gone so far in the hope that there was something that could help him. Being nice didn¡¯t work, going with the flow made her try to kill Hunter, thanking her for saving Hunter resulted in all of this, the only time it seemed like she was negotiating was¡­

    He puffed up his chest and tried not to let the hesitation creep into his voice. ¡°You¡¯re coming out here, or I¡¯m breaking down this door and dragging you out!¡± Tlara stood out of the chair. ¡°And if that doesn¡¯t work, I¡¯m just going to get Kob!¡± Tlara strode over to a window and glared down at Daniel. It made him feel like he was some kind of inverse Romeo. ¡°You can¡¯t just-¡° he started until Tlara forcefully closed the shutters and returned to a chair he couldn¡¯t see. Damn it. What else can I do? Threaten her bird? No, she¡¯d probably like that, he thought bitterly. Daniel did have a skab orb on him, he could¡­ glue himself to the door in protest?

    Wait, what about music? The phone in his hand could replicate anything he remembered clearly enough. Among the various songs was a selection of loud metal and rock he¡¯d acquired from a popular guitar game, along with a few his parents had been fond of. Eh, why not?

    Heightening features was still new to Daniel. No option on his phone offered itself when his features gained that benefit. Instead, it was an intrinsic feeling he had to explore, similar to how his talon hands or parkour feature had been discovered. His current options were hit or miss, though he at least kept his Maps heightened, mentally investing the mana shortly after waking up every day. His Encyclopedia¡¯s new scanning capability was interesting, though attempting it on himself and Hunter revealed nothing new and just seemed like a way to get monster lore and there hadn¡¯t been much left of the plant monsters to try it on. Music had its own improvement that might entice the bird out of her cage.

    The app¡¯s volume slider, similar to the phone¡¯s original program, changed when he heightened the function. Instead of adding a little bit more to the end and labeling it ¡®11¡¯ as he expected, the slider could now loop back on itself once. ¡°Let¡¯s see how she likes power metal,¡± he muttered, sliding the volume to about 175%.

    Even expecting it, the blaring guitars were so loud he dropped the phone to shield his ears. As he¡¯d come to learn, the phone was far more durable as a Focus than it was back on Earth and the music played on. That got Tlara¡¯s attention, though she only fidgeted and did not move back to the window. After about seven minutes, the song ended without her appearance. A few of the garrison had come out onto the street to investigate the noise.

    ¡°You¡¯re a Bard? Wait, did you multiclass?¡± one of them asked. Daniel was well known enough to the garrison that the supposed revelation was scandalous to those assembled.

    ¡°No I¡¯m, ugh,¡± Daniel began with exasperation before sighing and returning his focus to the Beastmaster. ¡°Tlara! I have a week¡¯s worth of music on this phone!¡±

    ¡°You what?¡± another of the garrison asked incredulously. Daniel ignored her.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to keep playing until you talk with me, and you¡¯re not going to like what I play next!¡± He mentally queued the next ¡®song¡¯. Unlike the Encyclopedia, this app worked off of his memory which apparently meant he could control it by thought. Useful, but that only made the Encyclopedia more aggravating in comparison.

    ¡°I¡¯m serious! This next one is going to hurt me just as much as it¡¯ll hurt you!¡± His finger hovered over the play button as the onlookers stepped back. The challenge went unanswered, though Tlara was behind the shutter now. Was it out of curiosity or anger?

    Ugh, Daniel thought as he pressed play. The noise that came out of his phone was from one instrument and instantly set Daniel on edge. It was like a swarm of bees with an echoing and distorted quality. In fairness, Daniel had heard this noise over television and had only been ten during that time, so some degradation of audio could be expected.

    The title of the song scrolled across the screen of the phone: ¡®Vuvuzela, World Cup 2010¡¯. It was this or meme music and Daniel had to save his biggest guns in case this failed. More of the garrison was running down the street. They probably thought some monstrous swarm was attacking.

    In the center of the storm, the monotony drowned out anything else even though he could tell those nearby were trying to scream at him to stop as they stumbled away. Tlara didn¡¯t open the window or come to the door, though. She asked for it, Daniel thought and slid the volume to 200%. Perhaps it was the fear of how much louder the sound could get, or the fact that the shutters had started vibrating, but Tlara finally opened the window. It looked like she was saying something, but Daniel just mimed not being able to understand with an innocent expression. She held up a dagger, almost threw it, and retreated instead.

    The door in front of him opened and revealed Tlara. She was still yelling but Daniel could barely make out her voice. The sudden silence almost knocked several people down as the Artificer paused the song. ¡°FUCKING STOP that,¡± Tlara lowered her voice as she noticed it herself.

    ¡°So you¡¯ll talk?¡±

    ¡°Like Crest I-¡° The wall of noise was thrown up again and Tlara waved her hands frantically and Daniel paused the song again. He idly mused that flipping the horn sound on and off rapidly could have some kind of effect in battle, though at just as much a cost to him. ¡°Fine!¡± She stormed back into the house and left the door open.

    ¡°Please don¡¯t do that again,¡± one of the garrison pleaded. The closest one was now ten meters away and a few had weapons drawn. That would have made Daniel nervous if he thought they¡¯d use them.

    He gave a commiserating look and pointed his head inside. ¡°That¡¯s up to her.¡±

    This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

    Tlara was waiting inside the common room on the first floor. It was just like the one in Daniel¡¯s house, but sans ringcat. ¡°What was that?¡± she asked acerbically.

    It was finally time for Daniel to make the pitch. ¡°Agree to come with us to the mines and I¡¯ll tell you.¡±

    ¡°Forget it. You can-¡° Tlara stopped dead when Daniel reached for his phone. She seemed almost scared of it, and that made him feel a little terrible about himself. Was she more sensitive to noise because she was a bird? He put the phone away and she relaxed only slightly.

    ¡°Do you think I want to go?¡± he asked after a pause. It was only the thought of who was trapped down there that put him here, instead of hiding in his own house. ¡°We¡¯re all we have. Khare¡¯s still regrowing themself and Sigron¡¯s¡­¡± he trailed off. There was still a shell of glue on the Knight¡¯s shoulder. The substance turned out to be lightly caustic and was doing unfortunate things to the exposed flesh. Peeling it off would stop that, but the damage had progressed to the point where the only thing stopping him from hemorrhaging to death was that shell. The healers told Daniel Sigron would have died without the patch, which had made him feel a little better about further maiming the Knight.

    ¡°Let the garrison handle it,¡± Tlara said dismissively.

    ¡°All the real adventurers left when this place evacuated,¡± he countered. ¡°Except for Kob, you¡¯re the highest leveled person here. You are level three now, right? No one else here is used to fighting anything closer than a ballista shot away.¡±

    ¡°And you fucking are?¡± That prompted the first positive emotion from her, though it was humor and at his expense.

    It was a fair point though. Daniel had been in four fights. No, five, he corrected, almost forgetting about the sparkbats. It seemed longer than a handful of weeks ago. ¡°This isn¡¯t about me.¡±

    ¡°You very loudly made it about you.¡± Tlara would be gritting her teeth if she had any. ¡°I¡¯m only talking to you to make sure you don¡¯t fucking come back. And if I have to do something else to be sure of that, I will.¡±

    ¡°So, what? You¡¯re just going to sit here until the monsters come and kill you?¡± Daniel didn¡¯t back down. He would have, were he the person who had just fought the sparkbats, but the illusion of threat around Tlara had been broken when he had prepared to fight her for Hunter¡¯s sake. She was dangerous, to be sure, but her personality was like the feathers she puffed up. Learning to call that bluff was a sign of the confidence fighting and surviving had been building in Daniel.

    Tlara tried to say something, but Daniel wouldn¡¯t yield the initiative. ¡°You know more than anyone what it¡¯s going to take to survive this. You fought the damn thing. No, wait,¡± he amended. ¡°Lograve fought it while you ran. If anything, you owe him your life, and you¡¯re just sitting here while he¡¯s in danger? And what¡¯s letting the only person to survive fighting the dra-¡° Daniel had to cut himself off. The D word was off limits in public conversation and the garrison outside was in earshot. He might have already said too much but plowed on anyway. ¡°You seem like someone who likes having plans, so tell me, what¡¯s yours now?¡±

    Tlara didn¡¯t directly answer him, either in her gaze or her words. ¡°What do you want me to do? I¡¯ve got a giant rhino, a bird, a ranged monster that can¡¯t hit shit in the dark, and an exploding rabbit. The only thing that could work down there was killed by Kob¡¯s insanity unless you¡¯ve fucking forgotten.¡±

    ¡°So just, I mean, can¡¯t we just capture one for you to use when we¡¯re down there?¡± The question surprised Tlara. Daniel sensed a good argument and took a stab. ¡°Your powers revolve around your beasts, right? How are you going to get more powerful just sitting here? If you need something that can fight in a space like the mines, like what you used against the skabs, then you should be asking to go with us. I¡¯m sure Kob could string up whatever you needed.¡±

    The feathery brow of the Beastmaster scrunched in irritation. Daniel hoped it was due to how well he¡¯d pleaded his case. Eventually, Tlara asked an incredulous question. ¡°What are you?¡±

    ¡°Not a Spiritualist,¡± Daniel sighed. ¡°Or a Bard, or a Totem Warrior, or even someone that hates you. Sure, I can barely tolerate you.¡± He waved a hand. ¡°But you¡¯ve given me more than enough reason to go full hatred. Do you know why I don¡¯t?¡± She just stared at him, and the question was rhetorical anyway. ¡°I know what it¡¯s like to say the wrong thing and push people away. It seems like it¡¯s more on purpose in your case, but I think I¡¯ve got part of you figured out. You,¡± he pointed at Tlara dramatically, as if he was about to perform a magic trick, ¡°Are lonely!¡±

    Tlara let out a sneering laugh. Even the melodious tones seemed sarcastic coming from her. In disbelief, she said, ¡°Is this your way of propositioning?¡±

    ¡°God no.¡± Daniel almost gagged, but he was also smiling. His humor and Tlara¡¯s were discordant and at cross purposes. Still, it was an improvement. Even if she denied it, and even if he had been off, Daniel knew he¡¯d struck at something. Tlara didn¡¯t try to change the topic when he was far off base. ¡°This is your way to get better monsters and get in good with Lograve. You said you wanted to be with the strong to survive, right?¡±

    She didn¡¯t have an immediate answer to him. Rather, she scoffed, turned away, and walked towards the stairs, only to turn towards the side. The bird paced in front of him, not an awkward movement like the simpler kin but the steady gate of a biped. According to the Accounts of Artruz, her race had been elevated from a monstrous one. Daniel wondered how Tlara felt about that, and what kind of monster it had been so long ago.

    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll do it,¡± she said with a straight face. As straight as it could be, the slight curve of the beak made it impossible for Tlara to make an even line with her mouth.

    ¡°That¡¯s great!¡±

    ¡°If you give me your ringcat. It¡¯s serious enough that you¡¯ll do that, right?¡± Her voice needled him with a teasingly sweet tone.

    That got to Daniel. Whether or not Tlara was serious didn¡¯t matter, she had said that to get under Daniel¡¯s skin and that fact was enough to get it done. He wanted to punch her in the face, but this conversation was important. Controlling himself and somehow winning over this impossible Beastmaster was important. Daniel slowed his breathing and took his own short pause in the conversation. He¡¯d been doing so well. ¡°Why do you hate everyone?¡± He held back a wince after blurting the question out. Calming himself had stopped an assault, but there was still an insult that had to be answered and he could not resist.

    ¡°I don¡¯t.¡± Tlara was smiling now. One of her hands was idly tracing a circle on the stair¡¯s banister.

    ¡°Name one person here you like. Anyone in the region,¡± Daniel huffed and threw up a hand. ¡°Anyone in the world! Because to me it seems like all you care about is yourself.¡±

    Tlara chuckled, amused at how worked up this of all things was making Daniel. ¡°Why do you care?¡±

    ¡°Because you don¡¯t make sense! You¡¯re an asocial asshole. You even treat the things that keep you alive like they¡¯re dirt.¡± Daniel pointed to Tlara¡¯s waist where the fist-sized pouches were kept. ¡°Do you even care about yourself?¡±

    ¡°Are you going somewhere with this?¡± She was completely unphased and Daniel was out of ideas. Maybe she didn¡¯t care and wanted to just stay here until she died. Maybe there was some game she was playing, some angle she saw that Daniel didn¡¯t, but the facts didn¡¯t allow for it. She would die in this region unless she worked with everyone else to escape.

    Daniel gave up. She was running circles around him and completely unmovable in the conversation at the same time. ¡°What do you want?¡±

    ¡°Your ringcat.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m being serious Tlara. What do you want?¡±

    She nodded with self-satisfaction, like she¡¯d been leading Daniel to this point and was pleased to have arrived on schedule. ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure I can tell lying. Tell me whatever I want to know about your pathetic life and I¡¯ll come.¡±

    A question game? Why? Daniel thought. ¡°How do I know you¡¯ll do it?¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t.¡±

    Guess I can just stop answering if she goes too far. ¡°Fine. But we start walking towards the mine right now. You stop walking and I stop answering and go get Kob.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s fine.¡± She moved towards the door with exaggerated sluggishness. ¡°Where do you come from?¡±

    Crap.

    ¡­

    Study was a common way for Arcanists to both acquire and advance their class, up to a point. Diminishing returns made all but complex subjects worthless far faster than most liked. A few completely abandoned the habit when it was no longer profitable, though many more chose topics to their liking and made a hobby of reading. Lograve was far better educated. He''d made himself into a librarian after what had happened to his team and it came with the territory. Coming to the Thormundz had meant a chance to carve his own piece of the world, discover the mysteries of the newly freed region of the Octyrrum, and spread it to the next generation.

    Knowledge, so prized by the Arcanist, could be a curse. The count of how many of his students had already perished haunted him. The chance of the evacuation¡¯s triumph over the dragon, ever slim, grated on his nerves as it grew slimmer. And now this, this¡­

    Lograve had felt fear when he fought the dragon. Anyone fighting something three levels higher than themselves would. Doing so alone could incapacitate with terror. That fight had been short and ended in pain and disfigurement, but was far from the worst Lograve had felt. On the day of the Upswell, the thought of lives lost and the impossibility of what happened, that had been worse. A stinging, numb dread that the dragon had only briefly overshadowed.

    What Lograve saw now at the bottom of the world snuffed all fear and despair from him like pain fleeing from a deep burn wound. Another wouldn¡¯t have known the significance of what he saw, but Lograve knew what it was and he knew what was happening to it. In the darkness, under the mountain, the Arcanist froze with unyielding terror as he watched the end of the world begin to wake.

 Chapter 35: Emotional Manipulation

    Daniel could see the auras of Hunter and the rest waiting for them at the entrance to the mine as they walked the short road from the city to the mountain opening. If he were honest with himself, he hadn¡¯t expected to be accompanied by Tlara. She was doing everything to make him regret it. ¡°Who was the first person you fucked?¡±

    Really? Daniel thought wearily. He¡¯d fended off the questions that might have led to Earth, but the avianoid had extracted all of what he knew about his class. Those questions let him filibuster other sensitive ones, and it was safe to tell her what his powers did. Daniel had to stop her from leaving in disbelief as he reiterated his dual advancement and the recent advancements he¡¯d gained through studying.

    She¡¯d run out of those questions, though, and had turned back to embarrassing personal ones. ¡°Claire.¡± The name was given begrudgingly, but it was necessary to keep Tlara walking.

    Her questions paused as she assimilated that. ¡°So you two were a thing before the Upswell? Damn, does she know you cheated?¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Was she trying to misinterpret his answers to justify lying to Claire? No, that was dumb, she¡¯d just do it regardless if that¡¯s what she wanted. ¡°No, she¡¯s the only one I¡¯ve been with.¡± He was not going into any more details.

    ¡°But didn¡¯t you¡­¡± Tlara¡¯s eyes widened and then she laughed. ¡°Oh. Oh! I can¡¯t fucking believe I didn¡¯t see that earlier.¡± This was the closest Daniel had gotten to pulling out the talons, but Tlara¡¯s self-satisfaction was distracting her from asking any more questions. ¡°You couldn¡¯t close the deal with a Bard!¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t see you in any relationships.¡± Daniel kicked a loose rock. That shut Tlara up but didn¡¯t stop her walking. Had that of all things touched a nerve? Tlara¡¯s crest of feathers wasn¡¯t standing up, and that was the only sign of honest emotion she tended to show. I don¡¯t know if I¡¯ll ever understand her.

    The sight of Kob towering over the rest did cause Tlara to puff up. It was a completely different look compared to her normally smoothed over feathers, like she was wearing a fan attached to the back of her head, though not like a peacock. The colors were wrong for one, Tlara¡¯s feathers were a mix of browns and whites reminiscent of a hawk. For another, her feathers did that out of anxiety rather than showmanship. Daniel took it as a refreshingly honest look into Tlara¡¯s thoughts. It was a perverse pleasure given what had happened to inspire the change, but the interrogation on the way here had lessened the Artificer¡¯s desire to play nice. She hadn¡¯t learned anything important, nothing that could be used to make mobs reach for torches and pitchforks. Regardless, she had dug into personal things just to have control over him again.

    Thoughts on the matter halted as the abyss closed in. The entrance of the tunnel dwarfed even Kob, cut cleanly into the side of the mountain as it descended into darkness. Eight tracks ran in parallel, their way guarded by spent torches. Daniel¡¯s mind was drawn to stories of trapped miners, videos of cave diving gone wrong, and the overriding fear that closed in on him. Tlara¡¯s antics had been enough to distract him right up until this point.

    The others hadn¡¯t noticed yet. They were talking, and Hunter was thinking something to him. He couldn¡¯t sense any of it. He, he couldn¡¯t do this. Daniel had put off thinking about actually going down, rationalizing that the mine would just be like a long tunnel and ignoring the obvious. He¡¯d handled the skab fight fine, right? But now, for all he had said to Tlara about owing Lograve, practically dragging her along to do so, going into that cave was impossible. No future, near or distant, would see him do it. Maybe if his wisdom was properly leveled he could overcome it, but the penalty from level disparity wasn¡¯t doing him any favors.

    Claire was the first biped to notice Daniel. She, and her friend Parduc, were part of the garrison detachment that escorted the rescue team to the mine entrance. Her voice broke through the fog enveloping Daniel''s mind. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±He couldn¡¯t tell her. If Daniel was in control of himself he¡¯d say something. But he couldn¡¯t even think of what he would tell her. Walls were closing in and-

    The Arcanist poked him with a glowing finger, and suddenly he could breathe again. ¡°What did you do?¡±

    ¡°Calming spell,¡± she whispered back. ¡°You were under the fear effect?¡±

    Whatever ability she had used had ripped his claustrophobia out like a weed. It was strange, looking at the mine and suddenly not dreading the descent to come. Was this permanent? Probably not, but it was strange all the same and for more than one reason. ¡°I¡¯m a higher level than you, how could you affect me?¡±

    She narrowed her eyes, another sign he¡¯d asked something that should have been obvious. ¡°It¡¯s not a healing ability?¡±

    ¡°R-right.¡± Daniel turned his attention back to the other conversation in hopes of changing the subject.

    A woman casually bracing a huge sledgehammer on her shoulder was mid-explanation. ¡°Of course, I can¡¯t go into specifics. No one that mined on the regular stayed after the Upwell and we stopped everything after your team went in. Heh, I don¡¯t blame them. They were paid to dig in the dirt, not get buried in it.¡± Kob¡¯s mass shifted slightly, preemptively freed from the stone armor to fit in the tunnel. Perhaps it was the gestalt equivalent of clearing your throat because the titan didn¡¯t say anything. ¡°Anyway, we sent your boys down the main shaft after a rumor. There were a few carts that didn¡¯t get pulled amidst the panic, and there were a few known monster warrens good for training. Win win.¡±

    Tlara joined the conversation, incredulous despite how nervous Kob was making her. ¡°You sent the other team into this Crest mouth for carts?¡±

    ¡°Full carts,¡± the burly woman emphasized. ¡°At least one had some andorite in it. I don¡¯t know about you, but most people here don¡¯t have much to look forward to besides getting out of the Thormundz. Might be nice to have some coin to celebrate on the other side. Anyone from Thest who had a claim to those minerals left with the Spoke, so it¡¯s finder¡¯s keepers. Problem is we¡¯re not sure which track it was and they could be on the other side of the mine from those carts. No one here to tell us and your friend didn¡¯t specify. Might be able to follow the blood though.¡± She scuffed the ground with her heel to indicate a patch of dried blood left from when Tak had escaped.

    Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

    ¡°Seems like a gamble.¡± Parduc¡¯s voice was hesitant, though it carried well. ¡°Sending the four of you in there. Might already be dead¡¯s all I¡¯m saying.¡±

    Daniel was most surprised by how Claire nodded in agreement and spoke up. ¡°We have to look for them! They can¡¯t, they can¡¯t all be dead.¡± It was hope that inspired him, not certainty. The only people he could trust in this world were the ringcat standing next to him, and two among the team trapped beneath the earth. He was getting there with Claire. Things had been going well enough until this dragon friend of hers had shown up and things had gotten tense.

    ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter,¡± Tlara said dismissively. ¡°We¡¯re going down there to look regardless of what anyone fucking thinks.¡± She clenched a fist and used the other hand to smooth down her feathers. ¡°And you owe me for what you did. I-¡° she faltered for a moment, but persisted, ¡°I need to replace my tools. You¡¯re going to string up any level three I want for what you did.¡±

    Damn. She¡¯s annoying as hell but she¡¯s something, Daniel mused. Lograve¡¯s earlier monologue about the hierarchy of levels would suggest that Tlara was being suicidally brazen, although he was sure by now that that speech had been exaggerated. Still, everyone else had fallen silent under the same impression. Kob was now at least ten times her size, and the stone of their armor was broken into hundreds of shards capable of blocking attacks and shredding enemies simultaneously.

    Without the face of the armor, there was nothing to clearly show Kob¡¯s emotion. Perhaps, if they were just the brutish mass they appeared, they would lash out at her. The giant was anything but predictable and just started slithering towards the mine entrance.

    ¡°Wait, don¡¯t we need to know more before cave diving, like what kind of monsters are down there?¡± Daniel asked as Tlara started walking behind him.

    ¡°You¡¯re the one who was making noise about getting down there. We¡¯re going now.¡± She lit a torch that sparked blue against the darkness of the mine.

    ¡°How long will this spell last?¡± Daniel asked Claire quickly as he strung the crossbow.

    ¡°An hour at most, but re-exposure shortens the duration. Is it a phobia?¡±

    ¡°Y-yeah.¡± He trembled slightly despite the absence of fear. ¡°I guess I¡¯ll just have to deal with it when it wears off.¡± And ask her how it works exactly. He turned his thoughts towards Hunter. Are you going to be ok with her for the next day or so?

    I do not like this. Hunter growled. He wasn¡¯t coming. While the ringcat had recovered to the point of being able to walk, it was only slowly. He was close to a full recovery and might even get there after tonight, but it was too risky now.

    ¡°That¡¯s admirable, but be careful,¡± Claire admonished as Daniel was about to respond to Hunter. Carrying mental and audible conversations at the same time was a complicated art Daniel was barely a novice in. ¡°Just because I like a man who can put himself back together doesn¡¯t mean I want you to end up like the other one.¡± Her cheeks paled just as much as they had when she¡¯d found him at Tak¡¯s side.

    Who to respond to first? Daniel had limited time and risked losing sight of the torch. It was like his fear had been numbed, but that didn¡¯t stop him from worrying about losing sight of the others. He settled on both. ¡°I¡¯ll be back tomorrow at the latest. Maybe sooner if I can¡¯t handle that.¡± He gestured ahead of him, the point directed at both the mine and Tlara. ¡°Or if we find them. Keep each other safe. I¡¯ll toggle the tag on myself if we need help. You do the same,¡± he told Hunter. Their telepathy was short ranged, but Identify Creature shared information in a much wider radius. Theoretically limitless, though only because that limit hadn¡¯t been found yet.

    ¡°How will I know Hunter¡¯s gotten the warning?¡± Claire asked.

    The last sparks of Tlara¡¯s torch were fading in the distance. It was time to go. Even with three auras in the tunnels to go by, that didn¡¯t guarantee Daniel could find his way to them in the maze of the mine. ¡°He¡¯ll let you know. See you soon.¡±

    She grabbed him. Her strength wasn¡¯t enough to slow him but Daniel stopped all the same. She gave him the briefest of kisses before warning him. ¡°You better.¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°Hammer, Claire, I still don¡¯t know about this,¡± Parduc said uneasily as he and the half dozen others from the garrison watched Daniel descend. ¡°And that ringcat, you¡¯re sure it¡¯ll stay tamed with him gone?¡±

    Hunter growled at him and remained sitting by Claire. She held her hand above his head for a moment before stroking an ear, just long enough to make sure the creature wouldn¡¯t bite her. ¡°It¡¯ll be fine. I¡¯m more worried about Daniel in there. The story is a collapse, but I know a little about how construction powers work. What could have happened down there to break the tunnels?¡±

    ¡°Dunno,¡± Parduc shrugged. ¡°I mostly do above ground stuff.¡±

    ¡°The main tunnels were dug by a level 4,¡± Yedra, the Berserker with the hammer, said. ¡°They¡¯re decades from breaking down naturally. The side passages, ¡®specially those dug by hand, those could fall easily. If it were the main one though¡­¡± She trailed off.

    A sound came from Hunter again. Still a growl, but carrying tones of worry. That drew attention, though most assembled assured themselves the ringcat wasn¡¯t following the conversation. Monsters couldn¡¯t talk or comprehend language, everyone knew that. Even those dominated by Beastmasters only really understood their controller, and that was because of their powers. Everyone knew that. Except Claire. It was a time for things that had never happened before. She idly traced a small ring in the pattern of Hunter¡¯s fur and pondered with mixed concern and intrigue at the man she¡¯d found herself ensorcelled with. Maybe, just maybe, what he¡¯d told her about the ringcat wasn¡¯t exaggerated.

    The sound of Daniel¡¯s clattering pack stopped echoing from the chamber in front of the group after a minute, long after the torchlight had winked out. ¡°Guess that¡¯s it then,¡± Yedra said. ¡°Back to the fort before a wyvern finds us out here.¡±

    ¡°This one would warn us before that.¡± Claire gestured with her non-petting hand at the ringcat staring into the mine. ¡°We worked out a system for alerting the city while he¡¯s gone.¡±

    That didn¡¯t mean they were completely protected out here, but Claire wasn¡¯t worried. She wouldn¡¯t even be here if she couldn¡¯t quell the fear inside herself as easily as Daniel¡¯s. Using Calm Emotions around the clock had a mana cost she couldn¡¯t completely ignore, but it was necessary. Especially after the Upswell. Especially after Lyander. Could he still be alive? she wondered but shook her head as she turned to walk with the rest of the group. Everyone knew that those within Eido during the Upswell were gone. Even if Eido appeared again, as quickly as it had left and with all that had been taken, could she be blamed? Others had pursued new bonds far sooner. She had waited a month. Surely that was enough to know he wasn¡¯t coming back.

    Claire dug her nails into her palms and tried to drive the thoughts out with pain. She¡¯d been trying to resist using the power on herself again before dusk, but it seemed she¡¯d need it sooner. The ringcat at her side noticed this but did not understand. Hunter had supposedly been granted language by whatever strange power Daniel wielded, but there were still some quirks of mortals that escaped the creature. The two walked together, back towards the city, and thought of those they had left behind.

 Chapter 36: Shardrock Mole - (1)

    By definition, a phobia is an irrational fear. Being nervous in a narrow hallway was irrational, even if there was only half a meter between the walls and your shoulders. Said space was from Daniel¡¯s high school and the reason he had avoided the stairs it led to despite it having been the quickest way to leave when he was a junior.

    This was something of the opposite case. Anyone would be justified in fearing a monster-ridden mine shaft that had already partially collapsed. There was no sign of that here save for the occasional trail of Tak¡¯s blood, but they hadn¡¯t gone far yet. Daniel should be frozen in place, but he walked quickly to catch up to the two others in front of him. He felt fine, irrationally calm despite having every reason to be afraid.

    I need to get this power at some point, he thought to himself. Or could I make something to dispel fear? Either way I need to learn some recipes. Formulae. Whatever. It seemed odd to Daniel how hard it was for him to make magical items given he had an entire feature devoted to it. His class should have given him something, but the only items he knew how to make were those he¡¯d designed himself.

    Neither invention would be too useful here. He¡¯d refused to make another lightning bolt after what had happened to Hunter and the wings were wrong for the environment. At least his crossbow was well suited. Someone with a bow could hardly keep it drawn all the time, but the stronger mechanical arms of Daniel¡¯s weapon could bear the weight of the taut string for hours. He had to be careful not to accidentally fire it, but along with Snap Shot, it meant Daniel could react to an enemy in seconds.

    If there was anything left to react to. Catching up to Tlara, Daniel saw the mass of Kob fully stretched across the mine tunnel like a mobile clot. The avianoid was walking calmly as if the horror in front of her hadn¡¯t ensnared her just a few days ago.

    ¡°You¡¯re not going to summon something?¡± Daniel asked quietly as he caught up. He would have whispered it, but the sound Kob was making as they clawed through the tunnel would have overshadowed his words. It was like a drawn out scratching noise, the combination of roots and stone talons dragging themselves across dirt.

    ¡°No point. I¡¯m going to dominate new monsters. Taking out one now would slow me down.¡±

    Daniel glanced at the pouches on her belt. She never took them off, didn¡¯t throw them, and seemed to work far slower than the ones in that game he was thinking of. ¡°How do those work, out of curiosity?¡±

    ¡°Magic.¡±

    ¡°I mean,¡± he sighed. Daniel was in no mood to continue playing nice with Tlara to get information. On the other hand, Kob was moving slowly enough through the tunnel that there wasn¡¯t much else to do but talk. He hadn¡¯t even needed to run to catch up to them. That was odd considering how fast Kob had charged up the cliff face to fight the root core. One thing at a time. ¡°Back on that cliff, when your beetle died, we could have used your flying creature. You didn¡¯t pull it out.¡±

    ¡°So?¡± It was barely a response but didn¡¯t contain outright hostility. Maybe the thought of getting new monsters was cheering Tlara up.

    ¡°So is there a cooldown or something? And how long does it take for you to dominate something?¡±

    Tlara eyed him suspiciously. ¡°Why do you want to know?¡±

    ¡°I just mentioned one reason with the cliff. And if you¡¯re about to tell me it takes an hour to claim a monster then that¡¯s going to make doing it down here difficult.¡± Not like Kob isn¡¯t taking it slow though, he thought.

    Tlara paused to phrase her answer in the least helpful way possible. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it.¡±

    ¡°D-,¡± Daniel grunted in annoyance. He was out of ways to bargain, reason, or plead with Tlara after the antics of this morning. The only thing that seemed to work was his music, which wasn¡¯t the best option when they were ostentatiously trying not to attract monsters. With Kob¡¯s grinding, though, they never had a chance at stealth.

    Rocks scattered across the tunnel floor as shapes dragged themselves out of the earth behind Daniel. The sparking torchlight couldn¡¯t fully illuminate the creatures, but it was enough for Identify Creature. Each aura had identical labels.

    <hr>

    Shardrock Mole - (1)

    <hr>

    His finger brushed against the trigger of his crossbow, though the weapon was ultimately placed on the ground as Daniel prepared to fight at close range. Engaging the approaching monsters hand to claw wasn¡¯t his preference, but he could only carry a brace of twenty bolts on himself and needed to save his shots for enemies his level.

    ¡°Six level ones!¡± he called out while drawing the enchanted dagger. Daniel said something else as he moved his other hand. ¡°Bulwark!¡± At first, only a small pebble rose from the ground. More stones joined it to gather in the rough shape of a circular shield. It was one of Daniel¡¯s new abilities, his first incantation spell, and tied to his endurance. It could create a shield from nearby material, though it came with the curious limit of not working on ¡®worked material¡¯. He supposed it was meant to prevent him from using the ability to make holes in walls, but the rock on the ground worked.

    Alone it was merely useful, but in combination with Telekinetic Reach, it could become a mobile barrier. That combo cost more mana than it was generally worth, but it would get better once his endurance reached 20. While his reserves only deepened every class level, the level disparity to endurance was making Construct Shield cost more than normal.

    Since he needed to save his mana as much as his bolts, he just levitated it up to his arm and gripped the rough handle he¡¯d mentally shaped while casting the ability. Shield acquired, he turned to face the monsters.

    The things loping from the darkness were shorter than he was, but thicker, quadrupedal, and asymmetrical. Each of these ¡®moles¡¯ had powerful front legs ending in three claws sheering the earth as they moved forward. The pace was slow, only slightly faster than Kob, and would let Daniel easily run if they didn¡¯t block the exit.

    Tension squeezed Daniel¡¯s lungs as he readied himself. Claire¡¯s parting spell was edging out fear, but adrenaline had more than just an emotional effect. He found himself thinking of the skabs, freezing as they rushed at him. It was more than being underground, it was the concept of being this new person combined with what he had to do setting him on edge. Ignoring the disparity of his past and present life was easy when he didn¡¯t have to kill.

    Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

    ¡°Well, they¡¯re fucking useless,¡± Tlara said, no hint of doubt in her voice. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about saving one for me.¡± Daniel looked at her with wide eyes. Sure, she was level three and they were level one, but she had no monster out. The avianoid was more of a general than a soldier, relying on her creatures to fight the enemy. She didn¡¯t even hold a weapon as she stood next to his shield. What was she doing?

    When the last enemy entered the torchlight Daniel had his answer. Tlara¡¯s eyes darted toward each one and the moles recoiled in pain as small eruptions of flesh popped across their forms. The damage wasn¡¯t catastrophic but it was distracting, both to the moles and Daniel. Talons that would have broken skin if he wasn¡¯t wearing armor shoved him forward. ¡°Now would be a good time to hit them!¡± Tlara squawked in his ear.

    The lead mole was getting its bearings when Daniel punched out with his dagger. Holding the shield was restricting his movement and would have been a problem if grace was called for. With his improved strength and level advantage, it didn¡¯t matter. The magical steel stabbed clean through its almost triangular skull and hit brain. The sensation was nauseatingly similar to when Daniel¡¯s hand had clawed through a ringcat of its own accord. The mole was dead, outright.

    Kob was creeping around the walls to reach the enemies, keeping the almost exaggerated slowness that marked the giant as of late. The mole¡¯s pace was olympian comparatively. Is this how bad level disparity can get? Daniel couldn¡¯t help but think as two moles attacked him at once.

    The shield was raised in time to block one, but the other bludgeoned its way through the terrible guard Daniel attempted to make with his right arm. Abilities and features were something, but they couldn¡¯t make up for the gap in experience and grit that separated Daniel from those who had earned all of their powers. He should have tried to step back or lean into one opponent to throw off the timing, but all Daniel could do was fend off one of the attacks.

    The majority of the mole¡¯s front foot was made of a substance similar to a hoof, shaped into the claws it used to dig. Toughened leather could withstand small knives and even glancing sword strikes, though the mole¡¯s claws pierced through as easily as Daniel¡¯s knife had the skull. The attack was crushing and knocked him back. He looked down, expecting to see himself disemboweled from the force of the blow, and saw that the claws had only given him shallow wounds. Painful, but Regeneration would take care of it in an hour or less.

    ¡°That¡¯s the problem with shit armor. You get tougher than it,¡± Tlara observed as she raked into a mole with her talons. Her hands didn¡¯t have the extra punch or feral length Daniel¡¯s ability afforded but parted the mole¡¯s flesh despite this.

    Daniel wanted to say something. What, he wasn¡¯t exactly sure. Both moles in front of him moved to follow up until the one closer to the wall was torn apart by vines that had made it to the party¡¯s backline. Two knives flew out to the other from the mass, though this wasn¡¯t the doing of Kob. Khare, having regrown to a clump about the size of a large dog, was nesting within the much larger giant. Of everyone, they would be the most comfortable to ride within their larger kin. There wasn¡¯t much Khare could do beyond fire weapons, fulfilling the role of a turret on the battleship that was Kob.

    There wasn¡¯t much to it once the shock of the initial hit was over. The moles had barely put up a fight. Tlara had ripped one to pieces with her talons, with Kob and Khare tag-teaming the rest. The last had attempted to dig away to no avail. Daniel didn¡¯t even hold his breath for an advancement notification from his phone; that had been way too easy.

    Daniel¡¯s exposed midriff was the only casualty, more an annoyance than anything else. ¡°That was pretty much suicide for them,¡± he remarked as he saw the bloody remains on the ground. ¡°Why did they attack?¡±

    ¡°Because they¡¯re fucking monsters?¡± Tlara asked as if she was speaking to a toddler. That could be an acceptable if blunt answer, but Daniel sensed there was more to it than that.

    Right, back to bitchiness, Daniel bitterly thought. Tlara¡¯s edge had almost come off during the fight, only to reemerge once it was over. ¡°So,¡± he replied with forced joviality. ¡°Think you want a level three version of those?¡±

    Tlara cocked her head to the side as she looked closely at the most intact mole. ¡°Eh. Whatever. I¡¯ll take it if we find one.¡±

    ¡°Move,¡± Kob ordered, as the mass of vines recollected in front of them and continued its march. Both followed and continued the sparring conversation.

    ¡°What kind of monsters do you look for in general? Are there rare monsters better than those generally of their level?¡±

    Tlara gave him a familiar glare and asked, ¡°Why do you fucking care?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m just curious.¡± Daniel shrugged. ¡°Come on, we talked about my class on the way here. I haven¡¯t talked with another Beastmaster and I¡¯m just curious.¡±

    ¡­

    Tlara stared at him for about a minute before saying, ¡°Things like that ringcat of yours aren¡¯t worth shit. They¡¯re a basic monster that can¡¯t do anything something else can''t do better. I need something with unique or useful abilities. A fucking dragon would be amazing because of how much it can do. I need things that cover a lot of areas. Flying, climbing, invisibility¡­¡±

    ¡°You have an invisible monster?¡±

    Crest, he¡¯s annoying, Tlara thought. He just wouldn¡¯t shut up. She was trying to hear above the noise of Kob¡¯s movement for any approaching creatures but Daniel kept dragging her attention back to him. First with that stupidly loud Focus, now with his loudly stupid questions. Of course she didn¡¯t have an invisible monster. Invisibility wasn¡¯t something monsters got until level 3 at least, everyone knew that!

    At least she¡¯d gotten something over him today. She planned to hold out until someone more important came to bargain for her help like the acting headwoman, but they had sent Daniel and the Artificer had been obnoxiously stubborn. That was odd given his earlier behavior. She¡¯d hoped prying questions would get him to turn away and get someone else to deal with her, but he¡¯d proven adequate in fending off her questions with clever wording. Tlara wasn¡¯t above breaking deals and would have with Daniel if her position right now wasn¡¯t precarious. She could afford to make him an enemy but couldn¡¯t say the same of those who allied with him.

    Whatever. Tlara honestly didn¡¯t mind talking about her class. Bragging could be a more appropriate word that she wouldn¡¯t choose. It was just a simple fact that Beastmasters were the most versatile of any. The strongest too, with the right powers. The best class overall. Tlara¡¯s Stasis Pouch feature did come with a terrible cost, restricting how many monsters she could use at a time and how often she could bring one out. Still, it was one of the strongest features a Beastmaster could obtain, and at level nine, well, it wasn¡¯t worth thinking about that now.

    She had to get there first. She had to get out of the Thormundz first. She had to stop walking to her death in this mine, but all these things were based on factors outside her control and Tlara hated that. At least bragging made her feel better. "No, I don¡¯t.¡± Yet, she mentally added. ¡°I barely have anything. And yes, there are ¡®better¡¯ monsters. Until recently I had a decent assortment of level twos.¡±

    That bought her a few good seconds of silence before Daniel thought of another question. ¡°So, if you were level six, could you dominate the dragon everyone¡¯s worried about?¡±

    The thought of that made Tlara¡¯s feathers ripple as if cold air had blown on the skin beneath. That, now that was a fantasy she really couldn¡¯t afford to distract herself with at the moment. ¡°Sure. I¡¯d do a lot of things at that level.¡±

    ¡°Then there are Beastmasters out there with creatures like those under their control? That sounds OP.¡± The man tried to piece together the ruins of his leather coat and sighed when the flaps came apart to expose his abdomen. ¡°That attack you did though, that was nasty.¡±

    ¡°It hit hard because they were fucking weak.¡±

    ¡°What does it do to things on your level?¡±

    Tlara shrugged. ¡°Slows them down mostly. A lot of what I do weakens instead of kills. Makes it easier to dominate.¡± She smiled, recalling one that bucked that trend. Tlara considered keeping it a secret, but maybe a little mollification would do Daniel some good. ¡°But I have one that...¡± she trailed off. She¡¯d heard it later than she should have, but she was still the first to hear it. Somewhere, echoing down the mine shaft, was music.

 Chapter 37: Falling Never Gets Old

    Murdon cursed once more at the Upswell. He cursed it for what he had lost, what he¡¯d had to do in Eido¡¯s absence, and the path it had set him on. He cursed it whilst he stared into the small fire built amongst the grass of the valley when it had turned to late evening. Two others, Quala and Janice, were with him. The smallest of miracles was that they had caught up with the guardswoman and joined forces before she ran too far, though they¡¯d still traveled far before coming to rest. You could make it to Roost¡¯s Peak in a day if you pushed, and didn¡¯t care about attracting monsters.

    The problem was the days they¡¯d need to reach Roost¡¯s Peak and then return. Hagain wouldn¡¯t have much time. The Tyrant, whoever it was, had plans. They all had plans. Tyrants manifested in power vacuums and upheavals not only because they could, but also to fulfill the dark machinations their class evolution inspired. They could take many forms, from the king that ruled with an iron fist to the snake that puppeted figureheads to conceal the true mastermind. The latter was likely the spawn of Murdon¡¯s recent troubles and the topic of the conversation.

    ¡°It can¡¯t be Jonus. Lograve saw him torn apart,¡± Murdon snarled weakly. ¡°In the moment at the bridge, I considered it as possible, but Jonus is dead.¡±

    Quala¡¯s caring eyes looked to the side as she carefully asked, ¡°Murdon, could it be Lograve?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°But could it-¡±

    ¡°The dead would return sooner than Lograve would betray me.¡± Murdon¡¯s tail beat the ground in rejection of the possibility.

    Janice was standing unsteadily on her spear as she spoke. ¡°They can, though. No one here can do it, but-¡± She sighed as she realized that wasn¡¯t helping. ¡°Do you think it was that avianoid, sir? The one that informed you about the camp rules?¡±

    ¡°It could be. It could be anyone. Besides Lograve,¡± Murdon added testily. ¡°My mind almost goes to that strange human, but no. Whoever this was had to be in Hagain to direct what happened.¡±

    Silence fell as the three pondered that. What was there to say? The fire had been burning brightly when they¡¯d started trading theories and was now halfway to embers. The truth was anyone could be a Tyrant if they assumed they were capable of anything. It was the problem Murdon had had with Daniel, assuming everything. The conversation on the identity of the Tyrant was pointless.

    ¡°Forget who it is,¡± Murdon broke the pause. ¡°What do we think they can do?¡±

    Quala ran a hand through the feathers on her head. Hair, and the avian equivalent, was something that puzzled Murdon. ¡°I don¡¯t know much about Tyrants, but it¡¯s clear there¡¯s some kind of influence power at work that¡¯s affected the other headmen. Most likely charisma based.¡±

    ¡°Why aren¡¯t we affected?¡± Janice asked. It was a question she¡¯d posed Murdon too, but Quala had a different answer.

    ¡°It depends on the kind of influence ability. Some spread like disease, person to person. Others are location based, sight based, it varies. I would be immune to most of my level and inconsistently so until about mid level five. Even if one of the level threes was behind this, they wouldn¡¯t be strong enough to bypass my defenses.¡±

    ¡°A self-cleansing power?¡± Murdon asked.

    ¡°Iron Mind.¡± Quala tapped her head. ¡°Resistance to fear, charm, and other mental effects. I awakened it this level and wisdom is my highest attribute.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know about you Commander, but I don¡¯t have anything like that,¡± Janice said with a bit of worry. ¡°What if I¡¯ve been affected?¡±

    Quala passed a glowing hand over Janice before shaking her head. ¡°No, there¡¯s nothing active on you.¡± The hand turned towards Murdon. ¡°Or you. I¡¯d detect it. It¡¯s how I knew something was going wrong in the first place.¡± They processed that for a moment.

    ¡°There¡¯s a limit,¡± Murdon theorized, and Quala nodded in agreement. ¡°It¡¯s either quantity or the method.¡±

    ¡°It has to be the method. Uh, sir,¡± Janice quickly added, but Murdon waved away the formality and urged her to explain. ¡°If the Tyrant could affect anyone, but only a limited number, they¡¯d hit you with the power. Or me, to get to you.¡±

    ¡°But there were the plots,¡± Quala countered. ¡°The camp rules, the monster attack. Those were aimed at weakening the public¡¯s opinion of Murdon. If the influence was limited by method instead of numbers, they wouldn¡¯t need to go that far.¡±

    Damn it, Murdon thought. He¡¯d hoped changing the topic would lead to a revelation, but they were talking in circles again. They were fair points though. Why had the Tyrant done what they had, and why hadn¡¯t they tried going after him? That gave him an idea. ¡°Janice and I have been working ourselves to death ever since the Upswell. What if there just hasn¡¯t been an opportunity?¡±

    ¡°Could it be spread by sex?¡± Quala asked, causing Janice to choke on her waterskin. ¡°I¡¯m being serious. If the evolved class was a Bard, it could be something along those lines.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know of any level three Bards left in the region, at least not any when this all began,¡± Murdon said, not quite meeting Quala¡¯s eyes in a sudden fit of bashfulness. She''d offered the possibility in a clinical way, but it''d still gotten to him.

    ¡°And?¡±

    ¡°It has to be a level three. Tyrants gain more power than most, but even so, what has happened cannot be the work of a level two.¡± Murdon thought for a moment. ¡°There¡¯s ten? Twenty of them? Likely a few more than we started with, but I would doubt any fresh level three for the same reasons.¡±

    Janice cleared her throat having recovered from near drowning. ¡°Well, if you¡¯re right sir, that does narrow it down. We should have thought of that sooner.¡±

    ¡°Hardly. That leaves us with most of the headmen and a handful of the stronger fighters. A Builder and librarian in Roost¡¯s Peak though I think we can discount them. The rest were already at the top of the list.¡± Murdon shook his head and returned to the earlier point. ¡°Assume both Janice and I wouldn¡¯t have had the time to be affected by this influence ability, that still leaves you, Quala.¡±

    ¡°I told you I¡¯d be immune.¡±

    ¡°But would the Tyrant know that?¡± Murdon pointed a claw to her in emphasis. ¡°You¡¯re the strongest healer in the region and that would make you a priority target regardless of how the power is limited. An attempt must have been made.¡±

    Quala frowned at that and looked into the fire while she thought. Her eyes widened for just a moment as a memory surfaced. ¡°I know what it is. Not who,¡± she quickly said as Murdon¡¯s gaze grew intense. ¡°If you¡¯re right, there¡¯s only one time I can think of that an attempt like that was made. It was when I was in a tavern. Some of the townsfolk were talking about you and somehow it turned into this conspiracy about you being a Tyrant. I thought it was odd at the time, but it was right near the start. With what had happened to Eido it just seemed like people¡¯s fears getting the better of them. No one was talking about burning down buildings.¡±

    Murdon absorbed this knowledge and nodded. It wasn¡¯t the bitterest pill to take. The influence ability being based on rumor and conspiracy agreed with what he¡¯d seen so far, even if it was an ill omen for the future. Something like that could spread beyond the Tyrant¡¯s immediate area, across even great distances if combined with messaging powers. ¡°Hmm. Rumor. Reinforced by a Tyrant, yes, that matches what we¡¯ve seen. Quala, could you cleanse¡­¡± Murdon trailed off as he finally saw the look of horror in Quala¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°Murdon, that happened in Roost¡¯s Peak.¡±

    Murdon stood, scattering the fire with his tail. ¡°No more breaks. We¡¯re getting there tonight.¡±

    ¡­

    The music playing in the mine was a godsend. It became audible just as they reached the first branching path in the mine. Daniel only knew because the other tunnel became visible as Kob charge crawled through the first one. Most of the mine cart tracks went down the second path, leaving two to accompany Daniel as he walked further into the mine.

    ¡°This is probably a trap,¡± Tlara warned balefully.

    ¡°It¡¯s not, that¡¯s Evalyn playing.¡± The confidence in his voice made Tlara raise an eyebrow.

    ¡°And you¡¯re sure how?¡±

    Daniel shrugged. ¡°I know the song.¡± He did, and he tried to hide the embarrassment that came with that knowledge. The muffled sound coming through Kob¡¯s mass was an accordion cover of the song Daniel had played Evalyn to catastrophic effect back when he had a chance with her. There was some improvisation to it since she¡¯d only heard the beginning, but the core of the song was the same. In Daniel¡¯s defense, the saxophone opening of the piece was a widely known romantic meme in his world, and Evalyn wouldn¡¯t have known it was meant to be ironic. Either way, he was just happy Evalyn wasn¡¯t singing the lyrics.

    Tlara squawked lowly in a way that could have been a grunt and said, ¡°Doesn¡¯t sound like Bard music. Doesn¡¯t feel like it at least.¡±

    That was an odd thing to say. The music sounded like, well, music to Daniel. What¡¯s the difference? he only thought because chances were Tlara wouldn¡¯t tell him. ¡°She doesn¡¯t sound far. Maybe we should go ahead of Kob to get to her?¡±

    ¡°Protection,¡± Kob¡¯s voice caused a small earthquake, but the tunnel walls held. That sparked fresh anxiety in Daniel as he realized Claire¡¯s effect on him was slowly wearing off. At the same time, the music stopped.

    ¡°Kob?¡± the voice of Evalyn distantly asked.

    The section of tunnel around Evalyn was a sight to behold. The otherwise flawlessly cut walls had been broken by something, causing the tunnel to collapse in on itself. She had been trapped in the collapse. Mercifully, it was in a pocket in the rubble instead of under it. Still, the vine giant needed to shift the earth to get to her and make a passage through. This was a slow process, exacerbated by the impact of Kob¡¯s level disparity.

    While they did that, Evalyn explained what had happened and Daniel tried not to look at the mess on the floor. Their team had planned on training in the passes surrounding Roost¡¯s Peak as Daniel¡¯s had until they¡¯d been approached by several of the garrison who¡¯d asked that they investigate the rumor of lost andorite. No one had been excited about fighting underground. Unfortunately, Gadriel had been the first to respond and had heartily agreed.

    That had been about a week ago. The first few days were eventful. No metal, just fighting. Evalyn was almost level two from the earned advancements. Then, late two days ago, they¡¯d explored the secondary passageway and everything had gone wrong. Someone had called out from deeper in the tunnel and Gadriel charged into the darkness to help. Half of the group followed without thinking and the ground exploded around them.

    ¡°Explosives? Like, uh.¡± Daniel paused. Dynamite¡¯s probably not the word they use. ¡°Like a bomb? Not an ability?¡±

    Evalyn wasn¡¯t visible at this point, concealed by both rock and wriggling vines. ¡°I think so. I still don¡¯t know why they would set a trap.¡±

    ¡°Did they think you were monsters?¡±

    ¡°They called out to us for help.¡± She sighed and continued. None of them saw who¡¯d done it, they¡¯d had bigger problems. The explosion had opened a cavity in the rock that sloped downwards. When she¡¯d recovered, Gadriel, Thomas, and Lograve were missing and presumed to have fallen down the pocket. Evalyn and Tak, after taking a moment to discuss, decided to return to Roost¡¯s Peak for help. ¡°We knew you should be back soon and neither of us had anything that would let us climb back up if we fell,¡± Evalyn explained as if defending herself in court. ¡°Better that people knew what had happened than we all get stuck down here. I guess Tak made it back?¡±

    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    ¡°If you could call it that, sure,¡± Tlara said, looking with unease at the walls around her. ¡°They blow this section up too?¡±

    ¡°No, that was the monster¡¯s fault.¡± Daniel looked at the remains on the floor puzzled. They looked like they belonged to one of the moles, maybe a higher level variant, but several had dug through the tunnel further up and hadn¡¯t brought it down. He brought that up and Evalyn sighed. ¡°I¡¯m not sure, but I think this part of the mine was weakened by the blast. We¡¯re not far from where it happened. Is Tak ok?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯ll live. Probably,¡± Tlara said airily.

    ¡°Are you ok?¡± Daniel asked.

    Evalyn¡¯s accordion played a few more notes and rocks shifted to reveal her as if in answer. A few scrapes, but the Bard was otherwise untouched and as unnaturally beautiful as ever. ¡°Ok enough.¡± She looked at her rescuers and didn¡¯t see everyone she was expecting. ¡°You¡¯re missing people?¡±

    Daniel could tell Tlara was going to say something bluntly and cut her off. ¡°We fought a level five and things went bad. We nearly died. They¡¯re healing. Khare¡¯s, uh, in Kob right now.¡±

    The Bard nearly dropped her instrument. ¡°A level five? Are you all insane?¡±

    ¡°Oh, Kob fucking is.¡± Tlara laughed over the sound of shifting rock. Kob was almost through the collapse. ¡°They leveled up to five. Tripled their level disparity and now they can barely move.¡±

    ¡°We both leveled up too. Not sure about Khare or Sigron,¡± Daniel added.

    Evalyn smiled and said, ¡°I guess my charms won¡¯t work on you now. Probably for the best.¡±

    Tlara looked between the two, misreading the familiarity. ¡°I thought you said you didn¡¯t fuck?¡±

    ¡°Ready,¡± Kob interrupted all of them, signaling that a roughly one meter wide passage had been cut through the collapsed rubble. Rocks had been forced into the larger pieces of stone once forming the walls, and the passageway appeared stable. The Beastmaster took one look at the darkness beyond and scowled.

    ¡°Fuck that. We found the Bard and it sounds like the others didn¡¯t make it. Time to cut and run.¡±

    ¡°We can¡¯t just leave them,¡± Daniel and Evalyn said at the same time, causing Tlara to narrow her eyes. ¡°You haven¡¯t found a level three monster yet,¡± Daniel added.

    Tlara looked into the darkness once more and huffed. ¡°Fine.¡±

    Daniel was regretting his decision by the time they reached the site of the explosion. The thought of the walls collapsing around him more and more became the center of his focus. He wasn¡¯t quite paralyzed, it was just a good thing Kob was moving so slowly, or else he¡¯d be the one dragging them down. The tide of fear was being kept at bay only by the thought that it couldn¡¯t get worse than it already was.

    The dark hole in the earth proved otherwise. Instead of collapsing the tunnel, the explosion had opened up an undiscovered chasm within the mountains. It ran perpendicularly to the original and at a sharp drop. If it hadn¡¯t been there, none of the original team would have survived the trap. Instead of death by fallen rocks, the three missing members had merely suffered a fall. At least, that¡¯s what they all hoped.

    ¡°How far down do you think it goes?¡± Evalyn asked quietly, standing close to the edge. Tlara answered by tossing a loose piece of rubble down. It quickly disappeared into the darkness.

    Daniel took another sip from his waterskin. It was like a water bottle, but it quickly imparted a strange taste he had yet to get used to. It didn¡¯t matter, his mouth was too dry for him to notice.

    ¡°Do you have any beasts that could help?¡±

    Tlara glared at Kob as she answered Evalyn. ¡°I did.¡±

    ¡°Do you have anything?¡± Daniel found the ability to act through curiosity. Evalyn was the only one of the adventuring party he hadn¡¯t seen fight.

    ¡°I can¡¯t charm stone at this level.¡± There was a hint of humor in her voice, but otherwise, the Bard was serious. ¡°I know we have to, but how are we going to get down there without falling ourselves?¡±

    ¡°Climb,¡± Kob answered, sinking roots into the ground to spread their buff.

    Scaling down the crevasse, Daniel learned several things. The first was thanks to his Quick Mind ability, which allowed him to estimate the slope between 70 and 75 degrees from the pull of gravity. That had surprised him given that the description of the feature hadn¡¯t mentioned anything about doing math for him, but when he had wondered how steep the surface was an answer came a minute later. It felt like he¡¯d tasked a background process in his subconscious. Similar to many powers he used, Daniel wondered what it could do at level nine. No automatic answer came after that mental question.

    Then there was the descent. Daniel discovered that hating heights came to him far more easily when Claire¡¯s spell wearing off combined with the anxiety of being deep underground. The darkness below defied the torchlight. No one was going to waste a light source by tossing one down, the sparking sticks were magical items. Obviously, and very minor ones, but valuable still. Another thing he would have to look into making if he ever got out of here alive.

    Kob¡¯s climbing buff had a new development as well. Instead of clunky, magnetic boot-like movement, the vines wrapped around him now afforded something close to a normal walking pace. This was complicated by the descent growing narrow enough at points that he had to crawl, a terrifying experience made even worse when Daniel wondered how long it would take him to die if he got stuck now that he had Regeneration. That he could move at all was thanks to Kob above him, threatening to envelop him should he stall.

    The giant¡¯s attributes were still a partial mystery to Daniel. One was level five now, and whatever it was tied into the climbing feature that could be spread to allies. As Tlara had frequently reminded them, Kob¡¯s dexterity was only in the 20s. Beyond that, it was hard to tell. Daniel could ask Kob to share their statistics through their identification feature, but he didn¡¯t fully understand how that worked and was not in the mood to figure it out now.

    The only new development that didn¡¯t confuse or crush Daniel¡¯s mind was the music. And oh, how that was a revelation on its own. When space allowed, Evalyn played her accordion as the group descended. It wasn¡¯t the music from home, that song here would be comedically absurd, but a light driving melody. Simple and repetitive, and something that Daniel felt would let him run for hours. His steps covered more ground, his pack was lighter, and exuberance pushed against the fear inside of him. Fear was winning but Daniel would take any assistance he could get. That included the notification on his phone that had appeared when Evalyn first played, which accompanied the notification from Kob¡¯s buff.

    <hr>

    Alert: You are under the effect of a friendly Feature: Grapple Vines and a friendly Ability: Lightfoot Song

    -

    Lightfoot Song (Ability, Dexterity or Charisma, Domain: Enchantment, Bardic Music: Instrument/Voice, Level: 1):

    You possess the Power to instill alacrity in yourself and allies. Through the use of appropriate music, you may improve the travel speed and evasiveness of friendly Creatures in a short radius around yourself. This effect scales with your dexterity, and with your charisma to a lesser extent. This is an Acoustic Ability that does not function if the target is not receptive. This is a Magical Ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression.

    <hr>

    Grapple Vines wasn¡¯t in his Encyclopedia, but Lightfoot Song was one of the powers Daniel had read about in Lograve¡¯s library. It felt odd to him now that he hadn¡¯t advanced from that particular study session. Daniel made a mental note to ask Lograve about that, placing it right under the one constantly reminding him not to die. In any case, the music was revolutionary. Not only because it was the first magical song Daniel had heard, it was the first time he¡¯d considered the use of buffs in combat. Sure, Kob had given him and the others the ability to climb before, but that had only led to disaster.

    Another tight spot came up and the feeling of stone at his back froze the breath in his lungs. Close your eyes and keep going, Daniel told himself. Thinking about something else was good. Thinking about the vines wrapped around his hands and feet, and the possibility of getting wedged between stones forever, was very bad.

    Bards were amazing. For more reasons than the fact that the one with him now still shone with beauty despite being stuck in a cave for over a day. The added dimension of their music had Daniel rethinking everything he¡¯d thought about fighting in this world. If Bards could improve travel speed, surely they had songs that affected other traits. Music that could increase strength, reduce damage, maybe even music to stop people from dying?

    That would have to be at level nine, Daniel thought. He could only guess though. Without having a clear sense of any power above level three, there was no way of knowing how the power scale of this world worked towards the top end. What could someone at level nine do, and how many were there in the world? Gadriel had mentioned an ability that could sunder mountains when they¡¯d first spoken, but that had been said off-hand and the Hero was probably exaggerating. Unless he wasn¡¯t. Kob was level 5, ostensibly halfway to the pinnacle. Was what they¡¯d showed thus far true examples of that kind of power, or had the gestalt been holding back?

    ¡°How far are we going to fucking go?¡± Tlara complained. She was below Daniel, with Kob and Evalyn above him. The formation made sense, it kept the strongest at the edges to protect the weaker fighters, though it meant Daniel had to be careful where he looked. ¡°In case you forget we have to climb back up too. If we find something dangerous right now, we¡¯re fucking dead.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s just been ten minutes Tlara,¡± Evalyn, currently struggling to get through the narrow gap Daniel had passed, retorted. ¡°We could almost be there.¡±

    ¡°The longer we climb, the harder it is to believe those idiots survived.¡±

    ¡°Hey!¡± The Bard reached a point where she could stand but didn¡¯t resume playing. ¡°We don¡¯t leave people behind.¡±

    The sight of Tlara glaring now was odd. Mostly because she was standing on a nearly vertical wall, but a small part of that was due to it being directed at someone other than himself. The intensity in the eyes was the same, like a tight laser directed away from him. They didn¡¯t burn to look at when pointed away. ¡°Not for long you won¡¯t. Taking risks like this is just going to get you-¡± She didn¡¯t get to finish the sentence.

    In an instant the earth began to shake, scattering rocks that only loosely clung to the wall. The roots anchoring Daniel and the others were stronger and kept them in place. He suffered a small strike to his back, but that barely stung. Everyone took a moment to collect themselves. In Tlara¡¯s case, this was spent formulating the perfect ¡®I told you so¡¯. The second, stronger earthquake preempted her.

    The only silver lining was that Daniel wasn¡¯t carrying lightning bolts or spines. They were useful but incredibly dangerous. He added figuring out a way to make them safer to the list of things to do should he survive the fall. The passage they had been climbing down had almost broken apart from the violent shaking. Kob¡¯s roots had allowed Sigron to withstand a strike from a level five opponent. The Octyrrum¡¯s power was beyond them. All it took was moving one limb close enough to a wall to slow Daniel¡¯s fall, the problem was the walls wouldn¡¯t stop shaking. The result was an ungraceful descent punctuated by periods of almost slowing to a stop.

    Someone¡¯s torch had fallen out of their belt loop, illuminating the next hundred meters or so below Daniel. With surprise, he realized it was his. His side was bleeding slightly from where it had scraped against the rock, and that blow had taken both the torch and one of his daggers.

    Evalyn sailed by as Daniel latched temporarily onto another wall. The Bard was tumbling through the air, also bloody from where she had roughly made contact with the sides. Still alive, she was screaming loud enough to make that obvious, but completely disorganized in her movements. Daniel had at least been able to keep relatively oriented towards the ground, allowing him to anticipate when he would hit the wall.

    The question as to why he was able to do that briefly crossed his mind before the wall he was sliding down broke apart and he was in free fall again. The difference between his ability to control his fall, and Evalyn¡¯s, was stark. The only comparator he¡¯d had before was Tlara, whose wing arms allowed her to ignore the need to use Kob¡¯s vines. She¡¯d still struck the sides of the passage twice, but was now below the light of the torch and racing to the bottom. What would be at the bottom? Daniel thought. Worst case, it would be giant spikes of earth that would impale him just before the tunnel collapsed.

    Daniel felt that fear should be arresting his movements. Claire¡¯s ability had completely worn off by this point and death was chasing him to the bottom. He had been stunned the first few moments of the fall until the first impact, jarring him into action. Now, something else emboldened him. Evalyn was falling too fast and another narrow section had been revealed by the torch.

    Following a strange instinct, the Artificer drew himself in and pointed down. Flailing as she was, Evalyn¡¯s speed wasn¡¯t the fastest it could be. With seconds to spare, he grabbed her in a flying hug that altered their trajectory from the center of the tunnel. Whatever power was allowing him more freedom in the air, perhaps the parkour one, had combined with his Quick Mind feature to reveal just the angle he needed to push them over the hole in the shaking rock.

    Kob¡¯s vines, centered on the clusters around their waists, stuck like velcro to the walls to slow down the ludicrous speed both were going. Trying to immediately do so would break their backs, so each vine only tethered for a moment before letting go. It was reminiscent of how the devil root core¡¯s minions slowed their fall and was further evidence of how improved Kob¡¯s power had become.

    Unlike the rest of the tunnel, the section that greeted Daniel and Evalyn following the narrow junction began to slope horizontally. More surprising was that the earth had finally stopped tearing itself apart. Kob¡¯s vines were afforded more leverage in the still earth and halted the two just before the end of the tunnel. The splintered remains of the dropped torch, still fizzing with occasional light, and the dagger he¡¯d lost earlier welcomed them on arrival.

    Daniel looked at Evalyn in his arms, realized he¡¯d pulled off a feat worthy of some kind of super spy, and fumbled terrifically as he looked for a pithy one liner. ¡°I guess it¡¯s a good thing you fell for me this time.¡± His voice being hoarse from screaming didn¡¯t help the delivery.

    The Bard chuckled and gave him a sympathetic look, Daniel glad to see she recognized it for the joke it was rather than something else. ¡°Level two or not, you really need to work on your charisma.¡± It was at that point both realized Tlara, who had been below them, was not among them. That turned their attention to the mouth of the tunnel and they finally heard the sound of distant fighting. ¡°Your timing as well!¡±

 Chapter 38: Monster Mash

    Peering through what turned out to be a hole in the wall, Daniel gaped and Evalyn stared when they saw the space ahead of them. The mountain had been broken here. A vertical passage, like the one they had just fallen through, pierced through the rock with a perfectly cylindrical shape. Plant life crept on the sides near the top where light would best reach. With it now being late evening it was dark twilight, only just brighter than the tunnel behind them. It wasn¡¯t just that this hole extended all the way to where the mountain met the sky, it was its width as well. Daniel estimated it was a kilometer wide, maybe more. ¡°How did no one know this was here?¡±

    Evalyn shook her head and pointed away from the space, towards the ground below them. Gadriel, hand reached out to accept his returning sword, was dueling on a rock shelf overlooking the giant chasm. Blood stained his armor in places, an understandable exception to the near flawless fighting style Daniel had observed due to how outnumbered he was by both the dead and the living.

    The trail of corpses showed Gadriel had fought a retreat from the edge overlooking the cylindrical chasm, though there was no sense as to how long the Hero had been fighting. As for the opponents that still breathed, it only took Daniel a second to identify all of them. The majority of the thirty odd monsters were level one or two. Though Gadriel was technically on par with half of that number, Daniel had learned the Hero was worth far more than his level would suggest.

    Gadriel was moving through the enemy mass like a harlequin, flinging his sword almost as soon as it touched his hand while doing ridiculous acrobatics. The man¡¯s kicks and punches impacted the various monsters as if they had been delivered from a steady fighting position, instead of towards the end of a backflip. There was an odd grace to his movements, likely sourced from his Balance feature, but there were times that Gadriel seemed to float for a few extra seconds.

    Whatever powers he was using, Gadriel was a terror to the monsters. In less than ten seconds, Gadriel kicked off of an adult burrower skab, landed two punches on yet another mole that sent the poor level one flying with only half its jaw, brought a foot down hard on an insectoid creature Daniel identified as a shiver spider, and flung his sword out again after it cut a large section of flesh off of the original skab.

    Only one creature had died from that exchange but Gadriel had gone nearly untouched, even with his shield on his back instead of on his arm. He¡¯s moving that way to juke them out, Daniel realized. What could he do if he didn¡¯t have to defend himself? The Hero¡¯s display was so impressive it had taken Daniel a second to register the other mortal in the space. Thomas, miraculously alive, huddled away from the brawl. Despite his apparent vitality, the Cleric wasn¡¯t doing much to help Gadriel.

    The third participant in the battle noticed the two in the wall gawking and yelled at them as she flew by. ¡°You going to fucking help or what?¡± Tlara was gliding around the space, taking care to avoid the other flying creatures as she seemed to do nothing to help Gadriel. But then again, every so often a monster about to strike at one of the Hero¡¯s blind spots would recoil in sudden pain. She was wise to avoid a direct fight. Two of the flyers were young skyshock wyverns, no doubt drawn to the brawl from above. Without beasts to help her out, Tlara would¡­ Wait a minute. ¡°Those wyverns are level three, Tlara!¡±

    For the first time, Daniel said something that made the avianoid smile. She looked at the wyvern Gadriel¡¯s sword had been focusing and her beak almost bent upwards with joy. ¡°Oh. Oooh fuck yes,¡± she trilled. ¡°Those two are mine!¡± she declared to the world at large. ¡°Let me at the injured one. If Kob ever gets down here, tell them to tie up the second one like they promised!¡±

    Tlara swooped towards the injured wyvern as Daniel looked up. By their auras, Kob and Khare were still hundreds of meters up. For whatever reason, Kob was having trouble. Their speed wouldn¡¯t be a factor for falling, but the collapsing rock could be hampering the gestalt¡¯s descent.

    ¡°Well?¡± Evalyn¡¯s voice drew his attention. She was smiling too, expectantly even. ¡°Are you going to go down there and be a hero or am I going to have to push you?¡±

    Daniel peered over the edge and eyed the drop. It was about two stories up, more than he would have braved before his experience with falling out of the sky. Twice. Still, he would have preferred sniping from the elevated position. He wasn¡¯t Gadriel, he couldn¡¯t wade through monsters. Evalyn probably guessed as much and insisted. ¡°I need the space.¡± Daniel looked between the horde of death and the beautiful woman asking him for a favor. There wasn¡¯t a choice here, even if he was already in something romantic with Claire.

    At least he nailed this landing. Daniel held his crossbow up with one hand, using the other and his feet to break the fall. Above him, Evalyn was standing on the lip of the tunnel with instrument in hand. A brief light glowed across it, a tell-tale sign of some abilities, and then played.

    <hr>

    Alert: You are under the effect of a friendly Ability: Valor Song*

    <hr>

    She was still playing a metallic accordion, but the sound that echoed across the battlecliff was, well Daniel couldn¡¯t quite place it. Alex was the virtuoso, not him. The closest he could place it was what he thought was called a woodwind instrument. Not a flute, the sound wasn¡¯t that high-pitched. Though honestly, Evalyn could be playing the triangle and it wouldn¡¯t matter.

    Lightfoot Song had opened Daniel¡¯s eyes to the power of a bard. Valor Song opened his heart. It was everything the background music his gaming groups used tried and failed to capture. Brushing away his fear was the least this anthem was doing. It resonated with Daniel¡¯s desires to survive, to protect his friends, to overcome these enemies, and to someday go home. With this song, he felt he could hold against any siege and break through any defense.

    Evalyn shouldn¡¯t have asked him to jump down, her song would have done it for her. That being said, the exhilaration was still tempered by common sense. Charging into the mosh pit with Gadriel, who was now fighting even harder, would be death. Even if Daniel longed to summon the talons and leap into battle with a spray of feathers.

    What? The music faded into the background as he took stock of that alien desire. The talons made sense, but feathers? What just happened? Wait, damnit, I need to focus. The distressingly long list of things he needed to investigate lengthened as Daniel braced the crossbow and sighted toward the side of the monster pack closest to Thomas. They were among the most damaged and most threatening to the Cleric.

    Evalyn¡¯s song played on as he cast Scatter Shot on the ammunition and took aim, activating Snap Shot a moment later. The sequence was necessary as there was a limit on using abilities at the same time. Most, but annoying not all, abilities that required constant mana consumption couldn¡¯t be combined. It was kind of confusing and even Lograve had said most people had to try out combinations before figuring out what was and wasn¡¯t possible at the beginning.

    Thankfully, Snap Shot and Scatter Shot could be used together so long as he staggered them. Whether it was because one was a spell and one was an attack, or if the magic of the two powers just decided they liked each other, it meant he could use his most powerful attacking ability without needing to rely on unassisted aiming. Whatever power affected his hands was the opposite example, preventing him from using Snap Shot or Scatter Shot while the change was manifested. Not that Daniel would ever want to fire his crossbow while his hands were all weird.

    The only downside was that the feeling from the Bard song was dramatically decreased after the sobering mental jolt of imagining something related to feathers. That deeply saddened Daniel. Bardic inspiration was a classic fantasy staple and now he felt like he was missing out. If he¡¯d somehow broken his ¡®receptiveness¡¯ to the ability, he might never have that feeling again. Though if it was any consolation, three monsters would never feel anything again. Two shardrock moles and one of the spiders that seemed to always be vibrating were the closest to the burst of ghostly crossbow bolts. Others were injured and turned away from the Hero to retaliate against he who had freshly struck them.

    Daniel looked first to Gadriel, then Tlara for aid. Neither would be much help. The Hero was busy solo¡¯ing everything else, and Tlara was now latched onto the injured wyvern and glaring intently at it. Beyond gliding, the assailed wyvern was motionless. She must be taking it over, Daniel guessed. The Beastmaster needed to hurry. Ten monsters, three of them level two, had broken from the main pack.

    On the upside, Gadriel would finish off the rest of the ground monsters around him. On the other hand, Daniel had drawn aggro. Spiders twitched side to side, still loping towards him at a fast pace. The surviving moles were slower but had dug into the ground to avoid another ranged attack. Churning earth aimed for his position, as well as the auras outlining the creatures underneath, were the only signs they were still in the fight. A shock runner was in the group as well, oddly bereft of other lightning-attuned kin in its pack.

    I need more crossbows, Daniel thought as he desperately reloaded. In situations like this, there was simply no time to use the ranged weapon effectively. Experience had cut down how long Daniel needed to replace the bolts, though now he was at the point of diminishing returns. Even with improved strength, there was a minimum amount of time needed to perform the necessary actions of pulling back the string, drawing the bolt, and casting Scatter Shot. If there was a pile of loaded crossbows by him, or better yet a readied firing line of them, that would be different.

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    Oh, thank God. Daniel sighed with relief as his second shot either killed or incapacitated the alpha shiver spider in the horde. Arachnophobia wasn¡¯t his, but no one looked forward to fighting a jittering spider twice as tall as them. There were still three spindly things with prominent jaws intent on ripping into him, though they were only his height. Just before he had to summon his talons, Daniel killed two of them with Snap Shot and his two daggers. He charged towards the last one, changed hands spread outwards.

    After sliding under the last shiver spider and lashing out at its legs, Daniel had to wonder if Valor Song was still affecting him subconsciously. The initial high was gone but he hadn¡¯t frozen or hesitated at the thought of power sliding under a giant spider with talons outstretched. He¡¯d just done it, and it worked! Granted the spider was only level one and already injured, but Daniel was still just Daniel. A young guy from Earth whose life had imploded right before it took off had severed seven of the eight, no wait, nine legs of a spider monster with his hands. The reverie was broken when a shock runner, scurrying on the wall containing Evalyn, zapped him in the back.

    The moles prepared to capitalize on the momentary seizure of Daniel¡¯s muscles when Evalyn got to him first. Valor Song, either in its second stanza or the first repetition, was interrupted by a four note refrain that sounded different from the rest of the music. There was harmony in them like the resonance of an incantation. Are all Bard powers music-based?

    Whether that was true or not, the short burst of sound freed Daniel before returning to the previous song. Scattering rocks marked the Shock Runner¡¯s retreat from him. In its flight, it had taken notice of Thomas. The Cleric was still slumped by the wall, unresponsive to the threat. Dead? No, he¡¯s breathing and I can see his aura. The shock runner was looking to change that. The moles would probably follow him, but he should ask. ¡°Evalyn, I¡¯m going after Thomas. Will you be ok?¡±

    ¡°Yep!¡± Her vibrant voice bounced around the space as if alive itself, adding another layer to the music. The Bard had one leg up against the cave wall while she played, watching both Gadriel and Daniel with a look of deep concentration.

    The trails of upturned earth followed Daniel as he took off after the shock runner. It was clear by now the moles moved faster below ground than they did above. Daniel was faster but the shock runner was the fastest. He briefly considered throwing a crossbow bolt at it before an idea struck him. Oh, I¡¯m an idiot! It was something so simple, so basic, he should have been doing it ever since he¡¯d gotten the ability.

    Hunter¡¯s amplification of Daniel¡¯s identification feature was an exemplary display of how discovering combinations in powers could vastly improve their function. In the face of that, this idea wasn¡¯t as impressive. It was more common sense, though it solved a major problem. Daniel didn¡¯t have enough time to stop, reload his crossbow, and shoot the shock runner before it reached Thomas. Even if he tried the moles would fall onto him. What he did have time for was to pluck his daggers from the corpses of the shiver spiders with Telekinetic Reach, then hurl them after the beast. Both landed squarely in the same leg but didn¡¯t explode with the effect of Scatter Shot. What was the point? They¡¯d only hit one target. That annoyed the shock runner but wouldn¡¯t kill the level two creature outright.

    Removing the daggers with another twin use of Telekinetic Reach caused blood, sickeningly purple, to spray out. Some of it flecked onto Daniel¡¯s arms from the carried momentum as he caught the daggers. Daniel ignored that, at least he tried to. Then, he hurled one dagger after the other at the creature, again at the same leg. Snap Shot was ever the saving grace allowing him to pull off otherwise difficult throws.

    The mana cost of Telekinetic Reach meant Daniel couldn¡¯t do this all day, especially with the penalty from the shock runner technically possessing them. However the daggers were light, the distance not too far, and the effect worth the effort. This was exactly what he had been asking for, a rapid ranged attack to use when he couldn¡¯t reload his crossbow. The knives arced back and forth between Daniel and the shock runner, almost like Gadriel¡¯s sword juggling which had been the inspiration for the idea. The latter was a clean, fast arc through the air whereas Daniel¡¯s maneuver was a more pointed motion with a delay to the return.

    It wasn¡¯t like the shock runner cared how its back right leg was steadily hacked off. It tried to resist by skating across the wall in a snakeline motion while firing lightning behind it. Daniel could feel the work Valor Song was putting in as he dodged each one mid-stride without breaking in determination. Danger meant nothing to him right now. There was what needed to be done, and what he had to do to make it so. The shock runner needed to die and Daniel was going to kill it.

    The beast fell off of the wall as Tlara screamed. It didn¡¯t sound like a pained scream so Daniel ignored it. Instead, he recalled his daggers for the tenth time and fell on the wounded animal without any hint of remorse. Nothing about the resulting melee was fair. The shock runner relied on its speed to build up its electrical attack and was practically helpless delimbed.

    Daniel didn¡¯t stop until the purple blood drenched his hands. It was darker than the lightning spines but reminiscent of their color. That wasn¡¯t the sight of that which made Daniel pause. It was the feathers, sharp as knives, which peppered the corpse that fully sobered him. Tlara was the only feathered creature nearby, but these were primarily red and auburn. Not hers, they couldn¡¯t be. Where had they come from?

    Then the moles broke the surface of the ground, saw the butchered shock runner, and fled. Had Daniel noticed, he would have wondered why they¡¯d chosen this moment of all times to run. Their kin still crowded Gadriel even as the throng lost members every few seconds. The Artificer did look over to that battle and saw the conclusion minutes before it would happen. The monsters were just outmatched. Very much so, now that Tlara had dominated one of the wyverns. She was using it to weaken its twin, no doubt bent on capturing that one too. With the primary threats in the sky otherwise eliminated and the tempo of Valor Song driving Gadriel¡¯s deadly blows, it was over.

    Gadriel didn¡¯t need his help, but Thomas might. The Cleric was crumpled into himself and deathly pale. His toughened robes were torn, though there should have been a pool of blood from the wounds those tatters implied. It was almost like how Daniel had looked after Regeneration had healed the wounds from his fall from the second sky island, but Thomas didn¡¯t have that power and what healing he did have didn¡¯t work if he was unconscious. ¡°Thomas, are you ok?¡± he asked, kneeling by the Cleric. He couldn¡¯t help but notice that the red of his hair had become white in a few places, though only at the very end of the strands.

    ¡°Guy, ya made it.¡±

    ¡°You need to heal yourself,¡± Daniel chided, noting with concern the weakness in the voice. This wasn¡¯t like finding Hunter after the root core. Thomas wasn¡¯t on death¡¯s door, he was just in the neighborhood.

    A hand fraily clutched the symbol hanging from Thomas¡¯ waist. It was his Focus, but it was cracked. A jagged line ran through from one side to the other, intersecting the cupped hand in the center. ¡°Can¡¯t, my Focus¡¯ out.¡±

    ¡°Did it break when you fell?¡±

    ¡°Y-yeah.¡± That was a lie. Thomas didn¡¯t have the strength to be convincing. That being said, Daniel didn¡¯t have the abrasiveness to call him on it. He asked the more pressing question instead.

    ¡°Where¡¯s Lograve?¡±

    Thomas winced and mulled on his answer for a few seconds before simply saying, ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±

    The rock was illuminated by a flash of lightning. Daniel turned and saw Tlara manically firing her wyvern at the other as it tried to flee. Daniel didn¡¯t blame it. Not only was the one trying to dominate it laughing dementedly, she was using that inflict pain ability on it as well.

    ¡°Does she always fight like that, Guy?¡± Thomas asked behind him. He sounded just as skeptical towards the avianoid¡¯s sanity as Daniel.

    He wanted to commiserate. The fate of the last missing member took priority. ¡°What do you mean you don¡¯t know? What happened?¡±

    Thomas grimaced. Not in physical pain, but distress. ¡°When I woke up after the explosion it was just Gadriel. You¡¯ll have to ask him.¡±

    What happened? Daniel wondered. The monsters around the Hero were now dead or fleeing. He¡¯d have the chance to ask soon. Maybe Gadriel had some healing power or an item Thomas was sworn to secrecy over. Healing wasn¡¯t rare in itself, and there was a level two ability Hand Clerics could get that provided a massive, one time heal. Rarer, more desirable powers did exist, like ones that bypassed the restriction on use above the caster¡¯s level.

    Valor Song ended when it became clear the battle was over. Tlara was still chasing her prize, though Gadriel was now unopposed. Daniel was the one he addressed first. ¡°Sir Artificer! Your arrival here is fortuitous!¡± The Hero was still bleeding in several places, not that that would slow him. ¡°Does Sir Kob accompany you?¡±

    Daniel glanced towards the auras and saw they were still a third of the way from the bottom of the tunnel. Moving, so Kob wasn¡¯t stuck, but slowly. ¡°They¡¯re here! Tak warned us about what happened but he¡¯s been badly hurt. Sigron and Khare too but-¡± Daniel shook his head. Too much to explain.  ¡°Where¡¯s Lograve?¡±

    ¡°Ah.¡± Gadriel turned towards the cliff. ¡°I believe he¡¯s at the bottom. When-¡° The Hero paused and exchanged a glance with Thomas that only Tlara missed.

    ¡°I guess it¡¯s a good thing we have a Hero then.¡± Evalyn lightly landed on the rock shelf and addressed Gadriel in an almost mocking tone. ¡°You should go get him and let us clean up your mess.¡±

    ¡°Would you prefer to strike me from your retelling of this day entirely, then?¡± Gadriel challenged evenly.

    ¡°Heh, never fails,¡± Thomas wheezed. Daniel blinked at him as the two behind him started arguing. ¡°Bards and Heroes. They can be like that.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Both had been working so well together during the fight only to turn on each other the instant it was over. Evalyn and Gadriel were both good people, it didn¡¯t make sense. Well, to be fair Gadriel did have some flaws. And did he know Evalyn that well?

    ¡°You know how cats and dogs can get? It¡¯s just like that. It¡¯s just a class thing.¡±

    Wait, there are pets here? In all this time Daniel had yet to see anything resembling a domesticated animal. And no, tamed monsters didn¡¯t count. Even if Hunter tolerated petting, it didn¡¯t count. There was a pause in their conversation, and then he asked, ¡°So, Lograve fell over the edge?¡±

    ¡°I think.¡± Thomas shrugged. ¡°He was gone when I came to.¡±

    ¡°What about the monsters?¡±

    ¡°Oh, they¡¯re new. The earth shook and they came swarming out of the hole a few minutes before you showed up. If he was still down there¡­¡± Thomas trailed off, lowering himself back as the implication was left to speak for itself.

    ¡°I need to know.¡± Daniel stood and started walking to the edge. He had to know. Lograve had survived a dragon. He could summon ice from the air and make anyone smile with his ridiculousness. He had taught Daniel about the world and welcomed him into his home. He needed to be sure.

    The spat between Gadriel and Evalyn was dying out when he reached the edge. Night was truly falling now, enveloping the borehole through the mountain in darkness. There was no way to see to the bottom, not without Hunter¡¯s senses. There shouldn¡¯t have been. But something at the very bottom of the world registered to Daniel, tickling an unfamiliar sense. Not only that, it reached out to him.

 Chapter 39: Rorshawd Alimar

    It was a good day. Strike that, this was the best fucking day in the history of the Octyrrum. Flying was not an unfamiliar sensation to Tlara. She¡¯d done it within an hour of getting Grow Wings, back in Aughal. Her father had even organized for her to be invisible so she could jump off the Eye of the Spires without revealing to everyone what she¡¯d done. Come to think of it, that was about the last nice thing he¡¯d ever done for her.

    Flying herself was hollow now, especially because she still lacked the strength to do more than glide. That was life. The high of doing something for the first time, defying everything that would keep her constrained, was what she lived for and what almost constantly eluded her. Not today though.

    She wasn¡¯t riding an overgrown lizard with wings, she was riding lightning as it streaked across the sky. She was falling on the second like a doomsday star. When that one fell to her will, that was life. That was meaning. That¡­

    Her jubilation lasted for about a minute before she got bored. Commanding the wyverns to shoot the wall with lightning a few times brought her spirits up before boredom inevitably settled in again. Tlara sighed. Part of her was aware of how destructive this pattern could be if she fed into it but to Crest with that. No one told her what to do, not even herself. Now with two level three monsters literally under her belt, Tlara deigned to consider those below her. Kob still hadn¡¯t shown up but there was no way they were dead. Even if the mountain fell on it the gestalt would just wriggle out. Khare was another matter, though that one didn¡¯t matter in the grand scheme of things.

    The Hero and that Bard were arguing. Classic, she thought. It was amusing and frustrating to watch at the same time. They were just so predictable. Put a Bard and a Hero in a room together with nothing else to do and they¡¯d find something to disagree on regardless of who they were. The same could be said for either class on its own to a lesser degree. They were all drama queens, Tlara had decided, pointedly ignoring how she had her wyverns swoop through the air as they fell to the ground.

    ¡°Hey,¡± she said in greeting, preening on top of the landed wyvern. She allowed the other to start feeding on the monster remains and implicitly dared anyone to tell the woman riding the young skyshock wyvern to stop it. Her tool didn¡¯t need to feed, it wouldn¡¯t Grow, but it could lose its strength through starvation. Stasis Pouch delayed this and was part of why the feature was invaluable. In fact, now that she¡¯d committed it to level three, it would completely halt the metabolism of her monsters while contained. The permanent mana cost was annoying and overzealous use of Flay Monster had drained her but, hey. She had two level three wyverns, and those were pretty close to dragons. Fuck anyone who would tell her these tools weren¡¯t impressive.

    Depressingly, the others weren¡¯t awestruck. Well, fuck them then. I have wyverns, what do I care? Daniel wasn¡¯t with them, and that was odd. The Artificer should be making a fool of himself by fawning over the Bard or something. She was pretty sure he still had a thing for Evalyn and would be sure to let his paramour know if he crossed a line. That was just common courtesy or whatever.

    Even so, she did owe the Artificer the slightest favor. Tlara had no power that detected the attributes of monsters and had initially assumed the wyverns were the level four variant. Size became less reliable an indicator of power around the level three to four mark. If things scaled in size the same way they scaled in power, the astonishingly rare level nine monsters would be larger than individual regions. Either way, she wouldn¡¯t have tried taking them over if he hadn¡¯t mentioned that was an option. So maybe she¡¯d cut him a break. Wherever he was. Someone was asking her a question. ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Do you think those wyverns could fly us out of here?¡± Evalyn repeated.

    Tlara¡¯s first instinct was to say no. Then she remembered the only other way out was likely a pile of rubble Kob was crawling through. ¡°Eh, probably. Two trips at most. Kob¡¯s on their own though.¡± Roost¡¯s Peak shouldn¡¯t be too far, especially as the wyvern flew. She could save everyone here. She was even willing! And people said she was a bitch.

    Remembering the ballista of that city and how they¡¯d likely react to approaching wyverns made her reconsider. ¡°We¡¯ll need Daniel to tell that thing of his to let us through. Unless you like dying to fucking friendly fire.¡± She didn¡¯t know how he¡¯d do this other than whatever power linked him with the broken tool. It didn¡¯t work like any she¡¯d heard of. If he couldn¡¯t do that, well, she¡¯d just think of something else.

    ¡°A sound point,¡± Gadriel commented, looking to the ledge where she finally saw the Artificer, and then away from the gorging wyvern between them.

    Huh, Tlara thought. That¡¯s interesting. Now why doesn¡¯t he like that? Flaws were just another kind of opportunity and Tlara took care to remember any she picked up on. Daniel¡¯s fear of the underground was just a recent example. ¡°Hey! You listening?¡± she yelled at the Artificer, but he didn¡¯t turn. The man was barely moving.

    ¡°Daniel?¡± Evalyn¡¯s voice out of all of them should have reached the man, by his crotch if nothing else.

    ¡°Do you see him? Lograve?¡± Thomas asked. ¡°Is he?¡±

    The Artificer didn¡¯t even look like he was breathing. ¡°Alright, what the fuck?¡±

    ¡°Tlara!¡± Gadriel had taken offense at her tone. She eyed her feasting wyvern and a covert hand sign made it turn its face to the hero. Gadriel shifted uncomfortably and broke eye contact first. See? Flaws are just opportunities.

    ¡°I¡¯ll get him.¡± Thomas stood unsteadily.

    ¡°You look like you¡¯re about to fall over,¡± she responded dispassionately, shaking her head. ¡°Fuck. Get on the wyvern, I¡¯ll get you back first.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll get him,¡± Evalyn cut in softly and walked a wide circle around the bloody-mouthed wyvern. When she got close to the Artificer, he jumped off the cliff.

    ¡­

    Daniel dreamed he heard Evalyn scream. That normally would have woken him, but this was a deep dream. An odd one too. The kind where your teeth were falling out or you were suddenly naked in public, coupled with a sluggishness of thought. He was in bed and didn¡¯t want to get up. That was the simplest explanation. Some famous guy had said something about simple explanations but he could hardly remember even that.

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    The oddest part of this dream was that he was someone else. Daniel still felt like Daniel, at least the person observing what was happening was Daniel. The person in the center of the dream was different. It was complex, the thoughts of this dream entity overlaid with the feeling of falling.

    That made Daniel furrow his metaphysical eyebrows. Falling, again? If movies had taught him anything, it was that falling in dreams made you wake up. Not this one though. For a moment, Daniel struggled to make sense of this and rouse himself, only for waves of soporific force to push him back into the greater dreaming.

    Rorshawd, a name for the dreaming entity Daniel plucked from the air, was intent and intense. Clever, too. He was skipping across the walls to reach the bottom, using the still active buff from Kob to make this fall survivable. He was thinking¡­ what was he thinking?

    The thoughts of the dream entity reached across to Daniel as if from the opposite shore of a grand sea. With focus, currently hard to come by, he could make out the individual words of these thoughts. Emotion carried through first, making Daniel feel reverent. It was a religious experience unlike anything he¡¯d had since a young age. The Brants were Baptist as a family, with Daniel¡¯s participation peaking at age 11 with his baptism. Life had worn down his faith since then.

    Rorshawd was in rapture. If he could survive doing so, he would have just jumped to the bottom of this place instead of jumping around. Sight was foggy as well, so Daniel couldn¡¯t tell exactly where he was supposed to be. On the other hand, when did you ever know exactly where you were in a dream?

    Lord. My Lord. It was the first thought Daniel caught from the mist surrounding his mind. Rorshawd was repeating it as a mantra, so it wasn¡¯t difficult. Were Daniel more aware of where he was, he could also guess that this thought was closer to Rorshawd¡¯s subconscious than what the entity was actively thinking. With time, more thoughts came.

    It was worth it! Then, Sacrifice not in vain! The thoughts were disjointed like Daniel was trying to read a book by pinning it to a wall and throwing darts to see which sentence he¡¯d read next. Will unmake. An end of Tyranny. Rorshawd could see his Lord now, whatever that was, and paused on a wall in elation. To Daniel, it was just a fuzzy shape barely distinct from the darkness surrounding it. He wanted Rorshawd to get closer just as much as the other. This was an interesting dream and Daniel wanted to know how it would end.

    Free of this cursed existence, the thoughts echoed around him again, growing clearer. Daniel was missing less as time went on, though he was also growing less aware of himself as it went on. They will rise. Rise! Unmake the Octyrrum! The dream focused on the hands of Rorshawd, which turned avian as he clenched his fists. To be here when it awakens is an honor I will never forget. My lost brothers, your deaths were not in vain.

    They were falling again, the dreamer and the zealot. The earth shifted with their flight. Rorshawd had waited long enough and had come far enough. He had no wings but still guided his fall towards a clear area in front of the Lord. The rock there stretched towards them, almost as if the land itself had shaped a stage where he could commune and behold its grandeur.

    Of all his group, Rorshawd would not have expected himself to be at their Lord¡¯s side. Amalia had been level five, the strongest of their number in Eido, but she hadn¡¯t survived their attack on the Temple of Unification. None of them had. As soon as they¡¯d fought their way to the center and Rorshawd had laid a hand on the Godseed, there¡¯d been a tremendous explosion. The incomplete Spoke had been destroyed just before it would have damned the region, just as they¡¯d hoped.

    That must have been what the others called the Upswell in what glimpses he¡¯d been able to get of the real world. Only he had survived what was advertised as assured martyrdom and in a way most unpleasant. Trapped in another¡¯s form with no way of controlling the body, barely conscious at the best of times.

    Then his Lord had freed his mind and banished the other, perhaps forever. Rorshawd was in a stranger¡¯s body but that did not matter. He landed roughly, spraining or maybe breaking an ankle. It would heal and it did not matter. He wasn¡¯t going to stand. Rorshawd knelt, ignoring the pain, the tribulations of the past weeks, and the voice that suddenly spoke to his mind. Was it the interloper, trying to wrest control? It wasn¡¯t his Lord, he would know, and so it didn¡¯t matter.

    Communion had already begun before Rorshawd had descended into this most sacred of places. His Lord had found his soul, abused and hidden, and brought it out so it may see. So that it may know Rorshawd was of those pledged forever to service. Now, it could be finished. Amalia had spoken of it. A rite, performed when the baneful artifices of mortal kind had been sundered, to bring forth the full might of the Lord¡¯s wrath.

    That mental tick was trying its best to burrow into Rorshawd and interrupt his splendor. It only spoke, nothing changed around him. Instead of using his strength, the zealot pushed himself mentally towards the Lord Incarnate. Nothing could overcome the power of the one in front of him. It was nature itself, it was the world! Even the so called gods of mortal kind were nothing to it. This Rorshawd knew, for the truth was not kept from the faithful.

    The vessel Rorshawd had been trapped in was faint to him now. Not from its failing, but from the Communion nearing its culmination. It wasn¡¯t doubt that made Rorshawd think of what would happen when it was finished but wonder. Would he be changed? Made into a superior servant of the Lord, one more fitting? Would he shed mortal form entirely? The thought of power was almost as alluring as the presence of his Lord. Rorshawd had, of course, only been level one when his cabal¡¯s grand work had finished. Hitting his wall early had given him the usual bitterness of divine rejection, although Rorshawd did not find acceptance. Instead, he had found the Spiritualists. He was a more recent addition to their rank but believed just as much as any. Just as much as Amalia, and who was now in front of the Lord? Not her.

    He felt his arms spread wide in unconscious reverence. Closer now. So close. The core of his being was farther from that husk than the Lord. A new form, then. That would be better. More disorienting, perhaps, than a mere transformation but Rorshawd had already been through something similar. The creation of lesser life was within the grasp of the Lord when it slumbered. Now that it was awakening, surely it could grant Rorshawd a fitting form to reward his service.

    The news of the dragon had reached him, deep in the mind of that hated man Daniel. That would be a very appropriate vessel for him to continue to serve in! If the Lord felt he was worthy to possess it of course. Another would suffice if not. The Lord would choose whatever would be most appropriate. He was so close now, practically touching the outer nature of the Lord. The barrier between itself and the world, what it had been forced to use to survive what had been done so long ago.

    Rorshawd knew, in an occult rather than a scholarly way, that passing through this barrier was the threshold. Beyond the shell, there was only one of the true gods of this world. The communion would be done. For a moment, he questioned why the idea of pulling back had entered his mind. His instincts had always been sharp to danger, it was what had allowed him to break through the fog and save his own life when that cursed man hadn¡¯t the strength to do it himself!

    He continued, heedless of his trepidation. This was his Lord! This was the world. This was¡­ nothing. The mind of Rorshawd found nothing beyond the threshold as it became nothing. His soul was consumed, and the Origin Beast¡¯s long slumber ended.

 Chapter 40: Hidden Powers

    Lograve could not fully comprehend what had happened. Telepathy, by its nature, required the ability to sense minds. If acquired early enough, it could only be used to sense if a thinking creature was nearby. Later on, he could use it to learn what they were thinking, but not now, and though he was close, at level four he could only bridge together Telepathic Links to form a Telepathic Network.

    Even if he had the benefits of level nine Telepathy, he couldn''t explain what Daniel had done. Why had the Artificer come here? Lograve had seen him loping down to the bottom of the world, too paralyzed to do anything but scream into Daniel¡¯s mind to run. He hadn''t listened. Daniel was slumped to the ground, worse than dead, and the dragon was now the farthest worry from his mind.

    The old scripts came readily to him, the lore of the Origin Beasts. All was speculation, old knowledge, and conjecture viewed as heresy by the churches. Like neglected armor it had rusted and been poorly patched for so long none could tell what its original form had been, but the shaky consensus believed them to be the gods of the monsters that had come with the Crest to try and take this world from the Octyrrum.

    The stories were true. Terribly true. Something strong enough to steal souls was a power beyond levels. It was waking now. Hatching. Lograve had feared that was happening earlier when nebulous clouds of light had issued forth from a crack in the giant shell while the earth rocked violently.

    Only monsters had come of that and not even strong ones, all things considered. They¡¯d ignored Lograve thanks to Invisibility, the power he was pouring all of his mana into to remain hidden. It normally cost too much to use for this long, but if he stayed perfectly still, as he had, he could sustain it for over a day.

    Daniel was dead, unmade, and the small crack in the magical shell was widening. Slowly enough that he didn¡¯t believe it at first until the crack had branched. Lograve took what felt like the first breath in a day and realized something. If it didn¡¯t matter, if it was already waking up, why was he hiding? This thing hadn¡¯t taken him and it had had many hours to do so. Was he to just wait here to witness the monster fully wake? It would be a dubious distinguishment, second to fall to an Origin Beast. Second in the line of all mortal kind.

    No. No, only he would know what this was. The things he¡¯d read couldn¡¯t be found in his library, or any other library that operated legitimately. Others would merely mistake this as a level nine monster and react inappropriately to its true nature. He needed to warn his friend. He needed to warn the world! Lograve took a step forward. Subtle noise stopped him in his tracks. It was coming from the body in front of him. The moving body. Daniel? He projected his mind despite himself and the fear of what would respond.

    Ugh, headache, came the groaning reply. Mental responses could carry more subtleties than voice, going further than just tone and inflection. With acquired instinct, Daniel pulled out the strange Focus he carried and started reading from it. The language it projected was beyond this world and Lograve¡¯s understanding. If there was time, that was something the Arcanist wanted to change. Somehow that was still an option.

    ¡­

    Daniel¡¯s head hurt. He got like this sometimes after taking a short nap in the middle of the day. You¡¯d think more sleep would be a good thing, but the dream had been intense, to the point that he¡¯d woken drenched in sweat. What had happened? Did I hear Lograve? Daniel was starting to remember what had happened before the dream. I should read my phone first before thinking about that. The notifications didn¡¯t last and there were a lot of angry ones.

    <hr>

    Alert: Attempted Unidentification targeting you has failed due to Fundamental Law: Immutable Soul.

    -

    Alert: Unidentification affecting various Concepts related to you has been removed due to the destruction of its source. You still possess unidentified knowledge requiring Level: 10 power or higher to identify.

    -

    Alert: One of your Souls has been removed by hostile Effect: Communion. You still possess one soul.

    -

    Alert: You have lost Bond: Dual Soul. The following benefits are lost:

    - Soul: Rorshawd Alimar

    - Synchronous Advancement of Strength and Intelligence

    - Synchronous Advancement of Endurance and Wisdom

    - Acquisition of Powers from Class: Totem Warrior

    -

    Alert: You have lost Class: Totem Warrior. You will no longer gain Powers from this class, and your total level has been reduced to the sum of all levels from other classes you possess. Powers already derived from the lost class remain available to you. You can no longer bind a Focus to your lost class.

    -

    Alert: With the loss of a Class, you now possess Attributes corresponding to a higher lever than your total class level. Additional levels in another class may be gained until this disparity is resolved, so long as you possess an appropriately advanced Core Attribute.

    <hr>

    What the fuck? Daniel looked up, scrambled backward, and yelped as he put pressure on his left ankle. In front of him was what could only be described as an egg, towering though it was. Exactly one hundred meters tall according to Quick Mind, and surrounded by a dark red aura. Lines of indescribable color traced over the outside of the egg in patterns he couldn¡¯t comprehend, intricate enough over the large surface that he could barely make out the lines. It was a very shaky suspicion, but something told Daniel he wasn¡¯t seeing anything real in those lines, but physically manifested mana. The one blemish in the shell was a crack halfway up, slowly widening.

    <hr>

    Origin Beast - (???)

    <hr>

    Hands were on him. By reflex, Daniel summoned his talons to break free but stopped when the voice entered his head again. Quiet! Be quiet!

    Daniel couldn¡¯t see what was touching him. More likely than not it was Lograve, the voice in his head sounded like him. Could he be sure? Who guards your library?

    I do! There was a pause, then the slightest hint of mirth. Gadriel¡¯s brother. That exchange convinced both of who the other was. How are you still alive?

    The phone was tilted back to where Lograve should be before Daniel remembered he couldn¡¯t read the language. Where to even begin? I could just read off the notifications and see if Lograve understands anything.

    As it turned out, the Arcanist knew even less than he did. Not about Rorshawd, the name Daniel faintly remembered from the fading dream, or the Dual Soul bond. Only the terror in Lograve¡¯s mind carried through the mental link. The conclusion was that they needed to get out of here. Now. I can do it carefully, Lograve thought. All you¡¯ll have to do is not freeze to death or wake¡­ that. Ice began spreading out from under Lograve to coat the ground. The magic did nothing for the cold that chilled wherever it touched, which did help Daniel''s sprained ankle.

    Does that feature give you ice immunity? Daniel asked.

    Lograve shook his head as he slowly stretched out his hands. The motion mimicked the spreading of the ice, hands turned down. Hardly. Some of us are just used to the cold. The hands turned up, and the platform he¡¯d made began to rise. The others, did they survive?

    The ice was numbing Daniel¡¯s feet as he sorted the past week in his head again. Tak and Sigron are hurt bad. Khare too, but it looks like they can grow back. Everyone else is fine.

    Was it the summoned monsters?

    No. Daniel sighed and told Lograve everything. They had time, the ice disk¡¯s movement was slow and uneven. Most of the bumps in the ride came when topics like the dragon, the level five monster hunt, and Sigron¡¯s arm came up. Can that be healed? Daniel already had an answer for that but hoped Lograve knew better.

    Most likely, no. That kind of healing is as rare as an honestly humble Hero. It¡¯s not consistently found before level six, at least the kind that affects other people. Now, there are potions or similar consumables that can bridge the gap, but good luck finding any here. Part of the disk skated against the wall and Lograve adjusted its course. The rock was difficult to see in the dim light. Daniel had long ago learned that the auras from his identification ability didn¡¯t cast any actual light and true night had finally set in. Lograve nodded, remembering something, and explained further. I suppose you haven¡¯t had the chance to read about this, fighting monsters four levels above you as you were. All most healing does is repair damage. Crippling or disfiguration is a different matter. Lograve unabashedly gestured to his face with that. Regeneration stands out as an exception, although its rate of healing is slower compared to other powers and limited to one person. Fire weakens it, and necrotism can snuff it out entirely.

    So Tak should be fine?

    Eventually. Just like how Khare only needs to sit in a sunned pot to recover. Sigron, however. Lograve grimaced. Nothing can be done here, at least.

    The ice circle ran up against something again, tipping slightly. That was odd since Lograve had just adjusted its course. The walls of the chasm surrounding the Origin Beast were smooth, they didn¡¯t have protrusions that could catch the disk. Not everywhere, at least. Rock with faint orange coloration jutted out from the wall. Whatever it was wasn¡¯t living, Identify Creature did nothing to it. What is that?

    Just a pile of lapis we¡¯re casually bumping into. I can¡¯t believe it! Lograve brought the disk back down to level it and nodded his head towards the lump. See if you can pull that out, but carefully. If you slip or wake it, we won¡¯t be in for a good time. No matter how surprised finding this strange rock made Lograve, the beast below cast an unbreakably grim fog over the Arcanist¡¯s mind.

    Daniel put a foot on the wall, feeling that his ankle was already better. The ''slow healing'' of Regeneration was relative to the fact that Thomas could have instantly cured him, in every other way it was marvelous. Kob''s vines rooted as he settled in. They¡¯d lasted for an hour or so now and it wasn¡¯t clear how long they¡¯d stay on him. If he wanted to they could probably be pulled off, so he didn¡¯t worry about it. I wouldn¡¯t mind this at all if it didn¡¯t feel like I was covered in snakes, Daniel thought to himself as he grasped the rock, only for the vines to spread out around his hands.

    Just like climbing trees, pulling rocks out of walls was an activity Daniel performed far more easily with his powers and level. Not that the chunk of orange material came free instantly, that took a few yanks. When it came loose Daniel almost dropped it, and himself, over the edge only to be saved by the leg he had pinned to the wall.

    With it in his hands, Daniel tried to inspect it closer. There wasn¡¯t much to see, rock had crusted over the majority of the surface. Touching one of the few exposed surfaces revealed something else. Magic? Khare¡¯s knife, well, his now, had a slight tingle indicating the power in it. It wasn''t a physical vibration but something triggering a sense Daniel didn¡¯t have before coming to this world. This stone didn¡¯t tingle, it was closer to how the sun felt on the skin through a magnifying glass. The tip of his finger wasn¡¯t burned, though he¡¯d pulled it away as soon as he¡¯d touched it.

    Ah, Lograve¡¯s thoughts reached out to him as he brought the disk upwards again. I hadn¡¯t thought about that, sorry. That material is above your level. Mine too. Don¡¯t take it as rejection, it¡¯s just not that into you.

    What? Is this alive?

    No, it, mmm. The Arcanist probably would have scratched his head if his arms weren¡¯t busy. Let me back up. This is about the special materials required for Artificers to enchant. It¡¯s a hard restriction for your class, though Arcanists and a few other classes can ignore it in some circumstances. Craftsmen, Clerics of Star, etc. Artificers are still the best at enchanting, I have to admit, though numerically most enchanters are specialized Arcanists or Clerics.

    Daniel looked at the ore resting on the ice and wondered why it mattered. Him tripping Lograve into teaching mode seemed to be calming both of them down, so he continued asking questions. Arcanists can make things from nothing?

    Arcanists can make fire rain from the sky. Lograve glanced at his ice disk. Well, some can. Arcanists still require material for powers that allow creation of permanent items instead of temporary ones, but enchanting through Artificer powers always requires receptive materials. On the other hand, not all Arcanists gain a power that enables item creation. Those who do learn what they can make and how to make it instantly, but they can never learn other formulae. Star Clerics are in a similar boat power-wise. Even the followers of the god of enchantment can¡¯t beat Artificers at their own game, and that rock is one of the reasons why.

    Is it andorite? One of the miners had mentioned that before and Daniel had intuited how valuable the chunk of material in his hands was from how Lograve kept staring at the visible orange surface.

    Better. Andorite is appropriate for the creation of level two items. Usually for metallic weapons or armor, although there are ways Artificers can interchange material requirements during the creation process. I digress, and my knowledge of that is second hand from someone who really doesn¡¯t like talking about his own craft. Suffice it to say heliorite, that material, is meant for level five enchanting. I''d hoped we''d find something here that would allow you to start putting out more than exploding sticks, but I''d never imagined something like this.

    How am I supposed to use it? The idea of enchanting was pushing back the creeping dread from soul consumption, monsters bigger than Kob, and still being underground. At least Daniel could see the sky.

    I''m not sure, if I''m honest. There isn''t as much information out there on rare classes for reasons you can imagine. Artificers have several ways to gain formulae through either observation of existing magical items, experimentation, or other more esoteric methods. You seem to have a weaker version of that second method already, though I don¡¯t think that will work here. You haven¡¯t stumbled on anything close to the first, have you?

    Daniel thought about the spark torch that had been with him this entire hunt. Despite the odd feeling that he should have some kind of power to gain ¡®real¡¯ formulae, nothing he had sounded like it would work that way. No. I guess I''ll have to keep advancing and try and gain whatever power that is.

    Well, no pressure but you are our best bet. We don''t have the infrastructure to allow Smiths to use this material, or the Smiths themselves. You, however, could if you knew a proper formulae. It''s a concept known as material requirement interchange, as I mentioned before. In theory, you could use far less level five material to create a level two item over how much you¡¯d need for the same level five item, perhaps even imparting special qualities. Handling it during the enchanting process might be tricky, but once the item is completed it would be appropriate for you to use. Even if you don''t have a direct use for it now, keep it. We might as well have, no. Lograve didn¡¯t smile but it was clear he wanted to. We actually did trip over it. While running away from the end of the world no less. Just don¡¯t let anyone you don¡¯t trust know you have it. If you do figure out a way to use it, wait until you discuss with me so I can make an assessment. I have a feeling we¡¯ll need every gram of that material and it¡¯d be a shame if you wasted it making Hunter a collar.

    Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.

    End of the world? Daniel couldn¡¯t tell if that was Lograve¡¯s normal glibness or not but the repeated doomsaying struck him. He pondered that for a while until he felt Lograve¡¯s scrutinizing gaze. What?

    You just had a soul ripped out of you and it wasn¡¯t even yours! I was paralyzed with fear by that thing for the better part of a day, and you don¡¯t seem bothered.

    Oh, I am. Daniel would have laughed if either were using their voice. It¡¯s just, it answers a lot of questions. Why I have a second class and all that. Not the actual how of how it happened, but it seems like the kind of thing that happens here. After being dragged out of my world and given a talking cat I just started accepting that weird things like this happen. Am I creeped out that there was another soul in me? Yeah. But it¡¯s gone now so that¡¯s a relief. Even if I lost a class.

    Things like this don¡¯t just happen here! I don¡¯t know how many times I have to say, er, think this to you, but you are an odd man Daniel. The defeated exasperation was clear in the Arcanist¡¯s thoughts. Well, I don¡¯t know everything, like I said. Most of what I know is based on knowledge from this Realm. It could be that this ¡®Dual Soul¡¯ bond nonsense happens regularly elsewhere. I wouldn¡¯t put it past the Seventh Realm to be recklessly pushing the boundaries of reality. In any case, Lograve followed up, overriding Daniel¡¯s prompted question, You have fought a level five, nearly lost your companion, and have now encountered the strongest threat known to mortal kind. Has your answer changed?

    My answer?

    Why you fight. Why you continue on this path. It is important to understand where your motivation comes from. I find myself questioning that now. Daniel had to think, privately, about that for a moment.

    It¡¯s basically the same. Help my friends and get stronger. The dragon complicates things and I have no idea what the thing down there means, but it feels possible. I feel like I can live here instead of just survive. If I had to boil it down? It¡¯s like I have something to live for.

    I¡¯m sure a young Arcanist has a hand in that, Lograve thought with a smile. Enjoy the time you have. You¡¯ll never know what the future holds. On that note, I worry about what has happened to the others in our absence.

    Daniel looked around for a moment. They¡¯re fine. Most of them are back in Roost¡¯s Peak and it looks like Kob¡¯s actually near the top of this shaft. We can check with them once we get there.

    Lograve blinked slowly. Well, I just remembered why I missed having you on the training team. While I think that power isn¡¯t solely restricted to Artificers, it seems more potent than the records of Identify Creature I¡¯ve read would indicate. Are you sure there¡¯s nothing from Totem Warrior interacting to complement that feature?

    Besides Hunter, I don¡¯t think- oh. Oh god damn it, I should have- Lograve looked briefly alarmed as Daniel retrieved his phone, rapidly tapping on the screen, then curious as the Artificer started reading. Daniel didn¡¯t notice, he was too happy.

    The hidden tab on his Settings app was revealed now. It was a list icon, like the one that held his Artificer class details but red instead of blue. Also, as an aside, he had earned two advancement potential during the hell that had been this mine. That was a lesser concern as Daniel could now see the powers Totem Warrior was giving him. They were all there with full detail and not even a hint of unidentification.

    <hr>

    Totem Warrior ¨C Level Two

    You are a totem warrior, a Class that embodies the Ideals of natural strength and affinity. Your Core Attributes are Strength and Wisdom. After taking this class, your strength will increase twice for every committed Advancement Potential, and you will require two advancement potentials to increase your Intelligence by one. Your Focus will take the form of an icon of nature. Your choice of focus may influence certain Powers you receive. Should you bind a different focus, powers already acquired will not be changed.

    Legacy Totem Warrior Features:

    - Balance (Feature, Dexterity, Domain: Universal, Level: 1): You possess the Power to improve coordination and movement reliant on preciseness and surety of footing.

    - Graceful Fall (Feature, Dexterity, Domain: Restoration, Level: 1): You possess the Power to control descent through the air and reduce damage taken from falling.

    - Natural Affinity (Feature, Wisdom, Domain: Illusion, Level: 1): You possess the Power to passively calm or Charm Creatures: Beast within a short range. Unless threatened, beasts of a Level equal to or lower than this feature will not be hostile towards you. Beasts of a level lower than this feature will be Charmed. This feature does not function while you are in the presence of sentient creatures who do not also possess this feature, although creatures charmed by you will remain charmed. You may have a number of creatures up to your Level charmed by this power at a time.

    - Regeneration (Feature, Endurance, Domain: Restoration, Level: 1): You possess the Power of a natural Healing factor, improving your natural healing rate and expanding what you can recover from. This effect scales with your endurance. Type: Necrotic damage, and Type: Fire damage to a lesser degree, can weaken or inhibit this feature.

    - Regeneration: Mana Burn: Healing rate is increased during rest, scaling with the amount of consumed Mana required to fully restore you.

    Legacy Totem Warrior Abilities:

    - Attune to Nature (Ability, Wisdom, Spell, Domain: Knowledge, Level: 1): You possess the Power to gain information on surrounding terrain and Creatures in undeveloped areas around you through expenditure of a moderate amount of Mana and one hour of concentration. The range of this ability scales with your wisdom and is dramatically decreased if used on settled areas. Creatures above your Level ignore this ability. This is a Magical Ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression.

    - Claw Strike (Ability, Strength, Attack: Natural Melee Weapon, Domain: Transmutation, Level: 1): You possess the Power to take on a Martial Aspect of a bird of prey. Through expenditure of a minor amount of Mana, you may transform one or both of your hands into a form that enhances strength, defense, and striking power for a short time. Continuing to Channel this ability prolongs the effect for a low mana per second cost. This is a Magical Ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression.

    - Cleave (Ability, Strength, Attack: Melee Weapon, Level: 2): You possess the Power to make a sweeping attack that damages enemies in a wide arc in front of you. This ability requires a moderate amount of Mana and a melee weapon you can use alone. This is a Magical Ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression.

    - Grow Feathers (Ability, Dexterity, Spell: Natural Ranged Weapon, Domain: Transmutation, Level: 1): You possess the Power to take on a Martial Aspect of a bird of prey. Through expenditure of a minor amount of Mana, you may grow sharp feathers on your arms to use as short range projectiles. Additional mana can be Channeled to increase the amount of feathers available for use. This is a Magical Ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression.

    - Jump (Ability, Strength, Utility, Domain: Universal, Level: 1): You possess the Power to improve the distance and height of a jump. Up to a moderate amount of Mana can be expended this way, with the effect scaling with mana expended and your strength. This is a Magical Ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression.

    <hr>

    Well? Lograve asked while Daniel was rereading the list.

    I didn¡¯t even know I had some of these. Having them in front of his eyes was a sudden revelation. He was now fully aware of how to use them, feeling Cleave and Grow Feathers at the ready just like Snap Shot or Scatter Shot. Did he just need to read them on his phone, or had that soul blocked him from understanding? It didn¡¯t matter. Daniel knew he didn¡¯t even have to think to bring forth the talons in his hands, though he opted for something else for his first test.

    Lograve raised an eyebrow as feathers sprouted from the side of Daniel¡¯s arms. Only ten, giving an unflatteringly balding appearance to the skin. The color was different from before, golden with streaks of blue and white. It was oddly similar to Hunter¡¯s fur. Daniel flung his arms out, one at a time, while shifting the heliorite between arms. Each feather struck within half a meter of the others on the far wall of the shaft.

    I can use Snap Shot with this! Daniel was beaming, thoughts of what lay below temporarily forgotten. The mana cost of the feathers wasn¡¯t much individually. The ability read like a shotgun blast, with high damage and accuracy fall off. However, Snap Shot applied its bonus to all the feathers thrown at once. The synergy might be as powerful as Hunter¡¯s augmentation of Identify Creature. It was just a shame he wouldn¡¯t get any more Totem Warrior powers. That was a cost Daniel was willing to pay if it meant no more hitchhiking souls.

    Impressive, Lograve thought honestly. Especially considering you realized the combination almost instantly. That ingenuity, if nothing else, is like a power unto itself. Daniel nodded graciously with the comment, trying not to smile. The end of the world may be right below him, but his friend was closer. They were almost to the top of this shaft, even. The question of how they¡¯d get down the cliff surrounding Roost¡¯s Peak was valid, but worst case Lograve could levitate them again. Daniel then thought of Claire, waiting for him there, and stopped hiding his smile.

    ¡­

    The thing at the bottom of the world was not truly awake. It was awakening, a slow process for one such as itself due to the magnitude of its being. True return to this world was a complex process involving several metaphysical tasks that only remotely correlated with the mortal equivalent of rising in the morning. Still, the way had been opened, setting into motion a return with all the inevitability of a landslide that began with a single dislodged pebble.

    And yet, through the open sliver of the thing¡¯s metaphorical eyes, it saw much. It knew much of the world from its followers, from all of mortal kind within its reach. There were many truths they did not understand until it was far too late, which it was now. A tendril of the entity¡¯s mind called out to the world, only finding what it expected. None of its kin were active, none across the breadth of this Realm.

    It was the first, then. The spark to burn all that this world was, to make the cinders from which a new system would be forged. A demonstration. That was what the so-called Origin Beast decided to make its first conscious act. The horde it had spawned earlier was a mere reflex to the presence of unfriendly creatures. It hadn¡¯t feared for itself but hungered for the deaths of the mortals. To think, its minions¡¯ failure had brought it salvation.

    A demonstration. There were¡­ 107 mortals in the adjacent area. Over ten times that many in the artificially sectioned off zone it occupied, all clustered together, as mortals do. Ready for slaughter. But how to bring about their end?

    At present, the Origin Beast could bring forth a creature of power equivalent to one at the high end of level five. It understood perfectly the differences in energy state between levels and between creatures in each level. Mortals had such a simple grasp of their exponential nature, and they were the only things that thought of the world that way. The entity could strip away that falsehood in its thinking superimposed by the work of its enemy, but the apex of mortal kind had assured its creations still had to abide by those rules.

    That said, one creature of that strength could easily kill everything nearby with the advantages it would have, even considering the aberrant monsters that time had let slip from the dominion of the entity. One monster. One monster would be summoned to deny them any hope. A swarm would take losses. A pack of elite creatures could still lose one before completing the eradication. The god would not give them that satisfaction.

    Such an occasion deserved something special. The first ensouled monster since¡­ No. The god registered surprise as something in the surroundings stung its thoughts in defiance. With the mortals, there was already one monster that had almost completed the repair of its spirit. Already, it had regained true sapience. The entity paused to consider this development, taking time to extend its senses. No, there were no other monsters of this ringcat¡¯s like anywhere in the region, or the Realm, or anywhere in the world. How could this have been done while the Octyrrum was cut off from the Astral?

    No matter. First or second, its champion would scour the mortals from the world. Perhaps it should delay until it had gathered more power, until it could spawn a higher leveled creature? No. The god had waited long enough. It was time for Communion¡¯s secondary purpose.

    The crack in its shell, now twice as large, began to dispense that which the Origin Beasts once used to weave all monsters into being. The ways it could influence the world were limited in scope, though it was a flaw the apex mortals shared. The general shape took as the entity spared a moment¡¯s thought towards the nature of this beast. Fire, it decided instantly. This region did not support the element as well as lightning, but the mortals¡¯ strongest warrior was weakest to it. Fire to burn, fire to cleanse. Fire to wreak upon the world the fury of the once defeated, once dreaming.

    The process of the champion¡¯s creation became self-sustaining and the shard of the entity¡¯s active awareness faded as it reconstructed the soul it had captured within the forming monster. The god had enough for one more monster of just below that quality, but no more souls to spend. All that was left was the small passive accrual and the slow waking process. There would be no more champions until more aspirants found their way here. It decided to save the energy it had left, just in case an opportunity arose or another intervention was needed. For now, the smallest fragments of itself would watch and enjoy the carnage.

    Rorshawd, reborn and resplendent, looked at the world with different eyes and saw only what needed to be killed. Spreading his wings, the dragon took flight.

 Chapter 41: Time To Go

    The open sky greeted Daniel as he lay on his back. It was heaven, this sky, after the nightmare today had been. No cloud in sight to obscure the stars and crescent moon. It was strangely similar to Earth, though the stars shone brighter and with faint color. Light pollution only explained one of those deviations and he didn¡¯t care about the reasons behind the other one.

    He had no reason to be this happy. The world was doomed, according to Lograve, and he¡¯d almost died again. But, that was hours ago now and he was laying next to Claire on their roof. She was right next to him. Not even in an alluring way, both were just watching the stars. Hunter was there and that would have spoiled any possibility of a mood.

    It didn¡¯t matter. There, back on the stone of a foreign world and flanked by a murder cat on one side, a sexy mage on the other, Daniel felt normal. Subtract the magic and this could be a scene from his world. The dark shape of Tlara swooped through their sight line to add another item to that list. That ever so slightly ruined the moment, but she¡¯d earned it.

    Not for leaving Daniel to die, or convincing the others she would double back to see if he¡¯d climbed up only to stay in the city. Tlara had risked her own life to alert Roost¡¯s Peak that the wyverns dropping on them weren¡¯t trying to kill them. Sure she¡¯d also been protecting her new pets but that didn¡¯t change the fact that she¡¯d flown down in the face of the fort''s ballista in the hopes they wouldn¡¯t waste ammo on such a small profile.

    You are happy, Hunter noted. They were close enough for the bond to become slightly empathic.

    Daniel glanced at the ringcat¡¯s side and answered. You¡¯re all better. Of course I am! There wasn¡¯t a mark to remind him of the explosion that had torn into the beast, a late evening nap having finished off Hunter¡¯s recovery. If Regeneration could flawlessly fix that at level one, Daniel never needed to fear death as long as he survived. He was pretty sure leveling endurance up was the wise next choice, though no commitments had been made yet. He could only get it to 18 with what he had now. Without Dual Soul also giving him points in wisdom, the choice wasn¡¯t as easy.

    ¡°I envy that, you know,¡± Claire said to him, still facing the sky. ¡°Being able to talk to Hunter. If it worked that way with my familiars I¡¯d never be lonely again.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s what you have me for.¡± Claire laughed at that. For once, it seemed Daniel had the perfect response.

    ¡°Are you sure about that? If this is going to last we¡¯ll need to talk about what happens after the dragon.¡± Daniel had told her, of course. That threat seemed so minor compared to the Origin Beast monster god and he didn¡¯t care if Lograve would be mad at him later. Though, he hadn¡¯t mentioned the giant egg to Claire. That was a secret no one else knew, and if it got out Lograve would know who to blame.

    Secrets aside, the question threw Daniel. For one, Claire all but confirmed this wasn¡¯t just something temporary. He wanted that, right? Absolutely, without any shred of doubt paradoxically weighing on him even though this was the best thing that had ever happened to him. He wanted this and there absolutely wasn¡¯t any part of him deep down inside that worried he wasn¡¯t ready to commit this much to someone this quickly. But to answer the question?

    Daniel didn¡¯t know what was outside the Thormundz. More settled regions, sure. Cities definitely, people had referenced them several times and it seemed the Thormundz had been a backwater, especially without Eido. But what were they like? Were humans the majority everywhere, or just the second Realm? Just here? Living in a city filled with Tlaras would be beyond him, even with Claire there. And there was Hunter. What if people found out about him? Wait, no, what if people found out about me? At best they¡¯ll try and kill me for being a heretic.

    ¡°You¡¯re giving this a lot of thought,¡± Claire observed. She did turn to him then, bringing herself up into a sitting position to gaze down into Daniel¡¯s eyes. ¡°I do have an idea. It¡¯s not exactly conventional, but I guarantee you¡¯d love to see it.¡± She dragged out the pause long enough to torture Daniel with the question of what she was referring to. ¡°Have you heard of a Sojourn? It¡¯s where I grew-¡±

    Hunter stood suddenly, the fur on his neck raised and a low growl seeping discordance into the night air. ¡°What is it? A wyvern?¡±

    No. Something I cannot¡­ I can¡¯t describe it. The ringcat¡¯s head was turning in all directions, trying to catch a scent.

    ¡°Something you can¡¯t tag either, then. Claire, send up a warning.¡± The Arcanist nodded and used her illusion spell to shape light above them. The power was level one and modest, though it stood out in the darkness. Any who saw, which would be everyone on the walls, would know an attack was coming. The warning would have mattered if something else hadn¡¯t alerted them first.

    ¡­

    Yedra was standing in front of him with her arms crossed. That irritated Lograve just as much as the fact that she had been the one to suggest the mission to the mine in the first place. The woman didn¡¯t even hold an official position of power in the city, the garrison just looked to her as their leader. In the end, that was all that mattered.

    ¡°We need to leave,¡± Lograve repeated, keeping his tone level and all sense of humor at bay. This was a serious conversation. That was something he normally ignored to lighten the mood, but not this time.

    ¡°Feel free,¡± Yedra replied pointedly, her voice deeper than the Arcanist¡¯s. ¡°But we ain¡¯t. If I remember right we were supposed to hold this place until it fell.¡±

    ¡°Until just before it fell. Which it is about to!¡±

    ¡°So you say.¡± There was a way that Yedra said this that seemed significant. Like there was something she knew, that he didn¡¯t. Someone had set the trap in the mines and she was the prime suspect. Her motivation for doing so was beyond him, and it also no longer mattered.

    Lograve paced to one of the windows in the central keep and glanced towards the mine. Towards what lay at its heart. If this valley had only been surveyed just a little farther, the danger would have been detected before it had come to this. Daniel was right, they shouldn¡¯t have missed a giant hole in the side of the mountain. What had the incursion army been thinking!? He looked back to Yedra and sighed. How am I to explain this to her? I wouldn¡¯t believe me, and I¡¯m me! ¡°The wyvern attacks have almost broken through your defenses before. They will get worse, and soon you will start losing people. It¡¯s time to go, Yedra.¡±

    ¡°Maybe it¡¯s just time for you to leave.¡± An edge curved the voice that chilled Lograve. She was below his level. In every other way, he was at a disadvantage. Out of mana and up against a class that specialized in close-range combat, to say nothing of her allies within the room! Was this about to become an assassination attempt? Who plays politics while the world burns down? Lograve was saved from what could have been, by what was. All across the city stark orange light illuminated every living creature. The reaction of those inside the room was very hostile towards Lograve until they noticed he was affected too. ¡°What is this?¡± Yedra asked, not putting down her hammer or turning it away from the Arcanist.

    There was only one answer. The light, collecting around the head and chest of everyone in the room, was from an ability he¡¯d seen before. It could come from several classes, but there was no one in the region powerful enough to do this. Unless, but how would, could it be? Lograve¡¯s mind quickly processed the logical steps necessary to come to the only possible conclusion. ¡°This is time running out.¡±

    ¡­

    Rorshawd perched atop the cliff face and looked upon the workings of mortals with distaste. From his memories of Daniel, he knew the city was well defended against aerial attacks. That mutilated beast of his would have made his approach very problematic, if not for the fact that a monster of his level could easily avoid the senses of a mere level one. They would be easy prey. A creature. Prey. The mind of Rorshawd delighted in those unconscious word choices. Ascension beyond the mortal form was the desire of any who followed his path. It was the way to immortality, and those who did not manage it would not survive the inferno to come. He had been the first to reach the end. The other name he¡¯d had was forgotten now. He was only Rorshawd, although the dragon idly thought he could use a title. Something to muse on later.

    He could feel the vitality in his form. The fire, or the magic that would create it, rested in deep oceanic pools. The beating of his wings to subdue the air made his soul soar just as much as his body. This was far, far greater than he deserved. Rorshawd would see that his Lord¡¯s goodwill was repaid in mortal blood.

    There was more than the strength granted to him by the Lord at his disposal. Just as that damned man had taken from him, so Rorshawd had received in kind. The trade turned out to be generously in his favor. Take Mark Weakness, for example. It was prohibitively expensive for Daniel to use in any way other than sparingly. Even with a fully refreshed mana pool, the Artificer couldn¡¯t mark Rorshawd.

    Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

    The opposite dynamic was the key. Only one creature below Rorshawd cost a noticeable amount of mana as he marked everything he had already tagged with Identify Creature. And what a useful power that was! In the mists that were the stolen memories of Daniel, Rorshawd remembered the Artificer blandly waxing on how clever he had been to combine the feature with his companion¡¯s senses. Well, Rorshawd could see everything too. He was the equivalent of a high-end level five mortal with well-rounded attributes in that range. Level disparity worked both ways. Having a much higher level than the ability used would not increase its power unless it was a scaling ability, but it would drastically reduce the mana cost.

    Moment of Clarity was the prime example. At Rorshawd¡¯s new level, the ongoing cost was negligible and the initial only bothersome. It was still a level one ability, he could not act in the frozen time, but he could think. He could examine every one of the weaknesses he¡¯d marked in detail. His draconic eyes could cut through the night and tally every ballista and every shot that they could put out before running dry. His range of vision had also improved, allowing him to see the village in its entirety without needing to turn his head. For most, he even saw deep into the powers they possessed due to what Identify Creature did at higher levels. Quick Mind, heightened to level five, rapidly analyzed the information presented to him. The strange analytical process running parallel to his main thoughts returned a conclusion the dragon approved of. All who would bear witness to his ascension this night would perish.

    The head and the heart. Those were the primary weaknesses most of his targets had. Rorshawd¡¯s draconic visage would have grinned, revealing long teeth, if time flowed normally. Did that even matter? His fire would incinerate anything it touched. No, if Rorshawd was to be honest, there was only one he needed to discover the weakness of. Kob. The others were just for intimidation. Only he could see the auras around each flicker out on death. Mark Weakness would provide a visible, undeniable sign of each life he claimed.

    Kob was the one Rorshawd spent the majority of the stolen time scrutinizing. The gestalt was just a mass of vines, what weakness was there to mark? Plenty, as it turned out. Knots in the vines spread out among the throng that served equivalent functions of joints, bones, and nerves. The source of their strength and vitality. In an even fight, Rorshawd knew he could just fly around the giant and breathe fire at them with impunity until its stone defenses melted and the vines beneath burned. He''d have to be careful not to be caught, but even then the Berserker was a mimicry of a level five while he arguably stronger than one with all his advantages. Though, with a city at Kob¡¯s back and roughly 10% of Rorshawd¡¯s mana spent in these opening maneuvers, he would need to be more tactical. That was why he prepared to use terror as his first weapon.

    ¡­

    Seconds after the entirety of Roost¡¯s Peak had been marked, Rorshawd took flight. No longer moving cautiously, he allowed himself to be tagged in kind by Hunter. The Artificer¡¯s eyes widened at the title accompanying the red aura. It was formatted differently than any tag he''d seen before, including the monster race as well as a section that would normally indicate a class.

    <hr>

    Rorshawd (Young Fire Dragon, ??? - 5)

    <hr>

    The name, the recognizable ability, and his character sheets gave Daniel enough to reach the same conclusion Lograve had. Claire had been affected too. The sight of that mark on her, the intent behind its placement- Moment of Clarity, Daniel thought. Not to activate it, but to warn Hunter. The ringcat still hated the ability. We can¡¯t beat that, Daniel thought as the spell took hold.

    Kob is strong. Hunter pointed out after only a second of complaining.

    That dragon has my powers! Panic began to edge in as Daniel felt his mana dwindling. He¡¯d spent so much over the day. They all had. Every competent fighter was half strength at best. Except for Tlara, but odds are she would just run. He needed a plan, but he needed to stop burning mana. Tlara gave him an idea, but it would do nothing against the dragon. I¡¯m restarting time soon. Hunter, run. Keep yourself tagged and I¡¯ll find you.

    No!

    You can get out of here faster than I can! Daniel protested. I need you to make sure Claire gets away safely.

    What? But there was no time to explain.

    ¡°Tlara!¡± Daniel shouted as loud as he could, narrowly beating out the cries of alarm that spread throughout the city. Miraculously, she was close enough that the arrival only took a moment.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know what the fuck that came from, but I¡¯m out of here,¡± was her predictable greeting. ¡°Good luck.¡±

    ¡°Wait!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not taking you,¡± she said flatly.

    ¡°Claire.¡± Tlara glared at him for a second before looking away.

    ¡°Shit.¡± She sighed, spent a second trying to glare at the Arcanist, and for some reason couldn¡¯t. ¡°Now or never, lover girl.¡± The wyvern landed on the roof, taking up all of the space not already occupied.

    Daniel turned to Claire fearing she¡¯d protest, but she was already taking Tlara¡¯s offered hand. ¡°You better be right behind me,¡± she said.

    ¡°Hunter¡¯s following you and I¡¯ll do my best to-¡±

    ¡°Wait!¡± Claire panned the city and pointed to a building. It was closer to the dragon than the walls, though not a great distance away. ¡°Parduc. Please, find him and help him get out.¡±

    Daniel nodded in confirmation, seeing Parduc¡¯s aura in a basement close to where she had been pointing. ¡°I will.¡±

    ¡°Time¡¯s up, I¡¯m going.¡± The first of the ballista had begun firing and Tlara probably didn¡¯t want to be around for them to mistake her as a valid target. Her wyvern had been marked too, meaning the ballista could get a clean kill with one shot given the opportunity. Claire tried to say something else, but it was lost in the wind.

    Hunter vaulted off the roof in pursuit, sparing no time despite the brief anxiety Daniel could feel through the bond. That left him alone on the roof to witness the end of Roost¡¯s Peak.

    Rorshawd the dragon was twisting in the air. Daniel couldn¡¯t believe it. Even knowing the midair control features both he and the dragon possessed, it seemed impossible that Rorshawd could dodge every bolt loosed against him. He had seen them up close and watched them fired in daylight. The speed and power the ammunition carried rivaled small artillery of his world due to their enchantments.

    It didn¡¯t matter. Rorshawd had a momentum of his own, sinking into gravity while simultaneously guiding his huge body through the air. Wings pulled away just enough to avoid skewering, and when a hit couldn¡¯t be fully avoided the dragon rolled to make it a glancing blow. This was the soul that had been hidden inside him? Daniel had come to realize the times his body had acted against his will had been Rorshawd¡¯s doing. In a way, the Artificer owed the dragon his life. It was almost funny.

    Fire reduced two ballista, and the five men around them, to liquid that intermixed and sizzled. The one shred of hope from that sight was the opportunity the dragon gave the other ballista by pausing midflight. Four struck, and one bounced off! The hit had been clean, straight on, and the ballista bolt reacted like it had been aimed at the cliff wall. The other three drew a snarl from the dragon and it listed to the side.

    What hit Daniel the most was the names. He didn¡¯t know any of the ones who¡¯d died but he¡¯d known their names. Ralven, Kanias, Flora, Thresher, and Skain. The first people he¡¯d seen die.. Their auras and the fire hadn¡¯t even joined. The wave of heat propelled ahead of magical flame had killed them. Perhaps that was a mercy. Rorshawd seemed to be focusing on the ballista first, and none of his friends-

    Daniel¡¯s heart dropped. He¡¯d forgotten them. So readily he¡¯d agreed to save Parduc, but he didn¡¯t think of helping those he¡¯d fought with. Most of them were in the keep in the center of the city, debriefing or visiting the injured before calling it a night. He debated whether he should intervene or trust them to escape on their own before realizing he was wasting more time. People were dying. None of the garrison besides Parduc and the librarian were level three, so everyone Daniel saw die told him their name before they were erased from the world.

    Balance, the actual name of the parkour feature Daniel obtained after the ringcat pack, proved its worth as Daniel began vaulting rooftops and running along walls. There was no time. He constantly reminded himself of that. At any moment Rorshawd could choose him as the next target. The dragon must have Identify Creature, meaning it could track him.

    The ballista of Roost¡¯s Peak were the only reason this was anything but a slaughter. Some weren¡¯t firing, out of either ammunition or men courageous enough to stand their post. Another third were slag, the rest on their way to join them. There were minutes at most, and Parduc was- ¡°Fuck!¡± Daniel cursed. Parduc¡¯s aura was retreating to the keep. Maybe that was logical, maybe that building could withstand dragon fire. Kob was there, if anything could stand up to Rorshawd it would be the gestalt. Could Daniel be blamed for leaving Parduc? Would Claire forgive him? Would he forgive himself?

    Javelins of ice were being fired from windows in the keep. Lograve, it had to be. The Arcanist had no mana left, but his Aquakinesis had already been heightened. Given that Lograve only used it at level three, Daniel had to wonder what it did at lower levels. Not the time, he grimly told himself. Shame or glory. Was that the choice here? Lograve and Tlara had said the Octyrrum rewarded bravery and prudence in kind. They were living out either side of that doctrine, but Daniel just wanted to find somewhere in the middle to hide. Instead, he kept running to the keep. The outer walls were on fire anyway. Stone shouldn¡¯t burn but Rorshawd¡¯s fire didn¡¯t care. Liquified rock dripped from the areas directly exposed to the brunt of the flame.

    It was insanity. How much mana was this costing the dragon, and how much did it have to spend? It had marked everyone in the city and still had enough to bring about this cataclysm. Would it run out? Could it run out? Was the Origin Beast feeding it as much mana as it needed? Those questions occupied Daniel as he ran on. He¡¯d made up his mind. Living with Claire was what he wanted, but he couldn¡¯t do that if he watched his friends¡¯ names vanish like the rest of the garrison. They were all there. Lograve, Thomas, Evalyn, Khare, Gadriel, Kob, and even the wounded Tak and Sigron.

    Daniel threw himself across a roof and into an open window. The main gate had been shut, though he hadn¡¯t known that. This was just the fastest way. Two people, members of the garrison, briefly raised weapons before dragging him into cover. They¡¯d expected dragon fire to follow Daniel. None came. Rorshawd was too busy killing the rest of the city.

 Chapter 42: Dragons Fury

    ¡°Daniel!¡± Three of those assembled exclaimed when he entered the command room, in addition to one ¡°Guy!¡±

    ¡°Where¡¯s Claire?¡± Evalyn asked.

    Daniel steeled himself and looked to the horizon. If he didn¡¯t see her¡­ No, her aura remained. He felt it safe to breathe again. ¡°Tlara took her wyverns and left. I only just managed to get her on one before that. Hunter ran after them.¡±

    ¡°You didn¡¯t,¡± Lograve observed. ¡°No time to catch up. We have a dragon to kill.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think we can kill Rorshawd,¡± Daniel cut in. Lograve gave him a look that didn¡¯t even necessitate a mental follow up.

    ¡°Yes, Daniel¡¯s ability has revealed this to be a unique creature. A named creature,¡± Lograve covered quickly, charging over anyone who asked questions. ¡°Among its abilities, we expect it possesses Regeneration, some form of telekinesis, and the ability to mark and follow creatures. As we are all aware.¡± Mark Weakness had faded after the first minute of the dragon¡¯s attack, but it had left a reminder that they were being hunted.

    ¡°Level five Regeneration.¡± Yedra grimaced. The woman was a far cry from the one that had nearly assaulted Lograve. Dragon attacks tended to be sobering. ¡°How can we put it down with that? Even the Eido garrison would need time and resources to prepare to fight a normal dragon of this level.¡±

    ¡°We begin by fortifying this tower. Continue having the Builders seal windows and anything else fire can easily penetrate.¡± That clued Daniel into the sections of the wall that looked like hidden doors in a video game. The shade of color on them was slightly off. ¡°We could try waiting until dawn for some of us to recover, but I don¡¯t like our chances. I¡¯ve killed a dragon before and it cost more than I¡¯d ever be willing to give. Hopefully, some of the ballista will-¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re gone.¡± Daniel didn¡¯t even look, or question what Lograve meant by killing a dragon. He knew how many were left. The rate of destruction had been constant, regular enough that Quick Mind enabled something like a timer in his mind. That had run out a minute ago. A glance earlier had told him the dragon was now torching the interior of the city, working its way towards the keep. It only touched occupied buildings. It only needed to. ¡°God.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll need more than one, Guy,¡± Thomas said sadly.

    ¡°Swarm tactics.¡± Gadriel coughed, still injured from fighting fifty or so monsters at once though a healer was doing what she could. ¡°An all or nothing assault. Sir Kob and I can lead the charge. Every man, woman, and gestalt united to end this monstrosity. The Bards might even deign to honor our deaths with a light reverie.¡±

    ¡°How do we force it to the ground?¡± One of the garrison asked. ¡°It ate through our ballista, we¡¯re not taking it down unless we can get on top of it!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s just going to burn all of us up!¡± The conversation was getting out of control. No one Daniel knew was losing their resolve, but then again they¡¯d fought monsters before. The only thing some of these people had done was fire at one from very far away.

    ¡°Kob is our only chance.¡± The air grew cold around Lograve, flecks of ice shining off of torchlight. ¡°Though I can offer significant aid. You can all thank the Octyrrum for Aquakinesis, as I can blunt fire damage around me.¡±

    ¡°How much?¡± Yedra caught one of the specks and watched it melt in her hand.

    ¡°Maybe enough to prevent death from the indirect effects of the breath. I figured this out to combat other fire-type creatures, but never thought I¡¯d be using it against a dragon.¡± Lograve flexed his hands as the ice melted. ¡°Takes up about all of my concentration, though, and the moisture in the air won¡¯t survive too long against that kind of fire.¡±

    ¡°How many others here possess powers that aid others?¡± Gadriel asked Yedra. ¡°We would do well to coordinate.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know who made it here.¡± Yedra grimaced. ¡°It happened so fast.¡±

    Daniel began rattling off names, almost too fast to be discernible. The dragon was moving closer. Some were fleeing, some were fighting, but everyone outside the keep was dying. Those weren¡¯t the ones he named. Rather than think about those left out, Yedra or another just followed up each name by saying a class and helpful powers.

    It wasn¡¯t much. Another Bard, a Martialist that improved the aim of those nearby, and a half dozen near useless buffs like resisting cold weather. Parduc, at least, could fortify the armor of allies.

    Appraised of their numbers and skills, the rest of the plan was rapidly made. ¡°We must assume it knows where we are at all times,¡± Lograve commented. ¡°Stealth will be as useful as extinguishing its flames with buckets of water. We let Kob advance out of the entrance and support them.¡±

    ¡°Aren¡¯t gestalt weak to fire?¡± A question from the crowd.

    ¡°Stone Form, along with the inherent resistance one obtains from high endurance. Kob is the only one who can take the dragon¡¯s fire directly and survive. We must count on this and use it as our opportunity. Strike at the wings to knock it out of the sky and help Kob pull it down.¡±

    ¡°Inflictive songs could help with that.¡± An avianoid with feathers that were practically pastel in their reds, greens, and blues commented from the back. He was the other Bard. His instrument was some kind of metallic horn, but the mouthpiece was wide and indented. It looked like the he had to bite down on it to play, which made more sense than him playing a trumpet.

    There was a wary look in Evalyn¡¯s eyes. ¡°It¡¯s level five. How are we supposed to influence it?¡±

    Instant tension formed between the two, ice layering onto the snow bank of condensed anxiety that pervaded the room. The Bards had drawn themselves into a side conversation Daniel found himself listening to more closely than the rest of the planning. ¡°Maybe its defenses to our powers are weaker?¡± The bird took a deep, unsteady breath, and continued, ¡°If we play together-¡±

    ¡°Absolutely not. You¡¯re level two, you¡¯d be more useful using those songs on your own.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d rather add to each other¡¯s work than subtract from it.¡±

    ¡°Not a chance.¡± Evalyn left the room with gritted teeth and clenched fists. What just happened? Daniel could only half understand what they were talking about. He looked between the departing Bard and the strategic debate. He wanted to follow her, but what was happening here was important. He couldn¡¯t follow her. He should stay and help plan. That was the rational choice.

    And yet Daniel walked out of the room. The meeting was important, yes, but he wasn¡¯t. He had a connection to the events, having been Rorshawd¡¯s unwitting host, but the one to slay the dragon wouldn¡¯t be him. Even his ability to keep track of the dragon wasn¡¯t too helpful. It was large enough for others in the group with detection powers to keep a bead on it through the walls and Rorshawd wasn''t trying to be stealthy anymore.

    Thomas caught up to him just as Daniel did Evalyn. ¡°What¡¯re you doing, Guy?¡±

    ¡°Following her.¡± Daniel inclined his head and the Bard spoke up.

    A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

    ¡°I need to be focused, and I can¡¯t be in the same room as that feathered ass.¡±

    ¡°Heh. You ever get along with another Bard?¡± Thomas asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know that much about your class but it seems like it¡¯d be better not to be at each other¡¯s throats?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not-¡± Evalyn grunted lightly and grew frustrated. ¡°I know the perceptions of our class. Normally it''s fine, it''s, ugh!¡±

    ¡°What did he say that irritated you?¡± Daniel asked.

    ¡°Inflictive songs. I don¡¯t like them. To me, it¡¯s playing poorly at the enemy instead of well for your friends.¡±

    ¡°So if the bird had suggested one of those?¡± Thomas was more curious than Daniel in this instance, and least afraid of the coming fight of everyone in the keep.

    ¡°We would have argued over which song to play,¡± she answered airily as if a toddler had asked her about calculus while she had a migraine. ¡°It never works. There are plenty of stories about Bards coming together in times of crisis, sure, but to a one whatever forms will break up over the first disagreement.¡± Evalyn stopped, having reached her destination.

    The main entrance of the keep was the only space large enough to hold Kob. Even then, the giant stretched across the walls and gave the room a deep jungle atmosphere. The majority of the garrison not with Yedra was here, including Parduc who almost trampled Thomas to get to Daniel. ¡°Claire, where is she?¡±

    ¡°Safe, she got out of the city,¡± Daniel reassured him, the Builder¡¯s wide shoulders dropping in relief. Parduc was wearing two layers of armor that exaggerated the gesture. Stone encased his normal garb in an added layer centimeters thick. Parduc clasped him on the shoulder and stone climbed its way up to grant him the same benefit.

    ¡°Thanks. That¡¯s a worry off my mind. You next.¡± He reached towards Thomas and Daniel noticed the rest of the garrison here was wearing the same stone suits.

    ¡°Do you have the mana for all of us?¡± Evalyn asked.

    ¡°Well gorgeous, unless you think a gazebo¡¯s what we need to kill a dragon, it¡¯s not like I need it for anything else.¡± Parduc tapped her on the shoulder to give her the effect. ¡°When do we fight?¡±

    ¡°Lograve and the others are coming down,¡± Daniel reported using his wall hacks. ¡°The dragon¡¯s-¡± He spun around twice to be sure. He couldn¡¯t say it unless he was sure. ¡°Everyone else is dead. It¡¯s coming here.¡±

    ¡°How much time do we have?¡± Lograve began to ask, just missing what Daniel said as he led the group from upstairs. They¡¯d left only a minute after Daniel had. Still, the look on the Artificer¡¯s face told him everything. Were Murdon here he¡¯d no doubt use the time to give a speech on overcoming the odds and relentless determination. If there was a chance Lograve would have tried that too, there just wasn¡¯t time for anything but straight orders. He cleared his throat.

    ¡°Here is the plan. Kob advances with anyone level two or higher and melee specialized. Magic-focused classes in the center, anyone else that can fire a bow holds the door and targets that damn thing''s wings. If you see an opening, try to shelter in adjacent buildings. Above all, stay spread out. Kob, we need you to ground it. I don¡¯t care how, but knock it out of the sky.¡± That was it. Nothing on what would happen when they did land the dragon if half of them died to dragonfire before that was achieved, or if people started running instead of fighting. This wasn¡¯t a fight with the luxury of days or hours to agonize over projections and maps. There was just something to kill and something to die for.

    ¡­

    Rorshawd cut the stream of fire. His latest victims had attempted to flee, unaware that he could see them at all times. They¡¯d made it about a few blocks before he¡¯d incinerated them and a good portion of the street. Then, he turned towards the center of Roost¡¯s Peak where the last mortals cowered. A handful had managed to escape, making it outside of the city. They could be hunted down once he was finished here. The auras he¡¯d placed on them weren¡¯t going anywhere. The dragon had also taken enough time clearing the rest of the city. No more grace would be extended to those behind the fortifications.

    In truth, he might have started there once destroying the ballista. It would have prevented them from congregating in such large numbers, but Rorshawd had two reasons for delaying. One, he wanted to test his new body and the powers from it on weaker enemies. Fighting the gestalt would require actual effort. Though he had been given an innate understanding of his new form upon transformation, that did not equate to experience. Second, massed mortals only made his fire breath that much more effective. Disappointingly, the ability did use a good deal of mana. Rorshawd felt more than knew that this new body, no matter how awe and terror inspiring, was not fully matured.

    That was good. Rorshawd could only imagine what growing stronger would grant him, but that also meant he could not be as brazen with his fire as he had at first been. At least one, perhaps two uses would be needed to finish Kob once their defenses had been destroyed. It was time to test out his claws. As for the rest? The blessing of his Lord had granted Rorshawd many things, but omniscience was not one of them. The dragon knew that, with his level, destroying the forty odd mortals should be easy, but their kind had a way of leveraging their powers to upset an otherwise indomitable opponent. Had he not his, and Daniel¡¯s, powers he would have never attacked Roost¡¯s Peak to begin with. Not until he was stronger.

    Instead, he had his own edge. Heightened Regeneration had already fixed most of the damage the bolts had done. A few clung to his flesh like quills though they were being slowly pushed out by the feature. Like his flame breath, improving Regeneration to a useful level had been expensive but worth it. Rorshawd did not have Daniel¡¯s Focus, or his own which the damned mortal now wore around his neck, and could not make use of Encyclopedia. Oddly he still had access to all the powers, even though the lack of a Focus should lock them. Rorshawd didn¡¯t want or need to think about that.

    The extra powers on top of what being a dragon gave him had made the killing so easy. That, and the callousness with which Rorshawd now regarded mortal life. It wasn¡¯t exactly a new development, there had been no hesitation in carrying out the plan to destroy Eido and everyone within. Having the power of a dragon just removed the need to care about people entirely. Besides, the Lord had ordained their deaths.

    Not even the arrogance born from his transformation had changed how Rorshawd revered the ancient one. The Lord¡¯s power and station were unquestionable. It was, right? The dragon landed on a building, cracking the stone with the force. In the back of his mind, Rorshawd sensed something was wrong. The hole in his memory. No, the holes.

    There had been a gap between his Communion and awakening as a dragon, of course. To his disappointment, it had been long enough for Daniel to flee. There was something else he hadn¡¯t considered, however. The delay between Eido¡¯s destruction and his awakening within the Artificer¡¯s body. The realization had taken time, and the ability to think clearly that Rorshawd hadn¡¯t had until after reincarnating in this form. Why had his Lord only rewarded him? What of the others? And why did he have to suffer in the body of another before it would come to this?

    Was it because of the Communion? Perhaps. That thought didn¡¯t stop the planting of doubt in Rorshawd¡¯s mind. His Lord was a god. Why had it chosen him? Another of the conspiracy, in this form, would have been unstoppable with their greater array of powers. Had it chosen him at all, or had he conveniently been there to use? If the Lord had not saved him from the Upswell, had not planned for the Communion, who had?

    The so called gods of the Octyrrum were false. What the Spiritualists had done to Eido could not be survived. This was the spoken word of the Lord, assured to them! And yet, it conflicted with reality. True, Rorshawd had been rewarded beyond any measure he could have dreamed. Did the Lord have a choice in that, though? These thoughts troubled the dragon, and he was wasting time. No matter his uncertainty, the mortals needed to die. He knew this in his bones. The dogma he had been taught was now replaced with the instinctual certainty that mortal kind was a blight to this world. They, and all their works, must be razed and the dust swept away.

    Rorshawd was less than a minute¡¯s flight from the keep. He resumed his course. The dark, draconic eyes gleamed as he saw the tower¡¯s door opening. They were coming out to fight him. That would save the trouble of peeling away the walls of stone, though he flew faster despite this. Fighting in the courtyard favored Rorshawd unless they were able to spread out to the surrounding buildings. He was one engine of destruction against about 40 armed mice. Nominally the fight was already over, but being surrounded, and with the unpredictability of all of those power sets put Rorshawd slightly on edge.

    The gestalt, Kob, was leading the charge against him. Rorshawd was too far to use his fire now, but his roar. His roar! How had he not ushered a deafening challenge when first descending on this city? It wasn¡¯t just noise that the dragon unleashed on the mortals taking the courtyard, but an ability. More mana slipped from him in a burst detectable by anyone nearby, empowering the concussive force of his bellowing with a magical effect. Rorshawd watched with glee as several began to run. Their loose formation, spread to minimize the number of targets he could hit with flame breath, was turning into chaos. This would be no trouble at-

    He was seconds away from true engagement range when the fear his roar had caused faded. Several of those who resisted the effect could cleanse it from the rest. Rorshawd roared again in frustration, though this one was only noise as he learned his empowered roar had a cooldown. Frustration and murder roiled in his mind as primal fury sparked and ignited toward those who would deny him. Rorshawd was a dragon. He was undeniable. He was undefeatable. He would kill everything here and level the stone until the earth was just a charred flat piece of rock. Mana turned his rage into fire, and the dragon let it loose upon the world once more.

 Chapter 43: Falling Star

    The blazing tide struck the vanguard of the remaining garrison when Rorshawd was twenty meters away from them. Without Lograve¡¯s cold field of ice shards, spread from where he was positioned in the center of their formation, the cast off heat would have killed half of those at the front.

    Still, the initial casualties would have been significant if Kob had not raised their own shield. Flames split off stone and vented harmlessly to the sides of the giant. Those vines closest to the exhaust blackened and died. The rest of the mass, and the people behind Kob, remained unharmed. Kob did not shift their stone shield back around themself as the rock was molten red where the brunt of the fire had touched it. The roots within those rocks were slowly dying as well, Kob being careful to gradually replace them to keep control of their shell while minimizing their injuries.

    Those who could see the dragon from within the keep unleashed their readied attacks. Only a few could, as the dragon had approached from an off angle and some, including Daniel, had momentarily lost themselves in fear before the avianoid Bard had cleansed the effect. The Artificer had yet to learn that effect itself determined the level of ability needed to remove it, which transcended the level of either the afflicter or the afflictee. Simple fear was common and removed by the lowest level powers. The upgraded terror effect grown dragons could elicit was harder to address, though that was not a present concern.

    Arrows, and two long range spells from the center mage group, shot toward the dragon in response to its assault. Lograve¡¯s ice did not join this volley, concentrated as he was on nullifying fire in the area around him. Rorshawd spun in the air to avoid the attack and the meager number of projectiles was not enough to force a meaningful hit.

    It did, however, allow Kob¡¯s plan to work. In their normal fashion, they had proposed the idea with but one word: throw. Gadriel agreed immediately, without even clarifying what they had meant. Lograve had been skeptical, and Daniel couldn¡¯t help but think of a ranger and a dwarf as he caught on to the idea.

    A burst of mana, not quite as powerful as what radiated from the dragon when it breathed fire, emanated from Kob as they wheeled around for a sweeping attack. Kob had the range to hit the dragon and could have ended the battle there and then. The issue was their speed, critically dampened by level disparity which made them the turtle to the dragon¡¯s hare. Kob wasn¡¯t trying to hit the dragon, not with itself. The attack impacted nothing, but the cluster of vines forming the weapon continued to carry the momentum, releasing what it held at the end of its extended arc. Gadriel, armor impossibly gleaming in the light of the dragonfire¡¯s remnants, flew on an intercept course with the dragon as it passed over the courtyard.

    Rorshawd could maneuver fluidly in the air, but could not do two things at once. Mistaking Kob¡¯s wind up for a simple attack, he had committed to dodging the volley of ranged attacks which actually had a chance of hitting him. The gestalt adjusted mid-swing for this and launched Gadriel while the dragon was mid-evasion. This left it open for Gadriel¡¯s sword, which swung out ahead of its wielder to carve through leathery wings. They were a weakness of the dragons, lightly armored and critical for their ability to fly. The aberrant Regeneration possessed by this one compensated, but not fully as the sword cut thrice into it before the weight of the Hero threw the dragon off course.

    There were many reasons why what Gadriel did next succeeded. His extreme determination and hunting style, for one. Against most enemies Gadriel fought with only his features, and didn¡¯t heighten them unless needed. Earlier this day he had been forced to do so with Flying Sword, Acrobatics, Balance, and Brawling against the horde to both destroy it and prevent it from reaching Thomas. Still, he had reserved his abilities. His self-reinforced handicap allowed him to train not only his powers, but himself. The result of this was that Gadriel had the best technical skill of anyone in the Thormundz, even beating out Murdon and Kob who¡¯d been at this longer. He knew himself, and he knew how to fight.

    That wouldn¡¯t have saved him against an enemy three levels greater than himself. He needed Kob and the others to provide him with this opening. Having been thrown onto the dragon, Gadriel was now impossible to hit with its flame breath or claws. All this Gadriel knew, enforcing his boldness and driving any hesitation from his actions atop the dragon.

    The final reason, however, was known to no one present. There were very few alive amongst the mortals who could guess how Gadriel was able to defy the odds, cling to the dragon, and do what needed to be done. They were neither here, nor watching. Those assembled in the courtyard just watched Gadriel fly, none considering what the seventh attribute had contributed to his success.

    Moments before Gadriel hit the dragon, his sword returned to his free hand and he drove it into its hide. Kob had thrown well, Gadriel was positioned halfway up the neck. Too far up for the head to turn to face him, and too far for the tail to reach him. The Hero used the sword to steady himself rather than attack. That was what his abilities were for.

    ¡°Falling Star!¡± The Hero cried out the incantation, targeting the ground. Normally, this would bring him crashing down in a destructive wave with respectable damage to anything directly impacted, offset by a burdensome mana cost and inability to use anything else while falling. Here, the dragon¡¯s strength kept both aloft despite the force imparted by the ability.

    Undeterred, Gadriel used it again. The dragon had been circling for another breath attack. Its flight jerked suddenly when the Hero leaned into his sword to transfer the force of Falling Star into it. That was a problem. Rorshawd could easily keep in the air despite the loadstone that was the Hero. He¡¯d barely felt the sword pierce the scales of his neck, but now Gadriel was using the dragon¡¯s strength against him.

    ¡°Falling Star!¡± The longsword sunk half of its depth into the dragon¡¯s flesh and Rorshawd snarled in pain. There was not enough room for the dragon to burn the Hero, but they could lock eyes. Gadriel stared down a monster that would rend him asunder the first chance it could get and smiled. It was the same smile he¡¯d given Murdon, back in Hagain. It wasn¡¯t arrogant, brash, or even mirthful. Gadriel imparted in that weary grin that he would shoulder the world until the moment his back broke. Now, the dragon could share in that burden.

    Projectiles were still filling the air as more from the back group retrieved weapons and positioned themselves appropriately. Only a few pierced the skin, with one bolt striking well into the bony support of the left wing. Rorshawd had to recalculate, had to start killing. The sword cut deep and would continue to do so if he didn¡¯t land. Regeneration afforded him the ability to take the otherwise fatal wound the blade would inflict should it sink to its hilt, but the force of that ability was impacting his maneuverability. Should the Hero use it at the wrong time, it could misdirect his flame breath or foil a dodge.

    Rorshawd needed to kill, starting with the Hero. He needed to think. The blind feral rage of a dragon was intoxicating. He had reveled in the sensation when slaying the others but now was the time for Rorshawd to use his mind as much as his anger. The dragon flew over the assembled mortals for a second pass, not breathing fire to conserve mana, although he did extend claws that tore three of those in the center group to ribbons. He growled when he realized the primary target had thrown ice around himself to prevent a fourth kill, though the field of cold retracted noticeably in exchange. Turning back quickly would allow his flame breath to-

    ¡°Falling Star!¡± The voice behind his head called out another incantation. Rorshawd could sense the mana fleeing the Hero with each use. No power allowed that, just the scale of his level compared to Gadriel¡¯s. The sudden surge of gravity was accompanied by several abilities from below. No ice, thankfully, but grasping vines, pure telekinetic pull, and one human whose arm transmutated suddenly to grab him from a few meters away.

    The attempt wasn¡¯t successful. Rorshawd was simply too strong. Maybe if he bore the weight of all the damage inflicted on him that night he wouldn¡¯t have the strength to resist, but Regeneration had returned him almost to full health. The pitiful attacks on his wings from those within the tower would need to hit far harder to make an impact.

    Rorshawd paused time for a moment to think. It was such a casual action, calming almost, except for the sting of the sword that still burned despite the cessation of movement. He had roughly less than half of his mana remaining. 39%, the number came to him thanks to Quick Mind. The average breath consumed just under 7% of his mana, and he raged at himself for being careless before. Rorshawd had a quarter of his mana left to freely use, the rest needed to be reserved for the death of Kob.

    Gadriel could be dealt with for far less. The dragon considered his surroundings, estimated mana consumption, felt his mana drop to 38%, and stopped wasting time. He activated Telekinetic Reach, targeting the Hero in his totality. For all but the dragon it appeared as if, just after breaking from the attempt to pin it to the ground, Rorshawd shook his back and Gadriel went flying.

    The Hero sailed over the central row of buildings before impacting a wall, cracking it from the force of the throw. Rorshawd looked closely at the man for a few seconds and roared in triumph, before beginning to turn for another strike at the garrison. Four down, the rest to follow.

    ¡­

    Daniel wasn¡¯t breathing much, and what did come to him were gasps forced by necessity. He was barely functioning. That was while within the safety of the keep¡¯s tower. If he¡¯d been out there? Three people had just been torn apart. Lograve had seen it coming and tried to shield them, but only got the shield over himself before Rorshawd buzzed past. Thomas was with him. All of his friends were still alive, at least.

    Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

    Then Gadriel was torn from the dragon¡¯s back before the Hero could speak his incantation a fifth time. The progress the sword was making through Rorshawd¡¯s neck had given him some hope, until that was ripped away with the man. An audible crack of stone cut over the noise of battle as he landed heavily out of sight. Is he? No. Gadriel¡¯s aura was still present. He wasn¡¯t moving, but he was alive.

    ¡°Guy?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s just unconscious,¡± Daniel answered Thomas¡¯ concern after taking a breath. Both froze as the dragon roared. It was coming back. They were safe in the tower, up until the point that there wasn¡¯t anyone left to defend them.

    ¡°We have to bring him down. Archers, the left wing! Focus Fire!¡± That was Alost, level two Martialist. Had he been on the walls the dragon might have been stopped before it reached them. It was like he¡¯d suddenly turned on auto-aim, or given everyone in the group Snap Shot. It wasn¡¯t perfect, but it kept everyone locked onto the same limb instead of scattering their shots against the red hide.

    It was coming again, focusing on the middle group and avoiding the one at the center. Both were protected, though Kob¡¯s ability to divert dragon fire or claws was far above Lograve¡¯s. The intent had been to spread out and avoid as many losses to the breath attack as they could. The flaw, now, seemed obvious. But they¡¯d only had minutes to plan!

    ¡°Ready! Aim!¡± Alost was calling out the volley, the back group fully regaining order after the effects of the first, terrible roar.

    Wait, the dragon¡¯s left wing, or the one on my left? The crossbow wavered as he debated. Crap, it¡¯s subjective. There wasn¡¯t time to ask. Either wing, just pick one!

    ¡°Fire! The left, dammit, the left!¡± Alost cursed as the volley split its attacks evenly among both wings. The concentrated attack drew the dragon¡¯s attention, at least. Two others in the group had crossbows, while the rest used regular bows of various sizes. Even unenchanted, the weapons managed to puncture the light skin of the wings.

    Maybe with enough damage- no, Regeneration, Daniel reminded himself. Only the wounds caused by the crossbow bolts dealt lasting damage on their own. Arrows within powers or greater attributes behind them were pushed out of the dragon¡¯s scales in seconds by the monstrous healing rate. He pressed himself against the wall and closed his eyes when he heard the sound of rushing air. Rorshawd was taking in the breath that would become flame and he didn¡¯t want to see what would come of it.

    ¡°Crest!¡± Daniel felt the heat as he heard the curses.

    Opening his eyes, he looked not to the courtyard but to the south. She¡¯s, they¡¯re still alive. That comforted him. Tlara had paused some distance away from the city, dismounting to join Hunter on the ground. Maybe the wyvern was tired? But then why is- Daniel saw it, then. Hope, impossible though it was, there was hope on the horizon.

    The scorched courtyard stood in contrast to this. No, scorched didn¡¯t even cover it. There was a pool of melted slag where most of a mage group had been. Lograve¡¯s section had already been scythed, so Rorshawd had targeted others. All were from the garrison, including the other Bard. There was nothing left of them.

    What can I do? There was a chance, one chance. The plan to ground the dragon had failed. Gadriel was alive but out of the fight. They¡¯d lost a dozen of their original strength and Rorshawd was wise enough to stay clear of Kob. Still, there was a chance, if they could just keep the dragon distracted. He had Daniel¡¯s powers, but could he see far enough to where Hunter was?

    ¡°Guy, reload!¡± Thomas nudged him with the end of his new bow. ¡°We have to hit the wings! It¡¯s coming back.¡±

    ¡°Eyes.¡± Daniel turned towards Alost, the one who carried what passed for authority here. ¡°We have to hit the eyes!¡± He saw the aura swinging around. Another flame breath, or claws this time? Those out in the courtyard were either alone or sheltering under Kob at this point. Another bloodbath by one pass was no longer an option, though that just meant it would take longer to kill them all. There was one chance, and only if they kept the element of surprise.

    But how could Daniel explain that? If there was anything still human in him, Rorshawd could understand what he said. Alost was going to ignore him, he could tell. What do I say? What wouldn¡¯t tip him off? ¡°The wings keep healing! If we hit the eyes-¡±

    ¡°Its hearing is as strong as its sight. Left wing, everyone this time! F-¡°

    ¡°It has my powers!¡± Daniel cut Alost off before the man wasted mana. ¡°Trust me, we need to blind it!¡±

    That got the archer to stop. In that time, someone else died from dragon claws. They had been carried for a time before being torn apart. Thomas was looking at him with disbelieving eyes as if he¡¯d told the Cleric he had terminal cancer. That, and the mixture of expressions ranging from disbelief to hostility from the rest, would have normally shut Daniel up and made him go along with whatever they wanted to do.

    That was before flying swarms had tried to eat him, before Tlara had riled whatever small anger was within him into self-righteous indignation, and before Daniel had watched people die right in front of him. To hell with walking the line of other¡¯s expectations and getting caught up in himself from the effort. He was right. They were going to get everyone killed by doing the same wrong thing over and over again. What was the opinion of others worth when weighed against that truth?

    Daniel faced the mortals arrayed against him and got mad. It was a way in which he hadn¡¯t broken before, the mine having exhausted all of his fear. Angry tears filled his eyes. That hadn¡¯t happened since he was young, in impotent rage over an unfair world. This world was just as unfair, but Daniel was no longer powerless.

    ¡°Daniel¡­¡± Thomas said, breaking his habit to underscore whatever he was about to say.

    I must look so stupid, Daniel thought. Screw it, I don¡¯t need them. He was resolved on what to do, but emotion would spoil anything he would say. Instead, he brought up his crossbow to the alarm of several inside, pointed at the door, and activated Moment of Clarity. A moment¡¯s thought was spared for Hunter, hoping the ringcat wasn¡¯t caught up in this so far away, before Daniel lined up the most difficult shot he¡¯d attempted yet.

    Rorshawd had turned his attention to the foremost group that still retained all of its members. Kob seemed the primary target as the dragon was reaching out to grab the large stone chunks they were using as shields. Dragon biology dictated each eye was located as much on the side of the head as it was on the face. Daniel could only estimate, and do so well, the diameter of the eye that would face him as Rorshawd swooped by. Half, maybe one meter wide. Half a courtyard away too, moving target¡­ His subconscious uselessly commanded his unmoving jaw to grit his teeth.

    Daniel wasted three ¡®seconds¡¯ staring into Rorshawd¡¯s eye. It couldn¡¯t move, just like his, but still, he wanted to sense if Rorshawd knew what was going on. He had Moment of Clarity same as Daniel, and Hunter was brought into frozen time whenever the ability was used. Even though nothing happened to raise his suspicion, Daniel hurried his thoughts. If Rorshawd was given enough time, he might see what Daniel was doing.

    If he¡¯s going for the stone, he¡¯s going to stop to tear it off, he guessed. But not too long or he¡¯ll be open to Kob. Seconds, I have seconds, but the head shouldn¡¯t move separately from how the body moves, right? Unless he sees the shot coming. That neck is long enough to bend. Damn it. Crossbow bolts fired fast, Daniel knew that, but there was no telling how fast the dragon could dodge. And if he uses Moment of Clarity too¡­

    Enough. Daniel would think himself to death if he continued to waste his mana like this. There was no surety, only a feeling of where the dragon¡¯s eye would be for the next few seconds and where it would stay the longest. A hope, as small as the one Daniel so desperately protected, but it was there.

    Time resumed its course. People were moving around Daniel, but none would reach him before he fired. Muscles twitched as his body acted on the mind¡¯s calculations, leading the crossbow to where it needed to be. Light flashed over the bolt as he activated Scatter Shot. Then, as the Artificer used Snap Shot and pulled the trigger, several things happened very quickly.

    Rorshawd, moving as Daniel predicted, grabbed onto the largest stone and began pulling. The dragon¡¯s head, however, shifted with the wings as they forcefully beat down to generate lift. The entirety of the form still moved up, although the eye was below where Daniel had expected. That was within the ability of Snap Shot¡¯s correction, and the bolt left the crossbow on a true arc.

    Then, Rorshawd froze time. The dragon was in disbelief, both in the gall of where he was being targeted and in that it would hit home. A fraction of time was left to change the outcome, for which only a slight adjustment was needed. So what if the bolt hit his face? Rorshawd was a dragon, a rapidly-healing dragon. Blood may get in his eye occasionally, but that was better than being shot in it. Snap Shot could not adjust for unexpected enemy movement, nor do anything once the bolt was in flight. There was no way it could predict the future beyond knowing the momentum of the target. Rorshawd planned to rotate his head ever so slightly, and then focus his next attack on ending Daniel once and for all.

    His designated course of action took place the moment time resumed. Halfway to its target, the bolt was now off course. No one on the battlefield could change that now. But, for one observing from very far away, something could be done.

    The crossbow bolt skated off of one of the ice crystals Lograve was reforming in the air to protect from flame breath. It was less a ricochet and more of a nudge, just enough to put it back on track. Neither Daniel nor Rorshawd could have planned for that. It might have simply been random chance. Had Daniel been able to read the notification on his phone before it disappeared, he might have thought differently.

    <hr>

    Alert: An allied Ability: Impart Fortune has affected your most recent attack, increasing its Critical Chance and Critical Damage. Source: Creature: Silora Thelonas

    <hr>

    Rorshawd¡¯s eye widened and then bled black as the soft tissue was pierced. The scattered afterimages, normally spread out too far to affect one target, tore into the surrounding area. Even in the instant after the bolt penetrated through the center of the iris to the flesh behind, Regeneration began repairing the damage. The problem was that organs, especially complex organs like the eyes, would not heal as quickly. At lower levels it wouldn¡¯t do even that without a very long recovery time. The dragon howled in pain, a noise still deafening but different from the previous roars. It flew off, clutching part of Kob¡¯s stone armor, before beginning to turn.

    ¡°Go shoot the other fucking one,¡± Daniel¡¯s trembling voice told the others before he went to reload. At least they won¡¯t have to worry about which side to aim for.

 Chapter 44: Titan of the Thormundz

    To Lograve, everything around him was at the periphery of his mind. The Arcanist was entirely focused on pulling what moisture remained in the air together to form the network of ice crystals. Aquakinesis was a strong power, the kind made supreme by experience to exploit its versatility. Its weakness was running out of water to work with. Every fire breath issued by the dragon scorched the air as much as his targets. Once that was gone, Lograve was out of mana and options, and this battle would not last to dawn at the current pace. Even one mana potion might have made a difference, but the few that remained were stored in Hagain. Murdon had wanted everything saved for when it was time to break out of the region.

    If only he¡¯d known. Despite, or rather, in line with himself, Lograve smiled. The irony of this attack was not lost on him. Weeks spent preparing for the wrong dragon. They¡¯d even had a better chance here with the ballista, but most who could fight well were elsewhere.

    As for the garrison, the slaughter from before was turning into a total cull. The initial wave of fear had almost been their undoing if not for Lyrok, though the Bard was now ash in the wind. A shame. What a perfect name for a Bard. Gadriel¡¯s gambit had failed, his fate unknown. Kob was perhaps the biggest tragedy. The gestalt was meant to be the trump card against the dragon of the pass. From their performance here, Lograve could see that was a false hope.

    Kob could protect themselves and others around them fine. They even encircled some of the stronger warriors in hopes of preserving them for when the dragon was grounded. What they couldn¡¯t do was strike out meaningfully. The gestalt was simply too slow and awkward in their movements. They¡¯d leveled too quickly and taken too much level disparity. The dragon, the impossible creature with a name and a soul, was exploiting this to great effect. Kob was now its focus and when the gestalt fell, so too would the rest of those alive.

    Is this all because of Daniel? Lograve wondered as the field of ice became stable enough to passively maintain. Only he was certain, without a shadow of a doubt, that the Artificer¡¯s companion could speak. Did it have a soul as well? If he is truly from beyond the Crest, is there a chance Murdon¡¯s first instincts were correct? Lograve¡¯s gaze turned towards the Artificer and witnessed both the shot that took out the dragon¡¯s right eye, and the looks the rest of the archers were giving him. No. If nothing else, that isn¡¯t the same man I met in a healer¡¯s tent.

    Lograve tracked the dragon¡¯s retreat and hoped for just a moment it would flee before it turned around. Heading again towards Kob, unless this was a feint. There was something in that approach that was different, the dragon was favoring its left side. The Arcanist was well aware the loss of a single eye wouldn¡¯t drastically alter the fight. Even if both were destroyed, the dragon¡¯s hearing was just as sharp and far harder to obstruct.

    He spared a glance towards Evalyn. No sonic attacks or deafening abilities that he knew of, neither from before this doomed training mission nor after. Several of his contemporaries, including Lyrok, had abilities that could have been combined to weaken the dragon¡¯s hearing, but they were dead.

    Of the options available to him, few features could assist. There was Aquakinesis, Telepathy, Enhance Magical Projectile, Evasion, and a handful of other utility features that were useless in the current fight. What could he do, lambast the dragon to distract it? Telepathic communication couldn¡¯t be as easily ignored. But Lograve couldn¡¯t, both out of fear and the surety that he had to survive to warn the world what was coming.

    The dragon tore another stone section loose from Kob as a volley from behind him aimed for the head. Rorshawd was wise to this now and shielded himself both through his angle of approach and use of his rapidly-healing wings. Dammit, Lograve cursed, seeing the gashes that did tear into the membranes quickly close. He was sure, now, that Daniel knew something he didn¡¯t. Taking the dragon¡¯s sight was important, though they weren¡¯t being given a chance. Someone would have to make one.

    ¡°I need a disruptive assault timed to its next attack! Knock it off its balance and show the archers its eye!¡± Lograve shouted to the remaining mages. There were six including Evalyn. Telsor and his transmutation abilities were gone, though the gestalt Arcanist and avianoid with a psionic power remained as particularly useful candidates. A combined attack on the dragon¡¯s body, mind, and soul would be needed to drop its guard. They should have been coordinating like this since the beginning of the fight and had tried to, but there had been no time!

    Evalyn was the closest to him, the position earned from her time spent fighting alongside Lograve. We need you to use an inflictive song. Can you do that? This question to the Bard was only mental. He was aware of her preferences, and could not risk that she would delay her answer from fear of others overhearing the conversation.

    I can¡¯t. She replied as there was a momentary pause in her playing. Valor Song had colored the entirety of the fight thus far, lost as it was in the devastation inflicted by the dragon.

    Can¡¯t, or won¡¯t?

    I can¡¯t, she repeated as almost a plea, face falling as she watched Lograve grimace. I don¡¯t-

    You don¡¯t need to explain. Run to Alost and explain the plan. Now!

    Evalyn started to stride forward, stopped, and asked. Who?

    Gods, Daniel then. Go!

    ¡­

    Evalyn swung her instrument around to her back and made for the keep. It was a motion made easy through repetition. The Bard had very few powers that could be used against enemies and little means to defend herself. It was something her former mentor had almost literally harped on, and others continued to bring up once she was on her own. When you couldn¡¯t defend yourself, running away was a valid strategy to avoid dying. Her style of fighting amounted to finding an entrenched position, or at least an area somewhat obscured, and assisting her allies however she could. People who kept on with her for more than one hunt would come to appreciate her approach to the Bard class.

    In truth, she wasn¡¯t sure if it was her personality that shaped which powers she received or if she had received inflictive songs only to evolve them into something more to her liking. For someone of her means, there was no way to tell. In the end, that left Evalyn with nothing to use against the dragon. Even Valor Song, an ability common knowledge of Bard powers told her she shouldn¡¯t have been able to awaken at level one, did nothing against all-consuming fire.

    And now I¡¯m reduced to a messenger! Despair was seeping into her spirit. The careful persona she¡¯d maintained after the Upswell was slipping, just like it had that night with Daniel. Negative emotions. It was the double-edged sword of their class. Bards couldn¡¯t influence others without harnessing the relevant emotions themselves first. Normally, they were able to manage these feelings better than their targets and maintain control. Bards lived in emotion, in their songs, performance, and in their souls.

    Attacking a creature through their song meant taking in fear, or something just as suitable, and crafting it into their song. But Evalyn, after hearing of this when explained the tenets of her class, felt the principle conflicted with her basic will. Sure, she could loath monsters and hate evil. She¡¯d been a dedicated hunter for about as long as she¡¯d had a class, having only made infrequent use of the other ways Bards advanced. But internalizing every hateful emotion and feeding them? It was a path she didn¡¯t want to take, even if it meant she had nothing to help with now.

    ¡°Evalyn!¡± Thomas called out to her. All of those still in the keep had watched her approach, though the Cleric was at the front of the pack. ¡°What are you doing?¡±

    None stopped her as she rushed inside. Several no doubt thought it was cowardice that brought her here. Wasn¡¯t it? I could have fought coming here. I just went along with it because- He¡¯s staring, smile dammit! Evalyn forced a smile, having no effect on the Cleric. She couldn¡¯t muster a shred of confidence. Still, she had her voice. ¡°Lograve. He¡¯s going to disrupt the dragon when it attacks again to give you an opening for the other eye.¡± She looked around. ¡°Where¡¯s Daniel?¡±

    ¡°Reloading!¡± his voice called out from the back of the group. The Artificer was by a loose stack of bolts. Something stirred within her as she saw him.

    It wasn¡¯t love or even interest. Gods no. That¡¯s the last thing I need right now. It was a sense of the room, how he was separated from the others by both space and social cues. Bards could read those well, at least when they didn¡¯t neglect their wisdom. Whatever had alienated Daniel wasn¡¯t that he had made the shot that took out the dragon¡¯s eye. Something else had happened.

    You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

    ¡°When?¡± A man with a bow, Alost Evalyn presumed, asked.

    ¡°When it next attacks,¡± was all she could say.

    ¡°Crest, this hunt is a mess.¡± He quickly pulled an arrow from the dwindling supply in his quiver and knocked it. Enchanted, Evalyn realized with a surprise. Not the bow itself, but the arrow. They were noticeably different from the ones the others were using. Hadn¡¯t the Commander told everyone to- ¡°Form up! We¡¯re taking this thing down. Left eye, Focus Fire!¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know what Guy¡¯s thinking,¡± Thomas whispered to Evalyn, slightly jerking his head towards Daniel while tracking the dragon. She¡¯d gotten here just in time, it would fall on Kob again soon. ¡°Incredible shot though. I mean, your song helped.¡± His genuine smile hardened a little when he registered the stowed instrument. ¡°Out of mana?¡±

    ¡°Not yet.¡± Evalyn quickly pulled her accordion back into her hands and prepared to use Valor Song again. In truth, she struggled to use all of her mana on hunts because of how little her powers consumed. It was one of the tradeoffs that balanced all the negatives of how her musical powers worked, one of which she struggled with now. The gripping fear and lingering grief tried to smother her as she called upon Valor Song, but as she breathed evenly and let the music play, the darkness that had come upon her during the run lifted.

    ¡°What¡¯s Lograve going to do?¡± Daniel asked as he passed by them both to take a kneeling position in the front.

    ¡°The surviving mages are going to concentrate an attack to give you an opening.¡± Evalyn watched Daniel nod as each archer moved their aim together.

    Even when Daniel took his eyes off of the dragon, the point of the bolt remained on it. He looked at her, no trace of the original awe and lust that had accompanied the gape from their first meeting. Nor was there resentment, a relief considering all that had happened. Evalyn had rejected a fair number, all Bards had. Daniel hadn¡¯t exactly taken the events gracefully, but she was grateful he¡¯d eventually understood. And it wasn¡¯t even his fault in the end. I just didn¡¯t want to get into anything complicated after losing-

    ¡°Here it comes! Wait for the mages!¡± Alost called out, firmly in control of the group again. There was a moment of consideration from the archer before he pulled another arrow out and knocked it together with the first. It had to be some form of power since the two merged. ¡°Bowmen first, then crossbows when you see the arrows fly. I want them to hit this bastard all at once.¡±

    The dragon latched onto the last large clump of stone Kob had left. Vines were digging into the square to try and recover the shield, assisted by someone on the inside shaping the rock into usable pieces, but not fast enough. The majority of Kob would be left unprotected by flames, though Rorshawd did not use his breath attack. Not yet.

    ¡­

    Daniel had nothing but the belief that Rorshawd hadn¡¯t seen it yet, and they needed to destroy the other eye before that happened. The dragon¡¯s hearing didn¡¯t matter, he wasn¡¯t doing this to fully blind Rorshawd and knew blasting his music would impair the archers more than him at this point, while also drawing its ire towards them. It had seemed like Rorshawd was going to go for them for a moment, but a last twist in the air redirected him back towards Kob.

    He wants to take them out before we blind him, Daniel decided. If Rorshawd didn¡¯t need to fear being grabbed by Kob then his sight wouldn¡¯t matter, at least as far as the dragon knew. Daniel took stock of his mana as the time drew closer. Dwindling, so much that he decided against Moment of Clarity.

    Then, their opening arrived. A smaller gestalt in the mage group tunneled vines into the earth, which rose near Rorshawd to pin his right wing. Telekinetic force must have struck at the same time, as the dragon¡¯s head began to slowly turn. One from the melee group, a Beastmaster whose meager creature lay in wait for the dragon¡¯s fall, reached out a hand to lash out in conjunction with the others. A few even threw javelins or throwing knives, using what limited ranged abilities they had.

    No one but Daniel had seen the auras of the faint hope growing closer, but everyone knew the original plan had failed. Blinding the dragon was now the first step to victory. More so, those with swords, axes, and shields had watched their comrades die and had been denied any chance at vengeance. It was time.

    Only Lograve was absent in intervention, bringing his field of crystalline ice up as a shield between the spread out mages and the dragon¡¯s head. That proved life-saving as Rorshawd ignited the air when his head was forced to point toward the mages. This claimed a section of Kob¡¯s upper mass from convection alone, though where it met the crystals the flames recoiled like rushing water meeting a wall. Motes and streams would break through, seriously wounding an avianoid but claiming no life.

    While this happened, the two gestalt pinning the dragon struggled against his attempts to free himself. Daniel¡¯s heart barely beat as he wondered what would happen first, their target appearing or the dragon freeing itself. Time seemed to pass so slowly that Daniel briefly wondered if he had accidentally used his ability. Yet time flowed unabated, and the moment came.

    ¡°Fire!¡± Alost cried, releasing his combined arrows. Daniel waited for just one second before firing his crossbow, sinking mana into Snap Shot. He¡¯d pour it all in if it meant a guaranteed hit, but-

    But he¡¯d fired too quickly. That wasn¡¯t as bad as it seemed. Alost¡¯s plan to have each shot hit the eye at once would have doomed them. Rorshawd was no fool, he must have expected this was the end goal of the trap he was actively breaking out of. The staggered shots left the dragon with an impossible choice.

    Did he try to dodge the crossbow bolts or the arrows? The archers had all released at once, but each crossbowman had interpreted Alost¡¯s additional command differently. The imperfection of Focus Fire turned into a strength as Daniel realized that no matter what Rorshawd did, something was going to hit his eye. Whether it was a crossbow bolt or several arrows, there was no escape.

    For a normal dragon. Even without Moment of Clarity, most would not have been fast enough to have a chance to dodge that first bolt, remote interference aside. But for Rorshawd, there was another option. One Daniel hadn¡¯t even considered the dragon capable of using. Rorshawd¡¯s mighty lungs continued expelling air, although the magic propelled along with it stopped as something else took shape. A word.

    ¡°Bulwark.¡± The voice had the resonant quality of all incantations, but this was matched with an intensity befitting one whose normal means of speech was a throaty growl. There was a rasp curling at the edges of the voice like the flames which came from the same source. It was confident, imperial, and cruel. It was the voice of a dragon.

    The stone clutched in the dragon¡¯s claws was separated enough from Kob to no longer be considered part of the gestalt, and thus was a valid target. In the span of a second, a large disk-like shield was torn from the rock and raised in front of Rorshawd¡¯s eye. It caught every single arrow and bolt without breaking.

    Most of the mortals were stunned. Not from any power or wound but from the voice alone. They¡¯d heard Lograve say this was a unique dragon, but this was beyond belief. Monsters did not have souls, they did not think in any real way, and they did not speak. This was the doctrine all native to the Octyrrum held, that which Rorshawd now tore away with but a word.

    The disk shot towards Lograve after blocking the volley. The attempt on his life was foiled only by his previous experience with Hunter. That had inoculated him from the initial shock, preserving his senses enough to dodge the attack. It didn¡¯t matter, it wouldn¡¯t change what was about to happen. Gazes fixed in horror on the dragon, and every mortal heard Rorshawd¡¯s second word.

    ¡°Burn.¡± It was no incantation, yet it echoed through the streets of Roost¡¯s Peak. Kob was left with no shields in place to save them from the stream of fire that followed the word as Rorshawd flew out of reach. This was the dragon¡¯s endgame. Burning Kob would remove the final barrier to a complete annihilation of the garrison.

    The vines of Kob¡¯s form contracted in response, growing tighter to present less surface area to the heat enveloping it, and to protect those inside. It was Daniel who realized that, seeing the auras of five held within the mass. Then fire wreathed the vines, and those auras, including Kob¡¯s, began to wither.

    Alost fired three arrows in rapid succession, not using any skill but desperation alone. The dragon¡¯s eye was pointed away again, and not his nor the other arrows that followed would stave off the dragon. Few even penetrated the hide. An ice spike from Lograve could have done something, but the air was empty of moisture. They were out of cards to play.

    Perhaps they had been doomed from the start. None of the garrison had fully grasped the danger represented by the dragon or what distinguished it from any other of its kind. Not until it spoke, as it did now. ¡°Burn and die.¡±

    Kob had barely survived the first breath, reduced to a third of their mass. They would not survive the second. If they had waited to level, then perhaps they would have been nimble enough to act as more than a stationary bunker. In the end, they were too slow. The trap that felled Kob was not of Rorshawd¡¯s design but one inherent in the Octyrrum. The price of greed, of leveling too quickly.

    There was space only for one decision, one final act of Kob, the titan of the Thormundz. Fate had denied them the purpose they had leveled for, and any chance of reaching the heights of mortal kind. Not all sought level nine, but Kob had dreamed¡­

    A mass was flung back into the keep, impacting Daniel, throwing him back, and cracking the stone of Parduc¡¯s armor just before the second wave of fire overtook the center of the courtyard. ¡°Kob?¡± he asked the mass of vines in his arms, although he knew who it was he held.

    ¡°Khare.¡± Despite the biological impossibility, the voice was heartbroken. Kob had guarded their lesser kin to the last, ejecting the partially recovered Martialist at the last possible second. Had they meant to trust Khare to Daniel, or was he just the first friendly face the gestalt saw inside the keep? Daniel would never get a chance to ask.

    ¡­

    Rorshawd finished the last exhalation and exalted in what he had done. All that trouble for only five lives. All that mana! Between the flame breaths and powers he¡¯d used, Rorshawd was down to less than 5%. Another breath attack was out of the picture unless it was very short, and even then it would only kill at close range. But no, he didn¡¯t need mana anymore. There were none left to challenge him.

    His eye! Pain flared briefly to distract Rorshawd as he again set his sights on Daniel. The archers had been allowed to live in safety for too long. Without Kob, he no longer feared blindness and could approach them. The dragon turned away from the empty spot where five lives once stood. He knew their names automatically, even if he didn¡¯t care. Kob, Yedra, Alekios, Joran, and Parduc. Now dust in the wind. As would be the rest, then those that had fled, and even that wyvern high above if it dared¡­

    Rorshawd finally registered the mortals as they struck. The one falling faster uttered an incantation with the tone of an executioner. ¡°FALTER!¡±

 Chapter 45: Strike of Midnight

    The defenders of Roost Peak had failed in nearly all of their efforts. Rorshawd had never touched the ground, was meaningfully injured only in one eye, and had claimed the life of their strongest. The ballista of the city broken, morale shattered by the impossible voice of the dragon. Only Daniel had known of the chance they¡¯d had, and though they had not blinded the dragon, they¡¯d done enough to distract him from realizing what was coming.

    One of Tlara¡¯s wyverns had carried Murdon and Quala to the city. It made no sense, they should have been days away. And yet, Murdon was now on a collision course with the dragon, ax held with both hands. The concerns of the ground force were nothing to Rorshawd now. Murdon was falling out of the sky at terminal velocity, a considerable speed for one encased in metal, and Rorshawd didn¡¯t have enough mana left to appreciably change his momentum.

    Instead, the dragon reached out with his claws to intercept the Knight before its ax fell. That was what Quala was waiting for. She had Grown Wings as she fell and countered the attack with a glowing shield projected from one wing that strained just long enough against the draconic hand before relenting. Quala shot off to the side and Murdon passed by unmolested.

    The Knight bellowed out a roar to rival Rorshawd¡¯s as his enchanted weapon cut not only into the dragon¡¯s right wing but through it lengthwise. Half was severed as blood pooled on the ground and erupted with the Knight¡¯s landing. At almost the same time, Quala flew into Rorshawd¡¯s face, heedless of the arm-length teeth, and pushed her glowing shield right up to the working eye. The resulting explosion was difficult for Daniel to look at, and he was on the wrong side of it.

    ¡°Hand, how? Quala?¡± Thomas looked like he wanted to run to her, tears welling in his face. He didn¡¯t. Even with the wounding of the dragon, it was dangerous enough to forestall him. That being said, the dragon still fell. The Octyrrum shook as hundreds of kilograms crashed to the earth. Those assembled stood still for only a second before swarming Rorshawd like lions on an injured gazelle.

    Murdon leapt away from the partially severed wing, avoiding a follow up attack from the dragon as it fully shook off his ability. What had stunned and injured Rodrick only slowed this enemy. By all rights, Murdon should be in the thick of the fighting, but the Commander had witnessed both the death of Kob and some of the disarray that had preceded it.

    There was no order, no tactics to speak of, and a third of the force had been useless up until this moment. He didn¡¯t doubt it was Lograve who had tried to pull together this defense, and while no blatantly terrible decision had been made, would Kob have survived had Murdon directed this from the beginning?

    ¡°Murdon, how, how are you here?¡± Lograve asked. Instead of answering, Murdon handed him a bottle. It shined as if it contained real stars trapped in an amber sky, almost mirroring the pattern of Murdon¡¯s black scales now splattered with blood of like color.

    ¡°Regards of Quala. I¡¯m so sorry.¡± Murdon felt the weight of what had happened, and what was happening, bury his spirit for a moment. He saw in his friend¡¯s eyes the recognition of the grimace that painted his face and shook his head. ¡°Drink. There is a dragon that needs killing.¡±

    ¡°Murdon!¡± Lograve grabbed at his arm, clutching the bottle just as firmly with his other hand. There was fear in him. Not to be unexpected, someone else had already said what the Arcanist wanted to tell him.

    ¡°I know how this one is different. Drink. I must-¡± Pause. A catch in his breath. The dragon, maimed and blinded though it was, fought ferociously. People were already dying even as they carved the worth of their lives from their slayer.

    ¡°Save everyone? Gods Murdon, you can¡¯t save-¡±

    No time to repeat a conversation already had. No time to make formations or tell everyone to fall back to the tower where they should have fought the dragon from. Coming here, out in the open? That only made a killing field. Murdon ran towards the keep, frowning at the sealed tower windows. This dragon was only level five, it didn¡¯t have the mana to completely immolate the walls. Each could have been a firing port, defenders moving about to avoid retaliation while being relatively safe from reprisal themselves. Those who couldn¡¯t fight like that could have tried to rest in the center and held out until the nearing dawn to recharge while the dragon was denied the opportunity. It was only a half an hour away now.

    Lograve had done the best he could, but he was no leader. Murdon was. It was no formal class, but a specialization that arose when the right powers were combined with experience, in the same way that a Martialist with enough powers related to the bow could become renowned as a sniper. Some said the intent of a person shaped the course of what they received. That couldn¡¯t be further from the truth.

    Murdon had to think for a moment to remember Alost¡¯s name. They only met once, but Improved Recollection made such things trivial. An odd power for a warrior, but for one meant for command or politics? There was an edge to knowing someone¡¯s name who didn¡¯t recall yours, to say nothing of knowing who was who when it came to determining the chain of command. ¡°Alost. Gather everyone who can fight.¡± It was an odd look the human gave him. Suspicion? The Tyrant, Murdon realized. Their influence truly had spread here already. Then the man¡¯s eyes went over Murdon¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°Commander? What, what?¡± Alost, who had been fighting for his life moments ago, looked as if he were just waking. He almost dropped his bow before regaining his composure. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t we stay here in cover?¡±

    ¡°You should have been making for the surrounding buildings once the decision was made to fight in the courtyard. All of you would be dead already if the dragon had spared a moment for you.¡± Murdon sighed and spared further lecturing. People were still dying judging by the screams behind him. There wasn¡¯t time to waste on waiting for Alost either. ¡°We need to move. Now!¡± The group as a whole focused fully on him. Most were taking steps outside the tower before they realized it. Mantle of Authority. As a feature, it was always active, though Murdon leaned into it only when necessary. ¡°Can you still concentrate fire?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Take everyone with a bow into the library. Crossbows, to Lograve. E-,¡± Murdon blinked as he saw Evalyn in the group. Unless she¡¯d radically changed over the course of this mission, she had no business here rather in the center. No time. ¡°Evalyn, keep playing as you move and stop halfway to the library. Keep away from the dragon and keep everyone in your radius. Alost, I want volleys every fifteen seconds targeting the joint of the left wing where it meets the body.¡±

    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t the crossbowmen come with us?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll handle them. Go!¡± You shouldn¡¯t have been managing them in the first place, Murdon mentally added bitterly. Alost had Focus Fire, a fact once again courtesy of Improved Recollection. It was an excellent ability that the presence of the crossbowmen ruined completely. What they needed to kill this dragon was sustained, directed volleys. Combining weapons with drastically different rates of fire meant the archers were waiting for their slower counterparts or firing randomly in the meantime.

    That left Murdon with three, one of whom was Daniel. That was good, if for no other reason than that she had asked him to look out for the Artificer. As for the other Claire had mentioned there was no sign. He could ask, but later. Stay focused. As he ran past Lograve, Murdon spent only seconds relaying this part of the plan. ¡°Lograve, assist the crossbowmen. Fire and enhanced bolts on me.¡±

    That was all he needed to say, and he only needed to see the empty mana potion to know Lograve could handle himself. The benefit of experience in fighting with another was found in strategies developed ahead of time, though also in another way. The Octyrrum itself recognized the weight of Murdon and Lograve¡¯s past together. There was no need to reference specific powers or plan intricate maneuvers that directly involved the two, he just needed to wait for the look of acknowledgment before moving on. From landing beside the dragon to charging towards it now, it had only taken Murdon just over a minute to reshape the battlefield. Too long.

    You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

    The draconoid gripped his ax in both hands, bereft of his shield and second weapon. Ahead the beast of scale and flame was making use of tail and claw to repel the mortals and dominated monsters still assaulting it. Already its injured wing was repairing itself, albeit more slowly as it had been a partial amputation. Quala was overhead, keeping in the air and out of reach of the dragon, currently moving towards the tower. She could handle herself.

    Were he an artist, Murdon would describe the feat of killing this dragon as carving a large statue from marble using a spoon. And this marble repaired itself constantly. There were ways to prevent this, and bigger spoons. Fire was the lesser of the two elemental sources of damage that could forestall natural healing, and with Lograve¡¯s mana back, it was something they had.

    ¡°Ready!¡± Murdon shouted as he bulldozed his way to one of the dragon¡¯s legs, throwing his weight forward to carry the force from the run. With his armor and large frame it was considerable, enough to pierce the hide others were having difficulty with. Scales tore to reveal the taut muscle underneath as blood seeped from the edges.

    ¡°You. You feeble imitation dare challenge me!?¡± Rorshawd bellowed as the pain of the injury added to that of his now healing wing.

    ¡°I¡¯ve killed stronger than you,¡± Murdon declared, taking the talking monster in stride. He paused for just a moment under the dragon¡¯s gaze before he evaded. ¡°But I haven¡¯t killed uglier, I¡¯ll give you that.¡±

    The dragon turned his head, trying to track the Knight and use what little mana he had remaining to burn him, when he was burned instead.

    Runes of fire erupted against the injured flesh just as three glowing bolts used the torn opening as an opportunity. Casting three Elemental Ammunition spells then Runic Flame Circle in quick succession was a fast way to drain mana, though Lograve¡¯s supply was bolstered from the potion. The draft granted both an immediate boost and a slow accrual that would last for a few minutes. It was a good potion, among the best they¡¯d gathered for the anticipated breakthrough. It would be of more use here.

    Flesh sizzled as the spell drove heat into the bolts, damaging not only the surface but deep tissue. This dragon did have resistance to this damage type, containing the injury to the immediate area. That was fine, what was important was the wound¡¯s healing was delayed. Murdon had another way of stopping Regeneration, though it would also imperil his allies.

    At the same time, arrows struck the dragon¡¯s wing joint exactly where Murdon had wanted. That was sooner than expected. Alost must have ordered his men to stagger volleys as they ran. It was a welcome improvement to his original orders when every shot would count. If only they had that kind of inspiration earlier.

    Retaliation from the dragon was swift. Though each of its limbs was under assault and two enterprising individuals were going for his head, this hardly prevented the dragon from moving. Only the damage to his wing and their combined assault stopped an attempt at taking off. Rorshawd was still capable of lashing out with talons, his tail, and his teeth if any near his head were caught unawares. Sensing the one only remotely reminiscent of his glorious form, Rorshawd focused on this new threat.

    Murdon had come into this fight without his shield, it having been unrecoverable following the fight with the other headmen earlier today. Without it, he was served better by Agility and had assigned mana to it accordingly despite this adding to the already onerous cost of Fortitude. The Knight was not a speedy fighter. Under normal circumstances and, importantly, normal compositions he would have stuck with his defensive powers. In this case, no amount of defensive enhancements would last against the dragon.

    The front leg he had struck first swung out. It was slowed slightly by the damage taken, affording Murdon more than enough time to run close to the shoulder joint where the arm could not reach. He could have kept running under the dragon¡¯s main body to avoid all manner of attacks, but only if he felt like being crushed once the dragon realized where he was.

    A massive tail whipped towards him then, as expected. One of the major advantages of disabling the dragon¡¯s flight was that it had to keep at least three limbs on the ground at all times, limiting what it could attack with and making those attacks more predictable. The tail whip he jumped over wouldn¡¯t have killed him, though it would have knocked him down and then he would have died. This was a fight Murdon had been preparing for, in a way. The experience from his hunting days and the strategizing for the lightning dragon made combat with this superior enemy something he could survive for longer than a few seconds.

    Ready! Tell me you aren¡¯t dead back there. That would be extremely anticlimactic. Lograve¡¯s thoughts reached him as Murdon tried positioning himself close to a back leg while keeping an eye on the tail. This was outside of the Arcanist¡¯s normal Telepathy range, but their bond had another benefit that boosted the range of powers they targeted each other with. Murdon couldn¡¯t help but smile. Sure, there¡¯d been an odd hunt here and there after taking the role of headman, but always with the garrison to rely on as backup. Now though? It was just like old times. Shaking the dust off their bond would be good practice for the pass.

    Murdon carved at the beast¡¯s belly as he moved back towards the front of the dragon. He didn¡¯t signal Lograve, it wasn¡¯t time yet. He spared a thought towards better organizing those warriors around him as his subconscious guided his ax, ultimately deciding against it. Pursuing optimal strategy would risk the plan already in motion. Simply put, Murdon was playing the role of lumberjack. The dragon¡¯s leg was a tree, and he just so happened to have an ax. Murdon batted the signal back towards Lograve when he reached the limb. Ready!

    This dragon wasn¡¯t a fool. With the species¡¯ normally high intelligence and the strange properties of this one in particular, including the impossibility of speech, it wasn¡¯t unbelievable that it could catch onto the strategy so quickly. Tied down as it was the dragon couldn¡¯t charge Lograve, and Murdon was proving evasive enough to avoid quick elimination. The dragon¡¯s fire could have changed this, though as Murdon had hoped it was either reserving the rest of its mana or was out entirely. It was a gamble, but he¡¯d seen the devastation of the city from above and knew there couldn¡¯t be much left.

    That being said, the dragon could lift its leg when it sensed Murdon running towards it. Taking it out of his reach prevented him from further injuring it, although that sacrificed the dragon¡¯s ability to attack with other legs. Murdon could keep the dragon in check this way, staying near enough that the only reasonable option for the dragon was to rapidly swipe at him with the raised hand while the others continued to attack without that limb to worry about.

    Were he a fool, or too concentrated on his class¡¯ role, that was what Murdon might have done. Instead, he signaled with his ax towards the other forelimb and prepared to attack that instead. The truth was, time wasn¡¯t on Murdon¡¯s side. With every second the dragon¡¯s wounds were healing and its uninjured eye was regaining its sight. The largest concern, however, was dawn. It was minutes away. With it all uncommitted features would revert to their normal level, and as they were all awake mana wouldn''t be restored. Without his Agility, Lograve¡¯s Aquakinesis, or the dozens of heightened features among the group, the fight would be over. The dragon had to die quickly. Getting him on the ground was the first step. The next, getting the head into range.

    His foe attempted to shift the leg, guessing by sound Murdon¡¯s next target and snapping at him with his jaws when the draconoid ran underneath his neck. Rorshawd couldn¡¯t recover fast enough to prevent the ax from falling, however. Just like before, a volley of bolts followed and immediately preceded Lograve¡¯s Flame Circle. It was a simple pattern that proved difficult for the dragon to counter. This was one of the ways a force of lesser leveled individuals could overtake a much stronger foes and one of the strategies Murdon had devised for the pass. Without the sacrifices of those before it would have never worked, but now? A minute went by and no one died. Survival of the fittest had left those smart enough to recognize how to avoid the dragon¡¯s remaining attacks, or able enough to dodge them if not.

    Two ugly wounds, one for each respective foreleg, cut halfway to the bone as Murdon went hacking from one to another. The dragon tried rotating to face away from Lograve¡¯s group, but they were more than capable of moving in kind. Moreover, the other melee specialists had caught on to the game and were also focusing on those areas while being as defensive as they could. The archers, posted on the library¡¯s roof, kept targeting the wing joints no matter how the dragon was oriented. The strength in the mortals¡¯ target was fading. Only the remaining mages were not actively participating, having long run out of mana. They took up a role as ammunition runners after a quick order relayed to them by Lograve. In any other circumstance, the sight of Arcanists desperately sprinting to the library could have been considered humorous.

    No option remained for the dragon, other than to hope for a lucky attack with its tail or jaws. Even its formidable Regeneration was no longer the trump card it had been. Fire and sustained volleys were suppressing it at key points. The reappearance of Gadriel, Flash Healed after Quala had found where he fell, heralded the end as his Flying Sword could target the weakened areas on each leg even when they were raised. It wasn¡¯t the severing of one that brought the dragon to collapse, merely reaching the point where it couldn¡¯t support its own weight. Murdon held his ax in both hands and stood in front of the dragon, prepared to finish the abomination.

 Chapter 46: Nights End

    Rorshawd could barely see out of the eye that had been blinded by that flash. He looked venomously upon those who had despoiled his form and seethed. The star of hatred for the one known as Murdon now outshone Daniel¡¯s, for it was the Knight who had descended from that which should have been his domain and brought this pain. The constant needling of his wing preventing any kind of flight was merely the background to the agony in his forelimbs.

    Fire. Yet another aspect he should be the master of turned against him. Nothing made sense. He had slain their strongest! Brought down the vast majority of their number until all that was left were the scraps! His Lord was but a short flight away and yet it did nothing to answer his pleas for help. He was going to die. No! But how could he escape?

    The mortals that had easily fallen to fire and claw now evaded him. Even the one in full plate, the hated Murdon, he could not touch. Once Rorshawd thought he had finally brought the man to an end, though that only left a score in the armor rather than a mortal wound. Slowly, they wore him down. With only dregs of mana left there was not much Rorshawd could do. He had only one last desperate move.

    Now was the time for it. The elbows of his forelimbs bent like a mortal¡¯s, and he was forced to rest on them now that the flesh was compromised. It was almost like he was kneeling for execution, and there was the man with the ax. Rorshawd knew what would happen next. They¡¯d try to sever his neck or hack until they broke his skull. It would be a slow death. The ants in front of him weren¡¯t powerful enough to even kill him quickly. This wasn¡¯t right. This wasn¡¯t fair! Rorshawd, among all of his kin, had surpassed them all. He had found his way to his Lord and been given this beautiful, tarnished form. He smiled. Murdon, even within his helmet, recognized first the look and then the significance before Rorshawd curled the words out from his mouth. ¡°Too slow.¡±

    Dawn had come. With it was the daily reset, granting mana to those at rest and clearing away any features that had been heightened. This crippled Rorshawd¡¯s Regeneration, though the effect on his enemies was more pronounced.

    The nature of features on the Octyrrum was a nuisance for many. Acquiring a very useful feature at lower levels was the opposite of good luck due to the mana cost needed to enable their most important effects. Outside of those able to afford spurious use of potions, management of one¡¯s mana was a critical part of having a class. Optimal strategies were as numerous as theories on the best attribute advancement path, though there weren¡¯t many that took the permanent penalty involved with commitment of a feature to a higher level. Only a few here could even do that considering you had to be two levels above a feature to make use of this quirk. That left everyone in the square at a sudden and significant disadvantage against a foe whose natural attributes trumped theirs.

    Murdon was about to order a retreat when the dragon took the opportunity to bite him.

    ¡­

    By all the gods and the terrors of the Crest, why now? Murdon thought as the gift of Agility dwindled to level one. The weight of his armor once more hindered him. There was a look of delight and menace in the dragon¡¯s one good eye that was directed only at Murdon.

    Standing in front of the injured beast, there were only two ways it could make good on the implicit threat. Fire, or its maw. He would be too slow to dodge either since the dragon¡¯s head was undamaged and he¡¯d been mid-stride to lead the attack on it. Murdon was the closest to the danger. In a way, that felt right, despite the personal hazard.

    Murdon had mana left, he could try to Jump out of the way. Too slow. Like a snake, the dragon¡¯s head flashed out, tilted slightly away from his ax arm. He knew his armor would not be able to withstand the force of even a young dragon¡¯s bite. Not enough time to Jump, but he could still-

    The Knight was lifted out of the air, pierced in two places by the dragon¡¯s teeth. Not in the abdomen, as had been the intent, but through a foot and a hand. Saliva, heated by the dragon¡¯s internal energy, burned the wounds as it mixed with his exposed flesh. Crushing force tried to crumple him, resisted as much by metal as it was muscle.

    Then, it relaxed. Not enough to allow escape, but the dragon wasn¡¯t trying to close its mouth anymore. Voices of his allies called to him, but they were filtered out when Murdon¡¯s senses focused on a growing point of light within the dragon¡¯s throat. Fire. Surely the beast didn¡¯t have enough mana for a full breath, but if it poured the rest it had into it? Maybe enough to kill him. Murdon recognized the spite this creature must have for him. The arrogance. And the inspiration that this granted him.

    Drawing in air of his own, stealing it from the dragon, Murdon began charging Midnight Breath. It was the best he could make of this dire situation. Even if his ability resolved before the dragon¡¯s it wouldn¡¯t guarantee he would survive. I probably won¡¯t, Murdon realized soberly. That didn¡¯t change anything. If he was going to lose his life no matter what, why lose his resolve with it?

    Their relative sizes and levels proved crucial. Despite Murdon using a larger percentage of his mana in this last play compared to the dragon, Rorshawd was using more in an absolute sense and required more air to propel his fire. The cloud of blue and gold-dotted black fog descended into the beast and caused an immediate reaction.

    First, the creature¡¯s self-healing ceased. At level 5 Regeneration would have continued to function, though dawn had robbed Rorshawd of that. He was still building fire within him, but the damage within his throat provoked a particular reflex that ejected Murdon out of his mouth just before the flames filled it. Rorshawd was too new to this body to suppress the instinct. His summoned flames didn¡¯t pass far beyond his teeth, still hot enough to immolate Murdon had he been there.

    Murdon ignored the pain and looked around. His mind flared, working to reassess the situation. It wasn¡¯t good for either side. No one was delivering ammunition to the archers anymore, those who could attack at range with magic were now out of mana, and those that couldn¡¯t do either? Those bodies were the most recognizable of the ones the dragon had killed. There were so few left from a population that had started above one hundred.

    Their slayer was not better off. Necrotic energy ate at it from the inside. It was a heavy fog that collected in the dragon¡¯s neck and bowels, having not been destroyed or even dispersed by the fire. Would it last long enough to finish the dragon? Murdon wasn¡¯t sure, but he knew they couldn¡¯t stay to kill it themselves. Damn it. Damn it! A few more minutes¡­ But dawn had changed everything. Even weakened, dying from the inside, the dragon could still instantly kill any of them. By the same token, the dragon was beyond the point of chasing them. It was time to go.

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    ¡°Retreat! Cease fire!¡± he bellowed, forestalling those still fighting and backing away from the dragon.

    ¡°Murdon, we can kill it!¡± Lograve protested.

    ¡°It¡¯s not worth the risk.¡±

    ¡°But-¡±

    ¡°I used Midnight Breath on it.¡± The confusion on Lograve¡¯s face was only temporary, guessing what he meant. ¡°The dragon might die. It might barely survive. Either way, we cannot lose any more people to it. There¡¯s a reason I¡¯m here and not in Hagain,¡± he said slowly, glancing at those nearby to see if there was a reaction.

    ¡°My books!¡± A lone avianoid cried out that Murdon only registered as a librarian hailing from Threst. ¡°Please, we cannot lose them.¡±

    Murson was about to deny the request out of hand, furious at the thoughtlessness until he saw the look of sympathy on Lograve¡¯s face. Now able to outmatch the choking roar the dragon tried to bellow, he shouted, ¡°Everyone! We are evacuating now! Wounded first, then any magical equipment or supplies still here.¡± With this, he added a glare to Alost and his magical arrows. ¡°Then rations, then¡­ any books you can still carry.¡± The dragon feebly tried to lunge towards Murdon, only to temporarily collapse before assuming a defensive pose. There was hatred in its eyes, held only for Murdon. ¡°Move!¡±

    ¡­

    There would have been a search for any survivors on the way out, given that the dragon could not chase them and there were no other monsters keen on attacking the city at the moment. Daniel¡¯s feature made that tragically pointless. Only when leaving the walls behind did it fully impact the survivors that if someone wasn¡¯t with them, then they were no longer on the Octyrrum.

    Daniel was still focused ahead toward the spot where Claire, Hunter, and Tlara waited. And Janice, a woman he faintly remembered from somewhere. The Artificer was in no state to make full use of his memory.

    Parduc. He¡¯d promised Claire to protect him, get him out at least, but¡­ he hadn¡¯t. The moment of Kob, and those he protected, dying in the final blaze repeated in his mind. Murdon had been so close, but it hadn¡¯t mattered.

    Hunter¡¯s aura blinked a few times, the ringcat toggling the tag on himself. Daniel reciprocated and bitterly mused about developing some form of morse code to use with this. Hunter probably couldn¡¯t learn it even if he could remember the signal for each letter.

    No one talked during the exodus from Roost¡¯s Peak. Like its walls, their spirits were broken. Even Lograve, walking next to Murdon, was silent. The dragon¡¯s cries were the only ones that colored the early morning, fading roars mixed in with the cursing of Murdon¡¯s name.

    Daniel walked alone among the crowd, though Khare clung to him like the stone armor that had broken when Parduc died. The gestalt had taken a few things into itself when the garrison was gathering supplies, but that was it. Having a mass of vines that was also a sentient creature live on your chest was disconcerting. He might have protested by now if Khare didn¡¯t give him the impression of a shivering dog. Fear? Grief? He couldn¡¯t tell. Eventually, Daniel would have to sleep, and Khare would have to come off at that point. Confronting Claire with the truth of what happened would be first, regardless of how far in the future he¡¯d put that off if he could.

    ¡°Wyverns ahead!¡± someone called out. Tlara, and most noticeably her wyverns, had set up a makeshift camp on a flat stretch in the foothills.

    ¡°They¡¯re friendly,¡± Murdon shouted over the sudden panic. ¡°We make camp here for the day. Rest and prepare. There is much to discuss once everyone has had a few hour¡¯s rest.¡± People shifted, a combination of stowing weapons and unease amongst those members of the garrison. It was clear to Daniel that something more was going on.

    You survived. Hunter thought to Daniel when they were within range. There was a distance to the mental voice.

    Something inside of Daniel crumpled as he reflected on the night¡¯s events. Trying to summarize them, even in a few words to explain to Hunter, was too much. How could he relive what it felt like to watch people die, to know that he could have joined them if Rorshawd had prioritized his targets differently? To see the strongest warrior they had fall without even injuring the dragon, and with the one Daniel was supposed to protect. Now more than ever he wanted to go back home, even if it was too late to prevent him from seeing what he had.

    Hunter was staring at him as he approached, waiting for an answer. Worse was Claire, alternating glances between him and the crowd. Her movements were twitchy, breathing fast, and she was huddled close to the ringcat as if for protection. Did she already know? Is Claire ok?

    No.

    Does, does she know? Did Hunter know? The question assumed much on the part of the ringcat, but-

    No. They were almost at arms-breadth. Hunter put his head down as sadness entered his thoughts. She began to fear suddenly. Do not know why, but she said her mana is too low.

    Hunter, I can¡¯t tell her, Daniel pleaded, as if the ringcat could pardon him from the duty.

    Many died. You did your best. She will understand, or she will-

    ¡°Daniel, where¡¯s Parduc?¡± Claire asked, still hyperventilating. When he didn¡¯t answer, she brought herself unsteadily to her feet. ¡°Where is he?!¡±

    Another of the garrison spared Daniel from answering. ¡°Claire, if he¡¯s not with us, he didn¡¯t make it out. I¡¯m sorry. We lost almost everyone, even Yedra and Kob, but-¡±

    Claire collapsed. Not into unconsciousness, she merely mimicked Daniel''s spirits. She did not make a sound, did not scream, did not, as Daniel feared, charge him with Parduc¡¯s death or just straight up charge him. She didn¡¯t do anything but breathe far too fast. Daniel tried to say something but the words caught in his throat. He could only watch as she fully collapsed.

    ¡°Healer!¡± the one from the garrison cried, and Quala was there in seconds.

    The avianoid felt at Claire¡¯s neck and sighed. ¡°She passed out. Let¡¯s move her with the wounded so I can observe her.¡±

    ¡°I couldn¡¯t¡­¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Quala looked up at Daniel¡¯s words.

    They were the ones he¡¯d tried to say at the beginning, coming out far too late. ¡°I couldn¡¯t save him.¡± Every death he¡¯d seen weighed on him in that moment. Whatever protection his attributes might have given him from fully realizing the horrors of the night was undone by the disparity he was still afflicted with. It was the same thing that had killed Kob. ¡°I just watched him die.¡±

    Quala¡¯s face, so alien and unnatural, took on a soft look as she reached for one of his hands. ¡°You did nothing wrong. The fault lies with only one and it is not you. Rest, now. What you have experienced would weigh on anyone and you are no lesser for what you now feel. Just know there is a future full of brighter days than this.¡±

    The words calmed him, slightly. There was still roiling emotion within Daniel, not diminished at all, but it seemed more distant now. Quala had used no power, mana, or anything magical to do this. Just kindness. Daniel nodded wearily and sat in the dirt, barely feeling Khare crawl off of him. They had no tents or even bedrolls, so here was as good as anything. Quala looked at him for a moment more, then helped take Claire to where Tak and Sigron had been carried.

    We need to talk, Hunter thought in a serious tone as the ringcat stood and began to circle Daniel. The movement was almost hostile. Daniel would have questioned that more if he wasn¡¯t so numb from both exhaustion and emotion. Later, Hunter added, as he finally laid down around Daniel. Sleep now.

    And he did.

 Chapter 47: Augury in Aughal

    Fate meant something different depending on who you asked. It could be a script, written before the beginning of time in indelible ink. The intersection of random factors and free will. The intent of the Octyrrum itself. Silora¡¯s answer was closer to the truth than average. This wasn¡¯t through any special insight into the inner workings of the world but a linguistic trick. Fate, to Silora Thelonas, was her class.

    Rather than give her greater control of her life, all the class had done was imprison her. The unfortunate truth was the class was as rare as it was useful, and she had been youthfully naive when she¡¯d awakened her gifts. Despite the consequences of that day, Silora smiled at the memory. The old Torch Cleric who¡¯d identified her had almost moved onto the next, only to trip over himself in a delayed reaction. ¡°Fate!¡± he¡¯d repeated in surprise. She was a Fate, and the only one residing in the region of Aughal.

    Silora looked out of the Spire window and sighed. It had been a long night, and the morning would be just as taxing. It wasn¡¯t her powers that told her that, but the increasingly shrill tone of her ¡®assistant¡¯ Rait. ¡°Out of mana?!¡± the human asked incredulously. He was thin but stood at almost twice Silora¡¯s height. The difference was due more to racial average than anything else and was something she had found intimidating at first. Now it all blended into the indignant indifference she regarded the man and those he represented. ¡°No, the mineral caravan is reaching the rustland stretch in two hours, there is Lord Elegan¡¯s, uhm, request, and several appointments for a reading this afternoon!¡±

    She looked at him indifferently and replied, ¡°If all of that is so important, get me a mana potion.¡± She winced as the headache, previously ignorable, spiked. Silora was at the point where she could go without sleep, loss of mana notwithstanding, but that didn¡¯t mean her body had to like it. ¡°And a normal drink too. Something with alcohol, but not the first thing you¡¯d find in a tavern.¡±

    Rait stammered for a second before catching on something comprehensible. ¡°How am I supposed to get that!?¡±

    ¡°Request it from the city. Or, cancel today¡¯s contracts,¡± Silora said with a shrug. She held Rait¡¯s gaze and smiled when he fell silent. There¡¯s my mouse, she thought. That was the crux of the matter, the contracts that was. Silora was ¡®employed¡¯ by the city of Aughal, and nominally this was a very lucrative position. Rising from a ward of the city to its sole Fate should have been the gateway to an easy life. Unfortunately, the deal offered to her when her class was discovered hid deadly poison with its sweetness. Forgiveness of any debts accrued by her raising? Tutelage by city instructors who, while not of her class, could help orient her to her powers? Silora couldn¡¯t remember exactly what she¡¯d said, but it was something along the lines of ¡®where do I sign?¡¯

    Then, when she was fully trained, the costs of the arrangement were fully realized. Silora was contracted with the city, which in layman¡¯s terms meant she was paid a fraction of what her services were worth and had little, if any control over the work sent her way. This left her no room to do anything but work on their behalf. It also meant the city valued the completion of her contracts far more than she did, and this was the sole source of leverage she had.

    Pushing that button too much was dangerous. At any point, the city could use it as grounds for breach of contract, though they would never use the option, not unless they truly wished to dismiss her. What happened last night was important, worth resetting the timer on her ability to fluster the shrew of a man spluttering again.

    ¡°I can¡¯t just-¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m out of mana, Rait. What do you want me to do?¡±

    ¡°You-¡±

    ¡°Ugh, and with this headache it¡¯s so hard to focus. I couldn¡¯t use my powers even if I had mana.¡± She added a challenging lilt at the end. There was no point in making what she was doing anything but obvious. This was a game both had played many times over the years, obedient service punctuated by the occasional refusal and an accompanying demand. Rait must have been managing her better than the Council expected for his position to survive these bargainings.

    That being said, the human preferred to keep a sheen of legitimacy over such negotiations and didn¡¯t directly address the implicit threats. ¡°A mana potion can be obtained, but a drink?¡± He glanced over to a cupboard Silora had repurposed as a wine cabinet. One of the spoils from a previous ¡®request¡¯.

    ¡°Not from there. Something different.¡± Something that will keep you out of my fins for a few minutes. Silora had privacy, of course. Her ¡®prison¡¯ was a moderately well furnished set of rooms midway up Aughal¡¯s Sun Spire. Rait only bothered her during business hours, and the front door locked from the inside. Regardless, any chance to reduce her exposure to the man was one she¡¯d take.

    ¡°What?!¡±

    ¡°Oooh,¡± she trilled as she thought for a second. Summer was winding down, though most produce, and its byproducts, would be in good supply. Too rare a request would be rejected out of hand though. Another moment passed as she sighed again. No perfect choice was coming to mind. ¡°Oh, something with frostberries. Maybe the chill will settle this.¡±

    Rait looked at her as if she¡¯d just pardoned him for some capital offense. ¡°That¡¯s all you wa- I mean, I¡¯ll be right back!¡± He stopped himself from asking and took the win. Retreating, he reached for a hand mirror that hung at his waist and flicked the glass. Instead of shattering, the material glowed to reveal a woman¡¯s face. ¡°This is Rait, I need a level four mana potion delivered to-¡±

    Silora sank back into the cushioned chair as she breathed. She did have a headache, no matter how much Rait thought she was faking. The mana potion would help more than whatever frostberry concoction Rait found. She regretted nothing about what she¡¯d requested, though. As she sat in the lounge, Silora gazed at her reflection and frowned. It was all too obvious she hadn¡¯t gotten any sleep. Her skin was rough, suffering from neglect and exposure to arid air. The Focus Chamber was far from the restorative luxury her bed was. That separation was important though, since it was impossible to rest while her powers were amplified.

    The dryness was getting to her. She reached for a jar of unguent and began applying it to the worst spots. It was a half-measure but soothed the upset areas of blue skin. The exact species of monster that had been Grafted to create Silora¡¯s species was unknown, but it had been aquatic if nothing else. Adaptation to land was one of the supposed gifts of the process, though that did not mean she was comfortable without at least some time each day spent submerged.

    Aughal¡¯s climate more than anything else irritated her. Shavi lived perfectly normal lives in regions where the moisture in the air was less precious than gold. She had it better than most with her quarters, her tinctures, and the minor enchantment on her robes. Still, other shavi in the area could leave without risking reprisal, the region not bothering to restrict their travel. Not worth the effort, unless one of them was a Fate.

    Silora took a bottle out of the cupboard and poured herself half a glass, deciding a little of the usual wouldn¡¯t hurt while she waited for Rait. The drink was strong enough that it would provide almost no excess moisture, but that wasn¡¯t the point. Libation in hand, she made her way through a runed door and into the Focus Chamber.

    This room had to be one of the most magical of the Spire. Credit where credit was due, Aughal hadn¡¯t skimped on Silora¡¯s office. Though that was only in their self interest. Runes flared to life as she entered, her hand tracing across the first few out of habit. The room drew its energy from a complex network of mana built into the very stone of the tower making it very reliable, and very expensive even with the Spire pulling most of the weight. A kingly sum would be needed to build this room anywhere else. That system itself wasn¡¯t solely to benefit Silora; other rooms in the Spire made use of the free energy as well. Even its defenses, which weren¡¯t often needed. The Shroud was chief among them, a barrier that would resist both siege and attempts by thieves to climb through the otherwise open windows.

    The shavi Fate played a part in the city¡¯s defenses as well. One of her many duties was assessing threats to the city, mortal and monster alike. The start of every day saw her using Regional Log, which tracked certain events in the region like high level monster spawns or the appearance of someone with a rare class. The rest of the day could be made up of anything. Scrying, fortune telling, real fortune telling, remote assistance in dangerous hunts, and the occasional parading of her by the city elites. Most was done here, in a dome-like room of concentrated power that enhanced several of her powers far beyond their normal limits. Near the center were several lavish couches, though these weren¡¯t for her.

    The Fate¡¯s place was in the very center where what looked like a vertical bed stood. Silora finished the last sip of the average wine and placed it on one of the tables meant for guests. She wouldn¡¯t have anyone here until the afternoon, no point in keeping this space tidy. Rait would take care of it. With her back to the standing furniture, she fell and felt it adjust to her presence. Her throne, as others did not call it, tilted back slightly to capture her and unlocked. It would now freely rotate, easily manipulated by Silora¡¯s Magnesis feature.

    She hadn¡¯t been entirely truthful with Rait. She had a sliver of mana remaining, enough for a brief use of Farsight. She needed to know and needed to use this chamber before Rait returned and asked what she was up to. Nominally she was free to use this space outside of business hours so long as it didn¡¯t interfere with her normal duties, which last night¡¯s activities had. Best not to push matters. Second best was not to get caught doing it.

    Reaching out to the Focus bound to her, Silora closed her eyes and cast herself out into the world. As her senses raced out from the Spire and the rest of Aughal, she deftly rotated her body to guide the vision east. Going so far made for very inaccurate readings unless she had something to guide her, which she did now. The idle curiosity with which she¡¯d scanned the Thormundz region, after hearing of some ill rumors, finally paid off when she found someone out of all the empty space. The problem was the amplification. It cast her sight past its normal limits, which did make Farsight reach distant regions faster but with more difficulty. There was a brief distortion when her vision hit the boundary between regions, accompanied by a dip in her remaining mana. Adjusting to this chamber had been a pain due to the vertigo, though that had been overcome. That was back when Silora was still ambitious, still trusting. Poor, stupid Silora. Should have run when you had the chance.

    There. A Fate, or any class with remote viewing powers, could more reliably see someone or somewhere they were familiar with. Not having visited the Thormundz region it had taken Silora some time to find anything worth tracking, which had turned out to be a young man trapped deep in a mountain range. It had been an accident, Silora not turning her gaze fast enough to avert colliding with the rock. As she was trying to pull herself back to Aughal, she¡¯d slowed down right as it had happened. She¡¯d found the young human with a kind of power those who led regions actively hunted for. Limited, in its current state, but even now its owner would have no shortage of bids on his service. That kind of discovery was influence in its own way, but Silora had an entirely different reason to desperately track the man¡¯s progress.

    When she¡¯d revisited that young man with burning curiosity, she¡¯d witnessed the fight against the dragon. Helped, even, when Moment of Fate indicated a particularly decisive point where she could intervene. Casting a level four spell like that over long distance had done the most damage to her mana. Then, she¡¯d heard the dragon speak. That had shaken her to the point of withdrawing from the vision, robbing her of sleep and her daily mana restoration. Casting herself out now was a risk given what she¡¯d claimed. Rait could be back soon, but she had to know what had happened. Was the man still alive? Were any of them? Did¡­ Ah, there. Her vision slowed as she neared her target, indicating at least there was something left to see. A camp. He rests. Chest moving, so alive.

    With practiced precision, Silora dissected the image. Farsight had a decent mana cost that increased as time went on. The importance of efficiency was highly stressed by her ¡®employers¡¯, meaning she had to become very adept at reading situations quickly. There were many survivors, though who exactly she couldn¡¯t tell beyond a short radius around her target. Had they killed the dragon? That would set Silora at ease, but there was no carcass nearby nor trophy to indicate they¡¯d triumphed over it.

    This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    No matter. He was alive. Silora pulled back before fully exhausting her mana. She opened her eyes and froze when she saw who was standing there. Mark, a name for a man more familiar to the dead than the living. Silora¡¯s work as a Fate brought her in touch with many who could afford what the city charged, and this Assassin was among their number. Anyone with the appropriate powers could take the profession, though Mark himself bore the rare class that walked with the pace of death. Slow, confident, and unyielding.

    ¡°Silora. I was led to believe you were out of mana.¡± He brought a potion into view of the paralyzed Fate and idly sloshed the liquid. ¡°Odd to find you here, then.¡± The man spoke so calmly, like there wasn¡¯t blood dripping from one of the daggers at his belt.

    Blood?! Silora realized with a shock. She didn¡¯t think he¡¯d cut her, but, but no, it wasn¡¯t blood but wine. A bottle was visibly broken in the room before, one of the finer ones. Destroyed to make a point by one who knew she couldn¡¯t protest. ¡°I-¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t care about whatever game it is you¡¯re playing Silora,¡± Mark said with a tired voice. ¡°I just know that without this, your life gets very difficult.¡± In seconds the point of the wine-stained dagger was against the flask containing the potion. ¡°Lord Fredreick. Find him, and it¡¯s yours.¡± A small crack formed in the glass as slight force was applied by the dagger. ¡°Lie to me and this¡¯ll be the least you need to worry about.¡±

    Lord Fredreick. One of the city¡¯s elites, worthy enough of the title given his position on the Council. Worthy enough that if someone were inclined to eliminate him, Mark would be hired for the job. ¡°T-this is a test,¡± she said shakily. ¡°I won¡¯t b-betray Aughal.¡±

    ¡°Silora,¡± Mark chuckled coldly. ¡°The right answer at the wrong time. Now, I¡¯ll be honest. Killing you? Easy. Hiding my presence here would be more difficult, the city would bring out specialists to investigate your death. Far more than they would for the murder of a courier, if they¡¯d even suspect anything more than a simple disappearance.¡± He looked down at the potion and smiled.

    Oh. Silora hadn¡¯t thought to ask how Mark had appeared with the potion meant for her.

    ¡°But, well, if the price is right? I just want a peek, Silora. Then you get your potion, and you get to forget about me.¡± Faster than she could see, the knife was away from the bottle and into a hidden sheath. ¡°It¡¯s not a hard choice is it?¡±

    ¡°B-but I¡¯ll know you d-did it.¡±

    ¡°Silora,¡± the false humor dropped from Mark¡¯s voice, replaced by dark introspection. ¡°That is a good point.¡± Then the smile was back. ¡°I don¡¯t care what you know. What they throw at me after I kill Rodreick would make anything before now a wrist slap. Fuck, they may even let the Ironrush Ravager run loose, though most of them want him dead. Point is, they¡¯ll figure out it was me some way or another, but I¡¯d prefer that to be after the kill.¡±

    ¡°How do I know you won¡¯t just kill me when-¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t!¡± Mark shouted, a dagger back in his hand, as Silora shifted in place. ¡°Heh, best to stay still for now. Less of a chance you¡¯ll get hurt. The truth is, despite how vain and narcissistic you get, you do good work. And besides, those qualities make for far easier targets. It would be bad business to overly purge them from the world, don¡¯t you think?¡± The question was rhetorical, though Mark still paused for effect. ¡°Anyway, you should get on that request of mine. Unless you want your poor assistant to stumble onto me here and face the consequences?¡±

    Silora honestly considered taking the Assassin up on the offer before deciding against it. Some form of maiming she¡¯d accept, a broken leg for example that would sideline Rait for a good amount of time. But death? She wouldn¡¯t go that far. ¡°Just his location, or do you need to know anything else?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s my girl!¡± Mark clapped his hands in approval and spoke with exaggerated glee. ¡°Location, although if you can find out anything else I would appreciate it.¡±

    Not wasting any more time, Silora went about her business. The focusing chamber didn¡¯t just enhance the range of her powers. When she didn¡¯t need the distance, she could instead use it as a way to reduce the mana consumption of her abilities. The councilmember was no doubt in Aughal proper, and Silora¡¯s office was placed near the center of the city to envelop it within the normal range of her powers as well as provide her the benefits of the Spoke. Though her eyes were closed, she sensed the Assassin ready a weapon in case she was doing anything other than what she was asked.

    Silora had met the man known as Lord Fredreick. She¡¯d met most of those with the means to afford her services. Some came to her solely for the novelty of seeing a Fate, or a shavi in the desert, thoughtless of the consequences of doing so. In that way the Assassin¡¯s haste and coming here made sense. He must have been given the contract on short notice. She was the best option to find the target quickly, and Silora had to admit she was easy to intimidate with how weak her level disparity made her. She knew all of this because she¡¯d assisted in this kind of work before, back when Aughal had had its own Assassin instead of this terrifying level six drifter.

    She searched with her senses throughout the city, drawn to the unique signature that was the combination of Lord Fredreick¡¯s face and name. There were other things she could use to guide Farsight, though these were the most convenient. She found him. Oh. Oh, that¡¯s why Mark¡¯s here now. Disgusting. Looking around while keeping what was happening in the center of the vision out of her mind, she noted entrances, absence of weapons in the room, and estimated the height of the ceiling from the view from the windows. Considering what kinds of people lived in Aughal, this was an important clue.

    ¡°Well?¡± Mark asked evenly.

    Silora took a deep breath and tried to match his tone. ¡°Rose Spire, on one of the middle floors. Low twenties is my best guess.¡±

    ¡°Sounds like the pleasure house.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°I see.¡± Mark grinned again, with a predatory nature. Silora saw this as she opened her eyes and thought him more monster than a man. ¡°That explains the rush. By all accounts the man has an endurance below five, and without those pesky robes this will be a breeze. Good work.¡± Placing the potion down on a table, Mark turned to leave without another word.

    ¡°No weapons,¡± Silora said, making Mark pause midstep. ¡°Just two people, one door, four windows most of which face the south.¡±

    He didn¡¯t turn, but he did reply. ¡°You didn¡¯t have to tell me that. But that might reduce the collateral damage. Oh, yes, I did forget to mention that, as this is my last job here, I¡¯ve decided to cut loose a little.¡± A sense of death hung over Silora for a few seconds, and then it faded as Mark¡¯s shoulders dropped slightly. ¡°I¡¯d appreciate it if you didn¡¯t send any warnings. If my contract is spoiled, then I¡¯ll know who to blame. You don¡¯t want me to be angry with you, do you Silora?¡±

    ¡°I-I wouldn¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°Good.¡± With that, the man left, leaving not even an impression on the carpet.

    All thoughts of the business in the Thormundz were driven from her mind as Silora lay in her harness, replaying the events and wondering what had changed the Assassin¡¯s mind. Assuming that the last implicit threat was real and not another fakeout meant to intimidate her into silence. Rait found her like this, carrying a larger shard of the broken wine bottle along with an intact one containing blue liquid. ¡°Silora? What are you doing?¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    Rait steeled himself, and asked, ¡°Why haven¡¯t you taken the potion yet?¡± He looked around, ¡°And where¡¯s Kevin? I asked him to wait. Did something happen with the wine cabinet?¡±

    Silora blinked, eyelids flashing laterally as her mind was brought back to the present. ¡°I didn¡¯t notice,¡± she lied. ¡°I was preparing for today and fell asleep.¡±

    ¡°Your eyes were open?¡±

    ¡°Shavi sleep with their eyes open, didn¡¯t you know that?¡± Silora put the edge back into her voice in a false show of strength. ¡°Honestly for how long we¡¯ve worked together, I thought you would learn something about my species.¡±

    ¡°Right. Your drink?¡±

    ¡°I, I¡¯m fine. I¡¯ll just take the potion now.¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t have a headache anymore?¡± Rait asked with a put upon tone.

    ¡°No, no I think that little nap solved things.¡± She really didn¡¯t have a headache anymore. Mark had scared it out of her. ¡°The potion, please.¡±

    ¡°You aren¡¯t going to, ugh.¡± Rait sighed and uncorked the bottle himself, seeing the faint crack but not commenting on it. Handing it to Silora, he also took notice of the wine stains on the carpet within the Focus chamber. Again, Rait didn¡¯t comment. It was a conditioned trait to not say anything that could upset the Fate unless she pushed too far. She was hiding something, but as long as she did her job Rait would get paid. ¡°Mineral convoy is about an hour away, so we¡¯ll need to get started on assessing the routes for possible Mirage activity.¡±

    The flask in Silora¡¯s hands was large, the bottom chamber twice the size of a fist, and she lifted her fourth finger to indicate she hadn¡¯t finished imbibing it. After she did, the Fate bent to place it on the floor and then leaned back into the harness. ¡°Marker number?¡±

    ¡°27,¡± Rait said with surprise at the lack of resistance.

    ¡°You¡¯ll need to fetch the map. I¡¯ll get started.¡±

    ¡°Right, Fate.¡± Rait shook his head as he went to retrieve one of the maps stored in a locked cabinet in the sitting room. Silora had been some trouble in the morning, but now she was nearly friendly. Or as close as she got to that. Maybe today would be a good day after all.

    ¡­

    Deep in the Thormundz mountains, beyond where the settlement wave had pierced into the region, Mavar Helioc stroked his chin. He was in his office, that word straining to accommodate the truth of the matter. If it would take a king to build Silora¡¯s chambers, the resources of an empire would struggle to arrange these. Mavar was the head of this collective of the Illustrious and had had many years to refine this room. Beyond managing all those under him, and providing direction through his eternal insights, he was also responsible for maintaining the defenses.

    The control points for several were arrayed as crystalline structures within the large open room. It would give someone from Earth the impression of a spaceship¡¯s command deck rather than an office. As Mavar couldn¡¯t make that analogy he stuck with the simpler description. One bank of the almost monitors was for remote viewing. Contrasted to the scrying pool they had observed Murdon¡¯s flight from, these worked based on markers covertly placed amongst the mortals in key positions. The keep of Roost¡¯s Peak had one, and the invisible sensor had been spared from the dragonfire.

    ¡°It¡¯s returning from hibernation,¡± Mavar said to himself. He was not as giddily fervent as Rorshawd had been upon finding the god, instead impartially acknowledging the fact.

    No one else was here, no one ever came here unless they had important business. Mavar had been alive long enough to see generations die and would have been lonesome already, but this isolation did not bother him. He had his vision and his eternal hatred to keep him company.

    ¡°Another variance. This is too soon.¡± The sensors were superior to simple remote viewing, collecting information based on all seven senses rather than just sight. The effect was powerful enough to illuminate the distant presence that had accompanied him. ¡°A Fate. Too soon as well. But-¡± The image magnified. He sighed in relief. ¡°Good. Good. Just a Fate. From a bordering region, likely. My Foresight hadn¡¯t-¡± Mavar didn¡¯t finish most of his sentences when he was deep in thought. One listening in would think the man was scatterbrained. The truth was his mind was moving too fast for his mouth to keep up.

    Sometime later, he moved from the panels to a stair-like table that held gemstones in small bowls. There were no labels as each was different enough and Mavar didn¡¯t need to write things down to remember them. He didn¡¯t need to do anything to remember details. He picked up one that would contact the collective¡¯s main scout and spoke shortly through it. ¡°I require a progress report on Heldren Storm¡¯s faction, and the Tyrant¡¯s position, if you can locate them without being discovered. Lastly, someone confirm the Artificer still possesses what I left for him.¡± He waited for no reply, trusting his orders were clear enough. After the Arcanist had been severely chastised for allowing one of their scout golems to be spotted, he was sure they were taking more care.

    Mavar was about to return to a cross-legged position in the center of a glowing runic circle when a gemstone on his hip chimed. Only a few had stones bound to the one he carried, and even fewer should contact him without notice. ¡°This is the Prime,¡± he answered curtly.

    ¡°Master Helioc, I am so sorry for disturbing you.¡±

    ¡°Sasha Veltrex. You best have a good reason for doing so,¡± he intoned ominously.

    ¡°Of course! Master, I don¡¯t know how it happened. I would have missed it had I not done an extra check. I¡¯m sorry!¡± She apologized again, somehow intuiting his impatience. ¡°Have you run a Regional Log today?¡±

    ¡°Not yet. Should I?¡±

    ¡°Yes! You need to see this for yourself.¡±

    Mavar moved over to one of the semi-translucent constructs, this one enchanted to reproduce the effects of certain powers. Extreme-level work all things considered, but there¡¯d been time enough to have it done. After activating one a multi-colored, timestamped list ran across the screen at extreme speed. His eyes didn¡¯t need to move to follow the words since his mind was enough to scan the blurs and commit the words to memory. ¡°I¡¯m not seeing anything out of the ordinary here,¡± Mavar was about to say, before one of the earliest events of the day appeared. ¡°That design is restricted. What have you done!?¡±

    ¡°It wasn¡¯t me Prime! I swear, I checked. We didn¡¯t spawn this. It happened right after the last of the godbound left the fort city.¡±

    Mavar flicked his wrists, the multi-colored robe coming into being around him. ¡°For your sake it better not have been any under you. You have none to pray to if this is your error.¡± A three-dimensional image was displayed in the space taken up by the construct, rotating slowly. It was faintly reminiscent of a squid, dyed blue with red coloration along rectangular trenches. He cut the connection in his stone, musing to himself. ¡°How. How!?¡± Can it truly access our designs, even those we abandoned long ago?

    His eyes flicked back to the construct responsible for Foresight. For a very brief moment he was tempted, but the power was proving more and more misleading. Too dangerous. He went to another gemstone on the array. ¡°Send a covert team to the mountain pass and search the lake for monsters. Kill anything aquatic there but do not engage the dragon! Do. Not. Kill. The. Dragon,¡± he repeated slowly.

    Removing that block, at this point, would throw everything into abject chaos. The godbound confronting the dragon was important, but if this old monster was in play? It could kill them all.

 Chapter 48: Bonds of Hope

    Wake up.

    Daniel didn¡¯t open his eyes, though Hunter¡¯s mental prompting was enough to wake him. How long was I asleep?

    The sun is at its highest.

    Right, he doesn¡¯t know about time measurement. Daniel had tried explaining the concepts of minutes and hours, though they were foreign to the beast. In fairness he didn¡¯t have a watch or clock to demonstrate, and how was Hunter supposed to intrinsically understand a length of time he had no reference for? Without the clock on his phone, even Daniel had but a hazy sense of how much time passed. Quick Mind helped, but it wasn¡¯t perfect.

    Is Claire¡­ Awake? Stable? Daniel couldn¡¯t decide on what he wanted to ask, and what he wanted to know.

    She sleeps. Most do.

    Exhaustion, grief, and regret hit Daniel as the weight of last night fully returned. Why¡¯d you wake me up then?

    Something breathed in his face. Daniel opened his eyes to see Hunter¡¯s golden eyes reflecting the sunlight into his. There was something in them bordering hostility that matched what was coming from the Empathic Link. Hunter wasn¡¯t about to attack him, but he was upset. Those in the camp that were awake had taken notice. None had interfered. Daniel¡¯s peculiar companion was notorious as rumors of his nature had spread, mostly focused on his ability to detect ongoing threats.

    Hunter?

    We need to talk. It was the same thing Hunter had said before Daniel had slept. The same sense of pent-up frustration and bitterness. In hindsight, there wasn¡¯t too much that could explain it other than the obvious.

    Daniel brought himself up into a sitting position to better level his head with Hunter¡¯s and then bowed it. You don¡¯t like that I told you to leave.

    Yes. Daniel tried to raise a hand to Hunter¡¯s head, but the ringcat snarled. I am not your pet.

    I never said you were!

    What do words mean? Hunter bared his teeth, drawing reactions from around the camp. People were getting restless. The ringcat didn¡¯t seem to notice. Actions! Your actions. Send me away. Throw me aside.

    To protect you!

    Did not ask you to.

    What could you have done in the mine? You were hurt. When we reached the shaft, you would have had to go back anyway.

    And you, Hunter snorted. Reeking of fear. Pain. Should not have gone either. Last night, should have run with me.

    What was happening? Hunter¡¯s words were becoming more disjointed, raw emotion beginning to overtake sense. Was the link from his power breaking down? Hunter, you need to calm down.

    No! Not your pet!

    Daniel panicked as a thought occurred to him. Is this because I¡¯m missing Rorshawd¡¯s soul? The power had originally come from his class but, no, Hunter was normal right before the dragon attacked. What exactly did Beast Friend say in its description? Daniel thought desperately to recall. It made a bond? And it couldn¡¯t be removed unless both sides wanted it to be! Even if Hunter was upset, the power shouldn¡¯t stop working. What if Hunter thinks I¡¯ve invalidated the bond? Is the rule subjective enough that only one side needs to think both are willing?

    Daniel looked back into the animal¡¯s eyes. It was strange. Having Hunter¡¯s voice in his head had made it easy to see him as a person, but in a way, Daniel had anthropomorphized Hunter before he¡¯d become intelligent. Anyone with a pet falsely attributed human-like characteristics to their companion. Anyone with a pet, Daniel repeated internally.

    There was enough mana left for Moment of Clarity. It would provoke Hunter, but that was the point.

    Do not like! Hunter roared in Daniel¡¯s mind as a wave of anger crashed through the Empathic Link. Stop!

    Daniel ended the effect, keeping his gaze level.

    What? Hunter, even close to being enraged, was thrown by the sudden shift. Daniel had just wasted a significant amount of mana, about all he had left, to do nothing?

    Sorry. Even though he knew Hunter could feel his anxiety and fear, Daniel tried to think in a neutral tone. It wasn¡¯t something he had much practice in. Last night I used it too, were you affected?

    Yes. Hunter was guarded now, having been thrown off his aggressive tempo.

    The bond gave him a limited understanding of Hunter¡¯s emotional state, although that didn¡¯t imply he could perfectly make use of that information. You couldn¡¯t empathize with someone just because some power let you, or even because you could feel part of what the other person was feeling. Trying to understand their situation and the context they were in wasn¡¯t all of it either. Those were just basic steps Daniel hadn¡¯t even considered when he¡¯d first felt Hunter¡¯s anger. What did you see?

    You. Near that thing. In danger.

    Daniel nodded and thought of Hunter¡¯s maiming. When¡¯s the last time you hunted?

    Not since my injury. Hunter seemed to be calming down. Did he understand what Daniel was doing, or had he just burned the anger out of him?

    And you¡¯re nocturnal normally, right? I think someone told me that about ringcats.

    Yes. I do not need much sleep. My injury gave me enough.

    But it¡¯s better for you to sleep every day, right? You¡¯d feel better?

    ¡­yes.

    Daniel reached his hand towards Hunter again, this time unchallenged. He put his hand as best he could on Hunter¡¯s shoulder. I¡¯m sorry.

    Hunter broke eye contact first in the pause that followed. All aggression was gone from him, only weariness was left. You could have died, he thought, eventually.

    I wasn¡¯t planning on actually fighting the dragon. But I should have stayed with you one way or the other. I just didn¡¯t want to see you die. You would have if you¡¯d tried to fight that¡­ thing.

    I am not careless. Could have stood by you. Protected you. Died with you, at worst. But together.

    And the mine?

    Would have told you not to go. Would have been better than what happened.

    I¡¯d still have another soul hitchhiking in me, but it would¡¯ve been better. Hunter, I¡¯m sorry. Again. This is all my fault. Just, seeing you after the cliff-

    You should not worry. I am stronger than you.

    No you¡¯re not. My strength is 21 and yours is only 19.

    There is more to strength than numbers.

    Is there? Daniel had to think about that. Hunter was larger than him, if not in height than total mass. If the two were to arm wrestle, wait, no, that¡¯d be impossible. But it raised a good point. Could a meter tall man with a strength double a normal person¡¯s lift more? What about leverage? Throwing? Humans on Earth could throw farther than any other species because of how they had evolved, but they certainly weren¡¯t the strongest creature.

    Thinking too much.

    I thought I was keeping that private.

    I do not need to hear to understand.

    Are you sure your wisdom is only 12? You sound like a monk all of a sudden.

    What?

    Nothing, Daniel laughed, despite himself. The pain from the dragon attack was still there, waiting for him to drop his guard before it would crush his mind, but with Hunter not in full murder cat mode there was comfort in his presence.

    What now? Hunter asked.

    Fair question. You¡¯re right Hunter, you¡¯re not my pet. I wasn¡¯t trying to treat you like one, but I was. In some ways.

    Yes.

    Unintentionally!

    Maybe. Hunter thought with just a hint of bitterness.

    Before, you weren¡¯t going to snap, were you?

    Snap?

    It almost felt like the bond was breaking. Were you trying to sever our connection?

    No. Hunter reared his head back with offense. Was angry. It is harder to think when I am angry.

    Oh. I was worried you were going to hulk out in the middle of the camp.

    What?

    Nothing. Daniel took a look around camp to better assess his surroundings. Hunter had stayed awake since the tag on Rorshawd was still active. The dragon was alive, but he hadn¡¯t moved. Small mercies.

    Both of Tlara¡¯s wyverns had survived as well, neither creature having been close enough to the dragon to be in danger. None of the injured had died since Daniel fell asleep, though the people who had just been injured by the dragon instead of outright killed were very few. Besides one or two others, the only people Quala was taking care of were Tak, Sigron, and the still unconscious Claire.

    Worried about her, Hunter thought.

    Are you sure you¡¯re not reading my private thoughts?

    You were staring. Hunter glanced over to Claire as well. I am worried about her. She is¡­ Hunter gathered his thoughts for a moment, keeping them from Daniel. Something is wrong with her. Too much fear and anxiety. More than you. At dawn, it overwhelmed her.

    I told her someone she cared about died. Well, no. I couldn¡¯t even do that.

    Yes. Hunter nodded. She did something, before the mine. Took away your fear. Has been doing it to herself?

    She has been, hasn¡¯t she? I never would have known but she did seem familiar with phobias. I thought it was just because she had a power that affected them. You¡¯re pretty perceptive to notice that.

    She was suddenly not well. It was hard to miss.

    I¡¯m honestly terrified of what¡¯s going to happen when she wakes up. She¡¯s going to hate me, Hunter.

    Why?

    Tears started to form as a blackness gripped his chest, biting through the protection of his friend. I didn¡¯t save Parduc. I just watched him die. I watched so many people die.

    You should have- Hunter stopped, stood, and looked away.

    Is there something coming?

    No. I did not want to tell you the rest.

    Say it. Well, don¡¯t say it but¡­ Daniel took a deep breath, trying to steady himself. It would be easy to shut down now, but he¡¯d been neglecting his friend. Hunter, tell me what you want to. You¡¯ve more than earned the right to say something without me judging you. Daniel stood as well, following Hunter¡¯s gaze to the ruins of Roost¡¯s Peak. They weren¡¯t visible, but the opening of the valley was.

    Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

    You should have had me there. Stupid not to. Would have had another to blame. Not just yourself.

    Yeah, I know. Daniel thought softly. I¡¯m not giving myself an excuse, but this whole ¡®talking murder cat friendship¡¯ thing is something I never could have expected or prepared for on Earth. I pissed you off while thinking all the while I was doing what was best for you.

    Not your place to.

    I know, I know. I know that now, I guess is what I¡¯m saying. He sighed. It¡¯s fairer to say neither of us could be expected to play things perfectly in this insane situation. Hell, I fucked up pretty much everything I could have. I don¡¯t know what¡¯s going to happen with Claire, if there¡¯s any way to fix it or not. Daniel buried his head in his arms. Hell, her friend¡¯s dead. I can¡¯t fix that, but I¡¯m not losing you too. From now on, if something is getting on one of our nerves, we tell the other before it drives them to the point of wanting to eat them.

    Hunter nudged him softly, mental voice trying to be calming. I was not going to eat you.

    You could¡¯ve fooled me.

    Hmm. Fine. Hunter looked at Daniel. I do not like stopping time.

    That¡¯s not what I- Daniel stopped himself and picked his head back up. Alright, that¡¯s fair but it¡¯s also necessary sometimes. Why don¡¯t we say I only use it when I need to, and warn you if I have the chance?

    Do not like that, Hunter grumbled. Fair.

    My turn. The darkness of last night was not banished and continued preying on him. Even so, Daniel tried to push it away, push his thoughts of Claire away, so he could stop acting all sullen with Hunter. For now, at least. He tried to joke, but it came out a bit weak. I don¡¯t like how you don¡¯t let me ride you into battle.

    Hunter looked insulted at that. I do not like you wanting to.

    It could be fun. And it would make us more effective in combat.

    No.

    I¡¯ll take that as a yes.

    Not a yes.

    A maybe then.

    I do not like this.

    Alright, we¡¯ll revisit the topic. But it¡¯s good to talk like this instead of letting resentment build up. He sighed, ignoring the fact that he was letting another emotion build up inside of him. For what it¡¯s worth, Hunter, if I ever tell you to run and you don¡¯t want to, you should do what you want to. You have just as much free will as I do, and I forget that, remind me.

    I will, Hunter thought, showing teeth.

    Daniel kept smiling back, despite every reason for him to feel sorrow. Just like empathy, or strength, or swinging a sword, there was more to having power than having powers. That was something that could have been intuitive if Daniel had spent a moment thinking about how things worked. It was all about leverage and force multiplication. A rock could have an intelligence of 99 and still be inanimate. At least, I think.

    The point was, Beast Friend opened the door. It was up to Daniel and Hunter to make use of what it gave them. Relying on the feature to make everything effortless, or even worse, not putting any effort into the friendship, was how he¡¯d ended up here. Like any relationship, it requires mutual understanding, respect, and the willingness to listen. Considering how his life had gone so far, it wasn¡¯t a surprise it had taken Daniel this long to realize this. We¡¯re still friends, right Hunter?

    You need to ask?

    Right. That was a stupid question. He really needed to think sometimes before opening his, er, thinking. His phone chose that moment to vibrate.

    <hr>

    Bond: Friendship with the Creature affected by Feature: Beast Friend has been further developed! This has improved the benefits derived from this bond:

    - The range of Telepathic Link and Empathic Link has improved to Range: Moderate.

    - Empathic Link has improved to Intensity: Moderate. This link may be temporarily reduced to Intensity: Low.

    - While sharing senses with the subject of this bond, you may control the body of the host if they are willing, and vice versa, for an additional ongoing low Mana cost. While doing so, the entity sharing the body may not use Powers belonging to the host unless they also possess the one they wish to use.

    <hr>

    What the fu-

    When the bond had improved the first time, Daniel had only gotten warm and fuzzy from Hunter reaffirming their friendship. This time, it was another experience entirely. He was right next to Hunter, which meant a full blast of what the ringcat was feeling as opposed to the gentle haze it had been moments before. Hunger, exhaustion, the smallest of lingering resentment, and concern for Claire, all amidst a tide of other thoughts, impressions, and emotions.

    Lower it, lower it! Daniel thought, and the tide of Hunter returned to its wide ocean in accordance with his will.

    Do not like that.

    Agreed. Daniel picked himself up from where he had fallen and tried to ignore the skeptical glances. He felt completely different, like his and Hunter¡¯s perspectives had briefly averaged each other and it was taking some time to adjust back to normal. Also, Daniel¡¯s head felt itchy for some reason. The range upgrade is nice, we¡¯ll have to test it. That other one though, want to try it? Wait, I don¡¯t have the mana for it. Dang it. I never have the mana for it. Things need to stop happening that prevent me from trying out that power.

    Not here. People are watching us.

    Yeah, yeah. Good point. I¡¯ll check to see how much time we have here.

    From the looks of it, Murdon was asleep and Lograve was awake. Otherwise, there was a watch composed of every bound beast, sans Hunter who didn¡¯t count towards that category, and the few of the garrison who had gotten some kind of rest last night. Those who survived were either posted in the keep on night watch or were close enough to escape before the dragon found them in their homes.

    ¡°Are you quite finished terrifying the rest of the camp?¡± Lograve asked in greeting as he saw Daniel and Hunter approach. He was sitting on the ground near, but not next to Murdon. Is everything alright between you? More importantly, are you alright? He asked both privately since his Telepathy could only link one creature at a time even if Daniel and Hunter also shared a link.

    ¡°Yes,¡± Daniel answered simply, and the answer was even true for one of those questions. ¡°We were looking to go out a short distance from camp. There¡¯s nothing dangerous around and we won¡¯t go far.¡±

    ¡°Besides the giant lizard containing the soul that used to be bound to you, you mean.¡± Lograve sighed. ¡°We¡¯ll be resting here for a few more hours, so you have the time. Why, might I ask?¡±

    Should I tell him?

    I trust this one, Hunter replied.

    ¡°Hunter and I improved the feature that connects us. There¡¯s something that we want to try that probably shouldn¡¯t be done here.¡±

    ¡°You improved your bond? Impressive, though you have been together for about a month now under extreme circumstances.¡±

    ¡°Wait, how do you know it¡¯s called a bond? And, uh, this is the second time we¡¯ve improved it.¡±

    Lograve blinked. ¡°Twice? I, sure. Sure you have. Of course.¡± He took in a breath, and then in a combination of whispering and shouting, asked, ¡°How in the Octyrrum have you deepened a bond with that ringcat so quickly?!¡±

    ¡°Kindness and understanding?¡± Daniel said noncommittally.

    ¡°I seem to recall you mentioning something else when we first met.¡±

    ¡°No. God don¡¯t even joke about that.¡±

    Gods. If you¡¯re going to keep your origin a secret you need to be more careful. Lograve considered Daniel and Hunter for a second and continued verbally. ¡°Well, good for you. I¡¯d ask what you can do now but I¡¯ve got enough on my mind as it is. Go on and-¡±

    ¡°So, are bonds a thing? Like, other people can have them? Are there powers that affect them?¡±

    Lograve pinched his nose. ¡°What did I just-¡± He looked at Daniel again, perhaps seeing something the Artificer was suppressing, and sighed. ¡°No, no. It¡¯s fine. You¡¯re lucky I¡¯m a teacher in my spare time or I wouldn¡¯t have the patience for this.¡± Lograve patted the ground beside him. ¡°You might as well sit down unless you¡¯re in a hurry.¡±

    Daniel sat, began to ask a question, and was cut off by Lograve.

    ¡°Bonds,¡± he said over Daniel¡¯s words, ¡°Are a special connection between people. Not that kind of connection. Well, not always. There¡¯s bond of friendship, which I believe yours is. Family members can form bonds of kinship if they are especially close. There¡¯s also bond of love that can convert to bond of matrimony, the transition there should be obvious. Contract bonds, which you should avoid at all costs since they can easily trap someone in unfavorable circumstances if they aren¡¯t careful.¡± Daniel listened as Lograve kept droning on, happy to have something interesting to distract him. ¡°By the way, Bards have a disadvantage when it comes to bonds as they tend to be less attached than others. Bond of ritual is usually power-related. Then there¡¯s bond of vengeance and other antithetical bonds, the odd ducks of the litter. Uh, clutch. Clutch?¡±

    ¡°I think it¡¯s clutch?¡± Daniel glanced over to Hunter.

    ¡°Why do you think he would know?¡±

    Daniel shrugged. ¡°Hunter¡¯s smarter than you¡¯d think.¡±

    ¡°Anyway, you don¡¯t need a power to form a bond. In fact, most don¡¯t form that way. People with a deep enough relationship form one of an appropriate type, though with most kinds it isn¡¯t a guaranteed thing. There¡¯s no specific trigger for it as we know, they just reach a certain threshold and a bond is made.¡±

    ¡°What can you get from them?¡±

    ¡°It depends. Those with the love bond typically start with some kind of partner-sensing capability. Knowing where their loved one is at all times, that sort of thing. Bonds forged in hunting teams can produce special attacks derived from a power from each individual. The bond can deepen with time, growing in strength and the ways in which it affects those bonded. It can be difficult to determine what these benefits are as most identification powers won¡¯t touch them.¡±

    ¡°Huh. I didn¡¯t realize there was a way to improve your abilities beyond advancement. Speaking of I still need to commit,¡± Daniel tapped at his phone and whistled. ¡°Nine advancement potential. Jeez, I hadn¡¯t checked.¡±

    ¡°Impressive. On my end, last night was the largest gain of advancement I¡¯ve had in my third level. A grim night, but we are better for surviving it.¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    Lograve eyed him. ¡°You recall what I said after your first battle with me? ¡®You never really know yourself until you face an enemy you aren¡¯t meant to beat?¡¯¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°I imagine that, given all the circumstances involved, you might be feeling¡­¡± Lograve searched for the word, failed, and settled for a phrase. ¡°Under the weather. How are you feeling?¡±

    Daniel just shrugged in answer.

    Lograve carefully picked up the conversation when Daniel went quiet and started playing with the dirt. ¡°Of course, the problem with bonds is that you can¡¯t force them. It¡¯s that way with most relationships. Even two people benevolently coming together with the intent of forming a bond can fail, whereas two people no one would guess would hit it off will randomly acquire benefits. This can lead to problems, like if a married man acquires a bond of love that isn¡¯t reciprocated by his partner. Even if not intended, that could prove disastrous for all involved. Also, imagine if you and Tlara-¡±

    ¡°Not going to happen. Ever.¡±

    ¡°Not where I was going, but ok,¡± Lograve said, nonplussed. ¡°The point is bonds aren¡¯t something you can cheat or control. They are the Octyrrum¡¯s recognition of honest connections felt between two people at a fundamental level. Strengthening them represents this as well, thus my surprise at your progress with Hunter going so far in such a short amount of time.¡±

    ¡°Only two people? Can there be more per bond?¡± This was making Daniel weirdly think of chemistry. It was a topic he neither cared for nor particularly despised, which had ruled out several engineering career paths before he¡¯d tanked them all. Another thing he¡¯d failed at. Even so, he was drawing one of the few chemical structures he remembered in the dirt absentmindedly while Lograve talked.

    ¡°What is that? That diagram?¡± Lograve had noticed.

    ¡°It¡¯s, uh,¡± Oh boy. Does society on the Octyrrum know about atoms? This was the kind of topic Daniel had daydreamed about explaining to someone from the past one or two times. There was way too much happening right now to get into it. ¡°It¡¯s a lot to explain.¡±

    ¡°Is that magic? Some sort of representation of Artificer formulae?¡±

    ¡°Something from my world. Not magic. We learn about it over the course of a semest, uh, a few months. I could tell you about it later, but could we get back to my question before our time is up?¡±

    Lograve looked more closely at the chemical structure of caffeine before shaking his head. ¡°Familiar somehow. Regardless, yes. Bonds can form between more than two people, rising with both power and rarity the more are involved. There is a legend from pre-Collapse history of a band of eight forming a bond when placed under extreme duress, which turned the tide of war. It might just be a legend though, nothing quite like that has been seen in modern history.¡±

    ¡°We could have used something like that last night.¡±

    ¡°Yes, we could have. It¡¯s part of the loss of Eido. The damned Upswell just keeps taking.¡± Lograve caught Daniel¡¯s questioning gaze. ¡°There are many people who lost someone they had a bond to. Like everything else, that has weakened us.¡± Lograve looked sideways at Murdon, who was still suffering the downsides of his race ¡°I am fortunate I did not lose my bond.¡±

    I don¡¯t think I should ask him about that, Daniel thought to Hunter. He¡¯s not joking as much as he normally does which means we¡¯re heading towards sad Lograve. I¡¯m bringing down the mood enough as it is.

    It does not matter to me.

    You aren¡¯t curious?

    No.

    ¡°No passing notes in class!¡± Lograve mock snapped at Daniel. ¡°What were you saying to Hunter?¡±

    ¡°Nothing.¡±

    Lograve narrowed his eyes. ¡°What were you thinking to him?¡±

    ¡°Uh,¡± Daniel gulped. This was just like high school. ¡°I shouldn¡¯t tell you.¡±

    ¡°Hmm. You¡¯re lucky Telepathy doesn¡¯t let me intercept mental messaging until level five.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯d be able to read minds?¡±

    ¡°Maybe,¡± Lograve said mischievously. His eyes flicked to where Quala was overseeing those injured and Daniel held his breath. For a moment it seemed like he was going to ask about Claire, but it passed. ¡°Well go on, try out whatever weird thing that bond of yours gave you. Although if it lets you merge with Hunter as some sort of half-man, half-beast fighting creature then I¡¯m officially done with your absurdity.¡±

    ¡°Nothing like that. Yet.¡±

    ¡°You are joking, right?¡±

    ¡°Maybe,¡± Daniel said, trying his best to mimic how Lograve had answered earlier. As he left, Lograve surreptitiously copied the drawings left in the ground into a notebook.

    Hunter and Daniel walked for a few minutes down the sloping road that led from what used to be Roost¡¯s Peak. It wasn¡¯t long before they found privacy from all but Tlara¡¯s wyverns, though that was only if they flew overhead. Sitting down, Daniel felt the sensation of Hunter entering his mind like he was a hand that a tight-fitting glove was being slipped around. Only this time, the divide was less noticeable when the process was complete.

    Still strange. As before, Hunter¡¯s part of the conversation in this state seemed like someone had turned his mind into a magazine and cut up parts of it to make a ransom note.

    And I¡¯m always out of mana right when we get these upgrades, Daniel complained.

    You were not out last time.

    I had to save it, didn¡¯t I? Otherwise, I could still be walking around with cheek scars. And then you were hurt and we were waiting for you to get better. He looked at Hunter¡¯s face, now with a blank gaze like the last time he¡¯d borrowed Daniel¡¯s senses. He didn¡¯t need to see that to know for sure as a body-hugging sensation always accompanied Hunter switching views. Are you trying to control me now?

    No. I will wait for your permission. You are not my pet.

    Don¡¯t sound so smug, you know you want to try. Daniel lifted a hand. Raise the other one? We should start simple and train up to the bigger stuff. I¡¯m probably getting ahead of myself, but if we could become used to each other¡¯s bodies enough to fight with them we could- hey!

    Hunter, taking Daniel¡¯s suggestion to control his other arm, had lightly slapped Daniel¡¯s face with it. Ow.

    What do you mean ¡®Ow¡¯? You did that!

    Your pain feels different. Sharper.

    You didn¡¯t notice that when my cheeks were cut open?

    You had an excuse to hurt then.

    Are you saying I¡¯m weak?

    I would not have complained.

    You just did! Daniel sighed in exasperation, having to fight for a second for his lungs to usurp the control he¡¯d granted Hunter. Do you want me to slap you?

 Chapter 49: Unravelling the Conspiracy

    Lograve finished his illustrations and closed the notebook, stashing it safely in his robes. He then focused, remembering everything that had to be done in the coming days. Murdon had communicated the troubles of Hagain Village silently to Lograve during the walk to camp. Confirmation of a Tyrant and the destruction of the manor were disastrous, to say nothing of the lives lost and loyalties suborned. Likewise, Lograve had covered the Origin Beast and its implications.

    His friend hadn¡¯t been concerned. Murdon had argued that if that monster god attacked them now, there was simply nothing either he nor anyone else could do. They couldn¡¯t warn anyone, so their objective of escaping the Thormundz remained top priority. That was¡­ A sound, reasonable analysis of the situation. Trust Murdon to handle this logically, but give him one weird level one to manage? His thoughts turned sarcastic. No, we have to go full inquisition for him.

    A part of Lograve, his analytical self, wondered what would have happened if Murdon had killed Daniel in Hagain Village. Without Rorshawd¡¯s soul to absorb, would the Origin Beast have risen? What would the absence of Identify Creature have meant over the past few weeks? Nothing important would have changed, but, but no. Lograve couldn¡¯t think like that, trading lives for outcomes.

    Though I did let someone die on the bridge, he coldly reminded himself. Jonus had told Lograve he would be making the point that there would be no desertion as they were preparing the trap, but execution? If Lograve did not know for a fact Jonus was dead, he would make a good candidate for the mystery Tyrant. The Martialist might have even been one, only to have been overwhelmed by a superior enemy. That could explain why he hadn¡¯t stopped the arrow, but at the same time, Lograve couldn¡¯t give himself that excuse.

    As for who the current Tyrant was, there was a limited number of theories. Quala¡¯s suggestion of viewing the Tyrant¡¯s influence as an infection would fit with the idea that Heldren Storm¡¯s team served as a carrier, taking it from the main village to Roost¡¯s Peak where the populace was slowly turned against Murdon and everyone that stood for him. Lograve¡¯s team was spared either because they had been too busy or too loyal to be affected. Did my bond protect me? We still haven¡¯t figured out the third benefit.

    While the infection might have started in Roost¡¯s Peak, the degree to which Hagain Village had been affected would have to mean it was the source. The intensity of what was happening also suggested a higher level Tyrant. Lograve concurred with Murdon that it was a level three behind everything. Realistically, that meant the headmen and everyone on Heldren¡¯s team, not counting Quala.

    Lograve¡¯s intuition went further than Murdon¡¯s here. The rumor theory of how influence was spreading suggested the power was based on charisma. The attribute arrays of all potential candidates weren¡¯t known to the exact number, though that still ruled out a decent number of them. Even though charisma was invaluable to leadership, not everyone could afford to keep it even with their core attributes. Two of the headmen even had advancement penalties to charisma from their class, taking them out of the running.

    Of those that were left? It¡¯s Heldren. Obviously. A Hero going bad was hardly new. Most still kept the class, sure, but the conversion to Tyrant was a special case requiring circumstances just like the Thormundz¡¯s relative power vacuum. Heldren¡¯s attributes were somewhere within the mid 20 to low 30 range. As charisma was one of the core Hero attributes, he would certainly have prioritized its advancement. That just left the question of how knowledge of the lightning dragon had spread. Tlara had been watched closely enough that he was sure she hadn¡¯t told anyone. Kob had figured it out through deduction, and far too late to have been responsible. So how?

    Murdon stirred. ¡°That¡¯s not enough sleep, close your eyes,¡± Lograve called over to him. Murdon waved him off and sat up. ¡°Murdon, damn it, I was just talking with Daniel about bonds. Mine is telling me that you need more sleep.¡±

    ¡°Our bond doesn¡¯t have an Empathic Link.¡± Murdon blinked his eyes as he adjusted to the light.

    ¡°I don¡¯t need magic to tell me your sleep debt is numbered in days instead of hours!¡±

    ¡°The Tyrant, Lograve. Any thoughts?¡±

    Lograve frowned. ¡°You know, during our talk, Daniel mentioned kindness and understanding. I think I could benefit from that as well.¡±

    ¡°Who do you think it is?¡±

    ¡°This is exactly why our bond hasn¡¯t improved in years.¡± Lograve dramatically looked away, pouting. With Telepathy he thought, Heldren.

    I saw him fighting the rampaging monsters in Hagain. He was helping people.

    And we¡¯ve seen nothing at all to indicate the Tyrant has been using deception?

    Point taken. Just him, then?

    There are a few others, Lograve conceded. He¡¯s my top suspect.

    Murdon stood and looked around the camp. Those awake shifted similarly to Hunter¡¯s earlier aggression, moving slightly away from him regardless of where they were. They were all affected, he thought to Lograve, the link from the Arcanist¡¯s Telepathy still active.

    Everyone but my team, yes. For more reasons than one, it¡¯s a shame Yedra died. I have a feeling she was leading the effort against you here. Something about telling me to go into a cave, and then blowing it up while I was inside tipped me off.

    Alost, then.

    How are we going to do this? I can host a mental conversation if you need to- Murdon, what are you doing?

    ¡­

    The Commander hadn¡¯t taken off his armor before resting, leading to quite a few sore areas. While relatively minor, it added to everything else in the world separating Murdon from the feeling of comfort that he had been deprived of for so long. Agitation was predictable, impatience understandable. That¡¯s what Murdon told himself.

    With a direction in mind, he walked over to where Alost was sleeping and shook him awake. Giving the man only a moment to become conscious, he said at a volume just below a shout, ¡°We need to talk.¡± Had Daniel been there, he would have remarked on how similar Murdon sounded to Hunter in that moment.

    ¡°Commander!?¡±

    ¡°Your people tried to kill Lograve¡¯s team.¡± Fury that had been denied expression suddenly found the opportunity. The majority of the camp woke at this point. Daniel¡¯s argument with Hunter had brought them to a state of light arousal Murdon fully shattered. ¡°If you hadn¡¯t led them to the mine, that dragon would never have taken those lives!¡±

    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    Murdon, they don¡¯t know about- Lograve tried to caution him, but he was ignored.

    ¡°There is a Tyrant in the Thormundz,¡± he announced to the camp, voice softening slightly. ¡°Most of you seem to have realized you were under some kind of influence. That does not change what you have done.¡±

    ¡°I, I didn¡¯t-¡± Alost¡¯s words were cut off as Murdon planted a knee in his chest.

    Murdon leaned down to put his face right up to Alost. He wasn¡¯t wearing his helmet and was fully aware of the intimidation factor of his teeth. That was something he¡¯d used to good effect before. He used it again now. ¡°Tell me everything.¡±

    Alost didn¡¯t have all of the answers. He was never formally in charge of anything, only having risen to prominence in Roost¡¯s Peak because of Focus Fire, his hosting of an underground gambling club, and his skill with cooking. The last one had left Murdon incredulous until other members of the garrison vouched for him.

    Therein lay the true source of information. No one person knew everything, but what was left of the garrison collectively did. First, it was confirmed that the influence was spreading through rumor. Now that it was removed, people could distinguish the time that they were under the effect, pinpointing when it had started. The method was insidious. Several of the indoctrinated would host a smaller number of others, strike up a conversation, and eventually lead them to the topic of Murdon being a Tyrant. Unfortunately, working his way up the chain of infection ended with Yedra¡¯s name. She was the first affected and the only one who knew who had spread the rumor to Roost¡¯s Peak to begin with.

    As far as why the influence broke, there was an easy answer. The Tyrant wasn¡¯t omniscient and could never have predicted the presence of an Origin Beast near Roost¡¯s Peak. The plan was to take over the fort, get rid of any on Lograve¡¯s team that wouldn¡¯t be persuaded to the ¡®truth¡¯, and prepare for the arrival of everyone from Hagain Village. The Tyrant¡¯s end goal was isolating everyone in the Thormundz within Roost¡¯s Peak, completely derailing the plan to break out of the valley. With the knowledge of the dragon in the pass spreading with the rumor, it wasn¡¯t a stretch to see why those affected would prefer to shelter in a fortified city rather than risk death following Murdon. Rorshawd¡¯s appearance in and destruction of the fort ruined that plan. Between that, the deaths of their friends, and the dragon speaking, everyone present for the fight was shaken out of the influence that had gripped them.

    While rescuing the survivors of Roost¡¯s Peak had given Murdon a small force to act against the Tyrant, the revelation that they planned to shelter in the city was problematic. The Tyrant wasn¡¯t omniscient. With Murdon escaping the assassination attempt there was only one place he could go. Remove the knowledge of the dragon attack, and the Tyrant would naturally fear Murdon breaking the city out of their control and using its defenses against a siege attempt. The Tyrant had to accelerate their plan to stop Murdon from beating them to the punch. They were probably on their way already.

    The group interrogation hadn¡¯t been pleasant for any involved. Murdon knew the insidious nature of the influence had warped the perceptions of those afflicted, but that wasn¡¯t a perfect excuse. Influence powers could be resisted, and the universal success of this one in Roost¡¯s Peak meant that the city, at a baseline, had a poor opinion of him. Still, when he¡¯d learned all he could, there was some regret over how he¡¯d handled what amounted to traumatized survivors of a disaster.

    With respect to Alost, the archer had been chastised to the point of near breaking and was under the ministration of Quala. She hadn¡¯t interfered with the grilling but continued to give him disapproving looks while going about her work. Even the Cleric was down to the last of her mana and had to rely on slower methods. Using Flash Heal on Gadriel had been decisive, yet costly. To say nothing of the state of Sigron, Murdon¡¯s brother in class now missing an arm. The only reason he¡¯d been on the team with Lograve was that Murdon had pitied the Knight for the curse he bore, only to make the man¡¯s life even worse. With time, the gunk both eating away at the shoulder and keeping the Knight¡¯s blood inside could at least be removed.

    He returned to Lograve, saying, ¡°We¡¯ll need to move soon. You were traveling at a more sedate pace compared to us to get here. Any area nearby that has any defensive value?¡±

    ¡°Not since Roost¡¯s Peak went up in smoke. Hmm. You¡¯re thinking we¡¯ll need to repel the Tyrant here? No chance to get back to Hagain before they mobilize?¡± It wasn¡¯t an accident that Lograve was preternaturally quick on the uptake.

    Tactical Intuition was a unique aspect of their bond of friendship that was derived from Lograve¡¯s Telepathy and Murdon¡¯s Tactician features. It made for snap decisions and rapidly-made, yet effective plans. The power was somewhat ambiguous in how it worked, and a visit to the church of Torch had proved useless in finding out more. It wasn¡¯t consciously activated, though either could be conscious of it working. That was the case when Lograve had begun organizing Hagain Village along the lines of a plan Murdon hadn¡¯t even decided on yet during the start of the disaster, or more recently, how they¡¯d quickly decided on their plan of attack against Rorshawd.

    ¡°No chance,¡± Murdon affirmed. ¡°I don¡¯t like our odds in straightforward combat. The people here are hurt, shaken, and disorganized. I have no doubt the Tyrant will be recalling all of the training teams, reaping the rewards of our careful planning.¡±

    ¡°So we don¡¯t fight them. In a way, we have an advantage. Everyone that could be affected by the influence has been. Start breaking it and it could kick off a mass awakening from the momentum.¡±

    ¡°Alternatively, if you¡¯re sure about Heldren¡­¡± Murdon let Lograve finish the thought.

    ¡°If we¡¯re wrong, we-¡±

    ¡°Pardon my intrusion, but am I to understand you suspect Heldren Storm as the mastermind of this craven plot?¡± Gadriel was somehow next to them all of a sudden. Murdon hadn¡¯t noticed, and they¡¯d been careless in conversing vocally. The Hero was mostly whole, having dents in his medium armor and severe bruising that his dutiful demeanor did not show.

    ¡°Is there some way you can help?¡± Murdon asked.

    ¡°Hmm. Perhaps. Do we intend to face him today?¡±

    ¡°Not if we can help it. Let us say we strongly suspect he is the Tyrant. Do you have a suggestion to neutralize him?¡±

    ¡°Indeed. However, it is not something I can divulge. Not here, lest there are those that would warn him.¡±

    Lograve gave Gadriel a flat look. ¡°This penchant for drama is more suited for a Bard. This isn¡¯t the time for secrets, and everyone here has been broken out of the influence.¡±

    ¡°Even if you were sure, good mage,¡± Gadriel said with a hint of annoyance kept respectfully tamped down. ¡°One does not need to be influenced to betray. There is every possibility one of these people will defect on fear alone. A Tyrant¡¯s favor can be an alluring prospect, especially in the face of his army.¡±

    Murdon nodded at that. ¡°He has a point.¡± All three glanced warily at their surroundings and stepped farther away from the camp. ¡°What is the shape of your plan?¡±

    ¡°I cannot-¡±

    ¡°We aren¡¯t looking for details,¡± Murdon sighed. ¡°What I¡¯m asking is, are you setting up a power? Will you need to act before the fighting breaks out or before?¡±

    ¡°Are you trying to come in stealthy, or wearing a golden suit that says ¡®look at me, I¡¯m self-important?¡¯¡± The Arcanist had kept things serious during their training missions though could now prod the Hero as the weight of authority was off him.

    Gadriel maintained his smooth facade in the face of Lograve¡¯s needling. ¡°It will be before battle is joined. Draw them into discourse and I shall make my attempt. It is good there is time, I will need it for advancement tonight.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know if we¡¯ll have time for you to commit advancements six times, Gadriel,¡± Lograve said cautiously, humor gone. ¡°Not unless you do so through the night, and you¡¯ll need all the mana you can get.¡±

    ¡°Incorrect on both accounts, Sir Lograve.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    Gadriel leaned closer to whisper, making the Arcanist wonder why they were still discussing this out loud. Too late to change that. ¡°I may not have the unsporting dual and instant advancement powers Daniel possesses, though that does not mean I am without an edge of my own.¡±

    It took only a few seconds for Lograve to clue in on what the Hero meant. ¡°You have a simultaneous advancement power! That¡¯s how you¡¯ve kept your attributes perfectly even.¡±

    ¡°I finally attained six advancement potential after our struggle with that drake. If it would mean the return of Sir Kob I would give them up, but¡­¡± the Hero deflated slightly. ¡°Do try to keep that from common ears. One does well to keep some cards close to the chest.¡±

    Murdon wasn¡¯t entirely convinced. ¡°Without knowing what you¡¯re planning, I can¡¯t promise any kind of support.¡±

    ¡°That is fine. I shall need nothing but my resolve, my shield, and my sword.¡±

    ¡°Hmm,¡± Murdon grunted, looking at his bare arm. ¡°At least you have a shield.¡±

 Chapter 50: Slip of the Wrist

    First thing tomorrow, I¡¯m trying this out, Daniel thought to Hunter as the ringcat disconnected from him. I still haven¡¯t been able to get a good view through your senses.

    Why do you care about this? Hunter asked warily.

    Daniel ignored the question that had an obvious answer. How did it feel to fire the crossbow? Through trial and error, the ringcat had managed to coordinate aiming and firing to a degree, although reloading was outside of Hunter¡¯s current ability to control Daniel. So far, the nimbleness Hunter possessed with Daniel¡¯s body could only be described as janky. The sensation was eerily similar to when Rorshawd had taken over Daniel¡¯s arm to attack.

    Strange.

    That¡¯s the word you use to describe everything the bond does.

    It describes it well. Hunter was looking at one of his paws, upturned. Hunting makes sense. Stopping time, using you. Speaking. Not normal.

    I wouldn¡¯t call my hands turning bird-like normal either, but I¡¯m not complaining. It¡¯s just something you have to get used to. I¡¯m looking forward to it because it¡¯s a new experience. Something I never thought I¡¯d be able to do back home.

    Had enough of new experiences when the mountain exploded.

    That¡¯s¡­ fair. Daniel tried to act casual by tapping randomly on his phone. You¡¯re still good with letting me try out the reverse tomorrow, right?

    To his surprise, Hunter replied with borderline enthusiasm. You should join as I hunt. I doubt you could do better, but you could observe.

    Huh. He didn¡¯t know how to feel about that. On the one hand, a joyride with a jungle predator sounded amazing. On the other, being there for the experience of eating raw meat was less appetizing. I guess I could leave before the second part, Daniel thought privately. Yeah, that sounds fun. The only downside is we¡¯d have to wait until tomorrow night. Hopefully, I won¡¯t have to use a lot of mana before then. Or that Claire doesn¡¯t kill me.

    Both looked at the faint aura belonging to Rorshawd, still roughly where it had been when Daniel had fled the city. We will probably be fine.

    Yeah. We should head back.

    The look Tlara gave Daniel when both he and Hunter returned was middling, compared to the overall scale of glares she¡¯d given him. It was an impressive feat, the breadth of her expressions, considering Tlara didn¡¯t have proper eyebrows and the beak spoiled any possibility of a grimace. There was something else to the look apart from the hostility as well. Nothing Daniel could define, though it was clear something had changed between them. Whatever was mixed in with the suspicion and despise diluted it all the same. I guess once I maxed out Tlara¡¯s hatred all that emotional energy had to go somewhere else. He thought more about that and shook his head. No, I¡¯m pretty sure that¡¯s bullshit.

    Lograve¡¯s implication of a bond forming between Tlara and him stopped Daniel dead as he had the sudden fear his phone was going to vibrate. After a few seconds, nothing happened. Huh. Dodged a bullet there. Since it was already out, he took a look at the settings tab. Nine advancements, seven from last night alone despite not even killing anything. Did the Octyrrum recognize how insane a threat Rorshawd had been and rewarded him for just surviving it, and if so, how many of these points were from his poking out an eye? Either way, the total was enough to bring up any of his lagging attributes, even charisma, to level two. Or I could supercharge my intelligence and get to level three. Wait, no. That¡¯s how Kob died. I¡¯ll decide tonight.

    Thomas was the first to engage with Daniel. ¡°Hey Guy. Hunter.¡± Still the same, relaxed Cleric. He hardly seemed phased that everyone had almost died hours ago and that a lot had. Daniel had also forgotten until he just reminded himself. ¡°Murdon¡¯s got the camp on a war footing.¡±

    ¡°Are we going back to kill the dragon?¡±

    ¡°Ah no, nothing like that,¡± Thomas shrugged. ¡°Just got to kill a Tyrant is all.¡±

    ¡°Tyrant? Wait, weren¡¯t people saying Murdon was a Tyrant?¡±

    ¡°No, see there¡¯s a Tyrant that was going around making everyone think Murdon was a Tyrant. Kinda convoluted. You missed the show. Murdon dragged out the whole thing from the garrison.¡± Thomas made a gesture like he was pulling several handkerchiefs out of his other hand. That probably wasn¡¯t what he wanted it to look like. ¡°Sounds like the whole fort was against us before we even got there. Scary stuff.¡±

    Daniel looked at the damage to Thomas¡¯ armored robes, not having been replaced like the Cleric¡¯s bow. ¡°Have you gotten a new Focus?¡±

    ¡°Nah.¡± Thomas rooted around in his pack. Instead of some kind of partially formed Focus, he came up with some wrapped jerky.

    ¡°That doesn¡¯t bother you? We¡¯re about to, wait. What are we doing?¡±

    ¡°Nothing today,¡± Thomas said while chewing. ¡°It¡¯s fine, Guy. I can¡¯t get a new Focus for a week. Worrying about it won¡¯t change anything. I¡¯ll just have to let you do all the heroics.¡±

    ¡°You can still shoot your bow,¡± Daniel pointed out.

    ¡°Sure, just need the arrows. Ammo¡¯s so low they gave it all to the people who could use it best. Alost almost fought Quala off of him when it looked like people had forgotten to give him any.¡±

    ¡°Should I turn in the bolts I have?¡± It¡¯s not like I have a lot anyway, Daniel thought. He had his standard twenty shots after replenishing from the fort¡¯s supply, as well as what Hunter carried. It was a miracle Hunter had made it out with his new pack, especially since the heliorite was stored within it. In the long run, it was just a stone, worthless in the face of how many lives had been lost, but he¡¯d made a promise. Hunter, where¡¯s Khare? Thomas was giving some easy-going statement about how almost no one was stupid enough to use a crossbow when they had plenty of bows, so he had time for a side conversation.

    Went into the earth while you were sleeping.

    They died!?

    No. Aura is there.

    ¡°What?¡± Thomas asked as he misread the look on Daniel¡¯s face. Daniel relaxed as he confirmed Hunter¡¯s sighting. Khare¡¯s aura was indeed just below the ground.

    Weird. Thanks, Hunter. ¡°Sorry, I just noticed a weird aura.¡±

    ¡°You mean Hunter did.¡±

    ¡°How did you know that?¡±

    ¡°I thought I told you about that lie detecting power I had.¡±

    Daniel blinked. ¡°I thought you lost your Focus.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, but I also never said I needed it to read you like a book.¡±

    ¡­

    Murdon called for a break in the camp shortly after, deciding that greater distance from the dragon balanced losing the advantage of being at the top of the sloped path to the former city. No solid plan had been put forward as to how the inevitable confrontation with the Tyrant would go, but there were whispered guesses made during the march.

    Khare had come out of the ground when it had been time. They¡¯d almost fully regrown and walked close to Daniel instead of hitching a ride on his back. The gestalt hadn¡¯t said a word since Kob had died and Daniel wasn¡¯t going to rush them either. The conversations on bonds had reinforced the idea that there¡¯d been some kind of connection between them and the fallen titan.

    Thomas and Evalyn were walking with him as well and the group moved in a more organized fashion compared to the retreat last night. If this was a game, they would have made a decent party. Cleric, Bard, Artificer and¡­ Fighter? Martialist seemed pretty close to that. Hunter didn¡¯t fit though. It wasn¡¯t like the five were filled with adventuring spirit anyway. Even Evalyn was quiet, leaving most of the talking to Daniel and Thomas.

    As far as the others, Claire was awake now. Quala was sticking close to her, whereas the others who were wounded were able to move by themselves to some degree. Even Tak¡¯s mangled leg had returned to a degree of functionality, benefiting from the Mana Burn effect of his Regeneration. How Tak had managed to rest through the dragon fight Daniel didn¡¯t know, but he¡¯d done it and was the only one here with more than half of his mana remaining.

    ¡°Thomas, I¡¯m worried about Claire,¡± Daniel confessed in a low voice. The others could hear him, but they were his friends.

    ¡°I know, I took a look when Quala was examining her. Completely passed out. You were talking with her right before, what happened?¡±

    ¡°I-¡± He couldn¡¯t lie, Thomas would know, apparently even without any powers. That was probably a bluff, but did he want to lie, or just not tell the truth? Then he realized it didn¡¯t matter. Tlara had witnessed the promise. If she knew he didn¡¯t want people to know she¡¯d shout it from the top of the wyvern she was riding. He¡¯d tried to hide from this, tried to put off thinking about Claire, but in the end, the Beastmaster would prove his undoing like always. ¡°When the dragon first attacked I asked Tlara to take her out of the city. She went, but Claire wanted me to save a draconoid named Parduc. They were close or something, but he died with Kob.¡±

    ¡°Oh,¡± Evalyn sighed in somber realization. ¡°I didn¡¯t notice. That was her brother.¡±

    ¡°How could he have been her brother?¡± Daniel asked, feeling the pit within him grow deeper.

    ¡°How¡¯d you know?¡± Thomas added.

    If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    ¡°They weren¡¯t related by blood. Both grew up as part of a Sojourn. They wound up joining the initial expedition because of some deal it made with Threst.¡± Evalyn sounded distant as she explained, a marked difference from the confident cheeriness she normally carried herself with. It seemed like she was depressed, which was appropriate given the circumstances. She was wearing all the emotions Daniel was feeling on the inside and desperately trying to push down. ¡°I talked with her before we went to the mine. It came up.¡±

    ¡°After Daniel started hooking up with her, you mean?¡± Evalyn stared at Thomas and his laid back attitude withered a little.

    ¡°I can have a conversation with someone without it involving sex.¡± Thomas recoiled at the unshielded malice that accompanied those words, to the point that Daniel wondered if a power had been involved. ¡°No. I was just socializing. There were other people there. Most of them are dead now.¡±

    ¡°Her brother,¡± Daniel repeated after the pause Evalyn had injected into the conversation.

    ¡°It¡¯s not your fault Guy. Crest, you shot out that thing¡¯s eye!¡± Thomas reassured, more serious after Evalyn¡¯s rebuke. ¡°Her brother chose to fight up front. More than half of us died! She can¡¯t blame you for that when you did your best.¡±

    ¡°You should just talk to her,¡± Evalyn advised like she was telling someone at a gas station to put out their cigarette.

    The thought of doing that made Daniel freeze, just for a moment. Time had only made everything worse, and he knew it would only continue making things worse, but he knew now how he felt about his relationship with Claire deep down and the truth was cutting him in two. It was too much, even to consciously acknowledge, and in his unbalanced state he started to confess something sure to change the topic. ¡°It is my fault. I-¡± Wait, Hunter, I shouldn¡¯t tell them about the thing in the mines. right? What it did?

    You trust, or you do not, Hunter replied to the question directed at him. Do you trust them? You are hurting. I have tried to help, but it is a deep wound. I have not been enough. The ringcat wasn¡¯t talking about the monster god. He knew what Daniel was avoiding but also didn¡¯t directly address it.

    Daniel did, opening the crack in his soul, if only to the one closest to him. I just want this to go away. Hunter, I know she hates me. I failed her and everyone in that city because I let myself get controlled by that soul. But, it¡¯s more than that. Evalyn was right, I shouldn¡¯t have been doing anything with Claire in the first place because right now I don¡¯t know if I can ever talk to her without breaking down. I think of her and all I can feel is shame. How will bringing any of that up make me feel better?

    I don¡¯t know, the ringcat answered honestly. I just know you were there when I was hurt, and because you were I felt better.

    Hunter¡­ The ringcat really cut deep sometimes. The others were looking away, giving Daniel time and space to collect his thoughts. He could probably tell them the truth, in part or in whole, without people overhearing. Unless there were people with sensory powers that improved hearing, in which case he¡¯d be forever paranoid someone was listening. No, it was just the three of them. Thomas, Evalyn, and Khare. He¡¯d fought with all of them. Saved and been saved by some of them. They were all his friends, even if there was no bond of friendship between them to prove that. Discussing the other world part was out of the question, but the rest? If talking about it could make the heaviness in his chest better by any measure, he should do it.

    ¡°It¡¯s my fault the dragon attacked,¡± he said simply, going with the less painful of two truths.

    ¡°Is this about you jumping into that hole in the mountain?¡± Evalyn asked softly, guessing.

    ¡°Right! I completely forgot about that. Hand, Guy, we thought you¡¯d been hit by some kind of mind control or something.¡± Thomas blinked as he remembered something else. ¡°Wait, last night you said the dragon had your powers?¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    Even Khare¡¯s head turned the gestalt¡¯s first reaction to the conversation. Their lower half was decomposed to swarm across the ground, while the upper half was molded into humanoid form. They didn¡¯t normally travel like that. Actually, Daniel had never seen Khare like this at all. Was this some new kind of power? Daniel was too distracted to question it further. Somehow, he had to explain the insanity and pain inside of him now that he¡¯d opened the door.

    ¡°That wasn¡¯t me. There-¡± Here we go. ¡°There was another soul in me that took control.¡±

    Instantly, Evalyn looked at Thomas. That confused Daniel until the Cleric caught the glance, and whispered, ¡°He¡¯s not lying. Guy, that sounds insane.¡±

    ¡°I know. It¡¯s, it is. Look, just,¡± he was fumbling again. Daniel had been doing better talking to people in recent days. It was probably the improvements to his charisma, but there was something to be said for the confidence he¡¯d gained as well. Now? It was just like when he¡¯d first arrived in this world. ¡°Only Lograve knows about this,¡± he said quietly. ¡°Please don¡¯t-¡±

    ¡°Guy, you¡¯ve got a healer¡¯s confidentiality with me, even if I can¡¯t heal right now,¡± Thomas assured.

    Evalyn followed. ¡°I can¡¯t promise that. But with our history, I feel like I¡¯d be a terrible person if I didn¡¯t give you my confidence now.

    For the second time, Thomas wisely didn¡¯t say something, even though he clearly wanted to. What is going on with her? Daniel idly thought. It¡¯s almost like she¡¯s a different person. Like the world can touch her now. I only saw her like this back at the tree when I was being an ass.

    Khare said nothing, keeping their gaze forward. Well, two out of three wasn¡¯t bad.

    ¡°After the Upswell I kinda woke up where the city was.¡± Daniel had to choose his words carefully to avoid lying. Saying ¡®I survived the Upswell¡¯, for example, would trip Thomas¡¯ power or senses or whatever because as far as Daniel knew he got here after the fact. Unless implicit lies counted too?

    ¡°You-¡° Evalyn put a hand over Thomas¡¯ mouth as he started shouting, and a finger to her lips. The hand was removed when Thomas nodded, and he continued in a lower voice. ¡°You survived the Upswell?!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure. I don¡¯t remember much of what happened.¡± Still the truth.

    ¡°What does this have to do with another soul?¡± Evalyn was reserving incredulity until the whole story was told. There was some kind of knowing look in her eyes that she was directing at him.

    Crap, I forgot. Daniel had told Evalyn all about the other world during that night when he wasn¡¯t thinking clearly. She was connecting the dots. At least she can lie to Thomas, and she hasn¡¯t said anything yet. I guess I can trust her. ¡°When-¡± Daniel coughed. His throat had dried up. ¡°When I woke up I didn¡¯t know. I didn¡¯t figure it out until yesterday. There were a couple of times when weird things happened but I-¡± Didn¡¯t know what was normal in this world? ¡°Wasn¡¯t sure what was causing it.¡± Where to go from there? Mention every single weird thing, from waking up to who he had called Ringcat, to the origin beast?

    ¡°There were times when part of my body acted on its own. Only when I was about to die, so I thought it was a power or something. My Focus wasn¡¯t telling me everything. I had Regeneration but it wasn¡¯t showing up for example, so¡­¡± Daniel shrugged. ¡°With everything else going on I didn¡¯t think too much about it.¡±

    ¡°So this other soul flipped off Tlara?¡± Thomas asked.

    ¡°No, that was me. I think we¡¯re on better terms now, but back then she was just the worst. I¡¯m getting off topic, sorry.¡±

    ¡°Conjoined?¡± Khare spoke up. Emotion didn¡¯t carry the same in the voices of the gestalt, though the Martialist¡¯s voice didn¡¯t have any energy at all. Daniel also wasn¡¯t sure what the gestalt meant. Roughly, he had a guess, so Daniel carried on and hoped he was right.

    ¡°Yeah, turns out when the soul was implanted in me I got its powers and, well, it worked the other way too. My only guess is that happened when I came here since the soul briefly took over just after then.¡±

    ¡°The dragon had that soul.¡± Evalyn nodded. ¡°That makes sense, in a way that makes no sense.¡±

    ¡°There was something in the mountain the soul worshiped? When I looked down to try and see Lograve I think the soul sensed it and took over to get to it.¡±

    ¡°Worshiped, like a god?¡± Thomas¡¯ hand was over the spot his Focus had hung on his waist. He shuddered. ¡°I know there¡¯s weird Spiritualists out there but that¡¯s going too far. They were worshiping a dragon?¡±

    ¡°The thing that made the dragon.¡± No one was quite sure how to respond to that, other than to stop walking and stare.

    Evalyn was the first to speak. ¡°This is too much for me. What does that even mean?¡±

    ¡°Tell me about it. You didn¡¯t have a soul ripped out of you.¡± Daniel fired back, instantly regretting the intensity. ¡°We¡¯re falling behind, we should keep walking.¡±

    ¡°No, wait. What?¡± Thomas pulled on him to bring them face to face. ¡°Guy, your soul can¡¯t just be removed. That¡¯s not how any of this works. And monsters don¡¯t have souls!¡±

    ¡°Am I lying?¡±¡¯

    ¡°N-no. You¡¯re not. I don¡¯t think so.¡±

    ¡°How do you know without a Focus?¡± Evalyn asked.

    ¡°He has a tell. My power helps me spot them.¡±Daniel was about to ask what that was when Thomas quickly spoke over him. ¡°So why didn¡¯t this super monster kill you?¡±

    Daniel shrugged. ¡°It just looked like an egg. Taller than the cliffs around Roost¡¯s Peak, but an egg covered in what I think was solid mana. I don¡¯t think it can do too much directly. I didn¡¯t see the dragon get summoned either. That being said, it definitely took the other soul in me. I don¡¯t know if it makes a difference Thomas, but I think it willingly left my body.¡±

    Thomas looked away, thinking, and didn¡¯t respond to that. He was troubled by what Daniel was suggesting, compounded by the surety that he wasn¡¯t lying to him.

    ¡°Grafted?¡± Khare said. That was completely out of context.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Khare, we¡¯ll need more than that,¡± Evalyn replied.

    ¡°No, wait.¡± Daniel thought a bit more about what the gestalt meant. ¡°Are you suggesting what happened was related to the Grafting?¡± Khare nodded. ¡°Huh. I mean, it¡¯s kind of similar? Making a monster into something more humanish, but skipping the physical part.¡±

    ¡°If you believe the legends verbatim. I know more than most how stories can be exaggerated. The older a myth gets, the less reliable the facts are.¡±

    Thomas looked skeptically at Evalyn. ¡°Done a lot of research, then?¡±

    ¡°No. I¡¯ve just seen it happen in person. I think I¡¯d understand how stories work better than you would.¡±

    ¡°Fine, look it doesn¡¯t matter. We need to talk to Quala about this. Other high level Clerics too, ideally a proper church. Get out of here and head straight for Aughal. Or maybe Threst? Damn bird country, but it depends on which one¡¯s closer right now. People need to know about this.¡±

    Thomas had undergone a sudden transformation, activating his ¡®on duty¡¯ frenetic persona that carried the urgency of an EMS worker arriving at a massive traffic wreck. Like before, it didn¡¯t seem like he was motivated by fear but by the desire to get the job done. That could be a problem. ¡°Thomas, if you want to tell anyone about this you need to ask Lograve first.¡±

    ¡°Guy, if you saw this happen, people need to know. Only gods like the Hand or the Octyrrum undivided can influence souls.¡±

    ¡°You said I had healer¡¯s confidentiality.¡±

    ¡°There are limits to that!¡±

    ¡°What about the fact that he¡¯s your friend?¡± Evalyn asked. Frowning, Thomas sighed and put a hand to his head.

    ¡°I, Hand, we can¡¯t keep this to ourselves. If there¡¯s some new monster type that can steal souls and put them into summoned dragons then people need to know!¡±

    Telling Thomas about this was a mistake. Enough time had passed that Daniel had also forgotten the Cleric was an idle gossip. Combine that with real concern and a deadly secret, and he was about the worst person Daniel could have told. The only benefit was the lingering painful memories from last night were currently being overshadowed by fear of what Lograve was going to do to him in the very near future. ¡°Look, I trust Quala too. Can we at least wait for camp and talk to Lograve about bringing her into the loop?¡±

    ¡°As long as someone higher up in the church knows.¡± Thomas accepted the compromise, relaxing slightly. ¡°If it still matters, I don¡¯t think it was your fault.¡±

    ¡°Of course it isn¡¯t,¡± Evalyn agreed. ¡°Daniel, so many things had to happen to make that dragon attack the city. You¡¯re not responsible for even one of them.¡±

    ¡°If it didn¡¯t have my powers, the ballista might have killed it before anyone died.¡± He was disheartened again, now that the topic was back on Rorshawd. ¡°I didn¡¯t save Parduc. Also, you weren¡¯t here for this, but Hunter almost died because I was an idiot. I thought I could be some kind of badass and I just got people killed.¡±

    ¡°Your Regeneration comes from the other soul, right?¡± Evalyn asked.

    ¡°Yes?¡±

    ¡°While I admit that it marking everyone was terrifying, that was just a snowflake amidst the avalanche.¡± She winced. ¡°A cold metaphor wasn¡¯t the best choice, I admit. But from what I saw, none of your powers, and I mean your powers, not those belonging to the other soul, killed anyone or made the situation worse than it would have been.¡±

    ¡°Unless you can breathe fire Guy, she¡¯s right. And if you can, then that¡¯d be worth the shame honestly. What?¡± Evalyn was giving him a flat look.

    ¡°The point is,¡± she said, turning back to Daniel and taking one of his hands in hers, ¡°You¡¯re blaming yourself for the actions and consequences of others. I-¡± she looked away. ¡°I know what it feels like to be too hard on yourself. It¡¯ll take a while to get over this, but you will. Believe me.¡±

    Whatever good Evalyn did Daniel was immediately countered by what Thomas said next. ¡°Overall about what I¡¯d say too, four out of five. No complaints about your encouragement. That hand grab was probably too much though.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°Looks like Claire saw it. Guy, she was not happy.¡± Any weight that might have been lifted from Daniel by having this talk was suddenly thrust back onto him twofold.

 Chapter 51: Advancement

    Of the two problems Daniel had to confront that night, his choice of advancement was the one that would hurt the least. There was no way to tell how much damage had been done by Evalyn¡¯s absent-minded gesture. Innocent though it had been, the reputation of this world¡¯s Bards was just the same as in Daniel¡¯s world. Even worse, actual Bards were going around and reinforcing the stereotype.

    The real pain was he¡¯d told Claire what hadn¡¯t happened on the way to Roost¡¯s Peak back before he even knew Rorshawd existed. In the face of such secrets as coming from another world, previous and disastrous attempts at romantic encounters were easy ground to cover. Unfortunately, that now left Daniel in the unenviable position of trying to prove a negative in addition to managing the fallout from Parduc¡¯s death. Honestly, if he could just undo the entire relationship or wipe both of their memories of it, he would. That thought made Daniel feel terrible, but neither could he muster the courage to approach where Claire was still under the close watch of Quala.

    Time would only make things worse, but despite everything, Daniel sat by a fire looking at his phone instead of making strides toward a meaningful relationship. It¡¯d been far easier by comparison to manage Hunter after the city than it was the issue with Claire, but then again he¡¯d only made a bond with one.

    The only consolation was that others were focusing on advancement as well. It was something he hadn¡¯t seen before, due to his ability to instantly advance. Something to distract himself with, at least.

    Several factors converged to make this an optimal time for those in the camp to advance. First, everyone present for the dragon fight earned at least one advancement potential, even Tak who had slept through it, and Tlara who had run away. The Octyrrum awarded bravery and prudence evenhandedly, after all. Second was Daniel¡¯s sensor net of a companion, negating the need for posting guards and allowing those who would have been used to advance themselves. The final reason was the announcement Murdon had made as they were setting up the second camp for today. Contact with the Tyrant was expected within the next two days. A battle wasn¡¯t guaranteed but it was likely. A new power could be the difference between life and death, leading only those who couldn¡¯t advance anymore to abstain.

    The method appeared to vary based on which attribute the individual was attempting to advance. That was obvious the moment the camp divided into groups to assist in focusing on the task. From there, half began undertaking physical exercise while the other took more meditative poses, further subdivided by attribute. Strength trainers were lifting weights improvised from natural elements or just straight wrestling. Dexterity training was more acrobatic, and endurance oddly similar to the yoga of earth. That connection made the least sense, but Daniel couldn¡¯t argue with thousands of years of results.

    The mental training consisted of more intermixed exercises. In some pairs formed, playing a version of two truths and a lie between a charisma and wisdom trainer. Others competed in games of perception, or riddles for wisdom and intelligence respectively. There didn¡¯t seem to be one specific way each attribute was trained, but there was one common oddity.

    Everyone had an expression of borderline embarrassment Daniel didn¡¯t quite understand, and during the process, there were quite a few that broke off and sat down alone. That they didn¡¯t socialize probably meant they were still trying to advance, but even people who had been training for strength had given up on the former method. Did they decide to go with a mental attribute? Daniel wondered.

    As the night went on the activities changed for those still participating. A dexterity trainer was the first to cross the divide between martial and mental to attempt to avoid the senses of Wisdom trainers. Everyone involved understood what was going on with little need to explain, making it hard for Daniel to follow everything that was going on or understand how this process was meant to work. Most confusing was that Daniel knew people normally committed advancements alone, like the people who¡¯d given up. When they¡¯d returned from the first hunting expedition in Roost¡¯s Peak, the teams had broken off to see to their advancement rather than gather into teams like the rest were doing now. Why? Had they grouped up without telling him, knowing he didn¡¯t need to? Or was that the reason for the embarrassment? Maybe people weren¡¯t used to advancing in this large of a group?

    For that matter, the entire process of committing advancements was odd. What people were doing would make them stronger, smarter, or otherwise better than people on Earth. Was the potential just letting them skip months of progress in the gym? No, that couldn¡¯t be all there was. Kob¡¯s strength and endurance had been more than anyone on Earth could have rivaled. Advancement potential was adding more than just efficiency to this training. Furthermore, what improvements people gained from advancement were permanent.

    Daniel sighed. He knew was distracting himself from his own choice, and even that was a distraction from what he should probably be doing. Turning his attention back to his immediate area, he looked one last time at Gadriel before returning to deliberations. The Hero had been an exception to the large group exercises since the beginning, remaining unmoved by the fire in a kneeling position. There was an intensity about him that made Daniel hesitant to even breathe, a depth of focus he didn¡¯t want to interrupt.

    Gadriel wasn¡¯t the only exception to the group¡¯s training. All of the gestalt in the camp were below the earth, as still as Gadriel. They seemed to advance differently to- Made your decision? Hunter asked.

    No, I keep going down rabbit holes. How¡¯s the hunt?

    Good. No rabbit holes though. Hunter was in higher spirits compared to this morning and, more importantly, compared to Daniel. He finally had the chance to seek out prey again. With their improved bond, Daniel could even communicate with him. The difference between the starting and moderate range was significant, about a kilometer instead of a handful of meters. The ringcat went farther out during his hunts but made sure to dip within range every so often.

    They¡¯d also tested the normal intensity Empathic Link at that range despite Hunter¡¯s stolid reluctance. Like before, there was a dropoff in its intensity dependent on distance, making the increase barely noticeable at maximum telepathy range.

    Any chance you¡¯ll Grow? It¡¯s been a while since you did.

    No. I haven¡¯t hunted in a while. Will take time.

    For one moment Daniel considered his options, realized he wasn¡¯t going to make any more headway into making a decision, and turned off his phone. Is it just eating things that makes you Grow? I can get stronger from reading, although that method gets worse the more I use it, and I¡¯ve only got it to work once.

    Do not know.

    You don¡¯t know?

    I have only Grown once. Not something I know, something I feel when I am close. I do not feel close. Hunter¡¯s distant aura panned its head around, marking a fresh wave of targets which he began to size up. Unlike the small game he¡¯d gone after before, the ringcat was hunting other level one monsters. Regeneration and Identify Creature gave him a tremendous advantage over the prey, a point of similarity with Rorshawd that made Daniel uncomfortable thinking about.

    I guess that makes sense. We get little buffs every so often whereas you jump a level at a time. Even if the attributes you get aren¡¯t all level appropriate.

    Hmm. Hunter wasn¡¯t really listening to Daniel. The Empathic Link was at low intensity again so he didn¡¯t automatically know that, it was more that the ringcat wasn¡¯t looking in his direction. By this point, he¡¯d noticed that Hunter gazed his way whenever using the Telepathic Link, even if he didn¡¯t have to.

    Well, I¡¯m definitely getting endurance to 20. That still leaves five points left and I feel like I¡¯m going to need a charisma boost before doing anything with Claire. Hunter didn¡¯t reply. I¡¯m letting you know because it might do something to the powers I shared. Hopefully it¡¯ll let you heighten them, but if for some reason I have to reshare them I don¡¯t want that to happen when you¡¯re in the middle of a fight. Let me know when you¡¯re ready and I¡¯ll do at least endurance after your next hunt.

    Hunter only growled an assent. When Daniel didn¡¯t say anything else, he darted off towards a sleeping level one greater mole. Not an alpha, the variant associated with the version of ringcat one level better than base, but greater. The naming convention these monsters followed was either inconsistent, or there was an intricacy Daniel had missed.

    No more distractions, Daniel told himself. Three points to endurance, he was sure about that. Regeneration was far too valuable to leave at level one and he¡¯d already sunk both potential he¡¯d previously earned from studying into it. More than that, though, only afforded the possibility of additional endurance powers. Surviving was nice, and it was his other core attribute, but minimizing level disparity was also important.

    Of the other attributes, there was no clear choice. Dexterity improved his preferred method of attack and would allow heightening several Totem Warrior features, only he¡¯d have to sink all of his potential into it to achieve the latter benefit. Wisdom would improve Identify Creature to second level, although that seemed to only improve his ability to name mortals.

    As for charisma, getting to the point of allowing him to heighten Beast Friend would be costly since it was currently 12. Of course, if he was going to have any chance at navigating the inevitable conversation with Claire, he¡¯d need it as high as he could get it. That wasn¡¯t even considering the strategy of choosing attributes based on what kind of powers he wanted at this stage. Daniel could justify putting one or two points in either strength or intelligence in hopes of getting something combat-oriented he could leverage the higher attribute with.

    Daniel was the proverbial donkey stuck between stacks of hay, starving himself because he couldn¡¯t decide which good option he wanted. Should he just decide randomly? What if he hurt Claire even more, or died, because chance deprived him of what he would have needed? This advancement he¡¯d been granted for sitting in a tower and shooting his crossbow was his chance to remake himself, and the hope from that thought was tangible, if still not as strong as the rest of his emotions competing for dominance.

    The crux of the matter was the potential for a fight tomorrow. If he got something that drastically affected his ability to fight, the longer he had to think it over the better. But was he ok with letting Claire continue to hate him without doing anything? Was there anything he could do without screwing that up even worse? Hell, from what he¡¯d seen she wasn¡¯t doing well, and Quala might be the only one she should be talking to. Caught in this dilemma, he was unprepared for the question that suddenly occurred to him. Do I want to fight people?

    Rorshawd had been different. A monster, even if he had the soul of a human. Whatever hesitation Daniel had died with his first victims. But normal people? People tricked into following this Tyrant? What Murdon was preparing them for wasn¡¯t a monster hunt, it was a battle. He hadn¡¯t fought people before. He didn¡¯t want to! Daniel let his phone slip from his grasp and put his head in his hands. The order of his mind was scattered and hammered by grief and fear. Even the self-debate of advancement had failed to distance him from what he was truly trying to avoid. It wasn¡¯t even Claire.

    I want to go home. The desire had been there all along in the back of his mind. Present at times, but no stronger than now. It was all too much. Even Hunter close to death amidst the rubble, Daniel himself injured, was a brighter moment than simply sitting by this campfire. Rorshawd¡¯s slaughter, Claire¡¯s heartbreak, and the prospect of having to kill someone were demons on their own that combined to make a personal hellscape.

    Why was he even here? How? Would he ever go back, or would he die tomorrow? Or worse, become enthralled by the Tyrant? Sure he had friends, and he had Hunter, but what did that matter when the god of monsters had taken a soul from you and thrown the rest out like trash? He wasn¡¯t even a good Artificer. They were supposed to be magical craftsmen armed with as many enchanted items as anything else, but the last thing he¡¯d made almost killed Hunter. He was only alive because of the powers he shouldn¡¯t have. Having magic had always been one of his dreams. Only after he¡¯d gained the power to stop time did he realize what a nightmare a magical world could be.

    Something nudged Daniel¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Sir Brant, you have left your Focus unguarded.¡± Gadriel was done with his meditation. Daniel looked up, rubbing at his face, to see the Hero was holding his phone out to him. ¡°I would advise caution in the future, in case you are with more unscrupulous¡­ ah.¡± Gadriel looked uncomfortable when he saw what he¡¯d interrupted.

    ¡°Thanks,¡± Daniel said hollowly as he took it.

    ¡°Are you? No, I apologize. A foolish question.¡± The Hero looked to the majority of the camp committing advancements and nodded. ¡°I am curious if you have made your advancements yet. Given your unique skills, I must imagine you¡¯ve made commendable progress towards level 3 compared to the normal hunter.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t have dual advancement anymore. And no, I¡¯m still thinking about it.¡± Daniel¡¯s tone was making it clear he didn¡¯t want to talk.

    Gadriel pressed on anyway, although he didn¡¯t press that specific topic. ¡°I must confess, when the dragon threw me I did not expect to survive. Would Quala not have found me, perhaps I would have died of my wounds regardless.¡±

    The disappointment in Gadriel¡¯s voice caught Daniel¡¯s attention. ¡°Are you saying you should have done better?¡±

    ¡°Should I have, fewer lives would have been lost.¡±

    ¡°You jumped on its back and almost killed it in the first minute. You would¡¯ve if it didn¡¯t have-¡± Stop telling people it had your powers. ¡°Weird powers.¡±

    ¡°True. Twas an odd beast. But to not aspire for more than what you are is to die as you are. Whether that be this day, or far into the future.¡±

    That reminded Daniel of something. ¡°Movement is life.¡±

    ¡°Sorry?¡±

    ¡°Just something I heard people say about sharks, I think.¡± Gadriel gave him a questioning look. ¡°They don¡¯t stop moving.¡±

    ¡°What does not?¡±

    Does he not know what sharks are? Or maybe the Octyrrum doesn¡¯t have them. ¡°It¡¯s a kind of water monster. It¡¯s always swimming and if it stops, it dies.¡± That could just be a myth, Daniel was far from an oceanographer, though if they didn¡¯t exist here why did that matter?

    ¡°Hmm. Apt metaphor.¡± Gadriel studied Daniel for a moment. ¡°Why have you stopped moving, then? If it is not impertinent to ask.¡±

    Daniel knew the conversation was leading there. He wasn¡¯t an idiot. The Hero wasn¡¯t as close to him as Thomas, but he was the kind to take charge and fix things that seemed broken. ¡°I¡¯m not you. I can¡¯t do this. I can¡¯t kill people.¡±

    ¡°What has led you to believe I do?¡± Gadriel asked with respectful affront.

    ¡°You haven¡¯t?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°Would you?¡± Daniel looked over to those training. Some of them seemed to be done, settling down for the night. ¡°If we¡¯re fighting this Tyrant soon we¡¯ll have to.¡±

    ¡°It will be our duty to free those afflicted by his influence. Not kill them.¡±

    ¡°What if it turns into a huge fight?¡±

    The Hero put an arm on one of his propped-up knees, making a fist with the other hand that he put over his chest. ¡°A capable warrior can do battle without slaying their opponent.¡±

    ¡°And if you accidentally kill someone? What if someone trips into your sword as it¡¯s flying back?

    Gadriel thought for a moment, expression darkening. Maybe he thought a few rousing words would cheer Daniel up, but that game had been turned on its head. ¡°It will not come to that,¡± Gadriel declared. He gripped the pommel of his sword in a moment of agitation and repeated, ¡°I will see to it.¡±

    ¡°Just like that?¡±

    ¡°Indeed.¡±

    ¡°I guess that¡¯s why you¡¯re the Hero and I¡¯m the guy that-¡± Christ, Daniel do not tell him the dragon is your fault. ¡°Can¡¯t save anyone.¡±

    ¡°Rumor is you struck one of the dragon¡¯s eyes. That is no small feat.¡±

    ¡°Did it matter? Did that stop anyone from dying?¡±

    Gadriel sighed. ¡°Sir, I cannot give you your purpose. True motivation comes only from within. A night as terrible as that can unsteady the strongest of wills. In light of what has occurred, it could be expected that you would be disheartened. You are not weak, only reacting as is to be expected.¡±

    Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators!

    Almost exactly what Quala said in spirit. ¡°Then how do you do it? You go from fighting a horde of monsters to a dragon three levels higher than you! And when you get picked back up after nearly dying, you go back in? If that¡¯s what it takes to do this, then I can¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°To hear you speak, I sound unstoppable. Hmm.¡± He stood, the cape that was somehow undamaged from the fight blowing in an absent breeze. Gadriel held out a hand as if to catch it. ¡°Movement is life. I quite like that. Fitting of a Heroic philosophy, though it does not fit you, I think.¡± Daniel just gave him a blank look. ¡°Sir Brant. There are many paths and many ways to walk them. Should you fail one, that is only a sign you should seek another. Though if I may, I do not believe you have failed here.¡±

    ¡°There was someone I was supposed to protect. I promised to protect. And they died.¡±

    ¡°Ah.¡± Gadriel sat back down like a sail losing the wind. ¡°I admit, I did not witness most of the battle. Did you flee when the dragon bellowed its roar?¡±

    ¡°No, but I was one of the first people cleansed.¡±

    ¡°Did you hesitate to fight?¡±

    ¡°I know where this is going.¡± Gadriel¡¯s face finally reached a put upon expression that had probably been lurking under the surface. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯ve just had a lot of motivational talks today that I¡¯m getting tired of. They all start sounding the same.¡±

    ¡°It seems as if there are many who care for you.¡±

    ¡°There are. It¡¯s just that, the one I was supposed to protect, do you know about Claire and me?¡± Gadriel nodded, glancing sideways in acknowledgment of where she currently was. ¡°It was her brother. I don¡¯t know if there¡¯s still anything there now.¡±

    ¡°I see.¡± Now the Hero was looking uncomfortable. ¡°Just as there are many paths in life, there are many that may walk them with you.¡±

    ¡°Are you trying to tell me there¡¯s plenty of fish in the sea?¡±

    Gadriel raised an eyebrow. ¡°Why do your metaphors relate to water with such unnatural frequency? Hmm. Your spirit is indomitable when it comes to resisting encouragement, I must say.¡±

    ¡°I just, how can you look at the past few weeks and tell me anything is going right with the world? That we won¡¯t just die tomorrow?¡±

    ¡°We live today. Where there is life, there is the chance to right past wrongs and make a better future.¡±

    Daniel was about to say something disheartening when he asked himself why he was even arguing with Gadriel. There was an ideological gap between them words wouldn¡¯t bridge. Unbridled optimism versus beaten-down pessimism. To make things worse, he still wasn¡¯t close to figuring out his advancement.

    Gadriel grunted when Daniel fell silent. ¡°I must admit defeat here. Perhaps distance, both in time and space, is required to heal what ails you.¡±

    The continued sincerity in Gadriel¡¯s voice emphasized to Daniel how difficult he was being. ¡°Thanks for trying.¡±

    ¡°Think nothing of it. Still, I should rest before the coming trials. Should all go well, you will not need to fear the coming conflict.¡± For some reason, that did reassure Daniel. Just a little.

    Gadriel left Daniel by the fire as true night entered its third hour. At this rate, Daniel would get around six hours of rest at best, as the intent was to rouse everyone at dawn. He only knew that because Lograve had used it as a reason not to continue advancement for a second round. The general plan was to make for Hagain Village on the off chance the Tyrant wasn¡¯t moving towards Roost¡¯s Peak and keep a wide enough detection range to make sure they didn¡¯t accidentally pass their forces on the way there. That last part was Hunter¡¯s job.

    I am back. As if on cue, Hunter called out his presence at the edge of the Telepathic Link. Daniel didn¡¯t even have his phone unlocked, but that was remedied in seconds.

    I¡¯m sorry Hunter. I don¡¯t know what I want to do. The green nine in the upper right corner was a monster he couldn¡¯t slay. There were just too many choices and no perfect option.

    If you can make yourself stronger, you should. Hunter didn¡¯t mean the strength attribute, of course, but that hardly made his advice more helpful.

    It¡¯s not that simple. This might be the most potential I gain at once ever. I can¡¯t just choose.

    Why not?

    Daniel couldn¡¯t explain. That would mean confronting everything going into the decision and the fear that it wouldn¡¯t matter what he chose. That even if he found the magical combination, he would die to someone he could not, would not fight against. I don¡¯t know.

    Thinking too much. What do you want to do?

    I don¡¯t know!

    Not with numbers. With the future.

    Fix things with Claire, for better or worse. Stay alive, and help you stay alive. Was that it? No, there was one more thing. Going home. But his attributes wouldn¡¯t help with that, and he couldn¡¯t tell Hunter. As if I can do any of that.

    Which is more important to you?

    ¡­staying alive.

    Than choose for that.

    That did help Daniel. It meant ignoring charisma. It also meant sacrificing his best shot at a positive resolution with Claire, though if he was otherwise going to die tomorrow, why would that matter? He knew by now he¡¯d had no business getting into a relationship with her in the first place, and he¡¯d been the one pushing for it. Maybe the best solution was none. She already knew everything she needed to. Let him be the villain, maybe that would make it easier for her to move on.

    Four points to endurance and wisdom each. Daniel wanted to remove as much of his level disparity as he could, and the last odd point would be best served in dexterity to help his aim. It was a plan he¡¯d thought of before, but the fear of Claire always made him consider charisma. Now? Daniel just wanted to get it over with. Rip off the bandaid so he could start healing. He assigned the potential, hovered a finger over the button, rethought, cleared everything, put it all in charisma, reset again, went back to the original plan, shook his head, and pressed the button.

    <hr>

    Your Endurance is now 20! You have gained Feature: Fortitude and Feature: Craftsman¡¯s Repose. You are no longer suffering from Level Disparity connected to this Attribute. Level: 2 benefits for Regeneration have been unlocked.

    -

    Fortitude (Feature, Endurance, Domain: Restoration, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to resist Poison, Disease, and other Physical Status Ailments to a greater degree than normal.

    -

    Craftsman¡¯s Repose (Feature, Endurance, Domain: Restoration, Trance, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to resist weariness from prolonged work. This trance only applies to a form of crafting based on a power you possess. Through this trance, you may reduce the hours of rest required by your Race by 20%, so long as you maintain the trance throughout the time period and rest soon afterward.

    -

    Regeneration: Level 2: Improve passive Healing rate by 50% for a minor Mana cost.

    -

    Your Wisdom is now 20! You have gained Ability: Analyze Material and Feature: Steadfast Salesman. You are no longer suffering from Level Disparity connected to this Attribute. Level: 2 benefits for Identify Creature and Natural Affinity have been unlocked.

    -

    Analyze Material (Ability, Wisdom, Spell, Domain: Knowledge, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to analyze Magical and non-magical raw material, identifying their nature, level, and special properties if any. This ability requires a minor amount of Mana and physical contact with the target. Materials of a Level higher than yours, or material from living sentient Creatures, are inherently resistant to this ability. Worked, forged, and composite material made from raw sources are inherently resistant to this ability. This is a Magical Ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression.

    -

    Steadfast Salesman: (Feature, Wisdom, Domain: Restoration, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to resist Charisma based powers affecting negotiation and trade. This effect is significantly improved when used in relation to your primary profession, and against contested powers below your level.

    -

    Identify Creature: Level 2: Reveal the Attribute Arrays of Creatures at least two levels lower than you for a minor Mana cost.

    -

    Natural Affinity: Level 2: Extend this benefit to allies for a moderate Mana cost per target. This is a Designation effect that lasts one hour. If this Feature is heightened beyond level two, this effect may still be repeated for its original cost. This feature may be heightened beyond this level without paying for the mana cost of this effect.

    -

    Your Dexterity is now 14!

    -

    Alert: Powers shared by the Creature affected by Feature: Beast Friend* have improved beyond the level of that creature. Benefits of these powers inappropriate for the creature''s level cannot be accessed. If the creature loses access to these powers for any reason, they cannot be shared again until the creature is of a level appropriate for them.

    <hr>

    The results of his long-suffered decision? All it amounted to was a callback to Bartering. And this time, there was no Totem Warrior class to give him useful stuff in the background. Even Regeneration, which could be his best power, wouldn¡¯t be able to give its full benefit to Hunter until he Grew. Who knew when that would be?

    What these powers told him was something Daniel had come to realize. At best, he should be trying to set up a magic shop somewhere, not fighting for his life out in the wilderness. He hated camping! He hated sitting by a fire, eating terrible food, and aching from hours of walking. The magic and the adventure had, for a time, let him ignore how bad things were through the novelty. Daniel was done. It was the mine that had done it. It just took him a little longer to realize than he should have. In the end, Daniel told Hunter to go off and not do anything that might accidentally break him having Regeneration. Then he lay down and went to sleep.

    ¡­

    Rorshawd was still in darkness when dawn came. The small valley Roost¡¯s Peak occupied was not quite positioned parallel with the angle of the rising sun. Instantly the dragon awoke, sensing the restoration of his mana. Ever since the mortals had dared to run from him, all had been pain. The fog cast into him by the one whose memory caused hatred to outshine anguish had only lasted a few minutes. In that time it had eaten through his throat and stomach, seeping into the rest of his body. The underside of his throat was full of holes. The field of stars had drilled straight through, then leaked before it had vanished. Worse was his torso, riddled with pockets of decay where necrotic energy had collected and festered the flesh around it. The other damage he had taken, including the damaged eye, had not healed at all during that time. Even after the fog went away, his healing was slow enough to be unnoticeable.

    Body weak from so much insult and Regeneration stuck at level one, Rorshawd had collapsed in the center of the ruined city. His only hope was to wait for the next dawn and the mana it would bring. His renewed supply was formidable, though every drop would be needed to heal his afflicted frame. Then, when he was restored, he would pursue those cursed mortals and¡­

    And something was wrong. Rorshawd could sense his vitality wasn¡¯t improving as it should. Had he forgotten to heighten Regeneration? No, no he had. What was happening? Why wasn¡¯t he healing? After a few more minutes of panic, Rorshawd realized what was wrong. He was healing. Extremely slowly. Heightening hadn¡¯t done a thing.

    Shocked, he recalled Daniel¡¯s exploration into the definition of the feature. There was also the slow nature of his pet¡¯s recovery, its near death despite a feature that supposedly stopped anything still living from dying. The answer to both monsters¡¯ problems was that Regeneration was based on natural healing rate. Could it be reduced from critical injury? Had the fog damaged him to the point that he was crippled? Would he be able to fully recover, or was this damage permanent?

    No. No! Rorshawd tried to roar the word but the air escaped through his pierced windpipe and didn¡¯t even reach his mouth. Could he still breathe fire? He needed to know, but he needed to save all of the mana he could for Regeneration¡¯s mana burn. If he was healing too slowly, would that even matter?

    Lord! Save me! He cried out within his mind. The god that had remade him was practically steps away. What was such a short distance to both his Lord and its power? It had given him this form, surely it could repair his wounds and make him twice as strong. Ten times as strong! He would cut through the air and then through Murdon. Then Daniel. Then the rest.

    No answer came. The wind whistling through the ruined structures carried rain clouds towards the dragon. A drizzle turned into a downpour near noon and Rorshawd was only just able to move his good wing to shield his face. It was the one so many arrows had pierced at the joint, slowing how fast he could move it. Between that and the missing third of his other wing, he couldn¡¯t fly. He could barely walk with his front two legs cut to bone. Lord! He tried to roar again. Only a whisper came, and that took all the dragon had.

    This wasn¡¯t right. This wasn¡¯t fair! This- he would be revered just as much as his Lord to the others of his order. He had been first to ascend! The only to survive Eido! Chosen by his Lord, chosen¡­ He, he hadn¡¯t been chosen. It was something that had occurred to him before the battle that had left him broken here, put out of his mind by pain, rage, and impotence until now.

    Lord, he thought, but his faith was weakening.

    Here was a man no longer, given all he had been promised only for it to be taken away. The foundation of faith is in belief, and when Rorshawd had been rewarded he no longer believed but knew of his Lord¡¯s power. In the soaked street of the city he¡¯d destroyed, he prayed again and again for relief. First, for healing. Then, for a new body. Any body. Even the one that had been destroyed with Eido. Anything but the near-dead vessel he found himself in.

    Then death. Rorshawd pleaded to die, unable and unwilling to finish himself off. The denial of even that mercy was what finally broke him. He still hated the mortal races, still knew they were a blight on the world. But his Lord? It had made him into a weapon and put him in the hands of fate, uncaring as to the consequences. There was nothing left in the world for Rorshawd but himself. Nothing but his pain, his rage, and his broken body. As his faith slipped loose and tore away, a new motivation kindled within where fire should have lived. Revenge. No matter if it took days, months, or even years to return to something resembling health, he would take those who had wronged him from the world.

    The former object of his worship wasn¡¯t counted among those. Even blinded by all that ailed him, Rorshawd wasn¡¯t foolish enough to believe he could do anything but die should he raise a claw against that ancient power. Otherwise?

    Here was a dragon, now with no master, and only time to decide how he was going to burn the world.

 Chapter 52: Thunderstorm

    Daniel¡¯s Encyclopedia had a major flaw. Two, actually, and he was aware of only one. First, it was difficult to navigate. What annoyed him most was that it didn¡¯t allow him to directly look up anything he was notified about. Hyperlinks would generally let him go to anything relevant, but only inside the app. The problem then was there was too much to look up, too many directions he could go and too much going on to spare the time for it.

    The Encyclopedia¡¯s greatest flaw was also its greatest strength: it told Daniel what his powers did. Normally, anyone with a class would need to feel out new powers to discover what they¡¯d awakened. This was a slower, but natural process, allowing an intrinsic understanding versus the flat entry Daniel read.

    For some powers, that was fine. Snap Shot made him shoot better. It wasn¡¯t that complicated an ability at face value. Something like Beast Friend, on the other hand? Daniel didn¡¯t even know for certain the extent of what that feature did, or the bond it created. His only knowledge of the bond of friendship came from what he had gained from improving it. The nature of the bond was nestled there, deep in the Encyclopedia and within Daniel himself, but because the Encyclopedia granted the illusion of understanding he looked no further than the surface. This shortcut benefitted him in the short term, although the full side effects of relying on his Encyclopedia would remain undiscovered for quite some time.

    That was why Daniel didn¡¯t know that the intensity of his Empathic Link with Hunter reset at dawn, just like his mana did. In fairness, the details from the notification had warned that lowering the intensity would be temporary.

    ¡°Awaken!¡± Murdon called out to the camp soon after dawn. A Bard¡¯s playing would have been a gentler wakeup call, though the only one in their number had been among the late sleepers. The thundering voice was enough to rouse everyone in any case. It was odd, what happened when Daniel awoke. The depression he¡¯d ended yesterday with was still there, but there was a sudden contentment and vindication as well. The feelings were odd, alien. He couldn¡¯t make sense of them but they felt as real as anything else. Daniel got up and looked around, trying to figure it out.

    ¡°Uh, Guy?¡± Thomas, as well as Evalyn, had returned to Daniel¡¯s campfire after he¡¯d gone to sleep. The Cleric was looking at him oddly. Why¡­

    Oh. God damn it! He was trying to stand on his four legs, er, on his hands and knees. Hunter was next to him looking confused as well, a confusion that was mirrored suddenly within Daniel. He quickly cut the link as best he could and got off his hands. ¡°I thought I fixed that,¡± he complained.

    ¡°Most people do stop crawling once they¡¯re old enough to walk,¡± Evalyn teased playfully. That made him pause. She was happy? No, she was acting, just like she had been since the Upswell.

    ¡°No, it¡¯s,¡± he paused. He¡¯d been telling people too much lately, Thomas the gossip being the most flagrant example. They still hadn¡¯t talked to Lograve, and he didn¡¯t need an Empathic Link to know the weight of the Origin Beast was hanging over the Cleric¡¯s head. There was no harm in telling them about the bond, right? They already knew Hunter was special, although Daniel couldn¡¯t remember who knew the ringcat talked. He needed to keep better track of his secrets.

    To hell with it. He trusted them, and maybe they could tell him how to stop his power from making him think he was a ringcat. ¡°The power that made Hunter, uh, Hunter created a bond too. It¡¯s got an Empathic Link, and that recently got stronger. Too strong.¡±

    ¡°Is that how you communicate?¡± Thomas asked, interested. ¡°And how strong¡¯s the link?¡±

    ¡°Normal? My focus says it¡¯s normal intensity, although we¡¯re keeping it low whenever we can.¡± I trust them. ¡°And, uh, no. There¡¯s a Telepathic Link too.¡±

    ¡°You can¡¯t form a Telepathic Link with a ringcat.¡± Daniel just scratched his head, and Hunter looked at Thomas, keeping his eyes fixed on the Cleric¡¯s face. ¡°Guy, what¡¯s he thinking?¡±

    ¡°You threw aside that opinion rather fast,¡± Evalyn noted, grinning at Thomas¡¯ nervous tone.

    He shrugged and took a step back from Hunter. ¡°Guy didn¡¯t show his tell, and I did hear a dragon talk yesterday. This isn¡¯t-¡±

    Lograve interrupted him. ¡°You¡¯ll want to get ready. We¡¯re moving out soon. I wouldn¡¯t leave anyone behind, but Murdon can get irritable in the morning. Something to do with only getting a third of the sleep he should be.¡± That last part sounded like a particularly sore point for the Arcanist. Lograve turned, only here to pass that along, but paused when he fully read the situation. ¡°What happened?¡±

    ¡°Guy¡¯s just going on about all the links he has with Hunter.¡±

    ¡°Links?¡± Lograve blinked. ¡°Plural? There¡¯s one other than the telepathy?¡±

    ¡°You knew?¡±

    For a second, Lograve looked like a fish caught out of water. Then, he looked squarely at Daniel, and flatly said, ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Daniel asked, trying to discern if the imperiousness was feigned or not.

    ¡°Unlike yesterday I do not have the time for this. You¡¯ve reached the limit of absurdity for the rest of this journey. I forbid you from developing any more odd powers until I¡¯ve had a moment to consider the ramifications of the ones you already have!¡± Wisely, Daniel didn¡¯t mention the other new benefit of his recently deepened bond, and Lograve took the silence as an assent. ¡°Good! Now, if there¡¯s anything else-¡±

    ¡°I need to speak with you privately,¡± Thomas said seriously.

    ¡°I was going to say, ¡®save it for later¡¯.¡± The two began conversing silently as Lograve stopped caring and revealed he had Telepathy to Thomas. When Lograve turned back towards Daniel, he didn¡¯t have to guess whether Lograve was upset.

    One brief, yet scathing lecture on the value of secrecy later, Lograve had gone to rejoin Murdon and Quala with a worried look on his face. That left a newly chastised Daniel to get himself and Hunter ready. His similarly mortified friends considered the various, impractical, and ice-related threats Lograve had made should they say any more on the monster in the mountain.

    As he was getting Hunter¡¯s pack ready for the ringcat, Daniel had a thought, which he then aimed at Hunter. I¡¯m sorry I just told them without asking if you were ok with me telling people you can talk.

    I do not care.

    Well, ok, but I still should have asked right? It feels like the kind of thing you should get angry about. I mean, I trust these people, but if others knew what you could do they¡¯d want to hurt you. Especially after Rorshawd talked to them. People could connect those two dots in a bad way.

    Glad you asked now, then. Hunter bared his fangs at Thomas, but only briefly and in a manner that could be confused for a yawn. Daniel would have asked how the ringcat would have known to direct the gesture if the impression of him being a gossip was solely on Daniel¡¯s side of the table. Said table had been very rudely upended this morning.

    If Hunter hadn¡¯t been asleep at dawn, they might have been able to reduce the Empathic Link¡¯s intensity before things became quite so jumbled. As luck would have it, Hunter had chosen to rest through the pre-dawn hours after returning from his hunt. True to his word, Hunter was able to go days without rest if need be, but there was his mana and the mana burn effect of Regeneration to consider. The hunt last night had not been entirely one-sided. With the threat of an upcoming battle, the ringcat wanted to be in top form.

    Daniel knew this for the same reason Hunter knew Thomas was a gossip, they¡¯d been right next to each other for some amount of time while the Empathic Link was on full blast. Nothing had been done to permanently alter their mannerisms or personalities, but an echo of that time remained that was only slowly fading. One more distressing after-effect was Daniel¡¯s sudden habit of licking his hand before running it through his hair which he was fervently trying to suppress.

    Daniel ignored all of that and hoped it would go away. He¡¯d been making a habit of that recently. Daniel lifted the pack and struggled under the weight, even with his improved strength. Adding the heliorite to it weighed Hunter down significantly. Are you ok with carrying all of this stuff? It¡¯s mostly mine, and if I¡¯m asking things I should have before, then I shouldn¡¯t not now.

    Hunter brushed his nose against Daniel¡¯s backpack. We both carry burdens. You cannot help that I am stronger.

    You- Daniel shook his head and smiled. The darkness was still there in his spirit, but Hunter¡¯s antics were helping. They had to be on purpose since Hunter had gotten a full dose of exactly how Daniel was feeling. You¡¯re a good friend.

    Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    Do not like new feelings though.

    No kidding.

    Hunter gave Daniel an odd look, You do not like? You want to know what it is to hunt. To be me.

    There¡¯s a difference between a ride along, and mainlining concentrated ringcat psyche even if it takes me out of my head a little. God, I can¡¯t even imagine what the full Empathic Link would be like if we were sharing senses. We¡¯ll have to be careful to avoid that until we figure out why it flipped back into the on position.

    Not joining tonight¡¯s hunt?

    Oh, hell no, Daniel adjusted the last strap on Hunter¡¯s pack. That¡¯s about the only thing I have left to look forward to.

    ¡­

    An unexpected star was rising amidst the traveling remains of the garrison: Tlara. It was well known that she had dominated a pair of young skyshock wyverns, the only one to have done so since the Upswell. The young variant was not foolish enough to test Roost¡¯s Peak¡¯s ballista, and even if they did, there were no other level three Beastmasters near the mountains.

    Her appearance in the city ahead of the dragon already caught the attention of those who had only faced hostile wyverns for the past month. When Rorshawd assaulted the city it was Murdon and Quala that ultimately came to their aid. None were left to forget that Tlara¡¯s wyverns had allowed them to do so.

    Today, she traveled with the other leaders of the force. Murdon, Lograve, Janice, Alost, and Tlara. Gadriel was there too, but at a distance that suggested he was traveling near, but not with that group. Quala would have joined the other avianoid if she wasn¡¯t still busy keeping Sigron stable and Claire¡­

    Well, there had been some kind of argument going on between the Cleric and Claire. Daniel had been too busy having half of Hunter¡¯s mind shoved into him to notice anything. He also lacked the will to. Saying he was putting off any kind of contact with her would be an understatement. In his mind, they were already done, and he¡¯d thrown away any chance of changing that when he decided not to improve charisma. It was for the best. Or at least, that¡¯s what he told himself.

    As the 30-odd mortals, one ringcat, one wyvern, a mole-like creature called a gravel zapper that was a distinct creature from the shardrock moles, and a spark rhino traveled, a light rainstorm kicked up before turning into a full blown downpour.

    ¡°Great,¡± Thomas muttered as he stepped around a puddle forming from where the spark rhino had imprinted its foot into the ground. ¡°Rain. Again.¡±

    ¡°Again?¡± As far as Daniel remembered it hadn¡¯t rained like this before. Some, but this was a true downpour to match his demeanor.

    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s always raining here Guy. It sucks. This¡¯ll probably mean lightning later too. I hate this.¡± Thomas kept his tone light, but his dislike clear.

    ¡°Now that you mention it, I don¡¯t think we¡¯ve had a thunderstorm since the Upswell. We were past due for one,¡± Evalyn said, face turning up to the rain to show that absolutely none of her unearthly beauty was due to makeup,

    ¡°Huh. Good while it lasted.¡±

    The first peal of thunder rumbled in the distance and Daniel got a bad feeling. This was a world where Heroes existed. The tropes from his world¡¯s fiction sometimes played out here. Bards tended to be sultry and flamboyant when they weren¡¯t in distress after a dragon attack. Heroes actually had capes that fluttered in the wind, whether it was blowing or not. As he walked with his friends, including an increasingly grouchy Thomas, he considered something. Last night, Gadriel had said he would do something vague and heroic to make sure no one died. What did that probably mean?

    He would do something vague and heroic of course! There was no inherent problem with that, especially if it worked. What Daniel feared was what the weather was implying. No dramatic encounter was complete without something to raise the stakes. He could be wrong, it was just that Daniel would be in a glass half empty mentality if the cup hadn¡¯t already overfilled and soaked him to the bone. At least summer was winding down and the heat wasn¡¯t too bad.

    Hmm. I can not smell anything, Hunter complained.

    Yeah, and the rain¡¯s so loud I bet you can barely hear anything either. That would make Hunter¡¯s passive detection far worse than it was before, though he¡¯d already tagged everything within a couple of kilometers from the spot they¡¯d been in when the rain had started.

    Yes. Would hide when it rained before.

    So it has been drier than normal?

    Yes. Hunter sounded thoughtful. Agree with healer. Liked it when there was no rain.

    Yeah, your fur¡¯s getting soaked. For his part, Daniel was also miserable. The rough cloth clothing he¡¯d been provided was poorly repaired, bloodstained, and not at all water resistant. At least there was nothing in his pack that would be ruined; his phone having proven completely waterproof when he first found it.

    Thunder rumbled in the distance, and Thomas jumped.

    ¡°Someone¡¯s antsy,¡± Evalyn remarked. ¡°Scared of lightning?¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Thomas said, looking around alertly. He wasn¡¯t the only one. ¡°It¡¯s the things that can come with it. Everything about the rain here is awful.¡±

    Another clap of thunder, lightning visible now in the distance. They were getting to the end of where Hunter had been able to mark creatures before the rain had started. Daniel was getting nervous too now. ¡°Do these storms last long?¡± he¡¯d almost had to shout.

    ¡°Not too long. An hour normally,¡± Evalyn answered.

    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you know Guy? Pretty hard to miss this.¡±

    ¡°For someone that likes to burrow into everyone¡¯s secrets, I thought you would have learned by now that Daniel only came to the Thormundz two months ago.¡± Daniel looked at Evalyn furtively, nodding his appreciation. He¡¯d thought back to the painful moment before they¡¯d first reached Roost¡¯s Peak and realized he¡¯d never explicitly told her the truth. Either way, she¡¯d figured it out and was covering for him.

    ¡°Still-¡± Thomas started, before realizing he was being rude.

    Daniel didn¡¯t blame him for it. The rain was making this journey ten times harder. Hunter¡¯s senses were blunted, the ground was a mixture of sticky mud and gravel, and the lightning was so much stronger compared to Earth¡¯s. Far off strikes carried a weight to the thunder that they produced that shook Daniel with every boom. He¡¯d be looking for shelter if the continued movement of the others didn¡¯t pull him along with them. What if this had happened in the middle of a fight?

    Wait, what? Daniel thought back to something Thomas had said. Things that come with the lightning? That¡¯s when a bolt of lightning impacted the ground a short distance in front of him, changing the situation drastically.

    Acting as a flare, the lightning cut through the rain-imposed darkness to reveal not only those Daniel was traveling with, but a large mass of people ahead of them as well. Not even a kilometer away! Not even half a kilometer, and so many people, it had to be the Tyrant¡¯s army. Tags lit up amongst the mass as Hunter did what he could before the flash was over. Less than a third of the people Daniel had seen were marked.

    Focus! Hunter shouted in his mind, and Daniel realized he hadn¡¯t done anything. He¡¯d been too used to Hunter doing all the work. A situation where there¡¯d be a time limit on using Identify Creature had never occurred to him. It would have been the perfect chance for Moment of Clarity to shine and he¡¯d just sat there stupidly.

    Amidst the panicked shouting it took Daniel a few more seconds to realize the light from the lightning hadn¡¯t gone fully away. Balls of light had shot off the main line moments before impact and split away. It had seemed like just a trick of Daniel¡¯s senses until he realized the motes were still there and moving on their own. What¡¯s more, there were red auras, and words over them when Hunter marked the lights.

    <hr>

    Sparkbat - (1, Energized)

    <hr>

    The last thing Daniel noticed before the initial shock was over, and a single voice cut over the rest, was that there was something wrong with some of the people Hunter had tagged.

    ¡°RALLY TO ME!¡± Murdon¡¯s voice rivaled the thunder. ¡°DEFEND AGAINST THE MONSTERS!¡±

    No, we have to-

    ¡°Great, sparkbats,¡± Thomas complained, close enough to interrupt Daniel¡¯s thoughts.

    ¡°Tyrant!¡± Khare shouted, the mouth the vines created unraveling somewhat through the force of the voice it was casting. The anger in the voice was unmistakable. Instantly the Cleric became serious, not having noticed the people ahead.

    Evalyn pulled her instrument off her back and rubbed at one of the metallic sections with a hint of concern. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, we¡¯ll just join together until the monsters are gone. My music won¡¯t do much against all this static though!¡±

    Would it change anything if they knew? No, he had to tell them, but so many people were already rushing to Murdon as the sparkbats started taking notice of the mortals around them. Did they literally ride the lightning down here? No time to ask questions, there was never time to ask questions. Murdon had to know before they started dying.

    The Commander was close enough that he normally could have shouted to him. Not through the rain, or the bursts of thunder from lightning both distant and nearby. ¡°Can anyone talk to Murdon from here?!¡± Everyone shook their heads, even Khare, and Daniel started running. Hunter followed, understanding, and the rest followed cluelessly.

    As the monster threat was airborne, there was more value in securing their position than aggressively challenging the enemy. Even more so considering there was a larger force of assumedly hostile mortals nearby. Daniel understood holding back until the random factor of the monsters was dealt with, especially given the terrible conditions of this battle. There was just one thing that changed the equation.

    ¡°RESERVE AMMUNITION! ALOST, DESIGNATE TARGETS!¡± Murdon commanded as Daniel was pushing his way past people. Armed people looked for a second at Hunter as a threat before turning their attention to the flying creatures shooting lightning. Their lightning was still purple, but the sparkbats were no longer chaining it between them. Time to think about that later.

    ¡°Murdon!¡± Finally, the draconoid¡¯s head turned. He was wearing the helmet that normally hung from his waist.

    ¡°Quickly,¡± he said, voice echoing even at a lower volume.

    ¡°The Tyrant brought everyone from the village,¡± Daniel told him. Lightning struck another time, and this bolt carried additional Sparkbats to the ground. As the flash died, Murdon¡¯s eyes widened as he realized the problem too. Some of the people Hunter had initially tagged only had names. That wasn¡¯t new, it just indicated someone without a class, but some were smaller than the adults and Daniel hadn¡¯t seen any dwarves in Hagain. For some reason, the Tyrant had brought everyone in Hagain to assault Roost¡¯s Peak, all in one group. Even the children.

    Defending this position was the right thing to do if you ignored that. Everyone in Murdon¡¯s force was experienced by now, could defend themselves, and wouldn¡¯t risk attack from the enemy. The Tyrant¡¯s force was larger, and they were the reason innocents were in danger. They could defend themselves, couldn¡¯t they?

    Murdon reached the same conclusion Daniel had. Even if only one child died because of their inaction, it would be the same amount of blood on their hands. The Tyrant had painted Murdon as a monster, but he would be one now if he did nothing. This was the price of virtue demanding payment.

 Chapter 53: Tactical Mind

    Daniel could faintly see Murdon¡¯s eyes flicker across the field as the draconoid tried to reassess the situation. ¡°How many are there?¡±

    Daniel¡¯s Quick Mind feature drastically accelerated his response. ¡°34 Sparkbats. Hunter couldn¡¯t tag all of the villagers so-¡±

    There was something in the air between them for a moment, and then Murdon turned away. Using no power but the shape of his helmet and the force of his lungs, the Commander shouted, ¡°THE VILLAGERS ARE HERE! DEFEND THEM!¡± Word had already spread through the remainder of Roost¡¯s Peak that the Tyrant¡¯s forces were involved in this conflict, so there was no question what Murdon meant.

    The message passed on. The weight of the knowledge was off Daniel. That left him and his friends to face a field of battle full of electrical monsters and potentially hostile mortals, all concealed by a curtain of rain and the roar of thunder. He¡¯d thought the battle against Rorshawd had been chaotic, but this?

    Daniel had never had to fight without knowing exactly where everything was. It was terrifying, and yet also clarifying. Lograve had asked him before what his answer was, why he fought. He hadn¡¯t known what to say because his depression had been up and his adrenaline down. With people in danger, he remembered. Before coming here, Daniel would have never guessed he¡¯d be the kind of person to run into a burning building to answer a cry for help. Hearing the screams coming from ahead, there was only one thing he could do. It just surprised him how in control he suddenly was.

    ¡°Here.¡± Daniel pushed his crossbow into Thomas¡¯ fumbling hands. ¡°We¡¯re sticking together right?¡±

    ¡°Guy, what¡¯s-?¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t have any arrows. Can you use this?¡± Another lightning strike carried twenty more sparkbats to the area. How many were there in the clouds? There¡¯d only been about a dozen in the swarm he fought, and being carried down by lightning was elevating each individual monster to the strength of that original swarm.

    Thomas glanced down through the sights of the crossbow and nodded. ¡°Not what I prefer but I guess it¡¯ll do.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s not much I can do,¡± Evalyn said, holding her accordion. ¡°The rain¡¯s going to drown out my music.¡±

    ¡°Play anyway, for anyone who can hear.¡± She nodded, and Daniel wondered just where his confidence was coming from. He wasn¡¯t Gadriel, the Hero currently whirling his sword in the air and killing two sparkbats at a time. How was he taking charge, because he had to?

    ¡°Team.¡± Khare had their assortment of daggers out. The five of them really did make a classic adventuring team. That didn¡¯t change the fact that the average strength of them was high-level one, or Thomas¡¯ inability to use his powers. Charging to the center of the battlefield was a bad option. They were fortunate in that all of the Roost¡¯s Peak force and a part of the Tyrant¡¯s was highlighted. Daniel could tell where their allies were and could keep them on the periphery while engaging sparkbats no one else was handling.

    Hunter, I won¡¯t stop you, but you should stay near us. I don¡¯t think people can tell you¡¯re friendly right now.

    Hmm. Hard to reach bats anyway.

    ¡°Guy, I can¡¯t help but notice I have your weapon? I don''t think you''ve got enough daggers like Khare to just fling them away.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve got that handled, don¡¯t worry. There¡¯s a cluster of four just ahead, let¡¯s get them!¡± Khare and Daniel advanced first while Evalyn and Thomas stayed in the center. Hunter had their back, watching for anything that might be flanking for them. It had only taken seconds to arrange the formation, but it just seemed obvious. Did he accidentally unlock a power or something? Not the time to check his phone. Almost too late, Daniel thought to have everyone choose a target. Thomas one, Daniel and Khare picking one other and sharing the last. Thomas¡¯ crossbow shot went wide, but Khare¡¯s volley peppered their two targets well. As for Daniel?

    He brought both arms up, crossing them in front of his face and then pushing them down like he was poorly throwing an ax. Feathers grew out of his arms and shot towards his target and Thomas¡¯, a last minute adjustment. The mana drain of Snap Shot combined with Feather Strike was noticeable due to his dexterity¡¯s level disparity, but he could still keep this up for a while. The others looked like they wanted to comment on the new attack method but Daniel just directed them at the next group of sparkbats Hunter found.

    The enhanced versions of the sparkbats could individually shoot out electricity without needing to hit a lightning spine at the other end, but were limited by a range that was just shorter than Khare¡¯s daggers. With appropriate targeting, Valor Song, and the retrieval of Khare¡¯s daggers after each kill, they could take on groups of up to five without giving the monsters a chance to retaliate. It was clean. Tactical. Odd.

    Phone, am I under any buffs? They were moving between groups and Daniel felt there was time to ask. He¡¯d almost forgotten it had that function after how long it¡¯d been since he used it.

    <hr>

    Alert: You are under the effect of Ability: Valor Song* and a Designation effect of Feature: Tactician

    <hr>

    Had Murdon buffed him? Why him? And why was there an asterisk next to Valor Song like Beast Friend? Another lightning strike took his attention and an internal counter ticked. Almost 200 Sparkbats had fallen since the fight had begun. All at once, it would have been devastating. With them being drip fed in random locations, there¡¯d only been a few lives lost on the mortal¡¯s side so far. Every flash also brought a new opportunity for Hunter to mark people he¡¯d missed, to the point that after about ten minutes of systematically destroying clumps of Sparkbats, Daniel guessed that they had just about everyone.

    Now that Daniel was conscious of the effect on him, things were making more sense. It was like how Quick Mind helped him read, do math, or measure applied to strategy instead. The best way he could describe it was suddenly being able to view the battle as if he was playing a real time strategy game instead of personally fighting. There was no overhead view or health indicators, but the tags on everyone made for a kind of minimap allowing him to keep track of how the fight was progressing. Finally, the memories of the past were muted. Everything not important to this fight was something the feature pushed to the side far more easily than he ever could have, just like Claire¡¯s ability had taken his fear. That was probably one of the reasons Murdon had chosen him to benefit from this buff.

    The other was that his training team was most suited to benefit from the enhanced coordination given their previous experience together. Lograve or Gadriel could have probably done a better job, but they were also capable of tearing through the lesser enemies alone and had no one to command. Ignoring those wounded, that left Tlara, who was out of the running for obvious reasons. Murdon had done all of that mental calculation in the few seconds after Daniel had told him about the civilians. That, on top of completely adjusting his overall strategy. How was he only level three?

    ¡°I need more bolts, Guy.¡± Thomas hadn¡¯t depleted their supply as fast as Daniel would have thought, the Cleric less practiced with loading the weapon.

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    ¡°You already have the last from Hunter.¡± Anything else he can do? Daniel only knew a handful of the powers everyone else had. Whatever the Tactician buff did, it wasn¡¯t telling him things he didn¡¯t know. The best task he could think of was having him collect more daggers as they moved from group to group. Khare had started counting how many they had after each group of sparkbats. How the gestalt could fit almost one hundred daggers within their mass, even with a power, was beyond him.

    They kept moving, Daniel keeping them on the right flank and away from as many gray auras as he could. The monster attack had shaken most of the red out of the Tyrant¡¯s forces after the initial hostility sighting Murdon¡¯s forces had created, though there were still a few that were dark red. Lightning strike, nearby. 324 total Sparkbats. This was ridiculous. Daniel¡¯s team had taken down almost forty by themselves but they just kept coming. It would have been bad before, but they had a system now, a pattern that-

    Hunter slipped in the mud and fell. Several of them had already, the rain had saturated the ground so much that small lakes were forming in places. The difference this time was, just after that, the mental augmentations of Tactician faded away. Daniel was left suddenly feeling exposed and unsure, his woes returning as his phobia had earlier in the mines. Despite the distance and darkness between them, he caught Murdon¡¯s gaze and understood. The buff¡¯s time was up.

    ¡°Where to next?¡± Evalyn asked. For the first time, Daniel didn¡¯t have an answer. There were plenty of targets, too many targets. Too many moving pieces, allies, and potential enemies Hunter hadn¡¯t tagged yet. How had he decided so easily earlier?

    ¡°Guy?¡±

    There was a group of three that split off from the recent lightning strike but, no, Gadriel was already taking care of them. How had he known which ones wouldn¡¯t be killed before they¡¯d get there?

    ¡°Guy!¡± Thomas was shaking him, causing Hunter to give him a warning growl.

    ¡°I don¡¯t-¡± It wasn¡¯t just the loss of Tactician affecting Daniel, he felt slower than normal. Was feedback from the power going away making his inner turmoil worse? This wouldn¡¯t be permanent, right? He should be answering Thomas, but he had to ask his phone if he was under a debuff and if it would go away.

    ¡°Ashen sand, we need to move. Daniel!¡± Thomas, angrier than he¡¯d ever seen him, slapped the phone out of his hand. They watched it fly through the air before lightning intersected it seconds later. Tempered glass and plastic reinforced with magic burst apart as Daniel felt a second loss, and one more intrinsic than the last.

    As everyone in his team was thrown backward and deafened from the strike, Daniel sensed control of his Artificer powers slip from him. It was like he was a pilot doing a system check on a failing aircraft mid-flight. Only his Totem Warrior powers and what the bond gave him was active, the metaphorical indicator lights of everything else were dark.

    Daniel picked himself up and realized it was worse than he thought. Every tag he and Hunter had active was gone. If Hunter couldn¡¯t maintain the effect, then he¡¯d lost access to it as well. Pain exploded in his leg suddenly, cloth and skin burning near his knee. The main bolt hadn¡¯t hit him, it was the fresh wave of sparkbats that had dropped.

    The loss of so much capability in so little time stunned Daniel as much as the pain and returned memories did. It was like he¡¯d suddenly been sunk underwater, or sent out of an airlock into space and expected to fight. He was slow to respond as sparkbats shocked him again, twice now. No Rorshawd to save him this time, but there was Hunter.

    The ringcat leaped into the air, catching one of the bats and sinking his teeth into it. Springing Strike. It was like Jump, but it committed him to attacking whatever he targeted. One down, who knows how many left? Without Quick Mind Daniel couldn¡¯t just look at the group and know how many there were.

    Get up! Hunter snapped at him. It was the skabs all over again. No Moment of Clarity to give him a second to catch his breath. Sparkbats swarming, lightning flashing!

    Daniel rolled to the side, still feeling the bite of the shock as current flowed through the water around him. It was painful, but it didn¡¯t stun him like before. Daniel was at a higher level now, and even with Fortitude gone his endurance was still higher. That didn¡¯t stop the ringing in his ears as total deafness changed to partial deafness.

    Fear of pain drove Daniel to his feet. The creatures were still circling his team, surrounding them. Hunter was pulling most of the weight and Khare was the only other attacking. Evalyn and Thomas were powerless for different reasons and hurting. They were dodging the lightning fine, but still receiving a shock from the water around them just like Daniel had. He gritted his teeth and stopped overthinking.

    Hunter, we have to get out of here. There are too many. Take Thomas and run.

    This is his fault. A pause, then, How do I take him?

    Figure it out! ¡°Khare! We¡¯re not going to win this. Sink into the ground, we¡¯ll come back for you.¡± I hope the electricity can¡¯t reach them down there. Wait, can they hear me? Apparently so, since the gestalt started twisting their vines into the earth. Time to find out how this works.

    The light of the sparkbats was enough to see in the immediate area, and their attacks against Evalyn and Thomas revealed their position. The distance wasn¡¯t too far, but- lightning! Another sparkbat had recharged and sent its attack towards Daniel. Dodging would still get him shocked, so he Jumped instead.

    The ability made him feel like he¡¯d launched off of a trampoline, easily propelling him up in the air and ten meters over to Evalyn. He might not have stuck the landing if not for Graceful Fall.

    Evalyn was trying to say something, but the ringing in his ears was still too strong. He could try and mime what he was thinking, or he could act. In a maneuver possible only because of his amplified strength, Daniel grabbed Evalyn by the waist, tried to improve Jump by adding mana, realized he didn¡¯t know how, and just Jumped away. Then again, and again, in a random direction until the Sparkbats were in the distance.

    Both took a moment to catch their breath when Daniel landed for the last time. ¡°What about the others?¡± Evalyn asked, Daniel¡¯s hearing recovered to the point he could make out her words.

    ¡°Khare¡¯s underground and Hunter¡¯s got Thomas.¡± Hunter, do you have Thomas?

    Yes. He complains but is safe enough.

    Good. See if you can lead him over here.

    Evalyn was looking at him blankly so he pointed at his ears. She frowned in realization. ¡°Are they ok?¡± Daniel gave her a thumbs up, one of the hand signs he knew crossed between Earth and the Octyrrum. ¡°What about everyone else? Crest, I can¡¯t hear myself.¡± Daniel could only shrug. Without Identify Creature he couldn¡¯t even tell where Hunter was. The only positive was that the rain was dying down slowly. It was still midday, a little more and he could see the rest of the fighting.

    Evalyn¡¯s hearing recovered first, though it seemed more due to her natural endurance than any healing power. ¡°Better. You?¡±

    ¡°I think Regeneration¡¯s handling it.¡± The ringing was almost gone now. Guess I can never get tinnitus. Unless I lose my necklace. Damn, I can¡¯t replace that.

    ¡°What about your Focus? Did the lightning-?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s gone.¡±

    Evalyn frowned, trying to look through the storm. ¡°The villagers?¡±

    Daniel tried to zone in on where the sounds of fighting were coming from. Still too obscured by the rain to make out specifics, although there were fewer sparking lights than he expected. ¡°I think they have it handled. Maybe the storm¡¯s over?¡±

    ¡°Gods, it better be. That was horrible. Not because of you. What you did was exceptional. Otherworldly, almost.¡± Daniel looked around and Evalyn laughed, despite herself and the situation. ¡°There¡¯s no one around.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m surprised you didn¡¯t ask me about that before.¡±

    Evalyn shrugged, wincing as the wound on her left shoulder was provoked. ¡°If I was Thomas, maybe I would have. Everyone¡¯s entitled to their secrets.¡±

    He stared at her. ¡°That¡¯s how you respond to someone telling you they¡¯re from another world?¡±

    ¡°You didn¡¯t technically say that. I just have the handful of intelligence needed to figure it out.¡±

    ¡°It wasn¡¯t me,¡± Daniel changed the topic, not wanting to talk more about this in the open. ¡°Murdon buffed me before we headed out.¡±

    ¡°It wore off right before that lightning strike?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    She nodded and brought the conversation right back to where Daniel didn¡¯t want it. ¡°I have to admit, there are a few things I¡¯m curious about.¡± She looked to the ground. ¡°But I shouldn¡¯t ask. It¡¯s exactly why I stopped when-¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Look, I don¡¯t know if I said this or not, but no hard feelings. You were right about not getting too serious with people right now. I just wish I¡¯d realized that sooner.¡±

    ¡°I guess it¡¯s easier to be nice about these things when you¡¯re getting it somewhere else?¡± Evalyn¡¯s tone bordered on accusatory, despite keeping its light nature.

    Rather than protest, Daniel practically surrendered the conversation. ¡°Maybe. But, Claire¡¯s, I just don¡¯t know anymore.¡± Neither of them spoke for a minute. In that time the rain faded to the point where those still fighting clarified. Any sense of separation between the two forces was gone, the remaining sparkbats quickly exterminated.

    ¡°Are they really going to kill each other? After all of that?¡± Evalyn asked.

    ¡°Gadriel said he¡¯s going to stop anyone from dying.¡± Evalyn laughed again, loud enough for some to turn towards them in confusion.

    ¡°Of course he is. That arrogant bastard. Well, let¡¯s see if he does. It¡¯ll be one hell of a story either way.¡±

 Chapter 54: Final Destination

    Under the watch of Murdon, and through the efforts of every leveled mortal present, the one thousand, two hundred and thirteen energized Sparkbats assaulting the remaining mortals in the Thormundz region were beaten back. The dread intelligence that had guided this battle with the fragment of itself above the surface of sleep submerged once more. It was disappointed, though ultimately indifferent. It had already seen to the demise of these mortals. It would take time for anyone other than the remnants of a long dead people to realize this, but it had spent the last of its available power very well.

    ¡­

    Personally, there hadn¡¯t been much Murdon could do against the sudden sparkbat strikes that had interrupted the potential battle between the Tyrant and himself. Unless he wanted to toss his ax to take down one or two, all he could employ were the precious anti-dragon strategies he¡¯d formulated over the past month. That, or he could Jump all over the place and lose all tactical cohesion in the meantime.

    Both options would be akin to using an ocean to drown a rat. Murdon was a melee specialist, weakness to flight came with the territory. Instead of bemoaning this, he¡¯d leaned on his other specialty: command. Designating Daniel as the target of his freshly heightened Tactician feature was an obvious choice, and the Artificer had used the benefits to slaughter the monsters.

    He¡¯s did well, Lograve thought with an odd sadness.

    That drew a response from Murdon. Are you sure we don¡¯t have an Empathic Link?

    Not in so many words. You were looking at him for longer than a second, and your head is swinging around faster than Gadriel¡¯s sword. I don¡¯t know if you did him a favor considering what the backlash does. I doubt Quala will thank you when she finally gets around to talking to him.

    Hmm. The gallows humor of his friend didn¡¯t change the situation. People were in danger. Children were in danger. Even the Tyrant was less important than them.

    ¡°Alost!¡± he shouted, verbal communication markedly worse than mental in the rain. There was no response.

    I¡¯ll go. Can¡¯t have you wandering around and shaking your ax at them angrily. Tactical Intuition, or basic logic as Lograve sometimes called it, clued him in on what Murdon had wanted to do. The Knight had pointed out they hadn¡¯t been as in sync before the bond, to which Lograve had snarkily attributed to him needing a boost to cognition to catch up.

    Stay in our Telepathy range.

    Obviously. Ice began to collect around Lograve as he used his feature. The rain brought a wealth of resources for him just as it brought the enemy. Lograve was also the only one dry, and he could also use ice underneath his feet to save him from the mud. Why not, if it didn¡¯t cost any more mana?

    Murdon thought ahead of this hunt as it ended. Not even a thousand sparkbats, energized though they were, would overwhelm the mortals gathered here. Deploying the remainder of the garrison was the best he could have done to minimize the loss of innocent life. Until the rain let up, there was no way to control his forces from afar. Losing that tight formation and the preparedness for the Tyrant¡¯s forces was a heavy sacrifice. But if it saved lives in the end?

    Gadriel would be key. Whatever the Hero would do would be distracting, that was a given. Murdon could use that time to untangle their forces and observe what he was up against. At the least, Heldren Storm needed to die. A consensus had been reached that he was the most likely candidate. Even Tlara had agreed eagerly, though if that was to his identity as the Tyrant or just his need to die, Murdon didn¡¯t know.

    He also didn¡¯t know where Heldren was. The opposing group had been briefly visible every time lightning flashed, but not once had he seen the so called ¡®Storm of Righteousness¡¯. Heroes, he thought derisively. Of course, Heldren wasn¡¯t one anymore, and that was the problem. Tyrant class evolution would have changed all of his powers. In most cases they would become stronger, although their nature wouldn¡¯t necessarily be the same.

    That¡¯s why Murdon desperately hoped Gadriel wasn¡¯t going to do what he thought he was going to. Even with all of his training and skill, the Hero was only level two and didn¡¯t have any business taking that much of a risk.

    ¡­

    A critical moment formed in the sodden aftermath. The peace formed through common strife was fading as many realized they were surrounded by enemies. Those of the Tyrant¡¯s forces feared what Murdon would do to the civilians as the Commander¡¯s men feared their use as hostages. Both sides tensed, sure of what was to come and sure the other knew this too.

    With the slightest provocation, those on edge would strike at any they did not know as a friend. Chaos would spread, death following in its wake. A sword moving too quickly, the wrong look in someone¡¯s eyes, it would be something simple to start the avalanche of destruction.

    While he could not have anticipated it, the tense silence was exactly what Gadriel needed. ¡°Hear me! I call for justice! I demand satisfaction!¡± With a heavy tone, he arrested the attention of those nearby, those in the center of the throng that had become of the two merged forces. Confusion and incredulity predominated, depending on who understood what Gadriel was saying.

    ¡°What are you doing?¡± Thera, one of the headmen of the Hero¡¯s level, gathered herself first to respond. She leveled her wand at him. ¡°This isn¡¯t the time for glory-seeking! This-¡±

    ¡°This is the time to slaughter each other, moments after standing together as brethren?¡± Gadriel responded to the threat, leveling his morals against his opponent¡¯s weapon. ¡°I see each of you prepared to drive the life from your kin. Consider the innocent that are here! Those you would defile by your wanton acts of barbarity. I seek to end this violence by the blood of only one. I seek to right a history of whispered lies and treachery. I demand satisfaction!¡± Gadriel repeated, looking towards where the Tyrant¡¯s army had come and the back of their formation. He hadn¡¯t seen his quarry there, but neither was his guess wrong. ¡°I call the detestable mockery of Hero, Heldren Storm, to a duel.¡± He looked down at the arm hidden by his shield and clenched his hand. ¡°I stake upon this the very fate of our people! The Tyrant¡¯s rule or that dictated by our custom. Let further blood not stain this drenched earth but that which would engineer our demise. Sir Storm! Reveal yourself, unless cowardice has taken your heart instead of darkness.¡±

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    No one moved. The air had only grown more tense, but the idea of someone else fighting for control of the situation was drastically more appealing to those battle-weary than taking up arms against people they¡¯d known for years. Not Thera, Rodrick, or even the tense Murdon intervened as the calm stretched for a minute longer.

    Then, Heldren appeared from the mass Gadriel stared at. He was the same man Daniel had seen at the bridge, still with his cape flowing in the breeze, carrying a sword and shield. It seemed impossible to think this man was now a Tyrant, but then again, if Murdon was right he¡¯d been once since before they¡¯d even met.

    ¡°On many levels, your request is inappropriate,¡± Heldren said calmly, layering skeptical inflection on his words. ¡°You, certainly, do not speak for your side. How can I be assured these hastily-made terms will be honored?¡±

    The collective attention turned to Murdon, standing by the few from Roost¡¯s Peak who hadn¡¯t charged to the aid of the villagers. He and Lograve looked at each other as a silent conversation was had. Murdon¡¯s voice, still amplified by his helmet, easily reached those waiting for his response. ¡°Gadriel has my authority in this matter.¡±

    ¡°But how am I to speak for these people?¡± Heldren asked arms held wide. ¡°We are united solely to stop your Tyranny.¡±

    ¡°If it is their unified will that guides you, then I reiterate.¡± Gadriel turned to address the public as well. ¡°Should one die to settle this discord or hundreds?¡±

    Heldren spoke immediately in an attempt to quash the question. ¡°Your offer, as generous as you would make it seem, is more of a risk than open combat. We vastly outnumber you and we surround you. Which of your side will even fight, knowing they harbor a Tyrant? Which of us would not, if only to escape the fate of enslavement?¡±

    ¡°There is a Tyrant here. You, Heldren Storm. Face me in defense of your honor, if there is any left within you.¡±

    Unshaken by the insult, Heldren strode a short distance before replying. ¡°You are one to speak of falling. Serving a Tyrant? I suppose that doesn¡¯t go against that pathetic ideal you call a Heroic philosophy. Perhaps you feel you can usurp another of your betters with a cheap trick. He¡¯s done this before, you know,¡± Heldren said slyly, also addressing the crowd. ¡°Challenged a honorable man in Threst to a duel and not only used unjust methods to triumph, but inflicted permanent injury in the process. While I still refuse, I shall have you know trying that here will get you killed instead of exiled.¡± Gadriel¡¯s grip on his sword tightened, his face growing slightly red as he narrowed his eyes, but he held his stance.

    Heldren laughed when Gadriel didn¡¯t take the bait. ¡°Predictable. As entrenched as your will would seem, it is comically easy to unsettle you. You know, I recall a rumor you were quite taken with one of your former companions. A shame, both that she perished in the Upswell, and that she must have somehow learned of your past. Why else would she refuse your advances? What was her name? Ah, yes, Masi-¡°

    ¡°You are the Tyrant!¡± Gadriel snapped. ¡°Confess your sins!¡±

    Instantly, weapons were brought back to a readied position and one archer fired at Gadriel in response to the incantation. After the projectile was deflected by his shield, there were no more overt acts of aggression. The idea that open war could be avoided was too seductive for the worn down combatants to ignore.

    Gadriel had eyes only on Heldren, who took his turn to freeze and lock eyes with the Hero. There was hatred in his eyes for the other Hero, but he did his best to keep it out of his voice. ¡°As I suspected, one of your power evolutions has fortified your mind. Your wisdom should not be high enough to fully resist that ability. You are a Tyrant,¡± Gadriel proclaimed. ¡°Face me! Surely you believe yourself my better despite your bluster.¡±

    Heldren looked up and away from Gadriel and panning his gaze around. ¡°I am no Tyrant. I merely find no reason to respond to baseless accusations, ability or not. Especially from you. As I have said, the risk is too-¡±

    ¡°I stake further, my identity as a Hero on this battle. Should I be defeated and spared, I will never again raise a sword.¡±

    The bargaining made Heldren raise an eyebrow. ¡°That does not change anything.¡±

    ¡°Further!¡± Gadriel continued, ¡°I shall fight without expending mana. I will use no ability, and I will not heighten any of my features above their starting level.¡±

    ¡°How am I to know you haven¡¯t already? And as I have said, I will not fight by your terms.¡±

    ¡°On my word as a Hero, I have not done so.¡± Both paused. After a few seconds of nothing happening, Heldren reluctantly nodded in confirmation. ¡°Further! I will fight without the use of Flying Sword, though I shall still use the weapon itself. To you, I leave discretion in your choice of powers in this duel.¡±

    Heldren nodded again, clearly considering. ¡°As I have stated previously, I- er, my side of this has more to risk from this duel than from open combat. If you are willing to strip yourself of any advantage, then I may as well demand you fight without shield, armor, or sword.¡±

    ¡°No! From what I have deprived myself, this duel may only now be considered fair.¡± Heldren opened his mouth to respond to the affront, only for Gadriel to address the people again. ¡°You have heard my offer! A duel, instead of a bloody battle. Heldren has put forth the claim he works on behalf of common intent. I ask, then, what is your will?¡±

    For those from Hagain, the choice was simple. Easy, because it puts them at less risk, but also because of common knowledge. Everyone knew the Storm of Righteousness was the highest leveled Hero left in the region. Gadriel had minor fame, though it was tainted by the very rumors Heldren mentioned now. He was also one level under Heldren. The more observant noted an additional edge Heldren would carry in the battle beyond Gadriel¡¯s self-imposed restrictions. That only reinforced the obvious answer.

    ¡°Duel!¡± The common cry started, first weakly and in variations until it was repeated amidst the crowd.

    Heldren looked at the crowd calling for blood, looked up, sighed, and said to Gadriel, ¡°It seems I have no choice. Tyrant or no, Murdon, I will hold you to your word. Perhaps if you honor the terms of this agreement and surrender, the people will find it in their hearts to grant you a merciful death. Though I speak not for them and make no promise.¡± Already people were widening the cleared space around Gadriel, and Heldren walked with squelching sounds across the sodden ground to the makeshift arena. ¡°As for you, one who can barely qualify to share my class, you will get exactly what you have asked for.¡±

    ¡­

    The two stood towards each other, nearly identical in all but facial features. Moderate armor, a sword, a shield, and a cape blowing in the breeze. For not the first time Gadriel reminded Daniel of a fighting game, making this a mirror match. Only, Gadriel had left himself at a severe disadvantage. How was he going to win a duel without magic, in a world with magic? Without a very useful boomerang sword power? At a level disadvantage, no less?

    ¡°What happens if that idiot loses?¡± Evalyn asked. From where he sat, injured, Thomas grunted in an annoyed response before glaring at Hunter. No one else reacted, as if answering the question would make the premise come to pass.

    As each Hero continued to stare, those loyal to Murdon edged away from the others in a slow reformation of their lines. Several made moves to stop them until others of their side warded them off. No one wanted to fight if there was a chance to settle things with a duel. If that didn¡¯t work? Heldren was right, Murdon was vastly outnumbered.

    Another minute passed before Gadriel took a step forward. Immediately, a rush of mud and loose water shot towards him. Faster than the eye could move, Heldren was on the opposite side of Gadriel and ahead of the spray. It was all over. Daniel knew how that move worked. Or at least, he thought he did.

    In the second after Heldren appeared behind him, the spray of water hit Gadriel as the Hero moved his shield. Though, not to save from being splashed. Instead, ringing steel resounded as the Heldren behind Gadriel vanished, and the Tyrant appeared in front of him with a sword bearing down. Up until that moment, the attack had been invisible.

    ¡°What was that?¡± Daniel asked.

    ¡°How should I know, Guy? Shut up and watch.¡±

 Chapter 55: Might Over Magic

    The two combatants paused after the first strike, returning to just out of sword reach of each other. ¡°Fated Strike.¡± Gadriel¡¯s voice carried notes of surprise, but his form kept its defensive stance as he watched for another use of the powerful attack ability.

    Heldren let out a somewhat humorous grunt. ¡°I am free to use my abilities. Even so, you should not have been able to block that. Have you abandoned your development path?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°And you are level three?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°Hmm.¡± Heldren swung his sword in the air twice while he thought. ¡°A shame we have not had a chance to spar before this. Had I known you had some form of defensive feature that could counter me I would not have wasted the mana.¡±

    Gadriel didn¡¯t respond, eyes locked on Heldren¡¯s torso as he waited for the next move. Without the use of his mana or primary ranged ability, he was forced into a reactive state. It was akin to when he fought against the ringcat pack, though his movements were less animated. This was a fight against a superior opponent, wasted or erroneous movement meant death.

    Heldren¡¯s sword hand twitched, and without further provocation, Gadriel charged in complete defiance of his need to be defensive. Leading with a raised shield, Gadriel intercepted a retaliatory sword strike and carried it forward. In the brief contest of strength that resulted, Gadriel dropped his sword and threw a punch that caught his opponent in the temple.

    He was already backing up when Heldren swung out with his sword. The Tyrant blinked as he saw Gadriel holding his own once more. ¡°You have lost. Clearly, you made use of Flying Sword.¡±

    ¡°If I had, this duel would be at an end.¡±

    Heldren spat, then gritted his teeth. ¡°How did you know to interrupt my charge ability? It has no tell!¡±

    ¡°You do.¡±

    ¡°Hraa!¡± With anger Heldren came forward, running with his blade held flat like a lance. It was easy enough for Gadriel to block, but the point of the sword pierced forged iron and kept going. Quickly, the Hero used his sword to cut his arm from the straps of the shield and it came away with some of his blood.

    The Tyrant did not pause to remove the shield from his sword but followed up with a series of attacks Gadriel was forced to deflect with a sword now held in two hands. Every attack grew faster and faster, air blurring with the motion around the tenth slash. The building momentum would have proved deadly if Heldren was able to continue the pattern. When his feet began to slip in the mud from rapid repositioning he made one last attack and then stepped back to regain his balance.

    ¡°Damnable rain!¡± he cursed, kicking Gadriel¡¯s ruined shield free.

    ¡°I should have noticed your sword. It is different from when I last saw you. A mistake that almost cost my life.¡± Gadriel was almost breathless from his desperate defense. That wasn¡¯t carried in his bearing, both hands awkwardly gripped the blade meant to be held by one.

    Heldren was almost as tired, a fact that didn¡¯t escape his opponent. He pointed his sword to Gadriel though he didn¡¯t move. ¡°This fight should have been over already. Yield your cause and you might find redemption once the Tyrant is slain. I don¡¯t ignore the possibility you could be under his control.¡± Gadriel responded by quickly kneeling and grabbing a handful of mud, now wielding that in his off hand. Heldren laughed. ¡°Really?¡±

    ¡°Approach,¡± Gadriel replied, cocking the arm back and under his shoulder like he was about to throw a ball underhanded.

    Instead of taking the bait, Heldren seemed to take offense to the threat of literal mudslinging and changed tack. ¡°On your knees!¡± Gadriel¡¯s body twitched for a moment but held its defensive position. ¡°On your knees!¡±

    Despite his struggle against Heldren¡¯s ability, Gadriel¡¯s body dropped to one knee. Twitching hands lost their grip on their respective weapons as Gadriel¡¯s fingers arced almost backward in spasms.

    ¡°I gave you your chance,¡± Heldren said viciously, eyes fixed on Gadriel¡¯s with an intensity that carried the active effect of his ability. ¡°I am ending this.¡± He strode forward, bringing his sword up in an arc like an executioner''s ax, then paused. Gadriel¡¯s sword was back in his hand. Heldren couldn¡¯t help but break eye contact. The Hero¡¯s arm hadn¡¯t moved, he knew it hadn¡¯t moved. ¡°How!?¡±

    Free from whatever had been affecting him, Gadriel responded with an upward driving stab. Heldren deflected it and the two began trading strikes once more, though the Tyrant¡¯s did not build up speed like before. Emotion had taken over both, leaving no room for further banter. It was most present on Heldren¡¯s face, fury at having been denied a quick end to the fight again and again.

    By the time the melee had passed one minute, neither had inflicted a wound on the other. The only injuries either had were from Gadriel, from where he had cut himself, and the forming bruise on Heldren¡¯s face. Both were experienced in swordplay. When reduced to a test of arms alone, they were roughly even despite the level difference. Gadriel technically held an advantage with more mana remaining, only he couldn¡¯t use it, and he was down a shield.

    The duel paused again as both separated, tiring at the same rate and needing a moment to catch their breath. Those watching had also been holding theirs, several gasping as they remembered to draw in air. Heldren broke the silence again. ¡°For the last time, yield. You have pushed me far. That is to be commended. But to best you now I will need to use powers that will leave you to either a slow or a terrible death. For a fellow mortal I hold these back, but you have pushed me too far.¡±

    ¡°I am prepared,¡± was all Gadriel said. He eyed the broken shield now far from where the two stood and then turned back to Heldren.

    ¡°Black Blade.¡± A nimbus of dark energy wreathed the Tyrant¡¯s sword, extending only a few centimeters from the metal. The wide ring around them widened further as the onlookers recognized necrotic energy. Wounds inflicted by that were far harder to heal. Worse, the damage type weakened the afflicted, amplifying every other injury they had. Heldren was level 3. If the effect was the same level it would kill a normal man with a mere scratch.

    Heldren didn¡¯t stop there. ¡°Thorn Shield.¡± His shield was suddenly covered in sharp nettles, red needle-like tips on green plant matter. Poison, no doubt. With one hand Heldren carried a mortal blade, in the other a source of ongoing rot. His image blurred again, wet ground thrown up as a trough was formed. The false image behind Gadriel carried only a normal blade and shield, proof it was some form of illusion.

    Gadriel couldn¡¯t block this time, but he could parry. The timing needed was measured in fractions of a second, requiring him to meet the blade in the middle of its arc, not before or after. He¡¯d also need to know where the attack was coming from. It was impossible.

    Heldren¡¯s disbelieving roar was justified when Gadriel did it. The moment of sheer victory was marred by its cost. Heldren¡¯s sword cut halfway into Gadriel¡¯s and caught. Force from the end of Fated Strike wrenched it from Gadriel¡¯s hand. Heldren caught up with his blur, looked at his sword, and screamed again. ¡°How!?¡± Gadriel¡¯s sword was back in his hand. Before, it was possible the Hero could have reached it in the span of seconds when no one was looking. Even now, no one saw the sword fly back to his hand, but it had. It was almost cut in half, but it had returned. ¡°You swore not to use that! You have gone against your oath and yet this duel continues! How!?¡±

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    Gadriel frowned as he inspected his blade. ¡°Surrender, and I may tell you.¡±

    Heldren gritted his teeth as he looked to the sky for one moment. For no reason, he suddenly grew even angrier. ¡°I will drag the answer from your corpse!¡±

    Gadriel sheathed his sword and stood with fists raised. Heldren was beyond commenting on this, satisfied with having an easier time striking him down. Another Fated Strike could have ended the fight there, but Heldren didn¡¯t use it for the same reason he didn¡¯t repeat Voice of Command to make Gadriel kneel. The powers he¡¯d chosen to use were explosive, capable of ending even other mortals of an equivalent level if they weren¡¯t prepared. Such lethality came with commensurate mana costs. Like Rorshawd before him, Heldren had run himself down to the dregs of his mana. In exchange, he¡¯d not wounded Gadriel once. That would soon change. Leading with a sword slash still burning black, Heldren brought himself right up to Gadriel. The Hero managed to dodge but caught the followup shield bash thorns and all.

    What skin the thorns could reach turned yellow around the red marks left behind by them. Almost the color of jaundice, the skin burned as a poison began inflaming the area. Unlike necrotic energy, it did not affect the entirety of the host and could be cleansed more easily. Except Gadriel had no assistance in this duel. With that strike, Heldren had inflicted an inevitable defeat on the Hero.

    Gadriel grunted and panted, trying to tamp down the instinctual panic responding to the introduction of toxin into his body. The sides of his chest close to the arms had been most affected, though injury had crept through the armor to strike at various places on his torso. Pain was not unfamiliar to the Hero, but he recognized the danger from the lingering effect of the attack.

    Poison. It wasn¡¯t a strong poison, not like something you¡¯d see from a high level Rogue specialized in assassination or that dreaded class itself, but all poison slowly killed unless stopped by power or magical remedy. Heldren grinned when he recognized slight desperation peeking through Gadriel¡¯s otherwise stoic facade. ¡°You. Had. Your. Chance!¡± He said, each word separated by some form of slash or shield attack. Instead of making heavily committed strikes like the one he¡¯d opened the fight with, all Heldren was trying to do now was touch Gadriel and feed the death growing inside of him.

    Even those on his side whitened at the sight. Heldren had warned Gadriel, but these were powers few honorable people would use on mortals without exceptional cause. On the other hand, Gadriel was defending a Tyrant, so there it was. Poison didn¡¯t change Gadriel¡¯s skill. He jerked left to avoid an overhead cut while using the mud to his advantage to slide under the follow-up downward slam from Heldren¡¯s shield. His chest was burning and itching, trying as much to break his focus as to kill him. Worse was the cut on his ankle from the tip of Heldren¡¯s sword. The skin there was black, slowing his footwork.

    Heldren began to occasionally laugh as Gadriel started defensively retreating, abandoning any attempt to stand against the Tyrant. His earlier fury had burned off as the fight became more and more one-sided. All the talent and fervor his opponent had shown in the opening moments, from deflecting two Fated Strikes to intuiting a hidden charge attack, melted away when the first solid hit had landed.

    It was arrogance, Heldren decided. All arrogance. Who was this Gadriel Cross, exiled, honorless, and unnamed Hero, to not only challenge him but to give himself a handicap? An almost worthy opponent, he had to be honest. Had Gadriel used all he had in this fight it would have been far closer. There was always the random factor when it came to fighting another mortal, the chance of an exotic power catching you off guard.

    Heldren¡¯s eyes fell on Gadriel¡¯s sword, still in its sheath. Even if the Hero used it to defend himself, even if he pulled off another ridiculous parry, it couldn¡¯t do that more than once. The owner himself, now struck twice more by the shield and once by Heldren¡¯s sword, was in a similar state. The question of how Gadriel had returned his sword to him itched at the back of Heldren¡¯s mind as he forced the duel into its endgame, until he had a thought.

    Heldren paused, Gadriel backing away but not running once it was clear Heldren would pursue. ¡°It¡¯s another feature. You have another feature that can return your sword to you. That was your trick, make me think you couldn¡¯t do it, and then spring that on me. Clever, but your gambit has failed.¡±

    Gadriel coughed as his struggling lungs attempted to recover. Necrotism was worsening the poison infiltrating his chest, sapping at the diaphragm and muscles used for inspiration. The words Gadriel spoke were evidence of how close to death¡¯s door he was. ¡°An ignoble twist, perhaps, but not a lie.¡±

    ¡°It is a shame the Tyrant has used you thus.¡± Heldren spoke more to his audience than Gadriel. He was essentially monologuing, a trope those of the Hero class knew they were prone to, but what was the harm here? He could stand there and watch Gadriel die if he wanted to, and that would benefit his image more than delivering the finishing blow. Unless Gadriel forced the issue. ¡°Take this one last chance at salvation,¡± he said imploringly, cape suddenly billowing in the wind as he leaned on Mantle of Inspiration. ¡°You can still be saved. We have with us healers and potions. Just surrender, and we can reverse what has been done to you. All of it.¡±

    With a trembling hand, Gadriel drew his sword. Cracks in the steel had spread from where Heldren¡¯s had bit into the spine of the blade. ¡°Really? Is this how you wish it to end?¡± Heldren shook his head but did not advance. ¡°Well, better than let this slow death continue. If you do not wish to be saved, then at the very least a merciful death can be granted for one so earnest in their beliefs.¡± The black aura of Heldren¡¯s blade flickered out and the poison nettles retreated to emphasize the point. ¡°Misguided, though they were. Come and seek your death.¡± Heldren frowned as he saw Gadriel¡¯s arm begin to pull back. Was he really doing that? Defeating Gadriel was one thing, but seeing what the Hero was about to do, and the consequences of it, filled Heldren with genuine pity. ¡°Sir Gadriel, do not throw away your honor now. This fight is-¡±

    Gadriel hurled his sword at Heldren, who neatly side-stepped it. His eyes tracked the blade as it sailed past, wary of it returning to strike while his back was turned. Of the Hero himself, he paid no mind. This was the last desperate attempt of a near-broken man who had decided to throw away his class along with his life. The only danger was in ignoring the sword as it returned¡­ as it returned?

    Heldren had only a fraction of a second to realize what Gadriel had done before the Hero had closed the small distance between them. Features did not always need to be used, and in this case, the Hero had opted to throw his sword normally. The broken blade sloshed to a stop in the mud behind Heldren. But Gadriel?

    With a wordless battle cry, Gadriel charged Heldren, made a fist with his hand, and drove it up underneath Heldren¡¯s chin. The force of the blow was enough to lift the Tyrant off the ground. The earlier blow to the temple had carried a similar strength and did not incapacitate Heldren. But in this one moment, Gadriel had caught him completely off guard. It was all he¡¯d needed.

    Like his injuries did not exist, Gadriel followed the rapid punch with a left cross, then a right overhanded blow to avoid the shield Heldren was attempting to raise, and then- It was an effortless combination of strikes tailored to keep Heldren disoriented, preventing him from recovering a defensive posture.

    The rhythm of the strikes was regular enough that they could have made music were each its own note. The percussive melody was just the same Gadriel had used on the ringcats, with fewer throws and more hammering on Heldren¡¯s face and limbs. If the Tyrant tried to use his sword, Gadriel punched him in the face while moving out of the way. If he tried to speak an incantation, Gadriel would use it as an opportunity to attack an arm before punching Heldren in the face. If he tried to use his shield, the Hero would mix in the odd roll before punching Heldren in the face. Of all the Tyrant¡¯s body, his head was taking the most punishment

    The turn in the fight had come so suddenly that not even those among the Tyrant¡¯s forces who might have intervened did. In one moment Gadriel had gone from nearly dead to in complete control. Inevitability had been shrugged off of his shoulders and beaten into Heldren. The Hero arrested his assault for nothing, for he had only this one chance. If Heldren regained his guard, he would have a chance to deliver a finishing blow.

    That would not come to pass. With one final uppercut mirroring the blow that had begun Heldren¡¯s downfall, Gadriel knocked the Tyrant fully back to land heavily on the ground. Heldren did not get up.

    Gadriel held his shoulders up for three more seconds before he leaned forward, once more feeling the weight of his injuries. The man did not look as feeble as he had earlier appeared, though the poison and necrosis were still running through him. None of that was present in his voice. ¡°Hear me! Sir Storm has been overcome. By your oaths sworn in agreement with the terms of this duel, I demand your surrender to Commander Murdon.¡±

    Instead of outrage, the first response to this was awestruck as someone in the crowd cried out, ¡°How?!¡±

    Gadriel forcibly straightened himself. ¡°See in this duel an example of my driving force! My Heroic philosophy! Might over magic!¡±

 Chapter 56: Nobility in Defeat

    ¡°He cheated!¡± Awe was replaced by indignation as another random cry was heard from the Tyrant¡¯s camp. Outrage spread among their number, headed by a declaration by the transmutation Cleric Rodrick.

    ¡°We will bend to no Tyrant, duel or no. We will never be slaves!¡± This was directed to Murdon.

    The Commander looked to those surrounding him, Lograve and Quala, then turned to address the Cleric. Though they had rejected the outcome of the duel, it looked as though his opponents were at least giving him a chance to speak. ¡°There is something everyone here needs to know. First, it is you that are under the influence of a Tyrant. Heldren Storm.¡± Hearing this, Gadriel¡¯s head turned quickly to Murdon, though he said nothing. His eyes moved from the draconoid to settle on Lograve. Murdon ignored this and continued. ¡°Now that he is incapacitated, there is knowledge I believe will assist in breaking the effect on you.¡±

    ¡°Everyone knows about the dragon. We did what you should have done immediately and told the people.¡±

    ¡°Roost¡¯s Peak has been destroyed by a fire dragon.¡± Silence followed. They still looked to Murdon in disbelief, but also with broken hope. They were following the same plan the garrison at Roost¡¯s Peak had. ¡°Tell them, Alost.¡±

    ¡°It attacked early into the morning yesterday,¡± The archer said, having been brought close to the front of their formation during the duel for this very reason. ¡°Yedra, our acting headwoman, as well as most of our people died. Kob is dead. The ballista are destroyed, and many of the buildings are ruined. We didn¡¯t even kill the dragon.¡±

    Murdon was about to speak again when Lograve tugged on his arm. Wordless conversation passed between them for half a minute. Hidden by the helmet, no one saw Murdon¡¯s eyebrows raise in surprise and caution. He turned back to the Tyrant¡¯s forces, inspecting everyone he could see. The reactions were varied. Some appeared to be in the process of breaking out of the influence, whereas others stood mute in an attempt of continued disbelief. Theoretically it shouldn¡¯t matter, the snowball effect of the Tyrant¡¯s influence falling off should occur as Lograve had predicted once enough came out of it. But this new information changed things.

    ¡°I am taking Quala to tend to Gadriel and Heldren. We will take the Tyrant as a prisoner.¡± Quala, already mid-stride to attend to the now faltering Hero, briefly paused as Lograve warned her as well.

    There was no resistance to their approach. Some people were shocked still as they realized the truth, generating small scuffles between them and the more recalcitrant. Some were hurt, but no one else died. Those who had undone the influence and were not involved in a brawl looked to Murdon for guidance, but he was busy.

    ¡°Are you sure?¡± Murdon whispered to Gadriel.

    Gadriel coughed for a few moments before he could respond, his body further deteriorating. ¡°It was clear from the first moment of our duel.¡±

    ¡°Quala. Wake Heldren but do nothing more.¡± The Cleric was attempting to eliminate the necrotic energy from Gadriel¡¯s two wounds. She might have protested. Heldren was merely unconscious whereas Gadriel was actively dying, but she understood why this was important.

    Heldren opened his eyes to find Murdon had appropriated his shield. As for his sword, that was tossed away from his reach. What¡¯s more, the massive weight of the draconoid was pressed firmly on his chest through his knee. ¡°You could not have been a part of this without knowing. Why?¡±

    ¡°Commander.¡± Both were speaking quietly, voices not carrying too far. Murdon had even removed his helmet in fear of being overheard. ¡°You know why.¡±

    ¡°No, I don¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°You would have gotten us all killed,¡± Heldren said simply, and with enough strength to keep his voice even. ¡°With or without Kob, we could not defeat that dragon. Better to take the people to Roost¡¯s Peak. Fortify, and hold out until the other regions relieved us. They would have sent aid, even if it took a year. We could have done it.¡±

    ¡°Who told you about the dragon?¡±

    Heldren looked away, behind Murdon¡¯s head, guilt creeping into his expression. ¡°Lograve and that Beastmaster were not the only ones to survive.¡±

    The other survivors, of course! Murdon remembered the report of three others who had fled from the dragon. Only Tlara had returned, and the belief was the rest had been discovered by a monster and killed on the way back. Maybe they had, either way.

    Heldren continued explaining, resigned to his fate. ¡°I had yet to be assigned to the team departing for Roost¡¯s Peak, so I took it upon myself to patrol the outskirts of the village. I found them, the others. Heard their warning.¡±

    ¡°Killed them.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡± Heldren didn¡¯t answer, so Murdon took the opportunity to ask another lingering question. ¡°The other headmen claimed Jonus survived. Lograve saw him die. Did you disguise yourself as him somehow? An illusion power?¡± The man kept his silence on this point. ¡°Roost¡¯s Peak is gone! Why continue with this? You are not just a victim, but with your plan in shambles you must see mine is the only way to survive!¡±

    ¡°Without Kob you have no chance. Maybe a small group could find shelter and wait long enough. But not everyone,¡± Heldren conceded. His face was a mask of defeat, feeling the consequences of his loss. Strangely, though, Murdon didn¡¯t see regret there. ¡°I stand by my actions. I maintain that I have not strayed from my path.¡±

    ¡°Yes, you Heroes have a knack for justifying atrocities,¡± Murdon mused, before glaring down into Heldren¡¯s soul as he asked the most important question. ¡°Who is it?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure you¡¯ll ever know. Or that you¡¯ll ever want to know.¡±

    ¡°Tell me!¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Heldren closed his eyes. ¡°I have sworn myself to a cause. I will not and can not break that oath. You will get nothing of importance from me. Will you kill me for this?¡±

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    ¡°That depends. Whose idea was it to have Lograve¡¯s team assassinated?¡±

    Heldren nodded, eyes still closed. ¡°Mine. I think you¡¯d agree it was the correct decision. From a tactical perspective.¡±

    Murdon stood, taking his knee off of Heldren. He looked down at the prone man, still too weak to move. In one moment he felt all of the weight that had been put on him, all the misery and heartache that was in part due to this man. He thought of Ashier, who had died along with the other people sheltering in his home when it had burned down. Those torn apart by the monsters he¡¯d stabled so close to them. That pain was still somewhere in the jumbled mess of all the emotions he suppressed for the sake of everyone else. Worse still was the question he asked himself. What would he have done if Lograve had died? The thought of becoming a Tyrant had seemed so impossible to Murdon until he pondered that reality.

    Murdon looked at the man below him and in that moment could not find mercy within the storm of his soul. ¡°Your Tyranny dies today,¡± he said, loud enough for those nearby to hear, as he drove his heel down into Heldren¡¯s skull.

    ¡­

    The brutality of the act made Daniel look away, catching Thomas wincing and Evalyn nodding slightly. Khare was just there. The gestalt had said only a handful of words since the dragon attack. The only one they truly conversed with had died there.

    ¡°Hmm. Good riddance,¡± Evalyn said.

    ¡°Death to the Tyrant,¡± Thomas nodded, but there was a conflicted look on his face he explained. ¡°That looks bad for Murdon, though. Right after he says he¡¯s taking him alive, wham! I mean, I don¡¯t, aah-¡± Thomas grunted in pain as he moved his shoulder. The bleeding had stopped but the wounds hadn¡¯t healed. The Cleric still lacked his Focus, and now Daniel did too. ¡°Guy, we need to talk about Hunter.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re alive aren¡¯t you?¡± Daniel asked bitterly. Thomas hadn¡¯t even apologized, all he¡¯d done was complain.

    ¡°He almost bit my arm off!¡± That was fair. During the escape, Hunter had been given a task and few ways to accomplish it. If Thomas could understand him he might have been able to hang from the ringcat¡¯s neck or even ride him to safety. The latter option would have left Daniel eternally jealous. Instead, Hunter decided speed was more important than manners and had carried Thomas in his jaw like a kit. One of the long fangs had scratched him deeply by accident.

    ¡°Yeah, but you didn¡¯t lose anything did you?¡±

    ¡°I almost lost my arm!¡± Thomas shouted. ¡°Do you know how hard it is to get limbs regrown?¡±

    Evalyn looked away from the remains of the duel and raised an eyebrow. ¡°How much effort does it take to be that oblivious?¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°You destroyed his Focus, you idiot.¡±

    ¡°What? Oh. Oh, right! I¡¯m sorry Guy.¡± Thomas rubbed his shoulder slowly. ¡°Think it¡¯ll be hard to remake?¡±

    Daniel didn¡¯t know. If he had to make one fully from scratch there was no way. Maybe with magic and the chunk of enriched metal? ¡°I¡¯ll have to ask Lograve.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡± Suddenly, Thomas was more worried about someone other than himself.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t make the first one.¡± What he couldn¡¯t say was it had been a birthday gift, back when the Brant family was still whole. Then, after it all fell apart, he couldn¡¯t afford to replace it even if he wanted to.

    ¡°Guy I¡¯m-I¡¯m sorry. Hand, the kids I, when we were just doing nothing I couldn¡¯t stand it.¡±

    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t take you for someone with anger issues,¡± Evalyn said.

    ¡°I don¡¯t- ahh,¡± Thomas sighed as he provoked his shoulder again. He stopped talking after that.

    ¡°Tyrant,¡± Khare said, breaking the pause. Evalyn opened her mouth to respond, but the vines were still moving. A few seconds later, the word, ¡°Pass?¡± followed.

    Daniel scratched his head. Heldren was dead. He couldn¡¯t confirm it with an aura, but no one survived what Murdon had done to him.

    ¡°He¡¯s dead, Khare,¡± Evalyn said matter of factly. ¡°Broken into so many pieces there¡¯s not anyone in the region that can put him back together.¡±

    ¡°Dragon.¡±

    ¡°I think Murdon¡¯s dead set on abandoning the place,¡± Thomas added. ¡°And there¡¯s no way I¡¯m going back into the mountain.¡±

    ¡°Next!¡± There was irritation in Khare¡¯s voice. Frustration from not being understood. Until now the language barrier hadn¡¯t been much of a problem.

    ¡°Oh.¡± Evalyn looked to the south. Everyone deflated as they finally took the gestalt¡¯s point. ¡°You¡¯re right. That will be a problem.¡±

    Thomas flushed. ¡°Crest, Khare. You couldn¡¯t let us go one hour after we got rid of the Tyrant without reminding us there¡¯s a dragon even bigger than the one we couldn¡¯t kill standing in our way?¡±

    Khare¡¯s pseudo-shoulders just shrugged.

    Order was quickly restored following the death of Heldren. Most were too shaken to do anything but follow orders. From what had happened, it was clear that at least some had knowingly acted in accord with the Tyrant. Beyond the absent avianoid that had revealed the undermining camp rules, none were known.

    The ground was still saturated, making everyone miserable as the mud was kicked up to stain their clothing. The villagers had brought most of the remaining food stores with them, ruining whatever couldn¡¯t survive immersion and keep.

    Scattered amongst the mortals were the corpses of the sparkbats. So many, and so many of their spines. There were those destroyed beyond use, including a few dozen that had been neatly bisected by Gadriel. The precision was unmistakable, seeing as he was the only one who could aim a ranged sword attack to that degree.

    Still, Daniel should have wondered what he could do with the spines that were left should he be able to salvage them. He just didn¡¯t feel like digging through all those bodies for them, especially after what happened to Hunter. And if he did, there was nowhere to store the bodies. None were going to be carried by Hunter, that was for sure. But jeez. There are so many here. I might have been able to unlock more stuff in the Encyclopedia. Would that help? It might tell him why coming down on lightning made them far stronger, but Daniel already had a guess as to why that was.

    What I need is formulae. I¡¯ve got a chunk of rock and nothing to do with it. What am I supposed to do, just fumble around until something works? Stick chunks of stone on crossbow bolts and hope for the best? That didn¡¯t seem right. It didn¡¯t make sense!

    For something so fundamental to his class, there had to be some way for him to get formulae that didn¡¯t involve blind experimentation since that didn¡¯t give him any ¡®real¡¯ formulae. There wasn¡¯t a reason Daniel felt this way, and there was no rule that said he should be given formulae for free, but how would Artificers do it in general? It was a chicken and the egg problem otherwise.

    There should be something. It was like Daniel had gone back home, walked into his room, and saw that his bookcase was missing a book that he could only remember the blank outline of. So what was it? Nothing in the Encyclopedia said anything about gaining formulae. Stupid Encyclopedia, Daniel thought. Even at level two, you¡¯re just a glorified fetch quest for lore.

    Now, what would be useful was if it gave him an idea of which parts could be used in crafting. Analyze Material could do that when he could use the ability, but he¡¯d have to somehow know which random bit of a monster was useful. It had taken a great deal of pain for him to discover how the lightning spines worked. If the Encyclopedia entry on them had just told him about the lightning spines off the bat, well, he still would have been in as much pain. Formulae, that¡¯s what he needed. But there was no way to- ¡°Wait, what if, oh fuck!¡± Daniel threw his head back and slapped his face. Of course! The description hadn''t said anything about formulae, but-

    ¡°What is it?¡± Thomas asked, but Daniel was already running towards Lograve. There was a grim expression on the Arcanist¡¯s face that only lightened slightly as he saw Daniel approach.

    He seemed to guess something out of the ordinary was going to happen. In a contrarian kind of way, Lograve welcomed it, sure that it couldn¡¯t be the worst thing that had happened today. ¡°Daniel, I warned you about this,¡± he said softly, leading into a joke as if to counter the expected melancholy. ¡°No more absurdity until we¡¯re back at the village.¡±

    ¡°I need you to have everyone collect the sparkbat corpses. As many intact ones as you can.¡±

    Lograve sat down, then cursed as he remembered the ground was muddy. ¡°Why!?¡±

 Chapter 57: Keen Sensitivity

    Small fires dotted the sodden camp. Even with a handful of flame powers among the mortals, it had been hard to set them. The rain which drenched everything in the battle had also found its way here. Space by them was prioritized for the sick, injured, and infirm. Gadriel was a surprising participant in that number. Quala had been able to reverse one of the necrotic wounds before realizing that she couldn¡¯t cure the other one today. That was how terrifying necrotic energy could be, though there was little chance of Gadriel dying now that he¡¯d been partially healed.

    A more pressing concern than the cold for those outside the fire¡¯s warmth was the food. The villagers had taken everything from Hagain when they left and the monsoon had done a number on the perishables. Livestock were the most preserved foodstuff left, not nearly enough to feed the hundreds of people over any long amount of time.

    A possible solution was in progress by the Ranger William. Having become Heldren¡¯s right hand man following their initial departure from Hagain Village, he was one of the hardest hit by the earlier revelations. Doubts of his sincerity were eased as he gruffly told Murdon he was going hunting to feed the camp. Others followed, some together, some alone, echoing the need to atone for what they¡¯d done while under the influence.

    For almost everyone in the camp, that night was the worst in their lives. The Upswell had been a tragedy, an unprecedented, life-changing event. But being controlled by a Tyrant? Being ready to kill people without qualms? There¡¯s losing someone close to you, and almost losing yourself.

    Amidst the blank staring, soft crying, and self-hatred was Daniel. Weirdly, he was feeling better after the backlash of Murdon¡¯s power and the loss of his Focus settled. If he was right, he had solved the doubts he¡¯d had about his place in the world. It was kind of like being up on that island and figuring out how to make lightning wings. He¡¯d found a way forward, or at least, he was fairly confident he had. Daniel wouldn¡¯t know for sure until he¡¯d remade his Focus, but so long as his theory was right he¡¯d finally be able to properly enchant.

    Also, it was time. For over a week Daniel had the ability to share Hunter¡¯s senses burning a hole in his pocket. There¡¯d been disaster, critical injury, and limits on his mana holding him back. Tonight, it was finally time. Sure, he had wounds he needed to heal, along with travel sores. That only meant he had to wait for Hunter to go far enough out from camp. Daniel still wasn¡¯t sure how long he¡¯d stay for the ride. It was more the silent stalker in the night experience he was after than the messily devour a kill one. And there was the fear the Empathic Link would randomly turn back on. They had decided to toggle it quickly right before they shared senses, just to be safe.

    All that was left was the wait. He was in a small cutout of the camp with Khare and Evalyn. Thomas would have been there too but had been too injured by Hunter saving him and needed to be looked after over the night. Bite wounds carried the highest risk of infection, and without his Focus Thomas was at greater risk. Caught up in his thoughts, it took Daniel a few minutes to realize Evalyn had been looking at him. ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°You need to talk to her.¡± Her voice was hesitant but serious, giving Daniel no confusion as to what she meant. It was one of the worst things she could have suggested he do, up there with diving into the cart of sparkbat corpses Lograve had reluctantly agreed to have collected. ¡°I was trying not to interfere, but this has gone on long enough.¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t,¡± Daniel said, good mood gone.

    Evalyn sighed and looked away. ¡°I¡¯m not someone with a lot of experience in this area-¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re not?¡±

    ¡°No I am not! Why does, no. No, I¡¯m not touching that now.¡± She looked Daniel in the eye. ¡°Do you want to lose Claire?¡±

    ¡°Maybe,¡± Daniel replied, eyes downcast.

    ¡°By all the gods, why are you acting like such an idiot? That girl¡¯s suffering over there and she¡¯s supposed to mean something to you, but you haven¡¯t said a word to her since we left the city!¡±

    He shrunk back, feeling Evalyn¡¯s disapproval as he did so. ¡°She hates me. I think I never should have gotten involved in the first place. Every time I think about going over to talk I just-¡± He held his head in his hands, blocking off further words.

    ¡°Men!¡± Evalyn shook her head. ¡°If you took just a minute to talk to her you¡¯d know! Even if you lost her, it would be better than what you¡¯re doing now; letting her heart bleed into the earth instead of your arms.¡±

    ¡°I-¡± She was right. Daniel knew she was right. Everyone who had told him to do the simple, right thing this entire time had been pointing him in the right direction. But he¡¯d been the reason her brother had died. In the end, he shouldn¡¯t have even been with Claire that night. He shouldn¡¯t have been with her at all. Only now, when the relationship had gotten hard, had he realized he couldn¡¯t handle it. Daniel knew that made him a terrible person. That was just another reason he¡¯d done all he could to ignore the issue and hide from those thoughts. ¡°I can¡¯t.¡±

    Evalyn looked at him for a few more seconds, then stood. There was a conflicted look that lasted a second before her face hardened. ¡°You¡¯re being a coward. You¡¯re doing more damage doing nothing. The only way you could hurt her more is if you told her you killed Parduc yourself!¡± Daniel didn¡¯t say anything. If he tried, he¡¯d just make things worse. That was what was going through his head, at least. Evalyn glared at him. ¡°If you aren¡¯t going to talk to her, I will.¡±

    Was that supposed to be a threat? Probably, and the fact that Daniel didn¡¯t consider it one was telling. ¡°Go for it.¡± She blinked, and anger turned to sadness again.

    ¡°If that¡¯s what you want, I will,¡± she said with a sense of finality. ¡°But what I have to say won¡¯t be charitable. I know you¡¯re a good person, Daniel, but I can¡¯t understand this.¡± She left him after that, still as beautiful as when they¡¯d met in the library despite the rain and the filth. He never thought he could be friends with someone like that, so it hurt all the more when she gave him one last sad look before becoming lost in the crowd.

    ¡°Frost,¡± Khare said. Its current dissociated state made it hard to judge what it meant as there were no facial features to go by. Daniel frowned as he tried to make it out. Gestalt seemed to be at such a disadvantage compared to other races when it came to speech.

    ¡°Are you saying she was cold? That I was cold there? I, I probably was.¡± Khare didn¡¯t respond, maintaining the enigma. Daniel just shrugged, not having the energy to figure it out. ¡°I haven¡¯t forgotten about your dagger, at least. I have an idea for how to start crafting but I¡¯ll have to remake my Focus.¡±

    ¡°Fool.¡±

    ¡°What? Oh, wait, do you mean Thomas or me?¡± Again the sentient vine monster didn¡¯t offer any clarification. ¡°Honestly Khare, I think you¡¯re the only one in our group that hasn¡¯t made a mess of their life.¡± Daniel looked into the distance thoughtfully. ¡°Well, Hunter too. And Evalyn.¡±

    Khare did take a more solid form then, making a head and leaning it on a hand. ¡°Charisma.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I guess having a lot of charisma can help. Some people. I just,¡± Daniel tilted his head back and looked at the stars. The last time he¡¯d done this seemed years ago. ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯m someone that can do romance. I wanted to be, and while it was working out it was great. I¡¯d wanted that for so long and it just happened out of nowhere. And then it just died. I didn¡¯t want¡­ With what happened¡­¡± Just like with Evalyn, he couldn¡¯t put it clearly into words. Evalyn had, so he borrowed hers. ¡°I¡¯m just a coward Khare. That¡¯s why.¡±

    ¡°Alone.¡±

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Daniel agreed, but Khare shook its formed head.

    ¡°Me.¡±

    ¡°Oh. You¡¯re talking about Kob.¡± Of course they¡¯re talking about Kob you idiot. Has anyone even talked to them about it yet? ¡°Khare I¡¯m so sorry. Kob was amazing.¡± He left out the part about Kob almost getting them all killed from that estimation. Khare didn¡¯t need his full opinion right now. ¡°I passed out the first time I saw them, but they had more than just strength. Do you remember the frost strangler? I think Kob knew what I was going to do before I did.¡±

    Khare dissolved their head and hands and seemed to withdraw into themself, becoming smaller. They didn¡¯t say anything though. Daniel was struck again by the thought that there was some kind of connection between Khare and the late Kob. Familial? Did gestalt have families?

    When a minute passed without Khare talking, Daniel let the conversation end. He didn¡¯t have the energy to carry it on if Khare wasn¡¯t interested. Even so, there was an odd relief mixed into everything else inside of him. Dread of what would happen with Claire had eaten away at him right up until this moment despite all the times he told himself it was over. Now he knew. They were done, and he was a terrible person. He¡¯d hit rock bottom, which meant it was all up from here.

    Hunter reached out to him a few minutes later as he was brooding on that. I am ready. Are you?

    Almost. Daniel dragged Hunter¡¯s packs, discarded by the ringcat when he left, over to his sleeping bag.

    Sad?

    It¡¯s just nothing. Nothing important. Honestly, I could use some time not being myself. As he tried to arrange it so that the hidden heliorite was pressed against where he¡¯d lay, Daniel frowned. This was something he hadn¡¯t thought through. Sharing Hunter¡¯s senses would make the valuable chunk of rock, and himself, vulnerable. Without Identify Creature, he couldn¡¯t monitor the auras nearby to make sure no one was messing with his body. Considering what he had to lose, going on the hunt tonight was stupid. Daniel should just wait until they were back at the village where he could sleep inside, not fearing a sudden attack.

    In the end, he just dragged Hunter¡¯s packs back and lay down like he was going to sleep. To hell with it. It was a huge chunk of rock. If anyone tried to steal it it would be easy to find out who it was. Something could still try to kill him in the middle of the night, but Daniel didn¡¯t care. He¡¯d waited long enough and he needed something he could enjoy. You¡¯re a good way away, right?

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    Yes.

    Hang on, I¡¯m toggling the link. A brief flitter of emotions crossed between the two, muffled by the distance. Let¡¯s do this.

    ¡­

    Hunter was hidden in the tall grass of the field closest to where the mortals had made their camp. They were still a couple days from the village but had gone far enough to pass into the grasslands that predominated the interior of the region. The concealing terrain still carried the rain of the day, though the humidity had dropped to the point where Hunter¡¯s senses weren¡¯t drowning.

    Identify Creature, for Hunter, did nothing to help him smell, hear, or see prey. He didn¡¯t feel the loss of the power as acutely as Daniel, given his instinctual ability to be aware of his surroundings. It primarily benefited Daniel, who lacked that. Even so, recent events had made the ringcat more cautious. The dragon, as huge and ungainly as it had been, had avoided his senses until it was almost too late.

    Hmm. Dangerous. Hunter then acknowledged that he just thought something to himself, instead of Daniel, self-reflectively. Before Daniel, he hadn¡¯t had any coherent thoughts at all, much less the internal monologue that was slowly developing. Hunter regarded it as a bad habit but an inevitability of speaking to Daniel through thought. That was something else. The word inevitability. It was a big word. Seven syllables. Hunter¡¯s thoughts struggled to fully grasp it, but he could understand the word. Hunter knew other ringcats didn¡¯t develop this way when they Grew. They became stronger, bigger. So had he, but he¡¯d also gotten smarter. Why?

    Hunter sniffed at the night air and felt a pang of loss. What had been done to him, what he¡¯d agreed to, couldn¡¯t be reversed. Ringcats weren¡¯t extremely social by nature but formed packs more often than not. He¡¯d never join one. He traveled with the hunters now, carrying their scents as deep in his fur as their influence was in his mind. That alien sense that had tried to drive him to kill Daniel when he¡¯d released him from the charm effect was completely gone.

    That was fine. He¡¯d been weak before Daniel found him. Starving. He¡¯d have died one way or the other if he hadn¡¯t chosen to accept the light. Another sniff. Ears rotated to focus on distant sounds. He had competition, mortal and monster. As much as Daniel worried about his safety, Hunter was keener to the dangers of the wild. Hunter knew what he could and what he couldn¡¯t fight. Right now, he was searching for the former.

    There. A small group of three, well, Hunter didn¡¯t know what Daniel would call them and there was no power to name them. They were prey, no more fearsome than what he normally hunted after Growing. Monsters. Recent days had led him to such creatures. The old quarry held no more challenge or interest now that he could kill them easily. Hunter wasn¡¯t cruel, wanton killing without reason had no reason. It was against his nature. Except for the moles, he¡¯d still go after those foolish enough to be near the surface.

    When the cool night air stirred, Hunter knew it was time. No light shined, nothing told him it was time to act. The world and he had merely moved into the right order. He looked towards where he felt Daniel was. I am ready. Are you?

    Almost. There was something in that single word. Hunter wasn¡¯t built to care about the feelings of others, though that too was a part of his nature that was changing. With others it was hard, but with Daniel?

    Sad?

    It¡¯s just nothing. Nothing important. Honestly, I could use some time not being myself.

    What was that supposed to mean? Hunter¡¯s stomach bit at him as he tried to understand. It wasn¡¯t the words themselves, but what he felt underneath them. Ever since fire had come from the sky, Hunter had been reminded of fear and Daniel had been unsettled. He¡¯d tried to help, but the Artificer¡¯s mood had shifted around and that by itself put Hunter on edge. He sounded as close as he had been to at peace, which was good, so long as it stayed that way.

    You¡¯re a good way away, right? Daniel interrupted his thoughts.

    Yes.

    Hang on, I¡¯m toggling the link. Hunter braced himself. The odd emotions and the underlying framework of Daniel¡¯s mind grated against him whenever the second link between them was at its strongest. Of all the things he hated, this was only below the stopping of time, and just above Daniel¡¯s continued insistence of using him as a mount. Fortunately, they were far enough away that there was barely a whisper of Daniel¡¯s extended emotional state before things went back to normal. Let¡¯s do this.

    Pressure at the edges of his mind, like smoke on the horizon. Something that could be ignored if he looked the other way. If Hunter had a hint of capriciousness in him he might have considered waiting a few seconds, or a minute, to let Daniel into his mind. However the beast was nothing if not direct. He accepted the gentle request, only for Daniel to start screaming.

    Turn it down! T- The presence in his mind left. What was that?

    Hmm? Hunter was bemused. He¡¯d only felt the slight tingling that accompanied being the host. Maybe Daniel alone had been affected by the Empathic Link, but he doubted that. Not for any real reason, but he knew that was wrong.

    I think I woke Khare up. And a few other people. Hold on.

    It was a few minutes before Daniel¡¯s thoughts returned. Hunter could have prodded him, and he was getting impatient. He would need to move soon or he¡¯d lose his chance. However, despite his earlier shouting towards Daniel, there was still a part of Hunter that felt inferior. He was weaker than Daniel in most ways, dependent on him for many things, and he owed him a life debt. Maybe two. His friend hadn¡¯t consciously leveraged this and was trying to be better. That didn¡¯t change the fact that Hunter was left to wait with almost no explanation.

    Alright. Sorry. People thought you¡¯d sensed something coming and were making a big deal about getting the other hunters back to camp.

    Hmm. Hunter grumbled. For some reason, Daniel didn¡¯t catch the implied dissatisfaction.

    What was that anyway? Were you using an ability or something? I didn¡¯t think you had any new ones.

    What?

    It felt like I was drowning!

    Hunter raised an eye ridge and then blinked rapidly to dispel the expression. That wasn¡¯t a habit he was picking up, but a lingering side effect of the empathy bath both he and Daniel had taken earlier that day. I feel normal, Hunter thought, with the inflection of a shrug.

    You feel like that all the time?

    Better at night. I was injured before. Even so, Hunter didn¡¯t feel so different compared to when he was recovering. Those days it was the edges of his senses that had suffered the most. Maybe they¡¯d been dulled, but it was nothing like how Hunter felt the few times he¡¯d shared Daniel¡¯s perception. His friend¡¯s awareness of the surroundings was so limited, and every time he crossed the divide he felt vulnerable.

    Well, yeah ok. But that was pure overload. Not as bad as the Empathic Link but I could barely hang on. There was a pause. Maybe I just need to ease into it like a hot tub. Take it a bit at a time.

    Can you do that? So far, Hunter¡¯s experience with this particular ability was all or nothing.

    N-no. I don¡¯t think so. My phone, back when I had it, didn¡¯t say either way. Stupid Encyclopedia. Another pause. Alright. I¡¯m going to try it again, no screaming this time. Nothing out loud at least.

    None inside either, Hunter growled. Daniel¡¯s initial panic had been loud, but not in a way that drowned out his hearing. It was worse than that, disrupting his concentration and awareness of his surroundings. The scream had felt like it had been ripped from his instincts, which had initially given the ringcat the impression that he was in extreme danger. As an offensive tactic it was promising, though the only one Daniel could use it on was him. The request came again. Hunter did entertain the idea of blocking it this time but relented. And braced for the screaming. Nothing happened, though the presence in his mind was there. What?

    C-can you close your eyes? Daniel¡¯s voice, now coming from inside of his head, sounded immensely strained. Hunter obliged and felt the relief cast off from his friend. Sharing senses this way made the distance of the Empathic Link effectively zero. Even at a lower intensity, Hunter got a faint sense of what Daniel was feeling. When Daniel ¡®spoke¡¯ again, his voice was only slightly less strained. I want to stop time. Only for a few seconds, I don¡¯t have the mana for anything longer.

    Hunter growled audibly and inside his mind, Daniel winced. Why?

    This is still too much. I¡¯m trying to ignore what I can, but, hang on. The presence left. Sorry. I don¡¯t know how to describe it. Like I¡¯m staring at the sun, almost. Your hearing and sense of smell are just, it¡¯s too much! I thought taking out vision would make it easier. I¡¯m thinking if I can just get used to you before I add in everything else it¡¯ll be easier. Another pause. Why all this hesitation? Hunter! I should have thought of this earlier!

    What?

    You don¡¯t like Moment of Clarity because you can¡¯t hear or smell anything during it. That¡¯s it, isn¡¯t it? Now that Daniel mentioned it, no. That was a big part, but not exactly true. Even so, it gave Hunter an idea. For the third time, Hunter felt Daniel asking to enter his head. This had taken too long. The prey he¡¯d sensed earlier had been noticed by something else and it was too late to go after them. That did annoy Hunter, but if he could make Daniel more wary of stopping time that would be a worthy trade. He accepted, closing his eyes again.

    Alright, damn, this is still too much. Doing it now, this should hopefully- agh! It wasn¡¯t a prolonged scream, more a shout, but it still further annoyed Hunter as Moment of Clarity activated.

    The full reason why Hunter couldn¡¯t tolerate Moment of Clarity as well as Daniel escaped the ringcat, though he was beginning to better understand the differences between them. Put simply, Hunter was so much more reliant on all his senses, not just sight. For Daniel, his primary sense was vision. Moment of Clarity didn¡¯t impede that.

    However, you couldn¡¯t just turn off your other senses like you could sight. While taste wasn¡¯t universally important for Hunter, the rest were separate layers of the world he used in tandem to comprehend everything. Taking those away in one fell swoop, even temporarily, shot a sense of panic into him that was hard to shake. The moment extended as, disoriented, Daniel first tried to leave Hunter¡¯s body and found he couldn¡¯t while Moment of Clarity was active. Several more seconds dragged by as he figured this out, and then it was over. As soon as time restarted, Daniel¡¯s mind was gone.

    Ok, ok. That was¡­

    Bad, Hunter thought with complete vindication.

    Yeah. It was even worse than that first time. I can¡¯t even describe it. I think I can¡¯t do that anymore.

    Not going to hunt?

    My nerves are too shot. I want to, but it¡¯s just too much. Maybe tomorrow we can do some exposure therapy. A little bit here and there so I can get used to it. How did you share my senses so easily?

    Used to it by then. It was true. Being in Daniel¡¯s body was nothing compared to the sheer sensory deprivation of Moment of Clarity.

    Oooh. Yeah, I get it now.

    No more stopping time?

    Only when necessary, Daniel thought back quickly. Well, that wasn¡¯t a total disaster. It¡¯s too bad. Nothing you did, it would have just been nice for something to go right today.

    Hunter didn¡¯t have anything to say to that. He knew Daniel was hurting, but also didn¡¯t know how to help. To him, pain was something you just had to deal with. Eventually it would go away, and the only thing Hunter knew would speed up the process was to be there for the person you cared about. Which he¡¯d already tried. Daniel was afraid too, but couldn¡¯t run from or fight what he was afraid of like Hunter would. Unease built up again with that helplessness. The ringcat brought himself up and looked to the left. More prey. I am going to hunt.

    Good, yeah. The noncommittal response probably meant Daniel was trying to sleep.

    Hmm. Sleep would be an issue. Hunter didn¡¯t get tired often, his kind were built to get by with short rests here and there so long as they had a solid sleep every week or so. That was enough to replenish them mentally as well as magically. Adult ringcats didn¡¯t have too many ways to burn through their mana, but Hunter was the exception. Strangely, he¡¯d also found himself needing slightly more sleep as if the excessive mana drain was affecting him mentally.

    None of that was a problem. The problem was what had happened the last time Daniel had gone to sleep. The link. Hunter shuddered. No sleep tonight. Someone had to be awake to make sure that didn¡¯t happen again. If he couldn¡¯t help Daniel feel better, it was the least he could do.

 Chapter 58: ReFocusing

    Mavar Helioc, Prime of the Illustrious, stood with his subordinate Sasha in the largest room of the collective. Room was as fitting a word as office was for Mavar¡¯s personal quarters. A large cavern had been emptied and then reinforced to fit this space. Magic encircled the stone to screen against foreign sight, and to prevent anything occupying the room from leaving. Mavar could force his way out, but he was the only one here that could.

    This ¡®room¡¯ was the heart of one of the Illustrious¡¯ ongoing projects: monster design. It was a form of magic so advanced, Mavar was certain the mortals hadn¡¯t rediscovered it beyond what the Octyrrum allowed Beastmasters to do. Both because of the depth of magical knowledge needed, and because the gods themselves suppressed the practice. They didn¡¯t want their followers to repeat an old mistake. The Illustrious, however, were practiced enough that this wouldn¡¯t be an issue, and they needed every edge they could get in the coming years.

    Cells of varying terrains filled the space. To a quick and casual glance, the cavern could have been mistaken for an underground zoo. Small ones for works in progress, and larger ones for testing. Those who had yet to slip the binds of the Gods could even train here against failed projects.

    This entire operation was the responsibility of Sasha. She had retained all of her youth, magic making her appear half of her true age. Vanity wasn¡¯t responsible, just the natural effects of a magically imbued body. Mavar, if anyone, was guilty of intentionally altering his looks. The typical human lifespan didn¡¯t get into the thousands of years so some alteration outside of the norm was to be expected. Considering he specialized in transmutation, Mavar could appear however he liked. Mavar had chosen to reinforce his reputation as a wise Prime with a form matching a normal human in their sixties.

    Intentions aside, Mavar¡¯s face also displayed concern and anger. Only a fraction was directed at Sasha, enough to keep her standing despite the days they¡¯d spent without sleep. They were both next to a pool ten meters in diameter and depth, watching a pulsing red and blue mass develop. Sasha held instruments, each roughly in the shape of a wand but distinct from the others, between all of her fingers as she worked. This was a rush job based on old designs and would turn out poorly, though neither expected a functional monster. They just needed to see it. Well, Mavar needed to see it, and his will was the only thing that mattered.

    ¡°Your analysis,¡± he said flatly.

    ¡°I, I should not comment on this creature until it is finished, Prime,¡± Sasha answered carefully, thinking this a trick question.

    ¡°The anomalies. Start with the first one.¡±

    ¡°Oh.¡± Sasha had notes taken from the observers but had to rely on memory given her current task. Splitting her attention wasn¡¯t too difficult given how far she had advanced. That wasn¡¯t technically the right term anymore, but if she still had a class she would be around level six. ¡°A ringcat, originally a young variant, level 0. Affected by a yet unknown power Unidentified to the point that even you, Prime, cannot unseal it.¡± There was no reprimand for the implication. Mavar never punished one who spoke the truth. ¡°In that way, we cannot be sure if its development is merely unusual, or directly affected by the kind of work I do here.¡±

    ¡°It did not develop into one of our variants upon Growth.¡±

    ¡°No, it didn¡¯t.¡± Sasha pondered that as she continued to modify the growing essence of the creature in front of her. That was delicate work. Only deft hands could maintain the balance of power within the form while altering the mana structure. Ultimately, that set the limits on what the creature could be. When it came to artificially inducing a slow version of natural monster spawning, such a thing had to be set at the beginning. Trying to create something more or less powerful after the fact, even accidentally, could have adverse outcomes.

    ¡°To my knowledge, there are ten level one variants we have developed which the Gods restrict from naturally occurring. There is a roughly 10% chance the ringcat could have accessed our designs but randomly Grew into the normal one.¡±

    ¡°A 9.0909, etc, chance,¡± Mavar corrected sternly.

    ¡°Yes, Prime.¡± A few of the dozens moving about the chamber turned their heads, taking notice of that exchange, but did not interrupt. That would be very foolish. ¡°Not precisely within the bounds of significance, but I would say it is still a thin enough margin that we can rule out that ringcat having access to our designs.¡± Her eyes widened for a moment. ¡°So what we did to the region¡¯s Spoke hasn¡¯t changed how monsters normally develop under the Octyrrums¡¯ rules. At least, on the macro scale.¡±

    ¡°Correct.¡± This simple word was how Mavar applauded. ¡°You have grasped the significance of this work then?¡±

    ¡°From what I can tell so far, there is no way this monster would develop naturally. I would like to finish the process to be sure, of course.¡± Her eyes flicked to the side. ¡°Prime, we don¡¯t know what properties the Incarnate developed, do we?¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Mavar said flatly. ¡°We played a part, but ultimately it was someone else¡¯s design. An uncertainty I do not enjoy, but what we will receive in trade for our services is worth losing our sure grasp on the future.¡±

    Sasha nodded at that. ¡°Could the Origin Beast have spawned this variant?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± That same tone. Absolute confidence in what he was saying. Mavar only spoke the truth as he saw it. ¡°That is the strongest conclusion I can draw. Though it is strange. None of the collectives reported seeing any of our creations among the enemy¡¯s number during the last Collapse.¡±

    Sasha didn¡¯t have anything to add to that, only fear if that fact were to change for this one. ¡°Its servant managed to fully rouse it. How did that happen without coordination, or you predicting it?¡±

    ¡°The meddling of one aware of how this world works. I do not know enough to speculate who.¡± Something popped out of the main mass in the pool. It looked like a smaller version of the roughly formed monster. This spawn was also unfinished and died instantly, not under the sustaining effect of Sasha¡¯s equipment. ¡°What would it take to fully spawn this creature in a few minutes? Artificially, of course.¡±

    ¡°More power than mine, Master. It must be the Origin Beast. To appropriate a design this old, it would be reasonable to assume it can craft every variant we have.¡± She vetted her next question carefully and spoke as respectfully as she could. ¡°Does this conflict with any of your Foresights?¡±

    ¡°No. The consequences of allowing one of the number this early to awaken do not have that resounding of an effect. This local area will experience system incursion sooner, but that is all. They do not significantly improve a monster¡¯s power over what their mana structure would allow. They just alter affinities, strengths, and weaknesses as we do. This is ignoring the grand work they can accomplish through Communion, but that has its limits.¡±

    ¡°Prime, that¡¯s still enough to threaten us!¡± Sasha exclaimed. Close to impertinence, though here she spoke of her specialty and it was thus allowed. ¡°Take the Draconic variant we¡¯ve implemented in various species. You know what it costs to add those advantages. If someone isn¡¯t prepared to capitalize on the weaknesses, then all there are are strengths. If every Origin Beast that returns gains access to our variants, they could overwhelm the godbound and challenge us for the Hub.¡±

    ¡°This is a threat we can easily manage in kind. We have been preparing for this.¡±

    ¡°But what about the mortals in this region? The plan states that they need to escape.¡±

    ¡°Yes. They will.¡± Mavar frowned, unable to allow that statement to stand on its own or betray his principles. ¡°They likely will. Enough, at least, along with the one we care about. Though my predictive capabilities are growing less accurate when it comes to this region.¡± He sighed and pointed to the pool. ¡°Now that we are certain this creature was not spawned in the lake, and cannot be generated naturally, there is no chance of further interference from the Origin Beast. Of those among them that try and escape, I conservatively estimate 80% losses amongst their fighting force and total loss of civilian life.¡± His even tone betrayed no emotion. ¡°An acceptable outcome. I have given the Artificer what he should need to survive those odds. In the end, everyone else here is of little consequence.¡±

    ¡­

    Daniel¡¯s eyes hurt. The soft glow in front of him wasn¡¯t bright enough to damage his vision from prolonged exposure, but he¡¯d been staring so long they¡¯d started to go dry. No eye drops to help with that, and there wasn¡¯t anything that could help him with what he was trying to do.

    He was sitting in one of the damaged buildings adjacent to Hagain¡¯s library. The village had suffered in the absence of the people following the Tyrant¡¯s march. Scourging of the countryside had beaten back some but not all of the monster population, and the remainder took their vengeance on the undefended structures. This meant Murdon was met with a worsened housing crisis in addition to the food and morale concerns affecting those under his care. Daniel had an additional problem to solve.

    Thomas had destroyed his Focus. Well, it was more accurate to say he¡¯d accidentally caused it to be struck by lightning. The result was the same; Daniel¡¯s Artificer powers were gone. Getting it back was proving difficult.

    There weren¡¯t any other Artificers in the Thormundz, which turned out to be a huge problem. As Lograve, and the book he¡¯d given Daniel, had explained, the first Focus people got was made during the last step one normally took in taking a class. While that process was similar, each class had intricacies. Some bound themselves to items, some to ideals or oaths, and for some their own body served as an intrinsic Focus.

    While Lograve could walk Daniel through the theory and make suggestions, there was no direct way he could help. The Arcanist definitely couldn¡¯t make another smartphone, which was proving to be the main barrier standing in Daniel¡¯s way. The heliorite sat before him on a heavy table. It was the only magical material of note anyone had, the rumors of andorite and the rest simply a falsehood included to sell Lograve¡¯s team on the initial excursion into the mine. It was Daniel¡¯s best bet at regaining his Focus. Yet, after three days of various activities including poking it, chipping off small pieces, and failed attempts at meditation, Daniel was at a loss.

    There was a soft knock at the door, which Daniel took as a sign to stop staring at the magical rock. He had a good guess who it was, especially as he hadn¡¯t heard the guard speak prior. Daniel and his heliorite weren¡¯t the only things this house held. Hunter, for one, normally slept on the ground floor during the day. More important was the collection of magical items and potions that had been recovered from those the Tyrant had distributed them to. One guard stood at the front entrance, and another lounged near the stairs leading to the basement to prevent anyone else from misappropriating them.

    Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

    It was odd to have a private security detail. Stranger still was the leather armor and spears they carried as opposed to suits and guns. Daniel nodded to the guard on the inside whose name he had forgotten, and saw Thomas walking in with trays of food. Janice closed the door behind them, eyeing the food but not commenting.

    The other guard wasn¡¯t as polite. ¡°Don¡¯t suppose you can spare a bite?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ll get yours when they come by.¡± Thomas started up the stairs and the other man just shrugged. It¡¯d been the same answer he¡¯d gotten the past two days.

    For his part, Hunter didn¡¯t react. He wasn¡¯t hungry.

    ¡°Any luck?¡± Thomas asked hesitantly when they sat down in Daniel¡¯s room.

    ¡°Yeah, I uh, think so.¡±

    ¡°Guy,¡± Thomas sighed. ¡°I had a thought last night. Are you sure it has to be the same thing? Maybe you could make something simple and switch out later.¡±

    Daniel glared at the heliorite. ¡°Are you ever going to tell me how you know when I¡¯m lying?¡±

    ¡°Sorry, Guy.¡± Thomas took a bite out of the roasted meat. It was from a monster, although the identity was uncertain and the quantity was sparse. It was hot at least, the Cleric had been almost first in line for the public queue. ¡°I should be able to get my Focus back today.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s good. I¡¯m glad.¡± There was a minute of silence as both got halfway into their meals. ¡°Hunter¡¯s still not close, but he¡¯s been a lot more active. Thanks for the suggestion.¡±

    ¡°Surprised no one else thought of it while we were in Roost¡¯s Peak.¡± Thomas shrugged. ¡°Though I¡¯d heard the Beastmasters there didn¡¯t send out their monsters too often. No point, right?¡± He pulled the rest of the meat off his bone but didn¡¯t immediately eat it. ¡°All of this stuff with you and monsters and, you know¡­¡± Thomas trailed off, not daring to go further due to Lograve¡¯s standing threats. ¡°I know getting out of here¡¯s the priority, but Guy. It just, I don¡¯t know.¡± Thomas shook his head.

    You don¡¯t know the half of it, Daniel thought, glad he¡¯d kept his origins a secret from the Cleric. The revelations already made to Thomas had shaken him enough as it was. ¡°I think the problem¡¯s that I¡¯m trying to use this material more than anything. I have an idea of where to start with making what I want, but to get there I have to work out how to get this stupid rock to my level.¡±

    ¡°You can¡¯t use anything else?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think so. I tried for an hour or so with basic stuff like wood and nothing happened.¡± Daniel nodded to one of the planks that was still in the room. ¡°Not that I expect it to, but I¡¯m running out of ideas. If I can just make it again, I¡¯ll know if I¡¯m right about how I can get more formulae. The cart¡¯s still there?¡±

    ¡°The pile of rotting monsters? Yeah, but I don¡¯t think you have too much time left if you need them. Not to rush you or anything Guy, but if you haven¡¯t left this house then you wouldn¡¯t know. I¡¯d say you have a day before people get rid of them just to be safe from the stink.¡±

    ¡°I guess it¡¯ll have to be tonight. How¡¯s Sigron and the rest?¡± Daniel asked over whatever Thomas was about to say.

    ¡°Tak is pretty much fine now. The only thing holding him up the past few days was that leg. I mean, Guy, he was missing muscle in places and now that¡¯s all fixed. Regeneration,¡± Thomas grunted. ¡°Almost makes me want to take a level in Totem Warrior.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t recommend getting it from another soul.¡± Thomas laughed and Daniel felt like he was breathing easily for the first time today. The Cleric was humoring him, but that by itself was enough. ¡°So how is Sigron?¡±

    ¡°About the same?¡± Daniel didn¡¯t need a lie detecting power to hear the hesitation in Thomas¡¯ voice. ¡°It¡¯s not, look, it¡¯s not something you need to worry about.¡±

    ¡°I thought they¡¯d stabilized him?¡±

    ¡°Well yeah, Quala did. Then?¡± Thomas grit his teeth. ¡°He got an infection. We¡¯re not sure if it¡¯s something specific to the skabs, if that root thing had something, or if it¡¯s just a normal infection, but Quala can¡¯t fix it.¡±

    ¡°She doesn¡¯t have something to cure disease?¡± Thomas shook his head. From Hunter¡¯s recovery, Daniel knew there wasn¡¯t a one size fits all healing spell, at least at this level. Someone in Roost¡¯s Peak had had an appropriate power, but they hadn¡¯t survived the dragon.

