《Seed of a Rift Tyrant [LitMOBA]》


 Prologue - The 8th Tyrant

    <blockquote>


    7th Hill Intra-Nexus Update to the Comitia VIII:


    The transit of sanguine essentia has returned to prior levels.


    My recommendation is to convene as soon as practicable to lift the restrictions on essentia use in the capital.


    Caelus Sertorius Osterianus - Censor VII


    </blockquote>


    <hr>


    Prologue


    The Senate Square was nearly empty as the afternoon sun descended on the seven hills of Erulea, the city which became an empire.


    A cluster of young scribes bickered as they carried stacks of albumstone etched with the day¡¯s business to be published in the forums, their hands speckled with the bright chalky residue of the soft stone. They rushed from the steps of the senate to one of the uniformly massive buildings adjoining. The lengthening afternoon glow lit the bigger, newer albumstone buildings of the second empire with a bright orange glow that clashed with the more natural marble of the older buildings in the square, proud remnants of the first empire.


    As the scribes chatter and shuffling footsteps were cut off behind enormous doors, Podius was left in silence on his bench to glare. The youths reminded him of the team he left the city of Erulea with; he had not been back since.


    His reminiscence lingered in the lengthening shadows of the ostentatious buildings dedicated to the power and wealth of the empire. They were symbolic of the corruption of the second empire: too bright, unnecessarily large, and in a style that aped the elegance and functional beauty of the first.


    Shaking the bitter look off his face he focused on his task.


    He was not alone in the square. Standing in front of his target were the Emperor''s Guards, their ceremonial armour chased with gold, sweating in the lingering heat of the harvest season.


    Podius quietly enjoyed the soldier''s discomfort. It was that sort of wasteful and pointless job that plagued the legion away from the front. Twenty soldiers stood at attention in full armour all day, but they had no real power to guard against what was about to happen.


    Amongst the guardsmen a tessarius was glaring back at Podius. The senior soldier was a grizzled veteran in the highest rank he could achieve as a soldier without a commission and his gaze carried the weight of that experience as he eyeballed Podius. He wasn¡¯t sure if the gaze carried suspicious of the heavy robe and cowl he was wearing in the heat or if he sensed what Podius was carrying but the man was on high alert.


    Even out of uniform and outranking the veteran soldier the stern glare made Podius uncomfortable, reminding him of his time as a conscript. Shedding the feeling of scrutiny he adjusted his battle armour, preparing to strike. His fingers softly stroked the gauntlet on his right hand letting the hard lines reassure him as he rested them on the calculii, a vibrant red gemstone that would manifest the power he carried.


    Here at the centre of the empire he could feel the power beneath him, a vast well under the eight hills tugging at the essentia of a vast proportion of the continent. Standing so close to the Erulean Nexus there was an urgency to the draw on the massive pool of essentia he had hoarded as it begged to be released.


    Channelling some essentia down his arm a familiar feeling of power surged and the potential for violence drowned his distaste for the pretension of the capital and what subtle apprehension lingered. He would need to incapacitate the tessarius quickly, then subdue his subordinates.


    The time had come for Podius to unleash his frustration and to do what was needed to clean up the mess of Erulean politics. The moment of glory for Podius and the REAL Erulean Legion.


    Standing and throwing off his robe with a flourish, Podius flared essentia through his body with a burst of red light that coalesced in a halo of crimson fire. He focused the power down his legs and cast Crimson Tail, an ars he was famous for. The light rushed downwards and ignited into plumes of flame, lifting him off the ground. He accelerated upwards and in moments he was high in the air over the senate steps.


    With graceful skill he rotated and slowed his momentum with a jet of flame. As he descended the streak of flame leading back to his now charred seat flew behind him like a cloak and with a gesture he whipped it down in an explosive splash across the steps.


    The Emperor''s Guards had reacted quickly drawing their short swords and rectangular shields. In just a moment they had glowing edges on their blades and barriers of white light emanating from their shields to form an opaque wall with a pearlescent sheen. Standing ready at their posts along the steps up to the senate they made no move to engage as the fire smouldered around their shielded bodies.


    Landing amidst the flames, Podius addressed the Senate steps.


    ¡°Too long we have listened to the feeble fishwives that served as the sheperd''s of the Great Erulean Legion¡­¡±


    Podius trailed off as the guardsmen didn¡¯t react.


    The tessarius made an awkward coughing noise and signalled the guards to lower their shield.


    ¡°You might want to go inside to give your speech,¡± the senior soldier suggested.


    ¡°... you aren''t going to stop me?¡±


    Sheathing his gladius and saluting with an open hand over his heart the tessarius shook his head with a chuckle.


    ¡°Well sir, you are a decorated Legionnaire so there doesn''t seem much point. Though part of me would like to see what you can do with that and half the sanguine essentia of Erulea.¡± The tessarius chuckled and gestured reverently at the glowing gauntlet.


    Podius was flummoxed with the response to his attack, but took the opportunity to show off his Legendary Gauntlet. Turning and extending his arm to let the gem on top of his hand catch the light as he tried to catch up mentally.


    ¡°The Fist of the Red Tyrant¡­ beautiful.¡± The tessarius was transfixed.


    ¡°It coalesced on the Duroglenn nexus invasion.¡±


    The veteran whistled his appreciation as he asked seriously, ¡°No-one else came back?¡±


    Podius shook his head with a grimace.


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    ¡°Ah¡­¡± The tessarius gave a sombre nod as he saluted again and waved Podius onwards. ¡°Welcome home. They are waiting for you in the chambers.¡±


    ¡°Right, well¡­ I¡¯ll be going in then¡­¡±


    Podius scratched his head as he turned up the steps. Passing the guards as they saluted and returned to attention within the clearing smoke from the fading fire.


    Reaching the top of the steps Podius paused, here he had imagined an epic confrontation. His homeward march had been slow, gathering essentia from each of the transit nodes along the Via Sanguinis to fuel the power he now wielded, he had to frequently top up the constant drain of maintaining the vast pool of essentia he wielded unnaturally outside of a rift. At each stop it was a surprise that none of the soldiers or priests stopped him at any of the sub-nexuses. To be again allowed to pass without challenge was deeply confusing to Podius. The essentia he had gathered was a valuable resource, the power and lifeblood of the empire.


    The hardened soldier within him also felt a deep dissatisfaction of unrequited violence.


    <hr>


    As he moved past the steps he came to the arched entrance of the ante-chamber of the Senate Chambers. The room was uncomfortably warm with fireplaces on each wall of the nine-sided room. There were different themes on each wall: richly decorated gold leaf on the western wall to wooden shiplap spars on the mantle beside that.


    At the centre of the room a large multi sided fireplace squatted on the original marble floor. The bright white albumstone hearth shouted it''s garish second empire origins and was gaudily carved with scrollwork and gold plated swords drawing the eye up the eight legs to a coronet set on each of the mantles. This fireplace symbolised the 8th Hill of Erulea, the hidden cabal of the powerful and connected of the empire. With a scowl and a wad of spit he moved past, focusing his attention on the humble fire on the north western side.


    Reverently he rubbed the marble mantle, beginning a ritual to honour the hearth as he had done in times of celebration and remembrance since he was a child. Tentitively he let the marble of the mantle draw a trickle of his stored essentia and murmured a prayer. As he idly recited the words he traced the red veins in the marble across the carvings of regular people working to create. They laboured at looms and forges, with tools in their hands and concentration on their faces. Podius¡¯s tracing stopped at a leatherworker bent over a stretching frame as he reminisced.


    His childhood on the 7th Hill was a distant memory, though he still felt like a young man at only 31. His life since his time in the workshop had been nothing but violence and the countless deaths of friends and enemies. He had jumped into meaningless battle after battle joining the macabre dance with the Silvanian Kingdoms and now the memories and blood weighed heavy on his spirit.


    Podius finished the ritual by kneeling and resting his forehead on the hearth stones.


    ¡°You probably shouldn¡¯t keep the Emperor waiting,¡± a familiar voice softly chided. ¡°But it is good that you honour the hearth still.¡±


    Podius instantly recognised Censor Caelus despite the decade and a half that had aged the man. Caelus was a teacher and mentor to Podius, as the Censor of the 7th hill he had assessed his attunement as a youth and taught him the basics of essentia and suggested a path for his ars and classes.


    They clasped wrists in greeting and Podius gestured at the multi coloured trim on his white robe.


    ¡°I see you are still torturing children.¡±


    Cealus laughed as they walked together. They exited the antechamber and strode through a hall lined with busts of past emperors.


    ¡°We all do what we must,¡± Caelus recited the words of the First Tyrant glibly. Smiling at his own wit for timing the quote as they passed the long dead emperor''s face carved in albumstone. Podius¡¯s rolled eyes in response made the older man smile wider.


    ¡°When I heard you were returning I had hoped your defiance might have matured, but you always did think so rigidly. It is a classic trait of a deep red. Where are Kaeso and Bostar?¡±


    Podius frowned at the mention of his surviving team members.


    ¡°Kaeso stayed to raze Duroglenn, and Bostar disappeared one night on the way back around Tremona. Why are you here? To talk me out of it?¡±


    ¡°It is a shame they did not come with you, they would have been helpful for what is to come. I am just here to bear witness, I was the Censor responsible for your conscription and still my wagon is very much hitched to yours.¡± The Censor sighed fondly and seemed at ease despite the seriousness of the situation. ¡°Come. Let us meet our fate.¡±


    The pair entered the senate chamber. The floor of the room was carved down some way below them and from the entrance they looked down to the recessed floor of the massive circular room. The roof was an incredible dome with a circular sky light at the peak that normally made the space bright at its centre, but as night was falling an eerie orange glow hit one side of the room and left the rest of the room shrouded in darkness.


    On the circular stage in the middle of the room a man was lit from below by the soft warm glow of several torch stones scattered artfully around him. Emperor Septimus VII looked exactly like the murals and statues with perfectly curled brown hair under his coronet, a golden wreath of oak leaves. He had too-smooth pasty skin of one born to privilege who had spent too little time outside. As the 7th to inherit the title claimed by the 7th Tyrant he had probably never seen a rift, let alone risked his life in one.


    Podius had thought about what he would say to the Emperor for months. As he started his practised speech the frustration came through in his voice and echoed through the cavernous room as he moved and spoke.


    ¡°While we have suffered on the front through nightmares and deathscapes, here in Erulea the limp wristed, corrupt and inept have actively slowed the progress of the legion¡­


    ¡­The politics of the Centuriata have elected a series of atrocious marshals who have led the northern legion to a cycle of uninspired victories marching overwhelming force up the Via Sanguinis. Their lethargic expansion taking every opportunity to secure personal profit and their disorganisation and insufficient supply inevitably culminating in an embarrassing retreat that starts the cycle again down the same. worn. campaign trail¡­¡±


    Podius had walked as he spoke and now on the stage he stood across from the Emperor who just stood and listened to him speak. The man was nodding placidly as Podius¡¯s speech escalated to a rant.


    ¡°...and you¡­ you have done¡­ NOTHING!¡± Podius waited for a response, but the Emperor said nothing as he just mildly smiled and nodded his head. The Emperor''s calm demeanour, the lack of reaction and passive expression on his face enraged Podius and he began to channel his essentia, ¡°Even now. Faced with overwhelming power, YOU¡­ DO¡­ NOTHING!¡±


    Flourishing his legendary gauntlet, Podius made a five point gesture as he channelled essentia through the ars encased within. Powerful bolts of fire leapt from the red calculii mounted on the top of his hand towards the Emperor with five thumps of instantaneously created super heated air igniting and accelerating with a corresponding roar as they struck. The figure in front of him stumbled as it was engulfed in fire.


    Barely flinching as the conflagration swirled around the room Podius began a follow up attack subconsciously, the fingers of his left hand twitched as he began triggering his finisher ars to merge the inferno he had summoned in the initial barrage.


    As the threads of essentia tugged on his fingers, begging him to compress the air ignited in the chamber to a focal point and grind his target to a fine ash, he hesitated.


    Within the raging fire he no longer saw a man, but a glimmer of gold swirling in an inscrutable runic font and the flicker of something large moving. No-one could possibly have survived his opening attack with perfectly attuned ars channelled through calculii developed from a decade and a half on the front charged to peak rift levels with the essentia he carried. Each bolt could kill a dozen men.


    Muscle memory triggered the ars without his concious thought. The inferno was sucked into a fraction of it¡¯s size leaving a vacuum of air in the room and the stage they stood on glowing and sizzling with heat. A moment later a wave of hot air rushed back at Podius, and as it roared through the room he had a clear view of his target.


    Where Emperor Septimus VII stood was a pile of ashes. A surreal moment passed as he felt a moment of relief before a tendril of worming doubt clawed at him, this had been too easy.


    As he stood, staring at the ash, Censor Caelus patted him on the shoulder and walked to the pile of ashes. Podius could sense an ars allowing him to withstand the lingering heat. His old mentor reached into the smouldering pile picking something up from within, carelessly scattering the remains of the former emporer as he did so.


    He held up the Emperor''s coronet and pronounced loudly to the room.


    ¡°The Emperor is no more, his line has ended! Let us praise the 8th Tyrant.¡±


    Caelus kneeled in front of Podius and offered him the coronet. As Podius placed the golden wreath on his head he banished his lingering doubts.


    ¡°All hail Tyrant Octavius!¡±


    Around the room several men lit torch stones to reveal themselves in the gloom and joined the resounding cry.


    ¡°All hail Tyrant Octavius!¡±


    Podius stood on the stage as strange men greeted him as Octavius. He was the emperor now. He would fix Erulea.

 Chapter 1 - Dirty Boy

    <blockquote>


    Dear Caelus Osterianus, Censor of the 7th Hill.


    Health and warmest salutations to my esteemed colleague in the smooth and bountiful running of the youth facilities on our humble hill. Congratulations on your pending promotion, or welcome to your replacement if that is to whom this letter falls.


    To respond to your concern for the welfare of the boy, the focus on which I wholeheartedly commend, I can only report that he unfortunately remains at large. His lodgings remain ready should he return.


    He has been sighted around the capital but neither Aedile Decius L. nor Magister Fridisian have acquiesced to assign the manpower to bring him back to the Children¡¯s Dormitories despite my innumerable requests. He still attends his lessons at the gymnasium as normal, and continues to remain eligible for matriculation as you have insisted, though Grammaticus Pupullis condemns his scholarly effort.


    Keeping track of him would be made easier if you would kindly intervene with our colleagues to provide men to capture him, it would be a simple affair.


    Warmest Regards to you and the Concilium Censorium,


    Amnus Muco, son of Pelagius Muco - 2nd Nutrator VII


    Head of Children¡¯s Development VII, 7th Elector Comitia Tributa VII, 3rd Hnrs Academia Erulea.


    </blockquote>


    Chapter 1 - Dirty Boy


    Palinus kneeled to adjust his sandals. The sole was slightly too large, a man¡¯s sizing on his still growing teenage feet. As he tightened the strapping, pulling the leather around his feet tight he casually checked his surroundings, looking up the hill then back down towards the northwestern gate. The street had a quiet lethargy as the early work of the day started.


    This area on the northern side of the 7th Hill was mostly manufacturing and storage areas but even at this time of the morning you could hear the noise of industry. The road he kneeled on ran around the inside of the city walls on one side and had an open sewer channel on the other. It was an unpopularly grimy side of the hill, perfect for his needs.


    His moment to move came as a cart hauling massive amphora rattled past. He used its cover to slip off the road into the sewerage ditch and surreptitiously clambered up the channel leading away from the road and up into the backways.


    The route was a narrow alley between buildings and walled compounds with an open sewerage channel running down the middle. It served as a connection for multiple refuse alleys and sewerage drains running up the hill between the tightly packed storage yards, workshops and warehouses, with sewage trickling down from apartments and shops further up the hill. It was used for dumping rubbish and night soil, while some of the richer areas of the city had indoor plumbing, here on the 7th Hill most peoples waste was managed with chamber pots at home or the public latrines if one was convenient.


    Usually the alleys were cleared out twice a week by the local magister with copious use of red fire, but with the essentia restrictions of the recent months that had become less frequent. This hot season had been sweltering with little rain and the infrequent cleansing burns had made the area absolutely reek and Palinus gagged as he moved quickly away from the outer ring road up the slight incline.


    ¡°HuuRRhrrphh...¡± He gagged again, nearly losing his breakfast on the slippery surface.


    ¡°Nearly out of sight.¡± The teenager spurred himself on, ¡°Nearly safe.¡±


    In a scurry of heart pounding moments he was out of sight of the road. Taking a moment to breathe he stretched his lanky limbs and brushed his dark brown hair out of hazel eyes as he relaxed a bit. Anxiety was normal for Palinus, not having many places he called safe, but he was extra nervous today¡¯s foray. His deepest fear when out scavenging was the thought of being seen doing it by someone he knew, he would be the laughing stock of his cohort. So, after the first couple of times scavenging he and his old partner had established a few simple rules to avoid being spotted: start early, act like he was doing something important, and most importantly - don¡¯t scavenge on the 7th hill.


    ¡°The grandmothers on the hill have eyes everywhere! If you go anywhere near the backways of the 7th Hill¡­ They¡¯ll know. Then the aunties, then the mothers and then EVERYONE!¡± He heard her ranting in his mind.


    He couldn''t help thinking about Seline.


    <hr>


    ¡°Palpal, it¡¯s getting late¡­¡± Seline said as she followed him along the narrow wall overlooking the 7th Hill Temple gardens. Even in the fading light she showed her effortless agility, following Palinus at a skip with her dark red hair bouncing in a loose braid.


    ¡°You can go back to the Dormitories if you want. I am just going to¡­ to¡­ buy a new stylus for lessons.¡± Palinus replied.


    Seline blew a raspberry, it was a dumb excuse to avoid going back.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have any money!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll make some.¡±


    ¡°No-one is going to hire a kid.¡±


    ¡°Then, I¡¯ll find something to sell!¡±


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you want to go back to the dormitories?¡± She asked with a soft voice.


    They had always been close friends. They had both been raised from before they could remember in the Children¡¯s Dormitories. He wanted to tell her.


    ¡°Nutrator Amnus¡­¡± He tried to say, but the words wouldn¡¯t come out. His body felt cold and he wrapped his arms around himself despite the warm evening air.


    ¡°He beats you?¡± She guessed, ¡°But he beats everyone?¡±


    ¡°...It¡¯s not that.¡±


    ¡°...oh.¡±


    The look of pity made him feel small and opened a wound that he had repressed.


    ¡°Ok,¡± she said, with a smile that felt forced. ¡°I will help you. But we¡¯re not buying a stylus, we¡¯re buying tickets out of the capital!¡±


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    <hr>


    Today he was breaking their cardinal rule.


    ¡°I have to make a big score¡­¡± and today he had a lead on one, a find that would pay for a ride to a new life somewhere far from the capital. Not that Seline cared anymore, they hadn''t spoken in months.


    Now that he was safely within the backways he felt no hurry to rush to his target. Turning over the piles of rubbish and poking at mounds of mud he did his standard search for anything of value as he made his way to his target zone further up the hill. The most common saleable find was discarded clothes that he could sell to the rag pickers, but he had been lucky in the past finding things like jewellery or salvageable pottery. The wealth of the capital made people wasteful and their laziness was Palinus¡¯s opportunity.


    As his morning progressed Palinus was searching up a dead end alley formed from the back of several albumstone warehouses. Their tall walls created a pocket of deep shadow in the early morning. As he scoured the area a flickering light drew his attention deep into the shadow.


    He held his breath as he carefully approached. Excitement built as he moved in, but he remained vigilant. He suspected from the flickering that it was some sort of live essentia discharge, and could be either a massive windfall or a life threatening hazard.


    Holding his breath as with the longest piece of wood he could find he gently poked at a pile of sawdust and offcuts that the light emerged from. As if he popped a bubble the rubbish sloughed off and a vibrant light filled the alleyway.


    Palinus¡¯s mind filled with wonder as straight away he recognised it as a rift seed, his eyes drawn to the pulsing effusion of essentia. In their lessons on essentia and rifts they had mostly been warned about the grave danger of rifts or the risks of unregulated and untrained use of essentia. He had barely paid attention as he instead dreamed of using the power. The barely remembered classroom image of an egg with wavey lines poking out of it was laughable as he looked at the real thing.


    The seed was complex, a writhing mass of tendrils of white light that defied logic. The tendrils didn¡¯t seem solid as they moved through each other, stretching out and folding back into themselves. The seed was constantly shifting, as if it was trying to stretch itself out with its tendrils and reaching to grasp with a twitching hunger.


    Palinus watched the rift seed for a while letting his mind wander as he dreamed of rift diving and finding a calculii that would let him fly away. He spent a while staring at the egg and in that time it had visibly grown. If the lessons and snippets of information he could recall were accurate then it would take most of the day to mature. An observation struck Palinus as odd: the rift tendrils reached out particularly towards the albumstone walls of the warehouses but otherwise moved randomly.


    As he shook himself from his thoughts he considered what to do with this information more practically. He certainly wasn¡¯t going to go into the rift himself, it would be suicide. He could inform the guard for a small reward, it was his ¡®civic duty.¡¯ He briefly fantasised about telling Aedile Decius Littera personally, who would heroically vanquish the rift and thank Palinus personally.


    Palinus laughed at his childish fantasy and started back on his mission of the day. He would just sell the location of the rift when he made his delivery later. Picking up a piece of albumstone he scratched a map to the rift, putting it in the pocket of his tunic as he went to collect his more regular finds for the morning: a mostly functional basket with some broken reeding, and a pile of small amphorae stamped with a local vintners mark he could return for a small amount. He stashed his finds near where he entered the backways and made his way back up the arterial alleys towards the next block where his information suggested he might make his big find.


    <hr>


    Palinus lurked in the shadows looking up at the Via Faber, the busiest road on the 7th hill. He could see people strolling along looking at the shops besides the alleyway and holding their noses as they walked past.


    The sewerage channel crossed under the road while the alley stepped up to the street. Palinus didn¡¯t want to risk going up into the street. Today was 7th Day so while many of his peers in training or apprenticeships would have a day off, this was still one of the busiest roads on the 7th Hill with workshops and store fronts drawing local shoppers.


    Fortunately the arched roof of the sewer underpass was high enough for him to pass under the road. While the sewerage was unpleasant he could get through, bent over in a crouch. If he stepped on the side out of the main channel of muck it wasn¡¯t too bad and had enough clearance for him to avoid putting his hands and knees down.


    Palinus crept out of the shadow of the alleyway and took a moment to check he wasn¡¯t spotted from the road as he stepped down into the channel. He was getting excited despite the uninviting prospect of walking directly in the sewerage channel. After he made it through to the other side he would be at his first target zone.The fabric merchant who sold the bolts of wool he was looking to find would likely have dumped them around this area if the bolts were rejected before they got to the militia stores.


    As he started under the road he could hear voices coming from the other side. He slowed and focused on the voices. There were at least two people in the channel ahead of him. Backing off awkwardly in the confined space he realised that he recognised the voice doing most of the talking, it was a sort of banter. When the other voice responded with a deep voice and a chuckling laugh he was absolutely certain.


    It was Rufian and Bruchts. They were both in Palinus¡¯s cohort and he knew them well. They were amongst the worst possible people to have found down here. Always teasing and joking, generally at the expense of anyone who stood out or did something stupid.


    Palinus had known them for years and knew their patter so he generally laughed off the barbs and got on ok with the boys. But he could definitely not have them know what he was doing down here as everyone else on the hill would know within the week.


    He was safe for the moment as they wouldn¡¯t be able to see him unless they crouched down and came in this direction. So crouched over in the muck he considered his options as he listened to the boys.


    A solid option would be making his escape rather than risk the potential criticism and public ridicule he would face if the boys found him. But he had to get the product ready for the pick up, otherwise he would be in deeper shit than he already stood in. He had made an agreement with Domitia Commodus, one of the less scrupulous merchants in Erulea and she would take a pound of flesh if he did not meet their agreement, regardless of the circumstances.


    They were both sounding a bit frustrated as Palinus could hear bits of bickering creeping into their usual casual banter.


    ¡°... keep looking, he may be a drunk but he definitely said¡­ ¡±


    ¡°...you sure he definitely said here?¡±


    As he heard Bruchts question he realised that they were looking for something.


    Thinking quickly, Palinus made a plan. He could turn the tables and give the boys a taste of their own medicine. Once he had bullied them off the area, he could search it alone.


    He carefully made his way back out the channel. Waiting for a lull in the traffic to minimise the risk of being spotted he casually walked across the road and ducked into the alley on the other side.


    From the alcove of a doorway he peeked out at the other boys. Rufian had a typical Erulean complexion like Palinus with brown hair and tanned skin but with a stockier frame compared to the lanky Palinus. Bruchts was the biggest in their cohort, his size, blonde hair and blue eyes marked him as a stoneman even though he was apparently born in Erulea.


    Palinus waited for the perfect moment to catch the boys.


    This was his last opportunity to back out, once he crossed down into the alley he was committed. A heady combination of greed and fear drove him to action, and the potential satisfaction of getting one up on Rufian led him to committing to his shaky plan.


    Sauntering down the steps he called out.


    ¡°Fancy seeing you two down here. Are you trying to find girlfriends?¡±


    Palinus cringed, it sounded better in his head, but it had the effect he was looking for. Both Ruffian and Bruchts whirled around looking sheepish.


    ¡°Oh, hi Palinus¡­ we were just dumping some wood scraps for my father.¡± Rufian said feigning casualness and gesturing to some wood piled nearby.


    ¡°Haha, yeah I suppose you did that. Then you just liked it down here and decided to stay.¡± Palinus didn''t let him off with his canned excuse, ¡°I know wha¡­¡±


    Bruchts cleared his throat and pointed at Palinus¡¯s sandals. Then with a waving finger called him out with a mocking tone.


    ¡°Dirty boy.¡±

 Chapter 2 - Blood, Wood, Stone Not!

    Chapter 2 - Blood, Wood, Stone Not!


    Palinus deflated as he realised he had been caught out already. He had forgotten that his sandals and feet were filthy already from the morning¡¯s jaunt which gave away the game straight away to the observant Bruchts. He was in fact a dirty boy and his shame was written in leather soaked in sewerage.


    Quickly understanding the comment Rufian picked up on what Bruchts was saying.


    ¡°You''re out looking for the same stash, haha.¡± Rufian laughed as he figured out Palinus¡¯s game, ¡°Damn Marius has a big mouth!¡±


    ¡°Ugh¡­¡± Palinus was frustrated with the situation. Marius was one of the aides at the Gymnasium, he was in the auxilia and was involved with logistics for the city militia. Palinus thought he was close to the man but apparently this friendship was not exclusive.


    ¡°Well, you can saunter off like a proper young citizen and we won¡¯t tell anyone you roll in shit for fun.¡± Rufi tried to dismiss Palinus..


    ¡°We can split the profits if you help me haul the bolts up to the road. I have a buyer and I¡¯ve arranged transport to come pick them up¡­¡± Palinus scrambled to try and save his skin, he¡¯d give up his share if he had to rather than be in debt to his buyer.


    ¡°Ah yes, the bolts¡­¡±


    ¡°...¡± Palinus realised too late. ¡°You were looking for something else¡­¡±


    ¡°Maybe¡­¡± Rufian had a glimmer in his eye. ¡°Alright, an even three way split on the cloth. We help you, and you help us.¡±


    Palinus had the composure to consider the other boy¡¯s counter and weigh it up quickly. The other boy''s help would be valuable to him, and he was even more interested in making them complicit, preventing them from telling the world.


    The quick counter offer also made Palinus curious and recalling the bickering he overheard earlier it seemed like Rufian might be getting desperate for help. It sounded like they were looking for something valuable.


    ¡°The cloth is worth at least 10 denarius and maybe more. It¡¯ll be heavy, and as I said I have a buyer picking it up with the coin tonight. I might agree to a three way split on the whole haul if you¡¯ll cut me in on what you¡¯re looking for?¡±


    The amount visibly piqued Rufian¡¯s interest. Palinus knew that he liked to drink, and wine in Erulea was expensive for a teenager.


    ¡°I¡¯ll have to consult with my learned colleague.¡± Rufi feigned disinterest with a joke as he turned to Bruchts. He was on the hook.


    After a whispered conversation Rufi gestured for Palinus to join their huddle.


    ¡°Your in, and you won''t believe it..." Rufi whispered excitedly. "Marius said the 7th Hill Militia had dumped some old fulmination wands,¡±


    ¡°Fire and blood.... Yes.¡± Excitement lit up Palinus''s face. The wands might be worth even more than the fabric if they could find a purchaser. But even more exciting than the potential profit: fulmination wands shot explosive bolts.


    The three did a thorough search of the area around the road. They quickly realised that the bolts of cloth were obviously not here but searched a bit longer for the wands.


    ¡°Looks like they didn¡¯t dump anything we are after here.¡± Palinus called the others in from their search.


    ¡°Marius said the wand contract always goes to the Pansa brothers, and their workshop is just there above the shop.¡± Rufian sighed.


    ¡°Yeah he said the lazy porters just dump stuff here rather than take it back to the storehouse. But let¡¯s go check there, I don¡¯t think they¡¯ll be posting a guard out the back and I know how we can get around there through the backways.¡± Palinus suggested


    ¡°We¡¯ll have a quick look. But my father is expecting us back soon, he knows we¡¯ll be wasting time but there is a limit to his patience.¡± Rufian said with a quick glance at the sun just past its peak in the sky.


    <hr>


    Palinus guided the boys up the backways through a series of turns and under another road. Soon they came to a corner of a high wall that loomed over the two story workshops and warehouses in the area.


    ¡°This is the 7th Hill Militia barracks. Their storage yard is just over the other side of the wall and there¡¯s a gate around the corner so this would be a prime dumping spot. I don¡¯t think they¡¯ll be guarding their rubbish, but be ready to run. We need to be quiet as they might decide to rough us up if we draw attention to ourselves.¡± Palinus warned.


    The two boys followed Palinus as quietly as they could, hugging the massive wall and trying to be stealthy. They didn¡¯t have his experienced step but managed to avoid making too much noise. As they rounded the corner Palinus could see his target immediately. Stacked haphazardly next to a heavy bronze gate a dozen massive bolts of treated wool sat against the wall. Palinus breathed a sigh of relief confirming they were there and gave himself a mental salute for bringing help along, he couldn¡¯t have lifted these easily alone.


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    As they neared the gates and wool, Palinus reminded the boys with a signal to be quiet and pulled them into a huddle.


    ¡°Ok, you two start hauling these bolts. They are way bigger than I thought and we are going to need two people to carry them back to the road we just passed.¡± Palinus whispered.


    Rufian started to object before Palinus mollified him.


    ¡°Just think of how much wine you can buy with like 5 denarai, besides you two are stronger than me and will be able to carry them easily. I will start a thorough search for the wands. They aren¡¯t out in the open that I can see so they might not be here, or they were hidden to keep them from degenerates like you.¡±


    He made a rude gesture, but with uncharacteristic seriousness moved to get started with the cloth. As Bruchts and Rufian carried the first bolt around the corner back to the steps up to the road, Palinus had already started his search with a mental map of the area.


    In his way and filling much of the alleyway were several mounds of food scraps piled high. The militiaman who did the waste management was an artist with a handcart and clearly enjoyed making precariously tall piles of food scraps. It also looked like the mess hall was generous with their portions and not afraid of waste. These teetering piles were a potential spot to hide something dangerous like the wands but he put them at bottom of the search list as they would take a considerable length of time to go through.


    Just next to the gate was a pile of discarded camp fittings: broken frames for tents, several rusty cooking stands with crusty pots and cookware. Palinus made a mental note that some of the utensils might be worth coming back for another day, iron was expensive. He did a quick poke through but didn¡¯t see any likely spots to hide a stash of wands.


    Part of the problem he was facing is that he didn¡¯t know exactly what he was looking for. He assumed that the wands would be in a box, but they could equally be just bundled in a pile and he didn¡¯t really know how big the box or pile might be.


    As he looked back down the alley the other boys came back for another bolt. Palinus shook his head that he hadn¡¯t found the wands as yet.


    As he had been looking around his eye kept being drawn to a culvert that led from the barracks to the sewerage channel. The barracks, like most government buildings, was plumbed and the waste came out of the narrow chute of carved albumstone. As he looked closer at the outflow he noticed that there was only a narrow trickle of sludge as if something was blocking it. He steeled himself to climb down and get closer to the foul odour.


    Crouching down he looked up the culvert and he could see down the passage there was something square shaped sitting in the channel. It was well out of arms reach and he was definitely not sticking his arm down this sewerage outlet. He considered leaving it for later or getting one of the other boys to do it, but something gave him a strong feeling he had found what they were looking for. A mix of curiosity and avarice pushed him to action.


    He grabbed one of the spars off a broken tent and used it to poke up towards the blockage. Tapping the blockage he could hear a wooden thump with a hollow sound which excited the teenager and further convinced him he was on the right track. As he carefully started trying to wedge the length of wood he had around the side of the object he was careful not to push the object further down the pipe.


    He found some purchase and was able to wiggle the spar down the side of the blockage. The object shifted and with a bigger opening some of the blocked up waste was released. A gush of chunky fluid with an awful smell rushed straight towards Palinus. He jerked himself away managing to get out of the sewerage drain before he slipped, falling to the ground as he started heaving up the bile in his empty stomach.


    Standing over him Rufian let out a snort of laughter that he barely muffled at Palinus¡¯s misfortune as Bruchts came over to help him up.


    ¡°Nice trip, Fallinus?¡± Rufian quipped.


    ¡°I think I¡¯ve found it!¡± Palinus was too excited to care, gesturing excitedly to the other boys ¡°Look down there.¡±


    Bruchts carefully pulled out the tent spar Palinus had left wedged in there and barely gagged as he looked up the culvert towards the blockage. His eyes twinkled and he gave Palinus a thumbs up as he moved out to let Rufian look.


    ¡°Blood and flame, I reckon this is it!¡± Rufian cheered.


    The practical Bruchts came back with another two tent spars and wedged them into the pipe on opposite sides. Palinus saw what he was trying to do and grabbed one of the spars. Together they were able to move the box further towards them but it was stuck fast an arms length down and no amount of wiggling was able to get it out.


    The boys looked at each other. Someone had to put their arm in.


    ¡°Blood, Wood, Stone not!¡± Rufian childishly chanted, putting his finger to his ear.


    ¡°Blood, Wood, Stone not!¡± Palinus quickly joined.


    Unimpressed with the childishness Bruchts just glared back at them but ultimately started moving, not to the pipe but towards the pile of camp stuff next to the gate. He grabbed out a bit of iron with a spike on the end, some sort of fire poker or pot holder.


    As he retrieved his tool from the pile they heard a gruff voice from the other side of the gate yelling.


    ¡°Get out of it you urchins!¡±


    There was a rattling as the man undid the fastenings on the other side of the gate. The boys had gotten excited and were making far too much noise to avoid attention.


    Quick off the mark Bruchts and Rufian started running immediately. Palinus had started after them a moment later but the greedy voice in his head shouted at him to stop and that he was so close.


    Fully commiting he quickly dove for the culvert and he shoved his arm in. The adrenaline helped him ignore the squelching sensation of his body sliding into the semi solid liquid and the squishing between his fingers as he grasped for the box.


    The heavy gates let out a creaking squeal, protesting being opened.


    With some wild grasping Palinus was able to get his hand around the corner of the box and he tugged it. It twisted and his one hand grip was lost as he jammed the box against the side of the curved channel.


    He could see a gap in the gate as it started opening and the vague outline of a man tugging one side of the gate open, swearing as he worked at it.


    Palinus doubled down on getting the box out, he reached his other arm in and crawling both arms forward on his elbows he was able to get a grip with both hands on the box. He pulled again and with a squelch and gushing release of blocked effluent the box came out.


    He tucked it under his arm and started running. Jubilant, but literally covered in shit.


    Looking over his shoulder he could see the militia guard was through the gate behind him. The man got a good look at Palinus and could see what he had pulled out of the culvert.


    ¡°Stop boy, those are dangerous!¡±


    The miltia guardsman was running after him, his hand on his gladius as it slapped against his thigh.

 Chapter 3 - Explosions and Wine!

    Chapter 3 - Explosions and Wine!


    Palinus charged around the corner. As he rounded the corner he could see Bruchts and Rufian just ahead, they had stopped and watched him wide eyed as he came into view.


    ¡°RUN, he¡¯s after us!¡±


    The boys started running again as Palinus ran past.


    ¡°Why is he bothering?¡± Rufian called out.


    Palinus grinned over his shoulder and showed him the box.


    ¡°You are a legend!¡± Rufian praised Palinus and visibly perked up as they ran.


    Over their shoulder they could see the guard following. The man \was bigger than the boys and looked to be in good shape. If they ran in a straight line the boys would be in trouble.


    They bolted down the backways hopping from side to side of the sewerage channel and skidding around turns at the last moment to throw the guard off. The guardsman was wearing better footwear for this sort of pursuit with his heavy covered sandals but didn¡¯t seem comfortable running on the slippery footing as he slowed at each turn giving ground to the boys.


    As their flight took them around the corner leading to the road, Palinus quickly considered their options. If they climbed the steps up onto the road the guard might catch them or get help. They would stand out like sore thumbs as they were all conspicuously dirty.


    ¡°This way!¡± He yelled as he ran past the steps and ducked under the road leading the boys into the sewerage channel and deeper into the backways. The others followed as they retraced Palinus¡¯s route this morning. With the excitement of the box and being chased they made quick progress under the road and around the corner.


    A few turns later Palinus slowed as he confirmed they had lost the guard at the road and they stopped to catch their breath.


    ¡°Let¡¯s have a look!¡± Rufian gasped not waiting to catch his breath.


    Palinus passed the box to Rufian who set it down and wiped muck off the latch as he tried to open the box.


    ¡°Why are you still carrying that?¡± Palinus laughed as he noticed Bruchts was still carrying the iron poker he had picked up from the scrap pile.


    ¡°It¡¯s good iron. It¡¯ll be a good gift for my mother,¡± Bruchts replied earnestly.


    The reply stopped Palinus''s laughter and focused on Rufian opening the box. He felt a pang of jealousy for Bruchts to have that sort of relationship with a parent. Palinus saw his mother regularly, but the rules of the Vestral service meant they weren¡¯t close.


    As they watched Rufian gave up on the latch and was about to try to smash the box. Bruchts managed to grab it as his impatient friend lifted it above his head to bash it on the ground.


    The big blonde teenager gently sat the box down and with the end of his poker levered the latch open.


    Inside the box were twelve wands in individual compartments. Made of a light wood they were a foot long and were tapered to a hollow point at the top and about the width of a thumb at the bottom. Each of the boys grabbed one at random and waved them around. Cheering and pretending to shoot their wands at each other.


    As they settled down they started trying in earnest to use the wands and set up targets using the rubbish in the area.


    ¡°How do you make them shoot?¡± Palinus asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Rufian admitted.


    They tried different gestures and even commanded the wands to shoot but nothing seemed to work.


    ¡°No gem,¡± Bruchts suddenly said.


    The stoneman teenager had been inspecting the wand in his hand and showed the other boys a gap at the bottom of the wand where there was a slot for a clearly missing component. Looking in the wands in their hands they both noticed the same absence.


    ¡°Bloody inferno!¡± Rufian yelled in frustration. ¡°They¡¯re supposed to be too lazy to bother taking these out.¡±


    He threw the wand down and stomped over to one of their targets punching an unfortunate wooden box to pieces.


    With more patience and lingering hope Palinus and Bruchts went through the box of wands and started inspecting each of them. None had anything in the slot at the bottom of the wand.


    ¡°They are called calculii not gems if they have attuned essentia,¡± Palinus told Bruchts.


    ¡°Hmm, there¡¯s no difference in my language.¡± Bruchts replied.


    ¡°You¡¯re right though. Without a calculii in the slot to draw essentia, these are just hollow sticks.¡± Palinus said as he gave up checking all of the wands.


    Carefully Bruchts held each of the wands up to the light and looked down their hollow interior, he gave a start as he found something. Immediately he showed Palinus that one of the wands had a piece of calculii still left within the chamber of the wand. With a hopefuly expression he stood to test the wand.


    The wand looked small in Bruchts big hand as he stood with his arm outstretched. Gently he flicked the wand towards a stack of rubble. There was a flash at the base of his hand and a popping noise, but nothing happened.


    As Bruchts flicked the wand for the second time the wand again flashed and this time there was a high pitched pop and a whistle. With a short delay the wand spat out a tiny bolt of red fire that streaked towards the rock pile. The bolt flew lethargically as if travelling through water and fell short hitting the mud with a thwack that sounded like someone had punched the mud.


    ¡°Woo¡±


    ¡°Yeah¡± The boys were cheering and jumped up and down together.


    ¡°My go!¡± Shouted Rufian.


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    With an inscrutable expression Bruchts looked at his firend and instead handed the wand to Palinus.


    ¡°Hmph fine, I¡¯ve got next,¡± Rufian sulked.


    With reverence Palinus looked down at the wand in his hand. Now that he held the wand properly he could feel a spark of warmth and as he stroked it he could feel it tug at something inside of him. They had never had practical training in using their essentia, but like all Erulean¡¯s he had channelled essentia to honour the hearth when he went to the temple. The tug felt similar, he just had to let the wand connect to his essentia.


    ¡°Stand back,¡± he told the other boys. Rufian just rolled his eyes but Bruchts nodded earnestly and took a step back with a grin.


    He picked a target, an old ceramic pot that the boys had balanced on a piece of wood sticking out of the mud. He stretched out his arm, pointing the wand at the target and flicked it, imitating Brucht¡¯s movement before.


    As the wand came back down towards the target he instinctively let the tug take essentia from his hand which released a twinge down his arm from his chest. It instantly felt right.


    The flash from the bottom of his hand was visibly red compared to the whiter flash of Brucht¡¯s. The sound a deeper pop with an instant whistle as the bolt shot out of the wand streaking towards the target. The bolt visibly spun and traced a tight loop leaving a helix shaped afterimage.


    It struck the target with a flash and a thump breaking the pot to pieces and knocking over the propped up wood. The boys ran over to the destroyed target cheering. Pieces of pottery were scattered and the area around the target lay smouldering. The boys picked up the bits and examined the impact. Roughly reconstructing the pot they could see a circular chunk the width of two knuckles gouged out where the bolt struck. A few metres around the impact site was singed by the explosion.


    ¡°My turn!¡± Rufian snatched the wand out of Palinus¡¯s hand and ran back to where he had been standing, ¡°You¡¯d better step back.¡±


    He barely waited for Bruchts and Palinus to scramble behind him before he flourished the wand at some stacked chunks of rock. There was a flash of light and a fizzling pop that Palinus realised indicated the shot had failed.


    With a put out expression Rufian immediately looked accusingly down the chamber of the wand making a noise of irritation. He wiped his hands on a less grubby bit of his tunic and took a stance to shoot the wand again. It whiffed again with a flash and a pop and the teenager glared at the other boys, daring them to laugh at him.


    For his third attempt Rufian slowed down and looked uncharacteristically serious as he focused on the wand. He brought his other hand up to the wand and stood with a strong stance. This time he didn¡¯t flick or move the wand and managed to trigger the flash of the wand discharging.


    The wand went off with a pop and a whistle.