    ¡°She even advanced her wisdom to try and get something new. Didn¡¯t work.¡±

    ¡°Potions?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t think so Guy. She¡¯d have thought of that. Did you know she stole a few potions before betraying the Tyrant? If there were any I think she¡¯d have mentioned it.¡± Thomas scratched his head. ¡°Could check, but the guy guarding that door¡¯s always grumpy.¡±

    ¡°What about, uh.¡± Daniel tried to think. Infection wasn¡¯t his mother¡¯s specialty, though that hadn¡¯t stopped her from warning him about picking at cuts or eating sand. That advice was given at a young age, and understandably didn¡¯t include details specifics on treatment courses should he get one. Did the Octyrrum even have antibiotics? Other remedies, at least? It wasn¡¯t like there was anything he could suggest either way. ¡°What else can you do?¡±

    ¡°Hope we get out of here soon enough. Should be someone in the other regions that can help.¡± Thomas was watching Daniel closely and he had to ask.

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve been hard on yourself lately. You ok?¡±

    Daniel shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s not like I gave him the infection or anything. Unless there were bacteria in the glue?¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Nothing,¡± Daniel said quickly. He hadn¡¯t thought about what could be in the skab glue. It was biological, and that made him somewhat wary of using the remaining spheres. Also, do they know about germs, or do they just call them something else? Either way, another thing to keep track of not mentioning. He looked at the heliorite again. They¡¯d both finished eating and were, at this point, wasting time. ¡°I should keep trying with the Focus. I need to finish it before those corpses go too bad.¡±

    ¡°You think that stinking pile is worth anything?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s just a theory. I don¡¯t want to tell people and get their hopes up, but if I¡¯m right-¡± Daniel cut himself off. The idea he had would almost be too good to be true. To know for sure, he had to remake his Focus.

    ¡°Well, good luck Guy. Truly. And if you ever need to talk about, you know, everything that¡¯s happened I can come by for more than just food. Or Quala can.¡±

    ¡°Thanks,¡± Daniel said, not commenting on the offer. ¡°I¡¯m glad you keep coming by with food, but I can get it with what they bring by for Janice and the other guy if you¡¯re tired or busy.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not a problem, Guy. See you tomorrow!¡±

    Daniel frowned after Thomas left. It was nice to see him, but he knew part of the reason the Cleric visited was guilt.

    He shook his head. Back to work, although he was going to hold off on the heliorite for a few minutes. Hunter, you awake?

    Hmmm, was the somewhat aggravated response. The past few days had been taxing for the ringcat as he¡¯d joined in the village¡¯s sweeping hunts around the countryside. Hunter ate what he killed, but Murdon wouldn¡¯t complain about another actor suppressing monster populations. It did mean the ringcat was at continued risk for friendly fire, until Thomas of all people had made a good suggestion.

    Other people used monsters. They didn¡¯t hunt by themselves as Hunter did, but some Beastmasters or those with an appropriate power used their creatures as scouts. There were - Daniel stopped himself from using the word collar - sashes that could be used to mark them friendly. No untamed or undominated monster would tolerate these, Hunter certainly hadn¡¯t at first, so it was an easy way to prevent a case of mistaken identity.

    I want to try again. I need a distraction and it¡¯s probably better if you¡¯re drowsy anyways. Only for a few minutes.

    Fine, Hunter relented without too much opposition. No screaming.

    I¡¯m better than that now. Hold on, I¡¯m getting on the bed.

    Hmmm.

    With repeated exposure to the breadth of Hunter¡¯s sensorium, Daniel had begun to better understand and cope with the overload. It wasn¡¯t just that Hunter sensed things better, it was that he was on a completely different level from Daniel. It couldn¡¯t have just been from the Keen Sense feature the ringcat possessed, the biological differences and ways the nervous system worked had to be in play. Not that Daniel could guess at how that exactly worked, and his only idea to cope so far had been to brute force it.

    The analogy he¡¯d landed on was that Hunter¡¯s senses had an added dimension. It was like he was someone from a comic strip that was suddenly brought into the real world. In hindsight, he¡¯d been stupid to think he could effortlessly tolerate Hunter¡¯s body at full strength immediately. The only reason Hunter could handle the reverse was all the times he¡¯d used Moment of Clarity, forcing the ringcat to adapt. Thinking back to the first team fight he¡¯d been in, Daniel felt guilty about what he¡¯d put Hunter through. He¡¯d been so focused on his performance and survival he had just treated the ringcat like an inventory item up until the point Hunter had spoken up for himself.

    Things were getting better now on multiple fronts. He¡¯d gotten up to three minutes of tolerating the exposure. At first, it had been like trying to hold onto something that was vibrating intensely, like the prank gum from middle school. With time, it was more like swimming against a current that grew weaker each time. He couldn¡¯t power through it now, but one day he¡¯d be able to inhabit Hunter¡¯s body without issue. He knew it. And then, well, Daniel hadn¡¯t thought that far but it¡¯d be cool at least.

    With the slightest hesitation, Daniel asked and was allowed into Hunter¡¯s mind. That process had become as familiar as a handshake. For just a fraction of a second Daniel felt nothing. Then, it was back to trying to withstand the gale force winds that assaulted him. Amidst what seemed the equivalent of music blasting in his ears and pepper spray fired up his nose, Daniel felt humor weakly radiate from Hunter himself. The ringcat had adopted a bemused outlook on how difficult it was for Daniel to tolerate this.

    He couldn¡¯t turn Hunter¡¯s head or open the eyes he currently possessed. Taking control of the ringcat was a goal reserved for after he was confident he wouldn¡¯t freak out and accidentally injure him. Daniel ignored that and tried to pick out different senses among the maelstrom. He was getting better at distinguishing common and strong ones, like dirt, but that hardly compared to how Hunter used it to drive Identify Creature.

    Cooked meat was another that stood out. Hunter wasn¡¯t too hungry at the moment, he¡¯d gorged almost every night so far, but ringcats were carnivorous hunters. Their senses were tuned to something just like the lunch Daniel had had. Not even the tray remained, but the scent was stronger through Hunter than it had been when it was right up to Daniel¡¯s face.

    Isolating individual sounds and scents was one of the strategies Daniel had found worked best to prolong his endurance here. It was probably how Hunter did it too, or else the ringcat was an undiscovered genius when it came to multitasking. Janice shifted outside and Hunter¡¯s ears twitched at the sound, focusing for just a moment on it to detect the possibility of an attack before relaxing.

    To Daniel, it was like a grenade had gone off nearby. The small amount of control he¡¯d held in the first ten seconds was shredded under an assault of what he¡¯d previously ignored. This was what had made him panic and start screaming the first time. He suppressed that reaction in his own body at least, but the bleed off of anxiety from the Empathic Link was making parts of Hunter¡¯s fur stand on end.

    That was another thing. While Hunter¡¯s keen ears and nose were the primary barriers to Daniel feeling, if not comfortable, then sane during this exchange of senses, the general alien feel of four legs, fur, and fangs had yet to feel natural. Hunter¡¯s exposed canines, and the lower jaw retraction that came from how they were structured with his skull, had the sensation of chronic underbite. At around sixty seconds of his most recent dive, Daniel had re-established thready control by focusing on the scent of a flower preserved in a cup by the window. If Hunter had been fully awake and aware of his surroundings, he might not have been able to. Doing this in a battle, when adrenaline would only spike Hunter¡¯s alertness, was impossible for now.

    Good, Hunter commented. While on this side of the space between them, the wall having been fully destroyed by everything that happened, Hunter¡¯s voice felt like it came from all around him. Should Hunter cross over during this time, the telepathy would go back to normal despite the juxtaposition.

    Getting better, Daniel thought slowly. How long he could keep this up was directly tied to his concentration and conversation sapped this. He held it there, a feat as mentally taxing as holding a plank position was physically, until the sound of a crying child undid his concentration again. There were several touchstones like the flower he¡¯d either placed or discovered to regain control. Whatever he might have accomplished was foiled by Hunter himself taking the attention of an approaching figure. A saturated palette of senses was thrown at Daniel and he began to drown, metaphorically thrashing against the overwhelming force pushing him down. He was forced to retreat to himself. Damn it!

    Sorry.

    No, it¡¯s not your fault. I¡¯ll have to get used to that eventually. Daniel opened his own eyes and rubbed his forehead. He had a headache and had probably been getting one while he was occupying Hunter¡¯s mind. This is a lot harder than I thought it would be. Wait, hold on.

    What?

    How did my body get a headache if it was your body¡¯s fault?

    Not my fault, Hunter thought defensively, though Daniel¡¯s tone hadn¡¯t been accusatory and the ringcat mimicked the joviality.

    Huh. Maybe my brain¡¯s still processing everything, even though I¡¯m possessing you? I guess that makes sense.

    Someone is here.

    Who?

    Bird.

    Daniel paled. Tlara?

    No. Hunter almost sounded curious. One from the mine.

    Tak? Thomas did say he was almost recovered. Hang on, I¡¯m coming down.

 Chapter 59: Delayed Reunions

    Janice, who was not at all familiar with Tak but wary of male avianoids after one had played such a crucial role in the Tyrant¡¯s plans, was not keen on letting him into the stockpile. Daniel heard their argument as he came down, which was mostly Janice saying no and Tak politely rephrasing his request.

    ¡°I wish to enter.¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    Tak thought for a moment. ¡°I would like to speak with someone inside.¡±

    ¡°Unless you have the Commander¡¯s permission, you can¡¯t enter this building,¡± Janice replied with the intensity of someone who would have been scanning rooftops for snipers on Earth.

    ¡°Could you get them and I stay here?¡± Tak¡¯s face projected innocent familiarity, distinguishable even on the abhuman features. ¡°Ah. No need.¡±

    Janice looked up at Daniel wearily as he walked down the stairs. ¡°Sir, this is supposed to be a secure location.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s ok, it¡¯s Tak.¡± Janice looked unmoved. ¡°He was on Lograve¡¯s team?¡±

    She sighed and stepped away from the door, not quite relaxing. Tak, for his part, walked in as if he hadn¡¯t had only half a leg a week ago. ¡°Hmm. Good, you are alive.¡±

    ¡°The same. You looked bad when they brought you in.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡± the guard in the back of the room asked, taking interest in the new interruption to his boredom. ¡°He looks fine to me.¡±

    ¡°Regeneration,¡± Tak said proudly to an approving nod. He turned back to Daniel. ¡°I would like to hunt. It has been too long.¡±

    Daniel felt a question in the statement. ¡°I¡¯m too busy to, wait.¡± Hunter was paying close attention to Tak, his head tilting in what might have been a display of curiosity. ¡°You mean Hunter? He¡¯s been going out nightly but you¡¯d have to ask him if he¡¯d be ok with a partner.¡±

    ¡°Was going to. You asked what I wanted first.¡± That was an odd response. Everyone in the original training team had gotten a dose of weird when he¡¯d first joined them, but Tak had been absent when Daniel had been more candid about Hunter¡¯s sentience. He tried to ask Tak what he¡¯d meant, but he and Hunter were sharing a look. After a few seconds, they both nodded. ¡°Good,¡± was all Tak said.

    ¡°What?¡± Daniel and the man behind him asked, the latter adding, ¡°You can talk to that thing?¡±

    ¡°No. I can understand.¡±

    The guard whom Daniel was still unable to use Identify Creature on scratched his head. ¡°Well, how¡¯s that different?¡±

    Tak shrugged. ¡°It is. Will meet him tonight. Hunt. It will be good to be out again.¡± He nodded in either thanks or acknowledgment of Daniel and did the same bobbing motion to Janice on the way out.

    What was that Hunter? Daniel asked as he walked back upstairs to evade questions from the remaining mortals.

    Hmm.

    Uh, ok. The nonresponse threw Daniel, but then again Hunter didn¡¯t owe him an answer. But he called you ¡®he¡¯. I mean, I do, but, look, this might mean he¡¯s a Spiritualist.

    So?

    So Rorshawd and his people were too. You might want to be careful.

    I like him, Hunter thought definitively. Not an enemy.

    Well, I¡¯ll trust you. From what I think I remember, Rorshawd was the only survivor here anyway. In a fashion. I guess it¡¯ll be good to have someone watch your back out there. Just don¡¯t get any ideas about getting a new best friend.

    No promises.

    With that out of the way, it was time to return to the heliorite. Daniel had to make this work. He had to. Just like how Hunter had to reach level two. There was more than just his locked powers riding on this, it was survival. The Tyrant was dead. Everyone still alive in the Thormundz was in the ruins of Hagain Village. If nothing was standing in their way, Murdon would have ordered them all to march out of the region and finally complete the evacuation. But there was a dragon. Another dragon, one stronger than Rorshawd, even if it hadn¡¯t stolen mortal potential.

    To have a shred of hope in defeating it, they¡¯d need more than their powers and whatever advancements they could squeeze out in the time left before monsters would inevitably overrun the village. Magical items could prove the edge they needed.

    There were some, stored carefully two stories below where he stood, but they wouldn¡¯t be enough. Not enough to make up for the loss of Kob. To get more they¡¯d need an Artificer, Daniel. He had a chance to make up for everything he¡¯d done, but all roads led through his broken Focus.

    ¡°I¡¯ll make this work. I have to,¡± he told himself, dragging the chair over to the table and reluctantly sitting down. He didn¡¯t want to look at the softly glowing ore, but he had to. The only thing he¡¯d figured out so far was that creating his Focus would require, well, focus. Beyond that, he could only hope that the inanimate rock would give up its secrets through silent interrogation alone.

    Minutes passed, and nothing happened. The biggest obstacle in all of this was boredom. Daniel¡¯s mind tended to wander when he didn¡¯t have something clear to work on. In this instance, it almost felt like he was waiting for the heliorite to be ready. Maybe, if it was lower level material, this would be easier. Daniel had no idea. So far his creations had been practical extensions of the properties of the lightning spines. That had generated formulae, true, but even if he had his Arcane Creator feature active, the creation of a Focus was something different. Something that would be bonded to him, instead of merely made by him. Creating that personal connection to this material was something he just couldn¡¯t wrap his head around.

    He¡¯d tried every approach he could think of. Focusing on each part of the creation process, rethinking the order of events he¡¯d assumed needed to happen, and even trying to directly touch the heliorite for as long as he could. At the very least he¡¯d gotten a better sense of the material. Analyze Material itself was locked, but that didn¡¯t mean he couldn¡¯t intuit and experiment.

    The name itself implied some sort of light or maybe radiant properties. Damage types existed in this world and the rumor of Murdon¡¯s breath attack had reached him. If necrotic damage existed, why not radiant? And the name, heliorite. Was it based intentionally on the mythological god Helios from his world, or was that just a coincidence? If knowledge had passed between Earth and the Octyrrum, that might mean other people were here. People from his world.

    Part of Daniel mused on that while he continued his attempts to draw a smartphone from the rock. It would make sense, wouldn¡¯t it? It was more likely that he wasn¡¯t unique than that he¡¯d been the only one drawn through. On the other hand, the Upswell had never happened before. If there had been people from his world here, the knowledge of Earth should have spread to counter the mythology of the Crest. Another possibility was that it had happened and had been ruthlessly suppressed by the churches to preserve their doctrine, which wouldn¡¯t bode well for Daniel¡¯s future.

    Minutes turned to hours as Daniel shifted in place. Shadows passed up the walls and then almost filled the room as dusk neared. There wouldn¡¯t be dinner tonight. Everyone who wasn¡¯t critically ill was down to one meal. The hunger made for an added distraction. Even the importance of what Daniel was trying to do couldn¡¯t change the reality of the village¡¯s food stores.

    Hunting was a stop gap measure at best. Eradicating the weaker monsters meant the stronger ones would seek other territory, at first. Over time, the absence of the Spoke would allow the average strength of monsters to increase. It¡¯d already started happening and no one knew what the presence of the origin beast would do. That was mostly because almost no one knew about it.

    The bottom line was that the average fauna in the wilds would become too strong to effectively hunt en masse, both for advancement and food. The monsters could out scale how quickly the mortals could level, especially this close to where the Crest met the Octyrrum. That was the true limit on how long they could stay here before they would need to challenge the dragon.

    Daniel¡¯s heart fell as the sun disappeared from his sight. He hadn¡¯t made any progress. Maybe if he hadn¡¯t distracted himself by training with Hunter, maybe if he worked through last night he would have cracked it. But the heliorite stood as impassively as it had this morning before him. It wouldn¡¯t happen tonight. He was about to get into bed when Hunter, fully waking up, thought something to him with a warning tone.

    She is here.

    Is it Tlara this time? Daniel tensed, unsure what the Beastmaster would want. Ever since she¡¯d taken Claire for him they hadn¡¯t interacted at all.

    No. Daniel looked out the window and felt paralysis creep across his spine and spread through his body. She saw him right before his legs buckled, which did take him out of her vision. He heard her at the door, asking to be let in. Janice wouldn¡¯t have agreed, but she only worked until dusk. The night shift was Alost, and he knew Claire well enough to trust her.

    I could stop her, Hunter offered.

    No! Don¡¯t do anything to her.

    Want her to come up?

    N-no. If Hunter had sounded like this Daniel would have called it mewling. Should he hide? No, Claire had seen him, she knew he was here. He should talk with her and get this over with. God, ¡®get this over with¡¯. But, I know what¡¯s going to happen. It was getting darker outside. Hunter, Tak¡¯s going to be waiting for you. Go ahead, I¡¯ll be fine.

    Are you sure?

    She¡¯s not going to kill me, but I think something worse is going to happen.

    What?

    Daniel couldn¡¯t put it into words. I won¡¯t be fine, but you don¡¯t need to be here for this.

    Hmm. It was a bothered grunt that coincided with the opening of the front door. Daniel peeked over the bottom of the window frame and saw Hunter exiting. His head turned to look inside, and then he padded off.

    Good luck, Daniel thought to him as he heard Claire walk up the stairs slowly. Somehow, she was at the door before he¡¯d had another coherent thought. The window, maybe he could jump out before she-

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    Claire opened the door hesitantly, making the hinges creak. She didn¡¯t enter but stood in the hallway that branched from the stairs. She just stood there, looking at him as he picked himself off the floor. The anger he was expecting wasn¡¯t there, but neither was there sadness. Just a cold gaze matched by a flat stance, with almost no intensity behind it. It was a tense moment that dragged on, neither speaking. Daniel was scared out of his wits, confronted with something he¡¯d done everything to avoid. He couldn¡¯t begin to guess what Claire was thinking. Eventually, she did break the silence. ¡°What are you?¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°That thing that killed my brother. I¡¯ve heard the rumors. Tell me.¡± There was no hint of familiarity in her stiff voice. It was like they¡¯d never met.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you want to hear.¡±

    She took a step forward, face unchanging. ¡°I wanted to hear that you were sorry. I wanted you to tell me how he died. What happened. I wanted to hold you as I mourned him.¡± Her voice was close to breaking, but she kept it low and refrained from shouting her pain to the world. These words were meant for Daniel alone. ¡°I don¡¯t know why you stayed away. I don¡¯t understand, because you didn¡¯t tell me. All I know now is that I don¡¯t know you and that this was a mistake.¡±

    ¡°Claire I-¡±

    She took another step forward, and Daniel¡¯s words broke off. ¡°But you know what killed my brother, more than anyone else. You¡¯re keeping a secret I deserve to know. Tell me. Then I¡¯ll leave.¡±

    It was not what Daniel had been expecting. In a way it was worse because he thought she was right, but he couldn¡¯t tell her. Too many people knew already. He thought about what to say, repeating the words in his mind to make sure he wouldn¡¯t stumble over them. ¡°Nothing I can tell you will change what happened. I can¡¯t tell you how sorry I am, but I also can¡¯t tell you what you want to know.¡±

    ¡°If you loved me at all-¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think I did,¡± Daniel confessed suddenly, preparing to launch into the results of the last week of his introspection. Claire jolted in place, struck by his words. ¡°I thought I did, but, wait!¡± Claire didn¡¯t wait. Whatever she¡¯d wanted him to say was forgotten as her eyes widened. She turned and started walking away. The inner guard, also exchanged with the setting sun, was looking anywhere but the stairs as Daniel ran after her.

    She strode for the door which was already open. Alost was talking with someone outside who was standing just by the doorframe. He let Claire pass, but then a scaly, leathered arm shot across to bar Daniel¡¯s way. Dark green feathers grew from around the elbow up. A beaked face peered out from behind the wall as Quala stood in Daniel¡¯s way. ¡°Get her back to my tents, Alost.¡±

    ¡°I have to guard-¡±

    ¡°Now. I will stay here until you return.¡± There was a tone in her voice. The authority of a surgeon in an operating theater, one that took the measure of life and death and acted accordingly. Her eyes went beyond Daniel to the interior guard who was now frozen in place. ¡°Leave.¡± The building emptied and Daniel stood dumbfounded by Quala. She was acting how he¡¯d expected Claire to, with righteous indignation. But what was she upset about? He thought of how Claire had been acting and began to sweat. ¡°Did you know what she was doing?¡± Quala asked forcefully, closing the door behind her. By the way she asked, there was something specific in mind. Something he would have to had instantly known upon asking.

    ¡°No. What do you mean?¡± Daniel looked up with innocent trepidation. The only other time Quala had been this serious was in battle.

    That seemed to satisfy her. ¡°What did you say to her?¡±

    ¡°She asked me about the dragon. What happened in the mountains. Why her brother died.¡±

    ¡°What did you tell her?¡± She asked it as if she could get the answer out of him through dissection if he held his tongue.

    ¡°Nothing. It wouldn¡¯t have done anything for her.¡± And I couldn¡¯t tell her the truth, for so many reasons. He wanted to say that last part out loud desperately, but Quala didn¡¯t know everything. She wasn¡¯t Lograve, and more importantly, she worshipped the Octyrrum. According to her religion, he shouldn¡¯t exist.

    Quala leaned back against the wall and let some of the tension in the room fade. ¡°As you can tell, Claire is currently under my treatment.¡±

    ¡°Is she injured? I didn¡¯t notice.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡± She raised an eyebrow. With that, there was a subtle shift in her expression. Daniel hadn¡¯t interacted with her long enough to appreciate the control she had over how she showed her emotions. It was an important skill for a doctor, he guessed. ¡°I cannot speak of specifics when it comes to its nature.¡± She hesitated for just a moment. ¡°But there is something more I have to ask. I saw the look on her face when she left. Is there anything that remains between you?¡±

    Daniel looked down, knowing what he¡¯d already assumed since the day after they¡¯d fought Rorshawd. ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°I see.¡± There was no judgment in Quala¡¯s voice. She spoke as if she was dictating notes. ¡°Will you attempt to change that?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    She regarded him with what was probably curiosity, then nodded. ¡°Thomas speaks highly of you.¡±

    ¡°He does?¡± Daniel was forced to ask when Quala didn¡¯t continue. He looked once more into her green eyes and saw she was still studying him.

    ¡°Yes. From what he says he owes you his life. As his mentor and someone who cares about him, that isn¡¯t a debt I can ignore.¡± She was still assessing him, choosing her words and the delivery of them carefully. Why was she being so particular about this?

    ¡°He¡¯s my friend.¡± Daniel shrugged, the background chaos of everything that had been set off by Claire showing up temporarily smothered by this conversation. He respected Quala for what she was, even if he couldn¡¯t tell her the whole truth. ¡°To be fair, he¡¯s healed me before.¡±

    ¡°Just so. I know you aren¡¯t one to take my advice, but I¡¯d still ask you to listen.¡± She paused to smile, giving him no chance to mistake the humor for something else. Some of the tension from being under her knife faded. ¡°Speak with me on this later. I will need to see to Claire and those others injured, but that does not mean you don¡¯t need my help.¡±

    ¡°I, uh, thank you but I¡¯m not hurt. And I¡¯ve got Regeneration¡­¡± Daniel let his sentence trail off. Quala frowned slightly.

    ¡°I think we both know that doesn¡¯t cure all ills. To be clear, another might not have offered you this. Your actions towards Claire can hardly be described in a charitable light.¡± Those words cut through Daniel¡¯s heart, the blow only slightly lessened by what she said next. ¡°By what you have done before, you¡¯ve argued differently. Neither can I deny that our circumstances have been the best. I can¡¯t say if you could ever get back what you¡¯ve lost, but I believe you haven¡¯t acted out of malice.¡± Daniel didn¡¯t have an answer for that. He¡¯d gotten lightheaded from the emotional turbulence of the moment. At the same time, Quala¡¯s words were kind and piercing. ¡°What do you say?¡± The woman¡¯s face was so strange. Even after over a month after arriving in this world, he still hadn¡¯t fully gotten used to the other races. Despite this, her presence now was calming. The inspection was over, all there was now was a hand reaching out to lift his spirit.

    I want to say yes, but if I do, would I be able to keep my secrets? His fears and his desire for peace warred for moments before he reached his conclusion. ¡°I¡¯ll do it.¡±

    Quala waited a few moments for Daniel to add a qualifier, or reverse himself, but he left it at that. ¡°Good. I also know you¡¯re trying to rebind your Focus. You might find my help will aid you. For now, sleep.¡± Daniel wanted to tell her that he needed to finish it tonight, but he couldn¡¯t tell her no. He still felt dizzy with a soreness in his throat that normally meant he was dehydrated. He returned to his room while Quala, true to her word, waited for Alost and the other guard to return.

    ¡­

    The night was here. Somewhere out there, Hunter was roaming with Tak. He would have liked to see that, but he couldn¡¯t detect their auras or tolerate sharing Hunter¡¯s senses. He should just go to bed. Daniel was even lying down covered in the rough linen that passed as a blanket in a room that he had to himself.

    It could be worse. He could have been mixed with the general population. There were barely audible cries of infants and small children filtering through the night air. Sleep would have been impossible should he have been bunked near them, to say nothing of what the ¡®bed¡¯ he¡¯d rest on might have looked like. That¡¯s where he¡¯d be now if he hadn¡¯t taken Lograve¡¯s offer. He¡¯d still probably be level one. Hell, Hunter might have never gotten his name or his personality.

    It wasn¡¯t the thoughts of what could have been that was keeping Daniel up. Not really. It was the breaking of his spirit from the rush of emotions, from him truly feeling the loss he¡¯d been fearing. The failure, his failure, to do anything over the past few days. And the worst of it all, the homesickness that burned through him like a fever and choked like a noose. It was impossible not to think of his mother when he spoke with Quala. There were too many ways in which they were similar which made the clear differences hurt all the more, like seeing the truth behind a desert mirage.

    There was also what had been on his Focus. Not the Encyclopedia, the other apps, or even the fact that it had been the channel for his Artificer powers. It was the photo. Another part of his soul chipped off with that. It wasn¡¯t something he¡¯d even considered until now, broken despite even the kindness of the Cleric. The phone had been one of only two things he¡¯d had left from Earth, but the most precious part of it had been the background image of his family.

    How long would it take for him to forget their faces? It was already becoming hard to remember their voices in good detail. When his father had never come back, it had taken a few months for him to need to listen to a recording to fully remember. Even that was gone. Memory was all that was left, and that too would fade. He could see the picture in his mind¡¯s eye, but he knew it would fade.

    All he could do was keep it there for as long as he could. Fix it in place. Think of it every day, when he woke to right before he slept. Do that until the day he¡¯d neglect to one morning, for one reason or another, and suddenly find he couldn¡¯t place the color of his sisters¡¯ eyes. Were they blue? Brown? Green? He knew the answer now, but how long would that last?

    Still, he held onto the hope that that memory would never die. Clung to it like it was a dying torch and he was lost in a dark wilderness. It was stupid, he knew. It was just a photo, and he hated how he looked in it. Hated himself for the half-frown he¡¯d worn amidst the rest of the smiles, but it was the only thing left of them. Consciousness waned as he grew closer and closer to sleep. Even Claire was sent to the depths of his mind, perhaps to appear in the coming nightmare. The picture remained, refusing to slip from the center of his attention, keeping him from fully succumbing to sleep.

    The longer this carried on, the odder it seemed. That image really wouldn¡¯t go away, the visual equivalent of a song stuck in his head. Why? He didn¡¯t have a power that would do that. There was something to it though that spoke to Daniel. He opened his eyes and could feel the image in his mind like it was a tangible thing, not unlike the feeling the advancement potential gave. How could a family photo be a resource?

    His eyes naturally fell on the only other thing in the room that could be considered a resource and found an echo. A connection, untethered but possible. It took him a minute to realize what this was; the way to remake his Focus. Nothing about it made sense, from the sudden revelation to why a family photo of all things was the key.

    For all appearances, the rough ore was the same. It did not shine brighter for what Daniel felt, its color did not change, nor did it grow warmer to burn the wood. There was just something inside of it like there was in him. Two pieces that he could unite to make a whole. He did not hesitate, did not think about the why or the how. The way he had searched for over the past few days was suddenly in front of him, and he took it.

    He tore the photo from his mind and threw it into the stone, along with all of the pain and isolation being apart from them caused. Now that he knew what he needed, his earlier attempts at breaking off parts of the rock seemed comically stupid. Focuses were things one lashed to their soul. He understood this now in a way words had failed. To make one, you had to offer something worthy of that bond. Mana as well, as an afterthought, necessary only to bring the material he worked with down to his level. That too was simple, something he¡¯d been so needlessly worried about. All he¡¯d gotten wrong was attempting this without the most important piece.

    When the two halves had joined within the heliorite, it was time to finish his Focus and draw it out. This was just as effortless and natural as what had already been done, even though he¡¯d never done this before. He just knew what to do, it was that simple. As long as he didn¡¯t overthink it, or question why it was happening, it would happen. And it did.

    Daniel opened his eyes and saw the Focus in his hands. It was different, glowing softly like the ore it had come from. The major differences were the screen on one side, and the lattice of blue and gold across the back. The three colors were once again reminiscent of Hunter¡¯s fur, even if the pattern was different. Another oddity, but Daniel didn¡¯t care. He unlocked the screen and almost cried when the photo was there to greet him. Words were on the screen as well, but he just absorbed those to understand later. There was still something else he had to do.

    Alost was back at the door when Daniel leaped from the window. The archer cried in alarm but didn¡¯t chase after Daniel for the sake of the stockpile. He hadn¡¯t seen the Focus and did not know anything other than that Claire and Quala had visited recently. Would he worry about what Daniel was going to do? Send people to the medical tents? That didn¡¯t matter.

    The pile was on the outskirts of the village, dumped far from the tents intact enough to house people and beyond where the first trees started. He only found it in the night because of how much it reeked. The bodies of the sparkbats were breaking down, too far gone even for the scavengers if they could make it this close to the village. Only Daniel could have use of them now, and it was time.

    The scanning function from the heightened Encyclopedia was the same as it was with the old Focus. It was a screen similar to a camera app that highlighted targets and told him if he needed to be closer for it to work. He hesitated several times as he walked closer, smell overpowering even his febrile enthusiasm. The tracing of light over each sparkbat overlapped to make the pile itself glow on his screen, changing from gray to blue as he drew closer. To reach all the way to the back he had to be right up to it, but he did it. When every body was in range, he used his power.

    Daniel read the words that crawled across his Focus, clutching it like a small sun against the darkness and death. He read and knew who he was, and what his place in this world should be. Standing, he began to walk slowly back towards the house. There was work that needed to be done.

 Chapter 60: To Slay A Dragon

    On the fifth day after their return, a meeting was held. There was no building large enough to host it, and even if there was it¡¯d be used for housing. Instead, everyone met where the Roster had once stood. The billboard was still there, unadorned. Murdon¡¯s careful planning had been upended on multiple fronts, and what was the point anyway? All matters of concern for this and every day afterward were focused on the final evacuation efforts. The sole item for discussion was the dragon.

    Commander Murdon was in the center of the street, surrounded first by Lograve, Quala, and the other headmen. Others were nearby, and in a sense, the entire village was a part of this discussion. Word would reach those sitting on porches and along the streets who in turn would spread what was spoken throughout the village proper and the camps around.

    There was no need to call for silence when the moment arrived. Those who were speaking did so in a whisper, not wanting to miss the start of the conversation themselves. What they heard first was a heavy, rasping sigh. ¡°Alright. We¡¯re here for one thing only. As you have been informed, there is a level six lightning dragon blocking the pass out of the Thormundz region. There are too many people here to sneak past or try and push through. The mountains surrounding us are too high and too infested to risk. The only way we can survive is by killing that monster.¡± Murmurs became louder as several games of telephone began. The miscommunication would cause issues, but there was no way of stopping it. There were no more secrets and it was impossible to keep this anywhere but in the open. Almost no secrets, Murdon corrected internally. ¡°By now word must have spread of what was done in Roost¡¯s Peak. I want to first stress that despite our victory, what we face in the pass will be a far greater enemy. Lograve.¡±

    There was a space cleared in the center, around which those most important stood. Lograve concentrated for a moment, making use of his illusion power. A replica of the pass, focusing on the lake at its peak, was formed. He could have done this as well with Aquakinesis, but that had required much more practice and would have made a poorer representation.

    While this happened, Rodrick asked a question. ¡°It has been said that the fire dragon possessed Regeneration, among other things it should not have. Some blaspheme to the point of saying it possessed a soul. Disregarding that, it still would be an above average threat for its level. Would defeating the lightning dragon be so different?¡±

    ¡°I am getting to that. You see, uh,¡± Murdon¡¯s eyes flicked into the air, annoyance coloring his eyes as he noticed someone levitating themselves to get a better view of the illusive map. ¡°Briefly, that dragon recklessly exhausted its mana, leaving it vulnerable. This is abnormal as creatures with intelligence and wisdom this high retreat before that point. We have no reason to believe the dragon that guards the pass will behave outside the norms of its kind. Additionally, in that fight we had Kob.¡±

    Lograve took up the explanation here as he adjusted the image, something else made easier due to his choice not to use Aquakinesis. ¡°That changes our original plan. Broad strokes, we were going to load up Kob with every buff we could until they glowed brighter than the sun, then use them to occupy the dragon while the rest of us targetted weak points. The water of the lake is a problem, but if I commit entirely to freezing the surface I can make a contestable area of about this size.¡± Solid surface covered about a quarter of the lake.

    ¡°I¡¯m guessing Murdon will need to fill in for Kob?¡± one of the other headmen asked warily. They¡¯d all been taken by the Tyrant¡¯s influence, and some were finding the transition back to undiluted reality difficult.

    ¡°Yes,¡± Murdon confirmed. ¡°But I will be a poor shield for the rest of our forces.¡±

    ¡°Murdon cannot occupy the dragon¡¯s attention as easily as he does yours,¡± Lograve added defensively. ¡°To be clear, he is putting himself in the most danger and I do not agree with that part of the plan.¡± Contention passed between the two friends before Lograve reluctantly continued. ¡°We face two major threats from this dragon and one main obstacle. Its flight is the obstacle, obviously. If half our people can¡¯t hit the damned thing they might as well be carrying sticks instead of swords. As for the threats? Its collective assortment of slashing and bludgeoning appendages, and its lightning breath. It should go without saying that no one of our level can expect to live longer than a few seconds if directly exposed.¡±

    ¡°Then how did you survive when Jonus didn¡¯t?¡± Everyone leaned forward with Rodrick¡¯s question. Along with knowledge of the dragon itself, and Murdon¡¯s secrecy, was spread the fact that Lograve had survived an encounter with a being twice his level. Honestly, the scars should have made that obvious, but there were plenty of other known monsters in the region that could have done that.

    Lograve looked around, met the eyes of a few, and laughed. ¡°Pure, unadulterated luck.¡± The scar on his face stretched as his mouth opened wide. ¡°In all honestly, it was Jonus who was as responsible as I for my survival. He drew its attention and I only got battered across the lake instead of cut in half. After that, I was able to encase myself in ice to blunt its lightning. A rather oversized bolt of ice drew it into the lake, where its lightning stunned it. Honestly, I can¡¯t remember what happened next too well, but eventually I dragged myself to the edge of the village where some spearwoman I can barely remember saw me.¡± Janice shifted slightly where she stood behind Murdon.

    ¡°Repeating that feat will not be possible,¡± Murdon said, addressing what was probably going to be the next question from the audience. ¡°Disregarding that the dragon may avoid flying too close to the lake in the future, we cannot provide suitable protection from the lightning for everyone. If it touches the water, anyone not on land or the ice Lograve provides will die. To say nothing that fighting in the water before that would be a tactical disadvantage for most already.¡±

    ¡°Why fight the fucking thing there at all, if the water¡¯s so bad?¡± That was Tlara, leaning casually on the back of one of her wyverns that was perched on a roof. She¡¯d been inseparable from them as of late. ¡°Just bait it out or something.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s the last thing we want,¡± Murdon replied, to which Tlara stared in confusion. ¡°We will need to dedicate most of our forces to fighting this dragon. At the same time, we have roughly 800 people without classes and children to guard. If we left them here with a token force, it would only take a handful of monsters to cause another tragedy.¡± A collective shudder ran through the village as this image was passed on.

    ¡°The lair effect,¡± William shouted, from where he too was perched on a roof. He and Tlara weren¡¯t the only ones taking advantage of what was effectively stadium seating, although no one else shared Tlara¡¯s spot.

    ¡°Right. If we¡¯re close enough, the dragon will scare off other threats for us.¡± Lograve acknowledged. ¡°But that means keeping the villagers nearby. It¡¯s one thing to stay safe by a fire, and another to be within it.¡±

    ¡°What he¡¯s trying to say is that part of this battle will involve keeping the dragon by the lake.¡± Murdon gave Lograve an admonishing look. ¡°There¡¯s no reason for us to believe that is where it lives, but it has claimed it as part of its territory. Moreover, the initial scouting team was not attacked until they reached the lake itself. As long as the lake is part of its territory but the approach to it is not, the lair effect will keep the dragon fighting us and not those nearby.¡±

    ¡°That is a lot of lives to gamble on an assumption,¡± Quala commented. Even she was showing trepidation at what was being discussed in the slightest rise of some of her feathers. ¡°But I see no better option. This method allows us to send as many as we can to battle.¡±

    ¡°At this point, I should speak to the risks here.¡± Murdon cut in. ¡°We are facing a level six opponent. Jonus, in terms of durability, was above average compared to the rest of us and he died in moments. There is no plan I can conceive of that will ensure everyone will survive.¡±

    ¡°And he¡¯ll be at the greatest risk!¡± Lograve said pointedly to one of the headmen.

    ¡°So what do we do to minimize our risk?¡± Rodrick asked. ¡°I assume we will discuss tactics with this map of yours, who to put where, and what powers will we use. You would have thought of all of this already and with Kob in mind. Why meet like this? A smaller forum could have ironed out details before being passed along to the rest. All we¡¯re doing now is terrifying the village.¡±

    ¡°I learn from my mistakes,¡± Murdon replied. ¡°My decision to keep the dragon a secret made it easier for the Tyrant to undermine me. Even if they are no longer with us, I realize where I went wrong. I owe honesty to those I would ask to fight with me, and those I would risk by bringing them this close to danger. But, there is another reason. For weeks now, most of you have been training harder than you ever have, advancing at what has probably been your fastest pace yet.¡± He broadened his shoulders and gestured to the audience at large. ¡°I have a rough idea of what most of you can do, but that was before this training. What we need to know now is what has changed. Anything we can use as an edge in this fight improves our chances. Before we get into this, there is one development that should be discussed first. Daniel, Khare,¡± he beckoned.

    ¡­

    This is what Daniel had seen when he had remade his Focus and investigated both the bodies of the sparkbats, and the other enchanted items in the village. The potential it represented had prompted Murdon to hold this meeting ahead of schedule.

    <hr>

    Password?

    -

    Focus v1.1

    Use of exotic material has added additional benefits to your Feature: Focus Enhancement. These benefits will be lost if your Focus is remade with other material.

    ? Level: 5 durability

    ? Function: Flashlight

    -

    You have scanned multiple Creatures, listed below.

    Scanned Targets:

    ? Sparkbat, Energized, Deceased (Whole) - 23

    ? Sparkbat, Energized, Deceased (Damaged) - 107

    ? Sparkbat, Energized, Deceased (Decayed) - 378

    ? Sparkbat, Energized, Deceased (Rotten) - 276

    ? Sparkbat, Energized, Deceased (Destroyed) - 154

    You have met the requirements to unlock multiple Encyclopedia entries, listed below.

    Encyclopedia Entries:

    ? Monster: Sparkbat, Detailed

    ? Formulae: Spineshard, Ammunition

    ? Formulae: Lightning Link, Armor

    ? Monster: Sparkbat, Extensive

    ? Formulae: Sparkshine Trident, Weapon

    ? Formulae: Lightning, Affix

    -

    Analysis of Sparkbat, Energized has improved Formulae: Lightning Wings and Formulae: Lightning Bolt to Quality: Standard.

    -

    Analysis of Items related to your primary profession has unlocked Formulae: Enchanting.

    ? Formulae: Weapon, Base

    ? Formulae: Armor, Base

    ? Formulae: Shield, Base

    ? Formulae: Spark Torch, Item

    This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

    -

    You have accomplished Feat: Discovery.

    This has unlocked potential for growth. One Advancement Potential has been awarded. You may assign it with Function: Settings in addition to expending potential through normal methods.

    -

    Your Dexterity is now 17! You have gained Ability: Construct Projectile and Ability: Dodge Roll.

    -

    Construct Projectile (Ability, Dexterity, Spell, Domain: Destruction, Cooldown, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to create and fire a projectile from nearby, unattended material. This requires a moderate amount of Mana and a sixty second cooldown when used. Damage from this ability scales with your dexterity. Projectiles from this ability do not gain special properties from the materials they are created from unless they are magical in nature. If such material is used, it is destroyed after the projectile strikes its target This is a Magical Ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression.

    -

    Dodge Roll (Ability, Dexterity, Utility, Domain: Restoration, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to quickly reposition to another location within a short radius. This ability requires a minor amount of Mana and the ability to freely move. While under the effect of this ability you have an increased resistance to most types of damage. This is a Nonmagical Ability that functions in an area of Magical Suppression.

    <hr>

    Of everything, the advancement potential was the least of Daniel¡¯s concerns, though he¡¯d committed it along with the other two he¡¯d unknowingly received from the sparkbat battle.

    He had done it. He had found a way to make his class make sense. At that same time, he cursed his Encyclopedia for not telling him about this sooner. All it had said was that additional entries would be unlocked through the scanning function. He¡¯d thought that just meant more lore! The additional information on sparkbats had been interesting, covering things like typical swarm size, the occurrence of sparkbat strikes and how that converted them into a higher leveled variant that acted individually, even the creatures that commonly preyed on them. That was what he¡¯d expected, and wouldn¡¯t have been worth the effort of collecting all those rotting bodies.

    But enchanting formulae? He¡¯d have done it all by himself if he had to. This was the purpose of his class, something he preferred to do far more than put his own life at risk. In some of the battles he¡¯d taken part in there had been electricity, rhetorical as well as literal. The feeling of being alive. Still, too much death came with it for Daniel to ever feel completely comfortable with hunting.

    In the moments after he¡¯d acquired the new formulae, Daniel had run back with every intention of trying one out. Halfway there he changed his mind, although not his direction. Running past Alost again, Daniel forced his way into the library and spoke to Lograve. The Arcanist¡¯s annoyance at being woken lasted exactly five seconds into Daniel¡¯s explanation.

    The next day, Daniel made himself busy by creating an example of each item he¡¯d learned to make, except for the spark torches. In addition, he¡¯d hesitantly made copies of his previously shoddy formulae and found them to be vastly improved. It was a surprise, but a welcome one.

    Enchanting itself was tiring. When his Encyclopedia had called the process ¡°effortless¡± it must have only referred to the mental effort involved. Physically, it involved hours of concentration and manipulation of the material he was using. There wasn¡¯t any hesitation or second-guessing involved. To Daniel, it was like following the recipe for toast. As long as he had a heat source and some bread it was foolproof.

    As far as specifics, Daniel¡¯s crafting power followed a fairly simple series of events. First, he visualized what he wanted to make. It was like how he¡¯d focused on his family photo to make his Focus, though there was some variability here. For example, he could make armor for various types of creatures, even ringcats. The amount of material and time needed did scale with the size and complexity of the final product, so Daniel had refrained from making anything for Hunter at this point.

    Then, he slowly infused mana into the target material until it became fully charged. Using the heliorite added the extra step of converting the material to the appropriate level. This had benefits, like the improved durability and flashlight his Focus now had. The last step was fully separating the infused material from the rest of the source and finalizing its shape.

    The strangest part was the violation of conservation of mass. When he¡¯d made the example armor, he¡¯d pulled a full copy of his leather armor out of a palm-sized piece of the heliorite. That had taken him ten hours, by far the longest of the projects. If he hadn¡¯t had Craftsman¡¯s Repose he¡¯d never have finished everything in time.

    Daniel¡¯s mouth was dry as the time finally came. Amidst the bickering of the meeting¡¯s initial moments, he could barely hear the words. He shuffled forward, taking the space of the illusion as it was temporarily dismissed. Khare was there too, primarily for their storage power. Daniel had made good on his promise by delivering a lightning dagger to the gestalt, which also commemorated Khare¡¯s recent advancement to level two. It wasn¡¯t anything special, made only with the basic level two enchantment all enchanted items needed, as well as the lightning affix which either converted the damage type to lightning or added additional lightning damage to the base attack. He wasn¡¯t too sure about how it mechanically worked since no flashing numbers popped up when Khare had thrown the dagger at a training dummy. At least the gestalt had nodded approvingly.

    Lograve continued his explanation as they entered the center of view. ¡°Daniel has recently become able to create magical items and has a rather useful material to work with. We need to decide as a group which of these are most useful to us. Daniel, in any order you prefer.¡± Silently, he added, It¡¯s ok. Just describe them, that¡¯s all we need.

    How did you know?

    You¡¯re shaking harder than a man with a bad bladder. I guess public speaking isn¡¯t your thing?

    No. Daniel, now conscious of his trembling, locked his knees and clenched a hand.

    Didn¡¯t you yell at Alost¡¯s group after shooting out a dragon¡¯s eye?

    Daniel didn¡¯t answer that. It was stupid, the anxiety he was feeling now compared to what he¡¯d done, but that didn¡¯t change anything. He looked at Khare. ¡°D-dagger first.¡±

    The gestalt hadn¡¯t changed like Kob had after leveling. They were still roughly person-sized while a vine ball, having also recovered fully from Roost¡¯s Peak. Khare hadn¡¯t commented on what new powers they¡¯d obtained and Daniel hadn¡¯t thought to ask to see them through Identify Creature. Otherwise, Khare¡¯s ability to assume the upper form of a humanoid while maintaining an amorphous lower mass was the only development Daniel had seen, and that was before Khare had reached level two.

    Standing with Daniel, Khare reached inside themself to pull out the danger they had been gifted. It wasn¡¯t particularly embellished since it was made as an exact copy of the original. The difference was that it was level 2, glowing, and yellowish-orange. One might even say it looked like it was made out of gold. It didn¡¯t have a color pattern unique to ringcats and Daniel¡¯s Focus, but looked like solid gold from the blade to the hilt.

    ¡°I learned how to make weapons with a general lightning enhancement. Uh, damage buff.¡±

    ¡°How the fuck¡¯s lightning damage supposed to help us?¡± Tlara called from the middle distance. Strangely, that helped. Daniel had been so inoculated to Tlara¡¯s personality that all her attempts at needling did was calm his nerves.

    ¡°I made it from heliorite. That ore has some special properties. In this case, it makes the damage bonus radiant instead. I think I can stop that, but in this case it¡¯s useful.¡± There were some mixed looks, mostly hope or surprise from those who knew the true value of that material.

    William grunted, first to speak. ¡°Good. It¡¯ll have resistance to normal weapons. Enough of those and we can skin it alive.¡± He wasn¡¯t sharpening a knife when he said this, but he really should have been.

    ¡°Assuming we survive long enough to use them,¡± someone else argued. The murmurs about a new source of enchanted weapons grew louder with the arguments that formed over the new resource. It was Murdon who shouted them down.

    ¡°Enough! There will be time to discuss this when we have gone over everything. Until then, hold your comments. Please, continue Daniel.¡±

    ¡°Right. Uh, armor next,¡± he said softly to Khare, who pulled out the armor he¡¯d made for himself. Despite being made from metal, it flexed like the old leather set. ¡°Alone this is just level two armor. Uh, I should mention I can also make level one armor but not level three armor. Anyways, the main enchantment is called ¡®Lightning Link¡¯. It kind of works how the sparkbats do, spreading lightning between them. It-¡± Someone started to say something and was stared down by several people. ¡°It¡¯ll help resist lightning damage if you¡¯re close enough to other people with this kind of armor, and the bolts of electricity going between you will damage anything without the armor. It can¡¯t generate the current on its own and if too much builds up?¡± Daniel gulped. ¡°One of the armors will explode, purging all the energy in the circuit.¡±

    ¡°Circuit?¡± someone asked.

    ¡°Group. Everyone close enough to be linked. If that happens it¡¯s¡­ you¡¯ll probably die.¡± He paused, and added meekly, ¡°Oh, the heliorite gives a small resistance to radiant damage.¡±

    No one debated the merits of the armor after that presentation. Murdon had chastised everyone, but the thought of armor that could kill its wearer had chilled the blood as well. In the face of that grim thought, Daniel decided to go with the one he was most excited about next. The armor was brought back to wherever Khare stored those things, and instead out came a harness with what looked like folded jet wings off the back. In this case, only the wings themselves looked like they were made from the heliorite.

    Those unfamiliar with Earth technology, that being practically everyone present, couldn¡¯t guess what the device did by sight alone. ¡°These are lightning wings. They can¡¯t make you fly, it¡¯s more of a gliding thing, except, hold on.¡± Khare assisted Daniel in putting the wings on, multiple vines performing the task far more rapidly than would two hands. Murdon and Lograve had a disapproving look on their faces but didn¡¯t interrupt. ¡°Thanks. The heliorite¡¯s made this pretty useful but I didn¡¯t have the time to test this yet since I made the armor first.¡± He realized there was a fair number of blank looks in the audience. ¡°Sorry. I¡¯ll just-¡±

    Daniel knelt, opening and closing his hands once. The two pieces of metal attached to the harness shifted into a swept wing shape, and the bottom of the pack began to glow. A few seconds later, a sunbeam shot from it and sent Daniel high into the air, the Artificer Jumping at the same time to gain extra height.

    ¡°He was supposed to save that for last,¡± Lograve said in a put off way as he joined everyone in glancing upwards.

    ¡°Guy!¡± Thomas, standing next to Quala, started shouting to Tlara to go up and save him.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± Murdon sighed. He did wait for a few seconds to make sure Daniel didn¡¯t start plummeting after the apex of the launch before continuing though. ¡°Lograve, could you explain while he makes his way back?¡±

    Lograve held up a hand dramatically, palm up. ¡°Well, I suppose that¡¯s up to me now, isn¡¯t it? It¡¯s not exactly armor, but it does protect from gravity. Someone wearing that can still fall to the ground normally if they want to, but otherwise, ah, just look.¡± Daniel was twisting in the air, obviously in control and perhaps, maybe, having fun. ¡°That launching effect is from the heliorite. It takes an hour to recharge and requires direct sunlight to do so. Otherwise, there is no persistent propulsion.¡± It began to be clear that Daniel was not taking the fast way down. ¡°I think you¡¯ve shown them enough!¡± Lograve shouted up to him, but the soaring Artificer didn¡¯t seem to hear him. Daniel had gone just over one hundred meters in the air. When that didn¡¯t work, Alost fired an arrow. It bounced off the heliorite and didn¡¯t hit Daniel which was probably the intent.

    Daniel reached the ground a half minute later and spent a full one jogging back to the village center. ¡°Sorry,¡± he said, a little out of breath. ¡°The wings, uh, they don¡¯t-¡±

    ¡°I already explained. Next,¡± Lograve instructed with half-feigned impatience.

    ¡°Right.¡± Daniel didn¡¯t take the wings off and instead just took a trident offered by Khare. The gestalt seemed bemused, Daniel could tell by the slightest way the trident was pulled back before it was handed to him. ¡°Sparkshine trident. And, yes, it has to be a trident. I don¡¯t know why besides the name. Kinda similar to the general lightning weapons but using it underwater won¡¯t shock you with the lightning it generates, only the target. Except the heliorite makes it radiant damage.¡±

    ¡°Of all these items, this is the least suited for our upcoming fight. You can move on Daniel,¡± Murdon said. It was drawing close to noon and his impatience wasn¡¯t feigned. They still had much to discuss. The glowing weapon, more powerful than the vast majority of all others assembled amongst it, was unceremoniously shoved back into the plant person. Lastly, Daniel took out two bolts, both made of shining metal. The only difference was one had a purple tip.

    ¡°It¡¯s kind of weird with these two. I can make bolts or arrows, anything used as ammunition. Maybe even ballista bolts? Normally, they both deal magical lightning damage, but, obviously, radiant.¡± Daniel held up the spineshard bolt, which was pure gold. ¡°This one stays in the target and acts as another relay for the lightning link armor. It¡¯ll also explode faster than the armor, unless you make a ballista bolt I guess. It¡¯s a size thing. That would be good, except this one is-¡±

    ¡°Radiant,¡± several people said tiredly. Daniel was stretching out what could have been a brief demonstration with his residual nervousness.

    ¡°Yeah. I¡¯ll make some with just the lightning if I can. And, uh, if we want to.¡± He held up the purple-tipped bolt in his other hand. ¡°This one explodes on its own. A previous version did that whenever it was dropped from high enough, but this will only do that if willfully fired. Thank God-s,¡± Daniel tacked on the s after a glare from Lograve. ¡°It¡¯s shorter range though. It¡¯ll explode on its own after a certain point, and if it hits something before that it¡¯ll be too slow to do any damage. You can probably guess about the damage type?¡±

    ¡°Anything else?¡± someone asked.

    ¡°Just normal +2 weapons and armor.¡± More blank looks. ¡°Uh, level 2, or level 1 since I can make things below my level. And optional radiant damage or resistance.¡± Daniel walked out of the center of attention and felt relieved. He still had the lightning wings on as well. They were slightly heavy and he couldn¡¯t wear a backpack at the same time, but flying? That had been amazing. If they didn¡¯t settle on what they wanted made in the next hour he was going to go again.

    He listened dully to the conversation, busy with the one in his head. Hunter, I gotta make you a set of these.

    No.

    Oh, come on. You can¡¯t say you don¡¯t want to try this.

    Don¡¯t like heights. Daniel blinked at Hunter¡¯s aura, a good distance away from him.

    You climbed down a waterfall!

    Never said I liked it. Hunter¡¯s tail lashed against the floor of the house he was in. Both he and Tak were absent from the discussion, getting rest from their second long night of hunting. The ringcat was closer to level 2. No matter what they decided, Daniel was going to make armor for Hunter too. The heliorite was his, even though the rest of the village would take it from him if he kept it all to himself. Whatever they decided he¡¯d abide by, though some of the material was reserved for his use.

    He dipped back into active listening just to see where they were. Several people had figured out the obvious strategy with the lightning link armor and the spineshard bolts, although others were balking at the risks. One contingent just wanted the explosive arrows, and they were led by Alost. A couple of times Daniel was asked to estimate what he could make from the remaining material. Even if he hadn¡¯t already done the math, Quick Mind would have for him.

    Only one person wanted a trident, not seeming to understand how bad of an idea using it would be even though a lake was within the field of battle. They were quickly outvoted as democracy was established as the means by which the heliorite would be rationed. It wasn¡¯t egalitarian, only those with level three or a position of status had their vote counted.

    First, they deliberated on whether an item should be created at all. The trident lost. Beyond that, no one was confident enough that the other items wouldn¡¯t be useful. The lightning wings, for example, only provided one burst of flight. Against a dragon, that could be the difference between grounding it and remaining impotent on the ground.

    Matters turned then to who would get what. Despite its cost, a majority reluctantly agreed a full suit of armor should be made for Murdon to use as a new Focus. Given his size, that would take 3% of the metal, just underneath what Daniel would need for Hunter. That was making it at level one, which would seem a strange choice if Daniel hadn¡¯t discovered something else when he¡¯d regained his Focus. Ammunition was then agreed to, although that was the point Daniel left to start work on Murdon¡¯s armor. It¡¯d be the only thing he¡¯d be able to make today.

 Chapter 61: Deliberations

    ¡°Are we in agreement? The final tally is one full set of armor, three dozen bracers, three hundred arrows, six dozen bolts, half as much of the explosive variant for each, five lightning wings, and the remainder in general armaments?¡± The negotiations had taken an hour, but they¡¯d finally reached a conclusion. Someone was taking down a list that would be sent to Daniel once it had been checked by him. Murdon snarled in relief as there was general agreement. Some had fought ardently against the smallest of allotments. Alost had almost physically beaten someone who had suggested they¡¯d only need a hundred or so bolts and arrows combined.

    There was a break then as the day¡¯s meal was distributed and people rested from the surprisingly tiresome conversation. Murdon himself was weary as he knew that should have been the quickest matter to handle. He still had to hold an open forum on new powers! Who knew how long that could take? Then there was incorporating that into their strategy, seeing if there was anything extraordinary enough to reconsider changing what they were having Daniel make, and¡­

    ¡°Hmm. This is why I didn¡¯t go for headman when we came here.¡± Lograve found him as he was lying down for a moment and spoke in his normal, whimsical way. ¡°You know this will make you a Knight in shining armor? I suppose we¡¯ll have to find you a proper maiden next.¡±

    That made Murdon smile. ¡°Finding a female draconoid out here would be another miracle. I don¡¯t suppose you stumbled on one of them when you were busy pulling rare metal out of the earth?¡±

    ¡°Does it have to be one of those?¡± Lograve asked innocently. ¡°I happen to know Tlara is single.¡±

    Murdon laughed so hard he choked. There were a couple of people nearby who noticed, but they kept to their own business. ¡°Don¡¯t you dare. Gods. But she did prove herself with those wyverns. In some way, I owe her your life and she is not making it easy to forget that.¡±

    ¡°Yes, though in all seriousness we should ditch her once we get across the border. I don¡¯t think she¡¯s too trustworthy. Though, to be fair, she¡¯s only tried to stab me in the back once.¡±

    ¡°Across the border. It seems like we¡¯re so close now, even though we¡¯re back to where we started.¡± Murdon was silent for a moment. ¡°I almost killed that boy, Lograve. Now, he¡¯s giving me armor that would take years to afford normally. What was I thinking?¡±

    ¡°You weren¡¯t. No one was. It was the beginning of madness.¡±

    ¡°You had your head on straight. You were right about him.¡±

    ¡°Of course I was,¡± Lograve said, puffing out his chest. ¡°That¡¯s my job. Yours is to herd ringcats.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s been particularly trying today. I keep looking out for them. They, ehm, no, let¡¯s leave it at that.¡± A look of understanding passed between them. Lograve didn¡¯t even need to use Telepathy to know what he meant. Whoever the Tyrant plotting against Murdon was, it hadn¡¯t been Heldren, and the fallen Hero had taken their true identity to his grave.

    ¡­

    Evalyn had long ago regained the composure that she had lost during the dragon fight. She was a Bard. Even though she abhorred using negative Bardic powers, that didn¡¯t mean she couldn¡¯t cope when those relevant emotions naturally arose. Keeping herself grounded was an important part of maintaining the effectiveness of her powers. Not that anyone had asked, but she had been well experienced with hunting even before the Upswell, and was close to reaching level two without too much level disparity to correct. She was still afraid, of course, but the meeting today and the people in the village gave her hope.

    Claire and Daniel¡¯s situation still weighed on her. She¡¯d tried to get them talking on the way, but Daniel had been withdrawn and Claire partially restricted under Quala¡¯s care. Yesterday she¡¯d learned she¡¯d been successful, but also that it was over. At least, her part in it was. Quarrels like this were bad business for Bards, especially if both parties involved were friends. If it was between teammates, it would be cataclysmic due to how that would affect her powers. One of the teams she¡¯d hunted with in Eido had been like that. She hadn¡¯t been directly involved there either, but the underlying enmity sapped the strength of her music. Claire wasn¡¯t her teammate though, and Evalyn wasn¡¯t sure if Daniel still was. There were a lot of things Evalyn wasn¡¯t sure about.

    As far as the meeting itself, Evalyn had listened with interest though she knew she wouldn¡¯t personally benefit. Daniel couldn¡¯t make instruments. Even if they had a connection, there wasn¡¯t a chance she was getting anything. It was still important to listen to where she would be assigned so she could prepare.

    Another dragon. They were going to fight another dragon. Evalyn traded in stories just as much as she did coin, back when the Thormundz region had something resembling an economy. She knew the reputation those monsters had. If the survivors of Roost¡¯s Peak thought the one they¡¯d faced was horrifying, they didn¡¯t know anything.

    Terror. It was a word that failed to encompass what higher level dragons could do. Even the descriptions, warped as much as the proceedings of the meeting by repeated retelling, could not do it justice. It was worse than fear. It could completely immobilize, throw someone into a panic, or even kill in the worst circumstances. Any fully matured dragon could inflict this en masse. This hadn¡¯t come up in the meeting yet, but it was something she was listening out for. Valor Song could provide resistance to it and she would need to speak up. She couldn¡¯t cleanse the condition or guarantee that she could resist it herself, but it had to be brought up.

    During the break, she thought about visiting Daniel. She¡¯d seen him smile just before he flew up and knew his spirit wasn¡¯t completely crushed, but she wanted to make sure he was doing ok. Claire was a completely different matter. Even though Quala hadn¡¯t told her what she¡¯d been doing, Evalyn could guess. There was no way she could help her, and in hindsight what she¡¯d tried to do might have made it worse.

    Instead, she found Thomas and they talked. He only stared inappropriately at her a few times. It was a weakness of the Cleric¡¯s, she¡¯d noticed, but not bad enough that she needed to address it. The interest might have come to something if they weren¡¯t already so familiar. Evalyn was keen to her weaknesses too, and couldn¡¯t help but find how hard the Cleric tried to be smooth humorous.

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    Lunch was so spent in idle conversation. With Thomas that meant gossiping and he kept bringing up rumors of budding relationships. The intent behind the conversation was obvious, though she humored him. Thomas may deal in secrets, but just like his looks he had a hard time hiding his feelings.

    There were other things mentioned, of course. The upcoming battle, and how close both were to level two. There hadn¡¯t been enough time to commit every advancement potential they¡¯d earned until the village, and with such an important battle coming up, it was worth pursuing now. The only topic avoided was Daniel. Thomas had seen her talking to Claire, but only after she¡¯d said her piece.

    It was no major deduction to realize the Cleric felt guilty about destroying Daniel¡¯s Focus. That amounted to a major assault for most people. To someone who devoutly worshipped the Octyrrum, it bordered on sin. His bias towards Daniel was understandable, though he could have let Quala chastise her about helping Claire escape without also joining in. At least he was eating with her now, and not bringing up the argument despite how much he¡¯d disagreed. In fact, his avoidance of the affair during that meal made Evalyn consider if she had interfered too much.

    ¡­

    ¡°We are going to table the discussions on newly developed powers for now,¡± Murdon said to recommence the meeting. ¡°I wish to instead open the forum to discuss strategy. With broad plans worked out, we can make minor adjustments for individual powers later. It will also let us get some damned sleep tonight. Alright. Lograve?¡±

    The Arcanist resummoned his illusion, frowning at the repeated cost in mana but otherwise kept it going. ¡°Our strategy heavily depends on myself and Murdon. I will freeze a portion of the lake to allow us more room to maneuver. I can construct shelter for myself, though if others can protect me that will allow me to affect a greater area. Murdon will act like an arrogant bastard and try to be the center of attention. I think giant glowing armor should help.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll be breaking up the rest into squads,¡± Murdon cut in with just a hint of aggravation. ¡°Ideally, we¡¯ll be keeping the groups you¡¯ve been training with roughly similar. Those that don¡¯t have one, such as those in the garrison of Roost¡¯s Peak, will either be assigned into one or into support groups, which we will also need to discuss.¡±

    ¡°What? You¡¯re taking us to fight that thing?¡± One of those from Roost¡¯s Peak broke above the small uproar that started from that seemingly innocent statement. ¡°We already fought one! I thought we were going to be guarding the villagers!¡±

    This time, Murdon¡¯s voice alone wasn¡¯t enough to regain order. One of the headmen with a concussive power had to set it off above the village and use that disruption to shake sense back into the people. The draconoid nodded to Aszkash, the only gestalt to number among the headmen, and addressed the people¡¯s concerns.

    ¡°No one wants this fight. If there was any other way we would take it instead. You have suffered through this crucible once.¡± At first, there was hope in the eyes of those who had protested. Murdon sounded sympathetic, right up until he brought the hammer down. ¡°That gives you no excuse. You are the ones blessed by the Octyrrum, given the power to fight for its cause and protect its people. When there is a need, it is your duty to answer its call. Some of you will be posted to protect the villagers, but only through consideration of who is needed the least in this fight, not who has the least experience. If you want to protest, you may do so.¡± He paused for just a second, enough to let them draw in the breath needed. ¡°But you won¡¯t be leaving with us. My word on that is final. It is what I said from the very beginning. Those with power must contribute.¡±

    The words died in the belligerents¡¯ throats. Murdon had the full backing of every level 3 in the region, and he was the single strongest combatant. Even Gadriel, who¡¯d pulled off a stunning victory against Heldren Storm, wouldn¡¯t be able to defeat someone of Murdon¡¯s skill and experience. Tomorrow Murdon would have very potent armor, just the kind of thing to make him untouchable. He wasn¡¯t a Tyrant, that had been made painfully clear, but his rule was still absolute.

    ¡°Now, to the dragon. Our priority will be knocking it out of the sky, though we should be careful to avoid dropping it into the lake. Even with the ice, there¡¯s no guarantee those below level 3 would survive lightning arcing through it.¡±

    ¡°My ice likely won¡¯t survive the impact if it falls from too high up as well,¡± Lograve pointed out. ¡°It¡¯ll need to hit land, or be dropped from close to the ground.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll hit whatever you need me to from range.¡± Alost stepped up. He was one of the ones who had pointedly not commented on Murdon¡¯s expectation to fight the lightning dragon. ¡°I, as well as any you care to place me with. So long as this dragon does not have Regeneration, we¡¯ll tear up its wings.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ll have that opportunity,¡± Murdon confirmed. ¡°Would Jonus be here he would command our archers. In his absence, I trust them to you. As far as positioning, we will need to wait until the teams have solidified.¡±

    ¡°Better to have all the pieces on the board before we start playing,¡± Lograve added.

    An older human woman stepped forward from where a cluster of gestalt were conversing in their own way. ¡°We have a concern,¡± she said.

    ¡°Translation power?¡± Murdon asked, and she nodded.

    ¡°You all are so worked up about what we can do. But what of the dragon? Its roar?¡± Somewhere in the crowd, Evalyn stiffened. The woman, one of the few Druids in attendance, walked into the center ring. She tapped the center of the lake with her heel. ¡°This space is cramped enough that it will affect us all, and we cannot simply plug our ears!¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Lograve looked confused. ¡°It¡¯s a sonic-based ability. Why wouldn¡¯t that work?¡±

    ¡°Fought many dragons have you?¡±

    ¡°Three.¡±

    ¡°Well, fine,¡± she conceded. ¡°But you didn¡¯t do it right! And you¡¯re still wrong. They know why.¡± She pointed to the gestalt who were now probably watching her. Only one had taken humanoid form so it was hard to tell. ¡°Ges- uh, hmm. You! Do that thing.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± The woman tapped her head. ¡°Oh. How did she know about that?¡± Lograve asked quietly to Murdon as he used Telepathy. Murdon just smiled. He knew Festra wasn¡¯t a headwoman and had only just awakened her class despite her age. That didn¡¯t mean she couldn¡¯t run circles around anyone through sheer life experience. Lograve¡¯s eyes went from Festra to the small group of gestalt before nodding. ¡°That is enlightening. I will.¡±

    ¡°What is it?¡± Murdon asked.

    ¡°The roar of a matured dragon can bypass sound as a requirement,¡± Lograve said. ¡°Fascinating. I suppose not enough people fight them to have it be common knowledge. Hmm, yes, thank you. Uhm, who are you?¡±

    ¡°Festra. You are welcome.¡± She started walking back to her previous position.

    ¡°Wait, what do you suggest to counter the terror condition?¡± Murdon asked quickly. The humor he was taking from Lograve¡¯s flustering was quickly fading as Festra¡¯s nature was turned on him.

    ¡°How should I know? That¡¯s your job.¡±

    Quala picked up the conversation graciously. ¡°With luck, I can resist the effect passively. For the rest of our people, present company included, that will be far more difficult if not impossible. Worse, I fear a monster with significantly advanced wisdom and intelligence will know to reserve that ability until its disruption will most affect our forces. There are certainly those of us with powers that can aid in mental resistance, but most are either single target or do not last long. All of these powers would be unreliable in the face of a level six opponent. There is one exception.¡±

    ¡°Ah. I take your meaning.¡± Murdon, Lograve, and a handful of others looked in trepidation while most in the audience just waited for someone to explain it to them. Powers and their trends among the classes were mostly common knowledge, but only those who studied, commanded, or cared about how conditions were resisted and removed would have broad enough knowledge to reach the same conclusion themselves. Evalyn also knew what they were discussing but for none of those reasons. With hesitation, Murdon spoke loud enough to be heard a block away. ¡°I need every Bard in front of me, right now.¡±

 Chapter 62: Sunmetal Forge

    The commotion that rose in the square almost distracted Daniel enough to cause his enchanting to fail. That was saying something, as he¡¯d learned he could train with Hunter¡¯s senses when he was at the mana drip stage. There was as much emotion as sound in the air, and both were mixed together. Something was happening with Bards, although Daniel only knew that because Murdon had called for them right before it¡¯d happened.

    In truth, the process was too easy. Daniel was bored, but he couldn¡¯t stop now. This was an important item: Murdon¡¯s armor. In a few weeks, maybe just one, it would be what would keep him alive. The thought of that was something Daniel didn¡¯t quite know what to do with. He also didn¡¯t know what to do with himself.

    He¡¯d need 14 hours, maybe a little more, to make this armor. The heliorite was helping both in time and effort. The more he worked with the ore, the more he understood. It was like trying to solve a math proof and finding certain steps had already been provided for you. That left him able to divert some of his attention elsewhere, although he didn¡¯t have a book nearby. Neither his mana supply nor concentration could survive prolonged training with Hunter, and everyone else was busy talking about how they¡¯d kill the dragon.

    He was getting bits and pieces of the conversation when the speakers were loud enough, and the rest through the conga line of people passing the news along the road below his window. They might have been people he could talk to, but he didn¡¯t recognize any of them. At most times he was still just as shy as when he came to this world and opting for quiet boredom over potential embarrassment was preferable. Besides, what he was doing was important. He couldn¡¯t get too distracted.

    ¡°I have a list of items the Commander is requesting,¡± a familiar voice said behind him. Janice. ¡°Please review it and make sure there is enough material. If there will need to be revisions, I can carry your recommendations up the chain.¡±

    Up the chain? What is this, an army base? ¡°Uh, yeah.¡± Daniel took the list, looking it over. No tridents, as he expected. They would be useful for people fighting underwater as, otherwise, you couldn¡¯t reliably use that element down there. He wasn¡¯t sure how adaptation worked here but if a monster didn¡¯t regularly encounter an elemental damage type, it wouldn¡¯t make sense for it to have a resistance to it. In this case, they were facing a monster highly resistant to lightning, and trying to fight it in the water would be instantly fatal. He tallied up what had been requested and nodded. As promised, Murdon hadn¡¯t cut into what Daniel wanted to use for himself. There was actually extra. ¡°It¡¯s good. I can do it.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re sure?¡± Janice asked with respectful disbelief, looking at the relatively small rock that was to produce an armory.

    ¡°Even though I¡¯m making all these items at level two, I¡¯m using level five material. Not that I¡¯m too experienced with this, but that difference is important. It¡¯s not exactly a 2:5 ratio size wise, but I can use way less material than you¡¯d think.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯d know more than I would, sir.¡±

    Daniel blinked in surprise and was thankful his back was still turned. Even though he could carry a conversation, he had to keep looking in the direction of the heliorite. Sir? It wasn¡¯t the sir that Gadriel appended in front of the names of people he liked. ¡°Were you in an army?¡± Wait, do they still have those here? I really shouldn¡¯t assume stuff like that.

    ¡°All due respect, it¡¯s not something I like to talk about. Sir.¡± Janice took a couple of breaths behind him, not leaving. It was hard to know what she was thinking, if she¡¯d taken offense, or if Daniel had forgotten to answer something she¡¯d asked. It wasn¡¯t anything of those things. ¡°This, uh, wasn¡¯t something I was told to ask, but it seems pertinent. How long do you think this will take?¡±

    Daniel looked at the list again. ¡°Can I write on this?¡±

    ¡°If you don¡¯t need to change the tallies, that should be fine.¡± She watched as Daniel looked around and realized something.

    ¡°Do you have a pencil?¡± Pens probably don¡¯t exist here, and this wasn¡¯t written with ink. Damn, how have I not needed to write something before?

    ¡°Hold on.¡± Janice returned a minute later and walked in front of Daniel.

    ¡°Sorry. Gotta keep my eyes on it. Uh, thanks.¡± Daniel took the pencil, which was a less refined version of Earth¡¯s but still a marking substance encased by wood, and made a few notations on the back of the list he was provided. He had to consciously use the written language of the Octyrrum, but not think about it too hard or a mental block would form as he continually questioned how he¡¯d learned the language.

    The armor and lightning wings would take the longest, with the largest weapons right behind. Daggers and bracers? He could do two or three of those in an hour. Optimizing his time meant mixing the big stuff with the little stuff, making sure he wasn¡¯t wasting time or starting a project he couldn¡¯t finish that day. Daniel wasn¡¯t sure what would happen if he had to pause something he was enchanting. ¡°Hmm. Six days? Might stretch into seven but I think I can do it if I don¡¯t drive myself crazy first.¡±

    ¡°Is that a possibility sir?¡± Janice asked, completely missing the sarcasm. ¡°If the higher grade material poses a risk in some way we should discuss ways of mitigating it. Delays if necessary.¡±

    Daniel had to smile at how serious she was taking this until he realized that was probably the right way to handle preparing for a dragon fight. ¡°Sorry, just a joke. The thing is, this is going to be pretty boring, and that¡¯s weird. I¡¯m enchanting items that let people fly, and it¡¯s boring!¡±

    ¡°As long as the work¡¯s done and you stay safe, it¡¯s fine by me sir. I might even say I empathize.¡±

    ¡°Right, guard duty¡¯s got to be worse. You¡¯re theoretically always in danger.¡± Daniel decided then that he liked Janice, even though she seemed incapable of relaxing and had punched him with a spear the first time they¡¯d met. ¡°How do you deal with that?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not too bad.¡± Janice shrugged, dropping her use of ¡®Sir¡¯. Even if she didn¡¯t stress it, Daniel caught the shift. ¡°You see people. Get to recognize the locals. Helps when there¡¯s a Rogue in town that can¡¯t disguise themselves.¡±

    Daniel suppressed his urge to ask questions about things he should know about already. ¡°What was it like before the Upswell?¡±

    Janice looked down. ¡°Better. Shorter hours, fewer people I didn¡¯t recognize.¡± Her brow furrowed. ¡°Where¡¯d you come from?¡±

    Shit. Even when Daniel avoided the obviously wrong questions, it still somehow came back to this. He also remembered that Janice had caught him in a lie before. That might not have been a power since he had been a mess, but that also didn¡¯t mean it wasn¡¯t a possibility. Janice wasn¡¯t the worst person that could find out, though. Murdon trusted her since she came to Roost¡¯s Peak with Quala. Not that he would tell her if he had a choice, people needed to stop finding out. ¡°I¡¯m pretty new here. I hadn¡¯t even settled in a village or Eido before it happened.¡±

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    ¡°Not part of the initial wave then? Huh, wonder what brought you here.¡± She held up a hand to stop him from answering. ¡°Don¡¯t need to tell me, sir. People¡¯s past is in the past here, that¡¯s the point.¡±

    What? ¡°Uh, thanks.¡±

    ¡°I should get back to the door. Let me know if you need anything.¡±

    ¡­

    The next few hours were spent in relative misery. The monotony was broken only by the occasional dive into Hunter¡¯s senses. Credit where it was due, Daniel was up to five minutes. Either regaining his Focus had helped or he was getting better.

    It could be worse. All he had to do was wait. And wait. And keep feeding the glowing rock mana at a snail¡¯s pace lower than Moment of Clarity¡¯s ongoing cost.

    He really should get some books sent here, but they were still meeting in the town square and there¡¯d be no one that could be spared. Everyone besides Daniel was wrapped up in the discussion. Even the normal villagers who wouldn¡¯t take part in the actual battle were spreading the news like a virus. That made sense. When Daniel had decided between fighting or staying here, he¡¯d likened the latter to being on the bottom deck of a ship during a storm. Now, the captain had come below deck to discuss their chances.

    His next distraction came an hour before dusk. Evalyn. That was surprising, especially because the meeting was still going on. Daniel heard her arguing with Janice and yelled out the window to let her up. Any hesitation he¡¯d have of speaking to her was weighed against hours of boredom and found wanting. She didn¡¯t have what he¡¯d feared to lose with Claire, and while he¡¯d disappointed Evalyn, he also hadn¡¯t gotten her brother killed.

    ¡°Before you say anything, I can¡¯t turn away from the rock,¡± he told her, hearing her footsteps stop. He was now sitting on his bed, vacating the chair after realizing there were only two places to sit in the room. Daniel was not about to tell Evalyn to sit on his bed. ¡°I¡¯m not ignoring you, I just can¡¯t stop looking at it.¡±

    ¡°You can¡¯t close your eyes?¡± Evalyn asked as she took the seat and dragged it next to the window. There wasn¡¯t a lot of space in the room, even considering it had been an original bedroom instead of a converted closet some people were sleeping in.

    ¡°No, I can, I just have to be careful not to fall asleep. Otherwise, as long as I¡¯m facing it I¡¯m good.¡± There was a pause between them, neither knowing what to say.

    ¡°They¡¯re idiots,¡± she said finally. ¡°I can¡¯t believe them. Just like that?¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°You didn¡¯t hear? No, I guess not if you¡¯re in self-imposed exile.¡± Evalyn leaned her head against the wall. ¡°They want us to make a band.¡±

    Daniel snorted. Her exasperation was just too ridiculous, but Evalyn gave him a hurt look so he took her seriously. ¡°Why is that bad?¡±

    ¡°They want us to play together! I thought we¡¯d just break off amid the groups but this.¡± One of her hands started pulling at her hair. Daniel remembered that other Bards didn¡¯t get along too well. Also, Heroes and Bards, but that wasn¡¯t relevant.

    ¡°Can¡¯t you just do it this once? I¡¯m assuming there¡¯s a good reason to?¡± He asked quickly as she glared at him again.

    ¡°Terror,¡± she sighed. ¡°The dragon we¡¯re going to fight has an effect stronger than fear, we won¡¯t be able to purge it as effectively. They want us to play together to combine our strengths and help prevent people from being affected in the first place,¡± she said tiredly like she was repeating an argument given to her. ¡°But it¡¯s pointless! I know what they say about us, that it¡¯s just some stupid mental block, but I don¡¯t see anyone ignoring stabs to the heart with force of will! Besides, it¡¯s pointless.¡±

    ¡°You said that. Why?¡±

    Evalyn lowered her voice. ¡°You-¡± She stopped, closed the window, and then the door. The window didn¡¯t have a glass covering but a wooden shutter. It would still block out the sound, and Daniel knew why she was doing this. ¡°Do you know anything about how my powers work?¡±

    ¡°Music right? You just play a- I guess there¡¯s more to it,¡± he hastily said, sensing another glare before it happened. Evalyn was in a touchy mood, even if it wasn¡¯t directed at him. That would have made being in a small room with her unpleasant, though it wasn¡¯t. It wasn¡¯t just her looks, it was the knowledge that she¡¯d been right about Claire. That bought her a lot of benefit when it came to the doubt.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to assume that song influences you the same it does the people in this world, seeing as my powers have worked on you before. Do you have a favorite piece of music?¡± Daniel thought for a moment. He hadn¡¯t had a consistent one over the years, interest waxing and waning and occasionally aligning with popular interest. This was discussed with Evalyn in detail and she nodded. ¡°That¡¯s what I mean. If you play someone a song that at first moves their very soul over and over again, they will get tired of it. Do you know what that means?¡±

    ¡°You have to keep coming up with songs to use your powers?¡±

    ¡°Broadly speaking, yes. And works that are appropriate for each team member. If I¡¯m with people that haven¡¯t heard my music before then it is as effective as it ever was, so long as it¡¯s the right thing to play for them. If they¡¯ve been traveling with me for some time, or if they just don¡¯t like the song, it¡¯s less effective.¡±

    Daniel suddenly got it. ¡°That¡¯s why you don¡¯t work well together! If you share music then other Bards will use your works and you get less powerful because they¡¯re putting your good stuff out there. I mean, you could just travel with the same Bards and play the same songs.¡± He remembered the avianoid Bard Lyrok and the conversation he had prompted. ¡°But you guys don¡¯t always like the same stuff.¡±

    ¡°Mhmm. You¡¯re not entirely an idiot then. There are centuries of stolen work and credit making what they want impossible. Mind explaining that to the people outside?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m busy, sorry. I did hear the shouting and I shouldn¡¯t get in the way,¡± he excused. ¡°That doesn¡¯t explain why Bards normally hate Heroes.¡±

    ¡°Gods, I am not going into that now.¡±

    ¡°Well, ok,¡± Daniel raised a hand with his index finger extended. ¡°But, what exactly do you need to do here? What are they asking you to do?¡±

    ¡°Combine our talents to raise our side¡¯s collective defense against the dragon¡¯s roar.¡± Evalyn shrugged again. ¡°It¡¯s not a bad idea, but it won¡¯t work. Inevitably, we¡¯d have to decide on what to play, which means sharing the best of what we¡¯ve made, and no one will do that. Even under threat of death. Well, not under the abstract threat of death. It¡¯s not a problem that we have different powers,¡± she clarified. ¡°So long as what we play has some element of mental fortification, it would work. I have Valor Song, for example. But it won¡¯t work.¡±

    ¡°Is the main problem the songs then? I mean, in this case, it¡¯s not an issue of what kind of music to play right?¡±

    ¡°Yes?¡±

    Daniel walked over to the desk to retrieve his Focus and carefully walked backward to the bed. He had some kinks to work out in his enchanting setup. Evalyn immediately got his idea. ¡°No, you can¡¯t. I¡¯ve heard the instruments involved and I don¡¯t recognize some of them. Even if people don¡¯t make the connection, which they shouldn¡¯t, it will still raise questions.¡±

    It was a fair point, but Daniel had an easy fix. He still thought for a moment. Combat music, something inspiring? Damn it, I¡¯m not good with this. And if I don¡¯t go with classical they¡¯d have to remix-

    ¡°Daniel?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m going to play it for you and then you can pass it off as yours,¡± Daniel said dejectedly. He¡¯d wanted to play a song first, just for her, and let her realize how clever he was. That wasn¡¯t happening. ¡°And I know I can trust you to keep this a secret because you already, ah!¡± Daniel almost had a heart attack as he remembered the last setting his volume slider had been on. It¡¯d been reset to 100% since he didn¡¯t have that function heightened, but that still would¡¯ve been too loud.

    ¡°I can¡¯t take credit for these songs, Daniel. It¡¯s wrong.¡±

    ¡°What happens if we don¡¯t have something to help us against the dragon¡¯s roar?¡± Daniel challenged.

    ¡°We all run like we¡¯re on fire and get picked off.¡± She thought to herself for a moment, face changing between a thoughtful half smile and a grimace. ¡°You¡¯d still need to give me something appropriate. The music we play can¡¯t clash with the effect we¡¯re trying to make, and what you played for me that first time won¡¯t cut it. Not in a battle at least.¡± She smiled. ¡°Just how many songs do you have?¡±

    ¡°Anything I can faintly remember I can replay. I haven¡¯t used it too much, but it seems to be able to cover the gaps in my memory so long as I have a general feel for it. It gets it right, too, because I recognize what I¡¯d forgotten. Let¡¯s see.¡± Daniel looked away, Quick Mind providing an answer shortly afterward. ¡°I think it¡¯s somewhere just under a thousand songs, but I might remember more as time goes on.¡± He looked back up to catch Evalyn in his peripheral view and took a little too much enjoyment from her shocked expression.

 Chapter 63: Midnights Armor

    Daniel would have one last visitor that night. Long after Hunter had departed, again with Tak, long after many people had gone to sleep and beyond the duration of Craftsman¡¯s Repose. Daniel was tired. All he wanted to do was finish the armor and get to bed. It would be an early morning, a day filled with more of the same monotonous work, but he had to finish the armor. When he reached the final step, he suddenly realized something and shouted at Alost. Murdon was there in five minutes, a look of genuine concern on his face. ¡°Is the armor ruined? We have some excess budgeted for mistakes but if the armor-¡±

    ¡°No, no it¡¯s fine. Stand here.¡± Daniel gestured quickly, moving aside. His hands were on the patch of heliorite that had been infused with mana. It was the only spot on the ore he could touch without reprisal. ¡°Sorry, I didn¡¯t think about fitting the armor to you. I got the right basic shape but it needs to fit perfectly and I don¡¯t think I could do your tail or helmet without you here.¡±

    ¡°I see.¡± Murdon shuffled in place, unsure. ¡°What do you need me to do?¡±

    ¡°How fast can you take off your armor? Oh.¡± Daniel blinked as Murdon entered his field of view and he realized the draconoid already had it off. He¡¯d never seen him like that, even when they¡¯d first met Murdon had been encased in steel. Now? He was tiny! Well, still bigger than Daniel. He hadn¡¯t lost any of his true height, but without the mass of steel around him Murdon looked gangly and half a meter shorter. ¡°I wanted to wear this as soon as I was able,¡± Murdon explained, chafing somewhat under Daniel¡¯s goggling eyes. ¡°I just stand here?¡±

    ¡°Yeah! Right. I¡¯m going to walk backward with this, don¡¯t touch it! This will take a few minutes.¡± Slowly, Daniel began pulling at the heliorite. The tip of a helmet started to form from the metal, which Daniel refined with his other hand. ¡°Going to be honest, I don¡¯t know what I¡¯m doing here. I¡¯m working mostly by instinct.¡±

    ¡°I trust you¡¯ll be fine,¡± Murdon lied, not at all familiar with how Artificers enchanted despite knowing another one. At least he kept the anxiety over his armor out of his voice. ¡°It is hard to believe something so small will become-¡±

    ¡°Oh, shoot!¡± Murdon immediately winced, though this was another false alarm. ¡°Color! I can¡¯t change the color of the metal at this point, but anything else, like straps, I can change the appearance of. What do you want?¡±

    ¡°Black,¡± Murdon said after a moment¡¯s thought, hoping that would do something to mute the garish golden color. ¡°I¡¯m surprised at the degree of control you have.¡±

    Daniel double checked to make sure there was absolutely nothing left to decide, before sighing. ¡°It¡¯s the heliorite. It¡¯s making things easier. I don¡¯t think I would have gotten straps or anything else at all if I was using metal appropriate for my level, though I''m not sure.¡±

    ¡°Hmm.¡± Murdon watched as more of the armor, more of his armor, came out of the ore. After a minute, it was clear it¡¯d take some time. ¡°Are you able to talk while you are doing this, or do you need to concentrate?¡±

    ¡°I can. On the tricky parts I¡¯ll have to focus, but for most of it but, wait.¡± Daniel was silent as he navigated the area where the helmet split to allow it to be placed on Murdon¡¯s head. ¡°Ok, should be good.¡±

    ¡°It has been some time since we spoke privately. I did not expect to have even this moment.¡±

    Murdon was right, it had been a while. The last time the two of them had been in relative privacy was when Daniel had spilled out his life¡¯s story. Now here he was making enchanted armor. ¡°A lot has changed since then, yeah. Uh, thanks, by the way. For everything.¡±

    Murdon chuckled. ¡°I should be thanking you. This armor, what do you know of our currency?¡±

    ¡°Ah, I¡¯d meant to ask someone. Nothing. Thomas showed me a coin once but, yeah, I haven¡¯t had to use money here.¡±

    ¡°Of course not. If I¡¯d made people pay for food during this they¡¯d have been right to rebel.¡± There was a hint of bitterness there, slipping out in a moment Murdon felt vulnerable. But mostly, there was sadness. ¡°I have not handled this well.¡±

    ¡°What? We¡¯d all be dead if it wasn¡¯t for you. Or worse.¡±

    ¡°Some are dead.¡±

    Daniel couldn¡¯t look up to meet Murdon¡¯s gaze, but he wanted to. ¡°You can¡¯t blame yourself for that.¡±

    ¡°A Tyrant was born under my watch. Two, perhaps, if Jonus had been tainted before his death. That is unforgivable. Instead of punishment, I am rewarded.¡±

    Daniel was silent, but only because the helmet was finished and he had to swap pieces. He was making a full set of armor, but it would come in parts. Fortunately, the heliorite would only need to be primed once, and it was now just manifesting everything in sequence. He handed the helmet to Murdon, then went back to drawing out one of the arm pieces. ¡°I don¡¯t know what to tell you, honestly, but you¡¯re wrong. You¡¯re a good person, and you¡¯re not the one who took advantage of your power.¡± If Daniel could look up, he might have noticed Murdon deciding not to tell him something. Instead, he continued, ¡°I still don¡¯t get how most of this world works, but to me, you¡¯re a god damned hero. Uh, like the concept, not the class. Does that get confusing here?¡±

    That made Murdon smile, but only halfway. ¡°Sometimes. Your words are kind.¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re right! You¡¯re putting your own life on the line here! Not just that, but back then too.¡± Another pause at the elbow joint, and Daniel didn¡¯t continue the thought when he¡¯d finished it. ¡°You just need to see everyone¡¯s faces at the end of this. When you do, you¡¯ll realize what you¡¯ve done and who you¡¯ve saved.¡±

    ¡°What about the faces that aren¡¯t there?¡± Murdon asked darkly. Daniel didn¡¯t have an answer for that. Not one he hadn¡¯t already given. He was also no stranger to depressed moods as of late. He¡¯d had to get dumped, go on a journey of self discovery, and rocket into the sky to get peace from his, and even then it wasn¡¯t all gone. Murdon would need time. When the hand was done and handed to Murdon, Daniel picked his focus off the table and unlocked it quickly before handing that too to Murdon. ¡°Here, look.¡±

    The draconoid gazed blankly at what was in his hands. ¡°You¡¯ve shown me this already. I still can¡¯t read this language.¡±

    ¡°The picture.¡±

    ¡°Oh, I see. Hmm, your kin?¡± Daniel nodded, working on the other armpiece. ¡°I can have trouble with humans this way, but these two are almost identical. Interesting. That would make this your world. It is beautiful.¡±

    ¡°Parts of it.¡±

    ¡°Did you want to speak of this? Here there is time, privacy, and trust.¡± It was Murdon¡¯s turn to adopt a consoling tone. ¡°You have spoken of it some, but I imagine it has been hard to find those to confide in.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. I mean it¡¯s not, but I¡¯ve been here long enough haven¡¯t I?¡± He shook his head. ¡°I miss them. I¡¯d go back now if I could.¡±

    ¡°And I¡¯d let you, as long as you finish my armor first,¡± Murdon said with a hint of playfulness.

    ¡°Heh. I¡¯ve worked on this long enough that I couldn¡¯t just let it go. What kind of Artificer would I be?¡±

    ¡°A rested one. It is quite late, I hope you will not need to extend yourself every night.¡±

    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll need to. Your armor and Hunter¡¯s will take the longest and I wanted to get them out of the way. It¡¯ll be better tomorrow when I get to take a break now and then.¡±

    Murdon considered for a moment what armor for a ringcat would look like. It wasn¡¯t unheard of for barding to be created for monsters, though it was rarely done because of the higher demand for mortal armor. Out of everything, armor was the most desired piece of equipment an enchanter would make because of how it interacted with the Knight class, and because of how difficult it was to get enough material in one piece to make a full set. ¡°I would much like to see how that turns out. Is that what you will use your portion of this material on?¡±

    ¡°Yeah! I think it¡¯ll also help avoid friendly fire. That scarf thing is helpful but I¡¯d like to be sure.¡± Daniel finished the second arm and handed it over. The breastplate began, twice as wide as the helmet but still appearing from the same area of heliorite. A faint shimmering light bordered where raw material and forged metal were separated. ¡°I¡¯ll try to make a crossbow for myself too. It¡¯d be cool if I could get some kind of laser version, but I doubt it. It seems like I¡¯d need something more than the basic ¡®make a magical weapon¡¯ enchantment I can do. At the very least I can improve the design of my old one.¡±

    Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

    ¡°Ever consider branching out? Becoming familiar with multiple weapons is generally a good idea.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know if I¡¯m a sword guy. And don¡¯t you normally just use an ax?¡±

    Murdon was unarmored but still had both of his axes on him, just in case. ¡°These aren¡¯t my only weapons, although I haven¡¯t had much cause for the others. Before this, I was part of a team that hunted monsters,¡± Murdon explained. ¡°Especially once you reach level three, or start fighting level three monsters, you¡¯ll encounter those with quirks like damage immunities. Having more than one way to fight is essential. What is the limit to the kind of items you can produce?¡±

    ¡°Well, right now if I can think of it I can make it, at least as far as shape is concerned and it fits a base enchantment I can do. I can¡¯t make a cart, for example. I don¡¯t even know if there are enchantments for those.¡±

    ¡°Hmm. Tomorrow, I will bring you something to examine. I assume you prefer ranged weapons?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Thanks!¡± A decent portion of the breastplate was now finished, although Daniel didn¡¯t seem to be struggling with the weight. ¡°With the powers I have heavy hitting weapons like my crossbow are probably the best, but I¡¯ll take a look.¡±

    ¡°You might like them. I¡¯ve noticed you don¡¯t armor yourself well. Regeneration can pull some weight, but it is better to avoid wounds altogether.¡± Murdon glanced at the parts of the armor already made. ¡°I may be biased when it comes to that.¡±

    ¡°No kidding. I don¡¯t see how you live in this stuff.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a feature most Knights receive well before level two. Our Foci are our armor and we are the only class that can use them as such. Not being able to bear it for long periods of time would put us at quite a disadvantage.¡±

    ¡°Huh, didn¡¯t know that.¡± Daniel thought for a second and then beamed. ¡°If that¡¯s the case, you¡¯re going to like this.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± The seed of a grin was nestled in Murdon¡¯s face, waiting to be nurtured.

    ¡°Well, when I bound my Focus, the heliorite gave it some extra effects that didn¡¯t apply to the other items.¡± Daniel toggled his flashlight, which had comparable brightness to the standard Earth version in its level 1 form. ¡°This, and my Focus now has ¡®level five durability¡¯. If that means what I think it does, and it¡¯s the same for you, this armor is going to make you way tougher. Maybe as tough as Kob was.¡±

    Murdon nodded his head. ¡°It is well known to my class how that works. Foci of every kind grow stronger if something powerful is used to make them, however it is only in durability that they reliably improve.¡±

    Daniel looked slightly put down that his big reveal had been known to the dragon man, but he supposed someone like he would have known about that already. ¡°So what does your other armor do that¡¯s special?¡±

    ¡°Nothing. I still have yet to awaken my own Focus Enhancement feature, and it has no enchantment.¡±

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t?¡± Daniel asked in surprise.

    ¡°Enchanted armor is very expensive compared to other items, even though Artificers will often make it over other products for the profit when they can.¡±

    ¡°But you hunted all the way up to level 3. You still couldn¡¯t afford it?¡±

    Murdon sighed as they reached a sore point. ¡°I sold the set I used to have when my former team dissolved.¡± There was a finality to how he ended the sentence that made it clear he didn¡¯t want to go into that. ¡°It is almost bittersweet to know this armor has such a critical weakness in the enchantment. Using it after our battle with the dragon is likely unwise.¡±

    ¡°Oh.¡± Daniel looked at the armor piece he was currently making, driving home that it was too late to change anything that important to the item. ¡°Oh damn! I didn¡¯t even think about that. Sorry.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± Murdon waved a hand. ¡°We would need the link effect for the upcoming battle. I will just be sure to keep my old armor and exchange it once we are out of the region.¡±

    ¡°You could keep using it. Make sure people you travel with have some of the bracers? I mean, if people don¡¯t know about the enchantment¡¯s weakness you could make it work.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s still a weakness, and a fatal one.¡± Murdon looked back up. ¡°Don¡¯t mistake my melancholy for disrespect, please. You are doing me a great service.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m glad you brought it up! I didn¡¯t think about making Hunter¡¯s armor a normal variant since the lightning immunity will be important for the dragon. But if I want to make something he can keep using¡­¡± Daniel let that thought fade, and Murdon didn¡¯t comment. The draconoid was disappointed and trying not to show it. ¡°Uh, you haven¡¯t heard from Evalyn, have you?¡± Daniel asked after he¡¯d started on the last piece.

    ¡°No,¡± Murdon said, still slightly down. ¡°And our lack of protection against the terror condition is the largest weakness we have aside from the pure gap in power between us and our opponent. We can spread out the Bards to have a minor effect on individual squads, but it will not be enough.¡±

    ¡°I think they can do it.¡± Murdon just looked at him, waiting for the explanation. ¡°I can play music through my Focus. It doesn¡¯t have the effects Bardic music has, but I can give them something to play together.¡± Murdon blinked, still reserving words for a later date. ¡°Uh, she talked with me and mentioned that was the major holdup with them cooperating. No one would want to volunteer their music for the others to steal.¡±

    Murdon shook his head. ¡°Bards and Heroes. They¡¯re the most obstinate and pretentious of the classes. Why couldn¡¯t they mention this in the meeting, or just pool their talents to make a new damned song as a group?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a good point. Maybe it¡¯s a group project kind of thing, they¡¯re worried about people slacking off?¡± That sounded stupid as soon as Daniel said it. ¡°I mean, do you know why they hate each other? Evalyn said there was history, but it still doesn¡¯t seem like it¡¯s fully based on reason.¡±

    ¡°Hrhm, no idea. You¡¯re right, though. It¡¯s nonsensical. You¡¯d think the threat of mutual destruction would foster cooperation, but the only thing they agreed on was not working together. Though if Evalyn¡¯s changed her mind, then maybe there is a chance. This changes things, for the better, but I will need to speak with her. Thank you for telling me.¡±

    ¡°Not like I have much else to do but talk.¡± Daniel drummed his fingers against the armor he was holding. ¡°That, and trying to stay awake. If you weren¡¯t here I might have to talk with Hunter just to stay up. If he was here.¡± The draconoid shifted beside him, and Daniel suddenly realized he¡¯d never told Murdon how Hunter was different. ¡°I-¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard from Lograve about your peculiar companion,¡± Murdon interrupted, hearing the sudden strain in Daniel¡¯s voice. ¡°I am troubled by the similarities with that Rorshawd creature, but by all accounts, it was created long before you encountered the monster in the mountains. Still, it troubles me.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s fine, don¡¯t worry about it! He¡¯s-¡±

    Murdon shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s not the ringcat, it¡¯s you.¡±

    ¡°Me?¡± Daniel had to stop himself from looking away from the armor. There was something ominous in Murdon¡¯s voice.

    ¡°Your powers are odd. Even considering the rarity of your class, the relative strength and variety of what you possess is beyond a normal level 1 mortal. Your bond can only go so far to explain it.¡±

    ¡°Well, I am level 2 now.¡± Murdon inclined his head as if to indicate that didn¡¯t matter. Gestures weren¡¯t as consistent as words seemed to be crossing over from Earth, but Daniel decided not to overthink it. ¡°As far as everything else, it¡¯s just synergy, like I keep saying. The enchanting stuff is a bit broken but once I run out of heliorite I¡¯ll be back to the basics until I can find more magical material. There¡¯s also the Dual Soul thing. Even though that¡¯s gone, I didn¡¯t lose any of the attributes or powers I got from it.¡±

    ¡°Precisely. When you first arrived, we were concerned you weren¡¯t what you said you were.¡± Murdon paused for just a second, this time enough into Daniel¡¯s periphery for the Artificer to notice an omission. ¡°You seemed to have more classes than levels, which is impossible. That matter has been resolved,¡± Murdon said to ease the tension building in Daniel. ¡°But still it troubles me. The threat posed by monsters, normal ones, I understand. I can plan for them. Other mortals, like the Tyrant, are complicated but I can still comprehend the dangers involved. This is beyond me.¡±

    Daniel laughed nervously. ¡°Nothing about this world makes sense to me. I keep going back and forth on whether I want to fight something again. After the dragon, after those people died, that messed me up and all I wanted to do was avoid even thinking about it. But against the sparkbats, fighting with your buff, that was something nothing from my world could compare to. Getting my Focus back and figuring out some stuff about my powers has made me feel better about it, but I saw everyone who died in Roost¡¯s Peak.¡± The memory returned, lives snuffed out like distant candles. ¡°Their auras just disappeared moments after the dragon found them.¡±

    ¡°That was not a fair fight. Even so, you persisted. I cannot think of many who would survive such a thing unchanged.¡±

    ¡°Lograve said something similar. A few people have, actually.¡±

    Murdon saw the ankles of the armor now appearing from the fist-sized concavity in the heliorite and knew it was almost done. Daniel probably hadn¡¯t needed him once the section covering the tail was finished, but there were things the Artificer had wanted to talk about. Home, fear, and grief. Daniel wasn¡¯t in a good place despite his assurances, that was clear. ¡°In all other regards, the upcoming fight will require everyone to be where they are most needed. However, it may be best if you are spared. Your most applicable talents are your enchanting, which will be done before the fight, and your scouting. I hardly think we will need a power to let us know where the dragon is.¡±

    Daniel rubbed a thumb against the greaves in thought. ¡°You gave me a choice like this before.¡±

    ¡°Will you make the same one?¡±

    Daniel was afraid. They were going into this fight with the knowledge that people were going to die. It was a certainty, no matter what he made, or what Murdon planned. Only one of them had a reasonable chance of survival, and it wasn¡¯t him. I¡¯d be an idiot to say yes. Fuck, I might as well be jumping off a cliff. Except that might not kill me since I¡¯ve already done that twice, no, three times? Too many times. There was something else though. ¡°What about my friends?¡±

    ¡°They cannot be spared from this fight,¡± Murdon said simply.

    He had seen people die back in Roost¡¯s Peak. That still weighed on his mind. How fast it had happened, the years of life they had lived only for it to have meant nothing. It had cost them Kob, and it had cost him Claire. No, no, that was my fault. Despite this, Daniel could only think of one thing worse than dying or living with the memories of those who did: hearing that his friends had died while he had stayed behind. It was that same instinct that led him to follow Parduc, to stand to defend Thomas, even to keep his composure when he¡¯d fought the sparkbat swarm. It was a part of him he¡¯d never have found back on Earth.

    The soles of Murdon¡¯s armor were the last to appear as the armor finished. As it finally finished. Daniel wanted to faint, but most of the armor was occupying his bed. When he handed it to the draconoid, not having answered him, the Knight placed it below the breastplate. Murdon gazed upon glowing, golden armor with black straps fully laid out in front of him. ¡°Lograve will never let me live this down.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll do it,¡± Daniel said softly.

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll fight.¡± Murdon didn¡¯t have a response to that, other than a critical gaze. Whatever he saw, he approved of. Thanking Daniel, he left so the Artificer could rest. As he lay on the bed, feeling the indentations in the material from where the metal had sat, he reached out just before falling unconscious. Hunter? There was no response. That didn¡¯t worry Daniel. Even if it had, he wouldn¡¯t have been able to stop sleep from claiming him moments later.

 Chapter 64: Starlight Hunters

    The predator stalked in the night air. By mortal standards it was a child, despite all that had happened in the past month. However, this ringcat had Grown and in more than the way common to its kind. Did he have a soul? Neither he nor his friend knew for certain. What was clear was the hunger, fresh again for the night¡¯s hunt.

    While Daniel struggled to reclaim himself, and then to enchant for the villagers, Hunter did only two things: slept and hunted. He was in his prime. Ringcats did not normally rest every day, exhaustion being a necessity of survival. Hunter had a protected shelter, and now, a hunting partner.

    They¡¯d traveled for an hour to reach these fields. It was the farthest they¡¯d gone, and their third night together. Finding meaningful prey that wasn¡¯t the target of others meant going some distance away due to the recent scourgings. Every night meant danger was further and further from the village.

    It wouldn¡¯t last. Hunter and Tak understood this and knew each other felt the same. The feathered hunter was one the ringcat had been fond of since the beginning, in a way that had to be from the magic Daniel¡¯s kind used. This would have bothered Hunter if Tak had tried to misuse it, but instead, he simply used it like a smile. A way to make a good first impression.

    What had won Hunter over was the companionship. Until now, he had roamed alone despite Daniel¡¯s best efforts. Tak did what even he couldn¡¯t: share in the experience. Not as a phantom mind, but as another being. These primal hours had been Hunter¡¯s alone until this moment. It touched on a part of him he hadn¡¯t known how to describe until his awakening. Hunter had another friend.

    Tak didn¡¯t mean the same to him as Daniel, of course. That was a bond whose importance was underlined and overwritten with magic pinned to the core of their beings. No, but Tak did treat him as a person, and the bird man didn¡¯t have to be told to. Maybe that was another power, as he and Tak didn¡¯t have any problems communicating despite not sharing the same means of speech.

    Hunter didn¡¯t care about any of that. It was a power that was responsible for his friendship with Daniel too! What was important was the hunt and Growth. He was close again, and he understood the coming danger. Fear soaked everything in the village like nothing Hunter had ever sensed before. Every day it grew stronger as each day brought them closer to that confrontation.

    He hadn¡¯t fought a dragon before, or anything flying beyond sparkbats. Hunter was at the point where he could conceptualize how that would go. Poorly for him, even with the ability that was temporarily taking the place of the one that framed creatures in light. There was no knowing what would happen when he Grew, except that he would be stronger. He had to be stronger if he wanted to protect Daniel and, more immediately pressing, Tak.

    Not that the bird man needed it. Tak was stronger than him. Not just in the technical way Daniel was but in a real way. On the hunt last night he¡¯d picked up a rock to hit an armored, rolling creature. That had cracked the shell enough to expose the meat for Hunter, in addition to killing it outright. Tak had used the paws that looked like his to do this. Something else that strengthened the kinship and almost let Hunter believe he was part of a pack.

    They were close to their next quarry. Tak and Hunter were after those monsters who were also active at this time, knowing the fights would be less one sided. Did this make a difference? Maybe, or maybe it just made things more interesting. They could afford more risk here. Both healed themselves far faster than normal creatures and could cover each other if necessary.

    He was in the front. Despite Tak¡¯s strength and affinity to nature, Hunter¡¯s senses were the better of the two. Maybe the better of any one of the mortals. What Daniel called his Keen Sense feature allowed him to, at nearly all times, keep track of his surroundings. There were limits to this that Hunter was only beginning to appreciate. He hadn¡¯t discovered them when he was a mindless, cowering thing that stayed out of dangerous areas.

    The thing that had been called Ringcat would never have done what Hunter was doing. The prey were six, half were stronger than he, and he was leading them towards the group of monsters. Beasts, of course. The only non-beast monster Hunter had was the ephemeral frozen thing, which had probably used its ability to evade sight to haunt the other creatures and steal their prey. He didn¡¯t know if he could consume those things that fell far outside of his nature to Grow, and Hunter wasn¡¯t looking to find out.

    Hunter honed in on the scents again to solidify his impression of the prey tonight. Daniel had gotten better in their training sessions, but not to the point where he¡¯d fully come to appreciate what Hunter¡¯s nose could do. He breathed deeply, and selectively. It was like how the eye focused on near or distant images, only Hunter picked out specific air being carried from their targets¡¯ position.

    There were no proper words for what the wind told Hunter, none that he knew at least. Maybe the device Daniel carried could describe it, but only if the Artificer could find the right entry. No, there were no proper words, but there were words. Slick like rain, which meant scales. A biting stench, which could be poison or some rot used as a weapon. Scent wasn¡¯t the only thing Hunter could use either. He heard claws scraping the ground evenly, no hint that they¡¯d retract like his. Gentle whistling in the air, not from any mouth but from a fast tail. There wasn¡¯t any sound from that area that could be considered breathing. Light frames, then, or his prey wasn¡¯t tired enough to audibly inhale.

    A picture formed in his mind painted by scent and sound. A six-limbed creature, including the tail. Those on his level were smaller than he, judging by how the sounds were spaced out. They were predators, for they were stalking with intent rather than for survival. Just like him.

    Hunter glanced at Tak, who was moving stealthily behind him. He bared his teeth and lashed his tail pointedly. The full impression Hunter had gathered couldn¡¯t be mimed, but Tak got the gist and nodded. The changes Tak used when fighting had already been made, mouth contorted to bear fangs like his and sharp claws growing from furred hands.

    ¡°After you,¡± Tak said, voice deeper than the faintly melodic tenor he normally spoke with. Rasping and deep, qualities granted by his transformation, though the intent behind them remained the same. Tak was smiling, voice equally joyful. It was a feeling shared in Hunter, an echo of revelry.

    The six stridor scorpions, three young and three adult, were ambling through the dark fields of the Thormundz region. Their kind did not bear the affinity for lightning borne by many creatures in the region. Two of their number had been spawned during the disturbance of the Upswell. Two had become six as the invasive species feasted across the plains. Given time, they would reproduce further in their way, break off into smaller groups, and spread like scattered seeds. Their pursuers were unaware of what they¡¯d accomplish should they destroy all of the scorpions. If they knew, they likely wouldn¡¯t change their intent.

    Each of the monsters had five legs arranged like a star pointing backward, tipped with sharp claws. The mouths were framed by piercing mandibles that could bypass normal armor. The true threat was the stingers, arcing off the back tail like the animal variant. Bulbs of flesh gathered just before the stinger emerged from the tip. The adults had larger and more of these indicating a greater reserve of the particular substance contained within.

    Their strength, compared to the two closing, was both in numbers and sight. Darkness was almost nothing to the creatures that normally lurked underground or in dark bogs. Tak and Hunter had agility, surprise, and their powers, making the fight favor them. This was no surprise. The two were looking for a challenge, not a desperate struggle.

    When they were a minute from the six patrolling monsters, Hunter diverted to approach at an angle ahead of the scorpion¡¯s rough heading. His sense of smell was leveraged again to locate a field of grass large enough to conceal them. It was possible these creatures could detect them while they hid, but these scorpions wouldn¡¯t be subtle enough to conceal this. Hunter watched as a blood parasite attempted to feed on Tak while they waited. The needle coming from its head couldn¡¯t even pierce the skin. If it had, Regeneration would just close the wound and maybe kill the insect if it didn¡¯t withdraw the proboscis fast enough. It died instead when Tak speared it with a single claw, wiping it off on one of his fangs.

    Tak liked insects, Hunter had noticed. It was like moles were for him. These prey were insects, although it was unlikely his partner would join in consuming them. It depended, but so far Tak had only harvested from some of the kills and let Hunter take the rest. The bird man understood not only what Hunter was trying to do but how.

    The prey grew closer. Seconds now. They hadn¡¯t noticed. Hunter prepared to leap on one of the smaller ones. His decisive strike would be wasted on one of the adults who could survive it. Tak was opening and closing a paw, readying himself as well. Neither indicated their plan, they had no real way to. If they both ended up targeting the same one, well, that¡¯s how it would be. There was only a small chance either would hurt the other anyway.

    They were finally noticed as the third scorpion passed close to their position. An alarmed clicking sound passed between the prey and they began to rotate to face the enemy and lash out with their stingers.

    ¡°Fang and Claw!¡± Tak cried, voice fully bestial. He spun midair as he lept, sinking one of his paws into a tail to propel himself towards the body. The attack he was using committed him to the follow-up, its main flaw aside from needing an incantation. What made up for it was the momentum. This ability was savage and the chained attacks grew successively in strength.

    Tak¡¯s transformed beak couldn¡¯t fully open like Hunter¡¯s jaws could. Despite this, he bit into and tore a chunk out of the carapace of one of the adult scorpions right above its head. That didn¡¯t kill it but took it most of the way. For Hunter¡¯s part? The ringcat wasn¡¯t even there for the stingers to reach. He had Jumped.

    There were many options for Hunter to take to replace Identify Creature, which he couldn¡¯t access again until he Grew. Moment of Clarity had been immediately rejected. Of those he could have used, there were problems like not having a high enough level or not being able to use a crossbow. Feather Strike would have been interesting, but Hunter had opted instead for Jump. Daniel hadn¡¯t understood the decision, which was to be expected. Daniel liked to use Moment of Clarify so his judgment was clearly faulty.

    Hunter knew that if Tak was faced with the same decision, he¡¯d choose what he had. Why make use of feathers when Hunter could just Jump and close the distance immediately? That just went to show how in sync they were. Of course, Tak already had Jump, so he might have chosen the feathers given the chance.

    That wasn¡¯t even considering Hunter¡¯s Springing Strike ability which also improved the distance and speed of his jumps. Combining the two was possible despite everything telling Hunter it shouldn¡¯t be. The way the mana coursed through him upon the activation of an ability prevented him from using another until it ran its course. Jump and Springing Strike appeared to have enough similarities to ignore this effect and improve each other. That left the ringcat with an absurdly powerful combination attack. When the tails lashed out, Hunter was in the air and arcing down onto one of the young ones. Normally he¡¯d bite with this attack but wasn¡¯t forced into it like Tak was with his more committed ability.

    Hunter¡¯s claws ripped easily through the weaker exoskeleton of his target and would have decapitated the scorpion if its anatomy had afforded it a neck. Synergy. It was a word Hunter still had trouble wrapping his mind around, but Daniel had used it while remarking on the first time Hunter had tried combining his natural ability with the shared one. Maybe that was the reason he had killed his prey while Tak had only mortally wounded the other.

    ¡°Watch the tails,¡± Tak growled as both he and the ringcat backed off. They were on the opposite side of the grass now and preparing to clash again. The scorpions were doing the same as they recovered from their lunges. To strike at the pair, they¡¯d shot forward on their two front legs to propel their tails. It was easy for the monsters to then rock back and absorb the momentum on the back three that had initially propelled the maneuver. The bird man looked at something held in a paw. The stinger of one of the adults, ripped off from his combination attack. He eyed one of the ruptured pustules with an inquiring eye and threw it aside. ¡°Not poison. I think.¡±

    Hunter couldn¡¯t comment. He didn¡¯t have the voice or the time. Faced with an enemy and an escape route in the grasses behind them, the stridor scorpions chose to charge. It was a bucking motion not unlike how they¡¯d lashed out with their stingers, small hops using the front and back sets of legs. Every time they came forward there was an opportunity to sting if a target was within reach. The only exception was the wounded adult that limped forward with its shattered body, unwilling to submit. That reminded Hunter of the mountain that broke itself. He pushed hard into the ground and rebelled against those memories. He¡¯d never be that weak again. Hunter snarled and Tak stepped in front of him. Why?

    This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    The scorpions were almost here! Hunter had let time pass too quickly. No, he¡¯d lost his concentration. Only a thinking creature would have had this problem and Hunter cursed his mind. He¡¯d have to Jump again. Back? That would be safer, though it wasn¡¯t Hunter¡¯s way. His prey was in front of him, not behind. There was something else to what Tak was doing, lowering himself and bending forward slightly. Of course. Tak wasn¡¯t protecting him at all. At least, that¡¯s not all he was doing. The bird man truly understood him.

    ¡­

    The four charging scorpions lunged forward at the same time when their loping stride brought them close to Tak. The Totem Warrior momentarily bore the weight of Hunter as the ringcat leaped off his back, then concentrated. This kind of fight was one Tak was suited for. No tricks, arrows, or spells. The only quirk was whatever the scorpions carried in their tails. Not venom, not to Tak¡¯s currently malformed avian nostrils. They weren¡¯t as strong as the ringcat¡¯s but had sampled a fair number of substances before. This was something else.

    Tak lazily batted away the stingers of the younger scorpions, bursting the pustules as he did so. He frowned as he felt the flesh under his fur and feathers itch. Whatever was within the tails could act on contact, but all it did was itch. Worry was cast aside in favor of managing the two tails that remained, each moving with too much force to divert.

    Well, no one said Tak couldn¡¯t use tricks in this fight. He was already crouched down, which made it easy for him to Jump. It was a surprisingly common power that came to those who advanced their strength within certain classes, so much so it was regarded as a basic ability, one you would assume a Totem Warrior had. Tak was by no means an expert in fighting other mortals, but even he knew that much.

    He saw Hunter land when he reached the apex of his Jump. The ringcat had targeted the lagging adult, landing claws first to pierce the unarmored section. Tak looked for the one he wanted to attack, but his thoughts were interrupted when his hands started burning like they were on fire. He tumbled in the air as he batted and scratched, for with the burning there was still the itch. His lungs were moving faster than they should, and Tak wasn¡¯t consciously willing them to.

    The toxin had only come from a level 1 creature. How was it affecting him this strongly? Regeneration should be healing him. Maybe it was a disease? Regeneration worked with disease too, didn¡¯t it? Tak couldn¡¯t remember, or maybe he¡¯d never known in the first place. It wasn¡¯t like he could read. He only learned from experience, and Tak had never felt anything like this.

    He ended up landing roughly and away from the other combatants. The pain wasn¡¯t ending. What should he do, tear off his arms? It was an option, they¡¯d grow back eventually, and it would stop this. Or, no, it wouldn¡¯t. Tak could hear his breathing now. He was taking in air with gasps and it was becoming hard to breathe. He couldn¡¯t sever his neck to stop the effect, even with Regeneration there were some things you just couldn¡¯t survive at this level.

    If not that, then there was only survival. Hunter could drag his weakened body back to the village if need be, but Tak would not die. His defiance did nothing to slow his breathing. Something had crept under his skin to drive his lungs into a frenzy. What¡¯s worse, it was becoming harder to breathe, only increasing how frequently he gasped in air.

    The scorpions were advancing on him instead of Hunter, sensing he¡¯d been affected by their stingers. It would have been difficult to evade the next few attacks if not for the roar. It was an echoing thing, but not soul shaking like the fire dragon¡¯s, that rattled the windows of his mind. Ringcats were seen as generic, lacking in abnormal power or specialization. Reliable was what Tak preferred to think, but he was biased.

    ¡°Tails, bad,¡± Tak forced out as he tried to collect himself. Whatever had affected him was coming to a plateau, though the burning, itching, and choking was not stopping. Tak could fight but with difficulty. What was worse was all this had happened from striking a pustule with the back of his hand. If a stinger hit him or Hunter, it would be over. How were these enemies on his level?

    The fear effect on the adult scorpions wore off faster than their smaller counterparts, too quickly for Tak to recover and make use of the opening. That was still enough, and Tak wanted to reduce the number of opponents as quickly as he could. Two stingers could be managed, but four could not. He looked at one of the frozen young scorpions, anger rising at what they¡¯d done to him. A foreign emotion normally, but something else was bringing it out. A sound came from the back of his throat that wasn¡¯t remotely mortal. Tak blinked, then saw he was on the other side of the group of scorpions.

    One was dead, several cuts across its body. The rest had slashes as well, though the adults weren¡¯t critically injured. Tak himself had been hurt, though he¡¯d avoided the substance in the stingers. Time had passed without Tak being conscious of it. What had just happened? Was this a power he didn¡¯t realize he had?

    Then Tak saw that the only surviving young Stridor Scorpion was missing its stinger. He found it when he saw Hunter, the black chitinous spear buried in the ringcat¡¯s back. Instead of collapsing, Hunter was only showing signs of mild discomfort. Had the stinger been severed from the tail before piercing him? How would that work? The anger was still also there, spurned by the fire in his hands in chest. There was something in him, something driving all of this that was fed both by his friend¡¯s pain and the difficulties he was having. It was beginning to take him over.

    ¡­

    Tak ran at the scorpions again faster than Hunter had seen before tonight. There was a look in the bird man¡¯s eyes. Something had changed and Hunter didn¡¯t like it. He¡¯d roared so they could escape and come back when they¡¯d healed themselves. This prey couldn¡¯t outrun them or escape Hunter¡¯s senses, and he thought the bird man would have understood.

    Instead, after the roar, Tak had run on all fours toward the enemies and started cutting with his paws. They looked different, and not in the normal way following the transformation. Whenever one tried to sting him, Tak would either dodge or maneuver to use one of the others as a shield. Hunter had come to his aid midway through the brief exchange, only to receive a sting for his troubles. Tak had intercepted the tail in the moments after this had happened, cutting away the hard tip before too much of whatever was within could be injected.

    The area on his back that had been pierced burned, much in the way Tak¡¯s hands had. The difference was Hunter¡¯s breathing was mostly unchanged. No wheezing gasps or difficulty drawing in air. Hunter moved back in to support Tak. This was risky as he could die if the larger insects hit him with their stingers in the right spot. The claws at the end of each leg proved dangerous as well if the healing cuts on Tak were anything to judge by. Their somewhat flat frame meant the prey couldn¡¯t freely swipe with them as Hunter could. The danger was when the legs came up or down from the rocking motion of the bodies, adding an additional close range threat whenever they moved or tried to stab out.

    To escape both threats, Hunter had to stay as mobile as Tak. Small bounding hops across the earth instead of a straight run meant his movements were less predictable, if slower. He didn¡¯t use Jump here, just the natural faintly serpentine weave his kind made use of on occasion. All of his quarry were focused on the bird man, stabbing out consecutively instead of all at once to present a multimodal threat to Tak.

    The Totem Warrior was capable of dodging each of the stingers, but each time he did it was at the expense of a claw to the chest or limb. Hunter came in from behind a larger foe right when it leaned back from a tail thrust, latching onto the base of it with his fangs and paws. The added weight didn¡¯t flip the creature, as Hunter had hoped. Instead, it strained against him in its attempts to fully right itself.

    The hide was tough, and the taste of gravel was predominant. That sense was Hunter¡¯s weakest. Why would he need a refined palette? Hunger was all the motivation Hunter needed to eat. Devouring this insect would not be an easy task, however. He strained to tear off as much flesh as he could to weaken its tail. It was all he could do in this scenario.

    ¡°RAAAA!¡± Tak screamed as a claw caught him on the leg that had been injured in the mines. He wasn¡¯t just slashed but caught on the leg, pinned by one of the larger two scorpions. Hunter tried to roar but couldn¡¯t. His mouth was full, and he didn¡¯t have the breath to do so just yet. He didn¡¯t have anything to use. Even with what Daniel had given him, there was not enough. The ringcat was thrown aside as the scorpion overpowered him, lunging forward again to strike at Tak.

    It was with something beyond sanity that Tak acted. Even Hunter winced as the bird man simply ignored the leg of the scorpion pinning him down and lunged forward while screaming. The sound was bird-like again, though nothing like the faintly pleasant sound the race normally made. Something was happening to Tak. The mammalian features he¡¯d adopted were reverting to avian again, but far more feral than they had been. A longer beak, longer talons, and eyes strangest of everything else.

    The flesh of the leg tore away while what was still attached to Tak bled freely. Twisting in the air, Tak caught the tail and used impaling talons to climb his way towards the back of the creature. Once he¡¯d reached the wound Hunter had inflicted, Tak planted his newly hooked beak there, hugged the tail, and twisted. A shriek like warping metal came from his target as it expressed its regret in surviving the injury.

    When Hunter looked with concern, he instinctively backed up and lowered himself. Whatever was in front of him wasn¡¯t Tak, even though it smelled the same. Would it attack him? More worrying, was this what the scorpion¡¯s stingers did? Hunter had been able to ignore the pain from his back so far but began to fear both the bird man and the madness he carried.

    Still, he couldn¡¯t abandon the fight unless the bird man was actively aggressive. Now he only seemed to have intent towards those harming him. Hunter took more small leaps to hit one of the weakened smaller insects from behind. All the while he feared what would happen to his mind. Hunter wasn¡¯t supposed to have one, but that only made it more precious.

    The scorpions were mindful of Hunter but had to prioritize Tak as the Totem Warrior tore through them, mindless of his injuries. The only thing he avoided was the tips of the tails, otherwise bearing stabs and slashes. Hunter neared his target which turned too late to face him. Hunter jumped onto its back, bit in hard into the back carapace, and then used Jump. The segmented natural armor had already been weakened, now peeling away from the force of ability.

    Hunter had intended to fall back onto the same creature¡¯s claws first, but instead, Tak plunged one of his talons into the exposed flesh, pulled something out, and ate it. The insect died, unable to live without whatever had been removed. The last smaller scorpion died as Hunter fell, Tak hammering the spot above its head with his elbow until it dented. The surviving larger ones weren¡¯t inactive, but only had one stinger left between them. The fight was essentially over by the time Hunter landed on the dead scorpion unless Tak chose to fight him as well. If that happened, Hunter didn¡¯t know what he¡¯d do.

    ¡­

    Tak finished beating the last scorpion to death, watched it die, and then collapsed under the sudden realization of his injuries. And his thoughts. He remembered nothing between now and when he was standing away from the group of scorpions. They were dead, which was good. Tak himself still struggled to breathe and he was covered in wounds. The bleeding had stopped, but the burning in his hands continued. He needed to wash it off his hands but there was no stream nearby.

    He saw the ringcat approach cautiously, seemingly uninjured now that the stinger had been forced out of his body. There shouldn¡¯t be a need for fear, their prey was dead, but it wasn¡¯t on anything distant. It was him? Hunter was afraid of him? Tak forgot his pain with the surprise of it. What had happened? He had the sense he¡¯d used something, more of his mana was missing than there should be, and an eddy of an unfamiliar mana pathway rippled within him.

    ¡°What,¡± Tak wheezed, unable to say more. This wasn¡¯t as bad as the mines, but he was still critically injured. His leg was shredded again. Why was it always that leg? ¡°You, hwak,¡± he coughed, finding the air met resistance. ¡°Ok?¡±

    Hunter nodded slowly, still with an air of distrust. Tak¡¯s affinity power didn¡¯t translate what the ringcat was thinking, since there wasn¡¯t normally anything there to translate. Still, he found he could understand this ringcat better than any other beast he¡¯d ever encountered. Was this proof that his elders were right?

    Tak coughed again. His throat seemed to clog itself easily. ¡°What, gwa, happened?¡± Hunter just looked at the bodies. He couldn¡¯t answer, of course. What he could do was project worry, still tinged with fear. His fur was raised, breath fast. Not because of any toxin, but to scent the air at a faster rate. Hunter was keeping track of his surroundings but not facing away from Tak. That probably meant there wasn¡¯t a monster nearby, something that could better explain the strange behavior of the ringcat.

    The Totem Warrior paused to consider his injuries. Dozens of shallow cuts that would be gone by morning, a deep gouge and torn flesh on one of his legs, and the influence of the scorpion¡¯s stingers. He needed to get back to the village. Something was bypassing his healing, though it wasn¡¯t getting worse so there was time.

    ¡°Eat.¡± Tak scrambled away from the bloody mess. His light red blood was mixing with the dark green of the monsters. That turned his stomach to see. Tak would never eat anything that bled like that, not raw at least, but to a ringcat everything was food. Hunter did approach the bodies, still with the sense of being spooked. It was getting on Tak¡¯s nerves, just a little. He might have gotten carried away during the fight, or maybe lost control? Either way, he never would have done something to hurt Hunter.

    The ringcat did gorge then, starting with the flesh without chitin to protect it. The beast avoided anything that the stingers and the pustules above them had remotely touched. There was no way he could eat all of them either, Hunter would just take his fill. Normally, Tak would harvest these creatures to make up rations for the village.

    Not tonight. He was too injured, too inflicted. Maybe he should take one of the stingers back, carefully. Could they make something from it to heal him? Tak only knew that the one of his kind with dark green feathers was clever. She¡¯d make a suitable match for himself, only Tak had the sense it wouldn¡¯t work the other way. No matter, he was young. He would have plenty of time to find someone if he didn¡¯t die here tonight.

    Tak was wrested from his thoughts when Hunter moved towards him. Done already? Ringcats ate quickly to not leave themselves exposed, though it had only been a minute. Hunter jerked his head behind him, indicating the bodies. ¡°Can¡¯t,¡± Tak wheezed. It was time to go. He stood and fell back down. He tried again, and again, but his lungs weren¡¯t getting enough air and his leg was too weak.

    Hunter seemed to consider something, decide, and then clench his jaw. Tak didn¡¯t need to ask what the beast was thinking when he lowered himself to the ground. He was surprised, but the ringcat should be able to bear his weight. It was a good plan. So why did Tak again sense unease from Hunter as he rode him back to the village?

 Chapter 65: Restricted Access

    Daniel was asleep when Hunter brought Tak back into town. This was for the best, as the sight of the avianoid riding Hunter might have put an irreparable dent into their relationship. Instead, he slept a few hours past dawn, courtesy of a message from Murdon passed to Janice. Simply put: ¡®let the boy rest.¡¯

    That hadn¡¯t left him with enough time to work on Hunter¡¯s armor. As it turns out, this was fortunate. Hunter wasn¡¯t exactly pleased with the idea of wearing metal even if it would protect him. The ringcat was similarly immune to Daniel¡¯s assurances of how cool it would look. He¡¯d have to work on that, but he¡¯d have plenty of time to plead his case.

    Two sets of lightning wings and an assortment of weapons were made that day, and Daniel learned more about the world. The libraries of Hagain Village and Roost¡¯s Peak were available to him and there wasn¡¯t much else to do with his time besides slowly feed mana to the heliorite. He hadn¡¯t advanced from any studying this time, which was a shame. There had to be something to the process he wasn¡¯t getting, or else reading during enchanting invalidated the activity as a beneficial activity.

    Actually, he hadn¡¯t gained any advancement potential from the three days of enchanting either. Daniel couldn¡¯t figure it out. He was an Artificer, making magic items was what he was supposed to do! His best guess was that the helictite was spoiling him there as it did in every other way, but there was no point complaining given how necessary it was.

    What Hunter had to show for his efforts was far more interesting and troubling. He didn¡¯t go out hunting after the night Tak had been injured, and not just because the avianoid would need a few days to recover. Hunter was ready to Grow, yet there was something in the way. Not Beast Friend, to Daniel¡¯s relief. If that had to be improved to level two before Hunter could Grow there¡¯d be no way to get enough advancement potential before the dragon fight. Instead, there was a notification that was produced when Daniel pondered the question and felt something new in his connection with Hunter.

    <hr>

    Alert: The Creature under the effect of Feature: Beast Friend* has reached the necessary requirements to improve to a Level: 2 form. ???

    Function: Settings has been updated.

    <hr>

    He¡¯d immediately investigated the settings app and found a pointing arrow on the right center edge that led to another page when tapped. Instead of his silhouette, there was one of a ringcat displayed lengthwise across the center of the screen. Daniel had to rotate the phone to see it appropriately and felt slightly put off doing so. The only options here were an arrow to return him to his character screen and a flashing yellow triangle. Pressing that yielded more text, primarily in the form of buttons. Each had an icon, and everything beyond the first and last option had a red triangle beside it that a key told him meant ¡®restricted access¡¯. Despite the additional label, he could still choose any of the options.

    <hr>

    Select an option:

    ? Default: Alpha Ringcat

    ? Common: Dawn Ringcat

    ? Common: Dusk Ringcat

    ?   Common: Typhoon Ringcat

    ? Common: Toxic Ringcat

    ? Unconventional: Aquatic Ringcat

    ? Unconventional: Grave Ringcat

    ? Unconventional: Draconic Ringcat

    ? Rare: Spiral Ringcat

    ? Rare: Luminous Ringcat

    ? Legendary: Psionic Ringcat

    ? Unique: Awakened Ringcat, ???

    The bonded Creature must confirm the selection for it to take effect.

    <hr>

    That was another shock that almost ruined what he was making. Not just the revelation of different subtypes of ringcats, but that almost all of them were restricted. By who, the gods? The Octyrrum? And yet he could choose them. He had accidentally chosen toxic ringcat before tapping out and had panicked for a second. Thankfully Hunter had rejected the change out of hand, not understanding the impulse that had come over him. That was for the best, if only because it was just a common variant.

    Hunter could become 12 different versions of himself. There was no explanation beyond their names and the vague idea Daniel got from each icon, but greater rarity should imply stronger forms. That was what videogame logic would dictate, at least. Each different form likely had separate powers and attribute arrays as well. Despite this, Hunter was wary of making the choice.

    Daniel looked at the wing icon next to Draconic Ringcat and sighed. Hunter, we should figure this out. If you choose something that alters your body, it¡¯ll make the armor useless if I make that first.

    Hmm. Hunter was resting and took a moment to fully reply. Unsure.

    That¡¯s not like you.

    Yes. Hunter padded carefully up the stairs to reach Daniel, just small enough to fit on the upper floor. It is much. Hunter squeezed through the door and sat in the middle of the room. Too much.

    This is the kind of thing you have to be sure about. You¡¯re picking your class, unless we do this again when you Grow to level three. Why is text about this hidden? Daniel shook his head. I can hardly complain about thinking too much about decisions, but we, or uh, I need to know if I¡¯m going to make your armor.

    Hmmm, Hunter grunted, looking away.

    Is there something else bothering you? Daniel asked. He¡¯d noticed unease in his friend and had attributed it to decision paralysis, but that was just an assumption. When it came to Hunter, he was trying to make less of those.

    Hunter paused and sat down, putting his head on top of his paws. What if I become too different?

    Too different? Do you not want to level, get stronger?

    No. Hunter picked his head up and looked at one of his paws. It was one of the tics that gradual exposure to full strength Empathic Link was wearing into him. Daniel, likewise, had caught himself licking his hand and running it through his hair whenever he wasn¡¯t self-aware enough to stop himself. I am worried about being not me.

    So you just want to go with the default?

    You said others are better? Daniel nodded in response. I want to be stronger, but not- Hunter growled softly, having trouble putting his thoughts into words.

    You don¡¯t want to lose yourself doing it.

    Yes.

    Would some of these versions change Hunter? Probably. He could see Dusk Ringcat being some kind of vampire murder cat, for example. Draconic Ringcat? That would be amazing, but only if it didn¡¯t make Hunter some territorial, narcissistic jerk. I don¡¯t know which of these are safe. Even Alpha can have some negative interpretations.

    Must Grow, Hunter countered with an expression of pain. Daniel was still training with Hunter¡¯s senses and knew there wasn¡¯t anything physically wrong with him. Instead, it was everything he¡¯d felt when agonizing over how to spend his advancements before the sparkbats came. In more ways than one Daniel empathized.

    We could ask for help. I¡¯m sure Lograve knows¡­ Daniel trailed off as he noticed someone walking to the door with his lunch. He¡¯d expected that around now, but it was Quala instead of Thomas this time. He frowned as he remembered what she¡¯d wanted to do, feeling his anxiety peaking. Oh no.

    ¡­

    ¡°Is now a good time?¡± Quala asked at the door, noting both the heliorite and Hunter. ¡°Thomas told me he normally spoke with you around this time.¡±

    Daniel got the impression that was more to make it harder to refuse the offer than merely make conversation. Worse, he was hungry. She wouldn¡¯t take the food with her if I said no, would she? ¡°Now¡¯s fine,¡± Daniel said, committing himself to a difficult conversation.

    ¡°I¡¯m glad to see Hunter healthy.¡± She inclined her head backward to where Hunter was making his way back to rest in the house¡¯s lounge. ¡°Tak was quite injured when he came to me.¡±

    Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

    ¡°I heard about that. Thomas said he was poisoned?¡± Daniel asked, glad the topic of conversation wasn¡¯t him.

    Quala narrowed her eyes. ¡°He shouldn¡¯t have, but of course he told you. No, it wasn¡¯t a poison. For Tak, it was something worse. I suppose you are within the same team, and you should be aware of the danger yourself.¡±

    ¡°Why, is it something that¡¯ll happen with the dragon?¡±

    ¡°No, but if you continue to advance through combat, you should be aware of the risks associated with Regeneration.¡± She gave that a moment to sink in and continued when Daniel looked at her, confused. ¡°There are some things that can be made worse by that feature. Substances that make the body fight itself, for example.¡±

    ¡°Wait, Tak had an allergic reaction?¡± He didn¡¯t just get that from her description, but also from how Hunter had described that night. He didn¡¯t know about the strange transformation that had affected Tak, as Hunter hadn¡¯t included that detail. Either way, Quala seemed impressed by his insight.

    ¡°Not many know about those unless they suffer from one. Do you?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve met someone who had one,¡± Daniel said, not lying. He was being very careful not to lie in case Quala shared Thomas¡¯ lie detecting power. Or if Thomas had told her what his tell was. ¡°That¡¯s weird, though.¡±

    ¡°It is unclear why it happens, but Regeneration can make certain attacks more effective against you. I¡¯m not aware of the expansive list, but another example is parasites.¡± Daniel¡¯s expression turned towards horror. ¡°It¡¯s a powerful feature, but it has its faults.¡±

    She took a bite from her meal, which shared a piece of hastily cooked meat but had a few pieces of fruit instead of bread. Daniel didn¡¯t comment on that difference, he was too busy thinking about aliens coming out of his chest. ¡°How have you been sleeping?¡± Quala asked, breaking Daniel out of the day-nightmare. Her eyes were piercing, but not in an aggressive way. She was just watching him closely for his reaction. Daniel suddenly understood that the real conversation had begun.

    ¡°Fine. The first night I started enchanting was rough but I¡¯ve been getting enough now,¡± he answered evenly. He had no problem talking with Quala, except for when it came to one topic. ¡°This wouldn¡¯t be therapy would it?¡± Would she know what that word meant in this context?

    Quala tilted her head to the side for one moment and kept her beak in as flat line a line as possible. It seemed to be a returned display of honesty, rather than annoyance or any other emotion. Then, she took the chair in the room and sat down nearer to Daniel than she had to, but still outside his personal space. ¡°I don¡¯t have a power that I¡¯m using now if that is what you are worried about. What I¡¯m offering is time to speak with someone who will keep what you say to themselves. Knowing my former apprentice, I imagine that should come to some relief.¡±

    Daniel had to smile, though he did so nervously. That¡¯s not exactly a no. ¡°I¡¯m not sure if I can tell you some things.¡±

    ¡°Daniel, you don¡¯t need to worry. Lograve told me everything.¡±

    It was a good thing he wasn¡¯t actively enchanting something because he would have lost all concentration. He gave himself a few seconds to make sure he wouldn¡¯t choke on his words, and then asked, ¡°What¡¯s everything?¡±

    ¡°Everything about the mines,¡± she said simply. ¡°Thomas told me as well, even though he wasn¡¯t supposed to. If he were still my apprentice I would try to hone that wagging tongue out of him, but he is his own Cleric now.¡± She said nothing else, waiting for a response.

    ¡°Honestly, I don¡¯t feel bothered by what happened.¡± She kept watching him. ¡°I know what you¡¯re doing,¡± he sighed, but she just patiently waited. There was a force to it, like her silence was pulling at the words within. ¡°If Lograve¡¯s right, then what happened is pretty bad for everyone, but I didn¡¯t do anything wrong.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m surprised to hear that,¡± Quala said, breathing air back into the room. ¡°I heard you were mired in self-pity and indecision on the way here.¡±

    Thomas, Daniel thought, cursing the Cleric¡¯s name. ¡°Well, yeah. I¡¯d just survived a dragon attack.¡± Daniel shrugged weakly. ¡°People died and I just needed time to figure that out.¡±

    ¡°So nothing is weighing on your mind now? You have no regrets?¡± She was hounding him. That wasn¡¯t how this was normally supposed to go, was it?

    Daniel looked at the heliorite, not because he had to but because Quala hurt more to look at than the shining metal. ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have gotten involved with Claire. Evalyn straight up told me this was a bad time to get in relationships and like an idiot I ignored her. I just made everything worse.¡± She was staring again. He kept up the silence for a minute, seeing who could last longer. It was Quala. ¡°Look, I¡¯m just not the kind of person that can be in a relationship. I can¡¯t deal with things going wrong, or really care about someone that way. It was just something I did because I wanted to and I hurt someone because I didn¡¯t think it through.¡±

    Quala¡¯s silence lasted long enough that Daniel was about to say something else, but she interrupted him. ¡°I think I don¡¯t need to use metaphor. You¡¯re smart enough to take my point, but I¡¯ll gladly walk you through it if you don¡¯t. Relationships, whether they be a friendship or something more intimate, are difficult. You aren¡¯t meant to be perfect or make no mistakes. You¡¯re supposed to learn from them.¡±

    ¡°I knew what I had to do,¡± Daniel protested. ¡°The problem was I just, I couldn¡¯t. I couldn¡¯t face her after what I¡¯d done.¡±

    ¡°What did you do?¡± she fired back.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t save her brother,¡± he answered simply. ¡°At the time it all felt like it was my fault. It still is, partially, but I¡¯m not the one to blame.¡± The image of Rorshawd came back to him again. He never knew what the man had looked like before the Upswell having only witnessed his draconic form. Not killing him was now his biggest regret of that night, but at least he hadn¡¯t troubled them after Murdon¡¯s last attack left him crippled.

    Quala shifted slightly at those words, but she still remained locked on to him. ¡°Feeling as you do now, do you think you could have talked with her at any point on the way here?¡±

    ¡°I-¡± He¡¯d thought the hard part of the conversation was avoiding his origins, but Quala had somehow discovered another hole in his heart. Or rather, one that should have been filled that turned out to be bottomless. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. It¡¯s too late now.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± She nodded, not sparing him any doubt on that matter. ¡°Some mistakes are fatal, but that doesn¡¯t mean you can¡¯t improve afterward. I fear you have learned the wrong lesson.¡±

    Somehow, Daniel found that funny. ¡°Did you just come here to help with my love life?¡±

    ¡°I help keep people healthy. That includes assisting them in forming healthy relationships. You would be surprised, but it is a valuable service to those having trouble forming a bond.¡±

    Right, bonds. Daniel thought. I guess the fact that I never made one with Claire is just another reason it wouldn¡¯t have worked. ¡°So you¡¯re saying I should try to find someone else?¡±

    ¡°When you¡¯re ready. What concerns me is your belief that you were undeserving or incapable of love. I don¡¯t expect this one talk to change your mind, but I wanted to set you on the right track.¡± She turned and glanced out of the window. ¡°I won¡¯t say your attitudes now are perfect. Far from it. The worst thing you did was to stop trying. Of anything, that is the fastest way to kill a relationship.¡±

    ¡°But I should stop trying with Claire?¡± Daniel clarified.

    ¡°Yes. I could be wrong, but I think the damage has been done.¡± She looked at him sadly with that, not commenting further. He knew there were things about Claire she wasn¡¯t telling him, but Daniel had no right to know. Instead of pressing further on the topic, asked, ¡°What else would you like to talk about, if there is nothing else on this you¡¯d like to say?¡±

    My family, Daniel¡¯s heart said, but his mind countermanded it. There was something else. Nothing about him but something that could be helpful. ¡°Do you know if there are different kinds of ringcats?¡±

    Quala blinked, caught off guard by the seismic shift in the conversation. ¡°Yes. They grow stronger with level and while they are a more mundane monster, I have heard the level six variant is truly fearsome if one can get that far.¡±

    ¡°No, not like that. Like, species of ringcat? Subspecies?¡± That wasn¡¯t helping. ¡°Have you ever heard of a Draconic Ringcat?¡±

    Quala rested her head on an arm and thought for a moment. ¡°No, I haven¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s something Hunter can become now if he levels up. There¡¯s a lot of options.¡±

    ¡°Is this from a power of yours?¡± She asked without the blatant disbelief Daniel was expecting.

    ¡°Maybe? I¡¯m not sure. That doesn¡¯t surprise you though?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know everything about monsters, and I know less now that I¡¯ve heard one speak.¡± That was fair. The two spent a collective moment reminiscing darkly before she continued. ¡°Why ask me? You know a Beastmaster.¡±

    ¡°Uhh.¡± No. Nooooo no. ¡°She¡¯s probably not the best to ask.¡±

    ¡°I see. I¡¯m just not sure how I can help.¡± Daniel was surprised at how easily she admitted this and then wondered why he was surprised at all.

    I guess I should tell her something. It¡¯s not like she can say it¡¯s impossible. ¡°Hunter¡¯s not sure about what he wants to become. He wants to be ready for the dragon, but there are too many options. And he¡¯s afraid of changing. He did the first time, but that was just him getting smarter.¡±

    Quala had started frowning halfway through his explanation, conflicted. ¡°This was before the mines?¡±

    Daniel nodded, guessing where she was going with this. ¡°He wasn¡¯t even there.¡±

    ¡°Where did you find it? Originally?¡±

    ¡°He found me,¡± Daniel said awkwardly. Quala¡¯s way of referencing Hunter did not escape his attention. ¡°I have a power that automatically charms weak beasts if I¡¯m alone, not that I knew that then. That¡¯s a long story. The short version is I woke up and he was there.¡±

    She looked down, deep in thought. ¡°Do you think it¡¯s possible that a god could have created that ringcat to act as your guardian?¡±

    Daniel stared at her. He wanted to reject that theory but found it hard to do so conclusively. ¡°Hunter did tell me he was alive before he found me, but if we¡¯re saying a god did it then we might as well say the memories are fake. Does that happen?¡±

    ¡°There is not much beyond the abilities of the Octyrrum and its subservient parts. This being the Hammer¡¯s domain would make it easier to believe your ringcat was physically created. They also hold power over souls.¡± Quala grew calmer as she spoke, seeming to comfort herself with the reasoning rather than convince Daniel. ¡°You haven¡¯t encountered any other creature like Hunter besides that dragon, have you?¡±

    ¡°No. So if Hunter was created by the gods, or a god, that could explain why he¡¯s different. Same with Rorshawd. But why me?¡±

    ¡°You survived the Upswell,¡± Quala said quietly. ¡°And unwittingly contained the soul of one responsible. The gods are mighty but they cannot act or be everywhere at once. Not in their full strength. This being the Hammer¡¯s domain, I could see him creating an agent to help assure your survival so that this soul could be brought from the region and interrogated.¡±

    Daniel did not like the sound of that at all, for many reasons. ¡°If that¡¯s the case, then the only thing they accomplished was waking up that thing.¡±

    Quala shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s the nature of free will. Even the most powerful of Torch and Hourglass¡¯ faithful cannot perfectly predict the future.¡±

    ¡°People can predict the future?¡± Quala nodded and Daniel took a moment to think about that before asking, ¡°What does this have to do with the different kinds of ringcat?¡±

    ¡°The Octyrrum is vast. I have not spent my life collecting knowledge like a certain lanky human. It¡¯s possible these different variants can be encountered elsewhere.¡± She held up a hand, flat palm facing him, and light projected from it. It was like her shield ability, but more focused. It took Daniel a second to recognize the rough shape of the world, complete with each god¡¯s symbol. Seeing it instilled the slightest amount of reverence in him, though it felt artificial like sharing in Rorshawd¡¯s discovery of the origin beast. ¡°If your guardian is of the Octyrrum, then it would carry its blessing. Perhaps that gives it the ability to be any form of ringcat that exists?¡±

    ¡°Then why do I have to choose? I have to choose,¡± Daniel clarified. ¡°Then Hunter can accept it or tell me to pick something else.¡±

    ¡°It is your guardian,¡± Quala answered simply, before walking the statement back. ¡°I am not presenting this as the truth, only a possible explanation. One that would make me seem quite foolish for suggesting you rid yourself of it the first time we met.¡± She smiled self consciously. ¡°In the end, it is up to you what your ringcat becomes. And it, if it has the will to deny you.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s my friend,¡± Daniel countered, though he couldn¡¯t be angry enough with Quala to put force in his words. ¡°I won¡¯t make him do anything.¡±

    ¡°Good,¡± she said slyly, still smiling. ¡°I¡¯d hoped you would say that even if your friend is far outside what I would consider normal. If you ever doubt your ability to form and commit to a relationship, consider the one you have with Hunter. As far as your original question, I can¡¯t say. I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    Daniel ran a hand through his hair, reasonably sure he hadn¡¯t licked it first. ¡°It¡¯s fine. We just need to decide soon so that I can make him his armor.¡±

    ¡°Should you be making other things now?¡±

    Daniel glanced at the heliorite. ¡°A lot of the big stuff is done so I can split up the rest. Murdon still hasn¡¯t told me when my deadline is, but I have time.¡±

    ¡°I see. In that case, what else would you like to talk about?¡±

    ¡°Nothing else for now,¡± Daniel said, still holding off the urge to talk about his past. Maybe one day, if he knew she wouldn¡¯t kill him for it. Quala seemed nice and wasn¡¯t too upset over what Hunter was but he couldn¡¯t be sure. The Cleric was devoted to the Octyrrum and the teachings surrounding it. Even if she would only think less of him for introducing more heresy into her life, he didn¡¯t want to risk it. She stood to leave and then Daniel had a thought. ¡°Wait, have you talked to Khare?¡±

    Quala turned her head again in confusion. It was a peculiar gesture that was either specific to her or avianoids as a whole. ¡°No. Should I?¡±

    ¡°I think so. They¡¯re, well, I¡¯m not sure exactly. I just think they might not be alright after what happened in Roost¡¯s Peak.¡± Daniel thought about what he was asking her to do for a second. ¡°Ah, but it¡¯ll be hard to talk to them won¡¯t it.¡±

    ¡°Yes, I am quite busy, but I will see if I can spare the time. We should do this again as well.¡±

    Daniel looked at her blankly. ¡°You¡¯re going to do it? What about the fact that gestalt can¡¯t really speak?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll figure something out,¡± she replied knowingly, as if she already had a solution in mind. She left with that, though her words remained.

 Chapter 66: Spinner

    Tlara was flying. Well, technically her wyvern was doing the flying for her, but since Martialists went on about the things they killed when it was their sword doing the work it counted. She had good tools, and she¡¯d even gotten another since the wyverns. One of the purposes of the hunting groups was to find replacements or upgrades for the surviving Beastmasters, in addition to the constant struggle to feed around a thousand people.

    She was the strongest now. There was one with a higher wisdom or endurance, sure, but they didn¡¯t have wyverns. She had two. Two. She ran a hand over the false draconid and felt a rush from the knowledge that she alone could do this. Anyone else who tried would probably die, if she wanted them to.

    No, that was wrong. Tlara was careful not to let herself get too arrogant for her own sake. Not having the threat of more powerful mortals over her head could make her careless. Also, in the end, she wasn¡¯t a bad person. Sure she hated Spiritualists and didn¡¯t get along with a lot of people, but unlike what some people said her class wasn¡¯t evil. The monsters were evil! Compare Tlara to the Tyrant who had effectively dominated most of the region and you¡¯d get the point. Tlara nodded at her own thoughts and sagely vowed that if her class did give her something that let her dominate people, she¡¯d release all of her monsters and give it up. She was just that good of a person.

    Either way, Tlara would need to remember the importance of being sociable if they made it out of here. Tlara didn¡¯t know if they would. She thought they were all dead when she¡¯d heard Kob died, but now that idiot was passing around magical items like candy and Bards were practicing together in some secluded forest area. She didn¡¯t know which one was more hilarious.

    It was just too bad she couldn¡¯t get anything out of it. Monsters didn¡¯t respond to supportive Bardic music and conveniently Daniel couldn¡¯t make her a set of pouches. He was probably lying to spite her, it¡¯s what she would do. She¡¯d like to throw a lightning bolt or two on the building he¡¯d been making a hermit of himself in just for fun, but that¡¯d just get her shot down. It was a good thing she wasn¡¯t arrogant enough to try.

    Her wyvern was still flying as instructed, but at that point its movement became unsteady. Tlara half sighed, half shouted as she realized it was hungry. A thinking creature might have better described this as starvation, but Tlara didn¡¯t have the sentience-granting power that Daniel did. Instead, she just knew that when her tools started to perform poorly it was time for maintenance.

    She peered out for the other active beast she had, the monster that was not named Spinner. The people she¡¯d been with had tried to suggest that name, unaware of how Tlara did things. However it was still stuck in her head and she despised that. It made the monster more than it should be. Oh well, she¡¯d just use it against the dragon. There was no way anything she pitted against that thing would survive. Murdon had been quite clear as to the role both tamed and dominated creatures would play in the fight to come. She¡¯d have to use one of her wyverns too. It was unfair. Why did she have to put one of her best on the line?

    Spi- her newest level three addition was a tracker. Not as good as a ringcat and not in the same way, but damn more durable. It was large enough to have redundant organs like hearts and could survive with a large part of it cut off. Healing Hands - Monsters wouldn¡¯t regenerate limbs, but this silk shocker with no name was useful enough to warrant keeping it even if crippled.

    While Tlara couldn¡¯t command her tools at range, she could faintly sense them. With her wyvern, it didn¡¯t take long to reach the large spider-like creature roving the plains. Someone else had dominated one like it but had been stupid enough to get it killed when some kind of fight broke out in the village. Oh well, it just made her beasts more unique.

    This was important because it would be some time before anyone came back here. If no one else could capture one before they left, and there were only one other who could, Tlara would have a massive bargaining chip. Dominated monsters could be traded between Beastmasters. This was not an easy or inexpensive process, and you couldn¡¯t buy your way into having monsters more powerful than yourself. That didn¡¯t matter to the one holding all of the cards, who would typically be fronted those costs in addition to whatever was traded in kind. Of all the people here, it seemed Tlara was the only one who cared about how they¡¯d live after the dragon. The fact that she¡¯d just committed it to getting killed in the upcoming dragon fight didn¡¯t even cross her mind.

    Her wyverns would be worth more, of course, but fuck anyone who tried to buy those off of her. They were something else, a cut above. Everything associated with a draconic bloodline had an advantage over most monsters in their relative power scale, and she had two that were completely under her thumb. That even extended to mortals, though with Tlara that was more a matter of taste. Mind on the matter, she distracted herself the rest of the way down by trying to imagine the scaled Commander without his armor, or anything else. Tlara knew with certainty nothing would come of the idle thoughts, but she was in a good mood and allowed her mind to wander.

    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

    The silk shocker that was NOT named Spinner wasn¡¯t exactly a spider, even though it had eight limbs and mandibles. The fur, tail, and articulated neck were obvious exceptions to the norm. It still spun silk, and therein lay its usefulness as a scout. Given time, the creature could spread thin strands across an area that could sense movement, even if they weren¡¯t touched. This far out from the mountains there weren¡¯t likely to be flying creatures that could avoid its webs.

    ¡°Find me a couple of level 1 monsters, doesn¡¯t matter what kind,¡± Tlara ordered curtly. She could have done it with hand signs but didn¡¯t always use that feature. There was something about giving verbal orders that she preferred. Maybe it was the ability to shout if she wanted to. Her beasts never complained or went against what she said, and on a bad day it was nice to vent on things that didn¡¯t matter.

    She was about to scream at the thing when it pointed with a leg and then tapped the ground three times. She¡¯d had to teach it the signals she preferred, but only once. Three taps could mean anything, but if nothing proceeded it besides a direction it meant three kilometers. The hunting teams had been busy and must have completely eradicated everything closer. The village and its food stores being the way they were, even normal animals were being snatched up en masse to feed the hundreds of people waiting for the day they challenged the master of the mountain pass.

    Tlara pointed in the same direction the silk shocker did and ordered her wyvern, ¡°Go kill those level 1s, eat, and be back in an hour. Don¡¯t be fucking late.¡± The wyvern obeyed. Anyone watching would have gotten the wrong impression about Beastmasters, of course. It wasn¡¯t just that easy. What if the wyvern was attacked or got lost, would it know what to do and come back to her? No, it¡¯d be useless unless Tlara had thought of those circumstances and given standing orders. Run if you¡¯re attacked alone. Hit yourself in the face and then go back to the village if you¡¯re lost. That one would have to be changed once they left the region, of course, and that was what was so damned annoying. Her beasts would follow the letter of her orders and nothing else. Inexperience had cost her beasts due to poor wording before.

    Now what? Tlara looked around and clenched a fist in boredom. They were in the middle of nowhere! Just stupid grass and trees. It¡¯d been stupid grass, trees, or rocks for most of the past month, the monotony only broken up by the occasional fight or an annoying upstart she wasn¡¯t allowed to reprimand. How long had it been since she¡¯d been able to take a bath? Probably since they¡¯d been in Roost¡¯s Peak, but she couldn¡¯t remember.

    Tlara looked at the silk shocker and put a hand up against one of the large spines that poked out from it. Not for the first time she wondered why almost every creature native to this region had them. There was a strong affinity for lightning here, evidenced by the storms that were a regular nuisance. And yet, it was the same material. Tlara had dominated enough of the lower species here to recognize that.

    ¡°Where¡¯s the nearest level 3 monster?¡± she asked her minion beside her. It paused for just a second before it pointed to itself. ¡°Oh, you fucking- where¡¯s the nearest one I don¡¯t control? Or anyone else?¡± She glared at it with about 70% intensity as it paused again, then formed an ¡®X¡¯ with its two upper limbs. ¡°Fuck, so much for the monsters around here getting worse.¡±

    Not-Spinner played an essential role for Tlara in finding other monsters to dominate. Other mortals hoping to advance could stumble around until they found anything to fight, but she was after specific monsters to literally flesh out her roster. It was why she¡¯d still had a level 1 ringcat when she was level 2. The adult variant had sharper senses than the alpha, which dulled ever so slightly as the species leveled up. This useless mass should have made things convenient. A little investment of time up front and she could passively monitor a large sweep of land for potential targets.

    Only the damned thing wasn¡¯t working! Tlara considered some percussive maintenance before shaking her head. She wouldn¡¯t be able to do anything besides brush against the monster with her fists, and what was the point of hitting her tool if it didn¡¯t hurt it when she did? Tlara paced and marveled at how dull walking was compared to flying. She¡¯d been in the air more often than on the ground ever since the Tyrant died. It spoke to something she couldn¡¯t quite describe, a faded memory passing through time to reach her. Tlara would have normally rebelled against any kind of compulsion, ancestral or not, but this one was special. Besides, she had two wyverns. What was she going to do if not ride them?

    40 minutes after she¡¯d sent her hungry wyvern hunting, Tlara frowned as she spotted it in the distance approaching quickly. It could manage the journey there and back in half the time she¡¯d given, give or take how the targets were moving, but the feeding itself should have taken longer. Wait, was it bleeding? ¡°Oh, fuck.¡± As it got closer, she saw it was wounded. Not from natural weapons, but arrows.

    Tlara wanted to scream at both her monsters for their stupidity, but even she realized she hadn¡¯t specified to omit monsters owned by other mortals with her first request. This would be trouble, but Tlara was a level three Beastmaster, and in this current context that gave her a lot more authority than it normally would. If people wanted her wyvern dead in retribution, assuming it had done its job and killed its prey, then good luck to them.

    The skyshock wyvern dissolved into dust which was absorbed into a pouch on her waist. There, problem solved. They could complain all they liked, but they couldn¡¯t touch her property and they wouldn¡¯t attack her. Probably, Tlara added with a frown. Her other active beast was alerting her to the forces approaching by ground. Still minutes out, but moving fast. Tlara let out another half-scream, half-sigh. This was going to be annoying, she already knew it.

 Chapter 67: Public Recognition

    The chunk of heliorite Daniel possessed had shrunk dramatically over the past few days. Originally just smaller than his torso, it was now easy to carry one-handed. If he could directly touch it with all the lesser rock removed, that was. It had taken seven full days, but he¡¯d made everything Murdon had wanted and then some after a last minute addition to their strategy.

    The specialized weapon the draconoid had loaned him as templates had proven interesting, and he was now equipped with a heliorite version of each along with an enchanted crossbow that he¡¯d taken notes from Earth¡¯s designs on. He¡¯d still use his primary crossbow for normal fighting, but if he ever convinced Hunter to allow for mounted combat the new additions to his arsenal would be far easier to use.

    Something else he¡¯d occupied his mind with over the long periods of waiting was working on the designs he¡¯d make next. For standard gear he¡¯d just needed a rough idea of what he needed to make, which included visits for everyone requiring fitting such as for the lightning wings. For his gear Daniel afforded more thought, such as working out how to add a stock to his crossbow. He¡¯d even enchanted a very tiny level 1 version that would need toothpick sized bolts just to make sure it looked right.

    The only thing missing was Hunter¡¯s armor. He¡¯d put in a lot of design work on trying to retroactively fit his wings on the back, just in case, but if Hunter¡¯s body changed dramatically with Growth he¡¯d have to start over. They were running out of time to decide. Even if Daniel didn¡¯t make him armor the day of the evacuation was looming. Food was critically low, and while it had taken longer than they¡¯d expected for higher level monsters to fill the gap, that just meant there was less to eat. When asked privately, Murdon had given Daniel two days to get ready. Longer than that, he couldn¡¯t guarantee.

    For Hunter¡¯s part, he¡¯d been more docile. That probably wasn¡¯t the right word, but the only thing the ringcat had done was lounge, think, and visit Tak by himself. That was fine, Daniel wasn¡¯t worried at all that his murder cat had made a friend that was himself half murder cat. He just missed the days when it was only Hunter and him, or even the day it was just Ringcat and him. That first walk to Hagain Village, before he knew anything, seemed so much simpler and even nostalgic.

    Of course, Rorshawd was lurking in the background then. Tlara had also haunted his days spent hunting under Lograve and Kob¡¯s leadership. That¡¯d changed too. Kob died, Lograve was¡­ no, he was the same, and Tlara had gotten in trouble when her wyvern attacked a scouting party. Rumor, passed along through Thomas, said she¡¯d pretty much gotten away with it. Oh well, she wasn¡¯t his problem anymore.

    The last of the heliorite and the terrifying dragon were. Hunter needed to decide. Do you have any ideas? he asked the ringcat. They were walking through the village¡¯s crowded streets, drawing attention both due to the monster, and the wings on Daniel¡¯s back. He¡¯d made seven in total, each in different fashions. Since the wings themselves didn¡¯t have to be functional, they could be shaped in whatever way he wanted so long as they conformed to the general concept. He¡¯d done insect wings, bird wings, and a set of dragon wings specifically for Murdon.

    For Daniel? The impulse to make wings that looked like some kind of superhero cape was easily resisted since the color would be completely wrong for what his first choice would be. In the end, he¡¯d taken the first set he¡¯d made for himself. Even if they did faintly remind him of something a toy would wear, the fighter jet shape was fun. They were also the only set of wings that weren¡¯t set in place, making them less unwieldy.

    He stopped as he realized Hunter hadn¡¯t answered and he¡¯d gotten completely sidetracked. Hunter?

    No. The look in Hunter¡¯s eye was almost mournful. Can¡¯t.

    I don¡¯t know who else to ask, Daniel thought. No one had ever heard of atypical breeds of ringcat, not even Lograve. All monsters had one set development path as far as the Arcanist knew, though there were some species thought to be closely related. We can¡¯t avoid this decision forever. You need to get to level 2, at least for Regeneration. Do you want to know which one I¡¯d pick?

    Hmmm.

    It wasn¡¯t a no. Daniel hadn¡¯t put forward a serious suggestion up until this point because he wanted the choice to be Hunter¡¯s. This might be the only choice Hunter had over what kind of being he was. There¡¯s one that says unique. That doesn¡¯t necessarily mean that it''s rarer or better than the others, but it means there¡¯s something about you that it''s specific to. ¡®Awakened¡¯ probably connects to you being sapient. I don¡¯t know what that¡¯ll do to you but-

    Scared.

    I know. Daniel resisted the urge to put a hand on Hunter¡¯s head. He¡¯d gotten a dose of that fear every dawn, which was when they¡¯d figured out Empathic Link reset. Rising with the sun had become a common occurrence for Daniel if only to suppress the link and go back to bed. I don¡¯t know how you can be more terrified of this than a dragon, but I know you¡¯re scared.

    I will change. Die.

    You won¡¯t die, Daniel tried to sound comforting. Unless you meant the dragon for that one which, yeah. That¡¯s fair.

    Hunter dug a little further into the ground with his next pawstep, kicking dirt behind him. What is next will not be me. It will be different.

    Unless Awakened Ringcat just makes you more you, Daniel argued. Like, concentrating your essence or something. But if you don¡¯t want that, Alpha Ringcat is what you¡¯d naturally be without me. Would you want that?

    Alphas lead, Hunter countered. I will never be with my kind again. Never be in a pack.

    That more than anything made Daniel¡¯s face fall, and he understood a little more Hunter¡¯s connection to Tak. There are plenty of choices in between. Dawn or Luminous Ringcat both sound noble.

    But I would change!

    Well, yeah. He scratched his head instead of Hunter¡¯s. You¡¯ll change no matter what you pick. But you know what won¡¯t change?

    What? Hunter was looking at him intently.

    This is going to sound corny, Daniel thought to himself, and then to Hunter. We¡¯ll still be friends. I doubt Tak will care what you choose either, but we can ask him if you want.

    Hmm. That was a thoughtful mental grunt, that method of Hunter¡¯s expression becoming very flexible through repeated use. Would, but I cannot. He understands to a point, but not with words.

    Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.

    I can just ask him for you. Hunter didn¡¯t reply. You did think about that, right?

    Would have eventually.

    Daniel laughed, attracting glances from onlookers. Let¡¯s do that then. I owe Thomas a couple of lunches anyway.

    ¡­

    Acquiring the needed lunch was easier than it should have been. Even though he arrived about thirty minutes early to where the day¡¯s rations were being dispensed, a line of fifty people had already formed. These were the villagers without any responsibilities and nothing to look forward to in the day besides relief from their hunger. Or, their children¡¯s, as several bedraggled parents in line had their offspring in tow. Daniel was in no great rush. He couldn¡¯t start Hunter¡¯s armor until the next morning so the decision could wait until tonight. If other people with children came into the line he¡¯d let them pass. The only reason he was here so early was to relieve Thomas in case the Cleric tried to get his own meal. That wasn¡¯t what happened.

    Instead, the person in front of him, a young human man only a few years older than Daniel, did a double take when he looked towards the motion behind him. He stepped aside stiffly in surprise. In response to Daniel turning around in kind before offering a confused look, the man beckoned forward. It looked like he wanted to say something but the words were catching in his throat. Do I know this guy? Daniel thought to himself, plagued with the all too common sinking feeling of being recognized without reciprocation. Maybe it was someone he¡¯d saved during the sparkbat fight after Murdon turbo-charged him?

    Then, the next person in line stepped aside. Another, a father holding his daughter, followed. It spread down the line, skipping a few holdouts until they bowed to peer pressure. Each looked at him differently, but even the recalcitrant shared the traces of one common emotion: awe. That was when Daniel became self-aware and realized exactly what he looked like.

    A young human in armor. Probably not the cleanest, but the wings on his back and the golden replacement of his old leather armor shone in the sunlight. The sparkling wasn¡¯t just a reflection but a specific reaction in the wings¡¯ case as the metal absorbed sunlight to recharge the launching ability. By his side was a monster, a cat massive compared to a normal one and larger than he was in total size, even if Hunter¡¯s head came up to just below his neck. That wasn¡¯t everything.

    He¡¯d flown in front of all of them, and his part in the evacuation had been made public during that first meeting. Of everyone, Daniel¡¯s contributions had been the most tangible and theatrical. Then? What became of this Artificer, the only one in the region, was something they could only guess at once he retreated into his lair. In the intervening time, most of the important figures of the Thormundz had visited at least once. Daniel had seen people pause outside his window on occasion but hadn¡¯t taken the weight of this until now.

    Hunter, I think I¡¯m a celebrity, Daniel thought in a spaced out way as he walked to the front of the line. People were thanking him, some reaching as they did so. Hunter didn¡¯t receive the same kind of attention but wasn¡¯t feared by the crowd he passed.

    What? Hunter probably didn¡¯t know what that word meant. Daniel hadn¡¯t used it in all his time here, and definitely not in relation to himself.

    I¡­ He didn¡¯t like this. It took him up until this point to reaffirm how stifling public attention was. This wasn¡¯t as bad as his presentation a week ago which had tripped his claustrophobia to a small degree. Now, it was more awkward. Murdon, Gadriel, or Lograve should be getting this kind of praise, not him. He¡¯d just sat in a room while the heliorite did all the work.

    At the same time, if he didn¡¯t move ahead of everyone, he¡¯d be stuck with them and their misplaced gratitude. They were all just normal people.

    ¡°I-I¡¯ve got your food, sir. Thank you.¡± A young avianoid pushed a food tray onto the table. Steam was coming off what was not a single portion. It¡¯d been delivered too soon, probably pulled off from what had been cooked while the rest was being finished. ¡°Is there anything else you need?¡± she asked nervously when Daniel frowned.

    ¡°Oh, uh.¡± The problem was he didn¡¯t have anything for Thomas. People did get food for others, and Daniel suspected some might lie about that. He wouldn¡¯t be lying, but she would probably give him another larger portion. The background hunger that had been awoken by the smell of the steam made him consider, just for a moment, asking anyway. ¡°Could I get another tray? Just a tray, no food.¡±

    ¡°Right, of course!¡± the woman exclaimed, looking at Hunter. ¡°I can get you more food if-¡±

    ¡°Just a tray,¡± Daniel said awkwardly, stacking the second under the first when it was brought and quickly departing. They fit together perfectly, as identical to each other as the others Daniel had eaten off of. One person had to have made these and with a power. Did they get to cut in line too? No, he had to be honest with his humility, magical items trumped food trays, but that was still too much deference.

    It means I¡¯m famous. Daniel finally explained to Hunter.

    ¡­

    ¡°Guy!¡± Thomas exclaimed as they ran into each other near the medical tents. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you be tinkering with that magic rock?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve made almost everything, even the stuff for the rods.¡± Daniel extended one of the trays towards the Cleric.

    ¡°Ah, nice!¡± He looked up to the sky and scrunched his eyebrows. ¡°You got here fast. How long were you waiting?¡±

    ¡°Well, I do owe you for the past few days. Now that my job¡¯s pretty much done I have time to repay the favor.¡±

    ¡°Thanks, Guy.¡± Thomas held the tray one handed and picked up the fruit. He frowned, seeing it was cut in half, but took a bite anyway. ¡°They¡¯re getting stingier, but I know they have to. We need to get out of here before this goes to an every other day meal. Who¡¯d you talk to?¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t get their name. She was an avianoid?¡±

    ¡°Ah, young one or the one with a patch of missing feathers on the neck?¡±

    ¡°The first one,¡± Daniel said askance. Did Thomas know everyone in the village?

    ¡°Shiara! Guy, she¡¯s single, and not too bad if you¡¯re looking for a rebound. Unless Tlara¡¯s ruined avianoids for you.¡± The way he said it so casually stunned Daniel. He¡¯d been there for what happened with Claire, and he worked where she was being cared for by Quala. ¡°Guy?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m also here to see Tak,¡± Daniel said, steadying the hand that had shook just a little. ¡°He¡¯s not near Claire, is he?¡±

    ¡°Oh shit, sorry Guy. No, Quala¡¯s got her in her own, mhmm,¡± Thomas put a hand over his half-full mouth. ¡°Can¡¯t talk about that. Honestly, he¡¯s fine by now, Quala just wanted to give him another day so he¡¯ll think before he gets his leg torn off again. The only really hurt people we have are Sigron, of course, and the couple that were blasted when Tlara¡¯s wyvern buzzed them. Can¡¯t believe her. Anyways,¡± Thomas continued, hardly pausing to chew his food, ¡°Khare came by the other day, and with that weird lady that talks to plants. Have they been staying with you? They¡¯re never around when I¡¯m there.¡±

    Daniel latched onto that last question in the whirlwind lest his mind scatter trying to address each point. Khare hadn¡¯t stayed in the building and Daniel had rarely seen them over the week, usually to give them more daggers on a whim. He could knock out a throwing dagger in ten minutes and occasionally did it just for the rush of finishing an enchantment. The presentation was the longest they¡¯d been together, and he told Thomas as much. ¡°Honestly, I don¡¯t know where they¡¯ve been. Underground maybe? I think that¡¯s how gestalt advance and they¡¯ve been doing that a lot.¡±

    ¡°Huh.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Daniel asked when Thomas fell uncharacteristically silent.

    ¡°Can¡¯t talk about it,¡± he replied through a mouthful. ¡°So, why Tak?¡±

    ¡°Hunter has a question for him,¡± Daniel said plainly. At his side, Hunter looked to Thomas with a silent threat to ensure his silence.

    ¡°But how will, oh.¡± Thomas made the connection. ¡°Can I ask him a question, Guy?¡±

    I don¡¯t see why not, Daniel thought to Hunter, keeping that communication private even if he didn¡¯t need to. Hunter just nodded, keeping his eyes fixed on Thomas. ¡°Sure.¡±

    It took the Cleric a few seconds to put his thoughts together. ¡°Why¡¯d you go for my arm? You could¡¯ve torn it off!¡±

    I could not carry another way, Hunter thought, and Daniel forwarded it verbatim.

    ¡°So just nudge me then or something. I could¡¯ve run with you!¡±

    You told me to take him.

    Daniel grimaced, an expression that wasn¡¯t missed by the Cleric. ¡°Guy?¡±

    ¡°This might be my fault. Kinda.¡± Daniel winced as Thomas¡¯ gaze shifted. ¡°When I was trying to get everyone clear after the lightning I pretty much told Hunter to, uh, get you out of danger. I think he took that as ¡®by any means necessary¡¯.¡±

    ¡°Huh. Well, alright then. Better word choice might have saved me some pain but I guess it¡¯s fine.¡± Thomas was trying to project sudden nonchalance, though at least some of it was feigned. ¡°Can I ask another question?¡±

    Daniel and Hunter looked at each other, and then Daniel shrugged. ¡°Sure.¡±

    ¡°How¡¯d I taste?¡±

 Chapter 68: Awakening

    The rows of medical tents Daniel walked down provided a two-fold hit of fond memory. Of home, and his first day in the village. They¡¯d changed, of course. The monster outbreak and then the abandoning of the village had cost them their uniformity and number. Injuries were less common but still present. Between the unpreventable accidents, disputes within the camp, and injuries among the hunters, there was still a need for the healers.

    ¡°Over there, Guy,¡± Thomas pointed. ¡°He¡¯s on bedrest but you can probably walk around and have a talk. I¡¯ve got to get back to it. Thanks for lunch!¡±

    ¡°Yeah, thanks for the directions.¡± Thomas half-sprinted away with that, back on the job.

    Hmm. Still do not like him.

    ¡°The taste, or just him?¡± Daniel asked lowly, abandoning telepathy mostly for a change of pace. The corridor between the tents wasn¡¯t packed like it was that first day, when wounded were being received from everywhere in the region. People were moving about but kept to themselves.

    Talks too much. He flicked his tail in aggravation. To too many.

    ¡°He¡¯s just sociable. I kind of wish I was like him. Not as chatty,¡± he assured another tail flick. ¡°But he gets to know people easily.¡±

    Too many people.

    ¡°What does that mean?¡±

    Hmm, too many scents on him.

    Daniel kept walking but stared in horror. He also switched back to telepathy. Hunter, you can¡¯t tell when people, uh, you can¡¯t, can you?

    I think so, Hunter said evenly, as if that didn¡¯t carry boundless horrors into Daniel¡¯s mind.

    How long could you do this?

    Figured it out when you and-

    Ok, ok, I get it, Daniel immediately cut him off. But he¡¯s a healer and he talks with a lot of people, so couldn¡¯t that explain it?

    It is different.

    They were almost at the tent now. How come I didn¡¯t notice this during our training?

    You still do not know what you smell like, Hunter replied with a hint of humor.

    ¡°Ah, Hunter. Daniel.¡± Tak acknowledged them as they entered the tent. It was about the same size as the one Daniel had been taken to, maybe even the same one. Now it had twice as many beds and occupants who all looked up to see the man wearing glowing wings enter the tent.

    Tak looked barely injured to Daniel. Of course, he hadn¡¯t seen the avianoid when he¡¯d come in this time. All he knew was that some kind of allergic reaction had happened, and Tak almost lost his leg again. It was fine now, not even bandaged. ¡°We were hoping to talk to you. Outside?¡± He added, to the relief of the rest in the room. Five mortals and a ringcat made for very tight quarters in an already packed tent.

    ¡°Ah, why not!¡± There was a beaked grin on his face. ¡°They want me to stay here. Rest. I have done so for days already. I need to be fit if we are fighting the dragon soon!¡± He stood and walked by a surprised Daniel.

    ¡°You¡¯re excited about that?¡±

    ¡°Yes! I missed the first one.¡±

    ¡°People died Tak,¡± Daniel said, following him out. ¡°People are going to die.¡±

    Tak nodded. ¡°It will be a terrible fight, but against a worthy foe.¡±

    ¡°Ok,¡± Daniel said slowly and noted the direction they were going. It wasn¡¯t along the main line of the tents but between them, and the shortest way out of the village. ¡°Where are we going?¡±

    ¡°On a walk, like you said.¡±

    ¡°I asked if you wanted to talk outside.¡±

    ¡°Oh. Well, you can follow. I¡¯m not going far.¡± Tak turned and grinned again, then addressed Hunter. ¡°We could go for a run too. Though we¡¯d have to leave him behind.¡± Anyone else addressing Hunter directly would have raised an eyebrow, but Daniel appreciated the friendship between them. It was why they were here. He was about to say as much when Tak tilted his head. ¡°Oh, you are here for something. Hmm. Not to hunt, you are not hungry. Haven¡¯t Grown though. You have a problem?¡± Hunter nodded. ¡°I don¡¯t know what I can do. I have heard things from my people, but I am not smart.¡±

    ¡°Your people?¡±

    ¡°The Spiritualists,¡± Tak said proudly, turning to Daniel. ¡°I thought you knew. Were one of us?¡±

    ¡°Not really. I mean, I guessed, I just¡­¡± How to explain this? Daniel didn¡¯t want to insult Tak, but he also had serious, dragon-shaped concerns about that ideology even if he had been mistaken as one of them initially. He settled on deflection. ¡°Hunter came here to ask you something, but it¡¯s not like that. It¡¯s personal.¡±

    Tak gazed intensely at Hunter for a few seconds. The ringcat somehow managed a bemused look. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I can understand much of what he intends, but not this.¡±

    ¡°I can ask for him?¡±

    ¡°Oh, that is clever!¡± Tak said without a hint of sarcasm. He couldn¡¯t have figured that out on his own? ¡°What does he want to know?¡±

    By now, they were past the tents, moving towards the trees around the village. Some had been felled, though most of the surrounding forest stood as it had before. As it would, when they were gone. ¡°I¡¯ll wait for him. I know what he wants to ask but not how he wants to ask it.¡± Both mortals paused and waited for about a minute, walking silently as Hunter thought.

    What happens when I die? The fear and anxiety within Hunter came out again, a fact that did not escape the attention of Tak either.

    ¡°That¡¯s what you want to ask?¡±

    Yes.

    ¡°What is?¡± Tak looked concerned, the earlier carefree spirit gone.

    ¡°I¡¯m just going to repeat his words. It¡¯s not what I thought he¡¯d, uh, sorry.¡± He was trying to be more mindful of how he treated Hunter these days. Right now was an important time, foundational for who Hunter would become. He owed Hunter nothing less than absolute loyalty without second guessing. That was hard for Daniel, but it was worth the effort.

    ¡°What happens when I die?¡± Hunter asked, using Daniel¡¯s voice.

    Tak considered this, looked around, and punched a tree. It fell down almost instantly with a crashing sound and the avianoid calmly took a seat once it had settled. ¡°Not something to speak of lightly,¡± Tak said as if that explained what he just did. ¡°Many people say different things. Different afterlifes. No afterlife. Being born again as another. It is very confusing.¡±

    ¡°What happens when one of my kind dies?¡±

    ¡°To most, they would say nothing. Monsters do not have a soul, they have nothing to move on. I think we know differently,¡± Tak whispered conspiratorially but without levity. ¡°Of my people, those I have spoken with, they say other things. Some, rebirth again. They say it is a cycle, mortal goes to monster and back. Not sure about that. Those who also believe strongly in gods say some among monsters are chosen by them. Granted spirit or soul for a purpose, rewarded when that is finished. Others say it is an accident. Misplaced soul, but one that should be respected.¡±

    ¡°You do not know?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Tak shook his head. ¡°I am not smart. I don¡¯t know. Sorry.¡±

    Daniel looked around awkwardly as he waited for the next question. He had his own but wasn¡¯t going to ask them. Not now. ¡°What is a soul?¡±

    ¡°You are asking the difficult questions today. It is us, but not our bodies? Something more. Shraw,¡± Tak made a sound, not a word. Almost like a whistle crossed with a sigh. ¡°Something untouchable.¡±

    ¡°What does that mean?¡±

    ¡°It can¡¯t be touched?¡± He leaned back slightly and watched as Hunter paced back and forth in front of him. ¡°Souls cannot be hurt. Not by sword or claw. It is the only part of you truly yours. No one I have heard has said otherwise.¡±

    ¡°What about Growth? I change. Changed last time, could understand and think more. Is that different?¡± Daniel relayed, keeping the grammar exact. He was only a medium for this conversation in the same sense that the air carrying his words was.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. Haven¡¯t spoken to someone like you before, no one I know has. But you think and you feel, unless he is playing a very long joke,¡± Tak said, glancing over to Daniel before continuing. ¡°I would say you have a soul. I cannot say if it is the same as mine, but when I advance, I change. Get stronger, or faster, or sometimes, twice a year, smarter. Can do new things, feel new things. I don¡¯t think I am a different person though.¡±

    Hunter stopped pacing, and a little bit of the tension eased. Explain, please.

    ¡°Expl-, uh, hold on,¡± You want me to tell him about the different kinds of ringcat? Hunter affirmed, so Daniel did. He didn¡¯t pull up the screen on the phone because he doubted it would tell Tak anything.

    ¡°I have not heard of other kinds of ringcat. Interesting!¡± Tak ran a finger across the paw attached to his belt. His Focus. ¡°I wonder what that would change for my class. Your Focus, you can make from other metal. I am more limited. Many options though. I see why you are unsure.¡± Daniel waited as Hunter was thinking. He said nothing further until Tak asked him a question directly. ¡°What do you think? You are smarter than me.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d go with Awakened Ringcat,¡± Daniel answered with an attempt at confidence. ¡°It seems like it¡¯s special to Hunter, even if we don¡¯t know what it¡¯ll do.¡±

    ¡°Ah. I do not know what half of those other types mean, so you are probably right. I agree!¡± He looked back to Hunter. ¡°Your friend is smart, and he cares. If he thinks this is right, why do you not?¡±

    Hunter answered, and Daniel echoed. ¡°I am not sure. I am scared. When I first Grew it felt a thing I should do. Now, I can think more. I can wonder what will happen to who I am.¡±

    Tak steadied his elbows on his knees and then supported his head in his hands. ¡°I see. Maybe it is different for you. Instinct is usually right. But is this your instinct, or your fear? It is easy to confuse them.¡±

    ¡°I do not know.¡±

    ¡°It is a thing we have in common,¡± Tak agreed with a smile. ¡°I understand. You have a special soul. I would not want you to lose it.¡±

    Hunter didn¡¯t reply for about a minute, and when he did, the mental voice was soft. ¡°What happens if I do lose it?¡±

    The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

    ¡°You won¡¯t. Not to this, I don¡¯t think.¡± Tak shook his head. ¡°It may change, but I don¡¯t think it will either. You are strong. Daniel is strong, and there is a bond between you. Do you trust him?¡±

    The answer didn¡¯t need to be spoken, but Hunter made Daniel say it anyway. ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Then do it. He says it is the right thing. I am thankful you asked me, but that should have been all you needed.¡± Tak looked around, and added, ¡°I can leave if you want me to.¡±

    ¡°You want us to do it now?¡± Daniel asked, then hastily added, ¡°That was me.¡±

    Do it. Hunter was adamant. In essence, Tak hadn¡¯t said much more than Daniel had. What was important was how he understood the ringcat in a way Daniel never could.

    ¡°He wants me to do it now. I¡¯ll uh, just, do it.¡± His hands were shaking again, but he would not make a mistake. Of all the icons associated with the ringcat variants, Awakened Ringcat was the only one that was blank. He pressed it, tensing for the barrage of notifications he knew would come and watching with breath held.

    As expected, the shaking in his hands grew worse as the Focus tried to jump out of them. Hunter had his eyes closed, Tak had his wide open. Both he and Daniel watched as nothing happened.

    ¡°Did it work?¡± Tak asked after a moment had passed.

    Last time, I got bigger fast. I don¡¯t feel different this time, Hunter thought to Daniel, looking at an upturned paw.

    ¡°He says he isn¡¯t different, which I guess is a good thing. I¡¯ll just check something.¡± Daniel looked down and swore at what he first saw. There was a sea of ¡®???¡¯, eight individual notifications that were completely unidentified that he just glossed over. Further down, there was something else. Something that made Daniel¡¯s head spin with fear.

    <hr>

    Alert: The below Notification previously subject to Unidentification has been Identified by God: Torch, from whom the effect originated. Removal of this unidentification has been done selectively, bypassing Bond: Worldsoul. One or more entries contained within your Function: Encyclopedia are still subject to unidentification requiring Level: 10 potency or greater to identify.

    -

    The following Entities and Concepts have attempted to influence or prevent the Spiritual Awakening of the Creature affected by Feature: Beast Friend*:

    ? God: Torch

    ? God: Cloak

    ? God: Hand

    ? God: Hammer

    ? God: Hourglass

    ? God: Scythe

    ? God: Star

    ? God: ???

    ? ???

    ? Creature: Mavar Helioc

    ? Fundamental Law: Balance

    ? Fundamental Law: Immutable Soul

    ? Fundamental Law: Entropy

    ? ???

    ? ???

    As this awakening is Spiritual in nature, all interference has been ignored due to Fundamental Law: Immutable Soul.

    -

    You have accomplished Feat: Awaken a Monster.

    This has unlocked potential for growth. 3 Advancement Potential have been awarded. You may assign them with Function: Settings in addition to expending potential through normal methods.

    <hr>

    ¡°Hmm, odd. I feel different,¡± Tak commented, completely unaware of Daniel¡¯s sudden hyperventilation. ¡°I wonder- Oh!¡± The avianoid looked wide-eyed at Hunter. ¡°That is very interesting.¡±

    ¡­

    The day had gone well for Lograve, and all things considered, it would be a good night. He had a new set of armor, supple and yielding despite the metallic appearance. It even felt like wood, though without the risk of splinters. Magic armor was something he¡¯d never dreamed of, mostly because he wasn¡¯t as deranged as Murdon. But when Daniel had mentioned there was enough left over for a simple breastplate, how could he refuse? It also carried the lightning link enchantment meaning there wouldn¡¯t be much use for it after the Thormundz, though the Arcanist would have bought the damned thing himself despite knowing that.

    His advancement was progressing on schedule as well. The decision to push for level 4 wasn¡¯t a light one, especially given what had happened to Kob. That didn¡¯t change things. Improving Aquakinesis was essential to their strategy.

    Lograve wasn¡¯t actively engaged in that process now. Serially advancing the same attribute was immensely taxing and increased the risk of something going awry. Even though he was down to once a day the light headache persisted. So, not a perfect day. But there were a few hours left post-dusk and he could content himself with reading while a low breeze flowed in from the nearby window.

    Acquiring the collection of Roost¡¯s Peak had been a bounty, even if it came with its librarian and his own opinions. That had been a larger collection with many Lograve hadn¡¯t had a chance to read. Of late he¡¯d been focusing on arcane theory, trying to pin down something that was bothering him. This was one of his favorite things, a question he almost had the answer to. With nothing else left in the day, he could just relax and pick at the issue until he¡¯d unraveled it. This might even lead him to awaken a new power, since he should have at least one new one from all this advancing.

    Someone knocked on the front door. Lograve peered out the window like a troll would from under a bridge. He immediately regretted not making himself invisible first. ¡°Lograve, we need to talk!¡± Daniel¡¯s nervous voice shouted up at him.

    Damn it. I guess Invisibility wouldn¡¯t have made a difference anyway. ¡°No!¡± he answered flatly, also seeing the ringcat there. The combination of Daniel seeking him out with Hunter¡¯s presence hadn¡¯t historically made for tranquil conversation. Tak was also there for some reason which did nothing to change Lograve¡¯s mind.

    ¡°We really need to talk!¡±

    ¡°No! Come back in the morning. I¡¯m relaxing.¡±

    Daniel looked at the others and then those still on the street who had turned to watch out of curiosity. ¡°We really need to talk,¡± he repeated, and Lograve realized there was poorly concealed fear in the voice. The Artificer wasn¡¯t someone who could easily conceal their emotions and was starting to be a threat to morale.

    Lograve leaned halfway out the window, placing a hand on the side of the building and concentrating. A ladder of ice formed from the moisture in the air leading to him. ¡°Fine. Make this quick.¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t come in the normal way?¡±

    ¡°No! There are people trying to sleep that you¡¯ve already rudely disturbed!¡± Lograve shouted, twice as loud as Daniel¡¯s voice had been. ¡°Get up here already.¡±

    ¡°What about Hunter?¡±

    ¡°What about him?¡±

    Lograve tapped the spine of the book he was holding testily as Daniel took a seat, still marking the place he¡¯d stopped with a finger. ¡°I assume this has to do with your ringcat finally choosing his ¡®subspecies¡¯? He doesn¡¯t look different.¡±

    ¡°We went with awakened ringcat,¡± Daniel said with a strained voice.

    ¡°Do you want to converse with Telepathy?¡± Lograve finally took his feigned annoyance down a peg. Something was wrong.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think that would help.¡±

    Lograve glanced outside at Hunter. ¡°Can he detect all telepathic communication now!? A psionic ringcat perhaps, I could see that being a concern, but awakened?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not him, it¡¯s, uh.¡± Daniel took a few breaths. ¡°The, the gods, um, tried to stop Hunter from Growing.¡± For a couple of seconds, Lograve waited for the punchline. Then he dropped the book.

    ¡°How could, what?¡±

    ¡°And there were eight gods,¡± Daniel choked out as if this were the ramblings of the only survivor of a cult¡¯s profane ritual. ¡°I recognized the seven you know about but there was one that was just question marks.¡±

    Lograve held up a hand. ¡°Hold on. Murdon put you up to this, didn¡¯t he? That bastard is trying to get back at me for years of clever jests, is that it?¡±

    Daniel shook his head. ¡°That¡¯s the worst of it, but there¡¯s more. I have a bond I never knew about, ¡®Worldsoul¡¯. I think Hunter has a class and can, uh, advance like we do? But he doesn¡¯t know exactly how to. Also, he can talk to Tak now like he does with me. It¡¯s, I-¡± Daniel covered his face with both hands. ¡°It¡¯s been a long day.¡±

    ¡°Ok. Ok. You clearly believe this,¡± Lograve said with exaggerated calm. ¡°But this is probably all just some kind of misunderstanding.¡±

    Daniel pulled out his Focus and went to his avatar. ¡°See this green arrow? It¡¯s how many times I can advance before I¡¯m out of potential.¡± Daniel tapped the button to bring up Hunter and rotated the phone. ¡°This is Hunter¡¯s. This screen showed up when he unlocked level two, or something, but now he has numbers like mine. Exactly like mine, except I can¡¯t advance them for him. The gods thing was just a, a thing my phone told me, and as for Tak I can talk to him too when I¡¯m close enough to both of them.¡± He winced. ¡°I mean, mentally talk to him. I don¡¯t know what¡¯s going on Lograve. Is, is this¡­?¡±

    Lograve took a sip of the tea beside him, mulling this over. The incredulousness was still there, but he scattered some loose soil of scholasticism over his next words. ¡°We knew whatever was allowing Hunter to become something out of the ordinary was, in itself, unusual. As for the Gods, perhaps it was passive involvement. They do make up the world, and with our proximity to that thing, even if they were all ¡®involved¡¯ then it doesn¡¯t necessarily mean you had their attention. Our assumption remains that they aren¡¯t consciously aware of what¡¯s happening here. Your Focus likely counted the monster in the mountains as a god, resulting in eight. As we hardly understand them, it makes sense you couldn¡¯t identify that detail.¡±

    ¡°Ok, I, I guess that makes sense.¡± Daniel nodded but wasn¡¯t fully relieved. ¡°What about the bond, have you heard about that before?¡±

    ¡±No,¡± Lograve answered simply while racking his brain. There was an immediate conclusion but he was trying to push beyond that in case he could form another. ¡°I would suppose if he something to do with your habit of trespassing in different worlds, but beyond that? Bonds should have benefits.¡±

    ¡±The notification that referenced it almost made it sound like it had something to do with what¡¯s unidentifying me, but also that Torch had specifically blocked something too before unblocking it. I just don¡¯t know what¡¯s going on,¡± Daniel confessed, and Lograve was better understanding what led him here and started to feel a little remorseful about his initial actions. This was a reasonable cause for concern and a tremendous opportunity for study.

    ¡±I see. You know, some would consider themselves fortunate to receive the personal attention of a god. Then again,¡± he grimaced, ¡°Perhaps not with Scythe or Hourglass. Torch is responsible for the knowledge domain. I would take the fact that she¡¯s interacted with your Focus as a good sign all things considered, if only because that suggests the gods may be aware of what¡¯s happening here. Until we know for sure, though, Murdon and I will still have to-¡°  he waved a hand, breaking off that line of thought. No point thinking too much on things beyond the pass. ¡°Now, as for Hunter becoming what sounds like something akin to a mortal, that isn¡¯t outside the boundaries of belief. I suspect if you can converse telepathically with Tak, some sort of Telepathic Network may have formed. Most likely through the creation of another bond. Hmm.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s one more thing. I, I don¡¯t want to talk about it though.¡± Daniel gulped. ¡°It¡¯s not as terrifying as thinking all of the gods and then some personally said hello but I don¡¯t think I can handle how weird it is.¡±

    Now this was curious. Daniel¡¯s face had changed from frightened pallor to an embarrassed red. He knew he¡¯d regret it, but he had to ask. Curiosity was one of Lograve¡¯s vices. ¡°How weird what is?¡±

    ¡°Uh, it, uhm.¡± Daniel looked at the ceiling as if to petition one of the gods he so feared for aid. ¡°Remember when we talked about how monsters only spawn? It turns out I was right about Hunter being male.¡±

    Lograve wished he hadn¡¯t put together what Daniel meant so quickly. Still, that was fascinating. In a horrifying way. Something to consider the implications of, and what it meant for the philosophies of the world he lived in that had already found themselves on shaky ground. Right after he threw Daniel out the window.

 Chapter 69: Musings on the March

    <hr>

    Your Dexterity is now 20! You have gained Ability: Hover Object and Feature: Silent Movement. You are no longer suffering from Level Disparity connected to this Attribute. Features you have previously awakened from dexterity may be heightened to Level: 2.

    -

    Hover Object (Ability, Dexterity, Spell, Domain: Universal, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to passively fix unliving objects in place. The duration of the effect scales with the amount of Mana infused, and inversely scales with the target¡¯s weight, effect of gravity, and other forces on the object that attempt to move it. This is a Magical Ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression.

    -

    Silent Movement (Feature, Dexterity, Domain: Illusion, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to move silently, reducing the effect of enemy senses and detection Powers reliant on sound. This feature is acquired at level 2 and receives no additional benefits at this level.

    -

    Balance; Level 2: Increase resistance to Magical Hazards that may trip or otherwise physically disorient you for a minor Mana cost.

    -

    Graceful Fall: Level 2: Gain damage resistance to Damage: Ranged while falling for a moderate Mana cost.

    <hr>

    ¡­

    Moving any large amount of people is a difficult task. Simply pointing in a direction and shouting isn¡¯t the worst strategy, but it¡¯s also one that will quickly fall apart. Those that moved faster would tend to the front while the injured, young, or old would find it difficult to keep up. In an area where monsters had already been shown to prowl behind mass convoys, protection would need to be spread around the mass. Add to this problem food, supplies, possessions both communal and personal, carried or in carts, formations to maintain, and teams within those trying to stick together, and you got a headache.

    The aura of anticipation and fear shifted like water in a slowly shaken box, passing in waves. It would be today. Setting up a camp for so many people was just as challenging as moving them, not to mention suicidal so close to where the dragon lay in wait. Better to get it done and to get clear of the mountains. Once on the other side, no one knew for sure what would happen. That hadn¡¯t factored into any of the discussions so far.

    Ringing the moving people were mortals clad in gold. The most common armament was either a weapon or a small defensive item usually worn on the wrist. No shields, lightning link didn¡¯t apply to it, but armor for just the arms got by on a technicality. Even the gestalt could use them to a degree because the important part wasn¡¯t blocking hits but carrying the dragon¡¯s lightning away from them.

    There were only four full sets of armor. Murdon¡¯s, Lograve¡¯s, Daniel¡¯s, and most recently, Hunter¡¯s. There were only a few modifications needed for the ringcat following his, for lack of a better word, awakening, but they were important. Concealing one of his various changes prevented people from noticing the obvious contradiction to normal ringcat biology.

    Daniel forced himself to stop thinking about that. It¡¯d been bad enough in the days after, almost unbearable. Tak at least had volunteered to answer any of the questions Daniel couldn¡¯t or wouldn¡¯t touch. That was the other thing. For his part, the avianoid was mostly unshaken by what happened up to and including the newly formed bond.

    Tak was walking nearby, close enough that Daniel could privately converse with him if he wanted. The range seemed to be the same as the original Telepathic Link with Hunter had instead of the kilometer he had now. This did vary at times though, and Daniel suspected another factor was at play. Daniel didn¡¯t elect to talk though. He couldn¡¯t shake the thought that, in some way, Tak was intruding on something special.

    Hunter¡¯s uniqueness had been Daniel¡¯s as well. The ability to mark creatures at range, now back in force with the ringcat¡¯s leveling, had made him somewhat famous in Roost¡¯s Peak. If he was honest, a part of him missed that. More so, Hunter had almost always been with him. A confidant, the only person, for Hunter was now inescapably so, that Daniel had told everything. What Tak had done wasn¡¯t an intrusion. Tak hadn¡¯t even done anything other than be a friend to his friend. He should be grateful or at the very least curious about what could be done with this new bond, but at the core of Daniel¡¯s thoughts on the matter was a shallow bitterness that lingered no matter how much he scooped away.

    ¡°Your steps are softer now,¡± Evalyn commented as they kept walking. She was there, as were Thomas, Khare, and Tlara. The latter was only present as a haunting spirit that forewarned of what was to occur in the upcoming battle, but there she was. In a physical sense, Tlara was riding her wyvern as she always was and receiving some glares for a change.

    ¡°One of the last powers I got.¡± Daniel glanced at his feet. He wasn¡¯t consciously moving differently, and it didn¡¯t seem like he was either. ¡°Silent Movement.¡±

    ¡°A stealth power? Doesn¡¯t sound right for an Artificer.¡± Thomas, the most relaxed of the group, watched Daniel¡¯s feet too and almost tripped when he took his eyes off of his own.

    ¡°Maybe. I have a guess about the kind of powers I¡¯m getting. They fit a common trend.¡± What trend that was, he couldn¡¯t say exactly. Another Earth videogame parallel.

    ¡°Evolution?¡±

    ¡°Ah, nice, have you figured yours out, Guy?¡± Thomas clearly understood what Khare had meant, and Daniel had an inkling. He came to the classic conundrum, feign not knowing or ask a question about something that might be common knowledge.

    ¡°Maybe? I don¡¯t know what other Artificers can do.¡±

    ¡°So what is it?¡±

    Daniel scratched his head as he looked at Evalyn. ¡°Some kind of monster hunter focus? It feels like I¡¯m halfway between fighting and enchanting.¡±

    ¡°Think you¡¯ll keep hunting after all of this, Guy?¡±

    ¡°He should. I would join him. Especially now that Hunter is-¡±

    Don¡¯t! Daniel thought quickly to Tak and winced as the Totem Warrior looked sharply at him. Those not part of the conversation wouldn¡¯t have caught it, but for those that were it was obvious something had happened. He¡¯d only told Lograve about Hunter¡¯s development after it happened and getting ejected from the library only emphasized the importance of keeping it secret. Thus, why Hunter was wearing his new armor all the time now, just in case. Too many secrets, he thought to himself.

    ¡°Now that Hunter¡¯s what?¡± Thomas asked, uncertain of who he should be looking at. ¡°Something feels off here Guy, and now¡¯s the last time to be holding back.¡±

    ¡°Nothing to worry about,¡± Tak said somewhat meekly.

    ¡°Grafted?¡± Khare¡¯s followup question was a painful reminder of Kob¡¯s.

    ¡°No. I don¡¯t think so. He just got stronger.¡±

    ¡°Is that all it was?¡± Evalyn didn¡¯t seem to need Thomas¡¯ lie detection power to cue in on Daniel¡¯s evasion.

    ¡°You don¡¯t want to know,¡± he answered with complete sincerity.

    ¡­

    At the front of the column marched Murdon, looking far different from the headman elevated to Commander at the beginning of the disaster. Bright gold armor encased him, far outshining the darkness of the straps he¡¯d hoped would counterbalance the garishness. One of his axes was also golden, but only one. Slung across the other side was the other enchanted ax he¡¯d already possessed. Then, there were the wings.

    ¡°Stop that.¡±

    ¡°Stop what?¡± Lograve asked innocently, somehow keeping the grin off his face.

    ¡°You should be more serious.¡±

    ¡°How long have you known me, exactly?¡±

    Murdon rasped, which under the helmet made the noise turn into something closer to a soft roar. ¡°Too long. That¡¯s the problem. I¡¯m burning this armor after today.¡±

    ¡°I think it makes you look noble.¡± The helmet turned towards Lograve. ¡°In a ¡®rich in wealth but poor in taste¡¯ way. I don¡¯t think Daniel could have made you any more ridiculous if he tried. Did he actually try? And enough of that nonsense about burning the armor. We¡¯re selling it after this.¡±

    ¡°Who would buy armor that explodes?¡±

    Hearing this, several people in the draconoid¡¯s immediate vicinity slowed slightly to distance themselves. ¡°Someone looking to sell a suit of effectively level 5 armor without mentioning that fact? No, I see your point. What a waste.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re the one who gave the heliorite to him.¡±

    ¡°Technically, I never touched it.¡±

    ¡°Right. I-¡±

    A human with a respectful voice interrupted him. ¡°Wing Commander, we are an hour¡¯s march from the lake. Should we fortify the civilians now or continue?¡±

    Murdon caught on to the title Gadriel used and frowned. ¡°What did you call me?¡±

    ¡°I was informed that, oh.¡± He stopped when he saw the grin on Lograve¡¯s face. ¡°I see ascension to level 4 has not dulled your puckishness, Sir Lograve.¡± Gadriel was equipped with heliorite as well, though only with a bracer and his own set of wings. To Murdon¡¯s draconic ones that only amplified the gaudiness, these looked avian with sleek feathery patterns in the metal. If asked, Daniel might answer that he¡¯d chosen an angelic design, which wouldn¡¯t have meant anything to anyone here.

    ¡°We might as well. Move to the back and start informing those groups to make final preparations. Everyone to their assigned group. We cannot rule out the possibility of being attacked on the way to the lake.¡±

    Gadriel nodded sharply and began sprinting around the mass to the back of the moving throng, shouting as he went to prepare. For his part, Murdon took one look at the break in the mountain peaks up ahead and firmly gripped his heart so that his voice would not be anything but controlled. His helmet amplified his voice in every aspect. The smallest of hesitation would broadcast fear into the minds of his warriors, losing the fight before they even saw the scaled monstrosity. He stopped walking when Gadriel was halfway down the line. This would be where he parted ways with those he was bound to protect.

    If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

    ¡°You can still see the ruins,¡± Lograve said distantly. The buildings they¡¯d passed were destroyed, distinguished most by the clearings made in the fading grass and random spots of scattered wood.

    ¡°One last time.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°One last time!¡± Murdon repeated, turning to address the crowd in front of him. ¡°Turn, and see what we have lost. Even from here, Eido could be seen. From anywhere in this valley, you could see it. But Eido was taken from us! Its people were taken from us. Now, after this tragedy and everything that has come since, I stand before you with your trust and ask not that we stay and preserve what they have died to make. I ask you to follow me into the jaws of a monster even an army would hesitate to face. I ask, is that reasonable?¡± No one answered him. They were hoping for the words that would make everything ok. Waiting for Murdon to reveal that they¡¯d been wrong, that someone had noticed the dragon wasn¡¯t here anymore.

    He wished he could tell them that. ¡°All of you know survival here is impossible. There is no sense doing in stubbornness what would only be futile. We have but this one chance for escape. You know this, but I speak not to the people of the present. I speak to those who will walk with me into death, who will see friends die and feel powerless against the inevitable. To you, I say what I cannot when the dragon is in our midst.¡±

    Murdon drew in a breath, the action copied almost a thousand times in front of him. ¡°I will stand until the way is safe. Until those we leave here may pass without fear. I will stand until the last of my blood is spilled and my body is broken. There is nothing I would not sacrifice for those under my ward. I know-¡± His voice slipped for just a moment. ¡°I know I have failed you before, but my spirit this day will not break. I say this to those who would follow when they are at their lowest. I say to them to look back one last time! And then push forward to the future!¡±

    He raised a fist into the air, the classic signal that the speech was at its end. Cheers broke out, but they weren¡¯t universal. Most of the noise came from those who wouldn¡¯t be fighting, but that was ok. Murdon saw something more important in the faces of those who would be at his back; resolve.

    You didn¡¯t practice that, did you? Lograve didn¡¯t ask the question out loud, not daring to break the silence himself.

    Ability.

    Gods damn it I forgot! That¡¯s cheating.

    I don¡¯t think they care. We¡¯ll need everything for this. Every last trick.

    I figured that out when you asked the Bards to play together. I can¡¯t believe they ever agreed to that.

    Small miracles. Just what we need, Murdon thought, looking up to the sky.

    ¡­

    ¡°I don¡¯t care what Murdon says. No heroics.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine, I¡¯m not going to be in the front.¡±

    Quala narrowed her eyes. ¡°Do you think a dragon will care about formations, Thomas?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯ll notice me. Too many people wearing glowing armor like Guy.¡±

    ¡°Won¡¯t you be standing next to him?¡±

    ¡°Well.¡± Thomas adjusted the bracer on his arm. ¡°That¡¯s the point, right?¡±

    ¡°What have I told you about arrogance?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not arrogance, I just-¡±

    ¡°You aren¡¯t immortal, Thomas. You are favored by the Hand, but all that means is that you need to survive this. Promise me you will.¡±

    ¡°Fine, I¡¯ll be safe,¡± Thomas sighed dramatically, glad Quala had pulled him away from the others for this conversation. He wasn¡¯t fully ruling out the possibility of something happening with Evalyn, but those chances would be ruined if she saw him getting mother henned. ¡°I¡¯m more worried about after this. That thing, Quala. Hammer¡¯s people need to be warned, ours too.¡±

    ¡°Leave those thoughts be for now. We have discussed it.¡±

    ¡°Who¡¯s we?¡±

    ¡°Not now. Hand, why wouldn¡¯t they¡­¡± She shook her head. ¡°I need to get those staying behind ready and then return to Sigron.¡±

    ¡°We drained the pus this morning, he should be ok for now.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s not getting better Thomas. Whatever disease this is is spreading, and there is not much distance from the joint to his heart. He won¡¯t last long if it reaches there.¡±

    Thomas grabbed the back of his neck and thought for a second. ¡°We can¡¯t just amputate more?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll have to, eventually, but only when we can regrow the tissue without exacerbating the disease. This gets immeasurably harder if they also have to tend directly to his heart or other organs. The toxin.¡±

    ¡°Right. And I think he still has some of those orbs on him too. Damn Guy, do you even know what they do to people?¡±

    ¡°He does oddly. At the very least Daniel understands how blood flow works. I suppose his class is based on intelligence, but he understood more of anatomy than I would expect.¡± Quala glanced sideways, then continued, ¡°I can keep Sigron alive for now. To be honest, I¡¯m more worried about Claire. At least Sigron¡¯s case is straightforward. Hmm. No matter, focus on yourself today. That shouldn¡¯t be too hard.¡±

    ¡°Peh, right.¡± Thomas walked back to his assigned group. Squad. Whatever the more tactical people had been calling it. His steps weren¡¯t any heavier than they were before any of this. He didn¡¯t mind that each one carried him closer to certain death. He didn¡¯t mind that his mentor wouldn¡¯t be there, the only level 3 chosen not to fight the dragon. Thomas knew his chances of survival were slim, but that didn¡¯t matter. He believed and that was enough.

    Thomas walked into a far tenser atmosphere. Tlara had joined them, having dismounted and summoned her large spider-like thing. He didn¡¯t know what it was called but it freaked him out ever so slightly. It was the two upper arms that just looked too humanoid, though to be fair all large bugs unnerved him. Oh no, he thought in realization. I¡¯m going to have to deal with duskers again, aren¡¯t I? Looking away, Thomas realized the tension sprung from an argument.

    ¡°You made that thing armor? What happens when it dies?¡±

    ¡°Hunter¡¯s not going to die. If you wanted armor for your wyvern, why didn¡¯t you ask anyone?¡±

    Tlara didn¡¯t wrinkle her nose in disgust, because she didn¡¯t have one. Otherwise, the rest of her face mimicked the expression. ¡°The hell would I waste that much on it for? You should have made armor for me!¡±

    ¡°If you¡¯d asked for it, maybe I would have.¡± Thomas listened with interest as the debate continued. Tlara complained about not having been given anything, and Daniel tried to avoid the fact that he¡¯d received the most magical items out of everyone. The Artificer was different around the Beastmaster. He knew most of their history and had heard all of the rumors, so that wasn¡¯t surprising.

    Hunter was a different matter. There was no denying in Thomas¡¯ mind the ringcat¡¯s intelligence. Especially now. There was a difference in his bearing, easy to spot for one that had traveled with the beast from almost the beginning. Moments that could be considered thoughtful pauses, and how the eyes contained depth to them. It was very easy to tell the difference between Hunter and other monsters brought to heel by Tlara by just looking at the eyes. Steeling himself, Thomas looked up to the massive beast by Tlara and frowned.

    ¡°What is it?¡± Evalyn followed his gaze. ¡°It¡¯s on our side, even if Tlara is a pain.¡±

    ¡°Something¡¯s wrong with it.¡± Thomas looked away. ¡°And it¡¯s hideous. I mean, why¡¯d she have to pick that one?¡±

    ¡°From what I¡¯ve heard, it¡¯ll help make sure we aren¡¯t shocked to death.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, assuming we¡¯re not ambushed.¡± Thomas pointed to the heavy instrument slung across Evalyn¡¯s back while Tlara brought up what Daniel owed her for saving Hunter. ¡°You¡¯re going through with it? I mean, I know all the Bards have been splitting off for ¡®practicing¡¯ the last few days, but-¡±

    ¡°Whatever¡¯s happening in your head right now is more exciting than hours of bickering, trust me. But it¡¯s worth it, despite the constant headache I¡¯ve had since we started.¡± Something approaching awe entered her voice. ¡°I can¡¯t describe it. Even my words wouldn¡¯t do it justice.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re talking this up. I¡¯ve heard your stuff before, how different is it?¡±

    ¡°I just told you I couldn¡¯t, hm. It¡¯s more than just there being more instruments. I project myself into my music like every Bard. Playing near one another does not involve much extra effort, but what we¡¯re going to do today? It¡¯s more than just playing together. It¡¯s carrying the same fire, knowing your heart beats to each other¡¯s as much as the music. We can¡¯t just keep the same tune, that¡¯s not how it works. It has to go deeper than that.¡±

    ¡°You make it sound beautiful. Almost as much as you?¡±

    Evalyn rolled her eyes. ¡°I have no idea how what passes for your charm works on others.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve been told I have an innocent smile and honest eyes.¡±

    ¡°You certainly don¡¯t hide anything with your gaze. You have some deft touches, but I can see through them. I don¡¯t know if I¡¯d prefer you with more or less practice. Not that I¡¯m encouraging you.¡±

    Thomas gestured openly with one hand as the other conversation began to cool. ¡°Let¡¯s make a deal then. We both keep our heads straight today, and if we¡¯re alive tomorrow we revisit this?¡±

    Evalyn cocked an eyebrow. ¡°I¡¯m not the one with the problem.¡±

    ¡°Come on. Give a man something to hope for.¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t even know if we¡¯re staying in the same group after this.¡±

    ¡°So the risk of holding up your end is less, right?¡± Thomas gave her what most would call an honest smile, but not an innocent one. Evalyn did have to admit that the Cleric either had a higher charisma than average for his class or was just naturally charming.

    ¡°If we stay together, and if we survive¡­¡± Evalyn spun a little lilt on the end.

    ¡°Yes?¡±

    ¡°Then you¡¯ll just bring it up anyway!¡± Evalyn said, exasperated.

    ¡°You could just say you¡¯re not interested.¡± There was a leading tone in Thomas¡¯ voice. A challenge. This was a tactic Evalyn herself had used on rare occasions. Maybe Thomas had some kind of charm power? It would be unusual but not unheard of.

    She looked at him again with a more assessing gaze. He noticed and didn¡¯t quite pose, stopping just short of doing so. Well, if we do need every advantage we can get, maybe some encouragement wouldn¡¯t hurt. ¡°I¡¯m not sure if I am. Let¡¯s see how you handle yourself today.¡±

    ¡°So that¡¯s a yes?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a maybe.¡± She grinned again, then turned away.

    ¡­

    ¡°Assume from this moment that we may be attacked!¡± Murdon shouted as his group began to split off from the villagers. ¡°In that case, your squad leaders know what to do. Keep in formation!¡±

    Further back, Tlara looked confused. ¡°The fuck? I didn¡¯t hear anything about this.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s because they spoke to me,¡± Evalyn responded, keeping cool under the sudden dark gaze directed at her from Tlara.

    ¡°You!?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°So what should we do?¡± Daniel asked, trying to defuse the situation.

    ¡°Can¡¯t say unless it happens. You¡¯ll probably want to hear what he says next though.¡±

    Indeed, Murdon was already midway through the rest of his instructions. ¡°-for the lake should our approach be uneventful. The dragon may be there, which our scouting force will alert us to. If we reach the lake and have time, your primary orders are to be followed. This is it, everyone. Stay focused.¡±

    ¡°Not much to that,¡± Thomas commented when Murdon didn¡¯t say anything else.

    ¡°I guess not.¡± Evalyn shrugged. ¡°He only told me what to do if we were attacked on the way.¡±

    ¡°And why-¡±

    ¡°Scouting party?¡± Daniel cut Tlara off, shifting the focus of her ire. ¡°Why weren¡¯t Hunter and I part of that?¡±

    ¡°Guy, I don¡¯t know if you¡¯ve noticed, but even with that new power of yours both you and Hunter are glowing. They probably wanted people that wouldn¡¯t immediately draw attention.¡±

    ¡°Rogues,¡± Khare confirmed.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t know we had any of those fuckers with us.¡±

    ¡°I think that¡¯s the point of their class, Tlara.¡± Both Daniel and Thomas admired the Bard a little more for her ability to completely take the Beastmaster in stride. ¡°If you¡¯re done being annoyed at the world in general, we should be watching out for death from above.¡±

    ¡°I could kill you if I wanted to,¡± Tlara doubled down, making her hostility overt.

    ¡°You know, I don¡¯t mind your glares. You have lovely eyes.¡±

    In the minute or so it took Tlara to catch up after she froze midstep, there was silence as the males took a moment themselves to consider what had just happened. Tak spoke first after clearing his throat. ¡°Interesting.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s all you have to say?¡±

    ¡°All I should say,¡± he replied thoughtfully.

    ¡°Should you be using mana? I assume that was an ability.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine Daniel. I¡¯m only going to need Valor Song, and I could tire out my hands before I exhausted my-¡±

    ¡°Hey!¡± Tlara almost screamed. ¡°What the fuck was that?¡±

    In their midst, Khare shifted slightly. They didn¡¯t say anything in a spoken language but felt the attention of the other earth gestalt in the area turn their way through the communal connection they all shared. It was like the Empathic Link between Daniel and his beast. A vestige of their origins, and one of the reasons gestalt didn¡¯t rely as much on language. Still, language was a part of them now, and Khare did say something to themself in the private way of their kind. Were a certain Druid there, she would have roughly translated this to ¡®I regret being the sole gestalt in this group. We are to face a strong enemy, and this is what they chose to discuss?¡¯.

    That barrier made it hard for gestalt to form true friendships outside their kind. They just worked differently at a basic level, both biologically and mentally. The other races could mix to some degree, especially at the edges of the world where people needed to rely on each other. It was different for gestalt. That being said, if Khare had to describe what they had with Daniel with one word, which they would have to in discourse with him, they¡¯d say ¡®Transactional.¡¯ It wasn¡¯t the best word, it didn¡¯t describe the nuances and the fact that Khare didn¡¯t mean it in a detached way. It was just the best they could do. Their relationship was defined by give and take, and the human had more than made up for his promises.

    Khare took a moment to inventory their personal space. It was entirely contained within them, a space that was both physical and slightly larger than their mass. The power that created it wasn¡¯t unheard of among the gestalt, but it was regarded as rare. Let¡¯s see, they had just over a hundred daggers, ten of which had been enchanted. Daniel had been more than generous, saying something about how daggers were a good way to train smithing, though Khare probably hadn¡¯t heard him right. Misunderstandings were common whenever gestalt had to figure out what people were telling them.

    Also, two tridents. No one else had wanted the original. Khare had additionally requested a lightning based variant just in case, and the Artificer had obliged him. A dozen various swords. Three bows, two to use at once, and one backup, with a decent amount of ammunition. Khare was practically a Mobile Armory, which fit as that was the name of their power. There was also something else. Something had happened the day their progenitor had died. Something that Khare still needed to think about.

    Burrowing into the earth was how gestalt rested and advanced. Each of their castes had their own way of doing it, varying wildly from each other and other mortals. It was another way to distinguish themselves. It was also what Khare had been doing for the most part when they¡¯d returned to the village. There was something in them, some new power they couldn¡¯t quite grasp the details of. Meditation or trying to forcibly activate the unknown power were the normal ways to discern these things, but both were failing Khare. Whatever this power was, neither they nor other gestalt could figure it out. Something that only time would reveal, perhaps.

    There were powers like that, hidden ones that activated under specific circumstances. Sometimes, a being could have acquired one years ago and not have fully realized its potential until the right moment. It was just one more thing that weighed on Khare¡¯s mind as they prepared to face a creature kin to the one that had struck fear and grief deep into the depths of their soul, held more fiercely there than any of the weapons, supplies, or secrets they contained within themself.

    ¡­

    One last note on the small army approaching the dragon¡¯s lair. Not of those themselves, but the watchers from above. Of them, the shavi Fate Silora was the only ignorant of the others by merit of her level, but also the only one able to interfere. This was a special assignment. Aughal had cleared her entire day and as much additional time as she needed to track the escape attempt.

    How the city had known it would be today, or that she was able to find them was beyond her. To her instincts, it spoke to greater powers at play. Rikendia, perhaps, or even Hammer himself? Someone had arranged for a bounty of mana potions to sustain Farsight at this distance. Her new assistant, she¡¯d forgotten their name already, was applying the potions at her command.

    Satisfied there was no immediate danger to the group that would require her abilities, she focused on the one she was interested in most. Her orders hadn¡¯t mentioned the prize she¡¯d found. He¡¯d revealed himself for only a moment, one she¡¯d found by chance. The discovery was hers alone, she was certain. Her prize. Her way out of the city that had become a nightmare. She would do everything she could to make sure he survived.

    The second observer was a group led by Mavar Helioc, back in the scrying chamber of his collective. No one spoke, this wasn¡¯t what they were here for. With but a moment Mavar could open the way for these mortals, though he stayed his hand. The decision driven as much by Foresight as secrecy, based on projections made long ago. Things had gone wrong, but the big picture hadn¡¯t changed too much. Were it just his predictions Mavar may have still done more than create a chunk of heliorite in the path of the Artificer, but the circumstances of the mortals¡¯ escape were dictated in an agreement with one beyond the Illustrious. The mortals had to get through this alone, without knowledge of any intervention on their part, or not at all. What¡¯s more, one of them in particular had to get through this. The world was at stake. More importantly, the plans of Mavar and the Illustrious were at stake.

    As for the last observer? It had no restrictions, only a burgeoning hatred inspired by those arrogant enough to think they could escape it. Time had given it another fraction of consciousness, but there was no real power left to it after spawning the fire dragon and the design it had appropriated. The old mortals thought they were clever but had neglected that anything done within its domain was work it could access.

    The mortals had had a chance to kill the wild dragon of the pass through numbers alone, but after what it had laid in store? No one would escape. The god in the mountains called Origin Beast by some had made sure of it. Once they were gone it would continue to collect itself and prepare for the coming apocalypse.

 Chapter 70: Prelude to the Last Hunt

    The split in the mountain brought back terrible memories for Tlara and Lograve. One still carried the scars from what had happened. The other just scowled, begrudgingly forced to take part in such a battle again and risk her beasts. They were more potent than the single level one ringcat she¡¯d walked with here before, but they¡¯d still die just as easily if the dragon got its claws on them.

    By now, it was clear the dragon wasn¡¯t near the lake. That was the best case scenario, but didn¡¯t mean they were free. They had many people to help cross the bridge, and it would return as soon as it sensed mortals in its territory. It was probably on its way already. She wasn¡¯t above fear, and with every step, Tlara considered calling her wyvern to her and making a break for it. She could almost see the sky beyond the bowl-shaped depression in the mountain. Freedom. Minutes away at most. She could do it. Unfortunately, she could also be shot down.

    That¡¯s what they were here for. All the people around her were ready to knock a level six out of the sky. They¡¯d tear through her wyvern and then her in seconds. She hated knowing that just like she hated the lingering warmth from the ability she¡¯d been hit with. Who the fuck does she think she is?

    No. Tlara clenched her jaw. No, she was stuck with this insane plan. If it were her in charge and they¡¯d gotten this far, she¡¯d just have everyone rush through and see who made it out. Despite its prowess, the dragon couldn¡¯t kill everyone, and wasn¡¯t it better to sacrifice the weak so the strong could survive? Something had those in the upper wings of this plan worried, she knew. They hadn¡¯t told her. Why would they?

    So, she¡¯d fight. Her tools would, rather, and she¡¯d direct them. The wyvern she had out and Spi-, Urgh!, the silk shocker were the best she could do. She hadn¡¯t had the chance to grab anything else after what she very reluctantly called her mistake. People had gotten hurt, and it was technically her fault, so she supposed that was fair. Annoying to be restricted to the village after the incident, but fair. Tlara didn¡¯t fashion herself a murderer and didn¡¯t have it out for mortals in general, just the ones that annoyed her.

    The people around her were restless as they stepped over the boundary between the approach and the lake itself. Being within the lair carried a different sensation. They were being watched. Tlara took a look around as others began rushing to their places. Not much had changed, if you didn¡¯t count piles of bodies. Monster corpses. The dragon was using this place as a feeding ground. The water of the lake, already contaminated by the dead fish that had been killed two months ago, was tinged with blood and rot from the parts that hadn¡¯t been feasted on. There was a lot of it, so much so that Tlara began to wonder if the dragon was still level six. Had the ¡®tactical genius¡¯ of Murdon taken that into account?

    ¡°I¡¯m ready. Let¡¯s not give this bastard any more time.¡± She caught Lograve¡¯s voice and saw the Arcanist standing alone in the center of the first magical bridge section. The man focused for a moment, and then there was a concussive umph in the air centered from him. A mana pulse, evidence of a level four power. The last time she¡¯d felt this was from Kob, and before them, the lightning dragon.

    Murdon was quick to organize everyone. ¡°Get to your positions! It could come at any moment. Alost, ready the archers. Crossbowmen are free to select their targets but I encourage the eyes, switching to wings when we begin to focus on one. Flight team, with me. The rest get under shelter. Now!¡± People stirred with that, running towards Lograve once it was safe to do so.

    The Arcanist started his part by locking the bridge section in place with ice, anchoring it to the shore and lake bed. From there he could have converted a good size of the lake¡¯s surface to ice, but instead only manifested a thin sheet out to around twenty meters from where he was. The majority of his focus was on the water he was controlling above him, slowly forming a three story tower with slanted sections coming off the second floor. It would be very cold inside, but it might just protect against a breath attack. In the first moments of the fight, that would be crucial.

    ¡°Alright. Get to work,¡± Tlara instructed her silk shocker, which had already been informed of the plan. She¡¯d have to watch it to make sure it did what it was supposed to since these were somewhat complex orders. As far as her wyvern? Those bastards better not break it.

    The initial stage of the mortal¡¯s plan was simple. They needed to nullify the dragon¡¯s flight or they would all die. It was that simple. If this part failed, the dragon could kite them endlessly with its lightning breath and then fly away when it was low on mana. That wouldn¡¯t stop it from returning when the villagers came through when it could claim hundreds of lives by just flying through them.

    They needed to stop the dragon from flying which meant destroying its wings. They didn¡¯t need to be severed, just torn enough that the thin membranous material spanning the distance from the bony spines didn¡¯t have enough surface area to produce sufficient lift. That wasn¡¯t how they put it during the strategy meetings but the intent was the same. The wings Daniel had made created a potent opportunity. Their strongest warriors could propel themselves in a vertical charge that would decide the course of the battle. They weren¡¯t the only hope though. An additional three people in their force had some form of flight power, including an avianoid air Totem Warrior who could fully fly despite only having level 2 strength. Then, there was Tlara¡¯s wyvern.

    Being used as a glorified wagon, Tlara thought bitterly. Five others would be riding her wyvern up. Those with the Jump ability could leap towards the dragon once it was high enough. As to how they were getting down, the advice was to either hit the water or fall close enough to the tower where an Arcanist with the Slow Fall spell could catch them. She¡¯d complained about the risk to her wyvern and had been offered a spot on it in return.

    Instead, she shivered on the second floor of the tower, watching the beast that was not fucking named Spinner spread strands of its webbing across the ice. It was doing a good job, she had to admit. It was weaving some sort of circular pattern that covered the area more efficiently than the simple grid she¡¯d told it to use. Faulty memory and luck, probably, or it was just defaulting to some instinctual pattern.

    ¡°Hey, look at Spinner go! Nice we have something like that on our¡­¡± the idiotic Martialist that had been on the capture team trailed off as she fixed him in place with a glare. It was his fault that that stupid name was stuck in her head. She didn¡¯t respond though, just kept staring until he left. At least some humans could take a hint.

    Glancing out of the narrow window Lograve had formed, she saw ice creeping over where the strands had been completed. Tlara had no idea if this part of the plan would work, but if it did she¡¯d be begrudgingly impressed. At least, she would be if she could remember who had the idea.

    Ice crunched above her as weight was applied to it. The roof had been finished and those that would charge the dragon were taking their positions. The timing of this was good, she acknowledged. Still no sight of the dragon, there¡¯d probably be screaming if there was. Not from her. Never from her. Tlara would run from a bad fight but that was just common sense. She¡¯d die before she let fear truly overwhelm her.

    ¡°Hey Tlara.¡±

    I swear I¡¯m going to, oh. ¡°What?¡± she asked with a modicum of venom after realizing it was a different human talking to her.

    ¡°Here.¡± She blinked at the dagger being offered to her.

    ¡°The fuck is this?¡±

    She waited impatiently for Daniel to figure out what to say next. ¡°You don¡¯t have a weapon and Khare¡¯s got, uh, I actually don¡¯t know how many they have. I noticed it on the way up.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not going to fight that thing myself,¡± she half-laughed. No one else looked up at that, despite the slightly crowded atmosphere. Everyone who wasn¡¯t part of the initial charge or the archer barrage was taking cover.

    ¡°What if you have to?¡±

    ¡°What, and use this to cut my throat and spare the pain?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Daniel sighed, but he wasn¡¯t shying away. He was getting too used to her and there wasn¡¯t much room for her to escalate further than the near combat they¡¯d almost gotten into after Kob threw them off a mountain. ¡°It¡¯s just, look. Do you want it?¡±

    Tlara guessed at what the dagger would be worth and snatched it. ¡°That it?¡± Again, Daniel didn¡¯t answer immediately. She could tell something was on his mind, something he wanted to tell her. But then he looked around, taking notice of the throng they were in, and just turned away. That was fine. She doubted he could tell her anything important anyway.

    ¡­

    Daniel returned to the first floor of the ice fort where Hunter, Tak, and Khare had made room for themselves. In this part of the fight, Thomas would be standing with Alost and Evalyn would be standing by with the Bards. After that, it all depended on if they could ground the dragon.

    ¡°Did she take it?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, but somehow she made me feel like I was doing her a favor.¡±

    ¡°Tlara is fairly grumpy for someone of my kind,¡± Tak agreed. ¡°Not a good person, I think. Selfish.¡±

    Khare made a creaking noise that wasn¡¯t a distinguishable word. The other gestalt on the floor took notice though. They were all in humanoid form to save space, except those that could tolerate the cold who were clinging to the ceiling.

    ¡°I¡¯ll make you another one, don¡¯t worry. I just, she saved Hunter, even if it was against her will, and we had dozens of these things. Now she can¡¯t hold that against me.¡±

    ¡°Hmm.¡± What do you think? Tak asked, sharing the telepathic message to both Hunter and Daniel. The three-way call was something else he hadn¡¯t fully acclimated to either.

    I dislike her. She¡¯s cruel. Hunter looked out the window as the silk shocker passed by. What she does is wrong.

    Then, there was that. Hunter¡¯s diction was about on par with a normal person now, a far cry from when he was still called Ringcat. In every way besides the ability to speak or stand on two legs, Hunter was a person. It was what he¡¯d wanted to tell Tlara until he¡¯d realized the futility of it. It is her class, Hunter. Several people here do this. I¡¯m not-

    It¡¯s wrong!

    I¡¯m not saying it isn¡¯t. But honestly? If one of them could do that to the dragon we¡¯re going to fight, I wouldn¡¯t mind. Would you?

    Tak commented when Hunter didn¡¯t answer. I do not think it is entirely wrong. He missed the look Hunter gave him as he was glancing out the arrow slit they were near. One of the only things Daniel¡¯s limited knowledge of engineering had contributed to this tower, considering it didn¡¯t have to follow the basics of structural design.

    Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.

    Why?

    Not all are like you. Not all are special like it is with mortals. I have not heard of any doing what Daniel has done with you. Would it not be better to make sure these creatures do not harm other people? Even in his telepathy, Tak¡¯s voice was simple and upbeat, like there was no other way he could be.

    It¡¯s wrong! They are enslaving them.

    People enslave mortals too. That got Daniel to look askance, but Tak still wasn¡¯t looking at him. His eyes were on the sky. Maybe it is wrong, but people do it.

    ¡°Dragon?¡± Khare asked, unaware they were interrupting.

    ¡°No. Clear skies. No rain, that is good.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. If we had to fight sparkbats on top of this, that¡¯d be bad.¡±

    ¡°Sunder.¡±

    We need a Telepathic Link with Khare if we¡¯re going to travel with them after this, Daniel silently said to the others. Tak, do you know what they mean?

    No.

    ¡°Right,¡± Daniel meekly agreed, hoping that was what Khare was looking for.

    Some time later, Thomas found them. ¡°Guy, we¡¯re pretty much ready. Where¡¯s the dragon?¡±

    ¡°How should I know?¡± The Cleric looked at Hunter in response. ¡°I¡¯m not sure if he can sense it coming. Rorshawd was almost on top of us before he scented him.¡±

    And the scents here are too mixed. Too much noise, Hunter added mentally.

    ¡°Well, my fingers are frozen from just standing next to this thing. How are you tolerating this?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s enough people here that the air¡¯s warmed from body heat. Most of us have Regeneration on top of that, but I don¡¯t think that¡¯s doing too much against the cold. Not sure. Khare, how are you?¡±

    ¡°Rotation.¡± There was an undulating motion that accompanied that.

    ¡°What?¡±

    Daniel picked up on the meaning this time. ¡°I think they mean they¡¯re cycling which vines are exposed to the air. I don¡¯t see how that would help too much. Unless your interior space handles temperature differently?¡± Khare didn¡¯t answer the implied question.

    ¡°Well, this standing around is going to give me frostbite. Can¡¯t Lograve do something about the temperature?¡±

    ¡°You want him to warm up the ice?¡± Daniel asked blankly.

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°Ice melts.¡±

    ¡°But this is magic ice, Guy.¡± Thomas lightly punched the wall and then shook his hand, wincing. ¡°S-see? I bet he could do it.¡±

    ¡°Maybe. Shouldn¡¯t you be outside?¡± Tak asked, balling up one of his fists as if to test the wall himself. ¡°You do need to shoot the dragon.¡±

    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s fine. I got permission!¡± Thomas¡¯ half-grin made it clear that wasn¡¯t the whole story. After a self-satisfied pause, he continued, ¡°Alost just said if I wasn¡¯t back before the dragon came he¡¯d shoot me first.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think he¡¯s the kind of person who jokes like that Thomas,¡± Daniel said nervously, joining Tak in glancing out the small window.

    ¡°Come on Guy, he¡¯s not going to do it. Punch me maybe, but then I¡¯ll just heal myself. Magic hands.¡±

    ¡°Very convenient,¡± Tak commented.

    ¡°You¡¯re all one to talk. Most of you can Regenerate and the other one doesn¡¯t bleed!¡±

    ¡°Sap.¡± Everyone turned to Khare and watched as the gestalt drew out a dagger and made a small cut on a vine. A viscous, light green fluid ran briefly from the cut before sealing over the wound.

    ¡°Huh. You learn something every day.¡±

    ¡­

    Thomas left soon after that when he was elbowed from behind and realized being out in the open had its advantages. Not many compared to potentially being struck by lightning, but they were there. The sun was warm as well, the day progressing into mid afternoon. Care had been taken to make sure there was no chance of the fight reaching dawn and resetting everyone¡¯s features.

    Murdon was looking at the sky when Gadriel spoke to him. ¡°Commander, any last minute revisions to our strategy?¡±

    ¡°No. The time for agonizing and indecision is over. I just wish this dragon would come so we could end this.¡±

    ¡°Indeed.¡± He looked to the others on the roof and spoke lowly. ¡°I apologize again.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°If I could make my return I would, yet I fear until we know for certain I should not show my face in Threst. I hold little hope that the Talongleam family has forgotten its grudge.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s alright. It¡¯s how it has to be. Once word is spread, I can go to Aughal.¡±

    Gadriel looked down, hand pushing his way through his modestly long light hair. ¡°You, of everyone Commander, should have a say in their fate after this day. There must be an end to your sacrifice.¡±

    ¡°Not everyone has my freedom, or the trust to deliver our warning. I will go to Threst. Lograve to Aughal. That is how it must be, assuming we survive.¡±

    ¡°I see. None can doubt your virtue, Commander.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s no honor in living up to your responsibilities, Hero. You don¡¯t gain anything from doing what you are supposed to.¡±

    ¡°It is how Heroes can advance, but I take your point. Though, I do recall some regions base their societies on meritocracy.¡±

    ¡°Not the one you come from,¡± Murdon batted back with a hint of humor. ¡°I always think those are the kind of regions whose image trumps their reality the most.¡±

    ¡°You have opinions on statecraft, Commander?¡±

    ¡°Observations.¡± He waved an armored hand. ¡°In the old days, we¡¯d traveled plenty. Walked more than we fought. It¡¯s probably why Lograve just reached level 4. That, and the fact that he spends all day stuck in one book or another. I¡¯d put money on him having one open on his lap right now. He¡¯d say it ¡®helps him focus¡¯ or something, but he¡¯d be lying.¡±

    ¡°You are true friends. Camaraderie that runs deeper than your bond, I¡¯d say.¡±

    ¡°Of course. We were the only two to stay together after¡­¡± Gadriel didn¡¯t push when Murdon fell silent, respecting whatever dark memories the Knight didn¡¯t want to revisit.

    ¡°We will see this day through, Commander. We number just shy of 100. I was trepidatious at first, but with your tactics, our armaments, and those odds-¡±

    ¡°It will be an even fight, nothing more. Without Kob, that¡¯s all we could do, but I admit this is our strongest position. We were given time. The preparations are complete.¡±

    ¡°The drake is keeping us waiting. Perhaps we should consider if it has moved on?¡±

    ¡°I won¡¯t gamble with people¡¯s lives.¡± Murdon tapped a foot, his armor silent as he shifted his arms. ¡°Mhmm, but, if it isn¡¯t here by dusk, it will be harder to see coming.¡±

    ¡°Perhaps we should provoke it into an appearance?¡±

    ¡°Is that a serious suggestion?¡± Murdon let out a short barking laugh as Gadriel¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change. That got the other¡¯s attention, those who weren¡¯t pretending not to listen at least. ¡°Well, how should we do that?¡±

    ¡°I happen to know of a class fond of attracting undue attention.¡± Gadrie¡¯s eyes narrowed at the looks everyone else and, presumably, Murdon were giving him. ¡°I do not mean mine!¡±

    ¡­

    The Bards were standing in the clearest space on the second floor, each somehow looking in a way that avoided placing any other in their line of sight. As a class, Bards weren¡¯t normally so frictious. They could stand being in the same room as each other, converse pleasantly on most topics, and exchange stories without the urge to stab one another. The whole ¡®Bards and Heroes, and Bard and Bards are always at each other¡¯s throats¡¯ thing was a bit overblown even if there was some truth underlying it.

    Today was different. Today, there was the stress of the upcoming fight superimposed on the bickering, backstabbing, and bad relationships that were the foundation of the modern Bard. Worse still, they¡¯d spent the better part of last week alone with each other practicing. The novelty of the experience had worn off quickly as arguments began over what mixture of powers to use and, more importantly, what kind of accompaniment to use. Not every Bard could change how their instrument sounded which is why some carried more than one. They could only have one Focus, of course, but adapting to the tastes of their listeners was crucial. If someone hated the sound of a brass instrument it wouldn¡¯t matter how inspiring the song was. Well, that still mattered, but not as much.

    The point is, Evalyn thought, they¡¯re all idiots. The music Daniel had brought with him was a greater treasure than the dull rock he¡¯d pulled out of the mountain. A thousand songs, perhaps more. A Bard could take those and never again need to worry about their own creativity, or memory for that matter.

    Sound Exchange could reproduce any instrument that the Bard was familiar with. A fair number of the songs Daniel had shown her included those beyond her knowledge, but not too far from the norm. If she¡¯d had her way, they¡¯d be performing as close to the original as possible. There was something in the alien mixture of sound so unlike that of her world that Evalyn knew they would make an unforgettable moment mimicking it. The others, cowards that they were, had made the group decision to transpose the melodies into their native string, horn, and odd percussion instruments. She was free to use whatever exotic sounds she wanted, but that would only detract from what they were trying to do.

    Evalyn sighed. She couldn¡¯t blame them. After all, she was an accordion player. That was an unusual choice, most common among Bards who expect to frequently be in combat. Not because it caught the eye or was easy to carry, but because it was hard to break.

    Most of the Bards with her were not of that stereotype. Some were familiar with combat and had patrolled after the Upswell, but hadn¡¯t quite taken to frequent hunts as she had. They had all been in the villages for the most part, whereas everyone with true talent had been in Eido. Evalyn should have been there too but for a quirk of fate. So, she was used to exotic instruments and used to taking advantage of that atypicality to make her own style. She could see the merit in the strange music the others couldn¡¯t or wouldn¡¯t.

    The accordion was in her hands. Each of the Bards was ready to play at a moment¡¯s notice. They knew what they were going to open with, and they were all experienced enough to know when they¡¯d need to change the tune. Usually after the third or fourth repetition. The first song wouldn¡¯t be forever dead after that, but in the past Evalyn wouldn¡¯t play it again for at least a week. Luckily this one went over seven minutes in length which would extend its usefulness.

    Such was the burden of a supportive Bard. If she had powers that could affect enemies, it wouldn¡¯t matter how many times she played the same piece. Ideally, she¡¯d only have to play it for the target once. She couldn¡¯t do that. She knew the disadvantage that put her at compared to her peers, but she couldn¡¯t.

    Not the time for this. She shook herself, resisting the urge to play to calm herself. The others would take that as grandstanding. Or, maybe, that she¡¯d seen the dragon. They had to keep that first song fresh. It¡¯d been preserved so far, even though that had required chasing multiple lecherous groups away who had come to see what the Bards were doing alone so deep in the woods.

    It had to be fresh. What was rote became banal. This was the curse of the Bard, whose music could be new for everyone but themselves. With the most important performance of her life approaching, Evalyn did not play a single note. She could handle this, handle the fear eating her from the ground up. Evalyn closed her eyes, breathed, and smiled. I¡¯ve done this once before. Dragons have nothing on me.

    Then she blinked. Shouldn¡¯t Murdon be on the roof?

    After a few minutes, the Bards were standing by one of the tower walls outside. They didn¡¯t need to be exposed for their music to affect the battlefield, not at this distance, but direct adjacency to what they were about to do wouldn¡¯t be healthy. Evalyn was the only one not part of the main group. She watched from the entrance, ready to spring into action should they need to shift themes. Aware of it as she was, Evalyn couldn¡¯t escape the desire to play the first note of the song. It was her music. Daniel¡¯s music, but also hers now.

    People shuffled behind her, used to the ice enough to not slip. In the far corner were her friends, the ones who would be with her during the next phase. Her thoughts in the future, she touched one of her fingertips to the wall. Just as cold as the real thing, but strong enough to support dozens of people and a wyvern. The power of level 4. Not quite halfway to the peak of mortals but leagues above what a normal person could do.

    ¡°What are they doing?¡± someone in the crowd asked her in response to the Bards standing silently, holding their weapons.

    ¡°Waiting.¡±

    ¡°For?¡±

    She turned and saw a man with a sword. Hardly anything special, likely a Martialist. How could he understand? ¡°The right moment,¡± she answered simply.

    ¡°What?¡±

    A light wind kicked up. That had potential, but, no. Not enough. Even if she wasn¡¯t taking part in this, Evalyn understood what the Bards were doing. They were suddenly trusted with ushering a beginning unto this battle. Before they had only a reactionary role, but now? Everyone here would carry this story with them into their futures, retelling it to those who would do the same. Beginnings and endings were key. It was dramatic of them, of her, to insist on this but that was the point! They lived and breathed with the rhythm of their music and the turning of the page.

    More eyes went to the Bards, and as whispers spread, more eyes still. Attention was gathering around them like moths to Murdon¡¯s armor. Better, she could sense it. Everyone was focused on the Bards, waiting. The chill of the air grew goosebumps on her skin that wasn¡¯t covered by armor. Without obvious coordination, the Bards raised their instruments. Some to their lips, others bringing them up to chest level.

    Silence, still. The rising anticipation was feeding the moment but there was still something missing. The random shout to get on with it wasn¡¯t it. Neither was the mixture of sighs, curses, and other vindictives against her class. Evalyn didn¡¯t know what the final ingredient would be, but it wouldn¡¯t come from the ignorant masses.

    The time arrived a minute later, just before Murdon would have intervened. It was the sun touching the lip of the mountain ridge in its descent that was the final signal. At once, every Bard opened up with a single, prolonged note. Layered into the discordance of the clashing sounds were afflictive powers. Together they could have crippled any of the mortals here, but they were directed out. No one could have guessed where the dragon was approaching from. As it happened, their music flew straight for the beast. An earthshaking roar flew over the ridge, not empowered by the dragon¡¯s fearsome ability but still near deafening. It followed, soon after, framed by the setting sun.

    So broke the silence, and thus began the battle to decide their fates. As lightning built in the maw of the dragon there was a word that cut through the ringing, amplified by a helmet made just for that purpose. ¡°CHARGE!¡±

 Chapter 71: Lightning Dragon - (6)

    None of those in the valley had a way to see the battlefield from above considering that the sky was part of the battlefield. And yet, roughly one hundred eyes watched what they could not as the first act began.

    The lightning dragon approached from the southwest, finally making its appearance as it was heralded by the Bards. Hundreds of meters in the air, it was easily out of reach of the ranged weapons in play. A kilometer away was the tower of ice where the mortals took cover. The archers and Bards stood, volleys of song and arrow ready to meet respective threats.

    Neither were useful in this moment. The dragon was too far away to strike with lightning or terror, though it prepared one. Even though it lacked the sapience its counterpart Rorshawd possessed, the dragon was not deficient in animal cunning. It understood by instinct what it was facing, what it had to destroy with, and what it needed to fear.

    To the dragon, this was a simple fight. Small things had come to violate its territory. Worse, they were the hated mortals, and worse still, they came with enslaved monsters. The instinct it carried to destroy carried on to the creatures that bore the marks of its ancient foe. None could challenge it. They were all weak.

    Something bordering surprise took the dragon as it faintly recognized two in the group, each vying strongly for its spite. One had injured it and escaped, the other had just escaped but also tainted its kind. Both would die in due time. The dragon would master the sky, never touching the ground, and use its lightning to kill them all.

    Ever since it had come into being it had wanted this lake for its lair. Fear had made it hesitate, first of other monsters, and then of the very strong mortals that regularly passed through. Then they hadn¡¯t, and there had been nothing else that could prevent the dragon from taking what it wanted. There was still nothing else strong enough.

    With tremendous speed, the dragon set a pace that would reach the tower in half a minute. Not its fastest possible descent, but it wanted to pull back before reaching the ground. This was a strafing run, nothing more. It would repeat this for as long as it could, but the internal energy the mortals called mana may not last as long as it would hope. No matter, by that point they¡¯d either be dead or would be the next day when the dragon returned to slaughter the survivors.

    Another surprise. Some of the mortals were coming towards it? That, that was good, they would be caught in its lightning, but how? Its instincts hadn¡¯t told it to fear this. Arrows, yes, but none that could significantly pierce its hide. Unease pricked its scales, the same any monster felt facing powers and enchanted items. There were things it could understand automatically and those it could not.

    It continued to build the lightning within itself, ready to evaporate each mortal coming towards it. Starting with the one wearing metal stained in burnished gold by the setting sun. Short bursts of pain dotted its underbelly, wings, and along the legs as resonant words echoed from further below. Arrows? They hadn¡¯t penetrated past its scales. To a beast larger than a village square, that was nothing.

    It was time. The charge had built to its fullest. The lightning would pierce through those that would dare try to exist in the sky with one of its majesty and scythe across the tower. Maybe it would destroy it. Maybe not. The dragon was unsure since the ice wasn¡¯t behaving normally. There shouldn¡¯t even be ice here. No matter. Air filled massive lungs, then was expelled rapidly. Whereas a fire dragon ignited its exhalations, the Lightning Dragon charged the air using its horn as the catalyst. Particles ionized and burned as electrical energy coursed and writhed. This wasn¡¯t the energy the monsters native to this region used which was diluted with magic, but true lightning.

    The flash traveled quickly. Not as fast as light itself, but a significant fraction of it. No one here was fast enough to dodge it. What were they thinking? Wait, what was happening? Utter disbelief took the dragon as the lightning enveloped the armored man and was absorbed. The majority of the charge was taken, leaving only a pitiful jolt to scar the now vacant roof of the tower. That wasn¡¯t the end. The dragon¡¯s lightning appeared once more from the mortal, chaining to the others but dealing them no harm. Somehow, it was also coming back! Not to its face, but branching towards the insignificant wounds it had suffered moments before. The mortal that had stolen its thunder fell on it moments later, the weapons in his hands biting into its flesh far deeper than they should. The dragon sensed the magic radiating off the mortal. Not the armor, the mortal. He was inundated with it.

    Murdon spoke words he knew the dragon wouldn¡¯t understand. They were addressed to it, but they weren¡¯t for it. ¡°This isn¡¯t how I kill you. This is just how I say hello.¡± His words timed perfectly with the explosions.

    ¡­

    Lightning link was, at the same time, a perfect and perfectly flawed defensive enchantment. Immunity to any elemental damage was precious. That the formulae had been discovered from one of the weakest monsters in the region was strange, even though it mimicked an aspect of the source. In that way came its weakness. The armor would absorb all the lightning that struck it, right up until the point it couldn¡¯t. Then, it would explode. Murdon would die if that happened to him, whereas the others might just lose a limb at best. That would¡¯ve happened if Murdon had charged alone. Instead, a network formed between the armor of those behind him and the ammunition in front of him.

    The dragon¡¯s lightning was like a waterfall filling small connected cups. They¡¯d overflow, but the smallest would do so first. That was the spineshard ammunition that Daniel had carefully crafted to be smaller than almost anything else they were bringing. That¡¯s what they wanted to explode. Alost¡¯s volley hadn¡¯t been too accurate since his target was flying fast and at long range. The order had been center mass for that reason. Some of the shots missed, but most of the arrows had found something. Since they were all the same size, they all exploded at once and with the force of the excess lightning absorbed into the system.

    The result was pockets of missing flesh around the dragon¡¯s body half a meter in diameter. Painful, but not lethal. Not by themselves. The true threat to the dragon was the dozen warriors that had, wait, no. Only eight had found purchase on the dragon¡¯s scales. Three had missed as the dragon dodged, and one armed with lightning wings had been killed when battered by real ones. He¡¯d been level 3, but that hardly mattered.

    Wind battered the ice tower as the dragon swept its wings, bringing it up and away just after a second volley scattered arrows across its back. Now was the crux. There were eight of them, and if they did not bring this beast down, it would fly away and kill them one by one. Lograve began melting the tower to free up his concentration, expanding the field of ice as Tlara incomprehensibly directed Spinner and others drove tall spears tipped with gold into the ground. Lograve prayed for his friends and then hoped that would do something. His faith wasn¡¯t the strongest of late.

    ¡­

    Gadriel clung to the dragon¡¯s side with his feet. The abilities and hidden aspects of his features he usually restrained were now fully brought to bear. There was refusing to become reliant on them, and ignoring them altogether. If this wasn¡¯t a situation that called for his full might, what would be?

    He wondered who had figured out the extent of his powers from the rare few he used commonly. Lograve, perhaps. Maybe Daniel if he was truly intelligent. The truth was there was more than a training gimmick behind the secrecy. A fair few of Gadriel¡¯s powers revolved around the manipulation of one thing. That trend in itself would distinguish him, but the medium his powers influenced took him to the point that and into the territory where kings, councils, or likewise would take interest. Not as much as an Artificer perhaps, but Gadriel¡¯s past was already stained by the courts of Threst and he had no wish to draw similar notice to him.

    This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

    As Murdon brutalized the dragon¡¯s head with every transferable enhancement their force could give him, Gadriel ran upside down on the belly towards a wing. The two huge canvases of living leather had to be destroyed or injured to the point of failure. He¡¯d already tried Flying Sword, missing twice and watching the sword bounce off the third time. It was too tough at range, even for the enchanted sword he¡¯d won from his duel.

    Gadriel neared what would be considered the armpit of a bipedal creature when the lightning dragon became aggravated enough to try and shake them off. The violent turning delayed the dragon¡¯s escape from the lake but managed to dislodge two of their force. An avianoid who sprouted wings as they fell, and a gestalt. The latter had coiled like a spring to leap from the wyvern and had no easy way down. The Hero spared a moment to hope they could survive the fall, then jumped himself.

    He didn¡¯t have that specific ability or experience in this exact scenario, only training and a greater understanding of his own body than most. Gadriel knew that if the dragon continued its turn, and if he let go right now, then in a few moments he¡¯d collide with one of the wings. He either guessed correctly, or the Octyrrum favored him.

    The Hero¡¯s feet made contact and snapped into place. The wings¡¯ use in sustaining flight made them a more unsteady surface that threatened to throw him off with every beat. But, they were also on the dragon¡¯s side. Gadriel intended to deal damage and delay the dragon¡¯s retreat in one fell swoop. When the surface he was on was level with the ground, and he wasn¡¯t upside down, he pointed his sword and shouted, ¡°Falling Star!¡±

    The enhanced force of gravity on his blade tried to sink him to the surface of the Octyrrum. Like the last time he¡¯d used this, his opponent was strong enough to stop this from happening. It also made the dragon turn widely in the air as the force of enhanced gravity was leveraged against the wing. Even though the dragon could crush him were they to directly contest their strength, there was more to attributes than just numbers.

    Gadriel waited just long enough, then canceled the ability. He smiled, seeing their direction. They were headed back. That was critically important. If the dragon fell too far away from their other forces, all the preparation the others were doing would be meaningless and those currently on the dragon would die quickly.

    What this also accomplished was making Gadriel the prime target for the dragon, especially when it tried to turn away and he used his ability again on a different spot. Two ragged lines ran down the wings, stopping at hard bone that framed the stretched skin and muscle. In response to this there was a flick of the dragon¡¯s tail, and a bolt of lightning shot forward that hit the Hero in the chest.

    Something on his forearm radiated light as it absorbed the energy, which was then fed to the arrows and allies Gadriel was close enough to. Surprisingly nothing exploded, the capacity of the network able to sustain the charge. With that, every piece of heliorite sparked and randomly shot jolts out at the others. The energy in the system would slowly drain this way due to the inefficiency of the repeated transfers.

    This left the dragon with a conundrum. Fire again and detonate the ammunition in its side or allow Gadriel to continue? More of the arrows were in its wing this time. Could it continue to fly if it risked it? The beast was unsure. There was a bastardization of its kind attacking its head, and something else deeper. Something growing that was putting pressure on the parts the dragon used to think with. Its high intelligence attribute was compensating, though it was still an impediment.

    Gadriel¡¯s eyes were on the tail, now aware that it could throw lightning. He¡¯d been fortunate that his bracer¡¯s protection extended past its physical form or he¡¯d be dead. Just like that, his years of turmoil and sacrifice would have been for nothing. He looked at the sparking ammunition and noted the other side was unaffected.

    ¡°We must bridge the gap!¡± he shouted over the roaring wind, hoping to be heard. They were too far apart, only three were connected. Himself, the other on the wing, and one climbing the side by plunging two short swords repeatedly into the scaly hide. ¡°Quickly, to the back!¡± he urged the last one when they took notice.

    The dragon began to turn again. ¡°Falling Star!¡± He¡¯d only made it a third of the way back up the wing but had to keep the monster close to the melting tower. It was costing him, both in exposure and mana. The ability wasn¡¯t as ludicrously draining as Heldren¡¯s Fated Strike, but he couldn¡¯t keep this up indefinitely.

    His efforts were rewarded when a fresh volley of arrows impacted the dragon. This was the other reason Gadriel had wanted to bring the dragon closer. These targeted Gadriel¡¯s wing as Alost, commendable as an archer he was, had spotted the actively sparking ammunition. However, a few were directed at the other wing and as they all flew past Gadriel could barely make out Alost¡¯s cursing on right versus left.

    More flashes of lightning as the link joined to Gadriel equalized. The jolts between them were harmful and scorched the dragon where they intersected, but otherwise did nothing as the dragon was resistant to lightning. Only the explosion, which had the radiant type damage thanks to the heliorite, could bypass this.

    The fresh volley changed the equation, but not in Gadriel¡¯s favor. The dragon could not suffer more from the strange arrows and needed to get away. The Hero had proven himself too dangerous, even as another of the raiders was killed when they neglected the dragon¡¯s claws. They could reach some areas of the belly. Both the Berserker and their enchanted wings fell to the ground in pieces.

    ¡­

    ¡°LIGHTNING! WATCH OUT!¡± A bellow from the front. Murdon could see the horn he was next to begin to spark violently. The draconoid quickly scrambled over, using his axes much in the way the climbing Martialist had. While his enhanced offensive might was just enough to seriously harm the dragon, its horn was harder than its bone. He discovered this when he swung out with his heliorite ax and part of the metal chipped.

    Murdon gritted his teeth and gripped the horn with his gauntlet. Even his armor couldn¡¯t fully protect him from grasping the equivalent of ten natural lightning bolts, but he survived and bled the gathering energy off and into the nearby struck ammunition. This came at the same time as Gadriel turning the dragon and the combined force almost threw Murdon off.

    As it was, he lost his chipped ax, and the woman behind him stabbing out at the dragon¡¯s nape fully fell off. She¡¯d been injured, having gotten too close to an arrow whose shaft had snapped. This had concealed the arrowhead like the Earth equivalent of a land mine. She didn¡¯t have wings but, thankfully, they were close enough for someone to catch her with a spell.

    So few left, and Murdon was missing an ax. His shield was near Lograve, just in case, and he couldn¡¯t use it now. Nor could he grab the horn to prevent another lightning breath. There was nothing close enough to feed the charge to. Attempting to harm the right wing at this point was impossible. The mortal there was doing all he could to stay in the fight.

    Their only hope now was the left wing. It had a sizable number of arrows in it that would deal far more damage to the wings than they would the body. Combined with what Gadriel and the others had accomplished, that might be enough. If not, they were doomed. A lot of possible scenarios in this fight were like that which was simply a sign of how far they were outmatched.

    Should he use it now? Murdon reached with one hand for his belt while his other gripped the ax keeping him in place. Yes, he decided. He¡¯d hoped to save it for when they¡¯d grounded the dragon, but without his second weapon he couldn¡¯t move along the dragon. He took out a flask containing a bright yellow liquid, almost dropped it when Gadriel chose that moment to turn the dragon, and then swallowed the contents.

    Both feet planted themselves on the dragon¡¯s head. In the moments before he wrenched his weapon loose, Murdon caught sight of an odd swelling near the crest of the dragon¡¯s head. The bump was ringed with red-tinged white scales. Had it been hit there by something earlier?

    Murdon jumped off the dragon and flew. A flight potion. Their only one, and it lasted just a minute. His magical flight was by no means faster than the dragon¡¯s, but like Gadriel before him, Murdon only intended to intercept the wing as he came past. He swung out to embed his steel in the dragon¡¯s wing and missed. He gritted his teeth in despair as gravity began to pull him away from the dragon despite his flight, until it didn¡¯t. Murdon blinked and saw his ax had lodged in one of the vertical spines running down the wing. How? He¡¯d, no, he must have struck true.

    In another region, a mana potion was hurriedly fed to Silora as she gasped at how much mana had just been taken by her ability.

    ¡°Comma-¡± Gadriel began to say before he was fully enveloped in lightning breath. The Hero wasn¡¯t annihilated thanks to the enchantment which immediately began spreading out the electricity, but he¡¯d been severely injured. Gadriel fell with his sword in hand, knocked unconscious.

    For a moment, Murdon considered ordering one of those left to dive after him and use their wings to save the Hero. He didn¡¯t. He couldn¡¯t. Despite the explosions tearing new holes in the wing, making it look like a ship¡¯s sail after passing through a hurricane, the dragon continued to slowly fly away. Their ace in the hole, the ability to make the dragon turn midair, was gone. Every second now came with the tolling of death¡¯s bell.

 Chapter 72: Pit Stop

    ¡°Not good,¡± Tak observed, seeing Gadriel fall.

    ¡°He¡¯s still alive!¡± Daniel shouted at the same time. ¡°Someone catch him!¡±

    Gadriel had been dislodged as the dragon was flying towards their position, though he fell over open water. Lograve was steadily expanding his ice, but could not do so rapidly. Those who had powers dedicated to catching their falling allies looked at each other, each shaking their head. Too far, and not enough time. Not for them.

    Daniel saw this and then shouted at someone closer. ¡°Tlara, your wyvern!¡±

    ¡°Really?¡± She looked away from her other beast which was moving across the expanding ice at a frenetic pace. ¡°Ugh. Fine. Hey!¡± Her voice took on a deeper aspect that projected across the lake, forming seemingly nonsense words. The wyvern understood, and dove to catch the falling Hero. It could make it, speed wasn¡¯t the problem thanks to the enchanted wings Gadriel wore. Him hitting the water and drowning was.

    Someone else noticed this. Lograve was sitting within a sphere of thick ice at the center of their formation following the full self-destruction of the tower. Low walls circling his position provided cover for those around him, which included the Bards, archers, and Tlara¡¯s group. The Arcanist melted some of the ice around him to shout out of. ¡°Leave it to Murdon not to pull his weight! The dragon¡¯s getting away. Tlara, I want you to bring Gadriel right here. I need healers, healing potions, and a mana potion. Now! We¡¯re getting him back in the fight!¡±

    Tlara was quick on the uptake. ¡°No fucking way. That thing¡¯s faster than my wyvern.¡±

    ¡°Not now that its wing¡¯s been turned into a washboard. Gadriel goes back up to turn the dragon again or we all die. Do it Tlara!¡±

    What happened next was the closest this world could get to a pit stop. Unless there are chariot races somewhere? Daniel thought as he tried to distract himself from the nervous fear inside of him.

    ¡°You want all of them?¡± William asked Lograve as he held three bottles in his hands. The Ranger was the custodian of a large stock due to a particular power that protected equipment he carried from incidental damage.

    ¡°Nah, those¡¯re fine. We¡¯ll do the rest.¡± Thomas was cracking his knuckles as he propped his bow on an ice wall and joined a group of healers standing in a wide circle. Their patient was rapidly approaching.

    ¡°Fine by me. We¡¯re doing this fast, I¡¯ll need some help. Come on.¡± Somehow it was Daniel holding one of the potions. At this point he was a glorified guard until the dragon came back into range, so he had a free hand.

    ¡°Do I pour it into his mouth?¡± Could he fast enough?

    ¡°Nah I got the stronger one. That should go down the gullet. Hit him with it.¡±

    Daniel blinked. ¡°Just, just hit him?¡±

    William nodded, mostly concentrating on the approaching Hero. ¡°Glass breaks the skin, potion gets under to heal that and more. Not the pretty way to do it but it is the fastest.¡±

    First Heroes with dumb names, and now Rangers with faintly southern accents? Or, wait, I met William first. ¡°That doesn¡¯t sound pleasant.¡±

    ¡°Ever think about how you¡¯d get a potion through a mouth pooling with blood?¡±

    ¡°No?¡±

    ¡°Well best get thinking then. Destiny has arrived.¡± Parts of Gadriel were still smoking when the wyvern dropped him. The bracer on his wrist and the lightning wings were the only things completely untouched. ¡°Huh, maybe that¡¯s too much thinking.¡± William, with one hand plunging a bottle into Gadriel¡¯s throat, used the other to grab Daniel¡¯s wrist and smash his potion across Gadriel¡¯s forearm like he was christening a ship. Just like the Ranger said, glass cut and the potion healed. With some of the glass left inside. That made Daniel¡¯s skin itch and he pulled away. The mass of healers laying hands on the Hero also did that.

    ¡°I, I¡¯m alive?¡± Gadriel asked when the potion bottle was pulled from his lips.

    ¡°We don¡¯t have time. Flash Heal!¡± The ability expedited the slow rate of healing the Cleric would normally provide with Healing Hands, and a third of his burns disappeared.

    ¡°That¡¯s too much mana, don¡¯t-¡±

    ¡°Flash Heal,¡± another two spoke over the second. The three who had used the ability were the only members of the church of the Hand present, not counting Thomas who had yet to acquire the level two power. But he would, with time. Guaranteed powers were one of the exclusive benefits of swearing yourself to one of the gods. Gadriel went from death¡¯s door to peak health in moments. That was still more moments than they had.

    ¡°Tlara, wyvern, now!¡± Lograve shouted and then gestured at William. The Ranger nodded, pulled one more potion from his belt, and hit it against Gadriel¡¯s back. It was the mana potion, not meant for the Hero but his equipment.

    ¡°Mage, I fucking swear, if, aagh!¡± Tlara cursed as the bubble of ice around Lograve fully reformed. Still, she sent the wyvern off with its payload about ten seconds after it had landed. In its wake, the mortals continued to prepare for the next stage. The massive spider-like creature was at the fringes of the spreading ice, while teams were driving metal posts capped with a peculiar heliorite creation at regular intervals. They¡¯d be ready for the dragon, but would the dragon be ready for them?

    ¡­

    Murdon didn¡¯t know what to do. The effects of the flight potion were waning. Even if it persisted, he couldn¡¯t match the pace of the injured dragon given the weight of his armor. The tactical mind the Octyrrum had blessed him with was showing their odds declining like sand in an hourglass. What options did he have? Their boarding force was down to three. He was stuck on the wing. Though they had managed to slow the dragon¡¯s flight speed, its main body was practically undamaged. Worse, it was still flying away.

    What could he do? There was but one option that might work at the cost of, well, everything. It didn¡¯t matter. Murdon gripped the ax with both hands. One way or the other, he was going to die. It might as well be done while assuring everyone else¡¯s survival. He¡¯d been chipping off pieces of himself and casting them into the fire to renew their hopes all this time. Why not send the rest in one grand gesture? The truth was Murdon had one way left to move across the dragon, there was just little point unless he was going to enact this final plan. There was only one place where he could do more damage than futility clinging on and lashing out.

    Murdon steadied his grip and Jumped, landing ax first. That was something he could do faster than the dragon¡¯s flight. With what amounted to small steps, he went further and further towards the dragon¡¯s main body. It crested the lake¡¯s ridge when he made it, cold certainty accompanying the darkening dusk. He just wished the other two didn¡¯t have to follow him in this.

    Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

    He kept moving, closer and closer to the front. Back to where he started. Murdon was going to end this fight like he had the last. Midnight Breath was his strongest ability, but it wouldn¡¯t do anything if it just trailed out behind him. The effect was like a fog, using it now would just make it rain down slowly and kill a few trees. It had to be contained, and Murdon knew for certain that dragons made a good vessel for it.

    The ax bit into the neck and the fleeing dragon looked at him sideways. There was malice and willful destruction in them, but not what he had come to fear seeing in the eyes of that one ringcat. The intelligence that had made Murdon question if there were any others like it. No, that one was unique. Maybe, after he died here, Lograve could find out why. His friend may be the last to keep hunting, assuming the Arcanist didn¡¯t swear it off. The ten that had set out so many years ago only to find tragedy in place of glory were only a fraction of their original number now, soon to be further reduced. Worry stayed him for just a moment as Murdon wondered if he wouldn¡¯t take the chance he was being given. Would his friend stay to chase the fleeting hope that he survived?

    No, he wouldn¡¯t. Lograve was like him. Dedicated, and smart. Even if there was a chance, the people mattered more. Murdon focused and then did something complex. For his last plan to work, he¡¯d need to unleash his breath the moment he could see into the dragon¡¯s throat. Any longer and he could die from the dragon¡¯s teeth before getting it off. The problem was to get there, he¡¯d have to use a channeled ability while priming another one. Practical sense stated this was impossible. Untrue, although it took practice and skill many lacked. Manipulating mana flow in two directions simultaneously wasn¡¯t something you could just do without effort.

    In this case the task was equivalent to swimming up a waterfall, if only briefly. The draconoid drew in the air around him, wincing as lightning breath shot towards a wing behind him. There was a singular explosion larger than the rest as the last other mortal on the dragon died in an instant. A quick death, at least. If the dragon¡¯s maw didn¡¯t kill him, Murdon could take a while to die. Murdon clenched his eyes shut, grasping at whatever mental strength he could. In the midst of what he was attempting, he also had to time the Jump as well as mind the direction. With the latest hit the dragon was listing and turning its head to seek out the last mortal it sensed on itself. He had to guess where it would be looking.

    It was time. Rather, he was out of time. Murdon strained against the flow of mana within him, pushing the inflowing river to stop, and then to reverse course. The second wave of mana he wielded flickered once, then tethered to his legs. Murdon was flying again, out in front of the dragon. He gathered the rest of the mana within him and set it aflame with dark light like he had before and would never again. Time didn¡¯t slow as he fell towards the dragon¡¯s mouth. The Octyrrum was unwilling to give him anything more in this last moment. For a second, it almost seemed like his enemy wouldn¡¯t take the bait. Its dead, furious eyes tracked him, looking to the ground, making its own feral calculations. Then it opened its mouth, savagely prideful as if it thought Murdon had made a mistake.

    The teeth were as long as he was and wider at the base. It didn¡¯t need to bite him, but it would try. The mouth was already closing to meet Murdon as black smoke filled with gold and blue filtered out of his helmet slowly. The trickle before the dam burst. It had to be enough, it had to be. As one drake closed its mouth, another¡¯s opened shooting a torrent of the dark mist. Some spilled into the open air but a good portion of the initial burst caught the dragon. It reacted in pain but it had committed to this just as much as Murdon. The massive lips were closing around him, death soon to follow, when the dragon¡¯s head turned violently.

    The entire creature jerked to the right, spoiling Murdon¡¯s trajectory and wasting most of his mana turned poison to the air. He was stunned. Did the dragon have an ability? It shouldn¡¯t be able to fly like that, turn and dive so quickly with its wings nearly broken. Not at this level. His answer came as he realized what he was hearing. Like thunder, bellowed through the air louder than it ever had before. ¡°FALLING STAR!¡± Gadriel had reentered the fight.

    ¡­

    From behind and above the dragon had the Hero come, unnoticed by Murdon until the last moment. Tlara had begrudgingly told the wyvern to go where Gadriel had wanted it. The Hero had hastened when he saw Murdon climbing up the beast and understood. Pyrrhic victories were entirely within his realm as well.

    Once above his target, Gadriel was faced with a problem. He needed to turn the dragon and deal as much damage with his dwindling mana as he could. Stopping Murdon from killing himself, however nobly, was an additional concern. Impacting from the height the wyvern had taken him would mean plunging straight through the wing and perhaps bone, if he used Falling Star on his sword. If he hit the right joint that could knock the dragon out of the sky, but it was too far away now.

    It was fortunate, then, that this ability extended beyond just his sword. With a small amount of mana he could empower his fists, though shouting the incantation with every punch would be obnoxious and not add overly much. With a large amount of mana? ¡°Ally of mine, will you follow me unto glory?¡± The question came with an intrinsic request. The wyvern probably didn¡¯t understand his words in any way but could feel the impulse of mana in the same way Hunter understood how to allow Daniel to share his senses. Its simple mind compared the plea against the list of instructions Tlara had given it. She had told it to go wherever Gadriel had wanted.

    The Hero smiled when he felt the acceptance in the lack of resistance to the flow of his mana. It lasted only an instant, this ability triggering rapidly and culminating when Gadriel shouted the incantation. Right after that, the wyvern began plummeting to the earth like it was weighed down by dozens of anchors, aimed right for the undamaged wing.

    The principle involved was obvious to anyone familiar with weapons. The point of the sword could run through a man, while the wider head of a mace wouldn¡¯t break through armor but would concuss anything behind it. Put in terms Daniel would use, the larger surface area of the wyvern both delivered more force than Gadriel¡¯s sword and across a wider area. It was costly to affect a creature, and one larger than him. In a similar manner to Murdon, Gadriel had wagered his remaining mana on this play.

    The difference was, his plan worked. Jerking in midair, the dragon lost its chance to take out Murdon and was forced to face the lake again. And where the wyvern had hit the wing? It hadn¡¯t punched through entirely but had torn holes and strained the flesh there to the point of tearing. Already listing in the air due to the tremendous damage on its other side, the dragon was now no longer flying as much as making a controlled descent.

    Gadriel examined the angle of descent, frowned as he saw the dragon was slightly off, and was then blasted off his feet by a burst of electricity. Thankfully it hadn¡¯t enveloped him like before and set off the remaining ammunition within the dragon, but the primary target hadn¡¯t fared so well. Even with its resistance, Tlara¡¯s skyshock wyvern could not withstand the undivided attention of its better.

    In the distance, the Hero could hear the bird-like cry full of anger and anguish. As he fell through the air he mused on how such an abrasive person could have that beautiful a voice. All avianoids were like that. Their singers could turn hearts without even using a power. One, in fact, could¡­ What was he doing?

    Gadriel realized he¡¯d been knocked out of focus and regained his senses, engaging the magical device on his back. He had almost no mana left to him, not enough to use any of his other powers which might alter his trajectory. Without something like Daniel¡¯s Jump to augment the effect, he didn¡¯t even go a hundred meters in the air.

    He was heading for the ground. That would obviously be the case, but the problem was he¡¯d impact well before the lip of the rock around the lake, whereas the dragon would just crest over it. The wings would soften his landing, but it¡¯d be a few minutes to get to where he could jump off and get to the others. It could all be over before then. Even with all he¡¯d done, Gadriel¡¯s part to play wasn¡¯t over until the people east of him were safe.

    What could he do? Nothing, besides consciously lessening the effect of the enchantment just before the point of a terminal velocity. Gadriel landed roughly in the dirt and hard rocks of the Thormundz mountain range. The dragon dominated the sky above him, but not for long. It would crash somewhere near the lake. Where exactly he couldn¡¯t be sure. Murdon was trailing, the draconoid having activated his wings sooner. Bitterly, Gadriel accepted that at least one of them would be of continued use as he waved, then saluted. Both disappeared behind the cover of the mountain. Gadriel sheathed his sword, sighed, and began to run.

 Chapter 73: Skyfall

    ¡°Not good,¡± Tak remarked amidst other shouts and one particularly vindictive stream of curses.

    Lograve¡¯s mental voice rang out to everyone within range of his upgraded Telepathy, which allowed for cross-communication in addition to the range improvement. Second formation! Gods, Murdon, is he-?

    ¡°He¡¯s ok Lograve. Gadriel too, but just them,¡± Daniel reported somberly.

    ¡°That is not good!¡± Tak exclaimed, pointing.

    Lograve melted the ice in between himself and the approaching dragon to get a better look. His face, already pale from the cold, whitened further. ¡°Oh dear.¡± Cover, now!

    The dragon had lost its ability to direct itself through the air. Lograve¡¯s estimations showed it would collide with a fringe portion of his ice closest to the lake¡¯s center. It could crash through if it didn¡¯t soften its fall, though the wings were still spread to catch as much air as it could. The dragon had experienced landing in the lake once before and wasn¡¯t keen on repeating that experience.

    What Tak was drawing attention to was the sparking horn on its head. Another blast of lightning. How many times had it used this? A dozen, more? It still had enough to blast them on its approach despite all the lightning it had unleashed so far. The cone of lightning swept across the farther reaches of the ice, imperiling half of their number directly or indirectly. Only a handful had protective armor and none a full suit. Without that or Gadriel¡¯s ridiculous will to survive, direct exposure to all but fleeting bursts of the lightning would still kill. That¡¯s where the centerpiece of the fight¡¯s second act came into play.

    The idea had developed in parts over the week of preparation within the village. The issue of the dragon¡¯s lightning had been at the forefront of everyone¡¯s minds. Lightning link armor partially resolved this, but there were too many people to afford arming. The suggestion had been raised to give gestalt armor and allow people to shelter in them until someone from Roost¡¯s Peak had reminded everyone that Yedra had still died even under Kob¡¯s sheltering.

    No progress was made on this issue until Tlara acquired her silk shocker. This solved one of the issues with networking disparate enchanted armor as the threads could carry all types of electricity to expand the network. The final key to the puzzle came when Daniel, who had attended a strategy meeting while on break and asked if they¡¯d considered lightning rods.

    That suggestion cost them a day as Daniel cut into his share of the heliorite to make what was technically level 1 helmets to cap off the poles. The effort paid off. Against the quick moving lightning of the dragon, the metal spears that had been scattered around the battlefield reacted and absorbed it. Mortals still died, but only those who had not reached cover in time.

    Lightning traveled from the heliorite into the metal poles and conducted into the spider¡¯s threads underneath. There, they were insulated from above and below. Lograve¡¯s ice glowed eerily with the building energy. Nothing exploded, but random arcs of electricity still fired from the top of the poles and were a hazard to anyone unarmored who got in their way. Of course, a more directed breath attack would overwhelm the defenses of a singular pole and there was no true way to defend against that aside from having Spinner isolate it so the rest didn¡¯t go with it.

    In these initial moments, that didn¡¯t matter. Six people died whereas sixty might have otherwise. They¡¯re holding! Lograve mentally shouted. Lightning sparked into the lake below as he uncovered sections of the web. I¡¯m going to bleed off the charge until Alost feels like doing his job. We can¡¯t lose those towers.

    ¡°Can¡¯t shoot now, it¡¯s hitting. Archers, brace!¡± The bowmen, and everyone else, hunkered down. Only Tlara¡¯s remaining beast was in motion as it frantically sped away from oncoming death. A circle of ice on the opposite side of the battlefield was already forming for it to take position in.

    Whether by fortune or design, the dragon impacted a section of ice supported by one of the magical bridge¡¯s sections. It was made to hold a good amount of weight, though not a falling dragon¡¯s worth. It cracked, as did the ice, but the dragon did not fall through. Those people not already sitting were knocked off their feet as the force was carried across the lake. The shores not frozen burst water onto the surroundings as an enormous ripple emanated from the creature¡¯s landing.

    There was a slight pause in the battle as the mortals recovered, and the dragon took stock of itself. Everyone saw it lift each wing experimentally before snarling. They¡¯d done it. It couldn¡¯t fly, and now it was trapped on the end of the ice sheet.

    Are you in range?

    Alost chuckled and spoke with a swagger, the lifting hopes of everyone catching his voice. ¡°I could hit that with a sling from here. Archers, the head! Focus fire!¡±

    For his part, Daniel readied himself. His group had moved to the opposite side of the ringed wall of ice around Lograve¡¯s bubble, putting more distance between them and death. This also let Tlara direct her beast while crouching, but she seemed more intent on audibly planning Gadriel¡¯s death. He ignored that and looked to the regrouping Bards.

    Even he didn¡¯t know what they¡¯d play. Evalyn had heard around forty songs, making no comment other than for the repetition of some. In a minuscule way he felt embarrassed. This entire battlefield was about to be treated to his taste in music, not counting however the Bards had adjusted it to fit their instruments. His strongest present emotion was, well, fear of the dragon, but second to that was curiosity. What would they choose? As the archers fired, he found out.

    Wait, really? In his initial surprise, Daniel only heard the music, not processing the wave of enchantment that followed it. Tlara, on the other hand, shut right up as she listened. The song wasn¡¯t the same. Not entirely. It didn¡¯t have the electric guitars, but Daniel guessed they couldn¡¯t manage that. They had an avianoid singing the lyrics at least, though someone had adjusted them slightly after he¡¯d translated them for Evalyn.

    To Daniel, it bordered on tacky considering the song was about the wrong element. Maybe Evalyn had taken the title and lyrics of the piece to heart, or she¡¯d heard he¡¯d used it to annoy Tlara and this was some kind of elaborate joke. The dragon wouldn¡¯t get the symbolism, even if the original band had dragon in the name. He looked at the four around him and his eyes widened. There was a shimmer in the air around them, just like Murdon had looked when buffs had been dumped into him, albeit to a lesser degree. Their eyes, those that had them, reflected this shine, and through his Empathic Link Daniel felt a fire growing. As for himself? Phone, buffs?

    <hr>

    Alert: You are under the effect of the following allied Abilities:

    ? Cadence of Arms

    ? Ironmind Melody - x3

    ? Restorative Refrain - x2

    ? Shielding Stanza

    ? Surefooted Song

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    ? Valor Song - x2

    ? Valor Song*

    -

    Alert: Bardic Music affecting you has been merged into one medium. You will continue to be affected by all applicable abilities until the temporary Bond: Band is broken.

    -

    Alert: Bardic Music affecting you is greatly diminished in effect due to the selected medium.

    <hr>

    This music is-

    Making me want to fight! Tak finished Hunter¡¯s thought. It was as if both had taken all of the lightning the dragon had just fired and injected it. Daniel, not for the first time, felt jealous of them. He didn¡¯t get magic adrenaline just because he knew the song too well? This was probably how Bards felt all the time.

    ¡°Hoh, ok. Maybe the bitch gets to live,¡± Tlara graciously said, eyeing Evalyn with something approaching respect. ¡°Who knew those idiots could do this if they had half a brain?¡± Out of everyone, the avianoid had the mildest reaction to the Bards besides Daniel. That also wasn¡¯t counting her beast or the monsters brought by other mortals. Out of all of them, only Hunter benefited from the abilities underlying the music. Daniel had a suspicion as to why and was glad Tlara hadn¡¯t noticed.

    Across the battlefield the impact of the song took hold. Before, the assemblage of mortal warriors feared their foe in no uncertain terms. Most of their weapons couldn¡¯t do more than scratch its scales. What could they hope to accomplish? The speech Murdon had given kept them in line. It was the Bards that made them charge. Daniel saw people abandoning their cover and Evalyn playing with tears in her eyes. Daniel took a double take at that. All of the Bards had some form of sadness, stoicism, or detachment about them paradoxically nestled in the manic aura they unleashed with their music. It didn¡¯t make any sense.

    Hunter, get back! Daniel saw the flash of gold as the ringcat leaped from his position and, for a moment, ran towards the dragon himself. They were the reserve forces, meant to help defend Lograve, the archers, and the Bards. Granted there was little threat to them now. Daniel wanted it to stay that way.

    I- I must, I need to¡­ Hunter¡¯s thoughts were pressured, and he kept having to stop himself from moving forward towards the dragon. This wasn¡¯t missed by those in the area. Evalyn looked sharply in response to the beast larger than herself jittering in murderous excitement and seemed to indicate him to the others.

    ¡°Screen that one out unless the dragon uses its roar,¡± she said quietly, not daring to overshadow the music with her voice that changed in pitch with the melody. A moment later, surprise passed over the other Bards when Hunter relaxed. Only they had noticed, Lograve and the archers too focused on the charge to do anything.

    What was that? Hunter asked Daniel as the ringcat meekly padded back. I didn¡¯t feel like myself. Not that I was being controlled, but like there was a strong desire to hunt I couldn¡¯t fight.

    It clicked in Daniel¡¯s head when the first mortals reached the dragon. It was steady on its four feet and was able to manipulate the wings to the point of summoning gusts, if only from the right. In no way was it crippled like Rorshawd had been towards the end and it could easily tear through everyone here without the special tactics they were employing.

    Four died with a single swipe and the rest came on heedless of the danger. Daniel saw their auras fade away like those of the boarding party had, but this time hit him like it had back in Roost¡¯s Peak. What had he called the music? Magic adrenaline? Close, but no. This was something worse. Their forces were being made to be truly fearless at the cost of any sense of self-preservation. The Bards knew. They¡¯d known what this would do the entire time, and they were using the music he¡¯d given them. Tak, Tlara, and the archers were all grinning, too wrapped up to understand the horror of this moment. This wasn¡¯t a battle anthem, this was a man with a flute driving rats into the ocean.

    He had to stop this, didn¡¯t he? Sure, the effects of the music were making them fight more effectively but people were dying and no one else seemed to care! No one but the Bards, who watched the madness they wrought with song, smiling and crying and playing on. He had to stop this. Yes, they needed this to counter the terror-inspiring roar of the dragon, but they¡¯d been prepared to play in response to that before, hadn¡¯t they? The Bards needed to stop their song of death, they-

    Across the battlefield, the dragon regarded the insects in front of it as they massed in front of its broken splendor. It¡¯d used its lightning breath so far because it didn¡¯t want to have to chase down every last intruder. It just wanted to kill them. But somehow they¡¯d blunted its most fearsome weapon. Oh well, they were close enough now. These mortals were making that noise again, different perhaps but to the dragon music was all the same white noise. An irritant that needed to be drowned out.

    It took in air, wincing slightly as another volley struck it. They were aiming for its head! As if arrows or the explosions they caused could seriously injure it. Maybe if a few struck its eyes, but they were set into the side of the dragon¡¯s head. As long as it kept an appropriate angle most of the time, they¡¯d be fine. Yes, kill the ones in front of it, then those in the back that had taken part in bringing it down. They would fry, and then, the ones it could sense behind them would witness its majesty before their end. The dragon¡¯s mouth stretched, ignoring the squirming of the thing inside it the motion caused, and bellowed. This time, with magic as well as sound. Fear gripped every mortal present, which then escalated to terror. This lasted for ten seconds. Some of the combatants passed out from being overwhelmed like Daniel had when he¡¯d first seen Kob. People turned to run.

    The Bards on the opposite side of the battlefield were unmoved, protected by their shared abilities and their proximity to them. Three of them had Ironmind Melody which took its effect from the Ironmind feature possessed by Quala that had let her resist the influence of a Tyrant. Stacked three times, it allowed them to resist the dragon¡¯s roar. Then, they replied. Several of their members channeled abilities they could use while actively playing a song, the bond they¡¯d unknowingly formed stacking these powers to contest the dragon¡¯s singular ability. The dragon still killed as the rest recovered, but that was it. Its roar couldn¡¯t be used for some time. Its flight was gone. The lightning breath, sparking tail, and energized claws that cut through almost anything were deadly weapons, but the biggest cards it had were gone or countered.

    In the back of the formation, Hunter felt the maddening song come over him just long enough to drag him from the depths of fear before falling off. He didn¡¯t quite know how to judge the exuberance that overtook him at times from the music. He hadn¡¯t understood what it was back in the storm, but now? It was able to reach him. Another strange change from his most recent Growth. Hunter looked in response to an odd sensation from Daniel and saw his friend standing still, eyes fixed on the dragon with fear. Was the music not working on him? What are you- he began to ask, making the other start. Daniel was breathing rapidly, too fast. He turned, looking like he was about to run when Tlara punched him hard in the face.

    Hunter stared at her, baring his fangs, but she didn¡¯t follow up. ¡°What?¡± she asked him, then narrowed her eyes as if she was confused.

    Tak didn¡¯t give her time to ponder why she¡¯d asked Hunter a question. ¡°Why did you do that?¡±

    ¡°He was going to run, so I had an excuse,¡± she replied, a smile returning to her face. ¡°He could have slipped or something, fuck I don¡¯t know.¡± She didn¡¯t seem to be aggressive and had stopped Daniel from fleeing. With one punch too. Hunter wondered how until he remembered the music. She could probably still hear it, though it was gone from Hunter again lest he be overtaken.

    Daniel, how many losses are we taking? Lograve asked, unaware of what happened. Both mortals and the ringcat looked at the unconscious Artificer and pondered what to say. As Hunter tried nudging Daniel awake with a paw, Tlara replied first.

    ¡°Roar knocked him out. Right?¡± She glared at Tak, daring him to contradict her. The Totem Warrior wasn¡¯t exactly cowed, but he saw the futility of arguing right now. Besides, she was at a higher level than he was, even if in a direct fight he may be able to beat her. That meant she was his better. She was smarter, at least, since what she said was technically right from a certain perspective. Khare, for their part, kept their formed head pointed towards the approaching dragon. What the gestalt thought about Tlara¡¯s punch they didn¡¯t let anyone know.

    Damn, again? That man cannot resist the fear effect. Someone heal him! I need to know when to pull them back.

    ¡°On it!¡± Thomas shouted, not even waiting for approval from Alost. The music had changed his demeanor not one bit. The Cleric mantled the ice wall and frowned as he saw the damage to Daniel¡¯s face. ¡°How¡¯d this happen?¡±

    ¡°Hit it when he fell,¡± Tlara said dismissively.

    ¡°Right. Hang on, I gotcha Guy.¡±

    Tlara pointedly looked away and to her remaining beast. It wasn¡¯t time for Spinner to go to work yet since the dragon seemed content to use its jaws and claws rather than its lightning. In exchange, it was taking glancing blows and a rain of arrows that pricked all across its front. She did not envy that melee, even though the music filling the air was mildly prodding her to let caution fly to the wind. Hmm, fly. She was going to kill Gadriel, assuming the dragon didn¡¯t beat her to it.

 Chapter 74: Falling Back

    Murdon surveilled the battle from above as he slowly descended. The roar had reached him too, although his distance both to the dragon and the Bards had evened out. Beyond that, he possessed a will that went beyond his wisdom or any power. Unphased, he continued to maneuver back to the fight. What he saw was terrible. Those unable to contribute to the volleys had rushed the dragon when the Bards started playing and were dying in clawfuls. He had a choice, go to where the beast was and take its head, or return to his friend. Of the two, he only had one option. Not the one that would demand sacrifice, as here it was needless. Despite the deaths the situation was under some amount of control.

    The Beastmasters¡¯ fleeing monsters were a problem, yet something they expected. Bardic music couldn¡¯t affect them while the roar could. Tlara¡¯s remaining monster had resisted, probably due to it being the furthest away and encapsulated in ice. The others had been part of the initial charge, every dominated or tamed creature they had at their disposal. Even domination didn¡¯t confer immunity to other effects. It was up to the mortals now.

    He landed with a small spray of ice as his armor scraped against the surface. Lograve glanced at him out of the corner of his eye and thought with mock annoyance, Oh good, you¡¯re finally here. Would you mind taking over? I¡¯m a little busy trying to stop the dragon from ripping everyone apart.

    Murdon took a moment to breathe in the music, marveling at how the weight of his armor fell off and his hearts raced without making him feel lightheaded. He had no idea what kind of song this was, the style was completely foreign, but it was both driving and fast as the avianoid Bard responsible for lyrics practically shouted them. ¡°How many have we lost?¡±

    Ask Daniel when he¡¯s done with his nap. Lograve inclined his head and Murdon walked over to the human he thought was just taking cover.

    ¡°Commander! Daniel, uh, did not resist the roar,¡± Tak reported as Thomas continued his attempts at healing.

    ¡°Hrmm. William! Mana potion!¡± He held out a hand, and a few moments later a bottle appeared there. While the Ranger normally threw knives that way, potions could be handily distributed with the ability. Another reason he had the bulk of their stock.

    ¡°Focus fire! The head. Damnation, I¡¯m running out of mana,¡± Alost complained. ¡°How many do we have?¡±

    ¡°Two¡¯s all that¡¯s left, Commander. Had to use one for the Hero. Just gave you the strongest.¡±

    Will someone else need one? One of the healers? Murdon pondered the question as he quickly drank the foul liquid. Potions could be made to be palatable but this was harder and, therefore, more expensive. They¡¯d only had the supplies of the outlying villages to work with. Feeling ephemeral strength returning to him, Murdon replied, ¡°Only if you run out Alost, and then only if we are still volleying.¡±

    ¡°Focus fire! It¡¯s fine then. We¡¯ll shoot all of our arrows before I run out of mana. I told you we should have, er, the head,¡± the human said distractedly, as he had to each time before his ability worked. ¡°Focus fire, the head, made twice as many!¡±

    ¡°How many are in the target now?¡±

    ¡°Maybe one hundred?¡±

    Murdon¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Hold fire. PULL BACK!¡± Murdon fully opened his lungs to cut through both the air and the music. ¡°TAKE DEFENSIVE POSITIONS AT THE MIDLINE!¡±

    Influenced by the Bards as they were, those directly engaged with the dragon weren¡¯t mindless. The music just allowed them greater bravery. They began to pull away, a few wounded in tow whom Lograve had saved from a worse fate through the intercession of ice. At the same time, Murdon spoke quietly to Tlara. ¡°Begin charging the towers closest to the dragon. We can¡¯t rule out that it¡¯s put together how we detonate our ammunition, but it shouldn¡¯t expect this.¡±

    She gave him a hard look for a moment and signed something behind. ¡°If I lose this one too-¡±

    ¡°Then I will repay you with your life. I have not forgotten what you did here last time.¡± Tlara didn¡¯t have a response for that. Instead, her creature began its work.

    The final piece of their strategy with the towers was the silk shocker. It could control its web so long as it had contact with them, which was the reason Lograve had exposed a section for it to sit in before enclosing it in its own ice dome. With it, the mortals could selectively build electrical energy in some of the towers to prime them for what was about to happen. The downside was that if the webs became overloaded, a section would have to be sacrificed or the current would kill Spinner.

    Energy trickled from the lightning spines embedded in the silk shocker, through the webs nestled in the ice, to those metallic rods nearest the dragon. As the mortals retreated, a spark flew from them to an arrow lodged in the dragon. A pattern of purple light filled the air as it was redistributed across every piece of ammunition within the dragon, but this quickly faded as the energy dissipated where flesh intercepted the beams.

    Seeing this, Murdon called out, ¡°There¡¯s too many there. We¡¯ll have to detonate now before it closes on our forces. LIGHTNING INTO THE RODS, NOW! Tlara, be ready.¡±

    Murdon, I don¡¯t think my ice is going to survive that. They looked at each other with sudden realization. The plan they had all agonized over for days had many flaws and calculated risks, but this was something they hadn¡¯t anticipated. The dragon couldn¡¯t fall into the lake or it would stun itself and sink to the depths. That was fine, except it would survive being submerged and would be unpredictable in its awakening while fatally electrifying its surroundings to everyone else. The dragon regaining consciousness while innocents took the long way around was an unacceptable risk.

    It had been going well, despite their losses, but now it had all been unraveled because Alost was too good at his job. ¡°Damn! Can¡¯t you strengthen it?¡±

    Not at the edges, even if it¡¯s over part of the bridge. The same calculations were running in both of them at the same time. Tactical Intuition. The dragon could kill them all now by using its lightning breath, even though it would severely wound itself. Simply by threatening their crossing, forcing them to pull back for the sake of the villagers, it would win. They couldn¡¯t attempt this again, not with what they¡¯d lost.

    But, by some miracle or preservative instinct, the dragon did not do this. That still left the task of baiting it towards the center of the ice field. They¡¯d been fortunate that it had crashed on the ice at all, and then opposite of Lograve¡¯s position. Otherwise, the back teams would have to move to a new position which would delay their next move.

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    That plan was gone. Instead of staggering their defense, they¡¯d need to yield the central ground entirely. Would the explosions even stun the dragon, or would it continue its charge into their backlines? He¡¯d counted on bleeding the beast at every step. Then again, he¡¯d counted on many things. If something had to go wrong, at least this gave them a chance.

    Murdon reassessed the battlefield, ignoring the intoxicating effects of the combined Bardic powers. It was simple enough to do as the enhancing versions required a willing target, and he needed a clear head. ¡°Tlara, keep the current away from the dragon. Focus it in the rear rods for now and prepare for a larger burst later on.¡± Lightning arced harmlessly towards him as she complied with what might be mistaken for concern, having been party to the previous conversation. ¡°ALL FORCES, RETREAT! FALL BACK TO THIS POSITION!¡±

    There was a ripple across the surviving mortals who had withdrawn from their assault. Each knew the broad strokes of their plan. Giving this much ground was a bad sign. Only a few weren¡¯t quick enough to realize the consequences of grouping their forces in one general location. Still, Murdon was the Commander. Even with this region in ruin, that was important.

    At the far side of the battle, the dragon slowly moved its head from side to side. The archers had stopped pelting it, and the rest were running? It did not quite grasp why but also did not unleash its breath against the fleeing mortals. At this distance, it was likely to do little harm in exchange for severe reprisal from the ammunition lodged in it. However, if ground was being ceded to it, then there was only one thing it could do next.

    Murdon knew the situation was falling further out of control when the dragon didn¡¯t take the bait. Instead, it quickly and carefully edged around the outskirts of the ice in an attempt to reach the shore. He could let it and defuse their current problem, but then it could get behind them. ¡°Lograve cut the ice out from in front of it and drive it to the center!¡±

    I, I can¡¯t! Expanding my feature over this much distance means I can only effect changes slowly! If we let it circle around, then at least-

    ¡°It will go for the villagers and we lose the rods following it.¡± Murdon¡¯s eyes were fixed on the dragon, no doubt in his mind that it was committed to taking as much life as it could out of pure spite. ¡°I¡¯m going.¡±

    No, you¡¯re- Murdon ignored him and pushed against the flow of people heading for Lograve¡¯s battlement which was slowly forming a second ring around itself. He bellowed orders as he did, confident his foe wouldn¡¯t comprehend them.

    ¡°CONTINUE CHARGING THE RODS! TLARA, DETONATE WHEN LOGRAVE INSTRUCTS YOU TO.¡± Murdon then came to a stop in almost the center of the ice field. The dragon beheld him as it continued to move, rearing its head back slightly when he didn¡¯t complete the charge it was expecting. Instead, the Knight swung his ax down into the ice and used an ability. ¡°FACE ME COWARD!¡±

    Taunt. It was an odd ability that could work even if it didn¡¯t. The basic principle was that it drew aggression from other creatures. When it came to monsters, the use of manipulation powers could drive them into a frenzy even if they failed. Perhaps it was a communal fear of the Beastmasters, or something else entirely.

    Either way, the result was the dragon¡¯s nostrils flaring and horn charging. Oh, Murdon thought, as the dragon charged its lightning breath. He moved quickly, hoping to position himself such that the lightning wouldn¡¯t intercept any of the rods. The system might not be able to handle that much direct charge. That wouldn¡¯t change the fact that the blast was aimed at him. It streaked forward, true lightning as fast as the natural phenomenon. Murdon saw it coming and dodged. His heightened Agility, in combination with several movement-enhancing powers others had granted him, was just enough to avoid most of the blast. The glancing shock that did hit neither hurt him nor poured a significant charge into the lightning rods.

    What he hadn¡¯t counted on was the lightning bypassing the ammunition in the dragon and curving. His armor absorbed some of the energy and attempted to pull in the entire blast. Instead of this, it simply flowed around him like a river and struck one of the lightning rods behind him and to the side. He heard distant, unintelligible shouting. Tlara. What was she doing? The air burned as the lightning link system tried to balance the energy, but there was too much. Something would explode. He saw the towers closest to the dragon remain dead, Tlara preventing the energy from returning there to spare the ammunition that would destroy the ice. Similarly, the ones at the back of their line were cut off as that much energy could detonate the ammunition the archers carried.

    If she wasn¡¯t going for either side, then what? The towers themselves each contained the same amount of heliorite, another job done too well by Daniel. They couldn¡¯t lose all of them, and to her credit, Tlara was doing her best to limit who was affected. Murdon saw the flashes of energy shift over the course of heartbeats, around him, and toward the second line of defenders. Tlara had directed the lightning as well as she could, but she¡¯d had to have made a choice between several of the rods people were near. A cry of fear went out as lightning jumped to one of the groups closest to the dragon. A tremendous sound, the ice shaking with it, and then red mist.

    It was the right call. Murdon knew that. If he¡¯d been in Tlara¡¯s position he¡¯d have done the same, right? As it was, he was the only draconic creature here that cared about the moral quandary. Seeing its lightning had not managed to kill its target, the dragon roared once more and charged Murdon. He was alone. In the sky, the small creature had been able to dance around it, but now they were both flightless. It had almost gotten him once, and it would finish the job now.

    Gods, Murdon step back! Lograve¡¯s thoughts shouted over the battlefield. Murdon adjusted and prepared to Jump as soon as it was time. Perhaps he shouldn¡¯t have been surprised when the dragon reached him before an explosion.

    He¡¯d baited the dragon back into position, and yet the ammunition within it still needed to be set off before the rest of the mortals could approach. ¡°HOW MUCH TIME?¡± Murdon shouted as he weaved around the dragon¡¯s claws. They were big, electrified, and sharp. His armor could withstand one or two hits but that was it. So, he focused on dodging to buy more time.

    Tlara says it¡¯s like trying to start a fire with rocks! Lograve shouted back. Get it to hit a rod or something! But the dragon was holding its lightning breath back. Murdon was too close, and it had used its breath more than a dozen times by now. Enough that it might be starting to reserve its mana. A claw passed within centimeters of Murdon. He was breathing harder now from the effort of constantly avoiding swipes, bites, and the occasional lash of a tail. Despite its size and injuries, the dragon could move unhindered due to its impressive dexterity. He couldn¡¯t keep pace for much longer, so Murdon decided he wasn¡¯t going to.

    The move was similar to the time he¡¯d defused a blast of lightning breath. When the next swipe came he sidestepped it as before, then grabbed onto one of the claws. The current running through these was not as potent as the horn that powered the lightning breath but still might have killed Murdon outright if he wasn¡¯t armored. Golden armor blackened from the second direct contact it was forced to endure. The air around him burned. In his peripheral vision, Murdon could see Tlara was keeping the energy focused in the surrounding area. Good, that was good.

    What threatened Murdon the most was being unable to know when the ammunition would explode. Ideally, he¡¯d let go of the claw now that the dragon was trying to shake him off. The rapid shaking was making him slightly nauseous. With everything else going on, that seemed a little ridiculous. The light cast off the lightning link grew brighter and brighter. Murdon would have closed his eyes but had to keep watching for the moment when- there! His opponent, seeing that Murdon would not be displaced so easily, reared back on its hind legs and prepared to skewer him with its other foreclaws. He¡¯d have to depart now and hope the other could-

    An explosion rocked the ice shelf as the lightning building in the circuit finally reached the critical point. Not every piece of ammunition within the dragon detonated as some were bolts, larger than the metallic arrowheads which went critical. Either way, Murdon and the dragon were separated by the force. The monster stumbled backward towards the rest of the mortals, whereas Murdon flew, struck one of the lightning poles, forcing it out of the ice, and then came to rest near the far edge of the ice shelf.

    Everyone watched Murdon with held breath until it was clear he wasn¡¯t getting up.

 Chapter 75: Thunder Punch

    ¡°Murdon!¡± Lograve¡¯s shout echoed the immediate loss in morale that afflicted their side. Is Daniel awake?

    ¡°Guy¡¯s coming to, but slowly.¡± Thomas pinched the Artificer¡¯s cheeks to little effect. Even with a Cleric¡¯s healing and Regeneration in the background, unconsciousness took some time to recover from. ¡°Come on, get up!¡±

    You. Is Murdon still alive? Lograve directed the question as a thought, making an effort to single out the ringcat from the others in the network he was hosting. By default, Lograve¡¯s upgraded Telepathy would send every message to all within his Telepathic Network.

    Hunter waited for just a moment before replying. Yes. The dragon will try to finish him first.

    How do you know?

    I just do.

    It¡¯s weakened! Resume fire and charge! Lograve desperately ordered. But while Alost¡¯s archers readied another volley there was hesitation in the front lines. Even a song change from the Bards didn¡¯t spur any motion. Both Murdon¡¯s incapacitation and the violent deaths of the team next to the sacrificial rod had decimated their spirits. Some even eyed Tlara with more hostility than the dragon, knowing what she¡¯d done. There was mindless savagery and then there was betrayal.

    Daniel finally awoke amidst the desperate shouting. Lograve was pleading with the unruly forces to act, while Tlara had retreated to the ice dome containing her silk shocker. ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Sorry, gotta go.¡± Thomas vaulted the ice wall again, picking up his bow and noting with distaste the eight arrows left in his quiver. He didn¡¯t get a chance to draw one though as another quiver was thrown towards him.

    ¡°Regular arrows! The eyes, Focus Fire!¡±

    ¡°Hear just as good,¡± Daniel muttered, coming to his senses. Had Tlara punched him, or was that just his imagination? Exposure to the full force of the dragon¡¯s terror effect had completely frozen him in both body and mind until he¡¯d lost his senses completely. How long had he been out?

    Something grabbed him, drawing him upright. They weren¡¯t hands, and it wasn¡¯t biting him, so it could only be one thing. ¡°Khare?¡±

    ¡°Stand.¡± Daniel found that he could, though unsteadily. Regaining a better sense of himself, he found several parts of his body were extremely cold to the point of being numb. His eyes were drawn across the battlefield by a snarl. The archers¡¯ most recent volley wasn¡¯t able to hit either eye due to the angle of the dragon¡¯s head but had still caught part of its face which had already been injured by the earlier detonations. Murdon was lying on the ground on the opposite side. No one was doing anything. Why?

    ¡°Are we losing?¡±

    ¡°Hmm. It is not good. No one wants to fight. No one but him.¡± Tak pointed up and to the left, fingering quickly tracing a downwards slash towards the dragon. Only one person would come to Murdon¡¯s defense when everyone else was on the brink of breaking. A Hero.

    Gadriel barely used his wings as he descended. Even without Falling Star to ensure a safe landing, he knew there wasn¡¯t a second to waste. He¡¯d sprung from the upper ridge just after the most recent explosion. The aftermath was plainly visible. Murdon would die if no one stopped the dragon, and if he died, they all would. It wasn¡¯t that their strategies relied on him any longer, but it would be the deathblow of their fighting spirit.

    In the last moments before landing, Gadriel twisted in the air and brought up his shield. The claws meant for Murdon caught on the metal and tore through it easily. The Hero was another matter as he continued spinning in the air to blunt their effect. His arm and side were gashed either way, but Gadriel landed on his feet instead of into his grave.

    ¡°Are you cowards all?¡± he challenged, now dodging and using his blade to parry when able. This was just like the duel with Heldren, Gadriel possessing only the bare minimum with which to fight against an overwhelming foe. Conditions Gadriel had trained in so frequently that he lost none of his confidence now.

    He ducked below another attempt to bite him and used his sword to deflect a claw. The angle had to be glancing, or they¡¯d cut right through the metal, enchanted or not. ¡°What is it you are here for? To cower?¡± A sword throw, not at anything vital but one of the areas of exposed flesh, while he flipped backward to evade. Balance made it easy to maneuver as such, even on ice. Circle to the side, another sword throw, slide under a swipe. The dragon had taken interest in him, abandoning Murdon. Good. ¡°We are the champions of the Octyrrum! The Blessed!¡± Backflip, sword throw, sliding dash with a sudden correction using one of the towers. ¡°It is our duty to fight!¡± Straight jump, flaring his wings, catch the sword and throw again. ¡°So fight! Here, or against those we left behind. Death by our hands would be the more merciful.¡±

    Maybe it was Mantle of Inspiration feeding into Gadriel¡¯s words or the reminder that they were here for more than themselves. Perhaps the small shards of ice prodding into each hesitant warriors¡¯ feet had an impact as well. Lograve had turned from verbal spurring to physical in his desperate attempt to save his friend.

    It was after a minute of Gadriel surviving against the dragon that a second charge was made. A few at first, those exceptionally brave or of the Berserker class. The rest followed more hesitantly until a ringcat in golden armor ran past them. That hurt a basic sense of pride most inhabitants of this world were instilled with from birth, the belief of mortal superiority. Cowering before a dragon was one thing, but refusing a fight that an insignificant ringcat would take?

    The mortals had been reminded of the stakes of this battle and rallied to the fight. Only the Bards and those with ranged weapons stayed behind. Daniel clutched his crossbow and watched Hunter galloping off with Tak in close pursuit. His first instinct had been to call him back, but that wasn¡¯t right. They needed everyone now and Hunter knew the risks. He was his own person.

    As Gadriel continued his insane acrobatics, continually waltzing with death, Tak caught up with Hunter and the two looked at each other. The only thing Daniel could think of at that moment was that it should be him there. It could¡¯ve been, he wasn¡¯t completely useless up close, but it was the actual Totem Warrior who was better suited for it. He didn¡¯t know it, but he also couldn¡¯t do what Tak and Hunter could together.

    Something happened when the two got within a few meters of the dragon. At precisely the same time, the ringcat and avianoid split off from each other at a half turn from their initial direction. It looked at first like they were intending to surround the dragon and meet on the other side until they performed a synchronized jump.

    The second wave of attackers facing the dragon numbered roughly thirty, and it didn¡¯t seem to take particular notice of the two creatures leaping toward it. That turned out to be a mistake as Hunter and Tak landed on its back, one slightly after the other, and simultaneously tore through the scales. From his perspective, Daniel could only see the sections of flesh that came away in both sets of claws.

    Hunter, what was that?

    I don¡¯t know. It felt like my other kind of attack, but it needed him. The dragon¡¯s tail came down on its own back in an attempt to crush them, but both were agile enough to dodge the attack which was aimed only through guesswork. No talking. Need to focus.

    ¡°They got a combo attack?¡± Daniel asked aloud, blankly. He didn¡¯t even know those existed. He¡¯d made a joke way back with Gadriel but that had just been good timing. A combo attack? Really? Why didn¡¯t he get one?

    ¡°Bond?¡± Khare asked while firing their two drawn bows. Disincorporated as they were, the voice came from roughly the center of the vines instead of a head.

    ¡°Yeah, they have one now. Stupid combo attack.¡±

    ¡°Grafted,¡± Khare replied pointedly while Daniel took his own shot.

    ¡°Maybe. I don¡¯t know. Everything with Hunter right now is just- get down!¡± In the face of the renewed assaults, the dragon committed to another lightning breath. Instead of targeting those around it, its head turned towards those who had remained around Lograve. Alost had given a similar order with the Bards following close behind through simple observation. While there was no time to create a new barrier, the two already in place blunted the lightning strike enough for those in the back to not be touched. Daniel looked at his lightning armor with some amount of guilt. He hadn¡¯t needed it yet. How many could have been shielded if he¡¯d just made bracers?

    The sound of bodies impacting the ground made his heart stop. The towers had deflected the strike, hadn¡¯t they? Sure, something had to explode each time the dragon used its breath, there was just no way they could contain that much energy in the lightning link network. But what about his safeguard? He poked his head up above the wall and saw the breaks in Lograve¡¯s concentric walls. Three meters wide at the farthest ring, but only a half of one in the part of the wall closest to him. The towers had done their work, but the people? Several of the archers were lying on the ground, cowering even after the blast was over. Thomas wasn¡¯t one of them, nor was Alost. Confused, Daniel looked further and saw they¡¯d thrown their quivers away. Sure the arrows could explode, but only if they were the smallest individual components affected by the link.

    ¡°Up! Now!¡± Alost yelled at the archers still on the floor. ¡°What are you doing? We went over this. Normal arrows, resume fire on the eyes and Focus Fire!¡± He saw Daniel look and gestured to a smoking section of ice away from where the line had scorched them. ¡°Any more of those?¡±

    He meant the ball bearings. Technically, they were spineshard enchanted slingshot, but no one here could use them. Their entire purpose was to take the explosion for the archers, but Daniel had only made one bag. Using more would¡¯ve been too complicated and put too many people at risk carrying them. Daniel shook his head mutely.

    Alost watched the next volley, and then ordered, ¡°Yellow quivers out! They will kill you now if we¡¯re hit- now, toss them now!¡±

    The dragon was charging another lightning breath, aiming in roughly the same area. The first strike had hit slightly off center of their formation, meaning Lograve¡¯s ice bubble had been only grazed. By the look of the angle, the Arcanist was now dead-center of the corrected blast. It had realized it was being worn down, feeling real pain and the balance of the odds shifting. Murdon¡¯s theory that the dragon would expend only a portion of its mana before retreating was contingent on it being able to do so. Its new plan was clear. Eradicate the backline, then focus on those who were left.

    The archer¡¯s quivers now represented the weakest link. The bolts would be next, and then they¡¯d start really losing people.

    Is that the arrows gone? Lograve asked, not looking away from the dragon.

    ¡°Just the yellow quivers. We still have the normal ones, and purple ones as a last resort.¡±

    Alright. Get rid of your bolts. The next smallest items are the bracers.

    ¡°Another blast!¡± an archer interrupted.

    ¡°What is it doing? It¡¯s burning away mana-¡±

    The dragon¡¯s figured out how our system works. Lograve thought quickly. Brace for this attack and then get ready to- There wasn¡¯t time. The dragon hadn¡¯t even moved between bursts of lightning breath.

    Damn it, I should have varied the sizes, Daniel cursed, sensing the nearby explosion as the lightning washed over them. But all the ammunition had to be the same size, didn¡¯t it? Otherwise, they¡¯d just go off individually in the dragon. That didn¡¯t change that there was only one step left before the next smallest link would be the armor spread out among them, then the rods themselves, and then¡­ Me.

    Lightning was charging again, far too quickly. What was happening? Lograve had the answer. It¡¯s bursting its lightning breath. Mature ones can do this, separating the singular breath into bursts. Tlara! Let the bolts explode and then start isolating the outer lightning rods if possible. Can you do that?

    ¡°Fuck. I guess? What should I do when we run out of those?¡± Lograve answered with silent uncertainty. ¡°Fuck. Alright, got it.¡±

    Spread out! Lograve continued to order, lacking the precision or careful planning Murdon might have had at this moment. Just like the first moments of Roost¡¯s Peak. Lograve was many things, but he wasn¡¯t a leader. Bards, split up. Do what you can, evasion enhancements if possible. Everyone, get rid of your lightning armor unless you¡¯re absolutely sure it¡¯s- Another lightning blast struck, this time dead center on Lograve¡¯s sphere. The ice cracked but did not penetrate thanks to the reduced force of the partial burst. Daniel had realized it soon after Lograve had. The dragon was taking in a large amount of air but expelling it segmentally. Just enough current at a time to overload their link and cause something to explode. Was it really not sapient? And someone get Murdon a damned healing potion!

    ¡­

    The mortal¡¯s backline was forced to break up as the dragon hammered their defenses, eventually threatening to overwhelm them if they relied on the static tower network. The original strategy of containing the lightning on the opposite side and using it to detonate ammunition that struck the dragon was now useless.

    For one, there were too many around the dragon to risk. One plan had been to issue rapid retreat orders whenever it was time to detonate, but without Murdon that much coordination was impossible. Additionally, the only way to safely dispose of the lightning now was to sacrifice lightning rods or any spare armor lying on the ground. Any rod struck was part of the circuit, and the best Tlara could do was sever it from the system to preserve the others.

    You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

    It was the final act, one they¡¯d hoped not to reach. The Bards were split, the dragon seemed indomitable despite its injuries, and they were still dying. Even amidst its barrage, the dragon had taken six more lives. Now, Daniel found himself scattering with a handful of others. Thomas, Khare, Evalyn, and William for some reason.

    ¡°Hey, need a little help if y¡¯all can spare a moment. Things¡¯re gettin¡¯ a little feisty.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think we have another plan at the moment. Do we Daniel?¡±

    He shook his head at Evalyn. ¡°I don¡¯t know how we can kill that thing. Some of its face is missing and it looks like it doesn¡¯t care.¡±

    ¡°Thing like that you have to hit the brain or the heart, assumin¡¯ it has either or just one. If I recall right dragons have two hearts, so the brain¡¯s the best bet. Wouldn¡¯t you know it but that¡¯s where the bone¡¯s strongest.¡±

    ¡°You want us to help you break that?¡± Daniel asked incredulously. Even if he fired a lightning bolt straight into that bone, Scatter Shot and all, he doubted it¡¯d make a difference.

    ¡°Heh. Only thing I think of that¡¯d do that is your armor going up, and you¡¯d have to be in its gullet for it to work.¡± The attention of the dragon being elsewhere allowed Daniel time to respond with a horrified look. ¡°Probably best we go with plan B for now.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re going to heal Murdon,¡± Thomas said, first to catch on.

    William held up a bottle, smiled, then quickly replaced it and dove aside as the dragon took notice of them. It was bursting lightning across the battlefield, taking quick aim at groups rushing to harass it. Channeled this way, three snaps of electricity took the place of one stream. If used against an enemy of its level the loss of destructive potential would be noticeable.

    Against Daniel and his friends, there wouldn¡¯t be much of a difference. With the short warning William gave them, Evalyn was able to get behind a nearby rod, and Thomas was absorbed into Khare as the gestalt charged through him. Daniel spent a second to realize he couldn¡¯t see the Cleric¡¯s aura anymore, then engaged his defensive ability. Dodge Roll, the one he¡¯d received while getting his Dexterity to level two.

    It was similar to Jump in that he could vary the distance and speed of movement to a degree. It even granted a small, universal damage resistance. Not that that would help here. It was the distance from the dragon and the short burst that saved each of them in the end. Lightning briefly arced to Daniel¡¯s armor from the rod which had been struck, before Evalyn ran from that and it exploded.

    ¡°Best make this quick. Rod to rod so we can do that again. Any objections?¡±

    ¡°You ate me!¡± Thomas answered with a challenge to Khare. ¡°What even was that?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not how Kob used to move Sigron around. I couldn¡¯t sense you. I think he put you in the same spot they keep their weapons.¡±

    William looked sideways at Khare. ¡°Smuggler¡¯s Cache or somethin¡¯ like it. Useful. Strange in a Martialist.¡±

    Khare just kept moving, silent amongst the group¡¯s attempts to distract themselves from the current threat. They were halfway around the dragon now as other groups from the backline harassed from afar. Lograve himself was no longer in his ice shell which had cracked like an egg from a second lightning burst. Instead of frying, he had slipped out of a small circle he¡¯d cut from under him. Moving had cost the Arcanist his concentration, and the edges of the ice field were beginning to melt.

    That imposed another timer on Murdon¡¯s life. The only thing keeping him alive right now, his armor, would cause him to drown should the ice under him break. Even if someone could remove it from a distance, the dragon would just shock him to death. By that same token, William¡¯s particular method of potion administration wouldn¡¯t be effective either. They¡¯d have to get up close, and while the dragon wasn¡¯t right on top of him, it was where the fighting was. ¡°Ok, but what¡¯s our plan after we bring the Commander back up?¡± Thomas asked. ¡°Because we¡¯re going to be right up next to that bastard.¡±

    ¡°Gotta second potion in mind. I think Murdon¡¯ll understand.¡±

    ¡°Which one?¡±

    ¡°Mana. Just get me there.¡±

    ¡°You could dodge those blasts yourself, what do you need us for?¡± Daniel asked.

    ¡°I don¡¯t need you. Just her. All y¡¯all came on for the ride.¡±

    Evalyn¡¯s song briefly paused as she started. ¡°Lightfoot Song. You knew I was playing it?¡±

    ¡°I knew you were playin¡¯ somethin¡¯ that was stopping them from slippin¡¯ on the ice. Good enough for me.¡±

    Daniel looked down. That was right, he was running on ice like it was solid ground. But Balance was taking care of that, right? Even so, the fact that the others were able to keep up should have tipped him off. Man, it¡¯s really hard to think when a dragon is- shit! ¡°Lightning!¡±

    Only the other mortals splitting the dragon¡¯s attention let William reach his intended target relatively unharmed. Gadriel was still impossibly performing in front of it, though he had to rotate out every so often when the claws started to cut too close to catch his breath. ¡°Alright, just a moment.¡± William extended a hand and focused. Fog appeared around and ahead of them. The dragon had been tracking them with a sideways glance, guessing their direction if not their intent. It had guessed they¡¯d stop, but not that they¡¯d suddenly have concealment. Its hearing could still have picked them out, but there was another card to play.

    ¡°Sorry, Evalyn.¡± Daniel hit play and the monotonous horns he¡¯d summoned once for Tlara blared out, providing an audible cover as well. The rest of the team followed the plan they¡¯d hastily made when Thomas had asked how they were supposed to dodge lightning and feed Murdon a potion.

    Khare, Thomas, and Daniel heaved Murdon away from the spot where he¡¯d landed while Evalyn tried to open the helmet and William readied the potion. As the place they¡¯d just vacated was electrified by a lightning blast, William respectfully grabbed the Bard¡¯s hands, gave her the potion, and undid the split visor. She poured it down, mostly making it into the mouth which was more suitably shaped for this than hers. She scampered away and, moments later, another shot of lightning hit Murdon dead on.

    It was the clearing of the mist from the first strike, as well as the faint shimmering from that electrical energy that was imparted onto the draconoid¡¯s armor, which had given the dragon enough to target Murdon. The others had just managed to avoid being struck. Moments later, Murdon stood. Daniel couldn¡¯t help but be reminded of a defibrillator at that moment, even though the lightning had nothing to do with his revival.

    ¡°With us Commander. We gotta plan.¡± William smashed a different potion across the draconoid¡¯s back and explained his idea. It wasn¡¯t complicated, not like all the discussion that had gone into the lightning rod towers which were being systematically destroyed. It was straightforward and honestly unoriginal. They¡¯d already done what Murdon was going to try to do, just in a different way.

    ¡°I have this. The rest of you get clear.¡±

    ¡°I can fight up close.¡± Two almost machete-like knives replaced the bow in William¡¯s hands.

    ¡°The rest of you?¡± No one else in the group took Murdon up on that offer as the still enraged dragon behind the Knight charged another three-shot burst. It- no. It was going for a full breath attack now. ¡°Run! We¡¯re doing this now!¡±

    Murdon took off, able to maneuver on the ice not through song but from the weight of his armor punching through and giving him traction. William ran at an angle from him while the rest of the group that revived him retreated. He was about to be hit by the dragon before he could get close enough to strike himself. There had to be enough rods left to carry the charge. If they all went before he could strike the finishing blow, it was over.

    He stepped over a broken staff, torn in two. Just like he¡¯d broken it once before, only he¡¯d stopped at the Focus. It shouldn¡¯t have been a surprise, at least half of the people who¡¯d closed with the dragon had died in one way or another. But Rodrick-

    Lightning coursed over him. It was nothing to run against as his armor protected him and cut against the flow. He tightened the grip on his ax and waited. The world turned relatively dark when the prolonged surge of energy ceased. Murdon found himself in the thick of battle, though alone in an area cleared by lightning.

    Murdon looked again to make sure no one was too close to his target. There were only a few on the dragon itself, including the ringcat, but none near the head. Too dangerous. Then the ice shook. The rods. The rods! They all hadn¡¯t gone but the ones closest had. The armor he wore proved the fatal conduit. Up until now, Tlara had been able to keep the three or four surrounding the area the dragon was in cut off.

    Their inevitable explosion cost another two lives. How many were left? How many more would there have been if he¡¯d done this right from the start? It was ending now, no matter the cost. ¡°GET CLEAR!¡± Murdon yelled, activating his wings and hunching down. This angle would be very important. A draconic roar met his as a claw tried to come down. His wings activated first, carrying him up at tremendous speed. The head twisted, realizing the threat and trying to bare its fangs to catch him. Too slow. When Daniel had first used these he¡¯d reached his maximum height in seconds. Murdon was going a considerably shorter distance.

    He struck an exposed area of the head with the full momentum of the enchanted item. The beam of light continued to propel his ax deeper and deeper until it hit bone. No further. The initial plan had counted on them exposing such a section and focusing attacks on it. Purple ammunition if possible, the explosions would have done good work. All a waste now, only a few had been used for just surface damage. And they had no time left to waste.

    Murdon¡¯s ax bounced off the bone. He brought it down again, then again. The second time it struck the bone it stuck. He brought it out one last time, considered his options, and maneuvered differently for the third strike. Both he and the dragon writhed in pain from that blow. There¡¯d be more pain before it was over.

    Murdon pulled himself unsteadily from where his ax was lodged and moved up to the crest of the dragon¡¯s head. Past the strange swelling that not even scouring of the surface flesh had relieved and to the horn. There was enough current running through it to make this work.

    ¡°If, IF IT SURVIVES,¡± Murdon cried out. ¡°TARGET WHERE I HIT IT. FORGET ME!¡±

    ¡°Murdon!¡± Lograve¡¯s shout came to him from where the Arcanist was reforming his ice sphere. The rods are gone! Nothing else is in range!

    Did you think I¡¯d forgotten?

    I will not accept victory at the cost of your life! Gods dammit Murdon don¡¯t do it. Don¡¯t-

    It¡¯s fine. I gave the dragon a hand.

    You what? Murdon just smiled as he grasped the dragon¡¯s horn.

    Lightning streamed across the draconoid¡¯s armor as much as it went into him. Direct contact with the horn was burning him alive just as it had before. That time, the overcharged energy was bled off by the ammunition in the dragon. None of that was left, but Murdon had asked himself a question throughout the battle. Did one item always count as one item when it came to lightning link?

    His arm had been harder to cut through than the vambrace around it. After all, the armor was an extension of himself. If he wanted it to break, it could. There were other parts he could have broken off, but only one could hold his ax backwards and the gauntlets would not come off the normal way fast enough. His severed hand still gripped the shaft tightly in a death grip.

    The conduit between Murdon and his hand burned with electrical energy, trying to equalize it like a cup catching water from a fire hose. When the bottom broke, he let go. ¡°This, this is how I say goodbye.¡± The crude shaped charge he¡¯d created released most of its energy out of the wound as nothing was compressing it. The trick was, when the weakest link went it went with all the energy in the network. Direct contact with the source of the dragon¡¯s lightning meant there was plenty to spare forward as Murdon¡¯s severed hand propelled the head of the ax through the bone and then deeper.

    The dragon¡¯s head shot to the side like it had been punched by something twice its size. Its neck didn¡¯t break but the damage had been done. It reeled and fell, limbs jerking as electrical energy coursed through its body. Something twitched and woke up. The mortals didn¡¯t know. They¡¯d seen enough to be suspicious under normal circumstances but had let the battle distract them. They continued as they drove weapon, spell, and a few of the purple exploding arrows into the hole opened up by Murdon.

    Even with its impressive attributes, the monster was still chained by its biology. It had nothing atypical which would allow survival of such injuries. Something that might be considered a fatal flaw for a monster of its level, for all its advantages. The surviving mortals gradually burned the remaining life from it, and it was done.

    ¡­

    A collective moment passed as everyone processed victory differently. Only Daniel¡¯s group had been completely unscathed. Several of the Bards and archers had been hit by lightning blasts while they were making their way to Murdon. On the other hand, Tak and Hunter had been relatively safe on the back of the dragon considering its wings were crippled and its tail too slow to pin them down. They all gravitated near Tlara. It wasn¡¯t for her personality, but her distance from the dragon and proximity to Lograve.

    The Beastmaster took a moment to make sure the dragon was dead before she shook her head.¡°That was sloppy. I mean, damn, how many people died?¡±

    ¡°63.¡± Daniel couldn¡¯t hide from the number. It was just subtraction, taking the number of auras remaining and comparing it to how many they¡¯d started with.

    ¡°Fuck. Worth it though. Hey, mage, get my beast out of this thing. I¡¯m going to go kill Gadriel.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re welcome to try,¡± Lograve said through gritted teeth. ¡°Although I¡¯m afraid I might get in your way.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    ¡°His hand. He cut off his hand!¡± Lograve made a fist and ice formed around it. ¡°I¡¯m going to beat so much sense into Murdon that I might accidentally beat it out of him too.¡±

    ¡°If you still have it, we could try reattaching it. Quala could at least. I could go get her.¡±

    Lograve shook his head at Thomas. ¡°It¡¯s gone. He¡¯ll need it grown back.¡±

    ¡°Hey. Get Spinner out of this.¡±

    Daniel blinked at Tlara. ¡°I thought you didn¡¯t name the beasts you captured.¡±

    ¡°I don-¡± She glared at him, tried to find the one who¡¯d named the monster, and couldn¡¯t. ¡°I don¡¯t. It¡¯s just a dumb name.¡±

    ¡°I think it¡¯s better than Hunter though. What?¡± Evalyn shrugged at Daniel¡¯s scandalized look. ¡°It at least attempts metaphor.¡±

    ¡°Hunter picked his name and it¡¯s perfectly fine.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, sure, whatever. Killing the Hero now.¡± Tlara vaulted to the top of her silk shocker. ¡°Any actual objections?¡±

    ¡°Pretty sure you can¡¯t beat him?¡± Thomas only backed up a little when Spinner focused on him. ¡°What? You saw him fighting that dragon solo. Murdon¡¯s the only other one that pulled that off and he had at least 20 buffs on him.¡±

    ¡°He got my wyvern killed.¡±

    ¡°Got another one don¡¯t you?¡±

    ¡°I liked having two. Where the fuck am I going to get another one?¡±

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you just ask him to help you get another one? If there are any in the next region, I mean.¡± Daniel looked to the darkening horizon. The night was here. ¡°We can talk about that now. We won. We did win, right?¡±

    ¡°What is wrong?¡± Tak out of everyone caught the faintest bit of confusion in his voice.

    ¡°My Focus tells me whenever I earn advancement, and what for. I¡¯ve always gotten stuff from fighting monsters right after the fight ends.¡± A screen no one else could read lit up to emphasize this. ¡°I haven¡¯t gotten anything yet. I don¡¯t know if you guys can sense that stuff immediately, can you?¡±

    ¡°Tlara just needs to calm that thing down. It¡¯s still staring at me,¡± Thomas complained.

    ¡°Fuck you, dominated monsters wouldn¡¯t count.¡± A few people looked at her in surprise, Thomas included. ¡°What? You think it¡¯d be that easy to advance? Just get a high level Beastmaster to let you take apart its minions? Why don¡¯t we pin down that ringcat and see what happens.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not Hunter either. Neither of us sense anything. No monster auras, nothing in the lake. I think some things attacked the people we left behind but those are all dead now. Uh, no major casualties,¡± he reassured Lograve. ¡°Nothing above level 2 that I saw when I was conscious.¡±

    ¡°So what, fight¡¯s not over? Looks like it to me,¡± Tlara changed the topic quickly. ¡°Your thing¡¯s either broken or you didn¡¯t do enough to be worth it. Fuck, did you even shoot that thing?¡±

    ¡°Could there be any enemies concealed from Hunter¡¯s senses?¡± Lograve asked, reforming the ice shield around him and scanning the skies. Rorshawd wasn¡¯t detectable until the last moment.

    ¡°Anything that has a stealth ability maybe. Or that he couldn¡¯t smell, hear, see? I don¡¯t know. At the bottom of the lake?¡±

    Hold on. Lograve held up a hand to his head and closed his eyes. In the distance, William blinked, nodded, then knelt to a thinning part of the ice and knocked on it with one of his ears to the ground. Other people were looking around too and Murdon¡¯s armored frame straightened.

    ¡°Woah, you can reach that far?¡±

    Level 4 Telepathy. Does more than go farther, Thomas.

    ¡°Just because my feature doesn¡¯t work on you doesn¡¯t mean you¡¯re not lying. Probably.¡±

    Tell yourself that. Anyway, William says there¡¯s nothing alive in the lake. A lot of dead fish. Long dead. I¡¯d almost joined them that day. No one else can sense anything larger than a grasshopper. It¡¯s the lair effect. The dragon had a presence that told the other monsters they¡¯d die just from stepping foot on its turf. There shouldn¡¯t be anything else here.

    Tlara impatiently snapped her fingers. ¡°So we¡¯re good? Good, back to that chat with Gadriel.¡±

    ¡°Moving.¡±

    Daniel¡¯s head perked up. ¡°What is, Khare?¡±

    ¡°Dragon.¡± The gestalt had been the only one to notice. Maybe because they weren¡¯t listening closely to the whole conversation, only the important parts. Everyone else was worried about another monster. Khare had feared the dragon was only playing dead. Their suspicion was briefly confirmed when a spot on its head pulsed. Then, something else entirely appeared in a spray of broken bone and flesh. Elsewhere in the world a god of monsters raged in triumph, and Mavar Helioc realized why Torch was paying him a visit.

 Chapter 76: Illustrious Slave Host - (5)

    Something rained down on the sheet of ice covering the lake. The projectiles spread far because they were small. They were roughly rod shaped, tapering at one end while spreading out to four tendrils that looked almost like elongated fingers. In the center of the underside where these projected from was a mouth, above which faint red shapes squirmed under the slightly blue, translucent skin. The only other color to these creatures was the orange markings at the tapered tip and end of each tendril.

    They streaked like arrows across the sky, adjusting their course by bouncing off the others. Coordinated action. Only a few noticed, the rest reacting differently. Lograve¡¯s mental warning to key individuals was enough to put them on edge. It saved a few from what was about to come, but not everyone. Some were too close, almost buried by the small monsters. Those furthest away had the most time, the least to fend off, and the best chance. Lograve¡¯s shell of ice would protect him completely, the rest would have to dodge or kill.

    Daniel missed what initially happened when they hit the ice as he rolled backward and out of the way of the ones aimed towards him. It was just from an instinct to evade, but it saved him. Recovering from the roll was tricky, even with Balance, causing him to slide a bit further before righting himself.

    ¡°Ow! Fuck, get this off.¡± One of the living projectiles was grasping tightly to Thomas¡¯ arm while quite a few were covering Spinner who¡¯d moved to cover the group under it. Evalyn was missing entirely.

    No, Khare has her. That had to be it. Unless the new threat could make someone completely explode!? Don¡¯t be stupid.

    I¡¯m keeping this ice completely sealed for the moment. Was anyone else harmed? Lograve asked mentally, voice unable to pass through the solid barrier.

    ¡°Yeah, a couple fuckers got me. This stupid thing just ran off on its own.¡± Tlara kicked the silk shocker while tearing the last of the unknown creatures off her body. It wasn¡¯t resisting overly much and didn¡¯t move when it struck the ground.

    ¡°Khare, you got Evalyn?¡±

    ¡°Contained.¡±

    ¡°Hunter and I are fine!¡±

    That¡¯s good, Tak. Honestly, it might be best to keep Evalyn sheltered until we know what these enemies can do.

    What are these Daniel? Hunter asked, looking disgustedly at the vaguely squid-shaped creatures on the ice.

    Being bitten by the creatures had annoyed Tlara, but when she heard that voice in her head she grew deadly serious. ¡°What the fuck was that?¡±

    Oh dear. Tlara, uhm. By the look on his face, Lograve seemed to be drowning in these strange creatures. That was Daniel¡¯s ringcat. Sorry, I forgot to keep the Telepathic Networks separate.

    ¡°That¡¯s not funny.¡± She glared at him. ¡°Seriously, did anyone else hear that? You?¡±

    ¡°I did.¡± Thomas nodded, wrenching the squirming creature off his arm and stepping on it. The other surviving ones around them were still on the silk shocker. They weren¡¯t trying to grab onto it but trying to get off. Whenever one emerged from the fur someone in the group would kill it casually. They were surprisingly weak. ¡°I think that is Guy¡¯s ringcat. He can talk to other people now?¡±

    It¡¯s me, Lograve sighed mentally. I can group people into a telepathic conversation now that I¡¯m level 4. If someone¡¯s already in a group the two can cross as long as there¡¯s a bridge. I take it Hunter wasn¡¯t aware he was speaking to everyone.

    ¡°Bullshit. Fuck! Hey, forget that these things bite.¡± Tlara dismounted and approached Thomas, indicating three spots that were indeed shedding a good amount of blood. ¡°Patch me up.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re level 3, go find William.¡± Thomas waved her away and instead put a hand to his wound. ¡°Potions should still work.¡±

    So no one else was injured? Good. I¡¯m going to check with the others. It seemed the people closer to the dragon were worse off. Can you identify anything about them, Daniel?

    ¡°I¡¯ll try.¡± The things that had rained down were faintly reminiscent of leeches, crossed with a squid and a bucket of neon paint. ¡°I can already see the name, they¡¯re-¡± he drew in a breath as he read the tag above one of the living creatures on the silk shocker.

    <hr>

    Illustrious Slave Swarmling - (5)

    -

    Alert: God: Torch has added additional information to the entry for Monster: llustrious Slave Host.

    <hr>

    ¡°Not good. Lograve, they¡¯re level five.¡± No time for the god stuff. System, no Monsters, stupid Encyclopedia!

    ¡°Level five? These are too weak.¡± Tak scraped the remnants of another of the so called swarmling from his hands after it tried to jump at him. ¡°What are they called?¡± Daniel told him and the rest of the group as he continued to search through his phone, keeping a fair distance between himself and the infested Spinner. Behind the ice, Lograve¡¯s eyes widened.

    ¡°What kind of type is ¡®Illustrious¡¯?¡± Thomas asked, looking askance at where he¡¯d been bitten.

    ¡°That¡¯s the fucking word you have a problem with?¡±

    ¡°I know what slave means, Tlara.¡±

    It¡¯s not the name of a monster type. Daniel, I don¡¯t know what these are but the Illustrious, that¡¯s something I can¡¯t think on right now. Most of the others were bitten but nothing seems to be happening.

    ¡°Hold on, I got it.¡± Daniel blinked at the longest monster entry he¡¯d ever seen. Not even the information he¡¯d gleaned from the sparkbats was this extensive.

    <hr>

    Illustrious Slave Host ¨C 5 (???, Aquatic, Domination, Domain: Enchantment/Transmutation, Colony)

    An aquatic lifeform optimized to secure and control underwater domains. Each colony contains attack forms carrying parasites and the host itself. When a mortal is afflicted by the parasites, they come under the host¡¯s Effect: Domination which may be resisted through Defense: Wisdom or Powers which augment mental fortitude. The force of the domination effect scales with the total parasitic burden of the target, which increases with time following initial infection.

    When the domination of a target is successful, a multi-stage secondary effect is initiated. At first, the target will be completely controlled by the host. This domination cannot be broken by any means beyond death of the swarm host or use of appropriate powers able to contest the Offense: Wisdom of the swarm host. If the parasites within the target reach a certain threshold, the domination effect cannot be broken by any means other than Resurrection after death. Should the target spend ten or more days in this state, the domination effect will become Indelible.

    Parasitic mass within the target can be influenced through a variety of means. Healing effects will affect the parasitic mass more strongly than the afflicted in most circumstances, quickening its growth. Contact with additional attack forms, or the blood of another afflicted, will additively contribute to the total parasitic mass. Powers that can specifically target the parasites or Transmute the afflicted body into a nonviable target are the best countermeasures to directly address the parasitic mass and serve as an additional means of countering the domination ability.

    Damage Absorption:

    ? Radiant (Host only)

    Damage Immunities:

    ? Poison

    Damage Resistances:

    ? Unenchanted Weapons (Host only)

    ? Cold

    ? Fire

    Damage Vulnerabilities:

    ? Lightning

    ? Necrotic

    <hr>

    Moment of Clarity. Lograve, tell me you can hear me.

    Hunter responded instead. I don¡¯t like this.

    It¡¯s bad Hunter. I need to revoke Regeneration from you.

    Why?

    How much time did he have? He¡¯d used his ranged attacks and heightened a few features, but that had been it today. Most of his mana was avialable. To think he¡¯d been impressed with himself for surviving with so much. That should have been the clue that things were just getting started. They weren¡¯t biting them, they were infecting them. Do you have any cuts on your paws?

    No.

    Why is time stopped?

    What the fu- Tak!? Of course he was here. Tak, you have Regeneration too right?

    Yep!

    Have you been bitten, or could any of those creatures have gotten close to a wound?

    I am uninjured.

    Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

    Get out of here Tak. Immediately.

    I can¡¯t move. Is that normal for this?

    Yes. Listen, these monsters are carrying a parasite that can control you. Quala told me something about this earlier, but basically any kind of healing makes it worse. If enough are in you the control¡¯s permanent.

    Slaves. Hmm. We should try to save Thomas. Daniel didn¡¯t question Hunter¡¯s leaving out of Tlara.

    Shit, he was healing himself! I need to think for a second. How fast were people being taken over, and how much faster was Thomas? Tlara had been bitten three times to his one, so who would go first? What about those in the center, and where was the Host? That was the most important thing, killing that. Otherwise, they didn¡¯t have anything that could free people from the influence. No antibiotics for Sigron meant no antiparasitics from them unless someone did have a Power that specific. No, he couldn¡¯t bet on that.

    Thomas¡¯ aura is less green, Hunter commented in the pause. Not green is not good.

    Of course!

    Green?

    So Tak can¡¯t see Identify Creature at least, Daniel thought privately. Hunter and I could tell when people are getting close to being taken over since their mind would be more and more hostile. What about Tlara?

    Can¡¯t see her. Neither could Daniel. The things weren¡¯t biting her monster.

    I didn¡¯t think about that. Hunter was perceptive if nothing else. If we assume the parasites¡¯ control is based on their concentration, they¡¯d be trying to bite that one the most.

    Too many words, I am having trouble following. What are we doing?

    You need to run Tak. Hunter, without Regeneration you won¡¯t be at as much risk but if a single parasite gets into you we can¡¯t stop it until we kill the bigger one.

    Worse for you.

    Yeah. I¡¯m going to use the wings and tell Lograve everything in the air. It sounds like these things are normally aquatic so I doubt they can reach me. Thank god Lograve¡¯s sealed up, I can¡¯t imagine how bad it¡¯d be if he was affected.

    Which one? Tak asked.

    What?

    Which god?

    ¡­

    Four minutes of thinking led to Tak sprinting to the east, Hunter backing off, and Daniel streaking into the air while mentally pinging Lograve.

    ¡°What the fuck?¡± Tlara said in response, nonplussed. The day was bringing those exact words out of her often.

    Thomas, stop healing yourself. Tlara, put away your beast. Both of you need to lie flat on the ground. Khare, move away from them and keep Evalyn contained. If you can, tell her to move a little outside so I can explain.

    ¡°Why?¡± they all asked, Thomas slurring the word ever slightly.

    Do it now. Khare complied, but the two affected were more reticent.

    ¡°Damn it, I¡¯m not just going to, hey!¡± Tlara jerked away as Thomas suddenly jerked towards her. A large leg knocked both of them to the ground, and then Spinner was on top of them. Lograve was surprised but chalked it up to Tlara falling to the influence. If she¡¯d given it an order to protect her, then restraining her while she was controlled would be a valid interpretation of that order. Monsters controlled by Beastmasters could think to that degree. Right?

    Daniel, I think Thomas and Tlara are gone. I¡¯m restraining them, can you confirm?

    There was a brief pause before his spotter answered. Yeah. They¡¯re both red now. Everyone close to the dragon is too, but I can¡¯t tell if the ones still sane are afflicted. It only took seconds for Thomas to change.

    Are any of the gestalt we have remaining affected?

    No. Wait, how-

    Bloodborne parasites don¡¯t work if you don¡¯t have blood, Lograve explained quickly. Murdon, what do we do?

    Our target is the Host, and I take the point of your question. The skull of the dragon burst out. The little ones couldn¡¯t do that alone, so it¡¯s no longer sheltering in the body. If it is aquatic, it must have slipped into the lake while we were distracted.

    Lograve imagined trying to fight these things in the water. Daniel must have as well because he thought, It¡¯s a level 5. How can we beat that in the lake?

    It¡¯s a swarm host, they both answered at the same time.

    Murdon let Lograve continue explaining while he used the knowledge of who wasn¡¯t afflicted to organize the rest of the ice shelf. It should have been obvious since they¡¯d have the monsters still attached, but some had ripped them off in the initial moments. What was happening? What mistake had he made? They¡¯d won! They¡¯d killed a titan and had been rewarded with this horror. Some of those who had been covered with the swarm were already jerking into enforced motion, opening wounds on their hands and covering what they could with blood. They were making everything they could touch a vector for the infection.

    William could have been a disaster by himself, but the Ranger had acted immediately after hearing the warning by throwing every healing potion he had to the ground. Almost every one. The last showed just how terrible it might have been as he lost control of himself, instilled the potion with his blood, and used the suddenly teeming liquid to infect Alost from a distance. The Ranger tried that with the other potions to limited effect, which told Murdon the Host didn¡¯t have a complete understanding of what it was taking over. Good tactical information. They¡¯d need every bit as none of them could have ever encountered this before. Illustrious was what Daniel had said it was called. One of the Illustrious¡¯ mad creations. How could one be here if they had been extinguished in the Collapse?

    He saw the attack out of the corner of his eye. Not against him, and not by someone who was controlled. ¡°You, what have you done?¡± While the controlled near the dragon were massing to attack, the surrounding groups were doing their best to lay afflicted members on the ice where Lograve could embed their limbs. Only, one group had just executed a Bard who had been rendered helpless.

    ¡°Infected!¡± The gestalt executioner held their sword at length, wary from the warning about the blood.

    ¡°Do not execute any of them! If we kill the monster they will be saved!¡± His words didn¡¯t carry the same weight or have the same effect as they did before. Captured mortals weren¡¯t being slaughtered universally, but the frightened survivors were taking matters into their own hands. Worse, the gestalt hadn¡¯t gotten the full picture.

    The trouble was not being able to universally confirm who was clean, as those with the slightest of exposure took longer to succumb than those who¡¯d been bitten. The explanation Lograve had quickly given terrified the others more than if they¡¯d kept silent. Against a dragon it was life or death, and you knew who your allies were. Now?

    Lograve, isolate myself and Daniel. Murdon wasn¡¯t adept enough with Lograve¡¯s newest telepathic developments to screen out the others from that message, and the others around him looked on with suspicion. Oh well, like before it was better they didn¡¯t hear the truth.

    It¡¯s ready.

    Daniel, how many people are still unaffected?

    Five, not counting the gestalt or my group.

    So few? There had to be something they could do.

    Murdon, I don¡¯t care what you¡¯re about to say. We¡¯re getting out of here.

    But the others-

    Damn them, we¡¯ve done enough! They know what to do. If the gestalt can kill it then everything is fine. We can¡¯t stop them on the ground. I¡¯ve already released my control on the ice field and you know I can¡¯t get that back.

    We¡¯re running? Daniel asked

    This is the Origin Beast. It has to be. We can¡¯t affect this battle anymore, but we can ensure someone survives to warn the world.

    But how are you going to get away?

    We¡¯ll go around the lake. The ones being controlled don¡¯t seem to be able to use active abilities or move as fast as they would otherwise. Even if that was the case, I could float us above them with ice. In the worst case, we can return and save these people. The lake is close to the border, a rescue mission may be approved if-

    I looked up indelible.

    What?

    It had a hyperlink. Uh, my Focus had an entry on it. We would have ten days, and then nothing can reverse the domination.

    We¡¯ve already made sacrifices, Lograve said grimly.

    I don¡¯t want Thomas to be one of them!

    We don¡¯t have a choice! Murdon, get over here with anyone you can before you¡¯re overrun. Murdon?

    It must have been when he¡¯d crushed the few that had gotten on him. Murdon was sure none had gotten through the gaps in his armor, but he hadn¡¯t known the faint red mass inside the swarm were parasites until afterward and the broken stump on one arm left a clear way through. Even then he hadn¡¯t been careless, but it only took a drop.

    Lograve¡­ his aura.

    ¡­

    ¡°Not good,¡± Tak remarked from his position on the ridge. He was too far to speak with Hunter or Daniel and was not made aware of Murdon¡¯s affliction, but he could make it out himself.

    This is what he saw. First, the death of the ice age that had come to the mountain pass. The body of the dragon was getting closer and closer to the water as the ice receded. Maybe the lightning in it could have killed whatever was in the water, but that had died with it. Unfortunately, the creature¡¯s skull had protected the parasite before it¡¯d been exposed.

    Then, there were the afflicted. A large mass moving forward with bloody weapons. A few had accidentally cut too deep when they were poisoning their equipment and were bleeding out. Gadriel wasn¡¯t one of those, but even he had been converted. Too close to the initial eruption of the parasites. It had been close for Tak too, even though he had been far from the dragon. A few were headed to him before Spinner had interceded of its own will. A spirited one? Maybe.

    Murdon and the others who thought they¡¯d survived were in the center. It was clear each time one of them turned. Subtle changes in posture, like that person no longer fit in their skin. Further back, Thomas and Tlara were already straining at their bonds in an attempt to get at Lograve. Or Hunter. Tak quieted a burst of emotion and looked at the last group. The masses of vines slipped into the water with every weapon they carried. Khare was there, having joined up with the other gestalt to hunt whatever was in the lake. They were immune to the parasites that had no doubt infested it as much as the people above.

    Back to Hunter and Lograve. The Arcanist¡¯s concentration had slipped. Across the battlefield, the icy restraints on those that had been pinned broke. The survivors there were being infected quickly, lacking an easy way of navigating the ice or escape. By the slow pace of the others, it would be a few minutes before they reached his friend. Ten, maybe? Tak wasn¡¯t good at math.

    Hunter could get away. So could Lograve and Daniel. He was floating down to the ground like a leaf. Did he have any idea that could change the outcome? Any item he could make to solve everything? Tak didn¡¯t know, but he could see how distraught Daniel was by the tears on his face. Tak had good eyes, even if he couldn¡¯t do as much as others with what he saw.

    The ice around Lograve burst. Not from outside but from within, shattering as the man created a hole in the remaining sheet to dive through. Why? There were those things in there, orange points visible even in the darkness of the night. Was Lograve overcome with despair? Tak didn¡¯t know what the Arcanist was doing, unable to track him through the ice.

    Spinner suddenly jerked as both mortals it was pinning broke through their restraints. Against Thomas it afforded more pressure through additional legs, but it seemed unable to do anything else against Tlara. Would that be defying its orders? And Hunter, instead of running he was rushing to its aid. Why? Spinner focused on Thomas, not containing Tlara but not stopping Hunter. It must have known the ringcat intended harm but restrained itself. Hunter leapt, nominally at a disadvantage but he was fighting a class weakest by itself. Furthermore, Tlara couldn¡¯t use her powers while under control. Tak would¡¯ve given him a good chance if he ignored the fact that all Tlara had to do was bleed a little.

    He made contact with the Beastmaster, refraining from claws or biting and using the force of his momentum. Tlara responded with her talons, but they couldn¡¯t pierce the armor Daniel had made. Good, that was good. And Hunter was far faster, he circled before hitting her again. Knock her down enough times and she wouldn¡¯t get up.

    Daniel was descending faster. Was his plan to get to Hunter and escape with him? Surely, that was all they could do now. This was a losing fight. That was what was stopping him from trying to help. He was far enough away that either Hunter or Tlara would win first, and Tak was the only one who had run. If nothing else, he had to warn the villagers. Tak was smart enough to know that.

    Hunter used his jumping attack again. He was smart too. Very smart. He was fighting Tlara in a way that made it impossible for her to drip blood on or cut him. If everyone else here was going to lose, then it was good he was getting revenge on the one that had been so hostile to him all this time. He didn¡¯t wish permanent control on Tlara for what she¡¯d done, but getting beaten by Hunter before being saved was-

    ¡°N-no.¡± Tak saw Tlara do something different the next time Hunter attacked. Instead of trying to block, cut, or grab, she bit a chunk out of her hand, let the blood pool, and then threw it. The armor covering Hunter¡¯s face was by no means air tight. Tak¡¯s keen eyes saw drops go into the ringcat¡¯s open ones. Was that all that was needed? No. Did it have to be blood to blood contact?

    He¡¯d kill Tlara himself. No, he had to save Hunter. No, he had to warn the villagers. No, he- Anger. Fear. Guilt. Responsibility. Tak grabbed his head as the thoughts raced and emotions crushed his sensibilities. Slowly, something else began to win.

    ¡­

    HUNTER!

    Did she get me? I don¡¯t feel different.

    Daniel couldn¡¯t cope. Hunter had taken a spray of blood to the face, there was no way he wasn¡¯t afflicted now. There was only the hope that he still didn¡¯t count when it came to who the parasites could affect, but that would mean something was going right. Everything had seemed so bright when they¡¯d killed the dragon. There had been a future. Not anymore. Kill her.

    What?

    Fuck everything. Kill her. Nothing mattered anymore. He¡¯d given Tlara every chance, hadn¡¯t he? At the end of things, it had turned out to be her responsible for-

    No. Below the rapidly descending Daniel, Hunter jumped headfirst into the Beastmaster and knocked her down. She was free to claw him for several seconds, guaranteeing infection if Hunter wasn¡¯t already contaminated. Not caring about that any more was what let the ringcat bludgeon her on the ground, though not to death. You don¡¯t want that.

    But she, she¡­. Daniel couldn¡¯t say it, not to Hunter.  Lograve, Hunter¡¯s infected.

    It took a few seconds for the Arcanist to reply. I see. You¡¯re moving toward him? Land in the ice sphere I left behind first. Bait Hunter into it and then jump out.

    Why-

    I¡¯m not arguing with you. Lograve¡¯s thoughts were completely flat and directed at him out of what seemed the corner of his mind. Do it, or don¡¯t.

    He couldn¡¯t argue either. Daniel landed in the broken egg, noting the walls were already reforming. Hunter, come here.

    The ringcat gave him an odd look from under the armor. It was still him, the aura didn¡¯t lie. He was sad, but also knowing? That¡¯s not for me.

    What? The ice around him snapped fully together and the sounds from outside were cut off. Lograve, what are you doing!?

    The ice around you will melt slowly. I believe those affected will stay in the lake, while you float to shore. Use your Telekinesis to move away after that. If we lose, then run. Aughal is the closest to the west. Find a man named-

    Lograve, get me out of here!

    Arpan Morel, he continued, not listening. I believe that old Artificer is still around. He¡¯s a good contact, you should be smart enough to figure out the rest. Don¡¯t tell anyone other than him about your class. If you must go to Threst, try as hard as you can to meet with its regent, Soraso, and tell him I sent you.

    Lograve! There wasn¡¯t an answer. Below him, the aura of Lograve was shooting through the water far faster than the gestalt were as they chased something. He¡¯d never had a chance to tag the Host, he could¡¯ve guided them otherwise.

    Not¡­ a slave¡­ Hunter¡¯s thoughts were strained. His aura was slipping to gray. A person, this was only happening because he was a person. He and Lograve had already realized the parasites couldn¡¯t affect monsters because they didn¡¯t target Spinner, but Hunter was a person. Because of him.

    They¡¯ll, they¡¯ll kill it. I turned off your Regeneration so you¡¯ll be fine. If he was talking, Daniel¡¯s voice would have choked up there. We¡¯ll get you back.

    Don¡¯t want¡­ don¡¯t¡­

    Hunter? The last of the friendly aura slipped away. Hunter was gone.

 Chapter 77: All For One

    Gestalt played a different role in the societies of the Octyrrum compared to other mortals. Each race had their quirks and places where they could thrive. Special powers, special trends in initial attributes, diets, there were many ways to distinguish them. Some even had ancestral languages they carried on in addition to the common tongue. But the people of the elements? They were the most insular. The most different. In some places, the most despised.

    A mistake had been made during the Grafting. It must have, because why else were they so different? That legacy, and the questions, remained through the ages as a spur of discontent. Worse, as a title. Mistakes. It wasn¡¯t as bad on the outskirts of the world because gestalt normally lived on the outskirts of society in sanctuaries. The Thormundz would have had a mighty one with Kob as its head, but¡­

    The equivalent of a crippling speech impediment wasn¡¯t the only factor, or the most important. They looked like monsters. In this world, there had been a monster that looked like almost every species in existence, but only the gestalt looked like monsters. A minor caveat that meant everything.

    The earth gestalt of the Thormundz were together and apart from the other mortal species, as usual. Those that had survived the dragon were now moving through the waters of the lake. Earth gestalt could swim. How could they drown? Exceptionally strong waters could tear apart their mass and kill them through scattering, but the lake would be calm if not for the actions of themselves and the enemy. There were two exceptions to their number. Khare thought once again of the one within them and the space they occupied. It was like a hollow under a tree, a narrow space just under the trunk and surrounded by the roots. Invisible to the outside unless rot took the wood and exposed it. Level 2 had given Khare the ability to make it sizable, enough for ten people to fit if they kept nothing else.

    Of course, air was a problem. Khare worried about that since they weren¡¯t familiar with how breathing worked. Another separation from the mortal races as the earth gestalt sustained themselves from sunlight and assimilation of nutritious soil. To make matters worse the Bard was playing, exerting herself which would reasonably use up her limited resources like how gestalt had to be conservative when venturing underground. She was playing a melody, just for them. They could sense the space within at the same time as the world about. Music. At least that bridged the gap. If they couldn¡¯t understand Bardic music then they¡¯d be at an even more severe disadvantage to the other races, to say nothing of being able to become Bards themselves.

    The second exception raced around them. The Arcanist, who¡¯d taken to the lake just moments before, was already charging ahead faster than any normal shavi or other primarily aquatic race. He should have been instantly controlled by their target after setting one foot in the water now infested with parasite-bearing squid creatures, but water moved around the mage just as quickly as he did through it. A protective shell that battered anything that tried to reach him. The gestalt couldn¡¯t compare to that speed, not continuously. A Berserker among them had a trance that allowed for unexpected bursts of movement, but even this couldn¡¯t match the velocity with which the Arcanist himself moved.

    A voice entered Khare¡¯s mind, speaking to each of the gestalt. The one that could only be Lograve, though without seeing the speaker it was hard to tell. Khare knew how long the speech lasted, but couldn¡¯t discern the individual words. Just a glimmer of the intent and idea of what was said. There was no science to it, at least none devised that Kob had told them of, to how gestalt processed spoken and written word. A grand speech might give them the equivalent of a single word, as Murdon¡¯s had before the battle, while a single sentence could carry more weight.

    Khare readied their weapons, following what they¡¯d sensed from Lograve and, better yet, the consensus among their kin as to what had been said. They were each independent filters for the world around them. Different perspectives of something they couldn¡¯t quite grasp alone. Like blind mice, each describing the different parts of the elephant they grasped. Not the metaphor Khare would have used, but it still held.

    ¡­

    Lograve blocked Daniel out as he continued to surge through the water. It wasn¡¯t complete, the anguished cries were still there, but he¡¯d cut the Artificer out of his network so the gestalt wouldn¡¯t hear him. He felt no regret for the deceit. He didn¡¯t feel anything at all but a deep, biting rage that tore at him for every moment it went unsatisfied. He¡¯d been ready to abandon everyone else right up until the moment it was clear he¡¯d be leaving Murdon behind as well. No, he wasn¡¯t going to let his friend sacrifice anything else. He wasn¡¯t going to lose him.

    There was one other thing. In the back of his mind, the sensation of awakening. People described it in different ways, like being close to coming out of a dream, on the cusp of solving an indescribable problem, or even that itch just before a sneeze. There was an undiscovered power just under the surface that Lograve was close to realizing. Maybe the one he had received from reaching level 4. If he was close now, then there was something he was doing that was related. He¡¯d caught the faintest sense of this feeling when the battle started, or perhaps a little before. With the singularity of his determination clarifying his mind, it was easier to detect now.

    The problem was, Lograve couldn¡¯t do much himself. Aquakinesis was taking the majority of his will to hold together. All achieving level 4 had done for that was to expand the range, capacity, and force of manipulation, and dramatically so when first heightened. It was a benefit only received by those who¡¯d awakened the feature before level 4 and an example of just how complicated managing powers could be at higher levels. The strategy of heightening useful features immediately upon waking became less viable later on.

    As it stood, Lograve was putting all the capacity of his Aquakinesis into speed and in the protective shield around him. This was necessary to keep the hundreds of the swarm off of him. The water churned with the blue and orange creatures, along with clouds of red where parasites swam freely. Lograve was sure those afflicted would stay in the lake for only one reason. He could appreciate the thoughts behind the design of this creature. It was meant to hold aquatic territory, making it unassailable to most. Beastmasters were a hard counter, but they¡¯d lost almost every one of their monsters in the initial moments. Only Tlara had retained hers and it was staying with her and wouldn¡¯t follow anyone else¡¯s orders.

    The dragon had killed just over sixty of their number. That had been terrible, but it had been over the course of an hour. This slave host had, in just under a minute, dominated the rest. The loss was so terrible not because of the monstrosity¡¯s power. It was a lower leveled threat than the dragon itself, according to Daniel. It was in the circumstances that it depended, the same ones they¡¯d tried so hard to put in their favor. All the work they¡¯d done, only to throw things into this evil¡¯s hands.

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    They were going to kill it. Lograve could not think of what the world would be if they failed. Somewhere in the darkness of the night-shrouded lake was a creature controlling all of the smaller ones and his friend, and they were going to kill it. In some stupid twist of fate they had the perfect weapon for it. He just needed to find the host and lead the gestalt to it.

    As for fighting it himself? He wanted to, desperately. But one parasite slipping past his defenses meant death, or close enough to it. The host probably contained millions of the red menace and, judging by how thick the water was with its spawn, reproduced them rapidly. Only the gestalt could get up close and try to attack without fear of reprisal from the parasites. As for what else the host may have to defend itself with? Lograve didn¡¯t know. He didn¡¯t even know if this damned thing could turn invisible. It was level 5, it was possible, although his Sense Magic feature should help spot it in the worst case. The main problem was the lake was too big. It was fairly deep, maybe a hundred meters at its deepest. It was also a kilometer wide. He was moving faster than most mounts one might use, aquatic or otherwise, but that was still a massive area to search in the time he had.

    Daniel had given him crucial information, revealing the extent of the threat before anyone else had realized they were slowly losing people to the enemy. Even so, the timer on the effect¡¯s permanency weighed on him because he couldn¡¯t see its hands moving. At least Murdon didn¡¯t have Regeneration. Anyone infected who had that was likely gone forever. No one here could bring back the dead and they couldn¡¯t reach such a healer in ten days. He paused for a moment when the darkness behind him caught up to the gestalt. Losing them here would be difficult, but not impossible. When they were swimming they loosened up the constriction of their vines, making it appear as if they were a moving colony of intertwined eels. I still haven¡¯t found it yet. I may have to split off.

    Lograve felt impacts in the water. Aquakinesis didn¡¯t give him a sonar-like ability of the kind William possessed, they were just that forceful. What? Dive! Get down! Sink! He added a few more words in the hopes the point would get across. One of his fears was coming to life before his eyes.

    The Host wasn¡¯t unintelligent. While it wouldn¡¯t have the brutish attribute array of a dragon, it would make sense that its intelligence or wisdom would be higher given its role as a controller. Even though it appeared the Host couldn¡¯t use the abilities of those it had taken over, it had already demonstrated an understanding of their passive features and equipment. Thomas, trying to heal Tlara in his first moments under its command, showed it also knew what could affect its parasites. The exact degree to which the Host knew mortal powers was unknown, but it grasped strategy.

    The impacts were exploding ammunition. Neither he nor the gestalt had been injured as it appeared the purple arrows didn¡¯t travel as far in the water before activating. Regular ammunition had been sent at them as well to similar effect. The controlled warriors were firing at random with whatever ammunition they had on hand. That was fine, the only weapons with the ability to punch through the water unaided by powers were the crossbows, of which there was only one left outside the hands of Daniel. Go deeper, and even that would be out of range. What worried him were the dark shapes obscuring what little moonlight was coming through. Those without ranged weapons were being sent into the water to fight them.

    Would the Host try to preserve its slaves? Probably, if Lograve understood its design philosophy correctly. Would it know they couldn¡¯t breathe water? That was the real question, along with what the Host would do once it was directly threatened. Lograve assumed it would sacrificed everyone under its control to save itself, but would it hold hostages? Could it conceive doing that?

    He thought to ask Daniel who had jumped in, but relented. The Artificer had stopped shouting about a minute ago and he hadn¡¯t been paying any attention in the moments prior to the silence. Lograve knew what trapping Daniel in the orb might do, but he was the last sane person up there assuming Tak had fled. As he darted downwards, Lograve reached out with his mind to try and find the avianoid, this being the basic function Telepathy unlocked at level 1. Nothing. Must be out of range, which was good. Quala could provide backup so long as he told her enough of what was going on to understand. She had Iron Mind. Would that be enough to resist?

    ¡­

    The explosions around Khare disrupted their form like a sudden current. Consciousness faded for a moment until the natural coherence of their form re-established itself. It was like if a human was struck on the head, needing some time to recover. Khare began diving as soon as they regained control, though this was slow as well. The one benefit was that the further they went down the more his form was able to keep compressed due to the water pressure, at the expense of speed. Aggravation unavoidably bubbled up in their mind. They preferred ranged weapons! Bows, throwing daggers, though not crossbows as the mechanisms could endanger vines if they were careless. Perhaps a simpler version could be made if they could get Daniel to understand the idea. And, if both of them survived.

    Khare themself was under no immediate threat. The worst the Host¡¯s minions could do was try to crush their vines, which wasn¡¯t the best strategy for dealing with them. The parasites they injected during this did reach their sap but could do nothing with that either. It wasn¡¯t just that Khare didn¡¯t have proper blood, they also didn¡¯t have a brain. Not that they understood that as the reason, but by now some of them had to have been infected enough to turn. That none of them did was proof enough for the gestalt.

    The influence of their own personal Bard gave Khare the edge over all of the others, besides the Berserker. It was more rhythm that drove them than anything else, and Evalyn was smart enough to play something fast. They found their movements syncing up with the music, allowing them to push through the restrictive medium more easily. Whether that would translate to a combat advantage remained to be seen.

    Khare was using their weapons while they moved. The swarmlings died so easily they couldn¡¯t tell if the song was doing anything. That was partly due to one of the gifts Daniel had given them. The tridents, so mocked by the others, were shredding through them. A single touch was all they needed to instantly kill the small things. They¡¯d use them both to destroy the Host the first chance they had. This monster had taken their allies and their brethren. Even Thomas, while personally grating to Khare, was comfortable in their presence and Khare counted him among their friends. That was something no gestalt took for granted. They¡¯d fought together, and now the Cleric was bound by chains they could only break one way.

    There was Tlara as well, Khare supposed. Khare did not have as much conflict with the Beastmaster as others, not having been provoked by her in the slightest. Absence of negativity, perhaps.

    Evalyn said something from within. Atmosphere? Air? No, she wasn¡¯t panicked anymore than the light fear kept under control, so still breathing. Rephrasing, that was good. So many mortals just repeated exactly what they said the first time as if that would help. Climate? No, it was mood, how had weather come into the picture? Was she asking how they were feeling?

    Khare wanted to respond in many ways. If it were one of their kind, they could intimate some of what she wanted just through the Empathic Link. Beyond that, gestalt were able to hold multiple conversations at once with the same individual so long as they did not need to converse deeply, do something else at the same time like fight, or speak of disparate, complex topics. They could speak of their trepidation, their concern that they wouldn¡¯t be able to do it. Their fear of losing friends. The excitement still burning away from killing the dragon. Their gratitude towards her.

    How could Khare begin to express all of that in one word? Consciously, they weren¡¯t making that choice. They tried to say more, but in the end, Khare¡¯s speech could only convey the barest of coherence. The curse. The legacy. That which their progenitor had sworn to defeat before the night they¡¯d died. ¡°Determination,¡± was what Evalyn heard. It wasn¡¯t perfect by any means, but it was what she needed to hear. The music kept on, the tridents claimed more monsters, and the Host remained undetected. From above, bodies fell.

 Chapter 78: Hell Frozen Over

    Lograve! Let me out! Daniel mentally shouted those words out on repeat, altering them sometimes in hopes that something would grant his release. All the while he pounded on the ice, but it was as strong as reinforced glass was in his world comparatively. This was the result a level 4 power. The dragon had been able to cut through the ice whenever its claws made contact, but not even one of his enchanted bolts fired point-blank would do more than scuff it slightly.

    This was hell. It didn¡¯t matter if he died anymore because he¡¯d just end up right back here, completely trapped. Daniel wasn¡¯t sure if it would be worse if he couldn¡¯t move at all. That might terrify him so much he¡¯d pass out. Instead, he couldn¡¯t help but try to think of a way out. That gave him just enough hope that the fear didn¡¯t entirely overwhelm him. Trapped. And around him, in plain view, Hunter. And Tlara. He looked at her to spare him from greater pain and wished her death. When he¡¯d said it the first time, it had been something out of anguish later to regret. Staring at her now he repeated it more firmly in his mind, yearning to if not escape this hell than to kill one of its demons.

    She was evil. She¡­ Daniel looked away, regret staining him again despite himself. Hunter had been right. He wasn¡¯t a murderer, and he¡¯d be something far worse if Hunter had agreed to the request. Something very lightly pressed against his mind. A request. Daniel almost accepted before he realized what it was and screamed. The sound was deafening given he couldn¡¯t hear outside. It was the mental pressure from Hunter, present whenever the ringcat wanted to share Daniel¡¯s senses. Or control him.

    He could resist easily, of course. Consent was a foundational aspect of how the bond worked. But Hunter could ask again, and whatever had controlled him had figured that out. It was like a drop of water hitting his forehead, over and over again. A small stream of madness as the Host poked him from outside his cage with the mind of his friend. Daniel might have lost it if the Host made Hunter think towards him, but speech seemed to be beyond those controlled in multiple ways. The gentle requests kept coming, and Hunter began to circle the orb. With each step, another request. He¡¯d never thought that this could be used offensively. Were there other kinds of mental attacks? Definitely, he was looking at the victim of one.

    What if I tried getting into Hunter¡¯s mind? Could that, no. No! It was biological control. At best he¡¯d be unable to do anything, at worst Hunter¡¯s infected mind could hop into his body and do something. Or, he¡¯d expose himself to the parasites somehow. Were they altering the brain chemistry permanently? Is that how this became Indelible?

    Lograve! Let him run at least. What was the point of keeping him as a backup if the Host had things follow him? Sure, Tlara was out and Thomas was down, the rest seemed to be more intent on the lake, but Hunter could be on him in seconds. The sun wasn¡¯t out, he couldn¡¯t use his wings again until tomorrow. He tried to shout that at the Arcanist but was ignored. The mental pressure was unrelenting. The intensity never changed, but Daniel¡¯s will to resist continued to lessen. He didn¡¯t even need to respond, but the pressure would be there until he did. The reminder that Hunter¡¯s mind wasn¡¯t his own.

    He wouldn¡¯t tolerate this. He would escape even if it meant he had to set off an explosion in here and try and take Hunter down. Worst case? Permanently. If it truly was the end, he wouldn¡¯t leave his friend to be the puppet of some squid monster. Hunter kept looking at him, eyes locked with his whenever he was in Daniel¡¯s view. It was a blank look, anticipatory, but devoid of malice. That belonged to the creature controlling him, but at the very least it didn¡¯t contort Hunter¡¯s face to match its own emotions.

    Daniel breathed and reconsidered his options. He didn¡¯t have a way to explode either of the ammunition types he carried. No room for the lightning bolt, no spineshard bolts left after he¡¯d ditched them. None of his powers had enough punch to break through, even Claw Strike. He did have the heliorite scraps and inside this space there was the chance he could make something. There had to be some kind of way to-

    Thud. The sound of an impact against the ice, coming from behind Daniel. That startled him, causing him to drop the wrapped heliorite and cry out as an exposed section touched his leg. Still too low level to properly handle even if he¡¯d found a workaround. It didn¡¯t melt the ice either, which wasn¡¯t unexpected. What had made the noise?

    Hunter had stopped circling him and had backed up. Was the Host making him go to the lake to stop Lograve? Some of the controlled that had jumped had resurfaced at least, so it wasn¡¯t making them drown. He wouldn¡¯t have to worry about-

    THUD! Daniel found out what was making the sound. It just kept getting worse. A new layer of this hell opened up every minute. The sound was Hunter, running into the ice orb head first. The constant mental pressure had been relieved only to be replaced by one request accompanying the strike. No, Tlara wasn¡¯t evil. This was evil.

    The Host was trying to force him out, as if he had a choice! As if everything about this didn¡¯t touch the rawest nerves he had. What was even the point of letting Hunter take control? He could revoke that, couldn¡¯t he? Or would the Host come along with it, not needing- THUD!

    Hunter stop! he mentally screamed, but there wasn¡¯t a reply. Not a telepathic one. THUD!

    A small amount of blood stained the fur. It came from beneath the armor plate that fit onto the top of the ringcat¡¯s head. Hunter was hitting his head in that same place every time. Some of it spilled against the glass and it was displayed as if on a microscope slide. Daniel could see the slightest movement within the blood up until it froze. The parasites. THUD!

    ¡°STOP!¡± Only Hunter couldn¡¯t. Is this a good thing? This, this is a good thing, right? Daniel desperately tried to delude himself. Hunter will knock himself out. Maybe some serious damage but after we win I can just give him Regeneration again. He survived a mountain exploding, this- THUD!

    What if his skull broke? That¡¯s how the dragon had died, bone breaking off and piercing the brain before the mortals pounded more damage into the hole. There was no coming back if anyone died here, and who would waste resurrection on a ringcat anyway? Only a handful of people knew what Hunter was. Tak! he cried out, hoping the avianoid had come back. But his aura was nowhere. That wasn¡¯t righ- THUD!

    The blood was flowing freely now, down one side and crossing where a blue and white pattern flowed across. That was supposed to represent the Octyrrum wasn¡¯t it? Someone had said so. Well, where was it? Where were its gods? They¡¯d seen him before and Torch was the only reason they knew what they were fighting. So where were they now? THUD!

    ¡°STOP!¡± He¡¯d converted one of his hands to claws without realizing it. Anger could do that? Or was it anguish? Still not enough to break the ice, even with hitting where Hunter had. But he had powers, and most of his mana! He looked at Hunter, waiting for the next charge, and extended his will beyond the ice. Telekinetic Reach. Not enough to stop the beast and it drained his mana, but it softened the landing. No thud, just more blood on the ice.

    ¡°I can keep doing that as long as you can!¡± Daniel lied, unsure if the Host would understand or hear him. Hunter didn¡¯t charge again, backing off and looking for whatever had hit him. The monster controlling him was intelligent, but not all-knowing. Its primary objective was to infect as many as possible. Maybe it thought someone invisible had hit him.

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    Daniel went to punch the ice again, intent on breaking free during the distraction, when he noticed something. The ice was melting, just like Lograve said it would, because he wasn¡¯t controlling it. The construction was still toughened because of how the power had made it, but what if the power¡¯s absence opened it up to another kind of vulnerability?

    ¡°Bulwark,¡± Daniel whispered, keeping the incantation as quiet as he could. A section of ice opposite of where Hunter was separated from the sphere and fell to ground, formed into a shield. Daniel scrambled out, avoiding any red-stained section even if the parasites were frozen. Leaving the protection of the shell suddenly seemed insane, one drop and he was dead, but Hunter needed him.

    The ringcat¡¯s head jerked towards him, a few drops of blood flung from the headpiece of the armor from the motion. Every other person controlled by the monster was focused on the lake, though a few distant heads began to turn before ignoring Daniel. The host was under threat, and it was leaving everything else besides Hunter for its defense. It didn¡¯t need too much to infect, just a scratch.

    ¡°I¡¯m not giving up on you.¡± He felt his powers jumping at the ready, prepared to be unleashed just as he¡¯d freed himself. Creating the mostly useless shield to do so had taken some mana, but he had a good deal left to spare. ¡°This is going to hurt, but you¡¯ll get better.¡±

    More of the ice from the shell peeled off as Daniel used Construct Projectile. It was like his other enchanting ability, so long as the shape fit the general intent of ammunition he could make it. He brought forth a spear with several long, thin ends on the front like tines. The weapon flew toward¡¯s Hunter¡¯s rear, the intent to pin him somewhere non-lethally. Daniel didn¡¯t know if he could knock the ringcat out without fully killing him and would settle for immobilization instead.

    Hunter was too good. His cooldown power was wasted as the ringcat dodged the ability. Even stacking Snap Shot didn¡¯t guarantee a hit, and the awkward weapon was far from aerodynamic. Like the alpha ringcat, Hunter began approaching with small leaps that both covered distance and allowed him to feint. The combination of Grow Feathers and Snap Shot did hit home, but between the armor and the host¡¯s apathy for Hunter¡¯s health, it didn¡¯t stop the ringcat.

    He was forced to Dodge Roll away and back onto the ground around the lake. The water itself was teeming with the swarmlings and if he got too close one would jump on him. Daniel chained the ability three times, Balance keeping him steady as he tried to gain distance. Hunter was in fast pursuit, barely giving him room to breathe. His friend¡¯s pace only increased as off the ice he could move more confidently.

    I can¡¯t get too close, Daniel thought desperately as he considered using Moment of Clarity to buy time. Ultimately he wasn¡¯t willing to use the mana, and for the same reason he couldn¡¯t try Telekinetic Reach to make Hunter stumble. Too expensive.

    After another Dodge Roll, Daniel was forced to pull out a dagger. He only had heliorite ones on him since why would he ever need an unenchanted one? This is going to hurt, he thought towards Hunter, even though he was pretty sure his friend couldn¡¯t hear him. Infusing it with Scatter Shot, he threw the dagger at Hunter¡¯s foreleg. The limbs were mostly unarmored since Hunter had needed the mobility. The weapon sunk to its hilt and the ephemeral blades carved into the surrounding flesh. It didn¡¯t completely cut off the limb, but Hunter wouldn¡¯t walk on it until it was healed.

    Even with his bond and his awakened class, Hunter only had the powers from his level 1 state. Without the ability to advance, without his ridiculous combo attack with Tak, he couldn¡¯t stand against Daniel in a direct fight when it came down to it. Not unless he could get right on top of him, and there was no guile in the beast when it was only acting in accordance to the host¡¯s will.

    Hunter tried a Springing Strike, the committed attack recognizable from a normal leap because the course was set, but there was no power behind and Daniel easily avoided the attempt. ¡°Just stop,¡± he said, this time to the parasite. Hunter started dragging himself on the ground towards him like a zombie that had had its legs blown off. ¡°Stop! You¡¯re not going to get me.¡±

    It couldn¡¯t understand him, and it had no reason to preserve Hunter. It would run him ragged until he died or Daniel capitulated. Neither could Daniel knock out the ringcat without getting close and risking exposure. The blood seeping from the leg wound was already bad, and further movement was making it worse.

    ¡°Easy. Easy. No biting,¡± Daniel said, preparing himself. He was about to Jump over Hunter and try an unaided dagger throw to hit the ringcat with the blunt end while over him, when something came charging out of the forest. It was closer to Daniel and moving so fast he could barely react, even with his dexterity now at level 2. He barely identified it before the sneak attack struck.

    <hr>

    Avianoid Monstrosity - (3)

    <hr>

    Instead of clawing into him, the monster knocked him down before going for Hunter. What was this? It wore Tak¡¯s armor, but the body shape underneath wasn¡¯t right. Avainoids had a roughly human shaped head with a beak off the front, but this monstrosity¡¯s beak seemed to stretch to the back of the head. At least, there weren¡¯t feathers there anymore, and the ridge coming off where the nose would be ran that far as well. What¡¯s more, it was level 3, and the aura was the purest gray he¡¯d ever seen while in combat.

    It was far more feral a creature that came to a stop above Hunter. Terrible claws, not like a ringcat¡¯s but like those of a giant eagle transposed onto a barely humanoid frame. Its back hunched, just barely off all fours. He couldn¡¯t see the face clearly but the eye facing him was completely changed. The whites were tinged pink by multiple red vessels bleeding off into the space. The center was a pure black upward slit of a pupil.

    Hunter infected the creature almost immediately with a defensive swipe that carried his blood into the wound. If this was somehow Tak, then that was it. Could he at least incapacitate Hunter before falling to the influence? The answer was mercifully yes. Daniel watched as Tak batted away another swipe and pressed Hunter down into the ground. The beak, which itself was more harshly spiked at the end and larger than normal, opened in a terrible cry to accompany this. It almost deafened Daniel and he was standing ten meters away.

    Tak continued shrieking as he brought his mutated face directly up to Hunter¡¯s. Daniel was at the point where he was considering an intervention when he realized what was going on. It was a howl, but not canine or anything remotely close to an animal from Daniel¡¯s world. There was an element of wailing wind, but that was just background. Every avianoid Daniel had ever met had a beautiful voice, even Tlara. It was something that added a mystique to them, something otherworldly that made him wonder why they didn¡¯t all become Bards. Tak was no exception, though in the past he¡¯d either been unaware of his own voice¡¯s pleasing qualities or of how to exploit them.

    Now? He was a banshee. It was painful to hear, and Daniel was being exposed to a fraction of what could only be called a sonic attack. He shielded his ears. Hunter wasn¡¯t as lucky. A few moments after the scream he lay motionless. Tak¡¯s head rapidly shifted, tilting in various ways as he inspected the body below him. Then, frenetically, he stood, running towards the ice field.

    Seven arrows pierced Tak moments later on the approach, distant archers obeying a host that recognized a potential threat. He wasn¡¯t moving evasively and made for an easy target. Some had hit limbs, but four had hit the chest. Tak didn¡¯t stop. What shouldn¡¯t have been called hands tore away the arrows as the demented avianoid moved toward Thomas, who was still awake, and knocked him unconcious while still under fire. He couldn¡¯t see if the wounds were healing or not but Tak didn¡¯t slow down afterwards, hitting the next person on the ice field, knocking them down, and screaming at them.

    The others were reacting. Of their number was Gadriel, one the Host had kept above the ice along with Murdon for reasons unknown. Even if one was down a hand, either could easily defeat Tak in a duel. That wasn¡¯t counting the others still on the ice, most of whom were carrying bows. Impossible, under normal circumstances. Daniel had moved on from a mutation theory to possession, for Tak fought like he was. He stopped taking moments to scream when faced with groups, knocking each down until it was clear he had the time. Somehow, as Tak continued to take hits and move on without falling or killing anyone, Daniel began to hope again.

    Of everyone here, this new Tak looked the most like a demon. Somehow, he was pulling all of them out of the depths of hell.

 Chapter 79: One For All

    In the name of the Hammer, what is that? Lograve asked Daniel after the repeated screams finally made it to his water-logged ears. He¡¯d ignored the faint sounds at first, thinking them distorted explosions from the enchanted ammunition.

    Tak. Lograve was surprised by the lack of any edge in the mental word, given Daniel had been shouting for his release moments before.

    What¡¯s happening? He asked, as a school of swarmlings tried and failed to penetrate his barrier.

    I don¡¯t know, but he¡¯s knocking them all unconscious.

    Tak is fighting all of them himself? Are the villagers supporting him?

    No. No, they¡¯re. A pause. They¡¯ve started moving towards us but only now. I think it was the screams.

    Is he winning?

    Yes! And he¡¯s not killing anyone.

    By the Gods. Can you still not see the Host?

    No. I don¡¯t think I should get close enough to try either, the archers who are still up are firing bloodied arrows.

    Well, I suppose that¡¯s on me. Lograve cut the connection fully to focus once more. The Totem Warrior must be sacrificing himself. Noble, but he¡¯d fall to the influence at some point. Exposure to that much blood made it inevitable, and that wasn¡¯t counting Regeneration. Tak wouldn¡¯t be coming back from this, not unless they found the Host within a minute or so. He¡¯d be remembered for his bravery and his selflessness, and if his actions stopped Murdon from being forced into the lake? How could you repay that kind of debt to a dead man? Lograve would have to think about that later. He was smart. He¡¯d figure something out.

    Even with the avianoid¡¯s intervention, all that had been done was turn the situation into a stalemate. The Host was fast, invisible, or both. Or it had fled to the back part of the lake from the beginning. What if there were hidden crevices? He hadn¡¯t been closely inspecting the bottom and sides. Damn it! Nothing happening above would matter if they couldn¡¯t find the Host.

    Lograve wasn¡¯t experienced like Murdon was in combining abilities, so the other options he might have used were barred as long as he needed to actively maintain Aquakinesis. While it was a feature, taking direct control of water meant agitating the mana flow within him in such a way that it would prevent the use of an ability. He¡¯d had the years to try and develop a dual-channeling technique as Murdon had but elected to master his feature instead. If he¡¯d taken another path, Lograve could never have frozen the lake as he had today.

    Nor could he move through it now with impunity. At the speeds he could reach, he could cross the lake entirely within a minute without fear of the parasites. That meant little as he couldn¡¯t search that area while moving quickly. He¡¯d also be leaving the gestalt behind. He either needed more light or a way to make the gestalt faster. Barring that, he needed luck.

    No, he needed reason! The lake was engorged with swarmlings, but they had to be coming from somewhere. If the Host, after discovering the explosive ammunition, continued to employ depth charges then it wasn¡¯t anywhere near the ice shelf.

    Where would it hide? A naturally formed crevice far away from the mortals would be the ideal place. If none such existed the Host would probably use its servants to make one. Wait, it already has!

    The realization of where the Host was hiding didn¡¯t come from any confirmation from his senses, but from assumption and what he knew of this lake. Follow me. Look to the lake bed, he instructed the gestalt as he started swimming on a path straight down the center. The pace was slower because of what he was doing, but Lograve also knew he was right. He had to be. The chance still existed of some small natural crevice. If that was the case he¡¯d never find it. Lograve bet everything that the Host had chosen one of the plentiful, mortal-made crevices instead.

    ¡­

    Khare reached the midpoint of the lake and felt Evalyn losing her strength within them. Despite the rapid movement of her lungs, the air she was drawing in wasn¡¯t doing any good. Khare had wondered if the Bard was in danger of exhausting the air itself, although the pressure within them hadn¡¯t changed. That was interesting, but also meant the Bard needed to get out. Khare began breaking for the surface, informing the others as to why.

    They opened the way when part of them was outside the water, keeping the tridents ready in case a swarmling tried to burrow into them at this moment. Evalyn poked her head out, gasping first for breath, and then at the sight of the distant thing fighting those who were controlled. Neither recognized it for who he truly was. To them, it seemed some previously unknown monster was taking apart the dominated mortals. Brutally knocking them down and not killing anyone? Strange, but a mercy. If whatever this was could overcome Gadriel and Murdon as well as the others, it would mean everyone left on the ice had a chance.

    Evalyn was speaking to them as she retreated. Many things, with gratitude coming first. Questions, both about the ice, and what Lograve¡¯s plan was. She alone of the remaining force couldn¡¯t contact Lograve while she was within their Mobile Armory.

    ¡°Reveal¡± was what Evalyn heard when Khare tried to answer. Despite their time together, they didn¡¯t know her well enough to be more insightful. She asked another question but kept playing as well. Whatever it was didn¡¯t register well enough for Khare to feel like answering blindly and she didn¡¯t reiterate, so the matter was dropped.

    He only needed half a minute to catch back up given the renewed playing of the Bard. The Host hadn¡¯t been discovered yet, but it would be soon. Five more minutes and they¡¯d be at the lake¡¯s edge. Lograve was still swimming down the center while the gestalt were off in two groups trailing by the side.

    They reached another section and watched carefully as the platform began to rise. That was what Lograve had deduced, that the Host was hiding below one of the bridge sections like a slug underneath a rock. When not in use, these sections were made to conceal themselves on the lake floor to avoid the wrathful attention of monsters.

    Lograve was gambling that there was no other part of this lake that offered better concealment and that the Host felt it necessary to seek such a place. Doubling back and checking the rest of the lake would- wait! There. The inner vines of Khare¡¯s being twisted together tightly as they saw fresh spawnlings leaking out the sides of one of the sections up ahead. Spilling out from overabundance.

    So, it was quivering in fear? Keeping itself trapped underneath a section, but powerless to stop its form from reproducing and giving itself away? Good. Khare readied their tridents and an ability that would lash them rapidly around within a short distance of themself, just in case the Host came for them. No gestalt ability required an incantation, for obvious reasons, so it was still usable underwater.

    Lograve sent out a mental signal and then hovered over the bridge segment. Sensing a mortal above it, the bridge began to rise. It didn¡¯t matter that there wasn¡¯t a connection to land formed by its other segments. It was well-designed, enchanted by a Builder in the service of the Incursion Army that had first taken the region. Each section was enchanted to act alone so that failure of the enchantment at one point wouldn¡¯t cause the entire bridge to go down.

    Beneath the roughly square shaped piece of enchanted stone, the Illustrious Slave Host twitched. The pressure on it was being relieved, which meant it was being exposed. It had squeezed itself into a safe place far enough away from the mortals to avoid their detection, or so it had thought. That so many had escaped its swarmlings and then had been able to ignore them in the water came to it as a surprise. As the square bridge section lifted, a cloud of swarmlings burst out from all sides. Hundreds, there had to be. In the gestalt¡¯s senses, they were poorly lit by what moonlight made it down this far, as well as the faint shimmering from the bridge.

    The gestalt closed in as Lograve dashed through the cloud of swarmlings. The Arcanist was confident in his defenses and used the disruptive tide around him to cut gashes into it. The circling motion that both intersected the swarmlings and the space above the bridge was enough to keep it elevated. As other gestalt unleashed more long-range attacks able to cut through the water, a darker shape emerged among the others. It was of the same basic structure as the swarmlings, but ten times as large and without the orange coloration. On the main body, there were crevices that ran up from the center between where the flagellates parted. Red, to break up the blue of its skin. Swarmlings were passively disgorged at regular intervals from each side.

    Khare focused their intent on the Host and Marked it. As an ability, it was less extensive than Daniel¡¯s in that it did not reveal the creature or even apply to more than one at a time. Still, it let Khare sense the Host¡¯s general direction. It wasn¡¯t getting away now.

    Despite their speed, other gestalt made it within range of the Host first simply because it darted toward the other group. At that moment, Khare learned of another difference in the Host¡¯s biology. It speared through one of the level 1s in that group, instantly destroying it. The entirety of their vines weren¡¯t gone, but the gestalt didn¡¯t have enough mass to shift its integral connections around the spiked point of the Host.

    In essence, earth gestalt were giant knots. Trying to untie them the normal way would be impossible, if only because they wouldn¡¯t let you. But if the vines were untied and laid out in straight lines, the gestalt would die. If the bindings of their form were undone in any significant way, they lost the ability to spread their will across their form. Fire was another major concern, but only because that could easily and totally destroy one without appropriate defenses.

    So different. Each species fragile in its own way. Khare led the charge in his group as those close to the Host attempted reprisal strikes. Weapons scored hits, but even if their enemy was a swarm host it could survive attacks from lesser arms. It seemed like the normal swords, spears, or likewise being used were barely scratching it. And the enchanted weapons they did have?

    Khare watched as a gestalt Knight reached out with the sword they carried and struck a blow. Instead of damaging it, the few wounds the Host had been dealt closed! That had been one of the weapons Daniel had made. Lograve had mentioned something about this, but Khare hadn¡¯t quite grasped it. Those gestalt who hadn¡¯t seen the effects were warned, but they also couldn¡¯t communicate as effectively underwater. Another disadvantage of not being able to move their vines as easily as above ground.

    That was proving to be too costly. The Host was quick, outspeeding all of them except Lograve. The only exception was when it tried to impale one of them. If the gestalt survived, they would constrict around the Host to buy time for the others. This is what happened when Khare¡¯s group reached the others. The Berserker had used their dash to intercept the Host, sacrificing a third of their mass to restrain it. This was their best chance. Khare raised all of their held weapons, priming Coordinated Strike. Both of their tridents were included in the set, as well as some of their daggers. Thrusting attacks would minimize the risk involved in hitting the gestalt that bound their target. Concern was there of the sudden healing of the Host in response to their weapons, but what other option did they have? There was a trick here that they wouldn¡¯t discover unless they tried everything.

    The knots within Khare tightened as the ability triggered. While they didn¡¯t have arms per se, not when in their normal form, they had a limited number of the equivalent of shoulders with which to handle weapons. Khare had far more vines than they could use to manipulate weapons, although certain powers from their class helped mitigate that. This was a quantity over quality approach to the Martialist class which became both through the attention of a certain Artificer. Khare could be a volley by themselves, carrying tremendous firepower relative to their level and intensity of the ability. But as the first trident struck, Khare¡¯s metaphorical heart stopped when they perceived wounds around the host, injuries their brethren had struggled to inflict, seal. The trident itself only grazed the scaled hide.

    They wanted to abort the assault, but it was too late. Committed attacks had that weakness. The next trident hit the Host and it screamed. An undulating sound made the water itself ripple and swarmlings burst out. Khare would have wondered how it was screaming without lungs if they also didn¡¯t talk without them. Besides, they were staring intently at the flesh which was blackening where the trident had hit. Then, his daggers hit and it was like nothing had happened. The creeping dead tissue reversed course and his second trident was torn out of the creature by its writhing. As a result of the gestalts¡¯ exchange in total, the Host was left with no injuries.

    If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

    Emotions flowed around the gestalt like the water itself, invisible to everyone without their species¡¯ Empathic Link. Frustration and urgency saturated the picture, all taking that for granted when reading the others. Pain, predominantly, from the Berserker. Disbelief from some at the Host¡¯s continued survival but comprehension from Khare and those who were familiar with what made their second trident special.

    Lograve reached out to them after noticing what was happening. The earlier warning was clarified with what Khare knew now. Use lightning and avoid radiant. Notes of caution from his allies came too, focused on the weapons they were holding. Communal disbelief faded as comprehension spread to take its place. Resolve followed. One more experienced than Khare indicated a desire for their weapon, but communally this idea was rejected. Khare had the Bard, and the others seemed to agree they were the best to wield it for now.

    So much for his multi-weapon skills. It didn¡¯t take an Empathic Link to register the confusion from Evalyn as he replaced his radiant weapons next to her, but there wasn¡¯t time to try and explain the situation. They had to strike quickly before- too late. The Host was able to escape from the pin through its desperate movements, fearing the very weapon they held.

    It didn¡¯t come back. Why would it? The Host had thought it could take the lesser enemies, up until the point one had revealed it carried its weakness. In fact, two others of the gestalts had lightning-based powers they had previously used to help charge the lightning rods. The problem was any lightning they used would be dispersed throughout the lake and harm them as well. Only a very specific enchantment prevented that. It was a miracle they even had this trident. Khare hadn¡¯t been envisioning this exact scenario when they asked for the second one but had appreciated the value of having a lightning weapon they could use underwater. Honestly, the only reason they¡¯d asked for it was that Daniel had freely made other weapons for it. Why not ask for more?

    The Host slipped away into the darkness of the distant lake. Khare could track it, but they couldn¡¯t catch it.

    ¡­

    Don¡¯t use radiant weapons, gods damn it! Lograve cursed at the gestalt as yet again the Host was healed purely from the touch of the shimmering metal. Damage absorption. Worse than immunity, the monsters would steal the energy of the attack instead of ignoring it. Stronger variants of dragons had this for the element they embodied, for example. But finally, seemingly in spite of his repeated attempts to warn them, the gestalt understood. Khare¡¯s lightning-charged trident was enough to seriously wound the Host. Of course, follow-up attacks negated this, but when the gestalt put away their other weapons it was clear they¡¯d gotten the message.

    Too late. The Host had tasted a weapon that could kill it and was retreating faster than even he could go. This fast, it could avoid any area they targeted with lightning should they switch to plan B. Every minute the Host avoided them was more sand out of a timer he couldn¡¯t see. Daniel, do you have anything that can slow monsters?

    No. Stop disconnecting me!

    I¡¯m sorry, I had to focus and your screams-

    I was watching Hunter beat himself to death, and you had me locked up the whole time!

    Gods. So it could take hostages. What¡¯s happening with Tak?

    Most of them are down, and he¡¯s dragging them over to where the bridge is whenever the fighting stops.

    Smart. How has he not become affected yet? No, never mind. We¡¯ve found the Host but it¡¯s too fast.

    Can¡¯t you freeze the water around it?

    Too fast, Lograve reiterated. It¡¯s taking all I have to keep the swarmlings off of me. We need to slow the Host!

    Couldn¡¯t you make the gestalt faster?

    I think Evalyn¡¯s still inside Khare, but even with her, they''re too slow. If only they were water gestalt- That same feeling in the back of his head made him pause. Something about what Daniel had said, but that couldn¡¯t be it. Hold on, I¡¯m coming up. The gestalt are tracking it now, some of them at least.

    They¡¯ve got Identify Creature too?

    Nothing so absurd. Lograve shot out of the lake in a spray of water and swarmlings, both falling back down as he used Aquakinesis to very carefully shield himself and then create a platform under him. Manipulating the ice this quickly taxed him, but he managed it through the finer control level 4 gave him as well as the years of practice he had with the feature. He spared a glance at the ice shelf now rapidly shrinking and froze himself. What was that? What is that?

    Tak.

    What!?

    I don¡¯t know, but he¡¯s not- both of them winced as the thing that was probably Tak unleashed another scream on a downed mortal. He¡¯s not killing them.

    I need to focus! Something else on the ice shelf caught his eye. Where the melting edge met the water there was a fibrinous material spreading out like the tendrils of a translucent jellyfish. Spider¡¯s silk, spun by the creature now defending Tlara¡¯s unconscious body. Why was that silk giving him that same odd feeling?

    Time passed as Lograve desperately thought through the powers he could have gotten from level 4, knowing it would have to come from intelligence. Something to do with enhancement, silk? Speed? It wasn¡¯t making sense, because there was a third piece that didn¡¯t fit. He opened his journal to the page with one hand, holding it out in front of the lake and the ice shelf. What was it? Maybe some incantation related to part of these clues, while the others were what his ability did. If it was a feature, he should have felt the passive effects by now. Unless¡­ It was hope more than reason that made Lograve reassess his assumptions. A plea that the perfect solution to this scenario was actually within his grasp.

    He drew more water up in the space in front and below him, where the swarmlings were still trying to get to him and the gestalt hopelessly pursued the Host. He didn¡¯t make a solid platform, but a pattern in mid air. Yes, somehow, he was on the right track but it wasn¡¯t quite right. He looked to where the Artificer was standing a short distance from Hunter and rotated it in his direction. Daniel, is this pattern correct?

    There wasn¡¯t an immediate response. Uh, no, it¡¯s not. Why does this matter? Lograve sent a mental jab which spurred Daniel into being more helpful. There should be two lines one the second and fourth branches. No not those, the other, yeah.

    Why didn¡¯t you draw it that way the first time?

    I was just doodling! Why does this matter?

    Lograve ignored that and the follow-up question, fixing the copy of the pattern in front of him. Still not right, but it was closer. Time was slipping away, what was he missing? He flipped the page with his thumb to where he¡¯d repeated the structure several times, altering the notation to align with the arcane theory he¡¯d been investigating as of late. The alterations were mostly concerned with representing the points as if they were three dimensional. Much easier to reproduce with an ice sculpture, especially when the seventh sense was guiding him. And, apparently, Daniel. I see what you¡¯re doing. Make the points connected by two lines level with each other.

    Why? Lograve did so and found it fit better with whatever his mind was grasping for.

    It¡¯s just how it works. Whatever this was, the Artificer was familiar with it. This was also enough of a distraction that it was edging Daniel back from whatever abyss he had neared.

    What else?

    I, hang on I¡¯m trying to remember. It¡¯s been years since I studied this and I wasn¡¯t trying to make a career of it. Ok, the angles of parts coming off the large branching parts that aren¡¯t level should be at equivalent angles to themselves.

    Lograve blinked. He wished Daniel could express that in any other way than verbal, but that¡¯s what he had to work with. He slowly rotated the sculpture, trying to pin down what Daniel was describing.

    No, not like that. It¡¯s shaped like, uh¡­ Daniel was correcting the structure again. Caltrops! You have caltrops here, right?

    Ah, of course. Instead of angling each of the three points Daniel had specified equivalently to the fourth connecting each branching larger point to the main structure, Lograve arranged them so the connections between each other were equidistant. That description painted a much clearer picture in Lograve¡¯s mind. Why didn¡¯t he just say that to begin with? He was close. Anything else?

    That looks right, I think. I never really saw how this looks three dimensionally.

    Then how did you know how to correct me?

    There are just rules about how chemistry works! Daniel thought defensively.

    Chemistry? Another word for alchemy. Now that made no sense. Lograve played with the arrangements of other points Daniel hadn¡¯t commented on, feeling the fit in his head grow closer and closer. I¡¯ve almost got it. If this works, then I don¡¯t know, but you may feel like you¡¯re under the effect of Bardic music.

    You¡¯re working on a buff?

    It would be rather silly to make ice sculptures just for the heck of it. He smiled, looked at Murdon struggling against what was ostentatiously a level 2 opponent, and found he couldn¡¯t drop the smile. As surety of his power filled him, the name of it was revealed by the same strange instincts which had guided him. ¡°I have Ritualism, Murdon,¡± he whispered as if making a wish. ¡°I don¡¯t know how, but I do. Hold on, we¡¯ll get you better.¡±

    The final piece clicked into place. The clues had led him right to this. An array power, prompted by the patterns woven by the silk shocker. His desires for enhancement magic, and the symbol Daniel had provided which had first piqued his curiosity due to its similarity to others. Ritualism, a level 6 Arcanist power. No one acquired it before then because there were no benefits to it before then. But likewise, nothing an Arcanist of Lograve¡¯s standing could obtain explained what was about to happen.

    Intuition told Lograve he¡¯d spent enough time and mana preparing the spell and gave him a rough idea of the area he could target. Smaller than what he¡¯d expected, but it would cover the gestalt and they were in range. He brought his arms together and then pushed them forward as if to propel the mid-air symbol towards them. The ice composing the symbol splintered apart and ephemeral light replaced it. Rushing forward, it washed over the gestalt in the lake and they shimmered where the circle hit them. When the effect was over Lograve slumped forward as a mana surge erupted from him, the rapidly draining energy significant enough to produce a notable force in the world. As for the magic he¡¯d cast, that had a different impact on the battle.

    Lograve beamed for a moment, caught in the rush of discovery. Then pain made him look down and he couldn¡¯t stop himself from shouting, ¡°Oh come on, really!?¡± Attached to his leg was a swarmling that had managed to jump up to him while he was distracted.

    ¡­

    Below the breaking ice and writhing surface of the water, the gestalt pursued the Host at a maddeningly slow pace. No longer did it charge them. Instead, every swarmling in the lake converged in an attempt to take them down. The small creatures did relatively little damage on their own, but the combined mass was beginning to tax them. It was like being buried by pebbles. What was worse, every time Khare had to rip one off of them they had to pause to do so. This was hopeless. Even spreading out again into groups didn¡¯t afford them any better chance to get close and take it out. Beyond that, it was only Khare¡¯s trident that could score the critical blow. The others had abandoned their weapons with the intent of constricting the Host to create an opportunity. One that would never come if they couldn¡¯t touch it.

    Water. It wasn¡¯t the worst medium a gestalt could be suspended in, that was magma, but it was still aggravating. This was not their domain, and every gestalt sensed this on a basic level. They were not meant to fight in such a terrain, and they would tire far before one suited to it. This was hopeless. The time to kill the Host had been when it was emerging from the dragon¡¯s corpse, only none of them had known that. On the ice they had a chance, now they were watching defeat bloom before their eyes.

    Then something odd happened. A ring of light washed over the gestalt who had regrouped to try and come up with a better plan. From what they could sense, there was a pattern in the water that traveled within the center of the ring. It was moving too fast to dodge, but Khare didn¡¯t feel threatened by it either. Rather, when it touched them, the entire world shifted. Khare knew about enhancements, of course. They were actively under the effect of one courtesy of Evalyn and had listened to the combined might of the Bards during the second and final phases of the dragon fight. It was a similar experience to the band, only more intense, and more focused.

    Specifically, Khare was jittery. Their vines were twitching with energy as if they hadn¡¯t just been in a prolonged and desperate fight. The others were feeling it too, the complex color overcoming the others that had been the background of their communal Empathic Link. Then, the speed kicked in. Time itself remained constant, but everything else around Khare slowed except for the other gestalt. They were moving faster than they could on land. Faster even then Kob had been able to go before their ill-fated choice to ascend to level 5 early. They were tearing through the water! The more experienced of the gestalt recognized that this degree of improvement couldn¡¯t have come from any power of the first three levels, not if it was letting them corner the Host that had masterfully evaded them before.

    This was it. Khare¡¯s grip on the trident faltered only because the effect on them made grasping it more difficult. In every other way, they were prepared. They slowed themselves fractionally to let the others go first. Another shriek resounded through the water as the first gestalt made contact, easily dodging the attack the Host made as it rapidly turned on them. First one set of vines, then another. Like ropes pulling down a giant the cluster of gestalt ahead of them fought against the Host¡¯s superior strength. Whatever enhancement was on them didn¡¯t improve that attribute, but they had numbers and the ability to finally catch their prey. Khare paused for a moment more to ask themself where to strike. The creature had no eye. Its main body was just a tapered tube and the slits that spawned the swarmlings. One of those then.

    Khare selected what was widely considered the most basic of abilities for this attack: Strike. It was to Martialists what Jump was to Totem Warriors. All it offered was a very minimal improvement to damage and armor penetration, in exchange for very little cost mana-wise. Contempt didn¡¯t drive this choice, although Khare felt it for the monster they attacked. Strike was simply the only ability they had that would work with only one weapon.

    It was all they needed. The trident¡¯s bite was as devastating as the first hit, only now the gestalt were aware of its life stealing affinity for radiance. They were done giving it second chances. Another Strike, hitting into its exposed innards and spreading the blackness that was death across its body. The water around the creature sparked each time they struck, but neither they nor their allies were injured. The other villagers hadn¡¯t held this weapon¡¯s enchantment in high regard. Fools. By the fourth strike, it was over. The Host wasn¡¯t dead, but it couldn¡¯t escape them. Khare would keep lashing out until there was nothing left. They would, except they too recognized the inevitability of their victory. Pausing before the fifth strike, Khare released the trident and passed it to the gestalt next to them. They were an Arcanist who had no business holding such a weapon, but they did it anyway. They impaled the Host and passed it on, trident going from vine to vine as the others held the Host in place.

    The message was clear, although only the gestalt themselves were there to witness it. The species lived and died together. This victory belonged to each, including the ones that hadn¡¯t survived the Host¡¯s attacks. Even if the mortals above didn¡¯t acknowledge what they¡¯d done for them, within the circle of gestalt each stabbing the Host, there was community. They would remember, and they would endure.

    By the time the trident had made it to Khare¡¯s vines a third time, the Host was dead.

 Chapter 80: Silver Eye

    Silora collapsed in her Focus chamber when it was clear the danger had passed. She had seen so much. Too much. ¡°Fate, are you well?¡± the slightly rasping voice of the dusker who was her new assistant called to her. Still too new to feel comfortable calling her by her name, or for Silora to break through exhaustion and remember hers.

    She didn¡¯t respond. The past two hours had been the longest consecutive time Silora had maintained Far Sight on another region by a large margin. It wasn¡¯t a feat she could reproduce anytime soon as the credit was due to the pile of empty bottles lying by one of the side tables. They¡¯d all contained mana potions fed to her at regular intervals. Well, one or two were wine glasses. It had been an extremely stressful viewing.

    Was her prize unharmed? She¡¯d spent almost three potions worth on abilities when the dreadful trap had been unveiled, although Silora wasn¡¯t sure if it had been worth the effort. She wanted to keep viewing, make sure he was alright, but exhaustion had finally caught up to her. Even with another mana potion, she couldn¡¯t mentally concentrate well enough to make use of her magic.

    ¡°Fate!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m fine,¡± Silora groaned from where she lay. Her assistant was, of course, useless. The poor girl was a normal, although only a fool would discount the natural strength of a dusker. Why they thought she of all people would make a good replacement for Rait was beyond Silora.

    ¡°What happened?¡±

    ¡°Ugh, give me a moment.¡± Silora searched for a name for a second, then gave up and let the sentence end awkwardly. ¡°I¡¯m too dried out for this.¡±

    ¡°If it is a Cleric you need, one can be called for. However, I request an immediate answer,¡± a third voice archly intoned. It wasn¡¯t just the two of them in the room. Every place one could sit in Silora¡¯s Focus room was occupied, except for the floor. No one in attendance would stoop that low.

    ¡°Lord Aucrest,¡± she wheezed. ¡°It would be easier if you just asked what you want to know.¡±

    ¡°Did they survive? And what of these unusual monsters?¡±

    ¡°Dead,¡± she coughed, finally dragging herself out of the fully reclining position and adjusting the contraption in the center to make it so she could see more than the ceiling. There was a very worried look being shared by some in the room. Really? Oh, they thought she¡¯d meant the survivors. ¡°The mortals survived. The dragon and what came out of it are dead.¡±

    The Lord who¡¯d spoken to her looked on with impatience as she spoke slowly. It wasn¡¯t as if she was trying to get on their nerves, not this time, but the day and now, night¡¯s work had been extremely tiresome. ¡°I see. But the third, this bird creature?¡±

    ¡°Still alive, but it won¡¯t be if it doesn¡¯t retreat.¡±

    ¡°Hmm. Shame, though I doubt they¡¯d think to bring it here alive for study,¡± one further in the back commented. ¡°I don¡¯t suppose you could attempt to message them?¡±

    Silora wheezed dustily instead of laughing as she intended. ¡°I can barely speak.¡±

    ¡°Ah, wind-cursed ash.¡±

    ¡°Who survived?¡± Aucrest asked, regaining control of the situation. He didn¡¯t move, but his authority loomed over Silora as he threw more into his voice. ¡°And were there any unique displays of powers you can report?¡±

    It was fortunate that exhaustion prevented Silora from immediately giving it away. Of course there had been. He had taken part of the fight himself, though his unique talent hadn¡¯t been on display. But, there had also been quite a few strange mortals worthy of note who¡¯d revealed themselves. Should she report them and leave out the brightest of pearls in their midst? No. As much as her people were derived from them, the true sharks swam around her now. Give them any scent of blood and they¡¯d ruthlessly inspect the entire batch of survivors in case there were other gems she¡¯d missed. As absurd as it would sound to a layperson like her new assistant, talent scouting was one of her most valuable contributions to the region.

    ¡°Silora?¡± There was a warning tone in the voice now.

    ¡°The fledging Commander survived with grevious injury, I think. No one special,¡± she lied. ¡°If there was someone like that, they might not have lost the majority of their number.¡± It was a lie she could only tell because of the very basic retelling of the battle she¡¯d given as it was happening. No mention of lightning rods or magical items out of the ordinary, for example. She was mindful of what mentioning them could do to the appetites of the ones around her.

    They all had a hungry look in their eyes. The people on the streets wouldn¡¯t know it, but the recent death of a Lord had thrown the political backdrop into a frenzy. Fredreick had been important and had been unable to create an heir. A physical issue, it had been rumored. The fate of his holdings and, to a larger sense, the city and region itself were put into question as his slayer had somehow made sure revival was impossible.

    Mark. He¡¯d gotten away and had even left Silora alone. True to his prediction his part and hers in the assassination had come out. There¡¯d been consequences, of course. The balance Silora had carefully maintained was now very, very precarious. The identity of who hired Mark was still unknown and the true mastermind could be enjoying the contents of her wine cabinet at this very moment.

    Of course they would be. Who other than a monster would come into my home and ¡®requisition¡¯ my things, she thought bitterly. If only that helped narrow the list of suspects. But her position was precarious indeed, and she couldn¡¯t afford to comment on it. Survive the storm that now engulfed the city, and focus on making her great escape.

    ¡°My lady, do you need a Cleric?¡±

    Damn, who is she? Maybe it was just the exhaustion, but Silora¡¯s memory was half of her job. As much as she detested it. It shouldn¡¯t be this hard to remember. Chyla? Shyla? Something like that. Silora knew it started similarly to her name, but it was so exotic how could she be expected to remember? ¡°I¡¯ll be fine, just-¡±

    Silora stopped herself from asking to be brought to her bed. No, not yet. The others were departing from the room now that it was clear she was tapped. Most were hurrying to see to their neglected business. No, wait, Silora thought. They¡¯re going to avoid the murderer among them. Not even they know! If she could, she would have sniffed. Or they¡¯re going to their whores.

    Either way, Silora would soon have the room to herself. However, the adjoining room, her lounge, was currently overrun with those individuals who hadn¡¯t entirely left her abode. They were using the space as a parlor, the nerve! But, and this was important, they were still within what was technically her property. Groups were speaking in hushed whispers, confident the voices weren¡¯t carrying to the nearly dead Fate. She had some mana left. Careful misrepresentation of how much resources her powers used over the years had left Silora with a surplus on normal days. It was hard to keep things consistent, but who could challenge her? The civic authorities had no idea how all of that worked, and where would they find a contemporary to consult with? She was the region¡¯s only Fate!

    Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

    Silora had a little bit of mana left. Not much, and the pounding headache meant she could do little with it, but using Farsight across such laughable distances as the next room over was a task she may not even need her throne for. ¡°Let me rest a moment. See to our guests,¡± she told the dusker who might be named Shiala, taking care to keep the scorn internal. ¡°I will call when I am recovered enough to move.¡±

    The dusker gazed at her from behind its outer shell and didn¡¯t seem to read too far into the dramatic swoon Silora added towards the end. The girl generally did what was asked without paying too much attention to theatrics. Reliable but boring, and probably a spy. Shame. ¡°If that is your wish.¡± The voice clicked for a moment in the custom of the race before she turned to leave. Just like that, Silora was alone. Rait would have turned the request into a short sparring match as he insisted she return to bed. If Silora was honest, he could have persuaded her. Why had she been so irritated with him back when he was her assistant? Oh, yes, the arguing, but at least he had spirit!

    No matter. Silora closed her eyes to feign sleep and carefully rotated her throne to face the parlor. She only needed to turn the hidden gears by a few notches, but if someone saw what she was doing they¡¯d know in an instant. It was accomplished with little notice, the remaining officials and their orbiting staff more concerned with themselves than what they only considered a public utility. Extending her senses, Silora honed in on one of the conversations.

    This too was unnoticed, though only because her presence was already saturating the area. A consequence of the Focus chamber she was in. The only reason Lord Fredreick had been ignorant of her sight was that the man had been indisposed at that moment and without his protections. It was the late official¡¯s contemporary, Lord Aucrest, speaking when the words came to her.

    ¡°-refugees we can expect. If Silora is to be trusted, hundreds may be making their way here and at such an inopportune time.¡± The man, an avianoid covered in silver feathers no one would dare call gray, stood as the heart of his group. Not just a Lord, but a leader of one of the factions. A member of the Council. One who, over the past decade, had made some very major moves in the city. Aucrest Seliri, known as the Silver Eye after political enemies of his managed to get the unoriginal nickname to stick.

    ¡°Feh, I don¡¯t stake much on her words. She¡¯s hiding something, that much is clear.¡± A second voice, the one that had been concerned about capturing specimens. A wide-eyed avianoid shorter than Aucrest. Still a Lord, if barely. ¡°Good taste in wine, but poor taste in truth if you ask me.¡±

    ¡°Yes, well, Shavi can be expected to be familiar with fluids.¡± Both Silora and Aucrest furrowed their eyebrows at the third man¡¯s attempt at boorish humor. He was the human in the group. Also, the idiot. ¡°I agree. Definitively evasive on special subjects. Lying though? What would she have to gain?¡±

    ¡°Silora is, hmm,¡± Aucrest lowered his voice, just in case. ¡°A very difficult woman to work with. Practically one of us the way she schemes. I often hear my contemporaries on the Council wonder if we should execute her exit clause whenever they are annoyed with her.¡±

    It was like she¡¯d been tossed in an ice bath, though, actually, that would have done something to soothe her dry scales. Silora was chilled either way by the implication. ¡°Are you sure Aucrest, we- ahem, thank you, we are satisfied with our current beverages,¡± the second Lord, Lawrence was his name, waved off her assistant as she came close. All three waited a moment before he continued, ¡°Are you sure Aughal can tolerate that? Given the current unrest-¡±

    ¡°If there¡¯s one thing I believe, it¡¯s that she didn¡¯t know who hired the Assassin,¡± Aucrest interrupted. ¡°Which means she¡¯s an idiot or a coward. She was probably threatened, which means she can be threatened again. In truth, I¡¯m averse to the consequences of seeking out another Fate. If I had been there when her contract had been signed I would have argued against making the terms so aggressive. This city has lost too many rare classes by trying to entrap them. Remember, we still haven¡¯t found whoever received the Assassin class after we dealt with the last one.¡± A small note of anger entered Silver Eye¡¯s voice, and Silora knew exactly why.

    ¡°Ah! Better we have her watched then?¡± the third asked, suddenly nervous. He pointed at¡­ Skylark? No, that definitely wasn¡¯t it. ¡°Is she one of ours?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Silora sighed with relief. ¡°Probably one of the other factions. Ytaya is the obvious guess. Unless any of you arranged for her to be here?¡± Aucrest dashed Silora¡¯s hopes and continued. ¡°Consider, however, that we have chased the Assassin out of the city. I would have preferred him dead but you can¡¯t have everything. Especially when it comes to killing someone of his level. I doubt there¡¯s anyone else here at this moment that could do what he did.¡±

    ¡°The walls,¡± the third man Silora was mostly unfamiliar with shuddered. ¡°I saw the room after. What kind of power could do that?¡±

    ¡°Assassins, Eddor. They aren¡¯t called that because they kill gently. In any case, so long as we guard ourselves well in this transitory period, we should be fine.¡±

    ¡°Ah but it is so inconvenient,¡± Lawrence complained. ¡°Not the coin, of course, but having so many people aware of where I¡¯m going and at what times. Even if they aren¡¯t blatantly traitorous, at least a handful are selling the information I¡¯m sure! Just the other day I was going to the auction house when-¡±

    ¡°Enough.¡± Aucrest held up a hand. He was the more serious of the three, which probably came from his age. Silora knew the avianoids could also be hawkish at times, but didn¡¯t put too much stock into those kinds of observations. ¡°We do not interfere with our resident Fate at the moment. Any objections?¡± There were none, to Silora¡¯s relief. This time, Aucrest didn¡¯t immediately reverse that either. ¡°Well, we¡¯ve stayed here long enough. One last matter of business.¡±

    ¡°Assuring we have access to any samples they bring?¡± Lawrence asked hopefully.

    ¡°No!¡± The annoyance in Aucrest¡¯s voice made it carry to the two other groups in her lounge, representatives of the other factions. Having a reminder of their presence made the man hesitate, but only briefly. ¡°I¡¯m putting in a request for the city to monitor the approach of the survivors. Even if I didn¡¯t someone else would, so I¡¯m not showing our hand.¡±

    ¡°I could have my trackers put a track on them if that¡¯s where you¡¯re going.¡±

    ¡°No, Eddor. Most of these people have been in that ditch generously called a region for a decade now. They might have forgotten some of the rumors that others spread about our city. It wouldn¡¯t be good to give them a reason to remember them.¡±

    ¡°But you still want to investigate them? I suppose they¡¯ll be coming here either way.¡± Lawrence and Aucrest smiled while Eddor tried to follow along.

    ¡°I doubt there are any rare classes amongst them, but by all accounts, Eido was destroyed. With that went any records of promising individuals advancing within the region. Every one of those with a class coming out of the Thormundz should be considered a diamond in the rough until proven otherwise. We¡¯ll receive the normal fare sorting through them, but-¡± Aucrest held up a talon and leaned in, the other two doing the same, ¡°We should also consider the selective effect of what they¡¯ve been through.¡±

    ¡°The cream rises to the top!¡± Eddor whispered excitedly, finally getting it.

    ¡°Just so. I have no doubts the others are thinking the same and I¡¯m worried about what they¡¯ll do to find promising candidates.¡± All three looked to the groups discussing around them, unaware that they¡¯d been glanced at as well from time to time. ¡°We must consider the future of Aughal, gentleman. Better to make a fair approach on our terms than let someone like Claret get her hooks in them.¡±

    ¡°Well then, let us depart immediately! What if the others have already put plans into place?¡±

    The three lords left, attendants in tow. Silora¡¯s own started rushing the others out as the Fate shifted her attention. She heard mostly the same, which was immensely worrying. Even if they didn¡¯t know who exactly she was protecting, they were keen on searching each and everyone coming out of the region. Should she cut her losses and report what she¡¯d found?

    Silora denied that impulse with a glance towards her ravaged wine cabinet. There were scant dregs left with little chance of replenishment. They hadn¡¯t even needed to take her things, they were rich enough to have refreshments brought here! But that was the nature of this city, and she wanted out. She¡¯d just need to think about it! If she had to agree with Aucrest on one thing, it was that she was as conniving as any of them. With the right moves, Silora was confident she could weasel her way out of the contract and get out of this damned city.

    ¡°S¡­¡± Silora paused, thinking hard. ¡°Sctai?¡± The dusker turned her head in acknowledgment. Of course, that was it. The bug people had the weirdest names. ¡°I¡¯m ready.¡±

 Chapter 81: Mirage

    In another part of the Aughal, below the cylindrical Spires reaching hundreds of meters into the air, sat an Artificer. He¡¯d made himself as comfortable as he could since that¡¯s what his job primarily required. Sure, tracking down rare materials and formulae was important, as was making enough to remain out from under the thumb of anyone else. What trumped all of that was enchanting. It¡¯s what made the money and, occasionally, let him advance. By all accounts it was the purpose of his class, and by extension, himself. Disliking the process of creating magical items was therefore an impossibility, and he didn¡¯t dislike it. He hated it.

    ¡°Fifteen hours,¡± Arpan groaned on his couch, shifting slightly. That was how long he¡¯d been working on this piece and it¡¯d be another seven before it was done. ¡°I should have been a farmer. Better schedule at least.¡±

    There wasn¡¯t anyone to answer him, although there was something else in the room. A construct that took the form of a suit of armor roughly half his size. Arpan was no Knight and could hardly have been expected to wear it, and yet it was his Focus. That meant that while he was enchanting, the activity that took up the majority of his life, it had to be within a certain distance of himself. When he¡¯d first acquired the feature that allowed him to create the new Focus type he¡¯d resisted thinking of it as anything other than a decoration out of fear of going mad from prolonged periods of isolation with it.

    He¡¯d lasted a few weeks. ¡°Dril, how much are we making from this?¡± There wasn¡¯t a response. There never was, and a part of Arpan worried about the day that would change. ¡°It might be better just to cancel the order. Oh, but it is thrustgleam alloy,¡± he grumbled, opening his eyes and staring at the dark green metal he couldn¡¯t face away from. ¡°Because of course I can make a level 5 blade from it. Sure, it¡¯ll double the time over a more suitable metal, but if you like the color green, my lady then I suppose it¡¯s no trouble! Huh. Thank Star for Arcane Efficiency at least.¡±

    Both Apran and Silora would¡¯ve traded positions in moments if that were possible. The shavi yearned for Arpan¡¯s relative freedom, lack of binding contract bond, and ability to tolerate the air itself. The human, for his part, disregarded all of that in favor of being able to look at something, anything besides his office during his craft. That was the problem with enchanting. Coercing a bit of metal, wood, or other exotic substance to both change shape and hold magic was a difficult process. Unless you were insane and wasted material far above what you were trying to create, professional grade enchanting required deep concentration over prolonged periods of time. Even then, there were no breaks when the mana started flowing.

    At least he had Dril. Before the servant and before he¡¯d honed his craft, Arpan had ruined several works when hunger, thirst, sleep, or other needs had become too much to bear. As it was Arpan had grown to tolerate longer stretches over the years. ¡°That makes me sound old. I¡¯m not old Dril! Oh, now I¡¯m mistaking my thoughts for yours, ugh.¡± Arpan shook his head, being careful not to make too exaggerated a moment. Enchanting was a touchy activity, especially when you were making something of a higher level than the base material. That was putting the Artificer in a bad mood. ¡°You can dye metal, you know. It¡¯s not easy, but there¡¯s no way it¡¯s more expensive than paying for an entire day of my time! I think she placed the order just to annoy me.¡±

    He sighed again. ¡°Don¡¯t worry Dril, I¡¯m not packing up the shop. Besides, where would I go? Freedom is one thing, but material wealth is another and I¡¯m sorry to say I have expensive tastes. Oh, don¡¯t look at me like that,¡± Arpan told the helmetless armor. ¡°This isn¡¯t a cheap city to live in. And whenever you get scuffed I have to pay a Smith to fix you! I suppose I could just re-enchant you, but where would I find the time!?¡±

    Oops, stay focused. That was close. Arpan took a deep breath and solidified the image of the sword blade in his mind as he felt the enchantment grow tenuous. He was just enchanting the blade, of course. The hilt could be made by normal means and it was a waste of both time and effort to include it in the process. If he was really pushing the limits of his craft he could even just enchant the edge of a blade and leave the rest to another class. ¡°If I¡¯m being honest, a Craftsman would do a better job of it. A third of my requests are for the durability enchantment Dril, can you believe that? You don¡¯t need an enchanter to make metal that resists rust or,¡± he grimaced, ¡°cloth that resists stains. I mean really. Stainproof clothing? I could just make a wand that cleans, woah, woah-¡±

    Arpan¡¯s eyes shot open and he spent several minutes just staring at the metal ingot in front of her before swearing. ¡°Dril, you can¡¯t let me keep going on like that. Too close.¡± Just six more hours? No, that¡¯s too optimistic. I bet it¡¯s only been ten minutes since I last checked. I need to charge for complexity too, I hate not being able to read.

    That was the life. It wasn¡¯t glamorous in the way monster hunting was, though Arpan had to admit it was just as rewarding. He fawned over every piece he finished in the minutes after, relief of a job done feeding as much into the excitement as the wealth generated from it. That was a high that had driven his earlier career and motivation that had become muted slightly over the years.

    ¡°Guess I¡¯ll just hope level 6 has good things in store. I¡¯ll be able to start contesting the quality of Armafus¡¯ Legacy at least. Yes, Dril, I know, I need to work on my strength and dexterity before I can entertain that. Why I need to when you can just lift things for me I¡¯ll never- No, no I do need to make some improvements. I¡¯ll admit being blown over by a stiff breeze is a bad sign.¡± He held his tongue with his next thought, aware it wasn¡¯t the wisest thing to say aloud even if he was ostentatiously alone. City like it is now, I¡¯d be mad to make myself more vulnerable.

    The news hadn¡¯t spread far. At the same time, it was impossible for anyone in regular contact with what passed for the city¡¯s leadership not to know. They were tense, even those who generally passed through life in a daze and made the most banal requests of him. One of them had been killed. In the city, and while in the most defensible of locations, a Spire.

    If anyone asked Arpan and he wasn¡¯t paying attention to what he was saying, the Artificer would comment that underneath the machinations each was no doubt planning, they were scared. The nobility¡¯s actual power was fragile. It had only taken one life to remind them of that. Any breakdown in civic order would be bad business for anyone with something to protect. Like him. ¡°I¡¯m not good in a fight Dril.¡± Arpan grimaced. ¡°If I opened the mirror now-¡°

    ¡°That¡¯s good.¡± The voice came from behind him, interrupting what he was about to say. The speaker had a soft voice that sounded muffled as if passing through a veil.

    Arpan froze, holding onto the enchantment in progress only reflexively. ¡°Who¡¯s there?¡± How had they gotten in? How long had they been there? ¡°What do you want?¡±

    One of those questions was answered when the figure wearing sand-colored robes walked into his line of vision. ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to offer me a seat? It is rude to sit while your guest stands.¡±

    Arpan narrowed his eyes. There was cloth covering the woman¡¯s face. It fell loosely from the top of the hood, ending near the collarbone where it was affixed by string. A relatively simple disguise, unenchanted even to Arpan¡¯s eyes, and almost completely covered in sand. Was there a storm going on outside? ¡°I¡¯m afraid you are neither guest nor someone I am familiar with,¡± he replied, calming slightly. The mask was a good sign. Why bother hiding your face if you didn¡¯t intend to leave witnesses?

    ¡°Very well. I have my eyes on you and that armor. Don¡¯t try anything.¡±

    The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m perfectly defenseless while enchanting.¡±

    ¡°Your traps would indicate otherwise.¡±

    ¡°Well, the building is another matter, isn¡¯t it. How did you get past those?¡±

    Arpan couldn¡¯t see her face, but the direction of the hood still gave him a sense of where she was looking. Straight at him, just like she¡¯d said. ¡°As much as I enjoy banter, I am not here to answer your questions. I want to know what you made for the Assassin.¡±

    ¡°Nothing,¡± Arpan said immediately. His intruder nodded as if she expected the answer.

    ¡°Of course.¡± She didn¡¯t appear to have any weapons outside of the cloak but still exuded menace in her otherwise melodious voice. She definitely had a class, and not having a weapon just meant she didn¡¯t need one. ¡°And you aren¡¯t going to make me another of whatever that was.¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t.¡± Arpan frowned. Stupid! ¡°I, I mean, well, fine. But I can¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°I am led to believe you are the most capable Artificer in this city.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not saying much is it?¡± He weakly laughed, provoking no response. Besides what she did with her voice, the woman didn¡¯t move. Was she using a power? Arpan couldn¡¯t tell, it was always hard to with social powers. He¡¯d most often dealt with bargaining ones anyway.

    ¡°If it is the price you are concerned about, then trust that I have not come just to deliver an implicit threat.¡±

    ¡°I appreciate all business, but this isn¡¯t the most appropriate way to ask for my time.¡±

    ¡°I am not able to travel freely within this city. Approaching during your sporadic business hours would be difficult. And if my assumptions are correct, what I am asking for is not something you request openly.¡±

    ¡°Do you know what I made?¡±

    ¡°No, but I know what it does. I¡¯d find it hard to believe something like that could come from anywhere else.¡± She took a step forward and Arpan found himself unable to retreat. Despite the situation, he was still focusing on the enchantment. Why not? He would have to drop his concentration to use an ability, but by his generous estimates he was worth only half his actual level in a fight. That included his equipment and Focus, which he wasn¡¯t wearing. ¡°I want replicas. At least four, and we will pay their worth.¡±

    ¡°I, I can¡¯t.¡± Another step forward, and Arpan carefully raised a hand. Slowly, for both her sake and his. ¡°I don¡¯t have what I need! He, uh, the Assassin provided that.¡±

    The covered head tilted for a moment, thinking about his words. ¡°I am led to believe Artificers can make anything they desire from scraps.¡±

    ¡°Only true at face value. Believe me.¡± Arpan glared at the greenish metal ingot behind the woman and then fixed his gaze back on the midpoint between them. ¡°Look, you¡¯re doing the right thing. Coming here just like he did, making threats, though his involved more knives-¡±

    ¡°That can be arranged.¡±

    ¡°What you need to arrange,¡± he said quickly. ¡°Is what he gave me. Otherwise, I can substitute, but not to the point that it is feasible for me to. I¡¯d lose the craft from either my exhaustion or your impatience.¡±

    ¡°Fine. Then tell me what is needed.¡±

    Is this happening? Wait, what if this is a test? Then I¡¯ve said too much already. Damn it but how could I be expected to hold my tongue under threat of¡­ of¡­ implied unpleasantness! ¡°You¡¯re lucky that you only need to bring me half of what he did. The Assassin provided the formulae I used and I just need to learn that once. As for the other material, it was a heart.¡± He would have explained further but she interjected.

    ¡°A heart? From which species?¡±

    ¡°Monster, that¡¯s all I know. I couldn¡¯t identify it so it came from at least a level 6. I could describe the horrible fleshy thing to the best of my recollection but I doubt that would help you.¡±

    There was a pause that stretched for a minute, to the point that Arpan was debating asking Dril to fetch him a snack. Fear of damage to his armor held his tongue long enough for the woman to reply. ¡°I believe you, as aggravating as that is. Sands of my grave. Did the Assassin give you any details? Shouldn¡¯t the instructions have specified what you needed?¡±

    ¡°¡®Special requirement¡¯ was all the formulae said. The odder ones can be like that and I think they even went to the trouble of Unidentifying another part.¡± Arpan¡¯s tone was almost commiserating. The obstacle this unknown intruder had come upon was one he was well aware of. ¡°I can imagine many reasons why you might want this, but is it truly worth it? I don¡¯t just ask because of the enormous personal risk I am undertaking here, but, what you ask for is, well¡­¡±

    ¡°What, do you think I¡¯m an Assassin?¡±

    ¡°No? You look the part in some way. Not like him, but, well. A Rogue? I admit I¡¯m having trouble assessing you. I hadn¡¯t heard of another being active in the city.¡±

    ¡°I am no Assassin,¡± she replied with what sounded like a smile hiding behind the veil. ¡°And I know what I¡¯m getting myself into. Describe this heart, including how it was given to you. If I provide you with a sample, would you be able to verify it is suitable?¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t have a heart on you now, do you?¡± His sudden queasiness was mollified when she shook her head.

    ¡°No. I would hope the exact species wouldn¡¯t matter. Considering their abundance in the Alchemist trade, another shouldn¡¯t be hard to come by.¡±

    ¡°Do you know how expensive, wait, you know how expensive they are.¡± And they¡¯re familiar with Alchemists and can bypass my traps? ¡°Have you been here before, to my store?¡±

    ¡°You can consider me a repeat customer. That¡¯s all you need to know. Now, the heart.¡±

    As he described the organ a man dressed sharply in black had given him, Arpan thought quickly. The identity of his visitor wasn¡¯t of the utmost importance and he was probably better off not knowing, but only if she kept good to her word. Otherwise, the existence of another person who knew how to breach his sanctum would be a problem. Mark was currently dealt with, even if at great personal cost.

    This woman? She could be trouble. He still didn¡¯t know exactly who she was, but someone who casually spoke of acquiring high level monster hearts was someone of means. A Lady? Surely not, considering she had to have a class, but someone with access to that kind of influence or wealth. Wait, she¡¯d said ¡®we¡¯ at some point. Arpan reached a conclusion he should have drawn immediately. Realizing who this woman was, or rather, who she represented did nothing to change how he felt. At the very least he wasn¡¯t dying tonight. When he¡¯d finished with the gory details, the woman nodded, having made no notes that he could see.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think I need to describe the level of discretion I would prefer with this order.¡±

    ¡°You know about the first time. It¡¯s my head if that gets out.¡± Arpan shrugged. He¡¯d known making that dagger was a death sentence, in more ways than one, but no one seemed to have connected its enchantment with him. Mark could have acquired it many ways or have had it before he even came to the region. No one had been brazen enough to accuse him, except for the woman that had been bold enough to come here uninvited.

    ¡°That is true. But I am concerned that you fear what happens if you fulfill my request.¡±

    ¡°I am currently the only one in this arrangement with something to lose and only promises on what I may gain.¡±

    The woman crossed her arms, looking down. Arpan didn¡¯t get the sense of disappointment but further thought. ¡°I have no reason to harm you. Only words, I know. I can¡¯t tell you who I am, but perhaps if you knew who I represent you would feel more at ease. Earnest, even.¡± She reached into a fold of her garments and flicked a small token towards him. It was made of wood, easily fit into his palm, and was only embellished with waving lines. The Mirage. ¡°If you hadn¡¯t already figured it out.¡±

    ¡°You would be the only ones crazy enough to try this again. Assuming you hired the Assassin?¡± He shook his head. ¡°But you¡¯d know what kind of heart you needed if that was the case. Strange, I had assumed it was you. I am curious what would make you think I¡¯d jump at the chance to eliminate more of my primary customers.¡±

    ¡°I thought I¡¯d lead with the general threat of death, but only as a means of introduction. They are not the sole masters of commerce here, no matter what they say.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m hardly one for your propaganda. I know the position I¡¯m in, I just need assurances you won¡¯t use the last of these on me when you¡¯re done.¡±

    ¡°What manner of assurances?¡± she asked thoughtfully.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know! I wasn¡¯t exactly prepared for this negotiation.¡±

    ¡°You are fortunate you don¡¯t need to close the deal now then. Hmm. A heart. Hideously poetic.¡± Arpan just grunted in agreement. He¡¯d hoped never to use the formulae again. If he could have thrown it into the pits of his memory or cast it away forever he would, but that wasn¡¯t how Artificers worked. ¡°Very well. Speak nothing of our meeting. I will contact you again when I have what we need to proceed. And Arpan?¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°This isn¡¯t the kind of deal that you¡¯ll regret making, even if you don¡¯t agree with us. I will think about how to make you see that.¡±

    Arpan snorted. ¡°Just like that? I find of all my wares, my trust is the hardest to bargain for.¡±

    ¡°Then perhaps I should find something worth its value.¡± She moved out of his sight, footsteps heading for the sole entrance.

    He couldn¡¯t resist getting the last word. ¡°All and all, I do prefer you to the Assassin.¡± She left, but not before giving him the briefest of laughs. ¡°Oh Dril, we¡¯re in for it now. But, you know what the silver lining is? I think she took up an entire hour of this blasted sword.¡±

 Chapter 82: Aftermath

    Daniel was cold. Even though the ice was long gone, the chill would remain for some time in his heart and his bones. The memories would last forever. One more night of terror to add to all those he¡¯d survived. He sat on the lake shore and just stared into the sky, one hand on Hunter. The red aura was gone from him, just like all of the others who had been afflicted. Almost all of them.

    Gadriel had been the only one left when it¡¯d happened. Murdon might have held up against Tak too if he hadn¡¯t been down a hand. His helmet had also been a weakness against the screams. Either way, the Hero had been able to reverse the losing position he¡¯d been in and knock out the monstrosity assaulting him. It¡¯d been close, but Daniel had warned him of who it was just in time. Losing Tak would have been too much. They¡¯d already lost too many, the majority of those who¡¯d come here. None of the people in Daniel¡¯s group were dead, but that hardly mattered.

    The threshold for when the domination effect became permanent wasn¡¯t known, only the factors that would affect the progression towards it. It wasn¡¯t a surprise then whose auras hadn¡¯t changed back when the Host died. A few had been covered by swarmlings when they first emerged. Alost, probably because of the potion William had thrown. And, everyone with a healing power. Everyone.

    He watched Khare make their way to the surface with the other gestalt, save for one that was going after a human Tak hadn¡¯t quite managed to get over a bridge section. They¡¯d probably survive. Daniel found it hard to care. He just wanted to fall asleep, but he needed to know if Hunter was alright first.

    Evalyn stepped out unsteadily from the mass of vines as it held out a weapon and spoke. ¡°Trident.¡± Khare sounded grateful, so Daniel nodded in their direction. The Bard, for her part, looked across the lake and saw how few were still awake. Not counting the gestalt, that number could be counted on one hand.

    ¡°What happened?¡±

    She doesn¡¯t know? Wait, Khare got to her before it started. Daniel looked for the words. ¡°Most of them are just unconscious.¡±

    ¡°Most?¡± Evalyn looked almost hopefully to one of the bodies left over from the dragon fight as if that was what he¡¯d meant.

    Daniel didn¡¯t want to tell her, but the only other person who could explain was Lograve. The Arcanist was hovering over Murdon just like he was Hunter. ¡°Ten of them, uh.¡± he closed his eyes. ¡°They¡¯re as good as dead.¡±

    ¡°We can¡¯t heal them?¡±

    ¡°Anyone who could is gone. It wouldn¡¯t do anything anyway.¡±

    ¡°What do you-¡± She put it together quickly, following his eyes. ¡°Thomas? He¡¯s still breathing!¡±

    ¡°The thing that came out of the dragon, it controls people. Controlled, I guess. If that happens for too long, it¡¯s permanent. Healing makes it worse.¡± He still couldn¡¯t look directly at her, or anyone. It wasn¡¯t his fault and he didn¡¯t feel guilty. The point was he could barely handle what he was feeling. ¡°I thought Regeneration was the only thing we needed to worry about but I think he was healing himself the entire time. From what I can tell, he¡¯s still hostile even though the host¡¯s dead.¡±

    ¡°Who else?¡±

    ¡°Alost is the only other one I know. The rest¡­¡± He recited the names dully, hearing Evalyn react to a few. ¡°About twenty are coming from the group behind us. Quala is with them.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s nothing we can do? Gods, Daniel, he¡¯s still alive!¡± Evalyn seemed to realize something else. ¡°Who¡¯s going to tell her?¡±

    ¡°Me.¡±

    ¡°I could-¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Daniel¡¯s voice grew hard and he did look at her then. She returned the gaze, surprised at the sudden change. ¡°No. I¡¯ll do it.¡± He stood unsteadily and Evalyn gasped as the injured paw was revealed.

    ¡°What happened to Hunter?¡± Evalyn asked, grimacing as she noticed the leg wound.

    The sudden intensity left him for a moment as those memories flooded back. ¡°He¡¯s fine. He will be fine. They got him but I took off Regeneration. He has it back so, hopefully, he¡¯ll wake up soon.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re sure about this? Daniel, you¡¯re shaking.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m just cold.¡± He clenched a fist by his side but didn¡¯t resist when she put a hand on his shoulder.

    ¡°It¡¯s over. We knew there¡¯d be a cost, but-¡±

    Daniel tightened the fist, though he held back what he wanted to shout. She hadn¡¯t seen the worst of it. She hadn¡¯t seen Hunter throwing himself into the ice again and again. Thank god she hadn¡¯t. ¡°I don¡¯t want you to get any closer to this than you have to.¡±

    She took a step back. ¡°I can take care of myself.¡±

    ¡°Not this.¡± It was the haunted look in his eyes she caught from being up close that convinced her. That¡¯s what he thought, at least. ¡°Khare, you got the Host?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± The gestalt had been mostly silent, as was the race¡¯s custom, but had been standing close to the two.

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    ¡­

    Hunter didn¡¯t wake up by the time reinforcements arrived. They were prepared for anything, having only heard Tak¡¯s screams to alert them. Still, the relief force paused on the lip of the ridge to take in what they saw. No dragon, its body having slipped fully into the lake, but bodies sprawled over the magical bridge whose closest segments were now revealed. Also the bodies of the monsters the dragon had previously slain, still rotting around the edges of the lake.

    ¡°Miss Fulwing? I don¡¯t see any hostiles,¡± Janice reported by her side.

    ¡°Something isn¡¯t right,¡± Quala responded. ¡°We should have heard from them by now.¡±

    ¡°Most of them look knocked out. They¡¯re probably recovering first,¡± another said, relief plain on her face. As far as they could tell, the dragon was dead. They¡¯d won!

    ¡°If the dragon attacked them, then they-¡± A brief, fast movement interrupted her. Janice held her spear up, having pierced something orange and blue that was in the throes of death.

    Even if Hunter was still down, others had begun to rouse including those still under the influence. Like the Host itself, it was left to the gestalt to manage them. Everyone else, including Gadriel, was too shocked by what happened to intervene. What they couldn¡¯t do was explain to those non-gestalt in the relief force what had happened.

    Daniel had about a minute to prepare himself. He and Evalyn were the closest and most natural choices, considering Lograve wasn¡¯t moving from Murdon¡¯s side. The Bard stood behind him, respecting his choice. She had grown disturbed by what she¡¯d found after emerging from the gestalt, but true horror escaped her. Only the survivors who¡¯d seen it for themselves had to live with that.

    ¡°What happened?¡± Quala asked softly from the shore. There was no urgency in her voice, but even her eyes betrayed fear as she glanced at the still unconscious Thomas.

    Daniel took a slow breath, appreciating the fact that he was still sane. The image of Hunter rushing the ice was foremost in his mind and something he¡¯d never tell anyone about. As for the rest? The dragon fight he¡¯d seen most of, though he had to skip the part where Tlara knocked him out.

    All and all, there wasn¡¯t too much to say. They fought the dragon, people died, and then they won. He had to take more time with the second part, even though the host had died faster than the dragon. Despite his best efforts, a little bit of the horror leaked out into Quala when he gave her the list of the all-but-dead. She asked him the same question Evalyn had at the end, adding steel to a voice that made it curve like a scythe.

    ¡°Is there nothing that can be done?¡±

    ¡°At this point, they¡¯d have to be resurrected.¡±

    ¡°But they aren¡¯t dead.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s that or if they¡¯re kept alive for ten days like this it¡¯ll corrupt their souls.¡± There was sharp breath from behind him and shock on the faces ahead of him. He hadn¡¯t mentioned that part to Evalyn. He hadn¡¯t even known that part at first until he looked up what Indelible meant. ¡°Quala, I¡¯m sorry. It got Thomas before we even knew.¡±

    Something passed over the Cleric. It wasn¡¯t just a facial expression but a shifting of her feathers that didn¡¯t quite match the avianoid¡¯s instinctual reaction to fear. What she felt then Daniel could only guess. Either way, a response wasn¡¯t long coming. ¡°You both have done so much more than anyone could have asked.¡±

    ¡°How are you so perfect?¡± Daniel shot back, bristling at her calm demeanor for reasons he could hardly grasp. ¡°Thomas is dead and you¡¯re worried about us!?¡±

    ¡°Daniel,¡± Evalyn whispered in a warning tone behind him.

    Quala just nodded, taking no offense. ¡°We remember the dead, and do what we can for the living. I can save Thomas.¡±

    ¡°You can raise the dead!?¡± someone in her group exclaimed.

    ¡°No.¡± Quala shook her head. ¡°It is a function of a bond we have formed, but it is only something I can do for him alone. And, we must be alone. Are the parasites still a danger?¡±

    Daniel didn¡¯t answer, he was just looking at her and trying not to hope. After a few moments, he shook his head. ¡°No, the host is dead. You can save him?¡±

    ¡°Yes, and I would prefer doing so before he wakes.¡±

    Janice coughed. ¡°Before you go, I should ask. What should we do with the rest?¡±

    ¡°By the sound of it, we have ten days to decide. Even if we must put them out of their misery, there is a chance they could be revived though it is weaker the more time passes. I just don¡¯t know where we would find someone willing in time,¡± she sighed, understandably conflicted on the issue. ¡°Go tend to Murdon first and allow him to decide. I don¡¯t want to put that on him, but it should be his decision. Daniel, Evalyn, you have done enough. Rest. Janice, I want you to go back and signal everyone to prepare to cross. Do you feel safe doing this yourself?¡±

    ¡°The way¡¯s clear Ma¡¯am. I¡¯ll get it done.¡±

    ¡°Wait, how are you going to fix Thomas?¡± Daniel spoke up. ¡°I don¡¯t know for sure, but he could be brain damaged by the parasites. Or, something worse.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine Daniel. I¡¯ll take care of it. He will be fine.¡± With that, she walked past him and towards where her former apprentice lay. She was strong enough to take him in her arms and did so as the others of her group moved to secure the rest of the afflicted. They would have to die, she was sure Murdon would come to that conclusion, but Thomas?

    She walked up the ledge that led to the break in the mountain and over the pass, seeing Janice ahead of her. If she was as capable as she had been, the Martiliast might send for more aid. Quala would have to act fast, especially if she wanted to do this before Thomas woke up. It was unclear if he¡¯d remember what happened while under control but she¡¯d spare him any amount of trauma she could.

    Instead of taking the rough path down, she went along the side and tried to find an area shielded from above. A small cave, or a batch of trees ideally. Quala wasn¡¯t a fool when it came to who might be watching, and she needed to be certain what happened only happened between the two of them. Lying to the others had been necessary and they¡¯d all been too shaken to notice.

    The tears didn¡¯t wait. So much death. The Upswell, the two dragons, and everything else. She¡¯d even lost people when the villagers had been attacked today. Not many, but that didn¡¯t matter now. Quala knew what words she¡¯d say to someone else, and she¡¯d tried to say them to Daniel when she¡¯d seen how the Artificer had been crushed by what had happened. Even so, they sounded hollow when turned inward.

    She found an appropriate spot at last. A tree more tenacious than others that had taken root this far up in the mountains. It wasn¡¯t perfect, but any further and she¡¯d worry about the others. Still holding Thomas, she sat against a tree and looked out at the seed she¡¯d tried to nurture before it had been violently ripped from the ground. Even here, the crater that had been Eido marred the horizon.

    People might return here to rebuild, but she wouldn¡¯t be one of them. Thomas wouldn¡¯t either if she could help it. Hopefully, in the years that would come, he would internalize the wisdom the Octyrrum was supposedly giving him. She looked down and put both arms around his neck. Briefly, she checked to make sure his Focus was still attached to his hip. When there was no doubt, she gripped his head with both hands and twisted violently.

    ¡­

    For all the effort the mortals had taken to reach past the mountains, what awaited for them was not worthy of their efforts. Flat plains stretched into the horizon with gentle dips and rises to break up the monotony. It was reminiscent of the land enveloped by the mountains as if they¡¯d risen between what was once a contiguous area. It was noon and those in the camp still rested. By Daniel¡¯s reckoning, they¡¯d continued marching until 4 am to get clear of the lake.

    Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

    Somber only described the attitudes of the villagers and those who hadn¡¯t bore witness to the battle. Daniel, inured as he was at this point to combat, couldn¡¯t even tell where he was emotionally. Not in disguised despair and self-loathing like after Rorshawd. How could he blame himself for what happened? It was the memories, rather, that crossed through his dreams to find him on the other side of waking.

    Traumatized. Maybe that was the right word. The people who¡¯d been controlled certainly were. Memory of the events was shaky for them, which was probably for the best. Hunter didn¡¯t know exactly what he¡¯d done, only that his head and leg hurt, and took Daniel for his word that he didn¡¯t want to know. The ringcat was more angry than disturbed, made worse by not having something to retaliate against.

    The sole exception to the general air took a slow bite as they appraised their surroundings. ¡°Any idea who¡¯s going where?¡±

    ¡°I suppose we should talk about that,¡± Evalyn replied, not touching her food. ¡°Do any of you have restrictions?¡±

    ¡°I thought that wasn¡¯t supposed to matter now.¡±

    ¡°Who knows?¡± Evalyn let the question hang, and Daniel didn¡¯t feel like asking what they were talking about. He didn¡¯t feel like talking at all.

    Thomas cleared his throat. ¡°Probably best if I don¡¯t go to Aughal, but I¡¯m sure it¡¯s fine. Never been to Threst. Dunno what I want, to be honest.¡± Even unflappable as he was, Thomas was self-aware enough to keep his tone measured and quiet.

    ¡°Both are fine for me,¡± Tak commented. He was another matter entirely. The avianoid also had no memory of what he¡¯s changed into, and he¡¯d reverted before the relief force arrived. Only Gadriel, Lograve, Evalyn, Daniel, and the gestalt knew what had happened. The prevailing, and rapidly communicated, consensus was to not tell anyone, even Tak. It was too much to handle in the wake of what had happened. ¡°Either seems fine. More of my people in Threst, but either is fine.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not like we have to stay in either region. We could go further in.¡±

    ¡°Any region in mind Thomas?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± He shrugged. ¡°The places around Aughal aren¡¯t great. I mean, Threst is nice in the fall.¡±

    ¡°I thought you said you¡¯d never been there.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard things. It¡¯s closer to the Hand¡¯s Realm too.¡±

    ¡°Others?¡± Khare commented with a questioning tone.

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure who else we should ask.¡±

    ¡°I think they¡¯re talking about other regions, Evalyn,¡± Daniel cut in. ¡°Can we get to any others from here? I don¡¯t know anything about them, I just¡­¡± he trailed off. Khare¡¯s head nodded at him. He was starting to understand the gestalt better than the others, though he didn¡¯t know why. It wasn¡¯t a bond. Subconscious body language maybe?

    ¡°Don¡¯t think so. The mountains cut us off from those borders.¡± Thomas pointed to the distance and swept his finger across, eventually intersecting with the line of peaks rising far into the air. ¡°Yeah. We could hang around the edges and make our way to another of the border regions, though I don¡¯t think any others have developing regions like the Thormundz. This range¡¯s massive.¡±

    ¡°Hmm. Any of you have family nearby?¡± Tak asked. ¡°I do not. Too far away, and I am not expected to return.¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t miss them?¡± Evalyn asked.

    ¡°No. Sometimes. I have been away for longer than I have been here. What about you?¡±

    ¡°They were in Eido.¡± Everyone looked pointedly at her, and Thomas stopped eating.

    It took a few moments for someone to respond, and it was Thomas who did. ¡°Why haven¡¯t you said anything before?¡±

    ¡°We all lost people, didn¡¯t we? I mourned. I still mourn, but it seems tragedy comes down on us like rain in recent days. I could swim through it or drown.¡± There was grief in her voice, but not her face. ¡°I¡¯ve talked with people, just not you.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± Tak nodded, suddenly becoming the next person of interest. ¡°What?¡±

    It was a good thing Thomas wasn¡¯t currently eating as he would have choked. ¡°Wait, when you two-¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m still not going to talk about that,¡± Evalyn objected waspishly. ¡°Or anything else on the subject.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°Because I¡¯m not keen on my personal affairs being spread to everyone in shouting distance. You think I want to talk about that right now?¡± Evalyn looked down, forgetting a little of her annoyance. ¡°Just forget it. We¡¯re getting off topic.¡±

    ¡°Right. Well, what about you, Guy?¡±

    ¡°Like I said, I don¡¯t know much about either.¡±

    ¡°Well, which did you come through? Matter of fact, which region did you come from?¡±

    There weren¡¯t other people nearby. Close, but not close enough to overhear the conversation between those who had found companionship with each other. There was something between them, even if it didn¡¯t rise to the point of granting magical powers. They made up the vast majority of those he knew and trusted in this world and he could not be honest. But, he also couldn¡¯t lie to Thomas. Literally he couldn¡¯t lie, not without him knowing.

    ¡°It¡¯s pretty far away. I¡¯m not sure you¡¯d know about it. As far as how I got here-¡±

    ¡°Right, yeah.¡± They had at least talked about Daniel¡¯s teleportation and amnesia, even if the details had been stretched to cover certain aspects.

    ¡°You haven¡¯t told anyone about where I woke up, right?¡±

    ¡°N-no.¡± Communal scrutiny turned to Thomas. ¡°I didn¡¯t! I might have mentioned I knew someone who was around Eido when it happened, but I didn¡¯t say anything about Guy.¡±

    ¡°I guess it¡¯s a good thing you know half the people here,¡± Evalyn commented.

    ¡°Not as many as I did.¡± That was the first dark moment Thomas had had since yesterday and chilled the conversation considerably. ¡°Look, Quala¡¯s probably talking about this with Murdon and Lograve. They¡¯ll have a plan. Maybe we¡¯re all going to the same place?¡±

    ¡°That would be good. Staying together. We should, at least.¡± Tak looked around for approval. ¡°Good team. Could hunt.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know if we¡¯ve all fought as a team before Tak. Not all at once.¡±

    Thomas stiffened at that. ¡°Wait, Evalyn, guys, we¡¯re still talking about fighting monsters after what just happened?¡±

    The Bard looked over to Daniel. ¡°How much advancement potential did you get?¡±

    Daniel looked at his phone. ¡°Eight. I haven¡¯t done anything with it. I have ideas, but I¡¯m not sure.¡±

    ¡°See? We¡¯ve all become more powerful over the past month than I have my entire life.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s no way I¡¯m ever fighting another dragon!¡± Thomas exclaimed. ¡°Guy, come on. Two¡¯s enough.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not saying we do that,¡± Evalyn spoke in Daniel¡¯s place. ¡°Obviously. I¡¯m suggesting we take on things appropriate for us. Unless anyone¡¯s sitting on a fortune we¡¯ll need, oh.¡± She grimaced and looked towards Daniel¡¯s armor. He wasn¡¯t sitting on it, but it was in a pile nearby. ¡°Well, that won¡¯t solve our problems forever.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure anyone would be quick to buy it.¡± The prospect of selling the lightning link armor had occurred to him, as well as the problems. ¡°Alone, it¡¯s just armor that explodes.¡±

    ¡°Someone might still want that, Guy.¡±

    ¡°Who?¡±

    ¡°Well.¡± Thomas scratched his head. ¡°Could sell it to someone trying to trick someone else. I¡¯m just saying!¡± He buckled under the renewed scrutiny. ¡°It¡¯s an idea that doesn¡¯t involve putting our lives at risk!¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t want to fight?¡± Tak asked.

    ¡°No! I follow the Hand! You¡¯ve seen me, I barely use a bow. I¡¯m surprised the rest of you want to jump in considering you¡¯ll need to spend a couple of weeks advancing. Either way, I don¡¯t have any combat powers.¡±

    ¡°What about Nova?¡±

    ¡°Well, fine Guy I do. But I¡¯m not a fighter.¡±

    ¡°Quala is,¡± Evalyn challenged. ¡°You saw her against Rorshawd.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. That¡¯s her. She¡¯s awesome. Look,¡± he sighed. ¡°I¡¯m not saying you guys can¡¯t, it¡¯s just that that¡¯s not what I want to do with my life. I want to help people.¡± He stood up, stretching his legs. ¡°I like all of you, but I¡¯m not some battle Bard, warrior Artificer, Tak, whatever Khare is, or a¡­ murder cat? That¡¯s what you call him right?¡±

    Daniel had to laugh quietly, despite everything. Thomas could have that effect on people, even while under scrutiny. ¡°I haven¡¯t for a little bit.¡±

    ¡°Right. Well, I¡¯m not any of those things. I don¡¯t care if I level slower this way, it¡¯s just not worth it. I don¡¯t want to fight.¡± He looked back to the mountains and then to the sky ahead. ¡°Not if I have a choice.¡±

    ¡°No one says you have to,¡± Evalyn finally said, and despite his resistance, Thomas looked relieved. ¡°Daniel, what about you?¡±

    He looked at his hands as if he¡¯d just discovered Claw Strike again. Daniel skated around all of the horrible memories and considered what he¡¯d done. ¡°Am I even good at this?¡± he asked, aloud though it was more to himself. ¡°The rest of you did something today. I was either stuck behind everyone else or in an ice sphere. The only one I really hurt was Hunter.¡±

    ¡°Guy, you¡¯re not that down on yourself again, are you?¡± Daniel looked at Thomas like he was being facetious, only everyone else was nodding.

    His disbelief was clear on his face and Tak followed up the statement. ¡°You are not that dumb, Daniel. You know what you did.¡±

    ¡°The enchanting?¡± Daniel inclined his head. ¡°Yeah, I guess. That just means I hang back with Thomas in whatever city we end up in.¡±

    ¡°And Hunter?¡± Evalyn asked.

    The ringcat looked between them from where he was recovering but didn¡¯t comment. ¡°He could go with you, Tak, and Khare on hunts. He¡¯d be fine as long as Tak is there. Daniel played that out in his head and found he didn¡¯t like it.

    Thomas threw an arm around Daniel¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Yeah! You and me, Guy. We¡¯ll hit the taverns while they¡¯re out getting bloody.¡±

    Daniel shifted under the grip. ¡°Yeah, that would sound nice,¡± he lied, remembering the results of the last tavern he and Thomas were in. ¡°But on the other hand the powers I¡¯m getting make it seem like I¡¯m meant to fight monsters. How else would I get formulae? It¡¯s not like I just want to abandon Hunter.¡±

    ¡°So, don¡¯t.¡± Evalyn shrugged at his frown. ¡°Daniel, we¡¯ve been fighting in large groups against monsters far above what any of us should be expected to face. Normal people should feel inadequate if they only survived.¡±

    ¡°But what if I¡¯m terrible at hunting regular monsters too?¡±

    ¡°Then you get better.¡± Evalyn smiled at him, Thomas shamelessly catching some of the affection as well. ¡°That¡¯s what all of this was for. Now we all have time to get better.¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°This changes nothing.¡±

    ¡°Gods dammit Murdon, you lost a hand!¡±

    ¡°We keep with the original plan.¡± Closer to the front of the camp, Lograve scowled at his unarmored friend. The other three were watching the bickering. ¡°I will go to Threst with Quala. You take Gadriel. Everyone else is free to choose.¡±

    ¡°Commander Murdon-¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not a Commander anymore, Gadriel,¡± the draconoid cut him off. ¡°The region is done for. I yield my authority, ill-gotten as it always was.¡±

    ¡°Sir Murdon,¡± Gadriel compromised. ¡°I could attend Aughal with Quala. The two of you need not separate.¡±

    ¡°That could have been an option before he lost his hand. If we want to restore it quickly, having me there will prevent infection and give him a better chance of getting it regrown. For the same reason, I we need to bring Sigron with us in the forward group. He has perhaps a week, if not less, should a more specialized or higher level healer not be found.¡±

    ¡°What of the rest of our wounded?¡± Murdon asked Quala.

    ¡°The loss of so many of our healers is a blow. By the same token, the majority of those who sustained injuries did so from the monsters that attacked the villagers and will recover on their own.¡±

    ¡°They won¡¯t move as fast, though. Can we rely on them to continue guarding the convoys?¡±

    ¡°Assuming either region doesn¡¯t send aid,¡± Lograve added.

    ¡°I would assume they kept their roads clear, and there are main ones that reach towards both capitals from the Thormundz approach. Beyond a certain point, there will be little threat. I would argue we separate from the main convoy then. Hand willing, we can avoid further deaths.¡±

    ¡°I must say, Sir Murdon, that all things considered what you have accomplished here is nothing short of a miracle. Do we have an idea of exactly how many survived this ordeal?¡±

    Lograve took out a journal and consulted it. ¡°We¡¯ve made counts. Imprecise though they are. As many as 20 survived the lake encounter, and that figure doesn¡¯t include those that needed to be dealt with afterward. I know we made the right choice,¡± he said carefully. ¡°But I still can¡¯t help but feel damned for what we¡¯ve done.¡±

    ¡°Better they died than be left to the maledictions of the Crest,¡± Gadriel stated in only partial understanding of what had happened. ¡°They are with the Octyrrum now.¡±

    ¡°Otherwise, we are still at roughly 700 without any class. There were some losses, but only in the single digits after leaving Hagain. Counting those that were left to guard the villagers during the fight, that leaves us with one capable guardian for every 10, and that ratio assumes we evenly split between the two regions. We¡¯ll have to spend the day organizing.¡±

    Murdon nodded. ¡°I will-¡±

    ¡°No you will not! The three of us are taking care of it, you are getting some sleep before another part of you falls off.¡±

    ¡°I was going to say I will leave it to you.¡± He laughed at Lograve¡¯s stunned face. ¡°I said I was renouncing my title, didn¡¯t I? Wake me if another dragon attacks, but only for that.¡±

    Lograve looked helplessly at the other three, but only Janice offered a comment. ¡°Well, that¡¯s the Commander for you.¡±

    ¡­

    The announcements made their way throughout the camp quickly, given you could be heard shouting from the opposite end if everyone else stayed quiet. First, there would be no marching today. Everyone would rest and only needed to decide where they wished to go. Aughal or Threst. Beyond those regions, neither safety nor transit would be guaranteed.

    Those with classes were given the last pick as where the common people went decided how many were needed to guard them. Perhaps unsurprisingly to those familiar with the eastern regions of the kingdom, the majority opted for the verdant, broken skies of Threst.

    A smaller number, for whatever reason, decided on Aughal instead. Perhaps they¡¯d come from there, although many in the group heading to Threst could claim the same. Being in the minority didn¡¯t change their minds. As those who would be their defenders considered their options, Lograve approached the group that was currently debating the irritability of sand.

    ¡°It¡¯s not so bad, you just have to have the right kind of clothes,¡± Thomas was saying. ¡°There¡¯s some enchanted stuff you can get but it¡¯s expensive. Aughal only had one proper Artificer when I was there and they probably don¡¯t have another one by now. If we get some stuff like that, do you think you could make another?¡±

    ¡°Maybe? I¡¯d need materials. I was able to figure out standard weapon enchantments from Khare¡¯s dagger, but I¡¯m not sure if that¡¯s how it works for everything.¡±

    ¡°Excuse me.¡± Everyone sat up and turned to Lograve. ¡°I was curious as to what you were considering. Are you all staying together?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s the plan!¡± Thomas said brightly. ¡°Not all of us are sticking with a nearly suicidal profession, but that doesn¡¯t have to get in the way of a mutual travel plan.¡±

    ¡°Ah. So, you have a destination in mind?¡±

    ¡°Aughal!¡± Looks passed between the others as they were being spoken for. Evalyn looked the most reluctant and Khare looked like a gestalt. Even in a humanoid form, they were hard to read. ¡°I want to stick with Quala anyways, and-¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s going to Threst.¡± Thomas blinked in surprise at Lograve¡¯s measured words. ¡°I was hoping to see if you would come with me. To Aughal.¡±

    ¡°Why¡¯s she going to Threst? She¡¯s, uh.¡± Thomas didn¡¯t continue down that line of thought. ¡°She should be going to Aughal!¡±

    ¡°You¡¯d have to speak with her, but I¡¯m afraid that matter is settled. You see, Murdon and I are the most trusted and/or influential of our number. Word of certain matters must be spread. I have the strongest contact in Aughal, and likewise for Murdon in Threst. Well, actually either of us would do for Threst but after cutting off his damned hand Murdon needs to get somewhere he has a chance of getting it regrown. As straightforward as a spiral, perhaps, but the intent is to rejoin once we have accomplished that. At least, Murdon will. I cannot speak for what Quala will do.¡±

    ¡°But, but-¡± Lograve watched with interest as Thomas became torn, having anticipated the opposite of his mentor¡¯s choice.

    ¡°Why do you want us to go with you?¡± Daniel asked.

    ¡°Purely selfish reasons, I¡¯m afraid. To be honest, it¡¯s mostly you I am concerned with.¡±

    ¡°The symbol?¡± Daniel guessed

    ¡°Yes, I¡¯m glad I don¡¯t have to explain. As for the rest of you, our only concern is that we have enough to cover the convoys. Let us know by the afternoon and we¡¯ll see where we stand. If we¡¯re lucky we won¡¯t have to move people around, although that would be luck I¡¯d rather we¡¯d had earlier. For my own curiosity¡¯s sake, what are you thinking Daniel?¡±

    The Artificer thought for a moment. ¡°I don¡¯t want to break up this group if I don¡¯t have to, but I¡¯d also like to go with you.¡±

    ¡°Talk it over then. Again, I ask purely for my own reasons, though I¡¯m sure I can be of assistance as well.¡± He paused for a second in case another had words for him, and then walked away.

    Thomas gritted his teeth. ¡°Damn it! This was an easy decision. Guy, what¡¯s that about?¡±

    ¡°What, with Lograve? I¡¯m not entirely sure, but something I know can help with a power he has.¡±

    ¡°So you¡¯re going to push for Threst now? To be honest, I was never a big fan of heights. Beautiful views though.¡± Evalyn took a strand of her hair with two fingers, a sign of the idle agonizing they¡¯d run into over this decision. ¡°My family passed through it with the first settlement wave when I was 14 and my sister fell off of one of the islands. She¡¯s fine now, of course.¡± Something complicated passed over her face. ¡°She was fine. Maybe I should see what Aughal has to offer.

    ¡°You were against Aughal because of the sand!¡± Thomas protested. ¡°And, and I don¡¯t know. Honestly, it¡¯s alright. You guys do you want, I need to talk with Quala.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s going on between the two of you?¡± Evalyn narrowed her eyes. ¡°Did you know each other before coming to the Thormundz?¡±

    ¡°Hmm.¡± Thomas stood, and let half of a smile creep onto his face. ¡°What did you say? Something like, show a little discretion and you¡¯d let something slip? I haven¡¯t forgotten about what we talked about before the fight.¡±

    ¡°Really, you¡¯re drawing the line now?¡±

    ¡°For a shot with you? Yeah.¡± He left their small group too, and in his wake, Tak leaned over to the Bard.

    ¡°Maybe you could convince him to come with us?¡±

    ¡°No!¡±

    ¡°Ah.¡± A pause, then in a quieter voice everyone else still heard, ¡°Then, what about me?¡±

    Evalyn copied something very dear to Tlara¡¯s personality and Tak graciously surrendered the point.

 Chapter 83: Path of Vengeance

    The only mortal in the camp who did not wish to leave the Thormundz sat as she had for the past two weeks. Still, eyes closed, listening. Occasionally she brushed her other arm with a hand to make sure the effect on her remained active. It was tremendously mana draining, but what else did she need that for? Nothing interesting was happening now. She still listened, just in case.

    ¡°Talk is, you¡¯re headed to Threst. We¡¯ll get you help, alright?¡±

    ¡°Gerald, look at his shoulder! It¡¯s warmer than yesterday. We should get the healer.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m, I¡¯m sure she knows what she¡¯s doing. Let¡¯s not be a bother.¡±

    Claire could picture both of the humans talking in her mind by now. One man, one woman, both old. Mid 50s, maybe. Normal, nothing to make them special besides the one they talked to. The one who couldn¡¯t talk back.

    ¡°He¡¯s not getting better.¡± The woman sighed, placing her hand on the back of the wounded Knight¡¯s head and lifting it with some effort. ¡°I don¡¯t think he can hear us. Gerald-¡±

    ¡°We have to trust the Octyrrum, Thelma.¡± He placed a hand on hers, using the other to part the Knight¡¯s lips with a waterskin. ¡°If it was his time, he wouldn¡¯t suffer like this.¡±

    Why not? Claire thought to herself, numb to their hope. She didn¡¯t wish them harm, she just didn¡¯t consider what they were going through important or even unique. Sigron was the worst of those injured here, but he wasn¡¯t the only one. And he had his family.

    ¡°But what will we do? Will they let us come with them?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sure they will.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re only eating every other day now, and so many people are going to Threst. What if they want us to go with the other group?¡±

    No, this wasn¡¯t important. Claire mentally commanded her summoned creature away from the stretcher. It was just a bug, a small flying thing that was the most mana efficient to summon. She didn¡¯t have much to work with these days. That would have to change. It would, she could feel it. The wall she¡¯d run into early in her life was gone. She was advancing again, carefully, to not arouse suspicion. She wasn¡¯t entirely free at the moment though there were no chains on her.

    It was circumstance and compassion that trapped her. She thought of both with annoyance, though in a detached way. She didn¡¯t need help, she needed clarity and could find that on her own. Instead of escaping now, she prioritized gathering information. It was hard to evade empowered senses, especially when she didn¡¯t know who had what powers. On the other hand, who paid attention to a ladybug?

    On several occasions, she¡¯d learned something truly crucial to her goals. What waited in the mountain, the suspicions that Heldren hadn¡¯t been the Tyrant, and even the plans for the final evacuation before they were publicly announced. All she had to occupy herself these days was listening and planning. Claire knew in a small way what she wanted was insane, impossible, or both. That didn¡¯t matter. She would kill it, even if she had to go alone. Even if the Crest reclaimed this region and she¡¯d have to fight through it to strike at her enemy.

    There wasn¡¯t fear in Claire when she¡¯d considered these obstacles. There wasn¡¯t much of anything besides the loss and the need to take something back to balance the scales. Would it be enough? Maybe. Maybe all she wanted was death, and this was her twisted way of seeking it out. Revenge or death, was that it? Is that all there is for me now? She couldn¡¯t convince herself otherwise, and those who tried to help her had even less success. At least the battles of yesterday had given her a moment of peace. Rumor of what had happened at the lake filtered through her summon, passed on by Familiar Sense. She ignored most of it since the only people who knew about it were avoiding specifics.

    Claire turned on her makeshift cot and let the noises drown themselves out. Her attention returned anytime someone mentioned dragons, otherwise, she planned for the future. Threst. It¡¯d been one of the regions her Sojourn had traveled through, and the one they¡¯d gotten stuck in. Unfortunately, that didn¡¯t translate into much. Finding her old Sojourn was a good first step if she could track them down. They would understand. She and Parduc had left, but it had been for the good of the group. They were her family, if distant, and would understand her goal.

    Or they wouldn¡¯t. Or she wouldn¡¯t find them, or she¡¯d die on the way to Threst. There were so many things that could go wrong that it didn¡¯t do her any good to worry. If her old Sojourn was out of the picture, she¡¯d find others to help. Failing that, she¡¯d become strong enough to just do it herself. And if the dragon died before she got to it?

    No. It was alive, and it would stay alive. They had a bond now, whether the dragon was aware of it or not. Fated to die by the other¡¯s hands in a Fated Confrontation. A fate that was not irresistible to manipulation, not guaranteed to come to pass, but it gave Claire the surety that her quarry wouldn¡¯t randomly come to its end before she got her chance. It gave Claire the boldness to even consider it.

    At times, rare times, Claire wondered why the fire of vengeance burned brightest in her. Everyone else wanted to escape. None of them were planning on ever coming back here. So why? Because she had nothing else? That wasn¡¯t true. This wasn¡¯t her being backed into a corner. The rest of the world was spread out before her.

    Maybe it was insanity. Maybe what Quala told her about what she was doing was true, but the Claire of today didn¡¯t care. There was nothing else in the world for her. This anger that wasn¡¯t anger had given her a path to the higher reaches of this world. She had years of potential that had been souring under the simple inability for her to properly use it. If she could burn through it all at once like someone she once knew, she could reach level 3 and be a good way to level 4 assuming she didn¡¯t care about level disparity. Claire considered the fate of the last person to face the dragon unbalanced and decided on a slower course.

    She¡¯d kill the dragon, take her vengeance, and then? Claire couldn¡¯t see beyond that point. The road ahead of her branched limitlessly before converging to one place where it ended in a fog. That was alright. That would be enough.

    Her mind went back to what her familiar was feeding her when she recognized the voices of Thomas and Quala speaking together. That was very good. The younger Cleric held nothing back when it came to his mentor and was a wealth of admittedly questionable information. She carefully guided her familiar closer, urging it to move slowly. She couldn¡¯t see the two from her position like she had Sigron and could only hear through her familiar. Having the ability to intercept conversations was, at this point, crucial if she wanted to escape. In addition, Quala hadn¡¯t picked up on anything other than the sullen facade she¡¯d put up. The Cleric cared, Claire had to admit, but she did not need that kind of help.

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    The voices became clearer to the point she could make out words, though they were muffled. Were the two in one of the few tents? Claire sat up slightly. She didn¡¯t hear anyone else, and if they wanted this much privacy they had to be talking about it.

    ¡°Why are you going to Threst?¡± The back of Claire¡¯s head hit the canvas with disappointment. She didn¡¯t withdraw her familiar though. Thomas sounded both surprised and a little hurt. Even if he wasn¡¯t talking about the dragon or its master, that was the only thing that had made him agitated before. Hopefully, their conversation would turn to that topic. If not, then any discussion of travel plans would also be valuable.

    There was a soft sigh. ¡°Sigron and Murdon are the most injured and most in need of my care. Especially now that we have but a handful left. They¡¯ll need the attention of the church and my presence will do more than gold.¡±

    ¡°More than viridian, though?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re upset. Were you assuming I would take the other path?¡±

    ¡°I mean, yeah? You¡¯ve got family there, just like I have. I thought it¡¯d be nice to go back together.¡±

    A short laugh, unmistakably from Quala. ¡°Are you sure that¡¯s wise, given your circumstances?¡±

    ¡°What, it¡¯s not like I was exiled. Kinda the opposite. There might be trouble but I¡¯m not too worried.¡±

    ¡°Aughal isn¡¯t the kind of place where there¡¯s trouble you don¡¯t have to worry about. Even for those with your name.¡± Claire thought about that. Thomas in and of itself wasn¡¯t an uncommon name. There were a few others in Roost¡¯s Peak even, so she meant his last name? He¡¯d never mentioned it in her presence, but all the same, she could guess what Quala meant. Interesting, though that fact wouldn¡¯t help her now. ¡°Or your secret. If anyone finds out-¡±

    ¡°I know, I know. Jeez, if anything¡¯s going to tip people off it¡¯s repeating that conversation.¡±

    ¡°Hmm. I suppose you are right. But I still stress, do not reveal yourself to the church until you are at least level 5. I know you have it in you to go that far, if not farther. If you can¡¯t defend yourself from those who would exploit you then it is too soon.¡±

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Thomas sighed. ¡°It sucks though. I¡¯d never have to worry about money again if I could use it without the cooldown.¡±

    ¡°The same could be said if you remained with your family.¡±

    ¡°Them? Nah. I¡¯ll check in but they don¡¯t need me and I don¡¯t need them. I mean, I will if¡­¡± he trailed off.

    ¡°You are conflicted?¡± Quala was using the same gentle examiner¡¯s tone she used frequently on Claire, and when Thomas responded his voice was significantly disheartened.

    ¡°Yeah. I mean, it shouldn¡¯t matter, right? Either way, we could meet back in a month or so. But where were we a month ago? How many people were alive that aren¡¯t anymore?¡±

    ¡°I have no plans to die, but I will, one day. We all will, and you seem taken with the process.¡±

    ¡°That last time was your fault! I can¡¯t believe you just broke my neck. It still hurts a little.¡±

    What? That, that was something else. Could Thomas raise the dead? Her brother¡­ No, the faint hope Claire felt left just as quickly. There was nothing left of Parduc. Still, it was good to know.

    ¡°I had to, as I explained. And you would do just as well to keep quiet about it. The point is that you can¡¯t base your decisions on what you fear will happen. That road may lead to security, but it will also lead you to paranoia and darker things.¡±

    ¡°I guess. It feels like the obvious solution is to go to Aughal. The rest sound like they¡¯re all for it. Well, except for Evalyn, but I don¡¯t think she¡¯d be happy either way.¡±

    ¡°Oh? Well, it is good you¡¯ve found a group that will stick together.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not hunting monsters, if that¡¯s what you mean, but I want to keep up with them if I can. Maybe heal them if they get hurt or something, I don¡¯t know.¡±

    ¡°I also imagine there¡¯s one amongst them you are particularly keen to follow.¡±

    ¡°Maybe.¡± Claire could hear the smile in Thomas¡¯ voice, taunting her.

    ¡°Thomas, do not take this as instruction or professional advice.¡± Quala¡¯s tone turned more familiar as if she were Thomas¡¯ nosy aunt. ¡°You would do well to find someone you are content with for more than a few days.¡±

    ¡°Oh come on, I¡¯m still young. Barely 25, and I¡¯ll age slower now that I¡¯m level 2.¡± This wasn¡¯t helpful. She shouldn¡¯t be listening to this.

    Quala was irritated for the first time ever it seemed, though only in jest. ¡°And what does that make me?¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t say anything about you, Quala!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s Cleric Fulwing to you, you upstart. And mark my words, keep up at this pace and you¡¯ll earn the wrong kind of reputation.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m a people person! I¡¯m not worse than any Bard.¡±

    ¡°I wasn¡¯t aware you¡¯ve multiclassed. That will stunt your growth significantly.¡± The lightheartedness left her voice after that. ¡°Think about it, alright? I¡¯m aware it¡¯s only been through my presence in the region to keep you broadly in line. I shudder to think of what will happen when you are outside my influence.¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t say what I decided yet!¡±

    ¡°I know.¡± Quala¡¯s voice faded as the familiar left the area. Useless. No, that secret power was worth hearing about. As a studied Arcanist Claire could guess as to its exact nature. It was the kind people would kill to know about, especially this early on when the mortal could be manipulated.

    It appeared Thomas was heading in the wrong direction for her to make use of the information. Also, she wouldn¡¯t sell him out. Claire was all too experienced with the dark side of the talent scouting practices. It was impossible not to be, having been part of a large Sojourn. Regardless of how they governed, the leadership of regions was hardly charitable towards those who frequently crossed regional boundaries en masse.

    It wasn¡¯t so much the general population as the rare classes that went with them. Popular belief held that any rare class that awakened in a region counted against a maximum, and the spot wouldn¡¯t free up until they died. There were several in her Sojourn, including the leader who was level 6. Many would prefer to have them remain under their influence. Yes, the governing bodies of the Forlothan Kingdom could be mercenary like that.

    That was part of the reason why she¡¯d left. There¡¯d also been the hope that the advancement block she¡¯d run up against could be overcome in this new region. That¡¯s why people came right? The blessings supposedly bestowed on those who braved new wilds. Experience, pardons, rising to new heights, or even just up the social ladder. She¡¯d held onto that hope for a year but still hadn¡¯t broken through. Then, there¡¯d been despair. Resignation, the dying of a fire deprived of new fuel, the same way everyone who failed to overcome their wall felt. Something else had sparked when Lyander came into her life, and it wasn¡¯t as if she¡¯d been alone before him. Parduc had come with her, for no reasons of his own but because of their kinship.

    In a way, in a terrible way, it seemed the loss of those closest to her had been what she¡¯d needed. So long as she kept focused, kept the vengeance in her heart, she¡¯d have the strength to push herself. She was close to level two and close to something else. The more she used Calm Nerves, the more something shifted. Claire couldn¡¯t explain it, other than the same feeling one gets from a loose tooth in a dream close to falling out. She didn¡¯t think it was a new power awakening, not in that sense. No, Claire could sense the passive mana flow within her shifting. Powers could disturb this, causing ripples, but at rest it was always the same.

    Where she was going, and what would happen when the change reached its hidden threshold, she didn¡¯t know. The only thing Claire knew was she was going to find out, and that all roads towards her future started with escaping her captivity.

 Chapter 84: Crossing Boundaries

    Not everyone in the camp was clustered around the tents that had been salvaged from Hagain. In some cases, new teams or families were sticking primarily to themselves. The crisis wasn¡¯t over since there may still be monsters between here and safety, but the primary obstacle had been crossed. Without that physical barrier in place, everyone was starting to think seriously about their next moves. Common goals had kept them together up until now.

    It wasn¡¯t unbelievable that fractures were already forming. Before the Upswell, the people at the foot of the Thormundz range had populated different villages and were far from one coherent unit. A rare few had just been visiting only to be cut off from the rest of the world. Now, they drifted apart.

    That description was ill-fitting for Tlara. Too passive. She was parked far away and did not attempt to socialize. She didn¡¯t even have one of her monsters out. Instead of preening over her remaining wyvern or attempting to exact vengeance on Gadriel, she was thinking. It wasn¡¯t the brief moments she¡¯d been controlled that disturbed her, it was Spinner.

    Something was different about it, she couldn¡¯t deny that now. Oh, it was what she could expect from a silk shocker in terms of physical strength and abilities. What she couldn¡¯t explain was how it¡¯d acted in the moments after the dragon had died. It had put her in danger! Instead of retreating or shielding her from the swarmlings, which she¡¯d expect creatures loyal to her to do, it had moved to block the majority of the falling squids and put her in the line of fire.

    The easy answer was Spinner was defective or stupid. Disloyalty was, of course, impossible. So was the monster incompetent? Not if the others were to be believed. Word had gotten to her of how Spinner had restrained both her and Thomas, of how it had taken initiative. If Tlara hadn¡¯t had strange premonitions about the creature, or if its name hadn¡¯t been sticking in her head inexplicably, she would have chalked it up to luck. As it was? She¡¯d keep it in stasis and try not to think about what she had in her pouches.

    ¡°Tlara? I would have words with you.¡±

    Oh great. ¡°What?¡±

    Gadriel looked at her, cape fluttering in the wind. It was completely undamaged and unstained. How? ¡°A matter of honor. I understand you have an issue with my use of your wyvern.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, right. Let¡¯s talk.¡± Tlara stood up, brushed herself off, and raised a fist in the Hero¡¯s face. ¡°You fucking owe me.¡±

    ¡°That is what I wish to discuss.¡±

    ¡°If you think I¡¯m just going to ignore it because you¡¯re some big goddamn Hero, then-¡± It wasn¡¯t anything Gadriel said that made her stop talking, as he wouldn¡¯t interrupt her tirade unless the intimidation turned physical. Instead, Tlara saw the patience on his face and cut off her words in fury. He was being patient with her? That¡¯s not how this worked! But she¡¯d mistakenly allowed him to tell her exactly where she could put her debt.

    ¡°I am going to Aughal with Lograve. I must know where you intend to go as this will affect when and how I can repay you.¡± She stared at him, and he continued. ¡°I must confess I am unfamiliar with the worth of such creatures, though it is unlikely I have currency enough to simply give remuneration. Trade, perhaps, if I have something you would desire in kind. Ideally, I would assist in the capture of an equivalent creature, although as you are the wronged party I leave it to you to decide.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re serious?¡±

    ¡°Indeed.¡±

    ¡°What about the whole ¡®you have to do this for the common good¡¯ crap?¡±

    Gadriel shifted on his feet. ¡°Honor still demands a debt. On my second flight, I made use of an ability that endangered your wyvern. I ask again of your intentions.¡±

    ¡°Heh.¡± She scoffed lightly as her hostility became less blatant. ¡°Dunno where I want to go. You serious about this?¡±

    Gadriel nodded slightly. ¡°Yes. If you need time to deliberate, I understand.¡±

    Her immediate instinct was to insult his stuffiness, his demeanor, or just him in general. Sure, he was an impressive fighter, but he was as personable as a brick. She held it back because he seemed genuine. Honest as a brick too. ¡°K. Huh. Alright, you¡¯ve got a deal.¡±

    ¡°What would you like in return?¡± Gadriel said, a bit awkwardly after Tlara didn¡¯t elaborate.

    ¡°I want you to help me dominate a dragon.¡± Tlara beamed menacingly at the Hero who took a step back.

    ¡°I-I don¡¯t believe you are capable of such a feat. My assistance wouldn¡¯t be meaningful.¡±

    ¡°Duh. The weakest dragons are level 5. When I¡¯m ready for that, I¡¯m calling in the debt.¡±

    Whatever Gadriel was expecting clearly went more along the lines of emptying his coin purse. Tlara wouldn¡¯t have minded that, but the surprise mixing with slight panic on his face was just as rewarding. ¡°I, that is a, hmm. What if you are unable to reach level 5?¡±

    He recovered quickly. That¡¯s no fun. ¡°Then we¡¯ll figure something else out. Otherwise, I¡¯m getting my fucking talons on a dragon, and you¡¯re going to help me. Or is your honor not worth that much?¡±

    For just a moment, the Hero stiffened, and Tlara reminded herself exactly how lopsided a battle between them would be. That only lasted a moment. ¡°It is not exactly an equivalent repayment, but if that is what you wish then I will respect that. With the stipulation that, this request taking part in the uncertain future, reasonable accommodations be made with respect to my availability when it is time. In addition, that this debt not be passed to any among my class or blood should I fall in the meantime.¡±

    Gods, so stuffy. People are really attracted to this kind of crap? ¡°Fine. Fuck. Guess I¡¯ll tag along with you then.¡±

    ¡°Then our business is concluded. Thank you for entertaining me.¡±

    When she was alone again, Tlara didn¡¯t worry about Spinner or the faint memories she had of being controlled. In her mind, she was sitting atop a true king of the sky. For the Beastmaster, the future got a little brighter.

    ¡­

    The mortals split into two groups a little over a day after they began moving. Passage into the adjoining regions was fairly open and they could march together for some time before they¡¯d have to separate. The wounded among Murdon¡¯s group changed that. For their sake, they needed to take the shortest path. To Threst, Janice, Quala, Claire, and William joined the draconoid Knight.

    On the side, the much smaller group to Aughal included Lograve and Gadriel at the head. Tlara reluctantly followed for the distant promise of the Hero¡¯s assistance. Thomas just as hesitantly chose friends over his mentor. Of most interest were the gestalt who to a man, or person, chose Aughal. The Druid who could speak with them did likewise. It was a curious thing, but then again those strange people did stick together.

    It was peaceful that day. Hunter¡¯s senses were just as strong in his awakened state, allowing him to detect threats and avoid or scare them off. From his Map function, Daniel could tell they were getting close to one of the large lines that bordered the region. It was strange how this half of the Thormundz looked like a hexagon, whereas the shimmering white line of the Crest that was slowly taking over the opposite end smoothed over those boundaries. What would happen when it reached the edge?

    The map held two questions that Daniel had found no answers for, despite everything that had occurred. What took Eido, and what was the Crest? The people here had an answer for the second question, but not a satisfying one. From all he¡¯d read it was described as an amorphous force of evil that no one could survive within, but that didn¡¯t explain anything.

    Camp was made that night and Daniel started counting the days until they¡¯d reach the city they were heading to. Sure, he was warming up to monster fighting. By all accounts, it was the best way to level. If he¡¯d survived this far then threats appropriate for his level should be easy. It was how he¡¯d find formulae for more magical items to make, and get the money he¡¯d need to enchant them. It was what his friends, well, what most of his friends wanted to do. It seemed right, even after everything that happened.

    But not at first. No. The past, both of this world and his home, continued to haunt him. The times he had talked to Quala had helped, and seeing her part with his group felt similar to being cut off from his family. At the very least he wasn¡¯t alone, and every day he woke up with the people he trusted was a better one. Still, Daniel didn¡¯t need or want to face an enemy as terrible as the lake monster. Not now, not ever again if he could help it. He¡¯d stick to giant rats and take things the slow, easy way.

    The following day, they reached the boundary between Aughal and the Thormundz. Which, as it turns out, was literally a line in the sand. ¡°Woah.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, this always gets me, Guy. The sense of scale!¡±

    Daniel and Thomas looked ahead as the group of just under a hundred villagers and their guard reached the border. On one side were the plains they¡¯d been walking through. On the other, desert. There was no gradual transition, other than the sand spilling across the still obviously unnatural merging of the two climates.

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    ¡°How far does that go?¡± Tak asked, pointing to where the break in plains and desert became indistinguishable.

    ¡°One hundred kilometers maybe? We¡¯re near the center of the crossing.¡± Evalyn scratched her head and looked in distaste as she found the wind had already carried some sand into her hair.

    ¡°That far?¡± Thomas was right. If the region was shaped like a hexagon, then the area would be large. Daniel couldn¡¯t do the math offhand, and Quick Mind was being slow since he¡¯d forgotten the equation and was trying to estimate from circles. ¡°Are you sure we can make it to Aughal in a week?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, shouldn¡¯t be much of an issue Guy. They built it close to the center so we¡¯ve just got about that far to go.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s hundreds of kilometers.¡± Again, Daniel hadn¡¯t memorized hexagon math, but Quick Mind was giving him an estimation of about the same distance to Aughal as the length of one of the region¡¯s sides, though it would be shorter if they were starting in the middle rather than at one of the edges. Call it 180 kilometers, or over half a marathon every day to get there by the end of the week. He might be able to handle it with improved endurance, but what about the regular people?

    ¡°It is a good distance, but nothing will be trying to kill us on the way. I¡¯m sure the occasional village wouldn¡¯t mind us resting there either if it meant having Blessed nearby,¡± Evalyn commented, oblivious to Daniel''s mental math but coming in with excellent points. ¡°Everyone ready to cross?¡±

    ¡°Yep!¡± was the general response from their group, save for Daniel.

    ¡°Is there something that¡¯s going to happen?¡± He asked, uneasy now that they were paces away from the break.

    ¡°Guy, did you forget? Oh, wait, I guess you might not know. If you¡¯ve got anything heightened or any active powers, it¡¯ll reset here.¡±

    ¡°What? Why?¡±

    Thomas shrugged. ¡°Just the way it works.¡±

    ¡°Well, that sucks. I¡¯ll have to up the Map and Regeneration again.¡± You too Hunter.

    Hmm.

    ¡°Don¡¯t blame you for it. I¡¯d keep that feature as high as I could get it if I had it.¡±

    ¡°Crossing!¡± Khare called out, more to the other gestalt than the team they were with. They were ahead of Daniel and shuddered slightly as they stepped onto the sand.

    The Artificer grew wary after that. Ten steps away became five, then two, then one, and then it happened. A feeling like a small earthquake jostling him, just for a moment. His phone buzzed.

    <hr>

    ???

    -

    Alert: You have entered a new Region. Due to this transition, actively heightened Features have been reset to their base Level. Any Creature benefiting from Designation benefits or penalties will have those effects removed. Active Cooldowns have been reset to their maximum value. Powers that are ready to use are not affected. For information on additional effects, consult the Encyclopedia.

    -

    Alert: You have entered Region: Aughal. You do not possess a map of this region.

    -

    Alert: Creature: ??? has remotely triggered Ability: Moment of Clarity by use of Etheric Manipulation. Your Defense: Charisma attempted to resist this but failed to overcome the aggressor''s Offense: Intelligence. In addition to triggering this Ability, the aggressor has selectively screened out other Creatures who may normally be affected.

    <hr>

    Wait, what? The world suddenly froze. Hunter? Tak? No response. As he was looking at his phone, he saw the next alert too.

    <hr>

    Alert: A Creature has remotely triggered a sustained Ability and has chosen to continue prolonging its effects. The associated Mana costs will now be withdrawn from the aggressor.

    <hr>

    He was under attack. How had they forced him to use one of his abilities? What was going on? Daniel couldn¡¯t move, thanks to time slowing down.

    Then the impossible happened. From nowhere, a man appeared. He was human, old, with light skin and no hair. He was wearing the closest to actual wizard robes Daniel had seen so far. They had a collar that rose above the neck to about halfway up the back of the head where it ringed around to above either collarbone. The colors within the robe were iridescent and shifted impossibly in what should have been a frozen moment.

    That was what was most concerning. Both the colors of the robe and the man himself moved. Slowly, it had to be said, but he moved closer towards Daniel. What could he do? He tried to cancel his ability but found he couldn¡¯t. There was something metaphorically holding the button down.

    Apologies, Artificer. A voice in his head. Not a relatively new experience, but terrifying in this instance. The voice was as old as the man and resonated with magic. They were powerful, this most evident in their mental presence. That was what dominated Daniel, holding him in place with his power. This will take no time at all. A hand, wizened but strong, reached for him. It fell short of his body and instead lightly tapped his phone, new notifications appearing on it despite the active power.

    <hr>

    Alert: A Creature has attempted to affect one of your Powers through Etheric Manipulation. Fundamental Law: Immutable Soul has attempted to prevent this, but has failed. Your Defense: Charisma was unable to overcome the creature¡¯s Offense: Intelligence.

    -

    Alert: Your Feature: Focus Enhancement has been affected by an outside source. Function: Encyclopedia has been lost. Function: Divination Aegis* has been acquired. Function: Divination Aegis* has been set at Level: 2 for no additional Mana cost due to the means of its acquisition.

    -

    ???

    <hr>

    Why did you do that? How?

    The man smiled, not unkindly. You would do well to keep your Focus on hand at all times, Artificer. He took a step towards Hunter.

    Don¡¯t touch him!

    His captor eventually paused when he was within reach of Hunter, though it didn¡¯t feel like he¡¯d heeded Daniel¡¯s words. The man looked at the ringcat for a long time, the measure of which was meaningless given the circumstances. Eventually, he acted. One finger brushed against Hunter¡¯s nose. Nothing seemed to happen, but Daniel didn¡¯t relax.

    What did you do? What did you do!?

    So, that is what created this anomaly. The man gave him what was probably meant to be a calming smile. Seeing this, I couldn¡¯t help but be reminded of times far gone. It was a thought in the moment, nothing more. A gift. I have to remind myself you aren''t a willing participant in this, and it seems you truly have traveled a long road to come here.

    Do you know where I come from? Daniel asked with combined dread and hope at what this man might say, but he just ignored the question.

    Shortly after, he strode out of his field of view, but the presence was still there. We may speak again, we may not. Your future and ours are uncertain now, and I believe you are one of the reasons why. Continue on this path and you may find the answer you want the most, but ask nothing from the Gods. You cannot trust them. No one can. What Daniel could only describe as a timeless rage surfaced, though only like the periscope of a nuclear submarine. I should know more than anyone how they treat those they claim to love.

    He almost fell as time resumed. People commented, apparently not having seen what he had, but Daniel didn¡¯t care about them. Hunter, are you alright?

    The ringcat looked at a paw in introspection. That habit was now permanently acquired through the daily, small blasts of the Empathic Link. The consistency there was reassuring, but what had changed? Hunter had an answer. I can understand. It is sudden, but I understand. Was it from us crossing?

    Understand what?

    How to make myself stronger.

    You¡­ you can advance?

    Yes.

    Despite what happened, he had to agree. That was a gift. The planning around the dragon fight hadn¡¯t provided Daniel an opportunity to ask how normal people improved their attributes, no less a ringcat. It''d been that or make the armor after Hunter awakened, and Tak''s own attempts to help had proved fruitless. Removing that block would be a true gift, so long as no strings were attached.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Lograve appeared from the front of the procession.

    ¡°Something with Guy. He just fell and stopped moving.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m fine,¡± Daniel said quickly, ¡°But¡­¡± He tried to think of how to explain what just happened. His Encyclopedia was gone! Someone had directly manipulated his powers. Was that a god? But then why did he say not to trust them?

    There¡¯s something else. Hunter had a strange look on his face. Even with its more feral aspects, Hunter had a kind of eyebrow to furrow.

    What?

    The ringcat¡¯s jaws parted, ever so slightly. ¡°C, can you understand me?¡± Hunter asked.

 Chapter 85: Making Deals

    ¡°I know now what vexes my Foresight engine,¡± Mavar Helioc proclaimed as he stood in his office while reflecting on his brief venture outside the Thormundz region. ¡°Not the specifics, but its nature.¡± He looked ponderously into thin air but did not neglect the one standing in front of him. Neither did he speak again, waiting for her to.

    ¡°The ringcat anomaly?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Mavar shook his head as he mentally added another mark against Sasha, though he took into consideration how shaken she must have been from the appearance of Torch¡¯s Proxy.

    ¡°If I may ask?¡±

    ¡°Do so.¡±

    The engineer of flesh composed herself as she rethought the questions she had painstakingly prepared. ¡°The deal we struck with Torch mentioned nothing of it. We, or rather you, Prime, were to just replace the power she specified with one that could block even our attempts to detect him, then avoid further contact. Given its nature, I would have expected you to have destroyed the ringcat while you had the chance. Remove an aberrant influence.¡±

    ¡°I was going to, just in case,¡± Mavar mused openly. Honestly. He always spoke the truth but did not always speak. Here, just the two of them, he could let discretion fade just a little. If Sasha hadn¡¯t figured out the purpose of the intention he directed to her development by now, she wasn¡¯t worthy of it.

    ¡°Did you connect something to a prior Foresight in the moment?¡±

    ¡°Not as such.¡± The man tapped his fingers on the desk, still craning his neck upwards, though he was slightly frowning at how much Sasha was fixating on that one method of divination. ¡°That magic is no longer viable as a means to assure our aims. Someone has broken the rules of the Octyrrum. And, the Rules.¡± By the way he said it, it was clear they were two separate things. Not that Sasha knew the difference. ¡°I know who one of these beings is, but not why.¡±

    ¡°What does this have to do with the anomaly, Prime?¡±

    Mavar didn¡¯t begrudge these questions. Sasha was out of her depth and this curiosity would be necessary in guiding her to what knowledge she didn¡¯t already possess. Most would have to come from those with less calling upon their attention, but he could idly explain while his true mind was elsewhere. ¡°Not the anomaly. Its minder. The one we helped create and hoped would survive. There is more to them than we were led to believe, a hidden bond I doubt even he knows of that extends farther than I would have expected our partner to go. It would seem what we overhead in the halfborn, would-be Tyrant''s office was the truth. This all influences the random factor, the thing clouding my Foresight. The Entropic Agent.¡± Mavar nodded at the name he came up with and continued. ¡°Torch does not appear to have known about his unique potential, only coming to us because she knew I could remove the power that so incensed her. Her insistence on us not interfering with him again is simply a means to prevent me from restoring his power to spite her. It seems she thinks the old unwritten bargain holds. It was a risk, but with the old one placing that monster where it did, the mortals needed to know of the danger before the Entropic Agent was killed. Without her, we couldn¡¯t have given them the warning in time.¡±

    ¡°If the¡­ Entropic Agent is that useful to us, why didn¡¯t Torch kill him, or let him die?¡± Sasha asked, quickly adopting Mavar¡¯s nickname for the young human now traveling into Aughal. The Prime approved of the question and answered succinctly, though there was emotion so strong beneath the words that a hint of bitterness leaked out of the tightly-controlled ancient.

    ¡°You are still so young. You do not know the ways of the gods. Torch no doubt knows the shape of the Entropic Agent even if the details inside are shrouded. Allowing him to die could mean unrest between herself and Hammer. He¡¯s always been so attached to his ¡®children¡¯.¡±

    His fingers tapped again, this time with purpose as he distanced himself from that topic. Light filled the air between himself and Sasha, displaying a simplified retelling of the battle they¡¯d just witnessed. Only, it showed something else. ¡°This is what I projected would happen after the halfborn Berserker was killed. The initial force was to die to the dragon with few escaping. Our target was meant to be with their reserves that would rush through, leaving the civilians behind. A cruel choice, but necessary. This,¡± he said with distaste, altering the image to show how the battle had actually occurred, ¡°Is impossible. Unpredictable. Where did these formulae come from?¡±

    ¡°We gave them the heliorite, didn¡¯t we?¡±

    A fair point and a tally in Sasha¡¯s favor. ¡°To make weapons. The dragon had to be injured enough that it would either leave the reserves alone or be forced into the lake where it would be stunned long enough to let them pass.¡± A perfect illusion of Daniel¡¯s wings was suspended in the air. ¡°How did this come to be? His class is still godbound and limited by their influence. I sincerely doubt he could ever escape it without dramatic intervention by the fundaments. Yet, it is not just him. I witnessed powers during the viewing the mortals shouldn¡¯t have. Ritualism in a level 4 godbound Arcanist. How is that possible in the current version of the Octyrrum?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Sasha answered tentatively, as if it were the answer to a riddle she''d staked her life on.

    ¡°Of course not, that is my point. Nothing, not his bonds, origin, nor creation explains this. Whatever is happening around the Entropic Agent may be a threat to our plans. Yet at the same time, his disruptive effects on the Octyrrum will confound the gods. Ultimately it does not matter. Even if we did not have our deal with Torch, violating the other one would be unwise.¡±

    His words didn¡¯t unsettle Sasha as Mavar clearly wasn¡¯t worried. That a god knew of their location was no great failure and should be expected from the god of knowledge. Their efforts had halted the advance of the Spokes, likely drawing attention. The Illustrious had, in other parts of the world, simply allowed the Spokes to continue past them and remain in hiding. An unspoken peace had remained due to this and would not be broken today. The gods of this world moved slowly and couldn¡¯t amass the forces to contest their collectives all at once. The control they¡¯d so tightly kept on society would slip if the Illustrious acted in concert against it, and they certainly couldn''t sustain a war on two fronts.

    Did Torch know about their long term plans? The survival of the Illustrious was no secret to them, but the organization had been careful in concealing their grandest of works. Even the so-called gods were fallible, not even Torch was omniscient. Mavar had been stronger than the projection of Torch, able to banish the Proxy if he¡¯d wanted to. But Torch had appeared at just the right time, offering just what was needed.

    Did she know? Or had the god only glimpsed the ephemera and mistaken it for ultimately harmless meddling, drawn to him only because of a power that vexed her domain? They were arrogant. They had been masters of this world for longer than even Mavar could conceive of. And yet, and this was the key, they weren¡¯t the first. He gazed up into the air, envisioning a world free of them. A world returned to true magic, guided by hands that knew how to wield it best.

    ¡­

    In the mountains of the Thormundz, at the center of the broken fort, lay a dragon. Rorshawd could barely move despite having had weeks to heal. He was broken, and there was no one to help. Every day he¡¯d brought Regeneration as high as it could go and despaired. The mind inside the dragon was no stranger to being trapped inside a body and that only made this living nightmare all the worse.

    He could defend himself, at least. Wyverns and other lesser things had thought to take advantage of his injuries. As if, even in this state, he wasn¡¯t a dragon. Their bodies littered the courtyard surrounding him. Though his throat was whole enough to eat, the holes remained. Everywhere, and with them were focal points of pain. The living death had spread throughout his body. He knew by now that was what impeded his recovery. Not fully, not enough to completely rid him of hope. But the pace wasn¡¯t growing quicker. It would be months for his main body to be whole at this point, but what of his limbs? His wing? His eye? Would that take years?

    All that Rorshawd had done he did not regret, except his defeat. It was worth it, it would¡¯ve all been worth it. Flying in this form had been all he¡¯d dreamed. For a glorious few hours, Rorshawd could see himself purging the world of its corruption and making things as they should have been. Now both his flight and his ambition were gone. Had his order been lied to? That didn¡¯t matter. They didn¡¯t matter to the god in the mountains.

    His only respite was the discovery he¡¯d made when forced to self-reflect. When trapped by ruined gray buildings and the weakness of his flesh, there wasn¡¯t much for him to do but think. From that, Rorshawd was amazed to find he could still advance. It didn¡¯t make sense. He¡¯d given that up to become this, hadn¡¯t he? Did he still have his class, or was this something new?

    It wasn¡¯t like he¡¯d been successful. The constant pain, in addition to the added time and struggle inherent in improving attributes beyond 50 made it impossible for the thing that used to be a level 1 human to immediately succeed. His first few attempts had failed, squandering the potential. There was enough fuel for that fire to make more attempts, and what else did Rorshawd have to do but slay anything that came close enough? This wasn¡¯t a wall. He¡¯d met that and knew the difference. This could be overcome with time.

    He certainly had enough to work with. Was it a latent gift from his uncaring master? Rorshawd couldn¡¯t quantify how much potential was within him. Not an astronomical amount, but more than enough for ten advancements. Maybe, just maybe, if he got his endurance to level 6 Regeneration would finally work!

    However, he hadn¡¯t succeeded in improving himself. It was all too much, and he didn¡¯t try today. Today it was raining. Lightning flared in the distance, occasionally bringing flying, sparking things to the ground. They posed absolutely no threat to him and proceeded accordingly. It was the lightning itself that worried him. A direct strike wouldn¡¯t kill him, but it would hurt.

    If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

    Movement, in the rain. Distant. The senses of a level 5 creature that didn¡¯t neglect its wisdom were impressive, and Rorshawd caught them as they entered the city gates. Identify Creature took over from there, revealing a lone mortal. Not one he recognized, even counting Daniel¡¯s memories or those he knew from Eido. Had someone from his order come?

    Rorshawd¡¯s head lowered as he disregarded that hope reflexively. This was probably just a looter. He¡¯d killed many of the mortals. Not all of their leaders, sure, but did they have enough to get through the mountains now? Despair made people do stupid or terrible things. In this case, it was going to get the avianoid killed if he got too close.

    Which was exactly what he was doing? Rorshawd blinked as he realized the intruder was heading almost straight for him. Was he here to try and loot the center of the city? No, no they must know he was still alive. What was this then? Did this weakling think he was close enough to death to finish off?

    Fire built in Rorshawd¡¯s chest as he grew angry. That, of course, sparked fresh pain amidst the chronic dull ache, but it was an instinct he couldn¡¯t suppress. The rain didn¡¯t matter, he¡¯d vaporize that and this insect as soon as they were close enough. The man stepped into the courtyard, not even fearful of him. Rorshawd had something that could change that, but he stayed silent. Let him approach. Closer. Closer. Closer.

    Suddenly, the avianoid came to a stop. He was well outside the current range of Rorshawd¡¯s fire breath, so the dragon fixed an eye on the intruder and glared death instead. He didn¡¯t even have a weapon! What was this? ¡°Why!?¡± Rorshawd roared the question, keeping mana out of his voice. He could still talk, but the damage to his throat made it a weak sound not fitting a creature of his size.

    Another distant lightning strike. The mortal in front of him deliberated silently as he observed the dragon. The response came far later than Rorshawd would have wished. ¡°I come to bargain.¡± The voice was thready and held obvious fear down to steady itself.

    ¡°You will take nothing of mine!¡± Could he move fast enough to get within range? The barest amount of mobility had returned to him. Without that, the wyverns might have ended him through use of their ranged attacks. He could do it. He could burn this insane mortal alive. Rorshawd had other means, but he wanted to watch something burn to death.

    ¡°We offer restoration in return for what we seek.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Rorshawd couldn¡¯t help but ask. He didn¡¯t know how this insignificant creature could do what it claimed, or where the others were that they implied. This was enough to at least hear him out.

    ¡°Loyalty undying.¡±

    ¡°Hmm, allow me to answer.¡± There was a snarl in the voice, followed by a rushing sound as Rorshawd spat fire at the intruder. It barely went the length of his body as the majority was channeled through the holes on the underside of his throat. That offered a potential weapon against any that would take advantage of the limitations of a dragon¡¯s reach, but he hated it. He hated what the mortals had taken from him! Most of all, he hated Murdon.

    The avianoid was unmoved. The fire hadn¡¯t touched him, the cast-off heat only warming him to counter the chill from the rain. A different inflection entered the avianoid¡¯s voice as if it was someone else speaking. ¡°My master can restore you. Not fully, but they have told me there is little else that could be done for you. We offer a bond of eternal servitude, the same as the one I accepted.¡±

    Rorshawd knew of bonds, of the basic concept at least. Eternal servitude was a new one, and he didn¡¯t like the sound of that. ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°What else will you do?¡±

    ¡°No!¡±

    ¡°Will you stay here and die?¡±

    ¡°NO!¡± Rorshawd blinked, and added, ¡°I deny you.¡±

    ¡°They gave me a class,¡± the avianoid said, continuing to bargain as if his life was on the line. Maybe it was. ¡°I couldn¡¯t advance, not until they came for me! There is a price, but there is also a gift in measure to your worth. And this loyalty extends both ways.¡±

    ¡°I know of masters. Of gods. We are nothing to them!¡±

    The avianoid looked up and away from the dragon, silently deliberating once more. At times his beak moved as if he were speaking, but no words came out. Rorshawd took a careful step forward, the movement unnoticed amidst the other¡¯s distraction. Another. It was a horribly infantile crawling motion, but if it let him claim another life he would crawl hundreds of kilometers!

    ¡°My master is in no position to take their subjects for granted.¡± Rorshawd stopped as the avianoid turned back to him. Not because he feared him, but because he didn¡¯t want them running. ¡°They are level 1. You could destroy them easily.¡±

    ¡°Good. Bring them here!¡±

    ¡°They are here.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Rorshawd looked around with his good eye. There was nothing else in this city. He had claimed it! The monsters knew to stay away unless they were foolish enough to think they could kill him. That made them smarter than this fool, at least. ¡°There is no one.¡±

    ¡°There is. Their ways do not favor direct power. That is why we approach you, mighty yet enfeebled, so that they may restore you in trade for your service.¡±

    ¡°No. You lie.¡±

    ¡°They don¡¯t. My purpose is to speak for them, and they do not lie. I am but a vessel, whereas you would be a sword. What are your objections to this?¡±

    ¡°You lie!¡± Another jet of fire, still too far away. He needed to make the avianoid ask whoever this was more questions to his supposed superior. In those moments of distraction, Rorshawd could crawl closer. He feigned interest, asking, ¡°How could I trust you?¡± Ask them. Ask them!

    Infuriatingly, the avianoid had an answer already. ¡°This bond cuts to the soul. You agree on a condition, and if it cannot be satisfied by my master, the bond will not be formed. In that case,¡± He frowned and looked up, but not long for Rorshawd to move. The voice carried its fear clearly then. ¡°In that case, you may have this messenger¡¯s life in payment.¡±

    Well, that was enticing. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t run?¡±

    ¡°I-I am loyal.¡±

    ¡°And you wish me to put such chains on myself?¡±

    The avianoid¡¯s tears were lost in the rain. He spoke as if reading a script with a crossbow to his head. ¡°What, what do you fear more? Theirs, or the chains of your flesh?¡±

    ¡°LIES!¡± Rorshawd did use his empowered roar then. The messenger jerked but remained rooted in place. Frozen with fear? No, he wanted to run, but something was stopping him. He smiled painfully. Did whoever this master was think he was that much a fool to agree to that? A prison of flesh was preferable to losing his freedom.

    Now under direct control, the messenger spoke calmly again despite his terror. A different voice. Avianoids naturally had excellent vocal range, and whoever was taking over the man in front of him was using this to distinguish theirs. It sounded noble, with the slightest undercurrent of insanity. Rorshawd knew then who, or more precisely, what was speaking. ¡°This one is a Proxy. The conditions he is under are managed likewise. You would be my warrior. There would be a difference.¡±

    He looked at the messenger with scorn, not being able to do so to the true speaker directly. ¡°And my conditions?¡±

    ¡°Do not betray me.¡±

    ¡°Simple words.¡±

    ¡°Do not harm me or mine. Do not work against my interest. Obey me. That is all. I offer you your wing, your eye, and your health in return. Is that not fair?¡±

    ¡°You cannot do this. You lie.¡±

    ¡°I can, and I do not. If I am wrong, are you dissatisfied with the consolation prize?¡± Parts of the avianoid were seizing up, all but what his master needed to speak.

    Could this be true? No. Rorshawd knew this was a lie. But if he got to kill the one in front of him when it failed, what was the harm? ¡°Fine. I accept.¡± He smiled.

    ¡°Very well. But a word of caution. If you are dishonest, you will die. Is your answer the same? You must submit, or we will leave you here to suffer.¡±

    Rorshawd was silent fury. This was an insult. They were toying with him. Submit? Never! He, he had flown. He had soared. He was broken, now, with no way of returning to that paradise. He raged against this choice, true, but there was just as much a part of him desperate to get it all back. His wing. His eye. Could this master truly replace them? He wanted to fly, for the pain to stop, and they knew that!

    ¡°I will not abandon you.¡± They couldn¡¯t mean that. A god had not kept its promises, who was this ¡®master¡¯ to make that claim?

    ¡°You swear this on the bond?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    His wing. His eye. ¡°I accept. Deliver on your promise, one way or another.¡±

    A presence appeared next to him suddenly. A mass in the air, part of it yet distinct and heavy with the rain. They¡¯d been moving slowly. Air gestalt couldn¡¯t manage well in these conditions but they were right there! Rorshawd could have killed them easily, but they reached him first.

    The head formed from the cloud stuff brushed against his scales. They kissed him on the cheek.

    Rorshawd¡¯s anger turned black. He would scatter their essence and charge the trembling avianoid, injuries or not. Burn them. Burn them all! He would-

    The sensations made him pause. The pain was fleeing, and his flesh twisted like it had when his Regeneration was working properly. As Rorshawd took in what he was gaining, he registered a loss as well somewhere within him. Chains, loose but there on his soul. The promise he¡¯d made enforced by the connection he now had with the creature that could easily be identified.

    <hr>

    Ashier - (Gestalt: Air, Tyrant - 1)

    <hr>

    The pact was made and the world shook with a fresh roar. Rorshawd stood, his wounds healing and his heart bound. The Tyrant had lost their Hero, but they had gained something else with which to pursue their goals and save this world. A monster.

    ...

    At the center of the world there lay the Realm of the Hourglass, Lord of Time. In the millennia since the Collapse he had, by all appearances, sat unmoved from his seat of power overlooking the Hub, joined by seven empty chairs ringing the ancient miracle. Every other god of the Octyrrum devoted themselves to expanding against the Crest, though Hourglass himself had claimed that which had been shielded from the great enemies while the rest reclaimed. One was not always needed to watch, but balance must be maintained. And yet, despite appearances, he had been active. Seeing through bound Fates, acting through Proxies. Even his domain allowed for plans that could escape the notice of all others.

    Save for a handful of exceptions, Hourglass had remained dormant. Gathering mana and willing souls, while the others spent their resources in the charge of repelling the Crest. His only regular contribution was towards the godseeds that would grow to Spokes, that necessity of their System being the only reason he extended a network of followers out into the Octyrrum as a whole. Otherwise, his churches sat abandoned, built out of necessity in that old pattern. His lack of attention had made the common mortals grow distrustful of that which was far removed from them, no matter how aligned they were in ultimate goal.

    Yet, the inevitable occurred. Divine consensus was reached, and a meeting agreed to. Hammer already busied himself with his last preparations for the Divine Pavilion while the other gods moved their chosen Proxies to assure arrival by the destined time. Hourglass himself would need to send one, would be expected to. Fate and the god himself had other ideas. Old muscle performed the work of ages as a being of great and terrible power arose, seeing himself at the end of a journey first begun in the death rattle of the last apocalypse. Bringing himself to his feet, Hourglass set his sights on the future with the surety of one to whom the passing of this world bent in supplication.

    The old pact had been honored. All that stood in his way now was fulfilling his end. When the pieces were scattered and the key within his grasp, the conflict of this world would at last conclude. He could not predict which side would prevail, but that did not matter. Dominance was not Hourglass'' concern. As the god began to walk the world, his mind was consumed by thoughts of his true goal.

    Freedom.

    END OF BOOK 1: LANDING

 Chapter 86: Khiat of the Duskers

    BEGINNING OF BOOK 2: INCARNATE

    Khiat knelt in the quiet sands, the only sound the faint creaking of her half-drawn bow. It was too early in the fading dusk for her to use her full range of motion, but the heavy limbs of the weapon meant that wasn¡¯t an issue. Besides, she wasn¡¯t facing a terrible monster that¡¯d rip her limb from limb. This was a simple hunt to feed her village. Her only plan if encountering something dangerous was to run or hide.

    The deserts of Aughal were harsh, though not impossible to subsist in. The city itself could make for comfortable living if you had the means. If not, you¡¯d find yourself surviving out in the handful of villages scattered around the capital, which shared its name with the region. It was simple living. Dangerous, when the hunters didn¡¯t handle a monster in time. Hard, when the sparse fauna those without classes could hunt migrated away. Lonely, after years spent with the same hundred odd people.

    Khiat didn¡¯t have much to do but wait and think, and there wasn¡¯t much to think about aside from her short life. She¡¯d been alive for eight years and could reasonably remember five of them. How many people had she seen, ever? Under a thousand for sure. Making the trek to Aughal would change that in an instant. It was only a few days away if she traveled carefully. It was even visible on the horizon after the sun had gone down.

    That was all good but Khiat couldn¡¯t be spared. She was talented with her bow and people needed to eat. Precious little could be farmed here. It wasn¡¯t as if her village wasn¡¯t grateful. Hlona, the old one who sat by the fires even on warm nights, would smile every time she walked by. A few went so far as to call her a prodigy when they thought she wasn¡¯t there. That was fitting. Khiat wasn¡¯t one for self-aggrandizement, but she couldn¡¯t deny a simple fact. She could still advance and she was on the cusp of getting a class.

    Which one did she want? That was the talk of the village, source of much unsolicited advice, and, she was sure, a small betting pool. There wasn¡¯t much to wager, but her people would find something. Her mouth didn¡¯t move, though she smiled inside. Then, she let go.

    The arrow¡¯s path had been set an hour ago, Khiat remaining motionless and concealed against the terrain. Hunting was simple in that regard. All she had to do was wait for something to cross or get close enough to that line. When it did, she drew the rest of the way on the bowstring and made final adjustments. She¡¯d gotten good enough to only need to move a few centimeters, which had taken recognizing how her quarry moved around the dunes.

    The long-necked sesel she aimed at didn¡¯t have any obvious places to strike. The head was small and moved rapidly, whereas the heart was somewhere within its bulky, round body. Being off target or just unlucky would make even a good shot only wound. The arrows in her quiver would eventually kill with that, but Khiat wasn¡¯t in a position to chase down anything.

    Targeting the head was difficult, but the neck was a different matter. The creature wouldn¡¯t die immediately from being struck there, though it wouldn¡¯t get far. Khiat¡¯s target was hit at the base of the neck, causing a spray of blood to erupt from the high-pressure vessels within. The others in its pack were cowardly and ran. The stricken sesel tried to follow, made it a few meters, and fell when the deprivation of blood to its head finished it off.

    Khiat slowly rose and replaced the bow onto her back. A human might have had sores or even muscle damage from staying in the same pose for so long. She didn¡¯t have an issue with it, none of her kind did. All she felt was fading discomfort. The wood of the bow made a slight rasping sound as she replaced it on her back and it made contact with her chitin.

    ¡°Hrsh.¡± Khiat made a loud shushing sound in triumph. The largest of the prey had wandered into her sights. The head wasn¡¯t of much use so she tore it off dispassionately, long over squeamishness about such things. Then, she lifted the creature twice her current size without much issue. Khiat was a desert dweller, used to a life of struggle. Her attributes had been improved through the grace of the Octyrrum. Her race was also fiercely strong at baseline, so that helped.

    ¡°Still an hour,¡± she commented evenly, looking at the sun setting in the distance. ¡°It would be nice to run. Ah well.¡± Khiat shuffled across, up, and down the desert sands. She wasn¡¯t too far away from her village, maybe a kilometer, but it would take her half an hour to travel that distance.

    In that time, she thought again of what class she might want. Also, if there was anyone in the village she was truly interested in. Being the talk of the town brought attention, but that made it hard to honestly evaluate potential suitors. That there were only five in the village suitable for her didn¡¯t help. She swore to herself she wasn¡¯t that kind of person, but she¡¯d have a class soon. Could she do better?

    Not with dried blood running down her back! Khiat shivered slightly in disgust as she felt the prey she was carrying, Ugh, leak because she hadn¡¯t been careful in how she was carrying it. The red would stand out on her carapace even after it dried, too dark a brown against her lighter sand-like complexion.

    ¡­

    Duststone Oasis was nothing to look at. Most of the structures were underground, and they had to be. There were a couple of surface buildings, including a squat tower that rose just above the highest dune. From that height you could just see across the vast desert and find Aughal in the distance. Or, what was more pressing to the villagers, any monsters bounding down on them.

    The villagers could escape most attacks by just collapsing the entrances to their home, though monsters that could dig were a problem as were any powerful enough to cave in the dugout spaces through their presence alone. For those threats, there were those formally called monster hunters. Employed by Aughal and under the auspice of their Commander, they stood apart from both the churches and the city guard as a formal organization.

    Protection of the outlying villages was the responsibility of the capital. Every life empowered the region, and thus the kingdom, and thus the Realm, and thus Hammer, and thus the Octyrrum. Their lives were important, if not individually then en masse to help push back against the Crest. That was what the village taught its young.

    Khiat had another thought that bloomed from hours spent watching monsters move across the dunes. These small villages all ringed the capital. Sure, their presence enriched the region, but they also made for an early warning system if something truly terrible spawned and went unnoticed for too long. That was a touch cynical, and Khiat liked the thought that she¡¯d glimpsed an underside of the world others were ignorant of.

    Ok, maybe I¡¯m a little proud of myself. She trekked down the last dune, clawed feet able to dig into the sand and provide her stability. Only a few people were out this close to night, the rest would wake soon. Hwtel, one of the other youths of the tribe, was standing by the waters their village was built around. He appeared by all accounts frozen in place, though she could tell he was awake. Is he waiting for me? Oh.

    Like an enchanted statue coming to life, Hwtel began to move towards her as she navigated the dune. His voice traveled far faster than either of them. ¡°Khiat! It is good to see you, just as hard as it is to under that massive thing!¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re up this early for me?¡± Khiat asked in a higher pitch than normal, before wincing internally. The attention is getting to me.

    This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

    Hwtel laughed. ¡°The elders do say to start each dusk with a beautiful sight!¡±

    ¡°They mean the sun. But, thank you.¡±

    ¡°You hunt well. Are you thinking of becoming a Ranger?¡±

    ¡°Rangers aren¡¯t the only ones who can hunt,¡± she answered teasingly.

    Hwtel rolled his neck in mock exasperation, being careful during the motion to not expose the flesh underneath the carapace. ¡°Oh, give me something I can work with!¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t see why it would matter. Father says you don¡¯t always get the class you want.¡±

    ¡°I heard he hasn¡¯t even advanced. At all! What does he know?¡± Hwtel challenged, then appeared to regret his boldness. ¡°I, I mean, I¡¯m sure you can be whatever you want to be.¡±

    ¡°Is that right?¡± She appraised Hwtel with an eye practiced to seek out trends and vulnerabilities, in addition to taking account of his attractiveness. Average by their standards on the latter, which translated to one of the more handsome in the village. No cracks or discolorations in his shell, and even she couldn''t claim that herself because of the blood. ¡°What would I get out of this?

    ¡°Well-¡±

    A shout from the watchtower cut him off. Vtidi, twenty years of age and trusted for five to watch during the day. He¡¯d gotten his wisdom to nine before hitting his wall, no doubt a crushing disappointment to come so close and fall short. However, he could tolerate the slight pain that came from sitting in the sun while in armor, and there was no one else who wanted to be awake during the day. It was an important enough position that someone needed to do it, and everyone was thankful to have a regular. Seeing a threat in the distance, versus one over the next dune, made the difference between waking up the village before an attack and not having any time to react.

    In this case, it would''ve been hard to miss what was coming as it approached by air. Khiat herself saw the figure in the distance after the warning went out. The denizens of Duststone Oasis came to life in a panic as the cry echoed out across the desert.

    ¡°Wyvern! Bows! Bows!¡± Vtidi¡¯s cry roused late sleepers and galvanized those already awake. More importantly, it told the village what was needed for defense, and who could prepare to barricade homes in the worst case. Khiat was already prepared, thrusting her prey onto the fully terrified Hwtel so she could draw her bow. The brace of arrows at her side was nearly full. She¡¯d only needed one shot before, but now?

    She was afraid. Monsters had come close to their village before, drawn by the source of water. Weaker ones they¡¯d driven off, stronger ones they¡¯d hidden from. This threat was something else. It could fly, and it was large. Almost half as long as Vtidi¡¯s tower was tall, and there were sparks cast across parts of its body.

    Could it be a dragon? She froze in terror then, bow halfway drawn. The reputation of those beasts carried well across mortal lands, even to isolated villages. People still talked about a sand dragon that had spawned in Aughal years ago, though that had been before she was born. Khiat, still frozen, observed the beast and wondered if the time had come for another to appear. Did dragons have two or four legs? Khiat couldn¡¯t remember. It was too big. How had no one detected it? This wasn¡¯t supposed to happen. Why hadn¡¯t someone warned them?

    ¡°Khiat!¡± Hwtel had dropped the sesel rather than bear its weight while running for his life. At least he¡¯s sensible, she thought numbly. Then she shook slightly as her body pushed against the armored shell surrounding it. It¡¯d be too soon, the slight sting of the setting sun told her that plainly. ¡°We can¡¯t fight that, not before night!¡±

    She reached for an arrow, still with the intent of firing her bow. Size or not, the right shot in the right place could kill anything! Right? Khiat held the arrow in her hand for a few seconds and let it fall back into the quiver. She couldn¡¯t do it. Dropping her bow, she moved as fast as she could towards one of the small tents around the village. She couldn¡¯t die before she got her class. She was so close. Not now.

    Another of her people, Mvina, was holding the entrance to the subterranean abode open for the few who¡¯d been out to flee to. ¡°Hurry! Get below! You?¡± Khiat shifted with guilt but did not stop her flight. The woman of the house looked close to chastising her until she saw what was in the sky. ¡°Vtidi! Get down now!¡±

    The old man plucked an arrow from a nearby rack, though this one had an arrowhead only made of regular stone. Khiat carried a good portion of the village¡¯s ancestral arrows, and she was taking them with her in her cowardice. ¡°I will buy time! Get down and collapse the passages!¡±

    Mvina called back up to him in a warning voice. ¡°Not until you are down here!¡±

    Khiat heard Vtidi¡¯s response, and the loud crack of his bow, before she was in the tent and under the sand. Care had been taken to make these homes, hardening the earth so the terrain wouldn¡¯t flow into any pocket they formed. By the same token, knocking out a few supports on the way would make it very difficult for anything that couldn¡¯t dig to get down to them.

    Neither she nor Hwtel dislodged the beams they passed. Mvina was still above, as was her husband. Khiat had forgotten. How could she have forgotten? He was standing up to that monster while she was taking shelter in his home! How had the Octyrrum given her its favor over Vtidi?

    The room she came to at the bottom of the shaft was a rough dome four meters tall in the center, with smaller spaces branching off this point. Despite the safety this setup provided, it had disadvantages. Cooking fires were only possible near the entrance, and not many chose to start one there. The addition of rooms for a growing family was likewise problematic.

    Vtidi and Mvina had three children, young enough to need close watching. With four side rooms and two needed for purposes other than sleeping, compromises had to be made somewhere. That was life on the fringes. As two came rushing out from one room, Khiat remembered herself and stood to her full height.

    ¡°Who¡¯re they?¡± the youngest asked, not stepping through the door frame once he realized there were visitors. He, someone Khiat couldn¡¯t remember the name of at the moment, wasn¡¯t old enough to be able to protect against the sun and was closely watched by Mvina during the day. If not for the current situation, she¡¯d be with him now.

    The eldest child who Khiat did know as Tmok recognized her in kind. ¡°Khiat?

    ¡°Alright, it¡¯s ok, just stay calm,¡± Hwtel told them, trying and failing to project ease. Now at a full height of over two meters, he beckoned to the one not in the central chamber. ¡°Come. It will be alright.¡±

    Khiat knew what he was doing. In the worst case, this room would be the last to cave in. How long was it until true night? Damn it, I should know! How can I not know? She looked at her hands as it fully dawned on her that she¡¯d dropped her bow. The very precious, very expensive bow made by a Craftsman to sustain a draw weight far beyond what the other mortal races needed. All of that investment by her village and she was in here, hiding with children!

    ¡°I need to go back,¡± Khiat said while Tmok and his sister were coaxing the third out. ¡°Stay here.¡±

    ¡°Khiat, that¡¯s crazy. Stay here with me, with, uh, with us.¡± Hwtel stumbled over his words. She did want to stay. Not for that reason, but the thought of what waited above.

    I don¡¯t have to fight it, just get my bow. It wasn¡¯t too far, was it?

    ¡°Khiat!¡± he shouted after her, but she was moving more quickly now. Out from under the sun, she could make full use of her dexterity. Hwtel didn¡¯t follow her as she charged up the incline, shrunk down as fast as she could, and made it to the tent.

    Mvina was standing at the inner flap, almost unmoved from where she¡¯d stood before. ¡°I need to get my bow. Is it out there?¡± The older woman looked at her, the separated plates of her face turned down to accentuate the frown. Oh no.

    ¡°It flew away.¡± Instead of relief, Mvina sounded as if she¡¯d found a hole in her roof.

    The tone gave Khiat¡¯s panicked thoughts pause. ¡°It what?¡±

    ¡°That old shell brain should have thought of it before sounding the alarm. My stars, but really. Bothering the whole village for that.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Khiat could only stare into the open sky, free of any threat of imminent death.

    ¡°That monster isn¡¯t from this region. Some idiot of a foreign Beastmaster must have let it run free. Hesh, but I admit it was a kind of excitement.¡±

    ¡°Is everyone ok?¡±

    ¡°Oh don¡¯t worry yourself, girl. The worst that came out of it is our breakfast being a bit sandy. Do pick up your litter dear.¡±

    ¡°Oh, yes. Apologies.¡± Khiat had the same sinking feeling. Not from regret or cowardice, but from foolishness. How proud she¡¯d been of the refinement of her hunting technique. On the way back to the village, she¡¯d seen herself as already halfway to being a decent monster hunter. Not only had she run just after being confronted with a real threat, but she hadn¡¯t been smart enough to realize its true nature.

    Khiat attended her bow first, taking the composite of wood and metal into her arms and brushing off the sand. The sesel she didn¡¯t bother with. Others would clean the kill. She was walking toward them when an almost out of breath Vtidi gave another warning cry.

    ¡°The road! The road to the east!¡±

    ¡°Vtidi, if this is another false alarm I swear I will throw you from that tower,¡± someone shouted back on the opposite side of the oasis.

    ¡°A caravan! No threat, I hope. Dozens of people. Maybe a hundred.¡±

    A caravan, moving this late? Khiat saw now there were only a few minutes to darkness. The shadows of the dunes were deep enough that she could fully emerge without fear in their lowest points. What a relief. Well, they probably wouldn¡¯t be trouble. Even if these were bandits or the Mirage posing as a friendly convoy, they¡¯d need at least a few Blessed with combat classes to overrun the village. Only fools attacked duskers at night.

 Chapter 87: On the Road

    Daniel glanced at one of the only two reminders he had left of his world as he numbly followed the road blazed through the dunes. Rather than concrete or even stone which would be a more familiar paving material, the surface was made from compacted sand.

    The impression he¡¯d gotten was that someone with a relevant power had plowed through the countryside like a steamroller. In a world with magic and without cars, it made a kind of sense. The only kind of transit this path couldn¡¯t support would be heavily loaded wagons, so Daniel supposed there was another way those moved to the region he¡¯d just left. Or, rather, had moved. The Thormundz was gone, for all that any cared. The last people who¡¯d survived now either traveled with him or the group that had left for Threst.

    Daniel could be described in many ways. Former aspiring engineer turned actual Artificer was one way. Physically, he was in far better shape than he¡¯d ever been. Despite an avowed hatred of all things camping, it was most of what he¡¯d been doing for the past two months. That, and the magically enforced improvements to his body, had left him lean with visible muscles. Had he found a mirror at any point in the past few weeks he would¡¯ve been surprised, though not overly so. Even the bodybuilders of his world would have had him beat, if in appearance rather than actual strength.

    So, what was the same? His phone? That had changed too, remade from a magical material after his original was destroyed. Even its software was gone, replaced by an extension of the powers he possessed. The only similarity was the photo of his family serving as the background image. He sometimes wondered if his phone was the Focus his class required at all, considering it was the photo that had allowed him to remake it.

    In addition to that was the eagle feather necklace he wore at all times, a gift from his late father. The brown hair, longer than he normally wore, and the brown eyes were consistent with his earthly appearance as well. There was nothing to him that Daniel would consider particularly eye catching. Before coming to this new world, that was.

    Now, he had a crossbow harnessed on his back that looked like it was made of solid gold. In truth, the material he¡¯d constructed it from was far more valuable. The quiver on his side was as long as a short sword¡¯s sheath and positioned like one. Daniel was able to get away with not placing this on his back as his bolts were shorter than traditional arrows.

    The pack that used to be worn on his back was instead slung onto the ringcat Hunter beside him. He was a leonine cross between a panther and a tiger larger than Daniel, with fangs protruding out of the maw. He was faintly reminiscent of the sabretooths of old. The armor he wore contrasted this analogy, bright gold against the brown, blue, and white fur. This creature was more spectacular to this world than the man who wasn¡¯t from it, in ways both were only beginning to understand.

    Daniel thumbed through his phone a few more times, reading entries and double checking the character screen that displayed his stats and powers, before reaching a conclusion he¡¯d been circling for the past couple of days. He looked up and addressed the group around him. ¡°Ok, I¡¯m pretty sure that I have no idea what¡¯s going on.¡±

    ¡°So your power isn¡¯t gone then?¡± Evalyn, the Bard and unearthly beauty amidst their group asked. Her looks were a product of both natural gift and a force multiplier of a power, granting her a visage that had once literally stunned Daniel. He tried to put those thoughts out of his mind now.

    ¡°Yes, and no. I don¡¯t get it.¡± Words on the screen flashed by as he idly scrolled through the descriptions of the new powers he¡¯d gained from defeating a giant dragon and the more terrible monster that had hidden inside it.

    <hr>

    Your Charisma is now 18! You have gained Feature: Mantle of Creativity and Ability: Reassure.

    -

    Mantle of Creativity (Feature, Charisma, Aura, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to inspire new ideas and unconventional thinking in those that are able to observe you to a minor degree. Any number of Creatures may be influenced by this feature within a short range. This aura is Spiritual in nature and is able to function in an area of Magical Suppression.

    ? Level 2 (Automatic): You do not meet the requirements for this benefit.

    -

    Reassure (Ability, Charisma, Spell, Domain: Restoration, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to dispel Status Afflictions: Mental suffered by others. Use of this ability requires a modest amount of Mana, speech appropriate to counter the targeted affliction, and a receptive target. Effectiveness of the ability scales with your charisma and inversely scales with the offensive power¡¯s source Attribute. This is a Magical Ability that does not function within an area of Magical Suppression.

    -

    Your Intelligence is now 22! You have gained Ability: Invest Affix.

    -

    Invest Affix (Ability, Intelligence, Spell, Domain: Enchantment, Designation, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to instill one object with an Affix: Enchanting that you know, providing the normal benefits this would provide. Only enchanted objects you have made may be targeted, and this ability cannot be used to overcome the Affix Limit of the item. Items of a level higher than your intelligence cannot be targeted. This ability requires an amount of Mana that scales exponentially with the level of the target. You may only affect one item with this ability, and the mana used is reserved and cannot be restored until you voluntarily dismiss the effect. The is a Magical Ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression, although the affix will remain inactive and can be voluntarily withdrawn before leaving the area.

    -

    Your Dexterity is now 21!

    <hr>

    He¡¯d only gotten three which was a bit disappointing, and part of him wondered if the Octyrrum had retroactively used one slot for Divination Aegis. It was common wisdom that people in the lower levels gained one power for every two potential they spent advancing, though it was also possible he''d just hit below average. Even if that wasn¡¯t the case, he was lucky all things considered.

    ¡°My Encyclopedia is gone. At least, the way I normally get to it is and it¡¯s no longer on my character sheet, but I can still see the entries for my abilities and features in a different spot where I advance.¡±

    ¡°Right,¡± said Thomas pretending to understand. He was a Cleric and a gossip. Only one of those was a class. The man was around Daniel¡¯s age, maybe a year or two older, and tended between a frenetic on the job personality, and a laid back one when not trying to stop people from dying.

    ¡°I do not understand,¡± said another, covered in brown feathers. Rather than wearing them, they were part of his body. Tak was an avianoid, or bird person. Both his phone and society at large seemed to prefer the first term, and while Daniel might have had a few better suggestions on what to name the species he doubted they¡¯d gain any traction. Tak was also a Totem Warrior, bearing powers that would make him reminiscent of the ringcat in the same way werewolves looked like wolves. Usually, at least. Things had gotten unusual during the last, terrible encounter at the lake that Daniel was doing everything he could to put behind him.

    ¡°Yeah Guy, it¡¯s hard to follow when we can¡¯t read that. Can¡¯t you change the language or something?¡± Thomas asked.

    Add that to the list of mysteries I have no idea about, Daniel thought. ¡°Not that I¡¯ve seen. It¡¯s still odd. It sounds like we¡¯re speaking the same language, but your written one is different. But, I still understand both. Look here.¡± Daniel tapped on part of the text that was blue. Like an online encyclopedia, this brought him to another page tied to the subject of that text. ¡°I¡¯m in my Encyclopedia now.¡±

    The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

    ¡°The one that was taken away?¡± Of the rest of the group, Evalyn was the quickest, although Daniel wasn¡¯t sure how to judge the last member given how rarely they spoke. ¡°Ignoring again how some random human, likely level 7 at least, not only used one of your abilities for you but then altered another, how is that possible?¡±

    ¡°Like I said, I don¡¯t get it. I¡¯d almost say they made a mistake, and I¡¯m glad they did.¡± Daniel closed his eyes for a moment, expended some of the mana within him, and nodded. ¡°I can still heighten it too. Without that I couldn¡¯t get more enchanting formulae from monsters, and that would suck. The biggest change is that I can¡¯t search through it anymore. Anything structural to the encyclopedia, like the index, is still gone. The only way I can get around is by jumping between the links.¡±

    ¡°Ok, now you¡¯ve lost me.¡±

    ¡°I, uh, yeah Guy I don¡¯t know either.¡±

    Daniel decided to stop before he had to explain the internet without letting Thomas in on the fact that he was from another world. The Cleric wasn¡¯t one of the ones in the know. In fact, of the people around him only Evalyn and Hunter knew he was technically an alien. ¡°It¡¯s fine, the point is that I¡¯ve kind of cheated whoever did this. My Encyclopedia was already annoying to use so it¡¯s not gotten too much worse.¡±

    ¡°Do you think they¡¯ll find out?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know, Evalyn. What he gave me in return would make me think not, but I still don¡¯t know if they did anything else to Hunter.¡± He thumbed his way to the description of the function that had formally replaced his Encyclopedia, just to be sure.

    <hr>

    Divination Aegis* (Function, Wisdom, Domain: Illusion, Level: 2):

    Protects against any form of Power or Magic that allows detection or location of yourself and those around you within a short radius. You may selectively include or exclude Creatures within this area from this Function, and designate a default option. Creatures you are unaware of or cannot detect are unaffected by this function, except those you are aware of when you rest. This is a Magical Ability that functions in an area of Magical Suppression.

    *???

    <hr>

    The gaze of the group shifted towards the beast walking with them. He was as tall as Daniel¡¯s shoulders, which put him at Evalyn¡¯s chin, Tak¡¯s sternum, and Thomas¡¯ neck. The ringcat looked around, saw the wide berth he was granting the group from the rest of the refugees, and spoke in the smallest voice he could. ¡°I feel fine.¡± A giant feline couldn¡¯t whisper, but Hunter¡¯s closest equivalent didn¡¯t go far enough to reach anyone else.

    Everyone but Daniel and Tak tensed when they heard him. Monsters of this world did not speak. Hunter didn¡¯t fit that category anymore for many reasons, but he still looked the part. The people here had only heard one other monster speak, and that¡¯d been a fire-breathing dragon that had tried to kill them all. To the best of the natives¡¯ knowledge, those two were the only known exceptions to the general rule in all of history. Aberrations. Perhaps, even heresy.

    ¡°Grafted.¡± The last member of the group spoke one word softly, yet with a creaking sound that was unavoidable given their nature. Khare, an earth gestalt, could best be described as a sentient mass of vines tangled together like a Gordian knot. When otherwise unobserved, these gestalt defaulted to an amorphous mass but could take a humanoid shape which they now assumed.

    ¡°It¡¯s getting harder to deny that,¡± Evalyn agreed with Khare. ¡°That man who approached you might have been a god, or a servant of one with their authority. I think the class is called Proxy, though they¡¯re pretty rare. Maybe more than Artificer.¡±

    ¡°Nothing like that happened before I met the guy though, and Hunter¡¯s been like this since I met Tak. There wasn¡¯t some crazy ritual or god or however the Grafting working initially, just one of my powers making a bond. I mean, you all heard him at the lake, right? He¡¯s been in my head almost this entire time.¡±

    This topic made Thomas the most uncomfortable of the group, which made sense considering his class. ¡°It¡¯s different hearing a voice in your head and words spoken out loud, Guy. If I had the rate this compared to the rest of the crazy things happening with you, I¡¯d give it a 4.¡±

    ¡°Out of five or ten?¡± Evalyn asked Thomas.

    ¡°Five? I thought that¡¯d be obvious.¡±

    ¡°If this is a four, then what¡¯s a five?¡±

    ¡°The dragon. The first one.¡±

    Tak grimaced. ¡°Haw, yes. That one was bad.¡±

    ¡°You didn¡¯t even fight that one Tak!¡±

    ¡°You just shot it with arrows.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not a fighter, I¡¯m a healer,¡± Thomas grumbled. ¡°So what, Guy? Your power¡¯s only slightly broken?¡±

    ¡°I guess. It means I still have a good reason to hunt monsters once we get to the city. That, and making money.¡± Right, money. I don¡¯t have any. I need to ask someone how that works. He knew people used coins of some kind here because of a bet Thomas had once tried to make but otherwise hadn¡¯t seen much of the kind in his time here. Living in what equated to a disaster zone changed normal day to day affairs like commerce.

    ¡°Of all of us, you, and Thomas,¡± Evalyn conceded after a moment¡¯s thought, ¡±Have the easiest time not taking contracts to provide for yourself. Bards aren¡¯t exactly uncommon, Totem Warriors and Martialists less so. At level 2 our options aren¡¯t terrible, but they are still limited when it comes to any kind of formal command role. Honestly, we should be grateful someone of such a lauded class like you would still hang around with us.¡± Evalyn¡¯s words were, at once, sarcastic, good spirited, and contained just a hint of the charm that pervaded her. After what they¡¯d all been through, she¡¯d put in the most work at keeping a brave face and had done much to keep them all afloat.

    Thomas got that look on his face whenever someone mentioned the economy and Aughal. ¡°Right, yeah. About that, there¡¯s something I¡¯ve been meaning to tell you, Guy. Might want to keep it quiet that you¡¯re an Artificer, at least at first.¡±

    ¡°Do you think someone would rob me?¡± Daniel looked with some concern at Thomas. The Cleric was from the region they were now in, though he hadn¡¯t been entirely clear with what that history amounted to. This was what Lograve had told him back when the Arcanist was preparing for Daniel to be the sole survivor. It was something important enough that it was included along with the instructions on who to contact about the world ending.

    Thomas looked pointedly at the golden crossbow gleaming in the sun. ¡°I mean, maybe? You¡¯re probably fine if you keep your stuff inside Khare, no one would check them. It¡¯s, uh,¡± he looked away awkwardly for some reason.

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°You know how regions can be particular about rare classes?¡±

    No, Daniel thought, but didn¡¯t say. He didn¡¯t lie either, as Thomas could detect lies in people whose charisma wasn¡¯t high enough and still knew some kind of tell that Daniel had. He¡¯d improved his charisma, but not by enough. As the attribute was below 20, and thus below his level, he still suffered from level disparity to it. Everything having to do with charisma was made slightly worse, although he was still above his baseline before coming here. ¡°What¡¯s it like in Aughal?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not the worst?¡±

    Evalyn was the first to remark on the limp endorsement. ¡°Gods, you don¡¯t take slaves do you?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t! And, no. I¡¯m pretty sure.¡± Thomas kicked at the road, which held up surprisingly well to the affront. ¡°It¡¯s not that bad. But, look. Some people can find themselves in debt or serious trouble, and then conveniently someone comes along with a solution.¡±

    ¡°Slavery?¡±

    ¡°No! Uh, contracts.¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t sound so sure,¡± Daniel commented, suddenly very nervous about reaching the city.

    ¡°Guy, it¡¯s fine. There are just some people who might be powerful enough to get away with keeping a slave and not having anyone find out. I don¡¯t think that¡¯s happening but I can¡¯t say it¡¯s not!¡± He shook his head. ¡°Bottom line, there¡¯s another Artificer in the city already. Level 4, might be higher by now, and as far as I know, he¡¯s doing fine! They¡¯ve already got an Artificer is what I¡¯m saying. The city wouldn¡¯t be as motivated to hire you, but it¡¯s still attention you probably don¡¯t want.¡±

    ¡°But I¡¯m an Artificer. Ignoring that it¡¯s possible to identify people¡¯s classes, I mean, I can do that, not being able to sell magical items is going to limit how much we can earn.¡±

    ¡°So, we talk to that Artificer and have him sell them! We¡¯d lose some on it sure Guy, but it¡¯s more covert that way.¡±

    ¡°Is his name Arpan?¡±

    Thomas blinked in surprise. ¡°Yeah. You know him?¡±

    Daniel shook his head, and he didn¡¯t explain how he knew either. That was a painful memory. ¡°Do you?¡±

    ¡°Only by reputation. Look, it¡¯s fine Guy. Really!¡±

    ¡°Sure. But how powerful are the people who lead Aughal, level 6? I can¡¯t imagine there¡¯s someone this close to the edge more powerful unless they¡¯re leading a nearby Incursion Army or ambushing Daniel.¡± Thomas, who had already been unbalanced by the direction of the conversation, squirmed under Evalyn¡¯s probing question.

    ¡°Not exactly. It¡¯s not a secret per se but they don¡¯t like people talking about it.¡± He lowered his voice. ¡°See-¡±

    ¡°Hey, asshole! Village is where you said it¡¯d be.¡± A shout from the front of the procession interrupted Thomas. Like Tak¡¯s, the voice carried the auditory clarity and pleasantness that its owner did everything to defy. ¡°Can you stop using my wyvern as danger bait now?¡±

    ¡°Hmrm. Unfortunate she did not go to Threst,¡± Tak commented, unintentionally giving Thomas a lifeline from whatever he was about to confess.

    ¡°They could¡¯ve just asked me.¡± Daniel shrugged. ¡°Or Hunter. Not that people should think they can ask Hunter things. Not that what happened is bad! Uh-¡±

    ¡°I think he understands,¡± Evalyn said reassuringly, nodding at Hunter who hadn¡¯t visibly reacted to Daniel tripping over his own words. ¡°Your hearts practically beat in sync.¡±

    ¡°Not always.¡± Daniel looked into the distance where several humanoid outlines were displayed. One of his first powers, Identify Creature, displayed an aura around people he sensed and provided some information on them. It was something similar to having a wallhack with one notable exception.

    The first major foray Daniel had made into testing the limits of his powers had been accidental and game changing. Hunter, as it turned out, could share his powers. This was probably due to the bond they shared, something similar to a class in that it gave powers, but it was far more mystical and less well understood than classes. Daniel¡¯s Focus hadn¡¯t given him the details of the bond when it had first formed, and he still couldn¡¯t find it in his Encyclopedia, assuming it even had an entry. In any case, when you combined a magical power that relied on the strength of senses and a monster with a nose keener than a bloodhound¡¯s, you got what Daniel affectionately called ¡®murder cat radar¡¯.

    There were limits, of course. Higher level creatures and those with stealth powers could subvert Hunter¡¯s senses. Wind in the wrong direction, or excessive noise, similarly blunted Hunter¡¯s ability to mark nearby creatures. Further, the transition into a desert environment had impaired the ringcat as he was exposed to an array of scents he wasn¡¯t familiar with.

    In the best conditions, Hunter¡¯s range extended past three kilometers. Now it was closer to about half of that. Daniel hadn¡¯t been alerted to the clustered humanoids until Tlara had already sent out her scout, prompted by what Lograve saw on a map that Daniel had shamelessly copied into his Focus. Word had gone down the column that they¡¯d be pushing an additional hour or so into the march to reach the oasis. Even if they couldn¡¯t house the convoy, there were mutual benefits to camping near a village instead of open terrain.

    ¡°So, what are we looking at Guy?¡±

    Daniel¡¯s eyes scanned over what he saw. Another feature, one of two categories magical powers were sorted into in this world, subtly improved his ability to process information. Not to a great degree, but every bit helped. ¡°97 people, none with a class.¡± He frowned, wondering how they could have survived this long isolated in a world of monsters. ¡°Is that safe?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡± Thomas didn¡¯t sound entirely convinced himself. ¡°Aughal¡¯s got a Hunter¡¯s Guild. No one wants to stay out in random villages but there are patrols.¡±

    ¡°Right, but wouldn¡¯t any of the villagers get a class? Some of them are close.¡±

    ¡°How do you know that Guy?¡± Thomas asked, a little askance.

    ¡°If people are two levels lower than me, including people that don¡¯t have a level, I can see their attributes if I want to. There¡¯s a guy on the tower with a wisdom of nine, and another on the ground with a nine in dexterity. If they have potential, they could get a class tomorrow.¡±

    Thomas inclined his head to the side, not fully acknowledging the point. ¡°Yeah, but what about the wall? Village this small, there¡¯s probably just one or two people who could get a class before hitting it and they probably moved to Aughal when they did.¡±

    The what? Daniel encountered yet another topic he knew nothing about but appeared to be commonplace enough that it would be suspicious if he asked about it. Now that he thought about it people had mentioned it, but it¡¯d just been one of the many things there hadn¡¯t been time for questions for. Whenever something like this came up, he filed it away to discuss with Evalyn or, preferably, Lograve later. There was one question he felt safe in asking though.

    ¡°Right. One other thing. By default, I can tell the race of people, only I haven¡¯t heard of these before. What¡¯s a dusker?¡±

    ¡°Oh no.¡± Thomas groaned and shuddered a little. ¡°Evalyn, could you go use your boob powers and ask Lograve to head to the next village instead? We don¡¯t want to stop here.¡± While the sound of one Cleric getting slapped was satisfying to a few, it did little to answer the fresh questions that came to Daniel¡¯s mind.

 Chapter 88: Warm Welcome

    ¡°Well, that went about as well as I could expect,¡± a man said sarcastically. His most distinguishing feature was the large scar from past lightning burns on his face. Those scars stretched beneath what he was wearing, remnants of the day he¡¯d almost died. He was tall, wearing light blue robes with translucent armor underneath. This protection was made entirely of ice, which did wonders against the fading desert heat. He had another set, but the Artificer that made it was so inexperienced it was liable to explode.

    Lograve smiled at the inside joke as he glanced at Tlara. ¡°I¡¯m sure I don¡¯t need to ask this, but there isn¡¯t any way you might have terrified these people by, say, flying your oversized lizard too close to them?¡±

    The avianoid woman with a permanent beaked frown standing next to him folded her arms. ¡°How the fuck should I know?¡±

    ¡°Ah, yes, I should have considered that.¡± Lograve sighed after the mock apology. ¡°It¡¯s just that we are both very close to the village and right about where you had it turn around. There also seemed to have been at least one arrow fired at your wyvern, but that must have been my imagination. I¡¯m sure there¡¯s no connection between those facts and the faint shouting, but my mind does wander into some far-fetched conclusions on occasion.¡±

    Tlara glared at him, something that could be considered her signature move. ¡°Alright, alright. Jeez.¡±

    ¡°Lograve, what¡¯s a dusker?¡± Daniel, coming up to his side, asked. His opportunity to clarify this with Thomas had been stolen when the Arcanist leading this evacuation convoy had requested his presence.

    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s who lives here. Something you could have mentioned, Tlara.¡± The Beastmaster grumbled instead of giving a formal response. Sighing again, though this time with faint amusement, Lograve explained. ¡°They¡¯re a race you wouldn¡¯t have seen in the Thormundz. They¡¯re one of the races with a crippling weakness and normally require support to survive, except for environments in which they thrive. For duskers, the light of the sun is poisonous to them.¡±

    ¡°Jeez, do they live underground?¡±

    ¡°They can, but why don¡¯t you tell me? I assume you can see the ones ahead?¡± Daniel took another look and nodded in realization. ¡°It¡¯s not a desirable trait, but it is offset in a few key ways. A normal dusker capable of using the fullness of their inborn strength could pose a serious threat to someone of level 1 or 2, depending on the class. This village here wouldn¡¯t be able to fight us off if we all suddenly turned black-hearted, but it also wouldn¡¯t be an easy victory.¡±

    ¡°Damn bugs,¡± Tlara cursed under her breath.

    ¡°What?¡±

    Lograve recoiled as if she¡¯d just commanded her wyvern to dive bomb him. ¡°Oh come on, Tlara. I want him to see it for himself! They¡¯re the kind of people you only get to meet for the first time once.¡±

    ¡°Interesting,¡± another commented. Gadriel the Hero, as in, someone with the Hero class. He didn¡¯t stop semantics from letting him perform regular heroics though. The man was tall with dark hair at a medium length and a cape that fluttered even when the air was still. That last part was undoubtedly due to a power. ¡°I admit these folk are not common in Threst. How do they survive the sun?¡±

    ¡°Patience, you¡¯ll see.¡± Lograve¡¯s smile faded as he heard more shouting from the village. ¡°Oh gods, I hope you didn¡¯t just militarize the village. Daniel, do any of them look hostile to you?¡±

    The Artificer examined each of the auras in the distance, some of which, as Lograve had implied, were below where he¡¯d expect the sand to be in the oasis. Practically all of them were solid gray, though that could have meant anything as Identify Creature only measured hostility towards him. ¡°They probably won¡¯t attack us on sight,¡± he answered, seeing why Lograve had asked for him.

    The Arcanist gave an exaggerated sigh directed at Tlara before he shook his head dramatically. ¡°Maybe you should go ahead Gadriel? I doubt anyone could take a look at you and think ¡®bandit¡¯.¡±

    ¡°I accept your compliment. What should I say?¡±

    ¡°Something along the lines of ¡®we¡¯re not here to kill you¡¯, ¡®do you have any rooms to spare¡¯, and ¡®our Beastmaster is an idiot¡¯.¡±

    ¡°Fuck you!¡±

    ¡°Predictability is a vice, Tlara. Try to vary your aggression. Glares and curses only remain fresh for so long.¡± Tlara¡¯s wyvern, still summoned and not stored along with her other monsters in the pouches worn at her waist, turned ever so slightly towards Lograve and opened its mouth while lightning crackled across the spines in its wings. ¡°On second thought-¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°Master Lograve, is it? I am glad to find that my village can enjoy your presence.¡±

    ¡°Just Lograve.¡± The Arcanist waved a hand. ¡°I¡¯m sorry for the scare. Is everyone alright?¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± the dusker more than a meter taller than Lograve said, still managing to express deference to the human despite that difference. Daniel couldn¡¯t help but stare. They were massive, and so weird.

    Ok, only a two, he thought to himself, borrowing Thomas¡¯ improvised scale. But what the hell? The duskers had some form of insect heritage as Tlara had suggested. Beetles, maybe, although Daniel couldn¡¯t easily place what they most resembled. The man, and he was pretty sure about that gender, talking to Lograve was three meters tall, blood red in most places with dust-colored carapace plates around and over the body. Otherwise, they had what could be called normal limbs, and faces that were primarily distinguished by the arrangement of chitinous plates around the head. The breaks in the plates around the face created a large number of small sandy islands atop a red sea, and from what Daniel could tell the pattern of these was unique to each dusker.

    It was very noticeable how easily the carapace blended into the sand since it was difficult to tell where that ended and the dusker¡¯s feet began. That was potent natural camouflage. It was just too bad the interior skin stood out easily. Unless? Daniel also took notice of how each armor piece appeared segmented and put the pieces together. ¡°Woah. Thomas, can they shrink down?¡±

    He was back with his normal group now that contact with the village was made and no one was trying to kill each other. The six were standing to themselves amidst the rest of the people from the Thormundz who were gathered on a dune overlooking the oasis. The Cleric nodded. ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s creepy. Look at ¡®em! Giant bugs, and strong enough to punch through a house without any enhanced strength.¡±

    ¡°Very strong,¡± Tak commented. ¡°Very big. That is not fair!¡±

    ¡°Well, they do have it a bit rough. Whenever the sun¡¯s out they have to shrink down and become as slow as sand turtles.¡±

    ¡°Are sand turtles slower than normal turtles?¡± Daniel asked.

    ¡°No, they¡¯re a bit faster. Look, I just, ugh, I¡¯ll just camp over the nearest dune. I swear, nothing against them, they just creep me out.¡± Thomas pointedly turned away from the majority of the villagers. The actual villagers, and not the former ones that could now only be described as refugees. Lograve was busy explaining the situation to the village headman. A dusker named Xtalo, if Identify Creature could be trusted. No second name. Odd.

    Evalyn was also scrutinizing the villagers. ¡°What are you thinking?¡±

    She didn¡¯t turn away as she answered him. ¡°How do classes work with these people? Berserker is obvious. Gods, one of them would be worse than Kob was. But Knight? I¡¯d ask Murdon if natural armor could count, otherwise, how would they bind a full Focus?¡±

    ¡°And forget about one of them becoming a Bard,¡± Thomas commented over his shoulder.

    ¡°Don¡¯t be rude Thomas. Every race has its beauty and there are even gestalt Bards. Duskers have their own love stories and broken hearts. Just because they don¡¯t fit our standards, and I do agree with you there,¡± she added quietly, ¡°That doesn¡¯t mean they wouldn¡¯t make good Bards! Now, making an instrument that large, that could be a problem.¡±

    ¡°Since when do you wonder about that kind of stuff anyway?¡±

    ¡°Probably my fault,¡± Daniel admitted, trying to break up what could turn into a fight in front of recently riled villagers. ¡°Mantle of Creativity, remember?¡±

    ¡°Oh. That could be it,¡± Evalyn said thoughtfully. ¡°Tak, do you feel any different around Daniel?¡±

    ¡°No? I can just tell how smart he is.¡±

    ¡°Khare?¡±

    The earth gestalt who had taken to the desert better than the rest shifted. Khare had acquired the ability to assemble himself into a hybrid form at some point around the threshold of level 2 that they assumed now. It was a simple blend of a humanoid upper half, and a sprawling lower mass of vines that allowed better traction on uneven and vertical surfaces while retaining the better versatility and control of human hands.

    If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    ¡°Aura.¡± Evalyn frowned, not quite comprehending. That was the thing about gestalt. One of the things. In contrast to most races, they had difficulty conversing. In most cases, they only spoke one word at a time, although at several points Daniel had heard gestalt string together words as if they were each a sentence if given enough time. He¡¯d spent the most time with Khare out of everyone here and had the best luck deciphering what the vine person meant.

    ¡°They¡¯re right. I don¡¯t quite get the point, but the feature does have the aura tag.¡±

    ¡°Aren¡¯t auras the things your spying ability uses Guy?¡± Thomas asked, still with his back mostly turned.

    ¡°That¡¯s just what I call them. I¡¯m not sure if the descriptors my Encyclopedia uses are official or not, but people use the same words it does more often than not.¡±

    ¡°The Encyclopedia that shouldn¡¯t exist anymore?¡±

    ¡°Yeah?¡±

    Lograve¡¯s voice broke up the conversation. ¡°Alright, everyone! Duststone Oasis has graciously allowed us to make camp here! They¡¯ll even be able to watch over us as they¡¯re nocturnal. Stay peaceful, and be thankful for their hospitality.¡± A few people in the crowd, Thomas included, shuddered at the thought of being watched by the insectoid goliaths wandering about in front of them.

    Strange bugs. Are you sure they are not monsters?

    Yeah, Daniel answered Hunter, who used the Telepathic Link between them instead of speaking in such a public area. Why?

    They don¡¯t look like the rest of you. Taller.

    Yeah, but they¡¯re humanoid. Like, two arms and two legs.

    I have four legs. That isn¡¯t too different.

    Daniel glanced at the ringcat. Hunter had grown so much from the feral creature that had first stumbled upon him, both mentally and physically. He was an Awakened Ringcat now, and the tag Identify Creature placed on him confirmed that as a true class. What that meant exactly wasn¡¯t clear, but it was obvious that the once monster had fully crossed the line into personhood. Daniel frowned as he sensed something close to bitterness from Hunter. The Empathic Link they also shared was purposefully muted, as having it on full blast brought them far closer than any would have liked. They couldn¡¯t fully turn it off and proximity made it stronger. This close to Hunter, faint emotions sometimes slipped through.

    Hmm. It is odd, but I agree. Duskers are people. Ringcats are not. Not normally. Tak¡¯s voice came to Daniel too. The Totem Warrior had formed a bond similar to Daniel¡¯s with Hunter, though it was different in some ways. Like the fact that they got a combo attack, whereas Daniel just got a daily barrage of ringcat instinct whenever the Empathic Link reset at dawn. It wasn¡¯t fair.

    The Grafting. Could it be done to me? To other ringcats?

    Tak looked at Daniel expectantly, cluing the others around them in on why they¡¯d fallen silent. ¡°Five,¡± Thomas said, taking that as his cue to walk over a nearby dune and set up his improvised bedroll.

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°Hunter wants to be human. Like a human,¡± Tak answered Evalyn.

    ¡°That would be something to see. I haven¡¯t heard of anything like that happening this side of the Collapse. No stories or the like.¡±

    ¡°Grafted,¡± Khare stated insistently, pointing to Hunter.

    ¡°I¡¯m not so sure.¡± Evalyn shook her head. ¡°The fact that remnants of the Illustrious were in the region is something to consider, but this doesn¡¯t fit with what the Grafting did to monsters based on the stories I¡¯ve heard. As far as we can tell, Hunter hasn¡¯t physically changed.¡±

    ¡°Well, maybe not that last part,¡± Daniel countered but didn¡¯t elaborate. ¡°Khare, none of my powers say anything about the Grafting. If it was anything it was an awakening, though the fact that realizing powers is also called awakening doesn¡¯t help clarify the issue.¡± The gestalt crossed their arms at Daniel¡¯s words, unconvinced. ¡°I didn¡¯t know you wanted that, Hunter. It could be possible. Know any stories well enough to tell us Evalyn?¡±

    ¡°Of course I do. Why would you need to ask?¡±

    ¡°You haven¡¯t told any since I¡¯ve met you. They seem important to you though. Are they like how Bardic music works?¡±

    ¡°Not really. No point in keeping stories secret when some people write them down and share them with everyone. I suppose I¡¯ve never told one because the opportunity never came up amidst fighting for our lives.¡± She frowned and shook her head. ¡°No, I recall telling some. Not on the trail but in Roost¡¯s Peak. Where were you with- oh. I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± Daniel looked away and saw most of those accompanying them following Thomas¡¯ example of setting up camp a good distance away from the village proper. He didn¡¯t see how anyone could find these people more disturbing than the literal monsters they¡¯d fought.

    The duskers themselves were leaving underground homes. Some were appearing from the tents in a compressed state, making sure the sky was dark before drawing themselves up to their full height. It was strange, in their smaller state the duskers looked and moved like near identical statues. Their individuality, to his eyes, came from how their shell plating broke up in their enlarged form.

    ¡°Lograve¡¯s still talking to the headman,¡± he pointed out. ¡°Should we check with him?¡±

    ¡°I think I need to rest.¡± Tak yawned, a curious gesture for a bird to make that was no less contagious. ¡°I will find Thomas. Hunter?¡±

    There isn¡¯t prey nearby. No hunting tonight. I will stay with Daniel.

    ¡°Ok!¡±

    ¡°You two need to figure out a better way of handling that with Tak,¡± Evalyn pointed out dryly. ¡°I can try to read between the lines, but do that with anyone who doesn¡¯t understand what¡¯s going on, and it won¡¯t matter if people learn you¡¯re an Artificer. It¡¯s risky having Hunter talk in the caravan as it is.¡±

    ¡°I know, but I¡¯m not going to tell him what to do.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not saying that. I just want to make sure Hunter understands how dangerous this is for all of us.¡±

    ¡°I do,¡± Hunter rumbled.

    Evalyn took in a sharp breath, then looked Hunter in the eye. ¡°That¡¯s good. I think I¡¯ll rest as well. Khare?¡±

    ¡°Advance.¡± The gestalt glanced at Daniel and the Artificer shook his head. That had nothing to do with what they¡¯d said, and more with the possessions they were storing in a space within themselves. At first, Daniel had used saddle bags on Hunter to store supplies. The thought of doing that became more and more awkward, to the point that he¡¯d abandoned the idea in favor of giving the ringcat armor instead, with only his pack hanging from it for items he might immediately need. In the safety of the oasis, Daniel didn¡¯t feel he needed any of the special weapons Khare stored and waved him off.

    Do you want to be human? Daniel asked when he and Hunter were relatively alone.

    I don¡¯t know. It would make things easier.

    That shouldn¡¯t be the only reason though.

    Hmm. Hunter didn¡¯t elaborate further, so they both walked carefully down the sand to where Lograve and Gadriel were in the midst of a discussion.

    ¡°-honored to have you present for this occasion,¡± Xtalo was saying as he towered over the others from his sitting position. There was an undercurrent to the voice like the distant cry of a predatory lizard. At least, it had a similarity to how movies made raptors sound. Otherwise, it was a friendly voice expressing gratitude, and Daniel tried to focus on that.

    The head of the dusker turned first towards him, and then Hunter as they approached. The flesh below the carapace plates was red there too, and Daniel could see a pattern of smaller scales this close. Not like Murdon¡¯s, he of draconic ancestry. These weren¡¯t meant to withstand attack, appearing to function more like thick skin. There were no ears, hair, or nose, whereas the eyes and mouth were positioned normally if not a little far apart for the former.

    ¡°Another of your group¡¯s beasts?¡± The large head nodded to Hunter. ¡°At least this one is obviously under your control.¡±

    ¡°Right, yes, apologies again for that,¡± Lograve said quickly before someone would take offense. ¡°This is the one I spoke of. Daniel, are you able to stay up for a few more hours? We plan on extending our little stay here until noon tomorrow to compensate.¡±

    It was, what, 8 or 9 pm? People here didn¡¯t use am or pm, just ¡®8 at night¡¯ or ¡®4 in the morning¡¯. The point was that back on Earth Daniel could¡¯ve stayed up past midnight. A more sensible sleeping schedule had been forced onto him from days of hunting and marching, but he¡¯d also had very late and very terrible nights. ¡°Sure, I think I can. What¡¯s going on?¡±

    Xtalo answered. ¡°One of our people will attempt to gain her class this night. My daughter. We would be honored by the presence of any blessed by the Octyrrum to bear witness.¡±

    ¡°Oh. Of, of course!¡± Daniel felt he couldn¡¯t refuse, and was immensely curious. He¡¯d seen people advance their attributes after acquiring their class but hadn¡¯t seen this yet. ¡°What does she want to be? If that¡¯s not rude to ask.¡±

    ¡°She is unsure,¡± Xtalo answered with an unintentionally unsettling smile. ¡°Khiat will be advancing her dexterity.¡±

    ¡°A lot of options there. Martilalist, Ranger, even Rogue. There¡¯s a lot that could happen from just trusting the Octyrrum,¡± Lograve commented.

    ¡°True, but if the trust is well placed, there is nothing to fear. I am told you can identify her class?¡±

    ¡°Uh, yeah!¡± Daniel nodded. ¡°Why?¡±

    Lograve spoke up before the dusker could answer. ¡°We¡¯ll let you prepare, Xtalo. Is there anywhere you¡¯d prefer us to observe from?¡±

    ¡°The rest of our family will be by her side. You may watch from any distance, so long as you are no closer than any other of our people.¡±

    Gadriel, standing on Lograve¡¯s other side, placed a hand over his chest. ¡°Good headman, it is we that are honored to stand vigil. May the favor of all gods and the Octyrrum incarnate be by your sides.¡±

    Xtola nodded in thanks. ¡°I don¡¯t suppose there are more than words there?¡±

    ¡°Unfortunately no, good sir.¡±

    ¡°Ah, I am grateful still. All you have brought are welcome to observe so long as they do not interfere.¡±

    ¡°I imagine most are more interested in sleep, I am afraid. However, I will inform them of your generosity. Gadriel, please spread the word. Xtalo, I will speak with Daniel here and then we will take our places.¡±

    There were a few seconds that passed as Xtalo and Gadriel went in opposite directions, and the Lograve let out a huge breath. From the way he suddenly slouched, he lost a few centimeters off his height. ¡°Oh, gods, I hate that.¡±

    ¡°Duskers?¡±

    ¡°What? No. Leadership and diplomacy. Even Murdon barely tolerates that and his class is specialized for it. Who in their right mind wants responsibility?¡± He frowned and added, ¡°I¡¯m sorry about springing that on you.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine, but why didn¡¯t you warn me with Telepathy first?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m trying to get out of that bad habit. It¡¯s rude to have a mental and a verbal conversation going at the same time. Of course, back in the Thormundz we were hardly concerned about etiquette, but there are people in Aughal who¡¯d detect and call me on it.¡± His eyes narrowed. ¡°You aren¡¯t talking to Hunter right now, are you?¡±

    ¡°No. Why don¡¯t they know what class that dusker is going to get?¡±

    ¡°How about I tell you about that while we ¡®stand vigil¡¯, as our resident bore put it.¡±

    Daniel caught onto the hypocrisy immediately. ¡°It¡¯s not alright to use telepathy during a conversation, but it is during someone getting their class? From how you all were talking about it I got the impression it was a religious service.¡±

    ¡°Well, there isn¡¯t anyone in this village that would notice. So long as you both don¡¯t say anything,¡± Lograve emphasized his words as he turned to face Hunter for a moment. ¡°Or do anything to offend, we can have one of our chats. Otherwise, I don¡¯t think we¡¯d have the opportunity tonight.¡±

    ¡°That sounds good.¡± Daniel took in the tents surrounding the small lake in the center, the tower built off one of the shores, and the three smaller stone buildings branching off of the tower. There didn¡¯t seem to be any temple or ritual circle he¡¯d half expected when hearing what was about to happen. ¡°Where should we go?¡±

 Chapter 89: Night Lessons

    Khiat hadn¡¯t had any plans to cross the threshold tonight. That was before the wyvern had threatened her home. While it turned out to be just a misunderstanding, it exposed the fact that she was unprepared for game greater than mere animals and weak level 1 monsters. She had been holding back, planning to wait a few weeks, or even a few months as her mother had suggested. Wait until she felt ready.

    What would happen if the next thing to come out of the sky wasn¡¯t under the control of a mortal? Or if, gods forbid, a desert wyrm found them? Khiat had a thought after that encounter. What if she¡¯d never be ready? What if she hesitated, and for that was judged unworthy?

    After retrieving her bow and handing off the sesel, she¡¯d gone to her parents and explained. Her father had to depart midway through to deal with the travelers, which left Achia to try and talk her out of it. Her old cautioning hadn¡¯t worked because Khiat had seen the folly of waiting too long. She wasn¡¯t ready, but she wasn¡¯t going to hold back either. It would be tonight.

    It seemed the Octyrrum didn¡¯t feel the same way, or at the very least the climate didn¡¯t. The night air was cold, though not freezing thanks to the heat trapped in the oasis. The fact that it was now well in the fall had little meaning here. Aughal¡¯s days were hot, and its nights were cold, with little seasonal variation between.

    In the sky were clouds. Not an overcast night, the kind of cover that could offer her people some relief during the day. Instead there were high, wispy clouds, the most common in this water-deprived region. This night didn¡¯t feel special, even with the visitors. They were mostly human and bird people. There was another name for those but Khiat couldn¡¯t remember it exactly in this moment. A handful of the vine people too, which was a surprise.

    Then Khiat¡¯s eyes caught a four-legged creature standing by two mortals, garbed in bright golden armor. Some kind of feline monster. Khiat was familiar with cats and had wanted one herself, though the village was too hard for one to survive. Without the monster presenting as a threat, Khiat even found it a bit cute. It was clearly some kind of pet, as who would go through the trouble of armoring a monster otherwise?

    That inspired her. The two standing by this monster, which had been broken and bent to the will of mortals, were everything she wanted to be. Someone that could not only just live but stand up to the threats of this world. She clenched a four-fingered hand, which fit better around the bow now that she could get out of her shell. She had to do this. It had to happen.

    The cruelest joke Khiat could imagine was hitting her wall tonight in front of her village, and in front of so many people she didn¡¯t know and the heroes with them. These new people might have an actual Hero! The thought of failing now would have paralyzed her, if she wasn¡¯t hardened by the necessities of survival in this part of the world.

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to do this,¡± a voice behind her said. Her uncle, father¡¯s side. Of everyone in the village, twelve were her direct relation. He, as well as the others, were following her lead. In a directional sense. ¡°With all of these outsiders here, I can imagine the stress you are under. Why waste the potential and risk embarrassing all of us?¡±

    Another following Khiat struck him. ¡°Phyl! This is a sacred night. Keep going on like that and you will be the reason for our shame!¡± That was her aunt. Once removed? Khiat didn¡¯t have a good grasp on how those labels worked past the obvious ones. Either way, it was to the chitin so no injury had been meant.

    ¡°Are you sure about dexterity, Khiat? We¡¯re better suited to strength or endurance.¡±

    ¡°Srila, why is that important? It¡¯s her mental attributes we should be worried about. Why not use one of those to acquire your class? It¡¯s more predictable that way.¡±

    ¡°Khiat is leaving the decision to the Octyrrum!¡± Xtalo stated, cutting off the bickering. He and her mother were the ones walking right behind her, protecting her from the family as best they could. The subdued grumbling still made it to her auditory pits. What was happening behind her was the culmination of every side argument, bet, and personal opinion over her impending class acquisition whipped into a frenzy by her sudden decision.

    She could hear the reasoning in what everyone was saying. Well, maybe not for Uncle Phyl who was mostly concerned with her not making a scene, but the others had good ideas. Going for strength or endurance was something she¡¯d thought about. Playing to her racial advantages made sense.

    Only, Khiat liked using the bow. Up-close fighting did not strike her as what she wanted to specialize in. Her flight from the oncoming wyvern was a symptom of a much larger problem. She flinched. As in, whenever a childhood squabble had broken out, or she¡¯d sparred someone to train, she couldn¡¯t help but look away from an oncoming blow. How could she expect to fight up close with that weakness?

    As for the other ideas, they were good. Arcanists rarely developed powers requiring them to get close, and the Cleric class opened up almost as many doors as Craftsman. Still, Khiat didn¡¯t want any of that and she was putting everything on the hope that the Octyrrum understood her aspirations. What she wanted, and what she didn¡¯t want. She didn¡¯t know the ins and outs of every class. Khiat probably didn¡¯t know half of all the ones she could get, not to mention the infinite possibilities inherent in the powers she could receive.

    Powers. That suddenly hit her too. She would get one tonight. A spell? A new way to attack? The excitement of endless possibilities buoyed her flagging spirit and she bounded towards where she wanted to undergo her next advancement. The oasis, of course. Other times she¡¯d done it in the privacy of her home, or with the other young of the village when they were being taught how to.

    Every child was taught how to advance in the hopes they¡¯d make it to where Khiat now stood alone. Some had failed early, others tragically close. Vtidi was an example. Whether it was not being able to face someone succeeding where he¡¯d failed, or just the exhaustion of his day shift, the man was practically the only one not here. Would he hate her when she did it?

    How would the rest of the village react? Celebrations initially, of course, but then? They¡¯d expect a lot of her. To fight every time a monster threatened the village. She couldn¡¯t run again. How long would it be until she left to join the Hunter¡¯s Guild? Was she ready for that? It was time to find out.

    Khiat knelt slowly by the water¡¯s edge, then took a cross-legged position. She placed her bow across her lap, praying to every god and the Octyrrum in case it would matter. Closing her eyes, she began to concentrate, reaching out to a part of herself that could not be seen by any means. A fraction of her soul. Gathering the gift from the Octyrrum earned by slaying beasts, she started the slow process of taking its power and adding it to her own.

    Silence fell over the village. Around her was her family, in order of relation. Further out were the villagers, and then the visitors. None of them mattered to Khiat in this moment. It was time.

    ¡­

    Daniel, Lograve, and Hunter sat on the slopes of a dune at a distance from the duskers and those from their group who¡¯d chosen to watch out of interest. Lograve reached out to both of them with his Telepathy, his power combining with their bond to create a Telepathic Network. If something dangerous approaches the village during this time, tell me before you shout a warning. If it¡¯s not too powerful, I¡¯d rather send Gadriel to handle it alone than interrupt this.

    Gotcha.

    Understood.

    Good. After Daniel, Lograve had been the first to hear Hunter¡¯s voice in a mental form and had grown, if not used to it, then used to him having it. So, the transition from a normal mortal to one who possesses a class. You may be the only one in this world with powers that hasn¡¯t experienced it. Lograve waved a hand, remembered what was going on around him, and lowered it slowly.

    They were saying she couldn¡¯t choose her class. Is that true?

    In a sense. The attribute you take to 10 first will determine your class as you¡¯ll receive one that has the chosen attribute as a core attribute. Personal motivation and desire can shape the direction you take, but it isn¡¯t always consistent. There are a small few who report hearing, visualizing, or otherwise observing concepts when gaining their class, but that¡¯s not associated with either gaining a rare class or even one of their preference.

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    Daniel listened to the explanation while sitting cross-legged as if he was back in kindergarten. In addition to being the highest-level mortal present, Lograve was also a teacher and former librarian. His normal blithe demeanor became more formal under these circumstances, similar to how he sobered during battle. That wasn¡¯t a total change though. Still, your personality and talents should shape your class and the powers you awaken. Murdon is a classic counter example. If you ever want to make him annoyed, ask what kind of Knight he wanted to be.

    Why would I ever want to do that?

    He gets too serious sometimes. Anyway, with the knowledge that this young lady is advancing dexterity, and that that bow across her lap will likely become her Focus, Martialist, Ranger, or Rogue are safe bets. Odd choices for a dusker considering their limited mobility during the day, but I can see the merits. That¡¯s hardly the stickiest point of gaining your class.

    What¡¯s that? Daniel filled in the silence left by Lograve and was rewarded with a finger covertly pointed towards him.

    Your class is an excellent example. Almost no one has tried to be an Artificer because of how rare that is to get. There are even some theories to suggest there are limits on how many can exist at one time, but how would you even confirm that considering how random class acquisition can be? Gaining a rare class is basically winning a lottery, though you still have to advance the right attribute during your class awakening to buy the ticket.

    Thomas seems to think I should keep my class secret here, Daniel thought with some trepidation. I can see how rarity is good, but wouldn¡¯t that mean there are people who¡¯d look to exploit that?

    How would you exploit a person? Lograve winced as he realized he¡¯d asked an obvious question while trying to be snarky. Uh, don¡¯t answer that. We should try to keep this conversation light. You shouldn¡¯t have to worry overly much. This kingdom has laws regarding certain unsavory practices. That¡¯s not to say you don¡¯t have other reasons for discretion.

    They fell silent for a minute as Daniel absorbed the point. Watching what was happening below, he was struck by how still the duskers were being. Even with their shell broken, they were able to stand as still as statues. He glanced at the one named Khiat who was the center of attention, trying to discern any ongoing change. To his eyes, she was just sitting there.

    What about advancement itself? After that guy did whatever he did to Hunter he said he could understand it now, but he can¡¯t explain it.

    I can¡¯t, Hunter confirmed. Maybe once I try it, but we move too much.

    Yes, a lot of people are waiting for the city to convert their potential into power. Myself included! Hmm. Well, at face value what that young lady down there is doing is advancement. It involves meditation on the aspect of yourself you want to improve.

    Then what was everyone doing before we fought the giant sparkbat swarm?

    To Daniel¡¯s surprise, Lograve¡¯s cheeks reddened. Oh, gods, please don¡¯t remind me. That was so embarrassing. And don¡¯t ever tell anyone about that!

    W-why?

    That¡¯s how children learn to advance! Playing hide and seek, gods. Murdon suggested it as a ¡®team-building exercise¡¯ when we should have just been advancing by ourselves.

    Daniel added that to his list of things to remind Lograve of if he ever wanted to annoy him and tried to hide his smile. So it¡¯s just meditation?

    Essentially.

    Why doesn¡¯t everyone get a class then?

    Ah. There is more to it. Being able to reach the state of advancement is only one of the reasons someone may fail. Lograve coughed quietly and took a drink. Damned sand. I¡¯ll have to ask if this village can spare some of its water. Aquakinesis is going to be a pain to use here.

    What are the other reasons?

    Oh? Yes, of course. There¡¯s a concept known as the advancement wall. I haven¡¯t mentioned it before as it hardly matters for you. Some people just find they can¡¯t go past a certain point with their attributes. For most that happens before they ever get their class, and of the people that do gain a class they¡¯ll flame out somewhere in level 2 on average. Advancement just grows more and more difficult as they reach their limit. I¡¯d say one out of a hundred in this village¡¯s case is a fair approximation of the average rate of achieving a class at all.

    There were more adventurers than normal people in the Thormundz, though.

    Adventurers? Lograve¡¯s thoughts were almost giddy as he looked at Daniel with one eyebrow raised.

    I haven¡¯t heard anyone use a word to describe people with classes in general, so that¡¯s what I¡¯d come up with.

    Blessed is what most people use. Blessed by the Octyrrum, of course. That does bring up a good point. Do you know why people go to developing regions? It¡¯s very dangerous compared to the rest of the world.

    Manifest destiny? It was a fair guess. The religion of this world had a very expansionist trend when it came to the mysterious Crest that surrounded it. Considering that the monsters would stop coming once it was defeated, or banished, or whatever, that was understandable

    I have no idea what you mean. A term from your world? Well, I¡¯m trying not to get too off topic but it is relevant and we have at least an hour to burn. There¡¯s a thought that the Octyrrum rewards service in these regions by granting the ability to surpass one¡¯s wall. There are documented accounts of this occurring. There are also monetary rewards and the draw of exploration. And, in this kingdom, clemency. That last part he added hesitantly.

    Pardons? From, like, stealing?

    Yes, but also for more serious crimes. Murder, and the like.

    Daniel almost shouted his reply before he too remembered where he was. What? Wait, did you-

    Murdon and I came to the Thormundz at the beginning out of, say, civic duty. Our team had broken up and the timing seemed right. You should know that for those who have redeemed themselves, the past is left in the past. Only, I¡¯m not sure in this case. It¡¯ll depend on how what happened is interpreted by the various governments and the king in Rikendia.

    Ok. Ok. Not going to ask who the murderers are. Even though Tlara is totally one. Any other reasons people can¡¯t get a class?

    Those are the main ones. People can get tired of trying to earn advancement or run out of ways to do so without fighting and choose not to. Remember our conversation on the downsides of how Gadriel advances his attributes?

    Yeah.

    So, what other hour-long lectures would you like me to compress into four sentences?

    What am I? Hunter asked.

    Lograve jumped a little. That is not a question I am prepared to answer.

    Have I been Grafted?

    I don¡¯t know! Not in any way. Your entire existence confounds me, I must admit. My best guess is no, this is something new.

    Could I be Grafted?

    You did hear me the first time, right? Lograve put his head in his hands and his mental voice grew strained. Why? Do you want to be? Hunter offered no answer and Lograve in no way wanted to continue the conversation with the murder cat sitting across from Daniel. Well, if either of you have questions later, I suppose I could answer them. Now, it¡¯s my turn. Have you any thoughts on the new design?

    Daniel made sure nothing interesting was happening in the village below and then observed Lograve draw patterns in the sand with his finger. They were all reminiscent of chemical structures, a topic that for some reason was intimately related to Lograve¡¯s new power. It was also one of the key reasons they¡¯d made it out of the Thormundz alive.

    It all started when Daniel drew the symbol for caffeine after being reminded of chemistry class. Unfortunately for Lograve, that was the only one he remembered well enough to draw by memory. Instead of providing new structures, he was using what he knew of how chemical structures worked to help Lograve make new symbols.

    Getting the symbol just right was important for both the effect and its potency. Caffeine had allowed submerged gestalt to swim faster than a native water creature, though later they¡¯d suffered symptoms of what could only be described as withdrawal after. The only other group buffs Daniel had seen were from the Bards, who required sound and appropriate music as a medium. Ritualism, the power Lograve used to form symbols and create effects from them, had its limits but was far more powerful than anything Evalyn could do. According to the Arcanist, he¡¯d never heard of anyone getting it before level 6.

    The symbol Lograve was trying to perfect next was far more complex. Ring structures everywhere, bridged by lines with more coming off the sides to give it a spiky appearance. This was also just a two-dimensional representation of the final product, which Lograve would tune on his own. Wait, here. Daniel hovered his finger over a single point. This has too many lines coming off of it.

    Are you sure? I remembered your rule but this feels more appropriate.

    Daniel scratched his head. The two problems with this arrangement were that he didn¡¯t remember high school chemistry well, and Lograve had an intuition he didn¡¯t share. It¡¯s not supposed to. Too many electrons, or something. Unless that¡¯s not carbon?

    Yes, the small balls of lightning and dirt, Lograve thought dryly. I¡¯m not entirely sure you heard your prior instructors correctly.

    No, I know that¡¯s right. In my world, at least.

    The one without magic, which is made of differently charged small balls of lightning?

    That is not how I described them.

    Yes, well, I had to fill in the gaps. Lograve drew a circle around the completed structure. Is this too big? I haven¡¯t memorized other symbols but I have seen them. This is about the complexity I¡¯d expect, but it flies in the face of the simplicity of the first. I¡¯m worried about how effective it would be. Efficiency and all.

    Not sure. I know some stuff can get pretty big. Like DNA, it¡¯s one huge chain of this stuff.

    What¡¯s that?

    Uh, Daniel assessed his understanding of genetics and found it wanting. It¡¯s not important.

    I¡¯ll keep working on this then. Any other thoughts?

    Daniel looked down to the sand and fervently wished his phone could reproduce all the textbooks he¡¯d read like the music he¡¯d listened to.

 Chapter 90: Words of Awakening

    Khiat easily reached the state where time became a background concern. That was reassuring. In some ways, this shouldn¡¯t be different than the thirty times she¡¯d advanced an attribute before over the years. She was practiced with it, confident that she wouldn¡¯t waste any potential.

    Concern lingered. This time was different, and she wasn¡¯t sure what to expect. No one in her village had any advice for her as they had all failed to reach this point. Still, she would get her class! What do I want? she thought, wholly alone in her mind. She second-guessed every opinion she had, visualizing herself in different ways. Here already it strayed from the normal course of improvement, which would involve reflecting on the ways she¡¯d expressed a particular attribute and seeking improvement. Khiat saw herself firing a shot at some giant winged creature, faintly reminiscent of the wyvern. Sticking to the shadows, bow in hand, ready to surprise a monster that had infiltrated her home. For one confusing moment, she saw herself with no bow at all but a spell ready in her hands.

    That wasn¡¯t right. She liked bows. Adjusting for wind and distance, varying the draw when necessary, and even the responsibility of using her village¡¯s ancestral arrows. It was like solving a puzzle every time she drew back. They did get easy when she waited for prey to cross her line of sight, but there was still an element of timing there!

    These images helped keep her on track as use of ranged weaponry was intimately connected with the dexterity attribute. If she started reflecting on puzzles too hard, she might accidentally start exploring the part of her that related to intelligence. No room for mistakes. It was happening tonight.

    Another part of her was impatient. Get it over with! I want to know! She¡¯d live with whatever class she received for the rest of her life. There was no going back, it was permanent. Indelible, a word she didn¡¯t know but felt the meaning of in this space. That didn¡¯t scare her. It meant no one could take it away from her, she would always be Blessed.

    She didn¡¯t fight the urge to rush, but neither could she speed up this process. It took time and mental fortitude. As a child, she¡¯d struggled with the transition from the ¡®play¡¯ that was advancing her attributes to the intentional way to do so. Sitting in one place was something duskers were naturally good at, but they tended to fall asleep if they did. Learning how to concentrate had been very important, for both advancement and hunting.

    Khiat¡¯s stream of consciousness sensed that curve coming up and flowed along it without resistance. Hunting. Scouting, knowing your enemy. She could be a Ranger, couldn¡¯t she? They were those able to move through the wilds freely. Hunting powers would be very helpful for her village, and couldn¡¯t they tame monsters? She wouldn¡¯t mind an armored partner by her side.

    Is this doing anything? she wondered. Memories of her mother teaching her about the Octyrrum and each of the gods in turn came to her. It and its pieces? Subordinates? Something like that. The bottom line was the Octyrrum ruled over everything. It could probably give her whatever class it wanted to. The Octyrrum was benevolent of course, but it knew more than she did. It was the world! Whatever class it gave her must be the right one.

    She reigned in those thoughts carefully, exercising active control for the first time. She was moving too close to the territory of charisma and wisdom. Dexterity. Bows. Throwing. Acrobatics, not that she was too good at that, but that was what classes were for. Nimbleness. Ok, she wasn¡¯t very nimble during the day either.

    The night. That struck a chord. Khiat thought of what it meant to her. Freedom from the sun, seeing the rest of the village who had taken shelter in their own homes. Freedom. That thought repeated in her mind with a sudden rush. There was something there! An aspect of self-discovery. She knew she liked the night better than the day, that was obvious. This went deeper. It felt like she¡¯d pulled a fraction of her class from the infinite space around her. It was happening!

    No one had told her it would be like this because they didn¡¯t know. The last Blessed from their village had gone into the wilds one day, never to return. There were still stories of where Xhoten had gone and what might have happened. He was remembered, and she would be too. Although, if this had come now, what did that mean about becoming a Ranger? She hadn¡¯t gotten any special feeling from that. Did that mean that wasn¡¯t her class?

    That was fine. That was fine! There was something better and she would find it. Khiat understood now what she needed to do. Find parts of herself with this same resonance. She felt could improve her dexterity and be done with it without further issue, but she wouldn¡¯t find her class. Could she return to this space if she didn¡¯t?

    Ok, what else? I like bows. Bows. Bows. Bows! She prodded that part of herself impatiently. She might not be a Ranger, but whatever she¡¯d be included the weapon that lay on her lap. In a way that she could only describe as reluctantly, a second point of resonance flared in her mind. Bows. Another one of who knew how many. But that was the easy one.

    Something else caught her mind like a hook, dragging her backward. The Ranger class? No. Khiat found herself dwelling on what she liked about bows. That was odd, she¡¯d already done this. Would doing whatever this was again make her better with bows? That wouldn¡¯t be too bad.

    Arrows? No. Aiming, yes, but not another key to her class. Related. Pulling back the bowstring? No, colder. Making bows? Far colder, not even close and that was good. Craftswoman was a fine class but it wasn¡¯t hers. Judging distance? Warmer, yes. Khiat found it with the memory of the past late afternoon. Waiting on a dune, a line of death extending from her arrow tip to a distant point in the sand. Waiting, and waiting for something to cross that line. Preparation. A third spark. Still not enough.

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    What did this mean? Bows, preparation, and freedom. Khiat¡¯s heart skipped a beat as she began to lose the thread that connected the points. Had she made a mistake? Oh no, was I not supposed to focus on bows so much? She didn¡¯t have to use a bow, not if that would ruin everything. But it was too late. In her mind, that piece had already set.

    No. No! In the physical world, the hand holding her bow tightened. It hadn¡¯t been a mistake. It was her. Stupid as it was to associate so strongly with a weapon, it was her. Hunting for the village. Nights spent practicing with her father and mother. Eventually, she¡¯d gotten good enough to stand from the top of the tower, shooting at targets held by running villagers.

    Ignore it, she told herself, putting the ill-fitting pieces out of her mind. It would make sense. She trusted the Octyrrum, it would guide her. At some point. No, that was doubting. The only reason she could reach this space in herself was its grace. If anything was going to ruin this, it was being unsteady in her faith.

    A momentary pause, but no, nothing. Khiat hadn¡¯t seriously considered the possibility of Cleric. She didn¡¯t think dexterity was appropriate for them, but who knew? She was throwing sand to the wind to find what was hiding within at this point. Food? She liked cooked meat and the rare times someone brought back something sugary from the capitol. Was there a Cook class? If there was it wasn¡¯t for her.

    Family? The village itself? Both were important to her. What about relationships? Hwtel? No, and no, not a Bard. It was reassuring in some way, that she could explore these topics. There was no sense of urgency or that she was losing what she¡¯d already gained once the shock from the initial stall in progress had worn off. Maybe if this was happening near dawn she¡¯d run the risk of exhaustion, but Khiat was fresh.

    Running? Flexibility? Yes! There was something there, which made sense. This was a class that prized dexterity. Of course, that was so obvious! The way her limbs could move when not under the sun, each chitinous section a point of articulation. Flexibility, exactly what she¡¯d thought to get her back on track with dexterity.

    That made four. Still, it wasn¡¯t over. Only by the sense that she¡¯d improved her dexterity did she know about an hour had passed, otherwise her time in this space had gone by in both seconds and days. More accurately, it was timeless. The only other sense of time passing was a faintly growing hunger and the odd sounds that were made around her. They were quiet enough to be ignored in circumstances other than the otherwise dead silence that surrounded her.

    Silence? There was something there, branching off of freedom like preparation had bows. Stealth? There it was, instantly. That did make sense, she used camouflage to hunt. What did that mean? Rogue came to mind, but she didn¡¯t want that. Of the Blessed, they were often the most villainous and were perceived that way. Noble Rogues existed, of course, but Khiat could see how hard it was to resist temptation when your class could be used to steal from others.

    That wasn¡¯t her. Unlike when she¡¯d fought to have the self-discovery of bows, she didn¡¯t have to struggle to disabuse the notion of stealing. Not her. She was a good person. She provided for the people she loved and didn¡¯t have to hurt anyone to do it. Animals and monsters didn¡¯t count, of course.

    After fully ridding herself of the thought of Rogues, Khiat felt something else. She was close. One more? That made sense. There were six pieces of her soul, one for each attribute. Maybe each of the words fit into that? Only, she was just improving dexterity here. Hmm.

    In equal measures, she was thrilled and wary. This was the cusp. There was no doubt in her mind that her class was within arms¡¯ reach, and yet she still had no idea what it was. Freedom, bows, preparation, flexibility, and stealth. If not a Rogue, what would that make her? What else did she need to find?

    Again, she came back to that hunt. One last thing was there. She could see the scene playing out. Waiting, the moment the time was right, firing. Arrow striking, blood spraying, animal dying. None of those things directly, but the final key was there. She played it over and over, fixated, scrutinizing every detail.

    The other animals? Pack? That shouldn¡¯t apply to her. The thought of attacking itself? No. How the animals fled their wounded companion? No. No, she should be focusing on herself. What else had she done? On the ninth replay, she figured it out.

    She¡¯d targeted the animal¡¯s neck. Its weakness, and her recognition and use of it. How was that a good thing? Her people hated their weakness, being forced underground each day. As children they couldn¡¯t bear the sun, no less going outside while it shone. And yet¡­ and yet¡­ it fit. Weakness. She didn¡¯t see how every piece assembled, but that wasn¡¯t important.

    Magic flowed through her, there was no other way to describe it other than the blessing of the Octyrrum. Her blessing. Her class. No word had jumped into her mind to declare it, but she knew now she had it. Khiat couldn¡¯t help but tremble. Her family was speaking to her, worried, but she wasn¡¯t scared even though that last word made no sense. She had her class. She¡¯d done it.

    Hands were on her. She threw them off and stood to her full height, gazing up at the sky and screaming in triumph! A class. Her class. Her blessing. A future as bright as a full moon. She could do anything.

    ¡­

    Lograve had a distant smile on his face when the dusker stood. He quickly prodded Daniel, who¡¯d fallen asleep as the ordeal entered its third hour. ¡°I think we can converse normally now, though don¡¯t shout.¡±

    Daniel¡¯s head perked up as sharpness returned to his eyes. ¡°Did I miss it? What happened?¡±

    ¡°This is it.¡± Lograve extended a hand. ¡°All of the magic happened in her head. I wonder if she knows what she is already. Honestly,¡± he whispered, ¡°I¡¯m jealous. She¡¯ll have you to tell her if not.¡±

    The duskers of Duststone Oasis were in revelry as Daniel found he had to re-identify Khiat. Hunter hadn¡¯t fallen asleep, so it appeared level ups could cancel out the aura. The villagers hadn¡¯t received any sort of objective confirmation of Khiat¡¯s success, but you couldn¡¯t fake that kind of joy in Khiat¡¯s voice. Alien as it was, it still carried to Daniel. He alone saw the empiric truth in the tag that accompanied the halo of green-tinged gray light around the young woman being lifted into the air. He frowned, startling Lograve.

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s her class? I didn¡¯t even know that was a class.¡±

    Lograve pulled on his arm, less forceful and more impatient after sitting in the sand for three hours waiting for this very answer. ¡°What is it?!¡±

    Danger.

    ¡°What?¡± Lograve and Daniel both asked Hunter.

    I think the shouting drew their attention. Coming fast, I just heard them. Should someone tell cape man?

    ¡°Oh no. We¡¯re going to need more than him.¡± Daniel looked to the south, where a large number of red outlines were quickly charging across the sand.

    <hr>

    Shank Stomper - (2)

    <hr>

 Chapter 91: Shank Stomper - (2)

    The jubilation of the village was cut short by the warning cries. Lograve was no keen tactical mind, that was the role of his close friend Murdon. Lacking him, he had to do his best. Upwards of sixty level 1 and 2 enemies on a collision course with so many innocents warranted something more than a lone, discrete defender. It wasn¡¯t that Gadriel couldn¡¯t handle himself, he had once parried an attack he couldn¡¯t see, but he could only be in one place.

    ¡°Monsters!¡± was the average of the various shouts. Lograve moved quickly, mentally alerting those who were awake and coordinating a retreat into the village proper. In the center of it, by the lake, one dusker raised their voice to a different concern.

    ¡°See what the Octyrrum grants us! My niece, what a perfect opportunity.¡± The dusker Daniel could identify as Phyl took a bow in his hands like he was offering a sword and held it out. ¡°Show us your new power!¡±

    Daniel couldn¡¯t read the expressions of this new race, but several nearby had a similar pattern of movement amidst the chitin of their faces. Approval? Maybe, since no one was contradicting him. Khiat took her bow and started running very quickly to the large tower. He had a thought then.

    ¡°Lograve, do you need me anywhere specific?¡±

    ¡°Uh, one moment.¡± A brief pause. ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°Most people have to figure out how their powers work. I want to go tell her what hers does.¡±

    ¡°You know?¡±

    Daniel shook his head, not even able to see her attributes anymore. ¡°No, but I can ask her to share the information. She just got her class and everyone¡¯s expecting her to be some big hero!¡±

    ¡°I see. We should be fine. I¡¯m mostly concerned about these monsters getting to vulnerable people than I am losing Blessed to them. Is Hunter going with you?

    Daniel looked to the ringcat who was tracking the approaching monsters through the dunes. ¡°Do you want to?¡±

    No.

    ¡°Find Tak and the rest then. Good hunting Hunter.¡± Ok, I need a better way to say that.

    ¡°I¡¯m letting Xtalo know what¡¯s happening, including what you¡¯re going to do. Go!¡±

    ¡­

    Hunter had given the village about a two minute warning. Given his current range went out a kilometer, these creatures were moving fast. Compared to what they¡¯d overcome this herd of what his power called shank stompers wasn¡¯t a dire threat. To those who could defend themselves. For normal people, any leveled monster was a mortal threat, and both they and the village had children with them.

    Confirming that Hunter had linked up with Tak and the rest, Daniel focused on getting to the tower. Moving about the mass of impossibly tall insect people might have been difficult if he didn¡¯t have the Balance feature that he¡¯d originally called parkour, back when he hadn¡¯t known its name. In the worst case, there was also Dodge Roll. It wasn¡¯t perfect, he was no master acrobat, but people also made way for him as they ushered duskers about his height underground.

    Once he was at the tower¡¯s base, Daniel realized that it had been built with these people¡¯s height in mind. Though it was only a couple of stories, the top of each level was at least four meters high. The stairs, also designed for longer legs, would take too long to climb. He¡¯d left his lightning wings in Khare since they were too hot to wear all the time in the desert. To that point, he wasn¡¯t wearing any armor at all. Aughal was hot!

    Another power served him here. Jump. It was pretty simple. With level 2 strength and enough mana, he should be able to clear twenty meters or more. He prepared, thought for a second, and shouted, ¡°I¡¯m coming up over the side! Don¡¯t shoot!¡± Then, he released the mana within him. To Daniel, it felt like he¡¯d jumped normally, save for the fact that he didn¡¯t stop going up.

    Ok, I should be able to land on the ledge. Just get ready to- too far, too far! The duskers at the top of the tower watched Daniel come up to their level and keep going, cresting the spire on the tower¡¯s roof, and begin to fall on the other side. What might have been a messy fall was saved by yet another power, Graceful Fall.

    Whereas the lightning wings Daniel enchanted let him glide freely through the air, this was a more minor boon that, in this case, allowed him to just grab the ledge. Rough hands with the consistency of slimy stone gripped him, and he saw the taller dusker, Xtalo, pulling him up.

    ¡°Thanks.¡±

    ¡°Lograve explained, but tell me yourself. Is our village safe?¡±

    ¡°Uh.¡± Daniel saw most of the villagers would make it to safety before the first monsters reached the village, and Gadriel was already leading a charge against them. ¡°Yeah. Lograve¡¯s level 4 and we have a couple of 3¡¯s. If it was just us here this wouldn¡¯t be a problem.¡±

    ¡°Praise the Octyrrum. Khiat, he¡¯s here to help with your new class.¡±

    ¡°How?¡± the other asked distractedly. She was holding a monster of a bow, at least two and a half meters long with metal reinforcing the arms. The draw weight must have been at least a hundred kilograms, and the arrowheads it fired were bigger than his fist. Who needed levels when they could shoot that thing? You might as well walk around with an armor piercing rifle.

    Note to self, figure out how to make an armor piercing rifle. ¡°Uh,¡± Daniel stammered again, tearing himself away from those thoughts. He probably wasn¡¯t coming off as the most confident of people this dusker had ever seen. ¡°I can identify what powers you have if you share them with me.¡±

    ¡°What does that mean?¡± Xtalo asked with respectful suspicion.

    ¡°Right now, I can see both of your names and her class. If she wants me to, I can also look at her powers. That¡¯s it.¡±

    ¡°What is my class?¡± Khiat looked at him then. Her face was marked primarily by a curving pattern on either side that looked like crescent moons nestled into each other, broken by her mouth and eyes but otherwise meeting in the center.

    ¡°Khiat! If this man speaks the truth, let him see your power first.¡±

    A moment¡¯s hesitation, then, ¡°How?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve already done it. Just a second.¡± Daniel pulled his phone out, startling Xtalo, but the Dusker didn¡¯t comment. He was deferential to him, someone he¡¯d just met. It reminded Daniel of the time a cafeteria line had applauded him. Hunter, I¡¯m going to use a moment to read something. It¡¯ll be brief.

    Fine. Hunter¡¯s thoughts, carried from where he was running alongside Tak, held a bitter acceptance. The ringcat hated what Daniel was about to do.

    Positioning his phone in front of his eyes, Daniel froze time. Or rather, slowed it to the point of being nearly frozen. The mana cost of this ability had been high back when he was level 1 but was more reasonable with the expanded pool and cost reduction level 2 provided. He couldn¡¯t move or use any other powers during this time, but he could think. That¡¯s what had saved him the very first time he¡¯d fought a monster on this world, and countless times since. In this case, he used the Moment of Clarity to read.

    <hr>

    Critical Strikes (Feature, Dexterity, Domain: Destruction, Level: 1):

    You possess the Power to identify and make use of weaknesses inherent in your target. Attacks you make benefit from improved Critical Hit Chance and Critical Hit Damage, the magnitude of which scales with your dexterity and inversely scales with the target¡¯s Endurance and awareness of you.

    <hr>

    Finding that entry had been difficult without a search function, but Daniel was able to reach a list of all powers he knew about through the Power keyword. Way back in the beginning, Lograve had allowed him to read through indexes of powers that had added a bunch to what he knew, though the Encyclopedia also gave him some info from things he identified.

    Scrolling was the biggest pain, but mercifully ¡®C¡¯ was near the top. Considering what she was, it mostly made sense. What confused him was that Khiat¡¯s feature read ¡®Critical Strikes*¡¯ on her tag. On his phone, there was only the normal version. It was something he¡¯d seen before with one of Evalyn¡¯s abilities, the feature that bonded him to Hunter, and in the function that had tried to replace Encyclopedia. Despite investigation, he¡¯d not been able to figure out what it¡¯d meant, and he wasn¡¯t going to mention it now either.

    Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ve got it,¡± Daniel said, as time resumed. ¡°Your attacks deal more damage to weak spots, and if they don¡¯t know about you, you can do a lot more damage.¡±

    ¡°That sounds like Sneak Attack,¡± Xtola murmured, though the tone didn¡¯t do much for his volume. ¡°Is she a Rogue?¡±

    ¡°No!¡± Khiat practically shouted, whirling and not quite leveling the half-drawn bow at him. ¡°I know I¡¯m not. I¡¯m a good person!¡±

    ¡°Khiat! Don¡¯t point that at him!¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s not a Rogue. And it¡¯s called ¡®Critical Strikes¡¯.¡± In the distance, Gadriel was closing on the first monster. His sword reached it first, flying out of his hand to deliver a cut before returning to him in a clean arc.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know of that power.¡±

    ¡°What is my class?¡± Khiat demanded, bringing herself to an even more impressive height. She was almost twice as tall as him like that.

    ¡°Assassin,¡± Daniel said plainly, hoping this wouldn¡¯t inspire another reaction. He was going to Dodge Roll off the tower if it did, since fresh level 1 or not that arrow would go right through him and Regeneration wasn¡¯t a cure all.

    ¡°That¡¯s¡­ that can¡¯t be right.¡± Khiat¡¯s voice was soft, despite the depth of tone her size granted her. She retreated from Daniel, some of the armored segments on her legs coming together as she shrank a foot. The motion reminded Daniel of a slinky, which was a completely inappropriate analogy to be making given the sound of Khiat¡¯s voice.

    Xtalo appeared caught between respect towards him and his disbelief. ¡°This can¡¯t be. That is a rare class, and my daughter is not-¡± He paused for a moment and then said, ¡°She wouldn¡¯t have awakened that class.¡±

    ¡°I can just tell you what my power tells me, and it¡¯s never been wrong.¡± That I know of. ¡°Look, if it makes it more believable, I have a rare class too. Artificer.¡± He shouldn¡¯t be telling people that, of course, but Khiat seemed crushed by the news. So would knowing his class help? Probably not. I¡¯m an idiot. ¡°The only reason I came here was to help you. If your power had an incantation or something, I¡¯d be able to tell you what it was. I didn¡¯t want you to fight this without knowing what you could do.¡±

    ¡°If this is true, and charity is what motivates you, then I beg you. Tell no other soul.¡± In a way, Xtalo looked terrified once he¡¯d accepted Daniel¡¯s words. Were Assassins that bad? She was his daughter! Something else was going on, probably something along the lines of what Thomas had been worried about.

    ¡°Of course.¡±

    ¡°Thank you. Khiat, we will speak of this later. Can you fight?¡±

    The Assassin was looking at her bow, conflict in her voice. ¡°I have to, don¡¯t I?¡±

    ¡°And you?¡±

    ¡°Daniel.¡±

    ¡°Daniel, what will you do?¡±

    ¡°Stay up here, if it¡¯s alright. I have a crossbow.¡± That was one of two weapons he carried with him instead of storing in Khare. After everything that had happened in the Thormundz, Daniel wasn¡¯t sure if he could get up close and personal with a monster again. Firing at them from a distance was fine, but it¡¯d be a good deal of time before he could fully come to terms with the past.

    ¡°Artificer indeed,¡± Xtalo commented, seeing the golden crossbow. ¡°Khiat, I¡¯m sorry this had to happen of all nights. We all love you. As soon as this is over, we will be by your side.¡± Saying that, he jumped off the tower. Khiat didn¡¯t seem to be worried, so Daniel didn¡¯t look as he dropped. Instead, he surveyed the battle.

    Where the Blessed, as Lograve had informed him was the proper term, met the monsters there was one-sided carnage. Mortals who had survived dragons and mind-control parasites tore into the creatures who were a poor measure to their greater kin. From this distance, Daniel couldn¡¯t make out specifics. He could borrow Hunter¡¯s eyes for a moment, something the bond between them allowed, but he was still disoriented by the sharper senses and didn¡¯t trust himself to do so in battle.

    A small part of him hated seeing Tak and Hunter charge together, eradicating anything where they intersected. Combo attack. He wanted a combo attack! Oh well, at least Tak isn¡¯t going crazy like last time.

    ¡°What do I do?¡± Khiat¡¯s voice, still shaky, broke through his jealousy.

    ¡°Are you good with that bow?¡±

    ¡°Yes. I mean, I think I am.¡±

    Oh god. I¡¯m the experienced one, aren¡¯t I? ¡°Ok. Don¡¯t aim close to any of the people fighting out there. You¡¯d probably take their head off with those arrows if you miss what you¡¯re aiming for. It¡¯s better if we focus on the ones trying to flank around them. If any of them get to the village-¡±

    ¡°They won¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°Ok.¡± Daniel took a step back as the giant holding a bow suddenly sounded very determined. ¡°If I understand your feature right, your first shot should kill what you hit. Once the others figure out where you are, that power will be less effective.¡± Daniel looked at one of the arrows again and added, ¡°But even without your feature you¡¯ll probably straight up kill them anyways.¡±

    ¡°Feature? What do you mean?¡±

    Alright, I¡¯m drawing the line at becoming another Lograve. ¡°It¡¯s a passive buff. You don¡¯t have to do anything to use it, it just helps you. Point and shoot. Actually, hold on. I have an idea.¡±

    In the distance, two monsters broke through the blockade and sprinted towards the village. To Daniel¡¯s eyes, they appeared reminiscent of kangaroos, save for being able to operate their legs independently to run. Having blades for arms formed from bone was a definite change as well.

    They were young level 1 shank stompers, monsters of the Crest driven to hate mortals and all they built. If they made it to the village, they¡¯d kill and destroy for as long as they lived. Instead, another fate lay in store. From out of nowhere, one started glowing with bright orange light focused on its head and a spot over its chest. It paused, confused, before an arrow obliterated a large section of its chest. Dead in fractions of a second. A crossbow bolt to the head felled the other terrified monster in the next second.

    ¡°What was that?¡± Khiat asked.

    ¡°Mark Weakness. I haven¡¯t had a chance to use it because of the mana cost increase on higher level enemies, but it¡¯s really easy if the monster is a lower level than me. Seems like it synergizes well with your feature.¡±

    ¡°Synergizes? Uh, does that mean they work well together?¡±

    Daniel forced encouragement into his voice. ¡°Right!¡±

    The dusker didn¡¯t immediately reach for another arrow as Daniel reloaded, but instead watched him. ¡°You¡¯re so calm. Do you get used to this? I¡¯ve hunted but,¡± Khiat shook her head, ¡°This feels like I¡¯m fighting for the first time.¡±

    ¡°I guess you do. I¡¯m not going to lie, I don¡¯t think I could be down there right now though. Oh, shoot, over there!¡± Daniel used Mark Weakness again, noting its mana cost couldn¡¯t be ignored but wasn¡¯t too much higher than Scatter Shot for level 1 enemies. Khiat, true to her word on her experience, snapped her bow up and brutally ended another shank stomper. For his part, he¡¯d had enough time to reload and take down a second, but this group had four. ¡°I can¡¯t get the others, can you?¡±

    He couldn¡¯t tell exactly what she was thinking by her face since the patterns there and the way they moved were so alien, but he at least recognized the frown. ¡°I¡¯ll try. I don¡¯t have many arrows.¡±

    ¡°Same with my bolts. I have other options but I don¡¯t know if it¡¯ll help at this range. I¡¯ll mark one.¡± The third fell just like the first, but the fourth was reaching a tent. They couldn¡¯t stop it if it got underground! They weren¡¯t too far from the tower, he had to try. Daniel prepared to use the ability that grew feathers on his arm before something intercepted the monster.

    Xtalo¡¯s massive frame slammed into it, and two others followed. The monster¡¯s arms tried to flail defensively, but it didn¡¯t get the chance as sections of carapace slammed together to trap the blades. ¡°Woah!¡± Daniel cried out, watching the villagers brutalize the monster.

    ¡°That¡¯s father for you,¡± Khiat commented. ¡°I wonder what he could have been with a class. Daniel, right?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    Her voice was tentative. ¡°Am I really an Assassin?¡±

    ¡°Uh, yeah.¡±

    ¡°What does that mean?¡±

    ¡°Honestly, you¡¯re the first time I¡¯ve seen the class. But just because it¡¯s your class doesn¡¯t mean it¡¯s who you are.¡±

    Khiat looked at the edge of the village and saw there wasn¡¯t an imminent threat. ¡°Do you remember when you got your class?¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± Daniel lied uncomfortably, sure she wasn¡¯t referring to waking up on a floating island.

    ¡°Then how can you say that? I felt the connection to my soul. Freedom, bows, preparation, flexibility, stealth, and weakness. Those were the words that spoke to me. What does it all mean?¡± She looked out to the monsters. ¡°I feel something when I look at things. I didn¡¯t realize it before you showed me how to use the power, but now? I don¡¯t know if I like it.¡±

    Here, Daniel was lost. He was very atypical when it came to how most people experienced classes in this world. For a while, he¡¯d even had two. ¡°Sounds like you¡¯re a stealth archer to me. And freedom doesn¡¯t sound bad. You said, wait, there-¡± Three more monsters dead, two to Khiat¡¯s credit, over the next half a minute. Between them and the people in the melee ahead, the battle would be over soon. More so, Daniel was impressed. One of the ones Khiat had killed had been a level 2 variant, the larger pack containing a scattered few. ¡°You said you were a good person. Granted, I don¡¯t really know you, but your father seemed like a good guy too and he raised you. I assume.¡± Wait, why I don¡¯t try this? ¡°What is it people say, it¡¯s your actions that define you? You¡¯re defending people you love. Assassin or not, I wouldn¡¯t worry.¡±

    Khiat relaxed a little, which was displayed physically by slight contractions in the shell of her shoulders. Daniel¡¯s words had carried mana with the ability he used. Reassure. Like Jump, it did what you would think, only his Encyclopedia claimed it only worked on afflictions like fear. The relief Khiat showed ran counter to that. The Encyclopedia never lied, but Daniel had been taken by surprise a few times in the past when he assumed it also told him everything. ¡°Thank you. Any others coming?¡±

    ¡°No, I think they¡¯ve got it handled. You see the guy doing ridiculous flips while throwing his sword?¡±

    ¡°No? Oh, wait, yes.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s Gadriel. He could probably take all of them himself if we didn¡¯t have to defend anyone. He took on a horde like this before that had higher level flying monsters, and that was back when he was level 2.¡±

    ¡°What class is he?¡±

    Should I tell her? People here are way more concerned about keeping classes secret. No, wait, with him it¡¯s obvious. ¡°Hero.¡±

    Instantly, Khiat was enthralled, forgetting her woes. It was like he didn¡¯t even need to use Reassure. ¡°Really? What¡¯s his name?¡±

    ¡°Gadriel?¡±

    ¡°No, his Hero name. They all have them, right?¡±

    It¡¯s like she¡¯s suddenly a starstruck high schooler. A giant one. ¡°I know what you mean, but I don¡¯t think he has one yet.¡±

    ¡°Oh. Could, could I meet him? If he¡¯s not too busy after.¡±

    Daniel couldn¡¯t help but smile. ¡°I¡¯m sure he¡¯d be happy to talk to you. He¡¯ll probably have to wash the blood off, except for his cape. He says there¡¯s no power that keeps it clean, but he¡¯s definitely lying.¡±

    ¡°Wow!¡±

    In a way, Daniel was more surprised with himself than Khiat¡¯s reaction. He was historically terrible with people, and for most of his life the only people to be nervous around were human. He¡¯d grown more than physically in his time here and wondered how much of this had to do with his charisma. Following the escape from the Thormundz, he¡¯d improved his from 12 to 18. Along with whatever that did to his social confidence, it had granted him new powers.

    Add on top of his introspection the sight of a giant bug falling to pieces over a man she could barely see, plus the fading adrenaline from battle, and it was a very particular brand of awkward Daniel felt then. A good kind, but awkwardness nonetheless.

    Khiat was fiddling with her quiver, counting the arrows. Suddenly, she exclaimed, ¡°No! I forgot!¡±

    ¡°What?¡± She didn¡¯t seem to hear him.

    ¡°Oh, oh no! I forgot to get the arrow earlier.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think anyone¡¯s going to mind.¡± Daniel gestured to the field of monster corpses and remembered something himself. Hunter, can you tell Tak to tell someone not to do anything to the bodies until I scan them? Thanks. ¡°Are they hard to make?¡±

    ¡°The arrowheads are chitin!¡±

    ¡°Chitin, you mean like-¡± For the first time, Daniel realized the arrow tips were the same hue as Khiat¡¯s outer shell. ¡°Do you make arrows from your dead?¡±

    ¡°Not all of them, just- I need to get the ones I just shot!¡± Khiat swung over the ledge without another word, leaving Daniel alone on the tower. He took a few beats to look around and make extra certain the village wasn¡¯t in any danger. Then, after considering the stairs and shrugging, he followed the duskers¡¯ lead and went over the edge himself.

 Chapter 92: An Echo Still Beating

    Reaching the ground, Daniel found the duskers emerging following the all clear. The adventurers - a term Daniel found he far preferred to Blessed - were also retreating from the battlefield to return to their rest. Most had been woken from their sleep. It seemed his request was being honored, so he busied himself.

    One of the major discoveries Daniel had made regarding his class was how he gained enchanting formulae. His Encyclopedia could capture information from monsters and already made enchanted items. While the former method was far slower, he had a suspicion that the formulae acquired this way were unique or at the very least more diverse than what was readily available.

    That thought was baseless, but at the same time, Daniel would like to see someone else who could make an exploding crossbow bolt. Ok, now that I think about it someone else can probably do that. Either way, the scanning function required him to heighten one of his features, a process that invested mana in one of his passive buffs to improve it for that day. Since he¡¯d already done that on the way to the village, it was ready to go.

    <hr>

    You have scanned multiple Monsters, listed below. You have met the requirements to unlock multiple Encyclopedia entries, listed below.

    Scanned Targets:

    ? Young Shank Stomper, Deceased (Whole) - 6

    ? Young Shank Stomper, Deceased (Damaged) - 40

    ? Shank Stomper, Deceased (Whole) - 5

    ? Shank Stomper, Deceased (Damaged) - 2

    Encyclopedia Entries:

    ? Monster: Shank Stomper, Detailed

    ? Affix: Bonecut

    <hr>

    Another affix? So far, Daniel had only unlocked the lightning affix which gave weapons lightning damage. It was simple and effective, while this new one was more interesting.

    <hr>

    Bonecut (Affix: Enchanting, Domain: Enchantment, Level: -)

    An affix that may be applied to Items you enchant. This affix allows you to use Nonmagical bone scavenged from Creatures as a Material: Enchanting of a level equivalent to the origin. Use of this affix requires bone of a mass suitable for the desired creation.

    -

    Affix (Concept, Domain: Enchantment/Transmutation, ???):

    An affix is a modifier that may be placed on Items to alter its properties while staying true to the original Formulae. The total number of affixes that may be placed on a crafted item is equal to the Level of the Crafter or the item, whichever is lower.

    <hr>

    ¡°Huh.¡± Daniel tried to think about how he could use the bone arms of the monsters until the scent of blood made him turn away. He noticed several of the villagers watching him, looked down at the dead kangaroos with knives for hands, and made a guess. ¡°I¡¯m good over here if you guys want these!¡± All of the duskers nodded and began to collect the bodies, starting with those that were most intact. He decided to decline asking for an arm at this point, not having anywhere to carry it and not wanting to make Khare or Hunter do so either. With the money that his golden armor should bring in and the idea to hunt after a week or so¡¯s vacation, there¡¯d be more opportunities. A bit lazy? Maybe, but after almost a week of marching through the desert Daniel just wanted some R&R. Besides, he was trying to keep his class a secret.

    He reached the top of the dune near where the caravan was resting and was met with roughly one hundred recently agitated people trying to get some rest. They were all tired. He was tired, but a sudden monster attack would put you on edge. By contrast, the villagers below seemed to have just started their day. Nocturnal? How do they deal with mana restoration?

    The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    His team was trying to get rest themselves. His team. Whatever title was appropriate for empowered people in general, they were adventurers. The thought of having shot down three monsters without batting an eye, all the while instructing someone else, made him pause.

    Rising from the most comfortable of their bedrolls, Thomas yawned. ¡°Oh, hey Guy. You ok?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, just tired.¡±

    ¡°Most of us are,¡± Evalyn commented from where she had what used to be a thick tablecloth pressed over her head.

    ¡°We were just in a fight Ev, how can I go to sleep?¡±

    ¡°What did you call me?¡± Her attempts to fall asleep were forgotten as the makeshift blanket was tossed aside.

    ¡°You don¡¯t like it?¡± Thomas received a handful of tossed sand in response. Tak metaphorically piled it on.

    ¡°We fought. You ran with the villagers.¡±

    ¡°Pwwf.¡± Thomas wiped at his face. ¡°I¡¯m not a fighter! I promised myself I wouldn¡¯t get into any more stupid fights after it wasn¡¯t a matter of life or death.¡±

    ¡°Couldn¡¯t you have just shot a few arrows though?¡± Daniel asked. ¡°That¡¯d be enough to get you advancement, or at least part of the way there.¡±

    ¡°Guy, I can¡¯t- wait, never mind. What class did the bug get?¡±

    Cleric and gossip, exactly the worst person to tell a secret. ¡°I can¡¯t tell you. I promised Kite I wouldn¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°Who?¡±

    ¡°The dusker.¡±

    ¡°Oh. That¡¯s a weird name for one of them.¡±

    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t know.¡±

    ¡°Would you two please stop talking!¡± Evalyn fiercely whispered. ¡°I don¡¯t even know how late it is but I¡¯m going to have a headache tomorrow if you keep this up!¡±

    Thomas held up his hands. ¡°I¡¯m sorry but I¡¯m wide awake. Talking helps me settle down.¡±

    Evalyn sighed and pulled out her instrument. For a moment, several people in the group thought she¡¯d hit him with it. Instead, she held the reinforced accordion in her hands. Not as graceful an instrument as, say, the violin Daniel¡¯s sister used to play, but it was a sensible choice for someone who frequently took it into battle. ¡°Alright, fine. I have a song ability that can make you go to sleep.¡±

    ¡°For how long?¡± Thomas asked cautiously.

    ¡°Unfortunately, just as long as you¡¯d normally sleep. It¡¯s not a combat ability. And before you ask or think to later, I¡¯m not using this again. It¡¯s not good to.¡±

    ¡°Then why have it?¡± Daniel asked. ¡°Also why not use it every night?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s mostly helpful if used right before dawn, assuming you¡¯re up at that time of night for some reason and need to recharge mana.¡± Evalyn adjusted knobs at the end of her instrument, light shimmering on occasion as she did so. ¡°But, if you use magic every night to get to sleep, you¡¯ll find that you need it sooner or later. You have to be careful with powers that affect the mind, repeated use can lead to problems. In this case, it¡¯s worth the risk.¡±

    ¡°Well yeah, that¡¯s with repeated use. What¡¯s the risk of using it for just tonight?¡±

    Evalyn looked at Thomas like he was personally responsible for the sand she had to brush from her hair every day. ¡°The risk of this not working, meaning I¡¯ll have to beat you unconscious.¡±

    Thomas quickly sheltered in his bedroll, as if that would save him. ¡°You¡¯re mean when you¡¯re tired.¡±

    Evalyn straightened, shook her head, and began playing. ¡°Just shut up.¡± The music she played was soft and muted, likely adjusted to not disturb anyone else or carry to the village. It also wasn¡¯t based on the songs Daniel had shared from Earth when they were preparing to kill a dragon. That was good, he was worried she was just going to remix his stuff from now on. Some of his taste in music was embarrassing in ways only he understood.

    Suddenly, there was a weight to the world. Exhausted as he was Daniel almost passed out but kept aware enough to roughly set up his bedding where Hunter was sprawled in the sand. The ringcat didn¡¯t have his armor on. Khare must have already taken it off.

    Hey Hunter, Daniel thought slowly, laying down himself. You did good.

    Hmmmm. Good¡­ shots¡­ The music was getting to the ringcat. Monsters couldn¡¯t benefit from Bardic music, not the kind that enhanced allies, but Hunter was in many ways an exception.

    Sorry I fell asleep earlier. We could have talked or trained, or something. There was no response. Hunter wasn¡¯t asleep yet, he didn¡¯t think so, but they were both being influenced by magical music and a very long day. It would be so easy to leave it at that and let go, but he couldn¡¯t. Are you alright Hunter?

    Hmrf. Yes.

    Are you sure? There was something there. Not just with Hunter, but both of them. Daniel knew Hunter had been affected by what had happened at the lake, even if he didn¡¯t remember it. Being controlled was the thing he hated most in this world and one of the reasons he only just tolerated Moment of Clarity. As for Daniel?

    It wasn¡¯t special anymore. That¡¯s the conclusion he¡¯d come to. Hunter had been with him for almost all of his time here, a friend and confidant who was his alone. The ringcat¡¯s burgeoning independence, evidenced most clearly in the developments with Tak, changed that. He was jealous of some things, sure, but in a crazy way he missed when things were simpler because it was just the two of them against the world.

    If it was just that, Daniel could understand the wedge he feared was starting to be eased between them. Hunter was being withdrawn, speaking minimally even though he¡¯d improved to the point of talking in full sentences. What worried him most was he still didn¡¯t know what had happened when they¡¯d entered Aughal and if that was playing a part in the change.

    Am fine. Need sleep.

    Ok. It¡¯s just¡­ Daniel was already breathing slowly, but would have taken a long breath anyway. Kindness and understanding. Kindness and understanding, he repeated internally. I¡¯m worried. If it¡¯s something I¡¯m doing, or not doing, please tell me. If not, then I just want to make sure you¡¯re ok.

    Am fine. Daniel felt sand being disturbed nearby by a short flick of Hunter¡¯s tail.

    Are you sure? He asked again. This time, there wasn¡¯t a response. Troubled, Daniel shifted to lay on his back, took one look at the sky, and then closed his eyes again.

    ¡­

    Evalyn stopped her music after a few minutes, pleased by the slow breaths of her companions and the closed mouth of Thomas in particular. Lullaby. Such a pure Bard power. An escape to dreams on troubled nights. One of the first she¡¯d received too. Despite what she¡¯d said tonight, she¡¯d used it many times with her sister when they lived in Eido. Her parents, especially her father, hadn¡¯t been thrilled to learn what class she¡¯d received, but a class was a class and they hadn¡¯t had one.

    Coming to the Thormundz had meant an easier life and an escape from poverty. Beyond that there was just the hope that their service would reach the attention of the Octyrrum. That one of them would get a class, and she had. Evalyn had to think that seeing her like that, playing soft music to the sister who had still carried the memories of what she¡¯d experienced coming through Threst, had done something to relieve her parents that she wasn¡¯t ¡®that¡¯ kind of Bard.

    Not to say that she wasn¡¯t entirely that kind of Bard. Evalyn liked to have fun, meet people, and occasionally take things further. That wasn¡¯t because she was a Bard, that just made it easier and gave her an excuse. But in the end, they¡¯d gone away. She missed them, but she did not cry or let their memory weigh her down. It wasn¡¯t callousness, it was a secret that she was sure only she knew. Her family wasn¡¯t gone, nor were they dead.

    She¡¯d always felt it, the small pulse in her chest that mimicked but did not match her own heart. A simple bond, formed even before she¡¯d gotten her class. A reminder and a promise. Somewhere, Emily was alive. When Evalyn knew more, when she was stronger, she¡¯d find her. But for now, she needed to sleep.

 Chapter 93: The Eye of the Spires

    In another part of the region, hundreds of meters in the air, servants busied themselves in the late hours of the night. Their work would not see completion until well after the light returned to Aughal, despite the relatively small space in which they toiled. It was a suspended platform, in simple terms.

    To describe it more accurately, or at least give it its title, it was The Eye of the Spires. A circular platform that bridged the four towering structures that had been the result of finishing this region¡¯s Spoke. In a normal world its position between them would be untenable, the bridges and shallow supports at four points unable to bear the weight of the stone it was made of.

    Magic answered many questions physics asked. Not the remnant magic of the Spoke, but that of Builders who¡¯d stabilized the creation through group effort until the Eye had been accepted by the Spoke. A fountain was placed in the center, from which an enchantment produced water that would otherwise have no source to flow from. A cruel throne had once stood in its place, but those days were over.

    The earliest preparations saw the servants cleaning. Polishing the surfaces of many tables, dusting the sand from statues placed on plinths that had been dragged here in the earlier hours, and otherwise maintaining a space exposed at all times to the elements. Those important enough to even be this far up a Spire, and not for reasons of employment, could enjoy this space at most times. It was by no means unattended, but today was important.

    Two more hours were spent this way. It wasn¡¯t perfect, but it was as good as it would get. A few wondered amongst themselves when the city¡¯s elites would have the stone itself enchanted to resist dirt. Was it possible? Surely, just look where they were standing. But there were other problems, and for the most part there was silence. None spoke of what had happened to their sibling region. They didn¡¯t know.

    By the time the sun rose, the tables were dressed and flowers placed to greet it. Not of the desert, there were brighter things that needed almost constant watering to keep fresh. They¡¯d be dead by the end of the day, which coincided with when their usefulness would be at an end. The band arrived at that point. There was no proper Bard among them, that wouldn¡¯t do at all. They were just normal people who¡¯d learned to play and who¡¯d been confirmed to hit their wall, so it would never be a problem.

    Music filled the air as they practiced, tuning their instruments and adjusting positions according to the instructions of an overseer to best accommodate the space. Without powers, there was nothing else they could do to compensate for the poor acoustics of the space.

    Hours before the Spires¡¯ Eye would see the main event, it fully emptied. The day¡¯s heat was beginning to climb. To the four that approached, one from each Spire, all that was noticeable was the sun on their faces. Over the years, Aughal had seen tumultuous changes in the power landscape prompted by alliances, betrayals, and assassinations. There were not always four factions, and not always one leader for each, but that was the case for now. Such as it was, each approaching from one side of the Spires¡¯ Eye fulfilled both the need for a sense of equality between them, as well as the draw of symmetry that inexplicably called to all races.

    Two humans, one avianoid, and a dusker. The leaders of Aughal for now. They maintained power solely through influence, wealth, and the Legacy of their ancestral lines. Aucrest Seliri, or Silver Eye as he did not like to be known, knew he¡¯d die one day. It wasn¡¯t going to be soon, and he would end his line before handing it over to the likes of Eddor Kaysian. Two generations ago, Eddor¡¯s grandfather had stood where he was now. That man¡¯s loss and his gain.

    The avianoid stood in the slight breeze. The silver that his white feathers ended in caught the sunrise. For a moment, he was reminded of that ridiculous rumor that he painted the tips. How would that even work? One of the humans had started it, that was for sure. He adjusted one of the rings on his fingers and walked forward.

    The two humans made their approach together, meeting midway but still walking a meter apart. They were allies, though also rocks in each other¡¯s path. Aughal¡¯s political backdrop included no shortage of racial division that Aucrest himself had run against. In general, like kept with kind but only so far as it benefited them. Both of these humans gained security from the other¡¯s presence, though these matters had become cloudier as of late. It wasn¡¯t the death of Lord Rodreick, it was what he¡¯d done.

    ¡°Lords. Lady,¡± the fourth member spoke first. Ytaya, to omit the pointless title they all shared. To Aucrest she looked like any other dusker, save for the fact that her natural armored plates were separated under the sun. Strips of silk also flowed across her body. The duskers¡¯ ability to double their height made clothing difficult to design, and unnecessary as far as manners were concerned. Either way, appearing as she was was a power move, making the others look up at her.

    ¡°Let us not mince words,¡± the older human, a woman, fired back immediately. Claret Sosa. If this wasn¡¯t a private meeting that son of hers would be clinging to the teal gray dress wrapped around her old bones. Two mistakes he could see there leading to one conclusion. Her line would fall from prominence within a decade. Another Eddor. The only poison stronger than the Assassin¡¯s was complacency. ¡°We are still under threat. We still do not know the exact manner of Rodreick¡¯s death, or who hired the Assassin responsible!¡±

    ¡°Yet it seems you two received plenty of his former allies,¡± Aucrest noted, just detached enough to avoid a blatantly accusatory tone.

    ¡°You would know a thing or two about stealing supporters, wouldn¡¯t you?¡± Bennar Hammerson remarked coolly but with a definitive accusation. He was the most dangerous individual of the others of the Council. Not in the strength of Legacy carried, each was powerful enough to make comparison meaningless. No, Bennar had Claret¡¯s cunning and the years to make use of it.

    ¡°Are you suggesting that has occurred?¡±

    This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

    ¡°No, I just find hypocrisy distasteful.¡±

    ¡°Gentleman.¡± Ytaya was amused. In this dispute, she had little stake either way. ¡°I agree with Claret. Discuss this quickly. The sun is so bright today.¡±

    ¡°I heard a storm was going to come through in the next hour. It might last all day.¡± Aucrest didn¡¯t feel it necessary to mention that discussing the weather was hardly moving on.

    ¡°Really?¡± Ytaya sounded hopeful, then concerned. ¡°Will we need to delay the event?¡±

    ¡°Hardly not,¡± Claret denied sharply. ¡°If you bothered to stay informed, you¡¯d know we¡¯re temporarily extending the Shroud over the platform.¡±

    ¡°I was not informed of this!¡±

    Claret gave the dusker a look of fake innocence. ¡°Really? How odd, we received approval from your faction. Well, regardless, we have a majority behind the action and I doubt you¡¯d oppose us.¡±

    Now that was interesting. Aucrest hadn¡¯t done anything, not that this kind of game was beneath him, which meant either Ytaya was scheming or Claret had done something dangerous. Any manipulation of the Spires required something akin to a group vote between Council members, with the majority enacting their will over the divine shard entrusted to their region. Three Council members could go around the fourth and get things done, but that opened the door to reprisal later and if they were especially egregious, it might provoke a strong response from the public. Claret was inviting risk for relatively little gain. No doubt she foresaw what the immediate future held for her line and was growing desperate. A house of Eddors. She¡¯d been getting bolder, but Aucrest didn¡¯t sense a direct admission in her taunt either. Maybe Bennar had-

    Ytaya¡¯s incandescent bellow cut over his thoughts. ¡°I wish to be fully informed of all the details immediately! If I find I was intentionally left out, you will not like what happens next.¡±

    ¡°I assure you, I am not to blame for your lapse in awareness,¡± Claret said acerbically. ¡°If you need to know so badly, have your people do it. We¡¯re not here to discuss the weather.¡± It was a decent backhand. Not worth the trouble for if she truly had set this up, but Ytaya might as well have been half their size after finding herself off balance. Claret continued, ¡°Now, matters of Assassins aside, I assume we agree about announcing the fate of the Thormundz?¡±

    Bennar shifted but nodded. A compromise. Aucrest saw the telltale signs of one human bending over for another. He wasn¡¯t going to make an issue of this. ¡°Of course, I agree. Though you are aware word will inevitably spread down the Spires? I¡¯m surprised it hasn¡¯t already.¡±

    ¡°It hasn¡¯t, because we¡¯ve kept the secret well!¡± Ytaya protested, somewhat lamely as she again found herself one to three. She directed her massive head towards Aucrest. ¡°You only say that because they have a majority!¡±

    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, why waste time protesting? No, I feel it agreeable to spread the news. They are to reach our gates by the end of the week. I suppose you would have us keep the secret, even then?¡±

    It was not Ytaya¡¯s day. Aucrest hadn¡¯t planned this takedown with the humans but wouldn¡¯t be where he was if he couldn¡¯t pounce on an opportunity. ¡°What of any rare classes?¡± she asked, voice louder than any of them could shout. Movement flickered in the doorways leading to the Spires, but nothing happened. ¡°We are to let anyone have this knowledge before we have a chance to act on it? Our neighbors have denied us before, and from our allotment no less. Has anyone else forgotten how Threst poached the first Artificer we¡¯ve seen after Arpan only days after they¡¯d awakened their class?¡±

    ¡°You expect a failed region to have produced anyone like that?¡± Claret tsked. ¡°No, the Fate was clear. No survivors with rare powers. No chance of a rare class and none on the Regional Log. If Threst, Kallical, and Vellus want to sort through the weeds for a good Builder or Craftsman amongst the commons, let them. The survivors may be strong, but it seems Threst has snapped up a majority before they even crossed the border. What I am concerned about is the support contracts our region would be liable for if we continued to allow goods transit through our lands ostensibly for the Thormundz.¡±

    Aucrest¡¯s eyes widened as he read the subtext and made an assumption, which he attempted to cover with a cough. Bold indeed. Claret must have been requesting materials and funding from Rikendia for some form of relief effort into the Thormundz, despite their agreement to let that situation play out on its own. The lightning dragon they¡¯d detected in the pass made any thoughts of helping pointless, especially after the news had reached them that it had decimated a relief force sent by Threst in the early days of the disaster.

    If the region had continued to hold on, the losses of what had been given could be written off. Perhaps a failed evacuation attempt would have been made if Claret was willing to sacrifice a few of the guard. With the survivors breaking out so quickly, leaving no doubt as to what happened and the lack of aid given, the plan had backfired. If she could cite reasonable concern of their necessity in some future hypothetical, and the goods were promptly returned, there would be no penalty.

    On the other hand, if she continued accepting goods and payment whilst aware of what had happened, Rikendia would be out for blood and levy her house¡¯s holding. If that wasn¡¯t enough it would spill over to the region in general and may just be the end of Claret¡¯s entire faction. The knowledge had to be made public in this region for her to cleanly stop the shipments. The longer this stretched on, the worse the position she was in.

    Should he fight this? No, she was already on her way out. Ytaya seemed prepared to capitalize on the weakness she¡¯d seen as well, but he got there first. ¡°Of course! Whatever exposes us to the least liability. Our status amidst the kingdom will already suffer for this, but if we can at least lose no less than Threst that would be preferable.¡±

    Aucrest had earned the ire of two of the three now, and the surprise of Claret. ¡°Then there is no further need to discuss this. I-¡±

    ¡°However,¡± his words cut her off. ¡°I would ask a thorough accounting be made of anyone who had taken goods under such contracts. To limit liability, of course. Say, headed by one subordinate of each of our choosing? We must show good faith if we want to have these deals forgiven without penalty.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s necessary.¡± Claret tried to hide her nerves but a shaking hand betrayed her. How much had she signed up for under the table?

    Bennar looked between the two and came to his own decision. ¡°I think it sounds reasonable. Like the bird said. Limit our liability.¡±

    ¡°I find this agreeable.¡± Ytaya was smiling for the first time, not counting when she¡¯d heard about the storm. ¡°Should there be no discontent, we have a majority of our own. No need to further discuss this.¡±

    This time, Aucrest could feel Claret urging him to interject again, but he stayed silent. So did Bennar. ¡°Good. There are no further matters of state?¡± No response. ¡°Well, I hope all of us can enjoy the festivities.¡±

    Aucrest walked away from the fountain feeling largely indifferent. Honestly, he was more worried about his daughter returning from the Thormundz than anything that had been just said. He¡¯d had his moments of fun, but in the end, he¡¯d neither gained nor lost anything important here. For a five-minute conversation that could be expected. Still, he kept wary. The balance of power in Aughal could tilt on four words, as they had famously two centuries ago. He chirped them under his breath idly as he walked away from the very spot it had happened. ¡°Death to the Tyrant.¡±

 Chapter 94: High Society

    When Arpan Morel set foot on the Spires¡¯ Eye three hours later, there were more people than open ground. This was a standing affair, with food and drink placed on tables rather than being served by the staff. No point, as it would take too long to get here from the nearest kitchen. He brushed off the tan overcloak he wore, looking with some distaste at the dirt that had gotten on the green diamond split by the front divide near the hem.

    ¡°Name?¡± It was to be expected that the spire guard standing by one of the public entrances was broad-framed with an equally imposing broadsword sheathed at the waist. These were a separate organization from the city guard, responsible for and to those living in the Spires and given the best to protect them. Was this sword one of his? Arpan could sense the magic in it but he hadn¡¯t made the hilt, so he couldn¡¯t tell. The city imported almost as many enchanted items as he made, though the majority was the drull of Arcanist pretenders. ¡°Arpan Morel. I was invited.¡±

    The man paused, making no visible effort to check the name before nodding. ¡°Artificer. I¡¯ll need to check you. No weapons here.¡±

    ¡°Oh trust me, I¡¯m here to get away from work.¡± The guard didn¡¯t return his smile and gestured for him to take off his cloak. He did with a small flourish, throwing it off the side of the Eye. He had spares, could afford hundreds in fact, and didn¡¯t need to worry about sand considering there was a bubble of divine force keeping the ongoing dust storm away.

    Now fully revealed, the guard could confirm Arpan carried no obvious weapons. Neither did he immediately let the man through. ¡°Is that armor enchanted?¡± he asked skeptically.

    ¡°It¡¯s my Focus. You can confirm with whoever is in your head, but unless I¡¯m mistaken, we¡¯re not in the habit of asking Blessed to turn those over.¡± The spire guard frowned, paused again, then reluctantly stepped away.

    ¡°Keep it on at all times. Make use of any power and there will be trouble. Next!¡±

    ¡°¡®There will be trouble¡¯. Can you believe that Dril? As if I wasn¡¯t at least two levels his senior,¡± Arpan whispered down. His enchanted armor was currently on his person. While it was far too small for him, that was only whilst it was in one piece. Dril was scattered across Arpan¡¯s body with each part roughly where it should be if it were a full suit.

    This was hardly a new arrangement. The Artificer¡¯s wardrobe was made to match the separate pieces by enveloping the edges in fabric. The chest piece and the diamond-shaped emerald in its center were prominently displayed for all to see, making it clear to those familiar with him or his work who he was.

    Arpan enjoyed the notice of the nearby nobility for precisely three seconds, before a voice called out to him. ¡°Arpan? Arpan, how lovely!¡±

    Oh no. ¡°Lady Alecia Seliri! It is a pleasure.¡± Arpan greeted the human woman in her forties as she approached, her husband nowhere to be seen. That, and the smile she gave which was completely inappropriate for someone thirty years her senior had him worried. Who am I kidding? Forty. ¡°I hope you enjoyed my latest work.¡±

    ¡°Yes! Oh, but it¡¯s being fitted for its handle. I so hoped to bring it with me today, but it seems everyone is putting in orders like mad of late! My husband¡¯s hiding something, though he won¡¯t tell me.¡± She pouted dramatically, then brightened up again. ¡°I suppose you don¡¯t know anything about current events?¡±

    How anyone could expect an Artificer who was practically locked in their store ninety percent of the time to know the current gossip was beyond him. He put it more graciously to the Lady. ¡°Unfortunately, I was kept quite busy as of late. As you say it has been busy and my customers didn¡¯t impart the daily news with their requests.¡±

    ¡°Ah, I see. I do hope my order was fun for you. I was told that metal would be quite the challenge.¡±

    What?! You made me work an extra half day for the fun of it? He tried to keep his aggravation hidden. ¡°Uhm, my Lady, I apologize but I don¡¯t take your meaning.¡±

    ¡°Hmm, let¡¯s walk and speak. It¡¯s too crowded by the common door.¡± Warily, Arpan followed. He didn¡¯t want to, but the wife of someone on the Council wasn¡¯t one you refused without good reason. She led him to one of the banisters ringing the Eye and leaned against it, completely fearless of the long drop below. It should have been a good view, though the sandstorm that had enveloped the rest of the city hadn¡¯t yet faded.

    The gala, as it was so advertised, was mainly concentrated in the center where the fountain and tables stood. There, the four heads of Aughal mixed with lesser nobility, their families, and notable guests like himself. Private conversations were reserved for the edges of the space, and guarded by enchanted items like the one Alecia activated.

    A necklace with the muffle sound enchantment, plus the rich quality and concealable affixes. That¡¯s one of mine, Arpan thought, recognizing the concealed mark one of his powers had placed on the item. Alone, the power made it clear who the original enchanter was and prevented any other underhanded Artificer from stealing the design. Several later powers had built off of this simple one, allowing Arpan to do much to protect his inventory before sale.

    ¡°There we go. It wouldn¡¯t do to let just anyone listen in on our chat, now would it?¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± Arpan lied. ¡°Is this about another order you wish to place?¡±

    ¡°Well, your latest work did leave me quite satisfied, even though it was expensive. It was worth it to know you spent that time thinking of me.¡± Arpan thought of who had visited that night and made a point not to explain how wrong she was. ¡°I hope you understand why I requested that specific metal.¡±

    ¡°You wanted to give me a challenge?¡± As if my work wasn¡¯t already hard enough.

    ¡°Oh no, no.¡± Lady Alecia laughed, the sound captured by the enchantment originally meant for stealth classes and prevented from carrying to the ears of anyone nearby. ¡°Well, yes. I thought that would make it special. Also, well,¡± her slightly high pitched voice grew softer and she extended a hand. ¡°It is your color.¡±

    One of her fingers traced around the gem on Arpan¡¯s chest and he sighed internally. This was exactly what he feared. Similar advances had been made over the years. Most often it was by those in power looking to capture his interests or, at the very least, a discount. A few, and he worried this was the case here, were drawn instead by the mystique. He was one of the very few level 5s in the city, the only Artificer in the region, and nominally independent. What was it that people who had everything wanted?

    Well, one thing was for certain. Lady Alecia¡¯s husband didn¡¯t want this. ¡°I apologize, my Lady.¡± Arpan took a step back, breaking the connection while remaining within the enchantment. He was acutely aware of the fact that it did nothing to conceal vision. Arpan chose his words carefully. ¡°I am afraid I simply have no time for any additional business for the immediate future. As you said, there is currently high demand.¡±

    ¡°Oh, Arpan! You needn¡¯t fear my husband,¡± Alecia assured, now making no pretenses, ¡°He¡¯s been so busy of late. Couldn¡¯t I reserve your time? Or, at the least, visit you on occasion? I¡¯m sure you wouldn¡¯t mind the company during those long nights. I could be just the right amount of distracting.¡±

    She really did her research on enchanting, Arpan thought. He was going to say no, of course. Neutrality was important, as was the difference in their ages. It wasn¡¯t her fault he didn¡¯t look as old as he was and admittedly took care to present himself well. Though, it was hard for him to refuse the offer. Which he should, even though she¡¯d probably pay him. He just had to say no, it was that simple right? Lady Alecia stared at him with wide eyes, not in fear or shock but yearning. Gods, but it would be nice to have company. But no, I¡¯m a professional. This is will lead to problems. Say no.

    ¡°Arpan? Are you alright?¡± Alecia asked with a slight chuckle. ¡°You know, it¡¯s so busy right now, I doubt anyone would notice if we stepped out for a few moments. This is supposed to last all day, isn¡¯t it? We¡¯d have plenty of time. Unless you were planning on enchanting anything other than myself right in the middle of this Gala?¡±

    He was flushing. This was bad. This, well, this kind of thing did happen, right? Secret pairings amid a grand social event? And with people far less important than him, like the wait staff. Maybe this was a good thing. Let the flame burn bright and quickly, and Alecia would lose interest and find someone else. Oh Star, Dril, I¡¯m talking myself into it.

    Arpan couldn¡¯t speak, but his internal conflict was clear to Alecia by the tone of his tanned face. ¡°Haha, you¡¯re bright red and speechless! How about this. I¡¯m going to head down and wait for you two landings below this one. Wait five minutes, and then, if you want to find me, I can put this to use another way.¡± She smiled, tracing the same finger over the necklace and disabling the effect. As if she wasn¡¯t just speaking in a sultry voice, Alecia formally said, ¡°Thank you again, Arpan. I¡¯ll have to consider placing another order soon.¡±

    This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

    For a few minutes, Arpan stood gripping the handrail tightly. His heart raced, arguing back and forth in his mind. This was risky, but what was the worst that could happen? He wouldn¡¯t be breaking any laws. Angering someone important was the biggest trouble he¡¯d catch, if that. He could always move if he needed to, the only reason he stayed in Aughal was to avoid competition. Am I really going to do this? Tensely, but with a half-smile growing on his face, Arpan made his way towards the stairs.

    ¡­

    Across the Eye, Silora was miserable. The air was so dry! She didn¡¯t want to be here, but the city had made a request she was bound to follow. Her leash had been tighter as of late, the consequences of helping the Assassin Mark locate and kill Lord Fredreick. That she had done so under threat of death helped her case, as was the fact she was the city¡¯s only Fate. Hard to replace, but not impossible. They¡¯d said as much when they thought she couldn¡¯t hear.

    She was a shavi, a race descended from some long extinct sea monster. It¡¯d be strange to find one willingly living in the middle of a desert, and if you searched Aughal you wouldn¡¯t find any other. Silora had the distinct displeasure of having accidentally acquired the Fate class, one very valuable to the leaders of any region. Rumor was that she took up a slot and another Fate wouldn¡¯t awaken in Aughal until she died, even if she left and never returned.

    While she would have in a heartbeat anyway, she¡¯d made a fatal mistake in her youth: agreeing to help the city with her powers if they trained her and provided the expensive Focus chamber she used daily. It had been a good deal until it came time to repay the debt and Silora suddenly found she wasn¡¯t the master of her own time. Neither could she expect to escape the region alone, she¡¯d die an hour outside the city without special preparation and that was if a certain clause in her agreement wasn¡¯t enacted.

    For the last few years, she¡¯d contented herself with leveraging consolations from the city. Judging when she could get away with a request without asking too much that she¡¯d anger someone she shouldn¡¯t. Now, she had a plan. In a few days, he¡¯d be here. She¡¯d found someone of true value like herself. Even though her sight had been blocked from him somehow, she knew he was coming to Aughal. With him, she could escape.

    All that relied on her not dropping dead today. For the event, she¡¯d been loaned a ring of heat resistance. It was level 3, decent, but did nothing for the aridity. Silora looked at the distant fountain and weighed how much trouble she¡¯d get in for diving into it. It was more important than it looked, for it stood where the Tyrant¡¯s throne had once had. There was an old story that Armafus had cursed it when he died, but it¡¯d been thrown out with him so that wasn¡¯t a concern. She only cared that it was full of water. The balance was shifting with every moment, made worse by the fact she was bereft of her new assistant Sctai.

    The dusker had been able to tolerate working a day shift in a room that didn¡¯t accommodate her full size but balked at serving under the open sun. As it turned out the sandstorm would have made it safe, but even Silora couldn¡¯t force her servant out during the day. That was the entire reason she¡¯d been assigned who she had, Silora was sure. Another way to keep her in check.

    Then there was the small talk. ¡°No, I can¡¯t do a reading here. I don¡¯t know about what¡¯s happening there and I couldn¡¯t tell you if I could. Yes, I know how hot it is!¡± Being the only shavi present made her stand out, not in a good way. That was the real reason she was here, a showpiece. Her blue skin, broad head, and tail made an impression. Well, there were other people with tails here, but not one that went down below the ankles. The avianoids didn¡¯t have to worry about people kicking theirs!

    She kept her cool, if only in metaphor. Even so, the fountain was right there. If she ran, she could be fully immersed in seconds. Maybe that¡¯d get her kicked out and she could go back to her bed. Either way, it was too late to stop her skin from flaking and cracking. Oh, and someone else was coming to talk with her.

    The young avianoid with dark brown and white feathers approached her intently. He or she was dressed both finely and minimally, not giving Silora enough to go on to guess the sex. They were young, though, perhaps a couple years past reaching maturity. Far younger than she was and with little finery beyond a handful of enchanted items. Some were fairly powerful. That was odd. ¡°You¡¯re the Fate, aren¡¯t you?¡±

    Female. The voice of an avianoid was the biggest tell unless you were familiar enough with their faces or didn¡¯t care enough to try, which was the case in this moment. Silora just stared at her, done with everything and wishing this new conversant would go jump off a balcony.

    She didn¡¯t. ¡°You look parched. Here,¡± the young woman extended a hand holding a glass filled with water. Silora would have preferred wine, but only when she wasn¡¯t withering away from thirst. The thought of poison crossed her mind for a moment, but she didn¡¯t care. As she gulped the glass down, not caring that some of it spilled on her face, the woman kept talking. ¡°I¡¯m Willow. Sorry to bother you but you seemed distressed. I can¡¯t imagine this is the best climate for you.¡± The voice was refined, like any of the nobility or people who¡¯d qualify to be a guest here, though there was a simple honesty in it that didn¡¯t fit in with the general crowd.

    ¡°Ah, more.¡± Silora couldn¡¯t help it. She¡¯d taken entire jugs of water to herself over the day and had exhausted the local supply. Like the fountain, the bottles of wine and other refreshments taunted her, but they¡¯d only dehydrate her further.

    Surprisingly, Willow had another one. Silora didn¡¯t ask how but grabbed for it. She almost missed what was said next, but froze when the words made it past the exaltations in her mind. ¡°I heard there¡¯s going to be an announcement soon. I wonder if it¡¯s about the recent attack. Do you know anything about that?¡±

    Oh, this was an obvious trap. ¡°No, of course not. I¡¯m dying out here, when would I have the chance to go out and gossip?¡±

    ¡°Sorry. It¡¯s odd though. Rodreick I mean. I¡¯ve heard he was caught without his guard. Do you think there¡¯s another Fate in the city? I was just curious, either the Assassin was lucky or knew when to attack. My father¡¯s been too busy for me to ask him and I¡¯d thought you¡¯d know.¡±

    Silora was wary of this woman now as she was clearly the daughter of someone important. Moreso, her words struck at a lingering question in the Fate¡¯s mind. How had Mark or whoever had hired him known when to come to her and confirm Rodreick¡¯s location, if they didn¡¯t already know he was vulnerable?

    ¡°If I could tell you one thing,¡± she said carefully, ¡°It¡¯s that I¡¯m the only Fate in Aughal. Otherwise, I¡¯m as in the dark as everyone.¡±

    Willow looked up and frowned. ¡°Not for much longer though. I think the storm¡¯s calming down. The sun will be out soon. I¡¯m sorry. I could try to find you a parasol if that would help.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°They said it¡¯s good luck to do a Fate a favor and no one else here was helping you.¡± Willow shrugged innocently. ¡°Well? I¡¯d be happy to look.¡±

    That was it? Silora still felt unsteady. This Willow hadn¡¯t done anything that would justify overt suspicion, but why was she just helping her? Was she just being paranoid? If the sun is coming out- ¡°Thank you. I might need that.¡±

    ¡°Not a problem, Fate.¡± Willow left Silora partially improved, although it would take a bath to put a dent in her displeasure. The fountain. It was so close.

    Something was happening at the fountain. The four leaders of Aughal, four now that Rodreick had died heirless and his faction imploded, were standing together. Others had sensed the importance of this and were flocking to the right side to see them clearly. The buzz of conversation became excited whispers. Something was about to happen.

    Lady Claret Sosa raised a hand, inflicting silence on the crowd. Everyone besides Silora, who couldn¡¯t look away from the water, had their eyes and ears fixed on her. ¡°People of Aughal,¡± she began. ¡°Some of you have by now heard rumor and speculation regarding a certain topic of recent events. We, the Council of Aughal, have deemed it time for an official proclamation on this matter. What is discussed here will be distributed throughout the city proper, and to the outlying villages over the next few days. Whilst this news may inspire panic, I urge everyone to remain calm. If necessary, the guard will employ powers to maintain order.¡±

    There was an edge in the air now and Silora looked away from the fountain. This isn¡¯t about the assassination at all. Is this about the Thormundz? Wait, they¡¯re telling everyone right now?

    ¡°Approximately two and a half months ago, in the process of finalizing their Spoke, a calamity occurred in the Thormundz region resulting in the total loss of their capital city. In the intervening time the survivors reorganized, and have as of this week pushed out of the region, abandoning it. We have received no guidance, divine or otherwise, on these matters but are preparing for roughly one hundred refugees. They are expected to reach this city in a matter of days. We do not- we do not!¡± Claret attempted to raise her voice above the crowd but failed.

    Ytaya took over. ¡°WE DO NOT EXPECT ANY DANGER TO APPEAR FROM THE BORDER!¡± Silora¡¯s ears were ringing slightly. That was either an item or just the full range of the dusker¡¯s lungs. ¡°This region is safe. Expansion efforts have been harmed, but that is a burden shared by the kingdom, and the Realm as a whole. For now, all travel to¡­¡±

    It happened quickly. As Ytaya was speaking, the storm around Aughal broke enough to let the light of the sun through. Duskers were part of the crowd, but they didn¡¯t fear their ancestral weakness like others of their kind due to protective enchantments on their person. Only the richest could afford to have them made, but the richest were here. The largest inconvenience was the disruption to their normal sleep cycles. Or so they thought.

    When it struck the Eye, Ytaya paused as the radiance carried by it wasn¡¯t blunted as it was normally. First, she glanced at her hand in a panic before attempting to collapse her shell. The sand carapace could resist the sun, but the scaled flesh underneath? Whatever hadn¡¯t been covered by shadow turned as sandy brown as the carapace, rapidly hardening. This spread, regardless of what Ytaya did. It was too late, she¡¯d been exposed. In seconds, where she¡¯d once stood, there was a statue in her perfect, terrified image.

    There were so many cries, from the people around her and the guard. One shouted almost as loudly as Ytaya, dominating the air. ¡°MIRAGE ATTACK! GET DOWN!¡±

    The Fate threw herself into the fountain. The way she figured, if she was going to be in one place for a while it might as well be there. A bow trained on her as she rushed the center but didn¡¯t fire when it became clear who she was and exactly what she couldn¡¯t do. More armed guard, some Blessed and some not, came streaming from the various entrances around the Eye.

    And for Ytaya? Other duskers had tried to get to her first. She¡¯d been the only one whose protection had failed. Her faction had been too late. Every enchanted item she¡¯d worn was gone, stolen by the vultures nearest to her. In one case, that description was close to literal.

    From the soothing waters around her, Silora¡¯s eyes met with Lord Bennar¡¯s. He mistook the understanding there, sighed, and held one finger to his lips.

 Chapter 95: Oh No

    Oh no. Oh no. Oh, this is bad, this is very bad! Mmm, so good. But so bad. Khiat pressed her back against the wall, what was technically now lunch in her hands. The village was busying itself with processing the bounty of monster bodies, though the sesel she¡¯d found earlier was reserved for her.

    Outside there were celebrations and feasting. No noise reached her because they were trying not to be too loud to not wake the nearby sleepers. They didn¡¯t know what had gone terribly wrong. She was an Assassin. How could she be an Assassin if she¡¯d rejected being a Rogue? It was wrong. She knew something in her was wrong.

    Another bite and the wrongness of it all went away for a moment. Fresh, and made with some of the few spices her village had. A reward and the reason she¡¯d gotten good with the bow in the first place. The hunters always got the better cuts. She could still be one, right? Who cared that her class was Assassin, all that mattered was what she did! That¡¯s what the human with the glowing crossbow had said, and he should know better than anyone in her village.

    If that was the case, why were her parents so worried? Her mother was fully withdrawn into her carapace, and though her father had a long cut from where he¡¯d a second too slow to stop that monster¡¯s blades, he didn¡¯t seem to notice his pain. The three of them were just sitting in silence as if a huge monster was right above them.

    There was no turning back. She was marked as a killer of mortals. A terror. Other classes had powers that could hurt people, yes, but there¡¯d never been an evil one in any stories she¡¯d heard as a child. Even Rogues weren¡¯t painted in a bad light. Assassins and Tyrants, though, were spoken of as a pair. Two dark sides of the Octyrrum¡¯s power. She was one of them.

    Had it been the bow? Would she have gotten something else if she hadn¡¯t pushed that point, or was this just inevitable? The sound of sand shifting made her look up from the mostly finished roast sesel. Someone was slowly coming through the entrance. Uncle Phyl.

    The dusker immediately misread the room. ¡°Brother, is this not a fine night!¡± He hoisted his meal, one of the large legs of the monsters, and then paused as he registered the pained expression on Xtalo¡¯s face. ¡°Your wound! We, we should ask the Blessed if they have a healer among them.¡±

    ¡°Leave them be.¡± Xtalo¡¯s voice lacked none of its strength. ¡°I will be fine. Don¡¯t repay what they have done by disturbing their rest.¡±

    Achia extended herself half a meter upwards. Her mother didn¡¯t quite match Phyl¡¯s height in confrontation but made it clear he was intruding on something. That was a sign her uncle couldn¡¯t miss. ¡°What¡¯s wrong? My brother, you are injured, but the village feasts! We have our champion. She struck down ten of the monsters. Was that light her power?¡±

    ¡°Phyl, there is something we need to discuss. Go above and-¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m an Assassin,¡± Khiat said numbly, not looking up but seeing her uncle¡¯s feet take a few steps back. She knew it was stupid to tell him, but it was better than false praise.

    ¡°L-little Khiat, don¡¯t joke like that. Of course you aren¡¯t. How, how do we even know for sure?¡± Phyl¡¯s self-assuredness was thrown. ¡°I¡¯m sure you aren¡¯t. Maybe you¡¯re just a Rogue if that¡¯s what, uh, what you feel, uh.¡± Phyl trailed off, out of his depth.

    ¡°I¡¯m not a Rogue.¡± I wish I was. I thought it couldn¡¯t get worse.

    Xtalo weighed what Phyl could do with uncertainty against the hope the truth would shut him up, and decided. ¡°One of the Blessed was able to identify her.¡±

    Phyl clicked and threw his head back in disbelief. For a moment, Khiat¡¯s eyes were drawn to a spot on his neck for no apparent reason, but it quickly passed. ¡°They¡¯re lying.¡±

    ¡°No, I don¡¯t think he was.¡± Xtalo shook his head. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. He had no reason to lie, and after Khiat heard she knew.¡±

    ¡°But that would mean-¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± Khiat let them talk, half-listening. She¡¯d go to sleep if she could but it was too early in the night. All three were taking pains to discuss something without explicitly saying what it was. Something in the past. Khiat knew there were stories she was only just old enough to hear about. The bad things that weren¡¯t monsters or her.

    ¡°What are we going to do?¡± Achia asked as Khiat started listening again. ¡°Do you think we can hide her here?¡±

    ¡°For a little while, maybe.¡± Phyl was sobered now, accepting. ¡°If that one doesn¡¯t sell the information the first chance he has, maybe a year.¡±

    ¡°The city has a Fate, they¡¯ll find out sooner. Ah, here it is.¡± Xtalo put down the small chest he¡¯d lifted with one hand and retrieved rolled up parchment. It was their map, the village¡¯s map that was used monthly whenever people went to Aughal. The city wasn¡¯t hard to miss in the distance now, but that changed with the new moon or whenever there was a sandstorm.

    Aughal wasn¡¯t where Xtalo was thinking though. ¡°A week, maybe ten days. We could get to Threst. Or push to Kallical, another day at most.¡±

    ¡°Absolutely not! Anyone who goes with you will be exiled when they find out you left without approval.¡±

    ¡°Achia,¡± Xtalo put one hand on the map and extended the other towards her. ¡°What else can we do?¡±

    ¡°What about the Blessed?¡± Phyl asked quickly with a wary glance at the region¡¯s borders. ¡°They could hide her, surely. Or take her out of the region for us. If it¡¯s just one, we, we, we could say she died in the monster attack and blame them for not keeping them off our backs! If they notice at all.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to leave!¡± Khiat spoke up for the first time in minutes. ¡°I know what I am is terrible, but fleeing the region? Father, your life would be over. Forget my class. Just forget it! I won¡¯t advance anymore.¡±

    Xtalo turned and put the hand he¡¯d raised expressively against Phyl against the table. ¡°My Khiat, it is not that simple.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°Xtalo, we should tell her.¡±

    ¡°No!¡± Both her parents shouted the word at Phyl. Honestly, it was a surprise the occasional exclamations hadn¡¯t drawn anyone else¡¯s attention yet.

    ¡°I know you rarely value my opinion brother, but I am right. Surely, you wouldn¡¯t ask Khiat to do anything unless she understood why? She is an adult now, and a Blessed for that matter!¡±

    ¡°Why can¡¯t I just stay here?¡± Khiat asked again. ¡°This oasis is small! Nobody cares about us. You said there wouldn¡¯t be a chance for anyone here to live in the city for five years. If I don¡¯t do anything-¡±

    ¡°They¡¯ll still know, Khiat. They have ways of finding out, and I don¡¯t know what they are.¡± Xtalo collapsed his legs into their shell, the equivalent of a human sitting in a chair as he shifted the burden of his weight to his carapace. ¡°How can I protect you against that? I never dreamed I¡¯d have to!¡±

    ¡°Phyl, if we tell her, she¡¯ll be terrified. She¡¯ll never sleep through the day again!¡± Achia added.

    ¡°What could be worse than what I already know?¡± Khiat stood up. ¡°This is me now. I can¡¯t change the monster I¡¯ve become. What¡¯s more terrible than that? What, will they try to force me to kill people? I won¡¯t. They can¡¯t make me.¡± The smallest spark of will entered her voice at the end, something that wasn¡¯t missed by the other three.

    Her parents looked at each other. ¡°Xtalo, we can¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°She would learn one way or the other,¡± Phyl chimed in.

    ¡°You¡¯re right. I¡¯m sorry brother, you are right. Khiat, I will do whatever I need to protect you.¡± Xtalo¡¯s voice was shaking but his eyes were steady. ¡°Know that.¡±

    ¡°We all will.¡± Achia stood aside, still hesitant but not stopping him.

    ¡°If they find out who you are, what you are, they won¡¯t make you do anything. They will kill you like they did the last one.¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°Khiat? Achia? They¡¯re awake.¡± Ytidi¡¯s voice echoed into her room. Khiat opened her eyes and stood in a crouch. Her bedroom wasn¡¯t big enough to accommodate her full height, nor could human beds withstand her weight. Unless they led wealthy lives, duskers normally slept on sand or an assemblage of other cushioning material. It helped support them as they¡¯d otherwise have to lay suspended by their shells, and sleeping fully enclosed was just too uncomfortable.

    A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    Her bow and quiver were in the corner, as far away as she could place them. She¡¯d forgotten to tell anyone about the ancestral arrow she¡¯d lost. And she¡¯d forgotten to talk to the Hero! Now wasn¡¯t the time.

    The rest of the night had been spent preparing. One way or the other she was leaving the oasis. Maybe not today, maybe not this week, but she was leaving. For a dusker, travel was a dangerous prospect. During half of the journey, she¡¯d be mortally vulnerable. Even the briefest of exposures would risk death.

    That meant she had to pack her things and be fitted for travel armor. Duskers could wear armor in addition to their carapace, but like many things made for them it required additional effort. Their shells broke in unique ways, and for travel armor, the thick cloth had to be tailored precisely to each individual. The slightest touch of the sun meant death. Khiat had enough to worry about.

    In a way, the horde of monsters that had attacked last night were a boon. Wait, I already knew that. But the village can use their hides for leather too. I¡¯m not going to use it all up at least.

    ¡°Khiat, come over here and get your armor on,¡± Achai called from the main room with the same tone she¡¯d used to tell her dinner was ready in days past. In all honesty, she should have moved out months ago. If only there were somewhere to go. The village didn¡¯t go through the trouble of excavating a new house until a couple was wed.

    Hammer, I was thinking about boys just last night. None of that matters anymore.

    ¡°Khiat!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m coming.¡± She grabbed her bow, quiver, and pack and walked into the central space. There was no door separating it, but privacy was allowed by most of her room curving around the dome to conceal it from the archway. Wood and fabric were too precious to use for modesty¡¯s sake, not that duskers needed that.

    Instead of the map, the labor of several hours and duskers was placed carefully. Multiple layers of animal and monster hide had been stitched together with strong thread bought from the city. The slightest tear or imperfection and that would be it. ¡°We¡¯ll test it at the entrance when you¡¯re ready. I¡¯ll help with the back.¡±

    ¡°Should we be asking them for help? That man promised he¡¯d keep the secret.¡± And if I remembered his name, I¡¯d feel better about that.

    Achia continued to speak while bringing the armor up for Khiat to step into. ¡°That Crest-damned fool of a brother-in-law will ask them if we don¡¯t. Why did you tell him, Khiat? You¡¯re smarter than that. You know how your uncle is, for the Octyrrum¡¯s sake just look at the first thing he did when you got your class!¡± Khiat winced as she was about to step forward. ¡°Oh, my Khiat.¡±

    The tremble in her mother¡¯s voice hurt. Everything about this hurt. But her father was waiting, so she reached forward. The armor was constructed so that the front was one solid piece with five limbs stretching out from it. One for the head, one each for the arms and legs. The head was also solid leather, but the places covering her neck and limbs stretched out to cover the gaps in her chitin.

    Duskers had gotten good at this kind of craftsmanship over the centuries. Even without the Craftsman class, those trained made reliable travel armor. If they didn¡¯t, then it was a death on their hands. The split sections on her limbs would expand and contract with her, consistently shielding the gaps in her shell. This gave Khiat the ability to adjust her form without fear of exposure.

    When it was around her, her mother wrapped the edges of the main piece around her torso and back to the front where it fastened to itself. This was the most sensible way to make this kind of armor. More protection at the front, in case there was trouble on the road. It fit perfectly, a fact Achia spent ten minutes painstakingly checking despite her earlier urgings to be quick.

    All that was left to do then was stand in the closed tent that shielded the entrance to their home. Khiat had to crawl, unable to fully retract her height, but made it under the heavy canvas. ¡°Take your time,¡± Achia said slowly. ¡°Arms and legs in and out. Don¡¯t take a step out there until you¡¯re sure.¡±

    Khiat did as instructed, moving her limbs in various positions. Even when she bent her arms almost into circles, the slight burn from the sunlight screened through the tent grew no warmer on any part of her body. Just like she¡¯d felt when hunting before last dusk, only now she could make full use of her bow and run. ¡°I can¡¯t believe it.¡± She looked at an arm, at the leather that had been shaded to almost perfectly match her carapace. ¡°Why didn¡¯t I have one of these before?¡±

    ¡°These are only made for people who go to the city. And besides Khiat, what if you had torn a section by dropping an arrow?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t drop my arrows!¡±

    ¡°Then why are there only nine in your quiver?¡± Achia asked pointedly. Khiat didn¡¯t move, worried there¡¯d be an angry lecture. There wasn¡¯t. ¡°Do not worry, my star. I will not be angry with you on what might be the last time I see you for who knows how long. I¡¯m sure it was spent well.¡±

    ¡°This isn¡¯t the last night you¡¯ll see me. I¡¯ll come back when it¡¯s safe, or, or you could come to me.¡±

    ¡°I know, Khiat. I know.¡±

    ¡­

    Walking at her full height under the sun was a new experience. Things looked differently during the day. Brighter. She¡¯d grown used to the light but not the perspective. In any other case, Khiat would have been thrilled to have this armor. Possessing a suit in this village was an honor second only to being Blessed.

    The emptiness was the same. That was something she liked about hunting just before dusk, waking up and seeing no one but Ytidi on his tower. An air of freedom, not just being allowed to go out on her own but to do so when most of the village was asleep. That was how it was most days.

    This day, there was another village¡¯s worth of people standing over the eastern dune. The noise hadn¡¯t reached her insulated room to disturb her rest but filled the outside air. Did he keep his word, or are they talking about me? They aren¡¯t going to try to kill me too, are they?

    Her father was there, armored as she was. One of the plans he¡¯d made was leaving immediately alone with her, should the travelers prove untrustworthy. Neither of them expected that, but you could never be sure. Something her father had told her after she¡¯d turned 7 was that the Blessed were only always good in the stories. You could never really know who a stranger was, or what they wanted.

    Xtalo was talking with the tall scarred human that led the group. Standing next to him was a Hero. An actual Hero. Khiat brightened despite her poor mood and the odd way her eyes were drawn to the Hero¡¯s neck on occasion. Damn her father¡¯s warnings, they could be trusted. She would get to meet him! Maybe she could actually talk to him, and ask him what his Hero name was. The man from last night hadn¡¯t know, but he had to have one. They all did. Ghrol the Many, Shade of Aughal, the Unburnt Umber. Khiat even knew of the Ironrush Ravager who led the Hunter¡¯s Guild here, though she wasn¡¯t a dusker. She wondered what kind of Hero names a human would have.

    The three looked at her as she approached, pausing whatever conversation they were having.

    ¡°It is Khiat, yes?¡± The tall man asked.

    ¡°Yes.¡± Her voice was a little muffled behind the leather helmet but she had the lungs to overcome that. ¡°What¡¯s going to happen?¡±

    ¡°I was hoping to hear from you before I decided. Your father was just explaining the region¡¯s history as well as his concerns. I¡¯m truly sorry it has turned out this way for you.¡±

    ¡°What? Oh, thank you,¡± Khiat looked away from the Hero and nodded politely. She was too excited to be afraid. Something about the man just inspired her.

    ¡°What are your thoughts? I can speak as one studied in such matters that a Fate would be able to detect the assignment of a rare class in their region. There¡¯s a power they invariably receive at level 3, Regional Log, that would note it.¡±

    Khiat couldn¡¯t help but notice how stiffly the man was standing. He looked uncomfortable and was completely neglecting his back. Someone could come up from behind and cut his throat, or- Khiat stumbled in place as she realized what she was thinking. The horror was back because of what had come unbidden to her mind. Why had she thought that?

    ¡°Khiat!¡± Her father was at her side and something cold covered her. Ice?

    ¡°Is she exposed?¡± the tall man asked, concerned.

    Her father checked the armor as Khiat realized there was ice floating in the air and blocking the sun. The Hero had come forward too with his shield, though not as fast as what had to have been magic. ¡°Everything is still in place. Khiat, are you ok?¡±

    ¡°I d-don¡¯t know.¡±

    ¡°Fear not, we shall protect you,¡± the Hero said, and Khiat did feel a little better.

    ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± she asked, voice steadier.

    ¡°I am Gadriel Cross, at your service.¡± It was everything she¡¯d dreamed of. A real Hero. Well, maybe he didn¡¯t have a name, not yet.

    ¡°Wow.¡± Her father¡¯s eyes narrowed as he continued inspecting her.

    ¡°She¡¯s fine. Thank you, but I should stress that if she had been exposed, what you¡¯d done would have changed nothing. You must be very careful during the day if you are to protect her.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s what¡¯s happening?¡± Khiat was starting to get on board with the idea.

    ¡°We have a possible solution, though it is one I don¡¯t have the full details of. Before I go into it further, I would like to make sure you know what you¡¯re getting into. There won¡¯t be any others from your village coming so you¡¯d stick out like a painted Bard. Ahem, sorry.¡±

    Why is he apologizing? ¡°Father wouldn¡¯t be coming?¡±

    She couldn¡¯t read her father¡¯s face behind the helmet but saw him look away. ¡°I¡¯m known to the duskers of the city, and our supply run isn¡¯t for another week. We must minimize suspicion.¡±

    ¡°Won¡¯t me being alone raise suspicion?¡±

    ¡°Fair point,¡± the tall man said with a ghost of a smile. ¡°There also weren¡¯t any duskers from the region we¡¯re fleeing. We can always say you awakened another class and we¡¯re taking you to the Hunter¡¯s Guild as a favor. There¡¯s risk there, but it¡¯s balanced by one of the powers we possess. It can shield you from any divination powers, supposedly, and should include those used by the Fate.¡±

    ¡°They must be powerful,¡± her father commented, impressed. ¡°But is it not you? I¡¯d heard you were the strongest of your number.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not. Do you remember who I sent to you last night?¡±

    ¡°Him again?¡± There was a strained pause, and then the tall man burst out laughing. The Hero looked confused and her father sounded the same way. ¡°Are you ok?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I really am.¡± The tall man recovered. ¡°That¡¯s just a question I¡¯ve asked myself as of late. Ah, you have no idea. Uhm, but yes. If this is something you are interested in, we are willing to take you given the stakes. I just want to be sure you know beforehand what you¡¯re getting into. Gods, as if I could even explain half of it.¡± That last part was more to himself, probably not meant to be heard.

    ¡°Khiat, we have discussed this. If they can shield you from the Fate, it is worth it. Any other way would risk you being identified, if you haven¡¯t already. We have to hope whoever it is dreaming in those Spires is a late sleeper.¡±

    ¡°But if I go with them, what happens to you? The village?¡±

    ¡°We will hardly fall apart without you, but we will miss you.¡±

    ¡°Other matters demand we go to Aughal first, but once that is settled we could help you out of the region,¡± the tall man offered. ¡°Your family could rejoin you then.¡±

    ¡°You can really do this?¡± she asked.

    ¡°Yes. Not myself, but my, what should I call him,¡± he sighed. ¡°Friend? Ah, that¡¯s close enough.¡±

    ¡°You would be in good hands,¡± Gadriel affirmed. Well, that decided it.

    ¡°I, I¡¯m sorry all of this happened. If you and father think this is right, then I¡¯ll do it.¡±

    The tall man nodded. ¡°I¡¯ve already run it by the man in question and Daniel¡¯s agreed.¡±

    Daniel! That was his name.

 Chapter 96: To Aughal

    ¡°Guy, I like you. I really do. You¡¯re absolutely crazy. I mean, you¡¯re smart, but this is crazy. You all get that right?¡±

    Reception to their newest member had been mixed, trending negatively amongst Thomas and no one else. Evalyn had been sympathetic, Tak curious, and Hunter guarded. For Khare¡¯s part there was a lot of indifference, or the appearance of it. The gestalt didn¡¯t have a lot of opinions when it didn¡¯t come to the Grafting, the weapons Daniel made, or the handful of times they¡¯d comment on random topics. This wasn¡¯t one of them.

    Daniel felt defensive about the person he¡¯d just met and took issue with Thomas taking issue. ¡°They said she could be in a lot of trouble! You told me about how this region didn¡¯t like rare classes.¡±

    ¡°Not exactly what I said, Guy. And come on, is she an Assassin or something?¡± The answer was plain on Daniel¡¯s face. Thomas¡¯ incredulousness vanished. ¡°Guy! Hand, I was kidding. Gods, I, jeez. Alright, I get it.¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s an Assassin?¡± Evalyn repeated bluntly. ¡°Oh, not a chance. Are you sure there isn¡¯t a Hero you¡¯d rather join the team?¡±

    The sudden reversal in the two strongest opinions made Daniel take a step back. Thomas took up the charge, if reluctantly. ¡°Come on, Evalyn. She¡¯s a dusker Assassin.¡±

    ¡°So!? You were just calling Daniel crazy. Look, Daniel, I see where you¡¯re from, but her being an Assassin changes things. Do you know what that class does?¡±

    ¡°I can imagine?¡±

    ¡°No, you can¡¯t! They¡¯re capable of the most monstrous ways of killing people. People, Daniel. Remember the powers Heldren used against Gadriel? That¡¯s just a taste of what Assassins get. I shudder to think how many grieve because of people just like her.¡±

    ¡°Well, I wasn¡¯t supposed to tell you,¡± Daniel added lamely.

    ¡°Like that makes a difference!¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think she wants the class either.¡±

    ¡°So?¡±

    ¡°This isn¡¯t bad though.¡± Tak entered the debate without any sign of wariness. ¡°From what I see, we have no one good against other people. Not like Gadriel.¡±

    ¡°Tak.¡± Evalyn put her head in one hand. ¡°We don¡¯t want to fight other people! And not like that. You wanted me to tell you stories earlier? Here¡¯s one. In Vellus, two regions hubward and twenty years back, I heard there was a human Assassin that poisoned a well just to kill one man. Hundreds died!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s it? That is a rumor, not a story.¡±

    Daniel pulled his phone out while Thomas complained, remembered Evalyn couldn¡¯t read it and Khiat¡¯s feature wasn¡¯t tagged to her anyway, and put it back. ¡°She doesn¡¯t have anything like that, just something that hits weak points harder.¡±

    ¡°Sure, she doesn¡¯t have anything like that now. She just got the class!¡±

    ¡°What about this?¡± Hunter asked lowly, causing several to flinch.

    Evalyn rounded on that opportunity. ¡°Right. Daniel, she¡¯d have to be close to you at almost all times. Besides the inconvenience of that, there are secrets you want to keep secret.¡± She stressed the words, intimating that she knew things even Thomas, Khare, and, presumably, Tak didn¡¯t. She knew where Daniel came from.

    ¡°Well,¡± Daniel spluttered. That was a good point. That was a very good point. It was a shame because Daniel had just come up with a good counter-argument. Might as well mention it. ¡°What about power evolution? Lograve told me about it once. If she rejects any evil powers she gets, doesn¡¯t that mean she¡¯d get good ones?¡±

    ¡°I thought that was rare,¡± Thomas commented thoughtfully. ¡°Most people do get some powers that don¡¯t fit them, Guy. I have a few I haven¡¯t used in months.¡±

    Evalyn folded her arms. ¡°Even if that¡¯s a possibility, you can¡¯t guarantee she will resist those powers. You don¡¯t even know her! Normal people don¡¯t get that class.¡±

    ¡°But her-¡± Crap there¡¯s probably a special word for this and Lograve didn¡¯t mention it. ¡°The words she heard when she got her class were ¡®freedom, bows, preparation, flexibility, stealth, and weakness¡¯. They don¡¯t sound too evil.¡±

    ¡°Sounds like a sneaky archer,¡± Tak commented. ¡°More like a Rogue or Ranger.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m surprised she heard those, but it still doesn¡¯t mean anything,¡± Evalyn shook her head. ¡°Ask Lograve if you want, but it¡¯s like Thomas said. People do get powers that don¡¯t fit with them.¡±

    Daniel looked at Thomas, hoping the Cleric would back up him, but he just scratched behind his ear and echoed what Lograve and Evalyn had told him. ¡°Sorry Guy. Words of awakening can just be random, even if they feel right. Not that I heard any when I got my class. Like Tak said, you could take all of those and get a few of classes.¡±

    ¡°Rare?¡± Khare asked. The gestalt pointed at Daniel, and then in the distance. They did it with two different strands of vines amidst a swirling mass of them, but their companions were getting better at decoding the slight gestures.

    Thomas¡¯ brow furrowed as he worked out the question. ¡°Well, maybe? What happened when you got Artificer Guy?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t remember,¡± Daniel answered quickly. His cover for both how he¡¯d ended up in the region and his odd mannerisms was simple amnesia combined with a teleportation mishap. It had the benefit of being partially true, an importance when the Cleric standing across from him could detect outright lies.

    ¡°Right. Darn.¡±

    Evalyn didn¡¯t let the conversation go off on that tangent. ¡°Daniel, this is like the Tyrant. Assassins are stronger in some ways than other classes. You saw the bow she carries. What happens if she aims that at you in the dead of night?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d stop her,¡± Hunter growled.

    ¡°That doesn¡¯t change that she¡¯s dangerous, and if she isn¡¯t willing to use her powers on mortals now, just wait until someone tries to exploit her! Or kill us to get her.¡±

    That was surely an exaggeration, but even so, Daniel was unprepared for what Thomas said next. ¡°Evalyn, she¡¯s a dusker Assassin.¡±

    ¡°You said that before, why does that matter? I¡¯d think that¡¯s even more dangerous since they¡¯re normally active at night.¡±

    ¡°I heard about the last Assassin this region got, eight years ago. Right before I, er, went to the Thormundz. Dusker too. They killed him, Ev. I don¡¯t know exactly why. Maybe it had something to do with what they were doing, I do know they were actively taking contracts, but the city executed them after approving all of it. If her family¡¯s worried enough to send her with us, they¡¯re probably worried that will happen again.¡±

    Thomas¡¯ use of the pet name he¡¯d foisted on the Bard went completely over her head as she absorbed that. None of the others spoke, still on board with letting the dusker come with them class or not. What would happen if Evalyn stood her ground, they wouldn¡¯t learn. ¡°You can barely look at them without squirming, and you¡¯re fine with having a dusker travel with us? You think she¡¯s in that much danger?¡±

    ¡°Yeah! Have you seen how their faces move? It¡¯s extremely creepy, like that time I saw someone get his head torn up in a monster attack, pieces everywhere. He, uh, he died so it¡¯s not-¡± Thomas finally heard the sand moving behind him and saw the approaching shadow. He turned, stumbled backward, and didn¡¯t say another word.

    ¡°Are you the one coming with us?¡± Evalyn asked. It was obvious, but no one else was breaking the awkward silence.

    ¡°Y-yes. I am Khiat.¡± The tall figure wrapped in leather that almost perfectly matched her carapace looked like a statue come to life. The bow in one hand made that a very dangerous statue.

    ¡°Don¡¯t mind Thomas, Khiat. He¡¯s an idiot.¡± She turned and kicked the Cleric to get him to drop the horrified expression stuck on his face. ¡°Why don¡¯t we get to know each other? It¡¯s going to be a long walk, we¡¯ll have the time.¡±

    ¡°Alright.¡± The eyes behind the armor were faintly visible and reflected light with a sheen. There was a pupil, but no color, and the sclera had a look that uncomfortably reminded Daniel of a compound eye. They went to Hunter first. ¡°Oh! I think I saw this one last night. Is that your pet? It¡¯s so cute!¡±

    That was the first time Daniel truly worried about what he¡¯d gotten himself into.

    ¡­

    Three days later, the problems of the arrangement were very clear. Khiat was having difficulties adjusting her sleep schedule, exhausted during the day and restless at night. Since the entire point of this idea was to shield her with Daniel¡¯s power, that also meant she was chained to where the group slept regardless of whether she was awake.

    The problems didn¡¯t end there. Hunter had almost slipped and spoke a few times. The first was moments after she¡¯d joined when Khiat had called him a pet. It was about the worst first impression she could have made, just outshining Thomas¡¯ own in the seconds before. Also, Evalyn had been right.

    Not about the face shooting in the middle of the night, but the chilling effect Khiat had on Daniel. Even mentally, the stunted conversations with Hunter had grown quieter. He¡¯d gotten used to having a small group of people that understood him and could be trusted. Khiat? She seemed nice. Not a psychotic murderer at least, and she was a little shy herself. Having never left her village before, that made sense.

    Also, she was young. Very young for human standards, though for her people she¡¯d come of age two months ago. She was right around the relative age he¡¯d been when it¡¯d all fallen apart back on Earth. That was the crux of why no one had protested about her presence despite all the inconveniences. Pity. Either way, it was an unexpected wrinkle to their journey that added the kind of anxiety that, while not as dire as he¡¯d faced before, weighed on him.

    ¡­

    Khiat¡¯s experience fell in and out of harmony with Daniel¡¯s. She hated marching during the day, even if she could easily keep up with the sedate pace they traveled. The people were nice, most of them. Weird though. You heard about humans and bird people, avianoids, growing up, but the moving vines were something else. She¡¯d thought it was another monster at first, but she was wrong.

    The wyvern that had terrified her village was another strange thing. It looked blank up close, and that wasn¡¯t even counting when the bird woman who owned it turned it into sand that flowed into a bag on her hip.

    Magic was all around her. So many Blessed. People who could move ice through the air just by thinking, watch everything around them at the same time, and, in one odd case, open parts of their arms to keep things inside. The other humans told her that wasn¡¯t a normal power when she¡¯d asked.

    In all that time she¡¯d been kept close to the Artificer and his armored beast. She had to, or that person in the city could find her. The Fate, a class that she¡¯d never heard of before. The person trying to kill her.

    Aughal was on the horizon. Four tall towers, far taller than Ytidi¡¯s, and a wall surrounding the lower city. She¡¯d seen the outline before on the coins in her father¡¯s purse, half of which were sorted in a safe pouch on the inside of her armor. No one else in her group was able to see the city, their eyes not as good at night.

    She sat, grateful for the absence of the slight burning of the sun. This was exactly when she should be waking up, except in an hour they¡¯d all be asleep. Daniel was getting a head start, although he was twitching occasionally where he lay. Nightmares?

    ¡°Is he alright?¡± she asked the people around her. Four of them, and the beast. Their team. Not hers. Khiat was a Blessed now, but she was far behind where they were.

    There was a tension that passed between Evalyn and the man who couldn¡¯t look her straight in the face. She¡¯d picked up on a few things. Thomas didn¡¯t like her but liked Evalyn. The Bard didn¡¯t like him back but also didn¡¯t complain too much about him. The large cat definitely belonged to Daniel, but the bird man was familiar with it too. That¡¯s the best way she could put it. The different relationships in this team were kind of strange.

    Thomas spoke first. ¡°Guy¡¯s fine. He¡¯s just, uh-¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s training one of his powers,¡± Evalyn finished for him.

    ¡°Oh. I didn¡¯t know you needed to.¡± Khiat mentally slapped herself. Of course you need to. She only had one power at the moment but she wasn¡¯t using it. Critical Strikes was meant to be used when she wanted to kill something and the moment hadn¡¯t come up yet. There was also this weird feeling she got whenever she thought about the power, and after getting a random thought about killing the one she¡¯d learned was called Lograve, she had decided it was best to just suppress everything having to do with it.

    If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

    ¡°Not all of them.¡± The Bard pulled out her instrument and played a note. ¡°In my case they require constant practice, but it does differ.¡±

    ¡°What about mine?¡± Both looked uneasy at the mention of her class. ¡°I mean, uh, I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s alright Khiat. Assassins are just,¡° Thomas searched for the word and didn¡¯t find any that were appropriate alone. ¡°They can be, uh, you¡¯d have some powers that can really hurt people.¡±

    ¡°Poison. Disease. Maybe things that would blind or deafen.¡± Evalyn paid very close attention to her as she asked, ¡°That¡¯s what you took the class for, right?¡±

    Suspicion and fear. She didn¡¯t blame them for that either. She was afraid of herself, of the instinct she now had that gave her insight into a moment someone was weak. Daniel, for example, was wide open. She could kill him in seconds before anyone could stop her, and she hated that she knew that and that the thought had slipped through despite her best efforts.

    Maybe the Bard was trying to make her angry. She¡¯d told them she hadn¡¯t wanted this. Instead, all she felt was sorrow with every step from her home. Khiat didn¡¯t want to argue, just as much as she didn¡¯t want to be here. What choice did she have in either? ¡°I don¡¯t want to hurt anyone.¡±

    ¡°Would you fight back against someone trying to kill you?¡±

    Thomas came to her defense. ¡°Come on Evalyn, who wouldn¡¯t? I¡¯d defend myself and I hate fighting.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not the point. Even Heroes can find themselves stumbling down to depraved acts through small steps of justification.¡±

    ¡°No!¡± Khiat said with more conviction, ¡°Not Heroes. My class is what it is, but Heroes are good! Noble!¡±

    Thomas winced and even Evalyn didn¡¯t seem to take pleasure in proving her wrong. ¡°There was a Hero in the Thormundz that went bad and turned into a Tyrant. He attempted to undermine a good man trying to save everyone. In the end, Gadriel beat him in a duel.¡±

    ¡°Actually Murdon¡¯s the one who finished him,¡± Thomas corrected. ¡°Gadriel had this whole thing about how he wouldn¡¯t kill him. Gawper.¡±

    ¡°Reciprocal?¡± The mass of vines a short distance away spoke. Somehow. Khiat still wasn¡¯t sure how that was possible, or why the one named Khare could only speak a word at a time. It made understanding them difficult. They also rarely talked. A lot of the time the vine person was just there, or wandering off to where the others of its kind were. Creepy.

    Thomas chuckled. ¡°Yeah, Heldren got what was coming to him. Tyrant bastard.¡±

    ¡°Reciprocal!¡± Khare repeated, pointing to Khiat and making the effort to do so with a formed arm. There was a pause as no one quite understood him well enough to even clarify. Eventually, Khare said something else. ¡°Balance.¡±

    ¡°Daniel, do you understand him?¡± Evalyn asked. ¡°I¡¯m getting better but some of what Khare says still gets by me.¡±

    A few seconds later, Daniel blinked and sat up. Hunter shifted behind him as well, the ringcat altering how they stood. What had he been training? ¡°Uh, hold on. I was going in and out during that conversation. Reciprocal and balance? What were you talking about?¡±

    ¡°Just Heldren going insane and trying to kill us,¡± Thomas said bitterly. ¡°Some Hero.¡±

    Daniel thought for a few seconds and snapped his fingers. ¡°Ah, got it. They¡¯re talking about Khiat.¡±

    ¡°But that was a class evolution,¡± Evalyn pointed out. ¡°I don¡¯t know if that applies here.¡±

    ¡°Is there a good class evolution?¡±

    ¡°I mean, there¡¯s the normal ones.¡± Daniel stared at her blankly, and Evalyn responded in a defeated tone. ¡°Add that to your Lograve list. Assassins, though, I¡¯m not sure. Nothing in my lore at least. It is a rare class.¡±

    Khiat had to speak up before she got any further lost. ¡°Sorry, what are you talking about?¡±

    ¡°Khare was saying that if there could be bad Heroes, there could be good Assassins. Which is fair, I suppose. But in the case of Heroes, they are using a generalized power set for evil purposes. Assassin powers are, by their nature, evil,¡± Evalyn explained, clearly trying not to pile scorn onto her words. The Bard wasn¡¯t a bad person, but she didn¡¯t like her either. ¡°What Heldren did after he became a Tyrant was use evil powers for evil purposes, but that was after he changed classes.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s power evolution. I know it¡¯s possible. If you reject a power you get, then you get a different one,¡± Daniel explained, assuming correctly that Khiat wouldn¡¯t know what he was talking about. ¡°You can¡¯t use it or it¡¯s stuck, otherwise you could trade an evil power for a good one. I think. If you want, I could keep checking your powers after you advance so you don¡¯t use one accidentally.¡±

    ¡°What about the one I already have?¡±

    ¡°Critical Strikes? I think that¡¯s a good one. Doesn¡¯t specifically hurt people and it¡¯s helpful against monsters.¡±

    But you don¡¯t know what it makes me think. She couldn¡¯t tell him. They already had enough to hate her for. ¡°That doesn¡¯t sound bad, but I don¡¯t have any more potential. I know you can read to get some or hunt.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, each class has its own ways. Evalyn, for example, can advance by-¡± Whatever Thomas was about to say was cut off by another handful of sand.

    ¡°I hate to say it, but you probably advance best by killing people,¡± Evalyn said, lowering her throwing arm. Despite her hatred of the ubiquitous substance, the Bard seemed adept at using it against Thomas. ¡°Not exclusively, unless your class is truly cruel, but it¡¯s another temptation to cross that line.¡± She suddenly blushed a little, the first time Khiat had seen this happen to a human. ¡°As someone who¡¯s made use of temptation before I know how powerful it can be. Unless you can change your class, I¡¯m not sure you could stop yourself from becoming what it wants you to be.¡±

    It wasn¡¯t exactly something to give Khiat hope, but she still asked, ¡°Well, how do I do that?¡± Evalyn shrugged and there wasn¡¯t much help elsewhere.

    ¡°It¡¯s a good point though. Monster hunting. The way my class is heading, I think that¡¯ll be important. Is that something you think you can do?¡± Hesitation in the Artificer¡¯s voice, along with a little bit of fear. It was because of her class, not her, and Khiat tried to remind herself of that.

    ¡°I think so. I¡¯ve hunted game but avoided the dangerous monsters. Anytime one got close enough to the village we¡¯d hide. And, I¡¯m not good up close,¡± she admitted sullenly.

    ¡°Ah yeah, that armor. I get that,¡± Thomas nodded, brushing the sand out of his face with the smile of someone who¡¯d gotten away with something. ¡°I¡¯ve seen it a couple of times. I¡¯m, uh, surprised you stay out during the day. They die if the sun touches them, you know. Not if they hide in their shell, but, yeah.¡±

    ¡°Hello! I have rations.¡± Tak appeared and Khiat remembered he had been missing before. She felt guilty, especially since he was nice to her and wasn¡¯t afraid. ¡°Not as much, we¡¯re running low. Hopefully, we will reach the city tomorrow. Lograve said we¡¯re too close to try to hunt.¡± Laying in the sand, the ringcat put its head down in something mimicking disappointment. It couldn¡¯t understand them, right?

    ¡°Thanks Tak. We were just talking about that. Hunting,¡± Evalyn explained, taking one of the trays. They were strange in that they were identical. Two handles and a lip to prevent things from sliding off. Some had cracks or stains, but she could tell that when they¡¯d been new they¡¯d been identical. Khiat wondered who¡¯d made them, but it wasn¡¯t important enough to ask about.

    There was a break in a conversation that had wandered through tension to reminiscence to the future. As she ate, able to take off her head armor now that the sun was down, a pang of homesickness joined the dull hunger. This was old meat, scavenged from the monster horde that had attacked. Even that was getting old, and it was poorly prepared. Burnt in some places. Not good at all.

    She mostly listened as the four talked about what kind of monsters they could expect here. Thomas the Cleric wasn¡¯t keen on fighting any, but hung on every word and corrected false assumptions, usually by tying it to something someone else had told him and what he¡¯d been doing at the time. The only break in the Cleric¡¯s easy-going manner was when he looked her way. Assassin. Every time his smile slipped for a second, she was reminded of it.

    Given that, it wasn¡¯t a surprise she stayed silent. These weren¡¯t her people. Some of them were nice, most of them cautious, and one she just couldn¡¯t get. Not who she thought she¡¯d be eating with a week ago. And then there was monster hunting. The teams employed by the city would visit her village sometimes, asking if they¡¯d seen anything. Mostly, their presence was felt by the absence of monsters. Her father had been worried about what a horde as large as the last one said about what was happening in the city, almost as worried as he had been for her.

    The others had their minds on that as well. Eventually, Thomas asked, ¡°So, if Khiat has to stay close to you at all times, how¡¯s that going to work? You¡¯re both archers at least, but are you still going to fight level 2s?¡±

    ¡°If she wants to. Hunter and Tak could be the front line, Evalyn and Khare in the middle.¡± Daniel drew in the sand, small x¡¯s forming a larger X pattern. ¡°Since we can still locate anything within at least a kilometer we¡¯d have some safety. Don¡¯t know about under the sand though. Otherwise, it¡¯s the same principle as the original team under Kob, five people with a lower level for rapid training. Assuming you want to do that, Kite.¡±

    It took Khiat a second to realize he¡¯d meant her. Everyone else didn¡¯t seem to take his meaning either. ¡°Me?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    If it was meant to be a joke, Thomas didn¡¯t get it. ¡°Guy, that¡¯s not her name.¡±

    ¡°I, oh, sorry. I thought it was. Uh,¡± he looked at her, embarrassed. For someone just talking about hunting down monsters, it was an amusing and welcoming change. Khiat had to smile.

    ¡°My name¡¯s Khiat,¡± she said, a little bit of laughter in the back of her voice.

    Strangely, he furrowed the hair above his eyes. ¡°Am I saying it wrong? Kite?¡±

    ¡°Guy, you aren¡¯t even close.¡±

    ¡°Are you alright?¡± Evalyn asked.

    ¡°No one else thinks that sounds close to her name?¡± Bemused, Khiat watched as Daniel looked around to see signs of denial. Then he looked at his pet, frowned, and rubbed his chin. ¡°Say it again?¡±

    ¡°Khiat.¡± Is he playing a joke?

    ¡°Kite. Kite,¡± he repeated. ¡°Tell me when I got it.¡±

    ¡°You are still saying kite. Her armor looks like one, but I can¡¯t see her flying,¡± Tak pointed out unhelpfully.

    ¡°No, it¡¯s, argh. Hang on. This is something I¡¯ve been wondering about for a while it¡¯s just never come up. Say it again?¡±

    Now it was getting weird. Come to think of it, Khiat couldn¡¯t remember Daniel saying her name before now. ¡°My name is Khiat.¡±

    ¡°Ok, I think I got it. Faint Y sound near the end. Kite?¡± He looked around, shaking heads. ¡°Khiat?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s it. But what was that Guy?¡±

    ¡°How have you not heard her name right before?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not that, it¡¯s just the first time I¡¯ve said it, I think. It¡¯s, uh, because of where I come from. It just sounds the same to me. Not only me either. Weird.¡± There it was again. Some kind of understanding passed between Daniel and Evalyn. A secret. Not something she should ask about though. These people were giving her so much. Admittedly, she wasn¡¯t sure about the prospect of hunting. Up close, she knew she¡¯d be useless, but if Daniel was confident about it then it couldn¡¯t be too bad. Mortals were superior to monsters.

    ¡°Khiat?¡± A voice interrupted her thoughts. The bird person, one of the first she¡¯d seen despite hearing they lived in the region. ¡°Why is there metal on your bow?¡± She pulled it off her back, the flexibility of her limbs able to do so without moving her shoulder. Like many things, dusker weapons had to be made larger than those other races might use. This example was just under twice as long as the one carried and never used by the Cleric.

    Khiat explained this, but it didn¡¯t satisfy Tak. ¡°Why metal though?¡±

    ¡°It makes the bow stronger.¡± By no means was she familiar with the process herself.

    ¡°Do you hit things with it?¡±

    ¡°No!¡± You never hit things with your bow, her father had been very particular about that when the thought had occurred to her three years ago. She had to admit, that part of her that occasionally crept into her mind reassessed that childhood mistake and begrudgingly approved of the damage she could do with it if she wanted to. If she didn¡¯t care, she could easily break someone¡¯s neck if she hit them the right way. ¡°You shouldn¡¯t. It gives the arrows more speed and power.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡± Tak was turning his head from side to side, looking but not touching. ¡°I saw you kill many things with that. Strong things. The arrows are big, that makes sense, but the metal should be on the arrows, not the bow.¡±

    Now, Khiat was lost. ¡°It just, it makes the bow stronger.¡±

    ¡°Like enchanting?¡±

    No, but- ¡°Yes. Just, in the way it was made.¡± She couldn¡¯t explain it better, and Tak didn¡¯t seem to pick things up quickly. It was strange that someone one level higher than her wouldn¡¯t benefit from the higher intelligence. Unless his was somehow lower than hers? The aspects of attribute advancement and leveling had been gradually spelled out for her throughout their walk, including level disparity. The group¡¯s general recommendation was she get everything to 10 first, since the damage her bow could do alone and Daniel¡¯s divination shield would remove the need for her to gain more powers immediately.

    ¡°I see, thank you! I was just curious. Do you think you¡¯d want to hunt with us? We would probably need to get you more arrows.¡±

    ¡°Oh, not these.¡± Khiat held a hand protectively over her quiver. ¡°I don¡¯t have what I¡¯d need to make them, and no one else would sell me one.¡±

    ¡°Could you get more from your village?¡±

    ¡°Not anytime soon, I hope.¡± That confused Tak and Khiat didn¡¯t want to fully explain. It wasn¡¯t a secret, not really, she just regretted losing the arrow she¡¯d killed the sesel with when it could have been found. And to a simple hunt of all things! ¡°But there are other kinds of arrows I could find or buy. If I had the right stone I could try to shape my own, but that takes a while.¡±

    ¡°Ah. So, you do want to hunt?¡±

    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t want to slow everyone down or put you at risk to protect me.¡±

    ¡°Oh, don¡¯t worry about that! I met most of these people fighting. The first time Daniel and Thomas almost died. They were pretty bad at it, and Thomas still is.¡± Thomas, eavesdropping, looked up at this but didn¡¯t comment. Evalyn was more concerned with who was walking towards them to follow along.

    ¡°How bad?¡±

    ¡°We were fighting against others like Hunter, a pack. Like the one that came to your village but smaller. Twenty, I think? Maybe more. Daniel and Thomas were in the center, like that!¡± Tak pointed to the drawing in the sand that was steadily being erased by a slight breeze. ¡°Big ones came around us and tried to kill them. Gadriel got there first.¡±

    Of course he did. Khiat nodded. ¡°Would Sir Gadriel come with us?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. He¡¯s not part of our team anymore, I don¡¯t think. There were ten originally, but one died and the others went to Threst.¡±

    Khiat quickly counted. ¡°Who else was there?¡±

    ¡°Lograve, and Tlara. She¡¯s the one like me, but with a wyvern. She really likes that. Too much, sometimes, I think, and she doesn¡¯t like me at all.¡±

    ¡°Why not?¡± To Khiat, Tak could best be described as, well, chipper. She could see how he could get annoying, not that he was now. Otherwise, Tak had a simple friendly charm to him with a general lack of abrasiveness.

    ¡°Tlara is,¡± Tak thought for a few seconds. ¡°She likes herself most. When we fought the first dragon, she ran-¡±

    ¡°The first dragon!?¡±

    ¡°Oh, yes, we fought two. It was bad, but we won. I missed the first time but was there for the second. I got a lot of advancement potential from that, I think. Anyway,¡± Tak said, as if Khiat wasn¡¯t burning with curiosity and amazement, ¡°She doesn¡¯t like monsters.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t like monsters either,¡± Khiat said slowly.

    ¡°Oh. Well, she doesn¡¯t like them more than most. Except when they¡¯re hers, and when they are a wyvern, but even then she doesn¡¯t name them or care. Except for her wyvern, and Spinner. She is different.¡±

    ¡°I thought most people hated monsters. Tlara doesn¡¯t sound too different.¡±

    ¡°Well, she is different too. If you talk to her you would see, not that I suggest.¡± Tak frowned, looking worried. ¡°You don¡¯t hate Spiritualists, do you?¡±

    Khiat had never heard of the word. Even from context, it was difficult to figure out what Tak was saying. ¡°Is she one?¡±

    ¡°No, I am,¡± he confessed in a light warble. There was fear in the voice then, surprising Khiat. He hadn¡¯t been afraid of her before.

    ¡°Is that a bad thing?¡±

    ¡°No! But people think it is. I had to leave my home when people found out.¡±

    Khiat felt the pain in her chest again. ¡°Why? What is a Spiritualist?¡±

    Before Tak could answer, the tall, scarred man named Lograve spoke loudly. ¡°Daniel, could you, uh, stop that?¡± The Artificer exited his meditation at the Arcanist¡¯s request. ¡°It¡¯s time we talked about rejoining civilization and how we¡¯re going to keep both of you from the predatory avarice of civil servants.¡±

    Khiat looked at the horizon. They would get there tomorrow and still hadn¡¯t talked about what the city would be like or how they should get through the gates without suspicion. This was something she¡¯d looked forward to, only not like this, and not with these people. Either way, it was finally time for her to go to Aughal.

 Chapter 97: Customs

    While the Spires of Aughal and the Eye that joined them stood out most amidst the monotonous dunes, that was not the entirety of the city. This had once been an incomplete region of its own, settled centuries ago. The walls that had kept the Spoke safe while it was fully nested into the region remained as a bastion against those monsters that still spawned from the Crest.

    Forward progress on this edge of the Realm had been blunted by the Thormundz ridge. The fact that Aughal contained no obvious route past it left other regions in the kingdom little motivation to continue shoring it up. Instead, the leading edge of the Realm¡¯s progress continued to seek the end of the mountains. Aughal was left destitute, as the region was already difficult for most races to live in. That had led to dark days.

    Sometime later, when the pass hidden within the stretch of mountains nearby had been discovered by chance, a rush of interest returned to both Aughal and Threst. The civic leaders, who¡¯d already restored some semblance of normal order following the death of the former Artificer-Tyrant Armafus, oversaw a flourishing of their region. Among other things, this led to the creation of Khiat¡¯s village twenty years ago. A decade was spent preparing and enacting the incursion across the Thormundz, and another holding the region while the nascent Spoke was defended.

    The unprecedented destruction of the Thormundz Spoke was like a second debilitating wave rushing over the desert. It had been months, and still no formal word had come from Rikendia or the gods themselves. Surely, this of all things would warrant their attention. That was the predominant belief in the region for those who knew, but that faith was not rewarded.

    In the face of that, the refugees fleeing from the region attracted the interests of only a few. The masters of the region sitting in the Fate¡¯s chamber, and the unfortunate guards finding themselves having to screen an entire day¡¯s load at once. Most didn¡¯t even have a class, just weapons training, a list of questions, and authority.

    Jeras Stillfeather was one of the unlucky ones posted at the eastern gate during that fateful day. Normally, even a hundred people showing up at once wouldn¡¯t have been overwhelming. Assistance could be requested from other parts of the wall or from patrols, allowing them to process people without backing up travel for hours. With the backdrop of the assassination of two Council members, it was a narrow thing that the city wasn¡¯t on lockdown altogether. The days had been long, and the nights just so for the duskers on those shifts. In better days his group would draw straws to see who¡¯d have to stay up to debrief them when they took over. That was no longer necessary.

    He was of middling age, which matched relative human years as their lifespans were equal. Jeras had once dreamed of gaining a class himself but had hit his wall upon reaching a strength of 8. After processing that he¡¯d never be one of the Blessed, Jeras continued to train with the greatsword in hopes of at least making something out of himself. Would that young, aspiring avianoid see him now, they might have taken up something stupid like calligraphy instead. Would¡¯ve kept me out of the sun at least.

    Jeras idly wondered if he could use one of his feathers as a quill, or if you needed special kinds to make them, as the next group about a third of the way into the mother of all inboxes reached him. Each had to be carefully inspected to identify those with classes, contraband, or suspected ties to the Mirage. The last item was the most important, as the rebellious group that normally kept to the outskirts of the region had somehow struck within its heart for a second time in as many months.

    Such scrutiny dramatically slowed the process, and he had to ask triple the number of normal questions. Seeing what had happened to the first people who¡¯d neglected to ask all of them while in the presence of a superior had encouraged everyone to memorize them. ¡°Names?¡± The first question was always the same. Even the normally sonorous tenor of the avianoid was failing under the aridity and repeated use.

    ¡°Letol and Anna Parsley,¡± the male human answered for them both.

    ¡°Like the vegetable?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s an herb,¡± Anna corrected.

    ¡°Hmm. Farmers then?¡±

    ¡°We were. Should you be writing this down?¡± Letol asked with some concern. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t want anyone to think we came here without permission.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re refugees Letol! They have a responsibility to us.¡±

    ¡°Farmers?¡± Jeras looked past the sea of people to the desert beyond. ¡°Why not go to Threst?¡± That wasn¡¯t him making conversation but skillfully, in his opinion, working one of the required questions into what was not going to be a casual conversation. Not if he could help it.

    Ann looked sharply at Letol who avoided her gaze. ¡°I don¡¯t like heights,¡± he mumbled.

    ¡°Don¡¯t recommend the Spires then.¡± Dammit, stick to the questions, he chastised himself. Get these people out of here. ¡°Are you migrating here or elsewhere?¡±

    ¡°Well, my family¡¯s from Forola originally. Three regions away, right next to Rikendia, but at least half of us went with every settlement wave. Our duty, you know, and we were proud to-¡±

    ¡°Do you plan on staying in the region?¡± Jeras cut Anna off.

    ¡°No. If there¡¯s a convoy heading elsewhere, we¡¯d happily join. I can still work,¡± Letol said. He was maybe ten years older than Jeras but looked hardened. To survive what he¡¯d been hearing from the others¡¯ stories, he¡¯d have to be. ¡°Kallical, I suppose.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯d be nice to get back to Forola though,¡± his wife added.

    ¡°Do either of you have active warrants for arrest, writ of exile, or other matters of legal note?¡± Jeras asked, verbatim from the updated list.

    ¡°No, we-¡±

    ¡°Do you have any connection to the group known as the Mirage, any knowledge of their whereabouts, or supporters?¡±

    ¡°The what?¡±

    Jeras didn¡¯t explain, doubting herb farmers from another region were associated with rebels, and continued straight on to the next question. ¡°Do either of you possess weapons, dangerous material, or are carrying any disease, plague, or curse that you know of?¡± He eyed the two humans who barely had the clothes on their backs and guessed the answer.

    ¡°No, but some of the seeds I saved are moldy.¡±

    ¡°Letol! I told you to throw those out.¡±

    ¡°I thought the mold might be useful later on. Some of the races eat it y¡¯know?¡±

    ¡°How is mold supposed to survive in a desert?¡±

    ¡°Do either of you possess a class or powers derived from a Bond?¡± Jeras cut in, desperately trying to keep control.

    There was another awkward moment before Anna answered. ¡°We¡¯re not bonded, just married.¡±

    ¡°Maybe if you didn¡¯t eye every man that walked by¡­¡±

    Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

    ¡°Letol!¡±

    Jeras had to grin wryly there. ¡°Do you know of any traveling with your group that possess unusual powers or classes?¡±

    ¡°Well, there¡¯s the Artificer. He¡¯s one of the humans like us, only,¡± Anna frowned. ¡°I don¡¯t know if he survived. We all heard he was part of the people that attacked the dragon, but most of them died.¡±

    Jeras had heard of the Artificer from others, though no one could give any description beyond a young human man. Some had been holding back information and a few had gone so far as to lie, as he suspected Anna was. Honestly though, he wasn¡¯t concerned. Unless he had a good chance of identifying the man himself, asking more questions would only slow down the line. Also, his city had a reputation, Jeras would admit. It¡¯s not like the guard went around dragging people off the street because of their class, but even Alchemists would get a lot more attention than they¡¯d probably want. It was no feathers off his back if he just took the farmers at their word and let them pass.

    ¡°Alright, go on through. The city set up a camp in one of the market spaces if you don¡¯t have the coin to provide for yourself. I can¡¯t give you any further information. Follow the yellow signs.¡± Jeras pointed through the gate and to a sideways triangle of scrap wood nailed to a wall, which would lead to the camp after a series of its fellows. ¡°Honestly, you could also just follow the crowd.¡±

    ¡°Will there be food there?¡± Letol asked with a hint of shame. ¡°We¡¯ve been near starving the last two days.¡±

    ¡°You will be provided for. Move along and cause no trouble. Next!¡±

    Three hours passed and the crowd remained. Normal traffic was piling up and mixing with the refugees, made worse by the orders to give any shipments priority. Forcing the masses aside to allow for carts and wagons to pass only exacerbated the delay, but the instructions were clear. What ruffled Jeras¡¯ literal feathers the most was that there were just six of them assigned to process, with others held back to watch the crowds. They needed five times that number at least, but with the city on alert, the guard had to be everywhere.

    Steadily, both he and the refugees became more irritable. Someone had tried to punch one of the other guards, why he didn¡¯t know, but that had almost caused a riot before someone further back in the refugees called for order. In a deep place inside Jeras, he didn¡¯t blame them. In a realer sense, he was done. All of the rank and file were exhausted from the days of long hours and ¡®deferred off duty time¡¯. If he didn¡¯t get a break after a shit day like this he might just quit. ¡°Next! Next! Hurry up and, woah!¡±

    Jeras¡¯ first thought on seeing the beast moving towards him was wondering how he hadn¡¯t noticed it before. His second was to back up and grab his weapon, before he realized he¡¯d never be able to take on a monster that was wearing armor. His retreat finally stopped when logic caught up to panic. Moving towards him was a ringcat wearing golden armor. That was ridiculous in more ways than one but at least made it clear this wasn¡¯t a wild monster.

    Keeping pace was an odd group, one of the largest that approached together and obviously Blessed. One of them had a breastplate made of ice, another a battle accordion, the very obvious Cleric of the Hand and- Jeras frowned. An earth gestalt and a dusker? Neither were what he expected to be a part of this group, for different reasons. The last was an avianoid like him, what he pegged as a Totem Warrior assuming the Focus wasn¡¯t fake. Jeras nodded to the avianoid and received a smile in kind before he asked his first question. He already knew this was going to take a while.

    It was at the third question that things got interesting. ¡°Why have you not gone to Threst instead of Aughal?¡±

    The tall scarred human called Lograve spoke for the group, which he did in general unless the others were asked specific questions. ¡°I am one of the leaders of the evacuation effort and, as it happens, the highest level. Arcanist and 4, respectively. I, and the other leader, each took a group to either region that bordered the Thormundz.¡±

    Jeras blinked in surprise. Arcanist was the kind of class where level directly implied power, compared to Craftsman who may not fight as well as a Martialist half their level. To be level 4 was especially impressive considering the rumors passed on by the other refugees that the Thormundz garrison in Eido had been completely wiped out. ¡°What¡¯s your business with the city?¡±

    ¡°Saving the goddamn world would be a nice start,¡± Lograve responded in an attempt of humor that was plagued by the mutual frustration in the air. ¡°I don¡¯t suppose you have the authority to let me speak with the city¡¯s Council? Assuming they haven¡¯t all stabbed each other in the back by now.¡±

    ¡°N-no,¡± Jeras recovered when he spotted Sherman, one of the two lieutenants that primarily led the city guard, heading his way. He must have been waiting for these people to reach the front. Stiffening, Jeras said loudly, ¡°Do not speak of Council in that manner, refugee! Your level affords you no special status here. Answer my questions truthfully and you may enter without issue. I ask again, what¡¯s your business in this city?¡±

    Jeras¡¯ bristling didn¡¯t go unnoticed by the group. The areas where his feathers puffed up were a dead giveaway. ¡°Seeing as you can¡¯t help me, I intend to petition for a meeting with the Council. Hopefully before the sky starts falling, or worse. As for the rest, they¡¯re probably heading for the Hunter¡¯s Guild. I assume that kind of help would be welcome, no?¡±

    ¡°Wait, not me!¡± Thomas spoke up. ¡°I¡¯d had enough fighting, to be honest. I¡¯m sure the church here could use help.¡±

    To Jeras, two of those offers sounded like a huge relief. The monsters had been a growing problem, what with all the resources that had been pulled back to the city of late. Manpower in the city guard was so bad they¡¯d had to call on the hunters to cover the growing gaps in the city¡¯s defensive force. There were also always people in need of healing. As far as the other matter? ¡°Be warned the nobility, and the Council in particular, don¡¯t tend to see just anyone.¡± In his peripheral, he saw Sherman nod slightly and breathed a little easier. ¡°Do any of you plan on staying in the region?¡±

    ¡°Dunno.¡± The Cleric shrugged before the Arcanist could speak.

    ¡°Ahem. No, none of us know at this time.¡±

    ¡°Do any of you have active warrants for arrest, writ of exile, or other matters of legal note?¡±

    ¡°No-¡± the Arcanist began.

    ¡°Yes,¡± the avianoid spoke up, surprising everyone. ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Uhm, which one?¡±

    ¡°Exile, I think. No one ever told me, but I also do not think I should go back there.¡±

    ¡°To be clear,¡± Jeras said, trying to cut the man a break, ¡°This is not a matter concerning Aughal?¡±

    ¡°Oh, no.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s alright then. Should be cleared by your service but we¡¯re gathering a list to be safe. Do you have any connection to the group known as the Mirage, any knowledge of their whereabouts, or supporters?¡±

    ¡°Those guys are still around?¡± the Cleric asked, someone Jeras was beginning to realize was familiar with Aughal. ¡°Damn, I thought the city¡¯d take care of them by now. I¡¯m the only one from here, and, no it¡¯s been years.¡±

    ¡°Do either of you possess weapons, dangerous material, or are carrying disease, plague, or curse that you know of?¡± He looked at the ringcat. ¡°I¡¯m also going to need an explanation for that thing.¡±

    The Arcanist specifically didn¡¯t answer his question fully. ¡°We are armed. Am I to take it you plan on taking our weapons as well as our time?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Avianiods couldn''t growl, but they could wobble their pitch in a low way. ¡°Not if you¡¯re a Blessed. You should know the city¡¯s in a heightened state of alert. Anything that¡¯s in a sheath, keep it there. Arrows stay in quivers. Something like this,¡± he put a hand to the hilt of the sword strung on his back. ¡°Stays on your belt or back in public.¡± He eyed all of them, looked at the ringcat again and swore. ¡°Hammer, what is that thing?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s a ringcat!¡± the other avianoid said helpfully. Jeras caught the phrasing but didn¡¯t comment on it.

    ¡°Yours?¡±

    ¡°No, he¡¯s-¡±

    The Arcanist quickly broke in. ¡°That ringcat is associated with another of our number. They are delayed, but sent this one ahead as they can share its senses.¡±

    ¡°Dominated or charmed?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re missing familiar from that list of possibilities,¡± he answered smugly.

    ¡°And?¡±

    ¡°Have you ever seen any monster not dominated wear armor?¡±

    ¡°I haven¡¯t seen any monster wear armor.¡±

    ¡°Well, let¡¯s just say it would be very surprising to find one like this that wasn¡¯t dominated.¡± The Arcanist smiled and Jeras decided to move on. If he wasn¡¯t tired from already suffering through hours of this, he would have seized on the man¡¯s dodging of the question. In the end, he decided to let it pass. More trouble than it was worth, and they couldn¡¯t know Sherman had an item that detected lies, could they?

    ¡°Whoever¡¯s it is will be liable if it does something,¡± Jeras warned. ¡°So keep it contained. There are enough Beastmasters in this city that people are used to seeing them on the street. Normally we want anything here tagged, but that armor works. Just don¡¯t let it roam. Now.¡± Damn it, what was the next question? Oh, right, last two questions. Thank the gods. ¡°Do any of you not possess a class, or powers derived from a Bond?¡± He modified the question slightly since the answer was obvious.

    ¡°No, we all have classes.¡±

    ¡°Do you know of any traveling with your group that possess unusual powers or classes?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Jeras waited for the rest, but the Arcanist left it at that. ¡°And they are?¡±

    The man folded his arms, and the ice surrounding him shifted slightly. ¡°Confidential, but their existence isn¡¯t so I can confirm that.¡±

    One of Jeras¡¯ hands clenched as he sensed his headache spike. ¡°You can either tell me, or I¡¯ll bar all of you from the city.¡± He stared straight into the eyes of Lograve, knowing that the Arcanist could kill every guard here before a strong enough response was made by the city. His bad day has just gotten a whole lot worse.

 Chapter 98: Diplomatic Immunity

    Lieutenant Sherman was behind him seconds after the threat had been made. It was as if he¡¯d been waiting for it. Jeras jumped as he spoke, the higher attributes of the Martialist allowing the human to sneak up on him despite the armor he wore. He spoke in a tone of false respect at odds with the lieutenant Jeras was familiar with. ¡°I must apologize for my subordinate, but he is correct. Aughal¡¯s Council is concerned over the disaster of the Thormundz. If there was someone responsible for what happened there, they would be outside the norm, such as a rare class.¡± The lieutenant was polite in his explanation, having spent most of the day sitting down in the shade. He had patience to spare.

    ¡°I am familiar with the laws of this kingdom. You can¡¯t stop me from going wherever I please if I¡¯ve committed no crimes.¡± The Arcanist eyed Sherman like he was a pile of dung he was trying not to step in. ¡°I have answered your questions to the best of my ability, but I draw the line at throwing a friend to the wolves. I will happily answer anything else, but not that.¡±

    ¡°Ah. That is unfortunate, for you see,¡± Sherman said, stepping entirely in front of Jeras and grinning slightly. ¡°As my man implied earlier, Aughal is in a state of emergency. There have been two high profile assassinations in the last month, enough to warrant stricter measures. If you disagree with our ruling on the matter, you may feel free to raise the issue in Rikendia. Otherwise, you will not be allowed entrance into the city and will be found guilty of trespass should you attempt to enter anyway. I don¡¯t mean to cause you trouble, but we all have to obey the law. Don¡¯t we?¡±

    Lograve tensed. ¡°You would turn us away? I am carrying vital information for this city¡¯s leadership!¡±

    ¡°And I am sure they are eager to hear it after you tell them what they want to know.¡± Sherman kept his voice controlled, but the Arcanist was shouting now.

    ¡°Unbelievable! We killed a dragon coming here. Terrifying, I thought, but little did I know the most monstrous thing I would encounter would be bureaucracy!¡±

    ¡°Lograve, don¡¯t antagonize them.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re the one from here, aren¡¯t you, Thomas? What is your full name?¡± The human immediately fell silent at this question. Jeras was a little impressed, he hadn¡¯t noticed that Thomas was the only one who hadn¡¯t given his last name. Well, besides the dusker who didn¡¯t have one as was her people¡¯s custom. In all honesty, he¡¯d forgotten most of them since he wasn¡¯t expected to record any. Sherman, seeing the Cleric fall silent under his questioning, glanced at someone on the wall and then continued in a covertly gleeful tone. ¡°Unfortunately, due to destabilizing elements currently active in this region, I cannot just turn you away if you fail to answer these basic questions. I will either need your answers, or you will have to come with me.¡±

    ¡°But we have classes,¡± the avianoid protested. ¡°I do not think you can make us.¡± From anyone else that might have been seen as a challenge or threat, but the lithe Totem Warrior seemed to be warning Sherman of something he hadn¡¯t thought of. Incredibly, the only thing Jeras could think of was that the man was trying to be helpful.

    ¡°Of course, we wouldn¡¯t want things to turn violent,¡± Sherman said in a careful tone. ¡°But Aughal is prepared to take you by force if necessary. Not even a level 4 is above the law. We have cells capable of holding you.¡± A moment of tension passed between the Arcanist and Sherman, each staring the other down. As time grew on, Jeras was suddenly afraid Sherman would make good on his threat. The other guard could run for it if they sent an emergency signal for the Ironrush Ravager, but he was standing right there with them!

    Fortunately, someone else interrupted the standoff. ¡°Hey, assholes! Can you not get us all blown up today?¡± Another avianoid with a feather pattern faintly reminiscent of a hawk broke away from the guard who was questioning them and stormed over. Jeras didn¡¯t recognize anything about her besides anger, or, perhaps, general distaste for the world on her face. Sherman, however-

    ¡°L, Lady Seliri?¡±

    ¡°Fuck no.¡± The newcomer glared keenly at Sherman. ¡°Do I look like I have a cactus up my ass?¡±

    ¡°Wha-¡± Sherman blinked. ¡°Who are you?¡±

    ¡°Fuck you,¡± the avianoid repeated. ¡°You want to start something here? Cause I¡¯ve got a wyvern in my pocket. Wanna see it? I¡¯m pretty sure it could swallow you without having to chew.¡±

    Jeras took a step back. Intensity was radiating from what could only be a Beastmaster, to the point that he considered it a power instead of just her personality. Whoever this was, she did have something over Sherman. She knew who the guard would have to call against someone as strong as the Arcanist, and why they wouldn¡¯t unless forced to. Sherman¡¯s posturing wasn¡¯t entirely bluster, but in a real sense, it relied on intimidation to work. ¡°You, are you related to House Seliri?¡±

    ¡°Fuck, yes, fine. Who cares? Look, let these guys through or I¡¯ll have my wyvern eat you or something. You¡¯re holding up the line.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re threatening a lieutenant of the Aughal city guard!¡±

    ¡°Yeah. You¡¯re an annoying asshole, we get it.¡± Lieutenant Sherman had been keeping one of his wrists in his peripheral vision at all times. He raised it to his eyes in disbelief, a weakness this woman tore into. ¡°Whoops. Guess I¡¯m not lying, am I fucker? Wanna check again? Let me through, or I¡¯ll punch your head into the ground and pour sand into the cracks.¡±

    ¡°I,¡± Sherman spluttered. ¡°I can let you through, but these people-¡±

    ¡°Come on, just push him over or something if he stops you. These guys don¡¯t have any teeth.¡± Sherman drew his sword when she, and the others with greater hesitation, walked forward. The insane, and possibly noble, avianoid walked right up to him. ¡°Come on. Do it.¡±

    ¡°Let them through. But I will be informing House Seliri of this, and you better pray you are who you say you are.¡± Sherman growled, his human voice able to more accurately mimic the sound as he dropped any pretense of civility. ¡°Don¡¯t think this is over.¡±

    For some reason, the woman raised one of her fingers at Sherman and said, ¡°Thank you for your fucking service.¡±

    ¡°JERAS!¡± Sherman shouted as the group walked through the gate behind them. ¡°I want you to follow them. We can¡¯t stop her, or anyone she vouches for, but they can¡¯t stop you from following. If they kill you, that¡¯s reason enough to take them in.¡±

    ¡°S-sir?¡± If they kill me? ¡°What should I do at nightfall?¡±

    ¡°You have your orders. Send word when they settle for the night and a replacement will be sent to monitor them. Go!¡± Jeras caught up to hear most of what the others were saying.

    ¡°-you Tlara. But, why intervene?¡± Lograve asked.

    ¡°Gadriel. Leave it to him to keep fucking up my life, but he promised me something, and that gets harder if he can¡¯t get into the city.¡±

    The Arcanist looked blankly at her. ¡°Tlara, Gadriel entered the city ahead of us.¡±

    Tlara did a head count. ¡°Fuuuck! Are you kidding me? Hey wait. You, asshole, what are you doing?¡±

    Jeras had made no attempt to hide his movements. He didn¡¯t have anything in the way of stealth proficiency, but did have a giant sword and armor which stood out. ¡°Lieutenant Sherman ordered that I follow you,¡± Jeras answered evenly, with a hint of respect even though he had no idea what was going on. The adrenaline of the moment was blotting out his earlier exhaustion, something he hoped carried on longer than it took for these people to rest. ¡°If you¡¯re looking for the camp, there¡¯s yellow signage-¡±

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    ¡°Fuck off.¡± The woman gave him the curious hand sign again, the middle talon on her hand extended. The meaning of that Jeras could guess from context even if he didn¡¯t know exactly what it was. ¡°Wait, fuck you guys. I¡¯ve got my own business. See ya.¡±

    Jeras watched as she immediately split off at the next intersection, passing down a narrower road between the low buildings at the city¡¯s exterior. Compared to the thoroughfare that led to the base of the Spires, that one could easily dead end in a block or two. She was just trying to get away from him, and Jeras let her go.

    ¡°Jeras, right? She¡¯s a Seliri?¡± The Cleric almost got up under his armpit as he sidled next to him. ¡°Really?¡±

    ¡°I just met her. You didn¡¯t know?¡±

    ¡°No! You¡¯re kidding me, all this time,¡± he shook his head, giddy with the news in contrast to what had just happened. ¡°But you can¡¯t blame us, can you? Is Silver Eye still heading up that faction?¡±

    ¡°When did you last leave Aughal?¡± Jeras asked instead of answering, taken aback. The Cleric in front of him was mid-20s at best, meaning he had to have been young if he¡¯d left during the initial settlement wave. Not that he minded the questioning. Considering how chatty the Cleric was, if he could somehow get him to slip up and reveal the identity of the Artificer he could take that information to Sherman and get the rest of the day off. Or, more likely, get put back on the wall.

    ¡°Oh, eight years or so. The name¡¯s Thomas, by the way. Think I might have already said. Threst was doing that thing with resonite tariffs that was getting Smiths up in arms. I think Ytaya of, well, her house took over then for the bugs too. Which one of them got their throats cut?¡±

    ¡°Rodreick and Ytaya, within a couple of weeks of each other. Ytaya was last week.¡± That was common knowledge and Jeras didn¡¯t feel the need to hold back. If he had known exactly how either had died or the details of the investigation, that would have been a different matter. Fortunately, both deaths had occurred in the spire guard¡¯s jurisdiction and weren¡¯t his problem. In this case, there was an eagerness to this Thomas that seemed to pull the answers from him.

    ¡°Damn! And you guys think it¡¯s the Mirage? I thought they were just a fringe thing.¡±

    Jeras shrugged. ¡°They¡¯ve been getting bolder, but I don¡¯t know and couldn¡¯t tell you if I did.¡±

    ¡°Ah, makes sense. Active investigations and everything. Say, is the bakery two blocks from the main guardhouse still doing that thing with flour from Kallical? I know everyone says Threst stuff is better because of the Shattered Falls, but they¡¯ve got special stuff too. I never knew I wanted bread with a nutty flavor until I ate there. Makes you wish there was a farmer class, just think of the kinds of things that could do.¡±

    ¡°Uh,¡± Jeras scratched his head as he tried to remember what Thomas had originally asked. ¡°I think so.¡±

    ¡°Great! I¡¯ll have to see if I can get there before they close. You won¡¯t believe what we¡¯ve been eating the past few days, and not in a good way. Tag along if you want.¡±

    ¡°Thank you, but I have to follow-¡± Jeras looked up from the Cleric and came to a heart-stopping realization. He¡¯d been talking to the man for four, maybe five blocks now! In that time, the others had split off without him noticing. ¡°Where did they go?¡±

    ¡°Sorry, can¡¯t help you there. You might catch up with them if you stick with me though. I¡¯ll buy you something and, hey, I¡¯ve got a ton of things I¡¯ve been itching to talk about. Did you know one of the Heroes in the Thormundz went Tyrant? We put him down.¡± He stomped his foot on the ground for some reason. ¡°But it was a close thing. Well, bread?¡±

    Jeras thought back to the last time he ate, the morning meal, and then asked himself how likely it was he¡¯d find the others on his own. More than likely given they were traveling with a glowing ringcat. On the other hand, this Cleric was talkative. ¡°Could you tell me what the Arcanist couldn¡¯t at the gate?¡±

    ¡°Ah, sorry, but that¡¯s one of the things I can¡¯t. Guy¡¯s my friend and I, uh.¡± Thomas shook his head. ¡°Anyway, bakery. You in?¡±

    Ha, already got the first name. Sherman wouldn¡¯t mind if I could get him to slip again, Jeras thought. ¡°Fine. But if you don¡¯t lead me to them at some point today, I will have to take you in for interfering in an active investigation.¡± If Sherman was here his stone would show the lie. Not that Jeras wouldn¡¯t arrest Thomas for distracting him, but he¡¯d have to get creative with the reason. Kelra could probably help with that.

    ¡°No worries! Want to hear about the Upswell? I was actually in the middle of healing this woman who¡¯d gotten too close to a-¡± Amid his retelling, Thomas continued what in settled society was considered a faux pas by sending a thought towards Lograve. Alright, he¡¯s hooked. I¡¯ll probably have to meet up before nightfall, but you¡¯ve got a few hours.

    Thanks, Thomas. I don¡¯t think we could have counted on Tlara again.

    No worries! Just tell Guy he owes me one.

    Nearby, the group stepped off the main road for a moment to allow their last member to exit from where he¡¯d been hiding. ¡°What happened?¡± Daniel wheezed, stepping out from inside Khare. The gestalt had an interior space that functioned like a bag of holding, including that it didn¡¯t allow free air flow when it was closed. ¡°I almost ran out of air. Not that I¡¯m not grateful, Khare, but you need air vents. Wait where¡¯s Thomas?¡±

    ¡°Problems at the gate,¡± Lograve answered, waving his arms wildly.

    ¡°Is that supposed to be a spell?¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Lograve answered, continuing to wave his arms for ten more seconds before letting them fall. ¡°It¡¯s just supposed to look like one.¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°What do you mean you lost them?¡± A shrill, demanding voice asked.

    Silora, resting on her throne, winced. ¡°That Arcanist cast something. Someone of his level probably knows about me.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re level 5!¡± Claret brought a hand down hard onto her armrest, one of her many rings putting a dent in the wood. Whether it was just the nature of her Legacy or her preference, most of the magic items Claret had were worn around her fingers. ¡°Find them.¡±

    The Fate tried but frowned after a few seconds. ¡°This close, it shouldn¡¯t be a problem. Something¡¯s blocking me. I¡¯m trying the area where they were last, but there¡¯s nothing. I still see the street, but I can¡¯t find them.¡±

    ¡°Why not?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know!¡± Silora cried defensively. The presence of the remaining Council members, and the heavy guard in her parlor, was making her very nervous. ¡°This never happens! Not unless you¡¯re having me scry on the outlying regions and I hit a location that¡¯s warded, but that¡¯s a gap in my sight instead of people vanishing from it.¡±

    ¡°We shouldn¡¯t have pressed at the gate,¡± Bennar commented, though there was a note of disinterest in his voice. It was more like he was commenting on the results of a game to his friends than reacting to matters of state. ¡°They wouldn¡¯t think to protect themselves if we hadn¡¯t tipped our hand.¡±

    ¡°We wouldn¡¯t know to follow them if we hadn¡¯t,¡± Aucrest retorted. He had his reasons for being invested in this, though he feared they didn¡¯t align with Claret¡¯s. The results of the inquiry into her dealings with Rikendia were projected to be quite costly, which would make her no doubt even more desperate. Worse, they were now known losses. ¡°As it stands, we know enough to keep track of them.¡±

    ¡°This is quite a lot of trouble to go through for what sounds like one Artificer. And your daughter,¡± Claret laughed as if the foundations of her family¡¯s power weren¡¯t crumbling. ¡°It seems the chick that flew the coop had come home to roost, Aucrest. And, taken a class.¡±

    ¡°I bet you''re ecstatic,¡± Bennar mumbled around a scone.

    ¡°That does make things easier, though I will need to reign in her behavior.¡± Aucrest sighed. ¡°I doubt she would tell me what we want to know and I¡¯m not inclined to try asking, either.¡±

    Claret pointed an accusatory finger, and considering what was on it the gesture also served as a threat. ¡°Like you¡¯d pass on the information! You¡¯re not monopolizing this Artificer, Silver Eye.¡±

    Because you want to? ¡°Claret, I¡¯m hoping to recruit him for the city, perhaps as an apprentice for Arpan.¡± He saw the disbelief in her eyes but continued, wondering if his reasoning would make any difference. ¡°If the Mirage targets him next we will have truly suffered a loss, if only for the formulae he knows. Redundancy, and the hope we could negotiate more wisely with this one, are our aims.¡±

    ¡°Do you want me to go back to the gate?¡± Silora asked carefully, more to remind them of her presence before one of them said something they shouldn¡¯t have in front of her. Not that Silora minded, it was them knowing she would hear that was the problem.

    Aucrest exhaled and stood, leaving the wide wine glass meant for his kind on the table. ¡°No. I¡¯m leaving in case Tlara is inclined to cause more trouble tonight.¡±

    ¡°And to tell your wife,¡± Claret jabbed.

    Aucrest glared back. ¡°You would do well to prepare for the results of the supply contract investigation, Claret. Feel free to call upon my house for aid if the penalties are too onerous.¡±

    The older woman¡¯s nails dug into the furniture and Silora winced to see further carnage playing out. But, these were her direct employers who¡¯d trapped her in a cage of fine print. Soon. He was somewhere down there, she knew, and he¡¯d escaped their notice. All she needed now was the right opportunity. She returned covertly to view the key to her cage, who by this point had made it to his destination and was munching on a bagel with a bemused guardsman.

 Chapter 99: Ornithopter

    Walking the streets of Aughal was both an odd, and entirely new experience for Daniel. Difficulty tolerating commercial flights had severely restricted where his family had been able to take vacations. That had been a source of controversy throughout the years until it led to the ultimate one, him not going on the trip where his father had gone missing. For that reason, Daniel had never visited a truly large city such as New York, Chicago, or anything overseas.

    The spires of Aughal reinforced Daniel¡¯s impression of skyscrapers, not having the experience to make a direct comparison. They had dwarfed everything on the approach to the city and now rose to dominate the sky above him. Even with Quick Mind, he had only a guess of their height, something around a kilometer.

    Compared to those, the buildings of the outer city were sheds. There was a patchwork construction to them, although not in the sense of a shantytown but an old quilt in the process of being remade with new material. Age was apparent in the older style, cracked stone made from dried earth that repeated as they walked each block. If Daniel had to guess, the original Builders had only a handful of blueprints to work off of when they set up the city and mass produced them. The stone buildings of Roost¡¯s Peak drew an immediate and painful connection in his mind.

    Sometime over the years, a new style had taken root. Whenever one of the monotonous structures had become unsound or their owners wanted renovations, the hardened clay had been torn down wholesale for new construction. Colorful stone predominated those refurbished lots, either an improved variant of the previous mixture or quarried stone in some cases. While their neighbors were cut from the same cloth, this new construction stitched uniqueness into the fabric of the city.

    No wood in the construction, of course. Daniel imagined that would be hard to come by in a desert. There were signs occasionally made of the substance, though in most cases street names, advertisements, and storefront signage were painted onto the buildings. For the old stone it was a splash of color and only added to the liveliness of the new ones. He tried to imagine what this wave of color might look like from above and was met once more with the Spires jabbing him in the metaphorical eye. Something about them irritated the scraps of knowledge he had on engineering.

    ¡°How do those stay up with the wind here?¡± Daniel asked the group in general as Lograve led them to places unknown. Khiat was just as impressed as he was, absorbing the landscape around her with lingering glances.

    ¡°I would imagine magic,¡± Evalyn answered as if it were obvious. Which, upon reflection, it was. ¡°Builders have as many powers as we do, and they¡¯re a purposefully specialized class.¡±

    The Arcanist glanced up from the street sign he was reading to appraise them as well. ¡°It¡¯s more than that. Those are the city¡¯s Spoke.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve never seen one this large.¡± Evalyn¡¯s brusk tone changed to awe, far more impressed by this fact than Daniel. ¡°I didn¡¯t even see the developing one in Eido. They always kept the Temple of Unification locked down.¡±

    ¡°Do they all look like that?¡± Daniel asked in a more moderate tone, more curious about the divine object in front of him than some temple he could guess the function of.

    ¡°No. I¡¯ve seen a fair few. You know, of course, that the Spoke is the divinely blessed construct that suppresses monster activity, pushes back against the Crest, and calms a region¡¯s more dangerous aspects if present,¡± Lograve summarized, for both Daniel¡¯s benefit and Khiat¡¯s, assuming her education had been limited. His normal humor was toned down as he entered lecture mode. ¡°When a Spoke has fully taken root in a region, it transforms. Sometimes into garish towers such as those, or even something as abstract as a magical aura.¡±

    ¡°The city of healers,¡± Evalyn commented.

    ¡°Yes, Teskalia. Known even in this Realm, although I¡¯d argue Rikendia¡¯s aura is even more notable.¡± Daniel wanted to ask what he meant, but Lograve continued before he could. ¡°You could almost imagine a completed Spoke as the region¡¯s Focus, in that it differs between them and is the concentration of power lent here by the Octyrrum. I¡¯ve read about one city whose Spoke became a guardian construct, a true Incarnate. I imagine they don¡¯t have to worry about monster attacks, lucky bastards.¡± Lograve closed his eyes for a moment and cut Khiat out of their telepathy. Knowing that this aspect of his feature would be needed to get past the gate and that heightening it to that point would be noticeable, he¡¯d already done it on the approach. Keeping her out of this discussion was rude, but necessary. Hunter, I am curious if you recall the time before you met Daniel, when you were a monster and the Spoke was still active.

    The ringcat didn¡¯t respond immediately as they continued walking. True to what Jeras had said, no one called out in alarm as it was obvious he wasn¡¯t a threat. Beastmasters walked in these wide streets just like anyone else, and most of them didn¡¯t have Tlara¡¯s ability to store monsters on their person. If anything, Khare was drawing sideways glances and stood out more as the lone gestalt.

    Hunter answered mentally, as on edge as the fur standing up on his back would suggest. Like eyes were everywhere. I feared the monsters greater than myself, but also the air. It was heavy. Something near where the ground shook during the Upswell burned. I used to think of you as hunters needing to be destroyed. Everywhere you lived was fearsome, and I would not have come to your village if Daniel had not made me. Though, I would have attacked it in time, if I had Grown.

    Lograve pointedly didn¡¯t react, since Khiat may notice, but his response showed he was affected by the description. It¡¯s disconcerting to hear that, I¡¯m not going to lie. You can hardly blame us poor mortals for throwing something up to keep dragons and mangy cats away. What about now?

    Nothing. Since I made the bond with Daniel, I have had no instinct to hurt people or avoid where you live. I have also not felt the feeling from the Spoke since we came to the desert.

    If the group was in a car, Lograve would have slammed the brakes. As it was, everyone save Tak came to an immediate halt when he did. The avianoid was cheerily nodding at anyone who walked by and took a few seconds to notice.

    ¡°What is it?¡± Khiat asked.

    ¡°Just, making sure this is the right street.¡± What!? Lograve asked with the tone he occasionally used when talking to Daniel. You felt the Spoke in the Thormundz after you met Daniel?

    Yes. No heaviness in the air, no point of fire. Just a feeling it wasn¡¯t gone.

    Lograve looked sharply to Daniel who held up his hands in surrender, drawing another confused look from Khiat. He never said anything about this! Not that we really talked about it past the fact that he was going to eat me before Natural Affinity stopped him.

    I, gods, I need to think about this. Every time I think I¡¯m inured to your bullshit you find an even higher cliff to throw me from.

    You¡¯re the one who threw me out of a window!

    I gently pushed you out after you assaulted my poor mind with the implications of Hunter gaining the means of reproduction. There was a moment of awkward silence, broken by Tak distracting Khiat with questions about how she¡¯d been hunting without any levels. Lograve sighed and continued the mental conversation. Alright, we know the Thormundz Spoke failed, whether that means it was destroyed entirely or was just drained of divine power. Let¡¯s assume whatever was done to Hunter at the border removed him from the suppressive effects of the Spoke. If that¡¯s the case, it means he wouldn¡¯t be able to distinguish a completed Spoke from whatever happened to the one in the Thormundz.

    Maybe that thing in the mountains took it?

    I doubt it, we hadn¡¯t woken it from its nap yet. Hold on, we¡¯re here. The group stopped in front of a store displaying brightly colored shapes made of stone and wood. I think?

    ¡°This is a toy store,¡± Evalyn commented as the group observed the sign above the door of a colorful two-story building. It read ¡®Ornithar¡¯s Craftworks¡¯. There was no glass here, not that Daniel had seen, so instead of display windows there were detailed paintings on the closed shutters with names and prices of some of the objects. Instead of any currency marking like a dollar sign, there were just numbers contained within circles in different colors.

    The writing was all in the script of this world, though as long as Daniel didn¡¯t think about it too much he could read it. When he did, it was like realizing you were talking gibberish in a dream and could no longer connect meaning to the words coming out of your mouth. It was an ongoing mystery, but Daniel had another question at this moment. ¡°Where do they get all of this paint?¡±

    ¡°This isn¡¯t what I was looking for,¡± Lograve said, still reeling somewhat from yet another earth-shaking realization. ¡°There used to be an Artificer here, though I suppose it¡¯s been a decade.¡±

    Tak, observing some of the paintings up close, offered, ¡°Maybe he moved?¡±

    ¡°Likely. The old store wasn¡¯t made of painted brick. He might have finally earned enough to get a good Builder to upgrade his store. I always told him anyone with half a mind could break in on him while he was at work.¡±

    Daniel watched with interest as Khare joined Tak by the painted posters. Even now, he didn¡¯t have a good sense of the gestalt¡¯s real personality besides a strong affinity for daggers and the Grafting. A language barrier was only one thing, most of the time Khare didn¡¯t even have body language to read. This was one moment where Khare revealed something about themself Daniel wouldn¡¯t otherwise know, and he made a point to remember it.

    At the same time, Lograve made a decision. ¡°Well, I¡¯m sure Arpan gets out of town business all the time. It might have been a while, but this Ornithar has to have had to direct others to the new store from time to time.¡±

    ¡°I think Tak wants to buy something,¡± Evalyn whispered to him and Daniel. ¡°If this is a Craftsman¡¯s store, I might be interested as well depending on what powers they have.¡±

    Daniel nodded in agreement. He¡¯d first learned of the class when Lograve had explained the more common varieties of class evolutions. Unlike Tyrants, who evolved based on rare societal pressures and twisted aspirations, other classes could undergo a change at certain thresholds. Craftsman could evolve into another class as early as level 2 and had the widest amount of specializations known. Builder and Smith, for example. What Artificer could turn into Lograve was unsure. Lograve¡¯s class had its own permutations such as Aquamancer, a water-specialized class he¡¯d admitted he probably wouldn¡¯t get even though he had Aquakinesis.

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    Craftsmen could create magical items like Artificers, having a wider scope than Arcanists who gained relevant powers, but behind the theoretically infinite possibilities inherent to Daniel¡¯s class. Very good ones could still approach the level of proficiency common to Artificers, if still lacking in scope, while retaining versatility in other areas. A high level Craftsman could do something like make a laser fortress one day, and hundreds of mid grade enchanted swords the next. An equivalent Artificer could only do something like make you an arrow that could kill god.

    ¡°Some of these are expensive. Are you all rich?¡± Khiat indicated a particular sign with a price in a green circle. Daniel, who had seen most of them by now, was struck by a strange familiarity in the way each color seemed to represent relative price.

    ¡°I don¡¯t have any money.¡± Daniel would have inverted his pocket in emphasis but didn¡¯t want his phone to fall onto the sandy ground. ¡°I was hoping Arpan would buy some of my stuff.¡±

    ¡°Assuming all of you go hunting, you¡¯ll stumble on enough to live by as well,¡± Lograve reassured, reaching for the door and causing a bell to ring as he opened it. ¡°Daniel, it¡¯s probably for the best if Hunter stays outside. I¡¯m only going to ask for directions. If the rest of you want to browse, we have time. Arpan keeps odd hours, I¡¯m sure he¡¯ll be awake even if we don¡¯t get there by nightfall. Uh, good evening.¡±

    A voice greeted them from inside, clearly avianoid. ¡°Awk, customers.¡± The room Lograve opened up was of modest size and lit by lanterns no doubt set up in the last hour or so of fading light. Shelves took up the side walls and interior of the external one, giving the immediate impression of a cozy bookstore. Instead of tomes, various works of craft lined them. Some were in boxes, others on display. Two counters ran the length of the room to take up the interior space with more merchandise, and towards the back was a third where an elderly avianoid was at work on a fresh block of wood. The color of his feathers, an almost even covering of light orange, had faded to appear like the inside of a rind instead of the outer peel.

    ¡°Shopkeep. I was looking for the Artificer Arpan Morel if you wouldn¡¯t mind directing us. I believe some of my companions may also wish to peruse.¡±

    An appraising glance passed over all of them, lingering mostly on obvious weapons, Khare, and Khiat, whose travel armor was now loose fitting around the collapsed legs. She¡¯d had to reduce her height to fit in the store. ¡°You don¡¯t look like my normal patrons.¡±

    ¡°I am interested in one of the flying ones,¡± Tak said, walking over to where one was on the shelves but refraining from touching it.

    ¡°It should be said that I don¡¯t typically offer discounts,¡± the man said carefully, unsure of what exactly was going on. ¡°Even to those associated with the nobility. I am an independent business.¡±

    ¡°Oh, we are nothing of the sort,¡± Lograve laughed. ¡°We just found our way into town, as it were. I¡¯m an old friend of Arpan, so old that he stood where you do now the last time I saw him. You must have been quite young then and the memory hazy, but I would appreciate it if you knew where he moved to.¡±

    ¡°Idle flattery,¡± the shopkeeper waved a hand but visibly relaxed. ¡°That fool sold a plot just off the southern thoroughfare for half of what it was worth. Said he couldn¡¯t be bothered to wait for reconstruction.¡±

    ¡°That does sound like the man, always conscious of his time.¡±

    ¡°Let me think for a moment. No one¡¯s come here calling for him in years.¡± A wistful look came across Ornithar¡¯s face. ¡°Two, maybe three. It¡¯s nestled in some side street I couldn¡¯t be bothered to remember.¡±

    ¡°He probably enjoys the seclusion. Take your time, and I apologize for the intrusion.¡±

    ¡°Bah,¡± another hand wave, this time the one holding a chisel.

    Free to browse, Daniel looked at the shelves nearest the door while sending a thought to Hunter. Telepathic Network with the rest of the group or not, he could single out Hunter if he needed to because they had a direct link. Sorry Hunter, but Khiat¡¯s barely fitting in here. I don¡¯t think you could without breaking something.

    I will watch. Still, the same detachment that had been lingering for over a week now.

    Do you want anything?

    I am not a pet.

    Yeah, but you liked chasing that fake mouse when you were recovering. You haven¡¯t changed that much since then.

    And you¡¯ll buy it with what?

    Hey, I haven¡¯t explained the concept of money to you yet.

    I don¡¯t need you to, Hunter thought with a trace of humor breaking through the moroseness. Only a little though.

    Well, you are picking up a lot just from listening these days. Daniel continued looking, this time with more intent now that he wasn¡¯t carrying on a side conversation. He immediately found one toy that made him pause. ¡®Ornithopter, Enchanted - 1¡¯. It was about the size of his hand, a construct made from wooden poles and canvas in the rough shape of a bird in flight.

    ¡°Expensive,¡± Khiat commented, seeing his interest.

    ¡°It¡¯s more the name that¡¯s odd.¡± Daniel turned towards the back of the store where the shopkeeper was watching them. ¡°Excuse me, your name is Ornithar, right? Mine¡¯s Daniel,¡± he quickly added. He couldn¡¯t be sure of the man¡¯s name as both he and Hunter were reserving use of Identify Creature while in the city on the advice of Lograve. That, and Daniel had a terrible memory for names that attribute advancement had only given minor improvement.

    ¡°Yes, that is one of my finer works. I named the piece after myself, naturally.¡±

    ¡°Any reason for that name specifically?¡±

    ¡°No, it was a whim. Hraw, but my father wanted me to be a Builder when I found out what my class was. Far less room to be whimsical. I¡¯m sure if I had that mindset, I¡¯d have just named it ¡®Ornithar¡¯s Flying Bird¡¯ or something like that. Are you interested?

    Daniel debated internally for a moment. ¡°Maybe. I have to sell some stuff elsewhere first.¡±

    ¡°I am also interested. Could I see one fly?¡± Tak asked, taking Ornithar¡¯s attention off of Daniel as the shopkeeper sidled over to delicately take the piece off the shelf.

    ¡°Khiat, do the words ¡®Ornithar¡¯ and ¡®ornithopter¡¯ sound similar?¡±

    ¡°Yes. Is this about my name?¡± Khiat couldn¡¯t hide her voice like Daniel could in such an enclosed space, but she tried.

    ¡°It¡¯s weird. These are called ornithopters where I come from, or, that¡¯s one way to call them. His name and the word sound the same to me just like your name and the word ¡®kite¡¯ do, but it isn¡¯t the same for you.¡±

    ¡°What does that mean?¡±

    Daniel sighed. ¡°Khiat, there are things I can¡¯t tell you. Nothing bad, I¡¯m not a killer or anything but, it¡¯s like you, I guess. In more ways than you know.¡± He looked at the semi-giant insect woman wearing the equivalent of saggy jeans, while behind her Tak was smiling up at a flying bird construct and once again felt the absurdity that so troubled Lograve. ¡°I want to tell you, but I don¡¯t know if you¡¯re going to be with us long enough to take that risk.¡±

    Khiat was quick to reassure him. ¡°No, don¡¯t worry. You don¡¯t owe me anything.¡±

    ¡°Maybe. Why don¡¯t I tell you this though. I think something is going on with how I understand language. Like, it¡¯s being translated for me, except I¡¯ve run into one or two times where it doesn¡¯t work. Different languages, I think. Lograve said powers like that exist, so I might have one.¡±

    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t you know? I thought your Focus told you everything about your powers.¡± There was concern in Khiat¡¯s voice now, which was understandable given what Daniel had done for her.

    ¡°Yeah. It never lies, but sometimes it just doesn¡¯t say anything or leaves stuff out.¡±

    Elsewhere in the store, Tak asked a question. ¡°How long can it fly?¡±

    ¡°It depends. The one your friend found can all day. Forever, if it doesn¡¯t have to fight the wind. This one?¡± Ornithar frowned and looked at the tag in his hands. ¡°Ah, two hours a day. Cheaper. I could make them all the long-lasting version, but then only a few could afford them. That takes longer as well. Would you like to buy this one?¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡±

    After Tak had produced several golden coins, and Khare a few that were more orangish in hue, the shopkeeper suddenly remembered where the group could find Arpan. It might have been just a coincidence, and Daniel was inclined to think well of Ornithar even if it wasn¡¯t. Tak¡¯s small ornithopter flew around his head, a thing of thin wooden poles and canvas that was bound to within a short distance of whoever¡¯s name was inscribed on the bottom. The owner could control it with hand movements, otherwise it flew around randomly. Khare, for their part, bought a toy stylized as a turtle and advertised as something hard to break. It seemed primarily aimed at dusker children.

    ¡°I haven¡¯t seen too much in the way of money here,¡± Daniel commented as they made their way to the actual location of the Artificer. ¡°Not like the kind you use. Is the value based on color like a rainbow?¡±

    ¡°Yes, it is.¡± Lograve gave him the half-smile he showed whenever Daniel asked a good question. ¡°There are minerals from levels 1 to 7 that are common enough to use for coinage. Well, common for their level, and magically inert. You can smith them but you can¡¯t enchant with them.¡±

    ¡°Is it 10:1 between steps?¡±

    ¡°Broadly speaking, no. Yes for the first denominations, but it varies. The higher the rarity of the coin, the wider the exchange rate.¡±

    Evalyn, having bought nothing at the store, pulled out a coin she hadn¡¯t spent. ¡°Gold. Bronze is below it, and then copper, and then wooden coins for level 0. Those last ones are just made of regular wood. Generally, it¡¯s not even worth the effort to carve fakes.¡±

    ¡°But bronze is an alloy of copper.¡±

    ¡°Alloy?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s something with smithing,¡± Lograve said dismissively while trying to cover for Daniel¡¯s slip. ¡°You might be thinking of something else.¡±

    ¡°If the coins Khare used were ¡®bronze¡¯, that¡¯s probably it,¡± Daniel said, wary not to go too far into why he¡¯d been confused. This was already a sketchy conversation to have in front of Khiat, but he felt bad for leaving her out of the other ones. ¡°Too orange. Why do they fit that pattern?¡±

    ¡°The rainbow? It¡¯s just how it is. Higher level metal is rarer, thus more valuable. The colors are just a coincidence.¡±

    The conversation paused as Khiat laughed softly. Tak¡¯s ornithopter landed on her hand midflight before taking off once more. There was no intelligence behind its movement, simply a few patterns it had been enchanted with. The construct was one of Ornithar¡¯s finest, if a lesser example of the best version costing one of the green coins called viridian.

    ¡°One of the elders of my village, Mvina, said the gods made it that way,¡± Khiat commented. ¡°The rainbow they make represents the Octyrrum.¡±

    ¡°¡®The gods did it¡¯ is a fairly popular and unimaginative explanation for many things.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a nice story Lograve,¡± Evalyn replied, a bit annoyed by Lograve¡¯s dismissal. ¡°It might as well be true.¡±

    Daniel decided to get them back on track. ¡°What about level 8 and 9 coins? Assuming those exist.¡±

    Lograve shook his head. ¡°Even if the metal itself is inert, it¡¯s still level 8 or 9. Wrap it in leather and you have indestructible armor. Ignoring the fact that there¡¯d be no forge able, or Smith willing to melt it down into coin, what would you purchase that would be worth it?¡±

    ¡°Level 8 or 9 gear?¡±

    Lograve¡¯s laugh was about the same volume as Khiat¡¯s earlier one, though she¡¯d tried to hide it while he roared. ¡°Sometimes I forget how little you know. Suffice it to say the heliorite we found was an unimaginable bounty in and of itself. Discovering enough extreme level metal to make a single coin would set most up for life.¡±

    ¡°I saw some once,¡± Tak said idly, moving his hand just underneath the flying construct to direct its movements, before swapping his hand out with his foot and smiling as he realized that still worked. It looked ridiculous, but it worked.

    ¡°Really?¡±

    ¡°Yes! Alabaster. It was white.¡±

    Lograve was taken aback, indicating Tak wasn¡¯t bluffing. To be fair, he rarely lied. ¡°Tak, where in all of this world did you see that!?¡±

    ¡°Back home. We only had it briefly.¡±

    ¡°Is alabaster the level 8 or 9 one?¡± Daniel asked, enjoying the novelty of someone else causing Lograve consternation.

    ¡°Nine, it¡¯s, how big was it?¡±

    ¡°Small.¡± Tak wasn¡¯t perturbed at all by Lograve¡¯s intensity. He made a circle with his thumb and middle finger, one the coin Evalyn had shown wouldn¡¯t fit into. ¡°We just had it briefly. It was a secret, but by now I doubt that matters.¡±

    ¡°Spiritualists with alabaster. What did they buy, Tak?¡± Evalyn asked, giving Lograve a meaningful glance.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. I had to leave soon after it was given away.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll have to talk about that later. With everything else, that leaves us with a conversational schedule stretching into the next few weeks! Oh, Murdon, why did you leave me with these fools?¡± Lograve asked dramatically.

    ¡°Hey, you asked me to come with you,¡± Daniel protested.

    ¡°And don¡¯t I regret it.¡±

 Chapter 100: Another Artificer

    It was truly night when they came across Arpan Morel¡¯s storefront, which turned out to be the only painted building in the small alleyway. From just the front, it was difficult to tell how large it was, though like many of the buildings in the outer city it was built with two stories. Around the time Lograve tried the door to find it locked, a guardsman leaving a bakery was growing very nervous.

    ¡°Are you sure this is it?¡± Daniel asked.

    ¡°Yes, there¡¯s more protections on the walls than that toymaker¡¯s. I have a feature that lets me sense settled magic,¡± he told Khiat, inadvertently answering the others¡¯ confusion as well. ¡°This is it. Stand here long enough and we¡¯ll be noticed.¡±

    ¡°What if he¡¯s enchanting? You can¡¯t go too far from the material, or look away. Unless there are powers that improve that process?¡±

    ¡°There should be, although to my knowledge Arpan is still bound by that restriction. Arpan!¡± he shouted back to the closed front door.

    ¡°It is getting late Lograve. Shouldn¡¯t some of us go find Thomas?¡± Evalyn asked. ¡°With everyone who traveled with us to the city, the tavern might get full. What if we need to go somewhere else?¡±

    ¡°Then we¡¯d be better served sticking together. Go too far from me here and I won¡¯t be able to pick you out of the crowds to re-establish the link. This should be a short conversation.¡±

    Short conversation or not, it took another half hour of intermittent knocking and banging on the door for an annoyed voice to come through from the other side. ¡°Whoever is out there, I¡¯m in the middle of a very taxing project. I¡¯ll be open to the public at noon tomorrow. Keep bothering my neighbors and I¡¯ll contact the guard!¡±

    ¡°Is that you or Dril, Arpan?¡± Lograve asked knowingly.

    It took a few moments before the door opened slightly. ¡°Lograve? I thought you died when your Spoke exploded!¡±

    The Arcanist smiled. ¡°You know I fought a dragon, Arpan. Well, that count¡¯s up to three now. You think that would stop me?¡±

    ¡°Three? Star, but, hold on.¡± The voice had a projected quality to it. Not like telepathy, which was hearing someone talking to you just without the sound going through your ears, but more of a ¡®voice after going through a long tube¡¯ kind of thing.

    ¡°Are we ever going to hear about this first dragon of yours?¡± Evalyn asked while several locks were audibly undone.

    ¡°Not much of a story and not the time.¡± He gestured to the opening door, where a suit of armor stood. Headless. It was one meter tall, ornate, and with a bright green gem on the center of the chest. ¡°Ah, you remade Dril.¡±

    ¡°You were gone for ten years Lograve, of course I did.¡± The voice came from where the head should be. ¡°Who are these people?¡±

    ¡°My friends.¡±

    Despite the earlier joy at recognizing Lograve, the voice turned standoffish. ¡°I¡¯m going to need more than that.¡±

    ¡°Well, one of them¡¯s looking to sell you some heliorite. Enough to make a level 2 leather shirt, at least.¡±

    ¡°Heliorite!¡± The door fully opened. ¡°Come on in. Wait, why that much specifically?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s already been made into the armor.¡±

    ¡°Gods damn it Lograve, did you let some novice Arcanist touch level 5 material? I know you¡¯re not stupid enough to have done it yourself.¡±

    ¡°Would you rather all of us died? We had to fight dragons to get here, and this time we didn¡¯t have your services.¡±

    There was a pause before the armor commented, ¡°I never should have told you I have Material Reclamation. You know that doubles the amount of time I have to spend to make something, right? Wait, that thing¡¯s not coming- Did someone make a suit of armor for a monster?¡± The voice sounded outraged now. ¡°Have you lost your mind Lograve?¡±

    ¡°Daniel, it might be best to let Hunter wait outside.¡±

    ¡°Maybe.¡± He was about to enter the store before a thought struck him. Hunter, do you want to stay outside?

    It¡¯s fine.

    Ok, but are you fine with it happening everywhere we go here? No response. Tak, did Hunter ever tell you he didn¡¯t want to go to the city?

    No. Oh, but I see.

    It¡¯s fine, Hunter thought back defensively.

    Do you like being here Hunter?

    ¡­no.

    ¡°Daniel?¡± Lograve asked.

    ¡°Hunter¡¯s coming with us.¡± Daniel tried for firm and unyielding and guessed based off of Evalyn¡¯s approving smile that he¡¯d managed it.

    Arpan, through Dril, matched him. ¡°If that¡¯s the ringcat then you¡¯re mistaken. No monsters in my store.¡±

    ¡°Then I¡¯ll stay outside too.¡±

    The armor turned its non-existent head to Lograve. ¡°Who¡¯s this Totem Warrior and what ditch did you find him in Lograve?¡±

    Daniel gritted his teeth as an old wound was poked, and leaned towards the armor. ¡°If I stay outside you don¡¯t get to know how I made this. Khare, could you show him the trident? The lightning one.¡±

    Khare withdrew the sparkshine trident from their storage space. When using heliorite to make weapons, it automatically converted the damage type of the weapon to radiant. On a whim, Khare had asked Daniel to make one for them with just lightning damage instead, and he¡¯d added the lightning affix which switched the damage type back to normal. ¡°You¡¯re the idiot that butchered my heliorite? Wait, is that armor controlling the ringcat?¡± With that assumption, the distaste in the voice turned to keen interest. The armor walked to the doorframe, stopped dead before leaving the store, and sighed. ¡°Fine. But I want to know about that armor.¡±

    ¡°Deal.¡± Daniel smiled and gestured for Hunter to go first. You should have just told me you didn¡¯t want to come here. You¡¯ve been thinking about it ever since we hit the desert, haven¡¯t you?

    Yes.

    You should have just told me!

    Hunter eyed him balefully, discomfort displayed now that he was found out. Would you not have come here?

    A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    Well, Daniel frowned and completely missed seeing the front of Arpan¡¯s store as he followed the queue down a back door. I¡¯m sure there¡¯s something here you¡¯d like.

    Small rooms. Too many people. I have to keep the armor on. Everyone thinks I am ¡®controlled¡¯. A pet.

    Tak, who Daniel wasn¡¯t actively screening out, offered his advice. You can talk now. We could let people know.

    It was a good point that Daniel should have thought of first. Arpan can make his armor speak. Magic can explain anything. What do you want to do Hunter?

    Hunt. There is new prey here. It is more open. I like that, but not this place.

    We don¡¯t have to stay here all the time, and I am really curious what kind of powers you¡¯re going to get once we do get back to hunting. For a moment Daniel had thought he¡¯d seized on the solution to the tension he¡¯d been having with Hunter, as if realizing the problem was all he¡¯d needed to do. Maybe one will help?

    How?

    How should I know? Even I think this is a little insane.

    Tak butted in again. Ah, but good thought. I need to advance too. Tomorrow. Maybe intelligence, I think that has gotten too low. We should advance together!

    You two can, I¡¯m already caught up. Almost have everything to level 2 too.

    ¡°Are you talking with someone?¡± Khiat asked behind him. She was aware of Lograve¡¯s Telepathy, and it wasn¡¯t too hard to see Daniel and Tak were concentrating on something.

    How long before she notices Hunter? ¡°Yeah, sorry. It¡¯s not important.¡± Finally paying attention to his surroundings, Daniel found himself in a winding tunnel leading underneath the house. The animated armor was in front, touching various places as it went and no doubt disabling traps. The corridor and, in fact, the house itself had been made with the duskers¡¯ full size in mind so even Hunter wasn¡¯t cramped.

    The end of the tunnel led to a luxurious room filled with furniture. Couches, mostly, of different styles. Some were made for sitting, others lying down, but all had a fair amount of pillows. They were positioned to face a plinth in the center of the room, where a shimmering red rock was placed. A middle-aged man in what Daniel took for fine clothing fixed them with half a stare. ¡°So, you¡¯re here to sell me some heliorite?¡±

    ¡°Believe it or not, that¡¯s just something that makes coming here convenient. Arpan, tell me you have the ear of someone important in the city.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡± Arpan narrowed his eyes.

    ¡°It¡¯s bad. This region might be next.¡± Khiat tensed beside Daniel. She hadn¡¯t been told exactly why they needed to speak to the Council.

    ¡°You¡¯re talking about something like what happened in the Thormundz?¡±

    Lograve shook his head and gripped the back of one couch dramatically. ¡°No. Worse. The gods need to know.¡±

    ¡°The only ones who could think of contacting them are the Council. Ah. Damn it. Dril, why didn¡¯t you stop me?¡±

    ¡°Sorry?¡± Lograve raised an eyebrow.

    ¡°It¡¯s, argh.¡± Arpan sighed in frustration. ¡°Lograve, swear to me this is important.¡±

    ¡°Well, only if you value all of everything.¡±

    ¡°Swear it!¡±

    ¡°Fine, yes. Can you get me a meeting?¡±

    Arpan thought to himself for a moment, still keeping the rock in the center of his line of sight at all times. ¡°Maybe. I¡¯m assuming you want this done as soon as possible?¡±

    Lograve smiled at that. ¡°I¡¯m sure that¡¯s not a foreign concept to you.¡±

    Arpan scoffed and sat up. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll see what I can pull off. Come back tomorrow afternoon. Now, heliorite, and that armor.¡± Arpan pointed to Hunter, who was able to fit comfortably in the room. This basement, for lack of a better word, must have been the size of the entire floorspace of the above shop. ¡°I¡¯ll buy any formulae off you if I¡¯m interested in, along with that beautiful metal you¡¯ve made a disgrace of.¡± Arpan thought a moment longer and then addressed Daniel directly. ¡°Wait, how did you get that armor on it in the first place? Did you have a Beastmaster stun it?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s no special enchantment on the armor,¡± Daniel replied, smiling. ¡°Just a slight radiant damage resistance from the metal and the standard level 2 armor enchantment I used as the base.¡±

    ¡°Ah, shame, if Dril could take over monsters that would¡­¡± he trailed off, made a concerted effort to maintain concentration on his current enchantment, and just managed it. In a pained voice, Arpan asked, ¡°Lograve, that monster is under control, right?¡±

    The Arcanist gave him what might have been a wink of commiseration. ¡°It¡¯s complicated. You¡¯re fine.¡±

    ¡°Lograve, tell me it¡¯s under control.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re fine Arpan,¡± he laughed. ¡°There is another armor enchantment you would be interested in. Daniel, Khare, if you would?¡±

    Arpan watched Hunter out of the corner of his eye as a glowing shirt of what should have been leather armor was withdrawn from the gestalt. ¡°Smuggling space, useful. What¡¯s the armor do?¡±

    ¡°Lightning immunity,¡± Daniel said.

    ¡°Lightning immunity!?¡± Arpan leapt back up, forgetting the ringcat entirely. ¡°I will give you three lapis if you-¡±

    ¡°But you explode.¡±

    ¡°Uhm, what?¡± Daniel explained the intricacies of the lightning link enchantment, and then for good measure covered the others he knew, withdrawing samples from an obliging Khare. It was faintly reminiscent of when he¡¯d displayed them before the dragon fight except there was fair less pressure, and the promise of being paid.

    ¡°I¡¯ll take all the heliorite you want to give me, the armor and trident enchantments, both ammunition types, and the lightning wings.¡±

    Daniel clutched his lightning wings protectively. They were the first set he¡¯d made, discounting the cobbled-together construction that had self-destructed on the way down. They had a solid gold appearance too, and were shaped like airplane wings. It should be said that Daniel could adjust the color of his creations to some degree, but that added a layer of difficulty. Still new to the thing his class was known for, the best he¡¯d done was give the armor he¡¯d made for Murdon specially colored straps. ¡°I want to keep mine. They¡¯re the only pair I have.¡±

    ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t you? Sell them in Threst and you¡¯d be richer than me.¡± Arpan shook his head. ¡°Bring them by tomorrow and I can get the formulae without breaking them down. Hmm, do you want payment tonight? That could be inconvenient.¡±

    Lograve spoke up. ¡°So long as tomorrow is fine, I can cover room and board today, Daniel. This deal comes with a rider Arpan, no telling anyone about his class.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not some gossip.¡± Arpan frowned. ¡°Honestly Aughal isn¡¯t so bad for rares unless you¡¯re not careful. Do what Lograve says and don¡¯t sign anything and you¡¯ll be fine.¡±

    Lograve, and by extension Daniel, weren¡¯t too comforted. ¡°I think we¡¯d both like to avoid it even becoming a problem.¡±

    ¡°Fine, fine. Ten viridian for everything. Don¡¯t spend it all in one place.¡±

    Daniel had just learned about currency in this world today and had no idea what anything cost, or what the exchange rates were. Even the price of a banana was something he couldn¡¯t guess at, if those existed. Still, he had a strange feeling upon hearing the offer. ¡°That sounds a little low. Isn¡¯t that level 4 coin for level 5 metal?¡±

    ¡°No! No you don¡¯t!¡± Arpan said pointedly. ¡°No bargaining powers! Ten is my final offer.¡±

    ¡°You have a bargaining power?¡± Evalyn asked on the side. ¡°You have been working on your charisma.¡±

    ¡°Sorry,¡± Daniel said, embarrassed. ¡°That¡¯s the first time it¡¯s come up since I got Bartering. I just had a feeling.¡±

    ¡°Look, you¡¯re paying for my silence and my tolerance of, er, argh! Twelve. No, ten viridian. Stop that!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not doing anything!¡± Daniel held out his hands innocently. ¡°Ten is fine!¡±

    Arpan eyed him suspiciously, then let the matter drop. ¡°Come by tomorrow. Dril, see them out and get some parchment. We¡¯ll need to write a letter.¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°This is your last chance. Take me to them, or I put you in irons.¡±

    ¡°Come on, you saw me pay for the rooms!¡±

    ¡°Who¡¯s to say they¡¯re even in the city anymore?¡±

    ¡°Where else are they going to go, Jeras? Everyone¡¯s got a bunch of advancements to cook off anyway. Jerky?¡± Thomas extended a piece of dried meat towards Jeras. Food had surprisingly done wonders for the guard¡¯s patience, and really, when you got to know the avianoid you could empathize with the stress he¡¯d been under. The Cleric had been doing an excellent job of buying the others time, but night had entered its second hour. Both his coin and Jeras were beginning to suffer from his efforts.

    Finally, it seemed Jeras had enough. ¡°That¡¯s it. You¡¯re under arrest.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡± Thomas, a level 2 Cleric, could have easily resisted the arrest but knew better than to try. He threw an exaggerated put off expression to the bartender, flinched when he accidentally looked at her face, and was summarily marched out.

    Ten minutes later, Daniel and the others arrived at the building with the name ¡®The Painted Dusk¡¯ on the side. ¡°Painted Dusk? That metaphor is a little on the nose,¡± Evalyn complained.

    ¡°Having dusk in the name is a way to let duskers know the rooms can fit them, and that they¡¯re properly shaded. I imagine you quickly run out of clever names.¡± Lograve walked up to the bar at the side of the room. ¡°Hello, there should have been some rooms reserved for us earlier by a Thomas?¡±

    The woman behind the bar was a dusker standing with the fullness of her height. In a sense the naming convention was unnecessary, the height of the floors made this tavern taller than the surrounding building. ¡°We have your rooms,¡± she said, a conflicted tone in her voice. ¡°But the human was arrested. Just missed them. They were looking for you. You¡¯re not trouble, are you?¡±

    ¡°The rest of you, feel free to get some sleep,¡± Lograve said, sitting down and putting his head in both hands. ¡°I¡¯m going to need a drink.¡±

 Chapter 101: Vacation

    ¡°Daniel? I¡¯m sorry, I think I overslept.¡± A voice broke first through his door, and then his dreams. ¡°Are you in there?¡±

    ¡°Ugh.¡± He blinked, then registered who was talking. ¡°Khiat, don¡¯t open the door, the sun¡¯s out,¡± he mumbled.

    ¡°What?¡± The doorknob began to turn and Daniel panicked, trying to close the curtains. Instead, he accidentally ripped them off with his empowered strength. Khiat, hearing the noise, swung open the door and froze when she saw the sunlight coming through the window. Mercifully, that was only in the metaphorical sense as the killing rays didn¡¯t travel to the door.

    ¡°Uh.¡± Daniel looked at the partially torn curtains in his hand. ¡°Good morning?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m so sorry, it¡¯s already past dawn. I should have woken up but-¡±

    ¡°Khiat, it¡¯s fine,¡± Daniel said, glancing up with a frown at the curtain rod he¡¯d broken. It¡¯d been made from some kind of reed strong enough to hold up against cloth but couldn¡¯t contest someone of his level. ¡°I think we¡¯re all sleeping in.¡±

    ¡°You weren¡¯t waking up at dawn?¡± Daniel heard embarrassment in her voice and saw, as he brought the curtain off of him, that Khiat was already in her armor.

    ¡°No. Don¡¯t worry, Hunter would have woken you up if we were.¡±

    Khiat glanced at the ringcat who was standing by her. ¡°It can do that?¡±

    ¡°He can,¡± Daniel corrected. We should tell her about you at some point Hunter.

    If we can trust her, maybe.

    Daniel left that for a future version of himself to deal with. ¡°Honestly, now that we¡¯re in the city I¡¯d like to sleep in more. Nothing trying to kill us is a nice change of pace. You¡¯d like that too, right? If you wanted, you could sleep until at least noon.¡±

    ¡°But you¡¯d have to stay nearby.¡±

    It was a fair point. Divination Aegis blocked any kind of detection power from getting to him, or people in his immediate area. It also unintentionally functioned as a proximity indicator as he could see everyone it was or wasn¡¯t active on, although testing had revealed that was only if he knew they were in the general area. ¡°We¡¯ve got roughly a hundred meters to work with and I could just do enchanting during the morning, though I need more material. Starting to regret not getting any of those bones. Also, I did want to ask Arpan about a way to extend the effect or make my Focus better.¡±

    ¡°If he could, could I go back to my village?¡± The carapace on Khiat¡¯s face arranged itself slightly in what Daniel was going to call a hopeful expression.

    ¡°If that¡¯s what you want. You seemed to like walking through the city earlier.¡±

    Khiat nodded, but there was a note of hesitation in her voice afterward. ¡°It¡¯s big. I¡¯ve always wanted to come here at some point. If you¡¯re ok with it, I¡¯d like to go back to Mr. Ornithar¡¯s shop, but I do miss home.¡±

    If only she knew how bad homesickness could get. ¡°Yeah, I get that. I wouldn¡¯t mind asking him more about how Artificer and Craftsman powers differ and if they ever cross over since I have a power with ¡®Craftsman¡¯ in it. Maybe that¡¯d be a little too obvious, but still.¡±

    ¡°You like to ask a lot of questions.¡±

    ¡°I guess you could say I¡¯m naturally curious.¡± Daniel shrugged. ¡°Well, I¡¯m awake now. I¡¯m going to try and fix this, but you can go back to sleep.¡±

    ¡°Are you sure?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Everyone else is going to be advancing, so we have a lot of free time. Think of this like a vacation.¡± Khiat didn¡¯t understand that, but the word holiday did the trick. Probably more due to how she was raised than any faulty magical translator. Hunter lingered for a moment in the hallway, then went to find Tak.

    For Daniel¡¯s part, he looked around for some way to fix the broken rod. His room was wider than he¡¯d expected, but also shorter. It resembled a space hotel crossed with a regular one. There was about a half meter of clearance from his head to the ceiling when he stood, giving the impression of being underground even though day lit streets were visible outside the window. There was also a bed and a small side table. Decent, if cramped, but the room was built this way because it was stacked on top of another one.

    The inn they were in had human-sized rooms along the outer edge, one over the other, while massive rooms to accommodate the duskers lined the interior in a ring of their own. The disparity between both sizes meant Hunter would have taken the rest of the space in Daniel¡¯s room, while he could rest comfortably in Khiat¡¯s. The dusker had been hesitant about the arrangement at first but relented when told the alternative was him sleeping outside. She also seemed to think the ringcat was cute, and Daniel was saving that ammunition for when Hunter got too prideful about how much stronger he was.

    On a whim, Daniel used Analyze Material on the reed in hopes it would help. He felt immediate comprehension upon using it, but the details were also displayed on his phone.

    <hr>

    River Reed (Material, Variant: Desert, Nonmagical, Level: 0)

    Plant matter that confers no special properties if used in Crafting or Enchanting.

    <hr>

    ¡°Nice,¡± Daniel said sarcastically. The material being nonmagical meant he couldn¡¯t directly use enchantment to fix it, and he wasn¡¯t confident in his ability to on such a low level material anyway. So far he¡¯d only been successful with the heliorite and was beginning to worry that he¡¯d spoiled himself by not starting the hard way. He¡¯d have to check how enchanting with bone worked the next time they went hunting.

    Daniel thought a little harder and checked his phone to go over the options he had to try and fix the curtain. After a minute of thinking, Daniel decided to use Construct Projectile to form the broken rod into what was technically a crossbow bolt. The fact that it looked just like the undamaged version of the curtain rod was entirely coincidental and Daniel didn¡¯t feel like he was cheating at all.

    He then used Construct Shield to repair the curtain itself, speaking the echoing incantation softly. It became very stiff, unable to be drawn open. Here Daniel did do some improvising, making it so the curtain could be opened and closed like a hatch. Since there was no time limit on how long these items would last, it would be a good enough fix until he could afford a replacement. At that point, he considered sleep but was far too awake to try.

    Fortunately, no one else had been woken up by the excitement. It was either some material in the walls, or maybe the work of a Builder, but each had impressive sound reduction. Considering the tavern was open both day and night, it would be impossible for anyone to sleep otherwise. Stretching, Daniel decided to find the other member of their group that he suspected was exempt from needing to advance.

    While it was, at best, two hours past dawn a middling crowd filled the ground floor below the lodgings. Another person more comfortable amidst a sea of strangers might have stopped to mingle, meeting those many and various who had chosen to eat here this morning and perhaps being drawn into one or more directions. But it wasn¡¯t to be, it wasn¡¯t who he was, so instead Daniel sidled along the edges of the room to the door making a mental note to find food later.

    ¡°Khare? Khare?¡± They said they¡¯d be near the entrance. Exiting the tavern, Daniel looked around the three sides of the building not connected to an adjacent one. This building had been Thomas¡¯ suggestion, somewhere both they and Khiat could stay while being roughly halfway from the walls to Spires. Somewhere unobtrusive, but close. Considering he hadn¡¯t been to the city in years, Thomas¡¯ memory was fantastic.

    Daniel brought out his Focus, careful to keep it either on hand or in an interior pocket. Rogues apparently frequented cities and accounted for no small amount of theft as they sought advancement. As was Bards using charm powers on people this was a legal gray area in this kingdom with the understanding that the city guard wouldn¡¯t enforce the law for thefts under a certain amount. The risk was low on the streets, especially because he¡¯d be more resistant to their stealth powers than most, but the risk of losing his phone or necklace was too great not to take precautions. He¡¯d kept his crossbow on him too in case anyone tried anything.

    Now it was time to make use of the new function of his Focus. The app that had been unwillingly installed on his phone in place of the Encyclopedia had an icon that looked like a radar dish with a slash through it. The asterisk on the power name didn¡¯t apply to the actual app on his phone, only added more questions to what was going on with that. Daniel had first thought it meant the power was gained through a power evolution since that¡¯s how he¡¯d gotten Beast Friend, and Evalyn¡¯s Valor Song might have come to her the same way. That meant whatever that old guy did was something similar, or there was an entire other meaning that unidentification prevented him from knowing. He hadn¡¯t brought out his phone to ruminate on that though.

    Tapping the app displayed a toggle at the top, where he could distinguish whether the function passively disrupted his surroundings or not. It was disabled, as otherwise the Fate could track him by the blank spot in their vision. Even Lograve hadn¡¯t known how the class operated exactly, though they¡¯d managed so far. Below the toggle was a list of alphabetized names. It wouldn¡¯t reveal absolutely everyone around him, that¡¯s what he had Hunter for, but he could control who was screened by the function by additional toggles attached to each name. By extension, he could see which of his friends was nearby. Khare¡¯s name was on the list, so he knew the gestalt hadn¡¯t run off.

    ¡°Khare?¡±

    Rising out of the ground and startling some on the road, the Martialist appeared from the last side of the building Daniel had checked. The eastern one, facing the rising sun. Daniel noticed absentmindedly the tavern had no windows on this side but wasn¡¯t thinking too much about it. ¡°Morning.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Do you still have advancement left? It feels like you¡¯ve been improving every day. Are you getting enough sleep? Wait, do you need sleep?¡±

    Khare fully formed into a humanoid shape, even including legs despite them no longer needing to do that. They¡¯d been in that form ever since Daniel had climbed out of the strange, plant-infested cave hidden inside of them. It sure made reading the gestalt easier as they gave Daniel a knowing smile. ¡°Fast.¡±

    ¡°Sorry, I¡¯ll slow down. Do you know if Lograve got Thomas last night? I should have asked if Hunter could smell him or something but I forgot. It¡¯s weird not knowing where everyone is and what they¡¯re doing. Wait, does that sound creepy?¡± Daniel was suddenly self-conscious and aware of the crowded morning traffic around him. ¡°Do you want to come inside? There¡¯s enough room in my room for both of us if you want to talk.¡±

    Khare looked surprised, but nodded, giving no other answer to the multitude of questions.

    ¡°Great! Khiat¡¯s still asleep, probably will be for a couple of hours. I¡¯m guessing Lograve is too if he spent a few hours wherever the prisons are here.¡± Daniel and Khare walked back into the Painted Dusk, drawing more attention than when he¡¯d left. The patrons eyed the gestalt but quickly returned to their conversations. The thought didn¡¯t occur to Daniel as to what might have happened to Khare if they weren¡¯t with someone Blessed, but it did to the gestalt.

    ¡°I figure we¡¯ve got at least an hour,¡± Daniel said, sitting on his bed while Khare took up the floor space. There wasn¡¯t a chair, but the mass of vines hardly needed one. ¡°Although I might need to get food before then. Something for Khiat too.¡± Silence. ¡°I need to find a library. Advancing from reading didn¡¯t work the last time I tried, but at the very least it¡¯d be interesting.¡±

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    Khare didn¡¯t respond, so Daniel spent a few minutes looking out the window after awkwardly raising his curtain wall. He¡¯d talked with Khare before, of course. Definitely a few times, though the gestalt had prompted most of those conversations. They didn¡¯t think he was annoying, did they? ¡°I think I¡¯ve said this before, but thanks again for letting me use your power, in more ways than one. I hope that¡¯s not too much of a trouble. I should also ask Arpan about bags of holding so I can free up your space. Do those exist?¡± No response. ¡°Sorry, I can be a little over the place. Anything you wanted to ask?¡±

    ¡°Origin?¡±

    Daniel shifted, moving to lean back against the wall as he thought hard. He¡¯d been very careful with who he told about this, but now? Despite all the warnings, Aughal felt like a safe enough place. ¡°I guess I have been mentioning where I come from more often recently. Honestly, the only other people I haven¡¯t told the whole truth are Thomas and Tak. Maybe Tak is fine to tell but Thomas?¡± He shook his head. ¡°I trust you. I have to admit it still feels like I don¡¯t know too much about you, but you and the rest of the gestalt saved Hunter. All of us really. Can I ask you to keep it secret?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    One of Daniel¡¯s legs was vibrating nervously. Saying what he was about to would have been very foolish if the room wasn¡¯t soundproofed and his phone didn¡¯t prevent scrying. Even so, he closed the curtain before speaking. The fact that it now perfectly fit in the empty window space did improve his sense of security. ¡°I¡¯m not sure how well you understand what I say if it¡¯s like how you sound to us. Given the problems I¡¯ve been having with language, I think it¡¯s best if I just keep it simple. I¡¯m from another world, Khare. Not the Octyrrum.¡± Shifting in the vines. Was Khare thinking?

    ¡°Repeat?¡±

    ¡°I come from another planet, I guess? But the Octyrrum¡¯s flat so I¡¯m not sure if this is a planet or just...¡± Instead of finishing that thought, Daniel unlocked his phone and showed Khare the image. ¡°See this? My family, and behind them is my world. Just humans, no other races. No magic. I wasn¡¯t here until after the Upswell. I think that¡¯s what brought me here, but we still don¡¯t know really.¡±

    The gestalt put the phone on the bed beside Daniel, and he saw that the hand was shaking a little. More accurately, the vines compressed into that shape seemed to struggle to maintain it. When Khare spoke next there was frank disbelief in his voice. ¡°Artificer?¡±

    ¡°I know, I just had the class when I woke up. Had my attributes boosted too, or, rather I gained attributes. Before I came here, I wouldn¡¯t have been able to climb a tree, but it was the first thing I did after waking up. You don¡¯t happen to know how that could happen, do you?¡±

    Khare shifted into their amorphous shape for a minute, leaving Daniel to wonder if they were thinking about that question or just his insane ramblings overall. Eventually, Khare took their chimeric form and just shook their head.

    Daniel laughed. ¡°Yeah, this was the first thing that set Lograve off about how I¡¯m an affront to the logical neatness of the world. He¡¯s clueless too.¡±

    ¡°Truth?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not joking. I don¡¯t understand why or how it happened, it just did. I don¡¯t even remember what happened right before I got here.¡± Daniel gritted his teeth as his mind wandered to that week before he found himself here. Even now, it was painful to try remembering. ¡°After I landed, everything was on fire and it was all I could do to stay alive. Now¡¯s pretty much the first time I have to breathe. I should get one of those toys actually. What else am I going to spend the money on besides food?¡± Daniel thought for a moment and then frowned. ¡°Oh right, Artificer stuff. That¡¯s going to be expensive.¡±

    Khare waited for Daniel to stop talking to repeat their question. ¡°Truth?¡± In fairness, Daniel hadn¡¯t seen enough utter disbelief in the gestalt to recognize that emotion.

    ¡°Yeah. Ask Lograve if you don¡¯t believe me because he does. Just, not in public. It¡¯s already bad being a rare here, I don¡¯t want to think about what people would do if they found out about this.¡±

    ¡°Family?¡±

    ¡°They didn¡¯t come through. I wasn¡¯t with them, assuming that would have made a difference. My dad, actually, well, we don¡¯t know for sure but he¡¯s probably¡­¡± he trailed off, sagging a little.

    Khare¡¯s upper form dissolved once more, the space they were taking up shrinking. ¡°Kob.¡± Daniel didn¡¯t speak for a moment, and after the pause, Khare continued to speak. ¡°Remembrance.¡± Shifting, they clearly wanted to say something else but there was a delay between each word comparable to the average sentence. ¡°Inheritance?¡±

    To Daniel, it felt like Khare was trying to get something complicated across. He didn¡¯t have a suspicion of what they meant other than grief, but Khare could have gotten that across with just the name. ¡°I know, you saw them die. I wish I could say I didn¡¯t understand.¡±

    ¡°Inheritance,¡± Khare repeated.

    Daniel raised an eyebrow. ¡°Did Kob give you something?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Do you want to talk about it?¡± Daniel ventured.

    ¡°Identify.¡± A vine pointed to themself.

    ¡°Uh, ok?¡± The last time Daniel had used his own power was back with Khiat. Normally Hunter just tagged everything and alerted him to any threats, which took a lot off of Daniel¡¯s plate when it came to scouting. Still, it was easy enough to do. Green light ringed an already green creature and Daniel was surprised to find Khare was sharing access to their powers. ¡°Wait. That¡¯s weird.¡±

    ¡°Problem?¡±

    ¡°Do you mind if I take a look at some of these?¡± Khare shook their head and Daniel dove into his Encyclopedia. While powers like Chimeric Form and Mobile Armory attracted his interest, it was the asterisks that he looked up first. The three powers with asterisks.

    <hr>

    Stone Form* (Feature, Endurance, Domain: Transmutation, Archetype Restriction: Gestalt, Level: 4):

    You possess the Power to Transmute your form to add a tough, rocky hide granting Resistance: Physical Damage, Resistance: Lightning, and Resistance: Fire. The initial transmutation requires a major amount of Mana, but no mana is needed to maintain the effect. Repair of damaged transmuted matter requires additional mana, scaling with the amount of material used or transformed. This is a Magical Feature that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression, however already transmuted matter will not be reverted within one.

    -

    Bleeding Blades* (Ability, Strength, Spell, Domain: Destruction, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to enhance Weapons: Edged that you possess for a moderate Mana cost, increasing the amount of Damage: Physical that they inflict and adding Chance: Minor to inflict Effect: Bleed. The probability of inflicting this effect scales with the nature of the injury and your Attribute: Luck, while inversely scaling with the target¡¯s Attribute: Endurance. Weapons enhanced in this way will remain so for one minute, after which they will revert to their normal form. This is a Magical Ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression. Enhanced weapons will revert to their normal form if exposed to such an area, or if they leave your possession.

    -

    Menace* (Ability, Charisma, Incantation, Spell, Domain: Illusion, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to inflict Effect: Fear on Creatures you injure. The probability of inflicting this effect scales with your Attribute: Charisma and damage recently inflicted, inversely scaling with the opponent¡¯s Attribute: Wisdom. This is a Magical Ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression. The incantation required by this spell is not a set phrase, any sufficiently imposing oration will suffice.

    <hr>

    ¡°What the hell?¡±

    ¡­

    Khiat woke up again four hours after the first panicked start she¡¯d had to the day. Oversleeping wasn¡¯t one of her vices, but the adjustment to her regular rotation had been taxing. With what she¡¯d been able to get today, she almost felt normal.

    The large cat wasn¡¯t in her room anymore, which made Khiat feel a little sad. It really was cute, and having it sleep between her and the door had made her feel very protected. As she woke up more, she vaguely remembered it padding off somewhere. She¡¯d experimentally tried to pat its head last night just before trying to go to sleep, but a soft growl had stopped her.

    The first thing she did was put on her travel armor, having taken it off again to nap. It wasn¡¯t too irritating to wear, but this inn had been very comfortable and she¡¯d wanted to fully relax. The bed had been made of sand like hers at home, but a covering of some hide over it prevented it from spilling out across the stone floors. Finding out that an establishment had been set up specifically to suit her needs made the city feel welcoming, if there weren¡¯t people in it who would try to kill her.

    Khiat checked Daniel¡¯s room first to find it empty, curtains drawn. They looked odd, but she didn¡¯t closely inspect them. Instead, she wandered into the common room to find Lograve, Daniel, and the plant man having a discussion over a meal two of them were sharing.

    ¡°-from what I knew about Ritualism, I¡¯d received it two levels earlier than I should have. If there is something odd going on with power evolutions, granting people powers outside what they¡¯d normally receive, that could explain it. It¡¯s possible our classes could have been affected by what happened to the Spoke. We¡¯ll have to check the others and, oh, good evening Khiat.¡±

    ¡°Sorry, I think I still overslept.¡±

    ¡°Nonsense, I only woke up half an hour ago. Damned law enforcement here kept me waiting for an hour before just sending me away.¡±

    ¡°They didn¡¯t let Thomas go? Oh no!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine, it¡¯s fine. I¡¯m sure they¡¯ve just ¡®lost¡¯ him in an attempt to pressure us into revealing what we know. Shady, and I¡¯d expect we can peel off a small repayment from that damnable lieutenant''s hide once it¡¯s made known they arrested someone without cause. Assuming the law works at all here.¡± He took a sip of water, having declined further alcohol after last night had left him with a headache today. ¡°Now, if they hurt him in any way, his church will actually skin people. A benefit of taking a class with a default organization, I suppose.¡±

    ¡°I thought he worshiped the Hand?¡± Khiat remembered her mother¡¯s stories of the gods. The Hand was described as the kindest, the most merciful.

    ¡°Oh, I¡¯ve seen a Cleric of the Hand go to war. Not someone you want to anger as they¡¯re the ones you¡¯d turn to after being beaten bloody. Khiat, I assure you, you don¡¯t need to worry and this is in no way your fault. They¡¯ll keep him a day or so at most, by then pressure from his church will free him if nothing else will. I, uhm, made a rather irate ¡®confession¡¯ to them on my way back last night. It¡¯s not like he wasn¡¯t going to spend his time in one place advancing anyways.¡±

    ¡°Why aren¡¯t you advancing?¡±

    Lograve took a piece of bread and pushed around the meat on his plate with it. There was a sauce that soaked into it, and the sight made Khiat hungry. ¡°I¡¯m level 4, advancing will take me close to half a day and that¡¯s for one of the attributes I¡¯ve been neglecting. I¡¯m filling up so I can focus. You should get some food too. I think these two are eager to go about town.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s a place that sells spellbooks!¡± Daniel exclaimed. ¡°I think we go by there to look and then get to Arpan¡¯s.¡±

    ¡°You won¡¯t need me,¡± Lograve commented after a bite. ¡°Knowing him he¡¯ll need another day or so, just give me an update or a time and place if he has one.¡±

    Khiat was more curious about the first thing Daniel had said. ¡°You can learn powers from books?¡±

    ¡°No, and I don¡¯t know why he¡¯s so interested either. Arcanists commonly gain the Spellcraft feature that is, to spells, what enchanting powers are to formulae. I have yet to receive either kind of power.¡± There was no small amount of bitter disappointment in those words, which were also accompanied by a slight drip of the red sauce that Lograve dabbed at with the diminishing piece of bread. ¡°Mm, shouldn¡¯t talk while I eat. Murdon¡¯s always on me about that.¡±

    There wasn¡¯t much else said over the conversation, though Khiat felt she¡¯d walked into something important that had been interrupted. Part of her wanted to ask, but she was still too grateful to try and upset her protectors by prying. As the three prepared for their day out, excitement took over as Khiat wondered what this day would bring.

 Chapter 102: Far Out and High Above

    ¡°Is this good? Nothing nearby?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Do you want to tell Daniel we are safe?¡±

    ¡°I think he knows. Maybe he¡¯s sleeping. Maybe too far.¡±

    ¡°Ah. Here, I will remove your armor.¡±

    Tak undid various latches and clasps that bound the armor to Hunter. The ringcat stretched gratefully when it was done, finally free of the metal that had encased him for over a day. Though the two could communicate telepathically through their bond, the freedom to speak without drawing attention was another Hunter enjoyed. ¡°We could hunt. Seek prey.¡±

    ¡°If you are hungry perhaps. Otherwise, advancing will take time. A few hours for me, maybe the same since you are new. Are you sure you can advance?¡±

    Hunter dragged a track through the sand with a paw absentmindedly. ¡°Yes. Maybe. Haven¡¯t tried.¡±

    ¡°It is good to have waited. You can waste what you have if you are not careful.¡± Tak brought himself to the ground in a cross-legged position. The two had chosen the top of one of the dunes near the city for their advancement, in opposition to Evalyn and Lograve who both elected to stay in the inn. Leaving the city to get here had been no problem since Tak was relatively unassuming, even with an armored ringcat by his side. ¡°How much do you think you have?¡±

    ¡°Daniel says 12.¡±

    ¡°Oh, that is a lot! But I think I am close to that. I will have to think about what I want. Anything you want to talk about before we start? I will have to be quiet after. You too, probably.¡±

    Hunter circled to the other side of Tak, away from the pile of armor, and laid down himself. The sand was warm, and the day would grow hot as the sun continued to rise. Despite his species¡¯ ability to tolerate most natural environments, Hunter was attuned to the grasslands of his spawning. With time that might change, but today it was as if his senses were muted. The air was too dry, and the sounds too muffled. ¡°What should I do? Which attribute?¡±

    ¡°What did Daniel say?¡±

    ¡°He said to consider charisma. Too low.¡±

    ¡°That is smart. But also dumb.¡± Tak shook his head. ¡°The difference will not get worse until you level up again. Why not make yourself stronger, or faster? We will have to fight soon, and you do not have many special things to attack with. I want to work on my intelligence. It is more difficult for my class, but it is important.¡±

    ¡°Double Cut is good,¡± Hunter pointed out. It was the strange way of attacking both he and Tak could do if close enough together, but not too close. It did tire him in a way he¡¯d previously associated with using his roar or springing attack, a sense of mana loss the nascent Awakened Ringcat could better appreciate following his transformation. Simply coordinating swipes from both their paws, as Tak had to transform his hands to use the attack, would have been enough. Even so, Hunter suspected the attack harmed prey more than it should.

    ¡°Double Cut is good,¡± Tak acknowledged. ¡°But it can be better. Whatever you think is best, you should do it. Just do not rethink or things can go bad.¡±

    Somehow, Hunter felt the chances of that were lower with Tak here. It didn¡¯t have to do with their bond, but the comfort he felt in Tak¡¯s presence that even Daniel¡¯s couldn¡¯t provide. That wasn¡¯t to say Hunter valued Tak¡¯s friendship more, but on a certain level, the Totem Warrior understood him better and didn¡¯t need as much said between them. He doubted Daniel would want to come out here in the sun to advance. ¡°What happens when I am done?¡±

    Tak already had his eyes closed but answered as if it wasn¡¯t a bother at all. ¡°You can wait for me. Or try another, if there is time to, though it gets harder the more you try each day. For me, advancing intelligence always feels like I am doing it after another already. Very annoying.¡± The Totem Warrior reached for the wooden toy tied to his back as if to set it loose, then thought better of it. ¡°Then we¡¯ll head back.¡±

    ¡°Back to the city?¡± Hunter asked hesitantly.

    ¡°Yes! Unless you don¡¯t want to?¡±

    Hunter¡¯s head sunk further into the sand, the tips of his fangs tearing twin canals into it. ¡°Bad place.¡± The words were mumbled.

    ¡°Yes, and no. It would not be as bad if you did not look different. Oh!¡± Tak looked up brightly. ¡°I see what Daniel meant. Maybe you can get a power to disguise yourself. Most of those are charisma, I think.¡±

    ¡°Won¡¯t make me stronger,¡± Hunter grumbled as if annoyed at Tak for going back on his previous argument.

    ¡°Yes, but other people would talk to you. Not be afraid. Or not, but that isn¡¯t just it is it?¡± No answer. ¡°Daniel, I think, does not like the wild. You do. I do. The city, it makes you feel bad?¡± Tak put a hand on one of Hunter¡¯s front shoulders and rubbed it for a few seconds. ¡°It is ok. People are different. Both of you are smart and I am not.¡±

    ¡°You are wise.¡± Hunter looked at his friend. ¡°What you do know, you don¡¯t doubt.¡±

    ¡°Thank you! But that is not the same.¡± Tak took his hand away and propped his head up on both hands, elbows on knees as he thought. ¡°There is no good answer, but I think it is not a problem?¡±

    ¡°We are different,¡± Hunter protested. ¡°Before, it was easy. Had to hunt. Had to survive. Dangerous, but good. Now, we could stay in the city forever.¡±

    ¡°But Daniel still wants to hunt, yes? You won¡¯t be in the city forever. Some, but he will be out here some. Compromise! But that is still not a good solution for you?¡±

    ¡°Bad place,¡± Hunter repeated.

    Tak eyed the Spires in the distance. ¡°Is it the Spoke? I thought you could not sense it.¡±

    ¡°No. Too many. Too much. No escape.¡±

    ¡°Ah.¡± Tak looked at the distant walls. ¡°Do you want to go back at all?¡±

    ¡°Have to.¡± Hunter¡¯s tone was resigned with that.

    ¡°Yes,¡± he sighed melodically. ¡°But maybe this is just adjusting. And we can keep coming here! Should go back before night, but now is fine to be out.¡±

    ¡°Hmm. Thank you.¡±

    ¡°You keep too much to yourself,¡± Tak laughed, swatting at Hunter¡¯s shoulder this time. ¡°Should speak more. Or think, when others are around. It is bad to let thoughts wait to get worse. We are both your friends, and that means we listen! But we are also talking too much now, I think. Better to have a clear head when advancing. Are you feeling alright?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± Hunter closed his eyes, not feeling relief exactly but a sense that the beast stalking him was now further away. ¡°You are a good friend.¡±

    ¡°Thank you!¡± When there was nothing else said, Tak straightened his back and closed his eyes again, reaching out to a place within himself Hunter now tried to glimpse. Once, he wouldn¡¯t have had to consider any method of growth other than by the consumption of others. Every day, the ringcat grew further and further from his humble origins. This would be another step, using the power he felt within him to make himself stronger. Hunter had seen how those around him had gained new and strange abilities, mostly in Daniel¡¯s case who¡¯d explained and offered to share all of them.

    In truth, Hunter didn¡¯t blame Daniel for what he liked. He wasn¡¯t of this world and didn¡¯t care for places not of worked wood or stone. While he did seem anxious near large groups of people, he had the luxury of ignoring the presence of those he couldn¡¯t see. To Hunter, the city was a barrage of sound and scent. Even the large insect¡¯s room had only muffled the noxious noises. And, it was a trap. Walls higher than he could leap, narrow passages guarded by those who would cut him down if he tried to run.

    That was life. It was hard, even a dull terror at times, but at least now he was free. And, it wouldn¡¯t be forever. Hunter chided himself for what he was beginning to think was an overreaction. Tak was right, he did feel better for talking about it. That had simply never occurred to the ringcat. Before and after meeting Daniel, life had been about enduring the worst. He¡¯d have to get used to being an exception to his kind, and to the fact that there could be more to life.

    To that end, Hunter drew further into himself. Sound and smell were still there, but outside the city they were easier to block out. Reaching an inner calm was possible here, and necessary. He knew that but didn¡¯t know why he knew that. There was an instinct in his head that didn¡¯t belong, nudging him in the right direction, hinting at what to do. It had come with his voice. At first, he¡¯d worried this was another attempt to control him by outside forces, yet it was just him here. It was just something trying to help.

    Hunter found the core of himself, thought once more about what the future would hold, and then opened his eyes.

    ¡­

    ¡°I just want to say, again, that this is kidnapping.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not kidnapping,¡± the well-dressed man beside Thomas said with a tired frown that gave his face an overall scrunched-together look.

    ¡°So, I¡¯m free to go?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°That arrest was bullshit by the way. Was that you?¡±

    ¡°I wish it was brother.¡± The other man rubbed a temple now as he waited. He wore a suit that showed the outline of the muscles underneath. Naturally gained, not from advancement. Thomas¡¯ red hair was echoed in the one standing by him, though the Cleric lost a few centimeters over his counterpart.

    Both he and Thomas were within the South, or Sun Spire. The magic inherent in the building from both mortal and divine attention had led to the creation of something close to what Daniel would call an escalator, only this one curved into itself and went from top to bottom. Elevating platforms also existed but were reserved for important business. This may have qualified, but Eddor Kaysian clearly wanted his brother to endure the longer ride.

    Thomas, for his part, was unshackled and even had all of the things the guards had taken from him. One or two missing coins would have been expected after an arrest, but once they found out who he was not a thing was touched. Even if he was technically free, two of his brother¡¯s spire guard detail were standing behind him. He wasn¡¯t yet ready to see what would happen if he tried to run. ¡°Where are we going anyway?¡±

    ¡°Someone wants to talk to you.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not Dad, is it? Is this about me taking a class and running off?¡±

    Eddor snickered in a way he probably didn¡¯t mean to make him sound like a young teenager trying to hide in the ladies¡¯ washroom. ¡°I doubt it. You see, brother, I¡¯m the new head of the family.¡± The man stuck up his chin proudly until Thomas snorted.

    ¡°By default? Wait, is dad alright?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s fine,¡± the man sneered. ¡°But after Rodreick was found with his, heh, pants down our father rethought when to take retirement. It was about time.¡±

    ¡°Wait, that¡¯s where he died? The Rose Spire, or lower city?¡±

    ¡°Rose Spire, brother.¡± Eddor gave him a knowing smile, then continued. ¡°And Ytaya was killed on the Eye. I was there myself.¡±

    ¡°Damn,¡± Thomas said distantly, treating this like an actual conversation not held at sword point once the interesting details had come up. ¡°The Mirage has gotten bold. Aren¡¯t you worried?¡±

    The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    ¡°About what? Small time sand rebels? They never really do anything in the city itself,¡± Eddor said, in stark contrast to established fact. ¡°Rodreick was a fool and Ytaya was, well, a bug. What do you expect? They die every two decades even if you just stick them in the dirt. She was due for a burial soon.¡± The smile on his face didn¡¯t drop for a second. ¡°That whole faction is in chaos now. It¡¯s been a week and they aren¡¯t any closer to nominating a successor. Crest, Rodreick¡¯s imploded too. It¡¯s a good time to have a Council member¡¯s ear. Just imagine if we¡¯re left with three after this.¡±

    Thomas ignored the self-serving comments and zeroed in on one of the important ones. ¡°They can¡¯t revive Ytaya? Or Fredreick, but it would be too long now.¡±

    ¡°Oh, they tried with Ytaya.¡± Eddor waved a hand disinterestedly. ¡°It didn¡¯t work. As far as Rodreick, there wasn¡¯t enough left of him to bring back.¡± A troubled look momentarily crossed Eddor¡¯s face before it cleared. ¡°There¡¯s no point though. All of Ytaya¡¯s Legacy was stolen and no one knows enough to point the right finger. Who knows if they even still have enough to piece together another council member?¡±

    ¡°Huh.¡± Thomas glanced out one of the odd windows they passed on the way up. The stairs didn¡¯t move as fast as he could climb them, but it would average out if they were going all the way up. ¡°So where are we going?¡±

    ¡°That shark¡¯s lair. The,¡± he waved a hand airly. ¡°Fate whatever. I can¡¯t remember the name of the species. It¡¯s not important.¡±

    ¡°Why are you taking me to the Fate?¡±

    ¡°Come on, you should be able to figure that out. Although, he wants to talk to you as well.¡±

    Thomas sighed. ¡°Brother, you¡¯re terrible at trying to sound mysterious.¡±

    The man sniffed. ¡°I have no idea what you are talking about. In either case, things have changed since you ran away from home and despoiled yourself. Not that I¡¯m complaining though. House Rodamas made a very interesting decision a year or so after you left. They¡¯re no longer a major player.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Despite Thomas¡¯ distaste for his brother, his affinity for gossip edged it out. ¡°They¡¯ve been one step from taking over from Rodreick¡¯s house for, what, a century? Why didn¡¯t they take his seat when he died?¡±

    ¡°They got a seat. In a way,¡± he laughed. ¡°You missed quite the scandal.¡±

    ¡°What happened?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll let you figure it out. You were always good at sticking your nose in other people¡¯s business.¡± He smiled sharply at his brother, knowing what not knowing would do to the Cleric. ¡°We¡¯re almost here, after all.¡±

    The interior of a Spire was, just like the exterior, reminiscent of a skyscraper. Each floor had a landing where the various ways to ascend met, pipes or other channels through the wall to funnel supplies up and waste down, and a certain cramped feeling that was at odds with the view you could get from any of the windows. Where it differed dramatically was the magic that blazed alongside water and sewage, powering many and various artifices added on over the years.

    One such was the Fate¡¯s suite, a set of rooms midway up the southern Sun Spire dedicated to Aughal¡¯s sole member of the class. The last one had died of old age after hitting their wall, only making it to level 4. When Thomas had last been here, the shavi whose name even he didn¡¯t know had been around level 3. He idly wondered how much stronger she¡¯d gotten as Eddor rapped on an actual wooden door, a sign of her station.

    To his surprise, a dusker opened it. Fortunately, the height of the floors in this Spire prevented this one from breaking apart its shell and they weren¡¯t as creepy to look at like that. How does Guy stand them? Thomas received another shock as he observed the interior of the suite. ¡°S-silver Eye?¡±

    ¡°Kaysian runt.¡± Sitting in one of the padded chairs in the room beyond the lounge was the very man himself. The silvered bird that had led the avianoid faction of the city ruthlessly for decades. Granted, the non-human factions stuck by whoever they appointed to the Council, countering the human¡¯s greater numbers with loyalty, but Aucrest Seliri had even won over the support of some of the Human families. Even-

    ¡°No way.¡± Sitting beside Silver Eye was another figure Thomas recognized. He was good with faces. She was Alecia Rodamas, wife of Horacio Rodamas who had himself been one heartbeat away from the Council. ¡°No way!¡±

    ¡°I see you¡¯ve caught your brother up on current events.¡± Aucrest brushed a loose feather off his arm. ¡°I assume, despite your self-appointed exile, you are still loyal to the city? We¡¯ve brought you here to answer some questions. There are rumors that a new Artificer has entered the city and we¡¯d like to make an approach to acquire their services.¡±

    ¡°Wait, we¡¯re with him now!?¡± Thomas had assumed that his house, being human, had gone to either of the other active human factions following Rodreick¡¯s death. How much of that faction did Seliri poach?

    ¡°Aucrest is a genius, brother.¡± Eddor nodded enthusiastically at Silver Eye, and Thomas wondered just how much it had taken to buy his loyalty. ¡°Father was nervous about it, of course, but he¡¯s not in charge now is he?¡±

    ¡°Your flattery aside, I am thankful for you intervening to bring your brother here. You may go, Eddor.¡±

    ¡°What? I thought-¡°

    ¡°I¡¯m sure your time is better spent elsewhere. Go.¡± Aucrest added a tint of firmness to the last word, and Eddor didn¡¯t have the courage to protest. He and his guard departed.

    ¡°So,¡± Thomas said blankly. ¡°What¡¯s to stop me from running out of here?¡±

    ¡°Nothing, of course,¡± Alecia replied brightly. ¡°You are free to go.¡±

    ¡°Ok. Thanks?¡± Thomas reached for the door handle, knowing the stick was coming.

    ¡°But-¡°

    There it is.

    ¡°We would have to issue warrants for all those you entered the city with.¡± The keenness in Aucrest¡¯s eyes unnerved him. He would do it, and he had the leverage to. ¡°Just until we can verify they don¡¯t pose a threat to our city. The Thormundz did fall under their watch.¡±

    ¡°That doesn¡¯t make sense! There¡¯s no way any of them did that.¡±

    Aucrest took a sip from a wide brimmed glass, not at all bothered by Thomas¡¯ tone. ¡°Maybe, but that¡¯s all the reason I need.¡±

    ¡°Or,¡± Alecia offered. ¡°You can answer our questions.¡±

    Thomas stared at the two sitting close together. ¡°You two actually married?¡±

    ¡°A matter of politics.¡±

    ¡°And convenience,¡± Alecia smiled.

    Thomas nodded after a few moments. ¡°Wow. Honestly, I get it. Both ways. You¡¯ve got this, I don¡¯t know, Bard and Hero thing going on but with you two it works.¡±

    ¡°Unlike your brother, kind words alone won¡¯t grant you leave.¡±

    ¡°Just being honest.¡± Thomas shrugged and took a seat after regaining his footing. ¡°I hate that I missed it. Was it a public wedding?¡±

    ¡°No, but you would have been invited.¡±

    ¡°Alecia, this is no time for banter.¡± Aucrest put the glass down and leaned forward. ¡°The Fate is a valuable resource and there are several shipments later this afternoon I would prefer she protect, rather than continue to deal with this. Aughal is in a very tenuous position right now and the last thing we need is the Mirage hitting another caravan. All I¡¯m trying to do here is help this city. So, are you going to make the wise decision?¡±

    ¡°Can I grab something out of here?¡± He got a put-upon expression out of Aucrest and a bemused giggle from Alecia. Not hearing a no, Thomas pulled out a bottle of wine and a glass from a strange cabinet. ¡°Look, I know how things work here. I know the guy you¡¯re looking for, that¡¯s the truth, but I also know what you¡¯d do to him.¡±

    Pouring himself a glass, he saw the Fate herself as he took a different seat just to mix things up. She was a strange creature with blue skin and no obvious way to tell gender, just like avianoids. Her head was flat and spread out, shaped roughly like an arrowhead with the point forming the snout. She had scales instead of skin, and functional ones rather than the pattern that layered on top of dusker flesh. The Fate was short, just above a meter tall, with a relatively long finned tail that just met the ankle. Even though she was lying back in a very fancy, overbuilt recliner, she looked uncomfortable.

    ¡°I have no idea what you are talking about. Aughal conducts its business within the purview of the laws of the greater kingdom.¡±

    ¡°I should mention my class lets me tell when people are lying.¡± Thomas delivered that line smoothly, but he guessed what Aucrest was about to say.

    Silver Eye didn¡¯t miss a beat, raising a hand and rubbing one of the few rings he wore. ¡°Common people perhaps. I won¡¯t mince words with you. Tell me who the Artificer is. Believe me, it¡¯s in his best interest if you do.¡±

    Thomas took a sip from his glass. ¡°Let me get this straight. Two of the Council are dead, the Mirage is up your ass, the region next door just collapsed into a burning heap, and this is what you want to talk about?¡± Thomas¡¯ calm demeanor changed in an instant. ¡°Wait, you don¡¯t even know about the thing!¡±

    Aucrest and Alecia both raised an eyebrow. ¡°What thing?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s this thing in the mountains stealing people¡¯s souls!¡±

    ¡°Ridiculous,¡± Aucrest said dismissively, although the change in the man before him didn¡¯t escape his notice. In her throne, Silora shifted but remained silent as he had asked her to. ¡°I admit you aren¡¯t as vulnerable to pressure as your brother made me believe. Either way, I am only here to discuss what is best for Aughal.¡±

    Thomas¡¯ rapid breathing slowed, realizing that what he had to say was too impossible to be believed here. Better that Lograve try while he raised the alarm in the Divine Quarter. Instead, he set down his glass and crossed his arms. ¡°What¡¯s in it for me?¡±

    ¡°I believe I have already covered the consequences.¡±

    ¡°What, and how long can you make those charges stick? The way I see it, my friends just have to wait until the Mirage gets to you.¡±

    Alecia held up a quelling hand and tried a smile. ¡°Now now, let¡¯s not be unpleasant.¡±

    Right on cue, Thomas thought, not blind to the game both Aucrest and Alecia were playing.

    As if pre-planned, Aucrest took over after that. ¡°You would be performing a civic duty. Acquiring the services of a rare class, especially one that does not come from our allotment, would greatly benefit Aughal. Favor for you and your house would naturally result from this. And, your friend would be assured a comfortable life where she, or he, could advance in safety. Arpan Morel is the perfect example of how such people can function independently while still enriching our society. I doubt I need to remind you there have been more unsavory practices in the past.¡±

    Thomas nodded. ¡°Sure, sure, but you got to Arpan too late. He was already self-sufficient, wasn¡¯t he? What about your Fate here? Hey, you can leave the city whenever you want to, right?¡±

    ¡°Please do not distract Silora.¡± Silver Eye was back in control of the conversation, danger in his voice though he covered it. Somewhat. ¡°She is in the middle of important work and cannot be interrupted. As for your question, you know her biology would prevent her from traveling too far outside the city.¡±

    ¡°Convenient.¡±

    Aucrest looked almost uncomfortable as the conversation turned towards the Fate. ¡°We stray from the topic yet again. Perhaps you need me to prove my threats are more than empty?¡±

    ¡°Maybe what I need is to take what I know to the other Council members?¡± The air chilled further as Thomas pulled out the only real threat he could respond with.

    ¡°That would be unwise, for someone so concerned with keeping their acquaintances out of our politics.¡± Despite whatever artifact on him was blocking his feature, Thomas still felt Aucrest was telling the truth here. Or, at least, he believed he was.

    ¡°Well, if it¡¯s going to happen either way, might as well sell to the highest bidder right? That¡¯s practically our slogan. Oh, wait, no that¡¯s ¡®Death to the Tyrant¡¯. You know we killed one in the Thormundz too?¡± Thomas may have been wise enough to stop from saying what he did next, but he was starting to get a little annoyed. ¡°You know, he kind of reminds me of you. Well, he did.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sure you didn¡¯t mean that as a threat.¡± Alecia laughed, failing to break the tension.

    ¡°You think your class gives you power, boy. In your time away, it seems you have forgotten that that is not how we do things here.¡± Aucrest extended a finger towards Thomas, only for the hand to be dragged away by his wife.

    ¡°Husband, do not be hasty-¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t need you, do you know that!?¡± Aucrest seethed. ¡°Aughal can find this Artificer one way or the other, and if you think this is the hard way, then you¡¯ve been gone from this region too long. Tell me what I want to know before things get unpleasant.¡±

    Thomas was pretty sure this wasn¡¯t meant to be a direct threat, but he continued as if it was. ¡°What about my brother? We don¡¯t get along well, sure, but if there¡¯s one thing he cares about it¡¯s his image. Letting his kin out to dry, just after taking his role, wouldn¡¯t say the best things about him. Especially after he just crossed over to your side, across racial boundaries no less. He¡¯s not that much of an idiot to let any action against me stand, or else everyone will just see him as your vassal.¡± Thomas patted an object at his waist. ¡°Oh, and right, my class. Might not make me your equal, but good luck having anyone you care about healed, or Hand forbid, revived after the church learns about what you did to me. And if Quala finds out?¡± He shook his head. ¡°She fought a dragon. I doubt she¡¯d have trouble knocking you out of the sky.¡±

    Instead of falling further to anger, Aucrest composed himself, taking a sip from his own neglected glass. Then, he chuckled. ¡°What did your father do to drive you out? You would have made quite the head of House Kaysian. Flights above Eddor, that¡¯s for certain. An actual ally instead of a stevedore playing the part. It¡¯s a shame that¡¯s no longer possible.¡±

    Thomas was taken aback by the wistfulness that had suddenly entered Aucrest¡¯s tone. It was like he¡¯d realized anger wasn¡¯t getting him anywhere and had burned it off. Either that or it had been an act from the beginning. ¡°Dad didn¡¯t do anything. It¡¯s just not my thing. Neither is selling out my friends for quick coin. You don¡¯t even need me, you¡¯ve got a Fate.¡±

    ¡°Recent events have shown us her powers have their limits,¡± Aucrest replied, keeping the mood calm now. ¡°But, in the end, you are correct. I don¡¯t need you, you would have just made things easier. I¡¯ll let you go. I¡¯ll admit, you¡¯re too well-situated and too clever to adequately press. But this isn¡¯t over. You know, as well as I do that it¡¯s talent that makes or breaks a region, and rare classes are no exception to that. We can¡¯t let this opportunity slip through our fingers, or fall into the wrong hands.¡±

    ¡°Right. Glad to see everyone¡¯s following the law here.¡± Thomas stood. ¡°Alecia, Silver Eye, congrats on the wedding again. Really, I get it. Also, by the way, met your daughter in the Thormundz. I get the connection there too. Looks like Kaysian¡¯s not the only one to have a family member get a class.¡±

    ¡°I will deal with Tlara in my own time.¡± Thomas smiled, right before he had to suppress a look of horror. The Beastmaster didn¡¯t have any reason to keep the secret. ¡°And as we are technically political allies, I suppose I should tell you good day.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t be a stranger!¡± Alecia called out to him as Thomas stood, placing the wine bottle back instead of swiping it. It just added to the strange feeling Thomas got as he left, wondering exactly what Aucrest was worried about when he hinted at things getting worse. Either way, he had to get to Daniel before Aucrest found Tlara.

    ¡­

    Back in the focus chamber, Silora was still tense. If Thomas hadn¡¯t been the centerpiece of the conversation, it would all have been over. She¡¯d stopped breathing when he called attention to her. He had been right there. Her treasure. Her way out. If they had been alone, she might have been able to escape that day. Especially if these friends he mentioned were capable. Because what only she and, hopefully, two others knew was that Thomas possessed a power valued far greater than any other. Artificers, Assassins, and Fates were practically guaranteed to show up at some point. The recent awakening of an Assassin in the region was proof of this, even if you had to wait years.

    What Thomas had was a power that only developed in certain people, and only then at complete random without regard to how many or how few a region had. Aucrest didn¡¯t seem as desperate to acquire the Artificer as Claret, who¡¯d offered threats and promises in kind if Silora found the elusive rare and told no one but her. That being said, the Silver Eye would do anything to monopolize Thomas. In the end, what price could you put on the power to bring someone back from the dead?

 Chapter 103: Lapsed Attention

    A short time later, around 2 pm by Daniel¡¯s reckoning, he, Khare, and Khiat took once more to the streets of Aughal. Their section of the city, the southwestern quadrant, was basking in the shadow of one of the Spires. If the city had just one it could have made for a very large and colorful sundial, but that effect was spoiled by the multitude.

    Following up on a tip, Daniel led the three past Morella¡¯s Shadeways before realizing he¡¯d made a wrong turn, and eventually turned around to find the small shop. Besides the main trade roads that each led to one of the Spires, there was a network of smaller streets that was harder to navigate. The cookie-cutter blueprints the original Builders of this city had used did leave things looking similar.

    While Ornithar had made pains to keep his shop well lit, Morella pointedly kept it dark. Shades, no doubt one of the inspirations for the name, were drawn across the holes in the wall that circulated air throughout the building. Rather than cozy, there was an arcane sense to the space. What would have been slight darkness was broken up by glowing books, open to pages where the spiraling text of this world shone in many colors.

    Morella herself was a middle-aged human on the shorter side, pale and wearing dusken robes that blended well into the darkness and reflected the light of the books. ¡°Welcome to the Shadeways,¡± she intoned in a deep, mysterious voice. ¡°To what mystic knowledge may I direct you¡± She then took in the gestalt, the dusker who was out in the day, and the human with a glowing crossbow on his back. The light from that completely spoiled the ambiance she was aiming for. ¡°Would you mind dimming that light?¡±

    ¡°Oh, sorry. Khare, could you, thanks.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s interesting,¡± Morella commented, watching the light disappear at a certain point after the gestalt had swallowed the weapon. ¡°So, I take it you''re a team? Hunters maybe? Which of you is the Arcanist?¡±

    ¡°None of us are. I was just-¡±

    ¡°Oh for the love of,¡± Morella rubbed the side of her face with a hand and dropped the mystique from her voice a second time. ¡°If you don¡¯t have the Spellcrafting feature there¡¯s nothing I can do for you! Spread the word, because it¡¯s a rare day I don¡¯t have to tell someone! Yes, you can use scrolls, but if your intelligence isn¡¯t high enough they won¡¯t work.¡±

    Daniel would have left immediately if that last part hadn¡¯t caught his ear. ¡°I just wanted to see what a spellbook looks like, but if anyone could use a scroll my intelligence is 21. Is that high enough?¡±

    ¡°For basic ones maybe. Boy, what is your class?¡±

    ¡°Uh,¡± Not saying Artificer. If people keep mistaking me for this, might as well lean into it when it helps. ¡°Totem Warrior.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re a Totem Warrior with an intelligence of 21?¡± She paused and toned down the hostility. ¡°What did you say your level was?¡±

    ¡°Level 2. Is that too low?¡±

    She blinked at him. ¡°Well, you¡¯re an odd one. What about your friends? Unfortunately for the plant all scrolls require incantation, but if the dusker is similarly talented size doesn¡¯t matter here.¡±

    ¡°She just got her class,¡± Daniel said, being sparing with the details. ¡°How much would a scroll be?¡±

    ¡°For basic ones you¡¯d be looking at high gold to low viridian in value. Single use, yes, but can you put a price on the experience of casting a spell outside your power set? I have a few here that I know no one else in the city sells.¡±

    ¡°Huh. I don¡¯t have that much on me now, but we were thinking of taking contracts soon.¡± He and Khiat were still glancing around at the glowing books. ¡°Could I just take a look while you tell me about some of them?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t attempt to remove any of them,¡± Morella cautioned. ¡°I¡¯ve warded them. But if you¡¯re willing to listen to a sales pitch I don¡¯t see why not.¡±

    ¡°Are you supposed to tell me it¡¯s a sales pitch?¡±

    ¡°What else would I call it?¡± She was about halfway back to the distant, glowing mage that had welcomed them but an air of realism had crept in. Daniel looked in complete incomprehension at the spiraling text on each book that flowed across the center to fill both pages. He could read the language, but it was written in a different context, like a code. Only the title of each page was legible.

    Morella talked while he did so. ¡°Scrolls appropriate for your intelligence, assuming you aren¡¯t lying of course, but it would be your gold you¡¯re wasting, are appropriately compared to spells a level 1 Arcanist can develop and cast. Nothing too flashy, in your case I would suggest going for utility since you¡¯d be more than capable of handling any direct threats the old fashioned way. For example, Climbing Rope can summon just that and help you scale otherwise unassailable heights. Or perhaps a simple Mana Barrier spell if you come across a desert urchin. I even have one that can summon a small amount of water, though that¡¯s one of the more expensive ones.¡±

    ¡°Huh. So, the level of scroll I can use is half of my intelligence?¡±

    ¡°Yes. How astute.¡± The voice carried mock applause for confirming something she¡¯d already told him. ¡°Are there any you¡¯re interested in?¡±

    ¡°Khiat, Khare, you good?¡± They both nodded. ¡°Thanks for your time. I¡¯ll have to come back once I¡¯ve made some coin.¡±

    ¡°Oh. Well, I¡¯d be happy to help you find a scroll that fits your desires at that time. Thank you for your business!¡± Morella held herself up for a few seconds after the last one had left her store before grumbling. ¡°¡®Don¡¯t have the coin¡¯, sure you don¡¯t. Carrying a giant glowing crossbow into my store and then telling me you can¡¯t afford a simple scroll? Who do you take me for?¡± A lizard crawled out of a sleeve, holding a slightly curved, purple spine that was as long as it was in its tail. ¡°Well, well. At least I got something out of you wasting my time. What is this?¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°We have some time, anywhere else you two want to go?¡± Daniel asked, as they walked away from the dark store and squinted. Mindful of the possible dangers on the street, he also withdrew his crossbow from Khare.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know anywhere else here,¡± Khiat said. ¡°I¡¯ve heard of large markets and theaters from my father.¡±

    ¡°Theaters? You mean like plays? They do plays here?¡±

    ¡°I think so. I¡¯ve just heard his stories, but I¡¯d like to see one.¡±

    ¡°Huh. You know Khiat, I think other duskers visit the tavern at night. We could all start waking up later if you wanted to talk to some of them.¡±

    ¡°Alone?¡± Daniel couldn¡¯t see her face under the travel armor, but he heard the nerves. He thought back to Roost¡¯s Peak and how a Cleric had helped him. Hanging around in a tavern wasn¡¯t his ideal, but he was also curious about how different it would be when the room was full of duskers.

    ¡°I could stay up with you. You don¡¯t have to Khare, but you could come too if you want.¡±

    ¡°Companion.¡±

    ¡°Great! Does that sound good Khiat?¡±

    ¡°Sure, I guess. Shouldn¡¯t we be trying not to draw attention?¡±

    ¡°Hunter makes that hard to avoid anyway. I wonder where he is? I could ask but I feel like advancement¡¯s not the kind of thing you interrupt to just check on people.¡± Not that he, Mr. Advancement Cheat, would know.

    ¡°How would you ask?¡±

    Shit. He thought quickly. ¡°Lograve still has a connection active on me and Hunter¡¯s out with Tak right now. They have a kind of understanding. I could see if he could ping Tak but that would be a lot of trouble.¡±

    ¡°Oh, that makes sense.¡±

    I¡¯m getting too relaxed around her, Daniel thought, sharing a glance with Khare. It was easier too when they had eye sockets. Too many secrets, and too many people who only know half of them. I¡¯m glad I told Khare at least. ¡°Well, we¡¯ll have some cash after meeting Arpan. Is ten viridian a lot?¡±

    Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

    ¡°Yes, I don¡¯t think my father¡¯s even seen one of those coins.¡±

    ¡°Oh good. I still think it¡¯s a little low, but I¡¯ll take it. I¡¯m thinking I keep 3 and everyone else gets one.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Khiat asked at the same time Khare just said ¡°Share?¡±

    ¡°Lograve¡¯s the one that realized what the metal was, and I wouldn¡¯t be here if it wasn¡¯t for everyone.¡± Daniel shrugged. ¡°Maybe I should save one for Gadriel too? Tlara can go make her own money but he¡¯s, eh, we¡¯ll see.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t, I mean.¡± Khiat bent away from him slightly. ¡°Why me?¡±

    ¡°I feel bad. And it seems right to keep things even from the start if we¡¯re going to make more money from monster hunting. I am getting more than the rest, but you don¡¯t know how hard enchanting is.¡± And some of the money is for Hunter, he added privately. ¡°I should ask Arpan about that too, what it¡¯s like at level 5.¡± Daniel looked around and sighed. ¡°Anyone know how to get there?¡±

    After awkwardly asking several people for directions to the shop, the three made it there by midafternoon. Even though they¡¯d returned at more reasonable hours, the door was locked. A few minutes after knocking the second time, Arpan opened the door instead of Dril. He looked at the small alleyway and took in the diminished number of guests. ¡°Where¡¯s Lograve?¡±

    ¡°Advancing. He said you probably wouldn¡¯t need him today?¡±

    ¡°Smug know-it-all. Alright, come in let¡¯s make this quick. This is supposed to be my night off. You have as long as it takes me to copy that formulae.¡± Daniel paused as the others entered. He looked back to where the small street met with one of the larger ones, confused by a feeling he couldn¡¯t place. ¡°Are you coming!?¡±

    ¡°Sorry.¡± Daniel took in the storefront for the first time, having been distracted before. Like the other two, it didn¡¯t resemble the others at all. The wall facing the street didn¡¯t have windows, for obvious reasons, so interior light was generated from permanently mounted torches. These were akin to the magical sparking ones used in the Thormundz to prevent accidentally burning a gestalt, but the light they produced was white-green and floated above the stick as a ball.

    Otherwise, there were no magical items of any kind on display. All this room had was a counter, in front of which was a set of fine chairs and a low table set against the wall. The passage the suit of armor had led them through was nowhere to be seen, neither was any way to reach the second floor. ¡°Secret walls?¡±

    ¡°Yes. You¡¯d do well to befriend a Builder with potential. Any merchant is only as good as their store. I¡¯d have been robbed blind countless times if these walls were made of just stone.¡±

    ¡°I did know one, but¡­¡± Daniel trailed off, the memory and the pain from it returning for a moment.

    ¡°My condolences. Now, the wings?¡± In Arpan, Daniel saw a little of Thomas when the Cleric was in business mode. Here, there was the definite impression that his presence was only tolerated. At Daniel¡¯s gesturing, Khare placed the wings on the counter. Arpan immediately ran over and placed his hands directly on the metal. He nodded to the chairs. ¡°Have a seat. Your coin will be ready once I¡¯m done. And no bargaining!¡±

    ¡°I had a couple of questions if that¡¯s ok. Not about money,¡± Daniel added quickly while Khiat took one of the largest chairs instead of just collapsing her legs. It creaked a little but bore her weight.

    ¡°So now you want free advice? I¡¯ll remind you I paid for your formulae.¡±

    ¡°And I¡¯ll pay you! I¡¯m just curious if they exist.¡±

    A thoughtful look crossed Arpan¡¯s face as he focused. ¡°Hmm. Honestly, I hadn¡¯t given a thought to trade with other Artificers. Selling my formulae, that is. Haven¡¯t had the opportunity to discuss or visit the ones in the surrounding regions. You¡¯re level 2?¡±

    ¡°Yeah!¡±

    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t be much competition then,¡± Arpan said dismissively. ¡°What do you want to know?¡±

    Daniel was a little taken aback but rallied. ¡°Your focus has functions, right? Dril, I mean. You can speak through him at least.¡±

    ¡°Focus Enhancement, yes. It¡¯s hardly a power type unique to Artificers.¡±

    ¡°Really? Anyways, is there any way I can extend the range of one of mine? Duplicate it even?¡±

    ¡°What is the effect you intend to alter?¡±

    ¡°Protection from divination. Scrying, stuff like that.¡±

    Arpan looked at him, apparently not needing to keep the wings in sight while he absorbed the formulae. ¡°To what degree does it protect you?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure about how strong of a power it¡¯ll hide me from, but it goes out about a hundred meters. I was trying to see if I could make a relay to boost the effect.¡± Arpan stared at him, gaze unmoving. ¡°Is that doable?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re level 2? Dril, why can¡¯t you do that?¡± The armor didn¡¯t respond. ¡°I won¡¯t say it¡¯s impossible, but if I had some way of duplicating focus functions then I¡¯d have two sets of armor, wouldn¡¯t I?¡±

    Fair. ¡°What about bags of holding then? Something that can do what Khare can do except as an item instead of a person.¡±

    ¡°Those exist. Are you interested in the formulae? I¡¯m afraid to tell you though that I haven¡¯t needed to write down any of mine seeing as, until today, my afternoons weren¡¯t interrupted by random visits from other Artificers.¡±

    ¡°I mean, if you have one I can just grab the formulae from that like what you¡¯re doing now.¡±

    Arpan considered this and frowned. ¡°Sure, but I¡¯ll charge you full price for a bag. No, twice the rate considering you¡¯d start making them. Lower quality I suppose, but still a detraction from my business. And I¡¯m not waiting an hour for you to absorb the formulae.¡±

    The unpleasantness in Arpan¡¯s voice didn¡¯t border hostility but implied he was serious about the price. ¡°Ok, how much?¡±

    ¡°Two viridian. You can afford that, can¡¯t you?¡±

    Yeah, but it¡¯s a lot. It feels like that at least. Is Bartering giving me some intrinsic sense of worth, or would I be better at it if I knew how much things should cost beforehand? ¡°If it makes a difference, I¡¯m not looking to start a shop, and Lograve said we can make all we need monster hunting.¡±

    ¡°You can die all you need to doing that as well. Hunting is for Martialists. Artificers like us don¡¯t need that much advancement potential anyway. Stick to your core attributes and just keep the rest high enough that the disparity isn¡¯t debilitating. Dril still won¡¯t let me forget accidentally reaching level 5 when my strength was 19 instead of 20.¡±

    ¡°The armor is sentient?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Arpan eyed his motionless Focus suspiciously. ¡°I¡¯m just about done here. I¡¯ll get your coin and a message for Lograve. I have both good and bad-¡± He stopped abruptly as the front door opened, looking startled when he saw who was coming through. ¡°You?¡±

    Whoever it was had concealed himself with long robes and a cloth mask over the face, though there was a strange gritty texture over everything that suggested some power was active on them. Daniel guessed they were avianoid based on the fact that something was poking out the front and the frame wasn¡¯t right for a draconoid. ¡°I¡¯d assumed you wouldn¡¯t be entertaining other visitors.¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t know you were coming this early. Something came up yesterday and I hardly have a way to contact you, do I?¡± His eyes were fixed on a bag the woman was carrying. ¡°Dril, show her the way. I¡¯ll finish up here.¡±

    ¡°Who are these people?¡± the woman asked evenly, still surprised and very suspicious.

    ¡°Friends of a friend. Monster hunters, not involved in our business.¡± While the new visitor was calm, Arpan had only become more agitated by their presence. When the woman didn¡¯t ask anything else and instead followed the armor as part of the wall became transparent, he relaxed slightly. ¡°No questions about that, understand?¡±

    ¡°Sure,¡± Daniel shrugged, under the impression this was either a mysterious client or, something he hoped he was wrong about, someone Arpan was the client of. ¡°I might be interested in that bag though.¡±

    ¡°Not now. Wings, yours. Bag,¡± he reached under the counter and came up with a pouch that was smaller than Daniel¡¯s palm. ¡°Count. Count them!¡± Daniel confirmed there were ten coins made of a deep, shining green placed inside the small bag. ¡°Message: Tell Lograve to come by tomorrow at dusk in two days. Understand? Good, now out!¡±

    The door locked behind them as the three were ejected unceremoniously. Daniel felt like he should be excited at how much money he now had, assuming he was right about its worth, but couldn¡¯t help but feel off balance. Khiat seemed to share the feeling. ¡°That woman.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°She.¡± Khiat paused again. ¡°I don¡¯t think my class would work on her.¡±

    ¡°You mean your new power? How do you know?¡±

    ¡°Just a feeling.¡± She didn¡¯t elaborate, but the troubled tone in her voice spoke to a deep unease. ¡°Let¡¯s get back to the tavern.¡±

    ¡°Are you sure? We could try and find a place that sells arrows you could use. Here.¡± He took out a coin for Khare and Khiat each, handing them over. He felt uneasy again at that moment and wondered if this was the kind of money you didn¡¯t show out in the open.

    ¡°Let¡¯s just go back. I¡¯m a little hungry.¡±

    ¡°Alright. We just have to, uh.¡± He looked towards the road. ¡°Dang. We might have to ask for directions again. Unless you know the way, Khare?¡±

    Khiat held up a hand and pointed in a direction. ¡°No, wait, I think I can get us there.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± Khiat nodded, some of the unease drifting out of her voice. ¡°The general direction at least. If I¡¯m wrong, would you mind asking for directions again?¡±

    ¡°No worries. Lead the way!¡±

    ¡­

    They weren¡¯t all Blessed. If they were, other avenues of life might have been available. Or, more likely, they¡¯d just be that much better at what they did. Sherry had the potential though, unique out of the group. While she hadn¡¯t hit her wall, there was an inexorable feeling of dread that she¡¯d come up against it any day now. No one of her family in living memory had ever attained a class. That, and a down spiral of misfortune over the years, had left her at the end of the line with not much to show for it.

    Awakening the Rogue class had given her opportunities, and a grudge carried from her family¡¯s poverty the motivation to go down darker paths. Rogues were thieves, weren¡¯t they? She wasn¡¯t a good one, only at the mid-range of level 1. The people she brought with her made up the difference. Magical powers were one thing, but they could be overcome through sheer force alone if necessary. Mana would exhaust, reinforced skin would break, and empowered blood would run. Aughal¡¯s current society was built on that principle.

    Even so, Sherry wouldn¡¯t be foolish enough to outright attack another Blessed, with or without backup. Not unless they¡¯d proven particularly stupid, flaunting wealth in the open streets and not even noticing when she¡¯d placed a marker on one of them. Crest, a shopkeeper¡¯s familiar had stolen a strange purple spike off them without anyone noticing. The man with the crossbow just walked the streets without any care for his surroundings. No, these people were begging for it, and by chance, Sherry knew exactly what they had on them.

    As she continued to use Mislead on the least powerful of them, who the Totem Warrior and/or Artificer helpfully mentioned had just awakened, the rest of her people moved quickly through the streets to one of their ambush spots. Only she could have a chance at tracking level 2 targets without being noticed, whereas everyone else just had to hide from them for a few moments. By the time everything was in place, the sun was still in the process of setting. The area they¡¯d led their prey to would be too dangerous if it went below the horizon, but now was the perfect time.

    Sherry sighted the man with the ridiculously golden crossbow from her position on the roof above him, waited for them to be exactly halfway down the alleyway, and let go of her bowstring.

 Chapter 104: Player vs Player

    The arrow struck Daniel in the right shoulder, going through the unarmored flesh but not all the way. A lethal shot was prevented by the way the crossbow hung on his back and the archer¡¯s reluctance to kill, or enrage the other two. Even so, she fed mana into Quick Strike for a follow up to the lower leg. From this range, she couldn¡¯t miss. ¡°Down!¡± she called out, eyeing the large collection of whirling vines now that the Artificer had been injured. Her arrows would do relatively little against it, but the blades of her followers posed a real threat.

    In seconds, ropes were tossed from the rooftops and most of her crew moved to surround the three. Sherry followed with a wisdom spell, Muffle Sound, to prevent the cries of pain coming from the injured human from alerting anyone. She wasn¡¯t concerned about the occupants of the buildings, though someone on a neighboring street could be a problem. The ability reduced the intensity of ambient noise, meaning she had to shout at the top of her lungs to be heard at a normal volume.

    ¡°Don¡¯t move! Reach for a weapon and we attack.¡± She knocked another arrow. Five of her people, including herself, had remained on the roof while the rest approached from both sides of the alleyway. No one else had powers but they all carried a short sword. Knowing that none of her targets were higher than level 2 meant that there was a good chance that they could be killed with even unenchanted weapons. Sherry didn¡¯t know for sure and didn¡¯t want to find out, but the prize was worth the risk.

    ¡°Wha, why?¡± The dusker¡¯s voice carried clearly through her active ability, and Sherry narrowed her eyes.

    ¡°Shut up! No one talks. Plant! Stop moving!¡± The gestalt had been reaching for one of the arrows lodged in the Artificer who was still writhing in pain. No doubt to pull them out, but the Agony Arrow spell applied to them would keep the Artificer under control for at least a minute even though he was at a higher level. Its effectiveness depended on how much damage she did with her shots, and her Sneak Attack feature had gotten maximum value with the first one.

    ¡°Dusker, toss your bow out. Both you and the plant put your coins on the ground. I know what he gave you!¡± It was a shame she couldn¡¯t use the threat of the sun against the dusker. The shadow covering the alleyway did make it easier to use her stealth abilities if needed, but took that card off the table.

    The dusker looked to the plant helplessly. It was in a strange half man, half vine ball form assumed in the first few moments of the attack. ¡°Obey.¡± It said, and Sherry thought she heard bitterness in the voice. A reflective green coin appeared from its form, and the gestalt slowly ambled to one of the surrounding walls as the thieves came closer.

    Sherry had gone over the plan with them while they¡¯d waited for the right moment. Incapacitate the Artificer, then jump on the dusker if they resisted. That hadn¡¯t happened, thankfully. Even a dusker without levels could kill a non-Blessed with ease.

    ¡°Dusker, throw out your bow! I won¡¯t ask again. Quiver too.¡±

    That finally spurred the dusker. The bow was tossed in front of the eight coming her way, and one swore when they tried to pick it up. Her quiver she held in her hands, reluctant, but her eyes went to the human on the roof still aiming at the Artificer. Instead of throwing it, she placed it on the ground and gently rolled the quiver and arrows away.

    ¡°Good! Against the wall and get down into your shell!¡± Sherry was nervous for a moment when the dusker chose the wall she was perched on, but one of her subordinates gave her a thumbs up and she peered over the side to see they¡¯d shrunk by half. ¡°We¡¯re going to search your friend now. No one¡¯s getting hurt unless either of you do anything. Don¡¯t resist and you can get his wounds looked at in a few minutes. Larry, Fetch, you do it.¡±

    The gestalt against the far wall tensed and became the focus of Sherry¡¯s renewed concern. There was nothing visible that happened, just an instinct for danger her three lackeys lacked. She couldn¡¯t help but feel spite, which she directed at the Artificer. ¡°Pathetic. You call yourselves monster hunters?¡±

    His pained shouts had turned to gasps, still leaving him unable to respond. The fact that he wasn¡¯t a complete wreck with two of the arrows of pain in him concerned Sherry, but then again he was level 2. The fact that he was still enfeebled settled her nerves. Now, what was that dangerous feeling coming from Heightened Awareness?

    ¡°Watch the weed,¡± she warned. ¡°Keep away. It¡¯s doing something.¡± Some of her people below looked nervously at the ground, wondering if it was burrowing underneath to hit up at them. ¡°Do anything and he gets one in the head. Understand?¡± Sherry spared a moment to wonder if it did. The rumors of the plant people said they were just barely mortal enough to know not to attack people on sight. Oh well, she¡¯d make her point one way or another.

    In truth, her people didn¡¯t get close to either the plant or the dusker. Even in their smaller form, the one below her could kill easily with a punch. If either posed a threat she¡¯d shoot the Artificer and tell her people to run. Two viridian in the bank was a bigger score than they¡¯d pulled in months, but the demon in Sherry wanted more. She even had a good feeling about her crew being able to take them with the Artificer down.

    It all went wrong when the two she¡¯d chosen got within a meter of the Artificer.

    ¡­

    Khare had been as surprised as Daniel had by the ambush. Their wisdom was among their lowest attributes and still suffered from level disparity. Khiat was much in the same way, but the gestalt wondered why Daniel himself hadn¡¯t noticed. Through the various conversations they¡¯d had, Khare had gotten the impression Daniel was close to being balanced in terms of his attributes, and they didn¡¯t have a sense any of the attackers were more powerful than they were. Far from it.

    That didn¡¯t change the fact that his friend was overcome with pain and more than he should be, considering Daniel had walked off a mountain collapsing on him. Khare suspected something on the arrows, be it poison or a more straightforward power. Unfortunately, their attempt at removing them had been noticed. If they¡¯d been able to engulf Daniel he would have been safe from reprisal while Khare took them out, but there¡¯d been no time.

    The woman¡¯s words on the rooftop weren¡¯t perfectly clear to them, though Khare understood the threat of the bow¡¯s current trajectory. They complied, urging Khiat to as well. Not because Khare intended to give up, but because they needed everyone to be closer. In the way most mortals came to realize the effects of powers they¡¯d recently acquired, Khare had known there was some way they could change the weapons they¡¯d used. Now, with Daniel¡¯s slightly distorted insights, it was clear.

    Khare could affect either all or some of their weapons with a new ability. While Daniel¡¯s explanations had left the impression of swords, they also sensed it could extend to arrow tips as well. Enhancing their entire arsenal, which was worthy of the name, would take more mana than Khare had. Thankfully the number of assailants was well below the number of their weapons.

    In the space between themself and the wall, Khare carefully brought weapons out from their interior space. Throwing daggers exclusively, each affected by the power they now knew as Bleeding Blades. This was the extra edge they¡¯d need to make sure the surprise attack of their own would be decisive.

    The flow of mana to their weapons didn¡¯t need to be constant. Khare could sense it was stored in each knife to maintain the effect. This meant he didn¡¯t need to dual-channel to use another ability, something the gestalt couldn¡¯t possibly have had the time to practice. They readied Coordinated Strike once the enemies were close enough. The lead archer on high seemed to notice something was up as they held the attack but only guttered another warning. They waited, prepared, in much a similar fashion as Khiat had hunted almost a week ago. Just before the enemies could get to Daniel, Khare struck first.

    A cloud of daggers exploded outwards like thorns as their humanoid upper half dissolved. Even the otherwise golden heliorite daggers mixed in had a reddish-black tinge along the edge that gleamed menacingly. Khare had thrown ten daggers in rapid succession, catching the two close to Daniel in the throat, the three closest to Khiat in the chest, and at least two of the archers. The lead archer and other two he either missed or only grazed.

    Khare wasn¡¯t sure how the bleed effect would work, blood overall being a foreign concept compared to the substance their species used. It turned out to be almost as deadly as the daggers that had landed in vital areas, the higher level effect causing blood to pour from what they suspected were normal humans and avianoids. The air around him filled with words, Khare only understanding glimpses of what they were saying.

    ¡°Back!¡±

    ¡°Bleeding!¡±

    ¡°Run!¡±

    ¡°Crossbow.¡±

    ¡°Attack!¡±

    Khare noticed both they and Khiat were the subject of hostile intent, but not from the five he¡¯d hit on the ground. Two had instantly died, one was clutching at the dagger in his abdomen, while the other two were twitching on the ground as blood flowed like water from the wound. The archers hadn¡¯t retaliated yet, either because they had dodged or were horrified by what they saw.

    ¡°Protect!¡± Khare¡¯s word was meant for Khiat. She had just come into her power and couldn¡¯t be expected to fight here, but the least she could do was shield Daniel from further arrows with her carapace. Only, she wasn¡¯t moving. She was backing into the wall so hard it was cracking. Her assailants, seeing this, chose to prioritize the one who¡¯d just slaughtered a quarter of their number.

    Forced to respect both the threat on the ground and above, Khare flowed over to completely cover Daniel instead of releasing another immediate volley. That might have been enough to scare off the remainder, and it sounded like the leader was calling for retreat. The men on the ground didn¡¯t listen. They had looked at those who had fallen prey to the bleeding effect and decided on vengeance instead.

    Though Khare had inherited Stone Form from their progenitor, the mana cost to use it was greater than their entire mana pool. It was something they would have to grow into. More importantly, they couldn¡¯t use it to defend against the various blades surrounding them. Khare was a ranged Martialist and though they could whirl to parry every attack while in their natural form, they had neither the experience nor the ability to do this. They were facing normal enemies with unenchanted weapons, though they¡¯d still easily cut through vines and sever the vital internal points within their mass.

    For multiple reasons Khare couldn¡¯t use their bows, having to rely instead on a dwindling supply of daggers that the enemies now knew to dodge. Khare whirled and pulsed their being with every attack, not having the room to commit to multiple without leaving themself open to reprisal. Every sword that hit them was a line of pain across their being, amplified ten fold if it struck through one of the knots. A few arrows struck them too, but they didn¡¯t matter.

    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

    Their attackers realized Khare¡¯s weakness in melee and pressed them, even as a handful more died. Khare cut their way free, forced to abandon Daniel¡¯s position. Fortunately, he was forgotten amidst the greater threat that was the gestalt. If the attacker¡¯s leader was still present she might have realized what Khare had been doing while protecting the Artificer, but she¡¯d fled after almost taking a dagger to the eye.

    ¡­

    The last few minutes of Daniel¡¯s life could be compared most to his hazy recollections of barely surviving the fall from the second sky island. The terrible novelty of being pierced by two arrows was one thing, but his entire body burned with echoes of the sharp, blinding agony like he was in the middle of a continuous rain of them. In all his time spent fighting monsters he¡¯d only been grazed at best. Even falling from the mountain had knocked him out long enough to heal from the damage. That left him mentally unprepared to handle real pain despite Fortitude taking the edge off of the worst of the effect. It might not have been as bad if he¡¯d heightened that or his healing feature beforehand, but he hadn¡¯t expected to need it in the supposedly safe city.

    What happened around him was a blur. At some point it went dark before the arrows were yanked out and the pain in his body severely improved. The places where he¡¯d been shot still hurt like hell, but he could bear it and the pain diminished quickly with time. Now able to take account of what happened, he struggled to believe it had.

    They just shot me. No warning or anything. His blood stained the sand littering the streets, preventing it from pooling. Daniel reached for his crossbow only to find it gone, though it was the only thing missing. Beyond a dagger, he was unarmed.

    In what seemed like moments after the arrows had been pulled free, he was exposed once more. A ferocious melee was taking place, multiple humans and avianoids armed with swords attacking a large mass of vines. To the casual eye, it would appear like a group of civilians fighting a monster, but that monster was Daniel¡¯s friend. He remained frozen for a few moments longer, unable to accept what part of him wanted to do. These were people, even if they¡¯d just ambushed him. He didn¡¯t want-

    ¡°Plant! Plant! Stop, or run them through!¡± A panicked voice cried out behind him. Daniel saw Khiat was recoiling from a sword pressed against her armor. Even though her chitin was connected protectively, and she could easily tear him in half if she wanted, Khiat stood frozen at sword point. The small part of Hunter living in him from constant exposure to the Empathic Link flared in anger, feeding on his pain and spreading.

    Daniel reached out with his mind and tore the sword from the man¡¯s grip. Telekinetic Reach was costly to use on things people held, but the man didn¡¯t, or couldn¡¯t resist.

    There was a snap as it flew out of the man¡¯s hand. He screamed, doubling over in pain. An arrow flashed by his face as the remaining archers above realized he was both alive and kicking. Daniel Dodge Rolled away, feeling another arrow fly past just past him. He couldn¡¯t travel as far or come to his feet by using it on the ground, but it got him out from the arc of the next two arrows.

    It wasn¡¯t over. Khare was pressed against a wall, out of room against seven remaining opponents. There was no time to think until he got a hold of himself and realized there was. Daniel used Moment of Clarity, despairing at his fading mana reserves. He¡¯d used two level 2 abilities to fix a damned curtain this morning, and even more to hover it in place to keep it open. What had he been thinking?

    Daniel didn¡¯t know how gestalt worked, even now. He wasn¡¯t aware of the vital points within them, only that fire was a critical weakness. Still, Khare¡¯s desperate retreating had told him what he needed to know; they were under mortal threat. He had powers, he had killed things before, but people? A decision had to be made before his mana ran out. He knew what he had to do, or rather, what he had to do if he wanted Khare to live. For a brief moment, he thought of Gadriel confidently telling him that a capable warrior could fight without killing their opponent. Could he?

    ¡°Bulwark!¡± Daniel shouted, summoning a wall of hardened sand in front of Khare. That was extremely taxing, even though he¡¯d just made it a few centimeters thick. The realization that Daniel was fighting made it to those on the ground in a flurry of callouts, the attempt at coordination running over itself to make it hard to tell who was saying what.

    ¡°He¡¯s up!¡±

    ¡°Fuck, behind!¡±

    ¡°Run!¡±

    ¡°No, get him.¡±

    ¡°What about-¡±

    ¡°Get him!¡±

    The men and women in front of him had fought together before, but not with the stakes Daniel had with his team. They were slow to respond, some trying to hack apart the shield wall while others turned to face Daniel. ¡°Shoot him!¡± One of them yelled, reminding Daniel of the threat above. Khare was still alive, but they weren¡¯t trying to break out of the wall. Too injured? His opponents'' red auras drowned out the green behind them. They didn¡¯t have any levels! Why were they doing this?

    Daniel clumsily threw his dagger. Snap Shot corrected his poor natural aim to sink it into the knee of the first one. They fell, blood seeping from the wound as he retrieved the dagger telekinetically. More mana drained away, he couldn¡¯t do that for each of them or the ones on the roof. Not enough mana to roll to safety either, though as his wounds suggested he could take serious damage and keep going with Regeneration in the background.

    His blood was pounding, and it felt like he was moving slightly faster than his enemies as his enhanced attributes gave him a clear advantage. If he could just ignore the humanity of his opponents he could easily slaughter them. Hunter would, if he was here, but Daniel couldn¡¯t stop himself from seeing even the Grafted species as human.

    Still, they were coming to kill him. He ducked as an arrow came for his head and then jolted back before righting himself. They were already on him! No time to think, no mana to buy it either. He stabbed the first in the stomach and left the dagger there. No hesitation at least, a lesson learned from the skabs. His enhanced strength was enough for part of the hilt go through as well, making the clean cut messy. Daniel circled backward, but he couldn¡¯t turn away from the archers or outpace the running men. Not all of the people lying on the ground had auras left, but some had died before he¡¯d gotten back up. Those were all Khare¡¯s kills right?

    Talons. ¡°Get away!¡± he yelled, holding up his hands as they twisted. They lost a digit as the rest elongated into bird-like claws. The level 1 ability had a very low cost even while actively channeled and remained an effective option with the mana he had left. Though Daniel was averse to taking life, the months spent in the Thormundz had instilled the will of a survivor if nothing else. The thought of what Hunter would do if he got himself killed by holding back removed the final bit of doubt from his mind.

    ¡°Fuck!¡± The leading enemy recoiled on seeing this but was shoved by the one behind her.

    ¡°GET HIM!¡± another near the back screamed.

    Daniel first tried to grab the sword coming for him, knowing his enhanced hands could resist damage as well as deal it. He received no cut for the attempt, but the point of it raked his chest as the improvised move failed. Only his consistent backpedaling saved him from a worse injury, though the unenchanted blade wouldn¡¯t have been able to kill him from just one strike.

    With his hands still transformed, Daniel punched one of the remaining five in the chest. There was a cracking, squelching sensation and the woman went flying. He lost track of her as another arrow came for him. The rest were frightened but also furious, the same anger he¡¯d felt seeing Khiat threatened taken to another level.

    No time for pity, not that it would matter. Now that Khare had cut down their numbers and freed him from those arrows, they didn¡¯t have a chance. All Daniel had to do was connect with a punch and they went down with broken bones or worse. It was frighteningly easy. When there was one left chasing him, he looked them in the eye. ¡°Run.¡±

    The man suddenly realized he was alone, dropped his sword, and took off. He stopped to grab the one that had taken a dagger to the knee before abandoning the rest. The archers were gone, disappearing sometime between when the last and second to last were struck down. There were many more lying in the street, too injured to move or dead. Blood was pooling under some, refusing to coagulate.

    Daniel ran back once he knew it was safe. Khiat was still pressed against the wall, unmoving. There was noise coming from a street ahead, but Daniel¡¯s attention was on Khare. He carefully broke down the wall to find the gestalt was huddled together. Something about how the vines were moving looked off. ¡°Are you ok?¡± With what seemed like pain, Khare reformed their humanoid upper half. The face was grimacing, but they nodded. ¡°You saved my life.¡±

    As he breathed raggedly and Khare compressed themselves into a smaller shape, it fully struck Daniel how loyal Khare had been to the group. They¡¯d gone so far as to separate themselves from their people just to travel with his team, and if it had just been Khiat and himself here the thieves would have gotten away with at least everything on him.

    How alone must Khare feel to constantly be with people who couldn¡¯t completely understand them? Khiat knew the pain of being forced to leave home, but perhaps it was the gestalt who could truly empathize with how isolating this world could be for him, even with his friends. Numbly, Daniel extended a hand out. It was ridiculous, but the world was off. Things weren¡¯t seeming quite real after what had happened. Khare shook the hand anyway.

    ¡°Gratitude.¡± There was a change in the air, something Daniel could just barely perceive in this alert state before his phone vibrated. Something oddly familiar.

    ¡°I, I think I should check this. Are you ok?¡± Another nod. When Daniel saw the notification, he was only slightly surprised.

    <hr>

    You have formed a Bond: Outcast with Creature: Khare. The effects of this bond will persist unless the relationship between you and this entity dramatically changes. Additional or improved effects may be received if the bond is strengthened.

    Bond Benefits:

    ? Tactical Network: You and the bonded entity possess the Power to improve coordination and efficiency. Either of you may Mark up to three targets, designating them with a visual effect only visible to you and the bonded entity. This is a Magical and Spiritual effect that functions in an area of Magical Suppression.

    ? Customer Appreciation: You and the bonded entity possess the power to benefit from arcane creations. This feature improves the damage and durability of Items you enchant that the bonded entity uses to a minor degree. This is a spiritual effect that functions in an area of magical suppression

    ? Called Shot: You and the bonded entity possess the power to amplify Attacks: Ranged made against opponents who are marked. At a minor Mana cost, one bonded creature may designate a marked target, improving the accuracy and damage of the other bonded creature¡¯s attack to a moderate degree. This is a magical and spiritual effect that functions in an area of magical suppression

    <hr>

    ¡°A combo attack,¡± Daniel said breathlessly.

    ¡°Are we safe?¡± Khiat¡¯s voice was shaking and Daniel suspected she would be crying if she could. He turned and saw her pressed up against the wall in loose-fitting leather armor, looking between him and where her bow and quiver were resting in the sand.

    ¡°I think-¡±

    ¡°Freeze!¡± From the entrance to the alley, a commanding voice carried. More people with weapons were running into it. ¡°You are under arrest! Do not resist!¡±

    What? But we- In a flash, Daniel recalled Thomas¡¯ fears about this city, and what he had been told happened at the gate. He couldn¡¯t fight anyone else, lacking both the mana and the will. Instead, he whispered quickly. ¡°Khare, get my necklace.¡±

    Daniel plunged his head into the gestalt, feeling the vines writhe around him. At the same time, he thrust his phone inside and just managed to conceal his coin pouch before he was dragged away and forced to the ground where a knee pressed against his back. His wounds protested, but none were serious enough to worry about with Regeneration on board.

    ¡°Oh, oh gods.¡± One of the guards sounded horrified. ¡°Are there any alive?¡±

    ¡°A few,¡± another called out. ¡°Barely.¡±

    ¡°They attacked us!¡± Daniel shouted, and the pressure on his back doubled.

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t look like any of them are in a state to tell their side, so we¡¯re taking you all in. Don¡¯t resist.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s going on here?¡± Someone else behind Daniel asked, a new voice. One with far more authority than anyone else.

    ¡°Lieutenant Sherman! Reports of fighting, we just found them like this. Looks like at least a dozen dead.¡±

    ¡°I can see that for myself. Hmm. Hmm, what is this?¡± He still couldn¡¯t see who was talking but heard the deep interest in the voice.

    ¡°Found it among the bodies sir. Seems fancier than the rest of the weapons. I don¡¯t think anyone else had a crossbow. And it¡¯s, uh, golden sir. Can you make a crossbow out of gold?¡±

    ¡°You couldn¡¯t.¡± Daniel felt the gaze of the Lieutenant shift to him. ¡°But an Artificer could.¡±

 Chapter 105: Lockup

    Jeras was returning to the main guardhouse below the south Spire when he saw the large cluster of guardsmen moving at speed with bodies in tow. He didn¡¯t rush to join them as there didn¡¯t seem to be immediate danger, here or elsewhere in the city. Instead he sighed, realizing he was probably getting out late again today.

    For as long as he could remember his life had been terrible, which honestly just meant the last month or so. Sun up to sun down in armor, sometimes missing meals if he was unlucky or they forgot to send something to the wall. It wasn¡¯t only him, the majority of the city¡¯s force had been pulled into overtime after patrols and the wall guard were tripled. It made no sense to him, this is the kind of thing you¡¯d do during an active war. Or, right before one.

    There was no threat! At least, he was pretty sure of that. There were a lot of bodies being taken into the guardhouse. Had the Mirage finally attacked the city?

    The southern guardhouse was built a few blocks from the Sun Spire. Close so that they could reinforce the spire guard, but far enough away that the nobility didn¡¯t have to worry about living above criminals. Present days hadn¡¯t left them with much to reinforce, though, and anyone coming from the city guard would be exhausted after weeks of overwork.

    ¡°Hey Ras. You just missed the drama.¡± Kelra, one of the avainoids who staffed the front desk, and the best looking among them, called out as he walked in. The pack of guards he¡¯d seen enter were nowhere to be found and there were relatively few people here to report a crime or give testimony. It looked like there was time to talk. ¡°Might not want to tell the street sweepers how dull the hill folk have it today. Looked messy.¡±

    Jeras leaned on the desk and smiled. Kelra had bright blue feathers with a pattern of red around the neck that flowed past where her uniform obscured her feathers. If he had time for more than a quick chat, he could have stayed here until shift change. ¡°I saw them moving bodies on the street by hand. Couldn¡¯t get a cart at least?¡±

    ¡°Should¡¯ve seen Sherman. He wanted everything done before the feather drops. Spire business I think.¡±

    ¡°Just bodies?¡±

    Kelra leaned in, voice lower. ¡°No. Sounds like a trio of monster hunters cut loose on a bunch of normals. Didn¡¯t have to get one of the HURTs on them though, they surrendered as soon as we showed up. Hunters are fine of course, but about as many of the civilians survived as our people get good sleep. See that?¡± Kelra nodded to a thin red line on the floor. ¡°Could follow that all the way back to where it happened. Some of them were still leaking.¡±

    Jeras¡¯ stomach squirmed. ¡°Hammer. Is one of them a Rogue?¡±

    ¡°Gotta be. Something¡¯s got a fire going under the Lieutenant and I don¡¯t see anyone lining up to put it out.¡± She nodded to one of the rear doors that led to the locker rooms. ¡°Probably want to get out of here before he makes you file for an extra half a shift again.¡±

    Jeras winced, remembering just how much trouble he¡¯d gotten into for bringing that Cleric in instead of the news Sherman had wanted. ¡°Right. We get ¡®em all at least?¡±

    ¡°Oh yeah. Two of them were cut up, a human and a plant. Dusker too, but not a scratch on that one.¡±

    ¡°Human, dusker, and plant?¡± Jeras shook his head. Odd combination, sounds like the start of a joke.

    ¡°Yeah, and during the day. It¡¯s going to be a mess.¡± Kelra took a stack of papers and shuffled it on her desk, trying to look busy. ¡°Got any reports to hand in? Otherwise, it¡¯s getting close to quitting time.¡±

    Maybe I do have time. ¡°I could wait for-¡±

    ¡°JERAS!¡± Both winced this time as Sherman came charging to the front desk. ¡°Good, I was about to send for you. Have you been informed of the latest incident?¡±

    ¡°The mass casualty?¡±

    ¡°Good man. With me.¡± Jeras glanced at Kelra who gave him a sympathetic look. At the very least it looked like the wind filling Sherman¡¯s wings was carrying him along instead of pushing him off a cliff. The Lieutenant seemed borderline excited about the fact that a dozen people had been brutally killed on the street. There were rumors about the human but nothing that far out. ¡°This is all confidential, understand? I need you to confirm identities.¡±

    The brisk pace they were taking led into the underground sections of the guardhouse. Most rooms had high ceilings to accommodate the duskers who almost exclusively staffed the night shift. That, combined with normal sized furniture, was disconcerting to see for the first time. Jeras had worked here for decades and paid the oddity no mind. Instead, he took notice of where they were likely heading. ¡°We have them in the anti-mag?¡±

    ¡°Of course. Two in the level 4, one in the level 3. You should have seen it,¡± Sherman continued like he was describing one of the rare times he went on hunts to chase advancement. ¡°The street was covered in blood. I think that justifies taking them up a notch.¡±

    That was surprising. Jeras knew a Builder could place many kinds of enchantments in their construction, including fields of magical suppression if they had that kind of power. Field strength was equivalent to the level of the Builder, and he¡¯d heard for two of the cells the city had hired outside help to put on the finishing touches. Beyond those, they had a respectful section of level 3 and level 2 anti-magic cells in case someone with a class needed to be detained.

    Capturing such a person was a tricky business. Only a fraction of the guard were similarly empowered, the rest had to make do with calling for backup. The High Urgency Response Teams, which everyone always abbreviated when they talked about them, were the nominal force made up of Blessed or those who carried magical items at all times meant to respond if a team of hunters suddenly went berserk. By the sound of it, they hadn¡¯t been needed this time.

    Once captured, standard procedure would see any powered individual gagged and bound to prevent them from using any kind of power. That wasn¡¯t enough sometimes, resulting in escape mid-arrest or another fight, at which point the resisting individual would be hit on the head until they were definitely unconscious. Once inside a cell they were more manageable, but moving them got tricky as the general cell area didn¡¯t have magical suppression. If both level 4 cells were occupied, the city would be faced with a problem if someone else of that level needed containment.

    Jeras didn¡¯t point that out. You did not contradict or question Lieutenant Sherman on the rare occasion he was happy. ¡°Is this about those people you sent me after yesterday?¡±

    ¡°Yes! That Kaysian wasn¡¯t with them, and I can¡¯t recognize the dusker or the human. The other¡¯s a weed so gods know if that one¡¯s the same. You were the only other one that saw them up close. I want your opinion.¡±

    ¡°Yes sir. Do we know what happened?¡±

    Sherman looked at him, confused as if that didn¡¯t matter. ¡°Ah, yes, the story from the ¡®Blessed¡¯ is they were ambushed. Who would ambush a dusker carrying a bow taller than they were I have no idea. Four survived, if you can call it the state they were in survival, and we¡¯re getting them looked after. Since the Blessed are in the anti-mag, we can¡¯t use truth items on them.¡±

    ¡°Right.¡± In less than a minute, they were in the general cellblock. A large cell was first for indigents or public nuisances. From there branched three hallways. One led to normal cells, another to fortified ones appropriate for duskers, and the last to the special cells. The highest grade anti-magical cells were closer to the door since you wanted to reduce the distance you had to carry the more dangerous individuals.

    ¡°Another thing,¡± Sherman warned before they went through the last door. ¡°The weed¡¯s got at least something in them. It fought hard when we tried to check and it looked like several people had taken a saw to it. Anything magical should be suppressed, but if it''s a knife it might try to throw it. I personally told it we¡¯d finish the job if it tried anything, but you know weeds.¡± Jeras didn¡¯t, really, but Sherman¡¯s dismissive attitude didn¡¯t invite correction.

    Jeras gestured to the door as a response, and the Lieutenant opened it. The aforementioned human was in the first cell, his plain clothes torn and bloodstained in places. To Jeras¡¯ eyes, it looked like he¡¯d been shot twice, though the only sign of the wounds were on the clothing. The young man was awake and appeared to be meditating. ¡°Is he advancing?¡±

    ¡°No, that¡¯s impossible in there. I think it¡¯s an act to throw us off.¡± Sherman withdrew the shimmering sword at his belt, an enchanted weapon appropriate for both his level and station, and rattled the bars. What metal went within a foot of the bars dimmed as its enchantment was suppressed. ¡°Hey! Stop that.¡± The human started a little but didn¡¯t open his eyes and continued breathing deeply. ¡°You, approach the bars!¡± There was no movement and Sherman gave up. ¡°Bah. Well, seem familiar?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± He couldn¡¯t see the person in the cell, but there was enough to be sure this person hadn¡¯t been with the group Sherman was talking about. Jeras wasn¡¯t so sure this was an act. Sherman didn¡¯t pull enough cage duty to know what the ones who didn¡¯t handle a cell well looked like. To his eye, the human looked to be doing everything he could to keep calm.

    He walked over to the other suppression cell where a mass of plant matter was curled on the ground in the center. To see that he had to move a slider from the extra precautions needed to contain one of the people of the elements. It was a solid door set just behind the bars, anchored into points dug out and set so that the space contained was still within the overlap of the magical suppression. This way the plant couldn¡¯t sneak its way through by just squeezing around the iron. Gods forbid we ever have to hold one of the air ones. ¡°I guess this is it? Hard to tell.¡±

    Sheran grunted as if he hadn¡¯t expected much. ¡°Hmm. Well, look at the dusker.¡±

    While the last prisoner could be at their full height in a cell without sunlight, they weren¡¯t. Jeras looked hard at them, trying to compare the image in his head from his brief encounter at the gate. Without their bow or quiver it was hard, but the armor looked right. ¡°Yeah, I think that¡¯s them. Are they sleeping?¡±

    ¡°Not sure. The human was making all these threats and bluster before we tossed him in the anti-mag. That shut him up. The plant said a few words, but I couldn¡¯t make out anything.¡± Sherman rapped his knuckles on the bars of the third cage, which didn¡¯t provoke a response. ¡°Dusker¡¯s been quiet though. Hasn¡¯t moved since we took them in. Eerie. Come on.¡± Sherman nodded his head back out and Jeras followed uneasily.

    ¡°Should we get someone to make sure they¡¯re alright?¡±

    ¡°All three are breathing, aren¡¯t they?¡± Sherman looked towards the plant for a moment, clearly considering if that statement applied. ¡°Ah, Crest, they¡¯ll keep until morning at least. Blessed don¡¯t die outside of battle easily. Now, I want you to keep this quiet, understood?¡±

    ¡°Yes sir.¡± What else was he supposed to say?

    ¡°Good lad. Take off. I might need you again tomorrow but you have the night.¡±

    Jeras tried to hide his sigh of relief, feeling as if he¡¯d been in one of those cells and Sherman had just unlocked the door. ¡°Thank you, sir.¡±

    He didn¡¯t immediately leave the guardhouse, though. Things weren¡¯t sitting right with him. Sherman had been known in the past to bend the rules for those in power, and he was afraid that had already happened before the incident this afternoon. In a real sense, that Cleric should have never hit a cell. The arrest had been bad, a product of frustration and the sense of punishment waiting for him if he returned that night late and empty handed. On arrival he had been chastised, but not for breaking protocol. If the Cleric wasn¡¯t in the cells anymore, where was he?

    The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    ¡°Kel, you still here?¡±

    The desk guard smiled at him. ¡°Surprised he let you go that quickly. I was just wrapping up. Might have time for our old haunt if you¡¯re up for it.¡±

    He brightened and considered dropping his concerns, but asked anyway. ¡°Remember that human I brought in last night?¡± Was she there? No. ¡°The, uh, Cleric. Thomas, I think.¡±

    Kelra frowned. ¡°He was arrested after my shift, but I heard about him. Why?¡±

    ¡°What happened to him?¡±

    Her frown deepened. ¡°Eddor Kaysian. Bit of a meathead and a bastard, even considering where he lives. Came in around noon today to spring him. I think they¡¯re related. What¡¯d you bring him for?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s what he meant by Kaysian.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    Jeras shook his head. ¡°Nothing.¡± This was politics. Nothing new in this city. If it was just any other day he¡¯d forget about it and take getting off before the sun set. But he was tired, suspicious, and afraid of what would happen to the people in those cells. Murderers or not, they didn¡¯t just throw people in holes and forget about them, or feed them to the whims of the nobility. ¡°I need an hour. Something I have to do, but I¡¯ll meet you there.¡±

    ¡°Oh! I can¡¯t remember the last time we had a chance to catch up. I¡¯ll be interested to hear what you¡¯ve been doing with all this free time Sherman¡¯s throwing your way.¡± She smiled, and for a moment Jeras forgot his plans. Why hadn¡¯t this worked before? They had a history. But they also had the same job. Times like this where you worked and you slept, there wasn¡¯t time for anything else. And the stress. You started the stretch with a life and had it torn to pieces, leaving you with only scraps towards the end. This time needed to be different.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be there.¡±

    ¡­

    Aucrest Seliri walked into the guard station an hour later and was immediately brought to a beaming Lieutenant Sherman. ¡°We¡¯ve got him, Sir. Or, uh, Lord Seliri. No doubt, he¡¯s the Artificer.¡±

    Aucrest appraised the man and felt a small ember of dread catch. Sherman was as corrupt as they came and shifted to prevailing winds, but he wasn¡¯t opposed to working outside his race like others. It was that reason Aucrest had used resources and influence to put this man in his pocket instead of other potential targets of note in the city. Appearances were important, especially for his plans for the city¡¯s future. Yet, a blunt instrument was still a blunt instrument. ¡°You¡¯ve arrested him?¡±

    Sherman didn¡¯t hear the reticence in Aucrest¡¯s question. ¡°Yes, Lord! We found him and a couple of his friends surrounded by a bunch of corpses in the middle of the dusker district.¡±

    The old avianoid blinked, having only been informed of the capture. ¡°What happened, and how many?¡±

    ¡°About fifteen, some of them survived but barely. Normals against anyone with a class don¡¯t tend to go well. Uh, for most, Lord.¡± The amount of blatant ingratiating in the officer¡¯s voice waxed and waned in proportion to how many others were within earshot with a steady baseline of respect underpinning it. ¡°Looks like a gang of thieves thought they could beat quality with quantity.¡±

    ¡°If the Artificer was attacked, why did you arrest the victim!?¡± Aucrest grimaced internally as a note of anger entered his voice. Cultivating the relationship between himself and this man was a careful process. Offend him and Sherman might think of courting one of the other civic leaders, especially if he had a gem in his cells. Aucrest measured his tone and quickly followed with another question. ¡°How do you know he is the Artificer?¡±

    ¡°Oh, you¡¯re going to like this Lord.¡± Sherman took out a key and unlocked one of the interrogation rooms. At first, Aucrest was horrified at the thought that they¡¯d just put the Artificer in a normal room but found there weren¡¯t people in it at all. Instead, there was an assortment of weapons on the table gleaming golden from the light of a torch. ¡°Solid gold. I¡¯ve never seen anything like it.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s because it¡¯s not gold. May I?¡±

    ¡°Of course Lord!¡± Sherman preened. He picked up one of the daggers first, drawing an intake of breath from the guard. ¡°Uh, Lord, some of the bodies had a bleeding curse inflicted by those. I¡¯d be careful.¡±

    ¡°I am grateful for the warning, but it would take more than that to injure me.¡± He touched a charm hanging from a wrist and glanced closely at the blade. From there, his eyes moved down to the hilt. ¡°One solid piece. Inefficient, not the work of Arpan,¡± he mumbled to himself. ¡°And, interesting.¡±

    ¡°Lord?¡±

    ¡°If I¡¯m right, this is level 5 material used for a level 2 weapon. There¡¯s simply no way our resident Artificer would waste this much material. I¡¯d wager a healthy portion of my estate that only a novice would mass produce weapons this way. A novice, or one pushed to desperation.¡±

    There was a gleam in Sherman¡¯s eye Aucrest recognized from their previous dealing. ¡°Are these weapons valuable?¡± he asked, omitting the honorific.

    ¡°Not at the level of a king¡¯s ransom, but yes. This is odd.¡± Aucrest turned his attention to the odd weapon out of the bunch. ¡°Hmm. Crossbow, although I don¡¯t recognize this design.¡± The stock had a shoulder rest of the kind you¡¯d see with advanced models and would be hard to find from common merchants What drew his attention most was how the trigger had a guard that extended down into a grip, and that there were small wheels where the bowstring met the end of each arm. A unique design when taken in full. ¡°What do you make of it?¡±

    ¡°Just looks like another crossbow to me. A golden one.¡±

    ¡°Heliorite. More valuable than gold.¡± Aucrest thought too late that he shouldn¡¯t stress how much these items were worth. ¡°I agree with your assessment. If you captured whoever wielded this they are either the Artificer or knew them very well. May I see them?¡±

    Sherman nodded slowly, bowing slightly. ¡°We¡¯ve got him in the strongest anti-mag we have, him and his friends.¡±

    ¡°The strongest what?¡±

    ¡°Uh, magical suppression cell, Lord.¡± The formality that had been bleeding off Sherman¡¯s speech snapped back into place. ¡°I¡¯ll show you to them at once.¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°How can I help you?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m wondering if you could tell me if my father is here?¡±

    Kelra, minutes from signing off, looked at the young avianoid in front of her and hoped she wouldn¡¯t have to walk her through posting bail. ¡°Who is he?¡±

    ¡°Oh, he¡¯s on the Council. Lord Aucrest?¡± Kelra¡¯s eyes widened and the other smiled awkwardly. ¡°Sorry, I know, I don¡¯t have any of his silver. Both my sister and I took after our mother. We were going to have a late dinner, but I heard he had to come down here for some urgent business. I¡¯m Willow, by the way.¡±

    ¡°Kelra.¡± Another would have been more suspicious, but she could see the resemblance in the face now that she looked for it. ¡°I¡¯m afraid he might be a while. Have you heard about the attack?¡±

    ¡°Just bits and pieces on the way here. Does this have something to do with my father?¡± Willow asked, worried.

    Her desk wasn¡¯t connected to the other receptionists¡¯, some of which were being taken over by dusker counterparts as the night shift phased in. Following the conversation with Jeras she¡¯d negotiated for the next rotation out, although if she got delayed that would throw that plan into the Crest. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t worry,¡± Kelra whispered. ¡°It¡¯s looking like there¡¯s a rare class involved, they¡¯re probably just trying to figure out if he¡¯s associated with another region or not.¡±

    ¡°So he is here for work.¡± Willow sighed. ¡°Thank you Kelra, I know all I need to.¡±

    ¡°You could wait here if you¡¯d like,¡± Kelra offered, indicating benches near the entrance instead of the desk.

    ¡°No, it¡¯s fine. I¡¯m sure he¡¯s busy.¡± Willow left with a disappointed glance towards one of the secure doors leading from the guardhouse entrance, though it wasn¡¯t the one Aucrest had gone through. Kelra almost gestured for the next in line before remembering herself, and quickly gathered her things instead.

    ¡°Shaun, I¡¯m off,¡± she said to tonight¡¯s lead desk staff. The human, also just freed up, gave her a half smile.

    ¡°Kelra, when are you going to branch out?¡± He said in a low voice that wasn¡¯t quite a whisper. ¡°You know how this ends.¡±

    ¡°Shaun! I was sure no one overheard us.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, we just saw you bending the not-ears of your on-and-off flame with a hungry look on your face.¡±

    ¡°I did not have a hungry look on my face.¡±

    Shaun rolled his eyes. ¡°Sure, sure. I get it Kelra, everyone needs to relax right now. I¡¯d just suggest picking one that¡¯s either just for a night or forever.¡±

    ¡°Why do you care?¡±

    Shaun shrugged. ¡°You always take days off whenever you two break up. Covering that¡¯s annoying and I don¡¯t know if you can afford that right now.¡±

    ¡°Good night Shaun,¡± Kelra said abruptly.

    ¡°Yeah, you have a good one too.¡±

    ¡­

    Lieutenant Sherman stood alone in the secure cells, standing at attention and facing the cell containing the Artificer. He didn¡¯t move for the ten minutes he was in there, even when the viewing slit on the gestalt¡¯s cell unlatched and opened itself. Finally, there was a momentary tug on his wrist and he left.

    When the door to the cells was closed, Aucrest dismissed the invisibility effect coming from an earring stashed within the feathers of his chest. He was angry, but very careful not to let that show. To him, manipulating most people was as easy as a game. While Thomas had proven resistant earlier today, a result of taking the wrong approach based on flawed assumptions, all Sherman needed was assurances and bribes to remain loyal.

    He had hoped to reach the Artificer first and similarly manipulate them into an agreement favorable to the city. The ideal outcome was something akin to a non-compete contract with strictly enforced terms to both ensure Aughal would benefit from their services long-term, and prevent other regions or powerful individuals from taking more aggressive measures. How he arrived at that end depended on the Artificer¡¯s willingness to cooperate, which at this point was out the window. Manipulating people was like a game. In this case, an idiot had played the first half and lost most of the pieces.

    While the guard was within their right to detain those following an incident where lives were lost, especially when fault was in question, leaving two of three injured was unacceptable. Perhaps Sherman had thought having a class would protect them from death, and that seemed to be the case with the Artificer, whose wounds were mostly healed. At the same time, if his gestalt ally died while in Aughal¡¯s custody, he wouldn¡¯t just have to worry about his plan falling through. The Ironrush Ravager might level the building for that.

    First things first. ¡°Why do you have the gestalt in an unlit room?¡± he asked in a controlled tone.