    With a whoop of triumph Rufian ran over to the pile of rocks. The boys inspected the damage and comparing it to the target Palinus had hit. The area of Rufian''s explosion was bigger and it had made more noise than Palinus¡¯s shot.


    ¡°See how big that was!¡± Rufian crowed as he pointed to the rocks.


    ¡°But there''s barely any impact damage,¡± Palinus countered, ¡°and the burnt bits don¡¯t look as hot.¡±


    Rufian blew a raspberry back at him.


    ¡°Let¡¯s see you do better then.¡±


    <hr>


    The boys took turns with the wand as the afternoon wore on. They ranged around the backways to find stuff to use as targets and gradually figured out how the wand worked, starting to get more accurate and pick their target better. They had to move a few times as surly home and business owners chased them away from their property.


    As they mucked around with the wand Palinus went and grabbed the amphora he had found earlier. There was some leftover wine in some of the vessels and the boys drank the dregs even though it tasted off then used the pottery containers for targets.


    Feeling pretty proud of himself Palinus only failed his shot twice, it seemed like Rufian would whiff about a third of his shots but Bruchts had the worst run of it. No matter what he tried he couldn¡¯t get the wand to shoot faster bolts and it wouldn''t work at all in more than half of his shots.


    The good natured Bruchts wasn¡¯t too bothered by the failure; instead egging on Rufian and Palinus who were being competitive and at this point a little bit tipsy. Rufian bragged that his bolts were bigger with more fire splash. Palinus argued back that he rarely whiffed and that his shots hit harder and created more intense fire.


    <hr>


    It took nearly two hours and the wanton destruction of countless pieces of rubbish before Rufian accepted that Palinus was more effective with the wand.


    ¡°It is just better attuned to you,¡± Rufian complained. ¡°If we had a better wand I could beat you.¡±


    ¡°You are both better than me with hand to hand weapons or unarmed.¡± Palinus tried to mollify the sulking Rufian. He almost regretted challenging the other boy''s fragile ego. Palinus had enjoyed the afternoon, hanging out with the boys had helped him forget his worries and with hours before nightfall he decided to surprise them.


    ¡°Hey you two. I found something this morning that you might be interested in seeing.¡± Palinus said.


    ¡°We should probably get back to the workshop.¡± Rufian replied.


    ¡°You¡¯ll want to see this.¡± Palinus sensed he was losing the other boy''s attention. He leaned in and whispered conspiratorially, ¡°I found a rift seed this morning.¡±


    ¡°Whoa,¡± Rufian said excitedly. ¡°Show us!¡±


    Scampering off excitedly Palinus led them through the backways. He pulled out the map he had made this morning to double check the way, he knew they were close but were coming from a different direction. They walked for a bit, listening to Rufian talking excitedly about rifts and shortly they came to the alley. From around the corner there was a visible glow of essentia and as soon as they saw it Rufian shot off in a run.


    ¡°Careful! It¡¯s dangerous!¡± Palinus tried to caution Rufian but the boy just laughed and jogged around the corner. As they followed around the corner they found him stopped in his tracks and looking on in awe.


    ¡°Look at that!¡±


    The rift seed, barely the size of a watermelon when Palinus left it earlier, was now massive. Its tendrils stretched to either side of the alley as they grasped the buildings. In the middle of the thick waving tendrils was a swirling maelstrom of light raging around a circular aperture of prismatic colours. Juxtaposing the energy of the rift in the heart of the maelstrom there was a calm image of a room full of pillars lit with a red glow.


    This was no longer a seed. This was a mature rift.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡± Rufian waved the other two on and started walking towards the rift.


    ¡°What? No¡± Palinus refused.


    ¡°Wait!¡± Bruchts begged Rufian to stop at the same time.


    ¡°Why so scared? It¡¯s a rift! This is a huge opportunity for us!¡± Rufian tried to encourage the other boys. ¡°People go into these all the time and come out with amazing calculii or weapons.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not safe, you could die!¡± Palinus tried to talk him down.


    ¡°Have you ever known anyone to die in a rift? My Uncle Ares dives all the time, he says only idiots get killed.¡±


    ¡°Ares is crazy Rufi¡­¡± Brucht¡¯s counter argument seemed to deflate Rufian for a moment.


    ¡°Yeah, bad example¡­ But random people go into rifts all the time. It¡¯s called shepherding,¡± Rufian wasn¡¯t giving up. ¡°All you do is hang around and you pick up essentia off the ground. You could be powerful! ¡­you could fight Amnus.¡±


    Rufian said the last line softly, looking straight at Palinus with a sympathetic expression. It felt like a strike to the stomach with the mention of Nutrator Amnus. Despite his eagerness Rufian must have detected that that line of argument hadn¡¯t hit the mark as he quickly pivoted.


    ¡°I am going in, trust me. It will be ok, you will be safe. The Nexus will just revive you if you get into trouble.¡± Rufian sounded confident and with a moment of thought he passed the wand to Palinus. ¡°Here, you are better with this. I am relying on you two to back me up.¡±


    ¡°I need to get back to the wool,¡± Palinus said limply, he realised there was no stopping Rufian. ¡°At least before dark.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll be back soon, don¡¯t worry!¡±


    Rufian marched towards the rift alone. As he approached he raised his hand and a tendril of light reached back.

 Chapter 4 - Defence of the Nexus

    Chapter 4 - Defence of the Nexus


    The tendril of light curled gently around Rufians hand. The swarthy teenager stood for a moment caressing the light with his fingers.


    As the tendril reached back for the teenager it tapped gently as if tasting, and finding Rufian palatable it looped itself around his forearm and violently tugged. Rufian fell to the ground bonelessly, his arm out in front of him only partially stopping the teenager hitting the ground face first.


    ¡°Rufian!¡± Both Palinus and Bruchts yelled as they watched him collapse.


    Bruchts crawled over to his friend and tried to pull him away from the rift by the ankle. But trying as hard as he could he couldn¡¯t move Rufian. He seemed to be stuck in place with some invisible force.


    ¡°He¡¯s still warm,¡± Bruchts turned back towards Palinus. ¡°Still breathing.¡±


    The big teenager sat on the ground and rubbed at his blonde hair deep in thought. After a few moments he appeared to have made a decision.


    ¡°We''re going, he needs someone to watch over him.¡±


    He gestured to Palinus to follow and crawled towards the darting tendrils of the rift with the iron poker still in his hand. The heavy piece of metal would be better than nothin as a weapon in the rift and Palinus was glad he was going in with something. Bruchts crawled up next to Rufian where a white tendril of light caressed his back before wrapping around his neck as he too collapsed.


    Palinus was alone in the alleyway standing over two unconscious teenagers he barely considered friends staring at the rift.


    As he stood in indecision he considered the loose tendrils of white tendrils of light as they swayed and danced hypnotically. They were thicker at the base and moved like they were alive. This impression was reinforced as whenever a tendril got close to Palinus it would stretch and reach out towards him, moving with intent.


    The sense of the rift being alive repulsed Palinus and watching Rufian fall to the ground like he was dead had filled him with a deep sense of dread. It would have been logical to turn and run, and Palinus was definitely close to running. He hadn¡¯t exactly agreed to do this with the other boys but if they made it out they would absolutely call him a coward.


    ¡°Rifts are common, people go into them all the time¡­ I¡¯ll just go in and pick essentia off the ground¡­ It will be OK, we can be safe and the Nexus will just revive us if we get into trouble¡­¡± Palinus repeated Rufian¡¯s arguments to try and convince himself,¡±... We can get loot.¡±


    This was a chance, in the rift he might find something that could set him up for life far away from Erulea. Rufian was wrong, he didn¡¯t want to fight, he just wanted to leave. But maybe he was right, it might be safe and he said they would get back in time to secure the wool. If they found something good he could sell it to pay off Domitia Commodus and they wouldn¡¯t have to worry about the wool anyway.


    He wouldn¡¯t have to worry if he was dead in anycase.


    Checking that he had the wand secure in his hand and with grim determination he sat on the alley floor and scooted awkwardly backwards on his bottom towards the rift.


    <hr>


    Palinus¡¯ body jerked forward as he regained consciousness and hit his face on a curved albumstone wall.


    He found himself in a narrow cylindrical space. Just as he started to panic about being stuck in the dark confined space, a pin prick of light appeared in front of him and rapidly expanded as if the stone was melting. Through the hole he could see a room that looked like a generic Erulean temple with a huge fire in the middle.


    As he looked through the rapidly expanding hole he could see several enormous columns around the room. In the column opposite several fingers were sticking out, struggling ineffectually to widen a similar hole to the one Palinus was looking through. The owner of the fingers was an unfamiliar older man who seemed to calm as the hole opened wide enough to see through comfortably.


    The hole opened itself quickly and as soon as it was big enough Palinus climbed out. Rufian and Bruchts had done the same and were grinning back at him as they climbed out of their pillars.


    ¡°I knew you would come, but I thought you might have taken some time to work up the courage!¡± Rufian laughed.


    Bruchts and Palinus shared a look and while they didn¡¯t say anything, Bruchts did give a faint nod of acknowledgement.


    ¡°Let''s go-!¡± Rufian started moving towards the door on the right.


    ¡°Keep your pants on kid,¡± a gruff voice came from the man from the column who was stepping casually out now. ¡°Foolish to be diving a rift so young¡­¡±


    ¡°Haha, we would have been younger when we ran our first Marc.¡± A woman stepped out of the final column. She familiarly put her hand on the man¡¯s shoulder before she addressed the boys. ¡°First time?¡±


    She asked it as a question but it was delivered as a statement.


    ¡°It¡¯s ok, we can show you the ropes and make sure you get out safely. I am Minucia, and this is Marcus.¡± She gestured to the boys to sit with her by the fire at the centre of the room.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think we need your help-¡± Rufian started trying to brush her off.


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    Marcus walked calmly over to Rufian and punched him solidly in the jaw, knocking him down.


    ¡°Shut it boy. All of our lives are on the line here. So pay attention and do what we say.¡± Marcus stood over Rufian.


    ¡°You have time to sit and listen even if you do choose to rush off to die on your own.¡± Minucia placated, ¡°the first 5 minutes of a rift are preparation time. There are no spawning minions or creeps. More professional teams in a match rift might march off straight away or posture and poke at each other, but for newbies like you that wouldn¡¯t be a safe option.¡±


    ¡°How did you know we were new to this?¡± Palinus asked as he sat.


    ¡°If you look closely at an avatar, a minion or a creep you will get some information about them. ¡±


    Palinus looked at his team members more closely to see what she was talking about. If he let his eyes rest on one of his team members, boxes appeared above their heads with colourful writing and information on their avatars. Once he had the knack of adjusting his focus he could instantly see the information at will.


    Minutia Gavros 580/580 | Level 0


    Foam Witch - Sorcerer / Foam Witch / Mage


    Marcus Gavros 732/732 | Level 0


    Bloody Maceman - Bruiser / Bloody Maceman / Defender


    Rufian Ramirus 650/650 | Level 0


    Unformed


    Bruchts 610/610 | Level 0


    Unformed


    Palinus 600/600 | Level 0


    Unformed


    ¡°Whoa, the colours must be our attunement!¡± Palinus remarked excitedly.


    ¡°¡®Ooohh pretty colours!¡¯¡± Rufian mocked and got an idle cuff over the head from Marcus.


    ¡°...unformed?¡± Palinus wondered, ignoring the other boy.


    ¡°It means you have never levelled up in a rift,¡± Minucia explained and laughed, ¡°we¡¯ll pop your cherry today. So, you¡¯ll see what it all means.¡±


    ¡°This rift is an internexus conflict, a hardcore, five vs five, Defence of the Nexus with two lanes,¡± She started explaining rapidly, but sensing an interjecting question from Palinus she sighed and explained with a gesture at the turquoise calculii on her temple. ¡°I can see information on this rift using my essentia sight, and yes there are other types of rifts.¡±


    She launched back into explaining quickly.


    ¡°An internexus conflict rift occurs when opposing nexuses converge over an essentia pathway. In this case it is between an Erulean sub-nexus against a nexus in the Silvanian Kingdoms cluster. This rift is a common battlefield but of little importance so the essentia investment of the nexuses is low. Be aware that a very low essentia investment from the nexuses means that our nexus is unlikely to revive you until a threshold of essentia is collected, which is why we call this a hardcore rift.¡±


    His eyes had glazed over as he got lost in the details but the reminder of his mortality and the sympathetic look in Minucia and Marcus''s eyes as she explained that bit brought him back to focus. They had committed now and he needed this information to survive.


    ¡°This conflict is over two essentia pathways which means two lanes in the rift. It is a single stage battle and we call this map type a Defence of the Nexus because both sides will have an avatar of the nexus to defend.¡± Minucia pointed out this was the fire for them. ¡°The nexuses will battle by spawning minions which will march down the lanes towards each other in an effort to destroy the opposition nexus. They are always evenly matched, which is where we all came in. We have been spawned into the rift as avatars of ourselves to fight on behalf of the nexus. The rift will end when either nexus is destroyed and you will be returned to your bodies in the overworld.¡±


    ¡°So are you just here to shepherd the minions and get some easy essentia?¡±


    Minucia¡¯s question barely cut through the information overload in Palinus¡¯s brain and before he could even nod a confirmation Rufian blurted out, ¡°No, we are here to fight!¡±


    The two experienced rift delvers laughed at the bravado. They gestured for the boys to wait as they turned to have a quiet chat between themselves which involved several gestures at the boys. Rufian seemed pumped up and impatient to go but hesitated with a side eyed look at Marcus¡¯s fist.


    ¡°That is a very stupid idea, but Min wants to give you the chance, so we will see,¡± Marcus said before asking. ¡°How do you plan on fighting?¡±


    Palinus showed them the wand, Bruchts his iron poker and Rufian just raised his fists and shrugged which made the two adults laugh again before Marcus suddenly got deadly serious.


    ¡°Right, if you are set on fighting the opposition avatars instead of just shepherding the minions just be aware that you are putting our lives on the line as well as your own. At the first sign of real danger we will be backing off and I suggest you do too.¡± Marcus warned, ¡°Two generalised melee with a wand user is not a good combo for this rift configuration. You will either push too hard or barely get any essentia and besides, your attunements are not balanced as a trio. You two go down that lane.¡±


    Marcus pointed at Palinus and Bruchts to the door on the right.


    ¡°Min will support this one in the other lane,¡± the big man pointed at Rufian, ¡°and I¡¯ll roam.¡±


    Not wanting to separate, Rufian and Bruchts quickly objected to the orders.


    ¡°Let me take the wand and I¡¯ll go with Bruchts,¡± Rufian moved to take the wand from Palinus who offered it out for him. As Rufian tried to grasp the weapon in Palinus¡¯s hand he didn''t seem to be able to grip it. Palinus tried to give it to Rufian but the wand just slipped out of his grip and just clattered to the floor.


    Minucia and Marcus laughed, shaking their heads at the boys'' antics.


    ¡°You can¡¯t loot avatars, idiots. Also this is a low essentia rift so there is no exhange and you can¡¯t really change your loadout. But if you do see a drop coalesce from essentia you have to let us know and we will decide who can best use it,¡± Marcus growled and a hint of menace entered his voice as he warned, ¡°Don¡¯t be loot thieves or I''ll push you under their tower myself.¡±


    Minucia rolled her eyes at her husband¡¯s threat but her voice took a serious tone as she finished her lecture.


    ¡°We do not know what we will be facing. It might be a group of shepherds, or it might be Myrthelwhynese Rift Slayers. Until we say otherwise, stay near the tower, behind the minions and maintain contact.¡± Minucia wrapped up, ¡°We will help you through this where we can but I¡¯ll leave you with this:


    Absolutely do not go into the forest unless you know what you are doing.


    Assume the nexus does not have enough essentia to revive your avatar and do not let yourself run out of health. You will die in the overworld


    Surviving is the primary goal, not essentia, not loot and definitely not winning.¡±

 Chapter 5 - Contact?

    Chapter 5 - Contact?


    As Minucia¡¯s words of warning sank in there was the sudden sound of a horn and a clash of drums ringing from all around them.


    They watched on as the wood and flames of the fire in the middle of the room crackled into the air. Floating as if levitated the fire swirled in a blaze of a deep crimson hue before igniting in a blinding flash.


    As the flash of light cleared where the fire had stood a moment before was an enormous crystal. It had a conical shape and an undulating surface with flame like tongues sticking out that referenced its origin as a fire but coloured a vibrant red, it gave a subtle pulsing that made it seem as if it had blood pumping below the crystalline surface. As Palinus looked into the crystal there was an internal glow that built intensity to a crescendo of flashes as humanoid shapes began to appear in the room, already marching away.


    The minions were strange looking creatures. Their bodies were misshapen with strangely bulky forelimbs and slender bodies. Their skin was a leathery reddish pink and they stood on two legs. If you looked at them from a distance they might have passed for a naked human but their odd proportions, ungainly gait and complete hairlessness marked them as distinctly inhuman. The first minions were carrying a shield and sword made of bone but as the sixth, seventh and eight minions came out they were missing a right hand and instead had a thick tube for a forearm ending with a sharp protruding bone that they carried like a weapon.


    Melee Minion 425/425


    Ranged Minion 260/260


    ¡°Each Nexus makes them slightly different, but Erulean minions are always unsettling,¡± Minucia whispered to Palinus as she noticing him staring, ¡°... like our daughter''s drawings of a person.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s go then! Good luck and stay safe!¡± she wished them as they followed the minions out of the Nexus, splitting up to follow the diverging minions out the two different doors to their respective lanes. Marcus came with Palinus and Bruchts as they went right. Bruchts and Rufian dawdled as they reluctantly separated.


    They found themselves stepping out of the temple into a gloomy forest. As they left the nexus they were walking on a high terraced area perched above the trees. The terraced stonework and the nexus temple behind them was the bright white of albumstone tinged with the red glow from a massive column of light emerging above them. As they reached the edge of the terrace they stepped down to one of two cobblestone roads leading through the trees.


    In the distance there was a piercing green light in the mild sky. The opposing Nexus.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± Marcus grunted, squinting at the opposing nexus in the distance, ¡°definitely Silvanian.¡±


    As they walked Bruchts waved his iron poker around, getting a sense of its weight. He stabbed and whacked at the wall of greenery to their right, it made a satisfying crunch noise but the surface of the greenery rippled rather than break like true leaves and branches. The boys played with the strange effect as they walked, the barrier seemed soft if poked gently but hard if struck. Marcus shushed them occasionally as he focused intently while they walked.


    The minions they followed moved with an oddly choppy motion. As they marched every movement was completely synchronised by the group which emphasised the unusual cadence of the movement and while they seemed to take a lot of effort their actual speed was an underwhelming stroll.


    Along the cobbled lane there were occasional gaps in the trees that formed pathways into the forest. As they walked past Marcus looked into the forest and occasionally grunted or nodded. The boys didn¡¯t get close, heeding Minucia¡¯s warning to avoid the forest. Amongst the trees they could hear the noises of creatures, a loud rattling and hissing seemed to be coming from just inside the tree line and further in something roared fiercely.


    At one of the gaps in the trees a clump of high grass obscured their vision standing above head height. Marcus was on his guard as they neared the opening and rather than check it, he moved to the far side of the lane as far as he could get away from the grass and the boys emulated this caution.


    ¡°Unless you are completely certain they are not, assume their whole team is in the bush waiting to ambush you.¡± Marcus advised the boys as they made it past without incident, ¡°There will be more of this brush in no-man''s land and the forest. Don¡¯t go in until we have accounted for their team, and if someone from their team is missing¡­¡±


    ¡°Assume they are in the bush¡­?¡± Palinus supplied.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you a fast learner?¡± Marcus nodded and smiled. He seemed to have a thought and made a decision, ¡°Here, a favour.¡±


    He channelled some essentia into a calculii on his hip activating an ars which caused him to leap in the air and bring his club down with a smack on the last three minions in the pack they had been following. They were knocked over and took a small amount of damage, staying on the ground for a full two seconds as the melee minions continued on in front of them.


    ¡°This should make their minions push towards you. See if you can stall them just out of range of the tower. Let the essentia pool under the tower and when it spawns something. Report it¡­ and for bloody flames¡¯s sake report any movement of their avatars¡±


    Without another word Marcus rushed off through a clear gap into the forest.


    Bruchts and Palinus continued to walk in silence towards the massive tower at the end of the lane.


    ¡°Do you know how we are supposed to ¡®report¡¯¡± Palinus quietly asked Bruchts, who just shrugged in response.


    ¡°Splintery balls,¡± he swore.


    <hr>


    With Marcus disappearing into the forest they were alone and the danger of what they were doing crashed back into focus. He didn¡¯t know what he was doing, and he was in a life or death predicament. Palinus was starting to feel extremely nervous.


    He mentally inventoried the situation, he had:


    <blockquote>


    A weapon that he had first touched today, which would occasionally not work. He was also concerned that without a proper calculii it might just be useless and do no damage.


    No idea who he was about to go into battle against.


    Information on how rifts work learned through stories and a 5 minute introduction by a kindly aunt type and her taciturn husband. Which all mostly warned of the danger of what they were doing than any practical guidance¡­


    </blockquote>


    Bruchts put his hand on Palinus¡¯s shoulder.


    ¡°Breath.¡±


    ¡°... But we don¡¯t know how to report¡­ and if we don¡¯t report he will throw us under the tower¡­¡±


    The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.


    Bruchts shook his head. ¡°He¡¯ll be back.¡±


    ¡°How do you know that? He jumped up the chimney and left us here.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯ll come back,¡± Bruchts repeated with certainty, ¡°for loot.¡±


    The words grounded Palinus. Marcus had been insistent that they tell him if something dropped, so if they didn¡¯t he would almost certainly come back to check on them.


    ¡°So we make a big pile of essentia, then he can¡¯t be mad when he comes back.¡± Palinus reassured himself.


    As they walked under the tower the forest cleared out ahead and they could see a wide area of lane and they could now see the opposing minions and tower.


    But Palinus¡¯s eyes were drawn figures that looked like giants walking assuredly behind the wave of puppet-like wooden Silvanian minions. The enemy avatars.


    There were three of them.


    ¡°Splintery balls,¡± Bruchts agreed with Palinus.


    ¡°We¡¯ve got two up here so far.¡± Minucia¡¯s voice sounded in Palinus¡¯s ear as if she was whispering right next to him. ¡°I¡¯m looking at some classic shepherds¡­ Marc, I think they are actually shepherds! One has a crook! So cute!¡±


    The boys could hear the mirth in her voice which clashed with Palinus¡¯s fear.


    ¡°I guess that¡¯s how we are supposed to report.¡± Palinus whispered shakily to Bruchts.


    Palinus gulped as he stared at the three avatars standing behind the enemy minions. They all seemed huge, wearing thick animal hides and carrying big weapons. Their green tinged skin was rugged and rough with bushy hair that bounced as they moved with flailing tufts of moss streaming from them. Their features marked them as Silvanmen, the men of the forest and the traditional enemies of the Erulean Empire.


    He had heard so many stories but Palinus had never seen a fully fledged Silvanman. They were the boogeyman of children¡¯s stories where they would trick an Erulean child into the woods where they would be eaten. In Palinus¡¯s favourite story all the children of the town were sacrificed and their organs draped around a grove of trees.


    ¡°Palinus? Bruchts? Are you seeing Silvanian avatars?¡± Marcus¡¯s voice rang in their ears.


    They looked at each other and shrugged helplessly.


    As they watched and waited the two sets of minions neared each other. Marcus''s interference didn¡¯t seem to make a difference at first, the Erulean melee minions met the Silvanian minions at the precise middle point of the lanes.


    The minions marched until they met each other in their synchronous queue. Then, as soon as an opposing minion entered the striking range of their opposing minion, it stopped moving suddenly as if the strings controlling it were cut and both opposing minions would simultaneously strike at each other.


    The melee minions battled in a clustered line as the ranged minions fired at the first melee minion that entered their range. The Erulean ranged minions shooting bone bolts from their arm stub and the Silvanian tree like ranged minions shooting what looked like little crossbows. The minions all struck with exactly the same tempo creating a rhythm of wood smacking flesh and bone thumping into wood.


    As they watched and waited, a long ten seconds passed and the first lumpy Erulean melee minion¡¯s health was beaten down to zero by the wooden Silvanian minions, its chest filled with wooden bolts. The defeated minion simply popped and three beads: a red, green and blue drifted to the ground.


    The essentia dropping snapped Palinus out of his spiralling thoughts. The red bead of light on the ground called to him, begging to be picked up and he took an unconscious step forward.


    Bruchts steady hand on his shoulder again helped Palinus focus.


    The big teenager had his iron poker out and held low, at the ready. He walked with assured steps, flicking the heavy iron object slightly as he moved, shifting the spike on the end from right to left. Palinus knew that Bruchts was a talented fighter. Being in the same cohort they had sparred many times in the gymnasium and the big boy was fierce with a sword, amongst the best on the 7th Hill.


    Trying to emulate his big friend''s confidence, Palinus lifted his wand pointing it at the Silvanmen standing behind the minions. He gestured it at each of the men and tried to look threatening.


    Reeve Umfridus 704/704 | Level 0


    Savage Thug - Bruiser / Warrior / Thug


    Reeve carried a long knife and a heavy wooden baton. He stood at the front of the group and had a mean look. He glared at the boys fiercely and spat as he met Palinus¡¯s eye.


    Raoulet Umfridus 685/685 | Level 0


    Forest Warrior - Bruiser / Warrior / Defender


    The second man was talking, making animated gestures at the boys and the brush around them with the wood cutting axe he carried.


    Reinvar Umfridus 610/610 | Level 0


    Unformed


    The third man looked only a bit older than Palinus and Bruchts. He shared the massive frame of his relatives and held a boar spear in one hand as he stroked his wispy facial hair. There was a similar look to the three men and from their names Palius assumed they were related.


    Their size made Palinus nervous and he made a decision to avoid getting too close. He imagined the axe swinging for his face or the spear sticking through his ribs. But Bruchts didn¡¯t seem to share his fear.


    The big blonde teenager stalked back and forth behind the archer minions. As he moved he was watching the Silvanmen closely.


    Catching Palinus¡¯s eye as he looked back towards him Bruchts gave a meaningful glance and gestured at the enemy. Suddenly he made a dashing step forward and started to charge at the three men. He ran with his iron poker raised for an overhand strike.


    The Silvanmen reacted instantly to his charge, the scary one stepping forward eagerly and the other two stepping back into defensive positions.


    As he reached the cluster of the minions he slowed as quickly as his wild charge started and whacked at the first Silvanian minion. He struck three times in quick succession with tremendous force making solid sounds of iron against wood like a woodcutter with a blunt axe. As his third blow came down the minion popped with a wave of phantom splinters and the sound of a split log, dropping essentia to the floor. This minion dropped a scattering of smaller essentia beads and Palinus quickly surmised that this was because some of the essentia had gone directly to Bruchts.


    The Silvanian minions had made no reaction to the brutal death of their comrade, but mere moments later the second Erulean melee minion died and the enemy archer minions started winding up to fire at their next closest target, Bruchts. Who noticed them targeting him too late to get out of range.


    As he shuffled backwards and turned to run, all three shot their wooden bolts. Striking with a meaty thwack they pierced his tunic and stuck in his flesh in a neat row on the back of his shoulder. He grunted as he quickly moved back to where Palinus was standing. As soon as he was behind the Erulean minions the ranged minions changed their aim.


    Rather than pain or fear in Bruchts eyes were wild with an excited energy, he was in his element. He grabbed Palinus and shook him with his injured arm.


    ¡°They are worried about the bushes!¡± Bruchts excitedly whispered, ¡°They don¡¯t know where Marcus is and can¡¯t get close until he reveals himself.¡±


    Bruchts 538/610 | Level 0


    Unformed


    Palinus was as shocked by the other boy¡¯s lack of response to being shot. ¡°Didn¡¯t that hurt?¡±


    ¡°Nah, shocked me for a moment but it didn''t really hurt. Like when someone tickles you too hard, uncomfortable¡± The bolts had disappeared as he showed Palinus tiny punctures which barely bled, giving them a slap to show that they weren¡¯t bothering him.


    Bruchts 556/610 | Level 0


    Unformed


    He seemed to be healing slowly as they spoke. The sleeve of his tunic also seemed to be repairing itself slowly, threads of linen wormed and stretched one by one across the little holes as if they were weaving themselves closed.


    ¡°We can do this!¡± The big blond teenager practically yelled as he turned back to threaten the Silvanmen again.


    The feeling of unease hadn¡¯t left Palinus entirely. He wanted to be confident like Bruchts was, but when he looked at Reeve...


    The scary Silvanman¡¯s eyes promised violence.

 Chapter 6 - Contact.

    Chapter 6 - Contact.


    Rufian charged out of the bush at the two Silvanmen in their area. They had been creeping closer to the minions and the essentia beads on the floor. As he watched them turn and run he stopped and walked back into the bushes he had been hiding in.


    ¡°That¡¯s it! Good feint.¡± Minucia crowed as she waved her staff at the retreating silvanmen.


    She had been coaching Rufian on how to dominate the lane. ¡°I want you to go and grab the essentia. But you need to stay away from the gap into that right forest side, so sort of walk out of the brush just close enough and wait for the essentia beads to drift towards you. We¡¯ll take some early levels to keep them under the thumb.¡±


    Rufian was starting to admit to himself that Minucia might know what she was doing. With her talking him through it and more than a little bit of shit talking about the two Silvanmen in their lane he was feeling confident.


    ¡°Palinus or Bruchts. How many Silvanmen do you see?¡± Marcus¡¯s voice sounded in their ears.


    ¡°What are they doing? This is going to be damn hard without information from the other lane¡­¡± Minucia was getting frustrated at his friends.


    ¡°Haha, I don¡¯t think those idiots know how to do the talking in the ear thing.¡± Rufian joked to ease the tension, he didn¡¯t want to admit he hadn¡¯t known either till he watched her do it.


    ¡°Oh, bloody rags. That is really dumb and I should have thought of it.¡± Minucia glared at Rufian as she slapped her forehead.


    ¡°To party talk you just need to touch your ear, and think of the party as you speak. We need to know how many Silvanmen you can see!¡± She sent to the group.


    ¡°Like this? Can you hear me? Oh that¡¯s weird, I can hear myself in my ear.¡± Palinus¡¯s voice came through, there was a noticeably shake in his voice.


    ¡°You bloody idiots.¡± Marcus said.


    ¡°You really should have taught them before you left them.¡± Minucia retorted, ¡°How many Silvanmen have you got?¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s three here, they are huge!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m coming in with the wave after next from the brush on the left side to give them a scare. Be ready.¡± Marcus said.


    ¡°That blockhead, he probably just pointed them down the lane and ran off into the forest¡­ ¡± Minucia grumbled, ¡°They would be shitting themselves with three Silvanmen, but it is actually a good thing as long as they don¡¯t overcommit.¡±


    She was quiet for a moment before turning with a wink,¡±Well Rufi, how about I show you a good time?¡±


    Her laughter rang like bells through the lane at his reaction.


    <hr>


    ¡°He¡¯s coming to help!¡± Palinus was relieved, and took a moment to figure out what Marcus meant. The second wave of minions were already battling and dying with the Erulean minions losing numbers slightly faster and a little bit too quickly for comfort.


    To the left of the lane there was a large gap in the forest, from the lane the boys could only catch glimpses of what lay in that direction as the tree line stuck out on both sides with obstructing tall grass and a cluster of trees in the middle making a visual barrier for what was going on in that direction. It was from here that Marcus was going to approach.


    The Silvanmen had remained in the lane with their weapons out and ready standing behind their ranged minions. Reeve, the biggest and meanest looking, was staring down Bruchts. When the big Erulean teenager made feints towards the minions he was tensing up, as if getting ready to charge back.


    ¡°That guy looks like he wants to eat you,¡± Palinus said.


    Bruchts kept his focus on the Silvanmen.


    ¡°They just look scared to me.¡±


    As Palinus watched the current wave of minions engage each other he realised he needed to do something. The Silvanian minions were winning too quickly and with the nine ranged minions firing they were demolishing the Erulean minions.


    Palinus steeled himself to shoot the wand for the first time in the rift.


    The wand felt heavy as he lifted it to fire. He felt the hostile eyes of the Silvanmen watching and his heart fluttered as he raised his arm with a hand that shook. He needed this to work, and he needed to look confident.


    Pretending he knew exactly what he was doing he willed the essentia from his body and the wand instantly felt warm as it responded. The shot felt significantly different from their experimentation in the backways. The essentia felt more responsive, as if it was a raging torrent of energy rather than a trickling stream. As the bolt streaked towards the target it hissed and spun with a bolt nearly twice as large.


    In a flash the bolt struck true; it took a melon sized chunk from the wooden Silvanian ranged minion he targeted and exploded damaging the two minions beside it.


    Ranged Minion 180/260


    Ranged Minion 230/260


    Ranged Minion 230/260


    ¡°Boom!¡± Palinus yelled exuberantly. ¡°Haha!¡­ Hahahah.¡±


    The feeling of power overwhelmed him and so he started blasting. In a few moments he had demolished the target ranged minion, then two beside it.


    As he destroyed each of the Silvanian minions there was a stream of essentia trickling towards Palinus. He could feel a warmth in his belly as if he was drinking a gentle fire. The feeling spurred him on and he had taken out two melee minions and was working on the next set before a rough tug on his wand arm jerked his next bolt short and it exploded noisily on the paved laneway.


    ¡°STOP! I said.¡± Bruchts was in his face and had been trying to get his attention for a while. Palinus realised that he had gotten carried away.


    As he looked at the smirks on the Silvanmen¡¯s faces and considered his actions he quickly noticed his mistake.


    ¡°Oh, sorry!¡±


    The tide of the battle between the minions had changed and rather than pushing towards them the milieu of the minions engaging each other was now scattered and shifting the other way. As the 5th wave engaged the Erulean minions were scattered but gradually pushing towards the enemy side of no-man''s land.


    ¡°I¡¯m coming in.¡± Marcus said in their ears and Palinus felt like an idiot.


    The Erulean man was true to his word and in a few moments emerged from the brush to the left of the lane. They didn¡¯t see or hear him approach at all and if they hadn''t had his warning would have been just as surprised as the Silvanmen.


    Marcus moved from the left brush quickly moving to charge at Raoulet, the Silvanian avatar on the left. Raoulet yelled out a warning in their strangely melodic language and the others burst into action. He used a burst of essentia from a calculii on his shoulder to use an ars that launched his big woodcutting axe at Marcus. It struck him in the leg with a thump doing minor damage but leaving a gaping wound in his thigh. With the ugly wound Marcus started moving much slower as he continued to run to engage the enemy avatars. The thrown axe reappeared in its owner''s hand as the Silvanman readied himself to engage Marcus.


    Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.


    Quick on the uptake Bruchts had started charging forwards, in a moment he was past the minions and nearly in striking range with his iron poker. But before he could get close to the Silvanmen Reeve used an ars from his left hand and a baton flew point first directly into the blond teenager''s temple. It struck with an ugly crack and Bruchts stopped where he stood, swaying unnaturally back and forth with his eyes rolled into the back of his head.


    As his allies jumped into the fray Palinus had rushed forward and out to the left to get into a better position to fire around the minions. He slid to a halt and started unloading bolts, alternating between the Silvanmen as he tried to settle on a target. His shots were doing damage but not enough to concern the Silvanmen as all three of them moved to surround Marcus.


    Palinus realised they were in trouble when an allied minion popped and all of the silvanian ranged minions turned to start firing on Marcus as well.


    Marcus Gavros 541/762 | Level 1


    Bloody Maceman


    ¡°Marcus! Run!¡± Palinus yelled as he shot as quickly as he could at the Silvanmen.


    With a yell of frustration Marcus used an ars that flashed from a calculii on his chest which helped him swing the club in both hands around in a wide sweeping circle of green light. It struck each of the Silvanmen and they were all dazed with the same unnatural standing but unconscious effect that Bruchts remained in. This effect only lasted for a moment as Marcus took the opportunity to run away back past Bruchts towards their tower. He was still running slowly as if he was moving through a thick bog.


    Bruchts snapped out of his daze with a start to see all four men rushing towards him. To his credit he instantly moved to a ready position to start fighting.


    ¡°Run you idiot!¡± Marcus yelled.


    As the teenager turned to run Marcus used Aerial Smash to jump to a friendly ranged minion. Briefly stunning it as he continued to flee now well in the clear.


    With Marcus out of range Bruchts became the target as Raoulet again threw his axe and slowed him as he tried to run. The ranged minions struck him with a volley of bolts to add to his injuries.


    As quickly as he could Palinus was firing and moving backwards as he tried to deter the silvanmen from attacking. He checked on his teammates as he tried to figure out what to do to save them.


    Marcus Gavros 253/762 | Level 1


    Bloody Maceman


    Bruchts 346/610 | Level 0


    Unformed


    If Reeve was able to use another stun with his baton he would catch and kill either Bruchts or Marcus. Palinus focused fire on the scary Silvanman as he tried to frighten him off. The enemy were yelling to each other as Reeve kept up the pursuit. Bruchts was past the line of minions and was slowly making his way back down the lane still affected by the slowing axe wound. The allied ranged minions had shifted targets and were joining Palinus¡¯s wand blasts in shooting their bone bolts at Reeve and the big man was starting to accumulate damage.


    The huge Silvanman was snarling like an animal as he sprinted after Bruchts. His mossy beard was speckled with foaming spittle and deep brown blood. Palinus¡¯s damage was starting to accumulate but the man seemed to be in a frenzy. He raised his dagger in an overhand grip and brought it down on Bruchts back. The teenager stumbled with the blow and he was left with a savage stab wound that pierced his back and punctured through to his lung. The strike took half the remaining health of his avatar.


    Bruchts 176/610 | Level 0


    Unformed


    Reeve Umfridus 437/704 | Level 0


    Savage Thug - Thug


    Palinus wasn¡¯t doing enough damage. It would take him at least another half dozen shots to do the over 400 damage required to stop Reeve yet finishing Bruchts off might only take one more blow. The Erulean ranged minions were helping but they wouldn¡¯t be able to stop the killing blow and the Silvanman would likely escape if he was quick to turn and run.


    Another wand bolt struck the silvanman in the shoulder, it was doing more damage as he focused on repeatedly hitting the same target but it didn¡¯t slow the massive man as he started to raise his weapons to strike.


    Everyone was yelling incomprehensibly as the moment slowed and the dagger came down on the still slowed and heavily injured Bruchts. It pierced his tunic and into his flesh. With a spray of blue tinged blood the dagger pierced the boys back and was ripped out savagely leaving symmetrical wounds.


    Bruchts 2/610 | Level 0


    Unformed


    Miraculously Bruchts had survived the second blow and kept his feet. He kept running as fast as he could and it was just a moment later that he suddenly surged back to full speed as the slowing effect of the axe wound stopped.


    The slavering Silvanman mindlessly charged after Bruchts. Now they were moving at the same speed he wasn¡¯t able to stab again to finish off his target. If he was able to use his ars that struck out with the baton he would be able to take the boy out but as they ran it seemed that he couldn¡¯t yet use it.


    They had run past Marcus who had slowed and was getting ready to swing his club at the berserking Silvanman. He managed to strike at the big man but his strike barely registered with the beastly Silvanman.


    They had run nearly to the tower when a low hum began to sound menacingly from the gemstone the size of a cart wheel mounted at the top. The sound rapidly built in pitch and volume and the crystalline structure began to light up internally.


    The crescendo of the hum from the tower seemed to awaken the humanity in Reeve as his eyes changed from viciously focused to suddenly awash with fear. He finally noticed his predicament.


    There was a sizzling thump as with a flash of light the tower shot a bolt twice the size of Palinus''s wand. The sizzling bolt left a smear of red tinged light across their vision like a thick bolt of lighting.


    Reeve Umfridus 152/704 | Level 0


    Savage Thug - Thug


    The bolt had done over 200 damage and the hit staggered the big man as it singed his hair and left his furs smouldering.


    Looking for his allies Reeve was searching for help as he turned and fled. They hadn¡¯t followed him deep into the Erulean territory but had made a beeline for the essentia on the ground.


    Reinvar Umfridus 630/630 | Level 1


    Defender


    Unlike the savage Reeve, Reinvar and Raoulet seemed to have the brains of the family as they had been taking the essentia while the Eruleans were occupied. They had also managed to kill off the Erulean ranged minions while yelling for Reeve to retreat, giving him the chance to do so without their damage. Their eyes were wide and their incomprehensible yelling had taken on a panicked tone as they watched their family member dive deep into danger and the panic rose as they realised the dire danger of his situation.


    Reinvar, the youngest looking Silvanman had been moving towards the action he started to channel an ars. It wasn¡¯t the pointed light of an ars channelled through a proper calculii but his body illuminated with a yell and a flash of turquoise light that rushed from his throat and a barrier formed like a wall behind Reeve as he ran. Palinus could feel a resistance that prevented him from taking a step in that direction. It seems he had just acquired the ars with a class: Defender using the essentia he collected.


    The wall was too late to stop Marcus¡¯s club as it struck Reeve in the back doing a solid 90 points of damage and leaving the already massively injured man in an even worse state. His fierce scowl remained on his face as he spat blood and continued to run. Marcus was cursing as he pushed against the resistance of the enemy ars and with arms stretching out as far as he could he swung to try to kill the silvanman. The club whistled through the air and missed the big Silvanman by a handspan.


    Palinus was faced with a decision. As he moved to fire his wand again he froze.


    The wand bolts he was shooting had been doing escalating damage and as he had tracked his shots against Reeve¡¯s health points the bolts were now doing more than 50 damage. If he shot another bolt he would kill the man with only 47 health points remaining.


    His mind raced as he considered taking a life.


    Reeve was the enemy. A silvanman. The traditional enemy of the Erulean people. But they were just a family looking for essentia and loot, just like he was. Palinus had not entered the rift with any intention of hurting anyone.


    As he saw Reeve¡¯s face, the wild snarling mask of only moments ago had slipped. There was a tinge of fear in his snarl. But he had shown that if their roles were flipped the Silvanman would not hesitate, even risking his own life, to kill.


    ¡°Do it!¡± Marcus yelled at Palinus to strike.


    Looking back to the tower he saw Brucht¡¯s. His body looked a mess with savage wounds still bleeding as he stood straight and watched calmly. When his gaze met Palinus¡¯s there was a seriousness as they shared a moment of understanding with a flashing grimace of sympathy he nodded his head.


    His hand shaking, Palinus lifted his wand.


    Hesitating for a moment with a wave of nausea, he pushed his essentia to shoot.


    The feeling of connection and power washed through him as his essentia leapt from his body through the wand. As the bolt launched from his outstretched hand he recoiled at what he had done and turned his head to look away.


    The bolt flew,


    and struck with a wet thump.

 Chapter 7 - Big Choices

    Chapter 7 - Big Choices


    As he stepped back into hiding in the tall grass of his lane Rufian had a smile on his face. They had been playing peekaboo from the brush for the past three waves, scaring off the Silvanmen when they came close and picking up the essentia as it dropped. With her staff ready Minucia was standing around at the back of the minions. She had only had to shoot the occasional bolt from the calculii at the tip of her staff to get the Silvanmen to back off from the right side of their lane.


    Their little game had paid dividends already. As he had picked up the last pile of essentia beads the growing warmth of the essentia collected in his body had bubbled over and looking down at himself he could see his avatar information floating above his body showing off his level up.