    ¡°Lord, I figured it wouldn¡¯t matter so long as we got him out by sunrise. Assuming you ¡®worked things out¡¯ with the Artificer. If not, we¡¯d throw a torch in there or something.¡±

    At least the lieutenant was knowledgeable enough to know that earth gestalt needed light to survive, but still. ¡°A torch!? Do you not have a sunrod for this very purpose?¡±

    ¡°Well, not one that¡¯ll work in that cell, Lord. Shouldn¡¯t it be fine until morning?¡±

    Aucrest silently uttered a prayer to the Octyrrum for there to be at least one competent, corrupt official in this city, knowing it wouldn¡¯t be answered. ¡°Not if they are injured. Gestalt need sunlight or the closest approximation to heal. You need to move them into a cell that your sunrod can function in!¡±

    Sherman bristled slightly as he noticed the annoyance creeping into Aucrest¡¯s voice. ¡°Lord Seliri, I cannot risk my men. We were unable to fully search it, and unless you can guarantee it won¡¯t attack them when we try to move it, I can¡¯t authorize that. You know how hard it is to talk to weeds.¡±

    Aucrest scowled, not having a good enough reason or the authority to countermand the Lieutenant. Still, he couldn¡¯t let the gestalt die or all hopes of persuading the Artificer would go with them. He withdrew a bag from within his suit and transferred coins into an empty one. ¡°Fine. Take this and send someone to emergently commission a level 5 sunrod from Arpan. I don¡¯t care what he¡¯s doing, this is important. You have my authority to pledge additional funds in compensation for whatever he charges.¡±

    Sherman¡¯s eyes widened and shone when he realized each coin was a dark green. ¡°There¡¯s almost a whole lapis here Lord.¡±

    ¡°Send someone good at negotiating. You may keep the change, assuming he doesn¡¯t ask for more.¡±

    ¡°T-thank you, Lord!¡±

    ¡°Do not thank me yet. If that gestalt dies there will be trouble.¡±

    ¡°I will see that it does not Lord!¡± Sherman boasted, buoyed by the fresh bounty. He knew exactly who he¡¯d send to the city¡¯s Artificer. ¡°As for the others, it appears they¡¯ve both gone to rest. That¡¯s surprising from the Artificer considering how much he¡¯d howled in the beginning. Should I order the men to wake them up before dawn?¡±

    ¡°No need, let them their rest. We¡¯re trying to make the Artificer agreeable, remember?¡± A slight frown crossed Sherman¡¯s face as he realized for the first time that the way he¡¯d done things might have made it harder for Aucrest. Another covert glance at the bag solved those worries. ¡°As for the dusker, they aren¡¯t resting.¡±

    ¡°Lord?¡±

    ¡°I take it you¡¯re unfamiliar with how our night brethren function beyond the broad strokes. They can¡¯t sleep when they¡¯re completely inside their shells, it¡¯s too uncomfortable. I¡¯ve only seen one willingly stay that way in a space large enough to accommodate their full size for three reasons, aside from the sun. Grief, despair, or shame.¡±

    ¡°Huh. Makes sense,¡± Sherman lied. ¡°I¡¯ll get that rod then. You don¡¯t want to take the Artificer?¡±

    ¡°Of course not! He is in your custody. I don¡¯t have the authority to abduct people.¡±

    ¡°I could make it look like he escaped, Lord,¡± Sherman whispered. ¡°You know. Just to prove how helpful I am to you.¡±

    ¡°Thank you, Lieutenant, but that is unnecessary.¡± This man is a menace. Sadly, a necessary one. The city must bear him long enough for my plans to be fully realized. ¡°I will return a few hours after dawn tomorrow. Make sure the prisoners are fed and have a healer look at all of them sometime before dawn.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to take any of them out of the cell,¡± Sherman said carefully. ¡°I don¡¯t think the other two have their Focus, but-¡°

    ¡°Explain that, and have a healer use non-magical remedies.¡± Octyrrum, why do I have to explain this to him? ¡°Put a guard in the cell as well if you must, but I want to provide the appearance that we care about his physical condition. Do you understand all of that?¡±

    ¡°Yes Lord! I will go, uh, send someone to Arpan right away.¡±

    As both left the block, Khare writhed on the cell floor. They were critically wounded. One of their vital junctions had been completely severed and that was destabilizing their entire body. It could regrow, but like all plants they needed sunlight and water. The air in this underground room was damp enough for a desert and they¡¯d stashed water in Mobile Armory. But sunlight? Khare wouldn¡¯t have lasted the night without what they carefully brought out when they were sure no one was nearby. Held in trembling vines, they soaked in what they could from faint light radiating off of Daniel¡¯s phone. Of all they had on them, it was the only thing that still worked in this cell.

 Chapter 106: The Rest of the Team

    Evalyn was sore towards the end of her advancement. Staying in one position for hours on end was part of it, but she¡¯d also chosen strength to advance today. It was flagging behind and while she wasn¡¯t going to get it to level 3 right now, a point here or there was prudent. Actual exercise hadn¡¯t been a part of the process, it was more of a psychological exhaustion making itself manifest physically.

    As she opened her curtain and saw the evening sun, she hoped she wasn¡¯t the only one who had taken a chance to nap. None of them were expected to meet until a late dinner. She was hungry, still tired, and resolved to fulfill those needs in that order. Evalyn knocked on Daniel¡¯s room first, then Khiat¡¯s, then Tak¡¯s, then, reluctantly, Thomas¡¯. No answer. Was he still in prison? She would have tried Lograve but with him being level 4 she half-expected him to still be in meditation. Advancement was such an ordeal at higher levels. The jump from one to two seemed like a mountain itself, but at least she hadn¡¯t hit a wall yet.

    It became clear that none of her friends were available. At least there was pleasant company enough downstairs, and she entertained herself by seeing how long it would take the other Bard patrolling the tavern to realize she was competition and not a mark. Two hours and three separate conversations, as it turned out. She didn¡¯t blame him since she¡¯d left her Focus in her room. Say what you will about the propensity for flutes breaking mid-battle, they were a lot easier to lug around. I need to get a bag of holding someday.

    She filtered through the tables, Mantle of Grace making it easy to mix among the others. Even apart from her Focus, it was near enough that she didn¡¯t lose her powers. Any music-based ones would be impossible, but why would she need them? There¡¯d be no fighting and no real charming either. Pursuing something physical the moment she hit town would just feed into the worst stereotypes of her class, but that didn¡¯t mean she couldn¡¯t survey the field.

    While she wasn¡¯t a natural rumor sponge like Thomas, it was impossible not to pick up things. The minor details like market prices going up or more guards on the street were the concerns of people who lived their whole lives here and she didn¡¯t pay too much attention. The tidbits she cared about included the mumblings of tensions in the outlying villages and caravans vanished entirely, causing delays in shipping, with everyone involved either found dead or assumed to have joined the Mirage. The rumored rebels didn¡¯t do much to the city itself aside from the recent assassinations, instead working against the nobility by trying to cripple trade and morale. Evalyn didn¡¯t understand their motivations considering the Mirage was working directly against the will of the Octyrrum, but neither did she pretend she knew all the facts.

    It was nearing night when Tak and Hunter returned. Neither looked too different, but Evalyn could tell they¡¯d spent the day outdoors. Feathers and fur prevented sunburn, but they caught the sand just as badly as her hair. It really got everywhere. Evalyn peeled off from the brewing conspiracies about sand rebels and greeted them. ¡°Hey you two. Seen any of the others?¡±

    ¡°No, but Lograve is upstairs. No one else is close.¡± Hunter nodded beside him, the actual source of that information.

    ¡°I¡¯m sure Daniel and the others are busy with that Artificer,¡± she sighed. ¡°Maybe I should go by the prison and see if I can help get Thomas out? But he¡¯d just hold owing me over my head. Hmm.¡±

    ¡°How would that work?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not entirely sure, but he¡¯d find a way. At least you know when to take a hint.¡±

    Tak gave her a simple, friendly smile. ¡°If you ever change your mind-¡±

    ¡°No, Tak.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s ok. You are worth the try.¡±

    ¡°Thank you, I think.¡± Evalyn brushed at her hair, feeling the small amount of sand dust off. How? I was indoors all day. ¡°Well, did it go well?¡± She covertly glanced at Hunter as well, not directly mentioning him as they were in public. The three grabbed a table as Tak ruminated, the tavern more open as people were gathering close to the Mirage debate.

    ¡°Maybe. Hard to tell. Hunter thinks so! I went with intelligence. Hard, but I did it.¡±

    ¡°You have an advancement penalty to that right?¡±

    Tak¡¯s face got the closest she¡¯d ever seen to a scowl. ¡°Yes! It can be annoying, and if it doesn¡¯t work I lose two.¡±

    Evalyn nodded. ¡°I¡¯m sure double advancement makes up for it. That¡¯s the price you pay, though I¡¯m glad I just had an initial wisdom drop. A few weeks and I¡¯d corrected that. Where¡¯d you two go off to anyway?¡±

    ¡°Sand dune just outside the city.¡± Tak¡¯s primarily brown feathers were lightened by a healthy dusting of the stuff, although he didn¡¯t mind. ¡°Was good. No monsters tried to kill us.¡± Tak glanced downwards with Evalyn at the faint bloodstains that had been imperfectly washed off. ¡°No monsters tried to kill us while advancing.¡±

    ¡°But you did fight monsters?¡±

    ¡°A few,¡± Tak admitted. ¡°After. Good practice, but just level 1s.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m surprised both of you had it in you. I¡¯d be hard pressed to run. Well, actually,¡± she rolled a shoulder. ¡°No, I¡¯m good. I did strength today.¡±

    ¡°Oh,¡± Tak cooed. ¡°Get anything?¡±

    ¡°Not sure, I¡¯ll have to sleep on it.¡± The sun was close to setting. She couldn¡¯t see it on the horizon, but the dimming light outside was telling. Evalyn had noticed by now the inn was built so that there weren¡¯t any windows facing the east or west. Probably a bad idea for a building that served a lot of duskers. ¡°I¡¯ll be pretty disappointed if it¡¯s just something that makes me hit harder. A specialized buff would be nice. Valor Song is a good all-rounder for level 2, but it¡¯s a jack of all trades kind of thing. It gets boring to use the same ability over and over again.¡±

    ¡°I like your music.¡±

    ¡°Thank you Tak,¡± she laughed, somehow taken by the Totem Warrior¡¯s innocent persistence. For whatever reason it came off better than Thomas¡¯. ¡°Are you two going to get some rest? I got up late, so I¡¯ll probably mix a little more here and then take a walk.¡± Hunter¡¯s head turned all of a sudden. Not fast enough to be alarming, but it was a direct motion. ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Thomas is near.¡± Tak was slightly distracted as he listened to a voice in his head. ¡°Running. He¡¯ll be here in a few minutes. Coming from the center of the city.¡±

    ¡°Good nose. Is he ok?¡± Hunter walked towards the door, sending one of the more inebriated scampering away.

    ¡°No blood on him. There¡¯s another familiar smell too. Not one of us, someone from the gate. The¡­¡± Tak cocked his head. ¡°I think he means that guard. The first one, the other avianoid.¡±

    Evalyn debated immediately going for her Focus, or Lograve. ¡°Is he chasing Thomas!?¡±

    ¡°No. They are coming from different directions.¡±

    ¡°How much time before he gets here?¡±

    Tak and Hunter silently consulted. ¡°Maybe five minutes.¡±

    ¡°I just need one, stay here.¡± Evalyn barely made it back at the promised time, accordion slung on her back. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±

    They quickly caught up with Thomas, who was slightly winded from how far he¡¯d been running. ¡°Where-¡± he took a few breaths. ¡°Where¡¯s Guy?¡±

    ¡°At the other Artificer¡¯s, we think. Did you escape from prison?¡± Evalyn asked. Several people passing by glanced over.

    ¡°No! My brother got me out. L, look.¡± Thomas tried to put a hand on Evalyn to steady himself but was slapped away. ¡°I got pulled into an interrogation by Tlara¡¯s dad. I know, I know, that¡¯s not even the craziest thing but listen. He¡¯s one of the scariest people here and he¡¯s after Daniel. He doesn¡¯t know who he is yet, but how long do you think it¡¯ll take him to find Tlara and ask her?¡±

    ¡°And Tlara¡¯s not exactly the kind of person to keep that secret out of the kindness of her heart. Damn it. Hunter, can you talk to Daniel?¡± The ringcat sat back and closed his eyes.

    ¡°Can I just say I¡¯m still not used to that?¡±

    ¡°Hunter being Hunter?¡± Evalyn asked, being careful with her words.

    ¡°Just, all of it- woah!¡± Hunter suddenly sprawled over, losing his balance, before coming unsteadily back on all fours. The air around the ringcat grew intense, and this time one of the patrolling guards took notice.

    ¡°We need to get off the street. What was that?¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re talking fast. He is-¡± Tak frowned. ¡°Oh. Oh no.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡± Thomas asked with a hint of concern as the group diverted into a random alleyway, inadvertently causing two would-be thieves to reconsider their choice of evening activity. The group was more concerned with how Hunter was almost drunkenly moving and didn¡¯t notice them retreat up a wall and away.

    No one answered the Cleric¡¯s question until they were reasonably out of earshot from the street, although a wary eye was kept for anyone that might join them. Finally, Evalyn spoke. ¡°If we¡¯re going to keep having these clandestine discussions, it would be helpful for someone to develop a stealth power. Tak, is it Daniel?¡±

    ¡°Yes. Hunter says his panic is making it hard to move.¡±

    ¡°His what?¡± Thomas and Evalyn asked, both going on alert. While it wasn¡¯t universally true, very bad things tended to happen when Daniel was afraid. It wasn¡¯t that he was some stalwart soul only affected by the greatest of catastrophes, just that he¡¯d been there for every one after the Upswell.

    ¡°He¡¯s in a cage.¡± Hunter¡¯s words were slurred as if he wasn¡¯t in full control of his tongue. Thomas whirled around and made shushing noises, but Tak shrugged.

    ¡°No one to see. We could say it was someone else if someone hears.¡±

    ¡°Guy¡¯s in prison?¡±

    ¡°They were attacked,¡± Hunter explained. ¡°Won. Both injured. Then people came and put him in a small cage with no magic. He is-¡± Hunter¡¯s head jerked. ¡°Not happy. Managing, but does not like small spaces.¡±

    ¡°Who attacked them, and who was injured?¡±

    ¡°Kh-kharrre.¡± There was a shift in Hunter¡¯s stance, subtle but noticeable. A hunching of the shoulders and lowering of the head. ¡°Khiaat isth ffine.¡±

    The two without a Telepathic Link to Hunter took a second to realize what had happened. Predictably, Evalyn got there first. ¡°Daniel!?¡± Hunter nodded, or rather, Daniel did using Hunter¡¯s head.

    Thomas was the most taken aback. ¡°Well, this breaks the scale, Guy. Hand, I didn¡¯t know you could do this.¡±

    Hunter blinked and seemed to reassert control of himself. ¡°He says it is still hard,¡± Tak translated. ¡°He wanted to control just for a moment. To feel free. He says it is easier now because, oh. Because he has something to run from. He doesn¡¯t have much mana left though.¡±

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    ¡°How long can he keep this going?¡±

    Hunter answered this time. ¡°Two minutes. Used a lot when he fought earlier. He is¡­¡± A look passed between the ringcat and Tak, both nodding. ¡°We are getting him.¡±

    ¡°Guy, we can¡¯t just go in and get you out. The guard will stop us.¡±

    Evalyn looked back towards the tavern. ¡°We need to get Lograve, maybe speak to whoever commands this region if they aren''t leashed by the city.¡±

    A split formed between the four. ¡°He is hurt.¡± Hunter locked eyes with Evalyn. ¡°I am getting him.¡±

    ¡°How badly injured?¡±

    ¡°Two arrows and some sword cuts. Partially healed before going into the cage, Khare may be worse.¡±

    She sighed, realizing she had to stop the rest of the team from being arrested while managing this crisis. ¡°Daniel listen to me. We can¡¯t get you out right now, but I can put you to sleep, assuming it works how I think it might. Regain your mana and you can hop back into Hunter tomorrow while we sort this out.¡±

    ¡°He doesn¡¯t like this plan,¡± Hunter cautioned.

    ¡°I think it is a good plan,¡± Tak commented, crossing the divide. ¡°Daniel sounds bad, but it is not smart to be captured too.¡±

    ¡°Hunter, if we¡¯re going to put him to sleep I¡¯ll have to affect you too. If you resist it won¡¯t work, and the longer you delay the less time I have.¡±

    The ringcat didn¡¯t appear moved by the argument. ¡°He wants out.¡±

    ¡°If it was one of us and he wasn¡¯t in prison would he do the smart thing, or put people at risk? Put you at risk?¡± Evalyn was arguing without the benefit of several charisma features including Mantle of Grace. Even after Hunter had begun benefiting from her bardic songs, he¡¯d proven resistant or immune to others based on lack of interest. That wasn¡¯t to say her words were any less true.

    Hunter weighed her words and found reason to override the voice in his head. ¡°Do it. He¡¯s running out of mana.¡±

    Evalyn pulled the accordion and began playing, the song having already started in her soul. The Lullaby was the same as before, theoretically dampening its effectiveness compared to when it had been unheard of. However, this was her sister¡¯s song. Its meaning to her, and the anguish she shared with Hunter, brought forth the will to envelop the troubles of those she cared about in the safety of sleep. It was odd how well she could read Hunter at that moment. The expressions were clear on his face, one that had been so feral even after gaining the ability to speak.

    Though she specifically directed her intent away from the others, Tak and Thomas both yawned as did others who peered into the alleyway on hearing the music. For those without empowered attributes, walking toward Evalyn was like trying to swim against a tide that would wash them into unconsciousness if they got too close. Using such a wide ranged power drew attention from the guard who arrived too late to stop what happened.

    Hunter closed his eyes and began to rest. Daniel, whose mind occupied the body, was affected to a greater degree. Despite his training, he was still not at home with the ringcat¡¯s heightened senses, which strangely proved to amplify Evalyn¡¯s effect on him. When he fell asleep, the iron focus he¡¯d had on staying within Hunter¡¯s body faded and he returned to his own with only dregs of mana left.

    Evalyn stopped playing, allowing the unpowered guard to fully approach. ¡°Miss, we need to ask you to refrain from using bardic music within city limits unless authorized.¡±

    Both Thomas and Tak emanated slight hostility given recent circumstances, but Evalyn turned and smiled. ¡°Sorry, I had to keep this one under control. The charm slipped for a moment but it¡¯s back in place. Usually, I have a week. If it turns out it¡¯s getting used to the effect I¡¯ll get a new one. But, the armor¡¯s fit for this species and I¡¯d like to not have to waste it. You wouldn¡¯t happen to know where any packs were recently sighted? ¡±

    ¡°Uh, no ma¡¯am.¡± The guard cleared his throat, cheeks reddening. ¡°You should check with the Hunter¡¯s Guild.¡±

    ¡°Good idea. Thank you. Tak, why don¡¯t you wake up the ringcat and we¡¯ll be off.¡±

    Situation defused, Evalyn marched off with a freshly roused Hunter. Thomas leaned close to her and whispered. ¡°You¡¯re really good at lying. Like, scary good, Ev. Ow!¡± he wheezed, as he was elbowed in the stomach.

    ¡­

    In every region, there was a force dedicated to suppressing the lingering monster populations which the Spoke was unable to entirely suppress. They took many different forms depending on the societies they supported or, extremely rarely, ruled. In the case of the Forlothan Kingdom, monster hunters served as a distinct group from the guards that defended the city proper. Their responsibility and authority began at the regional boundaries and ended at the city walls. Blessed could freely choose participation in either the Hunter¡¯s Guild or the civic guard, or both, but there was one who had to remain apart.

    The Commander led this organization, having no formal overseer within the region at peacetime. They were typically the strongest Blessed permanently residing in their respective regions. Some used that position to capitalize on the strongest monsters that appeared, using them as stepping stones to gain advancement with the hopes of becoming strong enough to join an incursion force. Service with the armies that went into a wild region and blazed the trail was the only feasible way to reach the heights of mortal power, assuming one didn¡¯t encounter a wall first.

    While the Commander of Aughal did not bow to its nobility or the Council, she had to respect civic emergencies and threats from within. During times such as now she had needed to call upon the teams of the guild to supplement the overtaxed guard, a situation both sides would have preferred to avoid. This would allow monsters to grow in threat, eventually tipping the balance between pressure from above and risk to the outlying villages. She¡¯d fervently hoped the hardened adventurers from the Thormundz would provide relief and forestall a difficult decision, although so far only one as of yet unnamed Hero had made any sizable dent in the local monster population. The work that man had already done made the Commander mark him as a potential for permanent recruitment into her command staff.

    Her next exposure to the survivors of the Thormundz left a decidedly different impression. The Ironrush Ravager, as Rasalia Stoneclaw was more widely known, found herself meeting with people three levels below her as night fell over the city. The ease with which they found their way to her office only surprised her a little more than the armored ringcat, but if what they were saying was true it was worth the attention.

    Given the benefits of such a high disparity in levels, Rasalia could approximate not only these visitors¡¯ levels and classes, if that wasn¡¯t obvious, but also roughly where their attributes stood. Strength, dexterity, and intelligence were the weakest of the three mortals, although collectively they covered each other. As for the monster, that may be a clever disguise. Rasalia knew some Druids were capable of taking monstrous form, which would easily explain what she was sensing from the one standing in her office. Why one would do this in her presence, or go through the trouble of making armor specific to only one form she didn¡¯t know, but the vast possibilities of different available powers probably held the explanation. She didn¡¯t comment on it too much as the discussion was already heated, and her insights were still a guess at best.

    ¡°If what you¡¯re saying is true, I¡¯m going to need proof. Even then, if your friends did kill people it¡¯s within the city¡¯s right to imprison them while the matter is investigated.¡± Rasalia¡¯s tone was kept even and controlled.

    The Bard leading the group wisely continued to refrain from using any powers that might attempt to influence her. Rasalia was well balanced in her attributes and level 5. She could kill each individual in the room with her without much trouble beyond the fact that that thought to do so would never occur to her. That being said, Evalyn had been passionate in her rebuttal thus far. ¡°We spoke directly to him.¡±

    ¡°You visited him in prison?¡± She didn¡¯t sense overt deception through her empowered wisdom, but there was something, perhaps many things, these people were hiding. Their secrets were their own up until it conflicted with what they were asking of her. If they were then unwilling to disclose the information, she would let the matter settle without intervening further.

    ¡°One of us can communicate telepathically with him.¡±

    ¡°Within an antimagic field?¡± Rasalia raised an eyebrow. There was a strong Arcanist reported to be traveling with them, but level 5?

    ¡°Yes. It¡¯s a bonded power.¡±

    ¡°Oh, of course. I imagine your struggles in getting here provided quite the opportunity to form many such bonds. Which one of you?¡± Unease, shifting, glances of two of them to the monster. Interesting. ¡°Druid, I would ask you to revert your form so I can hear your account. We have facilities that you may change in,¡± she added without irony.

    Surprise, and a shot of fear from the disguised mortal. Was this a hidden member? Revealing that a dominated beast was actually a Blessed would be quite the swing in a battle and spoke to careful consideration she¡¯d expect from a team experienced in conflicts between both monster and mortal. As the guard had just captured part of their team, the precaution was understandable and raised her appraisal of the four. Still, neither the Druid nor their team immediately complied. ¡°I give you my word as a Champion that what you discuss or reveal will not leave this room unless keeping silent would endanger lives.¡±

    ¡°Champion, did your class evolve? You are the Ironrush, right?¡± The Cleric named Thomas asked.

    ¡°Yes, I am. It evolved four years ago when I reached this level.¡± Rasalia smiled lightly and genuinely to drive home her point, conscious of how intimidating her beak could look in a neutral position. Also, what the rumors said about her. ¡°I understand why you might want to hold cards up your sleeve, but this organization is above the politics in this city. A fact which, unfortunately, means I do not have unilateral authority to interfere without a very good reason. Please, your Druid¡¯s secret is safe with me.¡± Glances towards the leader, who shrugged.

    ¡°Hunter, it¡¯s alright. You can talk to her.¡±

    Rasalia stared as the Druid opened his maw and spoke gods honest Greater Forlothan. ¡°Daniel and the others were attacked. Shot from behind with arrows, and then many attempted to kill them. After, the guard took them to cells that block his magic. No one healed them, and Khare is very hurt. The large one didn¡¯t even fight and she was arrested.¡±

    Now it was making more sense. If the Druid could still speak while in that form and were otherwise able to comfortably inhabit it, why would they need to revert? The armor would have been expensive to commission, but this was a team with an Artificer. They would be ones to watch if they survived the avarice of the Council. ¡°How injured? If they are in danger of dying then that changes things. I will not suffer unjust execution in this city, even if I must personally take action.¡±

    ¡°Daniel sleeps. I don¡¯t know about Khare, but they were hurt.¡±

    Evalyn, the Bard Rasalia assumed was the leader, then added, ¡°If Khare was good enough to move, I doubt they¡¯re in danger of dying immediately. That doesn¡¯t mean they deserve to be locked in there!¡±

    Rasalia nodded. ¡°Considering I couldn¡¯t confirm that unless I went myself, I appreciate that you didn¡¯t try to lie to me.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not stupid enough to think I can get anything by you.¡± Evalyn wasn¡¯t short with her words, but there was a distance she was placing between herself and Rasalia, making it clear through subtext that she didn¡¯t consider herself a subordinate to the Commander.

    ¡°Good. If you intend to work in this region for any amount of time, and I hope you do, honesty will be paramount. Someone in this forsaken city has to play by the rules.¡± She leaned back in her chair and looked at the dark sky. The onset of night was hardly an immediate concern. Level 5 endurance came with many advantages. However, the same rules didn¡¯t apply to those important enough for her to speak to. The Lieutenant responsible for the arrest should be off duty while their counterpart took over. In the absence of a dusker on the Council, there was likewise no one she could inquire to at this time.

    It wasn¡¯t the answer Rasalia wanted to give the team, but as she¡¯d said, someone had to play by the rules. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, there¡¯s little to be done tonight. I will say I neither appreciate nor condone the attitude this city takes towards rare classes. It is, unfortunately, an obsession that spreads beyond this region. That being said, they have overstepped here and my influence can be placed behind your team to keep the pressure off now that they¡¯ve done something questionable. Now, if there are facts incongruent with what you have presented, I cannot promise this will hold true.¡±

    ¡°But we are telling the truth! They plucked Guy right off the street after he¡¯d been shot up and didn¡¯t do anything about it!¡±

    ¡°By chance,¡± Rasalia asked, ¡°Have you informed your church, Cleric?¡±

    ¡°After here I will. We need to get him out.¡±

    Rasalia held up a hand. ¡°I will advise patience there. There are no formal mechanisms for arbitrating matters like this with the divine leadership in this city, and an additional interest weighing in right now could make things more complicated.¡±

    ¡°One of ours is injured and they¡¯re just letting them all rot!¡± Thomas protested, far more vehemence in his words than Evalyn¡¯s.

    ¡°Your commitment to your friends is commendable, and that is what I¡¯m worried about. If your church takes drastic action based on its connection to you, it will cloud the sky. Believe me, they have made a mistake and I can use that to protect your friends.¡± That seemed to mollify the Cleric.

    ¡°How does this work, then?¡± Evalyn asked.

    ¡°Return to where you were staying and come back early tomorrow evening. I will either have them freed or will be in the process of doing so.¡± She wanted to leave it at that, but the current state of Aughal pressed her to add, ¡°After that, I would be very interested in discussing contracts with your team. We are in the midst of what could become a crisis if our monster population isn¡¯t culled.¡±

    ¡°We have advancements to consolidate. At least a week¡¯s worth,¡± Evalyn said carefully, wary of giving a direct no given the circumstances.

    ¡°I see. If there is nothing else, I wish you all a good night.¡±

    ¡°Wait!¡± Thomas shouted, surprising the others. ¡°There¡¯s something we gotta tell you about.¡±

    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t we let Lograve do this?¡± Evalyn asked with a hint of caution.

    ¡°We don¡¯t have the time to wait for this kind of stuff. We-¡±

    ¡°This wouldn¡¯t have to do with the theoretical cataclysmic entity within the Thormundz mountain range?¡± Three of the four blinked at her, the other avianoid continuing to be a nonplussed observer of the conversation. ¡°I was informed of its existence by Gadriel Cross and forwarded a recommendation for assessment to the civic leaders yesterday. From what I understand, your Arcanist will follow up with them personally to see that they take this matter seriously. I am sure this was impressed on you, but let me reiterate that news of this is to be kept from the public at this time. We have enough going on here without mass panic.¡±

    ¡°You know already?¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± Rasalia answered, just a little exasperated.

    Thomas had the self-awareness to appear embarrassed. ¡°Oh. That¡¯s good.¡±

    ¡°Then if there¡¯s nothing else?¡± The group, who she only now realized had neglected to give her their team name, filed out shortly afterward. Rasalia sat stiffly in her chair, pretending to glance at documents while using Peer Beyond to follow the group out of the building. The power was nothing on the level of what Fates could do, but within a reasonable distance she could pick out a conversation that would otherwise be inaudible to her.

    She was relieved when she heard the four agree to hold off on storming the guardhouse since she didn¡¯t want to use her powers to defend the city unless absolutely necessary. There¡¯d just be too much collateral damage.

 Chapter 107: The Rest of the Night

    Jeras didn¡¯t have anything to let him keep time, but he knew he was running late. What had started as a quick stop to the Painted Dusk had turned into an entire affair as he¡¯d apparently just missed who he had tried to warn. Unfortunately, after his questionable arrest the bartender on staff hadn¡¯t even given him the time of day, which would¡¯ve been more helpful than usual. At this rate, he wouldn¡¯t have time to even remove his armor before meeting Kelra.

    Driven as much by what he¡¯d put into this as what was at stake, Jeras resolved to contact the other Artificer in this city, knowing from Thomas that they¡¯d visited him yesterday. He was out on a limb but couldn¡¯t think of anywhere else they could be.

    Abandoning his pursuit had occurred to Jeras. Maybe the Artificer¡¯s friends had found out some other way. However, his disgust with the guard¡¯s leadership kept him going. That, and the thought of facing Kelra without having done anything putting a stone in his chest. In some way, Jeras felt that if he didn¡¯t do anything to change how things were done in this city, then nothing would change between him and Kelra.

    While not a street sweeper most days, Jeras knew the city well enough. The Artificer¡¯s new shop was a local landmark despite its exclusivity, and steady trade with the guard for various items meant he had been sent as an errand boy a few years ago when he was lower in rank. That also meant he was familiar with how the Artificer could be.

    Jeras¡¯ fears about waiting in front of the store for a reply were dashed and replaced tenfold when he saw who was standing at the door already performing the near constant knocking needed to get Arpan¡¯s attention. He tried to duck away, but too late. ¡°JERAS? What are you doing here?¡± Lieutenant Sherman paused in his knocking but continued to hold a bag in front of the door like it owed him money.

    ¡°Uh, I, uh,¡±

    ¡°Still have your armor on. Did the boys find you when I asked for a runner to take this shit back?¡± Jeras simply had no good explanation for his presence other than the one provided. He certainly couldn¡¯t afford anything made here. Reluctantly, he nodded. ¡°Great! Bastards, though, not to send a dusker. But commendable. It¡¯s this kind of attitude that will see you rise in the ranks. Now, help me break down this door.¡±

    Some distance below them, two people sat in Arpan¡¯s chambers while a suit of armor rushed to the door. ¡°Another unexpected guest?¡± the cloaked woman asked. She¡¯d been there since the first group had surprised her, watching carefully as the Artificer tested more of the ¡®components¡¯ she had brought. ¡°I thought I impressed on you the importance of keeping this work discreet.¡±

    ¡°Come on, we¡¯re past threats right?¡± Arpan asked nervously. ¡°You¡¯re not ending the world with these or anything. It¡¯s not like making this formulae is against the law! They¡¯d have to know about it first. The only thing that hurts me is if other people know what I¡¯m doing, and you¡¯re in a position to tell them I¡¯ve tried. I don¡¯t have anything to gain from selling you out.¡±

    The perpetually cloaked figure let him hang for a few moments before simply saying, ¡°Perhaps.¡±

    ¡°Look, I¡¯ll just see who it is.¡± Arpan switched one eye and both ears to Dril, skin crawling as the cloaked woman moved out of sight of the other. She didn¡¯t know which eye he was keeping on her, right? ¡°Who are you?¡±

    ¡°Lieutenant Sherman! It¡¯s about time, we have important city business. Open up!¡± A gruff voice bellowed through the door.

    ¡°You¡¯re on the day shift, aren¡¯t you? Why are you here?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s none of your business! Except, uhm, see here Artificer! We have an emergency commission. We need a level 5 sunrod. I have been authorized ten viridian as payment.¡± Arpan sighed in relief and then frowned. Ok, that was an innocuous request, but the coin?

    ¡°You can dive headfirst into the Crest for that amount. Maybe on an off day, but you¡¯re coming here in the middle of the night and expecting what I assume is an immediate turnaround.¡±

    ¡°Twenty!¡±

    I hate bargaining, except when it¡¯s in my favor. ¡°Two lapis, one for the item and one for my trouble, if it is an ¡®emergency¡¯.¡± Arpan smiled, temporarily forgetting his other guest.

    ¡°Fifty. Fifty viridian!¡± Sherman quickly clarified. ¡°We just need a small one. That will take you, what, five minutes?¡±

    Arpan nearly shut the door in the man¡¯s face then and there. ¡°Five? You¡¯re looking at an hour, and that¡¯s if I use expensive material. Fortunately, I happen to have just acquired a perfect match, but!¡± How much does this idiot have on him? Oh. Assess Customer became more potent at higher levels and level disparity. At level 5, Arpan learned exactly how much the level 2 Sherman had on him. He has almost a hundred viridian on him and he opened with ten!? ¡°For the guard, I¡¯ll drop it to eighty.¡±

    ¡°Seventy five!¡±

    Seriously? ¡°Fine. I¡¯m opening a hatch in the wall. Deposit the coin and I¡¯ll have the rod out in an hour.¡±

    ¡°No, you don¡¯t get the coin until I have the rod.¡±

    ¡°If you don¡¯t get the rod, just arrest me,¡± Arpan¡¯s voice laughed out of Dril¡¯s neck. ¡°I¡¯m assuming you want your lackey there to wait for it anyway.¡±

    Sherman hadn¡¯t thought of that but seized on the idea. ¡°Yes. Yes! Open the hatch.¡± Arpan instructed Dril to retrieve the coin and then took the heliorite breastplate down from where it was displayed.

    ¡°What are you doing? Our work is not finished.¡± Arpan¡¯s senses returned to him and he noticed his visitor had backed away slightly.

    ¡°It¡¯s a guard lieutenant. I¡¯m sorry, but if I don¡¯t do what they want they¡¯ll get suspicious. Sherman is-¡±

    ¡°I know. Both him and his presence. My time is as valuable, if not even more than yours. I do not appreciate delays.¡±

    Arpan sighed and spread out his hands. ¡°None of these hearts are level 6. We¡¯ll be here all night if you want me to test all of them. You¡¯re the one insisting on staying to see the results personally. Just come back tomorrow and I¡¯ll tell you if any worked. I should add that, despite your promise of payment, only the guard is actually delivering tonight.¡±

    ¡°You neglect to mention the considerable costs of acquiring these materials for your tests.¡±

    Arpan sighed and began concentrating. You had to draw the line somewhere, and if she felt like killing him at least there would be two guardsmen to either arrest her or share his fate. ¡°I¡¯m doing this. You have my secrecy and my service, but not my undivided attention.¡±

    She seemed to think on this for a moment before clenching one hand. ¡°I¡¯m taking the remaining samples. We¡¯ll pick this up tomorrow night.¡±

    ¡°But-¡±

    The Mirage agent gathered the ¡®samples¡¯ into a bag and picked it up. ¡°Tomorrow, Artificer.¡±

    ¡°You can¡¯t just leave now! They¡¯re at the door.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll find another way out.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    Back outside, Sherman nodded smugly to Jeras. ¡°See, that¡¯s how you do it. Alright, it¡¯s far too late in the day for me to be on duty. I¡¯ll leave you to collect the rod and bring it back to HQ. It must get in that weed¡¯s room, but be careful not to expose it to any dusker. Understand Jeras?¡±

    ¡°Yes Sir,¡± he replied, trying to muffle the sounds of his soul being crushed.

    If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

    ¡°Good man.¡± Sherman went to walk away but paused and pressed a green coin into his subordinate¡¯s hand. Jeras only resisted briefly. ¡°Keep it up, and there¡¯ll be more of that coming your way.¡±

    ¡­

    Most of the way up the Wing Spire, the westernmost in the city, Tlara briefly thought about unleashing her wyvern so it could attend the dinner in her place before shaking her head. Her father would just blow it up or something. In all honesty, she wanted nothing to do with them because they had nothing for her. Her mother was dead, her sister was obnoxious in no uncertain terms, and her father was¡­

    Well, the old man¡¯s sharp as fuck. Wonder what he¡¯s planning now. Like Crest I¡¯m going to be a part of it. She entered the quarters of her family with complete disregard for the servant staffing the door, brushing past him instead of simply identifying herself. The avianoid strode three paces to stop the intruder before coming to a stop himself.

    ¡°Oh. Welcome home, Lady Tlara.¡± He received no reply from the prodigal daughter and didn¡¯t press the issue. It wasn¡¯t his place.

    The abodes within the Spires varied drastically. In the northern, Moon Spire, every floor was sized appropriately for duskers making the space gigantic for other people. While the rest were sized for the other races, they still differed from floor to floor. In general, higher floors were more ostentatious and bled into each other. A standalone mansion was impossible, but taking up the same space on three to four levels and installing passageways between them accomplished the same effect while allowing for spectacular views. The Wing Spire faced the setting sun and did not have the Thormundz mountains to block out the horizon, affording it the best view. At least, according to the avianoids primarily housed there.

    Her family had been in command of the avianoid faction in the city for as long as she had been alive, meaning that the grand entryway which took up the entire lower floor of the Seliri estate was one Tlara had always walked through during childhood. The space looked like it belonged in a museum, with plinths placed at exact corners on an invisible grid to display works of art, magic, or both. The room that wasn¡¯t taken up by the displays was used for seating, a couple of dining tables, and stairs towards the back. Notably, no decorations were hanging from the ceiling. As a matter of course, the Silver Eye had a flight item on him at all times and preferred there was always clearance to make use of it. Tlara had no such treasures and couldn¡¯t use them if she did.

    ¡°Hey, assholes! Will you quit telling every guard in the city to get me to come here? It¡¯s annoying.¡± Her voice echoed up and down the room, summoning a human from upstairs. She wore a dress heavily accented with silver feathers, stabbing Tlara in the eye with blunt metaphor.

    ¡°Tlara, dear, it is wonderful to see you¡¯ve arrived safe from the Thormundz. When last you were here you would have known me as Lady Alecia Rodamas. I assume someone has told you of the news?¡±

    Tlara carefully considered an appropriate response, taking into account which of her powers she could use and which were likely to have any effect. Unfortunately, none. ¡°So, is Dad planning anything or did he just want to fuck you? Because, damn, that¡¯s an expensive whore.¡±

    Alecia gave a smile that showed teeth, inspiring momentary jealousy in Tlara since she couldn¡¯t mimic the gesture. ¡°I see all of the fond memories your father has related over the years well represent the woman you are today. I¡¯m told you are a Beastmaster. Your pets are appropriately stabled, I hope?¡±

    ¡°What, them? Yeah, got them right here.¡± She grabbed at her waist, drawing a confused look from Alecia. ¡°Stasis Pouches. Damn useful. This one¡¯s a wyvern,¡± she pointed. ¡°And this one¡¯s Spinner. I¡¯d love for you to meet that one. I¡¯ve got some more but honestly, I¡¯m just going to toss them off a cliff or something once something better comes along. You know that runs in the family, you might want to be careful.¡±

    ¡°Your father and I have an understanding,¡± Alecia responded cheerily, finishing with a small laugh. ¡°The front door is closed? Good. Honestly, it¡¯s a political marriage, but it has its perks when it comes to the bedroom.¡±

    ¡°Ew.¡±

    Alecia looked momentarily surprised by her reaction but shrugged it off. ¡°Your father and sister are both out but are expected back soon. You¡¯re fortunate they both had business or you would have missed the meal.¡±

    Tlara moved up to a plinth upon which rested a timepiece small enough to be worn. Through experience she knew she couldn¡¯t topple them, but that did nothing to quench the desire. ¡°So why am I here?¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it enough to catch up with your family?¡±

    ¡°Why don¡¯t I be the judge of that when they get here?¡±

    ¡°Hmm.¡± Alecia put a finger to her lips and leaned against a plinth herself. ¡°We¡¯re not going to get along are we?¡±

    ¡°Fuck no.¡±

    ¡°Oh, that makes things so much easier.¡± The Lady lost a few centimeters from her height as she slouched. ¡°Do tell you father I tried at least.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Tlara asked flatly.

    ¡°Honestly, I don¡¯t particularly care what a practically disowned child such as yourself thinks. You aren¡¯t part of the bigger picture, but appearances and all of that. I¡¯ll still ¡®try¡¯ when your father is around for his sake, but even then I think he just wants the same thing I do.¡±

    ¡°Fucked up head games?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not inaccurate if put rudely. Did roughing it in the Thormundz do that to your diction or were you always like that?¡± Tlara extended a middle talon. ¡°What¡¯s that supposed to mean?¡±

    ¡°Dunno, but I like it. I¡¯ll say it means ¡®fuck you¡¯.¡±

    ¡°Seeing how much you like saying that, I¡¯m surprised you created a gesture just to deprive you of the chance.¡±

    Tlara blinked. ¡°Ok, I know Dad didn¡¯t push Mom off a cliff, but did you push your husband off of one? Weren¡¯t you already married?¡±

    ¡°Hmm? Ah yes, Horacio. No, first I had him poisoned with enough subtle toxin to kill someone with levels, then removed his protective items during a time when he was very distracted. Astonishingly easy, both to procure the poison and deliver it. As it turns out, if you don¡¯t fear something, you don¡¯t protect yourself against it.¡± She looked wistfully out a window before continuing. ¡°Your father knows about it of course. I think he swallowed a protective ring and then, uhm, recycled it during the first month we were together just to be sure.¡±

    For once, Tlara was at a loss for words. She opened and closed her beak, but the mixture of curses and insults that instinctually ran out didn¡¯t. ¡°Damn, that¡¯s fucked up. What kind of poison was it.¡±

    Alecia brightened a little at Tlara¡¯s interest, even if it was guarded. ¡°Well, I was going to go with something from an Alchemist, but then I happened to run into this Assassin who practically gave me his finest work¡­¡±

    One hour later, Aucrest Seliri returned home to find Alecia and Tlara together. He was instantly put on edge as neither were at the other¡¯s throat. Instead, they were just talking. ¡°Alecia? Is something wrong?¡±

    ¡°Oh, oh no,¡± the Lady answered from where she was sitting on a couch aside from Tlara, ¡°Tlara was just telling me about a vow she made a Hero swear. Are you sure Willow¡¯s the favorite?¡±

    ¡°Would it matter?¡± Aucrest responded dryly. ¡°Tlara. Wonderful to see you are safe.¡±

    ¡°Dick.¡±

    ¡°Well, I believe that is enough reconciling to make up for fearing you were dead. Have you seen your sister?¡±

    Tlara rolled her eyes. ¡°And now the conversation¡¯s back to her. The one without a class.¡±

    ¡°Your mistake is your own. I warned you not to get greedy.¡±

    ¡°If that was greedy, what do you call trying to take over the region?¡± Aucrest looked sharply to the door at that, and then to Alecia.

    ¡°I told her nothing,¡± she laughed.

    ¡°Have you been drinking?¡±

    ¡°Maybe a touch? You were quite late.¡±

    ¡°We found the Artificer.¡±

    Alecia sat up. ¡°Really? It¡¯s not too much to hope we have a deal is it?¡±

    ¡°Sherman has made a mess of the affair which I am trying to-¡±

    ¡°Wait, hold the fuck on.¡± Tlara stood up. ¡°Him? Why do you give a fuck about him?¡±

    ¡°He is an Artificer,¡± Aucrest said simply. ¡°I thought you may know him but expected I¡¯d have a better chance getting a wooden coin from Claret Sosa than having you give me the details.¡±

    A small war was fought within Tlara over who she hated more, her father or that fucking Spiritualist. There was no conclusive victor. ¡°So what, he¡¯s the key to your plans for Octyrrum domination or something?¡±

    Aucrest raised an eyebrow. ¡°No. Every bit helps, of course. If you would rejoin the family, I would be grateful for-¡±

    ¡°Fuck no.¡±

    ¡°You use that word a lot,¡± Alecia giggled.

    ¡°Unfortunately, Tlara is still stuck in the phase where she learned what curse words are before coming to terms with what little they add to conversation.¡±

    ¡°And whose fucking fault is that?¡±

    By the time Willow made it up to her family estate, it was not quite midnight but closer to it than dusk. Tlara, not having retreated from the entryway, hadn¡¯t forced her father to raise his voice in that time. What she had accomplished was visible in the glass in his hand. Even so, her bitterness and resentment were running out of original means of expression. The air of hostility in the room might have slightly chilled until the youngest sister of the house came through the large double doors.

    ¡°Father, Lady Alecia. Sister! I tried looking for you at the guard station, Father, but they said you were busy. I thought it best to come back here.¡±

    ¡°Willow, we were just-¡±

    ¡°Hey monster fucker. Long time no see.¡± Willow reddened in moments and didn¡¯t have the composure of her father. Just like that, there was shouting once more in the Seliri household. It was heated, mostly between those directly related, and venomous at baseline. Alecia for her part watched, drank, laughed, and occasionally needled different parties mid-argument. A healthy familial relationship it was not, but it was a relationship. Past the scorn, bile, and hurt in Tlara¡¯s heart there was more of the same. Hidden away beyond even that was a memory of a time when the three standing together had been an actual family. A time far gone and buried, just like her true mother was.

    ¡­

    Elsewhere, Lograve finished his advancement of the day and fell backward, grinning. It was the first he¡¯d completed since reaching level 4. The process was frustratingly more difficult and requiring far longer immobility and concentration, but he¡¯d done it. Hunger made him hesitate, though Lograve disciplined himself and reached out with his mind to try and contact one of the adorable scamps he kept around before eating. There was always the risk of being dragged into the latest crisis they¡¯d run into, but what was the worst that could have happened?

 Chapter 108: Missing in Action

    Aughal did not experience regular seasons due to its elemental affinities, but the ratio of night and day did adjust normally. In a region with populations that split themselves along the divide of dawn and dusk that meant that life was significantly impacted, temperature change or not. The duskers were the most affected as the day was deadly to them. In traditional winter they thrived. Entering the middling reaches of the Fall, they were content celebrating the lengthening of night.

    The benefits of a group of people practically forced to live during the night were paid out in establishments able to staff at all hours. Not having to ever close meant theft was harder and revenue was constant. Any problems from a populace up at all hours were being slowly solved by the work of Builders steadily converting the old structures into newer models equipped with soundproofing and other enchantments upon request. In twenty years, it was estimated their work would be complete and the greatest among them might reach level 6. If Aughal survived that long.

    The Spires wouldn¡¯t fall today, even if Kelra wished they would. She arrived for her desk job at the guardhouse before dawn, the tradeoff to her disastrous investment yesterday. It was impossible not to hide her disappointment from the others who had little else to do during one of the slowest times in their work. Any dusker not armored against the sun would be settling down, and most other races weren¡¯t awake yet.

    The others, aware of which station drama scab had been recently picked at, didn¡¯t bother her beyond a reassuring nod or hand as they passed. That was fine by her, she was exhausted. At that moment, Kelra didn¡¯t know how many more days she could keep it up. She didn¡¯t know how many more hours she could keep it up. Under the heightened alert and duty status, there were no days off beyond a medical emergency she might be rapidly approaching. There had already been plenty of cases of those being found sleeping on the job, with the hardline punishments at the hand of Lieutenant Sherman either pushing them into a crisis or out of employment altogether.

    Aughal¡¯s criminal element was taking notice and becoming bolder. By now word had spread that the hunters brought in yesterday had been attacked by a relatively huge gang of thieves. Against the strong protests of the lieutenant, the desk guard of the main station was informed sometime after dawn that these people were to be released once the Commander of the region personally arrived to ensure there were no further misunderstandings. The decision was backed by the majority of the remaining Council, so there was nothing Sherman could do beyond attempting a coup. Kelra only cared about this so far as to hope she wouldn¡¯t be the one left to greet the Commander.

    She arrived before noon, the Ironrush Ravager walking in with several others in tow. Shaun saw her open desk and called them over out of the normal rotation. Something that, to another, would seem self-serving. In this part of the guard, in most actually, boring was better. ¡°Guard, I want those hunters released now!¡± She winced as the level 5 Champion began yelling and sent a quiet thanks to her coworker. It was unnecessary, posturing like this over a release that had been waiting for the Champion to happen.

    Shaun, well-tempered to such approaches even from Blessed, remained calm. ¡°Of course! We have prepared in advance of your arrival, Commander Rasalia, the Ironrush Ravager. You and your companions may follow me, although I ask any weapons remain stowed.¡±

    ¡°What about the charges? You won¡¯t have reason to bring them in again will they?¡± A tall man wearing robes with a scar on his face asked.

    ¡°I, uh,¡± Shaun quickly glanced at a sheet of paper on his desk. ¡°It is the opinion of the city of Aughal that the three currently in custody are not responsible for the events of yesterday and are cleared of all suspicion.¡±

    ¡°So you know who was responsible?¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t comment on an active investigation, sir.¡±

    Rasalia extended her arm across the tall man¡¯s chest. ¡°Enough, Lograve. We have an agreement, this is only delaying matters. Lead on.¡±

    Kelra was grateful for her coworker¡¯s sacrifice, right up until fear replaced the emotion. A few minutes after going back into the restricted areas of the guard house, the earth shook with Rasalia¡¯s Battle Cry ability. ¡°AUCREST, WHERE IS HE? WE HAD A DEAL!¡± The burst of mana that accompanied it knocked anyone without a class off their feet and Kelra fully out.

    Downstairs in the secure cell block, Rasalia and those accompanying her looked in horror at the empty cell Shaun had led them to before being knocked into a wall by the force of the Champion¡¯s voice alone. Thomas acted first, moving his hands to heal the back of the man¡¯s head and retrieve the keys he was holding at the same time. A healing Khare and quiet Khiat were freed, although they didn¡¯t know where Daniel had gone either. Khare¡¯s cell had been covered, and Khiat¡¯s didn¡¯t directly face Daniel¡¯s.

    As Rasalia charged upstairs to interrogate any she found, Evalyn took notice of how the dusker was acting. She¡¯d said less than Khare and was still hunkered into her shell despite having the space to move freely. ¡°Khiat, I¡¯m so sorry this happened to you,¡± she said quietly. ¡°They won¡¯t need me to look for Daniel. I can get you back to the tavern.¡±

    Khiat stopped and bowed her head. ¡°N-no. No. No!¡± For once her volume wasn¡¯t the loudest, the echoing voice of Rasalia coming from above still ringing painfully in the air. Even so, Evalyn found an odd sheen to Khiat¡¯s words. It took a second, but she realized they were the tears she couldn¡¯t cry.

    ¡°Thomas, do you have anything for mental afflictions?¡± She asked quickly.

    Thomas looked up from the injured guard, caution in his voice. ¡°We shouldn¡¯t just use those kind of powers all the time.¡±

    ¡°Now is the time!¡±

    He shook his head. ¡°I don¡¯t have anything, Ev. I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    ¡°Khiat, I need you to calm down. It¡¯s ok, you did nothing wrong.¡±

    What is it? Lograve asked telepathically.

    Her heart is tearing itself to pieces. It has been since she was attacked. At this point, I don¡¯t think I¡¯d be able to put her to sleep.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t do anything.¡± Khiat¡¯s voice shook. ¡°They almost died and I¡­ I just¡­¡±

    Should I knock her out?

    I don¡¯t know! I¡¯m not a healer, I can just tell she¡¯s close to a breaking point and she¡¯s been through enough already. ¡°Khiat, you need to calm- Hunter what are you doing?¡± Evalyn tried to intercede before the ringcat reached Khiat, but he easily brushed passed her. He glanced up, shook his head from side to side for a second, and made an odd vocalization she hadn¡¯t heard before. It wasn¡¯t a word, to the relief of Evalyn. Instead, it was like a kind yowl. Definitely not a mewl. Something like that coming from Hunter was physically impossible and if anyone did accuse Hunter of making such a sound Evalyn was sure there¡¯d be blood.

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    Khiat reached out with a shaking hand and brushed the fur that poked through the parts Hunter¡¯s helmet didn¡¯t cover. ¡°Soft.¡± Hunter pushed past the hand and rubbed against Khiat, who fell back against the wall. Evalyn watched in disbelief as Hunter worked his way under an arm like a house cat, calming the dusker.

    ¡°Hunter says he figured out his new power,¡± Tak whispered to Lograve. ¡°Says it is called ¡®Leonine Charm¡¯.¡±

    I think Hunter has this handled, as odd as this is to say, Lograve broadcast to the group. So, Hunter can advance. If Daniel could see his ¡®murder cat¡¯ now he¡¯d, Lograve¡¯s expression turned dark as he trailed off. Tak, I¡¯m assuming Hunter tried to contact Daniel again?

    Yes! Almost immediately.

    We know it can bypass magical suppression, so that shouldn¡¯t stop it. Have him keep trying. I¡¯ll keep a link active for you both.

    ¡°Khare, what about you?¡± Evalyn asked, moving on from the temporarily resolved crisis.

    ¡°Bond?¡± Khare took a humanoid form and pointed above their head. There was a disappointed note in their voice.

    ¡±They have some form of marking power Daniel can see,¡± Lograve explained. ¡°I¡¯m guessing Daniel isn¡¯t responding to that either.¡±

    Shaun, who had entirely misinterpreted the situation, stumbled back into the room as Rasalia stomped down the stairs and gruffly spoke. ¡°No one knows anything and that damned lieutenant is gone. I might have alerted him, or he was never here. I¡¯m sorry, but it seems like he¡¯s stolen some of the confiscated equipment as well.¡±

    ¡°My bow? The arrows?¡± Khiat asked from where she was clutching Hunter, on the verge of another heartbreak.

    ¡°No, I saw the room they were storing them and I assume you were the one carrying the gigantic bow. Probably too heavy for him or he didn¡¯t care. Given the situation, I am assuming temporary command of Aughal¡¯s city guard, issuing appropriate arrest warrants, and placing the Council on notice. If it comes to it, we will involve Rikendia. I will not let this stand, you have my word.¡± Rasalia didn¡¯t activate any powers because she wasn¡¯t going to war. Not yet, at least. Even the Champion couldn¡¯t lightly consider facing the Council alone.

    ¡°Thank you, we are very grateful for your help,¡± Evalyn said deferentially.

    ¡°You¡¯re welcome. I should go see to the search myself.¡±

    From where he was still comforting Khiat, Hunter rumbled lowly and his mental voice contrasted the calming presence he was trying to be to the dusker. Someone is dying today.

    ¡­

    Silora had been privy to many tense atmospheres. Before now, the most recent example she could recall was her viewing of the battle to escape the Thormundz mountain range. Only this time, the conflict was far closer. The Commander of Aughal stood over Lord Seliri with arms crossed. She didn¡¯t believe the Champion was using any powers, which was a good thing. The difference between the talent of a true level 5 fighter and the accumulated legacy of a Council member could go either way in terms of advantages, but Rasalia¡¯s power set had a reputation that made the infuriated Blessed far more hazardous to be around than Aucrest.

    Fortunately, the Silver Eye was fully cooperating. ¡°Commander, you have my word I intended to release those three even before you intervened.¡±

    ¡°And you personally determine sentencing in this city?¡±

    Aucrest leaned around her and looked at Silora, dodging the question. ¡°Have you had any fortune in locating the Artificer?¡±

    ¡°No,¡± she shook her head and winced as Rasalia¡¯s volume doubled.

    ¡°Do not change the subject and do not lie to me! Did you have them arrested?¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Aucrest responded flatly. ¡°I had intimated to the now missing lieutenant that I would be interested in any news regarding the rumored Artificer that had come to the region. This man misinterpreted my desires as a license to abduct.¡±

    One Silora knew from her readings as Lograve spoke up from where he sat. ¡°This same man accosted us at the gate some days prior. Are you seriously telling me this was all just a misunderstanding? From the looks of it, your feathers are scattered so far across this mess you could mine the land for silver.¡±

    Aucrest, continuing to expertly read the room, ignored the barb. ¡°That is in fact what I am saying. I wanted to approach your friend once I knew their identity and make them an offer. The actions of that fool only made my plans that much harder to see to fruition.¡±

    ¡°What if Guy¡¯d said no? Is that when you¡¯d have pulled out the chains?¡±

    Aucrest glanced over at Thomas and was struck by how much things had changed since they last spoke in this room. ¡°Commander Rasalia here can vouch for the fact that all of my dealings when it comes to those of rare classes, or any class at all, have been above board.¡± He glanced up and the Champion reluctantly nodded.

    ¡°What about her then?¡± Thomas asked, causing the Fate to go stiff as he pointed a thumb her way.

    ¡°Before my time.¡± Even one of the masters of the city folded slightly as Rasalia trained her eyes directly on his. ¡°If there is someone you wish to interrogate, I would recommend those of my contemporaries who still employ such aggressive bargaining. The ones, I might add, who aren¡¯t here.¡±

    ¡°Why don¡¯t we discuss Silora¡¯s relationship with the city?¡± Rasalia asked rhetorically, reopening an old argument. ¡°I find myself reconsidering why I haven¡¯t intervened, especially as I am now in an excellent position to do so.¡±

    ¡°The Council would never approve of amending her contract.¡±

    ¡°Would you?¡±

    Aucrest¡¯s face grew blank and he stood, turning away. ¡°Seeing as that is not the reason we are here, I have no reason to answer.¡±

    ¡°Typical.¡± Rasalia narrowed her eyes. ¡°You can pass along this message to your Council then. I am giving Aughal an ultimatum of one day to release this Artificer or I will act. One of the very purposes of my position is to check your power when you and yours commit such a blatant crime.¡±

    ¡°You have already seized control of the guard, something I should mention I have not opposed. What else do you propose to threaten us with beyond open war?¡±

    ¡°Reassignment of all available forces to the outskirts of the region to assist in quelling the recent rise in monster activity your decisions have allowed.¡± Rasalia smiled as Aucrest spluttered and turned back towards her.

    ¡°You know what that would do to this city!¡±

    ¡°As do you.¡±

    The Silver Eye snapped back to face the Fate. ¡°Silora, find him! If you are successful I will personally reward you with whatever you desire, so long as it does not violate your contract.¡±

    It wasn¡¯t meant to be a negotiation, Aucrest hadn¡¯t expected Silora to immediately respond with a request, but she did. ¡°Rait. I want him back.¡±

    ¡°That human? All you ever did was complain about-¡±

    ¡°Are you saying no?¡± Silora asked, breath somewhat shaky but otherwise determined.

    ¡°...if that is what you wish. Commander, do we have further business, or should I return to the business of keeping this city running?¡±

    ¡°There is another matter, Seliri. Lograve, Thomas, I will leave the explanations to you. In this matter, they carry my authority.¡±

    ¡°Should we discuss whatever this is in front of the Fate?¡± Aucrest asked warily.

    Lograve sighed, preparing for a difficult conversation with the man who could have abducted his friend and chemistry tutor. ¡°She might as well know, I was going to ask for her service in spreading the word. Assuming your Fate has Far Speech and can cross regional boundaries with it.¡±

    ¡°That is not an inexpensive talent of hers. What would merit its use?¡±

    The Arcanist stood and brought both hands in front of him, palms down. ¡°I am going to use an illusion ability to show you. Suffice it to say this is a threat that overshadows even those dust raiders picking off your people. I sent a very good friend of mine away to Threst to spread the word even though I¡¯d have rather he accompany me.¡±

    ¡°And what is this threat?¡± Aucrest watched as a dark image steadily began to form.

    ¡°Hmm. Put lightly? The end of the world. I need you because your Council are the only ones with the power to bend the ears of the gods, and we¡¯re going to need their direct attention.¡±

    Aucrest turned his head slightly sideways in disbelief, a reaction he¡¯d generally trained himself out of except in this moment. Neither the Arcanist nor the Commander showed any sign of bluff or jest. ¡°If that¡¯s the case, then we might have a problem.¡±

 Chapter 109: Falling Solves Everything

    To the one tied to the chair, the past day was an experience that could be likened to a drowning that did not stop at death. The initial arrest had only been mildly terrifying as Daniel realized he¡¯d been discovered. Neither he nor Khare had been in a position to readily resist a fresh wave of combatants, and there was a difference between defending yourself and killing to resist arrest.

    Things had changed when he¡¯d first reached the cellblock as he was reminded of his fears. Enhanced wisdom or no, he still had his phobia and it had taken everything to keep himself calm once it was clear the guard wouldn¡¯t help with his or Khare¡¯s injuries. He¡¯d gotten enough healing from Regeneration to stabilize before the loss of both his Foci had taken all of his powers away. That in itself had been a disconcerting feeling as he was reduced to just what he could do with attributes alone. It had taken Hunter contacting him to remind Daniel that his bond could still function in magical suppression. He might have tried sooner if his attempts to reach Hunter earlier hadn¡¯t failed due to the ringcat being outside the city.

    Evalyn¡¯s ability gave him an escape from his pain, fears, and thoughts on how he¡¯d taken people¡¯s lives. The prospect didn¡¯t ruin him as he felt completely justified in his actions, though the feeling of crushing chests and tearing bodies with Claw Strike was hard to banish. In a way he was glad Khiat hadn¡¯t participated as who knows what that would have done to her.

    He¡¯d expected to wake up in a cell again, or perhaps in an interrogation room with a guard staring at him as if they¡¯d been there the whole time. Instead, Daniel was presented with a sight that brought him immense relief, even if another would have been as bothered as he was in the cell. An expanse of desert far below him, lit by the sun. Without any obvious landmarks to tell, all Daniel could guess was he was in a Spire which didn¡¯t face the Thormundz mountains or another Spire. It took him a second to ask why and how he was here as he also quickly registered he was still magically suppressed.

    An anti-magical cell was an anti-magical cell, but the window he was facing made all the difference. Not even the ropes tying his arms and legs bothered him too much. He felt he could burst out of them if he really wanted to unless they were enchanted, but the enchantment wouldn¡¯t work with magic turned off. As he reoriented, Daniel gazed out into the open terrain and tried very hard not to think about yesterday.

    Before any real time had passed, he heard a door open. ¡°Enjoying the view?¡± They were a woman, human by the sound of the voice, and old. ¡°If you are unwise, it will be the last thing you see.¡±

    The presence of someone else reminded Daniel of just how dire the situation was. Sure, he was close to a window so large he could fall through it, but he was high up. Hundreds of meters easily. There was a way to escape, but now there was also someone else in the room. ¡°Who are-¡± Something pressed into the back of his head, hard enough it would have broken skin if it were sharp. Instead of bleeding, there was intense dull pain.

    ¡°Don¡¯t speak, not unless I ask you to. Honestly, this is the problem with this city. Even Silver Eye.¡± There was disgust in the woman¡¯s voice. It sounded like she was right behind him, meaning she was the source of this pain. ¡°Weak or unimaginative. Aucrest had the brains to sniff you out but not the guts to do it right. Bennar would if he didn¡¯t have whatever he¡¯s distracting himself with. What he sees in a handful of soon to be exiled guards that makes them worth what you are I¡¯ll have to look into later. And the other Council members? They¡¯re dead, so that should speak for itself.¡±

    There was an ominous feeling to whatever was pressing itself against Daniel¡¯s head. Instead of interrupting whatever this woman was rambling about, he let her continue. ¡°If we had a proper Council like the one I joined years ago, this ¡®Mirage¡¯ would only be that, an illusion. Maybe one we started so we could pressure the Hunter¡¯s Guild to throw more of their people under the control of the guard.¡± The pressure relaxed for a moment. ¡°But, back to you. Artificer. You did well to not announce yourself, if you ignore carrying a giant glowing crossbow on your back. I¡¯ve half a mind to kill you now and do whatever region you came from a favor. If not for what I have spent getting you here. I intend to make that back with interest. What is your level? Answer me!¡±

    Daniel knew without having to be told that not answering would lead to pain, and he didn¡¯t see how this information could hurt him. ¡°Two.¡± Hunter, can you hear me?

    Yes. The others are free. Where are you?

    Thank god. I don¡¯t have much time. Is Khare with you?

    They are. Daniel did everything he could to suppress his sigh of relief, and the telepathic conversation that continued while he bought himself time.

    The woman behind him thankfully didn¡¯t notice. ¡°Better than one I suppose. Feh, but a personal Artificer is just what I need to make sure my idiot son has enough influence to remain relevant. Even he can¡¯t foul that up.¡± The object rapped against his head twice, Daniel now getting the impression it was a ring. ¡°You have a choice, young man. Form a termless contract bond with my family, or die. It¡¯s quite simple, and I¡¯m afraid you have little room for negotiation.¡±

    There was a pause that let Daniel know he could speak. ¡°Can I ask a question?¡±

    ¡°You try my patience.¡± That wasn¡¯t exactly a no.

    ¡°What level are you? I can sense the magic in your ring.¡± That was the source of his unease about the object pressing against him. It was like the potential energy of the heliorite he was familiar with, processed into an enchanted object. There should have been a void considering the room was magically suppressed, meaning the item was above the level of the suppression. He¡¯d barely be able to hold it since he didn¡¯t meet the level requirement, and Lograve had warned him of potentially fatal consequences from prolonged contact or use of such items.

    The woman laughed, the sound bordering on cruelty towards the end. ¡°My dear fool. Why in the name of the Octyrrum would I take a class?¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Hmm, of course. You¡¯re new to this region. Unlike others, here the people rule. The foremost among them, of course.¡± A wrinkled hand, not the one pressing into the back of his head, was brought into view. Each finger wore at least one ring, some incredibly intricate while others were just simple bands with embedded gems. Something, likely his class, told him one with a ruby was the most powerful. ¡°With artifacts like these, why would I need a class?¡±

    ¡°How can you touch them?¡± The pressure faded from the back of his head, only for one of the hands to strike him hard. Daniel would have fallen over if the other hand hadn¡¯t steadied the chair.

    ¡°Idiot! You call yourself an Artificer and don¡¯t know the basic facts? Only people with a class cannot use items above their level. Ask me something like that again and I will strike harder, or just use my ring of lancing and put an end to this. Either way, no one outside my family will see you for some time, if ever.¡±

    Daniel was afraid of how this woman would judge his next question, but Hunter was still getting ready and he needed more time. ¡°What about the others? The process of elimination to figure out who kidnapped me would be fairly short.¡±

    ¡°I can stall a search for long enough to move you somewhere safe. I hardly need you to be here to do your work, and in the middle of the desert I don¡¯t need to worry about suppressing your magic or any means of magical communication. Fewer distractions too.¡±

    Daniel frowned, gazing out the window. ¡°Why put all these enchantments on a room open to the outside?¡±

    The woman laughed again as Daniel tensed, waiting to be hit. No strike came. ¡°You don¡¯t know anything. Stupid boy. It¡¯s not the room, it¡¯s me. Hard to fight someone who can suppress your powers at will, isn¡¯t it? Sadly there hasn¡¯t been anyone stupid enough to try in the last few decades. The look on a would-be Assassin¡¯s face is priceless.¡± Footsteps clicked against the stone as an old woman with a leering smile leaned against the window frame. ¡°Tempting, isn¡¯t it? Of course, without your Focus and only the clothes on your back, there¡¯s no way you¡¯d survive the fall. Not at your level. I happen to know Artificers have little in the way of self-defense if you take away their tricks. Though, I suppose I could be merciful and let you choose the way you die. That is the choice here. Serve, or die. Maybe my son will be weak enough to take pity on you when he takes control of the family, but not while I live.¡±

    Not even Tlara had been this directly abrasive to Daniel¡¯s belief in the common goodness of mankind. Then again, he supposed there were people like this back home too. ¡°What did I do to you? Why are you doing this?¡±

    ¡°A child¡¯s questions.¡± The woman slapped him across the face, wizened nails making cuts where they hit him while the rings bruised his face. ¡°I do what I do because I can, and because it is the best thing for me and my family. Even so, I do take some small pleasure. It was one of you that caused so much pain and suffering centuries ago. Armafus, a thousand curses on his name. What is more right, that one person hurt many, or that one person is hurt to benefit many? Soon, you will realize escape is hopeless. Your future grows ever more displeasing the longer you drag this out.¡±

    Is she just that arrogant? Daniel couldn¡¯t explain it any other way. This woman was standing by the window, not even restraining him anymore. Sure, there were the ropes, but he could break through them with enough effort. There shouldn¡¯t be anyone else in here either or he would have heard them. Either she thinks I can¡¯t survive the fall, or she thinks she can stop me in time with an item on her. I guess she doesn¡¯t know I can contact Hunter. ¡°How much worse could slavery get?¡± Just keep her talking. I need to make sure I¡¯m lined up right.

    ¡°A good question, finally. How many arms do you need to enchant?¡± She looked thoughtfully at his right shoulder and waved a hand. ¡°We can always have it grown back if you need it. But there are other things we can remove that I''m sure you don¡¯t need. Nothing is off the table, Artificer. That is what leading means. Doing whatever it is you need to do for the good of the people.¡±

    Right, the people. Daniel really should have been intimidated into silence, but he just couldn¡¯t resist talking back to this monster in a woman¡¯s flesh. ¡°So I¡¯d be making things for normal people then? Not just your family? Since this is for the greater good and all.¡±

    Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

    Her gaze turned hard at the first sign of true rebellion. ¡°I¡¯m certain you don¡¯t need two eyes. Let¡¯s tend to that before we continue this chat.¡±

    Hunter, I hope you¡¯re ready. It would have been the perfect moment for something witty, a short line of banter or scathing rebuke before Daniel acted. His captor had gone through the trouble of monologuing just to set this up. In the end, all Daniel could say as a sharp nail aimed at one of his eyes was, ¡°Nope!¡± Then, he took a leap of faith.

    ¡­

    In the underground cell blocks, Evalyn and Khiat remained whilst the rest went to work finding Daniel. He was important, but Khiat was in almost, if not as much trouble. Whatever Hunter¡¯s power had done calmed her down, but there was still turmoil in her soul. Evalyn had no powers to support a search effort, not unless they had someone to interrogate. She could make an attempt, but Rasalia had already efficiently torn through the guard here. Sherman and a handful of others were thought to be responsible, but they¡¯d fled the city after taking Daniel and his possessions under the cover of releasing him.

    That left Evalyn and the Assassin alone together. She¡¯d had strong reservations about Khiat at first. They were reasonable, given the reputation of Khiat¡¯s class was as widespread and well-earned as the Bard¡¯s. Even so, seeing her now and knowing that Khiat hadn¡¯t raised a hand against the thieves, Evalyn couldn¡¯t bring herself to think of her as anything but traumatized.

    The Bard held one of Khiat¡¯s hands with two of hers, waiting for the other to speak. Eventually, she did. ¡°I want to go home.¡±

    ¡°Alright. We can take you there.¡± Evalyn didn¡¯t even mention the reasons Khiat had left the oasis earlier. Compared to her current state, they didn¡¯t matter.

    Khiat thought about them though. ¡°What about the people? The Fate?¡±

    ¡°Damn them,¡± Evalyn said simply. ¡°Anyone who would take a person from their family is a monster, and we¡¯re monster hunters.¡±

    ¡°You are. I¡¯m just, just, I didn¡¯t do anything!¡±

    ¡°Good. You didn¡¯t want your class to turn you into something. You kept true to yourself. Fighting everything and everyone is how you either get yourself killed or become something terrible.¡±

    Khiat shook her head. ¡°Khare and Daniel fought! I just stood there.¡±

    ¡°True. To my eye, Khare didn¡¯t seem too troubled and we¡¯ll find Daniel.¡± She cursed internally as she realized the mistake a second later.

    ¡°If I¡¯d protected him, if I¡¯d helped, he wouldn¡¯t be missing. I don¡¯t deserve my class. I don¡¯t deserve your help!¡±

    ¡°You have both. They don¡¯t need me for the search, but even if they did I would be right here.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°Because you need me too. I talked with a lot of people who lost someone where I came from. I was one of them. What happened to you doesn¡¯t exactly compare, but I can see the wounds you took.¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t fight,¡± Khiat repeated.

    ¡°Not to your body, to your heart. You haven¡¯t fought people before, and you haven¡¯t seen what we have. No one was expecting you to do anything. Your village certainly didn¡¯t train you to fight in wars did they?¡± Khiat shrunk back into the wall at the mention of the oasis and shook her head. ¡°I think it¡¯s hard for me to remember because you¡¯re normally so much taller, but you¡¯re young, aren¡¯t you?¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± Khiat admitted in a small voice.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry it¡¯s me instead of your mother and father here. If they were, maybe they would have the words you¡¯d need. Maybe there aren¡¯t any words at all. But, I¡¯ll stay with you either way, because you need someone and I can be that person.¡± Khiat didn¡¯t say anything else, so neither did Evalyn. Talking to her wouldn¡¯t change things, not while she was still reliving what had happened.

    That was Evalyn¡¯s thought at least, having received no formal training in this area. Bards weren¡¯t exactly made for this kind of thing. Thomas might have a better idea despite his lack of specific powers, but Lograve had judged his knowledge of Aughal valuable enough to take along when they confronted Aucrest. Hunter and Tak were needed to scan the city, and although Khare could have gone with anyone, they wouldn¡¯t have been much of a conversationalist here. In that way, Evalyn was the only person for a role she was more than willing to fulfill.

    So, she sat next to the Assassin, using no power, playing no music, waiting for her to speak, and glaring at anyone who tried to enter. It was hunger that won out in the end, prompting Khiat to ask for food. That was enough to let Evalyn convince her to come back to the inn, and the two left the guardhouse undisturbed in Rasalia¡¯s lingering wake.

    As Khiat walked the streets stiffly, carrying instead of wearing her travel armor along with her bow and quiver. Both of them attracted some attention due to their looks, though for different reasons. Evalyn spurred Khiat on gently, wanting to get off the streets as soon as possible. Her thought was if Khiat could sleep in a real bed after eating the best of whatever the Painted Dusk had, she could heal in some small way.

    What she couldn¡¯t have possibly expected was what they¡¯d both see right before making it to the tavern.

    ¡­

    ¡°Nope!¡±

    Claret Sosa raised an eyebrow as the Artificer planted his feet on the ground and pushed towards the window with all the strength his class gave him. She knew, of course, that her suppressive ring would stop him from using mana even if he had a power that didn¡¯t rely on a Focus and likewise didn¡¯t fear for her life. He would make it, but she wasn¡¯t concerned. This would be the moment hope was truly lost and he¡¯d be ripe to bind.

    Confident that he¡¯d get nowhere, she didn¡¯t move and waited for him to bounce off the Shroud that protected the open spaces of the tower from travel both in and out. This Artificer was stupid, something she¡¯d have to work out. Who would put windows in a tower a kilometer tall without any precautions in place?

    Such it was that Claret gaped in surprise when Daniel and the chair he was tied to sailed through the window frame. She tried to grab him at the last moment, but her hands met against a barrier far stronger than the level 4 enchantment that suppressed magic around her. Furious and in disbelief, Claret pointed the ruby ring at the falling man. The ring of lancing was an Armafus original, made by the long dead Tyrant of Aughal for his mortal servants and powerful enough to burn a small hole in the Spire¡¯s shroud. Part of her family¡¯s legacy and a key piece that had allowed them to hold onto power.

    She missed. Claret wasn¡¯t used to using it on targets further than a meter away and cursed her old hands for shaking. Then, her eyes widened as a light flared in the distance, the ray she fired impacting the Divine Quarter.

    Gravity was quickly bringing Daniel far out of her control and she was powerless to stop him. Worse, she¡¯d just used her signature ring to attack the gods.

    ...

    Meanwhile, Daniel exited the range of Claret¡¯s suppression artifacts and reached out to his friend. Hunter?

    I see you falling.

    Yeah, falling too fast! The exhilaration of freedom was crossed with the hazy terror of yesterday, though for now, it was dominant. Falling didn¡¯t bother Daniel so long as this plan worked, though he was worried about how sluggish his body felt. Without Graceful Fall or Balance he was almost helpless.

    Where?

    Daniel couldn¡¯t turn his head too far but had enough of a view of the city to reason it out. The southern Spire, like I thought. Also, I¡¯m tied to a chair, but I have an idea for that. He spotted Hunter¡¯s aura, and those close to him. Do you have the wings on?

    Yes, Hunter hesitantly answered. I haven¡¯t used them before.

    Well, I¡¯ve hit the ground after a fall before and we both know how that turned out. All you have to do is not miss. Can you do that?

    I think so, but I am not sure.

    And whose fault is that? I don¡¯t know if I can survive this fall Hunter, and even if I¡¯m just horribly injured I¡¯m going to guess the person I just bailed on is going to send people after me. This gets us out of the city quickly.

    Out of the city? Now he had Hunter¡¯s interest.

    I¡¯m not fucking staying here after that just happened! Tak¡¯s down there too right?

    Yes. Too far for you to hear. He was looking around the other side of the city.

    Doesn¡¯t matter. Tell him to get everyone else out of here, we¡¯re in danger.

    As if he was trying to find some way out of doing what he was about to do, Hunter added, Others in the city are helping. One shouts very loudly.

    What? Look, they¡¯re not here. Do you think you can do it?

    Yes.

    All in all, Daniel was surprised at how well he was handling falling out of a skyscraper. That all this was happening just after what amounted to physical and psychological torture should have made a difference, but a calm spread as Daniel¡¯s subconscious pushed that into the future. In this moment, instead of being crushed by what he¡¯d had to endure, he acted.

    The chair was still a problem and would have been an obstacle if there wasn¡¯t a bar set low between the front legs which his feet could rest on. Daniel still didn¡¯t have his Foci, and for that matter didn¡¯t want to risk them during Hunter¡¯s jump, but that didn¡¯t mean he was helpless. The strength that had gotten him out of the room broke the chair in two as he ripped his arms free while pushing his feet against the legs to break the back. He rarely made use of his enhanced attributes but without any powers, it was the only option he had left. Now that he was free, all he had to do was hope Hunter could cover his end.

    On the ground, Hunter prepared as the wings mounted on the back of his armor glowed. Daniel had designed Hunter¡¯s armor after making his set of lightning wings and had spent extra time figuring out a way to fit them on. He¡¯d had nearly a week of sitting in one place whilst he enchanted the rest of the gear used to kill the lightning dragon and could devote his mind to other tasks so long as a part of it remained enchanting. The result was a section of the armor on Hunter¡¯s back that would clip onto the base of the wings and hold them until released. The swept, jet-like appearance of them gave more of an impression that a drone was docked on Hunter rather than that the ringcat had grown a set of wings, but Daniel was proud of the work either way. Of everything, designing that armor had been his greatest intellectual labor.

    I can¡¯t adjust my path, Hunter. You¡¯re going to have to catch me. Daniel thought, seeing that he¡¯d fallen halfway to the ground already.

    Do not like this, Hunter growled, but even he knew there wasn¡¯t another option. I can do it.

    Didn¡¯t you just complain about not having done this before?

    I can feel what I need to do. After that, I just need to leap as if I am pouncing on prey.

    But you¡¯re not going to attack me right?

    I am ready.

    Hunter?

    Doing it. A few seconds after he''d left the window, the mental conversation having taken place more rapidly with adrenaline speeding his rate of thought, a beam of light fired from the wings on Hunter¡¯s back as he leaped into the air. Whether the light needed to touch the ground to work they didn¡¯t know, but Hunter wasn¡¯t taking chances. The additional effect granted by the heliorite used in the construction allowed for a Jump-like ability with far greater height, though at the cost of a one hour cooldown that only reset while in sunlight. Otherwise, the wings just allowed for gliding. They were an improvement on an earlier design intended to do just that, only these didn¡¯t carry the risk of exploding.

    The defenders of the city were already on high alert which had been further escalated by Rasalia¡¯s city-wide cry of anger. By now, a few had noticed the man falling from one of the Spires. No one was in a position to do anything since the only way to fall from the superstructures was to climb the exterior. Anyone foolish enough to do that deserved the fall. When a monster shot through the air to intercept the falling man there was a sense of panic and confusion in the already unsettled streets that turned to pure confusion when, instead of being torn to shreds, he pulled his way up the armor and sat just in front of the small protrusions coming off the back.

    And you didn¡¯t like this idea, Daniel beamed, arms hurting from catching onto Hunter but otherwise unscathed from the midair collision. If you did this during a fight I could snipe monsters from up here.

    I can turn them off if I want.

    Can¡¯t you just give me this? Daniel asked, half-jokingly, as he righted himself on Hunter¡¯s back. From this position, he could almost compare it to the fantasies he¡¯d had growing up about riding dragons. There was a tactical aspect to his repeated attempts to get Hunter to agree to use mounted archery on hunts, but Daniel would admit it wasn¡¯t just that.

    The ringcat, perhaps sensing exactly what Daniel was trying to distract himself from through the Empathic Link, relented. Fine. Where are we going?

    Outside the city, we should be able to glide over the walls from here. Hunter, thanks. Really. He patted the ringcat¡¯s side and then frowned. Did your fur get softer?

    ..

    Below them, Evalyn winced as Khiat crushed her hand, though the grip was not strong enough to warrant a complaint. Instead, she placed her other hand on the arm and nodded. ¡°See? Everything is going to be alright.¡±

 Chapter 110: Willow Seliri

    Willow woke up in the Wing Spire as she did every day, a little past dawn but not too far into the morning. While she carried part of her family¡¯s Legacy, her father had not yet deeply involved her in city politics and there were few expectations of her. Considering she¡¯d come of age over a year ago this was a bit delayed. To be fair, Claret Sosa¡¯s son was barely visible on the grand stage and he was twice her age.

    She didn¡¯t mind since it gave her time to do what was important. Besides, if her father had paid close attention, he might have caught on to what exactly that was. If he learned who she was involved with that would lead to trouble. It would come up eventually, a conversation Willow both anticipated and dreaded.

    Her father and stepmother were already out of their residence when she made her way from the third floor¡¯s living quarters to the dining area on the second. Predictably, Tlara was there. It had been years, though the same maxim held. Whenever conflict could come between them, it did. Their separation had done nothing to bridge gaps, to Willow¡¯s disappointment and Tlara¡¯s expectation.

    That being said, both had aired out all the old grudges when they¡¯d first seen each other, with moderation by their father and commentary by Alecia. With all that expressed, there was a truce between them while tempers refueled. Tlara didn¡¯t even look up as Willow approached. ¡°Hey.¡±

    ¡°Tlara.¡± Willow took stock of the remnants of breakfast and selected an assembly of fried bread and what fruit was able to be harvested locally. The starch wasn¡¯t a common choice among her kind but the fruit was, in addition to the spread of well-prepared insects her sister preferred. Aucrest¡¯s campaign to expand their palates had been heavily resisted by her sister, but Willow had played the dutiful daughter and taken a liking to the pairing. ¡°Where are Father and Alecia?¡±

    ¡°How should I know?¡± Tlara popped a large grasshopper into her mouth, clearly grazing on the food her family had provided.

    ¡°They¡¯re your family, Tlara. You should care about them.¡±

    ¡°Fuck, good morning to you too sis.¡± The offense in her voice was exaggerated, though it could become real in a moment. ¡°What, you¡¯re not too late to ride in his tailwinds today are you?¡±

    ¡°Father says it¡¯s too early for me to be deeply involved in political affairs.¡±

    ¡°Jeez, this whole ¡®father that¡¯ and ¡®father this¡¯ thing was fine back when you were twelve. If you¡¯re the same fucking idiot you were when I left then no wonder he just keeps you here.¡±

    ¡°He does not just keep me here,¡± Willow replied, calmly taking a bite of her crunchy bread. ¡°I¡¯ve taken to other pursuits. He encourages my activism.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re talking about our dad, right? The fucker who threatened to exile me if I told people about my class? I think he actually managed to keep it quiet while I was gone.¡±

    Willow shrugged. ¡°Maybe, after he saw what happened with you, he decided to give me more freedom.¡±

    Tlara tossed a beetle near, but not quite at Willow, and rested her chin on both hands. ¡°So, how exactly does telling people we should all be living side by side with monsters go? You go by the Hunter¡¯s Guild often with that?¡±

    Willow pointed her head up and away from Tlara, trying to stay above her pettiness and avoid an argument. ¡°I am smart about who I speak to. Many agree this would be a better world if we could coexist with monsters and stop the attacks altogether.¡± Willow kept her head lifted proudly, not letting the mixture of amusement and disgust on Tlara¡¯s face get to her.

    ¡°You know, I met someone in the other region that was just like you. Fucker.¡±

    ¡°You met someone who was kind, open-minded, and stood up for themselves?¡±

    ¡°If you mean weak, idiotic, and annoying, then yeah.¡± Tlara looked away. ¡°Gods, it was like you were there drilling a hole in my head the entire time.¡±

    ¡°Most people find the presence of family comforting Tlara.¡± Willow recoiled as an uneasy sense passed over her, coming from Tlara. ¡°Did you just try to use a power on me?¡±

    ¡°Maybe. Have to try out the new ones somehow. Why, you don¡¯t find my presence comforting?¡±

    Willow scoffed and let the affront go. As the only capable heiress of a major family, she had a powerful protective item that would blunt most if not all powers below level 4. It wouldn¡¯t protect against a sword to the throat, but that¡¯s what the spire guard was for. ¡°Your generally grating personality aside, I would be interested in meeting someone like me who was able to tolerate you for so long.¡±

    ¡°What? Fuck if I¡¯m going to introduce you two. That¡¯d be a nightmare.¡± Tlara shuddered. ¡°I left this hellhole to get away from Spiritualists. Among other things.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s what you meant? Wait,¡± Willow¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°You¡¯re talking about the one who escaped the Spire yesterday, aren¡¯t you?¡±

    ¡°How the fuck would you know that?¡± Tlara bristled.

    ¡°It was hard to miss how he was caught by a flying ringcat. But he¡¯s not a Beastmaster, he¡¯s the Artificer.¡± Willow gasped, a thought suddenly striking her. ¡°He did it, didn¡¯t he? He found one.¡±

    ¡°No he fucking didn¡¯t! Shut up about him!¡± Tlara stood and sent one of the plates crashing against a wall. ¡°Seriously, he doesn¡¯t fucking matter!¡±

    ¡°Father was interested in him.¡±

    ¡°Fuck him too! They¡¯re both idiots who think they know everything. This plan he has but won¡¯t tell us anything about? When that blows him up like Claret fucking Sosa, I¡¯ve got a ride out of here. A ride that shoots lightning, by the way. What about you?¡±

    Willow took that as her moment to depart. It wasn¡¯t just that talking to Tlara was like having your feathers slowly plucked while the exposed skin was branded. She did have a plan, and no one else could know about it.

    ¡­

    ¡°Miss? How can I help you?¡±

    Willow broke away from her thoughts and shook her head, one of the others waiting at the front of the guard station to go ahead of her. It took a few minutes, but the person she was here for finally freed up. ¡°Hello. Can I help you?¡±

    She wasn¡¯t surprised the desk guard didn¡¯t recognize her, even if she was a fellow avianoid. The feather patterning of her and her sister were both very common. Tlara had hunter¡¯s equipment to distinguish her, but Willow dressed plainly and kept as many of her items concealed as she could. ¡°You¡¯re Kelra, right? I was hoping¡­¡± Willow trailed off, seeing how poorly the woman in front of her was hiding how distraught she was.

    The look most guards had these days of barely hanging on was one thing, but none of them were covertly brushing away tears. For a moment Willow thought about overstepping her authority and then decided to. ¡°I am Willow Seliri, and I require the services of this woman for a matter of immediate importance,¡± she announced in the confident voice her father often used when deciding matters of state. Not to anyone in particular, she wasn¡¯t sure who was in charge. The important thing was to act like she was.

    ¡°What?¡±

    The conversations happening at each desk stopped as the guards looked at each other. ¡°Uh, what for?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m afraid that¡¯s confidential. I¡¯ll only need her for-¡± Willow was about to estimate how much time she needed, then remembered her place. ¡°The day. That won¡¯t be a problem, will it?¡±

    The guard who spoke up scratched his head. ¡°We¡¯d normally have to check with the lieutenant, but technically that¡¯s the Commander¡¯s job now.¡± His tone made it clear exactly how much he wanted to bother her. ¡°It¡¯s nothing dangerous right?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Willow turned to the woman in front of her, unsure of the mess she was getting into. ¡°I just need an official witness for a matter and I found my last interaction with Ms. Kelra here to be quite pleasant. I assume you might enjoy a change of scenery, but if you don¡¯t want to come with me I won¡¯t press the issue.¡±

    Kelra brushed her feathered crest, conveniently bringing her forearm across an eye. ¡°No, it¡¯s, it¡¯s fine. I can follow you so long as you don¡¯t leave the city, but only until dusk. I¡¯ll have to send for a replacement at that point.¡±

    ¡°Great! Do you need any time to fetch anything?¡± Kelra shook her head, and the two departed. When they were on the street, Willow whispered to her, ¡°So, where¡¯s your favorite place for lunch?¡±

    An hour later, Willow and Kelra were on a rooftop finishing a fine meal. Avianoids preferred an open sky above them whenever possible, and the establishment was tailored to their needs. The owners lived on the first floor to allow their customers this seating, earning the favor of the avianoid crowd. Willow had paid, of course. The confused and armored Kelra had slowly begun to realize the hammer would never drop and steadily relaxed. As her stance opened up, so did her guard.

    Rather than pounce immediately, Willow waited until the small talk ran its course and there was a degree of familiarity between them. Even without an empowered charisma or any item to bolster that part of her, Willow could make fast friends with most people. There was just the one glaring exception. ¡°I¡¯m sorry to drag you away from work, but you looked like you could use a break,¡± she said carefully, guiding the conversation to where her curiosity was leading.

    ¡°No, thank you! I can¡¯t remember anyone ever doing this. Dragging us away, sure. Those at the desk are at the front lines whenever a noble comes through with something important, but we never feel like we¡¯re the ones getting the favor. Why me? If that¡¯s ok to ask.¡±

    ¡°You seemed to be more overworked than the other guard. You know, my father wants to put a stop to all of this. He puts it in terms of ¡®force readiness¡¯ and ¡®expected and observed personnel burnout¡¯, but I think he¡¯s aware of the toll it takes too. The humans are too afraid though. Duskers too, probably, once they get their faction in order.¡± Willow shook her head. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯m not here to talk about politics, you probably get enough of that at work. I simply saw that you needed time and someone to talk to.¡±

    ¡°I,¡± Kelra laughed, though the sound caught in her throat. ¡°I haven¡¯t had time to do anything else but sleep. My family would have probably forced me to quit if the pay I did get didn¡¯t keep us all aloft. But,¡± The guard looked around. It was just after noon and the patio was crowded. Willow understood and withdrew a necklace from a pocket, activating the item. It didn¡¯t have to be worn to work, so she didn¡¯t normally bother to.

    ¡°Unless there¡¯s anyone above level 3 here, which I doubt, no one else will hear.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s so quiet,¡± Kelra had a bit of wonder in her voice as the noise from the street and the other diners was banished like an unwelcome specter. ¡°It¡¯s never this quiet. Even at night, there are the duskers.¡± She slumped then, and Willow quickly activated another item that made the space around her blurred. This item was of lower level but would work against the predominately normal crowd around them. To the outside, the table appeared strangely contorted in a way one person in particular would describe as pixelated. ¡°I was supposed to meet him here. The night before he-¡± Kelra broke off and shook her head.

    ¡°Take your time.¡± From Willow¡¯s perspective, the outside world was displayed just as clearly as it would otherwise be. Their server glanced at the dome from which neither sound nor intact images came and decided to come back later. Willow also waited until Kelra spoke.

    If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

    ¡°It¡¯s stupid. No, it¡¯s not it¡¯s just,¡± Kelra clutched at the table. ¡°There was someone I was supposed to meet here earlier. We¡¯ve been on and off over the years and I was hoping we might finally start something. Only, he never came, and today we found out he was one of the ones who left with the lieutenant.¡±

    Willow had heard about the defectors, of course. It was part of the biggest news rocking the city. Claret Sosa of the Council had conspired with one of the city guard¡¯s top brass and overstepped what was acceptable for one of even her position. Worse, she¡¯d done it publicly and wildly fired a strong offensive spell into the city. That, combined with the timely reveal that she¡¯d made certain trade deals unfavorable to the city, had all but forced her faction to unseat her while they found a replacement. That hadn¡¯t resulted in any actual losses for the noblewoman, other than the most important of her possessions and the reputation of her family.

    The co-conspirators who¡¯d kidnapped the Artificer would have faced far harsher sentences if they hadn¡¯t fled the city soon after bringing him to Claret. From there, Willow didn¡¯t know anything else. A search was surely underway, but not one she was involved with.

    ¡°I¡¯m so sorry. How could they make you work?¡±

    Kelra gave her a confused glance. ¡°I have to. If I don¡¯t, I¡¯ll be fired and the rest will have to shoulder the burden.¡± She jumped suddenly. ¡°I need to get back! Gods, it¡¯s already been an hour hasn¡¯t it?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I still have two things I need you to do.¡± Willow grabbed the woman¡¯s arm from across the table, and she stopped. ¡°I understand if you can¡¯t tell me, but I would like to know where the Artificer went. The one who was kidnapped? I¡¯m interested in talking to him. Not because of my father or to do anything to him, I promise you.¡±

    ¡°Him? Oh. I¡¯ve only heard rumors, but I think he left the city. I wouldn¡¯t blame him, to be honest.¡± Willow frowned but didn¡¯t ask anything else. ¡°What¡¯s the other thing?¡±

    Willow looked Kelra dead in the eyes. ¡°Take the rest of the day off.¡±

    ¡­

    While she had spent the better part of two hours getting the answer to one question, and an answer that told her nothing at that, Willow didn¡¯t feel it was a waste of her time. Making friends was important for more than just normal reasons. Besides, it had been the right thing to do. She¡¯d wondered about coming back tomorrow to spring Kelra again but decided against it. If the Silver Eye took notice it would lead to inconvenient questions, even if she was just doing it out of charity.

    The rest of the afternoon was spent visiting the regular spots, taverns, and shops she¡¯d become familiar with over the years. Willow knew the importance of regularly watering a relationship lest it wilt from inattention. That was how she spent most of her days, meeting people and spreading the word. Only with those she had gotten comfortable with though, since what she had to say was considered outrageous at best. Like Kelra, it started with getting to know the person first and then carefully broaching the subject. Those people who still wanted to see her afterward usually passed it off as sheltered naivety. That began to change as they kept talking to her.

    Willow was good at arguing. Not like Tlara, who liked getting into disagreements. In the squabbles of their youth, she could generally come out ahead, up until Tlara pulled out ad populum and grasped onto it like it was a tree in a wind storm. Even if the majority agreed, Willow knew she was right. The monsters weren¡¯t just monsters.

    Oh, Willow was no diehard Spiritualist. They took to the extreme the truth Willow championed, callously spreading a message that needed a careful delivery. ¡®Every monster is a person and you¡¯re all evil for killing them¡¯ was hardly endearing, or true.

    ¡°I have need of you,¡± a figure covered in gritty cloth said, appearing suddenly beside Willow. Outwardly they appeared no different from anyone on the street other than that they were very particular about their appearance, and made pains to avoid the sunlight. They were so much more than that to Willow.

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    The cloaked figure handed her a large sack, lumpy with roughly spherical shapes pressing against the leather. ¡°Take this to the Artificer and have him test each one. Should any be what he needs, make every effort to contact me. Otherwise, it may be some time before we speak again.¡±

    Willow bowed her head. ¡°Of course. Is there anything I need to know or do for this?¡±

    ¡°Disguise yourself. The man knows someone else is coming, but he doesn¡¯t need to know who. At this stage, I doubt there is a need to fear deception or aggression, but be careful. Once that task has been completed, resume your normal life. You will not need to continue leaving me updates until I contact you again.¡± A hand wrapped in what felt like a sandy glove caressed Willow¡¯s cheek. ¡°You have done so well. We grow nearer to the end.¡±

    Willow put one of her hands to the one on her cheek and wished she could feel the real body. ¡°How long will you be gone?¡±

    ¡°Perhaps a month. There are matters that require my attention, and if none of these work then I will need to be more creative.¡± The woman in robes stepped away from the back, and Willow. ¡°Tell the Artificer not to expect anyone for a similar period. There¡¯s a pouch in there containing payment for his work thus far, as promised.¡±

    ¡°Wait!¡± The other as they moved to fade back into the crowds. ¡°The Artificer, the other one I mean, I think he has proof of everything we¡¯re trying to say. This could be what we¡¯ve been waiting for!¡±

    ¡°That man has left the city. I doubt he¡¯d return after all of this.¡±

    ¡°I could look for him,¡± Willow offered.

    ¡°No.¡± The voice didn¡¯t leave any room for argument. ¡°We can¡¯t have your father growing suspicious. It is a blessing enough that he does not involve you in his affairs, but that does not mean he would give you license to roam the region. Stay. We are so close, Willow. Now is not the time to be distracted.¡±

    ¡­

    It was almost dusk when Willow made it to the secluded alleyway. What she was doing wasn¡¯t the usual way people got in contact with the city¡¯s Artificer. Several of the birthday presents she¡¯d received over the years had just been commissioned from the man, her father substituting what could have been a thoughtful gesture with what amounted to a gift certificate. But he was busy, he had plans of his own and so much work that got in the way of anything resembling a family life.

    Anyway, most people didn¡¯t come here for business. Arpan Morel received requests through the city mail and tended to favor those over belligerents who beat down his door. Willow was here as a representative of the most recent exception to that policy. Unlike the one who had come before her, Willow¡¯s disguise wasn¡¯t as total. Since she normally tended towards plain clothing, all Willow had added was a cloth wrapped around her as if she was about to brave a sandstorm. There was nothing she could do for her voice, but she¡¯d also never met Arpan.

    He¡¯d been expecting her. The Artificer himself was at the door instead of the suit of armor she¡¯d heard served as a doorman. ¡°You¡¯re with, uhm, her?¡± Arpan was more preoccupied with the bag she carried than Willow herself. ¡°Let¡¯s make this quick. Nothing¡¯s worked so far, I doubt tonight will change anything.¡± The door closed behind them as he talked, and Willow wondered why there wasn¡¯t anything on display. ¡°The hearts I¡¯ve been given are all level 2 or lower. I told your leader they needed to be level 6, but she¡¯s trying to be cheap. As if my time isn¡¯t valuable.¡±

    Willow froze. ¡°Hearts!?¡±

    Arpan raised an eyebrow. His face wasn¡¯t as old as it should¡¯ve been considering he¡¯d been a staple of the city for decades. There was a light of annoyance in the green eyes, of inconvenience tempered only by respect and fear. Not of Willow, but the one who¡¯d come before her. ¡°You carried them here but didn¡¯t know? I guess the Mirage compartmentalizes knowledge. Smart. Don¡¯t worry, no one can hear what goes on in my shop from the outside.¡± He held a hand out for the bag and Willow quickly gave it to him. ¡°Are you staying?¡±

    ¡°She wants me to, just in case, uh, whatever you¡¯re doing works.¡± Willow held in a breath. ¡°It¡¯s not evil, is it? What the hearts are for. I know people keep saying the Mirage was responsible for the attacks, but that¡¯s not what we¡¯re about.¡±

    ¡°Really? You could have fooled me.¡± There was a careful tone in Arpan¡¯s voice over the spite. Even though the Artificer probably thought she was someone of the lower caste in the grand organization that was the Mirage, he¡¯d been frightened enough to respect anyone associated with them.

    Willow followed Arpan into a hole that suddenly appeared in the wall. The Artificer asked a question over his shoulder casually. ¡°You don¡¯t have any way around traps, do you?¡±

    ¡°No. Is that a problem?¡±

    ¡°Nothing I can¡¯t handle. Dril!¡± The armor she¡¯d half-expected to see came running up the hallway beyond the hole.

    ¡°If the hallway is trapped, why can the armor go through?¡±

    ¡°Because, despite his best efforts, Dril is neither alive nor a thinking being.¡± Arpan held out a hand, and pieces of armor began peeling away to settle on his person over the loose and expensive silk. The assemblage did not fully cover him but accented the clothing well. The green gem settled right over his breastbone was particularly eye-catching. ¡°I, of course, do not trigger my traps. I¡¯m pretty sure the Builder who put them in doesn¡¯t either, but we have a good working relationship. Your superior must be a Rogue or something similar because she¡¯s able to go right through despite definitively not being either of those two.¡±

    ¡°What happens if I try to go down here by myself?¡± Willow couldn¡¯t help but ask.

    Arpan shook his head. ¡°Come on. This takes up enough of my time as it is.¡±

    So it was that Willow found herself spending the evening with the Artificer. The area was very comfortable, a pleasant chill in an otherwise hot desert with many, many pillows. The reputation of Arpan Morel was that of a recluse, but the seating which could accommodate at least ten contradicted that. Shelves upon shelves of books further made the arcane workshop an odd site as it was halfway to being a decent library. With the Artificer¡¯s permission, Willow took a few to peruse. She couldn¡¯t enchant, or even use magic beyond that which was stored in items. Such talents were solely for the Blessed or those who formed bonds.

    Eventually, Arpan broke the silence. ¡°You¡¯re more curious than the other one. She just stares at me while I work. It¡¯s unnerving.¡±

    ¡°She is committed.¡± Willow nodded, then struggled to fix the disguise as it briefly slipped.

    Arpan pretended not to notice. ¡°Well, I must admit I find you a more pleasant guest even if this arrangement is outside the bounds of my normal practice. You say the Mirage isn¡¯t involved in the killings. I thought your entire philosophy was built around destroying the Council or something. By my count, you¡¯re over halfway there.¡±

    The urge to express her thoughts when asked bubbled up, but Willow stopped herself. She was well known for espousing what the unkind called ¡®monstrous sympathies¡¯ and Tlara ¡®stupid daydreams¡¯ at the tamest. ¡°Killing our way to equality accomplishes nothing. At worst, it could make a Tyrant. Look at the city and what these killings are doing. The guards are running ragged, everyone¡¯s worried, and for what? In a week there¡¯ll be new Council members chosen.¡±

    Arpan blinked and was fortunate that the Test Material ability he was using didn¡¯t need direct eye contact to maintain. ¡°That¡¯s remarkably insightful. How are you going to change things then? And, if the Mirage isn¡¯t behind the killings, who is?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not us,¡± Willow said flatly. ¡°We don¡¯t kill.¡±

    ¡°These items the other wants, they¡¯re-¡±

    ¡°If they¡¯re evil, then whatever she wants them for isn¡¯t what they¡¯re normally for!¡± Willow was close to shouting. ¡°We don¡¯t kill! There¡¯s always a better way, even if it means we have to use monster hearts and whatever dark magic you¡¯re putting in them.¡±

    The Artificer scratched his head. ¡°Sorry I asked. Dril, could you get me-¡± Arpan froze. ¡°Oh. Oh, damn it. I forgot!¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Willow got on her feet.

    ¡°Dril, get the door. You, uhm,¡± Arpan looked away from the plinth in the center of the room. The heart placed on it blackened and turned to dust as the power failed. ¡°Wasn¡¯t going to work anyways. Damn it! I told Massont I needed an another way out of here but the cost of a second trapped hallway was exorbitant!¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±

    ¡°One Lady Alecia Seliri is here to, uhm, see someone. A friend of mine, but apparently he got what he needed another way and I forgot to tell her not to come!¡± Willow froze. Her? That was very bad. Together, Alecia and Arpan could expose her. Arpan had fears in the same direction. ¡°She can¡¯t find out you¡¯re here but she¡¯s going to be all over me once I open that door, unless this is when she springs the trap.¡±

    ¡°What trap?¡±

    ¡°Nothing you need to worry about. I haven¡¯t told her anything about your people and I¡¯m not going to,¡± Arpan said nervously. ¡°But I don¡¯t know if she¡¯s going to want to go here or upstairs. Look, what level are you?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t have a class.¡± Without obvious magical items out, and with a supposedly powerful connection, Willow could see why he¡¯d made the assumption.

    ¡°Really? Good!¡± A full length mirror suddenly appeared by the Artificer. ¡°Get in.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean get in!?¡±

    Arpan put a hand in and out of the mirrored surface, looking very nervously into the face of the mirror. ¡°Mirror Space. I¡¯m not entirely focused on enchanting. When I¡¯m close to the door I¡¯ll resummon it outside of the good Lady¡¯s line of sight and you get out of here. You¡¯ll only be in there for a second,¡± he said in an odd way, as much to the mirror as her. ¡°Come back tomorrow and I¡¯ll tell you if any worked. Come on!¡±

    Willow eyed the item made entirely of magic and had a thought. ¡°What happens while the mirror¡¯s gone?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ll be fine. I imagine I wouldn¡¯t like what would happen to me if something happened to you.¡± That made enough sense for Willow to hesitantly step forward. The space where the glass should have been felt no different than normal air. Once inside, there was a moment of disorientation, as if she¡¯d been knocked out and just as quickly returned to consciousness. She turned around to find an alleyway instead of the underground room. It was so quick she didn¡¯t understand what had happened at first, before she realized she¡¯d been frozen in time while in the mirror. She ran out into the streets, not having had time to see what, and who, had occupied that space with her.

    ¡­

    Elsewhere, a day¡¯s travel outside the city, dozens of men watched in horror as the blood drained from the former lieutenant. He was pinned to the wall by five talons that had pierced through both armor and flesh. Every major vessel coming from and to the heart had been pierced at least once.

    Standing in the hideout was the leader of the Mirage, still covered head to talon in her ¡®disguise¡¯. Only the extended talons that had cut through the gloves were visible when they weren¡¯t in the wall. Jeras, already bitter and regretful of where his choices had taken him, was terrified. He hadn¡¯t meant to have been wrapped up in this, but after he¡¯d returned to the guardhouse with that damned sun rod one thing had led to another until he found himself implicated in very dangerous dealings. The choice had been to flee or stay and be made the focus of the city¡¯s ¡®justice¡¯, since he knew full well neither Claret nor Bennar would face any real consequences that would satisfy a public uneased by the most recent abuse of power

    Jeras¡¯ hope of eventually clearing his name dried up as the last of Sherman¡¯s blood stained the ground beneath him. The sand veil turned towards them, emitting a paralyzing dread. ¡°I think,¡± the terrifying voice behind it spoke, ¡°We understand each other better now.¡±

 Chapter 111: Mana Flow

    Nine days later, Daniel sat in the shade provided by a sturdy tent, opening and closing his hands. Each time they opened they became bird-like, before reverting as he closed them. He¡¯d been at this for an hour with his eyes closed, otherwise unmoving. It had taken a day or so to build up this much patience, assisted by the previous efforts he¡¯d put into exposure therapy with Hunter. The aim of this was different, however.

    The genesis of this exercise had come when his friends consoled him over his imprisonment and later kidnapping the day following his escape. Daniel had commented that being shot in the back wasn¡¯t as bad as being trapped in a cell when Lograve had given the innocuous reply which had started everything.

    ¡°Magical suppression can be like that if you aren¡¯t prepared. When we were just starting in Rikendia I¡¯d find myself in such a cell after a rowdy night or two. It¡¯s worse than the hangover.¡± Lograve grimaced.

    ¡°You had rowdy nights?¡± Evalyn asked quietly, across from the campfire.

    ¡°It was a while ago. Having the mana within you forcibly arrested can best be described as falling backward and sideways down a hill covered in thorns, at least until you get used to it. It¡¯s a good thing Khiat received her class recently, her sensitivity wouldn¡¯t have been high. Gods know she¡¯s suffered enough.¡±

    Daniel had definitely had a spike of claustrophobia during his imprisonment, in addition to everything that had piled on, though he had no idea what Lograve was talking about. ¡°What do you mean? I felt that I couldn¡¯t use certain powers, but nothing was weird with my mana.¡±

    One discussion later, a crucial fact was been learned. Put simply by Lograve, ¡°Your seventh sense is atrophied. This is what you get for taking so many damned shortcuts.¡±

    What they had discovered was that Daniel had failed to grasp something so basic about having a class that even Hunter had known about it. No one had mentioned anything because for anyone else, no one ever needed to. When a person began to develop their powers and grow familiar with them, they would also begin to sense how using them related to the flow of mana within their bodies. Daniel had been able to know about how much mana he had left, judging it like a reservoir with a depth gauge.

    The others could use the seventh sense more holistically because of how they advanced and awakened their powers. The trance achieved through advancement allowed for focus and exploration of the self, which involved mana flow. With time, the flow of mana for each ability and feature could be distinguished. Lograve could theoretically use his Sense Magic power to guess what another mortal was about to do based on recognizing these patterns, though that was a talent typically developed at a higher level.

    On the other hand, Daniel advanced with the push of a button. Daniel learned about his powers not through testing and discovery, but by looking them up. All of the opportunities others had to develop this sense he¡¯d skipped over. When in magical suppression, instead of being hit by the same sensory deprivation that made Hunter hate Moment of Clarity, Daniel had only been uneased of the enclosed space.

    It wasn¡¯t that the topic hadn¡¯t been broached before. Lograve had mentioned something about the mana from one ability blocking out others when they¡¯d discussed the limits of active powers. Daniel had just thought it was a rule of magic, rather than something he should also innately feel. It had taken someone directly referencing this seventh sense for the discrepancy to be realized.

    That led to the present. While the rest of his team were finishing their advancement, Daniel was training his seventh sense. Claw Strike was a rapid use ability with a low mana cost and no cooldown. Endlessly repeating it allowed for a constant circuit of mana to flow within his body which corresponded to the ¡®shape¡¯ of the ability. Initially, all he¡¯d been able to feel was the draining of mana like always, and Daniel had burned out after ten minutes from the lack of progress. Despite the relatively relaxing conditions, inner peace was hard to come by, and Daniel wasn¡¯t in the mood to beat his head against a brick wall until he started seeing lights.

    He¡¯d killed someone. Not knowing who exactly helped, but Daniel had his suspicions. The official count was 14 of the attackers dead and two survivors, the rest escaping. In a way, it reminded him of how the firing squads of old wouldn¡¯t all carry live ammo to absolve them of certainty. In his case, it was the uncertainty of who he had and hadn¡¯t killed. Regardless, blood was on his hands.

    Strangely, he was only moderately disturbed by that prospect. With the imprisonment happening soon after, the events hadn¡¯t seemed quite real. The pain of the arrows blurred the memories, jumbling who he¡¯d hit first and when he¡¯d been cut. At times, Daniel wondered if it¡¯d even fully hit him yet, or if he was just numb to it after becoming used to killing monsters. At least there had only been a few nightmares.

    A few minutes later, Daniel stood up. He didn¡¯t want to exhaust all of his mana with these exercises. He was making a bigger breakthrough with Hunter, now able to control the ringcat for short bursts of time. The hope was that this seventh sense had been a hidden barrier preventing him from fully tolerating the shared senses. That, and the Empathic Link, were the only benefits of his bond to Hunter still unique now that Tak was in the picture. Daniel wanted to develop the former to the best of his ability, and then maybe revisit the second one at a later time. As for his other bond? Daniel had a combo attack now and was very eager to see it in use.

    The others, barring Thomas who still refused to fight when unnecessary, and Lograve who hadn¡¯t journeyed this far out from the city with them, also had new powers to test. Hunter¡¯s first power granted by the Awakened Ringcat class wouldn¡¯t be of much help, despite how humorous Daniel found it.

    <hr>

    Leonine Charm* (Feature, Charisma, Domain: Illusion, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to improve your appearance and presentability to observers. This effect scales with your charisma and the target¡¯s affinity for Creatures: Feline.

    - Level 2 (Automatic): This feature is acquired at level 2 and receives no additional benefits at this level.

    <hr>

    The feature had been crucial to calming Khiat. Despite not knowing Hunter had a mind, she was fond of cats and the feature was able to reach her despite the disparity. It could affect others as well depending on how much Hunter leaned into it which, in most cases, he didn¡¯t. Its only passive effect was making Hunter¡¯s face more expressive in terms mortals could understand, and softening the feel of his fur. After Daniel had teased Hunter on that end the ringcat had tried to reverse the effect, but to his dismay it was permanent.

    Most notable of the powers that had been discovered were those with asterisks. Since Daniel¡¯s phone was the only device that displayed information on powers the way it did, there was no telling what the asterisks were supposed to represent or if they even mattered. His phone might be labeling something that already existed in this world in an odd way, and someone had Unidentified the information. Either way, everyone in Daniel¡¯s team bar Thomas had allowed him to scan their powers like Khare had, only to discover that they had marked powers as well. Valor Song for Evalyn, Avianoid Monstrosity for Tak, who was still unaware of the power, and the others already detected on Khare. As for Hunter, every power the ringcat awakened had an asterisk.

    After the initial scan, his further attempts to keep track of the marked powers were forestalled by a mutual agreement that even Hunter had joined on the urgings of Tak. Initially betrayed, Daniel came to understand as Thomas explained for the group.

    ¡°Look Guy, powers are personal. Letting someone know every single one you have is, well, I didn¡¯t say you could look at me did I?¡± Thomas half-smiled in apology. ¡°But it¡¯s important to find out what we can do for ourselves. Isn¡¯t that why you have to keep doing that thing with your hands?¡±

    When roughly put that way, Daniel had wondered if he should do the same. As it stood he didn¡¯t have to make a decision now, as he¡¯d already used the advancement gained from fighting off the thieves to round out his charisma. As he¡¯d done that before the discussion of seventh senses, he¡¯d already read the notifications regarding the power he¡¯d received.

    <hr>

    Your Attribute: Charisma is now 20! You have gained Ability: Personal Mark. Powers derived from your charisma no longer suffer from Level Disparity. Features derived from your charisma may be Heightened to unlock additional benefits.

    This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    -

    Personal Mark (Ability, Charisma, Spell, Domain: Enchantment, Level 2):

    You possess the Power to imbue Items you create with a Mark of your design. This mark can be visible or hidden, and will identify you as its creator. Formulae and Affixes of an item marked by you are protected from powers that would Identify them. This is a Magical ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression. Marks created by this ability that enter such an area are only temporarily dispelled.

    -

    Bartering,  Level: 2: Improve the effect of this feature to a minor degree, and add a minor degree of protection from deception-based Abilities for a minor Mana cost.

    -

    Beast Friend*, Level: 2 (Automatic): This feature now counts as level 2 for the purposes of forming a bond. No additional benefits are granted outside of those from improving the bond itself. This is an automatic improvement that requires no Mana.

    <hr>

    Overall, his last attribute reaching level 2 had turned out to be underwhelming. The only new ability, Personal Mark, seemed dangerous if his recent experiences were any indication. None of his legacy Totem Warrior powers had improved either since the majority of his climb to level 2 charisma had come after Rorshawd had been separated from him.

    Even so, there was a sense of togetherness that had washed over him when he¡¯d committed the advancement. It was like he¡¯d removed a splinter he hadn¡¯t realized was there. Gadriel¡¯s devout insistence that his attributes be equal was beginning to make more sense.

    Exiting the tent, Daniel found himself in the late afternoon hour by an oasis. Following everything that had happened he¡¯d been told that the Commander of Aughal would personally intervene, again, if anything suspicious were to happen to him. Letting one of her hunters be kidnapped twice would hurt her authority, something she seemed more concerned with than punishing the ones responsible for the first attempt. Thomas had said the nobility would take care of that themselves and Daniel wasn¡¯t keen on making sure either way.

    That changed nothing about the unease the prospect of returning to that city held now. Instead of continuing to advance in the city, his group decided to leave together and go to friendlier ground. Khiat was also adamant about returning home and had spent each day resting with her family. Something was wrong with her, but Daniel had a lot going on himself and was in no real position to help. Evalyn and Thomas both tried to join in consoling her but were only allowed when Khiat was willing. Either could force their way into Khiat¡¯s dwelling regardless, but that wouldn¡¯t solve anything.

    The rest of the village were grateful hosts, and they largely benefitted from the arrangement. Daniel and his friends just received a safe place to rest, while they got an on-call hunting team to respond to any potential threat in the area. That Tak and Hunter also went off to look for game passively was another mutual benefit. Daniel had considered joining them but decided against it. He was getting over his earlier jealousy and didn¡¯t want to intrude. Besides, in the next day or so, almost all of them would be departing together.

    Looking around, he noticed Evalyn wasn¡¯t joining the others in meditation. ¡°Out of potential?¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± she sighed. ¡°I thought I had another one in me, but, no. How about you, any progress?¡±

    Daniel flexed his hands, nodding as they shifted. ¡°Kind of. It¡¯s just a trickle, but I¡¯m getting something out of it. Nothing from my other abilities or features though. It¡¯s like trying to walk after being paralyzed.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve been paralyzed before and seemed fine. Granted I did give you a little help.¡±

    ¡°Uh.¡± A familiar awkwardness came over him as they broached a sensitive topic. ¡°I mean from your nerves being hurt. Permanent paralysis, or physical paralysis I guess.¡±

    ¡°Nerves?¡± In fairness to Evalyn, she was quick on the uptake, but few in this world had a strong grasp of biology. Thomas probably knew what he was talking about.

    ¡°They¡¯re small threads that connect your brain to everything else. If they¡¯re injured or cut it¡¯s hard to move. I¡¯ve heard people can recover but it takes a while.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d imagine healing is far more difficult where you come from,¡± Evalyn commented knowingly.

    ¡°Yes and no. My mother worked as a, uh, a healer so I picked up a few things. Nothing really.¡± I¡¯d say I learned more from TV shows.

    Evalyn glanced over to the tent Thomas was still burning off an advancement in. ¡°You could probably teach him a thing or two then. Now that you¡¯ve told Khare there¡¯s only two left if you want to count Thomas.¡±

    ¡°What about Khiat?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± One of Evalyn¡¯s arms crossed to hold the other as she looked down. ¡°I think if you hadn¡¯t gone through what we all had in the Thormundz you¡¯d be in the same shape as she is. Honestly, I¡¯m glad she didn¡¯t take it well. It means the rest of you were probably right.¡± Daniel raised an eyebrow. ¡°What? I admit I reacted a little strongly when I heard about her class. Most people would object to traveling with an Assassin. I never considered that, if you got to someone before they became drunk on the power of murdering people, you might be able to stop them from walking that path.¡±

    ¡°She wasn¡¯t the only one that got stronger.¡± Daniel looked at his hands. ¡°I didn¡¯t get to see the notification, but I know I got advancement from fighting the thieves. From killing them. I thought that was just monsters.¡±

    Evalyn didn¡¯t quite meet his eye. ¡°So did I. It might be everyone can advance a little from the activity but only Assassins can keep doing it. We don¡¯t all have a magical box that tells us when and why we get stronger.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s probably a good thing,¡± Daniel agreed. ¡°I just feel bad. I couldn¡¯t imagine spending my entire life in a place like this.¡±

    ¡°You miss the city?¡±

    ¡°I miss cities in general. When people weren¡¯t trying to make me their slave, I enjoyed Aughal. For the ten hours or so I was there.¡±

    ¡°We can go back in a few weeks, once things have calmed down.¡±

    ¡°Maybe we should get to level 3 first.¡± Evalyn gave him an odd look. ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Daniel, we¡¯ll all be lucky to reach that in a year, unless you neglect your other attributes.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s that slow?¡±

    ¡°Normally, people don¡¯t go around killing dragons until they¡¯re at least on that level.¡± She brushed past him in the direction of the oasis, pulling out a flask. ¡°Unless we¡¯re suicidal, our days of quick advancement are over.¡±

    ¡­

    With a few hours left until the rest of the village awoke, Daniel went to where Hunter and Tak were finishing their advancements. Khare found him on the way and they nodded at each other. Bonds were a topic that eluded understanding both in the world in general and within Daniel¡¯s Encyclopedia. He was fairly sure several key pages were Unidentified since there were no entries on either of the bonds he possessed. Regardless, Daniel could tell the difference between his two bonds. With both there was trust, although the familiarity and connection with Hunter was contrasted with a strangely comfortable feeling he got around Khare, like two travelers from the same home who¡¯d found each other on the road.

    Of all of the benefits of the new bond, Tactical Network was the most game-changing even though it was competing with a combo attack. They could now communicate by tagging nearby creatures. The system wasn¡¯t sophisticated and Daniel¡¯s attempts to both remember and implement Morse code had failed. In this instance, though, he was able to ping Hunter, remove the mark, and wait for Khare to reapply it to confirm.

    ¡°Hunt?¡± Khare said with the subtle infection of a question. It was probably a function of repeated exposure to the gestalt than their bond, but Daniel was ever improving in his ability to converse with them.

    ¡°Tomorrow, maybe. We still don¡¯t know about Khiat.¡±

    ¡°Froze.¡±

    It took him a few paces to figure that out. ¡°She didn¡¯t want to kill anyone. She doesn¡¯t want to be that kind of Assassin, which, I guess is good? Maybe there¡¯s a nonlethal kind of Assassin she could bend towards, sedatives and stuff like that.¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°No? That kind of Assassin doesn¡¯t exist?¡±

    ¡°Frozen.¡± Khare backed away from him before returning.

    ¡°You¡¯re trying to say cowardice?¡±

    ¡°Close.¡±

    Daniel ran a hand through his hair after unconsciously licking it. The bad habit had been picked up from his Empathic Link to Hunter and still occasionally manifested if he wasn¡¯t paying attention. ¡°She was a hunter before this, though. Not for monsters, sure, but when that horde attacked she didn¡¯t run.¡±

    ¡°Distance.¡±

    ¡°Ooooh.¡± Khare nodded along with his understanding. ¡°Sucks they stole my crossbow then. I still have those special weapons Murdon let me copy. I could try making a bone crossbow, but maybe I¡¯ll give them a try instead.¡± Several knives worked their way to the surface of the mass of vines underneath Khare¡¯s humanoid form and Daniel laughed. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ll make you some more daggers too.¡±

 Chapter 112: Murder Cat Sonar

    Among the other limitations of Hunter¡¯s otherwise impressive detection radius was that, when the ringcat was advancing, he couldn¡¯t detect new creatures. The tags already applied remained as those only faded when both Daniel and Hunter went unconscious, or the target died. Still, any new threat that approached could easily reach the village before Hunter would once more actively monitor the region.

    That weakness wasn¡¯t exploited today. Even if something did try to approach the village, there was a dusker who watched for threats and could warn if any approached. That didn¡¯t rule out the possibility of a monster with stealth sneaking up, although something like invisibility was uncommon in the typical monsters of the region.

    Tak and Hunter did not react as the two approached. The Totem Warrior was in the classic, cross-legged meditative pose, while the beast at his side simply laid down and rested his head between his front legs. Neither the heat nor the sun bothered them since their skin was covered, and they would both regenerate even if it did burn.

    While Daniel sat down, Khare rooted into the sand. Unlike when they entered their version of the advancement trance, they only sank halfway. Another of their new powers. Different species could access different ones, like the avianoid ability to temporarily convert their arms into full wings. From what he¡¯d seen the gestalts were the most exotic, altering how they could shape their forms.

    Kob, who had been the strongest in the Thormundz before their untimely demise, could cover their entire body in stone. Daniel had first thought they were some kind of stone giant, but the actual body was hidden inside. Khare had somehow acquired that power far before they should have, but didn¡¯t have the mana for it and likely wouldn¡¯t until level 4. Daniel didn¡¯t know what this new rooting ability did exactly, Khare having acquired it after sharing access to their powers and the decision to not rely on Daniel¡¯s Encyclopedia was made. Allowing Khare to just sink halfway into the ground seemed a poor benefit from a level 2 ability, so he expected there was more to it than that.

    There was an odd sense of boredom as he waited. The only other time he¡¯d been truly bored was during his mad week of enchanting. Even then there were books to read and people to talk to. Getting a taste of an actual city made things worse as Daniel was reminded of the comforts of his world, albeit in a lesser form. The absence of TV, air conditioning, or the novelty of magic made the small toy Tak carried the only real entertainment in the village while the villagers were asleep.

    Not even the Encyclopedia held much to distract him. Without a search function, the best he could do was explore hyperlinks that all eventually led along the same circles or into a roadblock of Unidentification. He¡¯d taken wide access to knowledge of how this world worked for granted, always passing off a deep dive into topics given the extreme needs of the present.

    If reading about the mysteries of the world couldn¡¯t distract Daniel, at least internally grousing about missed opportunities could. Hunter awoke first, standing up and shaking collected sand off. There was an ever present breeze to this region that would carry it to anything standing still. Good?

    Good. Hunter confirmed. They both used telepathy despite their relative isolation to not disturb Tak. I chose strength. If we are hunting, I will need that.

    Daniel navigated to the screen on his phone that displayed Hunter¡¯s stats and nodded. Yeah, and you still have enough to get charisma to level 2. Maybe you could get a power that lets your fur change color.

    No. Hunter replied flatly.

    What? You could go with an orange and bright yellow theme. The ringcat regarded him for a moment, and then something shifted. The connection between them was more than just mental, allowing the emotional and subconscious states to be shared as well. To Daniel and Hunter, this was incredibly disorientating at full strength. While Daniel had made strides in improving his tolerance of Hunter¡¯s senses, fully sharing the ringcat¡¯s mind appeared an unachievable goal as matters stood. Ironically, a being who was not only able to share a stronger Empathic Link but preferred doing so was sunk into the ground next to him.

    The Empathic Link between Daniel and Hunter had started at low intensity, but as their bond improved it gained the troublesome ¡®normal¡¯ intensity. Either could lower it at will, but the daily reset at dawn briefly brought it back up before one of them slapped the alarm clock. There had been some personality bleed in from this small exposure, though the effect was plateauing. That didn¡¯t mean the sudden shift in the link was enjoyable.

    Don¡¯t do that! Daniel thought as Hunter metaphorically balled up a little bit of himself and threw it at him.

    Worth it. Red markers appeared over both Daniel¡¯s and Hunter¡¯s heads.

    ¡°Oh yeah, sorry Khare.¡± Daniel dismissed the effect as he whispered and walked a short distance from Tak. ¡°Look, I¡¯m going to try something. There¡¯s an ability I haven¡¯t used yet, mostly because I¡¯ve already got Hunter and it takes a while. But if tomorrow¡¯s the day we go out, it might reach a farther range than what Hunter can do now.¡±

    ¡°What does it do?¡± Hunter asked, now using his voice too.

    ¡°Here, let me pull up the entry.¡±

    <hr>

    Attune to Nature (Ability, Wisdom, Spell, Domain: Knowledge, Ritual, Trance, Level: 1):

    You possess the Power to gain information on surrounding terrain and Creatures in an undeveloped area around you through expenditure of a moderate amount of Mana and one hour of concentration. The range of this ability scales with your wisdom and is dramatically decreased if used within a settled area. Creatures above your level ignore this ability. This is a Magical Ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression.

    <hr>

    ¡°I¡¯m guessing this village counts as a ¡®settled area¡¯ but I don¡¯t feel like walking through the desert just to sit down on a random dune. Besides, it¡¯ll be good to get a sense of just how far the range is reduced.¡±

    ¡°Artificer?¡± Khare asked.

    ¡°No, this is one of the leftovers from Rorshawd. I¡¯m also curious if I can use Identify Creature with it. I get the sense that you¡¯re not normally supposed to combine powers from these two classes, so if I can send out a sonar ping or something that would be awesome.¡± Daniel sat down and then realized there was a problem. ¡°It¡¯s going to be hard to concentrate if I¡¯m getting sunburned. Let¡¯s just wait for the night.¡±

    ¡­

    There was a residual heat to the air after the sun had gone down that made the air relatively pleasant by the oasis. Even going out to the first of the dunes, Daniel decided not to put on the stiff leather jacket that was essentially his armor. It¡¯d been too hot to wear so far during the day, and he¡¯d sold the heliorite armor he¡¯d made himself on account of it having a critical, explosive weakness. He doubted Rogues were lying in wait out here but kept his eyes peeled regardless.

    If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    Neither Thomas nor Evalyn had found their way to the other half of the group during the remnants of the evening. They were likely trying to help Khiat again and he wished them the best of luck. As far as those present, only Hunter could have a potentially better impact. While the ringcat wasn¡¯t thrilled about Feline Charm, he¡¯d leaned into it a few times for Khiat¡¯s sake.

    As far as Daniel himself, there wasn¡¯t much he could do. Both he and Khare served as reminders of who Khiat had failed to protect, at least in her mind. Remembering when he¡¯d mired in his failures, Daniel had kept clear, allowing those with either training or a strong sense of empathy to take the lead. Instead, he¡¯d kept to his various tasks and was now trying to figure out how to use one of his abilities.

    ¡°Is this hard because of my seventh sense?¡± he asked aloud to no one in particular.

    ¡°Maybe,¡± Tak replied simply. ¡°It is not hard for me to use it though.¡±

    Daniel turned quickly, almost falling flat on the ground as he threw out a hand to steady himself. ¡°Wait, you have Attune to Nature too?¡±

    ¡°Yes! Why?¡±

    ¡°You-¡± Daniel stammered, glanced at Hunter, and then back to Tak. ¡°How does it work?¡±

    ¡°Like this!¡± Tak sat down and took a stance almost identical to when he advanced, a look of peace on his face. He sat unmoving in this way for a minute before Daniel spoke up.

    ¡°That¡¯s it?¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡± Tak opened his eyes. ¡°Only, you have to do that for a little bit. Talking makes it not work. Or being attacked.¡±

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you use that before?¡±

    ¡°I did!¡± Tak tilted his head. ¡°Oh, but not when you were there. When I was with the others, to find things to hunt. Back in the valleys.¡±

    ¡°I just meditate? I¡¯ve already been trying that.¡±

    Tak¡¯s eyebrows creased. ¡°Yes? No. Maybe. You do need to move mana into the ground. Maybe you just suck at it.¡±

    ¡°So I can¡¯t do this yet.¡± Daniel hit the ground with both fists. ¡°I guess it¡¯s a good thing I never tried this before or I¡¯d have just thought the ability was broken.¡±

    ¡°I could try,¡± Hunter spoke lowly, cautious of the waking villagers who were still far enough to justify speech instead of telepathy. ¡°You can give it to me, then share my senses.¡±

    ¡°Why couldn¡¯t we just have Tak do it tomorrow though?¡±

    ¡°You wouldn¡¯t be able to know what it feels like.¡±

    Daniel blinked, realizing what Hunter was offering. ¡°Oh, thanks!¡± There was no interface he could use to revoke the powers he shared with Hunter, it was just an intrinsic will that guided how he used the majority of his abilities. Their bond, at this point, allowed him to share two powers with Hunter. The defaults were Regeneration and Identify Creature, though Jump was often traded in mid-battle to give Hunter more mobility. Though Daniel valued Regeneration higher than the marking feature, he revoked the self-healing now since he was curious about the interaction. Theoretically, he could make use of his power while sharing Hunter¡¯s senses, although even under normal conditions he failed to match the way Hunter instinctually marked everything he sensed.

    ¡°Well, this is going to take an hour either way. Tak, Khare, you can watch or,¡± Daniel passed a glance over their surroundings. ¡°Look at sand? How do people live their whole lives out here?¡±

    ¡°I can stay,¡± Tak offered. ¡°I will use my ability too. We can see if it is different.¡±

    Khare, for once, declined. There were aspects of the gestalt Daniel still didn¡¯t understand, but he¡¯d gotten the sense Khare wasn¡¯t entirely alright either. They might have died if it wasn¡¯t for the sand wall he¡¯d summoned. Alien mind or not close death encounters could change people. That, and the gestalt wasn¡¯t quite on the level with the rest of the group. They and Daniel had reached a certain degree of understanding, but even Hunter contributed more to verbal conversations.

    It could have been Khare was shy, and Daniel had no empathic link to say otherwise, but he¡¯d started to wonder if Khiat was the only one they needed to be worried about. After all, every other gestalt had headed off together just before they¡¯d reached the city to places unknown. As the three on the dune sat down to prepare, so did Khare separate from them, if only temporarily.

    To Daniel¡¯s slight irritation, Hunter was easily able to initiate the trance needed for the ability along with Tak. That deepened his theory that it was somehow tied to how advancement worked and posed further issues. The prevailing opinion was he wasn¡¯t capable of it right now, and may never be if the damage he¡¯d done to his seventh sense affected other parts of him. Joining Hunter mid-process was within his power, though.

    The enhanced hearing and scent of the ringcat had initially overloaded Daniel when he¡¯d arrogantly thought he could just handle it, to say nothing of the disorientation of suddenly inhabiting another body you couldn¡¯t control. The way Hunter viewed the world was dramatically different, in that he didn¡¯t just view the world. If Identify Creature worked solely by sight, the ringcat wouldn¡¯t have been able to improve its range much over Daniel. Scent was as much Hunter¡¯s primary sense as sight, rather than being the accessory it was for Daniel.

    By now Daniel could tolerate it better, especially since the desert air dulled the very sense that most troubled him. Unless any startling stimuli were introduced, he could tread water for the full hour this ability would take at the expense of only a small amount of mana. He could sense the steady but slow decline of his mana pool as Hunter began expending mana at a faster rate. Where it went he couldn¡¯t begin to tell, though that was due to his insensitivity. Should his talon training bear fruit, that would change.

    During that time Daniel didn¡¯t communicate or attempt to control the host body, afraid that would disrupt the process. Instead he rode on the senses, practicing both his identifying and new marking powers. His ultimate goal, beyond turning Hunter into some kind of pegasus he could use as a fighter jet, was to be able to take over Hunter¡¯s body in the worst case scenario of him being disabled by a hostile effect. Also, just to experience fighting up close with a body that was suited to it. Of all of his powers, the ones granted by his bond with Hunter were the most marvelous.

    When enough time had passed, Daniel sensed the drain on Hunter¡¯s mana end. What he couldn¡¯t feel was the mana which had gathered in a circle underneath both of them, primed for a sudden rush that was released in the next moment.

    Of the various mistakes Daniel had made in the development and use of his powers, he repeated a frequent one when Hunter finished the necessary preparations for Attune to Nature. In his defense, it was hard to intuitively discover the caveats and intricacies of an ability you couldn¡¯t naturally use. Even so, his reliance on the descriptions his Encyclopedia gave on powers meant that there were times when incorrect assumptions were made.

    In this case, rather than receiving some abstract list of information on their surroundings, Daniel was rocketed with Hunter along a wave of sensation spreading in every direction. Had he been the source of the ability, Daniel might have been able to tolerate the unexpected barrage, but the senses in question were based on Hunter¡¯s biology. Before the full effect had been realized, Daniel had already passed out from sheer overload.

    Leaving him behind, Hunter continued to push outwards on the wave of mana that was growing weaker with distance. Another major barrier was the village nearby, acting as a pillar to block the wave. An expanding wedge of shadow shrouded a sizable area, with other villages farther out acting as more minor stumbling blocks. Even the roads stymied the wave¡¯s progress, although they just diminished the range rather than block the effect entirely.

    While this trance was active, Hunter¡¯s mental faculties were improved to handle the expanding, omnidirectional wave. Daniel had also been bereft of this benefit, exacerbating his issue. In this state, Hunter was easily able to mark any creature he detected. Doing so didn¡¯t require mana usage, and didn¡¯t run against the mana actively channeling into another ability. In the same intrinsic way he could feel mana flow, his seventh sense, Hunter knew trying to use anything that required mana to function would fail as the river within him was preoccupied.

    The result was a sizable number of creatures both monstrous or otherwise highlighted on the horizon. This didn¡¯t spread far enough to reach the city and would have been pointless if it had, but the distance eclipsed even the longer range Hunter¡¯d had in the Thormundz. Normally, the results of this ability were limited by the memory of the user, which Identify Creature took out of the equation. There was still a time and mana cost, though even Hunter was impressed by the results.

    One unfortunate flaw was that anything above Hunter¡¯s level was unaffected. The more dangerous creatures still posed a threat, meaning that vigilance wasn¡¯t off the table.

    ¡°Ooooowww!¡± Daniel groaned, his headache upon awakening exquisite. He momentarily forgot it when he saw all of the auras around him. ¡°Jeez, how far did that go?¡±

    ¡°Far,¡± Hunter answered. ¡°I couldn¡¯t see through villages.¡±

    ¡°It is like that,¡± Tak nodded. ¡°Harder to use in older regions because of all the towns. I like here better.¡±

    ¡°And this is a level 1 ability?¡± Daniel pondered. It was like a sonar pulse traveling along the ground. Sure it can¡¯t see through villages, but even so that¡¯s crazy! ¡°I guess Identify Creature just combos well with other stuff. Good job Hunter.¡±

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    ¡°We should go farther out tomorrow to check the areas the village is currently blocking. Since we¡¯ll both want to be asleep at dawn we also can¡¯t sustain these marks. If it¡¯s alright with you guys, I¡¯m thinking of going after shank stompers again if we can find a good group. I¡¯ve got a feeling the formulae I get from later unlocks are better than the ones up front.¡±

    ¡°Ok!¡± Tak exclaimed.

    ¡°You understood that?¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Tak admitted. ¡°But those creatures are good prey. Good for a warm up at least.¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡± Daniel tried to examine the far off auras in greater detail, but though the titles of each creature became legible when he focused on them, there were far too many to distinguish. ¡°Damn. I think this worked too well.¡±

 Chapter 113: A Wound Still Bleeding

    In their underground dwelling, Achia and Xtalo discussed quietly. That was a difficult feat for their race, but the one they were keeping their voices low for wasn¡¯t listening keenly. She was huddled as far away from the entrance to her room as possible. ¡°Did Khiat get any sleep?¡±

    ¡°I think so,¡± Achia, tired and emotionally worn, replied. She¡¯d elected to stay up for that day to watch over and coax her daughter out of the void she¡¯d fallen into. There had been little progress on that but they hadn¡¯t stopped trying. ¡°But only when she is so exhausted sleep takes her. What else can we do?¡±

    Xtalo wrapped two arms around her, bringing his wife close. ¡°We give her time. As much as she needs.¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t bear to see her like this.¡±

    ¡°I know. I wish just as much there was some magical solution to put an end to this. Every day that goes by I worry she won¡¯t come out of this, but I have faith she will, and will be stronger for this.¡± They parted, and Xtalo picked up a quiver on the table. ¡°We knew we could give her these, could trust her with these.¡±

    Achia pulled one of the arrows out and cradled the arrowhead with her palm. Its color was almost identical to the chitin of her hand. ¡°We did, but it is only we who believe in her. She does not.¡±

    ¡°I will go to her, you should rest. We will both need to stay strong for however long she needs us.¡±

    The plates above one of Achia¡¯s eyes separated further than the other side¡¯s. ¡°If you think I will be found wanting, husband, then I suggest you make sure your mind has not wandered into the light.¡±

    Xtalo smiled shamefully. While he was among the strongest of the village, always springing to its defense, Achia was regarded as the mediator. Patient and fair, whenever a minor disagreement broke out it was her judgment valued above others. That was why she was taking the day shift, and only after enduring that had motherly concern broken through the otherwise measured way she¡¯d been handling this disaster. ¡°I am a fool.¡±

    She gripped his arm tightly. ¡°No! For our daughter¡¯s sake, you must be more.¡±

    ¡°My love, I was just- you are right.¡± His shoulders slumped, bending the elbow of the arm caught in Achia¡¯s grasp. ¡°Do you think anyone can see her?¡±

    ¡°You do not hear her cries, do you? Khiat is¡­¡± The hand let go. ¡°You will see.¡±

    Ever since coming back from the city, Xtalo¡¯s brave, beautiful daughter had not strayed from her room. At times she wailed, and when she did speak it was to deny food or their presence. During those times neither he nor Achia wanted the others to see her. That wasn¡¯t what greeted Xtalo. In a way, it was worse.

    Khiat had first returned to the village unmoving, placed on the cart the hunters had bought for lack of better options. The beast that traveled with them, as well as the avianoid, were apparently enough to pull it with her weight. When they had finally gotten Khiat to open up hours later, he¡¯d thought they¡¯d made progress. Instead, Khiat had fallen in and out of the sullen pose she was now frozen in, the pattern only interrupted by the rare times she became so tired she passed out.

    The extreme emotions in his daughter confounded him. She¡¯d been shaken to find out what class she¡¯d awakened, and he had no doubt what she¡¯d endured in the city would be something to rattle anyone. Yet, there was no sign that Khiat was improving. Worse, in all this time she¡¯d barely eaten. Duskers didn¡¯t accumulate fat. While they could temporarily store food taken in excess for later absorption, the degree to which Khiat was starving herself was becoming dangerous.

    Xtalo walked into the room, reducing his height so he would fit in the space. His daughter stood in the far corner with her chitin locked together, unmoving and not reacting to his presence. Slowly, he walked forward. ¡°I¡¯m here, Khiat. I¡¯m right here.¡±

    ¡­

    Thomas made his way up the tower, silently grumbling with discontent at every oversized step. The tall stairs and village of bug people weren¡¯t the biggest issue on his mind, but it was a welcome distraction. The Fate¡¯s ultimatum, and the gut-clenching anxiety it caused, was something he¡¯d just barely been able to keep secret. It¡¯d happened when Lograve stormed after Aucrest after being told it could be weeks before the region could contact the gods. As soon as they had left the Fate had become animated, urging him to stay. If only he hadn¡¯t.

    Evalyn and a bug wrapped in leather were on the top floor discussing the local monsters. While Thomas had some knowledge from his time living here, the lookout didn¡¯t have walls or the oppressive influence of the Spoke to ward off monsters. Small threats like individual Shank Stompers could be sniped before reaching the village, whereas anything over level 2 would require the village to hunker down and wait for the danger to pass.

    ¡°Most real threats are bigger,¡± the giant bug was explaining. ¡°So it¡¯s easy to tell. Anything smaller than us we can handle, usually.¡±

    ¡°How do you tell which small ones you can¡¯t handle?¡± Evalyn asked, leaning against the wall with her arms crossed and looking out into the desert. She was so beautiful no matter the environment, lighting, or dress. He was trying with her, but unlike others he¡¯d pursued in the past she was adept at this game too. More so, considering the Bard probably had relevant powers in this area. It was throwing him off, making him try too hard and, yes, be obnoxious at times. Anyone else he would have simply moved on, but circumstances had kept the two in proximity to each other. There was also Quala¡¯s advice in the back of his head, and Thomas really could see aiming for something long-lasting in this case. If only he could find an opening.

    ¡°If they¡¯re glowing, that¡¯s an easy sign,¡± the lookout answered readily. Even with races that couldn¡¯t cross with humans, even without powers, Evalyn¡¯s personality had a way of ingratiating her to most. ¡°Our people are slow, so anything quick is also a problem.¡±

    Evalyn¡¯s head turned slightly as she heard someone coming up the stairs, but she didn¡¯t look back. ¡°What about flying monsters? I heard our wyvern caused quite the alarm.¡±

    Thomas shivered as the chitin on the lookout¡¯s face contorted into a humorous expression. ¡°Normally not a problem. We have some people like me who are good with a bow. Khiat, although,¡± his voice turned troubled, ¡°I fear for that girl now.¡± The Cleric¡¯s face fell when the Assassin was mentioned as he was reminded of what was weighing on his mind the most.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for what she went through. Your village trusted her with us and we returned her traumatized.¡±

    Maybe it was being ignored, but Thomas took offense to that. ¡°It¡¯s not like it was our fault! It was that bastard Silver Eye siccing the guard on them.¡± Evalyn glared at him. ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°How was advancing?¡± She asked the question as if doing so would make Thomas jump from the tower.

    ¡°Fine. I¡¯ve got at least a healing thing out of this one, I think. It should be Flash Heal, finally, but I don¡¯t have a full grasp on it yet.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s good, now stop interrupting.¡± Thomas scoffed as she turned back to the lookout. ¡°Sorry, again. Did you teach her to shoot?¡±

    ¡°Xtalo is awful with a bow. Of course I did!¡± The lookout shrank slightly. ¡°An Assassin. How could that happen?¡±

    ¡°If it¡¯s any consolation, I don¡¯t think she wants to be one.¡±

    ¡°She doesn¡¯t want to be much of anything,¡± he answered darkly. ¡°I¡¯ve tried talking with her. We all have. I think she blames herself for what happened.¡±

    Thomas and Evalyn shared a look. ¡°We¡¯ve seen that before. In someone a little more experienced, maybe, but I don¡¯t think either were ready for what they got into.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, but at least she didn¡¯t wreck a relationship like Guy did.¡±

    ¡°Not to cause offense, but I doubt sullen withdrawal is any better,¡± the lookout answered with faint disapproval. ¡°Before all of this, Khiat was a bright child just coming into her own. One of the youngest to solo hunt, and we could trust her to do it during the day. I tell her this, but she just doesn¡¯t listen. Was it like that for you?¡±

    ¡°Pretty much.¡± Thomas shrugged. ¡°The circumstances were way different, but Guy could only see the things he thought he did and ignored the hundred or so other things that went wrong. Not sure if that¡¯s happening here but it¡¯s probably part of it.¡±

    ¡°What should we do?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think we have that answer,¡± Evalyn said sadly, cutting over Thomas. ¡°In one sense the best answer for broken confidence is to give them a chance to prove they can handle themselves.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t want Khiat killing people.¡±

    Thomas backed away as the lookout grew to his full height. Evalyn didn¡¯t, if only because that would put her over the edge of the tower. ¡°Monsters, not people. None of us would mind taking her along unless she doesn¡¯t want to.¡±

    ¡°She doesn¡¯t want to do much of anything.¡± The lookout took a deep breath and leaned against a wall. ¡°I am one of the only in the village old enough to see it founded. When you are in a community as small as this, you know everything about one another. The children have their parents, but they also have the village. Do you understand?¡± Evalyn nodded. ¡°I have seen Khiat grow from hatchling to hunter, and she has never been this withdrawn. Not even after the time she almost exposed herself to the sun.¡±

    ¡°Could it be level disparity?¡± Thomas offered carefully. Evalyn hadn¡¯t stopped glaring whenever he spoke, but this time he was sure he was being helpful. ¡°Her wisdom and charisma are underleveled.¡±

    ¡°I couldn¡¯t say. Khiat is the first I¡¯ve seen in a while with a class, present company excluded. I¡¯m not fully sure what you mean.¡±

    ¡°You think that could be the issue?¡± Evalyn¡¯s glare turned thoughtful. Perhaps she remembered that this was Thomas¡¯ area of expertise.

    ¡°Why not? We know what level disparity to dexterity did to Kob, and Guy can be a wreck with people when his charisma¡¯s low.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s gotten better.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, maybe.¡± Thomas waved a hand. ¡°Khiat¡¯s got level disparity to five of her attributes, including all her mental ones. Remember when you first got your class?¡± The lookout watched Evalyn for a reaction, following the conversation through her as a proxy. She winced.

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    ¡°Oh.¡±

    ¡°What is level disparity?¡± The lookout was forced to ask, not finding the understanding he¡¯d hoped for.

    Thomas gestured at Evalyn, who continued. ¡°It¡¯s what happens when your attributes are out of balance. The penalty to any lower than your level is more than you would think, especially if they¡¯re several levels below you. Most people who take up hunting don¡¯t go more than one degree into it because of the risk, and if you¡¯re unfamiliar with how that affects you¡­¡±

    ¡°Something like a major trauma can devastate you,¡± Thomas finished what Evalyn left hanging. ¡°I don¡¯t know if having her advance to get rid of it would help at this point. The damage¡¯s been done. Quala might know, or my church, but we¡¯re not in a position to ask either.¡±

    ¡°Could you help? You are a Cleric.¡±

    ¡°I can try. I¡¯ve been trying. But as for my class, it¡¯s generally a bad idea to use powers like that for stuff like this.¡± Thomas became more comfortable as the conversation continued along his specialty, and he almost forgot who he was talking to. ¡°Fixing mental stuff like fear mid-battle is one thing, but you can do more damage clearing something chronic out of someone¡¯s head that way unless you¡¯re careful. It¡¯s like setting the forest around you on fire to give your house more sun.¡±

    The metaphor wasn¡¯t apt for the lookout to understand, on many levels, but he still nodded. ¡°If it were that easy I suppose you would have done something already, now that I think on it. Forgive my foolishness.¡±

    ¡°S¡¯alright.¡±

    ¡°I think the best thing you can do is keep trying,¡± Evalyn said. ¡°Even if she wasn¡¯t our responsibility in Aughal, we¡¯d still want to help. If she can understand there are people that want to support her and believe in her, I think that will help mend the tears in her heart.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, basically that,¡± Thomas affirmed.

    ¡°Retreading our current path is not the answer I was looking for, but I thank you for it all the same.¡± The lookout turned to the tent protecting the entrance to Khiat¡¯s dwelling. ¡°I just hope she can recover from this.¡±

    ¡­

    The world was cold. The room itself was just chilly as the night¡¯s darkness replaced the sun, though Khiat barely noticed. Nothing had changed after she¡¯d been freed and taken back to her village. No one understood and she couldn¡¯t speak the turmoil into being or else give the fire consuming her more fuel.

    In the end, it wasn¡¯t her failure to act that had shaken Khiat but what it had taken her not to. When the first arrows had struck Daniel and the thieves had come down she¡¯d backed away, unable to control the instinctual fear that the ambush had caused. It had only gotten worse from there. Each of the attackers was so fragile. In panic, she¡¯d used her one power with actual intent, and now she couldn¡¯t get it to stop.

    She could have killed any of the thieves within an instant, she knew. As Khare had become more wounded that urge had grown inside her, a will she could call her own hideously merging with the alien impulses of her class. Khiat didn¡¯t want to be that, but she had to, but she didn¡¯t want to, but she had to. The balance of her mind had swayed, spurning her further and further towards action until Daniel had recovered and stepped in.

    Everything had turned out alright, just as Evalyn had said. That changed nothing. Rather, the attack had revealed what the future would look like for her. A constant battle against that part of her that called for blood, now fully awakened and never going away. Ever present and unyielding. She¡¯d almost given in the first time the pressure had been real.

    No. Better that it ended here before her hands were bloodied. The power that didn¡¯t hold back for her own parents had to die with her. It made sense to Khiat now why the city had killed the last one. Them being a dusker had nothing to do with it, Assassins were just evil. She wasn¡¯t, not yet, and she didn¡¯t want to be.

    Her father was in the room now, whatever comforting presence he might have had counterbalanced by the killer instincts. Duskers were naturally stronger than most races so he wasn¡¯t as fragile as the humans and birds that had been among the thieves. Without anything on her, it¡¯d have to be quick and decisive. Those sections of his carapace that weren¡¯t locked together glowed with a fell light in her mind. Not a visual effect like Daniel had used on the monster horde but a guiding light nonetheless. The area around his neck glowed the strongest.

    No! Khiat struggled to banish the thoughts and only succeeded in diminishing them. They never stopped, even if it was just in the corners of her mind, the lurking dark predator they wanted her to be. Everything Khiat did now was to deny them, and the best thing she could do was absolutely nothing. She¡¯d take them with her if nothing else.

    ¡°Has she been like this the whole time?¡± a new voice asked. Others had joined them while she was preoccupied. That was the sole saving grace, if she wasn¡¯t aware of someone then the impulses didn¡¯t come.

    ¡°No. But I don¡¯t know if this is worse or better than her wails.¡±

    ¡°I know, we could hear them sometimes. Hey!¡± A third complained as the second elbowed him. Evalyn and Thomas. They¡¯d tried to help too. Of the two, Thomas seemed more alert, and less susceptible to her power. She¡¯d have to come from behind and be careful not to make too much noise to make a clean kill. Evalyn would be easier, though not as easy as her father. That was probably because they were above her level. Hard, but not impossible. Khiat had only met one person to whom her power hadn¡¯t responded at all.

    ¡°Not here.¡±

    ¡°I know what I¡¯m doing,¡± Thomas replied scornfully, and in a slightly more serious tone asked Xtalo, ¡°Has she eaten at all?¡±

    ¡°Scraps, if that. The Khiat I know treasures meals above most other things.¡±

    ¡°Can I have a look?¡± Evalyn seemed ready to hit Thomas again for the lingering traces of levity in his tone, but Xtalo nodded before she did. His eyes met hers, despite his clear hesitancy to make eye contact. Locked up as she was, Khiat couldn¡¯t help but avert her eyes under a suddenly piercing gaze. ¡°She¡¯s still there,¡± Thomas reported, not moving. His voice grew softer. ¡°Sometimes when people see too much or have too much done to them they can just go somewhere no one can find them.¡± He shook his head. ¡°Khiat, are you alright?¡±

    She didn¡¯t respond, afraid that moving at all would tempt capitalizing on how close and vulnerable Thomas was in this moment. Her father spoke up instead. ¡°Since she has returned, she has barely spoken to anyone. When she is like this, not at all.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re not taking her tomorrow.¡± Thomas declared, far more authority in his voice than normal.

    ¡°What if she changes her mind before then?¡±

    ¡°Then that would be worse, Evalyn!¡± He finally turned away. Seconds would be all she¡¯d need. ¡°People don¡¯t get suddenly better from things like this unless something worse happens to them. As far as I can tell she hasn¡¯t improved since the trip here. It¡¯s like if you expected Sigron to suddenly regrow his arm on his own and join us the night before that dragon.¡±

    Evalyn was taken aback. ¡°It¡¯s that bad?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. I think there¡¯s more going on than we know. Uhm, Xtalo?¡± Thomas struggled with the name. ¡°We should talk somewhere private.¡±

    Parts of Xtalo¡¯s body not already locked together clenched. ¡°I don¡¯t want to leave my daughter alone.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think she should hear what I want to talk about. It¡¯s important, and it won¡¯t take too long.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll stay,¡± Evalyn offered, the suggestion meeting with Xtalo¡¯s approval. As they were leaving, she briefly ran out to catch him in the common room of Khiat¡¯s house. The voices were hard not to hear. ¡°I¡¯m sorry for speaking up. I thought, well, you¡¯re not normally what I¡¯d call a serious person.¡±

    She couldn¡¯t see the two, but there was a pause before Thomas spoke. ¡°Yeah. Look, now¡¯s not the time.¡±

    ¡°Honestly, I like this side of you better.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not fair! I¡¯m only like this on the job.¡± A little bit of the normal Thomas bled in as he undoubtedly pouted. ¡°People like my easygoing swagger.¡±

    ¡°People who don¡¯t spend more than a hour around you, maybe.¡± Evalyn sighed. ¡°Now I¡¯m the one getting in the way. Go, I¡¯ll keep her safe.¡±

    ¡°Alright, but be careful.¡±

    ¡°So now you¡¯re the one afraid of Assassins?¡±

    ¡°I never wasn¡¯t,¡± Thomas grunted. ¡°Look, my truth-telling thing can get better at level 2. It¡¯s not mind reading and the basic stuff still doesn¡¯t work on you, but it all works on Khiat. Don¡¯t take your eye off her Evalyn. I¡¯m serious.¡± Khiat was just able to make out what he whispered next to Evalyn. ¡°She might not be the only thing in there.¡±

    ¡­

    The dusker village had fully woken as Thomas and Xtalo walked out of the underground dwelling. Without the privacy of his home to use, they decided to travel over the nearest dune to at least get out of the sight of everyone.

    ¡°What do we need to discuss?¡± Xtalo didn¡¯t look directly at Thomas but at the half-filled moon, the gentler of the celestial bodies to his race. ¡°Why must these words be for me alone?¡±

    ¡°I know we¡¯ve told you before that we shouldn¡¯t use powers to resolve this. I¡¯m starting to think it¡¯d be worth it.¡± Thomas spoke as he would to someone whose best path forward would be to abandon attempts at salvaging a dead limb. It wouldn¡¯t be the first time.

    ¡°You said that was dangerous.¡±

    Thomas¡¯ gaze didn¡¯t waver from the dusker, keeping his squeamishness in check through an unearthed bedrock of professionalism. ¡°There are risks, but she¡¯s bad, sir. Mental stuff can be tricky. I don¡¯t think there¡¯s any curse here, but it¡¯s, well.¡± He scratched his head. ¡°If someone gets scared of something and that sticks with them, you can generally work with them and help overcome that fear. That¡¯s like a cut, and cuts can get infected if not looked after.¡±

    ¡°Is that what happened?¡± Xtalo held Thomas in full attention now, fully grasping the severity the Cleric was trying to impart.

    ¡°It¡¯s more like the infection¡¯s hit bone and spread at the same time.¡± He rubbed the symbol of the Hand on his Focus, silently praying for strength. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. We might be in the territory where taking drastic measures is better than waiting for things to get better by themselves.¡± He sighed. ¡°I can¡¯t do that, but there¡¯s probably someone in the city who could.¡±

    ¡°How do you know it has come to this?¡± Xtalo didn¡¯t shout. Rather, his voice was low with the thin desperate hope that Thomas was wrong.

    ¡°I got a good look at her, going deeper than just the physical. There¡¯s something in there with her. I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s her class or because of what happened in the city, but there¡¯s this presence in her now. The kind I wouldn¡¯t want to be alone with. I think Khiat¡¯s main problem is that she¡¯s fighting that part of herself constantly, and I¡¯m worried about what happens when she loses. The trauma might all be secondary to that.¡±

    ¡°You said there were no curses involved!¡±

    ¡°A power¡¯s not a curse, but that just means it can¡¯t be removed,¡± Thomas clarified sadly. ¡°I don¡¯t know if this is possible, but I¡¯ve heard of people who can change memories. If we go back far enough to before she got her class, that wouldn¡¯t get rid of it, but maybe if she can¡¯t remember it¡¯ll be just as good.¡±

    ¡°That would also mean she would lose her class.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, it would,¡± Thomas said simply.

    Xtalo recoiled. ¡°No! Khiat is special! Even if it is not what we expected, what we wanted, this was what the Octyrrum gave her! You are a Cleric, how could you say her gift is what is causing her turmoil?¡±

    ¡°Because it is.¡± Thomas looked to the side and grimaced. ¡°If I¡¯m wrong or not, it doesn¡¯t matter. My answer¡¯s your best bet. She¡¯s not getting better, and it looks like she¡¯ll die of starvation before anything else unless this takes a turn for the very worse. If there is another way you¡¯ll need someone better than me to find it. Either way, I¡¯ll need to get reinforcements.¡±

    ¡°Khiat can¡¯t survive another journey to the city the way she is, or wait for someone to return from there.¡±

    Thomas touched his Focus again. ¡°No, she can¡¯t, but I can try to contact my church. The method¡¯s dodgy and can¡¯t cross regions, but it¡¯s more than nothing.¡±

    Xtalo stood fully and paced, dealing with an impossible decision. He weighed the years he¡¯d seen Khiat grow and what the future could hold against grim reality. ¡°If there¡¯s a chance one more powerful has a better way, I must take it.¡±

    ¡°Ok, but just to be clear, if I do this there¡¯s no certainty someone will come. And.¡± Thomas took a breath. ¡°They might agree with me. Or say they¡¯ll have to do something worse to help her.¡±

    ¡°Is there any better way?¡±

    Thomas bowed his head. ¡°No. This is my opinion as a healer.¡±

    ¡°Then do it,¡± Xtalo said firmly, before walking away without another word.

    Letting out the breath he¡¯d been holding, Thomas fell backward, lying in the cooling sands. ¡°I¡¯m guessing you don¡¯t have any better ideas?¡± There was no response. He would have been equal parts awed and terrified if there was. ¡°I haven¡¯t done this in, Crest. When have I done this? Oooh,¡± he groaned. ¡°Quala¡¯s the one that managed this, right. I just helped. But I¡¯m where she was back then. Why does it seem like she had an easier time of it?¡±

    Thomas unhooked the symbol at his waist and held it to his chest with both hands. ¡°Sorry for lying, but I figured it¡¯d be better not to recommend the real way we might have fixed this. If Resurrection would¡¯ve even worked. That¡¯s not considering that Fate bringing it up. Jeez. What am I supposed to do with that? I¡¯ve only got a few weeks before she¡¯ll just tell them.¡± He lifted his head a few times, letting it fall unresisting back to the sand. ¡°Getting off track, aren¡¯t I? Just send someone. Please? Someone who can actually help. Crest,¡± he scoffed. ¡°I feel like an idiot. I try getting serious with someone for the first time and it goes nowhere. My only real answers for a patient I care about¡¯s a grave or losing their class. Why can¡¯t I stop making a mess of things?¡± The world had no answers for Thomas, so he continued. ¡°Hand, if you can hear me, then please send someone who can do anything other than just killing the poor girl.¡±

    There was no flow of mana or other sign that a power had been used. There never was with prayer. Church lore had spoken of miracles delivered by the gods before upon such prompting, but only rarely. Everyone had their pet theory about when and why the gods intervened, personally or by Proxy. Thomas merely hoped this was the right kind of time. Hope was all he had, and he kept it burning within himself despite there being no response or other sign. He lay there, at peace with the world if only for a moment, knowing that at least in this he¡¯d done the right thing.

    Somewhere in Aughal, the call was answered.

 Chapter 114: Back in the Saddle

    ¡°No,¡± Hunter said firmly, barely needing Daniel to ask to know what he wanted.

    ¡°Come on!¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°What, you aren¡¯t strong enough?¡± Hunter growled and Daniel backed off. ¡°Just wait, you¡¯re going to get some kind of battle mount power and then you won¡¯t have any excuse.¡±

    ¡°Hey, you two!¡± Evalyn called out ahead of them. ¡°Let¡¯s get moving.¡± It was just after noon, the day thus far taken up by last minute preparations. The time had come for Daniel and the others to start hunting again, doing so with an intent that hadn¡¯t been there since Roost¡¯s Peak. The thought of it made Daniel both nervous and a little afraid. His last fight still haunted him, though maybe taking out those feelings on monsters would help.

    A second scouting pulse had revealed a pack of shank stompers that only numbered at about twenty, ideal in that there were only three level two variants among them. The lesser monsters posed minimal threat to the hunters, the disparity meaning their bodies would better resist the attacks. Evalyn herself currently had level disparity to endurance and would be in trouble if overwhelmed, but even she had some new tricks that would let her handle reasonable numbers.

    Weaker enemies were an ideal opponent to test out recently unlocked powers on. The chance to gain advancement potential from them was low to the point they may not get anything, but Daniel had a secondary goal that would work regardless of the creature¡¯s level. His tertiary goal, convincing Hunter to serve as a battle mount, had objectively failed before they¡¯d set out. Next time.

    ¡°Is it alright that we¡¯re heading out without a healer?¡± he asked as both he and Hunter rejoined the group heading in a generally northern direction.

    Evalyn raised an eyebrow. ¡°More than half of us have Regeneration. Khare and I will have to be careful, but in the worst case one of you just needs to run for Thomas.¡±

    ¡°It just seems dangerous.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re fighting monsters,¡± she reminded him.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Daniel admitted. ¡°I guess I¡¯m more worried about how these will work out.¡± He lifted an arm, bringing a golden bracer fully into the light. Unlike the simple armor he¡¯d made for the dragon fight, these fit over his entire forearm with a sloped box shape on top. They were less massive compared to the ones he¡¯d originally seen in Murdon¡¯s house and didn¡¯t cover his hands, but were made with the same general intent.

    Evalyn eyed the weapons dubiously. ¡°You¡¯re telling me Khare doesn¡¯t have a bow or anything in that space? Those are more a weapon for a Knight than for an archer.¡±

    ¡°These are enchanted,¡± Daniel said like it wasn¡¯t obvious. ¡°And I don¡¯t have practice with the bow. Sure, I have an autoaim power, but it¡¯d take just as long to reload with me fumbling around with arrows.¡±

    ¡°They don¡¯t have bows on your world?¡± she asked, piquing the interest of the others. For what seemed the first time, Daniel was traveling solely in the company of those aware of his origins. Tak had been brought into the fold with an honestly not too extreme reaction, all things considered. That being said, the rest of the group¡¯s curiosity and his penchant for explaining finally had an outlet. Unless Hunter noticed a monster that had evaded Attune to Nature, there wasn¡¯t much to do but talk as they made their way to their prey.

    ¡°Kinda? Most of them are made from fiberglass which is made with¡­¡± Huh. I can¡¯t remember. ¡°Well, we don¡¯t have magic, Smiths or magical materials, so it gets a lot more technical than-¡±

    ¡°So is it complicated,¡± Evalyn spoke over him. ¡°Or you just don¡¯t know?¡±

    Daniel frowned. ¡°There¡¯s a whole career out of knowing that stuff, but I didn¡¯t end up going down that way. I know a couple of things, but even if I knew everything, this place doesn¡¯t have the infrastructure or scientific understanding to back that up.¡± His expression turned thoughtful. ¡°Is that why I got the Artificer class instead of Craftsman or Builder?¡±

    ¡°So, no bows?¡± Tak asked, only having followed part of the conversation.

    ¡°Honestly, there¡¯s a lot to explain. Like, we don¡¯t have monsters, our world isn¡¯t flat, and we have oceans.¡±

    ¡°We have oceans!¡± Tak exclaimed. ¡°Many!¡±

    ¡°You, uh, you do?¡±

    ¡°Oceans that stretch as far as the entire Thormundz ridge,¡± Evalyn confirmed. ¡°It¡¯s said the gods created new races just to settle the regions that encompassed them back when the Grafting was ongoing.¡± She left a small pause in there in case Khare wanted to comment, but they didn¡¯t. Hunter had heard much of this before and also remained silent. ¡°So, no magic, no classes, no monsters. It sounds boring if I¡¯m honest.¡±

    Daniel felt the smallest urge to defend his home. Sure, it didn¡¯t have magic, but it wasn¡¯t worthless either. ¡°It¡¯s just different. Most people where I come from have these,¡± he held up his phone. ¡°If whatever happened that brought me here doesn¡¯t change everything about them, you can use them to take pictures instantly, learn about the world, or contact anyone, anywhere, and that¡¯s just one of the things we made.¡±

    ¡°But not bows.¡± Tak was still stuck on that point.

    ¡°We have bows! And crossbows. And guns but I don¡¯t know if I can make those, or if I want to, so there¡¯s no point. Let¡¯s just talk about something other than weapons.¡±

    ¡°Gestalt?¡± Like a delayed reaction, Khare did cut in then. They¡¯d heard the least of Daniel¡¯s world and didn¡¯t know what he¡¯d already told the rest.

    ¡°Just humans.¡± Daniel shook his head.

    ¡°Like our world before the Grafting,¡± Evalyn pointed out. ¡°Could it be possible you¡¯ve traveled in time?¡±

    ¡°Uh, that¡¯s possible?¡± Evalyn and Hunter stared at him. ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°You have time magic.¡±

    ¡°Bad time magic,¡± Hunter added.

    ¡°You¡¯re affected by it too?¡± Tak waved a hand and Evalyn raised an eyebrow. ¡°Khare?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°That would be something. Why, though?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure, but I think it has to do with the bond. I never saw the original description and I can¡¯t find it in my phone. Hunter just started talking to me. That was right before I formally met you.¡±

    ¡°That explains a few things.¡± Evalyn slid down a dune, getting ahead of the others for a few moments. At the bottom, she continued. ¡°Could you have been caught up in something powerful enough to send you so far into the future that we wouldn¡¯t remember your time?¡±

    ¡°I doubt it. From what I know your world is flat. It could be that you¡¯re wrong, but either way, my world doesn¡¯t have magic.¡±

    ¡°And why can¡¯t you be wrong about the shape of your world?¡± Evalyn challenged in a way that made Daniel cringe slightly.

    ¡°We¡¯ve seen our planet from space. From, uh, so high up that it, look, it¡¯s a lot to explain.¡±

    Evalyn gestured at the endless expanse, broken up only to Daniel by the auras on the horizon. ¡°We have time, and I always like a good story.¡±

    ¡­

    The conversation that ended up taking two whole hours was, for the most part, both enlightening and confusing. Scientific standards of the world Daniel was currently in weren¡¯t well developed or, at least not within the greater population. Daniel¡¯s own understanding of topics such as gravity or satellites was limited enough that it buckled the fourth time Tak asked ¡®How?¡¯ consecutively, and things went downhill from there.

    What was left unresolved was Evalyn¡¯s theory about Daniel being from a time so far in the past that his world and theirs were the same. It heavily relied on magic being able to do anything, even appear or be created suddenly. It still sat wrong with him, if only because it reminded him of his earliest theory of being caught in some kind of twisted reality show. It just didn¡¯t feel right.

    The most unfortunate event to occur though was the movement of their targets. The group had hoped the monsters would migrate towards them, but the opposite had occurred. ¡°They¡¯re heading away,¡± Hunter commented, interrupting an explanation of atoms that had gone far worse than it had with Lograve.

    ¡°Flee?¡±

    ¡°Too far,¡± Hunter replied to Khare, both of them removed from the three-sided confusion. ¡°Even I cannot sense them now.¡±

    ¡°Is there anything else we can go after?¡± Evalyn asked. ¡°I don¡¯t want to go too far from the village. They don¡¯t have a way to contact us if they get in trouble.¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡± Both Daniel and Hunter looked around. Strangely, though Tak was included in the Moment of Clarity effect, he couldn¡¯t see the auras of Identify Creature. That might have been due to him not sharing the power, except Hunter had seen the auras before Daniel had figured out that aspect of their bond. ¡°That level 3¡¯s still keeping its distance at least. We shouldn¡¯t head further west.¡±

    ¡°Scorpions,¡± Hunter growled, recognizing a small group of nearby enemies. ¡°Not good.¡±

    ¡°Oh, those things? Very bad.¡± Tak winced, his memory of that last encounter somewhat hazy. ¡°I think we keep going.¡±

    ¡°Well, if there¡¯s nothing easy with a specific bounty, I guess it¡¯s still worth it. You¡¯re sure about that other goal though?¡± Evalyn asked. ¡°Your enchanting, I mean?¡±

    ¡°Got us through the dragon didn¡¯t it? I¡¯m hoping my stealth power can get me close enough to scan them alive. Worst case if they spot me, I¡¯ll wear the wings and fly away.¡± Daniel looked wistful for a moment, imagining it. ¡°Just think of what kinds of stuff I can make if we keep this up.¡±

    ¡°Sword arms? You didn¡¯t fight those things up close that last time, but they could cut an arm off easily.¡±

    ¡°Or a leg.¡± Tak looked worriedly down.

    ¡°Some kind of blade attached to a gauntlet could be neat. Like the melee version of these.¡± Daniel lifted his bracers again. ¡°The only thing I got from them last time was a way to make things from monster bones, so it would make sense.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know if we should put those bone blades in Khare though.¡± Khare¡¯s vines shivered as Evalyn planted the thought of the almost scythe-like blades passing through them. The gestalt had bladed weapons in him of course, but only those that could reasonably navigate the vines without injuring them. The curve of the shank stomper¡¯s arms would make it more difficult for Khare to stash them without injury.

    ¡°I need to get a bag of holding,¡± Daniel said thoughtfully. ¡°Not that I¡¯d make one of those from bone.¡±

    ¡°What you need to do is learn how to enchant instruments,¡± Evalyn complained. ¡°I know it¡¯s possible.¡±

    ¡°If you can find one, I can!¡±

    ¡°If I can find one, what do I need you for?¡± She fired back challengingly.

    ¡°M, murder cat radar?¡± Daniel answered weakly.

    Evalyn gave Hunter a playful, appraising look. ¡°I suppose he¡¯s cute enough to keep you around.¡± Hunter growled, and she laughed before abruptly cutting off as Evalyn became aware of who and what she was teasing. ¡°Gods, I have gotten used to this haven¡¯t I?¡±

    Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.

    ¡­

    As it turned out, the shank stomper pack had moved to intercept a small group of the lumbering sesels that, to this desert, might have been the equivalent of deer. They were somewhat plentiful, a target of both mortals and predators alike, and wholly unequipped to face scythe arms.

    While the monsters hadn¡¯t slaughtered the entire pack, they¡¯d cut down enough to feast on, rest, and then wake to feast again. The shank stompers were by no means the apex of the desert but drew strength from their communal nature. Even if something significantly more powerful ambushed them, there was every chance at least a few would get away. Moreso, several had hit the threshold necessary to spawn others of their kind and needed the time to undergo that process.

    The two level 0 Young Shank Stompers that joined the pack were defenseless on their own. It was a stark contrast to what Daniel had seen in the ringcat that would become Hunter which could readily maul something if given the chance. Moreover, the auras belonging to them were present on the lower abdomen of the level two variants present in the pack, suggesting the connection to kangaroos could be more than skin deep.

    I still feel guilty about this. Daniel did not speak but transmitted his thoughts to Hunter, who was with the others fifty meters away.

    Evalyn says, ¡®They are monsters, get over it.¡¯

    Yeah but, don¡¯t you feel bad? These are like kids, aren¡¯t they? Even as he asked he knew he was directing his concerns at the wrong person.

    They are prey. The forthrightness with which Hunter thought that made Daniel pause.

    Sure, but you wouldn¡¯t hurt a human child, would you?

    If it attacked, Hunter thought with the mental equivalent of a shrug.

    No! I mean, if they¡¯re a threat maybe, but don¡¯t kill them!

    You didn¡¯t say kill, you said hurt, Hunter replied defensively.

    That¡¯s fair. Alright, I¡¯m getting close. If this works I¡¯ll let you know and the rest can follow. If it doesn¡¯t, well, you¡¯ll know. Daniel, moving slowly up a dune, was doing everything he could to control his trembling heart. On the other side of the dune were the prey they¡¯d come to hunt. Daniel¡¯s Silent Movement feature had allowed a relatively easy approach to the unaware monsters who were not wise enough to trust anything but their senses. What he was attempting would be more difficult against enemies like ringcats which had Keen Sense empowering them, but these creatures just had the bone blades.

    When he¡¯d first dislodged a clump of sand Daniel had almost rocketed into the air, only to find that the sound from the flowing sand was as muffled as his movement. Now, he was just behind the rise. The function of his Encyclopedia that allowed for analysis of monsters worked like a camera in that he needed a direct and clear line of sight. Moreso, it had a maximum range of about 50 meters. It could scan multiple targets at once, and without alerting the monsters to his presence. At least, he hoped it didn¡¯t. This would be the first time he¡¯d used it on living enemies

    Daniel carefully raised his phone above the rise with Telekinetic Reach, keeping his body below it and using the screen to guide his aim. Fortunately, the predominantly golden color of the Focus blended well enough into the background of dunes, and the majority of the monsters were focused on their meal. To his relief, they were all in range.

    <hr>

    You have scanned multiple Monsters, listed below. You have met the requirements to unlock multiple Encyclopedia entries, listed below.

    Scanned Targets:

    ? Alpha Shank Stomper, Living (Uninjured) - 3

    ? Shank Stomper, Living (Uninjured) - 18

    ? Young Shank Stomper, Living (Uninjured) - 2

    Encyclopedia Entries:

    ? Formulae: Bone Claws

    ? Monster: Shank Stomper, Expansive

    <hr>

    Hmm. Less than half as much as I hoped. Daniel¡¯s initial monster scan had been a true haul, the result of scanning a pile of dead electric bats. Whereas the hundreds of corpses had unlocked six lore entries and formulae combined, a couple of dozen living shank stompers had only added two. In addition, Daniel hadn¡¯t gotten any advancement potential since that first big burst. There¡¯s got to be a trick to it. Oh well. Hey, Hunter, we¡¯re good. He gave a thumbs up to emphasize.

    It was at that point that one of the monsters, climbing the rise to investigate the flash of white it¡¯d seen from the phone¡¯s lattice pattern, shrieked.

    It took Daniel a few seconds to react as he¡¯d been just as unaware of the monster¡¯s approach as it had his position, having been in the middle of looking up the new formulae. Instead of taking his picture, the monster used its moment of surprise to bring both of its arms down in an attempt to cut a good portion of Daniel¡¯s torso off. If he had been more alert Daniel could have reacted with Dodge Roll, but instead, he could only try to amble away. His unenchanted leather armor provided little resistance against the blades that could have been used to harvest a field. His skin was tougher, holding up well against the level 1 monster¡¯s attacks.

    Even the arrows fired by that Rogue would have had trouble if they hadn¡¯t benefited from Sneak Attack. The extra damage had converted into improved piercing as well as disruption to the afflicted flesh. With no such advantage, the monster¡¯s blades could only cut so deep. The wounds were still immensely painful, made worse by Daniel activating his wings to get away. The sudden ascension dragged the blades across Daniel¡¯s back to lengthen the injuries. The golden wings finally stopped the scythes before they fully flayed him, the durability of the enchanted item proving completely resistant to their cutting power.

    By the time Daniel recovered from the shock and stopped screaming, he was a hundred meters in the air and gently gliding. The wounds bled freely but at a slower rate, his Regeneration already repairing the damage. Come morning he wouldn¡¯t even have scars, whereas a normal human could have died from the weakened attack alone. I¡¯m alright, I¡¯m alright! he hurriedly reassured, only to realize the others were already charging in. Hunter and Tak led the vanguard, charging side by side in what had become typical for them during the various hunts they did alone. Evalyn and Khare followed, but not recklessly.

    Could tell, Hunter thought, his words clipped as his mind went into a deeper, predatory state.

    Of course I was screaming, I could have been dying! It still hurts like hell.

    Dying doesn¡¯t scream so loud, Hunter answered and then pushed Daniel out of his mind. Daniel felt only slightly irked before getting his head in the game. Just because he was currently out of range of all his weapons, didn¡¯t mean he wasn¡¯t in the fight. It was time for his combo attack.

    Coordinating how they would use the attack had been difficult since both Daniel and Khare could initiate the ability. Without the ability to fully speak to each other, what they tagged and when they used Called Shot was difficult to communicate. Both Khare and Daniel had attacks that could greatly benefit from even the slightest boost. Khare¡¯s Coordinated Strike should allow for Called Shot to empower each of the strikes made during the flurry of blows, while Daniel had a setup that allowed for a piece of ammunition to explode with damage relative to the punch of the initial shot.

    Daniel being too far in the air to do anything else made the decisions easier at the start. Khare marked one of the level 2 targets and Daniel invested some of his mana to enlarge the red wedge, making it flash. If he made an attack or used a combat ability before Khare did it would spoil the effect and waste the mana, but Daniel didn¡¯t have anything else to do but fall until he was in range of his weapons.

    The offset of power between a mortal and a monster was not just in level. By and large, monsters had limited power sets and could be considered weaker than the average hunter. While Daniel¡¯s team was on the lower end of level 2, they had experience both in fighting together and against greater threats. Tak and Hunter alone could take the pack, albeit at more risk than either would be willing to take.

    An excellent example was how quickly Khare took down the targeted monster. They were still at long range and couldn¡¯t use throwing knives, instead relying on the dual-wielded longbows to deliver stronger hits. Khare not only benefited from Called Shot but Evalyn¡¯s Valor Song which gave a minor yet comprehensive combat buff. The first arrow took the monster in the chest, and the second, a headshot, finished the creature.

    At the same time, Tak and Hunter used their combination attack Double Cut to slash a bloody X through the charging monsters. They dealt slashing cuts to any monster they brushed past and demolished whatever was standing where they intersected. While this left them in the center of the pack, both were mobile enough to reposition without getting swarmed. The few injuries they took in the process began healing immediately.

    Daniel had been diving since he''d activated Called Shot and leveled out at ten meters above the ground, the wings on his back folding back out as he reengaged the effect. He took one moment to bask in how awesome this was before he raised one of his armed and hit the firing mechanism of the arm bow. The recoil of the powerful spring within the gauntlet might have spoiled his aim if not for Snap Shot.

    The smaller bolt that fired carried less force than what his stolen crossbow could put out, but the combination of Scatter Shot and the enchantment on the bolt was enough to messily destroy the level 1 enemy from the neck up. Damn. Good thing I don¡¯t need them intact. He fired with his off hand next, injuring one of the alphas, before pulling back on the rods jutting out from the top. It was hard due to how tense the spring inside needed to be to be reloaded, but his strength was up to the task.

    By the time he¡¯d glided down to the ground, he¡¯d fired three more times with the last one finishing off the pack. Despite the crippling blow the shank stompers had struck initially, they were too predictable. Only once had Evalyn been threatened, which allowed her to demonstrate that she was more than a magically enhanced pretty face.

    Evalyn had recently awakened the Songbolt ability with one of her dexterity advancements. While using the attack interrupted the effects of her active song, it allowed her to fire an energy projectile of a strength proportional to the mana spent while playing it. The minimal baseline damage meant she couldn¡¯t spam the attack but had to invest time in each one. With a couple of minutes of song behind the attack, it had blown a hole more appropriate for a cannonball into a monster.

    ¡°Is there a cap on how hard that can hit?¡± Daniel asked shortly after landing. While moving his shoulders hurt, the bleeding had stopped.

    Evalyn glanced at her instrument before responding. ¡°No, I don¡¯t think so. After a few minutes, the buildup becomes slow. Why?¡± She gestured to the stricken monster. ¡°You want more than that?¡±

    ¡°Blowing it up entirely would be cool.¡± Daniel shrugged and then winced. ¡°I need better armor.¡±

    ¡°Hunter¡¯s the only one here with real armor, and you don¡¯t see us complaining. Maybe,¡± she drew out the word, ¡°You shouldn¡¯t wander so close to ravenous beasts and turn your back on them.¡±

    ¡°That was not smart,¡± Tak agreed, his voice altered as the power that gave him the paws and jaws of a ringcat was still active. It was huskier, though it also wasn¡¯t the demonic screeching of the other form the group was still afraid he¡¯d randomly take. That he had fought in another battle without going berserk was a good sign. ¡°But a good hunt! Should we harvest the kills?¡±

    ¡°Anything nearby?¡± Evalyn asked Hunter, who shook his head. The blood surrounding the ringcat¡¯s mouth, as well as the bits of flesh stuck to the prolonged canines, did what the ringcat had fervently failed to do earlier in offsetting the charm power. No one could look at him as anything other than a killing machine. ¡°Good. Everyone thank Khare again for agreeing to take this stuff. I couldn¡¯t stand carrying a bunch of random monster bits.¡±

    ¡°What about the arm blades? I¡¯d like to take at least a few back and Khare can¡¯t take them.¡±

    ¡°You want me to carry them?¡± Evalyn asked incredulously.

    ¡°Just one! They look, and feel, heavy. I don¡¯t think the formulae I got today is going to be too useful, but I could try making some of the special arrows for Khiat from them.¡±

    Evalyn stopped the protest that was midway through her throat. ¡°Well, if it¡¯s just one that¡¯s fine.¡±

    ¡°Good! I will go harvest,¡± Tak said, pulling out a small knife. Evalyn called out to stop him.

    ¡°Tak, that might be easier if you smooth over your feathers first.¡±

    ¡°Oh!¡± Tak brushed at the feathers on his arms which, up until that point, had been standing stiff as a result of one of his new powers: Sharpfeather. He could make the feathers of his body sharp. It wasn¡¯t that complicated. They weren¡¯t the equivalent of level 2 weapons and couldn¡¯t be fired like Daniel¡¯s ability, being a more melee-focused power. That hadn¡¯t stopped them from shredding monsters that foolishly made contact with him. ¡°Thank you!¡±

    Tak went to make use of another new feature, Monster Scavenger, while Hunter feasted on the remains. He no longer needed to for Growth but he still preferred fresh kills for meals. ¡°Tak needs to fix his intelligence,¡± Evalyn said to Daniel.

    ¡°He¡¯s trying. Advancing at half the normal rate must suck. Doesn¡¯t that put him at a disadvantage?¡±

    ¡°His strength improves twice as fast. I¡¯d call that fair.¡±

    ¡°I guess.¡± Daniel pointedly didn¡¯t shrug this time.

    Evalyn noticed anyway and tsk¡¯d. ¡°That monster shouldn¡¯t have been able to sneak up on you.¡±

    Daniel looked away. ¡°Yeah, you¡¯re right. First those thieves and now this.¡±

    ¡°You should be more alert for someone with level 2 wisdom. Maybe you should be training more than your seventh sense?¡±

    ¡°I thought what I was doing with Hunter would help.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s taking a flood and diverting it. He¡¯s too strong for you. What you need to do is learn to watch for ripples in a pond.¡±

    ¡°Are water metaphors appropriate for a desert environment?¡± Evalyn frowned at him, accidentally saw what Tak was doing to one of the monsters¡¯ arms, and grimaced. ¡°Oh, gods, Tak, do you have to hack at it like that?¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡± Tak answered, looking up from the thick cords of tendon attaching one of the bone blades to the body of an alpha. ¡°The muscle is very, oh, thank you!¡± A golden dagger had sailed into the body courtesy of Khare, who was retrieving the very same weapons they¡¯d thrown when the monsters had gotten closer. With a level 2 implement, Tak¡¯s severing of the arm was drastically quickened.

    ¡°Do you think I should suggest using that bone blade to cut off the others?¡± Daniel asked, only to receive his answer in the form of a worried look. ¡°Yeah, I guess not. I don¡¯t think he¡¯d hurt himself, Tak¡¯s good at cutting up monsters, but the material might take damage.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t see why you¡¯re so interested. It¡¯s not a magic rock or anything, just bone. Isn¡¯t that harder to work with?¡±

    ¡°Level 2 bone,¡± Daniel said with raised fingers, then scratched his head. ¡°I think that¡¯s how it works, and though it¡¯ll take an affix slot to use it sounds like it won¡¯t give me any other penalty. I¡¯ll have to go back to the village and try enchanting to know for sure. Hopefully that won¡¯t take¡­¡±

    The look on his face was easily read by Evalyn. ¡°Monster?¡±

    ¡°Level 4, coming towards us. Khare, level 4!¡± A massive aura had lit up in the distance. It had only been spotted by Hunter¡¯s passive perception, meaning it was far closer than they¡¯d like. The sheer terror of the moment was diluted as surprise and confusion mixed in with what Hunter mentally reported. ¡°Gadriel?¡±

 Chapter 115: Greater Skink - (4)

    Evalyn reacted to the shift in the monster first. Her power set rewarded keeping track of the flow of battle and adjusting songs accordingly. The Bard preferred not to use songs relating to negative emotions, which ruled out those that could affect the enemy. So far, the powers she¡¯d awakened had honored that decision. That meant she focused more on her allies.

    Here, she felt a change was needed. While Valor Song¡¯s general benefits made it an all-purpose buff, there is something to be said about it being a master of none. Another might have chosen to switch to Lightfoot Song in an attempt to hasten a retreat, but the Bard was keen enough to realize they¡¯d be overrun quickly by the giant monster bearing down on them.

    It was truly enormous, an eight-legged lizard tall and long enough to step from one dune to another without needing to step in a valley. The Hero was a flicking reflection as he sped across the monster, moving far faster than anyone at level 3 ought to.

    ¡°Daniel?¡± she asked, as the group spread out.

    The Artificer pulled out his Focus, his thumbs moving almost as quickly across the surface as Gadriel. ¡°It¡¯s a greater skink, level 4. ¡®Greater¡¯ isn¡¯t a variant, it¡¯s part of its name. My Encyclopedia doesn¡¯t say anything on whether it has any abilities, just that it¡¯s big.¡±

    ¡°Very big!¡± Tak shouted, his voice sharpening into a shrill note. More from surprise than fear, though the latter was not entirely absent. ¡°Do we run?¡±

    ¡°Too fast!¡± Evalyn shouted, Daniel nodding in confirmation. They only had another minute before the massive monster would be on them, and it had been on the horizon. ¡°How is Gadriel still alive?¡±

    ¡°That kind of looks like the power Heldren used against him in the duel, Momentous Strikes. It¡¯s got a combo meter and as long as he sustains it, he moves faster. ¡± She saw his eyes widen suddenly. ¡°He¡¯s moving when I slow time! Very slowly, but I can make it out.¡± The exclamation was followed by a soft snarl from Hunter.

    ¡°He must have gotten lucky with his awakening. Plans?¡±

    ¡°It smells bloody. Hurting for a while,¡± Hunter commented after readjusting to normal time flow. ¡°Gadriel has been hunting it for long. Stall, evade, but do not run.¡±

    Evalyn, keener to the emotions of the team thanks to a newly awakened power, sensed Daniel¡¯s hesitation and stopped him from using his mana expensive time power again. ¡°Save your mana. Khare and I should back off, the rest of you can dodge and/or hope to survive an injury. Are you ok with being distractions?¡±

    The ground was beginning to tremble. Mutual concern spread from the three, as well as from Khare, but there was no time for more words. Evalyn took off running, firing a Songbolt over her shoulder as she switched to Ironhand Ballad. Gadriel was their best option for actually killing this thing, and the new song would help the graceful slashes he was cutting into the monster.

    With both his speed and the floating nature of the golden wings he wore, he was practically flying around the greater skink. It must not have had anything that could hit him in that state despite being at a higher level. Its death was inevitable, she just hoped it would die before any of her friends did.

    ¡­

    Daniel was running as well, perpendicular to the monster¡¯s charge instead of directly away. Tak remained still in the path of the greater skink, waving a red cape in every sense but in reality, while Hunter ran in the opposite direction from him.

    To the giant eyes of the skink he seemed a prey far weaker than itself frozen in fear. It planned on just trampling the feathered thing and moving on to the next. The blood loss and lines of pain across its body didn¡¯t matter when there were hated mortals to kill, and the one it had tried and failed to even touch and whipped it into a frenzy. But just before it reached the mortal, something happened.

    Tak Jumped towards the monster, directed away from its mouth and aimed over one of the front shoulders. The greater skink swerved with lightning speed, making a full turn in a space comparable to a large intersection. The wraith that haunted it was given every opportunity during this time, but that didn¡¯t matter anymore. It reached out with its foremost claws, grasping into the air to deliver death. It missed, the weakness from its many injuries severely limiting what it could do, even with its attributes.

    From its left, Daniel raised a hand and fired his reloaded arm bow while running, Khare obligingly using their mana to activate Called Shot. He knew the enchanted bolt was strong, enough to destroy the chest of a normal person if he ever got jumped by thieves again, but against the greater skink it was like shooting a tank with a handgun.

    Instead of going for him, the skink retargeted Hunter. Both Evalyn and Khare had retreated to a safe enough distance while keeping in range of their respective powers. They were ignored simply because the skink saw no difference in the prey and just wanted to kill them as quickly as possible. It was smart enough to figure out what the mortals were doing, but not immediately.

    Hunter dodged in much the same way, landing safely and reforming the third point of the triangle he, Daniel, and Tak were attempting to maintain. The skink came for Daniel then, now with a bit of caution. The wild pace it had maintained for hours had carried it too far to effectively track and strike the previous two. It adjusted by approaching deliberately, the pace still spurred to some degree by the life leaking out of it. The exsanguination was growing worse every time one of Khare¡¯s enhanced arrows successfully applied the stacking bleed effect.

    Daniel fought the urge to freeze time as the monster approached. His Jump would need good timing, but he also had no idea how long it would take this monster to die considering it looked half dead already and was moving at full speed. If he ran out of mana, he ran out of ways to stay alive. His legs tensed, ready to release at any moment. He Jumped, too early. Daniel had jumped low, correctly assuming that the wings he hadn¡¯t had time to release would keep him up in the air too long, but had compensated poorly by moving early.

    Rather than twist on the sand in an attempt to turn around, the skink made a worm-like motion by pressing down with its front legs, bunching up its back, and then springing upright on its back four legs. A few more seconds and Daniel would have been past the talons that came to meet him.

    Daniel could control his fall to a limited degree in midair, but this was matched by the monster¡¯s ability to redirect its claws. It had come to a full stop. At the cost of strain on its muscles, sure, but it had a lot of vitality to go before it would truly die. Nothing for it and no time. Daniel couldn¡¯t Dodge Roll or even Jump again. Without a proper seventh sense Daniel couldn¡¯t know why, but it was impossible to use another ability in his current state without practiced dual-channeling. He was-

    Blur of movement. Only one monstrous forelimb had come for him. That should have been all that was needed. Before it could intersect, something flew up and connected with enough force to sever one of the massive digits. The image of Gadriel lit by the noon sun, cape flowing over his flared golden wings, was only visible for a fraction of a second but stayed in Daniel¡¯s mind for longer. He was so stunned, going from certain death to overcome with awe, that he landed roughly, bouncing over the rise of a dune and rolling down the other side. At the bottom he coughed, thought about screaming, and then got to his feet. By now Daniel had learned that being a monster hunter meant rolling with the near-death experiences, in this case literally.

    Tak and Hunter both prepared for the monster to charge them, only for it to aim between them and for Evalyn. Daniel saw this as through the auras that persisted despite Hunter losing access to the feature. I think it¡¯s learning! he warned Hunter and Tak. But Gadriel¡¯s¡­ he¡¯s¡­ he¡¯s got it. One of you needs to intercept it.

    Will run past.

    It¡¯s heading for Evalyn!

    I know. I¡¯ve got it.

    The skink couldn¡¯t bother with the three standing to challenge it. Its instincts called for their blood, but its higher-level intelligence told it that if it wanted to kill anything it would have to be more selective. One of the two was making a lot of noise. Nothing the skink could sense the magic of, monsters being naturally insensitive to Bardic music meant for mortals. It simply, and violently, wanted the noise to stop. Then it heard something else.

    Hunter used Fearsome Roar when the skink was in the center of the rough triangle. This was a targeted sonic ability that only the monster was subject to. It could never be afflicted by the fear effect, at least not from an ability this weak. That wasn¡¯t the point. The roar was a challenge, speaking on another level and completely diverting the Skink¡¯s attention. The short-lived ringcat Tlara had once possessed had been forced to make use of this. Hunter did it by himself.

    His challenge was more effective. The skink couldn¡¯t quite comprehend what Hunter was. Until this moment it had regarded him as the same as the other mortals. With the roar, there was a realization. The same instinct that drove every monster to the ruin of mortals spiked a far deeper hatred. The monster without words suddenly found itself with one. Traitor. There was an intrinsic loathing of any creature that served the mortals, willing or not, but this was something different. Something the monster could not describe as profane, but still regarded as such.

    Hunter¡¯s plan worked too well.

    ¡­

    ¡°Why is it slowing down?¡± Evalyn asked herself, seeing the lithe creature practically pouring blood out of itself turn from her to Hunter. That didn¡¯t surprise her all things considered, but up until this point the slowest the greater skink had gone was a pace that could be described as breakneck. Now it approached Hunter with a slinking, stalking gait that was unbothered by Khare¡¯s exacerbation of the bleeding effect or the Hero now focusing on those areas most injured.

    Evalyn had been removed from the path of the marauding monster and yet still felt the gripping terror she had to edge out her ability¡¯s sake. She fired a Songbolt as she changed to Lightfoot Song, registering a little surprise as her mana went from half full to half empty, but was still mostly enveloped in a sense of foreboding.

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    ¡­

    Daniel worked his way to the top of a dune and echoed her fears. Hunter was low to the ground as he prepared to Jump. From his own experience, Daniel knew what would happen. The monster might even stop before reaching Hunter and carefully make the final approach to ensure it could land a hit, any hit. It had six arms it could reasonably use, too many for Hunter and Gadriel to block or evade

    I¡¯m switching your Regeneration to Dodge Roll, Daniel thought. Crap, have you used that before?

    No.

    Well, it¡¯s coming for you. You¡¯re going to need all three dodge powers and Evasiveness to survive this. Daniel looked at the bloody trail the monster was leaving in the sand. It can¡¯t keep going like this. It has to die soon.

    Can¡¯t use more than one power, Hunter pointed out, now padding experimentally to the side while the monster approached. There was a burst of speed from it whenever he backed up making it clear there¡¯d be a chase if he wanted to die running.

    I¡¯ll try to get close enough to use my shield power. Daniel took off running after the monstrous pair

    Which power should I use first?

    Up to you. You¡¯ve got this Hunter.

    With four legs on the ground and four in the air, the skink was able to move easily while presenting its jaws, tail, and half of its limbs as potential threats. In a way, the oversized lizard looked ridiculous, like a dog trying to walk on two legs, except it moved with murderous intent. Hunter couldn¡¯t run or it would drop down and chase, though not at the speed that would allow the ringcat to dodge it entirely.

    The claws of the monster not on the ground were kept high, expecting another jump. Instead, Hunter waited for it to get close, when the claws would come down. The skink was faster, but Hunter was smaller and hadn¡¯t spent all night having his flesh hacked off. That saved him from the first two attacks and an intervention by Gadriel a third. While the fourth would have connected directly, Hunter used one of his newer powers to survive.

    Hunter blurred, his image stretching across space and occasionally forming a distinct image out of the mostly golden mess of light. Contrary to Daniel¡¯s expectations of a power set that fell roughly in line with that of a Totem Warrior or, perhaps, Martialist, Hunter had awakened a power that could best be described as proper magic. Flash Jaunt was a mana-hungry combination of illusion and teleportation.

    Whereas Dodge Roll still left Daniel exposed, this temporarily made Hunter immune to attacks and produced a flickering image along the path of travel to draw fire. It saved Hunter, though Daniel might have suggested using Dodge Roll first to keep the trump card in reserve to surprise the monster with later. It was a lapse of judgment born out of inexperience with the newly shared power and trepidation of the foe he was facing.

    That did not mean Hunter was defenseless or inept. He came out of the ability with a final clarification of his form and reappearance of his aura, indicating the ringcat was real again. Hunter went running out from under the back of the monster which was conveniently in the direction of Tak and Daniel. His long enemy spent a few seconds turning, missing with a tail lash in the process.

    The dunes proved to be the biggest disadvantage Hunter had, beyond the sheer disparity in attributes. At best he could Jump from rise to rise, whereas the Skink was tall enough to step in the valleys and still keep its belly above them. It made a difference in the race for survival.

    Tak, faster and more physically adept than Daniel, still wasn¡¯t close enough when the Skink intercepted Hunter again. Parts of it were on the verge of growing sluggish through blood loss and accumulated damage, but the whole was just as deadly as it had been. It reached out for Hunter with a leap, back two hands spread out and front two up high to cover both methods of escape.

    Gadriel was a blur in the air, still gaining the smallest increments of speed with every hit on the monster. He was all but ignored by the skink, but even he couldn¡¯t move fast enough to intercede on more than one attacking limb. Tak, in the distance, began to breathe and run harder as he realized the arms of the monster might as well be the jaws of the giant creature, snapping up Hunter.

    Daniel came to the same conclusion. Instead of entering the beginning stages of a metamorphosis like Tak, he had a desperate idea. Hunter, can you use your teleport midair? It was less a formed word than a mental assent that came as a response along with the fear of a cornered animal. The Artificer didn¡¯t even feel the pain of hitting the ground when his body went limp.

    The world was on fire, a heat that flowed most through the veins of the body he possessed. His prior attempts to handle Hunter¡¯s senses were like holding electrical wire that, now, had the insulation stripped off. Raw nerves running hot with adrenaline filtered nothing from the world around him. The overwhelming scent of the skink¡¯s blood stabbed through Hunter¡¯s face and into Daniel¡¯s mind as even the cast-off remnants of the monster tried to thwart him.

    Without the experience of imprisonment, Daniel might not have had the will to hang on. Fleeing from his own worst nightmare had given him a breakthrough reinforced over the days since. He¡¯d only be able to maintain this for seconds regardless, but that was all he needed. I¡¯ll Jump, you Jaunt, he thought, finding it hard to do so within the maelstrom of a beast with its blood up.

    Can¡¯t!

    Must. Daniel took over, Hunter reluctantly ceding control. The instant that was done he activated Moment of Clarity. Even though this possession was an active mana effect, it was like it didn¡¯t count as being channeled, allowing another ability to be used. Considering the description of the power explicitly allowed him to use his while possessing Hunter, there was either a caveat or the Octyrrum just allowed the interaction to happen.

    Why!? Waste of mana. Hunter growled. The backswing of sensory deprivation was just as bad as the initial hit, but Daniel, discorporated, clung to the knowledge he¡¯d only need one moment.

    The first time he¡¯d used Moment of Clarity as anything other than time to think was to fire his first crossbow shot at a monster. The ability stipulated that he could ¡®designate¡¯ his next action once time began, which translated to preparing whatever he wanted to do and having it triggered once time resumed. Normally he didn¡¯t need that level of precision. In an unfamiliar body swarming with alien impulses, without ever having attempted this kind of maneuver, and with life at stake, Daniel didn¡¯t take that chance.

    Daniel, in Hunter¡¯s body, used Jump just before his will to hang on broke and he was tossed back to his body lying awkwardly in the sand. He couldn¡¯t sense its flow, but faintly registered a small drain on his mana. The notification that appeared on his Focus would have been ignored if he hadn¡¯t worried it would affect Hunter.

    <hr>

    Alert: You are sustaining an active Effect in Ally: Hunter through the benefits of Bond: Friendship. You may cancel this effect at any time, even if the Power does not normally allow this. While sustaining this effect you are considered as Concentrating/Channeling and cannot use another Ability or active effect of a Feature through normal means. You will also expend an amount of Mana equivalent to the amount needed to originally maintain the state in which the ability was originally used, in addition to whatever ongoing costs are incurred by the ability.

    <hr>

    As he was reading, Hunter was moving. The two sets of claws kept in the air struck, Gadriel unable to fully prevent either from reaching out. As they began to envelop Hunter, his image blurred once more as it shot down to the ground. Even Gadriel paused for a moment in seeing that, before the Hero¡¯s diligence kicked in and he struck to maintain his momentum.

    When Hunter landed, Daniel felt the small ebb to his mana reserve cease. The effect that Jump created didn¡¯t cost additional mana but did lock people out of using an additional ability while midair. It was one of the main drawbacks of the low level ability. A restriction Hunter had been able to ignore since he hadn¡¯t been the source. It had been a desperate guess, but it worked. Being able to cancel the ability mid-use would open up even more options for evasion if Daniel could tolerate Hunter¡¯s senses long enough to use it again.

    ¡­

    Concentrating on the fight and timing another intervention, Daniel didn¡¯t notice Tak. Evalyn did. Her stomach twisted as she kept playing, inadvertently hastening the Totem Warrior¡¯s pace towards the monster. That wasn¡¯t what worried her. Tak was changing as he ran. Transmutation powers weren¡¯t unheard of, and both Totem Warriors and avianoids had common ones. Some classes, Druids predominantly, could mimic or even embody monsters under certain restrictions. What Tak was doing wasn¡¯t that.

    She¡¯d seen what Tak had looked like after the battle at the lake, but not how he¡¯d gotten there. No one had. The sight now unnerved her. His skull bore the most dramatic changes, elongating to the point that his maw took up the majority of the length. The top of the head flattened, losing its feathers as the eyes shifted more to the side. The claws and legs grew wickedly long and Tak¡¯s back hunched.

    Those were just the physical changes. Evalyn had confided in Tak, having gotten the closest to him out of anyone in their group. She¡¯d known him as unwaveringly kind. Even the joy he felt in hunting came from an energetic, rather than masochistic place that some hunters darkly partook in. The beast that was taking shape was of anger and ferocity.

    That horror was contrasted by the wonder and fear of Hunter¡¯s battle with the skink, if you could call it that. Evalyn wasn¡¯t well studied in every power that existed and had only begun to understand that the singular limit on abilities was a false one, yet what Hunter was doing defied belief. Fortunately, she was keen enough to understand what was happening.

    I can let my cleverness get to my head sometimes but Daniel¡¯s? It almost reminded her of when he was under the effect of Tactician. To a degree. He wasn¡¯t the leader of the team, which was something they had yet to determine. They were lacking someone who could carefully balance everyone¡¯s powers and direct the course of battle. Daniel was showing ingenuity with his and Hunter¡¯s powers, true, but neither had he given much thought to the rest of the team over the last few moments. Still, I never would have tried that. Taking over Hunter and using an ability before dropping out? I guess we all have our strengths.

    ¡°Khare, Tak¡¯s, I don¡¯t even know,¡± she said to the gestalt who was now in danger of running out of weapons. Even with their storage space and all that had been done to the monster, the skink¡¯s endurance was proving the deeper pool. At least they seemed to gain an enhancement bonus from their rooted stance, the arrows from their bows flying faster. ¡°Do you have anything that can help him? Stopping him would be better, except I don¡¯t know if he¡¯d attack us if we try.¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    Simple enough. They can get to the point at least. Evalyn could only watch as Hunter awkwardly tumbled before triggering the overlapping mess that was his teleport power. That had to be draining mana quickly on both ends. As much as the ringcat could survive in that melee, she couldn¡¯t. In any fair world, she would have died in that mine collapse, spared only by luck. All of them should have been dead. Right now. If this monster had charged them without Gadriel to wear it down beforehand they¡¯d have been paste.

    If Daniel had never found the heliorite, if Tak hadn¡¯t made it back to the fort, if Thomas hadn¡¯t¡­ hadn¡¯t¡­ well, Evalyn had tried to be charitable. The point was the same she¡¯d tried to make to Daniel after Roost¡¯s Peak, something she reminded herself now to cut off those thoughts. So what? People almost died every day. She wasn¡¯t going to let that stop her. Evalyn had acquired more than just Songbolt and Room Sense* from her recent advancement. She still rejected offensive music, but only of a certain kind.

    Another Songbolt pulsed through the air, taking on a vibrant yellow that Evalyn most closely associated with her Lightfoot Song. She moved her hands along her instrument again, one on the rough keys while the other compressed, but it issued no sound. Instead, it faded as she ran forward, movement becoming strictly paced. Sand lightly swirled upwards around her, though she did not stay still enough for the effect to be noticeable. Inside, her mana burned. Maintaining this effect drew from her mana pool faster than any other power she possessed. It was a finale to a power set that otherwise used mana sparingly, a swan song by another name wielded by a rose in the desert. Investiture of Song.

 Chapter 116: Vivacissimo

    The raw killing power of the greater skink was noticeably fading. Despite losing the majority of its blood, enough in fact to interrupt circulation, it was able to continue. Survivability became less strictly bound by biology at this level, even in beasts who played by the normal rules. Still, the skink was going to die. It was merely a question of what harm it could do before it did.

    Hunter had evaded it every time it caught up. Anything less than a perfect dodge would invite death, but the skink was having trouble anticipating the combination of powers. It was unable to adapt as quickly to what its instincts told it was something out of the ordinary. That edge would only last as long as Hunter¡¯s mana did. The skink had been mindful of Tak and had forced Hunter away, delaying his assistance. By the same token, it had discounted Evalyn and Khare. They¡¯d both been keeping to a safe distance until Evalyn had decided it was time for a change in pace.

    As Daniel had stopped trying to reach the melee, there were only two on approach. A beast, and a beauty. Tak had fully transformed, losing his mind but not himself in the process. The slopes of the dunes were nothing to his outstretched talons. Though his form abandoned aspects of the ringcat his totem let him borrow, he was no less suited to tearing through the countryside.

    From his left, Evalyn danced. There was no other word for it as the movements themselves were timed to a song only she could and did hear. Her current ultimate expression of power took the wide reach of her normal abilities and focused them to a razor point. The movement was not of grace but passion to Tak¡¯s fury, purpose to his rampage. Her face bore the look of concentration as if she was directing her own orchestra.

    Daniel would have yelled out for her to stop if the sight wasn¡¯t so breathtaking. He was convinced, utterly, that she knew what she was doing. How many teleports do you have left? he asked Hunter as the giant lizard approached once more. You¡¯ve got more help coming.

    One. He is different.

    Focus on yourself!

    Like before.

    What? But you- Daniel shook his head. How many times have you seen this?

    Once.

    Daniel judged the distances, lacking in preciseness but gaining from Quick Mind. The relative factors balanced and gave him a maybe. It¡¯ll have to do. Could you try using Cross Strike towards Tak instead?

    No. It will not work. Daniel didn¡¯t question the surety in Hunter¡¯s thoughts having found a new appreciation for the intrinsic sense others had of their powers. Something he was improving upon, but hadn¡¯t reached proficiency with.

    Dodge or Jump? Your call.

    Both.

    What?

    Use both.

    I can¡¯t use two at once. Oh, wait. Oh! Daniel made his thoughts private for a moment to remark on how even Hunter could outsmart him sometimes before returning to the link. I¡¯ll get you closer to Tak since it looks like Evalyn would reach you first. Daniel checked his reserve and found it healthier, though only slightly. Viewing through Hunter and taking him over had additive mana costs that had eaten into it.

    This time, he¡¯d be using more than normal. Hunter wanted him to Dodge Roll first, step out, and then Jump during Flash Jaunt. With unlimited mana, Hunter could escape the skink entirely as they chained the various evasive powers. The reason they hadn¡¯t done that yet was the same reason Hunter hadn¡¯t just Flash Jaunted back to the village they were staying in. However, if this was the last time Hunter could use the ability, it was important to get the most distance out of it they could.

    There wasn¡¯t any indication that he was in an alien body when he took over Hunter, discounting the obvious. When Hunter borrowed his body there was a skin-tight suit feel to the other presence which was absent for him on the other side. He was just a panting, four-legged beast in heavy armor. Will I ever get used to this? Daniel idly thought, before forcibly triggering his Dodge Roll.

    The vertigo from switching back to his body lasted only a moment. In the rough sitting position he¡¯d planted himself in to not fall over when otherwise occupied, Daniel witnessed the last blurring of Hunter¡¯s form as the skink tried to pounce on him. Growing used to the abilities, it was keeping its main mass over the illusion in anticipation of when Hunter would reemerge. Daniel steeled himself and crossed back over.

    Technically, Hunter didn¡¯t exist in this moment as he was displaced from the real world. Daniel could still reach out to him and inhabit the body, though it felt like whenever he used Moment of Clarity with an additive blindness. Though it didn¡¯t make sense at the moment, he was able to trigger Jump and alter Hunter¡¯s trajectory before leaving his body. That caught the beast off-guard, granting Hunter another momentary reprieve.

    At that point, Tak and Evalyn finally met with the threat. Strong but for the life fading from it, the beast had not fully grasped the nature of those approaching. Evalyn would have drawn no second glances if you ignored her beauty. For Tak, the skink paused in consternation. Another? In its pain and ebbing consciousness, the skink did not know what to make of thing of talons and feathers approaching murderously. That was enough to distract it.

    Should I help? Hunter asked Daniel after he landed a good way away, panting from the effort of staying alive.

    Daniel inspected the battle quickly, noting that the red aura of the monster was beginning to fade while Gadriel¡¯s green moved as a ribbon around it. No, I think they¡¯re going to get it and we¡¯re both running low on mana. Man, this is a lot of work just to kill one monster.

    ¡­

    Evalyn had briefly seen Tak¡¯s new form during the fight at the lake. After fully exiting Khare she¡¯d found the avianoid shrunken back to his normal form. Strangely, his clothes and armor still fit perfectly despite the change. A quirk of the magic?

    That aside, witnessing this version of him fight was something else entirely. Tak leaped the last of the distance to land on the monster¡¯s neck, burrowing his beak savagely into its side. A massive arm came up to swipe him off, only to be deflected once more by Gadriel. Not to be outdone, another slashed out and there was nothing to stop it.

    Her heart stopped for a moment, the effect of her ability nullified, when she saw a gash halfway through Tak¡¯s abdomen open up as he fell away. To have not been torn in half entirely was a surprise that was overshadowed by his refusal to die. As Tak picked himself back, the wound he¡¯d taken was already closing. Regeneration didn¡¯t work that quickly at his level, did it?

    The next step jolted her, forcing both her and her heart back into rhythm. It was the blessing and the curse of this power. Evalyn currently embodied her music, having taken it into herself. Normally, this ability was less potent as Bards were perpetually less affected by their songs than others. Practice made perfect, but practice also made dull. Daniel¡¯s phone offered a treasure of music she didn¡¯t have to compose, only mimic, and that gave her a reservoir of material to pull out. She reserved a few songs he¡¯d shared for her personal use, for a time just like this.

    The song that played in her head had lyrics and instruments she didn¡¯t understand, this coming from what Daniel called the metal genre of his world¡¯s music. That didn¡¯t matter, what mattered was she could feel the emotion within it driving her forward. Strides in sync with the beat, and attacks as well. Against an enemy this large, she couldn¡¯t miss.

    Heeding the lessons of the Thormundz well, Evalyn targeted the head. Any monster that had something reminiscent of biology had a weakness there. With Gadriel practically shredding the exterior of the monster, there wasn¡¯t anywhere else she could do more damage. She¡¯d only get one Songbolt too, as it would interrupt her active ability. Other than that, she just had a dagger.

    The monster was stationary now that it had nothing to chase, focusing its attacks on Tak who took and ignored them for the most part. To Evalyn, everything flowed with the beat. Time wasn¡¯t altered in any way, just her perception of it. This offered clarity and simplicity in the way transitioning from a real-time to a turn-based world would, but this was also the main weakness of the ability. Anything faster than her tempo could strike in the blink between beats. Neither could she choose music that was too fast, or her mind couldn¡¯t keep up with it. Gadriel was an example, defying the pace of the song as he flitted across the monster.

    Weakened and bloodless, the skink could not offer such speed. It twisted a limb out to her as an afterthought which she dodged, easily slipping her golden dagger across its flesh as she did. Each beat offered a moment for her to prepare, but only a moment. She made to run up one of the limbs supporting the creature¡¯s weight, dodging and slashing as she ran, only to be thrown off. Something grabbed her on the way down and maneuvered her to land on her feet. The natural antipathy between Heroes and Bards wasn¡¯t at play now.

    She saw then that Tak was boring into another patch of flesh while bearing wounds that would have incapacitated her. Evalyn hesitated for a beat. Should I keep fighting if Gadriel and Tak have this? No. That was not the way of a hunter. That was not her way, not when death was only a possibility instead of a certainty.

    She could not Jump like Tak could, nor move with defiance of gravity like Gadriel. Evalyn had to do things the hard way and, after failing the first time, the smart way. Her temporal viewpoint allowed her to do more than dodge. The perspective, she realized, helped discern patterns in her enemy. Only if they were simplistic and brought to the point of responding to a similarly limited opponent, as was the case with the skink and Tak. Roughly every tenth stanza, or forty beats, the skink would strike at Tak with the front two legs on whichever side the avianoid was on. That gave her enough time for what she needed to do, so long as she knew which side he was on.

    Some amount of survival instinct must have returned to Tak at this point, as he leaped off the skink rather than come under threat of the second set of claws that rushed towards him. Blood trailed from various wounds that cut too deep, yet the avianoid kept going. This level of survivability was absurd. Only a Berserker could hope to come close to it with their trances. Sure, the two classes had come from the same root, but people said the same thing about Bards and Heroes.

    There! Tak leaped once more onto the face, tearing up the flesh with his claws in a dash toward one of the skink¡¯s eyes. That left Evalyn with a problem. Tak was on the front part of the face, the gentle slope that led from the flat nostril to the forehead. He was still primarily on the left side, but would the skink reach up with both arms on the left, or the front two? Or the front four? Gadriel would intervene on the first, and she shouldn¡¯t get in the way there. Evalyn had to choose.

    ¡­

    ¡°Tak!¡± Daniel cried out, coming to his feet as the Totem Warrior was almost cut in half.

    He is fine.

    He was just, what? Daniel blinked as Tak continued his assault as if nothing had happened.

    Happened last time. He was nearly dead, yet he still fought. Healed quickly.

    His leg was almost torn off!

    It was worse.

    You¡¯re not worried!?

    Hunter thought on that for a second. I am. But he will not die. That didn¡¯t sound as certain as Hunter would have liked it to, Daniel guessed. Either way, there was no point stressing about it. Neither he nor Hunter could wade in now, drawing attention to how many injuries Tak was enduring would only worry them further.

    I didn¡¯t know Evalyn could fight like that, Daniel commented, watching the Bard duck under claws while slashing out with the dagger he made. She¡¯s just stuck back and played her songs up until now. I guess she is the one with the most hunting experience if we don¡¯t count Gadriel.

    Tak is, Hunter insisted.

    No, it is her. The equivalent of a blank look was transmitted from Hunter. We talked about this when setting up the training teams. You were less you at that point so you might not remember. Tak¡¯s done some hunting, sure, but he also advanced from however Totem Warriors advance besides fighting. I forget that part but, look, the point is Evalyn¡¯s got almost all her advancement from fighting and only some from¡­ you know. The mental conversation grew less strained as it became clear that Tak could take whatever the skink could throw at him. Somehow.

    Tak is still better.

    You don¡¯t have to defend him. Daniel didn¡¯t laugh, but he did smile. Gadriel¡¯s doing enough of that. How he¡¯s kept all that up I have no idea. Yeah, Tak is probably better at fighting up close, but I wouldn¡¯t say Evalyn is hopeless. If Murdon had given her Tactician instead of me that one time, I think we would have been just as well off.

    Hmm, Hunter mentally grumbled. Going for the kill.

    What? Daniel got a bit nauseous as he saw what the feral avianoid was doing. He¡¯s not going to try to burrow into its skull, is he?

    Maybe. From across the hundreds of meters of sand and dunes, Hunter tilted his head in a challenge. Would Evalyn do that?

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    Probably not, Daniel conceded. She¡¯s just been stabbing its legs so far. There was that one time she tried to climb. Wait, she¡¯s doing it again! Evalyn was moving across one of the upper limbs of the giant lizard, although not climbing it as she¡¯d tried before. The almost absentminded swipes at her were easily avoided as she moved. No, it was more than that. Hunter, she¡¯s dancing.

    Dancing?

    The realization struck Daniel. He¡¯d observed the way she¡¯d been moving when Evalyn first activated the ability, but the pattern changed when she got in range of the monster. The fluidity of her motion hadn¡¯t changed, but it had taken Daniel this long to realize that the grace of her dodges and slashes kept a similar tempo, if not rhythm. Just like a dancer switching styles to the same accompaniment.

    There was an undeniable parallel between her movements and Gadriel¡¯s now. Both were dancing in their own way, a slow waltz to a tango comparatively. How the Hero was maintaining the insane pace of strikes and movements Daniel couldn¡¯t guess. He looked like he was flying, aided by the angelic wings Gadriel still wore. Daniel had become mesmerized by the twin displays, only realizing just after it happened what Evalyn had done.

    For most of her part, Evalyn had been a distraction at best to the skink. Initially, she hadn¡¯t even been that, the monster insensitive to her music and unknowing of the benefits it had been providing. When she¡¯d closed in it had paid little attention until she¡¯d tried to climb it. Hanging onto one of its foreclaws was annoying, but there was a howling thing trying to pierce the skink¡¯s eye that demanded more of a response. Unthinking, the skink brought its limbs up to swipe at Tak and brought Evalyn into range.

    She didn¡¯t have many direct combat abilities, nor charm powers that would work on monsters. Not that she would have used them even if she did. What Evalyn did have was Songbolt and a fair amount of time stored from Investiture of Song. It was technically accurate to say the damage of the strike was scaled to the time spent playing a bardic song. The whole truth was the ability relied on the mana spent on those abilities, siphoning a small percent of the flow into a pool that grew with time. The amount reserved for Evalyn¡¯s attack power had deepened considerably.

    Evalyn flipped over the face of the creature Tak was brutalizing like an Olympic diver. The energy that gathered around her was initially discolored in Daniel¡¯s view by her aura but was released as a sky-true blue directed into the other eye of the skink. The monster was nimble, quick even for its size. Or at least, it had been. The shimmering air almost as large as the fleshy orb hit just left of the iris it tore apart with the impact. The viscous material of the eye ruptured like a pond hit with a stone. Part of the bone making up the orbit cracked.

    Daniel gaped as Evalyn recovered from the maneuver with a roll, somehow conjuring and stowing her instrument in the process. She didn¡¯t stand at the end like a gymnast would but came out running, nearly depleted of mana and fearing reprisal from the skink. It was in no state to pursue, however. Tak, given another moment to act in feral frenzy, had dug past the point where the skink could reach. It still tried, digging into its other eye with claws that only did more damage to the broken orb. A short time later, the monster died and Daniel¡¯s phone dinged with a notification. Advancement, the sign that the battle was truly over.

    The racing Hero came to a stop as it became clear his enemy was dead, settling down with a look of true exhaustion on his face. Sure, he¡¯d leveled up since his fight with Heldren, but he looked like he¡¯d just gone through that duel five successive times. ¡°You,¡± He breathed heavily as Evalyn glanced at him, eyebrow raised. ¡°Were you copying me?¡±

    Evalyn was quickly scandalized, shouting, ¡°Seriously!?¡± The Hero stood for a moment longer, long hair and cape flowing in the wind. Then he collapsed to the sand.

    ¡­

    In the end, the group was left with the bodies of the shank stompers and greater skink, the unconscious Gadriel, and the heavily injured Tak. Whatever effect had overtaken him persisted just long enough for the Totem Warrior to drag himself clear of the body and then collapse, feathers sticky with whatever substances he¡¯d encountered on the way. Only Hunter got close to him.

    Tak awoke a minute later as the group converged, grimacing as he looked at one of his legs, which had sustained an injury that persisted past the incredible healing rate he¡¯d shown in the fight. ¡°Oh. Not again.¡±

    Evalyn covertly sighed in relief at hearing his normal voice. ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯s as bad as last time at least. Do you think you¡¯ll be able to walk back?¡±

    He looked at himself, raising an arm experimentally, before nodding. ¡°Yes, I think so. What happened?¡±

    We should tell him, Hunter thought to Daniel, who was close enough to have heard the question.

    Yeah. Back at the lake we thought it was a one-time thing and hoped whatever it was wouldn¡¯t happen again. It didn¡¯t at the village, but I guess there¡¯s no escaping it. Not here though. Back at the oasis maybe? Evalyn glanced at him as Daniel got close to the three and he shook his head.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get out of here, then we¡¯ll talk about it,¡± Evalyn replied. Hunter gave a mental assent to Daniel and the decision was made. That wasn¡¯t the only thing they had to decide, however.

    ¡°Loot?¡± Khare asked. There was a disheartened tint to the word as they sized up the body of the skink. Khare had used all of their ranged weapons on the thing and not every shot had hit. Not every weapon that had struck had stayed in either. A large area of the desert was now the dream of everyone with a metal detector.

    ¡°Well, I¡¯m scanning it at least,¡± Daniel replied, taking out his phone thoughtfully. ¡°It¡¯s just a giant lizard though. Not like how a dragon is but like if you took a normal newt and just scaled it up. What kind of formulae will I get from that?¡±

    ¡°You think you will?¡± Evalyn asked. ¡°It¡¯s just one monster.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, but it¡¯s a big monster,¡± Daniel said unhelpfully. ¡°I mean, take the sparkbats against the shank stompers. You could reasonably expect to fight more sparkbats than you would shank stompers, so theoretically, every shank stomper I scan gives me more progress toward a new unlock. For something this big, I¡¯d think you¡¯d only come up against one at a time. And it¡¯s a higher level.¡±

    Only Evalyn was following this. Khare had taken it as a go-ahead to retrieve what they could, while Hunter and Tak conversed mentally. Gadriel was passed out, but he didn¡¯t seem to be dying so he was left to the sand for the time being. ¡°I¡¯m not going to pretend to understand a power I don¡¯t have, but something tells me you¡¯re just guessing.¡±

    Daniel shrugged. ¡°My Encyclopedia doesn¡¯t tell me absolutely everything about my powers. It took me a while to figure that out, but there are caveats and edge cases, not including all the places where stuff is worded vaguely. This is a guess, but if I¡¯m right it would work like something similar from my world.¡± My world. Wait, Gadriel is asleep, right?

    ¡°Well go ahead and try it. Should be simple enough to disprove.¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡± Daniel was about to use his function when he had a flash of inspiration. ¡°Oh, wait. Wait! Tak, can you get me some of the skin off this thing?¡±

    The Totem Warrior passed an assessing glance over the body of the skink. This was one of his areas of expertise and there was a glimmer of confidence in the pained expression. ¡°Oooh,¡± he trilled disappointedly. ¡°It would be good leather. But torn. Gadriel cut it for a long time, I think.¡±

    ¡°Do you think there¡¯s enough for two sections about this big?¡± Daniel asked, indicating a space about the size of his shoulder. There was fervor in motions. He had an idea. It was something he¡¯d seen before but hadn¡¯t thought to exploit until this moment.

    Tak unsteadily got to his feet, placing a hand on Hunter¡¯s back for support. ¡°Maybe. It is big, there should be some places with only small cuts. Why?¡±

    Evalyn was looking at him too, now with curiosity. Should I tell them? If this doesn¡¯t work I would look like an idiot. But if it does I¡¯ll look like a genius. ¡°There were a couple of formulae I didn¡¯t get from the sparkbats, but I kind of did,¡± Daniel explained poorly, making his decision. ¡°I made a couple of things with parts of sparkbats way back, but the formulae were pretty bad. One almost made me fall to death, and the other nearly killed Hunter.¡±

    ¡°Bad,¡± Hunter agreed. There was no mark left on his side from that day, not one that was visible at least.

    ¡°But when I scanned the sparkbats, I got improved versions. Again, nothing in my Encyclopedia that says that¡¯s how it works, but,¡± Daniel gestured to the dead lizard. ¡°Even if there¡¯s not a lot of skin to work with if I can just make something, then I can use whatever I want later so long as I unlock the improved formulae for it.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re definitely guessing,¡± Evalyn said with a challenging smile. Tak, knife in hand, was slowly moving across the body in search of suitable material. It didn¡¯t take long. When Tak returned, it was with two neatly cut and rolled sections of the primarily red skin. There wasn¡¯t even gunk or disquieting fluid trailing off. Touching the dead skin was a prospect that still grossed Daniel out, but not as much as he would have thought.

    ¡°Thanks, Tak! That was fast.¡±

    ¡°It was easy. Monster Scavenger, new feature. Useful.¡±

    ¡°It is,¡± Evalyn agreed. ¡°If you¡¯re not too hurt, do you think you could gather more? Even if Daniel can¡¯t fumble something together, we could probably try selling the skin to a Craftsman.¡±

    ¡°What about getting back?¡± Hunter asked, noting both Tak¡¯s heavy breathing and the midday sun. ¡°Would need to camp if we wait much longer.¡±

    ¡°And there is Gadriel,¡± Daniel pointed out, finally drawing attention to the collapsed Hero. ¡°He should be fine, right?¡±

    ¡°I can carry him. If I must,¡± Hunter added after Daniel shot the ringcat a betrayed look. ¡°Or drag.¡±

    ¡°Not to use you as a pack animal, but that is a good idea,¡± Evalyn said, taking the pressure off of Daniel who had a similar thought. ¡°If Tak could cut off some of those claws, we might have a good bounty. Whether that¡¯s for you to enchant with, or to sell. Or both.¡± There was a thoughtful tone in Evalyn¡¯s voice. ¡°Daniel, since you don¡¯t need time to advance, what do you think about regularly enchanting during the team¡¯s downtime? We wouldn¡¯t necessarily need to evenly split the profits, but-¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s a good idea,¡± Daniel nodded. ¡°All of you helped keep Hunter alive here, and beyond that, we¡¯re a team. It makes sense.¡± He held up one of the leather rolls taken from Tak. ¡°I couldn¡¯t cut this stuff off nearly as well and I wouldn¡¯t want to anyway.¡± Putting the other one down, he unrolled the rough square and thought for a moment. ¡°Well, here goes. Bulwark.¡± Like the shade he¡¯d repaired some days ago, the flexible material turned stiff. The group waited for something else to happen, but that was it.

    ¡°Is that it?¡± Tak asked.

    ¡°This,¡± Daniel held out the piece and tried to speak with as much conviction as he could, ¡°Is a shield!¡±

    ¡°That is a square,¡± Tak replied, unconvinced. Experimentally, the Totem Warrior tried to grip it like one but failed. It was tossed to the prone Hero who might have managed to do something with it, were he not still unconscious.

    ¡°And it¡¯s a shield. I mean, technically. It¡¯s a shield,¡± Daniel repeated.

    ¡°You think your power works like that?¡± Evalyn asked skeptically.

    ¡°I took random monster bits and made a functional, if impractical, shield,¡± Daniel defended like a toddler discovered mid-wall art. ¡°It¡¯s a shield!¡±

    ¡°A square shield?¡±

    ¡°Y-yeah, sure. A square shield,¡± Daniel took the lifeline tossed by Tak. Evalyn didn¡¯t look convinced.

    ¡°That looked nothing like how you enchanted the heliorite,¡± she pointed out.

    ¡°I just stuck a lightning spine on a crossbow bolt for the other one. This time, I used a power. A whole power!¡± Daniel exclaimed, trying to convince himself more than anyone. ¡°It¡¯s a square leather shield.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a stiff piece of leather.¡±

    ¡°Just hold on.¡± Daniel pulled out his phone and searched through the formulae section. He didn¡¯t see it at first, but when he did, he beamed. ¡°Oh, ok. This is OP.¡±

    ¡°It worked!?¡± Evalyn exclaimed, only slightly outraged and more playing into the moment.

    <hr>

    Scalebound Shield (Formulae: Enchanting, Shield, Domain: Enchantment, Quality: Shoddy, Level: 0)

    A wearable shield made from material sourced from Type: Lizard, Type: Draconic, Type: Aquatic, or other appropriate Creatures of sufficient size to produce material to construct the shield from one piece.

    Creation of this item requires the crafter possess Ability: Construct Shield.

    <hr>

    Daniel looked at the second piece of leather on the ground, gears turning. ¡°Anyone have some thread?¡±

    In the end, Daniel only made one more shoddy item. ¡®Prototype¡¯, as he began calling it under increasing scrutiny. Evalyn¡¯s opposition to what he was doing was only playful. Well, mostly playful. She didn¡¯t have any horse in this race, and as far as Daniel knew there weren¡¯t any horses in this world. There was just the sense that Daniel was trying to cheat whatever rules the Octyrrum set to govern enchanting, made more grating by the fact that it was working.

    ¡°That is not a bag of holding,¡± she said flatly.

    ¡°Is it a bag?¡± he asked cheekily. She just stared at him, anticipating where the question was leading. Tak was back to harvesting while Hunter had been recruited to help Khare find their weapons. Gadriel was still unconscious, and really by this point someone should have been worried about him. No one was. ¡°Come on, is it a bag?¡±

    Evalyn glanced at the leather thing that had been roughly sewn to the point that it could maybe contain an apple without spilling its contents out. Sand was out of the question, that would flow freely through several holes. ¡°Yes,¡± she answered reluctantly.

    ¡°And bags hold stuff right?¡± Daniel received a half-withering stare in response. ¡°So, this is a bag of holding!¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s-¡±

    <hr>

    Bag of Holding - Lesser (Formulae: Enchanting, Construct, Domain: Enchantment, Quality: Shoddy, Level: 0)

    A container constructed from leather confers a very minor Dimensional property, allowing for storage of more mass than the volume of the item would suggest.

    Creation of this item requires no Mana or significant time beyond assembly.

    <hr>

    ¡°It¡¯s a bag of holding,¡± Daniel reported, tossing it to Evalyn. She gave up incredulity and returned to curiosity.

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t look much bigger on the inside.¡±

    ¡°Well, yeah, it sucks,¡± Daniel admitted. ¡°That¡¯s not the point. This is.¡± He pointed his phone towards the greater skink, closed his eyes, and prayed.

    <hr>

    You have scanned a Monster, listed below. You have met the requirements to unlock multiple Encyclopedia entries, listed below.

    Scanned Targets:

    - Greater Skink, Deceased (Damaged) - 1

    Encyclopedia Entries:

    - Monster: Greater Skink, Detailed

    - Affix: Leathercut

    -

    Analysis of Greater Skink has improved Formulae: Scalebound Shield to Quality: Standard and Formulae: Bag of Holding - Lesser to Formulae: Bag of Holding.

    <hr>

    ¡°Well?¡± Evalyn asked, eyebrow raised. Daniel smiled.

    ¡°We happy.¡± On the ground, ignored by both, Gadriel coughed weakly.

 Chapter 117: Rest and Revelations

    <hr>

    Your Endurance is now 22! You have gained Feature: Regenerative Craft.

    -

    Regenerative Craft (Feature, Endurance, Domain: Restoration, Level: 1):

    You possess the Power to enhance your natural Healing rate while crafting using a Power you possess. This effect scales with Endurance and the total time spent thus far on one craft.

    Level 2 (Automatic): Improves the effect of time on rate of healing by 100%. By Awakening this feature at level 2, you do not need to expend Mana to gain this effect.

    <hr>

    ...

    The man traveling alone through the desert may have been mistaken for a simple wanderer. You could come across them on occasion. The last survivors of a group set upon by monsters. Vagabonds. Loners. Errant Heroes, although Gadriel had recently reunited with his former allies. But this traveler carried no shining sword, and his cloak was ragged in places. The slightly weathered skin and black hair graying in scattered strands would place the human well into his 50s. However, looks could be deceiving. The traveler was, in fact, very familiar with this principle.

    Underneath the worn cloak whose true color had faded long ago, the traveler wore simple clothes of a cut not common to this desert region. The material was thicker than average, trapping more air than would be comfortable if the man wearing such garb cared at all for climate. The colors too were odd, an almost burgundy red for the shirt and opal blue for the pants. While they should clash garishly, the subtle shift of their primary colors towards where they met unconventionally pleased the eye. There was much about this man that could be considered unconventional.

    He was currently a Cleric, for one. The most powerful in the region, though he kept that fact and his true nature a secret. The brown eyes that almost, but not quite matched the red of the shirt were fixed straight ahead in yet another attempt to reveal nothing more than what was necessary. You could never know when a Fate might be watching.

    On the man¡¯s waist, partially concealed by the cloak, was a scepter. It was wide enough that it couldn¡¯t be called a wand, and yet short enough that staff didn¡¯t quite fit either. Unlike his vibrant garb, this was sheer black. Two orbs were at either end, one larger than the other. The tool wasn¡¯t a Focus, not in the traditional sense, and it would have been more suited to an Arcanist as it was. Instead, it served another purpose that the traveler would have been quite loath to reveal given its value. The truth was he had come to this region for a reason. The concerns of the Thormundz were his, of course, but the aberrant influence on the Octyrrum that had appeared around the same time was a larger issue. If it spread or got worse, it could make the coming catastrophe all the worse.

    This man was called Calius Thatch, supposedly a Cleric from one of the vassal regions empowering the kingdom¡¯s center. He was a man with a mission, divinely ordained, now taking a side journey in response to a plea he had intercepted. Would this further his purposes, or was this just another chance to help the faithful of the Octyrrum? That remained to be seen. Not even one as potent as Calius knew all of the answers.

    He did know he¡¯d reach the small village by nightfall. The Cleric¡¯s pace was deceptively quick and could be far faster, a mark of someone with high dexterity and practice in pushing them beyond the normal limits. At Calius¡¯ level and skill, one could cause a massacre with an evening stroll if they weren¡¯t cautious, which he very much was. He was Calius Thatch, Cleric of the Cloak. At least, that¡¯s who he was today.

    ¡­

    Thomas couldn¡¯t remember as deep a despair as he felt now. Nothing in the Thormundz, aside from what was within the mountains, had troubled him as present circumstances had. For one, Silora¡¯s demand weighed on him. Would she reveal his power just to spite him? What she proposed would set him back significantly, perhaps even to the point where his friends would leave him behind. His rate of advancement was already trailing theirs. Despite his stolid refusal to hunt with them, Thomas still felt he had a place amongst them as things stood now. He liked the idea of being a local contact, keeping one foot stuck in their world by helping out but not descending to the level of danger they seemed to prefer. And then there was Evalyn.

    But that chase didn¡¯t thrill him now. She¡¯d come back with the others, and Gadriel somehow, and still showed no signs of interest. Sure, Evalyn had promised to keep an open mind if they¡¯d survived the lightning dragon, but he¡¯d practically forced her to. If anything was going to happen it would have. With his other problems, he¡¯d finally reached the point where he¡¯d finally given up.

    That was fine. It was, really, because of Khiat. That was the true origin of what gripped Thomas. He could take losing out on a love interest, or even the blackmail of Silora in something like a stride. What weighed on him was failing a patient.

    She was dying. It was as simple as that. Khiat was starving herself, barely moving. He¡¯d prayed without any forthcoming answer. There was nothing to be done but wait for the inevitable, all the while seeing grief grow in the disconcerting faces of her family. Should he offer to bring her back when it was over? Would that make a difference?

    His ears picked up on the distant conversation. Thomas had no power that amplified his hearing, just practice. It wasn¡¯t a long exchange, only a question. ¡°Can I ask you something privately?¡± Evalyn to Daniel, indicating her tent. He blinked in surprise, not at all having seen this coming.

    It was fine. Daniel needed a win after what happened with Claire, and if he was honest, he still owed him. Destroying another¡¯s Focus was a grave sin. Thomas hadn¡¯t verbalized the debt, and Daniel hadn¡¯t brought it up again, but they both knew what was owed. He¡¯d been chipping away at it over time, but if he really wanted to right the balance then Thomas would have to be prepared. Just in case. Agreeing to Silora¡¯s deal would take that off the table, though.

    Nothing that could be solved now. He had time, and he had patients. Tak had, once again, torn himself to shreds. That the avianoid had survived the original wounds continued to amaze, for Thomas could guess at what he¡¯d looked like before Regeneration had put in its work. Gadriel was there too, less critical although driven past exhaustion by what had been described as fighting like a hurricane for an entire night. The analogy hadn¡¯t quite registered with the Cleric, but he knew Gadriel and what it must have taken to bring him to this point.

    So, he stayed near the tents where his injured friends rested and tried not to think about what the two others were about to do in another. Not for modesty¡¯s sake, but because even Thomas had lines he didn¡¯t cross.

    ¡­

    The request had come out of nowhere, and Daniel followed Evalyn with primarily a sense of confusion. This was disturbingly similar to that day back on the march. Twice-bitten, he was a little afraid of what would happen next. Time had brought him to a measure of peace with what had happened, but the scars were still there. He wouldn¡¯t have been worried at all if she wasn¡¯t being so cagey about what she wanted.

    Evalyn led Daniel into one of their tents. They¡¯d set up their camp on the rise of one of the dunes since the sleep schedules of themselves and the duskers were still off. Neither group wanted to disturb the other during their rest, and there had been no need for the team to place their tents right up against each other. It was a desert, they had space.

    The Bard sighed when the flaps closed behind Daniel with a hint of reluctance, tense. ¡°I wanted to ask you about something with the team,¡± Evalyn said carefully. Nervously.

    ¡°Ok?¡± Inwardly, Daniel sighed in relief as he realized his worst fears weren¡¯t being realized.

    She took another breath. ¡°We need to talk about who¡¯s leading this team. I think it should be me.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    Evalyn misread his reaction. ¡°I know, there¡¯s plenty of reasons it should be you.¡±

    ¡°I-¡± The truth was, Daniel hadn¡¯t even thought about a team leader, either it being him or needing one in general.

    ¡°You have telepathic communication with half the team, a high intelligence, and you can see the enemy at all times.¡± Evalyn was continuing with uncharacteristic unease. ¡°And you did well during that thunderstorm.¡±

    ¡°That was because of Murdon¡¯s power,¡± Daniel pointed out.

    ¡°Well, yes,¡± Evalyn conceded, oblivious to the fact that Daniel was making her case for her. ¡°Look, I know there¡¯s every reason for you to take point, and I don¡¯t want to make you feel like-¡±

    ¡°Yeah, no I got it. I agree.¡± She blinked. ¡°You¡¯re normally in the back and I just told Hunter today you have the most experience with this stuff, at least before the Upswell. I don¡¯t think I could coordinate with everyone at the same time, and honestly, I don¡¯t know if I have the head for it. Not when Murdon¡¯s not buffing me, at least.¡±

    ¡°And you¡¯re not saying that because, well,¡± Evalyn gestured to herself in general.

    Ooooooh. Daniel started to understand Evalyn¡¯s hesitancy. He also had to take a second to shake himself mentally. ¡°N-no. But you could probably charm me into agreeing with you if you wanted.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not!¡±

    ¡°I know, my phone would tell me. Look, when you¡¯re not doing sexy flips around a huge monster you¡¯re in a better position than I am to lead us. Besides Khare, you wouldn¡¯t have any problem getting us to go along with any plan you have.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to lead like that.¡± Evalyn¡¯s initially disheartened look at the suggestion turned into one of perturbed contemplation. ¡°Wait, what about Hunter?¡±

    Daniel recoiled, having not realized the mistake he¡¯d made. ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°I wasn¡¯t suggesting-¡±

    ¡°Just¡­ no.¡± That would be a bridge too far.

    Now that it was clear he agreed with her, Evalyn¡¯s confidence returned. ¡°What if he gets a power that lets him turn humanoid? He does have a charm-like power, I just might not be able to resist.¡±

    That kind of power would be really helpful, ignoring that image. ¡°Don¡¯t joke about that, please. I don¡¯t need you hitting me with any more mental attacks.¡±

    ¡°Fine,¡± she let the matter drop. ¡°Honestly, I wasn¡¯t sure how our team would work at first, tactically speaking. I hadn¡¯t imagined myself as a leader before and we are far from a normal composition. I just think out of all of us, I can do it.¡±

    ¡°Better than me?¡±

    ¡°Better than Khare at least.¡± She smiled. Daniel did too.

    ¡°Probably. With Tactician on board it seemed simple, but it fell apart as soon as I lost it. I think it¡¯s worth a shot. Having plans in place instead of everything going to hell like today.¡± His shoulder twinged and he put a hand to it. ¡°Ok, maybe you should be the leader.¡±

    This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    ¡°We¡¯ll have to ask the others and make sure they¡¯re ok with it. I just wanted to talk with you first. Given what¡¯s happened between us, I didn¡¯t want to bring this up first in front of everyone.¡± It was so odd. Evalyn was blushing. It could be an act or a power, but she also seemed generally off her game. ¡°I didn¡¯t want to make it seem like I charmed you into this decision. That¡¯s not who I am.¡±

    ¡°You literally charmed me the first second you saw me.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re too kind,¡± she responded evasively.

    ¡°No, I mean you-¡± She¡¯s messing with me. ¡°Yeah, yeah.¡± He was about to leave but his thoughts returned to what he originally assumed. Let¡¯s just get this out of the way. ¡°You know, when you first asked me here I thought-¡°

    ¡°Really?¡± She rolled her eyes and Daniel was relieved to find the outrage was sarcastic. ¡°I guess I can¡¯t blame you. You¡¯re not asking if-¡°

    ¡°No. It¡¯s too soon after, well, everything that happened and it¡¯d make things more complicated than they¡¯d need to be. Besides, if we go off how last time ended, doing anything will somehow lead to Tlara trying to kill me.¡±

    Evalyn laughed at that and Daniel smiled in return, able to feel comfortable alone with her now that they¡¯d cleared the air. ¡°Well, I guess we don¡¯t know where she is. Probably best to play it safe.¡± She held up a hand as Daniel turned to the tent flap. ¡°We could still talk for a bit if you¡¯d like. Everyone else is going to be busy.¡±

    Mind on the matter, Daniel also remembered the last time she¡¯d made this offer and found that he regretted not taking it. ¡°Sure.¡± Daniel took a seat in the sand, there being just enough space in the tent that he could do so without crossing onto Evalyn¡¯s bedroll. I wonder how things would have turned out if I¡¯d talked to her back then, too. No point in wondering. ¡°You mean about the team, or?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s something else I¡¯ve been afraid to ask you. You appeared here right after Eido disappeared. I¡¯ve told you this before, but, my family was¡­¡±

    ¡°I know, I¡¯m sorry,¡± Daniel said, guessing where she was going with this. ¡°I didn¡¯t see everything, but I don¡¯t think anyone without powers could have survived if they¡¯d ended up on one of those islands.¡±

    ¡°What about Eido itself, is there any chance it could still be somewhere?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think so. When Rorshawd had taken me over in the mines, the last thing he remembered was a huge explosion. Even if the Spoke there wasn¡¯t destroyed, I don¡¯t see how anyone else could have survived.¡±

    Evalyn was quiet for a moment before she put a hand over her chest as if feeling her heartbeat. ¡°I know all of that, but still.¡± She looked him in the eyes. ¡°I wasn¡¯t sure before, but I can¡¯t deny it now. My sister is still alive.¡±

    ¡­

    Hunter picked his head up, noticing the change in the wind, and willed the two nearby lights to wink out. From what he sensed there wasn¡¯t anything happening that Daniel would want him to screen out, but at the same time it seemed like a private moment. It was odd how he was getting a better sense of how the mortals related to each other. The second Growth that had set the foundation for him to advance had come with other ¡®benefits¡¯ as well.

    Bad thoughts. Hunter shook himself, coming to a stand. He was tired, and stripped of his armor for that reason. It felt good. Bearing the weight of the metal wasn¡¯t too much for his sturdy frame, but it was still restrictive. It was something that had only added to how uncomfortable being within the city had been. Now they were out, and they would be out for some time. That was good, even if it made Daniel uneasy at times. It hurt Hunter, the differences that had come to light between them and the glimpses of Daniel¡¯s emotions that showed the Artificer wasn¡¯t entirely approving of the bond he and Tak had. Not that he was strongly opposed, of course, but something was creeping in the back of his heart that had yet to be fully uprooted.

    Bad thoughts. Should he talk about them with Tak? No, the Totem Warrior was resting now to heal. That was another thing weighing on him. The change that rarely affected the avianoid worried Hunter. Tak was a competent fighter, on Hunter¡¯s level, but when he changed he became too reckless. If Hunter fought like that terrible thing, then maybe Daniel would have been right in fearing for him when they first hunted together. The change included more protection, but only to a point. Hunter had been aware enough to notice when the feral Tak had become more defensive, dashing his hopes that Tak couldn¡¯t be killed like that. And they weren¡¯t telling him. Not yet, it would be a team discussion after everyone had recovered.

    No Tak. No Daniel. Thomas might be free soon, but Hunter felt no impulse to interact with the Cleric. No energy to hunt. Bored, Hunter realized. For a moment that he would never admit to Daniel, he wished he could put on the wings and fly. The harness underneath the armor did cut into him painfully as gravity pressed him against it, but those wounds healed quickly and it truly was a unique experience. None of his kind ever flew unless they were very foolish. Not having much else to do, Hunter decided to go for it. He¡¯d just have to make sure Daniel never learned about it.

    Hunter searched with his nose and found Khare. The plant matter of their form had a different scent to the relatively blank canvas of sand they were currently nestled in. Even in a forested region, the sap that occasionally spilled through the friction of crossing vines was unique to each gestalt. Hunter, in that way, had a tremendous advantage in distinguishing them that Daniel hadn¡¯t fully realized. Identify Creature did it anyway and Hunter had never needed to tell him.

    The gestalt was under the earth, making the scent very faint but still there. They were advancing? Hunter wasn¡¯t sure, what he knew of the process had been added to his mind suddenly. Alien knowledge, and Daniel had spoken of how he suspected it was different for the gestalt.

    Finding Khare was easy. Getting the gestalt to understand was another matter. Hunter spoke quietly, cautious of the insectoid denizens of the nearby village. They were mostly asleep, but there was the one in the tower with honed senses. ¡°Uhm.¡± Hunter paused as the mass of vines snaked from wherever it had been beneath the sands to stand in front of him. They had never really talked, had they? This feeling was something else new, like boredom. Daniel had talked about it. Awkwardness?

    Hunter needed help, and from someone he didn¡¯t know well. Daniel had a way of handling Khare that he was aware of, but hadn¡¯t understood. There must have been something else to the random words they threw out. ¡°Susurrus?¡± Hunter furrowed his eyebrows at Khare¡¯s reply. What did that word even mean?

    ¡°Could, could you-¡± The words dried up in Hunter¡¯s throat. He was a strong warrior. A night hunter, a predator. No other of his kind was like him. Unique. But he didn¡¯t have thumbs or prehensile vines. Khare could have both, and that wasn¡¯t fair. ¡°The armor. And wings.¡±

    It took effort for Khare to blink. Normally they didn¡¯t have noticeable eyes, and even in an assumed humanoid form there were just hardened masses of plant matter that took the place of normal ones. Manipulating their face to have sheaths that could cross over the orbs took additional effort, although Khare had noticed the maneuver occurred during the conversations of other mortals and had started to reason when it was an appropriate response. Non-verbal communication was one of the few ways gestalt could improve. Khare had every reason to, especially now that they were traveling with other species. So, they blinked in confusion. Hunter had just done it so this was probably appropriate. ¡°Reply?¡± Khare wasn¡¯t sure what to say. They had, in fact, never talked to Hunter before. Not alone at least.

    ¡°I-¡± Hunter was unsure. And reluctant to say what he wanted. Fighting against the giant lizard earlier today had been stressful, life-threatening, but it was something Hunter was made for. This was completely out of his comfort zone. ¡°Can you put on the armor? And wings. Everyone else is busy.¡± The fur along his back rippled. Ringcats did not need a physiological response to social anxiety, so the normal anxiety response was co-opted. ¡°You don¡¯t have to.¡±

    Khare held out a hand. Larger and smaller vines intermixed to give a rough facsimile of a real hand, but it wasn¡¯t perfect. They pointed to Hunter¡¯s back, noticing and misreading the emotion. ¡°Armor?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± Hunter sighed in relief. ¡°And wings. Do you have them?¡±

    The Martialist knew something was going on. Hunter was moving stealthily, hackles raised. Was there a threat nearby? Why was Hunter asking about the lightning wings? Daniel normally wore them when they went hunting. Shouldn¡¯t they warn the others? Khare was going to advance tonight, but if there was danger, they¡¯d be needed. They hadn¡¯t done much in the fight. If Kob had been there, or if Khare was strong enough for their inheritance, that would be different. But they weren¡¯t ready. Not yet. And for some reason, Khare didn¡¯t think there was danger. Hunter needed help, and they wanted to if they could.

    Khare reached inside themselves to where Hunter¡¯s armor was disassembled and piled. Carrying it anywhere other than on the ringcat was problematic due to its size and weight. It did take a good portion of their interior space which would be annoying if it didn¡¯t mean Khare was being useful. Khare had caught something from the conversation on the way back of that not being an issue anymore, but like most times they hadn¡¯t gotten the full picture. Their team tried to keep them in the loop when it came to plans, but it was difficult sometimes, even with Daniel and the bond they¡¯d formed. That was the reason, one of the reasons, that gestalt rarely mixed with other species in hunting teams. In any kind of team, really. It was rare, special, and Khare wanted to hold on to this for as long as they could.

    Khare shifted over, vines reaching inside to grab pieces of armor as they went. They were skilled in managing multiple weapons at once, so this task was hardly a challenge. They could put on the armor in under half a minute, far faster than if Daniel and Hunter had to do it alone. Maybe if Hunter would willingly enter the space within them, Khare could manage it in seconds, but he¡¯d yet to do so.

    A vine accidentally traced over the small wooden turtle next to where the armor was in their Mobile Armory, and Khare was reminded of Kob again. A lot reminded Khare of Kob. The Berserker was their progenitor. The way gestalt furthered their species was wholly separate from the others, another mark of unwanted distinction. Another divide. Kob had been everything. Mentor, parent, guardian. Savior, in the last moments of their life. They had made mistakes, but they had been everything, a will taller than mountains that had been the inspiration of their species.

    Now they were gone. Unnoticed by any other, one of Khare¡¯s vines wrapped around the turtle hidden deep within themselves as they finished attaching the wings. ¡°Satisfied?¡± they asked distantly.

    ¡°Yes.¡± Hunter looked to his back, feeling a couple of points of pressure from where the armor had shifted to accommodate the wings. Daniel had done very well in designing his armor but had not done a perfect job when it came to comfort. ¡°Thank you,¡± Hunter added lowly, grasping for a way he could repay the favor.

    Khare didn¡¯t eat, not in any way Hunter had seen. The blank, alien appearance of the one unsettled him because Hunter could not tell if gratitude was expected. Both because of that, and his marked unfamiliarity with all social graces. All he understood were favors and debts, and that was from what he owed Daniel. What he still owed Daniel. Everything. This debt to Khare was nothing in comparison, but it was still there. ¡°Do you-¡± Hunter paused again, more nervous than even Daniel had been when they¡¯d first traveled together. ¡°I will jump. Far up. Do you want to join?¡±

    Khare blinked again, this time in surprise. It was a handy expression. ¡°Fly?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Khare considered this for a moment and then nodded. Even with their goals and their promise, they could hold off advancing for tonight. The ringcat did stiffen uncomfortably as Khare took a spot on his back, using the hybrid form they had gained to better anchor themself. They could probably survive any fall at this point, there not being as much in their body to be damaged by that. Still, Khare had no desire to find out.

    Hunter glanced at the distant tent, uncertain. It would be trouble if Daniel saw him now, but that was unlikely. And he¡¯d already offered. Hunter knew you didn¡¯t go back on something like this. Instead, his legs tensed, preparing. Hunter could combine Jump with this item like Daniel to rapidly gain height, more than anyone other than Tak could. He released the tension within him, triggering the wings at the same time. The beam of light trailed behind him, taking Hunter and his passenger high enough that the peaks of the dunes almost flattened out. So far Hunter could almost see the thing he wanted more than anything else in this world. Freedom.

    ¡­

    Vtidi, the old dusker who guarded the village during the day, had observed with some interest the interactions of the visiting hunters. He was bored too. It was the least of his workplace hazards. He¡¯d taken a special interest in the goings on of the Bard over the weeks they¡¯d been here in the same way the city guard of Aughal had once gossiped about Kelra and Jeras. It was the makings of a scandal if the actions of that Cleric in his tower earlier were anything to go by. That was the way of the class though, an anvil upon which broken hearts were forged.

    Then there was the beast that traveled with them, and the plant. That wasn¡¯t the right word for them, but it was better than what others less charitably called the people of the earth. Weeds. There were other words for his kind as well, the inventiveness and vindictiveness of others not lacking in that regard.

    As for the ringcat, Vtidi had no bearing on it. You didn¡¯t get that kind of monster here, not normally. He¡¯d seen only a handful, and mostly slain ones brought in from a hunt. Nothing like that one. He watched as the plant replaced the armor, and then added the wings to the back. Huh, wasn¡¯t that a thing. Vtidi would never have guessed-

    The dusker fell backward as a column of light erupted from the wings, angled oddly out the back at first then straight down. Not out of surprise, but fear. Duskers had a fatal weakness and a sense keen enough to avoid it. It was a burning sensation felt when their cover from the sun was at the threshold of inadequacy. What that device summoned forth gave him a similar sensation.

    Death. Instant death, without remorse or reprisal. He would have been dead, should have been dead, if not for the travel armor he wore as the custom of the day guard. If that had been activated at night when the village was unaware¡­ Vtidi hardened at the thought as the burning faded with the light. He needed to speak with Xtalo. Despite Khiat¡¯s situation being still unresolved, this matter could not be left unaddressed.

    ¡­

    Another witnessed the flight. Not from the village, but nearby. Like Vtidi he was distressed, though for different reasons. ¡°By the fundaments, what is that?¡± Calius uttered the oath, his attention now fully on the ringcat and gestalt that had only registered in his peripheral mind before. Neither should have mattered, and they didn¡¯t, not until both rocketed up into the sky. His eyes fixed on them both, hundreds of meters up in the air, trying to comprehend what he was seeing.

    Armor? And some kind of device off the back. Calius¡¯ gaze broke through more than distance, and he peered into the make of these two creatures. What he saw, or more accurately, what he didn¡¯t see, gave him pause. Was this what he was looking for? His hand reached for the scepter at his side, then stayed. Haste would not serve him here. There was still time to make a more thorough investigation.

    He assumed the blank facade once more and only looked up briefly on occasion to the floating pair. He was here for a reason. A favor. ¡°Thomas Kaysian of the Hand,¡± Calius intoned dustily. The Cleric, who had been sitting down to watch the flying ringcat, started. He hadn¡¯t noticed Calius¡¯ approach.

    ¡°Wha.¡± Thomas spun around, blinking at the symbol of a cloak stitched into Calius¡¯ shirt. The older man allowed his mana flow to extend slightly, the potent reserves spilling out as they leaked like water from a pressurized, porous container not made to contain it. The effect was like the pulse of mana from a mid-tier ability, only constant. Buffeting, a show of force. There was instant deference, and nervous tension, in the younger Cleric. He knew now who this was. ¡°You, I, uh, I am. I am honored. Who-¡±

    ¡°I am Calius Thatch, of the Cloak.¡± The older man smiled. ¡°I am the answer to your prayer.¡±

 Chapter 118: The Heart of the Problem

    ¡°You think they¡¯re alive?¡± Daniel asked, the two having not noticed any of the developments around them.

    ¡°Emily, at least,¡± Evalyn answered with a whisper tainted with fear as if her hopes were moments from being dashed. ¡°My parents, I don¡¯t know. But if she wasn¡¯t with them, she¡¯d have gone to one of the villages and made it to us. She¡¯s only fifteen, without a class there¡¯s no way she would have survived by herself.¡±

    Still thinking through the ramifications of what she was suggesting, Daniel hit upon something. ¡°Is that why you charmed me in the library?¡±

    ¡°Well,¡± she looked away. ¡°I thought I¡¯d be dealing with the librarian. All I knew was that they were level 3. By the time the ability affected you, I realized you were weak enough that it fully hit you. I was in a bad place, we all were. The first day afterward was the worst of my life. I wasn¡¯t supposed to be out of Eido but¡­¡± she trailed off, forlorn. Daniel knew she¡¯d lost people in the disaster, but only now could appreciate what it had cost her.

    ¡°Do you want to talk about it?¡±

    ¡°No. But if it¡¯s important,¡± she grimaced. ¡°It was a fight. My parents weren¡¯t exactly thrilled I turned out to be a Bard. When they heard I was awakening with charisma, I knew they were hoping for Hero. That¡¯s just not how it turned out. They were happy, of course, but disappointed and-¡± She searched for a word. ¡°Skeptical. Everyone knows the kind of life Bards tend to have. Then there was the monster hunting. I¡¯d trapped them. If I wanted to advance I¡¯d have to pursue one of two paths they weren¡¯t excited about.¡±

    Daniel didn¡¯t want to derail the conversation but was helpless against his curiosity. ¡°Bards are music-based too, right? Could you have advanced by becoming a performer?¡±

    She eyed him thoughtfully, considered rebuking the question, and shook her head. ¡°Not quickly. Some in Threst do it that way but I haven¡¯t heard of any that get past level 2. I think I¡¯ve only advanced once from playing. I wanted it all, everything.¡± She spread her arms out and then brought them back together, still with a sad look on her face. ¡°You didn¡¯t grow up here and I¡¯m still realizing how different that makes you. The people who fight back against the Crest, who protect others, are the noblest of us. The best. No one can advance to the highest levels unless they fight against the Crest itself, securing what becomes the new regions.¡±

    ¡°I can see why your parents thought you¡¯d be a Hero.¡±

    Evalyn snorted at that. ¡°Gods no.¡±

    ¡°You still don¡¯t like them?¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s,¡± She shook her head again and returned to her story. ¡°We had another fight. They tried to convince me to take a break. The Spoke was being finished and they thought that would be a good excuse to at least slow down. I didn¡¯t, we argued, I left. I wasn¡¯t part of a team officially, I just signed up as support for individual hunts. There were a few teams that I liked but I never found one I clicked with.¡± She sighed, pulling herself together and getting back to the painful memories. ¡°That was the day before it happened. I saw the city disappear, the flash at least. Gone in a moment. I¡¯d hoped they¡¯d followed after me, and when I heard everyone was moving to Hagain I thought I¡¯d find them there. But they weren¡¯t. Yet, I still feel Emily¡¯s heartbeat. I thought I was imagining it, and I was already pushing everything down just to get through.¡±

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell anyone? Why wait until now?¡±

    Evalyn¡¯s voice broke. ¡°Because I¡¯m still afraid I¡¯m wrong. What could have happened to them if they didn¡¯t just¡­ I didn¡¯t think there was any hope, not until I met someone who could do the impossible.¡± She nodded towards him. ¡°If someone like you can exist, what does that mean for Emily? For my parents, for everyone that was in Eido? Could they have gone to another world like you did? Would they be ok?¡±

    Already considering much, Daniel reeled at that implication. ¡°Wha, they¡¯d¡­¡± How high-level was the previous Commander again? ¡°I have no idea. If they just switched places with me, dang.¡± Daniel¡¯s face dropped at the thought of a city appearing overtop of an apartment block. He hurriedly made to reassure Evalyn who had noticed. ¡°They¡¯d probably be fine! Hell, they could probably take over the country if they wanted to. Maybe the world? I¡¯d honestly be more worried about my people. If it was the middle of an ocean or Australia they could be in trouble, but they have magic. As long as the people with classes didn¡¯t abandon everyone else they should be fine.¡±

    ¡°Do you think that¡¯s possible, then?¡±

    Daniel laughed. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t know. Half of the stuff that happens every day is beyond what I thought was possible. Sure? But I can¡¯t tell you that¡¯s what happened. There¡¯s at least two worlds out there, maybe they¡¯re on a completely different one.¡± Evalyn didn¡¯t look comforted by that prospect. ¡°I don¡¯t think anyone can tell you what happened to them, but we should tell people. Lograve, at least, only he¡¯s not here. Thomas maybe?¡±

    ¡°Did I wait too long?¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Daniel replied instantly. ¡°What could we have done? What can we do? The only thing I can think of is to pass along the message that Eido could still be somewhere to the gods and let them handle it, which is already taking a while here. We just have to let Lograve know about it before the Council is back in session or whatever.¡± Evalyn did look a little relieved with that. ¡°I wish I could identify your bond. It¡¯s like that stuff is an exception to my Encyclopedia. Maybe it¡¯s a benefit I get at level 3?¡±

    Daniel almost jumped as Evalyn made her way over to him, though she paused just before completing the hug, waiting for him to reciprocate. The two embraced, and Daniel could feel Evalyn¡¯s tears as they crossed onto his shoulder. She¡¯s been keeping this bottled up this whole time, he realized. Did no one see it?

    Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

    Evalyn returned to her side of the tent at some point, wiping away the last of her tears. ¡°Sorry.¡±

    ¡°For what? I¡¯m glad you told me. When you¡¯re ready, you should tell the others. That¡¯s what we¡¯re here for, team leader.¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°I make no promises. I must see her first,¡± Calius said, the duskers in front of him carrying on every word.

    ¡°She is unwell.¡± Xtalo, the father, didn¡¯t elaborate further, unwilling to address his daughter¡¯s ills publicly even if it was in front of the one who could save her.

    ¡°Ah. I will make my own judgment.¡± The Cleric looked towards the tent that led to where Khiat was but didn¡¯t immediately make his way there. ¡°Surely, you are aware of my church and the perceptions of it.¡± Even the young Cleric of the Hand stiffened at that, caught by the doubt they must be feeling no matter how small. ¡°Misconceptions or not, you all may be at ease. My church labors very hard to make sure our image is what we desire it to be.¡±

    ¡°Honored uhm,¡± Xtalo, normally firm in himself despite never having advanced, stumbled over how to address the Cleric. He settled on how the man had introduced himself. ¡°Cleric Calius Thatch of the Cloak, what is it you want to do?¡±

    ¡°I cannot truly remove whatever blights her mind, though I would hope my colleague here would hesitate to use such an option when he reaches my level. My talents are many, and I may have a better way.¡± Calius held up a hand to forestall conversation as his eyes moved. ¡°I can see much already, but my work would be best done in person. If you want me to help, you will need to show me to her.¡±

    There was the smallest amount of motion on Xtalo¡¯s face, the retracting of some of the chitinous plates on his chin, before he nodded. ¡°She is this way.¡± The duskers led him into the dwelling, and he alone now stood before the stricken dusker.

    Calius Thatch devoted more than his normal division of attention to any singular being to the one huddled in the corner of the dark room. One of the reasons he was here, but not the only one. He¡¯d taken time to get a better measure of the people of the village and had seen what was happening. His true aim was either among them or had been for some time.

    This woman was a casualty of the aberrant influence. Calius didn¡¯t know exactly what he was looking for, be it a Tyrant, a relic, or something else. Either way, it was definitely outside the boundaries of what mortals should possess, and the proximity to the Thormundz was troubling. As that part of his mind wandered, another diagnosed. The mana flow in the young dusker was dire, though just past the point of normalcy when a tranquil sea became first turbulent and began to flow.

    There were secrets of mana and classes not known to the common people, as there were secrets of many things. Only those who reached where Calius ostentatiously was, where the seventh sense extended to provide greater understanding, could reach the point where they could uncover that themselves. Calius hadn¡¯t needed to do so, and neither did he struggle with his investigation into Khiat¡¯s woes.

    Someone had interfered with both her class awakening, and the acquisition of her first power. Calius read the archetypes within the young dusker and frowned when he didn¡¯t see the one that should be there among the other five. Missing that had caused an exception that must have prompted the Octyrrum to assign a rare class. That alone wouldn¡¯t have led to this issue, but the young dusker had then received a power in conflict with her soul that had been identified before a power evolution could take place.

    There was a concept of Daniel¡¯s world that would appropriately apply, though even he didn¡¯t understand it well. A thing of quantum mechanics, not that those principles explicitly applied in their fullness to magic. Simply put, it was a matter of observation. Someone had identified the first power this girl had received far too early, setting it in stone. She wasn¡¯t advanced enough to feel the mana roiling within her as it was forced to flow through a path she intrinsically rejected. The secondary effects though, those she felt as the inherent antipathy of her will and mana made itself known. The Cleric of the Hand had been right to ask for help.

    Calius walked into the common room which was packed despite being spacious, Khiat not having moved the entire time he was there. ¡°I¡¯ve silenced the room,¡± he said gravely. ¡°We can discuss here without her overhearing. Or others.¡± The father and mother bowed their heads, most of the others in the family doing the same. No one interrupted him here.

    ¡°The specifics involve knowledge best not spread widely,¡± Calius continued carefully in the silence. ¡°It is not the practice of my church to be revealing, so I will speak plainly and only of that which you need to know. The child¡¯s class is killing her. She has two days, to my eye. Beyond that and my intervention is meaningless. The only hope would be someone with Resurrection and-¡± Ah, a secret, he thought amidst his explanation, catching Thomas¡¯ minute reaction, ¡°It would be unlikely any who possessed such a power would come to your aid.¡±

    Not a lie, not technically. Unlike someone Calius was in no way affiliated with, he did not speak the truth out of principle, but because he valued lies. He was a man who spent mistruths and budgeted wisely. ¡°Neither is my intervention harmless. There are many illusion powers I can call upon, several of which are relevant here. What I would suggest is Unidentifying everything she knows about her class, memories included.¡±

    ¡°What does that mean?¡± Achia finally spoke for her family. Calius winced, only slightly, and only internally, as he remembered he¡¯d said he¡¯d speak plainly. Even people at the level of Calius made mistakes. Arrogance and complacency could be strong poisons no matter how well one guarded against them.

    ¡°I would be concealing everything she knows about her class. Not removing her knowledge of the events, but hiding it,¡± Calius clarified, taking pains to simplify his words and draw more of the disparate fractions of his mind together again. ¡°Only someone of my power could unseal these memories, and it would be unlikely that she would come across someone with the strength and ability to do so.¡± More of the truth this time, but fragments of lies strewn about. Misdirection and omission primarily, though he kept what was important unsullied. ¡°She could be told of what had happened after the fact and understand, but still not remember. In all regards, it would be as if the time that has passed since attaining her class hadn¡¯t happened. She will revert to who she was then. This isn¡¯t a long time to erase, from what I have seen, and that is fortunate. Still, she may no longer advance and she would not be able to use any powers she¡¯s attained.¡±

    ¡°This will make Khiat lose her class?¡± Xtalo asked numbly.

    ¡°Yes.¡± Another lie, though in this case it was because they hadn¡¯t understood the truth. Going into a discussion on mana mechanics would only make the situation worse. ¡°This will not affect her lifespan in any way, although she will suffer from what level disparity she currently has. The least I can say is it will be a kinder existence than the one she has now.¡± He saw the conflict in those in front of him and sighed. ¡°I don¡¯t need to act now. For her sake, it should be done before tomorrow¡¯s end. She¡¯d live longer than that, but at some point, the damage to her soul will become greater than what I can reverse.¡±

    ¡°Gods.¡± The mother collapsed slightly into herself, bringing her below the height of the others.

    Calius sighed and dismissed the effect blocking sound from traveling out of the room. The girl should hear this too. ¡°One day. If you decide at any point before then I can act. If you do not, I fear the Hourglass will for you. He is never merciful.¡±

 Chapter 119: Bridge Space

    The next morning found Daniel sitting in the shade, practicing with his talons. He felt good, even if the villagers had made their complaint about his wings amidst the chaos of the foreign Cleric¡¯s arrival. That the light his wings summoned was toxic to duskers was problematic. If he¡¯d used them the first night he arrived there might have been a tragedy. But that hadn¡¯t happened, and now he knew. He knew that, and that Hunter secretly liked using them. Daniel was never going to let him live that down.

    ¡°Sir Artificer.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, Gadriel?¡± Daniel asked, looking behind him to see the recovering Hero was standing unsteadily. They had ended up needing to drag him back to the village, though whether it was that or the stress of fighting the level 4 which had left him drained Daniel didn¡¯t know.

    ¡°You and the Bard. I have heard rumors.¡±

    Gadriel broaching the topic took Daniel by surprise. ¡°If it¡¯s Thomas, tell him he¡¯s wrong. I wouldn¡¯t talk about it even if nothing had happened.¡±

    ¡°Of course.¡± Gadriel took the point and dropped the matter, moving to the other thing he¡¯d wanted to ask. ¡°The Assassin. The dusker. I have also heard she ails? It seems that powerful Cleric has come to restore her.¡±

    ¡°If you could call it that,¡± Daniel commented, having heard from Thomas the choice the village was facing earlier that morning. His smile faded. ¡°I can¡¯t believe they have to take her class. I thought if you didn¡¯t want a power it¡¯d switch into another one.¡±

    ¡°I cannot speak to that, but the situation is regrettable. Though, perhaps it is for the best? She may yet live a normal life.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s sad though. They were all so happy about her getting a class until they found out which one. Everyone¡¯s tried to talk to her.¡± He looked back to Gadriel. ¡°Wait, you should try!¡±

    ¡°Me?¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡± Daniel stood up, struck by the idea. ¡°You¡¯re like an idol to her. It¡¯s not like anyone else has a better idea.¡±

    Gadriel gave Daniel an odd look. ¡°If I recall correctly, my last attempt at a motivating speech was ineffective.¡±

    ¡°Well,¡± Daniel scratched at his head. ¡°She¡¯s going to be mind wiped if everything else fails, so what¡¯s the harm?¡±

    ¡°I would remember yet another failure,¡± Gadriel said, more to raise the concern than to shoot down the idea.

    ¡°So, you¡¯re afraid of failure?¡± Gadriel very lightly glared at him, and Daniel was reminded of a time they weren¡¯t on good terms. ¡°Please? I heard what that Cleric¡¯s been saying and I have an idea of what went wrong. I could be mistaken, but if I¡¯m not, I could be responsible.¡±

    ¡°How?¡±

    I don¡¯t have a good enough idea yet to say, Daniel thought, not fully at a conclusion. ¡°It¡¯s, look, just see her? No one else has been able to get her to move, but if you were there she might open up.¡±

    Gadriel looked down to his shield arm. If he was doing anything with that hand, Daniel couldn¡¯t see. Even recovering the Hero was outfitted in full, if battle damaged gear. ¡°I will take this charge, then. Though I make no promise, and may only act if my presence is acceded to.¡±

    ¡°Dude, look at yourself. I think they¡¯ll let you in.¡± Daniel watched as Gadriel nodded, and set out for the oasis. Despite his words he doubted Gadriel would make a difference, but felt better about trying. Even if that was through someone else. If he had locked Khiat¡¯s power in by identifying it, then this was his fault. But how could he have known? Someone had Unidentified the knowledge that could have prevented that mistake, so they were who was truly to blame.

    He sat back down, flexing his hands. Progress in training his seventh sense was going well. Really well, if only for the talon ability. Where before there was just an idea of the mana within him and the relative level, he could now feel a tingling flow rush down his arms to concentrate in his hands. Were he more unfortunate he might have compared the feeling to brief nerve pain, but the sensation wasn¡¯t unpleasant.

    Today, there was an unexpected development. Initially, he¡¯d felt the mana flow first in his hands where it concentrated. As he¡¯d improved the sensation had spread up his arms. He¡¯d finally become sensitive enough to reach his chest and now realized the mana was coming from his heart. That seemed almost too symbolic to Daniel. An easy answer, the thing everyone would guess mana came from. Well, that or the brain.

    But there was something more there, a thing that became more present as he continued the cyclical use of his ability. It, too, was cyclical, a circular flow of mana surrounding the part of his chest where his mana lay. Whenever he used his talons it would flow along that path first in a very specific pattern before taking a more random and scattered approach to his shoulders. What¡¯s more, mana never went towards his heart through the pattern. It was like a one-way gate. Compared to what was more obviously associated with his abilities, this seemed artificial.

    Whatever it was, it gave off a very faint mana signature. Since the whole point was to attune the sense, and because he was curious, Daniel began focusing on that while he repeated his power. Like a hypnotic spiral, it drew him into a more and more concentrated state, rewarding his focus with an intensification of the feeling.

    The world around him grew darker and darker as his mind entertained only the flow of the mana, growing to a point where he truly was mesmerized by the process. No one interrupted him, knowing what he was doing and not being able to understand what was happening. Perhaps Calius could have intervened, if the Cleric wasn¡¯t busy at that moment. But no one stopped him, and when Daniel¡¯s mind did wrest from the pattern, he was no longer sitting, and he was no longer in the desert.

    ¡­

    ¡°Hero.¡±

    ¡°Cleric,¡± Gadriel bowed slightly, words deferential, to the matter-of-fact statement of Calius. ¡°I would humbly request access to the one under your care.¡±

    Calius, who was sitting in a shaded spot by the entrance to Khiat¡¯s abode, did not look surprised by the request. He¡¯d heard the earlier exchange, including the part about the Artificer identifying Khiat¡¯s ability. One piece of the puzzle, though not the entire picture. ¡°What is it you intend to do?¡±

    ¡°I admit my aim is simply to try. It is better my effort is expended fruitlessly than that I reserve what may assist her.¡±

    Calius coughed lightly. ¡°There is nothing you can do. Not at your level, even if you have an interesting attribute array and some curious powers.¡±

    ¡°You can sense this?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± Calius turned a critical eye to the Hero. ¡°You have what it takes. I have no doubt you know my meaning. In fact, I¡¯m sure you already knew that even if you don¡¯t know why.¡±

    ¡°Do you?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± Gadriel paused, but Calius was not more forthcoming. The Cleric did eventually say, ¡°Well then, try Hero, and pray that you didn¡¯t make a Quest out of this task for you will fail. She is intrinsically at odds with herself. Perhaps if a god were here there would be another way, but perhaps not. The soul is immutable.¡±

    ¡°It would not be becoming of me to prove you wrong. If it is all the same, Cleric of the Cloak, I will still try.¡± In an almost theatrical way, Calius beckoned him towards the tent that guarded the abode¡¯s entrance from the sun. Entering, he found both Xtalo and Achia awake in the main chamber. Neither talking, both thinking. Dreading. Gadriel looked around and did not immediately know where Khiat was, seeing as none of the beds in the dwelling could be seen from the front door frame. ¡°I am Gadriel Cross,¡± he introduced himself. ¡°I have come to offer any assistance that I may.¡±

    Both moved at his words, Xtalo speaking lowly. ¡°I remember you. What my daughter thought of you. Seeing you now, I don¡¯t know if that¡¯s the best idea.¡±

    Were the circumstances any different, Gadriel would have honored the opinion. ¡°Humbly, I ask if any of this matters should the Cleric be needed.¡± The two duskers exchanged a glance, before nodding.

    ¡°Do whatever it is you intend, then. So long as it does not harm her. But I don¡¯t know if you can do anything.¡± Gadriel didn¡¯t have it in him to reassure the man. Neither did he know which path to take, until Achia noticed his hesitancy and gestured to an opening.

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    ¡°We will wait here. Please, if there is anything you could do, do it.¡±

    ¡°I promise only that I shall try.¡± Would that be enough? And for who? Was he just here to prove to these people that there truly was no other way? Well, if that would spare them further grief, that was enough.

    The room was dark. There wasn¡¯t a source of light at all within the dwelling. Gadriel could navigate due to the improved night vision of his level, a passive effect of his wisdom rather than a power. Even so, the figure huddled in the corner blended into the wall at first. Only when he was halfway into the room did Gadriel make her out. A foreboding sense, which did come from one of his powers, indicated a potential threat then. From above? Below? No, it is her. ¡°Khiat of the duskers. I am here.¡± What else was there to say?

    ¡­

    The flow of mana around his heart did not entirely abate after each use of his ability. Small at first, small enough to not be noticed, it eventually became clear that a small amount of power was being siphoned into the circuit. If Daniel hadn¡¯t continually chained an ability this stolen mana would bleed off and become unnoticeable again. Unbeknownst to him, powers that required an active flow of mana such as Moment of Clarity would also override the circuit as the mana tethered from source to target. Only repeated uses of a short-acting ability in quick succession could have completed the circuit, much like how an old lawn mower had to be started.

    After being wrapped up in his seventh sense, the loss of that focus struck Daniel before his surroundings did. It was something like waking up after passing out and mistaking reality for a dream. It didn¡¯t take long to realize the air was no longer hot, and no longer carried a very slight gritty sensation. He was standing, holding the position without thinking, and that was it. That was all there was to this place, for as far as he could see there was darkness.

    Daniel tried a few ways, ranging from rubbing his eyes to pinching himself, to make sure what was happening was real. It wasn¡¯t until he tried, and failed, to contact Hunter that he began to believe something was wrong. This was just like the floating island all over again, except now there was no way forward. Claustrophobia from complete emptiness. Panic. For a moment, then the fear wasn¡¯t as sharp as it had been. Daniel tried to call upon one of his powers and found that too was out of his reach. Is this some kind of out of bounds area? Am I stuck here? Damn it, why did I have to charge whatever that was.

    He tried to control his breathing and succeeded only in not hyperventilating. Whether it was his experience or magically heightened wisdom, Daniel was doing better than he would have otherwise. That would only last so long. ¡°Hello? Hello!?¡± No answer. Panic again, clawing up to reach for his mind. What is this?

    ¡­

    The room was about the size of a classroom, bigger than most though it made for a poor apartment when you spent most of your time there. The bunker was built way out of the way, with an unmarked service road the only method to get to it. He had spent three whole months here alone before there¡¯d been any sign that it had worked, and without regular internet access it had quickly gotten boring. There was a reason for this, though, and he¡¯d persisted.

    Then, one day, the monitors had turned on. Everything had happened as the instructions had said, at least at the start. There should have been more, he felt, but all there¡¯d been was that initial letter. Surely he should have been warned about what he was getting himself into. And yet, despite every tense near-death moment, hope was still alive.

    Things had been looking up, getting better on the other side. Yesterday had been a gut-clencher, but they¡¯d gotten through it alright and even managed to get a recipe for a classic magical item out of it. If the one in the room was honest, he was looking forward to seeing how that would turn out. He¡¯d been about to try and pick up nearby conversations during the current meditation stretch when something impossible happened.

    A window facing nothing had flicked on like it was a monitor. It covered most of one wall and was something he¡¯d been firmly instructed not to touch, just like the internals and wiring of the computers. More than anything, he knew this shouldn¡¯t be happening. The first letter had explicitly told him he¡¯d learn more about Bridge Space before it was activated, and yet, there he was.

    The tablet next to the window lit up in the next moment displaying controls and an initial tooltip of a tutorial for its functions. It seemed he could control what parts of the room were visible on the other side, which was none by default. Taking a deep breath, he considered whether he should do anything. This wasn¡¯t according to plan, but he couldn¡¯t pass up this opportunity. He just had to be careful. Preparing for the worst, Daniel made himself visible. This is not going to be fun.

    ¡­

    The image appeared before Daniel from the ground up, as if a curtain of invisibility was being drawn away to reveal what was behind. Maybe that¡¯s what had happened, but that still left one point of confusion.

    ¡°Uh, what?¡± The first impression of it being some strange mirror was ruled out as the copy of himself Daniel saw didn¡¯t match his movements. Neither was he dressed the same nor did the image carry any weapons. The replica looked normal. Like actual normal, as if Daniel had never left Earth. It was moving too, breathing out of sync with him. The presence of this image completely confused him. Is this just some illusion, all of it? That was a comforting thought, since a very skilled illusion Cleric had just come into town.

    ¡°Ok, I get it,¡± Daniel said, startling the image of himself in front of him. ¡°I¡¯m going to assume this is just a prank?¡± The copy, suspended just like him in darkness, reacted as if that wasn¡¯t what he was expecting to hear. As if it could have expected to hear anything. Ok, that¡¯s a little confusing.

    ¡°Sorry, what?¡± the other asked with his voice. The image was so real, it was hard to believe it was fake. But it had to be.

    ¡°I¡¯m assuming that by talking to you the Cleric can hear me? Or that you¡¯re him and just acting like me,¡± Daniel explained to the nonplussed clone. ¡°Look, you got me. I really was freaked out, but you can call off the illusion. Or,¡± he paused. ¡°Tell me what you want if this isn¡¯t just a prank.¡± The other figure blinked and hesitated, considering what to do. This was a very good illusion. Too good. It was even wearing his ¡®Thinking with Portals¡¯ t-shirt. Wait, how- ¡°How do you know about that shirt?¡±

    ¡°Uh.¡± The illusion was now nervous, very nervous. Daniel stepped forward, wanting to run his hand through and make sure it was just that, only to come up against an invisible wall separating them. That, if nothing else, put him on alert.

    I haven¡¯t thought about that shirt since I¡¯ve been here. If the Cleric can know about this he knows about everything. Why put me here? The pieces weren¡¯t lining up and Daniel found himself questioning his assumptions. If this wasn¡¯t an illusion, what was it? ¡°Who are you?¡± he asked, voice unsteady yet hard.

    The other took a deep breath, looking at something to their right Daniel couldn¡¯t see. ¡°It¡¯s too soon for this.¡±

    ¡°For what?

    ¡°You, I-¡° It was eerie, how this phantom was reacting. Just like him. Except, this wasn¡¯t him anymore. It was like how he¡¯d been before magic and monsters had become a part of his life.

    Daniel reeled back from the copy having come to another, far worse conclusion. Wondering if everything he had experienced had been a simulation, Daniel freaked out a little. ¡°No, no you¡¯re not, this isn¡¯t, you¡¯re not me! You can¡¯t be!¡±

    ¡°Woah, woah wait.¡± The other put up a hand and tried to approach, only to run into a wall of his side. ¡°Don¡¯t panic.¡±

    ¡°Then fucking tell me what¡¯s going on!¡± Daniel saw something else on the figure and brought up his necklace. ¡°How do we both have this? What is the place? Am I even real?¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡± the other quickly assured. ¡°Fuck, look, you¡¯re a real person in that world, just like I¡¯m a real person here on Earth.¡±

    ¡°What!?¡± Daniel gestured to the darkness. ¡°How does that even work?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s complicated.¡±

    ¡°If you understand it then so can I, so tell me what¡¯s going on!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s complicated!¡± The other Daniel ran a hand through his hair. ¡°Look, you weren¡¯t supposed to find this place until I got more information. I have no idea how you did.¡±

    ¡°How do I know anything you¡¯re saying is true?¡± Daniel asked. Sure, the other image was acting just like him. It fed into the story he was telling. That scared him all the more.

    ¡°Mark me with that power you got with Khare.¡±

    ¡°My powers don¡¯t work here.¡± Daniel frowned. ¡°Is this some kind of anti-magic zone?¡±

    ¡°I think?. That one should still work. I¡¯m not entirely sure why, but-¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s because it¡¯s a bond power, not a magical one,¡± Daniel groaned, seeing the point. True enough, he was able to summon a floating arrow above his other self.

    ¡°Y-yeah,¡± other Daniel nodded. Based on how his head tracked, Daniel guessed he couldn¡¯t see it.

    ¡°You have access to my Encyclopedia,¡± Daniel accused, not letting the obvious conclusion unsaid.

    ¡°Can we just take stuff one thing at a time?¡± The other Daniel tried to redirect. ¡°I should probably explain all of this-¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯ve been telling you to do!¡± Daniel shouted. He regretted raising his voice as he saw the other wince, feeling just a little like a bully. Before Tlara had set a fire in him through opposition, he could be cowed by a stronger personality, which happened most often when he got caught by one of his sister Alex¡¯s explosions. It was incredibly odd being on the other side of that. ¡°What am I?¡± he asked in a more measured tone.

    Other Daniel sat down, trembling slightly and with unsteady breath. It seemed as much from excitement as fear. He looked to that spot to the right of him again, and Daniel was starting to think something was written there. ¡°I can¡¯t tell you everything.¡±

    ¡°Why not?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s on the list.¡± Other Daniel smiled apologetically. ¡°There¡¯s a list of things I can¡¯t tell you about, in case this ever happened. I can¡¯t tell you about the missing memories, some of the unidentified stuff, or why you¡¯re here. Wait, I can say some things.¡± He stepped slightly out of the frame and came back with a clipboard carefully carried to not show the front to Daniel. ¡°I can¡¯t exist in that world, and you can¡¯t in this one because-¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t go back?¡±

    ¡°Technically, you were never here,¡± other Daniel said carefully.

    ¡°You sent me here, knowing what I¡¯d know, knowing I could never go back!?¡± Daniel was only modestly successful in controlling the anger that time. ¡°And you can¡¯t tell me why!?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s important!¡± The other Daniel clenched a fist and lowered the clipboard, finding a strength out of nowhere similar to what he had needed to face the Beastmaster. ¡°I know. I know! You have no idea what this is like for me either.¡± He struck the barrier, wincing with pain. ¡°You get to have magic, to have this adventure that I can only imagine. Friends I could only imagine. And I just watch, stuck in here alone, as afraid as you are whenever your life is in danger, but I can¡¯t do anything about it! Do you know how many times you almost died?¡± other Daniel asked, voice a mixture of emotions.

    Daniel was a bit taken aback by the strength in the monologue, and the implications. Numbly, he asked, ¡°You watch everything?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. I can tell you parts about that. Not everything, not when it comes up against the stuff on the list.¡±

    Suddenly, whatever was on that damned list was Daniel¡¯s second concern. ¡°What about when I was with Claire?¡±

    The other Daniel¡¯s cheeks reddened. ¡°Uh.¡±

 Chapter 120: Reaching Out

    Khiat stirred only slightly to Gadriel¡¯s words. That was already an improvement, albeit a chip from the mountain of turmoil the Hero would have to work through. He had no solid plan. Mantle of Inspiration might come to his aid, though aura powers had their weaknesses. The relevant one here was that the power was as strong as the target was receptive. Khiat seemed in no mood to be saved, and neither was his other influence power appropriate. All he could do was speak from the heart.

    ¡°I have heard of your troubles, and the proposed means by which they would be resolved,¡± Gadriel spoke from the middle of the room, not changing his formal speech even for these circumstances. Those not from Threst often mistook it for an attempt to play up his class, but it was just a habit he could not break. A thing of times he would not forget. ¡°Though I admit I am one ill-suited to this task, I would offer my aid.¡±

    Khiat didn¡¯t move. In fact, her efforts to remain still were redoubled because he was here. Other than her parents, he was the one she wanted to see the least. The one she wanted to disappoint the least. The pain of hunger was gone, all of the pain was gone when she was alone. The knowledge that there was something that could take memories away didn¡¯t comfort her. There was no guarantee they wouldn¡¯t come back. She was cursed, and ready to die. But why did he have to be here to see how she had failed?

    ¡°I am not wise enough to know the plans of the Octyrrum,¡± Gadriel continued when it was clear Khiat would not speak. ¡°Nor I the will to question it. Your class, it concerns me. Mortals should not raise weapons against each other, it is the Crest that remains our ultimate enemy. But, are there not times where evil takes root among us, and a call for its destruction is raised?¡± Gadriel gazed into the distance for a moment. ¡°I have had that necessity placed upon me before. Though I have not killed any mortal, I have fought them. I am to understand that you have the best of me there, class or not. They say it is your class that is poison to you. But those are the words of someone who has not spent a full day here. Blessed by the Octyrrum above most, perhaps, but the greatest of us can still err.¡± Above Gadriel, on the surface, someone grunted dismissively. ¡°You, of all others, can reveal to us how we can best aid you. Yet you keep your silence. You starve yourself. For what reason do you endure this punishment? A sin? You are blameless. Your class? It was granted not by your request. Why do you do this?¡± Both faced each other silently until Gadriel sighed, and turned.

    Both duskers were exhausted, and would not sleep until Khiat¡¯s condition was remedied one way or the other. Still, Achia had the energy to ask. ¡°Is there nothing you can do?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve faced one like this before. Caught in despair. There was little I could do for him, and time acted in my stead. I fear, as you well know, that time is not with us today.¡± He placed both of his elbows on the table that was slightly too high for him, and asked, ¡°What is the limit of your tolerance when it comes to measures that may save her?¡±

    ¡°What are you suggesting?¡± Xtalo¡¯s voice was guarded and wary. After being repeatedly told there was only one way to cure his daughter, he¡¯d begun to believe anything else would just cause her more harm.

    ¡°If we can spur her to eat, or at least to speak at length with us, we may delay the sands of time from snuffing out hope of another cure. I have an ability that may do this, an Inquisition-type if you are familiar with such terms. There is no physical harm to it, but it may stress your daughter further. I am no Cleric, nor am I skilled in the ways of healing. Under normal circumstances, the worst it may do is render one unconscious. With her, I am unsure.¡±

    ¡°The child would not die,¡± Calius spoke from the entrance, his approach completely unnoticed. ¡°Nor would it do any good. Her curse is not something words alone will cure, as I have said. Buying time only prolongs her suffering. I do not enjoy the prospect of what I must do, and yet if she is to be saved it must be done.¡±

    ¡°What of class evolution?¡± Gadriel asked, making the Cleric raise an eyebrow. ¡°I have seen it. To one knowledgeable of the greater mysteries, surely you know how it may be provoked?¡±

    ¡°You wish to make this child a Tyrant?¡± Calius asked, eyebrow raised.

    ¡°What good would that do!?¡± Achia protested. ¡°She suffers enough as it is!¡±

    ¡°Not a Tyrant, no. There must be other paths. Craftsmen have myriad.¡±

    Calius glanced to the door through which Khiat rested, then back to the Hero. ¡°What is the point of these questions? Do you wish to intimidate her or change her class?¡±

    ¡°I would spare her my ability if there was a chance of the latter. Is there?¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Calius said firmly. Truthfully.

    ¡°Then do not gainsay me before the attempt is made. If she could but speak-¡±

    ¡°It will make no difference, but neither will I stop you. Ultimately it is up to the child and, in her incapacity, her parents.¡± Calius glanced meaningfully at the two duskers, trapped between the Hero and the Cleric.

    Achia spoke for them both. ¡°I would spare my daughter any pain. At any cost. But if these days are to be cast away if all else fails?¡± the deep voice trembled.

    ¡°Go.¡± Xtalo nodded to Gadriel, then looked at the Cleric. ¡°If this does not work, we are ready for your mercy. We will not allow her to suffer any longer.¡±

    The Hero tensed as that weight was put on him. The last barrier between a young woman and the loss of her class. He had no reason to believe he¡¯d be successful, only the consequences to think of if he failed. For just a moment Gadriel regretted becoming involved until he realized the sting of inaction would have bitten him far worse.

    Under Calius¡¯ disapproving oversight, Gadriel strode back to Khiat who had not moved an inch despite being within earshot of the conversation. Of nearly every word that had been said in this dwelling, except when Calius had shielded the room. No Cleric would protect her from these next words, however. Keeping his gaze steadily on her, Gadriel spoke and his voice reverberated as he did. ¡°Khiat of the duskers, confess your sins.¡±

    The power gripped Khiat fiercely. She hadn¡¯t advanced anything to level 1 beyond dexterity, leaving her critically enfeebled in her other attributes. This happened to everyone after they leveled. Typically there was the foresight to leave time and advancement to round out other attributes before renewing normal activities. But the temptation, spurred on by her village, had been too great for Khiat.

    That didn¡¯t necessarily mean the ability would force Khiat to speak. Force Confession only worked on those with something to confess. Otherwise, the raw intimidation could trigger the fear effect in someone blameless. Gadriel had seen this firsthand and expected much the same. He had no idea where Khiat was mentally, the hope was that any jolt to her emotions would trigger something. It was the height of foolishness, but that¡¯s where they were.

    And Khiat had something to confess. The dusker shifted, compelled by the magic. She fought it fiercely, fought it harder than anyone ever had, but it was too strong. All the same, it could only make her speak, and she did not move as she did so. ¡°I, I,¡± she began, still fighting the effect. Xtalo and Achia rushed into the room behind Gadriel, while Calius looked on in the background disapprovingly. ¡°I can¡¯t live with this!¡±

    The throats of duskers did not go dry or hoarse with disuse. A quirk of their biology. So it was that when Khiat spoke it was at her full volume. Force Confession prompted nothing less, so loud was she that it woke duskers in adjacent dwellings and alerted most everyone above ground. ¡°I see how to kill people. How to kill anyone, whenever I look at them. I can¡¯t make it stop. I tried! It¡¯s evil. It¡¯s me.¡±

    ¡°We can take this from you!¡± Xtalo protested, horrified. ¡°The man of the Cloak, the Cleric can remove this from your mind. You can live in peace.¡±

    ¡°No!¡± Khiat denied. Force Confession was fading, but now that she was speaking, now that it was too late not to address this, she continued. ¡°No. It will come back. It is me. You need to kill me.¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Achia sobbed. ¡°That is not an answer.¡±

    ¡°I tried to warn you, Hero,¡± Calius chastised. Gadriel looked to the duskers, but they appeared not to hear the Cleric¡¯s words. Something was hiding them from them. ¡°Now look what you¡¯ve done. Do you think any of them are better off? I should take this moment from their minds as well. It would be a kindness.¡±

    ¡°Hold.¡± Gadrield held an arm out to block both Calius¡¯ machinations and the parents from reaching their child. ¡°The determination to starve oneself to deny darkness is not to be mocked. That will should not be ignored.¡±

    ¡°I will not let my child die,¡± Xtalo growled, angry at the blocking arm.

    ¡°Hold!¡± Gadriel¡¯s mouth was a thin line. He stared at Khiat with the same intensity he¡¯d used against Heldren, in as dire a battle as that one though with circumstance his current foe. ¡°If you have that seed of greatness, why do you fear the future? Is it cowardice, do you not think yourself fit for the struggle? I will make you answer if you do not.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s pointless,¡± Calius¡¯ voice reached his ears only, chiding now. ¡°The girl is at odds with herself in a way neither you nor I can correct. Only conceal.¡± The words were filled with doubt, attempting to poison his resolve. Calius was far stronger in level than Gadriel. His attempts to sway the Hero might have worked. On someone else.

    ¡°Speak!¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t win against this,¡± Khiat pleaded, now struck with bargaining for her own death. Weak with hunger though she was, her voice was strong and utterly convinced.

    ¡°She¡¯s right.¡± Calius¡¯ voice was in his ear, trying to tunnel its way further, but the only thing he was doing was speaking.

    ¡°Silence!¡± Gadriel whispered, then turned back to Khiat. ¡°You speak of defeat as if it is certain, and in doing so secure it. Why can you not call upon that same surety to your self-confidence!? Not one life of the Octyrrum¡¯s is forfeit, and yet you would cast yours easily aside?¡±

    ¡°Your neck,¡± Khiat said hollowly as if something else was speaking through her. ¡°You don¡¯t have armor there. I¡¯d try and stab you. Or break it, when your guard is down. It wouldn¡¯t work, probably, but it could. I can¡¯t stop thinking about it whenever I look at you.¡±

    Almost reflexively, Gadriel brought his free hand up to his neck before he disciplined himself. ¡°If it is strength of will you need to resist this impulse, then I say again that it is this you have! And if it is a ward you need, to defend against a time you fail, I could be that.¡±

    Calius raised an eyebrow but didn¡¯t speak to the Hero again about the foolishness of what he was doing. Sure, if he took her under his wing that could help in the short term. But it was too late. The girl¡¯s path had already been set. She knew it too. ¡°If I keep living, I¡¯ll just hurt people,¡± Khiat replied. ¡°And if you stay with me then I¡¯ll drag you down with me.¡±

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    ¡°No!¡± Gadriel denied her, or if not her, then the world. ¡°Do not set fate before fate sets itself, for this is the path of defeat. You write your future by denying yourself any chance at hope. Believe, if not in yourself, then me! Unless you claim I am the fool, blind to hope and redemption.¡±

    The Cleric¡¯s raised eyebrows continued upwards when his eyes widened. His observation of the futile effort included monitoring of the child¡¯s mana flow. While it had remained unchanged up until this point, something was beginning to shift. Every part of his mind was brought front and center, completely abandoning the rest of his surroundings, as well as the musings that constantly ran in the background. He was now truly present. Not for the girl, but because of what he¡¯d come here for. Did the Hero have more than blind faith guiding him?

    ¡°How?¡± Khiat asked. ¡°How can I believe? This is what the gods gave me. I should want this, shouldn¡¯t I? Don¡¯t I reject them by fighting this?¡±

    Gadriel pondered his answer for a few moments. ¡°Even the gods can err, for did not the Crest arise due in part to their negligence? That is what we are taught. They cannot be everywhere at once, and they, it seems, were not there for you. If the nature of your class is abhorrent to you, then you have the right to oppose it. That is not blasphemy, that is taking ownership of your soul back from darkness.¡±

    There wasn¡¯t any way to deny it. The Hero was causing a fundamental shift in the underlying mana structure of the dusker by word alone. It should have been impossible, the soul was immutable¡­ but fundamental laws could bend. That one had been abused more in the history of the Octyrrum than any other.

    Unfortunately, it would still fail. The class would reassert itself without an intervention the Hero was incapable of. Either way, that this was even possible confirmed to Calius that his target was here. If they intervened on the girl¡¯s behalf, he¡¯d have them.

    ¡­

    ¡°How do I get out of here?¡± Daniel of the Octyrrum asked, completely done with the conversation.

    The other Daniel stopped in place, still red-faced and not looking directly at him. ¡°Look, I saw what was coming and tuned out. I didn¡¯t watch.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡± Daniel could sense the partial deceit in the way the other couldn¡¯t quite meet his eyes.

    ¡°Yes! It¡¯s important that I keep track of what¡¯s happening to you, but if there¡¯s something, uh, that I don¡¯t want to see I just check out for ten minutes or so.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s supposed to make me feel better?¡±

    ¡°I know, it¡¯s weird. I just have to.¡± Other Daniel walked away, and for perhaps the first time Daniel realized there was a wall of nine monitors over a desk on the far wall. The room on the other side had been revealed during the conversation, but he couldn¡¯t see what was on the screens. Whatever had blocked the space beyond the invisible wall still apparently covered them. Very carefully, the other Daniel lifted a plastic case to reveal a red button. Just like what you¡¯d expect would launch a missile or something.

    ¡°What is that?¡±

    ¡°I have an emergency option. Again, can¡¯t tell you what it does, and I can only use it once. But if I have to-¡±

    ¡°I fought a fucking dragon!¡± Daniel said, now not quite at a shout. ¡°Two! If you saw everything, you saw what happened to Hunter at the lake. If you didn¡¯t use it then you¡¯re a fucking bastard.¡±

    Other Daniel winced but didn¡¯t rise to Daniel¡¯s level of anger. ¡°It¡¯s a really one-time only thing. If I use it then the whole reason you¡¯re there could be meaningless.¡± He grimaced. ¡°Do you know how hard it is to explain something I can¡¯t explain?¡±

    Daniel tried to breathe and slow his heart rate. He didn¡¯t have Moment of Clarity to take a pause and think things over, but he could ignore the other Daniel. Sure, he couldn¡¯t tell him why all this was happening, but he was him. Ostensibly. Daniel still wasn¡¯t entirely on board with the whole cloning idea, but he did know there was only one thing that could push him to do what he¡¯d claimed to have done. ¡°This is about Dad, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    Other Daniel¡¯s red cheeks turned stark white. ¡°F-fuck,¡± he choked. ¡°You, you, uh, no?¡± Daniel gave him a blank stare in return, although underneath it his heart was pounding. ¡°I really can¡¯t tell you about that.¡±

    One of my hands just shook there, Daniel noted as he read the obvious lie. According to Thomas he had some kind of tell, and he knew it wasn¡¯t as obvious as the other signs. ¡°You just did. Tell me the rest.¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t!¡± He hit the desk he was standing near with a fist, coming dangerously close to the exposed button. ¡°I don¡¯t know everything that went into setting this up, but it¡¯s fucking important. I¡¯m always walking the line, always on edge. I don¡¯t get to sleep easy, and I don¡¯t get to sleep at all if you stay up. If you think you know why I¡¯m doing this, then you know why I¡¯m going to stick with exactly what I was told to do.¡±

    ¡°Is he here, on my side? How could he be here if you can¡¯t-¡±

    His other self was beginning to look physically pained. ¡°Please, stop.¡±

    ¡°Fuck no! You- hey!¡± Daniel did shout as his other self touched something just outside the frame, and disappeared. He continued shouting for a few minutes before giving up. ¡°I thought you said you didn¡¯t have magic,¡± he complained bitterly when the other finally appeared.

    ¡°I don¡¯t. It¡¯s,¡± Other Daniel tried to explain but struggled with himself for a moment. ¡°I guess this wasn¡¯t on the list? If I¡¯m careful¡­ Look, if you push me like that again I¡¯ll have to hide. We both know how smart we are and I can¡¯t let things like that slip.¡±

    ¡°Ok. Ok.¡± Daniel took a deep breath. ¡°Say I believe all of this. If I can¡¯t go back home, then what do I do?¡±

    ¡°Enjoy all of your magical powers?¡± the other Daniel said in a brave attempt at a positive spin.

    ¡°You make never being able to see my family again sound so pleasant.¡±

    ¡°I¡­¡± Other Daniel took a step back and sat on the desk chair. Daniel looked around while he did and noticed two whiteboards on another wall, content blocked by whatever filter was in the barrier between them. On the other wall was a bed barely a step up from a cot, a microwave, and a small closet.

    ¡°Where¡¯s the exit?¡± Daniel asked, indicating the room when it seemed his other self had no defense for that.

    ¡°That kinda goes on the list?¡± Other Daniel smiled apologetically as he had to reference that yet again. ¡°This place technically isn¡¯t on Earth or the Octyrrum, though it¡¯s more on Earth than not. The explanation I got didn¡¯t go into much detail but when this place was built they did something to it. While I¡¯m directly connected to you like this, I can¡¯t leave or it would break the connection.¡±

    ¡°So you¡¯re just staying here all the time?¡± Other Daniel had said that before, but the look of the other side was starting to make Daniel realize he wasn¡¯t kidding. ¡°What about Mom? Alex and Ami?¡±

    ¡°We weren¡¯t keeping in touch well if you remember,¡± other Daniel said wearily. Sadly. ¡°We¡¯ll keep being distant until I get out of here.¡±

    ¡°When¡¯s that?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s on the list.¡± They both sighed at that, mention of the family taking the wind out of their sails.

    ¡°So you have to stay here to be a glorified button pusher?¡±

    ¡°No. I think it¡¯s more than that. I don¡¯t know everything either but I can guess.¡± Other Daniel stood and replaced the clipboard to where it had been hanging out of sight. ¡°I was given a set of instructions at the start of this by someone who doesn¡¯t know what¡¯s going on. Chris, if his name matters. It¡¯s not on the list,¡± he added in an attempt at humor. ¡°I¡¯m watching, but also keeping track of what you learn, what you can do, and the people you meet. I can see what¡¯s in your Encyclopedia, for example.¡± Other Daniel seemed reluctant for a moment, before continuing. ¡°I also have to screen out some stuff you can¡¯t know. Other people, at least one god, are doing that too. Not that I¡¯m talking with them, some stuff comes pre-screened before I send it to your Focus.¡± He swiveled the chair nervously, ready for another explosion. It didn¡¯t come.

    ¡°Alright. And you didn¡¯t get told what else you have to do because I¡¯m here too early?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m thinking. I knew this would happen eventually but the instructions just mentioned it. I thought I¡¯d get another set before you¡¯d get here. I should have by now.¡±

    ¡°So when do I get to learn all this hidden knowledge?¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t. Ever. Unless that changes, I guess,¡± other Daniel finished lamely, pointing to the list. ¡°You¡¯re the man on the ground, I¡¯m your handler. If what you need to know changes I can fill you in. Right after this talk I¡¯ll ask Chris if he¡¯s gotten anything.¡±

    Daniel nodded, still thinking. ¡°My Encyclopedia isn''t just part of my Focus. That¡¯s why I kept it when the feature got changed?¡±

    Other Daniel thought for a moment before simply answering, ¡°Makes sense. I have no idea what was going on with that guy that showed up at the border, by the way. I didn¡¯t even realize it¡¯d happened until I read the notifications.¡±

    ¡°Ok, so to sum all of this up, you can¡¯t tell me anything, I¡¯m stuck in monster hell and I¡¯m never leaving, all so you can get Dad back. Great.¡± Daniel walked in a circle, looking out into the great void. ¡°How do I get out of here?¡±

    ¡°You can just¡­ wait! You can¡¯t tell anyone about this. I mean anyone. What you¡¯ve told people already is fine, but nothing about this.¡±

    Daniel glared at himself, borrowing a little trick from Tlara. In that moment there was disgust, which was a weird emotion to feel for someone who was the same as you. Only, he wasn¡¯t the same person as the one in front of him. Not anymore. ¡°No. I¡¯m telling them. Not Thomas, obviously, but Hunter, Evalyn, Tak, and Khare deserve to know. Lograve too, when we get back to the city.¡±

    ¡°That could ruin everything!¡±

    ¡°So what? You already ruined my life.¡± Daniel¡¯s eyes fell to the floor and his voice grew smaller. ¡°No, I guess I wouldn¡¯t exist if you didn¡¯t do this, but I still don¡¯t owe you anything.¡±

    The sliver of hostility in his voice threw the other Daniel for a moment. ¡°This wasn¡¯t how I thought it¡¯d go,¡± he replied with the same melancholy as before. ¡°I didn¡¯t know it¡¯d be like this. When you showed up now I thought you¡¯d be happy, or at least relieved that someone was still on this side. But yeah, that¡¯s fair I guess. If you don¡¯t know what I do. I¡¯ve seen everything, or almost everything, that¡¯s happened to you but I haven¡¯t felt it.¡±

    ¡°You haven¡¯t. I can tell.¡± Daniel could almost feel the other version of him wince at those words but didn¡¯t hold back. ¡°If you had, you wouldn¡¯t ask me to keep this from my friends. How do I get out.¡± That wasn¡¯t a question, and it wasn¡¯t spoken like one.

    ¡°You just-¡± other Daniel trailed off again, fully turning around in his chair to look up at one of the monitors. ¡°Take out your phone!¡±

    Daniel was surprised to find it still there and functioning. On edge, he inspected it for any differences but found none. A notification popped up. The timing of that with the click of other Daniel¡¯s mouse was impossible to miss. ¡°You are screening what I see?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, anything that I can. I don¡¯t have to take out much, most of it is other people on your side. I¡¯m also the one who answers the questions you ask, by the way. You¡¯re welcome.¡±

    Daniel looked up quickly from his phone at that. ¡°Not all of my questions were out loud. Are you reading my thoughts?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± The other Daniel seemed to be getting tired of the scrutiny. ¡°If you were thinking towards the phone it might have been counted by the- look, just read it. I think this is important.¡±

    <hr>

    Alert: Entity: Khiat has partially met the requirements for Class Evolution. ??? has unsuccessfully prevented this process from beginning. The affected entity is not eligible for evolution to any standard, unrestricted Class. Continuation of this process without intervention may lead to harmful side effects. Through use of ???, you may attempt to guide this process to a positive outcome by enabling ??? in the affected entity.

    -

    Allow / Deny

    <hr>

    The notification eventually timed out, but the options stayed. ¡°What are you hiding?¡±

    ¡°Nothing! Look, it¡¯s not important. I¡¯m not there, but I still care about what¡¯s happening. I know what¡¯s happening with her. Watching, remember? If this could help, we should do it.¡±

    ¡°Show me what¡¯s behind the question marks and I will.¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t do that! It was Torch, probably. The knowledge god. Their name came up when you awakened Hunter. I even think-¡° he shook his head. ¡°Not the time. You heard what the Cleric¡¯s going to do if Khiat keeps going like she is, and this notification makes it sound like things can get even worse. If this can help, you should do it. This could be like Hunter.¡±

    ¡°It only says I can help guide the process.¡± Daniel clutched at the phone. ¡°This could make things worse.¡±

    ¡°Or better?¡±

    ¡°Tell me something, anything, that supports that.¡±

    ¡°Do you want to help her?¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡±

    ¡°Then this is probably the only way you can.¡± Other Daniel was still facing away, probably to not give anything away by body language. After Daniel had intuited the reason for all of this, he was being very careful. ¡°I don¡¯t know everything. I¡¯m making my own guesses here. What your phone is asking you to do is use something you don¡¯t know about yet. I don¡¯t know exactly what it is or how it works, but it sounds important and powerful. It¡¯s probably behind some of the powers you have that you don¡¯t know about yet, and powers go along with the intent of the ones using them. If you don¡¯t want to hurt her, then you can¡¯t. It¡¯s what you want to happen that matters.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s still just a guess,¡± Daniel pointed out, but he felt the truth in it too. Could this help her? ¡°You know what this will do to me if you¡¯re wrong.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d push that button if I could, but there¡¯s only one I can.¡± Other Daniel turned back around with that, belatedly closing the case as he did so. ¡°I guess you have to ask what you¡¯re more afraid of. What happens if I¡¯m wrong, or what happens if you don¡¯t do anything.¡±

 Chapter 121: Unbound

    There were quite a few ways to conceptualize how mana flowed through a body. Water was an easy metaphor even those in the desert tended to. There were still the odd rivers and oasis to which life flocked to take example from, and for whatever reason the mortal mind best grasped mana like a fluid conceptually. It was revealing to some degree if one used another comparison, such as wind or fire. Perhaps they had come from volcanic regions or the very rare few that had no ground at all.

    For Calius Thatch of the Cloak, what he saw involved no metaphor. Calius viewed the mana coursing through the young dusker as it really was. She did not have much, nor did it bind firmly with her form, but it had sat unused ever since she¡¯d awakened her class. Unchanneled mana could be problematic if left to sit idle. Almost no one would run into this, even those who attained a class but stopped advancing before unlocking something that used mana. With the girl¡¯s turbulent emotions and the prodding of a Hero, well, to extend the water metaphor a storm was brewing.

    Compressed emotions and mana alike were looking for an outlet. Whereas before the child had been near comatose, there was a sudden energy and spontaneity. Randomness. It was like a pocket of gas in a mine, otherwise inert, which had been brought to life by a spark. Calius might have stepped in at this point to head off the trauma of the failed change, he wasn¡¯t cruel, but only the true power backing him could have made a difference and he couldn¡¯t reach for that here. Not without blowing his cover entirely.

    Thomas strode into the hallway at a fast pace, just under a run. ¡°What¡¯s going on? What¡¯s he doing?¡±

    ¡°Do not interfere,¡± Calius intoned, making use of his powers to hide the noise of both from those in the next room. He could have Thomas walk out of here and make it halfway across the desert without realizing if he wanted but, again, not cruel. Neither was he completely benevolent. ¡°Enter that chamber and I will render you senseless.¡±

    ¡°But-¡± Thomas cut himself off, reigning in the charged attitude he¡¯d developed during his care of the child. His younger counterpart hadn¡¯t done exceptionally well, but neither had he relied on powers for his treatment while ignoring his instincts and training. The mark of either good mentorship or devotion to the Hand. In this case, Calius suspected both. ¡°What¡¯s happening? I thought she wasn¡¯t talking.¡±

    ¡°The Hero appears to have spiked that cactus, to borrow a local expression.¡± They could both only see Gadriel and Khiat discussing now that Calius was warding against sound. The older Cleric sat, on the floor as there were no chairs, and prompted Thomas to do so as well. There couldn¡¯t be anything but obedience from him given Calius¡¯ supposed level and standing. ¡°You have potential,¡± Calius said when both were seated, drawing a look of surprise from Thomas. ¡°Especially considering you have awakened Resurrection.¡±

    ¡°You-¡±

    ¡°Oh, hush.¡± Calius waved a hand. ¡°Anything that could overhear through my powers would know themselves without needing to. This place truly is a backwater, but we are on the periphery I suppose. I¡¯ve seen more Clerics with that power than you have people. Even a few non-Clerics.¡±

    ¡°I thought only Clerics could get it!¡±

    ¡°Stop interrupting!¡± Calius chastised and, for just a moment, Thomas mistook him as the grandfather who¡¯d died when he was ten. ¡°But you know how important discretion is so I take it you¡¯ve had a good mentor. Hmm. Mark me, but that Hero will be leading incursions one day if he doesn¡¯t die first. You could be in that company yourself.¡±

    Thomas did not take Calius¡¯ advice. ¡°You know when I¡¯ll hit my wall?¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Calius lied. ¡°Only that it will not be for some time. Perhaps you do not have one. The point of this is that if you are to reach this degree of power there are things you need to learn. I am speaking beyond bone, blood, and infection. This case will be highly informative no matter how it ends. Even if you do not understand all that occurs, you must remember.¡± Especially if what might happen does. Calius knew Thomas wasn¡¯t what he was looking for, of course. The Cleric was simply earnest and, if nothing else, he was a Cleric. That ruled him out decisively.

    As for his tutelage, that was a matter of opportunity. Calius was not in the market for an apprentice and would make Thomas walk halfway across the desert should the young man try to attach himself to him. Otherwise, they were all in arms against the same foe. ¡°I am going to dismiss the effect. Remain quiet. If you have a question, whisper it to me. If you have an idea, keep it to yourself. You rightly judged that you had no way to assist this girl, do not rethink that now.¡± Thomas, finally listening, merely nodded a response.

    In the room beyond, the debate continued between the Hero and the Assassin holding herself hostage. This attempt was far more frustrating to Gadriel than his earlier words with Daniel, if only because his words were having an effect but still changing nothing. At least the Artificer had known when to cut him off. The Hero did not back down, knowing he was the last defense against Khiat losing herself.

    Still, the last few minutes had been back and forth. The threat of the murderous impulses within her taking over, something Gadriel could rightly not imagine, was a continuous barrier they¡¯d always find themselves at one way or another. Khiat knew that this was a part of her now and would never be anything else, because that¡¯s how classes worked. She was an Assassin.

    ¡°I am an Assassin,¡± Khiat said for what felt like the twelfth time. There was defeat in her voice, and surety. ¡°You have been so kind to me. You and the others. You protected me.¡±

    ¡°We still can. I can,¡± The Hero reminded her.

    That wasn¡¯t enough. To the many futures she could imagine of her holding a bloody knife over someone, it wasn¡¯t enough. In her starved and worn state, she was yet finding the energy from somewhere to retain her conviction. ¡°I will never kill someone else, even if that means I have to kill myself first.¡±

    Xtalo shot a worried, exhausted glance at his wife. ¡°Perhaps it is time.¡±

    ¡°No! Not yet!¡±

    ¡°We know you have tried,¡± Achia told the Hero with unending gratitude. ¡°Gods, but if you could reach her we¡¯d give anything. She has suffered enough. We would give you until the end of time if it would help, but I cannot hear her say these things anymore.¡±

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    ¡°It will still be a good life,¡± Xtalo said, more to Khiat than Gadriel. ¡°You can still hunt and live without fearing this class. No one else here has awakened one. You will be with us.¡±

    ¡°No!¡± Khiat protested. ¡°No, I will remember. Eventually, and then everyone will be in danger.¡± She was sure. She knew.

    ¡°A shame,¡± Calius spoke to Thomas only, seeing that the parents were making their decision. The Hero, not yet defeated, but his failure on the horizon. The Cleric was so intent on what was ahead of him, drawing all of himself to witness the intervention should it occur, that he almost missed the change in mana flow occurring right next to him.

    The almost imperceptible flare of mana as a new pathway was set into the body of a mortal. It shouldn¡¯t have mattered, but the timing was extremely suspect, as was the fact that the power didn¡¯t fit what he was familiar with. The same power didn¡¯t express itself in the mana flow the same way between people, for various reasons, but Calius was experienced enough to still identify them so long as he¡¯d seen it before. ¡°You awakened a new power,¡± Calius said evenly, more ponderous than surprised.

    Thomas was surprised, to the point of taking him out of the tableau ahead of him. ¡°I thought I¡¯d get Flash Heal. I haven¡¯t heard of this one.¡± There was a crestfallen note to his voice that drew Calius in deeper. ¡°It¡¯s got an incantation though so it has to be it.¡± Thomas stood. ¡°I¡¯m going to try this.¡±

    ¡°Try what?¡± Calius asked, not stopping the other Cleric from moving forward. He was curious and knew Thomas wouldn¡¯t harm Khiat. Anyone could have seen that. With but a few words he could call Thomas back and stop whatever was going to happen. He considered it, then declined. There was no possibility his target was a Cleric, but perhaps the use of this new, odd power would be informative as to their identity. Actually, this would be the perfect excuse to interview the man following-

    ¡°Flash Balance,¡± Thomas incanted, and for another time today, Calius¡¯ thoughts stopped and were thrown on a new track. That power? There was a set of abilities Clerics received at level 2, divided by whichever deity they swore to. As a Hand Cleric, Thomas should have received Flash Heal, as Calius had received Flash Illusion from his Cloak affinity. Only instead, Thomas had awakened the one Clerics who chose to follow the Octyrrum undivided used to receive, before that power had been fully restricted. Old as he was, Calius had only heard about it.

    There was no denying the effect it had. In the moments following the incantation, Calius watched as the mana within the child evened out. Thomas was working against Gadriel, resetting the pattern of the Assassin class and the feature she¡¯d awakened. That wasn¡¯t the primary purpose of the ability, which was to cleanse all active effects and lower heightened features to release the mana reserved for them. It was strong enough to unlock committed features, which normally permanently reduced one¡¯s maximum mana. Yet, these were unusual circumstances.

    Impossible power aside, this sealed Khiat¡¯s fate. All the work the Hero had done was being canceled out and there were none left that could deny Calius¡¯ option was the only sensible one. A shame, truly. Suppressing a rare class was wasteful, but necessary in this case. Thomas had saved Khiat from the negative consequences of an unsuccessful, forced class evolution. Calius, having entered the room, prepared to take charge when something else happened. Halfway through the effect of Thomas¡¯ ability, Daniel pressed a button in a place that was neither here nor there.

    ¡­

    ¡°If this doesn¡¯t work,¡± Daniel said, keeping his eyes locked on the back of his double¡¯s head, ¡°Then I don¡¯t know if I can ever trust you.¡±

    ¡°If it does?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m still not sure,¡± Daniel admitted. While he couldn¡¯t see the other¡¯s face, his shoulders tensed. ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s, uh, something on the screen.¡± Other Daniel took in a sharp breath. ¡°Ok, we shouldn¡¯t have done this. Fuck! Do you see anything that says undo?¡±

    Daniel grasped at his phone, hoping, but the semi-permanent notification had disappeared as soon as he¡¯d hit ¡®allow¡¯. ¡°No! What¡¯s happening?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s thirty, forty, it¡¯s just a barrage of question mark notifications. Way more than Hunter¡¯s thing.¡± Other Daniel was at his keyboard but his fingers were unmoving, head tracking one of the monitors that Daniel couldn¡¯t read. ¡°Look, I¡¯m not going to forward you any of these unless actual text comes up but-¡± He swiveled around, face panicked. ¡°Fuck, I¡¯m an idiot. You need to get out of here now!¡±

    ¡­

    Calius watched, utterly confounded, as the intervention he¡¯d been waiting for came when he¡¯d least expected it. Timed, it had to be said, perfectly. The others hadn¡¯t noticed save for Khiat going stiff again from Thomas¡¯ ability, though she would have regardless. Something shredded the mana flow in the child¡¯s body, going so far as to disrupt the main source pooling at the heart and the major lines running along the vasculature. Mana didn¡¯t doggedly follow biology, of course, and it developed away from that preset pattern with advancement. What was taking shape now was entirely unnatural in the context of the Octyrrum.

    Khiat¡¯s trials had left her strained beyond the point of breaking, her refusal to accept her class the unstoppable force meeting the immovable object that was the basic rules of the Octyrrum. Now, someone had removed that immovable object and carried forward Khiat¡¯s will with all the pressure that had built up behind it. This was the potentially devastating outcome Calius had been worried about. He would have had to intervene himself to prevent worst-case scenarios such as the child¡¯s death, though there were darker futures possible.

    Only someone else had just inflicted a balancing effect on her. Doing so beforehand was like a prophylactic, setting guardrails on the wild mana that prevented it from poking holes in the side of the dusker¡¯s physical body. Of all the outcomes he¡¯d been expecting this was not one of them. He hadn¡¯t lied to Gadriel when he said class evolution was impossible for Khiat in her current circumstances, and it still was. Something very different was happening.

    Should I kill her? He mused darkly. I can do it quickly and remove their memories of it. The risk of letting someone free from the Octyrrum at this place and time may be too great. If Khiat was becoming what he thought she was, the standard procedure would be to clip that bud before it bloomed. Part of the reason he was here was to prevent this from happening, starting at the true source. But Calius was not cruel, and he decided to let the process in front of him carry itself out. Both due to mercy, and a suspicion that wormed its way into his head. It was time to use the scepter.

    ¡°Did it work?¡± Xtalo asked, hoping, and yet still defeated as he saw Calius step past the Hero. Neither Gadriel nor Thomas had realized what had occurred. Their seventh sense was simply too weak.

    The very mana structure of the dusker had cracked and shifted. Not in any random way, thank the gods, and yet it couldn¡¯t be denied. Khiat had lost her class, but not the means to improve herself. She was just outside of the Octyrrum now, magically speaking. There was much Calius was uncertain of, he still questioned if letting her live was the best option, but odds were this wouldn¡¯t amount to much if current projections on the state of the world held.

    As for Khiat herself? She had been senseless to it all when it came down to it. Too lost in her despair to do anything but parrot the thoughts running through her mind, if she said anything at all. No matter how many times or how many ways someone had reached out, it hadn¡¯t mattered. Until the time it did. Until she looked up and saw just how many hands were reaching out to her.

    No one thing saved her. No one thing saved anyone in the depths of despair. It took every kindness of her parents, every effort by her Cleric and the will of a Hero. And yes, yet unknown machinations unleashed by the bumblings of an Artificer. That, and nothing less. Because when you truly cared about someone, you give them every chance to pull themselves from the fire.

 Chapter 122: After the Storm

    He is not waking up, Hunter thought worriedly to Tak, looking down to where Daniel was sprawled. The original, semi-meditative pose had been disturbed by a prod. When an abashed Hunter tried to fix it himself, he found out he couldn¡¯t control Daniel to correct the stance. Whatever was happening wasn¡¯t some kind of enforced sleep, but neither would he respond.

    Tak, healthy enough to be up and about, was crouched on the sands nearby with a waterskin in his hands. Ah. Should we get Thomas?

    He just went to the dangerous man. The Cleric, who had arrived last night. Ever since then, Hunter had kept his speech completely telepathic, just in case. Daniel¡¯s fears about people entrenched in this world¡¯s religion finding out about his origins easily carried over to what Hunter had become as well. Here was someone strong enough to both notice a misspoken word and do something about it regardless of opposition. That was hardly Hunter¡¯s most pressing concern, though.

    Even after resolving the anxiety Hunter had over moving into the city, or if not resolving then at least bringing it to light, both he and Daniel had become less talkative. That was in comparison to the Thormundz when at times they only had each other to converse with. Now they had a team, and as such Hunter hadn¡¯t immediately noticed when Daniel went unresponsive. When Daniel had been pushed over without responding any doubt was silenced. There was no serious fear in Hunter since nothing had happened. Daniel had just been sitting there, practicing as he had the past few days. Unfamiliar with things such as aneurysms, the ringcat thought that as long as nothing dangerous had happened Daniel was fine. He just wasn¡¯t waking up. Maybe get Evalyn?

    Ah, yes. Tak stood unsteadily. I should have thought of that.

    Thank you.

    A minute after Tak departed, Daniel gasped and came to his knees. He realized he was half-covered in sand and, instead of brushing it off, clutched at the ground for a few moments. ¡°God. For a moment I thought-¡±

    Hunter growled lightly as Daniel hugged him, not used to the gesture and surprised by it. What happened?

    Evalyn interrupted before Daniel could answer. ¡°What¡¯s going on? Tak told me you were knocked out, but instead I find you twisted up with-¡± She stopped, recoiling as something hit her on the head. In the next few seconds the others were struck too, repeatedly. There was nothing they could do to stop it. Evalyn first looked to the oasis but, not seeing what she¡¯d been searching for, looked up instead. ¡°What?¡±

    A sound filled the air. It didn¡¯t drown out everything else but created a soft background noise. Tak held out a cupped hand, smiling, while Daniel scrambled back to the tent he¡¯d sheltered from the sun in. What he¡¯d just experienced had left his nerves raw and his adrenaline up, making him overreact to what was otherwise a natural occurrence.

    The few villagers who had awoken from Khiat¡¯s cries rushed out, a parent staying behind to prevent young children from exiting when necessary. A handful had seen what was happening and were far more curious than was wise for those of their race during the day. Vtidi¡¯s shouts reinforced this point. ¡°No! Stay inside, or stay protected! The sky could shift!¡±

    A few of the adolescents and the one adult who had stretched out above ground quickly stiffened back into their protective shell. Despite this, the sky burned no less, for the sun was hidden behind a thick layer of clouds. Rain, falling so thick that the arid sands were saturating, flooded the oasis and made the keener worry about the structure of their homes. Thunder rumbled nearby, though no flash appeared below the cloud layer.

    ¡°It¡¯s like we¡¯re back in the Thormundz,¡± Evalyn commented, blinking at first and then using the rain as an opportunity to clean her long hair. She held it in two wringing hands, smirking at Hunter¡¯s obvious displeasure from being soaked. ¡°I didn¡¯t know they got rainstorms like this here. You¡¯d think the elemental affinities would be too opposed.¡±

    ¡°The what?¡± Daniel called from the tent, before realizing the chance he was giving up for a bath as he calmed down. ¡°Wait, no I think I get it.¡± Compared to the previously sweltering heat, the rainstorm provided both a soothing chill and a balm for dry skin. He looked at Evalyn, still clutching her hair, and noticed something was off. Not anything specific, nothing he could place, but she noticed him looking.

    ¡°What? Oh, it¡¯s Beauty Sleep. It¡¯s my mana burn feature. I haven¡¯t been as drained as yesterday for a while.¡± After she said it, Daniel realized she looked slightly less, well, attractive. With everything going on he hadn¡¯t put it together, but it was clear now that the magical enhancements she benefited from were less potent today.

    ¡°Beauty Sleep? That¡¯s an actual power?¡±

    She leaned her head sidewise in a feigned attempt at recollection. ¡°What¡¯s the name for the power that links you and Hunter again?¡±

    ¡°Nevermind.¡±

    ¡°Hmm. Clouds came from nowhere.¡± The Totem Warrior had been preoccupied with the rainfall. Tak¡¯s gaze was fixed upwards, occasionally spooning water from his hand into his mouth. ¡°They don¡¯t do that normally.¡±

    ¡°Technically they do, but not this quickly.¡± Everyone stood numbly in the rain, joined by the villagers below who were now surrounded by sodden dunes. One of the tents around the burgeoning, not-yet lake caught Daniel¡¯s eye. ¡°Oh fuck, Khiat!¡±

    ¡­

    It was annoying, but he didn¡¯t have any magical way to protect himself from rainfall. Only the most powerful of illusions could fool reality itself, and those were outside of his reach. Calius couldn¡¯t have done it, but the Cleric, and his power, had been returned from whence they came. There was just Callister, now, a level 1 Proxy. He couldn¡¯t do that much compared to Calius, but in one particular way he outshined the persona stored in the scepter.

    Callister sat on the damp sands, not caring for how they clung to his worn cloak and the clothes underneath. The guise of Calius remained, the illusion bound to the body persisting for a time after the change had been made. One might mistake his stance for prayer, kneeling as he was with his head supported by his hands. What only he could see was the scepter, held in one hand with the large orb near his ear, and the small one next to his mouth. Eyes tracking Daniel behind an illusion of closed ones, he spoke with no apparent answer.

    ¡°I found it. I witnessed an event with my own eyes.¡± He paused and then grimaced. ¡°No, I¡¯m not sure. It wasn¡¯t a directed power, not one Calius detected. He didn¡¯t sense any external influence on her mana, just the loosening of the Octyrrum¡¯s rules.¡± His eyes panned over those currently visible aboveground. ¡°All the Blessed here have traces of it. Aberrations, powers they do not have the requirements for as well as those that cannot be identified. Whatever¡¯s doing it is affecting a broad area weakly. I¡¯m not sure of the extent. Should we tell Hammer about this too? It has to be one of his.¡±

    Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

    He stiffened and stopped talking entirely for a few minutes, solely listening. At one point there was a change in the expression underneath the illusion that fit neither Callister nor Calius, before it went away. Nodding, Callister said, ¡°I understand, lord. I will not disappoint.¡± He then allowed a different presence to enter, the stored Cleric returning. It wasn¡¯t long before Calius began shakily breathing again. He stood, brushing himself off, and the vulture that was Thomas swept in. Calius knew he should just ignore the man and be on his way.

    ¡°That was a huge storm!¡± Thomas commented, breaking the ice in the most traditional of ways. ¡°I can¡¯t remember the last time it¡¯s rained that much here. And thunder? You know anything about that?¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Calius lied. That was getting out of hand, but needs must. ¡°You have questions. Unfortunately, I have little time.¡±

    ¡°Another calling?¡±

    ¡°No. I must return to the church in Aughal.¡± The truth, unabashed. That made him feel a little better. ¡°Ask. I do not know if you will have another chance.¡±

    ¡°Flash Balance? I¡¯ve heard of others but not that one. Quala would¡¯ve mentioned it. Uh, she¡¯s my mentor. I thought I was getting Flash Heal. I¡¯m not sure what it does.¡±

    Unsurprising. Mortals in the process of consolidating fresh powers first had a generic impression. Fully learning a power required using it. Even then, they never figured out everything and Flash Balance touched on advanced topics. ¡°I am not a follower of Torch. My knowledge is not limitless. That said,¡± Calius added, buoying Thomas¡¯ spirit, ¡°I know of this one. It is a rare, potent, yet double-edged power. It may clear fear or other negative effects, but it will also strip away any positives as well. It is a total reset.¡±

    ¡°Did it cure Khiat? Using powers to outright cure stuff like this isn¡¯t ideal.¡± Calius frowned as Thomas said that. It was a delicate subject. ¡°That¡¯s why you said it was impossible before, right? It¡¯s ¡®cause I didn¡¯t have that power until right then.¡±

    He could say yes, he could take the easy lie. But who would that hurt down the line, how long would it take the young Cleric to discover the truth for himself? That was the price of lies, made heavier by a mind that could comprehend every potential pitfall. And Calius was not cruel. ¡°No. It helped, but what ailed Khiat went beyond your power and mine. I do not entirely understand what happened, though I suspect the involvement of power on the scale of the gods themselves.¡±

    Thomas went white, opening and closing his mouth for several seconds. Calius took that as his moment to leave, only to be stopped a meter away by another question. ¡°What about curses and disease?¡±

    ¡°Curses? I suppose. It depends on the strength of the effect relative to yours. It is not a cure all, and it is limited by the amount of mana you can feed it.¡± There was something there, an anxiety, but Calius detected no curses on the younger Cleric or in the village. Odd, because that wasn¡¯t the answer Thomas wanted to hear. Calius looked past the man and saw others approaching, grateful amidst the rain. If they made it to him he would be severely delayed. It seemed almost inappropriate, or at least anticlimactic, to end it there, but he had to. ¡°Goodbye,¡± Calius said to Thomas. And then he was gone.

    ¡­

    Jeras¡¯ throat was dry. His feathers were ragged, gone in a few places where he¡¯d been injured. They were being pushed beyond their limits by one who cared not for their health, lives, or names. Having been branded a traitor by Aughal left little other option without a nearby developing region to flee to for exoneration through service. His master knew that well and exploited it to the best of her ability. Death was not an escape. Not with her.

    Jeras was a child of the Octyrrum, though he¡¯d had his bitterness with the denial of a class. Everyone went through that. Almost everyone. In all his childhood stories and the tales he¡¯d heard as a man, nothing came close to what she was. Nothing but the word monster, although it didn¡¯t fit. She was something beyond the Octyrrum, anathema to it, and he was helping her. What choice did he have?

    Kelra. The anathema could still go about the city and had made it clear she¡¯d kill whoever she needed to to keep them in line. Jeras hadn¡¯t told her anything, of course, but Sherman had introduced everyone before the talons had come out. When the cloaked woman returned with the heads, they had no real way of confirming if they were related to the former lieutenant. Even if they weren¡¯t, who would test that?

    Others had died since then, though there were no more reprisals. No disobedience, aside from a lucky few to have purposely died to a monster that would destroy or horrendously damage their body. That was a fate Jeras now considered fortunate. There¡¯d been no promises to help with threats they couldn¡¯t handle unless you counted promises of violence towards them if they ran. The only hope he had was finding some way to escape, or following in the example of the others who¡¯d died.

    Jeras had been on monster hunts before, but only twice. Both times to try to break through his wall. You heard that worked sometimes, and it was a preferable option to dedicating a decade or so to shepherding a new region. Now, he was back to hunting.

    They moved across the sand. Desert urchins were roughly spherical and low to the ground, covered by spines they could use as projectiles. There was little force behind the spines they threw, but they could shoot a lot and defend themselves with them at the same time.

    None of the urchins, who outnumbered them three to one, fully approached. At a certain point, they began tumbling in a wide curve to fire on his group while running from them at the same time. The bodies convulsed, sending a rain of death out towards Jeras and his fellows. These monsters didn¡¯t pose a threat significant enough to surrender to, so they all fought and dodged.

    Jeras had his guard armor still, battered and broken though it was. Like him. The spines mostly glanced off the metal, whereas others in his group suffered puncture wounds. The odd dozen monsters were smart enough to not focus their attacks on one singular area but cast them out as a net. This was also due to the haphazard way they fired them, Jeras guessed.

    He still had his greatsword. Using a weapon this heavy wasn¡¯t usual for a member of the guard. There had been a reason he¡¯d favored it, and afterward had kept up with it for no other reason than nostalgia. It made him slow, but the urchins were vulnerable while attacking. Their spherical, bulky bodies made for poor speed. The claws on the very short limbs that didn¡¯t extend past the spines were nothing to speak of.

    Jeras caught one with an arcing thrust, raising a hand to his face when another monster nearby tried to spike him as he approached. The first died and the rest scattered, keeping to no formal group but a unified plan to separate and retaliate. The urchins were commonly faced in packs, which wasn¡¯t unusual. Only the exceptional could survive alone in a desert.

    Screaming, behind him. The attack that had left spines in his arm had hit something painful in those following. He ignored it, rushing at an angle at one of the fleeing monsters. Killing these was tiresome for someone with only a sword. They¡¯d continue to scatter and evade until they ran themselves to death, flinging painful spines at their pursuers all the while.

    Anyone who couldn¡¯t endure that much was already dead. Jeras could. He wasn¡¯t one of Sherman¡¯s former toadies who had ballooned up to their position with their own gas. He¡¯d endured training, harsh climate, and brawls over his years. Combined with the fear, and what he had to protect, killing these monsters was hardly a problem. This Crest he¡¯d found himself in had one redeeming quality.

    Two days after being conscripted by the mad avianoid, the proclaimed leader of the Mirage, he¡¯d leveled. Somehow, that made all of this worth it. A level 1 Vanguard. The class of his dreams. As hard hitting as a Berserker but with more control, though with not as much defensiveness as a Knight or variability as a Martiliast. Not a rare class, but one rarely chosen because of how vulnerable people saw it. Jeras hadn¡¯t cared about that when he was growing up and hadn¡¯t cared when he¡¯d awakened it.

    He was the only one here who had broken through his wall, and he managed eight of the kills. In exchange, one of their number had died. Jeras thought he should feel something, but it was only another number now. After the threats were dispatched they began the grisly chore that always followed. Harvesting, but only the hearts. That had confused Jeras at first, they¡¯d left several valuable components behind on previous hunts, but he no longer cared.

    Neither did he think too much about the sixth monster he¡¯d killed. The one that, instead of curling in on itself as he approached in one last attempt to harm him, seemed to have almost given up. Surrendered to death. It was odd, only sticking in his mind because that was not his path. He would not surrender, he would endure. When he was strong enough to challenge her, or at the least escape and flee with Kelra? Then, he could live again.

    Jeras hadn¡¯t surrendered to death. He¡¯d just agreed to serve her for now. Unknowingly, he¡¯d also found exactly what she¡¯d been looking for.

 Interlude: Thormundz - Border War

    The Octyrrum possessed four peoples of the elements. Earth, fire, water, and air. The last of these were traditionally seen as the weakest. Fire and darkness were a bane to those of earth, though beyond these threats they were hardy. For air gestalt there were many threats. The updraft from fire could scatter them. So could a strong enough breeze and, while their form gave them some resistance to weapons, a well-wielded fan could pose a mortal threat.

    Air gestalt, those who didn¡¯t gain levels and the protective powers of their kind, were like duskers in that way. There were things in this world they had to fear that others took for granted. Sunlight. A gentle breeze. But then again, an air gestalt would never go hungry. The only possible corollary to starvation would be a vacuum and nature had made its position on those clear.

    Ashier¡¯s nature as an air gestalt had influenced the kind of Tyrant they¡¯d become. They would never be one to lead from the front, overwhelming any opposition with personal strength and numbers. Neither were they particularly apt at leading through inspiration, having no voice. But Ashier could influence.

    Vassalize was the second power they¡¯d awakened in the moments after gaining their class. It fell in line with most Tyrant powers as, for level 1, it was incredibly powerful. Ashier could create a bond between themself and another, though that only ensured loyalty. The true benefit was that this process enhanced those they bonded to, either causing them to undergo power evolutions or grant classes to those who didn¡¯t have them. The only downside was that each use cost them advancement potential.

    They thought of that idly as the two figures below them paced and took in the surroundings. Ashier wasn¡¯t certain, but their best guess was that this class had come to them when Jonus died. The first Tyrant of the Thormundz. If he¡¯d survived to lead as a level 3 Tyrant he probably would have saved the region. That was the reason Ashier had fought so hard, sacrificed and betrayed who they did. Mortals held their own against the Crest. Against all odds. Murdon wasn¡¯t a bad person, just too soft. By fleeing he¡¯d doomed them all and now Ashier didn¡¯t know what to do.

    Kartoss, their voice, the avianoid with unpleasant features and threadbare clothing, sighed and sat on the ground. It was a sound of defeat and despair. The man was not in the best of spirits, worse now than even that moment Ashier had found him and made their offer. Service for power. They hadn¡¯t known it would work in the moment, but it had, making Kartoss a Proxy.

    Ashier had never heard of the class. Perhaps it was a thing of Tyrants, or just uncommon enough to not be widely known. The odd thing was he still couldn¡¯t advance. The level and initial attribute burst had come with the bond forged by Vassalize, though the advancement wall Kartoss had come up against earlier in his life remained. The failure of the plan was only part of the reason for the bird¡¯s disheartened warble.

    Ashier took his voice to speak to the third. Kartoss resisted slightly as he wasn¡¯t expecting it, but he couldn¡¯t do anything to stop the Tyrant. They could either fully possess them, using the body as a shield, or invest only part of their form to control the Proxy. Ashier willed the words to be spoken, Kartoss acting as a two-way translator. ¡°It is spreading. This region will be overcome by the Crest eventually. That damned draconoid. If Murdon hadn¡¯t rallied them against me-¡±

    ¡°It was spreading already,¡± the third dismissed with a deep voice, one that also wasn¡¯t his original. Rorshawd, betrayer of mortals, and then betrayer of the thing he¡¯d betrayed mortals for. Now he was bound by the Tyrant, who had been wise enough to place more durable chains on him. Though he¡¯d certainly received appropriate payment for his freedom. The fact that he currently stood on two legs, for example.

    ¡°But not this fast,¡± Ashier/Kartoss countered. ¡°I wonder if we can survive there. You, perhaps, in your greater form. Myself, I am less certain. Certainly not my voice.¡± Kartoss¡¯ face twisted with a worry that didn¡¯t infect Ashier¡¯s speech. ¡°We must either find a way to survive it or be pushed out of my region. Even if we survive it, I fear the invaders will force our hand.¡±

    ¡°Those mysterious interlopers from the Crest? You are deluded.¡± Ashier tolerated that insult too. They were under no illusion as to Rorshawd¡¯s nature and hatred of them. It just didn¡¯t matter. ¡°No mortals live beyond that void. It is the domain of the Lord and its kin. That which your gods steal and corrupt.¡±

    ¡°You speak well of that which abandoned you twice.¡±

    Rorshawd glared, not at Kartoss, but at Ashier themself. Even invisible, he knew where the Tyrant was. He raised a red-scaled hand tipped with claws towards them as if to drag them down, but Ashier was out of his reach in more ways than one. ¡°And what are you? A ruler of no one.¡±

    ¡°A ruler of two,¡± Ashier corrected. ¡°Kartoss, do you hunger? Yes,¡± the avianoid replied as if he¡¯d been talking to himself. ¡±I see. Rorshawd, you will hunt for the both of you.¡± The draconoid¡¯s slits narrowed. There was tolerance of disobedience, and then there was ignorance. Ashier would not have their intent misunderstood. ¡°Go. You will need to find enough for both of you to last a week. You can carry the extra during that time, of course, but I fear they will be coming soon.¡±

    Rorshawd¡¯s nostrils flared with the anger within, but the order had been made. ¡°Fine.¡± His voice someone deepened further, slightly echoing towards the end, as his form contorted. Regeneration had been one of his two powers affected by Vassalize, converting it into something vastly more powerful. Draconic Avatar. Those powers that were changed both gained and lost benefits. Rorshawd no longer had improved healing, not counting the formidable natural healing rate of his level 5 endurance. In exchange, he could transition between a humanoid form and that of a true dragon. The initial process had also healed almost all of his wounds.

    The holes in his neck had remained in his dragon body. That, and the pockets of death deep within where the necrotic gas had afflicted the flesh the strongest. Ashier was a Tyrant but had been level 1 then. Their powers only went so far.

    ¡°The day will come when I see your end,¡± Rorshawd intoned, the red of his scales shining in the sunlight.

    ¡°Perhaps.¡± The Tyrant, still concealed by their stealth power, waved an airy hand. The bond between them was pulled like a leash and the dragon took off. From across the barrier that shimmered in the seventh sense, marking the divide between the Octyrrum and the Crest, someone took notice.

    ¡­

    ¡°One last wrinkle to smooth over.¡± Mavar Helioc, Prime of his collective of the Illustrious, stood next to one of his apprentices on what had once been the plains north of Eido. He was on the wrong side of the Crest that even now worked its way to erase what the incursion army had done over two decades ago. There was a tang to the air like electricity, that affinity for this region of the world fully unmasked. The ground, however, was lifeless. A tree died in the distance as the shimmering line met it and it evaporated when its life was fully spent.

    Sasha Veltrex stood next to him, her presence the only reason the other, lesser members of the collective could survive here. They had survived within the Crest for as long as Mavar could remember thanks to the efforts of those like her. The methods were tested exhaustively, but having the flesh shaper on hand at this advance camp made sense should something unexpected happen. Such as the dragon taking flight a kilometer away.

    ¡°Tell me, Sasha, could you make something like that?¡±

    The woman was dressed heavily in practical clothing. The overall covering whatever was beneath had many pockets for various implements. The Arcanist, who was almost free of her class, had brought half of her equipment along for the journey. ¡°It¡¯s a level 5. Speaking in terms of resources, I could gestate something close enough to a true dragon in our breeding pools and make alterations to it. Higher level variants would tax my powers though. Were my mentor still alive we could dare for greater.¡±

    ¡°That was what cost us his services.¡±

    ¡°Of course. But in answer to your true question, no. I could not make something like that.¡±

    ¡°Correct,¡± Mavar agreed. The others in the camp, servants, and the thing in the center weren¡¯t following this conversation like the workers in the cavern had when discussing the slave host. There was a sense of death all around them. They¡¯d lived within this maelstrom all their lives, but you didn¡¯t see its extent until you traveled outside the normal protections. ¡°Instilling sapience into our creations was what led to our current state of affairs, if indirectly. An intelligence on par with mankind is one thing, but soul investiture comes with problems. Doing so again must wait until we have dealt with the Octyrrum and have unfettered access to the Astral domain. With regards to that specimen, not even we can replicate the unique circumstances leading to its current state. Instilling the combination of powers on it is almost an afterthought compared to what the Tyrant did.¡±

    ¡°More effects of the Entropic Agent?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± Mavar¡¯s eyes locked onto the one he knew as the true Tyrant, analyzing them across multiple spectra. ¡°Hmm. Too far, and I don¡¯t have enough experience with the Tyrant class to draw a conclusion. Their powers could be aberrant or simply those specific to them. The other, yes, but he has not advanced. Curious. My ability to predict them should be mostly preserved.¡±

    Sasha caught herself before she glanced up at the taller man. Mavar sounded uncertain. To one familiar with him that was a rarity growing more common these days. The Prime of the Illustrious was used to having a solid idea of the future through the use of his Foresight ability, magnified by the information taken in by their surveillance of nearby regions and observations of other Illustrious collectives.

    The grand scheme relied on such surety. Their ancient purpose was being fulfilled, though it had taken an alliance with both Spiritualists and one of the gods themselves. To add further complexity, a separate deal had then been reached with Torch when the god had sent a Proxy ahead of the main mortal group¡¯s departure from the region.

    Sasha took one small measure of comfort, which was that the tools of the gods operated on the same principles as her own master. If he, Prime of her people, was losing his grip on the future, so were they. Such uncertainty may then be more valuable than accurate prophecy. ¡°Are we going to eliminate them?¡±

    ¡°They know of me. The Tyrant, at least. While we remain on this side of the border there is nothing they can do. But their presence within the reverting section of this place is problematic. Especially that dragon.¡± Mavar looked further out, but could no longer make out the titanic monster that had flown off. ¡°I admit I erred there.¡± Sasha did look then in a mixture of amazement and shock. He laughed for the smallest of moments. ¡°You are surprised? Truth above all else, Sasha. There is no value in self-deceit. Were I to choose again I would have ended that dragon before the Tyrant found him. I simply did not predict such a binding would occur.¡±

    She considered that. Mavar, for all her life, had been a pillar of truth and the force directing all their hope. All of that, and an aloof, intimidating figure. Was this what he was like with everyone closer to him in station, or had recent events humbled him? And why was the barrier flickering?

    Sasha was running back towards the center of camp before Mavar had to say anything. The flesh construct, for which there was no better description, warbled in alarm. Its general structure was like a giant frog with its throat permanently bloated. Pores along the sickly green, leathery skin rippled as the effect this creation was generating began to fail. Other parts of the skin bubbled, the composite of that noise creating the alarm. If it had eyes, they would be bleeding.

    Mavar¡¯s thoughts were no longer on the Tyrant. Perhaps Sasha¡¯s barrier creature had failed on its own, but it wouldn¡¯t be like her to make something so shoddy. No, something was pushing against their defenses. The stronghold, built into the rock of a mountain, had so much overlapping coverage they could live in relative normalcy even outside the auspice of the Octyrrum. Here, they were exposed, both to the Crest and what lurked in it.

    ¡°We are being stalked. I will address this situation. Sasha, the lives of the others here are yours to protect.¡±

    ¡°Prime, is it a-¡±

    ¡°Yes. True Light.¡± It was one of the few abilities the former Cleric had held onto after abandoning his class. After freeing himself from it. The space around him illuminated, though while the radiance was overpowering, it was not blinding. It was as if the cast off energy was both in and out of the visible spectrum at the same time.

    Something at the edge of the Illustrious¡¯ barrier quickly retreated from it. Only Mavar saw it as he knew where to look. Iridescent black like gloss on a nightmare, the barest shade of purple hidden in the folds of the enemy. He didn¡¯t bother warning the others not to follow him as he strode towards the flickering barrier. If anyone couldn¡¯t figure that out they didn¡¯t deserve to survive.

    So, a lesson then. Mavar sometimes thought that way. It was inevitable. All of his collective knew the past, but he was the only one who had been there. The only one left on this side of the Astral, though he suspected the appearance of a horror here and now had to do with those that had chosen to sacrifice their freedom. If Andrastia had been forced to rebuff Grave once more, it could have opened the way for something this strong to invade the world.

    Mavar could tell his opponent was strong. Of course, neither had an official level, being outside the bounds of the Octyrrum¡¯s chains. Should he have to estimate his strength, Mavar would place himself midway between the 8th and 9th tier. It couldn¡¯t be a direct comparison. His kind were fundamentally different in how their powers and mana worked, and that wasn¡¯t even accounting for his ultimate project. And this horror? Not as strong. However, at this end of the spectrum, the disparity between others could matter much or little. A level 8 could take a 9 or win easily depending on the circumstances. Observe. The first moment is for observation. The second, understanding.

    Mavar processed it all in the span of time it took for his half step to take him out of the shield dome. He couldn¡¯t use Foresight here, the constructs necessary to use the power back in his office, but it was a simple encounter to predict through intelligence alone. He wanted to survive, protect those within the barrier, slay the horror, or drive it off. Those were his priorities in order and he hardly needed to think to organize them. What the horror wants is obvious.

    This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

    Motivation. Force enacted in pursuit of a goal inspires action. Now came the trickiest of steps. Even if you could understand your opponent¡¯s desires, and that wasn¡¯t always a given, gleaming their capabilities from the fractured time before a battle begins could be an impossible task. Easier with known monster types, but within the Crest there was no such thing. Humans at the peak of their potential could have over a hundred active powers to rely on, not to mention passive features. Guessing, estimating, or calculating all of that from glimpses and assumptions was the bedrock of the third phase. Planning.

    Which of your powers would you need to use immediately? What would you need to hold in reserve to counter the unexpected? A thousand questions the inexperienced could die trying to answer. Mavar knew what he was going to do after only two seconds. It wasn¡¯t hard. There was only one other variable he had to solve for

    The horror had made its own calculations, assuming it had a mind that word would apply to. Perhaps instinct would be more appropriate. Preset responses to given stimuli, although the intelligence of a creature this powerful would represent a complex web of them. That would make it predictable.

    The first assault came for him in the same amount of time the others needed to blink. Flesh seemed to solidify within a radius of Mavar, a sharp spike of dark matter lancing toward him. True Light did nothing to protect him from this attack. The radiance, not emitted by him but a product of passive alterations to the ambient light, only revealed the horror¡¯s true form. An arm built solely to kill reaching out faster than Mavar could breathe.

    Only, he didn¡¯t need to breathe to dodge. Mavar¡¯s mind was already processing information at a rate far faster than normal, allowing him to route energy to his limbs in time. His arm rotated and caught the strike, deflecting it sideways. Into the barrier! Ah. A classic fork. Another moment of excruciating analysis left Mavar with a greater respect for the horror¡¯s threat potential and cunning. If it had made this its opening move, it would be wise enough to know-

    The second and third attacks came together, two more tendrils shooting from the main body that remained hidden. The flesh was scaled with living eyes, seeing not with light but madness. Such aberrant flesh would be naturally resistant to any number of transformative debilitations Mavar could inflict. The world didn¡¯t want this monstrosity to exist and yet it prevailed. Even his magic couldn¡¯t compare to that. The saving grace was that his opponent¡¯s body wasn¡¯t Mavar¡¯s only potential target.

    Redoubt Form. Mavar thought the incantation rather than speak it. This taxed his will, but he didn¡¯t have the time or air to speak. The mana he was pushed into his body twisted, his bone and tissue following with the slightest of delays. Skin first took on the patterning of brick, then the consistency. His clothing shed as stonework pushed out. That was fine, transmutation specialists didn¡¯t wear permanently enchanted armor for this very reason. He could always transmute another.

    The first tendril struck him in the chest. The Illustrious Prime did not need to look down to know its momentum had been stopped before it penetrated more than a millimeter of his hardened body. The other attack was off target, attempting to skate by his defenses and strike once more at the barrier. Its initial assault on it had been slow to bypass their senses, but the strikes now carried the full force of the horror¡¯s insanity.

    Mavar¡¯s hand caught the limb, but only after it had gone past him. Weakened by the previous strike, the barrier gave way to the tip of the spike which cruised towards the barrier creature with all the destructive potential of a missile. Atmospheric Manipulation. Resonant Sharpening. Mavar called upon more of his abilities, creating two spikes of his own out of the air itself to drive down into the limb forcing its way past his grip. They pierced through, the enhanced tips of the spears able to fall through the ground as if it were air. Terraforming.

    ¡°Prime!¡± Sasha called out from behind him. He glanced back for a moment, fearing the attack hadn¡¯t been halted in time, and then realized he was hearing his subordinate¡¯s reaction to his exiting the barrier.

    From her perspective it has been, what, five seconds? A mountain struck his head and battered him sideways. He¡¯d neglected the other tendril, which had whipped around after failing to pierce him. The ground shook as his hardened mass dug into it. More writhing limbs shot in a cluster, forming a larger spike between them. Only the closest part intersected with his revelation aura but the total size must be one meter in diameter. Mental Acceleration.

    Something curious happened. From an outside perspective, it would seem as if time had frozen, although this effect was simply a mirror of Daniel¡¯s Moment of Clarity. Relatively, he was experiencing time on the scale of microseconds to seconds. There were a few key differences, however. Mavar wasn¡¯t restricted from his other powers.

    Etheric Manipulation. Dismiss Redoubt Form. Mantis Form. Resonant Sharpening. A fraction of a pause as he gave additional consideration to one last, potentially very taxing power. Seed of Second Life. Mavar deliberately walked through the activation of his powers one at a time rather than risk dual-channeling them. Even his experience and ability were being challenged as he operated within a space he was not meant to. True Light was altering the ambient electromagnetic spectra, but Etheric Manipulation dug at something deeper.

    Mavar stood and the world waited. Like the rest of his people, he was now surrounded by a barrier, though this one wasn¡¯t shimmering white but static iridescence like the robes he normally wore, phasing in and out of reality rapidly in patches.

    He walked up to the horror¡¯s collected tendrils, moving carefully. Mavar had to be very deliberate when he influenced time to this degree. That is to say, I normally must be. Gently, he brought up one of his freshly malformed hands. Where his field intercepted the horror, time accelerated into his reference point. That single section moved forward until its momentum carried it out of his influence. The eyes that could move stared at Mavar. Not balefully, even though the creature must have understood what was happening. Just observing, with a maddening glare, a-

    A sky tinged red above an isolated mountain peak. The station sprawled around in a long spiral as if a giant snake had twisted itself around it. This was where the brightest of their people would have finally found the cure to the plague ravaging them, but they¡¯d been too late.

    Thousands arranged in neat rows before the throne. None without injury but firm in their resolve. Enemies had hounded the nation for centuries, finally striking at their heart. But she stood to turn the tide, finally forced out into the open. Her sacrifice would have brought everlasting victory.

    Hundreds of moments from past lives, other worlds. Remnants of souls, though far less than what could be considered a spirit. Fragments that would never become whole again. Everything this creature had collected within itself as it wandered the Astral, a predator that was now consuming-

    The explosion threw him backward. The ¡®arm¡¯ of the horror had continued to be dragged into the field as parts of it entered the altered timestream. The mass was somewhat pliable, but upon building up it had eventually ruptured. Things like that tended to happen if you were reckless in maneuvering others through different time frames. What happened to the horror could just as easily cause blood vessels to erupt on a smaller scale.

    Mavar had known this would happen and averted the attack meant for the barrier behind him while injuring his enemy. What had surprised him was the ferocity of the mental assault. It has the corruption archetype and hundreds of fragmented souls, at least, powering it. If it had not been disrupted that may have been serious. It seems I took appropriate precautions. He mentally revised his estimate of the foe. This is a greater horror. Grave could not be responsible for this, could he? Regardless, it must be banished. Atmospheric Manipulation. Dismiss Etheric Manipulation and Mental Acceleration.

    The consequences of Mavar¡¯s actions fully played out as the bubble of accelerated time around him popped. Disturbed air and the final moments of the explosion, alongside numerous stacked mana bursts from Mavar¡¯s one-off abilities, rocked the surroundings. The concussive force would have killed his people nearby or, worse, thrown them into the Crest, but for a veneer of compressed air surrounding the flickering barrier. Such was the magnitude of the mana released from the man that some traveled to the boundary of the Crest itself, though the Octyrrum prevented it from spilling over. He was using an inordinately massive amount in this fight and yet was not deep into his reserves. Mavar could do this all day.

    Those under his ward had been threatened enough. With his powers and the failure of whatever mind warping assault made against him, Mavar had gained the initiative. He ran blazingly fast. The kicked up earth could have imperiled anyone of lesser endurance standing nearby. True Light revealed the offending limbs of the horror as he traced them to their source, occasionally firing an ability to prevent another strike at the barrier behind him.

    The Prime of the Illustrious was a transmutation specialist, as appropriately demonstrated by his powers thus far. The classic domains were regarded as balanced, though each had its niche. Transmutation had good destructive potential, though its shortcomings were that it largely affected the self or a very short range around it. This horror was very far away. One. Two¡­ thirty kilometers? False gods.

    He could spend all day shredding tendrils apart, but Mavar suspected they¡¯d just keep coming. The main body was where the twisted consciousness of the horror truly resided and he reached it in all of ten seconds. Mantis Form was not Redoubt Form¡¯s exact opposite, but it made for a sprint that would shame dragon flight.

    In truth, there was very little left in Mavar¡¯s arsenal that was not explosively powerful. He¡¯d had all the time in the world to trim down his powers and optimize those that remained towards his ultimate end. In the war he had Foreseen, his and every other Illustrious cadre needed those that could punch on the level of the gods.

    There you are. The horror, as it turned out, was primarily a collection of random body parts sourced from mortals and monsters, and not all from this world. When it sent out an attack, these melted into homogenous flesh covered by the eyes containing the corruptive influence. Given the strength of the gaze alone, he wouldn¡¯t be surprised if there were other means it could use to inflict it.

    All the better that this form prized slashing weapons as much as speed, for he¡¯d need to cut this thing apart. Redoubt Form could turn one into a living castle. Mantis Form made Mavar¡¯s features elongate, inverted his knees, and manifested blades around his body. He¡¯d chosen the standard variant of this combat form, which were long sword-like protrusions of dark carapace he could lock his hands into. If you looked for it, you could see the edges vibrating faintly. Humming a deadly tune.

    As Mavar caught sight of the main mass, it exploded outward. The falling pieces were equally physical and mental threat, both of which Mavar had adapted to counter. Without the need to protect others, his offensive potential was unleashed. Whatever twisted substance composed the horror could ignore normal attacks with ease. Had Mavar not imbued his natural weapons with a resonating damage enchantment, then he might have struggled as well. As it was, the two blades on his arms cut through the falling rain of insanity while his legs carried him clear of any that he couldn¡¯t intercept. More importantly, they also carried him towards that which had shot backward out of the mass instead of forwards.

    The greater horror was in retreat, the majority of its mass already unmaking itself following Mavar¡¯s attacks. However, such a creature would simply recover and return so long as part of it survived. Even killing its physical form wouldn¡¯t be the end of it, but Mavar had no means for an excursion into the Astral and trusted his allies there to handle it. Either way the threat had to be extinguished, otherwise it would strike again when he was not present. The Tyrant and their pet dragon were obstacles enough, he could not have two threats to their operations dividing his attention.

    He caught up to it, arms drenched in the slightly viscous material contained within the horror. The maddening eyes lined the flesh, even on parts that wouldn¡¯t normally have them. It would be invisible even without whatever mockery of magic concealed it normally, save for the light Mavar generated, though he was certain the effect produced by the eyes worked whether you could see them or not.

    The horror twisted and writhed feverishly, moving faster and faster in the air. It was such a simple creature, in the end. Long range attack potential, though not extreme, and a nearly unavoidable madness effect. High survivability. Four to five archetypes, but that is all. On par with level 7 at best. I¡¯m ending this. Flash Morph.

    The rapid ability did not alter his entire form, but merely broke the blades off his arms and converted them into held weapons. It was the earliest power he¡¯d awakened from his former class, though any transmutation Cleric now wouldn¡¯t receive it until level 2. Bane of Titans. Another mana pulse and the twin swords tripled in size. Keeping this many powerful enhancements on them was stressing the material and his mana structure, but Mavar did not need them to last long.

    Mavar took one step forward. Terraforming. It wasn¡¯t teleportation. Neither did he alter the flow of time again, he simply shifted dirt. A lot of it, as he sped along a surge of earth to catch up to the remnant horror. He cut through, first horizontally with one sword, then vertically with the other. Fearing another assault via his senses he closed his eyes and steeled his mind.

    It did nothing to stop the tide. In the throes of its death, the last horror fragment released itself onto the immediate area, saturating the firmament with its unnatural nature. Mavar¡¯s mind twisted with one, then two, then thousands of tormented specters drowning his cognition. At that moment he understood how far he¡¯d underestimated the horror, which had sacrificed part of its patchwork spirit to fuel this attack. By its own false nature and terrible evolution, it had not built itself to win against any foe. It was meant to die to the right one. Him. A perfect host to become an even greater horror of these forsaken lands.

    The madness infected him, warping his flesh and soul. Fragmenting his mind and throwing into chaos the careful structuring of mana that framed his body. But some part of him held on, knowing this was no longer a battle he could win, or survive. This was now about denying the enemy. How quickly that had turned.

    His mental incantation was opposed by every spirit the horror had contained and those parts of himself already forgone. He fought for each letter, failing, pushing harder, and growing weaker with time. But before he could be claimed, the Prime spun what mana was still freely his to great and terrible effect. Atomic¡­ Manipulation: Cas¡­cade.

    ¡­

    Sasha Veltrex had just finished cleaning one of the sharp implements, her myothermic stimulator, of blood when she saw the distant flash, and then felt the wave of pressure. Not from a mana pulse, not entirely, but a massive blast. Everyone who still survived had something nearby to hold onto by now, which for Sasha was her barrier creature.

    Gaps in the barrier around them briefly appeared, the pockets heralding a mind-numbing sensation of wrongness, before she stabilized the creation. No one else succumbed to the wild mana, although they¡¯d had to quickly put down five of the lower rank who¡¯d been exposed, however briefly, to the tendril that had breached their perimeter and the influence of the Crest.

    Something wet and amorphous rose out of the ground near the barrier and was promptly shot with six arrows and two magical abilities. They all bounced off. The flesh collecting itself into a rough shape seemed impervious. And then familiar. ¡°Prime!¡±

    ¡°Ugh,¡± Mavar groaned while reconstituting himself. He had a searing headache. Why? That wasn¡¯t part of the process. Oh. Bothersome.

    ¡°Prime! What happened? Did you slay the horror?¡±

    He grimaced but nodded while walking towards the barrier and shaping his customary robes from the air. ¡°It was a trap, and more powerful than I gave credence for. Arrogance, I freely admit it. I was forced to destroy myself and return to my redundant vessel.¡± A few of the survivors not familiar enough with the Prime to know his greatest power looked in awe. Sasha bore a different expression.

    ¡°You used Second Life?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°But your powers-¡±

    ¡°I know,¡± Mavar wearily silenced her. ¡°It is an unnecessary complication. Ah, and the Tyrant has vanished in the confusion. Did they sense us? No, it doesn¡¯t seem so.¡± He looked around, counting mentally. ¡°Considering we are rid of a greater horror it is almost a worthy trade, but my temporary weakening makes this situation harder to handle. I can still kill the dragon easily in a direct fight, but to kill it before it flees?¡± He frowned.

    ¡°Should we return to the sanctuary?¡±

    ¡°Yes. Prepare your creation for travel, although the waters should be calmer now, so to speak. And,¡± he turned to address the entire group, ¡°Do not let your conviction waver. The plan remains the same. First, we reclaim this territory, entrenching what we can before the Crest fully passes over it. And then,¡± The Prime gazed outwards, to the west and slightly south. He spoke as if his gaze could cover thousands of kilometers and pierce into the very core of the Octyrrum itself. ¡°We take the world.¡±

 Interlude: Thormundz - Stalkers

    The command structure of the Illustrious was a product of the long years they¡¯d endured in the Crest. When the world broke, the previous order of enlightened peers collapsed in the face of unprecedented challenges. The old ways might have survived regardless if not for the catastrophic losses taken during the betrayal. The Illustrious were not the only ones cast into the abyss by the uncaring gods, but they alone survived to this day.

    Of those that remained to lead, true memory was valued above all else. That these individuals were the oldest and strongest, capable of extending their lifespans indefinitely, also factored in strongly. For some sects there was a continual leadership struggle throughout the centuries as equally able members of the old guard competed to direct the preparations for the next war. Mavar Helioc didn¡¯t have that problem.

    Aside from himself and three sealed in the Astral, all within his local order had been born after the betrayal. Sheltered though they were in his stronghold, only a rare few had been able to join him in freedom from the influence of the Octyrrum. Most couldn¡¯t advance far enough to have the strength to break their chains.

    One proud example of his collective was standing in front of a row of armored humanoids. Remir Cassar was defined most by his scars and his choice to keep him. He did not have Mavar¡¯s mastery of form inherent to transmutation specialists, merely benefiting from what would be termed level 6 endurance should he still have his class. The man was beyond that now.

    Remir did not wear armor or carry weapons. For protection, he strengthened his skin with mana to be harder than any metal the Illustrious could reasonably find and forge. Should he need to fight, he would have ways other than a sword. He strode back and forth in front of the assembled warriors, muttering incantations under his breath for each one. The beard and stout nature of the man would have been comparable to a dwarf if this world had any.

    Each warrior he passed was left changed as Remir applied his buffs in a wave. First they stood straighter, dark eyes gleaming. Then the sea-green armor shone for a moment before fading into a darker green to match the forest on the next pass. A fourth shaped claws out of their gauntlets, giving the warriors weapons they otherwise wouldn¡¯t have. However, Remir paused before the last set of enchantments.

    ¡°You¡¯re sure it has Regeneration?¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± Mavar replied in a slightly irked tone. Remir, due to his status and position, was one of the few who could act with impudence in his presence. Mavar was no Tyrant, but he expected a general decorum from the collective. ¡°We observed it in battle and it matches what I suspect occurred with the Entropic Agent. Use the parasitic poison.¡±

    ¡°I could make ¡®em have a flame attack instead. Cauterize the wounds.¡± Remir lifted one of the warriors¡¯ clawed hands, the armored figure not resisting. ¡°It¡¯d be a damn sight more effective than the poison, and my guys wouldn¡¯t have to last as long.¡±

    ¡°It is a fire dragon, Remir.¡±

    The other paused for a moment, letting the hand drop back into a neutral position. ¡°Yeah, that would be an issue.¡±

    ¡°By all means, choose something else. If you can grant them necrotic attacks, that is,¡± Mavar qualified. ¡°Otherwise, it should be poison.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s just.¡± Remir sighed. ¡°It¡¯s my weakest damage buff. Anything with endurance not worth shit can resist it. Could you imagine these things running through the woods, hands trailing flame?¡±

    ¡°Enlightened Cassar, we are trying to catch our enemy unawares,¡± Mavar chastised, using the man¡¯s title.

    ¡°Fine. Prime. You sure you Foresaw it right though?¡±

    ¡°As you know, entities that have come into contact with the Entropic Agent are harder to view.¡± There was a bit of anger in Mavar¡¯s tone now that Remir heeded. Even still suffering from the drawbacks of using Second Life, the Prime of the Illustrious could unmake him should he choose. That would be a terrible waste of potential and resources, but the Prime still considered it at times.

    ¡°Fine, fine. Envenomed Weapons: Living Contagion.¡± A look of disappointment was clear even through the facial hair as Remir made his last pass. ¡°There. They¡¯re as ready as I can get them. Put anything else on and it¡¯ll ruin Battle Hardened.¡±

    ¡°And the tracker?¡±

    Remir exhaled gustily. ¡°I¡¯m getting to that!¡± He pulled something small from the air around him, hands gentle so as to not crush the delicate thing. ¡°Concealment. Bestow Alacrity. Track Entity: Rorshawd.¡±

    ¡­

    Several days had passed since Ashier had felt something beyond the Crest. What, they wouldn¡¯t say, further infuriating Rorshawd. The little Tyrant was advancing quickly, but keeping their powers secret unless they had to show them. They didn¡¯t trust him. That was probably wise. Rorshawd was averaging a death threat once every two hours and that counted when they slept.

    He was no longer a servant of the true gods. Time, misery, and unanswered prayers had taken his faith and he was glad to be rid of it. Rorshawd already had his superior form. Would that he could have avoided his hated foe¡¯s flames, or eaten him before they¡¯d issued forth, he would still be free. But from that terrible night he had lost an eye and a wing, along with becoming so crippled he could hardly move. Regeneration had kept him healthy enough to stay alive, but nothing more.

    Ashier had come with their offer and he had accepted more out of incredulity than honesty. He hadn¡¯t believed, or so he told himself. And so, clearly, he¡¯d been tricked. Leashed firmer than he had ever been by his former Lord. They were more a monster than he was for doing this to him. A Tyrant. What should I have expected?

    He shook his head, his true head, to cast out the memory. Thinking back on that moment would remind him of the shred of honesty he¡¯d bargained with. Acknowledging that stripped him of any ability for self-pity. The others reacted, and the Tyrant did what made him hate them the most.

    ¡°Is it your injuries?¡± They asked with Kartoss¡¯ voice. The Tyrant and their Proxy were rarely separated. The Proxy was mostly powerless, while Ashier had informed them that they had some potent combat abilities now that they were into the second level. Specifics had been withheld.

    Their true form reached for one of the channels black flame had drilled into his neck. Rorshawd bristled, hating how the cool air of their form could soothe the dull ache. ¡°Stop.¡± Even permanently maimed, his true form was still capable of speech. It was a far cry from the powerful bellows of his former glory, that perfect body he still saw sometimes in his dreams.

    ¡°If you are in pain, let me help you.¡±

    ¡°You said you would heal me!¡±

    ¡°I did.¡± They floated away and up to meet the dragon¡¯s eye. ¡°And you now have an entirely new form as well. You may interact with society. Your smaller form requires less food. You may even mate again.¡±

    ¡°Feh.¡± Rorshawd looked away, hiding how that last point had resonated with him slightly. ¡°It is not worth the cost. I will find a way to escape your binds.¡±

    ¡°You are mine. That is all. The idea that you are a slave exists only in your head.¡± The ethereal Tyrant phased out of the visible spectrum. Their Natural Camouflage power, along with the air gestalt¡¯s higher stealth at baseline, made for a potent combination.

    ¡°Then what would you call him!?¡± Kartoss fidgeted under the dragon¡¯s stare, only slightly calmed by the knowledge of Ashier¡¯s standing orders. The avianoid, normally straight-backed and at attention while under control, crumpled against a domed tree. He¡¯d been mostly silent these days aside from when Ashier used his voice. A depression to match Rorshawd¡¯s fury.

    ¡°I serve,¡± he said meekly after some time had passed.

    Rorshawd turned his gaze around the area, trying to pick out where the Tyrant was. He always had a sense of the general area, but he wanted to look them in the eyes. ¡°You will never make me that. I will fight and tear at you in every way I can until you release me or I take freedom by my claws! Not you, or your gods-¡±

    Ashier reappeared in front of him, directly in front of his nostrils this time. The gestalt raised one hand and then brought it down. The movement could have been called slashing, only the palm was pointed towards the direction the cloud hand moved. A moment later, Rorshawd¡¯s head jerked violently from an unseen strike. If that had been Ashier, and he saw no other possible source, then it felt like the Tyrant had swapped their relative sizes for a moment to strike him.

    Rorshawd picked himself up off the ground, feeling the murder within him spike. But he was not the one in control here. The fire building within him would not issue forth so long as he was close to Ashier or Kartoss. The sudden violence did startle the avianoid as the Tyrant had not shown this degree of control over their subjects before.

    Kartoss¡¯ vocal cords were seized by the same grip that held his soul. Anger and spite colored his voice now. ¡°I grow tired of your endless threats. I know you reject me in spite of your earlier promise. You are honorless. Fortunately, I made my initial approach with this in mind.¡± Rorshawd took in air to protest, provoking Ashier to raise a hand threateningly. ¡°Sit down and listen.¡±

    Kartoss didn¡¯t feel the Tyrant draw on his lungs to yell. The presence that had become familiar by now kept his tone level and simmering. Though a far stronger rage burned in the eyes of the dragon, it was powerless to resist the command. ¡°I know of your history. Your betrayal of the gods. Recanting that heresy on your own has given me the hope that there is still yet a use for one as formidable as you. Even my former champion could not hope to compare. Your insolence against me I may tolerate. Know, however, that our purpose is to make this world right. The mistakes of the one you hold in contempt above all else have put everyone, in every Realm, in mortal peril. You will serve to make this right, either willingly and with my support, or by force with my rancor. Even so, I am a patient master. I will tolerate much. But do not disrespect the gods nor their divine purpose as entrusted by the Octyrrum. Do you understand?¡±

    Rorshawd gained some control of his body back, but not all. The commands of the Tyrant had to be made verbally, but Ashier could also institute standing orders they could mentally disable. They did this now as they allowed him to stand. The gods? Rorshawd thought with bile darker than the fog that had wounded him. He had abandoned his former faith, but not the belief that the so-called gods of the Octyrrum were anything other than a mockery of true divinity.

    The dragon drew in air as if to breathe fire, ready to deny the Tyrant and be free of them one way or another, before a butterfly landed square on the tip of his snout. It would have been but a momentary distraction except for the fact that it would not flee when he flicked his head to the side. ¡°Get off!¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t see that approach,¡± Kartoss said, distractedly. It carried the same inflection of Ashier¡¯s speech and was likely the Tyrant¡¯s thoughts spilling over into the control they was maintaining on their Proxy. They faded from view, moving towards a new position. Even Rorshawd¡¯s keener hearing and smell couldn¡¯t track them. Air gestalt rarely made a sound, and their scent was identical to the surrounding air.

    ¡°You are afraid of a pathetic insect?¡± Rorshawd brought one foreclaw up to his face, intending to crush the insect between two claws but accidentally smeared it on his snout instead. Snarling with distaste he began to will himself into his humanoid form, only to find Ashier¡¯s intent blocking the change. They must have mentally enforced one of the standing commands that he remain in the form he was in. Typically, that was to stop him from changing into his full draconic form. ¡°Release me,¡± he growled.

    The response to his continued challenging of the Tyrant¡¯s authority was not another punitive strike, but the appearance of Ashier in front of Kartoss. The Proxy found himself uninhibited. ¡°W-what¡¯s going on?¡± the avianoid asked in his far meeker natural tone. ¡°Wait-!¡± His cry was cut off as the mist that was Ashier¡¯s body flowed through him, vanishing the man as if he¡¯d been consumed. The Tyrant themselves faded from view, leaving no trace of their first servant.

    That¡¯s new, Rorshawd thought. Another trick that cloud has up their sleeve. But why? His thoughts, which were about the only thing safe from the reaches of the Tyrant, paused as danger faintly registered on his senses. He wasn¡¯t as adept at making full use of his attributes yet and was beginning to suspect there were ways he could manipulate them that weren¡¯t possible at lower levels. Nothing he could do now, though.

    Rorshawd regretted killing the creature. Not for its death, but because he could have identified it with the powers he¡¯d stolen from Daniel. Was it some form of high-level monster that delivered toxins in a suicide attack? He didn¡¯t feel poisoned, but it was possible. There was no other obvious threat, so what was the point?

    He heightened his Balance and Graceful Fall features, remnants of his old class which had been stolen by Daniel in kind. At level 5 the benefits provided would turn him from an ace in the sky to a king. One whose crown was currently in the possession of another.

    Rorshawd took to the air, reveling in what he had traded his freedom for. He¡¯d awakened Totem Warrior as his class seven years ago. Time seemed so twisted now, his soul having passed through multiple crucibles since that formative moment, but he could clearly remember why he¡¯d taken the path he had. It was the same reason there¡¯d been a shred of honesty when he¡¯d agreed to this prison.

    This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

    If you¡¯d asked Rorshawd what power he¡¯d desire most when he was young, he would have answered flight. A dream more common to the avianoid race, but hard to shake for one native to Threst. Now, he was a titan of the air. He could turn around a tree at full speed with his powers enhancing his form¡¯s natural airborne agility. His fire breath would make short work of anything under his level. What enticed him the most, now that his gripings about the Tyrant were momentarily forgotten, was the promise of getting bigger and better in his adult dragon form. If that Tyrant would leave any of my advancement potential to me, that is.

    The speedy return of his dark thoughts was interrupted by a slight shimmer in the trees below. Rorshawd and the others had been concealed in one of the larger stretches of foliage that broke up the plains of the Thormundz at the insistence of Ashier. Their refusal to elaborate, either on what they were hiding from or what their plans were, had infuriated the dragon to no end. Now, there was a threat below him.

    The dragon breathed in, drawing mana to empower his fire breath. To his surprise, no muscles in his throat seized to cancel the ability. Neither did it feel like there were many inhibitions on him at this moment. Rorshawd still sensed Ashier nearby, but they must have been clear of his target zone. The dragon finished inhaling and then breathed. Flying was his life and joy, but his fire breath was a close second. That destructive power and life-ending energy far outstripped anything he¡¯d had before as a human.

    The trees refused to burn. Rorshawd blinked. He was sure the fire had carried down to them. Even with the holes in his throat robbing him of the range and power he once had, the edge of the fire plume had sprayed over the greenery. And they were trees! Trees burned. Everything burned with time. True enough, some of the foliage had caught on the ground, and that fire was spreading to trees further out, but the ones directly below him had refused to catch.

    Something was wrong. At first, Rorshawd was simply annoyed, but then a sinking feeling caused him to fly slightly higher. There was something there, a pattern his high intelligence and wisdom were making out subconsciously that he¡¯d yet to fully realize. Yes, the inexplicable fire resistance was unnatural, but there was something else to it. It was when a portion of isolated fire suddenly and incompletely died that he realized what it was.

    The tops of several trees had refused to catch fire. In addition, an area around them had been similarly preserved. There were almost perfect spheres of calm amid the growing inferno that moved without anything visible to explain the discrepancy. It was a power, several, which meant-

    Fire rushed up the trees to claim them. Rorshawd, wise now to the danger, felt no satisfaction. Even his improved sight didn¡¯t catch what was coming until it was nearly on him. A glint of the sun reflecting off open air. First one, then three, then a dozen or more. One for every tree that had not burned. Rorshawd could have breathed fire again at them but he was no fool. Arrogant, sadistic, and prideful perhaps, but he had a mind fortified by attributes and experience.

    He pulled away in a maneuver not unlike a midair backflip, something that would otherwise be impossible with his bulky frame were it not for his active enhancements. These enemies had been able to sneak up on him and had brought some form of potent fire resistance. It didn¡¯t take too many logical leaps to assume this was an assassination attempt. The vague warnings Ashier had given over the past few days solidified as Rorshawd begrudgingly acknowledged the Tyrant¡¯s foresight.

    Whatever was coming for him didn¡¯t slow for all he now appreciated the danger. They had flight as well, or less likely, empowered jumps and had anticipated the dodge. What level are they? Rorshawd thought with some concern. And where did they come from? There was no doubt in his mind these were mortals. Too much coordination and the use of powers perfectly tailored to counter him were the giveaways. Monsters, even other, lesser draconoids, did not have the wide-ranging power set to present this kind of targeted threat.

    For the first time, Rorshawd felt naked without Regeneration. It had always been there as a safety net until the cursed Murdon had debilitated it. As a human, he¡¯d been able to risk far more injuries than others would, secure in the knowledge that even grievous wounds would heal after a few days. So long as he didn¡¯t outright die, he¡¯d be fine. That safety was gone.

    What he did have was his other powers. While engaging his aerial maneuverings, Rorshawd focused on one of the glints and tried to identify them. A red aura appeared midair, roughly humanoid, although the tag that accompanied them confused the dragon.

    <hr>

    ??? - (4)

    <hr>

    Fucking Unidentification. He glowered in momentary commiseration with Daniel. Marking the others took but seconds, Rorshawd finding that his other assailants had also hidden their names. Why? To hide from his wrath should they survive this encounter? He had to admit that was a wise move. What comforted him was that they were all only level 4, and there were only fourteen of them. He was a dragon, and they didn¡¯t even have weapons! What could they hope to do?

    The group of aggressors collided with him. Rorshawd seized one but missed the second he reached for. He felt thick armor underneath his scales that gave some initial resistance as he squeezed. Sighing internally, Rorshawd activated Claw Strike and finished the mortal with a briefly taloned limb. Even though the mana cost was negligible and offered a slight boost to his strength, he hated perverting his pure draconic form. The bird-like appearance on his forelimbs just clashed too much.

    Then he registered what the other assailants had done. He¡¯d been mildly successful in twisting away whilst grabbing the now broken body he let fall to the ground, but several had still struck him. Rorshawd hadn¡¯t sensed any bursts of mana representative of higher tier powers, but attacks had still cut through his scales.

    None of the wounds he felt seemed different. As Rorshawd circled and laid eyes on his enemies for the first time, he grew puzzled. For one, they¡¯d disabled whatever had made them invisible. They all looked the same, with green armor and wings coming off the back. Not like avianoids, but mortals with six limbs in a mockery of his form. Whatever material made up their armor had been twisted into claws at the ends of each finger. He respected that choice at least; any weapon you carried into aerial combat was one you could drop.

    Any further sizing up of the small cluster was halted with a pained hiss. The areas he¡¯d been slashed began to burn. Not with a fire, but a throbbing wrongness as the tissue grew fevered. A power? Did they all have the same power sets? That should be impossible. Who are these insects?

    Lost to a sudden, impetuous rage, Rorshawd breathed fire at them before cutting the stream prematurely. Still immune to his fire, the attackers made use of it as cover and shot out of the flame cloud trailing clean air behind them. Not even the black smoke that the fireball turned into bothered his opponents.

    He killed two of them this time, snapping one in half with his jaws while battering one to the ground. Even so, the others came on without pause or grief for their stricken friends. Their natural weapons cut him too easily, delivering some kind of poison that bypassed his formidable defenses and caused the flesh underneath to writhe. The effect was too strong for level 4, but they at least died like their level and Rorshawd had never seen his identification power lie before.

    Yet, every slash he received in kind did more than it should. These mortals were striking out with glorified claws of their own, it would take minutes for them to dig through his flesh and strike at anything vital. What truly threatened him was the poison each carried. It ate at the immediate area but, worse, struck at his hearts whenever it found a blood vessel. He could feel his pulse slowing even when battle lust should make it race higher and higher. Both were affected differently as well, throwing off the coordinated rhythm necessary for optimal flow.

    Fear entered him, one of the legacies of his defeat at Roost¡¯s Peak. Rorshawd had wallowed in a broken body for weeks before Ashier had found him. He knew that losing a battle could end in something worse than death. He wanted to flee then, but they were faster! Immune to his strongest weapon. He still would have tried if Ashier hadn¡¯t enacted one of their standing orders at that moment

    Rorshawd shrank dramatically while in mid-air, returning to his lesser form. Ashier had also locked him into it, preventing another transformation. It did remove the sting of the toxin, though that would remain in his dragon form until his body fought it off. What was the Tyrant thinking? Even a level higher, I cannot resist that poison in a body this small!

    Oh, and he was falling. His powers would let him adjust and minimize his fall damage, but the enemies had wings! They flew towards him, surely confused but still with murderous intent. Then, Rorshawd felt a tremendous amount of mana leave him as Ashier siphoned it off. The Tyrant suffered a conversion cost for doing this like they did from stealing his advancement potential, but with Rorshawd¡¯s massive mana pool that wasn¡¯t too much of a concern.

    The neck of one enemy snapped, and then the body crashed into another to take both out of the sky. Ashier had stolen his Telekinetic Reach and was using it to outright kill these enemies at the cost of the majority of his mana! ¡°What are you¡­ no, stop!¡± His lesser voice roared as he continued to fall. Powerless to resist, he saw two more fling towards others without the lethal initiator. Five enemies altogether were felled, most alive, but that left more than enough to finish him before he hit the ground.

    ¡­

    He never would. Ashier had watched the battle after securing their Proxy. Kartoss was normally a massive liability in any fight. They preferred to keep him hidden if at all possible, though this day had called for the use of Cloudborn Sanctuary. It was an interior space that provided powerful protection, though only to those affected by Vassalize.

    While Rorshawd had his suspicions about the beings attacking him, Ashier had spent a few careful moments inspecting one of the fallen corpses before taking again to the air. Even with Tyrant¡¯s Bearing, an improved variant of other form-bolstering powers air gestalt could receive, they could not survive the inferno spreading across the forest for long. The Tyrant ascended until they no longer felt the edges of themselves being cast off by rising thermals, took brief note of one spot in the forest that still refused to burn, and then came to the aid of their champion.

    He¡¯d done well enough, slaying three in a minute and avoiding lethal damage. The Tyrant thought to leave the dragon to it until they saw sickly green taking root in the long slashes that had been inflicted across his body. Poison, they realized, and strong if it were acting so fast. Those few strikes might have proven lethal if Rorshawd still had Regeneration, though he would have to be saved from further damage.

    The Tyrant knew all of his powers, of course. That had been one of the first commands they¡¯d given. A few strategies had come to mind, such as this brutal use of telekinesis. The former was necessary here to quickly eliminate as many combatants as possible. As they issued orders, Ashier positioned themself below the falling dracanoid.

    Their enemies stopped when Rorshawd vanished in midair. With his mana siphoned off and primary attack form poisoned, Ashier had no further use for him until he recovered. His attributes and powers, on the other hand, could still serve.

    It is well known that Tyrants eclipsed other classes in terms of raw power, enabling them to directly contest others above their level. A less widespread fact, something approaching a secret of the class, was that a Tyrant¡¯s true potential lay in how their powers interacted with their followers.

    One mortal could not build a kingdom on their own. Murdon had been right to fear the influence spread as a result of Heldren¡¯s evolved power, but even that had been a secondary effect of Vassalize. Ashier had grown with time, awakening other powers and reaching their second level. That all their powers were received directly from the Tyrant class, rather than being evolved versions of prior forms, was equally important even if that left them with little to directly attack enemies with.

    The stalkers of their champion could not appreciate this. At present they flitted about in the air with a loose searching pattern, anticipating an invisible enemy. There was a moment where any of them could have struck an ending blow to the Tyrant while the air gestalt was focused on stealth. In the time they spent failing to do so, Ashier activated the necessary powers to end them.

    Kartoss emerged mid-air a short distance from the closest stalker. From his perspective, it had been moments since his master had shielded him from an incoming threat. For a second he hoped the danger was over. One look around was enough to dismiss the only optimistic thought he¡¯d had today. His scream was cut off as he fell through the Tyrant, who had jettisoned their Proxy above their current position. Rather than envelop him again in a similar manner to Rorshawd, something else happened.

    To an outside observer, of which there were a few, it looked as though smoke began rushing into the avianoid despite the furious exhalation of his lungs. In this way, Ashier took a more direct control over their Proxy than the already soul-forged magical bond between them allowed. In the time it took for the Tyrant to fully suffuse Kartoss¡¯ body, the closest stalker had gotten within arms¡¯ reach. The avianoid, whose attributes had only been improved to 10 through the pact made with the Tyrant, couldn¡¯t hope to withstand level 4 strength.

    He did. The tips of the gauntlet¡¯s claws still slashed at the skin, but feathers stalled the attack to the point that it was a mere graze. Kartoss was poisoned, but neither did this slow him. White mist gathered in a haze around his body, thickest near the eyes from where it very slowly seeped. The stalker tried to pull away and rejoin the others before making a combined assault, only for a hand to grab its neck.

    Ashier, using Kartoss¡¯ other hand, latched onto the front of the stalker¡¯s helmet. With a thought that hand¡¯s talons momentarily became elongated, digging into the enemy before tearing off the mask that hid all but the hateful eyes. Their attempts to get away were permanently halted by the left hand breaking the neck. Ashier looked between the mask in their hands and the face of the stalker, confirming what they suspected, then letting both drop to the ground.

    Even with the sight of this, the others didn¡¯t retreat. Kartoss, imbued with his master¡¯s form and the stolen attributes and powers of Rorshawd, was more than their match. He flew through the air, something that would have normally filled the man with joy if he were not overcome with terror. The Tyrant kept the body in check even if the mind would have driven them both to the ground. Ashier was in control, all else was unimportant.

    Put in Earth terms, the resulting aerial battle was a dogfight between one ace and a handful of rookie pilots. Rorshawd could have done as well with the full information and fewer enemies Ashier had, but as befitted a champion he had been spent reducing the threat to the Tyrant before their might needed to be used.

    The end of the battle saw the Tyrant alone in the skies. One of Kartoss¡¯ arms had been sacrificed to shield blows for the other and was more yellowish-green than normal. Where the coloration was deepest, small thread-like parasites were beginning to fester. Of the stalkers, only one remained. Ashier, ignorant of the pain her Proxy was still suffering, observed one clearing in the forest fire below that began to move to the east. Whoever had sent it hadn¡¯t anticipated the fire protection enchantment spoiling its invisibility.

    ¡­

    ¡°Hmm.¡±

    Remir looked up from the large quadruped with kinetic-conductive crystal capping a gyrating tail, a turbine bellower to use the name given by this region¡¯s occupants. ¡°What? They coming back yet?¡±

    ¡°It appears all of our stalkers were defeated.¡±

    ¡°Fuck! I told you we shouldn¡¯t have gone with poison.¡±

    Mavar considered what he had seen in the projection in front of him before tsk¡¯ing. ¡°The template was not strong enough. I¡¯ll have to forward my suggestions to Sasha. Regardless of your improvements, I fear the result was set. I had hoped to capitalize on the dragon¡¯s weakness but it appears my Foresight was once again incorrect.¡± To most of his subordinates, admitting his weaknesses was something Mavar did readily. Truth above all else, after all. Remir was the exception. ¡°From my observations, the dragon no longer has Regeneration.¡± Mavar didn¡¯t turn away from the orb in front of him. ¡°And Remir, when I said all of our stalkers were destroyed, I meant all of them.¡±

    The former Beastmaster paused for a moment. ¡°Hey Prime, you¡¯re still watching that scrying thing, right?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± There was a peculiar inflection to Mavar¡¯s words.

    ¡°So, well, not to question your wisdom or whatever, but is there still something to see if that stalker¡¯s going up in the fire?¡±

    ¡°Oh yes. I believe, one way or another, this is going to be interesting.¡±

    Remir peered at Mavar suspiciously before backhanding the rump of the beast in front of him to get it standing. On alert, he strode over to the man with iridescent robes and looked into the orb. ¡°Gah, fuck!¡±

    Whirling around, he saw Ashier as the Tyrant, still piloting Kartoss, materialized above them. ¡°I think,¡± they said with Kartoss¡¯ voice, ¡°We need to talk.¡±

 Interlude: Thormundz - Bad Faith

    ¡°Tyrant.¡±

    ¡°Trespasser,¡± Ashier/Kartoss nodded in kind. Mavar stood passively below the Tyrant¡¯s imperious pose. The mist billowing from Kartoss¡¯ form aided this to a small degree, the severed head held in one hand far more. Remir, for his part, was caught between wariness and smugness.

    There were also fifty-odd others in the immediate area, but they were rank and file of the Illustrious. None above level 1 and most not even that. The traditional issue preventing the majority from attaining a class didn¡¯t apply to the Illustrious, but there were still those among them who had problems advancing. Given that Remir was overshadowed by the two conversing without a detachment of monsters under his control, they were hardly worth mentioning.

    The Prime of the Illustrious raised a hand out to the floating duality as if to say ¡®get on with it¡¯. He neither bristled at the sudden appearance of Ashier nor reacted with immediate violence as they might have feared. In fact, the Tyrant was somewhat put off by the reaction of the one who¡¯d sent a dozen-odd killers after them. Remir¡¯s hand edging to the hilt of some weapon at his side was far more in line with their expectations.

    ¡°The teachings of the gods suggest it is impossible to survive beyond the Crest,¡± Ashier began, briefly looking towards the shimmering barrier off in the distance. ¡°Not only is proof against that standing before me, but they are all human. The first race,¡± they said speculatively as if finding the beginnings of a thread. ¡°That, and your beasts. Are monsters like this common where you live?¡± They threw the head they were holding for emphasis. Behind Mavar, the view in the orb tumbled.

    Remir gritted his teeth as the stalker¡¯s head deformed on impact, but didn¡¯t dare act before the Prime. Mavar took a breath, eyes slowly working their way across the body of the Tyrant as if he were reading a book. His words were similarly drawn out. ¡°And what is it that you hope to accomplish by coming here? You may not be at the point of keenly sensing the power of others, but you must know I could destroy you in an instant.¡± The threat was delivered coolly with a small amount of pity. ¡°It should go without saying, but I could also prevent any harm you would bring to my people. So why face such death? Why approach a timeless force you could not comprehend, rather than run when already provoked?¡±

    The condescension bit into the Tyrant. Still, there was a point to this, and succeeding would mean so much. Even if the chances were remote, even if this would be a sacrifice, the attempt had to be made. ¡°I have come to ask you to join me.¡±

    Mavar raised an eyebrow. He frowned, closed his eyes, and laughed wildly. ¡°You have come here to ask for my service?¡±

    The incredulity in his tone gave Ashier the answer they thought they would receive. At least that had gotten a reaction. ¡°I am a Tyrant.¡± They shrugged with Kartoss¡¯ shoulders, one of which was threatening to rot off at this point. ¡°I would not ask of you what I have the others. But I would ask. This world is under threat, and the gods-¡±

    ¡°You speak of such things as a child claiming to know everything of magic after witnessing an Arcanist¡¯s cheapest trick.¡± Mavar¡¯s laughter froze over as steel entered his voice and Remir took several steps back. ¡°But you are not a child. You are not even an infant! The world is in danger? It has fallen before! You know of the Collapse, it is one of the few stories your gods allow told. And on them I say this: What of the people they abandoned when the Crest pushed against their borders? When they hid in the center while the rest rotted? I was there when we first made your ancestors! If you would speak of your gods then speak of me, not those who abandoned all but the chosen few to fates worse than death. And if you would speak to me then make no demand, and most of all, do not invoke them. I have worked with Hammer himself, and that ¡®privilege¡¯ did nothing to stop him from leaving my soul to the whims of a broken Astral.¡±

    The sudden rage made Ashier question why Mavar didn¡¯t just strike out at them or personally come for Rorshawd in the first place. They could feel the mana rippling off the human¡¯s form, though they couldn¡¯t tell the exact level he was. ¡°Are the gods your enemies, then?¡±

    ¡°They are the enemies of us all.¡± Mavar folded his arms. ¡°You are bound to them and shall never escape, save for death.¡±

    ¡°Then why did one visit you recently?¡± They couldn¡¯t help but smile as Mavar¡¯s anger flipped on its head. ¡°You know of Tyrants, but you lack the insight of the class. Perhaps I am bound to them in a way. To this place? It is a strange sense, responsibility and ownership. I feel this region to a degree, including the parts the Crest is consuming. The brightest fires that burn here call to me. One came after I lost my previous champion and entered the Crest. I didn¡¯t know why, I didn¡¯t know why it never returned, until you arrived. You burn bright as well, yet their distant light eclipsed you.¡±

    Remir didn¡¯t look puzzled, he had been in the room, but most in the Illustrious¡¯ camp eyed Mavar. No collection of free-thinking individuals had perfect morale, and bonds of loyalty forged over millennia could fray in places. The majority of the Illustrious were just people. Only those who could ascend to the higher levels or, better yet, escape the clutches of the Octyrrum would persist through the ages. The rest were regular, if sheltered and indoctrinated, people.

    Mavar sighed. ¡°So you thought I was a misunderstanding ally then? No. Allow me to make something clear. We will find where they hide and smother them in their sleep. Failing that, we will at least sow the seeds of their destruction.¡±

    ¡°Perhaps you have not survived the Crest unscathed.¡± Ashier hovered low so that Kartoss¡¯ feet were almost on the ground. The Proxy¡¯s body was still poisoned, and it was only spreading. At this point, it''d take a church full of Hand Clerics to save him. ¡°A madness grips you, one I have seen in another. Your desires for revenge blind you. To destroy the gods is to destroy the world.¡± Mavar¡¯s hard gaze didn¡¯t shift. ¡°Fine, then. We are enemies.¡±

    ¡°You have wasted what little remains of your life to determine something you could have guessed?¡± Before Ashier could respond, Mavar¡¯s form blurred and he appeared before them, gripped their Proxy by the throat. Unable to use his powers for a time after reviving himself, he¡¯d instead made use of the natural power contained in his being. ¡°You contained the dragon in an interior dimensional space earlier.¡± He spoke calmly, his other hand keeping a death grip on the avianoid¡¯s arm. The bone began to crack beneath it. ¡°May it die with you.¡±

    ¡°It¡­¡± Kartoss choked, the life in him already fading as Ashier stopped forcing his body to sustain itself. Continuing to speak would have been impossible if it were just him trying. ¡°seems you¡­ don¡¯t know¡­ everything...¡±

    Mavar¡¯s eyes widened, and he vanished. Kartoss fell to the ground, dead. The mist within his body rose into the air and dispersed from the disturbance in the air from the Prime''s departure. Nearby trees rippled with the speed of the Prime¡¯s passing, some of the leaf domes bending out of shape. In a minute, he¡¯d searched for kilometers around but found nothing.

    Returning, he repressed true anger as he chided Remir. ¡°Leave the halfborn¡¯s body.¡±

    The once Beastmaster jumped and pulled his finger back from the corpse. ¡°Fuck! What was that? Er, Prime?¡±

    ¡°The Tyrant was never here. I thought-¡° His fists clenched and he didn¡¯t complete the thought. More to himself, he asked, ¡°Have I grown complacent? First the horror and now this speck of a being?¡±

    ¡°Prime?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s the Entropic Agent,¡± Mavar concluded, calming. ¡°Would I have known that individual would confound me so I may have reconsidered taking part in his creation, but the Foretellings were clear. He is the key to the destruction of the Octyrrum.¡± The Prime sighed. ¡°It appears this Tyrant had several novel powers, impressive ones considering their level. I was observing their mana flow during our conversation. I would have struck earlier, of course, but I hoped that if I understood his effects on others I may regain some accuracy of my Foresight.¡±

    ¡°And?¡±

    Mavar shook his head. ¡°Part of them was here, but not the core. They must have sacrificed some of their soul to pull this off as I know I was observing their mana structure within that Proxy. Of course, the Tyrant is an air gestalt. I should have seen- what?¡±

    The slightly pale-faced woman that had ambled towards the pair froze before sputtering, ¡°D, do you wish us to continue or work Prime, or is our position compromised?¡±

    ¡°I believe I made our relative strength clear.¡± Mavar kicked the corpse of Kartoss dispassionately, without any real power behind it. ¡°Continue. We will need the base structure up before Mistress Veltrex can assist with the necessary fortifications.¡± Nodding, the woman departed to the small fort being assembled in the background. She was a Builder, like many in that group. Mavar felt a small amount of pity for them. He could count on one hand the number of those with that class that had become Enlightened. Perhaps in the world they would make, more would have the freedom to grow beyond the limits enforced by the Octyrrum.

    His thoughts turned back to the question Remir had asked. ¡°Know this and warn the others you see before I do. The Tyrant has several powers to be concerned with. We already know of their potent stealth power and the bond-forming contract power. It now also appears they can steal various resources from their disciples, as well as¡­¡±

    ¡­

    Ashier felt the loss of their Proxy in a physical way. Literally, part of them died with the avianoid. Emotionally, there wasn¡¯t much. He hadn¡¯t been a good servant, and he had been a worse person before they¡¯d found him. A drunkard, one of Murdon¡¯s problems before the world decided to give him everyone else¡¯s too. Someone they knew they could control utterly without anyone noticing. Someone people would be relieved to have vanish from the public eye.

    But he was dead now. They didn¡¯t have a voice. They could make another Proxy, and they¡¯d need to. These invaders hadn¡¯t just come for the Thormundz. What concerned them most, though, was that the man had made no mention of the cancer growing in the mountains. It hadn¡¯t been there at first, not when they still planned to shelter in Roost¡¯s Peak. Maybe if they had sensed that monster before, they would have agreed with Murdon¡¯s assessment. At the very least, they wouldn¡¯t have planned on making the last stand there.

    If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

    No matter. The kindling fire grew every day. There was no doubt in Ashier¡¯s mind that the destruction of the Spoke had awoken it. With these strange, ancient enemies of the gods so nearby, it couldn¡¯t be a coincidence. Yes, Ashier thought, insofar as the thoughts of gestalts could be expressed this way, that is their master. Whether they know it or not.

    The world needed to know. The gods did. Infuriatingly, Ashier found themself in the same position Murdon once had. It burned at their mind to consider. Even now, months after the Spoke was removed, the Crest had reclaimed only a tenth of the region. It seemed impossible that the will of the gods could be contested so completely. Ashier did not want to retreat. It was more than an ideological concern, they felt they were bound in some way to the Thormundz, just like the dragon was to them. Would breaking that by leaving the region kill them? Ready or not, it was time to find out.

    ¡­

    Rorshawd knocked the chunks of wyvern flesh out of his teeth with a grim enjoyment. That they could be considered a cousin species to him mattered not at all. The sky was his and anything that challenged that was dinner. Something else that might have influenced that was the memory of several others of the species that had attempted to capitalize on his weakness before being healed. No, to Rorshawd the only positive quality of the smaller, four-limbed creatures was the flavor.

    It also helped when meals came to him. Ashier had driven him northwest across the mountains with little rest, only allowing him to regain his mana every day. He had a hazy idea of what they wanted, but things had become more difficult after Ashier had sacrificed Kartoss to get them away from whoever had sent those flying humanoids.

    That first day of flight had been painful. The poison hadn¡¯t been enough to finish him, but it had left him severely wounded. His body recovered as Ashier pointed the way for him to fly, lacking a voice to give him better orders.

    He still burned for the death of the Tyrant, but with their mouthpiece gone the days of complex orders without any loopholes went with it. The standing orders they¡¯d created still existed, but they were broad and couldn¡¯t be applied to every situation. Ashier had always needed precise, direct orders for anything involved because of the degree to which Rorshawd resisted everything they tried to do.

    Honestly, if it wasn¡¯t for the fact that Kartoss had been the harbinger of his enslavement, the dragon might have felt affection for the avianoid in his passing. Instead, it all balanced out into the indifference Rorshawd gave most mortals who were now dead. There were only a few that could provoke stronger emotions in that number, a scarce collection since his draconification.

    As the dragon contemplated on his forced march, he did think back on what Ashier had said about the power that had replaced Regeneration. Draconoids were popular among certain crowds, for all that they resembled the king of monsters. A sort of counter-intuitive attraction. He had to grin wryly at that, and hope he could still retain the draconoid form after finding a way to slay the Tyrant.

    All roads to the future, real or otherwise, had to begin with the Tyrant¡¯s death. Even if they had given him back some things, she¡¯d taken far more. Kartoss¡¯ sacrifice was the first step. They just had him now and, shackled or not, there was an opportunity there. He needed one moment. One lapse of control, one scenario the Tyrant¡¯s previously well-thought commands hadn¡¯t accounted for. One showering of luck, and he would never make this mistake again.

    Until then? Rorshawd supposed he¡¯d have to keep flying. That was nice, at least. The air around the entire Thormundz range kept cool with the shade from clouds that almost always threatened rain. Even fire dragons could appreciate a reprieve from the sun, that ball whose fire he couldn¡¯t think to try matching. More than anything though, he was trying to enjoy it while it lasted. While he¡¯d never been there, the one thing Rorshawd had heard about deserts was how dry they were.

    ¡­

    For the Thormundz, there was little left to be said. Its Tyrant rode on dragonback to flee the Crest and the invaders who had come from it. Not monsters, but mortals like them. Those who had seen history play out before and were prepared for their second chance.

    They took the region by force, outshining the attempt made previously by the forces of the Octyrrum. Every settlement made was a fortress meant to stand against the Crest and the horrors that spawned within. Secrecy was given as much care as speed, however, for there may still exist a handful looking into the region. Knowledge spreading to the gods was a forgone conclusion, though there was a difference between them knowing one thing and everything.

    That was why Mavar spent two days searching for the Tyrant before another horror sighting forced him back. Not a greater horror, he dispatched it with relative ease, but it made it clear Ashier and their pet would escape. The Tyrant''s ability to hide their presence, and the time they¡¯d bought with their Proxy, proved enough. This did complicate things, but what would it matter in the end?

    If you were to rank the strongest in the world on a list, you would very quickly run into a quagmire. Individual strength alone? That would discount Beastmasters. And under what context is this power assessed? Even still, after the decades needed to deliberate, Mavar Helioc, Prime of the Illustrious, would fall just short of the top 10.

    He was among the Illustrious¡¯ best, but the world was vast and in days of old, days forgotten by many, the Illustrious had lived across the entire expanse not ravaged by the Crest. So one Tyrant would escape the region and carry the alarm that ¡®something¡¯ was happening in the Thormundz. What did that matter? No mortal champion of the gods could hope to stand up to them alone, and in the coming era it would be clear that the Octyrrum did not have just one enemy.

    The so-called gods of monsters would wreak havoc on the world once fully awoken, contesting the system of the mortals with their own. The Illustrious were allied to it in the same manner that a forest fire was allied to the new growth that seeded the land in its wake. If everyone knew what they¡¯d hoped to accomplish, those denizens of the Octyrrum, they would call it madness and throw themselves into the dying region to deny Mavar¡¯s people every inch they wished to take.

    And they¡¯d fail. The truth was the Tyrant¡¯s actions were meaningless. The measure of their life was but a small fraction of Mavar¡¯s existence. They could not stop the next strike that would prove the deathblow of the gods and their Octyrrum. That was how you had to oppose ones strong and daring enough to call themselves gods. With patience, meticulousness, and a plan measured not with the passing of seasons but ages.

    The events of a single day and the life of a single person were just as meaningless, compared to that. Except, that wasn¡¯t entirely true.

    Mavar¡¯s thoughts returned to the space occupied by his body as yet another Foresight failed. True anger came to him once again. The ability to see into the future was a potent advantage the Illustrious had used since the time of the Collapse. It had been difficult for Mavar to arrange the construction of the device that allowed him to use the power, but he had managed it. The Entropic Agent was making all that work pointless.

    From his attempt today, Mavar received what could be best described as psychic static after trying to determine what would happen due to the Tyrant escape. Sometimes there would be random flashes, but he¡¯d lost faith in their accuracy. Chaos. The echo of the Entropic Agent. The burden was his alone as Primes in other cells still reported clarity in their visions. For now. Mavar anticipated that the longer the Entropic Agent lived, the wider his effects would spread.

    Or was it Mavar himself? The Prime reassessed his assumptions. Was he like a delicate instrument, forever ruined by the briefest of moments he¡¯d been in proximity to the young human? Was it the one called Daniel at all, or some curse the Proxy of Torch snuck past his senses? Any such affliction should have been removed with his recent usage of Second Life, but it wasn¡¯t impossible.

    This, above all else, Mavar despised. Uncertainty. For a man who prized always being in the right, always knowing the correct path, this stumbling block threatened the core of his being more than the echoing madness of a thousand souls. One was an enemy he could destroy or evade. The other haunted him, a specter he could not touch.

    Uncertainty. Chaos. Chance. Entropy. The Prime of the Illustrious was not a betting man. The world seemed clear on not giving him a choice, however. ¡°I have made my decision.¡± The others in the room, Sasha, Remir, and all others notable among his collective, looked up. He hated most the uncertainty in their eyes. It was spreading, and he was playing the role of the vector. There was nothing for it though. ¡°We do not cross the regional boundary at this time, and we hold with our agreement with Torch. I will not risk accidentally interfering with the Entropic Agent in our pursuit. The effects of this decision, I cannot speak of. My vision is still clouded.

    Mavar almost choked off the words, caught between his love of truth and his need to reassure his followers, but he finished the sentence. None here could replace him as Prime, there was no fear of a leadership struggle, only inefficiency. Or defection, if these leaders did not zealously clamp down on the spreading rumors of their working with the divine.

    ¡°We are still progressing towards the optimal path. The gods will be crippled following their summit, leaving them vulnerable to us.¡± With some difficulty, Mavar provoked his mana to alter the world around him. This was no power but the fire of Hammer he was stealing. True Transmutation, an aspect of magic that was only possible due to his experience, and he was not consistent in his ability to use it. An image of the world as it currently was formed in the air through manual mana manipulation alone. ¡°There is no reason to expect the gods to respond differently this time, even with our presence. They might hope that this next Collapse will finish us off. If they know we had a hand in causing this, they still do not know the entirety of our plan. For our suffering and exile, we have been rewarded with knowledge of the true nature of this world, and the Astral.¡±

    The Octyrrum contracted before Mavar¡¯s outstretched hand, at first beset on all sides, and then also from within. ¡°Their hubris was in using our works and thinking us expendable. They are not gods in truth. They do not create, only control. Though they may be timeless, remember that immortality is not invulnerability.¡±

    It was an old speech. Tired, and in place of the assurances he¡¯d hoped to give with his Foresight. But the ending always inspired, no matter how many times the image was conjured. Old bones, a skeleton sprawled on the dark earth of the Crest surrounded by three in serene meditation. It pained Mavar to use the remains this way, to abuse the legacy of who this once had been, but he did not count dishonoring a memory as telling a lie. ¡°We know because we have seen one die!¡±

    ¡­

    So was the Thormundz. All who had left would not return. The Octyrrum had written off the poor region as soon as its Spoke had failed, dashing the hopes of Aughal and Threst for expansion. Wooden structures rotted where the Village of Hagain once stood, reduced to all but the sturdiest of frames by wandering monsters. Should one see it now, their instincts would not acknowledge it as an irritant to be destroyed.

    Ironically, the last remnant of the civilization that tried to settle here would be the park bridge of Eido, suspended in air above the crater it had once been. Every airborne monster had left the sky islands untouched. There was something wrong with them. A pack of Sparkbats had dared because they sensed prey. Now, there was just withering plant life left.

    The trees would go with time. There was not enough soil to support them, and no way to replenish the land. Time and wind would wear them down in, say, decades. Another point in favor of Mavar¡¯s argument for the persistence of advanced planning in the face of intermittent interference. There was a momentum to decay that was hard to oppose.

    One of the islands held more than trees. A scorching of the earth where one young man had fallen. Someone who now opposed the Illustrious without knowing, without really doing anything other than muddy the waters. Stopping them by himself would be impossible, but misdirecting them? The Illustrious had a long way to go. Without a sure hand on the future, who knew how far off a slight nudge would take them?

    The truth of the matter was plain to see for any who knew to look. Mavar could have, but attributed no special properties to where the Entropic Agent had landed and already knew what it revealed. Daniel himself had only seen the marks once and thought nothing of them. The pattern had been disrupted, displaced dirt roughing the image and covering it in places. But if you could turn back time, climb the tree, and look down instead of up, you¡¯d see it.

    A half-formed thought in Daniel¡¯s mind had mistaken the pattern for wings before more pressing matters took his attention. The general shape was there, two swept shapes coming off the center which mirrored each other. Only, one side was burned slightly less than the other, and the ends cut off at perfect lines instead of the tips of feathers. No, what had scorched itself into the earth on Daniel¡¯s arrival was something he could have figured out eventually, but anyone from the Octyrrum would recognize on sight.

    An Hourglass.

 Chapter 123: Alpha Desert Urchin - (2)

    Daniel felt more satisfaction from the completion of the enchantment than most. It was the last one, and it was for the newest addition to the hunting team. He¡¯d spent the past two weeks enchanting, using the bounty of skink leather and shank stomper bones to magic up a storm. The others had either advanced or hunted lower risk targets, except for Thomas who had returned to Aughal once it was clear Khiat was better.

    Better being a relative term, though it was undeniable that the root of the problem had been solved. When he asked her to share her statistics, all Identify Creature gave him was her name without any sign of class, attributes, or level. Rather than losing all her magic like Calius¡¯ method, she had retained her mana and path forward. Kind of.

    Khiat could no longer advance, but on the short hunt she¡¯d accompanied Tak and Hunter on to help feed the village, she¡¯d claimed that the experience had given her a sense of progression she couldn¡¯t easily define. Neither did his phone, or his other self, have answers. He put the latter topic out of his mind because he didn¡¯t want to feel angry right now.

    Daniel looked at the bag of holding in his hand and nodded in appreciation. It was level 2, and the space inside was impressive. The material bonus from the skink leather seemed to enhance the carrying space, though he didn¡¯t have other material to compare it with or a way to identify the item¡¯s exact statistics. Either way, the items were extremely useful and had relieved Khare of being the team¡¯s pack mule.

    That wasn¡¯t all. He¡¯d just managed to make armor for himself, Evalyn, and Tak from the skink leather, though this process had been far more difficult due to the larger size. Making a copy of Khiat¡¯s travel armor from what he had would be impossible, if only because he didn¡¯t have a single section large enough to manage it. It slightly worried Daniel since he was using material two levels higher than the enchantment, but he reasoned he had plenty of time to get better with enchanting and focused on using every advantage he could to get his team ready for the next big hunt.

    Which was today. Tak and Hunter had used Attune to Nature to locate a large pack of desert urchins which would be ideal for Khiat¡¯s first trip. No one wanted her to be caught in a melee, and these monsters didn¡¯t have much reason to approach hunters unless it was to finish them off. That Khiat was going to hunt at all was a point of contention, but the consensus had been reached that it would help her regain her confidence.

    The sun was two hours from the horizon when he left the tent. The idea was they¡¯d hit the monsters around an hour after midnight to prevent any chance of Khiat getting exposed to the sun. That would mean it would be a late night for Earth-Daniel, the convention they¡¯d decided on naming themselves whenever they conversed. He might have felt bad about that if it were anyone other than the person who had stranded him in another world.

    ¡°Thanks,¡± Khiat said in a quiet voice, a relatively quiet voice for her race when Daniel handed her the bag.

    ¡°Of course. Did the arrowheads I made work?¡±

    ¡°Yeah! Mkael helped me fit them on.¡± She took one of the lightning arrows out of her quiver and showed it to him. It was made of bone and had the obligatory bonecut as well as lightning affixes on it, the elemental damage visually manifesting as a purple band halfway up the arrowhead. They¡¯d come to an interesting discovery through these arrows.

    Initially, Daniel had hoped to cheat the system by making just an arrowhead that Khiat would never have to touch as a way of giving her better arrows. Otherwise, he¡¯d only be able to make her level 1 versions without the lightning damage. She¡¯d inevitably come into contact with the first ones he¡¯d made but didn¡¯t suffer the penalties of holding an enchanted object stronger than what her level should be. Just another way in which Khiat now defied the norm.

    ¡°Is everyone ready?¡± Evalyn asked.

    Smiling, Daniel turned and exaggerated a salute. ¡°Yes, team leader, ma¡¯am, all members present and accounted for.¡±

    ¡°Stop that,¡± she laughed. ¡°And don¡¯t worry Khiat. All I¡¯m going to do is keep an eye on everyone and make suggestions. It¡¯ll be like we talked about with the greater skink, though it¡¯s not going to be that dangerous. If anyone has an idea bring it up, otherwise we¡¯ll go with what I say. I¡¯ll make sure that none of them get to you.¡±

    Khiat, currently standing at over two meters in height with a bow about that size on her back nodded in thanks. Hunter sent a thought towards him as they started walking. Strange creature. She could crush these enemies without that bow.

    Yeah, but she doesn¡¯t do well in close up fights. He didn¡¯t bother to screen Tak from the conversation and specifically didn¡¯t prevent the avianoid from hearing the next question. You¡¯re alright with her joining us?

    Yes. Why wouldn¡¯t I be?

    Because she thinks you¡¯re adorable?

    Daniel received a baleful glare from the ringcat and shared a grin with Tak. Oh, yes. What is that thing you said we could make Hunter?

    Team mascot. We¡¯ll need one since we¡¯ve decided on a-

    No!

    Evalyn noticed the good humor from Daniel and Tak but from their grins and her Room Sense power. ¡°Do you think this is far enough?¡±

    The three mentally conversing suddenly grew tense. Daniel looked over his shoulder at Vtidi in his tower, growing farther away. At this point, they couldn¡¯t see him from the valleys below the dunes. ¡°Yeah. Hey, Khiat, there¡¯s something we need to tell you if you¡¯re going to be hunting with us. After everything that¡¯s happened I¡¯m not too worried, but can we trust you not to tell anyone? It¡¯s like your old class,¡± he said carefully, emphasizing that Assassin was truly dead and gone. ¡°Someone could get hurt if people find out about it.¡±

    ¡°I owe you all so much. You don¡¯t have to tell me.¡±

    ¡°We kind of do,¡± Daniel told her, knowing that if they were going to take on the sniper full-time, Hunter wouldn¡¯t tolerate any more playacting. His origins could be revealed later, but the basics of the ringcat¡¯s identity had to come out if they were going to coordinate in battle.

    Khiat kept walking, but there was a wariness now, as if monsters could appear from over the nearby dunes at any moment. Which, fair was fair, they kind of could. ¡°Ok. What is it?¡±

    Do we do this the soft way or the fun way? Daniel asked Hunter.

    Soft. I do not want to startle her.

    Alright. ¡°Khiat, Hunter is a person, not a monster. He is a ringcat, but he has his own thoughts and powers. A lot of people in the Hunter¡¯s Guild, the Commander included, already think he¡¯s a Druid because they¡¯ve heard him talk but it¡¯s tricky with people he¡¯s been around before we knew that lie would work.¡±

    Khiat¡¯s helmeted face glanced at Hunter before she stopped walking and backed up a step. ¡°What? I don¡¯t understand. Is this a joke?¡±

    Daniel, hearing more disbelief in her voice than they¡¯d be able to resolve through simple explanation, decided on demonstration instead. He nodded, and Hunter opened his mouth. ¡°No.¡±

    Khiat raised a hand in surprise as she blinked rapidly. ¡°How is-?¡± Her voice was conflicted, and Daniel imagined she was rethinking every time she¡¯d interacted with Hunter. ¡°How long?¡±

    ¡°Since you¡¯ve met him. As far as how, we don¡¯t know. He¡¯s special, the other monsters aren¡¯t like him. He¡¯s¡­¡± Daniel trailed off, realizing he wasn¡¯t the one who should be talking. ¡°Hunter?¡±

    ¡°I was small, once. Body and mind. Daniel helped me be, Tak and Daniel helped me grow. They are my friends.¡± Daniel was keeping an eye on Hunter¡¯s face and was surprised to find the ringcat didn¡¯t use Feline Charm, no more than what the baseline gave him at least. That was probably wise. ¡°We helped you because we cared. We did,¡± Hunter emphasized. ¡°You are young, strong but weak. I know because I was too, once. To grow stronger in this world is to hunt. You may stay, you may not, but for now, join us. Fear is only strong when you do not face it.¡±

    Khiat was quiet for a moment, after that. Hunter, you didn¡¯t practice that did you?

    No. It is what I feel.

    Hmm, good with words, Tak added. Good charisma, better now that you have no level disparity. I am still trying with intelligence, but it is annoying to advance.

    ¡°I¡¯ve always heard that monsters want to destroy the world,¡± Khiat said eventually. ¡°Are you¡­ are all of you¡­¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re not Spiritualists, if that¡¯s what you¡¯re worried about,¡± Daniel cut in, feeling this was a better opportunity. ¡°I got a power from my class that let me make a bond with Hunter, and eventually he evolved. We don¡¯t hate the gods or anything like that.¡± Even if at least one is censoring my Encyclopedia. ¡°We helped get people out of the Thormundz and Hunter was a big part of that. All we want to do now is live our lives and get stronger. We¡¯re telling you this because if Hunter needs to say something during battle, he will.¡±

    ¡°If you need time to think about this, we could go back,¡± Evalyn offered.

    Khiat shook her head, the initial shock wearing off. ¡°No, no this makes sense. You were always too cute to be a monster.¡±

    I want her off the team, Hunter growled internally.

    ¡­

    The endless deserts of Aughal didn¡¯t provide much in the way of variety in terrain for hunts, save for the villages and roads which they tried to avoid if possible. They found another exception as they neared where the desert urchins had settled for the night. The pack was about forty altogether, ranging from young to alpha variants with the strongest being level 2. Their attacks would be a problem for Khiat if they pierced her armor and into the flesh between her carapace, and they weren¡¯t confident that armor could withstand more than one or two direct hits. Duskers gained a huge natural advantage in exchange for their racial penalty, but it wasn¡¯t the kind that would let them face dragons unaided.

    Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

    ¡°Think I should try to scan them like last time?¡± Daniel asked Evalyn.

    ¡°That depends, do you want to see how accurate they are at hitting something floating in the air?¡±

    ¡°Fair.¡± Daniel put his lightning wings back in the bag of holding, the item shrinking as it got close to the opening. When stored he could still see them along with everything else inside as if looking at an inventory screen in a video game. When he wanted to pull something out he reached in, and the item was drawn to his hand. It¡¯d still take some time, maybe fifteen seconds, to put them on from in the bag. He didn¡¯t like leaving his escape option there, but the light it cast made stealth hard at night. When he had enough material and confidence to make Hunter another set of armor he would, for similar reasons.

    ¡°What do I do?¡± Khiat asked.

    ¡°Khare, Daniel, and you will be set up two hundred meters away from the pack. That¡¯s in your range, right?¡±

    ¡°Maybe. It¡¯ll be difficult.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, we won¡¯t be able to hit anything at all,¡± Daniel assured.

    ¡°Extension.¡±

    ¡°You think that rooting power can let you hit things that far off?¡± Daniel asked Khare, fully breaking into a tangent.

    ¡°Test.¡±

    ¡°Back to the plan,¡± Evalyn said, still speaking lowly to avoid drawing attention. ¡°Hunter and Tak will advance and draw them out. I¡¯ll try to stay in range of everyone with my music, but I¡¯ll prioritize them at the start. Don¡¯t worry about hitting any monster in particular, just aim for ones you think you can hit.¡±

    ¡°What about your powers? Should I know anything about them?¡± Khiat clarified, now some interest in her voice.

    ¡°No, not for this time. It should be simple enough. What¡¯s important is if anything big comes through like last time, Hunter and Tak will need to cover while the rest of us retreat. I¡¯ll let you know if they need help, otherwise just keep running.¡±

    ¡°Do not worry, you will like this,¡± Tak encouraged, spoiling the effect somewhat as he¡¯d already taken on his martial aspect. ¡°And I will try not to turn into-¡°

    ¡°Not now, Tak,¡± Evalyn said quickly. Khiat had accepted the truth about Hunter readily enough and there was no need to complicate things by telling her about Tak¡¯s odd power. At least not on the same day. ¡°If they get too close, don¡¯t feel bad if you have to move back. Daniel¡¯s actually worth a little bit in a melee and I¡¯ll be fighting them directly too if it gets to that point, so you¡¯ll have plenty of cover. Is there anything you¡¯re worried about?¡±

    Khiat took out one of the yellow-striped arrows, looking at it for a moment. ¡°It¡¯s just another hunt,¡± she said, more to herself. ¡°I¡¯m ok, I¡¯m not-, I can do this.¡±

    Daniel walked with the dusker and Khare to one of the rises from which you could barely see the murder balls next to the oasis. His night vision was better than it should be thanks to his wisdom attribute, and the auras Hunter had placed might be enough for Snap Shot to do the rest. Unfortunately, without a proper crossbow he didn¡¯t have the range. That was something he couldn¡¯t easily reproduce without the benefit of level 5 material. Changing the properties of a material to make string from leather or a stock from bone was just too hard for him at the moment, especially since he¡¯d have to make the entire thing from one type of material.

    ¡°Should I do anything now?¡± Khiat asked as Khare rooted into the ground, leaving their upper half holding a bow.

    ¡°I¡¯d wait for Hunter and Tak to get the party started, but once that happens just fire at anything. Can you see them from here?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± There was a strange note in her voice there. ¡°You can¡¯t see what I have anymore, right?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Why, is something wrong?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Khiat put the arrow on her string but didn¡¯t pull it back yet. Ahead, the green lights of Hunter and Tak moved closer while Evalyn stayed in the rough middle. The two predators made it all the way to the main pack without being spotted. One moment, there was silence in the night. The next, the two activated their combo attack and eliminated three of the red lights while throwing themselves into the melee.

    ¡°Mark!¡± Khare cried and Daniel obliged, using Called Shot to make the mark Khare placed flash red and enable the damage buff. There was no cooldown to the ability, but he did have to use it before each of Khare¡¯s shots.

    ¡°I¡¯m glad they both have Regeneration,¡± he said sideways to Khiat, hoping banter would help calm her if she was afraid. ¡°I saw a picture of them on my Focus, they¡¯re like porcupines. Uh, they¡¯re covered in spikes.¡± In the distance, Khare¡¯s first arrow fell short, and a sound that grew close to grumbling issued from the gestalt. Something in their race¡¯s natural language, probably. ¡°Everything ok?¡±

    ¡°I can see one.¡± Khiat raised her bow, sounding surprised. It wasn¡¯t too impressive, but then again Daniel would have had trouble without the auras. ¡°I think¡­¡± Her arm came up, the composite arms of the greatbow creaking under the tremendous draw weight. It was truly a wonder of craft considering it had been made without enchantment. The only thing he¡¯d seen with higher base damage had been the ballista of Roost¡¯s Peak, but this was a mobile weapon.

    There was a faint woosh of air as the dusker let go, and the arrow sailed out and into the night. Daniel lost track of it, but both he and Khare paused to wait for its flight to end. It only took a few seconds before one of the red auras in the distance vanished, a small flash of real purple light indicating the lightning affix had added its damage.

    ¡°That was a level 2,¡± Daniel said blankly. He couldn¡¯t have done that at this range even with his old crossbow, not unless he got a lucky shot. ¡°You didn¡¯t use a power with that, did you?¡±

    ¡°Mark,¡± Khare said before Khiat could respond, now apparently seized by competitive spirit. The combo attack didn¡¯t help with aiming but Daniel casually applied to bonus as he kept his focus on Khiat.

    ¡°Hunter¡¯s Eye. It¡¯s, it¡¯s what I think my old power turned into.¡± She didn¡¯t immediately reach for another arrow.

    ¡°Everything alright?¡±

    ¡°Mark!¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I got it Khare.¡± Man, I¡¯ve never seen them like this before. They¡¯re not worried we¡¯re replacing them, are they? I¡¯ll figure that out later.

    Tentatively, the dusker pulled another lightning arrow from her quiver and her eyes shifted to the pack now being drawn towards them. ¡°I can see one far away like it¡¯s right here. It¡¯s weird, most of what¡¯s in front of me is pushed away to make it bigger.¡±

    She¡¯s zooming in on it? Wait, that sounds like a scope power. He was a bit jealous, but then again he had Snap Shot. ¡°And everything feels good when you use it?¡±

    Another thrum as she released the bowstring, the arrow falling on a level 1 desert urchin as if Khiat herself had jumped from a high board to crush it. Judging from the way the aura broke before it faded, she might be doing so much damage that the bodies wouldn¡¯t be worth much to his Encyclopedia. At the same time, he wasn¡¯t going to stop her. Not unless the power would be causing her any problems.

    ¡°No. It¡¯s, it¡¯s everything I wanted.¡± The gestalt, who was about to remind Daniel he needed to use Called Shot, paused as they caught something from the way Khiat said that. Her voice was sad, yet at the same time filled with wonder. ¡°Why couldn¡¯t it have been like this from the start?¡±

    Because of me. Word had spread about how identifying Khiat¡¯s Critical Strikes power had prevented her from evolving it. No one had blamed him, even himself, but Daniel wasn¡¯t going to forget what he¡¯d unintentionally put her through. ¡°There¡¯s about half of the pack left, want to try for another?¡± he asked, redirecting Khiat.

    The thought of going for any kills himself right now was put aside. He doubted killing all the urchins left would give him any advancement potential. This fight had been specifically chosen for Khiat¡¯s first because the only real risk was the pack overwhelming them or a stronger monster noticing. As it stood, Hunter and Tak controlled the hunt too well for the former to happen, like feline sheep dogs that had wildly misunderstood the job description.

    Khiat continued firing, coming close to exhausting the ten lightning arrows he had made for her. There weren¡¯t more because just making them without the shafts was laborious due to their size. However, with the armor and bags done, he could work on that along with the idea he¡¯d had with the ornithopters. Unfortunately, he couldn¡¯t experiment with that until he got back to Aughal as he didn¡¯t want to use Tak¡¯s. He¡¯d need two anyways.

    That just left him to occasionally use Called Shot and otherwise enjoy the scenery. It was odd, the slight chill in the air and how relaxed he¡¯d become making it feel like he was sitting on the porch of his childhood home in late fall rather than in the midst of a contest between life and death.

    Part of him wanted to reach out to Bridge Space again to yell at Earth-Daniel and try to drag more information out of him, but that left him completely vulnerable in this world. Later. Let¡¯s make him stay up some more once we get back to the village.

    It took about thirty minutes to wrap up once Evalyn finished off the last monster with a Songbolt. She¡¯d been able to keep her basic buff, Valor Song, active the entire time and the ability cost him another scannable corpse. Between that and those scattered during the fighting retreat Tak and Hunter had managed, he¡¯d had to walk around a bit to get the whole group. In summary,

    <hr>

    You have scanned multiple Monsters, listed below.

    Scanned Targets:

    ? Alpha Desert Urchin, Deceased (Damaged) - 2

    ? Desert Urchin, Deceased (Damaged) - 14

    ? Alpha Desert Urchin, Deceased (Destroyed) - 1

    ? Desert Urchin, Deceased (Destroyed) - 16

    You have met the requirements to unlock an Encyclopedia entry, listed below.

    Encyclopedia Entries:

    ? Monster: Desert Urchin, Detailed

    <hr>

    ¡°Ok, that confirms it.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Evalyn asked, walking over to the last body he¡¯d scanned. The rest weren¡¯t too far away, though both Khiat and Khare were looking for the ammunition in hopes of recovering usable arrows.

    ¡°These monsters suck. Hunter,¡± Daniel raised his voice, glad he was able to do so with Khiat here. ¡°How good would you say that fight was?¡±

    ¡°Pathetic,¡± the ringcat responded after a moment. ¡°They hurt, but they were all weak. I could have taken them myself.¡±

    ¡°Very pointy, but yes,¡± Tak added as he continued removing what must have been over a hundred spines he¡¯d been shot with. It looked like both he and Hunter hadn¡¯t held back with melee attacks even though the urchins got reprisal damage in turn. Regeneration was just too good.

    ¡°That¡¯s my point. There were level 2 monsters here and it was a breeze. I think these are like trash mobs. Uh, weaker monsters for their level. That is a thing, right?¡± Daniel searched his memories and nodded. ¡°Yeah, everyone says dragons are stronger for theirs. The point is that the greater skink gave me multiple unlocks for one kill, and this entire pack gave me less than the shank stompers did.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s important to remember that where you fight can make a difference. Imagine trying to fight underground or, worse, underwater.¡± Evalyn looked towards Khare with that. ¡°That being said, I agree. You¡¯re not going to make Tak harvest these, are you?¡±

    Daniel looked down at the mess of pointy spikes and ruined flesh. ¡°Nah. I¡¯ve still got a decent amount of stuff to work with.¡±

    ¡°Alright. Well, I¡¯ve got the count of what we¡¯ve killed for the guild. Khiat, how did that go?¡±

    The dusker stood, the broken shaft of a lightning arrow in her hand. ¡°It was good. It felt like how I used to hunt, some of it. I want to keep doing this.¡±

    ¡°Good. If everyone doesn¡¯t mind waiting for a moment, I¡¯m going to wash off some of this sand.¡± Evalyn brushed at her hair with some aggravation in her voice as she headed for the water the monsters had been drinking from. ¡°You know, I almost wish we¡¯d gone to Threst instead.¡±

 Chapter 124: Young Desert Wyrm - (3)

    They¡¯d gotten within a kilometer of Duststone Oasis before anyone realized what was wrong. Daniel could have figured it out sooner if he¡¯d been keeping an eye on his map, but it was Khiat who somehow recognized the pattern of the dunes and what wasn¡¯t on the horizon. Vtidi¡¯s tower was gone.

    ¡°How is everyone on mana?¡± Evalyn asked quickly. The answer was thankfully well off. Hunter hadn¡¯t had to use Flash Jaunt once, and while Daniel was a little drained from all the Called Shots, Khare was worse off for everything they¡¯d tried to put into making their long range shots work. It all seemed like a waste now.

    ¡°Hunter, anything?¡±

    The ringcat shook his head in response to Daniel¡¯s question. They hadn¡¯t left the villagers tagged, mostly for privacy concerns. That Hunter couldn¡¯t sense them was ominous and comforting at the same time. If they were underground he should be able to sniff them out, but if something had hit the village then the blood would¡¯ve been enough at this distance. However, he didn¡¯t sense any monster either.

    ¡°Stealth monsters?¡± Daniel had a flashback to the frost strangler. If invisibility was in play that meant a level 3 at least, if they could trust Tlara¡¯s word on it.

    ¡°Khiat, wait!¡± Evalyn yelled as the dusker started running. Her eyes went to the east trying to judge the sky, but Daniel¡¯s Quick Mind beat her to it.

    ¡°Less than an hour to dawn.¡± Daniel looked at his arms and scowled. He¡¯d taken off his arm bows. Hunter was next to him in a moment.

    ¡°Get on.¡±

    ¡°Wha-¡° He looked at Hunter. He looked at the armor, which he had put a lot work into to make it fit right on the four-legged creature. And, to give him just enough to hold onto if the opportunity ever arose. ¡°Now?¡±

    ¡°You need it now.¡±

    Daniel was exhausted, on edge, and afraid of what he¡¯d find in the village. He was also having the time of his life. Besides his escape from Aughal there hadn¡¯t been a chance for him to do this, but now that it¡¯d come, it was totally worth it. Good thing I¡¯m using arm bows now, he thought a little distantly, fitting the modified gauntlets on. I couldn¡¯t hold onto the crossbow like this.

    You¡¯re getting off when we get there.

    Why? This is more effective. It might make our bond better.

    What happens when I use Flash Jaunt? Daniel would have folded his arms at that downer if doing so wasn¡¯t very dangerous with how he was armed. Be serious. People are in danger.

    Alright. Daniel sighed and put lightning bolts into each of the slots of his weapons. Not the exploding variant, just regular level 2 bolts with a lightning affix. His lightning wings were a little more difficult to put on, but he managed it. Sense anyone yet?

    Yes, they are hiding.

    ¡­

    Khiat had her bow out and was looking around from the top of one of the dunes ringing the oasis when the rest caught up. From the vantage atop Hunter¡¯s back, Daniel could see the sand behind each of the tents protecting dwelling entrances was disturbed.

    ¡°No one is dead,¡± Hunter said lowly, and Daniel nodded in turn.

    ¡°We can see their auras. It looks like everyone¡¯s in those central chambers.¡±

    ¡°They collapsed the tunnels?¡± Khiat took in a deep breath and before anyone could stop her, she shouted, ¡°Dad!?¡±

    ¡°Khiat, there¡¯s a monster here! Don¡¯t attract its attention.¡±

    ¡°They wouldn¡¯t hide unless they couldn¡¯t fight it,¡± she fought back, far more force in her voice than she¡¯d had all night. ¡°If it¡¯s a burrower, it might be trying to find out homes!¡±

    Daniel exchanged a look with Evalyn, both of them understanding the implication. ¡°Hunter, can you sense something if it¡¯s underground?¡±

    Hunter tilted his head a few times as he thought over what Evalyn asked. ¡°In the ground? It would be hard. I don¡¯t hear digging.¡±

    ¡°Tunnel.¡± Everyone looked at Khare and Daniel slapped his face, almost accidentally discharging his bow.

    ¡°Tremorsense! Khare, can you root in and find it?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know if we¡¯re equipped to fight it if they can,¡± Evalyn murmured. Khare activated their stance power either way. ¡°It depends on if this monster can strike from below the ground without having to come out.¡± A wedge appeared suddenly, below the ground where the tower had collapsed. Whatever was supporting it must have been broken. Daniel focused on it and was able to get enough to activate Identify Monster. He didn¡¯t like what he saw.

    <hr>

    Young Desert Wyrm - (3)

    -

    Young Desert Wyrm ¨C (3) (Monster, Beast: Fire/Earth, Tunneling)

    A Creature often found in Regions with malleable terrain, such as loose soil or sand. This monster is capable of moving through most terrain but prefers that it can digest. While blind, the young desert wyrm can sense other creatures through vibrations in its surrounding terrain.

    <hr>

    The entry in his Encyclopedia didn¡¯t reveal too much more, but the fire affinity puzzled Daniel. If he could scan it it might tell him more, but something told him he needed a clear shot since he¡¯d had to raise his phone over the dune to get the shank stompers earlier. ¡°Khare, be careful. This might have a fire attack.¡±

    The gestalt quickly pulled themselves out of the ground and brought what seemed like every dagger they had out to the exterior of their form. The wyrm, or its aura which appeared as a red tube longer than ten meters in diameter, had started to move towards them. ¡°We are being hunted,¡± Hunter remarked, seeing that.

    ¡°It¡¯s a beast type, so biological,¡± Daniel continued to report. ¡°If Khare can get bleed to work on it we can try to wait it out like the skink. It moves slowly at least.¡±

    Evalyn frowned at that and pointed to the village. ¡°We don¡¯t know if it¡¯ll go berserk once that happens. I don¡¯t want to risk collapsing where the villagers are hiding.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s almost day!¡± Khiat exclaimed, realizing what the rest of the team had when she¡¯d charged off. ¡°The entrances are fine, but if my people get buried and have to dig out, there¡¯s not enough cover for them! What do we do?¡±

    A note was played as Evalyn compressed her accordion, though there was no song powering it. ¡°I think I remember the miners saying something about sonic attacks back in Roost¡¯s Peak, them hurting burrowed monsters more than trying to stab through the earth to them, but I don¡¯t know if Songbolt works like that.¡±

    ¡°I have explosive bolts,¡± Daniel offered, mind going to depth charges.

    ¡°Should I try to use that power?¡± Tak asked nervously. ¡°I, I do not know if I can, though. I still do not see it in my head.¡±

    ¡°No. If this thing takes you under the earth, the better healing you get won¡¯t help if you suffocate after killing it,¡± Evalyn quickly denied. Daniel was letting her run the show now after giving her what information he could. If he used Moment of Clarity he might be able to think of some elaborate plan before the wyrm got there, but trusted the process they¡¯d set up. Worst case it was a fallback plan, but this saved him mana. ¡°Ok, I have an idea. It¡¯s improvised and works off assumptions so stay alert for any changes. Hunter, your mana is good right?¡±

    ¡°Yes?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯m going to have to give you the hardest job.¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°For the record, I don¡¯t like this plan,¡± Daniel said. Everyone was set back from where Hunter stood to face the oncoming wyrm. ¡°If we use this every fight it¡¯s going to put him at a lot of risk.¡±

    ¡°Did we use it last hunt?¡± Evalyn shot back, but Daniel was ready for that.

    ¡°That wasn¡¯t really a hunt.¡± The argument broke off as everyone saw the shifting sand that heralded the monster¡¯s arrival. Daniel was afraid now as this was a solo monster. His recent theory on different monster qualities would suggest this was better than the urchins that had to stick in groups to pose a threat, and there was also Evalyn¡¯s point about contextual modifiers.

    The wyrm finally appeared from the ground a meter from Hunter, a slimy exterior wrapped around a toothed maw. Hunter roared in its face as soon as it appeared, the team banking on this enraging the monster as it had seemed to do with the skink. It¡¯d chase Hunter around and hopefully neglect its defense, but at least they could lead it away from-

    Fire shot out of the sides of the wyrm as it suddenly doubled its speed, jaws not quite large enough to swallow the large cat nonetheless latching onto Hunter. It attempted to push him into the sand as it writhed down, but Hunter was able to Flash Jaunt out a moment later. He still came away wounded, puncture marks visible where teeth had bitten in. Worse, some of the flames coming out the sides had singed him, and those would slow his healing.

    ¡°Hunter!¡± Daniel waited just long enough to see the ringcat shake himself and get onto his feet before switching back to the wyrm. It was trying to dive rather than seek out Hunter, the section of its passing frame growing less visible by the second. Daniel put both arms out in front of him and fired in a quick sequence, unable to shoot both at the exact same time with Snap Shot.

    The second landed in the sand, but the first, along with shots from Khare and Khiat, hit. More flames shot out of striations in the wyrm, likely in response to the large, lightning-charged arrow than anything else. Still, it didn¡¯t prove to be the one shot kill it had been in all other cases. The wyrm¡¯s diameter was just under that of a set of double doors, Quick Mind putting its aura at 17.3 meters in length. Its actual size would be just under that. The point was, Khiat¡¯s insane greatbow only did so much damage, and this was a creature with level 3 attributes and a durable body.

    ¡°New plan?¡± Daniel shouted when the wyrm broke off from its pursuit and tunneled further down before seeking out another target.

    ¡°Did Khare¡¯s bleed work?¡± Evalyn asked.

    Daniel checked the tag, but the monster didn¡¯t have any active effects, not even fear from Hunter¡¯s roar. ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°Damn it!

    ¡°I¡¯m going to scan it when it comes up next,¡± Daniel said, running to follow where the wyrm was traveling. It was going towards Khiat, probably because she was the biggest target and thus the easiest to sense. ¡°Are we good?¡±

    ¡°Go!¡± Evalyn shouted back, and then moved to coordinate with the rest of the team. Having her in charge made him relieved in that moment, knowing all he had to be responsible for was himself. There was also no mortal terror like there had been the other times they¡¯d faced an enemy above their level. Maybe if this conflict dragged out and they ran out of escape options, but worst case? They could run. He didn¡¯t want to, but they could.

    ¡°Khiat, it¡¯s about to come up!¡± Daniel shouted as he awkwardly grasped at his phone. He had to be very careful not to drop it, and with the arm bows on it was harder to move dexterously.

    Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

    ¡°I think I have a new power!¡± she said, puzzling Daniel. Khiat hadn¡¯t had an opportunity to advance. They weren¡¯t sure if she could anymore without attributes, and neither did she have a way to do so instantly like him.

    Can she just straight level up from enough experience now? ¡°What is it?¡±

    ¡°Mobility. It uses mana.¡±

    ¡°Use it, it¡¯s about to come up.¡± He¡¯d just spoken that when fire shot from the ground, the wyrm pre-emptively activating whatever ability sped it up. A few daggers flew into it as well as a Songbolt, Tak and Hunter deferring as the fire coming off it was as dangerous as the jaws.

    Khiat managed to just get out of the way as the attacks distracted the wyrm, though one of the large teeth ringing the mouth scratched her and the flames caught part of the armor on fire. She rolled down the dune, the fire extinguishing from the motion. The whole time she was moving faster than usual. It wasn¡¯t to the degree of Gadriel¡¯s Momentous Strikes, but without it she would have been in trouble.

    Daniel glanced over the notification from his scan, grabbing enough of the exposed work for it to count, noting he¡¯d gained both an improved entry and a fire damage affix from just one monster. Unfortunately, it didn¡¯t give him access to information on damage types like he¡¯d been given for the lake monster, but to be fair they¡¯d already hit it with about everything they had. The fluff, though, actually had something useful.

    <hr>

    You have scanned a Monster, listed below.

    Scanned Target:

    ? Young Desert Wyrm, Living (Injured) - 1

    You have met the requirements to unlock multiple Encyclopedia entries, listed below.

    Encyclopedia Entries:

    ? Monster: Desert Wyrm

    ? Affix: Fire

    -

    Young desert wyrms have access to two Abilities, Ability: Flame Sprint and Ability: Rapid Digestion. Both are potent, yet have Biological requirements in addition to Mana cost. The wyrm cannot use either ability unless the prerequisites are met.

    <hr>

    What it needed to do wasn¡¯t listed, though the second ability was both obvious and terrifying. They couldn¡¯t let anyone get eaten. ¡°Khiat, I want you to run as far away as you can!¡± Evalyn said, her voice carrying the beat of the song she was playing. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about attacking. Daniel, anything?¡±

    ¡°We can stop it from making those flames, but there¡¯s something we have to do to its body to do it!¡± He looked for the wyrm and saw it was motionless below the ground. Daniel almost cheered when the bleed effect materialized next to its tag. There was no way to tell how many stacks Khare had afflicted, but it would- ¡°Fuck! It just got rid of the bleed effect. I think it used its flame ability to burn the wound closed because it shot toward Tak at the same time.¡±

    ¡°Anyone feel like they¡¯re close to an awakening?¡± Evalyn asked, a sign they were clutching at straws. Everyone had been avoiding Daniel¡¯s identification power after what had happened to Khiat, meaning there were some unidentified powers waiting to be discovered amongst the team. No ace in the hole was there to dig them out of the crisis.

    ¡°Pull it out?¡± Tak asked as he readied to Jump away from the next wyrm attack.

    ¡°Not with the fire attack. I don¡¯t want to just whittle it down either because we¡¯re going to be hurt just as much evading.¡±

    Daniel, meanwhile, was looking through his bag of holding and trying to find anything useful. The handful of explosive spineshard bolts could perhaps be thrown into the wyrm¡¯s mouth to be later detonated by a shot from Khiat, though she was still running and he really didn¡¯t want to put himself into that position. It was the thought of force-feeding the wyrm something that gave him the other idea. ¡°Glue!¡±

    Evalyn actually recoiled as he took out what looked like a handful of hardened pus while Tak Jumped, several of his feathers burning on contact with the wyrm¡¯s flames. ¡°What the Crest is that?¡±

    Oh right, Hunter and Khare were the only other ones there. Daniel hadn¡¯t had a reason to pull out the skab glue orbs yet since getting them, and he had a handful left even after losing some to Hunter¡¯s old pack exploding. ¡°It¡¯s very strong glue. The wyrm looks like it¡¯s moving like how normal worms do, like Khiat¡¯s carapace coming together and then back apart. The fire was also coming from there. I want to try and glue sections together.¡±

    ¡°Won¡¯t it burn off?¡±

    ¡°Maybe?¡± Daniel answered, a little unsure. ¡°You normally need water to soften it. Heat may make it cure faster. Better ideas?¡± None other presented, besides continuing to attack it in the moment it exposed itself. The group didn¡¯t have the time for that. Khare didn¡¯t have time for that.

    Daniel crouched and then used a powerful Jump to move toward the wyrm¡¯s next target. The Martialist might have been able to survive a hit from the wyrm themself if fire wasn¡¯t a part of the attack. He¡¯d seen a gestalt catch fire once and did not want a repeat experience. ¡°My wings, take them and get out of the way!¡±

    It didn¡¯t take much to get the message across, especially because the gestalt could see the monster coming for them through the mark on it. Vines quickly took the metal construct and Khare wrapped themself around it. He thought for just a moment about how dangerous the light it cast off was to the nearby duskers, but Khare was in danger. They should all be fine.

    As the wings activated, Daniel clutched the glue orb in his hand as he shifted it into a talon. As soon as the wyrm appeared, he¡¯d- Shit!

    The wyrm used Flame Sprint before Daniel could mentally rehearse his plan and the mouth appeared from the ground to swallow him. Hunter was too wide to fit, but it could easily get him from how they were positioned. The thought of Rapid Digestion made almost made him freeze in fear, but Daniel acted instead. He threw himself toward Evalyn as she released a lower powered Songbolt, cracking the orb in his hand.

    While his legs burned from contact with the flames, he dismissed Claw Strike and quickly threw the cracked orb with Snap Shot at a section that was just closing. Up close, he could make out what was happening. The wyrm was bunching itself up at the front and allowing the tension to travel towards the back as it moved forward. Where the sections squeezed together during the rapid movement, fire shot out. The entire wyrm wasn¡¯t covered in flame while it used its ability, but because it only exposed a section of itself at a time, the effect was always active on the part above ground.

    A very unpleasant smell hit his nostrils as he tumbled away with Dodge Roll, fully clearing himself from the attack. It was both the hair on his legs getting singed, as well as the glue being exposed to the fire. The part he¡¯d hit had partially opened back up, but there was a kink in the wyrm now as it refused to open further. ¡°I think it worked! It may be able to use the fire attack again, but only one more time until it breaks that glue.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re telling me that glue is strong enough that a level 3 monster can¡¯t break it?¡± Daniel watched the aura in response to Evalyn¡¯s question and saw the monster¡¯s pace change to an almost confused wandering as it tried to extend the section glued shut. It didn¡¯t, as he feared, use Flame Sprint to try and brute force it.

    ¡°I think it could if it could move properly. Maybe the ability will get rid of it, but it¡¯ll hurt itself doing that. A level 1 enchanted dagger couldn¡¯t cut through when I tried.¡±

    ¡°Then we have a problem.¡± Evalyn took her instrument into herself as she activated Investiture of Song. She shouted over to where Khiat was still running. ¡°Stop! We have to make the next one count. Everyone get ready to attack.¡±

    Daniel got the point and Tak spoke as he realized it too. ¡°Oh. It will run.¡±

    ¡°Or go back to the village if it thinks they will be easier prey,¡± Hunter mused.

    ¡°It¡¯s going to give us another shot at least. Evalyn, coming to you!¡± Daniel carefully loaded two spineshard bolts into his arm bows. They¡¯d no longer explode from being dropped too far and should be fine until contacting enough lightning damage, but what had happened to Hunter would always make him nervous around this ammunition type.

    ¡°Hunter, Tak, Cross Strike on it after the initial volley. We¡¯ll have to hope the fire stops. Do what you can to stop it from moving. When its mouth is in the ground, it can¡¯t hurt us.¡± She was half-singing the plan, not by choice but because of the secondary effects of her ability. From what Daniel had been told, it was like being forced to do everything to the music like Evalyn was in a rhythm-based game. It gave her improved reaction times, at least, and assuming she¡¯d internalized the Lightfoot Song buff she¡¯d have a shot at dodging what was about to happen.

    The wyrm appeared from the sand with another burst of flame, but unlike the other times, it jerked suddenly as its momentum was thrown off. It had tried to track Evalyn as she dodged but when the flame effect reached the locked down area, it faltered. Daniel released his bolts and was heartened to see Khare had chosen to give him Called Shot rather than shoot their own weapons. They were better at handling massed enemies anyways, and could get in hits afterwards.

    The section with his bolts disappeared as the wyrm continued trying to dive into the ground. Khiat¡¯s arrow struck it a moment later along with Evalyn¡¯s Songbolt, and a cloud of sand was kicked up as his two bolts ate the electricity from the attack. There was no audible vocalization from the wyrm, though the ground continued to shake for a few moments more than it should have.

    Tak and Hunter were next, the two coming together on the exposed section of wyrm and tearing into it. They didn¡¯t absolutely destroy it like most things they hit with that attack, but the wyrm still received horrendous slashes. At the same time, the two hunters weren¡¯t burned as that ability had been interrupted. The two didn¡¯t end up too far after their combo attack and quickly pounced on the wyrm. Already it was halfway back into the ground and if it fully sunk below the sand, it might not come back until they weren¡¯t there.

    Daniel was running towards the wyrm himself before he consciously registered the decision. He¡¯d only been about ten meters away and he could move faster than he¡¯d expect with his attributes at level 2. Changing both of his hands into birdlike talons, he pulled with the other two to try and keep it exposed. Even with the three of them, it was a losing battle as he¡¯d lose his grip and have to grab onto another section.

    ¡°Khiat, keep firing!¡± Evalyn shouted, as Khare had already resumed his volley to renew the bleed effect.

    ¡°What if I hit them?¡± the dusker¡¯s loud voice called back, hesistant.

    ¡°You¡¯re our best shot, we trust you!¡± Daniel grunted as loudly as he could, knowing that with Snap Shot he still couldn¡¯t compare to Khiat¡¯s natural talent. Sure enough, a long, powerful arrow hit the wyrm a few moments later without threatening the three around it. There was a sudden surge of strength in his arms as Evalyn track switched to Ironhand Ballad, but even then they were failing to stop the wyrm from moving.

    It became a race against time instead of a tug of war, the melee fighters holding out as long as they could for the two primary archers to deal enough damage. Daniel could have glued the wyrm again, but it wouldn¡¯t have done much besides give it another reason not to resurface.

    Then, as almost all of the monster had passed them and the end of the tail was waving on the surface, Khiat hit her eighth shot and the wyrm¡¯s strength lessened noticeably. Daniel was able to take a step back, and then another, and then three at once as a ninth, unenchanted arrow landed. Brownish blood stained the sections they began to pull out as the bleed effect made every arrow wound a spigot for the monster¡¯s life force to flow from. Soon after, the aura faded with the monster¡¯s death.

    Tak kept pulling for a few moments, wanting to get the entire monster out, but gave up as he began to feel the fatigue from the long struggle. ¡°Hmm. Big. Maybe the villagers can get it out. Anything you want from this?¡± he asked Daniel.

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to make anything with wyrm-leather,¡± Daniel quickly decided. ¡°Actually, I don¡¯t know if it would count as leather. I did get a new affix that¡¯ll be fun to use though.¡± He frowned as he saw the sky begin to brighten and he had to quickly tamp down on the Empathic Link from Hunter¡¯s bond. The daily reset had come. ¡°Damn. Missed dawn. I may not have enough mana for¡­¡± His breath caught, and both Evalyn and Hunter realized what was wrong at the same time.

    Khiat was too far away to reach before the sun got to her. She¡¯d taken a hit from the wyrm, and while most of her armor still covered her, it only took one gap. They¡¯d resolved never to hunt during the day with her, just to avoid the risk of this. Daniel¡¯s heart was pounding as he saw Khiat was unmoving. Her tag was still there, but had she already been affected? He¡¯d heard what happened when duskers got exposed, but how long did it take? Was there any way to reverse it?

    ¡°Khiat, get down! We¡¯ll cover you!¡± Evalyn was shouting. ¡°Get to the shade of a dune!¡±

    They were a minute away when she finally moved, glancing over her shoulder at the torn section of armor at the back. The form had held since it wrapped twice there, the cut not going all the way through, but a burned section left just enough room for light to go through as the sun rose over the distant Thormundz ridge.

    Daniel Jumped as if to block a sniper¡¯s bullet, but he didn¡¯t get there in time. He landed roughly in the sand and looked up at the dusker, fearing the worst.

    ¡°It¡¯s ok,¡± Khiat finally said after everyone finished staring in horror at her. ¡°Sorry, I just, it hurts, but it¡¯s ok. I think it¡¯s coming to me.¡±

    ¡°New power,¡± Daniel wheezed as both the hunt and the desperate run taxed his body. ¡°From the wyrm?¡±

    ¡°It has to be. Ow,¡± she winced, making everyone jump. ¡°No, no it¡¯s fine, it¡¯s only hurting more. I don¡¯t think I can stay out here like this forever. I¡¯m not immune, I¡¯m just protected. Sun¡­ Sun Resistance. That¡¯s what it¡¯s called.¡±

    ¡°Gods,¡± Evalyn cried out. ¡°Khiat, I thought I almost got you killed. I should have told you to run for shelter.¡±

    ¡°I couldn¡¯t let that thing keep attacking,¡± she replied, a rare note of rancor entering her voice. ¡°They¡¯re the worst. Dad says all the villages worry about those wyrms. The city is supposed to protect us from them, how did one get so close?¡± With that, she shrunk as she compressed her carapace plates together to prevent further exposure to the sun. ¡°I need to find my family!¡±

    ¡°Your parents are still fine,¡± Daniel assured. ¡°I don¡¯t remember the exact number, but it looks like everyone in the village survived.¡±

    ¡°Thank you. All of you.¡± Khiat started walking back and everyone else followed, though Evalyn pulled on her arm as they did so.

    ¡°Hey, that¡¯s what we do,¡± Evalyn replied warmly. ¡°That¡¯s what we do,¡± she said again, emphasizing we. ¡°I don¡¯t think we could have killed that without you, Khiat. You¡¯re a real hunter now. When we go back to the guild, I¡¯d like to put you on our team too, if you¡¯d like to. What do you think?¡±

    The dusker looked at her bow for a moment before she answered. ¡°I can do it. I want to do it.¡± Her hand manged to tighten for a moment, even with the carapace plates forced together. ¡°Those monsters, the bad monsters,¡± she added with a look towards Hunter. ¡°They make everyone¡¯s lives worse. I don¡¯t know what I am anymore, but that, that thing isn¡¯t in my head. All of this, it feels right. Because of this, I can walk in the sun!¡± She extended herself for just a moment, basking in the light, before she turned to Evalyn. ¡°I was always meant to be a hunter, I know that now. Because of all of you, I have that chance.¡±

 Chapter 125: Time for Reflection

    ¡°Mom¡¯s doing well, or, basically the same. Alex and Ami too,¡± Earth-Daniel hesitantly said as the copy of his consciousness he¡¯d sent across worlds stared at him from the black void of Bridge Space. ¡°I texted them, just a quick check-in. They invited me to Thanksgiving in a few weeks but I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll make it. Chris also said he hasn¡¯t gotten any other documents sent for me.¡±

    Octyrrum-Daniel, or just Daniel as he liked to think of himself, continued to glare across the divide. He¡¯d really trained his ability to intimidate through exposure to Tlara, at least against normal people. None of his class magic worked here, but parts of his bonds did as well as the improvements from his attributes. While this was only the third time he¡¯d been here, he¡¯d been able to pick up on the differences. Also on his tell, which neither Thomas nor Earth-Daniel would be happy about.

    ¡°I¡¯ve been here for two months, maybe a bit more. It was June last I remember, so Thanksgiving should be more than ¡®a few weeks¡¯ away.¡± Daniel walked up and put a hand on the divider. ¡°I didn¡¯t think about the difference in season because, you know, different world, but it¡¯s starting to sound like it¡¯s linked up. We¡¯re halfway through fall, so I¡¯m missing at least a month from my memories. What happened?¡±

    He kept his voice hard and steady. It was the only thing he could use against the other version of him, and while he could leave here at any moment, Earth-Daniel had a lot more control over his view back home. If he was honest he couldn¡¯t truly hate himself for what he¡¯d done, but they were far from friends. ¡°I can¡¯t tell you.¡±

    ¡°Why does it matter!?¡± Daniel exclaimed, hitting the invisible wall with his fist. ¡°Fuck, haven''t you thought this through? How could Dad have set all this up? How is there even magic on Earth?¡±

    The questions made Earth-Daniel deeply uncomfortable as he looked away and then sat on his cot. ¡°I don¡¯t know. Chris said Dad had put a lot of money into this but we never heard from Mom about him draining accounts or anything like that. We¡¯d have thought someone had kidnapped and forced him to make a withdrawal or something instead of just going missing.¡±

    ¡°So, ignoring the fact that you¡¯re just trusting this Chris guy,¡± Daniel said, ¡°You¡¯re telling me you think Dad spent however long he¡¯d need to build that place, only to then get trapped in another world? He got lost hiking in the mountains, not setting up some kind of interstellar radio beacon.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know, ok? People clearly travel between worlds and most people don¡¯t know about it. I never said he set this up when he went missing, it could have happened later. Maybe he found someone who couldn¡¯t take him back, but could come here and make this. His letter never mentioned when he wrote it. The money could have come from something they brought from that world.¡±

    Daniel sighed as he didn¡¯t have a way to directly contest that, mostly because Earth-Daniel was hiding information from him. It was all on that damned list. Pulling things out of his other self was possible, like the missing time Earth-Daniel had let slip, but once he was conscious of the mistake he¡¯d lock down on that topic. If he could say anything about his other self, it was that he was incredibly determined to see this through. ¡°Tell me how you sent me across, at least. If I¡¯m supposed to get Dad back, there¡¯s no way you couldn¡¯t tell me that.¡±

    Earth-Daniel picked up the hated clipboard and read whatever he couldn¡¯t see from this side closely. ¡°Ok, ok. It just says I can¡¯t tell you about the missing time and what you can¡¯t remember, but since most of that is just me sitting here?¡± His conflicted look met Daniel¡¯s hard gaze before he quickly averted his eyes. ¡°There was this piece of, of something.¡± A note of wonder entered his copy¡¯s voice, his eyes growing distant. ¡°It was like smooth glass but touching it¡­ it was magic. I think if I looked into some of the stuff here I¡¯d find more of it, but that could also break whatever¡¯s linking us. I had to hold onto it until it ¡®activated¡¯. I ended up duct-taping it to my arm when nothing happened after twenty hours. It took a week before it vanished, and then I just waited again until you arrived.¡±

    ¡°You put duct tape on the mystical artifact that probably ferried a copy of our soul to another world?¡± Daniel asked incredulously.

    ¡°It was practical! I¡¯d have let go once I¡¯d fallen asleep otherwise.¡± The T-shirt clad watcher shrugged and leaned against the wall. ¡°I¡¯d say the time after that sucked, but at least I didn¡¯t have to work. We lost our job, by the way.¡±

    Daniel laughed briefly. Of everything, that got to him a little. ¡°Guess you had to be complete when you decided to ruin my life.¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t-¡° Earth-Daniel looked down. ¡°I didn¡¯t think it¡¯d be that bad. All I was told was that you¡¯d be sent to where Dad was and I¡¯d get more information when I needed it. I thought you¡¯d end up in some city somewhere. The island, everything with the Thormundz, I didn¡¯t know it would be like that.¡±

    ¡°Sounds like whoever¡¯s sending you those letters fucked off. Maybe that duct tape did ruin everything.¡±

    ¡°I hope not. I can¡¯t just leave now that you know I¡¯m here either, not that I would. Without me you wouldn¡¯t know stuff like active effects on you.¡± He nodded to the monitors which Daniel was still blocked from seeing. ¡°Sending you info makes me feel useful, at least. I was trying to figure out something for that wyrm but you beat me to it. And then you wrestled something the size of a gas truck. You know what I was doing?¡± He gestured to a mug. ¡°Coffee. I had Chris triple what he was bringing me ever since you started hanging around with Khiat. I was about to go to bed when you started that fight.¡±

    Daniel didn¡¯t reply to that, just shrugging. He wasn¡¯t at all responsible for his copy¡¯s insomnia and it was hard to sympathize. Still¡­ ¡°The fire affix I got from the wyrm, it seems really good. I¡¯m going to make more arrows and bolts and try it out with other stuff too.¡± Earth-Daniel¡¯s eyes lit up and he dragged a whiteboard over to where he could see.

    ¡°Yeah! From what I can tell on my side, those affixes add secondary damage after the initial hit, like Scatter Shot. That might mean they won¡¯t combo with that power, but it¡¯s still a straight damage boost. It¡¯s just too bad you already made all of your armor, I bet that would give you fire damage resistance if you¡¯d added it.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know if I could.¡± Daniel grimaced, and his stance became less hostile. ¡°Enchanting¡¯s not as easy as I thought it was. Small bolts and arrowheads with two affixes I can manage, but the armor¡¯s size makes things difficult. I have to maintain that state for longer and it was getting close to failure while I was making Tak¡¯s armor. That was with high level material.¡± He shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s like when I first got to level 2. A lot of new power, but a lot of areas to improve. I¡¯ll have to wait until we get whatever bounty we¡¯re owed for all these kills too so I can afford better enchanting material.¡±

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    ¡°And the ornithopters?¡±

    ¡°And the ornithopters,¡± Daniel confirmed. ¡°I¡¯ll make the first pair for Evalyn. Khare or Khiat might benefit from them more, but I can¡¯t see the prototype working for them. And it¡¯s not like Tak or Hunter need them.¡±

    ¡°You might.¡± Earth-Daniel shrugged as Daniel raised an eyebrow at how he¡¯d said it. ¡°It¡¯s just, it¡¯s weird.¡±

    ¡°What part of this isn¡¯t weird?¡±

    ¡°Fair.¡± They both were lost for words for a few moments. Daniel was aware of how vulnerable he was currently, but Hunter was watching him and Earth-Daniel was occasionally glancing at the screens to make sure he didn¡¯t have to go back. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I didn¡¯t know.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, you didn¡¯t, but you should have guessed.¡± Daniel tried to think back to his last memories of Earth, giving an honest attempt at playing out what he¡¯d been told to give Earth-Daniel a chance. The memories of falling still blocked out anything close to when Chris had made the initial call, kicking off, well, his existence. He¡¯d attempted this before, but every time, he kept seeing Hunter broken after the devil root core or the bodies of the people that the lightning dragon and lake monster had killed.

    He had to yield on one point, however. ¡°If Dad is here, and there¡¯s a way back, I¡¯ll do what I can to help. It just doesn¡¯t sound like I have a good way to, especially if you don¡¯t tell me anything.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t have anything to help you here,¡± Earth-Daniel said, less defensively than normal. ¡°I didn¡¯t get any information about the world I was going to, not really. The stuff I had to block out gave me some idea, but there¡¯s no directions saying ¡®find Dad here¡¯. I¡¯d tell you about that, believe me.¡±

    ¡°Why even hide information from me? If there was anything you¡¯d hide, I¡¯d think it¡¯d be that I couldn¡¯t go back.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not that much of a dick.¡± Earth-Daniel thought for a moment, bobbing his head as he did so. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s fair. Dad¡¯s note was clear on how important it was. If he somehow set this all up, even if it was through someone else on this side, then this plan has to be well thought out. There¡¯s a god on your side censoring things, so maybe if you had this knowledge you¡¯d be in danger from them? At this point, they¡¯re able to block it out before it gets to you anywhere else.¡±

    ¡°Oh yeah, I almost forgot about that. Damned gods can scrub my inbox but not defend their world?¡± The scraps of ancient history he¡¯d gotten from the Accounts of Artruz about the first Collapse being from the squabbling of the gods seemed more and more accurate as time went on. Frankly, an apocalypse was enough to deal with without also having to search the world for his dad amidst everything else. That made him think of something. ¡°Hey, I can¡¯t go across, but Dad can, right?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. My guess is however he ended up there was different than what I did, considering that accidentally fused you with the dragon guy.¡±

    Daniel shook his head, his other self not understanding where he was going. It¡¯d only been a few months of separation, but at this point they were different people. ¡°Hunter. If we find a way to safety, and it really looks like this world¡¯s about to end, I¡¯m sending Hunter across. Him, and any of my friends who want to go.¡±

    ¡°I, I don¡¯t think that¡¯s¡­¡± Earth-Daniel hesitated to finish the sentence and instead asked, ¡°Do you think he¡¯d even like it over here? I guess if the alternative is death sure, but that would be me bringing aliens here. What if their powers still worked?¡±

    ¡°Then Thomas comes over and cures cancer in his downtime, Evalyn wins an election or something after only doing one debate, and¡­¡± He trailed off as he thought. Tak and Hunter go on some kind of safari spree. Lograve absorbs the internet, we get Khiat one of those bigass sniper rifles. Khare might have it rough. ¡°I want your word that you¡¯ll do it if there¡¯s no other option.¡±

    Earth-Daniel frowned. ¡°I don¡¯t even know if that¡¯s possible.¡±

    ¡°Say that it is, would you do it?¡±

    ¡°Yeah,¡± he answered, eventually and reluctantly.

    ¡­

    Soft music filled the desert as Daniel watched the setting sun with Hunter. They¡¯d traveled a short distance from the village for the solitude they now enjoyed. The track wasn¡¯t from Evalyn but Daniel¡¯s phone, taken from a game featuring rainy streets filled with aliens with assault rifles. It was more calming than it sounded.

    ¡°We¡¯re going to have to go back there soon,¡± Daniel said, leaning against Hunter while sitting down. ¡°Not right now, but in a week or two.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°There are things we need there. Thomas and Lograve too. Everything we¡¯ve been hunting, people are going to pay us for. I don¡¯t know how much but it should be a lot. Someone also needs to tell people dangerous monsters are starting to get at the villages. Everyone here would have died if we hadn¡¯t stopped that wyrm.¡± There were plenty of good reasons, more he wasn¡¯t mentioning, but it did little to settle Hunter¡¯s unease. He could feel it through their bond, though they still kept the Empathic Link suppressed at all times. That wasn¡¯t a door Daniel was willing to open yet, even if it might make them hunt better together.

    ¡°They hurt you and hate me. It is not a city, it is a trap.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not so bad, some of the people just suck. There are people like that here too.¡± Daniel looked pointedly up as if there was a camera watching him. ¡°We don¡¯t have to stay here either. Khiat, well, she¡¯s on the team now, maybe she¡¯ll be up for an adventure. There are other regions, and it might be good to get some distance between us and that thing in the mountains. Just in case.¡±

    Hunter grumbled and didn¡¯t answer. The directness of his friend could be touching at times, though he had a troubling tendency to hide something if it would cause the kind of trouble he couldn¡¯t fight his way out of. That was part of why it¡¯d taken Hunter so long to speak up about how Daniel had initially treated him. ¡°You. The other you.¡±

    There it is, Daniel thought, smiling internally. He knew Hunter wanted to talk about it but wanted to wait until he was ready. He had to know it was ok to. ¡°It¡¯s ok, you can say what you want.¡±

    Hunter clenched his jaw, causing his already fangs to poke out more. ¡°It hurts me to think about. He hurt you, but without him, what would I be?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re not saying you feel guilty about what I¡¯ve been through, are you?¡± Daniel ruffled the fur of Hunter¡¯s neck. ¡°I¡¯m only alive because of you, not him.¡±

    ¡°Still it is¡­ it is like I am stalked. Knowing he is always there, that I can¡¯t do anything.¡±

    ¡°The dynamic¡¯s changed,¡± Daniel said, Hunter nodding. He almost held back what he was going to say, but it felt like he should get his own demons off his chest. ¡°I felt the same way after you got a bond with Tak.¡± He laughed softly under his breath as Hunter looked at him. ¡°It¡¯s not that I didn¡¯t like it, things just changed. It wasn¡¯t just the two of us anymore.¡±

    ¡°There were always others.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, but they weren¡¯t constantly in my head or pulling off combo attacks with you.¡±

    ¡°You bonded with Khare,¡± Hunter pointed out, easily pushing him over with a paw. ¡°Maybe I should be angry?¡±

    ¡°I was never angry!¡± Daniel protested, coming back up sandy. ¡°I was just dealing with it being different. But it is harder for you, I get it. Tak was a pure positive, while Earth-Daniel¡­ Seeing someone that¡¯s basically me without all the time spent here? I don¡¯t like who that person is.¡±

    ¡°Neither do I,¡± Hunter affirmed, unease in his voice. ¡°But he is you.¡±

    ¡°Is he? My mind¡¯s been changed by my attributes at the very least. Our bond¡¯s had an effect on us too. I wonder if I¡¯d ever have kept up with hunting back then if you hadn¡¯t been there with me.¡± That was another reason Daniel was hesitant to open the floodgates of Empathic Link. ¡°The worst part is he¡¯s doing this all for my dad. We, I, he¡¯s important to both of us. If he is here and there¡¯s a way to bring him back, this would be worth it.¡±

    ¡°Would you go back with him?¡± The question stung Daniel.

    ¡°I can¡¯t, at least according to him. But if I could, I¡¯d only do it if you could come to.¡±

    ¡°Who said I would go?¡± Hunter asked in mock offense, wrinkling his nose. ¡°I heard what you¡¯ve said about it. Too many people, no monsters.¡±

    Well yes, and no. ¡°Heh. Hunter, I think it¡¯s time I told you about Australia.¡±

 Interlude: Threst - Bottled Up

    Claire opened her eyes and knew she would escape today. She didn¡¯t hold much ill will towards her captors, it was just time to leave. Claire reserved most of the anger that bled through for one thing in particular, and it wasn¡¯t the people with good intentions. Neither could she deny that there were people here in the Hand¡¯s church who needed this kind of help. She didn¡¯t. Claire knew exactly what she wanted from life, and that was the death of the one who¡¯d taken the last of her family away.

    That said, Claire had no intention to charge towards her enemy the first chance she got. She had been considered a prodigal Arcanist in her youth, both due to how fast she¡¯d awakened the class and her natural intelligence. There was time. Her brother would stay dead. The dragon hadn¡¯t left her a body to have some hope of a revival. Claire could wait. She had been promised a Fated Confrontation.

    No, she was smart enough to know that no amount of righteous anger would overcome the monster¡¯s terrible power. Claire would need levels, equipment, and allies. She didn¡¯t need to spend most of her time in overly comfortable rooms fending off people who ¡®were only trying to help¡¯.

    There were two good things to come out of the current arrangement. First, Quala had brought her to Threst, where her old Sojourn still likely was. It was unlikely they were in Aurus, the capital of the region, but it was closer than Aughal where she might have been taken. Second was the library.

    Claire had often thought about how advancement worked outside of monster hunting. Having hit her wall before taking the Vengeance Bond, it had been an obsession until she¡¯d finally given up on further leveling. Classes all had unique methods of growing stronger outside of straight combat, though they could grow less effective or stop working altogether. It was all so inconsistent, just like the nature of classes themselves. There was no corollary between who could and couldn¡¯t reach the pinnacle.

    That being said, studying sure did work to advance Claire. So long as she stuck to new topics in a constant pursuit of enlightenment, potential came. Combined with what she¡¯d held onto from before the bond, she had managed to advance rapidly while hiding everything from her captors. They¡¯d praised how much she¡¯d taken to the relaxing activities.

    Yesterday she¡¯d hit level 2, and not in a way that left her with troublesome disparity. Those who rushed one of their primary attributes to advance in the early levels were often marked to burn out soon afterward. Not just because they had to spend more effort catching up on their other attributes either. The records from Torch¡¯s library indicated there was a distinct reductive chance of reaching the next level when someone had a disparity of five points or greater from their lowest to highest attribute. This was one of the topics Claire had researched thoroughly. She didn¡¯t intend to match her demon, she intended to crush it.

    So it was that one month after leaving the Thormundz, Claire committed to breaking out of the church of the Hand.

    ¡­

    The audience chamber was, like most buildings of state, open to the sky. Threst was primarily the domain of the avianoid race. This was not just the result of speciesism but that the region was attuned to their needs and abilities, just like how the shavi dominated aquatic regions. That also explained the feather motif of the colorful banners and pennants flying in the air, and the fact that there were four humans total in the entire chamber. Not that he felt excluded by this. Murdon was used to being an outlier wherever he went.

    ¡°I can¡¯t imagine Lograve had to wait this long,¡± he grumbled to the Cleric standing beside him. ¡°You¡¯d think our history would give us faster access than this. That or what we¡¯re here to warn them about.¡±

    ¡°Are you promoting nepotism?¡± Quala asked with mock affront.

    ¡°When necessary.¡± Murdon took in his surroundings again. ¡°At least my friend doesn¡¯t stick to that annoying dialect in private. I forgot how much it got on my nerves.¡± One of the Apex Flight, the highest in the protectors of the realm of Threst, motioned them forward. Murdon rubbed at his crippled arm self-consciously. ¡°Lograve should be here.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ll be together with your old friend soon, no worries.¡± After a beat, Quala continued, ¡°Lograve can come over here as soon as he¡¯s relayed the message.¡± She smiled, and Murdon moved his hand away to show the missing one. The armor he currently wore and bound as a Focus was modified to make the most of the injury, but it couldn¡¯t replace a limb.

    Murdon just grunted and walked upwards. As expected, the leader of Threst stood at the highest settled point in the city. Only the clouds flew higher, as well as the large waterfall constantly supplying half of the city from above. At this vantage, a high enough leveled individual could see to the boundaries of the region. To the Thormundz, or what was left of it. Threst was a land of material wealth and extreme natural defensibility. It was also the land of a Regent.

    Not King, and this position was not a class either. Threst wasn¡¯t at the point where they could challenge Rikendia¡¯s dominance of the cutting edge of Hammer¡¯s expansion into the Crest. That region possessed the power to march through several others and punish those who overtly challenged the status quo. Instead of Aughal¡¯s Council, one mortal ruled Threst by both power and statecraft alone. Any could challenge the one sitting atop the mountain. The trick to ruling Threst was to make sure no one wanted to.

    When they reached the top, Quala peered at the throne with disappointment. She kept silent, the back and forth between herself and Murdon allowed while waiting no longer appropriate. Up here there was formality and protocol. Expectations to meet. As neither were a native of this region, polite silence was the best bet to avoid an incident. Quala did see a sword floating by the throne, both of which continued the theme of stylized feathers. The entire back of the seat was carved to look like folded wings. Wait, that¡¯s not a floating sword, Quala suddenly realized as it began moving.

    Murdon just sighed internally and prepared for what was about to come. ¡°My friend!¡± a clear voice rang out from about where the sword was with the voice of someone on a stage. ¡°So terribly sorry to keep you waiting. I¡¯ve been booked. Congratulations on making it out of the Thormundz, by the way. Though, I did warn you. I always thought ruling a region preferable to building one.¡±

    ¡°Soraso,¡± Murdon shook his head as greeted his former teammate. ¡°You did keep me waiting.¡±

    ¡°So sorry, again, but I heard you needed a hand.¡± The sound of two, or perhaps just one, hands clapping filled the air and two servants walked out with a box about the size of a head. They opened it to reveal a potion. ¡°Maybe you shouldn¡¯t be wearing that gauche chestplate when you drink it. Scratch that, just drop off that armor somewhere and I¡¯ll have someone make it into something people will want to use. Like nails! Everyone needs nails.¡±

    Quala couldn¡¯t help it. ¡°Murdon, what¡¯s going on?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s almost there, just go along or he¡¯ll make it worse,¡± he whispered back. ¡°There¡¯s another reason I was the best to send. Put Soraso and Lograve in a room alone together and you might not get the room back.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Well, go on. Take it! Or not. The bottle alone was a hundred gold and don¡¯t get me started on the potion.¡± No one moved and there was a defeated sigh that filled the court. ¡°Fine. The supplicants may approach.¡±

    One of the Apex Flight uncrossed the weapons in front of Murdon and, with a sharp cry, declared, ¡°The supplicants may approach the Regent!¡±

    ¡°Pretty sure they heard me the first time.¡± At this point, Quala was sure the voice was coming from where the sword was. She also knew the Spoke of Threst manifested as a weapon wielded by the true ruler. Concentrating the entire divine energy of a civilization down into a weapon had its benefits, but granting sentience to the weapon itself wasn¡¯t one. Or, at least, Quala would have known if an Incarnate was in Threst.

    Murdon picked up the potion bottle from the box, handling it with extreme care. The color of the liquid was of purest blue, with no visible contamination from even the wax that had been used to seal it. No doubt this entire product was the work of several specialized Blessed, from the Druid that had grown the herbs, the Ranger that had harvested monsters, the Craftsman who had made the bottle, down to the Alchemist who¡¯d brewed the potion itself. Murdon suspected an enchantment had been placed to help preserve everything. Work like this was only possible in a region with a well-functioning economy and government that supported their artisans. Its true value wasn¡¯t in level but in complexity.

    ¡°Thank you. I feel it best to partake later as you suggested.¡± A faint growl entered Murdon¡¯s voice at the end as he forced some of the formality of the court into his speech to appease the crowd. He had no doubt Soraso¡¯s antics had been going on for some time, but he couldn¡¯t afford that much whimsy.

    ¡°The supplicant¡¯s gratitude has been noted.¡± An official recorder of the court spoke, having taken down all that had been said for posterity. With a quill, of course. No, Soraso might have beaten his style into this place when he took over, but given what they were here for, it was best for Murdon to play along.

    ¡°If it pleases those assembled, I come with dire tidings.¡± He could feel his old teammate grinning at him with every word. It was probably why he hadn¡¯t shown himself yet. ¡°The Thormundz region has fallen. I have returned with those souls I could save, but I fear another Collapse may soon be upon us. As our Spoke was lost, we had no way to alert the Octyrrum. I petition this court for aid.¡±

    The draconoid received mild approval from the gathered high society for that little speech. One he¡¯d only just managed to put together despite all the time he¡¯d had on the way. Well, it was also the fact of his ancestry. Draconoids in Threst were revered along with other races that could become flighted. The rarity and supposed majesty of dragons was only an added benefit in this case. So long as they composed themselves appropriately, ones such as Murdon could do very well for themselves here. He didn¡¯t get it.

    It was and wasn¡¯t a surprise that Soraso had done better. Anyone else treating the assembled with what they¡¯d perceive as disrespect would have been tossed out of Threst long ago, strongest or not, and it should be pointed out that Soraso was far from the strongest. The Regent sighed and, judging by the sword, took a seat on the throne. ¡°Enough prelude, I suppose. Yes, let us get to matters of state.¡± Soraso suddenly appeared, and Murdon heard Quala gasp beside him. He didn¡¯t blame her. He¡¯d been vague on exactly who, and what Soraso was. Sometimes Murdon liked to have fun too.

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    Sitting on the throne was the oddest air gestalt anyone would likely see, at least in this part of the region. The typical member of their race looked like a humanoid cloud, although they could take other shapes if needed and flow through most openings. Soraso had the same general appearance, but there was color in his form. A band of sunrise gold around his neck and collar, two stripes running down the main body while colors of all kinds filled in the space between them. It was akin to a peacock, and Murdon knew the gestalt had taken time curating his appearance. The only part that was the normal pure white was the head, save for another band of gold near the top to mimic a half-crown.

    Soraso picked up on the surprise. ¡°I see you didn¡¯t tell your companion about me Murdon. And you were so fond of our old hunting stories. You didn¡¯t find me worth mentioning?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re not enjoying this moment?¡± Murdon fired back.

    ¡°Oh no, I am.¡± The clouds in Soraso¡¯s face parted in a smile. ¡°Or, I should be. Lost your Spoke, did you? Yes, that is unfortunate. Harder to replace than an arm, that.¡± Half of those attending seemed put off by the now complete lack of stately air, while just as many were deeply interested in the conversation. You¡¯d heard rumors of the Thormundz, but now you could hear the facts from the draconoid who¡¯d saved what was left of the region. Quala could see beaks moving in the galleries surrounding her, people discussing the events, but not even the faintest of whispers was heard. Good enchantments in the gallery.

    ¡°The gods, Soraso. They need to know.¡±

    ¡°Yes, yes.¡± Soraso floated his sword in front of his body, and all eyes were suddenly on him. He rotated the sword in front of him, faster and faster, then abruptly stopped it. ¡°I already sent word. Seriously, you lost your Spoke, Murdon. What made you think I wouldn¡¯t reach out the moment a Fate confirmed Eido was gone? Crest, I sent a force to your rescue after our initial contact but some overgrown brother of yours blew them apart. After that practically everyone wrote you off.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± A note of actual anger entered Murdon¡¯s voice along with the surprise. ¡°You¡¯ve kept us waiting here for a month!¡±

    ¡°The supplicant will remain composed!¡± a shrill voice called out from the side.

    Murdon snorted and stared right at Soraso. ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°For one? So I could prepare that potion.¡± Soraso¡¯s sword returned to its sheath as he stood. ¡°But there¡¯s something else, something I had to confirm. We shouldn¡¯t speak of it here. It is above even this court.¡± He gestured with one of his hands, and the guards that had moved to block the stairway parted. ¡°Get yourself healed up Murdon. I won¡¯t keep you waiting for long.¡± Soraso waved dismissively, which was the formal way people were ¡®granted leave¡¯ from Threst¡¯s court.

    Murdon stomped down the stairs with Quala in tow. They¡¯d walked past the reception, then the gardens, then the full choir of songbirds, and had just reached the general catering area before she finally spoke. ¡°Murdon, what is he?¡±

    ¡°An air gestalt, isn¡¯t it obvious?¡± Murdon was still a bit annoyed by how the meeting had gone. He realized his tone a moment later and sighed. ¡°Soraso was the Bard on my old team. Damn useful in the early days. Even though he had good healing powers at level 2, no other team in Kallical wanted to make working with a gestalt work. Soraso never took the hint and kept trying to join with people outside of his race. For some reason. You heard the problems people had working with Kob back then?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re talking about how Kob would just do whatever they wanted to, leaving their allies in the lurch? Yes.¡± Quala nodded. ¡°That doesn¡¯t explain how he was talking, Murdon!¡±

    ¡°I thought that was obvious. It¡¯s a power. Not a common one, I¡¯ve met other gestalt Bards and Soraso was the only one who had something like it. He also started using ¡®he¡¯ around when he started talking, by the way.¡±

    Quala saw the deep grimace on Murdon¡¯s face. ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m remembering the day Soraso first spoke to me like that. He¡¯d told Lograve about it first.¡±

    She chuckled. ¡°How long did they make you think it was some kind of ventriloquism?¡±

    ¡°Five minutes. The team almost broke apart because of what they got up to. I almost think¡­¡± he trailed off, eyes moving to further the staircase. Quala was too absorbed by the conversation to notice at first.

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that one of yours?¡± Murdon pointed to a woman in Cleric robes running up the staircase. The avianoid was gasping for air and must have come all the way from Hand¡¯s temple. Considering that was about three kilometers below where they were, that was understandable.

    ¡°Paige!¡± Quala didn¡¯t run. Instead, she jumped off the stairway, something easily done as only a handrail separated it from the open air on one side. This wasn¡¯t abnormal considering every avianoid who gained a class would reliably unlock Grow Wings in their first level. Power concentrated towards the top in Threst, which included those with levels. Considering the feature didn¡¯t cost mana aside from what it took to heighten, and the fact that it was flying, people only took these stairways if they needed to.

    Murdon saw Quala land on a platform built out next to the stairway over the air, these being present at regular intervals so that no one had to land on someone¡¯s head to reach different parts of Aurus. As a draconoid, his race only guaranteed a breath weapon as a racial power, though dragon wings weren¡¯t completely out of the picture. That didn¡¯t change the fact that he reached the conversation when it had mostly finished.

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    Quala turned from where she was making sure the other Cleric hadn¡¯t pulled something during their run. ¡°Murdon, I have to take off. Claire¡¯s gone missing.¡±

    ¡­

    Information is power. The Arcanist class translated this maxim literally in some cases. For Claire, her escape was rooted in the fact that no one knew she had regained the ability to advance. Her hitting the wall despite a promising start had been something she¡¯d been encouraged to talk about when Quala and other attendants of the Hand had tried to ¡®fix¡¯ her. And while they never forced her to talk about what powers she had, interviewing survivors from Roost¡¯s Peak did enough to give them the basics.

    For example, they knew she had Summon Familiar and kept a lookout for any nearby small animals or beasts doing odd things. They also knew she had illusion powers and would have taken precautions against those if she had given them a reason to worry. Claire had spent the last few weeks cooperating as much as she could without giving anything away, so the effort wasn¡¯t wasted. While Quala and others in the church may be able to defeat such measures with their powers or enhanced attributes, most of the staff did not possess a class. They relied on routine, attention to detail, and most importantly, their knowledge of her to form the cage.

    This brought Claire to the day of her escape as she used Summon Familiar. Oh, she¡¯d awakened several other powers that gave her options but had chosen to rely on one she was more practiced with. For that reason, and that she had a few auxiliary powers that enhanced its functioning. The one that allowed her to hear through her familiars was only one such example.

    Claire gave one last look out of her window and sighed, thinking how easy this would have been if she could fly fast enough to avoid detection. She had access to flying familiars, but unless she was able to get to the main Divine Quarter landing, she¡¯d be obvious. The church of the Hand was built into the side of the mountain, and Aurus had an edict against regular travel too close to the murals carved on their exterior. This part of the region was also patrolled by the Nest Flight, always on watch for people who accidentally fell off the mountain island.

    No, her best option was to get up through the church and blend in with the crowds. It had to be today. While cooperating had worked as a delaying tactic, Claire couldn¡¯t push it indefinitely as some of the damned Clerics could detect lies. Eventually, they¡¯d see through her, or identify the fact that she was level 2. Taking the knife from the small dining table in the room, she steeled her nerves. ¡°This will work. I¡¯m getting out of here today.¡±

    Then she watched as she stabbed herself.

    ¡­

    Philimus Markain took pride in his role as the floor warden for the Hand¡¯s clinics in Threst. Under his watch, the members of the church provided care to all who needed it, in every way they needed it. It was easy to get a good reputation as the church of healing when compared to, say, the church of time, but he wasn¡¯t someone to grow complacent.

    Philimus made sure there were proper rotations of Clerics who could and could no longer advance, appropriate supplies of potions for emergency use, and otherwise handled the thousands of small problems one encountered in this line of work. The position entailed a lot more managerial responsibility than one would assume for a follower of a god, but since he¡¯d hit his wall midway through level 3 there wasn¡¯t a need to chase advancement anymore. Honestly, the Cleric felt it was comforting to know he¡¯d reached as high as he could, and could now entirely focus on helping people.

    While his normal schedule would see him walking the grounds in the early afternoon, observing for any problem areas, trouble had found him today. The patients requiring prolonged mental healing were housed in the lower sections of the church for both privacy and security reasons. The majority were willing participants. A low but significant part of the population came here at some point in their life to make peace with never becoming a Blessed. To the avianoids of Threst, never gaining the ability to even glide in the free skies could be crushing to the spirit. Not that he¡¯d ever know himself. The church tried to redirect those unfulfilled ambitions to something that would be both rewarding and beneficial to society.

    Philimus scratched at the fur of his arm as he was brought towards one of the few unwilling residents of the church. Behind him, several combat experienced Clerics were moving at a rapid pace while urging anyone they met to shelter in place. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± he asked in a sonorous voice, though it was unlike the avianoids surrounding him. They were part of the chorus, whereas he belonged to the brass. His voice wasn¡¯t overly deep, like a draconoid¡¯s, and had a bellowing quality rather than a rasping one. At least, that¡¯s how he¡¯d put it. Others would say the difference was too subtle to point out.

    ¡°Monster in the church, floor warden.¡± The Cleric kneeling next to Claire was healing a deep puncture wound on one leg, and he could see shallower cuts everywhere. ¡°Must be a stealth-type because we¡¯re having a hard time finding it.¡±

    Philimus appraised the situation with a frown. He knew of this Arcanist, of course. She was one of the few who had made several requests to leave when she¡¯d first come here. Involuntary confinement was only done when someone was a danger to themselves or others but hadn¡¯t already done something that would warrant a prison cell or grave. These patients, especially the Blessed, were among the most difficult to deal with as they posed additional risk. It made the Cleric feel like he was a jailer whenever they had to intervene, but he knew it was for their own good. ¡°Here? Has anyone else seen it?¡±

    Another avianoid standing nearby moved closer. They had a blue stripe on one shoulder indicating possession of a truth detecting power, as well as a white and red one indicating possession of Flash Heal. The church possessed a few items that could detect the truth, but they were harder to access during a crisis. ¡°I¡¯ve confirmed it. She stated some kind of monster or beast attacked her and ran off. Something stronger than a normal animal, at least.¡±

    The broad fingers of the floor warden tapped on his other arm as he deliberated for just a moment. ¡°Issue a church-wide alert and inform Caylis. No need to go broader at this point.¡± It was incredibly unlikely a dangerous monster was in the city, such encounters were rare at best, and there would be more trouble from false panic. Philimus was also aware of Claire¡¯s powers and felt they were the more likely cause. But if she¡¯s not triggering Eye for Truth¡­

    ¡°We¡¯ll need to request specialists from Torch in case it¡¯s capable of invisibility.¡± It was a neat solution that wouldn¡¯t immediately let Claire know he was onto her, should she be the root cause. Any Torch Cleric capable of seeing invisibility would have powers that could also detect half-truths and the like. ¡°When it¡¯s found, do not destroy it immediately unless others are at risk of harm. We need to find out if this was a natural spawn getting into the city or the work of a Beastmaster.¡±

    ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t it kill her?¡± a junior member of the church asked. He was leveled, and the question reminded Philimus that a fair portion of the clergy hadn¡¯t ever fought a monster.

    He stepped away, motioning for the others to move as Claire was stable enough to. Keeping her in the middle of a hallway during an alert like this was a bad idea, as he explained. ¡°Not every monster goes for an immediate kill. Some, like stealth-types, may choose to weaken mortals first to distract or place traps. Keep in mind, should you choose to ever accompany hunters, that there are rare attack powers both monsters and mortals possess that trigger in response to healing magic.¡±

    ¡°Of course, floor warden.¡±

    Philimus nodded sagely. ¡°Now, return with the others to the hospital, and be careful. I will see if I can track down this beast.¡± The Cleric briefly lost sight of the junior as they crossed in front of him before the vision on his right side picked him up. Rotating his head side to side to allow his primarily sideways-oriented eyes to take in the entire hallway, the teshak Cleric went hunting in his halls.

 Interlude: Threst - Moving On

    Raising an alarm might seem like the worst idea you could have if trying to escape a prison, though here context was important. For one, the Clerics were looking for a monster, not a human. Equally beneficial was that the church would think they knew where she was, and if they checked her rooms at all it would only be a brief inspection unlikely to reveal her hiding place under the bed. If they checked there, well, no plan was perfect. She only needed to be here long enough until she could confirm the alert went out.

    As soon as it did, broadcast over a Builder-placed enchantment, she started moving. Claire had a second familiar in the hallways shaped like a fly which she used to make sure the way was clear. This trick had yet to be discovered because of how sparingly she used it.

    Once in the hallway, Claire¡¯s reason for the alert was obvious. Only those guards patrolling for a monster were outside of the rooms. At other times the residents and workers of this floor could move about, so long as the former didn¡¯t stray too far. Given the choice between packed halls and more limited, if more alert, foot traffic, Claire felt she had a better chance if she reduced the number of people who could spot her. That, and the limited number of hallways leading to the only staircase on this floor, sealed the decision.

    Flicking her attention to her second active familiar, Claire spent a few seconds making sure her cover wasn¡¯t blown and then continued forward. The lack of any proper stealth powers and her failure to get anything like a cloak made her nervous about this part. If anyone spotted her before she made it up this staircase it would be over and she would lose the element of surprise. Claire didn¡¯t fear the reprisal, Quala struck her as the ¡®I¡¯m not mad, I¡¯m just disappointed¡¯ type. The Cleric had tried going with a motherly spin to break through to her when other attempts failed, but Claire had bought none of it.

    Claire stopped at the first corner, grimacing as she heard movement down the direct path to the exit. Signage was limited and these hallways had been a maze at one point until she¡¯d memorized the layout. I¡¯ll have to cut around the cafeteria, she thought. That was the largest room with the most connecting hallways, though it was also located centrally and she¡¯d have to move away from her goal at first. It was also possible staff were using it as a shelter point, though she¡¯d timed this in the early afternoon after lunch had been held. No helping it.

    She didn¡¯t let the nerves get to her. Nothing much got to her anymore. There was just focus, occasionally colored by a mild emotion or two. Claire wasn¡¯t blind to what she¡¯d done to herself no matter what the Clerics thought, she¡¯d just accepted it and realized it was her way to advance higher than she¡¯d been able to before. Claire continued, dodging patrols, then cursed under her breath. By the sound of it, the floor warden himself was setting up at her destination. She was walking right into the highest concentration of the seekers.

    Claire pulled her familiar away and pressed her back against a wall, thinking. A rough map of the floor appeared in her head thanks to a mental power dealing with visualizing concepts, of which cartography was just one application. Despite being seen as a common class, Arcanists could get esoteric powers like that. Her primary and secondary routes were down, and by the sound of it, there were a dozen in the cafeteria alone. They were taking this seriously. Why not? It¡¯s their home.

    This floor of the Hand¡¯s church had open air facing three sides. Some patient rooms were on the edges, although most weren¡¯t for obvious reasons. The center was taken up by communal rooms, such as the cafeteria, while the rest of the space was filled out by various staff and auxiliary rooms. It wasn¡¯t laid out precisely on a grid and certain sections had only one entrance and exit to make them more secure. If she was found out today, Claire would probably be going to one of those.

    The Hand Clerics were prioritizing the safety of their patients first, but a close second was preventing the supposed monster from reaching the staircase which was in the middle of the wall facing the mountain. With every minute the net grew tighter, and she didn¡¯t see a clear way through from her position one-third of the way there. The church had been able to respond with more people than she¡¯d estimated. Neither were they fools, she could hear pairs searching rooms with one going in while the other watched the hallway, leaving her no opportunity to sneak past. Claire could cause a distraction, but that would bring everyone down on the area and she was saving that for the final push.

    The mental lines she was tracing kept running into interference. Philimus¡¯ presence in the central area cut her off from an entire half of the floor. Between that and dead-end areas, there just wasn¡¯t room to move. If I could get to the other side and into the staff areas, there would be more corridors. But there¡¯s no good way there from here.

    Claire considered going back to her room and trying to salvage this situation by concealing herself and extricating her first familiar from its position when she had an idea. Her thinking had been too closed in, trapped by assumption and lack of imagination. She quickly ran back to her room, painfully aware of every second the delay was costing.

    A few minutes later, she couldn¡¯t help but feel the barest tremble of fear. It was a very long way down. Falling wouldn¡¯t guarantee death as the Nest Flight served as lifeguards for any who accidentally fell off of Aurus. That would still result in her effective capture. So, I better not slip.

    She kept her grip steady and kept climbing. It was fair to say Claire was less pious than the average citizen, but she was far from a heretic. That being said, the colorful patterns in the stone of the church¡¯s exterior, shaped long ago, made for far better handholds than decoration considering how few could see these murals from the city.

    The thought had struck her when visualizing the layout of the floor that few windows stayed closed. It was a hard thing to do to separate avianoids from the sky, even if you housed them most of the time in what was technically an underground space. An environment of small, windowless rooms would do the species more harm than good. Since Threst was full of avianoids, almost everything was built with them in mind. Instead of trying to slip through the center of the floor, she could bypass it and reach more open ground by going around the outside.

    Claire¡¯s struggling muscles were the reason she hadn¡¯t tried this immediately, or why she hadn¡¯t just tried to climb to the top. She still had some level disparity in strength and endurance which was eating away at her stamina. Oh, and there was the problem that she could be spotted here, which would ruin the plan. Time was an ever-present factor, circling above like a dragon and she¡¯d never know when the fire would come down.

    One of her hands slipped as her body jerked involuntarily. She hadn¡¯t seen it happen, but the image of Parduc surrounded by flames, dwindling until there was nothing left, was at the forefront of her mind. She brought the free hand up, touching her chest first before re-establishing her hold. Calm Emotions. She hadn¡¯t had to use it more than daily these days, and that was only to keep up the appearance that she was overusing it. Now she could go without it, for the most part. Get yourself together, she chastised, and kept climbing.

    ¡­

    Philimus looked around the room, noting how the chairs had been attached to the tables, and how the staff was careful not to leave anything like silverware laying out. Some sections had screens for privacy, though you could see into them from around the sides where other patients wouldn¡¯t be sitting. Those were down now while the threat was still present.

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    ¡°Anything?¡±

    One of the passing patrols stopped when he shouted the question. ¡°No. Floor warden, are we sure something¡¯s here?¡±

    He wasn¡¯t, though the monster had been confirmed by a truth power. The staircase had been watched the entire time, but maybe it had chosen to run when it sensed an overwhelming mortal presence. Either that or it was a summon, and Claire had dismissed it already. Philimus continued to chew on that point and made a decision. ¡°Send a runner and ask for a diver platform to check the sky around us.¡±

    ¡­

    Claire was navigating the curled part of the mural that ran around the corner of the church when she saw the construct start falling out of the sky. As one might have expected, the platform, or Bekali Diver as she knew they were formally named, had as close of a profile to a bird in flight as the Craftsman had been able to carve before handing the product off to be further enchanted. Damn it!

    Her goal had been to make it at least halfway along the far wall, which would have her come into a closet she¡¯d already scouted as clear. It appeared that wasn¡¯t an option anymore. She quickly ordered her familiar, now in the shape of a small bird, to fly by the rooms nearest her while she pushed even harder. Were the stakes different she would have stopped for a break before now but pressed on regardless.

    Her sparrow found another empty room three windows away. Whatever Ranger or Ranger-adjacent scout on the platform would have spotted her already were it not for the very thing they were standing on, but those platforms could move fast.

    Realizing she would lose the race, Claire pulled on her mana and created an illusion in the air of a mirrorbeak cutter. It wasn¡¯t the monster she¡¯d originally planned to use as a distraction, but from her studying of Threst bestiaries it still fit the bill. It was noted as a rare example of a level 2 monster with the ability to turn invisible, though it came at the cost of not being able to hide its reflections or use the ability for very long.

    Contrary to popular belief, even among hunters, monsters did have survival instincts. The bloodlust that overcame them when faced with mortals or their works was usually enough to override it. Sufficiently intelligent monsters would run if they needed to. She¡¯d heard the lightning dragon at the lake had tried that when faced with the survivors of the Thormundz, only to be forced back down.

    This was the ideal illusion because this kind of monster had enough awareness to back off. Usually when its mana was exhausted and it would lose its invisibility. Claire would have liked to have summoned something like this as a familiar, but her power only allowed the creation of monsters of a lower level, which was also why she¡¯d been stuck on simple animals before. Her illusion ability was up to the task now that she¡¯d leveled. The diver caught sight of the fleeing monster and peeled off to follow it. She¡¯d bought herself time but also taken a crossbow to her own foot.

    ¡­

    ¡°Floor warden, it looks like the diver found something. They¡¯re chasing it off. Should we start letting people out of their rooms?¡± He didn¡¯t immediately answer his subordinate. ¡°Sir?¡±

    Philimus scratched at the long underside of his face, still frowning. He¡¯d be facing heavy scrutiny after this no matter what the circumstances were, and he had to be able to defend his decision making. ¡°Wait for Torch¡¯s Clerics to arrive,¡± he finally decided, inclined towards the safest path. ¡°Have one question Claire again while the rest examine the area. Confirm her story. Keep up the patrols until then.¡±

    ¡­

    Claire absorbed the bird familiar into her Focus, a small orb, as she entered the room. With it she reclaimed part of the mana used to summon it which effectively reduced the cost of resummoning the insect. She preferred her orb to a staff or a wand as none of her powers needed to be aimed directly from her Focus, and being able to palm the object felt better than having to hold it. This hadn¡¯t been taken away, both due to her good behavior and the religious implications. Powers were blessings given by the Octyrrum. Confiscating someone¡¯s Focus or, worse, destroying it, would be close to blasphemy unless there was a great need.

    She concentrated for half a minute, forming the small bug more suitable for scouting in here out of mana. Creating level 0 beasts and monsters had become far easier at level 2, but the repeated use of the ability was beginning to impact the mana she had left. That was the tradeoff compared to being a Beastmaster. Limited duration, summoning times, mana cost, and level limitations were the price paid for having the cornerstone of another class as a single power. Arcanists who awakened enchanting powers also had limitations when compared to Artificers, as did those who brewed potions.

    Exiting the room carefully, Claire found her gambit had paid off. There were more empty rooms on this side, and more importantly, they were interconnected. Some of the staff doors would be locked, but only physically. The costs associated with enchanting rose with every additional enchantment placed on the same building, and the inherently trusting organization that was the Hand church hadn¡¯t felt magical locks were worth the cost. Not in this part of their temple, at least.

    She had almost reached the stairway, ducking through offices and at one point a bunk room the overnight staff rested in, when her skin began to glow. ¡°Shit,¡± she swore. This might have caused another flashback if she hadn¡¯t already calmed herself. It appeared to be a power akin to the one the dragon had used right before it had descended on Roost¡¯s Peak, one she had been affected by before fleeing.

    On a hunch, she switched her hearing to her second familiar and heard the voice of the Cleric that had healed the initial wounds. ¡°Please, I¡¯m sure she¡¯s been disturbed by the attack. We should let her rest.¡±

    ¡°The floor warden wanted me to confirm her story. Even a nod will do.¡± The second voice was foreign, though based on the fact that she was glowing, she guessed the Torch Clerics Philimus had called for had arrived.

    No use for it. Time for the end run. All she had to do was get up those stairs. Glowing didn¡¯t help, but if it was like the other power it shouldn¡¯t last long. By the time anyone figured out what was going on she should be clear.

    Claire reached out to her first familiar, which was currently benefiting from the Mimic Owner ability. The attributes remained the same based on whatever had been originally summoned, and it couldn¡¯t do anything the original form couldn¡¯t, such as talking. That was what Project Voice was for. Claire, issuing mental commands while speaking, set off the next part of her plan.

    ¡­

    Upstairs, the second Claire suddenly shot up. ¡°It¡¯s here!¡± Her eyes were open wide in fright, though the Torch Cleric raised an eyebrow as he detected the obvious lie. His powers, as a specialized Cleric of knowledge, could perceive the truth far better than someone of another church who received a lesser variant. He was about to ask the woman, clearly one of the crazies the Hand church kept in the basement, more pointed questions when a pure white cube three meters across filled the space she¡¯d been in.

    ¡°What?¡± He was only taken aback for a moment, quickly realizing it was an illusion, but ¡®Claire¡¯ was already running.

    ¡­

    Elsewhere, the mirrorbeak cutter winked out of existence, though the Ranger had already caught on because arrows went straight through it.

    ¡­

    Claire sighed as her mana was further depleted. The cube was thanks to Familiar Cast, a feature that allowed her to use certain other abilities on or around her summons at a far higher mana cost. When it came to illusions there was also added difficulty in weaving images, but all she¡¯d needed was the most basic shape she could think of to cause a moment of distraction.

    Someone was clearly in contact with the Torch Clerics below, who also started when she used the ability. Seeing a chance, Claire quickly used Mimic Owner on her other summon. The insect provided a truly pathetic amount of endurance, the clone would still die to just about any injury, but it could run. It was also glowing.

    ¡°Hey! Stop!¡± The Clerics of both churches saw Claire¡¯s familiar sprint towards a window and ran after her. In the confusion, no one thought to stay at the stairwell. She¡¯d bought just a moment, but it was enough.

    The Claire downstairs jumped, the Claire upstairs briefly reverted to a ringcat before being dismissed at the cost of all the mana used to summon it, and the real Claire reached the church¡¯s main floor and went straight for the laundry room.

    The alert was still active, but it was focused on the area she was just in. The guards at the gate weren¡¯t questioning anyone leaving, normally there weren¡¯t even guards. They just cared about making sure no monster got loose into the crowd of the Divine Quarter ahead. They barely nodded at her.

    Claire breathed in as she walked free, knowing they couldn¡¯t find her now that she¡¯d reached the streets. She¡¯d escaped. Now all she had to do was kill a damn dragon.

 Interlude: Threst - Party of Five

    ¡°I¡¯m surprised to find you here,¡± Murdon said to the man standing outside the patient room. ¡°All things considered.¡±

    The human glanced at him. ¡°You don¡¯t visit them?¡±

    ¡°Of course I do. But you weren¡¯t there when Sigron was injured.¡± Murdon looked in to where the Knight with a similar condition to his lay in a bed, flanked by his parents. They¡¯d both lost at least part of an arm, but the other Knight was both lower level and had been exposed to some form of toxin for a prolonged period requiring intensive care to keep him alive. He¡¯d barely made it to Aurus in time. Caylis himself had had to attend to the poor man. Murdon thought for a moment about offering the Knight his potion, but it wouldn¡¯t work with his flesh still being cleansed.

    ¡°Commander, he wouldn¡¯t have been on that damned mountain if I hadn¡¯t gone along with that thing.¡± William, Ranger and former teammate of Heldren Storm, hung his head. ¡°I should have taken him out. I just didn¡¯t know.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not the Commander anymore, William. I lost my region before I had it to command, but it was my responsibility either way. Not yours.¡± Murdon empathized with the guilt in the Ranger before him and knew it wouldn¡¯t go away easily. ¡°I heard you haven¡¯t found a new team yet. That¡¯s fortunate, because I need a tracker.¡±

    William shrugged. ¡°I¡¯m no Field Hounds or Farthest Run. I¡¯ve got some powers, sure. But this is Threst. You don¡¯t want a flier?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ve got flying handled. There¡¯s another reason. That alert earlier? Someone from the Thormundz escaping. Quala says they¡¯re a danger to themselves and I don¡¯t want to see her proven right.¡± Murdon moved away from Sigron¡¯s door, not wanting to further bother them, with William following. ¡°You were in the Thormundz. You know what people went through and the help they need now. Someone from here might not understand why we¡¯re taking her back against her will. I need that as much as I need someone reliable.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know if that¡¯s me.¡± William adjusted the bow stave on his back as if to make sure it was there. ¡°But I¡¯ll do it. I can¡¯t say no to you Commander. When do we set out?¡±

    ¡°Soon,¡± he replied, looking at his half of an arm. ¡°I need to take care of something first.¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°Huh. Sounds like a level 2 just took your church for a ride.¡± If Quala had been surprised by Soraso upon their first meeting, this second one both confirmed the impression and surpassed it. She didn¡¯t like the way he casually insulted her organization and by extension, her god, but she wasn¡¯t here for herself. Neither was she alone.

    Philimus had also been sent to meet with the Regent as he had been in charge during the escape. His decisions had arguably contributed towards it. Caylis, the head of the temple, wasn¡¯t present. It seemed the horse person, more commonly called by their formal species name as they often found the comparison insulting, would be taking the fall. ¡°It is difficult to contain a Blessed against their will,¡± he replied evenly. Defensively. The man seemed to be expecting a negative outcome from this meeting for him personally. He might be the highest ranking of his kind among all the churches. In Threst, that led to more scrutiny.

    The multicolored gestalt in front of them twirled a hand as they lounged on the chair. Not throne, this wasn¡¯t happening in the court but in a private chamber away from public eyes. It didn¡¯t have to be happening here, which gave Quala insight into Soraso¡¯s intentions even if his words were a bit abrasive. ¡°Our jails hold them just fine.¡±

    ¡°We aren¡¯t jailers.¡±

    ¡°We can discuss what went wrong after you give us authority to return Claire to the church,¡± Quala cut in somewhat urgently. ¡°We¡¯ve already given her enough time to enact whatever plans she had after escaping.¡± The orange glow of dusk coming through the window was a testament to this.

    ¡°Sounds to me like this is someone we should put in our Hunter¡¯s Guild, rather than your care.¡±

    Quala shifted uncomfortably before responding. ¡°I can only divulge what is necessary for her safety. Let us just say she doesn¡¯t have a history of participating in hunts.¡± Soraso just rolled his eyes, which in gestalt terms meant condensing and rotating the bit of fake sky that served as eyes. They both knew that wasn¡¯t the point. ¡°Claire, in her current state, represents a danger to herself that requires treatment by the church of the Hand. I thought we were making progress. Clearly, more help is needed than she has already received.¡±

    Soraso pointed his arm and his hand detached, floating away to grab a small book. He was already flicking to the right page before it returned to him. ¡°Rikendian policy on this matter suggests you have the grounds, but do you have the legs to stand on it?¡± Quala returned with a confused look and he continued, ¡°Is this worth our time and energy?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re suggesting we give up on her?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m suggesting you give me specifics so I can justify sending a search party after someone who can both clone and disguise herself. It¡¯s going to be a headache making sure we find the right one.¡±

    Quala felt the feathers on her arm stand up a little but nodded. This was a private space, not an open court. Soraso knew what he was doing, she just wished he didn¡¯t have to grandstand. ¡°In short, Claire Elsemar¡¯s soul is in extreme danger.¡± Soraso raised an eyebrow but she stared back, making it clear she wasn¡¯t exaggerating. ¡°She has an ability called Calm Emotions. Its primary use, its intended use, is to counter fear effects or temporarily quell overwhelming emotions. Temporarily,¡± she repeated the word. ¡°As you are aware, many people in the Thormundz suffered trauma, physical or otherwise.¡±

    ¡°Yes. I heard about the thing that came out of that lightning dragon.¡± Soraso grimaced. ¡°Good for my earth cousins to have ridden us of it.¡±

    ¡°The damage done to Claire was before this point. Again, to summarize a complicated case, she lost a significant other to the Upswell, a brother to a separate dragon attack, and a second significant other due to-¡± Quala paused, considering her word choice, ¡°Poor decision making on the part of her partner.¡±

    ¡°So two tragedies and a bastard?¡±

    ¡°As I said, it is complicated. And it is my duty to tell you as little as needed.¡±

    One of Soraso¡¯s hands went into his head as he mimed rubbing it. ¡°You aren¡¯t exactly making my job easier. Or your point clearer.¡±

    ¡°At some point, Claire began using Calm Emotions on herself frequently, and then constantly, to cope. You could say she developed a dependency on her power. Emotion-manipulating powers are all dangerous if used incorrectly, even those that nullify instead of provoke.¡± Soraso was listening, seeing where this was going. ¡°If she continues on this course, she risks completely blunting her emotions. I think this has already happened to some degree. If nothing else, something has allowed her to overcome her wall.¡±

    ¡°And it wasn¡¯t hunting.¡± Soraso nodded. ¡°Soul danger?¡±

    ¡°Both will and personality are core components of what we call the soul.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s an oversimplification,¡± Philimus commented, drawing the gazes of the others before he threw up his hands in surrender.

    ¡°Yes, but that isn¡¯t relevant. Claire risks damaging her soul to the point where it opens the door to troubling outcomes. It¡¯s like I¡¯m seeing the conditions in a region that could lead to a Tyrant being formed. Of the three inciting incidents I spoke of, the death of her brother, Parduc Elsemar, seems the most significant. She only mentioned Lyander, her first partner, once, and the other not at all.¡±

    ¡°Parduc was the one killed by the fire dragon?¡± Soraso clarified.

    ¡°Yes. If she leaves herself empty of anything but a will for revenge, that could lead her to do something extremely reckless or, worse, develop a perilous bond.¡±

    Soraso leaned forward at that. ¡°Is that likely? One-sided bonds are extremely rare.¡±

    ¡°Singular focus on the death of someone or something that wronged you makes is one of the greatest risk factors for a vengeance bond, rarity of not. You don¡¯t need to be deprived of emotion so long as it feeds into the need for revenge. I fear that if she reaches this point, she could grow unpredictable and dangerous towards anyone standing in her way. One-sided bonds, vengeance or otherwise, are far more likely to affect someone¡¯s mind than others. I want to stop Claire before she becomes a danger to herself and your region.¡± Quala sighed as she rested her case. ¡°I have tried reaching out to her, but perhaps I have gotten too close to be objective. I didn¡¯t see this coming. Still, we need to bring her back.¡±

    It only took Soraso a few seconds to come to a conclusion. ¡°I assume you want to be the one holding the nets?¡±

    ¡°Murdon is looking for help right now,¡± Quala confirmed. ¡°We have what we need for tracking her.¡±

    ¡°Alright, but I don¡¯t want him crossing a regional boundary. I¡¯m serious about needing to meet with him soon.¡± Soraso held up a hand to forestall a complaint. ¡°Anyway, my authority only goes that far. I doubt you¡¯ve forced one of my Fates at knifepoint to send a message to Kallical, Aughal, or Vellus. Otherwise, you have my permission. I¡¯ll send someone along to make everything official.¡± He nodded as Quala stood, and then turned to Philimus as his hand sought out another book. ¡°Now, let¡¯s talk about proper requisition protocols for the Aurus sky platforms.¡±

    ¡­

    Murdon had, like every Knight before him, heard the grumblings about how they cheated with their Focus. It was uncommonly known that if you took a high level magical material, say a metal, and used it to make lower level armor, a Knight using it as their Focus would benefit from their armor as if it was an item of the material¡¯s original level. Usually in addition to some other bonuses. The lightning link armor Daniel had given him was such an example. This interaction occurred with classes that used weapons as Foci, to be fair, but it was still only durability that improved.

    That bonus was a great advantage until you needed new armor. Either part of it broke beyond repair because you cut off one of your hands, or you didn¡¯t like how one of the enchantments could make you explode. Eventually, a Knight would find themselves in need of a new set and would run into the same problems everyone else had. The kind Murdon wore, plate, was already expensive when discussing the mundane variety. The pricing of enchanted sets was truly insane because every other Knight in the world wanted one too, to speak nothing of the other martial classes who wanted it despite not having the Focus bonus.

    Murdon could drink the potion and get his hand back now, but it would be unprotected. He didn¡¯t have time to hunt for a new set but also didn¡¯t want to be going out of Aurus ill-prepared for a monster encounter. Threst was better settled than the Thormundz had been. This meant fewer monsters, but also that there was a greater chance of higher level monsters appearing in the areas furthest away from settlements. Given Threst¡¯s unique geography that meant he¡¯d primarily encounter strong airborne monsters. After all he¡¯d been through, Murdon wasn¡¯t about to face off against another at anything less than full strength. Going in without Lograve already felt wrong, though to be fair he could also just ask Soraso if he wanted to come along himself if he wanted nostalgia. Murdon wasn¡¯t going to do that.

    He paused in his walk towards the church of Hammer as a keening cry resounded from above. It was a kind of shout avianoids were capable of, and in Threst that meant to look up before someone landed on you. Murdon stepped back along with the rest of the crowd as space was cleared. A tall avianoid landed, wings swept out to the side shifting back into arms after achieving a soft landing. Murdon still had the height advantage, though it was less than the half meter he normally had over this woman¡¯s race.

    The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    That wasn¡¯t the only thing remarkable about her. Her feathers had a combination of tan which was one of the standard colors, with additional sections of a flame red that was certainly not. She wore lighter armor made of lacquered wood, similar to the kind Lograve had lost in his first encounter against the lightning dragon. A suspicion formed in the back of his mind as he saw her eyes lock onto him.

    ¡°Murdon Darkscale?¡± she asked with the avianoid equivalent of a cocky grin.

    He grimaced internally as she included his last name in the address. ¡°Most people just call me Murdon. Soraso sent you?¡±

    ¡°The Regent did. I am Tounaki Splitswift, level 3 Arcanist here in my position within Mage Flight.¡± That was a subdivision of Threst¡¯s guard, the region rich enough in Blessed to form specialized units. Murdon suspected the Arcanist was also in the Hunter¡¯s Guild, though Soraso didn¡¯t have direct authority over that.

    ¡°Not Pyromancer?¡± Murdon guessed, already seeing the joke.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t get the evolution this level, but I have hopes for 4,¡± Tounaki replied with a grin. She snapped her fingers and one of the red feathers flew off, converting into a flame twice its original size while another one rapidly regrew to cover the gap. The fire formed into a stream that twirled around her fingers. ¡°Heard you could use some magic support for this. I¡¯ve also got a Bekali Soarer ready to go once your healer flies back down from the mid altitudes. Anyone else coming along?¡±

    ¡°Two. One¡¯s a Ranger, he¡¯s back in the temple of the Hand. Last one is a Martialist, spearfighter. Both human.¡±

    ¡°Speaking of.¡± Tounaki gestured to his arm. ¡°The Regent told me to tell you to, and these are his exact words, ¡®drink the damn potion already¡¯.¡±

    Murdon grunted humorously. ¡°He say anything else?¡±

    She looked a bit wary at that question and replied, ¡°He said that, and again, his words, that he ¡®hopes you find me a better partner than the last one¡¯?¡±

    Murdon shook his head. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s just a joke. A bad one and not at your expense. Will that platform have room for more?¡±

    Tounaki looked grateful for the change in the subject and followed him as Murdon continued to his original destination. ¡°No. No offense, but they''re built for speed and that armor is a person by itself.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll take metal over wood when it comes to fighting monsters.¡±

    ¡°Then you¡¯ve never had good splint armor before. Get your own set of wings and you¡¯ll see the need for it.¡± Tounaki realized which church they were heading to. ¡°Hammer? Why are we heading there?¡±

    Murdon pointed to the capped off armored sleeve that covered his half arm. ¡°I have to get this fixed.¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°You need me to make and fit an entire vambrace and gauntlet from that cap of metal on the end there?¡± The old Hammer Cleric fixed Murdon with a quizzical look as he and Tounaki stood in the main reception of the church. It was like the others structurally, but where the Hand had rooms off to the side to see to urgent cases when they appeared, this one leaned more into decoration.

    Above, there was a floating river of material that shifted into different forms along its course. Fire, stone, clouds, and even liquid metal at one point that was contained in the stream, flowed around the support pillars like Tounaki¡¯s fire had around her fingers. Given that this Divine Quarter was located in Hammer¡¯s region, extra emphasis on his temple wasn¡¯t too surprising, and there were signs of favoritism elsewhere in the building if you knew where to look.

    Murdon began unhooking the straps keeping the armor around his injured arm, which no one else would be able to do unless he let them. Another advantage of using armor as a Focus. ¡°Are you saying you can¡¯t?¡±

    ¡°Of course not! The question is, do you have the time to wait?¡±

    ¡°How long will this take?¡± Murdon held his breath. This was the Cleric he¡¯d been directed to for his request. It seemed Soraso hadn¡¯t planned quite this far or had just forgotten about Murdon¡¯s armor, leaving the Knight to cover the costs himself. If he had to wait in line again-

    ¡°Oh, about ten minutes.¡± Both he and Tounaki stared. ¡°What? Come, come, let¡¯s get this started.¡± The Cleric reached for and was given the armor. Murdon felt something try to influence his armor and he allowed it mentally, seeing the metal already begin to flex.

    ¡°We¡¯re doing it here?¡±

    ¡°Well, unless you want to eat dinner with me then I¡¯m getting this done here.¡± The Cleric took a seat and Murdon sighed. ¡°I¡¯m going to need you to drink that potion if you want something more than a blank cylinder too!¡±

    ¡°What is up with him?¡± Tounika whispered when Murdon took a few steps back to give the Cleric space.

    He shrugged. ¡°Must be hungry.¡± His gauntlet rubbed the potion bottle in his hand. There was no fear of breaking it with incidental motion. Soraso had requested it be returned after he was finished with it. Murdon tried not to think about the possibility that someone else had used this bottle before him. ¡°It seems so simple, but Eido couldn¡¯t make something like this.¡±

    ¡°Threst is advanced for its age,¡± Tounaki confirmed. ¡°No one really high level, but we¡¯re better than Aughal that¡¯s for sure. Shame about Roost¡¯s Peak, though. We could have used that ore. You know, I almost went along when we sponsored that fort.¡±

    ¡°Regretting not going?¡±

    ¡°Oh, Crest no.¡± Tounika shook her head fiercely, a feather shedding with the motion and combusting harmlessly. ¡°You need some privacy?¡± She took in the somewhat crowded surroundings and amended, ¡°Or me just to step away?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± Murdon swirled the bottle for a second and then poured it into his mouth. It would take the entire thing, so he was careful not to lose anything given that his jaw couldn¡¯t close around the lip of the bottle. It was possible to make something like that for draconoids, but not for avianoids, further suggesting this was a reused bottle.

    The effects began before the last of the potion reached his stomach, his body already absorbing the magic. An impressive amount of magic. Replacing a limb grew harder as someone grew higher in level, this being a universal rule for all things related to healing. Murdon was solidly in level 3 and required a very potent potion of his level. His arm began to surge with energy, shaking a little with the overflow. Other spots on his body also felt this to a far more limited degree. Hmm. So much for my scars.

    The energy in his arm began to push against the stump of flesh. Bone protruded outwards and he decided to turn his back to the crowds to spare them the sight of it. The Knight himself was too curious to not watch as over two minutes the limb he¡¯d severed to kill the lightning dragon was regrown completely. His arm was covered by the same black scales he had over the rest of his body. He swore the patterning of small gold and blue spots among the predominantly black was the same as it had been. It felt completely normal once the potion was done, like he¡¯d never lost his arm.

    ¡°Our Alchemists sure know what they¡¯re doing,¡± Tounaki said as Murdon flexed his regrown fingers. ¡°Won¡¯t see something like that out of Aughal or Kallical.¡±

    The Cleric was ignoring them both, hands working on the armor and drawing out the section that would cover his regenerated limb. The sight reminded him of Roderick, one of the many friends he¡¯d lost in the Thormundz. Murdon didn¡¯t say much as the old avianoid finished, Tounaki taking the hint and not advertising the region further.

    ¡°There! How¡¯s the fit?¡±

    Murdon didn¡¯t need to put it on to know, but he did before answering to not insult the man. ¡°Flawless.¡±

    ¡°Peh. That¡¯s not nothing. Unenchanted metal flows like water.¡± The old man stood with only the barest of stiffness, his level providing some extra vitality. Given how leveling slowed aging, Murdon could only guess how old he had to be to show it. ¡°Bring me some finagled piece of glued together scrap a hopped up Arcanist enchanted and I¡¯ll actually have to try. Not right before dinner, mind you.¡± He left with that, giving the draconoid no time to respond.

    ¡°Wow. He even copied that spot of rust.¡± Tounaki was also inspecting the armor, there not being much else interesting to occupy her attention. Murdon could feel a bit of heat radiating from her as she moved her face closer to inspect his arm. Her head was completely covered by the red feathers whereas they only partially covered other areas.

    Murdon checked and saw it himself. That old Cleric hadn¡¯t just fitted the armor, he¡¯d copied and mirrored the other arm down to the slightest scuff.

    ¡­

    ¡°Sir, Quala and William are waiting by the platform. She¡¯s getting nervous.¡± The last member of the thrown together tracking team almost saluted Murdon and then noticed Tounaki. ¡°Who¡¯s this?¡±

    ¡°Tounaki Splitswift, Mage Flight. You could say I¡¯m your fire support,¡± the Arcanist answered for Murdon.

    Janice nodded, taking in the newcomer instantly. ¡°Commander, did they send us another Lograve?¡±

    ¡°Looks like it,¡± Murdon grunted. He looked out below the horizon where the sun was still setting. ¡°We should get going. Did William say anything about finding the trail?¡±

    ¡°He should tell you himself, Sir.¡± Janice led them to what looked like a small dock built on the side of the cliff because that¡¯s what it was. It was off to the side between Hammer and Cloak¡¯s churches, divided into three sections for berths open to the public, those reserved for the city, and those for the churches.

    Threst had long ago developed vehicles capable of sustained flight. Like the potion Murdon had taken, they were the product of multiple specialists working together. One major difference was these weren¡¯t one use. Over the years quite a number had been stockpiled, allowing the supply to go from restricted by Threst¡¯s government to just very expensive to purchase. Murdon vaguely knew an avianoid named Bekali had pioneered the design a long time ago, but only because her name was still attached to the various platforms.

    The Bekali Diver that had first responded to the incident at the church was a small craft with limited range but by far the fastest. If Claire had been spotted as she left, they could have used that to chase her down. Well, Murdon couldn¡¯t have gone because he was too heavy, but that was beside the point.

    The soarer was larger and less square-shaped. Higher-grade magic allowed for more artistry in its design, giving it an actual profile of a bird rather than one reminiscent of them. It wasn¡¯t sturdy enough to support a ballista, like larger defense platform designs, but had enough magic within to go for several days at a decent speed. I¡¯ll probably have to stay in the middle, Murdon thought, mentally sighing. As good as the Soarer looked, its design meant its riders had to be careful with its balance.

    Soraso¡¯s latest gift was what looked to be a newly made platform, paint still fresh and control dais gleaming. William was perched off the stylized beak, concentrating. Quala, meanwhile, walked up and gave Tounaki the same look Janice had. ¡°Murdon, thank you.¡±

    ¡°The people of the Thormundz are my responsibility Quala, even if we aren¡¯t there anymore.¡± It was an honest answer. Murdon had never wanted to be a leader, but he never did a job poorly either. ¡°This is Tou-¡° he paused, and decided on a rare bit of humor. ¡°This is the new Lograve.¡±

    It only took one second for Quala to fire back, ¡°Well, maybe you¡¯ll make the rumors true with this one.¡±

    ¡°I think someone needs to tell me who Lograve is,¡± Tounaki finally said.

    William stood up, forestalling an explanation. ¡°Commander. I think I have her.¡±

    ¡°William, if anyone is in charge it¡¯s Quala.¡± He looked at her, but she just nodded back with a grin that would have hidden the anxiety from someone else. ¡°I assume you have a trail then?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± The Ranger pointed out into the distance, indicating a northerly direction. In his other hand was a small towel taken from Claire¡¯s room, enough to trigger his tracking power. ¡°It¡¯s a good thing we have this platform. I don¡¯t think I could flap my arms fast enough to follow myself.¡±

    ¡°Makes you wonder how our target did it,¡± Tounaki mused

    ¡°She may be developing into a fully specialized summoner-type Arcanist. Claire already awakened Summon Familiar before she was of full age.¡± Quala was climbing onto the soarer at this point, practically dragging Janice with her. ¡°With all the powers she¡¯s used today I don¡¯t doubt she¡¯s level 2. Summoning enough monster to fly her away shouldn¡¯t be an issue if she¡¯s reached that point.¡±

    ¡°Do you think she¡¯ll use them to attack us when we find her?¡± Murdon asked.

    Quala hesitated for a moment. ¡°I honestly don¡¯t know. I was wrong about some things, but I am right about one. She¡¯s in danger, Murdon. I only wish she¡¯d been more honest with me.¡±

    ¡°Right. Well, I¡¯m sure everything will be fine after we bring her back.¡± Tounaki had taken a position at the control strand for the platform. The fire Arcanist was standing in the exact center of the soarer where a circular wooden banister with a break in the back was raised out of the wood. Two bracelets linked with the platform could control the speed, pitch, and yaw of the device, though one could be used alone if needed. Small benches half a meter off the platform were set symmetrically around the dais, meant for passengers.

    The Soarer, already levitating in the air as Tounaki worked the controls, listed when Murdon stepped on before it corrected itself. He waited for a second for someone to say something, but even Tounaki proved she wasn¡¯t a clone of Lograve by staying silent.

    William returned to the front, ignoring the benches. ¡°Once we set out, I¡¯ll have to keep us on course. We¡¯ll follow the path she took since I can¡¯t just point to where she is now.¡±

    ¡°Is there a time limit on that power?¡± Quala asked. ¡°It¡¯s already been a few hours.¡±

    ¡°No, not as far as we¡¯re concerned. I¡¯m level 3 ma¡¯am, this isn¡¯t new to me.¡±

    ¡°I thought you said you weren¡¯t as good as Farthest Run,¡± Murdon said, taking a seat.

    ¡°They would have found her already, Commander.¡± The Ranger turned around and saw everyone else secured on the soarer. ¡°I¡¯m good when you are.¡±

    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll take us out as fast as your Ranger can handle.¡± Tounaki pushed her hands forward, the soarer accelerating gently. ¡°If anyone does fall off, I¡¯ll try to catch you without throwing anyone else. Worst case spread out your arms and legs and try to point your chest towards the ground limit. Nest Flight will catch you before you circle back to Aurus.¡±

    Janice was the only one looking perturbed as they eased over the edge like a reluctant diver. They sped up, William throwing hand signals to guide Tounaki until he grimaced, calling a stop a short distance out from Aurus. ¡°You¡¯re going to want to hold onto something. She went straight down.¡±

    Murdon inspected his seat for a few seconds before addressing Tounaki. ¡°Is there any way we can strap in?¡±

    ¡°As long as you¡¯re seated there the enchantments should keep you rooted at high speeds or odd angles. You¡¯ll want to get to one though.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll be fine,¡± William brushed her off. ¡°Just make sure you can keep up with me.¡±

    Tounaki¡¯s professional demeanor broke with a smile. ¡°You think you can outfly me?¡±

    ¡°William, let¡¯s not be confrontational,¡± was what Quala tried to say before the soarer¡¯s beak dipped down into a sharp dive. Ahead was the sky that surrounded the mountain city of Aurus, stretching all the way to the regional boundaries. There was sky below them as well. As the five descended through the air at speed, there was nothing at all but empty air rushing to greet them.

    In Threst, it was sky all the way down.

 Interlude: Threst - Air Plains

    Claire rested on her familiar as she looked up to the stars above. She was close to the highest altitude you could get in Threst, and if she looked down all she would see was an open expanse. Having spent years here before moving to Roost¡¯s Peak with a settlement wave, the heights wouldn¡¯t have gotten to her if she still felt fear. Anyways, her summon could catch her if she fell.

    Not surprisingly, Threst had a lot of flying monsters and animals, some completely native to the region. It was by far one of the most extreme terrains Claire had seen, and she could remember a few she¡¯d passed through as a child. Kallical was just one giant field with burrow works and warrens, Vellus a standard network of scattered rivers and deep lakes the shavi loved to colonize, and Rikendia¡­

    No, Rikendia was special. Claire had been born there, her Sojourn moving out when she was six. What few memories she retained beat out everything besides this sea of freedom and clouds, and the mountains of the Thormundz whose peaks had stretched farther than she could see.

    Back to the point, what Claire had summoned to get her out of Aurus was a fully tame species of insect that had been brought here to serve as both livestock and transport for the mortal races. Personally she didn¡¯t see the appeal of insect flesh, that was for the birds. She only intended to use this diamondback beetle as a mount. They came in black and faintly iridescent green colors, differing from the basic version in size and the formation of chitin on their back that allowed for a stable surface while the rest of the shell separated to let the wings out.

    Compared to the diver platform that had almost spotted her outside of the church, the flight of this beast was unwieldy and slow. The rustling noise made by the wings could be unsettling, and the bump of the chitin uncomfortable. The monster was only half again her size due to its higher level, the level 0 variant could just barely generate enough lift to keep itself and a passenger aloft. The only benefits compared to a Bekali Diver were that she actually had one of these, and it could fly itself allowing her to recover from the escape.

    Others did use these, the real version that was. The beetles made for excellent beasts of burden and could transport a good amount if multiple were harnessed. As for personal transport, since navigating Threst was so much easier by air the inconveniences were worth it to those who had no other option.

    Claire was headed towards Marbleview, a settlement built into a sky island cut off from the main land mass of the region. The denizens there would be completely at the mercy of Aurus for transportation if not for creatures like the humble diamondback. Or, at least, they would have been if not for who lived there.

    Granted, travelers didn¡¯t typically stay for this long in the air. A human going from Marbleview to Aurus would fly from the closest patch of mainland instead of taking the direct path because the skies of Threst were dangerous. Flying monsters were far more common than terrestrial ones, and the roads of Threst could be patrolled more frequently than the open sky. Claire was taking a risk, she knew. Even with Fated Confrontation, that didn¡¯t guarantee she¡¯d live to face her sworn enemy. Only that, if she did live long enough, they would meet again. Using a land route after she¡¯d gotten far enough from Aurus would have been safer.

    But the roads were patrolled. Claire needed to get to Marbleview and find her Sojourn. She was sure they were still in the region, considering the terms of the agreement that Zozar, their leader, had made with the air gestalt that had somehow come into power. Roost¡¯s Peak hadn¡¯t exactly worked out. The thing was, even if the regent could keep her people here, she doubted they¡¯d want to anger Zozar by pulling her out.

    The Sojourn was safety. Family, what little of it she had left. Parduc had been the last of what she would consider a direct relation, even if they weren¡¯t blood. Considering she may be all that was left of the people they¡¯d sent to the Thormundz, there was no way they¡¯d let her be taken. Assuming the Sojourn still existed, that was. It has to. They couldn¡¯t have broken it up.

    Claire had no way of knowing. They¡¯d been effectively exiled until the Thormundz was fully stabilized, just like that Hero who¡¯d gone to Aughal instead of risking old bargains being nullified by the Upswell. In her case she¡¯d come unwilling, and the issue was more with the group than her.

    She turned over, coming to a sitting position to inspect her surroundings. The wings of the beetle thrummed around her, far faster than a bird¡¯s needed to, giving a slight numbing vibration to the uneven seat. Most who rode these beasts for a living bought saddles to at least make it tolerable, Beastmasters especially. She just had to deal with it.

    Trying to avoid thinking about the Sojourn, Claire looked out and ignored the noise. Aurus was a speck in the distance, noticeable in the night sky only for the light it cast off. That aside, there were clouds above, below, and out. Large innocuous white, not the black that would threaten storms. Threst received those on occasion but light rain was more common when the cloudburst occurred above settled areas.

    Not every cloud was the same, or even safe. Cloudbats were this region¡¯s version of the sandbats of Aughal and sparkbats of the Thormundz. The half-elemental variety hid in clouds just like the sparkbats, though this was as much because all bird species of monster would attack them on sight as anything else.

    Other monsters could disguise themselves as clouds to various degrees, but anyone who¡¯d lived here long enough knew how to tell them apart. There was a way clouds moved with the breeze that couldn¡¯t perfectly be copied, and her summoned mount could instinctively avoid those.

    Rarely, you¡¯d find islands completely eclipsed by a permanent cloud cover. Unlike other land masses, these moved with the clouds around them, confounding attempts to chart them all. There wasn¡¯t anything of value in most, just serving as a reminder to not blindly dive through what would at first appear condensed water vapor, but occasionally a treasure island would be discovered and replenish the life blood of Threst¡¯s economy.

    People talked about how breathtaking or inspiring the so called ¡®air plains¡¯ of Threst were, but tonight, Claire only thought about how monotonous it was. White against a deep night blue that went down for eternity. That being said, she¡¯d lived in a stone fort built on stone and surrounded by stone with only a narrow view of the sky, so she admitted she may be doing the environment a disservice.

    There was an aesthetic appeal to the moon reflecting off the clouds threading silver into the skyline. If nothing else it was peaceful, relaxing. Claire could have easily fallen asleep there, exhaustion and relief from the escape taking their toll, but she needed to stay alert. Her familiar wouldn¡¯t steer away from everything, and near the sky limit there was always a danger of-

    Her peripheral vision caught the sudden appearance above her and Claire instantly ordered her beetle to drop. There was nothing to cling onto but the solid carapace which lacked good hold points. Slipping off wasn¡¯t immediately fatal, her familiar could catch her, but if whatever had come through the sky limit was hostile she¡¯d be defenseless. Summoning and altering so many familiars over the day had left her nearly drained, and that was assuming she could do much with her mana while in mid-air.

    Stolen story; please report.

    Claire heard a bird¡¯s cry, which could have meant anything. It wasn¡¯t until an avianoid appeared in front of her, showing off by matching her dive and then contorting to look like he was on a couch, that she knew this wasn¡¯t a monster. That didn¡¯t immediately put her at ease. Are they here to try and take me back?

    ¡°Hey, human, what are you doing so far from land?¡± He was young, though the fact she could sense he was Blessed meant he was at least a few years older than the mid-20s facade. Modestly armored with a sword and shield strapped to him that would be useless mid-flight unless he was particularly skilled at shifting between arms and wings. There was a hint of a mocking sneer in the voice, kept subtle enough to allow deniability. It might have been unconscious. Combined with the slight crack she saw in the man¡¯s beak Claire could form an initial impression.

    Jerk. ¡°The skies of Threst are free, aren¡¯t they?¡± she asked, wondering who had punched him hard enough in the face to do that. The wound looked old, like a scar, the kind you wouldn¡¯t heal from even with levels unless you had or benefited from specific powers. ¡°Is your team hunting something?¡± She knew she¡¯d seen more than one, and this didn¡¯t look like the kind of guy to go anywhere without cronies.

    ¡°Just a patrol,¡± he answered with an annoyed eye roll as they both leveled out. ¡°The Commander seems to think the world will end if they give hunters any time off. Sure, there was a mid level spawn somewhere recently, but they never get this close to Aurus. Our people are just that good, you know?¡±

    ¡°Sure.¡± Claire noted that the avianoid was producing lift with his wings without any issue. Damn. Probably has a higher level than I do.

    The hunter fixed her with a look as his friends, three of them, took up a loose arrowhead formation beside him. ¡°We¡¯re team Talonwing. You know, I haven¡¯t seen you around before. The name¡¯s Kahvin.¡± The too familiar look he gave her was returned with a blank one, mostly Claire¡¯s honest reaction to his name. The avianoid puffed up his chest while still flying, adopting the high way of speaking common to the court which completely clashed with his bearing. ¡°You may also know me as the Sonorous Gale, victor of a dozen duels and vanquisher of the Realm¡¯s foes.¡±

    Great, he¡¯s that kind of Hero. You may have won a dozen duels, Claire thought, eyeing the cracked beak. But how many have you lost? She considered answering back in court-speak, having lived in Threst long enough to at least recognize the tone and mimic it but decided that would be playing his game. ¡°Glad to see Threst has someone like you to defend it then. Shouldn¡¯t you get back to it?¡± Claire passed a look to the other three, two men and one woman. She couldn¡¯t tell much from the gear they were wearing since the armor avianoids commonly used while flying differed little between classes. Neither did any appear to lean more towards strictly magical classes like hers. Either way, they seemed resigned to what their leader was trying to do, which was only a shade better than being invested in it.

    ¡°Oh, yeah, of course,¡± he replied airily, dropping the formal tone into something probably meant to be charming. ¡°But I can¡¯t just ignore a lady in need, can I? Why don¡¯t we give you a lift? I can be a better ride than that thing.¡±

    It took Claire a few seconds to realize why there was an expectant look in his eyes. He¡¯s trying to use a charm power. Idiot. Dangerous idiot. Calm Emotions was still active on her. Its normal duration was short, an hour at most, but it had grown longer on her the more she¡¯d used it in some kind of reverse-tolerance. The power could act as a prophylactic against influence powers, though as Quala would have incessantly reminded her, it wasn¡¯t meant to be used that way. This Hero being higher level than her, or at least possessing higher charisma than her intelligence, would have still broken through if not for the changes she¡¯d undergone mentally. Thank the gods for that.

    Using a charm power like this wasn¡¯t against the law, at least in Threst and the Rikendia kingdom at large. The official opinion was that they didn¡¯t override someone¡¯s will, and so they didn¡¯t force anyone to do anything. With the constant struggle against the Crest being the overriding aim of society, the decision had been made long ago to support the training of Blessed. To a point, at least.

    Someone who made too frequent use and racked up complaints could face scrutiny, which was probably why Kahvin was trying it out here instead of in Aurus. Claire¡¯s current opinion on the topic was that she wanted to punch Kahvin in the face, but starting a fight just raised the chances that she wouldn¡¯t reach Marbleview.

    She decided to turn him down gently. ¡°I¡¯m busy.¡±

    Kahvin frowned. ¡°Oh come on, hanging with us could be fun. I have a power that can let people walk on clouds. Or do other things.¡± He said that last part suggestively, fully leaning into whatever he was wasting mana on.

    ¡°I¡¯m good.¡± She took some satisfaction from the confusion lining Kahvin¡¯s narrow face before turning and continuing on. There was no way she could outrun them, and her situation was very tenuous, but acknowledging either of those things would just make it worse. The best case scenario was making herself a very forgettable disappointment in this creep¡¯s head.

    ¡­

    Talonwing did not immediately depart. They huddled close while following a short distance behind her, trying and failing to keep what they were saying quiet. Avianoids always projected their voice further than they thought and it was hard to whisper with a beak. ¡°Why isn¡¯t Charm Person working?¡± Kahvin¡¯s talons absentmindedly touched his beak and his teammates tried not to notice. ¡°Who is she?¡±

    One of the other men, barely looking of age and struggling to maintain his altitude, tried to console his team leader. ¡°Hey, don¡¯t worry about it, man. She probably just has some kind of defensive power like Iron Mind. Plus, it looks like she is really busy.¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡± The note of defeat lasted only a moment before the Hero added forced cheeriness into his voice. ¡°Hey, let¡¯s find something to hunt so you three can advance for once. You¡¯ll have to catch up to me someday.¡±

    ¡°That, and if we don¡¯t come back with any kills the Commander will pluck you bare,¡± the woman in the team said, not even trying to whisper.

    ¡°Hey, maybe that human would like you better like that,¡± the last one joked. Kahvin didn¡¯t flare up at the tease but just sighed.

    ¡°Yeah, maybe. Not like I want to find out though. I think I saw some-¡±

    ¡°Above us!¡± The sudden cry made Claire jerk in her seat. Just when she thought she¡¯d won clear of the team, there was a burst of turbulence as something large flew by at a speed that made her beetle look like it was crawling. The castoff wind affected the avianoid team worse, buffeting their wings and disrupting their flight. Traces of blood misted the air in places where the turbulence had strained the vulnerable wings of the avianoids too far.

    Only Kahvin kept completely stable, and he shouted at his team as a blur of motion below began to arc back upwards. ¡°Ripair hawk! I only see one but that¡¯s level 3!¡±

    ¡°Looks like your feathers are safe after all.¡± The female on the team tried to fly back up to her friends, clearly struggling. ¡°Mine are busted.¡±

    ¡°Same!¡± one of the other lackeys cried out.

    ¡°Miss! Get into a cloud and hide, we¡¯ll take care of this.¡±

    That last one was directed to her. I guess he has to do something noble every so often to keep his class. Claire was already doing that, though, so Kahvin didn¡¯t get that many points. The hawk flashed by again, this time coming from below, throwing off another disruptive wave of wind. It kept climbing until it reached the sky limit, and then it disappeared. Her beetle did flounder slightly as the wind cut into it, but it was farther away from where the hawk had passed. That would be a really strong attack if it was focused instead of this spread out, she thought, wondering if Kahvin understood the danger. As far as she could tell, the hawk was only weakening the hunting team before it would come in for the final strike.

    What would she do if this team met their end? Kahvin¡¯s first impression was extremely off-putting, but not enough that she¡¯d see him and his team dead if she could help it. At the same time, there weren¡¯t any ways she could help. Claire took cover in a nearby cloud as the four spread out below her, slowly falling due to the injuries some of the team had encountered. For her sake, she hoped Kahvin was more than just talk.

 Interlude: Threst - Ripair Hawk - (3)

    The Sonorous Gale wasn¡¯t worried. He still had his good looks and charm, and if some random human wasn¡¯t interested, well, that was her loss. Maybe she wasn¡¯t into guys? That was it. He¡¯d ask Adva about it later to see if she¡¯d picked up on anything, but that was totally it. In the end it didn¡¯t mean anything anyway. She was just a human and therefore not the kind of person Kahvin Talongleam could do anything long term with anyway, not if the family¡¯s true name was going to survive.

    Bertrar, the cheeky new trainee he¡¯d taken on in a gambit to avoid more difficult hunting assignments, interrupted his sulking. ¡°Hey, boss? I don¡¯t think I can keep gliding.¡±

    Damn it, that¡¯s what I get for taking a hatchling. The Martialist looked pathetic in the air now. He¡¯d just reached level 2 strength and was failing to support his weight in the air with the damage the hawk had done to his wings. ¡°If you try and get to the ground limit from up here that hawk will do more than just take your feathers off by the time you reach it.¡± He made sure Adva was still watching for the monster¡¯s reappearance before he took stock of the area. That it was night didn¡¯t mean too much to his enhanced vision, though he had lost sight of where that human had gone. I guess I did tell her to hide. Maybe afterward when he¡¯d knocked the hawk out of the sky he¡¯d get another shot.

    Motivation secured, Kahvin decided on their strategy. ¡°Alright, Adva and I will stay in the air. Bertrar and Clacki, you two are heading down to that nice big cloud there that I¡¯ll make stable for you. When this thing tries to dive through it it¡¯ll get a nasty surprise. Let¡¯s fly.¡±

    Bertrar¡¯s wings wobbled as he struggled to keep on course. ¡°I¡¯ve never seen something that fast. How are we supposed to hit it?¡±

    ¡°The only thing it¡¯s got is movement, it has an ability that breaks the Spoke¡¯s speed limit. They¡¯re ambush predators,¡± Adva replied, keeping confidence in her voice. Despite not being the Hero on the team, she tended to handle Bertrar¡¯s uncertainties better. ¡°This is a classic encounter with one of these things. It¡¯ll hover near the two limits and dive down when it sees prey. It might not have bothered if we were at a more central altitude, so I guess we have Kahvin to blame for this.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s another way of saying without me, we wouldn¡¯t have anything to bring back to the guild,¡± he shot back, feeling that now the team was being a little too liberal with how they addressed him. This kind of disrespect would have been heavily admonished in the court, and if any of these hunters were staying with him long term he couldn¡¯t let their manners slip. ¡°Look, guys, don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ve fought these things before and they always die to the same old trick. You just need to-¡±

    ¡°Incoming!¡± Adva shouted the warning at the same time she covered Bertrar. Flying in front of him didn¡¯t fully protect the Martialist due to the nature of the attack, but every bit helped. Grow Wings as a power didn¡¯t provide the extra stability and toughness that would allow Bertrar to truly fly until level 3, and it was only Threst¡¯s Spoke that allowed him to do so well here.

    His and Clacki¡¯s wings could also be critically injured by just one of these airbursts. Adva was level 2 herself, but she¡¯d lucked out with a couple of auxiliary powers that enhanced her wings. Being an air-focused Totem Warrior had its perks.

    Reacting swiftly, Kahvin entered a sharp dive. He brushed by the cloud he¡¯d mentioned earlier, pulling out of it as the tip of one of his wings infused mana to solidify the water inside. The effect instilled was just strong enough that a normal person could stand on it. Anyone stupid enough to come out here in metal armor would sink through. Something caught in the middle could climb out, but he was still fond of the power for a lot of reasons.

    Adva and Bertrar landed on the cloud, the Totem Warrior¡¯s enhanced wings unable to hold up to repeated assaults like his despite her enhancements. Unfortunately, Clacki was shrilly screaming as he plummeted with absolutely no control of his fall. Three airbursts had been enough to force him to switch back to his arms. He could summon his wings again but they¡¯d be just as damaged, and no amount of rage from the Berserker would help now.

    There was also the fact that the hawk wasn¡¯t doing the normal slingshot maneuver it used to double the number of attacks per dive. It kept falling, the area of clouds being cleared by its passage slowly expanding. It¡¯s diving back to the ground limit. It can survive going that fast that long? Kahvin put that out of his immediate worries, they¡¯d have at least another minute before the hawk would make another pass if it was diving to the bottom. Even if the monster was bypassing the normal restriction on fall speed, it still had fifty kilometers or so to go before it would return to the sky limit.

    He spent most of that time reaching Clacki and attaching a rope to a point on the back of his armor. The knot was basic, considering it had been done with his wings, but functional, allowing Kahvin to tow his fallen team member back to the cloud. ¡°Thanks.¡±

    ¡°Eh, first one each hunt¡¯s free.¡± Kahvin turned his head as he flew up to ask, ¡°Hey, you think I would have landed that chick if I had more time, right?¡±

    Clacki had been part of the team long enough to get Kahvin, but he still looked a bit taken aback. ¡°You¡¯re thinking about that now?¡±

    ¡°Think about monsters all the time and all you¡¯ll get is monsters,¡± Kahvin replied sagely as he landed. Of his team, he was the only one with his wings out. Bertrar had his bow, but the rest were somewhat crippled as Adva fought primarily with her combat form, and Clacki with wingblades. That was fine though, because none of them needed to hit the monster. All in all, a ripair hawk was one of the simplest level 3 monsters to hunt in the region. They were fortunate to have encountered this over any other possible kind that level since it should be east advancement and coin. ¡°Ok team, good work so far. I¡¯ll get in the air just in case. It¡¯ll be coming fast so have a healing potion ready, but don¡¯t take it out until after it passes.¡±

    ¡°Kahvin, are you sure this is going to work? What if it¡¯s going too fast?¡±

    ¡°Adva, don¡¯t worry. This is the third time I¡¯ve done this and they never see it coming.¡± He jumped up and took to the air, turning in motion while reverting one of his arms briefly to give a thumbs up. Kahvin wasn¡¯t worried about the hawk. They were a glass ballista and a dodge tank combined, using extreme speed to weaken an enemy before devouring them. In a straight up fight, Bertrar could take it because their endurance was that weak, maybe in the level 1 range. You could also take them out by reflecting their strategy back at them with area of effect attacks, using illusions to misdirect them or mental powers to slow them down, really anything that got the hawk to stay in one spot for more than a few seconds. Kahvin preferred his method though because of how funny it was.

    Kahvin patrolled the sky, passing the time before the hawk¡¯s return by trying to spot where that girl had gone. He should be able to hear the beetle¡¯s wings if he concentrated. She shouldn¡¯t be too far away.

    ¡°Above!¡± Adva¡¯s alarm brought him back into focus. He swiveled to face the cloud the rest of his team was on, to all appearances sitting ducks for the hawk to try and strike directly. Little did it know he¡¯d left a little surprise in the cloud, and it wouldn¡¯t be as easy to pass through as it would like. The last couple of times the hawks had gotten stuck, letting the others he¡¯d been grouped with brutalize them. This looping fall trick was new and may let the hawk pierce through, but it would be hurt enough that the rest of the fight would be an afterthought.

    Heh. Stupid bird.

    ¡°Kahvin!¡± He didn¡¯t know why Adva was shouting at first, she should know what the plan was, until he realized the hawk wasn¡¯t heading for the cloud. It was- he brought his shield out just in time. It stuck to the air in front of the widest part of his wing, where his hand normally would be. The enchantment on it protected him somewhat from the torrent of displaced air that cut out of the explosion that hit next to him. It wasn¡¯t just the movement of the monster driving its attack, the hawk put some of its magic into the air when it wanted to exacerbate the effect. The monster wasn¡¯t high enough level to create an actual mana burst with its abilities, but it sure felt like it to Kahvin as he was hit near the center of the effect.

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    It¡¯s hunting me? That¡¯s not right. Kahvin knew how these monsters normally worked, targeting groups of weaker prey over singular strong ones. This wasn¡¯t right. It should have gone for the rest of his team and crashed into the cloud like the stupid bird it was. Instead, it was building up more ludicrous speed, the roar of its fall now audible.

    His wings felt weak. Not only that, but he¡¯d fallen a decent distance after the shock of the attack had stunned him. There was blood in his throat and a pain in his chest accompanying a new difficulty breathing. It had passed just next to him, so close it might have hit him physically too. Kahvin¡¯s first thought was to run before he remembered his advice to Bertrar. This hawk was fast enough that even if he flew laterally to avoid it the first time, it would adjust for its second or slingshot back upwards to catch him.

    I¡¯m in danger. The thought shocked him just as much as the last attack had. He was hurt, separated from his team, and specifically targeted by the enemy. Kahvin began to panic, almost dropping his shield before remembering to keep it tethered. He hadn¡¯t drawn his sword yet. He was alone against an equal foe, and unlike a duel there were no healers on standby or punishments waiting for those who took it too far. This thing would kill him and then eat him with a beak large enough to tear off his head in one bite. That was exactly what it was going to do, and while he was alive to experience it.

    At no point in his life had it been this bad. He was Kahvin Talongleam, a trueborn prodigy of the court, given this team because he¡¯d been judged ready. It was not supposed to end here. It couldn¡¯t end here, but Kahvin couldn¡¯t think about his powers at this moment. He was completely shaken. In hindsight, some part of him grimly mused, he should have fixed his level disparity before reaching level 3. Who knew wisdom could be this important?

    Flapping like a nestling just tossed out by their parents, Kahvin tried to reach a cloud before it came back. If he baited it into one, could he survive a second hit with the hawk going that fast? He was almost to the cloud when he felt something touch his shoulder. Screaming, Kahvin twisted away, but there wasn¡¯t any pain.

    Actually, he felt himself stabilize, both fear and flight smoothing out. He twisted his head and just caught a glimpse of a beetle before it vanished into another cloud. Her? What did she do? It was some kind of calming effect, but it wasn¡¯t trying to knock him out like a sleep ability. No, he just felt in the zone. Already he was kicking himself for not heightening Aerobatics and Evasiveness, which he did now. His wings caught more air with every flap, and if the hawk came straight at him again he had a better chance at dodging.

    Slightly concerningly, Kahvin wasn¡¯t that interested in whoever was on that beetle anymore. That did give him some pause, but this shouldn¡¯t be permanent. Right? Kahvin shook his head and decided not to worry about it. That hawk was coming back for him and he had to get ready. There was another way to take them out commonly used by Knights or other durable front-line classes. Kahvin had the tools to do it, he¡¯d just never considered it because of how stupid you had to be to try it. But plan A wasn¡¯t an option right now, and all Kahvin could think of was that suicidal strategy.

    The first step was replacing the shield on his back. He could use Wing Grasp to two-hand his sword but didn¡¯t do it normally since he¡¯d have to put both wings in front of him, limiting his ability to fly. It also felt like he was trying to hold the damn thing with spoons. He¡¯d try it here, but only when the time came.

    Next, he put his back to the ground limit and coasted. His body wasn¡¯t as efficient in the air like this, but he had to see the hawk coming. His best guess put it at 30 seconds until it showed up again. He¡¯d dropped about two hundred meters during the tumble, giving him roughly five seconds at best when the hawk appeared again.

    I¡¯m thinking so clearly, Kahvin realized. His intelligence wasn¡¯t as bad as his wisdom and with everything muted, it felt like he could use it better. Why don¡¯t people always use this kind of power before hunts? He had to ask that girl what this was later.

    Suddenly, a giant break in the clouds appeared above. Kahvin had been worried about missing the hawk¡¯s appearance, but this was unmistakable. Just like last time, it was heading straight toward him. Kahvin breathed in, activating Rush Strike and charging it to increase its effectiveness. He needed both the movement and the extra damage the ability provided since the hawk wasn¡¯t dumb enough to come right at him. A direct impact would kill them both at these speeds.

    Three seconds after it appeared, Kahvin unleashed his ability and launched forward with some of his mana trailing behind him to provide an extra boost. Like the hawk, his ability was making him move through the air faster than you¡¯d normally be able to. The turbulence from the dive rippled the air far before the hawk¡¯s actual approach, but he¡¯d surprised it by rushing up and the hawk didn¡¯t respond quickly enough with its own explosive ability. A second before it would have released its mana to sunder the air, Kahvin brought up his sword with both wings.

    It was ripped out of his hands faster than he could perceive. What followed was pain all over his body, concentrated in his arms. He was falling again, naturally. It seemed like his wings had completely broken, with the excess strain passed onto his real arms. He was locked out of Grow Wings for the next hour while the feature reset. A healing potion wouldn¡¯t help unless it could also handle the cooldown, and those kinds were extremely expensive. Kahvin tumbled head over talon, unable to control his fall.

    He still felt oddly calm. The hawk would kill him outright with its next pass if it was alive, and the exchange had gone by faster than he could blink. If he had been holding his sword, rather than tethering it to him with a power, that impact might have torn all the leathery skin off his hands. It had to be injured at least, right?

    Something flew down next to him. It wasn¡¯t the hawk, he knew that because he was still breathing after he registered it. ¡°Kahvin, what was that?¡± Adva¡¯s incredulous voice asked. He was still rotating too fast to pick her out of the blurring dark and silver of the sky.

    ¡°Did I get it?¡±

    ¡°Boss, you cut its wing off!¡± Bertrar said, closer. Kahvin felt an arm reach for him and his tumbling slowed slightly. ¡°What was that!?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± Another few nudges and he could almost make out the three around him. ¡°We¡¯re still falling.¡±

    ¡°Gonna have to hit the ground limit and glide home. Don¡¯t worry boss, we¡¯ll help you out.¡± Adva latched onto his back with her feet like she was a hawk herself capturing prey. That brought him fully out of his spin. Everyone winced as they saw how bloody his arms were, one obviously broken. ¡°You ok?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. It hurts, but that chick did something. It¡¯s like my head¡¯s more in the game than it¡¯s ever been.¡±

    ¡°Nice change of pace. You should make a habit of this.¡±

    Kahvin was still himself despite whatever power was affecting him, and he shook his head. ¡°Gods no. I can barely think about getting with anyone like this.¡± He was about to draw the obvious conclusion when Clacki asked a question.

    ¡°That wasn¡¯t the mid level you mentioned, was it? I could try and find a piece if we need it for the bounty.¡± It was probably not a serious offer since Clacki and Bertrar were supporting each other¡¯s injured wings by locking one to the other. If they had their normal arms it would have looked like they were holding each other¡¯s shoulders.

    Kahvin shook his head again as Adva tried to line him up, intending to get him above the pair before linking up with them herself so Kahvin could ride on all three as some cobbled together platform. ¡°Nah, that was just a level 3. Shouldn¡¯t have given us that much trouble though. Weird. Anyway, that one is rumored to be a level 5 veteran stone eagle. Only good news about it is if we ran into it we could run away. Which, we would need to. Nasty fucker.¡±

    ¡­

    One hour later, Kahvin was resting with his back on a cloud. He really liked this ability, especially now that it meant they didn¡¯t have to go back to Aurus to get him healed. His team had the potions, of course, but Kahvin wasn¡¯t wasteful enough to use it when there was no present danger. As luck would have it, they¡¯d run into another team on their way back. The five had asked questions about the woman on the beetle, another coincidence. He got the feeling there was something they weren¡¯t telling him, but the Cleric had fixed him enough to fly and the red-feathered one was hot, so he didn¡¯t see the harm.

    While Kahvin would have tried to put his freshly renewed libido to the test, the five were busy and his team did need to get back to Aurus. It didn¡¯t matter, since he was sure the story of this hunt would buy them some time off and give him a better shot at striking lucky elsewhere. The return of his full emotions mostly brought contentment with a little bit of disbelief at what he¡¯d pulled off, but that was ok. The legend of the Sonorous Gale continued to grow. It was all turning up Kahvin, just like it always did. He''d even avoided getting close to that level 5 monster. Good luck to whoever had to fight that thing.

 Interlude: Threst - Marbleview

    Claire was on the verge of falling asleep by the time she finally reached Marbleview. It had taken most of the night to get here and that was with only one major interruption from that hunting team. The island wasn¡¯t that far from Aurus, but her mount was slow and had been partially damaged from the encounter. She was honestly lucky it could fly at all.

    Now she was only a few minutes from touching down. The island in front of her was almost completely white, being made of marble as its name would suggest. One of the treasure islands of Threst, though less valued as the material was mostly useful for decorative purposes. A better name for it might have been chosen in time, but the residents there didn¡¯t particularly care what the rest of mortal kind called it. They had their way of naming things since Marbleview was a sanctuary. A gestalt sanctuary.

    Every region had them in one form or another since there was at least one affinity suitable to each of the four peoples of the elements. Considering the divide between the gestalt and the other races was greater than any other, this led to every region having something like this. Small communities built for and populated by gestalt where most of them lived. Those who gained levels would travel, though it was still rare to find them on teams with other mortal races. Gestalt stuck together because they had to. One reason for this was why Claire was here.

    She landed on the outskirts of the village built on and from the white rock. The gestalt had individual housing in addition to communal spaces. Relatives and families, in their own way. The two major differences from a normal village were the lack of anything to do with food and the absence of children. A newly created gestalt was practically an adult in terms of mentality, though they came into existence without any knowledge of the world and a limited ability to control their forms. Claire had seen this for herself. Her Sojourn was one of the rare examples of long-term coexistence with gestalt.

    The air gestalt lived here, harvesting the marble of the island and transporting it to Aurus to sustain themselves. If this land had been connected to the main body this would probably be an earth gestalt sanctuary instead, but only the air gestalt could live here without issue. They were able to fly and required only fresh air to sustain themselves.

    Claire absorbed the beetle, reclaiming less mana than normal because of the injuries to the summon, before walking towards the island¡¯s center. Most of the buildings, as well as the main dig pit, were located there. The island was shaped like an upside-down bell, meaning that if the gestalt dug further out they¡¯d be losing their own land. The sanctuary would last as long as the island did. Eventually, enough would be taken that the natural magic holding the island in place would fail and the rest could be dragged to Aurus by beetle. When that day came, the gestalt would have to find a new home.

    Judging by the size of the island, Claire would reach level 6 and grind that dragon to dust before they managed that. This was a rough estimate, but she put the mostly flat top at about two kilometers in diameter. The inner third was fully settled, the rest of the space taken up by stacks of cut blocks ready for shipment, and loops set at various heights. Flight training, Claire realized. An aerial obstacle course. The hoops were set up for turns far too tight for any other species to pull off.

    They weren¡¯t the only non-marble construction on this island. The houses were mainly wooden slats hammered onto a loose framework. It was easy material to carry back, and wood wasn¡¯t that scarce in this region despite the limited land mass. It had the additional benefit of being easier to extend upwards than heavier construction, and air gestalt would build tall if they were able to. Up and down was no less lateral to them than any other direction.

    There were tradeoffs to that. Air gestalt were the weakest physically of the elements, requiring this sanctuary to keep a pack of diamondbacks to move their product to Aurus. Claire could see the black and dull green beasts on the opposite side of the platform, given free rein due to how loyal they were. You couldn¡¯t trust power-tamed monsters the same way you could naturally tame ones.

    Another weakness was their natural frailty. Certain weapons like swords didn¡¯t do too much to an air gestalt, but a sharp breeze could pose a mortal threat. Even simple structures provided protection, though if a windstorm were to hit this island the air gestalt could benefit from the mine they were maintaining and shelter within. Fire proved a roundabout weakness as well due to the updraft, though air gestalt were generally more resilient to it than their earth kin.

    Claire knew a lot about gestalt, some from research and some from her personal experiences. All of that didn¡¯t do anything to help her distinguish one of the individuals here. To be fair, what was in front of her was less a gathering of individuals than a gathering of gatherings. All gestalt could form clusters within their element. To the outside observer individuals wouldn¡¯t be recognizable, but both the mana and soul inside each one would prevent true merging.

    She stood about a hundred meters away from the collectives, which had the appearance of patchwork clouds with sections just off tint from one another. Occasionally, one individual gestalt would float off to join another. At this moment, the general movement was towards her, and new gestalt were appearing from homes no doubt roused from their sleep by the intrusion.

    This was another part Claire had prepared for, knowing that Marbleview was her best shot at finding out where her Sojourn was. As long as they were still in Threst, the gestalt of Marbleview could find them, and vice versa. That just left the problem of asking for help from a race famously difficult to talk to.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for coming without warning,¡± Claire said, speaking as clearly as she could. She did her best to keep her words uncomplicated, and to only relay one general idea with each sentence. Speakers who could communicate with both gestalt and the other mortal races existed, and this was the best advice they gave that didn¡¯t contradict the advice of others. ¡°I am here to ask for help.¡±

    There wasn¡¯t an immediate reaction, though Claire¡¯s hearing picked up faint hushing noises coming from the closest group. That probably wasn¡¯t directed at her. Hopefully not. She assumed no one here remembered her since she¡¯d only been here for quick visits years ago. For all intent and purpose, she was a stranger at their door. Hopefully one with a good first impression. ¡°I¡¯m looking for Zozar.¡±

    Names were an exception to the language processing barrier or, rather, a gestalt could tell who you were talking about when you used a name. She could call this place Marbleview and they¡¯d understand what she was talking about, even if the gestalt all used a different internal reference for it. Zozar¡¯s name got the reaction she¡¯d hoped for, and one of the gestalt detached themselves to approach her.

    Claire didn¡¯t know how else to describe it, but the consistency of this one looked thicker. The clouds contained in its form moved more slowly. The blue light of the eyes dimmer, the shade pale gray. Signs of age. ¡°Can you help me find Zozar?¡±

    The gestalt considered her for a full minute. They didn¡¯t ask for clarification, so Claire didn¡¯t say anything else. This entire village was unreadable to her and the best she could do was be patient, no matter the fact that someone was probably pursuing her. Finally, the gestalt asked her something. ¡°Why?¡±

    She didn¡¯t detect too much hostility in the voice, but they were guarded. Claire decided to go with as simple an answer as she could. ¡°Refuge.¡±

    ¡°Here?¡± Now there was clear disbelief, which Claire instantly responded to with a shake of her head.

    ¡°No.¡± That¡¯s why I didn¡¯t say ¡®Sanctuary¡¯. I guess the word was too close. ¡°I¡¯m looking for my-¡± Claire cut herself off and reconsidered her words. Keep things simple. ¡°Sojourn.¡±

    ¡°Traveler?¡±

    ¡°Home.¡± Now she was getting somewhere with the gestalt. She was in their sanctuary and needed their help, so the onus was on her to guide the conversation to the right path. A gestalt in Aurus would be as much in her shoes and have to repeat this exchange every time they had to talk to someone. I can¡¯t imagine how exhausting that would be. The hard part wasn¡¯t over, though. She had to let the gestalt know that she knew about one of their race¡¯s distinct quirks and that this was what she wanted as a favor. Trying to get directions out of this old gestalt would be a nightmare, better if Zozar could come to her. Especially if someone was out there trying to bring her back.

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    ¡°Can you bring Zozar here through your link?¡± Claire was back out of the territory where single words could work.

    ¡°Clarify.¡±

    Damn it. This part wasn¡¯t going to be easy. ¡°Your Empathic Link. I know you can sense each other. Can you bring Zozar here?¡± They should be able to, shouldn¡¯t they? Zozar always knew when other air gestalt in a region were in danger. Threatening this sanctuary to draw their attention was far off the table, but surely that wasn¡¯t the only thing that would get Zozar to come.

    ¡°Clarify?¡± At least the gestalt sounded apologetic. She wasn¡¯t about to get kicked off the island, though she was no closer to getting through either.

    Claire pulled at her hair with a hand, the strands having grown a little unkept from the night¡¯s activities. ¡°Contact Zozar?¡± Too simple. She was starting to recognize the look of confusion the gestalt was giving her. Either that or the expression on their face just didn¡¯t change. ¡°No, wait. I¡¯m trying to get to Sojourn. Empathic Link to Zozar?¡±

    The gestalt was about to respond when they turned sharply. Instead of the head moving, the entire cloud form adjusted to a new direction, and the eyes appeared to face northeast. Just like everyone else in the village as the collectives broke up. She could see some already heading for the mine in the center. The one in front of her turned to face her again, looking her over for a second. ¡°Follow.¡±

    There was enough context to know something was going wrong. For a brief moment Claire wondered if she¡¯d gotten her message across and the sanctuary was faking distress. After realizing how stupid that sounded in her head, she headed for the mine with the gestalt. Everyone in the sanctuary was. A low shriek was building like wind passing into a narrow gap.

    It wasn¡¯t until she was lowering herself carefully into the pit, no ladder present to make the descent easy, that she felt what every gestalt in the sanctuary had minutes ago. Distortion in the air from massive wingbeats. Zozar would be coming, no doubt, only now Claire wondered if she¡¯d still be here when they arrived.

    ¡­

    ¡°Marbleview? Why would she head there?¡± Quala asked Tounaki after the Arcanist had realized where they were heading.

    ¡°Search me. It¡¯s a gestalt sanctuary. I¡¯ve got no idea why anyone would want to go there.¡±

    ¡°Hmm.¡± Everyone looked to Murdon as he grunted distantly. ¡°Sorry, I was thinking about the Thormundz.¡± Tounaki was looking at him expectantly so Murdon decided to share his thoughts. ¡°My assistant was an air gestalt. Ashier. They died because I was blind to the Tyrant¡¯s threat.¡± He and Quala looked at each other for a moment, both knowing that whoever the Tyrant was, it hadn¡¯t been Heldren. That having been unresolved did hang over his head, but at least they¡¯d never shown up again after the Hero had died. ¡°You know, there weren¡¯t any sanctuaries in the Thormundz. Most of them were in Eido. An earth and an air colony, ready to make sanctuaries once the Spoke was completed. The only reason we knew Eido was truly gone was that none of their surviving kin could sense them.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Tounaki asked while maintaining the platform¡¯s course as dictated by William. They had both stayed awake as dawn came and hadn¡¯t regained the mana they¡¯d used over the last day, though as neither had made heavy use of their powers this loss was minimal. Everyone else had gotten a quick nap in.

    ¡°That¡¯s not a question Lograve would have to ask,¡± Quala teased, keeping that game going before answering, ¡°Gestalt can sense others in their caste within the same region. It gets harder with distance, but they can always know if each individual is still alive.¡±

    ¡°Just when I thought they couldn¡¯t get any weirder. Alright, assuming she keeps going there, are you all good with doing the talking? My arms aren¡¯t doing so hot.¡± Tounaki disabled one of the control bands, shaking her arm to get the stiffness out.

    ¡°Just keep the platform steady,¡± William called out from upfront. ¡°Both you and I are getting some rest when we land so long as the trail ends there.¡±

    ¡°Should we be worried about her resisting, sir?¡±

    ¡°Yes, and no,¡± Murdon answered Janice. ¡°She might, but if it becomes a fight I am confident in our ability to take her alive and relatively unharmed.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d prefer it if she came back willingly.¡± Quala stood, the motion rocking the platform slightly. ¡°We¡¯re not just here to bring her back, we are here to stop Claire from going down a path that will bring harm to her and everyone around her. Your parts in this are finished when we return to Aurus, but mine will have only begun.¡±

    ¡°So, we let her do the talking,¡± Tounika concluded.

    ¡°Stop.¡± It took a few seconds before the Arcanist registered the abrupt command from William and did so. ¡°Just felt something on Sense Monster. A big something, the kind of size you don¡¯t get to until at least level 4. It¡¯s coming from straight ahead.¡±

    ¡°Could it belong to a Beastmaster?¡± Murdon asked, starting to wonder if Claire had gone to this sanctuary to seek out allies.

    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t count if it did. This one¡¯s wild, and it¡¯s not alone. I¡¯m sensing a dozen level 2¡¯s with it, all man-sized.¡± His head turned slightly as he looked out into the distance. ¡°Vision powers aren¡¯t picking it up through the cloud cover. I¡¯m getting the same read from all the little ones so there¡¯s less of a chance they¡¯re fighting each other.¡±

    ¡°If they¡¯re near Marbleview, they¡¯d attack the sanctuary over other monsters!¡± Command entered Murdon¡¯s voice. ¡°Get moving!¡±

    ¡°This wasn¡¯t supposed to be a hunt!¡± Tounika exclaimed. ¡°And he said at least level 4. Shouldn¡¯t we call for backup?¡±

    ¡°Can¡¯t take the heat, ma¡¯am?¡± Janice asked, and it was a testament to the group dynamics that the scathing remark from the level 2 went unchallenged.

    ¡­

    ¡°How is something that big alive?¡± Janice¡¯s confidence was severely shaken when they saw the monster currently sieging Marbleview. It was only a tenth as big as the island comparatively, which translated to a quarter kilometer wingspan.

    ¡°It¡¯s not a beast, so it doesn¡¯t have to play by our rules,¡± William commented. ¡°That¡¯s a full monster.¡±

    ¡°Stone eagle. Level 5,¡± Tounaki added. ¡°I¡¯ve fought a 3 before but that¡¯s massive.¡±

    ¡°Dragons don¡¯t get that big, ever. Because that¡¯s too large for it to fight small enemies effectively.¡± Murdon had the most practical approach to this, being the resident large flying monster expert. ¡°Get on its back or fly around it fast enough and it doesn¡¯t have any natural weapons that can reach or catch you.¡±

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t need to. They¡¯re a siege-type and a summoner-type monster,¡± Tounaki retorted as if she were reading from a guild bestiary. ¡°No big attack abilities, but that¡¯s what the minions are for. The level 2s around it are made from the main body; they aren¡¯t real. And it doesn¡¯t have any critical organs to burn through, you just have to melt it all down.¡±

    All five observed the scene before them in silence for a moment, assessing the scene. The massive bird looked like it had flown out of a mountain, taking most of the rock with it. The monster moved no less fluidly for being made out of stone and could perch on its legs while using its wings to knock down entire stacks of buildings.

    The smaller copies buzzed around, focusing more on the surroundings while the main eagle continued its destructive rampage. True to Tounaki¡¯s report, one occasionally flew into or out of the level 4 eagle like the surface of the monster was water. The sheer focus of the veteran stone eagle on destroying the settlement over everything else was exemplified in the fact that its spawn didn¡¯t bother with the cluster of beetles penned a distance away from the main area.

    Monsters dominated or tamed by powers drew as much aggression as mortals through the innate hatred of Crest-spawn, but beasts who were by their nature subservient didn¡¯t invoke this response. In fact, monsters barely bothered with animals at all once they¡¯d progressed past level 1. The giant bird may get around to killing them at some point if they didn¡¯t flee, but they were low priority.

    William finally broke the silence. ¡°Trail ends here. I¡¯m not seeing a body in all of that but I don¡¯t know if I could. Wreckage¡¯s everywhere.¡±

    ¡°Claire isn¡¯t the mission right now.¡± Murdon pulled out an ax as he stood, using the other hand to set his helmet on his head and set the straps on the front. His voice echoed afterward, a product of how the helmet was constructed. Unlike his old helmet, this one had a distinctively avian touch, the part covering his snout more reminiscent of a beak. ¡°Any objections?¡±

    Quala sighed but shook her head. ¡°This isn¡¯t what I had in mind, but this is more important. If anyone is still alive down there we need to make sure they stay that way. I can provide support, but faith in the Hand isn¡¯t known for giving many tools for destruction. I¡¯m not sure if I can blind the big one.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s alright, I¡¯ll designate you with Tactician. I¡¯ll be too involved in the fighting to react if something unexpected happens. Janice, we¡¯ll need to set you down at a distance. I don¡¯t want you fighting something more than twice your level.¡±

    ¡°You have Tactician?¡± Tounaki cut in, surprise and admiration in her voice. ¡°That¡¯s the kind of power that gets you scouted for an incursion army even if you don¡¯t meet the minimum level!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not relevant. Arcanist, do you have anything effective against this monster?¡±

    Tounaki scoffed, both at the question and the dismissal. ¡°I said I fought this kind of thing before, didn¡¯t I?¡± She waved her hand and her red feathers changed to a bright green. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, my fire comes in many flavors. Just be careful. The version I fought had lower level spawn buzzing around it and they were a Crest to deal with next to the main body. I think I can take that with how slow it¡¯s moving, but one hit and I¡¯m burnt.¡±

    The sound of loud clattering indicated another of the tall gestalt structures had been knocked down, accompanied by a screech from the giant eagle. It wasn¡¯t a natural sound, but rather like rocks grinding together pitched up a couple of octaves. ¡°Me, Commander?¡± William asked when it died down.

    ¡°You¡¯d do best staying on the flier. Keep the smaller ones off of us and try not to draw too much attention. If we find anyone here during the fighting, I want you to land and let Janice take the soarer out of here with them. If the monster starts to flee, we let it and have you and Janice go back for help while the rest of us defend here.¡±

    ¡°Sounds like a plan,¡± William acknowledged.

    Tounaki was nodding too now, warming up to the idea of taking on the massive eagle. She glanced toward Murdon as some of the magical feathers on her body split off to create a gout of flame that trailed around her. ¡°Alright hot stuff, why don¡¯t you show us why they call you the hero of the Thormundz.¡±

 Interlude: Threst - Veteran Stone Eagle - (5)

    The platform was brought above the eagle, William now piloting. Quala and Tounaki were winged, the Arcanist¡¯s colored feathers completely covering her forelimbs like her head and trailing some of the now green fire. Everyone was going through the motions, heightening features they¡¯d need and activating long duration enhancing powers. Murdon stood as far to the front of the soarer as he could without tipping it into a dive, a half-smile on his face under the helmet. ¡°You know, I have been looking for a reason to use this.¡±

    ¡°Awakened a new power, Sir?¡± Janice guessed.

    ¡°I¡¯d wager we all have. I¡¯ll use it on the way down. Everyone ready?¡±

    ¡°Hatched ready,¡± Tounaki confirmed. ¡°You guys are crazy, but hey, I like crazy. And I¡¯ll take the advancement potential.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re pretty high up Commander,¡± William pointed out. ¡°Everyone else is flying down. Do you need me to go lower?¡±

    ¡°This is fine.¡±

    Quala gave Murdon a look. ¡°That new power of yours doesn¡¯t let you grow wings too, does it?¡±

    ¡°Better.¡± He spared one last moment to remind Janice, ¡°Don¡¯t rush in. I¡¯m serious. We can all consider fighting up our level because we¡¯re well armed and experienced, but the disparity is too risky for you.¡±

    ¡°Got it, sir. Distance fighting only.¡±

    ¡°No, I want you to keep clear.¡± Murdon¡¯s stare was made more intimidating by the helmet. ¡°If it looks like you¡¯re being targeted, jump off and make for the ground limit. Even in a dive that eagle is too large to catch you.¡± Janice nodded her understanding and Murdon breathed out. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±

    Murdon ran towards the back of the glider, William simultaneously trying to dive to counter out the shift in balance while Quala and Tounaki jumped off either side. Murdon could have, but didn¡¯t use Jump as he exited. Lessening the impact of the fall would have been nice, but it would lock him out of other abilities during the jump and there was one he wanted to use instead.

    All classes could gain powers that influenced their Focus, though the rarity of these varied even when considering the trends classes could go down. As a Knight, Murdon should have received Focus Enhancement before he faced the lightning dragon, but hadn¡¯t. Somewhat bitterly, he suspected his leadership powers had gotten in the way. His patience was rewarded after the fact. His power had arrived after advancing endurance to 39, along with a function unique to draconoids.

    As Murdon fell, his armor began to shift. From head to tail, the metal took on the coloration of the scales underneath, and then the patterning of them. The gaps between his armor melted together, hinges disappearing while the helmet separated into a lower and upper jaw. It inherited the faint avian touches creating a strange hybrid appearance with the draconic power, but otherwise gave Murdon the appearance of growing over his armor.

    After the transmutation was completed and a fair amount of mana was exhausted, Murdon felt the effects. The transmuted armor was weightless. The metal had become like a second skin, though Murdon¡¯s real body inside the armor hadn¡¯t changed. The defensiveness of his scales compounded with the metal, throwing in a bonus resistance to necrotic damage that overlapped with his natural one.

    This function, once activated, would last for just over an hour. The downside to receiving such a potent function as part of his enhancement was he could only do this once a day. Otherwise, it was everything Murdon had been waiting for. The improved responsiveness of his armor alone was equivalent to heightening Agility to level 3, and with both on board, he felt he could out-dance Gadriel. Talented or not, the Hero was in the beginnings of level 3 while Murdon was nearing its end.

    Correcting his fall toward the giant eagle below him was no issue. It sensed him in the last stretch of the fall, but as he predicted its size was a weakness that he now exploited. The castle wall it used for a wing tried to strike him from the air but couldn¡¯t rotate to catch him. Murdon¡¯s confidence lasted a few more seconds before a level 2 stone eagle minion flew into the main body, and another launched out of the approaching wing as if it had been fired straight at him.

    Are they being remade or teleported? Murdon had just enough time to ponder that before the eagle just smaller and heavier than he was dove into his chest, knocking him off course. The impact itself barely hurt, something that should have thrilled Murdon if not for the next one. He was propelled so far that he missed the giant eagle entirely and struck the marble beside it. The world turned fuzzy for a few seconds as he recovered, his first sight being the shattered remains of the eagle spawn he¡¯d landed on. Then he noticed the massive talons overhead poised to crush him and desperately rolled out of the way. Still overconfident after everything I¡¯ve faced?

    For all his assurances that the veteran stone eagle would be too slow to reliably hit anyone, he¡¯d glossed over the fact that it was strong enough to mortally threaten even defensive classes with single hits. More marble cracked behind him as the crater deepened, but he escaped unharmed. He heard a bird cry and saw Quala, too far away to even shout, signaling him. A line was tracing from the tip of one of her wings that she was trying to keep on his body, finding the task hard to do while sustaining flight. Murdon got the message and ran to follow the arcing line.

    It made contact with his leg, and Quala quickly moved the point to his chest with a slight adjustment. After a second, the line became a bright green beam that carried what Murdon recognized as a healing effect. The fall had injured him slightly, and whatever new power Quala had used fully restored him. Just in time for another eagle spawn to dive bomb him. It tried to rake its talons into his armor but got more done with the sheer weight of the impact. Only level 2, but they are dangerous distractions. I¡¯ll need to fight defensively until William can target them.

    Another eagle spawn shot towards him, this time from the sculpted tail feathers. This truly was the largest monster Murdon had ever fought, perhaps the largest he¡¯d ever seen. The attack coming at him was far enough away that he had time to react, simply because of how damned tall this eagle was. At almost one hundred meters standing, it was a colossus he somehow had to demolish with an ax.

    That¡¯s what he¡¯d brought a team for. Quala had already assisted with a heal, and his second ally chose this moment to bring the heat. While sizing up the eagle to plan for a Jump, he watched as the Arcanist performed a twisting maneuver in the air that brought her into a brief hover. She then brought both wings forward, sending the flames around them spraying forth. Even if she was far enough away to avoid the giant eagle¡¯s wings, Tounaki couldn¡¯t miss. The swath painted over the back and onto the wing joint, burning and sizzling at the same time.

    Acid, Murdon thought approvingly. Unenhanced fire attacks against this kind of monster wouldn¡¯t scorch the stone. She isn¡¯t just another Lograve. He wouldn¡¯t be able to improvise his ice attacks against this. The bar between an Arcanist on the road to becoming an elemental specialist, and one with just an elemental manipulation power, were the various auxiliary abilities and features that enhanced one¡¯s mastery of their chosen element. By all appearances, Tounaki was well on her way to attaining the Pyromancer evolution.

    Her flame spray also got the attention of the giant eagle, who sent half of its minions toward the airborne fireball. It hadn¡¯t been a critical attack, the acidic flames burning themselves out after eating away a few meters from the surface of the titan, but it had been more effective than Murdon¡¯s mid-air flailing. It was time for him to catch up. He Jumped, anticipating one of the wings to pass over his location and arcing to land on it as it did. Murdon could have drawn on his practice of dual-channeling this ability with Necrotic Breath but decided not to waste the mana. The air movement from the wings alone would disperse the cloud.

    No, for this he¡¯d rely on another, less flashy power he¡¯d unlocked from strength. Between his defensive and leadership powers, Murdon had been lacking in a nice, solid attack ability. Stomp was fine, but he couldn¡¯t use it with a weapon. Like Focus powers these weren¡¯t too common for Knights in the early levels and he¡¯d been less surprised by the absence of one. So far he¡¯d just compensated by being a two meter tall descendant of dragons with one, sometimes two, barrel-sized axes.

    Now, he had Vital Sundering Slam. Like any Strike, it was an actively channeled ability that improved his attack and consumed an average amount of mana for its level. What redeemed it from complete mediocrity was two-fold. First, it allowed his attacks to be more effective against other armored opponents. The overall punch to the attack was also amplified by how healthy he was. Thanks to Quala, he was in top shape.

    Murdon landed on the wing and caught himself as the world began moving at its pace, just like the mobile walkways of Rikendia. Shield in one hand and ax in another, he activated his ability and brought the ax down. Powdered stone bloomed upwards as a huge chunk was carved out. Murdon felt he could have cut through to the other side if he continued his swing, but at a certain point, he had to stop or be thrown off balance. Relatively speaking, he¡¯d done about as much damage as Tounaki had over an area in one spot.

    The wound didn¡¯t bleed or show any other signs of injury a normal beast would. The giant eagle was simply missing part of itself. The trade-off was that its protection was spread out across the body compared to a biological being¡¯s concentration of defenses at the outer layers. To be fair, not having any vitals to hit made any hit on this target worthwhile.

    It was at this time Murdon realized he¡¯d erred again in judgment. Compared to dragons with wings sprouting from their backs, the wings of birds were more flexible and versatile. Murdon had known this but had assumed the stone eagle would be too slow in its movements for this fact to matter. What happened next may have occurred to him if he¡¯d questioned how such a monster could have flown in the first place.

    A mana burst detonated as the giant eagle used an ability its kind gained at level 4, and Murdon felt the ground underneath his feet vanish. For a few seconds, the monster¡¯s movement¡¯s became unburdened by its size and it sped away from land. The draconoid was left behind in midair, unable to grapple onto the wing before it brushed him off. Rather than strike at the off balance Murdon, the monster instead began chasing Tounaki who was barely evading.

    As the alternative was to watch the fight from the ground, Murdon desperately searched for a way onto the eagle as he fell. Jump required a surface to jump off of, and he was currently without any. His opportunity came when he noticed one of the eagle spawns had split off to hit him on the way down. He was able to twist in the air to hit it with his ax but purposefully held back to not completely destroy it. Suddenly, he had a springboard attached to the end of his ax.

    This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    From there, he reversed the dynamic and Jumped at another of the eagle spawns. The reciprocal force of a draconoid clad in heavy armor finished the one he¡¯d initially latched onto, and by repeating the process Murdon was able to catch onto the legs of the eagle before they fully folded under the tail feathers. On the other end, Tounaki was alternating curses and screeches while throwing green fire at the monster¡¯s head. It let out another burst of mana, taking Murdon along for the ride as it shot itself further into the air. The smaller eagle spawn were constantly maneuvering about the main body, forcing Murdon to fend them off instead of attacking.

    Murdon was saved from playing fly swatter against flies his size by the appearance of William. It had only taken the Ranger a minute to drop Janice off at a safe distance, though that was enough for the battlefield to entirely change. It had also given him enough time to figure something out about the soarers.

    As already demonstrated by Tounaki, the platform could be controlled by only one arm if necessary. William did this now, though he also held his bow in that hand, using the free one to reach for arrows. The platform flew in the direction he pointed, and so did his arrows, effectively weaponizing the transport. His first few shots on arrival missed as he got used to the delay in the platform moving after adjusting his arm. Soon, though, the Ranger was a bird of prey onto himself, taking out the smaller spawn from a distance.

    While the veteran stone eagle was drawn between the fire mage and Ranger, it left Quala and Murdon as afterthoughts. This had given the Knight time to recover, and also time to notice that it wasn¡¯t restoring any of the stone it had lost. Considering where he was, Murdon reconsidered his assumption that there weren¡¯t any critical areas to hit on this monster.

    He chipped away at the stone of the leg with his shield, the enchanted one taken from Heldren¡¯s corpse, until he could both hold onto it and the eagle. Two of the spawn got past William¡¯s arrows by appearing from the tail feathers above him, but Murdon just kicked one out of the way and used his ax on the other. The veteran stone eagle¡¯s seemingly endless supply of them was formidable, but the spawn themselves were easily dispatched. There also seemed to be a limit on how many could be out, and a delay in making new ones. Otherwise, the giant would just blanket the sky with its lesser kin.

    Footing and opportunity secured, Murdon began hacking away at the leg with the intent of severing it. This was one of the thinnest sections of stone on the main body, and with at least one leg gone, the eagle wouldn¡¯t be able to land anymore. The wing joints would have been another option if they didn¡¯t connect along most of the back. This was hardly as glamorous as using an explosive punch to expose the brains of a dragon, but he was a Knight. His class wasn¡¯t meant for absolute carnage.

    That was Tounaki¡¯s domain. Out of everyone she was harrying the eagle the most, having already burned away a good portion of its beak. Her constantly regenerating feathers provided fuel for her fire. Quala had focused her efforts on supporting the Arcanist, using Nova Shield to block several attempts by spawn to strike at her while healing what damage did get through.

    Even with the relative safety of everyone on the team, an issue soon appeared. When Murdon was most of the way through the leg, every blow of his ax demolishing a good portion, Tounaki stopped shooting gouts of flame. The fire hadn¡¯t let up until now and had burned the top of the Eagle¡¯s head to slag. She¡¯s running out of mana. Then, Murdon checked himself and realized, I¡¯m running out of mana.

    He¡¯d spent it well, but every one of his attacks was like a hearty swing of a scythe in a field the size of a region. The stone eagle wasn¡¯t tough, his cutting weapon broke it apart without much resistance, but its sheer size proved problematic for the lower leveled team to overcome. It could simply accept the punishment and outlast them up until they had to choose retreat or a battle without active abilities. Using its ability to reposition did draw on its mana supply, but it didn¡¯t need to move to survive. This was a monster that embodied endurance, especially in the way you were meant to fight it. Tactics could only go so far.

    Quala may have realized this too if Tactician was still active on her, but that had worn off and the Cleric was now entirely focused on whoever the eagle was chasing. Before she had the awareness to check in with everyone else. Murdon had a few bruises from eagle spawn getting through she could have healed, though in fairness they were no worse than what he would have gotten from tripping while outside his armor. The main threat they posed was in their potential to knock him off and knock his allies into their progenitor¡¯s attacks.

    At least Janice had stayed out of this. It would hurt the chance of her gaining advancement potential, but the eagle spawn would have given her a harder time and that wasn¡¯t considering that her spear was a poor weapon against this type of enemy. Murdon turned back to the great stone tree he was trying to fell and considered the situation. If I can cut this off, it can¡¯t land. Anyone still alive down there will have a better chance.

    It hurt him to admit, but retreating while minimizing the damage this monster could do was their best option. He¡¯d meant what he said to Janice; this wasn¡¯t the Thormundz anymore. His responsibility wasn¡¯t to the lives of everyone within the region, even if he couldn¡¯t completely disabuse himself of that.

    Once again, Murdon wished his friend was here. Strategizing without Telepathy was a nightmare. ¡°QUALA!¡± he yelled, opening the mouth of his transformed helmet wide to show the world that it had grown metallic teeth. The Cleric heard and began swooping down towards him, a difficult approach given the giant eagle and its interceptors. Quala had done the least directly against the monster, but it still defended itself against any mortal trying to get close.

    As she was diving under the belly of the eagle, which was currently tilted upright in flight, three of the spawn shot out towards her. It had to be said that of the four currently engaged with the monster, Quala was the least experienced in hunting. She hadn¡¯t been there for the lightning dragon assault, which was the only reason she¡¯d survived the Thormundz. Every other healer they¡¯d brought, except for Thomas, had died after succumbing to the aquatic horror¡¯s domination. There wasn¡¯t a rule that healing-focused Clerics avoided close combat, but that was the norm because of how few directly damaging powers they awakened.

    The glowing shield suspended from one of Quala¡¯s wings blocked the first attacker, though this brought it to the threshold of damage it could absorb after already blocking previous hits. Nova Shield worked in two phases: damage protection, followed by a blinding burst that increased in potency the more damage was absorbed. Despite being fired at max power, the cast off light from the shield¡¯s destruction did nothing to avert the approaching spawn as their vision wasn¡¯t based on biological eyes. They also didn¡¯t have an instinctive avoidance reaction for this reason.

    Quala still managed to bat one away with a wing. The spawn hadn¡¯t shown any power usage at this point, and despite not having one to use herself Quala could still dominate with her superior attributes. That left the third, which slammed into the Cleric¡¯s midsection to drive the air from her while latching on with its talons to her legs. The two were of roughly equal shape and size, though the stone eagle was an animal scaled to human size while Quala was the result of ancient magic twisting her former species into something reminiscent of a human.

    The wings of the eagle spawn grasped Quala in a winged hug while she recovered from the initial impact, swinging its head back and forth as it pecked into her flesh. Higher attributes or not, Quala didn¡¯t have the defensive prowess of Murdon¡¯s Knight class. Every attack left gaps of missing flesh. She did heal from the damage almost as quickly due to her powers, at the cost of mana.

    An arrow appeared out of nowhere and the spawn¡¯s head exploded. That was enough to make it grow inert, and the statue fell off of her. William¡¯s soarer flew past and an off-hand throw of a dagger struck another that had been looking to pile on. As the Ranger was more practiced with throwing weapons than archery, this too brought death to the one it struck. Quala made it to Murdon, suffering the entire way for the simple reason that Murdon couldn¡¯t direct the team from his position.

    ¡°We¡¯re not taking this thing down.¡± Murdon felt bitterness at the back of his throat as he admitted it, but kept what he said simple and direct to not leave the Cleric overly exposed. ¡°Get Tounaki to break off the rest of this leg, and William to pick up Janice. I¡¯ll make for the ground limit when she gets here.¡±

    She looked like she wanted to argue, no doubt worried about any survivors left in the sanctuary, but there wasn¡¯t time. Quala flew off before more eagle spawn could get to her, and Murdon continued hammering away while fending off the ones that came for him. It turned out the giant eagle had little natural defense against someone who had tunneled their way inside it, besides summoning more eagle spawn, and his position was the safest despite his proximity to the monster.

    Tounaki showed up soon after. Murdon had worn down the leg, but finishing the job would require more time than his armor ability would last. He didn¡¯t feel as confident handling the spawn without the buff and hoped the Arcanist could provide the explosive variety of fire. What she¡¯d accomplished so far couldn¡¯t have been the result of more than half a dozen powers, and someone of her level should have more options.

    ¡°Can you sever this leg?¡±

    Tounaki took shelter in the cavern he¡¯d created and gave it and him an appraising look, tilting her head up and down. ¡°I can give it a shot. We¡¯re running after this right?¡± Murdon sharply nodded. ¡°K.¡± There was a genuine smile on her face as she limbered up, shaking out the arms she¡¯d reverted and stretching her legs. Murdon stared for a few seconds at the Arcanist who looked like she was preparing for a run. Then he decided the immediate area would be very hazardous to his health soon and ran towards the open sky.

    He fell fast, armor and his natural bulk an anchor in this sea as he quickly reached terminal velocity. Turning his head, he saw Quala flying and William dock in Marbleview, which the giant eagle was now a good distance from. Rotating in mid air was difficult given he had all the aerodynamics of a shed, but he managed in time to see the fireworks.

    A plume of green flame pierced through the last of the stone connecting the veteran stone eagle to its leg. The discharge was followed by a rush of flame out of the cavity and a distant boom. The limb fell through the air and another rock-grinding screech issued from the giant eagle. Murdon wasn¡¯t sure if it felt pain, but it did feel the loss.

    A vibrant, almost pink-red blur shot from the green explosion and arced down towards him. Murdon was concerned this was an attack gone wild until he realized it was a person. Tounaki, flame back to its natural color, looked like a fire gestalt taking the form of an avianoid. She grinned fiercely as she neared him. ¡°Wooh! I never get to use Flame Form.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡± Murdon shouted back, his voice not carrying overly well through the rushing air.

    ¡°Can¡¯t use fire powers for a few hours afterward. Not really a problem if I don¡¯t have mana though.¡± She shrugged and then looked a little apologetic. ¡°I¡¯d try and help you get back to the soarer, but I¡¯m a little too hot to handle right now. That armor¡¯s a good look on you, by the way.¡±

    Murdon grunted at the compliment, though that probably didn¡¯t carry over to Tounaki. ¡°How fast can Aurus mobilize reinforcements here?¡±

    Tounaki seemed to sigh, though it might have been his imagination. ¡°If we just fly straight back it could take a day. You think the people here will hold out?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll have to hope that-¡± Murdon¡¯s words cut off as he felt a presence around him, before his fall gently came to a stop. He wasn¡¯t advanced enough in level or wisdom to sense the mana flow of others, but whoever was catching him with this power was also making it clear it was a person. The sky around him grew tinted in an odd but comforting way, almost as if the skyline of Rikendia overlapped Threst. It came with an overwhelming sense of safety, so much that he couldn¡¯t help but relax.

    Not everything in the sky was afforded the same treatment. Still oriented to look up, Murdon saw a shimmer in the air completely wrap around the giant eagle. If he squinted, he could just make out the form of a hand in the pattern of the haze. It squeezed, and in a few seconds, the monster he¡¯d almost broken his ax to maim was reduced to fragments.

    Higher above, Murdon saw who was responsible. It would have been a terrifying sight even to him except for the fact that he knew this was who had caught him. It was an air gestalt, but that was far too simple a description. They looked like a cross between a sky island and a cloud, the two mixed together in uneven ways and constantly shifting in their dispositions. The size was smaller than Marbleview, though not by much. People were inhabiting this island, both the solid land and the clouds.

    What would have inspired fear was how Murdon¡¯s gaze was drawn to the humanoid standing on an offshoot of rock with their hand out, positioned just like the giant one that had crushed the eagle. This was the air gestalt responsible for everything that had just happened. There was a connection between the figure and the power he was being allowed to feel that also extended to the island itself. He didn¡¯t understand exactly what was going on, if the hybrid island was part of the gestalt¡¯s body or just considered that through one of their powers. He didn¡¯t care either way.

    The only thing Murdon thought as the air around him began to drag him towards Marbleview was that he hoped he would still get some progress towards advancement from this.

 Interlude: Threst - Sojourn

    Claire¡¯s shaky exhalation of relief upon feeling the arrival of Zozar was met by a different response from those around her, though in spirit it was the same. The air inside the cramped mine hummed, almost but not quite a chorus as the air gestalt of the sanctuary vibrated the air around them. They were all communicating with each other, and not even the elder was in a place where they could try to translate.

    It had been harder on them. Claire just had to worry about the monster above breaking through the barriers placed over the mine and killing them all. For the air gestalt, there was an active danger in that the atmosphere inside the mine was stale. Holes had been cut to allow for breezes to flow through, though they had begun to be blocked as structures above rained debris down. Some of the gestalt, likely those created with the lowest endurance, had begun to gain a muddy complexion and were the first to break for the surface when the feeling of safety hit.

    That was how Claire knew she¡¯d managed it. Zozar had come, bringing the Sojourn with them. It would take an army to pry her from their grasp, assuming she was still welcome back into the fold. Would she fail in her goal after getting this close to freedom?

    ¡­

    ¡°Sir, what¡¯s going on?¡± Janice was content yet confused at the sudden death of the veteran stone eagle. Having been about to abandon the sanctuary to its fate, the sudden appearance of the cloud island had saved both the gestalt and her conscience.

    ¡°The locals called in air support,¡± Tounaki quipped, still in her Flame Form and enjoying every second of it. She could adjust the type of flame she was made of and was using this power to add a multi-colored aspect to it reminiscent of the Regent. ¡°Whew. Job done. I¡¯m asking for time off after this.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not over.¡± Quala, rejoining her team on the outskirts of Marbleview, sounded far more concerned than anyone else.

    ¡°What is it?¡± Murdon asked.

    The Cleric looked up at the cloud island and the collective on it. ¡°That is Claire¡¯s Sojourn. It has to be. I don¡¯t know if it was coincidence or¡­¡± she shook her head, thought trailing off. ¡°Murdon, they have the strength to take Claire. If they don¡¯t understand the danger, that air gestalt will doom her with their kindness.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a Sojourn?¡± Murdon might have put the pieces together sooner, but the reclusive traveling groups didn¡¯t tend to interact much with the public when they didn¡¯t have to. ¡°I¡¯d heard each had a guardian, but that? Whoever that gestalt is could blow Soraso off Aurus¡¯ court like they were extinguishing a candle.¡±

    A space a short distance from him was suddenly cut through, a line tracing through the air and expanding to reveal a distant place. Soraso stepped through, the sword of Threst in his hand. ¡°I hope you don¡¯t underestimate me that much, Murdon. I could put up an ounce of a fight.¡± The gestalt looked up at the cloud island. ¡°Eh, not much more than that though. It¡¯s probably for the best Zozar beat me here.¡±

    ¡°Regent, they¡¯re going to take Claire,¡± Quala pleaded, not questioning why Soraso was here or here alone. ¡°You can speak to this Zozar, can¡¯t you? They need to understand the danger Claire is in.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know if they¡¯ll listen to you if Claire¡¯s one of their people,¡± Soraso warned uncertainly.

    ¡°Regent, please. You are the leader of Threst, can¡¯t you tell them to give Claire to us?¡±

    ¡°Nooot the best idea,¡± Soraso replied, face displaying a frown. ¡°Look, I¡¯ll see what I can do. You can¡¯t tell, but the air gestalt need more help than she does right now. Most of their homes are gone and they all nearly died.¡±

    ¡°Of course,¡± Quala backtracked. ¡°I honestly don¡¯t know how much help I can personally be, but I would try. My concern is still for Claire being in the hands of people who don¡¯t understand her condition.¡±

    Soraso sighed gustily. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll talk to Zozar. They aren¡¯t impossible to deal with and you all scored some points for helping out against the monster. At least, I assume you did because Murdon is here and my young hotshot is flared up.¡±

    ¡°Regent,¡± Tounaki replied, bowing her head. The Arcanist looked far more subdued in Soraso¡¯s presence, even suppressing the wild fluctuations along the edges of her fiery form to appear more like her normal self. She¡¯d also banished her different colors, back to the solid flame red that normally colored her feathers.

    ¡°Yeah yeah,¡± he sighed again in complete opposition to her formality. Looking straight at the air gestalt Murdon had singled out earlier, he added, ¡°Wish me luck.¡±

    ¡­

    Claire did not doubt that Zozar had seen her. You didn¡¯t get to their level and not have a near omniscient understanding of the immediate area you could affect, especially with wisdom as a primary stat of their class. Yet she still found herself waving her arms above her head at her Sojourn above, wondering why no one at all had come down. Or, preferably, told Zozar to come get her.

    The only reason she wasn¡¯t shouting was that she¡¯d spotted that Cleric on the island, along with the former Commander of the Thormundz. They were standing next to a fire gestalt of all things. Where¡¯d they found one of those? Her Sojourn didn¡¯t have one, and that was the most cosmopolitan group in the region. Crest, she hadn¡¯t even heard of one being in either Threst or Thormundz region. The natural wind affinity just made it too intolerable for their kind.

    That matter aside, she was feeling something bordering concern as the continued refusal to acknowledge her existence. Part of the reason she¡¯d gone to the Thormundz was a deal that would have allowed the Sojourn to leave the region once the Spoke was finished. While Blessed typically benefited from free travel between regions, but it was a different matter for commoners. Many established governments disliked what they claimed was a destabilizing effect of the traveling groups, and Rikendia had finally forced the issue years ago.

    Were they to be stuck even longer in Threst because of what happened in the Thormundz? While Claire¡¯s purpose in life now was to bring about the death of that dragon, she still cared for her people.

    From nowhere, the most colorful air gestalt she¡¯d ever seen appeared out of the air in front of her through a slash in space. It took her mind a few seconds to provide the relevant information on Threst¡¯s current leader, though she didn¡¯t have all the facts. When he spoke, she just blinked in confusion for a few seconds. ¡°Claire Elsemar? I am Soraso, Regent of Threst. I must speak with you on a matter of import.¡±

    It was the formal way of speaking common to the court of Threst, puffed up like the rest of lofty nobility that cared only for style rather than substance. Still, she couldn¡¯t stop herself from asking the question. ¡°You can talk?¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± the Regent answered dispassionately. ¡°And you can bring chaos to one of the most well-organized sections of my city.¡±

    ¡°I was being unjustly detained,¡± Claire protested, now realizing the reason for Zozar¡¯s noninterference. Frankly, the leader of her Sojourn could squash the Regent of Threst like a bug. They wouldn¡¯t, both because the Regent was a fellow air gestalt, and for the same reason the Sojourn hadn¡¯t packed up and left Threst the moment Aurus started their posturing: Rikendia.

    Zozar had made the unfortunate mistake of becoming too powerful and too noticeable. The King had issued an ultimatum to her roving Sojourn after receiving enough complaints from those they¡¯d passed through. Either settle, disperse, or become enemies of the state. Zozar could beat a lot of things, but if Rikendia bothered to send an army after them, they¡¯d be blown away just as easily as the Regent in front of them.

    She¡¯d feel anger towards Rikendia for this if not for the sole rage burning in her that overcame even the immediate effects of Calm Emotions. It was there, always, driving her. The Regent, as if reading her mind, tsk¡¯d in a way air gestalt definitely shouldn¡¯t be able to. ¡°The actions you took, regardless of the motivation, broke Threst¡¯s laws. That¡¯s enough to get you tossed out of the basement and into a cell.¡± He coughed then, another impossibility, seemingly just for the effect alongside the recognition that he¡¯d begun to break decorum. ¡°Regardless, there are special circumstances to consider. I have deliberated with Zozar and the representative of the church of the Hand on how best to approach this and we¡¯ve come to a tentative agreement.¡±

    ¡°And I don¡¯t get a say?¡± Perhaps the smart thing to do here would be to act respectfully and plead for mercy, but Claire realized if they cared about what she¡¯d thought, the Regent would have asked-

    ¡°That¡¯s actually most of the compromise.¡±

    Claire¡¯s thoughts broke off as she digested that. ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ll just escape again.¡± Soraso waived a hand as if to fully banish any expectation of propriety, fully discarding the high tones he¡¯d begun to stray from earlier. ¡°They aren¡¯t willing to do what they¡¯d need to to keep you contained as that would ¡®interfere with your treatment¡¯.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sick,¡± Claire ground the words out, more from a weariness of repeating an old argument than actual anger.

    The Regent held up his hands. ¡°You don¡¯t have to convince me. You don¡¯t have to convince anyone. But she wants another shot at convincing you.¡± He nodded towards Quala, who was watching the conversation. ¡°If I understand right, you don¡¯t hate her for what she¡¯s done, do you?¡±

    Claire searched herself for the answer and looked down slightly when she found it. ¡°No. I know she thinks she¡¯s doing what¡¯s best for me, but that¡¯s for me to decide! I know what my future is. All she¡¯s doing is delaying my vengeance.¡±

    Soraso gave her one of the most piercing looks she¡¯d ever received, impressive for someone without actual eyes. His voice was contemplative as he spoke, half mocking and half sincere. ¡°Oh Octyrrum, the ¡®v¡¯ word. She¡¯s too late, isn¡¯t she?¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s that supposed to mean?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, she¡¯ll tell you. This is the deal. You speak with Quala, give her a chance to make a final pitch. If you don¡¯t like the price, you can walk.¡±

    ¡°And what if she uses a power to twist my mind into agreeing with her?¡± Claire challenged, more to point out the flaw in his offer than anything else.

    ¡°Has she used something like that before?¡±

    ¡°Not that I know.¡±

    ¡°And she won¡¯t now.¡± Soraso made the sound of two pillows colliding as he clapped. ¡°This is the deal, otherwise it gets messy. You go with Zozar or you go with Quala, but it will be your choice and Aurus washes its hands of it unless you do something else that gets our attention.¡± He gestured towards Quala, giving a thumbs up, and she started walking towards Claire.

    Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    Claire folded her arms. ¡°I haven¡¯t agreed to this deal yet.¡±

    ¡°Buuut you¡¯re going to,¡± Soraso shot back impishly.

    ¡­

    ¡°Claire.¡± Quala¡¯s voice was sad, like a mother¡¯s who¡¯d come home to find their child had kicked over the cooking pot in a fit of anger and burned themself in the process. Even now the sincerity she broadcasted with her eyes and the slight turn of her beak reached for something inside her. Unfortunately for the Cleric, there was nothing left to find.

    ¡°I¡¯m leaving,¡± Claire stated.

    ¡°You hid your advancing well. I thought we were making progress.¡± Claire noticed the feathers on Quala¡¯s outer arms were standing up slightly. That was normally a sign of fear, but that wasn''t what she was getting from the Cleric. ¡°Was I the problem? Did I make you feel uncomfortable, unable to share what you were truly feeling? I continued guardianship of your care because I was the most familiar with you, but if that is a problem changes can be made.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not going back,¡± Claire repeated, at the same time trying to figure Quala out. Either she was very good at manipulating people, or she really was disheartened and worried by the prospect of Claire getting away. ¡°You only have yourselves to blame. Telling any of you the truth of what I was feeling, what I wasn¡¯t feeling, would have gotten me locked down harder. Can you honestly say I would have had a chance to escape if you¡¯d put me in one of the secure wards?¡±

    Quala¡¯s face twisted into a rueful grin. ¡°After the past 24 hours, I think you would have found a way. At least we could have spoken with more honesty. Like we are now. I chose the approach I did, the exercises, and recommendations I did, because I was mistaken about your true thoughts and feelings. You don¡¯t need to spare mine with your words. If you think you can be this open with me going forward, I¡¯m confident we can work through what happened to you.¡±

    Claire kicked a piece of wood beneath her feet, a shard of one of the slat walls the monster had trashed. The damage wasn¡¯t as total as it first appeared. It was still bad, but the monster hadn¡¯t taken the time to ground every building to dust. With effort, the pieces could be salvaged and put back together, possibly saving a great deal of time, effort, and resources to bring fresh material here. Claire thought it would be wasteful to throw away everything from the past just because of one bad incident, but then again she wasn¡¯t thinking about Marbleview.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to get revenge for my brother. For everyone that thing killed.¡± She spat on the ground.

    ¡°Claire, even if that dragon is still out there-¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not here to debate this!¡± Claire shouted, voice rising out of nowhere as Quala tapped on the glass case surrounding her one true emotion. ¡°I don¡¯t care if it takes me decades. Centuries! I¡¯m going to kill it because Parduc was my brother. I shouldn¡¯t have to explain it any better than that.¡±

    Quala was silent for a moment, eventually asking a question she clearly didn¡¯t want the answer to. ¡°Claire, did you develop a bond after losing Parduc?¡±

    The sharp look Claire gave her was answer enough, but she confirmed it anyway. ¡°Does it matter? Even if I hadn¡¯t, I wouldn¡¯t stop. Even if I hadn¡¯t found a way to level again, I wouldn¡¯t have stopped. Even if you lock me away for years, I¡¯ll just be using the time to plan. Most people move on, Quala. That¡¯s what you told me. Sooner or later you would slip again, have a more important person to devote your time and energy to, and maybe so much time would pass you wouldn¡¯t notice I was gone.¡±

    The Cleric had tried to speak several times during her small rant but Claire had just kept talking and accepted no interruption. In the end, there was that same sad look on Quala¡¯s face, one Claire was beginning to faintly hate as it blamed her for all the Cleric¡¯s problems in the world. ¡°It is my belief,¡± Quala stated, seemingly more for her benefit than Claire¡¯s, ¡°That no one is beyond saving. Not until death, and sometimes, with the Hand¡¯s guidance, not even then.¡±

    ¡°Bring my brother back and I¡¯ll believe you.¡± Claire stared into Quala¡¯s eyes until she looked away.

    Quala collapsed in that moment, losing the tailwind of hope that had kept her going this far. ¡°I am a lacking servant of my god in that way,¡± she said, voice small. ¡°As I am in this one, it seems. I can¡¯t find the words to reach you.¡±

    ¡°My heart is a bastion,¡± Claire declared. ¡°It has taken the worst this world can give it and grown all the stronger so that its foundation may never again be shaken. There¡¯s nothing to reach, Quala, because I don¡¯t need your help.¡± She drew out her words towards the end. ¡°How many times do I need to say it?¡±

    ¡°No more.¡± Quala breathed deeply. ¡°No more. Perhaps my greatest failing was in trying to save you. And then to persist for so long. Too prideful by far.¡±

    The immediate self-reflection took Claire aback for a moment, but then she reasoned that someone in Quala¡¯s position had to be good at that kind of thing if they wanted other people doing it too. At least, if they wanted to be good at their job. As her temper cooled, Claire returning to her baseline calm, she realized she did think of Quala as a good Cleric. The handling of her aside, there wasn¡¯t a lot to complain about. The abject dejection on Quala¡¯s face started to bother her. ¡°You made one mistake. I won¡¯t say there aren¡¯t people messed up enough to not need the kind of treatment you gave me. I just wasn¡¯t one of them.¡±

    Quala¡¯s eyes turned and Claire found something approaching gratitude in them, though it was fleeting. The Cleric was mostly resigned at this moment. ¡°Without me, I doubt there would be many pushing for your return to treatment. The floor warden, for one, would be happy if you never came back.¡± Quala closed her eyes and nodded. ¡°And I no longer believe it is in your best interest to come back with me. Not because you don¡¯t need my help, but because I can¡¯t help you. I pray, Claire, that one day you find someone who can.¡±

    Claire didn¡¯t know what to think about that unless she meant finding someone who could help her kill a dragon. She¡¯d take that kind of divine blessing. ¡°Good. I¡¯d stick around to say goodbye, but I think after what I¡¯ve been through I¡¯ll just leave it there.¡± Without further word, without giving Quala the chance to say anything else, Claire turned around and walked towards where her Sojourn hung in the sky.

    She was still driven to get her revenge, eventually. For now, after convincing the church of the Hand to back off, all she wanted to do was go home.

    ¡­

    Murdon sat in the same office that a certain teshak had been harangued in a few days earlier. His fate was not set for the same unpleasantness, in fact it was the Regent who might expect some terseness. It was finally time for Soraso to explain just why he¡¯d had Murdon stick around in Threst for a month longer than he¡¯d needed to.

    The Regent, the Bard, like he liked to do, began with an inane tangent. ¡°So, you didn¡¯t take a shine to Tounaki? I thought you might have rather liked her, and vice versa.¡±

    Murdon almost stood up then and there. It wouldn¡¯t have been too rude since Soraso was in one of his dramatic stances by the window, the kind air gestalt could really pull off since they didn¡¯t have bones, joints, or flesh to get in the way of a good posing. ¡°Seriously? That factored into why you chose her?¡±

    ¡°Of course! It was the entire point.¡± Soraso split off hair-like strands of cloud from his head just so he could rub a hand through them. ¡°I mean, seriously Murdon, from what I¡¯ve heard you were practically celibate ever since you went off to the Thormundz.¡±

    ¡°I was busy. The world¡¯s been trying to end, if you¡¯ve forgotten,¡± Murdon objected. ¡°Why do you even care? Gestalt don¡¯t reproduce that way and don¡¯t you dare tell me you¡¯ve gotten some kind of power that lets you-¡±

    ¡°No, no, nothing like that.¡± Soraso cut him off before Murdon brought the conversation so far down in the mud that even he, the most irreverent Regent Threst ever had, had to object. You had to have some standards or else you wouldn¡¯t have anything at all. ¡°It¡¯s more, well, think of it like this, Murdon. I am a Bard. I think the fact that my people can take this class tells you it is deeper than most give it credit for. I wonder if popular opinion on the subject doesn¡¯t do it more harm than good.¡± He waved a hand, and Murdon couldn¡¯t help but notice the gesture was angled towards a flute displayed in a case. Soraso¡¯s original Focus, before taking the sword of Threst.

    ¡°Anyway,¡± he continued. ¡°You are my friend. Even if I have to keep conflicts of interest to a minimum, and even if I have no personal stakes in these matters, I know how important private time with one another is to you fleshbags. If I can¡¯t chase that dragon, then at least I can help others do that. Think of my take on the Bard class, well, one of them, as being the ultimate wingman.¡±

    Murdon groaned, wondering if Soraso really had gone through all this trouble for his benefit, or just to set up that joke. ¡°Soraso, first, if you¡¯re going to do something like that, tell me. And I told you, I can¡¯t spare the attention. The world is at stake.¡±

    ¡°Yes, yes, you mentioned that already.¡± Soraso pointed a finger at Murdon¡¯s chest from across the room, the hand having separated from the arm to pull it off. ¡°But in answer to you, first, if you knew what I was doing I would have lost all plausible deniability of it being reinforcements for a mission of mercy. Think about how that would reflect on me, sending a subordinate along with a friend and his three other friends on a remote mission where they¡¯d be very alone, having told said friend I was expecting my subordinate to hit on them.¡± Soraso shook his head dramatically.

    Well, when you put it that way, Murdon thought.

    ¡°And another thing. Murdon, the world ended when Eido vanished. Then it ended a few weeks after that when some god-tier monster started waking up. Then it ended again when you discovered the Illustrious may still be kicking around somehow. Most recently, it also ended because your friend wasn¡¯t able to help some poor, misguided Arcanist.¡±

    ¡°That last one is a stretch,¡± Murdon mumbled, intelligent enough to see where this was going. ¡°I just, it doesn¡¯t feel right. When everything could come crashing down at a moment¡¯s notice? That thing in the mountains is right across the region¡¯s border. An army of monsters could appear in the next few minutes and I¡¯d be dead before sundown.¡±

    Soraso gave the draconoid a disbelieving look and then laughed. ¡°Murdon, I said I don¡¯t have first-hand experience with romance, but I still know that¡¯s one of the times you turn to others for comfort the most. Maybe not with the same intentions as in peace time, but as far as I knew my little soon-to-be Pyromancer burns alone these days.¡±

    ¡°Should you know that kind of information?¡±

    Soraso dithered for a few moments. ¡°Ultimately, aren¡¯t I the best to if anyone has to? The point being, Murdon, is that if you want to get attention here, all you need to do is use that armor trick out on the open street and it won¡¯t take long. Tounaki described that power in detail in her report and I didn¡¯t even ask her to log anything like that. I don¡¯t remember asking her to submit a report!¡±

    It should be said that Murdon was the kind of person to feel slight discomfort from this kind of attention, even if it was by proxy. He was the reluctant leader type, after all. Still, he found it in himself to dig out one more quip. ¡°Use my powers to find a partner? What am I, a Bard?¡±

    Soraso clapped a hand over where his heart would be if he had one. ¡°My word good sir!¡± he exclaimed in mockery of the court¡¯s high speech, turning it up higher to the kind almost no one used anymore. ¡°Thou hath wounded me.¡±

    They both smiled as Murdon felt the topic begin to drop. They hadn¡¯t reached a conclusion, though he felt Soraso hadn¡¯t been leading the conversation towards one anyway. The Bard had just wanted to give him a push, it was up to Murdon to fly or fall. ¡°So,¡± Murdon spoke up finally, a grave note entering his voice. ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°Yes, well, that. Oddly topical given the surprise appearance of Zozar. There is a lot to explain and I don¡¯t feel comfortable discussing some parts, even here.¡± He gestured to the office broadly. ¡°Too many eyes, ears, and feathered asses lying in wait to catch me acting unbecoming.¡±

    ¡°They need to wait for that?¡± Murdon asked with a raised eyebrow.

    ¡°What, this? This is just my normal eccentricity, to hear some of the court put it. It¡¯s the bar I¡¯ve set with great effort and balance so I can act like a complete monkey in front of all of them without igniting a civil war. No,¡± Soraso sighed. ¡°No, this is actually about something serious. I¡¯ve already sent a message to Aughal requesting the rest of your team come here, every single one of note. Lograve, that exile we¡¯re officially pardoning, and an as of yet unnamed but promising team I¡¯m informed you had a hand in putting together. To name names. Or, not to.¡± He frowned, getting side-tracked again. ¡°Do you know why they haven¡¯t come up with a name yet? They do know you can change it if you don¡¯t like it, or realize it¡¯s stupid down the line? We had a team named the ¡®Ruddy Beaks¡¯ which, if you¡¯ll believe it, wasn¡¯t intentional innuendo but a case of someone thinking that word meant something else. I blame our guild¡¯s ban on similar-sounding team names, personally. And everyone¡¯s insistence on putting some kind of bird reference in them.¡±

    Rather than answer the questions that bordered on rhetorical, Murdon just waited for Soraso to tire himself out and get to the point. He did, eventually. ¡°So, Murdon. We discovered something, quite by accident. A ruin, and we¡¯re pretty sure it dates back to before the Collapse. It¡¯s above the sky limit.¡±

    ¡°Above the sky limit?¡± Murdon thought this was another joke at first, or at least the setup to one. ¡°There is no ¡®above the sky limit¡¯. And old world ruins? Those are rarer than alabaster. Anything the first world built was reduced to ash and dust.¡±

    ¡°Unless it was kept safe. Above the sky limit,¡± Soraso repeated.

    Murdon fixed Soraso with a stare. ¡°We both know there¡¯s nothing above the sky limit unless you¡¯re being cheeky about your definition of the word up.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m being exactly literal, Murdon.¡± Soraso summoned the sword of Threst, the manifestation of the Spoke of the region and thus the Octyrrum¡¯s investiture in it. ¡°Maybe I should start at the beginning.¡±

 Chapter 126: Civil Unrest

    "It... it worked," Arpan said breathlessly as he processed one heart in particular from the batch the Mirage leader had brought. He''d run it through his testing power as he did all the others, and she saw the intent in his eyes for a brief moment to destroy it. It was the reason she''d insisted on someone being here while he tested them.

    "Good. Use it immediately to make another dagger," she instructed. This had been what she had waited for. After hundreds of hearts, they''d finally found one that worked.

    "This is from a level 1 monster, a desert urchin if I''m not mistaken," Arpan said warily. "What you want me to make, that''s level 5. It shouldn''t work, but it does. How is this one different?"

    "Does it matter?" she replied dismissively, trying to keep the anticipation out of her voice. It was time. With the dagger the Assassin had used, and on the body he''d used it on, she had a second ally. That wasn''t enough. Either the Illustrious had misjudged the situation, hadn''t had the resources themselves to make a second, or had just not wanted them to succeed here. Matters were proceeding too quickly, the meeting of the gods projected to occur in less than two weeks. She had to strike before then, and with the stony mortal heart she''d acquired weeks ago, this next dagger could produce the last ally she needed to pull off the plan.

    The Mirage leader ignored Arpan''s questions and waited for him to begin his work. Once he did, she returned to her own thoughts. In the end it wasn''t too surprising as to what the material''s special requirement had been. It might''ve been the reason the Illustrious hadn''t shared the full formulae.

    It wasn''t the heart itself, it was the fact that it had come from a monster with a spirit, if the report of the one that harvested it was anything to judge by. From the secrets of her people Casia knew the hearts of those monsters could accumulate soul remnant from the broken spirit. Normally use of this resource was limited to the gods, but the Illustrious must have found a way to create a formulae that was compatible with it.

    She''d have to keep an eye out for more of those rare creatures. While she had enough daggers now for the plan to succeed, there were at least two others she wanted to use them for. All in good time. For now, she had a siege to plan.

    ...

    There was a bell behind the door that rang when it opened, playing a cheery three-note melody. That one of the notes differed from the other meant it was probably magical, and she could guess who had made it. It was a small thing, something she hadn¡¯t noticed when first coming here because of how big everything had been. The streets were no less intimidating now but for different reasons.

    A little over a month after leaving Aughal for the first time, Khiat stepped into the shop run by Ornithar. She saw the surprise on the shopkeeper¡¯s face. It had become a common reaction to people seeing her. Bending down, she fully crossed the threshold. She was alone, although armed. Weapons weren¡¯t yet banned on the streets, though there¡¯d been plenty of people grumbling about how the Council would probably put that in place the way things were going.

    To Ornithar, it was obvious that a Blessed had just entered his shop. He didn¡¯t remember her, as distinguishing duskers was very difficult for those not of their race even for people who dealt with them normally. He was just a little on edge because of how she¡¯d entered.

    Unarmored. It was minutes to dusk, the sun on the horizon, but the sun was still out. Duskers with Sun Immunity were a mark of someone high level or of exceptional means. Ornithar¡¯s Appraise Enchantment power didn¡¯t suggest she carried anything granting that effect, so that meant this Blessed was very powerful indeed.

    ¡°Good evening, madam. Can I help you with something?¡± He privately sighed in relief when he heard her speak, having correctly guessed the gender. Then he blinked as he realized how young she was.

    ¡°Uhm, yes.¡± Indecision for just a moment in her voice before an easy conviction took over. Someone who was still learning herself but having made it past the basic courses. That confused Ornithar. It didn¡¯t fit with what he¡¯d assumed, and several of his other powers were beginning to function as if she was below his level. ¡°There¡¯s a couple of things I¡¯d like to buy. Do you have any of the, um, long-lasting flying toys? The ones with your name,¡± she clarified with traces of uncertainty still clinging on.

    ¡°I do! How many were you looking for?¡± Despite being confused and a little intimidated, Ornithar¡¯s speech didn¡¯t falter and the mercantile gleam in his eye didn¡¯t fade. He was a businessman, and old. This wasn¡¯t the first time someone unexpected had entered his shop. Not by far. ¡°I can also customize them, for an additional cost. Paint that won¡¯t fade or fray, and in many colors. I can do patterning as well, even on the sails with a special dye.¡±

    An example was brought up unbidden. Not a full construction and certainly not enchanted. Ornithar didn¡¯t have the time nor wealth to create replicas of ornithopters with permanent flight in every color and pattern. Instead, small sections of cloth and painted clay lined a section of the counters, the colors of which could be transposed to any number of toys surrounding the shelves. The section the old avianoid lifted was purple, primarily, but had sections of green scattered about seemingly at random.

    ¡°Hue isn¡¯t an issue,¡± Ornithar continued. ¡°If you want minor alterations off an existing pattern, then I have Recolor Material. I was a greenhand back when I awakened it and thought it was a waste. Why use magic when you could go to the market and buy any dye you¡¯d like?¡± He shook his head at his old foolishness and then brushed a feather that had detached from the table. ¡°Ah. But what do you think? It would be an additional ten gold, but if you buy three with patterning I would round it to three and a half viridian total.¡±

    Despite everything that had happened, the sales pitch was affecting Khiat. She¡¯d lost her class, but she hadn¡¯t become immune to the powers of others. What saved her wasn¡¯t any superior resistance to the three separate powers Ornithar was employing, it was the same principle that had prevented Gadriel from making Daniel confess on their first encounter.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I don¡¯t have that much,¡± Khiat apologized wanly. She wanted a fleet of these surrounding her, in every color she could imagine. If only price wasn¡¯t an issue. ¡°I just have the money for two.¡±

    ¡°Ah, I understand.¡± Ornithar neatly replaced the colored cloth, showing none of the disappointment at not closing the larger sale. He reached for a shelf whose door opened without a touch, withdrawing two boxes as long as his arm before carefully closing it. ¡°Each will be one viridian, though I think you know this. You¡¯ve been here before, yes?¡±

    ¡°About a month ago.¡±

    ¡°You were the one with the Artificer!¡± Orthinar clapped his hands together in triumph, now finally putting the pieces together. ¡°I saw him fly! That was a sight, but I fear that was a turning point what with all these unpleasantries. Not the actual cause, please don¡¯t misunderstand, but everything seems to be getting worse and faster each day. But I digress. I thought you were the one with him. That quiver and bag on your hip is a giveaway.¡±

    Khiat, who had already been reaching for it, brought a mostly red pouch up and withdrew two coins out of it. ¡°Really?¡± A little more of the young woman she¡¯d been before awakening her class came out of the dust as she fully engaged in the conversation. Ornithar, with what could only be called a kind of elderly charm, made it easy. ¡°How can you tell?¡±

    ¡°Unfortunately, not all of my tricks are for sale or display.¡± Ornithar smiled. ¡°But, I see a secondary enchantment on the leather. That¡¯s an Artificer¡¯s work. I think there¡¯s another name for that. Drat. But it looks new, and I¡¯ve heard our resident Artificer has become even more of a recluse these days. I don¡¯t blame him.¡±

    ¡°Is the city always this dangerous?¡± Khiat asked. She¡¯d only returned to Aughal late yesterday, but that had been enough time to get a sense that things had changed. Or, maybe, she¡¯d just become less naive. Hard looks on the street amidst the surprise at her walking unarmored in the sun. Suspicion. Those who ran through the crowds to their destination rather than risk a slow walk in public. ¡°Oh, we didn¡¯t have anything to do with it, did we?¡±

    Ornithar grimaced as he slid one box out of its outer sleeve and began putting one of the flying toys together on the desk. ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have said that. No, it¡¯s not you. It¡¯s that damned Council. Other regions don¡¯t do this, you know. The strongest lead, and that means someone who has earned their levels. Here, power is inherited. I¡¯ve been happy to keep my head down over the years and make things better for the children of this city.¡± The last wing on the first toy was fitted into place, the process taking Ornithar as long as his speech did. ¡°I think I forgot to worry about what happens to them when they grow up. My grandchildren and, well, great-grandchildren don¡¯t have it hard because they have me. Seeing the looks on those who come in now, I think-¡±

    The shop¡¯s bell tinkled again, and looking out the door Khiat was surprised to find the night sky. How long had she been in this shop? It hadn¡¯t felt like longer than a few minutes. She turned to find what could only be a mother and her son. It took her a moment to realize that they were the more natural clients here. She was the outsider.

    As if in recognition of that, Ornithar bolted from the counter, leaving one of Khiat¡¯s orders unfinished. It might have also been that she¡¯d already paid, and exhausted the majority of her coin in doing so. ¡°Well, who do we have here?¡± he asked, not kneeling as he would to a child of another race as the young dusker was his height.

    The presence of the boy aboveground more than anything confirmed night¡¯s arrival. The muscles responsible for locking the armored chitin took time to develop fully, leaving immature duskers constantly under threat from the sun. ¡°He is Chati,¡± the mother answered for the child, who was staring at the walls as much as the shopkeeper. ¡°I was hoping there was something left. In the fund? Last night someone mentioned there was more and I came as soon as I could.¡±

    ¡°What? Oh, yes, of course. Anything he likes.¡± Khiat watched, not at all annoyed for being ignored, as Ornithar led the boy around his shop. She and the mother exchanged glances, the unfamiliarity between them enough to prevent further interaction. Khiat saw the same things from the street in this shop. The way Chati didn¡¯t run or speak, almost afraid to. The half step the mother took when they both got outside the reach of his arms before she reigned herself in. And the obvious overenthusiasm in the shopkeeper trying to make up for it.

    Chati settled on an articulated model of a creature Khiat hadn¡¯t seen before. Four stocky legs, a long mouth, and a tail made of hair, if the intricate carvings could be judged as accurate. It didn¡¯t look like a monster, none of the toys did here, so it was probably some form of animal not fit for the desert. ¡°Now, and this is very important Chati, what colors would you like?¡±

    He didn¡¯t get an answer. The child just stared upwards with a mixture of hesitation and uncertainty. Familiar emotions to Khiat. The mother eventually answered. ¡°Whatever they normally look like is fine. We couldn¡¯t ask for more.¡±

    Ornithar looked slightly crestfallen but nodded and squeezed the wood for a moment. Color flowed out from his talons, painting the body a tannish-red while white dyed the tail and revealed a mane along the back of the neck that had been hard to distinguish before. The display of magic and, more importantly, receipt of the toy finally broke the guarded look on Chati¡¯s face as he smiled. ¡°Thank you.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re welcome, my dear boy. Where are you off to next on this adventure?¡±

    ¡°Home,¡± the mother answered, taking her son¡¯s arm gently into her hand as she led him to the door. ¡°The streets the way they are, you know. But I am glad to see the Spireborn haven¡¯t forgotten us. That you haven¡¯t. Thank you.¡±

    ¡°Bah, I¡¯m just an old bird that can cut wood. Don¡¯t think anything of it.¡± As they left, and it was clear no other customer would be in, Ornithar returned to his desk and deflated as worked on the other ornithopter.

    ¡°You¡¯re really nice,¡± she said. ¡°Just giving them that for free.¡±

    ¡°You didn¡¯t grow up here, did you? Are you from an evernight region? Salant, perhaps.¡±

    ¡°No, I¡¯m from one of the villages. Duststone Oasis.¡±

    ¡°Hwark. Haven¡¯t heard of it.¡± The man passed a hand over his face briefly, brushing a loose feather out of his eyes. ¡°You don¡¯t know then. Not that I know what it¡¯s like out there, but here your kind keeps children very sheltered. We both know why, and that can be hard on them. A while ago, the dusker faction started giving me a fund to provide for them. A small thing, something I didn¡¯t even ask for.¡±

    ¡°The people I¡¯ve talked to say they haven¡¯t found someone to replace the one who died.¡± That had been a topic on everyone¡¯s lips. Who on the Council had died, who was left, and how little they were doing. Agitation and unrest. Assassinations and scandals of the highest order and little to explain the events beyond an increasingly strained city guard keeping the fracturing peace.

    If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

    ¡°It¡¯s run out, of course. The parents were more judicious before, duskers have a strong sense of community. Stronger than my people, I¡¯m afraid. That¡¯s why you see us and humans mixing factions whereas yours stood strong alone for¡­¡± He looked up for a moment, searching. ¡°Ah, who knows? I think of leaving sometimes. Threst? My family and I would be welcomed there, but I worry about who I¡¯d leave behind.¡±

    ¡°We might be going there,¡± Khiat nodded, trying to ignore the pain in the old man¡¯s eyes. ¡°Well, the people I¡¯m with.¡±

    ¡°Your team?¡± Ornithar nodded to the bow on Khiat¡¯s back which threatened to poke holes in his ceiling if she wasn¡¯t careful with her height.

    ¡°I guess? This is all so new. And a few weeks ago I was¡­ bad.¡± Khiat grimaced at the memories. The old Cleric had offered to at least block out the time she¡¯d spent in self-isolation, but she¡¯d taken the advice that it would be better to reconcile that time rather than conceal it.

    ¡°An injury?¡± Khiat didn¡¯t reply, looking away. ¡°Ah, well, new you say? I admit that is surprising. If you don¡¯t mind, how can you handle the sun?¡±

    Her face lit up at that. ¡°Oh, Sun Resistance. It only works for an hour at a time but it¡¯s so¡­¡±

    ¡°Freeing?¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± she answered emphatically. ¡°I hunted in the late day before, but not like this. And I can feel warm instead of burning. It¡¯s more than I dreamed. More than I ever thought it would feel like.¡±

    ¡°Well, I have your orders ready. Thank you, truly. It¡¯s people like you that let me continue my charitable streak.¡± He paused, thoughtful and guilty for a moment. ¡°If you do travel to Threst, perhaps stop by another time first before you go.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯d want to come with us? I¡¯m not even sure if I¡¯ll go.¡±

    He waved a hand. ¡°Just a thought. Not a serious one. Please, just ignore that. I¡¯m sure everything will be fine soon. Thank you, again.¡± There wasn¡¯t much else to say, and so Khiat headed for the door to ring the bell one more time.

    ¡­

    Daniel was back in Aughal. From the looks of it, the city was as excited about it as he was. The streets were tense, the mood dark, and prospects for an easy resolution for the region¡¯s government grim. Fortunately, it didn¡¯t seem like it would be their problem for too much longer. Lograve had received a message from Threst indicating they should all go there soon, and that the gods had already been warned about the threat in the Thormundz.

    The Arcanist was still trying to help pull together the city¡¯s government, if for no other reason than spite. From what he¡¯d heard, the factions whose Councilmember had been killed or removed from their position had yet to elect replacements even though it was making everything worse. He wished Lograve the best of luck but had no intention of sticking around long enough to see that get resolved himself.

    At least the gains had been good. According to Evalyn, they had been going at a pace the former Eido Commander would term ¡®aggressive¡¯, and that was if you left out the higher level monsters they¡¯d fought. Despite all of that he¡¯d only earned three more advancement potential. Well, that and a nifty power.

    <hr>

    Your Dexterity is now 22!

    -

    Your Intelligence is now 24! You have gained Feature: Ammunition Surplus.

    -

    Ammunition Surplus (Feature, Intelligence, Domain: Enchantment, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to occasionally produce another Item: Ammunition while enchanting. This effect can only produce one additional item per activation. The chance that this effect will occur scales with your Attribute: Luck, and your intelligence to a lesser degree. This effect may occur in an area of Magical Suppression so long as the base enchantment is not suppressed.

    <hr>

    He might have been abusing that feature now, but he was in the middle of something else. ¡°Being used to monster hunting is weird, but thinking of it as easy is¡­¡±

    ¡°Weirder?¡± Earth-Daniel finished the sentence. That was the other thing. The most earthshaking revelation. His bitterness at being marooned by himself was still there. Daniel didn¡¯t know if it would ever go away, and kept making only infrequent visits. It was that, and that he was completely vulnerable while here, that kept him from coming here more often.

    Right now, he was holed up in the inn with Hunter guarding the door. This was going to be a short visit. ¡°Khiat should be getting the ornithopters now. You think I should mount weapons on them?¡±

    ¡°I think you should try! Why not? Enchant a miniature crossbow or something, maybe get it to automatically fire. Wait, you¡¯d probably need an enchantment or affix that does that.¡± Earth-Daniel was scrawling on a whiteboard, roughly sketching the idea and letting him see the surface for once. Whatever had been erased underneath had been thoroughly wiped away. Asking about it would only lead to a sometimes literal wall of silence, so he didn¡¯t.

    ¡°Enchanting¡¯s hard enough as it is. Damn, I didn¡¯t know how good I had it with the heliorite.¡±

    ¡°Like watching paint dry,¡± Earth-Daniel muttered, commiserating. He had to watch everything Daniel did, all for the sake of a little red button on his desk that would do something in the direst of emergencies.

    ¡°I¡¯ve got to train with it though. We¡¯re not going after anything higher level than us anymore, especially since Khiat would have died after the wyrm if not for near divine intervention.¡± Daniel looked more closely at the drawing his counterpart was making, noticing he¡¯d switched to a red marker. ¡°Wait, is that a laser?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡± Earth-Daniel shrugged. ¡°Make something you don¡¯t have to trigger.¡±

    ¡°And what, just have it firing all the time?¡± The other considered this and then erased the line beaming out from the image. Daniel almost wanted to keep the conversation up, but he had to go. One thing first. ¡°Show me, again.¡±

    ¡°Are you sure? You tear up every time and that¡¯s hard to watch.¡±

    ¡°Show me.¡± Earth-Daniel sighed and brought his phone up to the barrier, going through a series of images he¡¯d saved on his phone. They were painful to look at, but he did it anyway. Kara, Alex, and Ami. His family, those still alive at least. These were all new, taken from social media. His only photo was years old, and seeing how they looked now was a blessing and a curse.

    Daniel wiped his eyes, taking comfort from the fact that what he did here didn¡¯t cross over to the other side. Hunter would probably tease him. Honestly? That might make me feel better. The tears stopped, faster than last time. It hurt, but it helped. After initially finding the way to this place, he sometimes woke up with the belief that this was all fake. Meeting his other half had shaken him. Seeing this kept him grounded. ¡°Thanks. I need to go though.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Hey, I know I don¡¯t get taste, but could you try that glazed thing next time? I want to know if it¡¯s a donut.¡±

    ¡°You clearly don¡¯t get smell either. It¡¯s not a donut.¡±

    ¡°Aw,¡± Earth-Daniel whined, as Daniel, or perhaps, Octyrrum-Daniel as he certainly didn¡¯t internally refer to himself, left. It was easy if you knew where to look. To come here, he had to channel mana through the circuit around his heart. A new ability, even if it didn¡¯t appear in his Encyclopedia. To exit he had to stop that flow by plucking at the only part of his true body he could faintly sense in the space. It was almost like a second heartbeat he willed to stop.

    ¡°That takes a lot of mana,¡± Daniel complained, coming to in a dimly lit room. The sun had set, and Hunter didn¡¯t need a candle to see in the dark. The keen eyes of the predator had received quite the boost as Daniel himself could attest. His sensory training was providing results, spurred on by a slight relief that Earth-Daniel couldn¡¯t watch him while he crossed over. Well, he can, but it¡¯s just my body. That¡¯s still creepy to think about.

    ¡°We should leave after tonight,¡± Hunter told him in greeting.

    ¡°Lograve says we should stay in the city for a few days while he figures things out. It¡¯s great that Murdon got Threst on board and there¡¯s this whole secret thing they can¡¯t tell us about until we get there, but he wants to be sure there¡¯s a Council here to keep the region stable. I think we give Lograve a few days to give him a chance to go with us.¡±

    ¡°I know,¡± Hunter growled. ¡°We could still go, though.¡±

    ¡°Is it that bad?¡±

    ¡°I can hear stress. Fighting. Worse things.¡±

    Daniel was taken aback. ¡°Where? Are people, oh. It¡¯s a big city I guess. Big enough for semi-regular crime. You¡¯re hearing everything?¡±

    ¡°Yes. It¡¯s worse than last time.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re not the only one with good senses,¡± Daniel said, sympathetic but also pondering. ¡°If we wanted to, we could probably be crime fighters. Not that I¡¯m suggesting that, but why doesn¡¯t the guard use Blessed to passively scan? Even if they only had one or two with powers like yours it¡¯d make a difference. And don¡¯t they have a Fate? They should be able to Minority Report this kind of stuff.¡±

    ¡°Do you like that the other you is watching?¡± Hunter didn¡¯t, and that was plain.

    ¡°Oh, right.¡± Daniel glared absently at a spot on the wall as if at a camera. ¡°But still, they straight up kidnapped me out of prison. If they¡¯re that shady, they must have something like that going on and just aren¡¯t telling people.¡±

    ¡°So?¡±

    ¡°So it¡¯s a good thing I have this anti-detection power.¡± He stood and peered out into the dark streets. Duskers were beginning to mix into the crowds, reducing the traffic from about ten abreast to four. ¡°I don¡¯t know why I didn¡¯t think about this before, but there¡¯s got to be people on the guard that do that. Set up in a part of the city and keep a lookout for trouble. I bet Rangers are great at that. If we can convince people you¡¯re a Druid then you could probably get hired too.¡±

    ¡°Not a Druid,¡± Hunter said pointedly. It was something that had come up on their first visit to the Hunter¡¯s Guild when the Commander of all people had asked Hunter a direct question. Hadn¡¯t that made for a moment of sheer terror? ¡°You¡¯re teasing me.¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t like this place.¡±

    ¡°I know,¡± Daniel said softly, trying to comfort Hunter. It¡¯d been better at the oasis, the ringcat less sullen, but at least he was talking about it now. ¡°We¡¯ll have to see how Thomas is doing. I know he has family here, but if Quala¡¯s staying in Threst he¡¯ll probably come too. No idea about Khiat but she seems-¡±

    ¡°Close.¡± An aura accompanied Hunter¡¯s words as a large shape, still some distance away, appeared. ¡°Will you tell her about everything, if she comes?¡±

    ¡°Everything? I don¡¯t know, but it has affected her. Maybe she deserves to know.¡± A knock at the door, silencing both immediately. Daniel¡¯s power protected against magical intrusion, but not someone eavesdropping through the door.

    ¡°Hey you two, looks like Khiat¡¯s on her way,¡± Evalyn¡¯s voice came through the door, slightly troubled but not in the way that would indicate danger. ¡°Want to come down?¡±

    ¡°Yes, commander,¡± Daniel snapped off.

    ¡°Stop that,¡± Evalyn laughed lightly, and her footsteps departed.

    The two left, entering the hallway of the Painted Dusk¡¯s upper level. They¡¯d chosen to return here since Lograve had never left, pursuing his advancement along with the delicate art of stitching civic order back together while they were gone.

    Aside from that, the wide hallways fit for duskers also perfectly accommodated the murder cat at Daniel¡¯s side. Most buildings in the city open to the public were built to allow duskers entry and Hunter could move about them with some difficulty, but in this tavern he could walk side by side with Daniel. Even the larger species kept a distance from the pair, yet they didn¡¯t avert their gazes. Hunter¡¯s golden armor was unmistakable, and half of the city had seen him flying. An adventurous few had asked for a ride since they¡¯d returned.

    Evalyn walked ahead, swaying ever so slightly as she walked. You wouldn¡¯t think anything of it if you didn¡¯t know her well, but Daniel had been there when she¡¯d awakened the power. It wasn¡¯t anything too powerful, nor would it shape a battle, but Evalyn had made good use of it. Mostly to turn heads, but give it time and she¡¯d figure out something impressive. That wasn¡¯t what bothered Daniel, it was the name. Head Canon*, with an asterisk. A pun to him, but not the others. A few of the powers had been like that, Beast Friend as an example, and they¡¯d all had asterisks.

    Earth-Daniel knew something about that, but the damn list stopped him from saying anything. He hated that, he hated the person who¡¯d taken him from his world even if that wasn¡¯t technically what had happened. Who acted like he understood what Daniel had been through just because he¡¯d watched it like a TV series. The one who was also his only link to what he¡¯d been forced to leave behind.

    ¡°You need to get out of your head.¡± Evalyn was suddenly at his side, sensing his turmoil.

    ¡°It¡¯s not fair.¡± Daniel slowed, not wanting to reach the stairs before he could complain. Like a child, it had to be said. These feelings came to him suddenly, as if he wasn¡¯t passively aware of never being able to go home. ¡°He-¡±

    ¡°I know.¡±

    We know. Hunter nudged against his back. Stop moping.

    ¡°I¡¯m not- fine, I am.¡± Daniel sighed, shaking himself. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go. We shouldn¡¯t keep them waiting.¡±

    ¡­

    Tak, Khiat, and Lograve were in the common area of the tavern, sitting together by the time the rest made it downstairs. Khare, for their part, was probably just outside resting, or meditating, or whatever the right word was for when earth gestalt went into the ground. They did that a lot whenever the group was in Aughal, but would resurface and join the group when they were ready.

    Daniel¡¯s brief dark mood evaporated when he saw the two shapes Khiat had placed on the table. ¡°You got them, thanks!¡±

    The dusker gingerly placed the two toys about as long as Daniel¡¯s forearms on the table. They didn¡¯t fly as they were missing something crucial. ¡°I didn¡¯t do much. You gave me the money, and it wasn¡¯t too far.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t say that,¡± Evalyn cut in, encouraging. ¡°That could have been dangerous. You should have sent someone with her.¡±

    ¡°Everyone else was busy.¡± Daniel paused in his observations of the ornithopters as he tilted one upside down, where a name could be carved.

    ¡°What did you want those for anyway? One I could understand, but two? Do you know how much coin you just spent?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll get more.¡± Daniel shrugged, fitting one and then the other in the bag at his waist. So useful. ¡°I have an idea. A couple, actually, but one good one that I¡¯ll need two for.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll be interested in examining your final product,¡± Lograve commented, a little impatiently. ¡°Considering you can just pluck rare enchanting formulae out of the air now there¡¯s no telling what you can do, but I¡¯m afraid we¡¯ll have to cut your gloating short.¡±

    ¡°I wasn¡¯t gloating!¡±

    ¡°Right. Well, let¡¯s be off. We shouldn¡¯t keep Rasalia or that feathered ingot waiting.¡± He started walking for the door, not waiting for anyone to protest. To his surprise a large figure did. The barkeeper, like many others, had been observing the exchange. Sheepishly, Lograve paid the tab for the evening meal he¡¯d forgotten about and then coughed. ¡°R, right. Now we¡¯ll go.¡± And on the way, he directed towards Daniel, I think we will have time for you to tell me everything about this doppelganger of yours.

    Daniel gulped.

 Chapter 127: Sisters

    It had been almost two months since she¡¯d returned to the city. Six weeks, or was it seven? Fuck, but time could slip by when you were just lazing about. Tlara¡¯s eyes opened earlier that morning to a now familiar sight. Dark brown stone. For all their wealth and status, the Seliri family didn¡¯t have much in the way of decorations for the ceiling. Who would care about something like that? Definitely not Tlara, and she paid it no mind.

    She rose with the sun. It was impossible not to with an eastern facing window, even though the Rose Spire should have blocked it. Little known trivia, the Wing Spire used to be named the Dusk Spire, with the eastern-most the Dawn Spire instead of Rose. Sun, Moon, Dawn, and Dusk. Two had kept the original names at least. One had changed ages ago, and in the intervening years, the Spire that would become dominated by an encroaching faction of avianoids from Threst would be renamed the Wing Spire. Tlara¡¯s predecessors had lacked creativity, it seemed.

    In truth, she didn¡¯t care about any of that. This could be called the ¡®Feathers-Up-My-Ass¡¯ Spire for all she cared. Tlara walked over to the window and tried to lean out, a small spark of anger rising when the Shroud prevented her from sticking her head fully out. Normally she¡¯d be cursing it for the sin of doing nothing more than existing, but in these few weeks Tlara had changed somewhat. By doing nothing.

    ¡°Hey. Where the fuck¡¯s dad?¡± She greeted the rest of her ¡®family¡¯, coming down to catch breakfast as she normally did these days. Willow and Alecia. The first she gave a customary glare and as for the second, well, she was kind of cool. Tlara had had time to figure out Willow disapproved of the second marriage, even if she hid it, and that was enough to get Tlara on board.

    ¡°He¡¯s sleeping in.¡±

    ¡°You two fuck too long last night or something?¡±

    Not missing a beat, Alecia snorted and waved a pastry in the air. ¡°No. Yes, and no. He has a late night appointment today and needed to sleep in. What with the dusker faction being in shambles for so long, I think we¡¯ve all forgotten about having to accommodate them. Terribly annoying, but then again it¡¯s not that I dislike the nightlife.¡±

    Willow, for her part, seemed like she wanted to slide under the table and through a convenient garbage hatch out of the Spire. If it was her first week back Tlara would have nettled her, maybe drawing her into another argument. You couldn¡¯t start a day right without getting the blood pumping, only she didn¡¯t today.

    ¡°Kay.¡± Tlara took a seat and started eating. It felt weird, just sitting down in peace without making everyone else regret their life choices. But Alecia was immune to her peculiarities and Tlara wasn¡¯t sure she wanted to be hostile with Willow right now.

    Right. The truth was Tlara could count the number of times she¡¯d left Wing Spire without having to keep track in her head. Here she was, half a roster to fill out and a glutton of monsters building up in the wild with the Hunter¡¯s Guild distracted and she¡¯d done nothing. Captured no more monsters and built up no more advancement. In fact, she still had some potential to use. The wyvern she¡¯d preened so much over sat in stasis. It¡¯s not like it would go bad, the opposite actually.

    The problem was that Tlara was depressed and afraid she might be hitting her wall. Worse, she was terrified her sister was right. Wasn¡¯t that something? That was a thought Tlara would never have had before. She¡¯d claw her eyes out before admitting that that naive, stupid girl she¡¯d had all those shouting matches with was right. But after taking some time to think about everything that had happened in the Thormundz, Tlara hadn¡¯t been able to avoid certain memories and the conclusions she¡¯d slowly drawn from them.

    She ate in silence, not caring what it was she was eating and ignoring Alecia¡¯s further attempts to unsettle Willow. The Lady had figured out Willow¡¯s distaste as well and that had led to its own form of tension. Willow would inherit everything, including Alecia¡¯s side, even if she and the Silver Eye were to have children. Tlara, having an inkling into how the Lady thought, expected that the word ¡®ungrateful¡¯ would be how Alecia characterized her sister.

    There¡¯d also be the consideration of having Willow assassinated or exiled in time, but that¡¯d be a long term play. Nothing immediate, not while her father was alive. Strike in the intervening period. Crest, Tlara might be a target too. She couldn¡¯t use most of the family¡¯s more impressive items and none of the collection that made up their legacy, but she was a Seliri. A complication if not a direct threat. Yeah, I get her. It just doesn¡¯t matter.

    Breakfast was coming to an end and the time for the decision was here. Just like every day for the past week or so. She was about to leave. Tlara could say something and find out if what she feared was true, or discover that she was just a fucking idiot and her memory had been scrambled after being mind-jacked. It could be either. Waking up after the battle at the lake had been rough. She¡¯d screamed, but not for the reason people assumed.

    ¡°Hey.¡± Willow¡¯s retreat from the table paused. Her sister tensed, anticipating. Tlara had been oddly tolerable the past few days. Was that just her giving Willow time so that the next few biting words would sting? ¡°What are you doing today?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m going to talk. With people,¡± Willow answered curtly, trying not to fall into whatever trap Tlara had set.

    ¡°Cool. You¡¯re just everyone¡¯s fucking friend aren¡¯t you?¡± Willow winced and Alecia pretended not to listen while doing so intently. Here it comes. ¡°I want to talk, later. Outside the city. You wanna-¡± Tlara¡¯s head snapped sideways, somehow conflicted. Willow was astounded. ¡°You wanna meet by the west gate this evening?¡±

    ¡°No?¡± Willow asked, now confused. She couldn¡¯t see the angle, or rather, she saw too many. Maybe this was leading to some kind of ambush or other kind of humiliation, but that wasn¡¯t Tlara¡¯s normal game. She was crafty with her words and would stoop to any kind of mischievousness that fell short of lethality. Though that depended on the person. But this required too much advanced planning and deception.

    Tlara hesitated again, but forced the words out. ¡°Fuck me. One of my monsters is weird. I want to make sure it¡¯s not-¡±

    ¡°You found one?!¡± Willow exclaimed and was then immediately recriminating. ¡°You, you dominated one!? How could you? Just to spite me?¡± Tlara stood up, ignoring Alecia¡¯s raised eyebrows, and headed for the door. Willow couldn¡¯t stop her but some of her items could. She didn¡¯t use any. ¡°What are you doing?¡±

    ¡°You know where to find me. If you¡¯re interested. I¡¯m heading out.¡±

    ¡°I can come with you now!¡± Willow said, equal parts excitement and horror. It was an odd mix, but if Tlara had what she claimed it changed everything. The Beastmaster only replied by raising one of her fingers alone as she walked away, towards the stairs and presumably the lobby below them. It¡¯d become a habit of hers recently.

    ¡°What¡¯s this about?¡± Alecia asked keenly, with a smile showing teeth.

    ¡°You know about my philosophy?¡± Willow could have followed Tlara, but she held off. Her mind was buzzing.

    ¡°Oh, that nonsense. Monsters are people too? Absurd. You¡¯ve never seen one have you?¡±

    ¡°Not one in the wild,¡± Willow admitted. ¡°But-¡± She cut herself off. She couldn¡¯t explain why she knew she was right, especially to her, to Lady Alecia. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I have to go.¡±

    ¡°Heh. And you''re the one your father wants to give the city to,¡± Alecia snidely remarked.

    ¡­

    Tlara left quickly, not wanting to let her sister catch up. There was no real reason she wanted to do this at night, other than it would be harder for other people to see what was happening. If Willow caught up to her now it was more likely she¡¯d cave and do it now to get it over with, or just call it off to spite her. Instead, Tlara was going to leave the Spire as soon as possible.

    Getting to the city proper was no major issue. On most Spires, she¡¯d have to take the slow enchanted stairs or bully her way onto a private elevating chamber, but the Wing Spire had been modified to suit avianoids. Even those who didn¡¯t gain a class still preferred to go for an item allowing flight if they were rich enough. Their race couldn¡¯t help but be fascinated with the sky.

    There was a balcony on at least every floor, with an opening in the Shroud so that they were useful. She didn¡¯t summon her wyvern when she reached one, though there would have been just enough space. In addition to her misgivings, her father had warned her about how the city might respond to flying monsters after a certain incident. Of course he has to ruin fucking everything. But the warning had been something approaching nice of her father. She supposed.

    Tlara fell through the air, not activating her ability until halfway down. This was a rush. Something to wake her up. She mildly regretted cluing her sister into her fears now, but she had to know. That wasn¡¯t important, this feeling was. Why had she stayed inside for so long?

    Avianoids didn¡¯t grow wings, or Grow Wings, out of their backs. The items Daniel had made for the dragon fight were ridiculous in that regard. How was a creature that stood on two legs supposed to direct itself through the air with wings coming out of the back? The skeletal structure couldn¡¯t support that. Tlara, more bird than human at that moment, understood this. But that was magic for you, it was the same thing that had turned her arms into the wide, nimble limbs that carried her through the air.

    The greatest tragedy was that Tlara still wasn¡¯t strong enough to sustain her flight. Level disparity cut against the amount of lift she could produce and most couldn¡¯t fly permanently until they got Grow Wings to level 3. They said it was easier in Threst because of the Spoke, but she¡¯d never been there.

    All she could do was prolong her time in the air and she tried to stay there forever. It didn¡¯t last. Eventually, she landed on the street. That wasn¡¯t uncommon, especially in the shadow of the Wing, but a few of the people on the road grabbed at weapons before relaxing. Even one of the guards.

    Fuck, everyone¡¯s jumpy. Dad, what are you doing? While she¡¯d been in hiding, that didn¡¯t make her unaware of what was happening in the city. A third of the total guard had resigned since Lord Rodreick¡¯s death, shouldering a hefty penalty to owed wages rather than stick out the current crisis. The problem was that the current crisis had been ongoing since before Tlara had returned to the city. The hunters drafted into service were bridging the gap, for now. They weren¡¯t trained for this and were used to meeting aggression with powers and overwhelming force.

    You couldn¡¯t be the daughter of Silver Eye without seeing where this was going. Civil unrest, if not managed, turned into uncivil unrest. Or worse. Her father had denied influencing the other factions to delay their nominations of new successors and, to be fair, that would be a terrible idea. However, she knew he was angling to take over.

    Not to become a Tyrant, which would weaken him at least in the short run, but to seize control of the public will. If Bennar took a sudden fall down the wrong flight of steps, Aucrest would be the sole leader of Aughal. The region had laws meant to prevent another Tyrant or Tyrant-adjacent from ruling, but how long would those last? To her knowledge, there had never been any one person in control since Armafus fell.

    Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.

    She glanced at the body of a dusker being loaded onto a cart near where she landed. The sun had taken them rather than any mortal, meaning they were very heavy. Deadweight had an entirely different meaning for that race. Normally, you wouldn¡¯t see that. Duskers never turned away one of their own in need of shelter. Death by sun was a fate they didn¡¯t wish on their worst enemies, and Tlara didn¡¯t blame them. She¡¯d heard of a few tragedies among their population in her youth. All to carelessness, nothing like the supposed assassination of Ytaya whose faction had decided to leave her in her grave. Cruel, but practical.

    Tlara¡¯s thoughts were wandering. She was wandering. She had a day before she¡¯d meet her sister and was uncharacteristically hesitant to bring out one of her monsters. Even the safe ones. So what to do? Accost random people on the street? That might be fun, but some of the guards could be twitchy enough to try to knock her out before she could pull rank. See if anyone else from the Thormundz was still here? Fuck no.

    She had no one. It¡¯d been that way in the Thormundz too, but at least the Hunter¡¯s Guild valued her class and level. Sure, she¡¯d had to rotate between teams because they were all jerks that didn¡¯t want to work with her, but she¡¯d gotten what she¡¯d wanted out of it. Beasts. Minions. Tools. She¡¯d been proud of each one she¡¯d captured. Well, not of the monsters themselves, but the fact that she had captured them. Having a living being completely under her control and knowing it had been her that broke its will was a thrill that almost matched flying.

    Dominating monsters took effort for a Beastmaster. Drive, maybe even passion. Wisdom was key to the class because the domination effect was a form of mental attack. Feeling unsure as she did now, Tlara knew she couldn¡¯t muster enough to take over anything worthwhile. Certainly not a wyvern. How had she been so sure before, absent of any doubt? The moment came to her again. Cold, around her arms and back. A blinding headache. And the giant spider pinning her to the ground with its legs.

    After hearing what had happened, Tlara had to agree it was the right play. Some of the others had died after jumping into the lake to stop the gestalt from killing the Host. If she¡¯d been left free to act she could have put herself at risk or ordered her active monster to protect what was controlling her. All in all, it was the right decision. What terrified Tlara and shook the foundations of her class was that her tool had made that decision. She¡¯d never instructed it to do anything like it had. Her fear and uncertainty stemmed from her wondering why the monster had protected her in that way.

    Spinner was different from the other monsters she had, Tlara knew. The others were completely obedient to a fault. The one she couldn¡¯t stop naming in her head? That was what kept her up at night. Tlara was many things. Arrogant, vain, haughty. Things her father had taught her. But she wasn¡¯t a monster herself. She could get a thrill out of chaining Crestspawn and making them fight to the death, but the thought that she might have done that to an actual person chilled her to the core.

    ¡­

    Willow charged out of the manor, still too slow to have seen where Tlara went. Knowing that she¡¯d never catch up, she sighed and decided to get on with her day. Getting out of the Spire took time. If only she could fly! But her father had only given her one item of their legacy and it couldn¡¯t do that.

    After reaching the streets, she first went to Perent, a baker. His daughter had recently broken her leg from a bad fall. She checked in: there was no news if the church could spare someone to heal it faster. That church was small comparatively, and bone was hard to heal. But she¡¯d ask again. Some bread, and in exchange far more coin than it was worth.

    That took ten minutes. Too much time! And yet not enough. Next, Moria, a widow whose son hadn¡¯t come back from the Thormundz. One of her oldest friends, both in years and the time she¡¯d known her. She felt shame at the impatience that crept in when that meeting stretched to twenty minutes, but she had so many people to see. Willow thought again of making a formal meeting of this as she ran to her next check in. Gather everyone in one place. They were good people, they would get along. But secret gatherings and ¡®Spiritualists¡¯ weren¡¯t a combination that put people at ease. Especially not now.

    Kelra, better but still heartbroken. She¡¯d only had time for a few words with how long it had taken to get through the line, but she was important. Everyone was important. And not everyone despaired. Sevik, a shopkeeper who was handling the stress on the city fairly well, who just liked seeing regulars in. Teshan, a retired member of the guard who haunted the small park within the center of the Spires. The almost constant shade spared the fragile plants and allowed them to survive. He looked a bit worried now, true, because they were trying to drag him back into service.

    So many people and so many faces. Her father thought she was trying to build up public support and solidify her station when it was time to pass the torch. That had been one of his prouder moments when he¡¯d ¡®figured it out¡¯. He¡¯d said it showed initiative. In truth she just liked people, and that was why she felt guilty the entire day. She wasn¡¯t giving them the time she should.

    Her frantic pace was arrested entirely in the midafternoon when she came back. Willow, who wasn¡¯t the only person half-running in the streets, came to a sudden stop as someone grabbed and pulled her into an alleyway. She was scared for a moment until she saw who it was.

    ¡°You¡¯re back!¡± Willow tried to keep her voice low as she drew closer, a little hesitantly. It was always hard to tell what she was thinking. Was she happy? Sad? Willow suspected she had a hand in what was going on, but this soon?

    ¡°You remain well?¡±

    ¡°Yes! What about you? You were gone for so long.¡±

    ¡°I returned earlier. More deliveries for the Artificer. You visited him only once?¡±

    Willow struggled with whether she was being chastised or praised. ¡°Yes, I didn¡¯t see a reason to go back.¡± Going into what had almost happened would be too much for now. More importantly, Willow had something she wanted to say. ¡°But, look, Tlara told me something this morning. She found one! I think she dominated it. Is that something we can fix?¡±

    Whatever fears Willow had of the news being dismissed like last time were dispelled. The head tilted behind the hood in a decidedly thoughtful way. Or at least, that¡¯s what Willow hoped. ¡°Hmm. Yes, this is good news. Have you seen it?¡±

    ¡°No, she told me in the Spire and it¡¯s probably too big to bring out at home. She said we could meet-¡±

    ¡°Where?¡± the other sharply asked, not letting her finish.

    Willow took that as a good sign and beamed. ¡°Outside the west gate, in the late evening, I think. Oh. We couldn¡¯t meet like this.¡± She gestured to the dark alley. The one before her never appeared directly in sunlight. She¡¯d told Willow before that this was due to how she¡¯d returned but hadn¡¯t given specifics.

    ¡°It is fine. Go. Confirm this if you can.¡± A hand absently pressed against the side of the hood and into what was behind. ¡°There was another, wasn¡¯t there? You mentioned it when we last met.¡±

    ¡°Yes, the ringcat the Artificer has! I don¡¯t know if he¡¯s in the city though.¡±

    ¡°Find that out too, if you can. I would like to meet both in due time. But do not miss this meeting with your sister.¡±

    ¡°Of course! But, what about you? What¡¯s going on, is this it? And what about Arpan, what¡¯s happening there?¡±

    Willow somehow got the impression of a wide grin, though she couldn¡¯t see it. ¡°Oh, my child, everything is going just as we planned.¡±

    ¡­

    Tlara ended up being late to her own appointment. As it turned out, her father¡¯s name was worth literal gold in that she¡¯d get ¡®free¡¯ drinks so long as she could convince proprietors she was who she said she was. The trick worked up until a certain point, which was when she moved on to the next place. That was pretty much how her day had gone, and a part of her delighted at thinking of the total she¡¯d racked up.

    It was almost dusk when she made it to the gate. There Willow was, practically shaking with anxiety. Fucking soft. She thinks monsters are so great? Let¡¯s see how she likes this. And that was another reason. Tlara was about to show her sister a giant spider monster. It was 50/50 whether Willow would run off screaming or not, forever taking back all those idiotic ideas about monsters with souls. Or spirits. Whatever. ¡°Hey.¡±

    ¡°Tlara! You¡¯re drunk?¡±

    ¡°Yep. I¡¯m good.¡± She stumbled, walking out of the gate as the sun in the distance turned red. ¡°I¡¯m good. Let¡¯s go. Let¡¯s, urgh, get this over with.¡± Willow looked back at the city for a moment, pausing as if she expected someone else. Oh fuck. ¡°You didn¡¯t invite any of your fucking friends did you?¡±

    ¡°No!¡± That seemed to rattle Willow for some reason.

    ¡°Good. Let¡¯s go.¡±

    ¡°Do you want to sit down for a little bit first?¡±

    Tlara hated the worry in that tone. ¡°Fuck no.¡± She took a breath and controlled herself. Still swaying slightly, but she was good. If it wasn¡¯t for the level disparity in endurance she wouldn¡¯t have gotten to this degree of inebriation. Willow didn¡¯t seem convinced, but she wasn¡¯t the one deciding things here either. ¡°We¡¯ll walk for ten minutes, and I¡¯ll show you.¡±

    ¡°What kind is it?¡± Willow was tailing her like one of those large lizards people tamed as pets. Not monsters, nothing like the greater skinks, just ones about the size of the dogs people from other regions couldn¡¯t stop talking about. ¡°Is it beast type? I¡¯ve always thought one of those would be more likely, like the one your Artificer friend has.¡±

    ¡°First of all,¡± Tlara glared. ¡°Not my friend. Fuck that guy. Anyway, yeah.¡±

    ¡°Is the one you have like his?¡± Willow was being bold all things considered. Maybe she thought the fact that Tlara was drunk would get her to open up more. She was right.

    Tlara dragged out her answer by exaggerating false internal deliberations, keeping her sister on the hook for as long as possible. Then she dropped the hammer. ¡°No. Mine doesn¡¯t talk.¡±

    ¡°Oh.¡± Willow stopped mid-step. ¡°What!?¡±

    ¡­

    Willow¡¯s heart was pounding. Speech? She hadn¡¯t- nothing the book she¡¯d been given had talked about this. It had talked about thinking monsters, but not of an intelligence on par with mortals. Just the precursors akin to the ones the gods had used to graft mortal races, humans excluded. The potential allies who could be turned against the others of their kind and help save lives.

    That was why this was all important! If a monster was tamed or dominated, it couldn¡¯t become more powerful and it couldn¡¯t make more of itself. Charmed monsters could, but they always broke from control eventually. What the Spiritualists wanted was to find those special few, protect them, and make a force of defenders that could fight alongside mortals without the need for magical control. Maybe, if they could show everyone that these creatures still existed, new races could be Grafted! The gods must not think any still existed. That was surely the reason why they hadn¡¯t made more, but Tlara herself had seen two!

    And one talked. That changed everything. How? A part of her worried it was a lie, or that someone had played a trick on Tlara. But she hoped. It was who she was. She hoped, even as Tlara threw up a stone wall to further questions, just to hurt her. Willow hated that about her sister, though the abuse didn¡¯t stop her from loving her. They¡¯d both been through the death of their mother, and Willow understood why her sister hurt. She just wished Tlara wouldn¡¯t hurt others to make herself feel better.

    The torture didn¡¯t last long. As soon as the gates were out of view Tlara opened one of the distinct pouches on her waist and dust flowed out. Not sand, the particles were larger and almost like dark ash. That hurt to see, a creature broken down and stored like an object. Especially if this was one of the rare few.

    Willow¡¯s neck bent further back and the shape continued taking form, but she didn¡¯t move or back up. ¡°Purple?¡± She asked, looking at large, crystal-like protrusions from the consolidating flesh. ¡°Did you put those there?¡±

    ¡°Nah. A lot of the monsters there had them. For some fucking reason.¡± Tlara seemed put out that Willow wasn¡¯t running away, even as the massive head fully formed. And its eyes tracked her. ¡°This is Spinner.¡±

    ¡°I thought you didn¡¯t name them.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t.¡± Tlara scowled. ¡°See! This is what I¡¯m talking about. Why can¡¯t I get that fucking name out of my head? And it¡¯s done things I didn¡¯t tell it to. Things that helped, sure, but I didn¡¯t tell it to fucking do them. So.¡± Tlara gestured vaguely at Spinner. ¡°Tell me if this is one of your magical dream fucking special monsters or whatever.¡±

    The sun was setting. Tlara had been late, and a part of Willow hoped they¡¯d stay out here long enough for it to get dark. The rest of her was fully intent on the monster in front of her. ¡°And she doesn¡¯t talk?¡± Willow didn¡¯t circle the monster but walked toward its head. The monster was tall, and she couldn¡¯t reach it even if she stood up on her talons. But without any signal from Tlara, it lowered itself to bring its eyes down to her level.

    ¡°See? That, fucking that. I didn¡¯t tell it to do that!¡±

    Willow reached out with a gentle hand. Spinner had a spider¡¯s head, but it was mounted on a short neck. Somewhat disturbing, but in the eyes she saw intelligence. Something more in them than the animals of the city and the monsters that other Beastmasters walked through. It wasn¡¯t anything you could find, not unless you were willing to look for it. ¡°They¡¯re real,¡± she said breathlessly. ¡°She¡¯s one of them. Tlara, you-¡± And then, everything went dark.

    ¡­

    Tlara was trying her best to conceal all of her anxiety, hoping desperately that Willow wouldn¡¯t be able to see the difference. But she¡¯d clued in, right on those eyes. Even a sheltered brat like her could tell. Tlara was fucked and worse, Wrong. And then it happened. Rising from beneath the sand, a dust-colored cloak appeared behind Willow and struck her on the back of the head.

    It had come from nowhere, and Willow didn¡¯t get back up. Tlara froze as she remembered the ring Willow wore on her left hand. A piece of her family¡¯s legacy. A powerful protective enchantment that whoever this was had gone right through.

    Tlara was about to do something, her numbed mind somewhat slow to react, when they spoke. When she spoke. ¡°Tlara, dear. It¡¯s good to see you again.¡±

    The voice chilled her instantly by its impossible familiarity. ¡°Mom?¡± A hand shot through the lowered torso of Spinner, effortlessly carving through the carapace of the monster who was reacting faster than her master. The spider thing shuddered and fell to one side with the force, not getting up.

    The woman held up something dark and fleshy, an expression impossible to read as her face was covered. ¡°Thank you for this. Though, I am sorry my child. I cannot leave you as a witness.¡±

 Chapter 128: Signed in Blood

    Thomas was sweating as he ran about Hand¡¯s church, checking on patient after patient. He was doing the equivalent of fighting dragons, pulling double shifts and barely sleeping. He¡¯d kept this up ever since coming back to Aughal. The church was staffed enough that they didn¡¯t need him to do this, but Thomas was chasing advancement. Sure, he¡¯d gained quite a lot from helping Khiat, but it wasn¡¯t enough.

    Silora¡¯s deadline was near. He had made his decision, but if he wasn¡¯t prepared then it would cost him years of his life. Sharise, the head Cleric of the church and Quala¡¯s sister, had noticed but not commented yet on what he was doing. People could chase advancement for any number of reasons and she had no reason to suspect he was being coerced. Neither could he tell Sharise the reason for his ills without giving up on any chance for a normal life.

    As if he needed any further reminders, a general call went out across the church, carried by members to other staff. ¡°We are preparing for a Resurrection service. All clergy are requested to attend if they are not in the middle of a case. Attendants will see to acute needs.¡±

    Thomas sighed, finishing the splint he was tying before excusing himself. Someone else was already entering to take over. The church didn¡¯t just have Blessed on its staff. People didn¡¯t need powers to have a drive to help others, and since you could learn to treat some ills without magic it made sense to train those with that will.

    But there were some things only magic could cure. Such as death. The mood was somber as Thomas entered the main chapel. The lights had been dimmed, almost to the point that you couldn¡¯t see the emblems of the Hand along the walls. The body lay on the altar. In another circumstance, this may appear to be a ritualistic sacrifice, but this wasn¡¯t a victim of anyone present.

    Thomas overhead the story while he was taking a seat somewhere in the mid-rows. It had been a murder from last night and there was concern of a repeat offender. The time of Aughal¡¯s only known Cleric with Resurrection was very valuable and reserved either for those who could buy it, or for the public good.

    Xavier, Thomas¡¯ unknowing peer, had to be judicious with whom he brought back. Every life returned came with a cost: time. Upon use, his Focus would break and another couldn¡¯t be bound for a full week at best. If you had to use the power on someone who was at a higher level than you, things got far worse. The first step increased the wait to a month instead of a week, and then a year, and then a decade. Beyond that, well, you might as well give up your class.

    Despite having lived for a century himself, Xavier was only in the lower reaches of level 3. It didn¡¯t matter if he¡¯d hit his wall or not, he wouldn¡¯t advance much further. The old man spent more time without a Focus than with one, and you couldn¡¯t advance without a Focus.

    Thomas barely paid attention as the ritual was carried out. You didn¡¯t need all of the chanting and reading from the book of the Hand, but he didn¡¯t begrudge showing faith and respect to the one who had given society as a whole the chance to bring people back. In truth, all Resurrection needed to work was contact with the deceased, and the willingness to pay the cost.

    Xavier was standing up front by the body, and to Thomas¡¯ eyes, he looked drained. Maybe at some point he¡¯d felt special, and important for being the only person in the region with Resurrection. It was an honor, but also a burden. He¡¯d lived a century, and every moment since awakening his power had been owned by Aughal in practice if not on paper. The church would never allow one of their own to be subjugated, but they also couldn¡¯t just ignore the importance of Ressurection.

    Am I being selfish? Thomas thought as he reconsidered his perspective and looked around. The family was sitting closest to the altar, a pew set out just for them like this was a marriage ceremony. They were the only ones that looked concerned that this wouldn¡¯t work. Ressurection had a chance for failure, but that grew with time, and getting to someone within a day was practically a guarantee.

    Anyone who died in the next week wouldn¡¯t have that chance. If I revealed myself, I could take some of the pressure off of Xavier. We could trade out weeks or something. No, that wouldn¡¯t work. The nobility would just insist that both Clerics be used as frequently as possible.

    If Thomas was acting out of selfishness then he would reveal his ability. Money, power, women, fame, the nobility of Aughal would give him whatever he wanted to sway his judgment. Thomas didn¡¯t want that. He wanted to help people and to be a Cleric.

    He bowed his head, joining everyone in prayer, although he wasn¡¯t focused on the one on the altar. Hand, why give me this? Questioning his god in the seat of their power, during a service dedicated to one of their greatest gifts, made him very uneasy. It showed how much he was doubting himself that he continued. You could have given this to anyone. Some other level 2 who wants to just come in once a week and bonk someone back to life. Me? Why choose me?

    He didn¡¯t hear a response. If the Hand told him, here and now, to confess his power he would without question. But there was nothing. The gods rarely contacted their followers. Calius coming to his aid for Khiat was more of a miracle than he should have expected, and if he prayed every day from now on without an answer he still would have come out ahead of the average Cleric.

    At the front of the room, Xavier lightly passed his hand over the deceased¡¯s eyes, and color returned to them. The family jumped to their feet and ran over. In the far corner of the room, a guard waited for an appropriate time to question the victim. Would this person have ever been brought back if the guard thought they didn¡¯t know anything? He knew the answer, and he knew that no matter what, he did not want Xavier¡¯s life.

    Thomas waited until the rest of the clergy began standing, still barely paying attention, and returned to his duties.

    ¡­

    Sometime later, Sharise found him. She must have learned he was advancing again and had come in time to stop him from reaching the trance. ¡°Thomas. We haven¡¯t had much chance to speak since your return.¡±

    ¡°Head Cleric.¡± Thomas bowed his head, hating how dull his voice sounded. ¡°I can¡¯t believe Quala¡¯s staying in Threst.¡±

    ¡°My sister is where she is needed,¡± Sharise returned evenly. ¡°I am glad she found an apprentice in you, though I doubt she taught you to disregard your health for the good of others.¡±

    Great, Thomas thought, She¡¯s here for a lecture. ¡°I just want to advance. Get better so I can help people better.¡±

    ¡°Advance you have,¡± Sharise agreed. ¡°And yet, to my eye you still have some level disparity in most of your attributes, which makes me wonder where all that potential is going.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve been spying on me?¡± Thomas kept his voice from sounding accusatory since he otherwise respected Sharise. Almost as much as he did her sister.

    ¡°Quala wouldn¡¯t forgive me if I let someone she cared about go astray.¡± Sharise gave him a piercing look and Thomas knew at that point that even if she didn¡¯t know everything, she suspected a lot.

    ¡°I have to do this.¡± She wouldn¡¯t understand, but neither was there much she could do. Oh, Sharise could banish him from this region¡¯s church, and that would hurt. But they both knew she wouldn¡¯t do that.

    Sharise drew closer, speaking with a firm voice. ¡°If someone is putting you into a dangerous position, or if you are trying to improve a power to heal someone, then tell me.¡± She looked at him, worried. ¡°A mortal¡¯s advancement path is their own, but you are making a mistake. This could set you back years or worse, make you hit your wall. What you saw and experienced in the Thormundz could make anyone want to grasp for more power. There is always someone here you can talk to if you need to.¡±

    It could hurt me, sure, but I make up for it on the other side. Thomas sighed and tried his best to keep his voice steady. ¡°It¡¯s not like that. I just need to be level 3.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡±

    He wanted to answer her, but he was trapped. It was as she suspected, but telling Sharise was just as dangerous as advancing to level 3 with an endurance of 17. ¡°I can¡¯t tell you.¡±

    ¡°Is this what Quala would want you to do?¡± That was a low blow.

    ¡°I¡¯m good. Really. Please, just let me do this.¡±

    The head Cleric stared at him and then sighed. ¡°When my sister learns of this, you are going to tell her I tried to stop you.¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡± Thomas closed his eyes, then cried out when sharp talons dragged him up. ¡°What are you doing?¡±

    ¡°Trying to stop you.¡± Sharise began dragging him away from the quiet meditation rooms within the church. There was no malice behind the action, but neither did she relent.

    ¡°You¡¯re kicking me out?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± Her tone made it clear this was not exile. ¡°Please, come back when you are ready to talk.¡±

    Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!

    Sharise gave Thomas the dignity of walking out, at least, although the look in her eyes hurt more than being thrown out. It wasn¡¯t disappointment, just¡­ Ok, it was disappointment. The kind people felt before someone was going to make a mistake, not after. Thomas sighed as he walked out the front door.

    The Divine Quarter had been one of the first to be caught up in the wave of new renovations, and the painted brick adorned the structures built in their traditional pattern. There was flexibility in how each city and region constructed theirs, but there were always common elements such as the layout.

    Not many took notice as Sharise didn¡¯t slam the door and Thomas didn¡¯t storm away. He just walked, taking note of the sky and speeding up just a little. He was getting to level 3 tonight, and if he had to advance in an inn instead of his church, so be it. He still had a room at the Painted Dusk even though he spent most nights in the church. It wasn¡¯t that expensive, and with there being fewer travelers with everything going on, the innkeeper wasn¡¯t rushing to vacate the room.

    As Thomas walked for the main road out of the quarter, someone tripped right in front of him, scraping their knee on the stone. Instead of the packed sand that made up most of the roads, the Divine Quarter had a proper courtyard. Knee-skinning stone and all. It was a young human, and Thomas only hesitated for a moment because they were wearing a symbol of the Cloak.

    ¡°Here, let me.¡±

    ¡°I shouldn¡¯t keep you,¡± the other Cleric said, making to stand before Thomas stopped him. Despite level disparity working against his strength, he had no issue holding the younger man down. The Cloak Cleric must have had the same issue and a lower level.

    Thomas didn¡¯t squirm at the sensation of broken skin below his hand. When you awakened Healing Hands, you quickly got used to that. The man¡¯s face did give him some pause though. ¡°Hey, I don¡¯t know you, do I?¡±

    ¡°Me? No. Do I know you?¡± The younger Cleric was wincing slightly from the pain, but that was going away. ¡°I¡¯m Callister. Callister Bynes.¡±

    ¡°That you¡¯re real name?¡± Thomas asked with a knowing smile. Trained in the Thormundz though he was, he¡¯d spent a few weeks in the Divine Quarter after his family had found out what he¡¯d done. There¡¯d been plenty of time to learn the reputations of the other churches. Callister, the one supposedly named Callister, shrugged beneath his simple robes. Looking at the rest of him, Thomas was surprised to find no sign of a Focus. Cloak would be the church to have concealable Foci, but then again, maybe Callister was just that green. Or their church¡¯s version of an attendant. ¡°You¡¯re not related to anyone high up in your church, are you?¡±

    ¡°No. I¡¯m not really anyone important,¡± Callister replied innocently, in the way of someone hiding something behind their back.

    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t lie to someone healing you,¡± Thomas said seriously, scowling. Callister looked frightened suddenly until Thomas smiled again. ¡°No one¡¯s not important. Now, I¡¯d tell you to take it slow, but I gotta run.¡± And then he left, giving no chance for a reply. The scrape hadn¡¯t taken long at all to heal and Thomas did have to start advancing if he was going to meet Silora¡¯s deadline.

    ¡­

    ¡°Hey, Ev. Where¡¯s everyone?¡± Thomas made it to the Painted Dusk in the early evening. He could have gone anywhere with a quiet space, but he knew seeing his friends would improve his mood. In a twist of good luck amidst all of his misfortune, he¡¯d found Evalyn sitting in the bar. Thomas needed to start, but there were things you simply made time for. Like someone injured on the side of the road. Or someone as beautiful as Evalyn.

    ¡°What¡¯s that look?¡± Evalyn asked piercingly, and Thomas¡¯ gut clenched.

    She didn¡¯t get a mind-reading power, did she? ¡°N-nothing. Did the others come back with you?¡±

    ¡°Yep. Daniel¡¯s up in his room with Hunter. Tak, Lograve, and Khiat are around here somewhere.¡± She took a sip of her drink and smiled. ¡°My team¡¯s getting our collective bounty for all the hunting we¡¯ve been doing today. It¡¯s not too late to sign back up if you¡¯re hurting for coin.¡±

    Thomas chuckled, both knowing she was half-joking and that even if he didn¡¯t have a shavi holding a crossbow to his future, he wasn¡¯t interested in hunting. ¡°Your team? You¡¯ve kept that up then?¡±

    ¡°Why, you think it should be Daniel? Or Hunter?¡± She laughed, expecting a grin from him. He didn¡¯t disappoint, but maybe something was off with his face because she narrowed her eyes. ¡°What¡¯s going on? You can¡¯t normally look at my face for this long. Wait.¡± She shook her head. ¡°I get it. You¡¯ve been back in the city for a few weeks, and now with daddy¡¯s money and name. I¡¯m sure you¡¯re pulling at least one good time a day. You probably don¡¯t have to pay for some of them. Do I not look that good anymore?¡± She elbowed him and he looked away.

    ¡°I¡¯m hitting level 3 today.¡± The confession slipped out before he could stop it. In truth, she did look that good, and he couldn¡¯t find it in himself to lie to her.

    His quiet answer was punctuated by the shattering of Evalyn¡¯s mug. They were glass, the material being somewhat plentiful given the bounty of sand, although the process was not refined enough to make the clear, durable kind needed for windows. Evalyn¡¯s best apologetic smile couldn¡¯t mollify the glare the bartender gave her. ¡°Damn you Thomas, I¡¯m probably going to have to pay for that! We don¡¯t have the money from all those hunts yet. Don¡¯t joke like that.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not a joke.¡± His steady eyes and lack of smile made her pause. Thomas looked down, one finger rubbing into the wood of the table. ¡°You know how it is for people like me who don¡¯t want to almost die every day. I got my wisdom to 25 when we got out of the Thormundz. Put a few into charisma too.¡±

    ¡°Of course you did. But Thomas, this is insane. We all advanced a lot from what we survived, but there¡¯s no way you¡¯re at level 3.¡±

    ¡°I kept going with wisdom after that,¡± Thomas said, not reacting to her words. ¡°It¡¯s at the brink now.¡±

    Evalyn thought for a second. ¡°You¡¯re taking on that much level disparity? Thomas, that¡¯s how Kob died!¡±

    ¡°But I¡¯m not fighting anything, am I?¡± Thomas challenged, getting just a little angry that his friends couldn¡¯t accept that. ¡°It¡¯s¡­ it makes sense! Everything I get from now on will be level 3. I¡¯ll be a healing powerhouse.¡± He stood, making for the stairs. ¡°I need to get started.¡±

    Evalyn stood to follow him and felt a burning gaze on her. No power, but a function of societal awareness and a debt owed. She looked between the barkeeper and the retreating Cleric, felt a little guilty, and then charmed the avianoid covertly before running upstairs. That wasn¡¯t so bad, right? She was going to pay whatever she owed. At some point.

    She just caught the door before the Cleric closed it. He tried to force the bolt into the latch, but she was stronger. Some of the wood began to bend as the Bard made the moment into a brief contest of strength, but relaxed before she would have to pay for a door too. ¡°Why are you doing this? You¡¯re smart enough to know you won¡¯t level as fast as you would, even with better powers. It¡¯ll be harder to fix your disparity, and you could hit your wall!¡±

    ¡°I know!¡± The soundproofing of the room, complete now that the door was closed, saved the slumbering duskers from the argument. ¡°Gods, but I know. I just have to do this.¡±

    ¡°Can you tell me why?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°Can we do anything to help you? Stop you from doing this.¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Thomas¡¯ voice almost broke.

    Evalyn considered her options and took the measure of their relationship like a jeweler with their scales. ¡°Can I do anything to stop you?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t do this to me now. I¡¯ve made my choice.¡± He didn¡¯t look at her, but there was no mistaking the implication in her voice.

    Evalyn took a step back and frowned. ¡°Are you under some kind of enchantment?¡°

    ¡°Flash Balance.¡± Thomas took the hand off his face and sighed. ¡°This is my choice. Look, it¡¯ll be fine. None of you are getting to level 4 anytime soon. I can heal you for a while before you advance past me. If you can.¡±

    Evalyn exhaled suddenly, finding the wrong answer. ¡°Wait, you aren¡¯t close to your wall, are you?¡±

    Thomas shook his head. ¡°I need to get started and I can¡¯t do that distracted. Could you let me do this, please?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not distracting you.¡± Thomas stared meaningfully, and not at her face. ¡°Fine. Just, come down when you¡¯re done? We can celebrate at least. Everyone else should be here by then.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d like that. I just have to do something first.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Thomas shook his head, not answering. Evalyn¡¯s thoughts turned to the weeks he¡¯d been away from them after Khiat had been saved, wondering what could have happened to cause this. She didn¡¯t realize that the events had been set in motion well before Daniel had escaped from his captivity. She couldn¡¯t have known, because just as the team had been keeping a secret from Thomas, so had he from them.

    ¡­

    ¡°You¡¯re late! I¡¯d almost¡­¡± Silora paused, thinking on whether she would have made good on her threat, and pressed on. ¡°Are you finally ready? I want to get out of here as soon as I can.¡±

    Thomas was almost a meter taller than the woman. The average shavi would be half his height and she was no great example of her species physically. ¡°Yeah. Let¡¯s get this over with.¡±

    The Fate peered closer at him, breaking out into a wide, sharp grin. ¡°You did it! You¡¯re level 3. Barely, but there. Not that I know why that matters, only that you somehow convinced me to wait another week for it.¡±

    ¡°I did it, didn¡¯t I? And you¡¯ll keep your part of the bargain?¡±

    ¡°Oh, yes, don¡¯t worry.¡±

    ¡°If you don¡¯t, I have people who are going to make you regret going back on your word.¡± Thomas¡¯ eyes burned at her, the raw anger he¡¯d briefly shown Evalyn now just the ashes of a spent fire. Silora thought for a moment to point out that she was level 5 to his 3, and then remembered who his friends had the attention of. And who Thomas was. A Kaysian. Not the most renowned name of Aughal, and if its current scion was any measure the family was in deep trouble, but they had the means to kill her if they wanted the trouble that would come with it.

    ¡°Fine. Not that I would go back on my word, but I understand your brutish threats. Let us be clear, if you don¡¯t hold up your end, Rait will pass along my missive.¡± Said human had been relieved to be freed from jail only to be slightly crestfallen to find himself back in her service and then completely askance at being roped into a blackmail scheme. But Silora held him by the throat too, metaphorically speaking. Both of their freedoms were at her discretion.

    ¡°And if I do what you want me to? How do I know he won¡¯t tell anyone?¡±

    ¡°Because he doesn¡¯t know what you can do. Only where to find the information. If I¡¯m going to be traveling with you, then I don¡¯t want another reason for people to be hunting us.¡± She pulled herself up into her throne, looking down on Thomas for once. ¡°Well, are you ready? I don¡¯t think they¡¯ll find out immediately what¡¯s happened but we¡¯ll probably have a day or so before someone checks that contract.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve got the mana.¡± Thomas took a seat, collapsing into it and putting a hand over his face. ¡°How are you going to do it?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve given it some thought. Naturally. Poison was an obvious idea. My endurance isn¡¯t the best,¡± she whispered almost scandalously. There was almost excitement in her voice. ¡°But that could hurt. I don¡¯t know, I¡¯ve never been poisoned. When M- the Assassin was still here I idly thought about hiring him. I have some money and they can do it painlessly if they want. Although he¡¯s gone now. A bow to the back of the head? Or a sword, something quick. But I need to be sure it works, it needs to happen how I know it will. That I¡¯m not paying you just to bring me back into slavery again.¡±

    ¡°So?¡±

    She looked at him and kept silent until he returned the look. ¡°You are certain you can do this?¡±

    ¡°Yes! Just do whatever it is you¡¯re going to do and let¡¯s get this over with. The longer you hold your breath the longer I have to wait.¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t hear you complaining about that when you asked for more time,¡± Silora harrumphed. She was afraid, but also anticipating something. Her voice shook for a moment, taking on an odd formal inflection, as if speaking words she¡¯d already heard herself say. ¡°I, Silora Thelonas, Fate of Aughal, willfully break my blood contract with this city. I exercise my exit clause!¡±

    Thomas looked confused for a moment, thinking this was another joke. Then, Silora died.

 Chapter 129: Hunters Guild

    Rasalia Stoneclaw was the strongest leveled mortal in Aughal. That wasn¡¯t too much of a surprise considering her role. The previous Commander, Zarel Carsow, had been stronger than her before transferring. Not to an Incursion Army, he wasn¡¯t quite there, but to a region with a larger population and greater threats. They had both faced enemies that would make a lightning dragon question its claim to a territory. Such encounters were at times necessary to propel advancement, especially in the higher ranks.

    One was not meant to make them the norm. She glanced at the list of kills the other Hero had, under oath, claimed. None below his level, nearly all fought alone. There was one notable exception on both counts.

    ¡°A level 4 greater skink? I don¡¯t know if I should question your sanity or your methods.¡±

    Gadriel stood to attention, his sword sheathed and his shield on his back. The wings were stored in a red pouch on his waist, the item being too bulky to wear indoors. And, he suspected wearing them in front of the Commander might be impolite. ¡°In truth, I aimed only to slay the level 3 variant detected some time ago. It appears it Grew before any could take it down.¡±

    The Commander had to stop from rolling her eyes at the overly formal language. She knew it wasn¡¯t the Hero being pretentious but just how some people from Threst spoke. Those who lived in the upper societies, at least. Rasalia had had the chance to visit the region on occasion and had found it too uptight for her tastes.

    Otherwise, the mood was civil between them. Perhaps she sat a bit straighter in her chair, but this was a younger member of her class. There was no natural enmity between Heroes like there was between Bards, or Bards and Heroes. She just had to set an example. ¡°And this other group assisted you. The one with the Artificer and that Druid who terrified half of the city? Hunter. Well, that is a name I would expect from someone who preferred a beast form to his normal one.¡±

    ¡°Yes, it is,¡± Gadriel answered simply, not at all needing a lesson on how to act his class. He¡¯d also carefully avoided an inconvenient truth. Deception wasn¡¯t above him. It was part of how he¡¯d beaten Heldren Storm, though the Hero would term that as a ¡®feint¡¯ rather than an outright lie.

    ¡°And the other, he fights? That sloth Arpan seems content to rest in his burrow at all hours. There are four individuals in this region at level 5, did you know that? Two, if you don¡¯t count the Builder and Fate. Only one acts with any responsibility.¡± The distaste in her voice was made clear by the ruffling of several feathers.

    ¡°Sir Daniel has shown exemplary courage in battle before,¡± Gadriel answered, mentally screening out some of the man¡¯s less graceful moments. ¡°In truth, I find it hard to determine completely, though I would place the odds of our escape from the Thormundz far less favorably were he not there.¡±

    ¡°Hmm. If only more were like him. I think some of my hunters are starting to get too cozy on guard duty. That¡¯s the thing about regular pay. It¡¯s worse than what you get hunting, but you can always count on it coming in. With the state of emergency giving it a bump, some of them might be making more.¡± She sighed, breaking her posture and leaning on the table. Gadriel remained standing, even though there was a chair specifically angled to accept a visitor on his side of the table. ¡°But they¡¯re not advancing. Or, they shouldn¡¯t be advancing, and I¡¯d be concerned if they were. This whole crisis is setting us back. Letting the monsters Grow while our forces stagnate.¡±

    ¡°May I ask a question?¡± Rasalia waved a hand and, while ambiguous, Gadriel took it as encouragement. ¡°Why the delay in restoration of civil structure? Incidents such as this have happened in the past, surely.¡±

    ¡°What, the majority of the Council getting slaughtered or disgraced? No, it hasn¡¯t.¡± She glanced out the window to one of the Spires towering above her office. ¡°One or two on occasion, sure, but there¡¯s always someone behind it who steps in. Even if that one¡¯s outed as ¡®working against city interests¡¯ or some other polite phrasing of treason, those seats don¡¯t stay open. It¡¯s the damned Silver Eye¡¯s fault. He fractured the lines of power and now no one knows who to side with.¡±

    Gadriel looked blank for a moment. ¡°I see.¡±

    ¡°Sure. Trust me, it¡¯s better that you don¡¯t. I am worried about our civic will, though. There¡¯s that feeling in the air, the kind you get before a Tyrant.¡±

    Gadriel would have drawn his sword if not for how tense he suddenly became. ¡°Is it possible there is one in this region already?¡±

    ¡°No. The Council still rules. What¡¯s left of it, at least.¡±

    ¡°What of a Tyrant from another region?¡±

    She thought on that for a moment, Gadriel¡¯s demeanor not escaping her attention. ¡°Even if the Tyrant you faced in the Thormundz survived, they wouldn¡¯t come here. That¡¯s not how the class works.¡±

    ¡°How so?¡± Gadriel raised an eyebrow, skeptical. Rasalia frowned.

    ¡°Something I¡¯ve heard. Those who take the class, accidental or otherwise, stay in their region. It¡¯s a requirement of the class. Surely it isn¡¯t news that becoming a Tyrant changes someone?¡±

    ¡°No. Indeed, I can attest to that. One would imagine the will to dominate would spread.¡±

    Rasalia acknowledged the point. ¡°That can be how some kingdoms of today came to be. One in the Scythe¡¯s Realm grew far because they had their god¡¯s support. Or so I heard, but the rumor is they always pin down a base of power first.¡±

    Gadriel fell silent at that. His eyes fell on a small symbol worked into the metal of Rasalia¡¯s armor around where the left collarbone would be on a human. A star, representing the Star. Not something obvious like a Cleric may bear, but still. ¡°Have you ever had the chance to speak to one? A god, I mean.¡±

    Rasalia leaned back a bit, surprised by the question. ¡°No. Crest, no. One this far out, well, with what¡¯s happening I suppose there¡¯s a better chance than most would get. But no. For all their power they are only seven, and the world is large.¡± One of her hands flexed idly on the table before reaching for a flask of water she sipped from awkwardly. ¡°To you, I must seem like the pinnacle of power, for how many ever reach my level?¡± The question hung in the air for a few seconds, just a few. ¡°Thousands. Millions, maybe. Someday I may make something truly worthy of myself, but on the scale of the gods I am hardly worth considering.¡±

    ¡°I would not say-¡±

    ¡°We should talk about the bounty,¡± Rasalia cut him off, knowing she wouldn¡¯t need to raise her voice to speak over him. Gadriel stopped talking the moment she started. ¡°It¡¯s late and your companions should be here soon. This is poorly timed with the upcoming meeting and if you and yours weren¡¯t personally involved I might push this to tomorrow.¡± She sighed. ¡°On the other hand, taking down something that could put a dent in our walls deserves recognition.¡±

    ¡°That was simply a matter of duty.¡± The Champion across from Gadriel gave him a sharp look and some of the air came out of him. ¡°Well, there may have been some show of skill involved.¡±

    ¡°Sure. But this show of skill is due a considerable sum. I¡¯m curious, you aren¡¯t named yet. Neither was the team that worked with you. Why?¡±

    ¡°There is nothing to our class that mandates a title,¡± Gadriel said in a dismissive, yet formal tone. He didn¡¯t answer for the team, which she supposed was fair. Rasalia, the Ironrush Ravager, tilted her head slightly.

    Struck a nerve? ¡°To each their own then. You¡¯ll have my gratitude either way.¡± A knock on the door drew the attention of both, the man on the outside pausing briefly before opening it slightly.

    ¡°Commander? Lord Seliri is here to see you.¡±

    ¡­

    In a lot of ways, the Hunter¡¯s Guild did not meet Daniel¡¯s expectations. The room immediately adjacent to the street wasn¡¯t a grand hall filled with trophies and tough, weapon-clad mercenaries swapping tales like fishers on a dock. Instead, it was small with only a reception desk. A faint fruit smell wafted from a pair of burning candles on the wall, and the temperature of the room defied the outside climate in a way Daniel had come to associate with special attention from a Builder.

    What surprised the most was that this entryway bucked the general trend of establishments in Aughal by way of its ceiling, which was not tall enough to accommodate Khiat¡¯s full stature. Even those taverns without ¡®Dusk¡¯ in the name generally had a common room large enough to accommodate them, though the sleeping areas didn¡¯t. As it was, the woman that nearly towered over Daniel retracted to about his height, while Hunter mentally grumbled about being pressed in from all sides.

    All in all, he was unimpressed. The fact that there weren¡¯t any other doors in the room made him wonder if they¡¯d accidentally wandered into someone¡¯s very small, very mislabeled office.

    ¡°Hello, Auriel. We are here to meet with the Commander,¡± Lograve greeted the woman familiarly, yet stiffly. His somewhat shorter temper from the tavern was growing worse with a small headache. Even the experienced Arcanist was having problems advancing as of late as the toll of level 4 took over. Daniel knew he was concerned he was getting close to his wall. Yesterday he had likened advancing to juggling spike-covered balls that randomly screamed, making Daniel once again grateful for his ability to skip past all of that. ¡°Is Lord Aucrest here already?¡±

    ¡°One moment.¡± The woman behind the desk was familiar with most of the people here, nodding at Lograve¡¯s request and not looking twice at Hunter. Although, Daniel reasoned, he might not be the only one coming in with a monstrous companion. She flicked a finger lightly against what appeared to be a vanity mirror.

    ¡°-Ytaya¡¯s people won¡¯t- Auriel?¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re here, Commander,¡± the receptionist answered coolly. ¡°Should I send them up?¡±

    Someone sighed on the other end of the magical connection. Avianoid, if that wasn¡¯t enough of a giveaway. ¡°Just the Arcanist. Someone decided to arrive early, and if I break now people will get the wrong idea. We¡¯re meeting on the roof.¡±

    A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

    ¡°I see. What of the others?¡±

    ¡°Did all of them come?¡±

    ¡°Yes, and they brought the Druid.¡±

    Another sigh. ¡°I¡¯m going to guess it¡¯s too much to hope they decided to be human today. Show them to the courtyard then.¡±

    ¡°Of course. Right this way please.¡± A door appeared on one of the walls. Not with a slow transition or dissolution of a shimmering barrier, it just was there now. Auriel opened it for Lograve, glancing back towards the other six in the room. ¡°Stay here for a moment please.¡±

    ¡°Politics,¡± Evalyn grunted when they were alone. ¡°I hope they don¡¯t make us wait too long.¡±

    ¡°Can they not just give us the money?¡± Tak asked.

    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t that be nice?¡±

    ¡°Uh huh,¡± Daniel said, still standing by the desk and looking at the mirror.

    ¡°What? Oh.¡± Evalyn followed his gaze and wasn¡¯t surprised when the Artificer pulled out his Focus. ¡°Do you think they¡¯ll mind?¡±

    ¡°Arpan would, but it¡¯s not like this harms it or anything.¡± Daniel shrugged. ¡°And I¡¯m not going to not learn free formulae- ah damnit.¡±

    <hr>

    Alert: You have attempted to learn a Formulae: Enchanting protected by a Personal Mark. The formulae has not been added to Function: Encyclopedia.

    -

    Alert: Darn, I was hoping it''d work too.

    <hr>

    ¡°No good?¡± Hunter asked.

    ¡°No, Arpan¡¯s shielded this one too.¡±

    ¡°Um,¡± Khiat spoke up. ¡°What happened with that door?¡±

    ¡°Builder enchantment.¡± Evalyn elbowed Daniel. ¡°Not even this ¡®prodigy¡¯ could do something like that.¡±

    ¡°Well, technically I could-¡± Another door appeared, this time on a different wall.

    ¡°Apologies, but your meeting will have to wait. No longer than an hour, I¡¯m told. Please follow me.¡±

    Not every door in what Daniel would come to call a complex was hidden, but they encountered a few on their journey. Past the initial reception area, there was a set of stairs that were ignored in favor of a carpeted hallway. While the ceilings were still too short for Khiat¡¯s full height, they were at least wide enough to suit Hunter. After a few turns and more hidden doors, plus a couple of near heart attacks due to Hunter and Evalyn respectively, the group was unceremoniously dumped into a large interior courtyard before Auriel took off for her desk.

    They were not alone here, but it seemed no one else needed a chaperone. People, predominantly humans and avianoids with the occasional dusker in armor starting to mix in, milled about a roughly rectangular space a hundred meters on the long side. Lining the walls were balconies, doors, and presumed hidden doors, as well as a few odd ladders leading up to the three-story roof. There was even a section of wall that was open to a restaurant.

    Both Tak and Evalyn had an odd look in their eyes. ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°It is-¡± Tak¡¯s beak shut and Daniel realized he hadn¡¯t seen the avianoid taken aback before. Not even learning the secret of his origins had moved the Totem Warrior unduly.

    ¡°We didn¡¯t come here last time.¡± Evalyn brushed at her hair and what might have been a tear. ¡°This looks like the guild in Eido. Not exactly the same, but it¡¯s-¡±

    ¡°Familiar,¡± Tak said.

    ¡°Too familiar.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s so many people!¡± Khiat added in what for her was a normal tone, stretching up to her full length and almost making it halfway up the wall. ¡°Are they all Blessed?¡±

    ¡°You wouldn¡¯t get to a place like this if you weren¡¯t. Unless Aughal¡¯s standards are worse.¡±

    ¡°So wait, do they all come through the small entrance?¡± Daniel asked as Evalyn began moving them forward towards one of the larger clusters of people. Their arrival had been noticed, especially for the armor Hunter wore. He wasn¡¯t the only monster in the square but it was clear at least some had made the connection to the events from a month ago.

    ¡°No, that was the guest entrance. I think.¡± Evalyn frowned. ¡°With everything that happened last time we didn¡¯t think about registering properly, but coming back after tonight we should be able to use the main entrance.¡± She then smiled as someone approached the group. ¡°Hi! We just blew in.¡±

    Evalyn¡¯s first contact with the native hunters of Aughal nodded politely and looked her in the eyes without needing to make a roundabout journey to get there. ¡°You make it sound so little a thing.¡± He was human and some kind of dual-wielder judging by the two small swords that were sheathed parallel to his legs. Daniel hadn¡¯t seen too many people with classes to be a flawless observer, but his guess was Ranger. And his developing seventh sense implied this one was at a higher level than he was. It was like that common trivia fact about how humans were always emitting infrared light, only also with mana which Daniel could now sense if he tried to. Since most of his party was somewhere in the range of level 2 he knew what that felt like, and the ripples coming off of this guy were stronger.

    ¡°Gordon. Captain of Farthest Run. These¡¯re the fools that put up with me.¡± The man extended a hand that Evalyn shook. He had one of those hairstyles that could be called full, but not long as it just ended above the shoulders.

    He probably cuts it with one of those swords or something, Daniel thought absently. Several others broke out of the throng to make it clear who was on the Ranger¡¯s team. One was obviously a Bard, male and actively appraising Evalyn. A staff-bearer that could be any of the more magic-focused classes, although the lack of any divine symbol on them put off the idea of a Cleric. And the last, for this team was apparently just a four-member party, had¡­

    ¡°Are those bolas?¡± Daniel wandered over to the fourth member while Evalyn made introductions while simultaneously fending off the other Bard. Though, not making too much of an effort, Daniel noticed.

    The last of Farthest Run was an avianoid, female if Daniel¡¯s developed eye for the race could judge, and higher level than him. Loops of rope hung off of her waist from a belt, snaking back to a leather pouch interspaced between where the rings of the bolas were hooked. At least, that¡¯s what he assumed they were because of how each ring had three ropes coming off of it. ¡°Yeah! Most people don¡¯t know what these are until they¡¯ve met the team. Got any in there?¡± The avianoid nodded towards his bag of holding.

    Definitely a woman. ¡°No, just some modified crossbows. Do those work well for monsters?¡±

    ¡°Good enough.¡± She reached for one of the rings and jerked her hand in a clean motion, making what was in the pouch fly clear. On the end of each rope were weights as expected but with hooked barbs instead of a solid ball.

    A gentle giant¡¯s voice rumbled from behind Daniel as Khiat also took interest. ¡°How do those work?¡±

    ¡°Dusker?¡± The woman asked herself before coughing to cover the surprise. ¡°Uh, sorry. Normally, they¡¯re meant to tie up the legs of whatever we¡¯re chasing.¡± She looked around for a moment and then smiled. ¡°Most people have to wind them up to throw, but for me, well, watch.¡± She spun tightly in place, holding the central ring of the bolas as the weights trailed behind. With the completion of a full turn she released, and the weapon made contact with someone closer in the center of the courtyard. There was a cry of alarm but not the violent reaction Daniel suddenly feared. There were some harsh looks amidst the general indifference, but no one pulled out a weapon of their own. ¡°Ass.¡±

    ¡°Is that guy ok?¡±

    ¡°Oh yeah, I used Merciful Throw. Blunts the hooks, useful if we¡¯re trying to take something alive for a Beastmaster.¡±

    ¡°Also useful now that we¡¯re on guard patrol. Qess, can you not aggravate half the guild?¡± Gordon, who hadn¡¯t missed the throw, broke from the second half of the two team¡¯s conversation to chastise the avianoid.

    ¡°You heard what he said about Marky!¡±

    ¡°And I remember him apologizing after we told him how much of an idiot he was.¡± In the distance, the bound man had pulled out a knife to cut the ropes. Qess didn¡¯t seem too concerned about the imminent loss of one of her weapons, which Gordon noticed. ¡°Qess, you didn¡¯t-¡±

    A flash of light and then a cry of pain as the man cutting himself loose was jolted by seemingly ordinary rope. Qess just shrugged, but the staff-bearer beside Gordon frowned. ¡°I don¡¯t need you to punish the ignorance of others on my behalf.¡± The man, human like Gordon, had a deeper voice even though he was about the same height and frame as Daniel. Also, level 2 like the Bard in their party. Odd that they weren¡¯t all on the same level. ¡°Can you release that ability before you get us kicked out?¡±

    ¡°Sorry, Marky.¡±

    The two teams relocated closer to the open restaurant, which thankfully kept to the 24/7 schedule many establishments did in Aughal. While Daniel was surprised to find a professional team with a mixture of different levels, Farthest Run had more ammunition to scrutinize his own team¡¯s composition. ¡°Which one of you is the Beastmaster?¡± Marky asked, as they all spoke over drinks rather than socialize with the other teams. While Qess¡¯ actual assault of another member of the guild hadn¡¯t been addressed by any authority figure, or directly challenged by the man struck, there was a divided sense in the air now that gave Daniel the impression they¡¯d just missed something.

    ¡°He¡¯s-¡±

    ¡°Druid.¡± Hunter smiled but did not receive the same jaw drop of surprise from every member of the other team.

    Marky nodded, almost as if he¡¯d expected that response. ¡°Makes sense because of the armor. How long can you keep that form, if you don¡¯t mind the question?¡±

    ¡°As long as I want to.¡± The ringcat seemed a little wary, although Daniel was the only one to notice this. Hunter didn¡¯t have Druid powers, and getting into the specifics could be troublesome.

    ¡°A passive form! Let me guess, you¡¯re probably forced into that one rather than having a choice. Still, a respectable power. And, again, the armor, yes, I see.¡± Marky nodded his approval, gesturing to his cloth robes. ¡°To make use of my powers, I cannot wear anything that wouldn¡¯t shift with them. But to have a consistent body, it makes sense to already be in a battle form. That must be a pain to put on mid-fight.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re a Druid too?¡± Evalyn asked.

    ¡°Marky¡¯s our Druid alright. Not many in the guild formally. You, Hunter, would make the sixth or seventh by my count.¡± Gordon stumbled briefly over the name, clearly thinking something about it he didn¡¯t comment on. ¡°You¡¯ve got a decently balanced team otherwise, especially if your Druid can heal like ours does.¡±

    ¡°Well, that is one of our weaker points. Those three can self-heal,¡± Evalyn pointed out to everyone with Regeneration. ¡°And Khare, our gestalt, can hide below the ground from most monsters if they have to. But if I or Khiat get into trouble and take a bad wound, we would be in trouble.¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t use potions?¡±

    ¡°We just came from the Thormundz. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve heard?¡± All four nodded. ¡°Well, not just, but this is the first time we¡¯ve turned in any kills worth something.¡±

    ¡°Glad to have someone picking up the slack.¡± The avianoid threw her head back with a bit of annoyance in her voice. ¡°The guard here needs to get their act together so we can get back on the road.¡±

    ¡°Wait, but how¡¯d you afford all those tasteful bags?¡± The Bard cut in, who had otherwise been deftly shuffled off to the outskirts of the conversation until now. ¡°Taloran, charmed of course. Lovely leather by the way. Can¡¯t pin the source but looks high level. Complements your hips well- Ow! Alright, Qess alright.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s the Artificer team. You didn¡¯t notice?¡± Qess, who as it turns out was the second Ranger of the four, asked.

    ¡°What? Really, but, oh!¡± For the first time, the Bard noticed someone other than Evalyn. ¡°Oh. You, and you,¡± he looked between Daniel and Hunter. ¡°Druid! Of course! But I thought-¡±

    ¡°Since it¡¯s come up, we¡¯d be interested in doing business if you¡¯ve got spares.¡± Gordon graciously smiled at Daniel. ¡°It¡¯s been a while since we were on the good hunts but we¡¯ve got some coin saved. And it seems like if you¡¯re not high up in the Spires the other Artificer here won¡¯t give you the time of day. The Guild has to petition if a team¡¯s hurting for something and that means paying extra.¡±

    ¡°I mean, there¡¯s a few Arcanists that can do some work,¡± Qess added. ¡°Nothing like what an Artificer can do though. I spent three gold on an enchanted bolas that broke as I was throwing it! Can you believe that?¡±

    Daniel was a little taken aback, and surprised to find parts of mind lighting up. The same odd intuition that had hit whenever he¡¯d dealt with Arpan as several of the more mercantile powers he possessed flickered on. ¡°Well, I¡¯ve pretty much used all of the leather we had and I¡¯m still new at this. I don¡¯t think I could make a bag without more level 4 stuff.¡±

    ¡°Where¡¯d you get level 4 monster leather?¡± Qess asked. Marky had the answer before anyone on Daniel¡¯s side said anything.

    ¡°Greater skink. You were with that Hero that took it down.¡±

    ¡°Allegedly took down.¡±

    ¡°Tal, I¡¯d bet my staff that¡¯s skink leather. And I thought you¡¯d gotten over this Hero aversion.¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t help it!¡± The Bard exclaimed. ¡°Great, you killed a level 4. So what? Pay ¡®em and get on with it. Nothing to shout from the rooftops over.¡±

    ¡°No one is-¡±

    ¡°Hey!¡± Lograve¡¯s voice broke over the general murmur of the crowd as the man himself leaned over one of the rooftop banisters. ¡°Can¡¯t I take any of you somewhere nice without someone being assaulted? We¡¯re taking a break, so get over here before they decide that skink died of a heart condition and withhold your bounty.¡± Taloran glanced smugly at the Druid.

 Chapter 130: Man About Town

    After saying their goodbyes to Farthest Run while leaving open the possibility of future dealings, business or otherwise, Daniel and the rest made their way to the ladder closest to Lograve. ¡°We need a name,¡± Tak commented.

    ¡°We do.¡±

    ¡°Do all of the teams have names here?¡± Khiat asked Evalyn. The dusker had, for the most part, been intimidated by the scene. To her, it was a collection of the greatest people in her region. There¡¯d even been some Heroes in the crowd! It was almost enough to make all the pain she¡¯d endured while getting here worth it. ¡°And we¡¯re meeting the Commander! Just like that?¡± The team gave the starstruck dusker a nod, before being faced with a pressing obstacle.

    ¡°Huh. How are we getting up there?¡± Daniel put a hand on the ladder stretching three tall stories up to the roof. ¡°I mean, most of us can take this, but,¡± He nodded towards Khiat.

    ¡°Oh, I can climb that.¡±

    ¡°You can?¡± She flexed her arms back and forth while the rest of the team exchanged meaningful looks. ¡°Is it uh, a new power?¡±

    ¡°No. I¡¯ll just- well, watch.¡± Khiat looked up and down the wall, sizing it up, before windmilling her arms. After two turns, her legs collapsed and sprang back upward, arms extending past their normal limits to catch the edge of the roof at the top of the jump. Once latched on, it was easy enough for her to clamber up with her greater strength.

    ¡°Hmm. Good jump!¡± Tak flashed a thumbs up before launching into the air himself with a power.

    ¡°Show offs.¡± Evalyn shook her head, taking to the ladder first.

    ¡°Hunter and I are Jumping!¡± Daniel called, loud enough for those already in place to get clear. Khare, for their part, didn¡¯t need the ladder as they just clung to the side of the building.

    As expected, the wide nature of the Hunter¡¯s Guild provided an expansive, flat roof. Not to say it was empty. Immediately standing out to Daniel were the ballista, placed far back enough from the edges to be invisible from the street. There were a half dozen, but nothing like Roost¡¯s Peak once had. Between those and the small structures made of hard brick with arrow slits along the side, it was clear the top of the Hunter¡¯s Guild had been built with siege in mind.

    In contrast, the section with sprawled rugs, furniture, and burning fires was something taken from a Western movie set in the Middle East. The spices in the air made Daniel¡¯s recently refreshed stomach take an interest in food again. Whatever was being served up here was a step above what the rest of the guild was getting.

    And for good reason. Standing out from the small assemblage was an older avianoid with a silver sheen. Tlara¡¯s father, somehow. One of the people who¡¯d been vying for him until another went too far in the attempt. Lograve, standing by the older man, caught Daniel¡¯s gaze and simply nodded before returning to a conversation too far to hear. Actually. Hunter, can you hear what Lograve¡¯s talking about?

    No. It¡¯s silent around them.

    Like, dead silent? They¡¯re alone on a roof, why would-

    ¡°My friends!¡± Gadriel greeted, also breaking off from the rooftop party. ¡°My apologies for not returning earlier. It was my haste that embroiled me in the politics you see before you. Sir Lograve did not wish for me to wander while seeking you out.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± Evalyn was just a little tense but was slowly getting over whatever it was that compelled Heroes and Bards to be constantly at each other¡¯s throats. Only with Gadriel, though. ¡°They are paying us, right?¡±

    ¡°Yes. I have of course implored them to make an equal share of the greater skink bounty.¡±

    ¡°How kind of you, considering we all almost died after you brought it to us.¡±

    ¡°So, Gadriel,¡± Daniel cut in. ¡°What¡¯re your plans after today?¡±

    Gadriel inclined his head towards him. ¡°My aim is to continue assisting this region. For now. Their guild is woefully pressed to assist with maintaining order in this city and are in desperate need of additional hands to cull monsters.¡±

    ¡°Do you need a break?¡± Tak asked. ¡°You have been hunting far harder than us. It is good you are strong, but maybe too eager as well?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a good point. Shouldn¡¯t you at least consolidate all of your advancement?¡±

    Gadriel smiled confidently. ¡°Sir Tak, Lady Evalyn, I thank you for your concerns but I am at little risk of overtaxing myself. A Heroes¡¯ duty never ends.¡±

    ¡°It does feel that way sometimes,¡± a new voice sighed.

    ¡°Commander.¡± Gadriel saluted, but no one else did. Actually, Khare tried, but without formed legs they couldn¡¯t perfectly mimic the gesture and they weren¡¯t entirely serious about it.

    ¡°Please, spare the formalities. I have a few fires to put out tonight and, considering that I¡¯m now partially responsible for the guard, some of them are real. First things first. You three.¡± She looked to Daniel, Khiat, and Khare. ¡°I apologize for the treatment you received in this city. The guild does protect its own, though not always to the best of our ability. You have my word that it will not happen again.¡±

    The Commander paused again to let the point sink in, and also to enjoy the breeze on her red-brown feathers. ¡°Alright. Now that that¡¯s out of the way, it¡¯s time for your bounty. Before we get into details, I need to say this first. I can¡¯t give you all of it now.¡±

    ¡°After what you just said, what happened, you¡¯re stiffing us?¡± Evalyn asked incredulously.

    Rasalia kept her cool. ¡°No. Our resources are being stretched by, well, everything. Everyone in the guild is on active duty, but without generating any revenue from the city budget by eliminating threats. But when I ask the featherheads to just adjust the budget to account for these unprecedented circumstances, they just say they need a full Council to handle these things because of a statute put in place fifty years ago!¡± She turned away from the group, leaning on one of the banisters ringing the edge of the roof. ¡°Not that that¡¯s your problem. But you took down a level 4 and have over a month¡¯s worth of kills to claim all at once. It¡¯s to the point where it makes future solvency an issue.¡±

    ¡°How much money is it?¡± Khiat asked. ¡°We don¡¯t need all of it at once. I-¡± She cut herself off before her sheer impulse to do whatever the Ironrush Ravager of Aughal wanted made her throw away her team¡¯s entire bounty.

    Said Champion didn¡¯t shrink from the question. ¡°You get a bonus for the skink since it was more dangerous than we believed. Or, rather, it was left alone for so long that it became more dangerous. Doesn¡¯t matter. If we¡¯re just talking about your kills, each member of your team gets one viridian and sixty gold. And a little over four for Gadriel since he put in more work.¡±

    Daniel¡¯s eyes bulged. That¡¯s way too much! How does that make sense? Level 4 coin pays for my heliorite and for taking down mostly level 2 monsters? I mean, we killed a lot, but what the hell? He wasn¡¯t complaining, but that tricky part of his mind that sometimes lit up whenever money was mentioned was highlighting the inconsistency.

    ¡°The skink kill rounds to a lapis with all the extra stuff rolled in. Total, mind you,¡± she added with a wince, noting the shock spreading to the rest of the group. Daniel¡¯s head was close to exploding. ¡°As Gadriel opted for an even split, that would be an additional 15 viridian each. You can see my concerns?¡±

    ¡°Y, yes.¡± Evalyn nodded humbly. ¡°How will this work, then?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m giving each of you four viridian and sixty gold. Or in smaller denominations if you want to give me another headache. Oh, and you get a reminder to stop punching above your weight.¡± She gave Gadriel a look. ¡°If you find something that high level again let me know about it. After the past few days, I¡¯m itching to kill something. Anyways. I had to meet with you all personally to attest that you agreed to accept letters of credit for the rest. When this city gets its act together I can pay the rest, or another region not presently tearing itself to pieces can. Any objections?¡±

    Evalyn fulfilled her role, collecting a headshake from each team member including Hunter before answering. ¡°I think that is very generous. Thank you.¡±

    ¡°Likewise I assent,¡± Gadriel, technically a solo hunter, added.

    ¡°Good. Thank the gods that¡¯s out of the way at least. One last thing, you¡¯re all in the guild.¡± She waved a talon in the general direction of Evalyn and company. ¡°No time for fanfare but the doors will work for you now. The ones you have a reason opening, at least. Gadriel, can you show them to the job board?¡±

    ¡°Of course, Commander.¡±

    The Champion nodded in thanks. ¡°I should get back to it then. Last bit of advice? Take a break, but not for too long. As much as my coffers are hurting, we still need people out there putting monsters down.¡±

    There was a relative silence left in her wake as the seven were promised a relative fortune. No, an actual fortune, even if the majority was reserved for better days. Tak was the first to speak. ¡°Hmm. That is a lot. Aughal pays better.¡±

    ¡°You always heard complaints from veterans in Eido about that. Gadriel, what are you doing tonight?¡±

    Coming from Evalyn, the question threw the Hero. ¡°I have no plans beyond what the Commander has asked of me.¡±

    She smiled at him, enjoying the effect that caused. ¡°Good! Let¡¯s pick up Farthest Run on the way to get our bounty, assuming they aren¡¯t lightweights.¡±

    ¡°Uh, what are we doing?¡± Daniel asked, Gadriel¡¯s wariness spreading to the rest of the group.

    ¡°We¡¯re going to settle on a team name. But first, we¡¯re going to have fun.¡±

    ¡­

    It was a familiar scene to times on earth when Daniel had been dragged along to some intensely social event when what he¡¯d rather do was have a good meal out and get back before most bars closed. That hadn¡¯t been a frequent occurrence, though it felt similar enough to the way Evalyn had taken charge not only of their group but Farthest Run as well. There was a momentum to her that had nothing to do with powers or classes which might have swept up more if not for the lingering discontent surrounding the four-person team. For all of what people said about her class, Evalyn wasn¡¯t a shallow person and wouldn¡¯t abandon their new acquaintances who¡¯d done nothing to cause her offense.

    Not even the tense nature of Aughal¡¯s streets could reach the traveling group. It was like the crowds parted just for them. The air of imminent disaster was still about, but for this night it would not touch the hunters celebrating good fortune.

    ¡°Ah. It¡¯s nice to be out and not on duty. Being a guard sucks,¡± Qess commented. ¡°I mean, you don¡¯t have to go for days on a hunt and they don¡¯t make us wear those uniforms, but still.¡±

    Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.

    ¡°Keeping order¡¯s important,¡± the other Ranger reminded. Though Gordon and Qess were of the same level and station, he was more serious. ¡°They call us hunters, but what we really do is keep people safe. Whether that¡¯s hunting or chasing down thieves.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, but we¡¯re better at hunting. And we advance from that!¡±

    ¡°Guys, please, you¡¯re bringing down the mood and this lovely captain was gracious enough to invite us after someone almost set the guild after us!¡± Taloran winked at Evalyn and over the next few seconds, something seemed to happen between them. If anyone had fine enough of a seventh sense they might have caught the flux of mana too weak to produce an obvious pulse. Whatever the outcome was it left Taloran somewhat dejected, his sapphire eyes losing their sparkle to become base blue. His gaze swept the rest of the people he was walking with before his interest died out completely.

    ¡°So, where are we going?¡± Marky asked, pushing an unresisting Taloran away with his staff. ¡°If I understand right, you¡¯re not exactly local. We could suggest a few places.¡±

    Evalyn nodded to him. ¡°We¡¯re going back to the Painted Dusk first to see if Thomas is there. He has some news, but it¡¯s not for me to say what exactly.¡±

    ¡°Whose he?¡±

    ¡°Qess, don¡¯t pry.¡±

    ¡°Stop grousing at me, Gordon! It¡¯s a simple question.¡±

    Evalyn didn¡¯t seem to mind and answered once the two stopped arguing. ¡°It¡¯s fine. He¡¯s a Cleric of the Hand. Doesn¡¯t hunt with us, but he¡¯s a friend.¡±

    Qess¡¯ eyes lit up. ¡°Oooh, that makes sense. You¡¯ve got a healer in your pocket! Between that and an Artificer you¡¯re half a guild on your own. No wonder you don¡¯t need potions.¡±

    ¡°I was thinking about that,¡± Daniel said. ¡°We didn¡¯t have a lot in the Thormundz and never used any during the evacuation until that last fight. Now that we¡¯ve got money it might be a good idea to get some.¡±

    ¡°You can¡¯t make any, can you? I¡¯ve heard that about Artificers, but I¡¯ve never had a chance to talk to one before.¡± Gordon¡¯s voice was even, slightly respectful, but the way he said it made Daniel feel like a minor celebrity. It was that kind of night.

    ¡°No. I tried seeing if I could learn the formulae for the few we did have back then but it didn¡¯t work. I¡¯m guessing that¡¯s restricted to Alchemists.¡±

    ¡°And Arcanists with the right powers, but the best potions are made by specialists.¡±

    Evalyn briefly split off at this point, having reached the inn. She¡¯d had a look of what might be called amused determination since leaving the guild, though it flickered for just a moment as she went to look for Thomas. Marky continued the conversation in the meantime. ¡°Do you do well with harvesting? With two Rangers our team can strip everything we kill to the point that carrying everything gets hard. Even with me taking a beast of burden form. But it helps to get on the good side of the Alchemists if you trade materials directly with them.¡±

    ¡°I have Monster Scavenger.¡± Tak nodded. ¡°It helps. Lets me know where to cut, what is valuable.¡±

    ¡°That is a decent all-rounder for your level, but I think Gordon and Qess would put you to shame. Not just by powers either, it¡¯s one of our specializations.¡± Marky shrugged, trying to make it clear he wasn¡¯t bragging, just stating facts.

    ¡°What¡¯d you get from the greater skink, if you don¡¯t mind us asking?¡±

    ¡°Just the leather, but Tak did a great job!¡± Daniel answered Gordon. ¡°Gadriel had ruined almost all of it-¡±

    ¡°Through my pursuit of the monster¡¯s death.¡± Gadriel cut in.

    ¡°Sure, but Tak managed to find all of the usable sections left and he was pretty wounded too at the time.¡±

    ¡°But no organs? Extracts?¡± Tak shook his head and Gordon sighed. ¡°It¡¯s probably because it was a higher level than you. If we had been there, we might have pulled another lapis out of it from the scavenging alone. Not that we would have tried taking it down. We work like that sometimes, chasing a stronger team to mind their kills and splitting the coin.¡± Khiat, mostly observing the conversation at this point, choked a little at that. If the wealth they¡¯d earned tonight had surprised Daniel, it had floored the dusker.

    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s our game. One of ¡®em.¡± Qess added. ¡°We can go the farthest and get there the fastest. If some rare monster our level is sighted we can track it and either truss it up or skin it down, depending on who would pay more.¡±

    ¡°The Beastmasters and Alchemists tend to love and hate you guys.¡± Taloran was sulking now, just a bit.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you part of the team?¡±

    The Bard opened his mouth to answer, but Marky put an arm around his neck and hung there, cutting him off. ¡°We¡¯re both training under these two masters of the hunt, haha! Him because he¡¯s so horny he puts off even the other Bards, and me because, well, you know.¡±

    He glanced at Hunter who understood, though in a different way. ¡°Not welcome?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s their loss,¡± Qess said firmly. ¡°Gordon and I can do well enough by ourselves, but taking on extra means we can punch up a little more. Honestly, your team¡¯s a little too big for this region. You¡¯ll advance slower hunting at your level.¡±

    Evalyn returned from the inn at this point, holding a large bottle in each hand. ¡°He¡¯s still out, and I¡¯m not keeping everyone waiting. There¡¯ll be more nights anyway.¡± The Bard flipped a bottle towards Gordon who, with the dexterity of a level 3, caught it easily.

    ¡°Taverns around here don¡¯t normally sell these whole.¡±

    ¡°I made a good offer. To being alive!¡± She took a drink, Gordon mirroring her after a second before she passed the bottle to Taloran in a friendly way. Only in a friendly way. The resulting pass around drained both bottles, the last of one being tipped into Hunter¡¯s mouth by Tak.

    Gah. Bad.

    Yeah. Daniel had taken a swig, but only because of his friends. He¡¯d also had to put out the thought that the bottle had been touched by three other people before him out of his mind. For someone who had fought dragons it should have been easier, but he wasn¡¯t familiar with alcohol in general. You know, you don¡¯t have to use telepathy now. I like this Druid lie. Even if there¡¯s something to the class other hunters don¡¯t like.

    Marky, meanwhile, chuckled. ¡°Ah, the beast¡¯s tongue. Everything¡¯s different in a form, isn¡¯t it? But I suppose you¡¯re more used to it than most.¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± Hunter replied simply.

    ¡°And you¡¯re going to keep it for this¡­¡± the Druid trailed off. ¡°I admit, I¡¯m not opposed to a late night of drinking despite having duty in the morning, but don¡¯t most do that inside the tavern?¡±

    ¡°Oh, we¡¯re not drinking.¡± Evalyn kicked one of the empty bottles into the street and was not touched at all by the glares that the act garnered. ¡°Not just drinking. Tonight is special, everyone. It¡¯s the first real night we¡¯ve had in civilization since the Thormundz, and we have something to celebrate!¡±

    Who is she? Daniel thought. He¡¯d seen Evalyn at her highs and lows but nothing like¡­ no, that was wrong. He had seen her like this before, but only when they¡¯d just met and she was trying to distance herself from the loss of her family. This was a more honest excitement, and he liked it on her.

    ¡°I propose this. Each of us makes a wish tonight, something small and grand, and we get it done!¡± Taloran¡¯s head picked up, just a little, but too soon. ¡°Gordon, you and your team can tag along for as little or as much as you¡¯d like. I fully intend not to sleep until the sun is up.¡±

    The impromptu game, if you could call it that, went unopposed. Even Gadriel had to yield to the Bard¡¯s enthusiasm, though he made no promises on the lengths to which he¡¯d follow them. For Daniel, it seemed like the only possible future. If someone like Evalyn had existed back on Earth, well he¡¯d already mused on how much of the world she could get away with conquering by looks alone. There was something unnatural to the plan in a way magic couldn¡¯t touch that if for a moment, made him forget both his troubles and those of the city at large. For good or ill, being wealthy and in good company could make you ignorant of such things.

    For a night, they reveled. Farthest Run, whose veteran members had seen larger paydays, siphoned off some of the enthusiasm and forgot the toll of the day prior. Even if it wasn¡¯t for them, and chance alone had dictated who first met the yet unnamed team when they entered the guild, and they didn¡¯t know these people, they followed nonetheless. What was the worst that could happen?

    Gadriel had volunteered to go first by merit of everyone else not having an idea, and Evalyn saving herself for last. With the time closing to midnight, the only rules agreed to were that anyone¡¯s wish couldn¡¯t last longer than an hour, and there had to be at most a low chance of arrest. Not that the Hero would get them into any kind of trouble.

    ¡°Were I not under your auspice, Lady Evalyn, I would be readying myself for the next hunt. Making purchases, though it would be just as likely I would retire early before-¡±

    Evalyn poked him in the chest and kept the finger there. Gadriel being Gadriel he¡¯d kept his armor on, so her finger bent rather than his clothes. ¡°Not tonight, Hero. Tonight you¡¯re just a man. What does that man want?¡±

    In the background, Marky silenced Taloran with another impromptu arm hold before the Bard could blurt out something inappropriate. It was beginning to be clear why other teams took issue with him. But for Gadriel? He nodded slightly and Evalyn withdrew her finger. ¡°It is difficult, I admit. Were I to wish for one thing it would be to see my team of old, but it is not yet time for me to step beyond the veil.¡± He looked melancholy for a moment before he looked to Qess of all people. ¡°In my previous visit, I had heard of a songbird performing in this city. Duty as it was I was bereft the time to investigate further, but, if the assumption does not offend, do you know of such a person?¡±

    Qess blinked. ¡°Uh, yeah. I mean there are a few, less this late. You can¡¯t live here and not know about them. Some of the better inns like to keep them on as regular talent. Not the really good ones, performers I mean, they have their own setup. Like the one from Threst.¡± She clearly wanted to ask why the Hero had made this request, but not every rule on the wishes had been spoken or verbally agreed to. A new one, forged out of respect for privacy, settled into place. ¡°It¡¯s not like I can take you there without directions, but if we start near the Wing Spire¡­¡±

    ¡­

    Songbirds were exactly what you expected them to be. Or not, if you thought it was a euphemism. Some of the revelers had by the way Gadriel spoken his request like it was criminal. The truth was found in the western part of Aughal under the pale shadow of the Wing Spire.

    Daniel¡¯s latent appreciation for engineering had mostly given way to his newfound ability to make jetpacks out of rocks, though he could still easily tell how this inn differed from the Painted Dusk. For one, as the lack of ¡®dusk¡¯ in the name suggested, it was not built for duskers. There was a small part of the common room that cut into the second floor to make room for the tall species, otherwise, it was a more ¡®normal¡¯ height.

    What differentiated it as a building built for bird people was that it didn¡¯t have a roof. It was like the bar had been built without one as a first floor, and then the housing above was constructed in the fashion of older motels from Daniel¡¯s world. Standing in the common room, you could look up and see the sky but where support beams and the rooms along the outer edges above blocked the view. From the upper floors, one could lean on banisters and enjoy unimpeded access to the sky.

    There were two other remarkable things about this tavern, not counting that the majority of patrons were avianoids even at this late hour. That should have been obvious. No, the first was that the building was made of the old brick of the city. This close to the Spire it should have been refurbished if the pattern Daniel had seen so far held true. There was something there, he knew, but that wasn¡¯t why they¡¯d come.

    They were here for the singer. You¡¯d hear her on the streets outside, but something was keeping most of the sound contained. Enchantment on the building perhaps. Though the sound traveled freely through the open ceiling, getting into the building was harder. Ten bronze harder since they¡¯d come late for the show, though that was the level 2 denomination and thus laughably cheap for the hunters.

    Daniel sat in the back by one of the tables meant for the duskers with Khiat, Hunter, and Tak. There¡¯d been limited space and the crowd ahead could accommodate neither the ringcat nor the larger woman. The rest of the group had gone ahead to what seats they could find, Farthest Run joining at Evalyn¡¯s expense because they were guests to this. Daniel felt a little left out but that was ok. They weren¡¯t here for him, and the singer was amazing.

    Looking at the people today, you could almost forget that in this world anything that wasn¡¯t a human had once been a monster. Though something had happened in the past to change that, echoes remained. Avianoids were descendants of some bird-like species, but plain birds weren¡¯t monsters. There had to have been something else to distinguish that former species from the animals and Daniel had heard the clues all this time.

    Some birds sang. This one entranced. The stage she stood on was in the center of the tavern and would be under moonlight if the moon had felt like cooperating. Instead, she sang alone, without accompaniment, in a dress of blue and silver over dusk-gray feathers. Nothing moved during the song, no doors opened and no drinks were served as a voice Daniel could not put words to flowed through the tavern.

    All of the avianoid race were pleasant to speak to, even Tlara if you only counted the sound of her voice. But take someone who trained that natural gift, and pair it with what Daniel was suspecting to be the Bard class, and you got a songbird. To the Artificer, it was just one more thing to ease the pain of exile from his home. For Gadriel, it was a beautiful, painful reminder of his past.

    Evalyn was sitting next to him. You could make jokes about Bards, Heroes, and taverns, and people did, but that wasn¡¯t what tonight was for. She was happy for Gadriel at first, for finally taking a step away from duty and doing something to enjoy himself. Then, after the second piece which, to her taste, used too much high octave, she saw the tears.

    Gadriel saw memory in the song. A sky below to match the one above. Songbirds, not one but a chorus. Ships that could sail the sky, a people who had not just taken the land back from the Crest but thrived in it. A man, human, whose promise had brought him higher than most his race could hope among the people of the wing. One whose beauty eclipsed even her voice, though he tried to banish her from his mind.

    ¡°Thank you,¡± Gadriel spoke softly to Evalyn when the music died and other conversations sprung up in the same hushed tones.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t know you felt this way about,¡± Evalyn waved a hand, staring at Gadriel. Seeing him for the first time, instead of his class.

    ¡°An odd thing for one such as myself to be taken with, I admit. But it is so. I¡¯d much like to remain here tonight. The rest of you, please, be on. Do not imperil your dreams for mine.¡±

    ¡°Are you going to be ok?¡± Evalyn asked softly.

    ¡°Yes. And, thank you. Again. I don¡¯t know if I would have found myself here were it not for you.¡±

 Chapter 131: Testing Bonds

    Evalyn¡¯s group wasn¡¯t the only one to leave mid-performance. It was getting late, and though impressive, such shows weren¡¯t uncommon to the citizens of Aughal. Farthest Run hadn¡¯t been too moved by the songbird.

    Mostly. ¡°How could I ever compare to that? It¡¯s not fair,¡± Taloran sulked. It wasn¡¯t his night.

    ¡°Come on, I bet that Bard¡¯s never had to fight a monster, Tal. You¡¯ve got that on her. Maybe a level too.¡±

    ¡°But did you see how everyone was looking at her?¡±

    ¡°Wait.¡± Daniel peered at Taloran and noted an important omission among what the Bard was carrying. ¡°What kind of instrument do you play?¡±

    The man looked offended by that. ¡°I don¡¯t play, I sing.¡± He forced bravado into the last word, but the faint song of the singer that crept through the tavern they were departing made it seem hollow. ¡°Oh,¡± he sighed. ¡°But for a voice like that-¡±

    ¡°Ok. I will be next.¡± Tak cut in, drawing focus away from Taloran. ¡°I would like to speak with a Berserker about my power.¡±

    ¡°Tak, I don¡¯t know if-¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s what he wants to do,¡± Evalyn shrugged, cutting Daniel off. ¡°You sure Tak?¡±

    ¡°It seems like the smart thing to do. They might know someone.¡± He pointed to Farthest Run who was looking mildly confused and, in one case, depressed. Tak then explained what the group had explained to him after the excitement over Khiat¡¯s recovery had died down. While someone else might have agonized over who to share his secrets with, Tak was more lighthearted.

    ¡°It¡¯s a total transformation?¡± Marky asked. ¡°And not aligned with your totem. Odd. I¡¯m not the most familiar with Totem Warriors so I can¡¯t say if that¡¯s rare or not for your class at your level, but why ask a Berserker?¡±

    ¡°We think it only happens when I¡¯m angry enough,¡± Tak explained simply as the group headed back to the Hunter¡¯s Guild. It was in the north-eastern part of the city so they lost some time retracing their steps, but not much since they were already close to the city center. ¡°It has only happened twice, so I do not know for sure.¡±

    ¡°Three times,¡± Hunter corrected.

    ¡°Right.¡±

    ¡°It also looked like it was improving his Regeneration?¡± Daniel offered unsurely. ¡°When we were fighting the greater skink he almost got torn in half, but he was mostly fine a few seconds later. I have something that can identify powers, but it¡¯s not showing up when I try it on him.¡±

    Marky took a moment to think that over. ¡°Yeah, definitely not within my experience. Even when I, or you,¡± he nodded to Hunter, ¡°are in a form we die for real if that dies.

    ¡°Sounds like a rage power. Smart to ask for a Berserker,¡± Gordon commented.

    ¡°I am not too smart, but thank you.¡± Tak bobbed his head with a slight smile. He was getting better with his intelligence. Specifically, he¡¯d finally gotten it past 10 over their month spent hunting and was now only suffering one degree of level disparity. That hadn¡¯t manifested as remarkably as Hunter¡¯s early improvements to the attribute, but if you knew the man you could tell. Then again, he¡¯d always been wise. It was like Tak was good at putting puzzles together but struggled to find the right pieces.

    It was after midnight when they arrived back at the guild. Going up to the roof might resolve some curiosity as to whether Lograve and the rest were still bickering, but again, not why they were here. This was Tak¡¯s turn in a game Evalyn had created out of maddened frivolity and, better yet, this probably wouldn¡¯t cost anyone coin.

    Though some corners of the city still played witness to the actions of the day walkers, the guild was now firmly in the hands of the people of the night. While the simple entryway Daniel had first arrived through was not built for them, other parts of the guild were. Numerous doors lined the outside of the guild, doors that had not been there before, and some were two meters tall. Rather than search through corridors and rooms, Farthest Run took them back to the courtyard where a few giants were being served a very meaty breakfast. Another thing about the evolved races, duskers liked meat. Daniel tried not to think about why.

    ¡°I¡¯d let Gordon do the talking,¡± Qess said to the group, who kept back. There was an air of separation to the courtyard almost as strong again as the enmity towards Farthest Run when the Ranger had thrown her bolas. ¡°It¡¯s not like before, well, they¡¯re not especially fond of Druids either, but it¡¯s a rare sight for duskers to mix with the other teams and vice versa. Not as bad as gestalt, but still not common.¡±

    Khiat shifted in place, wondering if anyone else here had come from a village like her. Anyone could advance until their wall, but superstition held that those who grew up in the city had a better chance of getting a class. Just for a moment, she thought about what it would be like to adventure with others of her kind and felt guilty about how hard it was then not to think about it. ¡°Does anyone do it?¡±

    Qess looked up. ¡°Besides you, you mean? Yeah, a few. Less duskers active during the day than Druids in the guild though, and you mostly see kinds like Rogues who like night fighting stick with duskers going the other way.¡±

    Gordon ran back after only exchanging a few words and also looked at Khiat. ¡°You, uh, haven¡¯t seen him use that power have you?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Khiat shook her head.

    ¡°Damn. They¡¯re being cagey. Someone passed along what happened earlier today.¡± He glanced sideways at Qess. ¡°Said they wanted to hear it from you.¡±

    ¡°I could still tell them!¡±

    Gordon shrugged. ¡°Might as well try I guess. You could always come back tomorrow and see if there¡¯s someone else¡­¡±

    ¡°But then it wouldn¡¯t be tonight,¡± Evalyn finished the sentence. ¡°I could try talking with them?¡±

    ¡°I think I can do this.¡± Khiat gripped both hands. ¡°I can do this. It¡¯s just talking to people. Strong people who my entire village look up to.¡±

    ¡°Khiat, your village looks up to you too. You can do this,¡± Evalyn encouraged, and Khiat smiled.

    ¡°Thanks.¡± She walked off, and Marky asked a question.

    ¡°What class did you say she was again? With most of you it¡¯s obvious, but I¡¯m getting, I don¡¯t know how to describe it exactly. An odd feeling from her.¡±

    Evalyn and Daniel, the two secret keepers of the group, exchanged a look. We have a cover, but with them, will it hold up?

    ¡°Ranger,¡± Evalyn lied despite Daniel¡¯s attempts to transmit his misgivings. Gordon and Qess raised their eyebrows.

    The avianoid spoke up. ¡°Oh! What powers does she have? We could give her some tips, or ask her directly if it¡¯s not for you to say.¡±

    Just don¡¯t go into specifics. Daniel tried not to show the sudden spike of panic. ¡°It¡¯s probably fine. Honestly, with that monster of a bow, which you haven¡¯t seen, she can keep up with us without using powers. The problem¡¯s when the monsters get close to her. The only one that¡¯s not, uh, basic I guess is Sun Resistance, but she doesn¡¯t have too many overall.¡±

    Qess winced. ¡°Ah, I hope she doesn¡¯t tell them about that. Resistance, though. Not Immunity? Huh. Well anyway, I have talked with a few duskers before about that and they¡¯re particular about that specific power. Or, powers.¡± She frowned, beak clicking as Qess opened and closed her mouth. ¡°Yeah. Yeah, Immunity wouldn¡¯t be level 1.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s not forget why we¡¯re here, Qess. It looks like that exchange went better than you thought.¡± Gordon pointed as one of the duskers returned with Khiat, although the majority kept to themselves.

    ¡°You. You hunt with her?¡± A deep, deep voice asked. This dusker was at least two and a half meters tall, one of the largest in the space, and his chitin looked sharp for all its smooth surface gleamed. Something that might have been from a power. Daniel had the sense he was of a higher level than even the true Rangers.

    ¡°Yes.¡± Evalyn stared directly at him, undaunted. ¡°We were there when she got her class.¡±

    ¡°Really? And a gestalt?¡± The large dusker appraised the group, minus Farthest Run who had separated themselves and backed up. He took note of Hunter¡¯s bared fangs but didn¡¯t remark, then settled on Tak. ¡°You. Totem Warrior. You can rage?¡±

    ¡°No? Maybe. Maybe?¡± Tak¡¯s gaze was also unbroken on the dusker, but there was less force behind it. Also less hidden fear. A hand larger than his head moved past Daniel, who flinched away. Tak cocked his head as a finger roughly poked into him. ¡°What are you doing?¡±

    ¡°Hmm. Don¡¯t feel it in you. Too kind. You¡¯re mistaken.¡±

    Daniel would have called out after the dusker as he walked away, but the thought of being squished by the hand overrode the impulse. Hunter was not one to run from fear. ¡°You are wrong. He has it, a, a changing power. I have seen it. It happens when he is angry.¡±

    It had to be said that the novelty of a talking monster had weight to it even if Hunter was supposedly a Druid. It was enough to stop the Berserker for a moment. He turned and narrowed his eyes. ¡°Druid? What kind of team is this?¡±

    ¡°A strong one.¡±

    Something passing for respect crossed the dusker¡¯s face, though only Khiat recognized it. ¡°He is not of my kind. Not my class,¡± the dusker explained, with a little less indifference. ¡°You are mistaken.¡±

    ¡°I have seen it.¡±

    A thought occurred to Daniel then. While he was smart enough to know the consequences of airing it, if they could find a way to control Tak¡¯s power, and the dusker really wouldn¡¯t help otherwise, what was the harm? ¡°That might be part of it. Tak¡¯s only used the power a few times and doesn¡¯t seem to know he¡¯s using it, but it¡¯s always when Hunter¡¯s in danger.¡±

    ¡°This one?¡± A large finger extended towards the ringcat and just for a moment, Tak tensed. Evalyn looked at Daniel as if she¡¯d wished she¡¯d thought of it first. ¡°Bonded?¡±

    ¡°He is my friend,¡± Hunter replied with half of a snarl.

    ¡°Interesting.¡± A huge hand slammed into the ground, knocking some of them off their feet. The dusker had aimed for Hunter, who had only evaded because of his Flash Jaunt. The afterimages of the ability caught the eye of anyone who hadn¡¯t looked at the sound of the blow. ¡°Very interesting.¡±

    ¡°Hey!¡± Daniel shouted before the dusker looked at him. In the eyes, there was something that made his fears of being crushed real for a moment. Definitely a power, his phone attested to a fear effect when he brought it out with shaking hands. The rest of his group was hit as well, all except Tak and Hunter.

    ¡°Gtoll!¡± A voice snapped from the roof. Rasalia peeked over and looked twice at the group she¡¯d dismissed. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±

    ¡°Training,¡± the massive Berserker replied cooly.

    She sighed. ¡°Keep the earthquakes to a minimum! We¡¯re still hosting the Council. What¡¯s left of it.¡± She muttered the last sentence.

    The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    ¡°Yes, Commander.¡± Gtoll looked from Hunter, back on all fours with fur raised, to Tak with a curious expression on his face. ¡°Not enough.¡±

    ¡°I am trying, but I have tried before. Something is wrong with the power, I think,¡± Tak explained.

    ¡°If you have it, somehow, it¡¯s not your class,¡± Gtoll said with the longest string of words he¡¯d used yet. ¡°Odd. But I¡¯d like to see. Show me.¡±

    ¡°I am trying,¡± Tak said helpfully. Brightly. The Berserker frowned again, then blurred. Despite the fast movement by such a large creature, the ground didn¡¯t tremble as before. Hunter also blurred across the courtyard but in a different way, dodging the attack.

    The Berserker clicked with his mouth, sharply. ¡°Skilled in that body. Sharp.¡± Gtoll raised a fist and punched out. Hunter Jumped back rather than spend more mana on the costly ability. Daniel tried to fight against the fear keeping him back, but it was strong. If this was a battle he¡¯d be dead faster than if the dragon was still after him, either one. But, this wasn¡¯t a fight, Gtoll was just trying to provoke Tak. He knew that. The problem was, Tak knew that too.

    The Totem Warrior looked worried, sure. And he wasn¡¯t simple, he was a hunter of his own right before Daniel knew what that was. Anger just didn¡¯t touch him, normally. The lightning dragon hadn¡¯t brought out his inner beast, and if rage was how his power worked, it was easy to understand the trouble he was having.

    Gtoll stopped after the third punch. He was no fool either. ¡°You. Both. Fight me.¡±

    ¡°Like training?¡± Tak asked.

    ¡°Use everything.¡± The dusker looked to the roof and added, ¡°Nothing loud.¡±

    Tak and Hunter looked at each other and seemed to speak without words. Which, they did. ¡°Ok! Do we start now?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    The rest of them were trapped, kept from the fight by a fear as real as any physical barrier. Daniel had felt this effect before but not as consistent or menacing. Uncaring. Dominating. Rasalia had said she was the only level 5 in the city that fought, which meant that this wasn¡¯t a power above the scale of Lograve. In fact, there was no guarantee that Gtoll had gained this power at level 4.

    Hunter and Tak felt none of it. Some trepidation for going up against someone that outclassed them both in size and level, but this wasn¡¯t a real fight. Not to Tak, at least. Because this was training. When you got down to it, there were rules people tended to follow, like the one that kept Qess from asking about Gadriel¡¯s wish. This was just training, and Gtoll wasn¡¯t going to do anything permanent. Rasalia was right there if things got out of hand. Though Tak tried not to push for that emotion normally, whatever anger he reached for fled his grasp.

    ¡°Use your powers,¡± Gtoll commanded. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. You won¡¯t break me. But try.¡±

    ¡°Ok!¡± Both Tak and Hunter shot toward the giant tracing a rough X with their path. Double Cut, a marriage of two attacks made stronger by a bond. The two didn¡¯t collide at the point of intersection, that would have been suicide in an actual fight. Rather, one reached it just before the other did, the timing guided by the ability.

    Hunter had the teeth and claws of an alpha predator, whereas Tak had mimics of these and a body covered by magically sharpened feathers. The destructive potential of their full combination attack was such that they refrained from using it on small level 1 enemies just to make sure there was something left to harvest. They even aimed for one of the larger exposed sections of Gtoll¡¯s underflesh between the plates of armor on his midsection.

    It wasn¡¯t scratched. That shouldn¡¯t have been surprising, especially to those who knew of Gtoll¡¯s contemporary in the Thormundz. Berserkers were a class that could give in to senseless rage while fighting monsters and were granted the powers to survive such recklessness. But Gtoll wasn¡¯t angry, just terribly impassive. He watched the two like he was a sword master fencing toddlers and had found they could at least pick up their blades.

    ¡°Good. Can you use this when raging?¡±

    Tak shook his head. ¡°From what they say, I only scream and attack. No other powers.¡±

    ¡°You do not remember? You do not control.¡± Gtoll lashed out against Hunter again, arm flexing to attack beyond the angles the ringcat had anticipated. All of his attacks focused on the ringcat, whereas his words were for the Totem Warrior. ¡°Like a freshly awakened one. As much danger to friend as foe. To be my class is to first know rage, and then master it. Or you are lost.¡± Khiat saw a sneer on the giant¡¯s face. ¡°You can¡¯t manage that.¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± Tak sighed. ¡°But I am trying.¡±

    This was a moment for a Star Wars quote, but the only one capable of making it was being thoroughly suppressed. Instead, Gtoll said, ¡°Then I¡¯ll try too.¡± He blurred again, the difference between a Berserker with low and high dexterity evident. It was hard to see each attack and they were speeding up each time like Gadriel¡¯s Momentous Strikes, only in this case Gtoll was steadily using more and more of his dexterity.

    Hunter continued to dodge and, as he did, his fur started to stand on end and give off a faint glow. The predominantly golden fur inched towards the yellower end of the spectrum. Gtoll noticed this, but his focus was on Tak. Even as Hunter continued to dodge as if he was against the greater skink again, Tak was attacking. This wasn¡¯t why he was here, but this was also just a game. Neither his emotions nor his mana were cooperating to reveal his ability. It shouldn¡¯t be this hard, it was his after all, and he¡¯d already used it.

    The Berserker was invincible. That¡¯s what it felt like. Despite Tak¡¯s improved strength from Ringcat Aspect, his claws couldn¡¯t do anything to him. One of them chipped, which was less of an issue given Regeneration. If this was a real fight, both he and Hunter would be dead. Tak did feel a little bit of annoyance as he continued to skate his claws off the dusker¡¯s armor, but that didn¡¯t come close to what he needed.

    After about a minute of Hunter dodging and Tak swiping, something happened. Unfortunately, it was the ringcat showing off. They¡¯d all advanced over the past month and gained new powers. One of Hunter¡¯s, Lion Charge, reached a critical point. Electricity was arcing off individual strands of fur, though it didn¡¯t discharge even when he contacted something conductive. Instead, Hunter waited until he was glowing bright enough to illuminate the whole courtyard before lashing out with a forepaw. All of the electricity collected in the limb, augmenting the attack and causing the Berserker to stop in place to inspect the slightly charred chitin.

    ¡°So that¡¯s what that is. Strong. But we waste time and I grow impatient. Many Hands.¡± With the incantation, two additional arms shot out of Berserker¡¯s midsection as the armor plates morphed to accommodate them. Without proper shoulders their range of motion was limited, but you¡¯d still probably die if one of those hands punched you.

    The two fighting the Berserker realized that in all of this time, he hadn¡¯t been using active powers. They had known that already, but now that Gtoll had used one it opened the door to others. He was in complete control unless he did something to upset Rasalia. Just playing with them. Was he helping, or was this a high-level dusker taking amusement from toying with the newcomers?

    One of the new hands pointed to Tak, who was starting to think about Jumping for the dusker¡¯s eyes. ¡°You. Show me what you have been hiding. Or this will get worse.¡± Gtoll brought his two lower arms down to briefly mimic a centaur before he charged at Hunter. The speed was such that Flash Jaunt couldn¡¯t completely evade the attack. Gtoll just waited out the ability before getting the first solid connection of the spar. The ringcat larger than a motorcycle went flying along the length of the courtyard, while the fear effect on the others intensified to prevent interference.

    Oh, Tak thought. His hands were clenched. Gtoll paused for a second to look, but nothing happened. Hunter picked himself back up, bruised from the punch, but Regeneration would take care of that. Tak felt relieved, and Gtoll frowned. The Berserker¡¯s hands caught on fire, though it didn¡¯t burn him.

    A bane to Regeneration. Not as hard a counter as necrotic energy, but if the Berserker had pulled that out someone else might have stepped in to stop him. There were things you just didn¡¯t use against another mortal, even one wearing the body of a ringcat. Fire, however, was fair play. Burns healed and didn¡¯t permanently taint a wound. With that said?

    Hunter snarled in pain as one of the hands brushed past him. It could have been a solid hit, but Gtoll elected to just catch Hunter on fire. Some of the fur burned away to leave bald patches. This had happened before as the desert had fire-aligned monsters they¡¯d come across. It was just an annoyance, it would grow back once the burns were healed.

    Tak abandoned the hit and run tactics he normally used against stronger enemies and clambered onto the dusker, using the plates as handholds while he lashed out between them. It did nothing. Gtoll had ignored him this entire fight but for the barbs.

    His concentration on attacking was broken by a strangled sound, as if Hunter had yarl¡¯d but the air escaped too quickly. Gtoll had struck another full-body blow with fire behind it and the ringcat burned. Hunter got up and considered running, just for a moment. For any but two he might have, though Tak was one of them. Gtoll continued with his fists. The fact that there was a giant ax leaning nearby and unattended escaped most of those watching.

    The fear effect on them was strong now. Strong enough to suppress active powers, any attempt to move mana was disrupted. Except in one case, when someone used a power that ran deeper than normal magic. The Berserker stared as Hunter employed a tactic learned from the greater skink fight, first Jumping and then employing Dodge Roll in mid-air. The thread of mana connecting to the ringcat didn¡¯t go unnoticed and the dusker on the cusp of level 5 followed it with his eyes.

    ¡°Triple bonded?¡± The surprise in his voice was clear, but that didn¡¯t stop him. He continued the assault even as Daniel started supporting him from afar despite the fear effect on him. Tak, meanwhile, had fit himself in between one of the largest gaps to use his sharpened feathers directly. In any real fight, Gtoll could just crush him between the shell plates, but the dusker was careful not to compress that part of his body.

    When it became clear that the spar was primarily with Hunter instead of the one he was trying to provoke, Gtoll decided to bring things to a close. The fire on his hands went out as he grabbed at Tak, picking him out of the cavity and tossing him aside a good distance away. ¡°Worthless.¡± He pointed to Daniel with one of the false alarms. ¡°This one does more for your friend. No wonder his bond is stronger.¡± Gtoll was guessing here, trying to find a weakness beyond those he could punch.

    The words did hurt. That alone might have¡­ No, Tak still couldn¡¯t find true anger. He didn¡¯t have Daniel¡¯s insecurities or a need to be better. Having something was enough. Besides, he was smart enough to know the dusker didn¡¯t mean-

    Gtoll grabbed Hunter this time. He could have done it at any point. He was a little bemused, as the dusker wondered if any of them knew who he really was. Mostly, though, there was grimness in him. The Druid taking a ringcat¡¯s form had run out of mana at this point and couldn¡¯t escape his grip.

    Clinically, he looked closer at the one he hadn¡¯t expected to catch his interest. Gtoll had long outgrown the feeble intelligence endemic to his class. You didn¡¯t see anyone truly unwise over level 3 so long as they avoided disparity. The armor in and of itself stood out. Knights always outbid everyone else on the enchanted gear. To make a near full-body set for a Druid, nonetheless one of its combat forms? Madness, and a sign of a strong bond.

    But the armor didn¡¯t cover the whole body. The quadrupedal nature of ringcats made coverings for the legs too restrictive, especially one that liked to jump all over the damned place. That meant it was quite easy for Gtoll to grip one of the forelegs at the joint and tear it off in one clean motion. There was a little more resistance than he¡¯d expected, but the Berserker was simply too strong.

    Gtoll casually tossed the severed limb aside, in full view of Tak. The Totem Warrior had only assumed the Berserker was going for a throw. Something that would just hurt Hunter. Neither of them were strangers to pain. But this, the blood running from the wound and onto the ground was real. Nothing he could do would change anything. Tak had known that from the beginning, only now did he appreciate how unfair it was. In seconds, the Berserker could just end his friend and there was nothing he could do. That, finally, provoked some anger in Tak. At himself. And more than that he felt¡­ he felt¡­

    The giant dusker idly reached for the other forelimb, pantomiming cruel indifference while making sure no one else would interrupt. This was maybe a step too far, but nothing else had worked. This avianoid didn¡¯t get angry for his own sake, Gtoll had figured that out in seconds. But now, he saw it. The Berserker waited until Tak was past the tipping point before laying Hunter on the ground. ¡°Sorry. Wset! Fix this. I¡¯ll deal with him.¡±

    In front of Gtoll, Tak was senseless to the words. He changed, a process that left even Marky taken aback as the Totem Warrior twisted not to mimic the form of another monster, but was made to appear as if he¡¯d been one all this time. In less than five seconds the monster was ready. It raised its head to shriek, when the giant wrapped his hand around it. Like Hunter before Gtoll examined it while he squeezed, trying to knock it unconscious.

    ¡°Ow,¡± Gtoll grunted, grimacing as the talons of the creature dug into his hand. Deeper than they should, given his defensive powers. It wouldn¡¯t matter but it was, ¡°Interesting.¡±

    ¡­

    Tak awoke on the ground, fully himself again. He hadn¡¯t been out long, and the dusker Arcanist Wset had provided a little bit of life energy to hasten the process. Healing wasn¡¯t entirely the domain of Clerics, as Regeneration itself attested to. Tak looked around, breathing slowed as he saw Hunter standing on all four legs. Had it just been an illusion?

    ¡°Are you awake?¡± Gtoll asked from behind him. Tak turned on the ground to see the dusker standing some ways away. His friends were also in the periphery, no longer being held back by an active fear effect but still wary of the giant. Khiat was whispering something to Evalyn in a way that everyone nearby could hear, but Tak didn¡¯t focus on the younger dusker.

    ¡°Yes. That was¡­¡± Tak thought for a moment. ¡°Rude.¡±

    ¡°Maybe,¡± Gtoll admitted. ¡°You asked for it. It¡¯s not what you think.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not a rage power. Not from my class, at least.¡± If Tak could read the man¡¯s expressions he¡¯d see the frown. ¡°I don¡¯t know what that was. You had anger, but that wasn¡¯t it. At least, not all of it.¡±

    ¡°Oh.¡± Tak turned his head. Are you ok?

    No. Hunter pouted for a moment. Yes. It just hurt.

    Thank you.

    Anything for a friend.

    ¡°I thought you had multiclassed into Berserker by mistake,¡± Gtoll said when Tak didn¡¯t say anything else. The intensity of the dusker was still there, but no longer directed. ¡°It happens with Totem Warriors sometimes. Similar roots. But that¡¯s not from my class. A twisted combination of mine, yours, and Druid perhaps, but nothing the Octyrrum would bless. I have no idea what that power is.¡±

    ¡°It is ok.¡±

    Gtoll raised an eyechitin. ¡°You harbor no grudge?¡±

    ¡°I do not think I would have done that if you hadn¡¯t brought it out of me. This was not the right way, but you stopped me from going down the wrong one.¡±

    Gtoll clicked again in the way of his race. ¡°An odd sort. For ones that survived the Thormundz? Maybe not. If you can provoke the ability again, you may better understand it. Gain awareness during it, then you may retain your other powers. Not that I expect you to ask me for help again.¡±

    ¡°Oh. Thanks though!¡± Tak chirped and nodded to a man most others would be cursing or screaming at. Because that wasn¡¯t who he was.

 Chapter 132: Taking Notice

    ¡°He¡¯s Gtoll!¡± Khiat was exclaiming as if that provided new information. ¡°No, you don¡¯t understand, he¡¯s the best!¡± Unlike the rest who had witnessed what could not in any way be called a spar, the young dusker had been taken by the display. If a little disturbed towards the end. ¡°He¡¯s a hero to us. He¡¯s almost level 5. And that¡¯s his team!¡±

    Khare barely heard any of it. They¡¯d been concerned for Tak and Hunter, of course, but also distant from the rest of the group. That wasn¡¯t bad, or that unusual. It was pretty easy to forget that Khare was there. Entire days could go by with the other members of the team barely interacting with them, though, admittedly, they could be isolated for hours advancing inside the ground. That¡¯s just how it was for a gestalt traveling with those not of their kind. They were hard to understand and slow to understand them, and the rest of the team didn¡¯t feel what Khare did.

    Otherwise, they would have known that gestalt didn¡¯t show tears when they were sad. And why wouldn¡¯t Khare be sad? There he was, standing as tall as Kob once had. How could Khare not think of them? The Martialist knew what they were doing tonight, but honestly? There wasn¡¯t anything their friends could do to make any wish they had come true. Because-

    ¡°Hey, Khare, are you ok?¡± Evalyn asked, and they picked up most of the meaning behind the question. Not that they believed it had been asked.

    ¡°Memory.¡± All that Khare wanted to say, compressed to a word.

    Evalyn looked to the giant as Khiat timidly walked over and Daniel went to check on Hunter. Farthest Run was in their own corner discussing something. It was just the two of them. ¡°Oh. Kob, of course. Khare, I¡¯m sorry, I didn¡¯t even think. Why don¡¯t we do you next? We can figure it out while they recover from whatever that was.¡±

    Khare had to take a step back, or, rather, amble backward. They¡¯d taken to moving in their hybrid form unless that appeared to unsettle someone. Their wish? They wanted Kob back. They wanted to see their people again. Khare was the only one that hadn¡¯t gone to the sanctuary, because of their friends. They didn¡¯t want to abandon them. If Khare could have anything possible in this world, they wanted the ability to be normal. Though it was Daniel they had gained a bond with, perhaps it was Hunter who would have understood them best.

    Perhaps, just tonight, their friends could help with that. Khare tried to ask. To be fair to their team, it was easier to communicate than with random people off the street. Familiarity did help.

    Evalyn eventually got there. ¡°Understand? You want, oh of course! Why didn¡¯t I think about that? There has to be some kind of item or something that can translate for gestalt. We could try at Arpan but, no, it sounds like not even Lograve can talk to him now. Maybe there¡¯s some gestalt in the city you could ask? There was also that Druid that came with us from the Thormundz.¡±

    Khare let her talk, catching what they could and hoping a little more than they had before.

    ¡­

    ¡°You¡¯re sure you¡¯re fine?¡±

    ¡°It just hurt. Not anymore.¡±

    ¡°Screw that, your leg was torn off!¡± Daniel emphasized the last two words. ¡°And they just put it back on?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± Hunter raised and lowered his leg experimentally and nodded. ¡°It would have grown back.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not the point!¡±

    ¡°I think it¡¯s fine, and I am very grateful.¡± Tak was there and suddenly, Daniel felt like he was intruding. This wasn¡¯t his moment.

    ¡°Sorry.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°I just wanted to make sure Hunter was ok, I didn¡¯t want to interrupt this,¡± Daniel said, self-aware.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡±

    ¡°It is?¡±

    Tak folded his arms. ¡°We know you can be disrespectful sometimes. It is ok.¡±

    That startled him for a moment until he saw Hunter grinning sharply. ¡°You,¡± he chuckled. ¡°Ha. Fair.¡± At least they didn¡¯t¡­ Daniel¡¯s thoughts trailed off as he picked up on something. Tak and Hunter still seemed like they were communicating privately. ¡°Uh, what is it?¡±

    Tak¡¯s voice entered his head as the two included him. Should we try it again?

    Best way to find out.

    Find out what? Daniel asked.

    Nosy, Hunter scolded mockingly.

    But, hey! They ignored him and walked over to a cleared part of the courtyard. There was a lot of room here, even considering the few duskers that were trickling in as the night aged. The voices of the giants carried and the language was common, meaning Daniel picked up on several retellings of the fight amid people being grateful that this had been their night off. As he watched the two take up individual positions away from each other, he had a sinking suspicion. ¡°No. No, oh, come on. Now? They didn¡¯t really do anything!¡±

    He watched, half-hoping he was wrong, as Tak and Hunter used Double Cut again. Or, they tried to. The effects of the attack still worked on them, but something else happened too. Appearing the same distance away from the point the two had decided to intersect at, but on the opposite side from each, another Tak and Hunter appeared. At that moment all four launched towards the center of the X, now being formed from all points, and each struck in succession.

    It still took only about three seconds for the attack to be pulled off as conjuring the clones didn¡¯t take any additional time. The copies vanished after the ability ended, although interestingly Hunter ended up where his illusory clone should have while Tak followed the line he¡¯d originally set. ¡°That¡¯s not fair,¡± Daniel whined to himself and then had a thought. He pulled out his Focus. ¡°I didn¡¯t happen to improve my bond with Hunter too, did I?¡± There wasn¡¯t a response at first, though eventually one came.

    <hr>

    Alert: No, sorry.

    -

    Alert: Cool ability though. Looks like it¡¯s based on Flash Jaunt.

    <hr>

    It was technically against Earth-Daniel¡¯s rules to break from the formatting of how his Encyclopedia responded to him when he made a custom alert. Things had changed ever so slightly once Daniel had found his way to the Bridge Space. His other self had reasoned that that rule was put into place so Daniel wouldn¡¯t think there was someone on the other end of the line. With that rationalization, Earth-Daniel cheated now and then.

    That hardly changed things. As Daniel copied Taloran¡¯s earlier sulking with about an eighth of the earlier intensity and Evalyn discussed with Khare, Farthest Run was having their own quiet discussion.

    ¡­

    ¡°Marky, what the Crest is that Druid?¡± Qess asked in a whisper. ¡°Am I insane or did we just watch his bond improve? Just like that?¡±

    ¡°How should I know!? You¡¯re the one with a bond!¡± The Druid was unsettled by what he¡¯d witnessed. They all were to some extent, considering they were recovering from being under a prolonged fear effect. Gordon and Qess, connected by a bond of the hunt, shared a look. ¡°You heard what Gtoll said in the middle of that fight, though? Triple-bonded? That would mean they¡¯re quad-bonded now or something!¡±

    ¡°I think he was talking about the Artificer,¡± Taloran mumbled.

    ¡°What?!¡±

    The Bard recoiled just a little and then shrugged. ¡°That¡¯s where he was looking when he said that. How¡¯d he know?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a thing you learn around level 4 or 5 if you make it that far. I¡¯ve heard of it,¡± Gordon explained. ¡°You should be able to get a rough sense of someone¡¯s level by now. The Seventh Sense improves with everything else as you level up.¡±

    ¡°What could you do with a bond that deep?¡± Marky, the unbonded, asked.

    ¡°You never know. What Qess and I have is specific to our bond and in six years it¡¯s only deepened once.¡±

    ¡°Damned trap spiders,¡± Qess muttered.

    ¡°But that Druid has two bonds that have both improved at least once.¡± Gordon grabbed his chin in thought. ¡°That would be about half a dozen extra powers altogether? And you tend to get better than average ones from bonds that can resist magic suppression. Damn.¡±

    ¡°Makes sense.¡± Everyone turned to Taloran, who bristled at the skeptical gazes. ¡°Oh, what, the horny Bard can¡¯t make a good point? Did all of you forget where they just came from?¡±

    ¡°Thormundz,¡± a few of them sighed. Somehow, it hadn¡¯t come up in conversation yet. How did you broach the subject of being from there? They might not have known if a certain Artificer and Druid pair hadn¡¯t made a very public exit from the city a month ago.

    Rumor, being what it was, had carried the highlights to any of wished to know such things. ¡°Two dragons and a Tyrant,¡± Gordon said softly. ¡°Surviving all of that? It does make sense.¡±

    ¡°Tal! Where¡¯s that big brain of yours when it comes to women?¡± Marky asked.

    ¡°Hey! I have taste.¡±

    ¡°If that¡¯s taste, then you¡¯re a glutton.¡±

    ¡°If only,¡± Taloran sighed dramatically.

    ¡°Hi. Sorry it turned out like this.¡± The team tried not to jump as Evalyn appeared beside them.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. Gordon¡¯s fault, really, for walking up to the second strongest person in the guild and not knowing it.¡± The Ranger glowered at Qess¡¯ words but didn¡¯t comment. ¡°Calling the night off?¡±

    ¡°Oh gods no. Actually, we may need your help again, if you still want to come with us. Marky, how well do you know the other Druids here?¡±

    ¡­

    Not well, as it turned out. Or at least, he didn¡¯t know about the Druid Evalyn wanted to find. Considering none of them had remembered her name, had only a loose description to go off on, and couldn¡¯t be sure she was here, that was hardly his fault. Marky did know most of the Druids in the guild and a few outside of it that hadn¡¯t taken to monster hunting, all of whom were likely asleep given how late it was.

    This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    Evalyn¡¯s team, still unnamed, had the energy and previously shifted sleep schedule to keep going strong. Farthest Run were beginning to flag. Even with level 3 endurance powering half of them, they had been patrolling with the guard all day. All week. The city was going downhill, though none of them tried to think about it.

    So, finding a Druid was out. That meant tracking down one of the gestalt. It shouldn¡¯t be too hard, right? There were some in the region, and where else would they be? Farthest Run had certainly seen them on the streets, only, now that they tried to look they couldn¡¯t find any. Mostly duskers, because it was night. The gestalt slept, or, at least, everyone thought they did. Khare confirmed it, but could you be certain it was the same thing?

    That was the problem. Gestalt were different. Even Hunter, an awakened monster, could talk to people. For every gestalt, or at least all that Daniel knew of, it was like they had a barrier of smoky glass between them and other people you could just see through. And there was the simple fact that they looked different. To use Hunter for another example, he had a mouth, four limbs, and eyes you could see the person behind. If you looked for him. When you got down to it earth gestalt were just a mass of vines. Hell, he¡¯d fought monsters that looked just like them.

    Only, they were people. You couldn¡¯t deny that, and no one was trying to. At that same time, the people they tried to ask on the street looked a little uneased by the questions. Giant bug people being caught off-guard by questions about gestalt amused only one person in the group, though it would have been two if Thomas had been there. But the Cleric was on no one¡¯s mind.

    ¡°This is frustrating,¡± Gordon, Ranger and expert tracker, sighed. ¡°I know there are some in the city. Earth gestalt, that is. None of the other elements, even fire. There¡¯s a team of them in the guild but I rarely if ever see them. They have a setup out in the deserts they defend.¡±

    ¡°Hmm. My tracking power wouldn¡¯t work.¡± Tak frowned, continuing to converse with Hunter in his head while the group deliberated. The most obvious improvements from the deepening of their bond were the effect on Double Cut, now called Mirror Strike, and an extension of their telepathy out to Daniel¡¯s current range. Both also had that ¡®on the tip of your tongue¡¯ feeling of an unawakened power, but hadn¡¯t figured it out yet. Daniel¡¯s phone didn¡¯t work on bonds either, except for the initial notification whenever he got them. Not even Earth-Daniel knew why that was.

    ¡°My powers aren¡¯t working either. The streets are too busy. The whole damn city¡¯s too busy,¡± Qess complained. The city¡¯s atmosphere was starting to weigh on the group a little. It was like they were out at sea and every time they talked to someone, they took on some water. They also weren¡¯t getting anywhere.

    ¡°Maybe we should move on to someone else and keep a lookout for gestalt?¡± Daniel asked. It was a reasonable idea, save the mood and efficiently use time. Evalyn shot it down.

    ¡°It¡¯s Khare¡¯s turn. We just need to think about this differently.¡± The Bard kicked at the dirt while Tak rubbed his shoulder. A dusker had bumped into him on the streets and Tak had received the worst of that trade. ¡°What kind of place is more likely to have gestalt at night? Gordon, you¡¯re sure you haven¡¯t seen gestalt at least working anywhere?¡±

    The Ranger shook his head, and the Taloran muttered, ¡°Definitely not in the brothels. What? I¡¯m saying we shouldn¡¯t look there! Jeez.¡±

    ¡°Sewers?¡± Daniel ventured. It was a random thought prompted by the fact that gestalt couldn¡¯t smell. He received mostly blank looks. Right, sand. I guess looking around the acres of farmland is also out.

    ¡°Hmm. Tricky riddle,¡± Tak said, still rubbing his shoulder despite Regeneration having already taken care of the minor injury. ¡°Not where you normally go. So where do you not go?¡±

    ¡°Spires, but they¡¯re not there. Gestalt don¡¯t have one,¡± Qess said. ¡°I don¡¯t think they have a noble house either. They weren¡¯t there when the Tyrant fell.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s starting to feel like they aren¡¯t anywhere,¡± Evalyn sighed over Daniel¡¯s sudden curiosity. ¡°But we¡¯re not giving up. We just need to-¡±

    ¡°¡®Scuse me,¡± an old voice called out behind her. A few of the others had seen her approach and noticed because the human was the only non-dusker on that street. Of course, the only person who had seen the old woman the first time had her back turned. As such, Evalyn was completely caught off-guard when she turned around to see Festra, the old Druid. The gestalt whisperer. ¡°I thought you might want to talk to me.¡±

    ¡°Wha, how?¡±

    ¡°If you don¡¯t mind my old knees, I¡¯d be more comfortable talking at home than on the move. Seeing as you just spent the last half hour running away from me.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Guardian¡¯s Call, dear.¡± Her eyes flicked to Khare for a moment, and then she laughed. ¡°This one says, ¡®you sure took your time.¡¯¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°So you can just talk to them?¡± Daniel asked. He was one of the four non-gestalt in the room, which was the basement of an old brick house. Whatever Builder magic had paved the roads had also dug out this space and prevented the sand from flowing back in. I really need to talk to one of them at some point.

    ¡°Yes. Tea?¡±

    ¡°No?¡± Evalyn replied, still a little shaken by the whirlwind that was the Druid but aware enough to not see anything close to resembling a boiling pot in the room. There was just a bed, a small, slightly rotted wooden chest, and the chairs they were sitting on. Oh, and the walls were covered in wriggling vines. That was also coloring the conversation.

    ¡°Good! That would take time and you¡¯ve already woken me.¡±

    ¡°Right.¡± Evalyn blinked. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±

    ¡°Guardian¡¯s Call,¡± Marky said, last of the four. ¡°It¡¯s a Druid feature. I know an avianoid from one of the outer villages that has it. Anytime they need help she gets a feeling about it and goes running. It¡¯s a pretty vague power though.¡± Festra nodded at the explanation.

    ¡°Uh, how can you talk to them?¡± Daniel decided to ask a wiser question and then ruined the sage moment. ¡°I thought there was, a uhm, language barrier or something. But not like a different language, it¡¯s something with how they process it?¡±

    Festra was staring at him. ¡°You done?¡±

    ¡°Yes?¡± People tended to question themselves more in Festra¡¯s presence. Also, when the walls were moving. Space aside, the only other person who had wanted to come down here was Tak, but he was still trying to figure out the new bond powers.

    ¡°I just can.¡± Festra shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s another power. Elemental Tongue. Name gave me quite the wrong first impression. Spent the first day trying to spit fire before my intuition finally kicked in.¡± At the same time she was speaking noises were coming from the walls. Those Daniel had previously compared to a haunted forest that made the entire room feel like a scene from a horror movie he¡¯d just decided to sit calmly in. ¡°Helps them understand me too. Good! Or else I¡¯d have to creak around like they do.¡±

    ¡°Right,¡± Evalyn said weakly. Festra smiled back at her, making it shamelessly clear she was enjoying the effect the room was having on them. ¡°Thank you for, uh, this.¡±

    ¡°Least I could do, child,¡± she said with a more serious tone. ¡°You and yours fought us out of the Thormundz. Even with my class that black-scaled bastard wouldn¡¯t put me on the front lines.¡± The woman, who Daniel would place at maybe seventy with a modest physique, leaned back on her chair and propped her legs up on one of the wooden pins beneath Evalyn¡¯s seat. This went unchallenged. ¡°Khare tells me you¡¯re looking for me but in travel form? Also, that you¡¯re bonded.¡± She looked at Daniel while mixing frivolity and intensity like other old women knitted. ¡°That¡¯s something the people of the earth respect. Me too, since I¡¯m stuck with ¡®em now.¡±

    ¡°Right, but, is it like telepathy? Them understanding you?¡± Daniel was stuck on that point.

    ¡°It¡¯s magic, boy. I talk, they listen. I thought Artificers were supposed to be smart.¡± She took a sip of something from her flask, which hadn¡¯t been offered, as Daniel¡¯s cheeks reddened slightly. ¡°And you can¡¯t put what I have in a bottle. Sorry. I was one of the farmers in the Thormundz, one of the ones that crossed with earth gestalt. I¡¯ve been around them in one way or another for decades and never heard of it. Bonds that allow communication, sure, even if yours doesn¡¯t. Powers, certainly. But I don¡¯t have what you¡¯re looking for.¡± She almost looked sorry about that.

    ¡°Well, you could always hope Hunter gets this kind of power,¡± Marky encouraged. ¡°Even though his focus seems to be exclusively combat-oriented.¡±

    ¡°Oh yes, him. The Druid.¡± Daniel and Evalyn froze as Festra winked at him.

    She knows? Then again, if she¡¯d been in the Thormundz since the beginning, she might have seen Hunter back when he wasn¡¯t Hunter. ¡°Right,¡± Daniel said carefully. At least she seems fine with it. ¡°I mean, it¡¯s good Khare has people they can talk to now. I assume that¡¯s what they¡¯re doing.¡±

    ¡°Hmm? Oh, yes. They won¡¯t stop talking actually.¡± Festra sounded a little aggrieved. ¡°The parts about your hunts are interesting. And, oh. They¡¯re talking about-¡± She looked at the walls again, never in the same spot. ¡°Are you sure? Alright.¡±

    ¡°Is it Kob?¡± Evalyn asked.

    ¡°Yes. Khare¡¯s grateful you picked up on that, by the way. Not everyone did.¡± Daniel looked away.

    ¡°They¡¯re still mourning? Not that I¡¯m surprised, Kob was Khare¡¯s¡­ parent? But I didn¡¯t know they were depressed.¡±

    ¡°And you¡¯d know what that looks like? Good gods girl, they¡¯ve been on their own this whole time with their grief. Gestalt don¡¯t separate from their communities! At least, not without good reason.¡± She nodded towards Daniel. ¡°But it¡¯s more than that. Khare was there when Kob died. Physically entangled until the last moment. Do you know what that means?¡±

    ¡°How do you know about that?¡±

    Daniel, perpetually skipping over the line between Festra¡¯s good and bad side, received a glare. ¡°Fool. That bird Cleric brought me along to help when someone suggested it.¡± The inflection in her voice made it clear who she was talking about.

    ¡°I did? Ooooh, I did,¡± Daniel sighed, remembering.

    ¡°More wisdom in those two seconds than you¡¯ve shown all night. Anyways! I, hmm¡­ Anyone mind if I tell them about the link?¡± she petitioned the walls. Apparently, she got a reply. ¡°I understand. Well, what do you know about emotional links?¡±

    ¡°You mean Empathic Links?¡± Daniel asked carefully.

    ¡°Feh. Semantics. Wait, you have one?¡± She glanced sideways. ¡°Not with Khare. Hmm. But yes. Well, it¡¯s no great secret apparently, but every gestalt, of the same element, has an ¡®Empathic Link¡¯ with every other.¡± Marky had somewhat lost the thread when this wasn¡¯t explained clearly but Daniel, and Evalyn who¡¯d heard Daniel¡¯s explanations of his powers, stiffened. ¡°Only works when you¡¯re ever so close but when they are, it¡¯s strong.¡±

    ¡°But, that¡¯s¡­¡± Daniel shook his head. He was struggling to wrap his head around the prospect.

    ¡°What?¡± Marky finally asked.

    ¡°Imagine if you could feel every emotion someone else was feeling. Not necessarily their thoughts, but all of their¡­¡± Evalyn waved a hand, not finding another word, ¡°Emotions, all at once. Excluding us, every gestalt in this room is feeling what every other gestalt is, at the same time. It¡¯s something that fades with distance, but bound up like that Khare can know the other gestalt in here on a level almost none of us can attain.¡±

    ¡°So you understand what isolation can do to one of them?¡± Festra asked rhetorically. ¡°But it¡¯s not your fault child. You didn¡¯t know. But you should have sought me out sooner.¡±

    ¡°You could have mentioned something when we split up at the border,¡± Daniel pointed out.

    ¡°Yes, well, my apologies for overestimating you,¡± she returned acerbically.

    ¡°Khare felt Kob dying?¡± Evalyn quietly asked.

    ¡°Yes.¡± There was a tear in the Bard¡¯s eye and one Festra would never have admitted to in hers. ¡°It was horrible, by the sound of it. But, yes yes, I¡¯ll tell them, Khare wants me to tell you that they are not as bad as Khiat was. Whoever that is. Another gestalt?¡±

    ¡°Dusker. It¡¯s a long story.¡±

    ¡°Well, I¡¯m sure it is. But seeing as you¡¯ve found what you¡¯re looking for and we¡¯ve had this nice chat, would you kindly let me return to my rest?¡±

    ¡°What? But, couldn¡¯t we talk to Khare? Through you, I mean?¡±

    ¡°Oh sure, sure.¡± Festra mimed Evalyn¡¯s earlier handwave and put some sarcasm behind it. ¡°Tomorrow! Or just later. Don¡¯t you know that it¡¯s the middle of the night?¡±

    ¡°We should go, then,¡± Evalyn decided for the group. ¡°Thank you for seeking us out even if I did call you, somehow. Does Khare want to stay here for the night? If that¡¯s ok.¡±

    ¡°Yes, yes, that¡¯s alright. Honestly, after hearing them talking for so long I can almost fall asleep to their speech. If I ignore the words.¡± Daniel considered that, remembering how people slept with fans on in his world, and still didn¡¯t get it. ¡°Well? Go on, get!¡±

    ¡­

    Tak looked up as the three climbed out of the cellar door in the alleyway. ¡°Is Khare not coming?¡±

    ¡°No, they¡¯re staying the night.¡±

    Marky, meanwhile, had noticed something else. ¡°Hey, guys, where¡¯s Taloran?¡± There was a note in his voice that suggested he already knew.

    ¡°Got bored and ran off,¡± Qess answered with a defeated expression.

    ¡°That was after he¡¯d checked that door. After I told him not to.¡± Gordon frowned. ¡°What was down there?¡±

    ¡°Boss, I think we may want to go after him.¡±

    ¡°Fuck that, I¡¯m not going to-¡± Qess began, but Gordon held up a hand.

    ¡°You¡¯re sure?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    The Ranger nodded. ¡°Well, Evalyn, as much as we¡¯ve enjoyed this, my team does need its rest. But don¡¯t be strangers. It would help if we had a name to look after you by.¡±

    ¡°You have mine,¡± Evalyn smiled. ¡°We¡¯ll think about it. See you around?¡±

    ¡°Of course.¡±

    It was an hour later, back in the Hunter¡¯s Guild and the private rooms being leased to anyone helping out the guard, that they spoke. Without Taloran, whose stunts the three were well familiar with. He¡¯d take care of himself. ¡°Gordon, this team, are we sure they¡¯re alright?¡±

    The Ranger was well versed in reading the Druid. Marky was new to the team, but not a fresh recruit. ¡°What happened?¡±

    ¡°Well, they were talking about the gestalt and there¡¯s something I gotta tell you about them, but that¡¯s not important. That other Druid said something about Hunter. An aside, like it was a joke. Like.¡± He lowered his voice. ¡°Like she was saying ¡®look how funny it is that everyone thinks he¡¯s a Druid¡¯. She might have assumed I was in on it. After all this time thinking about how weird a Druid he was, it kind of hit me. If I¡¯d started to see it after just meeting him, and this Druid knew them from before, she would know if anything¡¯s off, right?¡±

    ¡°But he is a Druid,¡± Qess said, confused. ¡°The Crest would he be if he wasn¡¯t?¡±

    ¡°I dunno. A Spiritualist, maybe?¡± The thought crossed to the rest of Farthest Run, who shared suddenly uneasy looks.

 Chapter 133: Stocking Up

    Before Gordon of Farthest Run had weighed the merits of interrupting whatever conference was still happening on the roof to make a report, the yet still unnamed team was faced with its own critical decision. ¡°Alright, who¡¯s next?¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t want to go next?¡± Daniel asked, and Evalyn shook her head.

    ¡°Oh no. Mine should be last. It might, well, we¡¯ll get to that.¡±

    Evalyn wasn¡¯t giving anything to go on with that and Daniel was still thinking, so he asked, ¡°Khiat, do you know what you want to do?¡±

    ¡°Oh! I¡¯d like to talk to Gtoll again. If he isn¡¯t helping the guard now. He was very nice.¡± The others stared at her. ¡°After the fight, at least.¡±

    ¡°Not that we wouldn¡¯t do that but it might be easier to find him tomorrow night if he¡¯s out and about now.¡± Evalyn didn¡¯t mention the fact that they¡¯d just spent the last hour doing something very similar. ¡°We can go anywhere in the city, do anything! And all of your people are up now. Although, someone else can go if you need time.¡±

    ¡°Um.¡± Khiat looked around, hoping for inspiration. ¡°I¡¯m not sure. I am hungry though.¡±

    ¡°You want to get food?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± Khiat correctly interpreted the look of dissatisfaction on Evalyn¡¯s face. ¡°No. I want the best food.¡±

    As it turned out, this was as hard a prospect as finding Festra. Not because their target was one among unknowing thousands. In this case, they could quite easily ask around. That was the problem. Everyone had an opinion and also offered opinions on others¡¯ opinions gratis. Places that catered to all kinds, keeping to the traditional 24/7 hours of a city that never sleeped, were quickly ruled out. No, said the common dusker, the many discordant notes joining in one harmony, if you want the best food, you shouldn¡¯t go to some trashy all-night diner. For the best food¡­

    And that was where opinions diverged. Though the giants tended towards a carnivorous diet, they still had a rich palette as a culture. Then, there was experience and ambiance to consider. Having started their search about midway from the Spires to the walls, near where Festra lived, they missed out on recommendations for the truly pricey and exclusive joints run by those that catered to the city¡¯s richest. This was probably for the best, as these establishments could charge prices that could humble the team¡¯s prodigious budget.

    Any thoughts of the compromise, proposed by Tak, of employing a variation of the bar crawl were shot down after they reached the first restaurant and saw the prices. And the portions.

    Their journey eventually led them to a permanent stall built into one of the large, open courtyards you occasionally came across while traveling the city. The ground was still compact sand and dirt, like the one in the Hunter¡¯s Guild or the Divine Quarter. The square sat somewhat close to Moon Spire on the north side of the city, to the point that the buildings around had been converted to new brick. The stall itself, named the Lunar Grill in the written language Daniel could read, was an exception. It didn¡¯t have walls, instead, several thick staves of rare wood had been driven into the ground to support stretched canvas. The same material provided a communal roof over the entire square, blocking the night sky now and the lethal sun during the day.

    ¡°Lunar Grill?¡± Daniel asked himself skeptically, seeing the name. At least it doesn¡¯t have ¡®dusk¡¯ in the name.

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Nothing,¡± Daniel said quickly.

    Evalyn turned away from him with a curious expression. ¡°It smells like a grill. Anyone want to bet on whether they¡¯ll serve Hunter?¡±

    ¡°They will.¡± Tak didn¡¯t sound like it was a question, though neither was he attempting intimidation. ¡°This is a good idea. Very smart.¡± The Totem Warrior, who couldn¡¯t fully read but could understand pricing, eyed a sign posted near one of the entrances. ¡°Oh. Very expensive.¡±

    ¡°It is?¡± Khiat asked worriedly. ¡°We can go somewhere else if it¡¯s too bad.¡±

    Daniel looked at the sign and frowned. ¡°This doesn¡¯t seem too bad.¡±

    ¡°Ten bronze for a side? That¡¯s just under half a gold!¡± Evalyn exclaimed, drawing attention.

    ¡°But that¡¯s, what, less than a thousandth of what we were just paid?¡±

    Evalyn looked at Daniel, seeing a rich man with no idea of what normal things cost. Even Bartering wasn¡¯t putting in work here, maybe because dining wasn¡¯t associated with Daniel¡¯s theoretical profession. ¡°Daniel, a good loaf of bread costs half of a copper coin. We each spend about this much for food at our inn every week. Or, we would if Thomas still wasn¡¯t paying for us.¡±

    ¡°Is he alright, by the way? It seems like he¡¯s been too grateful recently. Like when he was trying to make up for getting my Focus destroyed.¡± Daniel frowned. ¡°He¡¯s not still doing that is he?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll talk about him later, this is Khiat¡¯s time. Khiat?¡± she turned to the dusker reading the menu with a mixture of excitement and uncertainty. ¡°This is fine for tonight.¡±

    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s great! This place smells really good. I¡¯ll probably get seconds.¡± Khiat looked into her bag of holding, the opening of which was just wide enough to accommodate her arm. ¡°Or thirds.¡±

    A trio of duskers, two of indeterminate gender and a child, walked by quickly. The fear gripping the city could not grasp the team, but it was still present. At another time the child might have shown curiosity towards the ¡®tamed monster¡¯, but not tonight. ¡°Let¡¯s get in before they¡¯re packed.¡±

    The interior space was set up in a way not at all representative of the eateries Daniel had seen so far, both of his world and others. For one, no chairs. He¡¯d already observed how duskers could collapse their legs to get a similar degree of comfort. Happily, that meant the tables were only so tall that they¡¯d have to eat standing, instead of on top of one another. No one else in the establishment had this problem, as everyone else was a dusker.

    Such a crowd instantly made Daniel feel as if he were a child accidentally wandering into a fancy restaurant. Only Hunter could compare with them in terms of bulk, but he was long instead of tall. While stares greeted them at the entrance, nothing else did. No waiters, or assigned seating. Instead, there was a large setup in the center reminiscent of a 360-degree bar. It was a large square table surrounding several cooking spaces, tables of some ceramic-like surface heated by fires underneath. Whatever they were burning produced no smoke, which would have otherwise flooded the space.

    A board reiterated the menu posted outside, slight variations in the writing confirming that it had been hand-written. Daniel had seen enough to know that mundane objects, like serving trays for example, could be replicated en masse by those with powers. This was not the case here.

    ¡°Do we order up there?¡± Khiat asked one of the nearby patrons, who nodded. She was gathering the least of the stares.

    Would we be kicked out if she wasn¡¯t here? Daniel inspected the menu again as Khiat marveled at the cooks rather than order. Five bronze would get you a drink here, whereas the most expensive meal was three gold and multi-coursed. He recognized sesel and skink meat on order, among other species monstrous or otherwise native to the region. Wonder if Farthest Run¡¯s ever sold stuff to this place.

    ¡°We¡¯ll be happy to serve a Blessed,¡± one of the staff was saying as Daniel thought, ¡°But not that. Have your monster wait outside.¡±

    ¡°Druid,¡± Hunter rumbled in a self-satisfied way as half the room just stopped.

    ¡°W-why?¡± the server stuttered, something Daniel hadn¡¯t seen a dusker do before.

    ¡°Things taste different. Better. I can pay.¡± Give me the mind-move thing, Hunter mentally asked.

    What? Oh, ok. Daniel reneged Jump from Hunter¡¯s shared powers and sent Telekinetic Reach over. The ringcat had so far elected to keep two powers standard on him at all times and hadn¡¯t shown too much curiosity in the other ones despite knowing about them. The disinterest always puzzled Daniel, who would have jumped at the chance to try out Hunter¡¯s powers himself.

    Somewhat unsteadily, Hunter mentally opened the bag of holding hung around his neck and withdrew a gold coin from it. To his credit, the server recovered quickly. ¡°Ah. Unusual, but to experience the palette of a monster? I understand. Actually, no, I have to admit I¡¯m jealous. My apologies for offending you. What would you like?¡±

    You¡¯re getting better at lying.

    It helps when I can enjoy it, Hunter thought, while smiling at the server. ¡°Sand mole filet. Three of them.¡±

    Despite Hunter¡¯s small win for the advancement of respect for awakened monsters in society, of which he was the sole member, he still had to eat on the floor. Daniel would have paid money to see Hunter standing on his haunches, which would have just allowed him to put his paws on the table¡¯s surface, but that was too painful of a position to hold for long with the armor on. Also, there wouldn¡¯t have been enough room for his order.

    Hunter had spent five gold in total for his order of the elusive sand mole meat, one serving of which was heaped onto a plate one meter in diameter. It occurred to Daniel then that there might be a reason behind the higher prices.

    ¡°This is amazing!¡± Khiat had a huge fork in her hand that the larger plate and jug of water made appear normal. She had, of course, ordered the three gold meal. Daniel, Evalyn, and Tak had received normal-sized silverware that only made their meals that much more daunting. Even the stew Daniel had ordered, hoping it would be less meat-heavy, would have been more appropriate in the center of a king¡¯s feast hall next to the full roast pig.

    ¡°Hmm. A little gamey for me. But good.¡± Tak smiled through his fanged beak, the Totem Warrior having adopted his ringcat aspect to better eat the meal. ¡°No spice?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s a kind of sweet glaze on mine, but nothing I¡¯d consider spice either. Huh.¡± Evalyn turned to Khiat. ¡°Do you like any spices Khiat?¡±

    The giant insect that had just taken a bit of flesh returned the gaze of the Bard. While she swallowed, Daniel again reflected that Thomas¡¯ fear of the race might not be entirely unfounded. ¡°Mmm. Not really. The only one from the village who liked them was Hwfel. Cinnamon, I think.¡± She took another bite, slowly and with relish. ¡°It¡¯s ok. And I like sweet things.¡±

    ¡°Mine¡¯s good enough. I mean, as far as spices I like garlic, but I don¡¯t think it would go well with this. What about you Hunter?¡± The ringcat didn¡¯t even respond to Daniel¡¯s question as he attempted to fit more meat than even his stomach could handle into him. ¡°I¡¯ll take that as a vote of approval. What?¡±

    Tak was frowning. ¡°Still nothing from the bond. Something is there, but I don¡¯t know what it is. Frustrating.¡±

    ¡°Probably not an Empathic Link like me then. You¡¯d know, trust me.¡± Of all of his sensitivity training thus far, Hunter and Daniel had agreed not to push the envelope with their emotional link. It was, as Daniel put it, ¡®still too weird¡¯. And Khare has that active all the time? No wonder they see things differently.

    A few people came to the table, initially towering over them before they locked their legs and looked at Khiat. ¡°Blessed,¡± one of them greeted as they all nodded. ¡°You are the one that met with Gtoll earlier tonight?¡± A note of excitement entered the voice of what Daniel decided was a male youth. It was just too familiar to how Khiat could get around Gadriel.

    Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

    ¡°Um, yes. He was so cool! I¡¯m Khiat.¡±

    ¡°Gtisi,¡± the first speaker replied with what was probably a smile. ¡°I am Lord Tsook¡¯s third son, otherwise I would have tried for a class too. The family doesn¡¯t want me to get any attribute farther than eight.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re nobility!?¡± Gtisi and his companions looked bemused at that, at least to most of the patrons they did.

    ¡°Khiat, there¡¯s twice as many of us as there are you. I¡¯m just rich, but you, what kind of powers do you have? What¡¯s your class?¡±

    A familiar edge colored the team as again someone poked at that particular secret. ¡°Ranger,¡± Khiat replied with halfway practiced ease. Fortunately, she didn¡¯t have to lie for the next part. ¡°I don¡¯t have too much. I just started but they¡¯ve been hunting for months. I can mostly hit things harder if I want to. With my arrows,¡± she clarified. ¡°I have a special attack that can immobilize something. And, I can be in the sun for a little bit each day.¡±

    The restaurant hadn¡¯t come to a full stop when Hunter spoke, but it did at those words. It had been Gtoll¡¯s name which drew every ear into the conversation, if temporarily. Long enough to hear those words. Every head turned, and Daniel remembered Farthest Run¡¯s words. Apparently, the cultural impact of sun-resisting powers wasn¡¯t the same in the outlying villages, because Khiat was just as surprised. Are we about to get mobbed?

    Gtisi took a step back and one of the people at his side bowed. Amidst the clicks of the crowd processing the news, a word resounded. ¡°Sunwarded.¡± It took the other hunters a second to realize the emotion in the air was awe. Even traveling with Khiat they¡¯d been slow to recognize how emotions played across the race.

    Then, they were actually mobbed. Only Hunter made it out with his food intact, dragging one plate with his mouth and the other with his mind. If someone tried to take one from him, they might lose a hand. ¡°Should we help her?¡± Daniel asked, looking as the crowd began asking Khiat about every aspect of her life.

    ¡°Can we help her?¡± Tak wondered, looking at a wall of strong, impassioned adorants.

    Evalyn appeared conflicted. ¡°As long as she sticks to the story, it should be fine. But what are they doing?¡±

    Daniel continued to listen, working out a trend to the questions barraging Khiat. ¡°I think they¡¯re trying to figure out why she got that power. As well as ask her out?¡± He frowned. ¡°Ok, maybe we should step in.¡±

    Evalyn had a winsome grin on her face. ¡°No, let her enjoy the attention. This will be good for her confidence. Gods knows she needs a boost.¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s been doing well.¡±

    ¡°We think she¡¯s doing well, but I¡¯m still worried about her. This is a good thing. Probably.¡±

    Daniel blinked at her for a few seconds. ¡°But- ok, but what if she gets attached to someone? We¡¯re leaving for Threst soon.¡±

    ¡°And that should hold her back from finding love? I don¡¯t think there are many duskers in Threst. Maybe she should stay here. It¡¯s not like she needs to worry about being hunted anymore.¡± There wasn¡¯t much he could say to that. Instead, he just sighed.

    ¡°I think one of them is eating my food.¡±

    ¡­

    The team¡¯s retreat from the Lunar Grill was only made after Hunter had finished eating. They had ultimately decided to leave Khiat behind, though only after being assured that she was fine by the dusker herself. Overwhelmed a little, but fine. Hunter was more of a casualty.

    ¡°Why did you order three meals?¡± Daniel chided. ¡°They¡¯re giants! You should have thought about that.¡±

    ¡°Urrk.¡± Hunter emitted a sick noise in response, part of it coming from his stomach. He¡¯d finished eating, but despite all the determination in the world he hadn¡¯t cleared the last plate.

    ¡°Food coma. Very greedy.¡± Tak shook his head, features reverting to their default settings. ¡°You could have taken it to go.¡±

    ¡°Didn¡¯t think to,¡± Hunter mumbled.

    ¡°Do you want me to give you Fortitude? It might help.¡± Hunter collapsed onto the ground in response, awkwardly laying on his side as the armor pressed into him. ¡°You¡¯re ok, right?¡±

    Full, Hunter mentally messaged him and Tak.

    ¡°I¡¯ve never seen him like this,¡± Evalyn commented. ¡°Daniel, it¡¯d be best if you go next. We¡¯ve still got a few hours left and Hunter might feel better after you go.¡±

    ¡°Well, I still only have one idea. It could be boring but it is something I wanted to look into. What if we checked out an Alchemist¡¯s shop? There has to be at least one open for duskers.¡± Evalyn gave Daniel the same look she¡¯d initially given Khiat. ¡°What? The only other thing I could think of was food and we just did that. I¡¯m curious. And since you suck at healing we should have something for emergencies.¡±

    Evalyn crossed her arms and then relented. ¡°Alright. I didn¡¯t look into potions too much before because you¡¯re generally wasting money buying them at level 1, they can be expensive. In the realm of gold for lower-level ones.¡±

    ¡°How about the ones we used during the dragon fight?¡±

    ¡°Gold to viridian? Nothing above that I¡¯d think.¡± Both turned as Hunter made a very unpleasant noise while Tak tried to drag him from the grill. While most of his armor was made of smooth plates, one of the lips made to accept the lightning wings was dragging a trough into the ground. ¡°It¡¯s a shame their new bond doesn¡¯t cover indigestion.¡±

    ¡°It probably is some kind of combat thing. That¡¯s the motif of it, I think? Like how I¡¯m a monster hunter Artificer and you''re a buff Bard.¡±

    Evalyn glanced at her arms. ¡°Thank you.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not what I-¡± Daniel caught himself before he said anything to spoil the mood. ¡°So, potions?¡±

    ¡­

    Alchemists, as a class, fulfilled a different role in the societies of the Octyrrum compared to Artificers. In one sense, the difference was class rarity. A region could have any number of potion makers, yet only a few Artificers. In another, Artificers created permanent works of magic while alchemy could only make one use items. This did not mean Alchemists were any less useful. Enchanted armor was all well and good, the most expensive magical gear one could buy in fact. Yet when your stomach is torn open, you¡¯d reach for the work of Alchemists and not Artificers.

    On the other hand, were they that different? Both classes created a secondary market of their own from the demands of reagents and materials. Aside from extraordinary or short-lived cases, they did not pursue a life of hunting like other classes. And, most importantly, they knew their worth.

    Daniel frowned as he inspected the violet fluid with silver flecks on the shelf. The bottle was on clear display like the others, without any obvious protective measures. Someone could quite easily take it and be out the door before being stopped by the proprietor behind the desk. At least, that would be the case without magic. As it stood, Daniel got a very ominous feeling whenever one of his hands moved towards the glass.

    Joruza¡¯s Bottleworks was, in fact, a non-dusker operation open in the early morning hours. Rather than staff at all times, the sole Alchemist kept a sleep schedule similar to how Daniel had had to adapt when the team took on Khiat. Except, rather than choosing to sleep in, the draconoid shopkeeper was an interminable morning person who used careful doses of sleeping potions to briefly rest at dawn. Another point to the differences between Alchemists and Artificers, if on a scale of two.

    Daniel looked away from the level 4 mana potion (priced on sale at 20 lapis) to the woman behind the counter with light blue scales currently breathing into a flask. That was the politest word he could think to use. As a descendant of water dragons, Joruza had awakened a breath ability that had been influenced by her class and aversion to general fighting. Rather than become a fire hose that could douse enemies, Joruza could generate various alchemical bases to assist in her work. With her mouth.

    Another difference between Alchemists and Artificers. Of the two professionals Daniel had seen, he could conclude that Artificers liked to work in private while Alchemists enjoyed publicity. He had to admit, there was more showmanship value in seeing various beakers and flasks change colors while passed over flame compared to dully staring at material and willing it to be magic. At the same time, he wished the draconoid didn¡¯t need to mind her supplies so frequently.

    ¡°Ah. Taken with my work, Artificer?¡± Joruza wiped something that smelled faintly of vinegar from her cheek as she toyed with her current patrons and continued brewing potions. ¡°I can assure you everything is priced accordingly. I¡¯m always in need of more storage space, you know, so I¡¯m not averse to bargaining. I can¡¯t tell you how relieved I am to hear I have someone other than Arpan to deal with now.¡±

    ¡°Thanks,¡± Daniel ventured, still off guard. ¡°But, you know I¡¯m more of a hunter than an enchanter right?¡±

    ¡°Oh how could I forget? All that means to me is you need my potions.¡±

    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t say need,¡± Evalyn replied, smiling. ¡°Half our team has Regeneration.¡±

    That didn¡¯t even phase the saleswoman. ¡°Healing isn¡¯t everything, is it? Trust me, it¡¯s a whole different world when you can restore your mana more than once per day. Have some flashy, high-cost ability you like using?¡± Joruza asked, in sales pitch mode. ¡°Mana potions! That one there is overkill for your level, I¡¯ll admit. It¡¯ll take a level 3 from empty to full and give them enough of a passive recharge to last an hour or so. Word of warning though, don¡¯t drink one when you¡¯re full. Overcharging your mana doesn¡¯t do good things to you.¡±

    Oddly, this was putting Daniel at ease. Probably because the Alchemist had economical powers. And he¡¯d come here out of curiosity, hadn¡¯t he? ¡°So, you could use these to heighten more features than normal?¡±

    ¡°Well, no. Heightening reduces the amount of mana you can regain through potions. Or other means. Some potions can help with that! Only, those stingy bastards further in the kingdom charge insane prices for formulae of that caliber.¡±

    Huh. I wonder if it works this way for her too. ¡°But can¡¯t you discover formulae on your own? Through experimentation, I mean.¡±

    ¡°Oh sure, sure. If I felt like spending weeks developing what I could just buy.¡± She gestured to her storefront full of glittering and sloshing bottles. ¡°In the meantime, I¡¯d run out of all my stock, stop making money, and go bankrupt. And this is not a city you want to end up in debt to.¡±

    ¡°What about formulae you couldn¡¯t buy? New ones, I mean.¡± Daniel didn¡¯t have any of his gear out and wasn¡¯t about to pull an arm bow on a store owner, but he could pull out his experience. ¡°In the Thormundz there were these lightning spines I was able to improvise with and make formulae I later refined. Remember the flying ringcat? I made that, and I¡¯m pretty sure it¡¯s unique to me. What if you tried using one of those in a potion?¡±

    Joruza, who had heard all about that event, didn¡¯t seem impressed. ¡°And? I can make a potion of flying. There are doubtlessly other Artificer formulae that can produce a similar effect. Threst would have commissioned it themselves if it didn¡¯t already exist. Why go through all that effort figuring out some new component when you could stick to what works, make a fortune, and buy whatever you wanted? Oh damn, I¡¯ll need more albedo. Excuse me.¡±

    Daniel tried not to mirror the draconoid in throwing up, made more difficult by the fact that she was now spewing some form of white liquid. Ew. But that¡¯s a fair point. I mean, even I haven¡¯t experimented anymore besides making things I knew should exist. There just isn¡¯t anything like the lightning spines here, not in the monsters at least. I hope the ornithopters will pay off.

    ¡°See anything you like?¡± Evalyn asked as a distraction from the Alchemist. She had been perusing too, though hadn¡¯t taken anything exotic herself.

    ¡°The healing potions aren¡¯t too bad, even if I¡¯m not sure what the difference is.¡±

    ¡°Lesser ones seal cuts and stabilize. Normal ones repair organs and bone if it¡¯s a clean break. Their effectiveness goes down on higher levels, by the way. A five drinking a level 1 potion would only get more hydrated.¡± Joruza said quickly, half-filled flask in hand. ¡°You using a level 3, well, you probably wouldn¡¯t need that unless you¡¯re fighting another dragon, but who can put a price on staying alive?¡±

    ¡°You?¡± Daniel said, noting the listed prices. 10 gold for a level 1, two viridian for level 2, and one whole lapis for the level 3. The entire team couldn¡¯t afford the most expensive potion, though if they were expecting to fight dragons weekly, he could see justifying the cost of the largest bottles. It¡¯s still a lot of money.

    ¡°Well, of course. I¡¯d rattle off everything that goes into the simplest potions but then, well, I¡¯d have to charge you for the formulae. Let¡¯s just say that my margins aren¡¯t as large as you would assume.¡±

    ¡°Anything here that could be used for disease, poison, or parasites?¡± He thought of the swarm parasites and shuddered.

    ¡°A base healing potion wouldn¡¯t work for those,¡± Joruza said, frowning. ¡°Poisons tend to require specific antidotes. Annoying to synthesize if I have to, but every so often a Lord gets bitten by an exotic pet. I do have a formulae for Potion of Remove Malady, but that¡¯s 50 viridian and a week turnaround. Too expensive to keep on the shelf, at least for now. I had hopes trade would get better once the Thormundz was up and running, but, well, you know how that turned out.¡±

    ¡°Hmm. I¡¯ll keep looking then.¡±

    ¡°Sure, sure.¡±

    Evalyn had given a few perfunctory glances around the shop, mostly at the weird potions, but didn¡¯t have nearly as much interest as Daniel. She saw Daniel looking at every single label and then turned to the woman mixing four vials simultaneously. ¡°So, is it hard being a water draconoid in the desert?¡±

    ¡°Oh? Not really. Levels help. It¡¯s not like I¡¯m a water-based species either like our Fate.¡± She drank one of the vials, a dull green, before spitting it into an empty flask over a flame. It was a different color coming out. ¡°Ahm, sorry. This is a Potion of Lesser Grace, the timing can be quite tricky. You know, you look like someone who could make great use of this. One viridian and five gold, but worth it.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll pass, thank you.¡±

    ¡°Oh well.¡± Joruza shrugged. If she had hair, she might have tossed it too. ¡°I do poisons too, you know. Relatively easy to apply. Not that Bards use them frequently, but you are part of a team aren¡¯t you?¡±

    ¡°I haven¡¯t seen any poisons so far,¡± Daniel commented from further down the line of bottles.

    ¡°Well, obviously they don¡¯t go on display. Check the green binder if you¡¯re interested.¡±

    ¡°Any thoughts on leaving the region?¡± Evalyn asked as he looked.

    Joruza¡¯s movement fully stopped with that question, though just for a moment. ¡°Why? If this is some kind of Bardic thing then let me tell you I am happily taken.¡±

    Evalyn shook her head. ¡°No, nothing like that. I¡¯m sorry for giving you that impression. We¡¯re heading to Threst sometime in the next few days and were curious. With everything going on.¡±

    ¡°Oh, I see. Threst? No. I¡¯m afraid of heights,¡± she half-whispered. ¡°One wonders how long the Council will stay in power. It¡¯s stood since Armafus fell but with the loss of the Thormundz?¡± She scratched her chin with a stained claw. ¡°Kallical? That¡¯s as boring a region as you could find. Fields everywhere. Higher level monsters. More competition, but I have made some improvements that could give me an edge.¡± She blinked as several bottles were placed on the part of the counter that wasn¡¯t partially on fire. The fact that Daniel¡¯s fingers weren¡¯t bleeding meant they were taken with the right intent.

    ¡°Six viridian and change for everything?¡±

    ¡°Yes. I see someone¡¯s been successful. Anything else for you, miss?¡±

    Evalyn took one last look around after buying a few health and mana potions of her own, and then said, not unkindly, ¡°No thanks, I can¡¯t find what I want here.¡±

 Chapter 134: Thinking Ahead

    Hmm. He is resting. I don¡¯t think I should wake him.

    Alright, I¡¯ll let her know. Despite the interesting and, at times, disgusting encounter with the Alchemist, Hunter had not yet recovered. One of the recovery potions on sale, distinct from healing potions, might have helped though at great cost. ¡°Hunter¡¯s out. Tak got him back to the tavern, somehow. He says he still doesn¡¯t know about the bond though.¡±

    ¡°They¡¯ll figure it out in time. I guess that means it¡¯s just the two of us.¡± He would have wondered if she¡¯d engineered this to happen if Daniel didn¡¯t catch the slight disappointment in her voice. At least it didn¡¯t seem to be directed at him.

    ¡°We¡¯ve got two hours until dawn?¡± It was hard to tell without a clock, and not even his Focus provided one. ¡°Should be plenty of time for, uh, whatever you want to do.¡±

    ¡°Hmm. Maybe.¡±

    ¡°Maybe?¡±

    Evalyn looked up, craning her neck. She pointed to something hard to see in the darkness of the night. ¡°It might take a while to get up there.¡±

    ¡°Up into the Spires?¡± He said that a little nervously. This world had given him a lot to be anxious about, Evalyn included. Also among that number were old women trying to stab out his eyes. Claret had been managed, he was assured. For some reason, he suspected that didn¡¯t extend to imprisonment. She was probably still up there in the Sun Spire, though only stripped of her position.

    ¡°I want to see the sunrise. From up there.¡± She nodded her head up again as Daniel noticed they were walking towards the southernmost Spire. The Sun Spire, because of course that was the one they were closest to. ¡°I¡¯ve been talking with people about it idly. The tops of the Spires are spiked, essentially glorified watch towers, but there¡¯s something special you can reach between them on the highest floors. I want to get there. You can come if you want to, but I¡¯d understand if you didn¡¯t.¡± She brushed some sand from her hair idly. ¡°It¡¯s not exactly something we¡¯re supposed to be doing.¡±

    ¡°Then how are we supposed to-¡± Daniel shut up as one of the main entryways to the Spire appeared as they rounded a corner. It was kind of like Sarumon¡¯s tower, with a staircase leading up to where two double doors reminiscent of the city¡¯s gates stood. Another courtyard was ahead of these gates. During the day, they were open. At night, they were cracked just a little and ready to be closed at a moment''s notice.

    ¡°To be honest, I was hoping to have Thomas for this part,¡± Evalyn whispered. ¡°But his name works too.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re going to bluff your way up?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. And I¡¯ve got plenty of mana for it.¡±

    Daniel stared at her which hardly helped the point he was about to make. ¡°They have to have defenses against that kind of thing.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯d think, wouldn¡¯t you? But I¡¯ve heard practically any protective items the city buys go to officers and the nobility. That dusker guarding the gate doesn¡¯t look important if I¡¯m honest.¡±

    ¡°But how are you going to charm a dusker?¡± Daniel asked, mortified.

    ¡°I¡¯ll play it by ear. Infatuation isn¡¯t the only emotion Bards can toy with.¡± The gate guard was staring at them now. There was only one place this road went to. The Sun Spire was also predominately occupied by humans and, thus, this street had very little night traffic. ¡°You don¡¯t have to come if you don¡¯t want to. I think I can get there just as easily either way, and worst case we ask Lograve to bail us out from prison.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to go back there,¡± Daniel muttered. Evalyn winced, the exhaustion of the night getting to her enough to make her slip.

    ¡°You have your wings, right? Then just do what you did last time if we¡¯re close to getting caught. I¡¯ll stay back and deal with the consequences. I¡¯m sure this will be fine anyway.¡± The magic was fading from the night, and yet Daniel still followed Evalyn towards the Spire entrance. Not for any physical reason and not because he¡¯d suddenly lost his aversion. Maybe it was a bit of sunk cost fallacy or the fallacious sense that he was about to win a chocolate factory for being the last to survive the night, but he needed to see this through.

    That almost ruined Evalyn¡¯s approach to the gate. The guard was of a mind to tell the two that this wasn¡¯t the Rose Spire but ultimately didn¡¯t stop them. After all, the woman had the appearance of a Lady or, more likely, the still maturing daughter of one. Another might have called that beauty, but not the dusker, whose only ability to know Bards from beautiful was to look for the tell of instruments. That particular loophole had been abused for quite a few trysts in the past, foiled only when the spire guard stationed someone with levels on the inner gates. Even the weakest of seventh senses could detect a class, which prompted additional questioning. Evalyn would have been found out, if not for overwork yet again impacting the city¡¯s defenses.

    Daniel and Evalyn walked into the Spire without a second glance being thrown their way. If pressed, the guard had another reason not to stop the two. They had matching bags of holding. Who other than the nobility could afford that?

    ¡°These are escalators,¡± Daniel observed as Evalyn bypassed the security of the grand lobby they found themselves in by a similar manner. Just by walking. Even in the dead of night there was foot traffic, which now that he thought about it, was understandable. The skyscrapers of his world hosted a lot of businesses, whereas most of these floors were residential. Daniel and Evalyn weren¡¯t the only people with things to do in the early pre-dawn hours.

    ¡°Yes. More convenient than stairs.¡±

    ¡°I guess that magic field thing Thomas mentioned powers them.¡± Daniel hadn¡¯t stepped on them yet. Each step was made of just a metal frame, not solid like the ones in his world. The meshwork was tight enough that only a finger could slip through. While the design was fancy, you always heard horror stories of getting something caught in one of these. Magic did little to make this feel safer. ¡°This goes all the way up?¡±

    ¡°Apparently.¡±

    ¡°How do the stairs get back down?¡± For a one story building it was easy, the steps traveled under the ones visible in a clean loop, but these traveled around corners and there was no underside to them. Even considering magic, there were only two ways this could be possible. ¡°They don¡¯t teleport back down, do they?¡±

    ¡°Probably.¡± Evalyn took in Daniel¡¯s astonishment. ¡°Why not? Spokes are the most powerful creations of our kind. Blessings of the gods and all that. I¡¯ve heard a story about a Spoke in the Hand¡¯s domain that gives everyone who levels in it one guaranteed healing ability. For every class.¡±

    ¡°What!?¡±

    She shrugged. ¡°Spokes can affect the powers people receive. They can do anything. I still wonder what the Thormundz Spoke would have done.¡± She then dragged him onto the escalator so that they could get moving and, more importantly, not draw attention.

    ¡°Ok, but what if someone travels to multiple regions with an effect like that? Would they stack?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure. Something to ask Lograve about.¡± She leaned against the banister for a second before withdrawing with a frown. It didn¡¯t move with the steps. ¡°Ow.¡±

    Daniel didn¡¯t comment. He was counting, internally. The Bard turned to look out the occasional window that passed. When they came across the third landing, Daniel sighed. ¡°It¡¯s going to take half an hour to go all the way up.¡±

    ¡°How do you know?¡±

    ¡°A lot of assumption, something one of my powers helps with. If all the floors are the same height, and my guess of the total number of floors is right, it¡¯ll be a while.¡± The speed of the stairs was decent, but the Spire was tall. To be fair, if it were any faster people would have trouble getting off.

    Evalyn didn¡¯t seem satisfied but didn¡¯t move for the upcoming landing. ¡°We have time. Boring, though.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s got to be some kind of elevator for the people on the higher floors. Or linked teleportation circles.¡± Evalyn raised an eyebrow. ¡°What? Do you think some rich jerk¡¯s going to spend an hour on a grocery run?¡±

    ¡°I doubt they get their own food. That is a good point though. You also have to wonder how they get water in, waste out. Pipes maybe?¡± She narrowed her eyes. ¡°Your mantle is insidious.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with a little curiosity?¡±

    She considered that. ¡°Now, that is a sentiment I could get in line with.¡±

    Daniel blushed, suddenly and for no real reason. He didn¡¯t think Evalyn had used her charm ability, and yet- ¡°Hey! You¡¯re doing something.¡±

    ¡°Every class has a mantle. At least one.¡± Whatever effect she was producing faded. ¡°You can be kind of oblivious sometimes, did you know that?¡±

    ¡°What does that mean?¡±

    ¡°You didn¡¯t notice that Ranger checking you out when we first met Farthest Run, did you?¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Daniel said, troubled. ¡°Wait, which one?¡±

    ¡­

    It was scary how easily the two found themselves on the Eye of the Spires. It was guarded, but only at the last stage did Evalyn have to attempt a bluff. All that happened then was the receipt of a tired warning about the Shroud not covering the platform. They didn¡¯t seem surprised at all that people would be up here at this time of night, and that was because they weren¡¯t the first to have this idea.

    ¡°Damn,¡± Evalyn cursed, seeing a couple dozen had already taken positions at the eastern lip of the platform. There were still open spots, but that was hardly the point. Idle chatter filled the mostly empty, circular space. ¡°I should have thought about this.¡±

    ¡°To be fair,¡± Daniel replied in a half-whisper, ¡°If people didn¡¯t normally do this, we¡¯d have had a harder time getting up here.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s just not-¡± Evalyn sighed. ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡±

    Daniel¡¯s gaze shifted across the area. People staked out the fountain. ¡°We could try climbing to the top of one of the Spires?¡± There were about twenty meters of structure above where each met the Eye, the Spires ending in a rounded section from which a spike projected from the center.

    Evalyn glanced upwards appraisingly, but her countenance didn¡¯t improve. ¡°There¡¯s nothing for it. I bet it¡¯s like this every day. No duskers, but that goes without saying.¡±

    Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

    ¡°Want to talk to them? We still have around an hour.¡± Evalyn was good with people, and these were rich people. Richer than he was, rather. Daniel wasn¡¯t close enough to be able to detect their magic items with his still weak seventh sense, but his eyes didn¡¯t miss the gaudy jewelry and occasional bedazzled sword. If I got close enough with my phone, how many formulae could I copy? Wait, Arpan¡¯s probably got a mark on them.

    ¡°Not really. That kind of person, someone who doesn¡¯t know what things are worth, can get on my nerves sometimes. I¡¯m not in the mood to deal with them.¡± She started walking towards the empty, western edge of the platform. You could still see the sun rising perfectly fine from that side since it appeared over the mountains instead of the horizon, but was that the best view?

    ¡°I, uh, don¡¯t know what things are worth,¡± Daniel admitted flatly. Tonight had reminded him of that.

    ¡°What price would you put on Hunter¡¯s life?¡±

    The question offended Daniel, just a bit. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°Exactly.¡± She was irritated, and spreading that feeling to Daniel.

    ¡°So, you said you had a couple of things you wanted to talk about?¡±

    They were leaning against the railing now and it was a long drop. Several hundred meters easily. It made Daniel want to pull out the wings, but that would draw attention and Evalyn clearly wanted to avoid that. She looked plainer than normal, like that day she¡¯d missed her Beauty Sleep. Not bad, definitely not bad, but she lacked the social magnetism she normally displayed. He hadn¡¯t noticed until now, but there¡¯d been a definite change since they¡¯d entered the Spire. ¡°Yeah.¡± She was glaring at a group of five lazing on the ground with a blanket and basket like this was a park in the afternoon. ¡°Team name. It¡¯s not important, but it makes things easier.¡±

    ¡°I can imagine. What do they do if you don¡¯t have one?¡±

    ¡°They¡¯d go with the name of the captain. Me, in this instance.¡±

    ¡°So, ¡®Team Evalyn¡¯?¡±

    She frowned. ¡°No, it would be ¡®Team Lasial¡¯.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s your last name? Huh.¡±

    Evalyn laughed softly and pushed at his shoulder. ¡°All this time and you never asked?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve seen it in your tag, it¡¯s just the first time I¡¯ve heard it. Besides, do you know what my last name is?¡± She opened and then closed her mouth before acknowledging the point.

    ¡°Brant.¡±

    ¡°Brant? Huh. ¡®Team Brant¡¯.¡± She stuck out her tongue in mock distaste. ¡°We made the right choice of captain.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re basing that just off of our names?¡±

    ¡°Branding is important. Look at Farthest Run. Excellent. Not obnoxiously obvious, but it touches on what they excel at.¡±

    Daniel followed the thread. ¡°So, we need a name that tells people what we do?¡± He thought on that for a moment. ¡°What do we do? I mean, kill monsters sure, but Gordon¡¯s people were so specialized.¡±

    ¡°We have an Artificer on the team.¡± She nudged him. Whatever mood she¡¯d gotten in from seeing the competition was bleeding off. ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of a team like that. And then there¡¯s Hunter. And Khare. And¡­ Khiat.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think we want a name that tells people about that.¡±

    ¡°I was thinking, ¡®Golden Wing¡¯.¡±

    It took Daniel a second to form an opinion. ¡°Wait, seriously?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s the most recognizable part of our team.¡±

    ¡°And we¡¯re leaving for Threst soon. It feels like a lot of teams will be named something like that.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re not leaving the wings behind, are you? Tak will be on board because of ¡®wing¡¯, I¡¯d bet on that. Between you and him, Hunter would go along with it. Khare wouldn¡¯t care, at least,¡± she frowned, ¡°I don¡¯t think they would. Now that we can talk with them it¡¯s something to consider. And you know how Khiat is. She¡¯d go along with whatever we suggest.¡±

    ¡°And she might not come with us.¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± Evalyn acknowledged. ¡°So, what do you think?¡±

    He looked at her expectant, vibrant face. ¡°It¡¯s not bad. I just, I think it sounds a little too rich. Maybe? Maybe just a little pretentious?¡± He didn¡¯t want to shoot down her idea. At the same time, he didn¡¯t want people who didn¡¯t know to hear the name and think they were akin to the rest on the platform. ¡°I do like the wing part.¡±

    ¡°Gold¡¯s not too rich,¡± Evalyn defended. ¡°Most people without a class would only earn a gold coin every month or so, but it¡¯s not something like lapis or, gods, alabaster. We still need to ask Tak about that, don¡¯t we?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Look, where I, uh, come from, gold¡¯s a pretty rich metal.¡±

    Evalyn looked like she wanted to argue, but relented. ¡°So what would you suggest?¡±

    ¡°I do like the wing part,¡± Daniel said encouragingly. ¡°If I get good enough material I could make a set for everyone. It¡¯s too bad we didn¡¯t get enough of the leather for me to.¡± His attempts so far to duplicate his wings had failed. The heliorite had been a crutch, and the larger an item, the harder it was to make both in terms of absolute difficulty and the fact that he needed a single piece large enough for wings. Like everything else he¡¯d previously cheated on he was getting better. ¡°Anyways. If Hunter were here he¡¯d probably suggest ¡®Hunter Wing¡¯ or something stupid like that. If I¡¯d known that was what monster hunters were called I would have suggested he choose another name.¡±

    ¡°What did you think they were called?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know! I didn¡¯t know people called adventurers Blessed.¡± He sighed, suddenly feeling tired. They weren¡¯t yet at spending a full 24 hours up, but it was getting there. More importantly, they wouldn¡¯t be regaining their mana today. He still had about half left, plenty for another city day so long as Rogues didn¡¯t jump him again. ¡°Wandering Wing?¡±

    ¡°Hmm. I don¡¯t know. I liked the alliteration with my name.¡±

    ¡°My name has alliteration! Oh, wait. Damn it.¡±

    ¡°Another language thing?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡± Daniel kicked at the ground. ¡°The structure of our two languages is similar, otherwise I might have ended up like Khare. But spelling, stuff like that, it¡¯s different. Some words with multiple meanings aren¡¯t the same. Idioms sometimes carry over though, and that¡¯s weird. I also haven¡¯t heard anything that clashes too heavily with concepts I understand. Just another strange thing about me.¡±

    Evalyn eyed him. ¡°And you think you¡¯re the best person to pick the name?¡±

    ¡°I thought we were coming up with suggestions,¡± Daniel shot back.

    ¡°Oh, sure,¡± Evalyn said as if she just hadn¡¯t walked him through her plan for selling the rest of the team on it. ¡°Maybe something that references the fact that half of us have Regeneration?¡±

    ¡°What, like Healing Wing? That¡¯d probably be misleading. Unless Thomas¡­ no, he probably wouldn¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°Fair.¡± She scratched her head. ¡°Gtoll did mention how many bonds are between the team.¡±

    ¡°Bonded Wing? No, that sounds too much like innuendo.¡± He looked back up. ¡°Is it that out of the ordinary? Farthest Run had one in their team.¡±

    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t know. Bards, we can have trouble with them. I¡¯m lucky to have the one I do have. I was never too attached to the previous teams I was with.¡± She pulled out her water flask from the bag of holding, needing just a moment to find it within the expanded space, before taking a drink. ¡°I see the idea, though. Honestly if you, Hunter, and Tak somehow consolidated your bonds?¡± She took another drink, thinking. ¡°Those grow in strength the more people are in them. The way you can share your telepathy is already on par with Lograve¡¯s level 4 feature if only limited to you 3.¡±

    ¡°Oh yeah, it¡¯s like chemistry.¡± He waved away Evalyn¡¯s confused look. ¡°Earth stuff. It does make me wonder if Lograve¡¯s worked out that symbol, but, eh.¡±

    ¡°For the record, I still like Golden Wing.¡±

    ¡°We just need a better adjective. Like lightning! No, too mouthy. Light? No. Fallen?¡±

    Evalyn shook her head. ¡°Fallen Wing doesn¡¯t make us sound good at our jobs. Why that word?¡±

    Daniel shrugged. ¡°I¡¯m saying things at random. Argent? It¡¯s a fancy word for silver. Or ardent which is something to do with confidence I think. Ooh, Dragon Wing. We¡¯ve fought dragons, it works.¡±

    ¡°And none of us are draconoids,¡± Evalyn pointed out, partially just to reflect Daniel¡¯s skepticism back at him.

    ¡°So, why should that matter?¡± The Bard¡¯s pointed stare indicated that it did. ¡°How sold are we on the wing part?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m still waiting to hear an idea that¡¯s better than mine,¡± Evalyn grumbled.

    ¡°It just sounds gaudy. And I might lose the wings someday, considering those jerks took my crossbow. Not that I want to, but if I do then what¡¯s that mean for our name? I¡¯d rather we do something as a reminder of where we come from. The Thormundz, I mean.¡±

    ¡°Khiat isn¡¯t from there.¡±

    ¡°Khiat may not come with us.¡± Daniel thought about that. He¡¯d already tried lightning, but that was too wordy. ¡°What about Storm Wing?¡±

    Evalyn was a bit taken aback. ¡°You want to name us after the Tyrant?¡±

    ¡°Well, no.¡± Daniel deflated, then put a hand to his chest. ¡°Actually, yes. Fuck him he¡¯s dead. Let¡¯s take the name and make everyone forget Heldren Storm.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s so stupid,¡± Evalyn said, chuckling at that same time at the boldness of the idea. ¡°Let¡¯s bring it up with the others. I feel like we¡¯re just talking in circles and I want to get through everything before the sun comes up.¡±

    ¡°What happens then?¡±

    ¡°We leave.¡± There was an ominous tone of finality there that Daniel couldn¡¯t pierce. It left a break in the conversation that did nothing to help the time limit. By the conversations drifting across the mostly empty space, it seemed like everyone was just wasting time too.

    He looked over as Evalyn took in a breath, though she kept him waiting for almost a minute as she considered whatever it was she wanted to say. ¡°Do you want to go back to your world? If you could, would you?¡±

    Daniel almost fell off the side of the banister. He would have, if not for several powers that made recovery easier. From where he¡¯d dragged himself back up, he breathed heavily. ¡°Did you do that on purpose?¡± Evalyn asked, bemused.

    ¡°No! How do you just ask that?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s important.¡± She helped him up and looked into his eyes, waiting for an answer.

    ¡°It¡¯s-¡± Daniel rubbed at his head. He knew the answer and knew what Evalyn wanted to hear. Unfortunately, those two didn¡¯t agree. ¡°Yeah. If I could, right now? Maybe not. If I could wait a little, a few days? But I can¡¯t.¡± He kept his voice down, despite the emotion budging into his voice. There were other people here. Maybe Evalyn had known it would come to this. She had been hoping for privacy, but if anything this proved she had her flaws too. ¡°I¡¯m never going to see my family again.¡± He said it like an accusation.

    ¡°Mine disappeared in an instant. So fast I didn¡¯t know what had happened until I felt the shockwave.¡± Evalyn¡¯s eyes were hard, as if he could have forgotten. ¡°If it wasn¡¯t for my bond, that faint hope, I might have given up in that moment.¡±

    ¡°At least you have hope.¡± The distant sky was slowly brightening, and yet the night had reached its darkest. Daniel fell again, collapsing against the railing. ¡°Why are we talking about this?¡±

    ¡°Because the only one saying you can¡¯t go back is you. And I¡¯ve seen you be really stupid sometimes.¡± Still biting, but with slight remorse in the corner of her eyes.

    ¡°It¡¯s impossible.¡±

    ¡°Says you,¡± she said, emphasis on the last word. ¡°All I am saying is you can¡¯t trust that. Even if he¡¯s not lying to you, that doesn¡¯t mean he knows the entire truth. There are great works of magic known to us, in our stories. Moving across the world in an instant isn¡¯t out of the question. Between them might be possible. No one has known to try before.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t do that. It¡¯s hard enough without thinking there¡¯s a chance.¡±

    She was sitting next to him now, staring straight into his eyes. Casual observers would have gotten the exact wrong idea of the mood. ¡°There is a chance. Always.¡±

    He pushed himself away, her not reaching for him. ¡°Why bring this up now?¡±

    Evalyn didn¡¯t move, or shift her gaze, but it did soften. ¡°You¡¯re too much of a friend for me to lose to the whims of fate, at least without talking about this first. It¡¯s been eating away at me ever since Earth-Daniel entered the picture, and we were already worried to death when you were taken by Claret. Gods, but if that happens again I¡¯m tearing this city apart rather than waiting for anyone¡¯s permission.¡± She glared at the Sun Spire for a moment before continuing. ¡°I¡¯d hoped we could have a fun night out and end it here with everyone that cared about you. You can have a good life here. I wasn¡¯t expecting it to be just the two of us, but that¡¯s how it ended up.¡± She shrugged helplessly at the open space around them. ¡°No one would want you to go, at least not without saying goodbye first.¡±

    ¡°Tlara would.¡± He couldn¡¯t stop himself from saying the smart response.

    ¡°I haven¡¯t seen her in a while.¡± Evalyn almost sounded worried, but there was a lot of emotion in her voice confusing things. ¡°Even after the Thormundz, I don¡¯t think any of us have been thinking enough about the future. Forming a team, traveling, it¡¯s making me consider things I¡¯d been putting off. I know it¡¯s not fair for me to ask you to stay, but shouldn¡¯t we at least know if you¡¯d run headlong into a portal if one appeared?¡±

    ¡°You should know without having to ask.¡± Daniel took a breath, trying to calm himself. Evalyn couldn¡¯t have surprised him with a more painful topic. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t just disappear, not if I have a choice. And if Hunter couldn¡¯t come with me¡­ We could game out a thousand scenarios and neither of us would be happy at the end. Is that what you want?¡±

    Evalyn face fell as she realized there¡¯d be no clean conclusion to the conversation. ¡°I guess not.¡±

    He looked ahead when she didn¡¯t say anything else. Dawn was here, for all it mattered. You couldn¡¯t see the sun, but they¡¯d missed mana regeneration. Oh well. ¡°I¡¯m sorry you didn¡¯t get a good wish.¡±

    ¡°Hunter didn¡¯t get one at all.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯ll deal with it.¡± Daniel rested his head on the bars that supported the handrail around the platform. Decorated over the ages, but the entire thing was made out of one piece and impossibly suspended. Builders, always and never here. ¡°For the record, if I did leave, it would be the hardest thing I¡¯d ever do because of you guys.¡±

    ¡±I guess I¡¯ll take that,¡± Evalyn conceded, before grinning. ¡°I mean, once you leave there¡¯ll be nothing standing in the way of Golden Wing.¡±

    ¡°If that makes you feel better about it.¡± Daniel stood, shaking out his nerves and feeling the weight of lost sleep. ¡°We should get going. I¡¯m about to fall off of this place.¡±

    ¡°Why don¡¯t we?¡± Daniel gave her an incredulous look until he got the point. ¡°Even if we¡¯re not going to use it as a name, we might as well use them.¡±

    The Artificer slipped on his wings, drawing attention from the others on the Eye who hadn¡¯t given much attention to the random two sitting on the western side until now. They were too slow to do anything as the Bard grabbed on and they both went over the edge.

 Chapter 135: First Blood

    Hours earlier, the dying light of the sun left but a small chill on Tlara compared to the sight in front of her. The figure was still completely garbed and there was only the protruding beak pushing into the veil that gave any hint of the person underneath. But the voice was the same.

    It¡¯d been eight years. She remembered the night. The Assassin who¡¯d taken the contract had been quietly executed. Not for trying, but for succeeding in a way that somehow meant she couldn¡¯t return. Having an Assassin in the city was seen as a boon before that, and the Council had decided to allow them to take contracts to train the valuable resource. It¡¯d stressed the reviver in the church of the Hand, but what was he but another resource?

    All attempts to view it as a kind of game died with her mother, and the Assassin himself when Aucrest had his way. But if her mother had been beyond the Octyrrum¡¯s help, how was she here now? Why was she attacking her daughters? And a last question that she felt she had to ask: What is she?

    The figure¡¯s head turned to the walls for a second. ¡°You¡¯d be wise not to try anything to alarm someone. If I have to, I¡¯ll kill her too.¡±

    Why the fuck is she telling me that? Her mother had downed Willow immediately, without tripping Tlara¡¯s senses before appearing. Why bother warning her? Hell, why attack her useless sister first? Spinner¡¯s dying. Shit, she tore out one of its fucking hearts. ¡°You¡¯re crazy. Or, or some kind of fucking monster.¡±

    The figure took a step forward, but carefully. Wary of something? ¡°Casia Seliri, but that was Everdown before the marriage. Not that you would know, but I honestly didn¡¯t mind losing the true name. I am not insane, Tlara. My perspective is simply beyond one life now. If it¡¯s any solace, the rest of our family will survive and ascend to be more than you ever could be with your class.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re not her.¡± Tlara didn¡¯t move, afraid that would provoke something. ¡°I don¡¯t know what you are, but my mother¡¯s fucking dead.¡±

    ¡°Yes. It did hurt. Your father didn¡¯t see it coming.¡± A sleeved arm gestured towards Willow. ¡°I see he¡¯s learned nothing, to trust her with the same ring.¡±

    Tlara¡¯s heart was pounding. None of this made any sense. It was like hearing the voice of that thing in her head all over again. Like all of her fears about Spinner¡¯s nature compressed into a single moment. This thing in front of her was wrong, not fitting with the world as it should. But more than that, why was it taking its time? Gloating? Tlara could understand that, begrudgingly. Still, that wasn¡¯t a trait her mother had possessed in life. ¡°So you¡¯re just going to kill me because of some greater good bullshit?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s hardly something new, isn¡¯t it? Your father was one of the ones that agreed to let the Assassin loose.¡± The heart the thing had plucked was gone now, spirited into the robes through a parting angled away from Tlara.

    Why is she entirely cloaked? The sun? It was a conclusion one who had lived with duskers would come to. Something completely useless now that it was night. A frantic pass of the surrounding sand showed not one ray of light left.

    ¡°You¡¯ve gotten more observant,¡± Casia commented. ¡°I wondered how you would fare out in the fringe. I almost asked after you, but that would have revealed me too soon.¡± She was halfway to Tlara now, and the Beastmaster had no doubt the pace would quicken if it needed to. ¡°It¡¯s a shame it came to this. A day longer and this wouldn¡¯t have mattered. Had I listened to your sister about the ¡®special monsters¡¯ sooner, this meeting would have been unnecessary. I wish I could tell you how important that heart is, but I¡¯m past the point of bending to pointless sentimentality.¡±

    ¡°What class are you? Assassin?¡± Tlara was still incredulous that the thing in front of her was a person, but she was trying to keep it talking.

    Casia laughed. ¡°No. I am beyond them. Would that I could free you from this miserable existence, but you made your choice. When the time comes, I can at least save Willow and your father.¡±

    Alright. She¡¯s fucking insane. Stop talking with her you idiot and think. Tlara¡¯s only offensive ability usable against mortals required eye contact, impossible in this case. Neither did she want to get close enough to try removing that veil. Fortunately, Beastmasters relied little on themselves.

    Tlara had not yet received anything to allow her to command her monsters mentally. Auditory instruction was the classic route, with most developing shorthand to simplify complex orders mid-battle. Signing was also an option for most races, one she chose now. The thing stopped to observe Tlara¡¯s hand, a note of puzzlement in its voice. ¡°What is that supposed to mean?¡±

    ¡°It means ¡®fuck you¡¯, Mom,¡± Tlara replied venomously, middle finger extended. Intent made it more than just a gesture. There was a reaction from Casia, too slow. Amidst the dialogue and internal strife, Tlara had been using abilities on Spinner. Improve Natural Weapon and Hardened Carapace were classics, even for creatures without an applicable exoskeleton like ringcats. It was a rare Beastmaster power that required an incantation, usually for special attacks, and what claimed to be her mother had made a fundamental error in believing Spinner to be dead.

    It, she?, was just playing dead. Monsters could have more than one heart. Rarely more than one brain, and destroying one of those in a multi-cerebral creature would cripple it. In Spinner¡¯s case, while the circulatory system was fucked up and would be a bitch to fix, that didn¡¯t mean the silk shocker couldn¡¯t fight.

    The lumbering mass charged. Bereft of a network of webbing to discharge electrical attacks, its weight was its greatest immediate weapon. It struck and the cloak around the woman deformed. Tlara¡¯s initial relief skewed as Spinner continued through the figure as if it were just a hanging pile of rags. No resistance at all.

    She threw herself to the side, no real reason behind the motion other than grim cynicism. True enough, an attack came in from behind, cutting at the space where she¡¯d been. For all the crap people gave her, they forgot that Tlara still hunted monsters with the rest. Just from a distance, where you got good practice at dodging ranged attacks.

    Spinner was directed at the new creature, defined as such because there were now long claws coming out of the wrapped hands. Tlara was still unsure about what exactly she was facing but was beginning to accept this was her mother. Did Mom get a class? She blinked at her own stupidity. How else would she be doing this? Idiot.

    So, claws probably meant Totem Warrior? But teleportation like this, traveling with the sand? What was up with the cloak? Experience and abrasive personality aside, what Tlara was not comfortable with was fighting other mortals. So much variability compared to the predictability of monsters.

    Oh fuck. Fuck! Only now did Tlara remember to begin charging her Stasis Pouches. It took no active concentration to ready a summon, but the process did have to be started. With the act taking a slow drip of mana even when ready, she didn¡¯t have another one active. Meanwhile, her fucked to all Crest silk shocker was doing a fair job against the enemy. Now alert to sneak attacks and benefiting from active enhancements, Spinner was guarding her organs and taking only surface wounds. The monster was level 3, large, heightened above the capabilities of others of its kind and, in addition to all of that, special. In a way that had shaken Tlara to the core to consider, no less appreciate.

    Tlara kept her focus on the duel, wary of another strike towards her even as she issued coded commands. Fortunately, her opponent couldn¡¯t split into multiple bodies as she¡¯d briefly feared. If Casia could do that, she was fucking dead. No way she could fight multiple of that. She did spare a glance towards Willow, now out of the way of the fighting. Her sister was breathing, with no sign of being in immediate danger of dying. Shit, she¡¯s as aggravating as a cracked talon but still¡­

    The Beastmaster grew worried as she realized something. Spinner hadn¡¯t hurt Casia once. Oh, she¡¯d bashed her way into the cloak or grasped it entirely with one of the more humanoid forearms, but they¡¯d come away holding nothing even though someone had been there moments before. Shoulders were bulging out when claws swung, the movement of the tail feathers along the rear with repositioning, someone was in there! Up until the last moment, then they would disappear into a cloud of sand.

    Should I run for the walls? No, fuck that, she¡¯d focus me. Coming so far out to avoid attention was costing her now. Spinner in her current state couldn¡¯t protect Tlara and keep up a decent speed towards the walls. As it was, she was slowing, and Tlara wouldn¡¯t be ready to pull out her wyvern any time soon. In the face of a practically invulnerable opponent, Tlara pulled out a truly desperate maneuver. ¡°Why are you doing this?¡± she pleaded. ¡°Just fucking go!¡±

    Casia backed off for a moment and Spinner halted with a command. Still completely obedient, despite everything. ¡°I needed the heart of this one, and you would hardly let me walk away after taking it. Willow, either, for all she adores them. You cannot be left to warn people of my survival.¡±

    Stolen novel; please report.

    Tlara glared incredulously. ¡°Fuck, are you serious? I would have- I can heal this kind of damage! If you¡¯d told me who you were before bashing your own daughter¡¯s brains in, I might have listened and given you one of the damned things.¡±

    Her mother¡¯s head tilted to the side at that, although the claws didn¡¯t retract. ¡°You can regenerate the hearts? A renewable resource would be useful. I had assumed this creature had only one. Tlara, my dear, I think we can come to an understanding after all. But I will need another heart now, and I know there is one to claim. The life I would save with it is worth more than your monster, if taking a second would slay it. Spirited monsters are rare, but we could find you another with time. If your offer is true, will you command this creature to remain still? I would be willing to let you live, although I could not let you return to the city until my work is done.¡±

    Sweet salvation. Tlara should have felt thrilled at that offer when death by an unkillable foe was the alternative. Spinner might survive another heart being removed, she wasn¡¯t sure if it had two or three. And if it died, so what? Death versus being out one rare monster wasn¡¯t a hard decision. It shouldn¡¯t be.

    Except Spinner had saved her when she¡¯d been dominated. Kept her down when others went charging into the lake after the gestalt, as far as the stories she¡¯d heard went. Moreso, if she was something more than just a monster, what would ordering her to her death mean for Tlara?

    Everyone had lines they didn¡¯t cross. Tlara didn¡¯t kill people, not when she had a choice. The thought of having one completely under her control was never something she would go for. Not a murderer, not a slaver. Tlara wasn¡¯t a monster, she just used them. Even if it were her prized wyvern here she would have made the trade in an instant. It was such an obviously good deal no one would pass up living for idealism. Except, this was Spinner. Different. She couldn¡¯t deny it anymore.

    Tlara sighed. Fuck me. I can¡¯t. ¡°No deal. Give me time to heal her and I can let you take the regrown heart. Hurt her anymore and you¡¯ll fuck your supply.¡±

    ¡°Her? You mean?¡± Casia looked at Spinner, then laughed. ¡°Tlara, you¡¯re having a change of heart? You, who I never managed to get to bed at a proper time once you started walking?¡±

    ¡°How the fuck do you reminisce two minutes after trying to kill me?¡±

    Casia shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s the world we live in. Reality. I thought you were someone who appreciated straightforwardness. This is your future here, Tlara. You cannot join us in eternal life. A goodbye is inevitable, and is too important for me to let go. Give up or I will take what I need and end you. You are going to die soon either way.¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Tlara clenched his hands. ¡°Spinner¡¯s mine, you fucking monster. You show up after being gone for years, aggro as fuck, punch Willow out, talk about destiny and all that crap and expect me to just roll over? I¡¯ve got a class, bitch. Punches won¡¯t kill you? Let¡¯s try lightning. Elemental Overload.¡±

    Another ability useless on a ringcat, the standard of comparison for no particular reason. Spinner was another who didn¡¯t strongly benefit from the ability as she had no way to directly discharge the electrical surge Tlara had just summoned in her body without a set web. Except, once the fight had started, Spinner had started weaving one. If Tlara had seen anything so far, it was that Casia was not familiar with spin shockers. She probably hadn¡¯t ever been to the Thormundz.

    It was a poor web by spiders¡¯ standards. No symmetry, merely tracing over where the giant monster had traveled during the duel. Either way, it¡¯d carry the charge and jump to Casia. Her mother had been able to hold her own with some kind of protective power, but an area effect like this with magical damage behind it? This was the reason people took Beastmasters seriously.

    The dune lit up, glassing the sand in direct contact with strands as if they were live wires. Spinner¡¯s ability to control where the current went spared Tlara, and Willow still prone where the webs had first originated. Huh, did I tell her not to hit Willow? Tlara mused on that as the discharge fired. Powerful, with trade offs sure, but the amplification of the natural lightning attack meant it could be deployed without any buildup. The perfect sneak attack. The Beastmaster felt a little proud of her quick, tactical thinking where another would pale in the face of a supposedly unbeatable foe. She just hoped Casia was knocked out instead of killed, or else she¡¯d catch all manner of trouble for killing-

    ¡°No. That¡¯s, that¡¯s not fucking fair!¡± Tlara screamed when the flash died. Casia had reappeared outside of the direct explosion, likely having escaped before taking any damage. What the fuck?

    ¡°Temper. That was always one of your weaknesses, though I¡¯m ashamed to say it¡¯s not your only one. It was a decent attempt however. Unfortunately for you, I am immune to most mortal powers. Also,¡± A claw pointed towards her. ¡°I warned you, didn¡¯t I? Not to alarm anyone. I¡¯m ending this now.¡±

    Casia charged her, two hands with claws outstretched. Horrified, Tlara ordered Spinner to defend her, and yet, too slow. Blood loss and the fact that there was catastrophic internal bleeding in the spot where a heart used to be was taking its toll. Her wyvern was taking too long to come out. Whether this thing was bullshitting on power immunity or not, Tlara didn¡¯t know, but her only option left was-

    ¡°You think that can hurt me? Child, you know nothing.¡± Tlara put her hands up, one clutching a weapon. She was shit with anything but what else could she do? She was level 3! With disparity, but damn it, that meant something! It-

    Oh. The robes felt coarse to her, what parts pressed against her skin. Like sandpaper under the feathers. Casia had gone through her guard like it was nothing and had simply speared her through the lower stomach. Wounds, Tlara had taken before. This was something else. It was cold and terrifying because despite having an entire hand jammed through her, she couldn¡¯t feel anything for the shock. That¡¯s not, no¡­

    It was spite that moved her hand. Personal revelation aside, Tlara wasn¡¯t about to hold back one last jab. There was no way she could miss. Casia held up another hand as if to cut across her neck, completely ignoring the attack as the point drove home. Then, Tlara heard her mother scream.

    There was an immediate change. The person in front of her seemed more real, and the cloak she was wearing hardened as if washed with too much starch. Tlara could barely feel that the surface was more solid as she was tossed to the ground. Casia clutched at the dagger in her side only to recoil. Where the blade had pierced was burning, just as it did to the hand that had touched the hilt. After all, the person who had made the dagger had enchanted it as one solid piece.

    ¡°What, aaaAH¡±! Casia stumbled backward before Spinner knocked her aside. This time, the blow landed. The woman flew across the sand just like Tlara had first thought she would from the first attack. Part of her mother¡¯s body seemed to crack as if she was a clay statue, cloak and all. It didn¡¯t matter. It was too late now. Spinner sensed this too, not going after Casia but staying by Tlara as she died.

    Another hand reached for the dagger as Casia tried to brave the pain enough to dislodge it, but she couldn¡¯t bear it for more than a second. Her cries of pain were almost unbroken and so agonized it seemed like it was shredding her soul. So contrasted to emptiness flooding Tlara.

    In the fading light, Tlara saw Casia reach her sister and use her hand to pull the dagger out. Damn it. Smart. The moment it was removed, Casia¡¯s body returned to its original state and appeared to regain its lost vitality as nearby sand flowed toward it.

    Casia held her chest as if she still had lungs that were being overworked. "You... very good, daughter. Unexpected." She inspected Willow on the ground before shaking her head. "It''s not time yet. I''m sorry it came to this, I am. I''ll let you know before you pass that I sincerely have a way to give your sister and your father immortality, as I have claimed." Tlara''s eyes opened wide in horror as she got the implication. Her eyes went to the catastrophic wound in her lower stomach and Casia shook her head again. "It won''t work on you. You have a class. I am sorry again, daughter. I would stay, but there is much to do. I wish that in your next life you find the peace you did not in this one." Casia then picked up the unconscious woman, looking once at Tlara, before coming to a decision.

    She''s running away. Afraid I have another dagger? Fuck, need to stop her from killing Willow. Tlara tried to move but her body disobeyed her. Endurance was a core attribute of Beastmasters, and yet Tlara had disparity to it. She had taken a mortal wound with an arm-sized hole in her lower stomach. Went through me like nothing. Damn.

    Spinner crouched by her, eyes unnervingly meeting hers. What she feared seeing in them for so long seemed trivial now. It was actually funny. Spinner looked like she was concerned. She was the one missing a heart and, to put it bluntly, Tlara had fucked her over. Stolen her will. Who¡¯d have known? That fucking Artificer was right.

    Tlara kept living for a few seconds longer just so that wouldn¡¯t be her last thought. It didn¡¯t stop the blood from spreading into the sand. The webbing did, Spinner improvising better than Tlara would have. Never in a thousand years would she have thought to use the same substance that electrified enemies as a way to bind wounds. Her monster had in an instant, but it still wouldn¡¯t be enough.

    Don¡¯t you fucking save me, Tlara thought, knowing Spinner wouldn¡¯t hear it. I¡¯m dead. Fucking dead. You¡¯re not. People find you here, they¡¯ll think you did this. Already wrapped me up like you¡¯re going to eat me. Useless fucking thing. Can¡¯t stop the bleeding inside. Can¡¯t heal. She saw the hole again with her darkening vision. Oh. You¡¯re hurt. Shit. Sorry, can¡¯t help you now.

    Tlara lay unmoving, eyes looking towards the sky until she could see no more. Hear no more, breaths coming only once every so often. Even anger fled her until she was just left with disbelief that this was happening. Anguish, in parts, in that she didn¡¯t fully know what had happened. Didn¡¯t know what would happen to her sister. And-

    One of the built up advancement potential that had been sitting idle since defeating the lightning dragon flared as it was absorbed into her, nudging an attribute up just a little. Awakening something. Spontaneous advancement.

    This could rarely happen, especially to those with multiple saved advancement potential. Thomas had mistaken Daniel¡¯s awakening of Regeneration for this phenomenon when they¡¯d first met. When you got down to it, all advancing was was enhanced focus on an aspect of yourself while in a heightened state of concentration. The clarity of approaching death could free the mind of many distractions. Tlara thought of her past. Her mistakes, few they seemed to her, but she would admit to some of them now. How her life had gone, and how small it seemed in hindsight.

    Not the kind of thing that would improve endurance, but it counted for something else. In the smallest of ways, Tlara felt something shake loose. Then, a terror beyond mortality came with the understanding of her new power. She would have screamed if she could because she did not want what was coming next. Had she the choice Tlara would have ended herself rather than use it.

    But she didn¡¯t have a choice. Neither could she prevent her heart from stopping.

 Chapter 136: A New Contract

    Thomas stood in a room worth more than even his own family, staring at the corpse. Dead by no blade, spell, or arrow, but a contract. A contract bond. They could be powerful and you always heard rumors that Aughal had strived to find out just how far you could go with them. Swearing to a formal contract was one of the only surefire ways to form a bond, not that many agreed to them. How had this one been phrased? No one would willingly sign something that would kill them, but words could be tricky.

    If he¡¯d been there, he¡¯d know it was something like this: ¡®We will give you a new life. If you break this contract, we will take it from you.¡¯ To someone young who only understood that as a loss of wealth and status, who hadn¡¯t been exposed to real evil before, it was an easy mistake to make.

    Now the Fate of Aughal was dead, and Xavier wasn¡¯t able to save her. And wouldn¡¯t be when he regained his powers, as the longer one stayed dead the worse chances were the power worked. A week was about the limit regardless of who it was that had died. Even if the Cleric hadn¡¯t just used Resurrection, there may have been some agreement between the city and him to not revive Silora. Otherwise, she¡¯d have tried to find a way to influence him instead.

    He could do it. He could also leave, blameless. No witnesses, and without an Assassin who else could stop a heart without any damage? Any trace of poison or magic? Yet, he was trapped on multiple fronts. For one, there was a human somewhere with his secret who would reveal it should Silora not give the all clear. If that happened, his church would shelter him. Treasure him. Hoard him. Xavier hadn¡¯t left the city for years. Thomas had talked to him about it, just for a short time some weeks back to not give anything away.

    The other reason, why this hurt so much? He couldn¡¯t help but want to help people. If Silora stayed dead because of what he¡¯d promised, forced or not, that was as good as killing her. The only reason he hesitated was what this would take from him.

    ¡°I promised.¡± Thomas took out his Focus, the charm of the Hand now twice replaced. It broke whenever he used this power, as he had discovered following his first death via falling. Thank the Hand the only two people with him at the time were honorable enough to keep the secret. And Guy was torn up about his ¡®big secret¡¯ with Hunter. If only he knew.

    Resurrection. The dream and nightmare of Hand Clerics, for how could you live with the responsibility and guilt of not acting when you could? Thomas had seen dead people since he¡¯d returned, able to save each one and spare the family the grief. But if he had, if he used his power as frequently as he was able? He¡¯d never advance again, stuck like old Xavier as if he¡¯d hit his advancement wall.

    The secret had to be kept. Silora had leveraged that into an escape from her contract at Thomas¡¯ expense. So, he placed the Focus on her chest, resigned to the act. His hands felt feverish as all the mana stored in his body was prepared to be released in one moment. That still wouldn¡¯t be enough to use the ability, which was what led to its ultimate price.

    He closed his eyes and prayed that this was the right decision. That this all wasn¡¯t a huge mistake. Like always, no reply.

    Thomas¡¯ hands were on the Focus. He¡¯d never used the ability on someone else before, and yet he knew what to do from watching Xavier. The words were unnecessary, but he spoke them anyway. ¡°Silora. You didn¡¯t have to do this. You didn¡¯t have to trap me like you did. I¡¯ll save you anyway. Because I have to, and I need to.¡± Anger and mercy in equal measure, before his eyes hardened. ¡°Still, you won¡¯t escape what we¡¯ve agreed to. So, live.¡±

    It was a simple change. In one moment, death. The next, a heart started beating, blood flowed, damage repaired and decay reversed. It happened faster than the last two times, not that Thomas remembered. The first time his body had to put itself back together after being partially splattered, the second a neck unbroken. Here, Silora just needed to be reanimated.

    The world became gray as what Thomas cherished most was driven from him and into Silora, the shark who¡¯d scented his blood. He backed up as she gasped, still holding the now broken Focus in his hands. ¡°You really-¡± She broke off, breathing and looking at herself. ¡°I felt that. It hurt! Did the bastards make it like that, or does death always hurt like that?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t remember,¡± Thomas answered blankly. He¡¯d been battered unconscious the first time and had no memory leading up to the second. Mercifully. ¡°You¡¯re free, then?¡±

    ¡°Yes? Yes!¡± Silora cried out, taking stock of herself and noting an absence. ¡°It really, oh.¡± She pouted, an insane expression for one just brought back from the dead to wear, as she felt something else take the former bond¡¯s place. So did Thomas. ¡°I thought, maybe, since we didn¡¯t write anything down¡­¡±

    The implication should have made Thomas rage and lash out. Instead, he looked at her coldly. ¡°Tell your friend to stand down.¡±

    ¡°Of course, just let me, hhrm.¡± She almost snarled as she was forced to stop while halfway getting up. ¡°Little Tyrant already, aren¡¯t you? But I agreed. Fine.¡± Her eyes closed. ¡°Damn, but this is hard without my Focus. I¡¯ll have to rebind to this chamber and get some rest, unless you don¡¯t want me to keep up appearances? Or, well.¡± She gave him an appraising look. ¡°I imagine you¡¯re going to want to enjoy your end of the bargain at some point. There¡¯s enough time for that.¡±

    He didn¡¯t know what was worse, if she was serious or just trying to get ahead of what she assumed his desires to be. ¡°Just send the message,¡± he replied tiredly. ¡°I¡¯ll try and find my friends and see how long we have to wait before moving. You¡¯re sure no one can tell your contract¡¯s broken?¡±

    ¡°Probably not. The person who directly swore it with me is dead by now so it defaulted to the city itself.¡± Silora blinked. ¡°Huh. A city killed me. Not something many people can say.¡± Thomas opened his mouth but she waved him away. ¡°I found him, don¡¯t worry about it. Besides, now that I¡¯m bound to you, I don¡¯t want people finding out either.¡±

    ¡°Just send the message. I¡¯ll see you when I can.¡±

    Silora paused, still a little surprised. ¡°When I looked into you I heard about a certain reputation. You don¡¯t want to-¡± But he was already gone.

    ¡­

    ¡°She¡¯s gone, as well as the others,¡± one of the duskers staffing the tavern told him. They only knew who he was asking about because how could you ignore Blessed staying long-term in your tavern? Or the fact that one traveled with a ringcat? Beastmasters. But they also knew Thomas, who made it a point to check in with the staff whenever he came by. Mostly for the gossip. ¡°She did tell me to say, ¡®Sorry, but you¡¯re missing out on something. We¡¯ll make it up to you.¡¯¡±

    The look she got in return was almost haunting. ¡°Did Evalyn say what it was?¡±

    ¡°No. But to be out this late? I hope they aren¡¯t in trouble.¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re fine.¡± Even if the city¡¯s on the brink of a riot, Evalyn could walk them through a mob untouched. When did everything start going wrong? Eido, Thomas decided. ¡°I need to go to sleep.¡±

    The dusker, one of the better readers of other species among her kind, hesitated. ¡°Do you need something to eat? You look worn out.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m good.¡± Thomas headed for the stairs, ignoring everyone. He sat on his bed in the small room. He probably could have asked for one of the larger ones by now but didn¡¯t see the point. Still, as he lay back, a bit of relief came to him. The worst had happened. Now, he just had to wait and plan out how to fix the mess he¡¯d made with his attributes. Sure, he couldn¡¯t go hunting with the others anymore, but hadn¡¯t he already decided not to?

    Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

    The secret was safe. He had a Fate bound to him until he regained his Focus. Funny, she¡¯d offered that up front along with her demands, as if expecting him to be insulted by extortion alone. Well, she had spent her entire life here. As much as Thomas loved his city, he¡¯d left it for a reason. He would again in the coming days. This time, he might not come back. Not much for him here anyway.

    His thoughts slowed as he approached the edge of sleep. Rest, he could do that. Regain mana for what it was worth. And maybe, figure out what he¡¯d gotten from level 3. The funny thing was, it felt like he could still use Flash Balance. There were a few rare powers that worked without a Focus, and this appeared to be one of them. Could this new one also be used without a Focus? One thing was for sure, he¡¯d have time to find out.

    ¡­

    In the pre-dawn hours, while an as of yet unnamed team was enjoying a meal, Rasalia was dragged away from the conference yet again to receive a report. Things hadn¡¯t been going well. This was intended to be a come-to-Star moment when the unruly factions were heavily impressed upon to nominate a leader, if only temporarily, so they could start putting this city back together.

    To her disgust, they¡¯d made absolutely no progress. Politics. The fact that you could see the price of pitchforks skyrocketing couldn¡¯t make old money pause its relentless dealings. If she didn¡¯t know better, Rasalia would suspect the factions were intentionally dragging this out, but who did that serve?

    A few people she¡¯d spoken to had fear thinly veiled under feigned regret and open greed. Rasalia¡¯d thought that had come from her immediate presence and the way she¡¯d briefly taken over the city a month ago. Maybe something else was going on. ¡°Report.¡±

    ¡°Commander. Walls saw a flash of light a few hours ago and a few briefly heard thunder. They waited a bit in case someone took down a monster near the walls or something, but no one and nothing came from that direction. They sent a few of us to take a look and we didn¡¯t see anyone there either.¡±

    The Commander was not in the mood to have her time wasted and glared at the poor dusker who¡¯d brought her the message. ¡°Then why are you bringing this to my attention?¡±

    ¡°Well, there was this area of sand that got burned in a weird pattern. Looks like glass, almost. If lightning did do it, it wasn¡¯t natural. So, something happened. And we found this ring after a bit of searching. Enchanted, helpfully engraved too. House Seliri.¡± She almost expected the man to produce it, and the hunter knowingly shook his head. ¡°None of us could touch it for more than a few seconds.¡±

    Rasalia froze, mind spinning to reframe everything. Any ring could have letters scraped onto it, but one at least level 3 in make, perhaps one she couldn¡¯t touch? She focused a freshly sharpened gaze on Aucrest. If this was some sort of game, he had no idea. The man was earnest in trying to reform the Council even if that meant provoking the other factions into getting their acts together. You could call him one of the faces of the movement to avoid complete anarchy.

    She knew what this was. In a low voice she commanded the hunter, ¡°Find as many teams suited to scouting as you can and marshal them in the courtyard. Day or night teams, throw open rooms if you have to and give me something to go on from that ambush site.¡±

    ¡°Ambush, commander?¡±

    If I can¡¯t trust my people, we¡¯ve already lost. ¡°Someone just kidnapped Silver Eye¡¯s wife or daughter. Possibly both. Keep this within the guild for now. The news by itself might cause panic.¡±

    Some of the chitinous plates on the dusker became lopsided in shock, staring at the very man who was right there, though the hunter brought himself back under control quickly. ¡°S-should we raise a general alarm?¡±

    ¡°No!¡± They may not know the ring was dropped. Rasalia didn¡¯t have the full picture in her head, but she was starting to figure it out. Clearly, this was some kind of hostile takeover in progress. Someone, be it the Mirage or another region, was kidnapping family members and using that influence to force Aughal into a nose dive, opening it up for them to establish control. Making the public entirely lose trust in a system of government was difficult, but if you pulled it off it made control over the Spoke very tenuous and open to manipulation. If she could find them, that by itself could save the city. ¡°Get Corphein to organize the search teams. I¡¯m going to see the Fate.¡±

    Daniel and Evalyn were not the first to take flight around the Spire¡¯s Eye that night. Rasalia landed to small applause from the handful of nobility on the Eye in the earliest hours for the morning ritual. It was simply the fastest point of ingress, the Fate living in the Sun Spire meant there were no breaks in the Shroud for the balconies the elevated members of her kind loved. Once inside, she could fall through the center of the escalating columns to reach the right floor. Faster than necessary most of the time, too fast for Daniel and Evalyn to notice, but too late for Thomas to be terrified on his way out.

    The door was the easiest part. Exigency and her higher level defeated mere locks in this instance. ¡°Fate Silora! I have an emergency request.¡± Doubtlessly her voice woke up everyone on the floor. Oh well. The Fate didn¡¯t appear from her bedchambers. In fact, no one stirred. She turned her head, giving the shavi a terrifying view of a currently six-limbed creature cluing into her position. ¡°You¡¯re awake?¡±

    Silora remained frozen for a few more seconds before she both realized who this was, and that they didn¡¯t know what she¡¯d done. ¡°Champion. Uh, Commander. Rasalia.¡± Why do high level people continue to just show up in my apartment? I need to leave this damned region already. ¡°How can I help you? I was just about to turn in before dawn.¡±

    ¡°I need a scrying on the direct family of Lord Seliri. Brief, so long as they are safe. You¡¯ve seen them all, I hope?¡±

    That threw Silora, for more than one reason. ¡°I, ah, of course I can help you.¡± And as far as you know I¡¯m still forced to. She had to be very careful. A Lord with a lie-detecting ring was one thing, but the Commander of the region whose attributes trumped her own? Very different. Very dangerous. ¡°Although, I haven¡¯t seen all of them. Just the younger daughter and current wife.¡±

    Rasalia didn¡¯t need to ask about the former wife. She¡¯d been there. ¡°Older daughter? Oh, right. Beastmaster.¡± Lightning? ¡°What would you need to find her?¡±

    ¡°Well, uh, Commander, the thing is-¡°You¡¯ve come at the worst possible time? ¡°I need to rebind my Focus. Something happened with the setup, that¡¯s why I¡¯m awake.¡±

    The Champion caught the lie. She was manipulating her mana to improve the effectiveness of her wisdom attribute at the moment, but she wouldn¡¯t have needed to. Neither was it important. Either Silora would help her or reveal any potential treachery through refusal. ¡°And?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m rather drained of mana, Commander. Without my Focus I can¡¯t use most of my powers either.¡± Silora kept her voice respectful, words within the strict bounds of truth. She¡¯d had practice with this before and leaned on old habits as she recovered from being rattled. ¡°I¡¯ll need a day to recover fully. I can try my best, of course, but I can¡¯t guarantee anything.¡±

    Almost half a minute passed before Rasalia, with one of her combat powers active, chose to speak again. ¡°Have you been threatened in any way? I can defend you from the Assassin if he is still here.¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Silora quickly denied. ¡°I haven¡¯t seen any Assassins on the Regional Log. Well, aside from the new one, but even they¡¯ve left.¡±

    That did little to set Rasalia at ease. ¡°There¡¯s reason to believe members of that household are in danger. Do what you can until your mana is exhausted. You will be rid of me as soon as you do.¡±

    What is going on? ¡°I, I see.¡± Even without her tethering to the chamber, Silora could still control the chair she was sitting on. Throne. Whatever. I should be exhilarated. Finally free! Damn this city for robbing me of that. ¡°I don¡¯t think the family of a Council would be easy to scry on, but I¡¯ll try.¡±

    True to her word, Silora was familiar with Willow and Alecia Seliri and had met both. Willow rather recently which helped refresh her memory. Farsight needed something to bind a search to a specific target, and without a strong connection to her Focus or an idea of a location, such memories were the best she could do.

    The expansion of her vision was similarly hobbled compared to her normal practices. The runed walls around her still glowed, but unclaimed they did nothing to aid her. Scrying into another region was out of the question. In or near the city? Doable, but she was also racing the sun. No doubt the city would understand why she¡¯d run out of mana with the Ironrush Ravager demanding her time, although she also needed to avoid as much attention as she could. She was free of the contract but not from suspicion or minders. Only Rait¡¯s bought loyalty and the value she now had to the Cleric gave her a chance of getting out.

    ¡°I¡¯m past the city walls,¡± Silora reported. Surprisingly, she felt a connection. As if she were in a night¡¯s sea, spotting a distant lighthouse. Past the first stage where she broadened in every direction, she could now propel her intent in a spike outwards from the initial bubble. West. She couldn¡¯t help but notice something on her way out. ¡°You have people searching off the west wall?¡±

    ¡°You see them? Wait.¡± Rasalia shook her head. ¡°Don¡¯t answer that.¡±

    Silora grimaced. ¡°I¡¯m running low. You don¡¯t have a potion?¡±

    The Champion actually patted her belt for a moment. ¡°No. I was in a rush.¡± Her legs were tensing, ready to bolt as soon as she received confirmation. Or, if her worst fears were confirmed, to rally the city against invasion. When the Fate gasped softly, she prepared for either option. ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°I, I don¡¯t understand.¡± Silora rubbed at her eyes as they opened. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. My mana¡¯s out and I¡¯m quite exhausted.¡±

    ¡°What did you see!?¡±

    ¡°The path traced back to the city rapidly.¡± Silora frowned, exposing sharp teeth. ¡°So fast I couldn¡¯t see where I was going, but when I got there, I saw myself.¡±

 Chapter 137: Mirror of Calamity

    Tak, do you know if monsters can get fat?

    Hmm. No, I do not think so. But I have not seen every monster, so maybe?

    Ok, but what if the monsters you have seen eat way too much?

    Well, they Grow. Or reproduce.

    Right. Daniel looked away from Tak, and his breakfast, then looked at Hunter. What about ones that advance instead of Growing?

    Oh! They might get fat.

    Stop. Hunter thought, half-pleading, to the other two. The entire conversation had been nonverbal and coincided at times with chewing. Telepathy did make for expediency sometimes.

    Maybe your new bond powers is that you both get fat if one of you overeats. Something like ¡®Caloric Link¡¯.

    Hunter made to growl lightly, but it came out as a sickly burp instead that no one enjoyed the experience of. Fortitude wasn¡¯t putting a dent into the effect a gorging beyond all others had done on the ringcat. He¡¯d gone into a restaurant serving patrons bigger than himself and eaten enough to make two of them queasy.

    ¡°Sorry I missed last night,¡± Thomas said, not acknowledging the gaffe. The Cleric looked better. Still slightly depressed, which could have been anything from still feeling down about how much he''d struggled when helping Khiat, to ill feminine fortune. Evalyn, yet to tell the group about her insight, had her own ideas. They were all wrong of course. ¡°Any news on Threst?¡±

    ¡°Someone has a good reason to get out of town?¡± Evalyn smiled at Thomas who did his absolute best to remain straight-faced. ¡°No. We still need to talk it over with Khiat, although judging by how Lograve¡¯s night went there might be a delay.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s not back yet.¡±

    Daniel, himself flagging on lack of sleep and trying to get a quick meal before completing the process of ruining his circadian rhythm, winced. ¡°Damn. Do you know why it¡¯s taking so long Thomas?¡±

    ¡°No idea Guy.¡± Thomas sighed, leaning his head back to stare at the distant ceiling. ¡°I haven¡¯t been home for years. Things changed. Like Tlara¡¯s dad taking over half of a human faction. That¡¯s crazy! Between that and the assassinations it¡¯s throwing everything into chaos.¡±

    ¡°Huh.¡± Daniel took another sip, still marveling at how Tlara of all people could be this connected. ¡°Why are they taking so long? You¡¯d think there would be plenty of people wanting to take over.¡±

    ¡°That could be the problem,¡± Thomas reasoned, sounding as weary as Daniel felt. ¡°I never liked how my family worked, but I saw them at it. Someone with enough influence could be playing them off each other, sending bribes, making deals. Doing that to keep all three vacant seats open though?¡± Fingers tapped across the table as Thomas thought. ¡°An entire faction could do that this long, but they¡¯d be bankrupting themselves in the process.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re talking about someone like Silver Eye?¡± Evalyn ventured.

    ¡°I could see it.¡±

    ¡°Why, though?¡± Daniel asked. ¡°Tlara would do it, but from what you guys said her dad¡¯s smart enough to not throw away his family¡¯s future to delay getting the Council back together.¡± He glanced towards Tak and had a thought. ¡°Could he be a Spiritualist? All the real ones in the Thormundz died with the Spoke, but that doesn¡¯t mean there aren¡¯t any here.¡±

    ¡°Tlara¡¯s dad? Nah, I don¡¯t see it Guy.¡± The Cleric paused though and leaned forward, suddenly wary of anyone who could be listening. He whispered, ¡°Ok, but there is something. It¡¯s a secret they try not to let most people know about. There¡¯s a rumor about a curse on the region the old Tyrant cast right before he died. He was level 6 and evolved from the Artificer class, so it¡¯s possible something¡¯s stuck around that long. All I know is there are a bunch of laws preventing any one person from controlling the Council. The only real exception is in times of war¡±

    ¡°We really need to get out of this region,¡± Evalyn stated, getting up and walking towards the stairs. ¡°I¡¯m going to get some sleep and then check on Khiat. Thomas, if we left in the next couple of days without Lograve, do you think you¡¯d come with?¡±

    Daniel stood up as well, feeling exhausted despite his endurance. He saw the conflict on Thomas¡¯ face and knew it wouldn¡¯t be an easy decision for him. The Cleric didn¡¯t answer in time and he tried to give a sympathetic smile before moving up to his room. He closed a very stiff curtain and quickly fell asleep.

    ¡­

    Earth-Daniel sighed in relief. Leaning back in his chair he yawned, then yawned again. Blinking at the screens, he confirmed Octyrrum-Daniel was as safe as he¡¯d get. Nap time.

    It had taken him a few weeks to realize his ability to see into the other world was getting better with time. The various views he was able to pan around with were based off of the other¡¯s perception, though an interesting wrinkle had opened up when he¡¯d unlocked the ability to swap perspectives. These screens only showed visuals from Daniel¡¯s body and didn¡¯t cross over when he did. But when Hunter possessed him?

    The system here wasn¡¯t entirely technology. Obviously, for it to cross worlds without ever having so much as a lag spike. Another clue? The sheer amount of information Hunter¡¯s mind gathered from the surroundings would have overloaded anything below a supercomputer. Even without the beast¡¯s natural nose, he could amplify Daniel¡¯s senses and unlock options like sonar maps of the surrounding area. Earth-Daniel was curious about how exactly this was accomplished in a world that didn¡¯t have magic, but taking apart the computers was explicitly banned in the list.

    Still, very cool. He was also very tired. And very concerned. He was getting an ominous feeling about Aughal and hoped they did move on soon. Earth-Daniel had to watch everything. He also watched it alone. He tilted an empty mug with a grimace and added, Without coffee.

    Supplies were running low. It was almost time to call Chris again, especially because of the lead in time required. Maybe he could send a letter this time? But no. Posted by Bridge Space was the list. Rules, not just for one, but both Daniels.

    <hr>

    - Do not reveal anything that happened after you learned of the project, or its purpose.

    - Monitor the other world at all times. Rest when able, you will be alerted if the Worldbridge bond is in danger.

    - Your location should avoid the notice of most. If detected, run the ¡®Lighthouse¡¯ program and prepare to isolate for one month.

    - Do not reveal the location of the city of Eido.

    <hr>

    That wasn¡¯t everything. The list spanned two pages and had been included with the letter that had explained everything. Earth-Daniel had been telling the truth to his counterpart about not knowing all the facts. He¡¯d gotten more context after the monitors started working, though only from seeing things play out.

    However, the thing about Eido confused him. He hadn¡¯t known what it was until the Upswell had come up, and even then, how would he know where it was? He¡¯d been expecting another packet for weeks now, ever since Octyrrum-Daniel had contacted him, but Chris had only brought the regular supplies and hadn¡¯t mentioned anything.

    Something had gone wrong. He definitely had to call Chris again, if only to ask if he had heard anything. Daniel sent out the text, not waiting for a reply before getting into bed. It was hard keeping up with someone who had surpassed the limits of humanity. Especially when all you could do was sit¡­ and watch¡­

    And forget to set an alarm.

    ¡­

    ¡°Hey. Hey! I want to run something by you,¡± Daniel shouted into the dark void. Not even an echo returned to him. He wasn¡¯t sure he was facing the right wall, but that shouldn¡¯t matter. ¡°Are you there, or¡­ out?¡± He kicked at the ground impatiently, the contact feeling real but with no pain. ¡°This is why I need a whiteboard on my side,¡± Daniel complained, before exiting Bridge Space.

    The time just before or just after sleep was always the best for contacting Earth-Daniel, and he¡¯d just woken up from his nap. It was also more convenient, considering he was leaving his body completely defenseless. ¡°I need to make some kind of turret,¡± he muttered, before shelving that idea. There was something else occupying his creative energy, something along the lines of a bag of holding that would be far more useful.

    So long as he could get it to work. I have all the pieces for a prototype. I just need a way to make it from cheaper material. Still, he shouldn¡¯t complain. His unique approach to the Artificer class was practically cheating. Just throw together something basic that matches the intent of a better item, and then refine it through monster analysis. Easy. Although other versions of the class have to have some way of doing this. My way almost gets me killed.

    There were no scars, of course. The worst injury he¡¯d taken from the surprise Shank Stomper attack had healed fully. It was odd how used to pain he was getting, and that was considering he could recover from any injury. Is it because I¡¯m improving my mental stats or just hardening myself? That brought up old thoughts about how far magic was changing him. Compared to the control group he¡¯d been able to converse with, at least a bit.

    Well, I¡¯m getting something out of it. He¡¯d gained a great deal of formulae and affixes from Aughal¡¯s monsters, the ability to use monster parts for enchanting perhaps the best of them. Using the phone mid-fight was somewhat challenging, but worst-case the bodies were enough.

    He craned his neck out of the window, lifting the stiff curtain to do so, and saw it was around mid-afternoon. Daniel reached out with his mind. Tak? Hunter? Do you know if anyone else is awake yet, or if Khiat¡¯s come back?

    Rather than answer, outlines suddenly lit up in Daniel¡¯s vision. Though Hunter had adopted certain privacy policies in his use of the power, Identify Creature was still one of the defaults shared with him. Hunter and Tak were on the roof? He didn¡¯t know this inn had a flat one, but they¡¯d found a way up. Evalyn was in a room one door down, still in bed. Lograve as well for that matter, but he¡¯d gotten back later than they had. No Khiat and no Thomas.

    The inn was on the border of the dusker section of the city, even with all of the crowds Hunter should have been able to pick Khiat out. If she was above ground. She¡¯s probably fine, Daniel thought, although part of him still regretted leaving her behind. If it had been him he¡¯d have had a rough time, but the other patrons had been idolizing her. As far as Thomas? Daniel had no idea.

    I''m here, Hunter replied eventually.

    Are you feeling better? Daniel asked honestly, keeping his mental tone serious.

    Stomach hurts. But I¡¯m able to move. The outline of Hunter¡¯s tail swished. You?

    I¡¯m going to try and make this a short day. Not staying up all night again, unless Evalyn drags us on another celebration for whatever¡¯s going on with Thomas. He started pulling items out of the bag of holding, using the bed as a makeshift desk. I might try and see Arpan soon. I¡¯ve got a few more questions about Artificer stuff and I could bribe him if this works.

    If what works?

    Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

    Right, I haven¡¯t told any of you guys. I¡¯m making something for Evalyn. Well, just a prototype for now. Fiddling with straps, Daniel reached for one of the ornithopters. I¡¯ll make a better version later for all of us. Honestly I¡¯d have done one for Khiat first, but she¡¯s too heavy. The main ¡®harness¡¯ now fixed around the delicate creation of wood and cloth, Daniel attached what he¡¯d used the last of the heliorite to make, enchanted loops fixing it tightly to the main body.

    There were two constructions in total, each as long as the ornithopter originally but now half again as wide. It could have ended there, but Daniel kept adding small bits and pieces to each. Here¡¯s where the real cheating begins.

    What?

    Nothing. Daniel shook his head, standing to observe the two creations. They weren¡¯t exact duplicates, rather they were roughly mirrored. And¡­ done? Strangely, though his phone didn¡¯t vibrate, he felt he¡¯d accomplished something. It was accompanied by the surety that he could put together more pairs of these like an assembly line, assuming he had the raw materials. He didn¡¯t, so he¡¯d need to refine the formulae to make more. Daniel stared at his phone for a minute, but still no notification came even though he could find the formulae now in his Encyclopedia. This had never happened before. Was Earth-Daniel AFK?

    Hmm. About the name.

    Tak, You have an idea? Daniel put the now finished boots back into the bag of holding.

    Wild Wing.

    Huh. You do like the wing part.

    Yes.

    Daniel thought about joining them on the roof for a second but decided against it. He¡¯d probably have to Jump and didn¡¯t have the mana to spend frivolously. What do you think Hunter?

    I don¡¯t care.

    But it¡¯s the team name! Everyone will know us by it first and if you just let someone else choose, they¡¯ll name us ¡®Snobbish Arm¡¯ or something. It has to sound good and be meaningful. Daniel didn¡¯t put his foot down on much, but damn it if he wouldn¡¯t be particular about the party name of the adventuring group he was in.

    Yes. Which is why Wild Wing is good. Tak sounded pleased with himself. Preening might be a better word.

    It kind of is? Daniel frowned. For you two at least. And maybe Khare. The rest of us aren¡¯t really wild. It might give people the wrong impression about us, socially I mean. Like we¡¯re all Berserkers or something.

    The outline of Tak crossed his arms. I think it is good. The voice sounded a little annoyed. It was the best we could think of.

    We? I thought Hunter said he didn¡¯t care.

    We still talked about it.

    It just doesn¡¯t feel right, Daniel thought in his defense.

    You are overthinking this.

    Probably, he admitted. Aw dang it. We should have asked Khare what they thought back at the Druid. But I didn¡¯t know Evalyn was thinking about it back then. There wasn¡¯t a response, almost as if to underline the point being made. Fine. I guess it¡¯s not up to us since Evalyn¡¯s in charge. Daniel¡¯s thoughts again turned to the time of day, grimacing as a brief headache overcame him. Even with magic, it looks like you can¡¯t stay up for a day and a half and expect to be fine after a few hours of sleep.