    Rufian Ramuro 665/665 | Level 1


    Enhancer - Fighter / Enhancer / Bruiser


    There was an insistent pulsing in his hand and forearm. Hovering above his arm he could see three boxes filled with overwhelming information written with coral coloured light of his own attunement. The boxes moved as he read them, somehow staying perfectly in focus but not restricting his vision.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>


    Fighter


    </td>


    <td>


    Enhancer


    </td>


    <td>


    Bruiser


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Ars


    </td>


    <td>


    Broad Strikes


    </td>


    <td>


    Multi Strike


    </td>


    <td>


    Heavy Strike


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Attunement


    </td>


    <td>


    nil


    </td>


    <td>


    nil


    </td>


    <td>


    nil


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Cooldown


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Compatibility


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Skill Type


    </td>


    <td>


    Enhancement


    </td>


    <td>


    Enhancement


    </td>


    <td>


    Enhancement


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Slot


    </td>


    <td>


    [Wrist],[Ankle]


    </td>


    <td>


    [Wrist],[Ankle]


    </td>


    <td>


    [Fist],[Hand]


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Slot Bonus


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Description


    </td>


    <td>


    Unarmed strikes cause damage in a cone.


    </td>


    <td>


    Each strike applies effects twice.


    </td>


    <td>


    [-100% Combination damage]


    Every second strike staggers the target.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    As Rufian read through the options he did not fully understand what they meant. He liked the idea of Broad Strikes so he could do more damage. Normally he would talk a decision over with Bruchts who would have been a perfect sounding board, he didn¡¯t want to ask Minucia something stupid and reveal that he didn¡¯t know what he was doing.


    ¡°¡®Grats on your first level!¡± Minucia gave a little cheer as she joined him in the tall grass, ¡°looks like you are a natural enhancer! That¡¯s a great path for a new rift delver because you won¡¯t need to worry about upgrading a weapon as much as a straight fighter or bruiser.¡±


    He must have had a stupid look on his face because she laughed at him.


    ¡°It¡¯s a bit overwhelming, but it will all make sense... Just a moment.¡±


    She paused what she was saying to burst out of the bushes and startle the Silvanmen who were creeping back towards them. They scuttled back well behind the minions and appeared to be talking to their team with their fingers to their ears.


    Minucia came back and casually sat down in the brush.


    ¡°We know an enhancer from back home who had a similar attunement to you. Why don¡¯t you read me the ars you were offered? You don¡¯t have proper calculii so when you become levelled the path options will be underwhelming: the left option will be from a class based on your loadout - your weapons and armour, the middle option relates to your natural affinity and calculii, the right will be a path based on your role and mindset. The options are often a bit generic and underwhelming for newbies, at least until you start to pick up some calculii and gear, but there might be some synergy in your options so it¡¯s worth thinking carefully.¡±


    Rufian read out the choices.


    ¡°Well Broad Strikes is out, but either-¡± Minucia said.


    ¡°What? Why would I not want to smash all the minions at once?¡± Rufian interjected.


    ¡°Haha, think about it! That would be a great ars if you were trying to clear waves quickly like a Wave Defence or Invasion Rift. But the goal of Defence of the Nexus rift types is to control the resources and dominate...¡± Minucia trailed off in the middle of her explanation.


    Something was going on with the Silvanmen, both of their opposition avatars were extremely agitated and looked to be yelling at each other and their team with their fingers to their ears.


    One of the Silvanmen suddenly turned and rushed into the forest through the bushes on the side of the lane.


    -An enemy has been slain!-


    A deep unnatural voice spoke the unexpected announcement which rang through the forest, startling Rufian. As he watched the other Silvanman rush off in pursuit Minucia put her hand on his shoulder, gripping it tightly.


    ¡°We need to trust that they have this under control¡­¡± she said quietly, saying it as much to herself as to him.


    Her grip on his shoulder was fierce and for a good minute she barely breathed as if she was waiting for something awful. When nothing else happened a few moments later she gave a gasped breath and laughed.


    If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    ¡°What happened down there?¡± Minucia asked the team.


    ¡°They¡¯re probably in the clear,¡± she said to Rufian letting go of his shoulder with a slap. ¡°Well, pick whatever you like, but I¡¯m happy to help with your choices. Anyway, you¡¯ll get some different options each level to pick another ars or upgrade until you fill your available slots out, the big thing to look out for is some ars require the same slot, so you won¡¯t be able to pick an ars that only fits in specific slots if the slot is occupied.¡±


    She hit him on the shoulder again. ¡°It won¡¯t really matter, cause you¡¯ll lose the generic ars when you leave and have to start again. So let''s see if we can get you a real calculii today.¡±


    <hr>


    ¡°What happened down there?¡± Minucia¡¯s question was left unanswered as the three Eruleans in the other lane gathered themselves under their tower.


    The mortally injured Bruchts was patting Palinus on the back to console the teenager.


    ¡°You did well, you are ok,¡± Bruchts whispered.


    ¡°He broke the shepherd''s code and was going to kill your friend.¡± Marcus said, ¡°You did the right thing putting him down. Besides, we don¡¯t necessarily know their nexus didn¡¯t revive him, so chin up boy.¡±


    ¡°One of the Silvanmen dove to make a kill. Palinus got him and we are all good.¡± Marcus responded to Minucia.


    ¡°Good job Palinus, and you two as well! A round on me if you''re ever up in Tremona! Our Silvanmen went into the forest so keep on your toes.¡± Minucia teamcast.


    ¡°Drown yourself in wine when you get out.¡± Marcus¡¯s voice was soft and he gave palinus and Bruchts pat on the shoulders. ¡°Right, good stuff surviving, but this rift is not over yet.¡±


    As they had recovered the Erulean minions had been advancing and were currently finishing off the last of the Silvanian wave, nearly under the enemy tower.


    ¡°Hmm,¡± Marcus grunted as he watched. ¡°It¡¯d be a risk to dive the tower, we could run in and get some nice essentia. The tower has buckets of it. But with missing Silvanmen, that¡¯s probably not wise right now.¡±


    ¡°So we just wait around?¡± Bruchts asked the man.


    ¡°Well, you wait. Then you take a few waves of essentia to get a few levels and if it looks like the Silvanmen have cleared out for good you can sit down here and stack up essentia till it coalesces into something nice. They might come back, so you both need to be ready and keep the wave close to the tower like good shepherds.¡± Marcus answered. ¡°You should be good from here. Just watch out for overextending, you¡¯ve seen what those Silvanmen can do. Sing out when something drops!¡±


    With that advice he ran off again into the forest behind them. He had only healed half his health, but Palinus could see why he was feeling confident of his escapes after seeing the man¡¯s ars in action.


    ¡°Hmm, I think he forgot some steps again¡­¡± Bruchts sighed as he scratched his chin.


    Palinus nodded his head in agreement as he considered what they needed to do now.


    ¡°I guess we just wait?¡±


    The boys watched as the Erulean minions mindlessly attacked the Silvanian tower. There was a rhythmic thump and sizzle as the green crystal on top of the gnarled wood of the Silvanian tower shot out huge bolts of energy at the ugly Erulean minions. They were being dismembered rapidly and Palinus shivered at the thought of being struck by one of those fierce bolts.


    In a minute or so Erulean wave had been destroyed completely and the next two opposing waves of minions marched to battle it out in the middle of the lane as if nothing had happened. The blood spilled in the lane had disappeared and Bruchts was already looking much better.


    ¡°It¡¯s like nothing happened.¡± Palinus said.


    There was a sympathetic look in his eye but Bruchts chose to ignore the emotional subtext of the comment.


    ¡°There¡¯s a limit though and it will get harder to reset the waves, then eventually the tower will be destroyed. Looks like there are more minions now, probably more later too.¡± Bruchts added.


    The big teenager was right. Palinus hadn¡¯t noticed but it looked like there was an extra minion in the waves. There was now a sixth melee minion in the wave in front of them.


    They had to approach this strategically. He couldn¡¯t just blast away at the Silvanian minions again as that would mean the minions would be fighting more towards the enemy side.


    Looking to experiment, Palinus lifted his wand and fired off a shot at the cluster of Erulean ranged minions. The bolt did around half the damage he expected and as the damage registered he felt some of the essentia he had collected being taken back out of him, rather than the warm feeling of collecting the essentia it was a cold and uncomfortable tugging. It felt bad and it made the essentia feel sluggish within him.


    ¡°We can damage our minions a bit, but I think it affects us negatively and drains some of the essentia you have collected.¡± Palinus told Bruchts.


    ¡°Right, that makes sense.¡± Bruchts was deep in thought for a moment, then appeared to come to a decision. As another wave of minions approached from behind them he swung his fire poker three times at the leading melee minion. ¡°Yeah, that doesn¡¯t feel good. The third swing hurt more than the dagger in my back.¡±


    Palinus appreciated Bruchts¡¯ attempt to lighten the mood but couldn''t bring himself to laugh.


    Their little bit of damage appeared to have been enough. The Silvanian wave was beating the Erulean wave as their minions slowly pushed towards them. As the essentia collected Bruchts offered Palinus to go first at collecting it. They hadn¡¯t seen any sign of the Silvanian avatars since they slunk off after the death of their team mate, but Palinus was careful as he moved towards the beads of essentia on the ground.


    As he got close he noticed that the red beads of essentia were drawn towards him like a moth to a torch stone from two or three metres away but the blue and green beads moved sluggishly and only if he was practically standing on them. As the beads of red essentia shot towards him they jumped towards his chest and were sucked into his body wherever they hit him. Each bead felt like warm lips pressed against his skin as they were absorbed and joined the essentia he had collected already, building on the warmth in his stomach. The blue and green beads were slow to absorb and Palinus felt that they only added a fraction of the effect.


    After he had collected half the red essence on the ground and some of blue and green beads that were close by the warmth in his stomach reached a peak as it spread through his body with a crash that flooded around him in a wave of warmth before settling in a lump that he felt pulsing across his shoulders and down his right arm.


    He looked at his hand and could see that the essentia he had collected on top of the essentia from earlier had allowed him to level up.


    Palinus 615/615 | Level 1


    Red Mage - Wandslinger / Red Mage / Mage


    If he looked at the back of his hand he could see several options jump out in boxes for him to choose from written in a dark red font.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>


    Wandslinger


    </td>


    <td>


    Red Mage


    </td>


    <td>


    Mage


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Ars


    </td>


    <td>


    Multi-Strike


    </td>


    <td>


    Fireball


    </td>


    <td>


    Magic Missiles


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Attunement


    </td>


    <td>


    nil


    </td>


    <td>


    nil


    </td>


    <td>


    nil


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Cooldown


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    <td>


    60 seconds


    </td>


    <td>


    30 seconds


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Compatibility


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Skill Type


    </td>


    <td>


    Enhancement


    </td>


    <td>


    Projectile, Area


    </td>


    <td>


    Projectile


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Slot


    </td>


    <td>


    [Wrist], [Arm]


    </td>


    <td>


    [Fist, hand, wrist]


    </td>


    <td>


    [Fist, hand, wrist]


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Slot Bonus


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Description


    </td>


    <td>


    Each strike applies effects twice.


    </td>


    <td>


    Shoot an explosive fireball damaging everything [200] within 2 metres and applying [Burn].


    </td>


    <td>


    Shoot three bolts of energy doing [50] damage each to up to three targets.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    After only a moment of thought he selected [Fireball], the ars was too exciting to skip. As soon as he reached out to touch the font describing [Fireball] the other options faded and the pulsing warmth of the collected essentia moved and sat beneath the palm on his right hand clustering into a lump of hard flesh. It felt odd physically, like something had been inserted into his hand. But within his essentia pathways it felt right, eager to be used with a persistent tugging of his essentia that he would just have to let happen to use the ars.


    ¡°I got a level!¡± He turned excitedly to tell Bruchts who had been keeping an eye on the surrounding bushes.


    ¡°Congratulations, oh great and powerful red mage.¡± Bruchts joked lamely, ¡°I thought I smelt something burning¡­¡±


    ¡°Ha. ha.¡± Palinus said. ¡°I don¡¯t get much out of the blue and green essentia. Why don¡¯t you go and collect those?¡±


    With a nod of acknowledgement Bruchts stalked through the minions and collected the remaining essentia. As he walked the blue and green essentia beads responded vigorously and jumped eagerly into him, the blue beads slightly more than the green, while the remaining red essentia responded barely at all.


    ¡°Ah, that is what Marcus meant by attunement balance. That makes sense now!¡± Palinus said.


    ¡°Yeah, it seems like he knows his business.¡± Bruchts agreed. ¡°If only he would take the time to share it with us¡­¡±


    There was insufficient essentia available for Bruchts to level which just meant they had to wait for the next wave. As he collected more of the essentia his body flashed with light. Rather than responding with excitement to the development he turned and sighed.


    ¡°Well¡­ this ars would have been useful a few minutes ago.¡±

 Chapter 8 - A Walk in the Forest

    Chapter 8 - A Walk in the Forest


    As they watched the minions battle and picked up their scattered beads of essentia. Palinus discussed their ars and class options for their first level. Bruchts had three options to choose from as well:


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>


    Swordsman


    </td>


    <td>


    Warden


    </td>


    <td>


    Defender


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Ars


    </td>


    <td>


    Multi Strike


    </td>


    <td>


    Reflective Skin


    </td>


    <td>


    Improvised Sword Wall


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Attunement


    </td>


    <td>


    nil


    </td>


    <td>


    nil


    </td>


    <td>


    nil


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Compatibility


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Cooldown


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    <td>


    2 minutes


    </td>


    <td>


    5 Minutes


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Skill Type


    </td>


    <td>


    Enhancement


    </td>


    <td>


    Defence


    </td>


    <td>


    Area


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Slot


    </td>


    <td>


    Wrist, hand


    </td>


    <td>


    Chest


    </td>


    <td>


    Hand, arm, wrist


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Slot Bonus


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Description


    </td>


    <td>


    Each strike applies effects twice.


    </td>


    <td>


    The user''s skin becomes reflective, preventing the next status effect and applying it instead to the caster.


    </td>


    <td>


    Create a wall with your sword causing all enemy avatars and minions moving towards you to receive strike effect for each step.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    ¡°Imagine if I had Reflective Skin, preventing the stun which incapacitated me¡­¡±


    Palinus replied, ¡°If we had either of our ars they would have had to run rather than fight, and he might still be alive¡­¡±


    ¡°He was the enemy and he made his own bed.¡± Bruchts said, ¡°But that is the power of power. Choice.¡±


    ¡°... choose what happens. I hope that¡¯s true, but I¡¯m not so sure. I think everyone in Erulea has to do what someone else says, no-one really has the power to choose.¡± Palinus replied.


    ¡°I bet the Emperor doesn¡¯t answer to anyone,¡± Bruchts countered. ¡°Anyway, that''s depressing. Let¡¯s get some more essentia and think about what we want the rift to make for us. I want a big sword!¡±


    They stood and watched as the minions clashed. The waves piled in against each other and scattered their essentia on the floor. Each wave of violence becoming more mundane as Palinus began to feel almost bored.


    ¡°Maybe we sh¡­¡± He started to suggest they try their new ars out as he turned to notice Bruchts sheepishly avoiding his gaze.


    The big teenager¡¯s skin which was normally so pale now had a reflective sheen. He moved normally and didn¡¯t seem to be slowed by the transition and as Palinus turned to stare he could see himself reflected in Bruchts bicep.


    ¡°I couldn¡¯t resist trying it.¡± Bruchts said. ¡°You should use yours too, it doesn¡¯t seem like the Silvanians are coming back.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t know that...¡± Palinus sighed, but he absolutely understood the urge to try his new ability. The ars was calling to him, it felt like another stomach with a hunger to use his essentia and blast the world with fire. The power sang to him and he felt a sense of rightness that he had never felt before. His fear and his anxiety was eclipsed by an intense feeling of confidence, he wanted the Silvanian¡¯s to come back and he wanted to show them his fire.


    He gave in to the tugging of the ars and let the essentia within him stream to the lump in his palm. He instinctively raised his hand with his fingers open and his palm pointed towards his target, the tall grass towards the forest. The lump beneath his palm took a moment to process the stream of essentia and grew hot as in the space formed by his outstretched hand a ball of fire began to form. Just as it became uncomfortable and he started to feel the flesh of his hand burn, he launched the ball with a splash of hot air into his body.


    If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    The fireball shot off towards the brush. Just as Palinus was congratulating himself on the foresight not to use the ability on the minions and ruin the wave balance he noticed a rustling in the long grass.


    As if in slow motion Marcus¡¯s head popped out of the brush. Heis eyes went wide as he noticed the fireball coming and started to duck too late. The fireball struck with a splash and a roar as it hit his face. He tried to cover his eyes and immediately started smacking himself to extinguish the flame that covered his face, chest and arms.


    Marcus Gavros 641/792 - [Burning] | Level 2


    Bloody Maceman - Bruiser


    He gave up slapping himself and started rolling on the ground as the fire was spreading across his body. Palinus and Bruchts ran to help smother the flame and it was a long ten or so seconds before they were fully extinguished.


    ¡°I¡¯m so sorry Marcus!¡± Palinus said repeatedly as they helped the man up.


    ¡°Bah, it¡¯s nothing. Good instincts, blasting someone in the bushes,¡± Marcus patted himself down, confirming the fire was extinguished.


    ¡°But, I shot you with a fireball¡­¡±


    ¡°Think nothing of it. My fault for not announcing my presence and popping out at you!¡±


    The fireball did less than half the expected damage and Marcus was quick to recover. Once he had the man stalked around the lane checking all the hiding spots. Palinus noticed he also helped himself to the essentia on the ground.


    ¡°Looks like they haven¡¯t come back down to the lane.¡± Marcus announced to the team, ¡°No sign of them in our forest or the middle forest.¡±


    ¡°No Silvanmen up here either, they might be waiting it out in their nexus.¡± Minucia¡¯s voice replied.


    ¡°Or they are farming the creeps in their forest. We¡¯ll go scout, be ready to assist.¡± Marcus sent to the group. He turned to Palinus and Bruchts and waved at them to follow him. ¡°We are going to take a walk through their forest. I swept it earlier and I think there is a deep red super creep spawn that I want to take down. If the SIlvanmen are anywhere near it, we¡¯re going to fight them off..¡±


    ¡°What are creeps?¡± Palinus asked the man.


    ¡°They are the wild essentia monsters that spawn in rifts, you¡¯ll see some in a moment.¡± Marcus replied, signalling them to follow as he walked into the tall grass.


    With his imagination running wild Palinus was almost excited to see the monsters in the forest, especially a ¡®super¡¯ monster. But recalling the warning from Minucia and the bestial roars they had heard from the forest he was glad to be entering with Marcus and Bruchts as he followed them into the tall grass.


    The boys tried to emulate Marcus as they followed. He walked with his mace in front of him in a comfortable position but ready to move in any direction to respond to a threat, he wasn¡¯t trying to sneak but moved quietly and deliberately in unpredictable bounces from brush to brush carefully checking in all directions as they moved through the forest.


    ¡°We are going into their side of the forest now so be on the lookout. If we get split up, run.¡± Marcus whispered. ¡°Give the creeps a wide berth and if they get aggressive, just run.¡±


    Bruchts and Palinus both rolled their eyes at another rough explanation with no room for questions as Marcus started moving before he had finished his sentence. In a flash he was through a gap in the trees and into enemy territory leaving the boys to scamper to catch up.


    They passed through another gap in the trees along a short path into another thicket of tall grass that completely obscured the way in front of them. Marcus did not hesitate to plunge into the tall grass and after a moment turned back to wave them into the patch of brush.


    The tall grass they stood in acted as cover over a junction of three other passages through the forest. To their right they could see a gap back towards the back of the Silvanian turret in the lane they had been standing and ahead they could see a direct path through the trees towards the Silvanian Nexus, their path was covered in dark shadow, winding itself deeper into the forest.


    The path wound around the forest, through thickets of tall grass. As they darted into one such patch Palinus saw his first set of creeps. Three creatures that looked like large tan coloured wolves sat in a clearing of the forest. Even with their long legs tucked beside them the beasts looked too tall and wide to be regular wolves, their hides had spots of tan and wide jaws that almost seemed to smile as they cackled at each other and occasionally got up to sniff around or snap at each other.


    Corocotta 410/410 | Level 1


    Spotted Dog Wolf


    There was a pulse of essentia from the clearing as he watched the Corocotta. As the pulse flared the creatures got excited and rushed around the clearing as if trying to catch flies in the air.


    A tug on his arm dragged him along as he turned to see Bruchts trying to get his attention and Marcus glaring at him from a brush further down the path. They gave the creeps a wide berth as they moved on.


    Only a short way further along they came across another clearing that looked to just be a small tree standing on its own. As they walked past Palinus spotted a slight movement and was able to see a box with the creep¡¯s information.


    Seps 230/230 | Level 1


    Putrefaction Serpent


    Shaking himself to attention as he kept walking, he was glad they weren¡¯t going near the tree. He hadn''t seen a creature there at all with the snake hidden amongst the leaves. Palinus was sure he had heard of Seps before, stories of a brutal venom that melted skin and from a snake that was nearly invisible until it struck.


    A signal from Marcus to follow quietly made Palinus¡¯s heart race. A moment later he could hear what had triggered the change of pace. Up ahead there were the unmistakable sounds of a fight.


    As they moved through a section of tall grass they turned a corner to a clearing deep in the Silvanian forest. The area was dark, in the heavy shadow of the trees towering above them and in the shadow was a dark stone mausoleum with its heavy stone door standing wide open.


    Through the door they could see a chamber lit by hundreds of candle flames and three of the Silvan avatars battling against monstrously proportioned humanoid corpses which were partially rotting, gushing smoke from their mouths and wounds. Palinus felt instantly drawn to the essentia of the mausoleum, it called to him, and a feeling of hunger pulled him into the mausoleum and made him rage against the Silvanian¡¯s for standing in his way.


    Vulcan Spectre 643/920 | Level 5


    Vengeful Shade of Smoke


    There were only two of the spectres but the Silvanmen seemed to be struggling in the battle against them with their higher levels. Reinvar was less than half health and they had done little damage to the other spectre at all.


    Reinvar Umfridus 304/630 | Level 1


    Spearman - Defender


    Reinvar¡¯s allies were barely helping as Raolet and the other Silvanman were affected by the status [Blinded] so they couldn¡¯t see what they were doing and got in each other¡¯s way.


    Raoulet Umfridus 672/712 [Blinded] | Level 1


    Forest Warrior - Warrior


    From the brush on the other side of the clearing they saw another Silvanman briefly pop his head out of the grass to throw a dagger at the shade. It did some damage and the man returned to his bush.


    ¡°We¡¯ve found the Silvanmen,¡± Marcus reported in a whisper to the team, ¡°We see three taking on a super creep spawn in the middle of their forest, and the 4th is looking out from the brush. No sign of the 5th respawning.¡±


    ¡°Are you going to engage?¡± Minucia replied.


    ¡°I¡¯ve got a level advantage and we¡¯ve caught them with their pants down. More importantly, it¡¯s a deep red so a potential coalescence is too valuable for me or Palinus to let go without a fight.¡±


    A surge of adrenaline spiked through Palinus¡¯s body in agreement with Marcus desire to fight. It felt like his body was ready to fight the Silvanmen alone if it had to.

 Chapter 9 - Avarice and How to Snipe a Creep

    Chapter 9 - Avarice and How to Snipe a Creep


    Palinus wiped drool from his mouth as he caught himself walking mindlessly toward the creepy mausoleum. He had barely been paying attention, the hunger for whatever lay within the tomb was insistent and he felt his face flush and a growing rage towards the Spectres, as if they had been stealing something important from him.


    ¡°Relax boy, keep it in your pants.¡± Marcus chided Palinus. ¡°There is a strong resonance in attunement to your own, I feel it too. You need to practise not letting the urges overwhelm you or you are going to get yourself or your friends killed.¡±


    While Marcus had been speaking he was holding Palinus back. He let go for a moment to slap the teenager in the face which briefly got his attention.


    ¡°We¡¯ll snipe the creeps don''t worry, but you need to focus right now. They are all still level one so just do what you can and I¡¯ll do most of the work. We''ll thrash the green beards or chase them off and then we switch to the spectres.¡± Marcus slapped him on the back and shoved him bodily over to Bruchts.


    ¡°Keep an eye out for him for a moment.¡± Marcus said gruffly ¡°When I go I need you to rush in and keep the spectre''s attention while we get the Silvanmen clear out, watch out for the [Blind] effect. If you hit me I¡¯ll hit you back twice as hard.¡±


    The burly Erulean man turned to check the progress of the Silvanian fight with the spectres. The spectres had switched targets to Raoulet and the [Blind] effect had worn off. The Silvanians had turned the tide of the battle and were starting to do some significant damage to the super creeps, Marcus was waiting for something and Palinus was having trouble holding back.


    Vulcan Spectre 351/920 | Level 5


    Vulcan Spectre 727/920 | Level 5


    The Silvanians traded another set of blows with the spectres as Palinus saw what Marcus was waiting for. The fourth Silvanian in the bush left his cover again to add his dagger attack to the spectre which was now at critical health. As soon as the dagger was thrown Marcus strode out of the brush towards the lookout. He waved his mace in the air and yelled incoherently at the Silvanman.


    The Silvanman lookout noticed him quickly and began to whistle urgently to his teammates. The lookout moved to engage Marcus with his shepherd''s crook in both hands and his dagger at his hip. The Silvanmen in the Mausoleum were yelling at each other but they kept their focus on the spectres.


    As he noticed Bruchts walking out of the tall grass as well, the lookout gave up posturing aggression as he called out to his teammates. When Palinus followed a moment later his shouting turned to panic.


    There was a moment of confusion for the Silvanians as Raolet, the big Silvanman with the axe immediately ran out the door and abandoned the fight with the spectres to respond to the call for help while the other two Silvanmen were hesitating to leave the nearly dead spectre. The spectre looked to be barely standing with vicious wounds all across its body. It looked like a corpse that had been savaged by animals with black blood dripping down from the punctures and axe wounds that smoked and bubbled, as though the spectre''s vital essence was smouldering as it leaked out of its undead flesh.


    Before the Silvanmen could organise themselves Marcus had finished activating his leaping attack ars and was sailing through the air to meet Raoulet¡¯s charge. The Silvanman had begun to channel an ars as well and Palinus flinched as he predicted the axe attack that caused the gaping wounds that had slowed Marcus in the last fight. Before the massive silvanman could finish the savage attack ars Marcus landed with his mace attack and managed to knock the Silvanman out. The stun effect was followed by a flurry of blows with a mace that glowed with a red haze as it splashed blood in all directions. In moments the flurry of attacks had taken nearly half of his health and the bleed effect applied by Marcus¡¯s mace was set to continue the damage.


    Raoulet Umfridus 304/712 [Bleeding] | Level 1


    Forest Warrior - Warrior


    As Palinus walked from the tall grass he had been firing his wand at the lookout, keeping him dodging the wand bolts and keeping him from assisting his teammate in the melee.The Silvanman managed to duck under a wand blast and swung his shepherds crook at Marcus only doing minimal damage, but applying a slowing effect. Seeing the Silvanman grouped up Palinus began to channel his Fireball ars causing the Silvanman to panic and start to backpedal.


    Deciding the Silvanmen outside were no longer a threat, Palinus looked back towards the Mausoleum trying to find a target for his fireball. As he watched there was an awkward moment as the other Silvanmen retreating from the Mausoleum eyeballed Bruchts who was strolling in nonchalantly to steal their kill.


    Giving up the super creeps they rushed towards Marcus as he brutally mauled Raolet. The bloody mace crashed down against the Silvanman¡¯s reeling avatar as it was taken down to less than a quarter health.


    In Palinus¡¯s hand the ars he held tugged at him. The bolt of fire swirled and crackled, ready to discharge. He knew from the description that the bolt was supposed to do 200 damage which would probably kill the mortally wounded Raoulet and with Reinvar standing so close would easily splash significant damage on him as well. For the second time he faced a decision. Would he kill again?


    There was an urging within him to do it. To launch the bolt of fire and revel in the heat and power as it took a life. The dark urging telling him to just get this over with so he could claim the rewards within the Mausoleum. His hand trembled and a tear trickled involuntarily from his eye.


    ¡°STOP¡­ just stop¡­ please¡± Palinus yelled. He wasn¡¯t sure if he was yelling at Marcus and the Silvanmen or himself.


    Palinus¡¯s shouted plea seemed to break through to the men as Marcus¡¯s mace paused halfway through another brutal strike. The savaged Silvanman, held up both of his hands with his palms open, dropping his weapon to the floor and the Silvanmen behind him slowly followed suit as their weapons dropped to the ground and their hands crept above their heads.


    ¡°Go back, GO!¡± Marcus yelled at the Silvanmen and gestured with his mace for them to leave and with the haft of his mace started pushing them away.


    He barely waited for them to start walking away as he waved Palinus to follow him into the tomb, ¡°Good job kid. Let¡¯s go help the Brute.¡±


    Marcus chuckled at his nickname for Bruchts as he reported something to the team that Palinus barely noticed.


    Something about the quick change from savagery to laughter at a schoolyard nickname disgusted the teenager and Palinus just stared at him. The name had been a moniker that his Stoneman blooded friend had been labelled many times in the 7th Hill Gymnasium. The reminder of life in the overworld rang like a bell in his head as he recognised a growing dysphoria. He struggled with his roiling emotions as he let the foreign urges within him lead him into the tomb.


    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    An urgent reminder of a sharp stinging from the ball of fire whiring in his hand spurred him to action as Palinus desperately ran past Marcus to the candle lit room where Bruchts faced the spectres.


    The blonde teenager gracefully danced with the smouldering corpses. The flickering light of the candlelit room cast a dim glow as the iron fire poker in his hand darted out and struck repeatedly with meaty thwacks against the cold flesh.


    As Palinus thought about launching the ars and releasing the ball of fire in his hand the essentia within him guided him and he knew without thinking the range, power and area of effect of the ars. Moving around the room away from his ally, he found a clear angle where he could strike and launched the bolt. Instantly he felt a sense of relief as the cool air of the mausoleum soothed his burnt hand.


    The fireball streaked like a comet towards the spectres. Landing with an explosion that rang through the enclosed space it struck true against the spectres bathing them both instantly in flame. Palinus felt a surge of essentia with the killing blow of the slain spectre. It had fallen with the explosion and its remaining essentia scattered like a smashed pot with a wave of fat red essentia beads.


    The final spectre was half covered in flame. The red fire bathing its back and left side starkly contrasting the darkened pale skin and the more natural flame juxtaposing the corrupted smoke of its smouldering blood.


    Vulcan Spectre 292/920 [Burning] | Level 5


    The near dead spectre kept up the fight, launching clawed hands at Bruchts that extended past the super creeps'' natural reach and left savage claw marks that cauterised themselves into slow healing scars that Bruchts had been hit with several times already judging from the tears in his tunic.


    As Marcus brought his mace down onto the spectre¡¯s head Palinus was reminded to use the wand in his hand. The bolts of the wand were made to seem even smaller in comparison to the conflagration of the fireball ars, but the damage on the creep was adding up quickly.


    The spectre howled as it spewed a flood of inky black smoke into the room. Marcus and Bruchts cursed as they both lost their vision to a [Blind] affect.


    ¡°Keep blasting Palinus!¡± Marcus yelled.


    The burly man swung his mace out blindly. It struck the spectre with a glancing blow and Marcus grunted as he quickly channelled an ars into the backswing. The mace struck another weak blow, but the effect of the ars landed as the spectre was stunned for a moment.


    Grunting with effort, Palinus shot his wand as quickly as he could. The damage was adding up quickly and before the spectre regained consciousness the wand bolts and the burning effect had done their job as the spectre popped in a flash of greasy black smoke and dropped another wave of essentia beads to join the beads of its brethren.


    ¡°Yeah!¡± Palinus cheered and the surge of essentia swelled the elation he felt for the victory they had stolen from the Silvanian avatars.


    His allies still stood in defensive postures and moved comically under the [Blind] effect for a few moment longer, they both reached out with their weapons to confirm the enemy was slain before they joined Palinus in celebrating.


    Sensing someone watching over his shoulder, Palinus looked back towards the tall grass where the Silvanians departed. Poking out of the tall grass he saw a mossy bearded face vanish with a rustle.


    ¡°Go ahead and take some essentia boy,¡± Marcus waved Palinus towards the essentia orbs on the ground as he walked across the room, carelessly picking up beads as he walked. The thoughts of the Silvanmen vanished from his head as he saw the carpet of red essentia beads strewn across the floor with small specks of blue and green in the mix.


    Palinus stepped into the middle of the room. As he moved the essentia hovering on the floor jumped in a surging wave towards him. He felt the beads warm him from within as his essentia reservoir swelled to the crescendo of heat becoming uncomfortable before a rush of relief as it hit the threshold for another level.


    As he picked up the last of the essentia he checked the options for his new ars.


    <table>


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>


    Wandslinger*


    </td>


    <td>


    -Red Mage-


    </td>


    <td>


    Mage*


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Ars


    </td>


    <td>


    Fiery Weapon


    </td>


    <td>


    Flame wave


    </td>


    <td>


    Magic Missiles


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Attunement


    </td>


    <td>


    nil


    </td>


    <td>


    nil


    </td>


    <td>


    nil


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Cooldown


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    <td>


    5 minutes


    </td>


    <td>


    30 seconds


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Compatibility


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Skill Type


    </td>


    <td>


    Enhancement


    </td>


    <td>


    Area


    </td>


    <td>


    Projectile


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Slot


    </td>


    <td>


    [Wrist], [Arm], [Shoulder]


    </td>


    <td>


    [Fist, hand, wrist]


    </td>


    <td>


    [Fist, hand, wrist]


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Slot Bonus


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    <td>


    n/a


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>


    Description


    </td>


    <td>


    Each strike applies [Burn] and deals additional [15] fire damage when striking a target with [Burn].


    </td>


    <td>


    Conjure a wave of flame which deals [150] damage, applies [Burn] and knocks up enemies struck dealing an additional [100] fire damage when striking a target with [Burn].


    </td>


    <td>


    Shoot three bolts of energy doing [50] damage each to up to three targets.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    So many questions came to Palinus¡¯s mind as he read through the options, but as he looked up to ask his thoughts were dashed. The man had moved over to the back of the room where Palinus sensed something surging with essentia. As he watched Marcus pushed something aside and the aura of power surged. Drawing Palinus in like a moth to a flame.


    ¡°Boy. I have a similar red attunement to you and this sings to me. It sings so sweetly.¡± Marcus spoke softly to Palinus, he tore his eye off the object to meet Palinus¡¯s hungry gaze. ¡°If it had any Green or Blue attunement I would snatch it and kill you if I had to¡­ but it''s as pure red as Vestra¡¯s fiery crotch.¡±


    ¡°So. It looks like it¡¯s your lucky day boy!¡± Marcus was struggling to sound cheerful through a grimaced expression. The jealousy and threat of violence still tinting his voice. ¡°I¡¯ve only seen a few of these and this one must be just about perfect for you.¡±


    The back of the room was filled floor to ceiling with alcoves containing skeletal remains. Marcus didn¡¯t need to point out what he had found as Palinus felt a tug and a hunger within him drawing him towards an object within the corpse that Marcus stood next to.


    The body in this alcove was dressed in decaying leather armour and what withered flesh remained was desiccated over its skeletal frame. The body had been pushed aside to expose a fragment of gemstone that sung with power. It was a deep red that closely matched the red of Palinus¡¯s attunement and he desperately wanted it but as he reached out to grab it he had a moment of hesitation.


    ¡°What is it?¡±

 Chapter 10 - The Attunement Shard

    Chapter 10 - The Attunement Shard


    ¡°What is this thing?¡± Palinus¡¯s question hung as they stared at the prize. It''s name came to him as he stared at the piece of gem that looked like a fragment of a larger stone that was broken to pieces. He could see a deep red attunement that matched it''s colour. ¡°An¡­ attunement shard?¡±


    Attunement shard


    The gemstone fragment called to Palinus with a sense of warmth and belonging like a treasured childhood possession returned to him. He hesitated to take it as something about the intensity of Marcus¡¯s focus on the deep red facets made Palinus wary. In the man¡¯s eyes there was an edge of anger over barely disguised greed and as his gaze turned to Palinus, a momentary glimpse of madness.


    ¡°You attach it to a calculii to modify it¡¯s attunement.¡± Marcus replied, ¡°I have heard they sometimes add a secondary effect. Some have the skill to read more through the facets of the gem, though I don¡¯t. All I can tell is to my eye it looks like it is a pure dark red which is perfect for your attunement, and useless to my muddy essentia¡­¡±


    As the man finished answering his question with a frustrated kick at the wall. Palinus picked up the shard, pushing down an unsettled feeling to claim the object before Marcus could change his mind. He didn''t quite understand what it was for but decided to trust Marcus¡¯s obvious avarice for it.


    ¡°So it¡¯s valuable?¡± Palinus asked.


    Marcus laughed hollowly as he responded. ¡°Almost worthless, but priceless for you. They are a bound item and once you pick it up it is yours for good. The only way you can take a bound rift item is from a corpse in the overworld. Just¡­ don¡¯t waste this on a random calculii, take it to a Censor, they¡¯ll be able to tell you how to use it best.¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t sell it¡­¡± Palinus was only minorly put out by the revelation, he already felt like the shard was meant to keep. They both stared at it sitting in his hand as Bruchts came over to the pair.


    ¡°The Silvanmen are coming back!¡± He updated in an urgent whisper.


    ¡°Palinus found an attunement shard!¡± Marcus reported to the team unworried by the news, ¡°... and the Silvanmen circled back, are you ready?¡±


    <hr>


    Rufian was bored. Once the Silvanmen had run away from the lane the rift had gotten really repetitive, they just watched the minions and picked up the essentia. Every now and then Minucia would let him unleash on a minion to manage the balance of their battle, but that was it for action.


    The only good thing about the situation was the levels. He was now well into level three and itching to actually use his ars: Heavy Fists, Multistrike and Leap Strike. Minucia had walked him through the choices and explained how choosing an ars from a secondary class meant that he would be getting reduced bonuses to his power gains each level but she strongly encouraged him to do so for the combination effects. He could feel the essentia within him ready to be used. It tickled his leg telling him to launch into a leap strike at any moment and his fists itched, ready to enact violence.


    If only he had the chance, punching the occasional minion just wasn¡¯t cutting it.


    ¡°Is it time to go help the others yet?¡± He asked Minucia impatiently.


    ¡°We need to wait for the signal,¡± She replied. ¡°But¡­ maybe it''s time for a change. Let¡¯s push the wave under the tower.¡±


    Finally he got the chance to unleash a bit. Smashing down the Silvanian ranged minions one by one he was enjoying the power in his hands as his fist splintered their wooden frames like bundles of twigs. He fell into a rhythm that reminded him of working in his father¡¯s carpentry workshop, smooth rhythmic strokes of his fist that he guided into the right spots to split the grain. Just like the feeling of a chisel against a soft wood.


    In a few minutes the dynamic of the lane had shifted and with no ranged minions left to destroy them, the Erulean melee minions were growing in numbers as they quickly dispatched their Silvanian opposition.


    As they watched their cultivated wave of minions crash against the tower the signal finally came.


    ¡°Palinus found an attunement shard! The Silvanmen circled back, are you ready?¡± Marcus¡¯s voice reported to the team.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go Rufian!¡± Minucia said cheerily as she marched into the forest, her staff at the ready. ¡°We¡¯d better hurry.¡±


    ¡°Congratulations Palinus! We are on the way.¡± Minucia responded to Marcus as she picked up the pace to a steady jog.


    Surprised at the woman¡¯s speed, Rufian ran to follow. He was again surprised at his own pace as he was able to catch up to her quickly.


    ¡°It feels good to let loose with a rift empowered body, right?¡± Minucia chatted as they ducked through the outer tall grass and into the forest proper. ¡°You need to watch out for your strength in this fight as you¡¯ll be overleveled! If they surrender you should try to let them escape, but don¡¯t hesitate if they threaten any of us. Our first priority is our own lives.¡±


    With that thought they rounded a stand of trees and through a thick patch of tall grass they could hear the sounds of fighting. They rushed ahead to see the Silvanmen Avatars attacking his friends outside a creepy looking mausoleum.


    As they made their way into range they witnessed a flashy combination of fire ars as Palinus launched an explosive fireball hitting all four Silvanmen and immediately followed it up with a wave of fire that did massive damage.


    With a surge of jealousy at how powerful his new friend''s combination looked Rufian charged, he didn¡¯t want to miss his chance to fight. He rushed into the fray targeting a big man with an axe who looked like he was trying to organise the Silvanmen. The man had a look that reminded him of his father, and it made the Silvanman¡¯s face all the more punchable.


    This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.


    Raoulet Umfridus 342/712 [Burning] | Level 1


    Forest Warrior - Warrior


    As he leapt in the air the man was yelling and waving his arms, the incomprehensible language sounded alien to Rufian¡¯s ear but he could almost hear his father¡¯s baritone in the Silvanman¡¯s voice.


    Landing with his fist ready to strike he quickly landed a series of blows sending the man reeling. Throwing blow after blow Rufian lost track of the rest of the fight, solely focused on the feeling of his fists as they flowed. The essentia pumping out of his chest through his shoulder and down his arm, multiplying as it coursed through his Multistrike ars and into his Heavy Fists as they smashed into the Silvanman¡¯s hide and rough leather covered body.


    He felt the rhythm of his combo attack change as his target was dazed for the third time. It seemed like the minor stunning effect was having diminishing returns so Rufian stepped up the effort of trying to dismantle the bigger man. As the big Silvanman met his eyes Rufian could see fear and frustration.


    ¡°...Rufian! ¡­. Rufian!!¡­ RUFIAN!!!¡± Bruchts insistent yelling finally pierced the haze of Rufian¡¯s focus too late. His fist was already thrown and it connected solidly against Raoulet¡¯s jaw depleting the last of the man¡¯s health.


    A flood of essentia filled Rufian as he caught his breath. The essentia felt warm and triumphant as he for a moment struggled to understand why Bruchts was upset with him.


    ¡°... he was trying to surrender.¡± Bruchts said quietly.


    ¡°Oh, whoops.¡± The revelation surprised Rufian who had felt much the same punching the Silvanman as he had the Silvanian minions. He was puzzled at the sympathetic expression from his big friend, he was fine. Why wouldn¡¯t he be?


    <hr>


    The two surviving Silvanian avatars stood with their hands in the air. One of the other Silvanmen had fallen to Marcus¡¯s mace moments before Rufian brutally killed Raoulet, but Palinus couldn¡¯t remember his name and there was no corpses to inspect, just two piles of essence beads. Reinvar, the youngest of the Silvanmen, still lived. He had spent the fight stunned and he still had a look of complete rage on his face that he made no effort to hide as the Erulean¡¯s considered their captives.


    ¡°Engaging again after surrendering is against the shepherd''s code.¡± Minucia explained to the Erulean boys, ¡°We should be executing them so they can¡¯t continue to endanger others, but we will let you decide their fate.¡±


    Before Rufian could say something with his usual bravado, Palinus voiced his opinion. ¡°They were frustrated we stole their kills and they tried to surrender, my vote is to let them live.¡±


    ¡°It might be a mistake leaving the young one, it seems like he¡¯s learning some bad habits.¡± Marcus commented in reply.