    The bed called for him again, but there was enough energy within his body to brave the somewhat short walk he was thinking of. Daniel looked outside and saw people ambling around in the mid-evening hours. He debated silently with himself. I could just wait for tomorrow, but we know how difficult Arpan is to reach. What if he''s open right now but would be closed the next three days? Might as well try. Sighing, Daniel mentally messaged the two on the roof. Alright, I¡¯m going to go by Arpan¡¯s real quick. Hopefully everyone will be here by the time I¡¯m back.

    Should I go with you? Hunter asked.

    Daniel thought about it for a moment, but heard the reluctance and felt sympathetic for the current state of his friend. Nah. We''ll be in telepathy range and it won¡¯t take too long. Lograve''s got a connection on me still and he''s linked with the Commander too. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m not walking down any more alleyways.

    Good.

    ¡­

    Rait frowned at the half-empty cabinet before taking out one of the dwindling problems. There were, of course, jokes to be had about an alcoholic shavi. He didn¡¯t feel like making any. After being held under suspicion of involvement in Lord Fredreick¡¯s death his life had been upended. He hadn¡¯t been held in the city cells, though he also hadn¡¯t been free to leave. Silora had changed that with a simple request that turned into a trap of its own. Whatever she¡¯d needed him for thankfully hadn¡¯t come to pass.

    Of course, some things were obvious. Like the rapidly depleting wine cabinet, or mood swings from crippling anxiety to exuberance poorly covered by blank looks. The young Cleric in robes who seemed to be waiting for when the two were alone. That was smart since Rait now told Lord Seliri everything that had happened to protect himself. Interestingly, he hadn¡¯t received an order to stop anything that had happened, only observe. Unlike the Fate who couldn¡¯t control her shaking at times, his hands were steady. Why trust me Silora? You should have known.

    ¡°Anything else?¡± he asked, placing the full bottle by the others. The guest had only had a sensible amount. Silora, well, she¡¯d grown used to performing her duties while sloshed. ¡°I can have something brought from a nearby kitchen if you-¡±

    ¡°No!¡± Silora blustered while lounging on her Focus. ¡°No, I think I¡¯m almost ready.¡± There¡¯d been some kind of late night emergency request which was his top priority to follow up on. Following a late morning rise, she¡¯d needed to rebind her Focus. At least half of the fine vintages sacrificed today were by his hand to push her into action.

    Thomas looked at him and joked, ¡°Does that chair recline back so she can work without falling over?¡±

    Why does he have to be so friendly? Rait coughed rather than answer, allowing Silora to instead.

    ¡°It¡¯s not a chair!¡± She spread her arms widely, which for her was a less impressive wingspan. ¡°It¡¯s a throne. I don¡¯t have much, but I have this. My court.¡± She giggled.

    ¡°Right.¡± At least Thomas was also taken aback. ¡°Look, I just wanted to make sure you were alright. But Silver Eye¡¯s daughters? Shouldn¡¯t you?¡±

    ¡°Fine.¡± Silora sighed as Rait grudgingly gave him an approving nod. ¡°I c, can try. Stupid sand. All I saw last time before things got weird.¡± Somewhat jittering, the contraption in the center of the room leveled to put Silora on her back and above the view of anyone sitting. ¡°But it¡¯s for Lord Seliri isn¡¯t it?¡±

    ¡°His, uh, daughters, Fate,¡± Rait clarified, pace quickening as he heard what all of this was about.

    ¡°Right. Fine. Fine. Oh!¡± Silora exclaimed as her wineglass, suspended by a metal ring fixed above the stem, poured a little too much onto her. ¡°Damn. Waste. I shouldn¡¯t be, no, no it¡¯s fine. No more of that Rait.¡± The assistant frowned and tried to replace the cork he just removed. ¡°West. If I¡¯ve got, uh.¡± Silora wiped a hand on her forehead. ¡°Gods, I may have overdone it a bit. You¡¯ll tell them if I find something, Rait? I don¡¯t think I can get out of this right now.¡±

    The assistant unfroze. ¡°Yes. I¡¯m sure the guard will be quick to act. The Commander has also decided to personally intervene, or so I¡¯ve heard.¡±

    Thomas whistled. ¡°The Ironrush Ravager¡¯s on this? Damn. Might as well just make the guild part of the guard now. If there are people out there who can kidnap Tlara, well, we¡¯re really in trouble.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s bad. I won¡¯t lie.¡± Rait gave up on the cork, he¡¯d accidentally sheared part of it off, and just poured himself some. Silora didn¡¯t seem to be in a state to protest. ¡°You¡¯re in a house, right?¡± Rait tried not to be too specific. He knew exactly who Thomas was, but only because the Silver Eye had told him.

    ¡°Yeah. Kinda. I¡¯ve been out of town for a bit.¡± Thomas glanced at something under his foot while Silora¡¯s ¡®throne¡¯ rotated with her powers. ¡°Still feels like I¡¯m not home.¡±

    Rait guessed off of the Focus hanging on Thomas¡¯ waist. ¡°Your family doesn¡¯t like your class?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not that. That¡¯s why I left. I come back after nearly dying twice and Aughal¡¯s basically on fire. Well, more than usual. I¡¯ve got friends who want to leave and I don¡¯t blame them but, this is my home. You know?¡±

    More than you, Spireborn. Rait brushed the instinctual invective aside. All things considered he was in deeper with the houses than the very valuable black sheep. ¡°If Silora can find whoever¡¯s doing this, things may get better. All of this started because someone took out Lord Fredreick. That faction fractured, the guard got more and more on edge, another member of the Council was removed, things just keep getting worse. Can this be the Mirage?¡±

    ¡°I never thought they were dangerous. Not to the entire region.¡± Thomas¡¯ voice was troubled. Rait was about to give his own opinion when he was interrupted.

    ¡°Rait! I found one! I had to try to slow down where I was going towards the end. Gods but I should have done this sooner. You need to tell the guard. They¡¯re here. They¡¯re¡­¡± The assistant walked around to where Silora was facing and saw she¡¯d grown pale. ¡°How?¡±

    ¡­

    "Arpan?" Daniel asked, confused at the mouth of the short street which led only to the other Artificer''s workshop. The front door was slightly open. The older Artificer did not seem the type to leave free and easy access for the discerning customer. Warning sirens were blaring in his mind, all of Daniel''s past experiences and mistakes telling him to slow down and take in his environment. What at first had seemed inviting now yawned like the mouth of a monster. Something was wrong. Daniel turned, preparing to reach out to Hunter and say that yes, actually, he would like some backup.

    He made it five steps before the Assassin struck.

    ¡­

    A man sat in his shop, terrified. His hair was unruly and unwashed. His armored companion he wore at all times, for what little it would do. Making the second dagger had been the worst mistake of his life because of what it had given her. Surety others could be made.

    The Mirage were bastards in the end. Oh, they¡¯d paid him, right up until they didn¡¯t have to. They hadn¡¯t reclaimed the coin hidden in his shop when threats turned into action. Money wasn¡¯t their concern. Neither, he guessed, was freeing the city from a Tyranny in all but name. The freedom fighters who supposedly defended outer towns in the rare hour of need, defying the rule of the Council, weren¡¯t anything like anyone thought. Was it a cruel joke they were named so? Good people weren¡¯t friendly with Assassins.

    He saw that when, blade at his throat, he summoned his dimensional space and let out the one who¡¯d taken shelter there. Having an Assassin force you to put them into a box they couldn¡¯t get out of themselves seemed foolish on their part, until you realized that if you didn¡¯t do what they said you¡¯d either die or lock yourself out of a very useful power. At least until you gathered enough strong people that they could put him down before he put you down.

    Arpan had never thought it would get this far. To do the kinds of things these people had went far beyond simple rebellion. Beyond expectation that there would be any sense of order on the other side of their plan. The harbinger of doom rolled his shoulders as he lazily stepped out of the mirror. ¡°Who is that woman?¡± Mark asked. He looked around and saw the others in the room. ¡°Oh. It¡¯s later. Time, then. Good.¡±

    The Arcanist didn¡¯t dare speak. The Mirage leader had no such reservations. ¡°You¡¯ll still follow the arrangement?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, yeah. Tonight, right?¡±

    ¡°The sun is setting soon,¡± she said as if about to perform some heretical ritual. ¡°Our armies are prepared.¡±

    ¡°Couldn¡¯t have given me a few hours prep time?¡± Ridiculously the Assassin looked put out. ¡°Who do I need to kill, or did your ridiculous plan already work?¡±

    Arpan watched in horror as the two talked like he wasn¡¯t there. He was sure he was dead the moment they were reminded of his presence. ¡°In parts,¡± the woman replied evenly. ¡°Claret Sosa proved an early impediment alongside my husband. She¡¯s on board now, at least. Maybe if you had given me the full formulae I would have known what to look for earlier, and we¡¯d have more allies.¡±

    ¡°Figured it out, huh? Heh, Mavar¡¯s going to be pissed.¡±

    ¡°You were paid your due. Are we still in accord?¡±

    Mark flicked a dagger in his hands in a moment of annoyance before nodding. ¡°Yeah. I¡¯ll just¡­¡± he trailed off, frowning. ¡°Did someone leave the damn door open?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re about to take this city. Who cares?¡± A cloaked man asked, only taking half a step back when Mark turned his gaze on him.

    ¡°I¡¯ll deal with it.¡±

    ¡°The traps,¡± Arpan murmured. The Assassin didn¡¯t bother addressing that concern. While he didn¡¯t have the Mirage¡¯s ability to completely ignore them, Mark had reached this sanctum unwelcome before. There was a tense minute as the Artificer pressed himself further into the couch. Their leader and the two subordinates traded glances but made no moves. The captive they brought in last night remained unconscious in his Mirror Space, which he¡¯d kept active for the simple reason that no one had told him to close it.

    Mark returned with someone on his shoulder, having left no trap sprung besides the extra weight. ¡°Amateurs. Still, looks like the Prime¡¯s on point as always. I¡¯ll need you three to leave the Artificer alive.¡±

    ¡°Unacceptable.¡± The leader reached a hand out towards Arpan before a small burst of mana shot through the air. It was akin to one from a power above level 3, only quieted. The Assassin was glaring at the Mirage leader. ¡°You can¡¯t kill me.¡±

    ¡°I know how to.¡± Mark shrugged the vaguely familiar, unconscious man onto a couch with a measure of casualness. ¡°And you can¡¯t kill me either. Not fast enough to stop me from telling enough people what I know. Look, the old man told me to keep an eye out for this one before I left. He has to live, so I need a safe place to stash him. You¡¯ve got someone you¡¯re stashing too. Her again. Huh.¡±

    ¡°Wait. Was there a monster with him?¡± The leader¡¯s objections were forgotten as she saw the intruder Mark was talking about. ¡°Tell me you didn¡¯t destroy its heart.¡±

    ¡°He travels with one of those? No, just him. Good to know one¡¯s on the field.¡± Mark smiled and made to move Daniel into the mirror, but it winked out of existence. ¡°Hey, don¡¯t be like that. We¡¯re friends here, aren¡¯t we?¡± Killer¡¯s eyes lingered on Arpan. ¡°Aren¡¯t we?¡±

    ¡°You were going to kill me this entire time,¡± Arpan said weakly. ¡°You, you don¡¯t have a reason not to after all of this. Why should I bring the mirror back?¡± He was smart enough to know it was his only card to play. And how bad a card it was.

    Mark gave it a thought anyway. ¡°Hmm. Spirit monster? That¡¯s enough to go on. Casia, you agree to keep this guy alive and I¡¯ll hunt that thing for you. Could be potential here. Sound good?¡± The leader of the Mirage paused to consider the offer from the best hunter-killer in the city as Mark crouched in front of a still terrified Arpan. She nodded eventually. ¡°Hey, Artificer. Ever wonder if you could be more than your class?¡±

    Arpan tried not to match the eyes of the killer, having no idea what he meant, while overhearing what the Mirage leader was saying to the others. ¡°We must start the plan, now. I am commanding our fresh army to march. Mark, you need to capture my husband, alive, and bring him to the Eye before fulfilling the rest of our bargain. Fredreick, you will stay here and assure our captive remains undisturbed. Should a problem arise I will send you to deal with it. Ytaya, do whatever damage you can to the Hunter¡¯s Guild before moving to our first primary target. I will strike the main guardhouse, and then deal with the Commander.¡±

    His blood froze as there were no followup questions asked, even by the one who was supposedly Ytaya¡¯s recently raised corpse. The three figures, covered in cloaks of sand, otherwise appeared as they would in life. A human, a dusker, and an avianoid, all prepared to destroy Aughal.

 Chapter 138: Rapid Response

    Thunder rumbled, just once, in the air around Aughal. It was unusual. Even with the natural variance, anyone accustomed to the sound would suspect that it had been cut off prematurely. It set Rasalia on edge, fearing another attack from the regions bordering hers. Of the yet unnamed team, only Hunter¡¯s ears were keen enough to distinguish the difference. Yet they all heard it, including the one who shouldn¡¯t have been able to.

    Underground. The room was far nicer than her home. In fact, the comparison would forever prevent her from calling her burrow a room again. For one, it had a door. No windows, never windows, but accommodations beyond her village. A pile of cushions not only large enough to fit her but also contoured to her body to rest on. This was a guest room aimed at the average dusker. Khiat eyed the embellished chisel, meant to work at chitin that overgrew and prevented plates from locking smoothly, and amended her impression. This was a very good room.

    She wasn¡¯t quite sure what had woken her, in the same way anyone waking from a nightmare could recall only hazy details. Like the real-life nightmare that had plagued her for weeks. It was still there at times. Not that alien impulse, thank the gods, but the memories. The change in her nature hadn¡¯t fixed anything, only stopped the bleeding. It still hurt, even in memory, because she was the same person who¡¯d had those thoughts.

    Last night was fun at least. Being hailed as a hero of your people was an experience more people needed. It had gotten better after Khiat had stopped trying to explain what she had wasn¡¯t exactly Sun Immunity and just let people be in awe. Then there was slight concern as the night dragged on and it seemed people would keep mobbing her until dawn.

    Xhrev had rescued her. He was an older native of the city and benefited from a bond with his wife that had grown so strong, they could pick up on emotions from other people as well. She was just glad honing on her anxiety had made Xhrev see her as a normal person, rather than a disappointment. Also, she was starting to realize a lot of her people had names that started with ¡®X¡¯, like her dad. Should I change my name? No, that¡¯s stupid.

    Khiat checked the clock on the wall, another sign of the very good room¡¯s amenities, and saw there was still about a half hour to sunset. There was a floating dial around the outside of the two hands indicating when that was for the season, although that wouldn¡¯t have been something she¡¯d trust without her powers. With Sun Resistance?

    Her new situation still took some getting used to. No one could explain the differences and guide her, for there were important differences. People in different classes could train others, especially if they possessed similar powers. That¡¯s how Lograve had explained it at least.

    With her? She didn¡¯t advance anymore. Neither did Daniel¡¯s identification power work beyond identifying what powers she possessed. It was like there was no class to read.

    Sun Resistance. An otherwise unheard of power that did not require mana to work but still ran out of¡­ something. She couldn¡¯t survive a full day of exposure and there was a sense of the power weakening with prolonged use as if she were walking towards a fire. Yet the mana within her did not dwindle. She didn¡¯t have to activate anything, it just worked until it didn¡¯t. So, probably a passive power like a feature, though one Daniel¡¯s Focus couldn¡¯t see.

    I really don¡¯t know what¡¯s going on, Khiat thought. It wasn¡¯t a sad thought. The future was looking brighter. She¡¯d had an amazing lunch last night, if interrupted, and a group of friends that might give her a chance to travel the world. She remembered never wanting to leave home before, and while a part of her still felt that way, another was excited to see what else was out there. Her new, strange powers had given her the freedom to not worry about the deadly sun. Without that literally hanging over her head, the prospect of going to regions her kind didn¡¯t normally visit was tantalizing.

    Khiat left a few of her gold and a note of thanks behind. Gods, but she was rich now. Another month of fighting could see her parents living comfortably in the city. Or, maybe the whole village. Would they leave? Will my team stay here long enough? The dusker brooded on that as she walked in the fading sunlight, leaving a small panic in her wake.

    Khiat made it to the Painted Dusk, the genuine article framed behind the tavern, just as time ran out. Hunter was vibrating ominously, fangs bared. Tak glided down from the roof and into the generous space around the ringcat when he saw her. ¡°Ah, you are back too. Good. We are going to kill something.¡±

    ¡°What?!¡± Khiat checked herself and breathed a sigh of relief in feeling her quiver. Losing more of her arrows, especially now, would have been a disgrace. ¡°Is there a monster in the city?¡±

    ¡°Yes? No? Not sure. Lograve received a message. Something bad is happening in the Artificer¡¯s store. Daniel went there and now Hunter can¡¯t find him.¡±

    ¡°He is not dead,¡± Hunter growled.

    Tak shook his arms as they melded back into their normal shapes. ¡°I know. We are going to get him.¡± More people departed the inn, this time from the front door.

    ¡°Khiat. Your timing is perfect.¡± The dusker honestly didn¡¯t know what to think of the Arcanist. Respect for someone of high level, certainly, but the few times they¡¯d talked Lograve had seemed kind of busy. Now, there was a calm smile on his face. Like someone had pasted a painting over his true emotions. Scary. He was also covered in ice armor. ¡°You are welcome to join us.¡±

    ¡°Shelter,¡± Khare added. It took Khiat a moment to realize their meaning. Of course. She nodded in thanks at the offer.

    ¡°Is it, um, do we know who¡¯s there?¡± Can I fight people? Would that make my class come back!?

    ¡°Daniel¡¯s there,¡± Evalyn said coldly. ¡°We¡¯re leaving now to stop them from escaping with him. We aren¡¯t going to let this happen again. Come, or don¡¯t. Lograve, is Thomas on his way?¡±

    The Arcanist shook his head. ¡°He¡¯s staying with the Fate. It would take him too long to get here anyway. Rasalia has her own problems but has promised to intervene if she sees anyone riding from the city. Now, everyone stand together. I¡¯m going to use a ritual.¡±

    ¡°The one you¡¯ve been working on?¡±

    ¡°No. The first one.¡± Khiat, caught up in a moment similar to, yet far from last night, was ushering into a cluster with the rest of the team. She watched as some sort of branching ring was crafted in the air before being shot towards the group.

    Then she was running. Really running, tearing through the streets with a frenetic energy. Another might have been in danger of falling behind the higher-level team, but Khiat¡¯s height made up the difference. No, more than that. This kind of power felt right to her. Kindred. More than anything, it gave her the feeling that the words she¡¯d heard when reaching the first threshold of power were more important than she¡¯d been led to believe.

    Lograve, at the head of the pack, was keeping the way clear by creating temporary barriers of ice from water contained in frozen cylinders melded into the back of his armor.

    Some of the actual guards in the city did try to protest their passage. Word of the kidnapping spread slowly to their ranks. There was little they could do as Khiat sped past them while under the effect of a level 4 Arcanist¡¯s boon. Someone that powerful could tear through a city like this with minimal resistance until the big bows were brought out to handle them. The reports went out, mixing in confusion with the kidnapping alert. Like arrows fired at men tired from a long march, they unlocked the last bit of reserve the remaining defenders of the city had. Weeks of overwork and disheartening politics made an actual, ongoing threat the only thing that could fully rouse them.

    Would it be enough? Damn. That can¡¯t be a coincidence.

    What? Khiat asked in response to the voice in her head. Unlike the more limited bond-based telepathy network Hunter possessed, Lograve had just connected the entire war group. Amped up as she was, Khiat almost tripped when she heard the next voice.

    A sandstorm, I know. It¡¯s almost on me. It just came up from nowhere. Someone¡¯s power is doing this. I¡¯m making my way back as fast as I can, Rasalia, Commander of the entire region, replied. Knowing the stories, that was fast indeed. Lograve, we can¡¯t rule out the possibility that they¡¯ve kidnapped more people. Someone¡¯s been stamping down attempts to elect new Council members. If there¡¯s an attack like this coming, from inside the city, the guard can¡¯t handle it. They¡¯re for keeping order and firing shots from the wall before anything gets close.

    Ahead, a cart splintered as a spike of ice rose to push it aside. We know where Willow Seliri is right now! Along with my friend.

    You¡¯re one of the most coordinated teams right now. I can¡¯t waste time on you, I have an entire city to protect!

    Rasalia? Rasalia? Lograve waited a few seconds. She must be blocking me out. I¡¯m sorry, unless we trip over that team from yesterday we¡¯re on our own.

    It makes sense. Another voice from someone not among the runners. The Cleric to whom Khiat owed just as much as those around her. Silora, the Fate, she saw that Assassin in Arpan¡¯s place. She, uh, she¡¯s working herself up for another attempt to look in there.

    Gods save me from shavi swimming in spirits. Tell me if she actually does it.

    Ambush? The mental voice of Khare was disturbingly similar to their normal tone, and still limited by the gestalt¡¯s language barrier. Of the group, they were having the easiest time navigating obstacles even if the sight of a vine person twisting around people did little to mollify them.

    Probably. Hunter and Lograve should lead the rest of us. Take this like our first outing from the village, only we actually cover them this time.

    Lograve eyed Evalyn. You think you can handle this better than I can?

    Evalyn was keeping in the center of the formation, having established that as her normal spot long ago to get the most out of her group enhancing abilities. Khiat couldn¡¯t see her face, but she guessed she was smiling. I haven¡¯t been sitting in my room the past few weeks.

    I¡¯d wager what I¡¯d gained against whatever you¡¯ve scraped together while getting sandy. Somehow, the Arcanist managed to put a little bit of hurt into his next thoughts. You¡¯d think my levels would be worth some respect.

    Put some magic where your mouth is and I just might give you some.

    Bards. Give them an ounce of control and they ride all over you. What was Daniel thinking?

    We are close, Tak cut in. While Hunter was murderously on edge, the avianoid was just focused. He¡¯d still yet to find whatever emotion unlocked his rage ability, though tense anticipation had been ruled out. Hmm. And we will have to fight indoors. Through traps, probably. That will be bad.

    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    We¡¯re not going to need to worry about those, Lograve answered, knowingly. Alright, ¡®Commander¡¯, I can guess where you¡¯re going with this. Might I suggest we put Khare and Khiat on the roof?

    Silora said they were underground, Thomas protested, still overhearing everything.

    I know. I¡¯m canceling the ritual effect now. You¡¯ll all feel tired, but it won¡¯t be as bad as if I¡¯d let it go the full duration. A wave of exhaustion passed Khiat as if she¡¯d just run twice as far. Get in position. It¡¯s time for a dynamic entry.

    There was no such thing as flawless home security. Given time any defense could be forced open, picked, subverted, or just made pointless by a new owner who thought the place could use more windows. By the same token, you had to balance impenetrability with accessibility. Creating a vault sheltered in a sub-dimension only open to ten keys carried by the fifth born sons of fishermen all but guaranteed your valuables would be hard to get to, though you¡¯d include yourself in that estimate.

    If you couldn¡¯t seek perfection, do what most did and find the good enough. Make any theft obvious, make any protection hidden (excepting those that worked because they were visible), and most importantly, make any would-be thief regret the entire experience. Assuming they survived.

    Arpan the Artificer had been faced with this quandary and solved it with the resources of a well-off artisan with ties to the city¡¯s elite. Unfortunately said city was Aughal, so the majority of his protection was in a general alert ward on the walls, a heinously trapped corridor, and a fortified door. The first was practically useless since the guard had figured out where the team was going. Now, the door could resist a level 3 Martialist for at least a minute, more than enough time for Arpan to retreat into his sanctum while awaiting the guard. Unless someone left it open.

    Since Mark had closed the door and eliminated the weakness in the building he¡¯d sensed, this door would still give anyone inside enough warning before they made it through. Even the wall surrounding it had been given properties to resist being broken down. Everyone knew the first thing someone did when the first kick didn¡¯t work was to just break down the wall instead.

    Say you had someone powerful enough to force their way through anyway. Rasalia could, though petty theft was beyond the Champion. Perhaps Gtoll, who could pick up an entire floor of the building and throw it, was a better standard. After he peeled off the roof and forced his way down the tunnel, tanking the reprisal of hallway traps, he¡¯d be in a good position to take anything he wanted and run.

    This wasn¡¯t a robbery, however. This was a hostage situation and SWAT had arrived first. Lograve didn¡¯t have time or patience for any trickery. Thomas, get that Fate to scry me.

    There was a slight pause. She¡¯s, uh, still pretty shaken up. I think I can convince her. Need someone to watch your back?

    That¡¯s what I¡¯m using Khiat and Khare for. Assuming the Bard who is completely in command agrees. Now in the alleyway, Lograve thinned out his armor and began to construct a long rod with the cast off water. The two city guards close enough to have made it here decided to wait for backup as a special call was put out.

    Lograve, what are you doing? Evalyn asked, still keeping to nonverbal communication. Doubtlessly the people below knew they were here, but they didn¡¯t need to know anything else.

    Something that will be damned complicated. At least I don¡¯t have to do this while also maintaining an ice shelf this time. Thomas?

    Hold on. Ok, she can see you. Now what?

    Have her locate Arpan¡¯s study and tell me exactly how far it is from me. She¡¯s a Fate, that should be as easy as going for a swim. The rest of you, be ready. I¡¯m tunneling us right to them.

    Evalyn lifted her instrument with a bit of uncertainty. I¡¯m not really in control here, am I?

    You¡¯ll get there someday.

    Hunter looked keen on trying an even more direct approach before Thomas reported back. Lograve, I have your directions but it looks like it¡¯s just Arpan down there. Silora can¡¯t tell if he¡¯s alive or not.

    We¡¯re going to find out. Khiat saw the ice rod, about as wide as her arrow shafts, tilt down and towards the building on the opposite side. If Lograve was creating a tunnel in that direction it would let her fire down into whatever space was being created. She had a sneaking suspicion that she¡¯d be effectively sidelined otherwise. That was fine. Things were getting too real, too quickly, and she didn¡¯t want to kill anyone.

    The end of the rod facing the ground sharpened in midair. Get ready. We¡¯re about to poke the beehive. I¡¯m going to need to concentrate. Watch and learn, kids. This is why it¡¯s not enough to just use your powers. The hardened sand making up the roads put up initial resistance, right up until the rod shaped into something closer to a spear. The head began to rotate, drilling into the ground at speed.

    That alone would have only accomplished a narrow channel through the earth. Lograve had other ideas. As the ice drill continued through the ground, water along the exterior melted off into the surrounding sand as the central rod began to expand. The speed and finesse of Lograve¡¯s control was markedly improved over the slow construction of his prior ice field, such that in less than half a minute there was a passage large enough for Hunter to descend, if single file.

    To her credit, Evalyn was prepared. When the Arcanist nodded, she directed Tak and then Lograve through first, instructing Hunter to follow after her. Removing the ringcat from the vanguard was a revision to her earlier plan and fed into his agitation. Speed was the priority and more important than the largest team member going first. Khiat looked beside her and saw Khare twirling daggers. Trying to hide a flash of shame, she put an arrow to her bowstring. She couldn¡¯t fire down the tunnel while occupied, and would hesitate to on anything not monster-shaped, but she would be ready.

    We are at the bottom. Tak¡¯s voice came in sharp and alert. Despite him shifting his body into his battle form, his inner thoughts betrayed no ferocity. Now, if he fully shifted into that other, terrifying thing, she imagined that would change. Lograve does not sense anything else. Arpan has been knocked out. We could have used your healing, Thomas.

    I, I know. I¡¯m sorry, I was too far away.

    That is fair. Gadriel isn¡¯t here either.

    Lograve¡¯s voice reached out as he kept everyone from fully entering the room. Alright everyone, this could a sign we got here in time but I¡¯m going to make sure before we go further in. It¡¯s time I pull out one of my hidden powers, Life Echo.

    Hunter cut off Lograve. We don¡¯t need that! I can tell he was here. We know he was here.

    The Arcanist¡¯s reply was somewhat terse. Can you tell what they did, or just taste the air? Thomas, how many were in the room the first time?

    Uh, besides Arpan, Daniel, and the Assassin? Three, all in robes.

    I¡¯m only sensing two echoes from the past 24 hours beside Arpan. Daniel and whoever Silora originally followed to this place. That would make the rest higher level than I am. Khiat¡¯s hands tightened on her bow. That¡¯s a region-level threat, but manageable if that¡¯s all there is. Our team could take one but it would be extremely dangerous.

    But they¡¯re at least level 5! Thomas protested. I¡¯m going to see if Silora can Far Speak to Rasalia. She needs to know.

    Do that. Everyone else, stay calm. All of you, well, most of you saw Gadriel do it. Level disparities can be overcome. They are not unkillable.

    Where is Daniel? Hunter asked roughly, uncaring about any of that. Khiat could see him pacing through the window she had into the underground, as well as a haze to the north. The approaching storm.

    For whatever reason, it looks like they¡¯ve hidden him and the other hostage in Arpan¡¯s storage power. We¡¯ll need him awake to summon it, although I¡¯m worried they may have hidden one of the conspirators there too. Leaving the Artificer unguarded after all this trouble, I mean, they didn¡¯t take any of the inventory here.

    ¡°Street.¡± Khare¡¯s voice startled her, having become accustomed to the telepathy. She looked and saw a few more guards massing. One, at the front, held a sword edged with a vibrant yellow metal.

    Lograve, I think the guards are here. The, um, the good guards.

    Just what we need. Don¡¯t touch anything. Arpan had a few inventory powers and I don¡¯t know everything about him.

    Should I try to wake him up? Evalyn asked.

    Better I do, unless you have a distance healing power. We don¡¯t know the classes of these people, one could have set a trap. The storage power is centered on Arpan. I¡¯ll drag him out and then deal with the guard. In the chamber, Lograve extended tendrils of water out towards one of the couches. The four were still grouped defensively near the tunnel opening, which was about a third of the way around the room from the natural entrance.

    You do have other powers, right Lograve?

    Of course. It¡¯s just that this one is so damn useful, he answered Evalyn blithely. Also, it¡¯s far less explosive than others. Arpan was only lifted an inch off the cushions when it happened. Had they entered the normal way, the layer of sand on the ground would have been noticeable. Unfortunately, none of what Silora had mentioned included that the lair of the normally fastidious Arpan had a dirtied floor before being broken into.

    Two sharpened pillars shot toward the Arcanist. Not spikes, these were as wide as his legs. While he evaded the one aimed for his neck, the second broke through and pierced one side under his arm. An arrow crashed into that pillar moments later, breaking its cohesion. Hunter was on the one Khiat couldn¡¯t see, but it proved more resistant to his fangs as it kept trying to drive itself into Lograve¡¯s throat.

    Khiat could barely see what was going on, but she heard Evalyn take command. It¡¯s some kind of geomancy! Tak, grab Arpan. We¡¯re getting out of here. Khiat, warn the guards! They were already advancing, though that was because she¡¯d fired a shot. They didn¡¯t look in the mood for a conversation.

    What¡¯s going on? Silora¡¯s trying to reach the Commander but she¡¯s saying there¡¯s something in the way. Are you under attack?

    Lograve¡¯s been stabbed in the chest. Someone¡¯s controlling the sand. We¡¯re retreating.

    If they¡¯re controlling the sand, Lograve¡¯s pained voice interrupted, Going into that tunnel is the last thing we¡¯d want. I need¡­ need to use a power.

    Hunter managed to pull the pillar away by sheer force. Too strong. Something is coming.

    They must be hiding under the floor. It¡¯s like trying to fight me in the middle of a lake. The guard with the yellow sword pointed it up at Khiat, tip crackling. Khare undulated uncertainly in their chimeric form. If the walls weren¡¯t enchanted he¡¯d probably have pulled them down on us already.

    That is bad. Lograve, he is coming out of the floor. Are you going to do something?

    Tak, I¡¯m gathering the mana within me while keeping my damned stab wound frozen closed. I don¡¯t know how but that attack went through my armor like it wasn¡¯t even there. I think I could manipulate the blood out of me just by speaking. Do you want to complain or cover me?

    It¡¯s coming towards us. Hunter sounded worried. Where did the robes come from?

    I didn¡¯t see his body. Hunter, did you smell anything?

    No.

    Lograve¡¯s thoughts came rapid-fire, the Arcanist not needing to give time for his mouth to move. Khiat could barely make the words out. Thomas, listen carefully. They have an earth expert of a higher level than me. Geokinesis at least. That¡¯s probably a summoned golem, keep back. Report all of that to Rasalia as soon as possible. Whoever is controlling that could kill crowds just by flooding the lungs with dust and lie in the damn ground like a worm all the while. It might even be a Crest-damned Geomancer. Lograve coughed and reddened the ice in front of his mouth. Get trackers and anyone with strong sonic attacks to counter him. Also, they¡¯ll need to evacuate the city.

    Into a sandstorm? And what about you guys?

    It¡¯s coming, Evalyn warned. Khiat couldn¡¯t even see the supposed golem, but just from the sound of their voices, she wasn¡¯t getting anywhere near the tunnel. Especially because the members of the guard not climbing onto the roof were stationed around the entrance. She had her hands up at this point.

    I hate using this. Damned charge time. Khiat saw a glow at the other end of the tunnel. Not the best, but it¡¯ll do. Khiat, Khare, I don¡¯t think I can reach you. Let the guard arrest you if you have to, don¡¯t fight them. They¡¯ll get their heads together eventually.

    Lograve!

    A mana pulse hit the air as Lograve used one of the few level 4 powers he¡¯d managed to awaken. Khiat held her breath as yellow sword kept watch, two others taking her bow. Someone was trying to talk to Khare to their mutual consternation. After a few seconds, she heard Tak. There was a faintness to the sound, almost like a distorting echo. What just happened?

    Scatter Teleport. That took a chunk out of my reserves. I think we all got separated. Does anyone have Arpan?

    Evalyn spoke next, with a buzzing that overrode most of her speech. -store you just- -no, I- -Lograve?

    Something¡¯s interfering with my Telepathy?

    Silora¡¯s Farsight is getting worse too. Lograve, is everyone- did Arpan go? - Lograve?

    Get to- if you can hear- the Spires. Even his mental voice was fading. The sand in the air was also getting worse as the edge of the storm hit, making it difficult to see a few buildings over.

    ¡°Dusker, hey! Talk to me. What was that?¡± Without the internal conversation, Khiat started paying more attention to yellow sword.

    She watched one of the guards begin to climb down into the tunnel and had a terrible thought. ¡°Don¡¯t go down there!¡±

    ¡°We are stopping a robbery in progress. If you want to be safely in a cell before this storm¡¯s here, you better start talking now.¡±

    Somehow, she knew she couldn¡¯t stop what was going to happen. ¡°It¡¯s not a robbery.¡± By the looks of it, yellow sword was the only one with a class here. The rest of the guards had training, weapons, and armor. That¡¯s all they had. Those on the ground raised weapons and screamed an alarm up as, from their vantage, Khiat and the guard sergeant saw the one in the tunnel take a spike through the face. ¡°It¡¯s an invasion.¡±

 Chapter 139: Scattered Ties

    Thomas had wrested all of the alcohol in the room away and glared at Rait until he stopped bringing more. While he could have just told Silora not to drink, he was trying not to force her to do anything. Unfortunately, the situation called for it. ¡°I just lost Lograve. Gods and Hand above. Did you get to Rasalia?¡±

    The Fate was shaking slightly. ¡°Oh. Oh gods. It¡¯s happening, isn¡¯t it? We¡¯re all dead.¡±

    ¡°Silora!¡±

    ¡°No. I think, maybe for a few seconds. But no.¡±

    Thomas cursed and ran to a window. The Shroud was keeping the sandstorm back, although the city below and the Eye itself were less fortunate. ¡°A Geomancer? Lograve said something about a Geomancer. That¡¯s, like, at least a level 3 Arcanist right?¡±

    Rait joined him. ¡°Someone like that, could they do this?¡±

    ¡°No idea. You and Silora deal with the uppers a lot. Ever hear about anyone like this coming to the city recently?¡±

    ¡°No. There¡¯s the Ironrush Ravager. Beyond her, Silora, that Builder, and the city¡¯s Artificer there¡¯s no one close to this level. She would see it in the log, monster or mortal.¡±

    ¡°Mark,¡± Silora groaned from her throne, putting Rait on edge.

    ¡°You told me he left the city.¡±

    ¡°He said he was going to leave,¡± she whined. ¡°Who knows if he did. I bet the storm is him. He¡¯s coming to kill me. You.¡± She eyed Thomas. ¡°You¡¯ll protect me?¡±

    ¡°My friends are out there fighting whatever this is, and you want me to stay here!?¡± he asked angrily before his shoulders slumped. ¡°That¡¯s probably, yeah, that¡¯s all I¡¯ll be good for. Maybe I could help people but.¡± He shook his head. ¡°Keep trying to get in touch with someone. Anyone. It sounded like Lograve was trying to get them all to come here. Rait, do you know how to get in touch with Silver Eye?¡±

    For some reason, that question made the manservant jump. ¡°Me? Why?¡±

    ¡°Of the two Council members in power, he¡¯s the one I¡¯d trust more in a time like this. We need to get everyone we can into the Spires. They were made for something like this. Go find him and make that happen, if he already hasn¡¯t started.¡±

    ¡°But, but I should stay with the Fate. He¡¯s probably in the Wing Spire.¡± He looked pleadingly at Silora who didn¡¯t meet his eyes. Sighing, Rait took off for the door. He knew exactly where Aucrest was. Ever since he¡¯d learned his daughter had been taken he was waiting nearby, and his orders were to tell him as soon as Silora found her. Rait hoped he wouldn¡¯t take the bad news too poorly.

    ¡­.

    They didn¡¯t like the looks of these streets. Aughal had a poor reputation, even among their kind, but this? Huddled masses, fear, discontent. Something here called to them. Well, two things. And like the instinct they¡¯d gained in the last region, Ashier could only loosely grasp what this one meant. What gave them hope was the sense that, among all these people, they¡¯d surely find one that would become their next Proxy.

    The attempts in outlying villages hadn¡¯t gone as well. At best their approach had been mistaken as a dream since the temporary communication Vassalize allowed mimicked telepathy. Approaching those at night had seemed like a good idea, but it turned out people took interruptions to their sleep poorly.

    Ashier could have tried using Rorshawd to force people into agreeing but detested that option for several reasons. The dragon was unruly and kept in Cloudborn Sanctuary at all times unless they needed him for transportation. It took patience, but Ashier had an entire city of desperate people and only needed one to make the right choice. They wanted willing servants, especially after enduring Rorshawd¡¯s resistance for so long.

    Now, how to do it? They¡¯d certainly need to find shelter before the storm fully arrived. With Rorshawd¡¯s stolen endurance and Tyrant¡¯s Bearing, they could survive out in the blustering winds that would have put other air gestalt into the ground hours ago for fear of being scattered. They had enough time to find a suitable target. Ideally, they¡¯d find someone isolated. Living alone and down on their luck. Judging such things in what was effectively an alien society was difficult, made more so as the people of the day finished making their way to their homes.

    The Tyrant was reduced to watching one of the poorer streets of the city, far from the Spires, and counting heads as they entered doors. The doors that let in only one person for long enough were her potential targets. If this didn¡¯t work, well, Rorshawd would keep well and good for however long it took. This city had tens of thousands of potential targets, maybe hundreds. They just needed one.

    There was also the Divine Quarter to consider. Ashier, for all their class was despised by the people here, adhered to the faith. The Hammer had given them this gift, surely the closest of his followers would be their allies. Though, Ashier reflected, if they went that route they probably shouldn¡¯t mention the dragon. If they could communicate at all.

    Ashier was starting to hate their inability to just talk to people. You¡¯d think a class as powerful as Tyrant would just bypass that limitation with a straightforward power. No luck. They really should have expected as much. By now, it was clear the powers the Tyrant class gave were as dependent on having followers as having the class. With Rorshawd in tow they could do many things, even boost themself entirely to level 5 attribute-wise. What they couldn¡¯t do alone was lead.

    It was becoming hard to see. It wasn¡¯t so much the sand but the turbulence in the air. Ashier could manifest eyes when they weren¡¯t trying to remain stealthy, though their primary sense depended on the movement of air around them. Similar to how fire gestalt sensed heat and earth gestalt had a form of tremor sense. The erratic weather was getting worse. Ashier moved through the shutters of a window and into a room they knew was empty. Mostly out of caution. As time went on Ashier was getting a sense that they could survive in the full storm, with Rorshawd¡¯s help, but it would tax them. Keeping themselves concealed would be another matter since they would have to nullify the movement of sand and wind within themselves.

    Ashier would remain there, watching the street and wondering if they should press their luck on the occupants of the building, right up until the screams started.

    ¡­

    She looked at him from across the table in the surprisingly modest home. You¡¯d think someone like her would be living in the Spires, but no. He¡¯d heard her mention that being closer to family was important, a detail most men in his position would have glossed over. Then again, most men wouldn¡¯t still be here. Crest, they¡¯d never have gotten past the front door.

    Let it be said that Gadriel Cross had a high opinion of himself. Yes, he was humble, and aware he had things to be humble about. Whereas not everyone in the group had gotten their wish that night, others had gotten more. ¡°You don¡¯t perform tonight?¡± he asked, seeing the dark sky outside. The first signs of a sandstorm brewing were visible as a slight haze to the north.

    ¡°One must have their moments to relax. You provided quite the opportunity.¡± Belonna wore a casual dress, far below the glowing standard she wore on stage. The songbird had a clear, formal way of speaking that belied a history of vocal training. A regal manner too. Gadriel still wasn¡¯t sure if the way she extended a hand imploring towards him was in jest, or if she always acted like she was on a stage. ¡°It¡¯s a pleasure to walk the streets in guise with another. You know, it never occurs to my fans that they don¡¯t see me anywhere but the stage.¡±

    The songbird gave him a knowing smile. The woman was a testament to those who gained a combat class and yet turned away from the Hunter¡¯s Guild. Her powers had developed along those lines. Or, had she always been meant for this, and her powers predetermined? There were many theories. ¡°I was, of course, honored to accompany you. I find being in your presence both exhilarating and nostalgic.¡±

    ¡°For someone speaking as if they were in Threst¡¯s courts, I¡¯d imagine you would. Have you given any thought to returning? I came here on the wing of opportunity, though if you are missing home there should be plenty for a man such as yourself there.¡± She took a sip of the juice both were having, the glasses both long and deep enough to fit her beak. They would have been awkward for Gadriel to drink from were he not used to their make.

    The question troubled him more. Being here troubled him, but in another sense, it was helping him let go of a weight he¡¯d carried for so long. It was not the time to burden the songbird with that, and so he simply said, ¡°I fear my return would be in question.¡± He took a breath but didn¡¯t shy from the admission. ¡°During my days there, in foolishness, I received unearned exile. In the years since I served the Octyrrum¡¯s purpose in the Thormundz seeking absolution, though with how that ended, that is uncertain.¡±

    ¡°I see.¡± He waited, half expecting to be thrown out, but she fixed him with a raised eye. ¡°You know, popular wisdom would suggest our classes would make us detest each other.¡±

    ¡°I have had ample opportunity to overcome that reaction,¡± Gadriel said slowly and did not add that she was beautiful enough for that to never matter.

    ¡°As have I. Still, it is interesting how our classes can shape us.¡±

    ¡°My history doesn¡¯t concern you?¡± Gadriel asked, surprised she¡¯d just let that go.

    ¡°No. The court and their flights can be ever critical of those in their rarified air. And your reputation since then has been nothing but sterling. Tyrant slayer.¡± She raised a glass and laughed as his eyes widened. ¡°What? Do you think you are immune to gossip? Between you and the flying ringcat the Thormundz has at least given us much to talk about these past few weeks.¡±

    The silence that followed carried the weight of what else there was to discuss. Incidentally, the two had just finished an evening meal which so far had refused to end. ¡°My home is open, should you wish to stay the night again. I couldn¡¯t turn you out in the middle of a storm.¡±

    Gadriel felt conflict where most would have readily accepted. He was reasonably sure no powers were at play here, and that their charisma was relatively equal. Bard and Hero, classes with as many similarities as differences. For better or worse, the songbird did remind him of both the Thormundz and home. ¡°I-¡±

    The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

    The sword was in his hand in moments. Gadriel was Never Disarmed. Belonna did react to this, backing away in her chair as the Hero circled the table before she saw his eyes focused behind her. ¡°Sir, you are intruding. Take your leave.¡± His grip was two-handed, not having summoned his shield to him. An earnest blow from the Hero, like that, could rend a normal man in two.

    By all appearances, the dusker that had walked into the room was just that. Strangely, no emotion was betrayed on his face at the leveled sword. The intruder only had eyes for her. The songbird felt no fear in this moment, even without Gadriel she was a Bard of the third level. She had her tricks.

    The intruder took a step forward. ¡°Desist. One more and I will strike.¡±

    Where did he come from? Belonna wondered. Her door was locked. There were the windows and the door to the roof, but someone would have seen him climb to either. Desperate fans had done similar in the past, though to sneak up on her-

    The Hero cut the man across the chest as he jerked towards her. Belonna had a hand to her throat, half in surprise at the suddenness. ¡°I apologize for spilling blood here. It is a shallow cut and their kind are hardy. Summon the guard and he will live to regret his actions.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s no blood on your sword,¡± Belonna observed, still with a cadence in her voice though it was diminished. With a distrusting suspicion, she stood and backed away from the man crumpled on her floor. No blood was spilled there either. ¡°Did you cut him?¡±

    Gadriel tilted his sword. ¡°I was sure of it. I struck him, pulling the blow yes, but I pierced the carapace. Sir, remove yourself before I resort to further unpleasantness. You have been fortunate to avoid injury. Please, forgo any further risk. You are not wanted here.¡±

    At that point the songbird would have taken offense at Gadriel going too far in her name, but the man stood up. There was an almost perfectly diagonal, shallow cut in his chest from his right breast to left hip forming a ravine in the compressed armored plates. That would have imperiled any normal man but given them a very fair chance to survive. No blood seeped into the shirt he wore.

    Gadriel cut off a hand as he reached out for Belonna, leaving another wound that refused to bleed. He kicked the man against a far wall causing a mounted flower vase to fall. ¡°What are you?¡±

    ¡°Gadriel!¡±

    ¡°I, I apologize for my haste but-¡±

    ¡°Gadriel, there are more!¡±

    ¡­

    Lograve¡¯s teleport had gone off without any warning. Hunter had been backing away slowly from the roughly man-shaped collection of sand that had formed out of the ground, cloaked by tan robes. It had no scent, not even a monster¡¯s, and he¡¯d almost broken a tooth on the sand pillar that had attacked the Arcanist.

    Now he was somewhere dark. His armor was giving off faint, faint light, which only gave his Night Eyes enough to hazily make out a short hallway. Where are we? No one responded. Tak? There was someone with him, though it took a moment for his nose to work. Along with the mixed scents of duskers, fear, and waste coming from one of the doorways, was a familiar scent. Arpan? He has Daniel!

    Nudging the man with a paw did nothing. Biting was considered, but Hunter¡¯s precision with his jaws strayed towards vital blows. Not that he had to use the large canines that ended just above his jawline, but neither was Hunter going to nibble. He had claws! And Arpan had Daniel.

    The Artificer was wearing armor of a sort. It covered his chest well enough, although on the sides and along the limbs it was more decorative than functional. Oddly similar to Hunter¡¯s, the ringcat realized, as his own did little to cover his limbs. Hunter extended the claws on one of his paws and made to lightly scratch part of an uncovered arm.

    Something stopped him. Hunter¡¯s claw skated off an invisible barrier a few centimeters from the man¡¯s skin. He tried again, carefully, though with more pressure as he went. The third time he wound up a slash, leading to his paw bouncing and knocking him off balance. Hunter growled. He tried to stand on Arpan to put his weight on him and began sliding off. Stupid armor. He had to wake him up, if only to move and find the others. If shouting and claws were out, Hunter didn¡¯t have another option. Daniel might have been able to lend him an attack that would work. Hunter paused to consider why that useless thought would occur to him and shook his head.

    There was one thing that could work, although that ability was difficult to use. Also, he needed something to hit and there was nothing here. Right?

    A minute later, Hunter had ineffectually ¡®attacked¡¯ Arpan enough for his fur to stand on end and begin glowing slightly. The charge had built up far slower than when he¡¯d fought against Gtoll, but in the end he had enough for a small discharge. Hunter stopped, waited a few seconds, and then brought his paw towards Arpan¡¯s face. For good measure he thought of only the most innocent thoughts, like lazing about in the sun. The master of stalking bypassed whatever defense the armor had, making contact too late for it to realize the trick.

    A howl filled the air. A human one. The mild setting of a level 2 attack power still delivered a sizable punch. Enough to wake Arpan and then some. He scrambled back, one hand reaching for the gem in the center of the breastplate. A confused expression crossed Arpan¡¯s face when the defensive ward only took a fraction of the mana to refill before he realized who he was sharing the space with. Considering said being was the only major light source in the area, Hunter wasn¡¯t hard to see. ¡°You? What¡¯s going on? Where did they, hoh, hold on, nice kitty.¡±

    Hunter stopped walking and gave the Artificer a look of pure insult and disgust which, thanks to a certain feature, was readable. ¡°Druid,¡± Hunter repeated the old lie and watched Arpan¡¯s face change from horror, to confusion, to understanding. Oh. He didn¡¯t know.

    ¡°You¡¯re a Druid? Oh, of course! That makes so much more sense. Wait.¡± A sharp, yet detached light lit Arpan¡¯s eyes. ¡°Armor for Druid battle forms? Why didn¡¯t I think of that? Sure, there¡¯s the issue of variability in body shape, but an enchantment to accommodate for that has to exist. Or I could just enchant leather armors to be more flexible, I know just the thing. How many Druids are in this city anyway? Dril, we-¡±

    The situation caught back up to him as Hunter continued to move forward, a low growl in his voice. ¡°Let Daniel go.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean? Oh. Gods.¡± Arpan collapsed against a wall. ¡°All this time they were just going to kill me. Both of them. But now, more than my class? I, I can¡¯t let them go. They really would kill me.¡±

    ¡°I will kill you.¡±

    Arpan smiled somewhat smugly. ¡°Doubtful. You barely put a dent in Dril¡¯s Defense Field. Did you know there¡¯s a trick with enchanted armor Foci?¡± He looked like he was about to explain it and then decided otherwise. ¡°Well, you are friends with an Artificer, I suppose you do. There¡¯s a reason I made Dril the way I did. Only someone my level or higher can get past my defenses before help arrives.¡±

    Hunter considered this. He was mostly a stranger to society at large and had been ¡®awake¡¯ for mere months. Grand political gestures and crafty bargaining were beyond him. Threats, though? ¡°I¡¯ll tell them you ran. Then they¡¯ll kill you anyways.¡±

    A flash of light illuminated the space as a beam singed the fur on Hunter¡¯s flank. The shot had been cast over his head and into the ceiling, though the ringcat still felt the magic within the blow as it sent out a pulse. Arpan stood back up, gaining a kind of confidence in his voice. ¡°Rather low mana cost for a level 4 ability, and it would make quick work of you. Not that I want to hurt you,¡± Arpan added apologetically. ¡°But that¡¯s not the kind of thing you say to someone who can silence you themselves.¡±

    Hunter was unmoved. ¡°I have killed a dragon. He is my friend.¡±

    ¡°That Assassin is worse than a dragon, my boy. Look at it this way. Something terrible is about to happen to this city. I know I¡¯m not on the right side of things but I had no choice! By following what they say I survive, and by extension your friend does too. He¡¯s in one of the safest places in the city right now. Safer than the Spires, I¡¯d warrant.¡±

    ¡°Let him out.¡±

    One of Arpan¡¯s fingers began glowing as he channeled but did not release an ability. The light was concentrated on the parts of the armor that extended along the back of the hands and ended with a very small gem placed on each fingertip. All green, of course. ¡°For my own conscience¡¯s sake, I don¡¯t want to kill you, but I will stop you from following me. I need to get back to, hm.¡± He shook his head with his other hand, looking around. ¡°Where are we? Now that I think about it, how did we get here? The last thing I remember was the Assassin knocking me out.¡±

    ¡°Lograve.¡± Hunter was glancing at the walls and doors as well, ears occasionally flicking.

    ¡°Sending me to some random spot underground with a murderous Druid? Sounds like Lograve.¡±

    ¡°Underground?¡± That tracked with the earth tones in the air but contrasted with the surroundings Hunter had come to associate with large mortal buildings.

    ¡°These are dusker quarters. Normal, uhm, that is, day people seldom see these places. It¡¯s not morning already, is it? It¡¯s so quiet.¡±

    ¡°Not quiet.¡± Hunter¡¯s ears flicked again.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Arpan held his weaponized hand up to his ear, blinking away from the glare and cursing. ¡°I can hear something. Distantly. But if it¡¯s night they should all be awake. Damnation, the city should be, well, fighting or something. I never did know what they were planning, only that they needed those daggers, and they only had three.¡± Arpan frowned. ¡°No. No, I was the only one that could make them. They couldn¡¯t have possibly made so many more of those creatures.¡±

    Hunter ignored that. His mind was still on Daniel, although something had just become more pressing. ¡°Bad things coming. Enemies.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°I see red.¡±

    ¡°What does that mean?¡± Arpan didn¡¯t get an answer, since it should have been obvious. ¡°If this is some ploy to get me to release your friend, it isn¡¯t going to work. If I let him go, I¡¯m signing my own death sentence.¡±

    ¡°We need to leave. Go.¡± Hunter¡¯s head turned. Arpan didn¡¯t see fear there, but what he did see was not reassuring. The two eyes, narrow pupils reflecting the light, moved from point to point in the tunnel behind Arpan.

    ¡°My friend, I think you take too well to that body.¡± He sighed. ¡°There are access points every so often, but only so many. Limit the amount of ways people can accidentally stumble out into the sun and all of that.¡± The sound at the edge of Hunter¡¯s hearing grew louder. ¡°Have they released a monster into the undercity?¡±

    ¡°They look like duskers. But red outlines. Running towards us.¡±

    ¡°That sounds like a tracking ability. Red? What does that mean?¡±

    ¡°Bad. They have no names.¡± The way Hunter said that chilled Arpan and he paled. ¡°We need to go. Follow.¡±

    The Artificer was more than happy to cooperate when it didn¡¯t involve opening his Mirror Space. ¡°You can probably run faster than I can,¡± he observed, struggling to keep pace. ¡°These halls are tall enough, I could ride-¡±

    ¡°No. Keep the light on.¡±

    Arpan looked at the walls and noticed the extinguished braziers where guiding flames were normally lit. Duskers feared the sun, but not light itself. Tending to these would have been something the entire community was involved in. ¡®They have no names.¡¯ Arpan thought about what the Druid had said again and gulped.

    He knew whatever the Mirage had been planning would be bad, but he¡¯d assumed it would be some kind of power play to eliminate the city leadership. Attacking the Hunter¡¯s Guild and the Commander, though? They might have stayed neutral if the fighting had kept clear of the public, so what did the Mirage targeting them first mean?

    ¡°Where is the way up?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know!¡± Arpan whispered urgently. The thought to try one of the doors and ask someone entered then quickly left his mind. Hunter¡¯s head was swinging left and right now, keeping track of things in three directions. It became clear why as they entered a communal dining area, rows of tables without chairs with four hallways leading into it. Hunter stopped. ¡°What are you doing!?¡±

    ¡°Too close. Need to fight. Here is better. Let Daniel go.¡±

    Arpan was, in a word, spooked. That was all. He was level 5. Even with some level disparity, more in strength than ideal perhaps, he had Dril. These weren¡¯t those unholy abominations the daggers created, these were just, just, well, he didn¡¯t know. Rage-maddened duskers? Even one of the most naturally formidable races in existence could do little in the face of his power. The hardest thing he¡¯d have to do is make sure the Druid survived, if only to make up for keeping his friend hostage. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, no. Stay by me. Dril and I should be enough to cut them down. As regrettable as that may be, I have a feeling we¡¯re not going to talk our way out of this.¡±

    The Druid growled, really playing into his battle form. Arpan could also hear them now. Heavy footsteps on the compacted sand from all four directions, though the corridor they¡¯d come from sounded the closest. No voices, and no light. Duskers had better night vision, but running in pitch darkness at speed? One of them should have stumbled. Run up against a wall. Anything.

    The first became visible and Arpan grew less confident. Coming out of the mouth of the corridor was a dusker, fully extended and bare of any weapons, armor, or clothing. Even fully extended there was nothing to offend the sensibilities of the more mammalian races. That was of little concern. What made Arpan freeze, until Hunter headbutted him, was the hole between plates in the chest where a heart should have been.

 Chapter 140: Civic Emergency

    Beautiful women appearing out of midair was a fantasy weaker minds commonly fell prey to. Ornithar had possessed one, once. Then he¡¯d grown up, made a family, lost¡­ started a business, and was getting around to accepting that he was in the twilight years of his life. So, when a young Bard whose beauty could be expressed in objective terms practically fell onto the ground with no warning, the strongest emotion he felt was annoyance that she hadn¡¯t used the door.

    ¡°Please don¡¯t teleport into my store. Some of these are fragile.¡± Frustratingly, the Bard was more preoccupied with something else. Telepathy, he guessed, by the way her lips were moving. Didn¡¯t she know it was rude to ignore someone talking to you? ¡°I¡¯m closing in a few hours and this storm¡¯s likely to last longer than that. Shouldn¡¯t you be running home, young lady?¡± Something flickered in his head, a feature clicking over. Ah. A repeat customer. Or, no, but she was with, ah. Recall Customer. Incredibly useful, and at his level it extended to the circumstances surrounding each sale.

    Evalyn blinked a few times, becoming more present as the telepathy was severed. ¡°Here? Why here?¡±

    Ornithar frowned. ¡°Is everything alright? There isn¡¯t a monster about, is there?¡± Foreigner, another mental ping alerted. ¡°There are these bats that can hide in these storms. Terrible nuisances most of the time, unless a big one has spawned.¡± She¡¯s a monster hunter! ¡°Has one?¡±

    ¡°No sandbats. Worse.¡± Her hands began moving over her instrument, the music making some of the pain in Ornithar¡¯s joints go away. ¡°Can you fight?¡±

    ¡°Me?¡± Taken aback, Ornithar gestured to his shelves. ¡°I am a Craftsman. If there is something dangerous out there the only thing I should be doing is locking my door.¡± He quickly appraised the situation, noting that while he was probably at a higher level than the Bard, she was far more experienced in combat. That in itself could easily bridge the gap in levels, not that he was looking for a fight.

    The bell above the front door rang. ¡°Ah, one moment. We may be closing early today.¡± He was too preoccupied, running through the list of products in his head that he should secure before taking shelter. Evalyn backed up slowly, and the figure blocking the light of one of the torches brought him out of it. ¡°What are you- oh, gods!¡± His hands shook slightly just seeing the chest wound. ¡°We, we¡¯re not too far from the Divine Quarter. Or, if you could heal, what are you doing?¡±

    The Bard was blocking the half door separating the back of the counter from the rest of the store. From behind, he watched as her instrument melded into her, music cutting off. Evalyn winced as the higher draw on her mana drained a reserve that hadn¡¯t been replenished this morning. ¡°I can¡¯t read his emotions,¡± Evalyn said. There was a very faint undertone to her voice, almost unto an incantation though more reminiscent of the music she¡¯d just been playing. ¡°I think he¡¯s missing his heart.¡±

    Ornithar stepped back. The blank look on the other dusker¡¯s face, the stiffness with which they walked. He thought it had just been shock and blood loss. ¡°What happened? How is he moving? Did a monster do this?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. There¡¯s at least one high level individual sieging Aughal.¡± She was talking fast, though the intruder just slowly stumbled forward. It¡¯d take him half a minute to make it to the counter at the rate he was going. ¡°I think he¡¯s dead. Is something controlling his body?¡±

    ¡°How do we stop that if it¡¯s already dead?!¡± Ornithar asked breathlessly. This wasn¡¯t good. Bards were notoriously indirect hunters. No other class excelled at supporting large groups like they did. They were a force multiplier but, as an unfortunate math fact, zero multiplied into zero no matter how large the other number was. ¡°Where¡¯s the rest of your team?¡±

    ¡°Scattered over the city, I think. The storm¡¯s blocking our Telepathy.¡±

    ¡°How?¡±

    Evalyn shrugged. ¡°Slow it down if you can. I¡¯m charging something.¡±

    The intruder¡¯s pace was increasing, now at a normal walking pace, navigating the rows of displays. ¡°You¡¯re not going to fight it?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not going to get close to something I don¡¯t understand. Slow it down!¡±

    The shopkeeper groaned as he resigned himself to it and realized what he had to do. ¡°Oh, but I must. Nothing too expensive, please.¡± Evalyn shot him a glance, but Ornithar was watching his shelves with trepidation. ¡°Animate Inventory. Attack! Wait, no!¡± Ornithar cried out as one of his finer creations sailed through the air and collided hard with the intruder¡¯s head, knocking him back. The wooden mock-bird was sturdier than the sum of its parts, but not strong enough to be used as a projectile and remain flawless. Still it sailed, coming around for another pass.

    The heartless avianoid recovered and tried to swat the toy down the second time. It failed then, but had more success in blocking a copy of Khare¡¯s turtle, though that came with the crack of chitin. Both Ornithar and Evalyn grew concerned by the lack of reaction to the pain, as well as the dusker growing more coordinated over time. The store wasn¡¯t that large, and Evalyn didn¡¯t want to abandon the shopkeeper.

    Time was bought as a storm of a dozen toys harried the intruder. All the while Evalyn stayed mostly still, moving from leg to leg to a beat only she could hear. Ornithar was about to plead with her to do something when she raised a hand. A bolt of pure magic shot towards the intruder, almost in arm¡¯s reach, who burst where it impacted. Unfortunately for Ornithar that was an appropriate word choice. A pair of smoking legs was left on the ground while the shelves, still with hovering toys between them, had a new red coat of paint. The shopkeeper choked slightly.

    ¡°We need to get to the Spires,¡± Evalyn said quickly, holstering the instrument on her back as it reappeared.

    ¡°Are you insane!? What if he could have been saved?¡±

    ¡°I doubt it.¡± She walked to the door, not even arguing with him. ¡°I¡¯m meeting my team there. It¡¯s probably the safest place for civilians. Like you. You can come with me or stay here.¡±

    ¡°What if there are more of them out there?¡±

    Evalyn paused, opening the door a crack and wincing as the wind blew sand into her face. ¡°There probably are. What happens after they break down your door?¡±

    ¡°But the watch¡­¡± Ornithar didn¡¯t need to finish that protest. The watch of today? At best, they were forming a defensive line around the Spires. There simply weren¡¯t enough of them to defend the entire city if something got past the walls. Hunters were supposed to fill in at that point and, well, here one was. ¡°Ooh, damn it all. Maybe they¡¯ll leave the store alone if there¡¯s no one in here.¡±

    Evalyn tapped her foot impatiently as the man shoveled various items and coin into a bag of holding. Ornithar wasn¡¯t foolish enough to try and save everything and he was out the door in a minute. He pulled on a long coat to protect himself from the whirling sand, while the Bard just had to deal with the improvised cowl of cloth she wrapped around her head. Ornithar could barely see a foot away from him, and he grimaced as he locked the door. ¡°I¡¯ve never seen a storm this bad.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s magic in it. There has to be.¡±

    ¡°How are we supposed to get to the Spires in this?¡± There was no sky. Looking up only invited the sand towards his eyes.

    Evalyn had to half-shout to be heard. ¡°We find one of the main roads! If we don¡¯t turn, do you think you can tell which way goes to the city¡¯s center?¡±

    Oh. Damn, which direction does my storefront face? Ornithar thought for a moment and then nodded.

    ¡°Good! Stay close. Do you have anything that could help us outside of your store?¡± Ornithar shook his head. ¡°Well, if more find us, we¡¯ll just have to run.¡± She looked to where the sand blotted out the wall and continued along where it should be. ¡°I need to find my team. Come on.¡±

    Ornithar followed, struggling to keep up with the younger woman as his bones hurt and the wind constantly threatened to topple him. He kept going though. Even when the screaming started.

    ¡­

    Yellow sword was bleeding. The initial squad that had been sent to secure the area was gone. Most were dead but two, something had happened to them. The first man had taken the equivalent of a ballista bolt to the face, dead instantly. The others had received rupturing wounds to the chest from the being who¡¯d emerged from the basement. He, and the hunters who were now clearly not thieves, quickly realized they were outmatched. Only the dusker¡¯s arrows had enough punch to phase the robed one, not that the guard was eager to get close after seeing what had happened to the vanguard.

    Most on the street had died. He¡¯d been deployed with a team of ten to respond to possible rampant hunters, catching up with them when they stopped to drill into the vault of the city¡¯s only Artificer. It was a bad assignment. He was the only one with levels and in two classes. Martialist and Cleric. Not a common choice, but then again he felt he¡¯d only hit level 3 at most. Why not try for some variety and give himself a unique spread of powers? That alone could lead to a command position down the line.

    It had worked so far. He¡¯d be granted a few pieces of enchanted gear himself, and his squad¡¯s kit included a brace of enchanted bolts that his unleved companions could still use to even the odds. Enough to make a rampaging Berserker pause and consider their actions, or hold on long enough for a lieutenant or the Commander herself to respond to truly dire situations. Only, she hadn¡¯t come, and he had three men left including himself. The dusker¡¯s bow had become useless when the storm fully blew in and they were retreating across the rooftops now. It was following them.

    An event like this was unprecedented, at least over the watch sergeant¡¯s tenure. There had been that bad business with a botched ¡®practice¡¯ assassination a few years back that had been very political. The younger sergeant of then, and he was only in his early 30¡¯s now, had kept well clear of that mess. No luck this time. At least there was protocol.

    Civic emergency, city-wide. High-level combatants. Indeterminate hunter response. The sergeant ticked off the various factors in his head and added another with a pang of remorse. Capable of overtaking/assimilating members of the guard, although the damage to the armor and chest makes infiltration unlikely. He didn¡¯t let it get to him, he was the ranking man here and in the running for strongest Blessed now that the Arcanist was gone. ¡°We need to head for a watchhouse!¡±

    ¡°Sarge, it ripped through our squad in seconds and you want to take it to HQ?¡± one of his men asked incredulously. None of them were out of breath from their run, this squad trained well and the hunters could naturally keep up.

    ¡°It needs to be taken down. Better it rampages there than an apartment block. Distracting it is enough for now.¡± He put a hand to the arrow wound on his arm and nodded when it came back clean. ¡°Crest, I¡¯d take it to the Hunter¡¯s Guild if it wasn¡¯t on the other side of the city.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d take it to the Crest itself if it meant we both died,¡± one of the others muttered darkly. They were feeling the losses too. But his men were dedicated. The entire squad hadn¡¯t lost anyone to the horrible attrition rate of the last months, only to make up for it in a few minutes. There would be time to mourn later.

    ¡°That¡¯s a Geomancer!¡± The dusker with the bow shouted. ¡°Lograve said it summoned a golem.¡±

    ¡°Didn¡¯t look like an earth golem,¡± the sergeant observed. ¡°And I haven¡¯t felt a mana pulse besides what your team did. No way anyone with a class can do this below level 4.¡±

    ¡°What about a Tyrant, sir?¡±

    The sergeant digested that. ¡°If it¡¯s a Tyrant-¡±

    ¡°Ledge!¡± His second, Vascott, gave the warning too late. The line of buildings they were running across had hit a main road. The storm had grown so thick that they¡¯d be choking but for the dust masks. One of the others, assuming the half wall was another separating the roofs of individual homes, had started to leap over it. The sergeant surged forward, trying to catch the man before he fell off the roof and out of sight, but he was in the back of the formation. He¡¯d be too slow.

    The dusker launched an arm and snagged his man by the ankle. She started to drag him up, but the sergeant made a snap decision. ¡°Stop! Let him down. Everyone else, we¡¯re getting down here.¡± He didn¡¯t want this to happen again. This storm could drown out the cry of a man falling. ¡°Your arms should be able to reach far enough to let us fall without issue. Can you do that?¡±

    Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

    ¡°Um, I, yes!¡± She nodded, and the sergeant updated his impression of her. The dusker had experience, especially with that bow, yet still seemed green when it came to high stress situations. The gestalt he had no idea about, but was glad it hadn¡¯t caused trouble.

    He turned around as the glorified ladder continued her work, watching the distance. There wasn¡¯t much he could make out, not even the giant monoliths that normally dominated the skyline, but if he squinted and knew what to look for, he could make out a darker shape moving in the clouds of sand. Normally he could put auras around creatures to track them, but this one was resistant to it. He swore as he barely caught a glimpse of what had been following them. ¡°It¡¯s turning off, the bastard!¡±

    Vascott, one huge hand encasing his arm, groaned at the prospect of being lifted back up. ¡°Do we give chase?¡±

    ¡°And have Martin fall off another roof? Alright, our primary objective¡¯s changed. We¡¯re on SAR.¡± The dusker held out a hand and he shook his head, jumping off the roof and landing neatly on the flattened road. He¡¯d beaten the gestalt who was still climbing down the side of the building, though the dusker was just as quick as he was in getting down. ¡°We¡¯re going to sand clump this. Go door to door, rapid evac to the Spires. Any guardsmen we find on the way we take in under my authority. Save who we can. Dusker, you two with us?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m Khiat. I-I¡¯m sorry, but we need to go to the Spires right away.¡± She sounded apologetic.

    ¡°Watch Sergeant Doran, High Urgency Response Team. Don¡¯t worry. A roving monster we take to the closest batch of idiots with swords and put the HURT on them. Civilians? Well, the Spireborn will need to double bunk tonight.¡± Vascott laughed despite himself, and he smiled at her. ¡°Are you with me?¡±

    ¡­

    A storm had come to Aughal. Yet for how sudden it seemed, the roots had been laid by Assassins long ago. Jeras Stillfeather knew that now, just like he knew Aughal was past saving. There were hardly any left of those who¡¯d followed Sherman. Jeras saw how deep the preparations ran and thought only of Kelra. She was out there somewhere, in danger.

    Now that his overseer¡¯s plans were coming to fruition, there was also little need to worry about a warning getting out. They were loose ends, though the woman in robes trusted in fear to keep them in line rather than be rid of them now. He wasn¡¯t any less damned either way. His one chance was to break away, find Kelra, and make a run for the border. Threst would take them. They may throw him in a cell, but if he told them everything, he should escape execution. And when Kelra learns what happened? Gods, she has to know I had no choice. That I didn¡¯t want to. His thoughts trailed off as the shapes moved in front of him. Jeras couldn¡¯t think of them as people anymore.

    She¡¯d done it to them just like Sherman, and every other ¡®deserter¡¯ that refused to serve or died in the process. Claws through the chest, into the heart. Dusker abodes were well insulated since they slept when most of the city was awake. A silent killer could do much before being noticed, especially if they could move through the sand itself. If there were only one of these horrors, they might not have done so much.

    Three had reaped blocks of duskers over the course of a day. Not the entire population, not by half, and yet they had created hundreds of ambling servants while sparing no one. A ready made army the likes of which Jeras had never seen. None with levels, if the process left enough of a person to keep their powers, but with the raw strength and durability of their kind. Perhaps more than that, considering they remained alive without a heart to move blood. Were they weak to the sun anymore?

    The order came. Not to him directly, or the other few still living here, but to the¡­ Jeras searched for a word to describe the horror before him and failed. Converted? But converted to what? Madness. They all turned towards the nearest exit and walked, unsteadily at first, but growing more adept in their movements. The Vanguard followed for this was his chance. Play along, keep walking, and hope the gods would still listen to his prayers.

    ¡­

    Of all the scattered team, Lograve landed in the best and worst place possible. The room itself seemed nondescript, some sort of broom closet, and he reserved further observation until after he¡¯d coordinated with the others. A high-level Geomancer and his friends were sieging the city at the same time a sandstorm was blowing in. Oh, and one of his lungs had been punctured. Things weren¡¯t going well.

    Once his Telepathy was countered, he began to worry. And were those voices coming from the other side of the door?

    ¡°-precautions! Break out the reserves, we¡¯ll bill the city later. Expect lacerations and aspiration injuries to be most prevalent, but inspect any avianoid patients for broken bones. Winds like this, Hand, I can¡¯t remember a storm this strong. I don¡¯t think we can perform any house calls, not unless we want more patients and fewer healers.¡± Lograve blinked as he opened the door and saw what would be, at any other time, a competent emergency response. Perhaps one of the only places he wasn¡¯t needed.

    Someone saw him stumble out of the closet. ¡°Sharise!¡±

    The head Cleric of the church of the Hand took in the sight of Lograve and felt her careful preparations begin to come apart at the seams like a poorly made splint. ¡°Who are-¡± Sharise began, before remembering what Thomas had said of his time in the Thormundz. ¡°Lograve?¡± The Arcanist tried to say something pithy and coughed up more blood. ¡°Get him on a table!¡±

    A voice entered her mind. I¡¯m afraid the city needs more of a hand than I do. Despite saying this, he didn¡¯t fight as a junior Cleric led him to one of the spots set up to accept anyone injured in the sudden sandstorm.

    ¡°The patient is capable of telepathy,¡± Sharise announced, abandoning her spot at the door to come to the bedside. ¡°Please include everyone else immediately caring for you within this power, if you can do so. I will relay what you say if not.¡±

    You shouldn¡¯t be worried about me. We need to see to the other guy. Anyway, I¡¯ve had worse.

    The younger Cleric¡¯s eyes darted towards Sharise and she nodded. ¡°With scars like those I can imagine. If there is something more dangerous than the storm out there then the best thing we can do right now is tend to you and go from there. I¡¯m assuming you can control this armor? We¡¯ll need you to remove it so we can inspect the wound.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s a Blessed, Sharise. Shouldn¡¯t we use Flash Heal on him?¡±

    She shook her head. ¡°It¡¯s a penetrating wound, and that¡¯s just what I can see through the ice. I don¡¯t want to risk leaving something in him, especially if we¡¯re dealing with poison.¡±

    You¡¯re just like your sister.

    ¡°I¡¯d hope that¡¯s a compliment.¡± She stared him down, and Lograve reluctantly exposed the wound in his side. ¡°Are there any other injuries?¡±

    He almost got my throat, but no.

    ¡°Hmm. Show me that area as well. You froze your blood?¡± She frowned at the white skin surrounding the stab wound roughly a decimeter in diameter. Only a Blessed could crack jokes with something like this. ¡°You¡¯ve risked frostbite to the surrounding tissue. For someone as smart as you, you should have realized the risks of icing an internal area that close to your heart.¡±

    The Arcanist grimaced. Well, in the moment, I thought not leaking all of the blood out of my side was more important. Ah! Sharise inspected the wound roughly, ignoring the mental protest.

    ¡°There¡¯s particulate matter in the wound. Sand? To be expected. Nothing we¡¯d need to worry about with standard healing, and I¡¯m not detecting poison.¡± She prodded his neck next. ¡°Frank hemoptysis. The airway is undamaged. Vallra! You¡¯re first on rotation. One cast should be enough.¡± Another Cleric, avianoid this time, obliged. Within seconds Lograve was groaning and repairing the gaps in his armor. The level 3 Cleric who¡¯d healed him hadn¡¯t been able to fully restore him due to the level difference, but appeared to have some kind of auxiliary power that helped her overcome the normal penalties of healing someone above her level.

    ¡°Normally, I¡¯d insist on doing a full body inspection on anyone coming to me with an injury like that,¡± Sharise commented, not yet returning to the flurry of activity around them.

    ¡°I¡¯d be happy to take you out for a drink tomorrow,¡± Lograve croaked, breath still a little unsteady as his lungs started working properly again.

    ¡°I¡¯m sure they normally fall for that, but I¡¯d rather discuss the dire warning you were hinting at before my Cleric stitched your lungs back together.¡±

    ¡°Right.¡± Lograve rose unsteadily, growing serious. ¡°There is a region tier individual, level 5 at least, assaulting this city. The sandstorm is crippling our ability to respond. Bastard¡¯s probably responsible. The Divine Quarter needs to go to war.¡± He hesitated for a moment, rethinking what he was about to say but nodding eventually. ¡°Contact the church of the Scythe first. Wake any reapers they have. We¡¯ll need them.¡±

    ¡­

    Hunter let off another Lion Charge, frying an enemy. It seemed the most effective attack against them. These strange living but not living creatures didn¡¯t bleed, didn¡¯t react to pain, and attacked with little regard for themselves. The fact that they were people troubled Hunter less than the other person in this trap whose confidence had shattered when the first dusker to have a hole seared through their head just got up again.

    He still wouldn¡¯t free Daniel, but the reason now was he was afraid the Artificer would be picked off after exiting. Arpan didn¡¯t deny they needed help. The lances of green fire did injure their enemies, throwing the room into a green filter by the flames that occasionally caught. He was entirely capable of hitting the enemy, stopping them was another matter.

    Arpan was on the ceiling now, his feet somehow clinging to it. Still within reach of the tallest species in the city but the clear ¡®floor¡¯ made it easier to move. The Artificer needed every edge he could get. A punch from the maddened duskers wouldn¡¯t kill him, though as demonstrated, they strained his shields which could only imperfectly screen the percussive damage. Worse, he sucked at fighting.

    Bolts of fire aside, it was all the Artificer could do to avoid being hit hard enough to knock him down. The surge from Hunter¡¯s Lion Charge did more, slowing or outright killing an enemy if he was lucky enough. The issue was there were dozens of them and, unlike Arpan, each one grew better at fighting the longer they did it. Fast learners who were individually attempting to outdo their instructors. It was like fighting the greater skink over again, a race against time as Hunter ran out of ways to survive.

    Only here? He wasn¡¯t sure anyone was coming. His nose wasn¡¯t picking out anyone else nearby, friend or foe. All Hunter could do was dance across and under tables, constantly wary of arms and legs striking with terrible power. If one managed to grab him, he¡¯d lose a second limb in so many days. Dodge, jump, and Jaunt. Daniel wasn¡¯t here to give him other tools, and of the ones he¡¯d received more recently, they were little help. Force of Fear, an ability that damaged enemies based on how much they feared him? Useless against apathetic enemies. Feline Charm? Worse than useless. Mantle of Predation may be making Arpan more alert, but there was an unfortunate downside to multiplicative powers.

    And of course, the new, undiscovered power from the bond Hunter shared with his greatest friend. Not his best friend, Daniel, but Tak. If the two of them were in this together they¡¯d have a chance. Instead, Hunter was far out of range of what their Telepathic Link had allowed and Mirror Strike was also out of the question. The duskers did stop moving if enough damage was done to the body, but the combo attack would have obliterated them. They might have even figured out the new power. But Hunter was alone, and friends could only help when they were there.

    ¡°Let Daniel go!¡± Hunter roared while narrowly passing under a punch. Arpan didn¡¯t deign to reply. He flipped backward from the assailing enemy, not a true backflip but one peeling off to the side. Evasiveness, one of the features he¡¯d acquired after coming to Aughal. Useful, making his already lithe movements flow in combat and improving his chance to dodge.

    The charge was already building in him again. It had been slow with Arpan, but that was it was similar to Evalyn¡¯s charge ability. In place of pure mana, it took a bit of his momentum and ferocity to store for a later attack. Daniel had kept calling him a battery after he¡¯d first used it. At some point it would release on its own if Hunter didn¡¯t will it to or allow it to disperse.

    Fire. Not Arpan¡¯s limited flame, but a mental command. Hunter channeled it through his claws as he raked across one¡¯s back. Not enough this time, he¡¯d been impatient, but it did something. They¡¯d killed, how many, 9 now? Seven to Arpan¡¯s two, which the man had accomplished by steadily cutting off limbs like he was shooting arrows in a line. Inefficient with his aim.

    A straight run away from one he recognized as an experienced dusker. Smaller and slower than most of the others, ignored up until they had vaulted a table to try and grab Hunter. The ringcat was beginning to fear that small one, but if he focused on them, the larger ones would grow dangerous instead.

    Three coming from two sides. He jumped away, using Springing Strike to get some use out of the maneuver, only to almost lose a claw or two when his target closed sections of its body in response. They were learning to try and trap his paws between armored plates, just like the duskers from Duststone caught the blades of the shank stompers.

    Too much, Hunter thought. He was trying to be an entire team by himself, attack and defense. Normally Tak would be by his side, Daniel and the others watching his back. Lacking them he could run, outpace these duskers. Leave Arpan behind. Daniel would appear in the middle of experienced fighters, perhaps not recognizing the danger until it was too late.

    ¡°Can¡¯t you do anything else?¡± he cried out in frustration and despair, recognizing that they were losing.

    ¡°This is all your fault!¡± Arpan howled back. ¡°If this was my store I could do something. I¡¯d have the artifacts I enchanted to back me up. If, ah!¡± Arpan hastily sidestepped an attempt to knock him from the ceiling before blasting the offending dusker. ¡°If you want your friend to live, you need to give me an opening, then keep them off me.¡±

    He¡¯s asking me to die for him, Hunter realized. If someone else had asked, he might have considered it. ¡°No. If you die, Daniel comes out.¡±

    ¡°And then he¡¯ll die!¡± Arpan shouted, exasperated.

    ¡°So let him out now and he can help!¡± There it was again, that deadlock. Also, a kick from- Hunter twisted into a side roll, nearly colliding with another dusker before he recovered and angled towards a group of them. That was a strategy he¡¯d learned. The slow ones were poorly coordinated and got in the way of each other, which provided an opportunity to attack the tangle of limbs. As long as he made sure there wasn¡¯t a fast one-

    Under the table! Hunter yelped and jumped away as the small dusker shot out a hand toward his foreleg. It had been waiting for him! It was hunting him. How smart would it get? Would it stop once it became as intelligent as the one it had originally been, or would its intelligence grow without limit? A body fell to the ground, smoking, but Arpan was killing them too slowly. Hunter was killing too slowly. There were still thirty odd enemies filling the space.

    Hunter set himself on a table, a scrap of burning insect flesh casting a grim light on his fur. He thought of how far he¡¯d come from the mindless thing so weak it was completely overwhelmed by a simple feature. After all that, it still wasn¡¯t enough? His friends weren¡¯t here. These things were to be his death, then. They had no names, no hearts. Like him, in reverse.

    Hunter leapt at the small one. It had to die. To his surprise, it didn¡¯t try to defend itself. Hunter sank his fangs deep into the neck. Despite the thick carapace segments, his teeth were sharp enough to break through. His jaw could bite with more force than all but the strongest duskers here could match. If only he could punch with his mouth.

    The chunk torn out of the small one¡¯s neck wasn¡¯t enough. Neither was there anything in its eyes as its head rolled to the side with what little muscle it had left. It was offering the rest to him? Too tempting a target. Hunter was biting before he realized the trap. The small one died. So did he. From behind, one of the more experienced larger ones reached for him. To his credit, Arpan blew off one of the elbows. The other hand grabbed Hunter¡¯s back leg and pulled with all the ferocity of Gtoll.

    Hunter felt pain.

 Chapter 141: The Champion of Aughal

    Tak had barely caught the end of the transmission Lograve put out after the teleport before being isolated. He landed mid-sandstorm, north of where the others had been guessing by how worse the wind had suddenly gotten. The nares above his beak couldn¡¯t filter out dirty air as well, though you didn¡¯t live this long in a desert as an avianoid without the means to protect against that. A perk of avian over human biology was that masks did not have to cover the entire lower face. Instead, Tak put on something like a vertical bandana that could stretch whenever his face morphed into combat form. Whether that would work when he managed to call on the not-rage power was a question for another time.

    That settled, Tak went about trying not to be lost. Lograve had said to go for the Spires, but where were they? If he were Daniel, he might have known that storms of all kinds followed a prevailing wind, guessed that this was blowing at a southerly to southwesterly direction based on the direction it had come from, and used that plus a rough guess as to how far he¡¯d traveled to make for the nearest one.

    Being smart was, unfortunately, never Tak¡¯s strength. As the old joke went, that was strength. He was working on it and relieving his level disparity had helped greatly! He was still hurt by the poor education growing up. Attributes enhanced and improved natural ability. Like Bards and Hunter, they had to work with what they were given.

    Tak was not very smart, but he was observant. For instance, he¡¯d already figured out he was on a main road. It was far too wide to be anything less. Already he¡¯d cut down the direction he needed to go from any to two. Unfortunately, choosing the wrong one meant he was walking in the exact opposite direction. If he were Daniel, he might have agonized over the problem before figuring out that the direction with more painted brick was the right way.

    A very nervous woman opened her front door to the insistent knocking. ¡°Hello?¡± she shouted into the storm winds. Someone was standing at her door in the middle of the worst sandstorm she¡¯d ever seen. A lone man in armor, but not that of the guard. Hopefully a hunter, but you could never be sure. Usually that put people on edge, but there was a kind of open honesty to the stranger.

    ¡°Hello! Do you know which way the Spires are?¡± he asked like the sky wasn¡¯t actively trying to erode the city.

    ¡°Oh no, are you caught out in the storm?¡± She pointed one way down the street. ¡°They¡¯re that way. You can normally see them from here, but it¡¯s a ten minute run on the best day. You shouldn¡¯t be out there that long. Do you need somewhere to shelter?¡±

    ¡°No thank you. And thank you!¡± Tak replied brightly. ¡°There are monsters in the city. Not in this part, but they may be coming. Could you tell everyone? It would probably be better if you stayed together for now, but that is just a guess.¡± He gave her what was somehow a sheepish look. ¡°If my friends were here, they¡¯d have a better idea. Sorry.¡±

    ¡°Monsters in the city?¡± The young woman¡¯s heart almost stopped. ¡°Where are the guards!?¡±

    ¡°They were trying to arrest us, but I think they did not know what was going on. Stupid sandstorm.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I need to go. Please tell everyone. Thank you!¡± Tak took off running down the street, keeping the side of the buildings in sight as the storm grew worse. It wasn¡¯t long until he ran into a crowd, though for some reason people screamed as they saw him.

    ¡°Another one!¡±

    A sword flashed towards him from a hand he could barely see. Tak was just able to step out of the way, and that was because the aim had been slightly off. The throw was familiar to him, and the return arc didn¡¯t pose a threat. A clear, practiced voice cut through the storm. ¡°Everyone stand back! I¡¯ll deal with it.¡±

    ¡°It is you! And Gadriel. It is me!¡±

    ¡°Tak? Stay your song, Belonna.¡± The Hero drew close enough to be recognizable, cape pulling overtime in the wind.

    ¡°You know her name? Oh, I see why you wanted to stay.¡±

    ¡°We cannot delay, Tak,¡± Gadriel said, quickly changing the topic. ¡°We make for the Spires. Something is in the storm, taking people like the monster at the lake. Where are the others?¡±

    ¡°Also going to the Spire, although we were separated.¡± Tak had been affable, even after having a sword thrown at him, right up until Gadriel brought up that day. He could sense the barest edges of something within him perk up and take notice. ¡°Someone is in the ground. They were at Arpan¡¯s, who has taken Daniel. Then Lograve was attacked and he had to teleport everyone away.¡±

    ¡°Sir Lograve can teleport?¡±

    ¡°Not well.¡±

    The songbird, Belonna, was looking concerned. So were anyone else that heard the report. ¡°How do we fight someone in the ground?¡±

    ¡°Depending on what it is, exactly, there are a number of ways. You, incidentally, are well suited for this task. Considering it is a Blessed, our best approach would be to-¡±

    ¡°Awk!¡± Tak suddenly cried out, clutching at his leg.

    ¡°Enemy! Where?¡± Gadriel¡¯s sword was out, Belonna¡¯s hand to her neck, and the cluster of people they were shepherding huddled together. Blood was flowing from somewhere near Tak¡¯s waist, though the flow was quickly diminishing as his wounds healed.

    ¡°It¡¯s, it¡¯s not here?¡± Tak looked confused, and more strangely, unconcerned about the surroundings. ¡°It hit me, but not here? Or, not me?¡± Realization broke across his face. ¡±Oh. That is what it is.¡± He smiled, despite the pain. ¡°Of course.¡±

    ¡­

    The dusker pulled at Hunter¡¯s leg, yanking him off the ground before snapping him over its shoulder. Its other arm was shot, but this would dislocate if not tear off his limb. Hardened to pain as he was, Hunter was shocked by the raw strength in this strange creature and despaired. If this only immobilized his leg, he could limp on it and prolong his life for a good minute. If he lost it, it was even odds blood loss would kill him before the duskers despite his Regeneration.

    Arpan got off another crippling shot, taking a blow himself in exchange, though this only prevented the dusker holding Hunter from slamming him back on the ground. The ringcat went flying, colliding with a far wall. The feeling in his leg was gone. It was dead. He could tell he still had it, but something had gone terribly wrong with it. Otherwise, he would be in overwhelming pain.

    Instead there was only some pain. And he could move it? What? The realization hit him later, with the same impact as the initial throw. A moment of clarity, not like Daniel¡¯s power but an observation into one¡¯s self. Remembering something on the tip of your tongue that you¡¯d never spoken before. Awakening. With it came the innate sense of the power fully realized, as well as its name. Share Your Pain, the latest gift from his greatest friend. Hunter stood, leg healing and far more functional than it would have been with the critical damage being blunted.

    Now he understood. Even apart, Tak was with him. As his healing wounds attested, so was his best friend. He smiled despite the pain. With both at his back, it was time to go all out.

    ¡­

    Spinner was the least bothered by the sandstorm out of everyone. Well, her and the earth gestalt she supposed. It was an odd sensation, higher order thought. Something she was still getting used to. Helpfully, her improved mind improved backward as well. Retroactively? That felt like the right word. Not that the actual intelligence went back in time to inform her decisions, she could just appreciate her memories in a new light.

    That was another thing. Her. Spinner didn¡¯t know why but that felt right. Was it due to the influence of her mistress, or just random? Or- Spinner¡¯s spirits sank as she unintentionally reminded herself that her mistress was dead.

    Tlara herself was also very unhappy about that. The soul of the Beastmaster within her was in turmoil because of it, and Spinner was trying anything she could think of to comfort her. She hated how her injuries made them so vulnerable because this was otherwise an incredible honor.

    There was a constant ache there. And the sluggishness. Spinner understood that with only one heart, her blood couldn¡¯t get around as fast which caused problems. Her body could survive that injury, it was already attempting to heal the wound, though it couldn¡¯t replace the organ as easily. Perhaps with time.

    Un-deading Tlara would also help so she could better use her powers. It was apparently possible, though the Beastmaster didn¡¯t have much in the way of advice. Her mistress could barely do anything in the state she was in. However, going into the large walls in the distance was impossible. Spinner didn¡¯t want to risk it despite the cover of the sandstorm. Mortals had been looking for her ever since her mistress died, and without any direct guidance from Tlara she felt it best to avoid contact with those that would pose a threat.

    One such very strong threat was flying quickly towards the walls. The webs she¡¯d laced throughout the sands could sense the air around them, and the disturbance from that one was clear. As for the second intercepting them, they were very hard to detect. Spinner was unsure if she could call the second a person as while the currents running off the webbing could detect well in the space around them, the one moving at ground level was fuzzy. Not undetectable, but also not always in the same form. It reminded her of the one that had killed her mistress.

    The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    All that told Spinner was to stay far away from both. Since they were the only other things not sheltering from the storm, though, she might as well watch what happened when they met.

    ¡­

    Though Rasalia had been minutes away from the city when she¡¯d been alerted, that was still a fair distance to cover through a storm. An ultimately useless outing, especially as it appeared her targets had gotten into the city. Was this planned for? She used her time in flight to try and make sense of all this. Was the storm the doing of the Mirage? Or, no, could this be Rikendia itself finally stepping in to re-establish proper order so that the kingdom¡¯s border wouldn¡¯t be further weakened? Rasalia might not have protested that, if not for the methods employed.

    She decided that if this was a higher authority coming down on the Council, it had better well announce itself if it expected her cooperation. Otherwise, Rasalia was going to get mad, and nothing less than a full member of an Incursion Army could beat her in the short run.

    Speak of the Crest-damned. The Champion slowed, sensing something through the storm. With half boosts to her dexterity and wisdom, best to make it through concealed terrain quickly, she was able to react before the air around her turned to death.

    Rasalia dove while above her, jagged splinters formed from the swirling sand. Each moved at the speed the storm propelled them at, making for a true hazard at that quantity while being mostly hidden. Lesser Blessed would be picked off by that attack, and the maneuver made it clear that the assailants were attempting to kill Aughal¡¯s Commander on sight. She mentally adjusted her willingness to cooperate with whoever this was.

    Strangely, as the Champion hovered low above the ground, a space cleared in the storm. Her mana sense was still developing to full maturity, though with the boost to wisdom from internal mana manipulation she could tell her enemy was making a physical connection with the entire half-sphere. Instead of stable mana of a set and forget power, the sand at the edges fluctuated with its controller¡¯s natural rhythms. In fact, they hadn¡¯t stopped the storm here but created a temporary shelter from it. They didn¡¯t have active control over the storm itself? Then who-

    ¡°Commander.¡± She turned at the voice but didn¡¯t move as a figure rose from the sands. It was too smooth of a motion, like a sword being pulled from a quench rather than someone picking themselves up out of hiding. They matched the description of one of the kidnappers though. Female avianoid like herself and covered in robes the color and visual consistency of sand. The only reason Rasalia didn¡¯t attack was that they¡¯d spoken before appearing. Also, she was getting a weird sense from them. Rasalia¡¯s seventh sense picked up the mana flow, giving her the sense this individual was roughly on par with her when it came to level, but that was the only thing she could understand about them.

    ¡°Are you here to surrender?¡± Rasalia asked blithely. Her combat form made the words echo slightly, as if through a poor fitting helmet.

    ¡°I¡¯m here to ask you to leave.¡± The kidnapper held a hand out, palm up, towards Rasalia. ¡°You know what we¡¯re trying to do. We will succeed. While you pose enough of a threat to warrant my attention, it is also true that you aren¡¯t strong enough to kill me. Abandon this place.¡±

    ¡°Heh. Maybe. First, why don¡¯t you tell me where your hostages are?¡±

    ¡°Oh?¡±

    Rasalia frowned. She was playing dumb? ¡°Willow and Tlara Seliri, and the rest. You were scried taking them. I want them, and the other noble children you¡¯re using to keep the Council neutered.¡±

    ¡°Is that what you think is happening?¡± The woman laughed. ¡°Oh, I appear to have overestimated you. You are mistaken.¡± Her form began to shift, putting Rasalia on edge until she realized there was no active mana surge belying a power. The kidnapper could manipulate the sand around them without actively using mana, suggesting it was a passive power. Instead of another attack, the front of the hood shifted and recessed until a face was visible. The cloth moved perfectly with it, like a death mask given life. ¡°Do you know who I am?¡±

    ¡°...no?¡± That seemed to irk the woman. ¡°Look, if this is part of your confession, I¡¯d be happy to take it but we really should have someone from the guard here.¡±

    ¡°I am Casia Seliri.¡± Rasalia raised a metallic eyebrow as she tried to square that information with what was going on. That did mollify this supposed Casia, a little. ¡°There is more to death than you know. More to this world, but all I shall say now is that you are in the wrong. This world would rebel against you if it had but the chance. In its place, we shall.¡±

    ¡°Ok,¡± Rasalia dragged the word out. ¡°We¡¯ll establish your identity later. Damn, I¡¯ve wasted too much time. Look, at our levels coming quietly isn¡¯t really an option, so if you just stand there while I knock you out I¡¯ll take it into consideration.¡±

    ¡®Casia¡¯s¡¯ face returned to its blank state. ¡°You are welcome to try.¡±

    Rasalia spread out her arms, a cocky grin forming. ¡°Know why they sent me to out a desert? I¡¯m the Ironrush Ravager. Didn¡¯t plan on it, but collateral damage kind of comes with the powers. The good ones, anyway. Normally, I have to hold back. Not here.¡± In her mind, she flicked on a few features she normally kept suppressed. Concussive Shockflight. Explosive Steel. Heck, even Molten Talons. She hoped she wasn¡¯t overdoing it. Rasalia was going to take this woman, whoever she was, alive if possible. But the city was also in danger.

    She dove, the air rippling around her. Concussive Shockflight built up energy as she moved which would detonate upon landing. Explosive Steel modified this and any similar effect she produced to also generate shrapnel spontaneously, making for a lethal, very unfriendly fire combo. Molten Talons just made her hands extremely hot, though under the right circumstances that too could cause an explosion. The Ironrush Ravager, someone you¡¯d be glad to both have on your side, but perhaps not quite so close to you.

    ¡®Casia¡¯ was about to find that out. It was definitely someone standing there. The real woman posing as the deceased noble, that was. The mana flow in the figure made that unmistakable. However, she wasn¡¯t doing anything other than reform a hand into a claw which was still concealed by the robes. Odd. They were hiding something, whether it be poison, enchanted weapons, or a body morph like hers. Probably the latter, though they didn¡¯t know who they were dealing with. Even if this woman was planning to collapse the sand wall into her it wouldn¡¯t work. Rasalia had adopted her combat form and summoned armor before leaving the walls. Right now, she was more metal than flesh. More magic than mortal.

    A single attack could do nothing to her. Not even were she facing herself would Rasalia fear one strike. The air erupted with her cast-off mana, divoting the ground where she landed. Only, her opponent had vanished. Rasalia, clad in summoned metallic armor, drew her wings towards her before sharply sending them out. They shattered into sparking metal that was also affected by Explosive Steel. That combination could level a village if unleashed in the center, and she was confident that she could tell where ¡®Casia¡¯ was when one of the fragments struck.

    The surrounding dunes were pitted from the various impacts, but nothing else happened. Rasalia grew new wings, almost as an afterthought, as she considered the earth beneath her. The desert wasn¡¯t that deep, sand would eventually become sandstone and firmer bedrock. Her opponent was some kind of elementally attuned evolution class. They were probably using a power to blend in with all this sand.

    Well, in that case she just had to make sure there wasn¡¯t any. Rasalia flew up, making very sure there was no one else in her target area while at the same dodging more attacks sent her way. She could trace the mana leading to the attacks and knew ¡®Casia¡¯ was still somewhere below her. Cracking her knuckles, Rasalia heightened Concussive Shockflight. Doing this would prevent her from disabling it later and slow her return to the city, but taking out one of the elite invaders in turn would be worth the delay.

    That wasn¡¯t it, though. Rasalia was level 5, she had a myriad of options to choose from, several practiced dual-channeling combinations and other gimmicks she¡¯d developed over her career. She needed maximum destruction now and went all out. Metal bled from her armor as she traced patterns in the air, summoning more material that would explode on landing. As this technically came from the armor around her talons, it was affected by Molten Talons, and the sizzling in the air grew as more sand in the storm contacted the burning metal.

    In the largest sections she planted a feather quickly plucked from her body, the end spontaneously lighting to act as a fuse. This would further increase the explosive potential, though the object would explode if the feather fully burned out before being used. Finally, Rasalia used an ability she couldn¡¯t stack with another without dual-channeling: Multiply Explosions. With a momentous amount of will she seized the stream of mana responsible for writing the power into reality and forced it to both split and flow back onto itself. This didn¡¯t allow her to combine it with another active ability. No, it used the power again.

    Rasalia couldn¡¯t help but smile. She really, really liked it when she didn¡¯t have to worry about damaging anything important. The only things below her were an enemy and a lot of sand. This would create one Crest of a crater, but the desert would fill itself back in eventually. She dove down, carrying the chained explosives with her to magnify the effect even more now that Concussive Shockflight was heightened. She would be in the center of the explosive, but her battle form combined with some protective features would mitigate most of the damage to herself.

    The sound produced by her impact with the ground could only have been rivaled by one of the Spires breaking in half. Rasalia¡¯s senses shifted with the explosion surrounding her and knowing this was a moment of weakness, didn¡¯t try anything aggressive. Eventually the last of the chained explosions ended, and Rasalia looked around. There should be at least enough of a scrap left to-

    ¡°Impressive.¡± ¡®Casia¡¯ appeared a few meters away. The temporary hole in the storm made by vaporized sand was filling back in, and to Rasalia¡¯s disbelief, her enemy didn¡¯t seem damaged in the slightest. Even a power granting momentary invincibility shouldn¡¯t have let her avoid all this damage as the progressive nature of that combo left lingering explosions after the initial impact.

    She had to ask. ¡°How did you do that?¡±

    ¡°I did warn you, you can¡¯t kill me.¡± Casia spread out her arms. ¡°Feel free to try. I won¡¯t move again.¡±

    The Ironrush Ravager was smart enough to know this was a trap. She had no idea what kind of powers her enemy was using, but the more she saw, the greater the chance she could find a weakness. Accepting a hit was worth the risk. Rasalia prepared the charge, safe in the knowledge that at their level, you couldn¡¯t kill someone with just one shot.

    ¡­

    Spinner¡¯s view of the battle cut off as the winged woman ripped the air around her, and a large destructive force was transmitted through her webs. Even the influence she had on the energy running through her body was disrupted and, thus, her senses. It was like a flash of light on the horizon so bright it blinded distant observers. That troubled Spinner, for she had never considered her webs to have such a weakness. The second devastation that followed obliterated a large swath and would have permanently harmed her sensory organs if not for the fact that she¡¯d disconnected from the network already.

    After metaphorically blinking her eyes and realizing the danger was over, Spinner found most of the web was undamaged. Parts were buried, of course, although the turbulence had also unearthed some of the older sections. Seeing into the area of the fight was more difficult, those webs had been destroyed, though Spinner had experience with controlling her webs both before and after her mistress had found her. Signals could be sent across the space so long as she had something to detect with on the other side. This took active charge, rather than the passive current running through her webs. Still, a trick she was proud of.

    A few passes through the region were needed for the full picture. She needed to see from all angles. It wouldn¡¯t be perfect since the two would be moving, but this was now a threat she registered to both herself and her mistress. More by instinct than her new intelligence, Spinner knew that people that powerful could be upon her in moments. She¡¯d see what was going on and if another one of those explosions seemed likely, she¡¯d cut and run.

    Instead, she grew confused. The two she saw were both standing still, and the robed one had her arm through the winged one¡¯s chest.

 Chapter 142: The Saint of Dunestep Street

    Dunestep Street was a primarily human-settled corridor branching from the western main road of Aughal that looped back on itself before returning to the main road. While this did give the street the prodigious honor of having a crossroads with itself, there was little else to draw denizens of the city there except for cheap housing. Only one of its buildings was painted brick, and this was because there¡¯d been no way to redo the building behind it without taking down the home as well. You wouldn¡¯t know it from the outside, though, as the present owners kept it concealed with mud to avoid reverse notoriety.

    The greatest hit to its property values was the proximity to the dusker section, which invited noise complaints and aversion among those with a fear of insects. Today it also put the denizens in the path of the duskers under the Mirage¡¯s thrall. No more were being created, each of Casia¡¯s kind was needed elsewhere. One was needed here, in fact.

    The horde had moved down the street like water with instructions only to cause panic and terror, with some receiving special instruction to go after pillars of the community. The sandstorm had crippled the guard, and for some reason the Hunter¡¯s Guild was having a hard time mounting a coordinated defense. Hundreds had died, and while the rate was declining as people fled, every street bordering the initial invasion should have been scythed clean.

    This one held. Not without casualty, and the wall of buildings along the back loop had broken down, but Dunestep Street was holding despite pressure from two sides. No, Ashier observed, they were pushing the enemy back.

    They were hovering above the internal crossroads of the street, observing each line whilst possessing Famar. One of her Proxies. It turned out the only thing they needed to find one was patience. And creative wording. Ashier truly was a servant of the gods and intended to defend who they could. Put it that way to desperate people and offer power, without any mention of their exact class, and they now had a multitude of followers.

    Not everyone received Proxy as a class. Those that didn¡¯t either attained one of the traditional ones or, in disappointing cases, only a single power from Vassalize without any hope of gaining more. It was wasteful considering each use consumed their advancement potential, but that in itself was enough to turn day laborers, lesser merchants, and the like into a workable fighting force. Throw in the gestalt¡¯s ability to shuffle powers among their Proxies and the strangely formidable duskers could be beaten. If only I still had Regeneration to work with, Ashier mused. Equally unfortunate was that Draconic Avatar only worked one way, otherwise they could have taken over the city then and there by creating dragons from commoners.

    Saving lives was the immediate goal. ¡°Gelina, fall back! The Saint is reinforcing another side.¡± Ashier let Famar convey their wishes, rather than usurp his control. It was nice, having followers that were neither cowardly nor narcissistic and murderous. If they were fortunate, they would never have to rely on such control again.

    Saint, though, that was an assumed title that would probably cause problems later. It was a better explanation than the truth, which was that Ashier needed these people as much as they needed them. In this storm the gestalt couldn¡¯t run as easily, leaving them vulnerable to whoever or whatever was behind this cursed army. Someone this powerful, perhaps as strong as those that remained in the Thormundz, could challenge Rorshawd easily. Those beings were doubtlessly in the city¡¯s center attempting to take control. In the meantime, they needed to rally as many people to their side as possible.

    At the center of the crossroads, people were kneeling. Once one Proxy had been established, as well as their defensive lines, Ashier had made a proclamation. Any who wished to serve would go there to take up arms. The bond was entirely voluntary, especially now that all those still alive on the street were safe. In fact, Ashier had run into a limit of how many people they could affect with Vassalize as they were running out of stored potential. Still, this street would become a crucible. Those that survived would truly be the best to assist them in turning back this invasion.

    Ashier was debating which of those offering their service to choose when a problem occurred. One of the would-be adherents was too small. The child seemed to sense this, and the Tyrant¡¯s dismissal of them. ¡°Please. I can help.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re too young Sedric. Crest, I don¡¯t think you¡¯ve even hit your wall yet. You may not need this, and it is a heavy burden.¡± Famar spoke without prompting and Ashier let him after a moment¡¯s consideration. It was presumptive, especially when the man radiated with their presence granting them their presumed authority. On the other hand, it was wise.

    ¡°Should I have done that?¡± Famar whispered to her as he hovered back into place. ¡°Saint, I¡¯m sorry if I overstepped, but he-¡±

    You did well, Ashier commended him, through the bond. It was nice to have people who could understand you again. Of course, their internal expressions weren¡¯t in line with what Famar heard in his head, but their Proxies could far better understand them compared to other mortals. I would have stepped in otherwise. He was too young. That comforted the Proxy. They were sure this was all very sudden. Assuming they all survived this, there would be some who would question the bond they formed.

    One of the buildings suddenly exploded. The sandstorm, which the street had some protection against due to the narrow streets and no clear through path, came on thicker. ¡°Everyone, pull back!¡± Ashier gave her Proxies just a second to relay the order, a few were too slow and had to be forced. Something was coming from the rubble. It was hard to see, but from the closest Proxy-

    Gone. Ashier felt something pierce the chest of the human before the connection broke. The gestalt¡¯s bond with their Proxies was one of the only things that could cross the sandstorm. Ashier weighed releasing Rorshawd now as they gathered those unsworn into one of the larger buildings with a basement. They could certainly play that off, but how to command the dragon not to speak without raising suspicion?

    ¡°Saint! They¡¯re dying!¡± Famar¡¯s voice was anguish as he witnessed the less valuable servants try to hold off the thing coming down one of the roads. The storm seemed denser around it, sand spearing those too slow to dodge them. Only four at a time, Ashier noted. In the center, there was something like them? But no, they would sense it through the air gestalts¡¯ shared link even while hidden from it, and no other element appeared like that.

    That monster. I have never seen its like.

    ¡°Octyrrum save us.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± one of the other Proxies asked, frightened and confused. Ashier could network communication between them, but that had only been relayed to Famar. ¡°What do we do? Those things, we were holding them off, but what do we do now?¡±

    ¡°Spread out around the courtyard?¡± Famar said it as a command he was unsure of. ¡°The Saint will channel divine fire through us.¡±

    ¡°If that is not enough?¡±

    ¡°Do not question the will of the gods!¡± another fiercely rebuked. Unsurprisingly, those who had agreed to the bond were of the street¡¯s most devout.

    ¡°But, but those duskers¡­¡±

    This new threat is one you cannot face alone, Ashier thought to all of them without any of the uncertainty they were feeling. With it here, no one may survive. I will not lie, defeating it will require sacrifice. Had I the choice I would stand with you, but that is not my nature. Fear not, for no matter what, I will be with you. That last part at least was fully the truth.

    Famar looked over his shoulder as if to glance at Ashier who was technically possessing him. ¡°We¡¯re with you, Saint. For our families, for the Octyrrum, we will take this down.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s coming.¡±

    Go! I will guide you, but you all must be far enough apart that it may strike only one of you at a time. There was a central creature to the spontaneous weapons of sand in the storm, and from their observations of it picking apart the last of the defenders, Ashier could tell that much.

    The Tyrant¡¯s confidence slipped when, instead of a monster approaching, they saw a man speak. ¡°I don¡¯t know how you found your way here, Tyrant, but this city is ours. You will never have it.¡±

    ¡­

    Hunter¡¯s only complaint with his new power was that, despite the name, it didn¡¯t seem to do much for the actual pain he experienced. Beyond that, it was everything he needed. The duskers were naturally strong, enough to threaten his limbs or life directly with the right blow. Any one of them could do that, forcing him to continuously be on the defense. With Tak taking half of the damage, he no longer needed to fear anything but a full grab.

    It still hurt. Fists crashing into him that should have broken ribs, cuts from those that had started picking up broken pieces of the furniture to use as weapons. Healing. His greatest advantage, because his enemies stayed injured and dead. Their numbers weren¡¯t infinite, and now they were few. Only, Hunter had stopped fighting.

    The move was underpawed considering his earlier help, but Hunter doubted another opportunity like this would come. ¡°Wh, what are you doing?¡± Several dusker surrounded Arpan, and at this point any alive were smart. These were the only ones left. A couple had dead limbs from where the Artificer had hit joints, though his ray attack took time to directly kill them. Arpan still tried, the shield around him continuing to weaken as it did. The man was tired, panting, and scared. No fighter. He was going to die.

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    ¡°Let Daniel go.¡±

    ¡°Oh come on!¡± Arpan held up an arm and grunted as he narrowly blocked another hit. ¡°You¡¯re not just going to leave me or he¡¯ll die too!¡±

    ¡°You die, Daniel comes out. I protect him.¡± Hunter didn¡¯t necessarily know this, but did Arpan know that he didn¡¯t? This kind of bluffing was hard for the ringcat, though for Daniel he¡¯d try.

    And succeed. Rather than argue the point, Arpan pointed a finger. ¡°I can kill you before I die if you don¡¯t help.¡±

    That had been an impressive threat before Hunter had seen the man actually fight. ¡°I can dodge,¡± Hunter scoffed, as Arpan was forced to block another hit. ¡°You still die.¡±

    The duskers weren¡¯t right on top of the Artificer. Get too close and they¡¯d bunch up, block each other, and give an opportunity to slip out. Instead, they just used their longer arms to rain punches with near impunity. The Artificer¡¯s feet could stick to the walls and ceiling, though that was useless here. His storage power could provide a way out, for anyone but himself. ¡°They will kill me.¡±

    ¡°You die faster here. Maybe less painfully,¡± Hunter added thoughtfully, no pity in his words. Social rules and empathy were a second language to him, one he didn¡¯t speak now. Arpan had something he wanted, and Hunter was going to get it. ¡°Let him go.¡±

    Arpan yelped as he took another blow, and a small crack appeared at the impact point. The gem on his chest, which he had almost continuously fed mana, grew dimmer. ¡°Alright! Gods dammit alright.¡± A large mirror, visible from one side, appeared behind the duskers. ¡°Just get him and help me!¡±

    Hunter dashed through, briefly drawing the attention of the remaining enemies before, to their eyes, vanishing. The Ringcat appeared in a room painted stark white, chests and sacks piled against the walls in an orderly yet cramped fashion. A twin of the mirror was fixed to the wall Hunter had come through. On the ground, sprawled as if they¡¯d just been tossed there, was Daniel and a woman whose scent faintly reminded him of Tlara. It obviously, and thankfully, wasn¡¯t her.

    ¡°Daniel.¡± His friend didn¡¯t wake up. Hunter sighed and started pressing on one of his legs. Without a protective shield, it didn¡¯t take nearly long to wake him. ¡°Wake up. Hurry.¡±

    ¡°Wha.¡± Daniel felt the back of his head, wincing at the memory of pain that had already healed. ¡°Hunter?¡±

    The ringcat assessed his friend¡¯s mental state as groggy and made a snap decision, opening the floodgates. Their Empathic Link didn¡¯t transmit memories, but it could inform Daniel of the stakes. The sharpness and adrenaline of Hunter right after a fight would be enough of a jolt. Daniel jerked, also spiked by a repeat traumatic experience of every time he¡¯d woken up before they figured out how the link worked.

    Daniel cut off the link from his side as he groaned, taking far too long in Hunter¡¯s opinion to get a weapon out of his bag. Fortunately, that hadn¡¯t been taken. ¡°Who¡¯s that?¡±

    Don¡¯t know, Hunter replied mentally, as he had an arm in his mouth. Bad things outside. Maybe monsters? I can tag them, but no name comes up. They look like duskers but hard to kill. They don¡¯t die unless you bite off the head or hurt the chest enough.

    ¡°Zombies?¡± The word, unlike most Hunter heard for the first time, made no sense. Daniel cocked one of the arm bows and looked around. ¡°Wait, where are we?¡±

    Hunter began dragging the woman, who was starting to wake up, towards the mirror. Arpan trapped you. He is outside, in danger, but not trustworthy. They threatened him.

    ¡°Who?¡±

    Right, he should probably mention that. The city is under attack.

    ¡­

    ¡°Oh, good. The hurting stopped.¡± Tak had started bleeding from some of the injuries his bond inflicted on him, though Regeneration kept him on his feet. Considering the people they were shepherding, he wasn¡¯t the slowest. The journey down the road had been dangerous at times, more of the strange bloodthirsty duskers appearing out of the storm. Gadriel was more than able to cut them down, they couldn¡¯t avoid his sword well and never appeared in large enough numbers to matter.

    ¡°I assume that¡¯s good news?¡± Belonna asked. The songbird hadn¡¯t left Gadriel¡¯s side yet, making things very obvious. Not that the mostly avianoid crowd was of a mind to gossip. Perhaps if Thomas was here he would have gotten some chatter started, to distract if anything else. It¡¯s not like the Cleric would be fighting with them.

    ¡°Yes. I would know if he is dead, but he isn¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°Have you tried asking?¡±

    Tak cocked his head at Gadriel. ¡°I cannot. Lograve said something was blocking telepathy.¡±

    ¡°It was my understanding your bond provided a Telepathic Link, which would defeat typical suppression. Have you attempted to reach Hunter?¡±

    ¡°Uhm,¡± Tak looked sheepish. Hunter?

    Tak?

    The Totem Warrior frowned. ¡°Ah. You are right, I can talk to him.¡± In fairness, they¡¯d only been able to converse over a long distance with their bond for just a day. Where are you?

    With Daniel. And Arpan, Hunter added begrudgingly. And ¡®Willow¡¯. Underground. There are bad things here. Duskers.

    Yes, we know. Not just duskers, though. Gadriel saw a few humans and others like me.

    Tak, I think they¡¯re zombies! Daniel¡¯s voice still sounded a little out of it, but came through clearly. Try anything with radiant damage if you have that option.

    Zombies? Why?

    You don¡¯t know about them either? Huh. Look, it¡¯s just a thought. We need to talk to Lograve. Everyone¡¯s heading to the Spires?

    Tak nodded. ¡°Ah, this is very good. Hunter has gotten Daniel back. I¡¯m letting them know what we¡¯re doing.¡± Gadriel nodded back. Yes. I am with Gadriel, the pretty songbird from last night, and a lot of people. We are almost at the southern Spire. Come here, but be safe.

    We will. Hunter replied. After a pause, he added, Thank you.

    You are welcome. I will always be there.

    Somewhere underground, Daniel blinked. Uh, guys, what are you talking about?

    ¡­

    He¡¯d walked these streets a thousand times. Ten thousand? He could find his way around half-blind, as he did now. Sword flashing, a monstrous weapon half his height again dancing in his grip. Enchanted from material so fine they¡¯d spent months getting enough of it for the blade. First against the dragon, the wyrm, the taurex, never to fall. It was all going wrong. Vanguard? No one took that class. That was the class you took when you wanted to die. Barely any way to defend yourself, completely at the mercy of your allies, and if one slipped up, you died. He hadn¡¯t heard of anyone getting it in the last decade.They fell, one by one. Unable to withstand him. One man, an edge so refined he could cut impossibility. Stupid. It was a stupid dream!

    Jeras couldn¡¯t block the old fantasies. They were of no comfort, just a reminder of how far he¡¯d fallen. He was lost, but he was not dead. There was one thing left in this city he cared about, and he was going to get it, get her, and get out. The noble Vanguard. The broken man. Coming home to face his-

    The front of the guardhouse was destroyed. Oh, the building was there, but the doors weren¡¯t. They were blown in, one off its hinges. This is the main guardhouse, Jeras thought shakily, focusing. If anyone ever got past the walls we¡¯d used this like a fort. What happened? It was shift change, or it had been. The day crew and those with reports from the walls should have been here, waiting for the dusker guard to take over once the sun went down.

    Reception was empty. There were no bodies and, just like outside, it seemed like there should be some here. Jeras already knew the answer, but he tried to disillusion himself. They retreated. Fortified the armory and prison. Fallback positions. I have to find her. He sprinted, faster than he¡¯d ever been in armor. Past the blood and broken weapons scattered across the sandy ground. The wind from outside howled through the halls. It was all around him and he could ignore it. He had survived so long, so much.

    The armory was breached. Someone had closed the door but the heavy bolts securing the bars had been torn out. Everything, no. Almost everything was gone. They¡¯d forced open the obvious containers, broken weapon racks, even torn up carpet in case of hidden caches. Which, there were, but Builders could be more inventive. There was a trick wall, behind which Jeras found a collection of smaller artifacts sequestered in a hidden safe. He reached for one and grimaced as it buzzed in his grip with a not-quite electrical shock. Jeras laughed, deliriously. My class. I can¡¯t use these because of my class. It didn¡¯t matter, he wasn¡¯t here for them. Jeras left the door open as he ran for the prisons. This part, strangely, was untouched.

    He barely felt his legs moving. Stunned, Jeras found people who had survived the attack. All of them were in cells, but not all of them were prisoners. ¡°Let us out! Let us out!¡± they all cried, though the handful of guards did so with more expectation. There were maybe ten in all, not counting the actual criminals.

    ¡°What happened?¡±

    ¡°Our worst nightmare,¡± one of the caged guardsman said. Jeras faintly recognized him as someone who worked with Kelra up front. ¡°Something, someone? High level either way. It broke its way through when the sandstorm was kicking up and just, just started killing. The damned hunters never showed up. And the city? The Council? Where are the damn storm wards! They put them to use for a storm half this bad for a party last month but for this?¡±

    ¡°The new lieutenant told us to stand our ground, right before he got picked up and thrown against the wall!¡± another protested. ¡°So we said fuck that.¡±

    ¡°Why the cells?¡± Jeras was looking in at each one, not finding who he was looking for and fearing to ask.

    ¡°There were others, down here.¡± The first guard who¡¯d spoken glanced at pools of blood on the ground. ¡°All of us backed into whatever was open towards the end. Not sure why but that thing was leaving the prisoners alone. Once it¡¯d seen it had gotten everyone in the hallway it left. And, and they followed it.¡±

    ¡°Where to?¡± Most shrugged or looked uneasy, but a prisoner closer to the main entryway spoke up.

    ¡°I heard the voice as it was leaving. Telling all of them to lie in wait for it to come back. It kept repeating things like the guards were having a hard time hearing.¡± The man, who was likely just here for drunken and/or disorderly conduct, didn¡¯t take any pleasure from the memories either. ¡°One time, I think it let slip they were going to attack the Spires. Honestly? Leave me in here. Whatever¡¯s out there, gods, but I¡¯ll never drink again.¡±

    ¡°Screw that, if this is a siege the cells could cave in. Look, whoever you are, let us out! Hey! Hey!¡± Jeras turned and started to leave. The question was on his beak, but if he asked, then he would know. And he didn¡¯t want to-

    ¡°Wait. It¡¯s him. That bastard traitor that left with Sherman. I thought he looked familiar, and how many idiots in the guard carry a greatsword?¡± Jeras froze as the first guardsman to speak pondered. He was suddenly very afraid because he¡¯d recognized this one too. ¡°Yeah. Jeras. You¡¯re with them, aren¡¯t you? You fucking traitor. You told them everything, and now everyone¡¯s dead!¡± Shaun, one of the desk guards, took in a shuddering breath. ¡°They¡¯re all dead, you bastard. She¡¯s dead. Why did you do it? Kelra¡¯s de-¡±

    Jeras¡¯ sword, briefly sparking with lightning, impaled him through the neck. It was easily able to reach the man despite the bars. Amidst the cries of shock, fear, and outrage, the incantation echoed after the blow. ¡°Lightning Strike.¡± He didn¡¯t let anyone go, neither did he kill anyone else. Jeras did pause briefly at the stairs. ¡°Hey. That voice. What did it sound like?¡±

    The older prisoner by the door quailed at Jeras¡¯ unsheathed sword. ¡°I, i-i-it sounded like a person,¡± he stuttered. ¡°A woman. One of the, the, like you.¡±

    Of course. Jeras put the prison out of his mind as he walked away and into the heart of the Crest. There was nothing left for him in this world, save for a monster he¡¯d take out with him.

 Chapter 143: Primary Targets

    There were many benefits to their monstrous nature. If not for the cost, and the weaknesses, the ones who had provided the means of their rebirth would surely have inducted as many of their retinue as possible. Not that the process was painless, though it was quick. A stab to the heart was rarely a slow death.

    Rasalia Stoneclaw, the Ironrush Ravager, discovered that. She would have lived if she¡¯d run, but Casia imagined that you couldn¡¯t expect cowardice from a class derived from Hero. Instead she¡¯d made herself vulnerable, transmuting most of her body with a power. Against most that armor would present an impressive defense, but their immunity to mortal powers had allowed Casia¡¯s hand to go through as if it wasn¡¯t there.

    No matter. While she returned to the city she communicated with the others. It wasn¡¯t telepathy, which was currently blocked, but some aspect of their forms that allowed for spoken communication to be carried to others so long as there was a possible connection through sand. ¡°Fredreick, Ytaya, the Commander is dead. It seems the Assassin¡¯s power is still keeping everyone else suppressed. Report.¡± The former Council members waited too long in their reply. ¡°Answer me!¡±

    ¡°A group attacked the Artificer¡¯s store after you left,¡± Ytaya replied. ¡°Fredreick failed to contain them, though I have succeeded in my task at the Hunter¡¯s Guild and am moving to our next goal.¡±

    ¡°Casia, the beast you wanted, I think it was with them!¡± Fredreick cut in. His voice wasn¡¯t too desperate. There was no formal hierarchy between them, though Casia was the first and the only one with prior knowledge of the plan. ¡°They teleported away, most of them. I was chasing the rest when, well, I think we have a bigger problem.¡±

    ¡°The churches? Ytaya should be enough with the forces under her control, though I will send you my latest addition to our ranks should you need them. As for the ringcat, it is of little matter. Mark has made his promise. Failing that we can return for it once the Spires fall. Focus on timing the siege wards appropriately. The pieces are in place. Bennar and Claret¡¯s authority will ensure-¡±

    ¡°Casia,¡± Fredreick spoke up, interrupting her. ¡°It¡¯s not the churches. There is a Tyrant in the city and they are rallying people. The Assassin warned us when they ¡®became active¡¯ but refused to help.¡±

    The woman paused midflight. ¡°How? We were careful with how far we pushed. One should not have been created.¡±

    ¡°Fredreick broke off to deal with it,¡± Ytaya explained. ¡°Everything is still proceeding as planned. The will of this city is still doomed.¡±

    ¡°Not with a Tyrant on the board! Gods¡¯ damnation!¡± Casia abandoned flight altogether for the less dignified, yet faster traversal by the dunes. Though without a proper mouth, her voice reached the others. ¡°I will join you. Every minute that Tyrant lives our surety slips.¡±

    ¡­

    The temples of the gods were always built in a basic pattern with little regard to the kingdom or even Realm they were in. The Hammer¡¯s church in Aughal was not physically grander than the others, even if it had more adherents as part of his domain and had better funding. Rather, the entire complex was shaped like an octagon with a large courtyard in the middle. Other regions didn¡¯t build their Divine Quarters as exact copies of Aughal¡¯s, you just had to look at Threst¡¯s to know that, but they still preserved the pattern and relative positions of each god.

    Strangely, the holiest of sites within each city defied the nature of the Octyrrum. The church of the Hourglass, a mostly abandoned building in the majority of regions, was along the side instead of sitting within the center. The other churches joined it, filling out the ring around the central courtyard. The last wedge of the octagon sitting opposite where the Hourglass was placed was empty, providing the main entryway into the quarter.

    Old stories told that this was meant to resemble the way of the Octyrrum before the great fall. Others cited the open space in the ring as a metaphor for how all peoples and all gods, even the Hourglass, had to come together against the threat of the Crest. In this moment, Sharise felt the design of the Divine Quarter did make for an excellent staging ground. The previous plan of setting up her church to respond to widespread storm injuries shifted into forming a support core with the Cloak¡¯s church. All Clerics had combat powers to some degree, but it was best to leave the followers of Scythe and Hammer to their work.

    Three in that retinue made her shudder. Black robes or armor with red accents, colors unpretending in their devotion to death. That she could see them was thanks to the Star church¡¯s hastily manufactured wards shielding them from the wind and sand. That left Knowledge¡¯s church, which had been rendered ineffective due to some suppressive power underlying the storm, and him.

    Hourglass¡¯ lone Cleric in Aughal. Every region needed a representative from each god. Where the reapers made her feathers itch, the sight of that man standing alone inspired actual fear. She, a sociable member of one of the friendliest churches, didn¡¯t know his name. ¡°We¡¯ll need him. Like sharp knives to dig out arrowheads, maybe, but there is a point¡±

    She turned to face Lograve. ¡°I know. Are you still unable to reach them, despite the storm¡¯s repulsion?¡±

    ¡°Yes. My guess is someone summoned it, and someone else enchanted it. Multiple high-level enemies, as if one wasn¡¯t enough.¡± Lograve was manipulating a complex floating ice sculpture resonating with as much mana density as the storm. Something she hadn¡¯t realized until she looked for it, prompted by the complaints of Knowledge¡¯s clergy.

    ¡°You aren¡¯t of the level to have evolved into a Ritualist.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not a Ritualist,¡± he replied evenly, not caught off guard that she recognized the power.

    ¡°Then how?¡±

    ¡°A mystery I haven¡¯t had the time to fully investigate. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ve added it to my list.¡± His posture relaxed for a moment, pausing the minute changes to the structure. ¡°To be honest I¡¯m not sure what this rune will do. Nothing harmful or, at least, nothing you can¡¯t fix.¡± He frowned in what Sharise was beginning to recognize as an ironic way as he asked, ¡°You do still have someone with Resurrection here, right?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re telling me you¡¯re going through all of that to target just one person?¡±

    ¡°W-well,¡± Lograve spluttered, then shook his head. ¡°I think this rune is tied to a life effect. Healing or prevention of damage perhaps? Some sort of vital resource. I have another that improves speed, though with most of the city engulfed by that,¡± he gestured to the raging storm, ¡°I¡¯d just be making you run into a wall faster. This may buy a group a few more seconds against that Geomancer.¡±

    ¡°It could be another class. You¡¯re hardly an Aquamancer.¡±

    ¡°Despite having their cardinal power? But I take your point. That¡¯s all I have. For all my practice with my feature I could hardly summon a monsoon with a snap of my fingers, even were your god to appear before us and grant me a few bonus levels. This is not just someone with Geokinesis. They have powers expanding their control, maybe even automating creations akin to other animation abilities.¡±

    ¡°The sandstorm could be natural.¡± Sharise didn¡¯t believe it herself, but it was a better alternative than facing down a treacherous level 6 mortal.

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    Lograve crossed his arms and thought for a moment. ¡°If it is, then they¡¯re just damned fortunate. That doesn¡¯t change the fact that someone¡¯s empowering it and that I faced an enemy that stabbed me with a spear of sand.¡± He rubbed underneath his shoulder. ¡°I¡¯ll have to submit a complaint about the quality of service I received after all of this.¡±

    Sharise eyed him. ¡°Have I mentioned we¡¯re billing you for the broom you landed on?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s hardly necessary.¡±

    ¡°It was a good broom.¡± She sighed. ¡°I need to direct my clergy. This has already taken too long. We should be marching to the Spires. The churches alone can¡¯t hope to hold everyone, and if this turns into a full siege-¡±

    ¡°Did you see that?¡± Lograve pointed to the roof of Torch¡¯s church where, true to the name, great sconces would illuminate the night and devalue surrounding property. The storm had been pushed back to the first third of the roof, leaving a stark separation between clean air and thick, whirling sand. Even that was enough to block sight after a foot or so. This was the worst of the storms Lograve had seen in the region.

    For a brief moment, he¡¯d caught movement that clashed with the random patterns. It seemed he wasn¡¯t the only one amongst the assembled who¡¯d noticed. ¡°Of course. They¡¯re trying to hit us before we mobilize. Another force at the Hunter¡¯s Guild too, likely.¡±

    ¡°Finish that rune Arcanist. And someone from the Cloak get over here to cover him!¡± Sharise ran towards where the reapers now stood, alert. Figures began to appear out of the storm, running along the main road and into the square.

    ¡°Sir, come with me.¡± Someone from the illusion church extended a hand. Like most of the clergy they were physically unremarkable, and probably not appearing as their true form. Lograve took the hand and blinked as five copies of himself, the Cleric, and his rune appeared and moved in separate directions.

    ¡°What level of power is this?¡± Lograve asked distractedly.

    ¡°Higher than 1, lower than 9.¡±

    ¡°I see. Is there any question you¡¯ll give a straight answer to?¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± the Cleric answered helpfully.

    The forces of the gods did not appreciate the true threat at first, because here there was a difference from the freshly-deceased faced elsewhere. They moved with a mockery of life, equipped with weapons they had learned over months how to use. Most importantly, they were in a uniform that painted the perfectly wrong picture.

    Mirage. A group said to be at the heart of many of Aughal¡¯s troubles, at least if you asked the elite. But what had they done really? ¡®Liberated¡¯ caravans moving throughout the desert, spreading discontent through propaganda no one could truly find the source of, and acting as a magnet for the malcontent. Oh, there were rumors of their involvement in assassinations as of late, but could anyone prove that?

    Perhaps their greatest claim to fame was that a member had never been captured alive. Even when caught unawares in the deserts outside the city, cornered rebels would round a dune and just disappear. Thus, the name. The truth? While many thought the Mirage had been building a resistance against the city, all the effort was toward making something else entirely. An army.

    The head of the Hammer¡¯s Church in Aughal was a level 4 Cleric by the name of Therodin, strongest of all the Clerics present. Middle-aged, but that was to be expected of those who took more to the church than hunting. Advancement was slower but stabler and the larger the church, the more opportunities for advancement. The focus this man carried was a tall staff tipped with horizontal bars off the top from which hung ornaments of various shapes and sizes. The collection was constantly changing, individual pieces in flux as they caught the light. It barely took a thought for the Cleric to expand his lungs and issue a challenging bellow.

    ¡°MIRAGE! YOU TRESPASS ON HOLY GROUND. ALL THOSE WHO CONTINUE WILL INVITE THE OCTYRRUM¡¯S WRATH.¡± The hundreds of individuals in mismatched cloth and metal armor adorned with roughly painted symbols ignored him. Arrows began to appear from the walls surrounding them in an uncoordinated reply. The clergy was outnumbered, though a full half could be counted as effective Blessed. The churches attracted those chasing the dream of leveling, especially those who had failed by other means. How many in the Mirage, even after surviving the deserts for months, could claim the same?

    Very little judging by what Hammer¡¯s champion could see. None before him spoke incantations or carried any Foci he could appreciate. ¡°Brothers, sisters, it appears they wish to drown us in waves of impious flesh. They will find no weakness here more than once. We are the ever changed, bending where others break thrice over. We command the bones of the earth and the freedom of the skies, making them unto each other. Through our Lord there will always be a path to victory!¡±

    Standing with him at the vanguard was the head of Scythe¡¯s church. She carried a less endowed Focus, a simple medallion with her god¡¯s symbol in line with what most adherents first bound themselves to. The avianoid squawked an order to her followers. ¡°Hey. You three. See them? Go kill ¡®em. The rest of you too.¡±

    ¡°One would recommend a more pious rebuke of these infidels as would befit your station, Cleric¡­ Killana.¡± The Hammer Cleric spoke the name with reluctance, knowing full well she¡¯d changed it after joining her church.

    The first of the Mirage was a hundred meters away. The arrows and rarer bolts found the occasional mark without major casualty. The prepared Hand Clerics were tending to battle wounds while Cloak Clerics created diversions and covered them. Star Clerics focused on their creations to push back more of the storm while Torch Clerics flexed their limited organizational ability within the safe zone. Time¡¯s church¡­ well, he couldn¡¯t see that Cleric and was frankly more comfortable that way.

    Therodin realized his counterpart had ignored him and decided to let the matter drop. Both she and her reapers looked bored. No sense of decorum, even now. His clergy were preparing themselves solemnly. They were about to kill mortals, people of the gods even if they had turned against them. For the church of Destruction that was something to look forward to, unless it seemed the process was to be more akin to a slaughter than something that would take effort.

    The head Cleric took in a breath to order the charge and kept inhaling as Hourglass¡¯ Cleric appeared beside him and placed a hand on his shoulder. He¡¯d just appeared there, and it hadn¡¯t been teleportation. The man spoke in what was an unnervingly conversational tone. ¡°You lasted about twenty seconds. They¡¯re all harder to kill than normal, you have to destroy the head or chest enough or they won¡¯t stop. One big dusker in robes is even worse. That one targets the head Clerics, turns to sand to get around and hide. Ignored pretty much everything we threw at it, reapers included. Doesn¡¯t have a problem killing us though. Comes up from the ground after the first wave hits. No other big powers, though they might have caught on to what I was doing. Couldn¡¯t figure out much more. Sorry.¡±

    Then he set off in the direction of his church, mana no doubt fully expended. Wasn¡¯t that terrifying? Clerics devoted to a specific god specialized in that domain, and the power of the Hourglass was time. Once, Therodin had been informed by that man how he¡¯d died in a duel between them, which had just taken place in his relative past. A favor so that he could improve was the justification. Madness, but that was the way of the seventh Realm and its patron god.

    Therodin swept his staff forward, several of the baubles flinging off towards the Mirage¡¯s charge. The move was clearly out of practice but effective enough. The ornaments exploded and released stored transmutative energies, converting the air around them to fire, noxious gasses, and fields of arcing electricity among others. A wide palette of elemental death. It was probably how he¡¯d started the battle in the version the time Cleric had seen, but he grabbed Killana¡¯s arm before she followed up on the ability. ¡°No. That is to buy time. We fall back until we observe this greater threat and make of it what we can.¡±

    Killana stared at him incredulously, both for the interruption and because you didn¡¯t just grab a Scythe Cleric and expect to keep the arm. That warning about the reapers made her reconsider her instinctual response. ¡°Fine. Fine. Let¡¯s-¡± Her words cut off as the first of the Mirage made it through the affected areas. Not unscathed, but unbothered. And of those who¡¯d passed through fire or a similar insult, trailing smoke as they ran, the hole in the chest made it very clear something was wrong.

    Hammer and Scythe fell back as walls rose from the cobblestone to buy however much time they could. Ytaya, from her vantage, hesitated. That was odd. The Assassin¡¯s power should have blocked anyone from warning them if there even was someone to call the alarm. And they were sure, completely sure, no one had learned of the spawn¡¯s nature before tonight. So why the caution? Maybe one of the tunics had fallen off during the charge. Maybe that balding fool with the staff was craven.

    Either way, Ytaya decided to hold back for the moment and mark her targets. She wouldn¡¯t need to wait for backup since she was the strongest of the three brought back by those daggers. With immunity to all mortal powers, nigh invulnerability in these conditions, and the natural strength of her race boosted by her new form, Ytaya couldn¡¯t lose even if she had to fight this entire army alone.

    It was a shame she wouldn¡¯t be the one to claim Armafus¡¯ last legacy, but then again she did owe Casia her new, eternal life. It wouldn¡¯t matter in the end, when they broke the Spires and freed this place from the poison that was the Octyrrum.

 Chapter 144: Holdup

    Rait stood outside the doorway, not daring to move. At least he¡¯d done what¡¯d been asked of him: find Lord Aucrest Seliri. Council member. One of the only people who could help put an end to this madness. The person he was secretly reporting to in exchange for his freedom. The one who knew Thomas could bring people back from the dead. Currently, by the sounds of it, also fighting for his life.

    The manservant didn¡¯t move, because if he knew he was here, Rait was dead. He should have known before getting this close, but it had taken the muffled sounds of a desperate struggle to finally clue him in. If he¡¯d been more attentive, he¡¯d have remembered earlier that the walls in this part of the Sun Spire weren¡¯t painted red. He saw, firsthand, that indeed the dreaded Assassin had never left Aughal.

    ¡­

    Watch Sergeant Doran fought his way to the front of the crowds trying to reach the Sun Spire while the dusker and her gestalt spoke. Looking up, he could see the barrier that was always active around the Spires, the Shroud, as there was a very thin shell of clean air around the towers. The entrances were an exception, though the large doors were closed and a line of guards provided further shelter for the doors behind them

    Spire guards were a separate entity from the main city guard. While they worked together, there was less separation between the authority of the Council and its forces than with the regular city watch. Additionally, they had a higher allotment of Blessed. Doran himself had received offers for promotions to their ranks, but that would have meant leaving the rest of his squad behind. As it turned out, he¡¯d done that anyway.

    One of the spire guards was projecting an illusive outline of a shield in midair in front of her, sourced from a physical shield she was holding in both arms. The width of the project shield more than covered the bottom of the steps leading to the main entrance, blocking off the crowds trying to force their way through. The power pushed against him as well, but Doran was sturdy enough to resist and the Knight selectively allowed him to pass once she saw him.

    ¡°Watch Sergeant Doran, HURT squad leader,¡± he announced to the ranking guard. ¡°We encountered a high-level enemy threat that wiped out most of my squad. I¡¯ve got citizens swept up along on our retreat choking in this storm. Why are the damn doors closed?¡±

    The look the other man gave him spoke of someone who¡¯d just been told to jump off the Eye. ¡°By order of the Council, the Spires are to remain closed to all but members of a recognized noble house.¡±

    ¡°Sir! We have a member of the Talus family requesting entry.¡± One of the guards holding the line spoke over Doran¡¯s reply. ¡°They¡¯re passing the verity test, but they want to bring someone unauthorized.¡± A pointed finger indicated an avianoid who had been allowed to pass by the Knight. She was standing, fighting someone holding her, reaching out to a man still being held back by the ephemeral shield.

    The lead Spire guard sighed loud enough to be heard over the wind. ¡°Our orders were clear. She can stay out with him or come through alone.¡± He bit off a curse towards the end, and Doran could imagine why. He watched as the woman held back tears and stepped up to pass by Doran, who looked back at the crowd. Anticipating.

    A few moments after the front gate was opened, the front of the crowd pushed forward. The Knight stumbled back, the floating shield coming closer to her, but she held on with the assistance of several others pressing at her back. It was a brief moment, no one in the throng ahead actually wanted to fight their way through, but the sight of safety was irresistible. Even if it were only the crack of a door that was now closed once more. ¡°This is a fucking mess,¡± Doran said. ¡°We¡¯ve got an HL tearing through this city and this is what the Council is doing? If it comes this way everyone here¡¯s dead.¡±

    ¡°Watch Sergeant, are you reporting under my command? Otherwise, you need to return to your post.¡± It was an effective dismissal from a superior seeing five steps ahead in the conversation. In truth, Doran knew this wasn¡¯t going anywhere either.

    Doran had to push his way back through the crowd, working against the now more tightly packed front. He picked up a man who had been thrown down in the press on the way, making sure he wasn¡¯t too injured. There wasn¡¯t much he could do with his powers, not being a devotee of the Hand, but Doran wasn¡¯t about to leave someone down.

    Most of the people he¡¯d gathered were now indistinguishable amidst the crowds, but the two he¡¯d tagged, as well as the remainder of his squad, were easier to pick out. Out of practiced habit, he removed the glowing outline along Khiat and the gestalt when he returned to them. ¡°Well?¡± one of his men asked.

    ¡°It¡¯s bad. We¡¯re close to a riot here, in terrible conditions, with the city under siege. How did this happen?¡±

    ¡°Why aren¡¯t they letting people through?¡± Khiat asked.

    ¡°Someone on the Council¡¯s an idiot.¡± Doran thought for a moment. ¡°Damn, there¡¯s only two left. Silver Eye must not have gotten an order through first, he wouldn¡¯t be this stupid.¡± Even his own were confused at that. ¡°The spire guard obeys the majority will of the Council unless they¡¯re specifically attached to a noble house. There are only two left so it¡¯s just the first order that matters. Guess that makes Bennar Hammerson a coward and an idiot.¡±

    Vascott looked uneasily towards the crowds, some of which the squad had brought here because they¡¯d expected to find safety for them. ¡°So what do we do?¡±

    Doran bit his lip. ¡°The rest of the guard should be mobilizing. Churches too. But we¡¯re going to need the Hunter¡¯s Guild working with them. Damn it, we might need everything to take whoever this is down. Look, if you want to wait here for your friends, go ahead. My team¡¯s not up for another fight right now so scooping up hunters makes sense. We know the city, and we can move fast in a sandstorm. Bring all that back here and even those topheads wouldn¡¯t stop us from letting people in. We just need¡­ need to¡­¡± Doran trailed off as cries rang out from ahead. The spire guard was pulling back up the stairs rapidly, but not because everyone had decided to charge at once.

    Instead, the blank space representing the Shroud was falling over the gateway to completely close it off. While the barrier extended outwards from most of the stonework, it directly covered the main door leaving the stairs and the spire guard still exposed with their backs now to a wall. Doran might be able to bring everything back to this spot, but that no longer mattered. The Shroud around the Spires was a fragment of a fragment of the power of the Octyrrum. As far as they were concerned, unbreakable.

    ¡­

    He looked for the emotions that had come before, wary of them. With surprise, the jealousy didn¡¯t return. Part of it might be the active zombie apocalypse, which in this world meant super zombies. Were the undead duskers weak to sunlight anymore? Probably, that would make sense. But beyond those thoughts in his head, when Daniel heard the news of Hunter¡¯s new power he was only glad he was alive.

    In between that was consoling the confused avianoid, Tlara¡¯s sister somehow, and coming to an understanding with the Artificer who had effectively kidnapped him. One of those conversations had been considerably less pleasant. Arpan was out of mana and in a very poor position to ask Daniel to get back in the strange mirror. In fact, without his store and with the mana in his armor depleted, he was just about helpless. Level disparity had been unkind to the attributes he could have used to directly fight with. Daniel wasn¡¯t sure what would happen or how he felt about Arpan now. It was all happening fast.

    What he was sure about was time had healed his reservations about Hunter¡¯s other bond. That and seeing how it kept him alive. Though, even if Daniel had no jealousy, he afforded some incredulity. Ok wait, so this power quarters the damage you take!?

    No. It halves it, Tak¡¯s voice chirped. He and Gadriel were almost at the Sun Spire and, Willow¡¯s familiarity with the streets willing, they were headed that way too. Two people take one person¡¯s damage. The math is simple.

    Well, yeah, but you both have Regeneration. So it¡¯s half damage which gets healed twice as fast. Hunter gave him a furrowed stare. What?

    Why does that matter?

    Because¡­ Daniel trailed off. Well, he was technically right, but without concrete damage numbers it didn¡¯t matter. This world didn¡¯t have abstract damage numbers, so did having an exact, clinical understanding of how each power worked down to the numbers matter? Yes, but Daniel didn¡¯t feel it was the time to argue the point. So do we know where everyone else is?

    No. I heard everyone else right after, but then it cut off, Tak replied.

    The storm, yeah. The air was so thick he¡¯d probably get some kind of lung condition if it weren¡¯t for Regeneration.

    ¡°This is the main road,¡± Willow said, breaking them out of the mental conversation. She was sad and scared, pushing forward only because the bodies she¡¯d appeared around made it clear this was flight or fight time. She peered up at one of the street signs, and the small mark on one side that indicated the way to the Spires in case there was a storm. Sometimes familiarity beat both cunning and intellect. ¡°Maybe ten minutes away in this.¡±

    ¡°The streets are so empty,¡± Arpan commented blearily. ¡°I might have come out more if they were like this.¡± They passed another building with a broken facade and kept moving, knowing what they¡¯d find inside. ¡°Damn it. I didn¡¯t have a choice.¡±

    This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    No one gave him any comfort. In fact, they were trying to keep the noise down in case they attracted more of them. So far they¡¯d just encountered the wreckage the zombies had caused. It was a small mercy that these undead didn¡¯t cause their victims to also rise. Daniel was starting to wonder if his initial assumption was right, but there was no denying that whatever they were, the people they used to be were definitely dead. Even thinking that, Daniel feared fighting them. He didn¡¯t want to kill anyone else on these streets, even if they were just monsters now that looked like people.

    The storm was making everything worse. He¡¯d never seen anything like this, even counting the few that had come through before. Someone was blocking communication powers with it, and the effect was strong enough to suppress Lograve. Also, were Hunter¡¯s flank right next to him, he wouldn¡¯t be able to see his head. Strangely, Identify Creature still functioned despite not being from a Bond, so that was less of an issue. It seemed only specific types of powers were being blocked. It¡¯s too bad we can¡¯t share this with Tak, he could at least tag himself.

    I should have marked everyone on the way here, Hunter rumbled.

    You were worried about me. Daniel smiled despite everything. It¡¯s fine, I¡¯m sure they¡¯re fine. Unless they run into that sand thing, everyone else should be able to take care of themselves.

    Thomas?

    Well, you said he was in a Spire right? He¡¯ll be fine. Hunter, illuminated in the storm, stopped. What?

    A hand grabbed Daniel by the throat and pinned him against the wall. They¡¯d come from the storm so quickly. Hunter tried to jump for him but crossed something that flashed on the ground. A rope appeared around one of his back legs and yanked him into the air.

    The pressure on his throat choked him as the assailant used his other hand to slap a cord of rope around one wrist. It flowed over to his other hand and, in a matter of seconds, restrained his arms. The ambush was clearly practiced, and there were only two of them. Two of them, and the auras Hunter reflexively placed showed they were mostly hostile. Not deep red like a monster, but-

    <hr>

    Qess - (Avianoid, Ranger - 3)

    <hr>

    That was feathers brushing against his shoulder, wasn¡¯t it? He tried to talk but couldn¡¯t get any words out. Hunter, it¡¯s Farthest Run. What¡¯s going on?

    ¡°Why?¡± Hunter asked since he was only hoisted up. Despite this, his attempts at Jaunting out were being suppressed. The power restraining him appeared to go beyond the physical. Even Daniel trying Dodge Roll didn¡¯t work as their bond related to the sharing of the power, not the power itself.

    ¡°I told you following her would work. Qess, let up but don¡¯t let him speak an incantation,¡± Gordon said as two more auras flicked into view. Marky, staring at Hunter, and Taloran, looking conflicted. ¡°We¡¯re going to talk.¡±

    ¡°Gotta make this fast, Gordon, either way,¡± Qess said in the same professional tone like Daniel was their target. Wait, Crest, he was their quarry. Why did people keep kidnapping him? ¡°How long do you think they¡¯ll wait?¡±

    ¡°A few minutes, I¡¯d guess. Don¡¯t do that!¡± Gordon turned away from Hunter and the tip of a sword became visible through the storm, pointed away from Daniel. There was a soft gasp from Arpan. ¡°And don¡¯t move.¡±

    ¡°What are you?¡± Marky asked Hunter in the silence that followed.

    ¡°I am going to kill you.¡± The ringcat tried to flex himself upward to cut at the rope, but his body was both too long and too heavy. Tak, help us.

    Smart, Daniel thought privately. He should have done that immediately. Screw this. I don¡¯t care what their reasons are, we¡¯re getting out of here. Hunter and Tak began to coordinate as he tried to buy time, both to think and for his friends to arrive. ¡°What are you doing?¡± He choked out as the arm relented though did not leave his throat. ¡°Don¡¯t you know what¡¯s going on?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s exactly why.¡± Gordon lowered his short sword as Arpan complied and, with quick footwork, struck. In a moment he made a small cut against Hunter, sliding in and out of range of his paws. The Ranger frowned for a second, having met some unexpected resistance. Then, he tasted it, spitting a moment later. ¡°Ringcat. Pure, not a morph.¡±

    Daniel was about to ask how he was so sure until the Ranger glanced at Marky and nodded. ¡°You¡¯re not one of mine,¡± the Druid said, shaky but determined. ¡°This is really you, isn¡¯t it?¡± He turned to Daniel. ¡°The Crest got to all of you before you made it out. No one kills a dragon like that at your level, even by drowning it in blood. It¡¯s people like you that make everyone hate my class. Spiritualists.¡±

    Qess turned her head to the side. ¡°You know, I heard a rumor one of the Spireborn was pushing that crap and here she is. The daughter of a Councilmember that mysteriously disappeared. What a coincidence. But Arpan? How do you fit into this?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t!¡± the Artificer exclaimed. ¡°I- in fact, they took me hostage!¡± Hunter growled deeply as he rotated in the air to face the man. ¡°We need to get out of the city.¡±

    ¡°No. We need to find out what the plan is.¡± Gordon flipped the sword in his hand, catching the hilt again after a full rotation. ¡°They hit the Hunter¡¯s Guild, you know? Those things, the people your side corrupted? We lost people, you bastard.¡±

    Daniel had no idea why Farthest Run thought they were with the enemy, up until he considered that there were very good reasons they tried to keep Hunter¡¯s true identity secret. Even Khiat had struggled with accepting the truth, and these people learning about it secondhand somehow? The fact that all monsters were evil and couldn¡¯t do what Hunter did was ingrained in the religion of this world. It was something you couldn¡¯t easily ignore. ¡°I¡­¡± Daniel tried to explain, but what would he say? ¡®I¡¯m from another world.¡¯ ¡®You have exactly the wrong impression.¡¯ ¡®Not all monsters are evil.¡¯ There was no one good thing to say here, no way to explain with the time they had.

    No willingness to listen either. ¡°What¡¯s the plan! How do we stop it?¡± Gordon shouted.

    ¡°Guys,¡± Taloran muttered. ¡°Are we sure about this? Evalyn, I mean, I don¡¯t think¡­¡±

    ¡°Tal this is not the time to think with your dick,¡± Marky chastised. ¡°They¡¯re the enemy!¡± The Bard shrunk away.

    ¡°Start talking Daniel, or we start cutting,¡± Qess threatened, as if they hadn¡¯t already made this dynamic clear. Markus brought his knife closer to Hunter.

    ¡°Wait!¡± Of all people, Willow cried out. ¡°Wait. Please, not him.¡± Neither Ranger missed the look of confusion on Daniel¡¯s face, though their attention focused on her. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you everything.¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°It¡¯s taking him too long.¡± Thomas paced back and forth, hearing occasional movement when he neared the door but nothing else. The storm raged outside, though it was held at bay by the Spire¡¯s protections. ¡°Hey, earlier we were worried about you finding our Artificer friend. Any way you could track down this Geomancer?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Silora folded her arms from across the chambers. ¡°Don¡¯t look at me like that. This storm¡¯s blocking everything I can try.¡± Thomas raised an eyebrow. ¡°Well, damn it. Don¡¯t tell me to do anything! I hate that. Stupid bond. I have a high level power, Regional Log. It keeps track of how many things above a certain level there are, monsters and people. I usually keep it above level 4. I have to read everything that comes up and that¡¯s so annoying. Did you know we have more than twenty over that threshold? Half are Craftsmen though, or some variant.¡± Somehow, the shavi sounded bored. ¡°I ran it yesterday. No new big monsters or anything like that, and someone took care of the skink that was running around last month.¡±

    Thomas walked back over and sat down in the divining chamber. ¡°That doesn¡¯t make sense. Lograve said there¡¯s someone here higher level than he is. At least one. I mean, someone¡¯s blocking your powers.¡±

    Silora shrugged. ¡°Someone was already doing that. The Council was drying me out over this new Assassin that showed up but they kept coming on and off the log. I thought they were on a border at first, but the other regions didn¡¯t see them so something was messing with my powers.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not that.¡±

    Silora¡¯s head snapped around. ¡°Wait, you know what was doing that? I was losing sleep trying to figure it out!¡± She fumbled with a bottle and Thomas fought the urge to ask her to stop. Concern for her health balanced against his desire to limit his use of their contract bond. He¡¯d left the Thormundz in part because of how he¡¯d disagreed with his family¡¯s ethos. Eddor being in charge of the family was enough to inflict on the world. ¡°Not that it matters now.¡±

    ¡°So there¡¯s nothing else you can do?¡± Thomas felt a sinking feeling as Silora avoided his gaze. ¡°Please, tell me.¡±

    She looked more pained now than any other time he¡¯d asked for something. He didn¡¯t take it back though. ¡°I- N,n,¡± The Fate was trying to fight the bond now, straining against it. The former one would have killed her for an earnest attempt. Thomas didn¡¯t know what would happen here, the agreement had been simpler. He could have even ended it here. He didn¡¯t. ¡°I don¡¯t ever use it,¡± Silora said quietly, forced to speak but trying to put as many words before the truth as she could. ¡°Not even the Council knows about it. I think I only have enough mana left to do it once anyway, I couldn¡¯t even manage it so there¡¯s no point in-¡±

    ¡°What is it?¡±

    Her hands started to shake. ¡°I don¡¯t know if the storm would block it or not. I really don¡¯t. I don¡¯t. I don¡¯t. So let¡¯s just not talk about it.¡±

    Thomas looked down and away for a moment. ¡°I¡¯m only asking because it could help my friends. And because the only reason we¡¯re here is because of you. Tell me about that power.¡±

    ¡°I can see the future.¡± Silora gave that statement the dramatic pause it deserved, and Thomas couldn¡¯t begrudge her that. ¡°I can¡¯t control what I see. I could see anything and it will come true. I tried to stop a vision once, change what would happen. It didn¡¯t work.¡±

    And I thought I had the cool hidden power, Thomas thought. ¡°Why don¡¯t you use it more?¡±

    ¡°Besides the mana cost? I can see anything, Thomas. Anything! What if, what if I see how I die? I-I already saw what happened last night. The contract killing me.¡± She shivered. ¡°I don¡¯t want to see another death now that I¡¯ve maneuvered my way back to life. If I use this now there¡¯s no way of telling what I¡¯ll see, and it will take me out for the rest of the day. Let¡¯s just forget about it?¡±

    He glanced towards the window. ¡°I don¡¯t think the storm would block it if you¡¯re looking into the future. Maybe if you use it more, you¡¯ll learn how to control it. What if I told you to use it to see something specific?¡±

    Silora looked briefly intrigued before the fear crept back in. ¡°No. I won¡¯t do it.¡±

    Thomas sighed. ¡°Alright. Damn, but if it happens either way I guess there¡¯s no point in knowing. If we could talk to Lograve, maybe, but¡­¡±

    The Fate clutched onto that like all the water in the desert. ¡°You¡¯re very kind Thomas. I think your mercy is one of your greatest strengths. Why don¡¯t we just relax and let the guard do their job? They are competent, you know. I¡¯m sure everything¡¯s fine.¡± At that moment, there was a shift in the air outside. A flash of the membrane surrounding the Spire. ¡°What was that?¡±

    ¡°They adjusted the Shroud?¡± Thomas stuck a hand through the window, fearing the defenses had been lowered. His hand met no resistance, but he could still see the Shroud. There was now a gap of a couple of meters between the Spire wall and it though. ¡°Can you try to scry the Eye?¡± It wasn¡¯t an order although Silora still obliged, saving her moments of resistance for when it counted. Also, because she didn¡¯t know what was going on and it seemed Thomas might.

    ¡°Oh. That¡¯s different.¡± She frowned. ¡°I¡¯m still being blocked but it¡¯s a firmer presence now. A wall in my way instead of my power just fading when it hits the storm.¡±

    ¡°They must have raised the siege ward. Do they have enough of a Council left to do that?¡± Thomas turned back to Silora. ¡°You can still scry inside the Spire, right? We need to find Rait. They just closed us off from the rest of the city.¡±

    ¡°Really? Gods, it must be getting bad out there. I can see if I can find him, but if the Spoke is keeping us safe I don¡¯t see what the problem is.¡±

    Thomas met her eyes. ¡°Silora, what if they¡¯re already in here?¡±

 Chapter 145: Meltdown

    Ytaya joined the assault on the Divine Quarter as an avatar of the storm. Moving about in the dissociated form as a cloud of sand had its disadvantages. She couldn¡¯t create spawn with her attacks, they were less powerful, and she could die should the material of her body be scattered faster than she could replenish it. Little issue in a sandstorm, though ultimately what bothered Ytaya most was how the form made her feel. The comparison to gestalt was more uncomfortable than dying had been.

    Somehow, they were aware of her presence here. Fredreick had let those he ambushed escape. There was also an impressive array of Blessed before her, perhaps one had pierced the storm? No matter. They couldn¡¯t kill her and, in return, she¡¯d already snuffed out the head of Torch¡¯s church.

    The Cleric had been trickier than anticipated. Ytaya had shifted her focus after the combined forces retreated, choosing to pick off the weakest head Cleric rather than the strongest first. They¡¯d still been able to avoid Ytaya for a time, being able to see in practically every direction and able to predict where attacks were coming from. When that answer had been ¡®everywhere¡¯, he¡¯d lost.

    Star¡¯s Cleric had used a bevy of rapidly produced objects to try and fight her. Like an Artificer, except their creations were impermanent and driven by narrowly scoped powers. One had managed to dig into Ytaya¡¯s main body before exploding. That had almost worked but for the part scattered into the storm where she regained consciousness. It was a reminder that while she was immune to the direct effects of mortal powers, the secondary nonmagical results could damage her. However, in this storm, Ytaya practically had unlimited endurance.

    Perhaps in another environment they could kill her that way. Instead, she was able to wear down the enchantment Cleric¡¯s defensive charms and end them. ¡°Two of the seven down,¡± she reported. ¡°The spawn are keeping them contained.¡±

    ¡°I am fighting the Tyrant. They are elusive but the servants fall easily. Really, pathetic. This is a Tyrant? Casia, I may not need you after all.¡±

    ¡°Fredreick, be careful and withdraw if it seems too easy. I am in place on the Eye and the siege wards are in place. You cannot die.¡±

    Ytaya looked for her next target while the two argued. She had her own promised reinforcements, unnecessary though they may be. Spawn from higher-level individuals did make for stronger servants, though they did not benefit from the powers they had in life.

    The storm pressed further into the courtyard as the Star Cleric¡¯s death made its impact on the constructs pushing against it. Five left, although Ytaya also considered whichever true version of the six Arcanists running around an additional sixth. That was the one who had escaped Fredreick, who was now channeling some form of charge power. Those tended to be more destructive the longer it took to summon the effect. Ytaya was beyond mortal powers now, but perhaps she should-

    ¡°You. The promise of our god. Everything dies.¡± A soft, feminine voice released an incantation to the wind and a powerful surge of mana crashed against Ytaya. Pointlessly, though it made the fallen dusker take notice. That hadn¡¯t come from any of her remaining targets. Most of Scythe¡¯s people were trying to eliminate the spawn and remove the harrying force from the field while Transmutation and Illusion covered them. Ytaya turned her head and realized who the people standing in loose formation were.

    ¡°Reapers.¡± Just as the Council kept note on those who possessed the precious resource that was Resurrection, so too did they track its dark opposite within the church of Scythe. Resources she¡¯d prefer to keep alive if possible, if only to give them a chance to come on her side after the plan succeeded. Ytaya eyed Restoration¡¯s head Cleric instead. A limited threat, though taking their healing off of the table would cripple the churchs¡¯ longevity.

    ¡°The first and last law. Everything dies.¡± The second of the imperious three spoke the incantation like the curse it was, saturated with black disdain. He carried a metal quarterstaff, one half-crescent blade arcing for opposite ends. The mana tried to eat at her mortality and shred at her soul to, among other things, prevent the possibility of revival. Fortunately she was beyond them and the power parted around her like a rock in a river.

    ¡°For the good of us all. Everything dies.¡± The last voice sounded regretful, though he advanced with the others all the same. A large club of a blade trailed behind him, held in only one hand. Scythe¡¯s head Cleric wasn¡¯t among them. Despite her position, she didn¡¯t have that power. They still came on, even though they must have known their powers had failed.

    The clink of glass gave Ytaya pause. Each reaper had withdrawn a potion and consumed it while she turned from them. The first speaker, the one with two long knives, spoke again. ¡°The inescapable fate. Everything dies.¡±

    ¡°You tread on death¡¯s domain. Everything dies.¡±

    ¡°The mercy at the end of strife. Everything dies.¡±

    Something was happening. It- Ytaya could feel the magic now, faintly. Impossible! Casia had said- ¡°You told us we were proof against all mortal powers!¡± That was the great equalizer, allowing her and the other two to consider assailing an entire city with just themselves and a small army of minions. No one had a strong enough beast in their thrall to counter them, and even if bonded powers would pose a threat, they were rare or weak enough not to matter. This power shouldn¡¯t have touched her, but the dark mana was beginning to collect on her like scum in a still pond.

    ¡°Everything dies.¡± The reapers spoke the third incantation as one and Ytaya gasped. She¡¯d tried to take off into the storm, only for everything to become real again. This shouldn¡¯t be happening. The air was heavy. Flying was out, but she could run.

    The reapers didn¡¯t reach for any more vials. Out of mana potions? Three each, fit for their level, was already an insane expense. Good, that was good. Ytaya felt whatever effect the reapers had been able to force through dwindling. It was like being exposed to the sun in this new form. Not instant death, but she couldn¡¯t pull from the storm around her to replenish her main body. Taking enough damage now would shatter the vessel housing her consciousness and send it back across the line of mortality. Had they just brute forced it? No matter, they weren¡¯t incanting now. If she ran and regrouped, she could kill those three next and be rid of the threat once this effect ended.

    That was when the blue ring shot out and passed through the three, surprising her and the reapers. It was shaped like a smoke ring, though more luminescent, and in the center was a strange configuration of spheres and lines. After passing through the reapers, the circumference shrunk dramatically. What kind of power was that?

    ¡°Unexpected¡±

    ¡°Just.¡±

    The third reaper spoke in turn. ¡°The end is nigh. For you. Everything dies.¡±

    Another blast of mana threw Ytaya to her knees. She took in a breath and realized what that meant in the next moment. The former dusker looked down, but no, she hadn¡¯t been returned to life. The reapers slowly walked to her, not having stopped for the strange ring or the husks that continued to fight around them.

    ¡°Ytaya, what is happening? The Commander¡¯s husk is almost to you.¡±

    ¡°I-¡° A knife struck her in the throat and but for her nature she would have bled. Ytaya did feel like she was bleeding something. Life itself? The bladed staff took off an arm which failed to reform. It fell dead to the ground as a hardened block of sandstone, looking so similar now to her original body.

    The dagger rotated around her throat as the first reaper moved. Moments later, a massive sword bisected Ytaya vertically. Everything began to grow dark. Actually¡­ that wasn¡¯t¡­ so bad¡­

    ¡­

    ¡°So that¡¯s what it does.¡± Lograve breathed heavily as he watched the Mirage elite die.

    The illusionist Cleric at his side, less winded despite having spent the entire battle so far maintaining multiple active illusions, asked a question with a piercing inflection. ¡°That looked like Ritualism. How do you have that power?¡±

    This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Lograve answered honestly. ¡°I¡¯ve compared what I can do to known figures who have it, and mine is certainly less efficient.¡± He leaned against a wall, fighting the urge to siphon water from his armor to drink. ¡°It must be some kind of level disparity, similar to attributes but for a power acquired too early. I didn¡¯t know that was possible. Speaking of, what did that pile of edge do? I recognized Beckon Mortality but that power shouldn¡¯t be affected by multiple uses.¡± He frowned, trying to figure it out.

    ¡°She must have been able to resist it. Resistance, not immunity. We wouldn¡¯t have figured that out the first time. Howard wouldn¡¯t have seen it.¡±

    ¡°Who?¡±

    ¡°Time¡¯s champion.¡± Lograve paled at the mention of that church, though he was already a bit blanched from prolonged exposure to his armor. The other continued as if he hadn¡¯t just mentioned the most terrifying church on the Octyrrum. ¡°That was power stacking. You¡¯re familiar with it?¡±

    ¡°An advanced maneuver, like dual-channeling,¡± Lograve answered distantly yet focused, similar to when he was carrying a mental conversation at the same time. He was starting to put something together. ¡°You told them to do that, didn¡¯t you?¡±

    ¡°Me?¡± The Cloak Cleric looked at him innocently. ¡°I¡¯ve been here the whole time.¡±

    ¡°But you pointed them out to me, knew I would give them just what they needed. You copied my rune like it was a stick drawing in the sand, not just once but multiple times, and independently controlled those illusions. I¡¯m very familiar with maintaining a wide area power and the level of control that takes. And you know the name of the only Hourglass Cleric in the region.¡± Lograve hesitated for just a second before trying to poke the man¡¯s chest. The Cleric had a put-upon expression as the finger went straight through.

    ¡°You do know I could have faked a physical presence?¡± The Arcanist¡¯s eyes widened as he was proven right. ¡°I¡¯m guessing you¡¯ve double checked with Sharise on the major figures in my church? Though it would be completely on brand to have a fake champion or hidden powerhouses. You have an idea of who I am, don¡¯t you?¡± Calius smiled, marking this man in his mind. ¡°The real battle is going to be at the Spires. The Eye.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Lograve was somehow paler. ¡°You¡¯re just telling me this?¡±

    ¡°The Cloak knows when subterfuge is needed, and when it is time to pull back the curtain.¡± The Cleric summoned an illusion in mid-air, similar to the one Lograve had used to plan the battle against the dragon and yet far more intricate. A perfect representation of the Divine Quarter. ¡°You¡¯re getting a peek. With that leader dead the churches can handle this battle. The next one will be the true test, and they won¡¯t be there in time. You¡¯ve played your part here. Move on. You would be more useful at the Eye. This isn¡¯t prophecy,¡± Calius clarified. ¡°This is just some friendly advice.¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°Ytaya? Ytaya!¡± Casia passed over the outer wall and felt the risen dusker fade. How had they killed her? The reapers¡¯ power should have had no effect. Yes, they could die, but not like that! ¡°Fredreick, have you killed that Tyrant yet!? The siege wards are closed, but losing Ytaya weakens our grip on the Spires. It cannot be allowed to continue subverting the city¡¯s will.¡±

    ¡°It is difficult. I am fighting their most loyal. This street trash still backs them even knowing the damn gestalt is a Tyrant! I am razing this street to the ground after this. Wait, what is that?¡±

    Casia made a snap decision. ¡°Pull back. I am diverting Rasalia¡¯s husk from the Divine Quarter to the Eye. The battle there is lost but we¡¯ve delayed enough. We claim the last legacy, and then-¡°

    ¡°AH! It burns! How?¡± Fredreick¡¯s voice carried a sudden agony which made Casia¡¯s lost heart freeze. ¡°You bitch! You told us we were immortal!¡±

    ¡°What is happening?¡±

    ¡­

    Ashier had lost half of their followers in an instant to mere words. The people of Aughal truly feared Tyrants more than the obvious monsters right in front of them. Hesitation was the only reason they had Proxies left. Breaking with the class meant death, and that motivated the rest to stay. That didn¡¯t change the irreparable damage the sand creature had done to their following, which would be repaid in death.

    If only Ashier could kill it. At first, they tried methods that would destroy one of their kind, which ultimately meant bludgeoning attacks with broad-headed weapons. Her remaining Proxies and odd collection of other classes had little else to contribute since they were fresh to their power. Rorshawd was not being let loose under any circumstance save Ashier¡¯s imminent death.

    That a spade empowered with the strength of a dragon didn¡¯t phase the enemy boded ill. If a Proxy could be granted Rorshawd¡¯s firebreath instead that may make a difference, though that was impossible. Power Network, the feature that enabled the way they could shuffle powers like attributes, only worked on those at or below their level.

    Ashier again regretted her monster¡¯s loss of Regeneration as a Proxy bled out from sand shards embedded along her legs. They resolved to Vassalize a Totem Warrior or Berserker whenever they had the chance, which wouldn¡¯t be now.

    ¡°We¡¯re going to die,¡± Famar said blankly. He¡¯d accepted his fate, and that he¡¯d been tricked. Like a man walking to the gallows, Ashier supposed. They would reward him, assuming they both survived. Famar would see, eventually, that what Ashier did was always just and good. They had a longer perspective and the willingness to do what needed to be done that at first, would seem heartless, but theirs was the way to the improvement of everyone¡¯s life. Even if distasteful actions were needed in the moment, like puppeting a less promising Proxy to distract the sand monster while others capitalized on the opportunity.

    The monster was ever gleeful in the repeated failures to kill it. That it took its time to savor kills was one of the reasons Ashier hadn¡¯t needed to flee yet. A more primal monster would have just been done with it already. Rorshawd would have burned everything to ash, and with control of a sandstorm, this thing could have caused a similar level of destruction.

    It came down to their biggest problem, Rorshawd¡¯s usefulness conflicting with his unruliness. Ashier couldn¡¯t trust him in this moment, not with so many innocents he¡¯d burn if given the chance. However, they¡¯d had another idea before the sand monster had revealed their identity that could still work.

    Stand still, Ashier commanded Famar through their bond.

    ¡°What!? It will kill me!¡± Famar verbally objected, but obeyed without the option to do otherwise. Having seen the earlier sacrificial plays, he knew what was coming. There¡¯d been a thin hope that the Tyrant would preserve him considering they¡¯d used him as their preferred vessel, but no. They were the most odious of classes, barely above monsters in the eyes of the gods. He¡¯d given up his soul to one, so dying was the least he should expect.

    The thing in the sand sensed the weakness like a sandlion scenting a nearby arterial cut. Even if it was plain to it this was a feint, what did it have to fear? Nothing they¡¯d done had harmed it so far, and it was made of sand. Was there even anything to attack?

    Famar felt the Tyrant leave him and knew then all they were doing was buying time for their escape. They¡¯d used whatever power cloaked them, leaving the man only with the sense of their cursed bond. The air rippled before him with the coming death. Perhaps, if he had the innate senses of the air gestalt that was now his master, he could know exactly when it would come. The only solace he felt was a coward¡¯s, that he wouldn¡¯t live to see the rest of his friends and family die.

    The monster became clear in the storm, having taken a humanoid form but shifting the arms into blades. There was creative cruelty in it, a mind experimenting with the various ways it could use an infinitely flexible form to kill. Not even Casia had shifted her base form to the degree of Rodreick, preferring only to sprout long talons if needed. As it came at the speed of the storm, Famar¡¯s throat took in the polluted air as he was forced to speak. ¡°Breathe now!¡± That being his last words seemed almost comical-

    A torrent of fire erupted from just in front of him and would have incinerated the Proxy if it were not pointed in the opposite direction. Ashier, currently contorting their form to open their Cloudborn Sanctuary, allowed the flames Rorshawd was forced to breathe to escape in a narrow plume aimed directly at the sand creature. Where nothing else had worked, this burned it along with the air.

    The voice of the creature screamed out in pain, cursing, as it tried to flee. It was fast, but Ashier currently possessed every stolen attribute from Rorshawd. The creature moved like the wind, but Ashier was the wind. Opening the portal took seconds, and the Tyrant could track where the enemy was even when they tried to hide amidst the swirling sands in a way no other mortal race could. They¡¯d made the command for Rorshawd to use his breath attack a standing order, one they could now trigger without needing a Proxy.

    A command from the nearest Proxy sent another wave of fire towards the enemy. Rorshawd did try to subvert her will here by refusing to stop the jet of flames, but the Tyrant simply closed the portal. As time froze while it was closed, not much fire was expended. The space itself was also undamaged by what flames spilled into it. Honestly, Ashier wasn¡¯t entirely sure of all of its properties yet. Unlike their sanctuary, the monster in front of them wasn¡¯t immune to his fire.

    By the fourth wave of flame it was clear whatever kept this strange monster going was burning away as the storm itself cleared from the heat. Rorshawd¡¯s mana was too, but he was getting the job done. No matter, they¡¯d work on finer control later. They had the chance now. The Tyrant regained their composure and sent a message to all of their remaining Proxies.

    You fear me, but it is my place in this world to serve the will of the Octyrrum and advance mortal kind. See this dreadful enemy fall to my hand and ask if I am truly the worst alternative. This is my pact. I spend lives, but not needlessly. With the shaking of this world comes the call for one such as I. A bastion against the peril of monsters and the weakness of mortals. Know this. I am but at the start of my path and seed of my power. With you, I will see it realized, and finally free this world from the stain that is the Crest.

    ¡­

    The last of the plotters froze in disbelief on the Eye, pausing for one moment to confirm the deaths before screaming in fury. Within the Sun Spire her husband still desperately fought against the Assassin.

    Below, the majority of the husks were being destroyed as the threat became known and the churches overcame Ytaya. Only one group of note remained, marching towards the Sun Spire and the crowds there. The final part of the plan began. There, caught between the unbreaking Shroud and the advancing horde, the invasion would become something far worse.

 Chapter 146: Interrogation

    Arpan was, despite being the highest leveled person there, continuing to prove his uselessness through his attempts to merge with the wall. If the Artificer actually had that power, and the mana to use it, he may have done so.

    Even Farthest Run was ignoring him, focused now on Willow¡¯s confession while keeping the other two contained. Telepathy was the only thing Daniel was sure they could get away with. The two Rangers were very perceptive, including things outside their visual field. Marky''s formerly affable demeanor was gone as he stared death at Hunter. Only Taloran showed some hesitation at the weapons drawn against other hunters.

    Willow¡¯s explanation thus far had focused on her involvement with the Mirage, which she claimed was not as large or insidious as people thought. The other team took direct issue with that, but not as much as her other affiliation.

    ¡°My entire class is looked down upon because of your people,¡± Marky accused, momentarily turning his Tlara-level glare from Hunter to Willow as the forced interrogation turned to Spiritualists. The Druid didn¡¯t shout, but the way he said it was far worse. Menacing without any sense of an attempt to be so. A quiet anger over a well of frustration and isolation that had just been uncapped. ¡°How can you turn from the Octyrrum, only to worship the things that slaughter anything without a second thought?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not what we are!¡± Willow objected, the only one in the situation able to freely move to some degree. She¡¯d been stripped of her magical items by the one that had taken her, meaning the young avianoid was barely a threat. ¡°We¡¯re trying to find the monsters that can be reasoned with. They exist! One is right there. If we can turn them against the Crest-¡±

    ¡°We have Beastmasters for that,¡± Gordon dismissed.

    ¡°I, I know. My sister is one. I think what she does is horrible. Enslaving something that can think just like us. I¡¯m not saying every monster is like him. The ones that only hate us should die. But the rest? Monsters can¡¯t Grow under a Beastmaster, we can never find out their true potential unless we take a chance like Daniel did.¡± The Artificer winced, wishing that Willow wouldn¡¯t be as familiar with him in the presence of the paranoid hunters. Otherwise, she was doing well. Maybe it was confidence earned from making similar speeches to others, though this was a particularly tough crowd.

    ¡°All your talking monsters have done tonight are slaughter hunters and innocent people.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not, I mean,¡± Willow looked down. ¡°I thought it was my Mom. She died, and something happened that meant she couldn¡¯t come back, only she did. I thought what we were doing was important. She knew everything. It had to be her. It is her. But why would she do this?¡±

    Some sympathy did cross the faces of Farthest Run when it became abundantly clear that if Willow had aided this invasion, she hadn¡¯t done so knowingly. Well, except for Marky. ¡°You think that matters? You think the Octyrrum has its laws for nothing? If this storm wasn¡¯t here, you could hear the screams of the people you and your damned mother are ¡®saving¡¯.¡±

    This is going bad. Tak?

    I am running, but Gadriel is being slow.

    Daniel blinked. You¡¯re faster than Gadriel? I thought he was higher level.

    He is bringing his date.

    What? That took Daniel right out of the tableau. Are you talking about that singer from last night?

    Yes. Tak sounded neither surprised nor too interested. Do not let them harm Hunter until they get there.

    What about me?

    You have Regeneration.

    So does Hunter!

    ¡°That doesn¡¯t fucking matter!¡± Marky¡¯s shout brought Daniel back into focus. Willow, whose speech had devolved into a series of ever more pleading excuses, was now trembling before the Druid. The two Rangers seemed content for the man to have it out. Taloran was trying to join Arpan in the wall. ¡°Gordon, how much longer do you think we have?¡±

    The Ranger sighed. ¡°At this point they¡¯re probably looking for us. We can take them, but I don¡¯t want to involve that shopkeeper. He¡¯s probably not in this. The Bard we can find later.¡± The two swords at his side were now both out of their sheathes, and he brought one up now as if to swing it towards Hunter. Was he going to!? ¡°Well, if there¡¯s nothing else you have to say, I¡¯m putting this one down.¡±

    Time slowed. Daniel had put off using the ability since it wouldn¡¯t make Tak run any faster and he was once again low on mana during a crisis. Now, they were out of time. He was nicer yesterday, Hunter complained, murder in his thoughts.

    Shit. Ok. I have one idea but it¡¯s going to aggro them. Hunter, you swap into me right after I use Claw Strike. You can¡¯t use Flash Jaunt in my body, but we can do the Jump/Dodge Roll combo from before on me. You Jump, I cut your rope and Dodge Roll out of the air before they catch me. I¡¯m pretty sure Qess isn¡¯t using a power to keep me pinned, just better strength. It was the only thing he¡¯d thought of that might not lead to one or both of them getting executed. We have to leave the other two. I don¡¯t know if we can get away, but if we run towards Tak we have a chance.

    They won¡¯t kill the sad girl. I don¡¯t care about the other one.

    Fair. You ready?

    Yes.

    Daniel was about to release the power when a thought occurred to him. You didn¡¯t complain about the time stop this time. Hunter just grunted a reply. Are you getting used to this?

    No, Hunter replied unconvincingly. I still don¡¯t like it. But it¡¯s not the worst.

    He¡¯d been avoiding tracing the path of the sword, but now Daniel did. I¡¯m guessing bisection is the worst?

    Yes.

    ¡­

    Gordon was good at many things, though he was not the highest leveled of their guild, nor of highest social prominence. As the earlier conflict with another team proved their inclusion of Marky in the team made them lower than average there, justified or not. But he was a solid hunter, reliable, literally willing to go the distance and help distant villages no one else wanted to spend a week getting to. Farthest Run, it was in the name. He was also good at hiding his true emotions, less a product of attributes and more his general demeanor.

    Marky¡¯s fury was true, but the Druid was specifically in a position where all he could do was verbally vent it. He and Qess were keeping their heads cool, constantly assessing the situation, treating this as a level-up hunt. The kind you went on when you wanted to advance at any cost. Oh, he was upset he had been lied to, which he was now sure was the case. Also frankly confused at how something like Hunter could exist. Most of all, Gordon dreaded how many lives had been lost and were being lost while they talked. He suspected Qess¡¯ anger strayed closer to true, which was why she was holding down Daniel instead of watching the ringcat.

    This attack wouldn¡¯t be lethal. Gordon knew the ringcat was both armored and in the possession of the Regeneration feature. He¡¯d seen an arm get torn off of it and get put back on moments later. That was actually where he¡¯d gotten this idea. With Willow providing ultimately useless information, this was his last gambit before he¡¯d ¡®take pity¡¯ on them and ¡®decide¡¯ to spare the ringcat. Marky would be furious, but neither was the plan to let them go. Hunter still may end up dead at the end of this, they all might share the same grave if the city fell, but if they could get any information-

    His thoughts were interrupted by honed instincts reorienting to a new threat. Daniel, somehow, had escaped Qess¡¯ grapple and shot into the air while effecting lateral movement. To one familiar with the beginnings of advanced power usage, it appeared to be dual-channeling of two separate movement powers. One they would have been ready for. Qess was leaping for the spot Daniel should have been, only for the Artificer to spin away. It was the same chain of powers the ringcat had used against Gtoll, only now the Artificer was doing it. What in the Crest is he?

    The sandstorm quickly enveloped the two, which would have been a problem for another class. ¡°I have some of his blood on my talon,¡± Qess reported to Gordon, indicating where her hand had dug into Daniel as he leaped. She reached for her waist. ¡°Going for a Tracking Shot.¡±

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    ¡°I¡¯ll copy. You two, stay with them.¡± Marky would have objected, save for the fact that he couldn¡¯t hope to keep up with the two Rangers unless he assumed a Bestial Form. That wasn¡¯t something the Druid felt comfortable doing right now. He ran alongside his avianoid partner, the familiarity of the hunt reflecting strangely on a home under fire. ¡°Bolas me.¡±

    Qess reached for her waist with a free hand but didn¡¯t toss Gordon one. Instead, it appeared in his offhand. Daniel and the ringcat weren¡¯t the only ones who¡¯d developed a bond. He¡¯d spent close to a decade hunting with Qess and they¡¯d known each other before then. That had still left them developmentally at the same point as the other pair if they trusted what had been said on their level of bond. If true, that just reaffirmed how odd bonds were compared to the consistent power gain of advancement.

    At the same time, the powers one gained from bonds could far overshadow advancement. ¡°Now.¡± Qess launched the bolas into the air, needing only a second to spin before the launch. Gordon mimicked her exactly with Copy Ability. It had a shared cooldown, but otherwise let them copy any ability the other had regardless of level. Even among two of the same class, there was enough variability in powers gained to be useful. Each thrown weapon tracked a different target and could be followed even where their heightened senses and other tracking powers failed.

    The weapons curved upwards as it soon became clear their quarry had jumped up to either side of the street. Neither Ranger had the Jump power, but they didn¡¯t need it. Gordon simply climbed up the wall by using his shortswords to offend Builders everywhere, barely breaking his stride. Qess, on the other hand, showed her mastery of the power unique to her race by briefly giving herself wings, propelling herself upwards, and reverting them once enough height had been gained. Sustained flight was something she was close to but still working on, an aspiration driving her chase of advancement.

    As he landed, Gordon¡¯s bolas fell to the roof. He could copy Qess¡¯ ability, but not everything she put into the throw like Extended Range. His hand pulsed as Qess tried to use their item swap power and he dropped the shortsword into its sheath. A small, flat stone appeared. Its appearance was deceiving, as this was worth lapis. The one item of actual quality they¡¯d gotten from Arpan had a similarly disarming name: transcription stone.

    The value was in that it transcribed thoughts, rather than words, and did so selectively. With the stone, Gordon and his partner had turned an already useful power into a communication method that worked over kilometers and could not be blocked by magical suppression. The brief message on the stone indicated that Daniel had jumped down into an alley, leaving the bolas to get tangled on a clothesline hung between the buildings. Gordon almost laughed when he saw that. Hardly an issue in the desert.

    He cleared the stone with his mind and sent back his response: keep tracking. The only reason they hadn¡¯t already caught up with their quarry was the need to track them in an urban environment. Also, through a sandstorm, but that was the lesser mitigating factor. Gordon had to deal with decreased effectiveness from his Terrain Affinity feature, which preferred natural environments, and the buildings gave the ringcat more options to throw off the trail then just jumping at an angle over the rise of a dune.

    What confused him was that the two were headed towards the Spires, not away. It was possible they were headed towards allies, but how in the Crest would they know where anyone was? Assuming the two were involved in the Spiritualist conspiracy, the Spires should be one of the last bastions of Aughal¡¯s defenses. Gods knew the nobility kept the best of the guard for themselves throughout the crisis which had led to Farthest Run serving as auxiliaries out in the city.

    Ultimately the chase led back to the street, Qess reporting that Daniel was following in roughly the same position on a side street and trying to reason while on the run. The Artificer was tiring and Qess never would. The ringcat, on the other hand, was too adept with movement to catch with movement. Gordon had never seen a monster with this degree of intellect or variety of movement powers. At one point he was pretty sure the ringcat had teleported through a thin barrier of cloth to buy precious seconds. It begged the question, how had it received so many powers? Even holding the two bonds it had responsible, it had shown far too much for that to make sense.

    Gordon frowned as another thought occurred. Hunter was definitely level 2. Weren¡¯t level 2 ringcats huge? All it came down to was confirmation that something was wrong, and the most likely answer was Spiritualist magic. Gordon sent over the transcription stone again, signaling that he was going for a takedown. Copy Ability had come off its minute-long cooldown and it was time for them to really start abusing their bond.

    The bond power was already good when it allowed him to use one of Qess¡¯ powers that he didn¡¯t have. Where it shined was when it let them double up on a power. Farthest Run had encountered power-stacking far earlier than most in their careers.

    What happened was this: Gordon used both Copy Ability and Burst of Speed five seconds after the transcription stone was sent, the default gap both knew to use. Qess only used Burst of Speed herself, but that meant that the copied power overlapped on Gordon. You couldn¡¯t normally use two actively maintained powers at the same time without dual-channeling, no less the same power, but bonds broke rules other powers observed. In this case, Copy Ability didn¡¯t count as a channeled ability since it was mirroring the mana flow of his partner.

    Only one of them could benefit from the stacked speed, but Qess was closer to her target. Gordon flew not like an arrow but a ballista bolt, benefitting from two speed enhancing abilities that also enhanced each other. A kind of synergy, as Daniel would call it. The movement power gave no better control, but the practiced Ranger kept himself steady as he bore down on the ringcat.

    Both his swords were out - he was confident enough to sprint with them - and there would be blood now. Hunter was too evasive, and clearly practiced at avoiding higher leveled enemies. They¡¯d wasted too much time and he didn¡¯t like the thought of leaving Marky alone with Taloran and Willow for too long. The Ranger could see how that could go wrong in many ways.

    Hunter¡¯s loping gallop was interrupted as Gordon¡¯s swords attempted to hamstring both rear legs. The Ranger knew exactly where to cut to disable important tendons and avoid major arteries. Beastmasters wouldn¡¯t pay for a monster that bled out halfway back to town. Strangely, his swords seemed to stick in the flesh, not penetrating as deep as he would have liked. Armor wasn¡¯t the problem, Hunter had limited to none on his limbs. Was this another power?

    A heavy weight tackled Gordon, throwing off his second strike. Tak, legs bleeding, shrieked at him. Gordon felt a moment of fear, remembering what the Totem Warrior could turn into when infuriated, only to realize it was just the normal avianoid equivalent of a scream. An angry one, sure, but Tak hadn¡¯t changed despite the emotion. Gtoll had been right on the money.

    Gordon threw off the avianoid, somewhat difficult as his opponent¡¯s class was strength specialized, only to throw up one of his blades and deflect a longsword that had come out of nowhere. Rather than come down in a follow-up strike, it flew back into the storm. He knew that power. Shit. Is everyone from the Thormundz compromised? Then a blast of sound split the storm and fully knocked him off his feet.

    ¡­

    Daniel was on his front, pressed into the ground while one of his arms was wrenched almost to the point of breaking. It could be said that the one doing it knew exactly how far they needed to pull. He really preferred Qess¡¯ earlier way of pinning him. She got me. Tell me you got there in time Tak.

    Yep. We got him.

    Thank god.

    Which one? Daniel ignored that.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to keep you here until I can use Gordon¡¯s Suppression Rope. Move and I start breaking your arms,¡± Qess told him. ¡°Then, you and that thing are going straight to the Hunter¡¯s Guild. What¡¯s left of it.¡±

    ¡°We didn¡¯t do this,¡± Daniel said to no effect. It hadn¡¯t worked the last ten times. When you say you ¡®got him¡¯, you mean you captured him right? The Artificer sighed in relief at the answer. He almost considered using Reassure for what he was about to say, but emotion powers could backfire easily if the other person realized what you were doing. ¡°Hunter got to Tak and Gadriel. They¡¯ve got Gordon just like you have me, so can we do some kind of prisoner trade and talk this out?¡±

    ¡°Bullshit.¡± Something small tore in his arm as it was twisted further. Daniel extremely disliked the fact that people knowing he had Regeneration meant they be less careful about his health. Everything still hurt! Earth-Daniel would have passed out by now. Part of him wished whatever contingency was being saved could be used right now, though his doppelganger must have felt the situation didn¡¯t call for it.

    ¡°I¡¯m not-¡±

    ¡°Shut up.¡± His arm twisted farther and Daniel did. He doubted anything he had could get him out of this hold. Flash Jaunt, sure, but Hunter couldn¡¯t share his powers or use those unique to him while inhabiting Daniel¡¯s body. For a bond that allowed them to share so many things, it did seem odd that that part was one way only.

    After a few moments of prolonged agony, the pressure relented and Qess shifted her hold to have an arm free. She¡¯d pulled out a rope and was waiting. Daniel couldn¡¯t see her face but felt the grip tightening on his arm as time passed. Tak and Hunter were in his head, making their way to him with a knocked out Gordon, something he was definitely not going to share now.

    Eventually, Qess spoke again. ¡°If they¡¯ve killed him, I swear your entire team dies.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re not evil! You¡¯re the ones who ambushed us and stop breaking my arm!¡± The pressure didn¡¯t relent. Daniel fought to keep his voice steady, drawing on memory and his approaching friends to keep a thin degree of calm. ¡°We were going to help at the Spires. If you hadn¡¯t come out of nowhere, we would both be helping instead of fighting each other! Why didn¡¯t you even just try to talk first?¡±

    ¡°You see a monster, you put it down. That¡¯s what it means to be a hunter. No hesitation.¡±

    Daniel wished he could give Qess a piercing stare, though if they were face to face he doubted he could pull it off through the tears of pain. ¡°You didn¡¯t kill Hunter at first. So you did hesitate. Yeah, he¡¯s not a Druid, but we only say that so people don¡¯t kill him! He would die for me and I¡­¡± His voice caught for a moment. Would I? ¡°I would do anything for him. We¡¯re friends. We¡¯ve been through worse than you.¡± That gave the Ranger a bit of pause, and Daniel a bit of pride. What¡¯s more, he wasn¡¯t lying.

    Figures appeared out of the storm. ¡°Put Daniel down!¡± Tak shouted. Qess blinked at the Artificer who was very much on the ground and partially in it as the storm deposited sand on him. ¡°Uh, step away! Let him go and we¡¯ll let him go.¡± This caused further confusion until Gadriel became visible, dragging Gordon along with him. The Ranger had a visible bruise on his face. As it turns out, once you knocked out a Tyrant it was all downhill from there.

    One look at Gordon was all Qess needed to let go of Daniel. ¡°Some Hero you turned out to be,¡± she spat at Gadriel. He only looked mildly offended in kind.

    ¡°I believe some form of misunderstanding is at play here,¡± he replied dryly. Both Daniel and Qess took a second look as the songbird walked up behind him, hand at her throat. The storm had diminished some of her appearance compared to the stage, though not by much. ¡°Perhaps we could discuss matters now that show of arms has made the stronger side clear.¡±

    ¡°If the rest of my team was here-¡±

    ¡°We would still outnumber you,¡± Tak cheerily informed her.

 Chapter 147: Pincered

    Daniel was ambushed a third time that day as they reached the main road after an uneasy truce was formed. Gordon and Qess looked like they wanted to run off, deciding to stay out of stubbornness more than anything. Even if they weren¡¯t in control, keeping eyes on Daniel and Hunter was still the best way they could think of to help the city aside from going and fighting the first monster they saw. Which, come to think of it, for a city under siege there was an apparent lack of heartless monsters.

    Then, the ambush. Daniel took three steps onto the main road before, coming out of the sand and throwing out her arms was, ¡°Evalyn!?¡± The Bard committed to the sneak attack, gripping him in the least painful hold he¡¯d been in all day. The mood changed when he saw who was following her. Willow, Marky, and Taloran. In Arpan¡¯s place though was somehow Ornithar. ¡°Toy guy?¡± He asked blankly.

    ¡°I was teleported into his shop after we tried to get you,¡± she explained. ¡°We were trying to make it to the Spires when we ran into those assholes. They said they¡¯d ¡®scout ahead for danger¡¯ and then just left us waiting in a random building. Eventually, I decided to go after them and found these two harassing a young woman.¡± None of the team answered the insults.

    ¡°How did you even find us?¡± Evalyn looked at Ornithar, who started.

    ¡°I, uhm, may have neglected to mention I can sense where some of my higher-end models are for a certain time after they leave my possession. It¡¯s mostly for theft prevention.¡± The old avianoid looked slightly abashed by the confession. ¡°I didn¡¯t think it would be useful until this young lady reminded me of your recent purchase. I¡¯m a little surprised you haven¡¯t imprinted them yet.¡±

    ¡°The ornithopters? They¡¯re in my bag of holding.¡±

    ¡°And?¡±

    Daniel took in the fact that there was a depth to economic powers even he hadn¡¯t thought of before someone else took over the conversation. Somewhat painfully, as no one and no power had healed him. ¡°Marky, Taloran, we¡¯re beat. Don¡¯t try anything now. Think of the end run.¡± That was probably a code, but no one did anything so Daniel relaxed.

    ¡°What are those for anyways?¡± Evalyn asked, as the group took stock and got their bearings.

    ¡°You remember how I can prototype something and get the formulae for a real version later?¡±

    ¡°How you can cheat, yes,¡± she nodded.

    ¡°It¡¯s not cheating. It¡¯s an exploit at best. And, these are for you.¡± He pulled out the finished construction from the bag. ¡°They¡¯re probably not helpful now, but I may as well give them to you.¡±

    Evalyn eyed the strange things with some hesitation. If you squinted, they almost looked like shoes. ¡°I¡¯m guessing I¡¯m supposed to wear them?¡±

    ¡°Winged boots.¡± Daniel took out a knife and started carving something into the underside of each ornithopter. Her name.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think two of those could support my weight.¡±

    ¡°Even though there isn¡¯t that much to support?¡± Daniel ventured, wary of a trap. ¡°It¡¯s fine. The ornithopters aren¡¯t the wings. I made small lightning wings out of the last of my heliorite. Together with the anti-gravity of the ornithopters, it should let you get up to a good height and hover, instead of drift down.¡± He shuffled awkwardly as he handed them to her. The assemblage was a bit sketchy, and he doubted they¡¯d survive a hit in battle.

    ¡°You started making these before we went up to the Eye.¡± The two fell behind as the others, through group agreement, made for the Spires. Gadriel seemed to sense something and told the others they would catch up.

    ¡°Yeah.¡± Daniel shrugged. ¡°I¡¯m not just going to scrap the project because you asked me hard questions.¡± He looked at the people vanishing into the storm before turning back. ¡°Besides, it makes sense to give you the flying item. When I can refine these I¡¯ll give you a proper set. I basically just stuck random parts from other common monsters here hoping that I only need one to give me the formulae later, so there¡¯s a good chance it won¡¯t take that long.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s a bunch of random monster parts in these and you want me to wear them?¡± Evalyn asked in mock affront.

    ¡°Yes? Did I mention they can make you fly? At least, I think they can. I haven¡¯t tested it but if Tak could control one with his hand you should be able to with your feet while you¡¯re in the air.¡±

    ¡°So, not the sort of thing to try out in the middle of this,¡± she observed, gesturing broadly at the sandstorm. Then, she dropped the act. ¡°Thank you.¡±

    ¡°No problem.¡± Daniel breathed in, still mentally catching up to the situation and grimacing at what his weak seventh sense was telling him. ¡°I wish I didn¡¯t keep running out of mana during all the bad stuff.¡±

    Evalyn looked confused at that. ¡°Did they take your potions?¡±

    ¡°My-¡± Daniel froze, and then slumped against a wall.

    ¡°You forgot about your potions, didn¡¯t you?¡± She laughed. ¡°The first thing I did when we heard you were in trouble was drink a mana potion. Do you want one of mine?¡±

    ¡°No. I¡¯ll just try and drink one without getting too much sand in it.¡± He pulled out a potion he now remembered was in his bag of holding, which had mercifully survived everything that had happened to him. Only two mana potions and two health potions. ¡°I should have bought more.¡±

    Halfway through the memory of the Alchemist who¡¯d made it came unbidden in his mind and he nearly replicated her unique way of brewing. Coughing, he finished it and stood up. ¡°You alright?¡± Evalyn asked.

    ¡°Yeah, I just almost died again. I do feel better though.¡± It wasn¡¯t a simple thing to drink a full potion outright. The total volume was around a quarter of a liter. Once it was finished, there was a sense of restoration that didn¡¯t entirely go away. Daniel spoke softly to the air. ¡°I¡¯m guessing you can¡¯t tell me exactly how much mana I just got back? Maybe as a percentage? Give me something out of a hundred.¡± His phone didn¡¯t vibrate, which meant Earth-Daniel was unable or unwilling to answer. Oh well. At least for this major catastrophe he was better prepared and with his friends. Once they got back to the Spires, they could take the fight to the enemy. Everything was going to be fine.

    ¡­

    The closing of the siege ward around the Spires didn¡¯t immediately usher in the final plan. There was a delay, a calculated one, to allow anger and fear to build up in the crowds before the end. While this served the ends of Casia¡¯s ilk, it had also narrowly allowed Tak¡¯s small group to bypass the threat that had spilled out of alleyways and side streets, now marching inexorably towards the Sun Spire.

    Oh, there were crowds that could have been targeted at any Spire. Choosing all of them would have defeated the purpose. All that was needed was an example, a push. One last straw. A second army, no, a third counting the district of duskers that had been risen to incite panic and push people into the trap.

    Guards from the main watchhouse. Taken at shift change, when you¡¯d think would be the worst time to hit them. Unless you didn¡¯t fear mortal weapons and wanted to take as much as you could get. They¡¯d been alive, if you could call it that, for long enough to return to a semblance of basic competence. Not fully restored into the training and experience the former city guard had, but they were all armed and pointed towards mostly defenseless, scared people.

    Only one person saw them coming.

    ¡­

    Watch Sergeant Doran¡¯s skin was prickling. He, Vascott, and Martin were holding with the two hunters at the rear of the crowds. They were mostly screening people coming in, looking for both injuries and news. Not as many were coming in, which was either a good or a bad sign. The fact that the newer ones didn¡¯t report seeing a monster, only hearing about one and coming here for shelter, was encouraging.

    Khiat and, he assumed, the gestalt were more anxious. They¡¯d seen one of their friends through the storm. While making their way to each other, however, the other had suddenly run off. With no way to track the avianiod, the dusker had come back to him instead. Honestly, with a bow that large he didn¡¯t begrudge her presence. If not for the fact that her race wasn¡¯t suited for his all-day team, he¡¯d consider trying to recruit her. Torch knew they needed everyone they could get after tonight.

    ¡°Doran. Movement.¡± Vascott hastily spat out some leaves he¡¯d snuck behind his filter mask as his second subordinate sighted something through the sandstorm. You could get about three meters of clear visibility in them, at least Doran could with his levels, but every so often the winds would shift just so to allow for a look at something farther. Doran thought this was like how lightning worked during a storm at night, but he¡¯d never been to the Thormundz before its fall.

    The multi-classed sergeant focused on the direction Martin indicated, straining for anything distinguishable. He had Identify Creature, a very useful power in his line of work which was wholly unaffected by the freak sandstorm. Khiat had mentioned telepathy was being blocked somehow, though however this was being done wasn¡¯t shutting down everything. The power was relatively easy to use and could even be heightened by his level in Martialist despite the fact that it originated from his faith in the Torch. If you asked him, there was a lot of things people assumed or just didn¡¯t know about multi-classing.

    His eyes caught a reflection of metal in the distance, just making it out as a breastplate. That was enough as a colored outline framed the figure. Doran swore though Vascott commented first. ¡°That¡¯s not teal boss.¡±

    Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

    ¡°¡®S black,¡± Martin added.

    ¡°Shit. Who are they?¡±

    Doran didn¡¯t answer, partly because his feature didn¡¯t reveal this individual¡¯s name, but also because there was something unmistakable about the gait. They were marching. ¡°This is going to be a slaughter. Martin, run up to the front and tell the guard there to stop being useless defending a door forged closed and get up here. I don¡¯t care about their loyalties, they¡¯re not about to use civilians as a shield.¡±

    ¡°On it!¡±

    Martin began to struggle his way through the crowd, though Doran was still dismayed at their prospects. ¡°It¡¯s why no one¡¯s reported seeing anything. They¡¯ve been forming up to hit us. Damn, but we don¡¯t have control over this crowd.¡± If it were up to him, he¡¯d funnel everyone to the courtyard between the Spires and under the Eye. The Shroud could extend there, it could go anywhere within a certain distance of the towers and was nigh unbreakable to mortal strength. If the Council wasn¡¯t so damned concerned about themselves, then what little they had to defend the city with could focus without worrying about casualties.

    The two hunters had drawn weapons, the gestalt taking a strange form that was like an amalgamation of plant and human he¡¯d never seen before. He had to say, as a Martialist, that the gestalt seemed far more proficient now than when they¡¯d been a dense ball of vines and knives. No matter how dexterous the tendril-like appendages were, actual hands offered far more control. Doran made a decision.

    ¡°You two, we¡¯re about to be deep in the dunes and I doubt your people will be here soon. I am formally offering to deputize you under my authority.¡±

    Khiat looked hesitant. ¡°I already have a team.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s just temporary. You in?¡±

    The gestalt of all people spoke first, in their simple way. ¡°Yes.¡± Khiat looked between the two, then nodded at Doran.

    ¡°Well then, welcome to HURT. Don¡¯t let it be said it doesn¡¯t come with benefits. I¡¯m a level 2 Martialist/Cleric of Torch.¡± With an effort of will, he extended one of his powers. ¡°This is Squad Sight. See the enemy down the road? That¡¯s probably their front rank.¡± He pointed to the black outline, indicating hostility, orienting the two new recruits to his power. As a limited designate ability, Squad Sight allowed Doran to share visual powers with those under his command. That currently just affected Identify Creature, though it was a potent extension nonetheless. He was about to explain the different colors when he saw something that had never happened before.

    There was an orange wedge pointing down at the distant enemy, gently floating up and down. A few seconds later, another appeared in the far, far distance. It was too small to make out, Doran only knowing it was there because whatever power this was gave him a mental indication. ¡°What is that?¡± he asked Khiat, though there was only confusion in the pattern on her face. Another wedge appeared, far closer. ¡°You?¡±

    ¡°Daniel,¡± the gestalt replied with relief.

    ¡°Oh! This is their marking power,¡± Khiat explained. ¡°I didn¡¯t think we could see it. Khare, they found Daniel!¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°Damn it,¡± Daniel randomly exclaimed as they were making their way to the Spires. He tried not to meet Evalyn¡¯s eyes as he explained, ¡°I forgot about something else too. Looks like Khare¡¯s already at the Spires.¡±

    ¡­

    Doran was musing about how to use the gestalt¡¯s power as a communication tool when the enemies he¡¯d marked broke into a sprint. ¡°They¡¯re coming. Khiat, weapons loose.¡±

    ¡°You want me to drop my bow?¡±

    He winced. ¡°No, sorry. Start firing, they¡¯re in range and getting closer.¡± Still, she hesitated, though now Doran had a better inkling of why.

    She spoke in a small voice, for all she towered over them. ¡°I don¡¯t want to kill people.¡±

    ¡°Those aren¡¯t people. That¡¯s an army, probably the Mirage, and tonight they unleashed monsters that caused countless deaths. If they get here it¡¯s going to be slaughter. It probably will be no matter what we do,¡± Doran said evenly, not hiding the truth. ¡°I¡¯ve had to make this choice too. No, it¡¯s not our choice, it¡¯s theirs. These people are putting innocents in harm¡¯s way for their own gain. We are the only ones standing in their way, the only ones with the power to stop them. No one wants to do this, but take a look behind you and tell me there isn¡¯t a reason to fight.¡±

    Khiat turned and saw through the storm hundreds of scared people, now pressing against and threatening to overwhelm the Knight still maintaining the barrier. There¡¯d been no sign Martin had gotten the message across yet. She looked at the bow in her hands and knew, even without the poisonous power in her mind, that someone without a level would die if she hit them. She had been terrified at that prospect before because of what it would change her into.

    Now, with the Assassin class gone and steps walked down the road of recovery, she found resolve to act. Not because it was what her class forced her to do, or because she would gain, but to protect those less fortunate with the blessings the Octyrrum had given her. Surely, if that was her motivation, she wouldn¡¯t return to what she¡¯d been.

    Despite not having ever trained to use the outline from Identify Creature as a target, Khiat had hunted long enough with the as yet unnamed team to improve her archery beyond what she¡¯d already accomplished. ¡°They¡¯re really evil?¡±

    ¡°The auras are completely black,¡± Doran observed. ¡°My power indicates general intent. They¡¯re here to kill and are moving fast. My guys will be in range soon. Are you with me?¡±

    The dusker took in another breath, then nodded. Her bowstring slapped the air, sending an arrow one of his other powers registered as magical down range. It was, frankly, overkill. The void outline lurched backward and hit something else before dissipating. Unlike when the gestalt removed the orange wedge intentionally, it faded over a few seconds with the target¡¯s death. Khiat¡¯s free hand shook for just a moment before it reached for another arrow.

    ¡­

    ¡°I just figured out why Khare was randomly tagging people between us.¡± Daniel started sprinting, forcing his team and the wary Farthest Run to keep pace. ¡°They¡¯re enemies.¡±

    ¡­

    It was an army against a squad of four. Five, though Martin was still MIA somewhere in the crowd. He wouldn¡¯t say it out loud, but the two temporary additions had pushed Doran¡¯s HURT squad to a higher combat effectiveness than when they¡¯d started. Khiat was firing slower than she could, either due to nerves or hesitation. When she did loose her bow, one of the enemy combatants died. The gestalt had no moral compunctions and was unloading on the enemy with two bows. They had an insane amount of arrows in them and whenever the gestalt attacked the mark they placed above the enemy would flash red. The timing on that didn¡¯t perfectly match each volley, so Doran suspected something else was at play there. He only wished he could properly ask how the power worked since it so cleanly paired with his. Crest, he¡¯d also ask if the plant would stay after this mess.

    Doran updated that thought after another enemy outline disappeared in an instant. He¡¯d take them both and transition his team to the night shift if he had to. In the meantime, he was spotting targets. Squad Sight shared his visual power, but just like he couldn¡¯t add those wedges to enemies, no one else could add the auras.

    It¡¯d be seconds to first contact, half a minute at most. No clear sighting of the enemy had been managed yet, he¡¯d just seen enough of a glimpse to tag them. Doran wasn¡¯t afraid, at least not for himself or his team. The average Blessed in this part of the Octyrrum was mid-level 1. Even multi-classed he was an above average fighter leading an experienced- leading the remains of an experienced team. That wasn¡¯t considering that a force like this had to be composed of a majority of the levelless with a core of Blessed to support them. Once the damn spire guard figured out what was going on, they¡¯d-

    ¡°Sir. Do you see that?¡± Vascott lowered the crossbow he¡¯d been firing, a simple, light tool not fit for serious hunting. It could still penetrate the weak areas of the armor ahead of them. Doran would know, he was very familiar with it.

    ¡°The HL hit the guard house first.¡± It was Doran¡¯s turn to freeze in the face of the enemy. Guardsmen. They¡¯d finally gotten close enough that he could make them out. He¡¯d heard of the monsters in the city, damn it he¡¯d seen part of his squad converted. But this, hundreds of his own coming at him with nothing but the intent to kill.

    ¡°Sir, do we fall back?¡± Vascott yelled as Khiat glanced around for a roof she could grab onto and the gestalt pulled out a collection of daggers. For the first time tonight, Doran felt true dread. He¡¯d known the odds, but this was no longer a faceless enemy that deserved only contempt.

    ¡°Nothing we can do for them,¡± he said blankly, feeling all the sand of the desert filling his mouth. ¡°Stand your ground. May Torch¡¯s light guide us.¡±

    ¡­

    It happened like this. The courtyard in front of the Spire was ceremonial in its construction. The end of the main southern street of Aughal ended in a plaza you could hold a parade in. It was wide, with access to side streets and the center of the city if you skirted around the Sun Spire. If the storm hadn¡¯t veiled the coming threat, the gathered crowds would have fled rather than continue their attempts to push through. As it stood, Doran¡¯s messenger was among the many trapped by the throng pushing towards the only safe haven in the city.

    From a strictly numerical sense, Casia was losing. She had herself, the commander¡¯s powerful husk, hundreds of converted guardsmen, an Assassin, and two traitors. Either the divines or the Tyrant may be able to replicate whatever method they¡¯d used to kill the other two. She was no stronger than they were, she just had more experience with what she could do.

    She watched from above, seeing clearly through the storm. There were a handful at the back of the crowds putting up a token defense, but that wasn¡¯t important. The tide of bodies easily flowed around them and began tearing into the backs of the crowd. Her focus was entirely here now, ceding the rest of the normal husks to whatever instinct was currently driving them. This was the crucial moment.

    The people dying now were nothing special, no classes or levels. They were in no way notable, save for how many of them there were. This crowd well outnumbered the husks. Unless this carried for long enough to train them, a sufficiently determined mortal could take the weaker human and avianoid husks. Together, half a dozen could overpower one of the duskers, and it being night meant there were living duskers in the crowd as well.

    People started fighting back. Parents, standing in front of the children, fighting with everything they had only to find they could win. Laborers with their tools formed a makeshift militia. And yes, the four at the front who were decimating the husks. This was what was important. People were dying. No one knew exactly what was going on. The storm hid much, though now Casia used her control over the sand to thin the air in the plaza. She couldn¡¯t dismiss the storm entirely, she wasn¡¯t the source of the power generating it, but she could create localized zones of calm as she had with Rasalia.

    The massed crowd only knew that the guardsmen were killing them. Not everyone knew about the husks, most didn¡¯t, only that there was a threat in the city. In replaced armor it was hard to tell what had been done to them. And when the air cleared?

    The spire guard had known something was going on. The Knight providing the barrier was at the limits of her stamina when the pressure on them momentarily eased, then doubled. Casia¡¯s influence over the sand peaked just when it broke and the crowd surged forward. The clearing air showed people taking apart guardsmen at the far end of the plaza in what was now a reverse charge. Martin was already dead, Doran and his spared because they weren¡¯t in the thick of it. Not everyone was fighting, but enough were.

    To those who¡¯d stood as the aegis of Aughal¡¯s Spoke, it was clear what had happened. A detachment of guard had come from behind to help calm the crowd. Maybe it was the storm, maybe it was Mirage plants riling them up, but something had gone very wrong. The last of the city¡¯s defenders were dying. Were they just going to stand there and let it happen?

    They let anyone who ran go, of course. Among those were enough who would spread the story. Guardsmen, slaughtering innocent civilians. Every point of pressure within the city that had been building over the last months was primed to explode, and that news was the spark to light them all. The servants of the gods still fought to clear their temples. The hunters were putting themselves back together and were bereft of their leadership.

    Casia¡¯s only concern was the Tyrant. It was a race for Armafus¡¯ last legacy now. This next part had to be done before enough of the city rallied behind the air gestalt Tyrant that had come out of nowhere. She had almost all the pieces needed for victory, save for one. Where the Crest was her husband?

 Chapter 148: Reunion

    Aucrest Seliri took a small measure of satisfaction from how hard he was making the Assassin¡¯s life. At the same time he knew that the only reason he was still alive was that Mark didn¡¯t want him dead.

    The Silver Eye was perceived to be many things. True or not, Aucrest¡¯s reputation as one of the foremost of Aughal¡¯s lords was well known. To the unleashed rage below the Spire, that just made him a bigger target. Before this disaster, though, he was also known as an unlikely bridge between his formerly pure avianoid faction and a host of human families that had flocked under his banner. He was a father, not that that needed to be emphasized. Lords that did not sire died unremembered.

    What few would guess was that Aucrest Seliri was a competent fighter. Oh, people would say he could be a powerful one. With the pieces of Armafus¡¯ legacy in addition to what enchanted items his house had garnered he could by weight of magic stand against teams of lower leveled Blessed. That power had only grown when he¡¯d played the vulture and capitalized on Ytaya¡¯s sudden death. He¡¯d missed out on capturing the ring normally responsible for her sun immunity, which hadn¡¯t been anywhere on the body.

    All that being said, if you knew what his repertoire of enchantments did and were capable yourself, you¡¯d expect that you could beat the old avianoid after burning through his best tricks. Mark had certainly assumed that. His wife had died to a completely green level 1 Assassin after all. Mark¡¯s opening attack, a storm of dark knives that blinded those they didn¡¯t kill, had wiped out Aucrest¡¯s personal guard and broke the shield that had flared around the man from a thin band around his wrist. He¡¯d half expected the lord to freeze up and make the job easy.

    Instead, he¡¯d been blasted through a wall by concussive force generated by something within the avianoid¡¯s suit. That same maneuver had thrown his target backward. Of the equipment Aucrest had on him, legacy included, it was the best response he could have made to the ambush.

    Nevertheless, Mark was a level 6 Assassin and on the cusp of leaving his class behind altogether for true power. Aucrest only had one item on that level, the shield generator, and an item could not match an empowered individual. It was just so damn hard to knock the Silver Eye out without resorting to one of his many, extraordinarily lethal powers. Compare it to Daniel, who was both level 2 and in possession of Regeneration. Mark¡¯s strength, which through manipulation of his mana structure had been effectively reduced to the mid-40s range to allow him to improve other attributes, was still enough to kill his target if he was careless.

    Aucrest was a glass ballista. He had items that would prevent damage but not blunt it once it broke through, and was strangely adept at using his legacy in a high-level fight. Hit him with enough force to overwhelm his shield and the attack risked going straight through until it hit the Shroud. Maneuvering into a position where he could ignore it and either choke Aucrest out or leave a disabling wound was made all the more difficult by his opponent¡¯s competence and arsenal. Mark finally had the thought after a casually thrown dagger killed the twelfth spire guard to investigate the disturbance. Bastard must have trained up after his wife died. Figures this would be Casia¡¯s fault.

    This was taking far, far too long. The fight had traveled across the Sun Spire, through residences, and at one point turned into a vertical engagement when they reached the main stairway. Aucrest had gained the upper hand there as, true to his race, he became a flying terror. As irritated as Mark was by the delay and the knowledge that he wouldn¡¯t be able to fulfill the other hunt he¡¯d been sent on, he wasn¡¯t worried about eventually prevailing. Someone hopped up by a number of good items still couldn¡¯t beat real power.

    The gear produced by the Artificer-Tyrant Armafus were potent enough to form the backbone of the region¡¯s entire ruling class. What other items Aucrest possessed, made by lesser enchanters over the years, would eventually wear out. A lesser variant of the ring of lancing Claret bore had posed a major threat, especially on the stairways when Aucrest could make fly-by attacks. Now, its gem was cracked. The old man was likewise tiring despite some form of vitality enchantment propping him up. Crest, Mark could just keep up the pressure until he dropped that way, but a professional completed his tasks with as much alacrity as was appropriate. Discretion as well, normally, when the plan didn¡¯t involve making the city eat itself.

    It was when they came to a hallway with a balcony, one of only a dozen in the Sun Spire, that Mark found the chance to end things. He was running along one of the walls, thanks to a power granting stability on any surface, when Aucrest dove for the opening. Surprisingly proficient he may be, the man hadn¡¯t paid close enough attention to his surroundings. Like a sandbat trying to fly into one of the Spire¡¯s windows, he collided with the recently deployed siege ward that threw out individual sections over large openings in the wall.

    The Assassin was on him, dagger stabbing down multiple times per second until the renewed shield broke. His grip reversed just as quickly, the pommel colliding with Aucrest¡¯s head. ¡°Target acquired,¡± Mark said to the open air, feeling no shame in the fact that he wasn¡¯t talking to anyone. A little grandiose, but he¡¯d earned it.

    Ideally he¡¯d inform Casia of the delay but, lacking the internal communication she and her lackeys had, that was impossible. Even without the Shroud, his sandstorm didn¡¯t discriminate in what it screened out. Looking down off the balcony, Mark sighed. Ah well, at least the rest of the plan is working out. Shouldering Aucrest, the Assassin prepared himself for a long climb.

    ¡­

    The two Rangers proved the fastest of the group to Daniel and Hunter¡¯s complete lack of surprise. While this was tantamount to them escaping custody, Daniel¡¯s group had never been keen on taking them prisoner anyway. Surprisingly, Willow still tagged along near the back. Either she didn¡¯t want to leave the relative safety of the hunters, or she was that obsessed with Hunter. Daniel had a weird sense that he was glad the ringcat hadn¡¯t figured out how to go full humanoid yet.

    With the sandstorm raging, only Identify Creature allowed the group to reliably stick together. Khare¡¯s marks were also telling a story, a grim one. There was no concrete distance indicator with them, though you could still make a rough guess based on how big the wedge was. When they¡¯d started marking the enemies Daniel was between a half and three-quarters of a kilometer away. Now, they were nearly there.

    The storm bothered him some as he ran, but his superhuman endurance attribute made it a breeze otherwise. He was faster than Taloran and Evalyn who both suffered from level disparity in at least one physical attribute. Compared to the balanced Daniel, these differences made themselves known over prolonged exertion. The Rangers, meanwhile, grew further ahead. It turned into something they may have agreed on if there were no differences between them, the two Rangers scouting ahead while the majority of the group brought up the rear.

    Daniel¡¯s improved speed meant that he could save his energy by keeping a lighter pace. Instead, he kept up the sprint and stopped for half a minute on occasion when he¡¯d built up enough of a lead. Evalyn eventually inquired as she passed him for the tenth time. ¡°What are you doing?¡±

    ¡°Enchanting,¡± Daniel muttered in the slightly distracted tone he used when part of him was focused on mana flow.

    ¡°Now? What could you be making that would make a difference?¡±

    ¡°Uh.¡± Daniel slipped something small into the bag of holding at his waist. ¡°Basically, they¡¯re bone pebbles I put the spineshard enchantment into. Don¡¯t worry, they won¡¯t react with anything in there and they¡¯re pretty small.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡± Evalyn asked with the fraction of breath she didn¡¯t need for running.

    ¡°I had an idea.¡± Daniel shrugged, now keeping pace out of self-awareness that he may not have chosen the best time for experimentation. ¡°What happens if I combine the lightning link enchantment and the lightning affix in one item?¡±

    ¡°It explodes?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m worried about too, but I have a power that can put temporary affixes on items.¡± It had been the idea he¡¯d wanted to work on after the boots. Granted, priming an explosion that was directly adjacent to him wasn¡¯t the best idea, and that was the the main reason he¡¯d held off until now. Making the small marbles from level 3 bone also took a few seconds each and helped Restorative Craft take the edge off the pain in his arm. ¡°It¡¯d be safer if I could have the lightning affix permanently on a bolt, but my power wouldn¡¯t let me put the exploding formuale on afterward. But if I just keep spineshard bolts in my bag of holding and charge them right before firing, then they¡¯d be self-activating explosive arrows.¡±

    If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    ¡°How does this help us now?¡±

    ¡°Explosive pebbles?¡± Daniel scowled. ¡°If Hunter would let me ride on his back I¡¯d probably have enough time to make one or two.¡±

    ¡°No,¡± a rumbling voice denied from further ahead in the sandstorm. ¡°Focus. I smell a lot of blood.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re still a minute or two away,¡± Daniel pointed out. ¡°And there¡¯s a sandstorm going.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡­

    Gordon and Qess stared out from the edge of the clear zone like it was a bush. Compared to what was in front of them, they were two apex predators observing clashing hordes of weaker prey. He¡¯d have liked to have thought about it in those terms to spare his heart from the truth. ¡°Who do you think is winning?¡±

    ¡°No one is,¡± Qess whispered back.

    The Ranger rubbed at his face, still somewhat bruised though his natural healing rate was putting in work to get him back in order. Nothing on par with Regeneration, which took the slow improvement from advancing endurance and multiplied it. ¡°Do you see how they could have missed this? Half of them came from this direction.¡±

    Qess wanted to agree, but there was something she¡¯d noticed. ¡°None of them looked like they were involved in fighting like this. If we trust them, maybe together we can stop this.¡±

    Gordon watched a sobbing man stomp on a fallen guardsman¡¯s helmet even after it was clear they were dead. He also saw the blood on the dead guard¡¯s sword. ¡°There¡¯s no stopping this without putting most of them down.¡±

    His partner glared upwards. ¡°None of this makes sense. Where is everyone? Rasalia, the churches? How did they take the Hunter¡¯s Guild without anyone knowing?¡±

    They¡¯d long since determined that most of the ¡®guardsmen¡¯ in this melee were the strange monsters being created out of people¡¯s corpses. You could tell, if you were looking for it, by how they moved. Besides the monsters and the civilians, there seemed to be a few loose hunters in the mix, and a detachment of spire guard treating everyone as hostile. The man Gordon had seen earlier took an arrow to the head, fired from where the spire guard were holding the closed off entrance to the Sun Spire. ¡°Where¡¯s the fucking Council?¡±

    ¡°Dead or useless.¡± They could both hear the rest of their team, and the questionably loyal hunters, getting closer. ¡°You see the rest of that Artificer¡¯s team?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°Seems like they¡¯re the only ones focusing on the monsters, trying to help people. I think the guy leading them¡¯s a watch sergeant.¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°Think it¡¯s an act?¡±

    Gordon shook his head. ¡°Maybe the dusker¡¯s oblivious, but the gestalt¡¯s from the Thormundz. If they wanted to sabotage the situation they¡¯d stab that sergeant in the confusion.¡± He tried again to square his suspicions with what he saw in front of him, with what Daniel and the others had done after they¡¯d ambushed them, and found he couldn¡¯t. ¡°They still have to answer for the ringcat. Back there, we made the right call. Just looks like the Octyrrum didn¡¯t agree.¡±

    ¡­

    Khiat¡¯s eyes were burning. If the Grafting had been kinder, she would be crying. They¡¯d long figured out the approaching guards had been taken over, which had given her just enough relief for what came next to crush her.

    People were dying all around them. Doran kept their group alive, moving throughout the crowd and giving them every opportunity to save who they could. Martin was dead, they all saw his outline fade soon after it started, but Vascott stepped lively enough to keep up with the Blessed. For someone she¡¯d just met, Khiat still felt grateful for that.

    At least they hadn¡¯t lost anyone else, and the rioters hadn¡¯t turned on them. She felt the emotion driving them in the air, a rage and pain that only wanted a direction to expend itself in. The last two members of HURT were doing as much to avoid notice as they were defending the people who may kill them on sight.

    It was fortunate they were far from the spire guard, who had snapped and begun indiscriminately killing once they¡¯d finally discovered what the majority of the guardsmen here were. Standing above it all, completely impenetrable, was the Spire. To someone raised in Aughal it was an object worthy of reverence, and this killing field below it was profane. That didn¡¯t make Khiat stop killing the converted guardsmen, though she still froze up whenever one got too close. Even all her improvements had yet to allow her to screen out that reflex.

    Khare, on the other hand, had initially tried the bleeding enchantment they could place on their weapons, only to find the guards had no blood to give. They¡¯d stuck with melee weapons in the end, careful not to hit the crowd of people who were mainly ignoring the only gestalt here. What kept her going was the knowledge they gave them, that the rest of her team would be here soon. That would make everything alright again.

    ¡­

    Qess shot Marky a look as his growing sick almost gave away their position. He still continued but tried to reign in the noise. Gordon, meanwhile, held out an arm to stop Gadriel from breaking into the clear space in the storm. ¡°Sir, desist.¡± There was something approaching fury on his face, though it wasn¡¯t directed at anyone in particular. ¡°This must come to an end.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re not going to charge in there, unthinking, to save your friend and catch an arrow to the neck,¡± Gordon replied smoothly. ¡°Level 3 or not, that would take you down long enough for the crowds to finish you. Now, let¡¯s say for the moment we¡¯re on the same side. They¡¯ve been holding their own. We need a plan of action before we go in there.¡±

    After a few seconds, Gadriel acknowledged the point. Daniel, however, asked, ¡°How can we even help this? They¡¯re just-¡± He almost joined Marky away from the main group. It reminded him far too much of the lake.

    ¡°The rioters are going to win,¡± Gordon predicted. ¡°The fallen guard isn¡¯t doing much now that people are seriously resisting them, and the spire guard don¡¯t have the numbers. It¡¯ll be a bloodbath, but numbers are always the counter to levels. We can¡¯t stop the fighting, only change the victor. Do we want to?¡±

    Silence for a moment, and then Taloran looked angry for the first time tonight. ¡°You¡¯re saying we go in there and, what, kill innocent people?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t look too innocent to me,¡± Qess fired back. ¡°The kids and anyone not fighting have made it out by now.¡±

    ¡°This is all the Council¡¯s fault! No,¡± Taloran reversed himself, ¡°The entire aristocracy. This is their heartless greed pushing people too far. I know the common man, this is not something that happens in one night.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s a bigger problem,¡± Willow, standing next to Hunter, said. Taloran turned, expecting her to contest his points. Instead, she explained, ¡°The city is still under attack, and my father would have let those people in if he had a choice. I¡¯m not sure if you all know this or not, but the Spires¡¯ functions operate differently. Some only need a simple majority to control, like closing the siege wards. But to reopen them, you need a unanimous vote.¡±

    ¡°Guess that makes sense,¡± Gordon shrugged. ¡°Someone takes a Spire and has a few pocket traitors, they still can¡¯t disable the Shroud around the other Spires. Don¡¯t see how that information helps us here.¡±

    ¡°Bennar must have closed the siege ward. He always was cowardly. My point is that he lives in the Sun Spire. If, if my mother is still making those things and sending them at people, then we need to reopen the Spires to let them in. Getting to him is the key.¡±

    ¡°I think I see your plan, but it won¡¯t work. We won¡¯t be able to get through that barrier.¡± Gordon pointed and, indeed, there were a few desperately trying to get to the main door of the Spire to no avail. The Shroud was locking everyone out. ¡°And my bet is when they lock down the Spires, there aren¡¯t any entrances, not even from below.¡±

    ¡°We can¡¯t get in, but he can.¡± Willow pointed to Daniel, who looked behind himself for a moment.

    ¡°Me?¡±

    ¡°I heard from my father how you escaped Claret. You went through the Shroud. You must have a power that lets you ignore it.¡±

    ¡°I guess?¡± Thomas had explained why Daniel¡¯s escape from Claret had been technically impossible, although they¡¯d never figured out how he¡¯d been able to do it. All Daniel had seen was an open window, but not being aware of the Shroud wasn¡¯t enough to ignore it. Not even hiding a third soul somewhere in him would do it, nor would his connection to Earth-Daniel who was equally clueless. ¡°So you just want me to Die Hard this Spire?¡± He winced right after saying it. ¡°Wait, sorry. You want me to go in there and find this Bennar? If he¡¯s as powerful as Claret is, I¡¯m not going to be able to make him do anything.¡±

    ¡°What else can we do!?¡± Willow asked, clearly agitated by the ongoing atrocity.

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard the Shroud can resist attempts to teleport past it,¡± Gordon added, scratching the back of his head as his eyes traced up and down the tower. ¡°We¡¯re either fighting or running. I think that¡¯s all this boils down to, and the only way we¡¯re making a difference by fighting is with a man on the inside. In the meantime, we can rescue your friends and find out when the gods have decided we¡¯ve done enough helping ourselves to merit some assistance.¡±

    ¡°You all seriously want me to go in there. Alone?¡± Daniel asked, incredulous.

    ¡°Thomas is in there,¡± Evalyn said thoughtfully. ¡°And at the very least Claret shouldn¡¯t be.¡±

    ¡°This is insane.¡± Daniel turned to Hunter. ¡°I¡¯m not going into the Spire alone, right?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t, if you don¡¯t want to. Help if you do.¡± Farthest Run, especially the recovering Marky, stiffened as the ringcat spoke once more. It wasn¡¯t the time to return to that conversation, however.

    Seeing no strong dissuasion from his friends, people dying before him as he stalled, and somewhat secure in the knowledge that he could always jump out of another window if he got into trouble, Daniel capitulated. ¡°Fine. I want someone to go with me to find a spot, though. And the rest of you better get Khare and Khiat out of that mess.¡± He looked back up at the Spire, the higher floors still invisible in the ongoing storm. ¡°At least I¡¯m not afraid of heights.¡±

 Chapter 149: Piercing the Shroud

    It had been pure chance that he¡¯d run across the group on their way to the Spire. If they hadn¡¯t been in a rush they might have noticed even though he was currently invisible. The sight at the base of the Spire gave him pause. Like the ones he was following, he was resolved to act. But not yet. He was prudent, crafty, and worried that someone with the power to block distant communication could also intercept it. Now was not the time to reveal himself.

    ¡­

    Daniel and Evalyn skirted the barrier of the strange calm in the storm, which they had presumed to be a function of the Spire. Hunter had been his initial thought until Willow had asked if they wanted the ringcat to make his way back to them alone in this kind of environment. Concern over her strange attachment aside, it was a good point. The exchange of marks with Khare also made it clear that having Hunter stay behind to watch the Identify Creature auras would be a good idea.

    ¡°They¡¯re going for them,¡± Daniel said, turning his neck to track his friends. Not all of them were diving into the fray. While they had been preparing, Hunter had tagged everyone around Khare and Khiat and determined by the auras that, including them, there were only the four working to survive against what was becoming an open revolt. They¡¯d ended up partway into the throng meaning the group going in to rescue them would have to break through. It didn¡¯t sound too hard on paper, but even Daniel with his Regeneration would have been in constant fear of catching a random sword to the neck.

    Evalyn herself had little confidence in any of her charm abilities making a dent in the emotions of the crowd. Her music would just make them a bigger target, so she was ideal to join Daniel in finding a way through. ¡°This wound is going to take years to heal.¡± Daniel looked at her, confused. ¡°Most of the zombies are duskers and the guard,¡± she went on, now having appropriated Daniel¡¯s word for the undead. ¡°I¡¯ve been feeling the resentment building up. People growing desperate and fearing for the future. I just ignored it.¡±

    ¡°This isn¡¯t your fault,¡± Daniel replied, feeling an echo of the past.

    ¡°I know. I can just see the cracks forming in the city¡¯s soul.¡± He didn¡¯t doubt her. One of the powers she¡¯d received from the most recent round of hunting was Room Sense*, with another mysterious asterisk after it. When using it, Evalyn had a better sense of the emotional makeup of individuals and groups and thus an easier time manipulating them. It seemed like a useless power in combat but fit her role as team leader. He couldn¡¯t imagine what she¡¯d just seen, but it had shaken her.

    ¡°What about that window?¡± Daniel asked. The other good reason to have Evalyn along was that they had both visited this Spire earlier. Between them, they had a fairly good idea of where the main staircase was. The sandstorm wasn¡¯t helping, especially because the bubble of calm didn¡¯t extend all the way around. It did mean their approach was concealed. Evalyn made to follow, only to run into an invisible barrier a few meters from the wall. Daniel turned and placed a hand flat on where he thought it was like he¡¯d just volunteered to go into the failing reactor of a starship.

    Evalyn half-smiled, trying to mimic the gesture only to run into the Shroud a few centimeters in front of his hand. ¡°How can you just pass through this?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. It¡¯s like it¡¯s not there.¡± Daniel moved his hand forward, meeting hers for a moment before he pulled it back and looked away awkwardly. He quickly tried to deflect. ¡°None of my powers have anything to do with bypassing god barriers, Artificer or the old Totem Warrior ones.¡±

    ¡°I guess it¡¯s just another thing that makes you remarkable.¡± He blinked at her, caught off guard. ¡°I mean it. And don¡¯t you dare die in there. Find Thomas first, he¡¯ll know how to navigate. We¡¯ll do what we can out here until you can get this Shroud down. You can do it, I believe in you.¡±

    Daniel looked from where, in the distance, Gordon was leading the charge into the crowd, then back to Evalyn. He knew he should say something. ¡®Good luck¡¯ seemed like he wasn¡¯t trying. His old nerves returned from their long slumber and he couldn¡¯t settle on anything. Evalyn turned to go, giving him a soft nod, when another part of him made him reach for her arm.

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s a better way. It¡¯s not just me that can get through the barrier. My stuff can too. It¡¯s not strictly my body.¡± What if it¡¯s not just me, but anything that I want to get through that can? Bacteria are technically alive and all the crap in me wasn¡¯t ripped out last time. The thought had occurred to him in a flash. Initially at him wondering if Evalyn could just hop into his bag of holding for a moment, but that didn¡¯t work on anything living. Arpan or Khare¡¯s storage power may have worked, though neither had his strange knack for ignoring super shields. ¡°Let me try to pull you through.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not part of your ¡®stuff¡¯,¡± Evalyn replied with eyebrow raised.

    ¡°I know I know, just let me try!¡± She nodded again, more firmly this time, and he pulled. He could feel the barrier this time as it resisted Evalyn¡¯s movement, but there was something else as well that was extraordinarily hard for him to describe.

    Daniel had experience with senses beyond his own, most often during his continued practice trying to acclimate to Hunter¡¯s body. In this moment he felt something that went beyond his poor mana sense, a completely alien sensation but not one that gave him the impression of a hallucination or external illusion. It was like the Spire behind him had suddenly become aware of him, realized what he was doing, and was not pleased about it. Now, not only could Evalyn not pass through but his wrist was locked in place where it overlapped with the Shroud. It was still getting blood flow so that was good, but he couldn¡¯t move at all. ¡°Shit, I¡¯m stuck!¡±

    ¡°Then let go!¡±

    ¡°N-no!¡± The Spire was getting angry. Not in a metaphorical way. His, what, eighth sense now told him the tower behind him was affronted by whatever he was doing. For some reason, his blood was getting heated as well. He wanted to win whatever strange contest this was. Also, if there was any chance he didn¡¯t have to go into the Spire alone, he was going to do whatever he needed to.

    Spontaneously, mana began to move within his chest. This was another area Daniel had been practicing after accidentally falling far behind the rest of his team in monitoring his mana, but to him the flow felt erratic compared to how his powers felt. There was still that strange loop around his heart which he now knew as the way to get to Bridge Space, though none of the surges touched it. Actually, after a few more seconds, he almost got the impression that whatever the mana was trying to do needed that space but was blocked by the loop that prevented mana from going back toward his heart.

    He also had no control over the strange mana. It was an automatic, no, an instinctual process. That at least was familiar. This was just like when Rorshawd had forced him to use Claw Strike for the first time, effectively teaching him to use the power until the removal of that soul allowed him to fully comprehend it. Come on, I was just joking about a hidden third soul.

    Either way, the battle of wills between himself and a damned tower was stalemating. Whatever his body was trying to do to counter the Shroud wasn¡¯t working. It was, however, draining his mana at an alarming rate. With no outlet it was just dispersing into the atmosphere. Daniel was going to let go and hope the Spire took that as an appropriate apology when he had yet another idea. Given the last inspiration had gotten him into this mess he was a bit wary, but it was worth a shot.

    Daniel let go of Evalyn while, at the same time, holding the will to bring her through in his head. His hand remained stuck which was at once encouraging and terrifying. Focusing, he tried to activate Claw Strike on both of his hands, but the mana running wild within him smothered the attempt. He¡¯d already learned about dual-channeling from Lograve during one of their talks regarding how he and Hunter could activate two abilities at the same time. The gist was that for someone to do it by themselves it required months to years of practice.

    For Daniel, who could barely understand the mana mechanics behind his powers, it would be impossible to suddenly accomplish the feat now. Instead, he relied on his friend. Hunter, I need to give you Claw Strike. Swap into me and use it on my hands. He got confusion back across the mental link. Hunter hadn¡¯t used the power himself after seeing what it did to Daniel, complaining that it would make his paws too bird-like. Daniel¡¯s concentration and urgency made the ringcat break off from the group rescuing their other team members and comply.

    The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    Both Daniel and Tak had similar powers which allowed them to transform parts of their body into bestial versions, increasing damage and strength in battle. The major difference between them was that Daniel had to actively focus on the power to get it to remain active, which counted as channeling it, while Tak merely had to use his power to shift at which point it had a set duration. What this meant was Tak could use other actively channeled powers while transformed, but as Daniel just demonstrated, he could not.

    This downside was what Daniel hoped to turn into an opportunity. His mana was locked down into whatever pattern it was trying to create to use the hidden power. Hunter¡¯s foreign mana, allowed in by their bond, was not under this limitation. The feeling of holding his arms under a running river took hold as Daniel paid close attention to what Hunter was doing. He watched as what he¡¯d hoped to accomplish happened.

    The rampant mana in his core bled off into Hunter¡¯s ability. The two mixed to create what was visibly just a normal activation of Claw Strike. However, there was a difference. Daniel suddenly felt leverage on the shield around him. What was more, he found he could penetrate the shield with his other hand. Keep it active for as long as you can, he mentally grunted at Hunter while in front of him, he put the backs of his hands together.

    Evalyn watched as in front of her, the storm suddenly cut into the space around the Spire. With effort, Daniel¡¯s hands widened more and more, creating a gap in the Shroud with great effort. ¡°Go!¡± His shout startled her, and she dove between his legs. The moment she was through he fell back, panting. She heard him murmur, ¡°Thanks, Hunter.¡±

    ¡°What did you just do?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± he answered, chest heaving. ¡°But I think I can do it again.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s get the others over here then.¡± She looked at him, waiting for him to telepathically pass on the message, but he shook his head and looked at the part of his wrist that had been caught in the Shroud.

    ¡°I have another idea. If you¡¯d agree, captain.¡±

    ¡°Oh?¡±

    ¡°We need to get one of the Rangers to where the spire guard are.¡±

    ¡­

    Somewhere on Earth, a light started blinking rapidly. The LED could emit any color but was now flashing red. An alert had come onto screen as well as an entire backlog of messages awaiting Earth-Daniel¡¯s approval before being sent to Octyrrum-Daniel¡¯s Focus.

    Meanwhile, the young man in the room continued to oversleep.

    ¡­

    Gordon readied himself for another memory he¡¯d spend time trying to drown in drink later. Both he and Qess had a true appreciation for the brutality of what was going on before them. The utility of his powers varied, though a focus on hunting had born out. Not just ¡®hunting¡¯, a word inappropriately used for anything related to monster killing, but actual tracking, observation, and stealth. He could see exactly what was going on to a better degree than anyone else with him. The fighting was chaotic, a tragedy at the far end where spire guard were engaging civilians ruthlessly. When the last of the converted guards were gone, the crowds would either round on those who had denied them access to safety, or worse, each other.

    They were all more beast-like in their adrenaline fueled rampage than the ringcat stalking forward with him. Qess, Taloran, Willow, Belonna, and that shopkeeper had all stayed back on the edge of the storm while the other five, including himself, made for the watch sergeant. The man had won some clear space in the melee by dint of holding his ground, and the mob seemed to at least partially recognize he wasn¡¯t acting in tandem with the spire guard. The other part of the equation was the dusker with the giant bow adding an intimidation factor.

    Their equivalent was the ringcat who had roared, the sound carrying a fear effect. It did little but prickle the Ranger¡¯s own emotions. Where it met the unleveled crowd it found easier victims. That was until the ringcat had stopped its advance, refusing to react. Its Totem Warrior claimed it had something to do with Daniel, what exactly Gordon couldn¡¯t tell. Just before Marky was going to explode, and Gadriel run into the crowd, it opened its eyes.

    ¡°Daniel can open the Shroud,¡± it said. ¡°We need to get to the spire guard.¡±

    This tripped Gordon¡¯s old suspicions that this was all some elaborate trap, though Marky responded first with a shout that convinced the few in the crowds thinking of asking them for help to ignore them altogether. ¡°You¡¯re leading us to our deaths! Or are all these people here in league with you? We¡¯re not going to help you take over the Spire!¡±

    ¡°Marky,¡± Gordon cut him off with the firm tone used for orders on a hunt, and the Druid closed his mouth. ¡°How can he open the Shroud? The entire Spoke is powering it.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± the ringcat replied with what appeared to be honesty. ¡°It is something with his hands, dragging it open? He needs me to do it. But there is another thing. It might help us stop the fighting.¡±

    Gordon paused for a moment to consider exactly how powerful a bond had to be to overwhelm a Spoke, before asking, ¡°How?¡±

    The ringcat inclined its nose at the crowds. ¡°He is still figuring it out. Wants Qess to come to him while you stay with me.¡±

    The Ranger didn¡¯t detect any dishonesty from the ringcat, which was a strange thing to need to do. ¡°I want details by the time we get to your friends.¡± He adjusted his jerkin, making sure there was nothing loose or easily grabbable. ¡°And I still want answers after all of this.¡±

    ¡­

    Doran¡¯s hard-fought balance was upset with the arrival of the ones the gestalt had been marking as friendly. The struggle on the outer edge sent ripples throughout the pond. A woman bumped into him, saw his armor first, and swung a stolen shield at him. He ducked and pushed her back, drawing the ire of the people around him. At this point, Doran sorely wished he had some kind of power that turned his attacks nonlethal, but the Octyrrum hadn¡¯t been generous in that regard. The friendlies were close and now also accompanied by a teal aura, but that distance was measured in many more bodies both living and dead.

    They were going to have to advance towards the coming allies and try to carve out another safe spot. After that, Doran didn¡¯t know. That the spire guard were still butchering the crowd behind him defied belief, but their combined numbers and levels would easily overcome his small force. Maybe the entirety of his HURT squad could have handled them, but they were just a shadow of that. He looked to the only other surviving member. ¡°Vascott, we¡¯re pushing towards the friendlies. Going bright.¡± The other man hastily dragged his hood down. ¡°You two! Cover your eyes!¡±

    He wasn¡¯t sure if the gestalt understood well enough to obey, or if they needed to. Doran gave them a few seconds and then used another Cleric power: Flash Brilliance. According to the church it was their unique second level ability every Cleric of Torch got, even multi-classers. One would assume the signature power of the church of knowledge would fall directly under that auspice. Rather, this power aligned more with the patron¡¯s name.

    A burst of pure light emitted from Doran as he shouted an incantation. Compared to the Nova ability and its permutations this carried no damaging or disrupting energies, only an initial blinding light. His surroundings remained illuminated, turning night to day in a sphere over ten meters wide. ¡°Go!¡±

    They pushed through, everyone around them recovering their sight. Doran had feared the magically animated bodies of the guards would do so faster or not be affected at all. The opposite was true. Already, people at the edge of the sphere of light were capitalizing on the disruption to bring down the remaining former guardsmen. Without his ability to see auras depart with death, they often battered the corpses far longer than necessary. Doran hurt to see it, but kept moving.

    He spotted the ringcat first, unsurprised by its appearance only because of the report that had initially gone out when they thought someone was robbing the Artificer. Hearing it talk was something else entirely. ¡°We need to get to the door!¡± it almost roared, before adding, ¡°Uhm, Druid.¡±

    ¡°That is not a Druid!¡± a young man who, by appearances, definitely was exclaimed. He was smacked on the head by Gordon, someone Doran recognized as the co-leader of one of Aughal¡¯s better hunting teams.

    ¡°Ignore that,¡± Gordon told him, casually grabbing an arrow out of the air that had been aimed wide. Incidental attacks were flying throughout the throng, everyone in Doran¡¯s group had minor injuries due to someone else¡¯s poor aim. ¡°We have someone that can open the Shroud. Can you get the spire guard to stand down?¡±

    ¡°I doubt the Council could do that now,¡± Doran fired back bitterly, following as the Ranger started moving towards the Spire. He sensed a kinship with the man that was heartening, someone who kept control when everything was going wrong.

    ¡°You hear you have to see cityborn as shit to get in their ranks, but I never really believed it until now.¡±

    ¡°Can it, Vascott,¡± Doran reprimanded. ¡°If you really can open the door, we¡¯re going to get rushed in moments. What¡¯s your plan then?¡±

    The Ranger looked at his hand briefly as a stone appeared from nowhere. This wasn¡¯t commented on, although Gordon did knock someone away with an elbow after they crashed into him and almost made him drop it. Every step towards the Spire was a fight, and the mobs only got denser towards the main gate. ¡°There¡¯s another plan. I don¡¯t know if it¡¯ll work, but it may stop the fighting.¡±

    A Hero with them, looking horrified at his surroundings, grimaced. ¡°I know not if what Daniel proposed is within the realm of normality, but he has shown commendable intelligence in the past. If there is any way to stop this bloodshed I implore you to consider it.¡±

    Doran sighed. ¡°Not the first time I¡¯ve followed orders I didn¡¯t understand. If you¡¯re on board, so am I.¡±

    Gordon hesitated a moment before the stone in his hand disappeared. ¡°Fine. Let¡¯s do it.¡±

 Chapter 150: Crowd Control

    They¡¯re doing it. Gordon is not happy, but he agreed. Hunter is inside Khare now.

    Got it Tak. Take care of them. Thanks. Daniel was standing on the ground outside the Spire, closer to the main entrance and the break in the storm. Qess, and the people with her, had made their way to them and were now standing on the opposite side of the barrier. Taloran was the only one among them giving Daniel an encouraging smile, the others just looking with some disbelief at Evalyn on the other side.

    Then, Daniel¡¯s hands changed, and the Shroud became visible as he tore at it. Daniel guessed he didn¡¯t need this specific power for it to work, but it was the most convenient one at the moment. His mana rapidly began burning away as the strange power within was diverted. Keeping it open long enough for everyone to come through took about a fifth of his reserves. If they didn¡¯t have two mana potions between them, and if those potions didn¡¯t provide a small regeneration after the initial bump, he couldn¡¯t consider doing this for everyone outside.

    ¡°What kind of Artificer are you?¡± Qess asked, now that they were able to talk to each other.

    ¡°A very tired one.¡± Holding the breaches open for prolonged times was as physically draining as it was mana intensive. He¡¯d had to let Hunter take over his arms towards the end. It didn¡¯t give him additional strength but another¡¯s willpower to shoulder the burden and a few snide comments about how weak he was. Through his new, hazy understanding it felt like wrestling the Spire itself. At least it wasn¡¯t intelligent, and stopped resisting when he stopped challenging. In fact, he could still hop through the Shroud without an issue so long as his intent was only on himself. ¡°You¡¯re sure there haven¡¯t been any items you couldn¡¯t swap.¡±

    ¡°No, we can do just about anything someone else isn¡¯t holding onto, but the most we can do is about 10 kilograms. But won¡¯t this hurt people?¡±

    ¡°My arm got caught in the Shroud earlier and it went right through.¡± The Ranger stared with raised eyebrow at the one she knew had Regeneration. ¡°No, it was fine, I just couldn¡¯t move.¡±

    ¡°Guess we all hope this works then.¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    Everyone waited for a few torturous minutes until Daniel got the mental notification that the other team had fought their way through. Daniel swapped Claw Strike for Construct Shield, Hunter grumbling at having to figure out a new power on the fly. See, this is why you should have at least tried all my powers before now, Daniel thought towards Hunter, still inside Khare¡¯s Mobile Armory.

    Nag later. I am trying.

    But this is important! If you don¡¯t think you can do this, we¡¯re screwed.

    I can do this.

    Yes, you can. He waited on the wrong side of the Shroud as Hunter acclimated to the power Daniel had given him, this one for the first time. You¡¯ve got the shape right in your head? The floor part has to be completely flat and parallel if this is going to work.

    Yes. I can do this, Hunter curtly replied. So much mana.

    You hardly use it anyway. Hopefully, we¡¯ll just need one section to get the point across. While talking in his head, Daniel stared at Qess, waiting for her signal. The plan he¡¯d come up with was that they¡¯d wait for Gordon¡¯s group to get close to where the spire guard was fighting outside of the main entrance before committing their strike. What they were doing wasn¡¯t foolproof, and could be undone if anyone figured out how they were doing it. Aside from that, Daniel had been astounded to find both parts of his idea worked when they¡¯d tested a small stone they¡¯d hovered mid-way into the Shroud. Alright Hunter. Make this count.

    I will. Hunter waited a brief moment for Daniel to provoke the Spire, causing the strange mana drain within him to begin. Taking over, he then spoke aloud in Daniel¡¯s voice, ¡°Bulwark.¡± It was the first time he¡¯d ever spoken an incantation. Despite it being Daniel¡¯s power and Daniel¡¯s voice, the echoing quality all spoken powers had carried a different reverberation compared to when it was actually Daniel using the ability. It had a feral, growling quality below the initial sound that Daniel was sure Hunter¡¯s own incantations would have whenever he awakened one.

    Some of the sand in the storm around them stopped, flowing together into a thin sheet. It was similar to the wall of sand Daniel had summoned to protect Khare from the thieves but bigger and far thinner. Hunter¡¯s mana pool, drained somewhat by the multiple uses of Flash Jaunt he¡¯d needed earlier this night, lost a good portion due to the size of the creation. On Daniel¡¯s side he had to will the turbulent mana into the creation to produce the desired effect. Unlike when they mimicked dual-channeling, this process didn¡¯t naturally draw his mana together with Hunter¡¯s. Fortunately, he¡¯d found a workaround.

    Daniel, back in control, pushed the newly created shield and opened a large hole in the Shroud. Covered by the storm as they were this went unnoticed, but would offer a far easier way to let people in than by physically holding a gap open. The Spire very much did not like this intrusion, judging by the feelings he was getting off of it, but this part of the Shroud was now ¡®his¡¯ until the power broke, which could be done by destroying the sand construct. As that construct was now a level 2 shield, it should prove resistant against incidental damage despite the flimsy construction. While Hunter¡¯s mana drain was over, Daniel still had to provide some of the wild mana within him to sustain it.

    This, beyond anything else, was what Daniel enjoyed the most. Even though he didn¡¯t fully understand the effects of this new pseudo-power, he had managed to improvise and turn it into something that could, theoretically, trap anything. In that moment he felt he¡¯d barely scratched the surface of what powers could do, counting having pulled formulae from thin air and practically everything related to Hunter¡¯s bond. Manipulating the mana flow of a power consciously, rather than just using it outright, seemed a way to alter their very identity and effect. As he prayed the plan would work, he asked himself two questions.

    What exactly was mana? If there was an answer that wasn¡¯t just ¡®magic¡¯. Secondly, why did it feel like one of his first power had been set up to intentionally blunt his ability to feel it?

    ¡­

    Item Swap, like all powers, had its limits. They couldn¡¯t make an item appear in someone, or they¡¯d just use it to phase swords and arrows into beasts. This worked for inanimate objects as well, in general. One exception was when they attempted to swap an item in an easily displaced material. If it didn¡¯t work that way, and the deserts somehow flooded, then water would block the effect. Or, Gordon supposed, it wouldn¡¯t even work above water because the air would get in the way.

    This was an important distinction as they¡¯d finally gotten close enough to the spire guard to trap the majority of them with what Gordon had been assured was an undefeatable snare. Though Marky had calmed somewhat, reserving his anger after coming to realize he might have been wrong, Gordon still hesitated. People knew who they were, on both sides, and the only reason they¡¯d gotten this far was that his group hadn¡¯t done anything overtly aggressive. This plan would put a lot of attention on them, and if it didn¡¯t work at least one side might focus on them.

    He frowned as he noticed the Knight from before had recharged her barrier power, which was currently shoring up the flank directed toward him. There was at least one Martialist armed with a crossbow firing into the crowd behind a wall of armored figures, most with levels. The normal city guard had a hard time recruiting Blessed, one of the reasons his team had stepped in to help, but the Spires with their wealth and influence could poach promising candidates from the Hunter¡¯s Guild. Against such a foe the crowds would normally disperse, but they were past a breaking point the entire city had been building to for months.

    Stopping the carnage required bringing at least one side to a halt while words won out. Doing so against the hundreds of everyday people nonlethally was beyond Gordon¡¯s level, save for very specialized powers none of them had. Even that Knight with their projected barrier couldn¡¯t handle all of this herself. Arresting the spire guard came with its own problems, namely that they represented the strongest contenders in the area. Frankly, Gordon may have decided to cut his team out of here earlier if this wasn¡¯t his home on the line.

    Which brought his thoughts to sand as he knelt. The plaza had a good coating of it from the storm, even if the area was now somehow calmed. This was heavily disturbed sand, both from what it had seen and the blood pooling in places. Gordon wouldn¡¯t have tried placing one of his traps in the ground here since the stone street underneath wouldn¡¯t give room to make space. This, however, wasn¡¯t his trap.

    If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    He sent his stone back to Qess and waited. All he had to do was keep his hand outstretched, and it would work, or it wouldn¡¯t. His partner didn¡¯t keep him waiting long as the sensation of his hand being too occupied to receive the item occurred. ¡°Fuck.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not working?¡± Doran asked, already eyeing ways they could break towards the edge of the conflict. In the back of both of their minds was the option to leave and enter the Spire alone to find Bennar and knock sense into him. It would damn everyone else here, though one ideal common to both professions was knowing when to give it your all, and knowing when your efforts were being wasted.

    ¡°Give it a second,¡± he grunted, shifting his hands to a slightly different position. He was decently sure this would work, but only if there wasn¡¯t anything getting in the way of what they were trying to shift. With so many feet, blood, and bodies in the way, it would take a miracle.

    A minute passed as nothing continued to happen. The others were doing well in securing the area, only other people with levels or drawing total hostility could threaten to move them. Doran, with far fewer people, had managed to hold out for longer back when the undead were still a significant issue. However, neither were people blind. ¡°Hunt leader, that captain keeps looking your way.¡±

    Gordon took a moment to realize he was being addressed. ¡°It¡¯s just Gordon. We¡¯re working on it.¡±

    ¡°How long do you-¡° As Doran was asking, it finally happened. Sand was thrown up as a solid floor was placed just above the ground. It rose amidst small columns a few centimeters in width, running into an invisible barrier made by the captured fragment of Shroud. As Daniel had experienced before, it completely locked down anything within the field which, at ankle height, effectively immobilized everyone caught.

    Most of the spire guard froze, along with anyone else nearby. Gordon winced as one man, in the process of running forward as the trap went down, fell forward while one of his legs remained frozen. The rest caught struggled, some trying to break whatever was holding them, but they all failed to pierce the unbreakable barrier. Before the spire guard could be stormed in this moment of weakness, Gordon ran up and got in position, another wall of sand now appearing from his hands to block off part of the advance. Between that and the very confused Knight still channeling her barrier, the direct approach for the majority of the civilians was blocked off.

    With the rest of their team inside the barrier, Doran took the lead toward the ranking officer he¡¯d spoken with earlier. He wasn¡¯t immediately attacked, although every ranged weapon in the group was trained on him. The leader of the spire guard didn¡¯t struggle in place but raised his sword. ¡°What is this?¡±

    Doran took a moment to observe what parts of him weren¡¯t covered in blood. ¡°I am relieving you of command. You, and the rest of the guard here, are to stand down.¡±

    The other man shook his head sadly. ¡°The Mirage got to HURT. What, is the rest of your team riling up more rebellion? I didn¡¯t want to think you were responsible for-¡± He jerked as Doran squared up, trying to lash out with his sword. The Shroud impeded his movement, and the power the man put behind it to speed up the strike didn¡¯t stop Doran from just ducking and transitioning the movement into an uppercut.

    ¡°Have you lost your minds!?¡± He yelled, as Gadriel moved to block a small fire spell and Gordon cut a bolt out of the air. ¡°Do you see what you¡¯re doing? Look at them!¡± He pointed at one of the citizens who¡¯d been caught in the Shroud, now trying their best to lean away from the guard. ¡°I don¡¯t care if you answer to the Council. If you get an order from the Council to commit a massacre and actually follow it instead of kicking them off the Eye, you¡¯re the traitors.¡±

    ¡°We were supporting you you fucking idiot!¡± one of the spire guard without recent facial trauma shouted. ¡°Reinforcements came from the guardhouse and they turned on them! They¡¯re trying to take the plaza.¡±

    Doran had guessed this misconception had been at the root of the spire guard¡¯s actions, though he didn¡¯t cool his temper one bit. ¡°The enemy hit the main guardhouse and used whatever Crest-damned power converts our people to take them over. They were killing innocent people and instead of stopping them, you decided to join them!¡±

    The spire guard leader recovered by this point and grunted, ¡°Say what you want, Doran. You¡¯re still a traitor trying to turn my men.¡±

    He didn¡¯t directly address that but turned to the crowds who, at this point, were watching with apprehension. ¡°Drag over some of the guard bodies!¡± When no one moved, he added, ¡°We¡¯ll get you into the Spire, but we need to deal with this first.¡± There was a tense minute of waiting as the converted guardsmen hadn¡¯t reached this far with their push. The trapped spire guard were still trying to break out, but held off on more overt action as it became clear that the crowds could rush them while they were trapped if the momentary peace was broken. Soon enough, half a dozen were moved through the crowd and thrown to the ground in front of the barrier the Knight was still maintaining. ¡°Take off their armor.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re a disgrace,¡± the captain in front of him growled. The one holding a crossbow leveled it at the people unlatching straps before a pointed glare made them lower it. The rest of the spire guard were still either defending themselves or trying to find a way out of the trap at this point, the handful not caught in it pulling at their friends or stabbing the ground to no avail.

    Finally, a breastplate came off and the man holding the body jerked back as he saw the hole in the chest. There were other injuries of course, but this one couldn¡¯t possibly have been made without damaging the armor above it. Everyone silently watched as the same wound was revealed to all the others. The Knight¡¯s barrier wavered for a second as she looked back. ¡°Sir?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t listen to them! Obviously they mutilated the remains after killing them!¡±

    ¡°Captain, I say again I am relieving you of your command and placing you under arrest. I don¡¯t care about authority or protocol, you¡¯ll be lucky if you don¡¯t hang after this. The rest of you have a choice. If you think we¡¯re traitors then we¡¯re knocking you out and tying you up. If anyone actually cares about the people of this city and, in case you¡¯ve all forgotten, the enemy actively invading it, then you¡¯re with me. We¡¯re going into the Spire and seeing just what the hell the Council is thinking.¡±

    ¡°The siege ward is closed,¡± the Knight protested, though she seemed to be coming around. ¡°How are you suggesting we get in with the Shroud in the way?¡±

    ¡°The Shroud? Ma¡¯am, what do you think we¡¯re standing on?¡±

    ¡­

    They¡¯re surrendering! At Tak¡¯s message, Daniel slumped to the side of the Spire, and then gave everyone a thumbs up.

    Can I get out of here now? Hunter asked.

    No, you should probably wait until there are fewer people, Tak answered after a beat, perhaps expecting Daniel too. Gordon does say to wait for a few minutes so Gadriel and Doran can finish beating up the ones resisting.

    Ok, Daniel replied, through his headache. All this time, he¡¯d been in what felt like a staring contest with a lighthouse. No, four lighthouses with a lens between them to focus all of their rays on his corneas. Nothing he¡¯d ever done had been this mentally taxing. Sustaining other kinds of powers had just been a drain on his mana with the requirement of light focus. Sure, the more advanced enchanting he¡¯d been getting into could be boring because of how attentive he¡¯d needed to be, but this was different. Something had been fighting him to release the sections they¡¯d torn off the Shroud. It continued to lose, surprising him. Hell, this was all too much. We were supposed to be done with disaster.

    ¡°Everything alright?¡± Evalyn asked softly, clearly aware how painful sound currently was to Daniel. Daniel just nodded to which she whispered, in a completely serious tone, ¡°As your team captain, I have to ask that you tell me about all of your powers from now on. We could have really used this before.¡± Daniel just groaned, sensing the hidden sarcasm, and she added, ¡°Also, I¡¯ve decided what our team name is.¡±

    ¡°Wha-¡± Daniel¡¯s headache was forgotten. ¡°What? It¡¯s not Golden Wing right?¡±

    For a second he was sure Evalyn would keep it secret just to mess with him, but she took pity. ¡°Close. You still gave me the idea. Starting today, we¡¯re the Wings of Craft.¡±

    He thought for a second. ¡°Doesn¡¯t that imply we¡¯re all Craftsmen or something?¡± Evalyn flicked him on the forehead. ¡°Ow!¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re going to stop overthinking this. Honestly Daniel, you¡¯re the smartest non-Lograve person I know, but there¡¯s a good reason we ended up with me as the leader.¡±

    ¡°You got me alone in a tent to convince me?¡± Daniel bowed his head, acknowledging the point and avoiding another flick. ¡°At least Tak will be happy with it.¡±

    Evalyn chuckled. ¡°It¡¯ll grow on you. Although, again, as team leader, I¡¯m going to have to insist you make those flying boots for everyone.¡±

    ¡°Someone¡¯s learning to abuse their power. I can, once I refine the formulae. Although I don¡¯t know if Khiat would be able to use them until she reaches level 2 or¡­ actually, how does that work with her not having a class?¡±

    ¡°The important thing is we¡¯ll have time to find out.¡± Evalyn looked up. ¡°We¡¯ll have to go in there, you know. Find Thomas and try to put a stop to this. With Willow, maybe Bennar will listen more, although I don¡¯t really get politics. I¡¯d say it was a shame we didn¡¯t also have Tlara but¡­¡± she trailed off as Qess walked over.

    ¡°Hey. They¡¯re almost ready to move.¡± She plucked at one of the strings of her bolas. ¡°And, sorry about, well, sorry. To us it looked like you were part of what was going on. Shit, I still don¡¯t know what¡¯s going on with that ringcat but I¡¯m willing to give the benefit of the doubt now.¡±

    ¡°I always thought it was a terrible idea!¡± Taloran shouted from where he was animatedly chatting up the songbird. Despite being in the middle of that, he still managed to wink at Evalyn.

    ¡°Taloran, shut up! Anyway,¡± she sighed. ¡°Sorry.¡±

    ¡°Sorry? You were going to kill Hunter!¡± Daniel objected, rising back to his feet.

    ¡°We weren¡¯t going to kill him.¡± She waved dismissively. ¡°Marky would have if we¡¯d let him though. Crest, it¡¯s going to take some talking to get him around. Look, we were just trying to get you to talk before taking you back to the guild.¡± Daniel folded his arms and when she looked to Evalyn there wasn¡¯t a hint of support. ¡°Fine, I guess it¡¯ll just be this way for now.¡± A stone appeared in her hand. She just nodded at Daniel and he did feel a bit better as the mental pressure was relieved. ¡°We¡¯ll get a drink or something after this, talk this over. I get a feeling Wings of Craft isn¡¯t a team I want to be on the bad side of.¡±

 Chapter 151: Storming the Castle

    When it became clear their compatriots outside the Spire had been taken down, they¡¯d mourned but stayed resolute. Then there was fear as the Shroud itself was breached, something that would no doubt lead to a final stand. Word was fighting had already broken out in the upper floors, though with the ongoing communication breakdown there was no way to know for sure. What was certain was the spire guard would hold this entrance until the last. They had no idea how much of the city had fallen already, but if the Spoke itself was lost their defeat would be total.

    Then the watch sergeant had come in, kicked the alive but bound guard captain into a corner, and started yelling. While Doran handled that, a flood of battered citizens came through. The fear and disgust they showed the interior spire guard only solidified the points Doran was making about how bad the situation had been. Moreover, there was a question people were now raising.

    ¡°Hey, are we sure there¡¯s even an enemy left?¡± Daniel asked his newly christened team while trying to ignore the headache keeping the opening in front of the Spire was causing. ¡°There were those hordes of zombies which may still be around, but it kind of feels like their big push to take the Spires just got shut down. At least this one did.¡±

    ¡°Willow¡¯s mother is still out there,¡± Evalyn pointed out. ¡°It sounds like she¡¯s some kind of monster, maybe even one that¡¯s just mimicking a dead woman. I¡¯d say that was impossible given she talks, but-¡± She inclined her head towards Hunter who had exited Khare. The ringcat got looks but answered each hostile one with ¡®Druid¡¯. This did little to endear him to Marky, though at this point Farthest Run was putting some distance between them and Wings of Craft.

    I¡¯m afraid the situation is more dire than that. Everyone jumped as a grim, almost melodramatic voice entered their heads. Don¡¯t be startled, you¡¯ll give me away!

    Lograve!? Where are you? Evalyn asked

    Nearby.

    Hunter sniffed the air and shook his head. I don¡¯t sense him.

    I can be good at hiding when I need to be.

    Oh right! Daniel suddenly remembered. You can be invisible. Does that also protect from scent?

    Evalyn asked better questions. Lograve, why are you invisible and how long have you been there?

    Well. Lograve¡¯s voice shrunk a little. I caught up around when you split off in front of the Spire. At the time it seemed best to stay hidden in case you needed a surprise ally to bail you out. I certainly didn¡¯t have an idea that could top unseating the will of the gods in order to steal their wallpaper. I guess you didn¡¯t need me after all. We will have to talk about respecting the artifices of higher beings after this, Daniel.

    If you¡¯re nearby, shouldn¡¯t we feel a cold spot? Daniel asked.

    Precisely why I unfroze all of my ice. I¡¯m still not good enough yet to create armor from water so no randomly elbowing the air to find me. My stab wound hasn¡¯t fully healed. But enough of that. I think I know what they¡¯re doing. First of all, I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s a monster or strange class evolution, but there¡¯s more than one of those things. I was teleported to the Divine Quarter, which one of them sieged with an army of those ¡®zombies¡¯.

    Is everyone alright? Evalyn looked around as she asked, trying to find where he was.

    We¡­ lost some people. But that sand thing, whatever it was, looked a lot like a former dusker council member. One whose family was unwilling or, perhaps, unable to revive her. Just like Casia Seliri several years ago.

    And Fredreick! Khiat interjected. Oh, sorry. I didn¡¯t mean to-

    It¡¯s quite alright. Yes, I heard about that too. It happened while we were escaping from the Thormundz.

    That makes sense. Everyone looked at Daniel. They¡¯re undead. That ¡®bring back the dead¡¯ power wouldn¡¯t work if they are still alive. Or, unalive.

    Exactly what can you tell us about these undead, Daniel? Since you are familiar with them. Lograve left his origin unsaid since Khiat was in the conversation.

    Well, there are several ways they could work. Daniel was familiar with Earth¡¯s more common zombie mythos, as well as the more out there versions like messed up videogame monsters. I¡¯ve got no idea what these ¡®sand things¡¯ are, except maybe mummies. Were they wrapped in cloth?

    At times, though I¡¯m unclear if those were actual robes or sand finely shaped to appear as such. The one I saw could control sand and seemed composed of it, able to hide in the storm before solidifying to attack. That¡¯s what I thought was the work of a Geomancer, earlier. They also have a very strong resistance to powers, although I¡¯m not quite sure what it truly takes to kill them. We don¡¯t have the resources to repeat the method I saw used, at least.

    Ok, that¡¯s different. There are usually some points of commonality though. Radiant or holy damage is better against them, some really don¡¯t like sunlight, healing magic can hurt them, and they can turn people into undead. Bites, normally, but it looks like this kind involves something weird with hearts.

    Hmm. We should find Thomas then, Tak pointed out. And avoid getting stabbed in the heart.

    They did try a myriad of other powers on the higher form undead, this ¡®mummy¡¯. The lesser ones died to just about anything, though I fear the power resistance of the mummy may overwhelm this natural vulnerability to divine magic. I do agree that finding our wayward healer is the best move now, though.

    Light? Khare asked in their rather unsettling mental voice. The gestalt rarely spoke, participation in telepathy was even more so. This felt important, but the old problem reared its head. Even Daniel, who had been getting better at interpreting the gestalt, couldn¡¯t pick up on his meaning. Khare kept mentioning light, the sun, and a plan, but as Lograve pointed out even if he¡¯d gotten some kind of natural power related to sunlight, the mummies had shown that they could probably resist it. They had to give up trying to understand them as both Gordon and Doran approached.

    ¡°Wings of Craft,¡± Doran addressed them. ¡°Some of you know me but to be sure, I am Watch Sergeant Doran, HURT squad leader and, apparently, acting authority over the Sun Spire until this mess is sorted out. We owe you for defusing that tragedy. Of course, there¡¯s no telling what else is going on here and there¡¯s been no contact with guard stationed on the higher floors. I have to ask, are you still willing to help?¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± Evalyn answered, taking on a serious look. ¡°And of course it would be heartless to discuss payment now, so we¡¯ll handle that after the crisis.¡± Daniel stared at the Bard but Doran almost seemed to be expecting that.

    ¡°Very reasonable. I should add that we¡¯ll be reforming the team after today. I¡¯d be undeserving of my current station if I didn¡¯t extend an invitation.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll think on it, thank you Watch Sergeant. I assume Farthest Run¡¯s captain is here to discuss strategy.¡±

    Now, Daniel¡¯s mouth was partly open. Evalyn was handling the situation flawlessly, even including a passive aggressive snub at Gordon through being overly formal. Sure, he could see what she was doing after the fact, but he¡¯d never have gotten there himself. It seemed like such a lame thing to be impressed by, but Daniel couldn¡¯t help it. I¡¯m glad I¡¯m not the leader.

    ¡°Yeah.¡± Gordon stayed neutral and professional himself.

    ¡°We have several priorities,¡± Doran continued. ¡°The first of which is finding the Council. At present, that leaves only Aucrest Seliri and Bennar Hammerson, assuming they live. The spire guard isn¡¯t sure what happens if there are no remaining councilmembers, but at this point we must operate under the assumption at least one is alive. Considering the siege ward was raised it¡¯s likely at least one is in enemy custody. To the best of our knowledge, only Bennar Hammerson should be in this spire.¡±

    ¡°And because they¡¯re on the Council, they¡¯re more important than the thousands out here that could be dying,¡± Evalyn added.

    ¡°They can open the gates and lift the storm.¡± Doran pointed towards the open front gate and the patch of shifted Shroud. ¡°This sandstorm is clearly unnatural. I haven¡¯t seen one blow this hard or last this long, and that¡¯s not counting what it¡¯s doing to communication powers. We didn¡¯t see the fallen guard approaching, and the spire guard didn¡¯t realize people were defending against them, due to it. Without the storm, we could see into the Divine Quarter from the Spire and figure out why they haven¡¯t showed up yet. We don¡¯t even know if parts of the city have fallen to the enemy or not.¡± A look of anger crossed his face. ¡°Apparently, the Shroud can protect the entire city from these storms. The only reason the Council hasn¡¯t done it yet is it weakens the overall strength of the shield to the point where a Blessed could defeat it. And, of course, because then a Rogue could sneak through their windows.¡± The distaste was mirrored on everyone nearby listening, most notably amidst the crowd of refugees.

    Oh dear, Lograve commented, still abstaining from revealing himself. I forgot to mention, but like I said I know what is happening and that is a clear sign it¡¯s working. I¡¯ll explain later, but we need to find Thomas and reach the Eye.

    ¡°You have a team with two excellent Rangers at your disposal,¡± Evalyn said. ¡°Can¡¯t they track them down?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s what my team was intending,¡± Gordon answered. ¡°We¡¯re a small group, stealthy. If the enemy holds part of the Spire we can sneak in, maybe free Bennar if necessary before their captors realize.¡±

    ¡°What we¡¯re hoping you, Wings of Craft, could accomplish is locating the city¡¯s Fate. Her location is known, and together you possess the second-most coordinated force I have at my disposal. Assuming we can lift the siege wards, which no doubt block her powers, we can use the Fate to better understand the situation. There have been reports of fighting within this Spire so I urge caution. Even if we don¡¯t accomplish this-¡±

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    ¡°I can remove part of the Shroud around her anyway,¡± Daniel finished the sentence, getting ahead of the man.

    ¡°That does sound reasonable, but we have our own concerns. There¡¯s a Cleric here by the name of Thomas Kaysian. We need to find him first.¡±

    Doran blinked for a second in surprise. ¡°That is fortunate, then. When I was asking the spire guard about the Fate, his name came up.¡±

    ¡­

    It was a testament to herd dynamics that the man had made it this far without being stopped, considering his armor. He¡¯d moved around the entire battlefield, arriving far too late to do anything, before finding what he was looking for. Seeing her, unarmored and in a pile with five other bodies, made everything go completely calm for a second as he knelt. Some people did notice at that point but saw the entire story in that one glimpse and moved on. The pure grief and regret echoed, staying hands that would have otherwise acted.

    Then, Jeras rose. He felt different. Like this wasn¡¯t a loss but a trade. It was true that he hadn¡¯t been himself since Sherman had led him into the depths of the Crest. He¡¯d killed someone in the cells and still felt nothing when thinking about it. This was something else. He was breaking down, and at the same time reforming for a single purpose: end the one ultimately responsible for all of this. He already knew where to find her, somehow. Looking just past the top of the Spire, Jeras charged towards the front gates.

    ¡­

    ¡°Hey you! Hey, stop!¡± The shout drew everyone¡¯s attention as a man in very poor looking city guard armor rushed through the crowd and into the main landing of the Sun Spire. Several attempts were made to stop him, but the avianoid dodged spells and created space with swings from the huge sword he carried.

    Hunter beat Daniel on tagging him, though no one else in the party did much else. Well, Doran was shouting orders, but it was clear this wasn¡¯t an undead. Acting without appropriately assessing the situation had cost too many lives tonight already. This hesitation did allow the man to escape through a side door, barreling his way through.

    ¡°Damn. ¡®Jeras¡¯. I think he was one of the Mirage traitors that left with Sherman a month ago,¡± Doran commented, before stopping a pursuit. ¡°I¡¯m tracking him. Looks like he¡¯s on a stairway. Shouldn¡¯t be too hard to find once we¡¯re done here. He¡¯s hauling though.¡±

    ¡°You can see him too?¡± Daniel asked, causing the sergeant to turn to him. Besides intuiting his plan with the Fate, they hadn¡¯t interacted before now.

    ¡°I have Identify Creature. Recognition and aura-based tags. You?¡±

    Daniel was floored. Someone else had his broken power? Well, it was only overpowered because of Hunter, but still. ¡°Same.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡± Doran thought for a moment. ¡°I am temporarily deputizing you into my HURT squad, do you accept?¡±

    Daniel was nearly knocked off his feet as Khiat nudged him. Say yes.

    ¡°Ok, sure.¡± Suddenly, every aura around him changed. The green of his friends shifted to a sea green, blue edging into it. Lograve was notably absent as Hunter still couldn¡¯t pin down where he was hiding. No enemies were currently marked, so he couldn¡¯t say what difference there was there, but the Jeras tag was still a solid gray. Wait, Vanguard? I didn¡¯t know that was a class.

    Doran was more taken aback. ¡°How have you marked so many people?¡± That was when Daniel realized not every aura had blue shifted. In fact, the majority were still green, and a small outlier were light blue.

    This man was about as far from in the know as you could get. Not wanting to waste time on a long conversation, Daniel simply said, ¡°I had a lot of waiting to do when people were first coming in.¡±

    ¡°I see. I¡¯d like to keep us connected for tactical reasons, but this many auras will be distracting. Remove your mark on all the civilians, please.¡±

    Hunter?

    Why do I have to? the ringcat grumbled mentally.

    It¡¯s your fault there¡¯s so many. What happened to discretion?

    Fine. Auras winked out, first one by one, then in batches.

    ¡°You must have had a lot of practice with that power,¡± Doran commented. ¡°This is Squad Sight, by the way. Any other visual, knowledge-based powers you have will also be shared. Doesn¡¯t look like you have anything else active.¡±

    ¡°Nope, but I can mark things.¡± A wedge familiar to Doran appeared, and he raised an eyebrow. Now the man wanted the entire team on his squad after all of this was over. Even that weird Druid the other one was so irritated with.

    ¡­

    With their objective determined, Wings of Craft took to the main stairway and began their climb. Faster methods of reaching the top floors existed, but according to Doran the magic running through the Spoke was entirely focused on its overpowered shield. Even the automatic nature of the staircase wasn¡¯t working, though not everyone needed to use it.

    Gadriel had left Belonna to join with them. Despite how quickly he¡¯d formed a connection with her, the songbird wasn¡¯t one to charge into battle. She¡¯d only fought tonight to get to safety, and with Daniel putting the Shroud back where he found it, the main landing was about as safe as you could get. Now he was running up the wall and jumping over where the staircase intersected. Khare was employing a similar if slower method as they were in their creeping vine ball form, which had become either strong or flexible enough to climb rapidly.

    ¡°That isn¡¯t remotely fair,¡± Daniel complained as he took steps three at a time. They had to climb about halfway up the skyscraper, and then if Lograve was right go all the way to the top. His relatively high endurance was struggling to keep up, so he stopped for a moment to breathe.

    With some effort, Evalyn stepped over to the railing, grabbed onto it, and looked at Daniel. She wasn¡¯t standing on anything solid but the two affronts to footwear he¡¯d given her earlier. Contrary to his expectations the Bard was picking up flying fairly well, and the assemblage produced enough lift to allow her to slowly ascend without using the heliorite part of the construction. It looked like someone trying figure skating for the first time and immediately being scouted for the Olympics. ¡°You could have just kept the boots yourself.¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t know we¡¯d have to climb all these stairs.¡±

    Hunter, climbing beside him, shook his head. ¡°Weak.¡±

    ¡°You have four legs! That means you climb twice as easily or something.¡± He then glared at the slowest ascending member of the team. ¡°You¡¯re sure you don¡¯t have enough ice for us?¡±

    ¡°Oh, definitely,¡± Lograve replied with snark in his voice. He was standing on a thin platform of ice, using a similar method that had gotten both himself and Daniel away from perhaps the scariest thing either had seen. The Arcanist was also still invisible, the ability compatible with his active control of a feature.

    ¡°Why are you still invisible? There¡¯s a random floating ice disk, won¡¯t people think that¡¯s weird?¡±

    ¡°Oh, yes surely, but I think it¡¯s a bit of a stretch they¡¯ll just assume I¡¯m here.¡±

    ¡°If one of us was on it with you, they might think we were doing it.¡±

    Lograve thought about this for a moment. ¡°No, I¡¯m afraid I don¡¯t see the logic there.¡± He kept moving while Daniel stayed to take a short break. Evalyn remained too.

    ¡°How are you handling everything?¡± She asked, not holding back the personal question despite Hunter¡¯s presence. Daniel didn¡¯t mind.

    ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡±

    ¡°Really? You were kidnapped again. Twice, depending on whatever we end up calling what Farthest Run did besides a knife in the back. Between that and everything else I¡¯m surprised you have it in you to banter.¡±

    Daniel shrugged and slowly began to walk up the stairs. ¡°I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s because of my better attributes or if the breakdown¡¯s going to wait until after all of this, but I just, I don¡¯t feel like I did back then. People have died and it might be selfish for me to say, but no one I care about has. I¡¯m just glad everyone is safe. Damn, I might be getting used to this.¡±

    ¡°Good.¡± Hunter rumbled.

    ¡°Yes,¡± Tak said. He¡¯d also been there the entire time, yet to gain the ability to fully fly with Grow Wings. Honestly? Daniel didn¡¯t mind his presence either. ¡°It¡¯s good you are better now. I was hurt on the way back from Roost¡¯s Peak, but I remember how worried everyone was for you. Humor is good.¡±

    ¡°As long as you aren¡¯t being too callous,¡± Evalyn added. ¡°I¡¯m glad you¡¯re doing well. Khiat, I think she may be heading for that delayed breakdown. She¡¯s keeping her head up, what she made it through back in her village probably gave her some mental strength. But I¡¯m still not expecting her to be completely fine after all of this. She was in that slaughter for a long time.¡±

    Daniel sighed. ¡°We all need a break after this. Somewhere not sandy?¡±

    ¡°Threst or Kallical would be nice.¡± Tak nodded. ¡°I would say Threst, but Hunter may like wide fields better. Better fights there too.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll go to both,¡± Evalyn promised. ¡°Threst first, we have to meet up with Murdon if you¡¯ve all forgotten, but Kallical borders both.¡± A moment passed between the four as they looked forward to a bright future. Then, Evalyn pushed herself off the banister and, with only a little bit of unease, kept skating through the air. Lograve, it¡¯s time you explained what the Mirage is doing.

    Ah, yes. The Arcanist¡¯s voice sharpened, entering lecture mode. You may not be aware, but it is somewhat difficult to usurp control of a region. For one, an invading army has to deal with the regional boundaries resetting powers, in addition to other effects. A defending army in a properly run region can just screen the border and hit people coming through. But even if Rikendia¡¯s forces, or an incursion army were to blow through here, they would have issues dealing with the Spoke.

    So other people can influence them? Daniel asked, confused. Like a few other things he did, people seemed to treat his manipulation of the Shroud as something that had never happened before.

    No, and, in a much bigger sense, yes. This is all advanced theory regarding knowledge the gods don¡¯t restrict, but also don¡¯t freely discuss or disseminate. Torch¡¯s church is responsible for what is known where. Even if they don¡¯t ban something outright they can make it akin to a secret. The bottom line is, ultimate control of a region is down to who controls its Spoke. Unlike how it is popularly believed, control of a Spoke isn¡¯t in the hands of whichever god¡¯s Realm it¡¯s in, but in the united will of the populous. Something like a subconscious democracy, if you all are familiar with that concept, and once power is entrenched in one system for long enough it becomes hard to unseat. Both in real terms as well as mentally. People become conditioned to accept the rule of law. I only researched this far into it because this process is inherent to stabilizing a Spoke prior to it gaining its special abilities, and solidifying mortal kind¡¯s control of a region.

    The Spokes mind control people into obeying the government?

    There was a pause before Lograve answered. No, I don¡¯t believe so, but I cannot disprove that theory either. My belief is that it is a form of societal inertia, or perhaps the manifestation of ¡®if it isn¡¯t broken, why fix it?¡¯ Not to say revolutions don¡¯t happen, this region encountered one when a Tyrant trusted his subordinates with too much power and they usurped him. What is important is that they also had to sell this as a populist revolt, otherwise they may not have gained enough popular will to control the Spoke.

    Wait. Khiat cut in. They killed the Tyrant and the people who were helping him. Everyone in power now just took what the Tyrant had made when they won.

    Daniel could almost feel Lograve shaking his head. That¡¯s propaganda I¡¯m afraid. The original founders of Threst¡¯s government were mostly made up of those directly beneath Armafus. I spent some time here earlier, you see. Traveled the dunes, slayed a dragon, and read some books. Be it the Mirage or just Casia Seliri now, that is the illusion they are attacking. I wouldn¡¯t be surprised at all if that scene under the Sun Spire was entirely planned, or if similar instances are occurring throughout the city. I don¡¯t know how I was so blind, they¡¯ve been building towards this the entire time we were here.

    Hearts and minds, Evalyn thought distantly. Lograve, I see how they¡¯re breaking the ¡®popular will¡¯, but how are they planning to take it for themselves?

    I don¡¯t know. I suspect we¡¯ll find out at the Eye.

    It was all lies? Khiat asked, and there was uncharacteristic anger creeping into her thoughts now.

    Not entirely, Lograve responded carefully. The ones in power today likely have little, if any relation to the original owners of the artifacts. Why don¡¯t we focus on finding Thomas for now?

    There was no response. Daniel sent the equivalent of a direct message to Lograve, the only person in the expanded network he was able to do this with since the Arcanist acted as a central relay. Are you sure it¡¯s not mind control? I¡¯m starting to wonder if that mess could have been caused by this.

    Or vice versa, Lograve replied sagely. The danger could be greater because the general public has been pushed to this point, primed for unrest. In this case, my guess is that Khiat¡¯s anger is genuine. She has always seemed reverent of traditional teachings. Do you remember how she used to act around Gadriel? We are telling her that the ethical foundation for her society is as strong as your cardio.

    Hey! It¡¯s not my fault my class makes me sit down for hours at a time.

    I¡¯m sure that¡¯s why you¡¯re the one slowing us down. Lograve seemed to take in a breath, despite not needing to for this conversation. In all seriousness, pick up the pace. We need to hurry.

 Chapter 152: Assassin!

    Thomas paced the lush interior of the Fate¡¯s quarters, consumed with fear and the sense of worthlessness. Of all the times to lock away his class, he¡¯d chosen to do it the day before his home faced some kind of terrible threat. The last he¡¯d heard Daniel was still missing, and the sandstorm outside was far from natural. Was it a monster doing all of this? With respect to the Commander of the Hunter¡¯s Guild, if something stronger than level 6 showed up the only hope for people outside the Spires would be it not noticing them as they ran, abandoning all they¡¯d ever known.

    The Spires would stand, though. They were unbreakable, the Shroud all-protecting. It used to make him feel so safe, growing up. Then he¡¯d started to wonder why everyone else had been left out of this great gift from the gods. Stories of the constructs other regions had seemed to tell of everyone benefiting, even Threst where the Spoke was held by one alone. To him, the Spires had always seemed a selfish blessing.

    ¡°Rait should have been back by now,¡± Silora said with a bit of worry. She was still in her ¡®throne¡¯, though the siege ward going up had drained the energies that normally amplified her powers and blocked her from outside viewing. Not that that mattered.

    ¡°Can¡¯t you still scry inside the tower and find him?¡±

    She hesitantly nodded. ¡°You can detect what I¡¯m doing, you know. My powers aren¡¯t invisible. If I do anything it could bring people here. Maybe we should just wait this out?¡±

    Thomas didn¡¯t see how she could just sit there. She wasn¡¯t working with whoever or whatever was doing this, he¡¯d asked. Instead it just seemed like base cowardice. ¡°And when they eventually find us?¡±

    ¡°Fates are valuable,¡± Silora replied while twirling one of the tendril-like things shavi had instead of hair. ¡°You are too, even if you¡¯re on cooldown. In fact-¡± Silora abruptly cut off but Thomas had followed the line of thought.

    ¡°I¡¯m even more valuable because I can tell you what to do?¡± Silora didn¡¯t look at him. It made his self-loathing all the worse. He wanted to be valued because of what he could do as a healer, how he could help people. Instead, his biggest asset was the leash he held. Thomas started seriously considering taking something from the wine shelf when there was a knock on the door. The sound was so ordinary it threw both of them. The two exchanged a glance and Thomas shrugged. Anyone who really wanted to get in here could just-

    The door shattered and threw Thomas back as he reached for the handle. Whatever wards might have prevented the intrusion failed, either due to the strength of the kick or the Spire¡¯s power being redirected. The Cleric landed roughly against the far wall, running into a chair on the way. This alone almost knocked him out despite his level since his endurance was still at 17. Double level disparity. Worse, there was nothing he could do to heal his wounds.

    Striding in was a man in black, casually flicking a knife between his fingers. The smooth appearance of the man gave the impression that there should have been a stocky brute behind him who had done the actual door-kicking, but he was level 6. ¡°Silora,¡± Mark said as if walking onto a stage. ¡°I¡¯ve been dying to meet you again.¡± In the adjoining room Silora stumbled out of her chair and made for the window. The Assassin dryly chuckled. ¡°You know, this is nothing personal. But it looks like people have somehow gotten into the Spire, and we can¡¯t have them using your fabulous powers now can we?¡±

    He took a single step forward and shadows leaped out from his back. They ran along the walls and then shot out, turning into dark spikes that impaled Silora in several places. The move could have killed her if it¡¯d hit the right place, but instead this just immobilized her. ¡°Sorry, but I just finished with the most annoying fight I¡¯ve ever had and I need to take some of it out on you. It¡¯s rare I get a chance to take my time.¡±

    Mark made to take another step when someone rushed his back with a sword. They¡¯d chosen the perfect time, taking advantage of the Assassin¡¯s melodramatic gloating. It lashed forward, point first, and only poked Mark through his cloak which refused to break. Everything stopped for a moment as the Assassin slowly turned his head to see Rait holding a scavenged sword.

    Under that gaze, the assistant couldn¡¯t move. ¡°Really, a level nothing like you? Throw at least a bond power at me if you¡¯re going to take a shot.¡± Mark grabbed the arm still holding the sword and twisted, tearing flesh and breaking the arm as easily as if he was trying to get a stuck cork out of a bottle.

    ¡°Rait!¡± Silora yelled, breaking through whatever crippling aura was weighing them down. The Assassin gave everyone in the room a quick, impassive look before tapping the manservant in the chest and sending him crashing into the wine cabinet.

    ¡°I could beat you to death with your servant, but that seems a little overdone even for me. Oh well.¡± He tossed a glance at Thomas, still struggling to stay awake. ¡°Stitch him back together if you can, I don¡¯t care. I¡¯m just here for the Fate.¡± The Cleric was struggling to breathe, impaled in places by pieces of the door and furniture he¡¯d run into. A level 3 hunter wouldn¡¯t be this enfeebled by that damage, but he had level disparity to most of his attributes. This was exactly why Kob had died.

    ¡°You, you don¡¯t have to do this,¡± Silora choked out as her slightly blue blood ran onto the shadow spikes.

    ¡°Silora, please, what gives you the impression I¡¯m doing this for any other reason than I want to?¡± He grinned now, before this only showing either a neutral expression or mocking concern. ¡°Assassins don¡¯t grow stronger from killing people too far below their level. But you¡¯re level 5, aren¡¯t you? While I¡¯m still bound by this class I may as well get the most out of it. No, the only reason I didn¡¯t kill you earlier is that she didn¡¯t want me to. But things are kind of going to shit, you see? They can¡¯t take any more risks. I don¡¯t really care, honestly. I¡¯m only here because my boss, the Prime? He struck a deal with her people and we¡¯re working towards similar ends for now. Just a contractor, get it?¡± He pointed the knife in his hand at Silora and she quailed, despite him still being a room and a half away from her. ¡°But this job sure does come with perks.¡±

    Mark started walking forward, taking his time. He¡¯d reached the threshold between rooms when he stopped, speaking over his shoulder. ¡°Look, I don¡¯t know who you are, but I¡¯ve already had one person walk in on me and my patience is spent. Get lost.¡± Thomas was facing the doorway, having been blown back from it, and couldn¡¯t see anyone. He realized then that Rait had never gotten the drop on the Assassin. Mark had detected the approaching group with his back turned before Thomas had seen them. He was, at once, thrilled and terrified to see his friends round the corner.

    The Assassin hung his head and stabbed his knife into the wall to punctuate every word he said. ¡°Fucking waste of time.¡± He left the knife in the wall and pulled out another, almost indistinguishable from the first. ¡°Fine, I¡¯ll play this game, but you get a time limit.¡± More shadows rushed towards the Fate and struck her in the chest, avoiding critical organs but making the blood loss far worse. ¡°Kill me before she dies or something like that. Oh.¡± He perked up suddenly. ¡°You¡¯ve got a level 4 with you. Nice. Drop the invisibility, loser.¡±

    In the hallway, Thomas saw Lograve appear from nowhere behind Daniel¡¯s team, who were themselves behind Gadriel. Khiat, the one he¡¯d spent so much time trying to help, seemed so scared in this moment as she approached a deadly threat while forced into a shorter height. The ceilings in the Sun Spire by and large weren¡¯t enough for a dusker to fully break out of their shell.

    ¡°Your arrogance will be your downfall, blackheart!¡± Gadriel yelled in response.

    ¡°Hero,¡± Mark said dismissively, finally turning and getting a look at his challengers. Thomas realized the Assassin was drawing things out. Silora was in a similar position as him, high level with undoubtedly some disparity to endurance. Level 5 was when common knowledge said you could survive what would outright kill normal people for some time, including blood loss. That assumed a well-balanced Blessed.

    So what does that make Mark? Thomas thought in despair. Guy, get out of here. You could cut off his head and he could still kill everyone before he dies. Or it grows back.

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    ¡°Hmm. Gravity powers. Rare in a non-mage class. Think I¡¯ll try not to kill you,¡± Mark said, somehow reading into Gadriel. ¡°Wait, you got out? Guess I¡¯m killing that Artificer after this.¡± He only glanced at Daniel, recognizing him, looked for a second at Tak, scoffed, and moved on until his eyes stopped dead. On Khiat. The suave facade broke as utter confusion took over. ¡°You, halfborn. You¡¯re not even a real level 1 yet, but you¡¯re not a level 1 anything. How the fuck did you remove your class?¡±

    Khiat froze under his gaze which the Assassin then dialed down. ¡°I, I don¡¯t know. I don¡¯t understand what I am. I just didn¡¯t want to be an Assassin.¡±

    Mark¡¯s eyes widened as he put away his knife and smiled, bearing instantly changing. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s make a deal. You all come with me and we leave here before things start to get really fun. I¡¯ll even let most of you go, although the old man is going to want to meet someone who achieved enlightenment blind. Eh, we¡¯ll talk later about that. All you have to do is tell me exactly what you did to her and we¡¯ll try it on me. I don¡¯t care what or who else you need, I¡¯ll get them.¡±

    ¡°And you¡¯ll let her live?¡± Gadriel asked although the Hero didn¡¯t seem like he was seriously considering the offer.

    ¡°What, the Fate? Oh, no,¡± he laughed. ¡°She dies. I mean, I¡¯ve got to have some standards.¡±

    ¡°I will not barter the lives of innocents for personal gain,¡± Gadriel retorted. Mark rolled his eyes, and a knife appeared in each hand without him needing to draw them.

    ¡°Fine, fine. Offer¡¯s still good to the survivors. Give it your best shot.¡±

    ¡°I shall.¡± Gadriel brought his sword forward in a two-handed grip, point towards the Assassin. ¡°Falling Star!¡±

    Mark¡¯s confusion grew. ¡°That¡¯s not going to-¡° He disappeared into mist as Gadriel fell laterally towards him, intending to drive the blade into the Assassin with greater force than the manservant had. Mark reappeared a short distance away, watching as the Hero collided with a wall. While the sword was buried in the stone, Gadriel didn¡¯t seem bothered. Indeed, when he stood up to face his enemy, it was in his hands without any obvious sign of him drawing it out. ¡°Interesting. But your ¡®righteousness¡¯? No one in this damned world is right. It¡¯s just about who has the power.¡±

    Gadriel reached back to grab his shield, the Assassin letting him. ¡°Power is meaningless by itself.¡±

    The Assassin scoffed. ¡°I have a cause, Hero.¡± Mark seemed more than willing to verbally spar with Gadriel rather than kill him outright, which Thomas knew he could. The reason for that was clear. Silora was still bleeding out on those spikes. Rait could be dying too, and he could do nothing for either. Fortunately, his friends weren¡¯t fooled by the gambit.

    ¡­

    Now. Lograve signaled the volley as Daniel stayed focused. He had to time his ability precisely as he waited for everyone else to fire. His projectiles were the second fastest of the group and he could freeze time to help aim. It was just a hope, but with a level 6 opponent threatening Thomas and the Fate, hope was more than they could ask for.

    Daniel activated Moment of Clarity as Lograve¡¯s ice, Khare¡¯s daggers empowered with Bleeding Blade, and Evalyn¡¯s Songbolt fired. He rarely needed to do this to aim, but against a dodge tank with a gauntlet bow he¡¯d need-

    Mark moved, ever so slowly, to the side of where the projectiles were focused. Already, a dark mist was spreading from the spot he¡¯d been. That¡¯s not teleportation, Daniel realized, he¡¯s slowing time too! Daniel still didn¡¯t know how much Moment of Clarity distorted his perception of time, but it was enough that only the mysterious man who¡¯d given Hunter his voice had been able to move in it. And Gadriel to a far lesser extent. Mark¡¯s speed was about three times as much as Gadriel¡¯s had been when his combo power was nearly maxed out, and the Assassin hadn¡¯t needed to spend hours building up to this point.

    Daniel made eye contact with the Assassin, and while he was physically immobile, there was enough for mutual recognition. Not good. Should we do something else? Hunter asked, one of the only other consciousnesses in this space.

    No. It¡¯s too late to change what everyone else is doing. At least I can try to hit him. Daniel had seen Mark appear about half a meter away the last time he¡¯d used his dodging power. While he could just extend Moment of Clarity until he saw the Assassin stop, mana was an ever precious resource even with the potion he¡¯d saved. Hell, if he tried to drink it the Assassin would probably break the bottle. Instead, he had to predict where the Assassin would land.

    As always, he could only aim during this time, not move his arms. The value was in double checking himself. In truth, Daniel didn¡¯t have natural talent. Khiat was better at this than him and she was a full level behind. Without Snap Shot he¡¯d be terrible at this. When it counted, though, he could pull out a clutch shot by relying on his mind.

    Daniel locked in the slight movements he¡¯d need to make and released the ability. He fired, sending the bolt to precisely where the Assassin¡¯s head would be. It flew true, straight into Mark¡¯s hand as he plucked the only threatening projectile out of the air. Khiat¡¯s arrow, aimed by a practiced hunter, would have proved more difficult to catch if only she could have adjusted for the dodge after the fact. Instead it splintered against the wall, arrowhead digging into the stone while a small burst of flame issued out from it. Gadriel had moved to shield Rait from incidental hits, while Thomas was trusted to take care of himself. Fortunately, there was no friendly fire.

    Just as Mark was about to say something, four blurs crossed the air towards him. His eyes widened once more as the thing he¡¯d dismissed as Tak¡¯s animal companion demonstrated a potent bond power with the Totem Warrior. Daniel had no idea if the Assassin could spam that dodge, but he did know this attack was unblockable. Both were effectively incorporeal!

    Mark dropped the bolt, his hands beginning to glow a pale green. The Assassin didn¡¯t disrespect this attack, paying full attention to it. Somehow, he grabbed both real attackers out of the air and avoided the fake ones. The Assassin tossed Tak to the side, and kept a hold of Hunter.

    Fuck, the frost strangler. Daniel had a flashback to a former enemy and realized that if there were monsters and powers that used phasing, there must be counters too.

    ¡°You¡¯re not a beast,¡± Mark observed, calmly ducking a swipe from Hunter, repeated ice spikes from Lograve, and projectiles fired from two sources. ¡°Not a Druid either, not with those archetypes.¡± It was like he¡¯d stopped to solve a crossword puzzle in the middle of a war zone. He didn¡¯t bother blocking the sword throw from Gadriel, instead kicking it out of the air. ¡°You¡¯ve been touched by the Prime!¡± He exclaimed after a few more seconds, a drop of reverence entering his voice. ¡°Are we Grafting again? I thought, but no, that¡¯s not what this is.¡±

    Daniel paused as he reloaded his spent gauntlet bows, and he saw Khare lower their weapons. ¡°You know what that guy did to Hunter?¡± Part of him knew the Assassin was drawing this out, but that was something that had lingered in the back of his mind. Constant worry that the gift had come with a curse.

    ¡°No.¡± Mark frowned and threw Hunter across the room. The casual way he did it, and the damage both Hunter and Tak received, made it clear that could have been a devastating attack if he¡¯d wanted it to be. As it was, the room was thoroughly trashed. ¡°The old man just touched him. Grafting, no, that isn¡¯t something he could do instantly. Did he give you the archetypes?¡± It seemed he couldn¡¯t figure it out. Lograve did realize something, though.

    ¡°You¡¯re part of the Illustrious.¡± Lograve didn¡¯t stop firing ice as he spoke, though the suspicion rattled him.

    ¡°Guilty.¡± Mark mock-bowed, which also allowed him to avoid Tak¡¯s charge.

    ¡°You all died during the Collapse.¡±

    ¡°Did we.¡± He shot a look at Silora, smiling as he saw she hadn¡¯t moved. ¡°If you met the Prime but didn¡¯t know who I am, I¡¯m guessing that was a brief encounter. He likes his cryptic shit sometimes. There are some diamonds in the rough here, be a shame to shatter them for nothing. Why not join the right side of history? I know, evil Assassin and all, but I¡¯m being serious.¡±

    ¡°What about the Origin Beast?¡± Daniel asked, drawing a glare from Lograve.

    Mark laughed again. ¡°That fat old thing? We¡¯re killing the gods, next to that a rabid hound is nothing.¡±

    ¡°You can¡¯t kill the gods,¡± Thomas wheezed, trying and failing to stand. ¡°They¡¯re the world!¡±

    This provoked the loudest, most deranged bout of humor yet. ¡°I see our resident Cleric¡¯s finally put himself back together enough to get in this little spar. Please, tell me all about the perfect idols you worship so dearly.¡± He took a step towards the Cleric, still effortlessly dodging everything thrown at him.

    We have bigger powers, Daniel thought, considering and then deciding against tying one of the spineshard spheres to a bolt. The space is too small. We could kill that other guy if anything gets to close. Everyone else was thinking the same. Lograve had more powers, including a ring of flame Daniel had only seen him use once, but the fighting was too tight.

    ¡°You¡¯re fucking insane!¡± Thomas yelled, before coughing out blood. Mark took another step, but Thomas didn¡¯t back down. ¡°All this nonsense, you don¡¯t care. You¡¯re just playing with your food.¡±

    Mark crossed the rest of the room with a single step, without bursting into mist, and looked down at the Cleric with a smile. ¡°I¡¯m not even doing that. But if you want to see what I can really do, let me show you.¡± His hand reached forward, then paused. ¡°You aren¡¯t healing, but with those archetypes-¡± The Assassin encountered another puzzle. Instead of dodging the next attacks, he grabbed Thomas¡¯ bloodied shirt and teleported across the room. Again, no dark mist, making Daniel think they were separate powers.

    ¡°Oh. Of course, that combination. You have it, don¡¯t you?¡± He gave Thomas another appraisal. ¡°And you¡¯ve used it! That is pathetic and bold at the same time, challenging me with all your powers sealed away. Just like that idiot bleeding on the floor.¡± Mark shoved Gadriel out of the way, tossed the Cleric to the side, then teleported to catch him by the left wrist with enough force to crush it. ¡°This, by the way, is how I start playing.¡±

 Chapter 153: Alternate Win Condition

    Thomas had watched the entire fight feeling more useless than Rait. At least he¡¯d tried attacking the Assassin, Thomas had been taken down before it had begun. The thought of telling Silora to do something, anything had crossed his mind, but he wouldn¡¯t do it. He wouldn¡¯t force someone to fight against their will, and once skewered there wasn¡¯t much she could do anyway.

    As it dragged on, the Assassin impossibly dodging everything thrown at him, Thomas finally had an idea. At least, if it didn¡¯t work, he¡¯d be a distraction. Baiting the Assassin, he played along until he could touch him with both hands. It was hard with how injured he was, but eventually an opportunity presented itself.

    With Mark¡¯s hand around his wrist, Thomas flexed his to make contact while his right hand touched the Assassin¡¯s back. Feeling more blood welling up in his chest cavity, Thomas fought to get the words out. Despite everything, there was one thing he could miraculously do without his Focus. Not all of my powers are gone asshole. ¡°Flash Balance.¡±

    It took a truly enormous amount of mana, especially considering that the cost had been reduced after reaching level 3. Thomas guessed he was basically out, going from full after pointlessly restoring his mana earlier this morning. It wasn¡¯t like he¡¯d use it on anything else. Mark dropped him like he¡¯d just lit the Assassin on fire.

    ¡°What, what was that?¡± the Assassin asked, unsure of himself for the first time. Everyone watched as the dark spikes in Silora faded away, and the black Assassin¡¯s cloak changed colors to show a slightly stained, but still dark appearance. ¡°What did you just do? That wasn¡¯t Flash Heal!¡±

    The Assassin appeared off balance for a moment. His fluid, sure movements of before were gone. Though he still dodged Gadriel¡¯s sword throw, timed perfectly with the Hero intuiting something was going to happen, he didn¡¯t kick it out of the air as before.

    This just resets buffs and debuffs, but he¡¯s reacting like I just unloaded a Nova on him, Thomas thought, also taken aback by how effective the ploy had been. Either the Assassin relied far too much on heightened features, or there was some aspect to his power he didn¡¯t understand yet. Despite this surprising victory, there was a problem.

    ¡°That¡¯s it! You''re all dead.¡± A wave of intimidation rolled off the Assassin. He could still use his powers, but something still seemed off about him. Thomas was about to try to roll away when he saw Daniel charge the Assassin out of nowhere.

    ¡°Guy!¡± he choked out. He watched as the Artificer didn¡¯t attack, but instead grabbed onto the Assassin¡¯s arm.

    ¡­

    If anyone could literally stare daggers at people, it would be this Assassin. He even had Tlara beat in quality, but Daniel saw what he¡¯d hoped to see hidden in the glare: hesitation. I¡¯m right. Hunter, keep heading to the window. If this plan doesn¡¯t work tell everyone else to run for it.

    ¡°Let go.¡± Mark threatened death with his tone, but gave up the only weakness he had in making the demand.

    ¡°You can¡¯t kill me,¡± Daniel replied, voice shaking. ¡°Someone told you not to. Or I¡¯d just be dead in Arpan¡¯s shop. He told me you wanted me for something.¡±

    ¡°Now he dies painfully.¡± Both of them jerked as Mark teleported them away. As Daniel had hoped, he had to bring whoever was in physical contact with him along when he teleported. Honestly, he¡¯d made some very sketchy assumptions for the plan he¡¯d thought up, but even the miracle Thomas had pulled out hadn¡¯t actually hurt the Assassin, just weakened him. ¡°And there¡¯s a long way we can go before death.¡±

    Daniel felt a blinding pain as Mark took his other hand and efficiently broke the wrist holding onto him. Blinking through tears, Daniel transformed his hand and continued to hold on. This would have further puzzled the Assassin, but the time for games was over.

    ¡°Casia asked me to kill that ringcat, you know,¡± Mark said in a falsely sweet voice. ¡°I don¡¯t think what she wants will work anymore, but if you don¡¯t let go, I¡¯ll kill it anyway.¡± He waited for a second, but Daniel didn¡¯t let go. It looked like he wasn¡¯t listening. ¡°You¡¯re that stubborn? There¡¯s no way any of you can kill me, especially now.¡±

    Daniel looked at him then, blinking his eyes. ¡°Does it look like we¡¯re trying to kill you?¡±

    Mark realized several things, then. He¡¯d given way to tunnel vision too much, perhaps, and hadn¡¯t noticed the attacks had stopped. In fairness he could get out of the way of most so easily it was second nature, he barely had to think about it. Also, all of his features had been dropped back to their baseline and he was busy heightening them. He had been paying some attention, though he hadn¡¯t heard anything important

    Of course. These annoying people had some kind of Telepathic Network set up. He really should have caught it before now. The Assassin took in his surroundings and saw what everyone else had been doing. Silora had been partially healed, an empty potion bottle in her hands. They couldn¡¯t get her through the door without running into him, so they¡¯d gone for the window instead. Mark scratched his head with his free hand. ¡°What the fuck are they doing?¡±

    ¡°Getting away,¡± Daniel said bravely. ¡°I stay here and tie you up. They jump out the window.¡±

    Mark took a moment to appreciate the stupidity and then punched the Artificer in the face to knock him out. Seriously, you give a man a few levels and he thinks he can hold off dragons by himself. Whatever that Cleric had done annoyed him too, but stealing the kill he came here for in the first place? Too far.

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    ¡°Alright, enough.¡± He flicked one of his hands, throwing a dagger that impaled the ringcat. Frustratingly, it didn¡¯t penetrate all the way through. It was deeply bonded to the Totem Warrior, granting them an enviable damage sharing power. Only two people willing to die for each other, or at least take tremendous amounts of pain, could develop something like that. He was almost curious enough about that story to hold back, anger beating the impulse out.

    What were they doing anyway? Mark jumped ahead in space several times, heading for the group bunched up by the window. The Shroud would stop them from getting away, even if they got into the thin area between the wall and the shield. They were locked in here with him. Were they stupid?

    He stepped forward again, shoving the honestly unremarkable Bard out of the way with a dagger just as the shavi was dumped out the window. That Arcanist had made an ice platform outside to catch her. The Hero was doing something interesting, standing on the outside wall of the Spire to catch him when he followed out. It wasn¡¯t a stupid plan, he conceded, just a bad one.

    Mark teleported onto the ice shelf, ready to end the Fate, when the ice shifted beneath his feet. The Arcanist had seen this coming. Oh well, he¡¯d just-

    Slip.

    Mark was completely taken aback as he lost his footing. The ice moved like someone rolling a carpet, propelling him towards the Shroud. What? He took stock of himself and realized, I forgot to improve Balance. Seriously? It was one of the features he kept heightened at all times. The only reason Mark never committed it to a higher level was that no one in the Illustrious committed anything to a higher level. It hindered progress towards enlightenment as it permanently locked part of your mana into the pattern of the feature. Escaping the boundaries of the Octyrrum required taking yourself back from the system, not putting more of yourself into it.

    He¡¯d just forgotten. In fairness a power that reset everything you had without refunding the mana was bullshit. He¡¯d never seen anything like that before. Mark had had to re-heighten over a dozen powers, all with conscious thought and mana manipulation, while dealing with a handful of pitiful idiots he was half trying not to kill. In the end, without a feature he¡¯d always relied on to catch him on shaky ground, he¡¯d just slipped. Mark truly had to applaud their ingenuity. Of course, he¡¯d just bounce off the Shroud and come back to kill them. Then, he¡¯d-

    Mark¡¯s mind completely shut down for a moment as he realized he¡¯d gone past where the Shroud should have been. He didn¡¯t move until a few seconds after he started falling. Mark threw a few daggers and confirmed what he¡¯d thought. The Shroud was still in place.

    He landed on the ground, not really bothered by the fall, and pressed his hand against it. ¡°What the fuck?¡± Utterly perplexed, he looked up and saw his target was being carried back into her room. Mark tried to teleport into the Spire, but of course that was impossible. He was so angry he shook in place for a moment. Then, he took out a knife. And stabbed. And stabbed. And stabbed and stabbed and stabbed and stabbed and-

    ¡­

    ¡°I think we just won,¡± Evalyn said, wincing as she pulled out the dagger in her abdomen. ¡°He¡¯s going to be a problem later though.¡±

    ¡°We were just very lucky,¡± Lograve clarified. ¡°Though I can¡¯t be sure. That is a level 6 opponent down there who now has a grudge. He could, by himself, turn Aughal into a graveyard. We should be glad he had an ulterior motive. Do you know why he can¡¯t kill you, Daniel?¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Daniel replied.

    ¡°That¡¯s a bit unsettling,¡± Evalyn replied. ¡°I can tell it¡¯s not Hunter talking.¡±

    Daniel had, of course, crossed over to Hunter¡¯s body right before he was knocked out. The bond power that let them share senses also allowed the consciousness to exist independent of the body, though Daniel still didn¡¯t want to test what happened if one of them died while out of theirs. Him staying awake was important, since that had kept the hole in the Shroud Hunter had created with Telekinetic Reach open.

    ¡°I¡¯m just glad I can tolerate this now. I may be close to handling switching bodies mid-battle for more than a few seconds,¡± Daniel said, borrowing Hunter¡¯s voice again. He could just reply mentally, but when you were inhabiting the body of a murder cat, you might as well get the full experience. ¡°If I go back I¡¯ll just fall unconscious, so I¡¯ll be a passenger here for now. Also, that punch looked like it hurt. I¡¯ll wait for Regeneration to do its thing and jump back after.¡±

    Everyone started to move back to the main chamber where the Fate was torn between thanking her saviors and bemoaning her ruined suite, when Daniel asked Hunter to hold back. Khare was still by the window, looking down to where the Assassin was repeatedly trying to stab his way back into the Spire. ¡°Khare?¡±

    ¡°Grafting.¡± Daniel got where the gestalt was going with this. Khare wanted more than anything to be able to interact normally with other people. Well, that or bringing Kob back, but that was impossible.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think he would have helped you,¡± Daniel said, about as gently as you could through a ringcat¡¯s mouth. He had to be careful not to impale his, or rather Hunter¡¯s, lower jaw while talking. Those canines were absurdly long. ¡°We don¡¯t know if they could.¡± Shit, wait, don¡¯t take away their hope. ¡°Anyway, that guy is insane. The older one he called the Prime gave me more of a mad hermit vibe, but he did give Hunter speech. If I meet him again, I¡¯ll ask if he can help you.¡±

    ¡°Gratitude,¡± Khare replied, though Daniel could tell it was half-hearted.

    ¡­

    Casia felt the mana in the air shift and felt like screaming again. Mark had been taken out? In all the ways she¡¯d anticipated failure, this was not one of them. No, she¡¯d expected her erstwhile ally to turn on them. Even if the price that had paid for all of this was high, an entire piece of alabaster, they were in the territory where all oaths and bargains were made meaningless by pure ambition.

    In summary, Casia¡¯s risen allies in Fredreick and Ytaya had been slain. She had a spare heart from her daughter¡¯s monster, but the dagger didn¡¯t work on the same person twice and there hadn¡¯t been time for Arpan to do anything with it. Mark was dead too, somehow. His summoned storm was slowly fading and the communication block had already been lifted. The churches hadn¡¯t been ravaged enough to stop their response. A Tyrant was still on the loose.

    Finally, the planned slaughter at the gates of the Sun Spire had been thwarted with the survivors bypassing the Shroud. A rebellion might still flare up, but she¡¯d been counting on that plaza to turn into the breaking point that would throw the entire city into chaos. That the slaughter had fizzled out threw that into question. All she¡¯d seemed to have gained in the exchange was a casualty count barely in the low thousands. In almost every way, Casia¡¯s plans had failed.

    She remained calm. You didn¡¯t take the mantle of a general and expect to win every battle. You aimed to win the war. With the people she had here now almost everything was in place. Armafus¡¯ last legacy was within her grasp. The last piece of the puzzle, the only thing left to claim victory?

    It could be a random detachment of spire guard. A few lesser nobles leveraging their artifacts against her. Perhaps whoever it was that had somehow gotten through the Shroud at the Sun Spire. Who they were didn¡¯t matter in the end. Only that they came and tried to stop her.

 Chapter 154: Subverting Fate

    ¡°Thank you so much. I honestly thought I would- oh, gods, Rait!¡± Silora finally remembered her assistant amidst profusely thanking the hunters and immediately went to the ruins of her wine cabinet where her assistant lay still. ¡°Is he?¡±

    ¡°I still have two healing potions,¡± Daniel said, enhanced hearing making him aware of the conversation. ¡°They¡¯re in my bag of holding. Thomas, you really can¡¯t do anything? Is this like when you fell?¡±

    Silora stared at the giant talking cat, which on any other day would have overwhelmed her. She felt like she should say something to cover for the Cleric, but one of the newcomers she faintly recognized did instead. ¡°He has lost his Focus,¡± Lograve confirmed. ¡°Let us discuss that later. I suspect we need to get to the Eye as fast as possible before they do something truly horrendous. Like turn all the rugs in here pink or something.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Silora asked, still struggling to keep up.

    At the same time, Thomas was relieved to see Rait groan after the healing potion was fed to the downed man. It did a lot more than it would have if Daniel had used it since Rait didn¡¯t have levels, and to Thomas¡¯ eye he would keep the arm. Still, the Cleric looked at his friends and knew. ¡°I can¡¯t go with you,¡± he said.

    ¡°Because you don¡¯t want to fight?¡± Evalyn asked.

    ¡°Because I can¡¯t. Using Flash Balance on that maniac about took me out mana-wise. And, yeah, I don¡¯t have my Focus.¡± He squeezed his hands together. ¡°I just, I wish I had another way to help you.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve done enough. Truly,¡± Lograve said comfortingly. ¡°I doubt that ¡®slip and slide¡¯ of Daniel¡¯s would have worked without you throwing him off balance.¡±

    ¡°It was Evalyn¡¯s execution, I just had the idea,¡± Daniel replied, still possessing Hunter.

    ¡°Yes, I suppose our neophyte Murdon truly is growing into her scales. Careful, or I might just start picking on you too.¡±

    ¡°As if you don¡¯t already,¡± she shot back. Evalyn looked pointedly at Lograve then, and Thomas heard her in his head. Somehow, he knew this was a private communication. Does this have something to do with reaching level 3?

    Yeah. I can¡¯t talk about it now. You have better places to be. Evalyn gave him a sad look but nodded. Despite his tendencies and the anxiety he got from his friends putting themselves in danger, he didn¡¯t try to stop her either. It was what needed to be done. It was their purpose to protect, just like his was to heal and support.

    He considered once again telling Silora to use her powers but knew it was wrong to force her to do anything. If Thomas started abusing that contract bond now, what would he turn into in a year¡¯s time? But she can see the future, he thought to himself. They were going to fight someone who used a level 6 Assassin as a lackey. Frankly, Silora¡¯s hesitation to use the power was stupid. If what she saw was random, then seeing her death again would be almost impossible. Unless she dies soon, but then it doesn¡¯t matter!

    Daniel¡¯s, or as he reminded himself, Evalyn¡¯s team was getting ready to leave. Saying goodbyes, for now. Thomas realized it was now or never and had an idea. He wouldn¡¯t force Silora to do anything. Shaming her into it, though, that was different. ¡°Hey, Silora, you owe ¡®Wings of Craft¡¯ your life, right?¡±

    ¡°Oh, of course! Rait, too.¡± She looked to where her assistant was now passed out again. He wasn¡¯t in danger of dying, but it had been one Crest of a day for him. ¡°I am in all of your debts.¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re about to risk their lives for all of us,¡± Thomas continued, being very careful with his words. He wouldn¡¯t say anything that could be considered a command. Just light suggestions at the most. ¡°If they¡¯ve done all that, and they¡¯re about to do it all again for basically free, shouldn¡¯t you help them?¡±

    ¡°I thought about this,¡± Lograve said, not missing the brief fear that crossed Silora¡¯s face. ¡°Fate, I know something of your craft. I¡¯m assuming with your home in the state that it is, you aren¡¯t prepared for a reading? The Shroud isn¡¯t an issue, as you saw, but all classes have a hard time functioning without a proper Focus.¡±

    ¡°I wasn¡¯t expecting guests,¡± she answered nervously. Not because she feared disappointment. She feared what Thomas was about to say.

    ¡°Silora can see the future.¡± Thomas grinned internally at the loophole he¡¯d found in his morality, and then paused to consider if that was the best thing to enjoy finding.

    ¡°At level 5?¡± Everyone seemed taken aback, even the omniscient. ¡°I have to say I¡¯m not all knowing when it comes to the Fate class. Really?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not something I like using,¡± Silora started to explain, but Thomas cut her off.

    ¡°You do owe them though, right? And that guy wanted to kill you. Doesn¡¯t it make more sense to help them stop whatever¡¯s happening?¡±

    ¡°If there is something you can tell us, it would help,¡± Evalyn affirmed. ¡°We came in here almost blind about what we were fighting, and it was mostly luck that let us win. If we¡¯re going to the Eye, we need a plan.¡±

    Intense internal conflict displayed on the Fate¡¯s face. Thomas had noted from their interactions so far that the Fate was a bit selfish and naturally mistrusting. To the degree of blackmailing him into helping her without even trying to just ask. He was prepared for her to say no and leave it at that, not willing to cross the line, until something surprising happened.

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    ¡°Oh, fine.¡±

    ¡­

    Silora sat on her throne, preparing herself. Magic was still dead in this room, she was only here because it was the most comfortable piece of furniture that had survived the rampage. At least she was already planning to move. As for peering into the future, she really did fear that power, but would admit she¡¯d played that up a little so the Cleric wouldn¡¯t insist on making her regularly use it. It hadn¡¯t technically been a lie, just an exaggeration. The crafty Fate was well experienced in managing people who were managing her.

    She tuned out her surroundings as she worked her mana as fast as she could. That handsome Arcanist had given her only a few minutes to work before they¡¯d have to leave. This ability did grow more focused the longer she channeled it, which meant there¡¯d only be glimpses. Again, she hadn¡¯t lied when she said she couldn¡¯t control what she saw. That would imply she could go into the vision herself and change things.

    Oh, but she could hone in on a strand of fate and follow its course. Silora had almost no worries about this year she¡¯d have to spend under Thomas, assuming she survived today. On a whim, she picked the Hero. If anyone here was going to get the dramatic final blow on whoever was doing this, it would be him, and she¡¯d like to see that.

    The vision started coming through. Flashes, moments. She didn¡¯t see the most important parts, this was truly random. First was something from just a few seconds from now, people sitting around her looking expectantly while trying to be comfortable on the remains of her poor furniture. The next series of images continued on this trend until it skipped to them leaving, already in the hallway. Up the stairs, they really were going for the Eye which gave Silora a bit of hope.

    Further and further up. The landing that led to the Eye, the young Artificer healed enough to stand with the rest of them. The rate of these visions began to slow, puzzling the Fate. Thomas perhaps had a point in that she underused this power, so she didn¡¯t appreciate all of its intricacies. What was happening?

    The next image stayed for some time. Wings of Craft arrayed against three people on the Eye, two more within a barrier surrounding the central fountain. She could recognize all but one of them and was surprised by who she saw. This truly was important information. Moreover, if this was all they¡¯d have to deal with she didn¡¯t see any real reason to worry.

    Silora saw the next flash and choked. It had skipped a bit, at least a few minutes. The flashes were coming far faster, jerking with a bit of distortion around the edges. She couldn¡¯t understand what was going on. It wasn¡¯t her power, there was extreme energy in the moments she was witnessing that was reaching backward in time to affect her. Suddenly, the vision flicked back to the first of the rapid-fire visions, cycling through them again and again. And she couldn¡¯t make it stop.

    ¡­

    ¡°Flash Balance!¡± Thomas cried out just after he finished swallowing. The Fate¡¯s writhing stopped, and though he¡¯d cut whatever was happening short, she didn¡¯t wake up. Everyone was still for a moment until he broke the silence. ¡°Sorry about the potion, Daniel. You probably needed it.¡±

    ¡°I think it¡¯ll be fine,¡± Daniel answered hollowly. Everyone could tell he was lying as a grim mood was set for their parting.

    ¡­

    ¡°It¡¯s so quiet,¡± Evalyn commented as they neared the top of the Spire. They¡¯d come across the bodies of spire guard now, clearly killed by the Assassin due to no one else having poisons that could do that to someone. Everyone else was aware something was going on and just taking shelter, same as the rest of the city. Outside it was still dark, a few hours before dawn, though with the sandstorm gone it was a bit brighter from the light of the moon.

    They¡¯d stopped at one point to look out and saw the destruction was not as total as they¡¯d feared. In fact, the majority of the city seemed ok. A few blocks were rubble, mostly where the dusker zombies had come from. The landing in front of the Spire was a field of death. If Daniel had to use Quick Mind to estimate, only a tenth of the city had been affected by the direct fighting.

    ¡°What do you think she saw?¡± Daniel asked, still disturbed by what had happened to the Fate.

    ¡°Don¡¯t let it bother you,¡± Tak tried to reassure. ¡°It could have been anything. Or she was just bad at using that power.¡±

    ¡°Gods willing that¡¯s the case.¡± Lograve had paid particular attention to the Divine Quarter, where the churches had begun to mobilize. They¡¯d reached the Rose Spire first and were stabilizing the situation there. ¡°Remember, we must discover what they are attempting to do and delay them at all costs. We have a lot of time to buy, but if we can hold them until at least dawn, the reapers will be able to regain their mana. Obviously if a better option presents itself we¡¯ll take it. I wouldn¡¯t mind swinging a few hammers into whatever fancy crystal doomsday device they¡¯re setting up and legging it.¡±

    Everyone nodded. They¡¯d been digesting the event on the way up and discussing plans, which had at multiple times included people telling Gadriel not to needlessly sacrifice himself unprompted. Ways of escape were top among their concerns. While stopping the region from falling was important, neither Daniel nor anyone else would die for this place.

    ¡°If I can, I¡¯ll try and take some of the Shroud to use as a shield,¡± Daniel offered. ¡°It¡¯s not something we can easily do since one of us will be leaving their body exposed, but it¡¯s an option.¡±

    ¡°Still no idea why you can do that?¡± Evalyn asked, and Daniel shook his head.

    ¡°No. I¡¯d ask Earth-Daniel, but if he hasn¡¯t sent me an answer then he probably doesn¡¯t know either.¡± At least there¡¯s the emergency option, Daniel thought privately. Not knowing what it did removed some of the comfort that would have given him, but on the other hand would whoever was waiting for them up there be worse than a lightning dragon? I really hope not.

    ¡°I have¡­¡± Lograve began, but cut himself off with a troubled look on his face.

    ¡°What?¡±

    The Arcanist peered at Daniel closely before responding. ¡°There¡¯s one thing I could think of that could account for this, but if I¡¯m right¡­ Honestly, I don¡¯t see how that could be possible. I know we¡¯ve been in ¡®never happened before¡¯ territory with you already, but this would violate our understanding of how the world works on a fundamental level.¡± Everyone stared at Lograve to continue, but he waved them off. ¡°We shouldn¡¯t distract ourselves with my mad ramblings. Everything goes well and I¡¯ll explain later.¡±

    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, I think we¡¯ve stalled enough,¡± Evalyn observed. The Arcanist paused, then realized what they were doing.

    ¡°Yes. Quite.¡± They all looked up to where the Spire met the Eye. ¡°I¡¯ve let Farthest Run and Doran know we¡¯re going up. It sounds like Gordon and the rest have run into a problem with their tracking Bennar and are going room to room. Quite quickly, I might add, but they''re not close enough to help. It¡¯s just us. So, shall we?¡±

 Chapter 155: At the Top of the World

    Daniel stood at the back of the group next to Khiat as they walked onto the stonework of the Eye of the Spires. Surprisingly, there¡¯d been a hole in the Shroud directly around where the landing connected to the central platform. No one there was sure if that section was normally excluded from the siege ward, but neither did they have the chance to turn away if it was a trap. Ahead, there were only a few people. Two by the large fountain in the center, where an absence of littered sand from the storm made it clear a separate Shroud was protecting it. Three stood between it and Wings of Craft.

    Of the five, Identify Creature worked on three of them.

    <hr>

    Claret Sosa - (Human)

    -

    Bennar Hammerson - (Human)

    -

    Aucrest Seliri - (Avianoid, Unconscious)

    <hr>

    Aucrest was behind the shield with who they presumed to be Casia. As for the fifth? That¡¯s the battle form of Rasalia, Lograve sent telepathically. They were far enough that normal people shouldn¡¯t be able to hear quiet conversation, but they weren¡¯t taking chances. Gods. They must have taken her out earlier.

    This is all they have left? Evalyn had her accordion out, still the same one she¡¯d carried in the Thormundz. She wasn¡¯t playing anything though. No one was doing anything that might provoke a fight. Neither were the three outside the barrier moving closer, they were waiting as well. I¡¯m assuming those two have powerful items, but if that¡¯s Rasalia¡¯s zombie it shouldn¡¯t be as dangerous as she was.

    Hmm. Metal feathers. That will be hard to get through. Tak seemed hesitant, Gadriel only adding more concern.

    We should be prudent in remembering Rasalia was a more talented Hero than I. Even if her other powers are beyond her, the Iron Ravager¡¯s body will be difficult to return to its rest in that state.

    Daniel was just staring at Claret. Be careful with her. One of her rings can suppress magic. I don¡¯t know how far it goes, but probably not farther than a normal room. He gritted his teeth, remembering what she had tried to do. Daniel wasn¡¯t scared. No, he was feeding that part of Hunter inside of him. Are we killing them?

    I think you spent too much time in Hunter earlier.

    Lograve, focus. Evalyn took a few deep breaths. They¡¯re doing something inside that fountain. I can¡¯t tell what but that barrier is part of it. Should we be concerned about invisible enemies?

    There are no scents, Hunter commented. I see no movements in the sand on the ground. Could be flying.

    That¡¯s the Council. Khiat¡¯s hand shook as the other clenched her bow. They¡¯re working with the enemy!

    Don¡¯t take out your anger until after we engage, Khiat. If you can land a Pinning Shot on Rasalia go for it, the others will probably have protective items. Evalyn tapped the side of her instrument with her fingers. Go with our standard formation. Gadriel joins the front, Lograve in the middle. Stop about 30 meters out if they just let us walk up, maybe you can get something out of them Lograve. We know there¡¯s at least one item with them that can unleash a powerful ranged attack and I don¡¯t want us getting caught in that magic suppression field. Daniel nodded at that, again focused on Claret. She had been all too eager to try and make a slave out of him. He very rarely felt murderous intent towards anyone, but the fact that she was here standing in their way gave him no guilt at all for indulging in those dark thoughts.

    Even with those items, we have better attributes, Evalyn continued. We¡¯re faster than the old woman at least. Keep to range. If it works like normal suppression then powers triggered outside of it that target her should work if they¡¯re not entirely magical. Tak, I want you and Hunter to focus Rasalia. Everyone else, if we get a chance to talk, be ready to surprise volley Claret out the gate.

    With that, she started walking forward. The winged boots weren¡¯t on, despite the advantage flight would give. They were too new to trust in this battle. Tak, Hunter, and Gadriel walked faster to advance upfront. Following the formation they¡¯d practiced, Khare stuck to the middle, Khiat to the far back, and Daniel somewhat between them. Finally, Lograve joined the loose cluster in the center with Evalyn.

    The three outside of the barrier let them approach. Only Rasalia was completely still, held back from fighting by whatever was controlling her body. Claret was checking the rings covering her withered fingers while Bennar, looking the most normal out of all of them, simply gazed off into the distance while they approached. Daniel had a strange sense of resignation from the way he was carrying himself. Casia ignored all of this, staring up intently at the fountain her husband was propped against. He was still alive, given his aura, though he appeared unconscious.

    ¡°I don¡¯t believe we have met,¡± Bennar said as Gadriel stopped. Those in the back spread out but didn¡¯t get closer than he was. ¡°Claret has had a face to face with one of you, as I am aware. And I recognize the Arcanist. Interesting that you have made it here, and with so few. I thought Farthest Run would make it here first after they breached the Sun Spire, or any of the spire guard for that matter. It¡¯s just you?¡± The man did not at all talk like he was expecting a fight. Or, maybe it was that he wasn¡¯t afraid of one.

    This sounds like a trap, Daniel thought to the others.

    Or he¡¯s too arrogant. Lograve, you¡¯re up.

    Prompted by Evalyn, the Arcanist raised his voice. ¡°We¡¯d hoped Farthest Run would find you while we handled this. If we¡¯d known we were picking up their slack we would have extended an invitation. First, I must ask, how can you stand on that side with a desiccated old corpse, and Rasalia¡¯s body, and not re-evaluate the decisions that led you here?¡±

    Claret flared at that. ¡°Silence! You are one to talk, impudent mage, with a beast on yours as well as a weed!¡± She gave Khare a greater look of disgust than Hunter and continued, ¡°Mistakes, all of them. Things we will be rid of in the new order.¡±

    Killing, Khare¡¯s mental voice rang out.

    Yes, Daniel agreed, before Evalyn admonished all of them to not provoke until the last moment.

    Bennar seemed to want to delay a fight as well. ¡°Claret, mind yourself. As for the rest of you, we are approaching a conflict I see no way to avoid. Regrettable, but we are committed or, at least, I am. I¡¯ve been working with Casia since the start, while Claret was forced to join or suffer the results of her actions without any protection.¡±

    ¡°Snake.¡± Claret briefly committed friendly fire before turning his attention back to Lograve.

    ¡°In defense of myself, I will simply say this. I want to live forever. I knew from childhood I¡¯d never rise to great heights in levels.¡± He shook his head sadly. ¡°It is not just that I had to refuse a class to maintain my position. There isn¡¯t one for someone like me. The paths to power are set by the gods and focused in limited directions. Moral and historical reasons aside, when this is over we will preside over the new order and make the Octyrrum into a better, greater world than the gods ever could.¡±

    It¡¯s arrogance and insanity, Evalyn concluded. Good for us. Get ready to hit them on my mark.

    ¡°Not that I don¡¯t disagree,¡± Lograve said, ¡°But what makes you think you can win? You¡¯re outnumbered and out-experienced, assuming that zombie is similar to the others.¡±

    Bennar frowned at the odd word while Claret ignored it entirely. ¡°Upstarts! Our legacy will more than match whatever feeble power you possess. I stand upon centuries of history dominated by the Sosa line. If you think-¡±

    Now. Evalyn started playing Song of Valor in that moment, prioritizing group enhancement over the self-empowering investiture power, while everyone else attacked. Lograve was fastest as he just needed to manipulate his ice, followed by Gadriel¡¯s sword, Daniel¡¯s gauntlet bows, and Khare being a volley by themself. Called Shot was activated to provide its ambiguous damage bonus after Daniel had fired, which ideally would be overkill against an old woman with no levels.

    Claret just cackled as each and every attempt to harm her bounced off an invisible barrier a few centimeters from her skin. Lograve¡¯s attack didn¡¯t even do anything, the ice slipping from his control about five meters out from the woman. Likewise, the Scatter Shot Daniel had attempted to pull off was nullified. Though he had initiated the ability outside her sphere, and didn¡¯t need to actively channel mana on that ability, her suppression prevented it from activating on target.

    It was made clear this wasn¡¯t the Shroud, as multiple gems inset in rings began growing brighter. Her eyes opened wide as Khiat¡¯s arrow came at her. This wasn¡¯t one of the ones Daniel had made, it was one of the few ancestral arrows she still carried. Despite not being enchanted or affected by any power, they bore through most targets and had never chipped. Claret didn¡¯t know this, but it was still a projectile that was almost as large as she was moving faster than all the others.

    The shield of the former Council member proved an exception to the general rule of things Khiat shot as it deflected the arrow, though it had folded in slightly before managing the feat. Claret had to take a half step back as some of the force had been passed onto her, but only to a very minor degree. Otherwise, she was unharmed.

    Tak and Hunter¡¯s Mirror Strike was the last to land. They had targeted Rasalia, who now looked like a cross between a fighter jet and a bird with wings coming out of her back rather than merging with her arms. The four blurred lines came together on the still unmoving metal zombie, sparks flying when the attack made contact.

    Both had chosen to remain in the positions they¡¯d started in once the attack ended, an option they¡¯d gained when the attack upgraded. The blood coming from both of their forelimbs was a testament to how that had been a very bad idea. Tough, was all Hunter said.

    It¡¯s a level 5 all-purpose combat form, Lograve noted. That this conversion process preserves changes to the body likely means it is permanent, or else it would have already worn off.

    I don¡¯t like how that went. Daniel, could you open a hole in that center area? Evalyn asked, tensed as everyone was for what they expected to come next. We could try stealing Aucrest to see if that does anything.

    Before Daniel could answer, Claret made her move. Pointing a finger, she activated the ring of lancing an Artificer-Tyrant had once made towards the Artificer of today before he could reload his bows. Abandoning the small cranks, he used Dodge Roll. Moments after he left the space, a beam of energy half a meter in diameter scorched the air. It impacted the Shroud around the Sun Spire, managing to break through at the cost of most of its intensity.

    Fuck! Daniel breathed rapidly for a few moments before he collected himself. No. One of us needs to jump over to the other to open the Shroud. We can¡¯t abandon our bodies, even for a second.

    ¡­

    While the rest focused on other threats, Gadriel moved to occupy Bennar. The Lord continued to prove he was not the same type of person as Claret as he moved to answer the challenge. Rather than fire a beam, he summoned a spectral sword and shield with markings unlike any he had seen before. ¡°The regalia of Armafus,¡± Bennar commented as if answering Gadriel¡¯s internal question, looking at his equipment introspectively. ¡°I always found it interesting that my family kept these. His mark never truly left us. Hero, I think we are well suited for each other.¡±

    Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

    Gadriel didn¡¯t immediately jump at the invitation, but did eye the man with less hostility than Claret or Rasalia. ¡°Sir, this is not the time for a duel.¡±

    ¡°I am not asking for one.¡± Gadriel nodded in understanding, throwing his sword at Bennar while closing the distance. The Lord knocked away the sword with his shield, it not meeting any apparent barrier on the way. At other times Gadriel could have retrieved his weapon from his surroundings and continued fighting despite that seeming implausible, though now he chose to allow one of his hidden powers to show its full might. Gadriel¡¯s sword, knocked away from the Hero, disappeared in midair and rematerialized in the Hero¡¯s hand.

    Gadriel also began channeling Momentous Strikes, which counted the attacks he made by throwing his sword toward the building combo. Whether the attack did any damage or not didn¡¯t matter, only that it hit something. He was slightly thrown off by a jolt of electricity from Claret, though the energy attack was far weaker than the initial one. That ring may have been made by Arpan, whose own work couldn¡¯t compete with the legacy of Armafus. It still hurt, but Gadriel¡¯s high endurance and own natural willpower easily took the blow.

    That wasn¡¯t to say Bennar was the only one receiving outside assistance. Evalyn redirected Khare¡¯s knives and bows towards the Lord, seeing no obvious barrier or impenetrable steel skin to block them. Faced with the new threat a barrier still failed to appear, but Bennar managed to dodge a series of staggered attacks while fending off Gadriel¡¯s thrown sword. It wasn¡¯t until the Hero had reached the Lord to recreate his duel with Heldren when he figured it out.

    ¡°Your suit,¡± he grunted, as Bennar ducked one of his swings and completely reset Momentous Strikes, putting it on cooldown. As a talented level 3 Hero who had managed to advance all six of his attributes following the battle against the Lightning Dragon, Gadriel could move faster than normal people could follow when he really tried. Bennar wasn¡¯t dodging him, his clothing was. The Lord was just pulled along with them out of the way. The sleeve of his left arm also aided in blocking, although it did nothing to help him swing his sword unless it was to parry.

    ¡°Yes. It is my favorite of my legacy.¡± Bennar¡¯s sword connected with Gadriel¡¯s shield, cutting through both the weaker enchantment and the top third as the Hero saved the arm holding it. ¡°Not the strongest of it though. These are paired items, each level 6.¡± He swung his sword again, forcing Gadriel to step back. In the pause, he continued with an almost weary tone. ¡°If you win, take them. And this ring.¡± He indicated one that seemed made of sandstone with hanging from his neck, uneven edges making an odd overall shape. It was far larger than it should be to fit on human fingers. ¡°Give it back to the duskers. They¡¯ll know what it is.¡±

    The Hero mentally prepared himself to face a truly difficult opponent, but didn¡¯t engage immediately. A doubt was beginning to eat at him. ¡°Why tell me this?¡±

    ¡°Because I think you¡¯ll find your way onto our side by the time you can use them. If not, then at least it is only fitting you take them. Spoils of victory.¡±

    Gadriel tossed down his broken shield, keeping the hand free. ¡°Just, I suppose. You owe me at least that.¡± He then charged back into the fight.

    ¡­

    I think Gadriel has Bennar handled for now, Evalyn observed as she continued her command duties. Not needing to vocalize along with her song to distribute the effects effectively allowed her to focus on it, as playing her familiar music was second nature. This did weaken the buff slightly, but it was a net gain in group strength given everyone else could focus on what they were doing. With Rasalia chasing Tak and Hunter we¡¯re free to engage Claret. Khare, target her again. I don¡¯t know if we can hit Bennar unless we¡¯re all trying. A mark appeared and flashed red on the Lady courtesy of Daniel, just in case Khare didn¡¯t fully understand the order.

    Rasalia will grow smarter, Hunter warned. The ringcat had experience with prolonged fights against this kind of undead, the only one in the group in fact. In most other cases the zombies had died too quickly and hadn¡¯t been ¡®trained¡¯ beforehand. I- The ringcat disappeared from reality for a second as he used Flash Jaunt, the move necessary to avoid the ring of lancing. It had taken less than a minute to recharge. Nevermind. Kill that one first.

    That is a potent shield. Lograve had switched it up, forming shields of ice to give people cover from Claret¡¯s attacks. The magic unleashed by her rings went straight through, but it could at least conceal his allies. Most of her other items appear to fire more typical magical attacks. It¡¯s a shame we can¡¯t just wait for her to die of old age.

    It¡¯s even blocking my arrows and Daniel¡¯s explosions! Khiat looked ready to snap her bow in half in frustration. Anger was better than fear in this case, but neither would help in the long run. Nothing I¡¯m doing is working!

    Evalyn stepped in. Khiat, keep calm. If we can¡¯t break the shield, we get around it. Hunter, I want to try something. Give us a tune. The ringcat obligingly roared, infusing the sound with mana to create a fear effect. Claret¡¯s face twinged for a second before she laughed.

    ¡°You don¡¯t seem to understand, young fools. You can¡¯t touch me!¡± She pointed her ring of lancing a third time towards Khare. ¡°Burn, weed!¡± There was little warning of the attack other than a bright red flash on Claret¡¯s hand, which forced everyone to keep track of the Lady at all times or else be taken by surprise. Evalyn shouted a warning for good measure, but that did little. Compared to the other two targeted so far, Khare did not have any mobility or evasion powers. Worse, their kind was naturally weak to fire which the ring of lancing was elementally attuned to. Khare was directly in the crosshairs of the ring when it fired.

    Out of the corner of his eye, Daniel saw the beam intercept his friend. His would-be scream of anguish died when he saw what had happened. Khare had shifted their form to create a gap within themselves to allow the beam to pass through. The vines closest to where the blast had gone through were still singed from the cast off heat, but the parts of him that would have been annihilated from direct contact were spared. Better yet Khare wasn¡¯t set on fire, which would have been very hard to save the gestalt from. That just left Daniel mentally asking, How?, since he knew that was where earth gestalt kept the knots of vines intrinsic to their being.

    Khare replied somewhat simply. Topology. A quick look at the expanded part of what Identify Creature showed what they meant, viewable only because Khare willingly shared the information.

    <hr>

    Khare ¨C (Gestalt: Earth, Martialist - 2)

    Active Features:

    ...

    ? Improved Topology

    ...

    <hr>

    That¡¯s a power? That¡¯s a weird power. Daniel looked back to where Claret was also expressing shock and surprise and attempted a Snap Shot at her face. The shield flared up as normal, but the old woman flinched away from the shot as it brought her back into the present. Bennar was at least trusting in his defensive artifacts, but Claret would have died in moments without hers. Awesome power. I¡¯ll have to look it up later.

    Khare, retreat if you¡¯re too injured. Evalyn fired off a Songbolt as she changed to Lightfoot Song. It was a lower level effect but prioritized speed over the other¡¯s diverse if shallow enhancement. Claret¡¯s ring of lancing was by far the most immediate threat. Still, everyone involved couldn¡¯t shake the feeling that Bennar was holding back by dueling with Gadriel, who was most suited to directly fight him. Lograve, Daniel, any ideas on Claret?

    Daniel looked at the old woman and had several thoughts flash through his head. Plasma pistol? Poison gas? Or- no, it absorbs shock energy. Sumo wrestling? That last one was garbage but he had to ask. What if we tried to roll her over the edge of the Eye?

    That shield likely isn¡¯t tangible, Lograve cut off the doomed plan at the knees. Pushing on it would just get you in range of those rings and the power suppression. They¡¯re more effective up close, no doubt.

    And they go through her shield no problem. One-way force fields are bullshit.

    That¡¯s legendary enchanting for you. Maybe you should complain less and work on making us some of- Lograve¡¯s jibe was cut off as he was selected as the next target for the ring of lancing. Claret had to be using it just as it recharged. Daniel again feared for one of his friend¡¯s lives. Lograve hadn¡¯t shown any potent dodging abilities thus far and the Scatter Teleport he¡¯d heard about requiring charging up. It turned out all the Arcanist needed was good old Aquakinesis, as he created a track of ice as he dove to escape the beam. That and the shield he was keeping between him did enough. It did cost him some of his material to evaporation, limiting his overall potential with that feature. Now, if we are talking absurd, it is the frequency of that ring. Where is all that mana coming from?

    She has to have another item providing it, Daniel realized. Legacy-grade or whatever. I mean, look at all those rings.

    You have an idea? Evalyn asked, having followed the conversation while playing her instrument, keeping track of her own position in the battle, and watching for any unexpected changes to call out. Something she probably wouldn¡¯t have been able to do before, but a month of leading the team had improved her multi-tasking dramatically.

    If I¡¯m right, the strain on that power-generating one goes from high to low once the ring of lancing¡¯s charged, then right back to high whenever she fires it. Daniel was mostly guessing here, not at all having the level of magical knowledge to back up his claims despite being an Artificer himself. No, this was all based on the assumption that Claret¡¯s mana-generating item, which she frankly had to have to power the ring of lancing, had the equivalent of a fuse box. Create a lot of demand all at once and you could trip a fuse. It could handle the sudden drain from the fire ray ring clearly, but what if- We should all-out attack her during, or just after she uses the ring of lancing. It may give us an opening.

    Worth a shot, Evalyn acknowledged. She¡¯s giving us plenty of opportunities. Khiat, do you have any ancestral arrows left?

    Two. The archer had gotten herself relatively under control as the battle progressed, falling into rhythm with the rest of the team. She had had a month of experience too. As a subordinate and not a leader, true, but the time spent with them had helped bring her back from the brink and forged relationships that had the potential for bonds down the road. Do you want me to use both?

    Yes. We hit her with our best shots next round. Tak and Hunter, you too. I¡¯m willing to risk leaving Rasalia unattended for a moment if it takes her out. Evalyn fired another Songbolt at Bennar, her only real target, as she switched back to Valor Song. If this doesn¡¯t work, be ready to run. We¡¯re potentially exposing whoever she targets. If it does work, don¡¯t let Bennar get to her body or we¡¯re just giving him those rings.

    Wings of Craft waited out the next minute. Gadriel continued to hold his own against Bennar, though he had to focus everything on defense. Tak and Hunter did the same with Rasalia, but the former Commander was growing faster and smarter by the second. Claret¡¯s shield made her truly uncontested and required the majority of the group¡¯s attention, meaning they couldn¡¯t break either stalemate. Evalyn, overseeing the battle, knew they only had a couple of chances before they¡¯d be forced to retreat.

    ¡­

    The time came when Claret¡¯s ring flashed bright red. Bolts, arrows, and a rock Lograve had found flew out while Khiat used her ability and the two ancestral arrows in her hand merged. Then she heard Evalyn¡¯s voice in her head. Khiat, she¡¯s targeting you! There wasn¡¯t time for more as the ring prepared to fire.

    She could get away, she knew she could. One of Khiat¡¯s five awakened powers was Mobility, an active ability that allowed her to burn mana to increase her speed and the flexibility of her joints. She didn¡¯t do that. She couldn¡¯t. Her home was under attack by the very people meant to lead them, the ones meant to follow the will of the gods. They had lied to her, to everyone in Aughal for so long. They were just as bad as the Tyrant. Yes, she was still angry, but she was controlling it. And she wasn¡¯t going to let them get away with what they¡¯d done.

    Khiat activated Hunter¡¯s Eye as she knocked the combined arrow, improving her aim and adding a slight amount of additional damage. She didn¡¯t need to think to aim. Her target was unmoving on a flat plane less than 50 meters from her. The dusker had practiced hitting the thin necks of sesels from across the dunes. Even Daniel with Snap Shot would have needed a second or two to position correctly. Khiat didn¡¯t need or have that time.

    Her Hunter¡¯s Eye-empowered Double Shot flew out, and the moment the arrow cleared her bow she bent forward while locking together her shell. Something burned across her back, scorching the flesh where it was exposed, but the ring of lancing had missed yet again. It had to be said that Claret had the worst aim of anyone here. If she tried to lead her target or time her use of the ring for an opportune moment, this would have gone far worse for Wings of Craft. She had even aimed at Khiat¡¯s center of mass. The normally tall dusker had managed to avoid the majority of the attack by shrinking down and huddling the ground, reducing her to a fourth of her full height.

    Khiat¡¯s attack made a bigger impact. It was the second to last to land, still hitting within a few seconds of the others. The massed volley did noticeably weaken the invisible barrier, the doubled arrow bowing far further in than her initial shot. To her great relief the arrow didn¡¯t break, for if the shaft split she¡¯d lose one of the arrowheads. They only split apart again if the entire arrow survived, making this ability very risky for her treasured ammunition.

    Just before the arrow was thrown away by the shield, there was a burst of light and a cry of pain. While the ring providing Claret¡¯s shield functioned perfectly, it and others actively used mana to produce greater effects than a passively enchanted item could provide. The drawback became clear as the strain on the mana ring grew too high. A dozen rings scattered to the floor as one of their brethren exploded, taking that finger and one of its neighbors with it. Claret snatched up each one and started jamming them back on, her fingers already regrowing while a ring on the other hand glowed green.

    Go for the kill! Evalyn¡¯s voice came through just before Tak and Hunter activated Mirror Strike. Their twinned versions appeared on the other side, far enough away from any of the three enemies that Khiat guessed that¡¯s where they¡¯d choose to appear afterward. Rasalia still chased them, and returning to that spot would just let the zombie catch up.

    She held her breath as the four converged. The two phantoms vanished upon impacting the power suppression, and while Tak and Hunter lost the benefits of the power, they didn¡¯t lose their momentum. Tak got centimeters from her, the shield shrinking each time without an active mana source to reinforce it, but didn¡¯t find purchase. Then Hunter¡¯s canines bit in, broke through, and tore her head off. Credit to her rings, one tried to heal the damage in the few seconds it took her heart to stop. Got her.

    Thanks Hunter. Khiat could tell through the voice Daniel was relieved, even if it was kind of hard to tell on his soft face. Khare also expressed gratitude, though Evalyn was quick to reorient them.

    Gadriel, we¡¯re going after Rasalia next. Can you hold Bennar off?

    The Hero didn¡¯t answer for a few seconds. I feel something is wrong. Bennar did not react as one would expect from losing an ally. He appears almost welcoming of death. In the distance, the Hero looked to Rasalia before sheathing his concerns. Put her to rest.

    We will, Evalyn promised.

 Chapter 156: You Only Fall Harder

    Ok, giant metal death bird, Daniel thought while trying not to take too much pleasure in the death of another human being. Lightning? Metal conducts lightning. Hunter, did you try shooting Rasalia with lightning while you were fighting?

    Yes. Didn¡¯t work.

    Darn. How are we going to kill that? Rasalia¡¯s zombie accentuated the point by throwing its head back and screeching with a brassy, metallic quality. Whatever process those undead grew smarter by had been working overtime since the fight had started.

    Khiat, you¡¯re hurt. Get back to the Spire entrance. Evalyn had paused for a moment, taking her boots out of her bag. I¡¯m taking to the air until I see something that could hit me. Lograve, you¡¯ll want to float up as well.

    It will reduce the amount of ice I could use, Lograve cautioned but he didn¡¯t protest. Khiat tried to, but when she stood she almost doubled over in pain. She had dodged the fire ray itself, but her back had been closer than Khare¡¯s vines and suffered far worse burns. Every time the chitinous plates shifted, it aggravated the damaged tissue underneath.

    Khiat reluctantly fell back. A healing potion could have returned her to the fight, but they were mostly spent from the encounter with Mark. Daniel had one remaining for emergencies, and this wasn¡¯t enough of one to justify it. Gadriel continued his bout with Bennar. Neither had been injured as both were fighting conservatively.

    Ignoring those two and the dome in the center, Daniel felt like he and his friends were trapped in an arena with a bull made out of diamond. Can¡¯t cut her. Can¡¯t electrocute her. Really aren¡¯t any organs for us to damage with explosions. Daniel ticked off ideas in his head, reserving Moment of Clarity for when he absolutely needed it. The mana potion he¡¯d meant to drink had gone to Thomas instead, and the passive regeneration from the first had ended long ago.

    Scatter Teleport only affects those who don¡¯t consciously prevent it, I¡¯m afraid. Although I¡¯d hesitate to send her off randomly, even if there¡¯s a good chance she¡¯d end up in the air.

    Wait, are you saying we could have ended up in the air last time? Evalyn asked Lograve.

    Er, well you see, my understanding is it usually keeps people at about the same altitude.

    We¡¯ll talk about you withholding that information later.

    Miss, I am two levels your senior, Lograve retorted with mock offense.

    We could try throwing her off the Eye, Tak interjected helpfully as he and Hunter continued to play keep away. It was the same as something Daniel had suggested for Claret, but to give the Totem Warrior credit it had a higher chance to work against the zombie.

    This is just like a classic party, Daniel thought privately, then looked to Khiat. All we¡¯re missing is a healer. Wait, health potion! He switched back to the group chat. We need to feed Rasalia my health potion! If I¡¯m right, healing will damage her.

    Quickly, Lograve removed Khiat from the group and responded, Daniel, you¡¯re basing that off of lore from your world. There¡¯s no guarantee that-

    We¡¯ll try it, Evalyn cut him off and Lograve looped Khiat back in with a resigned sigh. It¡¯s less risky than putting Tak and Hunter in direct contact with her while they push. How do we get it into her?

    Khare, do you think you can throw it into her mouth? Daniel held up the potion and pinged Called Shot to help the gestalt understand.

    Drink.

    Gonna take that as a yes. Daniel held the potion, looked at Rasalia who was now rampaging between them, and sighed. I wish I had Item Swap right now.

    Evalyn chose that moment to drop out of the sky. ¡°Sounds like you could use a hand,¡± she said, forgoing telepathy. She winked and gestured for the potion. Daniel almost fumbled it before the handoff and then watched Evalyn leave.

    Hope this works. If Rasalia went down without trouble, they should be able to handle Bennar. What worried him was Casia. She was in full sand-cloak mode, but the veil covering the face was watching Bennar. Not Rasalia, who was under her control, but the Council member. Hunter was too preoccupied to help him get through the Shroud barrier, so he didn¡¯t try. Instead, he thought to the group, You all seem like you have it handled. I¡¯m going to try and figure out what Casia¡¯s doing.

    Evalyn, having already delivered the potion, assessed the situation and replied, You¡¯re clear for now. Just keep your head up. We¡¯re going to try and lure Rasalia near Khare and if that goes wrong we¡¯ll need you.

    Got it. Daniel finished loading his bows, just in case, before engaging the safeties and running to the center of the Eye.

    ¡­

    Khare still felt the lingering pain of the burns and wondered for a moment if this was how their progenitor had felt when they¡¯d died. Stone Form hadn¡¯t saved them from the dragon¡¯s flame. That power had been passed down to Khare, though they were still too weak to use it.

    Even so, it was starting to become clear they wouldn¡¯t need to. Khare understood enough to know their friends were also getting on edge about how the battle was progressing. One of the sand creatures had nearly killed Lograve in an ambush at the very start of this, only for them to now be battling the head of the enemy faction without any sign of those incredibly dangerous foes. Was this all a feint? The rest of the city appeared to be stabilizing, so where else could the threat be?

    Although in fairness, the thing that used to be Rasalia was deadly. If it had come at Khare from the start they would have had to run for the side of the Eye and hope Rasalia couldn¡¯t follow as they clung to the underside. That it was still too stupid to realize some couldn¡¯t run from it was the only reason the team had taken injuries and not fatalities. To Khare, it seemed this whole fight should have gone a lot worse.

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    They twisted the vines around the potion Evalyn had dropped off, preparing for the throw. Khare didn¡¯t entirely understand why Daniel wanted to use a health potion on the enemy, but they trusted him. If they didn¡¯t, they¡¯d never have bonded. The other gestalt had been amazed when they had told them. Bonds outside of their race were incredibly rare. Perhaps, if they improved it again, Khare would be able to properly thank Daniel for what the human had done for them.

    For now, Khare would be a credit to their team by not missing with this damned bottle. A little part of them was annoyed they¡¯d all just assumed they could throw it with no problem. Daggers were easy to throw because they were one solid object and, more importantly, the ones they carried were weighted for someone like them to throw. A bottle was a clunky object with fluid inside that would interfere with the trajectory as it flew. Worse, it would break once it hit something, so they only got one chance. Khare¡¯s standard strategy was quantity over quality, which made it all the more interesting that they were the best chance their team had at landing this throw.

    The twin specters of Tak and Hunter haunting Rasalia were coming their way. Through the telepathy, Khare gleamed it would happen soon. If they missed or the potion did nothing, they really would have to bail out over the side or risk being torn in half. Besides lining up the throw, Khare just waited. They already had the appropriate features, Marksman and Improved Topology, ready. Daniel had marked the target and used Called Shot. Evalyn was even playing an appropriate rhythm to make them better overall in battle.

    As Khare waited, the point they¡¯d all been worried about was reached. The undead paused for just a second, and the clouded eyes of the transformed avianoid moved as the head turned. It shrieked again, before lowering itself on all four limbs and charging directly at Khare. Some threshold had been reached to make the monster realize chasing the other two was pointless. The wings even flared out in an attempt to gain extra speed, though they weren¡¯t positioned appropriately to provide force that way.

    Despite their focus on dexterity, which Khare had advanced to 25 from the recent hunt gains, they were not a supremely mobile fighter. Chimeric Form was their preferred state when not pressured as the humanoid arms provided better control, while the more natural lower half gave better stability and the ability to climb. That, as well as other powers, allowed Khare to manage and fire multiple bows at a time. It also left them exposed.

    Khare dismissed Chimeric Form, reverting their upper body to their natural state rather than trying to run away from the charging monster with unfamiliar legs. Even if gestalt could assume a humanoid form without the use of any power, it felt just as unnatural as a dusker fully locking their shell together. To the outer eye, Khare¡¯s mass would appear no different than normal as they prepared to throw and dodge.

    There was much the average mortal didn¡¯t appreciate about earth gestalt physiology. Few were aware of the clusters within or their importance. They were analogous to the bones, nerves, and joints of normal creatures, with the rest of the vine mass making up the muscle. Manipulation of these knots was critical to almost everything earth gestalt did. Improved Topology took Khare¡¯s instinctual knowledge of this process and vastly improved it, allowing them to create gaps in themselves to dodge attacks.

    This process of creating multiple of these in succession was still difficult, and unlikely to help against an opponent who could make multiple slashing attacks in succession and at odd angles. Rather, Khare gathered most of their cores in the upper portions of their body while putting tension on vines directly connected to them. This too was mostly instinctual, although not a maneuver they could have attempted before awakening the power.

    When Rasalia was close enough, Khare released the tension to catapult themselves upwards. It was the same tactic the team had used against the greater skink, and Khare had every reason to suspect it would work based on past hunts. It didn¡¯t. Rasalia leaped up and closed metallic talons around part of Khare¡¯s outer mass. The strength of the hand almost broke them by itself. Khare was slammed to the ground as part of them tore. They could create gaps in themself, but casting off the grabbed section was impossible.

    The zombie was currently smart enough to keep Khare grabbed while preparing to use its other hand to rend into them. Just like the ones sourced from duskers, Rasalia provided the improved strength and durability she had in life to her reanimated corpse. Her grip would have crushed any arm, Khare in some way fortunate that the damage wasn¡¯t that severe. They were also fortunate in their friends. Both Tak and Hunter came from behind and held back the zombie¡¯s other arm in an attempt to make it stop.

    They succeeded for only a moment before Rasalia managed to throw Tak off. Hunter had wrapped his jaws around the arm providing a better hold. In response, the zombie bit into the flesh around his shoulder. The damage sharing power they¡¯d awakened saved the ringcat from being maimed, and the zombie reoriented its head to make a more critical bite. When it opened its mouth a second time, Khare finally took their chance. The bottle was plucked from their interior space once more and flung without any wind up. A risky throw. Khare never would have gone for it if they didn¡¯t think it was also the last one they¡¯d have.

    It seemed the zombie recognized the threat of something coming towards its face as it closed its mouth and dodged the bottle. When it went for Hunter again, Tak came from behind and jammed the bottle down the throat. Khare didn¡¯t know the avianoid had been rushing back from where he was thrown, but they were glad twice over as the glass cracked and healing energies flooded the zombie.

    It wasn¡¯t a complete win. First, a snap of a beak took half of Tak¡¯s paw off despite the damage reduction in play. The zombie threw its head back to catch Tak¡¯s as he fell back, and at the same time threw the arm Hunter was biting down. The ringcat¡¯s head hit the stone, the combined head trauma stunning both for a moment.

    No longer impeded, the talons rose and came down across Khare¡¯s body. The sharpened metal met little resistance, cutting through a sizable portion of their mass and half of their vine clusters with a single hit. In an instant, Khare was reduced from slightly injured to crippled, in need of prolonged regrowth to return to full health. Their death may have come in the next instant if the healing potion hadn¡¯t started to take effect.

    Whatever strange force empowered Rasalia¡¯s corpse wasn¡¯t known to the regular denizens of the Octyrrum or the well-studied, using Lograve as that benchmark. Risen corpses weren¡¯t unheard of, though this was only in the case of malignant fungal growths or parasites which puppeted the host such as the lake monster created by the Illustrious. In this case, there was no distinct entity within Rasalia animating it but a magical force imparted by Casia when she¡¯d killed the Commander and consumed her heart. Daniel¡¯s guess was fortunately correct, as attacking this energy was the easiest way to bring Rasalia down.

    The un-life filling Rasalia¡¯s corpse was eaten away by the potion in an equivalent reaction. It had taken some time to take root in the corpse leading to a delay as the healing energies ferreted it out, but once introduced the two would inevitably clash. Compared to other unliving the Octyrrum had seen in its long history, Rasalia¡¯s counted among the weakest if you ignored the carried over advantages of her class. Normal people had been able to kill others affected by this magic, after all. Talent of old could have infused far more of this strange energy, done more with the prime material her body had been. The simplicity of the ritual by which Casia had raised her minion was also its downfall. Before it could strike again, the animating presence in Rasalia¡¯s eyes faded and the body grew still.

 Chapter 157: With All You Cherish

    Gadriel made a quick slash as he saw Bennar distracted by the battle¡¯s latest development, but the man¡¯s damned clothing spared him from harm yet again. The Hero knew now this wasn¡¯t a real fight. Bennar had only shown three magic items, potent ones yes, but Claret had an entire armory of rings she¡¯d used in the battle. He wasn¡¯t just holding back, Bennar was throwing the fight.

    ¡°You may surrender now, Sir. I know you are not showing me your best.¡±

    The Lord gave Gadriel a sad smile in response. ¡°This is the path I have chosen. I was involved since the beginning, Hero. I cleared the assassination of Casia, knowing what would happen. In truth, you could almost say she was working for me. I fostered inadequacy and corruption in the guard, sowed misdirection to shield the Mirage, and through very difficult political manipulation kept Council seats open after making sure they were vacated.¡± The rest of the team was in Gadriel¡¯s head preparing to focus Bennar but he waved them off, wanting to give the man his moment to speak. ¡°My family¡¯s finances are in ruin. The entire faction would fall apart in a month if this hadn¡¯t happened. Maybe, if I hadn¡¯t been shown the truth of this world, I could have made something truly great of this region.¡±

    ¡°There is yet a chance for redemption.¡±

    ¡°No, Hero. There is not. With respect, I have come too far to stop now.¡± Bennar took another breath, idly adjusting something on his collar. ¡°I¡¯m not going to take it easy on you now.¡±

    ¡°Any other time I would welcome the challenge.¡± Gadriel set his guard, nodding as Bennar rushed him. He half-listened as the team began to set up a combination of ice barriers and explosive bolts to try and score a lucky hit. His priority was unchanged: occupy Bennar¡¯s attention to enable his side¡¯s victory.

    Bennar was a competent enough enemy that this required effort. Gadriel would call his swordsmanship unpolished, yet deadly when considering his enchanted sword and supreme evasion. Neither could Gadriel fight completely defensively, or else he would continuously lose ground and risk being trapped against the edge of the Eye.

    He would not hold back now. His allies were counting on him to remain in position so their plan would work. The Hero sidestepped a basic overhand attack from Bennar and used his free hand to punch towards the lord¡¯s head. The protective enchantment had some flaws in that it wasn¡¯t adaptive enough to keep up for a long engagement. There was some kind of logic behind the equipment that could be abused if only Gadriel could find the perfect sequence. This kind of punch would consistently open Bennar¡¯s guard for a strike at the chest. Gadriel lanced forward with his sword, which would force Bennar back and-

    His sword pierced the other man straight through. The Hero almost let go of his sword in shock. The hit was to the right chest, having skated just under the shield¡¯s edge. Quickly recovering, Gadriel drew out his sword and stepped back twice, prepared for his enemy to heal as Claret had when she¡¯d lost her fingers.

    Instead, Bennar fell to his knees. The ephemeral sword and shield dropped from the Lord¡¯s hands and disappeared. Momentary fear and agony turned to a strange acceptance as the he examined his wound and the blood running from his chest. The Hero was suspicious of some kind of mental power affecting him, but no. This was reality. Gadriel, how did you hit him?

    He let me, the Hero answered Evalyn. He knew that was what had happened. In hindsight, when the shield moved up this last time it had been slightly off. Bennar had done that himself rather than rely on his protective enchantment. The Hero saw the sad smile on the Lord¡¯s face again and came to a sudden, terrible conclusion. They wished us to succeed. He dropped his sword and knelt next to the dying man, trying to put pressure on the wound. I need a potion!

    We used our last one on Rasalia, Evalyn replied, taken aback. Gadriel, what did he tell you?

    By words, nothing. By actions, they wanted us to kill him!

    Why?

    ¡­

    Within the Shroud summoned around the fountain, Casia nodded as she saw the last of her defenders perish. Adding Rasalia to the two nobles had been risky, but without that added pressure the fools might have seen through what they were doing. As it was, Bennar had performed perfectly and had avoided being taken alive.

    She unbound her husband, that being necessary after Mark¡¯s sleep effect had broken, and frowned at the hand penetrating through the Shroud around her. They would still be too late.

    ¡°Casia, is that you? How?¡±

    ¡°Yes, husband.¡± She reverted her image to how she¡¯d appeared before she¡¯d died, shedding the appearance of the robes around her. The consistency of her body was not the same, but otherwise, it was her. ¡°Not in body, but in spirit.¡±

    He took one moment to look into her eyes before taking in his surroundings. ¡°Why are you doing this?¡±

    ¡°Armafus¡¯ last legacy.¡± Aucrest¡¯s eyes widened, going to where Bennar was bleeding out. ¡°Yes. He is the last one. I¡¯m using your old plan. I admire what you were trying to do, but it looks like I beat you to it.¡± There was as much pain in her smile as there had been in Bennar¡¯s, at the end. What gave Daniel pause as he tried to break into the space were the tears. They appeared real, coming down Casia¡¯s face until they reached the edge and floated away on the breeze as sand.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t want this!¡± Aucrest protested weakly, struggling to escape her grasp. ¡°Not after you died! I, I was planning on taking the last legacy, yes, but only so I could bring about reform. Break up the nobility and remodel our government to end the stagnation! This region would have had a Tyrant eventually. Better one who would throw down the class when the work was done. I had made strides in bringing the humans to my side. I could have done it! That, or given Willow to chance to. And I would never have claimed it this way.¡±

    ¡°I know.¡± Behind them, the fountain began to shift as Bennar¡¯s heartbeat faded. The hunters were preparing to enter, one of them yelling at her to put her ¡®hostage¡¯ down. Casia didn¡¯t understand how they¡¯d managed it, but in the end it wouldn¡¯t matter if this part had to be rushed. ¡°I had more to say. More comfort to give you. Just know this. This isn¡¯t the end. We will be together forever.¡± Aucrest opened his beak to reply, but before he could, Casia¡¯s hand pierced through his chest and took his heart.

    ¡­

    The entire Eye shuddered as something very strange happened to the fountain in its center. The water within poured out as if the stone were no longer physical. What Lograve didn¡¯t immediately control soaked into the sand. The Shroud around it also vanished, but the attacks Wings of Craft let loose against Casia were of no effect.

    The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

    Still in her past form, she began walking up towards the center of the fountain. Where her feet landed, stone shifted to meet them. Entire concentric sections changed in moments, the fountain now beginning to resemble a set of circular stairs. They stopped three meters off the ground, creating a blank platform.

    Daniel watched as Casia mimicked taking in a breath, and then began speaking as if she was reciting an incantation. ¡°With Armafus¡¯ last breath, he cursed this land and those who would rule it. To the crowds chanting his death, to the once loyal servants with betrayal in their hearts, he spat on their hopes and ambitions. He declared that if any one were to claim Aughal once more, his kin would return to haunt this land.¡±

    Oh god. Ghost Tyrant super boss. No one on the team liked the sound of that, but they''d been drawn to the center of the Eye. It was too late for any of them to reach safety, even if that meant throwing themselves off the side.

    Casia continued, but her voice changed. She was declarative now, almost challenging as she continued to face away from them and toward the center of the platform. ¡°By rights and law, the authority of Council members rendered dead by enemy hands is separated equally among those still alive. Fredreick, Ytaya, Claret, Bennar, all of their authority was passed to my husband, and then onto me with his passing. Our marriage was never annulled. Alecia is not a true claimant, it is my right and intent. I claim the last legacy. I claim your throne, Tyrant. Aughal is mine to rule.¡±

    There was a silence that dragged on as everyone stopped to prepare for what was to come. Perhaps if the Spiritualist¡¯s plan had gone perfectly there wouldn¡¯t have been this delay. Despite the failings and the influence of another Tyrant in the region, what happened next was inevitable once Aucrest had stopped breathing. A throne rose out of the stone of the Eye with symbols matching those from Bennar¡¯s weapons carved into the back. Casia took a seat as a force pushed outwards, blowing back Tak and Hunter who had reached the bottom step. They hadn¡¯t been able to tag Casia before, but that changed now.

    <hr>

    ??? - (???, Tyrant* - 1)

    <hr>

    An asterisk on her class? Daniel couldn¡¯t help but wonder at that before the Eye rocked again. Cracks, small yet growing, began to form in the outer walls of the Spires as they shook.

    ¡°Slower than I would have hoped. This region has held to some of its will.¡± Casia¡¯s voice addressed those present now as she looked down on them. ¡°Without your intervention it might have taken too long for others to come and end the last of the Council. I offer you the same choice I gave Rasalia. Flee. If you oppose me, you will die as she did. The fate of Aughal has been sealed.¡±

    Oh gods. She¡¯s destroying the Spoke! Lograve thought rapidly, color draining from his face. I¡¯ve never heard of this last legacy, but it must have assigned the Tyrant class. Casia used a loophole to gain control of the region!

    You can just destroy a Spoke if you own it?!

    No! But she¡¯s also a monster. She doesn¡¯t have to will anything to happen. The Spoke must be destroying itself as a defense mechanism to prevent Crest-spawn from controlling it!

    So we take her down, and this ends, Evalyn concluded. Our normal attacks don¡¯t do anything, but she¡¯s still made of sand. Lograve, what if you harden her with water?

    Water projectiles are more difficult to control than ice. He sighed. I¡¯ll try.

    ¡°What are you doing?¡± Casia asked, observing them. ¡°Telepathy? Ah, of course. You all are passingly competent to have defeated my contemporaries in honest combat.¡±

    ¡°No. Bennar did not truly fight us,¡± Gadriel commented from the side. Casia nodded.

    ¡°He knew the outcome we needed. It is no real sacrifice, considering he will be returned to life as I was. As my husband and daughter will be. To that end, I will need more material.¡± Her eyes flashed towards Hunter. Something within Daniel blared a warning, but too late. A sudden sensation invaded his mind, as if Lograve¡¯s Telepathy had turned into a video call. The first terrible image the Fate had seen played out in his head as he also watched it happen in front of him, the two instances in sync.

    ¡°Hunter, run!¡±

    The air snapped as Casia moved faster than Daniel could track visually. There was a layer of unreality and disbelief as he tried and failed to reject reality itself. The monster-Tyrant was carried off of her throne by some force, rushing down without taking a step to where Hunter had gotten back up on his feet. The hand reaching forward didn¡¯t stop but knocked Hunter to the ground as it met his armor. His body was compressed as tremendous force was applied to it until the enchanted armor cracked open.

    It was so fast Daniel didn¡¯t have time to trigger Moment of Clarity. Even if he had, it would have changed nothing. Casia withdrew her arm out of Hunter¡¯s torso, holding his heart in a disinterested way. Tak had received every bit of damage Hunter had up until the hand had penetrated flesh, as if even the bond had recognized how futile it was in the face of the newly crowned Tyrant.

    ¡°Hunter!¡± Daniel yelled again, screaming into the air. A massive burning arrow from Khiat flew directly towards Casia¡¯s head but bounced off something in midair before it reached her.

    The ringcat only had a few seconds of life left. I, I will- The thoughts came through unimaginably slow in that moment, pain and despair in the mental voice, but also a determination to hold on until his last words were said. I will never forget you.

    Daniel watched the last of the aura fade from his best friend as something inside of him tore wide open.

    ¡­

    In another place, far distant from the Eye, a shrill alarm sounded. This finally woke the sleeper. Earth-Daniel jumped, saw the time, and then saw the flashing lights. ¡°I was asleep for thirteen hours!? Fuck!¡± He tripped on the way to the monitors, banging his head on one of the tables. Every alarm was going off. More worryingly, all the screens he had set up to receive visual information were dead. No, they weren¡¯t turned broken, they had lost signal.

    He got back on his feet, ignoring the welt that was forming. It took but moments to flip the cover off and slam his fist down on the big red button. Nothing happened. ¡°No no no no, oh fuck!¡± For a moment Daniel was terrified there was just something interfering with the signal, if whatever tied his clone to this place could be blocked in that way. What if he had just triggered whatever doomsday protocol was in store because the system had glitched?

    When he finally looked at the backlog of notifications for Octyrrum-Daniel on the one functioning monitor, he couldn¡¯t breathe. As it turns out, he¡¯d been too late.

    <hr>

    System Alert: A Temporal Anomaly has been detected by an intrinsic Godpower of Corrupted Spoke: Time you possess. The temporal anomaly will be automatically assimilated to prevent strain on Spacetime. Spoke integrity is reduced while this assimilation is active.

    -

    Creature: Hunter has Died. You have lost all benefits of the Bond: Friendship shared with this individual.

    -

    Command received. Deploying final countermeasure. Unleashing target Spoke¡¯s Mana Tide and suppressed Godpowers.

    -

    System Alert: Bond: Worldbridge has failed.

    <hr>

    Daniel¡¯s heart stopped for a moment, and then he tore through the notes his father had left for him. Something, somewhere, had to let him know what to do. There had to be something here. His father had thought of everything! He¡¯d-

    Four hours later, after going through the entirety of the bunker, Daniel lay on the bed. He couldn¡¯t stop hating himself. It was all over. He¡¯d ruined the only chance he¡¯d had at getting his dad back. That would have been enough by itself, but Daniel had lost everyone he¡¯d started to care about on the other side too. He had no idea what had happened, but if Hunter had died then it was likely everyone was dead.

    It was all his fault.

 Chapter 158: On Broken Wings

    Moment of Clarity activated, the world freezing in place for a relative second before collapsing together again. Froze, unfroze. It kept happening. Daniel didn¡¯t realize until the fifth time that he was burning mana trying to reverse time instead of pause it. He kept trying. Within him was so much mana he couldn¡¯t sense a flow, just the outline of his body. This was far more than he¡¯d ever had. At the same time there was denial, desperation, something Daniel could not begin to put into words.

    His friend was dead.

    Tak didn¡¯t waste any time. Daniel watched as time juttered in his perspective, coming unmoored, broken between what he saw and what was in his head as something kept streaming images to it. The avianoid¡¯s flesh rippled. The bestial transformation was not as clean and industrial as Rasalia¡¯s combat morph but something inspired by a feral predator. Tak screamed in agony as he lashed out, but he ran into the same barrier Khiat¡¯s arrow had found.

    In his mind, he saw the future.

    Casia impassively watched the Totem Warrior assault her for a few seconds before she spoke again. ¡°It will be simpler to kill you all, then. You were given a chance.¡± She grabbed one of his arms, the barrier around her still protecting her immediate form and crushing Tak¡¯s limb, though it rapidly healed. Casia brought the talons of her other hand together in a point that reached toward Tak¡¯s-

    No. The mana within Daniel was a raging storm. There was no gentle flow or pattern, simply chaos. A contained explosion his simple skin should have in no way held. Part of it listened to him.

    Time broke and came together again. Daniel found himself on his knees, the strange half-visions in his head gone for a moment. Everyone else was as stunned as he was, Tak was the only one who had taken the initiative. He was nowhere to be found now.

    Gadriel was next to move. He threw his sword, Casia not even responding but letting it bounce off of the shield around her. In his haze Daniel saw Hunter¡¯s body on the ground, unmoving. The Artificer threw back his head and screamed wordlessly. The thoughts of his other friends were still in his head, but distant. He could barely hear them.

    We have to keep fighting! Lograve, what happened to Tak?

    I don¡¯t know! That¡¯s the Shroud around her. Casia has full control of the Spoke, even if she¡¯s also destroying it.

    Daniel, you must grieve later! To fell this monstrosity you must break her shield!

    What¡¯s happening? I¡¯m still by the entrance. Is Hunter hurt?

    Sunlight.

    Daniel was shaking. He still felt the wellspring of mana within him, endless. Infinite. With all that power he could do nothing. His body was hard to move, his instincts and raw emotions could barely express themselves. Using powers of any kind was impossible, and there was an odd trembling in the magic items connected to him.

    Daniel is down. There has to be another way. Khiat, Khare, give us what you can. He saw Evalyn step forward as Lograve and Gadriel split up. Casia was moving with incredible speed, but could still only be in one place at a time.

    ¡°You¡¯re the one leading them,¡± Casia said as she appraised the Bard. There was a hint of surprise in her voice as she pieced it together. ¡°I¡¯d thought it was the Arcanist.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re dying right now,¡± Evalyn spoke with barely restrained fury, the mana in her body surging as Investiture of Song was activated.

    Daniel¡¯s head split open as time began breaking again. These internal visions were growing more unstable. With Hunter it had been one playback mirroring what was going on in real time. Now, it was like the vision was being split into pieces and played at random, endlessly cycling, while at the same time he experienced reality alongside everyone else.

    ¡°You will try.¡± Evalyn fired a Songbolt that Casia moved to dodge, covering the distance between them faster than a blink. The Bard instantly reactivated Investiture of Song to charge another bolt. She received a cut along the shoulder as she just moved out of the way of oncoming talons, Casia extending them out of her shield to go for another heart.

    In his head, Daniel saw Evalyn trying to relay the weakness as she stumbled back, bleeding. Casia gave her a moment more to realize the futility before moving again. The avianoid switched tactics, going for the neck instead. The incredible power of the monster-Tyrant hit her, instantly breaking-

    NO! Daniel screamed in his head again, the sound wildly warping in pitch as he became fully detached from the present moment. He felt something shatter on his arms but couldn¡¯t be sure if it was real or not. The vision in his head disintegrated, time breaking into pieces smaller than anything he could perceive. He came to as the sound of thunder rang out. Charred stone revealed that a bolt of natural lightning had struck Casia, and the Bard in front of her was gone. The Tyrant had been hurt by this, part of her body turned to glass that became unable to shift or move like flesh. It fell off of Casia as she shed it, absorbing more sand from the surrounding floor to regenerate.

    Her gaze turned to Lograve. ¡°What was that spell, mage?¡± The agony of the last dual-reality quickly returned as another vision hit him. It was absolute chaos. In the real world, Daniel saw the Arcanist tense, and then chuckle.

    ¡°I guess we¡¯ll both die never knowing. Murdon, you were right all along. I should have found better armor.¡± All of the ice around him melted, the Arcanist struggling to keep control as he formed it into a barrier of hardened water.

    Casia sped forward, impacting the water first and choosing to scatter it rather than go for the kill immediately. Lograve tried to fight her with his power, but Casia was using the Shroud around her to part it. He might as well have tried to sweep up dust while a storm raged, and it looked like a new one was building above.

    Lograve turned invisible once the majority of the water was absorbed by the sand on the ground, multiple circles of flame appearing around Casia. She just walked through them, unbothered. The arrows from afar weren¡¯t worth considering.

    Casia reached out with a hand, eyes closing in concentration. Another instance of the Shroud appeared in the air, noticeable as it blocked the first drops of falling rain. She moved her palm down, and there was a grunt of surprise as it caught the fleeing Arcanist. It was going to crush him against the Eye so fast, Lograve couldn¡¯t get in one last joke.

    Caught between two manifestations of divine power, the Arcanist¡¯s body was quickly-

    Daniel didn¡¯t scream anything this time. His mind was struggling to stay together as it seemed time itself was breaking down. He just knew what he was seeing couldn¡¯t happen. It wouldn¡¯t happen.

    ...

    Gadriel stood firm, the last person who could truly face Casia. Daniel lay unmoving in the sand. Khare and Khiat were both too injured to do more than they already were from range. Farthest Run had been on the way, but they hadn¡¯t wanted to wait for them to catch up. It hadn¡¯t been clear until the Eye itself that every living member of the Council was up there and time had not been their ally.

    It was just him. He knew Hunter was dead. Of the others, their fate was unclear. The sword and shield Bennar had left him were in hands, the items bound to paired bracelets. Too high of a level for him to use. Once summoned, they would grow steadily heavier and more painful to hold. Blessed could occasionally use items one level higher than themselves for short periods of time, but there was always a cost. If he persisted for any amount of time with these it could lead to worse, potentially fatal consequences.

    ¡°You¡¯re from Threst, aren¡¯t you?¡± Casia asked as she watched Gadriel clip the spectral sword and shield to his wrists. ¡°If you have any family there, you¡¯d do better to go to them then remain here. Aughal may be doomed, but we do not intend to break every region. The change coming to this world only requires death because your gods use mortals as their shield. When they are gone, our suffering will finally be at an end.¡±

    ¡°Perhaps, but I would rather your vile schemes harm none other.¡±

    ¡°Bennar was wrong. You¡¯ll never see the truth.¡± Casia shot forward, although her attack was deflected off of the spectral shield that suddenly appeared from his arm. Gadriel grunted under the recoil but kept it up. The high level sword cut out next, though this did not defeat the Shroud immediately. All it accomplished was allowing Gadriel to gain enough momentum to keep ahead of the growing weight in his arms. He still felt as if he was burning alive, but that was only pain.

    It should have been impossible for him to hold these weapons for this long, but for the interaction of two powers. First, Momentous Strikes could give him enough speed to counteract the negative effects of the items trying to break free from his grip. Second? Gadriel was Never Disarmed.

    The Hero wouldn¡¯t stop. Even as his own life started burning away from the artifacts attacking him directly, he kept going in the hopes that he could strike a critical blow. The Shroud around Casia did appear to be weakening, the level 6 blade possessing enough power to challenge a creation of the gods in some small way.

    Casia tried summoning other barriers, or using her extreme speed, but neither tactic worked. The shield Gadriel possessed and his experience was proof against them, and the Shroud refused to appear directly within a living creature. No one could deny the utility of masterwork artifacts in the hands of someone competent. Or their cost. The weight of the weapons was beginning to outpace Momentous Strikes. At no time had Gadriel¡¯s movements become faster than normal, the power had just let him keep up.

    Thirty seconds in, he knew it was time. Gadriel used Gravitational Shift to temporarily adjust which way the ground was for him. His sword and shield were currently very heavy because of his insistence on using them, and not just for himself. With the cry of an incantation, the Hero sped towards Casia with his fastest Falling Star yet. At the same time, a ring on his finger flashed.

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    The Shroud around Casia was impaled, cracking to allow Gadriel''s attack to enter. The stolen ring of lancing fired, scorching both of them and the stone itself more than the prior lightning strike. When it was done, the Hero collapsed, arms bending with the weight of the weapons.

    ¡°Almost.¡± Casia, body half-destroyed, stood before him. Gadriel watched with anguished resignation as the burned parts of her form fell off, gaps replenishing. It took up a good portion of the ambient sand, and those areas where the water had seeped in did not respond to her call. There was still enough for her to fully reform. ¡°It¡¯s a shame. You could have been something special.¡±

    Just before she could strike at him, Gadriel felt a hand with greater force than the items breaking his arms grab a hold of him and yank. Then, he was gone.

    ¡­

    Down below in the crumbling Sun Spire, the Fate woke up. Farthest Run was further delayed by a collapsing staircase. Lastly, one man reached the top.

    ¡­

    Casia opened and closed her hand over the space Gadriel had just been. She had won, but she couldn¡¯t explain what had just happened. The ringcat she had definitely killed. Everyone else? Gone a second before she could finish them. The archers in the distance had given up at least. Casia was of half a mind on whether she would pursue them. If the dusker was smart she¡¯d run. The gestalt? Crippled at best, and she''d be inclined to spare a member of that race over any other. Still, both might not make it out of the Spire before it came down on them, and that was only if they could bypass the siege ward she was keeping in place.

    No, all that was important was to remain here and see the Spoke¡¯s collapse through. Casia did spare a moment to recover Bennar¡¯s heart to preserve his soul for later revival, but she left Claret¡¯s alone. She had a feeling that wasn¡¯t the kind of person she¡¯d want to bring back. All that was left was the Artificer, who had completely broken when she¡¯d killed his pet.

    She decided he needed to die, at least. Somehow he¡¯d broken through the Shroud with mere touch, something that should have taken an immense amount of power like the repeated attacks from that Hero¡¯s sword. Also, how had lightning struck her through the Shroud earlier? There was a storm building above the Eye following the dispersal of the one summoned by Mark earlier, though one of a different nature. Bringing a thunderstorm here in the same way was certainly possible, but only with the same tier of power.

    ¡°Proxy,¡± Casia determined eventually. She only knew about the class because the Illustrious had warned her about them. That the personal attention of a god had been brought here wasn¡¯t surprising. She would have been warned about the direct presence of one, and there was at least one heading towards this part of the world. But they wouldn¡¯t get here in time.

    The Artificer stirred as she made up her mind. When he stood, something had changed.

    ¡­

    The remnants of the headache from time going abstract were fading. However, the mana within him continued to surge. His entire body felt like it could fly off in every direction at once, and it was painful on some level that it insisted on keeping its form. None of that mattered, not even the questions it would have naturally provoked. Daniel Brant only knew two things.

    Hunter was dead.

    Casia Seliri had killed him.

    The murderess flew towards him with ridiculous speed. Reflexively, he tried to activate Moment of Clarity and found he couldn¡¯t. In his current state of mind Daniel was beyond panic, but the will to defend himself still brought forth something entirely unexpected.

    A bolt from the storm above crashed down on him. It didn¡¯t hurt. It didn¡¯t even hit him. Instead, the lightning became trapped in a bubble around his body. His improved senses could barely make out the bolt flashing through the sphere around him, still moving with the speed and energy it had in its early flight.

    Casia rapidly changed course and Daniel noticed the edges of her body deforming as if she was a water balloon pressed against glass. Were it not for her body¡¯s composition the avianoid would have compressed herself into paste against the barrier around her. Daniel¡¯s mind was far from ok, but the part with killing intent still had his analytical side. She¡¯s moving herself with the Shroud. That¡¯s an active effect. She can¡¯t concentrate on anything else when she moves.

    The lightning shield around him? He gave little to no attention to it. Daniel knew it was his, a large chunk of mana had been burned summoning the bolt and there was a steady drain now that went towards trapping it. The rate of loss was insane compared to his resource pool before, but now it was just subtracting a million from infinity. He was wading on top of an ocean with no bottom. He had another thought now, directing his intent towards Casia. Kill.

    Nothing happened. Daniel felt the storm want to strike, but it couldn¡¯t so soon after the last bolt. At the same time, the Spoke she possessed began fighting back hard against Daniel, and he got the same feeling he did every time he tried to move someone else through the Shroud. Its ability to resist him appeared in proportion to what he was trying to do. Before, he was only trying to steal a small scrap of an extension of its power. Now he was trying to destroy the one whose will it obeyed.

    He checked his arms next when he didn¡¯t feel the trigger of his gauntlet bows, and found that there were fragments left of what he¡¯d once enchanted. It seemed as if every magical item on him had self-destructed from the magical overload going on inside, save for his bag of holding which had been able to detach itself from his waist. Even his necklace and phone had been affected. He would have mourned the loss of his father¡¯s gift if a greater loss was not still tearing his heart apart.

    While he was preoccupied, the Spoke of Aughal made its next move. Without Casia needing to consciously direct it, the top of the Moon Spire shifted as the fountain had to reveal a pale blue gem dozens of meters across. It fired a ray larger than the one produced by the ring of lancing and the ground around Daniel froze. When the light cleared he remained standing, though the lightning around him had faded significantly.

    Daniel dismissed the shield with an effort of will and raised a hand to the sky. It was instinctual, something he felt he should have always been able to do, like he¡¯d just awakened a new power the normal way. Yet there was no name in his head, and he had the feeling if he checked his Encyclopedia he wouldn¡¯t find an entry either. Considering none of his other Artificer powers worked, he might not have the Encyclopedia right now.

    Another bolt struck the space around Daniel, forming a shield. Ok. Ok. Lightning shield and lightning strike, both actively channeled abilities. Slight cooldown between bolts means I can¡¯t spam this.The Spires hit me whenever I try to hit Casia. Apparently, it was only acting on the murder in his heart that provoked a response, as the sheer hatred his soul harbored for her didn¡¯t make another shot come from the Moon Spire.

    For Casia¡¯s part, she stared at the gem that had revealed itself and looked thoughtfully at the other Spires. A red, white, and pink gem appeared respectively when she investigated further. ¡°I didn¡¯t know they could do this,¡± Daniel heard her say distantly. The appearance of the Spire¡¯s active defenses had not slowed their destruction. Paradoxically, the one the Spoke would expend itself defending was also by presence alone assuring its destruction.

    As if testing Daniel, Casia sent a ray of fire from the Sun Spire to where Khare was sprawled, caught while trying to crawl back towards that very tower for cover. Daniel had no clear knowledge of what he was capable of and was barely hanging together. All he could do was project his will on the world and pray that he wouldn¡¯t lose anyone else.

    No thunder came for Khare. Instead, the winds of the storm tossed the gestalt half of the remaining distance, well clear of the attack that scorched several decimeters off the floor of the Eye. As Daniel was distracted, however, the gem atop the Rose Spire fired toward him. This was less a destructive beam and more a spotlight. The lightning shield didn¡¯t react at all, as this wasn¡¯t a direct attack. It also turned out to be the least effective of Casia¡¯s tricks.

    Emotions tried to pry into his mind, flickering between them as the ray attempted to find a way in. Lust, greed, apathy, they all found no way in. It wasn¡¯t that Daniel was immune to them, despair certainly would have amplified his own and immobilized him. No, it was the sheer amount of mana coursing through him. The effect seemed to need to influence his mana flow to work. It might as well have tried to change the color of an ocean with a few drops of paint.

    In the meantime, Daniel saw Khiat running out to help Khare get back into cover. She¡¯d recognized whatever was happening was beyond them both. It should have been beyond Daniel too, but he was acclimating like he¡¯d been thrust into a fighter jet on autopilot. There was no way he could fly this himself, but he could find out what all the buttons did.

    Casia was in the same position. She¡¯d figured out how to manipulate the Shroud easily enough, but these gems were a new factor. Capitalizing on this, Daniel summoned more lightning down on her after temporarily dismissing his shield. He¡¯d tried for as many as he could get, though only one appeared and at far greater mana cost than last time. A billion out of infinity instead of a million, but still. Does the charge in the clouds have to build back up?

    The Sun Spire reacted again without apparent input from Casia. The Spires couldn¡¯t sustain infinite use of their attacks either, and the beam didn¡¯t last as long as it had initially. Whether that was from repeated use or the damage the tower had sustained, it was clear neither side could just spam their best attacks. Daniel was able to save himself at the speed of lightning, calling down a shield on himself just before the fire ray hit him.

    It still resulted in Daniel¡¯s shield being severely depleted, and the cost of each lightning bolt, offensive or defensive, was growing painful. The first few moments of this fight had been him throwing out metaphorical punches with all the anger roiling inside. Hunter was still dead. He¡¯s still-

    But Daniel¡¯s head was cooling down. Unbridled fury wasn¡¯t winning out. With a steadier attempt he tried to push for Moment of Clarity. Nothing. If he hadn¡¯t practiced his mana senses he might have never realized why it wasn¡¯t working, although the completely atrophied sense would have at least registered the new mana. There was a haze around him as the mana building up began to seep out as a pure substance better than any potion.

    So much mana and I can¡¯t do anything with it without exposing myself. He spent another surge, perhaps more mana than he would have channeled in his life otherwise, to bring down another bolt on himself to refresh his shield. Once he knew what he could do, it was easy. Just like after using Claw Strike the first time. Anything I do against Casia gets me smacked. It might not count against the power she actively channels.

    The one positive was that the rain was washing away the rest of the sand. She couldn¡¯t use more of it to heal and seemed to be stuck here while the Spires fell. If she leaves, does she forfeit control? That didn¡¯t change the fact that Daniel couldn¡¯t kill her easily, not with the lightning from the sky growing exponentially more expensive. Any strike against Casia prompted a response from the Spires while leaving him open, and if Casia could use a Spire herself in addition to this reactionary attack it may be more than his shield could handle.

    Instead of immediately engaging Casia, Daniel walked the short distance to Hunter¡¯s body. He needed to move from his position. Getting near one of the bridges leading to the Spire may let him go outside of its firing angle, but at the same time he couldn¡¯t ignore the ringcat. Casia for the most part let him. Time was on her side. Every moment Daniel spent on sentimentality led to the Spires¡¯ collapse.

    The shield parted around his hand as he brushed the fur of the ringcat¡¯s neck. Still as soft as in life. This is a fantasy world, Daniel thought, clinging to any hope he could find. Gods exist. There has to be a way to bring people back. I¡¯ll find it.

    What he did next was hard, but it had to be done. Daniel grabbed his bag of holding with both hands. It began to break down initially, but now that he was aware of the danger he could will the mana inside of him to avoid overloading the item. The opening enlarged to fit what he wanted. Despite Hunter¡¯s size, it didn¡¯t take long to store. Items one wanted to place in this kind of storage had a soft, almost magnetic pull based on the will of the owner. The only rules were that no one else could possess the item, and it couldn¡¯t be alive.

    Hunter¡¯s body safe from Casia using it as a distraction, Daniel clenched both hands and spoke. ¡°I¡¯m going to kill you.¡±

    ¡°Doubtful. Regardless of your hidden strength, you will fail. I-¡±

    ¡°Casia!¡± Someone charged past the dusker carrying Khare, almost knocking her over. Daniel saw an avianoid holding a greatsword pointed at Casia. ¡°You took everything from me!¡±

    She turned, confusion plain on the face that had remained revealed after Aucrest¡¯s death. ¡°Who are you?¡±

 Chapter 159: Hunted By Your Shadow

    Jeras had taken far longer to climb the Spire than the inferno in his chest had desired, but he was finally here. There were two in his way when he reached the top, but he sensed no threat from them. Judging by their appearance they were heavily injured, and it didn¡¯t take much imagination to consider how.

    He didn¡¯t notice how the Eye or the Spires had changed. Daniel was just a yellowish blur in the distance. Casia was his only target. ¡°You killed her. You killed them all.¡± Jeras breathed heavily, both hands on his greatsword. He was preparing to charge when his target flew towards him, a hand breaking through his armor before he could react. The hand was reaching inside of him. This must have been just what Kelra had felt, with one exception.

    A wind blew him away, suddenly. Casia regarded the yellow blur in the distance before her eyebrows raised. What she¡¯d pulled from his chest was just undifferentiated red mass. Jeras felt his flesh writhing as it brought itself back together. This wasn¡¯t Regeneration. His body wasn¡¯t returning to a livable condition, it was just bringing itself back to its basic shape. From the powers he¡¯d gained by the bond, it was clear this was a one-way trip.

    Hellbound Vigor*. Mark of Vengeance. Pyrrhic Stand*. Two of the names in his head had asterisks. He couldn¡¯t care less about that. Either way, Casia seemed to finally recognize something when she took a closer look. ¡°You have a Vengeance Bond. Who are you to awaken something like this?¡±

    ¡°Jeras Stillfeather. Your death.¡±

    ¡°Hardly.¡± With all the advantages the Octyrrum had given him to end this monster, she was still far faster than he was. Casia didn¡¯t try to punch into him again but instead slammed into his body with hers. Knocked down and pinned, he saw a pale blue beam project from the distant Moon Spire. It flowed around Casia and froze him. Before the bond he would have died.

    Now, after a few seconds had passed, he was able to feebly swing his sword towards the foe above him. His continued survival was taking something, but Jeras didn¡¯t know what it was. He didn¡¯t care. Casia would die by his hand. Lightning struck him then, but instead of hurting him, it flowed around him and shocked his target causing her to recoil. He looked up and saw the yellow blur in the distance had dimmed to become a humanoid outline. Was that an ally? ¡°Her life is mine!¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t care who kills her,¡± the distant human responded furiously. ¡°Only that she dies.¡± Jeras thought for a second and decided he liked that answer.

    ¡­

    Alright. She can¡¯t kill him, somehow. But she¡¯s still too fast. Worse, Daniel¡¯s lightning shield could only cover one person at a time. He was inundated with mana, but his durability hadn¡¯t changed. Actually, it was far worse now that Regeneration wasn¡¯t working. All of his normal powers were locked.

    Or were they? Daniel finally noticed that an orange wedge was repeatedly flashing over Casia¡¯s head. Khare? With Lograve¡­ not here, their Telepathic Link was gone. Their team hadn¡¯t normally had that advantage, however, and Daniel could tell Khare wanted to line up a shot. How, they¡¯re, oh. Back at the entrance of the Sun Spire, it was not Khare, but Khiat holding her bow. On the arrow was a bright, glowing cylinder he¡¯d never seen before. Thinking back to everything Khare had been trying to tell them, it began to make sense. Was this what Khare had meant by sunlight?

    He still had friends here, and they needed his help. Casia moved far too quickly for Khiat to ever hope to hit, to say nothing of the Shroud barrier around her. The moment they attack her she¡¯ll go after them, too. Unless the dusker had something ridiculous to pull out, that wouldn¡¯t end well. I need to figure out how this new magic works.

    In the distance, Casia and Jeras were fighting, giving Daniel time. It looked like the murderer would have preferred to finish him while he was unprotected, but something was forcing her to fight. He¡¯s drawing aggro? It¡¯s like a taunt effect. Someone else attacking Casia could break it. He watched as she kept an exact distance away from Jeras, about ten or so meters, while summoning more artillery fire from the Spires surrounding them. That was weakening the shield around Jeras, but leaving the Vanguard otherwise untouched.

    She can¡¯t directly attack when the lightning barrier is up. If we can pin her down, there¡¯s not much she can do. The recoil from her contacting the freshly summoned shield had certainly seemed painful, and it had required Casia to shed parts of her body that had been too damaged. The Spires were growing less responsive as well from overuse. All except Wing Spire, which Casia hadn¡¯t used yet. Daniel refreshed the lightning shield on Jeras by dismissing the original, but it didn¡¯t seem like that was doing anything but continue the stalemate.

    Daniel looked around, mind whirring, and came to a simple conclusion. There wasn¡¯t any way the shield would help them in the long run. But he had to do something with the energy from the storm above. With little else to target, Daniel decided to attack the very thing he was trying to save.

    ¡­

    Casia felt the hand of the gods here, acting against her. First, a high-level Proxy had revealed itself hiding amongst normal hunters, and now someone had developed a Vengeance Bond against her. That was as rare as a Tyrant developing naturally and, worse, was an uneven bond. The one taking revenge gained all the benefits, though in this case Casia had no doubt there were also drawbacks.

    She was directing the Spires around her to target Jeras, forced to by a power that bypassed her normal resistance, when his shield vanished and lightning came down on the Sun Spire. The gem atop it cracked, losing some of its light. Casia tried willing it to repair itself, but that seemed impossible. Her very presence being responsible for the tower¡¯s ongoing destruction may have had something to do with it.

    Her fury turned towards the Proxy near the center of the Eye, but the power binding her to the Vanguard still held. The irony of being forced to face an unkillable foe in close range did not escape her. Casia readied the Moon Spire to attack when a thought occurred to her. These gems were made with the intent to repel invasions in mind, but what kind of army didn¡¯t involve mid or high level combatants? Would Aughal¡¯s Spoke, one of the most protective in the world, not provide a countermeasure there?

    The attacks from each so far had been light-based, no doubt using the near constant sunlight the Spires were exposed to during the day to build up power. Were it daytime now she doubted the Spire gems would lose power. They would probably grow stronger. While she did not have that advantage, there was something to consider. Light could be manipulated.

    Casia enforced her will, creating a lens out of the stonework surrounding the Moon Spire¡¯s gem. The material making them up was completely versatile, able to transition into various shapes and materials. Originally the Wing Spire had not had balconies, and the Moon Spire hadn¡¯t been as accommodating for duskers. She couldn¡¯t repair what had been damaged, but what was still there could be molded by her will. Those in power had always been able to shape the Spoke to their liking.

    The ray that fired this time was condensed. It still lost some of its potency crossing the Eye, but it pierced through the renewed lightning shield around Jeras like a lance and instantly froze his upper half. Without that damned shield, Casia was able to rush over and shatter him to pieces. She had a feeling the man wasn¡¯t dead, but to her satisfaction she found the effect forcing her to target him was gone.

    This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    That just left the Proxy. And the two others now sheltering in the Sun Spire, but she both couldn¡¯t get to them without leaving the Eye and couldn¡¯t hit them with the rays from any of the Spires. She¡¯d just kill the Proxy then, throw this Jeras off the Eye, and wait out the destruction without any further interruptions. Casia had known it wouldn¡¯t be instantaneous, but the will of the city was far less fragile than she¡¯d expected. Damn that rogue Tyrant.

    Casia manipulated the Shroud around her forward, preparing to crash into the Proxy like a mounted Knight adjusting her lance, when a burst of wind launched the man upwards. It was a similar thing that gestalt had tried with Rasalia, but unfortunately it worked this time. He must have caught on to one of the flaws in this method, which was that she had to manually adjust her speed and fight the momentum of each prior movement.

    While the Proxy had some limit on the lightning he could use, this wind power seemed to use less mana and not require active channeling. She also got the sense it was potent enough to have given her trouble before taking control of the Spoke, though both of them had moved past the limits of most mortals by now.

    ¡°You can¡¯t evade me forever,¡± she taunted him.

    Lightning came down in reply when the man was at the height of his jump, surrounding him once more. She heard his voice after the rumble of thunder. ¡°Pretty sure I can.¡±

    Casia waited for him to fall back to the Eye, or for the Proxy to summon a burst of wind that would signal an opening. She¡¯d caught on to the fact that they could both only call upon one of their powers at a time and was currently adjusting lenses on each of the Spires to track him. However, the Proxy didn¡¯t come back down.

    ¡­

    When Daniel had thought earlier that his class was useless due to the mana surge within him, he was only half right. It had taken him longer to think of than it should have. Now, he flew through the air with most of the momentum from the prior jump. On his back were the, admittedly gaudy, golden lightning wings. They didn¡¯t let him fly without the heliorite boost, just reduced the rate at which he fell. The bursts of wind he was familiarizing himself with could be a good replacement. He was saving the wings¡¯ ability for later.

    Casia chased after him. He was able to dodge by just moving out of the way the first time, but the second time the murderer approached at a speed that would allow her to adjust without overshooting. Daniel called upon the power within to blow him out of the way, which was when the Moon Spire fired its condensed beam at him.

    Following the implied rules of this engagement, Daniel¡¯s shield would have taken a great deal of damage, possibly failing to fully ward him from the cold damage. It was here that he began cheating. His other powers were locked due to the basic tenets of how powers worked. You couldn¡¯t use two actively channeled abilities at the same time unless you¡¯d practiced enough to combine two beforehand. The sheer mana running through him went further, somehow, to completely suppress everything else he¡¯d once had.

    Everything else having to do with Daniel. His wings still worked fine, and so did the special property afforded by making them with heliorite. So long as he kept the mana storm in him from leaking out into them, they would not break down like everything else he¡¯d initially had on him. A golden light shot out from the bottom of the wings, propelling him further towards his target. There was a sharp cry behind him, and Daniel saw Casia recoil in surprise as some of her body began to harden.

    Daniel hoped they were isolated enough that no duskers were affected, since the cast-off light was close enough to sunlight to damage or kill them. While this was a weapon against Casia, it was also a temporary burst. What was more important was it got him clear of the beam and closer to its source.

    As Daniel reached the pale blue gem, he felt the mana radiating off of both it and himself. The air was suffused with raw power which his wings were absorbing, despite the fact that they normally required daylight to recharge. Using the time he¡¯d bought, Daniel brought out one of the very last skab glands and broke it on the gem. The glue within had still held up despite the many weeks it¡¯d been since he¡¯d first acquired it. He slapped every explosive bolt on him, as well as the bag containing the spineshard marbles he¡¯d made over the course of the night, onto the glob of glue and dove off before Casia could recover from the wings¡¯ light.

    The explosion caused by the next lightning strike was very satisfying. Enough of the gem had been destroyed that it faded entirely, removing one of Casia¡¯s most potent weapons. All it had taken was, well, most of the cards he¡¯d had. Every time he¡¯d summoned lightning the cost had grown exponentially, and that last strike had cost about ten percent of his enormous mana pool. The storm must be running out of power. He had to find a way to destroy Casia, and quickly.

    She pursued him like a banshee, for she was screaming at him now in frustration. Both flew through the air, both poorly. If either had been experienced in the unique methods they were using for propulsion it could have decided the fight. Instead, Daniel made it to where Jeras had mostly pieced himself back together.

    ¡°Can you make her attack you again?¡± Daniel asked quickly. The Vanguard took a moment to respond, literally not all there yet.

    ¡°Yes. She has to be close.¡±

    ¡°Then I¡¯ll get her close.¡± Daniel went to grab the avianoid when the clear white light of the Wing Spire intensified, and he realized Casia hadn¡¯t been holding back on that Spire. She¡¯d been waiting for it to fully charge. The western Spire sent out a pulse of energy that, even far away, still felt like a depth charge to Daniel. The issue was it wasn¡¯t aimed at him, but upwards. ¡°Fuck!¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Jeras readied to dodge, but Daniel shook his head.

    ¡°That Spire is clearing my storm!¡±

    ¡­

    Casia had noticed something odd about the Spire gems. The Sun and Moon Spires had predictable attacks compared to the other two. Rose Spire, with its emotional manipulation, was far odder and useless against her two opponents. So much so that she doubted that had been what the tower¡¯s gem had originally done. Spokes were modeled after the public will that drove them, even if this one was currently commanded by one. That had an impact.

    That wasn¡¯t to say there was a vote held to determine the Spire¡¯s functions. Casia guessed it just pulled from conceptual understandings and tied that to the purpose of defense. That left Wing Spire with its own curious effect. Something wind-related was an obvious connection to make, but clearing hazardous weather? That had to be related to the sandstorm Mark had summoned earlier. Just how malleable were these Spokes? It was probably the Tyrant class Casia had been forced to take for this plan to work, but she thought it was a shame this one wouldn¡¯t last long enough for her to experiment.

    Casia banished that thought. She wouldn¡¯t be turned from her goals. When the Wing Spire was ready, she willed it to fire. The gem pulsed out mana with disrupting force and the clouds above tore apart. She understood little of how weather worked, other than that for a thunderstorm like this to form in a desert region would be very unnatural. The Proxy¡¯s power was unable to overcome the weather clearing effect and Casia grinned as the moon revealed itself.

    No more lightning from the heavens. The Proxy still had his shield, but that was all. The Vanguard she was hazily remembering now had the Vengeance Bond but little else. This would have all been over if it weren¡¯t for the damage to the Moon Spire. Casia put the other one at about half power, and the decline in strength for each successive shot had grown. She could use it sparingly, or not at all. As for the Spires themselves?

    Stone was crumbling down onto the streets. Anyone still in the area outside at this point deserved to catch some of the debris. The people inside the Spires didn¡¯t have that choice, since the siege ward was still active in every place aside from the entryways onto the Eye. Casia had left that open since someone had needed to come up to kill the two Council members, or else their deaths wouldn¡¯t have counted. With the towers crumbling, that seemed another aspect she couldn¡¯t fully control.

    What was important was that Casia had two things neither of her opponents had in combination: overwhelming force and near invulnerability. That, combined with time being on her side, made it so that she still didn¡¯t fear a loss. Still, she¡¯d kill these two if given the chance.

    She¡¯d had another idea about how to use the Spoke, and this one had none of the weaknesses of the gems. The Shroud. She¡¯d tried to crush the Proxy with an invisible wall in a similar way she¡¯d intended the Arcanist to die earlier, but it had had no effect. Similarly, the strangely unkillable man had enough strength to contest it for long enough to leave herself exposed. But there was another option.

    Casia raised her hand, stopping in midair as a small stone was plucked from the Eye.

 Chapter 160: Across the Sky

    Jeras¡¯ head jerked next to Daniel and the man collapsed. Half of his skull had just gotten blown out. How? Then, something impacted his shield and knocked him back. By the third instance he¡¯d figured out what it was. She¡¯s using the Shroud to fire pieces of stone at us. That¡¯s cheating! There was something to be said about the fact that the Casia¡¯s most fearsome weapon wasn¡¯t the death rays, but her simple ability to manipulate the Shroud. It was effectively supreme telekinesis combined with an invulnerable shield around the projectile to prevent you from doing anything to it before it landed.

    At least she¡¯s not making a maze of invisible barriers, or just hitting us with the Shroud, Daniel thought. But then again, he could probably burn through those with all the mana he had now, and his lightning hadn¡¯t been affected. Casia might have been trying to do that earlier and just given up when Daniel unknowingly bypassed them. I still need to get her locked down. Jeras was stirring again. ¡°You don¡¯t have any other helpful powers, do you?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think so.¡± The Vanguard sounded strangely unsure, as if, well, as if the stone that had passed straight through his head might have caused brain damage. Still, Daniel had a feeling that wasn¡¯t it. Another rock cracked against his barrier, the Artificer standing over Jeras to cover him. These stones drained the shield¡¯s power far less than any of the Spire weapons, but he also couldn¡¯t recharge it now.

    Casia floated above imperiously, almost gloating. ¡°Get ready to charge her,¡± Daniel said. ¡°What I¡¯m about to do is going to draw a lot of fire.¡±

    ¡°Fine.¡± Something was definitely off with the avianoid, though he wasn¡¯t any less intent on killing Casia. Another piece of stone pried from the Eye was railgunned towards them, Casia seeming to believe she¡¯d discovered an undefeatable strategy when Daniel called upon the wind. With the storm gone it was less intense, making this gust cost so much it dropped his reserve by a few percentage points. He¡¯d spend it all if it meant killing her.

    The Sun Spire fired automatically at Daniel, but its lens was not positioned appropriately. Focusing earlier attacks now backfired, while above an ephemeral fist slammed into Casia and knocked her out of the sky. His lightning had pierced her Shroud, so why not the wind? Half of her body was compressed against the Shroud shield around her as it fought the pressure in vain, but this dealt no meaningful damage.

    What it did do was get Jeras in range, reactivating the taunt power. Casia immediately hovered up as far as she could get, the Vanguard having just enough range to skate the tip of his sword off the bottom of her Shroud. This infuriated the Vanguard, who struck out with several incredibly fast incantation attacks in an attempt to scratch her.

    Casia was lining up another shot with a huge chunk of masonry when Daniel activated his recharged wings. She saw him coming and tried to dodge, but a gust from the back launched her towards him. The Sun Spire fired, missing of course, and Daniel¡¯s hand broke through the Shroud to close around her neck.

    The lightning in his shield flowed into her, solidifying the sand where he¡¯d grabbed as the cast off light did the same to the rest of the body. As Daniel had discovered with Hunter¡¯s body, he could manipulate his lightning to allow him to touch things without hurting them. Focusing the shield entirely on his hand was also possible.

    As lightning coursed through Casia, the two impacted the Moon Spire under the remains of the gem after the propulsion from the wings carried them across the Eye. The part of Casia directly affected by the lightning had turned to glass and cracked on impact. The rest of the body was more of a sandstone consistency after exposure to light and cracked as well, but did not shatter. When the light of the wings faded, the damage there began to repair. Daniel also felt things break in several places along his arm and he lost his grip, falling away.

    With his wounds failing to rapidly heal and his shield gone, Daniel knew if Casia didn¡¯t die here, both he and Jeras were dead. It all came down to the last gambit, and the two others participating in this battle. On the way, he¡¯d activated Called Shot. Khare wasn¡¯t the one firing, but they could still pass along the message.

    Khiat lifted her bow and prepared herself for the shot. Survival aside, part of her knew that if she hit her mark, her power would grow. She walked a path apart from the others, having no class and yet still advancing under the grace of the Octyrrum. All she had were instincts when it came to her powers, and they told her that this was the most important arrow of her life so far.

    Standing under the Sun Spire, Khiat was about half a kilometer away from the Moon Spire where her target was briefly stunned and pinned to by the force of landing. Daniel had torn apart the Shroud, giving her an opening. While a normal archer would have despaired at that range, even Daniel¡¯s stolen crossbow not able to effectively go that far, she was a dusker. The draw weight of her bow was in the hundreds of kilograms. The only caveat was what they¡¯d tied to the shaft, requiring adjustment to the aim.

    The archer aimed high and fired, using Pinning Shot as she did so. The arrow flew with an arc of light, passing over the newly made throne at the apex before it began to fall. Its flight took long enough for Casia to see it coming, but she couldn¡¯t respond in time. The Spoke only acted by itself in response to Daniel¡¯s actions and didn¡¯t come to her rescue this time, as it hadn¡¯t for each of Jeras¡¯ earlier strikes. The arrow hit center mass, dealing relatively little if any damage. What was attached to it changed everything.

    It turned out that Khare had been walking around with a weapon of mass destruction. The rod of enchanted light given to him by the city guard so that they¡¯d survive the jail cell hadn¡¯t been recovered in the confusion surrounding their release. Considering it gave the gestalt direct sunlight at all times, they had a strong motivation to keep it. Absorbing that continuously while within their Mobile Armory had allowed Khare to heal from injuries even at night, when their kind of gestalt were traditionally weaker.

    It was fortunate the light from Daniel¡¯s wings had been discovered as harmful to duskers before they¡¯d ever had a reason to bring the rod out, as it was also constructed from heliorite reclaimed from equipment Daniel had sold to the city Artificer.

    The effect on Casia was similar to a dusker, the sand making up her true body hardening to stone. This didn¡¯t kill her, but at the same time the arrow and rod were sealed inside while the shaft pinned her. This went beyond the radiant dagger she¡¯d been stabbed with. The faint glow of that had hurt intensely. Now, a being who had felt no pain for years was exposed to unimaginable agony.

    Then, Jeras hit her. The Vanguard had continued charging after Casia and landed on her a few moments after the arrow. He held his greatsword in one hand, wildly swinging into the target of his vengeance. Casia tried to summon barriers again but confirmed what she had discovered earlier in the fight, the Shroud refused to appear inside or too close to any living creature. Given the choice she would have ended the fight at the start by bisecting someone with it, but the Spoke had refused. Jeras was too close for her to block off his attacks. Now, she started to feel fear along with the pain.

    The Vanguard frowned as the heavy blade failed to do much to his opponent, and flipped it in air to reverse his grip. He brought the pommel down again and again until Casia¡¯s head was just dust. Pausing, he saw that this wasn¡¯t enough, and threw both of them to the ground where he kept hammering away.

    With a last bit of effort, Casia managed to direct and fire the Sun Spire towards Jeras, but that hardly mattered. The ray of fire would have given him mild burns unfocused, while through the lens it only severely scorched his torso. Rocks thrown towards the Vanguard struck but he did not stop. Holding the blade now in bleeding hands, Jeras steadily demolished his hated enemy, scattering the debris across the eye.

    ¡­

    The localized destruction of the Spires ceased as soon as Casia¡¯s soul was driven from her vessel, and the throne in the center of the Eye melded back into the dais. Daniel walked slowly over to Jeras, still bleeding mana and with many injuries from that last attack. ¡°You did it.¡± The Vanguard didn¡¯t respond, in fact he seemed to barely be breathing. ¡°Jeras?¡±

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    Feathers started molting off of the man, where they hadn¡¯t already been scorched or blown off. His bond power had needed to keep him going, not maintain his appearance. It had stopped doing even that. ¡°I knew what this would cost. I¡¯ve been dead for a while, it¡¯s just catching up with me.¡±

    ¡°Wait, maybe I can do something.¡± He didn¡¯t know who this was, but the guy had put down the one who¡¯d killed Hunter. If it had just been Daniel in that fight he didn¡¯t think he could have physically torn apart Casia like that. ¡°I-¡± Daniel trailed off as Jeras turned, and he saw that the man¡¯s eyes were completely white.

    ¡°It¡¯s been taking everything. I didn¡¯t know until the gaps became too much.¡± Jeras looked down to where Casia had been and frowned. ¡°I don¡¯t remember why I was doing this. I don¡¯t remember¡­ who I am.¡±

    Daniel could only look on as he saw the cost of the power Jeras had reached for. It was horrifying. Bonds can do this? Lograve had mentioned this kind of bond, but Daniel hadn¡¯t appreciated what the product of negative emotions was capable of until now. That thought made his heart hurt, mixing with the pain of his other injuries. ¡°Thank you.¡± He didn¡¯t know if that mattered, but he wasn¡¯t just going to leave the dying man without saying anything.

    He walked for about a minute before it all crashed down on him. Daniel broke down, tears flowing freely. Mana as well, that hadn¡¯t gone away with Casia. Neither did he care in that moment. One of the only things that could have dragged him out of abject misery was the voice that spoke to him. ¡°Daniel? Is it over?¡±

    Khare tentatively spoke as well. ¡°Functi- alright?¡± Daniel blinked. He¡¯d never heard a gestalt stop in the middle of a word and go with another one. He looked up and saw the two had come out of the Spire.

    ¡°What happened to everyone?¡± Khiat asked when Daniel didn¡¯t immediately answer. ¡°Are they¡­¡±

    ¡°Hunter¡¯s dead.¡± It felt like stabbing himself in the chest to say. ¡°Everyone else, I don¡¯t know.¡± The moments immediately after Hunter¡¯s death were jumbled. He remembered seeing them all die, but their bodies weren¡¯t here. The memories gave him a headache to even reach for, like trying to think about the time just before he¡¯d been sent to the Octyrrum. Daniel didn¡¯t think they were dead, though. Had he done something? ¡°They¡¯re out there, somewhere,¡± he said eventually, the barest scrap of hope in his voice. He saw his friends standing there, two people he would have considered monsters a year ago. ¡°We¡¯ll find them. We¡¯ll find someone who can help Hunter. There has to be a way to bring him back.¡±

    Khiat thought for a moment before saying something he hadn¡¯t expected at all. ¡°Wait, Aughal has someone!¡±

    ¡°Someone what?¡±

    ¡°Someone who can bring people back from the dead. In the Hand¡¯s church.¡± She looked around and Daniel could just make out despair on her face. ¡°Oh no! We need the body.¡±

    ¡°Seriously!?¡± Daniel stood up, ignoring his broken arm. ¡°Where? We need to get there right now!¡±

    The dusker was about to say when they all felt it. A presence. It pressed down on everything, not malignantly but just by being there. Something of immense power that dwarfed even the mana within Daniel, and he was passively restoring Khiat and Khare¡¯s reserves by proximity alone. The Artificer had a terrible thought. The Origin Beast? But no, this was coming from the wrong direction. From the center of the Octyrrum, not the Thormundz.

    Khiat fell to her knees, which inadvertently threw Khare off of her. ¡°I can¡¯t believe it,¡± she murmured, awestruck in a complete turnaround of emotions.

    ¡°What? What¡¯s going on?¡±

    ¡°Hammer!¡± Daniel didn¡¯t realize what she was talking about for a few moments, and when he did he only had one thought.

    Now? You only show up now? But there was also fear. One of the gods of this world, who were themselves a fragment of it, was in the region. They must have just crossed over, except, if he strained his eyes, it almost looked like something was-

    The air rocked as a being four meters tall appeared, arriving faster than Casia had managed while manipulating the Shroud. The arrival didn¡¯t come with as intense a shockwave as Daniel would have expected, though. No, this god was able to control that and only wanted to make it clear he had arrived. As if being the source of the presence pushing down on everyone wasn¡¯t enough.

    He appeared as a human, proportionally over twice as large but otherwise true to the race. Wrinkles and weathered skin, along with some gray in the hair, made Daniel guess mid-50s. He wasn¡¯t fooled though. This was the god of transmutation, surely he could appear however he liked. Right now, it was as a sage craftsman. He wore something like a blacksmith¡¯s apron crossed with divine robes. Hanging off of loops and in pockets were tools of every nature. The very air around him shimmered, not like with Daniel¡¯s cast-off overabundance of mana, but with the promise of change. As if to come too close to this figure would be to come away different in every way.

    Hammer looked down and seemed to take in every detail of the city at once. Daniel couldn¡¯t help but be intimidated as the eyes settled on him last. He couldn¡¯t speak. He imagined everyone else in this city was either on their knees or cowering in fear. Daniel himself recognized the power before him and didn¡¯t doubt for a second this was a divine. At the same time, he¡¯d never really prayed to the gods here or felt an inclination to worship them. In a small way, whenever he thought about religion here he got the feeling of going to another denomination¡¯s church while visiting extended family. Daniel would be polite and respectful, but he couldn¡¯t express the same amount of emotional attachment as the congregation.

    Now, a figure from the stained-glass windows has walked through the church doors. What¡¯s more, Daniel had something he truly needed to ask a god¡¯s intervention for. It was too perfect and too infuriating at once. Now? If you¡¯d been ten minutes early Hunter wouldn¡¯t have died.

    Immediately after having that thought Daniel had a heart attack, but Hammer didn¡¯t seem to have noticed his impiety. If he could read minds at all. After a few more seconds of chafing under the stare of the god, Hammer finally spoke in a voice befitting his appearance, firm but gentle with a hint of knowingness. ¡°Little one. Why have you come into conflict with your sibling?¡± The question completely threw Daniel. In fairness, the god also seemed not to fully know what to make of the situation.

    It was difficult for Daniel to respond, both due to the crushing presence and the fact that he¡¯d broken at least one rib. ¡°Sibling? I, I don¡¯t have any family here.¡±

    This caused Hammer to furrow his eyebrows as the god grew more confused. ¡°You don¡¯t know? Something truly strange must have happened to you, for you to even leave the Thormundz. Oh, little one, fear not. I do not blame you.¡± Hammer took in the Spires once more, eyes moving across them like he was reading something. ¡°Ah, still hale. Fear not, nothing has been done that time won¡¯t mend. It is still good we have chosen to meet in this kingdom. I may have taken far longer to arrive were I not already on the way here.¡± He floated down to the Eye, and out of the corner of his Daniel saw Khiat start to tremble. He was too confused to be overcome with awe.

    He¡¯s not talking about the towers like they¡¯re alive or something, right? Because that would be crazy. Daniel certainly wasn¡¯t going to ask, because he had something more important to say. ¡°Uh, hi,¡± he said lamely, struggling to come up with an appropriate way to address this person. This god. ¡°One of my friends died stopping people from destroying these Spires. Please, you have to help me bring them back.¡±

    Hammer half-smiled in an amused way. ¡°You made a friend?¡±

    ¡°Yes?¡± If Daniel had imagined a situation where he talked to a god before this, he¡¯d never have come up with this exchange. Hammer was far too familiar with him and perplexed for no apparent reason by the concept of Daniel making friends. He wasn¡¯t that bad at it. He doesn¡¯t think I¡¯m someone else, does he? ¡°I¡¯m Daniel Brant. If you didn¡¯t know. Uh, my god?¡± He cringed at that but he was extremely off right now. He¡¯d gone from pain and misery to hope and confusion in an instant.

    ¡°Truly remarkable. I have never had the pleasure of making an Incarnate such as you. Certainly not one that could leave their home region without any apparent repercussions.¡± He walked closer to Daniel, ignoring everyone else present, and smiled fully. ¡°We will discuss this more, and I must know what influenced you in the Thormundz. Ah, but I forget myself.¡± He did glance towards Khiat and Khare then, frowning slightly at the gestalt. ¡°Not in front of the mortals, no.¡±

    This was starting to feel like two different conversations. Or, and he really hoped the god couldn¡¯t glean into his thoughts, is this guy senile? ¡°I would be happy to tell you anything you want to know, Hammer,¡± Daniel replied with as much respect as he could stuff into his mouth, also just deciding to go with the god¡¯s official name and forgoing any attempt at titles. ¡°Could you help him? Please?¡±

    Hammer gave him another odd look. It wasn¡¯t uncaring, but a strange mix of surprise and pride. ¡°Alas, that power is currently in Hand¡¯s domain. But we will see her soon, or rather her Proxy.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m going with you?¡± Daniel didn¡¯t see how he could object, and would gladly go if that meant bringing Hunter back. Hell, they could probably help him find his other friends and figure out what was going on with his mana. Going with the affable god didn¡¯t seem like the worst idea, but he had to know. ¡°Why me?¡±

    ¡°You truly have no idea.¡± Hammer smiled at him. ¡°Why, little one, I am your father.¡±

    ¡°What!?¡±

    ¡°We should be off. This isn¡¯t a topic one discusses openly.¡±

    ¡°Wait you need to-¡° Daniel was cut off as the god waved a hand. There was a twisting sensation across his entire body, and before he lost consciousness, a feeling of great acceleration.

    ¡­

    It took half a minute for Khiat to finally stand. Her heart was pounding, her mind trying to process what she had just seen and heard. Daniel was gone. Almost everyone from her team was, there was no trace of them on the Eye. Looking over the city and the sky beyond, lighting up in the predawn hours, she turned to Khare and asked, ¡°What do we do now?¡±

 Chapter 161: To Worlds Beyond

    The diner sat on the side of the mountain road, just close enough to the highway to have survived to become a local favorite. There wasn¡¯t much novel about the restaurant serving standard American breakfast and lunch fare. Its name wasn¡¯t worth mentioning. That didn¡¯t make it any less special to Daniel.

    Earth-Daniel, if that distinction still mattered. It was a week after he¡¯d failed utterly, bringing the entire plan to ruin. Ever since that first phone call, when Chris had explained what his father had hired him for, he¡¯d carried this deep longing within him to bring his father back and make the family whole again. To fix his past mistakes.

    Ironically, that plan had required him to isolate for months and ghost who he had left. He¡¯d left his job, lost contact with friends, broken his lease, and it was all for nothing. Four months spent in a hole in the ground for nothing, and during the first part of it Daniel hadn¡¯t been sure if it was all real or not.

    Then the monitors had flickered to life and Daniel had witnessed another world. Seeing a version of himself fighting off purple bats with a stick had been terrifying. He¡¯d almost pushed the button there and then. Both falls had been gut-wrenching, waiting for his clone to either wake up or die, but his other self had survived. Now? It was over.

    He scratched at the back of his neck while taking a sip of the coffee. At least he could get a haircut now. Daniel had quickly decided against trying to do it himself while in the bunker, even if no one else would have seen the hackjob. Then he stared at his hand for a second, thinking about how it would feel to have it change into something else. That was a bad habit he¡¯d need to get rid of.

    His phone vibrated again, no doubt his mom. He hadn¡¯t answered her last text, the gist of which was that the only reason she wasn¡¯t trying to constantly call him was that she was at work. That was another conversation he was dreading, but so far he¡¯d been able to get away with just saying he was headed home.

    No, Chris was the one he was worried about. The man walked into the diner and nodded at the hostess, thumbing at Daniel and walking by. The guy was like a young Alfred, if that made any sense. Older than Daniel¡¯s 23 by at least half a decade, probably a full one, but he was dependable, discreet, and honest. Not that Daniel had known him that long. The first time they¡¯d spoken was over that call. Chris kept his trucker-style hat on over short hair, which he at least had been able to take care of. Combined with the light jacket and slightly faded, nondescript clothes and you couldn¡¯t pick him out from most of the other people eating here.

    Chris had been the butler to his Batman, in that Daniel had spent the last few months living in a cave and relying on him for basic necessities. Daniel had to be watching the monitors at all times, so someone else had to do the shopping. His dad, or whoever was responsible for this, had picked out Chris as part of this insane plan. There had been a retainer of sorts that had kept him going over the years between that and contacting Daniel, although Chris had never really gone into details. Daniel wasn¡¯t sure if Chris knew anything about what he¡¯d been doing in the bunker.

    It didn¡¯t matter. Chris took the seat opposite and sighed like he was from HR and was about to give bad news. ¡°So, I got the final details. The Project is over.¡± ¡®The Project¡¯ was how he referred to anything having to do with the bunker, which was in turn its own euphemism. If someone had a transcript of all of their conversations, they¡¯d probably have come off as domestic terrorists.

    ¡°I fucked it up,¡± Daniel blurted out, drawing a look from the adjacent table. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    ¡°Hey, you don¡¯t know that.¡± Chris put a manila folder on the table and slid it over. ¡°The security deposit box had a letter too. He said a lot of things could have gone wrong and not to blame yourself. This is why we didn¡¯t tell anyone else. I''m just a contractor, Daniel. I get paid either way. I feel bad for you, but you didn¡¯t disappoint me.¡±

    ¡°But Dad, the others...¡± Chris gave him another sympathetic look but didn¡¯t say anything else as Daniel trailed off. He was too much of a professional to ask for details. Daniel was sure that in one of the packets like the one before him, Chris had also been given specific instructions on what he wasn¡¯t supposed to ask Daniel about. Where exactly his father was and the circumstances regarding his attempted return no doubt top of the list. ¡°Let¡¯s just get this over with.¡±

    ¡°Alright.¡± Chris nodded and brought out the other thing he¡¯d taken from the bank while Daniel had waited in the diner. ¡°There wasn¡¯t any problem with the checks. If you want to we can go over and confirm they split it as your father wanted, but-¡°

    ¡°No, it''s fine. I trust you.¡±

    Chris sighed again and put a security envelope on top of the folder. ¡°Be careful with that. You lose it and the money¡¯s gone.¡±

    ¡°Whatever.¡± Daniel didn¡¯t really care. What was in that envelope was his part of whatever was left in the Project funds, meant to pay for Chris and whatever the bunker needed until the plan succeeded. His inheritance, he supposed. There wasn¡¯t any point keeping it stashed away now that the plans had failed.

    ¡°You don¡¯t know how much was in that account, do you?¡± Daniel shrugged, and Chris lowered his voice. ¡°Ok, look, I know that everyone says that they¡¯d rather have a family member over this or that amount, but this is the kind of money you say when you want people to know you really mean it.¡±

    ¡°I do mean it,¡± Daniel shot back, but there was interest there now. He still felt like a failure, and the feeling of greed he couldn¡¯t fully suppress made it worse. In the end, it was his curiosity that got him. He wanted to know just how much his dad had been able to save up. He¡¯d said he¡¯d gotten lucky on the stock market, sure, but he hadn¡¯t touched Mom¡¯s money so-

    Daniel¡¯s eyes bulged as he opened the smaller envelope and read the figure. ¡°How?¡±

    ¡°No idea. But your old man didn¡¯t leave you hanging, that¡¯s for sure.¡± Chris took a look around and whispered again. ¡°We¡¯re getting looks. Why don¡¯t we take off and I¡¯ll drive you to the airport? You sure you don¡¯t need me to arrange some benzos?¡±

    ¡°No, I¡¯m good.¡± Actually, he¡¯d probably freak out on the flight. But if a version of him could stare down a dragon, he could beat fucking claustrophobia.

    ¡°Alright. This¡¯ll be it then.¡± Both stood and walked out, Chris leaving a hundred on the table even though he hadn¡¯t ordered anything. On the way to his car, a two decade old pickup truck likely chosen for its ubiquitousness, he said, ¡°I¡¯ll be honest, I¡¯m going to be living high off of this for a while. But if you need anything, give me a call. That number will still be good.¡±

    ¡°Thanks.¡± Daniel hadn¡¯t imagined he would need someone like Chris, but considering how rich he was now he could run around in a bat suit if he felt like it. Despite his willingness to be involved in something that was no doubt shady, Chris also seemed like a good guy. He paused as he opened the passenger door, taking one last look at the mountains around him. It really was over.

    ¡°You good?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Let¡¯s go.¡±

    ¡­

    Evalyn had faced Casia Seliri knowing she had led her team to her deaths. The way she had casually killed Hunter, the most durable of them, made it clear they were up against an enemy beyond their level. She¡¯d been so blind when it was her job to stay alert for traps.

    What had happened to Tak, she couldn¡¯t explain. She feared Casia had used some power of the Spoke to send him away, or worse, destroy him outright. Evalyn didn¡¯t have anything to compete with that level of power aside from the will to try.

    She¡¯d barely avoided death the first time the newly-anointed Tyrant had come for her. Only Investiture of Song and her experience had let her barely move to take the blow along the shoulder instead of into her chest. When a great force seized her in the next moment she knew it was truly over.

    Then, nothing. A gap in her memories or something to that effect, because she didn¡¯t know where she was when she came to. Evalyn was lying on the ground, still injured going by how her shoulder felt. Teleportation, she concluded.

    The ground felt soft below her, dirt instead of damned sand. There was the smell of salt in the air and waves in the distance which didn¡¯t entirely rule out its presence. A beach? I could use a beach. The Thormundz had lakes at best, but when Evalyn had been in her birth region she could remember-

    A loud thud next to her put her instantly on alert. The feral screech that followed only heightened her instincts as she rolled away, opening her eyes before she came to a complete stop.

    Evalyn had landed in a small grove. To her left was Tak, sitting up now on all fours. At least, she thought it was him. The avianoid was still in his feral form. Lograve was in the dirt too, she guessed he had just appeared. But what took her attention was what she saw and felt in the distance. A city she¡¯d thought lost, and a stronger response from her bond than any since the day she¡¯d lost her family.

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    There was another thud and another screech as a very injured Gadriel appeared out of nowhere, but Evalyn only had eyes for the city in that moment. ¡°Eido,¡± she cried out in disbelief. ¡°Emily!¡±

    ¡­

    Mark considered it only a little arrogant that, when the god had come to Aughal, he¡¯d thought it had been for him. Then again, the Illustrious weren¡¯t shy about expressing their distaste towards the deities whenever the matter came up. That, and the apparent failure of the Spiritualists, had been enough to convince him to leave despite his intent to finish off Silora and Arpan.

    Oh well. There would always be more people to kill. Mark was looking towards the long war to come when he could cut loose. Once the gods were dead, there¡¯d be no reason for the Illustrious to disguise their presence.

    Before all of that, he had to report to the Prime. The Crest had been in the way, but Mark was able to move through it for a few hours without exploding, and stealthy enough to not attract the attention of anything he didn¡¯t want to fight.

    Then it was a hop, skip, and a stab up to Mavar Helioc¡¯s pretentious office. As one of the few Illustrious who spent more time playing pretend outside their sanctuaries than within, Mark didn¡¯t have the same reverence others did for the old bastard. He was sure that if he had as long as the Prime did to sit around and think, he¡¯d have found a way to become a god by now. Alas, Mark only had a few centuries and a bit behind him.

    ¡°Oh, and I had eyes on that guy we were supposed to not kill,¡± Mark added towards the end of the report. ¡°Annoying to deal with because of how he ended up running against us, but you said it was top priority he stayed alive. I was just surprised to see him in Aughal instead of Threst. Thought Rikoor would have picked him up by now¡±

    Something flashed across the Prime''s face that Mark would have called schadenfreude if he''d known what German was. "Yes, well, ours are not the only plans that have been waylaid."

    ¡°Something else. He popped his Spoke. Went full Incarnate as far as I can tell. Should have seen it earlier but my blood was up. You know how I get. Gave Casia one Crest of a surprise.¡± Mark had saved this for last purely for the pleasure of watching the Prime blink for a few moments. That was as close to being taken aback as the man could get.

    ¡°Unexpected,¡± he said eventually, keeping most of his reaction covered. ¡°There has been a development on this end as well. We made a formal pact with the god of Knowledge regarding that very man.¡±

    Mark had a knife in his hand within a moment. ¡°You what?¡±

    It was an aggressive response, but Mavar allowed him it so long as the knife didn¡¯t do anything other than menace. ¡°Her Proxy sought us out. Not surprising that the god of Knowledge could find us if she tried.¡±

    ¡°And you didn¡¯t kill it on sight?¡±

    ¡°Any other than Torch and we might have. Regardless, the rules of engagement have changed. We are not to knowingly contact or interfere with that man. For now, at least.¡±

    ¡°Pretty sure Hammer took off with him so no worries.¡± More blinking, to Mark¡¯s satisfaction, though the mention of the god also kindled an old fury in Mavar¡¯s eyes. ¡°Guessing that one saw an Incarnate in the wrong region and wondered what the fuck was going on. He won¡¯t discover what we did, will he?¡±

    The Prime recovered from the knowledge that his nemesis had been only a region away and shook his head. ¡°No. I was assured the other gods wouldn¡¯t be able to detect the changes. Not that it matters. Our concern was that the region was lost. With it surviving our plans will be delayed somewhat, but we are still on course to fulfill our ultimate objective. It is the Spiritualists whose aims are harmed more.¡±

    ¡°Fine, fine. I¡¯ll leave it.¡± Mark wasn¡¯t willing to get into an argument anyway, no matter how much of a betrayal he felt working directly with a god was. And now they¡¯d made a deal with Torch too? If it wasn¡¯t for the fact that the Crest still shielded this base, they would have instantly evacuated the moment a Proxy had shown up regardless of whether they¡¯d blasted the fool into oblivion. Still, one thing bothered him. ¡°Hey, what was up with those daggers anyway? You never told me exactly what they did.¡±

    Mavar showed a little more surprise at Mark¡¯s interest, which the Assassin felt was a little insulting. ¡°Oh, the Shadeheart enchantment? They create a level 5 sand shade out of the first unleveled mortal heart they pierce, so long as the owner¡¯s soul hasn¡¯t faded into the Astral. Any ¡®Blessed¡¯ is too constrained by the Octyrrum to allow the transformation, even after death. We had to fold in a few racial properties, gestalt and dusker primarily, to balance extreme resistance to mortal powers. The odd rare component as well. Creating a monster that could both capture souls and charge corpses with Astral energy wouldn¡¯t be possible without soul remnant. I didn¡¯t consider explaining the exact effects as important since it should have been impossible for that Artificer in Aughal to make another.¡± Mavar had raised an eyebrow when Mark had gotten to that part of his report.

    ¡°Why? They figured out the secret sauce. Monsters with soul remnant aren¡¯t too hard to find if you know what to look for.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not that. You need access to the astral domain to make them. Not even the Octyrrum has that, currently.¡± Mavar shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s the Entropic Agent. The mortal/Spoke hybrid,¡± he clarified on seeing Mark¡¯s clear confusion. ¡°He was likely responsible for the halfborn Assassin freeing herself, at least in part. One of the effects of the Spoke bound to him appears to allow for individuals to ignore the Octyrrum¡¯s rules, if only temporarily. I confess, not even I could have predicted that this is where the circumstances of his creation could have led. Then again, he wasn''t meant to be here for this long.¡±

    ¡°I bet it¡¯s just eating you up we can¡¯t touch him now,¡± Mark prodded. True to his ideals, Mavar didn¡¯t deny it.

    ¡°Certainly. If I am correct about his influence on the Octyrrum, he would have been a potent resource. Perhaps Torch discovered this before I did but didn¡¯t understand the greater picture.¡±

    ¡°Idiot.¡±

    ¡°Quite. Though we ended up the fool.¡± Mavar stood and paced for a moment. ¡°There is a Tyrant I would have sent you after, had you arrived earlier. Because of Torch¡¯s deal, I had thought it best to keep you in the dark and maintain plausible deniability as you were operating in the region he went to. It¡¯s too late now, I¡¯m afraid.¡±

    Mark bristled at that. ¡°I can take a Tyrant, easy. Point me to them.¡±

    Mavar held up a finger. ¡°Not this one. They¡¯ve had the most direct exposure to the Entropic Agent out of anyone. Not physically, you understand, but spiritually. I believe the Tyrant¡¯s entire class may be affected. Besides, you have another target to see to that I''m sure will provide the challenge you are looking for.¡±

    ¡°The King in Rikendia, yeah.¡± Mark just nodded along for the rest of the debriefing, bored, until he laughed softly. ¡°Heh. Entropy. I get it now that I think about it. I like the name.¡± Mark smiled at the inside joke. ¡°Going his own way and fucking everything up for everyone else in the process. He really is just like his old man.¡±

    ¡­

    The least that could be said was that he¡¯d felt no pain. It had been over in an instant. Faster than he¡¯d ever believed, considering what he¡¯d faced so far. There had been only seconds after, not even that, and then he was gone. It hadn¡¯t been a bad death. Disappointing yes, but fair when balanced against the life that came before. There were no regrets, no blame, and the faint sense that the others had survived.

    All in all, Hunter should have felt content. He¡¯d done more in the world than any of his kind should have. Found kindness, friendship, a unique path, and quite the last meal. Though he had died, it could be said that Hunter had died fulfilled. Now, after the end, he should have been ready to move on.

    He wasn¡¯t. Hunter had known why in his last moments. It was why he¡¯d said what he¡¯d said; he didn¡¯t want to forget. Somehow, Hunter knew that if he just gave in to whatever was happening to him, it would all be gone.

    Like lifelines, the two bonds he had made in life kept him anchored to the world. Daniel¡¯s was the stronger pull, though not by much. Both fought the sense of movement which was all he could feel. Even time itself didn¡¯t register normally. The regular senses Hunter had painted the world with were gone. Hunter could have easily faded away were it not for the knowledge.

    It had nothing to do with his bonds, the powers he¡¯d had in life, or the memories themselves. Hunter simply had an intractable desire not to lose himself, and that will made the difference. He felt so strongly about it that he wondered if this had happened to him before. It if had¡­ well, he wouldn¡¯t have remembered. He''d lose his past life too if he didn''t fight for it. The thought of that finally broke Hunter out of the state he was in as his head broke the surface of the water.

    He pulled himself up, noting with uncertainty that as his paws touched the surface it turned solid, despite the sensation of being submerged most of his body felt. It was a liquid, but not a liquid, and utterly colorless. The floor looked there, and not there. Like, and this was stretching Hunter¡¯s imagination, two mirrors standing in front of each other with nothing to reflect. Though, his image was absent from the reflection.

    Hunter looked around and, more importantly, sniffed the air. Nothing, as far as the nose could smell. Considering the air was dead, sight was perhaps the better indicator. But for the fact that he was standing on something, Hunter would have thought there was nothing around at all.

    He tried jumping, just to see what would happen, and found that while he could, there was no mana to make the jump better. None of his powers, or those Daniel had been sharing when he died, worked. He couldn¡¯t feel them. On that note, Hunter knew he landed on the ground but didn¡¯t feel it in his paws either. A casual flick of his tongue visually moved the fur on his paw, but neither the moisture nor movement registered. It was all blank.

    Wherever he¡¯d found himself had no prey, no food, no wind, and no friends. Hunter observed his surroundings again and found nothing to his liking. It was like being stuck in a perpetual Moment of Clarity, except the lack of everything wasn¡¯t jarring. It all just wasn¡¯t.

    Hunter hated it. This was just like that hell Daniel mentioned occasionally. His entire impression of this place was that it was wrong. He would never- Hunter shook himself as he found he had begun sinking into the floor.

    Ok, maybe this place wasn¡¯t that bad. Faced with the alternative, Hunter would stay until Daniel and Tak came by. Knowing them, they¡¯d sleepwalk right into wherever it was he¡¯d been going initially. Someone had to stop them from being stupid, and Daniel could be an idiot sometimes. He still said ¡®oh my god¡¯ on occasion, people just didn¡¯t pick up on it.

    Resolving himself to stay as long as it took, Hunter laid down and prepared for a long, boring wait. What he hoped would be a long, boring wait. His friends could take all the time they needed, and he would stay here for as long as it took.

    It was at that moment something happened. ¡°What is this?¡± A rasping voice came out of the nothing behind Hunter. He jumped reflexively, this not seeming to impress the speaker. ¡°It has been so long since I have found someone who stayed. At least, I think so. Hello! I am, er-¡° the figure gestured down to itself. Aside from the voice there was no way to tell their identity, for this individual was just a silhouette of nothing. Again, Hunter was not the best at metaphors. He¡¯d been proud about the mirror one, and he¡¯d only gotten inspiration for that one because of seeing Arpan¡¯s earlier.

    The figure continued to gesture at itself for a few moments more, somehow portraying embarrassment with its limited features, before giving up. ¡°Well, I can¡¯t remember. Who are you?¡±

    It was then Hunter realized that, for better or worse, the afterlife wasn¡¯t as empty as he¡¯d first thought.

    End of Book 2: Incarnate

 Chapter 162: Ritual of Return

    Beginning of Book 3: Astral

    The Tyrant sat on their throne, gazing out across the deserts before turning to those assembled before them. Raising their head, they spoke three words with their stolen voice. "It is time."

    The once day laborer Famar had risen the most of anyone in this city after the Mirage had nearly destroyed the Spoke, the source of divine power in the region and a bastion for its citizens when storms or monsters threatened them. Hammer himself had visited once the enemy had been defeated, only to depart a mere minute afterward. The message, according to the Tyrant, was clear. The ruling elite of Aughal had forgotten their place, allowing rot to creep in, which had almost brought the four Spires of Aughal crumbling down. This had been averted and when the dust settled, it was Famar sitting on the throne that had appeared when the Tyrant took the city.

    He despised it, for it was not his will to sit here, just as it was not truly him speaking. Aughal had been ruled by a Tyrant once before, and the scars of that time had driven a hatred of the rare, terrible class into its culture. Now, Famar was the chosen Proxy of Ashier, the air gestalt who had promised safety in a time when the risen dead would have otherwise killed him and all he knew. It had been a week and Famar had yet to see any proof that Ashier had orchestrated these events, but deep down he knew he¡¯d been tricked. If only he could take back his choice.

    The Tyrant neither cared for his opinion nor his exhaustion, giving only empty promises that he could rest once the region was safe. He knew differently. Famar was the only Proxy the Tyrant had bonded with who could advance, and he did so relatively quickly so long as they spoke through him and possessed his body. Ashier used their own advancement potential to bring more under their thrall and so took a tithe from his power to fuel their leveling. That violation was one he cared about the least, for all his class did was make him a better slave.

    Most of those gathered on the platform suspended between the highest points of the Spires were similarly loyal. The red draconoid standing at his side was Ashier¡¯s most yet least trusted. When a large group of the nobles had tried use the enchanted items they¡¯d built up over the better part of two centuries to break another Tyrant, he¡¯d stepped in and crushed the rebellion. Without the greatest of their legacy, lost with the Council, the flames of the draconoid had reduced the rebellion to ashes. Famar didn¡¯t know much about this man, not even his class, as he never spoke. All he could judge was the death the draconoid glared at Ashier whenever their true body was visible.

    The two others of note who¡¯d taken a deal were Gtoll, the dusker Berserker who¡¯d taken over the Hunter¡¯s Guild, and Xavier, a Cleric of the Hand who could bring back the dead. That human was the reason everyone was standing here at dawn. Ashier had chosen the time of mana renewal with the hopes that the Octyrrum would show more favor toward what they were attempting to do.

    The body of Rasalia Stoneclaw lay before the Tyrant. The Champion known as the Ironrush Ravager had been killed in a fight outside the city, the Mirage somehow defeating the armored terror only to turn her remains on the city. While those combat transmutations had remained in death, the body hadn¡¯t been damaged to the point that the soul would refuse to return to it. Still, an entire week had gone by while Xavier¡¯s cooldown recharged. Swearing himself into the Tyrant¡¯s service hadn¡¯t affected that, and the other representatives of the Hand church here did not look confident in what they were attempting.

    His mouth moved by itself as Ashier continued. ¡°Exalted Sharise, leader of the Hand¡¯s faithful, are you ready?¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± the avianoid with dark green feathers replied, forgoing any title in the address. Ashier didn¡¯t signal the draconoid to immolate the Cleric for her disrespect at least. Any who served the gods were treated quite well, Clerics chief among them. They aligned with the Tyrant¡¯s convictions despite the churches harboring no love for the gestalt. Everyone else faced rationing and packed housing as a general edict had been declared, emptying the outlying villages that had been faring poorly against the untended monster hordes of the region.

    Crowding aside, only a hundred were assembled on the Eye of the Spires as Xavier knelt in prayer by Rasalia¡¯s body. This was a holy moment, Famar wouldn¡¯t dare disagree with that point. The Bastion Saint, as Ashier¡¯s propaganda had twisted his initial impression of them, tolerated the discontent within the city aimed at their rule. None who took issue with the gods themselves were spared. Only the trusted were here to witness this moment as Ashier would not dare taint the ritual with those who may be unfaithful.

    Famar felt the control the Tyrant had over him slip as Ashier left his body to manifest directly. They were still weak, relatively speaking. Gtoll could have crushed them, or the draconoid burned them, if Ashier didn¡¯t have an iron grip on the souls of both. Ashier wasn¡¯t completely defenseless and had a power that could make them nigh undetectable, though now the form of the air gestalt hovered above Rasalia and Xavier to witness the moment with their not-eyes. Despite all the power they wielded, Ashier could be mistaken for any of the other air gestalt that had flocked to them when they¡¯d taken over the city. The only major difference was that their form didn¡¯t shift as much with the wind, their powers giving greater resistance to the natural weaknesses of their race.

    ¡°Initiation.¡± The Tyrant spoke the world on their own, crippled in speech unless they used a Proxy. Xavier nodded as Sharise led the assembled Clerics from every church save Hourglass¡¯ in a mass prayer. Gtoll and the draconoid did not join, the first once more looking at the sunlight on his exposed flesh. The Berserker had benefited most from the deal he¡¯d made, becoming immune to the sun that would otherwise turn him to stone if it got under his outer carapace. Of all those Famar had worked with while under Ashier¡¯s control, he had been the least hesitant in his service.

    After a minute of beseeching every god and the Octyrrum itself for mercy, Xavier placed his Focus onto the warped, metallic chest of the fallen Champion with shaking hands. ¡°Hand, this servant pleas for the return of Rasalia Stoneclaw to the Octyrrum. Long is the night to come, and many the challenges we will face. Return to us our Champion, return to us our hope. Return to us our salvation!¡±

    Almost imperceptibly, Ashier¡¯s cloud head nodded and the Cleric¡¯s Focus broke as he used the ability. Everyone held their breath as they watched. Truthfully, Famar did not hope for this to fail. He believed in the gods and held nothing against the former Commander of Aughal, and yet her return would surely mean another pawn for the whims of the insane Tyrant.

    As if the Octyrrum had granted his prayer amidst all the others, Rasalia refused to rise. Xavier collapsed in despair and Famar knew the man had locked away his class for a full year regardless of the outcome. They had faile-

    A blinding light suddenly appeared on the Eye close to the central dias, the air shimmering around it. Appearing once the dust settled was a young human wearing the finest Cleric robes he¡¯d ever seen. He lay face down on the stone of the Eye, and on his back was emblazoned the symbol of Hammer, god of transmutation and ruler of this Realm. He wore a red pouch on his waist that, to the empowered Proxy¡¯s senses, faintly shone with magic. Not much else could be seen, other than the brown head poking out from the hood that had fallen halfway across the back of the man¡¯s head. Everyone took a moment to gape at the new arrival, but before anyone could say anything, the shavi Fate in attendance started writhing in pain.

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    ¡­

    Daniel awoke to a scream and breathed in sand. Recognizing a familiar place despite the cloudiness in his head, he turned his face to the side and coughed out what he¡¯d inhaled. The strangest case of deja vu he¡¯d ever had struck him as he registered something glossed over his most recent memories: nothing.

    Innately, he knew time had passed but could not find the memories that should have filled the blank spots in his mind, just as he couldn¡¯t guess how long this void covered. One odd change from the sky island was a sense of wrongness. It was like phantom pain, but instead of feeling what wasn¡¯t there, there was an absence of what should be coupled with a faintness. No amount of pondering cleared his head, and the second scream brought his attention elsewhere.

    He jolted up to his feet just in time to catch all the gathered eyes swinging from him to the shark person he was pretty sure was called a shavi as she clutched at her head and collapsed on the ground. Utterly confused, Daniel used Identify Creature.

    <hr>

    Silora Thelonas - (Shavi, Fate - 5)

    <hr>

    He was only able to get that information because they¡¯d met just before- ¡°Hunter!¡± His mind crystallized on that terrible memory, driving out anything else. The crowd began to swing back toward him, only for the shavi to completely outplay his heartbroken scream.

    ¡°I, they¡¯re using Farspeech but I¡¯ve never-¡° The shavi paused as she was wracked with more pain, either an amazing actor or just naturally histrionic. ¡°It¡¯s Rikendia! Something¡¯s happening in Rikendia. They¡¯re- The King is dead!¡± She gasped on the floor like a fish person out of water before her whole body shuddered once. It reminded Daniel of when she¡¯d started seizing during her attempts to see the future, but before he could do anything a Cleric he thought he recognized rushed towards her. It wasn¡¯t Quala though, since Identify Creature gave him nothing on the avianoid¡¯s name.

    ¡°She¡¯s unconscious,¡± the Cleric reported. ¡°Detect Malady isn¡¯t showing anything.¡± She turned to an air gestalt floating over everyone, and while what aura revealed around them shocked him, another¡¯s sparked a far stronger emotion.

    <hr>

    Ashier - (Gestalt: Air, Tyrant - 2)

    -

    Rorshawd - (Young Fire Dragon, ???)

    <hr>

    ¡°YOU!¡± Daniel screamed the word at the red aura and charged, turbulent emotions running through him so strong he was beginning to lose reason. Rorshawd, who was somehow in a humanoid form, looked momentarily confused before rage and a kind of bemused glee overtook him as well.

    ¡°You. Do you still have my Focus?¡± he intoned menacingly, humorously, indicating his neck. ¡°I think it¡¯s time I take back what you stole.¡± The draconoid began to inhale, only for the Tyrant to shout a word.

    ¡°Halt!¡± Rorshawd froze as the clouds that composed the Tyrant flowed into a human sitting on the raised throne like his whole body was a vacuum cleaner. The man began to speak, but the faint mist issuing from his eyes made Daniel suspect it was still the same person talking. ¡°Gtoll, seize him, gently. I will have order.¡±

    Daniel gritted his teeth at another giant figure he recognized, desperate to kill Rorshawd before the dusker intercepted him. He eyed the area around the draconoid and hoped no one was close enough to be injured by the lightning. Even if there wasn¡¯t a storm overhead, he¡¯d spend however much mana he needed to¡­

    The Artificer slowed and blinked as part of the void in his head was scraped away and he recalled his fight against the monster-Tyrant. Of summoning a storm and defeating Casia Seliri with the help of a Vanguard who¡¯d given his life to see the deed done. The massive amount of mana he¡¯d had at his disposal was gone, yet at the same time his class powers were back. That incongruity, along with the mental impact of downloading all of that at once, stunned him long enough for a giant chitinous hand to shove him to the ground.

    ¡°You?¡± Gtoll echoed his earlier cry, though the voice was somehow softer despite their relative size. His eyes turned to Daniel¡¯s clothing and he nodded as if that told him something. Daniel looked down at himself as the pressure released to the point that he could move, though not escape, and he saw he was no longer in his armor. ¡°Khiat said that the Hammer took you. I couldn¡¯t believe it. I do now.¡±

    ¡°Khiat? Hammer?¡± The very edges of his memory did reach to his brief conversation with the god before blanking out as a full-body twist overtook his senses.

    ¡°They have sent you back. He must have.¡± The dusker looked towards the possessed man and raised his voice. ¡°Saint, he is the answer to our prayers. This is the one Hammer took, the one who saved Aughal.¡±

    That Gtoll was both not hostile and knew of his friends raised an immediate question. ¡°Wait, is Khiat ok? What about Khare? Anyone else?¡± He remembered four of his friends vanishing after Hunter, but he¡¯d also seen them die, the memories between his Foci breaking and the lightning powers as temporally confused as the time he¡¯d lost just before coming to this world.

    ¡°She and the gestalt live. Farthest Run did not find anyone else,¡± Gtoll intoned before his face turned to the approaching Tyrant. Everyone else visible had spread out from the tableau save for the Clerics tending to the Fate.

    Still controlling the man Daniel could identify as a level 1 Proxy named Famar, Ashier came within a meter of where he was pinned and looked closely at his face. ¡°I recognize you. As one servant of the gods to another, I ask, what are you? To wield powers as you did, you cannot just be a mortal.¡±

    Daniel ignored the question, asking one of his own to the air gestalt he recalled meeting back in Hagain. ¡°It was you? All along, it was you? You tried to kill Murdon and Lograve. I thought you were his friend!¡±

    ¡°I was his assistant.¡± Ashier didn¡¯t deny it, nor did they turn away. ¡°When he chose to abandon his duty to defend the Octyrrum from the Crest, I was Blessed in his stead with the power to preserve the region. I failed, I admit, but I regret none of my decisions. I ask again, what are you?¡±

    At that moment, Daniel didn¡¯t know how to answer them. He couldn¡¯t explain where the powers he¡¯d manifested had come from, unless that was the emergency option Earth-Daniel had mentioned. If that was the case, he definitely couldn¡¯t mention it. The zealot of all zealots was standing before him, and they could order around the giant Berserker and the level 5 dragon shoved into humanoid form. One thing made him reconsider. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you whatever you want to know, but one of my friends is dead. I know Aughal has someone who can revive people. Help me and I¡¯ll tell you whatever you want to know.¡±

    Gtoll sighed and explained as Ashier looked at him. ¡°The Druid. He fell to that Crest spawn. The only one we know that died fighting here. Poor timing.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    The Tyrant answered him evenly. ¡°Rasalia Stoneclaw also fell in the siege. We attempted to Resurrect her, but the gods did not see fit to return her to us.¡± The man¡¯s face contorted to express the curious look Ashier wanted to give Daniel. ¡°Instead, they sent you.¡±

    ¡°Look, if you need diamonds or something to make this work, I can pay whatever you need me to.¡±

    ¡°The Cleric¡¯s power is sealed for some time, enough that there is no hope of your friend¡¯s survival. Rasalia was stronger than he, and yet her soul could not return after a week had passed. With the year you must wait in addition?¡± Famar/Ashier shook their head sadly. ¡°I am truly thankful for their sacrifice. Were I able, I would do this to honor your efforts in defending the work of the gods. It is simply not possible.¡±

    A week? Daniel shoved that aside as he pushed at the dusker¡¯s hand, the Berserker letting him up after a nod from the Tyrant. The turbulence, the instability within him rose once more. There was an inexplicable chaotic energy incongruent with the sensation of the god-like powers he¡¯d used to battle Casia.

    ¡±No! I don¡¯t care. There has to be a way. Hammer was just here, if we can¡­¡± Daniel trailed off in horror as he looked into his bag of holding. The space inside was entirely visible through the small opening through a trick in the magic and so he was completely sure. The armor Hunter had worn when he died was there, but the body was gone. ¡°His body. Did anyone find his body?¡± Despite his alien features Daniel could still read what he needed to know in Gtoll¡¯s face. Crushed, his unsteady mind plummeting, he fell to his knees.

    Above him, Famar¡¯s face frowned and the Tyrant turned, speaking over their shoulder. ¡°Have someone bring him to a room to rest. Treat him well. We will continue this conversation at a later time.¡±

 Chapter 163: Familiar and Foreign

    There was no fight left in Daniel after he¡¯d failed to find Hunter¡¯s body, only a deep depression. He didn¡¯t resist as he was marched into one of the Spires, not paying attention to which one. After the first two landings background noise picked up and he was reminded of Hagain Village after returning from Roost¡¯s Peak, when the already compressed population had to make do with what little remained. It¡¯d been Ashier all along, for it was too much of a coincidence to find them with the Tyrant class. Heldren must have been the scapegoat while the real manipulator angled to bring themselves into power.

    How and why Rorshawd was here he couldn¡¯t understand. Daniel had hoped the dragon had died after what Murdon had done to him. It was fitting, almost, that two villains from the Thormundz had come to haunt him after he¡¯d lost so much.

    The two leading him opened a door close to the landing five stories down from the Eye and shouted at those inside to leave. The space looked about as large as a medium supply closet, enough space to walk around in but not enough for the family who¡¯d been inhabiting it to truly live. Guessing that he¡¯d make things worse for them by protesting, Daniel just stood there in his ridiculous robes and waited. There was an argument, though thankfully the space was vacated before the guards turned to violence.

    Daniel was walking through the door when he had a thought. ¡°There was someone in the guard I met during the siege, Doran. Is he still alive?¡± The avianoid in the pair just nodded but the look in her eyes didn¡¯t suggest she wanted to say more. The two hadn¡¯t been exactly hostile to him, but it was clear having to escort him had made their lives harder. Wanting some privacy to figure things out and maybe scream some, Daniel didn¡¯t press and just closed the door.

    The very first thing he did was turn out his bag of holding, spilling all the contents into the room. The collection almost covered the entire floor since Daniel carried anything of value in it. While the absence of Hunter¡¯s body was undeniable, it wasn¡¯t the only thing missing. His lightning wings were gone. All of the enchanted items he¡¯d worn when the strange mana source inside of him was unleashed had been evaporated. His bag of holding had fallen off before completely destabilizing, and his wings had been within that at the time though.

    Daniel couldn¡¯t explain their absence, but neither was that what he wished returned to him now. For what it was worth he still had the broken remnants of Hunter¡¯s armor, the greater skink leather, sections of bone taken from shank stompers, and a miscellaneous pile of other preserved monster parts that he¡¯d been close to throwing out before everything had gone so wrong.

    Curiously, there were also new items in the bag. One drew his immediate attention. Daniel reached first for his Artificer¡¯s Focus but abandoned it when he saw the necklace his father had given him. The one that had burned away into motes of dust. Daniel undid the clasp and looked over every inch of it. It was the exact same, and he could feel that his Totem Warrior powers had returned along with those from his Artificer class.

    While he was satisfied the necklace hadn¡¯t changed in any way, the phone definitely had. Its primary color was now blue, with a pattern of white shapes looking faintly like stars, gold filling the center to copy the trio of colors that matched Hunter¡¯s fur and the feathers he could summon. Upon unlocking it he saw that the background image was different as well. It now showed Daniel¡¯s family in different positions, and what¡¯s more, everyone but his father looked as they did today. Most shocking was that Hunter stood beside him in the image.

    A dozen separate thoughts ran through Daniel¡¯s mind as the twisting pressure from right after he awoke returned. Attempting to take control of himself, Daniel slowed his mind and looked to one of the corners of the room. ¡°Ok, we¡¯re going to have a talk, right now.¡± He sat on the makeshift bed, closing his eyes as he manipulated the mana within him. The circle of mana surrounding his heart was still there, making him question if his most recent memories were real since that had also been broken. The process of reaching Bridge Space took less than a minute, although this time Daniel¡¯s consciousness didn¡¯t leave his body. He still wasted the mana, leaving no doubt that the attempt had been made.

    Daniel opened his eyes and glared at his phone. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± No response. He unlocked it again to investigate his character sheet, briefly noting that the flashlight app had been replaced by one that had been unidentified. Time for that later.

    <hr>

    Artificer ¨C Level: 2

    You are an artificer, a Class that embodies the Ideals of innovation and creativity. Your primary Attributes are Endurance and Intelligence. Upon taking this class your current Dexterity is halved. Your artificer Focus will take the form of a magical tool.

    Attributes:

    ? Strength: 21

    ? Dexterity: 22

    ? Endurance: 24

    ? Wisdom: 22

    ? Intelligence: 24

    ? Charisma: 20

    Artificer Features:

    ?  Ammunition Surplus

    ? Arcane Creator

    ? Bartering

    ? Beast Friend

    ? Craftsman¡¯s Repose

    ?  [???]

    ? Focus Enhancement

    ? Fortitude

    ? Mantle of Creativity

    ? Identify Creature

    ? Quick Mind

    ? Silent Movement

    ? Steadfast Salesman

    Artificer Abilities:

    ? Analyze Material

    ? Construct Projectile

    ? Construct Shield

    ? Dodge Roll

    ? Invest Affix

    ? Hover Object

    ? Mark Weakness

    ? Moment of Clarity

    You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

    ? Personal Mark

    ? Reassure

    ? Scatter Shot

    ? Snap Shot

    ? Telekinetic Reach

    ? [???]

    <hr>

    The character sheet settled it. Daniel had lost time and had been active during it. So long as the Tyrant hadn¡¯t lied about how long Rasalia had been dead, it would have only been a week. In that time he¡¯d advanced his endurance and wisdom twice which probably corresponded to the unidentified powers. Hope suddenly bloomed as he wondered if Hunter had already been revived. Daniel had no way to see his bonds in his Encyclopedia and wouldn¡¯t know if Hunter¡¯s had come back or not.

    That thin delusion lasted until Daniel closed his eyes again and turned inwards. He keenly remembered the loss of the bond and that piece of him was still missing. It was one ingredient to the roiling of his soul, though he didn¡¯t know the full recipe. That didn¡¯t matter. Hunter. I¡¯m not giving up. The thought of that gave him strength.

    Daniel stood and looked to the window in the room, coming to a decision. Ashier wasn¡¯t the first power hungry maniac to lock him in a room with a clear exit. Perhaps the Tyrant hadn¡¯t learned the full details of his powers, though he wasn¡¯t sure if he could still bypass the Shroud. He wouldn¡¯t take that exit, not now at least. Daniel wasn¡¯t confident in his ability to escape the city and unwilling to do so without his friends. Leaving this room now would make finding them harder.

    Instead, he rapidly toggled a mark on himself, making use of the benefit his bond with Khare gave him. He did this for a full minute and was disappointed when he didn¡¯t see a flash back to him. The marks didn¡¯t draw the eye or stand out, and if they were too far away from each other it could be like solving an extreme hidden objects puzzle to pick it out. Daniel just left the mark on and hoped the gestalt would find it eventually, or turn their own on if they heard he¡¯d returned.

    With that settled, Daniel examined the new items he¡¯d found in the bag. Aside from his changed Focus was a crystal about twice the size of his fist and faintly colored a split red and white, though patches of the two colors were becoming purple as if mold was growing within. Analyze Material just returned question marks, implying he could have used his power on the item but that the blanket unindentification of his past week was screening this knowledge out along with his new powers.

    The next item was a collection of pale green sling shot ammo that were obviously enchanted. His attempts to use his heightened Encyclopedia function to scan them in hopes of determining the Formulae were unsuccessful. Invest Affix didn¡¯t work, implying they were both level 1 and already had one in place. Further, Daniel could put his Personal Mark on the spheres, meaning he had made them. Considering what he¡¯d made during the siege, Daniel had a guess as to what these were and quickly put them back in the bag before they could be exposed to any static electricity.

    Lastly, there were the clothes and leather armor he¡¯d been wearing the night Hammer had kidnapped him. Daniel changed, again thankful for the privacy, and looked at the symbol on the back of the robes. There was gold and viridian threaded into the back, making this simple garment worth more than the few coins he had on him. Assuming the thread was the spun metal. Lograve had said the materials used for coinage were magically inert, but that didn¡¯t mean it couldn¡¯t be manipulated physically. Otherwise, no one could turn it into coins.

    Having done everything he could think of to react to his own sudden reappearance, Daniel looked from the window to the door and sighed. He¡¯d almost forgotten about the Tyrant while inspecting those last few items, but the prospect that he might face them soon chilled his already somber mood.

    ¡­

    Ashier was not the first person to visit Daniel after his house arrest, as he learned when someone pounded on his door an hour into his attempts to keep calm. Despite having just arrived, the events and his emotional outlook had left him drained, unwilling to do much else. The Artificer wondered why whoever it was didn¡¯t just open the door, assuming it to be one of the guards, until he opened it and found it was one of his friends.

    ¡°Guy?¡± Daniel threw his arms around Thomas as if the Cleric was a life vest in the middle of a stormy sea. The Cleric returned the hug, pushing both of them into the room rather forcefully. Quickly closing the door once the moment was over, Thomas took a moment to look Daniel up and down once before, wide-eyed, he asked, ¡°Guy, what the fuck happened? They¡¯re saying you spoke to Hammer in person.¡±

    Where to begin? The last time Daniel had seen the Cleric was when he¡¯d used his reset power to try and shake Silora out of her trance, though all that had accomplished was stopping her seizures. He¡¯d been injured and it seemed he¡¯d lost his Focus yet again, leaving him unfit to follow them to the Eye when Daniel and his team, Wings of Craft, went to stop the apocalypse. ¡°What did Khiat tell you?¡±

    ¡°Khiat? Guy, I haven¡¯t seen anyone for the past week! I¡¯ve been locked up in the church and as far as I know, they¡¯re in the Hunter¡¯s Guild. How is there a Tyrant here? Did they win?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Daniel realized Thomas knew less than he did about the state of the city despite the Cleric¡¯s penchant for gossip and relayed what he¡¯d learned. When the topic got to Ashier and what the gestalt¡¯s relation to Murdon had been, he had to stop the Cleric from exploding in pure anger. It wasn¡¯t an emotion he¡¯d associated with Thomas, but as he learned, there was a good reason.

    ¡°That¡­ that bastard killed hundreds of people when the nobles tried to take back the city. It was supposed to go like Armafus centuries ago. My brother and father were there, and that draconoid-¡°

    ¡°He¡¯s Rorshawd.¡± Daniel looked at the aura he could still see on the Eye. The knowledge that the dragon could put auras on people to track them in turn did occur to Daniel as he was considering the merits of an escape attempt, though Divination Aegis should prevent that from happening to him. It was a gamble to assume that given Rorshawd broke about as many conventional rules as Daniel did.

    Thomas stopped mid-rant when Daniel brought up that topic and looked at the Artificer¡¯s hands. He didn¡¯t try to hide them or his tell. ¡°I¡¯m going to kill them, Guy.¡±

    ¡°Thomas, Hunter is dead.¡± It hurt to even say, but Daniel had to stop Thomas from trying to beat the record for the world¡¯s shortest attempted coup. ¡°Evalyn, Tak, Lograve, and Gadriel disappeared. I don¡¯t think they¡¯re dead but it sounds like Khiat doesn¡¯t know what happened to them. The last thing I remember is Hammer showing up, and everything from there to coming back to the Eye is blank.¡±

    ¡°More amnesia, Guy?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡± Daniel opened his mouth, about to mention the unsteadiness in his mind, but held off. He was fairly certain it was just grief at this point and they had more important things to talk about.

    In the continued silence, Thomas sat against the wall opposite Daniel, just enough space in the room for their feet not to touch. ¡°Gods, Daniel, I¡¯m sorry about Hunter. Do you have his body?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Daniel looked away, knowing why he was asking. ¡°I thought I had it before Hammer showed up, but now I just have his armor.¡±

    ¡°Guy¡­ I don¡¯t know if it¡¯ll make you feel worse or better, but this long after someone dies he¡¯s as good as gone.¡± The Cleric grimaced at the news and continued to explain when Daniel didn¡¯t visibly react. ¡°We don¡¯t know why. No one who comes back remembers what happened. A week¡¯s about as long as you get, after that there¡¯s just nothing to bring back. I¡¯d like to think he¡¯s in a better place now.¡±

    ¡°Me too.¡± Daniel sighed and looked back toward Thomas. ¡°How are you here? I thought you said you were being kept in the church.¡±

    Thomas didn¡¯t answer immediately, delaying for a few noticeable seconds. ¡°I heard you came back and snuck out. It¡¯s not like they¡¯ll kill you for it and they¡¯ve barely touched the Divine Quarter besides restricting access to it. At least the Tyrant¡¯s not an impious bastard, but they have to go.¡±

    ¡°Do they?¡± Thomas¡¯ eyes widened further at the question.

    ¡°Guy, wait, you met the Tyrant. Did they use anything on you?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Daniel wasn¡¯t sure if he¡¯d know or not since he couldn¡¯t ask Earth-Daniel to list the active effects on him, and no notification had come up, but he felt that was the right answer. There were enough ripples in his soul that they¡¯d react to anything else inside of it. ¡°Thomas, I know this is where you grew up, but I¡¯m leaving this place the first chance I get and going to Threst. I don¡¯t know what I¡¯m going to do about Hunter, but the other people missing aren¡¯t here. Murdon has a bond with Lograve. If anyone can find him it¡¯s him.¡±

    Daniel¡¯s sudden conviction troubled Thomas, who didn¡¯t immediately object to the plan. ¡°I may know someone too, but it¡¯s tricky.¡± The Cleric looked around suddenly. ¡°Guy, does that divination blocking thing still work?¡± The app was indeed still there despite his phone changing and appeared to work as normal. When Daniel nodded in response, Thomas bit his lip and came to a decision. ¡°Alright, Guy, I need to tell you something. I¡¯ve been keeping a pretty big secret. From all of you, only Lograve and Gadriel knew.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Daniel had a good idea that it related to Thomas¡¯ broken Focus, though he couldn¡¯t imagine what would make the Cleric speak as if Daniel himself were confessing his origins to the Cleric.

    ¡°You remember that shavi? The Fate? We made a deal, back when you guys were hunting. For the next year, she has to do whatever I say. It¡¯s a contract bond and it¡¯s a good thing too because the Tyrant can¡¯t use whatever power it is that makes people their slaves on her because of it. She¡¯s been feeding me information with Farspeech and I¡¯ve been trying to get some kind of resistance going with that, but-¡±

    ¡°Why would she do that?¡± Daniel¡¯s eyebrows furrowed as he interrupted Thomas.

    ¡°I helped her out of the deal she had with the city. I lost my powers because of it, well, most of them, and the bond¡¯s there as a way to pay me back,¡± Thomas explained slowly, carefully choosing his words. Daniel was unable to stop himself from reaching the conclusion based on what he¡¯d learned from the failed ritual he¡¯d just interrupted. When he considered the circumstances around when Thomas¡¯ first Focus had been destroyed, as well as the fact that no one had given a good explanation of how he¡¯d undone the permanent control of the lake monster, the answer was obvious.

    ¡°You¡­¡± Daniel stood up, his mouth going dry as he tried to think of another possible explanation, but the look of mild horror on Thomas¡¯ face convinced him it was the truth. ¡°You can raise the dead?¡±

    ¡°Guy, quiet about-¡°

    ¡°You can do that, and you used it on her!?¡± Daniel shouted, one of his hands reflexively changing into the bird-like attack form as he clenched a fist. The storm within him was raging now. ¡°Hunter is dead! He¡¯s dead, and you-¡°

    ¡°I didn¡¯t know that would happen, alright!¡± Thomas shot to his feet as well but backed away both from the door and Daniel. ¡°Look, I couldn¡¯t tell anyone. If people found out then someone would find a way to do what Claret tried to do to you. Crest, Silora was blackmailing me.¡±

    ¡°Hunter is dead,¡± Daniel repeated, not caring at all about what might be a perfectly valid reason. ¡°If you could use that power right now-¡°

    ¡°Then it wouldn¡¯t matter, would it? You lost the body!¡± Thomas shouted defensively, abandoning his attempts to keep the conversation quiet. The Cleric grimaced at his own words but was too late to say anything else before Daniel¡¯s empowered fist hit him in the face, knocking him into the window where he bounced off the invisible Shroud rather than fall out. The impact didn¡¯t feel as crushing to Daniel as when he¡¯d fought against the thieves, but he¡¯d still done more damage than he¡¯d expected.

    The brief fear that crossed Thomas¡¯ face made him stop completely, draining away the anger as Daniel realized that without his Focus, Thomas couldn¡¯t stop him if he tried to kill him. ¡°Thomas-¡° he reached into his bag, but the last healing potion he¡¯d had had been used to destroy Rasalia¡¯s zombie. The Cleric removed a hand from the nose which was clearly broken and bleeding profusely. It looked so bad that Daniel was suddenly worried for his friend¡¯s life. Thomas shouldn¡¯t have been that weak, even if he¡¯d had one degree of level disparity to endurance to fix. He hadn¡¯t leveled to 3 without fixing that, had he?

    ¡°Shit, Thomas!¡± Daniel went for the door but the Cleric groaned something through his bloodied mouth to stop him. He realized the problem instantly. Thomas must have been trying to avoid people noticing that he¡¯d lost his Focus. If people saw him with an injury he couldn¡¯t heal, it would tip them off. They might not make an immediate connection to his secret power, but it was notice no one wanted while a Tyrant was in town.

    He was partway into shredding some of the clothes that had been stuffed into a patchy pillowcase for bandaging when he saw the hand Thomas wasn¡¯t covering his face with begin to glow with a soft light. Moments later, a bubble appeared in the space around Thomas, expanding to about half a meter out before it looked like the Cleric stopped it from going further. Daniel watched as the blood stopped flowing from Thomas¡¯ nose while he nasally mumbled, ¡°Vitality Bubble?¡±

    ¡°You just awakened a power?¡± Daniel asked disbelievingly. ¡°How could you do that without a Focus?¡±

    Thomas put his hand off and on his nose several times to make sure he was actually healing, though he still drew in a sharp breath with the last one as he tried pinching his nose. ¡°Fuck,¡± he moaned, sitting under the window. The bubble around him disappeared, taking the glowing field within with it.

    ¡°Are you ok?¡±

    The Cleric stood a little unsteadily and didn¡¯t look in Daniel¡¯s direction. ¡°I should go.¡±

    ¡°Wait, Thomas, I¡¯m sorry.¡± The Cleric waved a hand and started walking to the door, Daniel feeling in no way up to blocking him. The anger had welled up in him instantly, just like it had when he¡¯d first seen Rorshawd. The raw emotional edge inside of him had just cut one of the only people left he was close to.

    The thought that this could be the last time he saw Thomas, either because the Cleric would be done with him or the Tyrant would put him in prison for sneaking out, made Daniel open his mouth before the Cleric got to the door. ¡°Thomas, I¡¯ve got a big secret too. I¡¯m from another world.¡±

 Chapter 164: Empathic Echo

    The two froze as Thomas looked back in frank disbelief and Daniel frantically wondered if anyone could hear through the walls. When he considered that he hadn¡¯t given Thomas¡¯ secret that much concern, he decided to just plow straight on through before the Cleric opened the door. ¡°I was living on my world when out of nowhere, I showed up above Eido just after the Upswell. I almost died before I got to Hagain. You were like the fifth or sixth person I¡¯d talked to. I wanted to tell you for a while but you¡¯re a Cleric. I was worried you¡¯d think I was from the Crest or, worse, tell everyone about me.¡±

    He added that last part as an attempt at a joke but the Cleric wasn¡¯t in the mood for humor. His eyes scoured Daniel for any signs of lying but the Artificer had gotten too adept at suppressing his tell for his own good. Without Thomas having the actual power that would sort fact from fiction, there was no way to make a positive confirmation. Rather than speak, the Cleric just folded his arms, looking at Daniel with every intent of leaving if he wasn¡¯t serious.

    Daniel sighed and gave him the Earth basics, leaving out a detailed history of his life as well as the fact that a copy of him was still back on that world. At least, I think he¡¯s still there. It¡¯s possible that bunker could have exploded if I overloaded it with that mana surge. He really hoped that wasn¡¯t the reason he couldn¡¯t reach Bridge Space.

    The short version lasted only a minute, the retelling taking far less time than when he¡¯d given the first speech to Lograve and Murdon. It ended with Daniel showing Thomas the photo on his Focus, though the Cleric hadn¡¯t drawn closer and Daniel felt approaching at this point was unwise. He¡¯d had to levitate it over with Telekinetic Reach. ¡°It¡¯s changed, Hunter wasn¡¯t in it the first time. I think that happened while time was missing.¡±

    ¡°Why are you telling me now, Daniel?¡± Thomas finally spoke, his voice most of the way back to normal, though it carried both the hurt and insult he was feeling. Neither did he miss the change in how he addressed him.

    ¡°One of the first things Murdon said when I told him I was from another world was that there was only the Octyrrum and the Crest beyond. It¡¯s in your religion, and you¡¯re a Cleric.¡±

    ¡°And I told you I¡¯m not that kind of Cleric,¡± Thomas shot back. ¡°I do it to help people. Assuming whatever messed with your memories didn¡¯t screw up your head, I wouldn¡¯t have turned you in or tried to kill you.¡±

    ¡°How could I have known that? My life¡¯s been in danger almost the entire time I¡¯ve been here Thomas. My world doesn¡¯t have monsters!¡± He winced and lowered his voice for multiple reasons. ¡°You were so distant here too. Why didn¡¯t you tell us some squat shark person was shaking you down?¡±

    Thomas shuffled a little and finally uncrossed his arms, leaning against the wall. ¡°I¡¯d have to tell you why she was doing that? What would you do anyway, all she¡¯d need to do to screw me is tell people what my power does, and she can shout across regions.¡±

    ¡°Fair.¡± Daniel tossed his phone into his bag, where his necklace was also staying for now. He could still access his powers so long as the bag itself was on him and as recent events had shown, he couldn¡¯t just leave them out for something to happen to them. ¡°Are you ok?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, Daniel, I¡¯m fine.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m going to Threst,¡± Daniel said carefully, bringing them back to the topic they¡¯d been on before Thomas had mentioned the Fate. ¡°You should come with me. I¡¯m going to see if I can get everyone we know here to come, assuming I get the chance.¡±

    ¡°What about the Tyrant, we¡¯re just going to leave them here?¡±

    ¡°Honestly, yeah. Thomas, the people in power already sucked. I don¡¯t know how much worse things can get. I¡¯d still try to kill them both but Ashier somehow has Rorshawd under their thumb. We can¡¯t beat that.¡± Not if I can¡¯t use my lightning powers, Daniel thought to himself.

    ¡°She killed my brother and my father, Daniel.¡± Thomas stared at him like he¡¯d done it.

    ¡°Rorshawd killed Parduc,¡± Daniel shot right back. ¡°Everything that happened with Claire after was because of that, and that I was an idiotic jerk. I¡¯ve come to terms with my part but the first thing I did when I saw him was try to kill him.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m saying we should do!¡±

    ¡°This isn¡¯t our fight, Thomas. What do you have left here?¡± It was a nasty question, but Daniel didn¡¯t want to leave Thomas behind if he managed to escape.

    ¡°You want me to just abandon where I grew up?¡±

    ¡°Come with me,¡± Daniel repeated. ¡°We¡¯ll get strong enough, come back, and kill them both.¡±

    Something in Thomas¡¯ eyes shifted as he blinked. ¡°You¡¯re different. You were broken up about killing those thieves. What changed?¡±

    The swirling, agitated, energetic mass within his soul settled a little bit more as it tried to find its shape. ¡°Hunter died.¡±

    ¡­

    Thomas left soon after that, not committing to anything other than cooling his heels on the revolution. His pocket Fate wasn¡¯t checking in with him and after hearing she¡¯d collapsed again, he had grown worried. That left Daniel alone to stare at his hands, looking at them like he¡¯d just discovered Claw Strike. Even that hurt because it was the habit Hunter had picked up after the Empathic Link had caused parts of their personality to cross over from the brief blasts every day.

    The part of Hunter he¡¯d taken was still there in him, though it felt like an image burned into a screen. That was another clue Hunter wasn¡¯t back, at least in this region, since the Empathic Link would work across any distance up to the regional borders.

    ¡°Thomas,¡± Daniel said to himself, counting on his fingers. ¡°Khare. Khiat.¡± Is that it? Daniel asked himself with only three fingers raised. He had a random thought and spoke another name. ¡°Willow.¡± She was a Spiritualist and had known about Hunter¡¯s kind before meeting him. While it seemed she¡¯d been naive and not part of the real conspiracy, she could still know things about the organization that had ended up killing one of the beasts they supposedly revered. There was a faint hope that they might know of another way of bringing Hunter back. Casia had come back from the dead, though Daniel didn¡¯t want to use her method.

    ¡°Tlara?¡± Daniel didn¡¯t raise a fifth finger. ¡°Four, then. Four people and I get out of here.¡± Someone knocked on the door after he said that and he looked hopefully for a mark, thinking Khare had spotted him. Those hopes were dashed when a spire guard opened the door allowing a woman trailing mist from her eyes into the space. Rorshawd was still up above on the Eye, and he realized the aura he¡¯d placed on the Tyrant had disappeared at some point.

    ¡°It is time to continue our conversation,¡± Ashier announced through the woman they occupied.

    ¡°Are you going to try to do anything to my mind?¡± Daniel asked, knowing he was close enough to the window to Dodge Roll out if the Tyrant was stupid enough to answer him honestly.

    ¡°No. The influence power I made use of in the Thormundz died with Heldren.¡± The door closed behind Ashier and they remained standing. He could feel the authority in the air as a tangible force, similar to Murdon whenever the draconoid was being particularly commanding. None of that gave him a sense of mental intrusion or other aggression, Ashier was just able to dominate his attention passively. ¡°Have you had time to let your thoughts recover?¡±

    Ok, I don¡¯t think they know what Thomas and I discussed, Daniel thought, since there were several topics the Tyrant would have brought up immediately otherwise. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± he answered honestly. ¡°My friend died. That¡¯s not something a couple of hours alone in a room lets you get over.¡±

    ¡°The Octyrrum will honor their sacrifice,¡± Ashier replied in what they probably thought was a comforting way. The lack of any threats was welcome, though they were also keenly direct. ¡°Rikendia has fallen.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Daniel knew of the region, but only as the distant center of the kingdom he was in. ¡°Was it the Spiritualists?¡±

    ¡°We don¡¯t know. The entire capital city was destroyed, collapsing in on itself and claiming many of the lives in the process. My Fate received only part of the emergency message. The Spoke was destroyed during it, twisting the magic, but we know enough. The King has been assassinated. The region has fallen.¡±

    ¡°They were doing this everywhere,¡± Daniel said breathlessly.

    ¡°You understand the weight of our purpose, then. What are you? You do not need to fear me, servant of the gods. My only purpose is their will.¡±

    ¡°I-¡° Daniel found that he was mentally preparing to confess his origins and cut off the sentence before he could. Ashier had used an inquisition power on him, and this time he had information to confess. Thankfully he¡¯d been able to resist, though only by diverting his reply to a different answer they¡¯d wanted. ¡°I don¡¯t know. At the top of the tower, when my friend died, something broke in me and I just felt¡­ I had all this mana and these strange powers. Once she was dead Hammer showed up, and then it¡¯s all blank until I landed in the middle of your ritual.¡±

    The Tyrant took in his words and thought to themself for a few moments, the mist flowing out of the woman¡¯s eyes receding somewhat as they thought. ¡°What is your intent?¡±

    While the power wasn¡¯t used again, Daniel felt the echo of its effects and didn¡¯t feel there was a reason to lie. ¡°I¡¯m leaving Aughal and taking my friends with me. I¡¯m going to find those that are missing, and a way to bring Hunter back.¡±

    If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

    ¡°You are too focused on yourself. There are hundreds of thousands of lives in this kingdom alone that require our aegis.¡±

    ¡°Threst is in this kingdom,¡± Daniel argued, keeping a level gaze with the Tyrant as he found strength from somewhere to- No, not just somewhere. He reached back for Hunter¡¯s echo within him and used it as a touchstone. Words he¡¯d said before came back to him. ¡®No cages or masters. No fear or uncertainty. Stand or die, that is what life is here.¡¯ The now turbid swirl within his soul solidified around those words. ¡°I¡¯m going to kill as many monsters as it takes to make that happen, either because I need that power, or because they¡¯re standing in my way.¡±

    ¡°You can¡¯t kill me,¡± Ashier said simply. ¡°And it would be a loss to the Octyrrum for you to die trying. The gods have marked you for greatness.¡±

    ¡°Then let me be great somewhere else. How can you ask me to, knowing what you¡¯ve done?¡± Ashier hadn¡¯t seemed the regretful kind to Daniel, but he¡¯d sensed an opening in their words that implied their mind wasn¡¯t fully set when it came to his fate.

    ¡°All I did was to secure the region. Every one we lose strengthens the Crest, and it should be clear now that the loss of the Thormundz was the first step towards Rikendia¡¯s fall.¡± A little bit of flame entered the air gestalt¡¯s words, to his ears coming from an annoyance that no one else could see how easy a trade it was to kill a few people for maintaining order.

    Daniel mentally thanked Thomas for his glibness because if the Cleric hadn¡¯t told him every rumor in the Thormundz, he wouldn¡¯t have the ammo to fire his next shot. ¡°What about the people who died to the monsters you let loose, or the ones that burned to death in Murdon¡¯s house? The people you supposedly died with? Are you telling me their deaths were completely necessary?¡±

    A conflicted look entered Ashier¡¯s borrowed face for the first time. ¡°That was the work of my subordinates. They were too hasty, too zealous when I asked them to create an event that would incite Murdon. My goal was simply to burn the manor down and fake my death so that I could operate from the shadows.¡±

    ¡°And that just makes it ok?¡± It was a good thing Ashier was the true believer kind of crazy and not the ¡®strike them down for their insolence¡¯ kind because he was leaning into pure grade insolence. ¡°What about Rorshawd? You can¡¯t tell me you don¡¯t know what he¡¯s done. He worshiped one of the Octyrrum¡¯s worst enemies and you¡¯ve kept him by your side.¡± Inspiration flared as his words continued to flow. ¡°Why should I trust your commitment if you haven¡¯t put an end to someone like him?¡±

    ¡°Do not question my faith!¡± Ashier¡¯s voice rose and a force pushed Daniel against the wall for a moment before it died.

    That felt like Telekinetic Reach, Daniel thought, momentarily stunned. How do they have that? Is it a Tyrant power too? That did make sense. The force behind the power was massive, though everyone always said Tyrants had an advantage over other classes. As he began to breathe again, the Tyrant continued.

    ¡°The dragon is necessary. I will throw away no advantage that can be used to fight against the Crest. He obeys my every command and there is no aspect of his life I don¡¯t control.¡± Ashier gestured to what was technically herself. ¡°I treat no other this way, not even this Proxy. The mortals bound to me are those I have pledged to care for as they empower me in return. The lone monster I bonded to out of desperate need will persist only so long as he remains useful.¡±

    ¡°You should kill him right now,¡± Daniel said, dismissing all of the justifications, only to then add, ¡°But honestly? You sound worse than death for him. You may be the most pious person in this region, but I can never join your cause after what you¡¯ve done. Wouldn¡¯t it be better to let us both work where we can be useful?¡± He took a step forward against the tide that was the Tyrant¡¯s will. ¡°I¡¯m going to Threst, and I¡¯m taking my friends. Will you try to stop me?¡±

    The Tyrant gave him what might have been an approving nod as they pulled a bound journal out and consulted a page that was kept from Daniel¡¯s eyes. He was slightly taken aback by this as so few here used paper in their daily life. The avian Craftsman had, as well as Arpan, but the common laborer may only be able to read. That Ashier had something like this was less surprising considering they¡¯d been an assistant to Murdon for many years, although gestalt shouldn¡¯t be able to read normally. Did they have their own written language?

    ¡°Your departure would cost my region a Cleric, a Martialist, and a presumed Ranger, class unconfirmed. Is that right?¡±

    ¡°I also want Willow Seliri.¡± Daniel didn¡¯t offer any additional explanation and added another name last minute. Sorry Thomas. ¡°And Silora Thelonas.¡±

    ¡°She is my only Fate.¡± The face frowned, and it seemed Ashier had been ready to give him what he asked up until then.

    ¡°Is she? You haven¡¯t been able to bond with her. I think she¡¯ll get a lot less cooperative if we leave without her too.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡± Another spike of forced compliance hit Daniel, but he gripped hard on Hunter¡¯s echo. The ringcat wouldn¡¯t have given in, so he wouldn¡¯t either.

    ¡°Yes,¡± Daniel bit out, uncowed.

    ¡°You aren¡¯t as clueless as you would appear.¡± There was more subtle approval from the Tyrant, and Daniel retroactively saw this was the reaction Ashier had been looking for.

    Hammer had shown up and personally taken him away. If he had acted like the person he¡¯d been when he¡¯d come to the Octyrrum Ashier would have been confused, and ultimately thrown him into a closet until he proved his worth. What he¡¯d said and done now fell more in line with a powerful agent of the gods. They weren¡¯t looking for another servant with him, they had plenty of those already. They wanted an ally. Ideally, one that could blow up any strong monsters with divine retribution, but maybe it was enough to know he was out there bringing the justice of the Octyrrum to the monsters of the Crest.

    ¡°I¡¯ll leave today, then.¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Daniel found he couldn¡¯t move closer to the Tyrant, and the effect wasn¡¯t Telekinetic Reach but another power. ¡°I will move you to the Hunter¡¯s Guild to meet those you know there. We will soon see what the gods have in store for your future.¡±

    ¡­

    Daniel couldn¡¯t see the rest of what turned out to be the Rose Spire as he was led to an elevator. The small box of a construct evoked a strong sense of familiarity from Earth, although Daniel also felt another connection he couldn¡¯t quite place. The missing time maybe? He¡¯d had a sinking feeling he¡¯d had something to do with Rikendia, what with him arriving here right as it fell. Not something to bring up to the stern people armed with swords.

    As he got to the main landing, Daniel was taken aback to see the main lobby had been turned into a fortified strong point, barricades set up to face the gate with an entire ballista pointed outward. It seemed the Tyrant wasn¡¯t leaving anything up to chance with their rule, and had somehow brought Aughal¡¯s flagging guard back into full morale.

    Neither leading Daniel through the Spire¡¯s front door were those he¡¯d recognized, either by face or the name Identify Creature gave him. Even so, he had to ask. ¡°I heard things were pretty bad for the guard before the siege. Why is everyone working for the Tyrant now, I thought you all hated them?¡±

    The two shared a look before one replied bitterly. ¡°What other option is there? If you can believe it, life¡¯s gotten better though. Shorter hours, an actual rotation. No one¡¯s patrolling the deserts so we just have to defend here.¡±

    ¡°What about the monsters, won¡¯t they grow out of control?¡±

    The guard shrugged, and the other said in a low voice, ¡°With that red draconoid they¡¯ve got, who cares? He¡¯ll burn up anything that gets close.¡±

    An impish part of Daniel thought about revealing what Rorshawd truly was, but it wouldn¡¯t get him anything. He¡¯d set himself on a path of loose cooperation with the Tyrant and if there was a chance they¡¯d let him and his friends go, he¡¯d take it. Part of him, the part closest to Hunter¡¯s echo, rebelled at this but he shoved those emotions down. He was making the smart play. Letting anger control him almost killed Thomas earlier.

    He didn¡¯t make any more conversation as he was brought around the streets towards where the Hunter¡¯s Guild was built in the north-east section of the city. Threst itself was in this direction relative to Aughal making it convenient if he was being allowed to leave soon. Several of the ballista were missing from the roof of the guild, and two large sections of the walls were in the middle of patchy repairs.

    Farthest Run mentioned the guild had been attacked, Daniel thought, seeing this. I didn¡¯t think it was this bad. He still didn¡¯t know the extent of the siege. As the entrance neared, Daniel toggled the mark rapidly on him again and, finally, its twin appeared somewhere on the second floor of the building. ¡°You were taking me to see my friends, right?¡± he asked the guards. ¡°I can take it from here.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re to escort you all the way,¡± the one who¡¯d mentioned Rorshawd said.

    ¡°No. I¡¯ve got it.¡± He glared at one of the other guards.

    ¡°We have our orders,¡± he repeated, a hand going to his sword.

    Talon. ¡°I don¡¯t care.¡± It had occurred to Daniel that he could take apart both of these people if he wanted to. He¡¯d abhorred the prospect of killing people, but that was before someone had killed Hunter. It was a wake up call he should have gotten after Rorshawd or the thieves, but he¡¯d bought the lie of this world that it was mortals vs monsters. Not all monsters were evil, and some people were monsters themselves. That revelation didn¡¯t mean he¡¯d tear the throats out of these guards if they insisted, but he wasn¡¯t backing down either.

    The guard made to draw his sword but the other one sharply shook her head. ¡°Just get inside,¡± they practically spat at him, and didn¡¯t follow. He walked the halls purposefully, ignoring anyone who asked questions and heading straight for Khare¡¯s mark. There was no one he¡¯d recognized and talking with any of them was pointless. Maybe if one of Farthest Run had been there that would change, but Daniel had been intentional in leaving them out of who he was taking.

    Unsurprisingly, he found himself in an area tall enough for duskers to stand at their full height. Khiat and Khare staying together made sense. There weren¡¯t enough gestalt Blessed in the guild for them to stay with. Khare had gotten enough across to the dusker that she was already coming his way. ¡°Daniel!?¡±

    ¡°Khiat,¡± he nodded in reply. ¡°Are you ok?¡±

    ¡°Are, are you ok? Daniel, what happened? Hunter¡­ everyone¡­¡± He looked at her closely, trying to make sure she was handling events alright. In a way, the siege had been her Rorshawd, and he was afraid of what survivor¡¯s guilt might have done to her.

    ¡°We¡¯ll get them back,¡± he said with absolute conviction. Khare ambled around the dusker in their Chimeric Form, which they seemed to prefer when circumstances allowed. The acorns that represented the gestalt¡¯s eyes were set on his face and were unmoving. Daniel flashed his mark and Khare did the same.

    ¡°Survival?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± Daniel shook his head. ¡°I think Hunter was the only one who died. Look, both of you, what happened after the Eye?¡±

    ¡°The Tyrant showed up,¡± Khiat said with a hint of fear, though Daniel¡¯s presence bolstered her to some degree. He was holding Reassure in wait in case she needed it, but only if she needed it, aware of the dangers of overusing that kind of power. ¡°They took control. People say others tried to fight them but they all died. Daniel, my family came to the city two days ago, what¡¯s going on?¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t know? Gtoll sounded like he spoke to you.¡±

    ¡°Oh.¡± Khiat turned her head to the side and shrank by half a meter as the chitinous plates on her legs partially collapsed. ¡°He¡¯s level 5 now! We talked a few days ago, after he said he¡¯d decided to help the Tyrant.¡± She seemed conflicted about that, which was a distinct reaction from Thomas¡¯.

    It makes sense, Daniel thought after a few seconds. He lost his brother, while Khiat¡¯s family gets to be safer here. Relatively. ¡°Khiat, Khare, I¡¯m going to Threst. Will you go with me?¡±

    ¡°Assent,¡± Khare affirmed instantly. Khiat looked more hesitant.

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to,¡± Daniel added after the pause grew longer.

    ¡°What would we do?¡±

    ¡°Find Murdon,¡± Daniel said, dictating the list in his head. ¡°Find our lost friends. Revive Hunter. Get stronger.¡±

    One of Khiat¡¯s hands touched the point of her bow that dipped below her waist. ¡°After that shot on the Eye, the one with the glowing arrow, something changed. I think it¡¯s a new power. It¡¯s all still so strange. The world. I can¡¯t understand what¡¯s happening. I¡¯m not like how I was¡­ back then, but it¡¯s all changing.¡±

    Daniel locked his gaze with hers, ignoring the half-human, half-bug nature of the eyes that would have made him squirm internally. ¡°I¡¯m not a stranger to strangeness. Come with me and I promise I¡¯ll tell you everything. I don¡¯t know if I can help you with your, uh, ¡®class¡¯, but I¡¯ll try.¡±

    ¡°Everything?¡± Khare asked, able to pick up what he was offering.

    ¡°Everything.¡±

 Chapter 165: The Collapse

    Khiat didn¡¯t give Daniel her decision immediately, even as the day turned to night and it became time to rest. She was back on her normal schedule and had woken only to meet him, and she had to leave for a posting on the walls after the sun set. The Hunter¡¯s Guild was still being co-opted by the city for its defense, only now it wasn¡¯t voluntary. Khare was spared, though it was unclear whether they were skipping out on duty or no one had found another gestalt to tell them what to do. Air and earth gestalt couldn¡¯t cross-communicate, so they might be beyond the Tyrant¡¯s ability to command.

    Daniel lay on a slightly better bed than the makeshift one back in the Spire, reflecting on the day¡¯s events. He¡¯d punched Thomas, stood up to the ghost that had haunted the Thormundz, intimidated men with swords and had become a lot more loose with his secrets.

    He was changing. Hunter¡¯s echo was an easy explanation, but that wasn¡¯t everything. The ringcat¡¯s mannerisms hadn¡¯t taken him over when there was an active source. Leaning into it helped, but that still wouldn¡¯t change who he was.

    Something must have happened during the missing week that had shaken him. Enough that though the memories were suppressed, his personality had still been affected. He wasn¡¯t sure about that. This world was far more dangerous than his, and a strong personality could afford more protection. Up until now, he¡¯d relied on his friends, but also the umbrella of Lograve and Gadriel¡¯s higher levels. The only thing he had truly accomplished by himself was making it down from the air islands he¡¯d first appeared on.

    As he slipped into the middle space between waking and dreaming, he saw a version of himself charging out into the desert alone tomorrow morning. He didn¡¯t like it. Despite everything he still valued his friends. All of his goals focused on them. Neither did he think he could do a better job than Evalyn if the Wings of Craft suddenly reformed. He¡¯d gained confidence, but there were other traits the Bard had him beat in that made her the better choice. I hope she¡¯s ok.

    In the end, he was a monster hunter and an Artificer. He hadn¡¯t made large strides in either area. Most of his enchanting went towards utility, and he hadn¡¯t delved as deep as he could have. The enchanted marbles in his pouch were an example of how far he had to go. As for his powers, had he ever used Cleave? It was a level 2 melee attack that should be on par with what Tak could do, combine that with an enchanted sword or ax and it might be as good as an exploding Scatter Shot. Only, he¡¯d been too content to sit back and use his various crossbows.

    As Daniel drifted off, he promised himself he¡¯d get so strong that when Hunter did return, the ringcat would have to push himself to catch up.

    ¡­

    Daniel had been sleeping past dawn as of late, waking only to silence the alarm that was Empathic Bond resetting to moderate intensity. A similar feeling treacherously made him believe this had happened again, only for his discouragement to be met with an innate sense of danger. Daniel immediately pulled his phone out of his bag as Khare watched from where they¡¯d been posted by the door.

    <hr>

    System Alert: The System Collapse rule set has been implemented following the most recent System Reset. The following Effects are now active.

    ? Crest Suppression of active Spokes will decrease dramatically. This effect is significantly lessened based on the number of adjacent spokes, and spokes completely surrounded by others will not have their suppression decay while they are surrounded.

    ? The intensity of Godpowers: Spoke will decay at a rate equivalent to the decline in crest suppression

    ? Godseed development is blocked while system collapse is active. Currently germinating godseeds will fail in one month.

    ? Locational limits of Monster Spawning removed.

    ? Advancement Potential awardance adjusted.

    ? Advancement Wall thresholds relaxed. This effect inversely scales with the degree of Crest Suppression still active.

    -

    System Alert: Unable to locate a quorum of Entity: Gods bound to Domains of ??? during the most recent System Reset. ??? will revert to its backup version. The following changes have been made.

    ? Domain: Astral has been reintegrated. This will affect Class and Power Awakening, as well as Monster Spawning.

    ? Classes, Monsters, and Powers affected by Restricted Access may be unlocked, depending on whether the restriction was incorporated into the backup version of ???

    ? Bond Suppression of Creatures affected by ??? has been lowered to its baseline state.

    ? Domains that are unattended by their Gods will behave as determined by the default version of ???.

    -

    System Alert: System Hub is currently exposed due to failure to locate a quorum of Gods. Direct manipulation of ??? by external Entities is possible until a quorum is reached.

    <hr>

    I shouldn¡¯t be seeing this, Daniel immediately thought, and his breath caught as his mind shot ahead and reached a conclusion. Is Torch dead? He knew that Earth-Daniel had been screening his notifications, and it seemed with the loss of Bridge Space that had changed. Either he¡¯d unlocked a new set of alerts, or Earth-Daniel had been painstakingly removing the ¡®system¡¯ part of each alert. He guessed that was the case as otherwise, he might have figured out something else about this world earlier on.

    His theory about Torch was from the times they had proven to be able to affect what he knew, both by revealing a notification they¡¯d previously blocked, and by directly transmitting knowledge about the lake monster to him. It seemed that the doomsday kicked off by the Thormundz falling was now fully in action. I can¡¯t believe it. Did the Spiritualists manage to kill a god? Wait, no, not just one.

    The alert mentioned that the system hadn¡¯t been able to find a quorum of gods. At least four were dead. Letting the Tyrant know about this was out of the question. They couldn¡¯t read his phone, and if he shared his suspicions they¡¯d call him a blasphemer and have Rorshawd roast him alive. No, the Tyrant was already preparing for a last stand in Aughal, telling them this information wouldn¡¯t change much.

    ¡°Trouble?¡± Khare asked, no doubt noticing how his hands had tightened on his phone.

    ¡°Yeah. We need to get out of here, but I have to wait for the Tyrant to bring everyone they promised to.¡±

    Daniel spent some time trying and failing to make replicas of the marbles he had in his bag, too awake from the slightly terrifying notification to get more rest. Seeing that the small metal balls were stable was a relief, at least.

    He¡¯d balked at combining the lightning affix with spineshard ammunition as a base item as he wasn¡¯t sure if the affix would make the item count as charged and be more liable to explode, or detonate outright. Hunter¡¯s maiming in the Thormundz had made him too afraid to try before. The main reason, though, was that he struggled to enchant even the marble-sized ammunition with the affix already on it without using higher level material.

    Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

    With the rest of his heliorite gone, Daniel was down to using bone fragments of level 2 creatures. That required the bonecut affix to use since the material wasn¡¯t magical in and of itself. Crafting level 1 ammunition with the second level material was within his capabilities, having put some effort into training his enchantment. Not enough, though, as adding the lightning affix would require second level enchanting to gain an extra affix slot. Without the level disparity working for him, the image of the simple ammunition slipped out of his head around a minute after he started every time.

    The obstacle didn¡¯t feel insurmountable, but Daniel would be limited to the amount of destructive balls he¡¯d already crafted in case things got complicated. His newfound conviction wasn¡¯t enough to solve his shortcomings alone. That left him without any real weapons since his arm bows had been destroyed in the fight at the Eye. ¡°Khare, can I get a sword?¡±

    ¡°Blade?¡± Khare reached inside themself and pulled a shortsword out.

    ¡°You can put it on my tab,¡± Daniel replied, a grin on his face. He still would have liked a crossbow, though Khare didn¡¯t use them, and he had no intention of taking one of Khare¡¯s best ranged weapons considering he could barely aim a normal bow. His shotgun feathers could suffice, although they couldn¡¯t be affected by Scatter Shot since Grow Feathers was also a spell.

    With the sword at his side and the blast marbles, as he quickly christened them, within reach, Daniel felt ready for a war. ¡°Come on, Khare. Let¡¯s go.¡±

    ¡°Depart?¡±

    ¡°No, but I¡¯m not sitting around waiting for the next person to tell me where to go.¡± Daniel opened the door and saw the head of someone standing further down the hallway snap up. ¡°Come on, I¡¯ve got this.¡±

    ¡°Trepidation,¡± Khare replied, though they followed.

    ¡°Hey! You need to stay here for now,¡± a level 2 shouted over as Daniel walked away from them. ¡°You, hey! Stop!¡±

    ¡°Do you know what¡¯s going on?¡± Daniel asked, still moving in a random direction like he knew where he was going.

    ¡°The Tyr- the Saint wants you kept here for now.¡± The man backed up a step as Daniel stopped and turned around. ¡°That¡¯s all I know.¡±

    ¡°How long am I supposed to wait?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know, man. Take it from me, you don¡¯t get on their bad side and make it out the other end. I don¡¯t think having one of them with you would make a difference.¡± His eyes flicked to Khare and any sympathy Daniel might have had for the hunter crushed by the machine that was the new government faded.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to the courtyard,¡± Daniel replied as if that had been his plan all along. ¡°I heard a few people died here and I want to make sure the people I know are still ok.¡± His hands didn¡¯t tremble once as he blatantly lied. ¡°Look, follow me if you want, Gavon, but you¡¯re not stopping me.¡±

    The Martialist was left behind for a few seconds as they stumbled over their words. ¡°Wait, how did you-¡°

    ¡­

    Daniel walked out to the interior courtyard of the guild and froze as every eye turned on him. He wondered if this was the best idea but committed, even as he saw one person in particular with smoky eyes. Famar, as the overlapped auras indicated. It wasn¡¯t like anything he¡¯d ever seen as two names, the man¡¯s and Ashier¡¯s, projected from the same stark gray aura.

    He steadily identified everyone visible, taking three times as long as Hunter would have. Everyone he¡¯d mentioned to the Tyrant yesterday was there, even Willow. She looked rougher than when he¡¯d last seen her at the Sun Spire landing, but considering what she¡¯d been through, there was a way she held herself that told him it hadn¡¯t broken her. It also meant that Ashier either didn¡¯t know she was part of the group that tried to destroy the region¡¯s Spoke, or the air gestalt had some mercy in them. Silora was conscious as well and sat at the restaurant that opened into the courtyard, steadily drinking from a variety of containers around her.

    He¡¯d interrupted some kind of conversation between Ashier, Gtoll, Gordon and Qess of Farthest Run, as well as a handful of Clerics from different churches. Khiat was standing under the shade provided by awnings that had been stretched over the gap between the roofs, and Thomas was at a distance from Silora but the closest of his friends to her. He shot Daniel a wild gaze that was difficult to interrupt, though the Fate factored into it as his eyes flashed to her.

    Rorshawd was nowhere in sight, and the aura Daniel had had on him had disappeared after he¡¯d gone to sleep. Even without the dragon¡¯s presence, Daniel found his confidence slipping slightly against the larger crowd. He was outnumbered and outgunned without any experience to back up his bravado. Daniel called upon Hunter¡¯s echo again and puffed out his chest.

    ¡°Daniel, what¡¯s going on?¡± Thomas asked as he went to him first.

    ¡°I¡¯m getting us out of here.¡±

    ¡°What if I don¡¯t want to go!?¡± Thomas whispered fiercely and then gestured to someone at the bar a few seats from Silora. ¡°What did you do?¡±

    ¡°I told them I was leaving and who I wanted to go with me.¡±

    ¡°You told them to get me and her? Daniel, gods, do you know what you¡¯re doing?¡±

    ¡°If I just rolled over, we¡¯d all be stuck here and you¡¯d get yourself killed.¡± He didn¡¯t elaborate on that as both knew what he was talking about. ¡°What about Quala? Do you want her coming here to find you after she hears what happened?¡±

    ¡°So we leave everyone here to them?¡± Thomas gritted his teeth but otherwise kept his body language outwardly calm. ¡°They¡¯re evil!¡±

    ¡°We might need them. Something changed this morning,¡± Daniel quickly added. ¡°Another Collapse has started. That might be what they¡¯re talking about, but I have no idea how-¡° He stopped talking as Thomas turned around and walked towards the bar. ¡°What are you doing?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t even know if you¡¯re really Daniel,¡± Thomas shot back, hostility entering his voice. ¡°You show back up after a god takes you, people say you were throwing around real lightning, and after everything you¡¯ve told me and everything you¡¯ve done?¡± Thomas shook his head. ¡°Why are you talking to me? It¡¯s not like you¡¯ve listened to anything I¡¯ve said.¡±

    ¡°Approach, Daniel Brant,¡± the Proxy called over to him, stopping Daniel from following his friend. The use of his last name caught him by surprise until he realized Rorshawd could have just told Ashier what it was. Whether he¡¯d told them anything else about him, and whether they¡¯d believed it, wasn¡¯t obvious. ¡°It seems you have saved us some time, coming here unprompted.¡±

    Daniel dragged himself through the sand of the courtyard, feeling every eye on him once more. ¡°Are you going to let me go?¡±

    The Tyrant carefully appraised him and seemed to gleam something. ¡°You were warned as well. A time of great peril is upon us.¡±

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Daniel said simply. ¡°You seem like you have this region covered.¡±

    ¡°Perhaps, but what you propose is reckless. You will be exposed for a week at least getting to the border, and you will be taking valuable people with you. The city as it is, I can¡¯t afford to send anyone to guard you as they would be exposed on the way back.¡±

    Or they¡¯d just go to Threst too, Daniel thought. ¡°So what are you saying?¡±

    ¡°You lost the majority of your team during the siege, and by all accounts, you supported them, not the other way around. The Hunting Guild logbook notes ¡®Evalyn Lasial¡¯ as leader of Wings of Craft.¡± Ashier used Famar¡¯s hand to close their journal dramatically. ¡°I lack confidence in your ability to survive the desert.¡±

    ¡°Ask Rorshawd who shot out his eye. I can take care of myself.¡±

    ¡°I have indeed asked for those details. There were more shielding you in that struggle.¡± Ashier nodded to those around them, and the Clerics and Farthest Run stepped towards the sides of the building. Gordon gave him an uneasy look but didn¡¯t say anything. Ashier gestured towards Gtoll when they stood alone in the center of the courtyard. ¡°I have also heard two of your fallen team members fought against my new Commander. It seems he is adept at assessing combat strength, at least amongst the duskers. If you want your freedom, you¡¯ll find him standing in your way.¡±

    Gtoll towered over Daniel. The Berserker was like Kob in that their natural size had outstripped the average of their race. It was probably a power from the class, and if so it made Gtoll as imposing as Kob too. The giant looked down on Daniel without any aggression. ¡°You would be safe here. You can train here.¡±

    ¡°How do you expect my team to beat a level 5?¡± Daniel asked, the unfairness of the request evident in the strain of his voice.

    ¡°Not your team. Just you.¡± Ashier held out an arm to the assembled crowd. ¡°Many saw you defeat the one commanding the siege, if not directly then by the storm you summoned. The gods have shown you favor. All I ask is you demonstrate that power again. Alleviate my concerns, and I have no issue with your departure.¡±

    Can I do it? Daniel thought, sizing up Gtoll. The image of Kob superimposed onto the dusker¡¯s, and the thought of four arms picking him up and tearing him apart with the strength to charge up a mountain made him shudder. Even the defiance in Hunter¡¯s echo was guiding him to flee rather than fight this unwinnable battle. He still asked for more information, hoping there was some kind of Gadriel-clause on the duel. ¡°This isn¡¯t to the death, is it? How would this work?¡±

    ¡°You have Regeneration, as does Gtoll.¡±

    Fuck.

    ¡°I am confident grievous injury can be healed after enough time. Otherwise, your only restriction would be that you remain here where I could help guide your development.¡± Ashier wasn¡¯t talking like this was as impossible as it seemed to Daniel. In fact, if he could call down lightning, he¡¯d say the fight was in his favor. The monsters of the Thormundz were a testament to the fact that natural lightning was far more powerful than the magically generated kind. The only problem was that he couldn¡¯t do that anymore, and Ashier wouldn¡¯t know that.

    This was the perfect move the Tyrant could have made to find that out. Can I do this? Daniel asked himself again, looking around. Khiat was the only dusker here, he could blow up the tarp above him and- no, Gtoll had been standing in the sun on top of the Eye when he¡¯d arrived. There was no way to get in a cheap kill, not that he wanted to end the Berserker anyway. Maybe I don¡¯t have to win, he considered. I just need to show I¡¯m strong enough and say the lightning powers are extremely costly to use.

    ¡°Ok.¡± Daniel turned and gestured to the side walls to Khare, who¡¯d stuck by him.

    ¡°B-brutal.¡± There was the slightest hesitation in the creaking words that belied the fear.

    Gtoll seemed surprised but not completely so. Ashier nodded when he checked, the Berserker then grabbing the ax off his back. The ax taller than Daniel. It could cut him in two no problem. ¡°You are a ranged attacker. We will start at opposite ends.¡± Gtoll¡¯s footsteps thundered as everything suddenly sped up. Daniel was stuck in place, the reality of what he¡¯d talked himself into catching up to him. What was he doing?

    No cages, he thought, though it was almost like how Hunter thought to him while possessing his body. He probed that part of his mind hoping it had grown or shown any sign of changing, but it was still the static, frozen image influenced by the last moments of his friend¡¯s life. Daniel grabbed three of the blast marbles from his pouch and Grew Feathers across his arms, drawing immediate interest from the avianoids in the crowd. The ability was distinct from Grow Wings in that the basic shape of his arm didn¡¯t change, and they all nodded when it became clear he hadn¡¯t appropriated their racial power somehow.

    He closed his hand over the marbles and tried using Scatter Shot on all of them, but felt the mana flow to just one. At the far end of the courtyard, Daniel observed everyone else moving into doorways or side areas, clearing out the main space. Khiat was looking between him and Gtoll, the chitin of her face almost drooping at the sight. Thomas sat at the bar and looked on distantly, arms crossed except when he took a drink. Four seats over, Silora wasn¡¯t paying any attention. Finally, Willow looked from out of the crowd, whatever was in her eyes escaping Daniel¡¯s ability to define.

    There were about a hundred meters between the giant and Daniel, far longer than he would be able to throw the marble. His feathers wouldn¡¯t be as effective at this range either, especially considering how defensive his opponent was. He just leveled, Daniel thought, mind still working on overdrive to find any chance of victory. Berserkers have an advancement penalty to dexterity, so that¡¯s probably his weakest attribute. He¡¯s smart, and I doubt he has more than one degree of level disparity, but it should be there. If Lograve at the start of level 4 had struggled to advance once per day, it was unlikely this dusker had managed to get all of his attributes to 50 even if they¡¯d been at 49 the night he¡¯d fought Tak and Hunter.

    ¡°Begin, or I will,¡± Gtoll intoned from across the courtyard. ¡°You may surrender at any time.¡±

    As Daniel considered the offer as a creeping sense of helplessness closed over him, preventing his legs from moving. In the next moment, he was bearing his teeth in a fury he couldn¡¯t explain, other than it was an abject refusal at being trapped again. How many times had he been kidnapped in this city? It wasn¡¯t going to happen again. If I have to go through you to get Hunter back, then I will. He looked at his hand which was uncovered by feathers and changed it for just a moment, making his arm appear completely avian. I¡¯m getting you back Hunter. Whatever it takes.

    Daniel gave one last look at the Tyrant now floating up in the air in their true form like an emperor over a colosseum. Steeling himself, he Jumped forward and committed himself to the fight.

 Chapter 166: Oath of Memory

    The tarp above him limited how high Daniel could Jump, though he still had ten or so meters to work with. His goal wasn¡¯t to get above Gtoll¡¯s reach anyway but get in range of his feathers. He knew from watching the earlier fight that Gtoll¡¯s carapace plates were far hardier than the flesh underneath, though Tak had struggled to injure Gtoll while the Berserker ignored him.

    Neither did he have a way to shut down Gtoll¡¯s Regeneration. If Khiat was by his side the few fire arrows she had left might have done something, but this was a strict one on one fight. The lightning in his marbles might burn in their explosions and give him a chance, though there were less than twelve in his bag.

    At the apex of his flight, Daniel unleashed the feathers of both arms while activating Snap Shot. The mana draw of the ability only counted one activation instead of triggering for every feather, mercifully sparing his reserves. The storm of sharp feathers bedecked in the same colors as his phone rained towards the Berserker who didn¡¯t try to dodge them. The two areas he targeted were the largest gaps between plates on Gtoll¡¯s chest, and most of the volley got in between them.

    To his credit they stuck in, but just as quickly began to be pushed out as the giant¡¯s Regeneration repaired the damage. ¡°Not strong enough,¡± Gtoll remarked, adopting the impassive voice he¡¯d used to judge Tak. The Berserker slowly began to walk forward, the axe trailing him as he held it in one hand. ¡°Is the storm gathering?¡± He looked up and shook his head. ¡°You will need it.¡±

    Daniel rolled the blast marble between his fingers and made a decision. He charged forward, closing half of the distance remaining and activating Snap Shot again. The pale green marble flew threw the air, not slowing down all as a lightning bolt building up charge would have. The wind tried to intercept the small object but Snap Shot had factored that in, and it impacted Gtoll where the feathers had pierced.

    Lightning flashed on impact and a small shower of ghostly blast marbles radiated from the impact point, spreading to an area about the size of a hand. The initial damage and spread wasn¡¯t impressive because it was based on the damage of the attack. Then, the blast marble and its copies exploded as the lightning damage from the affix triggered the spineshard¡¯s explosion threshold.

    Gtoll rocked back from the hit and stretched that section of his carapace to inspect the wound, allowing Daniel to Jump back and regain his distance. ¡°Artificer, yes.¡± The ax swung through the air a few times, Daniel feeling it tremble from the disturbance across the courtyard. It would cut him in two without a problem, and he doubted it was enchanted. Worse still, Gtoll didn¡¯t seem too bothered by the blast marble, and he didn¡¯t have enough to kite around and whittle the giant down.

    The disappointment was evident in Ashier¡¯s cloud eyes as they watched him. The air gestalt was perhaps more sensitive to the atmosphere than the Berserker three levels higher than them and could tell no thunderstorm was approaching. Even if Daniel was using the powers of a rare class combined with ones he¡¯d stolen from Totem Warrior, it wasn¡¯t enough. He could get as much leverage as he could, but his lever was going to snap under the load.

    A mark suddenly appeared over Gtoll¡¯s head and flashed red, the sign that Khare had triggered Called Shot. He held his breath, waiting for someone to protest, but it seemed the bond power had gone unnoticed. Daniel did everything he could not to acknowledge Khare, but still smiled. It probably wouldn¡¯t change anything, but the gesture gave him a little more hope.

    Daniel took out one of the smaller arm bow bolts from his bag, still having some supply of them left. He only carried a few lightning bolt versions but knew their maximum range well. Without a crossbow to project them he couldn¡¯t deliver as much force, which would affect Scatter Shot, but it was something. He couldn¡¯t hide the light that flashed over the ammunition this time and Gtoll wasn¡¯t impressed. ¡°Only the power of the gods can save you. Call upon them.¡±

    He did take one moment to throw a half-hearted prayer to the Octyrrum in case that would work, but no massive influx of mana came in response. ¡°You¡¯ve felt the explosion that small ball did. Imagine what a full bolt can do. Am I really not strong enough to survive the desert?¡±

    Ashier flowed back into their Proxy for a moment to respond, the motion only taking seconds. ¡°It is not just for you to survive but to direct mortals to follow the will of the gods. If you cannot match any who would challenge you, what is to stop heretics from ending you once you are out of my domain?¡±

    The Artificer briefly considered throwing the bolt their way but knew that would reduce his lifespan to seconds. He threw the bolt at Gtoll instead once he¡¯d gotten in range, Jumping back toward the ever shrinking space he had behind him. As he did so, Gtoll battered the bolt away and it exploded midair, the chained ghost ammunition hitting the Berserker without apparent effect.

    This third exchange was enough to satisfy Gtoll that nothing would change, and he charged towards Daniel. He was moving fast enough to intercept him before Daniel landed, and with Jump still active he was locked out of abilities. The ax flung out, aimed at one of his arms.

    Hunter! he cried out mentally, screaming at the echo to do something. He felt the slightest ripple in his mana flow but couldn¡¯t discount the effect of his own will as a cause. He certainly didn¡¯t get a Dodge Roll stacked on top of his movement power, and the ax cut his left arm clean off just below the shoulder. Gtoll¡¯s other hand then swatted him into the ground.

    Daniel landed as blood sprayed out, though its rapid flow quickly ceased. His level 2 endurance was putting in work, but he also couldn¡¯t just ignore a wound like that. It was worse than when that thief had shot him, the pain and the sensation of the missing limb paralyzing him. Fear soon layered over that as the Berserker activated a power, bringing into being the same presence that had stopped any from interfering with his last bout.

    Gtoll assessed Daniel for a moment to make sure he wasn¡¯t in mortal danger before his slightly overextended joints relaxed. ¡°You can barely fight. You are clever, and your body is durable. Well-trained endurance and intelligence, the hallmarks of your class almost certainly. You neglect everything else.¡± Gtoll picked apart his battle prowess as easily as he had Daniel. ¡°It is not weakness to fight with allies, but it is not strength to rely on them.¡±

    Daniel looked at the stump of his arm. Despite knowing it would grow back eventually, the loss of it mortified him. He tried to pick himself up but the intensity of the fear effect increased. ¡°Stay down. Unless you can defeat something as simple as fear, there is no point to this battle.¡±

    ¡°I¡­¡± Daniel choked out but didn¡¯t get any further. His body was hurt so deeply he was struggling to stay awake. Blood loss, still ongoing, was making him lightheaded on top of everything else. His vision faded and his mana flow slowed. His reserves hadn¡¯t suffered for the loss his body took but it seemed the damage would make it harder to use powers. His mind turned to how weak Hunter had been after his side had been blasted open. Having saved him after the ringcat had been so close to death would have made the true loss unbelievable if he hadn¡¯t felt the bond break.

    He could hear Hunter¡¯s last words in his mind as if they¡¯d been spun from his own thoughts. I will never forget you. Daniel struggled to lift his head to see Gtoll¡¯s face, wanting to look at the one who¡¯d killed his dream in the eyes, forcing some of the world to remain visible amidst the growing darkness.

    Still, pleading wouldn¡¯t do anything. If he somehow reached the Berserker, he¡¯d get shut down again. He began to breathe faster and the Berserker glanced aside to the Clerics, one of his hands pointing to a healer. The crowd was relaxing with grim or disappointed looks on most of their faces. The fight was over and his future was-

    No. The force of that word in his mind echoed his refusal to let any more of his friends die. Gtoll didn¡¯t notice what was happening within Daniel as his own seventh sense detected the turbid mana flow suddenly roil at that word. He didn¡¯t fill with the power of a thunderstorm as instead, something else happened. Daniel reached for Hunter¡¯s echo once more, but for the first time he didn¡¯t ask anything of it. It was a dead thing, a memory. He could use it for inspiration but nothing more.

    Daniel gazed with his mind¡¯s eye at all he had left of his friend and felt something within him begin to push against a barrier. Crystallize into a final shape. Everything outside was forgotten as he took the memories of his friend and whispered magic truer than this world¡¯s to them. Every word in his mind fought not to be uttered and he felt the weight of what he was doing, but he persisted. I will never be weak again, Daniel thought, the words rippling in his mind like he¡¯d spoken an incantation. I will do anything to get you back. I will never forget you.

    Daniel¡¯s phone lit up in his bag of holding as half a dozen notifications came through, and then the light died as the Focus grew inert. At the same time, Daniel¡¯s view of the world shifted slightly. The darker areas of the shaded courtyard were clearer, and his entire body briefly felt off before that sensation faded. He vaguely knew what was happening, but the way he¡¯d fallen prevented him from seeing any part of his body. Gtoll, more concerned with calling over a healer, still noticed nothing. What¡¯s more, as Daniel¡¯s mind caught up to the changes, everything seemed so simple.

    Epiphanies struck him as he felt multiple powers come under his control. Other people had told him they¡¯d just gotten the name, but in his mind he could see a description not unlike what his Encyclopedia granted him. He barely took in the words, skipping around as his intent was more towards the giant standing over him.

    <hr>

    Mantle of the Hunter (Feat¡­ ss the Power to sharpen the¡­.

    Intrinsic Focus Enhancement¡­ the nature of your focus cannot chan...

    ? Fusion Aspect¡­

    ? ¡­ightening this function does ¡­fter the effect ends.

    ? Natural Weapons¡­

    ? Mana Condu¡­

    ? Ferocious Heal¡­

    <hr>

    Details didn¡¯t seem important right now. The fear was crushing him against the ground, but as he pushed against it with his willpower, the weight shifted. Another epiphany fired.

    <hr>

    Fearless (Feat¡­

    <hr>

    How and why he was receiving powers didn¡¯t matter, although Daniel distantly registered the loss of every Artificer power he¡¯d once had. It wasn¡¯t that they were suppressed or turned off because he¡¯d lost his Focus, they were just gone. It¡¯d been a few seconds since the first change and people had noticed whatever had happened to him. Thomas spat out the sip of water he¡¯d taken while Marky, the Druid of Farthest Run, had grown completely pale. Willow had a hand covering her beak, shock and something else on her face. Gtoll clued in but too late.

    Daniel Jumped up. Artificer powers aside, everything from Totem Warrior was still active. The Berserker reached for him and would have closed a fist over his opponent, but he just missed. Even high level Blessed entered a period of relative weakness just after leveling while they brought the rest of their attributes up to par, and the dusker was fractions of a second too slow.

    Teeth bared, Daniel landed on the face of his enemy, plunged his hands into the eye sockets with more force than he¡¯d imagined necessary, and Jumped again. Gtoll grunted with the pain as Daniel dragged what he¡¯d caught with him. Gtoll was strong, sure, and had Regeneration. So had Rorshawd, and the dragon¡¯s eye hadn¡¯t recovered by the end of the long battle before Murdon had hit him with necrosis. The reasoning made sense to Daniel, but he only became consciously aware of the choice afterward as he flicked the viscous material off his hands. It was like and unlike the times Rorshawd took over. Someone far better at fighting was driving him, but this time it wasn¡¯t another person.

    Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

    The Berserker let out a few sharp exhalations as he probed the bleeding sockets. He could still hear Daniel by the way his head turned as he circled, but the Berserker didn¡¯t react. It seemed he was trying to make sense of what had just happened. Several in the crowd either aimed at Daniel or stepped forward to intercept him, but Ashier raised their voice. ¡°No! This is not what I expected, but it is what I was waiting to see.¡±

    Daniel¡¯s improved vision picked up on the flesh of Gtoll¡¯s face repairing itself, but the eyes and the chitin he¡¯d torn away were taking longer to recover. That was his target, the face. The armor of his prey was weakest there and couldn¡¯t collapse to trap him as he went for the space between the plates. It was a tall target and he was far outmatched, but it was a chance.

    ¡°Many Hands.¡± Gtoll incanted, doubling the amount of arms he had to work with. His breathing became more erratic and his head briefly turned to the Tyrant. ¡°Saint, I, hrsssh, stop me if I go too far.¡± A second burst of mana erupted from the dusker as he bellowed so loud the air vibrated. Everyone except the Tyrant pressed themselves against walls or the floor as the fear aura was fully unleashed. Daniel didn¡¯t feel it, though he was backing up now and considering his options.

    Regeneration had dropped back to level 1 for no apparent reason, and as he heightened it he felt less mana drain than normal. Testing out the new powers he found he could also heighten three of them, the functions of his new Focus. He did so, not having too much else to recklessly spend mana on. The mana within him coursed with a vibrant energy as it was directed, and Daniel grinned wickedly at the feeling. If hunting had been like this from the start, he would have never stopped.

    His grin spread as he saw Gtoll was less coordinated after the ability he¡¯d just used. That would make it easier to- Daniel threw himself to the side as Gtoll planted two hands on the ground and surged forwards, using the other two to swing the ax. The edge missed him but the thicker wooden haft struck his shoulder, the strength of the blow sending him spinning away. That light touch was enough to throw him into a wall, and the adobe construction cracked easily from the impact.

    His healing power started to work immediately, though the slight twinge spread faster over the affected areas and he thought a slight bone crack had sealed in seconds. He had only that long to dodge a follow-up strike, a fire growing along the edge as if the giant were swinging it from orbit into the atmosphere. Daniel Jumped away, feeling the axe cut and burn something he wasn¡¯t familiar with, some new aspect of his body he had no time to think about. He used to be so concerned about having time to think when all he needed was whatever he had now.

    Daniel continued to avoid the bull in the makeshift ring for a time, hoping whatever abilities Gtoll used were costly enough that he could wear down his mana supply. The times the Berserker used the fire attack or made the earth shake with some disruptive effect were perilous, and these new instincts didn¡¯t let Daniel escape unharmed. He was singed and cut in multiple places. Without the improvement to his healing speed he might have passed out or succumbed to his wounds, but the part of a foot Gtoll had lopped off was mostly back to its general shape. The pain, like the fear Gtoll was constantly trying to overwhelm him with, seemed so distant that it barely existed.

    The first risk Daniel took came when Gtoll paused as a charge would have led him into the Tyrant¡¯s vicinity. Those who hadn¡¯t run for it had still vacated the courtyard, save for the Ashier. The Berserker controlled himself for a moment before he struck the one he was bound to, and Daniel darted across the ground to test his new weapons on the dusker¡¯s legs. To his brief dismay, the plates of the dusker¡¯s outer armor moved on their own to protect the Berserker and he lost a finger as it was crushed. The other hand wasn¡¯t able to scratch the plates. Gtoll hadn¡¯t been this tough during the sneak attack and must have heightened features of his own to improve his defensiveness.

    I can¡¯t cut through him, Daniel thought, the first coherent words to come from the maelstrom of the battle high he¡¯d entered. The need to get through that armor struck a chord in his mind, but unlike earlier, there was no immediate epiphany. Something was trying to help him, but he had to fully realize it before he could use whatever hidden power this was.

    Gtoll stomped just as Daniel¡¯s foot hit the ground and he rolled his ankle. It seemed whatever rage he¡¯d entered was wearing off as his movements became tactical again. The giant was worthy of his higher level and Daniel had no doubt that he would have died already if not for what the changes had given him and the level disparity weakening his opponent. The blindness he¡¯d inflicted contributed as well, though not as much as he¡¯d hoped.

    As Daniel lay sprawled there was a chance for it to end, either by another maiming or the Berserker growing tired of this and finishing it for good. Instead, he faced the Tyrant again. ¡°Is this enough?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    Gtoll sighed and hefted his ax on one of his upper shoulders, bringing a temporary pause to the fight. Daniel shouldn¡¯t have let up as he was giving the giant time to regrow his eyes but as he¡¯d determined, blindness wasn¡¯t that big of a factor. He¡¯d withheld a strike, so Daniel would repay the gesture. ¡°What did you do? This is no battle trance I have seen. You fight completely differently, not unlike that avianoid, but you are still controlled. I would expect this from a Totem Warrior, but it feels different. Apart from that class.¡±

    ¡°You have grown slow,¡± Daniel answered, noticing a slight difference in his voice and feeling another ping in the empty gap in his memory. Unlike the elevator this seemed stronger, something he could latch onto, but now wasn¡¯t the time. He let it fade away. ¡°I have seen Berserkers die from that.¡±

    ¡°A weakness of my class,¡± Gtoll acknowledged. ¡°But I am still stronger than you.¡±

    Daniel opened and closed his hands as they talked, on the cusp of something. The power was focused there as he¡¯d expected and it felt like he should be grabbing something from the empty air, but there was nothing. ¡°For now.¡± He looked at his arm and saw that a cut that had gone halfway through was almost fully healed. It was the first time he¡¯d gotten an inkling of how much of his past self he¡¯d thrown away, but he blanked that out before it cost him his edge. ¡°I think I¡¯m healing faster than you.¡±

    ¡°Speed is not everything.¡± Gtoll blinked as cloudy orbs took root in his face. They weren¡¯t functional and appeared quite vulnerable, but the hard part of getting them back was done. The two faced off, Daniel with his arms slightly spread to the side and nine and a half fingers splayed. Gtoll remained still, his ax in an unreadied position. The wild energy in Daniel wanted him to strike out, but he sensed something was off. Gtoll has shown maybe ten powers overall, and he¡¯d had nearly forty himself before undergoing this change. The rate of power acquisition did slow towards the later levels, but Gtoll would still have a large repertoire to pick from.

    Daniel summoned a single feather on his arm and threw it out. A meter from the giant, it was cut in half. ¡°You can¡¯t overcome this gap, not without the power of the gods.¡± He nodded to Daniel, the pupil of one eye forming. ¡°This must be of them, but it is not enough.¡±

    Physical attack, Daniel assessed as he watched the feather fall. Hunter¡¯s Flash Jaunt could get past whatever that is, but- As soon as he thought it, that power was made available to him. It wasn¡¯t what his hands wanted to do, instead, it was like the power had been strapped onto him artificially. Experiencing so many awakenings in so little time, even this false one, made Daniel regret leaving his seventh sense to rot earlier on. By the feeling it gave, there was no wonder people thought of powers as gifts from the gods. But this wasn¡¯t from them.

    ¡°You should-¡° Daniel flashed through Gtoll when he began to speak, grimacing at the mana cost of the ability before the sharp smile returned. He¡¯d crossed through the blade barrier without a scratch, though it was hard to tell since all of his senses had been blocked during transit. By the look of Gtoll¡¯s stance he¡¯d tried to stop Daniel¡¯s movement with the blunt head of his ax before he would hit the defensive aura, only to pass straight through and overbalance.

    The fifth rush of awakening hit Daniel as he looked down and saw his hands had indeed grabbed something from wherever he¡¯d been. They glowed with a soft purple light and looked slightly translucent. He didn¡¯t think about the name that entered his head as he saw the Berserker begin to recover.

    He activated Flash Jaunt again, feeling that whatever his mana flow had done didn¡¯t block an actively channeled power, as if he¡¯d cast Scatter Shot on them. Setting his course, Daniel winked out of existence. This time, he felt his hands impact something and the momentum almost halted, until something gave and he carried forward. He appeared closer on the other side than he should have gone but it didn¡¯t matter.

    Gtoll had a hand to his neck, covering where a chunk of flesh had been torn out when Daniel had grabbed on with two hands mid-flight. He¡¯d cut at least a decimeter deep and could reasonably decapitate Gtoll with enough of those swings. Daniel focused and pulled more of the energy into his hands as he activated the ability once more. He didn¡¯t need to be in the strange ethereal space to access it, only needed the initial experience to awaken the power. ¡°You done?¡±

    ¡°H-how?¡± The dusker looked truly shaken. ¡°What kind of attack was that?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll roll over if you have anything that can hit me when I¡¯m like that. Do you?¡± He stared into the dusker¡¯s eyes, which were now formed enough to make the gesture worthwhile. It was entirely possible, since Mark had such a power. There were no more nudges in his mind, no more cards to play. He had enough mana to make use of this combo again, though both abilities were hungry enough to starve him after a few turns. Gtoll could adapt, but if he couldn¡¯t block, Daniel could just aim for the head next time and hope to pierce through to the brain.

    ¡°Show me that again,¡± the Tyrant commanded, keenly looking at Daniel after seeing Gtoll¡¯s shock. A flick of the Proxy¡¯s head made it clear what they meant, and they added, ¡°Do whatever you can to block the blow without killing him.¡±

    ¡°I will,¡± Gtoll gravely said, though it was clear that among the vast powers at his disposal, there was nothing to counter incorporeality. Kob had been the same way against the frost strangler.

    ¡°I¡¯m going for your upper right arm,¡± Daniel said confidently, salting the wound he was about to inflict. He waited a few seconds and then activated his ability, sending him screaming through the void. Gtoll¡¯s mass slowed him almost to the point of stopping. Just before he let the energy in his hands dissipate to carry him forward, he pushed off while still blind. The ax appeared right next to him as reality returned, and it would have cut another arm off if not for that last touch.

    Reacting immediately, Daniel charged more energy into his hands and used Flash Jaunt again, his speed not suffering as much as he went through the side of the leg. On the other side, he saw Gtoll go down on one knee as a good chunk of the ankle was missing. Healing, but it seemed the oversized frame of the Berserker took more time to mend once enough damage had been dealt.

    His eyes shone as he lowered his guard, projecting confidence though he could only do that one more time. ¡°Want me to fight Rorshawd too? I¡¯d enjoy that.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s enough, Gtoll.¡± The fear aura everyone else was under released and there were gasps from around the courtyard. It was too much for the circumstances, Daniel knew. Gtoll had him dead multiple times and would have won despite how much he¡¯d held back if he¡¯d had anything to counter the cheap trick Daniel¡¯d developed.

    No, Daniel hadn¡¯t really beaten Gtoll, but he¡¯d done enough to win his freedom. Cheating isn¡¯t going to give me what I need. Not after today. I have to get stronger.

    ¡°One last time, what are you?¡± Ashier asked, interrupting his thoughts. ¡°This form, it isn¡¯t what I would expect from a servant of the gods.¡±

    ¡°You know who took me right after I won this city for you?¡± Daniel asked loudly and rhetorically. ¡°That¡¯s all the answer you should need.¡±

    Whispers of Hammer, god of transmutation, echoed and the Tyrant nodded. ¡°I see. You truly would be wasted here. I never break my word, and you have done as I asked.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re letting me go with everyone I asked for?¡± Daniel clarified, wanting the Tyrant to say it in front of all assembled.

    ¡°Yes. You are all free to leave. May the Octyrrum bless your path.¡± The Tyrant didn¡¯t sound happy as they spoke, but stuck with the decision they¡¯d made.

    Daniel fully relaxed and started walking towards where Thomas had fallen out of his seat some minutes ago. He passed Gtoll on the way and looked to the side. ¡°Get something enchanted. That ax is just metal. You¡¯ll need it if you meet someone like me again.¡± It was something he¡¯d figured out after being hit with it so many times, not feeling any appreciable mana in the weapon itself along with the pain.

    The giant¡¯s hand closed over one of his legs, taking him completely by surprise. The pressure lasted only for a moment, though. ¡°Take care of young Khiat.¡±

    Daniel¡¯s eyes burned as he spoke, though they also held some respect for the dusker. ¡°I will never lose another friend again, you can be sure of that.¡± He kept walking, and when he reached the Cleric, his voice softened. ¡°Thomas, I can¡¯t do anything about your brother or father. I don¡¯t think you can either. Come with me to Threst.¡±

    ¡°What did you do?¡± the Cleric asked as if Daniel had just slaughtered everyone in the courtyard.

    ¡°Thomas, it¡¯s still me,¡± Daniel said, although even he wasn¡¯t convinced of that.

    ¡°Well, yeah, obviously.¡± Daniel raised an eye and the Cleric gestured back frantically with both hands. ¡°Do you even know what you look like?¡±

    ¡°Not exactly.¡± Now able to let those thoughts distract him, Daniel hunted for a mirror or any particularly reflective surface, and then remembered his phone. It didn¡¯t light up when he tapped it or thought toward it, but he didn¡¯t need the light for this. As he stared down, he saw an echo of Hunter staring back.

    The nickname that the Cleric had dropped snuck its way back in amidst the incredulity. ¡°Guy, you¡¯ve got a tail.¡±

 Chapter 167: Making an Exit

    Khiat trembled as she scrambled to prepare, having less than an hour to do so. She had managed to stay and watch the duel despite the full fury of the hero of her people unleashed on the space. The fear effect had even reached into the main Guild, though her family had been far enough to escape it. Her parents stood in the room with her looking as conflicted as she felt.

    Xtalo, wearing the travel armor he¡¯d needed for the monthly trips to Aughal, was the first to break the silence. ¡°This must be part of the gods¡¯ plans. I-I can¡¯t make sense of this any other way.¡±

    ¡°You were given a choice, Khiat,¡± her mother reminded her. ¡°You don¡¯t have to do this. Aughal has a Tyrant again, but are they worse than what we had before?¡±

    ¡°Ytaya kept our people¡¯s interests in mind, until she joined that madness. Perhaps the artifacts Armafus left were tainted.¡±

    Khiat checked her quivers, making sure every arrow was in place. Special care was taken with the ancestral arrows recovered after the siege, made from the chitin of those few Blessed her village had awakened over the years. It was a tradition her people observed across Aughal, though it remained to be seen if it would continue with everyone returning to the city. She knew she wouldn¡¯t be here to find out. ¡°They gave so much to help us. To help me. If the rest of¡­¡± She paused for a moment before a surety entered her. ¡°If the rest of my team is out there, I can¡¯t be the only one not looking for them.¡±

    ¡°Threst is dangerous for our people, despite your power to withstand the sun, daughter,¡± Xtalo warned. ¡°Still, I support whatever future you want, even if it takes you from us during these dangerous times.¡± He placed a hand on her shoulder, Achia doing the same on the other side.

    ¡°Will you be alright?¡± Khiat asked as they stood in front of her, the shaking in her body subsiding.

    ¡°Of course we will be, Khiat,¡± her mother reassured. ¡°This Tyrant has proven kind to those who believe as we do. They could have left us to die but accepted us without question. Don¡¯t be afraid for us.¡±

    The words did make her feel better, and yet at the same time there was a creeping doubt in her mind based on what she¡¯d learned about how Spokes worked. Was the Tyrant¡¯s control of the region slowly infecting her parent¡¯s minds? She desperately wanted to take them with her, but if what she¡¯d heard of Threst was true, there was almost no escape from the sun. Her path was as unclear as ever, save for one thing. If she stayed with the creature Daniel had become, she would become powerful, and, maybe, rich enough to afford protection for them. And she couldn¡¯t refuse if there was any chance she could help save her friends.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be back as soon as I can,¡± she promised as the three closed together for a hug.

    ¡­

    Khare lasted an admirable minute before the gestalt ran over, even morphing their lower body to legs to give them a little extra speed. ¡°Grafted!¡± they exclaimed, looking over Daniel. He was doing much the same to himself.

    Daniel brushed at his arm as he looked within himself. His Artificer Focus wasn¡¯t there to tell him everything, and yet it had been relying on that which had made him weaker than he was supposed to be. ¡°It¡¯s a bond,¡± he answered, the voice an almost perfect average of his old one and how Hunter¡¯s incantation sounded when coming from him. Deeper and a touch more feral, though still mostly human.

    ¡°Who did you bond to?¡± Thomas asked, appearing to fear what the answer could be.

    Daniel thought for a moment before answering. ¡°Not a person. Hunter¡¯s memory. I didn¡¯t know what I was doing at the moment, but it¡¯s obvious in hindsight.¡±

    ¡°You can¡¯t form a bond to a memory.¡±

    ¡°Maybe you can now,¡± Daniel said pensively, remembering the information he¡¯d gotten about the Collapse earlier this morning. ¡°Do you need to pack up anything?¡±

    ¡°So we¡¯re just ignoring this?¡± Thomas gestured to him again. ¡°We¡¯re ignoring all of this?¡±

    Daniel sighed, the sound including a faint hiss. ¡°I need more time to think about it than I have now. I¡¯m not waiting around to get into it and have the Tyrant change their mind.¡±

    ¡°Daniel, if what you¡¯re saying is true, that¡¯s a one-sided bond. They can be¡­¡± Thomas stared at him and then shook his head, dropping the point. ¡°I¡¯ll run to the Divine Quarter and get a few things.¡± A man Daniel faintly recognized opened one of the interior doors of the restaurant and walked over to where the Fate had swooned, struggling under the weight of an almost comically large pack. ¡°Wait, he shouldn¡¯t be lifting that much right now.¡± Thomas stood, momentarily putting aside what might be a six on his personal weirdness scale, as Daniel continued trying not to mentally engage with the changes. It felt like how the language power had at first, it worked so long as he didn¡¯t look too closely at what was happening. Even the pattern of his thoughts was slightly different, though not so much that he wouldn¡¯t overanalyze at rest.

    Khare followed him as he sought out Willow, the last member of his thrown together group. He needed to make sure she wanted to come, otherwise he wouldn¡¯t force her. She represented the possibility of a better chance for Hunter¡¯s return, and for a moment he warred with something inside of him as he decided that. He had said he¡¯d do anything to bring Hunter back, right? Yes, he would fight as hard as he could to make that happen, but he wouldn¡¯t lose himself doing it, not any more than he already had.

    Seeking the avianoid without the tag he¡¯d placed with Identify Creature was difficult, though Daniel was beginning to notice his smell and hearing had vastly improved. Not to Hunter¡¯s levels of absurdity, though he had a suspicion he could change that when he had time to test it. Help unexpectedly arrived as three people intercepted him. Daniel stopped as most of Farthest Run approached, and after some time Qess spoke first. ¡°Some fight.¡±

    ¡°I should have lost.¡± Daniel shrugged. ¡°He gave me too many openings and didn¡¯t take it as seriously as he could have. I should have been dead with his first swing but he cut off my arm instead.¡±

    ¡°The power that does that, where does it really come from?¡± the Druid Marky asked, eyeing Daniel warily.

    ¡°I reformed my bond with Hunter, and this happened,¡± Daniel answered simply, not seeing any reason to lie because the Druid wouldn¡¯t believe anything he said. He turned to Gordon, ending that part of the conversation. ¡°What are you doing here?¡±

    ¡°Seeing you off. Doubt we¡¯ll get another chance to talk for some time.¡± A bit of tension rose in the air as Daniel waited for him to say something about the earlier ambush and Gordon avoided the topic. ¡°The Saint wasn¡¯t lying about the roads. You¡¯ll run into at least a few monsters before Threst and there¡¯s no way they¡¯re securing this side of the border for us.¡±

    ¡°Saint?¡± Daniel asked, noticing the way he¡¯d addressed Ashier. ¡°You three made deals too?¡±

    ¡°No, we¡¯re just smart enough to tell where the wind¡¯s blowing,¡± Qess answered with a low warble. ¡°No one here is going to go up against Gtoll or that draconoid over a word.¡±

    ¡°Sure,¡± Daniel grunted as his new appendage flicked behind him, Marky¡¯s eyes following it.

    ¡°We should have been there,¡± Gordon said finally, disappointment and failure in his voice. ¡°We were rushing to meet you when the Spire started shaking apart.¡±

    ¡°Well, thanks for the warning.¡± Daniel walked away without a further word. It had occurred to him that the team was one of the best options for finding Willow, but Gtoll was right. Relying on other people was a weakness. People without any levels at all had been able to ambush him because of how much he¡¯d neglected his wisdom by letting Hunter observe the world for him.

    It turned out he was onto something, because as soon as he began earnestly seeking out Willow he had an immediate awakening.

    <hr>

    Track Creature (Ability, Wisdom, Spell, Domain: Knowledge, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to seek out the closest individual Creature of a type you are seeking for a moderate amount of Mana. The effect and accuracy scales with your wisdom and your familiarity with the target, inversely scaling with the target¡¯s Dexterity and distance from you. This is a Magical Ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression.

    <hr>

    The descriptions of his powers didn¡¯t include an exact mana cost whether they were words on his phone or in his head, though the relative measure held mostly true. A moderate cost for a level 2 ability wasn¡¯t something he could easily ignore, though at peak potential he could use it twenty or so times. He had enough left to use this at least once, and as soon as he willed it it became immediately clear where Willow was. It was as if he could see her aura without any visual indication. On a higher level monster some distance away, he doubted it would be as effective.

    These powers are helpful, Daniel noted as no one challenged his departure from the courtyard. Still, it¡¯d help to know exactly what happened when I took the bond. He had a sense, of course, but not as obvious a description of the powers that had come into his head. He thought back to those he¡¯d gotten back in the fight, fully examining them as he walked toward Willow. While it was odd how detailed they were, considering no one else he talked to had the full description in their head, it wasn¡¯t the first time he¡¯d held onto some aspect of the Encyclopedia after losing it.

    <hr>

    Mantle of the Hunter (Feature, Charisma, Domain: Universal, Aura, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to sharpen the killing instincts of yourself, and allied Creatures nearby to a lesser degree. Any number of creatures within the radius can be affected. This aura is Spiritual in nature and functions in an area of Magical Suppression.

    If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

    -

    Intrinsic Focus Enhancement (Feature, Strength, Domain: Destruction, Focus: Intrinsic, Level: 1):

    You possess the Power to enhance your body, bolstering the source of your magic. As a bearer of an intrinsic focus the nature of your Focus cannot change, but the effects of this feature function in areas of Magical Suppression.

    - Fusion Aspect: Your body permanently undergoes an Effect: Transmutation that further aligns you with the Ideals of your class. The efficiency of Attributes: Physical is slightly improved.

    - Level: 2: Further increases the efficiency of physical attributes for a modest Mana cost.

    - Natural Expert: Weapons: Natural you possess gain Enhancement: Basic of Level: 1 potency.

    - Level: 2: The potency of the enhancement increases to level 2 for a minor mana cost.

    - Mana Conduit: The Mana cost of heightening Features and Functions you possess is moderately reduced. This effect also reduces the penalty to your maximum mana from heightened features.

    - Level: 2: The mana cost reduction is further improved. This function automatically heightens upon reaching a higher level and does not cost mana to improve.

    - Ferocious Healing: Improves your body¡¯s natural Healing rate. This effect increases drastically for a brief time after you damage another Creature, scaling with the amount of damage dealt.

    - Level: 2: Improves the effect of dealing damage on your healing rate.

    -

    Fearless (Feature, Wisdom, Domain: Restoration, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to ignore Effect: Fear. You additionally gain greater resistance to hostile Effects: Mental, scaling with your wisdom.

    - Level: 2: Gained at this level, no extra benefit

    -

    Imbue Astral (Ability, Intelligence, Spell: Melee Weapon, Domain: Astral, Level: 1):

    You possess the Power to imbue your attacks with the energy of the Astral. Using a modest amount of Mana, you can empower your next melee attack with Astral Energy. This is a Magical Ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression.

    <hr>

    No major surprises, and in the heat of the moment he¡¯d only needed the general sense he¡¯d gotten. Imbue Astral was the major outlier and he did regret the loss of a searchable Encyclopedia now as he had a sense that the information behind the Astral tag could be very important. Without anyone unidentifying knowledge he gained, he should be able to see everything on topics he hadn¡¯t encountered yet.

    He found Willow by one of the windows, and it appeared she¡¯d retreated there to watch everything from a slightly safer distance. The building was cracked in other areas, but Daniel was sure the ever present but never seen Builders would handle that later. He didn¡¯t open this conversation with silence. ¡°I want you to come to Threst with me.¡±

    She didn¡¯t look at him but nodded as she continued to face the window. ¡°This is every reason I did what I did.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± he asked blankly.

    ¡°You! Look at what you were able to do.¡± Her breath trembled slightly as she turned to behold the changes. ¡°He isn¡¯t in there, is he?¡±

    ¡°Hunter¡¯s dead. This is just what I need to bring him back.¡±

    ¡°What if we had been doing this from the start?¡± Willow asked with the energy of any youth entirely convinced in their beliefs, as Daniel was reminded she was a couple years younger than him.

    ¡°You know your people tried to destroy this region, right?¡± Daniel asked, his voice straining with a sudden intensity that he explained with what he said next. ¡°Your mother killed Hunter.¡±

    She looked away and rubbed at her face, her voice betraying the emotion that was hiding beneath her courage. ¡°Then why do you want to bring me?¡±

    ¡°Do you know anything? Anything that could help me bring him back? Anyone we could ask?¡±

    ¡°No,¡± she answered, fading a little more. ¡°Everyone I was talking to before it happened, they either hate me or have become a pariah like me. One of them was killed.¡±

    He sighed, amping down the fire in him. ¡°I¡¯m sorry about your parents, and your friend.¡± Even with his new confidence he almost didn¡¯t ask the next question. ¡°You haven¡¯t seen Tlara, have you?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know if she¡¯s still alive.¡±

    ¡°She has to be. Cockroaches always survive.¡± Willow gave him a very conflicted look at that but didn¡¯t respond. ¡°The only reason I wanted to bring you at first was that you might know something about the Spiritualists that could help. I¡¯m starting to think you should come with me either way.¡± He assessed Willow again and felt a little pity for her. All of her enchanted items had been lost when she¡¯d been captured by her own mother, and after Ashier had taken over her family¡¯s holdings had been repossessed. In just a week her clothes had become bedraggled and stained in areas, and it was likely only her whole ¡®woman of the people¡¯ act that kept her going. A sheltered socialite would have fallen to pieces already. ¡°I¡¯m guessing your life isn¡¯t that great now? I keep hearing how many avianoids are in Threst, I¡¯m sure you¡¯d do fine.¡±

    She made a curious sound as air rushed into the nostrils above her beak, likely the equivalent of a sniffle, before nodding. ¡°I¡¯ve only ever wanted to make the world a better place. With everything that¡¯s happened, I don¡¯t think I can here. But I also can¡¯t fight anything without what I¡¯ve lost.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not asking you to,¡± Daniel replied, a little surprised. Then again, he hadn¡¯t been clear with his intentions aside from mentioning them a few seconds ago. ¡°At the very least your people were right about spirits. There may be a way for you to help Hunter later, you just don¡¯t know it yet. Besides, Wings of Craft is owed a lot. Assuming Threst still honors Hunter¡¯s Guild debts, there¡¯ll be enough for you to live on. This isn¡¯t charity, it¡¯s the price I¡¯m paying for the smallest chance you can help with Hunter.¡± Ok, dial it back. ¡°I know you only did what you did because you wanted to help. If you¡¯d been in on it Casia wouldn¡¯t have knocked you out and stuffed you in a mirror.¡±

    ¡°Ok.¡± Willow leaned against the windowsill. ¡°Can I ask you about what happened down there?¡±

    ¡°On the way,¡± Daniel answered evasively. ¡°I¡¯m still figuring it out too.¡±

    ¡­

    He didn¡¯t see the Tyrant again before it was time to leave. Khiat¡¯s family saw her off as the rest gathered. Apparently, the Fate¡¯s servant was healed enough to travel and Ashier didn¡¯t care about him. Rait was a mixture of subdued subservience and unease, the latter of which spiking whenever he looked at Daniel. Everyone¡¯s reaction to him further drove the itch to further inspect the changes, but he knew once he opened that door he¡¯d need time to think and wanted distance from Aughal before that. He¡¯d gotten enough of a general sense by now anyway.

    With little fanfare, they left, Daniel attracting the most attention out of everyone. Even the shavi straining to remain hydrated with a parasol and a cream Rait was applying every few minutes was mostly glanced over in favor of the once human walking at the head of the group.

    ¡°Thomas, can Silora let Murdon know we¡¯re coming?¡± Daniel asked, ignoring the looks as he headed toward the gate. He could have asked the Fate himself but felt interrupting the steady stream of complaints about the weather coming from her would just have them redirected at himself. At the very least the shavi had put up no resistance to coming along, whether because Thomas had ordered her to or she really did hate the region. ¡°Also, what else can she do?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. I didn¡¯t ask her to tell me all of her powers. I could, but I¡¯m not going to.¡±

    ¡°I get it.¡± Daniel glanced at the shavi who was now yelling at Rait to get a spot under the tendril that protruded from the back of her head. ¡°Any use in a fight?¡±

    ¡°Probably not more than me.¡±

    ¡°Less than you.¡± Daniel indicated the Cleric¡¯s hands. ¡°Can that affect other people?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, but it drains mana fast if I push it out too far.¡±

    ¡°You can make the bubble bigger?¡±

    ¡°Out to a few meters. Not like I have anything else to spend mana on.¡± A thoughtful look crossed the Cleric¡¯s face. ¡°Should I try Flash Balance on you?¡±

    Daniel shook his head. ¡°I don¡¯t know if that works on bonds. Either way, not here.¡±

    ¡°You, you know how different you sound? It¡¯s not like you¡¯re completely different, but it¡¯s a bit scary. This isn¡¯t a vengeance bond, right?¡± Thomas took a breath and walked closer, speaking in a murmur. ¡°Daniel, I know about these kinds of bonds. I was helping Quala with someone in danger of developing one. They can change people, and not for the better.¡±

    ¡°Casia¡¯s dead. This isn¡¯t about killing who¡¯s responsible, it¡¯s about getting Hunter and everyone else back.¡± They finally reached the northern gate, which was in the process of opening. One look at Daniel was all they needed, and he faintly made out a misty-eyed woman standing next to Rorshawd on the wall above.

    As they crossed through, Thomas ever so slightly paused during one of his steps. He glanced at Daniel and in the next moment, he heard Silora¡¯s voice in his head. I swear, it¡¯s like he doesn¡¯t realize how hard this is to do while we¡¯re moving!

    What is it? Daniel asked, and he heard a sharp intake of breath behind him.

    Oh, that shouldn¡¯t have- Well, hello there. Silora Thelonas, I think we¡¯ve met? I have to say, I like the new look.

    What is it? Daniel asked again, unable to stop himself from growling slightly to accompany it. As he¡¯d already discovered, the shift was deeper than cosmetic and there were a host of instinctual responses he wasn¡¯t used to suppressing. It helped in a fight, but not when the petulant voice of a fish person was annoying him.

    Scary, the Fate thought sarcastically. Don¡¯t look now, but we¡¯ve got someone else with us concealing themselves with illusion magic. Low level, but something¡¯s strange. I had a hard time noticing and clearly you haven¡¯t yet, because they¡¯re standing right behind you.

 Chapter 168: (A Lack of) Clarity

    The fur on the back of Daniel¡¯s neck stiffened and it did take some effort not to turn around. He couldn¡¯t hear anyone directly behind him but doubted the shavi was playing pranks. What do they look like?

    Some kind of Cleric, I think? I can barely sense them and my wisdom is level 5. Also, you do know this power is rapidly draining my mana, right?

    Isn¡¯t this just telepathy?

    It¡¯s Far Speech, Silora thought, as if it were obvious. This is one of my grand, transregional powers that little slave driver is making me use to whisper to you from a few meters away. Completely unnecessary since he¡¯s already noticed I¡¯ve noticed, but he insisted.

    Daniel thought quickly and decided that if this was someone the Tyrant had sent to shadow them, there was nothing they could do to stop them from joining. Rorshawd was right there and could reduce most of them to ash with one breath. Without the mana to chain Flash Jaunt, he knew he¡¯d be as dead as he would be if Gtoll had actually wanted to kill him. Also, the fact that the spy knew he¡¯d been made gave him pretext to react once they were away from the walls. It was entirely possible this was someone trying to escape Aughal with them, and if they could avoid all but level 5 senses they¡¯d make a valuable addition.

    Tell me if they do anything.

    I suppose I could. The presence left his mind and he heard Silora make another demand for skin cream. Half of the space in the backpack Rait wore must have carried the stuff.

    ¡°Everyone, assume we could be attacked. I¡¯ll do my best to sense monsters coming but I¡¯m not Hunter.¡±

    ¡°Grafted.¡±

    Daniel sighed. He really needed to get a good look at himself before he could dispel that theory. He¡¯d figured out some time ago that Khare¡¯s interest in the topic was personal, and he couldn¡¯t blame the gestalt for wanting the ability to interact with society normally. At the same time, he didn¡¯t want to give them false hope. ¡°I don¡¯t think this would work for you, Khare. Even with our bond, you couldn¡¯t replicate the circumstances.¡±

    ¡°Acknowledge.¡± The gestalt¡¯s voice was disheartened, but they trudged along the sand all the same.

    The group fell into a travel pace set by Silora, their slowest member. When they were a kilometer away from the city, Daniel whirled around and reached a hand for the space right behind him. He caught nothing, and Silora spoke up a few seconds later. ¡°Oh, he moved. Should I have said something?¡±

    Daniel glared at the Fate for a second before speaking to the open air. ¡°We¡¯re far enough out. Show yourself.¡± His eyes were flicking across the sand, readying Flash Jaunt in case anything hostile happened.

    Somewhat off to the side, space folded in and revealed a Cleric whose robes fittingly bore the symbol of the Cloak. ¡°Callister?¡± Thomas asked, taken completely by surprise. ¡°How¡¯d you do that?¡±

    ¡°Fates,¡± the Cleric cursed. His face was shrewd, the dark eyes not reflecting enough light to reveal their color. That was strange in the dimming light of evening.

    ¡°Why are you following us?¡± Daniel asked.

    ¡°I¡¯m not following all of you,¡± the Cleric answered cryptically. Silora shied away, but the man¡¯s gaze made it clear to everyone else who he¡¯d meant. His dark eyes widened as they fixed on several places on Daniel¡¯s body. ¡°Your Archetypes. What have you done?¡± With a hint of desperation he started half-running towards him. ¡°Your mana flow, I need to assess it.¡±

    Daniel used a small amount of mana to grow feathers amidst the fur of his arms and cocked one at the Cleric, who both understood and respected the threat. ¡°Thomas, who is this?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t really know? He¡¯s just someone I¡¯ve seen in the Divine Quarter, like, once.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s the last thing you remember?¡± Callister asked, instantly drawing Daniel¡¯s attention back to him. ¡°This is about the Collapse.¡±

    Daniel stiffened as his suspicion that this Cleric was more than he appeared was confirmed. ¡°I remember Hammer taking me, and that¡¯s it until I got back. What do you know?¡±

    The Cleric grimaced, started to say something, and then paused. ¡°I¡¯m going to test something. If I¡¯m right-¡°

    ¡°Don¡¯t,¡± Daniel warned, wary of the illusion Cleric. If he could hide himself from almost all of them he was potent, but he was also afraid of the feather attack. That wasn¡¯t enough to convince him of letting this random person use a power.

    ¡°I¡¯m just going to say something,¡± the man said calmly, and then his lips continued to move.

    ???

    Daniel blinked and saw the man was suddenly three steps to the left. Everyone else had shifted slightly, most with surprise on their face. Thomas spoke up. ¡°Wait, what do you mean-¡°

    ???

    ¡°Stop! Don¡¯t repeat anything I just said!¡± Callister suddenly cried out, making Daniel jump. It was like he was spacing out for a few seconds each time he heard whatever was said. The Cleric held a hand to his face and groaned. ¡°I set it up perfectly and she had to go and ruin it.¡±

    The missing time had shaken Daniel out of his aggression. Up until this point it had all been information retroactively taken away from his phone, only now he was being affected personally in the present. How was Torch doing this if she was dead? ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡±

    ¡°This should be a private conversation.¡±

    ¡°No. Enough secrets. I told everyone I¡¯d tell them everything, that includes whatever you have to say.¡±

    Callister glanced over to Silora and Rait. ¡°Including them?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± Daniel gave the exact opposite answer his old self would have given. ¡°What could you possibly say that¡¯s that important, anyway?¡± He was fairly sure this Cleric was lower level than him.

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s all our funerals.¡± He glanced at the city walls in the distance but was as satisfied as Daniel had been when he¡¯d first struck out. ¡°I know exactly where you¡¯ve been and what happened during the time you¡¯re missing. I can¡¯t tell you anything because Torch restricted the knowledge from you specifically, forcing the Octyrrum to remove said knowledge as soon as you reacquire it.¡±

    ¡°How could you-¡°

    ¡°Father of illusion!¡± Silora suddenly cried, making a connection faster than anyone else. She bowed down into the sand, and Daniel could see her grit her teeth as she resisted the urge to call out for more cream.

    ¡°You¡¯re a Proxy of Cloak? Wait, no, you¡¯re-¡°

    ¡°Yes, yes, well, pleased to meet all of you,¡± the man said as he waved all of them away. A loud thump resounded as Khiat¡¯s entire frame mimicked Silora¡¯s. The dusker had gone beyond awe and into pure reverence, outdoing the Fate¡¯s display through simple devotion. Daniel himself was taken aback as he realized the god had done to Callister what Ashier had done to their Proxies.

    ¡°You¡¯re actually here?¡± he asked, not as spiritually moved as the rest of the crowd. Khare was similar, either not having gotten the full context or as skeptical of Daniel. Thomas was joining those bowing, while Willow had a very conflicted look on her face.

    ¡°Yes, I know you¡¯re all honored, now, your mana flow. I need to see it.¡± Knowing that the person in front of him was possessed by a god did nothing to mollify his fears, but Daniel still brushed the feathers from his arms to disarm them and held one out for the man to inspect. Everyone else was frozen. As he was inspected, Daniel tried to use his seventh sense to determine what was happening, but either the method was noninvasive or too subtle for his still weak senses to detect.

    ¡°Good, good,¡± the Proxy-god sighed in relief. ¡°Whatever you¡¯ve done hasn¡¯t interfered with, well, I think you learned about that already so best not to mention.¡±

    ¡°Learned about what? What exactly is going on with my memory?¡±

    If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

    ¡°In short, all information you learned during that week is restricted. You¡¯re prevented from remembering or learning about it. Fortunately, it only covered the last week, but she¡¯s still covered the most important part.¡±

    Daniel¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°Ok, but I didn¡¯t blank out when you mentioned that.¡±

    ¡°She can¡¯t restrict the knowledge of her restricting knowledge while she¡¯s restricting other knowledge,¡± he said offhandedly, as if talking about the latest thing his coworker had done to get on his nerves. ¡°She only had one shot at you so she couldn¡¯t get that, at least. I know what your next questions are and I can¡¯t answer anything. I¡¯d hoped to shadow you until the time was right, but you had to bring her along.¡± His gaze fell on Silora and she shuddered, either from the attention or the dryness of the ground. ¡°As you clearly know, the Octyrrum is in grave danger. Another, second Collapse is upon us. I would tell you more, but provoking the effect Torch put on you will make it worse. There may be a way to recover your memories but we should get out of this desert first.¡±

    ¡°This world is your problem,¡± Daniel said, realizing after the fact who he was blustering to. Something inside of him was reacting to the god¡¯s commanding presence, compelling him to resist it. ¡°My only concern is getting my friends back.¡±

    ¡°Hunter, right?¡±

    ¡°What do you know?¡± Daniel asked dangerously.

    ¡°Nothing I could tell you, but I promise that I haven¡¯t lied to you, I won¡¯t lie to you, and that I will try to help you remember what you¡¯ve lost.¡±

    ???

    The god snapped a finger in front of Daniel¡¯s face and his mind came back to the present. ¡°Sorry. Even I¡¯m having trouble keeping track of everything I shouldn¡¯t say.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re Cloak,¡± Thomas said hollowly, catching up to about thirty seconds ago in the conversation.

    The god gave Daniel a commiserating glance, which did ingratiate him a little. ¡°They might be like this for a while.¡±

    ¡­

    True to his word, the god of illusion faded into the background as they continued and everyone tried to not think about him shadowing them. That made things worse as the others were afraid to breathe in the presence of one of the divines they couldn¡¯t see. Daniel himself wasn¡¯t sure what to think about the intrusion, other than that Cloak wasn¡¯t what he¡¯d expected. Either possessing the Proxy had taken something from the divine¡¯s presence, or the god was far closer to a normal person¡¯s demeanor than Gadriel was. There was also the possibility that it was all an act, which would be completely in line with the god¡¯s domain.

    Eventually the sun reached the horizon and they broke for camp, Khiat collapsing to the ground. Daniel somewhat guiltily remembered she¡¯d had guard duty the night before and had been running on fumes when he¡¯d challenged Gtoll. The rest gathered mutely around a small fire made from gathered scraps foraged on the way and placed in Daniel¡¯s bag of holding.

    He sat on the ground, feeling it was finally time to examine himself in full and deal with whatever he¡¯d done to himself. As far as he could tell, his entire body was now covered in a light fur that mimicked Hunter¡¯s pattern. The spirals of the blue-white were less pronounced on his arms but still ran their length. His hands were mostly normal, but at the ends were retractable claws that Natural Expert made quite deadly. It was only a basic level 2 enchantment without any other modifiers, but most people, including Gtoll, hunted with normal weapons. Now that he was locked out of his Artificer powers it was at least a consolation prize.

    His tail was next. It was long enough to grab and bring in front of him but he didn¡¯t like the sense of his hand on it. There wasn¡¯t much to say about it beyond the obvious, and the only thought he wanted to put towards it was that he was thankful his clothes were compatible. The last obvious change of what was visible was his head.

    The canines of his new mouth weren¡¯t as pronounced as Hunter¡¯s, although they did poke out slightly whenever his jaws fully closed. The front of his head did protrude forward as well to give him a slight muzzle. From the reflection on his phone, he¡¯d guessed this was what Tak¡¯s ringcat transformation power would make a human look like if applied to the entire body. His eyes and ears were cat-like, and while he didn¡¯t have hair anymore, the fur on the top of his head was slightly thicker.

    Overall, he wasn¡¯t sure what to think. The intrinsic descriptions of his new powers claimed they were permanent. There was also talk of how his ¡®Archetypes¡¯ had changed, something the Illustrious Assassin had been able to detect and comment on when they¡¯d fought. The bottom line was he had a headache and wanted to sleep. ¡°Do I call you Callister or Cloak?¡± he asked to the open air.

    ¡°Let¡¯s stick to Callister,¡± the god half-whispered to him as he appeared nearby. ¡°I should also let you know I¡¯m unidentifying my presence and our conversations from your companions. It will be a weak effect, but it will stick.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t do that!¡± Daniel menaced as he subconsciously bared his teeth. No one else in the camp reacted and he guessed the god was making this conversation private.

    ¡°It¡¯s already done.¡± The Proxy shied away as Daniel advanced, which made him pause.

    ¡°You¡¯re stuck in that body, aren¡¯t you?¡±

    ¡°Yes, but before you ask why I¡¯ll go ahead and say Torch probably caught that part of the conversation. Do you understand why I have to limit who knows about me?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡± The Octyrrum, the system behind the alerts, hadn¡¯t been able to find a majority of the gods. Something terrible had happened during the week he¡¯d disappeared, so bad it had shaken this divine being and had probably forced him into a desperation play of jumping into a weak Proxy to save himself. Was his main body gone? That doesn''t excuse what he did, Daniel thought, but as Cloak had proved he could disappear on him and probably would if attacked. It was tempting to do so anyway because of what he''d just done, but Daniel had bigger concerns. "Why are you here?"

    ¡°Proximity, for one. There¡¯s also¡­ something about you that you fortunately didn¡¯t damage with that transformation. All I will say now is that if my Proxy dies, all mortal life on the Octyrrum will end. I understand you have your goals, but the world still has to exist for you to realize them.¡±

    ¡°If you can¡¯t tell me anything, why bother with this conversation?¡±

    ¡°Because I can tell you this. Continue what you¡¯re doing.¡± He rolled his eyes as Daniel¡¯s expression turned murder cat annoyed. ¡°I mean in a general sense. Specifically, I need you to uncover the memories you¡¯ve lost. The job Torch did was rushed and when she was below her full power. If we find someone of level-¡° He quickly stopped talking and Daniel guessed they¡¯d almost run into a point where his memories would self-wipe. ¡°If we find someone with a strong enough identification power that would work, although I doubt there¡¯s anyone like that nearby. What has a better chance of working is for you to be on the lookout for inconsistencies. Torch restricted knowledge you were deeply a part of, and with the limited time she had it¡¯s possible she missed something. Leverage those opportunities and you can regrow your memories from those seeds.¡±

    ¡°I think I already did that.¡± Daniel related how he¡¯d recovered the knowledge of his fight with Casia after charging at Rorshawd. When he mentioned the moments of deja vu he¡¯d had since then without any progress, the god moaned.

    ¡°The effect¡¯s patching itself. Unidentification is, well, something I tend to use more than the others so I¡¯m familiar with how it works. Torch didn¡¯t technically do that but the Octyrrum considers it the same thing. My best guess is you have to work your way forward and if you uncover a trigger too early, the effect will cover the hole and prevent you from using it later on.¡±

    ¡°So what do I do, not look for holes? I won¡¯t be able to know which ones I can and can¡¯t use.¡±

    Cloak frowned at that, but he still said, ¡°Anytime you feel something, you must pursue it. Trust me, this is important.¡±

    Daniel didn¡¯t know how he could trust someone he just met. This person might not even be a god, but the control he had over his limited powers gave weight to the argument. Callister was ostentatiously a level 1 Proxy that could partially block a level 5¡¯s senses. The Divination Aegis he¡¯d once had was just as lopsidedly powerful, and that had been granted by someone far above his strength. It could still be an act, and while Daniel didn¡¯t fully trust him, be that a man or god, there was something he had to say now before Callister would become a ghost that would hear about it anyway.

    ¡°Alright. Just so you know, I¡¯m originally from another world.¡± He again prepared to strike out at the god in case this prompted an attempted smiting, but was unprepared for the look of horror to spread across the man¡¯s face as he stumbled backward.

    ¡°You, you¡¯re not lying. Oh no. That¡¯s what he meant.¡± Thomas glanced over to both of them and shaded his eyes as whatever illusion Callister was maintaining slipped for a second, though his control quickly reasserted itself. ¡°This¡­ Do you know why you¡¯re here?¡±

    ¡°Kind of?¡± Callister tensed and Daniel further clarified, ¡°There¡¯s this other version of me back on my home world that hasn¡¯t told me much, but it has to do with getting my dad back. He went missing, and from what I¡¯ve gathered he ended up here somehow.¡±

    Whatever Callister had been dreading, that wasn¡¯t the answer. For a second it looked like the god had been about to hit him with a memory wipe and run, but he settled down and sat on the dune. ¡°Alright, alright. That changes things, but it¡¯s still worth the risk.¡±

    ¡°Has anyone else come here from another world? Can I go back?¡± Not before Hunter, Daniel added to himself, as well as, I should get this fixed too. Or maybe not. No one will think I¡¯m Earth-Daniel¡¯s twin, at least.

    ¡°No. You shouldn¡¯t be here. How did we not see this? He must have been planning it for centuries at least.¡±

    ¡°Who?¡± Daniel asked, now somewhat aggrieved by the considerable vagueness plaguing Cloak¡¯s statements.

    ¡°That would be restricted knowledge, right up towards the end,¡± Callister said, reaching through time and space to grab Earth-Daniel¡¯s clipboard and hit him over the head with it. ¡°If it makes you feel better, that is what I¡¯m trying to get you to remember. Not that specifically, but the important knowledge is right up there with it.¡±

    ¡°Ok, but how did I get here in the first place?¡± A full sea of questions were unleashed in Daniel¡¯s mind as he finally met someone that had all the answers. The restricted knowledge couldn¡¯t cover all of it, but he was dismayed when the god vanished, his parting lines growing more distant.

    ¡°That is enough for now. You should rest. I don¡¯t need sleep even in this Proxy so I can keep an eye out. Please, don¡¯t mention me to the others. I¡¯ll just remove the knowledge again at the first opportunity.¡± With that, he was gone. Daniel was left completely dissatisfied, though at the same time, finding a way home wasn¡¯t his priority.

    I should have asked about Hunter, he thought, kicking himself and resolving to the next chance he got. For now, he tentatively lowered himself further down into a sleeping position, found the old ones less comfortable than they used to be, and adjusted. Tossing and turning, Daniel wondered how much different his life was going to be now.

    ¡­

    ¡°Hey, uh, should we have set a watch?¡± Rait¡¯s voice woke Daniel up and he opened his eyes to see the man looking around nervously.

    ¡°It¡¯s ok,¡± Khiat reported, cresting over a dune. ¡°Daniel had the first one and I- oh!¡± She was looking at him as she exclaimed and Daniel wasn¡¯t sure why, until he looked down and saw that he was missing an arm. In addition to that shocking discovery, his other arm and the rest of his body were back to normal.

 Chapter 169: Disarmed

    It took Daniel eight seconds to go from looking at the stump of his arm to panicked screaming. It wasn¡¯t just the shock of the old injury catching up with him but the dysphoria in his mind. It felt like he¡¯d just spent an entire day next to Hunter with the Empathic Link fully active, only to wake up with it gone. That¡¯s exactly what happened, Daniel thought as he cut off the scream and tried to slow his rapid breathing. Thomas was already at his side examining the arm.

    ¡°It¡¯s not bleeding!¡± Thomas exclaimed, the earlier friction between them gone as he turned on medic mode. ¡°Not tainted or cursed as far as I can tell. Didn¡¯t look like Gtoll hit you with anything special but you never know. Is it still painful?¡±

    ¡°N-no,¡± Daniel grunted, still struggling to come to terms with the amputation. Knowing it would eventually grow back helped, but he was still in a state of light shock from his rude awakening.

    ¡°Could¡¯ve warned us you could turn back, Guy,¡± Thomas said, trying for a humorous inflection to settle him, though it came out strained. ¡°I thought I¡¯d be stuck with Mr. Fuzzywiskers from now on.¡±

    An ominous foreboding cut into Daniel¡¯s waning panic. ¡°I didn¡¯t know either,¡± he said, trying to just ignore the joke in hopes it died on its own.

    ¡°Oh, good, ''cause when I said you should get some tail once you got to Aughal, this isn¡¯t what I meant.¡±

    Daniel raised his half arm towards Thomas and put some more suffering in his face. ¡°I don¡¯t think I can handle this much right now, Thomas.¡±

    ¡°As your Cleric, yeah, you can.¡± Thomas slapped the arm away, not even squeamish. ¡°No idea how long that¡¯s going to take to fully grow back, but it should. Just avoid fire or necrosis until then.¡± He must have read the surprise in Daniel¡¯s eyes at the change that had come over the Cleric because he shrugged in response to it. ¡°Yeah, I know. You¡¯re the Guy I know. Dunno who that was yesterday, but he kind of sucked.¡±

    ¡°That was still me,¡± Daniel replied with a shake of his head, confident in his answer. He tried to smile at everyone else to show he was ok and mostly managed it. ¡°I can remember everything and it doesn¡¯t feel like someone else¡¯s memories. Just me, but more focused I guess?¡± He looked at his injured arm again. ¡°Sorry, I know everyone has questions, but I need to see if my phone has anything about this before I say anything.¡±

    ¡°Phone?¡± Silora¡¯s voice raised in curiosity, adding an admiring pitch when he pulled it out. ¡°Oh, I love that pattern. What is it? I¡¯m impressed you found a material that even I can¡¯t identify.¡±

    Daniel was suddenly incensed at his cat-self for the promises he made as Silora¡¯s question provoked them. He hadn¡¯t told the Fate herself he¡¯d answer everything, but he would have to get her on board and couldn¡¯t be selective now. All the justified caution he¡¯d had just hadn¡¯t seemed to matter to the Daniel of yesterday, who hadn¡¯t seen any problems with telling someone who could contact other regions his secrets. ¡°What do you mean?¡± Daniel deflected, as he also tapped the screen and was relieved to find it working.

    ¡°I have a power that lets me detect and identify rare materials,¡± she bragged airily, and then closed her mouth quickly. When it became clear that the group hadn¡¯t missed what she said, she went on. ¡°It¡¯s not like I can use it now. Most of my powers do function without a Focus but only in a very limited range. Aughal never had anything interesting either, all of it was buried too deep to ever dig for.¡±

    ¡°Right.¡± Silora seemed satisfied that he didn¡¯t press for details and forgot about her question. That gave Daniel time to investigate, and happily, it seemed his phone had been suspended when it died. The notifications that had come up right before he lost the Artificer class were still there, though he froze time briefly to read them in case they were just about to expire.

    <hr>

    You have reached the threshold for Bond Progression.

    -

    System Alert: Bond Progression failed due to the prior loss of targeted Bond.

    -

    System Alert: Your failed Bond Progression has created the opportunity for Bond Reforging. Bond reforging radically changes the nature and benefits of the former Bond. Proceeding with the available bond reforging may lead to unpredictable effects. This opportunity may or may not remain available if refused.

    -

    You have formed Oath Bond: Memory! You have gained the following benefits:

    ? Strength in Memory: You may temporarily acquire up to two Powers associated with the primary subject of your Bond.

    ? Power Evolution opportunity for Feature: Beast Friend*.

    ? ???

    -

    System Alert: Power Evolution available for Feature: Beast Friend*. The influence Fundamental Law: Karma has allowed you to ignore typical restrictions for power evolution.

    -

    System Alert: Power Evolution of Feature: Beast Friend* has converted it to Ability: Beast Mode*.

    -

    Triggering a Power Evolution has unlocked an addition benefit of Oath Bond: Memory!

    - Inherited Vitality: You gain a second Health Pool bound to the transmutative state of Ability: Beast Mode*. Upon activation, your current and secondary health pools will be swapped, including any injuries taken to either form. While in reserve, ongoing Healing or Damaging effects affecting the reserved health pool will be significantly diminished.

    <hr>

    Daniel could have been satisfied with just those notifications, especially now that no one was hiding anything new. Instead, he went to his Settings app to try and locate the new ability through the backdoored Encyclopedia, only to find a new option. The button that had once led to Hunter¡¯s outline now had an icon of linked chains, and pressing it opened a detailed list of both of his current bonds. Seeing this made him wonder if Torch or Earth-Daniel had been suppressing this ability all along, or if it was some combination of the conditions of the Collapse and a type of bond he¡¯d never seen before.

    He ignored the questions of his traveling companions as he focused on the new information. When the description included a particular hyperlink, he read that information too, delighted to find it was mostly free of unidentification. At the same time, the description had troubling implications.

    If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

    <hr>

    Beast Mode* (Ability, Charisma, Spell, Domain: Universal, Bond, Cooldown, Level: -):

    You possess the Power to draw on the subject of your Oath Bond: Memory to gain various benefits. This is a Spiritual Ability that requires no Mana for use. After using this ability, you cannot use it again until after a one hour Cooldown. Activating this ability triggers a fundamental change of one or more of your Archetypes, dramatically influencing Class Powers. These changes persist until the ability is activated again, or you are subject to a System Reset. This is a spiritual ability that functions in an area of Magical Suppression.

    -

    Archetypes (Concept, Universal, Soul)

    Archetypes are core values held by sentient Creatures which together influence both Awakening and Spiritual Identity. Archetypes remain dormant until an individual reaches the first Threshold of Power, locally determined by ???. On World: Octyrrum, archetypes influence Class Awakening, Power Awakening, and Bond Awakening, though the presence of ??? inconsistently influences this.

    Your current archetypes are: friendship, commerce, creativity, crafting, ranged, and invention.

    <hr>

    The information from the Collapse, as well as his alerts suddenly becoming ¡®System Alerts¡¯, had given Daniel enough to guess that at least some of the unidentification tags would lead to a page titled ¡®The System¡¯ or something similar. The gods on this world appeared to be as much administrators of magic as well as the subject of faith. This wasn¡¯t necessarily new information, but the context was important, especially in what he could determine by assuming which tags referenced the system. It seemed the gods were influencing mortals on the deepest level they could, something to ask Cloak about later when he wouldn¡¯t be subjecting his friends to more mind wipes.

    More immediately concerning was how his archetypes would change. It did fit with his impression of the shift. If each archetype was a lens his soul was projected through before reaching the world, not only would that alter his powers, but his personality too. One of them has to be ¡®reckless¡¯, Daniel thought, wishing his phone would tell him exactly which archetypes he¡¯d gain in Beast Mode. Honestly, he¡¯d be less averse to using the power if it didn¡¯t come with a personality change, even if Thomas was busying himself thinking up more cat jokes.

    As it was, he couldn¡¯t question the power of the new bond. His ¡®Beast Mode¡¯ was far more capable in fights if the duel with Gtoll was anything to go by and had more absurd healing than he did for his level. That it improved with the damage he dealt through Ferocious Healing meant he could confidently take on harder hitting opponents so long as he kept up with the damage. It made him wonder why the system suppressed bonds in the first place. If the goal was to push back the Crest by creating strong mortals, why would they throw away this source of power? If Gtoll had lived his entire life without that weighing him down, what could he have awakened?

    Daniel tried to scratch his head with his left hand and when nothing happened he was dragged out of his contemplative haze. Everyone else was packing up at this point, most of the workload foisted on Rait as Thomas and Daniel could just put things in their bags of holding, and Khiat was helping Willow. The avianoid didn¡¯t have Thomas¡¯ problems with duskers and he could see her smiling while talking with the archer.

    ¡°I need to enchant something,¡± he muttered to himself, shaking out the bedroll one-handed. Restorative Craft stacking with his Regeneration didn¡¯t turn out as much healing as the other combo, but that wouldn¡¯t help him now. Neither could he enchant on the move, not for any meaningful length of time. The best thing he could do was wear the light cloak he had for sandstorms over the injured arm and let it heal. Activating Beast Mode would instantly grow it back, but not really.

    Worse, it would stunt the regrowth of his actual arm and bring out a side of him he wasn¡¯t sure about yet. He was pretty sure the bond reforging had eaten the determination and willpower he¡¯d been forcing himself to express in the moments leading up to his fight with Gtoll, making them actual traits instead of feigned ones. If he hadn¡¯t been running with such a hot head he might not have punched Thomas. Or ever escaped Aughal, he added uncomfortably.

    When they started traveling he decided to at least explain what he¡¯d figured out about his new bond. They¡¯d seen all the important details, and while he was rethinking his earlier commitment to radical honesty, this was information they should know if they got into a monster attack. The last thing he did before surrendering to the mindless walk down the desert road was to borrow Lion Charge from Hunter¡¯s power pool. There was no indication Hunter was granting him the powers from the beyond, but he liked to think his friend still had some say in it.

    ¡­

    It was later in the day that Daniel decided to give another one of Hunter¡¯s powers a try. This was after they¡¯d stopped during the hottest few hours as Silora pointedly refused to go further. The fact that she didn¡¯t exaggerate, and that her long-suffering assistant also recommended this, at least gave Daniel another attempt to make the blast marbles. He failed, but the time spent enchanting still counted for Restorative Craft. His arm was slowly regrowing itself, a few centimeters over the day and that much again while he enchanted.

    Now back on the road, there was nothing but sand and the need to keep a constant watch for monsters. The further out from Aughal they got the likelier it was they¡¯d run into something. Keeping this in mind, Daniel hesitantly hovered over Hunter¡¯s Keen Senses feature in his mind. ¡°I¡¯m about to do something that might make me freak out. Just a warning.¡±

    ¡°Are you going to use your transformation power?¡± Willow asked, showing the most interest out of the group aside from Khare, who was still hung up on how they might learn a similar power.

    ¡°No. It¡¯s just one of the things I can borrow that hasn¡¯t historically worked well with me. But, if I can handle it, it¡¯ll make sensing things easier.¡± While Lion Charge would be useful in combat, he wouldn¡¯t be while missing both an arm and primary weapon. Daniel mentally shelved the power and pulled at the spine for the sensory one. The world exploded around him as the faint shifting of sand around him became the average of loud, while the bland, dry air now smelled like he was standing in the center of a botanical garden, if only in intensity and not quality. Nothing else changed as the feature affected just those two senses, and all heightening did was improve the effect.

    What didn¡¯t happen was the normal sensory overload. In fact, Daniel was more disoriented by how little he was affected. It took him about three seconds to realize why. God damnit, was the only reason I couldn¡¯t tolerate Hunter¡¯s senses because I didn¡¯t have his power?

    ¡°Guy, you feeling ok?¡± Thomas asked a little nervously as a deep frown spread across the Artificer¡¯s face.

    ¡°It works.¡±

    ¡°What works?¡±

    ¡°Your stomach is grumbling. We¡¯ve got plenty of food, you don¡¯t need to starve yourself.¡±

    The Cleric put a hand over his abdomen self-consciously. ¡°You¡¯ve got Hunter¡¯s senses?¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s more like mine are better. It¡¯s weird. I think the power is doing some background work or else I couldn¡¯t handle all this raw input.¡± Daniel Jumped to the top of one of the dunes the road plowed through and closed his eyes, focusing on his hearing. ¡°I can hear something far away. It¡¯s like¡­ it¡¯s like if Hunter was pointing things out to me and then I notice them. You know, I¡¯ve never actually used Identify Creature this way but now¡¯s as good a time as any to start.¡±

    Normally, when Daniel used his identification feature he would investigate the target closely with his eyes for a moment. The correlation wasn¡¯t exactly there with hearing, and he couldn¡¯t ¡®hear¡¯ the aura, but after half a minute of experimenting he figured it out. Smell would take longer to attune to, though his beast form might take readily to it.

    ¡°Nice. That¡¯s at least a kilometer away.¡±

    ¡°Impressive,¡± Silora commented, obviously sucking up to him. With Cloak removing her memories of him, she¡¯d still think he was the most powerful person here and seemed the kind of person to try idle flattery to manipulate people. ¡°Not as far as my powers could go, of course, but without a Focus you have me beat. Have I mentioned I¡¯ll need some help making a new one?¡±

    ¡°Monster?¡± Khare asked, drawing a sharp glance from Silora as they interrupted her attempt at fundraising. Daniel put a mark on the creature first so Khare could get a sense of its location and then mentally willed the name on it to expand to a size he could read. There was no way in hell they were hunting whatever this was, but if there was some moderate-sized level 4 charging towards them they might need to go offroad and find somewhere to shelter. A village, or the remains of one, wasn¡¯t too far away.

    As the tag magnified, Daniel gasped.

    <hr>

    Spinner - (Silk Shocker - (3), Possessed)

    -

    Tlara Seliri - (Avianoid, Beastmaster - 3)

    <hr>

    A few moments later, he heard what was chasing Tlara. She was bringing a monster horde right to them.

 Chapter 170: Feeding the Beast

    <hr>

    Alpha Desert Urchin - (2)

    -

    Gray Wastewolf - (3)

    -

    Rusted Shank Stomper - (2)

    <hr>

    Daniel read the tags on the strongest creatures chasing Tlara and frowned. In addition to there being two level 3s in the crowd of around thirty monsters, the variants listed weren¡¯t along the standard progression track for those monsters. If the Collapse was unlocking all of the possible variants Hunter¡¯s awakening had implied existed, it was going to make the escalating threat even worse for the people of the Octyrrum due to the variety. Also, while he wasn¡¯t an expert, he¡¯d never heard anyone mention the wastewolf monster. Were entirely new species spawning?

    ¡°Horde, incoming,¡± he called out to the others. ¡°Looks like a mix of level 1s and 2s with a couple of 3s.¡±

    ¡°Oh, gods!¡± Silora cried out, hiding behind Rait in the wrong direction. The two of them were the most afraid, while everyone else tensed.

    ¡°How far, Guy?¡±

    ¡°Kilometer and closing. There¡¯s something else. I think Tlara¡¯s being chased by them, either her or a monster she¡¯s piloting.¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s alive!?¡± Willow exclaimed, making for the dune Daniel was standing on. He honestly hadn¡¯t thought much about the Beastmaster since coming to Aughal after she disappeared from his life, only considering her as he listed who he still knew in the region. If Willow weren¡¯t here he¡¯d just save her and point her in the direction of the city, or take her as far as Threst¡¯s border if he was in a good mood.

    ¡°Yeah. We¡¯ll have to rescue her monster. It¡¯s that spider thing she calls Spinner.¡±

    Willow gasped. ¡°They¡¯re both alive!¡±

    ¡°Seems like it.¡± If she¡¯s so worked up about it, could Spinner be like Hunter? ¡°If we¡¯re going to fight this, I¡¯m going to need to-¡°

    ¡°Let out your wild side? No worries Guy, just try not to be a jerk this time.¡± Thomas reluctantly accepted a bow from Khare as he yet again broke from his preference for pacifism. ¡°Otherwise I¡¯m going to have to find some extra water to spray you with.¡±

    ¡°How do you know so much about cats?¡±

    ¡°Family had some pets growing up.¡± Thomas¡¯ joking mood darkened and his light grip on the bow became firm. ¡°Alright, Guy. I¡¯m good to kill some stuff today.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a good thing Beast Mode gives me melee powers,¡± Daniel commented, putting off the transformation for at least a few more sentences. ¡°The rest of you are archers. Khare, you¡¯re good in a melee to some degree, but maybe not with all those things coming at us. I¡¯ll have to draw their attention so there¡¯s no one to bail you out. Let¡¯s give those three at least something to defend themselves with.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Silora looked aghast as Khare offered her one of their remaining heliorite daggers. ¡°I can¡¯t¡­ oh, this is quite nice.¡±

    ¡°Silora, would you rather have just your hands if a monster gets to us?¡± Rait asked tensely.

    ¡°I¡¯d rather have you stand in front of me.¡±

    ¡°If I find the man who told me working for a Fate would be a cakewalk¡­¡± Rait muttered, trailing off as he also accepted a dagger.

    Daniel checked the auras again and saw the horde would reach Spinner before Spinner reached them. ¡°I¡¯m going to have to go out there. Khiat, you might be able to hit them from here once you see them. I¡¯ll draw them close enough and then really engage. At least, that¡¯s what I¡¯m planning now.¡± He used his only hand to pick a blast marble out of his bag of holding, hoping his bestial self would at least remember he had these. ¡°Everyone ready?¡±

    Seeing nods, Daniel closed his eyes and activated his ability. There was a shift in his mind, and then¡­

    Daniel opened his eyes and tilted his head upwards, basking in the warmth of the sun. He spared a moment to take off his shoes, which his feet still fit in tightly after the addition of fur and clawed toes. The anxiety and tension had melted away. This was freedom and more, the exhilaration he¡¯d felt while under Murdon¡¯s Tactician buff was back in full force. It was a high, the knowledge of a nearing fight making his eyes dilate and his heart race.

    The duel with Gtoll had been thrown, and even if the rush of awakening had colored it, it hadn¡¯t been a real fight. Either the giant had been given secret orders to give up after a certain point should Daniel survive that long, or the dusker had felt he was strong enough no matter what the Tyrant said. It didn¡¯t matter now, he was ready to fight for real.

    He scented something odd nearby and his head snapped towards it, Cloak appearing in the sand below him and out of sight of the others. ¡°I¡¯ll try to shield them in the worst case, but I¡¯ll have to unidentify their memories again. It¡¯s better to avoid repeated uses of that kind of magic, especially close together. You understand?¡±

    ¡°Get out of my way,¡± Daniel growled, annoyed at the interruption more than the offer and implied threat. Cloak vanished and Daniel spared a moment to look behind him. None of them had heard the exchange as he¡¯d expected. Willow¡¯s eyes were fixed on him, clearly having watched the transformation with baited interest. It wasn¡¯t personal, not in that way, but that of an ardent believer seeing proof of their faith. Neither was it the power itself, Tak had one that was similar, but where it had come from that spoke to Willow.

    He gave each of them a cat¡¯s grin as his muscles flexed. ¡°Time to hunt.¡±

    ¡­

    Daniel raced ahead of the three other active combatants, covering the distance between the approaching monsters and himself far faster than he expected. A few moments after he¡¯d taken off he¡¯d entered some kind of meditative rhythm as he alternated between running and sprinting on all fours depending on the terrain. The underlying structure of his body had slightly changed, even if outwardly he looked humanoid. Moving using all of his limbs didn¡¯t feel completely natural, but he could do it.

    While this was happening, he was still perfectly aware of his surroundings. Well, what was in front of him at least. All of his senses were compressed into a cone ahead of him, and while they didn¡¯t improve over their base state, the borrowed Keen Senses power allowed him to keep track of every approaching monster even if he didn¡¯t get the fine details of Identify Creature. The experience in his upgraded body made it clear that Hunter had still pulled his weight. Daniel wasn¡¯t quite beating the original murder cat radar despite being two levels higher than Hunter had been originally.

    Stopping on a closer dune, he realized there¡¯d been more than runner¡¯s high to what he¡¯d experienced. Another awakening had already added information to his mind, though he¡¯d only now realized it.

    <hr>

    Longstalker¡¯s Stride (Feature, Dexterity, Domain: Enchantment, Trance, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to enhance long distance movement. While actively using the benefits of this feature, you may enter a light trance while your travel speed improves. Direct combat, complicated tasks, or interrupting travel breaks the trance and removes the benefits of this feature.

    <hr>

    He knew the easy awakenings would come to an end at some point but relished the feeling all the same. The approaching enemies would allow him to get at least one more as well. The giant chimeric spider that was Spinner was scampering across the sand. It was bleeding in places where spines from the rolling balls of flesh had shot into it. A sickly looking pale gray wolf was also hanging onto one leg jaw first. Despite being the strongest monster here, Daniel didn¡¯t get a sense it was that tough and became wary of a trap.

    The least fearsome and annoying enemy was the shank stomper variant barely keeping pace with Tlara¡¯s beast. They looked mostly normal but had a red tinge to their arm blades. A distant Earth memory advised Daniel to keep anything metallic he liked away from them. There wasn¡¯t much of that left after all of his heliorite weapons and armor had gone up on the Eye.Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.

    He needed to get the enemy pack off of Spinner. A shot by Khiat winged one of the enemies but didn¡¯t kill the level 2 monster. She was too far away for accurate shots, even with whatever new power hitting Casia with the sun arrow had unlocked. A sly grin formed on Daniel¡¯s altered face and he held out a furred hand as if to accept an award. Now, if only he had something that could affect a lot of enemies at once.

    <hr>

    Grounding Roar (Ability, Charisma, Spell: Sonic, Domain: Transmutation, Cooldown, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to issue forth a Sonic assault on your enemies for a small Mana cost. This ability deals no damage but inhibits the movement speed of affected enemies by a degree scaling with your charisma, and inversely scaling with the enemies¡¯ Wisdom and Level. This ability has a cooldown of ten minutes after being used. This is a Magical Ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression.

    <hr>

    There it was. Daniels¡¯ roar kneecapped the level 1s in the throng, while the wastewolves seemed barely affected. Also, the slowdown wasn¡¯t permanent and had a decay to it. It was unfortunate that this ability could only be used every ten minutes as it was just the thing to cut the legs of running prey out from under them. Oh well. He shelved Keen Senses and Flash Jaunt, not needing either. He¡¯d take hits, but his healing would do more than wasting mana on an expensive dodge ability would. Instead, he took Lion Charge back and added Springing Strike, knowing he could combine it with Jump to turn himself into a missile for relatively low mana cost.

    Daniel¡¯s grin grew as he eagerly opened his mouth, combining the two abilities and taking to the sky. It was the first time he¡¯d made a committed attack and felt like his body was on autopilot, unable to change course in the air even with the mobility features he still retained from Totem Warrior. He was on the wastewolf clinging to Spinner before he consciously recognized it, tearing off the head from the body with his sharpened claws. He didn¡¯t go for a bite as he was still wary of some hidden trick.

    The head of the body remained latched to Spinner like a tick after he passed by, and the smell he got from the neck was indescribable. He was sure Hunter could have put it to more words and silently thanked his friend after the fact for the power as he threw the body at an urchin that was priming itself to fire. The spines hit the flying body as it crashed into it, further impaling the dead monster.

    Daniel didn¡¯t hesitate, cutting into the second wastewolf and tearing it in half with a forceful down swipe of his claws. He was again confused by their weakness, the monsters barely putting up any resistance. His instincts didn¡¯t indicate any rot or poison on them that his Regeneration would make more effective against him, and yet neither did they do anything but stare at him with pale eyes as he destroyed them. Eliminating the two wolves took only moments while the general flow of the battle led towards his allies. He put them out of his mind in favor of the enemies still living.

    Another prick hit his back as he squared up against the shank stompers that could actually threaten him. His new body was a touch more resistant to damage due to Fusion Aspect, which he¡¯d heightened the moment he¡¯d entered this state. The pain barely reached him as the projectiles from the level 2 creatures penetrated through his fur and a few centimeters under the skin. Each time he struck a monster they were pushed at least most of the way out anyway due to Ferocious Healing, and what was pain to an alpha predator?

    The long gash opened in his side toned down his arrogance, just a little. The blade had sailed right through the old leather armor he¡¯d kept around but didn¡¯t hit anything important. Neither did the red blades do anything special, and Daniel guessed these monsters were more a terror to Knights than whatever he was now.

    The fire support became far more effective as they got within a hundred meters of Khiat and the rest, though he wasn¡¯t worried by the proximity. By now, he¡¯d torn apart most of the level 2s and just had to deal with the level 1s that had recovered from his roar. Still, if he had to compare himself to the horde faced on the mountain, he¡¯d put the then level 2 Gadriel above him since he¡¯d fought now with the help of his friends and Spinner, who occasionally discharged lightning from its spines while keeping up its flight.

    As the fight began to wind down, he knew that his human self would have been decimated trying this. Lack of arm aside, he got too caught up about thinking to take action and couldn¡¯t push through pain or react to the same degree hybrid Daniel could. Part of it was undoubtedly his new archetypes and Mantle of the Hunter, but he liked to think the abject refusal to fail in his mission to save Hunter was playing just as large a role.

    At the end of the fight he was panting slightly and found himself licking some blood off his arm. He looked at it thoughtfully and wasn¡¯t disgusted by the act. It felt natural, just like how he was getting used to the slightly loping run on all fours. If there was any downside to all of this it was that his massive advantages from his bond would likely negatively affect his advancement rate, just like the ballista at Roost¡¯s Peak had hobbled the garrison.

    ¡°How¡¯d I do?¡± he asked the rest of his team, already knowing the answer. He¡¯d gone through them all without needing to use Lion Charge, though his fur was standing on end from the built up energy. If he didn¡¯t fight anything soon, it would all bleed off.

    ¡°Better than you did against Gtoll,¡± Thomas said, just before Khiat exploded.

    ¡°That was amazing! We didn¡¯t need to do anything.¡±

    ¡°They were weak prey,¡± he shrugged, still smiling with the compliments. A very faint purr escaped him that he stopped immediately, but the humorous light in Thomas¡¯ eyes told him the Cleric had caught it. Oh well, that was human Daniel¡¯s problem. He didn¡¯t care about the jokes about how awesome he was. ¡°I think I¡¯m stronger than Hunter now.¡±

    ¡°Nah.¡± Thomas smiled as he discovered he still had ways to get under Daniel¡¯s fur. ¡°So, Tlara¡¯s still kicking. Or at least Spinner is.¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s possessing it,¡± Daniel replied with a little bit of annoyance in his voice. He turned to the massive beast and regained some of his flighty enthusiasm as he wondered what Tlara must be thinking of him. Wherever she was. ¡°Tlara, you missed quite a day. I guess you¡¯ve been busy too. We¡¯re going to Threst, and you¡¯re lucky your sister¡¯s here or this is all the help you¡¯d get. Where are you hiding?¡± He stared at Spinner and waited for a response, snarling when none immediately came. ¡°I know you¡¯re in there. Kinda wonder if you and Spinner have something like Hunter and I did. He¡¯s dead, by the way, but I¡¯ll get him back and show you just how wrong you were about him.¡±

    ¡°Clump.¡± Khare gestured with a vine hand up, and Daniel noticed both that the grisly wastewolf head was still attached to one of the legs, and that there was a mass of webs on top of the beast. Probably something it¡¯d taken as dinner, which might have been the inciting incident behind the monster horde. He hoped the questionably sentient monster hadn¡¯t picked one of the wolves as prey as he did not like the look of the blackened silver flesh when he broke the wastewolf¡¯s head off Spinner.

    ¡°You did survive,¡± Willow said shakily, making her way up the dune while Rait stayed behind to calm a panicked Silora. Had the Fate ever seen a monster up close before? ¡°I was worried, for both of you.¡± Daniel¡¯s thoughts about the weak Fate were interrupted as he saw Willow lay a hand on the monster with tears in her eyes. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry I brought her to you. There is something special in you, isn¡¯t there? Please forgive me.¡±

    One of the partially humanoid upper arms touched the hand. It was more of an articulated pincer than a hand but that was more than the lower six legs had. His still slightly dilated pupils widened as he read the expression that formed on Willow¡¯s face. He wanted to ask something incredulous but another part of him stopped himself from interrupting the moment and he instead shot Thomas a look before he said something.

    ¡°What just happened?¡± Willow asked, a rapturous glow to her face and voice that her race made only more apparent.

    ¡°You¡¯ve bonded with Tlara¡¯s monster.¡± Daniel almost laughed, imagining what she¡¯d think about that. He wondered if the bond had broken the Beastmaster¡¯s hold over it. ¡°Welcome to the club.¡±

    Willow¡¯s look grew troubled and then disturbed as she better explored the innate senses her bond was giving her. Even if she¡¯d forsworn advancement to level 1 as part of Aughal¡¯s nobility, something that he¡¯d encourage her to change, her seventh sense hadn¡¯t been stunted like his was. She wouldn¡¯t get some Encyclopedia entry, but enough of a sense to use the bond. He didn¡¯t have to wait long before she explained her sudden change in emotion.

    ¡°It wasn¡¯t with Spinner. It, it¡¯s with Tlara? Something¡¯s wrong.¡±

    Misery was currently into pairs as another completely unexpected awakening hit Daniel and a new sense gave him a clue as to the wastewolves¡¯ secret weapon.

    <hr>

    Sense Astral (Feature, Wisdom, Domain: Astral, Level: 1):

    You possess the Power to better sense Creatures and other Concepts related to the Astral. This feature acts as a unique sense and does not benefit from other powers enhancing general senses unless otherwise stated.

    - Level 2 (Automatic): Allows you to sense various kinds of Astral Remnant. Acquiring this power at level 2 has automatically improved it to level 2. No Mana is required to gain this benefit.

    <hr>

    An energy was escaping the remains of the wastewolf¡¯s head, traveling back to the general area where he¡¯d killed the level 3 monsters. One was already standing back up as their bodies reformed and the faint, noxious smell from them intensified. His instincts and his new senses told him everything he needed to know. These monsters couldn¡¯t be killed, and they got stronger every time they died. With a diva of a Fate in tow, there was no way his group could outrun them.

 Chapter 171: Astral Advantage

    ¡°They¡¯re coming back to life?¡± Thomas asked, horrified, as he witnessed the distant resurrecting wolves. Daniel¡¯s fur was standing up on its end too, but for different reasons.

    ¡°There¡¯s twice as many,¡± he reported, Keen Senses easily able to track what was happening. The two largest pieces of each torn apart body were reforming into whole wolves, and what Sense Astral picked up at this distance indicated that both individual wolves had a good amount of astral energy each. He didn¡¯t have a baseline to judge that by as Spinner was the only one in their group to have any itself, but the alertness and coordination of the once sloths implied they were at least on par with normal level 2 enemies. ¡°Khare, toss me a radiant dagger.¡±

    The gestalt hesitated longer than they should have, either taken aback by the wolves or having a harder time understanding Daniel in his new state. The faint tingle of the enchanted metal felt good in his hands.

    ¡°I think this bond could let me help.¡± Willow didn¡¯t sound confident at all, but there was a change in the way she stood next to Spinner. He could only guess as to what she¡¯d gained since those fell outside the normal rules. His own body was a testament to this.

    ¡°No. Same strategy. I go out and kill, the rest of you defend here. Try to wound, heliorite could be needed to end them permanently.¡± He had two other ideas if that failed but neither were reliable against the now four wolves. He almost dropped the dagger as he ran out, his hands opening to prepare for the run. It seemed Longstalker¡¯s Stride had more limitations than initially advertised. The weapon itched in his hands as it prevented him from entering the stalking trance, but he reigned in the impulse to put it in the bag as he wanted it immediately available.

    Extra hands? he thought idly, though no power was forthcoming. In all honesty, he was fine skipping out on Gtoll¡¯s four-armed power when fabricating an arm sheath later would serve the same purpose. He came to stop two dunes away from the charging wolves, half of which headed directly for him while the rest skirted around. They¡¯d recognized he was the main threat too.

    Daniel prepared to make use of the double jump power combo but hit a block as he clutched his dagger. It looked like Springing Strike also didn¡¯t play well with it, only being compatible with natural weapons. Letting out something in the middle of a hiss and a cough, he just ran on two legs to meet the wolves. The astral energy in them coursed like a mana flow, and he sensed it fluctuate just before the wastewolves collectively used a power.

    The two charging towards him shed their fur in an explosion of rapidly settling dust, draining the color away from where it fell. This didn¡¯t contain any astral energy, though it was a magical effect he felt he should avoid. The wind carried the slightest traces of the dust to him despite his best efforts and his own fur withered, followed by an intense dry sensation when it made skin contact. While the wolves¡¯ fur was rapidly regrowing after this, it looked like there was a cooldown that he exploited to stab a dagger through the one leading them.

    Flesh around the wound immediately sizzled and began burning away as Daniel¡¯s suspicion of a weakness to the element was confirmed. The game logic his human self was so familiar with still bled through the instincts that mainly drove his actions. Those in turn saved him as the other wolf attacked mid-strike. He couldn¡¯t avoid all of their teeth and claws, which cut far deeper than they had before, though his healing immediately went to work as he speared it in the chest. Each strike was death no matter if he hit vitals or not as the radiant damage chased away the astral energy.

    He dealt with the first half of the pack while taking only light wounds in turn. When he saw the other two were most of the way to his friends, moving faster as well, he stowed the dagger in the bag of holding to make use of his movement trance. The sudden glare of light soon broke him out of it.

    The wastewolves were closing on Khiat, Khare, and Thomas. Khare had taken his advice and fired a Coordinated Strike, Daniel belatedly using Called Shot as he remembered the benefits of his other bond. Thomas wasn¡¯t being helpful, but Khiat pulled out a stunning ability as the arrow she¡¯d knocked glowed with a bright intensity. If it was doing what he thought it was then it must be painful for the dusker to hold it that close, but she managed and shot one of the wolves dead on. It disintegrated, the power in the arrow deadlier to the wolves than his dagger.

    ¡°Good kill!¡± he shouted across the desert. He hoped that completely destroying the bodies would prevent resurrection if nothing else worked. That, along with his Imbue Astral ability, were the two strategies he¡¯d held in reserve. ¡°How many more can you do?¡±

    Khiat stumbled backward in answer, appearing drained from the attack. The other that was left leaped onto her with a sudden jump. He threw his dagger, snarling as it went wide. He¡¯d really gotten too used to Snap Shot, and his new instincts did nothing for his aim.

    Worse, it turned out radiant damage couldn¡¯t provide a finishing blow when part of a wolf survived. Four came sprinting from behind him, the results of the two he¡¯d killed splitting. They dared to ignore him and instead aim for his friends. Khare managed to hold before he got there, but Thomas was another matter. The Cleric had never been a good fighter, having been picked for the run to Roost¡¯s Peak run only due to the need for every healer to become as strong as they could before the lightning dragon. His recently acquired level disparity did nothing to help either.

    The fangs of one wolf latched onto a leg as Thomas screamed in pain and fear. There was no extra life waiting for him if he died, unlike the earlier fights he¡¯d been in. It was the first time Daniel had seen true fear in his friend. Not even the Assassin had wanted to kill the Cleric as unyieldingly as these monsters. The thought of losing yet another friend made something burn within him. More hesitantly than the others, an awakening came.

    <hr>

    Eyes on Me (Ability, Charisma, Domain: Illusion, Taunt, Level: 1):

    You possess the Power to attract the aggression of nearby hostile Creatures for a moderate Mana cost per affected target. This effect scales with your charisma and inversely scales with the target¡¯s Wisdom or Intelligence, whichever is higher. Affected creatures are encouraged to attack you over all other targets for the duration of the ability. Certain circumstances, such as an attack made by another creation, may prematurely end this effect. This is a Magical Ability that does not work in an area of Magical Suppression.

    <hr>

    ¡°Over here!¡± Daniel growled. Every wolf turned towards the lone cat as mana left him, the cost considerable despite the reduction in mana cost for using an ability below his level. Thomas groaned in pain as the fangs in him tore flesh with the motion. ¡°Don¡¯t attack. Let them come at me.¡± The wolf on Thomas let go somewhat reluctantly. It was fighting the ability but the magic held, also drawing the wolf mauling Khiat off of her. For the gestalt¡¯s part, they¡¯d already killed the other two with thrown heliorite daggers.

    The last three died with burning wounds in their sides, the astral energy in them draining away as Daniel slashed with a dagger Khare had thrown him. A shimmering light appeared as Thomas summoned his healing bubble, closing the wounds on his leg. The Cleric¡¯s eyes were hard as he looked up to Daniel. ¡°You can¡¯t do that again.¡±

    ¡°Do what?¡± Daniel asked, affronted by the challenge in the words. He was eyeing the bodies of the wolves around them warily at the same time, but none had come back yet. It¡¯d been longer than the last few times. Had they hit the limit on their resurrection?Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

    ¡°You can¡¯t run off and leave us alone! I could have died if it had gone for my neck.¡±

    ¡°You can¡¯t get strong if you rely on me,¡± Daniel fired back, echoing one of Gtoll¡¯s lessons. ¡°I know you don¡¯t want to fight. You¡¯re not always going to get a choice.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not that. Hand, I know what I have to do, but you can¡¯t be part of a team and abandon us right after you say you know we can¡¯t handle a melee alone.¡± Daniel¡¯s ears drooped as he acknowledged the point. The rush of the hunt had gotten to him and he¡¯d let himself be baited into leaving his friends alone. The tears in Khiat¡¯s armor struck him harder than the Cleric¡¯s healing wounds since he knew who¡¯d made it and how important it was to her, Sun Resistance or not.

    The dusker didn¡¯t look angry, in fact as she stood and brushed herself off, she made a very curious noise as she looked at Daniel. ¡°Are you alright?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll be fine,¡± Khiat answered with half-confidence.

    That was all he needed to cement the mistake in his mind. ¡°You¡¯re right, Thomas. I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯m still figuring out all of this. Looks like the mantle makes me a bit bloodthirsty.¡±

    ¡°No kidding.¡± A pointing hand made Daniel touch his muzzle, where mostly dried blood was sticking to the fur. He hadn¡¯t even registered the couple of times he¡¯d bitten into shank stompers, just going with the flow of his instincts. Thomas sighed with a half-grin as he saw the conflict on Daniel¡¯s face at that realization. ¡°It¡¯s a five out of five, Guy, I get it. Just remember you¡¯re not the only one here.¡±

    ¡°No glory kills for the tank,¡± Daniel affirmed, mentally crossing his fingers. A few glory kills for the tank shouldn¡¯t hurt. ¡°Willow, are you alright?¡±

    The avianoid was still sticking close to Spinner and had barely noticed the wolves get to their defensive line. She wasn¡¯t focused on the monster itself but on her surroundings as she held a hand to her head. ¡°They¡¯re not dead,¡± she warned, putting everyone on alert. ¡°I can still feel them. They¡¯re here, but not here.¡±

    Daniel began tossing the bodies away, feeling the smallest of astral energy gathering like a heart beginning to beat. One, whose body hadn¡¯t been significantly damaged, split into two mid air. The near rotted appearance was gone as the wolves¡¯ fur shone a sleek gray as the variant title implied. They didn¡¯t rush upon landing, electing to wait until their brethren returned.

    Surprisingly, the number of wolves from this group didn¡¯t double, even accounting for the one Khiat¡¯s shot had evaporated. ¡°Something¡¯s killing them on the other side.¡±

    ¡°In the Astral?¡± Daniel asked, making the obvious guess.

    Willow didn¡¯t understand the word but nodded. ¡°I think? They feel like dark flames, the wolves, but these two? One is completely blank, but the other-¡°

    ¡°Hunter!?¡± Daniel cried out, seeing her eyes fall on his fur and the color pattern he¡¯d inherited. ¡°He is still alive.¡±

    ¡°Guy, Rasalia¡¯s soul didn¡¯t last a week!¡± Thomas protested. ¡°I know you want him to still be there but it¡¯s not possible.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s him. He¡¯s helping us.¡± Daniel gestured at the wolves who were forming into one massed pack to attack theirs. ¡°This Astral, it has to be some kind of spirit world. He¡¯s killing the wolves in there before they can come back.¡±

    Thomas¡¯ conflicted look promised further debate, though the wastewolves stopped him. Howling as one they charged, fur rippled as their dust cloud attack was readied. Daniel knew it was time to release the energy Lion Charge had been steadily building and let loose with a blast more powerful than what Hunter usually preferred. Five of the wolves died due to how they were grouped, though the permanency was questionable. Get ¡®em Hunter, he thought with a mix of elation and sadness. His friend was right here, but Sense Astral couldn¡¯t copy whatever Willow¡¯s bond had given her.

    ¡°How long can you keep up that bubble?¡± Daniel asked, backing away as the wolves got closer.

    ¡°Maybe a minute? It gets harder the bigger it is.¡± The chance to comment on his phrasing didn¡¯t come as the fur of the wolves exploded. This time the dust was like a fog, concealing the monsters as it advanced as its own force of death.

    ¡°Do it now!¡± Thomas¡¯ Vitality Bubble expanded and, as he¡¯d hoped, the dust didn¡¯t penetrate. The Cleric grunted with effort, the act of shielding them from the mist costing him more mana over time. Acting in opposition to his earlier promise, Daniel charged out into the cloud. He felt the nerves in his sensitive nose die, blunting his scent, and his fur withered again.

    He didn¡¯t have to wait long for one to attack him, and when it did, Daniel grabbed it and Jumped into the bubble that was just barely large enough to contain all of the fighters, as well as Silora, and Rait. Spinner and Willow were outside, though they were further away and hopefully out of the cloud. Daniel broke the wolf¡¯s neck as he landed in the bubble. Powered up by another death as they were, they couldn¡¯t contest him one on one in anything other than pure speed. The powers he gained in this body were just too focused on killing.

    The wolf¡¯s body melted away as it died, though the vitality bubble also shrank to expose Rait. In the time it took him to get back into the zone, his skin had turned cracked and leathery. Daniel was about to charge back out before the smart part of his brain kicked in and he just activated his taunt power. It took most of the mana he had left, but instead of circling the bubble and waiting for it to die out, the wolves charged in.

    By the time the dust cleared, there were no bodies remaining aside from the initial five that Daniel had blasted. It had gotten hairy at times, but Thomas¡¯ field also healed any injuries sustained. Just as the dust cloud had rapidly harmed Rait, it had rapidly healed him to counter any incidental wounds he took. Silora was the worst off as she wasn¡¯t affected, though she had to have some kind of defensive power as she hadn¡¯t been scratched. Everyone had made it, including the two outside of the bubble who had retreated when the wolves had used their ability.

    Daniel frowned as he sensed the astral energy return, but only three wolves came back. Hunter had been busy on the other side, but he hadn¡¯t gotten all of them. The frown turned into a fanged grin as he considered something. He had no way of knowing if Hunter could hear him but he spoke the words anyway, focusing on his bond in case that helped. ¡°Hunter, leave one alive for a while. The rest of you get some rest. I¡¯m going farming.¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°How strange. These are new, but I remember them. Do you?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Hunter locked eyes with the wolf in front of him as he allowed it to leave, seeing it split into two just before it faded into the mirror ocean below him. It had taken him some time to realize why Daniel had been leaving one alive, but after that he¡¯d allowed one of the spiritual wolves to split off with each set. It was a bit tedious, but what else did he have to do?

    The thing next to him inclined its lack of a head towards him. ¡°This thing that you do-¡±

    ¡°Hunt.¡±

    ¡°Hunt, yes. Strangely familiar. It¡­ fits you.¡± The thing had no memories as they¡¯d been alone so long they¡¯d lost their mind. Wandering this strange place with Hunter was helping, and he¡¯d gotten no sense of danger from them yet. That, combined with reaching Daniel, made existence here tolerable. Otherwise, there was no taste, no smell, no magic, and not even satisfaction from dispersing the glowing wolves as they reappeared. There was only the sense that Daniel was nearby, and the thing at his side.

    Hunter could sense Tak as well, though the distance was far greater. While he could head towards Daniel, no amount of moving had improved the separation between him and the avianoid. He¡¯d at least made some progress with Daniel when, two days ago, the signal had gotten far stronger. After wandering the monotonous space, he¡¯d reached a point where he could almost feel his friend from across the divide between life and death.

    ¡°There is something else. A guardian. No?¡± One of the faint hand shapes of the indistinct figure moved over the front of the head shape. ¡°Not the right word. Familiar. A class? No, they don¡¯t have that. Can they have that? No, but they could.¡±

    The confusion was frustratingly familiar to Hunter by now. The appearance of a fresh pair of wolves gave him a break, though the fight was disappointingly easy. The wolves had grown in power up until the third revival, when their strength stopped increasing. ¡°Do you know anything now?¡±

    ¡°No,¡± the thing said dejectedly. ¡°It is possible, I think. I remember¡­ no. It is gone. I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    ¡°You will remember,¡± Hunter replied evenly, hoping his confidence would infect the weak-willed companion. On that note, ¡°Your name?¡±

    ¡°No!¡± The thing shouted, before taking a few steps back. ¡°No. It still isn¡¯t right. I, I have one, but I can¡¯t remember. Taking another isn¡¯t right. I just have the one name!¡± It was about the only thing the thing had an opinion about, even rejecting Hunter¡¯s attempts at giving him a nickname.

    ¡°Ok.¡± Hunter killed another wolf and got some enjoyment out of the resignation he saw in its eyes. ¡°We keep following Daniel?¡±

    ¡°Yes! Whatever you-¡± The thing trailed off as something strange happened. In the sky above, purple deepening to black, a light shone and fell to a point in the middle distance before wherever it landed became obscured from his sight. ¡°Oh. Oh! It misfired. So rare. Someone must have done that¡­ thing again.¡± There was a moment where the creature somehow projected profound sadness, before it was replace with determination. ¡°We should get that!¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Hunter asked, confused as the thing became more animated, actually walking in a direction without him leading them.

    ¡°The,¡± his companion gestured towards the now distant light. ¡°The thing! The, oh, I can¡¯t remember. But it is important.¡±

    ¡°So is staying with Daniel.¡±

    ¡°You can catch up. This is important, trust me. With the new one, it might help him.¡±

    Hunter didn¡¯t ask what the thing meant, knowing it would be pointless. He killed both wolves this time, feeling Daniel had enough, and set out after his companion towards the distant light. Hunter had no idea if his friend could sense him in response but if he did, he hoped he¡¯d understand that he wasn¡¯t leaving forever. His goal was to return somehow, and this strange individual was his best bet. Even if the distant light turned out to be pointless, it was a distraction. The thought of Daniel running across more strange wolves did worry him, but only slightly. Something must have changed with his friend because he had a suspicion he¡¯d grown a lot stronger all of a sudden. He wished he knew what had happened since, knowing Daniel, it was probably interesting.

 Chapter 172: Body Farming

    The killing haze lasted until the last gray wastewolf stopped spawning. As the instincts from his new mantle faded, Daniel became more aware of the degree of his tunnel vision while in that state. He hadn¡¯t given any thought to his friends once he knew they were safe, but more so, he was surrounded by hundreds of bodies. The most frequent killing blow had been decapitation as he¡¯d been at least aware enough to preserve them as best he could. The slaughter had been easy as he¡¯d essentially spawn camped each wolf as it came back to life.

    I can¡¯t do this again, he thought as he observed the carnage. His hybrid form gave much in strength, though it was also affecting his mind. Thomas was right to be concerned. Another downside was that there was no way he was getting advancement from all of these wolves. They¡¯d stopped growing stronger after the fourth resurrection and had given up at a certain point. Grinding these creatures forever to reach level 9 didn¡¯t seem something the Octyrrum would allow, though he¡¯d have to check his phone in a few minutes to confirm his suspicions.

    It would have been more convenient to revert then and there, but the hour long cooldown on Beast Mode wasn¡¯t done yet. Turning his head to check on his friends, he saw that they¡¯d made camp. Silora was huddled under a tent, though she was applying the hydrating cream herself this time. Rait had apparently had enough after the attack and was resting himself.

    Willow and Thomas were trying to get at the clump of webbing on Spinner¡¯s back, though it seemed the monster was conflicted, helping at times and running a short distance away at others. Was Tlara trying to let them while Spinner refused to part with its prize? He¡¯d have to have her show them where her true body was at some point, but Daniel would deal with the wolves first.

    ¡°Hey, I¡¯m going to switch back in a minute or two. I¡¯m not sensing anything else nearby. Spinner must have drawn everything in.¡±

    Willow stopped trying to calm down Spinner and looked up at him. ¡°I need to get whatever is on Spinner¡¯s back. I don¡¯t know what it is, but it¡¯s important.¡± She blinked a few times and looked around, frowning. ¡°Those flames, I don¡¯t see them anymore.¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t see Hunter!?¡± Daniel was about to go crazy, worried that the wolves had stopped spawning because something had happened to him, but Willow sighed a moment later.

    ¡°No, wait, they¡¯re over there.¡± She pointed to the east, but Daniel himself couldn¡¯t see anything even with Sense Astral still going. ¡°They¡¯re walking away? The distance, it¡¯s hard to tell, but I don¡¯t think they¡¯re afraid.¡± Daniel didn¡¯t press her on that as he doubted she could give him more information. Knowing that Hunter was out there was enough, and he didn¡¯t believe the ringcat¡¯s soul being nearby was a coincidence. They¡¯d find each other again.

    ¡°I¡¯ll help you soon. We should also talk about your bond, I can talk through how mine worked in case that makes things clearer to you.¡± Daniel said, easing the tension in his voice. Willow was still dealing with the death of her parents only to have this new bond thrown on. He¡¯d have Reassure while in human form worst case, but the young avianoid was doing well despite it all.

    With the last minute of the cooldown burning off, Daniel put his back to the sand and enjoyed the warmth of the sun. He couldn¡¯t get sunburned anymore with all of his advantages in healing and it did feel nice. He only just stopped himself from taking a nap to hit the switch.

    Daniel frowned as he watched the fur evaporate from his arms and the tingle of the sun became a slight burn. It¡¯d been pleasant seconds ago but now he wanted to join Silora under the tent. He didn¡¯t have time for that though. After tabbing through to confirm that he had in fact only received two advancement potential for the hunt, something that felt almost insultingly low, he stood. There were a ton of wolves to scan.

    <hr>

    You have scanned multiple Creatures, listed below.

    Scanned Targets:

    ? Gray Wastewolf, Deceased (Whole) - 12

    ? Gray Wastewolf, Deceased (Damaged) - 321

    ? Gray Wastewolf, Deceased (Destroyed) - 20

    ? Rust Shank Stomper, Deceased (Damaged) - 14

    ? Alpha Desert Urchin, Deceased (Damaged) - 15

    You have met the requirements to unlock multiple Encyclopedia entries, listed below.

    Encyclopedia Entries:

    ? Monster: Wastewolf, Detailed

    ? Formulae: Smoke Bomb, Item

    ? Formulae: Astral Aegis, Shield

    ? Monster: Wastewolf, Extensive

    ? Formulae: Cloudburst Cloak, Armor

    ? Affix: Self Repair

    ? Monster: Wastewolf, Complex

    ? Affix: Patchwork

    ? Formulae: Splitting Arrow, Ammunition

    ? Monster: Wastewolf, Complete

    ? Monster: Shank Stomper, Extensive

    ? Monster: Desert Urchin, Extensive

    You have unlocked all Encyclopedia entires relevant to Creature: Gray Wastewolf!

    -

    Analysis of Creature: Rust Shank Stalker and Creature: Alpha Desert Urchin has improved Formulae: Winged Boots to Quality: Standard!

    <hr>

    Woah, Daniel thought after the final tally came through. He fully remembered the fight but things had gotten hazy when he¡¯d relied on his hunting instincts. That was an insane amount to have killed in under an hour. While the other monsters hadn¡¯t given him anything due to their relatively low number, he¡¯d scanned enough wolves to earn everything he could from them.

    Despite how excited some of the formulae and affixes made him, he put off looking at them as he needed to help Thomas and Willow. He did sneak a glance at the fully fleshed out monster entry for the wolves out of curiosity and burned a little bit of mana to read in stopped time. While the majority was relatively uninteresting and confirmed what he¡¯d already figured out, a section at the bottom caught his eye.

    <hr>

    Illustrious Design Notes, Final: After careful consideration, we are suspending further development on the wastewolf. Addition of the Undying, Astral Walker, and Splitting Traits are too taxing on the Mana Structure, even with the flaws introduced to counterbalance the costs in order to satisfy Fundamental Law: Balance. This Monster can only survive gestation at Level: 3, as weaker variants cannot support the modifications, and those of higher level are too enfeebled by the initial drawbacks to survive gestation. The Creature: Base used is also too simple, another compromise too far for the positive traits. While a monster that is nigh unkillable without the right Powers would be a significant boon against the Gods in the eventual war, we have too ambitiously pursued this goal here.If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    <hr>

    The Illustrious really are designing monsters, Daniel thought, his breath catching. That had been a theory floating around in the group after encountering the lake monster, though it hadn¡¯t been confirmed until his unshackled Encyclopedia had sucked the information out of all the bodies. If the Collapse is letting their min-maxed shit start spawning, we¡¯re in trouble.

    ¡°What is it, Guy?¡± Thomas asked, reading his face as he returned to camp.

    ¡°I¡¯m calling a meeting,¡± Daniel said with a determination about half as intense as while he was in Beast Mode. ¡°After we get whatever is in that web down, I¡¯m making good on my promise.¡±

    ¡°Guy, I don¡¯t know if you can trust Silora,¡± Thomas whispered, pulling him close. ¡°Or Rait. He was selling us out to Aucrest before Mark happened to him.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t care,¡± Daniel replied, trying to mean the words. ¡°I¡¯m not telling everyone I meet, but this world has gotten a lot more dangerous and I can¡¯t worry about this anymore. We can tell Silora not to tell anyone, and honestly, I don¡¯t think it will matter by the time she¡¯s free.¡± Thomas looked uncomfortable with that suggestion but didn¡¯t object.

    Turning back to the last stumbling block between him and spilling his guts, Daniel looked directly into the eyes of Spinner. They were insectoid and not at all as human as Khiat¡¯s, and yet he could make out something there if he looked for it. ¡°Spinner, look, if you¡¯re that hungry I can let you take some of the wolves I just killed. The ones that came back healthy don¡¯t look as toxic. Willow seems to think that thing on your back is important, can you let us have it?¡±

    Any doubts that this creature wasn¡¯t special were erased as the spider-like head nodded, but in the next moment, Spinner backed away. Still confused, Daniel sighed and hoped this wouldn¡¯t take too much mana. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but we do need to know what that is.¡± Hopefully not an egg sack, he added mentally.

    Daniel used Telekinetic Reach on the clump and grimaced as mana began to drain from out of his hands. The power was being actively resisted and the webs posed an additional barrier, so he cut off his attempt with a shake of his head. ¡°It looks like Tlara can¡¯t override Spinner. We¡¯ll have to find out where she is, but I want to do this first. Is that ok?¡±

    The avianoid looked disappointed, but she still didn¡¯t protest. After looking down for a few moments, she said, ¡°I don¡¯t feel like Tlara¡¯s in danger, just that something¡¯s wrong.¡±

    ¡°You might have an Empathic Link,¡± Daniel said, grimacing at what the experience of sharing Tlara¡¯s inner mind must be like. ¡°Now that I can see bonds in my phone, I could try to identify yours. Just will the information to be shared with me.¡± Nothing happened as Willow closed her eyes, and from his earlier experiences, he knew it was easy enough for normal powers. Khiat had done it moments after gaining her cursed class.

    ¡°How long did it take you to figure this out?¡±

    ¡°A while. With Khare, I got the information up front, but Hunter¡¯s bond was blocked from my phone by a jerk.¡± He was getting into too many details, especially since this was coming before his confession. ¡°I should start at the beginning and everyone needs to hear this.¡¯

    Everyone gathered where Khiat was clumsily repairing her armor. She wasn¡¯t in any real danger without it as she could fully collapse her shell when Sun Resistance ran out, but it would be uncomfortable. He hoped the work his beast self had done would help with that. As he prepared for what was about to happen, he also began enchanting a piece of the fur he¡¯d torn off. Making bags of holding was difficult, but a level 1 leathercut bag of holding with level 3 material was something he could manage. This would also give him something to do while talking, help heal his arm, and allow them to store wolf bodies at the same time.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry about abandoning you guys,¡± he said first, though he continued before she could reply. ¡°I¡¯m still figuring this out. That¡¯s not why everyone¡¯s here. I told you I¡¯d tell you everything, and this is the time.¡± Daniel did pause now but no one was going to interrupt the man about to confess a deep secret. He was hesitant, but there were some lessons he could learn from his beast self. ¡°There are more worlds than just the Octyrrum. I¡¯m from one of them.¡±

    ¡­

    He managed to craft three gray bags of holding during his conversation, the interior space within slightly smaller than the ones he¡¯d made from the greater skink leather. It wasn¡¯t the level of the craft but the dimensional aspect of the level 4 monster that had added to the carrying capacity. What the wolf fur did wasn¡¯t immediately apparent, though the bag felt gritty to the touch.

    Of everyone, Rait had immediately checked out as he was far over his head. The rest pestered him with questions like Murdon and Lograve had originally done, a new wave coming up each time he moved from the various topics. When it was over he was more exhausted than after killing hundreds of wolves, and yet he was calm. That Cloak hadn¡¯t swept in to stop and/or kill him was another good sign. The secret was out.

    Then Khiat broke the silence. ¡°I don¡¯t have a class.¡±

    ¡°Wait, we don¡¯t-¡°

    ¡°I was an Assassin, but then it went away.¡± She looked at Daniel, knowing the truth now. ¡°You helped me get rid of it.¡±

    ¡°That was you!?¡± Silora shot up. ¡°How did you avoid my Regional Log? You kept coming on and off it.¡±

    ¡°Oh, that was me. I have a power that blocks that kind of stuff.¡± That was so minor a secret compared to everything else he hadn¡¯t bothered to mention it. The Fate looked angry at that, but her outburst was preempted by Thomas.

    ¡°Damn it, I guess we¡¯re all doing this. I have Ressurection. It¡¯s not like half of you don¡¯t already know.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± Khiat asked, not quite getting it from the word alone.

    Thomas scratched at the back of his head as he looked away. ¡°I can bring back the dead. It sucks.¡±

    ¡°What!?¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t bind a Focus for a year because she blackmailed me into bringing her back right before the Spiritualists would have freed her anyway,¡± he said bitterly, glaring at Silora. ¡°With normal people, it locks me for a week, but it takes a longer time if they¡¯re higher level than I am. Look, I¡¯m not trying to be callous, but you wouldn¡¯t know the trouble this power has, uh-¡° Spinner had suddenly charged up to Thomas, removing the webbed bundle it had so fiercely protected before. The insect-fearing Cleric stumbled backward, only for Spinner to push the webbed thing forward towards him.

    Both Willow and Daniel got the same premonition for different reasons. The avianoid ran to the clump while Daniel stayed rooted, not sure if he was right. As Willow tore off sections of webbing there were slight sparks from the latent charge the magical silk the spider monster put out. She didn¡¯t notice and gasped when enough had been torn away. Her eyes went to Thomas. ¡°Can you help her?¡±

    The Cleric sucked through his teeth as he looked down on Tlara¡¯s pale face. Patches of feathers were missing, though the decay hadn¡¯t become too noticeable yet. ¡°She¡¯s been dead for too long. I¡¯m sorry. If I had my powers I¡¯d try, but her soul¡­¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s possessing Spinner like a ghost,¡± Daniel said hollowly. Had Tlara gotten the same body swapping power with Spinner he¡¯d had with Hunter before she¡¯d died? Would Hunter¡¯s mind have persisted in him if he¡¯d managed to swap over before the end? No point in wondering about that now. ¡°Thomas, if her soul is in Spinner, could someone still bring her back?¡±

    ¡°When you say in Spinner, you mean¡­¡± Thomas looked up at the monster and couldn¡¯t hide his revulsion. ¡°Damn. Uh, maybe. I don¡¯t know if Threst has someone that can do that but both people in Aughal are tapped for a year. If she can hide out in Spinner I guess it¡¯s just down to making sure there¡¯s enough of the body left.¡±

    ¡°How much is enough?¡± Willow asked, her voice torn.

    ¡°We should put it in a bag of holding right now.¡± Thomas caught one of the wolf bags and frowned at the feeling of the exterior. ¡°Handy. Look, that might not be enough, Willow. The soul usually passes on before it¡¯s a problem, but the church has tried it with people who were mangled in monster hunts. There¡¯s not a clear point of when the damage is too much, and I can¡¯t heal dead things.¡±

    ¡°Does she still have her other monsters?¡± Daniel hesitantly approached the body, more fearful of Spinner than Tlara¡¯s dead body. The monster, or more likely Tlara, was reacting poorly to the news. He guessed where her waist was and peeled back the webs with a talon hand, taking care not to damage the body. Tlara had at one point brought him to murderous fury, but he would have let Thomas bring her back now if that had been an option as he didn¡¯t have Hunter¡¯s body.

    It took some exploring, but he found the set of pouches on Tlara¡¯s belt and pulled them off. ¡°She¡¯s awake in there, right?¡± Daniel asked Willow. ¡°You did bond with her and not Spinner. Do you think there¡¯s anything with the bond that could help?¡±

    Willow gave a troubled, assessing look at Spinner and shook her head. ¡°All of this is just feeling it out, but it doesn¡¯t feel right. There¡¯s something with those pouches, though.¡±

    ¡°Tlara can have two monsters out at a time, I think.¡± She did against the lightning dragon, at least. ¡°Do you know if she was hunting a lot over the last month?¡±

    ¡°She was mostly staying at home with us.¡± Willow shook her head as memories she didn¡¯t want returned. ¡°I don¡¯t think she advanced at all. We used to fight about this, you know. If monsters could think and feel. At first she was being confrontational, but then she awakened the Beastmaster class.¡± Willow sat in the sand and looked sadly at her sister¡¯s body. A short distance away, Spinner stopped shaking. ¡°She¡¯s not a bad person. I don¡¯t know what happened in the Thormundz, but she never did anything really bad or hurt anyone. Not physically, at least.¡±

    ¡°She wouldn¡¯t save Hunter when all it cost was a bit of mana,¡± Daniel spat back, Willow¡¯s defense of her sister driving out some of the old pain despite his attempts to hide it.

    Willow glanced to where her sister was now and shook her head. ¡°She¡¯s not a good person either, just not a bad person. I mean, she didn¡¯t help our mother kill hundreds of people and our father, so there¡¯s that. From what I heard she even helped kill that dragon. You both did.¡± Spinner¡¯s eyes shined with the recognition. ¡°What do we do now?¡±

    ¡°I could ask around in Threst¡¯s church,¡± Thomas said with a verbal shrug. ¡°We don¡¯t have a great chance, but with all the money the kingdom owes Wingcraft we could try buying a Resurrection, assuming there¡¯s a Cleric there with it. Quala¡¯d help.¡±

    Oh right, that, Daniel thought as he remembered the deferred sum Rasalia had promised them. As long as Rikendia¡¯s fall didn¡¯t throw that into jeopardy, he was set to receive a lot. When his mind got back to the matter at hand, he made a decision. ¡°We¡¯ll help you. Tlara, you were an absolute bitch to me and part of me thinks this is exactly what you deserve.¡± Spinner reared back slightly at this, either one or both of them taking offense. ¡°But I¡¯ll help you, if only because I want to hear you apologize in person. You can¡¯t deny you were wrong anymore. You, uh-¡° His fierce words were cut off as Willow approached and held out a hand for the belt of pouches. Seeing Daniel and Thomas¡¯ support had given her some strength that she was now using to investigate whatever her instincts were driving her to.

    When Willow was busy inspecting the pouches, he continued, ¡°You¡¯re easier to fix than Hunter is, and that¡¯s the only reason I¡¯m splitting my focus like this. I help get you back, and you do everything in your power to help me.¡± He didn¡¯t wait for an agreement but looked back to Willow. ¡°Figure anything out?¡±

    ¡°There are others in here,¡± she said, certain of the knowledge but uncertain of why she had it. ¡°I think I can free them? Not forever, but release them at least.¡±

    ¡°She has a wyvern, it¡¯s the only other level 3 thing if she hasn¡¯t gotten more monsters. Try bringing that out.¡±

    Willow¡¯s hand hovered over one of the pouches and she frowned. ¡°I don¡¯t think any of these are special. They feel empty, but it¡¯s like I can put something in them. Something I don¡¯t have.¡±

    ¡°Souls?¡± Daniel asked hopefully. ¡°The flame you saw earlier, Hunter, if we got another level 2 ringcat, could you put him in it?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± She looked back at the pouches and said it again. ¡°No, I¡¯m sorry. It doesn¡¯t feel right. Everyone is alright if I bring it out? What if it attacks us?¡±

    ¡°If they¡¯re still in there, Tlara¡¯s class is still working. It¡¯s still dominated, but Spinner isn¡¯t,¡± Daniel suddenly realized. That tag had been present on every one of Tlara¡¯s monsters, but it had been replaced by the possessed tag. Spinner didn¡¯t have an awakened version of its species, though perhaps it had progressed into the stage Hunter had been in before his. Too bad we don¡¯t have Lograve here to confirm with Telepathy.

    ¡°Khiat¡¯d just blow it out of the sky with one of those arrows if it gets fussy too,¡± Thomas said, clapping the dusker on the back. ¡°What do you think that new power is anyway?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s called Sun Arrow,¡± she reported, the tone in her voice not exactly enthusiastic about the power. ¡°It hurts to use, and I get really tired right after.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s strong, though. I¡¯m going to try and get you better armor, Khiat. Maybe that will help block out the light more.¡± Daniel turned his attention back to Willow as she began the process of drawing out one of the monsters. He didn¡¯t know exactly what limits Tlara had had on the process other than that there was a cooldown involved. Willow was likely accessing that power through the bond, and after a minute dust flew out and coalesced into a familiar blue wyvern with lightning spines threaded through the wings.

    Its dull eyes flicked towards Spinner as if waiting for a command, though something changed in them after a few seconds. Daniel identified the creature and immediately realized the mistake he¡¯d made as the wyvern moved its head to inspect one of the wings.

    <hr>

    Young Skyshock Wyvern - (3, Possessed)

    -

    Tlara Seliri - (Avianoid, Beastmaster - 3)

    <hr>

    ¡°So, yeah, Tlara,¡± he said, now a little nervous. ¡°Thanks again for agreeing to help.¡±

    While she had been fighting for control with Spinner before, there seemed to be nothing in the way within the wyvern. A smile too large spread over the wyvern¡¯s face, though it flickered when the head turned to where Thomas was stuffing Tlara¡¯s body into the bag. For a second the lightning spines sparked and a weak shot of electricity burned the sand a meter away from Daniel. As he recoiled, the wyvern took flight.

    ¡°Man,¡± Daniel said, a little stunned despite the purple lightning missing him. ¡°I thought my bonds were weird.¡±

    Above, Tlara danced in the sky.

 Chapter 173: I Suck At Enchanting

    <hr>

    Your Charisma is now 21!

    <hr>

    Daniel took first watch this time, though with Tlara now piloting a wyvern he wasn¡¯t sure he needed to. Someone has to make sure she doesn¡¯t eat me, he mentally compromised. Might as well be me. The fact that the avianoid was basking in that body robbed him of any sense of justice he¡¯d felt, though to be fair she¡¯d just spent the past week and a half in Spinner. Not to put down the intelligent monster, but that did not look like as fun a body to possess.

    Staying up also let him enchant, Restorative Craft and Craftsman¡¯s Repose giving him meaningful boosts. His arm was well on the way to fully recovering, almost back to the wrist. This was also the perfect opportunity to test out the new formulae. There was just one problem, something that had been gnawing at him since he¡¯d seen the blast marbles.

    I suck at enchanting. It wasn¡¯t his fault, not really, but his enchanting skills had been as spoiled as his seventh sense in terms of development. The typical Artificer should¡¯ve had no problem making items on par with the level of the material, but he was struggling. This hadn¡¯t been a problem before with higher level material, but his desires to both improve himself and use multiple affixes in one item were forcing the issue.

    Khiat¡¯s armor was the crux. Every time he saw the repaired gashes in the front sent a spike of guilt into him. Daniel wasn¡¯t going to let himself use the excuse of an altered personality to avoid responsibility. Khiat needed a good set of armor, and it had to be a replica of her current set because of how her body moved. In other words, it had to be in one piece.

    His ideal work would involve the use of two affixes, self repair and patchwork. The first was self-explanatory, the enchanted item would automatically repair itself from damage up to a certain threshold. Patchwork was where things got interesting, and it explained why it had been the second, rarer affix he¡¯d received.

    <hr>

    Patchwork (Enchanting: Affix, Domain: Enchantment, Level: -):

    This affix allows for the use of multiple Materials: Enchanting. Separate instances of the same base material can be combined into one final product so long as the material is in direct physical contact at all times during the process. An additional type of material can be used for every Level above 1 the final product is.

    Special Interaction: Affix: Bonecut and Affix: Leathercut allow you to use Nonmagical materials of a type respectively appropriate for those affixes without adding the affix to the final enchantment.

    <hr>

    The supply of materials wasn¡¯t an issue. Wolf fur counted as leather for the purposes of leathercut, but the problem was salvaging workable pieces of it. Without Tak, the best he could do was try and clumsily hack off what he¡¯d used for the bags he¡¯d already made. Even if he could skin a wolf from head to paw without losing anything, it still wouldn¡¯t be enough to cover Khiat. Making the armor with both his desired affixes required a level 2 enchantment with level 3 material, and he couldn¡¯t even do that.

    Daniel needed to start back at the beginning, enchanting level 1 items with level 1 material. Since he didn¡¯t have any, he was doing his best with the bone scavenged from the rust shank stompers in an attempt to make more blast marbles. If the bonus effects from the material played as he¡¯d hoped, the explosions might damage metal more effectively.

    ¡°You surprise me,¡± a shrewd voice said, and a moment later Cloak appeared next to him.

    ¡°Can you hide from Tlara?¡± he asked, a little worried. It had taken a level 5 Fate to detect him before, but he was also sure he could do it with Keen Senses while in hybrid mode. And who knew what Tlara and Willow could do now with their bond. Would the fact that Cloak was a god make him register in the Astral? Actually wait, what was the Astral? Daniel first navigated the hyperlinks to Sense Astral and used the link there to jump to the entry, leaving the god to watch him bemusedly.

    <hr>

    Astral (Concept: Dimension, Domain: Universal, Multiversal):

    The astral is a Dimension bridging all other dimensions. Souls and other Concepts: Spiritual are attuned to the astral. Upon the death of a sentient Creature, their soul falls under the-

    -

    Astral (Concept: Dimension, Domain: Universal, Multiversal):

    ???

    <hr>

    ¡°Hey, bring that back!¡± Daniel shouted at the god as before his very eyes, the entry of the Astral was unidentified. His memory wasn¡¯t affected but he hadn¡¯t had a chance to read it fully.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. There¡¯s information there you can¡¯t know, the kind Torch and I work very hard to keep out of mortal hands. It¡¯s dangerous, just like those two are.¡± He indicated Willow and the wyvern circling above. ¡°A Contronymous Bond.¡±

    ¡°A what?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a type of advanced bond, like yours. A bond made of opposites who yet still have bridging similarities. The kind that should have remained suppressed. He¡¯s throwing this whole world into chaos.¡±

    ¡°And you can¡¯t tell me who this is?¡± Daniel asked acerbically. One thing that was consistent between hybrid Daniel and him was that they had waning patience for this god, and he glared as Cloak just held up his hands helplessly. ¡°Ok, then tell me this. You were the one there when Khiat lost her class, right? You and this Proxy?¡±

    ¡°Yes, in a sense.¡±

    ¡°So why aren¡¯t you that powerful now?¡±

    Cloak considered for a moment before appearing to relent. ¡°Callister was given an artifact that contained a bound soul. A willingly bound soul,¡± he added quickly to Daniel¡¯s look of immense skepticism. ¡°We have tools the likes these border regions will never see. Regardless, as a Proxy Callister could allow that soul to subvert his body, though he can¡¯t do that now that I require it.¡±

    ¡°Do you still have it with you?¡± Cloak shifted but didn¡¯t reveal anything.

    ¡°I know what you¡¯re capable of, and what kinds of information I¡¯d give you access to if you had it in your hands. No wonder-¡°

    ???

    ¡°Right, right, sorry,¡± Cloak said as a piercing headache hit Daniel. The piece of bone he¡¯d been working on had partially disintegrated as the attempted enchantment failed. ¡°I am letting you see more than you normally would be allowed, but the Astral is off limits.¡±

    ¡°Fine,¡± Daniel seethed. ¡°What about Hunter? Willow saw his soul. So long as that¡¯s still around, all I need is to find his body and someone else with Ressurection, right?¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± Cloak said, though Daniel sensed there were qualifications on that word he wasn¡¯t mentioning. ¡°All I¡¯ll say is to continue on this path. Incidentally, I¡¯d hold off on delving too deeply into enchantment until you¡¯ve recovered more of your memories. You might accidentally uncover a trigger too early.¡±If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    Makes sense, I did somehow make the blast marbles, he thought. At least on his suppressed memories he trusted Cloak, as otherwise the god wouldn¡¯t have a reason to use unidentification on him sparingly. ¡°I still haven¡¯t found anything to latch onto after Hammer grabbed me.¡±

    ¡°You need to. The more time that passes, the less likely it is you will recover those memories.¡±

    ¡°You know everything that happened,¡± Daniel returned, still with some bitterness. ¡°Can¡¯t you give me any hints?¡±

    Cloak didn¡¯t immediately answer, pondering that. At that time Daniel started another enchantment, hoping the god wouldn¡¯t drop any more restricted knowledge. As he was enchanting on his level the size of material required was equivalent to the final product. Losing a marble-sized piece of the arm blade wasn¡¯t too bad, but he was trying to grind them out in hopes of improving his skill.

    Eventually, the god pulled something out of the air and handed it to Daniel. It was an ornate hand mirror, although everything but the reflected surface was pure black. ¡°What? How?¡± He could touch it so it wasn¡¯t an illusion, unless Cloak had created something that was passively fooling all of his senses.

    ¡°What are you doing?¡± The god asked as Daniel dropped the mirror. The Artificer frowned as he saw the sand react realistically.

    ¡°Sand physics,¡± Daniel muttered. ¡°How did you make this?¡±

    ¡°Find more of your memories and I¡¯ll be able to tell you,¡± the god answered unhelpfully. ¡°Just do whatever comes naturally. Telling you more might close off another opportunity.¡±

    ¡°Fine.¡± Daniel put the mirror in his bag of holding without thinking and paused afterward as his mind caught up. No deja vu hit him. The enchantment failed as he did so, but this time it wasn¡¯t Cloak¡¯s fault. Enchanting on his level currently required a good deal of concentration, though not enough that he couldn¡¯t talk. The best he could describe it was like trying to fly a plane through a narrow valley in that one mission every flight simulator had in its campaign. Back with the heliorite it had been as wide as an ocean, but now there were crags and unexpected turns to manage. The one time he¡¯d tried to enchant an item above the level of the material, it¡¯d been like flying through a pass as wide as the plane.

    Daniel put down the arm blade and decided to pause enchanting while he talked to the god. Going for too long without it would spoil Craftsman¡¯s Repose, but there was something important he had to ask about that he¡¯d alluded to. Actually there were a thousand questions he wanted to ask, but after being assured about Hunter there was one he had to know about. ¡°Khiat. What exactly happened to her when she lost her class?¡±

    Cloak seemed to run this by the knowledge that was restricted to Daniel and came up with a clear check. He still didn¡¯t seem enthusiastic about answering. ¡°I don¡¯t know if I should tell you. In any case, you¡¯d tell the girl and you wouldn¡¯t be able to explain how you- oh.¡±

    The primarily blue Focus was being presented to the god, who had taken the point. ¡°I already know the Octyrrum is some kind of magic system you gods run. I¡¯m guessing she¡¯s somehow gotten outside of that. My world doesn¡¯t have magic at all, so is she playing by other rules?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s a part of this I can¡¯t tell you, though in this case I can tell you what is important.¡± The god looked towards where Khiat was resting before she¡¯d take the second watch, and Daniel found the pity that crossed Cloak¡¯s face comforting. Another sign of humanity lurking behind the ancient knowledge and restrained omnipotence. ¡°You know about archetypes. Those are important to classes as the powers people awaken from the Octyrrum are tied to them, for the most part. In the most current version we introduced randomness as the deviation towards the mean still promoted a stable system, and in fact improved the rate of empowered individuals surviving their first level. That and the concept of archetypes is problematic. Mass discovery leads to some unfortunate consequences. The Illustrious are a perfect example of this.¡±

    ¡°Uh, what?¡± Daniel blankly stared at the god who¡¯d suddenly started talking like he was dictating a game update.

    ¡°We manage the Octyrrum, and that includes how it interfaces with mortals. Not every individual decision, not even Hourglass has the time for that, but the underlying rules and variables.¡± A light smile crossed the god¡¯s face as he turned introspective. ¡°You know, this is the exact opposite of my role in the Octyrrum. I have to say I find this conversation a bit refreshing.¡±

    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, why was Torch unidentifying everything I learned?¡±

    ¡°She wasn¡¯t. Again, what she did wasn¡¯t from my domain, the Octyrrum just considers it unidentification because the result is the same. The reason she was responsible for that instead of me is the offending power is sourced from her domain. She was the only one who could sense when you were gaining information you weren¡¯t supposed to know and act in the moment.¡±

    That made sense, and also explained why Cloak hadn¡¯t been as quick on the draw with the Astral entry. He decided to drop that and get back to the matter at hand. ¡°So what¡¯s happening with Khiat now? She doesn¡¯t even have a level.¡±

    ¡°Levels and classes are both constructs of the Octyrrum,¡± Cloak explained before qualifying, ¡°And again, tell anyone about that and I will have to unidentify that knowledge, as well as from you if you keep it up.¡±

    Great, more secrets. Cloak¡¯s continued threatening of mind wipes was starting to piss him off, but any pushback would just get him ghosted. Better to find out more now and find a way to work around the god later. ¡°I get it, I¡¯ll just tell Khiat what she needs to know. Can you get to the point?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure which of your personas I prefer. The other one is aggressive but he doesn¡¯t press me this hard,¡± Cloak scoffed. ¡°That dusker¡¯s power is in a less quantifiable state than most. You¡¯ve already figured out she can use items of a higher level, which normal level 1 individuals couldn¡¯t do. We put in that restriction as another way to help increase system stability, by the way. Too many people were getting their hands on high grade items and wreaking havoc.¡±

    ¡°Didn¡¯t help Aughal,¡± Daniel pointed out.

    ¡°Well, yes. Mortals without a class are less restricted by the Octyrrum. I think your group showed that even a normal mortal with a set of very powerful items can be defeated by a group of Blessed, so there was no need to take drastic measures for stability¡¯s sake. Back to the main point, your friend solely gets her powers from her archetypes and develops them outside the boundaries of the approved power list. If she does something unique enough she might make a new one rather than pull from our system. There¡¯s more to it than that but nothing she¡¯ll encounter in years or decades, assuming she lives that long. All she needs to know is that her powers are focused on her archetypes, which I believe she already knows. As she continues to defeat enemies, her general power will grow.¡±

    ¡°What about the other ways to advance?¡±

    ¡°Another product of the Octyrrum that she is beyond.¡± The god seemed to hesitate, but added one last nugget of information. ¡°It¡¯s not important, but you should know that non-humans normally have their race as an artificial archetype. It¡¯s how we managed the introduction of race-specific powers, but the consequence of this is that it is impossible for them to do what your friend did. You can¡¯t escape a system if one of your archetypes is solely found within it.¡±

    ¡°So why didn¡¯t she get that archetype?¡± Daniel asked, already knowing the answer. Cloak simply pointed at him, not elaborating as that would probably force him to zone out and miss the answer. Partially satisfied with what he¡¯d learned and wanting to get back to enchanting, Daniel asked one last question. ¡°What are the archetypes that I have while in Beast Mode?¡±

    ¡°Friendship, Cunning, Hunt, Bravery, Beast, and Astral,¡± Cloak replied, seeing no reason to hide that knowledge. ¡°The first Astral archetype to awaken in thousands of years.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡±

    Sadness unexpectedly crossed Cloak¡¯s face. ¡°Another time.¡± He stood, clearly ready to end the conversation. ¡°Remember, the mirror. Do whatever comes naturally. The others won¡¯t be able to see it, by the way.¡±

    ¡°Then why-¡° Daniel started to ask, but the god vanished. ¡°Fine. Might as well get back to enchanting.¡± He started piloting his way through making another blast marble. That too was a failure, but half an hour later, he finally succeeded. More than that, Ammunition Surplus triggered and another blast marble appeared from nothing. The bone spheres retained the reddish tint and he carefully wrapped them in scrap fur before storing them. There was no telling if the presumed anti-metal nature would react while they were like that.

    I need to ask Cloak about Khare next, Daniel thought, and absentmindedly tried to scratch his face with his missing hand. Damn it. I really need to grow this arm back too.

    ¡­

    ¡°How far are we from Threst, do you think?¡± Daniel asked Thomas later, who just shrugged in response.

    ¡°Dunno. Could be a week. Think we¡¯ll run into any more monsters, Guy?¡±

    ¡°If we do, I think we can handle most level 2s,¡± he replied, looking uncertainly up at the Tlara-wyvern. From what he¡¯d heard, the main limit on Beastmasters was the imprecise if total control they had on monsters, as well as a lack of personal power. Tlara had somehow solved both of those problems, if at great personal cost. Willow couldn¡¯t talk to her so there was no telling where her head was at, but she wasn¡¯t rampaging. Hopefully, the thought of being revived in Threst was keeping her head straight.

    She wasn¡¯t the only one who would be getting on the wild side as they traveled either. ¡°Thomas, I¡¯m going to stay in Beast Mode while we move. The scouting potential¡¯s just too much to ignore and I think I can finish growing back my arm tonight. You¡¯re good with that, right?¡±

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Thomas sighed, giving about 80% approval to the idea.

    ¡°Hey, we¡¯re still friends when I¡¯m like that. I just, everything feels different.¡± Daniel didn¡¯t elaborate as he¡¯d run out of ways to explain it. ¡°I¡¯m glad you know everything about me too. I should have told you sooner.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine, Guy. We were both keeping secrets.¡± Thomas then waved as he left to check on Silora, who was trying to argue for another hour or so of rest before they got going. Daniel sat in the sand and was about to initiate the change when he had a thought.

    ¡°Hey, Khare! Take these.¡± He passed off the scrap fur containing all the blast marbles he¡¯d made the past night, taking them out of the bag of holding as Khare couldn¡¯t put one in their Mobile Armory. ¡°Keep them away from anything lightning you got in there. I figure you can make better use of them than I can in cat mode. Got it?¡±

    ¡°Acquisition,¡± Khare confirmed with a slight smile, and Daniel suspected they¡¯d made their response a little less clear than they¡¯d needed to. The gestalt had a personality, just no good way to share it.

    Cloak has to have a way they can help them get a real voice. He went to close the bag the marbles had come from and saw the mirror. Oh, what the hell, might as well see how this looks. Daniel inconspicuously propped the mirror on the ground so that he could watch his transformation. ¡°I¡¯m doing it. Sorry in advance if I¡¯m a jerk.¡±

    Activating the power, he watched as his face began to contort, teeth lengthening and fur shooting up from the skin. As Cloak had intimated would happen, he felt a sudden deja vu from the experience. No, wait, two moments. The general transformation felt familiar, though watching his teeth change brought on a more specific sense of strange familiarity. Despite this, it was the broader feeling that felt the closest temporarily, and Daniel clung to that as he called out to the others.

    ¡°Thomas! Tell Silora she¡¯ll get her break after all. I don¡¯t know how long this will take, but it¡¯s important. I might be getting some of my memories back.¡± Daniel didn¡¯t wait for the response but closed his eyes, chasing the first feeling like it was prey. He didn¡¯t let it slip away like the other times and as he closed his eyes, he began to remember.

 Chapter 174: Hammerspace

    The soft touch of silk greeted Daniel as he regained consciousness. Beds had been a luxury over the past few months so it was welcome. Between those times he was camping or traveling, Daniel had been roughing it far more than he would have preferred. Even the Painted Dusk had only had serviceable amenities. He half expected that the mattress had been stuffed with old clothes since the desert didn¡¯t offer much else in the way of stuffing.

    This bed was really nice. It was like there was a minute black hole below the frame that sucked him down into perfectly firm bedding. The sheets were smooth and cool, pairing with a slight breeze from an open window. Honestly, this beat everything he¡¯d ever slept on, including Earth and Hunter¡¯s fur after he had gotten the feature that made it softer. If it wasn¡¯t for the fact that he knew Lograve would give him hell if the Arcanist ever caught him napping with the ringcat, he¡¯d-

    Hunter. Daniel fell out of the bed as he scrambled, taking the marvelous sheets with him. He hit the wood flooring while still covered, unable to see his surroundings. Falling off the bed felt odd. From the way hitting the floor only fainting hurt, he knew he hadn¡¯t somehow teleported back to Earth in some ¡®it was all a dream¡¯ way, as his endurance put in work to resist the admittedly incidental damage. No, it was the fact that he should have far more control over the motion given all the powers he had.

    That was a secondary concern he put off for later. Hunter is dead. He had met a god, but this was his first coherent thought waking up. Hunter was dead. Casia Seliri, the strange undead sand creature, had killed him for nothing. His team had practically been wiped by her alone on top of the Eye. It had taken strange powers that allowed him to directly contest the Spires of Aughal, as well as some guy coming out of nowhere, but she was dead.

    So was Hunter. Daniel threw off the sheets, finding himself in some kind of Victorian-adjacent room with the symbol of the Hammer everywhere, even in the wood of the headrest. It was like he¡¯d landed in one half of Stalin¡¯s bedroom. A candle flicked to life as he stood up, the only source of light aside from the faint silver reflecting from the nearly new moon off the mirror attached to the desk. That itself was odd as the reflection in the mirror showed the room as if it were illuminated by some omnipresent light source, banishing all shadows, but it didn¡¯t emit any light that would have spoiled someone¡¯s sleep.

    Daniel¡¯s eyes passed over the person standing there until his head registered the obvious. Wait, that¡¯s me!? Daniel paid no attention to the very fine bedsheets he¡¯d trampled on the ground as he made his way to the desk, trying not to hold up an arm to his face so he could deny what he was seeing for as long as possible. He put both hands on the desk, leaning forward towards the mirror so he could inspect his face as closely as he could. When he brought one of his hands up to touch a cheek, it got very hard to say the person he saw wasn¡¯t him. What the hell is going on?

    When Daniel had appeared on the Octyrrum, he had been physically changed by the addition of attributes boosting his natural talents. Even so, his body had been the same, that of a young white guy in his early twenties with just a little more fat than most doctors would have recommended. Surviving in a magical world where some kind of disaster happened every other week had gotten him into shape, something the version of himself that had stayed behind on Earth had been very envious of. Along with all the friends and magical powers he¡¯d gained.

    The person Daniel saw in the mirror wasn¡¯t him. Oh, the body moved when he told it to, but this went beyond what cosmetic surgery on Earth could achieve. For one, someone had taken the skin color slider in his character builder and moved it two thirds of the way towards the other end. His face overall gave him a faint impression of how more shaded Middle Eastern people could look, though no one anywhere on Earth would think he was a local.

    Daniel¡¯s damn eyes were purple, and there was a thin secondary ring of light blue around the pupil that sat about halfway from the center when he was looking straight forward. He used to have brown eyes and hair, but the latter was now dark red. The difference wasn¡¯t too much, and honestly the color fit his current features better than the original. Otherwise, not much else had changed. He still had the same build and height, and everything was fine under the hood. The flowing, first phase JRPG end boss robes he¡¯d been changed into made it a little easier to check than what he¡¯d been wearing before coming here.

    ¡°Still, what the hell is- what?¡± Daniel spoke for the first time and really shouldn¡¯t have been surprised that his voice had changed too. This one was deep and commanding, achieving Murdon levels of stoic without him having to try. Out of all the changes he did like that one, though whoever had done this needed to undo it before he started to worry if this was some kind of unwilling cultural appropriation.

    Daniel was about to head for the door when he glanced at his face again and got an odd feeling. It wasn¡¯t as if he¡¯d seen this person before, otherwise he¡¯d worry this was some kind of body swap power hitting him. No, there was only familiarity. It was when he wondered when the hell he would have met someone with a blue ring in their eyes that he remembered he had, Daniel had just been too worked up in the moment to notice.

    This was kind of what Hammer looked like. The hair had thrown him off at first since Hammer¡¯s was graying. The skin tone matched, the weird eyes matched, and the god could command people to sacrifice themselves upon his sacred altar by voice alone. Well, he was a god so people would do it anyway. Since Hammer ruled over the transmutation domain, he could make himself look and sound like whatever he wanted. Wait a minute. Oh. Oh no.

    ¡°Little one, is everything well?¡± Hammer appeared right behind him, and since Daniel had been looking in the mirror he knew it had been either teleportation or movement so fast he couldn¡¯t track it. Seeing both reflected images hammered the point home. This god had changed his body so he¡¯d look like his son. The fact that this had been done to him without any forewarning boded very ill, contrasting to the concern and fondness the god¡¯s voice had for him.

    Daniel decided to ask something that would get the god to answer the question he wanted to ask, without appearing rude to the divine that had given him a non-consensual extreme makeover. ¡°What happened?¡±

    ¡°I am sorry, little one. You are more remarkable than I had first expected.¡± Hammer put a hand on his shoulder and Daniel tried to suppress his shudder. Either the god was blind to his discomfort or was mistaking the reason behind it. ¡°When I brought us to Rikendia, I had assumed you would have no issue traveling as I did. However, you are more reliant on your corporeal form than I thought. You may still be feeling unwell, but this will pass.¡±

    Ok, but how did we get here? Daniel asked the question in his mind but directed it at Hammer as if they had a Telepathic Link. He needed to know five seconds ago whether the god could passively read his mind or not. Fortunately, Hammer just patted him on the shoulder in what would have been a comforting gesture for most people, not having heard it. ¡°How did we get here?¡±

    ¡°By linear transmission,¡± Hammer said as if that was supposed to mean anything. ¡°Would time not have been against us I would have enjoyed showing you the other regions of this kingdom, but I needed to prepare this space for the coming meeting. Journeying to Aughal took longer than I thought it would. Ah, but fear not, little one, it was worth it to have discovered you. For some reason, I was not able to find you after you left the Thormundz until just before my arrival.¡± His face darkened, which in another context would have preceded someone getting smited to hell and back. ¡°In fact, up until that moment, I had thought you lost, as you fell from my sight entirely.¡±

    Divination Aegis, Daniel realized. It works on him? I guess it failed when those weird powers manifested. He didn¡¯t explain any of this out loud because he still barely understood what this god¡¯s whole deal was. Part of him wanted to start screaming at him for what he¡¯d done, but it was complicated. Hammer could bring back Hunter, or at the very least get him in contact with Hand who was the source of that magic. Daniel would tolerate this for at least a few hours if that was what it took. Also, it had to be said, Hammer was a god. Instead of inviting the man who was otherwise acting benevolently towards him to get biblical, Daniel opted to go for more information. ¡°Linear transmission?¡±

    ¡°Ha!¡± Hammer chuckled, humor directed at himself. ¡°I forget. You are so young, even more than your other siblings. There must have been something terrible that interfered with your creation if you can¡¯t access the Octyrrum¡¯s records on the subject.¡± Daniel just let Hammer continue talking at that point, but he was starting to get a suspicion. If he was right, it might kind of explain why Hammer was acting the way he was, but it would also be insane. Even more so than waking up with the wrong skin tone.Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

    ¡°Consider this, young one.¡± Hammer picked up a quill pen from the table as Daniel finally turned to face him. The god laid it flat on one hand, and in the next moment, it appeared in the other. ¡°How did I accomplish this?¡±

    ¡°Teleportation?¡± Daniel answered, playing along with the lesson for now.

    ¡°No, little one.¡± Hammer gave him the wink every grandchild got from their grandfather at some point in their lives and put the pen back on the desk. He didn¡¯t even do whatever it was he had been doing either. ¡°No god can teleport. Do you know why?¡±

    No? Daniel pondered that rather than immediately show ignorance, and Hammer seemed to enjoy watching him think. He had no real experience to pull from or secret knowledge to cheat with, save for one thing Hammer had said when he¡¯d asked about bringing Hunter back. Part of Daniel¡¯s initial tutorial into the world¡¯s lore, credit to Lograve, was an explanation of the theology of gods and their domains. Daniel ran the seven through his head and realized something.

    Oh, wait, I do have secret knowledge to cheat with. ¡°Teleportation doesn¡¯t match with any of your domains?¡± There was one domain he¡¯d seen among descriptions of his Encyclopedia no god was responsible for. ¡°It¡¯s under the universal domain, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡± Daniel felt the air grow both warm and still in the room all of a sudden. It wasn¡¯t unpleasant, more like the feeling of being around a fire with friends. Hammer hadn¡¯t visibly done anything to trigger the change, though it had been him. He took it as a sign of approval since the god was praising him. ¡°You are as clever as you are personable, for an Incarnate. It¡¯s good you haven¡¯t lost everything. Even though we gods are bound to our domains, that does not mean we cannot replicate that which is solely administrated by the Octyrrum. I, for instance, can compress myself down into a very small thread.¡±

    ¡°So you spool yourself out, cover a huge amount of distance because you¡¯ve reduced your width to something on the microscale, bunch it back up at the end, and then repeat?¡± Hammer¡¯s grin grew as his eyebrows raised, but a look of horror crossed Daniel¡¯s face. ¡°You did that to me!?¡±

    ¡°Ah, yes.¡± Hammer looked a little apologetic, which was another absolutely bonkers thing happening today, and he took a seat on the bed a few centimeters from Daniel. ¡°As you saw, that quill was unharmed. Likewise, I can do this to myself without fearing for my existence. I have moved your siblings at times and encountered no difficulties. Why, I am certain other Incarnates tolerated the journey, though I have rarely had the opportunity to do so over my long, long life.¡±

    ¡°So, this.¡± Daniel gestured at himself. ¡°You remade me to look like you?¡± They were finally getting to the topic he wanted to cover. Well, one of them. Hunter. I haven¡¯t forgotten you, I just need to feel this gu- this god out more first.

    ¡°Of course,¡± Hammer said as if Daniel really should have been able to figure that out. ¡°You are my child.¡±

    Ok, he needs to stop saying that because he is not Dad. Or, well, if he is, then everything Earth-Daniel¡¯s doing would make more sense because Dad¡¯s gone crazy. Daniel looked out the window, which he was now facing, and just saw clouds and sky. Alright, I¡¯m going to ask him if I¡¯m right about this Incarnate stuff and I hope I¡¯m wrong. Or he¡¯s wrong. Or both. ¡°Uh, Hammer?¡±

    ¡°Please, call me father. It has been so long since I have been able to interact with one of my Incarnates.¡±

    Daniel did shudder a little there, but he had to play along. ¡°Uh, Dad,¡± he choked out. ¡°When you talk about Incarnates, what are those?¡±

    Hammer took Daniel¡¯s chin in a light grip and moved his head so they were looking straight at each other. There wasn¡¯t much force behind it but Daniel was so stunned by the suddenness that he didn¡¯t resist. ¡°You truly don¡¯t know?¡± Hammer asked disbelievingly, letting go. ¡°Why, little one, I have never met one such as you. You must know of the Spokes, of the nature of this world?¡±

    God dammit, Daniel thought, as his theory was practically confirmed. Well, Dad dammit now, I guess? ¡°I¡¯m a Spoke?¡±

    ¡°A sentient one,¡± Hammer added quietly. He seemed quite disappointed that Daniel didn¡¯t know certain things, but at the same time wasn¡¯t blaming him for it. ¡°Oh, but I don¡¯t know if Incarnate is quite the right term. You are unique. You have personality, individuality, and?¡± A hint of a smile returned to his face. ¡°Friends.¡±

    ¡°Yep.¡± Daniel was beginning to grow very tired of how similar he and Hammer sounded. Ok, so I¡¯m what the Thormundz Spoke turned into. That was why Hunter was still able to feel it up until Aughal. Hell if I know how that makes sense but it explains a lot about what happened yesterday. At least it wasn¡¯t a hidden third soul, I could not handle another OP dragon coming after me. That settled, Daniel finally asked a question that would determine exactly how hard his life was going to be from now on. ¡°Uh Hammer, Dad, could you change me back to how I originally looked?¡±

    ¡°You aren¡¯t satisfied with that body, little one?¡± There was a slight huff to Hammer¡¯s voice as if Daniel had said the bed was uncomfortable. The god was almost certainly the one who¡¯d willed it into existence.

    ¡°It¡¯s not unattractive,¡± Daniel qualified, looking again into the mirror and admitting to himself that Hammer had upgraded his looks. The eyes were still weird, but there was a kind of exotic quality to them that Evalyn would have liked. He stopped thinking about that when he realized he¡¯d have to explain himself very carefully. Hammer did not know Daniel wasn¡¯t from here, judging by what he¡¯d said so far. He was also assuming Hammer could tell when he was lying, even if he was working on suppressing his tell. This was more out of general caution since truth detecting powers shouldn¡¯t be in the transmutation domain. ¡°It¡¯s the body I¡¯ve had since I was created. It¡¯s the ones my friends know,¡± he added, since Hammer was so wrapped up on that. ¡°I do like this one, but I¡¯d also like my old one back.¡±

    ¡°Sentimentality,¡± Hammer remarked, with the same inflection he used whenever Daniel mentioned he had friends. ¡°Oh, little one, I suppose I may indulge you. Hold your breath for one moment.¡±

    ¡°Wait, you¡¯re going to just-¡± Hammer poked him in the arm and Daniel felt the same whole body twist that had preceded the last time the god had done this. That was also what had almost killed him. Instead of being spaghetti¡¯d to death, Daniel watched as his body rippled in the mirror and returned to what he knew and loved.

    ¡°Better?¡± Daniel looked himself over, though not as closely as he had the last time since the god was still sitting right there. He nodded and Hammer added, ¡°You need not keep to that form forever, little one. You are my child, and we are the everchanging. Is there anything you could think of now that would be an improvement? When our guests arrive there will not be time for me to make adjustments until this meeting is over, and that could be¡­ we will get to that.¡±

    Daniel was a little taken aback as he realized having a god just do things to his body could have an upside. There was the obvious thing he thought of, as well as asking if Hammer could give him actual wings, or triggerable transformations like how Claw Strike worked. Gaining the ability to turn into a dragon himself was extremely tempting. In the end he didn¡¯t ask, mostly because he didn¡¯t want to encourage Hammer to make more unsolicited changes down the line. ¡°I¡¯m good right now, thanks. Dad. I can tell you if I change my mind.¡±

    ¡°Splendid!¡± Hammer clapped his hands and Daniel winced, expecting the sun to suddenly turn into a basketball or something equally crazy. Instead it was just a simple gesture, not even louder than normal. ¡°Well, now that you are feeling more at home, we should discuss things further. I would very much like to hear of your experiences, though at the same time, my preparations must continue. Torch¡¯s Proxy will be arriving soon and I¡¯d hate for our first real meeting in ages to start with half-materialized hallways.¡± Hammer chuckled again as if talking about the one time he¡¯d forgotten to get propane before hosting a barbecue.

    Ok. More talking is good. Meeting the avatar of the god who¡¯s been unidentifying half of the things in my Encyclopedia? Daniel suddenly considered the merits of the perfect disguise he¡¯d just thrown away, but reasoned Torch would know it was him either way. It was kind of the god¡¯s job. Daniel pushed himself off of the bed and did his best to match the attitude in Hammer¡¯s voice, even if the family resemblance was gone. ¡°Sure! Uh, before we go, though, can I ask what happened to what I had on me in Aughal?¡±

    Daniel waited with held breath as Hammer considered the question. A half-formed plan came to his mind of punching the god and diving for the window if he admitted to putting Hunter¡¯s body in some kind of garbage can, or worse, if Hammer just hadn¡¯t remade it along with his altered body.

    The god half-frowned for a second, during which Daniel felt more terror than any dragon could inflict. ¡°Oh yes. Those things.¡± Hammer gestured towards a drawer in the room. ¡°I suppose an Incarnate as strange as you wouldn¡¯t shun the products of Star¡¯s domain. Please, gather your possessions and meet me outside. I only ask that you do not take too much time. We have so little alone, and once the others are here I will be unable to spend as much with you as I¡¯d wish.¡±

    Daniel nodded, again feeling deep conflict about the whole situation. Hammer seemed so earnest and invested in him, yet at the same time assumed Daniel would go along with whatever he wanted and would be happy about it. Once the god left the room, Daniel ran to the drawer to find his armor, weapons, and most importantly, a greater skink bag of holding. He peered inside, the opening revealing a space about as large as the room he was in, and saw what he¡¯d been looking for.

    Tears came to Daniel¡¯s eyes as he saw the dead look in Hunter¡¯s. The armor, and his body, were both still broken. Hammer hadn¡¯t changed anything and Daniel prayed that meant he could still use this to bring his friend back. Wiping at his eyes, not even caring if the god could see him at this moment, Daniel prepared to play out a classic tale in mythology by bargaining with gods for the soul of someone he cherished.

 Chapter 175: Wild Hunt

    Daniel shook himself out of the memories as they ended at another blank point. The unidentification affecting him did not yield entirely, only revealing a new section he had leveraged up with the sight of his face changing. Relieving the memories hadn¡¯t been as long as it had taken to make them, but the process had had a significant effect on Daniel. It wasn¡¯t the revelations that made his breathing ragged and fast, it was himself.

    The feeling of helplessness the memories invoked echoed the defiance he¡¯d channeled into his oath bond. No, it didn¡¯t echo it, this was where the seed had been planted. Hammer¡¯s complete disregard for his own will and, worse, his meekness in the face of it directly clashed with his current personality. His oath. It was the same feeling he got whenever he thought of all the times he¡¯d been awkward or unsure in conversations magnified into an experience so intense, he felt another power awaken within him.

    <hr>

    Defiant Rage (Feature, Charisma, Domain: Enchantment, Rage, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to enter a rage, empowering Attributes: Physical at the cost of Attributes: Mental. This effect scales with your receptiveness to the effect. All Attributes receive an additional bonus when there is a nearby Aggressor of a higher Level than you. This is a Magical Effect that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression.

    <hr>

    His mind clouded as the rage took effect. The detection range of Keen Sense dropped dramatically as his self-control slackened. The fury had flared out of nowhere and it was impossible to suppress. His only option was to direct it. ¡°Daniel, what are you doing?¡± Thomas yelled after him, though the Cleric didn¡¯t follow. The hint of fear in the voice suggested his current state was visible to the others.

    Daniel forced the words out, the sense of responsibility he had for his friends giving him enough to stop from just charging off. ¡°Going to kill something. Stay here.¡±

    ¡°Wait!¡± The world sharpened as Daniel activated Longstalker¡¯s Stride. The trance was different while he was consumed by fury. He could feel the land speeding by, and yet he wasn¡¯t moving fast enough. No one else in his group could have hoped to catch up as the enhanced physical attributes and single-minded focus almost gave him enough momentum to leap from one dune to another.

    His target was the only level 3 in the immediate area, which had been close to his detection limit before the rage kicked in. Everything else was weak enough that it wouldn¡¯t threaten his friends, leaving him free to vent his anger and denial of ever being as powerless as the memories had suggested. In what felt like both minutes and hours, Daniel found his quarry and combined both Jump and Springing Strike as he launched into the air.

    The monster sensed him coming but even at a higher level it struggled to defend itself in its surprise. Daniel landed on its somewhat broad head and dug his teeth and the claws of all four limbs into the creature. The rampant desire to tear this thing into pieces that very moment was denied by reality as all he accomplished with his rush attack was taking gouges out of the neck and upper back.

    He Jumped off just before something would have collided with him. The promised overall improvements from fighting an enemy had come, but the mental attribute enhancement was as focused as his mind was during his movement trance as it primarily boosted his killing instincts. It also made him realize what he¡¯d gotten himself into. Any concern that Fearless had been altering his subconscious was dimly pushed aside as Daniel caught up to what he was doing. Immunity to fear hadn¡¯t made him reckless, but this rage power did.

    The level 3 opponent was not alone. A cluster of ten shank stompers was around it, the different varieties unlocked by the Collapse evident. Only three were the normal alpha, with the rust variant taking up half of their number. Another was slightly smaller but had a green fluid slowly dripping from the blades that Daniel¡¯s nose indicated as something other than poison. The final one had four arms, though each blade was smaller and more awkwardly positioned.

    Their leader took the most divergent course from normal shank stomper evolution. Daniel hadn¡¯t seen a veteran variant before but knew this couldn¡¯t be it. The joints of its primary arms appeared reversed, pointing its blade arms down to stab into the sand. These were four times as large as the standard monster and were used more to propel the beast than scythe out.

    The hulk, as Daniel quickly termed it as he sized his opponent up, bellowed from the mouth that could fit one of its smaller kin as it flared out eight smaller blade arms along its torso. By the placement of its limbs and the way it moved, it seemed to run down and spear prey with its primary arms before dragging them in to be eviscerated by the others. This wasn¡¯t a fake level 3 opponent whose main power was in self-resurrection, this was a true threat.

    He wouldn¡¯t run, not when his future and his friends were counting on him. Even more, this was the perfect opportunity to let out the anger in him. Looking at the stronger opponent Daniel felt an echo of Hammer in his memories and the urge to kill rose. As the pure ferocity eclipsed reason, he barely acknowledged another awakening.

    <hr>

    Mark Prey (Ability, Intelligence, Spell, Domain: Destruction, Mark, Level: 1):

    You possess the Power to mark a creature for the hunt through the use of a modest amount of Mana. All powers related to Archetype: Hunt will function to greater effect while you are actively engaged with your prey. You can only have one mark from this ability active at a time. A Creature affected by this ability will know your intent on sight. This is a Magical Ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression.

    <hr>

    His instincts were further honed as he placed his mark on the hulk, and while the cumulative physical bonuses didn¡¯t push him to absurd limits like Gadriel¡¯s Momentous Strikes, he was able to lean out of the way to avoid a green blade that suddenly shot towards him. The apparently acidic shank stomper revealed itself to be a ranged variant capable of striking from about ten meters away.

    While the level 3 was his focus, even his diminished mind knew he had to take care of the smaller ones first. Fortunately, all but the acidic shank stomper and the slower hulk had rushed out to meet him. They were staying close together in a tight pack, hoping not to get picked off one by one. Foolish.

    Daniel dove headlong into the group as his fur began to slightly stand on end. Lion Charge had begun building, and like last time he¡¯d save it for a bigger blast against the hulk. For the prey on his level he lashed out with a Cleave-empowered attack, the anger inside him somehow intensifying with the wild joy doing so gave him. He could have used Claw Strike along with it as a spell/attack combo, but had rejected the transmutative ability thus far like Hunter had. It didn¡¯t feel right, and were he thinking more deeply he may have considered if it would disrupt the enhancements Fusion Aspect gave him.

    His right claws cut clean through the neck of his first target as the power extended them. The damage wasn¡¯t too surprising given all the advantages he currently had, from attribute improvements to enchanted claws. The swipe continued with less momentum and only made it halfway through another target, though a spectral attack finished the trajectory. It was similar to Scatter Shot¡¯s effect, though in this case, the echo carried less damage.

    The reprisal from the initial hit came before he could Jump away. Daniel hadn¡¯t considered his mana being locked while the echo attack carried on and stumbled for a moment when the ability failed. In the next second he swapped out Springing Strike for Hunter¡¯s Evasiveness, though this wasn¡¯t enough to completely avoid injury with everything coming down on him.

    His body took several deep cuts as the massive blades raked across him. He should have either Jumped away or traded for Flash Jaunt, but in his rage Daniel attacked again. Two of the rust stompers died and his wounds twisted together, though the damage wasn¡¯t enough to completely heal him in kind. He might have risked more if it wasn¡¯t for the acidic blade that struck him from behind accompanied with the ground trembling with the hulk¡¯s approach.

    The burning in the small of his back could have been ignored, but the sudden trembling and loss of feeling in his legs brought him up and out of his anger enough to retreat with Flash Jaunt. It was expensive, but the damage to his body was such that he couldn¡¯t have Jumped if he wanted to. Acid wasn¡¯t one of the direct counters to regenerative abilities, but the ongoing damage it dealt overcame even his impressive healing speed.

    Daniel gasped on the ground as the pain broke through the haze. He wasn¡¯t as weak as his human self, but it was the most intense injury he¡¯d ever taken from an enemy and that counted the arrows that Rogue had hit him with. He might have died if that acidic shank stomper had been level 3, and as it was the attack had penetrated deep into the muscle and had injured his spine. Beast Mode was still on cooldown so there was no chance of swapping to save himself as a last resort.

    It pained him to rely on what he¡¯d made with his Artificer class, though Daniel had once again dug himself into a hole by ignoring his rational side. The rage power was still active and he was still committed to the death of the hulk stomper, but the degree of damage had reminded him he wasn¡¯t prepared to give his life to do so. He pulled out one of the original green blast marbles and flinched as he remembered Lion Charge was active, though the electricity coursing across his fur didn¡¯t run into the ammunition. Balefully eyeing the approaching pack, he threw it at the acidic shank stomper¡¯s head.

    Even though his rage power enhanced his dexterity, the attack didn¡¯t fly straight. It did impact one of the bone blades of a normal shank stomper, causing cracks with the explosion but not a full delimbing. Daniel hissed in frustration, knowing the ranged powers of his Artificer class could have brought down far more with the wasted ammunition.

    He briefly considered chucking the hunk of crystal which had grown more purple over time, but decided on another course as he began to regain control of his legs. The acid could only dissolve so much before it lost its potency and the burns from it weren¡¯t as severe as from fire where Regeneration was concerned. Knowing his best bet for regaining mobility was to deal damage, Daniel grew out a full barrage of feathers on his arms and let them loose.

    Quantity of quality worked, to some degree. The hulk¡¯s leather hide ignored the feeble level 1 attack entirely like Gtoll before it, though the majority of the pack took some damage and one that had been hit by the spectral Cleave twice fell over. He felt at his back and hissed again when he prodded the injury, but he¡¯d gotten back in fighting shape. Even better, enough of his mind was on board to prevent another reckless strike into the heart of the enemy. Hunter hadn¡¯t fought like that, not without backup.

    Daniel began warily moving around the approaching enemies and threw himself behind a dune to avoid another acid blade. He was beginning to suspect the hulk was enhancing the pack¡¯s coordination as it hadn¡¯t shown any other kind of power yet. It had to have something as monsters without any notable powers just got a huge boost to physique, like the greater skink. The hulk was sturdy, but not something on that level.

    Now that he wasn¡¯t blindly rushing in and leaving himself open to the acid, the hulk was keeping its pack closer. Time was on his side as his wounds continued to heal, but he was also leaving his friends exposed out there in his absence. Guilt from his sudden abandonment of them fueled his rage and he almost charged back in, barely holding himself back. Defiant Rage gave him impressive benefits, but it was proving a difficult thing to keep in check.This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

    When he became confident enough to Jump without being thrown off course by his injured legs, he rocketed toward the last rust shank stomper and dealt it a grievous wound with a passing swipe. Both the hulk and the acidic one tried to hit him during his flight, but he was moving too fast. In the end, they were still monsters with only instinct to guide them. Daniel had turned too far away from his own mind and had almost ended up like the rust stomper, led to his death by his instincts.

    In the end, the hulk only protected the acidic stomper by sheltering it under its hunched over frame, leaving the rest of its lesser kin to soak up Daniel¡¯s mana with their deaths. The two alone made for a fearsome combo, enough ranged pressure to keep him on the edge and a tough hide his limited ranged abilities couldn¡¯t crack. Cleave provided an opportunity to at least injure the green monster through its protector, but it would open him up to easy reprisal like the first two times he¡¯d used it.

    No, to defeat his prey he¡¯d have to get as brutal as Tak did whenever the Totem Warrior went into his own form of Beast Mode. Shank Stompers as a whole were categorized as beasts, meaning they shared many of the common biological weaknesses of mortals. He¡¯d already done some damage to the nape of the hulk¡¯s neck, and digging in further would open up a path to victory. Once the hulk was down, the acidic shank stomper wouldn¡¯t last seconds.

    Daniel looked at the handful of blast marbles remaining in his bag and palmed them all. He had thought about saving one to find out what metal it was made of in case that was a clue for his memories, but right now killing that fucking monster was more important. He Jumped high, not combining it with Springing Strike so he could control his movement. The hulk lifted its huge blade arms to catch him, but he used Graceful Fall to reduce his fall speed and end up above where it had expected him.

    The impromptu airstrike caused another shriek of pain as Daniel threw the marbles from a range his poor aim couldn¡¯t miss from. It wasn¡¯t a finishing blow but it was good enough. He Jumped back immediately after landing, catching the hulk in its moment of weakness. He used Imbue Astral along with Cleave in the hopes it would further improve his damage, but it didn¡¯t seem to have the effect he was looking for.

    Abandoning powers altogether and falling into his rage, Daniel just tore further and further into the monster until he broke through the shattered base of the monster¡¯s skull. As he unleashed the built up Lion Charge into it, he realized the hulk was using a power of its own. The lesser arm blades on its side rotated in their joints and extended outwards suddenly, coming down at all points across its back. He felt a very faint fluctuation in the mana of the monster due to his proximity, though it was nothing like a mana burst a level 4 or higher creature would produce.

    The trade did kill the hulk, but four of the arms had an angle on Daniel and the attack had gone out before his. He managed to turn in time to avoid the upper two from biting too deeply into his chest, but the lower two cut most of the way through his abdomen as a feeling beyond pain replaced the draining rage.

    His one consolation was the squelching sound as the collapsing hulk killed the acidic shank stomper it had been protecting, though he was still most of the way to being cut in half. There was no feeling at all in his legs as he fell with the monster, and his general perception of the world began to fade with blood loss.

    A dull terror filled him as he realized he was dying, and there was still half an hour to go until Beast Mode was active. Would he revert to his human form on death and permanently lose this body, or was true death waiting for him? He¡¯d been so stupid, coming here alone. Khiat, the sniper on the team, could have picked off the acidic shank stomper while it was under the hulk. Sobered by his wounds, he realized he¡¯d kept making the same mistakes ever since coming back from wherever Hammer had taken him.

    Lying with the remains of his kills, he couldn¡¯t help but despair. There¡¯d always been a chance to learn from his mistakes, but now there wouldn¡¯t be one. With him, any hope of finding his wayward friends or getting Hunter back would¡­

    Would¡­

    <hr>

    Unyielding Tenacity (Feature, Endurance, Domain: Restoration, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to resist death. Upon taking a fatal injury, you have a chance of surviving so long as your body is at least partially intact. This effect scales with Attribute: Luck. If this power is required to ensure your survival from significant injuries, your natural Healing rate will be severely penalized and this effect will not trigger again until you have fully recovered. This is a Magical Effect that will not trigger in an area of Magical Suppression, but once it has all effects if this ability will persist until it is reset regardless of any attempts to suppress it.

    <hr>

    The awakening was more than metaphorical as Daniel regained his senses. How he¡¯d survived he had no idea, even with the power now in his head. He could see places where he¡¯d been disemboweled, and his spine had to have been fully severed in at least one place. Given how long it had taken Hunter to recover from the lightning bolts exploding next to him, he could be laid up for at least a month. Plenty of time to learn from his mistakes.

    ¡°How are you still alive?¡± the voice of Cloak asked. Daniel tried to respond but his lungs wouldn¡¯t work. Thankfully Beast Mode was off cooldown and a tremendous relief flooded him as he swapped to his mostly whole human body.

    ¡°I fucked up,¡± he replied when he was able to, seeing the robed god appear. ¡°My friends, are they alright?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know, I ran after you as soon as you fell to your rage power. Tricky things. People can get like that when they first awaken them. It¡¯s always something we considered restricting, but the effects on expansion rate¡­¡± Cloak shook his head. ¡°How far did you see?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s what you¡¯re asking me about!?¡± Daniel stood uneasily and tried not to look at what was under him. He had no desire to harvest those bodies even if the level 3 bone would be useful.

    ¡°It¡¯s important. Enough that I would sacrifice this region to ensure you lived, though it seems you¡¯re more than able to see to your own health.¡±

    ¡°Because I have a Spoke?¡± That revelation had been kicking around in the back of his head, suppressed by the fury that had overcome him. ¡°I saw up to the point that I was about to leave my room. Hunter¡¯s body was there but my Foci weren¡¯t.¡± He didn¡¯t ask anything about that, knowing the knowledge would be taken from him as soon as Cloak told him.

    ¡°Hmm. In all my time I¡¯ve never seen one like you. It¡¯s more apt to say you¡¯re a Spoke and a person combined.¡±

    ¡°Just like that Dual Soul thing then.¡± Daniel sighed and gave an abbreviated version of that part of his history, seeing a glint of understanding light in Cloak¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°He really went all the way. Full commitment to his plan, false reincarnation and everything. He must have timed it at the exact moment you crossed over,¡± he murmured, and again Daniel didn¡¯t ask. ¡°Yes. In your case the Spoke in you functions independently, though you share some benefits as it is melded into your soul. There are some ways you can access it, though the direct route is blocked in your mana structure. Unfortunately several of my contemporaries referred to the other ways you can influence it and you haven¡¯t met them yet, so to speak.¡±

    ¡°Alright,¡± Daniel sighed and looked around. He had no idea where his friends were, but thankfully his map could lead him back to the road they were on. ¡°Question for the road. How can Khare get a real voice? Actually, why can¡¯t gestalt talk normally?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s what you¡¯re asking me about?¡± Cloak repeated Daniel¡¯s earlier question, though with a more formal affectation. ¡°You recovered memories from your meeting with a god and you ask about a gestalt?¡±

    ¡°I just abandoned my friends and if it weren¡¯t for a hidden power that would have been the last time they saw me. This conversation isn¡¯t about me.¡±

    ¡°Alright. I suppose there¡¯s no harm in telling you about the Illustrious since it sounds like you¡¯ve had dealings in the past.¡±

    ¡°I think so. There was this old guy who swapped out one of my powers and gave Hunter a voice.¡± He still had reservations about that encounter, though it might not matter now with Hunter dead. ¡°They were behind the Grafting right? If he could do that, then you should be able to use god powers for Khare even if it¡¯s just a level 1 illusion.¡±

    Cloak seemed to think on that as they walked, but ultimately shook his head. ¡°There¡¯s no good way to make that work without revealing myself to the gestalt, and even then it would be a hollow thing. Do you know the meaning of the word gestalt?¡± Daniel nodded his head. ¡°It¡¯s a more fitting name than you know. Gestalt aren¡¯t mortals, not exactly. The other races are, but they¡¯re different. They don¡¯t have a full set of archetypes.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Daniel looked to Cloak in shock but the god wasn¡¯t lying. Then again, could he tell?

    ¡°They were the first races created during the Illustrious¡¯ experiments. I wasn¡¯t too involved since Hammer and¡­ another god were heading the project.¡± There was a flicker of true sadness in Cloak¡¯s eyes, like the one before. ¡°It was all a charity case the second was determined to finally crack after genius on a level none of us had seen before manifested among the mortals. It was a good first step, but the initial Grafted races had no proper souls and couldn¡¯t contain a full set of archetypes.¡± The god scratched his head at Daniel¡¯s incredulous look and almost blithely said, ¡°They ironed that out with the later races. There was discussion on allowing them to die out but in the end none of us were that cruel. To put it bluntly they are a step between mortals and monsters, not fully on either side.¡±

    ¡°But Hunter was a monster that became a person.¡±

    ¡°Yes, but something different happened with your ringcat.¡± Daniel¡¯s breath caught as it became clear Cloak knew what had happened to make Hunter a real boy, so to speak. What¡¯s more, Cloak didn¡¯t hold this knowledge back. ¡°Since it might be relevant with the Astral domain returning, you should know that not every soul in this world is intact. For one reason or another it can splinter or, far worse, fully break into remnants. If it survives, it is incomplete and referred to as a ¡®spirit¡¯, at least in the language of the Octyrrum. Spirits can¡¯t invest themselves in a mortal as souls do, but-¡°

    ¡°They can in monsters!¡± Daniel exclaimed, coming to a sudden stop. ¡°Not every monster, but some of them. Spiritualists!¡±

    ¡°Yes, and if they die, they are unable to pass on and instead are reborn into a different monster. Like bonds, that truth cuts deeper than the Octyrrum, hampering both Torch and I¡¯s ability to fully suppress it. We will need to discuss the Spiritualists later, but with your defeat of their local forces there is time to later. Your monster friend had a partial soul, or spirit. You managed to awaken a full set of archetypes in it and fully restore his soul. This will be harder in a gestalt due as the deep bond they share with their kin serves as the patch for theirs, effectively making a soul when what they have wouldn¡¯t otherwise count as one. They aren¡¯t missing something you can cleanly give them.¡±

    ¡°But it¡¯s possible?¡± Daniel asked with some hope that his bond with Khare could help overcome this.

    ¡°It¡¯s been done before. There¡¯s an air gestalt in the region you¡¯re heading to that¡¯s managed it with the aid of a bond.¡±

    Daniel nodded, feeling slightly better about both himself and Cloak now that a path had been revealed to help Khare. ¡°Any advice?¡±

    ¡°Improve your bond. You¡¯ll need to at least overcome the strength of the gestalt¡¯s inborn one. But as always it¡¯s easier to say than do. Your status doesn¡¯t give you any advantages there because bonds are beyond the Octyrrum. Outcast is an interesting relationship to form one off of, by the way, but I can see that connection.¡±

    ¡°Huh.¡± Daniel had honestly thought almost dying and finding out he was connected to a Spoke were the biggest developments he could make today, but discovering there actually were monsters running around with soul fragments shook him. Hunter had really been special, but not unique or fated to him. It had just been some lucky random encounter, and if it had been a normal ringcat they¡¯d have never formed a bond. ¡°Hey, if monsters find us again, can you hide the group like you do yourself?¡±

    ¡°If they aren¡¯t more powerful than the ones you just killed, yes,¡± Cloak replied unevenly, ¡°But your friends will notice being ignored.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll tell them I awakened a stealth power with the advancement I got from that hunt,¡± Daniel said, seeing that his struggles had at least netted him two more potential. ¡°And I¡¯ll only need to do that if it comes up. If we¡¯re lucky, it won¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°Reasonable. I suppose it¡¯s a good thing you¡¯ll be stuck in this form for now.¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡± Daniel tapped his phone and committed both points to wisdom, hoping that when he eventually recovered, that would help him resist falling to the rage. He smiled despite it all, glad to be alive, before his thoughts turned to the hell Thomas would give him. ¡°I guess cat-Daniel gets to avoid all the responsibility. That¡¯s so like him.¡±

    <hr>

    Your Wisdom is now 24! You have gained Ability: Identify Item.

    -

    Identify Item (Ability, Wisdom, Spell, Domain: Knowledge, Level: 2)

    You possess the Power to identify any Item at or below your Level. This power only works on crafted items and does not reveal the identity or property of unworked materials. Enhancements on Forged, Enchanted, Brewed, or Crafted items will be revealed if the item is at least one level lower than you, or if these properties are already known to you. This is a Magical Ability that does not work in an area of Magical Suppression.

    <hr>

 Chapter 176: Firebirds Welcome

    The avianoid flying over the wasteland that was Aughal had to give it some credit. Having actual land go on for as far as the eye could see was a novel experience, though if she wanted a pleasant one she¡¯d go to Kallical. That wasn¡¯t considering how flying felt harder because of the absence of Threst¡¯s Spoke. The one bright spot was that her powers were ever slightly more efficient in the heat-attuned region, and the dryness would make anything organic catch fire faster. Several monsters had already been struck from the sand as she experimented, though the red Arcanist didn¡¯t spend too much time hunting. She had a mission.

    Fortunately for the flier, she¡¯d chosen to mostly follow the main road between Aughal and Threst in case she saw anyone in trouble on the road. She wasn¡¯t a Hero, but it always paid to show how superior Threst¡¯s Blessed were over other regions. You¡¯d never see anyone from Aughal stepping in when a rippermaw falcon caught sight of travelers.

    If she had just taken the straight path, she would have entirely missed her targets and possibly have run afoul of the new Tyrant. Instead, she made two passes as she confirmed there were at least some of those she was looking for on the road and then gave the standard landing call for the flighted of Threst. It was unnecessary because of all the open ground, but then again, branding. Tounaki Splitswift was a loyal denizen of her home region.

    The seven mortals and two monsters traveling together took defensive positions as she landed. Tounaki wasn¡¯t too worried about most of them since she could fly and they couldn¡¯t. The lightning wyvern variant was potential trouble, but solitary monsters, empowered by a Beastmaster or not, couldn¡¯t beat one of Threst¡¯s elites without a significant level advantage.

    She reassessed her confidence as the bug person traveling with the group pulled out what looked like part of a ballista and put an arrow on the string. Even if her endurance would allow her to survive being hit by that, it would hurt. ¡°Tounaki Splitswift, mage flight of Threst,¡± she introduced herself, keeping her Fire Feathers on her person so no one would get any ideas. ¡°Thanks for meeting me out here. If you can contact your friends I¡¯ll buy you lunch, ¡®cause you¡¯ll be saving me a week of flying.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re looking for us?¡± the one she recognized as Daniel by the descriptions asked. His beast wasn¡¯t with him, an odd discrepancy given how much it had been stressed not to harm it.

    ¡°Who sent you?¡± the Cleric asked, keener on the uptake.

    ¡°A certain scaly bastard worried about his friends. There¡¯s one I¡¯ve been dying to meet because of what people keep saying.¡± She looked around but didn¡¯t see anyone tall or scarred enough to be Lograve. ¡°It¡¯s not too much to hope they¡¯re nearby, is it?¡± The reception quickly turned frosty despite the day¡¯s heat.

    ¡­

    ¡°So I was sent out after we heard Rikendia fell. Murdon and the Regent were hoping to have your whole team help with something classified and wanted to get you out before things got too hot here,¡± the Arcanist explained with a sideways glance toward those in the group she didn¡¯t recognize. Daniel, currently in his human form due to the lingering damage to his hybrid one, was strangely comforted by her presence. Not because of Tounaki personally, but the fact that Murdon had sent her here with the expectation that she¡¯d find Lograve. He¡¯d have felt the loss of his bond, so the draconoid would have known if his friend had died too. ¡°Guess you had the same idea.¡±

    ¡°Is everyone alright over there?¡± Daniel asked, knowing that the Collapse would be making things just as difficult in Threst as Aughal. Both only bordered two other regions now that the Thormundz was gone, as the mountain ridge that was the region¡¯s namesake had stopped progress elsewhere.

    ¡°Yeah, we¡¯re cool. The Regent¡¯s considering a general recall back to Aurus after getting the vision from the gods, but we¡¯re maintaining altitude for now.¡± His eyes were drawn to a feather that floated off her neck from a slight breeze only to combust a moment later. He¡¯d gotten the clear impression of a fire mage from her, though it sounded like she didn¡¯t have the specialized Pyromancer class yet. ¡°So, you have no idea where they are?¡±

    ¡°No. I was hoping Murdon would have a better chance of finding them because of his bond. It¡¯s the only thing I could think of.¡±

    ¡°We also have Silora¡­¡± Thomas hesitantly offered, causing the shavi to grimace. She hadn¡¯t had the best of times over the past week of travel, especially since Rait had steadily grown a spine. The moment it was clear she had been exaggerating some of her discomfort she lost all the benefit of the doubt. ¡°Does Threst have any Fates? We could see if they could help.¡±

    Revealing they had a pocket Fate was risky, but there¡¯d been something to how Tounaki had told the story of how she¡¯d gotten involved with Murdon that had settled the group¡¯s nerves. Her patriotism could be off-putting though. ¡°Of course we do. Threst isn¡¯t some backwater like this wasteland with only one shoddy diviner.¡±

    The slightly cracked skin of Silora¡¯s face scrunched as she took offense.¡±Oh? And how far has the best the mighty flights of Threst can produce gotten in their class. Level 3? I heard you had a 4 a decade ago but they left after one too many remarks about how far they¡¯d gotten ¡®despite being flightless¡¯.¡±

    That was another reason the group wasn¡¯t trying too hard to hide Silora¡¯s identity. There was only one notable shavi in Aughal, and Tounaki was informed enough to put the pieces together. ¡°Hmm. I¡¯m surprised that neck of yours didn¡¯t scar from being collared so long, Fate. Maybe you¡¯ll warm up to my home more once you realize no one¡¯s going to make you a slave again.¡±

    ¡°This isn¡¯t the time to fight! Please, too many people have died for us to be divided now.¡± Willow shouted over from where she was standing near Spinner. Despite the monster belonging to Tlara, she¡¯d stuck by the sister more once the bond had been developed. Daniel found it hard to see the fostered spirit in the silk shocker, and yet if people had done it for Hunter he could do it for Spinner. Tlara, for her part, had been in the sky as much as possible, occasionally splitting off to feed the body she was hijacking.

    Tounaki put a few more pieces together as she assessed the group as a whole. ¡°Wait, which one of you¡¯s the Beastmaster? She doesn¡¯t feel like she has a class.¡± With a bit of communal mischievousness, most turned and pointed to the young skyshock wyvern, which gave the red-feathered avianoid a wide smile.

    ¡­

    It was later that day that Daniel and the rest arrived at the border between Aughal and Threst. His previous experience of crossing a regional boundary couldn¡¯t compare at all to what he saw now. Like before, there was a clean-cut line separating the desert and the terrain of Threst. Or, rather, the lack of it. ¡°How is this possible?¡± Daniel asked rather pointlessly, already knowing the answer.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

    ¡°Heh, welcome to Threst,¡± Tounaki beamed, stretching slightly as she stepped over the border. The crossing was like a daily reset, just without the mana refill. Daniel¡¯s Map function had allowed them to know they¡¯d hit the border today causing most to hold back on heightening anything. ¡°Watch your step, but don¡¯t worry if you fall.¡±

    Daniel got as close to the border as he could and looked down the divide. He could see the side of the desert as it met open air. While the very top layer sometimes misted over from the wind, the majority of sand and earth underneath kept to its side. Then he looked further down, stunned the sky impossibly continued. ¡°It just goes on forever.¡±

    Tounaki gave him a knowing smile and shook her head. ¡°No, fall about¡­ 24 kilometers and you¡¯ll hit the ground limit. We¡¯re a bit below the median altitude mark here.¡±

    ¡°What happens then?¡± Khiat asked, coming beside Daniel only to shy away from the edge. She would fall far faster than any of them and even the Tlara-possessed wyvern would struggle to safely catch her if needed. They were the only ones who weren¡¯t in the know about the region, it seemed, as both Thomas and Willow crossed over without as much fear.

    ¡°You¡¯ll go to the sky limit.¡± All of Daniel¡¯s apprehension drained away as his understanding of what he saw radically changed.

    ¡°It loops!?¡± He felt a pang of loss in the next second and resolved to remake a set of lightning wings as soon as he found someone to process all the wolf bodies. ¡°Do you get reset at the bottom?¡±

    ¡°Nope, it¡¯s just a brief weird feeling and you¡¯re on top of the world,¡± Tounaki replied, enjoying Daniel¡¯s wonder. ¡°Better than a desert, right?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡± He could see why duskers didn¡¯t come here normally since the only land in the immediate area was a floating island that connected to the road. It wasn¡¯t too wide, maybe half a kilometer at the widest, but stretched into the horizon. A species that needed constant cover from the sun wouldn¡¯t find it here, making the need to improve Khiat¡¯s armor all the more pressing despite her Sun Resistance.

    Something interesting yet alarming happened as Tlara, as overjoyed as he was to have an extended flight playground, barreled through the divide. The wyvern stopped moving and entered an uncontrolled fall. Willow exclaimed at the same time, a sharp bird cry rather than any word, and dove after it. Daniel had charged after her without thinking and didn¡¯t notice as the border reset him, though he stopped himself from going over the edge as he saw a red streak descend towards the falling pair.

    Willow reached the wyvern first and placed a hand on it before spreading her arms out to slow her fall. It was all she could do to reach the monster during its tumultuous tumble, getting on to ride it was out of the question. Daniel tagged it at the same time Tounaki caught Willow and saw that Tlara had possessed it again after assumedly being kicked out by the border reset. That left him to wonder where her soul had gone in the interim and suspected Willow¡¯s urgency had been a part of that.

    ¡°Everything alright, Guy?¡± Thomas asked as he ran over to the edge. He saw it play out before Daniel could answer. ¡°Oh, good. You know, I remember Evalyn saying something about her sister falling off an island here. Now that I¡¯ve been here I get how that can mess someone up. Just, nothing to catch you.¡±

    ¡°There are other islands,¡± Daniel commented, pointing out to the north where one was floating a far distance away. It was also below the ground level of Threst. ¡°Honestly, this place is amazing. Hunter would hate it though.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. You think that¡¯s why his soul split off?¡±

    Daniel¡¯s face fell slightly. ¡°Who knows? I¡¯m just glad he¡¯s out there.¡± He turned around and watched the rest of the group cross over. Khare was forced to drop their Chimeric Form but quickly assumed it on the other side. ¡°Khare, how are you feeling about this region? I want to make wings for everyone that¡¯ll be hunting but I might have to be creative for you.¡±

    The gestalt crawled over the side of the sky island they were on and was able to secure themselves there without slipping off. The tone of their one word reply was a little hesitant, though. ¡°Ground.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Looks like we¡¯re both out of our element.¡± Daniel tried not to think too hard about their bond as he said that. Lograve¡¯s initial lesson on them was right, it was hard to improve them when you were trying since a part of the interaction felt fake. He hoped that keeping Cloak¡¯s advice secret from Khare would help. If not, it would at least stop them from having false hope.

    Tounaki landed at that point, touching down gently as opposed to her dramatic descent in the desert since she was carrying Willow. ¡°Don¡¯t do that! I know it looks safe but there are all kinds of monsters out there that¡¯ll smoke you in an instant if they catch you. Your sister won¡¯t mind losing a monster if it means you live, right?¡± She asked, having bought the lie that Willow¡¯s bond allowed her to control Tlara¡¯s monsters when she outright refused to believe the Beastmaster had possessed them after death.

    The uncertainty in Willow¡¯s eyes made the Arcanist cock her head, though she eventually nodded. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, there¡¯s just no way to replace the wyvern. It came from the Thormundz.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I can see that.¡± Tounaki¡¯s eyes went from the lightning spines in the wyvern to those in Spinner. ¡°I heard there was a bidding war over the handful of special ones the Beastmasters from the first group of refugees brought. Someone in the apex flight got involved and that heated things right up.¡±

    ¡°How much did the most expensive one go for?¡± Thomas asked, fishing for gossip now that everyone was back on firm ground.

    ¡°Couple lapis and change.¡±

    ¡°Pricey.¡±

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Tounaki chuckled a little breathlessly, some of the adrenaline from her dive still floating around. ¡°I¡¯d say some people get all the luck, but here you are with an Artificer. You know,¡± she added, turning to Daniel, ¡°Threst has a few but there¡¯s always demand. I¡¯d give a lot of thought to staying if I were you.¡±

    ¡°What about the Collapse?¡± Daniel asked, a little wary of the direction Tounaki was going the moment they¡¯d stepped foot in Threst. ¡°This region¡¯s on the edge of the world. Aren¡¯t you worried about it falling?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. If that Tyrant came here we¡¯d send them packing before they laid eyes on Aurus. Even Rikendia had its flaws, but we¡¯ve got a solid army, strong economy, and devout following of the gods. If they need a region to hold against the Crest for eternity, well, here we are.¡± Tounaki didn¡¯t seem at all aware of how shamelessly she was selling her region.

    Daniel was less confident, and he feared this Regent had only gotten limited information like Ashier did about the realities they were facing. The gods weren¡¯t here, not really, and a true terror was waiting in what was once the Thormundz to start pushing from the edges. Cloak kept encouraging him to go here, though, and the god hadn¡¯t given up on the world. He wouldn¡¯t either. ¡°I¡¯ll think about it,¡± Daniel replied noncommittally. ¡°You should know I hunt as much as I enchant, and I¡¯m looking to keep developing both independently. I¡¯m not signing any kind of contract.¡±

    ¡°Jeez, who do you think we are, the sand bastards? No offense,¡± she quickly assured the natives of Aughal. ¡°They have to stoop to slavery because no one wants to live there. Just get one look at the Shattered Falls and tell me this isn¡¯t the perfect place to live. You¡¯d like it there, at least,¡± she nodded to Silora with that and the Fate visibly brightened. The higher moisture in the air was already soothing her and Daniel had noticed how longingly she looked at the clouds. If there were an actual pool nearby she¡¯d be sprinting towards it.

    Thomas was the last of the group to move on after Willow caught her breath and Tlara flew back to the group. You couldn¡¯t see Aughal from this far, but somehow Daniel knew the Cleric was looking there. ¡°There isn¡¯t anyone you want to go back for, right?¡± Tounaki asked. ¡°We¡¯re pretty much shutting down our border patrols so you¡¯re going to get more heat if you go back later.¡±

    ¡°Quala has a sister,¡± Thomas mused but ultimately turned around. ¡°They need her more.¡±

    ¡°Alecia,¡± Willow said in a similar, conflicted way. ¡°She survived, but she didn¡¯t try to find me. The last I heard she¡¯d joined Arpan. I think they were¡­ seeing each other before the siege.¡±

    ¡°What happened to him?¡± Daniel asked, not trying to hide his distaste for the other Artificer.

    ¡°Tyrant got him and everything in his store,¡± Thomas answered to Daniel¡¯s slight satisfaction. ¡°Sorry to hear that, Willow. Sounds like she¡¯s latching onto anything to save herself.¡±

    ¡°So we going back?¡± Tounaki asked, a little impatient but respecting the moment. The mortals, and the mortal possessing a wyvern, shared a look before coming to a decision. Khiat was the one who gave it.

    ¡°My family¡¯s still there. I want to go back for them, someday, but it¡¯s not where I need to be now. Let¡¯s keep going.¡±

 Chapter 177: Skinning a Cats Loot

    The final part of the journey on Threst¡¯s side had been far more casual, despite the backdrop of the world coming to an end. Several waystations had been established for travelers and there was a heavy presence of the region¡¯s guard to defend them. Each had at least one of the enchanted ballista that had also been used to defend Roost¡¯s Peak, as well as a system for communication with the capitol, surrounding villages, and other waystations based on Artificer-created sending stones. Daniel had been elated to copy the formulae as it covered the absence left by the loss of their various methods of telepathy, though he hadn¡¯t been able to make one yet. As it turned out, there was another level of difficulty to enchanting.

    <hr>

    Sending Stone (Formulae: Enchanting, Item, Domain: Enchantment, Quality: Superior, Level: 2)

    A magical construct that enables long-distance communication. Upon creation, the stone must be infused with a specific frequency. It will transmit to all other stones of this frequency that are in range.

    Creation of this item requires additional Mana and Enchantment Complexity unless appropriate Special Items are used during the creation process.

    <hr>

    The best that Daniel could tell, the penalties in creation were equivalent to an additional level of difficulty. The base enchantment was also level 2, meaning he couldn¡¯t try for a level 1 version. Even with the disparity from level 3 bone for a level 2 item, it was beyond him and he continued making blast marbles instead. He¡¯d amassed a fair amount, though he¡¯d made them far smaller than before. Part of this was that Ammunition Surplus¡¯ chance to trigger was the same regardless of mass, but he was also working towards the idea he¡¯d had for replacing his crossbow.

    There was a lot of enchanting he needed to do before he could properly hunt, as well as a lot of healing for his cat form. As the city of Aurus rose before him, he eyed the Divine Quarter and the murals along the side of that floating city section and hoped Quala could help him out more than Thomas. That was just a side thought though, as most of his mind was taken up by the majesty of the city before him. Damn Tounaki, but the avianoids of Threst did put more into appearance than Aughal did.

    The entire city was built around a floating mountain Quick Mind put at over five kilometers tall from base to peak. The path there was slightly below normal ground level, though otherwise it was situated at the exact center of the region both in position and altitude. The Divine Quarter was only one example of mass terraforming, with parts of the mountain carved off into various residential and commercial districts, among others. In some cases, the society had literally moved the mountain into separate independently floating break-off sections, mostly near the peak.

    Two features stood out as most impressive. One was the main road that cut up the side of the mountain, large enough to be visible from the approach. At the bottom it threaded through the lower city, only to turn off the side of the mountain to freely float while lights projected both up and down some distance. It completely defied all architectural logic, but that¡¯s what Builders were for.

    Lastly, there was the freaking waterfall descending from the heavens. At some point, an earlier Regent of Threst had realized the enormous potential that a looping ground and sky limit held and set up a massive channel of water that ran from top to bottom, back to top. It fell on the opposite side of the mountain so he couldn¡¯t see exact details, but he¡¯d heard the farmland there was among the best in the kingdom. He imagined there was no shortage of waterwheels either to abuse the potential energy the vertical river generated.

    He honestly didn¡¯t know if he¡¯d have time to check that out. They were heading straight for the Hunter¡¯s Guild to meet with Murdon, and since only Tounaki could fly, a fact she repeated a few times as they neared the city, it would take them until evening to get there. On the walk there he saw both avianoids and the magical constructs this region produced flying above. While he really wanted to get his hands on that formulae, he doubted it was appropriate for his level or skill.

    There were humans, but not as many as in Aughal. The bird race truly dominated this region, even if most couldn¡¯t fly themselves. The link they had to flight, as well as the potential for anyone to gain the ability to with a class, had become a cultural touchstone. Draconoids lived here as well, and he almost saw enough colors to form a rainbow during his walk. The draconic race didn¡¯t have any inherent advantages or disadvantages like Khiat¡¯s but there was something to be said about how imposing they were. There were also examples of entirely new races, but Daniel didn¡¯t have time to stop and talk to them to find out more information.

    Finally, they reached the Hunter¡¯s Guild, which was one of the few isolated islands in the lower third of Aurus. Everyone in the group had hung around at this point as it was unclear what would happen going forward. Tlara and Willow¡¯s situation was the most up in the air as while Tlara could technically continue functioning as a Beastmaster, what had happened at the border crossing showed that having Willow nearby was important in her current state. Apparently, her soul had been briefly ejected into the Astral when her possessing ability was reset, and Willow¡¯s bond with her allowed it to be returned before whatever stopped people from coming back from the dead happened to her.

    So much is happening so fast, Daniel thought as he sat in the conference room with most of his group. Tlara¡¯s wyvern was outside for obvious reasons, as was Spinner and Willow to keep her company. He quickly snagged a copy of the map on the table, which was placed there for teams to use to plan hunts. It didn¡¯t have every sky island labeled on it, but it would help once they got going. ¡°We finally made it,¡± he said, putting his phone away and returning to a chair. ¡°How¡¯s everyone feeling?¡±

    ¡°This place is amazing!¡± Khiat commented, not moving from the window. The fact that the buildings were all too small for her full size didn¡¯t damper her enthusiasm. ¡°I was nervous about all the open air before, but there¡¯s so many people here and none of them look scared.¡±

    ¡°Threst is good at making first impressions,¡± Thomas grumbled. ¡°But spend a day on the streets without feathers and see where that gets you.¡±

    ¡°Is it that bad?¡± Daniel asked, but someone interrupted them before Thomas could answer.

    An avianoid in a suit walked in holding a clipboard scarily reminiscent of Earth, though the clip was wooden instead of metal. ¡°Ah, good. I am Temir Riseti, administrator under Commander Zolyra of Threst. It is a pleasure to meet your acquaintance.¡± There was a formalness to the tone Daniel immediately associated with Gadriel. He¡¯d long since learned the Hero¡¯s way of speaking came from the courts of Threst rather than his class and while Tounaki hadn¡¯t used that affectation on the way here, Temir was kind enough to confirm the rumors.

    ¡°Likewise,¡± Daniel replied for the group, wishing either Evalyn was here to handle things or that he could go cat mode to bolster his confidence. ¡°Is there a problem? I thought we were meeting with Murdon.¡±

    ¡°Of course,¡± Temir chuckled. ¡°Knight Murdon has been informed of your arrival and is en route. There are some matters to take care of. First, allow me to formally welcome you to Threst¡¯s Hunter¡¯s Guild. As I have been informed there are not any others that will be joining you on hunts for the time being, so we can dispense with your official registration now.¡±

    ¡°Just so we¡¯re clear, I¡¯m not hunting with Guy,¡± Thomas said carefully, though it seemed he had interrupted the man more to give Daniel a careful look than stipulate that. Daniel read the warning in Thomas¡¯ eyes and grew more alert.

    ¡°Of course.¡± Temir nodded and put his clipboard under one arm, using the other to withdraw a monocle from a pocket. Light quickly ran across it as he donned it, leading to a grimace. ¡°Ah, it is as I thought. We will have to register you under another name, unfortunately. While Wingcraft isn¡¯t currently claimed, it is too similar to other teams to allow. We can give you time to-¡°Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators!

    ¡°That¡¯s our name,¡± Daniel interrupted, surprised at the sternness in his voice. He¡¯d thought all of the confidence he¡¯d woken up with had gone to cat Daniel, but he found himself unwilling to move on the point despite being initially hesitant about the moniker. ¡°You just said no one else has it.¡±

    ¡°Well, your position is understandable, but we do feel it is important to keep a distinction between teams in Threst so that there are no cases of mistaken identity or falsely attributed fame.¡±

    ¡°I should tell you now that I¡¯ve got a power that lets me read lies,¡± Thomas said, folding his arms. Daniel stepped closer to the Cleric as he continued. ¡°You just don¡¯t want to give a team name with wing in it to a group with mostly non-birds, right?¡±

    Temir¡¯s eyes flicked to the symbol of the Hand on Thomas¡¯ body as if to confirm he hadn¡¯t missed any of Torch, the god whose church was primarily responsible for those kinds of powers. The administrator cleared his throat melodiously and returned the monocle to its pocket before Daniel could think to sneakily scan it. ¡°As it happens, there is a policy in place to restrict certain words such as ¡®wing¡¯ or ¡®flight¡¯ in team names for various reasons. Again, to avoid confusion. A non-flight capable team such as yourselves could be seen as misrepresenting themselves by taking on ¡®Wingcraft'', though I¡¯m sure that¡¯s not your intention.¡±

    But the word ¡®craft¡¯ isn¡¯t a problem even though we don¡¯t have any Craftsman? Daniel thought bitterly, not liking the fact that they¡¯d hit a sticking point before he¡¯d had a chance to ask about all the bodies he was carrying around. ¡°We are flight capable, I just need to make a few items for my team first.¡±

    Temir¡¯s eyes flicked to the other two of Daniel¡¯s teammates in the room and he sighed. ¡°I see, although unless you are prepared to verify this information now it remains a point of contention.¡±

    ¡°Fine, we¡¯re not going to hunt until then anyway.¡± Daniel and Thomas stood unmoving together and the avianoid decided to defer the issue.

    ¡°I see, I see. Do note, for the record, that teams are unauthorized to receive assignments or bounties in Threst until they are properly registered. We administrate the right way here, no shortcuts. On that note, I have made copies of our standard taxes and policies for you all to review. Regardless of when you register, you should review them.¡± He unclipped the pages, handing one to both Daniel and Khiat. Sensing a bond opportunity, Daniel gestured towards Khare as well. Temir gave him a confused look but he did comply.

    Daniel scanned the document and felt a sinking sensation. Not only did the guild claw back 20% of listed bounties, which seemed entirely pointless to him, but the policies Temir mentioned weren¡¯t explained but listed as reference numbers. It covered everything from how to represent the guild appropriately in public to managing scenarios where two different teams encountered each other on the same hunt. That last one did sound useful, but the sum of the experience gave Daniel a bad vibe.

    Thomas, reading over his shoulder, gave him a commiserating look but didn¡¯t comment. ¡°Ok, I have more reading to do,¡± Daniel said to try and ameliorate the situation before making his request. ¡°We¡¯ll get fully up to date on all of these before registering. Is there anything else?¡±

    ¡°Since you aren¡¯t registering now, no. I will thank you for your commitment to Threst¡¯s security, either way. During these uncertain times we must all perform at the peak of our potential, and keeping the public calm is of the utmost importance. Panic will only cost more lives.¡±

    ¡°¡­we aren¡¯t supposed to tell anyone about the Collapse?¡± Daniel ventured as Temir looked at him expectantly.

    ¡°You should avoid discussing the exact nature of the escalated threat facing Threst. Even calling it ¡®the Collapse¡¯ is disingenuous as we don¡¯t truly know if that catastrophe is upon us again.¡±

    I do, Daniel thought irritatedly, but he tried not to let it show. ¡°Alright, I¡¯m good at keeping secrets. Had to in Aughal to not get taken as a slave, after all.¡±

    ¡°Hmm, yes, quite.¡±

    There was a stretch of awkward silence before Daniel asked, ¡°So we ran into a few monsters on the way here and I have their bodies. Is there anyone in the guild that could help with processing them? I can use the hide for enchanting and the bags of holding they make are really good.¡±

    Temir looked worried about just where Daniel was keeping said bodies until he mentioned the bags. ¡°Oh?¡±

    Daniel wouldn¡¯t have been able to explain exactly before, but Identify Item had come in clutch with his most recent advancement. It was the counterpart to Analyze Material, working on things that had already been crafted.

    <hr>

    Bag of Holding (Item, Domain: Enchantment, Quality: Enhanced, Level: 2):

    An enchanted item that makes use of Dimensional magic to expand the space inside, allowing for far more to be stored than its appearance would suggest. The weight of materials placed in this bag is negated while stored. Anything placed in this bag can be easily retrieved, and a slight preservative effect is applied while inside.

    Added Affixes:

    - Leathercut

    - Self-repair

    Material Bonus: Use of Special Item: Gray Wastewolf Fur has improved the preservative effect of this item, dramatically slowing down the rate of decay of all items inside.

    <hr>

    It was a far better bonus than the expansion to storage space the skink leather gave him. He still used that as his primary bag for most things that didn¡¯t need to be saved, but the wolf fur bags now carried anything that could rot. If he needed more space he could always make more bags. He had enough fur to start an ethically challenged coat store back on Earth.

    ¡°Very interesting, though without formal guild membership there are fewer resources available to you. I could bring this to the Commander to try and work something out,¡± Temir offered as Daniel smirked. Everyone always needed more handy storage space. ¡°How many bodies are we speaking of, precisely?¡±

    ¡°A little over three hundred normal-sized wolves,¡± Daniel said offhandedly, enjoying making the annoying official gape as he heightened both Bartering and Steadfast Salesman. It was finally time to get a use out of those powers.

    ¡­

    Murdon entered the room a few minutes after Temir left, and his unsteady breath made it clear he¡¯d run here after hearing the news. That also made it less likely things had been arranged for their meeting to be delayed until Temir had his chance to rain on Daniel¡¯s economy parade. ¡°Lograve?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know where he is,¡± Daniel answered. ¡°Or the others. Hunter is dead but his soul is still out there so we think there¡¯s a chance he can come back.¡± No, I know we¡¯re getting him back, Daniel added internally. ¡°Lograve¡¯s not dead, you¡¯d know if he was.¡±

    The draconoid¡¯s armored shoulders collapsed as he closed his eyes. Daniel hadn¡¯t seen Murdon since the two refugee groups had split off. The Knight had lost a hand at that point and had been crushed under the weight of saving all of their lives over two months. He looked better now on both counts, though that was nothing compared to the clear relief he felt on that. Daniel wasn¡¯t done relaying the news, though.

    ¡°There¡¯s something else. The real Tyrant you thought was behind Gadriel?¡± Thomas sucked in a breath behind him as Daniel readied himself as well. ¡°It¡¯s Ashier. I identified them myself and they admitted to it. They¡¯ve got that fire dragon under some kind of domination effect too.¡±

    The Knight remained stunned for half a minute, keeping his eyes closed as he absorbed the news. ¡°Why?¡± he eventually asked.

    ¡°They didn¡¯t want to give up the region. They are¡­ extremely devoted to the Octyrrum.¡± He suddenly wished he¡¯d eased Murdon into this revelation and tried to soften the blow. ¡°They always say becoming a Tyrant changes people, right? The class could have made them betray you.¡±

    ¡°They tried to kill me.¡± One of Murdon¡¯s arms, the one that normally held an ax, shook. ¡°They tried to kill Lograve, and they did kill hundreds through their actions. I was their friend!¡± He took in several deep breaths, initially making Daniel worried he was about to use his racial ability, until he saw they were calming. ¡°I will have to confront them at a later time.¡± His eyes flicked to Khiat, who quailed under the intensity that remained in them. ¡°We haven¡¯t met. I am Co-, I am Murdon, Knight. I commend your bravery for coming here, all things considered. As one who spends as much time in armor as you must, I can¡¯t truly say my life depends on mine as much as yours does.¡±

    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s fine.¡± Khiat shifted one of the leather bands that covered the flesh of her arm and exposed it to the sun. ¡°See? I have Sun Resistance.¡±

    Murdon¡¯s brief look of horror faded and he took another steadying breath. ¡°You shouldn¡¯t show anyone else your power in that way. Regardless, it is good you have found someone capable, Daniel, and I thank you for being upfront about these troubling developments. We¡¯ll have to depart to discuss certain matters with the Regent, and Quala will be there as well,¡± he said, addressing Thomas at the end. ¡°Before we go, is there anything else you need to mention? You don¡¯t need to fear ears here.¡±

    Other than that I¡¯m a Spoke and a god is following me around? Daniel thought, wondering if Cloak was in this very room. ¡°Two things, mostly. Tlara died but is possessing her beasts which her sister has some kind of control over. I also need to ask Quala if she can heal the hybrid ringcat body I can turn into since it almost got fully cut in half. And there¡¯s about two hundred wolf bodies that I need to enchant my way through, but I¡¯ve got that covered.¡±

    ¡°Oh,¡± Murdon groaned as a weight settled on him. ¡°This is how Lograve felt when he was training you, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    ¡°You did say you liked me being upfront.¡±

 Chapter 178: Lost Civilization

    While they¡¯d walked to the Hunter¡¯s Guild, they¡¯d flown to the next meeting. The Bekali Hauler was the first he¡¯d seen of the magical platforms up close. It was a broad, wooden construct twenty meters wide that gave him a disappointing message when he tried to scan it.

    <hr>

    System Alert: Attempted use of Function: Encyclopedia on targeted Item has failed as you do not possess all required Powers: Crafting to learn the Formulae.

    <hr>

    The gist was that the item was his level, as Identify Item showed, but it was too complex for him to make alone. It would have been worse if he didn¡¯t already have an idea for making his team fly, even if Khare could have managed better on something like this. The construct¡¯s flight was slow, intended for carrying cargo as the name and the hooks built into the underside suggested. This grade of construct was necessary for their whole group as both Murdon and Khiat would have overloaded smaller ones.

    Willow was the only one to abstain, riding on Tlara¡¯s wyvern after very reluctantly putting Spinner back in the pouches she now carried. The young avianoid had been interested in going on the hauler but Tlara was adverse to her sister being too far from her after what had happened at the border. Whether this whole experience was changing her or she was just being a self-centered jerk like normal, he still couldn¡¯t tell.

    Getting to the top of the mountain only took half an hour as the hauler climbed at a slight incline. Tlara had been encouraged to stay close as whenever she broke off one of the many ballista of Aurus began tracking her. They docked at another of the secluded islands, just under where the political center of the region was. Unlike most, this island didn¡¯t have a land route to Aurus, leaving the lavish mansion truly isolated.

    Surprisingly, there was more than just one faint connection to Murdon¡¯s manor of old. In addition to being the fanciest place in town, most of the people inside were air gestalt, like an entire workforce of Ashiers. Murdon made eye contact with Daniel at one point and it was clear his mind was on the Tyrant as well. There wasn¡¯t much in the way of actual conversation as everyone just wanted to get through this meeting and deal with the fallout of Aughal¡¯s siege.

    As they entered what looked like a war room crossed with the courtyard of a resort, the staff, gestalt and otherwise, promptly departed save for one carrying a sword. Quala and Tounaki were standing around the large central table as well, along with a handful of other avianoids and one whitish-pink draconoid he couldn¡¯t identify. Daniel and Thomas were the only humans in the large space.

    The Cleric¡¯s attempt to run over to his former mentor was fully arrested as everyone turned towards the armed air gestalt. Their body had rapidly changed to form a swirl of colors that was faintly reminiscent of the robes of what he suspected was some elder Illustrious, though it was only in their iridescence. What had drawn everyone¡¯s eye was the way they were speaking.

    ¡°Ah, good! I always appreciate being ahead of schedule. Here I thought we¡¯d be sitting around for another week waiting for you.¡± Several of the people he didn¡¯t know covertly glanced at the gestalt, not in surprise like Daniel but faint affront for some reason. The gestalt made a noise mimicking their throat clearing, and what he said next was in a far more formal tone. ¡°I, Soraso, Regent of Threst, Protector of the Region, Servant of the Octyrrum, and so forth, welcome hunters Daniel Brant, Thomas Kaysian, Khare of the gestalt, and Khiat of the duskers, as well as Silora Thelonas, and Rait Geshel to my home.¡±

    The Fate seemed slightly peeved that she¡¯d been mentioned fifth, though this didn¡¯t match Rait¡¯s surprise that he and his last name had been included. Daniel again thought of Cloak and guessed the god wasn¡¯t here. While his control over illusions was supreme, it was limited in maximal power while in the Proxy. This was exactly the kind of place that would have protections capable of detecting him. ¡°Thanks,¡± Thomas remarked casually as Daniel pondered, breaking the silence that had fallen after the greeting.

    ¡°A poor reply, but what can you expect of a scion of Aughal?¡± one of the bystanders Daniel now decided was stuffy murmured, his borrowed Keen Senses allowing him to pick it up.

    ¡°Well, now that¡¯s that over, we should get to business,¡± Soraso said without as much formality. Daniel started to follow the group to the table when something wrapped around his arm. Khare, standing behind him, had an expression of pure shock on their formed face.

    Oh, damn it! Why his thoughts had gone to Cloak first instead of his friend, he didn¡¯t know, but this was obviously the air gestalt he¡¯d mentioned. Makes sense that if they¡¯re anyone, they¡¯re the leader of this place. At least I don¡¯t have to look for them. Now that they had his attention, Khare was rapidly alternating a mark on Soraso, as if their interest wasn¡¯t obvious. ¡°Khare, I¡¯m sorry, I don¡¯t think this is time to ask them,¡± Daniel answered, whispering. ¡°I know how important this is for you, and I¡¯ll definitely ask after the meeting. If it¡¯s an item that¡¯s doing this I¡¯ll do my best to copy it.¡±

    ¡°Salvation,¡± Khare replied lowly, though in an amazed tone. It hurt to lie to them like this but Cloak had been clear on how he should go about this. Bonds were the only answer. As they both caught up to the rest, no one missed how Murdon stood next to Tounaki and was closer than even Thomas was to Quala.

    Looks like Thomas wins that bet, Daniel thought to himself as Soraso waved a hand to both gather everyone¡¯s attention again and summon an illusion over the table. It was like the map of the region he¡¯d seen in the Hunter¡¯s Guild, only displayed three-dimensionally. He did his best to closely examine every part in case his phone could replicate this too.

    ¡°I¡¯m sure you¡¯re all wondering why I¡¯ve decided to make so much fuss over a few pilgrims from Aughal,¡± Soraso began, with a hint of what reminded Daniel of Lograve¡¯s flippancy. ¡°To summarize the current situation, we have confirmed that a Tyrant has taken control of Aughal following an attempted coup by the Spiritualists, who have now been fully recognized as enemies of the Octyrrum. Whether they were responsible for Rikendia, we are not sure as our scouts have not returned yet. What we can assume is that this is related to the global crisis I was warned of. This makes our endeavor all the more important. Before we continue, I want everyone in the room to understand this is our secret.¡±

    An odd sensation passed over Daniel. It was familiar to the few times he¡¯d been hit with a social power before, though this one didn¡¯t seem directly hostile. He could even resist the effect which came as a surprise since its source was the leader of the region. ¡°Ah, for those who are new here, this power will restrict you from discussing this topic with those who do not know about it. You are free to decline, which will screen our words from you. We have several comfortable chairs for you to wait in should you so choose. Trust Me, we won¡¯t mind if anyone doesn¡¯t want to hear this.¡±

    Rait immediately headed for one, leaving Silora alone at the table. Khiat gave Daniel a questioning look and he smiled back, nodding at her to stay. He wasn¡¯t entirely thrilled by the prospect of being magically forced to keep a secret, but if Murdon was going along with it he would. Thomas would be able to reverse the binding worst case. Daniel accepted the odd feeling and felt a brief bit of mana on his tongue before the sensation faded. Ok screw that, Thomas is taking this off us as soon as we¡¯re out of the room.

    His thoughts didn¡¯t make their way to the Regent, who just nodded, seeing that only Rait had left. Before they could speak, the stuffy avianoid did. ¡°Lord Regent, I must ask why we have stopped to include outsiders in this venture. Considering its importance for the future of this region, I¡¯d recommend we reconsider.¡±

    ¡°Thank you, Director Kayati, for providing me with the perfect segue,¡± Soraso replied smugly. ¡°You are looking at part of the team that was responsible for the death of the Spiritualist leader in Aughal. This young human, by all reports we¡¯ve gathered, was the one who finished the job. He¡¯s also an Artificer,¡± they added, which struck fresh interest in the crowd. ¡°We can¡¯t ignore the possibility that those bastards, uhm, excuse me, those terrorists have snuck traitors into our organizations. Who better to trust than those responsible for stopping the destruction of another region? If any of you are still doubting that, there are unconfirmed rumors that Daniel has met with the Hammer himself.¡±

    This mollified the group and several looks of respect were thrown to Daniel¡¯s side, most notably from a Cleric garbed in the regalia of Hammer. Seeing the symbol sparked a mote of anger in him, though without the rage power he was able to fully suppress it. Murdon coughed conspicuously and Soraso gestured towards him with a small chuckle. ¡°There¡¯s four members of the team who¡¯ve gone missing, including a close friend of both the Regent and myself. Considering the importance of what we¡¯re doing, I¡¯d like Aurus to make a request on my behalf to every Fate here. We need to find them.¡±Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    ¡°A rather onerous demand,¡± Soraso replied dramatically before anyone else could, ¡°But considering your friends have brought another Fate along it¡¯s only fair, even if we¡¯ll have to provide a Focus Chamber.¡± Murdon nodded in thanks and no one else spoke against the move. ¡°Now, for the actual matter at hand. A few months ago as I was participating on a hunt. In doing so, I made use of the Sword of Threst near the sky limit.¡± The weapon on their hip unsheathed itself and Daniel felt an echo of something within him. The item was a Spoke, and the power was so concentrated within it compared to the Spires that he could sense it. ¡°There is space beyond the limits, of course, and it is only with this sword that they can be reached. Most of it is rock below and treacherous void above, but in this particular spot I found something astounding by rare chance.¡±

    The map on the table shifted to an area mostly devoid of charted sky islands. The movement didn¡¯t draw Rait¡¯s eye, so Soraso¡¯s secret power must even cover visual occurrences during the meeting. ¡°The entire world was once the domain of the Octyrrum, as hard as the Crest makes that to believe. Enough time has passed that most of the works of our ancestors have faded, though not all of them.¡± The sky limit of the projection lowered slightly, and a large block appeared above it. ¡°We have discovered ancient ruins of this past civilization.¡±

    An avianoid in deep purple robes nodded as the Regent indicated him. When he started to speak, Tounaki visibly stiffened to attention. ¡°As far as the Mage Flight can tell, this megastructure was preserved due to the space above the sky limit being a special dimension created by the Octyrrum. During the first Collapse it was preserved from the ravages of the Crest, and when we reconstructed the region with our Spoke, we inadvertently opened a way back to it. The question remains as to what this structure is for, though it must be important if our precursors built it in such a secluded area.¡±

    Daniel had a premonition with the news, figuring that this was exactly what Cloak had wanted him to be here for. The god would¡¯ve known about it since he¡¯d been around during the first Collapse. Was this some kind of temple that could bring back Hunter without a body? ¡°Why do you need us?¡± he asked, desperate to know more. Speaking without permission didn¡¯t endear him to the gaggle of officials but he still had some credit from his history.

    Ultimately, Soraso answered without chastising him. ¡°There¡¯s something¡­ wrong inside. I made a brief inspection when I first discovered it and quickly ran into strange monsters. Nothing that could withstand the might of Threst,¡± they said with the faintest hint of sarcasm toward the end none of the natives noticed, ¡°But I didn¡¯t want to risk something stronger being within. It appears even if the cataclysmic effects of the Crest don¡¯t reach inside, monsters may still spawn as they do here. These, as I have said, are strange. I hadn¡¯t fully understood their nature until the reports of other unknown variant spawns began to come in. What¡¯s more, from my brief encounter I believe those that do spawn become as dangerous as those faithful to the Octyrrum within the ruin are. I was the only one within, and it seems just too much of a coincidence that all were on my level.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯d hoped to form a large team of competent hunters to explore this place in Soraso¡¯s place,¡± Murdon picked up. ¡°From our experiences in the Thormundz, and¡­¡± Murdon paused as he put whatever he was about to say more diplomatically, ¡°the nature of the experience the best of Threst has to offer, we are the best suited for an initial exploration. But Lograve and the rest going missing complicates things. I¡¯d suggest we delay this until we find them.¡±

    ¡°Outrageous!¡± the outspoken Kayati exclaimed. ¡°We have forces enough to repel any threat arrayed against us. If these foreigners cannot muster the strength, let us rely on our flights and make clear the price of treason for any who dare refuse the order.¡± That got a few nods, but Soraso wasn¡¯t one of them.

    ¡°Despite this new disaster, I have decided on caution for now. The new monster variants are troubling, and I would like to secure the region before diverting resources on what may be only dust. I can open the way, but without following myself those we send will be cut off until they return to where they entered the structure. What I need to know now is only if you are willing to take up this charge.¡±

    For Hunter, Daniel thought, seeing only one answer and no reason to doubt Soraso¡¯s words. ¡°We will. But I need some time to get my team ready for hunting here too, and I want to get them stronger before doing anything with these ruins. Evalyn, Tak, Lograve, Gadriel, finding any of them would help tremendously.¡± He briefly thought to ask if the Regent could help out with registering at the guild but thought better of it. Murdon and this strange gestalt had some kind of former relationship, but he didn¡¯t know how far he could go based on that.

    ¡°Just the three of you?¡± the other, pink draconoid in the room asked curiously. ¡°You do make for an interesting team, but are you sure that¡¯s enough? I haven¡¯t seen many non-avianoids fight well in the skies, and I¡¯ve buried too many overconfident hunters from other regions who thought an item or potion would be all they need to survive a fall.¡±

    ¡°We can handle it. And, it¡¯s not just the three of us,¡± Daniel said, regretting his words for multiple reasons. ¡°We¡¯ve also got a Beastmaster.¡±

    ¡­

    Nothing else of substance was said over the rest of the meeting, which devolved into procedural deliberations of how to adjust the region¡¯s defenses over the next month. Daniel¡¯s group didn¡¯t have to be there but both Murdon and Quala stayed at the table. Since he wanted to talk more with both them and the Regent, he half-listened as he internally organized what he wanted to do to prepare for hunting here.

    First, have Thomas remove that secret blocking effect. Soraso seems like a nice guy but that feeling weirded me out. Second, get better at enchanting and heal my other body. Once I can reliably enchant level 2 stuff, we do Khiat¡¯s armor, then figure out flying. Last will be my claws¡­ and my gun. He wasn¡¯t sure how long all that would take him and was worried that he¡¯d have to cheat with the wolf material. For Khiat he¡¯d certainly do so since he couldn¡¯t mess up the complicated armor, though for the rest he was considering trading for lower level material.

    The Hunter¡¯s Guild had claimed a fair number of bodies as part of the deal for handling processing, about a third, but he¡¯d managed to do better than the full half Temir had initially wanted. That would leave him with an insane amount of fur and bones which would be valuable to other Artificers as long as they had leathercut or bonecut. If not, he could sell them the affix as part of the deal.

    As the meeting ended, Daniel was caught by Quala before he could go to either of his other targets. ¡°Thomas has told me about your issues,¡± she began sympathetically. ¡°I am sorry for your loss.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m getting him back,¡± Daniel said, slightly evasively before he got to the real point. ¡°Did he tell you about the healing I need?¡±

    ¡°I think I¡¯ll have to see it for myself to believe it, but yes. Do you have plans tonight?¡±

    ¡°Besides sleeping? No.¡±

    She saw him looking intently at Soraso and must have realized why Khare was standing centimeters behind him. ¡°I¡¯ll wait for you and have us brought to the Divine Quarter together. I¡¯ve used some of my mana today, but I¡¯ll see what I can do.¡±

    ¡°Thanks.¡± Daniel was about to leave it at that, but he felt a sudden weight in his chest. It wasn¡¯t new, just something being in her presence reminded him of. ¡°Could we talk, too? Just about everything that¡¯s happened.¡±

    ¡°I am prepared to give you all the help you need.¡± Quala gave him a soft smile and patted him on the shoulder as she walked away.

    I¡¯m telling her about Earth, Daniel decided. Thomas already knew and there weren¡¯t any secrets between him and his mentor. Better she heard it from him first. Khare wouldn¡¯t let him stew on that for long and almost dragged him to Soraso before someone else could talk to them.

    ¡°Ah, the Artificer himself and a cousin of the earth. I¡¯m glad my wayward fire aspirant didn¡¯t spend too long flying in circles looking for you.¡± Even now, the perfect speech coming from the cloud man was jarring. There wasn¡¯t a full face or anything to accompany the words, they just issued forth like how all other gestalt talked.

    ¡°Speech!¡± Khare called out, patience exhausted.

    The cloud mouth of the regent turned down slightly as they looked away. ¡°Ah. It¡¯s a common question that comes up whenever another gestalt meets me for the first time. I¡¯m sorry Khare, I don¡¯t think you can find what you¡¯re looking for with me.¡±

    ¡°Why not?¡± Daniel asked, a little confused. Soraso had done some research on them since he knew Daniel¡¯s last name, something that had only been infrequently mentioned. The bond he had with Khare shouldn¡¯t have been much more difficult to figure out.

    ¡°This is due to a rare Bard power that awakens to my race,¡± Soraso explained. ¡°In fact, I don¡¯t know of anyone else that has it within the next region or two, not that my kind are as prolific as humanity or the avianoids.¡±

    That¡¯s not right, Daniel thought, confused. Did Cloak just forget about that power, or did he assume it was more likely to be a bond? Soraso has no reason to lie¡­

    Khare asked a question before he could. ¡°Diversify?¡±

    Soraso studied the earth gestalt for a second while he parsed the question. Only gestalt within an element could understand each other, and the racial Empathic Link likewise didn¡¯t cross. It wasn¡¯t too hard of a puzzle though. ¡°No, I don¡¯t recommend multiclassing in search of it. I know the pain my galavanting in front of the other races must cause you. I¡¯d say it¡¯d be best to come to terms with what the Octyrrum has planned for you, but you¡¯ve gone and bonded with a human so what do I know?¡±

    ¡°Is there anything from our bond that could help Khare speak?¡± Daniel asked, now wondering if Cloak had straight up lied to him.

    ¡°Perhaps,¡± Soraso said ponderously, dangling that temptation in front of Khare. ¡°I myself have no bonds so it¡¯s hard to say. What you two share is the most precious of everything you own, possessions and powers alike. I hope you understand the pressure that puts on young Khare, dragging him between two worlds.¡±

    ¡°I do,¡± Daniel acknowledged, looking over and nodding to his friend. ¡°I¡¯m already ready to do the impossible for one of my friends, and I¡¯ll do the same for Khare.¡± Part of him hoped that declaration would prompt a bond development, and in the next moment, he feared that intention had spoiled any possibility of it. He was about to thank Soraso and move on when he caught up to something they had said. ¡°Wait, young? What do you mean?¡±

    ¡°Oh, you didn¡¯t know?¡± Soraso peered at Khare again and nodded their head. ¡°I¡¯m not the best guess with the people of the earth, but I¡¯d put Khare at about a year old, give or take a month.¡±

 Chapter 179: In Confidence

    Daniel lay on his front, a towel draped over him. It felt like he was about to get a massage, though something far worse was going to happen. He¡¯d made it to the church of the Hand around an hour before midnight, the rest of his team including the year old gestalt he¡¯d assumed a full adult having been taken to lodgings Aurus was providing them for the next few days. Thomas had been the exception, coming along for the ride and practically sprinting away once he got there. The Cleric had managed to purge the ¡®Enforce Secret¡¯ power, as his phone listed it, so that was nice.

    He wanted to rest himself but didn¡¯t know how long it would take to heal his cat body. With the knowledge that there was some kind of floating dungeon to explore that could lead to Hunter¡¯s revival, there was no time to lose. Soraso throwing doubt on what Cloak had told him about giving a voice to Khare did make him rethink everything the god had told him, though. How could he trust anything the literal god of lies said? He had clear memories of how Hammer treated people.

    Daniel rested his chin on the table as he brought himself back into the present. There was only one other person in the room and she asked a question as she closed the door. ¡°Are you ready?¡±

    He and Quala were in one of the treatment rooms towards the back of the main hall of the church. It was about twice as large as the typical kind you¡¯d see in a family doctor¡¯s office, though the general layout was surprisingly the same. He did find the linens on this one better than a crinkly plastic sheet. ¡°Yeah.¡±

    She caught the hesitation in his voice. ¡°Do you feel pain from your injuries? I can bring someone to apply a numbing power before you change.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure if that would affect me afterward,¡± Daniel replied. ¡°Honestly, I don¡¯t hurt as much in the other body.¡± That wasn¡¯t to say he liked how his critically injured cat body felt, but that wasn¡¯t the reason for his hesitation. ¡°Thank you, by the way. I¡¯ll just let you know again that it won¡¯t be pretty.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve seen worse,¡± Quala assured him. Daniel gave her a skeptical glance and she nodded in affirmation. ¡°Thomas gave me a brief rundown. I should qualify there have only been a handful of worse injuries I¡¯ve seen on living people.¡±

    ¡°Sigron?¡±

    ¡°No, you have him beat.¡±

    ¡°Is he doing alright?¡± Daniel asked to delay the transformation by another question.

    ¡°He is improving,¡± Quala answered shortly, before adding, ¡°There may have been a profound improvement following your arrival, in fact, but the extent of his recovery remains to be seen and I cannot say anything other than that we have our hopes. Is there anything else you need to do before you shift?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Daniel half-smiled as he knew she was onto him. There was no way she knew the real reason but she could tell he was stalling. ¡°I¡¯ll just do it then.¡± He braced himself and activated Beast Mode. Switching to his cat form felt like unzipping part of his body. Thomas¡¯ efforts had barely touched the canyon that had been cut into his back.

    Unyielding Tenacity was a far cry from the nine lives it had at first seemed. If the acidic shank stomper hadn¡¯t been crushed following the hulk¡¯s death it could have finished him off power or no, and if he couldn¡¯t switch bodies he¡¯d have been crippled for months without assistance. There was also the wound to his right shoulder and upper back, which was less deep as he¡¯d been able to partially avoid the attack. The arm was dead but not fully severed like his human one had been.

    There was a moment of instinctual panic as he registered his injuries. He fought and won against it, steading himself. ¡°May I examine you?¡± Daniel weakly nodded at the question rather than answer. He could somewhat talk, though his lungs and diaphragm had been damaged. He laid perfectly still as Quala removed the covering over his body and with sharp eyes dissected his injuries. She took a few notes after getting permission, and by the motion seemed to be drawing as well. That he had just undergone a full body transformation didn¡¯t phase her at all, though to be fair powers like those did exist. His power was unnatural for other reasons.

    After documenting his wounds, Daniel felt a hand on his shoulder. ¡°I¡¯m going to attempt a Flash Heal now. Are you ready?¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± Daniel wheezed, hating how weak his voice sounded.

    ¡°Flash Heal,¡± Quala incanted, and his body shifted slightly. He didn¡¯t feel that different though, and Quala¡¯s continued frown told him all he needed to know. ¡°Flash Heal. Flash Heal.¡± She used her power twice more, a pause of a few seconds between each cast. The ability was helping, though the healing penalty of Unyielding Tenacity was fighting her every step. Daniel at least felt his breathing grow more even after the third use, though his legs and right arm remained dead.

    ¡°How bad?¡±

    ¡°Well, this is certainly the worst positive response to Flash Heal I¡¯ve seen,¡± Quala commented without any agitation. ¡°I suspect if I had the Limit Break: Healing feature I¡¯d encounter similar difficulties with a level 6 patient. It¡¯s too soon to tell for sure, but I¡¯d estimate it will take a week of healing for you to gain some mobility. Fully recovering your spine will take far longer. That is with my assistance, which I am willing to continue providing.¡±

    ¡°Thank you,¡± Daniel said with all the sincerity he had. With this matter settled they¡¯d reached the point he¡¯d been hesitant about. He¡¯d left the matter for when he was in cat form since the personality was better suited for not worrying about consequences. ¡°Did Thomas tell you where I¡¯m from?¡± The question took about twice as long as normal to ask, though it was from pausing for breath multiple times than anything else.

    ¡°You¡¯ve told him? No, he hasn¡¯t.¡± Quala tried to keep the surprise and faint disapproval out of her voice but Daniel¡¯s keen ears caught it.

    ¡°He deserved the truth.¡±

    She looked thoughtfully at him and then took a seat herself. ¡°This room is warded. I assume you want to tell me?¡±

    He was having trouble determining if she had some idea, given how she was just rolling with the confession. Either way, he was about to find out. ¡°If you don¡¯t believe this, ask Murdon.¡± She just stared at him, urging him to continue. ¡°Alright. I¡¯m from another world called Earth, and I was sent here by a copy of myself to find my Dad.¡±

    Whatever she¡¯d been expecting, it wasn¡¯t that. Quala blinked and bought a few seconds idly glancing at the notes she¡¯d taken before asking, ¡°Is there any chance your mind has been affected, made to believe this?¡±

    Technically yes, Daniel thought, but so far there¡¯d only been subtractions to his memory and he was fixing those. Some part of him knew that bridge space hadn¡¯t been faked, even if he couldn¡¯t get there anymore. ¡°No. This, what I am now, is different. I¡¯ve changed. Who you met outside of Hagain, that¡¯s the closest I¡¯ve been to what I was.¡±

    ¡°Your ringcat, did he come with you?¡±

    Daniel stifled laughter, knowing his body wasn¡¯t up to it. ¡°No. You believe me?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s as hard for me to as it is to deny,¡± she answered honestly, and he noticed one of her hands holding her Focus tightly. ¡°Faith has been hard. Losing two regions, almost a third, with no way of knowing how the rest of the world fairs. I am wholly devoted to the purpose of the Octyrrum, though I am beginning to wonder if we have taken for granted our confidence in what we know of it.¡±

    A thought suddenly struck Daniel. ¡°You have a mental defense power?¡±

    ¡°Iron Mind,¡± she nodded, confused by the line of questioning. Daniel focused all he could on the scents in the room, trying to pick out if there was anyone else there. Even with Cloak¡¯s mastery, he was confident the god couldn¡¯t evade him in such a small space.

    ¡°There¡¯s more,¡± he continued with a hint of urgency. There wasn¡¯t any solid logic behind what he was about to do, just a feeling that keeping this secret to himself was unwise given Cloak¡¯s questionable advice on Khare. Quala represented one of the few people the god couldn¡¯t mind wipe, and the only one of those he trusted. ¡°I¡¯ve met at least two of the gods, and one is currently following me in secret.¡±

    ¡°What!?¡± He¡¯d never seen the Cleric so astonished or unguarded. A shrill note entered her voice as she glanced around. ¡°I, I don¡¯t think you¡¯re lying. Who are you?¡±This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

    ¡°The same person you knew. It¡¯s more the things that have happened to me than things I¡¯ve done,¡± he said with a hard edge. The anger from how Hammer had treated him was still there, but Quala had always been a calming presence for him. ¡°I can¡¯t remember most of the week before the Collapse started. Hammer found me after we stopped the Spiritualists, like Soraso said, and I think he took me to where the gods were meeting to figure out how to respond to the Collapse. In Rikendia.¡±

    She stood with that. ¡°Why haven¡¯t you mentioned this sooner?¡±

    ¡°Cloak¡¯s the one following me. He¡¯s taking the knowledge from anyone that finds out besides me.¡± And isn¡¯t that a great thing to do to people?

    He could tell by the faint stretch of skin around her eyes the feathers didn¡¯t fully cover that she¡¯d grown pale. ¡°I shouldn¡¯t be hearing this.¡±

    ¡°You should. At least half the gods are dead or somewhere the Octyrrum can¡¯t find them.¡± He considered not throwing more at the poor Cleric but pushed on regardless. ¡°I got the same information Soraso did after I was sent back to Aughal, and more. When I was brought to this world I got merged with Eido¡¯s Spoke. Hammer himself confirmed I have it in me, and Cloak repeated that on the way here. That¡¯s the reason I get so much information, and I learned that a ¡®quorum of the gods¡¯ couldn¡¯t be reached.¡±

    ¡°Hold on,¡± she held a hand to stop him and seemed to be catching her breath. ¡°If anyone else was saying this¡­ Murdon knows about this?¡±

    ¡°Only about where I come from, and he doesn¡¯t know about the other me. Thomas doesn¡¯t know about the gods part. Well, he did, and then Cloak unidentified it from him.¡±

    ¡°Then why are you telling me this?¡± One of her hands shook as she asked that as if she feared the god would strike her memories at that very moment. He didn¡¯t enjoy seeing the look of fear in her eyes and seeing that severely deepened his distrust of the illusion god.

    ¡°Because they¡¯ve lied to you,¡± he answered. ¡°I¡¯m proof that there¡¯s other worlds. But it¡¯s more than that.¡± He went into detail about how Hammer had treated him and Cloak had lied about Khare. It was almost funny how much he¡¯d been worried about being labeled an extraterrestrial because of how heretical that would make him, only to now bash the entire religion in front of Quala. ¡°Your history says the gods growing lax caused the last Collapse. What if one of them betrayed the others and caused this one? It¡¯s pretty clear that Hammer doesn¡¯t care much about mortals, so it¡¯s possible¡±

    Quala appeared close to both tears and anger as she continued to listen, transfixed by his pained exhortation. That last comment tipped the balance. ¡°Stop! You go too far.¡±

    He didn¡¯t back down, but he was reminded that she could easily kill him if she wanted to in his current state. ¡°Do I? Take what Hammer did to me and ignore the fact that he¡¯s a god. Say it was some rogue high level Arcanist. Do you still want to defend him?¡± She didn¡¯t say anything to that and instead of getting angrier, he cooled down. ¡°If it¡¯s worth anything, I¡¯m sure the Hand is one of the best of them.¡±

    ¡°Our world was taken from us and it has been the gods that have given us any chance of survival!¡± she replied, now talking as if questioning a hostile witness in a court show. ¡°These words, they sound more at home with those who tried to destroy Aughal.¡±

    ¡°And we stopped them. Would Thomas have come with me if we¡¯d done anything to hurt people?¡± That gave her a moment of pause.

    ¡°Do you know what it would mean if what you¡¯re saying is true?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, we¡¯re even more screwed than we think. That¡¯s why I¡¯m telling the one person Cloak can¡¯t affect while he¡¯s stuck at level 1, just in case it¡¯s him and he¡¯s playing the long game.¡± He was relieved she was at least being reasonable and hadn¡¯t either silenced him or left to grab a holy mob. ¡°There have been some things he said that have been true, but he also seems like exactly the god to throw around truth and lies until you don¡¯t know which is which.¡±

    Quala thought to herself for a moment. ¡°Has the father of Illusion lied to you about anything else?¡±

    ¡°Not that I know of,¡± Daniel answered slowly. ¡°But would I know?¡±

    ¡°Fair. It is just as fair to wonder if Soraso was lying.¡± Daniel blinked, realizing he hadn¡¯t even considered that. He started to get a headache from how complicated this was getting. ¡°If this is information Cloak has, in his wisdom, kept secret, then it should be kept secret. The gods have a wider understanding of the world and the experience of handling the Collapse that came before. Have you considered the lives that could be lost if you contested their will?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± He wanted to adjust his position and glance away from the Cleric, but most of his body was still resisting his commands. ¡°Ever since Hunter died, no,¡± he corrected, remembering how he¡¯d been with Hammer. ¡°Since coming back to Aughal I¡¯ve been¡­ I haven¡¯t been thinking about things like I should. I challenged a level 5 to a duel and honestly thought I could win. I abandoned my friends during a hunt. Twice.¡±

    ¡°You aren¡¯t well.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not crazy,¡± Daniel said firmly.

    ¡°I know.¡± Some of her calmness returned and evened out her expression. ¡°But you¡¯ve undergone significant emotional turmoil and then went and awakened a rage power, along with what sounds like a one-sided bond.¡± She gave him a sad look at that point that he didn¡¯t think was meant for him. ¡°World-shattering revelations aside, you need my help.¡±

    He wryly smiled, showing a bit of one fang. ¡°Always seems that way, doesn¡¯t it? I guess I knew that. I couldn¡¯t talk about this without telling you everything.¡±

    ¡°That is how it tends to work.¡± The green feathers of her face rustled as she lowered herself to stare into Daniel¡¯s eyes. ¡°But we should be clear on something. You are wrong about the gods. They are this world¡¯s protectors. I can accept much of what you¡¯ve said, but on this point I cannot compromise.¡±

    Even with Fearless, Daniel wanted to shy away from Quala at that moment. She¡¯d fully regained control of herself despite his volley of knowledge bombs and taken the momentum of the conversation. ¡°I¡¯ll admit I can¡¯t prove you wrong. I don¡¯t want to.¡±

    ¡°Good.¡± She returned to a comfortable distance, but before she could say anything else Daniel got an odd feeling. Somehow, he¡¯d awakened another power despite not having tried to kill anything. That couldn¡¯t be right.

    <hr>

    Pack Insight (Wisdom, Feature, Domain: Knowledge, Level: 1):

    You possess the Power to improve your intuition into your Allies, improving your awareness of their mental state and battle capacity over a short radius. This is a Magical Effect that functions in an area of Magical Suppression.

    - Level: 2: Improve the radius of the effect. This effect has been automatically acquired through gaining the Power at level 2, and no Mana needs to be spent to gain this benefit.

    <hr>

    It was one of the shortest power descriptions he¡¯d seen and, worse, sounded like a Bard power. Evalyn had something similar but this was aimed entirely at those in his team. It must have been his friendship archetype making itself known but even so, couldn¡¯t it have given him a damage boosting ability like Called Shot? Must be because of how much I was trying to read Quala, he thought, a little disappointed.

    His opinion changed as he looked back at the Cleric. There was no visual effect like many of his Artificer powers but an innate feeling he could sense while focusing on her like how his Empathic Link had been with Hunter just after getting the bond. More than that, it was like he could tell where her attention was placed as if there were a visual cone coming from her head. It was like a Bard power, and in battle it might help him coordinate with the others if they missed seeing something.

    ¡°What?¡± Quala asked as Daniel continued staring at her.

    ¡°Sorry, just thinking.¡± Getting into all of his new powers with her would be a step too far. ¡°I have about twenty minutes left until I can turn back.¡± His gaze shifted away before he asked his next question, finding the prospect of asking for help harder in his current form. ¡°Do you still want to help me?¡±

    ¡°Of course.¡±

    The rest of the time was taken up by Quala drawing more details out about his feelings on Hunter, Hammer, and what had been going through his mind while raging. Controlling those powers was apparently a common problem for Berserkers just starting out, though it grew easier with time.

    That encouraged him that it wasn¡¯t just because part of the foundation of his oath bond was an abject refusal to be bested. As Thomas had said and Quala confirmed, these types of bonds had historically caused personality changes in those who took them. Like Jeras with the vengeance bond.

    With the experiences he¡¯d had on the way to Threst, Daniel willfully admitted he needed more help. Either with everything, or just the rage power if the oath bond would influence him until fulfilled. It showed what kind of person Quala was that despite with all the strain he¡¯d put her under, she readily agreed to see him nightly. Whatever mana she had leftover she could use to help him heal, and the rest of the time his transformation cooldown needed could be spent talking.

    At the end of the hour, he resolved to give Quala a chance to meet his mother if at all possible, knowing the good they could do together might make up for all the wrongs he¡¯d done by itself. There was one last thing he mentioned, after reverting to his human form.

    ¡°This is probably the least insane thing I¡¯ve said all night, but I¡¯ve got Tlara¡¯s body with me in a bag of holding. She¡¯s currently possessing her wyvern, so the time she¡¯s spent dead shouldn¡¯t matter. She¡¯s not the first person I¡¯d want to bring back, but I still need to find Hunter¡¯s body. Is there someone from the church that can help her?¡±

    Quala froze with that question and left him to sit for half a minute before she whispered, as if that mattered, ¡°I am only telling you this because of how important our work is. Not even Thomas knows, and you shouldn¡¯t tell him. I will, when the time is right.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    ¡°After Soraso received his vision, something changed in our church. Everyone with the Resurrection power lost it. We can no longer revive the dead.¡±

 Chapter 180: Clubhouse in the Sky

    Daniel¡¯s biggest obstacle to his plan to replace his crossbow was that he knew nothing about guns, other than he wanted one. Enchanting his original magical weapons had been far easier, both because the heliorite had been helping him, and that he¡¯d had a modicum of understanding on how crossbows worked. Having one to model his improved design off of had also been a boon.

    Now he was working with material on his level, trying to improve his enchanting while grappling with unknown mechanisms. Sure, every guy past the age of 12 knew what rifling was, but how tight did you make the spirals? How far into the barrel did they go, or, wait, did they jut into the barrel or recess into the sides? Was it the same either way? Daniel wasn¡¯t about to enchant dozens of barrels just to solve that problem alone.

    The only saving grace was that he had time to figure it out. It was three days after he¡¯d arrived in Aurus, and he¡¯d spent most of his time here so far rebuilding himself. Literally, when it came to his cat body. Quala had continued to show up and since she could still talk about his encounters with the gods it seemed Cloak was unwilling or unable to take those memories from her. Neither had the god shown up himself, giving him little opportunity to clarify the situation.

    His other project was his enchanting. There was still a day or so left before he¡¯d receive the wolf pelts and bone, meaning he could work on his lowest priority task first. He frowned at the miniature blast marbles in his hand, coming to a conclusion he¡¯d just reached. ¡°This isn¡¯t going to work.¡±

    Sighing, he threw one against the wall. The explosion it produced didn¡¯t burn it, instead creating a puff of smoke. He¡¯d had the idea to use blast marbles as blast powder, making them so small he could pack them behind ammunition. Even if he had access to regular gunpowder he¡¯d prefer this method as he could better insulate the ¡®powder¡¯ from electricity than he could heat. With Rorshawd in the next region over he wasn¡¯t going to leave his new primary weapon with that weakness.

    Only, it wasn¡¯t working. Creating a small crossbow bolt in the shape of a dowel rod with the lightning affix had been an inspired choice since it could act as a striker, eliminating the need to add the lightning affix to the powder itself and simplifying that end. The issue was he couldn¡¯t get the grain small enough to flow properly. Hell, he still hadn¡¯t figured out how to assemble something that could passably act as a bullet. If he tried enchanting one wholesale, casing and all, it would just explode in the chamber.

    He also had an issue with the new splitting ammunition formulae. There was a delay in that effect activating, but it still had to be separated from the part that exploded. Otherwise, it was a promising addition since the effect didn¡¯t take up an affix slot.

    Daniel didn¡¯t think this was a dead end, but he was relying too much on what he half-remembered from his world. So, no guns until I figure this out, he thought sadly, disposing of the idea of lugging around a minigun or picking off Rorshawd from a kilometer away with an exploding round. No, he needed to boil this down to what his goals truly were.

    First, make a weapon that preserved his old crossbow¡¯s firepower while improving reload time. Second, enable the design to accommodate variable bullet designs, including future-proofing for whatever other formulae he picked up. Murdon had once told him that a competent hunter needed to be adept with many weapons. While his cat body was enough of a cheat, he didn¡¯t want to neglect his human side. The more formulae he learned the more ammunition types he could create, and the more affixes he could add.

    His thoughts turned towards using the blast marbles as a propellant for a crossbow design, but then there was the issue of controlling the release. With normal crossbows, the tension in the string was consistently applied to the bolt as it was fired. It needed a channel to hold the ammunition, but not to the degree of precision guns needed. In the latter case, all the potential energy was released at once and it was up to the barrel to make sure the shot didn¡¯t go off target. Which brought him back to the problem with rifling.

    This is where Earth-Daniel would have been useful, he thought, standing up and taking a break. He was far less rushed for time than he had been coming here. Quala¡¯s revelation that the church of the Hand had lost its power to bring back the dead truly meant that the moonshot of the ancient ruins was his only real way to bring back Hunter. And Tlara, if she behaved nicely. The Collapse was an imminent, but not urgent threat. Threst had a handle on it and all desperately fighting monsters while being unprepared would do is get his other body cut in half. There was the pressure from his oath bond to progress toward reviving Hunter that Quala had helped him realize, but with those facts in mind, it allowed him to quietly spend most of the day enchanting uncontested.

    The house his team had been loaned upon arrival was in the middle altitudes of Aurus. It was easy enough to figure out the paradigm since the city of Aughal had something similar to how close you were to the Spires. It had to be said that while the view from those towers was something, Aurus had it beat. From his window, Daniel could look out to the open sky and breathe in the fantasy. Despite having an entire other body now, small moments like this when he was relaxed still struck him with wonder.

    Wishing for the tenth time today that Hunter was here to share in it, Daniel descended the tight spiral staircase into the main room. The structure had many, each leading from the ground floor to separate rooms on the second, which all had balconies. Poor Khiat was too large to take one and had been given half of the common room in compensation. It was strangely reminiscent of the short time Daniel had spent in a dorm room before dropping out of college.

    He reached the bottom and tensed, moving before he consciously willed himself to. The crack reached his ears before the object that had been aimed at his head struck his hand instead. Daniel grimaced and shook his hand as the pain faded. ¡°Hey, what was that for?¡±

    ¡°Training!¡± Khare replied brightly from the ceiling. They were holding one of the small models Daniel had made while testing basic principles. It had a lightning striker and a receiver made from rare level 3 bone, Daniel cheating there as anything weaker would fail from the repeated explosions. He¡¯d used lesser bone for the rest of the construction to make what was roughly shaped like a water pistol. With a flat, rectangular piece of spineshard ¡®ammunition¡¯ slotted in, it could shoot something marble-sized in a general direction.

    The lack of real power behind the weapon and the fact that the ammunition¡¯s proximity to the blast charge had made Daniel abandon the design. The gestalt, who Daniel was still struggling to believe was only one year old, had taken to it. ¡°You¡¯re trying to train my reflexes, huh?¡± He remembered arrows hitting him in the back before a blinding pain seized him. ¡°Fair.¡±

    He picked up the bone marble off the ground and tossed it back to Khare. It just had a level 0 base enchantment on it since he didn¡¯t want to make anything lethal for the test weapon. It had also saved the bones in his hand from breaking. If one thing was for sure, it¡¯s that he didn¡¯t have to worry about propulsive force for his ultimate design.

    A creaking from behind the curtain made Daniel wince and Khare drop to the floor, their vines moving a little slower than normal. Khiat¡¯s voice boomed from behind the curtain. ¡°Is everything alright?¡¯

    ¡°Sorry Khiat, I was testing something. You can go back to sleep.¡±

    ¡°Oh, ok.¡± The loud, but drowsy voice faded and Khare formed the top half of their body just so they could look at each other.

    ¡°We should probably save that for when she¡¯s up,¡± Daniel whispered, easing away from Khiat¡¯s area. ¡°I do think that could help, though. My awareness and reflexes should be better than they are. Beast Mode is giving me some benefits in this body just from the experience, but I don¡¯t have Mantle of the Hunter to give me instincts.¡±

    ¡°Apology.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine, Khare,¡± Daniel chuckled. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll look into making a combat version of that for you at some point, but Khiat¡¯s armor comes first.¡±

    ¡°Gun.¡± The gestalt waved the model weapon in his face to underline his hypocrisy.

    ¡°Are you acting like this because we know how old you are now?¡± Not that he minded Khare showing more of their personality, but as Soraso had explained after revealing their age, gestalts were born, or generated, or whatever was the right word with a fully developed mind. They still had a form of youth, which was this otherwise blank slate being introduced to the world. Daniel honestly found it hard to wrap his head around.

    Instead of answering his question, Khare leaped back to the ceiling and crawled to their room like a movie monster entering a vent. I have weird roommates, Daniel thought, still smiling. He walked outside to the porch that ringed the entire structure and found Willow leaning on the banister while watching her sister fly. ¡°How¡¯s it going?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s all so different,¡± she said distantly, mind on something farther than even her home. ¡°Every time I wake up, there¡¯s a moment I forget what¡¯s happened.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯ll get better. That happened to me at first and at some point I accepted that I¡¯m really here. I¡¯m not saying you should get over it, just that time helps.¡± Reassure was on the tip of his tongue, ready to be used, but Daniel waved the ability away. He was taking Quala¡¯s advice on it for now and reserving it to counter hostile emotion effects. There¡¯d been a lot of advice he¡¯d taken to heart from their renewed chats.

    ¡°Thanks.¡±

    ¡°Any more thoughts on trying for a class?¡± he asked carefully. ¡°If you hunt with Tlara you¡¯ll gain a huge amount of advancement potential, unless the Octyrrum reads your bond and gives you a penalty.¡±

    Willow picked at her arm, the part without feathers, as she thought. ¡°How can I after refusing it for so long?¡±

    It¡¯s just a system, he thought and wanted to say. The people of this world treated the thing that arbitrated powers like a god, or perhaps the entire pantheon combined since the popular view was that the gods were fractions of it. That wasn¡¯t entirely wrong, but it was also looking at it from the wrong perspective. That was one of the reasons Daniel was being careful with how he talked to Willow about it. He wanted her to get a class but was wary of what would happen if she did.

    It wasn¡¯t only the Collapse opening up new possibilities, it was the effect he had on the Octyrrum. It was a revelation he¡¯d come to himself after reminiscing on certain facts. They¡¯d already discovered the asterisk powers were sourced from something weird happening with power evolutions, allowing people to gain powers they shouldn¡¯t be able to. Put simply, it was him. Daniel was a glitch. Whether that was because he was fused with a Spoke, a beacon for the system, or if that was a hidden function of his Spoke, he didn¡¯t know.

    What he did know was that not only had he prematurely identified the power that had almost driven Khiat mad, but he¡¯d also probably allowed her to gain her class. Under his influence, he¡¯d given her the ability to refuse the dusker archetype in favor of something else, altering what class the Octyrrum would have given her. That it hadn¡¯t been conscious on his part meant he couldn¡¯t stop it from happening to Willow. If she didn¡¯t get the avianoid archetype, would that prevent her from getting Grow Wings?

    ¡°The Octyrrum wants people to defend it, and even if there wasn¡¯t a new Collapse, you¡¯re a good person. I wish it had been you in the Thormundz instead of Tlara.¡± Willow seemed to blink away a tear as he said that, and she turned to him with clear gratitude. Jeez, I guess this is what having Tlara as a sister does to you. Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!

    He stopped dunking on the Beastmaster as he put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. She was living here too and over that time they¡¯d already become more familiar. It was hard not to with the common links their bonds had, as well as the fact that the young avianoid was as friendly as Tlara was not. He liked the warm feeling he got whenever he helped her, and his cat side appreciated her spirit in battle. She hadn¡¯t panicked when the monster horde had come for them.

    That being said, Willow hadn¡¯t come out of Aughal unscathed. She whispered something instead of immediately backing out of the loose grip, confiding in him. ¡°I¡¯ve lost almost everyone. My mother, my father, in less than a day they¡¯re just¡­ gone.¡±

    That stabbed him in the heart. ¡°If it matters,¡± Daniel said, lowly even though there wasn¡¯t anyone around, ¡°I was there when your dad died. He was talking about his plan, right before the end.¡±

    ¡°About how he was going to take over the city?¡± Willow asked, confusion mixing with her sadness. ¡°He never involved me. Maybe if he had, what I¡¯d been doing with, with her would have been found out sooner. Stopped sooner.¡±

    ¡°He wanted to abolish the nobility,¡± Daniel said, still close to Willow but not right next to her. ¡°I think he saw what was wrong with the city and was trying to fix it. There¡¯s something people say in my world, that people show you their true selves right before the end. I don¡¯t think he was doing it the right way, but he had good intentions.¡±

    ¡°Did he say anything about me?¡±

    ¡°He loved you,¡± Daniel answered, sure that if the old avianoid had had the time, he would have said something like that. Willow didn¡¯t need the blunt truth here. She blinked away more tears and stepped away, taking both comfort and regret from his words. Though it still hurt, Daniel knew he¡¯d said the right thing and had a sad smile on his face. She was almost like a sister, as if Alex or Ami had been a few years younger than him instead of the other way around. The thought of what might have happened to her if he hadn¡¯t asked her to join him back in Aughal mixed with the memories of his family to haunt him.

    ¡°Thanks.¡±

    ¡°Of course.¡± Daniel tugged a little awkwardly at his light shirt as he thought of what to say next, though he didn¡¯t need too much time. ¡°If you could get a class, any class, which one would you want?¡± A thought suddenly occurred to him and he stopped Willow from answering. ¡°Wait, nevermind. That¡¯s the wrong way to ask. If you had a class, what would you want it to do?¡±

    Willow furrowed what passed for eyebrows on her face at his sudden revision but respected the question. ¡°I¡¯d want to help people.¡±

    ¡°You sound like Thomas,¡± Daniel grinned. ¡°So, healer?¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Willow answered, some conflict in her voice. ¡°If that¡¯s what the Octyrrum wants for me, then I wouldn¡¯t mind. It¡¯s just, I¡¯d want to help everyone.¡± She looked away to where Tlara was now flying back to the house. ¡°Monsters aren¡¯t our only enemies anymore. Think, just for a moment, if we could turn them to our side.¡±

    ¡°Like Tlara?¡± Daniel ventured.

    ¡°No!¡± Conflict rose in Willow again. ¡°Not exactly. She wasn¡¯t entirely wrong.¡± By the way Willow shrank it seemed that confession had taken a lot out of her. ¡°After we bonded, I could tell there was something in Spinner that the wyvern didn¡¯t have. She was¡­ whole, while the other was just a hole. I always thought there were special monsters out there but I¡¯d hoped if we tried, we could find a way to reach them all.¡±

    ¡°But there¡¯s nothing to reach,¡± Daniel affirmed, remembering his conversation with Cloak about spirits. ¡°I see where you¡¯re going with this. Taking the path Tlara did, just shooting for a different end goal. Huh, contronymous.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Nothing.¡± Daniel tried to wave away his slip, but a lingering thoughtful look in Willow¡¯s eyes made him wonder if the word had resonated with her mental picture of her bond. ¡°The information I got on the Collapse mentioned that the Octyrrum was unlocking more classes,¡± he said, aiming not to speak too much in game logic or mention the exact reason for that change. ¡°If you do try to advance into a class, you should keep in mind what you want, rather than the classes you already know about.¡±

    ¡°You think the Octyrrum will listen?¡±

    ¡°I hope so,¡± Daniel answered, mentally prodding wherever his Spoke was in the hopes it would oblige her. Tlara landed on the platform that extended from one end of the balcony a moment later, the slight shaking of the construction waking Khiat up again. Daniel winced as he heard her call out. ¡°I¡¯m still doing her armor first,¡± he said sideways to Willow while trying to hide a guilty look, ¡°But noise cancellation should be my next present for her.¡±

    ¡°I should make sure Tlara is alright. Her soul hasn¡¯t left the wyvern since we crossed over but I know she¡¯s afraid of it happening again.¡± One of Willow¡¯s hands, the one that had put her sister¡¯s soul back in the draconid, closed over her chest at the memory. She¡¯d almost lost another family member just as quickly as the others.

    ¡°Yeah, I think someone¡¯s coming up to talk to me too,¡± Daniel said in parting, mentally adding a reminder to see if Quala could talk to her. He still didn¡¯t know if his earlier suggestion with Khare had made an impact, but he couldn¡¯t deny how she¡¯d helped him despite their differing views on the Octyrrum.

    He put those thoughts aside as the unexpected guest made his way up the winding mountain road that led to this collection of oversized birdhouses. It had a middle-class suburban kind of feel, though the streets had verticality instead of cul de sacs.

    His cat ears had even picked up a few ¡®there goes the neighborhood¡¯ comments from the residents immediately to their left with Keen Senses, and he generously decided to attribute that to the rumors of another Collapse rather than anyone living with him. Willow had done more than enough to smooth things over, both due to her personality and race, so they¡¯d avoided trouble. I should probably keep the explosions to a minimum though.

    ¡°Mr. Brant, I¡¯m glad to find you well,¡± Temir, the Hunter¡¯s Guild representative greeted. At first, Daniel hoped the pelts had been processed early, but there was no comically oversized sack or, more likely, collection of bags of holding on the suited avianoid. Daniel hadn¡¯t made the association before because his mind had been elsewhere, but seeing the official now finally made the image of a penguin click.

    ¡°Mr. Riseti, thank you for making the walk,¡± Daniel replied congenially, heightening Bartering as he did so. Using his commerce powers in actual negotiations felt like unexpectantly walking into niche friends and mentally switching to the group¡¯s internal lingo. Like his nebulous language translation power he now suspected was tied to his Spoke, it worked so long as he didn¡¯t think too hard about it.

    The official couldn¡¯t hide his slight frown at the address fast enough. ¡°I see you have anticipated my business here. Would you like to take this inside?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s probably best I don¡¯t wake up my dusker friend a third time,¡± Daniel said, gesturing widely at his surroundings with his hand coincidentally ending on the wyvern Willow was standing next to. ¡°I think here is fine.¡±

    ¡°Very well.¡± Temir walked up the short flight of steps onto the ringed balcony and crouched briefly as he placed a square piece of wood on the ground. A pole appeared from underneath it and telescoped up, turning the surface into a short table. The man had no class as far as Daniel was aware, but the Hunter¡¯s Guild clearly trusted him to hold his own against people with powers, economical or otherwise. Their top government didn¡¯t abuse the magical item cheat like Aughal, but neither did they completely ignore it. ¡°Our select Craftsmen have been hard at work processing your bounty. You will be happy to know that they have managed to produce a surplus so far, which is expected to result in about 7% overage of initial estimates.¡±

    Must be something like Ammunition Surplus, Daniel thought to himself. ¡°Great! So, you don¡¯t want to keep the 65-35 split?¡± That was the deal they¡¯d landed on prior. His intuition had told him it was a terrible exchange, but also that he didn¡¯t have enough leverage to push for more. Something had changed it, and he had an idea why. ¡°I¡¯ll also go out on a limb and say you haven¡¯t found enough people to work with what you have.¡±

    ¡°The increased rate of monster spawns has created many opportunities,¡± Temir acknowledged, not hiding the fact. ¡°The Hunter¡¯s Guild doesn¡¯t want this valuable resource to go to waste, and the director of social affairs put out a request to look into means of expanding our food stockpiles.¡±

    ¡°You want me to make more bags.¡±

    ¡°Just so.¡± Daniel¡¯s economic sense clashed with his other priorities. This was beginning to sound like a dream opportunity for any normal Artificer just starting out, though he was far from normal. It was also easy to see why no one else had taken this offer. Time was the most valuable resource for an established Artificer.

    ¡°They aren¡¯t the easiest to make, and a small bag can take an hour. If I go bigger, say an entire wolf pelt for a sack of holding, that can eat up an entire day. And I mean 24 hours of straight enchanting with a non-negligible failure rate. Have you ever seen an entire day¡¯s work turn to dust, Mr. Riseti?¡±

    ¡°Haven¡¯t we all? Someone as experienced as yourself should know how to handle risk.¡± The official verbally pivoted the direction the conversation was going with ease, beating Daniel¡¯s powers with experience. ¡°The Hunter¡¯s Guild is currently due the pelts and bones of 112 of the corpses, as well as all other derivative remnants from the process you yielded. I¡¯ll be forthright with you, that is more than our Arcanists and Artificers affiliated with the guild can manage. A few Smiths have expressed interest in the material for armor, though it¡¯s our opinion that the preservative augmentation would better serve Aurus through enchantment. We are offering you back the bones of three wolves for every pelt from one you enchant for us.¡±

    No fucking way, was Daniel¡¯s immediate, internal assessment. It was a net profit, but one that would see him grinding away for weeks to get any real benefit. Even more, what was the point of having more enchanting material if all of his time would be spent enchanting for the city? No, this offer was a trap meant to get him comfortable with slaving away for Threst.

    ¡°I¡¯m not looking to take on large contracts right now,¡± Daniel replied, placing a hand on the table palm down while looking slightly away. ¡°A handful I could mix in over the next week, maybe, but I¡¯m trying to get my team fit to hunt. The Regent does want us in fighting shape.¡± He said the last part in an almost off-handed way and smiled as he saw the feathers of the official perk up. A few emotions could cause avianoids to display that instinctual reaction, and he guessed this was concern.

    ¡°We could discuss the addition or monetary renumeration, or conversion of the bones to other material suitable for enchanting.¡± Daniel couldn¡¯t help but be interested in that. The bonus the wastewolf pelt and bones provided was great for the bags, but he couldn¡¯t be sure it would be useful for armor or weapons. Having a library of material to pick from could expand his horizons and might just solve the problems he was having with his gun. Pouncing on his weakness, the official pulled out several sheets of paper that had been carefully folded in one corner to replicate the effect of a staple. ¡°I¡¯ve brought a catalog, if you¡¯re interested.¡±

    Damn it. The very first entry on the beautifully illustrated list was of feathers from the ¡®Tempestfowl Elemental¡¯ monster. Using them in armor or worn equipment would lessen the weight of the wearer. Daniel didn¡¯t know if leathercut would extend to using feathers, or if enchanting with them required the patchwork affix, but if there was a ¡®feathercut¡¯ affix he¡¯d undoubtedly get it from hunting in this region. These would also be perfect to mix into Khiat¡¯s gear to help her fly.

    ¡°You may feel free to take this and peruse if you wish,¡± Temir added, doing him the favor of not openly smiling as the hook bit in. Daniel¡¯s eyes scanned the front page and he was surprised to find a material he¡¯d heard of before listed two-thirds of the way down, and was even more interested when he learned what it did when used in enchanting. It wouldn¡¯t help with his flight plans, but it might just make another project more possible.

    ¡°You¡¯re from the Hunter¡¯s Guild, right?¡± Daniel asked, the question coming to him later than he thought it should have. ¡°Why are you negotiating on behalf of the city?¡±

    ¡°Oh, you don¡¯t have to worry. If we come to an agreement today, it will be honored by all interested parties,¡± Temir assured him. ¡°There is greater cohesion between the various institutions required to run Threst and you need but take one look at our flights or our Bekali constructs to see the integration paying off. As an official within the Hunter¡¯s Guild, I am the most appropriate liaison to discuss these matters with you as I am more mindful of the needs of a hunter than someone purely from the commerce sector.¡±

    ¡°That sounds¡­ efficient,¡± Daniel said, internally taken aback by how regimented Threst¡¯s government was compared to Aughal¡¯s.

    ¡°I¡¯m glad you see it that way. Now, do you need more time to think?¡±

    It was too tempting. He¡¯d had seeking out other enchanting materials on his to do list and, like magic, Temir had gift wrapped it all for him with only a few strings attached. ¡°In this hypothetical deal, I¡¯m providing most of the valuable services. Hunting and enchanting are critical commodities, to say nothing of the fact that my time is the most precious thing we¡¯re trading.¡±

    ¡°Of course,¡± Temir said as he waved his hand, not giving away if he agreed or not. ¡°We respect your ambition and see this as a way we can help equip your team while providing for the needs of Aurus.¡±

    Then why didn¡¯t you lead with this? Daniel thought but didn¡¯t ask as he knew that was a pointless question. ¡°I¡¯m willing to consider more work after further thought, but I¡¯ll agree to make ten normal sized bags now for a few concessions.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m afraid we can¡¯t budge on your registration,¡± Temir said carefully, making his first real misstep of the negotiation.

    ¡°It¡¯s not that. I know you have to have some pelts ready and I¡¯d like all you can give me now, in addition to the ones I¡¯ll enchant for you.¡±

    ¡°Naturally. What else?¡± the official asked, sensing that couldn¡¯t be all.

    ¡°These Craftsmen you have processing the wolves, they do regular work for the guild?¡± Temir nodded in reply, now with a slight frown as the conversation got off track. Daniel wished he could use Beast Mode without crippling himself so he could give the avianoid a truly predatory grin. ¡°Good. I want you to arrange it so that I can inspect some or all of the bodies they process before they do anything to them. I don¡¯t want to take anything from them, and it¡¯ll only take a few minutes each time. You could say it would be over in a snap.¡±

 Chapter 181: Suiting Up

    Daniel unfurled another rolled up wolf pelt, marveling once more at the work that had been put into processing it. While there wasn¡¯t a leather-specific Craftsman sub-class, Aurus had a few with enough relevant powers to produce a very satisfying product. They¡¯d fixed the gritty texture without harming the enchanting properties, leaving him with something he¡¯d like to wear once he turned it into armor.

    Not every wolf¡¯s pelt had been returned intact since cat Daniel hadn¡¯t killed all of them with minimal damage. The extra material produced by the Craftsman power was also not an entire duplicate of what they¡¯d worked on, but smaller sections of fur in flawless squares. Temir¡¯s word had been reliable, and what he¡¯d asked for had been delivered the next day.

    The other arrangement with the Craftsmen was going to take some work since neither he nor the other professionals wanted to have him there every time a new body came in from a hunting team. Most of them weren¡¯t intact enough to use with Encyclopedia, but once established, it promised to be a passive if slow source of new formulae. Temir was able to talk him down to one month of access, starting after his first visit, but it could be extended if he continued putting in work for the city. The official was really good at his job.

    Now with his bounty in hand and the first half of the day making good on his promise to the city, Daniel was ready to fulfill the one to his friend.

    ¡°So I just, uhm, stand here?¡±

    ¡°Yeah!¡± Daniel said encouragingly as Khiat, out of her armor, stood in the common room. The curtains to her ¡®room¡¯ were also open revealing the stand supporting her bow, the makeshift collection of blankets and pillows that made her bed, and a slightly messy side table that she ate all her midnight snacks on.

    He needed her here, and her armor in front of him, because this was going to be one of the most difficult pieces of enchanting he¡¯d ever done. For one, it all had to be one piece, and he had to make the armor elastic enough to accommodate how Khiat¡¯s body moved. Most torturous was that every section had to perfectly cover the gaps in her carapace no matter how it was stretched.

    It would have been impossible to do without a lot of trial and error if he didn¡¯t have her current armor to use as a model, but even still he¡¯d be faced with a challenge. Altering the elasticity of the fur was possible, but it added complexity to what would already be a long enchantment process. That he was aiming for level 2 armor with level 3 material would help, but the disparity was offset by all the added difficulty.

    ¡°Just to go over this again before I get into it,¡± he said, handing Khiat one of the fur squares as he did, ¡°I¡¯m going to have to use patchwork to make this possible, but I¡¯m also giving this self-repair. It¡¯ll be basic level 2 armor since the only armor-specific formulae I have isn¡¯t good for general purpose use, but as long as it isn¡¯t completely destroyed it should keep you from being exposed for too long.¡±

    ¡°This is, just, thank you!¡±

    ¡°You left your parents behind to help me bring Hunter back. It¡¯s the least I can do.¡±

    ¡°Think I could get some armor too for all those times I healed you, Guy?¡± Thomas asked from the side. He¡¯d come from the church of the Hand after hearing Daniel would have to skip his meeting with Quala today. The Cleric would no doubt be one of the watchers to grow bored after the first hour, but for now everyone in the house was in the common area to watch Daniel start the process. Tlara was even stalking around, glaring in from various windows and exposing her teeth in a grin whenever someone noticed her and jumped.

    ¡°Later. Hunters get priority,¡± Daniel answered with a good-natured shake of his head, though he also threw one of the smaller pelts toward Thomas. ¡°You could wear that as a helmet for now.¡±

    The Cleric put it on his head and hunted around for a mirror. ¡°I just might, thanks Guy!¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t mention it,¡± Daniel laughed, not even caring if he didn¡¯t get that back. He knew how many bodies there¡¯d been originally, but even so, the sheer amount of material he had to work with now was insane. Part of him, probably the latent cat part, wanted to dump it all in a pile and lie on top of it. There wasn¡¯t enough space in the house to do that if they took out all the interior walls.

    His focus returned to Khiat. ¡°I can¡¯t promise I¡¯ll have this ready by morning, and if I fail I¡¯ll have to sleep before I try again. I will need to ask everyone to be quiet while I do this. I think I can talk through most of it, but when I¡¯m in the final stage I¡¯ll need to be locked into this. Every section¡¯s going to be a pain to do.¡±

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t have to be exactly the same,¡± Khiat offered, but Daniel shook his head.

    ¡°That¡¯s what works for you. And don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll figure out how to add flying to it retroactively like I did Hunter¡¯s armor. Temir¡¯s catalog¡¯s given me a few ideas.¡±

    ¡°And just like that the gawpers get you to sign on,¡± Thomas sighed, half in appreciation as he tugged the fur square in various ways, no doubt imagining how it would look after being tailored. ¡°Have to admit, the birds have a better way of doing things so long as you can handle their faults.¡±

    ¡°Like what?¡±

    ¡°Like the fact that you shouldn¡¯t use the word ¡®gawper¡¯ in public,¡± Willow chastised. ¡°Or in private. It¡¯s a racial slur.¡±

    ¡°No it¡¯s not!¡± Thomas protested, but he backed down as everyone gave him an odd look. Well, besides Khare, who was still lurking on the ceiling like a proper plant monster. ¡°Hey, at least I¡¯m not one of those people that just uses it for avianoids. In Aughal it just means someone pretentious. Tell ¡®em Guy, the first person I called a gawper in front of you was Gadriel.¡±

    ¡°And who¡¯s he?¡±

    ¡°The Hero that helped us save Aughal,¡± Daniel replied a little distantly. ¡°The one that¡¯s missing.¡±

    The mood darkened, just a little. ¡°I can¡¯t believe they haven¡¯t found them yet,¡± Thomas said, taking the fur off his head and putting it in his bag of holding. ¡°I¡¯ve been asking whenever I visit where they¡¯re helping Silora set up, but none of the Fates in the region can find them.¡±

    ¡°Yet,¡± Daniel said firmly. ¡°But we will find them.¡±

    ¡°Sure, Guy.¡±

    Daniel sighed at Thomas¡¯ lukewarm response and gathered all the fur in front of him into a pile, adding a few pieces from one of the storage bags to make up for what he¡¯d thrown away. ¡°I¡¯m going to get started. This will take at least 12 hours, so I hope everyone¡¯s comfortable.¡±

    ¡­

    By the time he was halfway through, he had already dismissed Khiat to allow her to continue exploring the city¡¯s nightlife. This was truly difficult compared to the waiting game enchanting with the heliorite had been, but in a way that helped. The challenge kept him alert without completely overwhelming him, though he had a sinking feeling he¡¯d have failed already if he¡¯d used level 2 material. Oh well, he¡¯d get better.

    Willow was asleep upstairs and Khare had gone to ground, so the house was otherwise dark. Daniel had borrowed Night Eyes from Hunter¡¯s list to give himself darkvision, and while color was slightly distorted, he could still see just fine. Tlara occasionally poked her snout in to mess with him, but his work otherwise went uninterrupted.

    That was until he faintly sensed a disturbance in the normal scents in the room from Keen Sense. He was trying to keep that on for as long as possible in the hopes of making taking over Hunter¡¯s body easier when they got him back. ¡°Cloak?¡± Daniel asked, not looking up.

    ¡°Is this a bad time?¡± the god asked.

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Fitting, then.¡± There was a sullenness to the immortal man¡¯s voice that surprised Daniel. It didn¡¯t go into surliness, but was more an agitated depression that implied Cloak had had his own troubles as of late. ¡°Easy to see why you have the friendship archetype, going through this much trouble. I¡¯d say it¡¯s your most defining one even if your powers don¡¯t reflect that. It is the only one you keep when you transform.¡±

    ¡°Are you alright?¡± Are the defenses of Aurus that good?

    ¡°Do you know what you¡¯re doing?¡±

    ¡°Enchanting?¡± Daniel asked quizzically. He had a guess at what Cloak meant but wasn¡¯t feeling too charitable towards him right now. That he¡¯d chosen a time to appear when Daniel had so much riding on a successful enchant didn¡¯t help. ¡°What were you doing for the past week?¡±

    ¡°Trying to save every mortal soul in the Octyrrum. Unless you¡¯ve forgotten, there is an apocalypse on the way.¡± Cloak picked up a loose square of fur, copies of which littered the common room like the aftermath of a fashion show turned bloodless slasher movie, and scoffed. ¡°Star would be happy, at least.¡±

    ¡°The enchanting god? Did I meet them?¡±

    Cloak closely watched Daniel for a few moments before he shook his head. ¡°Yes. I won¡¯t go into details, obviously, but I¡¯d hoped that would shake something loose. You haven¡¯t recovered any more memories?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°It is important. In fact, it should be your priority to-¡°

    ¡°You lied to me,¡± Daniel suddenly cut in, the earlier anger he¡¯d let out with Quala finding a better target. She hadn¡¯t given him any advice on how to handle the illusion god the next time he showed up given her internal conflicts. Even so, he could feel her disapproval as he continued, ¡°I talked with the air gestalt you mentioned. They got their voice from a Bard power, not a bond. Why give me false hope? You know, I don¡¯t have any reason to believe you are who you say you are. You could just be¡­¡± he trailed off and almost looked away from the pile of fur in front of him as the god let out a frustrated sigh and put his head in both of his hands. It was such a human, or mortal, rather, expression that he wondered for a moment if his rhetorical accusation that Cloak wasn¡¯t a god was true.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.

    ¡°He must have known it would be like this.¡± Daniel didn¡¯t ask for clarification as he sensed this was a reference to the lost week. ¡°There isn¡¯t a Bard power that can give a gestalt a true voice. Well, there is one now, yes. I didn¡¯t find it worth mentioning given your friend¡¯s class. It¡¯s only become available after the Octyrrum reverted to its backup state, but this Soraso has been talking for years. He shouldn¡¯t have it.¡±

    ¡°How do you know? Also, why does it even have a backup state?¡± He couldn¡¯t help his curiosity as the repository of all this world¡¯s lore showed a moment of weakness.

    ¡°My people looked into this kingdom when I was investigating what turned out to be your effect on the Octyrrum. That was my primary role, when my strength wasn¡¯t needed to confront a level 9 monster.¡± He shrugged, as if taking on kaiju while wearing a deerstalker hat was just another day at the office. ¡°We had a backup version for the Octyrrum, as otherwise we couldn¡¯t easily revert changes if turned out the gradual shifts we made were taking us down the wrong path. Our goal has always been to resolve the issue of the Crest, and that requires an Octyrrum that produces mortals capable of pushing in and beating it back. There¡¯s simply too much risk and space for us to do it ourselves.¡±

    Something in that monologue triggered a sense of deja vu, but it was weak. Daniel was a little grateful since he¡¯d have to curtail his enchantment and lose all of the fur he was working on to focus on a real one, but that was still another closed off path to his hidden memories. ¡°Alright. So Soraso could have glitched into a restricted power, sure, but they, he?¡± Daniel raised an eyebrow as he remembered how the god had addressed the Regent. Cloak just shrugged in response. ¡°He said a bond wouldn¡¯t work with Khare.¡±

    Cloak fixed him with an incredulous look. ¡°Whose knowledge do you trust more, a level 4 Bard or a god of this world?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m just saying, what you¡¯ve been doing hasn¡¯t given me many reasons to trust you. Especially when you can just change my memories on a whim. That¡¯s almost as¡­ no, that¡¯s worse than Hammer changing my body without my permission. That¡¯s a fucking insidious power and you used it on my friends without a second thought.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s necessary!¡± Cloak replied defensively. ¡°Do you know what happens if these secrets get out? All that I¡¯ve done since I- nevermind that. All that I¡¯ve done has been to save this world, and I have to work with what I have. You know about our domain restrictions now. Knowledge is dangerous. You aren¡¯t going around telling everyone about your origins, are you?¡±

    There¡¯s more to this than he¡¯s telling me. ¡°What happened when you got to Aurus?¡±

    ¡°I went to my church,¡± Cloak replied after a few moments, defeat in his voice.

    ¡°They didn¡¯t believe you?¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t just walk up to them and say, ¡®Hey everyone, it¡¯s the big man.¡¯ I sought out the head of the church in private and revealed myself.¡±

    ¡°And?¡±

    Cloak¡¯s dower look further soured. ¡°The public head of the church is a fake. They do that sometimes as an inside joke I¡¯ve been trying to have ironed out of church culture. We don¡¯t know everything that goes on in our churches for the same reason we don¡¯t arbitrate every power someone gets. There is a connection between us and the clergy but it¡¯s not, that¡¯s not the point. Instead of mobilizing the Divine Quarter, I was patted on the head and told how promising a Cleric I was, but that I needed to work on my insight.¡±

    ¡°Ouch.¡± Daniel couldn¡¯t help but chuckle. ¡°I guess it sucks to be the kind of person no one can trust. Hey!¡± The god threw a piece of the fur at him in frustration and it almost broke his concentration.

    ¡°This is serious! Without the direct support of the churches I have to fully rely on you, at least until I can resolve this misunderstanding.¡±

    ¡°I guess you should have worked harder on not being such a manipulative bastard,¡± Daniel said, with a little bit of venom. He knew provoking the god wasn¡¯t the smartest idea, but there was justified anger in him even without the rage power active. In a way, it was also good to push Cloak. If he could take this kind of ¡®impudence¡¯ without resorting to punitive mind wipes it was a good sign.

    The god didn¡¯t respond initially, instead going to one of the windows that looked out over the skies of Threst. ¡°I change my mind, friendship isn¡¯t the archetype you¡¯re closest to.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s just being petty.¡± Daniel threw the stray piece of fur back, though with enchanting locking his other abilities he couldn¡¯t use Snap Shot to hit the god. ¡°How are you and Hammer in the same pantheon anyway? You two are completely different. Is it because you¡¯re possessing a Proxy?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure Star tells you about that. If you focused on recovering your memories you might know already.¡±

    Daniel didn¡¯t answer the repeated reminder, letting a few minutes pass as he refocused on his enchanting and Cloak continued doing whatever he was doing at the window. Talking had sapped some of his ¡®enchanting durability¡¯, to put it in simple terms, but he could regain it so long as he removed the distractions. It was fine so long as it didn¡¯t hit zero, but at that point the pile of fur in front of him would turn to dust.

    ¡°If you want me to trust you, then reveal what it says in the Astral entry.¡±

    ¡°That is about the worst topic you could ask about,¡± Cloak replied hesitantly. ¡°Haven¡¯t I answered everything else honestly?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know, have you?¡± The contention lingered between them until Daniel decided there was something else Cloak could do. ¡°I know my Spoke¡¯s affecting how the Octyrrum works to some degree. Can you tell me specifics?¡±

    ¡°No. Not because I won¡¯t, because I can¡¯t.¡± Cloak¡¯s answer had that careful tone he used whenever he had to dance around restricted topics. ¡°I suppose I should tell you that gods and sufficiently advanced mortals can read the powers of others by assessing their mana flow. It¡¯s difficult, and you need to know how the pattern looks for a power beforehand to recognize it. Even I¡¯ve seen a few new ones in recent days, thanks to you.¡±

    ¡°That works for archetypes too, right?¡± Cloak nodded in his peripheral vision. It was an easy guess to make since both he and the Assassin had been able to do it.

    ¡°Spokes are something different. It¡¯s not in your mana structure, the interface of your physical, magical, and spiritual elements, since they aren¡¯t designed to be used by living creatures. You are a body and soul wrapped around one, disguising it from even us. If I¡¯d been able to read your Spoke that easily, I¡¯d never have needed to spend so much time in Aughal locating the source of the glitch, as you put it.¡±

    ¡°Darn. Ok, look, Willow might be going for a class soon. She has some advancement potential she saved though it¡¯s not a lot. I want to make sure she gets the right one.¡± He would have looked expectantly at the god if that wouldn¡¯t have ruined the armor. ¡°Since a bunch just got unlocked and I affected Khiat¡¯s, I want to make sure there isn¡¯t a repeat of the Assassin incident.¡±

    ¡°Hmm.¡± Cloak stroked his chin, sensing that an olive branch was being offered. ¡°Alright, if it makes you feel better about this arrangement, I suppose I could just expose millennia of history of class development so your girlfriend doesn¡¯t end up as a Martialist.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re not like that,¡± Daniel said instantly and firmly, wondering if Cloak had seen the hug yesterday and gotten the wrong impression. ¡°I¡¯m not going to date anyone after¡­ look, that¡¯s not important and I don¡¯t want to get too distracted from Khiat¡¯s armor. Do you know what she wants?¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± Cloak said simply, confirming his fears. ¡°There was a class that was restricted when we had to remove the astral domain from the Octyrrum, and any questions on that are as taboo as the Astral itself. It would be fitting, though. Both for her and her bond. Class assignment still works off of fuzzy logic in the backup state, but I could try and see if my knowledge and your influence can guide her, even if you can¡¯t directly control it.¡±

    ¡°Ok. So what¡¯s it called?¡± Cloak told him and Daniel had to nod in appreciation. It did sound appropriate. There might be hope for their relationship yet, assuming this paid off.

    ¡­

    ¡°It¡¯s not too loose, is it? I don¡¯t think I was able to match the other armor exactly,¡± Daniel warned as he held his breath. He¡¯d done it, creating a huge set of armor on his first try while under difficult circumstances. By mass, Murdon¡¯s old armor had been bigger, but the heliorite had made that easy. It was this armor that he now looked at with concern and pride.

    The sections that covered the gaps in Khiat¡¯s carapace were the same, thanks to his ability to copy the form of her old armor, but they adjusted slightly slower and didn¡¯t seem as stretched. Exposure to the sun wouldn¡¯t kill her but he knew it was still painful, and he¡¯d hate for the dusker to be randomly shocked every time she shifted because he¡¯d done a poor job.

    ¡°No, it¡¯s perfect!¡± Khiat exclaimed, rubbing at one of her arms. The effect of the fur and carapace together was certainly¡­ something. The gray did compliment the sandstone color of her shell, though the combination of textures was off to his eyes. ¡°It¡¯s so soft. Like, like he was.¡±

    Daniel¡¯s eyes sharpened. ¡°We¡¯re getting him back.¡± Khiat shrank slightly and he winced. Cool it on the oath stuff, he thought. Hunter is out there, he¡¯s coming back. This is about Khiat. You can be happy, if only for her. ¡°This won¡¯t let you fly. I think I¡¯ve got a few things to figure out with that, but it should make your life easier. Ready to test it?¡±

    ¡°Ready,¡± Khiat nodded, trying to avoid backing away from Khare. She¡¯d been almost helpless when the wolf had pinned her, even though she¡¯d been stronger. It was some kind of fear reaction to being close to something hostile, though to be fair that had also kept her from killing anyone as an Assassin. If she¡¯d ever given in to that impulse things might have turned out far differently.

    The gestalt wielded one of their prized heliorite daggers. They only had less than ten left after various unfortunate occurrences had dwindled their supply. One of Daniel¡¯s many ongoing projects was looking into making good replacements from the pile of bones he had built up across several bags. The gestalt didn¡¯t need those now, as they only wielded one against the dusker.

    The dagger met some resistance when trying to tear through the armor, and Khare was careful to only target that. Khiat¡¯s outer shell was tougher than the skin of a standard level 1 individual, and she didn¡¯t exactly fit on the normal power gradient anymore, but the level 2 weapon in the hands of Khare would be enough to damage the carapace.

    The slash along the front of the armor quickly began to close as the self-repair aspect kicked in. It wasn¡¯t instantaneous and that section of armor was weakened until fully repaired, but it was better than leaving Khiat exposed until she could make repairs herself. Then, there was the material bonus. It wasn¡¯t obvious, but Daniel was about to confirm that it was active with Identify Item.

    <hr>

    Dusker Travel Armor (Armor, Domain: Enchantment, Quality: Enhanced, Level: 2)

    Armor made for Race: Dusker to protect from both Damage and Racial Weakness: Sunlight. This armor can only be made from materials pliable enough to match the natural flexibility of the duskers.

    Added Affixes:

    - Patchwork

    - Self-repair

    Material Bonus: Use of Special Item: Gray Wastewolf Fur has imparted Ability: Dust Cloud to the wearer of the armor. This ability has a one hour Cooldown once used, and this cooldown is shared between any wearers of the Item during this period.

    <hr>

    To summarize the simple explanation in the ability entry, it was a smoke bomb. That bonus aside, Khiat had gotten a major upgrade and could now at least try to escape an enemy that got too close.

    First goal down, Daniel thought, letting the cheer Khiat raised as her armor fixed itself infect him. Now, we make them fly.

 Chapter 182: Astral Attack

    ¡°We are lost.¡±

    ¡°We aren¡¯t lost! I know exactly where we are going.¡±

    ¡°Where?¡±

    ¡°Well¡­¡± It looked up to the deep purple to black sky, which had remained unchanged throughout the journey. It mimicked licking a finger to test the breeze despite the fact that it had no mouth, no consistent hand shape, and that there had never been any wind to tussle Hunter¡¯s fur in these dead lands. ¡°It fell over there. Poor thing misfired, but at least not into the Crest.¡±

    ¡°What does that mean?¡± Hunter asked, trying as hard as he could to be nonchalant. The creature traveling with him occasionally dispensed knowledge, though it seemed the more conscious they were of remembering something, the faster their remembrance faded.

    ¡°That¡¯s the bad place!¡± The thing exclaimed. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t have survived long if you¡¯d ended up there. No, no, very bad. I came here from there and it didn¡¯t turn out well for me.¡± Saying this, it then bent down, pried up a piece of the otherwise unbreakable, mirror-like floor, and skipped it into the distance like a flat stone on water.

    ¡°How did you do that?¡± Hunter asked incredulously. If the thing could throw pieces of the floor, that would at least add something to the rare fights the strange creatures here provoked. Moreso, if it could tear up the floor, could it make a space for Hunter to leave through? He¡¯d floated up out of the now solid surface after his death, but then again he¡¯d begun to sink back through it after initially rejecting this space. Going beneath the surface might not be the best idea.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. I am very sorry, again, about my head problems.¡±

    ¡°Fine,¡± Hunter growled, lowering his head as they continued moving to where that shooting star had fallen earlier. A thought struck him then, and he asked, ¡°How long have we been walking?¡±

    ¡°Hmm?¡± the thing asked, as if it hadn¡¯t heard him.

    ¡°How long?¡±

    ¡°Oh, you¡¯re asking about time.¡± The formless silhouette tilted its head sideways at that as an arm phased through the front to scratch at the back of the head. ¡°Time. I think I¡¯m not supposed to like him, but I don¡¯t remember why.¡±

    Hunter quickly discarded the line of questioning since he¡¯d gotten one of the crazier answers than normal. The thing still hadn¡¯t been aggressive, the sole exception to what they¡¯d come across here, but neither were they reliable. He was worried that staying here for so long would do the same to him. There was still that strange sense that he¡¯d been here before and had forgotten things, people. Not again. Never again.

    The ringcat began bounding forwards as the thing followed, not running but floating through the air as if being pulled by a hook attached to the center of its chest. The shifting limbs and blob of a head trailed behind, lengthening ever so slightly. ¡°I don¡¯t know if this will get us there faster.¡±

    ¡°Should I not run?¡±

    ¡°Oh, you can. I¡¯m just saying I don¡¯t know if this will do anything.¡±

    Hunter would have sighed in annoyance if his body still worked like that. If he still had a body. Bad thoughts. He shook his head mid-run and continued charging to where the light was now faintly visible on the horizon. It was pure light, and perhaps white was the right color for it if it was shining in the real world. Here, it was just more brightness on the horizon than normal, the drained nature of both his senses and surroundings not providing the right context for his mind to attribute more detail.

    The thing next to him wanted this and, more importantly, thought it would help Daniel. That was the only reason he wasn¡¯t with his friend now, if only in spirit. More time passed as he charged forward, sustaining the run for longer than even his Grown and then awakened body in life could sustain. A few of the glowing enemies populated the surroundings at times, but Hunter ignored them. There was no joy in hunts now, only danger, not unless Daniel was nearby and needed him.

    ¡°Time,¡± the thing said after the pair had continued traveling for who knew how long. ¡°It¡¯s a funny thing. I don¡¯t think it¡¯s the right word, but it¡¯s also the right word. I think we changed it? It doesn¡¯t fit as much as it once did. I liked the old way better.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re still thinking about that?¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡± the thing gasped. ¡°I have been thinking about it ever since you last asked! It is working.¡±

    ¡°What do you remember?¡±

    ¡°What do I remember?¡± it asked as if Hunter was supposed to know.

    ¡°About time.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not the right word.¡±

    ¡°What is?¡±

    ¡°What is what?¡±

    Hunter fully stopped and lay down as he got as close as he could to a headache, burying his head in his paws. He stayed like that for what he was sure was only a few moments, but when he picked his head back up the thing was gone. ¡°Where are you?¡± he called out to the empty not-air.

    ¡°Here!¡± Hunter jumped back as the thing appeared from the ground, rising from just in front of him.

    ¡°How are you doing that!?¡± he asked angrily, losing all of his patience. The surface below him had been completely solid since he¡¯d committed to remaining behind for his friends, yet this strange creature could both break it and move through it without any concerns of sinking all the way down to¡­ something.

    ¡°I just can,¡± the thing shrugged, nonplussed at Hunter¡¯s frustration. It then turned and exclaimed, ¡°Oh! We¡¯re here. Not first though. That¡¯s too bad.¡±

    Hunter turned his head and blinked as he saw a disruption to the calm reflective surface under him approaching in the distance despite him not moving. As soon as he realized this the distant crater stopped, though the thing continued moving towards it for a short distance before coming back. ¡°You don¡¯t want to go anymore?¡± It sounded disappointed.

    ¡°I was moving without moving?¡±

    ¡°Yes! That¡¯s what I wanted to say earlier. You didn¡¯t need to run. Things don¡¯t work here like other places.¡± It moved one of its hands to its featureless face as if blocking the sun from its eyes, peering at the broken depression in the ground. ¡°We got here faster than I thought. You wanted to help me. Thank you!¡±

    Hunter would have taken longer to figure out what the thing meant if there wasn¡¯t a small part of Daniel always inside of him, mulling things over and using complicated words like mulling while Hunter focused on killing things. If their personalities hadn¡¯t mixed slightly from the Empathic Link, he might have never had the patience for the thing. ¡°Desire is speed,¡± Hunter ventured.

    ¡°Probably?¡± it said this with a frown in the voice, if not the face, still ¡®looking¡¯ ahead. ¡°That wanted to get here faster, though. Poor thing. We can still save it, though.¡±

    ¡°Is it dangerous?¡± Hunter asked. He wasn¡¯t one to back down from fights, and he¡¯d been superior to everything he¡¯d fought here thus far, but a part of him was urging caution as he still didn¡¯t know everything about his surroundings. I am strong, but not the strongest.

    ¡°Oh, yes! And no.¡± It was an answer at least, considering the thing had barely commented on the wolves. ¡°It is, hmm. Not like the things in the Crest, but more than empty. Less than us. Does that make sense?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°Sorry.¡± The thing sat down, though at the same time it began moving slowly to the hole. ¡°Let me think. It only has one or two? You have six, which is surprising, for some reason. I didn¡¯t help you do that, did I?¡±

    Hunter just stared at the thing uncomprehendingly as he followed. He still couldn¡¯t connect how his speed adjusted to how much he wanted to move since normally that was what his legs were for. ¡°You aren¡¯t talking about the light, are you?¡±

    ¡°Oh? Oh, no, that has three. Very good. I can see why the other wants it. It misfired too, but too long ago for me to help.¡±

    ¡°What did?¡±

    ¡°A spirit.¡± The thing turned in place, still moving forward, and said it like it was obvious, only to then turn self-reflective. ¡°Yes, I¡¯m sure about that. Something¡¯s changing. It¡¯s helping me. You¡¯re helping me, but something else is too. It¡¯s like this place is becoming more real. Reconnected. Hmm.¡±

    It stopped again, now only what Hunter would say was 60 meters from the hole if he was back in the real world. The crater that the light¡¯s landing had caused broke the infinite reflective ground, and where it shattered there were chunks of completely translucent reflective crystal sticking out of the sides of the hole and scattered around the bottom. The floor was slowly repairing itself, these shards sinking back and smoothing out.A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    Inside the hole were two things. The first was the phantom light Hunter had been seeing ever since it had fallen, now appearing as a shimmering orb. Something else was attacking it with a single limb, grasping just under the surface and trying to push deeper in. The orb itself was half of Hunter¡¯s size, while the monster attacking it was twice his, roughly. He¡¯d seen monsters and had been one for most of his life, but this was, well, more monstrous. The thing beside him gave Hunter a better to call it as it spoke almost breathlessly.

    ¡°A horror. We aren¡¯t far from the Crest. It¡¯s destroying itself to come here, but that spirit is worth it.¡±

    Hunter looked at the assemblage of various limbs and body parts rolled into a vague ball shape, all colored deep purple and black. Unlike the sky, there was no gradient but a chaotic mix of colors. ¡°Can I kill it?¡±

    ¡°It is easier for you to here than elsewhere.¡±

    ¡°Can you kill it?¡±

    The thing picked at the ground, leveraging up another piece before dropping it. The section faded back into the ground and quickly smoothed over. ¡°No. I shouldn¡¯t. It¡¯s not right.¡±

    The short answer told Hunter it wouldn¡¯t say anything else on the matter. ¡°How do I kill it?¡±

    ¡°Just use your things! You have more.¡±

    ¡°My powers don¡¯t work here.¡±

    ¡°No, your¡­¡± It searched for the word but couldn¡¯t find it. ¡°You used one before. Hunt. You have others, but I won¡¯t know which ones until you use them.¡±

    ¡°Ok.¡± It¡¯s not going to help me more on that. ¡°Can this kill me?¡±

    ¡°No. But it can break your six, and you don¡¯t want that to happen.¡±

    ¡°And this will help them, if we get the light?¡± The thing nodded and Hunter clenched his jaw, his long fangs pressing up against his lower lips in that way that always reminded him of the moment just before he¡¯d pounce on unsuspecting prey. For my friends, he thought, moving quickly towards the lip of the crater.

    The horror continued to be transfixed by the spirit it was trying to grasp until Hunter put a paw into the crater. He could faintly sense the jagged ends of the broken floor, but they didn¡¯t feel like something that could hurt him. As he ruled out the shards as a weapon, the horror¡¯s collection of appendages rotated towards him, the black and purple arm from some kind of lizard sickeningly distending to keep its grasp. It bellowed, but though the various mouths on it opened, he didn¡¯t hear it come from any of them. It was like a mana burst from a strong power, an emanation of guarded hostility from the horror.

    Good, Hunter thought. If he understood anything the thing behind him said, it was that he had more of these numbers than the spirit. Despite this, the horror was being protective of the prey it had caught as he approached, like it had come across another predator in the act of its devouring that it wasn¡¯t sure it could take. This horror didn¡¯t run, so it did have some confidence in itself.

    Rip and tear, Hunter thought as he sized the horror up. He knew the weaknesses of Khare and instinctively compared the two. The fur on the back of his neck began to rise, though as always since coming here the buildup of Lion Charge didn¡¯t start as he committed himself to the hunt. The horror sensed this and tried to drag the spirit with it as it approached, but the orb remained fixed in place at the center of the crater.

    With another ghastly shriek, the horror abandoned the spirit to posture aggressively toward Hunter with its many limbs. One, a lanky arm that ended in an orifice rather than a hand or foot, shot a mostly purple, viscous ball at him that wasn¡¯t able to go the full forty meters between them. Ranged attack. Will need to be careful.

    He¡¯d been injured before during the fights here, the wounds manifesting on his body without any pain, just a faint dulling of his mind and a slight weight that tried to drag him under. If he¡¯d actually ¡®died¡¯ here, Hunter expected he¡¯d lose himself and go wherever the bottom of the reflective surface led. For some reason, the look of that attack made him think it would do something worse.

    That limb would be his first target. The horror was keeping it extended out from the main mass to continue firing it, while its other ones seemed either integral to its nature or meant for closer combat. His movements felt more natural now that he was hunting. He hadn¡¯t noticed how odd traveling was here before since there was nothing to judge distance by, but as he approached the horror the thrumming of his legs moved him as they should.

    Another globule shot at him when he¡¯d covered most of the distance, and Hunter quickly jumped to the side to avoid it. The horror¡¯s many eyes tracked him, the pupils, monstrous and mortal, widening as he evaded the attack. It fired two more in rapid succession, the arm generating less of the dangerous substance each time, but Hunter was able to weave around them even as the horror tried to lead its third shot.

    Hunter pounced on the black and purple arm, sinking his fangs into it while piercing the flesh with his foreclaws. He began to swing his weight to twist and break the arm, but as he did so something inside the arm dribbled into his mouth, and the taste¡­ Blood was something Hunter had never had a problem with. If anything, the taste of it from inflicting a grievous bite wound spurned him onwards to finish his prey. This, this was¡­

    Part of him recoiled from what was transmitted into his mind by the contact of whatever substance this was, but to Hunter¡¯s terror, not all of it did. The taste was memory, life, what he¡¯d been denied ever since coming here. It wasn¡¯t just taste either, but sights, scents, and other things twisted to infect his mind through his tongue.

    One of the strongest impulses was an entire scene that played in his mind over seconds. He was something else in this memory, a tall two-legged creature with long hair and pointed ears watching children play from a hill above them. One of them, hers, fell and rolled an ankle, and Hunter rushed down to-

    The ringcat tore himself out of the intrusive vision as his body moved in response to the threat his mind had come under. The other limbs had been attacking him while he¡¯d been in reverie, doing relatively little to his form but worsening the infestation of foreign impulses. If it had engulfed him that might have been it, but he¡¯d broken free. He¡¯d even destroyed that ranged limb, although as he quickly backed up he was forced to reassess his chances.

    Hunter didn¡¯t remember the time he¡¯d been under the control of the lake monster that had come out of the dragon, but he hated knowing what had happened to him, what he¡¯d done while under control, regardless. He was a person. He was not a beast or a pet, he was Hunter. The place that conviction came from had been what saved him from whatever the horror had tried to do, but he wasn¡¯t entirely immune to the effect either.

    ¡°Freedom!¡± the thing called from outside the crater, having watched the initial exchange. ¡°That is a very nice one!¡±

    Hunter growled softly as he bared his fangs, though he felt a resonance within himself from that word. He had freed himself from the horror, but it was more than that. He would never be controlled again. He was free. There was a strange confidence that built from the realization. Hunter knew this horror couldn¡¯t fully take him over with whatever magic it was using, but that fluid inside of it still posed a threat. Areas on his body had been stained black-purple where it had clawed him and were taking longer to heal than they should.

    I can¡¯t use my fangs, he thought, grimacing internally at the resolution. His claws were sharp enough to cut into the horror, but they lacked the power of his crushing jaws. Hunter stalked to the side and the horror shifted, not quite circling with him as it stayed close to the spirit. ¡°Can you move that?¡± he asked, eyeing the spirit. Hunter wanted to destroy this thing for what it had tried to do, but the smarter side of him remembered that wasn¡¯t why he was here.

    ¡°Maybe? I¡¯ll need time, and the horror won¡¯t like what I¡¯m going to do.¡±

    ¡°Fine, I¡¯ll kill it,¡± Hunter murmured, pleased at the conclusion. Experimentally, he took a few bounding leaps like the alpha ringcat that had almost killed Daniel, watching how the eyes moved. The chain ended as he double-feinted, making it look like he redirected at the last moment before continuing where he originally intended. Several grasping arms, one looking uncomfortably like his own, reached out for where he would have been as Hunter tore into the side of the horror before quickly backing off. Neither the ranged attack arm nor the wound he¡¯d just inflicted showed any signs of healing, encouraging him.

    Even with the confusing collection of body parts and the terrible mind-altering substance contained within, this enemy didn¡¯t seem intelligent or complex. Perhaps that¡¯s what the thing had meant by it only having ¡®one or two¡¯, compared to his ¡®six¡¯. Hunter would have to find out what his other four were, but he didn¡¯t need them to kill this thing.

    Fortunately, Hunter didn¡¯t need to completely unravel the tangle of body parts in front of him to kill it. The wounds he dealt eventually started bleeding the purple substance, and there had been a few times it had briefly incapacitated him when some spurted out to catch him. Freedom, whatever it was, kept him safe and the horror was whittled down, unable to keep pace with him or predict his ability to move due to Hunt.

    In the end, his prey collapsed. Instead of fully sinking through the floor, a light shone from inside while the main body of the horror turned to dust and swirled upwards into the sky. The light was initially as discolored as the horror, but that faded as the main body did, making it a smaller twin of the orb still in the center of the slowly flattening crater.

    Hunter looked sharply at the thing as the horror¡¯s now pure light began to sink through the floor. It shook its head in what had to be a sad way. ¡°It¡¯s too far gone.¡±

    ¡°The other one?¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡± With the horror now gone, the thing entered the crater, pausing as it joined Hunter. ¡°It is good you destroyed that. Someone else had taken care of its physical form earlier, weakening it, but what you did is the only way to put it to rest forever. If it had taken that spirit, it might have come back.¡±

    ¡°What was the number it had?¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°The, thing. Like my hunt. Do others here have it?¡±

    ¡°Oh, corruption.¡± The thing turned the front of its head to where the horror¡¯s light was now almost fully below the reflective surface. ¡°Some do. Only the horrors. I try to stay away from them, but I can¡¯t go too far from where I¡­¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t remember. It¡¯s important!¡± One of the thing¡¯s hands formed a ball shape and slammed it into its other palm. ¡°It¡¯s, I need to remember! I¡­ I can¡¯t.¡± It clutched at its head and Hunter backed up, worried the area might have been contaminated by the horror. The thing¡¯s turmoil subsided, however, and it settled back into its passive posture. ¡°Sorry. I¡¯ve spent so long just existing. All of this returning is hard, but having someone to talk to helps. I¡¯m starting to feel what I¡¯m missing. It¡¯s so much.¡±

    ¡°I am sorry,¡± Hunter replied, pity rising in him. ¡°I do want to help you. Daniel and Tak are my friends, and we have become stronger for it. Could we be friends?¡±

    The thing pondered this for a second before shaking its head. ¡°No. Thank you, but I can¡¯t form another bond.¡±

    ¡°Another?¡±

    He had the feeling the thing would have given him an embarrassed smile if it had a face. ¡°Another part of me I¡¯ve lost, but like you it¡¯s still there in some ways.¡± It began walking towards the light, making a hushing sound. ¡°It¡¯s ok, little one. The horror is gone. We¡¯ll bring you to someone who can help. Don¡¯t be afraid, Grave is here.¡± The thing cradled the small light, not trying to pierce it like the horror had. The light didn¡¯t immediately react, just as it hadn¡¯t resisted the horror, though eventually it flowed into the thing¡¯s hands and disappeared. ¡°I¡¯m glad we saved it, but we need to bring it to your friend to incorporate it.¡±

    ¡°Grave?¡± Hunter asked, picking up on what it had said.

    ¡°Yes?¡±

    ¡°You said grave,¡± Hunter clarified.

    ¡°I did?¡± There was another moment of confusion, but whether it was absorbing the spirit or its continued improvement, the thing had a breakthrough. ¡°I did! It¡¯s, it¡¯s my name!¡± The thing held out both arms in front of it, voice full of elation. ¡°My name is Grave!¡±

 Chapter 183: Monster Spawning

    Ugh. I wish I didn¡¯t have to get so close. Still, worth it.

    <hr>

    You have scanned multiple Creatures, listed below.

    Scanned Targets:

    ? Fire Ludegrund, Deceased (Damaged) - 1

    ? Fire Ludegrund, Deceased (Partial) -1

    ? Elsyian Wisp, Deceased (Partial) - 6

    ? Ludegrund, Deceased (Whole) - 1

    ?  Ludegrund, Deceased (Damaged) - 3

    You have met the requirements to unlock multiple Encyclopedia entries, listed below.

    Encyclopedia Entries:

    ? Monster: Ludegrund, Detailed

    ? Formulae: Firestarter, Item

    ?  Monster: Elysian Wisp, Detailed

    -

    System Alert: Recent use of Function: Encyclopedia generated information duplicated in other entries. Per Fundamental Law: Balance, unique information on Monster: Fire Ludegrund will be added to the base entry for Monster: Ludegrund.

    <hr>

    Huh, that¡¯s new. The attendant wearing a thick outer garment and mask was about to wheel the cart away when Daniel asked him a question. ¡°These fire ludegrunds, are they one of the new monster types?¡±

    ¡°Uh, yeah,¡± she responded, beginning to push the cart even though Daniel had more questions. ¡°Sorry, Craftsmen are waiting.¡±

    ¡°No worries.¡± Daniel pulled up the Encyclopedia entry for the ludegrund, having to path to the monsters page first through hyperlinks before finding it on the list. True enough, fire ludegrund didn¡¯t have its own entry. His best guess as to why, knowing what he did, was that it was a simple reskin done by the Illustrious during their tinkering.

    The base ludegrund was a flying monster, as many were in Threst, though neither it nor the remnants of the wisps that had come in on the carts were birdlike. It had a swept wing shape, the anatomy not matching up well with normal rules like those in the beast type. The outer body could rotate along a central, hardened core that floated freely like a trackball. It was also propelled through the air by plain magic rather than physics. The normal level 1 variant had sharpened blades on the front edges, and the fire ludegrund could shoot flames from its center core as well.

    Daniel read the description of the only formulae he¡¯d received for his troubles and mentally marked it as another possibility for his weapon experimentation before pursuing the other reason he was here. He worked his way from the open-air loading dock where a hauler had just brought the fresh batch of kills to the part of the warehouse containing the actual talent. The entire space was owned by the Hunter¡¯s Guild and those natural or evolved Craftsmen they contracted did their work here. Temir might have insisted that Daniel work in a similar space while making the bags of holding if Aurus wasn¡¯t trying to make a good impression.

    Technically, he wasn¡¯t allowed in this area, but Daniel had a good reason to push his luck. He¡¯d kind of screwed himself over when making the winged boots formulae, as the improved version he¡¯d gained following the wastewolf hunt showed.

    <hr>

    Winged Boots (Formulae: Collaborative, Item, Domain: Enchantment, Quality: Standard, Level: -)

    A combination of Crafting and Enchanting talent enabling Flight in any Creature capable of wearing them. This formulae is collaborative in nature, requiring the input of multiple individuals in the sequence to construct.

    Creation of this item requires the combined efforts of individuals with Class: Craftsman and Class: Artificer, or individuals with appropriate Powers: Crafting. Absence of one or more of these requirements imposes high Mana and Construction/Enchantment Complexity penalties.

    <hr>

    He¡¯d tried making one himself with level 3 fur and had immediately failed. This was turning into a huge issue as, while he did have the lightning wings formulae, no one on his team could use those to fly alone. His idea had been to try and further combine the winged boots and lightning wings formulae into one superior one after doing some prototyping, since the winged boots themselves had been derived from another magical item. That¡¯s where he¡¯d messed up, since including the work of Ornithar had made it a requirement of the design.

    Daniel got some odd looks as he entered the large workshop. People of various races moved about large tables, mostly avianoids wearing aprons. He was wearing some casual wear Willow and Khiat had picked out on a shopping trip, since their desert wear wasn¡¯t cutting it in the windy climate now growing colder with winter. Compared to those wearing protective equipment, he stood out.

    ¡°Are you lost?¡± one of them shouted over to him over the grisly sound of butchering. An entire half of the room was dedicated to the carcasses of wolves he¡¯d supplied, while the rest dealt with other kills. Not all of them were Craftsmen, judging by the weapons his weak seventh sense could make out as Foci on a handful. Rangers, if he had to guess.

    Daniel snapped back to the avianoid who¡¯d addressed him, who he identified.

    <hr>

    Padri Tiltfeather (Craftsman - 2)

    <hr>

    The aura that came with it was a solid gray. ¡°My name is Daniel Brant. I was here for other business, but I was hoping to find someone that could help me. I¡¯m a new Artificer in the region and there¡¯s an item I can only make with-¡°

    He didn¡¯t get any further as a drop of red entered Padri¡¯s aura, the looks on the others who¡¯d heard suggesting they¡¯d become even more aggravated than the first one. Daniel realized his mistake as he saw that almost everyone was working on skinning wolves. Rumors of who¡¯d brought them in must have spread.

    ¡°You asshole!¡± one further down the line shouted. ¡°You dump all this on us and then strut in here asking for more?¡±

    Daniel would have just backed out and cut his losses if that wouldn¡¯t mean alienating almost everyone who could help his team fly. ¡°I¡¯m not asking people to do it for free. I¡¯ll either pay you or we can split what we make evenly. Isn¡¯t this your job, anyway?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re contracted with the Hunter¡¯s Guild to help process whatever teams bring in. They¡¯ve got most of us for eight hours every day, but we don¡¯t have to work if there¡¯s nothing to do.¡± A third Craftsman, this one only level 1, gestured to the wide space with feathered arms. ¡°No one ever works that long, except if some cracked beak dumps hundreds of corpses on us!¡±

    ¡°Worse ¡®n that. I hear they¡¯re giving some of the better teams bags of holding to make sure they can bring everything they kill back. We¡¯re never going to catch back up. Guess who we have to thank for that?¡± Several who hadn¡¯t heard that tidbit glared intensely at Daniel while others moaned. ¡°You can take whatever you want made and shove it up your ass, rare. You and whoever killed these things.¡±

    Come on, the Artificer complained internally as he briefly considered asking Cloak to blank out the last few minutes of everyone here so he could try again, but there was no telling if the god was actually with him now. That didn¡¯t leave him any better off. He had a feeling telling these people he hadn¡¯t known, or what they were doing would help the region, wouldn¡¯t help. At the very least, he could correct one misconception. ¡°I killed them.¡±

    ¡°You killed over three hundred level 3 wolves. How?¡± Padri, the original Craftsman, asked disbelievingly though with some curiosity.

    ¡°Yeah. Took a while but I got through them. I¡¯m a combat Artificer, I don¡¯t just sit around enchanting, I hunt monsters too.¡±

    ¡°Lucky you,¡± one of the Rangers in the room mumbled darkly. ¡°I¡¯d be out there too, but because of you I¡¯m stuck in here! Fucking Guild¡¯d take my registration if I broke contract. No one told me it would get this bad.¡±

    Daniel continued to hold his ground despite the absolute lack of sympathy in the room. He considered offering to talk to Temir to get whoever helped him free of this duty, but he¡¯d just seem even more an aggressor to their united front. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Look, I¡¯m just trying to¡­¡± he trailed off and shook his head. Daniel was just as disappointed as the Craftsmen were angry, but he was smart enough to see he wouldn¡¯t accomplish anything by staying. Better to track down someone later, when the entire room wasn¡¯t against him. A hammer was thrown at him as he left, but he dodged it.

    ¡­

    Walking back to his house made Daniel all the more aware of how much not being able to fly was hurting him here. He could make the journey in ten minutes, less if he had his heliorite wings, but the ground path was at least an hour and far more taxing. Even the streets were built for the skyfolk as every time one landed people had to clear the way, causing backups. Looping from the ground limit and gliding to there was somehow worse, as he¡¯d effectively have to travel about 50 kilometers down instead of two up and suffer the Spoke¡¯s limit on fall speed in the process.

    I would have brought Willow if I¡¯d known they¡¯d all hate my guts, he thought as he waited for a group of five to finish their descent ahead of him. They were all level 1 and nothing special, they couldn¡¯t even truly fly. Elsewhere they¡¯d have no special advantage, but in Threst they were celebrated. Flight was the status symbol magical items had once been in Aughal. That he had a way to give anyone the power of flight didn¡¯t matter if all the Craftsmen in Aurus despised him.

    Distracted by his internal grumblings, Daniel didn¡¯t notice the oddity before the landing team did. It was partially due to his seventh sense only being on par with the level 1s as he could only spend so much time trying to train it these days. To be fair, the other hunters wouldn¡¯t have sensed anything either, except for the fact that the disturbance was affecting their mana flow.

    Daniel immediately pulled out his phone and saw that a notification had come through.

    <hr>

    System Alert: System Conflict between ??? and ~Error: Undefined~ has generated an instance of Monster Spawning. Locational suppression of monster spawning is currently disabled due to the effects of the Collapse.Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    -

    System Alert: You are currently in an area subject to an instance of Monster Spawning. Remaining in the area directly affected by the System Conflict will pose a risk of succumbing to Forced Transmutation and ~Error: Undefined~. Fundamental Law: Immutable Soul is attempting to prevent this instance of spawning.

    <hr>

    ¡°Get out of the street!¡± Daniel tried to yell, but a general concordant murmuring had started as the landing team went on the alert. None of the non-Blessed could sense what was going on, whereas Daniel could feel the unnatural twisting of the mana within him. The loop around his heart resisted, and he felt that gave him more time. He backed up a few steps, empowered strength easily allowing him to force his way through, and could barely sense the diminishing of the invasive mana.

    God damn it. ¡°Get off the street!¡± Daniel shouted again, though more melodically. There hadn¡¯t been a reason to do what he was about to before, but now he needed to cut above the noise. He mentally pushed the volume of his Music function to the max and played back what he¡¯d ¡®sung¡¯. The function was loose with its definition of music as he¡¯d demonstrated the first time he¡¯d made public use of it.

    The burst of sound visibly injured those standing closest to him as he unleashed the equivalent of a weak level 2 sonic attack. It got the job done as people ran from his warning for one reason or another. Those closest to where the team had landed, including the five, were an exception.

    Daniel had thought the most disturbing thing he¡¯d seen magic do was either Casia¡¯s zombies, or the lake monster. This easily beat both. As he continued backing up, he felt a sudden surge within him as the intruding mana attempted to alter how it flowed in his body. It barely did anything, both due to his distance and the loop around his heart, but it gave him an idea of what was happening to those closest to the clearing. His phone left no room for doubt.

    <hr>

    System Alert: The instance of Monster Spawning has resolved. All Wild Mana has been exhausted through absorption by other Creatures. Fundamental Law: Immutable Soul attempted and was unable to prevent this process.

    <hr>

    Those who had ¡®absorbed¡¯ the wild mana were currently frozen in place as their bodies changed. Thankfully, it looked like they¡¯d already died. The tags identifying them had completely faded, and when they returned after the quick shift, there was no sign of any mortal soul inside.

    Numbly, Daniel pulled out the only enchanted weapon he had. Bone claws, made to be worn like brass knuckles. They didn¡¯t fit his hands too well, but that¡¯s because he¡¯d made them for his cat form which was still too injured to use. He tried not to think about who they¡¯d been as he resolved to take down the new monsters. Aurus¡¯ guard could respond, but none were close enough to stop more people from dying.

    As he pushed through the still-fleeing crowd, Daniel used Construct Projectile to rip up part of the earth beside the street and impale one of the monsters that had come from the team. Each was a level 2 example of known monsters from this region, while those in the crowd that had been caught were now level 1 monsters. The one he¡¯d hit was a ground-based monster known as a crag stalker. Half of the team had turned into bulky, somewhat reptilian monsters who could climb faster than normal people could run.

    The one he hit died as he spawn killed it. Daggers thrown with Snap Shot took down some of the flock of various flying monsters that took off, some ludegrunds among them. It wasn¡¯t enough to stop all the attacks, and it was all Daniel could do to block out what was unnecessary and focus.

    In the next moment, his mouth stretched as he activated Hunter¡¯s Fearsome Roar. It was a hard choice since he¡¯d figured out he couldn¡¯t swap to another power with that slot while it was on cooldown, but it did stop the monsters on his side from advancing. For similar reasons he took Force of Fear, eating a second cooldown to deal damage in proportion to how afraid every nearby monster was. This combination quickly staggered the level 1s, buying more time.

    A ballista bolt slammed into the pavement two meters away from him as he broke into the clearing itself. The defensive weapon had tried to aim for the level 2 monsters first, but whoever was aiming hadn¡¯t been able to sight properly. I couldn¡¯t hit anything without Snap Shot right now either.

    The closest crag stalker was still blinking, taking in its surroundings as the overwhelming rage against mortalkind overwhelmed it. When it saw Daniel it charged forward, the street cracking as the heavy digits of its feet dug in. It jumped, and then jumped again while in midair, redirecting despite not having a surface to reflect off of. Daniel saw it coming and threw half an arm full of feathers into its face, and then used his enchanted weapons to dig through the monster as its fall was disturbed.

    The bone claws formulae he¡¯d gotten from the shank stompers hadn¡¯t seemed too useful until he¡¯d gained his cat form. In addition to shaping them to cut in tandem with Beast Mode¡¯s claws, he¡¯d added elemental damage. On his hands right now were the two he¡¯d made already, one fire, and one lightning claw. The damage versatility was pointless in this case as both level 2 weapons destroyed whatever they cut through.

    It¡¯s not just Beast Mode, Daniel thought as he Jumped away from the dead body. It¡¯s not the oath either. It¡¯s me. I¡¯m beginning to believe. He¡¯d been fighting for so long, been through so much, that when faced with this horror out of nowhere he¡¯d had no hesitation. Using his powers felt natural, and while he might not be making the best decision every time, he was making one. It was easy to ignore when surrounded by those who vastly outperformed him, like Gadriel, but alone there was no doubt.

    The last crag stalker managed to get a hit in, surprising him with the double jump ability by using it to charge towards him. Its claws were more crushing than sharp and he made out with only bruises, maybe a slight crack in one rib Regeneration would take care of. By the time it was dead the cooldown of Construct Projectile was ready.

    Making an educated guess, Daniel tried to use it on the claws that had battered him and was relieved to find it worked. If he could use monster parts in enchanting, then they counted as material. It pierced through something called a mirrorbeak cutter, which despite turning invisible hadn¡¯t been able to remove the tag he¡¯d placed on it. That just left the last level 2 monster, a fire ludegrund.

    It was up to full fighting capacity at this point and was lasering the crowd. Even at a distance, the fire beam was powerful enough to cause deep burns in normal people from a glancing exposure. Daniel Jumped towards it after throwing a dagger, but it evaded both. This monster didn¡¯t have the powers the former avianoid did in life, what happened to it seemed different than the process Rorshawd had undergone, but it could still kill.

    The fire beam concentrated on Daniel. The ludegrund could keep it going almost constantly, except when it had to rotate the wedge of its main body across the point it emanated from to keep flying. That translated to anything directly in front of it being safe from its primary attack, a weakness the shock runners he¡¯d fought in the Thormundz shared.

    Enough. Daniel pushed with his legs, trying to emulate Jump without actually using it. He¡¯d never mastered the full strength his attribute gave him, but in this way he¡¯d had some practice. Daniel didn¡¯t go as far as normal, but he did get far more height than the meter or so his unpowered self could do. At the same time he used Telekinetic Reach on the ludegrund, trying to drag it to him.

    It worked, though at the cost of a fifth of his total mana. This ability wasn¡¯t meant to be used on monsters directly, at least not on his level, but he didn¡¯t care. The telekinetic pull lasted just seconds, enough to drag it into his lightning claws which he used to skewer the trackball that was the center of the monster. A fluid from inside ran down his fingers as he landed hard on the ground, lacking the protection Jump normally gave.

    Daniel looked around and saw flying hunters engaging the rest of the monsters. All avianoids, they¡¯d been the only ones who could get here the fastest. A few looked at him and then at the scraps of armor that had remained on the crag stalkers. If Daniel was managing to hold himself together, he couldn¡¯t imagine what news of this would do to the general morale of Aurus. He¡¯d thought the uninhibited monster spawns would just mean they could appear in inhabited territories, but not in people.

    ¡­

    ¡°We need to talk.¡±

    ¡°My thoughts exactly,¡± Cloak said, appearing in his room. Daniel had just finished making a full set of both claw types for his human form, just in case, when he¡¯d heard the concealed god climbing his stairs.

    ¡°How did that happen? Why does the Octyrrum drop its protections during a Collapse? That wasn¡¯t part of it not being able to find enough gods, you programmed it to do that! How are people supposed to sleep knowing that could happen to them at any time!?¡±

    With the disguise he wore, both the clothing and body of a Cleric of himself, Cloak appeared young and inexperienced. The hardness in his eyes betrayed that. ¡°You¡¯re lucky this didn¡¯t come up, or I wouldn¡¯t be able to tell you.¡±

    ¡°So you will now?¡±

    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t, but my guess is you¡¯d do something radical if I don¡¯t.¡± Cloak summoned an image in the air, a board eleven by eleven spaces. ¡°Are you familiar with this?¡±

    ¡°If you¡¯re about to tell me you see this world like a game, I¡¯m going to throw something at you.¡± Daniel placed a hand on his desk, which was currently covered by wolf bone weapons and fragments. ¡°And if you were going to say, ¡®sometimes you have to sacrifice a piece for the greater good¡¯, I¡¯ll use Snap Shot.¡¯¡±

    ¡°Your anger is exactly the justification for our actions,¡± Cloak returned smoothly. ¡°You¡¯ve seen that happen once. How many times did you think we saw this during the last Collapse?"

    ¡°You mean when you abandoned the people of the Octyrrum?¡± Daniel asked, remembering the Accounts of Artruz.

    ¡°When we took necessary measures, yes.¡±

    ¡°Speaking of, there¡¯s something that¡¯s been bothering me.¡± Daniel thumbed through his phone, a worried look growing on Cloak¡¯s face. It took him a minute to find his way there, but he eventually found the ¡®System Collapse¡¯ entry by way of the one on monster spawns. It was the one he¡¯d seen on the initial notification announcing the new apocalypse. Cloak must have already gotten to it since it was unidentified, but he just needed to confirm the title ¡°This Collapse isn¡¯t because of the Crest, it¡¯s artificial. These are settings you put in place. Why?¡±

    ¡°The Origin Beasts.¡± Daniel tensed as they broached a topic he¡¯d been afraid of. If Cloak was about to tell him it could appear at any moment, like those monsters had on the street, he wouldn¡¯t be able to handle it. ¡°The first Collapse ended when Hourglass poured a massive amount of our combined energy into his domain. We isolated the very core of the Octyrrum in time while we devised a countermeasure.¡±

    There was a slightly strained hollowness to Cloak¡¯s voice as he continued to explain, as if speaking of a pain he wasn¡¯t currently feeling. ¡°You must understand, the monsters you see can¡¯t survive in the Crest. The Origin Beasts can destroy our Spokes, but they can¡¯t take them over or create their own. Only they survived once they took all the space outside the hub. We allowed enough time to pass that they were forced to hibernate, and at that point we had a chance to try and find them while expanding to reclaim the world.¡±

    ¡°If the monsters come from the Crest, why can¡¯t they survive in it?¡±

    ¡°Many reasons. Suffice it to say that when this world was invaded, the conflict between systems created an environment which neither side could exist within. The Origin Beasts project it onto us passively. Every element we deny or mitigate strains the Octyrrum, and their influence grows as they wake. We incorporate what we have to, and that burden grows as they rise.¡±

    Daniel chewed on that for a few moments, realizing at the same time that if they could talk about this, the topic must not have come up during the unidentified time. ¡°You¡¯re talking about Growth?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s just a part we allowed into the Octyrrum. We couldn¡¯t fully block it out. We won¡¯t be able to until the Crest and the enemy gods are gone. Only then will the system conflict finally end.¡± Cloak¡¯s voice sounded so weary there. ¡°The Collapse is exactly that, a collapse of resources to the center as a last failsafe so we can preserve the system core. As far as the monster system, I would expect it to begin fully influencing the monster population again. All the Collapse has done is unlock versions of monsters we have restricted for various balancing reasons. Balance must be maintained, if only to keep the system stable.¡±

    ¡°How long do we have?¡±

    A shape flew past the window. An avianoid, Daniel realized a few seconds later. After the spawning incident Aurus was on high alert. Cloak sighed again, bitterly. ¡°We¡¯d have more if my damned church would listen to me. This far out in the fringes, in another¡¯s Realm, it¡¯s not as structured as I¡¯d hoped. Monster spawning would have been just one of the warnings I could have given.¡± He shook his head as Daniel tried to speak, actually silencing the sound he would have made. ¡°You couldn¡¯t have done it, you don¡¯t have the connections or the authority, not for this. Either way? We have some time. Even though this Spiritualist movement was more organized than I¡¯d believed, waking a slumbering god is no easy process. In the worst case, which this is, a full collapse to the center of the Octyrrum in which nothing outside of the core is defended will still take decades. Their gods will begin infiltrating the Octyrrum with elements of the enemy system well before then, however.¡±

    ¡°Alright.¡± Daniel didn¡¯t feel too much better for that estimate. ¡°But right now, monsters are showing up and taking over people¡¯s bodies.¡±

    ¡°Even with the Collapse, that will be rare. We were simply unlucky. Now that people are aware of the threat it can be mostly avoided so long as there is someone nearby who can tell what¡¯s going on.¡±

    Daniel didn¡¯t want to ask the next question, but he did. ¡°Was today because of me?¡± The presence of the ludegrunds in the horde was too much of a coincidence, even if they were native to the region. ¡°The first one just happened to be right in front of me. If I¡¯m a danger to my friends-¡°

    ¡°Then I wouldn¡¯t be standing next to you. Those incidents can¡¯t affect me, but they can alter my Proxy. It is random,¡± the god assured. ¡°The majority of monsters will appear from natural material like rock, or even water vapor. It¡¯s harder for the process to change a living thing, but sometimes it just happens in an area where it can¡¯t choose anything other than a populated section.¡±

    ¡°Path of least resistance,¡± Daniel muttered, catching Cloak¡¯s attention.

    ¡°We should speak more on your world sometime. In some topics, you are far more knowledgeable than you should be.¡±

    ¡°I still don¡¯t trust you.¡± That hung in the air for a minute, neither seeing a way forward in the conversation. After enough time, Daniel just picked another topic. ¡°Willow¡¯s advancing again. We¡¯ll see if your advice pays off.¡±

    ¡°It should. She¡¯ll get Spirit Guardian as long as she keeps both the ideals and the archetypes of it in mind. It¡¯s too well suited to her for the Octyrrum to give her anything else. That¡¯s one of the reasons people would run into an advancement wall, you know. The Octyrrum wants to give someone a specific class, but we restricted it or they¡¯re too opposed to it. Don¡¯t worry, with her it will go smoothly.¡±

    ¡°Thanks.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re not enemies,¡± Cloak said slowly as if Daniel hadn¡¯t heard him four times before. ¡°There are things I wish I could tell you, beyond what Torch has blocked, that I simply can¡¯t. If they ever got out, the Octyrrum would be finished no matter if we defeated the Origin Beasts again. Torch would have annihilated a region if a hint of one of those secrets was found.¡±

    Daniel pointed a sharp finger at Cloak. ¡°One of the reasons I have a hard time trusting you is that you say you¡¯re not my enemy, and then you say something like that.¡±

    ¡°Look what the secret of spirits did! This entire Collapse is due in part to some of our population discovering and swearing themselves to the Origin Beasts through the discovery of that topic alone. There are billions of people in the Octyrum and only ei-, seven of us.¡± Cloak¡¯s voice broke towards the end.

    ¡°Billions.¡± Earth had that many, but humans were also the apex predator there. How many regions were there? ¡°You¡¯re right, I don¡¯t have your perspective. I also don¡¯t have your goals. If there was a way to get Hunter and all of my friends to Earth, I¡¯d take it right now. I know there isn¡¯t one, so I guess I¡¯m stuck with you.¡±

    ¡°Daniel! There¡¯s someone here to see you!¡± Khiat shouted from the common room.

    ¡°As am I, you.¡± Cloak faded from his sight.

    ¡°Coming!¡± Daniel shouted back. It had to be Quala. She¡¯d been late for their nightly meeting, no doubt due to the attack. Today was the first moment people would truly realize the Collapse was here. He looked to the door and was surprised to find the visitor already tagged. He didn¡¯t have Hunter¡¯s ability to reflexively do it to anyone entering his range. But then again, he¡¯d already tagged this person today. It was Padri, one of the Craftsmen.

 Chapter 184: Group Projects

    ¡°You. You are actually a hunter?¡± Padri was staring wide-eyed at Daniel as he stood outside the doorway of the house, though the gaze occasionally flicked to the dusker behind him. ¡°People talked about that incident. I have never known an Artificer who could fight like that.¡±

    I hope Thomas hasn¡¯t worked his magic, Daniel thought, knowing the Cleric often exaggerated when it came to friends. ¡°I got my class when the Thormundz region fell. It was fight or die, just like it is now,¡± he explained evenly. Daniel hoped the Craftsman was here for the reason he suspected, though the why of it wasn¡¯t clear. He decided to take a shot in the dark. ¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯m doing all this. There¡¯s a formulae I have that my team needs to hunt here, but I can¡¯t make it alone. Can you help me?¡±

    ¡°I heard you tried to warn people right before it happened. I will be honest, if anyone else in the guild could find you they¡¯d be here asking what I am. How did you know what was coming?¡±

    ¡°How did you know where I lived?¡±

    Padri knocked a talon on the doorframe a few times. ¡°You are using guild housing. Not hard to locate if you know the right people.¡±

    The Craftsman had a clipped way of speaking that Daniel hadn¡¯t picked up on until now, mostly because this conversation had already doubled the words the avianoid had spoken to him. It sounded a bit like Tak, though this wasn¡¯t due to level disparity in intelligence. At least, he assumed so. ¡°Well, considering what happened I can forgive the invasion of privacy,¡± he said diplomatically, pulling out his phone. ¡°My Focus can alert me to things like something hitting me with the fear effect. It caught a surge of wild mana responsible for the monster spawning, although I was able to sense it myself just after. It¡¯s like a mana burst if it was a roiling whirlpool instead of an explosion.¡±

    The same curious light entered the Craftsman as when Daniel had said he¡¯d personally killed the wolves. ¡°Hmm. Make something dependent on ambient mana, it could act as an alarm.¡±

    ¡°If you have a formulae that does that, sure.¡± Daniel didn¡¯t, as most of his known formulae were tuned towards fighting. The firestarter one he¡¯d just gotten was a sign that his particular way of acquisition could lead to utility items, but he still had a long way to go in his formulae collection. ¡°If it helps, I think what happened is rare. The new Collapse is weakening Threst¡¯s Spoke, but I doubt the gods or the Octyrrum would stand for it if this was a regular occurrence. They¡¯re our protectors, right?¡± He hoped Cloak was around to hear that.

    ¡°Yes.¡± Padri turned to leave with that.

    ¡°Hey, I still need a Craftsman. Since you already know the way here, would you at least hear me out?¡± Daniel pointedly did not use any of his charisma powers. He had Steadfast Salesman which only proved these kinds of classes could get commercial defensive powers and didn¡¯t want to put the avianoid on edge.

    ¡°I am very busy.¡±

    Yeah yeah. ¡°You have me at an advantage since all the other Craftsmen hate me. I¡¯m not asking for anything long-term, just enough time to make what I need. If it¡¯s items you want then I¡¯ll tell you what I can make. You know I have a ton of fur, and that could make great armor. It even has a smoke bomb effect that¡¯ll give you, or people you care about, a good way to escape if something finds them.¡±

    Padri paused at that and returned to the doorway, unabashedly stepping inside to give Khiat a closer look. ¡°All one piece?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, it would¡¯ve been too complicated to enchant it a section at a time.¡±

    Padri frowned. ¡°How? That dusker is larger than any of the wolves. There shouldn¡¯t have been enough mass to accommodate this.¡±

    ¡°Uh, hi, I¡¯m Khiat,¡± she said, introducing herself to the avianoid who looked like he didn¡¯t care much for information he hadn¡¯t asked for.

    Padri did give a second look to Khare on the ceiling, but his attention was mostly on the armor Daniel had made. ¡°How?¡± he asked again.

    ¡°You know about affixes and how they work with enchanting?¡±

    ¡°I have heard of them. Craftsmen have modifications. Different, but the difference isn¡¯t important.¡±

    ¡°Ok,¡± Daniel replied, smothering his curiosity so he could get to the point. ¡°I have an affix that lets me use separate materials for one item so long as they stay close enough together during the process. By the way, I¡¯ve met another Craftsman before, not evolved, and he could do this too. Is the single source limitation only for Artificers or would he have had something similar?¡±

    Padri blinked at him. ¡°Which affix?¡±

    ¡°Patchwork. It- hey!¡± Daniel called out after the Craftsman, but by the time he got outside Padri had already Grown Wings and jumped off the balcony. He noticed Tlara take an interest in the falling avianoid and they met gazes, Daniel almost chuckling as he intuited the offer. Maybe getting stuck in a wyvern¡¯s body was doing some good for her personality. Still, what the hell is with that guy?

    ¡­

    Daniel was woken from sleeping in by another call from downstairs. He looked out the window and sighed as he saw it was the same person who had ditched him the night before. Though, the haggard look of the avianoid made him frown. From what he could tell, the man hadn¡¯t slept himself. ¡°Is everything alright?¡± he asked as he opened the door, stepping outside so their conversation wouldn¡¯t interrupt Khiat¡¯s rest.

    ¡°Did you lie?¡± Padri accused.

    ¡°About the monsters?¡±

    ¡°The affix. It is not in guild records or the libraries of Torch.¡±

    Oh, damn. ¡°No, but that makes sense. I can get formulae from observing monsters, dead or alive. That one came from the wolves and they¡¯re a new monster type. It was the best thing I got from them.¡± Daniel foresaw a problem and decided to head it off before rumors spread if they hadn¡¯t already. ¡°Just so you know, I Personal Mark everything I make.¡±

    ¡°Prudent. There are ways around that.¡± Daniel waited for Padri to say anything else, but that was it.

    ¡°So, why are you here?¡±

    ¡°You are familiar with Bekali platforms?¡± Daniel nodded slowly, not seeing where this was going. ¡°Her full name was Bekali Tiltfeather. She was in my family line, ten generations ago. Regent of Threst, for a time.¡±

    ¡°Oh, ok. You want me to help you make them?¡± He knew those platforms were due to the combined work of a Craftsman and an Artificer like his own winged boots, though that was the bare minimum. He was sure it was more complicated than that. ¡°I don¡¯t know their formulae.¡±

    ¡°Not important. I likely do not know the one you want made. Only one needs to know for collaborative effort, and then I would learn it after the first successful craft. That¡¯s not what I want.¡±

    ¡°What do you want?¡±

    A passing platform, Daniel wasn¡¯t sure of the make, caught Padri¡¯s attention before he turned back to Daniel. ¡°I want to make them better. Bigger, smaller, more. Differ the design, the function. The sky is the limit, as they say.¡± He indicated the house with a talon. ¡°That armor, what you used, it is new. I have studied what Threst has and it will not work for me. I need something new.¡±

    Daniel was beginning to get the bigger picture. ¡°If you help me out now I can keep hunting with my team. You¡¯re thinking I find something that¡¯ll help?¡±

    ¡°You have already. The largest platform, the Bekali Hauler, requires careful cultivation of certain trees in the Shattered Falls. They graft them together so it is technically one living being before the wood is harvested. Craftsmen can work multiple pieces of base material into a final product, but not if they require Artificer help.¡±

    ¡°Smart! Wait, so they just enchant one huge block of wood rather than fit stuff together?¡±

    ¡°It is necessary due to the current design,¡± Padri said, waving a hand. ¡°Inefficient, though Threst has attempted workarounds. Patchwork would negate that issue. I would like a sample you have enchanted with it.¡±

    ¡°To take to another Artificer?¡± Daniel asked skeptically. It was starting to sound like Patchwork was more valuable than he already assumed.

    ¡°No. It may have a Personal Mark. I wish to experiment. This, as well as others you feel are unique.¡±

    He¡¯s trying to do what I did with the ornithopters, Daniel realized. Does he have a way to prototype and improve formulae too? ¡°I do that, and you help me?¡±

    Padri gave a single, sharp nod. ¡°That is the idea.¡±

    ¡°Thanks! Do you want to come by after your work?¡±

    ¡°No need. I have taken a personal day. If this bears fruit, I will sever my contract with the guild,¡± Padri said casually. ¡°Bekali was an innovator before she was lost. The people I work with, they are¡­ not. Threst is advanced for its place in the world, but it has grown too reliant on what works to test what might not. Advancement through innovation is seen as a gamble by most. Dangerous times require more than what we had in the past.¡±

    Daniel felt something there, a connection to the part of him that had been excited to find the glue orbs in the skabs. Nothing that could form a bond, not even close, but it was a point of commonality that boded well. ¡°Yeah! Well, if you¡¯ve got time now I¡¯d love to make a set. I¡¯d have to use Patchwork on it and I the base formulae would work for the platforms, so win win. Say we make two for now?¡±

    ¡°Acceptable. What is the formulae, out of curiosity?¡±

    ¡°Winged boots,¡± Daniel answered with a smile. He gestured inside and slowly opened the door. The Craftsman followed, tilting his head as he inspected the interior and noticing the loose rolls of fur that cluttered a few areas. The lither frame of the avianoid had no trouble navigating the stairs up to his room, which he found a little too restrictive for comfort.

    He winced as the two found themselves in the secluded and somewhat messy space of Daniel¡¯s room. There were still scraps of material on the workbench he¡¯d converted, and evidence of his nightly transformation if you knew where to look. He felt like Dr. Jekyl as Padri frowned and picked up a tuft of golden fur from the floor. ¡°This isn¡¯t from the wolves.¡±

    ¡°We should be quiet, if that works for you,¡± Daniel said with a hushed voice. ¡°Khiat¡¯s been sleeping during the day and I haven¡¯t found any enchantment that would work with that.¡±This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

    ¡°Muffle Sound is a common base item enchantment. Not too expensive if you were to purchase. Also unnecessary with me here.¡± Padri closed his eyes for a moment, his face evening out. ¡°There.¡±

    Daniel guessed the Craftsman had just used a power, but he was a long way from being able to sense the mana flow in others. ¡°What¡¯d you do?¡±

    ¡°Tranquil Workshop, reduces ambient noise among other things. It is a feature I must designate daily. There are other powers I will use when we get started. First, I must prepare.¡± The Craftsman took out a pair of glasses, and here Daniel did get a faint twinge. It was like they radiated a faint heat to his magical senses, a giveaway that they were a Focus. That he could sense the magic in them from a short distance away was only due to their bond with Padri, as he still had to touch other magical items to get a sense from them.

    Another sign I¡¯m improving. Good. ¡°Interesting choice. I thought a Craftsman would use something like a handsaw or chisel for a Focus.¡±

    ¡°Some do.¡± Padri shrugged, a little self-aware as if he hadn¡¯t expected Daniel to notice. ¡°But form defines function. It is the advantage we have over intrinsics, modification of the Focus to derive optimal functions. I am sure you chose yours for the same reason.¡±

    ¡°Totally,¡± Daniel said, turning away slightly. I didn¡¯t even think about that. But Encyclopedia¡¯s too good to turn down. If I make something that gives me other functions, it could break what¡¯s letting me keep it. ¡°So, uh, how does this work?¡±

    ¡°Similar to how Smiths and Artificers can cooperate. Enchanted edges on forged metal, arrowheads on Carver shafts. It will be more difficult now, but after the first attempt we can work apart.¡±

    ¡°Carver is a class?¡± Daniel asked, picking up on that. He thought there hadn¡¯t been a woodworking-specific class, or else the toy maker should have had it.

    ¡°Not a common one. Threst sponsors those that evolve into it for the platforms, but it is too narrow to be palatable. Another inefficiency I wish to fix.¡± Padri walked up to the table and began pulling various tools, from a needle and thread to small knives, from various pockets. His clothing had many of them, each with an additional strap to prevent them from opening during flight. The size of some of the implements suggested they were bigger than they seemed.

    Daniel pulled out a few sections of fur from his bag, joining the Craftsman at the table. ¡°This should be enough. Though the boots are separate, I can enchant two at a time. Do you need to do anything before I start?¡±

    Padri took the fur in his hands instead of answering, inspecting it. ¡°I skinned this section,¡± he murmured to himself, holding one in particular. He put that one aside and gave the others back. ¡°Show me more.¡± Daniel continued passing rolled sections along until the Craftsman was satisfied. ¡°Good. I will need to learn the formulae for this first attempt. This will help.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m guessing it¡¯d be easier if I had one of these made already. You could just copy the formulae from it.¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Padri said with a bit of impatience, apparently growing frustrated with how much Daniel didn¡¯t know. ¡°Collaborative formulae can only be learned by doing.¡±

    ¡°But once you know, you could make physical boots for me to enchant,¡± Daniel offered, hoping he was buying back some points in the avianoid¡¯s mind. ¡°And if we figure out how to make your platforms better I could do the same.¡±

    ¡°Indeed. For this stage, I will need to observe you. What other affix are you using besides patchwork?¡±

    ¡°Self-repair,¡± Daniel answered. ¡°Gonna make another assumption, what you¡¯ll learn includes the specific set of affixes I use. Is it locked to the type of material too?¡±

    ¡°No, as long as it works with patchwork.¡±

    ¡°Good. I don¡¯t want to use fur for all of them, but I will for mine. It could get complicated, but the affix lets me use certain types of nonmagical material. I can even combine a number up to my level, or the level of the item.¡± Padri stared at him again for a few moments. ¡°I didn¡¯t mention that the first time, did I?¡±

    ¡°What a ludicrous effect. I must experiment with it. You have considered the implications?¡±

    ¡°Combining material bonuses? Yeah, I¡¯m just waiting on a couple things to try it myself. Feathercut or whatever it¡¯s called.¡±

    ¡°Featherworked. At least, for the Craftsman modification,¡± Padri added distantly, clearly still thinking of the implications for his project. ¡°You should have mentioned this affix in the guild. Everyone would have wanted to work with you.¡±

    ¡°To steal it. But with you, you have as much of an interest in keeping it quiet, right?¡±

    Padri¡¯s eyes shifted back to a window, though he didn¡¯t find what he was looking for. ¡°For now. The enchanting, if you would?¡±

    Daniel sighed and settled in for what would be an awkward hour or two. He barely knew this Craftsman and wouldn¡¯t have a lot of time for small talk. One of the other reasons he was nervous about combining material was whether the added difficulty would throw him off. It wasn¡¯t worth disappointing his potential crafting partner to try it out now.

    He started the enchanting, and as soon as Padri laid a hand on the fur he felt the block that had prevented him from making the item before go away. While the mana dripped from him to the fur, Padri remained within two meters and kept his spectacles on at all times. From sideways glances, Daniel could tell the lenses could change by how the Craftsman¡¯s eyes appeared. Magnification function? He didn¡¯t ask, letting the man work. Something different happened when the material reached the point where he could begin to manifest the physical form.

    ¡°Hey, you¡¯re going to break my-¡°

    ¡°Let me work!¡± Padri¡¯s hands began to blur with motion and Daniel blinked, both due to the sudden shift and the pause in his mana flow. It was still locked in the enchanting pattern preventing him from doing anything else, but the weight he consistently carried had been lifted. The fur no longer required his direct attention, perhaps not even his direct presence, at least while Padri worked.

    The fur was shaped so fast it was like the Craftsman was molding it from clay rather than cutting and sewing. Sections of it began to shift as he did, thickening towards the base where the soles would be. The Craftsman only took a few minutes to Daniel¡¯s hour and when he was done, all Daniel had to do was invest the last of the mana. The assistance had completely negated the need to draw the item out.

    ¡°Finally,¡± Daniel sighed as he identified the item.

    <hr>

    Winged Boots (Item, Domain: Enchantment, Quality: Standard, Level: 2)

    A combination of Crafting and Enchanting talent enabling Flight in any Creature capable of wearing them. This formulae is collaborative in nature, requiring the input of multiple individuals in the proper sequence to construct.

    Added Affixes:

    - Patchwork

    - Self-repair

    Material Bonus: Use of Special Item: Gray Wastewolf Fur has imparted Ability: Dust Cloud to the wearer of the item. This ability has a one hour cooldown once used, and this cooldown is shared between any wearers of the Item during this period.

    <hr>

    ¡°We¡¯re taking a break,¡± Daniel declared as he picked up the boots. They were the same silvery gray as Khiat¡¯s armor. While they lacked obvious wings off the side, Padri had crafted flaps that swept off the front and grew wider as they went further up. He could barely contain his excitement as he pulled them on, and something in Padri¡¯s gaze told him the Craftsman understood. ¡°You can have these to experiment with. I¡¯ll look more into combining materials for my team before we do anything else. Uh, sorry, but these are going to be worn first.¡±

    ¡°I see. Meet me at the Hunter¡¯s Guild, one hour.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know if I can walk there in an hour,¡± Daniel said with a knowing smile.

    ¡°Then, do not.¡±

    ¡­

    Everyone in the house had come out to witness this, including Khiat who would probably go back to sleep soon after. Padri had flown off before they¡¯d gathered, but even Tlara was here in wyvern form. She¡¯d been staring at Daniel¡¯s boots, using the open-mouth ¡®look how big my teeth are¡¯ glare to stare at him. ¡°Is this you asking me to make you armor?¡± She just continued staring, though he was sure if they could communicate she would be calling him an idiot or something. ¡°Fine, I¡¯ll see what I can do. So much to enchant. You know I¡¯ve almost gotten to where I can walk in Beast Mode, right? We need to get back to hunting.¡±

    ¡°Those will let you fly?¡± Willow asked, bringing him back on topic.

    ¡°Yep! They, uh, should.¡± He looked over the edge of the landing platform attached to the balcony and had a flashback to the second floating island. ¡°The item description says it gives flight, and the Encyclopedia¡¯s never lied when it could give me information, so- aaaaaAAAA!¡±

    Tlara had pushed him in the back with her tail. He¡¯d seen it coming and had almost activated Dodge Roll in time before he realized the only place to roll to was forward. Graceful Fall was quickly heightened and he turned in the air to look up, seeing everyone looking back down as he fell. Tlara was grinning widely. I¡¯m going to make your armor itchy for this! Daniel thought vindictively, before something else caught up to him.

    He was flying. Kind of. As Evalyn had demonstrated with the original shoddy design, the propulsion of the winged boots was as if he had rockets strapped to his feet. Without his aerial power or enhanced dexterity it might have taken him too long to acclimate before he hit the part of the mountain a kilometer below that jutted out under his house. Once he consciously acknowledged what they could do, control became easier.

    Daniel spent a full ten minutes spiraling through the air, just enjoying the magic. An entire axis of movement he had been denied in one way or another was now fully open to him and he was in the best region possible to try it out. It was all sky, all freedom.

    He briefly returned to the house to flip Tlara off before making for the Hunter¡¯s Guild. All the while he summarized his more practical thoughts on the experience. The top speed isn¡¯t terrible. There¡¯s a penalty when going up. Slightly faster than running, but there¡¯s a problem. He tried, and failed, to activate both Jump and Dodge Roll. Both needed a surface to stand on, and if he declared the boots as said surface he would soon have a bigger issue. Flash Jaunt still worked, though it remained expensive. It did make him wonder how he¡¯d been able to activate Jump while Hunter¡¯d been in the air during the greater skink hunt. Had it been because his physical body had been on the ground? Something to test after we get Hunter back.

    There were other problems. Turning sucks. I can hover fine, but I only have limited control of my momentum and that¡¯s with Graceful Fall. Hopefully the lightning wings will compensate. As it was, he felt unbalanced and prone to twisting his body like a pretzel if he tried too daring a maneuver. And there¡¯s no way of telling how this will work with Beast Mode. Thank god I still have the same shoe size as a cat.

    The Hunter¡¯s Guild was fast approaching and Daniel was about to land when he randomly remembered something. Pulling out his phone, he mentally adjusted the volume to about 125% and played back one of the landing screeches he¡¯d heard others give. Not the one from the group that had fallen to the monster spawn, he would have removed that from his phone if he could.

    A few looked up at him and blinked in surprise, though Padri was leaning against a tree and waved slightly, just a brief raise and jostling of the hand. He decided to touch down near the avianoid and found this process to be another point of difficulty. I can¡¯t just cut out the boots or I¡¯ll crash land. This¡¯ll take some getting used t- oh shit!

    He tumbled slightly as he misjudged his first step onto the ground and ended up rolling into a fast recovery. As he continually reminded himself, someone without all his powers, such as his entire team, would have had a much rougher fall. As it was, he¡¯d unconsciously ejected his Focus as he opened his hands to catch himself, and the phone had landed on the dirt next to Padri.

    The Craftsman picked it up and dusted it off. For a moment Daniel worried the Craftsman would run off with it, but he quickly held it out instead. ¡°You will need to be careful. Lose this in the sky and you will need to remake it.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, that would suck. At least it can¡¯t break.¡±

    Padri gave him an odd look as Daniel accepted his Focus. ¡°Oh?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s got¡­¡± A strange sense filled Daniel at that moment. It was the same deja vu that told him he¡¯d found something related to the missing time, and it was strong enough that he felt he could leverage it. The change was the foreboding and the consequences of the last time he¡¯d successfully regained memories. He might not have pursued this thread here and now if it wasn¡¯t for Cloak¡¯s insistence that he do so.

    Daniel quickly took off the boots, giving them in trade for his Focus. ¡°Great work Padri. Look, I have to go. How should I get in touch with you when I¡¯m ready to make more?¡±

    ¡°The guild can contact me. I will also make it known when I require your aid. Please, tell me if you discover anything else novel.¡±

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Daniel said distractedly, looking for a place he could sit down and not be bothered. ¡°Looking forward to it.¡±

 Chapter 185: Under Construction

    Daniel stepped out of his room and into an aircraft hanger. After his initial gasp at the unexpectedly huge space outside of his room, he took in more detail and amended his statement. This was the kind of aircraft hangar the pope would build if the catholic church took over the world through the power of steroids and genetic engineering.

    The vaulted ceiling was far above his head, and without Quick Mind in the background, Daniel could only place it at over ten meters. The space was lit by candles half as tall as he was on sconces, and they appeared to be more of the self-lighting ones posted along unlit walls. With no lighters standing at attendance, it was an easy guess to make.

    There were benches too, cushions coming to just under his shoulders. It seemed as though everything besides the door he¡¯d just come through had been scaled up by a factor of two, making this space already impressive before the change.

    Then, there was the part of the hallway that was not hallway. Hammer stood in the center of the corridor with both hands outstretched, and he was back to being as tall as when he¡¯d appeared in Aughal. Twice as tall, at least, as him. A thought suddenly occurred to Daniel but was interrupted when Hammer looked back and smiled like a dad working on the car in the garage, only for his son to make an unexpected appearance. It seemed Daniel would at least be spared from holding a flashlight. I need to stop making dad analogies about Hammer or I¡¯m going to gaslight myself.

    ¡°Ah, I see you at least prefer the robes. Good! I can also allow your room to return to its section of the pavilion.¡± The smaller door, indeed half the size of one that suddenly appeared in front of Hammer, shot away down the side of the wall in the opposite direction.

    Wait, we¡¯re moving? Daniel was seized by a sense of vertigo as the candles, doors, and other furniture around him shifted at incredible speed before slowing to a just faster than running pace. He¡¯d remained on the carpet the whole time and hadn¡¯t gotten rugburn. Aside from yet another display of divine power, probably for his benefit, Daniel noticed the style of his surroundings had changed. They had the same basic structure of self-lightning candles and everything else, but instead of hammers everywhere there were scythes, black curtains shading almost all the light out of windows, and a decidedly goth take on divine supremacy.

    ¡°If you would like, I could at least return your full stature.¡± Hammer looked at him hopefully, nudging one of his palms upwards.

    ¡°I¡¯m good. Dad.¡± Thanks for asking this time at least. The hallway continued shifting like this was some kind of auto scroller and Daniel¡¯s background sense of curiosity overloaded. Hammer shrunk my entire room, with me in it, without me noticing, and is now writing this hallway into reality while doing something with transmutation to make it so that I don¡¯t have carpet burns as he drags me along with him. At this point, Daniel just accepted that if Hammer could make this stuff here, he could make anything anywhere.

    ¡°Very well. I had hoped giving you an aspect of my appearance would help shield you from what is to come, but I will respect your preference.¡± The doom and gloom ended around them as the hallway shrunk to half of its original width. The top half was replaced by either glass or just magic holding the same shape. Either way, it was translucent, and reinforced that Daniel was currently high in the sky. What¡¯s more, the structure was massive and formed in the rough shape of a circle.

    ¡°We¡¯re above Rikendia?¡± Daniel asked, wishing he could look down out of these windows, but he was stuck at toddler height.

    ¡°Yes. But that is not what we should speak on first, little one. We must discuss your class.¡± There was a frown in Hammer¡¯s voice that Daniel didn¡¯t care to make an analogy about, especially since he did not want the god dragging him through the megastructure they were creating to be mad. ¡°Do you know of what I speak?¡±

    ¡°Yes?¡± Daniel ventured though Hammer was keeping his face unreadable save for faint disappointment. ¡°One of the first things I learned in this world was that I was an Artificer. I came into it with the class.¡± Hammer sighed, and a little bit of that burst into a mixture of elements, including those Daniel couldn¡¯t guess at. One exploded like a miniature firework in a strange circular pattern, colors rapidly shifting. Is he losing control or is that just for effect? The miasma of elements didn¡¯t shoot off into the background, so at least Hammer was containing the cloud.

    ¡°A class foremost rooted in Star.¡± Hammer waved away the elements and turned back ahead while continuing to talk. ¡°Not to give the wrong impression, my child. We are allies and respect each other, in our own ways. Though it could also be said we are each other¡¯s opposites, balancing the Octyrrum upon that axis. For one like you to appear with his mark on you is disappointing.¡±

    The hallway widened again but did not take on a motif. It was plain white from floor to ceiling with outlines instead of any fixtures. Hammer seemed to sense Daniel¡¯s confusion and continued speaking unprompted, now with a more distant tone. ¡°Cloak. He always prefers to see to the details of his accommodations, I merely provide the space. Be wary of him, little one. His ways are circuitous. Despite his domain, he is adept at using the truth to lie. Though, he is in no way our foe.¡± Hammer snapped a finger and an ingot of metal, primarily blue but speckled with white and gold, appeared in the space next to Daniel and remained next to him on the ground despite the rest of the hallway still moving.

    This is going to give me vertigo at some point. Daniel assessed the magical metal and wished Analyze Material was working. ¡°This is for me?¡±

    ¡°Yes. Please, remake your Focus. I have repaired your mana structure and have, for the time being, sealed the functions of your Spoke. I apologize, but it is necessary until we conclude our meeting. I am only glad to see you have either not noticed, or are perfectly well despite this.¡± Hammer fell silent at that, continuing his sculpting of monochromatic reality while Daniel took the only vibrant color nearby into his hands.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

    My mana flow, he realized, tuning in on the movements of magical power within him. Daniel had yet to reach the proficiency everyone normally did with their seventh sense by level 2 and only now understood what Hammer had meant. While he couldn¡¯t freely manipulate the flow aside from using powers, Daniel had been able to sequester mana into the loop around his heart to reach Bridge Space. It was like using an ability backward, moving the mana first to trigger the power.

    That loop had been broken when Hunter died, along with almost every magical item he¡¯d been wearing. Even with time having grown confusing at best in the moments afterward, Daniel had keenly felt the loss along with his friend. That was also the moment both of his Foci broke. The loop was back, which must have been what Hammer had meant.

    The loop was shutting out my Spoke powers. Someone put it there to do just that. It wasn¡¯t that hard of a conclusion to draw. Daniel already suspected his Encyclopedia power had been designed partially to prevent him from developing his seventh sense, which in turn had delayed when he had been able to find Bridge Space and his other self on Earth. That an old man in robes with questionable views on consent had already adjusted his powers confirmed that something like this was possible long before Hammer had shown up.

    Daniel filed that away before it became something else put in front of getting Hunter back. Regaining his Focus? That was important enough to do now. The metal in his hands felt heavy, and he would have struggled to pick it up with one hand if not for the fact that he still had his attributes. Daniel was a balanced level 2 Blessed, not suffering from any level disparity. Strength was one of the first he¡¯d gotten above twenty and he had kind of forgotten how strong that had made him aside from one unfortunate curtain incident.

    The last time he¡¯d lost his Focus he¡¯d struggled to make the other one. Now, Daniel was very glad Hammer couldn¡¯t see into his head, or he¡¯d have set the god off. He centered his mind on his family, though instead of the picture he¡¯d used the last two times, he chose something else. Bridge Space had allowed him to have a face to face, so to speak, but it had also let him coerce his Earth self into showing him images of his current family. In his mind, he took those and added his last memory of his real father, along with the un-Hammered self he¡¯d seen in the mirror earlier. This kind of customization might have been possible the other time, but all Daniel had cared about was restoring his powers ahead of the lightning dragon fight.

    He had more ambitious goals now. This wasn¡¯t an image to represent the past, but the future he would work towards. Daniel was about to commit the image and create his Focus when he paused. His family was all there, but something was missing. It wasn¡¯t his clone, Daniel had no real desire to give his family a second set of twins. It was Hunter. He considered each and every one of his other friends and couldn¡¯t find the same feelings. Hunter though?

    I¡¯ll get you back, he thought. And if I ever find a way home, I¡¯ll take you with me. The metal shifted as he imparted his will, his memories, and his soul into it to create what so many people in this world mistook for a hand mirror. The case took most of its color inspiration from the metal, a sea of blue with white patterning like stars, a drop of gold in the center of each. The same color set as Hunter¡¯s fur, and the feathers he could no longer grow.

    <hr>

    Password?

    -

    Focus v2.0

    Use of exotic material has added additional benefits to your Feature: Focus Enhancement. These benefits will be lost if your Focus is remade with other material.

    ? Level: 10 durability

    ? ???

    <hr>

    Uh. Daniel honestly hadn¡¯t expected this degree of bonkers from the metal Hammer had given him, even if whatever special effect from the metal was disappointingly blocked. ¡°Hammer?¡± he asked, his voice going up an octave. ¡°Was that level 10 metal? How could I even touch it?¡±

    Hammer scowled as he turned around. ¡°Torch.¡± Daniel recovered from panic when he saw the god was looking at his new phone. ¡°Why do you hide this from my child? What do you think to keep from me, removing these records?¡± The movement in the hallway stopped and Hammer sat for a moment. Daniel just remained motionless, ready for the god of libraries to come crashing through the white walls and kick off a crusade. ¡°Hmm. We will discuss this later.¡± The hallway began to move before Hammer stood up. ¡°My child, I am sorry. Torch is protective of knowledge and as I have my domain, she has hers.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s ok.¡± Daniel tried to project confidence as if he had any control over the situation. ¡°But, what about the metal? I¡¯ve tried to hold heliorite before and I only managed it for seconds.¡±

    ¡°That was elemental essence,¡± Hammer explained, somewhat downcast. ¡°Specifically, the essence of you. It took some of my true power to create, but for you it is barely a thought. Levels are meaningless when it comes to what you are, or at least, they should be. I had hoped your unique nature would produce something truly impressive for my companions to see.¡± In what could only be described as a sheepish gaze to the side, Hammer laughed at himself. ¡°I might have overdone it.¡±

    ¡°So, you¡¯re fine with me having a class?¡± Daniel could have guessed that after being given what might be the highest level material he could dream of to make his Focus from, but at the same time, Hammer could get embarrassed and just melt it down. Reading the god was still difficult. Daniel had at least judged that Hammer wouldn¡¯t strike him down or make random changes so long as he played into the whole ¡®father-son¡¯ thing. ¡°Dad?¡± he added a few seconds later.