    ¡°They knew the risks and they chose to attack.¡± Rufian said and gave a thumbs down gesture to indicate he voted for execution but wasn¡¯t callous enough to voice his sentiment.


    ¡°Let them go.¡± Bruchts said with barely a moment of hesitation. He waved the Silvanians away as he gave Rufian a sharp look.


    The older Silvanman seemed grateful for the mercy as he tugged Reinvar back to their nexus. As they walked away the young man turned and in his language chanted what sounded like an angry poem as he gestured at Palinus, Rufian and Marcus


    ¡°Lunari alor, velar enai.


    Tyira luma,


    tyira luma,


    tyira luma."


    ¡°Haha, looks like you¡¯ve got your first Silvanian curse.¡± Marcus laughed as they departed before asking Minucia, ¡°Anything creative?¡±


    ¡°¡®You¡¯ll die alone and afraid. I curse you, I curse you, I curse you.¡¯¡± Minucia replied. ¡° 3/10, good commitment but missing any creative dismemberment or injury.¡±


    The Silvanian had a deep look as he cast the curse and despite the flippant attitude of the couple Rufian felt a chill at the young man¡¯s intensity.


    ¡°Show us the shard!¡± Minucia said to Palinus, changing the subject to celebrating the loot as he showed her the stone.


    <hr>


    Once the Erulean team had taken a few minutes to recover after the battle, and the adrenaline had faded, Marcus and Minucia pulled the team together to chat.


    ¡°Good job boys, we¡¯re pretty certain that we won¡¯t be seeing the Silvanian team again¡± Minucia said.


    ¡°Yeah!¡± Rufian cheered triumphantly. ¡°That was too easy!¡±


    Marcus cuffed him over the head with a light blow and a smile.


    ¡°It is bad manners to celebrate before the rift is won,¡± he scolded the teenager. ¡°Now we just wait for some loot and farm up to our essence cap.¡±


    The group waited until the silence became uncomfortable expecting Marcus to explain. Until with a soft cough and with a chuckle Minucia filled in what her husband meant for the teenagers. ¡°Your overworld body has a limit to the amount of essentia it can naturally hold, if you take more out with you you¡¯ll find that it just drains off and goes to waste. The nexus will get mad if you take out too much too, it will want it¡¯s cut. So as tier 0s coming into the rift you definitely won¡¯t benefit from taking more essentia than around level 3 or so. We just hit tier 5 last month so we¡¯ll be aiming to hit around level 6.¡±


    ¡°That seems really low.¡± Rufian commented.


    Minucia and Marcus laughed.


    ¡°The difference between tiers is enormous, you¡¯ll feel like new men when you leave and your bodies hit tier 1.¡± Marcus laughed before admitting with a nostalgic sigh, ¡°Then the grind starts¡­ it takes so much more essentia to progress from there it¡¯s ridiculous.¡±


    ¡°You may not have noticed yet, the essentia amount needed for each level increases by quite a bit. In a low essentia rift like this it will take over an hour in the lane alone to get to level 6 and that isn¡¯t even enough to tier us up, it¡¯s just all the nexus will let us take.¡± Minucia added with a sigh.


    As the team chatted they walked together to check the progress of the lanes they were hopeful for something to have coalesced while they were gone. On the walk to the right lane the couple told the teenage boys stories of items they had seen.


    ¡°Can we just let the rift coalesce items forever?¡± Palinus asked hopefully.


    ¡°No,¡± Minucia said. ¡°There is a limit to what the rift will spawn, generally with a low essentia rift like this one you would expect a lower quantity of items. But the rifts seem to respect delvers who take the risk on hardcore rifts, so they tend to offer higher quality items.¡±


    As the group came out of the forest they returned to a lane that was filled with minions locked in battle over a carpet of gently hovering essentia beads. In the lane Bruchts and Palinus had vacated they didn¡¯t find anything amongst the carpet of beads..


    Deciding to stick with the original groupings, Palinus and Bruchts stayed with Marcus as they worked together to push down the tower while Minucia and Rufian went back to their lane. It was fun to finally let loose on the minions and Palinus made the most of it, blasting wand and fire spells as fast as he could.


    As they started working on dismantling the Silvanian tower they got a report from the other lane.


    ¡°It appears that we have found something.¡± Minucia commented with a strangely flat tone.


    ¡°It¡¯s a big f-¡± Rufian¡¯s excited voice was cut off.


    ¡°Come up and we¡¯ll calmly discuss who gets it.¡±

 Chapter 11 - The Perfect Sword for Tower Offense

    Chapter 11 - The Perfect Sword for Tower Offense


    ¡°I wonder what they found?¡± Palinus speculated as he, Bruchts and Marcus jogged through the forest to the other lane. ¡°I need an actual calculii to use my shard on.¡±


    ¡°I need a proper weapon,¡± Bruchts waved his iron poker, emphasising the need for an actual weapon. ¡°But I really hope for a sword.


    ¡°Hmph,¡± Marcus made a strange noise of frustration as they speculated. ¡°Rift drops are random, it¡¯s never quite what you want and you just have to make do with what you get. I was the best swordsman in the Southern Tremona Gymnasium. But we¡¯ve run more than a dozen rifts and I haven¡¯t yet got a sword¡­¡±


    Marcus¡¯s voice trailed off as they came to the lane. A grinning Rufian and a sheepish Minucia stood behind a glittering sword sitting in the middle of the lane in a perfect circle that was empty of essentia beads. The metallic sheen of the blade somehow managed to glint in the soft light of the tree cover and it had a pearlescent lustre with a blue undertone to the most pristine iron Palinus had ever seen. The blade looked heavy with a straight, double edged blade. It¡¯s pommel looked like it was made of stone and was etched with a glowing blue runic font.


    ¡°Before you¡­¡± Minucia started


    ¡°I don¡¯t care..¡± As Marcus spoke at the same time.


    He glared at her, and she met his gaze with a calm expression.


    ¡°I can reattune it, you know how long I have been waiting for a rift blade.¡± Marcus insisted. There was a tension in his whole body, ready to pounce on it.


    ¡°That might take years...¡± Minucia countered. ¡° I know how much you want this¡­ You just need to stay patient, this isn¡¯t the one, but you will get it.¡±


    As she gently tried to calm the man she moved slowly towards him, getting between Marcus and the sword and gently reaching for him as if trying to calm an injured animal.


    Breathing heavily with wild eyes he whirled in a burst of movement, punching Bruchts as he stormed past and ran into the forest.


    ¡°He has had a bad run of luck with swords in rifts.¡± Minucia explained to the boys, ¡°In one of our first rifts a sword dropped that was perfect for him. A supposed friend of ours took it, and he hasn¡¯t found anything to match it since.¡±


    ¡°Why doesn¡¯t he take this one?¡± Bruchts asked.


    ¡°That¡¯s sweet of you to offer,¡± Minucia replied with a smile. ¡°But if you inspect it you can see that it is totally the wrong attunement for him and it is a thrusting sword for use with a shield. He wouldn¡¯t be able to use it properly and it would hinder any ars he used with it. Anyway, his mace is better than fine, he is just clinging to a dream still.¡±


    As she explained, Palinus checked the sword.


    Raider¡¯s One Handed Sword


    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s a blue attunement.¡± Palinus commented.


    ¡°Well it¡¯s a sort of cornflower blue so it''s got quite a bit of green in it, and Marcus is a red leaning dark grey.¡±


    ¡°So, it would be better suited to¡­¡± Palinus remembered that Bruchts was a blue attunement and Minucia was a blueish green.


    Bruchts 740/740 | Level 2


    Warden - Defender


    Minutia Gavros 650/650 | Level 3


    Foam Witch - Support Mage


    ¡°It¡¯s sort of between both of your attunements.¡± Palinus scratched his head.


    ¡°Yes, it can be hard to judge but it¡¯s definitely pretty close to Bruchts attunement¡­ and a sword doesn¡¯t fit with any of my class and ars combinations. So congratulations Bruchts!¡± Minucia said cheerily before shooting a glance to the forest where her upset husband had retreated to.


    With reverence Bruchts picked up the sword on the ground. As he lifted the blade he stared at it with an intent and awe like a father with a newborn child. His moment paused as he snuck a look towards the bushes Marcus had retreated through, a guilty look crossing his broad smile for a vanishing moment before showing the blade off.


    ¡°I guess you boys can push down the towers until we get to the nexus towers if you''re up for it! I¡¯ll go spend some time with Marcus.¡± Minucia said, ¡°Leave as much essentia as you can on the ground so we can get out of here faster.¡±


    As she jogged off into the forest Rufian immediately charged an ars and leapt into the mob of minions. He began methodically swinging his punches into the minions with a steady rhythm and a gleam in his eye. Palinus and Bruchts joined in with wand and new sword knocking over the minions as quickly as they could, with liberal use of fire, fists and iron.


    Quickly they dismantled the accumulated waves of Silvanian minions and the wave of Erulean minions pushed under the tall wooden Silvanian tower. As they started to hit the tower they quickly realised they needed to watch where the tower was shooting, it did splash damage, which paled in comparison to the power of a direct hit, but would still whittle away at their health points if they were careless and stood close to the minion being attacked.


    With the wave of minions taking the damage of the tower they were able to knock it down about a quarter of its health before the tower had destroyed the last minion in range.


    Silvanian Kingdoms Outer Tower | 12,012/15,500


    With the minion wave destroyed the tower began to target Bruchts. Remembering the damage done to Reeve he quickly ran out of range. Rufian wasn''t as fast on the uptake and stayed to keep hitting the tower. He was deeply focused on trying to dismantle it piece by piece with his fists.


    ¡°Run out you idiot!¡± Palinus shouted at him.


    Rufian paused and looked up to watch the tower blast him squarely in the face.


    ¡°Eeeee¡± Rufian squealed with a high pitched squeak, which to his chagrin was hilarious to his teenage friends. As he tried to run, holding his blasted face, he sprinted as quickly as he could only to get hit by another bolt to the ass making the boys double over in laughter.


    Rufian Ramuro 408/720 | Level 3


    Enhancer - Bruiser


    ¡°That stings.¡± Rufian said, rubbing his ass.


    ¡°It blasted off your eyebrows!¡± Palinus laughed even harder at his friend''s misfortune, getting a scowl in return.


    As they bantered another wave of minions had arrived. They took moments to destroy the wave with Palinus¡¯s fire combo and a few quick strikes to clean up. They tried to leave the essentia on the ground, but Rufian and Bruchts getting into melee range couldn¡¯t help accidentally attracting some of the orbs.


    A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    With the individual wave of minions they were able to get under the tower to do a few hits of damage, but had to retreat quickly.


    ¡°Well this is going to take forever.¡± Brunchts commented with the agreement of the other boys.


    ¡°Maybe we need to let the wave build up a bit. I¡¯ll kill just the ranged minions and try to build up at least two waves of melee minions.¡± Palinus suggested with a flourish of his wand. He got a nod from Bruchts and a scowl from Rufian, but Palinus knew that was just that the boy didn¡¯t like waiting and doing nothing. ¡°Maybe you can take a couple of the tower hits before and after the wave to give us more time to destroy it?¡±


    ¡°You volunteering?¡± Rufian said with a chuckle, but waved him on to do his part as the minions waves settled into battle.


    The strategy worked effectively with Rufian and Bruchts taking a bit of damage but extending the time they could attack the tower. They fell into a rhythm and within the next dozen sets of waves they were able to finally finish off the tower¡¯s hit points. As Rufian¡¯s punch took the last of the health points the crystal at the top of the tower combusted in a wave of essentia beads which the boys ran away from to avoid collecting as they cheered. The tower itself looked like it slowly deflated, sinking onto itself like a collapsing sand castle until it rested in a pile of wooden debris.


    -An Enemy Tower has been Destroyed-


    The announcement rang through the forest as the boys clasped wrists and cheered.


    ¡°One down, two to go!¡± Rufian yelled as he followed the remaining minions down the enemy lane.


    ¡°I wonder what the others are doing?¡± Palinus speculated.


    There was a long walk down the lane towards the Silvanian nexus. Their wave of minions was caught up twice against Silvanian minion waves before they made it to a set of stairs that led up to another Silvanian tower. The steps up to the tower made the attack on the tower much harder, but their practice at the outer tower paid dividends.


    With the essentia they had collected from dealing damage directly to minions and towers, Palinus and Bruchts had managed to reach level 3. With the sole focus on doing as much damage to the tower as possible Palinus had chosen to take a secondary class as a Wandslinger with Multistrike. Though he was tempted by the Red Mage ars Conflagration which created an explosion when damaging [Burning] targets, it was Bruchts who pointed out that they didn¡¯t need to do much damage to the minions and the most damage he could do to the tower was through applying a bigger combo with his wand.


    For his Third level Bruchts had discussed his options and chosen to take a second class too, with the ars Bulwark which was from the Defender class. It had a short cooldown and allowed him to reduce incoming damage so he could take the hits from the minions to build a wave, then from the tower to let them destroy it as quickly as they could.


    They found out what the others were doing when an announcement came as they took their second pass at the second Silvanian tower.


    -An Enemy Tower has been Destroyed-


    ¡°They¡¯re catching up!¡± Rufian yelled, the confirmation that the couple were working on the towers in the other lane spurred the boys'' competitiveness and they started to push their pace to race down their tower. Palinus started trying to take a few tower shots and complained bitterly about the pain as they pushed the second tower down quickly.


    A few short minutes after they heard the announcement they could see across the terraced plateau of the Silvanian nexus area to the point where the other lane¡¯s tower stood. They saw a wave of minions reach the tower with Marcus quick on their heels and the splashes of seafoam green bolts against the tower as Minucia added her damage.


    The boys laughed as they worked together and dismantled the tower quickly.


    -An Enemy Tower has been Destroyed-


    With their enthusiasm, teamwork and a numerical advantage. It was a shock when they hadn¡¯t yet finished off their tower and the announcement rang through the forest.


    Out of the corner of his eye he saw Marcus pretending to clean his nails, as he laughed with Minucia. It seemed like he was in a better mood with some wanton destruction to distract him.


    It was mere moments later that a wand blast from Palinus managed to finish off the tower¡¯s hit points, triggering the announcement they had been working towards.


    -An Enemy Tower has been Destroyed-


    ¡°Good job boys,¡± Minucia sauntered across to them now that the threat of the towers left the outer nexus plateau undefended. ¡°Looks like you have left us some nice essentia to pick up.¡±


    ¡°Did anything coalesce?¡± Marcus questioned with an ugly look at Bruchts sword, that he hid quickly.


    ¡°We haven¡¯t checked back down the lane, we¡¯ve been focused on the towers.¡± Palinus replied.


    ¡°Do you want to come look with me?¡± Minucia asked as she started gathering the nearby essentia beads.


    Getting a bit bored of the tower destruction, Palinus agreed to the walk leaving Bruchts and Rufian to work with Marcus on the trio of towers around the Nexus.


    ¡°We¡¯re nearly done!¡± She said with a smile, she hit level 4 as they gathered patches of essentia beads in clumps along the lane. ¡°I¡¯m sorry for Marcus, he was never so abrasive before. He¡¯s just frustrated with the Rifts and feeling left behind. He dreams of joining the Legion, but can never quite make the cut¡­ ¡±


    As they came back to the ruin of the Silvanian outer tower they spotted a tell tale circle in the essentia beads.


    ¡°Well, it looks like something has dropped!¡± Minucia said.


    ¡°That¡¯s a bit odd, it wasn¡¯t there when we left¡± Palinus commented.


    ¡°The rift rarely coalesces anything when you are watching, it¡¯s like they are shy.¡±


    Minucia gave a little chuckle and a wink, but she stiffened as they came close enough to see what they had found.


    +Channelled Leap+


    Allows ars that involve a leaping component to be channelled for up to [2.5] seconds increasing the range of connected ars by [1-250]% and damage by [1-250]%


    They both stared for a moment at the calculii deep in thought.


    ¡°It¡¯s a connector¡­ a secondary calculii that you link to an ars. This would make ars that involved jumping or leaping¡­. MUCH more effective.¡± Minucia explained what they were looking at, then with a small voice continued, ¡°Rufian should take it. Marcus would want it, and it would work for both of them. But if Rufian picked up a basic leap strike calculii-¡±


    Palinus shook his head.


    ¡°I think Rufian would agree with you,¡± he replied with a laugh, ¡°but it looks like it is better attuned to Marcus. After this it''ll be hard to keep Rufian out of rifts, so he¡¯ll wind up with something eventually.¡±


    Finished picking up the essentia around the calculii Minucia gave Palinus a long look.


    ¡°I had you picked as a citizen brat from the capital with your accent and attunement,¡± she said with a serious expression. ¡°I¡¯m glad you aren¡¯t a power hungry mini tyrant. You could have used the attunement shard to give yourself part of a powerful skill set.¡±


    ¡°Maybe¡­ let¡¯s not tell Rufian about this though¡­¡± Palinus joked to deflect the tension. He hadn¡¯t considered the idea of keeping the calculii, but now that it was in his head he couldn¡¯t help but briefly fantasise about a powerful fire leap. He had heard stories about Podius the Fire Fist and how he blasted through the air and rained fire on the Silvanmen.


    He was starting to get excited with ideas for how he could find calculii to make devastating ars combinations. If he enhanced even simple ars with connectors like empowered leap they could do amazing things. As they walked he talked through his thoughts with Minucia who fueled his speculation with stories of ars she had seen or heard of.


    ¡°Red mages are common through the Empire, but you probably aren¡¯t a red mage.¡± Minucia said casually, devastating the images Palinus was forming of himself flying through the sky and raining fire on his enemies.


    ¡°What? But I am a red mage right now!¡±


    ¡°You have a dark red attunement. I don¡¯t want to speculate too much, you need to speak to a censor to know exactly what your attunement means. But you are probably some variant of a dark red aspect. You are a red mage now because it is a generic class, when you get some calculii they will shift to your aspect and your core class will change.¡±


    Minucia read his expression as disappointment.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry! Your class will be better than a generic fiery dick flinger, all power and no finesse. You are lucky.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to be powerf-... I don¡¯t know what I want¡­. I just want to be left alone,¡± he was trying to express his conflicting emotions. Palinus felt like he could share his thoughts with Minucia and it felt good to verbalise them. ¡°I want to leave the capital.¡±


    ¡°Ah,¡± she said with a searching look. ¡°It sounds like you want freedom. To get that you will need power.¡±


    As they walked towards the Silvanian Nexus they began to hear Rufian and Marcus yelling.


    ¡°¡­ It is mine now and I deserve it. We held your hand through this rift! If it weren¡¯t for us you would be nothing but essentia to fuel those Silvanmen¡¯s levels!¡± Marcus screamed at Rufian holding a vibrant coral coloured calculii out of reach of Rufian.

 Chapter 12 - Finders Keepers

    Chapter 12 - Finders Keepers


    As Palinus and Minucia returned to the tableau of the big frame of Marcus holding a calculii above the head of the not yet fully grown Rufian. Marcus¡¯s words were harsh and angry as they rang out in front of the Silvanian Nexus.


    ¡°But I need it!¡± Rufian yelled as he tried to grab the calculii from the man¡¯s hands.


    The frustration of the situation made Rufian¡¯s voice sound shrill compared to Marcus¡¯s rage. Palinus looked at the rust coloured gemstone with a blocky baguette cut and the information of Iron Fist came to his vision.


    This was the first calculii that Palinus had seen and he stared for a while at the information provided.


    <table style="width: 56.4263%">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 17.5003%">


    Ars


    </td>


    <td style="width: 82.117%">


    Iron Fist


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 17.5003%">


    Attunement


    </td>


    <td style="width: 82.117%">


    #b7410e 183 65 14


    ¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 17.5003%">


    Cooldown


    </td>


    <td style="width: 82.117%">


    30 sec


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 17.5003%">


    Compatibility


    </td>


    <td style="width: 82.117%">


    n/a


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 17.5003%">


    Skill Type


    </td>


    <td style="width: 82.117%">


    Enhancement


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 17.5003%">


    Slot


    </td>


    <td style="width: 82.117%">


    [Hand]


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 17.5003%">


    Slot Bonus


    </td>


    <td style="width: 82.117%">


    n/a


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 17.5003%">


    Description


    </td>


    <td style="width: 82.117%">


    Passive - Prevent damage to hands.


    Empower a strike to deal additional damage. Deals [300]% additional damage to constructs..


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Iron Fist sounded like the perfect calculii for Rufian, it would solidify his unarmed fighting strength and let him fight against avatar¡¯s with bladed weapons without worrying about damaging his hands. The active effect would also be amazing for attacking towers.


    Unfortunately, with the calculii in Marcus¡¯s hands there was no way for him to return it to Rufian, even if Marcus chose to. Though it didn''t stop the teenager from trying to grab it.


    ¡°It¡¯s ok Rufian, we¡¯ll run another rift and you¡¯ll get another chance.¡± Bruchts was saying to try and calm his friend. He was using the same disarming voice and posture as Minucia had for Marcus before.


    Before they approached the group Minucia shot Palinus a questioning look. Instantly interpreting her meaning he respected her even more for allowing him the opportunity to change his mind about offering the newly found calculii to Marcus. Something about watching Rufian squabble pointlessly with a bitter man acting like a childhood bully made Palinus acutely aware of how his own emotions had been heightened throughout his experience in the rift.


    The questioning look deepened on Minucia¡¯s face as Palinus considered.


    ¡°We are being influenced,¡± he muttered his realisation, instantly glad he wasn¡¯t loud enough for Minucia to hear because he sounded a bit insane. Palinus wasn¡¯t sure what was causing it, but he was sure it was happening. Whatever was triggering or amplifying his emotions was doing the same for Rufian and Marcus. As he pondered he wondered why it didn¡¯t seem to be affecting Bruchts or Minucia in the same way.


    He pushed the worming thought aside for the moment, but it helped him empathise with Marcus.


    ¡°Marcus is bitter because someone took something that was meant for him. Rufian will feel the same way for a bit, but we¡¯ll make it up to him somehow.¡± He said to Minucia quietly as the others squabbled. ¡°Let¡¯s separate them and quietly show him +Enhanced Leap+, Rufian doesn¡¯t need to know now, if he calms down later we¡¯ll tell him.¡±


    With a nod Minucia set the plan in motion by stepping between the man and the teenager. Once Marcus had put the calculii in his pocket and the boys made promises to run more rifts with Rufian they calmed down enough for Minucia to lead Marcus away.


    ¡°Did you find anything on your walk?¡± Rufian asked.


    ¡°Oh, Minucia picked up all the essentia and we talked about classes and ars combinations, she called them ¡®synergies¡¯.¡± Palinus replied, avoiding telling an outright lie. ¡°She is really smart! Did she teach you some stuff while you were in the lane?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I guess so.¡± Rufian hedged. Palinus was glad the deflection had worked. The conversation lapsed into an awkward silence as they watched the minions stream under the three towers protecting the Silvanian nexus from both lanes.


    ¡°There!¡± Bruchts suddenly yelled, pointing into the Silvanian nexus.


    The Silvanian Nexus looked like a giant tree stump, with curling roots and its bark carved with symbols. Through the tall door Bruchts had pointed through they could see a green crystal shaped like a young pine tree and the heads of the two remaining Silvanmen poking out behind it, watching them.


    ¡°They¡¯ve been watching these idiots squabble, it was a bit embarrassing.¡± Bruchts cringed.


    ¡°Bah, they were weak and were stupid to try and fight us. I don¡¯t even know why they wanted to pick the fight in the forest in the first place.¡± Rufian blustered.


    ¡°We killed a member of their family, they were trying to get revenge,¡± Bruchts replied. ¡°You didn¡¯t see the fight down in our lane. That younger one - Reinvar, he was really angry. They had to drag him away from the lane.¡±


    Rufian blew a raspberry, ¡°See, stupid.¡±


    <hr>


    The boys played a game of toss the minion as they waited impatiently for the go ahead to start destroying the Nexus towers. They would pick the ugly erulean minions up by the arm and toss them as far as they could. The minions were heavy and Palinus could barely throw one over his shoulder but the other boys could heave them nearly five metres.


    The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.


    ¡°How do they always land on their feet?¡± Bruchts marveled.


    ¡°It¡¯s completely illogical that they are so uncoordinated walking, but can flip in the air like that.¡± Palinus replied.


    ¡°AND UP!¡± Rufian tossed another one. ¡°I just think it''s funny how they can somehow sprint like that to catch up but barely walk faster than a shuffle.¡±


    As the boys mucked around Marcus and Minucia returned.


    The look on Marcus¡¯s face was conflicted as they came towards the boys. Giving Palinus a subtle nod of thanks as he walked towards Rufian.


    ¡°I apologise boy.¡± He stood in front of the teenager with his arm outstretched to grasp. ¡°If you come to meet me in the overworld I will give you the calculii. We¡¯ll even run another rift with you, and you can have first right.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯d better old man,¡± Rufian replied as he grasped the outstretched wrist.


    ¡°Good, you can find us at The Crow. It¡¯s the taverna on the Via Erulea near the bridge across the Dalabrius.¡± Marcus explained.


    With the agreement reached Rufian seemed thrilled with the idea of getting the calculii and started making plans with Bruchts for how they were going to get to Tremona.


    As Minucia and Marcus picked up the essentia beads for the latest wave of minions they were all smiles.


    ¡°It¡¯s time to finish this.¡± Marcus stated.


    With the five of them working together they were able to destroy the towers with brutal efficiency. Bruchts would take the initial hits from the tower for each wave as the rest of the team attacked the tower. He would run out of range to let the towers refocus on the minions and as they were eliminated Rufian and Marcus would stand in position to be hit by the towers as they retreated.


    The system worked brilliantly as they quickly destroyed the towers and as the final tower fell they followed the wave of minions inside the Silvanian nexus.


    The room was lit bright green by the Nexus crystal, its green crystal leaves sparkling as if a moving canopy of foliage in the sun. Around the crystal five tall tree trunks stood with hollowed bodies, Palinus realised these were where the Silvanmen¡¯s avatars spawned from.


    Looming behind the Nexus Crystal was a rift portal, but no sign of the Silvanian avatars.


    ¡°Looks like they took the rift out, smart choice.¡± Minucia said to Palinus, catching him looking through the rift, ¡°Fights around the exit can be brutal, if you get too close the rift will defend itself and sometimes enemies try to bait you into attacking or shoot at you from safety.¡±


    They joined Rufian and Marcus who had already started attacking the crystal. Their fists and mace making quick work of the crystalline structure. The crystal dimmed as it was damaged, releasing fewer minions which were swiftly dealt with by the surging wave of erulean minions joining them in the nexus.


    As the green light of the Silvanaian nexus crystal was extinguished the room was left dark, with only the glow of the rift to light the Erulean team as they finished.


    -Victory!-


    The announcement rang through the rift.


    ¡°Yeah!¡± The boys cheered and jumped around the room in celebration.


    The more experienced Marcus and Minucia looked on in amusement.


    ¡°Well done! A victory on your first rift!¡± Minucia said.


    ¡°Don¡¯t get too used to it.¡± Marcus grumbled, though he had a smile breaking through his taciturn response.


    ¡°What happens now?¡± Palinus asked.


    As Palinus turned he missed Rufian¡¯s movement as he started walking towards the rift behind the Silvanian nexus crystal.


    ¡°STOP!¡± Both Minucia and Marcus yelled, jumping to grab the teenager.


    ¡°What? Why?¡± Rufian replied as he dodged their grabs.


    The couple seemed hesitant to get closer to the rift, but they gestured urgently for Rufian to come back.


    ¡°Don¡¯t do it!¡± Minucia pleaded. ¡°It is the Silvanian Nexus¡¯s rift. See the roots and branches around the rift instead of tendrils.¡±


    ¡°If you are able to get close and you try to go through it might tear you apart, or worse: it might let you through.¡± Marcus added.


    ¡°What happens on the other side?¡± Rufian asked.


    They just shook their heads in response. Either they didn¡¯t know or didn¡¯t want to say.


    ¡°The Erulean rift will tax you on the way out, but at least you¡¯ll be safe and return to your bodies.¡± Minucia said softly.


    With a look over his shoulder Rufian walked away from the Silvanian rift. Shrugging as he sauntered back to the group.


    The couple shared a relieved look as they led the boys back to the Erulean nexus. Walking back along the lane was surreal. The red light of the Erulean nexus had overtaken the area, casting an eerie pink glow and the lane without the minions seemed empty as they walked.


    The team chatted as they walked, filling the intense quiet of the rift. The sounds of the forest and minions only conspicuous now in their absence.


    ¡°It''s tradition now that you are ¡®formed¡¯ you get to have rift call signs!¡± Minucia said excitedly, Marcus sighed at her exuberance. ¡°Don¡¯t give me that, it is important! A rift name is a short name you use to make communication faster in combat, most people use an abbreviation of their name like Min and Marc but some prefer anonymity or a moniker.¡± She said pointing to herself.


    ¡°Iron Fist!¡± Rufian yelled.


    They all laughed at his exuberance.


    ¡°You can¡¯t pick your title, that is something you earn.¡± Marcus stated with a swat at the teenager¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Maybe we should call you ¡®Rufi, Baby Hands.¡¯¡±


    The exuberance faded from the swarthy teenager''s face as he pouted.


    ¡°Rufi it is!¡± Minucia laughed. ¡°Any thoughts?¡±


    The question stumped Palinus, he had never thought about his name. Children with families in Erulea had a given name and a family name. As the child of a citizen he couldn¡¯t claim his family name until it was granted, so he just had his given name. Eruleans also often went by a different given name when they were granted a high ranking position.


    He brainstormed ideas for names as they walked, but he drew a blank and decided on an abbreviation of his given name. It was hard to pick a name.


    Like Rufian, Bruchts was happy to pick his own name. He considered picking a more Erulean name but decided to stay with his given name to honour his father and Stoneman heritage.


    ¡°Besides, I will get a new one when I become a legate.¡± Bruchts bragged jokingly knowing there was very little chance he was granted leadership of a city or army.


    ¡°Happy to have fought with you, Bru and Pal!¡± Minucia stated. She and Marcus grew serious as they came to the Erulean Nexus and stood in front of the rift.


    ¡°This is a bit uncomfortable. My only suggestion is to not fight it and take it easy when you get back.¡± She instructed as she stepped calmly into the rift with Marcus quickly following after with a wave and a nod. ¡±See you when you get to Tremona!¡±


    As they neared the tendrils of the portal they suddenly winked out of existence.


    ¡°See you on the other side!¡± Rufian ran straight after and with a sigh Bruchts followed.


    Taking a moment to look back Palinus turned and touched the still glowing red nexus avatar. There was something not quite right about the Erulean nexus. Its lines were wobbly and it had a sloppiness that wasn¡¯t present in the Silvanian nexus¡¯s avatar.


    With a last look at the albumstone pillars they had arrived within and a feeling of relief to be alive, Palinus walked through the rift.


    <hr>


    The first thing Palinus became aware of was the smell.


    A clawing sticky funk of sewage and rot assaulted him, making him gag as he opened his eyes. He was looking up at the sky which he was relieved to find still held some light with an afternoon glow. That meant it had only been a few hours at most in the rift, though it felt like a month.


    He had a pounding headache and the soft afternoon glare still made him squint as it triggered the thumping in his brain. His body ached as if they had been doing a challenging full body workout the day before. A feeling of power lingered from within the rift, but stripped of the power he had felt inside the rift there was a sense of emptiness and loss.


    The smell of the backways pulled his thoughts back to the present and reminded him of his obligation to deliver the bolts of wool this evening. He was happy that Rufian was right for once, they would have time to sort those out before nightfall.


    The groans of Bruchts and Rufian stirring beside him filled him with an unexpected sense of relief that overwhelmed the stiffness of his body and he jumped up to help them. They seemed stiffer than he felt.


    Seeing the sword in Bruchts hand, Palinus patted at his pocket and was happy to find the Attunement Shard. But unlike in the rift didn¡¯t get any information when he looked at his friends or the items no matter how he stared.


    Watching his friend struggle he moved to try to help Rufian up, and his friend reached for his outstretched arm but paused before he took it.


    ¡°Ah, no offence but I¡¯ll be ok. I think you need to take a bath Pal.¡± Rufian said, refusing the help.


    Palinus chuckled as he noticed his clothes and arms were covered in filth. It seemed like their avatars in the rift hadn¡¯t copied that detail of their clothes, and catching a whiff of how he smelt he was glad.


    His relief was short-lived as he noticed that someone was watching them.

 Interlude - The Thrice Cursed Family

    Interlude - The Thrice Cursed Family


    The first thing Reinvar became aware of was the smell.


    The sweet smell of humus and the leaf litter of the oak grove lingered in his nose as he blinked away tears that came unbidden. His blooding was supposed to be a joyous day with a short jaunt to the rift and an evening of mead and song. A celebration of his manhood and a shedding of his childhood.


    ¡°This family is thrice cursed, ptch! Brothers!... You were so misled¡­¡± His mossy bearded uncle cried as he raged, thumping the bodies of his family where they had lay themselves down to join the rift. He raged until he noticed Reinvars sobbing.


    ¡°You¡­ You were born a curse¡­ You are no longer Umfridas, I denounce you! Ptch-¡±


    The glob of spit trickled down Reinvars face as the last surviving member of the Umfridas family stormed away. Leaving him on the ground with the corpses of his father and uncles.


    He spent a time considering staying on the ground for good. But as the afternoon light stopped trickling through the boughs of the ancient oaks above him, he was left in darkness and a well of pain built inside him until the emotions he refused to feel became too much.


    A spark of anger flared within him as he pushed aside the grief. Firming his resolve he began the Silvan rites to return his family to the forest. They had not forsaken him, they had tried to believe again.


    As he worked the knife through his father¡¯s now cold flesh he sang the story of his family. As he worked at the corpses he reveranty placing their remains amongst the roots of the sentinel oak. As he did he sang a story.


    The story of three curses: a seed, a babe and a madman.


    <blockquote>


    The Umfridas family was an old and storied line. They were an old Silvanian tribe from the ancient forests under the Dolerite ranges. For several generations they sought refuge in the Montleglen Kingdom while they waited for their fate to turn.


    The brothers Umfridas were born from several mothers. They were bound by blood and oaths from birth to reclaim their home. Raoulet, the eldest, sought a blessing from the King¡¯s Forester and was granted a seed, and an axe. He led his brothers home to where the forest fought back against the Eruleans.


    ¡°We will take the fight back to the demons and send them back to their plains.¡± He declared.


    They found themselves in a forest of gnarled oak with soft soil and gentle mountain streams. It had seemed a paradise and the brothers were thankful, planting their sacred seed in a meadow of mountain flowers.


    As they made their home the brothers readied themselves to delve and make the seed strong. Led by Raoulet with his blessed axe they entered many rifts that appeared in the forest.


    But the Erulean avatars were too strong for the brothers and the demons from the south blasted them with fire and overwhelmed them with swords. They lost two brothers to Raoulets hubris in the first summer, and another to the winter.


    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    So they took what scrapings they could and made a life for themselves. The brothers accepted their fate and the family drifted, letting the promises of glory lay fallow.


    As the years passed the seed grew into a tree that sang to them of violence, but the brothers no longer listened to it or to Raoulet. They enjoyed what little essentia they could take from the rifts, and with minor power and a bountiful place in the overworld they lived in comfort.


    One summer while his brothers traded with the Eruleans down in the plains Raoulet had enough of waiting for his moment and he walked through the passes to the land of the Stonemen seeking the power to claim his glory.


    When he returned to the forest he came back not with a powerful weapon, or a calculii to counter the Erulean flame. He came back with a baby.


    The brothers laughed at Raoulet¡¯s folly and dove deeper into their mundane lives. One brother became a shepherd in truth, giving up the ways of the land. Another married an Erulean woman who he brought to live in the forest.


    The second eldest brother, Reeve, grew to love Erulean wine. Each summer he would spend longer and longer down in the Erulean town until one year he didn¡¯t come back.


    The tree still sang to them sweet lies of glory, and the brothers grew to hate it. They argued if it was evil from the moment it came to them, or if it was tainted by the blood spilled in the forest. No-one but the beast itself could know the answer.


    So a decade passed.


    Until one day Reeve came back. He came back with news about Erulean Empire and an idea. He came back with hope for their promised glory, but he also came back changed.


    He came back angry.


    The brothers joined the rifts and Reeve fought with a savagery that took the Eruleans off guard. He broke the shepherds rules which they had followed for so long to keep themselves safe and he killed many Eruleans. But he was never satisfied.


    His thirst for violence grew day by day and he was never content. Something within grew as the man he was died and in his final moments his madness made him barely more than a beast.


    </blockquote>


    Reinvar couldn¡¯t finish the song, a Silvanian eulogy never finished with a death. He could only finish it with vengence.


    As he finished with Reeve¡¯s body. He washed the blood off his hands with mead and he poured the last skin of sweet alcohol over the scattered bodies.


    His father and uncles were gone, their flesh belonged to the forest.


    <hr>


    Without a family and with nowhere else to go Reinvar walked north and east.


    The walk through the passes high in the Dolerite ranges was hazardous even in high summer. Melting snowcaps caused flash floods, the wandering creeps and the threat of Erulean huntsmen or Stoneman raiders could all kill Reinvar in a moment of inattention.


    He carried only his boar spear and his water skin, relying on what he could hunt and forage on his journey. He hadn¡¯t wanted to face what remained at the homesteads amongst the oaks to gather supplies or his belongings.


    So with great danger and hardship he made it through the pass. Ragged from his journey he stood on a mountain goat trail above a Stoneman Village, a lush valley of forest and stone tucked amongst tall snow capped mountains.


    ¡°It is not a good place for you.¡± A strongly accented woman¡¯s voice said from behind him.


    Startled by the sudden voice after weeks of isolation and heartache, Reinvar whirled to find a striking figure of a tall blonde woman with icy blue eyes. She carried a staff of stone carved with vivid blue runes and wore a robe of skins under a wolf fur mantle.


    ¡°It is good to meet you, child.¡± She said, struggling with the Silvan language. ¡°You call me ipa.¡±


    ¡°Yipa?¡± He tried out the word as she laughed.


    ¡°Aitei.¡±


    It took him an embarrassing length of time to figure out that it meant mother.

 Chapter 13 - A Dangerous Meeting

    Chapter 13 - A Dangerous Meeting


    Wordlessly Palinus drew the attention of his friends to the man casually leaning against the corner of the alley. He wore strange clothes, dark tanned leather that looked thick enough to stop a blade and a thick black cloak rather than the loose fitting tunics popular in the warm climate. Something about him gave Palinus a sense of power. A dangerous edge as though some sort of predatory animal and he took care not to make any sudden moves.


    ¡°What are you looking at!?¡± Rufian yelled at the man, his breaking voice betraying his brave front.


    Standing up from his spot leaning against the wall the man walked casually towards them. He was tall and quicker than his languide ease indicated. As he brought his arm forward, Palinus flinched.


    He held his arm out for Rufian to grasp.


    ¡°I am Provocator Servius,¡± he stated with a soft deep voice.


    ¡°You didn¡¯t answer my question.¡± Rufian refused to grasp the outstretched arm, crossing his arms and trying to look tough.


    The refusal seemed to amuse Servius and he smiled as he let his hand fall.


    ¡°I suppose I didn¡¯t.¡± He said slowly as if picking his words carefully. ¡±I have been called back to the capital to investigate a string of deaths in the backways. Which we believe to be associated with the rifts.¡±


    The man¡¯s words made Palinus¡¯s stomach churn.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure who is luckier you are alive, you boys or myself.¡± Servius laughed macabrely, ¡°When I reported your delve the Censor took more interest than I expected. Though I think I see why.¡± He cast a look at Palinus.


    ¡°Are you going to arrest us, or can we go?¡±


    Servius laughed again at Rufian¡¯s aggression, putting his hands up to placate.


    ¡°That¡¯s really not my job, and you aren¡¯t in trouble.¡± He said, ¡°Though your lives will be quite different now you are formed.¡±


    The boys shared a look, and while his friends looked relieved, Palinus sensed trouble in the subtext of what the man was saying.


    ¡°What do you mean, sir?¡± Palinus asked, trying to be respectful.


    Bruchts nudged him and whispered. ¡°He still serves.¡±


    ¡°Provocator.. I meant, not sir.¡± Palinus corrected, commissioned Erulean soldiers were always addressed by their rank, only citizens took the unspecific honorific sir.


    ¡°I don¡¯t really care about all that.¡± Servius said disarmingly, ¡°The Censor will want to speak to you. But before you do that, I have to ask you some questions about the rift. It looked to me like it was a Harcore 5v5 Defence of the Nexus, is that correct?¡±


    The boys nodded in response and the man asked curiously.


    ¡°Then why did you go in?¡± he asked.


    ¡°We didn¡¯t know what sort of rift it was,¡± Palinus admitted.


    ¡°I guess that makes sense, but you are doubly lucky to get out without loss.¡± Servius said, scratching his head and giving them a look to say that he thought they were idiots.


    ¡°Can you tell me about it?¡±


    The man gradually coaxed the whole story from the boys, asking pertinent questions as they shared their experience. When they mentioned Marcus and Minucia he commented how lucky they were to have experienced allies. By the time they got to the end he seemed troubled by something.


    ¡°...Formed rift¡­ damn meddling beast,¡± he muttered to himself as he pulled out a piece of vellum and a pot of ink out of nowhere and started writing against the alley¡¯s wall.


    With the man occupied Rufian took the chance to run and sprinted off through the backways and Bruchts followed quickly on his heels.


    Noting the direction the boys ran, Palinus slowly moved out of the alley trying to avoid catching the scary man¡¯s attention but something about his mutterings begged Palinus to ask him a question. Before he could sidle past Servius gestured for him to wait.


    ¡°What¡¯s a formed rift and how can a beast meddle?¡± Palinus asked his curiosity outweighing his nervousness.


    ¡°What do you know about the purpose of rifts?¡± Servius answered obliquely.


    ¡°I know they are something to do with the conflict between nexuses in the underworld?¡±


    Servius didn¡¯t respond as he kept writing, which Palinus took to mean he was on the right track.


    ¡°So what does a beast have to do with it and how is a rift formed? I thought people were formed.¡± Palinus was starting to get confused.


    ¡°Think of formed as¡­ shaped by essentia.¡±


    ¡°So the beast meddles by shaping the rift?¡± Palinus asked, getting frustrated with the lack of direct answer.


    ¡°They¡¯re going the wrong way,¡± Servius said, calmly avoiding the question again, ¡°but you know that. Can I make a few suggestions?¡±


    The man had finished with his notes and while Palinus was frustrated with his obtuse wisdom now that Servius was giving him his full attention Palinus again felt intensely intimidated. He merely nodded in response.


    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    ¡°Your attunement shard is quite the treasure, keep it safe and when you have a plan for your build get some advice on how to use it most effectively. Some might kill you for it, so take care with who you tell.¡± He turned and met Palinus¡¯s eyes with a serious expression, ¡°I¡¯m sure I will see you in the not too distant future. If you do not cooperate with the Censor, that may be sooner than later¡­ and in a less pleasant capacity.¡±


    With the veiled threat lingering, Palinus sensed he was dismissed and jogged after his friends to rescue them from the maze of the backways.


    It was not far along the alley that Palinus found his two friends, who were still in a panic.