    ¡°It is what makes you special. One of many things. Spokes were not meant to be like man, and yet you appear as two in one, somehow. There is more, but since it is clear you are unaware of many things regarding your nature, I shouldn¡¯t provoke Torch further.¡±

    ¡°That makes sense. Something bad isn¡¯t going to happen if she does get angry, will it?¡±

    ¡°As I have said before, little one, there has not been one like you in the history of this world.¡± Hammer¡¯s voice grew possessive and worried in equal measure. ¡°Some may argue you should not have been in the first place.¡± Daniel wanted to object to that but the motion of the hallway stopped abruptly and he did get a little queasy, endurance finally failing him. The pure white space met with an already constructed corridor.

    ¡°It is done, and with little time to spare. Ah, but it is not my right to ask time to bend to my desires. Come, child, we must greet Torch. Do not fear her, but do not test her. Your fate will depend on the will of the majority, no matter how hard I protest against any action. If they wish it, you could be taken from me.¡± Hammer walked up to him in less than a second, cupping a hand against one of his cheeks. ¡°Please, little one. For the sake of your existence and my heart, this must not come to pass.¡±

 Chapter 186: Parts of a Whole

    ¡°Your spinal column has begun realigning, though I don¡¯t believe your nerves will be repaired tonight. Not in full.¡±

    ¡°Is Flash Heal losing strength from how much we¡¯re using it?¡±

    Quala gingerly replaced the stretch of cloth that was heavily washed every day and shook her head. ¡°No, not exactly. We are reaching the damage that my ability doesn¡¯t normally address. Those with broken backs can be stabilized, though it takes a general healer of at least level 5 to fully restore them with ease.¡±

    ¡°How long?¡±

    ¡°A week.¡± Daniel sighed in relief, the noise deeper than normal. He stretched both of his clawed hands in front of him, glad that at least both arms were working now.

    ¡°I flew today. It needs more work, but I flew.¡± He breathed deeply a few times, trying to corner the rage inside of him and cage it. ¡°I saw more memories of Hammer.¡±

    The continued quandary Quala faced with this topic didn¡¯t escape him as she bought a few moments looking into the journal she¡¯d recorded his recovery in. He was sure these notes would be going into some theory regarding how other powers affected the healing rate but right now he didn¡¯t care. ¡°Have these changed your perspective?¡±

    ¡°Not really. He¡¯s an asshole. Maybe a lonely asshole. He warned me about Cloak, by the way.¡± He held her gaze for a few moments to drive the ¡®I told you so¡¯ home. ¡°Thinking about how easily he just rode over me, it, it¡­¡± He clenched his hands hard for a moment, breathing becoming forced before it evened back out. Quala didn¡¯t look alarmed at this, though then again there was little he could do in this state. ¡°I think it¡¯s good. He gave me something I can kill with.¡±

    ¡°And have you talked with the rest of your team about your rage power?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Daniel passed an eye over the room. ¡°I don¡¯t get it. Spending so much time in here. Out there, there¡¯s so much space. I could go anywhere.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re avoiding the question.¡±

    ¡°I, I know. I could be dangerous to them. They should know the risks,¡± he said tiredly, as if having already repeated the words a hundred times over. ¡°They already know the basics.¡±

    ¡°Do you remember why you didn¡¯t approach Claire after Roost¡¯s Peak?¡± Daniel glared at the Cleric as she poked a wound deeper than the one in his back. ¡°You shouldn¡¯t let doubt or uncertainty prevent you from communicating. Oftentimes we make situations out to be worse than they actually are, but that doesn¡¯t excuse us from doing right by other people.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to scare them.¡± All traces of the rage within him fled as he dipped his head, the tips of his fangs dipping into the mattress. ¡°I don¡¯t know if I can trust myself like this. I know I¡¯m the same person, but there are still¡­ differences. If I can¡¯t, they can¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°This may not be what you want to hear, but if you can¡¯t trust this form, don¡¯t use it until you can. Until they can.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m stronger like this. Too many useless powers for combat as an Artificer.¡±

    She leaned forward in her seat, speaking deliberately. ¡°Are you stronger alone than you are with them?¡±

    He wanted to say yes. Based purely on killing potential he could outmatch anyone here, except for Tlara who was cheating and not really on the team. But that wasn¡¯t the point. ¡°I¡¯m stronger with them.¡±

    ¡°You are the one who has chosen this path. You are the one who wants to be on a team,¡± she reminded him. ¡°You can¡¯t have it both ways. This divide between man and beast within you can¡¯t be sustained as it is. You must either let it grow to the point where you are different people and sever the halves, let one triumph, or compromise to find a middle ground. For your soul¡¯s sake, if nothing else. And remember, always, that the leader of a team is still part of the team.¡± Daniel laughed weakly at that. ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not the leader, I¡¯m just filling in for her.¡± Ultimately, he was glad Quala put up with him. The past couple of weeks here had been crucial in allowing him to reign in the rage Hammer had awakened, and she was moving to other areas he needed to improve. ¡°I¡¯ll talk to them tomorrow. I¡¯ll be busy, but I¡¯ll do it.¡± Quala nodded in approval, and it seemed that was as far as she¡¯d wanted to go tonight.

    As she left, the noise from her footsteps quickly fading thanks to Padri¡¯s power still being active on the room until the next dawn, Daniel¡¯s cat eyes inspected the bundle of items on his workbench. After calming down from the vision this morning, he¡¯d decided to pursue the feathercut affix since that was the only thing standing in his way from putting all the pieces together for flight.

    He¡¯d ended up trading with another level 2 Artificer, an avianoid who¡¯d followed Arpan¡¯s path of pure enchanting. The deal had ended up involving much more than just the affix he was after since the unique lightning bolt and spineshard formulae he¡¯d traded had given him a lot of leverage. Combined with the material he requested through Temir, he even had a way to scratch off the last item on his list.

    But that was for when he was back to being a human. Beast Mode had come off cooldown, though he still spent as much of every night as he could in this form to get the mana burn effect of Regeneration. Rather than fall asleep immediately, he called out to the window. ¡°Tlara.¡±

    The head of the wyvern appeared as the house creaked slightly. She could put her wings up and stand without completely toppling the structure. He knew this because she enjoyed waking him up by barking through a window. The single eye that faced him took in his changed form and didn¡¯t blink.

    ¡°We¡¯re getting close to going back out for hunts. We need to get stronger if we¡¯re going to go to these ruins, level 3 if we can. Willow wants to come and if your bond works how it seems, that¡¯s fine. I¡¯m glad. Let¡¯s just get one thing straight.¡± He bared his teeth for a moment and caught Tlara mid eye roll with the growl he added to his voice. ¡°If you try to fuck us up or bail like you¡¯ve done so many times, I will murder you and not care one bit. You¡¯ll come back, you¡¯ll just lose that ¡®tool¡¯ of yours. I made a promise to Quala and I¡¯m fulfilling part of it now. I¡¯ve got a rage power, and I¡¯ve already killed one level 3 with it. It¡¯s what got me here, sure, but I learn from my mistakes. Learn from yours, or I¡¯m going to make you.¡±

    Lightning crackled across the scales of her borrowed form for a moment, and then the head slowly retracted.

    ¡­

    ¡°So, I don¡¯t think I should use Beast Mode, at least for the first hunt. Quala¡¯s been helping but in the heat of the moment the anger can get to me. Right now I have a clear head, but once I change it¡¯s like I¡¯m constantly slipping down a slope towards losing it,¡± Daniel said to those on the bottom floor of the house, the barest scraps of sunlight coming through. He¡¯d still wanted to put this off, but Quala had been right. Also, the timing was convenient as Khiat was about to go to sleep.

    Khare and Willow were also in the room, but Thomas wasn¡¯t. The Cleric had been growing more distant as he continued to help with his church. Daniel felt a moment of sadness for that, but he¡¯d made his choice clear before they¡¯d left the Thormundz. He was sure they¡¯d see more of each other once Silora¡¯s Focus Chamber was finished and the Fate started scanning for his missing friends.This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    ¡°I guess I¡¯m bringing this up now because we¡¯re getting close to getting back out there,¡± he said when no one else immediately commented. ¡°I¡¯ve got what I need to get us flying, and for me to make a new crossbow. I just want to make sure everyone¡¯s feeling alright with everything. I know what happened with the monster spawning thing was¡­¡±

    ¡°Those people, it¡¯s so horrible,¡± Khiat murmured. ¡°Is there anything we can do to stop that?¡±

    ¡°Kind of?¡± The only way he could think of to revert the Collapse conditions would be to allow the gods to regain control of the Octyrrum. Since Cloak was so insistent on him getting to those ruins, and hunting would help get them there, ¡°Yes, but we need to be stronger for it. The best we can do now is get stronger. It won¡¯t stop the spawns, but every monster we take out is one that won¡¯t find its way to Aurus.¡±

    ¡°Weapons.¡±

    ¡°I think what I¡¯m going to make myself is going to be too big for you Khare, but I¡¯ll look into something smaller. I can enchant a new bow for Khiat, but don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll just copy what you have now since you¡¯re so used to it.¡± He looked to Willow then and she shifted.

    ¡°My wisdom and charisma are at nine. I, I could do it today.¡±

    ¡°We still have time. I¡¯ll be busy making sets of wings and boots as well as my weapon for at least a few days, longer if Padri stiffs me on his end. It¡¯s a big step, but we¡¯ll be here for you. Especially Tlara.¡± He looked to the side and couldn¡¯t see her through any of the windows, which was ominous. She hadn¡¯t done anything too out there, but she had to be getting restless. The demented Beastmaster had never been the most sociable, but her getting her real body back was trapped behind the same nebulous promises of the ruins as his ambitions were. Plus, hunting meant having the opportunity to get more bodies for her to try out and she took to the flying kind far better than horrific spiders.

    ¡°I¡¯ll take a few more days then. I¡¯ve been talking to people, praying, thinking about it.¡± She pecked at some of the breakfast bread idly. ¡°Thomas hasn¡¯t heard of anyone getting odd classes yet, but it does sound like people who¡¯ve hit walls are breaking through. Part of me wants to wait until someone else awakens one¡­ but I¡¯m going through with this. I¡¯ll keep advancing my other attributes until then, but I won¡¯t get anything else over 8. Does the end of the week sound fine?¡±

    ¡°Yeah! Actually, it¡¯d help if you cleared your level disparity as soon as you could after getting your class. It sucks.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m glad I don¡¯t have to worry about that,¡± Khiat murmured, increasingly sleepy.

    Khare let out a creaking sound that was their version of a grumble. The gestalt had shared their attributes with him at some point and Daniel knew Khare¡¯s mental stats had been fairly low when they¡¯d leveled, meaning they had a long way to go to get to his balanced state. Given how Kob¡¯s array had ended up he was sure the berserker had given Khare some advice about how to manage their attributes but hadn¡¯t been able to stick around to tell them how to handle it at this part.

    Easy solution though, kill more monsters. ¡°Alright, I need to get enchanting. I still owe Temir a good deal of bags for the supplies he advanced me too, so, yeah. Probably not going to let us into the guild until that¡¯s tidied up. Everyone good?¡±

    Khiat lazily nodded and headed for her section while Willow wrapped some food for herself. ¡°I¡¯m going flying with Tlara. We¡¯ll need to stay close to each other when we hunt and I¡¯ll need to get used to it when she¡¯s moving fast. Honestly, she still needs to get used to flying in that body too.¡±

    ¡°Alright, but be careful. Tlara should know if a monster spawn¡¯s dropping on you. If she suddenly dives or something and you don¡¯t know why, that¡¯s probably it.¡±

    ¡°Got it.¡± She opened the door and ask she did, Khare shot him in the face with one of the bone marbles. Sighing, Daniel began to rethink giving the Martialist hand cannons.

    ¡­

    Back in his room, Daniel opened a bag of holding, frowned as he realized it was the wrong one, and then withdrew the contents of the one he¡¯d received yesterday. This is starting to feel like I¡¯ve got a giant trading card collection or something. I need to label these.

    From the list of available materials Temir had given him, he¡¯d opted for four. Two were crucial for finishing the flight preparations and the others were needed for his new weapon. Daniel spoke under his breath as he pulled out each one, having already read their descriptions.

    ¡°Tempestfowl Elemental feathers, weight reduction effect with use in armor or worn items. Level 3.¡± They were a very light shade of green, different from Quala¡¯s darker primary color. The feathers themselves were grouped into a pouch as they were too loose to store individually. While a higher level material, the thing they came from was big and he¡¯d been able to get a sizable quantity.

    ¡°Arrakan moth fur, more distasteful than I¡¯d think. Makes things cling on mental command like really strong velcro. Level 2.¡± The sections of fuzz that could loosely be called fur were indeed itchy. The Craftsmen had been able to get the grittiness out of the wastewolf fur, but this was another story. Still, it would be crucial for the gear of one party member in particular.

    ¡°Hammerite, level 3. Malleability.¡± He looked distastefully at the couple of ingots of red metal. With all of his affixes that allowed the use of monster parts, he¡¯d forgotten he could use naturally magical materials too. Doing so would free up an affix spot, though for most of what he was going to use this for he¡¯d still need Patchwork. The level 3 material was certainly expensive but it was the only level the material came in, and that was true for the last special material he¡¯d requested as well.

    ¡°Andorite, level 2. Durability improvement.¡± Even though this was a level lower than the Hammerite, it had cost him more in the bargaining process because the source had been Roost¡¯s Peak. He recalled it being used as the bait to entice Lograve¡¯s team into the trap Ashier had set for them through the influenced fort¡¯s headwoman. Considering Threst had sponsored the entire mine, it wasn¡¯t a surprise they still had some left months after the Thormundz had fallen.

    The Andorite was absolutely crucial for what he wanted to do, but its scarcity and it being level 2 was a problem. He put the gray-blue metal back in the bag, knowing he¡¯d have more work to do before he¡¯d attempt to use it. Instead, he brought wastewolf fur and some of the feathers together into a pile and prepared himself for a difficult enchant.

    Interestingly, he¡¯d become able to prep his part of the winged boots after working with Padri. His Focus hadn¡¯t explained this, but he guessed he¡¯d needed to have someone in mind to finish the project before he could truly start. Whether this meant no other Craftsman could do the job he didn¡¯t know, and didn¡¯t want to find out.

    The feathers along with the fur were plentiful, so he could fail with these. And he would. Combining the feathers and fur with patchwork was another difficulty step up, both because of the second material and, as far as he could tell, the level of material provided was averaged between the two. Still, it was worth it, both because of the practice he¡¯d get and the improvement to speed reducing his weight would bring. Khiat wouldn¡¯t be able to fly at all without that benefit.

    His morning was spent failing three times, getting closest to success on the second try while during the third he was burned out and couldn¡¯t do it. Daniel smiled as the third try faded into dust, though. He was getting better. Mana control, as he suspected, was crucial for this. He could train his seventh sense just through enchanting, though he didn¡¯t begrudge his earlier methods for multiple reasons.

    Daniel started to head downstairs to get lunch and recharge when he paused and looked for Khare¡¯s aura. The gestalt had taken more and more to ¡®training¡¯, mostly because Daniel hadn¡¯t discouraged them. It was improving his general awareness, aided by Hunter¡¯s Keen Senses, but he should reign it in some. Khare wasn¡¯t lying in wait, though they were doing¡­ something. Daniel closed his eyes and focused on his hearing, barely picking out another creature near the gestalt.

    <hr>

    Jhoven (Gestalt: Earth)

    <hr>

    A friend? Huh. The two gestalt were in Khare¡¯s room and Daniel didn¡¯t feel like intruding, so he just made his meal as quietly as he could. Despite his gains from the Artificer trade, he¡¯d struck out when it came to Muffle Sound.

    As Daniel was eating, he couldn¡¯t help but notice the other gestalt slip along the side of the house as it left, avoiding every window as it did. The subterfuge was strange since someone his level would have normally been able to sense this, even without Hunter¡¯s power. Daniel had been enchanting though, tuning out the outside world. He almost went up to ask, or to just mark Jhoven so Khare would know he¡¯d seen, but then he thought about Khiat.

    Khare probably told them to avoid the common room to not disturb her, he thought, putting the matter aside. I¡¯ll ask them later. Sighing a little, Daniel stood up and prepared to get back at it. It felt like he was about to fight a boss he¡¯d already died to fifty times, but he¡¯d get through it. Being able to fly was worth it, and even if it wasn¡¯t, he needed to do this. For Hunter.

 Chapter 187: Astral Awakening

    ¡°Close,¡± Hunter said to Grave as they moved across the endless reflective glass towards the closer of the two bonds he still felt. The thing had become slightly more defined after remembering its name, gaining a neck and general head shape as well as more defined limbs, though it was still broken. Still healing.

    Grave occasionally brought out the spirit they¡¯d rescued to ¡®soothe¡¯ during the journey, able to do so while moving thanks to how this place worked. It had been doing this more and more as they got closer and Hunter couldn¡¯t shake the feeling it was preparing the spirit for something. If Grave had given him any reason to mistrust it he would have asked, but by now Hunter had realized that directly addressing when Grave was half-remembering something would make the thing forget most of the time. Better to let it do¡­ whatever it was it was doing and watch closely when the moment came.

    More and more translucent creatures were populating this space. One briefly flicked into existence as it got close enough but it soon fled before Hunter could get a good look at it. It seemed he was stronger than most things here because he had ¡®six¡¯. The kind of thing that had tried to eat the spirit could be on par with him, or stronger, but as he¡¯d proven to the wolves he was above anything tied to a monster on the other side.

    At least it broke up the monotony whenever something did try to attack him. Once he rejoined Daniel, he¡¯d make sure nothing like them would bother his friend. To a point. A faint bit of amusement colored Hunter as he thought, Daniel does need to get stronger. Shouldn¡¯t make things too easy for him.

    ¡­

    Three weeks after he¡¯d arrived in Aurus, he had working pairs of wings and boots for the entire team. It seemed odd how fast the time had passed since he¡¯d almost entirely spent it either working on his enchanting or sitting around in cat form waiting for his body to heal. On the latter note, he could feel his legs again and the wound in his back was healed. All that was left was for the nerves to fully regenerate, and then his healing speed would go back to normal.

    The sole exceptions were very brief visits to the Craftsmen facility to farm formulae and a rare few times he¡¯d looked into how Thomas was doing as a break from hitting his head against a wall. He¡¯d had to do that a few times while trying to make Khiat¡¯s wings. He¡¯d even seen Sigron briefly. Someone who didn¡¯t know better had commented it was the worst combined case of infection, amputation, and corrosion they¡¯d seen but that he was on his way to making a full recovery.

    As for the others, he hadn¡¯t seen Murdon or Silora since the Regent had gone over the plan for the ruins. For one heart-stopping moment he¡¯d even remembered that Claire had originally gone to this region, but something had happened with her and she wasn¡¯t in town. Thank god.

    All in all, despite having friendship as an archetype, he made little strides in meeting anyone new. Padri was the exception, though he was less talkative and only came by on boot business. Whatever he was trying to do would take a while and was intense enough that he had followed through on breaking ties with the Hunter¡¯s Guild.

    Willow and Thomas had been far more sociable, and Daniel would bet she knew the name of everyone in their neighborhood. Khare had a few more covert meetings when they thought no one was watching which left Daniel in a bit of an awkward position. Since none of the gestalt Khare met were leveled and he was trying his best to improve their bond, he felt broaching that subject would come off as a betrayal of trust. Khare could have a private life and he¡¯d wait for the opportunity to discuss the covert visitors to naturally come up.

    That left Khiat. Well, her and Tlara, but Daniel didn¡¯t think the possessed wyvern was worth mentioning as he thought back to his time here thus far. She¡¯d done¡­ fine, though he wondered if it was truly in the right way. He¡¯d heard she¡¯d gotten a lot of attention, sure, but he was worried it was as an oddity more than anything else. The reputation of Threst was more than just a rumor as evidenced by every glare he got when flying above crowds of unBlessed avianoids. It was more than jealousy in some of their looks, it was like he¡¯d stolen something that was supposed to belong to them.

    That didn¡¯t matter. None of that mattered, because today Willow got her class. It was eerily similar to when he¡¯d watched Khiat, though the audience was smaller. Cloak was lurking around and they¡¯d talk if necessary. He was another figure Daniel had seen little of, only dropping in to confirm he hadn¡¯t unlocked more memories before leaving without entertaining any questions. What the god was doing with all his time remained to be seen, but neither he nor Thomas had heard any rumors indicating people were onto Cloak¡¯s presence.

    They were on the balcony now, the landing platform that allowed flying individuals to take off without hopping the banister. This could have been done indoors, but Willow had wanted to be with her sister when it happened despite their history. Several others watched from the houses above and below them, people the avianoid had no doubt made friends with. Willow had a very welcoming personality, and if this was going to go the way both he and Cloak wanted it to, she¡¯d have to avoid the friendship archetype.

    He repeated the six that would match her and Spirit Guardian like a mantra, giving the Spoke inside him no doubt of his wishes in case that would change anything. Spirit, Astral, Protection, Life, Light, Avianoid. That last one was Cloak¡¯s suggestion so nothing would be thrown off power-wise. He¡¯d still made Willow a set of flying gear since Grow Wings didn¡¯t allow free flying at level 1, but neither did he want to deprive her of her racial powers or invite what happened to Khiat to strike again. Cloak had also stressed that it was extremely unlikely they could repeat what they¡¯d done to free Khiat during their initial chat on the subject.

    ¡°How does this work?¡± Willow asked Khiat, the only person whose advice she could seek out as she settled into a sitting position. Daniel hadn¡¯t gone through this process, and the other two weren¡¯t in a position to wax poetically.

    ¡°It¡¯s like advancing, but you have to find things that connect with you,¡± the dusker replied after a moment¡¯s pause. ¡°They have to be connected with the attribute you¡¯re advancing, too. Once you have six, you¡¯re done.¡± There was a bit of pain in her voice for a moment and Daniel knew she was thinking about her former class.

    Willow nodded in thanks and began to close her eyes before her head turned sharply. ¡°They¡¯re back?¡± She tracked something only she could see, thanks to her bond with Tlara. Her sister tried making sense of what was going on but Daniel could tell whatever effect this was only worked one way. ¡°It¡¯s him, and two others.¡±

    ¡°Hunter¡¯s back? And two?¡±

    ¡°One¡¯s the same as before, but brighter. More defined. The other is¡­ it¡¯s hard to describe. Different, but also not like what those wolves had.¡± She reached out into the air before closing the hand and sighing. ¡°Still nothing. I can touch Tlara¡¯s soul, but that¡¯s it. Maybe my class will change things.¡±

    ¡°That could be why they¡¯re here.¡± Daniel felt the anticipation in his chest. Cloak had told him Willow couldn¡¯t gain anything from Spirit Guardian at level 1 to revive or even speak to Hunter, but that didn¡¯t account for his Spoke¡¯s influence. ¡°You¡¯re still good with doing this now?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve made up my mind.¡± As Willow spoke, Daniel could see the similarities to her sister that were often overshadowed by how they were different. Willow was empathetic and outgoing, but she was also determined and self-assured. Casia had used this to manipulate her, but now that the truth was revealed Willow was directing that energy into truly making a better future. ¡°If the Collapse is bringing this Astral realm back into the Octyrrum, we¡¯ll need to understand it. It could be the key to everything I¡¯ve been trying to do. You know, it¡¯d occurred to me that if my father had never wanted me to replace him on the Council or as head of the family, it¡¯d been a mistake not to allow me to level. I suppose he thought I¡¯d have hit a wall anyway, or just wanted to make sure I could keep using my protective items. Now I see it was a blessing so that I could pursue my true calling.¡± Willow stood, reaching again to the air and the lights only she could see, across an ocean both vast and paper thin. ¡°I will seek out those in need. I will build the bridge between our kind.¡±

    Daniel started to get an uneasy feeling. She¡¯s starting to sound like me when I took my oath bond. ¡°Cloak, is this ok?¡± he whispered. No answer came in time.

    ¡°I am not enough to save the Octyrrum alone, but an idea? We only have to look at you to see the fruits of it.¡± She nodded at Daniel who was doing his best to keep his frantic attempts to reach the god quiet. ¡°The Spiritualists, my mother, they had something that gave them power, but it had a cost. This, I won¡¯t use this for myself. If I have to hurt others, I will. I know there are times you can¡¯t avoid it, but if there is another way, I will find it.¡±

    Daniel was beginning to consider interfering despite the lack of guidance. Is my Spoke doing something, or is she making a new bond? Neither option is bad on its own and bonds can break system rules, but if she ends up with a one-sided bond like me... ¡°Cloak?¡± he whispered, and he finally picked out the god rushing from further up the neighborhood. He must have been camping out invisibly while keeping his distance.

    ¡°I will no longer be blind, to myself, to the world, or to those who need me the most. No matter who or what they are.¡±

    ¡­

    On the other side of the divide, Hunter saw Grave nod happily. ¡°Good, this is good. She is perfect. Right time and right place. Right person. I think she will take care of you well.¡±This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.

    ¡°Me?¡± Hunter asked, confused.

    ¡°Oh?¡± Patches of Grave¡¯s form around where the eyes would be winked out rapidly as if it were blinking at him. ¡°Oh, thank you. I almost forgot.¡± It brought out the captured spirit in one hand, the other shifting to form a fist over it. A very small amount of nebulous material making up Grave floated down and spread out to coat the spirit, surrounding but not intruding on it. Like Daniel, Hunter grew wary at this but didn¡¯t interfere as Grave reached out with the spirit.

    ¡­

    Willow gasped and collapsed to one knee, the tag on her vanishing. He hurriedly reapplied it.

    <hr>

    Willow (Avianoid, Spirit Master - 1)

    <hr>

    Cloak had read the same thing via her mana flow judging by his widening eyes. That the god recognized the class was mixed news. He mouthed ¡®later¡¯ to Daniel and vanished, leaving the Artificer to wonder if his Spoke had just screwed over someone else. It had to have done something since Willow had instantly gained her class.

    Tlara nudged her sister with her nostrils as she continued to breathe heavily. They¡¯d figured out Willow could pass along any damage she took to the monster Tlara was inhabiting after an incident with a bread knife, though only within a certain range. There¡¯d been a question on whether this would work with things like poison or massive injury, but he had a suspicion something else had happened.

    ¡°Willow, can you share your attributes with me?¡± They appeared a moment later in the tag as she obliged him.

    <hr>

    Attributes:

    ?  Strength: 7

    ? Dexterity: 8

    ? Endurance: 4

    ? Wisdom: 10

    ? Intelligence: 8

    ? Charisma: 9

    <hr>

    ¡°Your endurance got halved,¡± he explained as Willow¡¯s breath stabilized, though she didn¡¯t immediately stand back up.

    ¡°But I didn¡¯t¡­ what did I do wrong? I haven¡¯t started yet.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s better you figure it out for yourself.¡± He tried to screen the trepidation from his voice. What¡¯s done was done, and they¡¯d deal with the consequences.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± A soft glow issued from the hand she¡¯d kept close to her chest the entire time and Daniel just pointed. He had no idea what this was, other than a power. ¡°Gods. My class?¡± She opened her hand to reveal a small ball of light that drifted in the air on its own. It melded back into her in the next moment. He watched her tag carefully just in case any effects popped up, but nothing happened.

    ¡°After what happened with Khiat, I don¡¯t want to identify anything for you.¡± He put a hand on one of her shoulders as the dusker put the pieces together herself and exclaimed something in the background. ¡°Take some time to figure it out. If you get stuck, ask me and I can identify your power, but don¡¯t do it unless you need me to. ¡°

    ¡°You got your class!¡± Khiat shouted again, alerting the neighborhood and anyone else in half a kilometer. ¡°Why was it so fast?¡±

    Daniel continued to pretend to be at ease. ¡°The Collapse, maybe. The new classes could work slightly differently, but don¡¯t be worried. I¡¯m happy for you, Willow.¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°What the fuck happened?¡± Daniel asked later that night, glaring at Cloak with eyes that cut through the darkness. The god had made him wait long enough that he¡¯d had his nightly visit from Quala, who¡¯d determined her healing magic wouldn¡¯t do anything else for him at this point. He was so close and could walk now, if slowly. Not all the muscles in his legs responded right, so he was sitting when Cloak entered.

    The god was shaken. His body looked thinner than it had, the robes stained, but it was the rapid heartbeat he could faintly hear that gave away his condition the most. Cloak was afraid. ¡°You are, uhm, recovering well.¡±

    ¡°Not fast enough,¡± Daniel bit off, tail lashing. ¡°Spirit Guardian. That was her class. Double advancement to wisdom, advancement penalty to dexterity. If I¡¯d known her endurance would get cut in half I¡¯d have suggested she hold off on advancing other attributes, and that doesn¡¯t get into what happened with her instantly awakening her class!¡±

    ¡°Not instantly.¡± There was a weariness to the god as well as he sat on Daniel¡¯s bed, heedless of the indiscretion. He looked like he¡¯d just walked into town after being lost in the woods for a month. ¡°She should have gotten Spirit Guardian. Accounting for every possible choice, that was the most likely given our preparations.¡±

    ¡°The Spoke did this,¡± Daniel surmised, hating the thing inside him he couldn¡¯t claw out.

    ¡°No. Spirit Master is¡­ it is a rare class. But it shouldn¡¯t have been eligible for assignment here because of the regional quota. Another time.¡± Cloak waved away that topic and returned to the point. ¡°It should have been impossible for her to get this class. This can only mean one thing.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t care about that,¡± Daniel said, knowing this conversation would have gone down a different track if he¡¯d been human right now. ¡°What does this mean for Willow?¡±

    ¡°For her?¡± Cloak laughed weakly. ¡°I suppose it¡¯s a good thing. It might help strengthen her bond given the dynamic involved. She¡¯ll have access to some unique powers. But it¡¯s¡­ it could be very bad for everyone. I¡¯m honestly struggling to grasp the implications.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡± He stared down the god who fell backward onto his bed.

    ¡°Someone said part of his name, but nothing else,¡± he murmured to himself, Daniel¡¯s keen hearing picking it up. The god was tired enough to let some things slip, the weaker attributes of his host finally getting to him, but that was the only one done unintentionally. ¡°Alright,¡± he said, scooting backward to rest against the wall while on the mattress. ¡°There¡¯s someone I believed to be dead who must be responsible for this. Only a certain group of individuals can allow people to ignore class requirements. If he¡¯s somehow still alive, or at least active¡­ I still need to think that through.¡±

    Daniel figured out what Cloak was implying quickly, though perhaps not as fast as he would¡¯ve as an Artificer. ¡°You¡¯re talking about another god? Like the monster gods?¡±

    ¡°No. The god responsible for the Astral domain. I¡¯m glad we can discuss at least that far, but this did come up in another way during that week.¡± Cloak¡¯s gaze fell upon the workbench and the project Daniel had been killing himself trying to complete, but he didn¡¯t comment on it. ¡°This could be a good sign. If he is still in the Astral, that would give us someone else to help regain control of the Octyrrum at least.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s who Willow¡¯s seeing with Hunter, isn¡¯t it?¡± Daniel stood and cursed his weak body for every slow step he had to take towards Cloak. ¡°If he¡¯s in danger-¡°

    ¡°I would have no way of knowing or any means to intervene if I did,¡± Cloak replied sharply, some of his earlier strength returning. ¡°I know you are concerned for your friend¡¯s soul. If any semblance of the god I knew remains he would protect your friend. Of all of us, he cared the most for spirits and¡­ regretted why they are what they are. Something that strays too close to the Astral to speak on. However, in the spirit of trust,¡± he said, stressing those words, ¡°I¡¯ll tell you he fell in the Crest.¡±

    ¡°I need to get Hunter back now.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s nothing you can do,¡± Cloak responded tiredly as Daniel started to amble towards the stairs.

    ¡°I¡¯ll tell Willow to get him out of the Astral like she did that ball!¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s a Spirit Master, not a soul master.¡± Cloak stood and grabbed Daniel to stop him, not shying away when he growled. ¡°The fact that G-,¡± he almost said a name and then stopped himself. ¡°That the Astral god could award the Spirit Master class means there is part of them still in there. Think of it this way, your friend has a powerful ally who, depending on their status, can control the Astral as finely as I do illusions.¡±

    ¡°So gods can die?¡± Daniel asked, Cloak not missing the hint of murder in his voice.

    ¡°We try not to. Without a god to control the domain they are associated with, we have to restrict it from the Octyrrum entirely or else we can¡¯t control it. That¡¯s why Astral classes and powers were locked and all information on them burned out of society.¡±

    ¡°The Origin Beasts can die?¡± This time, the question sounded like a compromise.

    ¡°They can, though when the Collapse came we had to isolate ourselves and force them into hibernation. It was far too risky to engage them. Individually, they are all stronger than we are together.¡±

    ¡°They killed the Astral god?¡±

    ¡°Yes. He died toward the beginning of it and it should have never happened. He was¡­ he was the best of us.¡± There was something there in the words, aside from old grief. Daniel didn¡¯t think Cloak was lying, as far as he could tell. Not directly. It was as if there was something important he was omitting, like everything on the Astral. Something that touched on a topic they¡¯d destroy regions over in the old days. His mind flicked to how the Octyrrum had been named, and the fact that as far as society knew there had only been seven Realms both before and after the first Collapse.

    A suspicion began to form in his mind, though he decided to change the topic. ¡°Where have you been?¡±

    ¡°Listening. Gathering information. Trying to scrape by without getting caught. I know you¡¯re going hunting soon and I¡¯ve been keeping an eye on how the local teams are faring. ¡° He leveled a hand upwards and a projection of a fire ludegrund flicked into being. ¡°You already know new monster variants are appearing. Something else is going on too. I think the monster system is infiltrating the Octyrrum faster than I anticipated. It could be the nearby god and a local effect, or Spiritualists committing more sabotage. I¡¯d have no way of knowing.¡±

    ¡°You said we had decades.¡±

    ¡°Until their gods take the entire world! This is relatively minor. When the Octyrrum functioned properly it restricted monster spawns to only certain types that maximized advancement potential gain while minimizing losses in every level category. While the Collapse has altered this, this system infiltration will do something else in ways I can¡¯t fully predict. What I can say is it sounds like there are odd monsters being sighted, those that show unnatural skill or power even within an aberrant variant.¡±

    ¡°Sounds like hunts are going to be challenging again,¡± Daniel said, concern for his teammates mixed with some excitement. He was already looking forward to flying onto something and tearing into it with his claws. ¡°Almost feels like you¡¯re telling me monsters will start gaining classes.¡±

    ¡°It may be something similar, but it will be under a different system. The mechanisms behind it will be alien to ours. The point is to be careful. You almost already died rushing into an unexpected fight and in hindsight that monster might have been enhanced.¡± He gestured with a hand to the workbench where the long weapon sat waiting for the last part needed to complete it. ¡°Hopefully, whatever that thing is will even the odds.¡±

    Daniel grunted in agreement. He was slightly more disdainful of ranged weapons in this form since they didn¡¯t work as well with his powers. He could be convinced to throw blast marbles and maybe fire a crossbow but forget a bow. His claws would cut the bowstring anyway. No, this was the superior melee form he¡¯d switch into after his Artificer class got a few ranged hits in. However, this weapon he was working on might just balance his two halves, so long as he could finish it.

    Who knew magic guns were this hard to make?

 Chapter 188: Blast Bow

    ¡°Today. Today, I¡¯m finishing this fucking thing.¡± Daniel stared at the workbench in frustration. He¡¯d gotten almost everything done, but there was one part that was far harder than the rest and worse, required both of his most precious materials.

    His earlier problems with trying to make some kind of gun-based weapon had been resolved by a change in perspective. He¡¯d been trying too hard to find physical workarounds for his lack of knowledge when magic could provide the answer.

    The barrel of the weapon, for example, could use rifling to help the projectile spin and gain accuracy and range. Alternatively, he could use the far-shot bow formulae he¡¯d picked up in another trade and just make a smooth tube. Technically this worked as while ammunition could only benefit from the enchantment of one ranged weapon when fired, nothing else on what he¡¯d taken to calling a blast bow had a conflicting enchantment.

    That had been difficult but not impossible to make, since he¡¯d combined both hammerite and wolf bone for the barrel. In hindsight it seemed the second material didn¡¯t add anything, suggesting the bone¡¯s material bonus effect didn¡¯t universally apply depending on what you used it with. Still, he was satisfied as with the self-repair affix, the barrel would be both durable and allow for a range of tolerance for what kind of ammunition he could use thanks to the hammerite.

    The two other parts he¡¯d completed included the general frame of the weapon and what would be used to ignite the ammunition. For the frame, he¡¯d experimented with wolf bone and the feathers due to their relative abundance. Again, the wolf bone didn¡¯t do much other than provide mass, though something interesting happened with the feathers. He¡¯d hit a more difficult enchantment than he¡¯d expected, which was due to him needing to adjust the physical properties of the feathers beyond what was normal. The result was adding a feather-like texture to the surface of the weapon and a reduction of its overall weight.

    As for the striker, he¡¯d used the firestarter base he¡¯d lucked out on from his trips to the Hunter¡¯s Guild slaughterhouse along with the self-repair and lightning affix. Choosing these two prevented him from combining multiple materials or using monster parts, but he only needed one. Andorite.

    This material was proving to be Daniel¡¯s bane, but its effect couldn¡¯t be worked around with the current design. He¡¯d just managed to make the device that would fit in the frame, an internal section that would cause a spark for the ammunition, and the trigger he could grip in human or cat form connected to it. While it was a level 2 item, andorite gave it level 3 durability. Combined with the self-repair affix, it should be able to survive the explosion needed to propel his ammunition without needing a lot of time to repair between shots.

    That same principle was required for what Daniel called the receiver, either correctly or incorrectly. He intended to use both hammerite and andorite to make a durable box that could accept ammunition of various sizes. The good news was that since the spineshard backing he¡¯d make for the ammunition destroyed itself in the explosion, he didn¡¯t have to worry about ejecting what was left afterward. He¡¯d still cobbled together a makeshift bolt action since the ammunition being spring-fed from the bottom had to be protected lest they discharge when he fired the chambered round. For the same reason as the trigger, he¡¯d opted to give it the self-repair affix in the second slot. It was less a complex design from an automatic weapon and more a bomb chamber that would only open towards the barrel when properly loaded.

    So, it¡¯s kind of like a cannon instead of a gun I guess, Daniel thought as he tried to think of any way to make his design simpler. He¡¯d already failed to make six receivers, eating into the precious metals he¡¯d made so many bags of holding for. There were enough for two, maybe three tries left. The main issue was the cumulative difficulty of everything going on resulting in the hardest enchantment yet. Multiple materials, two affixes, an average material level of 2.5, and intricate manipulation around the bolt mechanism when it was time to fully form the end result. He¡¯d gotten to that point on the third try, only to see his half-formed project go up in smoke.

    Gradually increasing the difficulty of what he¡¯d been enchanting had been enough to allow him to improve, but he¡¯d finally hit a point where determination alone wasn¡¯t working and grinding wasn¡¯t feasible. He started to reach for the remnants of the ingots when he paused. I should be able to do this, he thought, perplexed. It¡¯s difficult, but this is a task on my level. A little above it, actually, and Arpan was increasing the level of material without having nearly as much difficulty. There¡¯s something else I¡¯m missing.

    The actual process of enchanting was relatively simple, as far as Daniel knew. You picked the base enchantment, added affixes, and locked that and the form you wanted the item to take before feeding the material mana. That charged it up, and then the item physically transformed when ready. He¡¯d already figured out the last step wasn¡¯t strictly necessary because of Padri¡¯s assistance with the boots, though he wasn¡¯t sure if the Craftsman could help him with this project.

    And if I do get his help, it¡¯ll just be another crutch. Daniel pulled away from the metals and picked up a roll of fur. Despite how much he had, he¡¯d already depleted around a quarter of his stock as well as a sizable amount from Temir for the city. When he¡¯d started, a bag of holding with self-repair and patchwork would take him just over an hour. He¡¯d had no way to time it since his phone didn¡¯t have a clock anymore, but he had started to get faster. Quick Mind put it to around 54 minutes as he thought back. Why?

    As far as he knew, getting better with enchanting meant a higher success rate. Sure, he¡¯d gain some time on the drawing out process as his manipulations grew practiced, but the major limiting step should have been infusing the item with mana. The same base conditions should have given him the same completion time, yet he was growing more efficient after making over a hundred of the things. If he was going to finish the blast bow without wasting hundreds of viridian in rare materials, he had to figure out why.

    He began making a new bag of holding, but did something different. Daniel kept his hands on the fur, zeroing in on the mana flow to it. With his better senses, he¡¯d figured out the tether between the item and himself came from his hands, both of them, even if he only initiated the process with one. Considering he used those to form the final product, it made sense.

    Daniel wanted to know what the mana was actually doing. It wasn¡¯t just building a charge in the item. He¡¯d made level 1 gear from level 5 ore back in the Thormundz, and the heliorite should have had enough magic on its own to power whatever he made. Despite this, the mana cost of each item didn¡¯t change, only its time and difficulty. All of the bags he¡¯d made had also cost the same amount of mana despite the time needed shortening.

    But the average rate of mana flow isn¡¯t changing either, he thought, once again benefiting from an insight from Quick Mind. Paying close attention, distance didn¡¯t change anything either and the rate of flow was fast enough that the extra travel distance was negligible. Still, I¡¯m losing mana faster since I¡¯m doing this faster. It¡¯s gotta be the concentration of mana I¡¯m feeding this item. The width of the river instead of the speed of its flow.

    He reached the halfway point of the enchantment and reflexively did something so minor, he¡¯d just now picked up on it because of how much attention he was paying to the mana flow. A very slight change in the rate, an acquired instinct he must have picked up subconsciously after so many repetitions because it made things easier. Perform any task dozens or hundreds of times and you¡¯d find and quickly forget you were using such shortcuts.

    Daniel blinked, cut the flow of mana, and allowed the material he was using to dissolve. No way. Are all those bags of holding I made for Aurus actually paying off? He began again, pointedly keeping the mana flow to the fur nice and even. He couldn¡¯t do it perfectly, but despite the occasional flaw he¡¯d accomplished his goal: sucking at enchanting again. The bag was far more difficult to make this time, and he risked failing due to the attention he was putting into doing this incorrectly. By the time he reached the midpoint slowdown, he was barely holding it together and decided to scrap another set of fur.

    He checked his Encyclopedia, scrolling through any relevant entries he could reach through hyperlinks, but there wasn¡¯t any new information. It looked like something he had to figure out himself as the truth he was seeking was hidden by the text¡¯s ambiguity, like how the Empathic Link with Hunter reset at dawn. Or, for that matter, that he was supposed to be able to sense mana. Really could have used a heads up about that earlier.

    On a hunch, Daniel began to enchant a third and final bag with one change, he dropped the self-repair affix and added lightning instead. It would give the bag resistance to lightning damage, something that was fairly useless save for what he was trying to do. On paper, the enchantment should go just as smoothly as the others since all the difficulty modifiers were the same. Switching out one affix for another shouldn¡¯t make a difference.Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

    It did. Even with his practice, the bag of holding took him one hour and one minute as well as noticeably more mental effort. Faster than the first bag he¡¯d tried to make under these conditions, but slower than with self-repair. He¡¯d learned enough to make a tentative conclusion but made one more test. Keep everything the same, but use the moth fur instead of the wolf fur and drop the item level by 1 to keep the level disparity the same.

    One hour, three minutes. It¡¯s like everything has a different magical signature, or pattern. There¡¯s a right way to infuse mana based on the combination I want. It¡¯s got to be deeper than just adjusting the rate and concentration. Maybe I was right about mana having affinities? Also, this assumes my material is the same every time. If I don¡¯t use things processed by Craftsmen, that¡¯ll complicate things. Mass changes things too, since that prolongs the duration and increases difficulty.

    He didn¡¯t have time to dive deeply into each aspect. The enchanting had held up his team long enough, delayed Hunter¡¯s return long enough. All he needed to do now to finish his preparations was isolate more shortcuts for the patchwork and self-repair affixes, which he could do by making yet more bags of holding. If those could be applied to the receiver, it should dramatically improve his chances. It was already early afternoon and he hadn¡¯t seen anyone or eaten anything today, but he kept going, driven.

    I don¡¯t know if I can decrease the mana concentration for the receiver, he thought as he tried making another bag with just the patchwork affix. But if I can, I should slow it down. If I can handle more mana at a time when I¡¯m more familiar with an enchantment, I should be able to do the reverse when I¡¯m learning something.

    From that bag, he learned that the halfway delay was specific to self-repair as it didn¡¯t help this time, as well as several other things he hadn¡¯t consciously noticed before that hurt the otherwise familiar enchantment. Next, he made another bag with moth fur. This was to try and isolate patchwork, seeing what did and didn¡¯t work, since he couldn¡¯t isolate what the materials felt like without using patchwork for either.

    All the while, Quick Mind and his magically heightened wisdom and intelligence were pulling serious weight. It was only when he struggled that he could appreciate what had changed, just like how he could lift hundreds of pounds but wouldn¡¯t notice until a boulder tried to crush him. Gtoll had been right all along, he hadn¡¯t been training his attributes correctly until after he¡¯d fought him. Even now it felt like he could improve on what he was doing, if only through variety. Either way, Daniel was able to pick up on several shortcuts by nightfall that improved his efficiency.

    He debated repeating the bags to find more, knowing he couldn¡¯t have gotten everything, but decided to make an attempt. If the enchanting process could be slowed down and made easier by flexing his familiarity with the affixes, he should be able to do it. The third attempt had almost succeeded on its own and that was before Daniel was consciously improving the mana flow and not relying on force of will.

    Pulling out a scrap sheet of paper, Daniel drew several lines and began marking the general location of where each slight improvement was based on the different factors. He¡¯d at least partially researched the affixes, which left the two metals and the base enchantment unknown. It was risky to do this without delving into them, but he didn¡¯t have the material to waste and he wasn¡¯t sure if he could keep the mental image of the receiver exactly the same in his mind. Would the slightest of variations make for a new pattern?

    He also wasn¡¯t sure by how much he could slow the process, if at all, but that didn¡¯t matter. He knew the amount mana the receiver would take from when he¡¯d almost succeeded and could calculate the average rate with Quick Mind during the process. From that, he could anticipate when he was about to come up on a shortcut and take it, hopefully improving his chances of success. Daniel had said he¡¯d finish this today, and he meant it.

    The red and dull blue metals sat stacked together, waiting for him to initiate the process. He considered keeping his hands on the material at all times, but as the hammerite was naturally magical and above his level, he couldn¡¯t. Instead, he closed his eyes, disabled all the auras around him, and made sure Keen Senses was off. If this run didn¡¯t work, he would have to rely on anything he picked up for the second attempt. Beyond that, things would get difficult as he¡¯d have to bargain for more material.

    About fifty minutes into the process, he had to stifle his excitement. He was indeed able to slow down the enchanting speed, something he hadn¡¯t tried before. When Daniel had compared between items before, the longer enchants had always seemed more difficult, but time didn¡¯t exactly correlate to difficulty as he¡¯d first assumed. This time, he could feel the difference. A third of the way in and the ¡°health¡± of the enchantment was doing well. Still falling, and he was giving it his all to make it work, but he knew he¡¯d reach the final stage.

    When it came, he got nervous again. Nothing he¡¯d discovered would help him with this step directly, only set himself up better for it. The receiver began to form from the metal, flat top first. This would fit into the space he¡¯d made in the frame once he¡¯d fed the trigger mechanism into it. The hard part was two thirds of the way down when he would reach the bolt-operated section. Generating multiple sections that moved and interlocked with each other was a huge difficulty spike. Put in video game terms, he had to hope the health of his enchantment was good enough to tank his way through when the boss¡¯ hair started glowing.

    He winced when the moment came and tried to slow the process even more, but either he¡¯d hit the minimum or he couldn¡¯t do anything now that the item was fully charged. The mental image of the receiver wavered a little and he desperately held on, fearing that it would turn out like something being 3D printed. One significant bump was all it would take to ruin a project.

    The knowledge of what he¡¯d have to do to get back to this point, of what was riding on this, gave him the will to hold on. Despite the hunger and having spent an entire day mentally taxing himself, Daniel was able to push through. He gasped as the receiver cleared the difficult section and continued moving. All that was left was the opening to accept the magazine and the small lever he¡¯d made to retain it. Compared to everything else, it was nothing.

    The metal part clanked onto the table as it finished. Daniel wanted to shout in celebration before eating half of their kitchen, but he couldn¡¯t stop now. Most of the blast bow had already been assembled, though he had to fit the trigger into the receiver and then add it into the frame. Hammerite¡¯s material bonus aided here as well, since Daniel could manipulate the shape to a small degree after it had been enchanted.

    He put his finger on the trigger as soon as it was slotted in. The firestarter was normally like a lighter from his world, but he¡¯d bent both the flame end 90 degrees towards the trigger and lengthened the neck. With the lightning affix altering its elemental output, it was now perfectly positioned to hit the back of the ammunition he fed into the receiver.

    The magazines were nothing special, simple boxes with springs he¡¯d purchased rather than made to push ammunition up. He¡¯d loved to have somehow integrated a bag of holding into it but those required him to physically pull things out. Daniel held his breath as he loaded the blast bow, pulling back on the bolt to allow a round to be pushed into the receiver. If he¡¯d made a design mistake, this would be when he would find out.

    Nothing happened, which could have meant anything, though the bolt returned to its resting position without issue. He pointed the finished blast bow, which was about a meter in length, towards the ground and fit a bag of holding over the end of the barrel. Items could fall into them just fine, but the bags would retain whatever was in there despite the will of gravity or momentum.

    With the same trepidation as someone turning on a home built computer for the first time, he fired. What he¡¯d loaded was a simple round, a basic bullet of wolf bone without any special enchantment fit into a back section of level 1 spineshard ammunition.

    The bullet would be damaged by the explosion but should survive intact enough to do damage since it was at a higher level than the material generating the propulsive explosion. The final size of each round was about twice as wide as his thumb and as tall as his hand, which was also as large as his receiver would allow to be fired. If the explosion needed to propel the ammunition was too much he could fine tune things by reducing the overall mass, and adjusting the relative primer:bullet ratio, but all he cared about now was a successful test fire.

    The blast bow kicked in his hands as the back half of the loaded round detonated. It was loud, muffled slightly by the receiver but enough to give him away on a hunt. The recoil itself wasn¡¯t too bad, but only because he was strong enough to keep the weapon steady. The rest of the ammunition in the magazine had also been unaffected, the receiver and magazine together shielding the spineshard primers within from the elemental energy. He wanted to check the bag for the slug but had one last test he¡¯d do before celebrating.

    Acting quickly, because the others in the house had been alarmed by the sound, Daniel pulled on the bolt to load another round. He did it just like he thought he would during a hunt, not easing it but using his full might to yank back. If there was a chance it could jam, he wanted to know now.

    The bolt returned to rest position, and he touched the trigger again. A second explosion. Khare wormed into the room from the ceiling of the lower floor and composed themself, acorn eyes zeroing in on his weapon. They¡¯d have marked it if they could have, so they made an orange wedge appear over Daniel instead. ¡°Functioning?¡±

    Daniel took the bag off the ground and peered in. It had been one of the ones made today and was mostly empty, save for two vaguely bullet shaped pieces of wolf bone. One had a small crack in it, but both had survived. Even if pieces had broken off and hit the barrel on the way out, self-repair would keep it from getting permanently damaged.

    ¡°Fucking yes!¡± Daniel cried, venting his frustration and letting joy take its place. ¡°Khare, I¡¯m going to be honest, I can¡¯t make you a lot of these.¡± He hid his smirk as the gestalt¡¯s head fell. ¡°Buuuut, I think you can have at least one, maybe. Later, though. I¡¯m wiped out.¡± The gestalt made a grasping motion towards the blast bow and Daniel nodded, handing it over. ¡°Be careful though, only fire into the bag.¡± He moved it onto the ground next to Khare for emphasis.

    A disappointed look crossed Khare¡¯s vine face as they tried to operate the weapon, but after Daniel showed them how the bolt worked, they quickly emptied the rest of the seven round magazine. ¡°Powerful,¡± they commented, having struggled to keep the weapon aimed properly.

    ¡°Yeah, a lot harder to handle than a bow after firing, isn¡¯t it?¡± Something large began to move downstairs and he cursed under his breath. Two steps forward, one step back. ¡°Sorry Khiat!¡±

 Chapter 189: Flight Certification Hunt

    When the day finally came, it was not Temir who met them at the Hunter¡¯s Guild. Daniel¡¯s team had, with Murdon¡¯s help, submitted final notice that they were ready to register. The draconoid didn¡¯t have any special connections to smooth over the process, but Tounaki did. Most of them found it funny how the Knight continued to pretend that no one had caught onto their relationship. If only Lograve were here, he¡¯d have carved an ice sculpture of the two in a compromising position and put it in the middle of a street somewhere.

    He wasn¡¯t here, though. It was only the members of his team that would be registered, and the special attention of Tounaki had helped when it came to Tlara. She was now recorded as a Beastmaster remotely piloting the wyvern, and any inconvenient questions had been pushed to the side. When they eventually revived her, they could make it seem like she¡¯d been there the whole time.

    That just left proving to the Threst Hunter¡¯s Guild that they were capable of fighting while flying. As someone who had gone through the DMV on his world, Daniel knew the process would be as easy as the driving instructor would make it. He just hoped they got someone reasonable.

    The moment they all landed in the wooded area of the separated island containing the Hunter¡¯s Guild, someone called out to them. It had to be obvious who they were. Avianoids didn¡¯t have a monopoly on flight powers, just consistency, so there were humans and those of other races who were ¡®flight certified¡¯. That being said, Wingcraft were notable as they landed.

    The combination of lightning wings and winged boots allowed for both control and propulsion respectively. It took some getting used to, especially with how Daniel had designed the sets. For most the boots were simple, it was the wings that were the problem. The moth fur helped as Daniel had decided on something more akin to a wingsuit than mock physical wings coming off the back to better maneuver. The material¡¯s clinging effect kept them stuck to the arms when activated, while the green feathers lining the edges lent their weight reduction effect. Even Khiat could fly, though she was the slowest of them.

    Daniel identified the man who¡¯d called out as well as the three standing next to him, frowning as the tag failed to produce any information on the leader. The rest were level 2. Oh well, at least they can¡¯t blame us for having people at different levels.

    ¡°Hey! You¡¯re that new team with the Artificer right? Nice gear,¡± the leader called out as they walked towards each other. He gave the largest smile to Willow after finding her next to the wyvern. ¡°I should look into ordering something.¡±

    ¡°You mean asking your dad to,¡± one of the whispered, the snide comment from the avianoid Martialist named Bertrar only meant for his team but picked up by Keen Senses, which Daniel kept on now by default.

    ¡°I am Kahvin Talongleam, also known as the Sonorous Gale. This is my team, the Talonwings. A pleasure to meet all of you.¡± His speech kicked into a more formal gear as Daniel suddenly had an unfortunate recollection of Heldren. He noticed there was a crack in Kahvin¡¯s beak, not immediately obvious but there if you looked for it, and wondered how that¡¯d happened. ¡°I, in the capacity as a level 3 team leader in good standing with the guild, will oversee your flight certification training and safeguard you should the need arise.¡±

    ¡°Are you a Hero?¡± Khiat asked hopefully, still as charmed as ever by the class.

    Kahvin shifted uncomfortably as the large dusker addressed him, but tried not to show it. ¡°Of course! I take it as my charge to offer help to those in need. My team and I often fulfill auxiliary, necessary roles such as this.¡±

    ¡°Anything to get off regular hunting duty,¡± Betrar complained to himself again, now audible to everyone as they¡¯d closed the distance.

    ¡°Anyway!¡± Kahvin said loudly, shooting a glance behind him, ¡°This is going to be simple. We shall hunt prey appropriate for your team, something in the low to mid level 2 range.¡± Daniel thought to protest there since they could easily handle that, but going after something more difficult would just prolong this unnecessary step. Plus, he¡¯d like to see the look on Kahvin¡¯s face after he blew the target away with his blast bow.

    ¡°So we do that, get back, and we¡¯re in the guild?¡± he asked hopefully.

    ¡°Er, yes. Basically.¡± Kahvin waved a hand and dropped the formal tone after Daniel didn¡¯t reciprocate. ¡°There¡¯s all this paperwork I have to fill out but as long as you can kill something without us needing to get involved you¡¯re fine. Used to be stricter but with everything happening they want as many people out there hunting as they can get.¡±

    ¡°Good. Let¡¯s go.¡± He wasn¡¯t sure if it was that initial look at Willow or his experience with Heroes, but there was something about Kahvin he didn¡¯t like.

    ¡°Hey, not to be rude, but how the Crest does that plant fly like that?¡± The only female member of the team, named Adva, asked. It was a fair question for an outsider, all things considered.

    Daniel had been met with a problem when it came to Khare. Their unique biology was an advantage in some regards, but using the methods he had for the rest of the team would have locked the gestalt in their humanoid form. Instead, he¡¯d made the lightning wings in a bowl shape, leaving holes in the bottom for Khare to thread vines and make contact with the boots. The combination flew through the air differently, and on top of it Khare faintly looked like a shelled, fire-breathing lizard who¡¯d just kidnapped a princess, but they¡¯d preferred it to Daniel¡¯s gear when they¡¯d tried that out.

    ¡°Khare flies just fine,¡± Daniel replied evenly.

    ¡°Talongleam. That¡¯s one of Threst¡¯s notable lineages,¡± Willow commented from the back of the group.

    ¡°Yes! My family has long served this region and has remained pure to the race, as you no doubt can tell.¡± He gave what Daniel was rapidly considering a creepy smile to Willow and asked, ¡°Who are you to be so wise in the ways of Threst? I can¡¯t recall seeing such a pretty face grace these skies before, for it is a rare thing that eclipses Threst¡¯s own beauty.¡±

    Both Daniel and Tlara¡¯s eyes narrowed at that, the Artificer also seeing the charm effect blink into place above Willow. She was still dealing with level disparity, but even if she was balanced, the Hero had every advantage over her. He slipped his dominant arm into the bag on his side and withdrew the blast bow, which had a last-minute addition to the design. After almost dropping it during a test in midair, he¡¯d made a self-repairing wrap from the moth fur so that it could cling to his hand and arm. Mentally juggling the active effects of all his magical items was getting to the point of becoming tedious, but he didn¡¯t have to think too hard about what to do next.

    ¡°We¡¯re just here to hunt.¡± Daniel might have flipped into Beast Mode if he wasn¡¯t trying to keep that a secret, but he did brandish his weapon. The barrel didn¡¯t exactly point toward Kahvin, though a slight adjustment might easily, accidentally shoot him in the knee. ¡°Keep the charms off my team.¡±

    ¡°Told you we should have tracked down that no-rection power,¡± the fourth member, Clacki, whispered to Bertrar. ¡°He¡¯s always doing this.¡±

    ¡°I have no idea what you¡¯re talking about. Indeed, that is a rather brazen accusation!¡± Kahvin rebuked, switching in and out of Threst¡¯s formal speech. To Daniel, the lack of consistency just showed how shallow the Hero was. At least Gadriel committed to the bit.

    ¡°I have a power that identifies people and shows active effects on them. Even if I didn¡¯t, you were being obvious. Like I said, we¡¯re just here to hunt.¡± He pulled on the bolt of his weapon, loading a round. The Hero wouldn¡¯t understand the gesture but the intent should be clear. This was clearly the worst kind of person he could¡¯ve gotten stuck with, but like hell he would let some asshole mess with Willow like that. Tlara was also charging the spines in her wings, using one of her powers on herself to prepare the attack. People in the area started to step back.

    ¡°That¡¯s enough!¡± A loud, feminine bellow cut across the grounds. Daniel recognized the speaker. It was the pinkish-white draconoid from the regent¡¯s briefing. She was higher level than him too and he¡¯d never gotten her name, so all Identify Creature showed was a vaguely red aura that came off as annoyed to him. Kahvin¡¯s was a deeper shade, though the rest of his team were colored more by embarrassment and fear of the draconoid. ¡°Talongleam, I don¡¯t recall your team assignment involving tearing up my lawn by starting a brawl.¡±

    ¡°C-commander,¡± Kahvin addressed the draconoid, who was speaking loud enough to be audible from the guild¡¯s entrance sixty meters away. Given what he knew of Threst, Daniel was surprised an avianoid didn¡¯t have the position. ¡°I was just executing my duties when-¡°

    ¡°Yeah.¡± There was distant thowmp, and then the Commander was sailing through the air, landing heavily close to the group. It could¡¯ve been Jump, though she¡¯d been too far away when the power started for Daniel to tell. Neither did the draconoid have an obvious Focus. She did wear intricate wooden armor that rolled in on itself to give the appearance of a stormy sea, but it didn¡¯t resonate like a Focus would. ¡°Sure you were.¡±

    ¡°Commander, are you implying that-¡° Kahvin attempted to continue in his increasingly petulant voice, but she ignored him.

    ¡°Daniel Brant. Heard a lot about your team. Liked what I saw at that meeting. I have to say, I wasn¡¯t expecting you to pull together something like this. I need more Artificers in my guild. Not less,¡± she added that last part with a look towards Kahvin. ¡°It¡¯s obvious no one¡¯s happy about what¡¯s going on. Deal with it.¡±

    ¡°He used a power on one of my teammates. Look, we can bring down whatever monster you want us to without them babysitting us.¡±

    ¡°And you haven¡¯t used one of them?¡± she asked knowingly.Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

    ¡°There¡¯s a difference!¡±

    ¡°Not in the eyes of the law,¡± the Commander replied firmly, though Daniel felt the hard edge in her voice was directed most toward Kahvin. ¡°I¡¯d like to take this moment to point out that with Rikendia¡¯s royal line officially being ruled extant, there is every chance certain kingdom-wide policies may be reviewed and revised by Threst¡¯s court.¡± The Hero¡¯s feathers covered the fact that his face had just grown pale. ¡°For now just suck it up, both of you. It is the current policy of the Hunter¡¯s Guild that all Blessed must be verified as flight capable before they can hunt in our skies and I can¡¯t spare anyone else who¡¯s certified to do this.¡±

    You mean you don¡¯t want to spare them, Daniel thought. Kahvin was beginning to seem like a paper tiger. Sure, he was higher level than him, but there was no way he was higher than 3. Daniel could have gotten to level 3 himself by now if he didn¡¯t care about level disparity. In fact, he could¡¯ve done it before leaving the Thormundz. You only needed 20 advancement potential after getting a class at minimum. Maybe there¡¯s a reason he¡¯s running around with a bunch of level 1¡¯s and 2¡¯s instead of hunting on his own level. ¡°We¡¯re just supposed to trust him to be impartial?¡±

    ¡°Nothing subjective about it. Get out there, kill a monster. You two disagree about what happened afterward Torch Clerics get involved. Do not make me involve Torch Clerics.¡± She sighed, and Daniel could just make out scraps of pink flame along with the exhalation. ¡°Am I clear?¡±

    ¡°Perfectly, Commander,¡± Kahvin replied sharply, still shaken from what she¡¯d said about Rikendian policy. Daniel knew it was a kingdom-wide stance that certain classes like Bards and Rogues be allowed to use certain powers on the populace to help train their class, within limits. Technically, Heroes didn¡¯t advance from romance. Kahvin must have been exploiting a loophole after awakening a charm power.

    ¡°Great. There¡¯s a flock of whitesprings a Fate just spotted trashing the abandoned village of Diver¡¯s Rest, two hours north and near the ground limit. Seems like there are some new level 3 variants among them. Handle it.¡±

    ¡°Level 3? Commander, uh, shouldn¡¯t we go after something more appropriate?¡± Kahvin asked. ¡°We have level 1s with us.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ll be fine. Artificer, point that thing at the ground and fire it.¡± Daniel gave her a confused look until the Commander pointed to his weapon. He obliged, and there was a crack as the round¡¯s explosive charge detonated. It was slightly quieter than the first few he¡¯d tested which better preserved the slug. The default magazine he kept locked by not loaded contained bullets with fire-enchanted wolf bone that usually survived the process of being fired. The bone didn¡¯t give him any special benefits, but there was enough of it that it was worth using for normal ammunition.

    A plume of dirt erupted as the bone slug cut its way into the ground. The Commander whistled as she inspected the hole. ¡°I think you almost pierced to the other side.¡±

    ¡°What is that?¡± the Martialist on Kahvin¡¯s team, Bertrar, asked. He looked like a melee specialist, but also that he¡¯d consider a change if he could get what Daniel had on him.

    ¡°Multi-part construction. It propels bolts at high speed by causing a small explosion in the weapon. Enchantment on the front end that only affects what you fire. Inventive, just what I¡¯d expect from an Artificer.¡± At this point, Kahvin seemed to recall that Daniel had been almost pointing it at him earlier and took a step back.

    ¡°That weapon explodes?¡±

    ¡°You can tell what it does?¡± Daniel asked at about the same time.

    ¡°Not like I was hatched yesterday. Shame something like that wouldn¡¯t scale well or I¡¯d see if we could get a few ballista working with that design. Can¡¯t imagine it¡¯d survive being fired more than once, and we couldn¡¯t just stick a tree in front of a couple Craftsmen and tell them to make ammo for it.¡±

    She has to be some kind of intelligence-based class. Arcanist?

    The Commander exhaled through her nostrils and her tone grew more reasonable. ¡°Look, I get your concerns, but someone needs to take care of this. Use a modicum of intelligence and it will be fine, whitesprings aren¡¯t strong for their level. Clear out the flock. Talongleam gets its quota filled for the next week and the probationary team passes flight certification. Don¡¯t make this harder than it has to be, and for the love of the gods, don¡¯t make me deal with Torch Clerics.¡±

    ¡­

    Kahvin made it harder than it had to be. Talonwing and Wingcraft flew separately through the skies of Crest, keeping near the ground limit but not too close to it. The common wisdom of the region stated that sticking too close to one of the two massive teleportation walls left you open for potential surprise attacks from something near the sky limit above you.

    At least flying was still amazing enough to make up for the jerk¡¯s presence. The wings on his back couldn¡¯t provide lift, that¡¯s what the boots were for, but they did allow him to turn in the air and catch the wind. His very first deployment of this kind of device had ended disastrously for many reasons, but now it felt like he¡¯d fully realized the dream.

    Willow was the sole exception to their team, riding on Tlara rather than using her equipment. She waved over to him and Daniel flew close to her, marveling at how easy it was to fall in formation with Tlara without over or undershooting. The wind made talking slightly difficult, but they could still hear each other. ¡°What he did, how can I defend against it?¡±

    ¡°Punch him in the face.¡± She frowned at the unhelpful advice. ¡°Sorry. I¡¯ve been hit by that before too. Your wisdom will help, and if the context isn¡¯t right it¡¯ll break. I¡¯m pretty sure if he tries it again on you it¡¯ll either fail or have a far lower chance of working.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t like having thoughts like that about other people. Anger,¡± she clarified at Daniel¡¯s odd look. ¡°I should have been advancing my wisdom, I¡¯m only going into this with one power.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a good one for your level. Don¡¯t worry, you¡¯re covered as long as you stay by Tlara. Once we get to that village, I¡¯ll identify the level 3s. Between me and Khiat, we have a chance of taking them out before they even get to us. You should advance with a future in mind rather than what you need now.¡± He glanced at Tlara and wished his next question could be asked in her absence, but that wasn¡¯t going to happen. ¡°Are they still following us?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± Willow indicated the general air around her. ¡°It¡¯s odd. They¡¯re following, but the elevation isn¡¯t affecting them. I¡¯ve never seen them over me.¡±

    ¡°Strange.¡± As if that¡¯s the strangest thing about having another god following me around in a different dimension. ¡°Well, keep an eye out for any other spirits and take them in if you can. I¡¯m going to avoid Beast Mode if at all possible so I won¡¯t have access to Sense Astral. If we run into something like those wolves, you and Hunter will be our best bets.¡±

    ¡°Alright, but I can only go where Tlara does and I¡¯m sure she wants one of those level 3s for herself.¡±

    Right, because we totally need her to have another flying body she can jump into at a moment¡¯s notice. ¡°Ok. I¡¯ll try and ground one of these whitesprings for her to dominate.¡± He pushed on the effect coming from his boots to draw himself to eye level with Tlara. Her head now had some armor and, true to his bitter thoughts, he had made it slightly itchy. There was no other way to get the sections of fur armor to fit her without the cling effect of the moth fur. ¡°And you, if the monsters pressure you too much, fly away with Willow. I don¡¯t want to risk her getting separated from you.¡±

    She snorted in response and glared back at him as if to point out his contradicting orders. In fairness, he had been in Beast Mode that other time. ¡°Pretty sure she won¡¯t leave without making sure some other monster won¡¯t snap that jerk in half before she gets a chance.¡±

    ¡°You two must be getting along a lot better now, I didn¡¯t think she¡¯d take that much offense on your behalf.¡±

    Willow¡¯s head bobbed as she chuckled. ¡°It¡¯s not that, it¡¯s that she has an excuse to do it.¡±

    Daniel had to quickly peel away as Tlara suddenly snapped towards him, the attempted bite not at all pulled. At least, it didn¡¯t look like Tlara had held back. She is keeping it together, right? Daniel wondered, suddenly worried that all these ¡®pranks¡¯ might be something else. Worst case, we see if anyone else in Aurus has Telepathy after we get back.

    There was little else that occurred on the flight to Diver¡¯s Rest, aside from an incident where Khiat tried to fly through a cloud only to find a sky island hiding inside. Kahvin had excitedly called for a brief break but whatever he¡¯d been looking for inside wasn¡¯t there, and he dejectedly called on them to keep moving. He seemed more dejected than aggressive now, though hints of red were still in his aura.

    When they came upon the sky island hosting the city, it was obvious why it had been abandoned. The main stretch of land did come this way, but to get to Diver¡¯s Rest by foot you had to take a circuitous route of bridges that once linked a chain of smaller islands going down to the village proper. Those, as well as the buildings, had been heavily damaged as the monsters rolled in.

    The creatures that had ended up capitalizing on the withdrawal were whitesprings. These were another bird hybrid monster that didn¡¯t exactly fall into the beast category, like the tempestfowl elemental whose feathers adorned his team¡¯s gear. The normal, fully grown variant was level 2. The photo in his Encyclopedia was a better representation than what he could see over a kilometer out.

    They were faintly reminiscent of the feathered snakes from his world, only there wasn¡¯t anything reptilian to them. The common whitespring had a long, tubular body with many small sets of wings branching off like the legs of a caterpillar. They were predominately white, though the monsters had variations in the subcolors. None were too unique from looks alone, but neither was every monster a carbon copy of each other. Ringcats, for example, had different patterning even if their fur was always blue, white, and gold.

    Several notable exceptions were among the flock. First was a group of about half a dozen young whitesprings he¡¯d feel guilty about killing later. There weren¡¯t any new variants among the level 2s, but it got interesting when you took into account the level 3s. One was named a ¡®crossed whitespring¡¯, and looked like two had been joined perpendicularly at the center while also doubling in size. Another two had the ¡®iridescent¡¯ variant tag. Based on how their color patterns glowed, Daniel guessed it had more active powers than the others. Lastly, there was a handful of the normal alphas.

    What he didn¡¯t see was any sign of special monster domain tricks that Cloak had warned him about, though they¡¯d play it safe regardless. Sucks that I can¡¯t scan them before we fight, but I don¡¯t care enough to lose this advantage. ¡°Hey. We¡¯re going to engage. Our plan¡¯s to go for the level 3s first and mop up the rest afterward.¡±

    ¡°You can hit them from here?¡± Adva asked incredulously.

    ¡°Gravity should help. I have an aiming power though. Khiat, what do you think?¡±

    The dusker¡¯s head turned to the abandoned village below them and she drew her bow, the movement somewhat clumsy as she also had to bring herself to a hover with the boots. ¡°It¡¯s so strange. I¡¯ve never had to shoot at this angle before, the dunes never got this high. I¡¯ll try my best.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, well, whatever,¡± Kahvin muttered. ¡°Just do it. I don¡¯t care.¡± The Hero¡¯s continued sulking made Daniel question what his true age was. He appeared mid-20s, assuming he could judge that right with avianoids. Considering he had at least a few years more than that due to how leveling affected aging, he was behaving a decade younger than he was. This gave Daniel every reason not to regret his earlier reaction to Kahvin going after Willow.

    And this is the guy they certified to decide whether people could get into the Hunter¡¯s Guild or not? Yikes. Threst clearly had as many problems as Aughal when it came to people abusing power, they just hid it better. He put that out of his mind though and shouldered the blast bow. Of everything he¡¯d managed to do, putting reliable sights on this weapon had been beyond him. Iron sights he could do, no problem, but there was no guarantee the blast bow would fire perfectly straight. As much as he felt reluctant to continue relying on it, Snap Shot was necessary to use the blast bow at anything other than close range.

    ¡°Mark me,¡± he said to Khare as he tagged one of the iridescent whitesprings which was currently blasting the support beam of a house with rainbow energy. He didn¡¯t want to find out what that did until he unlocked the entry in his Encyclopedia. The orange wedge over the monster flashed red, and he charged the ammunition currently in the receiver with Scatter Shot at the same time.

    ¡°Ready Khiat?¡± Daniel asked, and she nodded back to him. Steading himself, Daniel pulled the trigger.

 Chapter 190: The High Ground

    As soon as he fired the weapon, Snap Shot twisted his arms down and to the side. It was the most dramatic adjustment the ability had ever made, and it wasn¡¯t enough. He quickly lost sight of the projectile but could see by the aura that the monster hadn¡¯t been hit. Khiat¡¯s monstrous arrow missed too, though their volley did succeed in provoking the monsters.

    It couldn¡¯t compensate for wind shifts after I fired, Daniel surmised. Hitting something from a kilometer away with the force his weapon could put out was perhaps too powerful for his level anyway. If there was no challenge, he wouldn¡¯t advance. I will have to stop using Snap Shot eventually, once I figure out how to make this more accurate.

    ¡°Miss?¡± Willow asked as he pulled back on the blast bow¡¯s bolt.

    ¡°We both did. Not too surprising.¡± Daniel checked the bag of holding on his left hip, which held the extra magazines. He¡¯d made three others for fire ammo, two for lightning which were proving slightly unstable given the bullet¡¯s affix damage could trigger the primer in some rare circumstances, two for normal damage in case something was resistant to both of those, and one magazine that was wrapped in leather to prevent him from loading it accidentally. The springs he used for them were cheap and the boxes not too difficult to enchant, the real limiting factor was the bullets.

    In total, he had 61 shots left before it would be time to pull out the bone claws and consider Beast Mode. Not enough to comfortably take on the thirty or so monsters below him, but that¡¯s what being on a team was for. ¡°Mark!¡± Khare cried out, leveling one of the smaller versions of the blast bow Daniel had made for them with the leftover andorite. It wasn¡¯t magazine-fed but loaded manually, Khare able to do this more efficiently with their vines. However-

    ¡°Khare, there¡¯s no way you¡¯re hitting one from here.¡±

    ¡°Mark!¡±

    ¡°Fine.¡± He used Called Shot on the same iridescent whitespring, which was joining the others in flying up to challenge them. The monsters moved in a strange pattern, corkscrewing through the air until they were coiled and then shooting forward with a burst of speed, ending up straight again. The acceleration suggested some kind of power was in play, especially since the young whitesprings did not have this speed and began to fall behind.

    Khare¡¯s weapon snapped as it discharged, the noise almost down to the point it could be used as a stealth weapon. Theirs was more comparable to a handgun, though the projectile could still fly far due to the base enchantment used on the barrel. Unsurprisingly, Khare missed.

    ¡°Mark me until they¡¯re about three hundred meters away, then open up yourself. This is just like the desert urchins, you should wait until they¡¯re closer.¡±

    ¡°Accede,¡± Khare sighed, and highlighted the marked monster again for Daniel to strike.

    ¡°They¡¯re so¡­ calm,¡± he heard Bertrar comment, and Daniel looked over after he missed again at a range of about 850 meters. It took him a moment to realize what the other team was doing because his eyes refused to believe it at first. They were all sitting on a nearby cloud, Kahvin even idly swinging his legs back and forth over the side. Adva and Clacki were the only two who seemed remotely alert. ¡°If all those monsters got to us right now, I¡¯m pretty sure I¡¯d die.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re all from the Thormundz, right?¡± Adva called over.

    ¡°Yeah, most of us.¡±

    ¡°Explains it. Heard you fought through the Crest to escape. Figuratively.¡±

    ¡°Almost literally,¡± Daniel replied with a scowl as he missed at 600 meters. The level 3 whitesprings were fast, though he could already tell their burst of speed was a potential weakness as they committed themselves to the direction they shot toward. He lightened his tone when speaking to the Totem Warrior, figuring he shouldn¡¯t blame her for the piece of work her boss was. ¡°Fight enough dragons and the little stuff doesn¡¯t bother you.¡±

    ¡°Dragons,¡± Kahvin scoffed.

    Daniel turned his attention back to the approaching monster pack and was surprised to find two missing. Khiat had nailed some of the level 2s, switching targets at the far end of her range since the stronger monsters were proving too nimble. Dexterity-based monsters, he decided, and adopted her strategy. On his fourth shot, he finally hit something.

    The whitespring had tried to coil and jet away, but his projectile moved too quickly. Keen Sense did nothing for his eyesight and he couldn¡¯t make out exactly what had happened, but he guessed the initial hit had cored the monster and left it with enough vitality to keep going. He was trying to figure out the best ways to manipulate the size of the spineshard jacket and bullet to make it break up like shotgun pellets in midair, but hadn¡¯t gotten a working model yet. Splitting ammunition was temporarily a no go. Because the gun was enchanted in parts rather than one whole, the ammunition triggered while in the barrel and had almost destroyed the one that had been fitted when first tested.

    For now, Scatter Shot filled in the gap. For yet more mana per shot, he added a ridiculous amount of burst damage. The explosion of attacks around the creature appeared as quick moving lines of bullets that faded a short distance away. Most did nothing, but the few that intersected with the whitespring drilled more holes in its body. The level 2 briefly managed to activate its speed burst before the body broke away. He¡¯d made the kill at 534 meters, estimate courtesy of Quick Mind.

    By the time Khare began unloading their weapons, they¡¯d killed seven of the level 2s and one of the alphas. Most were due to Khiat, whose natural aim continued to outshine Daniel¡¯s magically enhanced one. The iridescent whitesprings had proven too fast to hit at far range and were at the front of the pack, the crossed and remaining alphas close behind. Still 600 meters away were the lagging level 1s, almost pitiful in their attempts to get to them.

    ¡°This is a common strategy,¡± Clacki commented, a bit of nerves in his voice as it was clear a melee would happen before the hunt was over. ¡°If it were me down there I¡¯d get in the shadow of clouds and islands and make for the ground limit to run away, but most low level monsters are mindless enough to fly at you until they die.¡±

    ¡°Why don¡¯t we have anyone that can shoot that far?¡± Bertrar asked.

    ¡°Ask the boss.¡±

    Daniel reloaded his weapon during the side conversation, taking care to drop the empty magazine in the right bag of holding and withdraw from the left. All of the earlier confusion that had happened when he had made far too many bags of holding had inspired him to make conventions such as this. He reached for the lightning ammunition next, distinguished by the purple tip on the bullet similar to how Khiat¡¯s lightning enchanted arrows had a purple band around the head.

    The only issue with his current ammunition design was that it was time intensive to make every shot. Arcane Creator had given him individual formulae for each combination of bullet and primer, but there were problems with enchanting it in one piece. He had gotten one for the blast bow as well, and it was ludicrously hard to make from just one base material. As far as the rounds in total, each one he fired took about 15 minutes to make, not accounting for Ammunition Surplus. It didn¡¯t sound like much until you counted and realized you¡¯d already thrown about two hours of work at the enemy.

    First world problems, he thought as he eliminated another level 2 with the lightning-charged ammunition. It didn¡¯t seem like the normal ones had special resistance to those two elements. He pulled back on the bolt, the lead whitespring just over 200 meters away. ¡°Tlara, if you¡¯re going to try to dominate anything, it¡¯d be better if you go down there now.¡±

    The wyvern, who was forced to continue flying as Tlara was unable to hover with her wings, did a few lazy swoops. On her back, one of Willow¡¯s hands began to shine with a faint light. The Spirit Master was nervous but determined. ¡°I don¡¯t know if she- ah!¡± Willow exclaimed towards the end as Tlara dove towards the approaching monsters, angling for the iridescent he¡¯d been trying to hit.

    From this distance, he could make out the faces of the monsters. They had long jaws and most were fanged, save for the toothless iridescents. Confirming that Tlara was heading towards his initial target, Daniel toggled his mark on it a few times and then moved it to the other one to let Khare know what was going on. At the same time, he called out to Khiat so she¡¯d know to avoid attacking it. All the while, Talonwing sat on their cloud, though they brought their weapons out.

    Daniel fired twice in rapid succession, but the iridescent twisted out of the way of both shots. He cursed as he realized none of the special level 3s would be brought down before they engaged. ¡°Khiat, we need to start moving. Let the other team cover us while-¡°

    ¡°Nah.¡± Daniel stared at Kahvin as the Hero stood and backed up from the cloud¡¯s edge. They were a little ways away from where the monster pack was heading, far enough that they might just get ignored. ¡°This is your flight certification hunt. I don¡¯t have to intervene unless it¡¯s necessary.¡±

    The others on his team looked askance, but there was something new in Kahvin¡¯s voice that gave Daniel an ominous feeling. It was still petulant, but with a surety and gleeful nastiness that would have fit with the smirk a bully gave their victim after tearfully relaying a fabricated story to the teacher. He wanted to argue and/or threaten to shoot the Hero, but the monsters weren¡¯t giving him the opportunity.

    By the time Tlara¡¯s lightning attack struck the first iridescent whitespring, there were four level 3s and seven level 2s left. With the armor and weapons he¡¯d made for his team he wasn¡¯t as desperate as he would have been otherwise, but he¡¯d held the other team in the back of his mind as a reserve option should it get this far. Now they were just sitting back and watching despite knowing how insane these odds were for normal hunters.

    It was a trap, and worst of all, Daniel had two bad options to choose between. He could try and tank using Beast Mode, but he was untested flying in his cat form and that risked exposing Khiat and Khare if he couldn¡¯t control the rage. Alternatively, he could continue burning down the monsters and trust Tlara to be their shield. That depended on how reliable she was.

    Fuck it. Daniel pulled out the half-empty magazine and exchanged it for the one wrapped in leather as the whitespring reached 50 meters. They were bigger than he¡¯d first thought, the normal-sized level 2s a meter in diameter not counting the wings, and at least seven in length.

    They¡¯d soon reach a distance where their movement power would get them in melee range. The only saving grace was that they were now within range of his special ammunition. The unfortunate trade-off in this weapon design was that he couldn¡¯t use the combination that led to the blast marbles to make exploding rounds, since the slug would just go off in the receiver.Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.

    However, Daniel had a similar base ammunition enchantment that worked slightly differently. Lightning bolt, the formulae that had taken the gravity aspect of the lightning spines rather than the electricity overload. They were more limited in their usefulness since they exploded a certain range out, and only at that range, because of the internal charge that built during motion.

    Daniel fired the first shot at the crossed whitespring, infusing the slug with Scatter Shot and grimacing as his mana hit around half. He wasn¡¯t just suffering from ability usage but also the features he¡¯d heightened, like Regeneration and Graceful Fall. Thankfully, he¡¯d judged the range right and a massive chain of midair explosions went off. The crossed whitespring somehow survived, but it was left broken and vulnerable for Khare to finish off.

    It only took Daniel a few seconds to load the next shot, and he acquired two of the level 2s that were close together. Using the same combo, he fired and struck again, Snap Shot proving enough at this range. The ammunition didn¡¯t immediately explode on contact, preventing Scatter Shot from using the higher damage of the effect, though it did go off after penetrating through the monster. When he¡¯d used it on bolts it had been liable to stick in creatures before it would explode, but that wasn¡¯t a problem here.

    He almost shot another of those bolts but stopped himself and switched out to the ones that just added lightning damage. Based on the charred parts of the iridescent whitespring that Tlara had managed to hit with her attack, even the more magical variant wasn¡¯t resistant. While that fight was happening at a good range for his explosive ammunition, the rest were already too close.

    ¡°This is going to turn into a melee!¡± he shouted, both for his team¡¯s and the other¡¯s benefit. Even if Kahvin was being unbelievably petty, the rest of his team wouldn¡¯t just stand by when the monsters got on top of them. Right?

    ¡°What do I do?¡± Khiat asked. She wouldn¡¯t be fast enough to retreat even if all she did was fly away. Firing down on the monsters had been a good strategy, up until it prevented Khiat from diving to get away. The dusker was not the best when something got right up on her and she was just starting to acclimate to flying.

    ¡°Drop a smoke bomb and try to get to a cloud!¡± Daniel suggested, firing while moving to get between her and the advancing monsters. ¡°They might not see you in one.¡± Khiat nodded and then in the next moment, gray smoke billowed out from her feet. The gusts around them dispersed some of it, but enough remained to obscure her. Khare, for their part, had put away their other weapons to bring out daggers.

    Tlara got to her target before the rest of the whitesprings made it to them. She fired more lightning from her wings, the attack more effective at close range. The Spirit Master on her back used her own power then, the light in her hand projecting out in the air in a rough dome.

    The iridescent¡¯s retaliatory breath attack was slightly blunted when it hit, though the shield quickly broke. It did give Tlara enough time to twist away before she gripped the whitespring in her lower claws. With physical contact and a weakened enemy, she could begin dominating it. The shield by itself wasn¡¯t that powerful, Quala¡¯s Nova Shield could block more with an additional effect, but that¡¯s not why Willow¡¯s power was impressive.

    Another breath attack directed at him forced Daniel¡¯s attention away from below. The other iridescent was after him. It and a couple of the level 2s. Time slowed as he activated Moment of Clarity. It was odd, doing this without Hunter¡¯s low grumbling in the background. It looks like I¡¯ve got half the aggro. Khare will have to screen for Khiat. He would have liked to designate a Jump or Dodge Roll towards the cloud Kahvin was sitting on, but he¡¯d yet to work out a way to easily make a mid-air platform that he wouldn¡¯t immediately lose.

    The best he could do was mentally line up a shot at the head of one of the normal whitesprings, then dive. The iridescent may be able to survive a hit and he needed to reduce how many he was dealing with. As soon as time resumed the attack released, Snap Shot driving it home. He attempted to jet down and away from the breath attack, but the iridescent was tracking him and at only ten meters away. A swath of the multicolored attack crossed his lower body. Daniel braced for pain, but something else happened.

    For one terrifying moment, he had a flashback to the monster-spawning incident on the street, but this wasn¡¯t it. This attack was only giving him back mana, rather than just trying and reshape his flow. It wasn¡¯t a lot, about five Snap Shots worth or 1% of his maximum, but the attack from a creature one level higher than him wasn¡¯t as immediately threatening as he first thought. The reason why became clear as he tried to slow time again and found he couldn¡¯t.

    The mana he¡¯d been given was constantly circulating in its own pattern, not usurping his regular flow but interrupting anything he tried to do with it. While he was affected by this he was locked out of abilities or any way to improve features he hadn¡¯t already heightened. The foreign mana decayed as it circulated, but slowly. It was an insidious effect either way, and being hit with more of the breath would prolong the duration.

    Daniel tried to mark the iridescent as he twisted in the air and gave a relieved sigh when it worked. This was similar to magical suppression in that bonds could at least still function. Khare shouted something in response to the mark but he was too far away and moving too fast to notice.

    The addition of a third dimension to the fight was something Daniel was rapidly realizing he wasn¡¯t prepared for. In seconds, he¡¯d fallen farther from his teammates than he could have run in a minute. The iridescent whitespring moved just as quickly, striking forward while opening its mouth, multicolored light shining within. Have to kill the others, Daniel thought quickly. I can¡¯t avoid all of that, but without teeth it¡¯s less of a direct threat.

    He leveled out, Graceful Fall still working and leading him to ride a gust that was flowing laterally to the iridescent¡¯s approach. Even with its momentum it was still able to turn towards him, but Daniel managed to get a cloud between him and the breath attack. The water vapor that was struck bubbled, absorbing some of the foreign mana before it fully dissolved. That looked kind of like what happens when I fail an enchant. What the hell?

    The remainder of the multicolored breath struck him, tripling the amount within. Quick Mind¡¯s running estimation reset and now put it at just over a minute before it would be fully drained. It seemed that as the effect compounded, it grew harder to get rid of. He brought his weapon up, trying as best he could to line up a target with the physical sights he¡¯d put on top of the frame. The level 2 whitespring he shot at managed to avoid a direct hit, both from its nimbleness and the shot going slightly off. Still, the slug shredded a good number of wings along one side, either destroying or setting them on fire. It fell away, leaving only three of its normal kin to support the iridescent.

    Another blast of colorful flames reached for him, but Daniel was able to divert it this time by throwing a bone dagger in the general direction of the iridescent, causing it to flinch when it got close. It hadn¡¯t been on target of course, but it let him slip away. No cooldown on its ability, though. That¡¯s insane. He began to appreciate just how dangerous the iridescent could be. Get hit once by its breath and it could continue to lock people down, and it would take something like Thomas¡¯ Flash Reset to cleanse the effect. If it continued like this he¡¯d have to-

    A creature about the size and shape of a normal rabbit, but with a lightning spine sticking out of its head like a unicorn, fell from the sky almost on top of the iridescent whitespring. In slow motion, Daniel watched the horn-like protrusion spark, followed by an explosion that buffeted him and shredded the wings of the iridescent. What the fuck?

    He heard a roar of triumph above him and watched as the other iridescent in the battle dissolved to dust and flew towards a pouch Willow held in her hands. He put together what had happened a moment later. She must have been at her monster limit and ejected whatever that was. She had that thing this whole time?

    Watching the iridescent fall, Daniel decided he had no desire to prolong the lockdown effect and would have finished off the other level 2s if not for the other shout that followed Tlara¡¯s.

    ¡°Help!¡± About one hundred meters up, a few whitesprings had found Khiat and were circling her, trying to bite into her. From a nearby haze it seemed she¡¯d tried to use the smoke bomb from her armor, but it hadn¡¯t been enough. The dusker was trying to fight back but was being overwhelmed.

    He raised and then lowered his weapon, climbing as fast as he could. Khare was also holding back everything but daggers, neither confident with the aim of their big weapons to risk accidentally hitting the dusker. Daniel tried and was able to borrow Flash Jaunt from Hunter, but when he attempted to use it the ongoing mana lockdown stifled him. The power was given to him by a bond, though it still wasn¡¯t considered as directly from it and could be suppressed.

    ¡°Boss, we should help,¡± he heard one of the Talonwings say as he neared their cloud.

    ¡°Why? The cheaters all have good armor. Look, it¡¯s even repairing itself. Better than a trash level 1 should get, than all of them should get. It makes us look bad, don¡¯t you get that? They all think they¡¯re better than their level. People like that are the worst. We¡¯re not helping until they¡¯re really desperate, otherwise how are they going to learn their place?¡± A part of him rose in anger at Kahvin¡¯s words, reminding him that he could trigger Beast Mode without needing to use mana and that he could easily put that Hero down in that form without powers. He resisted the temptation.

    ¡°The Crest are you talking about?¡± Adva asked as he flew past them. ¡°They¡¯re winning. All you¡¯re going to do is make it impossible for us to ever buy something from them.¡±

    ¡°We don¡¯t need anything they have,¡± Kahvin shot back angrily.

    Daniel ignored the rest of what was going on with them as it was clear no help was coming. Khiat¡¯s armor was holding thanks to the level 2 enchantment, but her carapace was a weak point. Even with the physical improvements her alternate method of leveling gave, the natural plating wasn¡¯t enough to withstand the whitesprings. She had a few cracked sections on her arms and one on her body that leaked blood from the injured flesh beneath.

    I haven¡¯t looked for any more potions, he thought, cursing himself. All of his time and effort had been put into enchanting and in the back of his mind he¡¯d decided to wait until he could claim the deferred bounty from Aughal to buy anything he couldn¡¯t just trade with Temir for.

    He reached Khiat faster than Tlara even though she¡¯d started higher, her form slower to ascend. He had to remember that the level 3 wyvern was technically the young variant and immature in some ways. Bone claws in hand, he did his best to cut at the many pairs of wings on the monsters before they could react to his presence. Khare¡¯s daggers dotted the bodies in places, though they must have reserved the bleed effect they could put on them because of the proximity to Khiat.

    ¡°We¡¯ve got you, fly towards the other team!¡± Daniel shouted to Khiat. Talonwing could be juvenile assholes all they wanted, but couldn¡¯t ignore the monsters if they aggro¡¯d onto them. As the dusker flew away, blood trailing her, the rest of his team focused on the remaining whitesprings.

    By the end they had all taken a few injuries, even Willow, though these were passed onto Tlara. Daniel felt the last of the foreign mana depart as he glared at Kahvin, whose team was doing the best they could to not look at where Khiat was trying to use a section of her armor to staunch one wound that had yet to stop bleeding. There was still a bit of wind, but without being in motion himself Daniel and Kahvin could still hear each other from a good distance away.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t know they let cowards stay in the guild,¡± he seethed at the Hero. The look of fake ¡®it was just a prank¡¯ playfulness on Kahvin¡¯s face twisted.

    ¡°You should think carefully on how you address me.¡±

    ¡°Fuck you and fuck your team. I don¡¯t care what you tell the guild because I¡¯m going straight to Torch¡¯s church to make a statement.¡± He wasn¡¯t sure if that was a thing, or if the god who¡¯d supposedly wanted him destroyed back in the lost time had given her churches an APB for him, but Kahvin¡¯s hand going to his sword suggested he¡¯d struck home. ¡°I don¡¯t care about the rules you¡¯re trying to hide behind either. People like you are worse than the Spiritualists. At least they help the side they¡¯re on. I think everyone should know how trustworthy you are.¡±

    ¡°You think that thing in your hands makes you powerful?¡± Kahvin cried back, actually taking to the air. ¡°You¡¯re all just cheap tricks and luck. Take a look at that bug friend of yours and you¡¯ll see what your trash team is worth. Coward? I¡¯m just here to observe you idiot! She¡¯s the one who froze up. You¡¯re all hopped up outsiders thinking you can fly big. My family¡¯s the one that¡¯s built this region. If you can¡¯t respect authority, you have no place in Threst.¡± His sword exited his sheath as he moved a wing towards it and it floated a few centimeters from his feathers. ¡°I am Kahvin Talongleam, Hero of Threst, and if you wish to see me fight, then perhaps we should settle this with a duel.¡±

    Daniel was seriously considering the offer when another voice called out to them. It was Bertrar, the most junior of the other team. ¡°Uh, guys, there¡¯s still monsters out there.¡± They both looked down and Daniel realized the level 1 young whitesprings had never made it to the fight proper. They¡¯d started to lag behind and once it had really started going, he¡¯d lost track of them. It seemed the group hadn¡¯t continued flying up. Instead, something else had happened. ¡°Are they, are they eating each other?¡±

    ¡°Oh fuck,¡± Daniel cursed as he saw the auras of the distant monsters below wink out simultaneously. They hadn¡¯t died, but they had changed enough for Identify Creature to be removed, just like when a mortal leveled. He reapplied the tag and found what he¡¯d feared.

    <hr>

    ~Undefined~

    <hr>

 Chapter 191: Fusion Frenzy

    Daniel¡¯s Encyclopedia, and the hyperlinks on creature tags, either provided the information he wanted or was blocked from doing so by external meddling. That wasn¡¯t what was happening here. His information source was, ultimately, the Octyrrum itself. If it didn¡¯t know what this monster was¡­

    System intrusion. The underlying rules and mechanics of the Octyrrum were beginning to fray, starting at the edges, allowing the influence of the monster gods to invade. With one waking up next door, both Threst and Aughal would be the first to experience what was in store. At least mortal classes and powers would still function appropriately, according to Cloak. The Octyrrum would have to be broken entirely before they would be affected, though that didn¡¯t help now.

    Damn it. ¡°Khiat, can you move?¡± he called out, ignoring as Kahvin gave a half-hearted glance downward and started bantering again.

    ¡°It hurts.¡± She tried to flex her arms and let out a small cry of pain. The wounds must have been agitated whenever she tried contracting the plates. If it wasn¡¯t for the fact that her armor self-repaired, he¡¯d be worried about her being unable to lock down once Sun Resistance ran out.

    Daniel looked back to the Hero and thought, I don¡¯t care if you¡¯re level 3 or how important you are, you¡¯ll pay for that even if I have to go murder mode and claw you out of the sky. The new monster wouldn¡¯t give him that chance, though. ¡°Tlara, get Khiat and take her and Willow out of here.¡±

    ¡°Hunt¡¯s not done yet,¡± Kahvin taunted. ¡°The assignment was to kill all the whitesprings. Be a shame if you failed now after putting all that blood into it.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m staying. Khare, it¡¯s your call if you want to. This could be more dangerous than the rest.¡±

    ¡°The Crest are you so worried about?¡± Kahvin bellowed before Khare could answer, looking again at the monsters now about 400 meters away. ¡°They¡¯re just level 1s. Sure it looks like they¡¯re¡­ wait, I thought monsters couldn¡¯t do that. Gross.¡±

    He still hadn¡¯t understood the danger, though part of that was probably due to not being able to see the aura. At face value, what the remaining whitesprings had turned into at this distance just looked like the six had tangled together. Something else had occurred.

    The fuzzy lines of the caterpillar-like wing arrangement had faded, and the aura sat closer to the tubular main bodies. That in itself was alarming considering it was still somehow flying, but more of the anatomy had been scrambled. It seemed like the six had formed into the general shape of the crossed whitespring that had died earlier, which made Daniel wonder if his theory on how that had spawned had been correct.

    Instead of just the look of two fused whitesprings, this new formation had something approaching a torso in the center with a wide mouth, the eyes of the six former creatures surrounding it. It made him think of a six-limbed starfish to look at.

    The combined monsters were levitating toward them too, not making use of the spring-like motion they had before the transformation. As Kahvin got a better look at it, Daniel fired after swapping to non-explosive rounds. He had Snap Shot back and could hit big enough targets at this distance, so-

    The monster slid to the side at an incomprehensible angle, dodging the shot easily. Even the winged boots had limitations on the direction they could allow Daniel to fly, but this monster had moved at an odd angle while retaining its full speed.

    Huge mouth, freedom of movement, and it can dodge what the iridescents can¡¯t. What¡¯s going on? He knew level wasn¡¯t the ultimate indicator of strength Kahvin thought it was. Both he and Gadriel were perfect examples of how bonds and skill respectively could overcome power gaps. It seemed like whatever had happened was another edge monsters could now access.

    ¡°Get the rest of your team out of here,¡± Daniel said to Kahvin as the Hero floated his shield to his other arm.

    ¡°Look, don¡¯t be so serious. We can handle it. I¡¯ve killed level 3s solo, this is nothing¡± he bragged, as if Daniel¡¯s team hadn¡¯t just faced a handful themselves. ¡°If you¡¯re not willing to take some pain, you¡¯ll never be anything.¡±

    ¡°The rest of your team doesn¡¯t have anything enchanted like you,¡± Daniel pointed out, having been with Talonwing long enough to figure that out. ¡°The normal level 2s bit through Khiat¡¯s armor. What do you think that mouth is going to do?¡± He tried for another shot at the end of the sentence but the rapidly approaching monster dodged again.

    Kahvin beat his wings a few times. It seemed to cost him something as he said, ¡°Rookie, glide out of here with the rest. Everyone else get ready, I¡¯m sure this will be difficult.¡± He put a sarcastic spin on the end as he did his best to sneer at Daniel with a beak.

    Bertrar quickly complied, flying out after the two now riding on Tlara. He couldn¡¯t fly as much as fall slowly, whereas the level 2s on Kahvin¡¯s team could produce some lift. Only he could fly with what Daniel would call grace if it was anyone else. He didn¡¯t get how a team of theoretical Bertrar¡¯s could be automatically flight certified just by having Grow Wings at level 1, but his team with better methods and experience had to jump through these hoops.

    Well, he was about to find out if the avianoid race had any other justifiable advantages in the air aside from their racial power. The hungry star that was the fused monsters had dodged almost everything coming toward it, and Daniel swore a slug that had gotten close had been pushed away. Telekinesis? That doesn¡¯t make any sense!

    He did not want to fight this thing up close, but Kahvin, puffed up and pride hurting, was mentally preparing to cut this thing in half with one strike and then further dunk on Daniel¡¯s team. If he¡¯d arranged the rest of his team around him Daniel might have suggested he play it safe but since he was alone? Kahvin seems pretty confident. I¡¯m sure he can handle himself.

    It was close, slightly spinning as it broke through a cloud and continued to come for them. The mouth in the center had been made from the combined jaws of the former whitesprings and hinged backward at six points. The limbs coming off the sides moved independently of each other and not in any way that suggested they were responsible for the flight.

    Khavin thought better of his original plan and sheathed his sword. ¡°Feather Rain!¡± The ability was similar to Daniel¡¯s own Grow Feathers, though in this case it looked like the Hero¡¯s arm was a machine gun continually firing the sharp projectiles. It wasn¡¯t very accurate as the location on the Hero¡¯s wing each came from partially determined their trajectory, leading to a wide spread instead of what Daniel could achieve in combination with Snap Shot.

    The monster, whose aura remained undefined, spun sideways and away from the torrent. It¡¯s definitely deflecting projectiles, Daniel decided. Only a few out of the hundreds of feathers even made it, the rest skating away. The effect¡¯s stronger there. It must be like my Telekinetic Reach, less effective on things with more momentum. They could have used Khiat here, but Kahvin¡¯s refusal to participate had gotten both her and, by extension, Tlara removed from this fight.

    ¡°I think we need to get close for this one!¡± Adva shouted, her voice slightly twisted as she adopted the martial aspect from her class. Bird transmutation on a bird person wasn¡¯t as immediately stark as Tak¡¯s normal shift, but he could make out a section on her wings that had claws poking out of the feathers. It looked like she could stack both Grow Wings and Claw Strike. ¡°I¡¯ve never seen anything like it.¡±

    ¡°I can rage if we need to take this down quickly.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t!¡± Daniel shouted back at Clacki, but Kahvin quickly overrode him as he flew back up towards him, the monster on his heels.

    ¡°You don¡¯t order my team around! Clacki, you¡¯ll need those buffs. Do it.¡± Daniel watched as the Berserker let out a loud cry and started charging toward the monster, Adva following close behind. She stopped and turned in the air when it became clear Kahvin was letting them fight the monster first, but the other one didn¡¯t.

    It can¡¯t be too strong, Daniel thought to himself, hoping for Clacki¡¯s sake he was right. He was done trying to save them from Kahvin¡¯s stupidity and depending on what happened next, was ready to get himself and Khare out of here. The rest had made their bed.

    The monster didn¡¯t scream or bellow on its own as the two closed, Kahvin falling in a few meters behind for a follow-up. The shape of its central body was flat, and it couldn¡¯t have contained normal biology for things such as lungs. If you could avoid the jaws, and if there wasn¡¯t anything special to this monster aside from its flight and deflection, then it wasn¡¯t that difficult an opponent. That must have been what the Talonwing team thought before they struck. Monsters rarely had many tricks, surely there was nothing else.

    Clacki¡¯s wings glowed red as he evaded one of the six tendrils coming for him, the light focusing on the blades fit to the exterior of his wings before winking out. Daniel didn¡¯t know what kind of rage power the avianoid had, but from his own he had an idea of how they worked. His best guess was that Clacki¡¯s strength and evasiveness were boosted, given the Berserker was properly flying now in a way only level 3 Grow Wings allowed on its own.

    The slight fear that he had been exaggerating the danger was quashed as, hovering next to Khare above the melee, Daniel watched three limbs of the monster not directly adjacent to Clacki point toward him. They bent like fishing rods as the Berserker entered a spinning dive, lashing out with his wing blades as he grazed the monster¡¯s side and flew out from under it. Or, at least that¡¯s what he had tried to do.

    Clacki squawked angrily as he began to slow, the monster rotating to face him while also matching the descent. Even with his equipment, Daniel couldn¡¯t pull off something like that, especially when the flaps of his wings were detached to allow him to hold the blast bow comfortably.

    Kahvin and Adva dove after the limbs pointed at Clacki, having made the same connection Daniel had. Cooperating for the Berserker¡¯s sake, he aimed for the one they wouldn¡¯t immediately reach and tried to selectively mark it to communicate to Khare. Unfortunately, their bond was all or nothing when it came to monsters.

    He fired and managed to strike his target, though the flesh was only cored from the damage. It held together about as well as the level 2 monsters he¡¯d struck, which wouldn¡¯t have died as easily from his attacks were it not for him targeting weak points and using his area damage buff. With frie-, with allies this close, he could only use Snap Shot.

    Khare went for the main body instead, the edges of their arrows red with the bleed effect. It¡¯d be great if they managed to apply it since this new monster still had blood, though the overall damage from one of their volleys was also respectable. Daniel¡¯s blast bow beat any one projectile Khare put out, but the gestalt had a quantity over quality approach and received a universal damage buff while using items Daniel made.

    That the monster withstood these attacks, and managed to completely stop Clacki midair, told him it was no longer level 1. The two in melee fared no better, though Kahvin¡¯s enchanted sword got halfway through severing a limb before his blade stopped. On even ground he¡¯d have had the leverage to completely follow through, but fighting in the air meant transitioning the weight of the fall into a strike. There was no way to shift the momentum with his sword loosely grasped by whatever power tied it to his wing, not unless he tried to land on the monster. Adva was faced with a similar issue as she tried to sever a limb with a spectral attack that looked similar, though not identical to Cleave.

    Clacki tried to escape the monster¡¯s grip as his teammates circled for another pass, beating his wings so fast they began to blur. He barely moved, locked in place as all six limbs of the monster were now pointed at him. Daniel fired twice into the back of the creature, hoping now to kill it before it could bite Clacki. The Berserker managed to get a little bit away whenever one of the limbs was damaged, but he was tiring from rapidly sustained flight.

    It should have already gotten him, he thought. The monster didn¡¯t need to maneuver to reach Clacki, it could just fall onto him. It¡¯s gravity manipulation, not telekinesis, Daniel decided. It can only move one thing at a time and it sticks in place when it does. Was its deflection actually repulsion? That would make sense since both he and Khare weren¡¯t having issues hitting it now.

    He¡¯d begun to consider if there was a way he could do more damage than his blast bow when it happened. Khare¡¯s next volley deflected as did all of Talonwing, including Clacki. The monster had taken considerable damage up until this point without showing signs of serious injury, but several of its limbs were close to being cut off. It seemed to have abandoned its attempts to snare the Berserker, until the arrows Khare was shooting began twisting in the air back and forth. Kahvin and Adva were caught by the turbulence as well, but only in the weak field effect that surrounded the creature.Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.

    In the area around Clacki, where it was focused, the effect was more pronounced. It only took Daniel a few moments to see what was happening. It¡¯s switching the direction of its effect every time he flaps his wings! The Berserker had been tiring and working himself further up in a mad attempt to escape, which left him off-balance against this type of attack. The rapid fluctuations of gravity must have been disorienting.

    Kahvin, by merit of his higher attributes, managed to overcome the turbulence himself and strike at a limb to fully sever it. The five that remained were still enough. Clacki performed the flying version of stumbling and as soon as he lost cohesion, the gravity around the monster remained attractive. Adva tried to knock him away and almost got caught in the main effect herself. She tried to push off from him in the last moment but only got herself clear.

    Daniel had to judge by aura what happened next. The now five-limbed monster¡¯s aura eclipsed Clacki¡¯s, this coinciding with a scream. Daniel used Moment of Clarity after hearing this, his mana dwindling after already being spent on so many ranged attacks. We¡¯re not going to kill this fast enough. The main body of the new monster was far tougher than its composite parts and didn¡¯t appear to have any singular weak spot. His blast bow could cut all the way through, but without something like a brain to destroy there was little point in that. It was something he¡¯d have to consider later, with the lightning bolt design proving too dangerous and problematic to consider making more of, but there was no way he could change things now. Not like this.

    There was no limit to what Daniel could designate once Moment of Clarity ended so long as it was a singular action. Using Beast Mode qualified. Revealing the power and all that came from it wasn¡¯t his first choice, but he wasn¡¯t going to leave someone in that kind of situation no matter how much of a jerk their boss was. Plus, he knew that as long as Clacki survived in some fashion, Regeneration would allow him to eventually heal. It was a power almost every Berserker awakened.

    The conversion was almost instantaneous, similar to other transmutation powers. Coming out of both stopped time and into a new body was disorienting at first but falling was all he needed to do. As he willed the lightning wings to reattach to his arms, the cling effect making them crawl up from his back, he fell into Longstalker¡¯s Stride. He¡¯d had to get used to flying before the movement trance worked, but a few covert nighttime ventures had been enough.

    ¡°Caution!¡± Khare called after him, but it barely registered. In this state he was focused forward. Perhaps a weakness in the sky, but with nothing else nearby there was no need for caution. The trance broke after only ten seconds, Daniel having gotten too close to the monster for it to function. Even the small amount of speed he¡¯d gained would translate to a shorter amount of time his fellow hunter was being chewed. He had almost forgotten to slip on the bone claws but thrust both hands into the bags on either side of him in time to make contact with the twisted white mass.

    His mind blocked out the taste as he bit and clawed into the monster. Defiant Rage was activated, it was always activated, but he neither felt a boost from facing an enemy of higher level nor overwhelming emotion like when he¡¯d gained the feature. His prolonged exposure to the power, and especially Quala¡¯s guidance, were helping. He could sense Clacki and the two others of Talonwing even with Pack Sense still at level 1. The Berserker wasn¡¯t doing well. On the other hand Sense Astral gave him nothing, so this wasn¡¯t a foe that crossed into that place.

    Daniel pulled himself across the creature, needing to sink his claws in as the monster¡¯s gravitational effect switched to repulsive. The limbs were acting semi-independently now and there were two tracking both him and Kahvin. It was trying to distance them while it killed Clacki and felt it had a better chance this way, rather than escaping itself. He dug in, using both Mark Prey on the monster for a good portion of his remaining mana, as well as slightly giving in to the anger Hammer had originally sparked.

    It was like pulling on a stuck lever and meeting no resistance once the rust was broken. He almost lost himself to it, feeling the attention of Adva and Kahvin turn to him through Pack Insight, but held on. His friends were counting on him. His family would never see him again if he got himself killed. Hunter¡­

    He blinked and was at the compound jaws of the monster that were currently stained red, Clacki¡¯s feathers stuck in places where it was drying. Some of the limbs had tried hitting him when it became clear he wouldn¡¯t be pulled off, but Daniel either avoided the damage or healed it back through Ferocious Healing. He hissed lowly as he gripped one of the protruding upper jaws and felt a slight burning. Not fire, but the saliva of the monster was acidic enough to take the fur off him and eat into the flesh. Acid wasn¡¯t quite the counter to healing fire or necrotic damage was, but it would fight any restoration until neutralized.

    At least his claws, both natural and bone, were resistant due to their enhancement. Daniel pulled fiercely, getting what steady footing he could with the boots preventing him from sinking his smaller back claws into the monster. The resistance wasn¡¯t overwhelming, and if it had been just this hinge keeping Clacki in he should have been able to escape. It was the combined effect of each keeping him contained in the maw that was slowly dissolving him.

    The flesh within the jaw itself was solid where a throat should have been, muscle connecting the top and bottom halves. Toward the center of the monster there was an opening through which he could barely see Clacki. He wasn¡¯t doing good, already knocked unconscious and kept alive only by the self-healing power of his class preserving what the acid hadn¡¯t reached yet. Daniel slashed at the connective muscles while using his other hand to keep the jaw elevated, feeling it grow slack.

    His eyes found Kahvin where his power suggested he¡¯d be and he growled out, ¡°Two more, then help me get him!¡± He saw the Hero breathing hard, on the edge of panic. If the monster made an aggressive move towards him he might flee, but it appeared it was now trying to run. Three of its limbs had been hacked off and its movements were less coordinated as it fell through the sky. Every wound bled fiercely as Khare¡¯s continually applied effect took its toll. All of this had been happening while he¡¯d been zeroed in on the jaws, barely registering in his mind.

    Bad leader, Daniel idly mused as he pried up another jaw. They needed to find Evalyn and the others. He saw the island of Diver¡¯s Rest flash by as he crippled it, and then moved to the next. The ground limit would be close, but they¡¯d transition with the monster. There was no escape.

    ¡°Now!¡± he yelled. There was only one limb left and it seemed the monster didn¡¯t have enough to stabilize itself in the air. It was trying to brake, the mystical barrier at the bottom of Threst nearing. It was odd, now that he could see it. The sky continued downward, but his seventh sense registered the immense magic sustaining the combined illusive and teleportation effects.

    Adva landed by him first and he heard her gasp as she made out Clacki within the acidic maw. ¡°He¡¯s still alive, grab him!¡± To her credit she didn¡¯t hesitate, compared to Kahvin who had yet to appear. Daniel pulled and then levered up a fourth jaw with his feet while reaching in with the Totem Warrior, both retrieving the stricken Berserker.

    Through unspoken agreement they retreated from the monster, Adva quickly looping rope onto a latch he hadn¡¯t noticed before on Clacki¡¯s armor before remaking her wings and flaring them out. The monster would hit the ground limit before they got him clear, but Daniel intended to make sure Adva could support Clacki alone. Then he would go after that thing and-

    The fused whitesprings hit the ground limit as if it was physically solid, splattering. Its body didn¡¯t entirely break, but this was enough to kill it after all the other damage it had taken was accounted for. Neither commented on this, instead getting Clacki back up to Diver¡¯s Rest. The shared movement was awkward, Daniel having to compensate for how Adva flew, but he used the time to calm himself. He breathed in, trying to catch where Tlara was, but they must have been too far away. He¡¯d have to meet them back in Aurus.

    When they laid the Berserker down on the grounds of the destroyed village, Daniel got a sense of just how damaged he was. There must have been pools of acid in the maw that parts of his body, including one hand and both feet, had sat in as there were spots of greater damage. The back of his head was eaten into as well, but thankfully not through the skull. Still, it was worse than the injuries Tak had sustained after a mountain had tried to fall on him. Regeneration could allow people to survive extraordinary injuries, but it said nothing about a pleasant recovery process. Like his spine, Clacki would have to depend on his power alone to regrow the parts that had been completely lost.

    ¡°You!¡± he heard someone shout. Kahvin. The Hero had flown down and had been storming towards them, only to see Clacki¡¯s wounds himself. ¡°This is all your fault!¡± Daniel felt incredible anger coming from the Hero, but also fear. ¡°This was supposed to be a simple hunt but half of you abandoned us. Look at what you¡¯ve done to my friend!¡±

    ¡°Kahvin-¡° Adva started to say.

    ¡°SHUT UP!¡± His sword was in his hand, and while it wasn¡¯t pointed toward Daniel, he suddenly lost his sense of Kahvin through Pack Insight. That only worked on allies. ¡°You weren¡¯t ready. You weren¡¯t ready, and this is what happened!¡±

    Daniel didn¡¯t reply as he would have in human form. Instead, he just made sure the fit of his bone claws was still snug as he walked away from Adva and Clacki. Neither the Hero nor the Totem Warrior had commented on his transformation, and he hadn¡¯t shown too much to distinguish it from a normal power. He grinned towards the Hero, feeling a soft nudge of a burgeoning power awakening in the back of his mind.

    ¡°Kahvin, we need to get him back to Aurus,¡± Adva tried again, but the Hero pretended not to hear. A mark suddenly appeared over his head, Khare giving their own opinion from above, but Daniel dismissed it.

    ¡°You think you can just come here and fly over everyone like you¡¯ve earned anything? You¡¯re nothing. Nothing!¡± He did point his sword toward Daniel then. ¡°And if you don¡¯t know that yet, I¡¯m going to show you. Fucking prepare yourself.¡±

    With pleasure, Daniel thought, making no outwardly welcoming gestures. The degree to which the Hero was unhinged puzzled him but he ultimately didn¡¯t care. Defiant Rage was giving him the benefit of facing a higher level enemy now, and he was getting closer to realizing the hidden power. It was an ability, he knew that much.

    Daniel widened his stance as the Hero suddenly shot toward him, moving fast enough that it had to have been a power. The sword came within a centimeter of his arm as he bent away, and in that moment he awakened not one, but two powers. The first had been the one he expected, but the second had been a complete surprise, provoked by the kind of attack Kahvin used.

    <hr>

    Siphon Mana (Ability, Intelligence, Domain: Restoration, Cooldown, Modifier, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to absorb Mana used to fuel an offensive power targeting you. This ability does not reduce the target¡¯s Mana Pool or weaken the effect of the triggering power. This power has no mana cost and can be combined with another power without interrupting it. The mana gained from this ability must be used immediately, and once used this ability has a one minute cooldown. This is a Magical Ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression.

    -

    Opportune Moment (Ability, Intelligence, Domain: Time, Counter, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to improve your speed and reaction times over a brief period for a major Mana cost after completing evading an Attack. This is a Magical Ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression.

    <hr>

    Daniel instinctually used both, understanding why Siphon Mana didn¡¯t interrupt the other as he did so. He gained a sudden sense of control over mana radiating off of Kahvin¡¯s waning power and it flowed over to him, mirroring the path his began to take to trigger Opportune Moment. Despite the extra mana it almost wasn¡¯t enough, this ability having the largest cost he¡¯d ever seen.

    Time slowed, though not to the degree it did with Moment of Clarity. It was at maybe quarter speed, and Daniel couldn¡¯t move any faster than he would have normally while this slow. Still, he saw the justification for the higher mana cost as he could move. Kahvin continued past him, but Daniel was both flexible and fast enough to get a hit in before the Hero was out of reach. Reluctantly, he took off one of the bone claws while stepping away from the strike. There was no point in making this worse than it already was.

    Daniel shifted his weight and aimed a punch straight for the Hero. If he was trying to end this fight here and now he¡¯d have gone for the neck with his claws, though he knew killing this asshole would be a bad idea. As the Hero fell away from him his power didn¡¯t immediately end. Daniel felt he could cut it off at any point, but he wouldn¡¯t get a mana refund for time unused. He decided to keep it going to see how long it would last and guessed it was about five real seconds.

    The Hero crashed to the ground, the momentum from what the committed attack giving him no ability to save himself. Reeling, the Hero didn¡¯t immediately rise in aggression but instead felt at his beak around where the crack was, panic returning.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t hit you there,¡± Daniel said distastefully, disgusted by the pathetic creature in front of him. How had this weakling made it to level 3? ¡°But I will, if you keep acting like an idiot. I¡¯m taking my team and leaving. Go help the only two on yours who actually did something.¡±

    ¡°I-¡° Kahvin started to say, but his voice broke as Daniel glared at him. ¡°My father will learn of this! Do you hear me!?¡±

    Daniel laughed at that and ascended into the sky. His only thought toward that was that no one who raised Kahvin could prove a serious threat.

 Chapter 192: You Cant Fight City Hall

    As Daniel sat in the tense office, he reflected that the change in perspective Beast Mode gave him had other downsides he hadn¡¯t yet considered. He was certainly more forceful, and the rage could make him overly aggressive if he didn¡¯t stay on top of it, but it also seemed that he disregarded certain unconventional threats. Like political influence.

    A curious cascade of instances had occurred upon his return. Daniel had already reverted to human form and had intended to go straight to Torch¡¯s church as he¡¯d initially threatened, only to find that Kahvin had one-upped him. When the Hero had threatened to tell his father on Daniel in turn, he wasn¡¯t making a future threat but actively doing it. Sending stones. Of course that damned coward had his dad on speed dial.

    A couple of air platforms had congregated towards him, intercepting Daniel before he could make it to the Divine Quarter. Before they finished the announcement that he was under arrest, they¡¯d been called off before another group had approached, then broken off again. Several people were fighting a war in the background over what was happening, with the most dramatic move involving the equivalent of a bomb threat being called in the Divine Quarter to make the churches lock down.

    It had culminated in Tounaki herself flying over and escorting him to the Hunter¡¯s Guild while Khare was sent to their house. Given the influence Kahvin¡¯s father had he might not have trusted anyone else native to this region, but he doubted Murdon¡¯s girlfriend would backstab him. Now he sat in the office of the Commander, whose name was Zolyra Rosescale judging by the nameplate and a level 6 Arcanist according to the firebird.

    The room was far more spacious and decorated than Murdon¡¯s had been back in the village. A flag bearing the symbol of Threst was hung on one wall, and by its age it appeared the oldest of everything here. There was another section of inscribed scrolls that hurt to look at closely, and another wall with drawings of various islands from different angles. There was no clear indication, but Daniel had the impression that the Commander had personally made all but the flag.

    She entered the room only a few moments after he¡¯d sat down. There was a presence to her he¡¯d felt last time. It wasn¡¯t how much stronger she was, it was her charisma. The attribute didn¡¯t just connect to attractiveness but force of personality, and Zolyra¡¯s was like a mountain.

    ¡°I¡¯ll give you this,¡± she said as she took her seat, the only other one in the room. ¡°You didn¡¯t get any Torch Clerics involved.¡± Her voice was hard, but not hostile as it might have been if she was in Kahvin¡¯s pocket. Neither did he feel relieved to be there.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to. It¡¯s obvious someone¡¯s been lying.¡±

    Zolyra sighed with that and tapped her desk with a claw. Pink runes in the kingdom¡¯s script flowed from the spot to cover the walls and form a barrier over the window. They overlapped onto the script of the scrolls whenever they intersected with them. ¡°It¡¯s a privacy effect,¡± she explained to Daniel¡¯s wide-eyed expression.

    ¡°Ok?¡± Daniel held his Focus in his hand protectively. Most of his possessions had been confiscated but they¡¯d left him with that and his necklace. He doubted this would lead to violence, but if it did, the level 10 material would be his only hope. ¡°I get the sense this isn¡¯t the first time you¡¯ve had this conversation with someone.¡±

    ¡°No, it is not.¡± She pulled out a piece of parchment and began idly scribing on it with a claw, the color of the ink black this time instead of matching her scales. It seemed to be another scroll, rather than a record of the conversation. ¡°These circumstances are worse than normal.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re talking like you already have all the facts. I just got back to Aurus, there¡¯s no way you can take Kahvin¡¯s word seriously.¡±

    ¡°We were observing the hunt.¡± Daniel gave her a confused look before getting what she meant a moment after she started to explain. ¡°I had that Fate that arrived in Aurus with you watching. Officially to note the new variants, unofficially because of, well, you can guess. She was making a live report. Kahvin wasn¡¯t aware of this either, by the way.¡±

    ¡°So you know exactly what happened. Why am I the one they¡¯re trying to-¡° He cut himself off as Zolyra gave him a meaningful look. ¡°You know about Thomas.¡±

    ¡°Any information that Fate provides could be biased. Both because of him, and her connection to you.¡± The Commander continued scribing as she talked, though she didn¡¯t look at the glyphs once. ¡°I wasn¡¯t anticipating there being an incident this contentious, or concerning.¡± Daniel wanted to ask her what he was doing here, but the Commander held up a hand. ¡°Do you understand the situation?¡±

    ¡°Not really. Kahvin¡¯s the son of someone important and he got pissed off that I saved his friend so he¡¯s taking it out on me.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re too new to Threst, then. That¡¯s part of why we¡¯re having this conversation.¡± She tapped her claw forcefully on one of the corners of the parchment and the glyphs briefly shone.

    Scroll, Daniel realized. He¡¯d gone to a shop selling these but hadn¡¯t been too interested, given their limits and costs. Whatever money he had was going toward potions anyway after what¡¯d happened to Khiat. ¡°I didn¡¯t know you could make those that fast.¡±

    ¡°Most can¡¯t, and this is only a level 1 scroll.¡± She rolled it up but left it on the table before retrieving another, smaller piece from a drawer on the desk. This had the look of a form she began filling out, angling it away from Daniel so he couldn¡¯t read it. ¡°Kahvin¡¯s father is Lagori Talongleam, the level 5 Hero in command of Apex Flight. That is the order responsible for the protection of our highest officials and the courts.¡±

    ¡°Yikes.¡± Daniel spoke his earlier internal assessment of Kahvin, both for his sake and the region¡¯s. The Commander gave him a commiserating nod. ¡°So this is a ¡®we can¡¯t do anything about it, you¡¯re screwed¡¯ kind of conversation?¡±

    ¡°Not exactly, but yes. In private,¡± she said, gesturing to the wards around the room, ¡°Kahvin Talongleam is a disgrace and a menace to both my guild and this region as a whole. In public, all I would say on the matter is that he reminds us that it takes more than just power to be a lauded servant of society.¡±

    Daniel bitterly laughed, getting the backhanded compliment. This wasn¡¯t the worst way this could have gone, and yet there was still an air of defeatism. ¡°How did someone like him get to level 3?¡± he asked, echoing the question that had come to him earlier.

    ¡°You¡¯re aware of how Heroes advance outside of hunting?¡± She asked, making Daniel sigh in exasperation.

    ¡°He grinded quests? How much has he actually hunted?¡±

    ¡°Far less than I would have liked. I couldn¡¯t do anything about it until he hit level 3, which comes with more expectations. Granted it hasn¡¯t been smooth for him. I have it on good authority he once, drunkenly, took a quest to bed five women in one day. His family had to make arrangements to make sure he didn¡¯t fail.¡± She paused in her writing to roll her eyes. ¡°Part of me wonders if he was meant to be a Bard, but Lagori bribed the Octyrrum itself to give him the Hero class. The only good thing to come out of this is I¡¯m pretty sure I can use the initial inciting incident to force through the revision of our charm power policy. Maybe the one covering Rogues too, we can handle their side advancement in better ways.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m amazed no one changed that earlier,¡± Daniel complained, still infuriated about how casually Kahvin had used his power on Willow.

    ¡°There is the crux of the issue. Rikendia,¡± the Commander clarified, as if she hadn¡¯t just changed the topic. ¡°It was an official kingdom policy, prioritizing Blessed training over anything else. So long as the power usage wasn¡¯t ¡®predatory¡¯. With them gone, changes can be made.¡± She tapped another claw on the table and appeared to refresh the privacy power. ¡°Including to our leadership. Soraso maintained power for so long because he appreciated how the old Threst factions played the game. He acts the fool so that they can believe he is one and that they are influencing him. Lagori and others want the power for themselves, but they don¡¯t want someone ¡®competent¡¯ in control that would use the regency against them. That, as well as the novelty from having him in command, and him convincing a powerful Sojourn to stay within the region and help control the monster population.¡± She shook her head. ¡°I¡¯m digressing.¡±

    Zolyra removed a small case from her desk and opened it, the container flashing with magic as she took out a seal. She stamped it into the form she¡¯d been working on and handed it to Daniel. ¡°With all of this said, there¡¯s little the Regent can do himself in your favor given Lagori¡¯s vested interests. It¡¯s important that he continues to hold the Sword of Threst with both the Collapse and the ruins in play, and it¡¯s too much trouble to darken the skies over this incident. That being said, I can at least do this.¡±

    Daniel looked at the form, which turned out to be a Hunter¡¯s Guild application she¡¯d filled out for him. Two things drew his attention: the listed team name, and the Commander¡¯s attestation above her stamp. She¡¯d given his team exactly what they¡¯d wanted from the hunt. ¡°They can¡¯t do anything to change this?¡±

    ¡°Not unless they want to remove me. Which isn¡¯t off the table. Stubborn, prideful birds. You know, I had to break the wings of the former Commander before he gave up and that was with a clear advantage over him.¡± She brought yet another, larger parchment onto the table. This one was oiled and well-preserved. It was a two-dimensional map of the region, but when Zolyra tapped it it projected upwards like the war room table. There were notes written in spaces in recognizable handwriting, and when she zoomed in on one island, Daniel saw it marked as one of the few the region was trying to hold against the increased monster aggression. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. We¡¯re getting to the hard part of the conversation.¡±

    ¡°If anyone needs to be sorry it¡¯s not either of us,¡± Daniel said, equal parts aggrieved and commiserating.

    ¡°And neither of us have a choice. First off, you should know whenever a hunter is critically injured or killed, Threst automatically reviews available evidence to determine if there was any foul play involved. If Kahvin was anyone else he¡¯d have been severely punished for not intervening before your dusker friend was hurt.¡± Zolyra grimaced. ¡°For the record, I assessed both your team and what was known about the targets. The armor you make is nothing to sneeze at, neither is your weapon. If Talonwing had fought alongside you Khiat never would have been put in that position. As far as the Berserker, well, it was the enemy that defied my expectations there.¡±

    ¡°So we agree all of this is Kahvin¡¯s fault?¡± Daniel pressed

    Zolyra nodded, but there was a catch in it. ¡°Unfortunately, Lagori had a head start and already verified an account of what happened. It lays the blame on your inexperience and attempts to override Kahvin¡¯s command.¡±

    ¡°Bullshit.¡± Daniel stood up angrily. ¡°How the fuck can they twist it that way? There are people who can tell when people are lying!¡±

    ¡°Unfortunately, they are still people,¡± the Commander said sympathetically, not taking offense at his tone. ¡°Like I said, I¡¯ve had this conversation before. Lagori has a few ¡®old friends¡¯ in the church of Torch. This isn¡¯t the first time he¡¯s gone to them to clean up his son¡¯s mess. Without the outside pressure from Rikendia supporting the current regime they can be more brazen. With that said, they can¡¯t change your registration or what you¡¯re owed from Aughal. They can make your life more difficult, and I¡¯d expect any ongoing deals you had with the guild to be canceled, including your lodging. The city was also screening people from knowing where you were, otherwise you would¡¯ve been hounded by requests for enchantment. I¡¯d recommend accepting a long-term assignment before they put pressure on one of my subordinates to give you something worse in the hopes that you refuse, giving grounds I couldn¡¯t legally contest to remove you from the guild.¡± She then indicated the island marked as ¡®Pinion¡¯s Point¡¯.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

    ¡°We¡¯re getting kicked out,¡± Daniel sighed. ¡°I¡¯m sure Kahvin would see me getting sent to some distant village as a victory.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s the point, although I¡¯m trying to make this as soft a landing as I can for you. Pinion¡¯s Point is on its way to becoming a full city in its own right. It¡¯s the second largest settlement in the region, well-defended, and the lead hunter there follows protocol over anything else. Someone the Talongleams would have trouble bribing if they were feeling particularly vindictive. You would be expected to patrol and hunt monsters near the town, but I¡¯m assuming you would have done that anyway. Not every team would face five monsters above their level charging them, and that¡¯s not considering the others in that pack.¡±

    Daniel nodded, though thinking about this in a political frame gave him pause. ¡°No offense, but why are you doing this? You¡¯ve laid it out pretty clear that Kahvin¡¯s family has their feathers everywhere. I know the Regent has plans for me, but why are you helping?¡±

    ¡°For one, I respect what I¡¯ve seen from you so far. There¡¯s no way Kahvin flies alone into a pack of monsters that suddenly appear in our streets. It¡¯s also my fault Kahvin hasn¡¯t been kicked out already,¡± she said simply. ¡°I was trying to push him, either make him give a damn or admit he just wants to spend half his time in brothels, and then the idiot takes out a ripair hawk solo and saves his team in the process.¡±

    She waved away his questions and continued. ¡°Not important. Once I¡¯d seen your disagreement I¡¯d hoped to use this as a way to get him out of my scales for good. There was no way he would¡¯ve taken that snub lying down. I was waiting for him to do something that would let me at least suspend him pending dismissal from the guild. Leaving your team unaided, leading to significant injury of one of your members would¡¯ve been enough. What happened after that went too far and forced Lagori to fully intervene in order to salvage his own reputation. Trust Kahvin to screw up so poorly that he still lands on solid ground.¡± Zolyra sighed wearily. ¡°There¡¯s another reason too. As the Regent said, you were responsible for defeating the Spiritualists in Aughal. You warned the crowds about the monster spawning incident and was then the first to defend them from it. Then there is your caution against what the level 1 monsters turned into.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s another Collapse. I figured a bunch of monsters fusing was a bad sign,¡± Daniel replied, being careful not to lie. He hadn¡¯t yet, but they also hadn¡¯t discussed any overly sensitive topics before now. Someone with attributes far above his could likely sense his deceit even if they didn¡¯t have a power for that.

    Zolyra tapped her claw a third time and the wards around them refreshed. Despite this protection, she dropped her voice to a whisper. ¡°I have also heard rumors of a Cleric of Cloak roaming the city that only the most alert can detect. I¡¯ve asked the church and, as far as I can make out, someone claiming to be a Proxy of their god arrived around when you did.¡± There was an unsure frown on her face when she mentioned the church, though otherwise she¡¯d become more respectful if still leaving out the formal speech of Threst. ¡°I don¡¯t need to know where you¡¯re getting your information from. All I¡¯m asking is if there is anything you can tell me that would help keep this ship from sinking.¡±

    Ooooh, Daniel thought, realizing why Zolyra was being this accommodating. There was her guilt, sure, but in a way she¡¯d made similar assumptions as Ashier had. In this case, she was partially right. ¡°I don¡¯t know everything,¡± Daniel qualified. ¡°I also don¡¯t know if you¡¯ve heard of the Origin Beast in the Thormundz. Well, there is one. I¡¯ve seen it. It¡¯s like a god of monsters and it¡¯s starting to wake up. With us so close, it¡¯s affecting how monsters behave. All I know is that they¡¯ll develop ways to become more powerful, maybe gain their own classes. I think the monsters fusing like that could have been a bond, or their equivalent.¡±

    ¡°This is responsible for the new variants?¡±

    ¡°This is in addition to the variants,¡± Daniel replied to Zolyra¡¯s consternation. He decided not to tell her about spirits after a moment¡¯s consideration, both because that wasn¡¯t technically new information, and it might complicate matters when it came to Willow. ¡°It sounds like you know what happened on the hunt. How strong would you consider that fused monster to be? Also, why didn¡¯t it pass through the ground limit?¡±

    ¡°You would have a better idea of it,¡± Zolyra answered ambivalently before pondering on the matter. ¡°I place it as a strong level 2 to mid level 3 monster, which is concerning given it originally consisted of six level 1 monsters. Roughly speaking, that is more power than those six should have combined. That its gravitic power could stop a Berserker midflight suggests far more adept control than I¡¯d expect from a fresh monster as well. I agree that something in the realm of a bond could be responsible. As for the ground limit, I have no idea. There is nothing known to me that doesn¡¯t pass through. Perhaps the Octyrrum intervened.¡±

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Daniel shakily agreed. And he did agree, though his suspicion was based on knowledge he shouldn¡¯t share. He eyes the scroll again, which had gone untouched since Zolyra finished it. ¡°What¡¯s that for, by the way?¡±

    ¡°Ever used a scroll?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± The prospect had been enticing, although they¡¯d been too expensive for what they could do back in Aughal.

    ¡°Not too hard. That one contacts me. You can only send a limited message, but you can use it three times.¡± She pushed the scroll towards him.

    ¡°Three charges? I thought each was single use.¡±

    Zolyra smiled. ¡°You¡¯re level 2 now. I¡¯m certain you are already learning ways around the supposed limits of your craft, whether by power or skill. I¡¯ve been at this a lot longer than you have.¡±

    No kidding. ¡°Ok wait, what exactly am I agreeing to here?¡± Daniel asked, turning his attention back to the holographic map. ¡°I¡¯m not going to permanently tie my team to something. What if we want to visit Aurus or leave the region? What about the Regent¡¯s plans?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯d have to ask Soraso about that last part, but it shouldn¡¯t be an issue. There are several teams I¡¯ve been instructed to pay attention to, including yours. When the time¡¯s right, you¡¯ll get your notice.¡± She took longer to answer his first concern, using the time to fold the map and replace it. ¡°The short answer is you¡¯ll need to stay there until this all blows over. Probably best you didn¡¯t return to Aurus for at least two weeks, maybe more. Beyond that, it¡¯ll depend on how big of a deal the Talongleams make of this. It¡¯s not going to escape most that Kahvin was in over his head no matter what his family says. It was too public for them to sweep into the breeze, especially with the show they made trying to expedite your arrest.¡±

    ¡°Great, I get to suffer even more because they doubled down on being terrible people,¡± Daniel sighed, though he was already resigned to it. He doubted he could do much more than the Commander already had if Kahvin¡¯s family did have that much influence. If this was a trap somehow, then worst case he¡¯d try to weasel out through his connections with Soraso or Cloak. Have to make sure he gets transferred with us, he thought. No matter the problems he had with the god, having him nearby was important if for no other reason than to discuss the monster fusion. ¡°When do we leave?¡±

    ¡­

    Four hours later, Daniel¡¯s team was gathered by a Bekali Hauler. Khiat had been seen to by Quala and was ready to travel, though she had to be reassured all of this wasn¡¯t her fault. Her being injured had been one of the steps leading toward this outcome, true, but the fault for her injury ultimately lay with Kahvin. If anything, Daniel should have told her to keep retreating upwards while firing, but he¡¯d wanted to make sure she hit her shots so she¡¯d grow in power.

    ¡°You¡¯re all leaving just like that, Guy?¡± Thomas asked, discouraged. ¡°Damn gawpers. I heard what Silora was saying during her reading. He left all of you out to dry!¡±

    ¡°At least the Commander here isn¡¯t compromised.¡± Daniel held up a folded letter to the Cleric, shifting to another topic. ¡°Thanks. I still can¡¯t believe Padri won¡¯t tell me where he lives. I didn¡¯t even see him the last two times.¡±

    ¡°Least I could do.¡± Thomas left the letter in the air for a few seconds longer and then took it. ¡°Less than ten months now. I wish I could come with you but with Silora and the church¡­¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re still in the same region. Besides, I¡¯m sure they¡¯re making good use out of Vitality Bubble.¡± Daniel once again thought to ask the Cleric to join them on hunts, but he¡¯d made his choice clear on many occasions. If circumstances had been different when he¡¯d arrived in this world, Daniel might have never ended up on the road himself. ¡°Try not to let Murdon know we¡¯re onto him before we get back though.¡±

    ¡°Guy, I¡¯m trying, I really am,¡± he answered in a strained voice. ¡°It¡¯s just, they¡¯re being so obvious. Murdon visits Sigron now and then and Tounaki¡¯s there at least half the time.¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t believe he¡¯s still injured. It¡¯s been over three months.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s almost there, Guy. Not getting his arm back, but it sounds like they¡¯re working on a replacement. There¡¯s an Artificer here that does that kind of stuff for avianoids who don¡¯t have powers that attach weapons to their wings.¡±

    ¡°I am on board,¡± a voice whispered to him, shielded from other ears. ¡°It would be preferable to stay here, but I suppose the guard were beginning to search for me.¡±

    And it¡¯d be too much to ask you to mind wipe the event from everyone¡¯s memories, Daniel thought to himself. ¡°I hope he gets better. He lost that arm saving my life. Mine and Hunter¡¯s.¡±

    ¡°¡¯course he¡¯ll get better, don¡¯t worry.¡±

    ¡°Why, because you¡¯re looking after him?¡±

    ¡°Well yeah,¡± Thomas moved some dirt with his feet, ¡°And Quala is too. It¡¯s mostly her.¡±

    ¡°We should get moving, sir,¡± a new but familiar voice called as the last-minute addition to their trip walked toward Daniel. He¡¯d been the only one staying behind on the dock after he¡¯d heard Thomas running toward them. Janice had stuck around in Aurus, mainly keeping to Murdon¡¯s side until a certain Arcanist had made a better case to be his companion. Without any way to fly herself, her choices had mainly been grunt work in the guild patrolling the roads, which was made a more dangerous prospect with the Collapse.

    Daniel honestly hadn¡¯t thought about the woman bordering both her second level and middle ages and wasn¡¯t sure what he would¡¯ve done if the question about her joining had been raised when they¡¯d first gotten here. He¡¯d fought with everyone in the team before, whereas Janice was an unknown. Thankfully, the assignment to Pinion¡¯s Point provided an easy excuse for the marooned Martialist to abscond from Aurus, as well as a task she could fulfill herself while Daniel¡¯s team operated independently.

    All that was left was Padri, whose refusal to leave him with a more direct method of communication meant he had to trust Thomas to leave his message where the Craftsmen worked. Losing access to the Hunter¡¯s Guild¡¯s processing capabilities, the material trade with Temir, and Padri hurt, even if it was temporary. At least I finished all my big projects.

    Daniel took one last look at the mountain city before nodding and climbing onto this world¡¯s equivalent of a flying 18 wheeler. He waved at Thomas as most of them flew off on the construct, Tlara and Willow flying in formation beside them.

    ¡­

    The church of time in Threst was mostly empty, as all were. Each god of the Octyrrum was renowned, of course, but there was something distant about the one isolated in the center of the world. Few swore to Hourglass. Aughal only had one Cleric belonging to him. This had caused¡­ problems when a certain Artificer had not ventured to Threst when he should have.

    It was almost a joke that Daniel Brant would have poor timing, for when he did arrive it was unfavorable for them to make an approach. He had allies within Aurus¡¯ leadership, capable friends, and most importantly, a god shadowing him. That it was through a Proxy didn¡¯t matter, one needed absolutely overwhelming force to banish a god.

    Rikoor, Hourglass¡¯ champion in Threst, was level 4. That wouldn¡¯t be enough, not when they couldn¡¯t confirm the strength of the Proxy. Still, the world itself was at stake. Failing to capture Daniel before the meeting of the gods was an almost unforgivable sin, but there would be another chance. They would just have to manipulate factors into their own favor.

    ¡°Champion, should we not strike now before he leaves our influence?¡± one of the subordinates asked the avianoid Cleric in their hidden sanctum. ¡°Pinion¡¯s Point has a church, but moving our people there will alert the Proxy.¡±

    ¡°We will act when the time is right,¡± Rikoor answered. ¡°To our knowledge neither he nor the world at large are aware of our master¡¯s true aims. Until we are certain the plan He has given us can be enacted perfectly, we will wait. To that end, are the preparations complete?¡±

    ¡°Yes, champion.¡± Rikoor watched as several boxes the size of briefcases were brought in. He opened and meticulously inspected each cylinder contained within. Only churches could have the supply lines to move this product from where it had been made by a particularly talented Alchemist from outside the kingdom. Still, it had taken weeks and much coin for the forty vials of uncommon design to be brought here.

    Rikoor took one and pushed the sharpened end into one of his legs, feeling his mana flow surge as his body absorbed the contents. Aside from healing potions, which only required some way of getting past the skin, most didn¡¯t work this way. Particularly talented, that Alchemist, but that wasn¡¯t the only thing they¡¯d done. Each syringe held highly concentrated potion.

    What he¡¯d gained from just one made his veins feel as though they were on fire. The mana overcharge was potent, though with only this he could control it. To take in enough to do what needed to be done¡­ Rikoor would trust in Hourglass for the will required to activate his ability.

    ¡°Preserve the rest and speak not one word of this to anyone,¡± Rikoor instructed, closing the last case. ¡°We will watch and wait for an opportunity. No matter what, Daniel Brant must reach our Lord, or all is lost.¡±

 Interlude: Earth - 972

    He hadn¡¯t sat on this couch since last year. Thanksgiving. Christmas had been on his work schedule and money had been tight enough that he couldn¡¯t afford to lose the job. It wasn¡¯t that his family had cut him off, he¡¯d just wanted to make it on his own. To not feel like he owed them everything, to have to ask every time rent was due. Well, that wasn¡¯t a problem anymore.

    Nine hundred and seventy two million dollars. And a few numbers afterward that hardly mattered. Not quite a billionaire, but it was quite the inheritance Dad had left him. He¡¯d barely touched it after following last minute advice from Chris about where to put it and who to contact. Somehow it was all legal, all taxes already paid by the trust prior to its dissolution. That was about as far as he could go with the financial terms that had been regurgitated over the whole process.

    Now, two weeks later, he was back home. The flight hadn¡¯t gone well, but it was over. He was home. So was his mother, and Alex. The school she taught music at was out for break allowing her to drop everything when he¡¯d contacted them after all that time in the bunker, while Ami was still wrapping up some project at her marketing job. From the snippets he¡¯d heard over the years Ami made more money but Alex was happier.

    He sighed, turning on the TV and randomly changing the channels until he finally found one he wasn¡¯t looking for and just stared out of a window. Leave it to Mom to still have cable, he idly thought, seeing the evergreen trees mixed in with those that had already shed their leaves. Being in the house always hurt him. It was built just far enough into nature to have satisfied his dad while not being considered rural. The twins might have fomented a coup growing up if it hadn¡¯t been for the mall ten minutes away, while he¡¯d been content enough with the small city that provided ready access to video games and the few friends he¡¯d had in high school.

    Then his dad had died, or at least, they thought he had. Hunter was dead for sure. He would never say that hurt him more than it did Octyrrum-Daniel, but his heart still ached with the twin loss of the ringcat and any hope of getting his dad back. All he¡¯d known was that Garret was out there somewhere and the link that had been formed between the two Daniels had been crucial to the plan. He¡¯d always had some questions about how that had all worked but there¡¯d been no one to ask.

    The ultimate answer had finally come, and it was nine hundred and seventy two million dollars. Less than what the richest person in the world made in a week, but more than he could ever dream of spending. It¡¯s not like he¡¯d go around buying private jets. He hadn¡¯t had time to spend much despite the unlimited potential of the small debit card in his wallet. The key to anything besides what he truly wanted.

    He heard the front door open and braced himself. His sister walked in, coming back with the fast food she¡¯d picked up for lunch. The way she immediately looked for him in the room made it clear she¡¯d half-expected him to be gone even though she had the only car. Kara, his mother, had hers as well but she was at work. They were keeping at least one of them on him at all times like he was a baby that would hurt itself or a ghost that would vanish.

    Alex silently passed him the wrapped burger and he weakly smiled as he picked the onions off. No matter how many times he¡¯d asked, she always ordered his with them. ¡°So, do you want to talk about it? I won¡¯t tell Mom or anyone if there¡¯s something you just want to tell me.¡±

    ¡°No. I only want to go through this once.¡± The haunted feeling in his soul must have been picked up by his voice because Alex didn¡¯t ask for more details. She looked a little guiltily at his sandwich, even though that old joke had done something to shake Daniel out of his depression.

    ¡°What are you even watching?¡± she asked instead, narrowing her eyes at the news station. It was one of the more business-related ones talking about something weird going on with cargo ship fuel. Daniel sighed and just turned it off.

    ¡°Nothing.¡± He checked his phone and Alex pointedly didn¡¯t comment on the new model. It had been the only major purchase he¡¯d made since the old one had been copied when Octyrrum-Daniel had been sent over. That was not a reminder he was going to carry around. Nothing from Chris, though there was no reason for the guy to reach out unless there was anything related to ¡®The Project¡¯ that he received. One last desperate plan, perhaps, one last chance. But there was nothing.

    ¡°The kids are doing well. Hey, do you remember Scheherazade? I¡¯m considering teaching the seniors a part of it for spring recital. There¡¯s some real talent in that group.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s that one?¡± Daniel asked, glad for the tangent.

    ¡°It¡¯s from my high school recital, the one you almost fell asleep at,¡± she said, fake punching him in the arm. ¡°The one with the solo?¡± she added when that didn¡¯t help.

    Oh. Another stab to the heart. That had been what Octyrrum-Daniel had played the first time Hunter had almost died. There hadn¡¯t been any time for it on the Eye. ¡°That¡¯s good,¡± he choked out. I could probably buy your school, if they let people do that. Just another random thought nine hundred and seventy two million dollars would give you. ¡°How¡¯s the budget? I mean, you always hear how music programs are suffering,¡± he quickly added.

    ¡°Why, are you going to donate after paying me back for lunch?¡± Alex asked sarcastically. ¡°We¡¯re fine. The bake sales do well and we only need that money for extra stuff like competitions. If I ever get into trouble I¡¯ll just ask Mom and Ami for a couple thousand. They can afford it.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Hey, Alex, what you¡¯re doing, I think it¡¯s great. I wish I¡¯d¡­ I wish I¡¯d been able to¡­¡± he couldn¡¯t finish the sentence. Alex¡¯s face had grown hard for a moment as he¡¯d almost broached that time. It was just the crust of old anger that she quickly broke away as she sighed.

    ¡°It¡¯s not too late. Hell, you¡¯re only 23, Daniel. Plenty of people go back to college late. Take some online classes here, I¡¯m sure Mom wouldn¡¯t mind.¡±

    I could buy a college. A small one, at least. ¡°Maybe. I¡¯m still trying to figure out all of what happened.¡± He waved away another question and took a bit of the burger, the faint taste of onion as sickeningly familiar as it was just sickening. ¡°When¡¯s Ami getting here?¡±

    ¡°Tomorrow, and she¡¯ll be here for the holiday. Mom wants the family back together and we do too. You think you can stay here again?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Daniel answered honestly. ¡°But I¡¯m going to try.¡±

    ¡­

    A car horn broke through the trees the next day and reached Daniel as he was walking around the backyard. Ami had arrived on time for once, and as melodramatically as always. As he rounded the side of the house he saw her get out of a car whose model had been out for less than a year, the leather business jacket and stylish purse just more ways she flaunted the benefits her career path had over her twin sister¡¯s. He was perfectly positioned for the ultimate one up but hadn¡¯t told anyone about the money yet.

    ¡°Hey baby brother. Looks like someone got tired of living in boxes.¡± She flashed him a smile, though the humor was less playful than Alex¡¯s. ¡°Finally hit rock bottom?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡± Daniel did enjoy the troubled half-frown Ami that crossed her face but ultimately regretted unleashing a fraction of his true feelings early. ¡°Alex is on a call, there was some kind of leak in the band room or something.¡±

    ¡°What? Is everything alright?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± The development had come in the early morning and had devastated his sister, leaving him in the odd position of comforting her. ¡°A pipe burst and flooded a few rooms. It got some of the instruments but most of the damage was the auditorium. Apparently the school¡¯s considering moving band classes online while it gets fixed since they don¡¯t have another space large enough to hold the class.¡±

    Ami¡¯s face scrunched. She¡¯d mostly abandoned music as far as he knew, but she¡¯d been in the trenches of high school band with Alex while growing up. ¡°How do you teach a concert band class online?¡±

    ¡°If you go in you¡¯ll hear her shout that question every minute or so,¡± Daniel replied with some pity in his voice. ¡°I don¡¯t get why that¡¯s become popular all of a sudden.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s just business,¡± Ami shrugged, as if it was obvious. ¡°The community colleges started it. Make your stuff available online and you get a better market share. Adolescent education caught on to the fact that they can capture days lost to minor sickness instead of letting kids laze around in bed or something.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, can¡¯t let the sick kids have it too easy.¡±

    Ami shrugged as she remotely opened the trunk and continued talking as she walked around the car. ¡°What, you¡¯d rather they be forced to go to class and get everyone else sick? What kind of expectations do you want them to have when they get a job? You know, my office is starting to adopt it. There was this whole email about how much money the company could save if we ditched our office space and just reserved hotel meeting rooms whenever something comes up.¡±

    She pulled out a sleek suitcase and a more heavily stuffed duffel bag after that. It didn¡¯t belong to a significant other as both of his sisters were currently single, it just gave her the ability to bring what she needed while also flaunting the smaller all-black rollercase. ¡°You know Daniel, there¡¯s always people hiring for jobs like mine. Doesn¡¯t have to be marketing. If you went for a degree in business you could land a job by just banging rocks together. It¡¯s how some of my coworkers must have done it.¡±If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

    I could buy everything you have a hundred times over and not break a sweat. ¡°I need to get my head right first.¡±

    ¡°Right. So are you going to tell us what¡¯s up with that? Those texts were cryptic as shit, Daniel. ¡®I fucked up but everything is ok¡¯ isn¡¯t exactly the clearest or most comforting message. You don¡¯t have any active warrants, do you?¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s not like that.¡± He caught the duffel bag as Ami hefted it at him and followed as she walked towards the front door. ¡°I had this opportunity to do something that would have changed everything and it, I just ruined it.¡±

    ¡°Are you talking about a startup?¡± she asked, now very interested. ¡°Hey, even if that failed that¡¯s experience the people throwing crap at the wall to see what sticks don¡¯t have. If they hired Edgar they¡¯d hire you somewhere.¡±

    ¡°Thanks, but I need some time before I do anything like that.¡± He winced as Alex¡¯s shouting reached his ears. Whoever was on the other end of that line was finding out what happened when you pissed her off. He knew she wasn¡¯t angry for herself but her students who¡¯d be missing out. ¡°I¡¯m going to tell you everything, I promise. Mom has the day off tomorrow and I¡¯m going to do it over dinner.¡±

    He¡¯d set that deadline in his head so that he couldn¡¯t wriggle out of it later. Part of him was worried they¡¯d think he was crazy and he wasn¡¯t sure if he should mention the other world at all. His phone camera had picked up everything in the bunker just fine, but it only showed black space where Octyrrum-Daniel should have been whenever he came to Bridge Space. There were some rough screenshots he¡¯d made while monitoring his other self, but image manipulation and CGI could explain away those. He had no magic to back up his insane story.

    ¡°Alright, tomorrow then. But if you chicken out I¡¯m going to fake a resume and let you deal with recruiters calling you nonstop.¡±

    ¡°Tomorrow,¡± Daniel promised.

    ¡­

    The time was here before he knew it. He¡¯d gone to sleep early yesterday, missing his mother coming home entirely. From the sound of it Alex¡¯s call hadn¡¯t gone well and the welcoming front the family had tried to put up for his return crumbled. Between dealing with his regrets and trying to comfort his sister, he just hadn¡¯t been able to stay awake. His sleep schedule was still a little messed up from shadowing Octyrrum-Daniel¡¯s anyway.

    It wasn¡¯t until dinner that they were all in one room. His mother had spent the better part of the day cooking unaided, in fact throwing off Ami¡¯s attempts to help. Alex had spent a good amount of time in her room, the sounds coming from it alternating between the violin and silence. Now that he was sitting across from her, he could see a very faint redness in the eyes that everyone pretended wasn¡¯t there.

    Ami was, as always, sitting next to her and his mother was at one of the ends of the table. The other sat empty as it had for the last five years. ¡°-in Jesus¡¯ name, amen,¡± his mother finished the prayer, and Daniel opened his eyes as he wondered where the god of this world was. ¡°Daniel, it¡¯s so nice to have you home again.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. I¡¯m glad,¡± he quickly added after the uncommitted grunt. She was about to say something else, but Alex broke into the conversation.

    ¡°I need to tell everyone something,¡± she said, her voice better expressing what Daniel truly felt. ¡°I lost my job.¡±

    Daniel¡¯s eyes widened as his other sister exclaimed, but at the end of the table his mother¡¯s eyes sharpened. ¡°Because of the damage? Alex, I¡¯m so sorry.¡± She stood up and looked to where her phone was resting on a table just out of arm¡¯s reach. ¡°There¡¯s a nephrologist with a brother on the school board, I¡¯ll-¡°

    ¡°Mom, please, can we just eat? This doesn¡¯t have to be fixed now,¡± Alex said quickly, and his mother paused. ¡°I wasn¡¯t- I didn¡¯t handle the news yesterday as well as I should have. They fired me for ¡®conduct unbecoming¡¯.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sure the fact that they can put off some of the repairs without a class to teach had nothing to do with it,¡± Ami added snidely. ¡°You should sue.¡±

    ¡°That wouldn¡¯t solve anything,¡± Alex retorted, pushing his chair away a little from her sister. ¡°Even if I won it¡¯d just be taking money out of the school¡¯s budget.¡±

    ¡°I thought you said they were doing fine?¡± Daniel asked, and it seemed everyone realized he was there again.

    ¡°That¡¯s before the school flooded,¡± she sighed. ¡°I don¡¯t want to go into details over the holiday after I spent all of yesterday fuming about it.¡±

    ¡°Ok,¡± Kara said calmly, like she was instructing people on how to survive an imminent plane crash. ¡°We¡¯ll talk about this later, but we support you. This home will always be here, and you know if you need anything you just have to ask.¡±

    Daniel admired his mother for the way that none of that was directed at him. The strife he¡¯d gotten into with Alex over his father¡¯s disappearance had been the worst of the family drama, Kara having tried to act as a mediator while in mourning herself. There was still a silence that fell as everyone started eating the slightly lukewarm meal, and as time went on Daniel felt every look that crossed his way.

    Eventually, his mother spoke again. ¡°Daniel, do you still have things in your old apartment? We could look into getting those shipped here after dinner.¡±

    ¡°I just had what I took on the flight,¡± he answered, gearing himself up for his confession as his mother carefully broached the topic. He wasn¡¯t going to be as graceful. ¡°I also have nine hundred and seventy two million dollars.¡±

    A look of concern crossed his mother¡¯s face as Ami choked and Alex waited for the joke. ¡°Ok,¡± his mother said slowly, beginning to diagnose the problem.

    ¡°Wait, how is almost being a billionaire ¡®fucking everything up¡¯?¡± Ami asked incredulously.

    ¡°Ami, please be quiet,¡± his mother shushed, then turned back to Daniel. ¡°Were you seeing any psychiatrists? If you were on a medication I can find someone to prescribe it here.¡±

    We¡¯re just getting started with the crazy, Mom. Daniel took out his phone and his mother identified the newer model as Ami had, though this didn¡¯t relax her. Numbly, Daniel logged into his banking app and handed the phone to her. Ami half got out of her seat to look while Alex just looked confused. ¡°It was Dad¡¯s money.¡±

    Kara dropped the phone. ¡°W-what?¡±

    Daniel hesitantly reached behind him for the backpack sitting against the wall and pulled out a thick manila folder. ¡°I got this about six months ago. It¡¯s a lot to explain. I wish I could prove it like the money but all I have is this.¡± The folder was held in the air for a few seconds before Alex snatched it. Conflict crossed his mother¡¯s face but she let her daughter read the pages first. They were the originals and were wrinkled, one with a noticeable indent from where it had been clamped onto a clipboard.

    She stopped reading halfway through the first page and threw the pile to the ground. ¡°What the fuck is this!?¡± she asked fiercely, the anger directed yesterday at the phone now fully centered on him. One of the glasses was knocked over as she planted both hands on the table to lean over towards him. ¡°You, what, win the lottery or something and type this shit up to make yourself feel better? If you wanted to bring Dad back then you should have gone with him in the first place!¡±

    ¡°Alex!¡± his mother protested, coming to her feet as well.

    ¡°No, you need to read that trash before you yell at me.¡±

    ¡°Alex, this is Dad¡¯s signature,¡± Ami said, the twin reserving a little more benefit of the doubt no doubt due to Daniel¡¯s sudden inheritance. ¡°We never found his body so it¡¯s¡­¡± she trailed off as she returned to the top of the page and began to read down, getting to the part about magic and other worlds. ¡°Ok, this is fucked up. Mom, this is saying Dad¡¯s trapped in some kind of game or something.¡±

    Daniel tried to summon Hunter¡¯s courage as he looked at his mother, unaware it had already been claimed. ¡°I¡¯m not crazy and I¡¯m not lying. I got a letter Dad wrote before he left. Did anything he do before he left make you think he wasn¡¯t coming back?¡±

    ¡°God, Daniel,¡± Ami said from where she was reading, astounded by his gall in asking that question.

    Kara pretended not to hear it. ¡°Everyone just calm down. Daniel, it¡¯s clear you should have come home sooner. I was worried about the stress you¡¯ve been under, and this money, it¡¯s not going to fix everything.¡±

    Daniel picked up his phone from where it had tumbled onto the table, Alex still glaring at him but letting her mother take the lead. He pulled up one of the last photos that had been transferred onto his phone, a picture of him and Chris at the airport. The older guy had suggested it as a parting gesture. Neither were smiling, though Chris had a sympathetic look that still slightly comforted Daniel. ¡°I wasn¡¯t the only one involved, there was a guy Dad looped in to set everything up. Him, check the date on the photo.¡±

    ¡°Daniel, this is insane, seriously,¡± Ami said, neatly stacking the papers before putting them back in the folder which was awkwardly placed by the ignored gravy bowl. ¡°You have to see that.¡±

    He glanced at her, but his focus was on his mother, who had zoomed in on part of the image by the way her hands were moving. Even Alex picked up on it and moved her Tlara-level glare away. ¡°Mom?¡±

    Kara¡¯s eyes widened and she nearly dropped the phone again. ¡°Who is that?¡±

    ¡°Chris,¡± Daniel said, surprised by the reaction. ¡°Do you know him?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Her chair screeched back and her hands shook as she put the phone back on the table.

    ¡°It kind of looks like you know who that is,¡± Ami said, looking at the magnified image of Chris¡¯ face before shaking her head and passing it to Alex. Her twin had quickly lost her anger after the momentum was stolen, which was more usual for her than the hour-long tirade against the phone yesterday.

    ¡°Who is this?¡± she asked as their mother stiffly left the room without explanation. Daniel wanted to follow her but his sister was demanding his attention through her voice.

    ¡°It¡¯s just Chris. He called me before all of this happened, even before I got that letter. I still have his number, you can hear everything from him if you don¡¯t believe me.¡± Daniel asked for his phone back with his hands and heard the soft vibration as he got a text.

    Alex furrowed her brow in slight disbelief. ¡°He just texted you. What the hell is this?¡±

    ¡°Let me see!¡± The twins ganged up on him, tapping something before reading as Daniel rounded the table.

    ¡°Ok, this is starting to make more sense,¡± Ami commented. ¡°He probably, what, spoofed a bank account. Downloaded that banking app for you, right? That sounds more likely than what¡¯s in the letter. You haven¡¯t spent any of that money, have you?¡±

    ¡°What is it?¡± Daniel asked, getting aggravated now as they blocked him from viewing the screen.

    ¡°Some guy sends you all this conspiracy crap and makes you think you¡¯re rich, points you our way and¡­¡± she trailed off in thought as she tried to continue playing out what she¡¯d ¡®unraveled¡¯.

    Alex just tossed him his phone after locking it and ran off to look for their mother. Ami stayed to watch his reaction as he read the text.

    <hr>

    Chris: Hey man, hope you¡¯re doing well. Don¡¯t know if this was related but just came across this. Was this the weird stuff you were talking about? Dad = cryptid hunter? Don¡¯t have to say if you can¡¯t, just let me know if you need anything.

    <hr>

    There was an attached article below the text leading to some fringe news platform that existed solely within its own website. Daniel frowned, and instead of reading it searched the title on the web, getting a strange feeling as he saw several immediate hits from more well-known organizations. It didn¡¯t seem like a story that would ever make primetime news, but it had some veracity in how much it was being picked up elsewhere.

    Daniel picked a link at random and like his mother before him zoomed in on the image attached to the article. It was about a photo taken by a fisherman after they¡¯d gutted a shark with terrible wounds found floating in the ocean. A humanoid but not human leg found inside was ringing all of the classic alien conspiracy bells. Only he knew the truth; they were right.

    ¡°What are you doing?¡±

    ¡°Texting him, just, I¡­¡± he tried to calm down but his mind was moving too fast. He¡¯d never understood why he couldn¡¯t tell Octyrrum-Daniel where Eido was when he¡¯d had no idea what had happened to it. He only learned what his other self did, if you ignored what he had to screen out from the notifications. Based on what he¡¯d seen, they wouldn¡¯t reveal that kind of information. It should have occurred to him earlier. There was only one reasonable circumstance in which he would learn about Eido and his copy wouldn¡¯t.

    The city was on Earth.

 Interlude: Earth - Eido Island

    His first thoughts were of his failures. His hands had taken a mortal¡¯s life, and that sin had doomed the world. He had nearly redeemed himself by putting an end to the monster that had become a Tyrant, only to come up short. Gadriel Cross knew he should have died, and yet he still breathed. A terrible pain in his arms made his mind waver for one moment before he steeled himself and dragged consciousness back into his body.

    As he opened his eyes, he saw a solid stone ceiling above him and felt the blanket around him. It took him a few seconds to remember why this was familiar. Placing this room made him sit bolt upright, his eyes widening. A voice he thought he¡¯d never hear again spoke as he saw the impossible. ¡°Hey champ. Long time no see.¡±

    ¡°Masika?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡± There was a complicated note in the familiar tone that carried the weight of both the separation and unexpected reunion. ¡°Gade, I don¡¯t know what you¡¯ve been up to for the past few months, but you really need to take a break.¡±

    ¡°How is this possible?¡± She was standing right there in stark defiance of all he believed. The avianoid was in her usual armor, and the Focus worn on one arm made it clear it was her. The only requirement for the Foci Clerics took was that it was an object representing their faith. Masika had made a bracer embellished with the symbol of the Octyrrum, an eight-sectioned wheel. Not many Clerics chose the path of universal devotion, but Masika had, and she was-

    A human in robes ran in looking first at Gadriel, shock plain on his face, before he turned to Masika. ¡°You should have told me the moment he woke up!¡±

    ¡°Come on, it¡¯s Gade. I¡¯ve never known a Hero that takes himself so seriously. He¡¯s not going to let his ¡®grand journey¡¯ end anywhere but the middle of a fight.¡±

    The other Cleric examined him, reaching for his wrist to feel the pulse. The pain from there had never ceased, and Gadriel saw to his surprise the armbands containing the enchanted weaponry were still there. ¡°Please, let us remove these now.¡±

    ¡°By all means,¡± Gadriel said, but as the man tried to remove them he felt an automatic response take over. Never Disarmed was preventing their removal. He couldn¡¯t stop it despite knowing that keeping them on was causing him pain. ¡°I, I apologize good sir. My power, it¡¯s not responding appropriately to my desires.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re like the others then,¡± the man muttered.

    Masika wore a beaked grimace. ¡°Give it straight. How bad is he?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s fortunate these items need to be activated or he¡¯d be dead already,¡± the Cleric reported. ¡°That¡¯s not counting the fact that holding onto these things should be putting you in incredible pain. It¡¯s a good thing that power¡¯s protecting you from that.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not,¡± Gadriel replied, unable to stop himself from gritting his teeth for a moment before regaining his composure. The other human¡¯s eyes widened, but Masika just laughed.

    ¡°Classic Gade.¡±

    ¡­

    ¡°How?¡± Gadriel asked again, now walking outside of the Eido Hunter¡¯s Guild¡¯s clinic after being ruled otherwise healthy.

    ¡°Search me. After the attack on the temple there was this, I don¡¯t know. We all felt like we went really fast for a few seconds and then we were here. Not even the Commander knows what happened and he barely got out of the temple before it exploded.¡±

    ¡°The Spoke was truly lost?¡±

    ¡°As far as we can tell. Our best guess is we got teleported to a remote part of the Octyrrum since none of the natives speak our language. A different Realm at least.¡± She reached for one of the armbands and Gadriel¡¯s heartbeat treacherously sped up as their hands neared. He fought, but was only able to conceal any obvious sign of what he¡¯d thought long banished. ¡°Tell me honestly, no high speak. You good?¡±

    ¡°I am¡­ good, Masika,¡± Gadriel spoke softly, letting the formality in his voice drop just a bit. He looked around at the hallways, still in disbelief. They looked unattended, dust gathering on the scant furniture. ¡°I am so sorry I wasn¡¯t here when it happened.¡±

    ¡°Aw, come on Gade. We all knew you had dreams, and I don¡¯t blame you for chasing them.¡± She paused before she opened the next door, the deep green-blue feathers of her arms rippling just a little. ¡°Go ahead. Ask me what you really want to.¡±

    ¡°Who else survived?¡±

    ¡°For Eido in general? About half, less now,¡± Masika said grimly, opening the door. ¡°A lot of people were in the temple. The divine construct was filling with mana, everything was fine, and then people in the crowd started letting off powers indiscriminately. A group managed to fight their way to the center. I mean, they had a level 5 with them, the Commander couldn¡¯t stop them in time. One of the fuckers touched his hand to it and it went off. I was far enough away to get blown out before the entire building disintegrated, and then, well, we were here.¡±

    Gadriel looked at the blue sky and smelled salt in the air, the faint call of birds echoing in the distance. The city of Eido itself was familiar, though he could tell something was off about the surroundings. He¡¯d thought it was just the pain that was still present, but by now he¡¯d figured it out. ¡°My powers, they¡¯re suppressed?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s like this entire region is under heavy magical suppression. Got the Commander down and everything.¡± Masika stopped Gadriel from walking further out onto the street. ¡°I was the only one from our team that made it. Borjin and Sarah went charging in when it started and I think Reshi hit a wall instead of a window after that first blast.¡±

    Gadriel spent some time looking at the city. Down the street he could see where the taller buildings of the city¡¯s center gave way to the blocky housing for citizens. The Builders who had first risen the city had done a passable job, but most were still the ubiquitous blueprints common to other starting settlements like Hagain Village. He could see a hole in the skyline that matched where the Temple of Unification had been. From the missing buildings, it looked like the entire Divine Quarter was gone.

    ¡°We talked to the others you came here with,¡± Masika said when Gadriel¡¯s silence didn¡¯t break. ¡°We know roughly what happened. There was the librarian of Hagain and a Bard named Evalyn. They were quite worried about you.¡± A mock suspicion flicked across her eyes. ¡°You didn¡¯t finally find someone, did you?¡±

    ¡°No, but I am glad they are alright. Was there no one else?¡±

    The Cleric looked to the side and sighed. ¡°Better you see for yourself. It¡¯s a bit of a walk. She might be there, she visits a lot.¡±

    ¡­

    Evalyn sat on the small hill looking down into the pit that had been dug. Neither that nor the bench she sat on had been there before they¡¯d returned to Eido. By now she¡¯d gotten used to this new place, including how it had affected her personally. Investiture of Song had become permanently activated somehow while they¡¯d been transported to Eido. The mana cost should have drained her long before dawn, but something else was powering it.

    The Bard now perceived the world in flashes, the tempo adjusting to whatever song was in her mind. While the base effect was an enhancement, Valor Song wasn¡¯t meant to be used all the time. It was like she was always keyed up, and at the same time had to consciously choose what to do with each flash. Every step, every small movement, every blink had to be designated. It was fine, she was handling it, and she didn¡¯t have it the worst.

    That caped bastard is finally awake and he¡¯s heading your way, Lograve mentally communicated to her from wherever he was hiding in the city. Luckily they weren¡¯t able to remove Armafus¡¯ weapons. He shouldn¡¯t have any idea where I am and you should keep it that way.

    Alright. Evalyn spent three flashes adjusting her head to look out to the ocean, frowning at the crick in her neck that was developing from how she¡¯d been sitting. She was still figuring out ways to remember all the adjustments needed to prevent muscle damage most people did naturally. Have you been able to learn any more of their language?Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

    No. I think I¡¯ve barely convinced them I¡¯m real. It would be easier if they could see me.

    You think if they could see your face it would make it better?

    Low blow Evalyn! Not all of us cheat beauty with magic. Evalyn closed her eyes, the process taking a few beats, and laughed to herself. Are you still doing well?

    I found my family. How could I not be? She began hearing sounds behind her and switched to a faster song in her head, which changed the relative speed of the world slightly. This gave her more beats to use for actions but also required more mental effort on her part to keep her going. Missing a beat while walking would leave her sprawled on the ground if she didn¡¯t recover, but since she was sitting it was fine. It sounds like they¡¯re getting close. Do I mention you at all?

    Well, they know I¡¯m here, but from what I overheard that old teammate of his didn¡¯t go into details. Try to be vague if you can and just distract him if you can¡¯t. Your face should be able to handle that, right?

    Goodbye Lograve, Evalyn replied with a bit of snark. He was the only one she could have an effortless conversation with and despite the Arcanist¡¯s nature, that was another thing keeping her going.

    Gadriel and a Cleric she¡¯d seen around Eido stepped into her field of view. He began speaking and while she was able to understand him, the words came piecemeal over a longer time than they should have. Evalyn slowed the pace of the world, which helped. ¡°Lady Evalyn, I am heartened to see you survived. Was there no one else that came through with us?¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Evalyn said over the course of about a dozen beats. ¡°Only Lograve and¡­ Tak.¡±

    The Hero drew in a sharp breath as he looked down into the pit, which had been dug twenty meters deep. What was inside could climb that distance but had stopped trying after the last two times an escape had been made. She¡¯d started coming here twice a day after that. ¡°Gods. I should have thought about this, considering my strife. Is he?¡±

    ¡°We don¡¯t know. He recognizes me, I think. Lograve¡¯s always invisible so it¡¯s harder to tell with him.¡±

    ¡°Ah, yes. Is he here now?¡± Gadriel looked a bit uncomfortably at his surroundings while the Cleric¡¯s eyes sharpened.

    ¡°No.¡± The beast in the pit inclined its head below them, looking straight at Gadriel. A feral, barely avian sound came from it that only sounded a little hostile. ¡°I think he does remember you.¡±

    ¡°There must be a way to undo this!¡± Gadriel declared, stepping towards the pit. As he got closer, the beast shrieked and became more agitated, causing the Hero to back off in surprise. ¡°I see.¡±

    ¡°How are you?¡±

    ¡°Gade¡¯s holding up well enough,¡± the Cleric answered for him. ¡°He¡¯s in pain, but that¡¯s never stopped him before. I¡¯m glad you¡¯re here though. Commander Marshall wanted me to bring up those artifacts again.¡±

    Evalyn increased the tempo and hardened her gaze. ¡°No. This changes nothing.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s going on, Masika?¡± The Hero asked, confused.

    ¡°Your powers weren¡¯t the only odd thing to arrive with you,¡± she answered, looking for a moment at Evalyn who didn¡¯t protest. Gadriel was going to learn at one point what they¡¯d done and she didn¡¯t have anything to gain from hiding the truth. ¡°Some of the enchanted items on you are still working despite the suppression. They¡¯ve been hiding them.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡± Gadriel asked, taken aback.

    If only you knew where we were, Evalyn thought. Then I could tell you. ¡°It¡¯s our decision,¡± she replied simply. ¡°We¡¯ll help Eido in any way we can short of those. Daniel made them, I¡¯m not about to just give them up.¡±

    ¡°The bags of holding alone would help us with gathering food!¡± Masika objected. ¡°You two are being selfish, and we¡¯ve put up with a lot.¡± She gestured towards the pit with that.

    ¡°Masika, that is a good friend,¡± Gadriel objected. ¡°I know his current appearance is, well, disconcerting, but he has returned from this before. It is merely an odd transmutative power that simply needs to be removed.¡±

    ¡°We could do that if we get out of this region, but it¡¯s ocean all around us for hundreds of kilometers at least! With one of those bags, our strongest swimmer could be loaded with supplies and sent out for help.¡±

    ¡°The Commander has explained the situation to us and we stand by our decision,¡± Evalyn stated firmly, standing up with some effort. ¡°It¡¯s not like you¡¯d be able to have them come back if they¡¯re going that far with how the island¡¯s hidden. What we¡¯re doing will help everyone. If you¡¯d stop sending people to look for Lograve we¡¯d have more to hunt with.¡±

    ¡°How long was I unconscious?¡± Gadriel asked, and Evalyn consciously raised an eyebrow at him. He hadn¡¯t thought to ask yet?

    ¡°Two weeks, Gade,¡± Marisa said, at least sharing in Evalyn¡¯s exasperation. ¡°Your arms were a wreck but at least our attributes are still working.¡± She sighed and touched her Focus with her offhand. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ve said my piece. I¡¯m going to show him the ship now, do you want to come with us?¡±

    ¡°The Commander isn¡¯t penalizing Evalyn for defying his will?¡± Gadriel asked.

    ¡°No. We need everyone we have Gade, it¡¯s bad. Everything about five kilometers from the old temple got pulled with us but that¡¯s not enough to farm off of for everyone here. There¡¯s a mix of fish and low level aquatic monsters nearby that are sustaining us for now, but we keep having to go farther out and that gets risky. We don¡¯t know why, but you stop seeing Eido after a certain point. Not everyone who leaves has come back. All the air gestalt flew off in the first few days, and I¡¯m not sure if they can find their way back. We barely see the earth gestalt out of the ground these days either.¡± Masika shook her head. ¡°Best estimates give us a few months unless more wildlife spawns here, or migrates nearby.¡±

    ¡°I see. And you¡¯ve built a ship to go out farther? If we have such a vessel, why are the bags of holding such a point of contention?¡±

    ¡°Because we didn¡¯t build it.¡±

    ¡­

    In the time that Evalyn had spent in the relocated Eido, she¡¯d found that not much had changed. There was the large gap in the center where the temple had been, as well as gouges that had been taken out randomly which fit with Daniel¡¯s descriptions of the floating islands he¡¯d found himself on. The rest of the area included the city and surrounding countryside, pulling in a few forests along with the rolling hills.

    The biggest change to the city itself, aside from the missing sections, was the missing magic of the Builders that sapped defenses and disabled helpful functions like climate control. The people here didn¡¯t have it as bad as it had been in Hagain, but they¡¯d also been completely isolated for months with no hope of escape. Even a dragon couldn¡¯t beat a seemingly endless ocean empty of sentient life.

    The lore of Eido Island spoke of the day this changed. A ship had come from the east. At first there had been hope of rescue despite its unnatural construction. No one had realized until it was too late that the ship was going to run aground instead of dock. The sight of the aftermath left Gadriel more speechless than seeing Masika or Tak.

    It was almost half a kilometer long, though there were no sails to propel such a massive vessel. Instead, colorful metallic rectangles flooded the deck and the surrounding terrain in a scrambled mess. The main structure of the ship was also metallic, though it had torn during the process of digging the furrow in the island that it now rested in. What had been painted on the side was still visible enough though Gadriel couldn¡¯t read the text. The only thing he did recognize was a large symbol of a golden shooting star, which didn¡¯t closely match any depiction of Star that he¡¯d seen.

    ¡°What is this?¡±

    ¡°The ship,¡± Masika answered with a shrug. ¡°That¡¯s what everyone calls it. I¡¯ve been on it once but the Commander wants us to stay away from it for the most part. We¡¯ve salvaged what we can but there¡¯s some strange stuff on there.¡± She answered his questioning gaze by pointing out a smaller metallic vehicle half sticking out of one of the rectangles that had been heavily damaged. It wasn¡¯t shaped like the main ship but had wheels, making it more likely to be a land vehicle. ¡°Some people are worried we¡¯re deep in the Crest and these are people who managed to survive. No one knows what¡¯s out there, and there¡¯s enough fear that these artifacts are tainted that we keep away.¡±

    ¡°If that¡¯s true, should we not rid ourselves of it?¡±

    ¡°They can¡¯t,¡± Evalyn replied, an odd look in her eyes as she gazed out over the vessel. ¡°It¡¯d take most of the Blessed here to and there¡¯s something else. A lot of the people on board survived, but none of them speak our language. They¡¯re worried if we get rid of it and more of these people show up it¡¯ll be more trouble than we can¡¯t explain.¡±

    Gadriel sat down and Evalyn saw a flash of pain in his face. It would have been hidden to most but she saw it for several beats. ¡°So much has changed. Perhaps this is our penance for failing in Aughal. Are we to assume any who did not come with us are dead?¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Evalyn answered firmly. ¡°We¡¯ll find a way back. Something sent both us and Eido here. Swimming mindlessly in one direction isn¡¯t going to make a difference.¡± That last barb was directed at Masika as a proxy for the Commander, though both this disagreement and the earlier friction weren¡¯t fiercely heated.

    An uneasy balance had been reached, Commander Marshall unwilling to alienate the only people with active class powers and unable to find Lograve. Considering what Daniel had made amounted mostly to the bags of holding and her winged boots, there was nothing they had that another could use to save lives. She was about to take her leave and see her sister again when Gadriel suddenly started.

    ¡°Blood, there!¡± He was off running before she or Masika could stop him. Gadriel was without the majority of his powers. In other words, his default state. The loss of his basic Balance benefits did hurt, but it was easy enough to run. He made it to where the island unevenly broke off into the sea and Evalyn saw him plunge right into the surf. A minute later, he was hauling himself and a young avianoid up. The Bard faintly remembered him as a Ranger she¡¯d hunted with, someone who¡¯d unfortunately hit their wall right after gaining their class.

    ¡°I, I thought,¡± the youth spoke weakly, grimacing in pain. ¡°I thought they weren¡¯t dangerous. They said low level. It came out of nowhere. I¡¯ve been swimming for days trying to find the island.¡±

    Masika quickly attended to the Ranger, her breath coming out sharply as she saw that one of his legs had been bitten off. The injury had happened some time ago to Evalyn¡¯s eyes and it was only the empowered endurance that had allowed him to survive this long. Some blood was still slowly seeping and Masika quickly tore off part of the shirt under her armor to make bindings.

    ¡°We need to get him to my sister,¡± Evalyn said, and Masika nodded.

    ¡°Not the clinic? I presume with the church of the Hand gone that is our best course of action.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll bring people to help, but we need her for this,¡± Masika replied quickly, picking the man up from under one arm as Gadriel supported the other side. They were both effectively carrying him as Evalyn watched.

    ¡°I was told powers did not function?¡±

    ¡°No one¡¯s class powers,¡± Evalyn replied, keeping pace with the help of a faster tempo. ¡°My bond with her still works.¡±

 Interlude: Earth - Bon Voyage

    The security at the Hawaiian dock looked askance at the passengers in the SUV with heavily tinted windows, but the pass Chris had given them was enough to let them through despite Daniel¡¯s nerves. They¡¯d just gotten here from the airport and two flights in less than two weeks had taken a lot out of him. Neither was he thrilled about what they were doing, but under all that fear was the surety of what that one photo had shown him.

    If a shark had somehow gotten hold of an avianoid¡¯s leg, there was at least one avianoid in this world. The only way he could make sense of that and the cryptic instructions he¡¯d gotten from his Dad was that the city of Eido had been transported here when he¡¯d sent over the clone or, more accurately, allowed it to manifest on the Octyrrum. The details of how that process had worked still weren¡¯t clear, but neither was that his goal to solve. He had to find Eido. What happened when he did he wasn¡¯t sure, but sitting around at home and trying to forget what he¡¯d seen wouldn¡¯t solve anything.

    The car continued to move through the paved streets once it passed the gate. This was a private dock used by the kind of people who also owned private jets. Yachts, as it turned out, weren¡¯t as expensive as he¡¯d thought. The one his dad¡¯s money had gotten would have been under a million if buying one currently located in the Hawaiian islands hadn¡¯t pushed that price up significantly. Still, nine hundred and seventy two million went a long way.

    It wasn¡¯t the largest yacht he could have purchased, but going bigger would require a crew he didn¡¯t want to take along for what he hoped was first contact between Earth and an alien world. If some government had found them first and started a secret war, this would get so much more complicated and he was already starting with more than he bargained for.

    ¡°Holy shit. That¡¯s ours?¡± Ami asked as the car stopped in front of the small stretch of gangway that led directly onto the vessel. It was less than thirty meters in length, slightly tripping his claustrophobia when he considered he¡¯d be stuck on it for some time. ¡°The people at work are going to flip out when they see me on video calls. We¡¯ll have internet, right?¡±

    ¡°Chris is setting up some kind of satellite thing,¡± Daniel said distantly.

    ¡°He was able to get everything I asked for?¡± his mother asked from the passenger seat. That was the craziest thing. Alex had been fired from her job after losing her temper following the effective cancellation of her class. Ami could work remotely, her employers being very generous with that definition.

    His mom? Kara had taken a leave of absence after Daniel had told his family he was going to explore the Pacific. That was the reason his sisters had folded, since there was no way any madness Daniel had picked up would have spread to their unflappable mother. Something had shaken her when she¡¯d seen Chris¡¯ photo, though whenever they asked she either ignored the question or changed the subject. She wouldn¡¯t be able to avoid it for long, though.

    ¡°Chris said he¡¯ll have everything on the boat. Yacht.¡±

    ¡°Pleasure barge,¡± Ami added, the most excited of them. ¡°He can work this by himself?¡±

    ¡°We may have to help, but he can sail it. Somehow.¡± He¡¯d half expected the young jack of all trades to balk at the request, but not only had he arranged everything, he¡¯d even contracted a law firm to run them through the basics of maritime law. The American flag flying from the ship¡¯s side would give them some protection, though it came with that adage about the best protection being not needing any. A legitimate vessel would leave them alone, but sailing into a country¡¯s national waters would invite conflict they were in no way able to match. Hopefully, Eido hadn¡¯t been shunted too close to Asia.

    ¡°So, we go on this and find that city,¡± Alex said skeptically, not moving from where the dock met the water. ¡°The one with aliens on it. What happens then?¡±

    ¡°I¡­ don¡¯t know,¡± Daniel answered. ¡°You don¡¯t have to come if you don¡¯t want to. We can book you a flight back or a resort here. The money Dad left isn¡¯t just for me.¡±

    ¡°Come on Alex,¡± her sister teased. ¡°Look at this! We¡¯re in our twenties, exactly when we need to have insane adventures. Hell, I don¡¯t care if any of this crap about Eido is real. This is the kind of thing we¡¯ll never forget.¡±

    ¡°Mom, do you really think this is a good idea?¡± Alex asked, ignoring her twin. ¡°If we run into a storm or something, we won¡¯t have help. I did some research and we¡¯re just outside hurricane season, but that doesn¡¯t mean one can¡¯t show up. Especially with climate change. It¡¯s just going to be the four of us with someone we don¡¯t know, who we¡¯ve trusted to figure out all the details and steer us around. What if this is all a trap?¡±

    Kara took a look at each of them before answering. ¡°Losing your father was the worst thing that I¡¯ve ever had to endure. If I lost any of you, that would destroy me. I know this is a risk, Alex, but Daniel is going no matter what I can say or do. If this is dangerous, then this is where I need to be for my children¡¯s sake¡±

    ¡°What about the other world stuff?¡± Alex asked, a bit of her temper rising from the indirect answer.

    ¡°The Lord works in mysterious ways,¡± Kara answered, surprising all of them, before she walked onto the boat.

    Daniel was hit by the implication the hardest, though Alex¡¯s stunned question towards him indicated she wasn¡¯t that far behind. ¡°Daniel, is she saying that God is involved in this?¡±

    ¡°I hadn¡¯t thought about that.¡± His family was religious, though he was the least of them. Ami was a mixed bag, Alex casually faithful, but both his mother went to church every week when they weren¡¯t globetrotting. ¡°I, Alex, the gods of the other world are real.¡± She rolled her eyes at that, still incredulous about everything he¡¯d told his family since spilling the beans. ¡°Ours could have one too, or more. Earth has multiple religions, and stories of magic. Multiple cut off cultures across the world that developed stories about dragons. All those stories you hear about aliens, the ones other than Eido¡¯s. Holy shit.¡±

    His head began to spin as he numbly walked onto the boat and took a seat at a spot where you could feel the wind blowing when the ship was in motion. Chris had yet to appear, though he was likely in the interior space further up the front of the ship making final preparations. They¡¯d boarded on the back, passing the jet ski mounted above the water. Alex was the last one to walk up, doing so a minute after her sister.

    ¡°I¡¯m only doing this for Dad,¡± she said, passing him.

    He laughed a little too loudly at the irony, still overwhelmed by his thoughts to comment.

    ¡­

    The yacht was already moving when Chris called a proper meeting in the small dining area on the yacht¡¯s first floor. Or, deck. Ami was still treating this all with snarky skepticism, especially after what Kara had said, and was on her phone after connecting it to the ship¡¯s internet. Alex and Daniel looked between their mother and Chris, who was currently dressed in cargo shorts and a patterned polo shirt like he¡¯d just stepped off a golf course. Neither was giving anything away, and Daniel wasn¡¯t sure if Chris knew the reason for his mom acting weird since he hadn¡¯t brought that up over text.

    ¡°Welcome to the SS Far Shores,¡± Chris started, giving the introduction like he was guiding them into a dinosaur park. ¡°That¡¯s the original name from the last owners and we didn¡¯t have enough time to change it. Anyway, my name is Chris Rogers. I¡¯m a, well, you can call it a contractor of sorts that¡¯s worked with Garret by phone and Daniel directly in the past. I know this is the first time most of you are meeting me and I want to make sure everyone¡¯s comfortable, since we¡¯ll be together for at least a few weeks. What concerns can I answer?¡±This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.

    ¡°Who¡¯s driving the boat?¡± Ami asked from her corner, not looking up.

    ¡°The Far Shores received an upgrade package courtesy of the fund. It¡¯s got a kind of auto-pilot that incorporates depth sensors, radar, and GPS. It¡¯ll bring us to a stop if it senses anything one of us would have to make adjustments for, like inclement weather, but it can otherwise keep itself going.¡± He¡¯d started saying it to Ami but when it was clear she didn¡¯t care about the fine details, he¡¯d shifted back to addressing the group in general. ¡°I¡¯m confident all of us can sleep while it¡¯s running. I¡¯ve got the radio in my room in case we get hailed, and the system will alert me if anyone or anything gets within ten kilometers.¡±

    A few questions burned in Daniel¡¯s mind about what his mother had said, but he couldn¡¯t ask them with her or his sisters there. There was something else he wanted to know more anyway. ¡°Were you able to find Eido?¡±

    ¡°Unfortunately, I couldn¡¯t zero in its exact location. As fantastical as this all may seem, I do think you¡¯re right though.¡±

    ¡°So you¡¯re in on all this other world stuff?¡± Alex asked challengingly, folding her arms.

    ¡°I am a man that likes to keep an open mind. The arrangement I had with your father wasn¡¯t exactly normal either.¡±

    ¡°So, you just go around doing whatever rich people want you to do?¡± Chris¡¯ smile faded a little at her implication.

    He took a seat, abandoning the slight youth camp leader stance he¡¯d been taking at the head of the table. ¡°Alright, I get your concerns. Let¡¯s just get it out of the way. I got into this business because of a friend who won the lottery. Not as much as Daniel got, but the ¡®make your life very good until you completely ruin it¡¯ kind. Smartest thing he did was hire a financial advisor who then recommended someone like me. A lifestyle manager. I was seventeen and didn¡¯t have anything else going for me. It seemed interesting, so I talked the guy up and got involved. I was running solo for my fourth year when Garret reached out.¡± He took another long drink, looked at the table, and then cursed under his breath. ¡°One moment, sorry, I forgot the map.¡± He walked out and Alex turned a sharp gaze towards their mother.

    ¡°This is who we¡¯re trusting our lives to? Mom, what do you know about him?¡±

    ¡°I-¡° she started to say, before cutting herself off. There was a moment of deep conflict as her poker face lifted. ¡°I¡¯ve seen him before, that¡­ man. He isn¡¯t what I expected, but I think we can trust him.¡±

    ¡°Is this about God?

    ¡°I don¡¯t see any other rational explanation for-¡° Kara stopped abruptly as they all heard Chris¡¯ footsteps coming back. The man himself appeared with a rolled-up map that looked like it had come from a print shop.

    ¡°Sorry, had this stored so it wouldn¡¯t get wet.¡± He unrolled it on the table, revealing the Pacific Ocean with several overlapping areas circled. ¡°So, again, I don¡¯t have an exact location, but there¡¯s been this new Bermuda Triangle-esque zone in the Pacific the conspiracy nut heads have begun picking up.¡±

    Ami snorted. ¡°We¡¯re chartering a ship to find an alien city. If they¡¯re nut heads, what¡¯re we?¡±

    ¡°Clients,¡± Chris answered diplomatically. ¡°I didn¡¯t just copy what they did either, I fact checked. Not all of this stuff out there¡¯s legit, especially the newer claims, but some of it is true.¡± He took another sip as he tapped the largest circle labeled ¡®ship fuel¡¯, pulling out photo-copied documents as he did. ¡°Over the last four months, shipping companies have noticed a roughly 5% increase in fuel consumption by anyone traveling along shipping lanes in this area. It¡¯s not a consistent effect, but it¡¯s undeniable, and there¡¯s no current explanation for it besides something a team of physicists are trying to confirm.¡±

    ¡°And where exactly did you get your physics degree?¡± Ami sniped, having taken the dedicated heckler position despite still trying to feign disinterest with her laptop.

    ¡°Don¡¯t need it when there are smart people out there kind enough to put their findings in honest English,¡± Chris answered, continuing to answer politely. ¡°Anyone here heard of gravity anomalies?¡±

    ¡°Bullshit.¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s a real thing,¡± Daniel piped up, unable to continue watching the one-sided argument while also really not wanting Ami to make Chris reconsider the favor he was doing him. ¡°Somewhere where the gravity isn¡¯t what it should be?¡±

    ¡°Sounds like something a smart man would say simply,¡± Chris nodded. ¡°I¡¯m not talking about crop circles or floating islands, it¡¯s just areas that don¡¯t behave according to our current understanding of gravity. Theories are out there, of course, but something like what you¡¯re talking about would also be the kind of thing my mind would go to after a few of these.¡± He shook the half-empty can and set it a little further from him than before.

    ¡°So anomalous gravity zone, shipping fuel, it sounds like someone would have already found this place,¡± Daniel said, tensing as he imagined some military stumbling across Eido and ruining any chance he had to salvage his dream.

    ¡°Eh. We¡¯re talking about a large area of the largest ocean on our blue planet.¡± Chris¡¯ finger traced the largest circle again. ¡°Can¡¯t speak for everyone, but the closest it sounds like people¡¯ve gotten is that leg, and there¡¯s a few ¡®alien mummies¡¯ in Mexico that¡¯ve discredited stories like that before.¡±

    ¡°This is all fascinating, really,¡± Alex spoke up, a hard expression on her face. Daniel didn¡¯t think she was heading toward an explosion, they¡¯d become rare after the early teenage years, but this was a touchy subject. ¡°But what chance do we have of actually finding anything? How long are you going to keep us out here until we accept that this is all hoaxes and coincidence?¡±

    ¡°Long as you like,¡± Chris shrugged. ¡°I do think I¡¯m one of the only ones taking this seriously, and because it¡¯s my job rather than my delusion, I have a better approach. Wouldn¡¯t call it science exactly, just a mix of hope and good intentions.¡± He tapped a spot on the map to the north, where almost all the circles overlapped. ¡°And this is our best intention. It¡¯ll take a week, maybe less, to get there. Plenty of fuel for a round trip, so don¡¯t worry about getting stranded. Say we look around a day or two and then have another talk about whether you want to continue or head back.¡±

    ¡°Mr¡­ Rogers,¡± Kara said slowly, whether because of her supposed familiarity or the realization of how the name would sound after she started saying it. ¡°I am concerned for my family¡¯s safety. What are you doing to minimize the risk to us?¡±

    ¡°Well, you talked to those lawyers and I¡¯ve taken their advice,¡± Chris started, sensing this was an important topic. ¡°You should also know this beauty is a speedy one, and we¡¯ll have enough of a warning to avoid someone coming our way if we need to. I have a radio and contacts within several US embassies should the absolute worst happen and a foreign navy takes an interest in us. I want to stress that the chance of that happening is extremely low so long as we keep our heads down.¡± He considered his next words and took another sip of beer before putting his hands flat on the table. ¡°Lastly, I have a handgun aboard. It is currently in a gun safe, and if you want to be the only ones who can access it, I can make that happen. It is only there as a last resort.¡±

    That was as much news to Daniel as it was to the rest of his family, but every way Chris had presented himself thus far did nothing to support the idea of him turning the weapon on them. He still saw Ami begin to rapidly blink as she considered how she¡¯d spent the last ten minutes, and Kara sighed. ¡°I don¡¯t think guns are a way to make us safe.¡±

    ¡°Respectfully, ma¡¯am, I¡¯ve met people who could change your mind on that.¡± He sighed too. ¡°But I¡¯ll throw it in the ocean if you want. This is what I wanted to get across. You are the clients, what you say goes so long as it doesn¡¯t cross a line, and none of you seem like the people who¡¯d ask me to. I¡¯m here to help you, and it is my first job to make sure you feel you are safe.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t want us to feel safe,¡± Kara countered. ¡°I want us to be safe.¡±

    Chris thought on that for a moment before he nodded thoughtfully. ¡°Then, again, respectfully, this isn¡¯t what you should be doing. I can swing us back to port, book all of you a nice stay, look myself and report back. There are places on this planet where I can do nothing to assure your absolute safety, and the deep blue is one of them. I have taken every precaution, but at the end of the day it is your call, and if one of you wants us to turn around then that¡¯s that.¡±

    He looked around the room, still with his hands in a non-threatening position, waiting for someone to tell him to do just that. Daniel was determined and said nothing. The gun part had scared Ami for a moment, but she was still wrapped up in adventure and had probably rationalized Chris into a fancy armed guard by now.

    Alex and Kara would be the dealbreakers if anyone would be. The two sensed this, looking at each other. Chris had done about as perfect a job as he could selling this, including being absolutely serious about sending some or all of them home at the drop of a hat. Alex¡¯s eyes wavered first. ¡°Mom, if there¡¯s any chance of Dad being there¡­¡±

    Kara¡¯s eyes fell. The decision had just been made for her. She then picked her head back up and looked Chris in the eye with all of the precision and cutting power of a scalpel. ¡°I¡¯m putting the lives of my children in your hands. Do not forget that for a second.¡±

    ¡°Cross my heart, ma¡¯am,¡± Chris replied, doing just so. ¡°Now, I¡¯ve already got a course set. Let¡¯s take a break, grab some drinks, relax, and try not to get too tired of the view just yet. All we¡¯ll be seeing for a little bit.¡±

    Nervously, Daniel stared out at the vast expanse now that the islands were fading into the background behind him. This was better and worse than a flight in some ways. He had medication on board if needed, but he wasn¡¯t going to be drugged when they found Eido.

    And they would find it. He didn¡¯t care about logic or luck, they had to find it, because otherwise all the money in the world couldn¡¯t let him live with what he¡¯d done.

 Interlude: Earth - Adagio

    The tempo was slower than Evalyn¡¯s heartbeat, making the world whirl around her. If her body wasn¡¯t able to keep itself alive, pumping blood and moving air autonomously, using a song this slow would have killed her. During a hunt it would have regardless, but she wasn¡¯t hunting. She was home.

    Her parents and sister lived on the ground floor of a three-story building, each floor its own residence. The Lasials hadn¡¯t been rich, coming from the common farmers of the Kallical region that bordered both Aughal and Threst. The decision to come to the Thormundz had been difficult. Evalyn had been sixteen at the time, her sister seven. Threst had been the obvious choice for their pilgrimage since it was universally viewed as safer and more prosperous.

    Emily¡¯s fall had made for a far more terrifying experience than they¡¯d bargained for. A bridge had broken while their convoy passed over it, the region having neglected maintenance due to what they¡¯d sunk into setting up Roost¡¯s Peak. It probably wouldn¡¯t have broken if the entire convoy hadn¡¯t gone across at once, but they had, and Emily was one of those who fell off before catching something or being caught. Her small sister had been carried by a strong breeze away from the primary recovery efforts, hitting the ground limit twice before someone had finally found her.

    Even eight years later, she never went farther up than the first floor of any building. The one good thing to come out of the tribulation was the bond it had created between Evalyn and her sister. Emily¡¯s heartbeat always accompanied her as a reminder she was alive, though the bond¡¯s effect was distorted from Investiture of Song. That wasn¡¯t the only benefit, though.

    Evalyn hummed the slow tune of the lullaby to her sister. Emily was approaching adulthood and yet still treasured both the singing and the singer. Considering the months of separation they¡¯d endured, it was also the only magic Emily had. All anyone in Eido had, aside from the few bonds that had survived both the explosion of the Unification Temple and the Upswell.

    The two weren¡¯t alone in the room. The avianoid who¡¯d gotten his leg bitten off, Karki, as well as a human who¡¯d torn a muscle while chopping down some of the trees on the island rested on cots. Both had the same relaxed expression on their faces as Emily.

    While Evalyn could affect others with her music, the effect was dependent on many things. Her bond changed that, as willing individuals could tether themselves to Emily¡¯s emotional state like a one way Empathic Link, strong but temporary. With the absence of any healing power or bond capable of replicating those effects, the best the healers could do was resort to harsher measures. The calm Evalyn could bring her sister, even without Bardic music, had saved many people a lot of pain.

    It was a lot to put on Emily, but it helped with the tension between the Commander and Evalyn¡¯s group. Lograve¡¯s theory bordered on insanity, which would be par for the course considering Daniel was involved. From the telepathic updates he was getting closer to a successful ritual, though nothing was certain.

    One of the Clerics nodded to her and Evalyn stopped her song. She rarely sang, but Emily was an exception. The two patients awoke, Karki with more work done on his limb and the human with his arm bound in a makeshift cast. After everyone else had left, Emily exited her trance and opened her eyes. ¡°How long was that?¡±

    ¡°Twenty minutes at most,¡± Evalyn replied while switching to a moderate internal tempo. ¡°Thank you, this helps.¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to say that every time, sis. I know.¡± She dragged a coat over herself as Evalyn watched. The cold had come as a surprise after having just been in a desert, but winter had been coming to the world as a whole and Eido¡¯s experiences over the last months had kept true to a region within a temperate climate. Or, a world with one. ¡°Any time for more stories of what happened while you were gone? I still don¡¯t think I believe you about that ringcat.¡±

    Evalyn tried not to let remorse color her words. ¡°I wish I could prove it to you.¡±

    ¡°If you get us back from wherever this is, maybe you can. I wouldn¡¯t mind magic working again, even if the monsters get worse.¡±

    ¡°You miss magic? I¡¯m the one with the class.¡±

    ¡°And I¡¯m the one whose room isn¡¯t heated.¡± Emily smiled as she headed for the door. ¡°Besides, I still haven¡¯t figured out advancement yet. That means I haven¡¯t hit my wall. Maybe I¡¯ll get to level 2 younger than you did.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think Dad would like another Bard in the family.¡±

    ¡°Who said anything about being a Bard?¡± Emily laughed. ¡°That¡¯s for people who can¡¯t get enough of themselves. I¡¯m going Arcanist so I can blow shit up.¡±

    Evalyn mock searched around the room, knowing her sister wouldn¡¯t have what she was looking for. ¡°You know you have to read to get that class, right?¡±

    ¡°Better than what I¡¯d have to do for yours,¡± she shot back, the mood remaining light. Evalyn couldn¡¯t imagine anything either could say that would truly get on the other¡¯s nerves. Their bond was too intimate to be broken by something like that.

    Evalyn felt Emily¡¯s heartbeat speed up just before opening the door. Her trauma from the event in Threst had manifested in an obvious way, but also in some more minor, odd ones. She¡¯d developed this thing about doors, always getting a little afraid before opening them as if a pit was right behind them. By now Emily could hide this quirk from everyone but her sister.

    They shared a look, but neither commented on the moment. Still, Emily¡¯s voice was quieter in the hallway. ¡°We are going back, right?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll find a way. My friend is already working on it, and there are people I trust on the other side.¡± If they¡¯re still alive.

    ¡­

    Hello, friend. Is there any chance you¡¯ve suddenly gained a translation power? Lograve got the same unintelligible response he did every time he tried this. The duration varied, making him certain the actual speech was different, but it was too hard to pick out common words. Without being able to have direct access to the natives that had come from the vessel, he had as good a chance of communicating with them as with what Tak had become.Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!

    Translating the foreign language may have gone easier if he¡¯d devoted serious time to it, but there was another project he was prioritizing. Contacting Daniel. Not the Earth version, but the one on his world. He¡¯d come to a few conclusions during his time here, some he¡¯d shared with Evalyn, and some he hadn¡¯t. The one he was keeping hidden for now was his suspicion as to Daniel¡¯s biggest secret to date.

    Somehow, he was a Spoke. There was no other way to explain the evidence in front of him. Despite being in an area so magically inhibited that a level 5 couldn¡¯t function, his Invisibility and Telepathy were being maintained and it wasn¡¯t costing him his mana. His feature was also stuck at level 4, though there could be another reason for that. Daniel had explained how he could tether his mana to Hunter whenever he activated a prolonged effect in the living impossibility, and this had to have been what was happening here.

    Maintaining active powers in four people, not only in magical suppression but across worlds? Only the magic of the gods could explain something like this, and it also resolved what had happened to Eido¡¯s Spoke. Somehow, a copy of a soul from this world had been incarnated into a Spoke as it was in the final stage of unification. No wonder it had exploded. Had this been a random accident, or had the Spiritualists somehow been involved? The Illustrious?

    Questions for later. Now, he was attempting to reach back through the mana tethering his power to Octyrrum-Daniel. To that end, he¡¯d kept every single magical item the Artificer had made, since they functioned here as well. They had a mana tether, just like he did. In fact, they could both be considered as part of the same mana flow, with an absurdly long distance between them and the source. It was raising all kinds of difficulties with what he was trying, but at the same time, he was making progress.

    Lograve had no doubt he was the first person to try using Ritualism in this way, and he¡¯d even give that arrogant fool of a Commander his socks if he was wrong on that point. What effect he was trying to make he wasn¡¯t sure, since he didn¡¯t know the result of a pattern until he¡¯d used it the first time. He¡¯d awakened what appeared to be a far weaker version of the normal Ritualism, and along with it being more difficult to use, he hadn¡¯t put time into a deep study of the power.

    It wasn¡¯t like any book would have information on this. Lograve was currently adjusting the various magical items in front of him, having to precisely adjust their height and angle as well. It gave him a new appreciation for Aquakinesis, since he only had to use his mind to move the mana within his ice constructs. Here, he had to use makeshift stands to prop up the three-dimensional assemblage.

    The fact that the Commander of the island was hunting for him meant he also had to pack up and move this every so often. He was invisible, but the items weren¡¯t while outside his direct possession. It was supremely annoying, especially because he couldn¡¯t just explain himself. The hidebound beliefs of his world among the common people rejected any possibility of other societies, and he once again wondered why the gods and the Octyrrum had hidden this truth. Did they not know? That would almost be funny.

    Lograve felt his agitation spike as a slight adjustment to one of the ¡®winged boots¡¯ caused his internal assessment of the ritual¡¯s viability to plummet. He took in a deep breath and did what he always did to calm himself down. Hello, Commander. Still looking for me?

    Arcanist. You try my patience. The human on the other end of the link had a mental voice that rivaled Murdon¡¯s despite only being a human. Commander Marshall was one of the rare Martialists who had managed to evolve his class, depriving Lograve of ammunition from how close the two sounded. I have no time for you unless you wish to finally think of the common good.

    Oh, certainly. I¡¯m currently a kilometer north of Eido¡¯s outer limits. You can find me on a hill overlooking the patch of ground that decided to move to the sky back in the Thormundz.

    ¡­what¡¯s actually there?

    A carefully written review of your hospitality, Lograve admitted, chuckling out loud on his end. The hijinks weren¡¯t endearing himself nearly as much to Marshall as they would if this was he and Murdon meeting for the first time, but between the slightly familiar voice and a need to channel his aggravation and concern, he¡¯d kept it up. I¡¯ve categorized the list this time so it¡¯ll be easier to make improvements. You¡¯ll note quite a few remarks on the demeanor of your waitstaff.

    He didn¡¯t get a reply that time. Looks like Marshall could learn something after all. Murdon always had to counterpunch his jabs which just fed the demon in Lograve. No, he wasn¡¯t making a new friend here. Lograve turned his attention back to the sigil, muttering under his breath. ¡°If I can get this to work, it will move the mana within the items and myself. Even with his terrible seventh sense, he shouldn¡¯t be blind to a mana burst coming from himself.¡±

    After that? It was down to the thin hope that Daniel could undo whatever he¡¯d done to bring them here. That he hadn¡¯t already meant they were dealing with another hidden power situation. It had taken Claw Strike being manually used by another for Daniel to realize he had the ability, then he could use it through force of will. If Lograve disrupted the current stable state of the mana tethers, it might do the job. If not, then he¡¯d still have figured out how to trigger another of his suppressed powers, and that might convince the Commander he wasn¡¯t being greedy.

    The Arcanist spent the next hour making careful adjustments before he sensed people nearby. The Commander couldn¡¯t trace back the mental communications, but he had enough people to send to random sections of the island in search for him. Sighing, he did his best to memorize his current progress and quickly shoved the array into the bags of holding.

    Once on his person, they turned invisible too. While those Blessed who¡¯d survived the blast that destroyed the Unification Temple were the strongest of the Thormundz, even their enhanced attributes couldn¡¯t contest his stealth power alone. Marshall was the only one who outleveled him. He moved closer to the coast this time, about halfway around the island from the metal ship. Looting that had been a temptation, though he had decided to be careful with technology from a society he didn¡¯t understand. The topic of the explosive substance Daniel¡¯s world used to fuel their vessels had come up, and he wasn¡¯t sure if the garish tube was always moments away from giving him more scars.

    Settling in as the coming night grew colder, Lograve looked out over the wide ocean. It would be the Pacific or the Atlantic, if he remembered correctly. The others were too close to land or the ice caps of the ball Daniel lived on to fit. It was impressive, either way. The Octyrrum had oceans that spanned multiple regions, but none quite as large as spanning half a world. How did people live that far away from each other without any means of magic to bridge the gap? All they had were these¡­ Wait.

    Lograve stood back up, rising out of his musings as his eyes caught something in the distance. Coming roughly from the south was a reflection in the fading sunlight. It was consistent, not from the shifting of water. That it was the only thing his enhanced wisdom could make out meant it was very far away, Still, another vessel was on the way. Would it be more merchants, or a warship looking for those who¡¯d fallen prey to Eido? Did they even know the island was here?

    Do I tell Evalyn or Gadriel? Lograve tossed a bag of holding idly in his hand. Not now. Not unless it is coming for us. If it is? He opened the bag, scowling at his various stands and makeshift thread before his forcibly active ability made them disappear. No rest for the weary.

 Interlude: Earth - Collision Course

    I¡¯ve never ridden a jet ski before. Huh. It was an insane thought, all things considered. Daniel sat on the back of the yacht, feet over the Pacific Ocean which stretched out as far as he could see. At another time that might have been frightening, but they were making good progress. What Chris had installed on the boat let them stay on course even when they were all asleep, which apparently helped conserve fuel like when cars used cruise control. There was a maximum distance they could go from the Hawaiian Islands before they had to go back, that or Chris would have to try and arrange for refueling somehow on the water.

    The hope was they¡¯d find what they were looking for by then. Chris, coming in clutch again, had narrowed down an area to search based on various clues like the news story he¡¯d texted. Some were less concrete, general disturbances in normal weather patterns, gravity anomalies, and the odd cargo ship fuel problem that so happened to be in the same area. Then again, if a sizable land mass from another world had just been tossed into the ocean, that might be doing all sorts of weird things to the environment.

    It¡¯d been about six days since setting sail and he and Alex were getting tense. Ami spent her time between work and social media, and it had gotten to the point that Chris had to ¡®kindly ask¡¯ that she stop giving people a rough idea of their location. It wasn¡¯t that they might lead someone to Eido, but that pirates would watch the streams and take them hostage. As far as his mother, she¡¯d remained resolved but hadn¡¯t spoken anymore about her suspicions.

    Six days of all of that had left Daniel¡¯s nerves raw, the oppressive blankness of the ocean not helping, and he¡¯d finally thought to ask about the small watercraft off the back of the ship. It¡¯d been used a few times, mostly by the twins and Chris the one time they¡¯d come close to an island that could have matched what they were looking for. It wasn¡¯t.

    ¡°Biggest thing you need to know is not to turn too hard,¡± the self-proclaimed ¡®lifestyle manager¡¯ was saying as he held the handlebars from the boat, keeping the jet ski steady. It was, as far as Daniel could tell, one of those classic designs that made you think of a motorcycle on the water. It moved pretty fast and considering what their budget had been for this trip, he was sure it was a higher-end model. ¡°This is stable when moving, but you can¡¯t do an immediate 180. If you need to turn around, you have to make it a wide arc. I¡¯ll be manually piloting the yacht while you¡¯re out so you don¡¯t need to worry about us hitting you, but you do need to worry about hitting us. Stay out at least fifty meters unless you want to come back, and if you do ease up on the speed. I¡¯ll stop if I see that so you don¡¯t need to race back. If you see a storm or hear me sound the ship¡¯s horn, come back immediately. If you fall off stay in one place, the life jacket will be enough to let me know where you are. Don¡¯t worry about the jet ski, we can get another if you lose it. If, for some reason, we get separated, there¡¯s a flare gun in this panel. For emergencies only,¡± he emphasized. The whole speech was given like Chris had worked at an aquatic theme park in the past.

    ¡°Do you ever not think everything through?¡± Daniel asked.

    ¡°Only when it comes to happy hour and heartbreak,¡± he replied as if quoting country music. ¡°Go on, sunset¡¯s in two hours and you should be back before then. That has running lights, but I wouldn¡¯t trust them.¡±

    ¡°Thanks.¡± Daniel was about to push off from the yacht when Alex appeared from the interior.

    ¡°Hey, mind if I ride with you?¡± she asked evenly. Things had taken a turn between them ever since he opened the ¡®other world¡¯ door, though to be fair his sister had also lost a job she¡¯d loved recently. It wasn¡¯t a good time for either of them, but for the most they kept civil. Neither could forget that the wedge that had driven Daniel from the rest of the family had fallen mostly between the two of them.

    ¡°It¡¯s big enough, just be careful,¡± Chris said, handing her a life jacket before assuring Daniel, ¡°It¡¯d ride the same.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, why not?¡± His sister sat behind him, a moment of hesitation before she held on to him. They both kicked and began to float away from the yacht. A low hum from the active engine was present, but it wouldn¡¯t get loud until he pulled on the throttle. ¡°You¡¯re not going to push me off at some point, are you?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Alex didn¡¯t sound too surprised that he¡¯d asked. ¡°I just heard you were setting this up and needed a break. Ami can work just fine but there¡¯s not much for me to do but think about this. I don¡¯t want to do too much of that.¡±

    ¡°What about your violin?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to expose it to too much of the seawater here, it¡¯s bad for the wood.¡± The yacht¡¯s main engine started back up and the large boat moved forward. ¡°You¡¯re not going to chicken out of this are you? I will throw you off if you just keep us sitting here.¡±

    Daniel held onto the handlebars and almost fell off as the jet ski jumped forward and it took him a couple of seconds to ease the throttle. Alex had started whacking him on the shoulder as they wobbled, but stopped as the ride became even. Experimentally he tried turning, and the machine obliged. In less than a minute he¡¯d shot past the yacht and was just going.

    It didn¡¯t feel isolating here, alone with all the blue around. He might have thought of the sharks below, the probability of death if they got lost, but something about the expanse and the sensation of speed hit him with euphoria. It was freedom. The sensation was odd in some way, a faint heady buzz accompanying it in his mind. That was probably adrenaline.

    After ten minutes, Daniel let the jet ski come to a stop and looked over his shoulder. ¡°You want a turn?¡±

    ¡°Do you really think we can get Dad back?¡± she asked suddenly, like they were anywhere other than where they were. ¡°All of this, it¡¯s insane Daniel. What that letter said-¡°

    ¡°I do. I messed up what we were doing, but if we can find Eido we might get a second chance.¡± He did not mention how much of a blind hope that was.

    They both had to turn to the side to switch positions, and to keep the jet ski balanced they had to face away from each other. ¡°I¡¯m sorry about some of the things I said at the house. I just¡­¡±

    ¡°I know. I should have gone with him.¡±

    Alex was quiet for a moment and they shuffled, leaving her in the front. She didn¡¯t immediately turn to face forward. ¡°Why didn¡¯t he ask any of us to go with him?¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    ¡°I liked hiking. We were both in college but it could have been scheduled around that. Mom could have gotten off work. He didn¡¯t have to go alone.¡±

    ¡°He was in the parks service, he didn¡¯t need anyone to go with him,¡± Daniel countered, though weakly. He saw what she was doing and was surprised by it. ¡°It was supposed to be our trip. He always talked about how much fun the Rockies were the few times he¡¯d gone before and wanted to share it with me. I was the one too stubborn to go.¡±

    ¡°You should have gone with him, but he shouldn¡¯t have gone alone.¡± She put her hands on the handlebars and Daniel quickly held onto her midsection, though Alex didn¡¯t pull on the throttle. ¡°If we find this place, there¡¯s going to be magic?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. Probably. Aliens, at least.¡±

    ¡°What kind?¡±

    ¡°Bird people, mostly. From what I heard Eido also had cloud and plant people too.¡±

    ¡°Right, and we¡¯re definitely not the nut heads. Glad you dragged us out here for plant people.¡± The jet ski shot off before Daniel could answer.

    ¡­

    It happened quickly. Daniel and Alex had been riding out on the ocean for an hour, trading turns at the front. The fuel gauge was getting low at this point and they probably should have gone back to the yacht, but Ami was there with her constant alternation between yelling at people through patchy wifi and trying to talk them into watching romance movies. Her brand of workplace temper was less incendiary and more motivating than Alex¡¯s, though it was just as loud and occurred at night due to the time zone.

    As Daniel was about to tap Alex on the shoulder and point to the yacht, he flinched instinctively. Something very large had appeared right in front of them. Alex saw it too and jerked on the handlebars, but was too late. The jet ski tried to slow down, but by the time they hit the sand it was still going at a considerable fraction of top speed.

    They both fell off as the jet ski continued forward from its momentum, slamming across the shallower waters and into the beach that now occupied where ocean had been just a moment ago. In fact, the island in front of them was so large they couldn¡¯t see its entirety from where they stood.

    Daniel made it to the muddy sand second, gasping from having hit the water at an odd angle on the way down. Nothing felt broken, and it looked like Alex had faired about as well. As he lay in the sand, recovering, he heard her shout as she waved her arms. ¡°Hey!¡±

    In the distance, less than a kilometer away, the yacht continued forward for about a minute before coming to a stop. The fog horn of the ship resounded across the water once, then twice. ¡°Flares in the jet ski,¡± Daniel wheezed.If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    ¡°We¡¯re right here, they should see us!¡±

    ¡°We didn¡¯t see the island.¡± Their eyes locked in understanding, and Daniel saw Alex¡¯s widen as she fully grasped what had happened over the last few minutes. ¡°I think we found Eido.¡±

    ¡°Holy shit.¡± She pointed a shaky hand into the distance, where buildings appeared as vague outlines on the horizon. Trees with their leaves in the shapes of domes scattered the relatively even ground between them and the center of the island. From the look of the coast, they¡¯d gotten lucky as most of it ended above the water. Only a few sections had something like this. ¡°Holy shit!¡±

    ¡°Flares!¡± Daniel grunted in pain as he stood. Nothing was broken, but something was bruised. ¡°They might-¡°

    ¡°Right.¡± The jet ski had almost taken out one of the dome trees as it self-destructed across the terrain, and by the rough troughs dug into the ground it looked like it had flipped end over end. Alex had to force open the panel Daniel indicated, taking out the red-colored canister gun and a few shells packed in a water-tight case. ¡°There was nothing and then, then it was just there,¡± she said, still shaken from what had happened. ¡°How are they going to see the flare if they can¡¯t see the island?¡±

    ¡°Shoot it out over the water. There must be a distance that this cloaking falls off at.¡± The ship¡¯s horn sounded again, a third time, and the yacht slowly began to move. ¡°Damn it, wait. If they come towards the flare they might ground the boat.¡±

    ¡°Should we swim out?¡±

    I found it, Daniel thought, caught between his current predicament and a sudden elation. ¡°No! If we¡¯re behind whatever¡¯s keeping the island invisible, they could drive straight over us. How many flares do we have?¡±

    Alex opened the box. ¡°Three.¡±

    ¡°Fire one now, then another when they get closer. There¡¯s no way Chris doesn¡¯t miss one appearing out of nowhere.¡±

    His sister cracked the flare gun open and shakily loaded one in. She paused before firing though, looking over her shoulder. ¡°The people who live here, are they dangerous?¡±

    ¡°Not to us. They shouldn¡¯t be, at least.¡± Most of the people on the Octyrrum were normal, reasonable. If they¡¯ve been starving this whole time, that¡¯s a different story. Let¡¯s hope Eido had good ration stores and that avianoids don¡¯t turn rabidly carnivorous when left with no other choice. ¡°We¡¯re here to meet them. Might as well announce ourselves rather than sneak up.¡±

    Alex sighed, raised the flare gun, and fired. The red glow continued to shine as it flew out over the water despite going far enough away that it should have crossed the illusive barrier. The fact that they could still see the yacht should have told them the illusion was one-way, but this confirmed it as the yacht turned toward them.

    ¡°Ok,¡± Daniel said as they watched the yacht slowly approach. ¡°The person in charge should be a Commander. I don¡¯t actually know who they are but people mentioned Eido had one when it was sent here. Don¡¯t say anything about this being another world, not at first. Their religion says that anything outside of their world is literal hell.¡±

    ¡°You didn¡¯t think to mention this sooner!?¡±

    ¡°You kept calling me crazy when I tried! I could¡¯ve- ah hell.¡± He was one part thrilled, one part terrified as a trio of humans became visible in the middle distance running at an impressive pace. They¡¯d get here before the yacht, even though they¡¯d started further out.

    Alex saw what he was looking at and the fear on her face was plain. ¡°They¡¯re so fast.¡±

    ¡°They probably have enhanced attributes.¡± Alex looked at him blankly. ¡°In their world, they use magic to improve their bodies and minds. You can also get powers to make you better at things, one might be giving them a movement buff. I¡¯d say they¡¯re at least level 2.¡± He gritted his teeth as he saw Alex load another flare. ¡°Don¡¯t fight them! If their magic is working we don¡¯t have a chance.¡±

    ¡°If they¡¯re dangerous, I¡¯m aiming at the yacht,¡± she said determinedly. ¡°I think Chris would get that message too.¡±

    Damn, that¡¯s¡­ she¡¯s handling this better than I am. ¡°Just let me talk to them! I know enough that I can make a good first impression.¡±

    ¡°If we¡¯re relying on you to do that, we¡¯re screwed,¡± Alex teased, a bit of humor edging in as her incredulity began overwhelming everything else. He absentmindedly wiped at the dirt and grime that had gotten all over him after the crash. His bare feet were also an annoyance, though as soon as he saw them he chuckled. ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Looks like I don¡¯t have shoes here either.¡±

    ¡°What!?¡±

    He didn¡¯t have time to explain. Three honest to god aliens stood about ten meters away, bedecked in light armor and weapons. They¡¯d come to a stop some distance away, no doubt wanting to assess the visitors before getting closer. That they were all human didn¡¯t change the fact they were from a different world. ¡°Uh, hi!¡± Danie called out to them, fervently wishing he¡¯d thought this part through more. ¡°This is Eido, right?¡± It had to be, either that or he¡¯d accidentally discovered where rich people went to LARP in secret. His face fell when one of them called back, the language completely incomprehensible. ¡°No, no, damn it!¡±

    ¡°You can¡¯t understand them?¡± Alex guessed.

    ¡°The Bunker must have translated it for me. I thought¡­ damn it!¡± The same human called out to him again, the sounds of the words completely foreign. Daniel had heard many Earth languages over the years, and while he could only speak English, he at least had a sense of others. Though, if I¡¯m honest, I probably couldn¡¯t tell French from Spanish spoken in a French accent. Either way, these people were speaking something he¡¯d never heard before.

    One of the two further back looked from the gun Alex was holding, to the dying red light, to the yacht still half a kilometer out. She said something to the one up front and the other two made the connection as well. The second human grabbed at her bow, though the other hand didn¡¯t immediately go for an arrow. Daniel paled as he realized these people could easily hit both Alex and himself, as well as the people on the Far Shores. They had to be hunters, and most of the best had been in Eido.

    ¡°Is there anything else you can do?¡± Alex asked, not looking away from the three in front of them.

    I, I... ¡°Damn it, no. I thought I could at least talk to them but I can¡¯t even do that!¡±

    She slowly passed the flare gun to her other hand, holding it barrel first, before putting it on the ground between them. ¡°These people, are they like us? They¡¯re not all bloodthirsty monsters, right?¡±

    ¡°No, they¡¯re, they¡¯re just people. Some suck but the majority are good. They¡¯ve been fighting this cosmic threat for so long it¡¯s given them a kind of unity.¡± Well, that¡¯s not counting Aughal or Heldren, but¡­ ¡°Why are you- what are you doing?¡±

    ¡°Speaking a common tongue,¡± she said. ¡°Stay here, use the flare gun if this doesn¡¯t work.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± He stared in disbelief as Alex began to walk towards the humans, gesturing to the third. Daniel hadn¡¯t looked too closely at him because he¡¯d neither spoken nor drawn a weapon, but the moment he did he understood.

    First of all, the third human had the classic marks of someone with higher charisma and the practice of using it, from improved looks to knowing how to bear themselves. For one terrifying moment, he thought that¡¯s what Alex had meant until he saw the Focus on the human¡¯s back. The Bard¡¯s back. No way.

    Ami, the twin sister still on the yacht, had an unfortunate habit of bragging about certain things. Like how much she made or the fact that she could pull almost six figures while kicking back in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. It was a remnant of the competitive spirit the twins had had growing up that Alex for the most part had abandoned.

    However, there was one thing Ami would never challenge her sister on. Musical ability. If Alex hadn¡¯t had the drive to teach, she could have been in a professional orchestra. Chris had been astounded the few times Alex had played during this trip, though as she¡¯d said she¡¯d hardly ever brought out her prized violin. During the flight here she¡¯d taken it as her carry-on and it had never left her sight until they¡¯d gotten on the yacht.

    She didn¡¯t have that now, but as Daniel had witnessed in the Bunker, the Bards of the Octyrrum used similar instruments to Earth. He could tell the three were on alert, though the Bard grew a little bemused as Alex stopped a short distance away and gestured at his back.

    The three discussed this, being open in their conversation as they¡¯d also figured out the language barrier. The archer, class unknown, kept glancing at the red gun still on the ground and Daniel took a step away hoping that would help. He¡¯d need to go for it if this took too long since the yacht was currently on a collision course, but Chris was keeping it moving at a slow pace. His mother was at the front, looking down just in case they were about to run them over. It was about half an hour to sunset and the sky was darkening.

    A faint sound brought his attention back to the ground. The Bard had walked forward, the archer ever so slightly putting a hand to an arrow without drawing out. With a flourish, he spun his instrument in his hand and offered it to Alex, bowing slightly so she could withdraw the instrument¡¯s bow from a sheath he¡¯d had made so it could go on his back too.

    Alex carefully inspected both and had begun tuning the instrument, which had alerted Daniel. ¡°I can¡¯t tell what these strings are made of,¡± she said, more to herself though everyone could hear her. ¡°It¡¯s shorter than normal, but the tone is similar. It¡¯ll be awkward to hold, and there¡¯s no real chin rest.¡± The Bard said something in his language, the cadence of which Daniel was beginning to describe as flowing based on how there were fewer pauses for punctuation than his. He thought he caught curiosity in the Bard¡¯s tone and hoped the guy wasn¡¯t getting any ideas.

    Alex spent another minute testing the strings, holding the instrument as if she was going to play it while moving her fingers around to find the notes. The yacht was getting closer and closer, but if Daniel went for the flare gun he¡¯d ruin what she was doing. After three experimental chords, Alex drew out the last note, and then began to play for real.

    The confident smile on the Bard¡¯s face slipped and his eyebrows rose when Alex began, an aura of focus around her as she struggled to bend the new instrument to her will. Perhaps it would have been more difficult for her to adjust, but Daniel knew that in her former position she¡¯d had to at least become practical with any instrument someone in her class could play. How else could she teach them? The other two reacted keenly at first, perhaps fearing she was using a power, but it became clear that Alex was ¡®just¡¯ playing.

    It was complete improvisation, though Daniel could pick out certain themes at times that had been adapted into the impromptu performance. It was moving, either way. Alex didn¡¯t play any rapid-paced sequence of notes designed to show off her technical skill, rather she reached for the hearts of these humans and kept the pace slow. The melody was sad, but not depressing. At times there were moments of hope that lifted the spirits, but not so much as to make Daniel forget his melancholy.

    Alex had always been so expressive, so honest about her true feelings. That had been a fault when she couldn¡¯t get over blaming him for their dad¡¯s disappearance, but now, as it was every time she played, she could stun with just two hands and four strings. The performance ended after only a couple of minutes, the yacht having closed to a quarter kilometer. The Bard was blinking away tears and held up a hand when Alex offered the instrument back. He wanted her to keep playing.

    His sister gestured towards the ship, and the three seemed to understand. She pointed with the violin bow to the flare gun, and the human who¡¯d first spoken to them nodded, gesturing with his hand at the archer to relax. With careful movement, Daniel bent to pick up the gun and turned away from the group, hiding his tears with the motion.

    If you knew Alex, if you knew why she played, it¡¯d be easy to tell what she¡¯d been thinking of in those moments. Dad should have sent her over, he thought as he raised the gun. Alex would¡¯ve made one hell of a Bard.

    The flare launched from the gun and over the water. The yacht was so close Daniel could make out Chris¡¯ face. He could tell exactly when it became visible as the man gaped, and then a moment later the yacht came to a complete stop from the more careful approach they¡¯d made. ¡°Alex, that was amazing.¡±

    ¡°It was nothing,¡± she said as she finally convinced the Bard to take his instrument back. ¡°Now let¡¯s go get Dad.¡±

 Interlude: Earth - Travelers

    Commander Marshall was a Pugilist, a class almost no one knew about. Every class had its evolutions, though this was only well documented in Craftsmen and Arcanists. It had been as much a surprise to him as those he was close to that upon reaching level 5, his Martialist class changed into what it was now. In hindsight he could see how he¡¯d trended towards this, having already forgone most weapons by level 3 once his powers made his fists supreme. He¡¯d awakened one that allowed him to use them as an intrinsic Focus, which put everything but the work of the best enchanters to shame.

    This strange region made all of that meaningless. His mana was actively suppressed, restricting even his innate features. To do this in such a wide area, to a degree that a level 5 mortal would be affected, had to be the work of the gods. Them, or the Crest. Even if they were still within the Octyrrum, Marshall feared they¡¯d been sent to some form of quarantined zone. Perhaps this was the cost of failure.

    The ship that had crash-landed had briefly given them hope, only for its crew to turn out to be as foreign to them as they were to this place. The three mortals and that¡­ thing appearing had also been a pointless development, regardless if they had working magic. Though if that stubborn Arcanist would just relinquish those items-

    ¡°Commander! We, uh, you¡¯ll want to see this.¡± Masika, the undivided Cleric, said through the door of his office in the Hunter¡¯s Guild. That Hero had to be close by as well. He was, without a doubt, the most dangerous individual on the island. The sword and shield he could summon, if only for a few moments before the items forced him to dispel the effect, could kill anyone or defend against anything here. They were a higher level than the Commander himself, and their magic still worked. Thankfully the stories that¡¯d passed around Eido about the dishonorable, nameless Gadriel were untrue. Otherwise, there might have already been an attempt on Marshall¡¯s life.

    He stood and walked carefully to the door. The attributes he normally kept suppressed outside of battle were forced back up to their maximum as he couldn¡¯t manipulate the mana in his body like normal. Step the wrong way and he could shatter the floor. The doorknob was slightly dented from where someone had surprised him just as he¡¯d opened it.

    Masika explained as they started moving. Gadriel was here as he¡¯d expected, but so was Assani, a Ranger. ¡°There¡¯s new people on the island, just came in. Assani ran ahead of the group that found them, but they¡¯re on their way. Like the others, they can¡¯t speak our language.¡±

    ¡°How many?¡±

    ¡°Five,¡± Assani replied sharply, taking over. ¡°Two of them came here on a much smaller craft that wrecked on the shore, nothing bigger than a cart. Good thing because if it¡¯s how we suspect, their main vessel would have run aground like that other one if they hadn¡¯t been warned. They used some kind of device to signal out, didn¡¯t feel like magic but I¡¯m pretty sure at least one is Blessed. Harvy gave her his violin on a whim and she made him cry with it. He puts her around level 3 or 4 based on skill alone, though if she¡¯s only a performer it would be 2. Doesn¡¯t seem like someone with high attributes.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s the first sign of a Blessed we¡¯ve seen here. Good. Is that vessel still sailable?¡±

    ¡°It seems like it, though we didn¡¯t go on in case it¡¯s corrupted like the other one. There is something strange, though. There¡¯s someone with them that looks exactly like the Bard. It¡¯s like she used a Mirror Image spell, except that¡¯d still be off because there are minor differences between them. Most of them are related, no chance they aren¡¯t, but those two are odd.¡±

    Marshall frowned at that, not quite getting the point. ¡°I¡¯ll have to see for myself. Are they not coming here?¡±

    ¡°They are, I just thought you¡¯d want to handle this before it got to the village.¡± Assani pointed towards the southern road that led from the city to where the land fell off into the ocean. ¡°Coming up that way.¡±

    ¡°Well, let¡¯s see if we can get an idea of where in the Octyrrum we are,¡± Marshall replied firmly, wondering if his penance was finally coming to an end.

    ¡­

    ¡°These were the roads he walked after coming down. Well, not these specifically, but the parts that didn¡¯t get taken here,¡± Daniel said as they were led by the Bard and the other human, while the archer had gone off ahead of them. Ami and his mother had been very wary after docking, though part of that was no doubt due to how the island had suddenly appeared. His sister was recording everything on her phone now, beginning to believe, while Kara and Chris remained tense.

    ¡°And all of this is really from some mountain valley?¡± Ami asked, getting a full 180 while she walked. The two guiding them noticed, one shrugging to the other. ¡°How did you send this place to the middle of an ocean? You¡¯d think it¡¯d end up near Everest or something.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t mention that!¡± Daniel whispered fiercely. ¡°I don¡¯t know how they¡¯d react if they knew I was the reason they¡¯re here.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll have to go back for the supplies,¡± he heard his mother say to Chris. ¡°I¡¯m not seeing any signs of treated water or other modern utilities. Even if these people have supernatural abilities, they still look biological like us. We¡¯re also potentially introducing novel pathogens to each other. Ideally, we should all be wearing masks.¡±

    ¡°Wait, we could get them sick?¡± Alex looked to the Bard, concerned.

    ¡°They could get us sick too. If all of this¡­¡± She paused and shook her head. ¡°If all of this is what it seems, we could be dealing with bacteria and viruses that evolved under different evolutionary pressures. Our antimicrobials may be more effective because they haven¡¯t needed to develop resistance, or what we¡¯re targeting might not be present and they¡¯ll be useless.¡±

    ¡°When I sent myself over, I didn¡¯t get sick. I, or, the other me, even had a power that could make diseases worse because of how it worked.¡± His mother¡¯s face got the same look of discomfort it had whenever he talked about what he¡¯d done, but no one had brought it up besides him. This might have finally broken the seal, but something else happened first.

    Ami clutched his arm, pointing with her other hand. ¡°That. Is that?¡±

    Daniel had to take a moment himself to gawk. He¡¯d seen one of these before, many in fact. Seeing one in person was entirely different from a screen. A new group has just become visible as they rounded a hill less than a hundred meters away. ¡°Avianoid, a Cleric. I can¡¯t tell if they¡¯re male or female but you¡¯ll know if they talk.¡± He was about to wave at the first true alien he¡¯d ever seen before he registered who was standing next to them. ¡°Oh my god, I know him. That¡¯s Gadriel!¡± How is he here?

    ¡°The hot one with the cape?¡± Daniel felt the grip on his arm tighten as the Hero spotted him in the crowd. Gadriel then turned to the one walking in the back wearing what looked to be monk robes, bulging muscle visible where the sleeveless shirt didn¡¯t cover the arms. That one nodded and Gadriel began to run forward. Chris moved to put himself in front of everyone else, handgun on his hip. The man looked intensely focused, calculating, but Daniel stopped him from doing anything drastic.

    ¡°It¡¯s ok, he recognizes me. He¡¯s one of the ones I met over there, I just, how is he here?¡± Oh fuck. Is Octyrrum-Daniel here too? ¡°Gadriel?¡± he greeted tentatively as the Hero stopped a short distance away. The Hero blinked at him again, and then said something. Unintelligbly. God damn it, but I guess that makes-

    Daniel!? The voice was in his head. In his head. Telepathy had been the only thing the Bunker hadn¡¯t picked up, so Daniel hadn¡¯t known exactly how it worked or what had been said with it for that matter. But now, there was a voice in his head. Not Gadriel¡¯s either.

    Is this Lograve? He hadn¡¯t ever communicated with his thoughts before, but there was a strange sense he¡¯d only felt once before when holding onto the shard that had sent a copy of him across worlds. Magic. It was magic!

    ¡­you¡¯re not him.

    I¡¯m the original, if that¡¯s what you mean.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Kara asked, no doubt seeing Daniel¡¯s shocked expression.

    ¡°Hold on, just-¡° How can I understand you?

    I¡¯m not sure, Lograve answered in a guarded tone. He was far from the familiar, sarcastic mage that his other self had interacted with. It doesn¡¯t work like this for the others.

    Others, what do you mean?

    One thing at a time. I¡¯m bringing two people into this little chat as a test. Try saying something.

    How are you here?

    The two groups had come to a standstill while the telepathic communication proceeded. When Daniel had first seen Gadriel he¡¯d been elated, but both the persistent language barrier and Lograve¡¯s standoffishness were concerning. This is Daniel? He appears too similar to be another, and yet different, like those two standing by him. The mental voice of Gadriel was largely similar to how he spoke, though now he could understand him.

    Daniel saw exactly what Lograve was doing and grimaced as a fourth mental voice said something incoherently. Damn, but it¡¯s to be expected. I want to link someone in your group to confirm a theory. Do you have a preference?

    ¡°Daniel, what¡¯s going on?¡± his mother asked.

    ¡°One of them can talk to me telepathically,¡± he said, feeling a little insane doing so. ¡°It¡¯s not working for everyone though. He wants to test it with someone else.¡±

    ¡°Is it dangerous?¡± Chris asked, but Ami held up a hand.

    ¡°Hell, this is all crazy. You can tell ¡®em I¡¯ll do it.¡±

    ¡°Ami, wait-¡°

    Testing, testing, Lograve¡¯s voice came over the Telepathic Network. Daniel saw Ami blink, and at the same time, Alex gasped. Can you understand me?

    What¡¯s happening? Alex asked. I didn¡¯t say to-

    Ah, unfortunate. It¡¯s limited to those with a mana tether. You must have one too.The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

    Wait, why did you bring both of my sisters into the network? Daniel asked as Alex and Ami exchanged a glance.

    There was a pause on the other end. I¡­ didn¡¯t. Curious. I¡¯ll take both out, don¡¯t worry.

    What is he saying? Ami asked, less taken aback. Everyone can hear me ri- She was cut off as the connection broke between them.

    Ok, Commander, truce. This isn¡¯t exactly what I was waiting for, but it gives us an opportunity. I¡¯ve known where we were from the start, I was just afraid you wouldn¡¯t believe me. This man is my proof.

    Daniel? I admit I¡¯m still confused, Gadriel thought.

    No one told him about me? From what he¡¯d seen Octyrrum-Daniel never had, but it was always possible another had leaked the secret. No one on the other side had been thrilled to learn about him, which probably explained why Lograve was acting how he was. He waited for a moment for a reply and then realized he¡¯d been shut out.

    ¡°They¡¯re talking,¡± Daniel said as everyone, even the two from the original three that found them, looked at him. ¡°I don¡¯t get everything that¡¯s going on, but I can understand the ones who know me. Well, the other me.¡±

    ¡°I would¡¯ve been more hesitant to help your Dad out if I knew this is what we were doing,¡± Despite saying this, Chris didn¡¯t seem as shocked as the rest of them. The guy was mostly eyeing the avianoid in the distance, which was an appropriate reaction for someone from Earth seeing a different race for the first time. Still, Daniel was going to pay close attention to Chris for now in case he got a sense of why his Mom had reacted the way she¡¯d done. Chris had been trustworthy and he¡¯d had multiple opportunities to stab them in the back so far. He could¡¯ve walked away with nine hundred and seventy two million dollars and disappeared before anyone found him. What could motivate someone to betray more than that?

    ¡°Why¡¯d you stick around anyway?¡± Ami asked, rubbing at her head. The telepathy hadn¡¯t been painful, but for someone not expecting it it could be disconcerting. He¡¯d at least had Octyrrum-Daniel¡¯s verbal descriptions to know what it would feel like.

    Chris chuckled for a moment and gestured from the avianoid to the weird architecture of Eido in front of them. ¡°Same reason you did, Ami. Worst case, I get a boat trip, and I¡¯m being paid to be here. Best case? Where else can you find something like this?¡±

    ¡­

    Let me make sure of something first. It is just the two of us, Lograve thought to Daniel as they stood collectively around the large hill. Is this Earth?

    Yeah. How are you here? Who else is here?

    We¡¯ll get to that. See the person walking around with his fists clenched and his sleeves torn off? He¡¯s the Commander from Eido and he¡¯s in charge, unfortunately. We are currently in a disagreement over, well, it¡¯s a long story. What I need to know is if there is any way you know of to return to the Octyrrum. I know you were hiding things from my Daniel. There was a way his mental voice twisted towards the end that distanced the two.

    Not that I know of.

    Then why did you come here? How did you come here?

    Because¡­ Daniel slumped into a seated position, not minding the dirt. The alien earth of another world. I needed to. I was asleep when whatever killed Hunter happened. I had an emergency option and I didn¡¯t use it fast enough. I blew the only chance I had to get my Dad back, and then I saw an avianoid¡¯s leg on the news that some shark had bitten off.

    Are there others looking for this place? Lograve asked, suddenly alarmed.

    If there are, they probably can¡¯t find it. There¡¯s some kind of illusion around it. We would have sailed right past it if Alex hadn¡¯t driven us straight onto the island.

    Oh, Crest, Lograve cursed abruptly, cutting him off. Look, I think I know what¡¯s about to happen. I¡¯d get in the way but it¡¯d just happen to me instead.

    Is my family in danger? Daniel asked quickly.

    Your family is fine. The Commander is a¡­ he¡¯s not a bad man. It¡¯s not him you need to worry about anyway. She is. The Arcanist was the only interested party he couldn¡¯t see, and while there was no pointing finger to indicate who Lograve meant, it was obvious. He just didn¡¯t see the reason for the warning.

    Running to the hill from the city was the most beautiful woman he¡¯d ever seen, even considering every other Bard the Bunker¡¯s systems had shown him. Her gait was flawless, as she hit the incline every step was made in time with the last. It took him a few moments to realize she was using Investiture of Song, which was odd. He knew that ability had a high mana cost, so why-

    A few people spoke up when she joined the gathering. Most were in the language of the Octyrrum, though Alex had caught on to what was happening. ¡°Someone else this copy of you knew?¡±

    ¡°Probably a closer friend than the other two, yeah.¡±

    ¡°Just a friend?¡± She didn¡¯t miss how his voice had shifted either.

    ¡°Yeah.¡± Evalyn brushed past those ahead and was standing in front of the two faster than he¡¯d thought. She was burning a ton of mana just for a speed boost. She asked him a question judging by the tone, but like always he couldn¡¯t understand. Uh, Lograve? he asked, the novelty of telepathy yet to wear off. Can you translate? The look on the Bard¡¯s face was unreadable.

    Alright, the Arcanist thought with some hesitation.

    And he¡¯ll understand me then? the voice of Evalyn asked in the group call, Daniel catching the tail end of her question.

    Yes. While I¡¯ll do my best to ignore it, I will remind you I can hear everything as the nexus of the network.

    Fine. You. Her eyes locked with Daniel and he was taken aback by the hardness there. You sent him over?

    Y-yeah, but- She¡¯d come forward and slapped him so fast he was on his back before the pain registered. Part of his cheek had torn and a small amount of blood was dripping down his jaw. When he looked back up Alex had taken a step toward the Bard, raising a fist, but she stopped as Evalyn¡¯s expression changed to profound sadness.

    I don¡¯t know if he¡¯s alive anymore. Lograve thinks so, but who knows? The last I saw, his heart was broken. He saw Hunter die right in front of him.

    If I hadn¡¯t done that, you¡¯d never have met him. He¡¯d never have existed! Daniel shouted back in his mind while pressing a hand to his cheek. Neither would Hunter. When I made that choice, we were the same person. He would have done the same thing in my shoes, because he did! You don¡¯t know how hard this has been for me.

    From the look of it, that¡¯s the first time you¡¯ve bled in a while, she answered dispassionately. Lograve said you looked like a warped mirror¡¯s reflection of our Daniel. I don¡¯t even see that resemblance. There it was again, ¡®our Daniel¡¯. He hadn¡¯t expected to find anyone the other Daniel had met on Eido. Dealing with strangers would have been risky, but in his desperation it¡¯d been worth it. Finding familiar people here should have been a godsend, but that was the catch. They weren¡¯t his friends.

    She shut me out, Lograve reported as Evalyn walked back to the Thormundz group. For what it¡¯s worth, it¡¯s just the three of us here. And¡­ and Tak. I don¡¯t know what happened to the others, other than Hunter. His mental voice grew sad as well. There¡¯s plenty we need to discuss, but right now the Commander wants me to host a conversation. I¡¯ll have to translate as well as link you. Right now, he thinks we¡¯re in a cursed part of the Octyrrum. Also, that the one currently holding a bandage to your face is a Bard. Apparently, she almost charmed one with just music. Do they both play?

    Ami doesn¡¯t, not really. Why?

    Something I noticed when I accidentally linked them with telepathy. Later. Keep Earth to yourself for now, I can¡¯t predict what he¡¯ll do if he learns the truth. I¡¯ll give you a few moments and then we¡¯ll start.

    ¡°Let me look at that!¡± His mother took the bandage from Alex and dabbed at the wound, using water from a bottle to wash it off. ¡°How hard did she hit you? Here, take this. I doubt I need to put you on anything, it¡¯s just a precaution.¡± She handed him two capsules and Daniel remembered what she¡¯d said about antibiotics here. ¡°You¡¯re sure we can trust these people?¡± she whispered while she looked closer at his injury. ¡°Chris has the gun. I don¡¯t like it, but we talked about it before leaving the boat. If we need to run-¡°

    ¡°It won¡¯t matter, they have magic.¡± Right up until the slap, he¡¯d had confidence leading him forward. Blind confidence, driven by thin hope. The view from the outside had made him think he was familiar with these people, like how someone could get too attached to a character on their favorite TV show. He didn¡¯t want to be here now. ¡°I¡¯m sorry I got us into this.¡±

    Still pressing a hand to his wound, his mother grabbed his back with her other arm and drew him in close. ¡°It¡¯s ok. This is right where we¡¯re meant to be.¡±

    ¡°How do you know?¡±

    She sighed and looked around, and Daniel could see she¡¯d finally reached the point where she couldn¡¯t keep the secret anymore. Still whispering, she said, ¡°I can¡¯t explain it any other way than that this man, Chris? We knew him, your father and I.¡±

    ¡°What!? But-¡°

    Kara moved her hand to cover his mouth. ¡°There was always something strange about him, but he was just a friend of a friend in college. Until he died.¡±

    I¡¯m sorry to cut whatever you¡¯re saying short, but the Commander is insisting we begin, Lograve told him at the worst possible time.

    Chris died?

    Sorry, what? He heard Lograve ask, and in the next moment Daniel cursed at himself for letting his internal thoughts leak into telepathy. He was completely unprepared for the fact that he had to divide his mind to block out what he didn¡¯t want to send.

    N-nothing. Daniel¡¯s head was spinning, trying to make sense of everything. Chris had lied to him. Either that or his mom had mistaken him for someone else. Was he a twin too, and never mentioned losing his brother because it was too painful? But that would be impossible, his mother wouldn¡¯t have come this far without checking herself and eliminating the rational answers. Still, how had they been college friends given the age difference? Wait, Daniel thought, hoping he was sectioning off his thoughts appropriately this time. Levels make people age slower. Thomas had a power that brought himself back after he died. Is, is he?

    From the other side of the hill, the monk-looking Commander struck his hand with his other fist creating a sound as loud as a thunderclap. Uh, he¡¯s getting impatient. I¡¯m adding Gadriel and the Commander to this Network. It might be best to keep Evalyn out for now.

    Feeling at the bandage on his face, Daniel gulped. Why do you need me? You don¡¯t want me telling him this is another world. Why link me into this?

    I need your voice in the background so he knows you¡¯re talking, Lograve explained pragmatically. And given our disagreement, the Commander is predisposed to mistrust me. Gadriel acts as a witness as he can also understand you. I¡¯m adding them now. Translating. ¡®Outsider. Is this the Seventh Realm, the land of Hourglass?¡¯

    No, Daniel answered simply, adding out loud, ¡°I¡¯m talking with them now. They can only translate mentally.¡± Ami was still filming, no one on the other side had figured that out yet. The other two nodded, staying close to Chris. The one who¡¯d potentially crossed over from the Octyrrum before he¡¯d ever been born.

    ¡®Where are we?¡¯ Again, translating. I doubt I need to say that every time. There was another short section of Octyrrum-speak after that from the Commander that Lograve didn¡¯t translate.

    Daniel realized that while Lograve had told him to keep Earth a secret, he hadn¡¯t given him anything else to go on for what to say. Far away from the Thormundz.

    Hold. I apologize but I must clarify. This is Daniel, is it not? Gadriel¡¯s mental voice entered the picture. I don¡¯t understand what¡¯s going on. Lograve and the Commander began speaking, Daniel only hearing one side of the conversation.

    No, he¡¯s not- The Daniel Gadriel knew appeared following the catastrophe that sent you here. I believe that a copy of him was sent over. How am I supposed to know, all I can explain are the facts as I see them! There were several- No, I am not joking! Shouldn¡¯t it make sense that the person who swapped places with your city would come from where you were sent?

    There is a second Daniel? Gadriel¡¯s eyes flicked from Alex to Ami. I see. Is this somehow related to your project?

    We¡¯re getting off topic. Commander, I assure you I only had suspicions up until this point but this man¡¯s presence confirms them. Uh, next question. ¡®Is there a nearby settlement? What of the-¡® Oh. Lograve seemed reluctant as he finished the question. ¡®What of the people already here? Did you know about them?¡¯

    No? The nearest inhabited islands are a week away. Who is he talking about?

    Something I¡¯ll need your help with later. Commander, suffice it to say I believe a magical link between ourselves and the Daniel that came to the Thormundz is responsible for our powers and those magical items you so dearly want to get your fists on still remaining active. This individual must be linked to the other in some way, and that has to be the reason we can understand him. Perhaps it is a bond that was unnaturally warped, or magic of the Spoke gone awry, but this is a part of what I was looking for to make the way home.

    Daniel had to unpack a lot from what Lograve just said. The Commander did too as he paced for a moment. He sighed eventually.

    Ok, we¡¯ve reached an agreement, Lograve said after a period of silence, Daniel realizing he¡¯d been cut out of another conversation. They want more answers but the Commander¡¯s not going to do anything stupid, today at least. In the meantime, I need some things from you.

    What? Daniel asked, a little askance.

    First, your language. Then, your¡­ what is it called? Ah, yes, your internet. All of it.

 Chapter 193: Pinions Point

    Daniel ducked under the swipe, grinning wildly. He wouldn¡¯t have expected to be pressed this hard, but mortals, mortals who weren¡¯t overconfident coddled weaklings, always posed a greater threat than monsters. They had more powers and experience than monsters who didn¡¯t survive more than one encounter with Blessed on average. Despite his current opponent having just reached level 2, she was putting up a better fight. Actually-

    ¡°Don¡¯t pull your attacks,¡± Daniel said as he performed a short Jump back, sure he hadn¡¯t moved in time to avoid a hit. ¡°I can heal.¡±

    The spearwoman paused, the grip on her weapon not relaxing. ¡°You move well enough, but you only react. I can surprise you too easily with a power. You¡¯re too used to monsters.¡±

    ¡°Maybe.¡± Daniel¡¯s opinion of Janice was surprisingly unchanged between his two forms. The different perspectives could lead to different impressions, though in her case there was a sense of practicality mixed with wallflowerism that led to a generally bland, if positive, picture. This sparring match was at his prompting after the encounter with Kahvin had made him worry about duels with people who wouldn¡¯t leave it at just one punch. ¡°You don¡¯t fight much of either.¡±

    ¡°I train. Helps me advance.¡± Janice shrugged, and Daniel had to admit that was true. She was like Khiat in a way, skilled with her weapons beyond his ability. Whereas the dusker had natural talent, the Martialist¡¯s was honed after years of following her class¡¯ alternative method to power. Similar to Gadriel, if without the rabid drive to clear out the countryside of monsters. ¡°You want to see a power?¡±

    ¡°You want to hit me with it?¡± Daniel answered snarkily, putting Flash Jaunt away as he prepared to dodge manually. That got a smile from his opponent and she shot forward, though not toward him. He¡¯d seen this ability before, Chain Strike. It allowed the Martialist to make a series of committed attacks, though she was only forced to complete the one she was currently in before deciding on continuing or not.

    Janice flashed around the courtyard in a series of linear motions, speartip out in front of her. He¡¯d thought he was onto her when a sudden shift brought her towards his right rear, but when he stepped aside and prepared to counter she¡¯d triggered another attack with a turn made in less than a second. The back end of her spear struck him in the chin and sent him reeling. ¡°Now who¡¯s holding back?¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t rely on just my powers,¡± Daniel grunted, rubbing at his fur and the bruises slowly forming and being healed at the same time. ¡°Damn it. You could¡¯ve killed me there.¡±

    ¡°Probably not the best move for me long term. You really fought a level 5 Berserker to a draw?¡±

    ¡°It wasn¡¯t a real fight.¡± Daniel waved that away, grumbling. ¡°You¡¯re sure you don¡¯t want to hunt with us?¡±

    Janice looked up and then shook her head. ¡°Not while you¡¯re flying. I¡¯m not the best in the air. Trying that move off the ground doesn¡¯t end well.¡±

    ¡°Makes sense.¡± He took in a deep breath, and decided it was time. The fur of his cat form shed, turning to dust just like his tail did, starting from the tip.

    ¡°Want to try it now?¡± Janice asked, looking with some interest as he shifted.

    ¡°Only if I want to get beaten up again. Cat mode is for close combat. I¡¯d go for it if you wanted to walk a few minutes that way before we get started.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d almost take you up on that, but I should get back to my patrol.¡± She started walking away before performing a tight turn, scanning the sky and the buildings around the courtyard. ¡°I still can¡¯t believe you bought this place.¡±

    ¡°Everyone needs bags of holding.¡± Although if I keep doing this, I am going to crash the market. Daniel spent a second retagging Janice before taking a steady breath. He was still a little tired from the spar despite shifting forms.

    It was almost a week since his ¡®amicable departure¡¯ from Aurus, and following the Commander¡¯s advice seemed to be the way to avoid major trouble. He wouldn¡¯t be content to stay here forever or let the matter go unsettled, but it was also important to keep sight on the bigger picture. Get stronger, find my friends, explore the ruins, and get Hunter back. At least his friend, and who he and Cloak thought was the fallen god of the Astral, had followed them to Pinion¡¯s Point.

    The large town and almost city was built on a wide stretch of floating land northwest of Aurus, toward both Aughal and Kallical. In normal times it would see a lot of land travel from the region, but everything was locked down due to the changes in the world. It had a few of the ballista that were scattered across the capitol, though most of its defense had relied on the buffer its large population gave it against monster spawns. They hadn¡¯t had a direct incident yet like Aurus had had, but there had been several instances of monster attacks. Before the Collapse, this would have only happened if the hunters had all but ignored their region¡¯s population.

    Now, there was a standing guard at all times. Janice was one such individual, whereas Wingcraft went out and tried to stop threats from getting too close. They weren¡¯t the only team in town or the most powerful, but they did well enough. With the evacuation of part of the town, mandated or otherwise, there was a small housing surplus the wealthy could exploit. Having claimed the bounty from Aughal he¡¯d been owed, as well as offering enchanting in trade, Daniel had been able to outright buy a small compound on an elevated section near the road to Aurus.

    It was only three medium-sized buildings about the same footprint as a regular house around a courtyard, but it meant Khiat could sleep uninterrupted and everyone as a whole got more space. Each house also had an interior courtyard giving them a rectangular donut appearance from above that left little interior space shielded from the sun, but that was what blackout curtains were for. There was privacy either way, which was personally important to Daniel as he¡¯d become the most popular person in town.

    The Commander hadn¡¯t been kidding when she¡¯d mentioned keeping people off of him before. Once the town had figured out he was an Artificer and, more importantly, where he lived, there¡¯d been various requests and offers for his time. Some were pretty tempting too, but living a life halfway between hunting and crafting left him with little in his schedule for commissions. There was that, and the fact that he¡¯d lost access to the material markets in Aurus. Until he could trade there again he could only enchant with what he salvaged from kills.

    There was one major exception to that in the power Daniel had gained from his advancements from the whitespring hunt. When he¡¯d asked, Cloak had said it all but confirmed Daniel could gain any power known to the Octyrrum.

    <hr>

    Your Intelligence is now 26! You have gained Ability: Flash Craft.

    -

    Flash Craft (Ability, Intelligence, Spell, Domain: Enchanting, Incantation, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to rapidly construct an Item based on Formulae known to you for a moderate Mana cost. This power also requires utterance of Incantation: Flash Craft, and cannot be used if another item you have created through this power still exists. Items created through this power persist, and do not require materials to create. You may only use formulae that you can make yourself. This is a Magical Ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression.This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

    <hr>

    Lograve had mentioned abilities like this existed as a contrast to his class. In fact, he¡¯d somehow acquired the signature power of Star Clerics despite neither worshiping the god nor being a Cleric. The ability created an item instantly without any possibility of failure, though there were downsides. He couldn¡¯t attach any affixes and the item didn¡¯t benefit from material bonuses, though Invest Affix was a workaround in the first case. The mana cost meant he couldn¡¯t use it as a reliable way to generate ammunition, but he¡¯d found another use for it.

    ¡°Never thought I¡¯d have to turn to this to own real estate,¡± Daniel muttered to himself as he walked into his house.

    ¡­

    Later that night, Daniel prowled through the streets in his feline form. It was safer this way even though he got looks, since most assumed he was channeling a combat power on patrol or that he was weird. The people hunting him hadn¡¯t yet figured out he could change his appearance since whole body transmutation wasn¡¯t common to the Artificer class.

    As for why he was doing this? Fun and training, mostly. He¡¯d noticed in Aughal that Hunter¡¯s senses could detect crimes as well as monsters and the thought of being some kind of vigilante had briefly been appealing. In Beast Mode, Keen Senses made his smell and hearing almost as good as Hunter¡¯s had been. That had turned into a somewhat embarrassing mistake as he tuned his senses into the nighttime activities of the town and found less crime and more private moments.

    He had that power turned off now, and was instead attempting to hone his senses without the enhancement, as well as get around without being noticed. The color of the fur armor from the wolves blended well into the night, better than his own. Even with the divide between his two forms, it was still him. He wouldn¡¯t benefit from the powers he had now while human, but the experience would cross over. It was why he¡¯d gotten slightly better at dodging despite not having the better instincts of his current body. There wouldn¡¯t be a repeat of the ambush in Aughal if he had anything to say about it, and improving stealth would make it easier for him to sneak up on kills. So far, no one had seen him-

    ¡°Hey.¡± Daniel jumped, and almost Jumped, as someone spoke behind him. ¡°You know they¡¯re changing the rules. You¡¯re a Rogue, right?¡±

    He turned and saw an avianoid that had practically materialized behind him in the alley, like how Cloak appeared. ¡°That¡¯s a new one,¡± he sighed.

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Nothing.¡± The woman didn¡¯t seem hostile and as he flicked on Keen Senses, he didn¡¯t smell anything on her that belonged to him. Even with the enhanced senses he could hardly hear her as she shifted. ¡°What rules?¡±

    ¡°About theft. It¡¯s coming down in a few days. That¡¯s a weird disguise power by the way.¡± She brushed at one of his arms with a hand and stiffened when the fur moved. ¡°Wait, what?¡±

    ¡°How long have you been following me?¡± Daniel asked instead of answering, frustrated that someone had yet again gotten the drop on him. At least he got the feeling this was someone on his level. The Rogue class was predisposed to stealth and his current ¡®class¡¯ was¡­ well, he wasn¡¯t sure. Aside from being awesome at murder.

    ¡°Haven¡¯t, just noticed you.¡± The Rogue was still puzzled by his appearance, though he could barely make out her eyes. She was wearing the typical cowled cloak favored by both her class and Rangers. Leather armor in general predominated Threst given heavier material stifled flight, though he¡¯d seen some Knights wearing variations of reinforced wooden breastplates and leggings. The arms were always free, though in this Rogue¡¯s case she had light sleeves covering hers that would be pushed up if she Grew Wings.

    ¡°Ok.¡± He wasn¡¯t feeling too hostile towards this person as it became clear she¡¯d neither stalked nor stolen from him. She gave off about an eighth of a Tlara¡¯s worth of a vibe and presented as a few years younger than the real deal, at least from what he could hear and see. ¡°You part of a team?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡± She didn¡¯t say which one, and still hadn¡¯t introduced herself. Which was fair all things considered. ¡°What are you, Totem Warrior? You don¡¯t advance this way.¡±

    I don¡¯t seem to advance most ways either, Daniel mentally complained. It hadn¡¯t escaped him that he¡¯d earned nothing from the laborious process of making the blast bow. Cloak had mentioned the Collapse tilted experience gain dramatically towards hunting and that other methods would grow weaker, though he wouldn¡¯t say why. The other methods would still work to some degree, but it had been a while since he¡¯d gotten anything except from hunting. ¡°It¡¯s good practice. Had one of you backstab me before.¡±

    She took a step back. ¡°Not me. Crest, those people are the worst. Gives the whole class a bad name. Plus Dakalos would-¡° she abruptly stopped talking. ¡°Nevermind. Look, it¡¯s like how some Bards turn into nestwreckers. I don¡¯t ever steal anything, I just-.¡± She sighed with a bit of defeatism. ¡°At least the new way will be better.¡±

    ¡°What are they doing?¡± he asked, and the Rogue relaxed slightly from the defensive posture she¡¯d taken.

    ¡°Seeding marks in villages. People with stashes and safehouses we can break into. Have to turn the stuff back in but that doesn¡¯t affect advancing, and you won¡¯t have innocent people¡¯s pockets emptied.¡± A bronze coin appeared from nowhere and started weaving between her fingers. ¡°Ever think about how weird it is? I don¡¯t know why the Octyrrum would make people want to do this.¡±

    ¡°Assassins too,¡± Daniel muttered, and the Rogue¡¯s head bobbed.

    ¡°Exactly. Shit, what about Tyrants? You know Aughal has one now? Feels like everything¡¯s breaking down.¡±

    It is. Daniel knew why Tyrants existed now when taken in the context of what he¡¯d learned from Cloak: they were a defense mechanism. Something to reign in a region whose population was beginning to get unruly or uncontrolled. The god hadn¡¯t touched how Spokes interacted with the population, but from what Casia had done he could guess it was a potential weakness. Rogues and Assassins, though. Strange. ¡°Rogues can keep people on edge.¡±

    ¡°Keep people on edge¡¯?¡± the Rogue scoffed. ¡°Right. I guess the Octyrrum just works in mysterious ways.¡±

    ¡°Heh.¡± He thought for just a moment before holding out a hand. ¡°Daniel.¡± It¡¯ll be fun when she finds out who the Artificer is. She didn¡¯t know now, judging by how the Rogue didn¡¯t react immediately. After a few moments, she moved a hand behind her head and brought her hood back to reveal a face of gray feathers and blue eyes.

    ¡°Shuni.¡± She gestured to his armor. ¡°You¡¯re on that Artificer¡¯s team, right?¡±

    So she doesn¡¯t know. ¡°Yeah. As far as I¡¯ve heard he¡¯s not taking orders now. He kept us waiting for weeks back in Aurus enchanting and if he keeps it up now he¡¯s going to miss out on hunting.¡±

    ¡°An Artificer who fights? That¡¯s a first. Well, damn.¡± She gave him a cocky, beaked grin. ¡°You won¡¯t mind if I ask again next time we see each other?¡±

    ¡°Next time?¡± Daniel asked, mirroring her playfulness.

    ¡°Someone¡¯s got to keep you on edge.¡± She flipped back, briefly touched the wall, and then hopped up to one of the nearby roofs. Shuni hadn¡¯t Grown Wings, and yet gravity seemed to affect her at about half strength after the second jump. ¡°I think a new cloak would be nice,¡± she said, more to herself once on the rooftop. Daniel caught the words as he still had Keen Senses on.

    ¡°Alright, but if I see you first, you have to pay for it.¡± He only saw the gleam in her eyes before the Rogue disappeared. Daniel deactivated Keen Senses after her departing footsteps faded. When he was sure he was alone in the alleyway, he shifted back into his human form and quickly took off his leather armor. ¡°Never said I couldn¡¯t cheat,¡± he said to himself brightly. He decided he liked the Rogue, despite only talking with her for a few minutes.

    She¡¯s better than the last one at least. Now out of his disguise, or in one depending on how you looked at it, he started walking back to his house. He could fly, the wings were folded up on his back and he was still wearing the boots, but that could be a little too obvious in case Shuni was watching the skies. It was only a couple hours past dusk and there were people in the streets, though the foot traffic was far less than Aughal without a species that only came out at night.

    He found himself in the proto-Divine Quarter of Pinion¡¯s Point. He hadn¡¯t heard about this until coming here, but there was a classification system the kingdom used for population centers. Every fully fledged city had to have a Divine Quarter, even if it wasn¡¯t as big as the region¡¯s capital. He didn¡¯t know if this affected how the monster suppression from the Spokes worked or not, but Threst was trying to develop this place either way.

    The churches here were still being finished, nestled within the rest of the settlement rather than built off to the side like in Aurus. It had the same layout as they all did, one he hadn¡¯t thought about too deeply. Knowing what he did know about how gods could have ¡®opposites¡¯, he saw how Hammer¡¯s church was placed directly facing Star¡¯s. The other two obvious pairings held true, with Hourglass¡¯ church facing empty space.

    The Astral church. They completely scraped that out of society. The way the Divine Quarter was set up, along with what he knew about the history of the world, affirmed something he¡¯d suspected about the Octyrrum. If the Astral god had fallen in the first Collapse, wouldn¡¯t he have had his own Realm? Why had the Accounts of Artruz claimed Hourglass had held the center as he did now?

    To Daniel, it made more sense that the world would have been parted out like the space he was now standing in, each god having a Realm on slices of the world with the center as neutral territory. It was always possible the historical accounts were junk, but there was another possibility. This wasn¡¯t the second Collapse. He could always ask Cloak whether his idea was right or not, but if he was, this would fall under the ¡®blow up a region to keep quiet¡¯ category.

    He was about to leave when something struck him about the Divine Quarter. His other thoughts had distracted him up until this point, but when he took the layout and the structures in as a whole, there was a resonance in his memory. A strong one. Should have thought about this before. Or not, since the hole would have been filled before I could access it. Steeling himself for what was to come, Daniel threw caution to the wind and started flying back to his compound before the lead to the past was lost.

 Chapter 194: Greeting the Guests

    Daniel was given a few seconds to process that his continued living depended utterly on a vote, with one god already hating him, before the world blurred and he found himself in a new space. How Hammer was moving him without teleportation or spaghettification he wasn¡¯t sure, but it was only barely less comfortable than the latter.

    The space around him was the shape of an octagon and must have filled the space made by the exterior hallway ring. The term megastructure completely applied. With Quick Mind on board, Daniel still struggled to get a sense of the exact size. From his position in the center, he would guess it was two or three kilometers to the edges yet only a quarter of one at most in height.

    Sections of the octagon were split off like the Realms of the Octyrrum, eight instead of the outer six with a space one hundred meters wide in the center distinguished from them. It only contained a floor made of hexagons, the small panels split into separately colored wedges each with a symbol of the known gods. The disparity between the eight-sided building and the six-sided panels in the center drew Daniel¡¯s eye, but now was not the time for questions.

    The outer areas were set as temples, with one grand throne for someone like the giant Hammer to sit at. Various alters, structures, and banners filled the space between that and the center. There was enough room in that middle area for an army to both train and pray in. To extend the metaphor and consider what this must look like from the outside, this megastructure is what the theoretical eugenic catholic church would use to invade and conquer other worlds.

    Background concerns over death by divine democracy aside, Daniel was reminded of the message that had been shown when Hunter awakened. It had implied eight gods, as had the world¡¯s name when he¡¯d first heard it so long ago. Wouldn¡¯t you know it, but what Hammer had spent who knows how long writing into reality supported that theory too. There were a few assumptions he could make based on this structure, aside from the fact that magic did make what little he remembered of engineering from his world obsolete.

    First? The gods of the Octyrrum had dedicated pairs. Hammer had mentioned that Star was his opposite, and they were placed accordingly in the octagon. The same with Hand and Scythe, Cloak and Torch, and Hourglass and the last mystery god. Only their symbols were present, but in the case of the eighth¡¯s, Daniel found he couldn¡¯t fully remember what it looked like despite looking hard at it. It was like the knowledge was being blocked from entering his brain, and that¡¯s when he realized that was exactly what was happening.

    Either way, this mimicked but did not mirror the current structure of the Octyrrum. The center was empty here, whereas Hourglass ruled the hub of the modern-day world. Did the Collapse happen because this eighth god died and threw things out of balance? But that doesn¡¯t make sense, Artruz invaded Hourglass¡¯ Realm in the center after that. Was the entire story a lie? He had very little information on the event that had created the Crest, though one thing that mortal knowledge was clear on was that the gods had been partially responsible. Given that Torch could so easily obscure knowledge, it was strange to have this fact spread without any intervention.

    Lastly? Daniel did not want to be here. Nothing Hammer had said thus far implied he¡¯d be able to leave. He was so in over his head he was half the size of the people this massive complex was built for. At best he was being treated like a child with some potentially terminal illness. If he had a choice, he¡¯d ask Hammer to take the Spoke out of him and send him to Aughal right now so he could get on with his life and let the gods handle the apocalypse, but it seemed that wasn¡¯t in the cards today.

    No, instead someone his size appeared in the very center of the massive construct. She was already prostrate, dressed in immaculate robes that glowed with a soft light. ¡°On behalf of my patron Lady, I greet you, Hammer, master of transmutation.¡±

    Hammer nodded solemnly in response and gestured upwards. ¡°Rise, servant of Torch. A fine servant indeed. Level 7 Proxy? Long has the journey been that has led you to this honor.¡±

    ¡°I count a life in service to the protection of knowledge spent well,¡± the Proxy replied, coming to a standing position but keeping her head bowed. At no point did she look at Daniel, despite him standing beside Hammer. ¡°Would it please the divine for Torch¡¯s will to enter this vessel?¡±

    ¡°Of course.¡± The Proxy stood up straight and kept standing up, rising to a height about equal to Hammer¡¯s. That wasn¡¯t the only change. The woman, who previously had had the beginnings of facial lines you could see in the late-40s, aged into crone territory. Hair whitened, skin grew taught, and the back hunched slightly which did nothing for the difference between her and Daniel. She looked older than Hammer, who was trying to play up the whole old wise guy look.

    The robes shifted in kind with their mistress, though they weren¡¯t the only thing casting off light anymore. Torch¡¯s eyes glowed as soft as the cotton she wore, and that light was all that was visible from the sockets. Suddenly, Hammer¡¯s odd eyes seemed more mundane. ¡°We meet once again,¡± Torch spoke, and there was a sense that what she said was made into reality just as much as how Hammer had crafted this space. Like her very words could establish truth. ¡°There is much we must discuss. Without this one.¡±

    ¡­

    Daniel spent the rest of what was becoming a pretty depressing night inside his rooms, which were now plural. Hammer had ninja¡¯d an entire apartment to the bedroom, making a kitchen, library, and lounge area as well. Whether it was the influence of Torch or it had just been meant for show, the bookshelves of said library were empty. At least the pantry wasn¡¯t, it would have been bad if Hammer had assumed he didn¡¯t need to eat.

    Tasked only with assuring his survival by not being a nuisance, Daniel investigated these spaces more as he tried to stop himself from checking on Hunter¡¯s body. He knew the bag had a slight preservative effect, but given all that had happened it felt like it could be torn out of his hands at any moment. The complete lack of agency and isolation began to get to him, especially when he realized he couldn¡¯t reach Bridge Space anymore.

    The loop was there. Hammer had repaired it as promised, and yet activating it wasted mana to accomplish nothing. Whether it was Hammer repairing it poorly or the loop breaking in the first place Daniel didn¡¯t know, but he might have tried just existing there if it got him away from the gods.

    One small fact he did learn that would have been revolutionary elsewhere was that his mana was slowly recharging. It was minor, but what mana he had used to recreate his Focus was now restored somehow. Daniel was at the point that he barely cared about free magic and chalked it up to his Spoke bleeding the armageddon levels of power he¡¯d manifested earlier through a weakened wall.

    It was when he considered jumping out of one of the windows that Daniel gave himself an ultimatum. If the next god that shows up is another crusty old guy I have to play pretend with, I¡¯m just telling Hammer everything. His reasoning wasn¡¯t entirely self-destructive. For one, Earth-Daniel¡¯s actions and words had hinted at some kind of complex plan in place, ostentatiously to help bring his Dad back to Earth. Granted that¡¯s what he¡¯d deduced himself, but Earth-Daniel hadn¡¯t liked that he had done that. Even if he¡¯d gone against the script by finding that place so early, if the undertaking was as convoluted as it seemed it should have more contingencies than just a copy of him waiting by a button.

    It had to be said there wasn¡¯t an absence of nihilism in the plan either. Hunter was dead, and everything Daniel had built in the world was either regions away or farther. Hell, he had no idea what had happened to most of his team. Given the world was ending and things like the Illustrious slave host existed, would being unmade in a thought be the worst outcome?

    Why do I think Hammer would react negatively? Would it be worse to keep lying to him by omission? Daniel did not want to go down that path, but the only good things about where he was right now were the bedsheets and the bread. There was no sign that his survival would lead to anything other than ending up as a pet to Hammer. In the words of Hunter, he wasn¡¯t a pet.

    There was also the matter of his advancement. Despite everything that had happened on the Eye, Daniel had a measly four potential. Perhaps using his Spoke powers had invalidated whatever he would have gained from Casia, and to be fair they hadn¡¯t beaten Mark either. The most impressive thing Daniel had done was defuse the slaughter outside of the Sun Spire, and he guessed that¡¯s where most of the potential had come from. Without a notification history or access to Bridge Space, he couldn¡¯t be sure.Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

    Intelligence tempted him as always with the promises of hitting level 3, but Daniel didn¡¯t feel it was time, especially since he¡¯d be one point short of 30. Endurance was a strong contender for at least some love since it had given him Regenerative Craft last time, pushing his healing rate to broken levels of restoration when he combined it with Regeneration. Assigning two points to that, he also gave two points to wisdom in the hopes he¡¯d get something to survive all of the insanity going on.

    <hr>

    Your Endurance is now 24! You have gained Feature: Defensive Craft.

    -

    Your Wisdom is now 22 You have gained Ability: Track Merchandise.

    -

    Defensive Craft (Feature, Endurance, Domain: Restoration, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to improve the durability and resistance of Formulae: Armor you can craft. This effect scales with your endurance, and the Attribute your crafting feature is awakened from to a lesser degree. The effect also scales in inversely with the disparity between your level and the level of the craft, to a certain threshold.

    -

    Track Merchandise (Ability, Widsom, Domain: Knowledge, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to locate Items you have personally crafted through the expenditure of a minor amount of mana. This effect can be prevented if the item is possessed by another with the chance for success scaling with your wisdom, and inversely scaling with the target¡¯s Charisma and the length of time the item has been out of your direct possession. This is a Magical Ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression.

    <hr>

    The two new powers were interesting, a universal defensive buff and something with very abusable mechanics. There was nothing there that would help him with gods though, and Daniel sighed as he resigned himself to the fact that there¡¯d be no magic bullet to get him out of this mess. He turned off the phone and sank back into the sheets, both dreading and anticipating the moment he¡¯d tell Hammer the truth.

    ¡­

    So it was with a strange kind of resolve that Daniel stood on the central plate of the megastructure. More accurately, the divine pavilion as Hammer mentioned in passing as he brought Daniel back the next morning. Whatever discussions he¡¯d had with Torch were over now, the goddess sitting distantly on her throne. Despite the distance and direction, it still felt like she was looking over his shoulder.

    ¡°Star¡¯s Proxy is approaching,¡± Hammer told Daniel, with a note of warning in his voice. The god hadn¡¯t given Daniel any indication about how the private conversation had gone, but now there was a note of warning. ¡°I would advise you to remain respectful. He and I are oppositely aligned, as I mentioned. In addition, he is unusual. The most unusual of all of us, I would say, though Scythe makes that assessment difficult.¡±

    I¡¯m from Earth, Daniel thought, mentally priming the confession like he was loading a gun. Who he was pointing it at, he wasn¡¯t sure. I¡¯m not your son and I don¡¯t want to be here. Please, just let me go back to Aughal. I¡¯ll take sand over this.

    The next Proxy appeared like the other one had, instantly. He was pretty sure Hammer had included some kind of array or teleportation circle in the design to allow this, as while the transmutation domain could give a workaround for teleportation, he didn¡¯t know how Torch¡¯s Proxy could have pulled it off. Star, representing the enchantment domain, could probably get here under their power, but Daniel didn¡¯t see any kind of device on the Proxy younger than the Torch¡¯s had been.

    Whereas Torch¡¯s Proxy had glowing robes, Star¡¯s Proxy had on something approaching a modern jacket and khaki¡¯s. It was primarily black, though patterning in a slightly fainter shade wove across at random. Though, the more Daniel looked, the more it gave his nascent seventh sense a nudge. Something to do with mana flow? he thought and then recalled what the shell of the Origin Beast had looked like.

    ¡°Star,¡± Hammer greeted with clear disappointment. ¡°A level 1 Proxy?¡±

    The poor Proxy, who Daniel had to remember was an individual who was essentially getting taken over to channel their gods, shuddered. ¡°This, this one apologizes for his failings. Please, do not think ill of my patron master.¡±

    Oh great, Daniel thought, pulling the hammer back on the loaded statement in his mind. If this Proxy is so terrified his boss must be a jerk.

    ¡°I would have hoped for more, given the occasion. Still, you may manifest him.¡± Hammer didn¡¯t allow the poor Proxy to stand first.

    ¡°T-thank you.¡± The body of the Proxy changed as the other¡¯s had. To Daniel¡¯s surprise, they only grew a meter instead of doubling in size. The appearance of the Proxy didn¡¯t change either, though the fear was gone and replaced by a wide smile.

    ¡°Hammer! It¡¯s so good to see you bro!¡± Daniel¡¯s mental confession jammed as the god spoke like he was passing out beers while reminding people to stay hydrated. ¡°Guess it¡¯s that time again. Hey Torch!¡± He waved broadly in the general direction of the distant god, who looked in dire need of a newspaper to grumpily raise in front of her face.

    ¡°Star,¡± Hammer repeated, his frown unchanging despite his nature. ¡°A level 1 Proxy?¡±

    ¡°What? He really wanted to come.¡± Star saw the look in Hammer¡¯s eyes and tilted his head down a few degrees in half-exaggerated shame. ¡°Sorry, but all we need to do is talk here, right? I don¡¯t need to send my highest leveled Proxy here just to hang with you guys.¡± Across the massive space, Torch¡¯s hands twitched as if she was rustling a newspaper. Daniel¡¯s eyes must have betrayed the instant liking he took to the god as Star noticed him. ¡°Hammer, who¡¯s this?¡± Star did a double take and knelt down, the god next to him looking on with disappointment as the knee touched the hexagons. ¡°No, no way. He¡¯s an Artificer? Hammer, I¡¯m touched. Of course I¡¯ll help train him.¡±

    ¡°Star, that is my child.¡± The air grew heavier as Star¡¯s relatively normal eyes widened, and he stepped away. He must have been under a higher subjective gravity than Daniel, because while the Artificer could just remain standing, the Proxy the god inhabited struggled to get up.

    ¡°Sorry!¡± Star apologized, not exactly subservient but in recognition of an unintentional insult. ¡°But how-¡°

    ¡°Incarnate.¡± The accusation came from the back of the room and felt like a slap to the back of Daniel¡¯s head. Star¡¯s reacted by squinting at Daniel, before pulling out a set of goggles with multi-colored lenses from the air as Hammer watched.

    ¡°If your Proxy¡¯s senses were not as weak, Star, you would have known,¡± Hammer intoned.

    ¡°Hammer, you can¡¯t blame me for missing the fact that the Artificer in the room also has a Spoke,¡± Star said in self-defense, before taking the goggles off. His words had also grown more contemplative. ¡°There¡¯s more there too. Hammer.¡± Star turned to the nearby god as he said this. ¡°You did it!¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± Hammer said simply, though his frown lessened.

    ¡°Well, Crest dude, I¡¯ll still give him a few tips if you want me to. We both know Hourglass isn¡¯t getting here for at least a few more days. There¡¯s time.¡±

    Hammer, as well as Daniel, was torn by the offer. On the Artificer¡¯s side his understanding of how the gods in this world behaved had been rocked to the core. In a good way, though he didn¡¯t think he was closer to avoiding either petification or reality erasure. Enchanting tips from the god of enchanting didn¡¯t sound so bad.

    ¡°Star, our work is the only thing more important to me in this world than my children,¡± Hammer said, Daniel getting that slight freeze in his veins whenever the bearded god got super possessive.

    ¡°I know, I know. Come on, Hammer, you know I¡¯m a fun guy. He¡¯ll have a great time.¡±

    Hammer sighed, this exhalation not accompanied by any random manifestations in reality. ¡°It would do well for my child to excel in his class. Very well, Star. Do not forget to attend when our brethren arrive,¡± he added with a note of warning. ¡°Hand will be here this afternoon.¡±

    Hand!? Daniel¡¯s mind jumped at that and the weight on his hip grew heavier. The thought that he might get Hunter back in only a few hours made this all seem bearable, especially because there was at least one god who wasn¡¯t a jerk. If Hand was anything like Star, he doubted he¡¯d have to do more than ask.

    The god of enchanting and possibly fraternity turned and squatted slightly to get on Daniel¡¯s height. ¡°So Artificer bro, want to learn enchanting from the master?¡±

 Chapter 195: Scouting Run

    The next day, Daniel and the rest of Wingcraft gathered between the three houses in preparation for their next hunt. It was early evening, and raining lightly. The weather was odd in that it gave Khiat no cover from the sun. The clouds producing the rain were actually below the island, the precipitation falling through the ground limit and back down towards them. This phenomenon only occurred in the first half hour or so of a storm as the moisture from it would eventually reform the clouds above. An infinite waterfall would never form from this like it had in Aurus because there was mortal magic in that, but it was a similar principle.

    As far as he was concerned, it just meant the first leg of the journey would be slightly more miserable. The changing of seasons made the skies of Threst more chilly, making him glad most of the team¡¯s armor was fur-based. Khare wasn¡¯t exactly able to bundle up, but they also didn¡¯t seem too bothered by the temperature thus far.

    Along with the five prepared to depart, Janice and Spinner were there to see them off. The housing in Aurus hadn¡¯t been suitable to let the spider creature out but there was space here. She¡¯d spread a loose network of webs that provided excellent home security, even catching an intruder who he suspected was Shuni last night. Whoever it was had run off when Spinner sent a shock to their position and woke up Tlara. The draconic roar alerted everyone else.

    Leaving the monster active and behind would have been a bad idea given Tlara¡¯s limits on her pouches, but they¡¯d discovered that the spider didn¡¯t count towards that total. Willow wasn¡¯t sure why exactly, but Daniel knew it had to be due to their bond as the enspirited monster had been part of Tlara¡¯s roster back in the Thormundz.

    As far as the powers Willow got from Spirit Master, there wasn¡¯t anything to explain it either. She¡¯d first awakened Spirit Vault, which allowed her to store spirits and gain additional powers from them. They were essentially her Focus, granting her functions based on the spirit. The one she had now was aligned with the light, shield, and seeking archetypes according to Cloak, which she was currently using to make a projected shield.

    It was an interesting combination of both intrinsic and non-intrinsic Foci mechanics with a serious drawback: Willow had to have at least one spirit for her powers to work. They hadn¡¯t come across another on their hunts so far, and Daniel regretted that she hadn¡¯t had a chance to inspect the fused whitesprings in case they had collectively had one. He¡¯d also been unable to scan it due to flipping into Beast Mode halfway through the battle.

    Today, they were trying to seek out another ¡®undefined¡¯ monster to claim a spirit, and Daniel was looking forward to testing out a power. Not one of the two he¡¯d just re-discovered from the lost week, but one of the very first he¡¯d ever acquired. They¡¯d have to get some distance from Pinion¡¯s Point first, and had decided to go up to the sky limit to do so. They¡¯d checked out the ground limit already near Diver¡¯s Rest but hadn¡¯t crossed over, so it was a good excuse to visit the higher altitudes.

    ¡°You¡¯re sure Tlara¡¯s good?¡± he asked as a last minute check to Willow. They¡¯d yet to find someone with Telepathy and while the Beastmaster hadn¡¯t done anything too concerning, it was worth remembering she was the strongest on the team. Gaining control of a monster that could lock down powers only made her more dangerous. The iridescent whitespring was currently coiled around the neck of her wyvern, which did enough to label her as nonhostile to mortals if they didn¡¯t already notice that the skyshock wyvern wasn¡¯t native to Threst.

    ¡°Her soul is fine. You can just talk to her yourself.¡± Willow looked up and asked, ¡°Tlara, you¡¯re good to hunt today?¡±

    ¡°And you¡¯re not going to try to eat anyone?¡± Daniel added. The wyvern turned an eye to glare at him and then nodded, the whitespring around her neck sticking close to her. He didn¡¯t understand the full mechanics involved with her or her powers since she¡¯d refused to share them with him in detail back when she could talk. It did appear she could swap monsters so long as they were in physical contact, so wearing it like a scarf effectively gave Tlara a readily accessible extra life.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know if I¡¯ll ever get used to seeing that,¡± Janice commented dryly. ¡°And Spinner¡­ We¡¯ll keep this place secure while you¡¯re away. It¡¯d make my life easier if you didn¡¯t invite Rogues to break in, though.¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t think she¡¯d try and sneak in while I was sleeping! It was supposed to be a fun cat and mouse kind of thing.¡±

    ¡°Sure,¡± she dragged out the word. ¡°Will you be back by tomorrow?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s the plan. Two days out at most if we see something good a little bit away, we¡¯ll let you know.¡± Daniel nodded at the sending stone on Janice¡¯s hip. It had been an expensive purchase. He had needed to outright buy it given he¡¯d failed to make one despite his improvements. Getting one by itself was 20 viridian. That, in addition to a run on what potions were available had taken a sizable chunk out of the money he wasn¡¯t keeping for his lost friends. It¡¯d almost not been worth it until Daniel realized Flash Craft would allow them to get by with just one as he could create one that was ¡®tuned¡¯ Janice¡¯s. He had it active by default, just in case.

    ¡°And don¡¯t worry, we¡¯ve got enough food,¡± Khiat added, though she¡¯d be the one most concerned about packing light.

    ¡°I see. Well, good hunting. I¡¯d say I envied you, but not in this storm.¡± Janice waved them off as, one by one, they took to the sky.

    ¡­

    The skies of Threst were frequently broken up by small land masses, though the average of these were no bigger than the courtyard of the compound. Stretches of floating land like what Pinion¡¯s Point was built on were rarer, not counting the land bridges that connected Aurus to the other regions. What land-bound monsters did spawn in this region didn¡¯t appear here, though that didn¡¯t make them safe. Flying monsters didn¡¯t fly all of the time, and these small floating islets made for a perfect rest stop for them.

    Wingcraft was adopting that strategy while Daniel prepared his ability. It took an hour to charge and he needed to be motionless while he doing so. While he¡¯d improved enough in his seventh sense through enchanting to use the power, he was also inconsistent with it and had gone through the trouble of hovering a bag of holding over his head with a fur funnel to channel water into it. It looked ridiculous, but it kept the rain off of him.

    What Daniel was attempting was to use one of his oft-neglected Totem Warrior powers: Attune to Nature. Daniel could feel the mana welling inside of him as he continued to prepare it. The process required some amount of control, not as much as enchanting but if you couldn¡¯t feel the mana inside of you, you¡¯d never be able to pull off the ability. He¡¯d kept himself human for this part since he knew from Hunter using it that if you didn¡¯t mark what you sensed, you¡¯d have to rely on memory. With an entire extra dimension to work with, he¡¯d need the help.

    Tlara was flying around the island in a fit of boredom when he¡¯d finished the preparations. Unlike when he¡¯d rode along with Hunter¡¯s attempt at this, Daniel didn¡¯t get overwhelmed enough to be knocked unconscious by sensory overload. He did feel his consciousness expand in one of the most mentally altering experiences he¡¯d had in this world, counting what Beast Mode and the oath bond did to him.This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.

    He was entirely vulnerable during the process as his body stayed in one place while his mind expanded out in every direction. It was like he was watching the results of a sonar sweep while also being the pulse, the outgoing tide of his senses registering creatures en masse that he did his best to tag with Identify Creature. Pinion¡¯s Point wasn¡¯t in the area of the effect this high up, and as uninhabited islands didn¡¯t count, the only thing that broke the pulse was running into the sky limit. Daniel wasn¡¯t sure how far he¡¯d gone exactly, but it was far enough to see something extremely concerning.

    ¡°That¡¯s¡­ not good,¡± he reported after returning to himself and taking stock of all the auras. There were thousands, including all the base animals who the ability caught, but a fair number of monsters as well. The closest to them was a group of five level 1s half a kilometer away, though these were land-based and occupying an island under them. They weren¡¯t the issue.

    He counted twelve undefined auras of various sizes, usually accompanied by other monsters. That was still scarce all things considered, though there was one he was particularly concerned about. Without explaining anything to his team first, Daniel withdrew the sending stone he¡¯d temporarily crafted. ¡°Janice?¡±

    There was a brief pause as the spearwoman had to withdraw the stone. They worked like walkie-talkies otherwise, up to and including the possibility of interference if too many people used the same signal. ¡°Daniel. Is there a problem?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m seeing a large undefined monster aura two kilometers north of Pinion¡¯s Point, all the way up next to the sky limit, with about a hundred level 1s around it. They¡¯re a mix of known monsters.¡± He marked the aura for Khare¡¯s sake in case the gestalt got the wrong idea from the tone of his voice. They weren¡¯t in any immediate danger, although- ¡°I can¡¯t be sure, but it looks like it¡¯s moving towards the city while maintaining altitude. Town, whatever.¡±

    ¡°Are they attacking the town?¡± Khiat asked in a worried tone, no doubt thinking of when her own home had been attacked.

    Daniel muted the stone. ¡°I¡¯m not sure, but don¡¯t worry. We¡¯re not going to fight that many alone. Best case they can throw a level 3 team at that horde to trash it.¡±

    ¡°Acknowledged, hold on. I¡¯m heading for the command post. Five minutes.¡± After hearing that, Daniel put the stone in a pocket and carefully fastened it rather than put it in one of his bags, since it couldn¡¯t be heard from there.

    ¡°Willow, how many hunting teams are in Pinion¡¯s Point?¡±

    The Spirit Master looked briefly put on the spot by the question. ¡°If I had to guess, a dozen? There¡¯s more Blessed than that but not all of them can fly. I¡¯ve talked to a few people but not everyone.¡±

    ¡°Gossip.¡± Willow gave Khare a slightly hurt look at that, but Daniel was smiling.

    ¡°Yeah, I miss Thomas too.¡± Daniel observed the rest of the auras he¡¯d marked, but only the large cluster he¡¯d reported was making consistent movement toward the town. The swarm around it had at least a dozen different monster variants, from young ludegrunds and whitesprings to those he hadn¡¯t encountered yet. More were being actively produced, emerging from the larger undefined monster, which was an ominous sign. ¡°It¡¯s like a bombing run. Whatever that is is staying at high altitude. I wonder if it¡¯ll just dump that swarm and move on until it makes a new one.¡±

    ¡°Monsters don¡¯t normally mix like that,¡± Khiat commented worriedly.

    ¡°They did chasing Tlara.¡± Willow scratched at her head as she thought. ¡°But that could have just been because they sensed her in Spinner and ignored each other. Are we saying that larger monster is controlling them?¡±

    ¡°It kind of makes sense if they¡¯re coming from it.¡± Daniel sucked in a breath as a terrible thought occurred to him. Seeing the auras in detail this far out was hard, so he had to concentrate. When he did, he saw a pattern emerge. Not every monster around the undefined one was moving directly toward Pinion¡¯s Point. On occasion, one would swoop towards an animal not smart or fast enough to get out of the way. The aura from that poor creature wouldn¡¯t fade until it got close to the undefined monster, and soon after a new labeled monster would appear from it. ¡°Oh fuck. Janice!¡±

    Someone else responded. ¡°This is Captain Esket Marrow of Raven¡¯s Call, acting representative of the Hunter¡¯s Guild in Pinion¡¯s Point. You have a monster sighting to report?¡±

    ¡°Monster horde. There is a¡­ an extremely dangerous monster variant heading for the town. I don¡¯t know what it is exactly, but it¡¯s controlling hundreds of level 1 monsters and using them to drag anything living close to it so it can make more monsters.¡±

    ¡°¡­say again?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s going to grab people to turn into monsters!¡± Daniel shouted, alarming his team as well as whoever was on the other side of the stone. He couldn¡¯t explain everything quickly, but the fact that the undefined monster was sticking to the sky limit besides theoretically being unable to make use of it told him what its general plan was.

    The Captain sighed, the inflection making it through the transmission. ¡°We¡¯ve been careful, the monster population isn¡¯t high enough to endanger the town even if there are that many. I¡¯m contacting Aurus to get a Fate on this, in the meantime do not engage the horde. The last thing we need is greenwings leading it back.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s actively heading toward you, we need to-¡°

    ¡°Daniel, he gave me back the stone,¡± Janice cut over him. ¡°The captain just said they¡¯re following protocol before leaving.¡±

    ¡°Those protocols were put in place before the Collapse! Janice, it¡¯s going to unleash the monster horde, have it snatch up people, and then make them dive for the ground limit while hovering above the town. We don¡¯t have the people to rescue everyone if it does that with everything it¡¯s got!¡± He didn¡¯t know this for sure, but it was about the worst thing that could happen and Murphy¡¯s Law wasn¡¯t something you ignored with these stakes. ¡°I¡¯m putting it at about twenty minutes from town, thirty at best if it doesn¡¯t unleash the horde until it¡¯s right over. How long do you think it¡¯s going to take to get a Fate to confirm what I just said?¡±

    ¡°Considering he didn¡¯t ask you where it was?¡± Janice asked rhetorically. ¡°I¡¯ll alert who I can find. At least the town¡¯s ballista are always on stand-by. Give me notice if you see the attack start. What are you going to do?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll head back. It¡¯s the best we can do without backup.¡±

    ¡°I could try hitting it from far away,¡± Khiat offered. ¡°It would be something!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s too risky for just us. These new monsters have powers we haven¡¯t seen before and I can¡¯t tell how strong the main one is. Plus, if we have to run from the horde we¡¯d just be bringing it to the town prematurely. That¡¯s why the captain wants us to hold back.¡± Daniel replaced the stone in its pouch and carefully pulled out a scroll. ¡°I didn¡¯t want to have to use this so soon.¡±

    ¡°That captain¡¯s not going to like you going over his head,¡± Willow warned, though she didn¡¯t sound discouraging. ¡°You¡¯re sure about this?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s not moving away and that¡¯s an insane number of monsters.¡± He unfurled the paper, watching as the rain that still fell beaded off of it without ruining the page. The markings on it made his eyes hurt, but he could just make out the patterns underneath and understand what he needed to do. It was technically too high level of a scroll for him to use as the limit was equal to half his intelligence, but the Commander¡¯s various auxiliary powers did more than just improve the number of charges the scroll had.

    The process for activating the item went quickly, and as he grew closer he could feel the mana moving within him. This was a one-way only spell, though that hopefully wouldn¡¯t matter. As he spoke, magic suffused his voice like an incantation. ¡°Monster horde inbound to Pinion¡¯s Point, 2 kilometers north and high. Suspect leading monster can trigger monster spawning near it.¡± The magic of the spell was beginning to wear out and he knew he only had a few words left. ¡°Captain following protocol, will be too late, damn it!¡± He considered another charge but had to trust Zolyra could figure that out. Unfortunately, she couldn¡¯t contact him back, though Silora could with Farspeak as long as they acted fast enough.

    Khare prodded him with a vine, having floated while still in their upside down flight dome. ¡°Move?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, we should have been already.¡± Daniel kicked off the ground, taking in the surroundings as he did. There didn¡¯t seem to be any other monsters joining the assault. In fact, a few groups were moving away from the horde¡¯s advance. Monsters not part of a set group would fight each other, but there was no good way to abuse that since the presence of mortals would aggro¡­ ¡°Oh no.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Willow asked.

    Within his mind, a pressure started to nudge him. ¡°I just had an idea.¡±

 Chapter 196: Flying Solo

    The speed given by the winged boots didn¡¯t make Daniel the fastest thing in the sky, but level 1 monsters were by and large slower than him. The incoming monster horde was close enough to the town to make it worth what he was attempting, considering the Kahvin levels of incompetence that captain was displaying.

    It was insane, potentially fatal, and Daniel was doing this alone while the rest of his team returned, but it could make a difference. Even if the undefined monster just unleashed its horde without trying to kidnap people to convert, that was still too much to risk. He was banking on two assumptions: first that the undefined monster couldn¡¯t control those it hadn¡¯t spawned, and second that its own spawn were still subject to his powers despite its control.

    He wouldn¡¯t have done it if not for that voice. That pressure. His oath. He had Flash Jaunt and all the sky in the world to fall away from the horde. He needed power, and thought of how much he could potentially advance if this worked. To get Hunter back, he needed to be strong. This plan would work, would make him stronger, and he couldn¡¯t summon the will to resist given he truly believed he could escape if the worst happened.

    Daniel, I have successfully located you and¡­ there was a pause in the voice that suddenly spoke in his mind, and it grew more tense afterward. Are you aware monsters are chasing you!?

    ¡°Very much, Silora,¡± Daniel replied out into the air. His voice wasn¡¯t being carried to the Fate, however with her viewing him it made for roundabout long-distance communication.

    What? I can barely hear you. Gods, you have monsters chasing you! Where¡¯s the rest of your team? The rush of air turned louder as another wind blade came after him from a sunbreak falcon. He¡¯d thought it would have some kind of light or fire-based attack, but so far it¡¯d just chased after him and tried to hit with slashes of air that felt like solid blades.

    He was running with Hunter¡¯s Evasiveness and Flash Jaunt, which had allowed him to avoid most of the hits. He¡¯d been attracting the attention of any level 1 monster he could path to while on the way down by firing on them from a distance. There were dozens now, all focused on him but unable to fully catch up. Normally this would be a difficult struggle that might require him to make full use of both his health pools, considering how many he¡¯d grabbed, but he was hoping he wouldn¡¯t have to touch them.

    ¡°It¡¯s already halfway to the town Silora, what¡¯s happening there?¡± he asked instead. What he was attempting wouldn¡¯t solve the problem by itself, but it would buy time if it worked.

    They¡¯re making us search the entire region for other attacks. Some of the Fates were quite upset at being brought out of what they were doing, but-

    ¡°Silora!¡±

    This isn¡¯t the only one. There are large groups of monsters moving toward Aurus and other population centers, though yours is the closest to reaching one. That little Tyrant friend of yours is making me contact every team near Pinion¡¯s Point to get them to return for its defense. The haughtiness in her voice faded a little as she continued. I¡¯m afraid you¡¯re on your own. The Commander and this ¡®Apex Flight¡¯ are going after individual threats. The swarms near Aurus are so large they¡¯ll need time to kill them all even if it will be easy. How are there so many monsters?

    It¡¯s the Origin Beast, Daniel thought. Its physical form was still waking, though a fraction of its mind had already demonstrated the ability to influence monsters. He wouldn¡¯t be surprised if Aughal was facing a similar surprise attack. ¡°Keep gathering people! I¡¯m going back after this.¡±

    After what!? He didn¡¯t answer. Adrenaline was surging through him as he did his best to continue evading. There weren¡¯t any more monsters to pull on his path, he just had to make it to the switch over.

    Daniel had moved up through the sky limit after aggroing every level 1 monster he¡¯d marked that he could reach on the way to the monster horde. They¡¯d followed as he hoped, and now he was flying face up, monitoring the monsters and the massive cloud of red kilometers above him. He¡¯d appear near the fringe of the horde, away from the large undefined monster commanding from the back, and deliver his payload.

    There was no changing the decision to try and hold off the attack at Pinion¡¯s Point, and it might even be the correct one. Daniel wasn¡¯t some great tactician, he just didn¡¯t want this horde to threaten the townsfolk. If the mortals weren¡¯t going to fight it before it was too late, he could at least try and cause some chaos to buy more time to fortify.

    This is crazy, Daniel thought to himself as he dipped toward the shimmering barrier of the ground limit. But I can do it. I have to do it. He was counting on his movement being fast enough to escape before anything hit him. The horde was close enough that he could fall towards Pinion¡¯s Point and rejoin the defense while leaving the monsters he was bringing behind.

    At the last moment, he replaced the blast bow into his bag of holding and readied the feature that was key to this plan working, one he hadn¡¯t thought about in a while despite how life-changing it had been. It had been so long he¡¯d had to read its description again just to make sure the plan could work.

    <hr>

    Natural Affinity (Feature, Wisdom, Level: 1):

    You possess the Power to passively calm or Charm Monsters of the Type: Beast within a short range. Unless threatened, beasts of a level equal to or lower than this feature will not be hostile towards you. Beasts of a level lower than this feature will be charmed. This feature does not function while you are in the presence of sentient creatures who do not also possess this feature.

    Natural Affinity: Level 2: Extend this benefit to allies for a moderate Mana cost each. This is a Designation effect that lasts one hour.

    <hr>

    The limit of only affecting beasts wasn¡¯t an issue due to the monster horde¡¯s mixed nature. Essentially, Daniel was going to fly by the horde while doing his best not to aggro the ones his power would affect. It wouldn¡¯t charm anything as he¡¯d figured out earlier that applying the bonus to a friend didn¡¯t make the level of the effect increase. That it could only charm level 0 monsters and calm level 1s had made it mostly useless for hunting until now. If he was right, calming the beasts in the horde would allow them to retain their hostility towards unaligned monsters as long as there were no other mortals in their presence. If the undefined monster could shield its entire horde from one power, then, well¡­ It''s going to work. Don¡¯t doubt yourself. Become stronger.

    The transition between the limits didn¡¯t feel like Flash Jaunt. It was instantaneous, and Daniel also didn¡¯t feel like he was passing through any medium on the way. There was also suddenly a huge cluster of monsters below him. None were individually larger than he was, at least among the level 1s.

    The undefined monster glided behind the majority of the horde, wings locked in an extended position. Its appearance wasn¡¯t completely bird-like, though it had that general outline. Instead of feathers, it had exposed, lumpy flesh that gave the impression of hills and valleys along the thick wings. From this distance, Quick Mind put it at around sixty meters wide and twenty long. He had no inclination to get closer and verify that estimate.

    Now came the hard part. Daniel wasn¡¯t sure about the exact radius of Natural Affinity as Hunter had been the only creature it had worked on, and the best the ringcat had said about its effect was that it had worked when he was ¡®close¡¯. This wouldn¡¯t be something to hit the whole horde with, only enough to assure what did try to attack him would swerve off as he started a fight.

    The level 1s he¡¯d baited appeared above him without any sign other than the noise from their movement, but it was already so loud around Daniel he¡¯d be hard pressed to hear anything other than the screams of the wind and monsters. In the last moment, he decided to let his temporary sending stone crumble to dust and Flash Crafted a shield using the slot. Construct Shield may have also worked, but he had no material to work with.

    Only the slightest rumble of the incantation reached him, and in the next moment he was guiding himself toward the edge of the horde while blocking another wind attack. The level 1s didn¡¯t have much that could threaten him aside from their numbers, but as he had hoped, the auras of the beast type among them turned gray as they approached and broke off their attack run from below. About seventy percent of the horde were beasts and all those nearby were affected, the rest remaining hostile to him. The non-biological monsters would still target him, but the others?

    Chaos erupted around him, and he twisted his head back to see the small flock he¡¯d brought get briefly overwhelmed by the horde redirecting toward them. It was working. This strategy would have been difficult to pull off elsewhere, but he¡¯d managed to get them fighting each other. The non-beasts and those he¡¯d ¡®attacked¡¯ on the way here held him as a priority target, but they now had to fight through the level 1s trying to bring them to the undefined monster.This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    With the pressure of those chasing him relieved, Daniel did his best to avoid attacks from those Natural Affinity didn¡¯t work on. It was impossible to escape fully unscathed, and the pain from each hit that landed fed a little more into his desperation to get away. What he¡¯d survived had toughened him up, to say nothing of what he was like in cat mode, but the stakes here were higher than even against the hulk stomper in Aughal. He didn¡¯t want to count on Unyielding Tenacity to save him again.

    At the same time, Daniel had to focus on solely defending himself. This would all be for nothing if attacking the non-beasts in the horde broke Natural Affinity on the beasts. It had sounded so simple in his head when he¡¯d thought of the idea, dragging monsters behind him to fight the horde. His team had tried to talk him out of it, but he¡¯d survived worse. Hadn¡¯t he?

    A young ludegrund rammed him, Daniel only just able to twist and blunt most of the force behind the attack as he reappeared from a Flash Jaunt. It worked, but evading this way robbed his momentum. Daniel quickly realized escape wouldn¡¯t be as easy as he¡¯d thought. He¡¯d had to break out of the initial steep dive both because of the attacks and because the horde was forming a wall below him. He could attempt to free fall and Flash Jaunt through them, but if he misjudged it and slammed into a group that would likely knock him out. Daniel started to feel a chill as the bond¡¯s constant reassurance that this would work grew dimmer. Neither of them had accounted for something.

    That big bastard is directing them like a Beastmaster, he thought. It was another sign of increased coordination and strategy coming from empowered monsters. Dismayed, Daniel concluded that they could screen him from escaping below them to Pinion¡¯s Point regardless of how many uses of Flash Jaunt he could squeeze from his mana pool. Worse, the horde leader was wafting its way through the pack to get closer to him. I have to go back up through the sky limit. Worst case, I hope the ones staying to fight the other monsters don¡¯t notice me attacking the ones that follow. At the very least part of the plan had worked, whatever instructions the horde leader was able to give unable to override his calming power.

    Daniel began flying upwards, but before he could reach his target, the horde leader used one of its abilities. A young mirrorbeak cutter, only able to sustain invisibility for half a second if that, was trying to claw at him with its sharp back talons when its chest exploded. At first he¡¯d feared another mortal had engaged, ruining what he¡¯d done. He saw too late what had really happened and what was about to happen to him.

    When the monstrosity of flesh roughly shaped into a huge bird had reached past the center of its horde, it had shot out part of its mass toward the closest level 1, spearing it and causing another burst of flesh toward the next to form a red chain. Whereas the level 1s that followed it were formidable in quantity, this attack held the true terrible strength of the horde leader. When he saw spears of melded tissue and bone easily penetrate the monsters, his error in judgment became fully realized.

    This horde leader was far more powerful than he¡¯d expected. Even he had fallen to assumptions of the old world order, knowing that the person he was now could have survived against the lightning dragon if only by escaping and evading. He¡¯d also underestimated, or perhaps misunderstood its intelligence. If it was strong enough to contest the town directly, why would it hover near the sky limit instead of joining the battle where its minions could more quickly return victims they¡¯d seized?

    It¡¯s not here to die, Daniel thought as he Flash Jaunted away from the tendril that had come after him from the mirrorbeak cutter. The maneuver saved him, but it was costly and he didn¡¯t have enough mana to reach the sky limit while in the invulnerable state. This isn¡¯t a siege where it takes and goes after more. This is just a raid.

    The monster was hoping to snatch what it could and run, perhaps sacrificing part of its horde in its escape. The level 4s in the town would be enough to challenge it, but only if they could do so without abandoning the townsfolk. Daniel didn¡¯t fully understand how monster spawning worked, but if his earlier observations were anything to judge by, living things turned into monsters ended up one level higher. This horde being level 1 was primarily due to the leader prioritizing vacuuming up the lesser wild animals in the lead up to this assault. Fighting the best in the area would be a risk for it, but if forced, also a potential source for high level converts. Rather than go to that trouble, it had decided to target regular mortals instead.

    The horde leader regarded him now, the monster having two eyes on each side and a fifth nestled under its twisted maw to watch the sky below. They all swiveled toward him as he Flash Jaunted away from another attempt to catch him. All of its minions, even the gray auras, turned to face him.

    Daniel was breathing hard, furiously debating whether he should activate Beast Mode or save it. It would help with the rising dread, but he¡¯d yet to take any meaningful injury. At the same time, could he seriously be expected to fight this and win? The horde was all around him, some of it clipping into the sky limit to circle off his escape. He was about 100 meters away from that, and the horde leader was growing closer. It had been maneuvering him into this pocket ever since he¡¯d first appeared.

    Moment of Clarity activated as yet another chain of flesh bounced through the horde, coming for him. Too far for anyone to help. I can¡¯t count on Silora watching and warning people, and my team¡¯s still in Pinion¡¯s Point. I have to kill it. That¡¯s the only way. Kill it and get stronger. He doubted the horde leader¡¯s death would automatically kill them all, but it should make them lose coordination. Without that, he could easily outmaneuver level 1s and get to safety. The ability helped him clear some of the fear closing in on him, but the sight of his target didn¡¯t inspire confidence.

    It was like a well put together flesh golem still somehow able to fly despite how heavy it must be. As he looked closer at the wings, he could now see that the pits he¡¯d noticed earlier in the flesh were moving slightly, especially at the upper edges. It gave him a horrifying impression of a piranha plant, especially because the gaps could easily fit a dusker.

    The body between the wings was roughly bird-shaped, but there were writhing limbs growing out of it at random places that swung out and grasped at the air. Those were what it was firing to start a chain. Then there was the maw itself, surrounded by the five eyes. There was no beak but instead another, larger pit filled with various teeth no smaller than his arm. Clacki would have died in seconds if he¡¯d been dragged into this instead of the acidic one of the fused whitesprings and Daniel wouldn¡¯t fare much better.

    When the moment ended, Daniel immediately went for his blast bow and pulled back on the bolt. He¡¯d only managed to do so before the next attack came, and he bitterly Flash Jaunted away leaving more mana behind him. He had about a third left.

    When he came out the other side, Daniel aimed for the head of the horde leader as he desperately sent shot after shot, doing his best to pick times when there was a relative opening in the horde to do so.

    Every bullet still hit at least one inferior monster, but the penetrative power of his weapon and the size of his enemy meant most still connected. By the time the seventh round was in the receiver, Daniel was gasping for breath as blood seeped from a few deep wounds. One of the horde leader¡¯s attacks had managed to hit him in his stomach, though he¡¯d been able to cut himself free with Claw Strike. The fact that that part of the chain had come from a level 1 didn¡¯t seem to matter at all when it came to durability. The incidental damage from other various attacks from the horde was stacking up too, despite there having been nothing to suppress his Regeneration. Even heightened, it couldn¡¯t keep up.

    He was running ragged and ready to activate Beast Mode, but paused as he saw something in the nearing horde leader¡¯s face. It was pushing out the ammunition he¡¯d hit it with. Daniel snapped off the last shot but didn¡¯t wait for the results of his attack before he shifted, stowing the blast bow and taking out fire claws. Fearless quieted the white noise of panic in his mind, but despite the new perspective he knew the situation was grim.

    Strangely, he didn¡¯t get a sense from Defiant Rage giving him its extra bonus even though this monster was stronger than him. He still knew it would be more challenging than the hulk, and that was ignoring the gnats flying around him.

    He had to go for the head. That was always the answer when fighting a monster larger than you, at least when you needed a quick kill. Unfortunately his earlier attacks hadn¡¯t exposed anything that looked vulnerable, and the missing flesh of the monster was already being filled in by surrounding tissue. It was less fast healing and more the horde leader moving its own body to repair the gap.

    That made him reconsider, though if this was at all tied to natural healing his fire damage should hurt it. Shame I can¡¯t scan any of the horde. I need more damage types. It was too late for that thought, though if he¡¯d tried anything earlier he¡¯d have likely dropped his Focus. No, it was time to kill.

    He landed on the front of the horde leader, claws dripping from the minions he¡¯d slashed on the way. The rage was building, and he didn¡¯t suppress it as much as he would normally. He needed his physical attributes higher. Endurance to live, dexterity to avoid the fast limbs that shot across the body to hit him, and strength to cut through. He had to win. He had to grow stronger.

    He was distantly thankful for his efforts to make these claws as the monster¡¯s flesh continued to prove mutable. What he didn¡¯t tear away completely could reform back into its original shape, although the areas burned by the enhanced bone claws seemed truly dead. Without them this would have been a nightmare of a fight.

    It was already difficult enough as it was. More injuries accumulated as both the horde and the leader¡¯s self defense piled into him. Ferocious Healing¡¯s bonus was enough to even it out considering he was almost continually slashing, but he felt like he was taking a chisel to a mountain.

    He must have subconsciously swapped from Flash Jaunt to Lion Charge at some point, as Daniel found himself unleashing the charged attack at a section of the horde leader that another flesh tendril was coming from. Those were the main threat. Each limb was like a missile that could either be fired by itself or bounced through members of the horde. In both cases, detaching it from the horde leader nullified the attack.

    He felt savage pride when the blast countered the oncoming attack. It was then that the horde leader showed him it hadn¡¯t even begun to fight. A burst of mana issued from the creature underneath him, and Daniel immediately grew light-headed. It was attempting to incapacitate him, and he gave as much as he could into the rage to cling on. If he was thinking more clearly, he¡¯d see why that was the worst thing he could do.

    The second attack hit harder, both because his will had been weakened by the first, and also due to the rage siphoning his mental defenses to feed into his physical attributes. With fading consciousness came a return to lucidity. Daniel realized it had been waiting for him to ramp up enough to be felled by its hidden ability. If it had needed more, he might have been able to get away with some last ditch effort, especially because the horde around him was breaking away. They¡¯d made it above Pinion¡¯s Point.

    I didn¡¯t kill that many, he blankly thought as he was picked up by the monster¡¯s limbs and hauled to a depression in one of the wings. The attack¡¯s started. A dome began to appear above him to seal him into the space. It¡¯s going to-

    A burst of fury picked him back off his feet. This thing was just like Hammer. Just like him! A memory of pain, soul-rending and all destroying, came to him without any context. He didn¡¯t need any. Daniel picked himself up, ready to leap out and tear the enemy in half no matter how large it was.

    Flesh warped beneath him and rose to cover his body before he could move the dregs of mana within, lashing him to the floor and pulling him to his knees. He fought, but his body still felt like a limb that had fallen asleep. Daniel was helpless as he watched the dome above him close.

 Chapter 197: Ancient Malevolence

    The true strength of the monster that trapped Daniel revealed itself as it continued to bind him despite fierce resistance. Whatever mental attack it had used was shrugged off, but it didn¡¯t matter now.

    He could feel the concentrated mana worming its way through him, preventing him from using powers. It didn¡¯t falsely replenish his stores like the whitespring had, instead it was like someone was shoving needles into all of his veins at once and was trying to reshape his vasculature that way. It was strange, he¡¯d never known you could feel pain through the seventh sense.

    He wasn¡¯t afraid of what the monster was trying to do to him. From before, he knew the mana loop around his heart would prevent an induced monster spawn from affecting him. No, it was being crushed by the wall of flesh currently surrounding him that he was wary of. That or suffocation if the monster kept him trapped here. Could he somehow survive long enough for dawn to reset his mana?

    He couldn¡¯t help but let out a grunt of pain as the horde leader continued trying to use its fell power on him. It was good he was in this form because human Daniel would have been overwhelmed by what the monster was trying to do.

    Instead, most of what he felt was impotent rage fed by the impossible memory of pain. He didn¡¯t know what it was, other than a feeling that Hammer had grievously wounded him at a point he had yet to remember. Despite recovering that echo of a memory, he didn¡¯t feel a sense of deja vu and couldn¡¯t concentrate to follow it even if he did.

    This, this was bad. He was under no illusion that death was probable and that he had fucked up massively. The thought of buzzing past the horde and dropping monsters on it to save people had been too tempting, too possible based on what he¡¯d known for the bond to ignore. He wasn¡¯t a Hero, but Daniel, at least in his human form, had felt the need to act quickly to save lives. Were he to do it again, he¡¯d have just gone back to town, or taken Khiat up on her offer to try and snipe it.

    Play dead, he decided, anger fading. This was about buying time now, either for dawn or for help to come. Could Silora find him here? If the horde leader just thought it needed more time to turn him, instead of him being resistant to the effect, it wouldn¡¯t mulch him.

    The pain, pressure, and feeling of his body moving made it difficult to stay still. Small changes were manifesting that he couldn¡¯t see, but as soon as the mana of the horde leader found purchase somewhere a stream would connect to his heart, and whatever changed would revert thanks to Regeneration. Despite this it was incredibly disturbing and only added to his difficulty in remaining both calm and still.

    Definitely good I¡¯m not human right now. The intruding mana picked up a little as the pressure on him increased. It would¡¯ve been enough to kill a normal person, but his body was strong. The rate of small mutations could be increased all the horde leader liked, it couldn¡¯t bypass the protections a god put in place, even if in this case the warding was unintentional.

    Time wasn¡¯t passing as it normally would in this space as Daniel had no external reference. Quick Mind might have helped him keep track, but that wasn¡¯t a power he had right now. He put what mental energy he could into searching for a new one, hoping for an awakening that would help, but either there was nothing there or the suppressive effects of the invasive mana could prevent a new power from forming.

    Eventually, the horde leader stopped infusing him with mana, save for a small trickle to continue locking down his powers. He tried to fight at this point, fearing it was done with him, but despite the low amount of mana it had a strength behind it that refused to break when he pushed. As he prepared to claw out at what he could, a presence entered his mind.

    Daniel had hosted the thoughts of enough mortals to tell this one was far different. For one, it had a vastness to it, on scale he¡¯d never felt from Lograve who had almost consistently been two levels above him. What was worse, there was a distinctly alien feel to it that his mind struggled to comprehend. It was as if trying too hard would put him under the same effect as the horde leader¡¯s mental attack as his mind fogged.

    This wasn¡¯t the horde leader, though. He knew that, though he didn¡¯t know why. The foreign presence examined Daniel like it was a feral beast locked in a room with him, backing him up to a corner and sniffing him to determine if he¡¯d make a good meal. Only, the presence wasn¡¯t that¡­ unrestrained. Inelegant. The image of a beast fit, but it wasn¡¯t-

    Oh fuck. Recognition mirrored in the presence. The god. He¡¯d suspected the attack had been coordinated by the Origin Beast, but not that it was in active communication with the horde leader. Somehow, it had made a connection to his mind.

    Any fight in him was made moot as the awareness of his surroundings faded. He was still there, still in his body, but the signal from the god was overwhelming anything else. It wasn¡¯t¡­ words, and neither was it as hostile as Daniel first expected. There was an ominous feeling to the presence, like a judge holding their gavel before the sentence would be rendered.

    As for what the god sent him in this moment of direct communion, they were flashes of sensation. A hand running through fur, the sight of an odd color contaminating a river, blood seeping from an internal wound. There was no way he could stop these, and yet he didn¡¯t think they were meant as an attack. It wasn¡¯t that he couldn¡¯t understand the Origin Beast¡¯s language, it was that they communicated on two entirely different spectrums. Two different systems. It was doing its best to bridge the gap, though only hints of its emotions came through the clearest.

    Last was the image of a burning tree taller than the mountains around it, seen from far enough away that there was little definition to it. Rays of light shone from somewhere high above, lancing into the bark. Pain, sharp blinding pain, reminiscent of the kind he¡¯d half-remembered just now, coupled with an echo of his rage directed at Hammer. This last one was repeated three times and Daniel found it oddly similar to how Khare and he had used marks to point at things.

    It knew him. This was the one Rorshawd had given himself to, and yet it was surprised by what it found. Daniel couldn¡¯t entirely grasp what it was trying to communicate, but it had latched onto his changed form and hatred of Hammer. Was it trying to see if he was an ally?

    There was an eagerness in the implied question that stunned him out of his building enmity. This imperious, all-powerful leader of the monstrous hordes bent on destroying the Octyrrum, the being personally responsible for everything Rorshawd had done and the consequences thereof, had a curiosity to it as it examined and questioned him that he¡¯d almost call young. Simple, perhaps, but not unintelligent.

    Why? He found himself asking. Why come here and fight them? Why kill us? There was an obvious answer, and no matter its motivations this thing was evil, but he had to know. This was the source of the hatred that drove all monsters to kill people, the same that had almost made Hunter kill him until he¡¯d pacified and then removed it unintentionally.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

    The god withdrew for a moment before a tide of images came through, many redundant but for a small change. Empty next. Broken nest. Variations of the burned forest and dirtied river. A sky of cracked colors and flesh that had grown torn and diseased. With every one the same soul-searing pain and rage against Hammer. Anger slowly replaced the earlier curiosity and suddenly there was the judge again. It was as if the god had made itself vulnerable, for just a moment, before seeing him for what he really was and wasn¡¯t.

    He saw a longer, more complicated image next. It was the Octyrrum, the eight-sided true version rather than the one missing Grave, surrounded by closed eyes that were slowly opening. The one he was closest to was already open a sliver, and from the gap the god gazed upon the world where-

    ???

    Confusion came across the mental link as Daniel snapped back into focus. Somehow, the mental vision from the god had triggered the unidentification Torch had left him with. The Origin Beast must have sensed the source as it was incensed, and the mental world fuzzed a little as real pain, not an image of it, was introduced. The horde leader was squeezing him, and the intrusive mana was flowing faster than before.

    You won¡¯t turn me, Daniel thought defiantly. You think you¡¯re the victim? You lost a war you started. You¡¯ve kept losing it, and all you¡¯ve done is get more people and more of your kind killed. Have you ever tried making peace?

    He was shouting uselessly into the void, but that was about all he could do. The god didn¡¯t reply with any more mental images, though he could sense it grow both distant and more agitated from his words. Or perhaps, from what it could understand from them.

    How many times has this happened? He asked, trying to bring up a mental image of the Octyrrum shattering, reforming, and breaking again. They say there¡¯s only been one Collapse. I think that¡¯s a lie. How long will you continue this fruitless hunt?

    An image was sent his way with what felt like an afterthought, a mountain of bodies with one standing alive on top. ¡®This time, we win,¡¯ is what he took from it. Neither could he argue. If one of the gods had betrayed the others, this could be the last Collapse.

    He was caught, unsure what to say or do next. Trying to persuade the Origin Beast away from its scouring of the world seemed a laughable idea, but he had to give it a shot. Now, he was completely at its mercy. The only thing he could deny it was twisting his form. It was certainly trying, experimenting with different movements in the mana flowing through him. Every time, the loop in his heart denied the god, even when it attempted to pierce the protective formation or drown it.

    Another series of images, these more directed. Various predators attempting to track or sight prey as they moved through the land and sea. Asking him what he was. Knowing it could likely read his thoughts, including those he screened from normal telepathy, Daniel did his best to keep his mind blank. Diplomacy had failed and the last thing he was going to do was to give information to the thing trying to play mad scientist with his body and soul.

    The pressure increased when he refused, the bindings closing in so much that the blood flow to his arms was cut off. He gritted his teeth, fangs digging into his lower lip, and held on. He wasn¡¯t weak. This enemy was stronger, but he wasn¡¯t weak.

    The foreign mana receded again to the minimum needed to lock him down. The world rocked slightly as it did, Daniel¡¯s first sign of the outside world since arriving in this immersion tank. Had the other teams come to help him? He toggled a mark on himself, just in case Khare was nearby. There was no way to know if the gestalt had gotten the message as he was effectively blinded.

    The god sent him another mental image, and this one was more targeted. He saw himself as he would have appeared now, in cat form, before that peeled away to reveal the human underneath. Instead of stopping there, his form faded into a silhouette and another image of the Octyrrum appeared with one difference. The eight were arrayed as normal, but there was a shimmering silver barrier around it that projected the symbol of Hourglass. ¡®Do you see? Do you understand?¡¯ he could almost make out as the intent behind the message.

    It¡¯s my Spoke, but that barrier is wrong. Why is Hourglass¡¯ symbol there? I have one of Hammer¡¯s Spokes in me. Hammer reformed the shield around it. Did something happen later that week with Hourglass? Red roots began to encircle the image inside of his body. Daniel¡¯s muffled breathing quickened when he realized those were corresponding with the foreign mana that was making a new push toward the loop in his heart. It wasn¡¯t showing him this to enlighten him but to make sure he knew what it was doing in malice.

    But why? It had already tried to break him there, and its distant power couldn¡¯t undo what a god in the fullness of himself had wrought. That¡¯s what he fervently hoped as the red of the horde leader¡¯s mana drew closer to his core. It saw him as an enemy now, without doubt, and yet it was going through the whole slowly moving laser routine and giving Daniel time to pull out a mirrored watch. His confusion lasted up until he saw the representation of the Octyrrum budge, just a little.

    The roots and the mana they represented hadn¡¯t penetrated the shield. In fact they hadn¡¯t gotten close, but they were doing something. It was like the Origin Beast was trying to trigger an ability inside of him with its mana, though the pattern didn¡¯t seem to fit with any he was familiar with. The roots twisted around to form a rough sphere, individual currents writhing within and on the surface. As it did, the divider between two of the gods in the Octyrrum began to grow hazy. An immense amount of glee and surprise rushed toward him from the god as he sensed an immense amount of power begin to fill him.

    No, no no no. How? He desperately thought of some way to fight back, but it was locking down everything besides his bonds and nothing there would help him escape. He tried forcing the loop to break again like it had after Hunter¡¯s death, but that resisted his will just as it did the Origin Beast¡¯s.

    It continued to metaphorically tape his eyes open to watch as the disturbance in the Octyrrum moved like a worm crawling under skin, nestling in the center of the formation. The net of roots around it grew tighter and tighter, and he felt his pulse slow as the pressure mounted.

    It broke as a dot of color marred the representation of the Spoke in its very center. Daniel felt as if his bones were melting as it began to expand. He mentally cried out for it to stop, but this just urged the Origin Beast on. No symbol adorned the area that formed, just a blood red that contrasted and contested the finery of the areas around it.

    The process ended when the area was about as equal in size as the other sections of the circle, the Origin Beast¡¯s corruption lingering in the center like how Hourglass¡¯ Realm fit into the world today. It all shuddered, and for a moment a tremendous amount of mana welled up inside the loop before it vanished with a feeling as though he¡¯d collided with the ground after a long fall.

    Daniel¡¯s hazy mind struggled to comprehend what had happened as the roots retreated, their work done. The mind of the Origin Beast was imperiously examining him again, making sure what it had accomplished was holding. He couldn¡¯t help but feel a bit of hope, for if the god was going to just order its minion to kill him, it wouldn¡¯t have gone through the trouble of doing this. He was still physically the same, his mind untouched. It could have been a lot worse.

    Reflexively, the god threw two images at him as it sensed his relief. The first was one creature wresting itself free of another¡¯s jaws, only to bite in turn. While both carried the same surprise and glee as when it had first broken through the barrier, the second was more malicious. It was one of his memories, the old Illustrious mage who he had encountered when entering Aughal. He didn¡¯t understand why he was being shown this until the foreign mana returned, and it demonstrated to his improved seventh sense what had been done back then.

    Rather than attempt to change his body or influence the Spoke, the invasive mana began tearing a channel open around his body and somehow moving his own to follow that pattern. He was being forced to incorporate it into himself, and the loop around his heart didn¡¯t fight that at all. This was done far faster than every other step before, and the sense of awakening as it finished was terrible in its euphoria.

    The Origin Beast had just given him a new power. Daniel fought against his bindings more strongly than he had before, and his body did begin to change now. Seemingly satisfied, the Origin Beast¡¯s presence departed. The space he was in began to open as well, though it did him little good. The damage was done. The change, superimposed on the one his body has already undergone, completed by the time he was freed.

 Chapter 198: Seige Swarm

    The last months of Willow¡¯s life had brought the greatest of tragedies and triumphs alike. The death of her parents still haunted her. Her father, who had endured the worst of rumors while keeping his benevolent if near-Tyrannical aims secret. Her mother, enough of her having remained to have undoubtedly been her despite the monster she¡¯d turned into.

    But then, there was her sister, her bond, and her class. The three were linked with her in ways she was only beginning to see. She had commiserated with Khiat about this, having to explore paths that diverged from the old norm of the Octyrrum. They wouldn¡¯t be alone in the times to come, but they were the first.

    It remained to be seen how long they would last. The spiritless monsters had rained down upon Pinion¡¯s Point in numbers enough to overwhelm the static defenses and defenders who flew up to meet them. Dozens died before a single claw or talon touched a mortal, but there were just too many to handle all at once.

    Daniel had bought time as he¡¯d said he would, allowing the city to fully shelter those without powers in central or underground areas. He hadn¡¯t returned before the attack, although Khare was certain of his survival. I should have told him not to go, but he seemed so certain. Her fear of what had befallen the man from another world almost eclipsed that of her own safety, but a beak tearing into her neck brought her back into the present.

    Willow had tried to stop the four-winged monster with an insect stinger instead of tail feathers from getting to her, but she was still young in her class. Borrowing from the shy spirit inside of her to create the shield only prevented the monster from stinging her, but its avian head had still managed to bite after it had broken through.

    She still felt the pain, but any damage was cured immediately as the monster brought its head out of the space just underneath her chin. An injury formed on Tlara¡¯s current body in front of her. The dominated iridescent whitespring on the neck turned to blast the monster with its breath while her sister used the wyvern¡¯s attacks to finish it and another in the air around them.

    Willow wished she could do more to help, but she¡¯d followed Daniel¡¯s advice to round out her attributes before making any further advancement beyond 10. Relieving level disparity did give her a sense of catharsis, but working past that initial hit to endurance was a struggle.

    Today would give her the last advancement potential she needed, she was sure of it. The team was fighting in the air close above the town. Khiat was hovering just above a rooftop and would utterly destroy at least one enemy per shot, whereas the bladed bastion that was Khare stood firm despite being surrounded. If the enemy was stronger they would be in trouble, but they were all relatively weak compared to the team¡¯s average level. Spiritless too, all of them. She¡¯d hoped to find at least one to save, but even the two permanent dwellers of the Astral were distant at the moment.

    Willow continued throwing up shields as best she could, faintly sensing the mana within her fading as she did so. The density of the monsters still meant she took more injuries, but she trusted her sister and her bond to protect her. She had a sense that if this was to be part of her life now, she¡¯d have to get used to pain.

    A sharp shout drew her attention despite the words not coming across. Willow looked down and saw Janice below and a few blocks away from them. The spearwoman had remained grounded and was part of the force securing their compound, which they¡¯d turned into a shelter with the help of Spinner. Her group had gotten buried under twenty or so monsters whose aerial superiority was proving hard to overcome. Other flying teams saw the danger and tried to respond, but those of the horde around them began fiercely throwing themselves at the would-be defenders.

    Even Khare was hard-pressed to put out enough ranged fire to both handle those around them and intercede. Willow punched Tlara¡¯s neck a few times and pointed, and her sister sighed before breaking away from the fight she was in. The horde tried to stop her too, but the buffs Beastmasters could give the ones they dominated were powerful. Combine that with flawless control and the greater constitution of a monster, and Tlara could almost contest the weaker level 4s in the town. Between that and the afflictive breath of the whitespring, they were able to cut through to where-

    Willow was nearly unseated as Tlara rocked from a blow. A young ludegrund had just directly dove into her, receiving the worst of the trade with a large crack in the front spilling out some kind of white substance as it fell away. She¡¯d been angling her shield to prevent the bladed sides from cutting Tlara, expecting it to pull away at the last moment.

    Tlara continued in her descent, snarling as she just managed to avoid another direct strike. ¡°They¡¯re getting inside!¡± Willow shouted into Tlara¡¯s ear to urge her on, seeing monsters spill into the central house of the compound while Spinner and the guard tried to deal with the ones attacking them and break through. The spider monster was sending shocks into the webbing she¡¯d spun around the courtyard, frying those who got close to her defenses, but there were still too many. At least a hundred in their courtyard alone, counting the dead.

    Willow was helpless to watch in horror as monsters rapidly exited the house with people caught in claws or roughly carried in beaks. Only those that could have carried people had gone in, though the defenders were also being pushed to the side of the island. The compound was close enough to the edge that the horde could toss people over after only going a short distance, and that¡¯s what they were doing.

    A tingling ran across her feathers as Willow felt the electrical charge build in Tlara as she considered firing lightning from her wings. They were at the entrance of the compound now, only ten or so meters off the ground and within her range. The current died as she decided the people were too close, and Willow agreed.  That didn¡¯t change how dire the situation was, punctuated by Janice herself being dragged over by the collective effort of five monsters.

    Bright light shone behind her, and a brilliant arrow streaked to where the spearwoman had just been. Khiat¡¯s powerful attack had been on target, but she¡¯d noticed a moment too late amidst the rest of the chaos. While it didn¡¯t save Janice, the eruption of energy cleared a space, at the cost of weakening Khiat from the recoil.

    Willow and Tlara had to make a snap decision. Go after those who¡¯d been taken through the gap that had just been created, or stay and defend Khiat. They both came to the same conclusion without having to communicate, and within seconds Tlara was diving off the side of Pinion¡¯s Point.

    The body her sister was inhabiting had no power to increase fall speed like the ripair hawks she¡¯d heard about, and the chase stalled as they could only slightly gain on those falling. The horde was doing their best to stay under their victims, using them as shields, and not just here. Willow could see other groups falling further down that had come from another part of town. Thousands of people lived in Pinion¡¯s Point, and they couldn¡¯t fit everyone in the center. Daniel had given them time, but not hours. Tlara was doing her best to use her ranged mental attack on the monsters while Willow shielded them from reprisal, but there were enough monsters in the air to drag down any trying to slow their fall even with those they were killing. If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    While it was just under twenty kilometers from the island to the ground limit, the speed they were falling meant they could reach there in ten minutes. It went by faster than she could have imagined, Tlara dodging and doing what she could to target the horde acting as shepherds for their unwilling flock. When those at the bottom of the formation began disappearing, she knew they were close to losing those that had been taken. Worse, Tlara¡¯s head picked up and it seemed like her sister was beginning to pull out of the dive.

    ¡°Don¡¯t!¡± she screamed, unsure of how well her voice was carrying. At the same time, she summoned a shield above where Tlara was headed and willed it to remain in place, rather than follow them. Tlara broke through it with but a moment of struggle, though it got the point across. The head of the wyvern turned to face her as she hovered in the air, not fleeing but not following those captured through the ground limit.

    ¡°We need to save them,¡± Willow shouted, more audible now that the wind wasn¡¯t embracing them with a death grip. Tlara scoffed as best she could in her current body and motioned downward, the Spirit Master feeling a slight tremble through her bond. ¡°I know. I don¡¯t want to do this either and I have you to protect me, but there are people down there that need our help. Most of the others stayed behind. We need to go.¡±

    Tlara didn¡¯t move, and Willow had to remember just who was inside the monster she was riding. It was hard to remember how impossible her sister could be now that she¡¯d lost the ability to curse at people. She needed the right motivation. ¡°We still don¡¯t know where Daniel is. If he¡¯s down there and dies because we didn¡¯t help him, your chance to get back in your body goes with him.¡±

    Her sister performed her own calculations with that input. It had only been seconds, but Willow was painfully aware of time passing. It all seemed so much slower than when they¡¯d been falling. Shifts in her perception of time had never been as exaggerated before, but now it was just something else to get used to.

    Tlara sighed and dove once more, the colored areas of the iridescent whitespring lighting up as it charged its breath. Willow didn¡¯t completely understand how Tlara controlled the monster while in the wyvern but knew it had something to do with her briefly swapping into it after every hunt, leading to the dominated monster growing more effective over time. If she had a spare spirit to give it, it might become even more of an asset. Unfortunately, they were as preciously rare as they were sacred.

    There was little for Willow herself to do but draw on both the mana and spirit in her to prepare another shield. She threw it up as soon as they crossed over, keeping it moving in front of Tlara in case they were about to run into something on the other side. It was then she saw the one responsible for all of the pain and death.

    The horde leader was a terrible thing that looked like a mountain of flesh twisted into a mockery of her form. One look at it was enough to know the malice within, though her bond was responsible for that. A spirit resided within, though one she would never touch. Its minions had been drastically reduced, but it still had a hundred or so in its immediate area.

    Most were concentrating on their terrible work. Of those kidnapped from the town, some had been lucky enough to break free of the monsters around them and fall away from the horde leader, which wasn¡¯t big enough to position itself under the entirety of Pinion¡¯s Point. Someone would still have to catch them before they struck land, but there were enough Blessed active in Pinion¡¯s Point to handle that.

    Willow was more concerned with those held captive. They were being dragged to the large monster¡¯s wings, and she watched with horror as Janice was thrown into one of the pits that dotted the bumpy surface. In seconds, flesh rose to trap her in, the completed structure giving the appearance of a cyst. There were already dozens formed.

    ¡°Don¡¯t get close!¡± someone called out from the fighting below. She recognized them as the captain coordinating the defense of Pinion¡¯s Point, though the name escaped her. He must have been one of those pursuing the taken townsfolk. ¡°That monster can produce a powerful sleep effect. Everyone under level 3 is immediately knocked out.¡±

    Saying this, he then stood on the air as if it were solid, drew a blade with hands that rapidly shifted back from wings, and swung out. The blade extended as he did, the extra separating a bit at a time to create a flying arc attack. It easily cut through the lower level monsters, but the horde leader didn¡¯t react as it got winged. ¡°We eliminate the rest of the spawn, and then destroy that profane existence.¡±

    She wanted to ask about the people trapped inside, but the man flew away with that to pursue others of the horde. His flight wasn¡¯t the fastest, and Willow guessed he was a Knight by the armor. One of the worst classes to have when they needed to kill quickly.

    ¡°I think our bond would protect me,¡± she told Tlara, who replied with an incredulous gaze. ¡°I can sense a spirit inside that monster, and it feels like it¡¯s gloating and¡­ reverent. It isn¡¯t afraid. If your whitespring can afflict it, we would turn off the sleep effect and let other people help!¡±

    She saw Tlara inspect the horde leader and felt a shudder in the wyvern¡¯s spine as she and it made eye contact. Whether it was the thought of a chance to dominate the creature, or the absence of any directly threatening powers, Tlara decided to act.

    The wyvern swooped down, ignoring the light injuries she received as her pseudo-Regeneration repaired them. Between the sections of her body that were armored and the natural defense of the scales, she actually received more wounds by taking them on Willow¡¯s behalf than being targeted herself.

    At about 10 meters out, she could tell it had tried to use its power on her, but that only resulted in a brief moment of exhaustion before it passed over and Tlara yawned. The whitespring was entirely unphased, and grew slightly larger as the Beastmaster buffed it. Such measures hadn¡¯t been needed on the chaff, but who knew what level this thing was?

    The roiling rainbow spray painted over the left wing of the monster as Willow threw another shield to block an attack from the horde. They were being targeted by almost all of them in the immediate area, which had the beneficial effect of allowing the last of those kidnapped to be ignored.

    The malicious satisfaction in the horde leader vanished with that, replaced by a tinge of fear amidst a sudden anger. Willow braced, but no attack was forthcoming. ¡°Again, it¡¯s working!¡± she called out, and the whitespring breathed once more as they passed over the right wing. It was a useful creature despite its lack of direct damage powers, especially with its breath attack not having a cooldown.

    Something unexpected happened as they finished the attack run. A shimmering haze ringed the horde leader, a visible manifestation of mana. Can it purge the breath attack? ¡°Tlara, you need to la-¡° she tried to say, but the wyvern began to turn upside down as she flew up causing Willow to hold on tight. The maneuver brought them back over the horde leader without the need for a wide turn.

    Tlara slammed down on the back of the horde leader, and the whitespring began almost continuously breathing down into the monster. Willow was left with the responsibility for defense, though she was beginning to run low on mana.

    The horde leader tried to turn to throw them off, but its movement was laborious and slow. Tlara¡¯s back talons could dig in enough that they wouldn¡¯t be displaced. Another shimmering haze appeared after a few seconds, but none after that. Without its minions, it seemed the horde leader had little defense against its mana being suppressed.

    Willow¡¯s confidence lasted until one of the cysts on the wing began to open. While rage and surprise filled the spirit below her, she felt a moment of grim satisfaction accompany the split in the monster¡¯s flesh. Her eyes widened when she saw the fur of the creature climbing out from within. If not for the pattern, she¡¯d have no way of knowing that they¡¯d just found Daniel.

 Chapter 199: Friend or Foe

    Willow had only once seen a ringcat up close, and that was during the siege of Aughal. The worst day of her life. Still, she knew of the monster and could recognize the markings on a different frame, like with Daniel¡¯s alternate form. This was the same, and yet different. What she saw would make normal ringcats look tame by comparison.

    Before, she would have called what Daniel turned into a fusion of man and beast, but that wasn¡¯t accurate in the face of this new creature. It was barely bipedal, with long arms and legs that bore muscles which were evident through the fur. The top of the head was flatter and followed the curve of the spine to end in a longer snout. The fangs and claws had lengthened, and all four limbs ended in large paws rather than hands and feet. The boots on the creature¡¯s feet were barely constraining them now and were constantly trying to repair the damage from the claws piercing them. Its armor would have probably torn off as well if not for that enchantment.

    It raised its head and roared, the sound hurting Willow¡¯s ears despite it being halfway up the wing. Her heart stopped for several seconds before she fully understood what she was sensing. He still has his soul. Or, no, he¡­ She couldn¡¯t see people¡¯s souls with her bond, only the spirits within monsters and beings that solely inhabited the Astral as Hunter currently did. Willow had no idea what had happened to Daniel, only that there was one person they needed to quickly get him to before-

    ¡°Gods!¡± An exclamation from above, the captain again. ¡°The reports were accurate. Everyone, prioritize breaking open those pods! I shall distract the fresh spawn. Face me, coward!¡±

    There was a force to the Knights words that almost bent Willow to obey. It wasn¡¯t a directly hostile command power, but she was three levels below this Knight and the disparity strengthened whatever he was using to coordinate the Blessed here. The influence reminded her of Kahvin, however, and the anger that memory invoked was enough to push it aside. ¡°He¡¯s still in there, don¡¯t fight him!¡±

    The Knight was about to reply before Daniel, affected by the taunt power, lept into the air. If the captain was surprised at how he¡¯d actually reach him he didn¡¯t show it, instead standing in midair again and drawing his sword. Light flashed a few times across it and Willow was mortified, yet too far away to cast a shield. Tlara wasn¡¯t getting in the air either, she was frozen still at the sight of Daniel while her whitespring continued to suppress the horde leader.

    If the Knight hadn¡¯t been surprised by Daniel¡¯s jump, he was when the assailant adjusted his course to avoid the arc of the blade. Monsters didn¡¯t use enchanted items and aside from passively wearing armor, the feral demi-ringcat didn¡¯t look like something that would naturally have flight powers. A claw tried to catch Knight as he passed, but it met a barrier that reminded Willow of her own, only far stronger.

    Once more, Willow was caught between two choices. Intervene with that duel somehow, or continue assisting in destroying this abominable spirit and its physical shell? She and her sister had opted for the path that would save the most before, but they each had their reasons for what they did next.

    Tlara gave her an eye roll and then cut the breath attack of her whitespring. Its effect didn¡¯t need to be continually applied to work, and Willow hoped the larger monster couldn¡¯t cleanse itself again. With about ten other mortals attacking it now, they could handle cutting in to free people, though the flesh of the domes seemed more resilient than it had a right to be.

    ¡°Stop!¡± Willow shouted again, Tlara taking them both up to the vicinity of the fight. Daniel was ignoring everything besides the Knight, and he showed no signs of any of his former powers. That he had another dramatic transmutation power that changed them around gave her hope that whatever the horde leader had done could be reversed, but the fact that she could see his astral presence worried her greatly.

    ¡°I shall do my best to incapacitate,¡± the Knight replied while standing his air, prolonging whatever was keeping him in place, ¡°But I shall not allow this creature to roam free.¡± Daniel came at him again with little if any guile, and the Knight raised his free hand as if to catch his head when the fangs went for his throat. The face of the creature began to turn despite fierce struggling, and the Knight had to brace his hand with his sword arm to fully throw off the attack.

    In the next second, he¡¯d managed to fully turn around and slash out at Daniel as he passed within centimeters, the monster himself unable to claw past the barrier around the Knight. It didn¡¯t look like he¡¯d used an active ability, and yet Daniel was slowed for a few extra seconds as his attack missed.

    The Knight struck Daniel on the arm where he wasn¡¯t armored, and the attack managed to cut to bone. While the wound began to heal tremendously fast, the area glowed with an orange light. As Daniel fell, his arm was hoisted up to restrain him as he tried to move away.

    Willow urged Tlara to hold off for a moment as she saw the Knight reform his wings, only to dance around the half-monster and deliver another deep cut with every strike. The orange from the original cut was fading by the fifth, but the series of rapid attacks had left Daniel immobilized in mid-air.

    Then, as the captain came for the head with the flat of his blade, Daniel was somehow able to maneuver an arm to grab at him. To make the passing strikes, the Knight had to revert his wings and unsheath his sword on the approach. He moved fast, but seemed unable to adjust his course once he committed.

    The barrier remained around the Knight, not a centimeter away from his feathers, but Willow could see it crack slightly as Daniel wrapped a paw around one arm and gripped fiercely. Lifting the Knight, Daniel brought their heads together with a loud crack.

    The shield continued to hold, but the roar that followed it up still went straight through. Willow saw Tlara grimace while feeling fine herself and realized it had been loud enough for her bond to consider it damage to pass on to her sister. The Knight had it worse, but managed to summon a spectral shield that hit Daniel in the chest and knocked him away before he could try to bite through to the neck.

    ¡°It fights without reserve,¡± the Captain commented, a little louder than he probably meant to. He glanced down to where the other mortals were having difficulty with the horde leader. It couldn¡¯t do much in its current state, though both he and Willow assumed it had recalled the horde below after getting locked down. ¡°Somehow, it knows I must continue to channel Stasis Strike for the effect to persist. We do not have the time for me to draw this out.¡±If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    Daniel was rapidly storming back to the Knight, though the movement was a little clumsy compared to the first jump. He could still make use of the winged boots, but he lacked his previous experience or wherewithal to extend the wings still on his back.  ¡°Let us handle him!¡± Willow shouted, both the Knight and Tlara giving her an incredulous look. ¡°The people down there need your help more. That¡¯s what we need to kill.¡±

    ¡°It is taunted, and will remain so unless-¡° the Knight¡¯s next words were cut off as he jerked away from a streak of lightning. It hit Daniel, however, evoking another growl from him. Tlara had changed her mind after figuring out what they¡¯d need to do to make the plan work. The Knight looked between them again and sighed. ¡°Your spirit is admirable.¡±

    ¡°Hardly,¡± Willow said to herself. The still unnamed spirit within her shrunk as much as it could in the metaphysical sense whenever anything else was nearby, though it had grown to trust her. Based on what she¡¯d seen so far she didn¡¯t have a scrap of hope the power it gave her would protect against Daniel. Then again, if she had to use her power at all she¡¯d have failed. Willow couldn¡¯t truly fight anything at this point without Tlara¡¯s protection, but reaching people? That was something she¡¯d practiced every day of her life.

    She could almost hear Tlara¡¯s laughter as the wyvern dove away from Daniel, encouraging him to leave the Knight. They were also leaving everyone in the horde leader in the hands of the remaining mortals, including Janice, but they¡¯d made their decision. Willow scanned the sky and found a small island below them, pointing it out to Tlara.

    They made it before Daniel caught up to them, though it was close. Willow jumped off of Tlara, careful to stay within the protective radius. Daniel was falling toward the wyvern claws first, though as before with the Knight there was too much simplicity in the charge. Tlara was able to batter him away with a wing, her self-cast buffs enough to overcome the momentum. Still, she heard her sister grunt with effort and wondered how strong Daniel could be like that. His normal bestial form was fearsome, but Tlara had the level advantage both in form and class.

    ¡°Daniel!¡± Willow called out as he rolled to a stop, stepping in front of Tlara and holding out an arm to both of them. ¡°It¡¯s me. The other hunters are killing that thing up there. The town is safe. We¡¯ll take you to Thomas and have this reversed. I know you¡¯re still in there.¡± She tried to project as much confidence as she could, though there were parts of that she wasn¡¯t entirely sure about. When she looked into Daniel¡¯s eyes there were only red-tinged primal orbs reflecting voracious hatred of the world. Though, when they flicked to her, there was the slightest of changes.

    All her bond with Tlara gave her was an insight into the Astral, and a limited one at that. She could perceive something in Daniel now where she couldn¡¯t before, and it grew stronger when he saw her. Sharper. Willow made a guess and prayed she was right. ¡°You have to calm down and come with us. If you¡¯re like this, how will you ever bring Hunter back? You found the person inside of him and brought him out. You just need to do that again. I believe in you.¡±

    She could feel Tlara¡¯s eyes rolling behind her back, but in front of her Daniel had stopped. The presence inside of him was twisting, growing, and all she had was the belief that this was a good thing. The air grew staticky as Tlara began charging a lightning attack, but it proved useless the moment she could no longer sense Daniel¡¯s Astral presence.

    The beast fell onto his knees. He began to shift, back straightening. Daniel didn¡¯t entirely revert to his human form, but the moment he caught sight of his arm the fur and tail melted off to reveal the Artificer she¡¯d first met. Now certain there was no danger, Willow ran forward and found that he was clutching his chest as if his heart was succumbing to illness. ¡°Daniel!¡±

    ¡°What.¡± He looked up and seemed surprised to find her next to him. His eyes then caught the horde leader, which was in the process of dying despite all of its minions having returned from their assault on Pinion¡¯s Point. Daniel wiped a suddenly sweaty brow and Willow could see he was trying hard to hold himself together. ¡°What happened?¡±

    Tlara snorted behind both of them, clearly having something to say, but Willow ignored her. ¡°You don¡¯t remember?¡±

    ¡°No, I-¡° He looked up at the horde leader again and his voice carried a chill tone. ¡°Oh. Oh no.¡± He grabbed at his chest again. ¡°It did it. I thought it was bluffing.¡±

    Willow put a hand on his shoulder. ¡°You came back from it. If you can, anyone else it afflicted can as well.¡±

    ¡°Came back from what?¡± he asked, uncomprehending. ¡°No, it¡¯s still, I can identify that thing now. It corrupted my Spoke.¡±

    Willow considered hiding the truth, but part of her was worried that if he didn¡¯t know about that secondary transformation, it could trigger again unexpectedly. ¡°When you came out of that monster, you were different. You looked far more like a monster than a person and you would have killed Tlara if I hadn¡¯t stopped you.¡±

    The wyvern circled so Willow could see her, just to glare. ¡°Like Tak?¡± Daniel¡¯s voice recaptured her attention, though it seemed a question aimed more at himself. He brought out his Focus and began inspecting it, grimacing at what he saw. ¡°It did. Damn it, what does this mean?¡± The words she couldn¡¯t read changed as he adjusted the image. ¡°I¡¯m not seeing that power on my list. It has to be bound to Beast Mode. That¡¯s¡­ that¡¯s good.¡± He was calming down, though there was still an edge to his voice. ¡°What about Ygazir?¡±

    ¡°Who?¡±

    ¡°The-¡° Daniel gestured upward. ¡°Sorry. That thing has a name.¡±

    ¡°Oh, they¡¯re taking care of it. A name¡­ I did sense a spirit in it.¡±

    ¡°One you¡¯d want to capture?¡± he asked hesitantly.

    Willow thought for a moment and shook her head. ¡°I¡¯ll try to save every one I can, but that one didn¡¯t want to be saved.¡±

    ¡°It was working directly with the Origin Beast. It¡­¡± Daniel shook his head. ¡°Thank you, Willow. Is everyone else ok?¡±

    ¡°The last I saw, yes. Khare and Khiat stayed behind to defend the town, but the horde got some of the people hiding in our compound and we followed.¡± She took a seat by him and looked up at the large monster someone had managed to cut a wing off of. ¡°I think I¡¯m going to get a lot of advancement potential from this.¡±

    Daniel weakly chuckled. ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have gotten anything. Going off on my own, I can¡¯t even blame that on Beast Mode. It just felt like the right thing to do and I didn¡¯t want to put all of you at risk to do it. The plan wouldn''t have worked with anyone else there. The bond¡­.¡±

    Willow rubbed her shoulder when he trailed off. ¡°It did work. The monsters didn¡¯t get to us until half an hour after you said they would. The defense wouldn¡¯t have gone as well if people had been caught out when it happened. Threst wouldn¡¯t have known at all if you hadn¡¯t spotted them in the first place.¡±

    Daniel stood up, checking his equipment and frowning as he looked under his armor. ¡°My clothes are shredded. I¡¯m not going to have to enchant clothing now am I?¡±

    Willow raised an eyebrow and said carefully, ¡°You¡¯re not troubled by what just happened?¡±

    ¡°One thing at a time,¡± he sighed. ¡°We need to get back and make sure everyone¡¯s safe. I doubt Aurus fell from two of those attacking, but the other outer settlements?¡±

    ¡°Two were overrun.¡± Willow stiffened as a new voice intoned grimly from empty space. The air shimmered, and a man emerged. The only definable aspect of him was the voice and a black cloak that wrapped around the front and back of the head, while the body within was only a darkness deeper than what garbed it. Willow couldn¡¯t distinctly make out the shape of the person.

    Daniel tried to say something, but though his mouth moved no words came out and she couldn¡¯t lip read humans. She tried herself and found her words unchallenged. ¡°Who are you?¡±

    ¡°There will be time for that later. The enemies of the Octyrrum move on this region.¡± The man gestured and a veil of darkness enveloped the entire island. ¡°Now, we must discuss this war.¡±

 Chapter 200: Divine Reinforcement

    Daniel knew what was happening as soon as the darkness appeared, though that didn¡¯t change the hundreds of questions he had or the lingering dread of what the named monster had done to him. He¡¯d intended to ask Cloak, but the god had preempted him by somehow coming to this random island. If the god could teleport, he¡¯d been seriously holding out. Not that he was being given a chance to comment, and the god had muted his initial reaction to his appearance.

    The sphere of illusion around them closed in, the darkness filling the space for a second before it flickered into a projection of another place. Daniel and Willow found themselves in the meeting space where he¡¯d first encountered Soraso, though it appeared Tlara and her whitespring had been screened out of the effect. Other people were appearing in the hall as well, including the Commander who had come in clipping into the central table.

    Soraso was standing at the head of the table with his sword drawn, staring at the dramatized version of Cloak. Half a minute after they¡¯d appeared themselves, he spoke. ¡°Well, it seems we can take you at your word. I trust this region¡¯s defenses aren¡¯t being compromised by this impromptu meeting?¡±

    ¡°You have done all you can for now,¡± Cloak replied. Both were being far more formal than he¡¯d experienced before and it didn¡¯t seem like either would break from it here. The mystical apparition Cloak was cosplaying as walked to the table and put a hand against it. Daniel was surprised to see he had collision in this space and knew then something bigger was happening than he¡¯d initially expected. Supreme domain control or not, there was no way Cloak had managed to grab people from every active settlement in Threst at the same time while being in Aurus.

    ¡°What favor have we earned to be visited by an aspect of the Octyrrum itself?¡± Soraso pointedly did not put away his sword, and his tone was guarded. Other people seemed like they wanted to comment on this, or how they¡¯d been brought here, but didn¡¯t dare to speak in the god¡¯s presence.

    ¡°Your region is under direct threat by one of the fell intelligences of the Crest, which has assumed control of a portion of the monsters here,¡± Cloak replied, specifically avoiding the fact that he was talking about an enemy god. ¡°It is one of the perils the Octyrrum faces that has prompted this state of emergency, one you are unprepared to handle. As today shows.¡± He extended one void hand to where two heavily injured Blessed were barely standing, keeping themselves upright only off of the weight of this meeting.

    ¡°Regent, the lord of illusion speaks the truth,¡± one said. ¡°The monsters broke through our defenses. We were ready for their numbers, but not their ferocity and coordination. We have lost at least three hundred lives, not counting those taken.¡±

    ¡°We have reinforcements on the way,¡± Soraso assured, but Cloak cut down any reassurance from that.

    ¡°By this point, any who are taken should be considered dead. This form of monster is capable of long-range teleportation. You were successful in destroying the ones assaulting this city fast enough, and in one case the ability was disrupted before it was fully channeled.¡± He indicated Daniel and Willow. ¡°As most of you are now aware, the purpose of this attack was to steal mortals for use in the creation of monsters, though it is worse than that already profane act.¡±

    ¡°These creatures will not last a day. We shall scour them from Threst no matter where they try to hide!¡±

    ¡°They have already departed the region.¡± Silence filled the room after that proclamation as everyone worked out what he meant by that. A Cleric of Hammer was the first to break it.

    ¡°Forgive me lord, I do not wish to sound ungrateful for your presence, but what of my master? We have a Proxy of our own, but she has not had a glimmer of the lord of transmutation since Rikendia fell.¡± It seemed like asking this took all the courage the man had.

    ¡°The enemy has chosen to focus on Hammer¡¯s Realm,¡± Cloak answered with what Daniel knew was a direct lie, if only because of the vision from the Origin Beast he was hazily remembering. ¡°He is managing defenses elsewhere. I have directed my attention here in his stead once the movement of our enemy became clear. The Crest looks to break this region, and those they have taken will be their vanguard.¡±

    ¡°How?¡± Soraso stiffly asked. Daniel looked for Murdon in the crowd to see if the draconoid was reacting to how his friend was behaving, but neither he nor Quala were in the room. Honestly, with all he¡¯d just been through he kind of got it.

    ¡°The life forms the Crest sent specialize in the twisted magic of that place. Those who were not rescued will be slowly converted into agents of the enemy, and these resulting monsters will benefit from their former souls. You could consider them elite among monster kind, fully comparable to a mortal of that level with balanced attributes.¡± Cloak summoned an image of the surrounding regions, a creeping blackness representing the Crest beginning to infiltrate both Aughal and Threst. The illusion appeared independent of the table, which was capable of its own projections. ¡°You¡¯re fortunate to have several Fates in the region. They¡¯ll be necessary to monitor for aberrant monster activity. Any with the Regional Log power will be crucial to your defense.¡±

    What about my friends? Daniel wondered internally. Silora had been looking for them as a side project but had been as successful as Padri had been responsive to his attempts to reach out. Knowing that a Fate was looking for them, and that Murdon would sense if anything had happened, had helped to put his mind at ease. The refreshed worries took him out of the conversation, which mostly dealt with Cloak explaining how his church was going to help coordinate the information he was allowed to share.

    Willow tapped him on the shoulder, whispering to him as quietly as she could. ¡°Why are we here?¡± The two of them had practically been ignored, though Daniel knew exactly why Cloak had included him in this meeting. He hated that Willow didn¡¯t.

    ¡°The captain was busy,¡± Daniel answered back, thinking on his feet. Now that Cloak was revealing himself to the public he might allow Willow to know about how he¡¯d followed them from Aughal, though that would contrast with the story he was weaving here. ¡°It sounds like the other horde leaders teleported out while ours was still being killed. He needed someone to come here and report on what was said.¡±

    ¡°So you should be paying attention?¡±

    He coughed and pressed his back to the side wall he and Willow had moved to before stumbling through it. The illusion was flawless, though as he passed through the wall he briefly caught sight of the outside world. Another Cloak was still here, maintaining the effect while hunters above mopped up the remainder of the horde and began shuttling people back to Pinion¡¯s Point.

    Talons pulled him back into the illusion as Willow rescued him from the wall. He¡¯d have expected that exchange to have drawn attention, however several other side conversations had sprung up along with others dipping in and out of the walls to keep an eye on their surrounding. Those with high enough levels or specific powers might have been able to see through it without doing so, but even with Keen Sense Daniel couldn¡¯t defeat this one while within it. How was Cloak doing this?

    ¡°What of the pre-Collapse ruins the Regent located?¡± Someone else asked a good question, though with the various factors at play here Daniel couldn¡¯t identify them.

    ¡°Ruins?¡± A stately voice asked from above. A figure flew into the room and from the sound they made on contact, Daniel could tell they were really there. ¡°Lord of illusion, regent, Aurus is safe. Apex flight has secured the high altitudes from any lingering threat.¡±

    ¡°Sir Talongleam. There¡¯s hardly a reason to concern ourselves with that matter considering the topic at hand,¡± Soraso replied bruskly, as if he¡¯d found a fly in¡­ whatever it was air gestalt ate.The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    ¡°Admiral Talongleam, Regent,¡± the bane of both Daniel and Soraso replied with equal vindictiveness. ¡°Lord of illusion, it is this humble servant¡¯s opinion that if this gathering has been called to share information, then anything relevant to the defense of Aurus should be discussed. For the sake of us of all, as much as I know it goes against your tenets, I must ask that we rid ourselves of secrets.¡±

    ¡°Pre-Collapse ruins?¡± Cloak asked thoughtfully, stroking his not-chin. ¡°I¡¯m afraid I have no knowledge of these either. Anything built before the Collapse would be thousands of years old, and my Realm is one of the farthest from here.¡± He sighed as if he wasn¡¯t yet again blatantly lying, though only Daniel could see through it. ¡°I¡¯ll have to ask Hammer when I have the opportunity.¡±

    ¡°All the assembled need to know now is that they are dangerous. Preparations to explore it met with several setbacks,¡± Soraso explained bitterly. The stakes of the conversation were too high for him to ignore the topic or divert with humor. From what the Commander said, he was on shaky ground and this ¡®admiral¡¯ was just the person to unseat him if he gathered enough support.

    ¡°If remnants of the Octyrrum of old wait for us to claim them, then in our hour of need I must insist that-¡°

    ¡°Thank you, admiral, perhaps we shall discuss that later,¡± Soraso spoke over him, almost literally cutting off his words. Daniel knew Soraso was level 4 to Lagori Talongleam¡¯s 5, and for a moment it seemed the leader of Apex Flight wanted to lean on that disparity before he let it go.

    Kahvin¡¯s a dangerous idiot, Daniel thought to himself. But he¡¯s just dangerous. I don¡¯t think he¡¯s using any powers, but he¡¯s still putting Soraso in a rough spot.

    The image around them flickered, and in the next moment Cloak held up a hand. ¡°I¡¯m afraid my presence is needed elsewhere. While Hammer¡¯s Realm is a focal point in this war, it is not the only one.¡± With that, the image fully disappeared and left them on the island. Daniel was surprised to find that the mysterious figure that had come to them was Callister, or at least his body.

    ¡°Do you have a mana potion by chance?¡± he asked wearily, without any of the gravity or faint echo from before. He almost wondered if Cloak had managed to jump into another Proxy to leave Callister, but there was a brief look in the man¡¯s eyes that told him otherwise. He¡¯d seen what had happened to Daniel¡¯s Spoke just like how he¡¯d read the change in attributes, and like Daniel was waiting for a good time to talk about it.

    ¡°Here.¡± Daniel offered a level 1 potion from supplies he¡¯d replenished. They¡¯d gotten more expensive since he¡¯d bought them in Aughal, but it was still worth it. Most of the healing potions they had were with Willow, Khiat, or Khare, who could use them despite their different body structure.

    Willow wasn¡¯t oblivious to their sudden guest, but she had taken some time to inspect them. ¡°Have I seen you somewhere? You¡¯re a Cleric in Cloak¡¯s church, right?¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± the old intelligence in the young man lied. ¡°It was like you said, by the way. I was sent after Captain Esket Marrow originally, you just happened to be a good second option. I heard he was the one who sent the first warning.¡±

    ¡°How did you get here, and do you need help getting back?¡± She looked to Tlara, perhaps fearing what a direct representative of a god would have to say should he figure out either her sister¡¯s situation or her history.

    Cloak just nodded amicably though as he finished the potion. ¡°Our church has its ways, but I would appreciate some help on the return trip. Humans just aren¡¯t built for this region.¡± He said it like a joke and Daniel was stunned by the brazenness of the act. The guy was talking to Willow like she was the typical Threst supremacist, and worse, he knew what that would do.

    ¡°Oh, no it¡¯s no trouble. Tlara can fly you back.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve named your wyvern? I guess I shouldn¡¯t be surprised with a specimen this fine.¡±

    This is Cloak, right? Daniel thought as they prepared to go, the god both throwing him an inside joke while continuing to fluster Willow. He¡¯d never been like this before, and it didn¡¯t seem to be a complete act. Was it just relief from finally getting his church to recognize him? ¡°Will you need me to give you any info on what happened today?¡± he asked, keeping up the act.

    A seriousness he recognized came over Cloak as he climbed onto the wyvern that was currently contemplating biting him in half. ¡°Yes. We should talk later.¡±

    ¡­

    The calm sea was changing. Hunter had seen a pit form before, but that had been the work of something acting upon the reflective ocean. Its edges had been jagged and repaired before his eyes, whereas now it seemed the world he was inhabiting was shaping itself. The evenness was broken, the surface now gently rising and falling. It got worse every day, and while it was slow, Hunter could tell the average ¡®height¡¯ of the floor was lowering.

    ¡°It¡¯s waking,¡± Grave commented, running a hand through the reflective surface. Remembering his name had sharpened his form and mind, but granting the spirit to Willow had had the strongest effect. There was now a consistent nature to his outline, even ghostly hair that sometimes waved in an absent breeze. Grave did not have any further definition than that, and his mind still slipped on occasion, but he was otherwise as different as the surroundings were compared to when Hunter first arrived in the Astral.

    ¡°What do you mean? What I felt with Daniel, is it related?¡± Hunter wasn¡¯t sure what to think about the incident himself. The tether representing his bond hadn¡¯t been severed, but it had changed briefly in a way he couldn¡¯t describe. As it turns out, neither could Grave as he shook his featureless head.

    A reflective ripple was sent out as he flicked his fingers out of the ground. ¡°The Astral was sealed from the Octyrrum after I died. I was responsible for it. I still am,¡± he said somewhat distantly, looking at his hand. A few drops still lingered on his hand, and Hunter could make out himself in those small shards. Grave let them fall from his hand after a moment. ¡°This land has gone untended for so long. Here it was simply negated, but outside of the Octyrrum¡¯s reach, in the Crest, matters have gotten far worse. That horror you defeated is only a minor symptom of that problem. But something¡¯s changed on the other side. They can¡¯t have found a replacement for me, I would know. Hmm¡­¡±

    Grave tapped the ground with his foot in several places, watching the ripples intently. Hunter still couldn¡¯t make the sea dance like that. Between his memories, original personality, and influence on the Astral returning, Hunter was quickly becoming outclassed by what he¡¯d once considered to be an inferior. He wondered if this was how Daniel felt. Though, it had to be said Grave still refused to directly fight any other horrors they¡¯d come across.

    ¡°A dozen powerful spirits traveled through this space recently,¡± he remarked after some thought. ¡°They had no class. Monsters, it had to be. It is another Collapse, but even so, why reintegrate the Astral?¡±

    ¡°Collapse?¡±

    Grave seemed uneasy as he replied. ¡°Yes. I have been meaning to-¡°

    ¡°I am a person,¡± Hunter declared.

    ¡°Yes, but it is complicated. Where do your loyalties lie? This is a time when your kind assaults mine relentlessly. Do you feel their call?¡±

    Hunter stared at where the eyes would be. ¡°The hatred? No. I will never be controlled again. By anyone. I just want to get back to my friends.¡±

    ¡°Have you ever killed a mortal?¡±

    ¡°I kill anything that tries to hurt the people I care about,¡± Hunter replied evenly, trying to conceal as best he could his activation of the hunt Archetype. He¡¯d figured out he could only use one at a time and while he couldn¡¯t sense any obvious sign that he was using it so long as he didn¡¯t move, Grave could be an exception.

    ¡°Spirits. They are like incomplete souls. When I was alive, I and my people would shepherd them, tend to the Astral and try and prevent any horrors at all from forming. It¡­ they are what they are because of us. Because I couldn¡¯t stop them,¡± Grave lamented, not going where Hunter was expecting him to. A chill ran over his fur as Hunter got the sense Grave was looking at him, though not with any fake eyes or the appearance he had in this strange world. ¡°Your existence is a sign of my negligence. A failure, but one extraordinarily rare to have found a path alone.¡±

    ¡°I wasn¡¯t alone.¡±

    ¡°Of course. What I am saying is that you are not like the others. A dozen powerful spirits under the command of those who hate my kind came here, and I fear the havoc they wrought. If you have any sympathies-¡°

    ¡°I do not!¡± Hunter inadvertently growled, offended. ¡°Sides. I see no sides, only friend and enemy. Assuming one is another because of how they look is how you get killed.¡± His tail lashed as he grimaced. ¡°It is one way to. If they attack Daniel, Tak, or any of the others, I will kill them. It doesn¡¯t matter if they do it with fangs or a sword.¡±

    It seemed to be the answer Grave was hoping for, and yet there was a disappointment in his voice Hunter wasn¡¯t sure was entirely directed at him. ¡°It shouldn¡¯t be this way. In the beginning, we tried to¡­ to¡­¡± his voice faltered as one of the ghostly hands clutched his head. ¡°No. It¡¯s still gone. The end, and the beginning. I still can¡¯t recall either clearly. Brothers, sisters, I feel you still. Why would you reintegrate the Astral without me?¡±

    ¡°Why is that bad?¡± Hunter asked, again taken aback by a rapid shift in topic.

    Grave indicated one of the nearby depressions. ¡°The Astral will begin manifesting in the Octyrrum, growing stronger as this continues. Those classes bound to me have been released, but without my church they will be directionless against the threats that will appear. Those wolves will just be the start.¡±

    ¡°It sounds like we both need to go back,¡± Hunter commented leadingly. He hadn¡¯t asked this next question in a while since it could cause Grave to blank out, but he was hoping he¡¯d regained enough of his mind to finally answer it. ¡°Do you know how we can?¡±

    A long moment passed, Grave turning to face the deep purple to black that was the sky. ¡°There might be a way.¡±

 Chapter 201: Full Magic Jacket

    Wreckage and bodies were strewn across the broad ground that made up Pinion¡¯s Point upon Daniel¡¯s return. Fortunately, most of the corpses were those of monsters as they¡¯d prioritized kidnapping mortals rather than killing them. It was still a devastation of the town that reached even where the Wingcraft had sheltered.

    Daniel idly watched out the window as he waited for Cloak. Spinner was in the process of removing portions of her webbing now that they no longer needed a Halloween vibe, though she was keeping minute threads around the place to retain detection. They needed to put in some work too. The floor below him was trashed from the forced passage of part of the monster horde.

    At least it sounded like the Blessed of Pinion¡¯s Point would be well rewarded for being the only settlement aside from Aurus to down one of the horde leaders, so they could afford repairs. Ygazir. He thought back to the information Identify Creature had given him, and the notifications that had come once the artificial power triggered in him had worn off.

    <hr>

    Invested Deliverer of Subservience - Ygazir

    -

    System Alert: ??? has been corrupted by ???. Attempts to trigger self-annihilation failed due to entanglement of a Soul innately resisting this effect. Domain: Monster fully integrated into ???.

    -

    System Alert: ??? has attempted to alter an unawakened Power through use of Domain Manipulation. Fundamental Law: Immutable Soul has attempted to prevent this, but has failed. Your Defense: Charisma was unable to overcome the Will of ???. Ability: Monstrous Evolution has been forcibly awakened and is accessible while benefiting from the Effects of Ability: Beast Mode.

    -

    Monstrous Evolution (Evolution, Domain: Monster): Temporarily sacrifice Archetypes for an empowered form. Grow stronger to dare new heights.

    -

    Unbreakable* (Adaptation, Domain: Monster): Burn the essence of Magic to cling to life. Let all others break before you.

    *System Note: This Power was Awakened while you were under the effect of Ability: Monster Evolution. It only functions while you benefit from this power.

    <hr>

    The two powers he¡¯d acquired during all that madness along with the notifications proved he¡¯d been infected on some level by the Origin Beast. His sole solace was that the changes were to the Spoke and Beast Mode, while Daniel himself, that is his soul, had been untouched. He was still himself. If that forced power was anything like Tak¡¯s it could be considered a good thing in some respect, like a super-charged rage power that came at the cost of any semblance of control or memory of the events. He¡¯d compared the Totem Warrior class, and then what Beast Mode did, to a form of lycanthropy before but this was the first power that really enveloped the concept of being cursed.

    Almost as an afterthought, he checked his Settings app and saw that he had gained two advancement potential from his struggles. He hadn¡¯t committed them yet as he wanted to talk things through with Cloak first. They both had a lot to answer for.

    While he waited, he made more ammunition, experimenting with a new design. He¡¯d tried adding the fire affix to the base spineshard enchantment a day or so ago and discovered that it resulted in ammunition that would explode when exposed to fire, instead of lightning. There¡¯d been other things going on and he¡¯d had a full stockpile of ammo, so it hadn¡¯t been until now that he had reason and time to develop the theory, which included needing to change how the blast bow ignited ammunition.

    With all the factors going into the end result of enchanting Daniel was sure there would be plenty of new combinations to discover, especially as he continued to gain both material and formulae. A quick pass of the bodies in the town while on the way back had already earned him three more. While none were immediately relevant, Evalyn would be very happy whenever they found her.

    The first one was pathfinder, and it kind of sucked. It was essentially a compass that would either indicate north, the nearest Octyrrum-registered settlement, or a point Daniel designated while he was there. Useful for other people, perhaps, and he¡¯d bind at least one to his room to have in case his map function conked out¡­ but he had a pretty detailed map of Threst already.

    Clearsound instrument was fairly straightforward, it amplified the sound an instrument made and gave him a base appropriate for making instruments. While he could contort the shape of another basic enchantment like how he¡¯d made the receiver for his blast bow from the very tortured form of a helmet, a Bard couldn¡¯t bind that as a Focus.

    Lastly was silent weapon, a base formulae that made everything a weapon directly did less noticeable. It was kind of like the far-shot bow formulae he¡¯d traded for earlier, and if you couldn¡¯t guess what he was going to do with that then you hadn¡¯t been paying attention. But for now, it was back to the ammunition grind and further developments to his arsenal.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

    This new round he was making had a red blasting jacket around the slug rather than a purplish one, signifying the addition of the fire attribute to spineshard ammunition. It had required the creation of another trigger mechanism to accommodate, but this went slightly easier as he was dropping the lightning affix altogether rather than replacing it.

    Instead, Daniel would use Invest Affix on that individual component, which he likened to taking the safety off the weapon. Before, anyone could pick it up and fire it because all the pieces were in place. Now it would still shoot anything with a red jacket, but to shoot purple jackets he would have to swap it to shoot lighting by instilling that affix. Depending on how other damage types worked, this would also future proof the design and allow him to use other colors of jackets too.

    The point of all this work was to revive the spineshard/lightning affix combo and create explosive rounds that didn¡¯t have the maximum range penalty of lightning bolts. He¡¯d still have to be careful to keep the magazines in a dimensional space as they¡¯d explosively react to two different kinds of elemental damage, or being dropped on something considered a target. That was also a concern if he ran into something with a strong enough elemental attack to get through the insulation of his weapon, but you couldn¡¯t protect from everything. Not even yourself.

    ¡°If Star could see you, he¡¯d weep,¡± Cloak commented, the god appearing out of nowhere as before.

    ¡°Am I doing something wrong, or do you mean what just happened?¡± Daniel asked over his shoulder, sensing through his enhanced hearing the god relax. He wasn¡¯t being as aggressive as he was back when Soraso had implied the god had lied. ¡°I¡¯m getting better, but this¡­ this impulsiveness. It¡¯s more of a problem than I thought.¡±

    ¡°You formed a dangerous bond,¡± Cloak replied with a hint of condescension. ¡°Those always change people. It¡¯s a deeper magic than our system.¡±

    ¡°I had control of it before¡­ mostly. There was the hulk stomper. I guess, I guess I¡¯m just going to keep throwing myself into any situation that¡¯s not obviously suicidal until this is over. Is that what you¡¯re saying?¡± Cloak didn¡¯t answer, an uncertain look on his face. Daniel decided there was no point dancing around the real topic. ¡°What the Origin Beast did to my Spoke, how bad is it?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Cloak sighed, and the god seemed more tired than he¡¯d ever been as he took a seat in Daniel¡¯s somewhat spacious room. It was about three times the size of the one he¡¯d initially enchanted in at Hagain Village and had a decent balcony that was still covered in webs. ¡°My best guess based off of your description is that the god added its domain to the Spoke so you would act as a relay for it as you do for ours. That¡¯s part of how they work. At certain times each of us would instill each other¡¯s godseeds with our domain through a Proxy.¡±

    ¡°If the Origin Beast is already infecting Threst with its system I guess it¡¯s not that bad,¡± Daniel ventured hopefully, though Cloak¡¯s defeatist attitude didn¡¯t waver.

    ¡°Perhaps. It will make the future difficult, but this shouldn¡¯t be possible. Our systems directly conflict.¡±

    Daniel obviously didn¡¯t know either, but something Cloak had said struck him. ¡°If each god has to instill this godseed with their domain, how did you work in Grave¡¯s domain into mine after he died?¡±

    ¡°You have-¡° Cloak began, but then paused as he looked to the side and thought deeply. The Proxy he inhabited still limited him mentally as it did physically, but he seemed able to handle it well like an expert at a game returning to the tutorial. ¡°Oh. Oh, I see the shape of his plan now.¡± Cloak came out of his ponderings grinning fiercely, at the edge of laughing. ¡°I take it all back. It may damn us all, but at least it damns him with us.¡±

    Daniel didn¡¯t like the spite he heard in the voice. ¡°What about the domain? My Spoke can influence power acquisition. We¡¯re in trouble if people start gaining monster domain powers.¡±

    ¡°The Druid class is already based on altered concepts from that,¡± Cloak said, waving away the concerns as his sudden good mood continued unabated. ¡°One of the ways we mitigated the passive encroachment from sharing this world with them. It will enhance the native monster population, but not significantly more than everything else going on.¡±

    ¡°Then why are you so happy?¡±

    Cloak considered his answer before giving it. ¡°Someone took a great amount of care to make you into a key. You no longer fit the lock they wanted to break.¡±

    Guessing that¡¯s that ¡®he¡¯ Cloak keeps mentioning. It¡¯d have to be Hammer, Star, or Hourglass as long as this god isn¡¯t playing an enormously convoluted game. Which he could be. ¡°You didn¡¯t tell me you got in contact with your church.¡±

    Cloak¡¯s smile faded. ¡°No, I didn¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°So now that I¡¯m not your only hope it¡¯s back to me needing to know nothing?¡± The latest round he¡¯d been working on clattered onto the desk and Daniel turned to fully face him. ¡°Or are you about to try and wipe out what I do know so you can pretend this is the first time we¡¯ve met, like you just did with Willow?¡±

    Cloak stiffened at the return of hostility in Daniel¡¯s voice. ¡°I¡¯ve told you before about my purpose in this world. It is how I have lived for millennia.¡±

    ¡°But not always.¡± Daniel stood up and shut the balcony doors, even though he was sure Cloak was already muffling the room. ¡°This isn¡¯t the first time the System has triggered a Collapse, is it? This isn¡¯t the first time a god has died.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve remembered?¡± Cloak exclaimed, the previous edge in his voice changing to urgency. ¡°That conversation with Star was close to the end, you¡¯re nearly to-¡°

    ¡°Remembered? No, I just figured it out.¡± Cloak opened his mouth, and-

    ???

    ¡°Thank Fortune,¡± Cloak gasped as he snapped Daniel out of the Unidentification fog. ¡°It¡¯s getting worse, but you haven¡¯t fully lost the memories. Even so, you shouldn¡¯t have been able to come to that conclusion unless the effect Torch put on you is settling.¡±

    ¡°But I¡¯m right?¡±

    ¡°What does that matter?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve been lying to your entire civilization about basic historical facts!¡± Daniel shouted. He knew Cloak¡¯s justifications for doing so and didn¡¯t care. The bond had nothing to do with this. He¡¯d seen Willow and the rest talk to Cloak¡¯s vessel after he¡¯d revealed himself. Between that and his torture at the hands of the monster god, he¡¯d become done with how they could run roughshod over their ¡®lessers¡¯. ¡°Everyone here is thinking this is the end of everything because this is the first time the Spokes have ever failed against the Crest. Ignore the fact that this time is different because something happened to the rest of the gods, I know that didn¡¯t factor into the Collapse. Why keep it a secret that you can recover from this!?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t see why you¡¯re so upset,¡± Cloak replied defensively, not directly answering him. ¡°It¡¯s not your history or your world. Surely you understand why keeping some information secret is important. It would all fall apart if the world learned what happened during those memories you have still yet to recover! The same would be true if they learned a countless number of unfortunate realities. It is my divine purpose to shroud that which should never be seen. Unfettered, absolute transparency at all times is neither a moral nor a realistic good.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve still taken it too far,¡± Daniel shot back, but he knew arguing was pointless. The balance of power and perspective between them was too slanted to come to an agreement. ¡°And it just proves that I can¡¯t trust you. I don¡¯t even know if this is you or someone pretending to be you like with Soraso. There¡¯s no way you maintained each illusion in that conference.¡±

    ¡°Like it or not, we are stuck together. Unless you would see this world burn.¡± Cloak advanced on him, a shimmer in the air rising around him that didn¡¯t form any one solid image, though Daniel could make out vague aspects of blood, death, and carnage. ¡°Who would want to know this world has fallen more than once? More than a hundred, a thousand times? To see all of this and still persist is as noble as anyone should be expected to be! We could be Tyrants of our own right if we had the will.¡±

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you?¡± Daniel stood his ground. Cloak was brimming with divine fury, but he had nothing on the Tlara of old. The charisma of his vessel was just too low to put enough force into the words to overcome Daniel¡¯s higher attributes. ¡°Ignore everything you¡¯ve done before this Collapse and look at it from my perspective. Aren¡¯t you just ordering me and my friends around, taking their memories, and telling me to trust you or the world dies?¡±

    The visions around Cloak faded, but his eyes grew hard. ¡°We aren¡¯t moving past this impasse, then. It¡¯s not like we need to coordinate anymore, I can do more good working through my church than moralizing with you. I¡¯ve told you enough times what you need to do for you to know the answers you seek. After witnessing one of the horrors of this war return I can¡¯t find the patience to continue shouting into deaf ears.¡± Cloak¡¯s voice broke toward the end, regardless of how he tried to stop it. He appeared legitimately disturbed by what the monster gods had done today, and while that did change Daniel¡¯s mind slightly, it didn¡¯t change his decision.

    ¡°Alright.¡± Daniel gestured to the hallway door. ¡°You may have your reasons, but your methods suck. I don¡¯t care if it¡¯s arrogance, stress, or just you. This isn¡¯t how you treat people.¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Cloak scoffed. ¡°It¡¯s how you save the world.¡± He walked to the door but stopped before reaching it, instead grabbing a stone on his waist. It was clearly telling him something, but he¡¯d blocked the words from Daniel¡¯s ears. That proved pointless as he turned around, bitter surprise in his frown. ¡°That was one of mine in Aurus. That Hero in charge of Apex Flight is putting pressure on Soraso about the ruins and because of the panic people are backing him.¡± He explained this dryly, though Daniel could tell there was more to it. ¡°The gestalt could only get them to back off by promising action.¡±

    Daniel could read all he could need to on Cloak¡¯s face. ¡°Us!?¡±

    ¡°Your friend Murdon still doesn¡¯t have a full team, and you were the second pick. They¡¯re giving you two weeks to prepare, and then you¡¯re going in.¡±

 Chapter 202: Weight of Heroism

    Toralaw Talongleam would have risen before dawn if not for the realities of the Octyrrum. Even one as ¡®devoted¡¯ and ¡®prodigious¡¯ as him couldn¡¯t add more time to the day or change the need for sleep. Kahvin idly thought that he¡¯d never heard of anyone bypassing that limit regardless of class or level. If there was ever one to do it then it would be his brother, if only to add yet another laurel to his brow while on his quest to usurp him. The only reason he knew his brother hadn¡¯t taken that as an actual quest was that his father was putting Toralaw through the same enhanced training he¡¯d gone through.

    Not that he or his brother were embarking on any at this moment. Kahvin hadn¡¯t sworn any Quest after the fallout from that disastrous hunt. That man, that human, who was arrogant enough to think he¡¯d earned the sky for just putting on some special jacket still infuriated him. He¡¯d explained the risks of the mission, hadn¡¯t he? It was the responsibility of the team leader to look out for their team, and having the gall to blame him for-

    Kahvin leaned deeper onto the balcony overlooking the sparring field of his family estate, switching back to his other woe. He was losing momentum. It could just be the difficulty hike from level 3, but a part of the Hero was terrified it was something else. Toralaw, the showoff, was only gaining altitude. Not literally at least as he hadn¡¯t yet gotten to the point of self-sufficient flight, the fledgling level 1 Hero instead fighting at the bottom of the pit surrounded by ropes.

    Toralaw was only level 1, though his attribute total was around where Kahvin¡¯s was long after he¡¯d ascended to the second level. His father¡¯s doing, no doubt. His sons couldn¡¯t be given free rein of their advancement after his mistake. The first failure that had begun the steady decline that was now threatening to turn into a free fall. His face had been scarred by that duel with another Hero, who¡¯d been exiled from the region for daring to do so. There were other marks too. Despite having arranged the exile, Lagori seemed intent on turning his second son into a copy of the one who¡¯d humiliated the first.

    His brother was currently dueling a level 2 sword Martiliast, human. Flight was such a significant advantage over the wingless kind that the gliding Toralaw was capable of could have changed the fight, so both were staying grounded. Even so, Toralaw was pressing his opponent. There was a beauty to the simple, efficient movement Kahvin hated. How many hours every day did Toralaw pour into practicing movement itself, and to what end? He¡¯d barely touch the ground in most hunts.

    Then there was the sword work itself. Toralaw had an attack power, Reverse Lariat. It was a sweeping attack that started at the front, went above the head, and then struck at anything behind the user. Not as ridiculously flashy as Hero special attacks could get, and it was also a committed attack. Using it in most cases would leave you open to the front until the power was over. All committed attack powers had that kind of weakness.

    Except Toralaw, that bastard younger brother of his, had figured out a cheat. Kahvin watched as his brother began executing the maneuver, his opponent parrying the initial hit. The Martialist followed up with a quick strike, expecting Toralaw to block with his shield and effectively reset the state of the duel. His brother did block, but the sword twisted in air above his head and came back down to strike at the human in what could have led to a decapitation were they using real swords.

    It was ridiculous. The deflection off the Martialist¡¯s blade hadn¡¯t broken the path of Reverse Lariat, rather his brother had somehow managed to reverse the reversal. It was exactly the kind of cheap trick that¡­ And who the Crest needs to train something like that anyway? Monsters are stupid, you don¡¯t need to work this hard.

    He didn¡¯t get it. Even with the new threats, Aurus had it handled. So some new type had trashed the outlying garbage heaps, the capitol had it handled. They just needed to bunker down for a year or so and then the gods would take care of everything. You didn¡¯t need to overthink this.

    Kahvin shook his head as he stood up, shaking out his arms as he Grew his wings. Flying around the city was more annoying now that the defenses had been heightened. Certain zones where the ballistae were clustered were restricted to keep sightlines clear. The nest guard didn¡¯t have the manpower to shepherd all of these, but you still needed to stay away as they would fire on threats no matter if you were in the way or not.

    The Talongleams lived near the top of the mountain, on the side that faced the Shattered Falls even, but that blessing had turned into a curse as there were now narrow, constricted flight paths down. It was almost as slow as walking, and he pitied anyone whose flying was weak enough to prevent them from hovering in place. Kahvin wanted to just break out of the queues and quickly dive, but he had every reason to avoid being noticed these days.

    He couldn¡¯t land in the Divine Quarter¡¯s courtyard either, as that had been dramatically fortified along with other areas of the city. One of the gods had sent an echo of themselves to help, though his father had expressed private doubts to his mother whilst they were dining. Kahvin had to agree that of all the churches to have made the moves Cloak¡¯s had, the only one he¡¯d trust less was Hourglass¡¯. Those seventh Realm freaks were just too out there.

    At least he was going to one of the good ones. The church of the Hand had a better reputation than all of the others, beating out Hammer¡¯s in his own Realm. That wasn¡¯t too much of a surprise. I don¡¯t even blame them for my beak. Kahvin found him touching the spot as he walked into the lobby. It was small but noticeable, and it hadn¡¯t healed properly. Regular healing powers didn¡¯t work on breaks in hard body parts like bones. His family could afford the means to repair it regardless, but¡­

    ¡°Kahvin Talongleam, Hero of Threst,¡± he said almost absentmindedly when he found himself in front of a green-feathered Cleric after a minute of aimless wandering. He could have gone straight to the desk but he was hesitating, unsure of even coming here in the first place. ¡°I¡¯m the captain of Talonwing. There¡¯s someone here on my team receiving treatment.¡±

    It was odd how easily the formal court way of speaking could come to him when he wasn¡¯t paying attention. He could usually block it out when there was a potential match in the room, but this Cleric was too old for his tastes. Plus there was just a¡­ I don¡¯t know, a look in her eye that makes me think she can tear me in half if she wants to. ¡°Can I see him?¡± he added when the Cleric didn¡¯t immediately reply, only continuing to look at him with that sharp gaze.

    ¡°From what I know, no one from his team has visited since he was injured,¡± she accused.

    ¡°I¡¯m here now, aren¡¯t I?¡± Too bitter, I¡¯m not like that. ¡°I wanted to come sooner. How is he doing?¡±

    The Cleric gave him an assessing look, frowning slightly though she didn¡¯t speak on whatever she was thinking. ¡°He¡¯s this way.¡±

    Kahvin followed, feeling a weight on him as he continued down the hallway that he tried to ignore. Every injured person here reached out to him through his powers, evoking Call for Help to name just one of the powers his father had been thrilled he¡¯d received. He hated it. Why trigger for them? They¡¯re getting help. They don¡¯t need me. He could ignore the urges most times, but they were always there. All he wanted was a simple life.

    ¡°He¡¯s in here.¡± Again he got the sense that the Cleric wanted to say something else, but he was having a hard time reading what exactly. He¡¯d had some disparity in wisdom practically since he¡¯d gained his class, and Kahvin had the feeling the Cleric was on his level, maybe getting close to 4. ¡°With his Regeneration, he was able to survive the initial injuries,¡± she continued softly, in case there were people nearby who could overhear. ¡°I¡¯ve had the chance to observe how severe injuries can affect self-healing powers recently. Acid isn¡¯t a traditional counter to this one, but the tissue has been damaged to the point that recovery has been affected.¡±

    Kahvin¡¯s eyes glazed over for a moment before he shook his head. ¡°Sorry, what?¡±

    ¡°It will be another week at least, and he¡¯s in pain,¡± the Cleric replied simply. ¡°You are here to see how soon he¡¯ll be ready to hunt, yes?¡±This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    ¡°Huh? Oh yeah, I guess.¡± Kahvin stood in front of the doorway, hand shaking a little as he reached for the knob.

    ¡°If there is anything you need to speak privately on¡­¡± the Cleric offered behind him, so quiet he could hear his heartbeat over her words.

    ¡°There¡¯s nothing to say.¡± He quickly opened and closed the door behind him, not initially taking in what was in the room. Damn it. Does she have a mind reading power? I don¡¯t need people causing more problems for me.

    ¡°Kahvin,¡± a voice wheezed feebly, and the Hero finally took a look at who was lying on the bed. The sight of Clacki would have been enough to make him sick if he hadn¡¯t seen how the Berserker had looked after being pulled out of that Crest-damned monster. Almost all of his feathers had been dissolved, and acid had eaten deeply into various parts of his body. One hand had been severed just from what had gone missing, and he could see a section of bone that had rotted.

    When Clacki had joined the team, Kahvin had been envious of that power. So simple in what it did, and yet it could fix anything given time. There was no more exposed bone, and the feathers were regrown in the areas that hadn¡¯t been too damaged. Still, this looked less like recovery and more like torture. ¡°Hey,¡± he grunted.

    ¡°Bertrar and Adva?¡±

    ¡°Grunt work,¡± Kahvin shrugged, trying not to hear the pain in his teammate¡¯s voice. Clacki quickly rose when he heard this, and Kahvin winced as he saw blood begin to stain the bandages.

    ¡°Your dad didn¡¯t-¡°

    ¡°No,¡± he quickly assured. ¡°The Commander. She would have gotten to me too if she could. It sounds like they¡¯ve been too busy to check in with you.¡±

    Clacki chuckled lightly. ¡°Not much to see here boss. What about you? I don¡¯t know if I should be surprised you came this late or that you came at all.¡±

    ¡°How are you feeling, really?¡± Kahvin asked his friend, dodging the question. ¡°If those idiots hadn¡¯t left us to fight that thing alone we could have-¡°

    ¡°I¡¯m good boss, really,¡± Clacki said, using the tone he always did when what he wanted to say was that his boss was being a bit much. Or that he should stop staring at tail feathers before he got smacked. ¡°Just thinking about how everything¡¯s changing. I heard what happened two days ago.¡±

    ¡°Everything¡¯s going to be fine. I don¡¯t know why everyone¡¯s so worried,¡± Kahvin replied curtly, his words heating up towards the end. ¡°Aurus isn¡¯t going anywhere. That damned Crest isn¡¯t going to-¡±

    His voice broke and Clacki gave him an odd look, the Hero appreciating for the first time that one of the Berserker¡¯s eyes seemed to have just finished reforming. ¡°What are you talking about?¡±

    ¡°Why does everything have to be so hard!?¡± he almost shouted before remembering himself. If this had been somewhere public it would have been a disaster. ¡°We were set for an easy life. A bit of monster hunting between kicking it up with some hot chicks and just enjoying the world. Why does this all have to happen now?¡±

    The Berserker pondered that sage question before he just shook his head, unable to pierce through to the cosmic truth that eluded Kahvin. ¡°I think you need some rest too, boss. It¡¯s not going to get any easier.¡±

    ¡°Yeah,¡± he replied simply, hurt by the disappointment that was suddenly in Clacki¡¯s voice. The Berserker was just too injured for him to make anything of it. Kahvin was too lost to either. He left without saying another word, but as he walked back into the secluded hallway, a fierce grip suddenly enveloped his arm. ¡°No, wait, I-¡°

    ¡°Boy,¡± a harsh voice intoned from behind him as his father began to activate one of his powers. ¡°It seems you need another lesson.¡± Both vanished before anyone could react, not that they¡¯d been noticed.

    ¡­

    The room was odd with respect to avianoid structural design. Fully interior rooms existed as a matter of course in any space large enough to require structural support, though you would be hard pressed to find any room without windows that people wanted to stay in for a prolonged period of time. This was one such exception, where Lagori Talongleam oversaw the finer points of his heirs¡¯ education.

    Levels gave and changed much, perspective chief among them. Lagori thought he might have reached the point where he¡¯d stopped aging, or at least wouldn¡¯t enter old age for a thousand years. A thousand years. He¡¯d served Threst for two centuries without letting distractions such as a family life intrude on his devotion to his people, region, and gods. It was only when he¡¯d ascended to his current position that he had considered other aspects of life. The only heights he could further aspire to were leading the Hunter¡¯s Guild, or the regency itself. He had no interest in the former and up until recently had no chance at the latter.

    So, time. Hourglass¡¯ domain was the cruelest. Lagori had achieved all he could through duty alone and had thus set out to assure that his legacy would extend beyond his tenure in Threst, whether due to his climbing to the peak of his class or his death. His first son, and his first failure sat frozen in the armchair, bound by Valorous Expectation.

    Powers were so versatile. Toralaw was showing an admirable understanding of this already, which further highlighted the failings of his older brother. His first wife had urged a measured approach to Kahvin¡¯s upbringing and like a fool he¡¯d obliged her to some small degree. Now he could see the consequences of that decision. The power he was using was nominally meant to inspire bravery in those fighting alongside him, empowering them in the way of Bardic music while cutting out all that was unnecessary.

    But there were other ways to use it. The power gave people an example to live up to. If they couldn¡¯t, and if he pressed, then this would happen. All Kahvin had to do was stand out of the chair and he would embrace the man his son had become, but it wasn¡¯t to be. Not today, but Lagori would give his son every chance to improve. Heroes never left anyone behind.

    ¡°I was clear in my instructions,¡± he declared after Kahvin had suffered the costs of his transgression for a full minute. ¡°We are not to be seen with failure. We are the hopes of the common people, their bastion. It does not do to show them the cracks in the wall.¡±

    Lagori eased the tension slightly, allowing Kahvin to speak despite how poorly he fit the ideal in his mind. It still took him a moment to compose himself, a sign of the imbalance in his attributes he had still yet to correct after all these years. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    ¡°Insufficient.¡± His son¡¯s words broke over Lagori like the talons of a monster who thought it knew the meaning of ferocity. ¡°I had been content to watch your path, hoping to see you finally mature once given responsibility. My hopes soared with your bravery against the ripair hawk, and yet it would seem to be an exception rather than a development. It confounds me how recent circumstances haven¡¯t shown you the way to greatness.¡±

    Lagori clicked his beak in a tsk and moved to his desk, withdrawing a piece of parchment before writing on it with a quill made from the preserved feather of his own tragically glorious father. ¡°Then you proceed to be humiliated by a foreigner who has only tasted the sky. In full view of a Fate, no less. It sounded as though you hardly fought back.¡± He could sense Kahvin trying to speak, resisting the power on him, but the attempt was feebler than an immature chick failing to break out of its shell.

    ¡°You are fortunate I was able to intercede, doubly so given your rival¡¯s backing.¡± The scratching of the quill paused as Lagori turned contemplative for a moment. ¡°Ruins. I have heard certain rumors of divine portents surrounding that Artificer, and yet their lineage is questionable. Too crossed with speculation. Fitting, considering the only avianoid following him is a mongrel unfit for a true name. The daughter of a traitor.¡±

    He sighed and turned back to face Kahvin, who was now looking in horror at the parchment. ¡°Too much is at risk for me to allow weakness to fester in the heart of Aurus. The hand of the enemy moves to claim our people and turn them into its pawns. How fitting that of the only settlements outside of Aurus to survive relatively unscathed, the Sojourn and that foreigner were at each?¡±

    Lagori took a seat himself and moved a table between the two of them through Force of Will. ¡°I know somewhere in that hormone-addled mind you have seen the same signs. I refuse to believe that Hammer would abandon us to the likes of Cloak, especially with the fall of Rikendia. We are the top contender for a new center of the kingdom, and yet, another god comes in his stead. Spiritualists have shown their hand in Aughal, demonstrating how easily they turned the weak-willed duskers of the city to their end. You must have wondered if they could do the same with a church.¡±

    Kahvin saw the words on the parchment now and did manage to vocalize something, but it could barely be considered a whine. ¡°This isn¡¯t the time for indecision or weakness. It is time for us all to make a Noble Sacrifice, my son.¡± He waited, but as he thought Kahvin wasn¡¯t a willing target of the ability. ¡°I see. Then, perhaps it would be best for you Reminiscence on Failings.¡±

    Despite his development of novel uses of his powers, even Lagori wasn¡¯t sure why this worked the way it did on Kahvin. It was meant to be a way for Heroes to relive past mistakes and learn from them, and he had made use of this power many times to beneficial effect. And yet, it seemed Kahvin could not help but relive that one duel years ago when he clearly wished otherwise.

    Gadriel Cross was a coward who¡¯d gotten what he¡¯d deserved, of course. Using a cheap tactic in a duel was unbecoming of any proper Hero of Threst, not that the human could have ever aspired to be so. That wasn¡¯t to say humans didn¡¯t have their place, but avianoids were simply optimized for the region. Other races could live here quite fine, but when one dared to threaten the fate of a true master of the sky?

    Lagori felt no qualms about helping a fellow Hero find a place elsewhere where he could truly shine, though it had to be said he despised the mark he had left on his son. Kahvin was panting as he came out of the trance, temporarily out of the effect of Valorous Expectation before it was pushed back onto him without issue. His mental defenses were truly atrocious. ¡°Have you changed your mind?¡± he asked simply, closing his eyes as he sensed the answer. ¡°Then we will have to do this again. Do not worry, my son. I know you will find true conviction eventually.¡±

    Well immune to the pleading he saw in Kahvin¡¯s eyes, Lagori used his abilities again as he mentally prepared for a long lesson.

 Chapter 203: Show and Tell

    The prospect of venturing into unknown ruins would have normally intrigued Daniel, so long as they weren¡¯t the buried kind. Even with recent events and the unexpected deadline, he was still looking forward to it. They couldn¡¯t be that dangerous since Soraso was Murdon¡¯s friend and had initially picked him for the job. They couldn¡¯t be. More importantly, they were his best lead for Hunter.

    Wingcraft had also gotten a few upgrades since Ygazir¡¯s horde descended on Pinion¡¯s Point. Willow had begun awakening new powers after resolving her disparity, and everyone else was still gaining them as normal. The pace of advancement was slow compared to the explosive gains of his two dragon hunts, and yet they were going faster than the average hunter.

    Powers aside, the team was also getting reinforcements. Not Murdon or Quala, sadly, as both had other responsibilities such as continually pestering the Fates to search for their missing friends or denying that they were dating fledging Pyromancers. At this point Daniel was beginning to wonder if his friends had been sent halfway across the world and wondered how long it would be before they reunited. It was possible his Spoke held the way to bring them back, but as always control of it eluded him.

    Instead of those two powerhouses, they¡¯d been loaned one hunter from another team, and been assigned another who¡¯d recently finished a long recovery. Only the first was with them today. Shuni. It was a little surprising to find that Rogues had entire power sets related to traps, though in hindsight Spinner was exactly the kind of monster you¡¯d want to have them for.

    As his Spoke hadn¡¯t tossed him any of those powers from the Rogue class, they¡¯d needed to bring one on board in case the Octyrrumites of old had set anything up when the world started to Collapse. Daniel still wasn¡¯t clear on how old these were as Cloak had been cagey about the details before he¡¯d all but abandoned direct contact with the Artificer. He was sure the specter would pop back up once he either found whatever the god wanted in the ruins or uncovered the last of the memories, but for now he was on his own.

    Or, well, as much as he could be. This is still so surreal. ¡°So everyone, this is Shuni,¡± he began as he introduced the Rogue while everyone gathered in the common room of the central house. It had several areas open to the sky giving it a semi-courtyard feel, which also had the happy coincidence of allowing Khiat to relax while at her full height.

    ¡°Hi gang. Never been ¡®loaned out¡¯ before but I don¡¯t mind spreading my wings a bit,¡± she replied with a voice a touch deeper than the average avianoid. No member of the species could be said to have a husky voice, but hers had an element of weight to it that most didn¡¯t. ¡°You all seem alright and I¡¯ve already met a couple of you. And before you start worrying, I¡¯m not that kind of Rogue. Stickyfingers don¡¯t make it to level 2 without getting that rep.¡±

    She flexed her arms while keeping them level with the rest of the team as if to show there was nothing in her sleeves. It might have also been a nod to Daniel, who¡¯d promised to provide a few pieces of gear to help her prepare. The stash of fur was definitely over halfway gone now. Still, without Tak or the guild¡¯s resources to process kills he¡¯d need to be stingier in the future.

    ¡°A pleasure to meet you,¡± Willow replied tactfully, though there was a noticeable hesitation in her voice. ¡°We¡¯ll be up to seven with you and the Knight. I hope that will be enough.¡±

    ¡°Ah, I¡¯m not too worried,¡± Shuni smirked as she leaned against a wall, her shoulder beginning to blend in with the wood as she did. ¡°I¡¯m thinking of this like a patrol. I mean, no one¡¯s sure we¡¯ll be fighting monsters, so that¡¯s an improvement right?¡±

    ¡°Right,¡± Willow nodded, but that did little to relieve her.

    The Rogue¡¯s eyes went to each of the people in the room before she turned back to Daniel. ¡°So Captain Brant, I know that Knight¡¯s not joining up until the last minute, but what about that Totem Warrior of yours? He seems like the type that could give me a run for my money, and that¡¯s saying something.¡±

    Khare of all people had figured out the joke first and was looking at Daniel while in their fully-humanoid form, waiting for the reveal. It would¡¯ve been the perfect time to shift considering they were in a private space, especially because Daniel had yet to tell Shuni his full name since meeting her earlier today ¡®for the first time¡¯, but he was wary about Beast Mode now that it had an extremely troubling power attached to it. He hadn¡¯t gone back into it since that day. ¡°That would be me.¡±

    ¡°No, really,¡± she laughed, to which Daniel just shrugged helplessly. ¡°Seriously? Did you multiclass?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s complicated.¡±

    ¡°So who¡¯s the seventh then?¡± Daniel caught Willow¡¯s glance and inwardly sighed. The constant interplay of secrets had grown old to him as well, but at least this one was something they had a good explanation for.

    ¡°Our Beastmaster.¡±

    ¡­

    In the end, Tlara¡¯s situation was the easiest to explain away. There were already a few odd classes awakening among the general population, to say nothing of the powers that both the Collapse and system default had reintroduced. All they needed to do was be a bit creative with when Tlara had acquired her ghosting power and they could blame it on the larger trend, rather than the actual reason of Daniel¡¯s Spoke giving it to her for whatever reason.

    Obviously, that and Daniel¡¯s dual form nature were the only party secrets exposed during the initial meeting. Depending on how the initial expedition turned out, Shuni might only be with them for a day. If all they needed to do to get Hunter back was set foot in the ruins then Daniel wouldn¡¯t have any reason to continue exploring them. Well, almost none, but it would give him more leverage in getting Cloak to explain why he was so fascinated with them.

    The group left Pinion¡¯s Point soon after, leaving Spinner and Janice behind. The Martialist had been stirred but not overly shaken by being kidnapped, though she still turned down Daniel¡¯s offer to make flight gear for her. The way she¡¯d put it, Janice wanted to continue her development with both feet on the ground as she didn¡¯t want to stay in Threst forever. Which was good as Padri was still incommunicado, and he was wary of roping in another Craftsman to help out with the boots.

    The now six of Wingcraft settled down near a gathering of small floating islands, the largest of which would barely fit six Tlaras. There was little risk of danger as the one good thing to come from the recent horde was a scouring of the local monster population. More would spawn eventually, but the real threat would be the elite monsters the other horde leaders would reintroduce once their terrible powers had run their course.

    No, they weren¡¯t here to hunt but to test out powers with Shuni in tow. Daniel had one in particular from advancing dexterity that he couldn¡¯t try out while near a populated area. ¡°Alright, everyone behind me?¡± he asked over his shoulder, catching Tlara rolling her eyes even though she was the furthest away.

    ¡°Slow!¡± Khare complained, itching themself to see what Daniel had acquired ever since he¡¯d initially described it.

    ¡°Ok, ok,¡± Daniel said, being careful as he withdrew a single piece of ammunition from his bag of holding and cast Scatter Shot on it. He didn¡¯t need to individually load rounds in order to cast that spell as it worked through the receiver, but he was being very careful to only keep one of the new combination spineshard rounds out at all times. If flame hit the red jacket, or lightning the purple bullet, while it was anywhere other than in his weapon it would be a wild explosive projectile.This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

    After briefly rotating the blast bow sideways so the dual-explosive didn¡¯t fall out, he slid the bolt in place. ¡°Just a warning, this could be loud. I don¡¯t know if Scatter Shot will pick up the extra damage from the attack or not.¡±

    ¡°If it¡¯s that powerful, should you be using the spell before trying it out?¡± Willow asked in a fit of rationality.

    ¡°I¡¯m aiming for that island,¡± Daniel said, pointing to one about two hundred meters out. ¡°So, we¡¯ll probably be fine.¡± He was mostly joking, and worst case someone would need a healing potion. He got down onto his knee and did his best to manually aim with the iron sights on the blast bow¡¯s frame. Without actual rifling in the barrel or Snap Shot to guide his hands his accuracy was iffy, but then again his target was the size of the side of a barn.

    ¡°Power Shot,¡± Daniel declared, though the words didn¡¯t echo with magic. It didn¡¯t require an incantation, but he really wanted to call out the power this time and honestly wouldn¡¯t have minded if it did need to. A dim light began to glow at the end of the barrel, continuing to glow as he charged the ability.

    <hr>

    Power Shot (Ability, Dexterity, Attack: Ranged Weapon, Domain: Destruction, Charge, Level: 2):

    You possess the Power to imbue your next ranged weapon attack, improving its Damage. Initial Mana cost is minor, with cost and effect scaling to the total amount of time the ability charges. This is a Magical ability that does not function in an area of Magical Suppression.

    <hr>

    The longest he could hold the charge was a minute, after which he¡¯d have to choose to release the attack or watch the magic fizzle. This was actually one of the powers he¡¯d read about before in Lograve¡¯s codexes, and it was normally restricted to Martialists and Rangers. Just another sign of his Spoke playing games. While explosive power was great, it came with incompatibility with Snap Shot.

    Still, Daniel couldn¡¯t wait to see what kind of trouble that random island was in. He let the charge attack build to its very limit and triggered the attack with the newly designed firestarter mechanism. It was hard to see the purple-colored bone bullet as it traveled through the air, despite Power Shot doing nothing to the projectile speed. That was all in the weapon¡¯s design. He did notice it impact, landing disappointingly far from where he¡¯d-

    Daniel was almost knocked backward from the shot going off, Balance being just enough to keep him in his kneeling position. He heard Shuni exclaim a curse and saw Khiat catch Khare before the force pushed the unrooted gestalt off the island. While that happened behind him, utter destruction befell the poor island he¡¯d targeted. It was impossible to make out how many secondary explosions Scatter Shot caused because of how they overlapped, but when the blinding light faded the entire island was gone.

    ¡°Holy shit,¡± Shuni cried out. ¡°That looked like a level 4 attack!¡±

    ¡°I got all of it?¡± Daniel asked, just as bewildered.

    ¡°No.¡± Khiat was leaning over the edge as she put down Khare. ¡°I can see it with Hunter¡¯s Eye. A lot of it is gone, but the island¡¯s falling.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard the islands here lose stability if most of the original size is taken away.¡± Willow gave Daniel a wide eyed look as she picked herself up, Tlara having almost saved her with one of her wing arms only for the Spirit Master to bounce off. ¡°You want to use that in the ruins?¡±

    ¡°Not that exactly,¡± Daniel replied, smiling a little self-consciously at the local armageddon he¡¯d just caused. ¡°That¡¯s using Scatter Shot and explosive rounds. I can try a normal one at, say, half strength.¡±

    ¡°So wait, you can make that insane weapon and fully transform into that killer body?¡± Shuni asked in disbelief, still hung up on that last point. ¡°What kind of class is Artificer? I haven¡¯t heard of any in the region doing stuff like this.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m guessing they haven¡¯t fought dragons either.¡± Daniel flashed Shuni what he hoped was a mischievous smile and hand loaded a normal bullet. His ammunition varieties were becoming complex and that was only with two damage affixes to play with. Converting his trigger mechanism to have fire by default had necessitated making a stock of his normal ammunition that could be triggered by that element, since Invest Affix still cost mana and he couldn¡¯t count on infusing electricity into the blast bow in every circumstance.

    He held the next Power Shot for only thirty seconds, after calling it out first as a matter of course. This time he aimed straight down since the island they were standing on was deeper than the one the Hunter¡¯s Guild rested on. Thanks to Zolyra he knew he hadn¡¯t made it all the way through the last time, and the only changed variable was Power Shot.

    There was no contest between the two shots. For one, the hole dug out by the slug¡¯s travel was three times as wide and Daniel had almost shot himself in the foot from the cast off force despite aiming it away. Neither he nor Khiat could tell what had happened to the bullet after it had breached the bottom of the island. ¡°That¡¯s probably fine,¡± Daniel murmured, trying not to feel like someone who fired into the air on the fourth of July.

    ¡°Can I get one of those?¡± Shuni eventually asked.

    ¡°Line!¡± Khare immediately protested before Daniel could reply. They still had the smaller version he¡¯d made but had grown a little dissatisfied with how its firing rate differed from their bows, which they could use in unison with each other. The gestalt was hungry for the real deal, nothing less.

    ¡°It¡¯s hard to make,¡± Daniel said, fending off the request. ¡°I don¡¯t have enough for some of the critical parts either. Find me a bunch of Hammerite and Andorite and I¡¯d see what I can do.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t get a girl¡¯s hopes up,¡± Shuni said in a contemplative manner, and Daniel didn¡¯t like the gleam in her eye as she looked at where a floating island once was.

    Putting thoughts of potentially encouraging a crime spree away for later, Daniel turned to the others. ¡°Since we¡¯re asking Shuni to show off her powers, anyone want to try out their new ones now?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, let¡¯s go with the dead Beastmaster first. I still don¡¯t know if I believe you.¡± Daniel couldn¡¯t help but feel the Rogue was starting to be a little too enthusiastic for a temporary teammate, but it beat having one they¡¯d have to constantly worry about having stolen their things. They all knew Shuni was safe because she said so, and Rogues totally wouldn¡¯t have powers that helped with lying. Worst case he¡¯d have Tlara eat her if he scented anything of theirs on her. Even with restricting Beast Mode, he¡¯d kept Keen Senses by default because of how useful it was with Identify Creature.

    The wyvern seemed willing to at least as she took center stage. Tlara hadn¡¯t allowed him to fully identify her powers, so he didn¡¯t know exactly what this one did other than what she¡¯d loosely scribbled on the ground about it being a cool ability. Theoretically, any attack power she got should be more powerful than his, but Daniel had had a long history of abusing synergy to produce greater effects than his level since coming here. He still watched with some wariness since the other attack power he knew she had caused a blast of lightning comparable to about 65% of one of the explosions from his first Power Shot.

    Tlara closed her eyes, and then her entire body shifted. Kind of. In point of fact her scales turned green, with the lightning spines embedded in her wings also becoming a deeper green giving the impression of a palette swap. Daniel didn¡¯t get it at first, but Shuni did.

    ¡°No way! I¡¯ve heard about an Arcanist with this kind of power. She¡¯s changing the elemental affinity of the monster.¡± The Rogue passed an appreciative eye over the changed wyvern as she took a step closer. ¡°Poison?¡±

    A liquid began to drip from the spines and sizzled on the ground, though the flow quickly ceased as it became clear Tlara could control it. ¡°How many elements can you do? And can you copy what the whitespring does?¡± Tlara just turned her head sideways in response to deny him an answer and Daniel let the matter go. She had seen very clear evidence as to why they had to be careful about what elements the team used in area of effect attacks, and he was sure she wouldn¡¯t just blow him up. Not unless she had a good reason, at least. Or was just really pissed off. Too late to rethink my gun¡¯s design now.

    The Rogue nodded her head appreciably. ¡°Alright, alright, that¡¯s cool. Don¡¯t know how I feel about hunting, or, eh, exploring with a mortal trapped in a monster¡¯s body but there¡¯s already been some messed up stuff going down recently. Saw that huge one that attacked the town recently and egh. I guess it¡¯s like what Druids do so I¡¯ll just go with it.¡± Shuni began stretching out her neck as she threw up her hood, and even though she was standing on a flat island in the middle of the day, it became harder to see exactly where she was. ¡°Want to see what I can do?¡±

 Chapter 204: Showing Off

    Daniel hadn¡¯t seen a Rogue in action before, not really. A few had taken part in the lightning dragon fight, but he¡¯d been so subsumed by his fear, and then Tlara¡¯s punch, that he hadn¡¯t noticed their actions overly much. There was also the one that had ambushed him in Aughal, but in that case he hadn¡¯t even tagged her before she¡¯d run off into an unknown fate. Classes had generally followed what his expectations of them would be, but then again there was a lot of variability between any two Blessed, which would only be made more pronounced due to the recently expanded power pools.

    Shuni would have had the opportunity to gain at least a handful of unrestricted powers, and Daniel was curious as to what exactly she could do. For now, she continued to stand in the center of all of them while her body became gradually more and more transparent. It seemed like some kind of natural camouflaging feature if he had to guess, given that it had activated back at the compound when she¡¯d pressed her shoulder against the wall.

    He was about to mentally remark that the power didn¡¯t seem too impressive when there was a tap on his shoulder. Daniel almost jumped as he found a hooded figure behind him. At first it seemed like Shuni had cloned herself since his empowered senses didn¡¯t register any difference, though that quickly changed when he focused on the slowly fading Shuni. It wasn¡¯t camouflage at all but the clone growing more translucent as the effect timed out, and just as there was a visual hollowness, so he could better distinguish the falseness to its scent.

    With what was decidedly a confused motion, Khare tossed one of the small bone marbles their pop gun used through the now flickering image. It fooled their tremor sense, Daniel realized. ¡°Nice. It works on monsters too?¡±

    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t be much help if it didn¡¯t,¡± she replied cheerily, walking back to a more neutral position in the group. Daniel was beginning to get a general Evalyn feel from Shuni the longer he spent with her, though that might have just been from the ease and self-assuredness she acted with. He still had thousands of doubts about the ruins, whereas she was joining a bunch of people she¡¯d just met to go somewhere potentially insanely dangerous. The only reason he couldn¡¯t not go was that the bond would actively force him to like it had with the horde leader if he fought it.

    Why is she so confident? he suddenly wondered. ¡°Anything else you want to demonstrate?¡± Daniel pulled on what he knew from role-playing games and added, ¡°We¡¯re open to discussing tactics beforehand. The cloak I¡¯ll make you will give you a one-off cast of a cloud spell, but we¡¯ll have items with that too if you need cover for any of your powers to work.¡±

    Shuni frowned. ¡°I thought you said you¡¯ve never dealt with Rogues before.¡±

    ¡°He was shot by one once,¡± Khiat explained uncomfortably, the experience plain on her face as well. It could be said that the Rogue in Aughal had been the one to push her into her crisis of class, and the at times shy dusker had become completely reserved in Shuni¡¯s presence.

    ¡°Seriously?¡± Shuni asked, but the foreign expression on the dusker¡¯s face was enough to tell part of the story. The upbeat quirk in her voice faded and she grew a little withdrawn. ¡°Oh. I didn¡¯t know.¡±

    ¡°Not like we told you upfront,¡± Daniel replied reasonably, surprised to read disappointment in the Rogue and not sure what to make of it. ¡°It was just some random asshole. Could¡¯ve been any class behind the bow.¡±

    ¡°So, yeah.¡± Shuni stood awkwardly for a few seconds, face still hidden by what was definitely some form of concealment power. No one else was eager to comment and the silence stretched. Eventually she scratched the back of her head and sighed. ¡°Ok, look, I¡¯m-¡°

    ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± Daniel spoke over her, hearing defensiveness in her voice and wanting to head it off. ¡°We¡¯re both taking risks here. Full disclosure, I was told the ruins would help me bring a friend back from the dead. As long as you aren¡¯t working against that we¡¯re good, and you don¡¯t seem distrustful anyway.¡± Despite Cloak giving me every reason to with people who could have those kinds of powers, he mentally added, trying not to let his experience with the god of lies taint his outlook.

    The Rogue visibly stiffened at that, but didn¡¯t give anything else away. ¡°That¡¯s why this is so important? I¡¯d heard the Hand church had lost their blessing but that¡¯s, I didn¡¯t expect this.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know any specifics,¡± Daniel qualified in case Shuni had someone in mind herself. ¡°It sounds like Soraso doesn¡¯t know much beyond the quick look he took. If it were anything else I¡¯d be asking why stronger people couldn¡¯t go instead of us, and I¡¯m lucky to have friends who will follow me despite that.¡± He ignored the loud wyvern scoff and continued, ¡°Just don¡¯t be a jerk or run out on us when things get difficult and we¡¯ll be fine.¡± He did shoot a glare towards Tlara with that.

    ¡°Alright,¡± Shuni ruminated with far less intensity than Daniel expected, before nodding and continuing in a diminished way. ¡°Sounds good. As far as my other stuff, Sneak Attack obviously. I¡¯ve got a good bit of ground fighting experience but can handle myself in the air. Just keep things distracted and I can make it work. Unless we¡¯re fighting things that can pin me down I can usually take care of myself too.¡± There was a pause and an almost self-conscious way to how she removed her hood. ¡°A couple of those weird powers everyone¡¯s getting now too, but nothing worth mentioning.¡±

    Daniel was curious about which formerly restricted powers she had received after the Collapse, but he decided not to ask. Even some of his friends had balked at showing him their full list, and there was the effect his power could have on settling pre-awakened powers as well. Not that he¡¯d be brazen enough to ask Shuni to show him hers.

    ¡°Alright. Well, only Willow¡¯s got something new to try out and she¡¯s still growing into her class. As far as the other two, Khare is good at multi-attacking in melee and range, while Khiat-¡°

    ¡°Can shoot huge glowing arrows?¡± Shuni asked appreciably, glad for the change in topic. ¡°Hard to miss a giant bug lighting up the sky below you. I thought she was the best shot in your team until I saw what that monstrous contraption did to that poor island.¡±

    ¡°Proficient,¡± Khare mumbled to themself as the Rogue talked up the other two ranged death dealers on the team, their opinion of her continuing to fall after she¡¯d tried to jockey for one of Daniel¡¯s blast bows.

    ¡°She still is,¡± Daniel replied, made a little uncomfortable by the combined praise and how Shuni had referenced Khiat. ¡°I¡¯d be trash without my aiming power, but Khiat does it all herself.¡±

    ¡°You help the team in other ways,¡± the dusker readily assured, her normal humble nature absent when it came to her talent. ¡°But he does need to get better at aiming that thing.¡±

    ¡°Hard to see why when the hit¡¯s that big,¡± Shuni shrugged, but then reconsidered as she took a subtle step away from Daniel. The topic was dropped though as she turned to Willow. ¡°So, last mysterious member of Wingcraft. What¡¯s your game?¡±

    ¡­

    Willow didn¡¯t shrink as the spotlight was cast on her, but Wisp did. That was the name she¡¯d decided to give the sole spirit currently sheltering in her after growing closer to it. Daniel had given her an odd look when she¡¯d told him about the name but didn¡¯t explain why, reassuring her it was a good choice.Stolen novel; please report.

    The thought of giving Wisp a more person-like name had occurred to her, but despite the will she could feel inside the spirit it didn¡¯t feel like a complete consciousness. She supposed that was the difference between a spirit and a soul, for it was a completely different experience to have Tlara¡¯s soul in her grasp the rare times her sister had to leave one of her monsters.

    Willow would have never imagined reaching these heights. Her destiny had been to inherit power and wealth, though it came with the trade of never taking a class. She found that being a Spirit Master fit her better, despite what the journey had cost.

    It still hurt her heart, and not just for what she¡¯d experienced. Daniel had told her more of the cyclical nature of the Collapses as his Focus had continued to unlock more information, as well as how one of the gods they¡¯d known nothing about had perished during one of them. The very one she was attuned to through her class, which had been locked until the world began to break down. How much misery could have been avoided if the mortals of this world had had these powers? To sense the potential allies in their enemy and reach them?

    Well, as recent events showed having an element of spirituality did not guarantee friendliness. Willow had resolved not to let blind idealism guide her any longer. She would use her class with the responsibility and reverence it was due.

    In that light, the casual way Shuni asked her to expose Wisp to the world was slightly offensive, as if she expected her to start twirling daggers on her talons or something. Using her new combat power out in the open without good reason felt slightly wrong, but it would be necessary if they had to fight in the ruins.

    Taking in a breath, Willow walked a short distance away from the currently green wyvern and nodded at Shuni. ¡°I haven¡¯t been able to see how strong the attack is yet as I gained it after the horde, but it is only a level 1 power.¡± Willow knew that to this newcomer she¡¯d be the least impressive. Khiat¡¯s relatively new status as a quasi-Blessed overshadowed her scant weeks since awakening. ¡°I¡¯ll need a moment.¡±

    ¡°Another charge attack?¡± Shuni asked.

    ¡°Wisp is shy,¡± she answered simply, only drawing more curiosity from the Rogue. She didn¡¯t ask more questions though, patiently waiting with the rest of the team. Willow knew the spirit would act with more alacrity if they were in actual danger, but right now it was steeling itself for the ability. She and Tlara operated on completely different levels and ideals, and yet their classes shared a common weakness. They relied on those in their care.

    When she sensed the one within her was ready, Willow slightly shifted her stance and took what a Totem Warrior would recognize as a sparring pose. Few other classes fought with natural weapons such as claws or fists because of how poor they were compared to enchanted weapons, though as her new development demonstrated, powers could make up the difference.

    A soft light began to fill the air around Willow, similar to the shields she could summon only fainter. The intensity grew as it began to gather in one of her legs, and she executed a downward kick that cracked the ground. Another shot of radiance surrounded her and then infused her arm. Though the punch didn¡¯t connect with anything, the air rippled as her fist passed through it.

    ¡°Huh.¡± Shuni was mostly confused by Willow¡¯s display and was looking between her and the ephemeral energy. ¡°New class, right? I¡¯ve heard those are getting the strangest powers. That looks like some kind of Martialist special attack but it feels weird to look at.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s called Spirit Strike,¡± Willow explained, adding, ¡°I am a Spirit Master. As far as I can tell, the ability feeds mana to Wisp, who gives me energy in return filtered through their archetypes.¡± The blank look she got in return was the main reason she felt safe in explaining that much. Well, that and the fact that no one could take Wisp from her.

    ¡°Wait, sorry, who¡¯s Wisp?¡± She started looking around as if the team was going to pull another fast one on her, but everyone else was letting Willow take the lead. The Spirit Master herself could tell Daniel was getting nervous about oversharing when it came to the Astral, but he wasn¡¯t the ultimate arbiter of secrets.

    ¡°They are a spirit,¡± Willow answered, growing less confident as she did so. ¡°A fractured soul. I believe my class is meant to find and protect them.¡± And after that? she mentally asked. The end of her path was unclear. Placing spirits in monsters to encourage their development was one end, but was it the only one? She¡¯d have to trust in her class to reveal more as her powers grew.

    ¡°Spirit. Like Spiritualists?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ve killed Spiritualists, definitely not on their side,¡± Daniel quickly spoke up, though his words did little to allay Shuni. She seemed uneasy judging by how her arm feathers were puffing up under her sleeves.

    Willow reached out her hand and beckoned to Wisp. There was nothing in the static description Daniel had read about her power that covered why she could do this, but then again both her class and bond behaved less empirically than his.

    A small globe of light hesitantly appeared from her palm, drifting slightly upwards as she released Wisp from her Spirit Vault. She knew it looked like a simple illusion at first, but those without her abilities could still tell there was something more to the light just like there was to her attacks. Wisp stayed out for only a few seconds before retreating back into her. It wasn¡¯t completely sapient, she could tell, but there was a mind within that had seen an unfamiliar face.

    Shuni was silent for some time as she thought about what she saw while pacing. The two of them were left alone as Daniel let Khare borrow the blast bow and Khiat took off in her continual efforts to improve how she flew. Only Tlara remained engaged with a more wistful expression in her soul than normal. Her ordeals had been transformative as well, though not to the same degree as Willow¡¯s. Either way, the Astral was something both of them were tied to now.

    ¡°I can¡¯t think of anyone on this team that¡¯s normal,¡± Shuni finally concluded, though her voice didn¡¯t hold much malice. ¡°I mean, it might be the only one with a dusker and a gestalt in the region and that¡¯s ignoring the wyvern in the room.¡±

    ¡°Having second thoughts?¡±

    Shuni tilted her head and let out a short, high-pitched call of amusement. ¡°Are you crazy? World¡¯s ending and I trip into a few of the only people who know what¡¯s really going on. The rest of my team was already jealous I got tapped for this.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re not hesitant because of Wisp?¡± Willow pressed, not touching on whatever Shuni was assuming they knew. She had no major objections to bringing a Rogue to the ruins, especially if Shuni could counter any hidden traps or monsters there, but this was an absolute dealbreaker. If Shuni¡¯s opinions of her and her class were tainted by the surface connections to the Spiritualists, then-

    ¡°Look,¡± Shuni said as she put a hand on her hip, slightly adjusting one of the tail feathers that had gotten caught in her armor as she cut off Willow¡¯s thoughts, ¡°It sounds like we all know who the real enemy is and Wisp¡­ I¡¯ve seen high level people pop off something impressive. That shot your friend made earlier isn¡¯t the biggest explosion by far, and it sounds like he had to throw several things into the mix to make that work. Still, that, whatever that was?¡±

    She took a few steps closer and Willow could feel the wariness in Tlara as she held her breath as well. ¡°You know why I think I got the Rogue class?¡± Shuni asked in a quieter voice, low enough that the others wouldn¡¯t hear her over the crack of the blast bow. ¡°There¡¯s this beauty to Threst at night, a darkness so deep you can fall through it forever. I¡¯m not saying I¡¯m a dusker,¡± she clarified while smiling, eyes going to where Khiat had accidentally flipped upside-down while trying to shoot her bow and turn at the same time. ¡°There¡¯s something special about it. At first it was just when I could sneak out and run around as a hatchling, but it¡¯s always stuck with me. Like I¡¯m more alive when I find something wondrous. I guess you could say I¡¯m like a Bard that doesn¡¯t screw, it¡¯s not about the money for me. Seeing that light in your hand made me think of the first time I was able to fly myself through an ocean of black. It was¡­¡±

    ¡°Spiritual?¡± Willow offered when Shuni failed to come up with the word.

    ¡°Guess so,¡± she chuckled. ¡°Whatever it is you have a line on, it doesn¡¯t feel like the kind of thing that tries to turn a village into monsters. Honestly, I wish I¡¯d waited to get my class until now. Makes me wonder if I would have gotten something different.¡±

    Both of them turned their heads as another ridiculously powerful explosion sounded. It appeared that Daniel had figured out he could charge Power Shot while Khare was actually wielding the weapon, so long as he held onto part of it.

    ¡°Oh, and then there¡¯s that guy,¡± she added wryly, and something in Shuni¡¯s voice gave her some insight into why she¡¯d sounded a bit crestfallen after Khiat had mentioned the Rogue in Aughal. ¡°Always good to know an Artificer, right?

 Chapter 205: Briefing

    It was one of the oddest experiences of his life, though it came with a sense of completeness and relief that all felt at the end of a long ordeal. He wasn¡¯t whole, he may never be again, and yet he may be stronger for it.

    ¡°Are you sure this is alright?¡± The older woman at his side asked. She and his father had been there the entire time, and while others might have felt stifled by this, he was simply glad they were alive.

    There were a couple of Clerics in the treatment room, one of the nicer ones meant for longer stays, though it was the middle-aged Craftsman who answered. ¡°Of course it is. The core of this was enchanted by Reikos himself, and my bindings will ensure a perfect fit. He could block a falling boulder and not worry about something coming loose.¡± The talons of the man dug into one of the straps as it was fiercely tightened across his chest, though the pain from the compression lasted for only a moment before fading. His breathing wasn¡¯t affected at all. ¡°See? There, now how¡¯s the fit?¡±

    ¡°Mmm,¡± he grunted to the crafter, nodding his head.

    ¡°Thelma and I, we were just wondering if this was necessary,¡± his father tentatively clarified. ¡°We are eternally grateful for all that you¡¯ve done for our son, of course, but after seeing that Murdon was able to regrow his¡­¡± He left the sentence to die on its own, unable to muster the courage to ask amid so many potent people. Both were leveless, even after the great change had come and allowed many to overcome previous walls. If he had to guess, his parents weren¡¯t trying to advance. They¡¯d long ago made peace with their fate and had poured all their love and ambition into him.

    Quala, one of three people he owed his life to, gently spoke up. ¡°The damage to your son¡¯s shoulder, and the prolonged infection, makes regrowth particularly difficult. If he awakened Regeneration today I wouldn¡¯t expect him to regain use of the limb for months. There is an inertia to injuries like this, just like the rare curse your son was afflicted with. I am only glad we were able to address the latter in a way that allows for a total recovery, though that too will take time.¡±

    ¡°Of course!¡± His father quickly assured the Cleric. ¡°We trust that you have his best interests at heart. I just worry this will make his life harder.¡±

    ¡°Harder?¡± The Craftsman would have snorted if his biology had allowed it. ¡°Mr. Restiff, this is a finely enchanted item you have here. If it wasn¡¯t for the Regent himself he could have never afforded this, not at his level.¡± The man tapped the metal socket that fit onto his shoulder and dithered for a few moments in a fit of honesty. ¡°Well, it has its drawbacks. Avianoids would never go for this unless they had no other option, it would impair Grow Wings, but it should be well suited to your son. Especially as he can bind the construction as a Focus. Knights,¡± he shook his head.

    ¡°What kind of effects will it give him?¡± the younger of the two life debts in the room asked. Thomas hadn¡¯t been around as much after coming to the Threst region, but his early help had been instrumental in keeping him alive. Those two hadn¡¯t been the only ones in the Thormundz, but all the others had died in that last battle.

    ¡°Who knows?¡± The Craftsman shrugged. ¡°I can¡¯t recall the last time we used one of these. Like I said, not for the winged folk.¡±

    He knew his mother would say something well before she did. ¡°It will keep him safe, right?¡±

    The Craftsman was steadily moving toward exasperation, though Thomas intervened with a question of his own. ¡°It does seem like a fast turnaround. He¡¯s going up to help Guy in like, what, a day or two?¡±

    ¡°The world is changing,¡± Quala replied sagely. ¡°With all the threats that face us, we need bravery such as this. And it is not as if he is not willing.¡± There was a pointed gaze with that, prompting him to respond. He tried, but after half a minute the best he could do was simply nod.

    ¡°It¡¯s alright son, you¡¯ll get there,¡± his father soothed as he rubbed the shoulder that was still whole. On the other end, the Craftsman cheered.

    ¡°Ha! There, you should have control of it now. See if you can move it.¡± He took a step back, but his mother joined and placed her hand next to his father¡¯s.

    He already knew it had worked as he had gained feeling of the limb. Binding it as a Focus would take more time, but the basic functions of the enchanted arm were under his command.

    Sigron raised his shield arm up into the air and brought the hand into a fist when it was in front of his face. It could do more, he knew, but that could wait until he was out of this bed. It had been a long rest and his body had suffered for it, but Sigron felt no less able.

    No, it could be said that he was better for it. A Knight¡¯s duty was simply to endure for others. Murdon had gotten creative with his class¡¯ role, but he had always been simpler. The Octyrrum had not overlooked his strife, and as his health had returned, so had more power come to him due to his survival.

    If that was all then he would just have kept on pace with those others of the region, less so if you considered the bursts of potential they¡¯d received from defeating multiple dragons. No, there was one more matter that came from the two hands on his shoulder. This had been more recent, and he wasn¡¯t sure if they knew what had happened. Whether they were aware or not, the bond had formed. With it and his new powers, it was time for Sigron to begin to repay what he owed, starting with the one whose actions had created the greatest of his three debts.

    It was time to hunt once more.

    ¡­

    Soraso turned out to be good at chess. Not that the game existed here, and Daniel wasn¡¯t particularly inclined to change that, but the Regent had been thinking ahead even as his team had been kicked out of Aurus due to the fallout of a jerk Hero and his father. The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    It should have occurred to Daniel to double check where the ruins were on his Map since he¡¯d been shown their location before, but it hadn¡¯t. Bond-induced recklessness aside, Daniel wasn¡¯t suicidal enough to test his theories on whether his Spoke could bypass the sky and ground limits like it had the Shroud in Aughal.

    It came as a bit of a surprise then when the Regent himself appeared in town and told them they were only an hour¡¯s flight away from the ruins. They weren¡¯t going to them today, the last member of the team had yet to join, but Soraso wanted to give them a briefing before so they had more time to think on it.

    To her credit, Shuni wasn¡¯t as self-abasing toward the head of the region as many others were, preferring to just meld into the wall instead and listen. The same went with the Wingcraft proper. A crowned cloud wasn¡¯t too big of a deal considering what they¡¯d dealt with, and the Regent wasn¡¯t trying to maintain the composure he¡¯d seen before in the meeting with Cloak.

    ¡°So, one week to the green light,¡± the regent commented smoothly while floating in the main room of the compound¡¯s central house. ¡°Your last member is in the last stages of recovery and will be overKnighted here on the big day. I¡¯ve also brought what support I can.¡± He nodded to a bag placed on the table containing potions and a handful of scrolls. ¡°Unfortunately several people, including a certain leader of Apex Flight who will go unnamed, have decided to make my life difficult all of a sudden so that¡¯s the extent of my generosity. Now, onto the main course of today¡¯s word meal. I¡¯ll start with this since I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve all been wondering why I¡¯ve chosen you instead of the brawniest winged mana sacks I could find.¡±

    He floated to the ground and moved the Sword of Threst into his hand, concentrating briefly. How does his class work with that as his Focus? Daniel briefly wondered in the short lapse. He knew Soraso¡¯s powers still worked since Thomas had registered mana loss when removing the Enforce Secret effect put on him, but any group enhancing ones would still require some kind of music, right?

    ¡°This is why.¡± Soraso made several quick cuts in the air, leaving rifts in space around the entirety of their open concept living room/ interior courtyard. What was an expansive space became cramped as it seemed the Regent had created looping portal walls trapping them in a corridor of space barely tall enough for Khiat to be extended.

    ¡°The ruins are enclosed buildings!¡± Daniel exclaimed, getting his point instantly. It wasn¡¯t just this hint but several other factors, including who his initial picks had been and something Shuni had mentioned about her skills. ¡°It¡¯d be a nightmare for anyone used to fighting midair.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think anyone would be used to fighting in these conditions, excepting earth gestalt from Kallical,¡± Soraso mused, ¡°But for whatever reason I have a shortage of them on hand.¡±

    ¡°What about ground teams?¡± Shuni asked from the side, eyeing the space that had just intersected her wall with some wariness. She¡¯d almost lost her balance when Soraso had turned her leaning wall into a portal. ¡°We have plenty of people native to the region who can¡¯t get flight certified.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. You probably know how much attention they get from the guild compared to Blessed who can do little more than sink slowly in the air.¡± He gave a diffuse shrug as the air gestalt¡¯s arms rose in a bit of a delay after his shoulders. ¡°Honestly, a lot of them end up like the spearfighter you have bunking here, more patrols and less fighting. Though I will mention in fairness that she pulls some serious weight on clearing mortal crimes based on the most recent report by the Captain here. I¡¯d go so far as to say his opinion of her is one of begrudging approval.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡± Daniel asked, surprised. Janice hadn¡¯t mentioned anything like that, though then again he¡¯d mostly imagined her as walking a set path around Pinion¡¯s Point every day while looking for anyone trying to sneak half-sentient ringcats into the town.

    ¡°Surprised me too that a Martialist would have that affinity. It¡¯s good to see we have people who remember that just because the monsters are getting rowdy doesn¡¯t mean we can let people get away with assault and theft. Present company excluded for about, mmm, three days.¡±

    Shuni just tried not to let it show as she rolled her eyes, while Khiat, still crouching so as to not have her head phase through the ceiling and up through the floor, asked the salient question. ¡°The ruins are all this small?¡±

    ¡°I¡­ believe so,¡± Soraso answered with a pause. ¡°Though if I saw the entire structure I wouldn¡¯t need you. No, but the part we can immediately access is like this, hallways and rooms. Our elite hunters are specialized for midair combat. Even if they have diverse powers, they have trained and fought in one kind of environment for most of their lives. As you know, Threst has certain negative rumors circulating about its treatment of nonfliers. Most aren¡¯t eager to come here unless they like the view.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve still got people like the Commander,¡± Daniel pointed out.

    ¡°And if I wanted to get rid of the only person keeping the Hunter¡¯s Guild running smoothly for a week or two, I¡¯d put her in my team.¡± Soraso shook his head, and his voice grew heavier. ¡°No, there¡¯s another reason. Not one I say with certainty, but it¡¯d be a Crest of a coincidence if I¡¯m wrong.¡±

    He waved a hand before taking a seat as the rifts vanished. The fact that he was entirely made of cloud and probably didn¡¯t need to sit at all to rest occurred to Daniel, but it did add to the moment as Soraso¡¯s clear sky eyes dimmed slightly. There was a feeling that whatever was about to be shared should be accompanied by a campfire and a flashlight mounted under his chin.

    ¡°I never let anyone else enter when I explored. The Sword is the only way out, and if they were separated I couldn¡¯t guarantee they¡¯d make it back.¡± Daniel wanted to interject here but was suddenly spellbound, some passive feature no doubt working in Soraso¡¯s favor. ¡°The base of the ruins are broad, and I managed to cut into several sections before finding where they ended. Over that time I faced¡­ monsters. Their forms and abilities differed from what I expected, but in my opinion their overall strength was always the same.¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re all level 4?¡± Daniel asked skeptically, now finding enough to object despite how much he wanted this to work. ¡°We have a level 1 on our team, that¡¯s too dangerous.¡±

    ¡°The monsters were exactly the same strength,¡± Soraso replied with some emphasis. ¡°At first.¡± He waited for someone to interrupt again but had won another moment of rapt attention. ¡°The longest time I spent in one place was half a minute. I was moving quickly and still only explored a kilometer or so, and I found the strength of my foes gradually increased as I fought them. It wasn¡¯t until this venture that I knew, or rather guessed, why, and as soon as I found this out I left immediately. Trust Me, I wouldn¡¯t be considering sending in you guys if I thought a bunch of monsters as tough as me would be waiting for you.¡±

    An image appeared in the air of a wall about the same height as the corridor Soraso had summoned. It was translucent like a hologram, leaving no doubt that it was an illusion. Still, it had a faintly marble look that distantly reminded Daniel of the Divine Pavillion¡¯s walls, especially the blank section that had been meant for Cloak. At least, it would have save for the scar in the wall, where a deep purple to black pool filled the empty space.

    As if beckoning a captive audience to behold a work of madness, Soraso asked, ¡°What do you know of the Astral?¡±