    ¡°Thank Vestra you¡¯re here.¡± Rufian said as Palinus approached. ¡°Is he following?¡±


    ¡°No, he really didn¡¯t seem that interested in stopping us.¡± Palinus replied, ¡°but he very firmly suggested that we ¡®cooperate¡¯ with the Censor.¡±


    ¡°Bah, Caelus is just a stupid old fart,¡± Rufian dismissed the idea. ¡°That guy was flaming scary! Provocators are supposed to be secretive, smoke and mirrors spies, what is he doing hanging out around rifts and reporting to Censor Caelus?¡±


    The boys shrugged and started walking out of the backways, when they walked past the alley they noticed that there was no sign of the rift or Servius.


    ¡°We all need to wash before we go home, and this is not something we can clean off at the fountain.¡± Bruchts pragmatically stated.


    ¡°We need to stash the weapons, and we can¡¯t forget the wool,¡± Palinus added with a sigh, ¡°We only had 3 bolts ready. It¡¯s better than nothing but the Commoduses will still be annoyed.¡±


    ¡°Ugh, the Commoduses?! Why are you dealing with them!¡±


    The frustration Rufian expressed was totally justified, dealing with a prominent family of the tribes was a genuinely awful idea and with hindsight he cursed his own foolishness for making the arrangement. He had been desperate and greedy, but now that he had experienced the rift the struggles that pushed him into this seemed shallow.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯ve got to face them¡­ you don¡¯t have to.¡± Palinus said.


    ¡°Rubbish.¡± Rufian gestured at the refuse around them to bring home his joke. ¡°We¡¯ve got your back!¡±


    The warmth of Rufian¡¯s word and the nod of agreement from Bruchts felt like a warm hug and Palinus had to turn and pretend to be rubbing something out of his eye to hide the tear that came unbidden.


    The boys made a plan to drop the weapons at Rufian¡¯s uncle''s shop. Palinus knew the shop and the way through the backways and Rufian could sweet talk his Uncle Ares into locking up the weapons for them. Then they would exit the backways as near to the city gate as possible and make a break for the river to wash off before they met the pickup for the wool at nightfall.


    They were cutting it fine for time, but with Palinus¡¯s knowledge of the backways they could make it if they ran.


    <hr>


    Over an hour later and completely exhausted, the boys found themselves standing on the Via Faber looking down on the spot they had met earlier that day. Palinus found himself smiling fondly despite the misadventure that followed and the pungent smell that wasn¡¯t improved by the cooling air. Unfortunately they didn¡¯t have time to reminisce and they needed to get down there again. The remaining afternoon light had faded and the street was dark.


    The boys carefully walked down the steps to the alley and located the bolts of wool they had left carelessly in the filthy alleyway. They tried to be careful as they manoeuvred the bolts up the steps but it was difficult without light on the slippery surfaces.


    As they hauled the last bolt up they didn¡¯t have to wait long for a horse drawn cart to clatter to a halt in front of them. The driver cursed as he struggled to get the oxen to halt and cursed again at the smell as he got off the cart and approached the boys.


    ¡°This had better be worth it you shit bunnies,¡± the rough looking man spat at the boys, Rufian laughed at the label. It was a derogatory term for people who worked as public toilet attendants.


    He walked over to the bolts of wool and cursed as he inspected the bolts.


    ¡°Where¡¯s the rest?¡± He said, whirling around to put his face close to Palinus¡¯s, ¡°and why did you cover them in shit?¡±


    The second person on the cart chose this moment to slip off to join their conversation with their face covered by a cowled cloak.


    ¡°Mistress, leave it to me. I¡¯ll handle-¡± The driver was cut off with a gesture from the woman as she approached.


    Lifting the hood, Palinus and Rufian both gulped. They recognised the woman in what little light the night offered with her dark curled hair, big hazel eyes and generous figure famous for its dangerous appeal.


    ¡°Well, well, it seems the little ¡®shit bunny¡¯ has been quite busy today.¡± Domina Commodus purred with predatory eyes.


    The boys gulped again.


    ¡°We could only recover the three...¡± Palinus began to explain, trailing off as she started running her finger across his chest.


    ¡°Boys,¡± she said, ¡°running rifts. Instead of telling the family?¡±


    Palinus spluttered and struggled to come up with an excuse. ¡°We didn¡¯t know¡­¡±


    ¡°Eumenides told us there were 12 bolts.¡± she changed the topic back to the bolts, throwing Palinus even further off.


    ¡°Tell me¡­ what did we agree for the delivery?¡± She asked sharply.


    ¡°T..Ten Denarius,¡± Palinus stammered.


    ¡°So ten denarius it is!¡± She held out a shining ten bit coin, it had a golden lustre in the moonlight.


    ¡°Oh¡­¡± She paused and looked thoughtful for a moment. ¡°But that was for 12 bolts!?¡±


    As Palinus reached for the coin she snatched it back, and faster than he could follow slapped his hand. His hand instantly stung from the vicious slap.


    ¡°The bolts are worth 10 each.¡± she said calmly and the man behind her cackled as he stood menacingly behind her. She gestured for him to start loading the bolts.


    ¡°By my count, it seems like you owe us,¡± she simpered with a menacing smile, ¡°You and your little friends.¡±


    Palinus looked back at his friends and he saw a flash of fear echoed in their eyes.


    ¡°Maybe you found something fun in the rift?¡± She asked, ¡°A shiny stone might make me happy¡­ No?¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t owe you anything.¡± Bruchts said suddenly.


    ¡°Oh? I don¡¯t think that¡¯s true.¡±


    ¡°We delivered you three bolts, that¡¯s three more than you would have gotten.¡± He argued.


    ¡°Well pretty stoneboy, I¡¯m not sure how it¡¯s done in the mountains but here in Erulea agreements are bound by the laws of contract,¡± her words were losing their saccharine quality as they started to sound venomous. ¡°And when a contract is broken, there must be restitution.¡±


    As she spoke she moved closer to the blonde teenager.


    ¡°... otherwise¡­ we are nothing but savages.¡±


    She punctuated the comment by pulling his arm down quickly and pushing him to the floor, rubbing his face on the ground with her foot.


    ¡°I will be seeing you around.¡± Domitia¡¯s voice was sweet again as she stroked Palinus¡¯s shoulder on her way back to the cart.


    A moment later they had clattered off into the night and the boys stood rooted to the spot.


    ¡°Did you find that hot too?¡± Rufian asked, to a reply of two solid punches on the shoulder.

 Chapter 14 - Welcome Home!

    Chapter 14 - Welcome Home!


    Palinus smiled as he woke.


    The excitement of the previous day lingered like an itch. But as his good dreams lay forgotten, he recalled the nightmare of his evening meeting. The frustration with himself for dragging his friends into his mistake weighed on his conscience, but the support from Bruchts and Rufian buoyed his mood.


    ¡°Friends,¡± he verbalised his thoughts and found them to be true. They could have left him to his own problems, but they had stood beside him.


    A bad smell roused him from his thoughts. He had slept in his tunic which was still damp from the wash in the river. Since he had stopped staying at the Children¡¯s Dormitories he was almost always a bit unkempt. Running his hand through his hair and checking over his body he confirmed that he at least wasn¡¯t too dirty. Finally he assessed the nest of random cloth he used as bedding to check if he had brought any of the muck from the previous day home with him.


    Not that it was much of a home.


    His nest was in a lofted storage area above a textiles workshop. He had made a hidden space behind a stack of old hand looms into a cubby. A cosy nest above the workshop floor with what few possessions he had. They had found his hideout years ago, he and Silene. He hadn¡¯t spoken to her in months and the memory of their friendship was bittersweet. They loved running around the 7th hill playing hide and seek and this spot was a favourite haunt. They would climb a riverstone wall at the back of a forgotten courtyard and squeeze through a round window into the loft and spend hours spying on the workers.


    The only way to access the loft from the floor was to use a platform on a pulley system attached to the wall. When they first found the space the loft was filled with bolts of fabric. But a few years ago the hand looms had been replaced with bulkier treadle looms and they had stopped using the space as fabric storage because the bolts that came off the new looms were too wide to fit in the loft. Amongst the relics of the past, it was rare that the workers would ever need to come up here and Palinus¡¯s hideout was near perfect.


    The only problem with this arrangement was the noise. Every morning at sun up there was a racket as the workers came into the workshop. Then a whirring clatter started as they began running the shuttles; weaving the bright red fabric used in the Erulean Legion uniform.


    ¡°...he¡¯s from the 7th hill you¡­¡±


    ¡°HE NEVER, little Pod! His ma¡­¡±


    ¡°HurrKahkahkha, she was always such a¡­¡±


    ¡°.... what she did to our Littera. I¡¯ve half¡­¡±


    The gossip of workers was incessant and Palinus tried to tune it out. He could pick the voices of the two Florias from beneath him. Floria Blanda has the braying cackle and Floria Facilius always seemed to be onto the scandalous gossip. Floria B said that she was projecting her own insecurities behind her back.


    ¡°Ughhhh.¡± Palinus groaned quietly and chose to get up rather than subject himself to their voices; it was aggravating the pain in his head.


    Stretching his slightly sore body he slid out the window. He quickly descended the wall and started jogging. If he was early enough he could get some food from the temple before the first lessons.


    As he jogged he avoided making eye contact with the people he recognised as he went the long way around the block to the public square. Even this early there was a hive of activity around the water fountain as people came to collect water for their households. Checking the sun in the sky he figured he had time and kept going past the Gymnasium and only slowed as he came to the 7th Temple, joining a throng of people walking into the sacred hearth.


    Walking reverently through the doors into the vestibule people would stop next to a neat pile of wood, some making donations of coins and picking up some wood to carry into the temple. Palinus never had anything to donate today but he pretended to put something in the donation bucket in case anyone was watching and picked up a chunk of wood. As he followed the people in front of him they passed through the entrance and came to the temple proper.


    The 7th Temple was an old building, it was constructed of enormous blocks of marble rather than the albumstone of all the new temples and government buildings which dated it as being from before the first emperor. Despite its age the building was big, a rectangular room with a high ceiling and tall columns carved with square edges. The central feature was an enormous fireplace that was surrounded by thick stone edging that radiated outward in circular bands and was surrounded by woven rugs. A low chatter filled the room of people talking and laughing.


    Along with the people coming into the room he respectfully shuffled around the perimeter of mats. He could see his mother ahead, talking to a group of supplicants.


    She acknowledged him with a nod of her head as he waited for their conversation to end. It was the banal small talk of the faithful, well wishing for acquaintances and the ¡®well meaning¡¯ shaming of people they perceived to be different, also known as temple gossip.


    Listening to the conversation felt worse than taking a blast from a tower to the face, and Palinus was weighing up the pros and cons of not speaking to his mother and just accepting a verbal lashing later. Sensing the gossip finding a rich vein about the love life of Aedile Littera he accepted that he would rather do anything else than listen to the hero''s lascivious ways so he turned to the Hearth fire.


    Imitating the supplicants approaching the fire, Palinus slowly moved towards it. Around the fire were rings demarcated with lines of tiles, as he stepped into the first ring. Here he normally felt the fire raging. But today it only felt like a gentle warmth.


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    As he took another step forward he started to feel the true warmth of the fire, a heat that held a touch of essentia and was beyond a normal flame¡¯s.


    He stepped forward again and the heat ratcheted up, now starting to feel uncomfortable.


    Stepping forward again it started to hurt, but he didn¡¯t yet feel that he was at his limit.


    He took a final step and quickly with his skin felt like it was starting to burn he threw the piece of wood on the burning pile.


    As he walked away from the flame the air caressed his skin with a cool susurrus as he noted that there was no damage from the burning. Assessing himself he realised that he truly felt much better than before, his headache and his body aches had dulled. Within himself his essentia felt energised, returning to his mother he marvelled at the feeling.


    His mother appeared to have finished the conversation as he saw the gossip mongers separating with rounds of blessing each other with the ¡®Warmth of the Hearth.¡¯


    In her white and red Vestral robes and her brown hair done up in complex braids around a silver band his mother, the 1st Vestral Priestess Appalina VII approached him with a wide smile. The genuine smile made the makeup she used to mask her age flake and Palinus was slightly taken aback. He was used to a sappy fake over the top display if they met in public, especially at the temple, but it seemed that today she was genuinely happy to see him.


    ¡°¡®The Hearth welcomes home a man formed in fire¡¯¡±, she chanted ritualistically, loud enough for many in the room to hear. Palinus instantly went crimson with embarrassment recognizing what this was.


    ¡°WELCOME HOME!¡± The room full of people chanted in response.


    ¡°Ugh, mother¡­¡± Palinus whined as she grasped him in a hug. Everyone in the temple, even people he didn¡¯t know came over to him and patted him on the head, arm or hands and awkwardly sometimes his legs and chest.


    He had seen ¡®the formed returning home¡¯ in the past and from the observer¡¯s role in the ritual he had always relished giving the person as big a slap as he could get away with. Being hit by the younger people in the room now made him giggle and surprisingly it didn¡¯t seem to hurt.


    For most undertaking the homecoming it was just a coming of age ritual, but it made more sense now that he was being welcomed having actually been formed in a rift. Palinus was just surprised that his mother somehow knew so soon, he hadn¡¯t had the chance to tell her yet.


    As the well wishers finished touching him and giving platitudes his mother walked him out the back door to the refectory.


    ¡°I¡¯m so glad you came so soon!¡± Appalina cheered.


    ¡°How did you know? Palinus asked.


    ¡°A mother just knows these things.¡± She joked, but knowing he would keep asking she told him the truth of it. ¡°As someone carrying the power of the rift you can sense when someone else is formed as well¡­ and Servius came and told me.¡±


    She laughed brightly as they collected a breakfast of porridge and fruit, finding a table to sit at in the large room. As he considered what she said he realised what she meant, he had felt the power coming from Servius and he could sense a bit of the same coming from his mother.


    ¡°We used to run the occasional rift¡­ Servius and I.¡±


    Bored of waiting for Palinus to play with his newfound sense, she reverted back to her usual gossiping mixed with trying to provoke a response from him. He was surprised to think of his mother putting herself at risk and entering a rift.


    ¡°He, and Ember, and Littera¡­ Oh and little Pod! I always forget about him! Did you hear-?¡±


    ¡°Mother, I don¡¯t really want to hear what you did or did not do with half the citizens of the 7th hill. I have to run for the first session. Bye!¡±


    <hr>


    His mother seemed to make a sport of embarrassing him and as usual he had made the excuse to leave as soon as he could. Palinus walked through the gates of the Gymnasium complex with plenty of time to spare.


    The morning session started as always with physical training, so rather than walk up through the pillars of the tall Albumstone building and into the main hall lined with mosaics of battles, scenes from history and monsters he jogged around to the training yard to see hundreds of children. They were a range of ages, from his cohort who were as old as 15 down to the first cohort who could be as young as 9.


    Around the training yard a hard dirt track surrounded sparring squares. Along the track edge were obstacles: walls, pits and rope ladders. Then on the outside of that were various exercise stations with equipment like heavy stones and bars for pulling up on. Palinus joined some of his peers in the 3rd Cohort as they started on the outer exercise circuit.


    ¡°It¡¯s so funny watching the littles on the obstacle course.¡± He laughed as he joined Rufian and Bruchts. They usually put effort into competing with their peers but today they grouped themselves with the slackers looking to gossip.


    ¡°Hmm, yeah. So cute.¡± Bruchts said distractedly.


    ¡°Especially when they fall on their faces! ¡± Rufian joked. ¡°Did you dream of curly hair and wide hips too?¡±


    He had a black eye and both he and Bruchts looked sore as they messed around at a station lifting heavy rocks above their heads.


    ¡°Looks like my dreams weren¡¯t as rough as yours¡­¡± Palinus quipped back.


    ¡°Haha,¡± Rufian gave a too loud fake laugh, they all knew the black eye was the work of his father. ¡°We¡¯ll have to do all the work we skipped yesterday this evening. Still totally worth it. How are you not too sore to move faster than a stumble?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure.¡± Palinus replied, ¡°My body is barely sore at all, but my head feels like it''s been pounded with these rocks and my essentia has been churning enough to make me feel sick.¡±


    ¡°Huh,¡± Bruchts had a thoughtful expression as he lifted an enormous rock above his head like it was nothing. ¡°My head barely hurts at all, and comparing our pain. It seems like mine is more my skin and deep in my bones, whereas Rufian¡¯s is his muscles.¡±


    ¡°.. and look at how much I can lift! This is half again heavier than my heaviest lift last week, and I can lift it easily!¡± Rufian held the stone above his head, pressing it up and letting it leave his hands to show off his strength and control.


    ¡°I have so many questions¡­¡± Palinus sighed.


    ¡°Well, I might have some answers for you.¡± A voice stated from over his shoulder.

 Chapter 15 - Answers, Torture and a Tyrannical Likeness

    Chapter 15 - Answers, Torture and a Tyrannical Likeness


    The boys, deep in their conversation and playing with the heavy stones, only noticed that everyone else had stopped and was staring at them when the voice spoke from behind them.


    ¡°Well, I might have some answers for you.¡±


    ¡°Wha-?¡± Palinus started as he noticed Bruchts and Rufian looking behind him with slack expressions. He dropped the stone he was holding and quickly turned to see what they were looking at.


    He recognised Censor Caelus from his white robes lined with colours; he came to the Gymnasium weekly to give droning lectures on the dangers of rifts and essentia. Up close he didn¡¯t seem like such a caricature of an old citizen, and Palinus sensed a well of power within him.


    ¡°Come.¡± He directed and turned without waiting.


    The boys followed Censor Caelus, walking behind him respectfully as they left the Gymnasium and walked towards the 7th Hill Temple.


    ¡°I have done this many times,¡± Caelus said, keeping his voice soft and forcing the boys to come closer to hear him. ¡°You will have many questions, and unfortunately less time than we normally would. So I suggest you make the most of it.¡±


    Bruchts and Rufian remained quiet, but Palinus was bursting with questions, and struggled to settle on what to ask.


    ¡°Is it our different classes that is making us sore in different spots?¡± He asked.


    ¡°Astute observation, boy. Yes, each class will direct the empowerment from the rift in different ways. If we had the time I would give you a full lesson.¡± The Censor waved his hands as he spoke and projected panels of light which let him make notes that hovered in the air around them as they walked and he spoke. ¡°For brevity''s sake the simplest way to describe the rift empowerment is that each class provides boosts relevant to its key strengths and purpose which are either physical in nature or the application of essentia. Traditionally we call the measurement of the rift empowerment statistics.


    The Physical Statistics:


    Strength - Enhances the delver''s muscles, increasing speed, striking power, and lifting capacity.


    Resistance - Fortifies the delver''s body and mind, reducing damage taken from both physical and elemental attacks.


    Vitality - Enriches the delver¡¯s blood, allowing for greater damage absorption and health points within the rift, while also promoting better bodily function and reducing fatigue.


    Mastery - Empowers the hand and the essentia flows of the delver, making their movement, attacks and ars faster and more efficient.


    Mastery crosses over into the essentia statistics and can be found in classes with both a physical aspect and an essential aspect.


    The Essential Statistics:


    Area - Expands the radius of influence for an Ars.


    Force - Determines the volume of essentia that flows through a calculii into the Ars, affecting its impact; for instance, a cone effect may be broader, or an attack targeting multiple foes might hit an additional target.


    Power - Represents the intensity of the essentia used in an Ars.


    So your body and essentia have retained some combination of these empowerments, which is why you feel sore in different ways."


    ¡°That makes sense, so I-¡± Palinus said, digesting the information.


    ¡°Wait, wait. We¡¯re nearly there¡­ and humour an old man, I like to guess.¡±


    The temple was less busy now that the morning gathering was over. Censor Caelus took the steps two at a time, practically skipping up to the entrance and the boys jogged to follow, with shared raised eyebrows.


    ¡°This way boys,¡± he led them to an unremarkable door in the antechamber that he opened to reveal a narrow spiral staircase that went up to the roof and down into the ground.


    ¡°Wow, this goes really far down.¡± Rufian whispered as they travelled downwards into the earth.


    ¡°Maybe we are going down to the nexus?¡± Palinus postulated.


    They were surprised when the censor laughed, he was further down in front and they wouldn¡¯t have thought he would hear them.


    ¡°We are miles away from the Erulean Nexus, but you are partially right.¡± Caelus said as they reached the bottom of the stairs which opened up to a small room with three doors and a bench.


    ¡°This is the 7th Hill Sub-Nexus, also known as the Sanguine Gate.¡±


    With a dramatic flourish he opened the door in front of them which opened to a natural cavern. Before they could look closer the boys were struck with a wave of force that felt like their insides were being squeezed up through their throat as their essentia surged in response to the light from the cavern.


    The cavern was dominated by a massive beam of light that came into the cavern from somewhere above them. It had jagged edges and the various colours within it swirled and eddied to make it seem more liquid than light as it surged in an overwhelming torrent. Struggling to stay standing with the force emanating from the doorway, Palinus could feel the raging power of the essentia that the beam represented.


    In the middle of the cavern the beam struck a gigantic red crystalline structure which glowed with the swirling force and re-directed it into a tight pink beam that shot off down a tunnel tiled with reflective panels off into the distance.


    This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    The floor far below them was scarcely lit despite the bright lights of the essentia flows and he couldn¡¯t make out the bottom of the cavern. Deep in the gloom he could see enormous something sprawled around underneath the red crystal. He wasn¡¯t sure if it was a trick of the light, but it looked like it was moving.


    Censor Caelus was cackling as he stood by the door.


    ¡°Good, good job boy! Yes, excellent.¡± As he closed the door Palinus felt the pressure on his body and mind lessen and slowly fade.


    He hadn¡¯t noticed until the door closed fully that Bruchts and Rufian had passed out and lay where they fell on the floor.


    ¡°What was that?¡±


    ¡°I told you. The sub-nexus.¡± Caelus said distractedly, as he pulled out a piece of vellum and took some quick notes. He pulled out what looked like a long multi coloured nail and faster than Palinus could register the Censor had stabbed it into the teenager''s arm.


    ¡°Ow,¡± Palinus said lamely, it didn¡¯t really hurt as much as it was a response to the surprise.


    Caelus pinched the nail where it had stopped in Palinus¡¯s skin.


    ¡°Do not touch the wound.¡±


    Before Palinus could respond he had taken the nail out with a tug and was looking at the lines of colour on the nail. He slapped Palinus¡¯s hand as he unconsciously reached up to put pressure on the small hole in his arm that was leaking blood from the puncture.


    With a rhythm that showed that he had done this many times the Censor wiped the nail clean and repeated the jab to the two boys still lying on the ground. As he checked the markings on the nail and added to his notes he kept looking up at the wall. Palinus turned to note a sand timer running on the wall behind them.


    As he turned back he saw Cealus poking at the wound on Bruchts arm. It had already dried up and scabbed over. The Censor moved over to look at Rufian whose wound was not far behind the big blonde boy.


    Caelus was tapping his stylus impatiently as he stared at Palinus¡¯s arm. It made the boy feel uncomfortable, like he was a piece of meat at the market, and he struggled to not put his hand on the wound.


    A few moments later Caelus made a note and Palinus realised that his puncture had finally scabbed. It had healed far faster than a normal body should have, but he felt inadequate comparing himself to his friends now stirring on the floor.


    ¡°Come in here, boy.¡± Caelus opened the door on the right and ushered Palinus into the tiny room.


    Filling most of the room was a long copper tube connecting to the wall on the right side, surrounded by hundreds of lenses on long arms that would allow the lenses to be placed into the tube.


    The tube pointed at two padded arms, shoulder width apart poking from the wall with a panel of tiles behind them. The Cesnor pointed him to the arms.


    ¡°Squat when I say go.¡± He said as he fiddled with the tube, setting several lenses into their respective slots in the tube.


    As Palinus followed the instructions he placed himself under the arms in a squatting position as he prepared to lift the arms. They squatted under weights frequently in physical training so he knew exactly what to do as he got in position.


    Ready to go, he could see along the barrel of the tube, it looked to be reflective inside and he could see several green lenses already in place.


    ¡°Hmm, the mother¡­ pure red? HmmmMMMmm.¡± Caelus was muttering as he placed the lenses in the tube. ¡°The question is¡­ how much black from the father?¡±


    As the Censor muttered he paid no attention to Palinus. He did not know who his father was, which was not abnormal for the child of a high ranking female citizen. It was however a revelation that someone other than his mother knew who his father was.


    ¡°GO!¡± The questioning train of thought was lost as Caelus ordered him to perform the squat. The arms weighed barely anything as he stood straight under them without effort.


    As soon as he reached his full height Caelus pulled something on the tube and Palinus was instantly punched in the chest with a blast of green light. It felt like he had been scalded with boiling water and smacked with a sledgehammer at the same time and he screamed as he tried to drop the weight and step away from the blast.


    Before he could, the light stopped and staggering away from the arms Palinus sat down on the floor. Rubbing his chest.


    The Censor ignored him as he took a torch stone off the wall and a device that looked like a small copper tube. He moved to the tiles behind the weighted arms and was looking through the tube at the tiles behind. From his seat on the floor Palinus noted a clear green glow.


    Satisfied with his reading Caelus made some notes and pulled a small lever next to the arms, it caused an audible thunk from behind the wall and the tiles instantly stopped glowing green as the lever returned by itself to the up position.


    ¡°Again.¡± Caelus impatiently gestured at Palinus to get up as he shuffled the lenses expertly around the device.


    Rubbing at his chest, Palinus slowly stood to run the test again. As a child in Erulea was used to corporal punishment and he didn¡¯t doubt that the Censor wouldn¡¯t hesitate to hurt him more than the light would if he didn¡¯t comply promptly.


    ¡°This one won¡¯t hurt as much.¡± The Censor said reassuringly, sensing the reluctance.


    Preparing to lift the arms, Palinus instantly noticed that they felt heavier. With trepidation he looked down the tube device and grimaced as he waited.


    ¡°Go.¡± The command came.


    Palinus grunted as he lifted the arms resting on his shoulders, he pushed them up and stood at his full height. As soon as he reached the top of the movement he was punched again by a blast of light. This time the light was distinctly blue, and it hurt just as much as the first jolt.


    ¡°I lied.¡± Caelus laughed unsympathetically as he again prodded at the tiles that glowed a strong blue, testing them with the same handheld device. Grunting in satisfaction he made another note. ¡°Good news. We don¡¯t need to run those again, we just have one more test and I think you will find it much less uncomfortable. Again.¡±


    Palinus shuddered as he rubbed his chest and considered objecting to another test.


    ¡°Hurry up boy. We still need to get through the other two and I have places to be.¡± Censor Caelus swatted Palinus with a bolt of white light he shot from his finger which hit him on the face, jolted him uncomfortably and gave him an odd coppery taste in his mouth.


    Moving only quickly enough to avoid another bolt he prepared to face another blast of light. As he prepared to lift he noticed that the arms were truly heavy and Palinus sensed that he would struggle to lift them. Squatting low beneath them and preparing for the pain to follow he readied himself.


    ¡°Go!¡±


    Heaving. With his teeth gritted, and his face going red. Palinus slowly pushed the arms up until he was standing. His whole body was shaking as he hit the top of the movement.


    A blast of red light shot from the barrel in front of him. But, it didn¡¯t hurt.


    He almost sighed with relief as he dropped the arms and stepped away.


    The tiles behind where he had stood had an outline of a body standing in front of them in a dull red and Caelus examined the hue closely this time. Shifting from side to side he considered the tiles. With an air of excitement he rushed out the door and came back with a stack of tiles of very similar red tones to compare the light. He held them up to the dully glowing tiles, comparing the colours closely through the device he carried. A few minutes later he jotted down his notes and turned with a smile to Palinus.


    ¡°You were offered the Red Mage class.¡± He grinned and waited expectantly for confirmation.


    Palinus nodded. ¡°You can tell that from those tiles?¡±


    ¡°Yes, and your stats...but I can also tell you aren¡¯t a true red mage.¡± He paused for effect. ¡°Your attunement is right on the border of two, quite portentous aspects.¡±


    Caelus seemed extremely excited.


    ¡°You are either a variant blood mage¡­ something like the Blood Pilum¡± He said, his voice pitching up with excitement.. ¡°... or you are a smoke mage. Like the First Tyrant!¡±

 Chapter 16 - Questions of Smoke and Blood

    Chapter 16 - Questions of Smoke or Blood


    Palinus¡¯s head was spinning, it was partially the exertion and pain from the testing that felt more like torture but he was also coming to terms with the aspects of his attunement that the Censor had just revealed.


    ¡°The Blood Pilum¡­ or the First Tyrant¡­ blood or smoke?" Palinus whispered to himself.


    The mages that the censor compared him to were amongst the scariest and most powerful in the history of the empire. They were figures of history, but not the sorts of heroes that inspired a teenage boy.


    The Blood Pilum was from the time of the 4th emperor, hundreds of years ago. He was known for summoning a demon and for launching devastating bolts of hardened blood that he could launch like a spear, giving him his name, or from the summoned demon. He was the sort of delver that mothers would threaten their children with. Palinus wasn¡¯t sure how he felt about using blood, it wasn¡¯t just that it was kind of gross but it also struck him as attention grabbing in all the wrong ways.


    The First Tyrant was a mythical figure. He was known for dominating the battlefields of more than a thousand years ago with waves of smoke, it was said that he was impossible to stop and could kill in an instant. The power of the First Tyrant gave the smoke aspect something of a mystique, but there hadn¡¯t been another successful smoke mage since. Something about smoke seemed like it was right to Palinus, he recalled moments in his youth that he had been enraptured by watching not the flame of a fire, but the smoke as it drifted in the air. The inevitable comparison to the First Tyrant was regrettable, but Palinus could make it work as a no-name delver doing rifts out in the country.


    Censor Caelus didn''t seem to notice Palinus¡¯s lack of excitement about the comparison as he smiled and talked to himself, resetting the room.


    ¡°A combo builder¡­ hmm. For blood that¡¯d be easy, for smoke¡­ not so much. A burst? Hmmm¡­¡±


    Caelus stared at the roof for a moment appearing lost in thought.


    ¡°Show me the shard, boy,¡± he turned to command Palinus.


    It was a harder voice that the Censor used, and Palinus hesitated for a moment recalling the significance that Servius, Marcus and Minucia had placed on the shard. This was a chance to get some answers on how to use it and he knew that he wouldn¡¯t be able to say no as he pulled the stone out of his pocket.


    ¡°Hold it up.¡± Caelus said, Palinus was glad the man made no attempt to take it from his hand.


    As Palinus held the shard up Caelus pulled another stack of tiles out of his pocket and a small brass bound lens that he stuck over his right eye. With one hand holding a tile behind the shard he made his other hand glow with white light that he cast through the shard onto the tile.


    ¡°Hmm, good.¡± He said as he switched the tile. ¡°Yes, indeed.¡±


    He tried nearly a dozen tiles that looked like minor variations of red colours until he was satisfied.


    ¡°Right, yes. Good.¡±


    Without any explanation the Censor put away his instruments and led the teenager back to the first room with Bruchts and Rufian. They were sitting on the bench with cups of wine in hand still looking pale and shaken from their exposure to the sub-nexus. Sitting down to join them he found out a moment later where the cups of wine had come from as his mother walked out from the stairwell with another cup in hand.


    Seeing Palinus she smiled warmly but said nothing as she passed him the cup and took the vacant spot as Censor Caelus led Rufian into the next room. Palinus instantly regretted not warning him and felt a wave of guilt.


    ¡°Hey Bruchts, he is-¡± Palinus started, before he was shushed by his mother.


    ¡°-Shhhh, he is just going to test his strength.¡± She said to stop Palinus revealing what was happening in the other room. ¡°Just like you do every day. Isn¡¯t that right?¡± She asked Palinus pointedly with a hand resting firmly on his arm.


    ¡°...yes, I suppose it is a strength test.¡± He struggled with the decision to stay quiet. But ultimately said nothing as he realised that knowing would only make the experience worse. Bruchts gave him a puzzled look, but he didn¡¯t push further, simply sipping his wine.


    Deciding to change the subject, Palinus took the opportunity to ask his mother a question that had bothered him for some time. He had asked this before, but the accidental revelation in the testing room brought it to the front of his mind.


    ¡°The Censor said something about my father. Who is he?¡±


    ¡°Oh. Did he really, the silly goat?¡­ Well he is a bit distracted I suppose with everything going on.¡± She considered how to answer. ¡°If I could tell you, I would. You know I was raised in the dormitories too. I know how you feel when the other children get to go home to their families¡­. I am sorry I can¡¯t do that for you.¡±


    She trailed off and had a tear in her eye.


    ¡°Minion shit mother. The fake tears won¡¯t work on me.¡± He called her out unsympathetically.


    ¡°Bah, you¡¯re no fun.¡± She dropped the act with a laugh, ruffling his hair. ¡°Did he say anything about your attunement?¡±


    ¡°He said¡­ well he said something quite interesting¡­¡± He responded to her change of subject with calculation. ¡°I suppose what he said might depend on who my father is?¡±


    ¡°You never want to listen to my stories. Now suddenly you are interested in ancient history that matters little?¡± she huffed and stood to leave. ¡°You need to finish those cups before the last test, it''s mostly tradition but it is dosed with a relaxant that''ll make the next test safer."


    With a pout, she whirled up the stairs and out of sight. Palinus leaned back against the wall and sipped the cup of wine which was really quite nice.


    ¡°It means he is a citizen.¡± Bruchts said unexpectedly.


    ¡°What?¡± replied Palinus.


    ¡°Your father. She can¡¯t say who he is because he is a citizen¡­ and probably still in active service if he hasn¡¯t named you already. It also means he is still alive, because then you would have his name too.¡±


    It didn¡¯t surprise Palinus that Bruchts would have that sort of knowledge about Erulean customs. Despite his Stoneman heritage he had lived in Erulea for a long time and he paid attention in lessons where Palinus would doze.


    ¡°You might be right, but that doesn¡¯t rule out that many men at all. She name drops half the citizens of the 7th hill¡­¡± Palinus gave up with a shrug that Bruchts shared and they sat in companionable silence as they waited.


    It was only a few minutes later that the door to the testing room was flung open and Rufian stormed out.


    ¡°Y-!¡±


    Whatever he was about to yell was cut off by a bolt of white light that was shot from the doorway behind the teenager. The Censor poked his head through the door and looked around for a moment ignoring the teenager on the floor.


    ¡°Where did Appalina go?¡± He asked after Palinus¡¯s mother, ignoring Rufian as he lay limp on the floor. ¡°No matter. Help him up and get him to finish the wine. No time to waste. Big one¡­. Your turn now, come.¡±


    He hurried Bruchts into the room.


    As the door shut Palinus moved to Rufian and checked that his friend was ok. It looked like he was still breathing and had just been knocked out by the white bolt. Even as he rolled him onto his side the teenager started to stir.


    ¡°-ou said it¡­ woah!¡± Rufian shouted from the ground recognising he was only the floor only halfway through his objections to the closed door. ¡°Ughh¡­ Splintery balls, that wasn¡¯t fun.¡±


    He hopped up from the ground and sat with Palinus.


    ¡°Sorry I didn¡¯t warn you.¡± Palinus said apologetically.


    ¡°Bah, it¡¯s not your fault.¡± he waved off the apology, ¡°It¡¯s that miserable old farr, he¡¯s clearly taking pleasure in this¡­ When I come back with my ars I¡¯m going to bash his wrinkly face in.¡±


    Rufian cracked his knuckles as he seethed, occasionally muttering to himself and rubbing his chest as they waited. It was only a few minutes later that Bruchts stumbled out the door.


    ¡°Good, good¡­¡± Caelus followed the teenager out the stone door. ¡°Why haven¡¯t you finished your wine? Quickly. Bottoms up!¡±


    Pushing the cups to the boys lips to hurry them along Censor Caelus rushed them to finish their drinks and bustled them through the last door to another room.


    This room was bigger than the last with half a dozen raised beds of stone next to a lectern that had several switches and dials. The beds were rectangular and big enough for a man to lay on, in the middle of each was a large central plate and two smaller plates of copper set flush against the stone.


    ¡°Sit.¡± Caelus commanded, pushing the boys to take a seat on one of the beds and aligning them forcefully so they were sitting on the big copper plate and had their hands on the small ones.


    ¡°For this test you need to focus and allow the essentia to flow through you." He explained hurriedly moving himself to the lectern. ¡°Follow the pulse and release the essentia into the secondary panels. You can let go at any time, if you lift your hands from the plates the pressure will stop.¡±


    Before he finished speaking a hum filled the room and Palinus started to feel a tingle from the plate he sat on. The feeling of essentia flowing through him felt right and the building warmth was almost refreshing. Every five seconds or so the intensity peaked and he let the essentia release down his arms and into the hand plates.


    As the tempo and amount of essentia started to dial up the hum in the room raised in volume and pitch. He heard Bruchts and Rufian grunting and could feel the essentia pressure rising.


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    ¡°Sssss-,¡± Bruchts started letting out a whistling hiss with his mouth.


    ¡°Hnngggg,¡± and Rufian was grunting with effort.


    The essentia still felt manageable for Palinus and he turned his head to see Caelus staring at him with a smirk as he made an adjustment on the panel in front of him.


    ¡°Oof-¡± Bruchts hit his limit and the testing mechanism seemed to relieve him of the pressure instantly as he let go and breathed out a sigh of relief. Rufian was still going and was trying to turn his head to look at Palinus and pushing himself to compete. The strain built and built but it just wasn¡¯t affecting Palinus the same way.


    ¡°Ugh..¡± Rufian stopped straining and let go a half minute later, giving up with a valiant effort.


    The essentia flows were starting to get serious now. The hum in the room had dropped as the other boys stopped, but it started to pick up again as the essentia flowing in Palinus¡¯s body picked up, then picked up again.


    Each pulse came with a wave of heat that rushed from the plate he sat on and through his body. Churning and mixing with the essentia stored within him and swirling in a crescendo that flooded his body until he was able to force it out of his hand. At first he could easily clear the waves of essentia without effort. His body capable of processing the essentia in an orderly way.


    As the waves increased in power and volume he couldn¡¯t quite offload the full load of essentia through his hands. He started to focus on the process and push the essentia through his body and out as quickly as he could. Palinus caught up to the flood of essentia and completely cleared the foreign essentia for half a dozen waves. But they kept getting stronger.


    Gritting his teeth as he tried to tune out room and focus on the task, he could hear Censor Cealus chuckling quietly to himself and his friends whispered encouragement.


    The test slowly pushed him to his limit, and he gradually lost the battle as more and more essentia in each wave remained and left him less room and more to process in each wave. It felt like an eternity he battled with sweat running down his face and teeth grinding


    <hr>


    With a start, Palinus regained consciousness.


    He lay sprawled over the stone bed and blinked with confusion.


    ¡°Well done, well done boy.¡± Censor Caelus handed him a damp cloth. The room had an oddly tinny smell that reminded him of a summer thunderstorm and he took a moment to remember where he was. The other boys sat around him in a marginally better state.


    Clap!


    The Censor got the boy''s attention with a clap as he pulled out a sheet of albumstone.


    ¡°I have finished your assessment and I will start with your statistics.¡±


    He quickly marked up the albumstone and explained as he did so.


    ¡°The testing indicates you have indeed all reached the first tier. This is a fine achievement for your first rift.¡± He beamed a wide smile as he praised the boys. ¡°It appears you have all chosen to dual class, which is reflected in slightly lower statistics but is generally considered the optimal path for new delvers until you have settled on your class.¡±


    He showed them the tablet.


    ¡°As a tier one you will be above the averages for an unformed person in most ways, but you only acheive another tier after breaking the deviation threshold for the next tier.¡±


    <table style="width: 89.9482%">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 22.6314%"> </td>


    <td>


    Palinus


    </td>


    <td>


    Bruchts


    </td>


    <td>


    Rufian


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 22.6314%">


    Tier


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    I


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    I


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    I


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 22.6314%"> </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle" colspan="3">


    Physical Statistics


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 22.6314%">


    Strength


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    I


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    II


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    II


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 22.6314%">


    Resistance


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    -


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    II


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    I


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 22.6314%">


    Vitality


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    -


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    I


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    I


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 22.6314%"> </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle" colspan="3">


    Essential Statistics


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 22.6314%">


    Area


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    I


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    I


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    -


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 22.6314%">


    Force


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    I


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    -


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    I


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 22.6314%">


    Power


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    II


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    -


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    -


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 22.6314%"> </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle" colspan="3">


    Mastery


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 22.6314%">


    Mastery


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    I


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    -


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">I</td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Sensing a question coming from Palinus, the Censor explained as he showed them the tablet.


    ¡°The demarcation for each tier is one standard deviation from the base unformed level. So for your squatting strength a standard intermediately trained unformed male would be able to squat 127 kilograms plus, the first standard deviation is 168kg+ and the next is 217kg+. The other statistics are benchmarked similarly, but that is the easiest to explain.¡±


    Palinus thought for a moment, that made sense. At Tier one for strength he would be stronger that most men, but not stronger than all unformed men. It was also reassuring to know that while Rufian and Bruchts were clearly stronger, they weren''t twice as strong, yet.


    ¡°If we go into a rift and choose different ars and classes will our stats change?¡± Palinus asked.


    ¡°A great question!¡± The Censor replied. ¡°The short answer is no. The long answer is that your rift empowerment is developed incrementally in each rift but only manifests in the overworld once your avatar reaches its capacity and jumps to the next tier. So each rift you delve and the choices you make within will affect your empowerment for the next tier when that occurs.¡±


    ¡°Wh-¡± Palinus¡¯s follow up question was cut off.


    ¡°No time for more questions.¡± He hurriedly stashed the albumstone and pulled out another with several of the coloured tiles from the previous testing room. ¡°Here are your attunement results.¡±


    <table style="width: 89.9482%">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 19.6268%"> </td>


    <td>


    Palinus


    </td>


    <td>


    Bructs


    </td>


    <td>


    Rufian


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 19.6268%">


    Red


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    CXXXIX


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    II


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    CCLV


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 19.6268%">


    Blue


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    IV


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    CXLV


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    CXXVII


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 19.6268%">


    Green


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    II


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    CXCIV


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    LXXX


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 19.6268%">


    Attunement


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    ¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">


    ¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€


    </td>


    <td style="text-align: center; vertical-align: middle">¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€</td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    ¡°Rufian, come with me. You two stay here for a moment, I will return to speak to you both.¡± Cealus led Rufian out the door. In the waiting room Palinus was surprised to catch a glimpse of Marius and even more surprised to see him in full uniform with several other soldiers.


    ¡°Marius! How ar-¡± The door shut off behind Rufian greeting the man. After only a minute the door opened and Caelus returned.


    ¡°Now. You two are faced with a decision.¡± The Censor had a serious expression on his face. ¡°Your friend has a deep sanguine attunement.¡±


    The way he phrased it made it seem like a really bad thing and Bruchts took sharp breath as if he knew what it meant.


    ¡°It means that he will be prone to impulsiveness, violence, and for some people¡­ madness.¡±


    ¡°But I have a high red attunement as well?¡± Palinus questioned.


    ¡°Yes, yes you do.¡± The Censor replied. ¡°But at less than one hundred and fifty it falls into a low risk category. You will be required to serve outside the capital once you matriculate, but not until you pass the 5th tier¡­ or you start to show signs¡­¡± he tapered off dramatically, searching Palinus¡¯s face as if looking for some response.


    ¡°What will happen to Rufian?¡± Bruchts asked.


    ¡°He will be conscripted immediately.¡±


    ¡°Can I go with him?¡±


    ¡°That is one of the options.¡± The Censor told Bruchts, who wasted no time in following through the door. He didn¡¯t wait for the other options.


    The Censor chuckled and shook his head. He seemed pleased with the impetuous choice by the blonde teenager. The ageing man turned to Palinus with a gleeful expression.


    "Now for the only real choice of the day." Cealus sat on the stone beside Palinus. "I believe we can chart a path for either aspect, and you could be great as either. Smoke or Blood?"


    He waited for an answer his bright eyes sharply framed by his bushy mostly grey eyebrows staring into Palinus''s.


    "I don''t know..." Palinus was barely thinking about himself and his aspect. He was more concerned for his friends.


    The Censor waited.


    "I guess I prefer smoke?" As Palinus verbalised the words, he suddenly knew them to be true. The expression on his face must have answered the Censor as he slapped his hands in his lap and guided Palinus to the door.


    ¡°You can stay in Erulea and continue as you are doing. You would matriculate normally and might scrape together the money for passage across the sea. More likely you would find yourself further in debt and wiggle your way deeper in bed with the Commodus family, taking their scraps and doing their dirty work. Or¡­¡± He let the visions of a mundane and uncomfortable future linger for Palinus.


    ¡°... you could enlist as well and form a team for the Rift Trials.¡±

 Chapter 17 - Uncle Ares and the Biggest Load

    Chapter 17 - Uncle Ares and the Biggest Load


    There was no choice at all.


    Palinus had only ever vaguely considered his future. The only vision he had was to leave the capital, and this was a fast ticket out. He would join the Auxilia and put up with wherever they decided to send him.


    It was only as he ran up the stairs two at a time that he practically started to consider what entering the Rift Trials might mean.


    All the children of Erulea knew of the Rift Trials; they were a prestigious test for the newly formed talent of the Empire. It was the fast track for entrance to the legion or at the very least an opportunity for power.


    It was also extremely dangerous.


    There were stories of teenagers fighting against enormously powerful creeps of all types and most dangerous of all the monsters of the two legged green bearded variety - Methelwhenese Slayers, Deep-Forest Stalkers and powerful Archdruids.


    He pushed the fear of a distant and unknown future from his mind and focused on the positive. He would be leaving the Capital¡­ and he would be leaving today.


    As he rushed out of the temple he could see his friends laughing and joking with the soldiers, but before he could join them he was stopped by the last person he wanted to be seen with in front of the soldiers. His mother.


    With superhuman speed she grabbed him as he tried to run past her and gathered him into a hug. Kissing him on the cheek.


    ¡°Aaawwww,¡± he heard Rufian call from ahead, calling attention to Palinus¡¯s predicament.


    Palinus blushed fiercely as he tried to squirm out of her grip, but she was too strong.


    ¡°My boy.¡± She said planting another kiss on his cheek and ignoring his protests. ¡°I am so proud of you¡­ and I won¡¯t get to see you for such a long time.¡±


    A tear dripped down her cheek and Palinus stopped struggling sensing that she might be showing genuine emotion for once in his life.


    ¡°Mother¡­¡± he felt a warm drop on his face, which he quickly brushed away.


    ¡°Be good.¡± she said as she swept him up in a final hug.


    He didn¡¯t resist and he lingered a moment, trying to find the words which wouldn¡¯t come.


    ¡°I will come back,¡± he said, as he waved goodbye and fled.


    Palinus wasn¡¯t sure he meant the words.


    <hr>


    ¡°You¡¯re such a mama¡¯s boy, Palinus¡± Rufian teased, ¡°You¡¯ll probably run back before we¡¯ve made it out the gates.¡±


    ¡°If I could run to Appalina¡¯s bosom, I most certainly would.¡± Marius said, thrusting his hips sleazily.


    ¡°Ew, that¡¯s weird, it''s my mother.¡± Palinus said


    ¡°Mother or not, she is the finest woman on the 7th hill.¡± Marius replied.


    ¡°Aye,¡± Rufian agreed and punched Bruchts on the shoulder.


    ¡°Sorry Pal¡­ she is a very attractive woman.¡± Bruchts admitted.


    Starting to regret his decision, Palinus tuned out the banter as they walked.


    ¡°Where are we going?¡± He asked as he noticed they had split off from the other soldiers and were not heading towards the gates or the barracks.


    ¡°To meet my Uncle Ares and pick up the weapons!¡± said Rufian excitedly.


    As he said it they turned the corner and came to his uncle''s shop. The odd structure looked like a miniature fortification with essentia carved stone walls dotted with singe marks around the doors and windows that made the place seem like it had either been attacked frequently or been blown up from the inside multiple times.


    Over the door a sign read:


    Ares¡¯s Armoury


    Weapons, Artifice and Expertise


    They walked into the armoury and Palinus was amazed by the racks of weapons of all sorts. The room was packed to the brim with floor to ceiling displays of mundane weapons near the entrance and as they moved further in they started to see glass cases of rift born weapons that glowed a kaleidoscope of colours.


    ¡°You need something?¡±


    A gruff voice startled Palinus from over his shoulder as he was staring at a case that held several beautiful wands.


    ¡°Buco!¡± Rufian warmly greeted the man who looked like he was seven feet tall but had never seen the sun.


    ¡°Oh Rufian, good to see you boy.¡± Buco¡¯s accent was hard to pick, and Palinus assumed he must be from very far away.¡±You must be here to see Ares! Come this way.¡±


    They walked through the shop and out a small door into a workshop which was filled with bits and pieces of half fixed, mostly broken or partially constructed weapons. Palinus was starting to get the picture that Uncle Ares might be a bit scatterbrained.


    ¡°Buco!? Can you come help me with th- oh Rufian!¡± Uncle Ares walked around a corner fiddling with a length of leather. He shared a strong resemblance to Rufian with a wide frame and hairy arms. His face was covered with a cloth and massive goggles, with only his prominent nose poking out. ¡°I didn¡¯t expect you back so soon. You brought your friends!¡±


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    ¡°We are headed out for Prima Disciplina!¡± Rufian said cheerily.


    Ares grimaced momentarily and looked sadly at Rufian as he shot a meaningful glance at Marius, who nodded in confirmation. He patted his nephew on the shoulder and smiled widely at Palinus and Bruchts.


    ¡°It¡¯s good you are going with him, it will be much easier together.¡± Ares said, clapping his hands together. ¡°You will need your weapons then.¡±


    As he led them through a maze of stuff they found themselves in front of several strong boxes. He pulled one down from a shelf, showing amazing strength throwing the iron box around like it weighed nothing. Once down he retrieved an enormous bunch of hundreds of keys. Palinus was amazed when he flicked the ring and a key shot to his fingers, and even more amazed when it was the right one to open the box.


    Ares turned to Palinus and pulled his goggles off to give him a wink. The other boys rolled their eyes and laughed at his showmanship.


    ¡°This is a fine sword Bruchts, I have knocked up a scabbard for it.¡± Ares passed him the sword and wrapped the leather he was carrying over his shoulder around the teenager showing him how to make the blade sit in the leather sheath and fitting the leather comfortably over his hips.


    ¡°As for this, it is fine for a newbie¡­ but you¡¯ll be needing a better weapon or focus once you figure out what your preferences are.¡± Ares threw the wand at Palinus. ¡°Come, let¡¯s have some lunch before you get stuck with the Auxilia¡¯s awful rations.¡±


    ¡°We have time before you are expected at camp.¡± Marius agreed and they wound their way through the shop to a shaded balcony.


    They sat with an amphora of wine and a platter of olives, bread and cheeses.


    ¡°Tell us about your first rift!¡± Ares asked excitedly.


    The boys recapped their experience, with Marius and Ares laughing and teasing good naturedly them as they spoke.


    ¡°Their composition was flawed. They clearly had some experience but they underestimated you. With a melee focused team like that they were either going to destroy you in the first fight, or they were never going to be able to compete,¡± Ares explained the weakness of the Silvanian team. ¡±You see that is why you need to have varied ranges to have an effective team composition. The ranged damage dealers provide a zone of control which prohibits enemies from entering without taking hits but melee attackers will generally do more damage.¡±


    ¡°Damn right we do, Pal¡¯s wand hits like a wet noodle¡± Rufian laughed at Palinus.


    ¡°Even so, multiple hits to the same target will inflict stacking combination damage.¡± Ares was practically vibrating as he explained. ¡°The rift theorists all agree that low tier rifts are dominated by the teams that can stack sequential attacks, either by using range, movement, or control¡­ Ideally all three. The combination damage will stack up quickly if it is allowed to.¡±


    ¡°So Pal¡¯s noodles will eventually fill a pot,¡± Rufian said again with a contemplative expression. ¡°Maybe I should take the wand till we get my calculii since I do more damage with it.¡±


    ¡°Shut your butt Rufi,¡± Palinus said in frustration, he thought they had settled this yesterday.


    ¡°Well it might be quite easy to settle who it suits better. Let''s see who can shoot the bigger load.¡±


    They all laughed at the crude joke. Ares beckoned the boys to the back stairs and picked up a box on their way.


    Behind the shop there was a small yard with a large gate open to the lane behind the shop. Various pieces of rubbish lay piled around the yard with chunks missing and singe marks.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have a proper Fluctuscope set up, you¡¯d have to get permission to use one of those and it isn¡¯t worth it for¡­ that,¡± Ares gestured dismissively at the wand Palinus was holding. ¡°But i¡¯ll show you how to test the stick¡¯s attunement.¡±


    They took turns firing the wand and Ares took measurements at the impact site and watched them fire the wand through a little tube that let him swap lenses out similar to the massive tube that Censor Caelus had shot at them but a fraction of the size with much fewer lenses.


    He explained how their stats affected the shots as they shot a dozen times each and swapped. Then shot several more bolts at Ares¡¯s direction. He asked them their attunement and stats and dragged them back in his workshop as he scribbled directly onto a table with a piece of charcoal and pulled out several incomprehensible charts as he lectured them excitedly.


    ¡°It¡¯s quite an interesting find, this wand! Not what it looks like at all! It is as pure red as I can test. No detectable green or blue. It¡¯s extremely rare to have that level of-.¡±


    ¡°But uncle,¡± Rufian cut off Ares¡¯s lecture, ¡°Who is it better suited to?¡±


    ¡°That is a complicated question to answer. It is more powerful in Rufian¡¯s hands as he has a more similar Red attunement. But it would work more efficiently in Palinus¡¯s hand because he has a closer Green and Blue attunement to the wand.¡± Ares said before he started to ramp up into lecture mode, ¡°The non-uniform colour theorists keep pointing to the non-linear connection between shades as a gap in our understanding of essentia. But I can¡¯t help but find that the practice of taking simple measurements like this shows that there is clearly some sort of connection in the delta of attunements, even if it isn¡¯t exactly linear. Which points to a defined relationship between the essentia¡­¡±


    Ares caught a glare from his nephew. ¡°Ah... I¡¯ve gone a bit over the top there. I¡¯ll just keep it simple: The wand shoots faster and does more reliable damage for Palinus.¡±


    ¡°Hmpfh, I was never going to take it from you anyway.¡± Rufian said with a sour expression that belied his assurance.


    ¡°Your attunement was never going to be best suited to a ranged weapon.¡± Ares said thoughtfully. ¡°Though there was an Enhancer / Wandslinger that I knew down south that made it work-¡±


    ¡°What do you know about the Rift Trials?¡± Palinus cut in trying to divert Ares from another lecture.


    ¡°Oh? You think you are getting invited to the trials?¡± Marius cut in.


    ¡°Censor Caelus said we could make a team for the trials.¡± Palinus said.


    Marius and Ares laughed at him.


    ¡°He would say that¡­ the Censors take a great deal of pride in their student¡¯s performance in the rift trials. He no doubt thinks he has shaped you and will claim your laurels if you make it to the trials.¡± Ares explained. ¡°But you aren¡¯t special and the future is guaranteed, the Censor can recommend your team but you need to be amongst the best conscripts in the training legion to make it to the trials.¡±


    ¡°The forever camp is stacked with kids from the 2nd hill, soldiers'' sons¡­ They¡¯ve been training from birth so you might as well accept you aren¡¯t going to make it to the trials.¡± Marius stated bluntly.


    Finishing the amphora of wine he had carried down from lunch Marius let out a loud blech.


    ¡°Alright, let''s get going!¡± He said.


    <hr>


    The walk through the city was uneventful. They walked and bantered as they went but as they passed the city gates Marius pulled them aside on the road.


    ¡°Now you have passed through the gate you have officially entered service.¡± He said with a serious expression. ¡°If you run, you will be declared a deserter and you will be punished. If you do not comply with a direction from a superior, you will be declared insubordinate and you will be punished. Is that understood?¡±


    The boys were taken aback. Marius was never serious, even when he ran their drills at the gymnasium.


    ¡°Does that mean you are our superior?¡± Rufian asked cheekily.


    ¡°Yes.¡± He responded flatly.


    ¡°Tha-¡± Rufian was cut off.


    ¡°I asked you all a question. The answer should be ¡®Yes, Decurio¡¯¡± Marius¡¯s voice was sharp.


    ¡°Yes, Decurio.¡± The boys responded. They were used to drill instruction through the Gymnasium, and with the gesture to move the boys lined up and started marching single file.


    In front of Palinus he could see Rufian and Bruchts shooting a puzzled expression at Marius. They couldn¡¯t understand the change in the man and they were starting to worry.


    What had they gotten themselves into?

 Chapter 18 - Prima Disciplina

    Chapter 18 - Prima Disciplina


    It was only a hours march to reach the Mustering Fields.


    Palinus had only ever seen them from a distance in the odd times he had left the city to go to the river or just go out exploring. They were out in the plains to the northwest amidst a bend in the river and a wall of wooden posts with a fortified wooden gate. Behind the wall an occasional building poked over and a wooden fort stood on a tall hill dominating the fortified area.


    Marching through the gates Marius saluted the pair of older soldiers standing beside the gate with his hand to his chest. One wore a Legion uniform, its iron and gold gleaming in comparison to the leather armour the man in Auxilia uniform wore.


    From behind the other boys in the line Palinus copied the salute as best he could, but he noted that Bruchts and Rufian didn¡¯t. Palinus got a bad feeling when he saw a cruel smile from the soldiers and a snigger from Marius.


    ¡°Halt!¡± Marius ordered.


    The boys came to a poorly coordinated stop as Rufian walked into Bruchts back.


    ¡°Welcome to Prima Disciplina conscripts!¡± A booming voice came from one of the soldiers as the boys turned towards them.


    ¡°I am Centurion Armiger of the Legion.¡± projected the soldier in the legion armour with a booming voice and an ugly glint of malice.


    ¡°I am Auxilia Optio Magunnus.¡± The Auxilia soldier spoke with a gravelly tone but no less volume. ¡°We will be your superior officers in your interim training cohort for the duration of your training here.¡±


    ¡°I thought we were leaving¡­¡± Rufian started speaking but realised his mistake as the three senior soldiers fixed him with a hard glare, but it seemed he couldn¡¯t stop himself as finished his sentence. ¡°... the capital?¡±


    ¡°It seems we have an impatient one.¡± Armiger said.


    ¡°We will quickly correct that.¡± Magunnus added. ¡°Conscript Bruchts, Conscript Ramirus, step forward.¡±


    Bruchts took a pace forward and stood at attention with his hands by his side. His crisp movement making Rufian look clumsy as he failed to recognise the unfamiliar use of his family name.


    The two soldiers marched with neatly synchronised steps to stand with the Centurion in front of Bruchts and the Optio beside.


    ¡°Conscript Bruchts. For failing to recognise an officer you will receive one lash.¡± Centurion Armiger shouted in Bruchts¡¯ face. The teenager paled, but didn¡¯t flinch.


    The Centurion and Optio snapped their feet together in unison and turned to march into the same positions surrounding Rufian.


    ¡°Conscript Ramirus for failing to recognise an officer and for failure of respect you will receive four lashes.¡± The Centurion gave a vicious smile as he gave the sentence and the two ranked soldiers snapped their feet together again and marched themselves to be standing in front of the boys.


    ¡°Decio fall in.¡± Decurion Marius ordered and Rufian was quicker on the uptake this time as they both stepped back into line with Palinus.


    ¡°Salute!¡± Marius yelled and the boys put their fists over their heart as quickly as they could.


    ¡°Repeat after me!¡± Armiger started, holding up a tablet with a reverent expression and a tone that reminded Palinus of priests in the temple.


    ¡°I swear that I shall faithfully execute all that the Emperor commands!¡±


    ¡°I swear that I shall faithfully execute all that the Emperor commands.¡±


    The boys repeated and as they spoke to words Palinus felt a swelling of his essentia, as if the words were spoken with his essentia as well as his voice


    ¡°That I shall never desert the service so long as Erulea stands!¡±


    ¡°That I shall never desert the service so long as Erulea stands!¡±


    ¡°And that I shall not seek to avoid death for the Erulean Empire!


    ¡°And that I shall not seek to avoid death for the Erulean Empire!


    With the final word spoken the weight on his essentia ceased, but where his essentia flowed through his heart he felt something like a ring of lead around the channel.


    ¡°You have now sworn the sacramentum, and are reminded that you are bound by the laws of service. I will now read articles relating to punishment that apply to you:


    For acts of minor insubordination and failures of duty or respect the punishment will be flogging at the discretion of the commanding officer before the soldier''s century, cohort and or legion.


    For acts of moderate insubordination and failures of duty fines may also be levied as well as flogging at the discretion of the commanding officer.


    For repeated or gross acts of insubordination and failures of duty the commanding officer may demand sureties including retaking the sacramentum.


    For acts of treason or theft the punishment will be drowning within a sack of serpents. If serpents or a body of water is not practicable death will be administered in a method of the commanding officers discretion.


    For acts of desertion or dereliction of duty the punishment is Fustuarium or Bastinado, wherein the soldier will be stoned or bludgeoned by their decio, century, cohort or legion until their death.


    Punishment that results in the soldier''s death must be assigned by a court martial of¡­¡±


    Palinus struggled to pay attention as his body became uncomfortable standing still for so long, he also felt drained from the sacramentum as if they had been running. The Centurion recited the martial laws in intricate detail for at least ten minutes without stopping and the man¡¯s ability to do so without referencing the tablet in his hand as he instead maintained intense eye contact with the boys was impressive.


    ¡°¡­ if a penalty of death is administered and the soldier escapes their death, they will not be pursued and another attempt on their life will not be made. However, they are banished from Erulea until they are pardoned by a Legate or the Emperor himself.


    ¡°Hail Emperor Septimus!¡± Centurion Armiger finished.


    ¡°Hail Emperor Septimus!¡± Everyone else echoed the cry,


    ¡°-Emperor Septimus?¡± Palinus joined late.


    He didn¡¯t want to stand out but questioned whether they didn¡¯t know the emperor was deposed or there was something else at play.


    ¡°Decurion Marius.¡± Centurion Armiger said and the Centurion and Optio marched crisply for a few steps then suddenly started walking normally as though a stick holding their spines vertically was removed. They almost immediately started talking casually and laughed at something as the boys stood, still at salute.


    Marius waited until the officers had walked away.


    ¡°Laxarte.¡± Marius ordered them to relax their salute, and then ordered a sharp right turn ¡°Ad Dex. Dex!¡±


    Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.


    Palinus struggled with left and right as it was, the use of the old language threw him right off and he turned left instead of right, leaving him facing Marius who chuckled and gave him a wink before Palinus realised his mistake and turned back the right direction.


    ¡°Quick March¡±


    They marched  through the secondary gate and finally got a full view across Mustering Fields from inside the wall.


    Ahead they saw the Centurion and Optio walking towards a set of albumstone buildings that looked like offices, meeting spaces and several forums from tiny to massive with rows of seats set around a stage or lectern. The area was landscaped beautifully with olive trees and tasteful shrubberies amongst sweeping lawns. The grass was emerald green and manicured which was wholly out of place in the Erulean summer and clashed with the natural browns of the plains grass and bushy forested area they saw around the hill with it¡¯s wooden fortification that looked even more impressive from within the camp.


    They marched past the official looking buildings along gravel paths towards one of dozens of identical wooden structures. They looked like enormous barns or squat warehouses with groups of ten to a hundred young people marching in and out accompanied by soldiers.


    The soldiers were easy to pick out with their full uniform compared to the conscripts wearing a uniform light brown tunic with a leather belt.


    The boys soon learnt why the conscripts uniform fit so badly on many as they marched into the storage yards.


    ¡°Halt!¡± Marius stopped the boys just inside a bustling square. Ahead they saw tables piled with tunics, belts and parts of sandals. It looked like a mess, but there was clearly a system as each station was attended by an Auxilia soldier, who shuffled around the piles and put things in order as they waited.


    ¡°I am not surprised to see you come in late again Marius¡­¡± A soldier in an Auxilia uniform approached them with a board and a piece of vellum pinned to it. She had thick dark hair that was barely contained with a thick braid pinned up. She officiously checked the list she carried and eyeballed the boys as she spoke to Marius.


    ¡°You know how these youngsters are Armicustos Cico, it¡¯s hard for them to leave their mamas,¡± he replied.


    ¡°So hard for you to leave your amphora more like...¡± She laughed, turning to the boys. ¡°Undress quickly and when I say, go place your items in those boxes.¡±


    They only hesitated for a moment before Palinus, Bruchts and Rufian started undressing. While they did so the Armicustos briefed them.


    ¡°You aren¡¯t on parade here and we aren¡¯t going to offer you more lashes unless you do something dumb. Cooperate with my team and you will be fitted as best we can. I say this only once: Do not complain, or I will fit you in a sack and wooden shoes.¡±


    ¡°Conscript Palinus!¡± She pointed to a box, and scowled as he struggled to untie off his tightly bound sandals. ¡°Hurry up boy.¡±


    ¡°Do we keep our weapons?¡± He asked.


    ¡°Did I say, ¡®place your items in those boxes, except your weapons?!¡¯¡± She replied with a flat tone and more volume than necessary, making Marius chuckle.


    The boys were bustled along the line once they stowed their stuff. It was a blur of activity as they were thrown a tunic and were only given a moment to pull it on before a belt was thrust into their hands and they were pushed onto a bench.


    As they sat doing up their belt a pair of soldiers knelt in front of them. With practised efficiency one quickly grabbed a foot and held up leather soles against it, he would swap the pads from a box beside him out until he found one roughly the right shape, then with one smooth motion cut the excess leather off with a blade sharpened with a subtle ars. He passed the leather sole to the other soldier as he completed the other foot.


    With the leather sole in her hand the soldier used a device that punched several holes through the sole and poked a length of leather through. She placed the sole against the boys feet and channelled essentia, Palinus didn''t catch where the calculii she used was but the effect was instantaneous as the length of leather curled around the boy¡¯s foot and looped itself through the holes in the sole to make a perfectly fitting sandal.


    ¡°That¡¯s amazing!¡± Palinus said as he watched her fit a sandal to his foot.


    She gave him a wink, ¡°This is nothing.¡±


    The boys marched out wearing their first uniform. The tunic itched and Bruchts¡¯ and Rufian¡¯s hung too low, needing a ridiculously large size to fit over their bulky frames.


    ¡°Armicustos Cico yells just right.¡± Marius said with a lecherous grin as they gathered to leave.


    ¡°Mhmm,¡¯ Rufian agreed and dodged the punch from Bruchts.


    ¡°Fall in.¡± Marius ordered his expression snapping back to business.


    They marched along a path past several of the squat wooden buildings. Up close they could see through the wooden slats that served as windows into the buildings. Inside looked to be rows of identical rooms with five double bunks and a shelf. They saw each room was neatly made up and there were occasional hints of personal possessions like carved bits of wood, and the odd letter or drawing.


    There were currently no people inside but Palinus¡¯s guess that these were where the conscripts slept was confirmed as Marius marched them into a building that was nearly identical to the half dozen they had passed and more further along the path.


    As they marched around the side they noticed painted numerals above the door:


    Cohort II, Century VII


    ¡°This is the barracks for your Century here.¡± Marius said, as they stood outside the door ¡°You¡¯d best remember it now, if you are late because you are lost you will still be flogged.¡±


    They walked through and Marius pointed out a door on their left.


    ¡°This is a female tent group, the women in your decio are in here. But you will never go in there, or you will be flogged. Do not go into another group''s rooms or tent unless duty compels or you will be flogged, you may also be accused of theft and drowned in a bag of snakes.¡±


    Down the hallway a room was pointed out that looked exactly the same as all the others.


    ¡°This is your tent group while you are here. You will meet the rest of the Century when they return from training.¡±


    ¡°When will that be?¡± Bruchts asked.


    ¡°Probably not until just before dinner.¡± Marius replied, ¡°So you can take a nap while you wait, or whatever, so long as you remain in your room until you are called.¡±


    With those instructions Marius walked off, leaving the boys in the room.


    ¡°It looks like some bunks are occupied.¡± Palinus commented.


    ¡°I guess the ones without the blankets must be free?¡± Bruchts conjectured.


    It took them a while to figure out that the existing occupants of the room had spaced themselves out. They found a bunk each and sat, waiting for something to happen.


    ¡°A hundred people seems like a lot of conscripts.¡± Palinus said thinking about the size of the building as he looked out the slat windows at the identical building next door.


    ¡°... and that would be just our century. There are at least two cohorts of at least seven centuries other than ours.¡± Bruchts added.


    ¡°That¡¯s hundreds of conscripts!¡± Rufian exclaimed, ¡° There can¡¯t be that many people here.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s at least one thousand four hundred conscripts, assuming the cohorts are full. But we know they aren¡¯t.¡± Bruchts corrected, gesturing at the several empty bunks.


    ¡°Uncle Ares said that the ¡®forever camp¡¯ was just for training and that we wouldn¡¯t be here long. Though he also said that some misfits stayed here forever¡­¡± Rufian said. ¡°He also said that I would probably wind up in a sack of snakes at the bottom of the river, and not to worry about it.¡±


    They talked idly for several hours as the afternoon passed, speculating on the other people in their century.


    <hr>


    Palinus was woken with a rough shove.


    ¡°Wake up you cabbage!¡± an unknown voice yelled in his face.


    Around him he heard a clattering as the building was full of frenetic activity and the tense voices of a lot of people trying to get stuff done and get somewhere quickly.


    ¡°Two Seven! Venite!¡± a yell came from down the hallway and the activity in the room hit another level as people streamed down the hallway while Palinus tried to collect himself.


    He followed the press of bodies out the door and onto the gravel pathway. It seemed like everyone knew where they were going as the conscripts around him ran to a specific spot in one of three files


    Trying to join the lines he was shoved repeatedly until every other recruit was in their assigned place in one of the three lines with Palinus, Rufian and Bruchts stood sheepishly beside them.


    Optio Magunnus marched down the gravel path in front of the lines of conscripts. He brought his feet together to halt and performed a right turn to face the century.


    ¡°Century, Intente!¡± The Optio ordered and the century stood to attention. ¡°Conscript Ramirus, Bruchts and Palinus. Venite ad Sin!¡±


    Understanding from a little gesture that they needed to come stand next to him the boys awkwardly marched around the rows of conscripts standing to attention.


    ¡°Conscript Ramirus, Bruchts and Palinus. Intente! Salute!¡±


    The boys stood to attention and gave a salute to conscripts standing at attention in front of him. Now that he could see the whole length of the lines he counted twenty two abreast with three lines meaning that there were sixty six in their century.


    ¡°Century Salutate!¡±


    ¡°Salutate!¡± The Century greeted the boys with a thump to their chest as they repeated the greeting.


    ¡°Conscript Caecilianus Dex. Move Dex!¡± Optio Magaunnus ordered the column, then turned to the boys and shouted in their face. ¡°Conscripts Venite!¡±


    With impressive efficiency about half the column in front of them raised their right fist to touch the conscript to their right and took a step to their right leaving a gap for the three boys to join.


    As Palinus marched into the formation he saw a face that stopped him halfway through his stride making Bruchts and Rufian behind him run into his back.


    ¡°...Seline?¡±

 Chapter 19 - Watered Wine and Old Friends.

    Chapter 19 - Watered Wine and Old Friends.


    Once the boys awkwardly joined the formation they were quickly ordered to march. The conscripts around them marched silently, but there was an eager bounce to their steps as they marched. Ahead they could see another century marching the same direction towards the administrative section of the Mustering Grounds.


    As they marched Palinus struggled with the urge to turn around and confront his childhood friend. He hadn¡¯t seen Seline for months, and the pain in his chest reignited as they marched the same direction only arms length away but he was unable to turn to greet her.


    ¡°...Pal pal.¡± Her voice whispered from behind him, he struggled to hold in his emotions as her voice made the pain of the past months burn. ¡°I¡¯ve missed you so much¡­¡±


    He heard her choke with emotion and he felt a warm tear rolling down his face.


    ¡°Get a room!¡± another female voice from behind Palinus said loudly, causing all the nearby conscripts in their century to shush them and ruining his chance to whisper back: I¡¯ve missed you too.


    Palinus recognised the second voice instantly and was deeply surprised to hear it, a raised eyebrow on Bruchts face beside him showing he shared the emotion. Palinus could understand how Seline would wind up joining the military, but Vesuvia was Magister Fredisians daughter and practically a princess of the 7th hill.


    Marching awkwardly still, not quite used to the pace and standard of the actual military even in this training group, Palinus had to focus on what he was doing to avoid falling out of step, his mind burned with questions and his heart was beating in his chest, he choked a sob and tried to wipe a tear out of his eye without anyone noticing.


    Eventually the limbo ended as they reached an enormous open air dining hall. Under the tiled roof hundreds of bench seats were filled with conscripts and soldiers eating. The dining area, despite not having walls, was filled with the noise of talking and eating.


    As they were bustled along lines of servers into the area they were handed a plank of wood with a ceramic bowl and a cup. The line progressed swiftly as their cup was filled with a ladle of wine and the bowl was filled with a larger ladle of soup, they also got a handful of olives and a hunk of bread which they took to an empty row of bench seats.


    The fluttering in his belly rose as they sat in their formation groups. He would be able to talk to Seline and his mind began to race as he considered what he would say to her. He had pushed his pain away for months, when he needed her support the most¡­ she had vanished.


    He was hurt.


    They had made a plan to leave together.


    But she had left without him. Or so he thought.


    As his plank touched the table and as he met her green eyes his mind went blank.


    ¡°Oh, blessings to the hearth¡­ it is so good to have some nice boys from the hill joining us!¡± Vesuvia enthusiastically greeted them, she spoke too loudly as she twirled and flicked her long light brown hair. ¡°Eeevryone in the century is from the 2nd hill and they are just so booooring. Oh not you Augustus, you are a gem.¡±


    She started talking and didn¡¯t stop for a breath as Palinus and Seline stared at each other with Bruchts and Rufian politely grunting along as they ate with gusto.


    ¡°I¡­ I thought you had left m-¡­ I thought you had left.¡± Palinus said softly.


    ¡°That night¡­¡± Seline said breathlessly. ¡°You left the dormitories.¡±


    She took a moment to gather herself.


    ¡°I followed you.¡±


    ¡°No, you didn¡¯t.¡± he countered, his voice rising and an edge of pain sent a flood of water to his eyes as tears began to fall unbidden. ¡°I didn¡¯t see you, and then you were gone! I looked for you.¡±


    ¡°I did. I followed you into the backways¡­ but I lost you.¡± She struggled with the memory as a fresh tear came to her face. ¡°I found a rift, and there were bodies...¡±


    Her voice hardened and she shook her head.


    ¡°I thought you were...one of them. So, I went to look...and I got too close.¡± She had a sad look on her face. ¡°I wanted to come back, but they wouldn¡¯t let me.¡±


    She tried to smile, but it didn¡¯t reach her eyes.


    ¡°For a while, they thought it was me. Just another savage Silvanian witch¡­ of course they just blamed me and threw me in the holding cells.¡±


    Her eyes burnt fiercely.


    ¡°It was weeks. Weeks with a bench and a bucket. Then all of a sudden the Censor came and got me out.¡±


    The smile on her face took him aback.


    ¡°Did he do the tests?¡± Palinus asked weakly, unsure how to react to the news that the friend he thought was free and living large was held captive for weeks.


    ¡°Oh yes,¡± Shge laughed again. ¡°That was fun, but Marius said I¡¯d see you again soon and I guess he was right. So here we are¡­¡±


    Palinus didn¡¯t know what to say so he took a spoonful of the soup.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± She said, ¡°I¡¯m sorry we didn¡¯t leave sooner. I didn¡¯t listen then.¡±


    Her eyes had an expression of pity. It hurt more than the memories.


    ¡°I thought¡­ I¡¯m s-... Never mind.¡± He said firmly, ¡°You didn¡¯t leave on purpose, and once we are finished with this ¡®Prima Disciplina¡¯ nonsense, we will be on our way out of the capital!¡±


    ¡°Too right!¡± Rufian chimed in with his cup of wine in the air.


    The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.


    ¡°Sit Saluti!¡± Vesuvia added boisterously, raising her cup.


    Palinus responded with a raised cup and took a swig. The wine was watered and sour.


    <hr>


    Drinking bad wine watered down was the most minor of the discomforts of the Prima Disciplina.


    The boys struggled with the schedule of the training.


    They were up before dawn and marched around as a big group most of the time. Wherever they went, they needed to rush from place to place with scarcely any time for essentials like going to the bathroom and when they did get time to themselves they were always surrounded by conscripts trying to do the same thing.


    For all the rushing they did, it didn¡¯t matter. They still got yelled at constantly. Even worse, there was no point to the rushing or yelling. They almost always got where they needed to go and had to sit around waiting for something to happen.


    The days blurred with a quickly familiar pattern.


    At the start of the day they marched to a training ground and exercised until they could barely stand before they had breakfast.


    Then they had training where they practised marching and weapons drills until their brains melted and their feet and arms felt like they were about to fall off.


    After lunch, that was always the same bland but filling soup, they would attend lessons.


    All of the lectures followed a particular style where a soldier shouted facts at them and punctuated their sentences by slapping a rod of wood at notes prewritten on large albumstone tablets. When the rod wasn¡¯t slapping the tablet, it was slapping the conscripts.


    In their first lecture they learnt about the structure of the Erulean Over-Legion and that this structure was loosely also used by the Under-Legion and Auxilia. They found out that the little group they marched with was called a decio made up of ten soldiers, every decio is commanded by the next rank up from a legionnaire called a decurion. A century was made of ten decios.


    Palinus was able to follow the lecture up until this point. Ten tens make a hundred, got it. Easy. A part of his brain unconsciously filled in the details of the next step, 10 hundreds would neatly make a thousand, right? No, that would be stupid!


    Each legion in the Over-Legion was different and that they had two to ten cohorts of three to five centuries. Then they all had a support cohort, or multiple cohorts, that weren¡¯t always ranked as legionnaires and could serve a myriad of functions from siege magic to cavalry. Palinus listened to the lecturer drone through the structure of the twenty odd Over-Legions and he was nearly asleep as the soldier finished. He had gone on to explain that the Under-Legion broke all the rules and that they weren¡¯t worth explaining, he was even more dismissive as he summed up the Auxilia organisation as a disorganised rabble that was a disrespectful mockery of the Over-Legion.


    *WHACK*


    *WHACK*


    *WHACK*


    Palinus wasn¡¯t sure when he had nodded off but the feeling of the wooden rod hitting him over the shoulder swiftly roused him. He jerked his head up to see grizzled decurion lecturing them channelling an ars down his arm to the rod in his hand still standing by the large tablet at the lectern. Palinus was not the only one struck by the ars as he heard the noise of the rod striking echoed through the forum with a snort or a startled shriek accompanying the blow as it woke a conscript.


    ¡°You need to know this to avoid a flogging!¡± The soldier lecturing them stated, ¡°It is not my skin that will suffer the lash and I don¡¯t speak for my own edification.¡±


    ¡°You DO NOT salute a non-commissioned officer:


    Decarion - commands a decario


    Cornicem - handles signalling and messages for a century


    Signifer - carries the icon of the century, manages the war chest, pay and supplies


    Tessarius - manages the watch and is the third in command of a century


    Aquilifer - carries the Aquila which is a banner, or the equivalent emblem of the legion ¡±


    Starting with the red plume that he had on his helmet that marked him as a Decarion the lecturer explained how the different ranks could be identified. The NCOs were generally marked by something relating to their function and did not have ostentatious armour.


    *WHACK*


    *WHACK*


    *WHACK*


    Another round of the rod striking conscripts was channelled by the decarion, this time Palinus was awake and avoided getting hit.


    ¡°You ALWAYS salute a commissioned officer:


    Optio - Second in command of a century


    Centurion - Commands a century


    Primus pilus, the first spear- Commands the first century of the Legion


    Tribunus angusticlavii - One to six tribunes shared command of the cohorts


    Praefectus castrorum, the camp prefect - Third in charge of a Legion and commander of the first cohort


    Tribunus laticlavius, the broad striped tribune - Second in command of a legion and generally a younger man learning to take command.


    Legatus - The legate commands the Legion.¡±


    The Decurion explained the means to identify each rank as he ran through the commissioned officers.


    *WHACK*


    *WHACK*


    *WHACK*


    Another round of blows struck at the conscripts.


    ¡°If they have a white plume or cloak, with fancy armour. You¡¯d better bloody salute.¡± He summed up simply. ¡°The fancier the armour or the taller the plume, the faster you''re going to want to salute¡­ and if someone is walking around with a white robe you¡¯d best salute so hard you make your heart skip a beat. Understood!¡±


    ¡°Understood Decarion!¡± The more switched on in the class repeated.


    -rstood Decarion!¡±  and the stragglers caught up.


    After the afternoon lessons they would do more training until it was time for dinner.


    Then they would return to their bunks and sleep until it was time to do it all again.


    <hr>


    The training itself was focused on mind numbing repetition of marching drills, weapon skills or tactical formations. Learning the commands and the intricate dances of turning and marching as a unit or the way to hold a spear or gladius while maintaining a shield wall required ridiculous repetition and attention.


    ¡°When are we EVER going to have to turn in a perfectly even wheel on the battlefield. It is so stupid¡­¡±


    Rufian complained endlessly that that was the sort of thing only the Over-Legion cared about and that marching around in circles in a perfect formation was pointless in a rift. He was deep into a rant about the pointlessness of their drilling that day when he was overheard by Centurion Armiger walking through the hallway of the barracks.


    The entire century was turned out of their bunks to stand outside in the dark to hear the dressing down.


    ¡°You would never make the cut for the Over Legion you piss stain.¡± Armiger yelled. ¡°You practise the formations of the Legion so that you can learn what a REAL soldier looks like. If we are deployed to extract you from a rift in hostile territory you need to be able to join the century seamlessly under fire.¡±


    Turning to the century he yelled.


    ¡°You can thank Conscript Ramirus for the additional practice this evening later.¡±


    After an additional hour of marching the century were happy to let Rufian know how much they appreciated it. The bruises were so bad Rufian couldn¡¯t move properly but the Centurion refused to allow the boys to take him to the infirmary.


    ¡°That would be a waste.¡± Centurion Armiger chuckled evilly.


    The next day they found out why.

 Chapter 20 - Commence Sureties

    Chapter 20 - Commence Sureties


    Horns blared a warbling alarm as always to start the day.


    Today they blasted with a bit more gusto and they kept going for longer than the normal morning routine. The century raced to get dressed and ready with even more frantic energy.


    ¡°What¡¯s got everyone so worked up?¡± Palinus asked a roommate.


    ¡°It¡¯s seventh day you shit stain!¡± he yelled over his shoulder as if that explained the urgency.


    The boys raced to get ready and out the door to the spot on the gravel path where they assembled. They were fortunate to be in the middle section of the barracks which meant they were in the middle pack to get to the lavatories and the rush to get out the door so they were not the last to get in position.


    The last of the century to get out the door were stopped by Optio Magunnus who stood next to the door.


    ¡°For failure of duty you will each receive one lash!¡± The Optio yelled in the faces of the stragglers, they accepted their fates with a range of expressions but no audible complaints and joined the century.


    As they got underway they were amongst the last barracks to be leaving the sleeping quarters as along the gravel paths they could see several other centuries marching towards the big parade ground which sat at the back of the camp, overlooked by the hill fort and sprawling forest.


    It was a formidable sight with hundreds of young people gathering in formation in the neat rows of their centuries. Their brown tunics making the red legion soldiers and the various colours of officer and auxilia uniforms stand out as they stood amongst the youths.


    In front of each century stood ten wooden frames that looked like tall sturdy fence posts. From the top of the posts hung a piece of leather on a long cord and below each there was a subtle red stain to the fine brown gravel.


    As their century arrived they were expertly wheeled into position and stood to attention with orders delivered by Centurion Armiger.


    On a raised stage in front stood half a dozen men wearing white robes, they were older looking men barring one man with a smiling face staring up at the hill behind him. They looked nothing like soldiers as they sat on little chairs compared to the a muscular man standing beside them. He was wearing a Legion Uniform that was so heavily adorned that it looked like it was made of gold standing on the stage and staring out at the conscripts with a hard expression. His white cloak billowed behind him and the plume on his helmet stood almost farcically tall over his head and cascading down his back. Palinus guessed that he would be the Primus Pilus, the first spear and an impressive figure.


    They were fortunate to not have to wait long under the primus¡¯s glare as the last century arrived. Once their centurion ordered them to a halt the primus took a step forward and brought his heel down. The men sitting on the seats on the stage stood up behind him, with far less military precision.


    ¡°Legion, Salute!¡± The voice of the Primus Pilus was impossibly loud from where they were standing nearly 60 metres away.


    THUMP!


    Thump!


    Thump!


    There was a solid thump as every conscript and soldier hit their chest over their hearts as hard as they could. With more than a thousand people, the echo of fists on chests rang out like a bell through the parade ground.


    On the stage the primus gave a crisp salute in return and the tribunii behind him gave sloppy slaps to their chest.


    ¡°Legion, laxarte!¡±


    With the primus¡¯s command the legion released their salute and as one moved their right foot to stand at a more relaxed position with their hands behind their back.


    On the stage the oldest of the men in robes shuffled forward and the Primus turned as he approached, sharing a salute. The older tribune had a robe with gold edging and carried golden staff. He held his hand to his ear like you might in a rift to speak to the team and as he spoke his words sounded as if they were coming from right next to Palinus as he listened intently.


    ¡°You may have heard that there has been some¡­*Hurk*¡± He gave a wet cough as he spoke and he sounded ancient. From the embellishment on his robe Palinus realised that he would be the Legate and the first in command of the legion ¡°... changes in the city. I can confirm that we do indeed serve a new emperor.¡±


    There was a susurrus amongst the crowded conscripts as they vocalised their concern. The delayed news was perplexing to Palinus, as he barely paid attention to the goings on in the empire but even he knew that this had occurred over a week ago.


    ¡°We continue to serve the Empire of Erulea, and we will continue to serve the new Tyrant as we have the old emperor.¡±


    ¡°All Hail Tyrant Octavius.¡± Beside the aged legate the Primus Pilus projected.


    ¡°ALL HAIL TYRANT OCTAVIUS!¡±


    The response thundered across the parade ground. It felt like the ground shook with their voices.


    ¡°With these trying times¡­ we must be doubly vigilant to those who fail to heed their duty to the empire. So, today, and moving forward¡­ we will be doubly hard on those of you who fail to live up to their duty.¡± The legate stated this matter of factly with a slow drawling voice, but something about the words and the voice made his skin itch as he listened to the man. ¡°And so, you will be receiving twice the punishment for failures. Be glad¡­ that you can only give one life to Erulea.¡±


    With his short speech finished the legate turned to sit in his chair and the Primus took over the proceedings.


    ¡°Centuries, commence sureties!¡±


    The command triggered a cascade of movement amongst the soldiers standing beside the conscripts.


    Centurion Armiger and Optio Magunnus had been standing beside the century as they stood for the briefing, now they marched around the century to stand before the wooden frames.


    ¡°Second cohort, seventh century intente!¡± Optio Magunnus called the century to attention.


    As the Optio called out there was an echoing chaos of yells around the parade ground as the commanders of the various centuries called out the same instructions.


    ¡°Conscript Denefer, Conscript Albius, step forward.¡± Centurion Armiger called. The two conscripts stepped forward, Palinus wasn¡¯t sure what they had done to deserve being called out but Albius was always late and always seemed to be doing the wrong thing. Not so much out of malice but due to an ill fit with the structure of the training.


    Once the conscripts stood before the century, Centurion Armiger paused. Several drums at the front of the legion began to beat a thumping rhythm.


    ¡°Nominated conscripts you will repeat the Sacramentum. May the reminder of your duty help you serve the Empire.¡±


    At a specific point in the beat Centurion Armiger began reciting.


    ¡°That I shall never desert the service so long as Erulea stands!¡±


    ¡°That I shall never desert the service so long as Erulea stands!¡±


    The Sacramentum echoed strangely around the parade grounds with several conscripts from each century performing the ritual at the same time. The palpable weight to the words was multiplied hearing them delivered amongst the whole legion and Palinus gulped, glad he had not been called out to do this. As he listened, he could hear a sigh of relief from Rufian standing behind him who must have been thinking the same.


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    He did not escape the punishment delivered that day however.


    As the Sacrementum concluded the conscripts who were forced to take it again looked drained as they returned at a stumble to their places in the century.


    ¡°First Decio, step forward!¡± Optio Magunnus ordered and the nine conscripts in the first decio marched around from the right side to stand before the century.


    ¡°Conscript Albius, Conscript Rofarian, Conscript Iferio!¡± Centurion Armiger called the conscripts names. They responded by stepping towards the posts. They placed their hands against them and gripped the leather bit in their mouths.


    The drums began to beat again, this time with a slow counting beat with a double beat at every interval of five. A swelling of essentia emanated from the Centurion¡¯s shoulder and as the beat hit it¡¯s next double count he brought down his arm with a whipping motion and three streaks of red light slapped against the backs of the three conscripts.


    As soon as the strikes landed the centurion''s arm was raised for the next strike which came down again on the next drum beat. On the third beat only two strikes landed as the conscript on the right flinched for a strike that didn¡¯t come.


    The blows continued as Conscript Albius racked up an impressive twenty four strikes against his back. As the next beat came from the drum and no blow followed he slumped to the ground. Palinus felt sorry for the boy, he was drained from the sacramentum already and the blows from the whip looked like they were not physically substantial but left narrow scorches on the areas of bare skin that were visible around the conscripts'' tunics.


    ¡°First Decio, fall in!¡± Optio Magunnus ordered the remaining members, ignoring the conscript on the ground.


    ¡°Second Decio, step forward!¡±


    A pair of soldiers carrying a stretcher marched formally through the legion to come and pick Albius up. As the second decio received their lashes they saw several sets of stretchers marching conscripts that needed medical attention from other centuries past them.


    Their decio was the sixth and they watched as several sets of whippings were handed out before their turn. It seemed like the punishment was common as most decio¡¯s had at least one conscript receiving lashes.


    As their turn approached they watched as the ten conscripts from decio in front of them stepped forward. Centurion Armiger cracked a rare smile as Optio Magunnus called no-one forward for punishment. Palinus knew them to be a group of boys from the 2nd hill, mostly the sons of soldiers and military officials, they were Centurion Armiger¡¯s favourites. They stood proudly as the drums beat for the other centuries.


    ¡°Fifth decio, fall in!¡± Optio Magunnus ordered the group to return to the century; they still wore smug expressions that irked Palinus as they returned to the place.


    ¡°Sixth decio, step forward!¡± The decio containing Palinus and his friends from the 7th hill were called and the group stepped forward. Compared to the fifth decio they looked like a ragtag group, with the two girls and Palinus¡¯s friends being so new they did not look like the shiny golden boys of the previous decio and Centurion Armiger¡¯s smile swiftly vanished to be replaced with his standard scowl.


    ¡°Conscript Ramirus, Conscript Fredisian, Conscript Bruchts, Conscript Seline!¡± Palinus¡¯s friends were all called forward. He knew this was coming for Bruchts and Rufian but hearing the girls¡¯ names called he felt a flash of panic thinking he might be called out too. As soon as the optio stopped and he realised he wasn¡¯t called he started to feel guilty for his cowardice. Realising he was the only one in the decio not receiving a punishment the feeling of guilt multiplied.


    He watched with a clenched fist as his friends old and new gripped the leather in their mouths. Rufian didn¡¯t take the leather bit.


    From Palinus¡¯s position he saw Optio Magunnus almost move to try to gesture for him to put it in, but he was forced to remain in place with a grimacing expression. The Centurion had his back turned to Palinus, so he couldn¡¯t see his face but the clench of his fist indicated that the commanding soldier took that as a challenge.


    The drums beat their slow rhythm.


    Rufian took the far left posts, he stood tall as if he was leaning on a wall and having a pleasant chat with Vesuvia beside him. Bruchts had his shoulders clenched, and Palinus could see him glancing with concern at their friend.


    Vesuvia and Rufian shared a glance and Palinus could swear he saw Vesuvia wink. She and Rufian were more alike than they might admit.


    The first line of the drum beat crawled. As the bar ended with it¡¯s doubled strike and the first beat signalled the whipping to begin, Palinus flinched.


    *Crack*-ack*-ack*-ack*


    The multi-strike of the fiery lash made four vicious welts on his friend¡¯s backs.


    The sense of survivor''s remorse swelled again. He couldn''t watch his friends being punished while he wasn¡¯t and he shut his eyes before the second drum beat could signal another round of strikes. At first all he heard was stoney silence from his friends, the whimpers that had escaped from conscripts from previous decio¡¯s was conspicuously absent as the ars empowered rod struck their backs.


    Brucht¡¯s and Silene¡¯s punishment ended after two strikes, leaving Vesuvia and Rufian at the posts. As they took the 5th lash without complaint a sniggering noise caused Palinus to open his eyes.


    With their hands still on the posts Rufian and Vesuvia were craning their necks to look at each other and nearly laughing as they were flogged.


    It looked like Centurion Armiger was about to pop as he went a deep shade of red and he started putting more force into the whipping motion. His grunts as he administered the 7th and 8th lash made the two youths from the 7th hill struggle not to laugh even more.


    After the 8th strike finished both Vesuvia and Rufian turned to face the century with smirks on their faces. As if they had been told off by a master at the gymnasium rather than receiving corporal punishment.


    The centurion was holding back a snarl and as the 9th beat of the drum continued the punishment for other conscripts his hand twitched as if he was considering adding some lashes to Rufian and Vesuvia¡¯s punishment.


    They were smart to avoid saying or doing anything to challenge him further as they fell back into the century at Optio Magunnus¡¯s orders.


    The decio after them glared daggers at them as they received their lashes from a pissed off centurion but the rest of the brutal ceremony passed without further note. Palinus was puzzled by his friends behaviour, he could see the lashe¡¯s impact, there was no way that it didn¡¯t hurt. Yet Rufian and Vesuvia looked completely unbothered.


    As the last conscript received the last lash administered for the day the drum beat changed.


    It started speeding up and was joined by several more drums to begin a looping tattoo that was joined by the various signalling horns to create a thrilling tune that stirred the conscripts up.


    Palinus started to feel like he was drunk and ready for a fight as the music stirred something within him.


    Suddenly the music stopped.


    The primus pilus stood up at the lectern on the stage.


    The conscripts standing around him were already silent, but an excited energy built as they waited for him to say something mirrored in their eager postures leaning forward in excitement.


    ¡°Due to a surplus of sanguine essentia Tribune Asterius has prepared a fully powered essentia scenario.¡±


    There was a susurrus amongst the conscripts as they reacted to the news, it was apparently quite exciting as the youths struggled to stand still. The young tribune behind the primus was beaming at them and gave a wave as his name was mentioned.


    The primus continued.


    ¡°Cohort one takes the hill for field exercises. Legion, dismissed!¡±


    There was a moment of silence as the formation of hundreds of soldiers and conscripts digested the news, there was almost a cheer from the other side of the parade ground but around Palinus the news was not as good as their century and the others amongst the 2nd cohort around subaudibly grumbled.


    The soldiers around the various centuries began to order the conscripts forwards off the parade ground, but as they were towards the back of the formation the 7th Century had to wait.


    Palinus took the opportunity to quietly ask the conscripts around him. ¡°What is going on?¡±


    ¡°The field exercises¡­ we were supposed to be hill side this rotation.¡± Vesuvia answered quietly.


    ¡°-and we were due a spot in the rear guard after last week''s debacle¡­¡± A conscript from another decio whispered sharply from behind them there was grumbling agreement and muffled curses.


    ¡°Rear of the forest is better than the front of the hill!¡± Vesuvia added cheerfully. ¡°We¡¯ll get some time to sit around camp before our thrashing.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s basically a cohort vs cohort battle¡­ and the hill side almost always wins.¡± Seline whispered, filling him in. ¡°At least we won¡¯t be in the swamps again¡­¡±


    The conscripts around him fell into silence as they waited.


    ¡°How were you able to take that beating?¡± Bruchts whispered with concern to Rufian.


    Rufian chuckled and gestured at Vesuvia.


    She winked in response and sneakily pulled at the neck of her collar to reveal a gleaming white calculii set below her collarbone.


    Before Palinus could ask about it¡¯s ars the century was ordered into a march towards the battleground of the hill versus the forest.


    He could see why the hill side would have an advantage as the centuries in the 1st Cohort marched away from them towards the fort that stood on the hill. As he stared up at it from the bottom Palinus could see there were several smaller towers poking up on the slope.


    With a gulp he imagined the effort of climbing the hill. Fighting up it seemed like an impossible task.


    As the path they travelled skirted the hill and diverged towards the scrubby forest, they started to get a sense of the wooded area which featured pockets of trees that obstructed vision and looked impassably dense. Amongst the thick stands of trees and bush were passages of shadowed bushes, tall grass and meadows that created maze-like paths through the forest. Standing watch over the trail they walked past a tower on their right; it stood standing guard, watching over the entrance to the forest


    Looking through the doorway, Palinus caught a glimpse of what lay within: a spiralling staircase to the crenellated battlements at the top. Flickering in the shadows of the room, he could feel as much with his essentia as see with his eyes, the prismatic light of a mature rift.

 Chapter 21 - What Lies within the Tower.

    Chapter 21 - What Lies within the Tower.


    <blockquote>


    Commander Training Legion, II, VII


    By request of Censor VII you are ordered to assume the defence of the left side. Proceed there directly and await further instruction. Armicustos Cico will meet you at the River Tower with supply.


    Primus Pilus Laudanus


    </blockquote>


    As the 7th Century followed the 6th ahead of them a runner wearing an Auxilia uniform burst out from within the forest and stopped them as he pulled Centurion Armiger aside with a slip of vellum handed over.


    The centurion''s face twisted in confusion and frustration as he read the orders contained in the note. Crumpling the vellum he stuffed it under his breastplate as he turned to address the conscripts.


    ¡°Century, it appears that the normal rotation of duties has been adjusted¡­ instead of a break at the rearguard we will be in the vanguard... Again.¡±


    The bitter look on the centurion''s face was echoed by the century who muttered under their breaths and kicked at rocks along the path as they turned around and walked back the way they came, then wheeled left at the base of the hill to march towards the river. The frustrations mounted as they mourned the loss of a plum position on the side that always wins to suddenly being sent to the worst part of the battleground.


    ¡°I only got the smell of mud out of my hair yesterday.¡± Vesuvia moaned too loudly, but it seemed like Optio Magunnus marching off to their right agreed with the sentiment and didn¡¯t reprimand her. ¡°At least it will be quick and we can go back to the barracks early!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s strange we are being ordered directly to our position early and getting field supplied.¡± Silene whispered to Palinus.


    ¡°Why is that?¡± he asked in response.


    ¡°Normally we would be going with everyone else to the Forest Fort and getting orders, weapons and supplies from there.¡± She was deep in thought. ¡°I think there is something going on and I¡¯m really not sure what it is. Maybe it has something to do with the high essentia battlefield and Tribune Asterius¡¯s modifications.¡±


    ¡°Uncle Ares talks about Asterius all the time.¡± Rufian interjected into their whispered conversation. ¡°He says that he is a genius and a revolutionary non-uniform colour theorist¡­ he also says he is a mad man¡­¡±


    ¡°If Ares say¡¯s he¡¯s mad, he must be pretty eccentric¡­¡± Bruchts said.


    A hiss and a sharp glare from Macunnus cut off further conversation as they marched.


    <hr>


    The path they followed started to get muddy as they marched down towards the river. Around them the forest changed from a dry woodland scrub to wet, gnarled and boggy stands of trees with patches of reeds and pools of water from the meandering river. They could see their destination out in front of them, a stone tower peeking out from the forest on their left with the river not far behind. To their right, perched on the lower slope of the hill stood a tall matching tower standing over them ominously.


    As he imagined attacking the hill tower, Palinus looked over the ground in the way. A swath of marshy fields that was dotted with low prickly bushes and patches of brackish water disguised by thin layers of water plants waiting for a wayward sandal to step in and test their depth. That was before they even reached the hill itself, it was a nightmare.


    Soon they had arrived at the tower and were greeted by a grouchy Armicustos Cico standing beside a donkey cart and yelling at an assistant shuffling around a pile of boxes.


    ¡°Why in Vestra¡¯s fiery crotch am I doing a personalised delivery to a pack of babies out in this mud pit?¡± She ranted at the centurion and at the conscripts. ¡°We spend all week stocking the forts so we don¡¯t have to do this sort of rubbish.¡±


    With a swift series of orders from Optio Magunnus several decios were dispatched to set up camps around the tower with supplies they were issued rapidly from the boxes on the cart.


    Fortunately the 6th decio, which included Palinus and his friends, were assigned to the tower defence and avoided trying to find a patch of land that was dry and flat enough for camp. They got to set up in an alcove under the spiral stairs up to the battlements, quickly setting up their bedrolls and not having a tent to set up meant they had little else to do so they were assigned to help pulling more boxes down from the cart and into the fort. They helped make piles of supplies around the edge, leaving a wide space around the rift which dominated the centre of the room casting it''s vibrant light.


    Moving the boxes around they got to hear more of Cico¡¯s venom.


    ¡°... and what possesses the Primus to swing his meat spear around like this? I don¡¯t even know. He¡¯s never bothered to change up the intercohort exercises before.¡± Cico was still ranting even as the unpacking was finished.


    ¡°It is probably more the work of Tribune Asterius if you ask me.¡± Optio Magunnus chimed in.


    ¡°Incorrect on both fronts. Stop gossiping like fishwives and get-.¡± Centurion Armiger growled at the two. Though a sharp glare from Armicustos Cico made him backtrack, ¡°-let us help you on your way.¡±


    The armicustos held her sharp glare with the centurion for a moment before snorting and moving to a clear patch of ground in the tower. She began to channel essentia for an ars that Palinus didn¡¯t recognise, though it seemed to be something that took a considerable amount of essentia and focus as she stared at the empty space with her hands spread.


    ¡°What rank is an Armicustos, it seems like even Armiger is deferential to her to let her rant like that.¡± Palinus wondered aloud as he watched the leadership group while his team mates fussed around with the gear assigned to them.


    ¡°She is an NCO so she doesn¡¯t have a commission. An armicustos is like a special kind of signifer. You are about to see why she is so important and even Armiger wouldn''t want to piss her off.¡± Silene answered quietly.


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    Palinus must have blinked as the empty spot on the floor that Armicustos Cico stood over was filled in a moment with several sturdy looking boxes. He let out a soft gasp.


    Armicustos Cico must have heard them as she waved her hands with a flourish and posed with the boxes like a salesman showing off their prized wares.


    ¡°All signifers have some sort of storage ars to keep the century¡¯s war chest safe. To be an Armicustos you need to be able to hold at least three hundred weapons as well as a payments chest.¡± She bragged as she wiped her hands dramatically and signalled to her assistant that they were leaving.


    One box she had summoned looked familiar, it reminded Palinus of the wand box they found only the other week. Standing with his team it felt like a lifetime since their adventures in the back ways.


    Outside the decios surrounding the tower had begun to finish setting up their campsites. Once they had the bed rolls down, covered with canvas tents and fires started they cooked the rations provided for their breakfast: the standard filling porridge of oats cooked in milk and honey with dried fruits.


    The smell of porridge Bruchts was cooking up in the small fire set in the narrow firepit made Palinus¡¯s stomach rumble. He was getting used to the generous portions and rigid timings of the Training Legion and the delay in getting out to the tower and set up meant they were having a very late breakfast.


    Each decio in turn was called into the tower and Palinus sitting with the sixth decio in their spot eating their meal watched as each opened the sturdy boxes. Each conscript was armed by Optio Magunnus or Centurion Armiger as they took their turn.


    Most of the century were young men, and the more physically inclined made up the majority. These conscripts were given a gladius made of wood and a squared wooden shield with a painted face depicting a stylistic two and a fluffy eaglet that referenced their training legion and cohort.


    Some decios which included women or the less stereotypically over-legion looking men were offered alternative choices including bows, throwing spears and slings. Most interestingly of all, certain conscripts within the century were offered a choice from the box which Palinus recognized.


    His suspicion of the box was proven correct when as they approached for their turn. Optio Magunnus held the box open for him. Inside were half a dozen remaining wands which were armed with cubed calculii that glowed dully.


    ¡°They are only training wands,¡± The optio advised. ¡° They¡¯ll knock a conscript on their arse but shouldn¡¯t do any lethal damage¡­ or at least they aren¡¯t supposed to. Just don¡¯t go around blasting people repeatedly on the ground, especially in the rift.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re going into the rift!?¡± Palinus asked excitedly.


    Magunnus laughed.


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t get too excited, kid. Rifts in even a mock battlefield are a meat grinder. Ol¡¯ stinky here,¡± He gestured at the rift dominating the middle of the tower. ¡°It¡¯s the worst of them all. Anyway, the centurion generally prefers to send in a more defensive team, so it¡¯s probably not your problem. You¡¯ve got an overwatch spot though, so be thankful you''re not sleeping in the mud¡­ if the battle even lasts to nightfall.¡±


    Reaching into the box Palinus could feel a specific wand in the box that spoke to him. It looked like it was just about the perfect attunement, as if it had been picked out for him. As he pulled out the wand the optio nodded and smiled and Palinus suspected that it might well have been chosen for him. His attunement was apparently relatively remarkable according to the Censor.


    "Do we have any chance of winning?" palinus asked the optio.


    Magunnus laughed again, shaking his head with mirth.


    "No." he answered simply. "The last time the forest side won was more than a decade ago. That was back when Podi... Tyrant Octavius was here. So yeah... no."


    As they returned to their spot under the stairs and waited for further instruction Palinus felt strangely disappointed. Something inside him wanted to go into the rift and wanted to win. Intellectually he couldn¡¯t place why he had that feeling, he had never been a risk taker as a child and he generally preferred to avoid conflict. Why now did he feel a sense of bloodlust?


    The feeling of introspection was still unfamiliar to him. Ever since their time in the rift he had been noticing more and feeling like he was smarter and more capable, he supposed that the drive within him might be something to do with the empowerment from the rift.


    As he reflected on his own mental state Palinus looked around at his teammates. Silene and Bruchts busied themselves organising packs. They laughed and joked as they separated the rations from the box provided and Silene directed Bruchts on how to organise the individual packs. She threw objects accross the space into the packs that Bruchts held open, showing off her skills they landed neatly into the pack with little effort.


    Vesuvia and Rufian sat side by side on bedrolls. They weren¡¯t talking or moving much at all.


    Instead they stared hungrily at the rift.


    ¡°Psst¡­ Psstt¡­¡±


    From behind Palinus heard the soft noises of someone trying to get his attention. No-one else in his team seemed to notice, focused on their task or the rift.


    Turning slowly to the noise Palinus peered into the shadowy corner below the stairs.


    Deep in the corner was a crack of light, a small doorway disguised as the stonework under the stairs stood open only a sliver to reveal a face lit by a torch. Palinus instantly recognised Marius, but below Marius¡¯s face was another man who peered out from the crack who must have been crouched below.


    Palinus¡¯s face twisted with confusion and the two men smiled widely beckoning him to come over and pulling the doorway open further to reveal that the tower¡¯s spiralling stairs also went downwards.


    As he moved slowly towards the door something about the gleam on the unknown man¡¯s face made Palinus hesitate.


    From behind the man Marius noticed the hesitation and began to frantically signal.


    *Finger to lips*


    The universal signal to be quiet


    *Hand with open palm waving towards himself*


    Palinus knew that one too, it meant he needed to come to them.


    *Three knuckles tapping twice on his shoulder and pointing to the unknown man*


    That signal was unfamiliar but it was something to do with a Legion rank.


    *Saluting while shaking his head*


    Saluting was obvious, but the additional headshake was definitely not a standard signal.


    *Hand with open palm waving towards himself, but this time more urgently*


    Palinus didn¡¯t understand what Marius was trying to signal but the frustration on the decurion¡¯s face ultimately made up his mind to come to them quietly.


    Creeping over to the men they opened the door just wide enough for Palinus to squeeze through and they quietly closed the hidden door behind him.


    Moving silently away from the door they crept down the stairs spiralling below the tower.


    As they finally came to a landing at least as deep as the tower was tall they paused.


    The unknown man turned in the torchlight. Palinus could see now that he was a younger man than Marius and the iris of his eyes glowed subtly with a red lustre that matched the man¡¯s smouldering intensity. As he made a wide flourish with his hands and channelled essentia into a panel on the landing the stairwell began to light up with a soft glowing light in which Palinus caught a flash of the white robe beneath his dark cloak.


    Palinus finally realised who the man was with a gasp.


    ¡°Welcome, Palinus,¡± The intense man said dramatically. ¡°To the tomb of the First Tyrant.¡±

 Chapter 22 - The Tomb of the First Tyrant

    Chapter 22 - The Tomb of the First Tyrant


    The gloomy light gradually filled the stairwell beneath the tower revealing the depth that they already stood with the stairs they had passed down spiralling up above them. The stone walls glistened with moisture and patches of moss filled the gaps in the stonework of the outer wall which contrasted the pristine stone of the inner wall.


    Palinus was on edge.


    Being lured away from his teammates and descending into the unknown with the bipolar Decurion and the enigmatic stranger was pushing him beyond uncomfortable. His suspicions of the identity of his personal tour guide, the extent of the tomb and its historic occupant was sending him over the edge.


    ¡°Woah,¡± he said simply.


    ¡°The Tomb of the First Tyrant!¡± the man said again, looking for more reaction.


    ¡°Yeah. um. You said.¡± Palinus replied. ¡°Are you Tribune Asterius?¡±


    ¡°Oh¡­¡± The tribune seemed deflated, ¡°I mean. I am, but aren¡¯t you at least a little bit amazed?¡±


    ¡°I am.¡± Palinus agreed. ¡°It¡¯s a ¡­ um¡­ amazing doorway? In a¡­ really deep stairway.¡±


    Watching as the awkward encounter unfolded Marius finally intervened by cuffing Palinus on the head.


    ¡°You need to show respect to the tribune.¡±


    Tribune Asterius blew a wet raspberry


    ¡°I only have a rank because of my work in the nexus''s, I don¡¯t really do any of the legion ¡®walk around in lines and yell at each other¡­¡¯¡±


    Palinus couldn¡¯t help but laugh at the incongruity and the tribune was quick to laugh along as Marius¡¯s face twisted into the grimacing smile of an amused but disappointed father.


    ¡°Anyway, let¡¯s focus on why we are here!¡± Asterius recovered and his intensity came back as he bounced on his heels and rushed further down the spiral staircase. He started talking rapidly over his shoulder as they ollowed.


    ¡°We call this complex the Tomb of the First Tyrant. It was where he was interred, and the nexus he seeded for the purpose of guarding his body still forms the rift you see in the tower above us today! In truth this place is less of a tomb and would be better described as a catacomb¡­and,¡± he sighed wistfully, ¡°the calculi of the First Tyrant have long ago been claimed and so his remains have long since crumbled to dust¡­¡±


    The spiral stairs ended abruptly opening onto an enormous cavern. Its floor was natural stone that looked naturally weathered but the squared angles of the walls and floor indicated it had been carved out and smoothed by time and passage.


    ¡°Even without it¡¯s illustrious progenitor, 1TT is remarkable! The engineering feat of building so deep and so close to the river. I know what you¡¯re thinking!¡± Aterius laughed brightly, ¡°Why would the Tyrant place his tomb here?! A marshy forest right next to a river sounds as far from a red aspect as you can get.¡±


    It was safe to say Aterius did not know what Palinus was thinking because his thoughts were not on the tomb at all. He was transfixed by a natural flame that burned towards the middle of the chamber. It flickered as they came into the room and as they closed the door behind them stilled to the steady light of a giant candle.


    ¡°Well the answer lies beneath our feet!¡± The tribune¡¯s lecture was gathering steam, ¡°Did you know that he was an alchemist? He believed that he had found a source of essentia through physical means and was going to throw off the shackles of the nexus beasts and make the Empire of Erulea the masters of the underworld.¡±


    The area around the flame was bathed in shadows as he listened and they walked towards the flame across the enormous cavern Palinus squinted. What he had thought was shadows from the flickering flame persisted, though the light from the flame without the breeze from the door remained still.


    ¡°Huh!¡± Palinus realised that the object moving around the flame was huge.


    ¡°Calm down,¡± Marius stated as he struck out with the back of his hand at something in the gloom.


    ¡°Oh ho ho, are you being a bit frisky?¡± Asterius said as if talking to a cat. ¡°Play nice with the boy, we are just in for a visit.¡±


    ¡°Gluurrrbblllkkk!¡± A deep throaty sound from the shifting shadows that moved independently around them. Wet sounds accompanied the movement and Palinus thought he heard the sound of bubbles popping.


    Suddenly the movement stopped.


    A moment later an enormous eye popped into the light and blinked slowly at the trio.


    Rather than the rounded eye of a human it had a U shaped pupil amidst a shocking purple speckled orb. It was only recognisable to Palinus as an eye as it blinked slowly and narrowed as if squinting.


    ¡°BBbbbrrrrrbbbbllkkk?¡± The creature intoned, managing to inflect upwards to give the impression of a question.


    Asterius laughed and gestured to Marius.


    From under his chestplate the Decurion pulled an object wrapped in cloth and threw it as far as he could away from them. There was a chime of bells bouncing as the object hit the ground.


    ¡°Should keep it busy for a moment,¡± said Marius.


    ¡°Right then!¡± Asterius said as he bent over and tapped around at something on the ground. He moved from spot to spot as he tried to find something. Though palinus couldn;t tell what he was looking for. It was difficult to make out what he was doing, and it looked like he was struggling as well as it took him several minutes.


    Eventually he found what he was looking for and moved Palinus and Marius by the shoulder to stand awkwardly close to him ¡°....and up we go!¡±


    *Thunk*


    The sound rang out of heavy stone against stone as they dropped down for a frightening moment before, with a lurch, they started ascending. The dim flickering flame passed slowly below them emphasising their steady climb upwards, standing on a platform that felt as steady as the stone floor.


    The novelty of the slow climb helped him move from fear to curiosity and with a sense of wonder Paulinus reached for his unfamiliar essentia senses.


    He let out an involuntary gasp of breath.


    The platform he was focused on was a working of pure essentia, he could feel a steady surging stream of essentia that literally pushed the circle of stone that they stood on upwards. A flood of pure energy that expanded in a narrow tube lifting the stone under their feet.


    Down towards the floor he sensed the beast, he clouds sense it stretched around the area below them. It had returned to the flame and at the edge of the light and Palinus could see its purple eye staring back at him.


    ¡°What even is that ?¡± He whispered.


    ¡°Just another squid boy,¡± Marius dismissed the question.


    The platform stopped suddenly and wobbled precariously.


    ¡°It is NOT a squid.¡± Asterius sharply rebuked. ¡°This genus of nexus beast resembles Cephalopods with tentacles that extend from their heads but they do not share ANY similarities beyond that! Oh and they tend to have beaks¡­ and often an ink or vision obscuring ars¡­ ¡±This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.


    ¡°Right, no similarities at all¡­¡± Marius agreed placatingly as he slapped away a creeping tentacle that Palinus hadn¡¯t felt wrapping itself around his ankle.


    ¡°Squid lover¡­¡± The Decurion smiled as he ribbed the vastly higher ranked tribune


    ¡°Bah, I am no fan of the squids.¡± Asterius sighed as the platform continued to rise, ¡° The First Tyrant introduced the foreign cephalopodean seeds to challenge the hold of the canid nexus beasts that dominated the first empire. They were a means to an end, and the thousands of years since have revealed them to be his biggest mistake...¡±


    The tribune¡¯s lecture on the nature on the nexus beast below them washed over Palinus. The beast below felt unreal, beyond its monstrousness and alien nature it had an intangibility that he couldn¡¯t quite put his finger on. Probing it with his essentia senses it didn¡¯t feel as real as the two men standing beside him.


    Sensing the beast''s shape he could feel its long limb spreading around the room below them dully. The core was a bright flood of essentia that felt more similar to an essentia working like the platform they stood on than a person. Palinus traced the threads nexus beast¡¯s essentia to something above them.


    ¡°It is just a projection¡­ a manifestation of the nexus.¡± The tribune was watching Palinus sensing the room as he gestured grandly up above them.


    Just missing the opportunity for perfect dramatic timing Marius made a bright orange light splutter to life that illuminated the room. Hanging down from the roof like an ornate candelabra was a spiraling crystalline structure. Despite its different shape Palinus instantly recognised the similarity to the nexus in the rift.


    The nexus came to a point that extended down towards the flame below them. Now that the room was lit he could see it pointing down, and spiraling upwards with a central ridge that made the crystalline structure seem organic. As if it was growing from the flame.


    As they kept rising slowly they passed the widening spiral. Starting with shallow divots the spiral began to reveal holes and then larger chambers in its structure. At first the chambers were small, but quickly expanded as they rose. Palinus found himself enchanted by the elegant shape, its form felt pleasing to his eye as if it had a hidden symmetry.


    ¡°Ugh!¡±


    Both men laughed at his exclamation.


    Stuffed into the chamber he was looking at was a perfectly preserved corpse.


    They didn¡¯t stop at this corpse, or the next dozen as they ascended the spiral.


    Most chambers held a body, they all appeared different but each of them had at least one calculii prominently visible, and they all had a similar colour: various shades of dark red.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t this a bit¡­ gross?¡± Palinus asked.


    ¡°I guess it is a bit macabre.¡± Asterius agreed, ¡°but the nexus maintains the attunement of the calculi and the calculi preserve the bodies. Which is why you see them decomposing normally once they lose the essentia when the stones are removed.¡±


    As he became inured to the parade of bodies they passed Palinus marveled at the variety. Some were wearing ancient styles of robes, with the old style of dysfunctionally draped and folded robes. The old bodies looked just the same as newer ones with more modern cuts of robes.


    Not all of the bodies were of older people. Amongst the venerable corpses were younger people. They tended to be wearing more practical clothes and often leather padded armor giving a hint of how they met their deaths early.


    ¡°Here we are!¡± Asterius said cheerfully.


    The platform stopped beside a chamber. As they had ascended the spiral had been expanding towards them and this chamber was close enough to touch.


    Which is exactly what Marius did.


    He heaved the body around and unceremoniously pulled the robe down off the shoulder.


    The corpse was of an older man. He had a curly beard that was a striking white.


    ¡°Who was he?¡± Palinus asked.


    ¡°Oppius Saturninis, a citizen in the time of the second emperor. He was not a famous man at all, but Caelus picked him out for you for his prized calculii.¡± Asterius was getting excited as he gestured at the dark red gem on the man¡¯s shoulder. ¡°In his service the man was not known for being a great mage, but he was the key support to one of the most successful teams of his day because of this: ¡­ Enhanced Smoke Field.¡±


    ¡°Go ahead boy.¡± Marius encouraged Palinus.


    ¡°So this ars in this calculus was selected for me?¡± He asked. ¡°... I can¡¯t have a fireball?


    ¡°You don¡¯t want a fireball,¡± Asterius said, as he and Marius laughed. ¡°Smoke aspects tend towards affliction and combination attacks. Your build will evolve over time, but more than damage you need to control the battlefield so you can skirmish and build your damage.¡±


    ¡°What do I do?¡±


    ¡°Take the calculus.¡±


    Palinus hesitated for a moment. The gem called to him, he could tell that it was almost perfectly attuned for him with a rich red tone. It had a circular shape with crisp facets twinkling at their edges but absorbed the light towards its core. The orb-like shape was broken with a squared edge sticking out.


    ¡°This is why we do... all this.¡± Marius said, still holding the body. ¡°Leaving the stone in the body lets it keep the modifications and attunement. This one has a field modifier,¡± He pointed at the squared edge, ¡°It extends its size and adds a buff.¡±


    Asterius was nearly clapping with excitement as he watched and held himself back from commenting.


    Gingerly Palinus reached out and touched the calculii.


    As soon as his finger brushed it he felt it come loose and slide out of its socket on the corpse''s shoulder.


    Desperately trying to prevent it falling down to the floor far below them he awkwardly grabbed at the gem with his other hand. He practically punched the corpse in the effort, but he was able to keep a hold of the stone.


    Marius let out a deep laugh as he placed the body back in the crevice.


    ¡°Put it in!¡± Asterius said.


    Palinus knew what to do. He didn¡¯t have any information on the stone yet, but he could feel that it would go nicely on either shoulder. A twitching sensation in his leg said there might be an alternative.


    ¡°Oh! I know that look!¡± The tribune chortled, before suddenly stopping and fishing out his coin purse. ¡°I guess you were right Marius, it was a movement buff¡­ serves me right for trusting the records¡­¡±


    Marius held out his hand and bit the 10 denarius piece comically as he took the bet.


    ¡°Smoke is never straight forward,¡± Marius laughed and winked.


    ¡°So where do I place it?¡± Palinus was frustrated at their antics.


    Marius shrugged.


    ¡°Back yourself.¡± he said simply, ¡°A placement on the shoulder would be more traditional and would likely expand the area and maybe the force? It looks like you are thinking about a leg placement, that would probably be more towards enhancing the movement buff.¡±


    Thinking about the battle ahead Palinus considered the hill they needed to climb and the difficult terrain around the towers.


    He made a decision and placed the calculii against his skin.


    It felt cold at first.


    Then the stone rapidly heated. It began to sear his skin and he felt as though it was burning away at his flesh. He tried to stop and pull the stone out, but it was too late.


    ¡°AGH!¡± He grunted out a scream that echoed around the chamber.


    As he clawed at the skin around the stone trying to remove it he scrabbled his fingernails against flesh that melted against the calculiis surface as it buried itself deeper into his body.


    He gripped the squared edge and tried to pull it out, but it was too late.


    A powerful swell of essentia flooded his body, making him convulse as he fell into the arms of the waiting tribune. Moments of agony passed as his essentia surged through his body and into the calculii. His skin burned and his stomach revolted, vomiting up the porridge he had eaten in the tower above them.


    Suddenly the essentia in his body rushed back into the calculii. The abrupt absence leaving him feeling hollow and wrung out.


    His body was covered in sweat and he could feel something where he placed the calculii. The flesh felt firm and tender, but there was no sign of the scorched flesh he felt as it entered his body.


    ¡°What?!¡± He exclaimed.


    ¡°Never easy.¡± Marius commented.


    ¡°Never.¡± Asterius agreed.


    Wordlessly Palinus stood and nodded his thanks to the men.


    ¡°You should really be thanking Oppius.¡± Marius said, gesturing at the body.


    Palinus repeated his nod towards the corpse of Oppius Saturninis. The man had given him an enormous gift, even if he had lived thousands of years ago.


    ¡°One day, you will return it.¡± Asterius said seriously. He rubbed at a calculii buried in his scalp, mostly covered by his light hair. ¡°You¡¯d best start thinking about the battle! I¡¯ve got a couple of tips that might help, though I won¡¯t pretend that it is not going to be an almost insurmountable challenge even with the gifts the Censor has provided.¡±


    As they travelled back towards the surface they discussed the intercohort battle and the ways that Palinus and his team could give a good showing. It became apparent that winning would be an extreme challenge.


    ¡°... the first cohort will be almost all from the second hill with better training in over legion tactics. They will be stronger and have more conventional firepower.¡± Asterius explained further. ¡°They also have the upperhand with their position defending the hill¡­ the only time the hill has lost in recent memory was purely due to hubris.¡±


    ¡°You are not expected to win, you only need to put up a good showing. You won¡¯tadvance to the trials in this round, but you will have a good chance in the weeks to come!¡± Marius agreed and tempered Palinus¡¯s expectations.


    His new calculii felt strong. He could feel it tugging at his essentia pathways. He didn¡¯t want to lose.


    But as they came back up to the tower and he snuck through the hidden doorway, he came back to find the battle was already underway¡­ and it was not going well.

 Chapter 23 - The Inter-Cohort Battle: Defence of the River Tower

    Chapter 23 - The Inter-Cohort Battle: Defence of the River Tower


    <blockquote>


    Inter Cohort Battle status:


    Cohort 1: 923/924


    Cohort 2: 829/833


    Ongoing Rifts:


    1st River Tower Rift C1 12 : 1 C2


    1st Middle Tower Rift C1 2 : 2 C2


    1st Creek Tower Rift C1 0 : 1 C2


    Towers Fallen:


    -nil-


    Century Battle Status Report, II, VII:


    Location - The Forest / River Tower


    Strength - 72/74


    Incapacitated - 2


    Dead - 0


    Rift Teams -


    Fifth Decio - Full strength -Engaged-


    Sixth Decio (aka Team Palinus) - Full strength


    Seventh Decio - 4/5


    </blockquote>


    The hidden doorway shut behind him with a barely audible click.


    No one noticed as he slipped into the tower and out from under the stairs. Noises of shouting and explosions could be heard all around the tower through the thick walls, but the tower room itself was strangely silent.


    Arrayed on the floor under the rift were a team of five conscripts from the fifth decio. Palinus was jealous of their opportunity to enter the rift. They were the golden boys of the century and a small part of him was itching to tie their sandals together or rub something in the sun bleached hair of Augustus, their de facto leader.


    He reconsidered as he noticed a man standing quietly to one side watching over the unconscious boys. He wore the robes of a medicus and gave Palinus a pitying expression as he noticed him standing around at the bottom of the stairs.


    ¡°Are you lost conscript?¡± The medicus asked.


    ¡°No, thank you.¡± Palinus said quickly, ¡°I was just¡­ grabbing supplies?¡±


    ¡°It is natural to be a bit scared, the first century of the first cohort are vastly superior to yours. Just go take a few hits and lie down so you can go back to the barracks.¡± The medicus said softly as if trying to sooth a panicked child.


    Palinus simply gave a nod of assent as he grabbed the wand he was issued from the pack he had left behind. They needed to make a good showing so they could get their shot at the Rift Trials and get out of the capital, he would not be accepting a beating or lying down in defeat.


    Making his way quickly up the stairs to the top of the tower, Palinus was excited to hear a familiar voice as he joined his team at the top of the tower.


    ¡°... I still think we would have been a better choice in the rift.¡± Palinus could hear Rufian complaining. ¡°They are all brawn and no brains. They¡¯ll just take swords to the face until they pass out¡­¡±


    ¡°You can barely talk!¡± Palinus joked as he joined them looking over the battlement up the hill. ¡°Do you remember the time you and Caulion slapped each other till you both bled from the ears?¡±


    ¡°That was his fault, he should have just given up. Where did you wander off to?¡±


    Palinus opened his mouth to start explaining but was cut off with a rough shove.


    ¡°Duck!¡± Seline shouted.


    A bolt of whistling essentia flew uncomfortably close as Palinus barely had the time to duck his head.


    ¡°Bloody oath!¡± He swore. The power of the bolt was intimidating considering this was supposed to be a mock battle as it landed with a thundering explosion that made their ears pop on the far edge of the tower.


    ¡°The first salvo hit the 7th decio before they were ready,¡± Seline said, peering over the stonework down at the enemy. Her hand twitched on the bow she carried. ¡°It knocked out two before they even saw it coming¡­ we might have a weakened rift team before the first rift is even over!¡±


    Joining her at the edge of the tower they looked out up the hill.


    Across the entire width of the hill they saw a rough battle line of hundreds of conscripts from the first cohort marching in formation down towards them. The conscripts struggled to stay in an even line down the rough terrain of the hill but the effect was intimidating. With their shields up and feet churning the grass of the hill they looked invincible and innumerable.


    ¡°One¡­ Two¡­ Three¡­¡± Palinus counted. ¡°...seven centuries attacking!¡±


    Seline gave a hum of confirmation.


    ¡°So many¡­ They must be splitting the last three centuries across the five towers to be attacking so aggressively.¡± Palinus commented.


    ¡°They scarcely need to defend the towers, it¡¯s not as if we are going to be marching up there to attack them.¡± She replied ¡° They¡¯ve probably just got a couple rift teams relaxing up on the hill there.¡±


    ¡°Hmm,¡± Palinus hummed in thought. ¡°That means we could ju-¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ve all thought it.¡± Seline snapped, cutting off his idea and Vesuvia laughed at the interaction.


    ¡°Teehee little general Pal thinks he can win the unwinnable battle.¡± Vesuvia jumped in to mock him.


    Sensing that she had touched a nerve she explained.This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.


    ¡°The 5th decio won the first river rift last time and tried it¡­ They rift jumped to the enemy tower, exited the rift under fire in the middle of an occupied tower and fought their way onto the roof. They miraculously made it to the top and were stuck there with no support until they were taken out. A valiant way to go¡­ but no way to win the battle.¡±


    ¡°Someone tries it every week,¡± Seline added. ¡°The boys would have to beat the 1st 1st 1st Rift team to get the opportunity anyway so it¡¯s not very likely we''re going to need to charge up to the tower to save them this time¡­.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s such a dumb team name.¡± Rufian said idly, before imitating the stick up the arse attitude of the soldier¡¯s sons in the legion. ¡°¡®We¡¯re the 111s! We have muscles on our muscles and we fart beams of sunshine which is why we have to clench so hard!¡¯¡±


    The team laughed at his stupid impression.


    ¡°Duck!¡± Seline yelled again.


    They jumped to the floor of the tower still laughing as the bolt crashed into the tower below them, narrowly missing its range.


    ¡°Who is shooting at us?¡± he asked, sticking his head over the edge to eyeball the enemy.


    ¡°The 4th Century.¡± Bruchts chimed in. ¡°They¡¯ve set up a siege engine.¡±


    He pointed out a group of conscripts split off from the advancing centuries. They stood besides a cart that looked like it was carrying a bright red miniature nexus. It had a bronze frame, a series of levers to one side and an enormous tube pointing out the front - directly towards them.


    Watching the conscripts buzzing around the device they looked like ants swarming a carcass as they worked together to lever down the firing tube and push the cart around to adjust the aim. They had set up in a position that was relatively flat, but they still needed to fiddle with several planks of wood under the wheels to stabilise the cart.


    A half minute later they were ready to fire again and the conscripts all jumped off the cart before someone pulled a lever and the whole contraption jumped off the ground slightly.


    The bolt sailed towards them, but this time it was clearly aimed elsewhere as it crashed down below the tower.


    A few yells from several of their century arranged below the tower indicated that it had come close and Palinus peered over the crenelations of the tower to look down at where it struck.


    Around the tower the his century was arranged in a checkerboard formation with smaller clusters of conscripts holding shields. In the aftermath of the bolt they laughed and dropped their shields, but held them at the ready for the next incoming shot.


    ¡°Do we have siege engines?¡± Palinus asked.


    Bruchts pointed off to their right and behind them. They could just see a few conscripts hunkered down in the forest. Behind them Palinus could see another siege engine winding up to fire. This team looked much different from the siege team on the hill, they had pensive expressions and appeared to be waiting for something.


    ¡°The 9th have a cart off in the woods. But the rift must not be going well.¡± Bruchts said with a grimace.


    He sensed the question Palinus was about to ask and continued.


    ¡°They are not getting as much essentia from the nexus, it¡¯s why they aren¡¯t firing as frequently.¡±


    Palinus could feel the essentia within the nexus below them being strained. It felt like the essentia was being tugged up to the hillside tower. The tugging had an urgency and a tension that felt as though something was going to break as if the tide of essentia was about to turn.


    ¡°This is not good.¡± Bruchts shared Palinus¡¯s feeling of unease.


    The team turned to the sounds of people coming up the stairs behind them in a hurry.


    Rofarian and Iferio from the first decio nearly tripped over each other as they came to a stop in front of Palinus and the team.


    ¡°Centurion Armiger has sent word for you to prepare for the next rift. We are about to lose the first... badly. So we need a quick win to counter capture and retain the tower.¡±


    ¡°Vestra¡¯s tits.¡± Rufian swore, ¡°I told you all we should have gone in instead.¡±


    Turning back to go down the stairs


    ¡°At least we get our shot! If we are fast maybe we can win the rift and get back before we are overrun.¡± Vesuvia said optimistically.


    The dark look from Seline said that she didn¡¯t share the optimism.


    ¡°It¡¯ll be at least 10 minutes before the second rift opens. The 1st century will be spitting on our bodies before the first wave of minions spawns. Even if we could hold them off it¡¯ll be out in the forest somewhere, completely out of cover and shining like a beacon for their siege weapons.¡±


    ¡°She is just upset that she doesn¡¯t get to trip muscleheads up with her ars and shoot them while they are on the ground.¡± Vesuvia laughed.


    With a spark of brown green light a root appeared to snatch at Vesuvia¡¯s ankle, tripping her up and making her stumble down the steps and crashing into Brucht¡¯s broad back.


    ¡°You are getting better at that!¡± Vesuvia kept laughing as she took the opportunity to drape herself over Bruchts muscular shoulder. ¡°But you can¡¯t say I''m wrong.¡±


    Seline was flushed with embarrassment that matched her deep red hair.


    ¡°Maybe I was a bit excited for some shooting¡­¡± she admitted. ¡°I didn¡¯t get to do it last week either.¡±


    She genuinely sulked as they walked down to the base of the tower.


    <hr>


    ¡°Here you are!¡± Centurion Armiger looked unusually pleased to see them as they found him issuing orders to the century from behind the tower.


    It was yet another hint that they were about to get an uncomfortable assignment.


    ¡°Optio Magunnus has already taken the second and fourth decio out to the likely seed location. Augustus and his team must have been unlucky to go down so quickly.¡± The centurion sneered at them, ¡°Obviously I don''t expect you to counter capture the nexus. You just need to hold the rift line off for us to retreat the siege cart. The 3rd century will clean up your mess at the Misty tower rift. Dismissed¡±


    The team saluted with their fists to their chests and quickly shuffled off into the forest.


    Rufian had barely been able to maintain his composure, fortunately Bruchts was subtly pinching him to remind the fiery boy to not say anything stupid to their commanding officer. As they got out of earshot he whispered encouragement, but the snort of rage from Rufian indicated that he was by no means letting this slight go.


    There was a palpable tension as they moved through the forest away from the safety of the tower and towards a likely painful fate.


    ¡°Should we have brought our packs?¡± Palinus wondered aloud.


    ¡°There isn¡¯t much point, we are sacrificial lambs and will likely be back in the barracks by lunchtime.¡±


    ¡°Oh,¡± Palinus said simply, defeated disappointment settling into his posture.


    ¡°Oh! I forgot to show you all this!¡± He remembered he hadn¡¯t shown the team his new calculus.


    The team stopped and turned to watch him pull up his tunic.


    "We don''t want to see that you pervert!" Vesuvia joked as he lifted the cloth to reveal the calculus set at the top of his right thigh.


    Palinus igored her as he talked excitedly about the gem in his leg.


    ¡°It¡¯s called Enhanced Smoke Field! It obscures vision of enemies in a large circular area and provides some sort of a movement buff. I placed it in my leg to magnify the movement effect, Tribune Asterius seemed to think that was a good choice and was saying-¡±


    ¡°How big i-¡± Seline started asking.


    ¡°You met Tribune Asterius?!¡± Rufian excitedly asked ignoring Seline¡¯s question.


    ¡°Yeah! He took me down into the tomb below¡­¡± Palinus trailed off as he caught the hard glare from Seline. She looked like she was about to pull one of the arrows from her quiver and stab it into either Palinus or Rufian''s face.


    ¡°I have an idea for how we can turn this situation around.¡± She said with a growing intensity. She turned to look up the hill towards the other cohort¡¯s first century coming towards them and glanced back towards where Optio Magunnus stood with a cluster of conscripts. ¡°I think the timing might be just about perfect.¡±


    As they walked through the forest with an eye out for incoming bolts of essentia Seline explained her plan. The plan started to come together quickly with excitement from the team, especially when Palinus shared some of the ideas he had picked up from the tribune and Marius.


    ¡°These sitting ducks might have teeth.¡± Rufian said fiercely.


    Everyone laughed at how stupid that sounded. They laughed longer than was warranted as the tension of the situation began to bleed into a nervous excitement. There were going to be myriad moving parts and Palinus didn¡¯t dare feel hopeful yet. Their first step might be the most challenging.


    They had to convince Optio Magunnus.

 Chapter 24 - The Inter-Cohort Battle: A Lost Rift

    Chapter 24 - The Inter-Cohort Battle: A Lost Rift


    ¡°Hmm, I¡¯m not sure that is what Centurion Armiger intended.¡± Optio Magunnus stated as he listened to the team''s plan.


    ¡°His intention is for us to be captured and beaten¡­¡± Rufian muttered under his breath.


    ¡°The centurion ordered us to enter the rift to delay the enemy capture of the tower,¡± Seline explained, ¡° we are just following the order.¡±


    The optio was lost in thought, he stared up to the nearly two hundred conscripts of the 1st and 6th centuries in the first cohort marching towards them. Then towards the River Tower where the rest of the 7th century were abandoning the river tower and were retreating towards the Misty Tower a few kilometers into the forest behind them.


    ¡°Maybe¡­ you are relying on the enemy to engage in haste. I don''t like that we are relying on them to act a certain way and putting the century at risk.¡± Despite his words Magunnus¡¯s posture shouted that he was receptive to the idea. ¡°What makes you think you can make a difference here?¡±


    The team gave the optio the quick and dirty run down of the capabilities that made them confident of their plan.


    With a palpable excitement Seline explained her ars.


    ¡°It is a variant "Root", the core ability is a targeted control ability that stops an enemy from moving and leaves a slow effect, but it can be applied to a wider area causing a slow and occasionally tripping over moving enemies.¡±


    She went on to explain Palinus¡¯s new Ars. When he started to add the caveat that he hadn¡¯t tested his new ars yet, she cut him off with a sharp look.


    Holding a staff to her chest Vesuvia explained her abilities. She had an ars that could heal and one to buff the defenses of allies, which she had used so effectively to avoid the sting of the whip only hours before.


    Sheepishly Bruchts and Rufian explained they didn¡¯t yet have calculii allowing them to use ars outside of the rift but that they could contribute with their Tier 1 physicality and fighting skills. They were both armed with a wooden gladius and shield which Rufian planned to use for overworld battle but to discard before entering the rift.


    The team were getting excited as they discussed their capabilities holistically. With their abilities and roles laid out it was easy to see that there was a distinct synergy to their team.


    ¡°Ok. Yes, I think this could work, but you are going to need to be fast and time this perfectly¡­ even so, we are going to need to pull in some extra support. I have a feeling that Centurion Armiger won¡¯t be receptive so we need to act before he is able to pull back the full century. Maybe I can get the 9th century to support, their Centurion owes me a favour.¡± Optio Magunnus scratched his chin as he launched into action immediately yelling for runners from the surrounding decios as he marched off into the forest towards the 9th century .


    This left Palinus and the team to wait, their plan set in motion.


    Their focus as they waited was up the slope towards the tower where they could see a group of five conscripts separated from their century. They stood roughly between the two opposing River Towers, mirrored by Palinus and the team who stood at the junction between the River and Misty tower.


    They couldn¡¯t see details from this distance but they knew they were looking at the second rift team of the first century. They were known to be a solid and stereotypical Tier 1 rift team not a specially selected team, but they were dominated by the children of career soldiers as most of the training legion was so they were likely the favourite for the rift they were about to delve. Palinus was quietly relieved they wouldn¡¯t be jumping into their first rift as a full team against the monstrous 111s.


    Both teams waited for their opportunity. Their enemy battled to capture the river tower and make the nexus within hostile, empowering the nearby enemy conscripts with more essentia. Palinus¡¯s teams goal was just to not lose the rift too quickly, the Centurion did not expect them to win and counter capture of the tower. It would be quite the acheivement if they were able to.


    The groups eyed each other off, on edge with the pending fight and an unknown time frame.


    They wouldn¡¯t need to wait long as the prismatic light of a rift began to spark and faster than they thought possible a seed appeared and began to open.


    ¡°Bloody Augustus¡­¡± Rufian complained. ¡°I can¡¯t believe the floppy haired crotch sniffer managed to lose so fast!¡±


    <hr>


    ... A few minutes ago in the First Rift of the River Tower ...


    Augustus and his team had gone into the rift with low expectations.


    Their expectations had been exceeded, in completely the wrong way.


    ¡°Armiger is going to be pissed.¡± his team mate whispered to Augustus. Quintis was the only teammate still standing after the most team battle. They had lost three, and hadn¡¯t managed to get a kill in return. Even worse the outer turret of the nexus they had fought under had already been swiftly dismantled leaving themselves and their nexus with not much defence remaining, and even less hope.


    They stood behind the Nexus Towers watching the enemy rift team dismantle the minions and towers with ruthless efficiency as they waited for the nexus to revive their teammates.Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.


    ¡°He knew we were outmatched.¡± Augustus replied as much to himself as to his teammate. ¡°We just needed to delay long enough to limit the embarrassment to the century, we were never going to win.¡±


    ¡°We are never going to get selected for the rift trials.¡± Quintis said wistfully.


    ¡°We were never going to be selected over monsters like them.¡±


    The 111s, the first rift team from the first century of the first cohort, were definitively the best rift team in the legion. When the team inevitably got selected for the rift trials and left the training legion they were always replaced with the second best team. It was considered a nearly sure thing to be the next team selected for the trials. Augustus would kill for the chance to become the 1st 1st 1st team.


    His team was currently more than a few places behind in line, today they had probably jumped down the list even further and he could see just how stark the difference was.


    Both of the defeated team members let out a sigh as he watched the entire wave of minions vaporised by a combination that had been pushing them under the tower the whole rift. Vel, the captain of the 111s, summoned a blistering hot flame wave that left a debuff on each of the minions struck. Arruns, his ally and an absolute behemoth of a man would then follow up, swinging his giant axe around in a sweeping circular strike that cleaved through the minions and triggered the debuff causing the affected minions or avatars to ignite from the inside with a deadly flame.


    ¡°It¡¯s not fair.¡± Quintis grumbled as they moved further back behind the turret. Without their teammates and the minion wave they couldn¡¯t get close enough to do damage to the enemy. The other three members of the 111s were hovering, standing at the ready to pounce and add to their already high death tally. ¡°They are clearly tier 2 at least, and they all have multiple ars.¡±


    Augustus couldn¡¯t help but agree. The opposition team had a strong synergy around building momentum using conditional buffs and debuffs. They were also extremely well practised and knew how to play their roles well to dominate their individual lanes and convert that into tower pressure.


    ¡°If only the idiots in the bottom lane hadn¡¯t fed Vel and Arruns, maybe we could have stalled this a bit longer.¡± Augustus idly blamed his teammates as he waited for them to reappear from the Nexus.


    The time it took their avatars to respawn was taking longer and longer as they lost the rift and the essentia balance accelerated towards the opposition''s favour.


    ¡°Didn¡¯t you lose first blood?¡± Quintis questioned.


    ¡°They had already lost, and my lane opponent countered me. Besides¡­ it was close to my first blood.¡±


    Quintis must have noticed the edge to Augustus¡¯s voice as he dropped the topic.


    ¡°Well at least we won¡¯t be losing our position as the first rift team in the century.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, the second team finally filled their ranks. Did you see? It looks like they picked up some random street rats from the 7th hill.¡±


    ¡°... and your father served with Armiger.¡± Quintis replied pointedly.


    ¡°GROOoooo!¡± From the nexus came the howling roar of Jano, his transformation ars already activated as he was already charging at the 111s. From behind him their revived team mates followed, scrambling to keep up.


    ¡°Wait-!¡± Augustus yelled impotently as Jano rushed towards the enemy team.


    It was too late, with his bestial transformation he ran on all fours with his arms matted with a wild fur and fierce claws instead of humanoid hands. His face was partially transformed and huge fangs stuck out from a protruding snout with his still mostly human eyes tinted the yellow of a wolf and glazed with a ferocious focus.


    As he passed out of range of the towers he was instantly struck with an ars. A thick black tentacle cast by the other mage of the 111s grabbed the bestial avatar, bringing his charge to an instant stop.


    Augustus¡¯s team didn¡¯t have a cleansing ability which forced Jano to wait, snarling and roaring, for the effect to finish as he was already bombarded with magical strikes from a wand and a stave of the two mages. They were stacking combo points and a burning effect that was already making a dent in Jano¡¯s health points.


    Supporting their teammate Augustus and Quintis joined the charge with their shields up and swinging their wooden short swords. They caught up to Jano, flanking him on either side to soak the strikes of the enemy mages and break their combo. They were able to prevent further damage from the ranged attacks but as they stepped past the still rooted Jano they were stopped in their tracks as they ran headlong into a wall.


    One of the other melee fighters from the 111s stood with his arm up behind a shield channeling an ars. The wall was a solid impassable object that mimicked the painted wooden surface of the shield he carried.


    Striking at the wall in anger Augustus again felt the sting of helplessness. They didn¡¯t have the ability to fight against this team, they were too strong.


    He knew from their last team fight that the wall was not meant just for defense.


    As he felt the wave of heat rise nearby and with his two strongest allies standing too close together he knew this was the end of the fight, and the end of the rift.


    Augustus gritted his teeth for the uncomfortable sensations of dying as an avatar in a rift and for the second time today was grateful they were not in a hardcore rift. He would just have to bear some stings before waking up safe in the tower in the overworld.


    The flame of Vel¡¯s fire wave struck, it didn¡¯t hurt at first but the burning effect began to make its presence felt as it began to eat away at the health points of his avatar.


    It felt almost cool by comparison when the blast of black goop struck his chest from the other mage.


    The vision obscuring [Blind] effect was almost a relief as he couldn¡¯t see the axe swing he knew to be coming. When it struck it cleaved his flesh leaving a gaping wound.


    His body was instantly lit up with fire that began to truly hurt, it was beyond any pain he had felt within a rift and he whimpered as he waited for it to be over. His arms holding his sword and shield dropping beside him he gave up the pretense of resisting.


    With a finishing blow his pain ended. His avatar was dead before the [Blind] effect had even finished.


    <hr>


    With a blast of prismatic light the rift seed opened. It¡¯s aperture revealing a similar room to their previous rift with five columns and an Erulean temple theme. There were similarities to the previous rift, but Palinus could see a reassuring difference in a less chaotic swirling of energy and a softer light. The tendrils that probed from the rift moved with less vigour and seemed almost gentle in their touch.


    The team shared a look as they moved into place.


    They lay down with their heads towards the oncoming enemy, positioning themselves so that the rift would block any projectiles that came towards them and so they would be ready to run once they were finished with the rift. They knew the rift would protect their bodies while they were in it, but once the rift was over they would be vulnerable - whether they won or lost.


    With a final look towards the oncoming enemy conscripts, Palinus knew that they would be overrun in minutes and whether they woke up from the rift completely safe or in prime position for a beating was out of their hands.

 Chapter 25 - The Inter-Cohort Battle: A Plan in Action

    Chapter 25 - The Inter-Cohort Battle: A Plan in Action


    <blockquote>


    Inter Cohort Battle Report:


    Cohort 1: 920/924


    Cohort 2: 789/833


    Ongoing Rifts:


    1st River Tower Rift C1 21 : 1 C2 [Victory C1]


    2nd River Tower Rift C1 - : - C2 [Seeding]


    1st Middle Tower Rift C1 12 : 13 C2


    1st Creek Tower Rift C1 5 : 8 C2


    Towers Fallen:


    Forest River Tower - Contested


    Century Battle Status Report, II, VII:


    Location - The Forest / River Tower - Falling back to Misty Tower


    Strength - 69/74


    Incapacitated - 5


    Dead - 0


    Rift Teams -


    Fifth Decio - Full strength


    Sixth Decio (aka Team Palinus) - Full strength [Engaging]


    Seventh Decio - 4/5


    </blockquote>


    Being assigned to the first century of the first cohort was a great honour and Janus was enjoying every minute of it.


    ¡°I am going to find a nice girl from the second cohort and knock her out so she can¡¯t run away from you!¡± He called to Kraton, his tent mate and the man to his shield side in formation.


    ¡°Bahaha,¡± Kraton laughed with his usual boisterousness, slapping his wooden sword against Janus¡¯s shield. ¡°There won¡¯t be any pretty ones left by the time we get down there, the bolt thrower is doing some fine work.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll be back to the barracks in time for a lunch date so maybe you can drink enough of the muddy watered wine that it won¡¯t matter!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯d take a lot of wine¡­¡± Kraton said as he slapped his toned stomach and flexed an impressive bicep. ¡°But getting back before lunch does sound like a fine plan.¡±


    Their banter lapsed for a time as they marched, listening to the other conscripts in their century as they shared similar conversations. They were moving quickly down the slope and the pace had only increased as they caught glimpses of the opposing century abandoning the river tower.


    To the left of their formation they could hear the orders of the Centurion VI calling for their supporting century to speed up. They were falling behind Janus and the conscripts in the 1st and would miss all the fun of mopping up the stragglers.


    It didn¡¯t matter to Janus if they kept up or not, he was confident the 1st could easily manage to hold off the two centuries around the river tower, especially with the advantage of the nexus they were sure to capture as soon as the second rift team did their part to secure it.


    The second rift team had split off quite a while ago further up the hill to prepare for the capturing rift. They had seemed eager to Janus and he was sure they would make quick work of any rift team the second cohort could put together.


    *Crash*


    The siege cannon bolt struck the dead limb of a tree ahead of them, dislodging it with a crash. Their targets had dried up with the enemy century falling back from the tower and the team were taking wild shots into the forest. Janus knew from the lectures on siege equipment that with their range limited by the connection to a nexus that they were not firing effectively.


    ¡°They¡¯ve had their fun. Surely they should stop draining the river towers essentia for the second rift...¡± Janus commented.


    ¡°It scarcely matters,¡± Kraton grunted. ¡°It¡¯s not like you to care about the rift pansies..? Ahhhh, you¡¯re jealous of the team on the siege cannon!¡±


    ¡°I¡­ I am just thinking strategically.¡± Janus replied, ¡°They are wasting essentia that would be better spent elsewhere.¡±


    ¡°Haha, yeah sure you are. It does look fun blasting the cannon¡­¡±


    They had reached the bottom of the hill and passed into the edge of the forest uncontested. Up ahead they could see groups of conscripts running back towards the Misty Tower through the forest, but no cohesive force to counter theirs.


    ¡°Century I!¡± They focused as they began to receive orders on the march. ¡°Janus sin, march to capture at rift site two.¡±


    ¡°Understood!¡± Janus, Kraton and the conscripts to their left took a slight left to march towards the glowing beacon of the rift as the reset of their century moved to capture the tower.


    They marched in ranks with their shields at the ready and swords drawn.


    As they moved through the edge of the forest their tight formation was broken to weave around obstacles, but the first century moved fluidly, maintaining their spacing and moving gliding around trees, stomping over bushes and through patches of mud.


    The rift ahead glowed. Its light was a pulsing beacon that pulled them forwards like a moth to the flame.


    ¡°Something feels off,¡± Kraton whispered as they approached.


    ¡°You are imagining things,¡± Janus replied. ¡° Look, you can see their rift team lying there¡­ that stocky boy didn¡¯t even take his sword and shield into the rift. What an idiot.¡±This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.


    It wasn¡¯t surprising that this rift team was undefended. It was a common strategy for a weaker force to leave a dispensable rift team behind to contest the rift and delay the capture of the tower.


    They couldn¡¯t just knock the team out, they would be defended by the rift. They also couldn¡¯t leave a team behind their lines to attack at their own rift teams or the siege teams.


    So they had to wait.


    They had all done this before and they knew what to do to secure the rift.


    ¡°Century I, quadratem (a square)!¡± Their centurion ordered.


    The conscripts moved quickly with each row of the formation jogging in a file towards their position to surround the rift.


    Janus followed Kraton as they made a wide turn around the rift on the right side. They maintained a ten meter spacing to avoid being attacked by the rift. They had all made that mistake before and the Nexus tendrils stung worse than the lash if they wanted to.


    The unconscious bodies under rifts always creeped Janus out. The way they fell as they entered the rift was uncanny, even experienced rift delvers would fall awkwardly with their face in the mud lying completely still with their limbs akimbo. He avoided looking too closely at the team they surrounded, but something tickled at the back of his mind.


    They swung around again to take their spots on the front side of the defensive position with the Misty tower poking up from the forest ahead of them and the rift with the bodies of the enemy rift team behind them. As he reached his position and set himself to look out into the forest he realised two things.


    One of the bodies around the rift had definitely twitched, and hiding in the forest amongst the bushes he could see the eyes of several enemy conscripts startlingly close to them.


    ¡°WE''RE-!¡± As soon as he started yelling the forest was suddenly filled with an intensely thick smoke.


    The chaos started as his warning yell was joined by shouts of surprise from his century.


    The cacophony of voices was joined by the cry of a charge that sounded like it was coming from all around them.


    ¡°Shields up!¡± The expected order came and Janus followed it as he was drilled. He already had his wooden shield up and at the ready, but with the order he charged the ars he held in a calculii on his left shoulder.


    A transparent wall of force sprung up in front of him and he could feel the effect of his shield multiplied by the ars that Kraton was channeling beside him and the defensive ars of most of the century carried forming a solid wall around them.


    Through the thick smoke he could barely see beyond an arms length in front of him. He could hear the sounds of the approaching enemy yelling unnecessarily loudly, he could also hear the sound of fighting and people yelling in surprise and pain.


    *Thump* he felt something strike the shield he channeled in front of him.


    From the flash he knew it to be an essence projectile. Janus Shrugged it off, a single bolt would do nothing against their shield. He was completely unconcerned.


    They would simply wait out this smoke ars protected behind their shield wall, this was the great strength of the Erulean Over-Legion and they would not be broken so long as they remained in a solid defensive position.


    The voices of the charging conscripts had finally reached them and through the swirling smoke Janus caught a glimpse of a second cohort shield as it charged into him.


    The shield, and the conscript charging from behind it, bounced off their shield wall falling on their arse. Janus didn¡¯t even bother to move as he waited for the conscript to stand.


    Once the boy had regained his feet he moved to strike with a wild overhead chop of his short wooden sword. Janus respected the bravery of the boy, he was going out fighting rather than retreating and hiding or cowering in a bush.


    With a swift thrust Janus stabbed at the boy''s shoulder, his wild strike was too slow and it forced the boy to open his body up to attack. The sword struck hard into the gap between the chest muscles and collar bone, it was a calculated strike with enough force to bruise heavily and make it hard for the boy to use his sword but not enough to do permanent damage.


    ¡°Ow!¡± the boy from the second cohort yowled with pain and dropped his wooden sword instantly cradling his shoulder. Janus lost sight of him as he retreated back into the smoke.


    The quick exchange had only taken moments but in that time he knew that something terrible had happened. Janus could feel that the shield wall was significantly weaker than it should be. Not knowing what else to do he stuck to his training and waited for an order or something to happen. With a muscular arm he grasped more tightly to the strapping of his shield.


    As the smoke began to clear he could see what he already knew. He was the last conscript standing on this side, and the surrounding enemy were already upon them.


    <hr>


    ¡°We¡¯re in! The ambush went well, thanks for holding down the fort team,¡± Seline said cheerily as she and Palinus joined their team in the rift.


    Wasting no time they talked via team chat as Palinus and Seline ran to their lane assignments.


    ¡°Nice one¡­ how many did you get!?¡± Rufian asked.


    ¡°At least 5. They didn¡¯t even turn around! They just stood there¡­ It wasn¡¯t exactly sporting.¡± Seline said.


    It was a sentiment that Palinus did not agree with, he had been excited to turn the tables on the First Cohort. Seeing them up close they all looked like giants who had been sculpted out of stone and managing to knock two out with his wand before they retreated into the rift had felt pretty good to him.


    ¡°Anyway we¡¯re glad you made it, I have an important question.¡± Rufian said via the team chat, ¡°Why is this lane called the top lane?¡±


    ¡°The convention for rift maps is to lay them out with the defending nexus on the bottom left and the attacking on the top right-¡± Seline started to respond.


    ¡°Boring reasons¡­ you could have just said boring reasons¡­¡± Rufian cut her off.


    Tuning out Rufian¡¯s inane chatter Palinus took the opportunity to look at Seline¡¯s avatar as she ran out of sight to another lane.


    Seline 584/584 | Level 0


    Verdant Druid - Archer / Verdant Druid / Woodsman


    Verdant Druid sounded like such an interesting class. He had seen her roots and the colour of the avatar¡¯s information matched the flashes of essentia she channeled when she used that ars.


    Not for the first time Palinus wondered about Seline¡¯s story. She didn¡¯t have parents or any known family and her attunement and features were clearly Silvanian in origin. As a child he had asked, but she had always said she didn¡¯t know anything.


    As she ran out of sight he reflected on his own avatar, Palinus was excited to see if he now had a cool class.


    Palinus 605/605 | Level 0


    Smoke Mage - Wandslinger / Smoke Mage / Mage


    He couldn¡¯t help but sigh with disappointment. Smoke Mage¡­ that was not going to impress anyone. A little part of him that was starting to enjoy the growing feeling of power was secretly hoping for something that sounded powerful or mysterious.


    Pushing down that feeling of discontent he focused on the task at hand.


    ¡°What have we missed?¡± Palinus asked.


    ¡°Five waves, and we have yet to have first blood.¡± Bruchts supplied helpfully. ¡°They were confused and cautious with you both missing for the first few waves, but then they just pulled their roamer into the middle lane and have been collecting the essentia. So they have level advantages. Sorry.¡±


    ¡°It was too much to expect them to do something stupid or to not capitalise, we will just have to bide our time.¡± Seline replied optimistically.


    A small part of Palinus was disappointed, he wanted to fight and he wanted to fight head on. If they had been a bit faster they would not have been at a disadvantage and could more easily win by dominating their opposition in lane. But they had known coming into the rift late was a risk.


    He consoled himself with the fact that they had not lost yet and even better, they had another plan.

 Chapter 26 - The Inter-Cohort Battle: Introduction to Ganking

    Chapter 26 - The Inter-Cohort Battle: Introduction to Ganking


    As he ran along the lane to his place Palinus considered the situation.


    Their opposition: the second rift team of the first century, first cohort were also known as the 112s and were braggarts with a mediocre record. They pretended to be second only to the 111s but in reality this gave them a false sense of superiority and a rigid mindset.


    They were a traditional Erulean rift team and had so far played into Palinus and the team''s plans.


    As he turned off the pathway of the lane and into the brush of the forest Palinus slowed and began to step more carefully. He tried to calm himself and control his breathing. The sensation triggered an odd flutter in his chest and a momentary out of body experience as his avatar didn¡¯t respond quite the same way his body did in the overworld.


    Pushing down the emotions, Palinus focused on the task at hand.


    Sneaking as silently as he could through the brush of the forest he moved parallel to the middle lane, a slightly circuitous route through the forest paths.


    He struggled again to control the response of his body to the anticipation as he moved carefully into position. Through the brush he could hear a conversation from unfamiliar voices.


    ¡°... It''s just weird. I mean, where are they?¡± The greasy haired red mage who occupied the middle lane complained to his team mate, a brutish looking boy who carried two short swords.


    It was odd to hear his enemy talking and being able to understand them. It was especially odd hearing them talking about him.


    ¡°Five waves is too long to be lying in wait.¡± The brutish roamer agreed. ¡°They could be clearing the forest, but I didn¡¯t see any sign of them. You should have let me check their side¡­¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s just not worth walking into a 1v2, once we have the level advantage and we know where the missing enemy are, you can go wild in both forests.¡± The mage consoled his teammate.


    Seline and Palinus¡¯s absence from the rift had triggered a conservative but logical choice. To avoid their own roamer running into danger they had elected to pull him into the middle lane.


    ¡°Are you finished comparing who is smaller?¡± Vesuvia taunted the pair. She had been holding the lane against the two and while they were talking she had been manoeuvring herself closer and as she spoke she used the angle around the minions to take a shot with her staff.


    The pink bolt struck at their roamer doing negligible damage. The big boy scowled and made a rude gesture at Vesuvia.


    ¡°Mwah!¡± She blew a kiss in response as she dashed back around the minions, staying out of the direct line of fire of the red mage.


    ¡°I¡¯m in position.¡± Seline¡¯s whispered voice came through the team chat.


    ¡°Me too.¡± Palinus whispered his reply to the team with his finger in his ear.


    As he said it he slowly backed away from the bushes, he had to adjust his position slightly and to find the exact spot he needed to reference his new ars.


    Opening up the skill selection he was excited to get the details.


    <table style="width: 69.0277%">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 12.7197%"> </td>


    <td style="width: 24.4763%">


    Wandslinger


    </td>


    <td style="width: 30.4824%">


    Smoke Mage


    </td>


    <td style="width: 31.6793%">


    Mage


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 12.7197%">


    Ars


    </td>


    <td style="width: 24.4763%">


    Multi Strike


    </td>


    <td style="width: 30.4824%">


    The Saturnine Veil


    </td>


    <td style="width: 31.6793%">


    Magic Missiles


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 12.7197%">


    Attunement


    </td>


    <td style="width: 24.4763%">


    nil


    </td>


    <td style="width: 30.4824%">¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€¨€</td>


    <td style="width: 31.6793%">


    nil


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 12.7197%">


    Cooldown


    </td>


    <td style="width: 24.4763%">


    n/a


    </td>


    <td style="width: 30.4824%">


    4 minutes


    </td>


    <td style="width: 31.6793%">


    30 seconds


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 12.7197%">


    Compatibility


    </td>


    <td style="width: 24.4763%">


    n/a


    </td>


    <td style="width: 30.4824%">


    n/a


    </td>


    <td style="width: 31.6793%">


    n/a


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 12.7197%">


    Skill Type


    </td>


    <td style="width: 24.4763%">


    Enhancement


    </td>


    <td style="width: 30.4824%">


    Debuff [+Buff], Area


    </td>


    <td style="width: 31.6793%">


    Projectile


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 12.7197%">


    Slot


    </td>


    <td style="width: 24.4763%">


    [Wrist], [Arm]


    </td>


    <td style="width: 30.4824%">


    [+Shoulder] , [+Leg]


    </td>


    <td style="width: 31.6793%">


    [Fist, hand, wrist]


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 12.7197%">


    Slot Bonus


    </td>


    <td style="width: 24.4763%">


    n/a


    </td>


    <td style="width: 30.4824%">


    [ +50% to buff and duration]


    </td>


    <td style="width: 31.6793%">


    n/a


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 12.7197%">


    Description


    </td>


    <td style="width: 24.4763%">


    Each strike applies effects twice.


    </td>


    <td style="width: 30.4824%">


    Shroud an area [100m, circle] in a veil of smoke for [40 seconds]. Limiting enemy vision to [1m] and applying [45%] speed to allies.


    </td>


    <td style="width: 31.6793%">


    Shoot three bolts of energy doing [50] damage each to one target.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    He nearly drooled as he stared at the ars, giving a silent thanks to Oppius Saturninis who¡¯s legacy this was. It was an innocuous seeming ars as it didn¡¯t provide a direct status effect of actual blindness, it only limited enemy vision to melee range.


    Palinus speculated that if he had applied it to his shoulder it might have enhanced the debuff to an actual status effect rather than the environmental affect of the smoke. Time would tell as his build developed if the choice to apply it to his leg was right.


    He quickly selected the level 0 Ars, there was no choice for him as he didn¡¯t yet have any other calculii to choose from. Not that he would have considered anything else, the Saturnine Veil was exactly the right ability for their plan.This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    Palinus 605/605 | Level 0


    Smoke Mage


    The area and timeframe of the ars seemed pretty monsterous, but as he reflected he supposed that the smoke didn''t really prohibit the enemy from doing much which balanced the ability.


    He knew instinctually that would be counters, as he considered the opponents they were about to attack; he knew there was at least one they would be facing - a charge.


    ¡°Go on three. One¡­¡± Seline¡¯s voice interrupted his musings and he quickly scanned the area to check he was in the right spot. He looked towards the brush and estimated the distance.


    ¡°Two¡­¡±


    He was standing around 10 meters from the middle lane brush, and that seemed about right. The enemy would be within the veil and their retreat would be covered.


    ¡°Three!¡±


    He let the calculus in his leg tug the essentia from his body.


    In a flash, as if he had blinked and missed it, the surrounding area was filled with swirling smoke.


    It had an odd transparency, as if it was just a light smog, but the intense smell of oily smoke in his nose belied its innocent appearance from his perspective.


    ¡°WHA-!¡±


    ¡°WE¡¯RE UNDER ATTACK!¡± Through the brush he could hear his targets yelling.


    Palinus immediately started running towards the commotion. They had 40 seconds to make the most of his ars.


    As he entered the brush he could see through to the lane, the enemy where batting at the smoke as if trying to disperse it though this was having little effect.


    The enemy avatars had been startled for a moment with the sudden appearance of his smoke, but they were already countering. Vesuvia¡¯s work of taunting them had taken its toll and the bolt that she shot at the boy with the duel swords as he tried to see through the smoke triggered a roar of rage.


    He channeled an ars in his leg and he suddenly charged at her through the smoke. In a flash the boy was upon her. A glint of white light on his swords indicated he had already hit level one and had triggered a second ars to amplify the damage of his swords.


    ¡°WAIT!-¡± The red mage yelled after his teammate.


    Swinging wildly with one sword strike after another the brutish swordsman tried to slash Vesuvia to pieces. She had a look of genuine fear as the boy managed to get to her and attack so quickly.


    A surge of pride relieved Palinus as she lifted her staff to block what she could and channeled her ars to defend herself


    Vesuvia Fredisian 589/589 | Level 0 [Bolstered]


    Aesthetician


    An involuntary snort of mirth detracted from the violence of the situation as Palinus nearly laughed at Vesuvia. This was the first time he had seen her class information and Aesthetician was such a ridiculous class, she had been keeping that quiet. The value of the class shone through as she merely winced as a blow from the boy¡¯s swords struck her on the shoulder.


    It dealt less damage than the boy expected as his savage snarling face twisted in rage. The damage of the sword strike was mitigated by her ars, it toughened the skin of the target and the perception of pain. It would take more than a few strikes of the sword for the boy to take her down.


    Palinus tore his eyes off Vesuvia and lifted his wand to join the fight. He didn¡¯t target the swordsman who attacked her, she was doing a great job baiting the boy safetly through their minions and they would get time to finish him off once their other target was eliminated.


    The red mage floundered in the same spot. He had channeled an ars that was almost certainly a fireball, but he didn¡¯t have a clear target with his ally charging at Vesuvia¡¯s last known location. He was more likely to hit his teammate than her.


    He allowed the fireball in his hand to dissipate, which appeared to burn the boy slightly, and he started to run after his teammate and Vesuvia. He made it almost to the wave of minions before Seline decided to strike. An arrow flew from the brush on the other side of the wave and struck the mage in the side just above his right hip.


    ¡°Argh!¡± The boy yelled in pain and surprise before yelling futilely to his teammate. ¡°Roscus! We need to retreat!¡±


    Another arrow struck him in the back as the boy turned to run. The two arrows had done less than a fifth of the boys hit points. If they didn¡¯t do a lot more damage the mage would escape easily by running.


    Palinus had to take a few steps out of the brush to engage. He flourished his wand as he joined the attack.


    The wand he had been issued felt different to his. Its bolts were quick to respond and he felt like he could fire much faster, but with more muted strikes. They did comparable damage but didn¡¯t have the fulmination effect dealing splash damage.


    He fired off two strikes into the retreating mages back, causing the boy to stop running diagonally away from Seline as he tried to sprint towards the tower. Between the wand bolts and arrows in the boy they had managed to get his health points below half, and the combination damage was starting to stack. Even with the speed bonus of the smoke allowing Palinus and Seline to move and shoot, they weren¡¯t going to be able to kill the boy before he reached the tower.


    As the enemy reached the outer range of the tower he visibly perked up and changed his angle of retreat again to run directly under the tower. It was then that Seline decided to act.


    She had a mischievous smile on her face as she channeled her ars. The calculus sat just above her heart, disguised in the dip of her collarbone. As the flash of green light came from under her tunic their target yelled again in surprise.


    A root had appeared to snag his feet. He was tripped over and the momentum of his retreat made him comically faceplant on the stone pavers of the lane. The fall did minor damage and as well as forcing him to stop the roots around his ankles made it a challenge for the boy to stand.


    Seline and Palinus fired as quickly as they could. The boy was singed on one side, his clothes hanging in burnt rags around circular red and black welts. On the other side of his body he was starting to resemble a pin cushion with half a dozen arrows sticking out of his back and side.


    They had his health down to a sliver when with a burst of effort the boy managed to escape the binding roots. The level advantage was making a difference with the reduced damage they were doing, the larger pool of health and the boy''s avatars enhanced physicality.


    Reaching within himself Palinus felt for the calculus that supplied his smoke field ars, it felt warm within his body. He could sense from the stone some information about the ongoing effect.


    Saturnine Veil - [27 seconds] - 3:47


    It had only been 13 seconds since he activated the effect. They still had time.


    His eyes met Seline¡¯s and she gave him a nod as he delayed his step with a grimace allowing her to take the lead as they ran after their quarry. They made the decision to dive the turret.


    Seline steeled herself for the bolt as they ran into its range. They would need to be quick and ensure that neither of their strikes missed. She could take two shots from the tower, but they could see a wave of minions oncoming and if the swordsman caught her on their retreat with his charging ars she would almost certainly die.


    With their buffed speed they were quickly able to get into range to shoot at the red mage. Palinus¡¯s wand blasted as soon as he could release the bolt and it flew true, striking the retreating mage squarely in the back. It wasn¡¯t quite enough damage leaving what must have been single digits of health points.


    Seline paused her sprint to line up her shot. The boost of the speed buff causing her to slide to a stop and emphasising the focused stillness as she pulled the bowstring to her cheek. She released the arrow and tracked it for a moment before nodding.


    The arrow flew true and burst through the flesh of the red mage. His body fell to the floor but exploded into motes of essentia before it struck. Scattering mostly red essentia on the ground that Palinus ran to collect.


    ¡°-An enemy has been slain!-¡±


    The announcement of the red mages death rang out across the rift. The first blood bonus adding to the pile of essentia motes carpeting the ground


    ¡°Augh!¡± he ignored the cry of pain as Seline took the shot from the tower. He needed to get the essentia that dropped quickly or it would go to waste, even worse it would be picked up by the enemy and fuel their level advantage even further.


    Running as quickly as he could, Palinus moved in a wide curving hook. The beads of essentia jumped into him as he took a wide turn. He ran past the enemy melee minions letting the lead minion strike him in order to pick up as much of the essentia as possible.


    ¡°ARGH! Hurry Pal!¡± Seline took another bolt from the tower and as he turned to run out he saw that she was starting to retreat too.


    A spark of annoyance rose, he had not been able to get the full amount of essentia leaving clumps of beads on the ground.


    He was glad of this decision as he turned to see what was going on in the lane.


    The swordsman had given up chasing Vesuvia and was currently sprinting towards them. Fortunately he couldn¡¯t see them through the smoke as Seline had taken considerable damage from the tower strikes.


    A sharp pain hit Palinus in the back as a bolt from the tower nearly knocked him off balance. He hadn¡¯t picked up enough essentia to level and the bolt from the tower had done more damage than he was comfortable with.


    In an unspoken manoeuvre Seline moved off to the side of the lane and into the brush and Palinus moved in the opposite direction. She gestured to Palinus to open fire and he didn;t hesitate to launch a bolt from his wand.


    It struck with a sizzle and they got a sense of how much damage the swordsman had taken.


    His whole body was covered with bone bolts from the minions and his clothes were in tatters with the flesh below blackened as if it was rotting. He was on his last legs and the damage appeared to be ticking as he ran away, his face no longer snarling in fury but white with fear.


    Vesuvia ran after the boy cackling madly.


    As she caught up enough to launch another bolt she stopped and shot again. As she noticed Palinus and Seline watching the tenor of her laugh shifted a notch and she covered her face with her hand to smother the cackling. This didn¡¯t stop her from sprinting after her target and launching another bolt, which was enough to finish the boy''s health off.


    ¡°-An enemy has been slain!-¡±


    ¡°I told you the boys can¡¯t resist me.¡± Vesuvia winked at Palinus as she smoothed her sun bleached hair, her hand on her hip striking a pose.


    ¡°Good job!¡± Bruchts encouragement across the team chat reminded them of their need for haste.


    They quickly picked up the essentia on the ground which was enough for Vesuvia and Palinus to level up as he checked the timer.


    Saturnine Veil - [11 seconds] - 3:31


    When they had drawn up their plan of attack Seline had called this type of surprise attack from the brush a gank. This gank had gone off nearly perfectly.


    They were not done, they had another gank to go, and the speed boost of the Saturnine Veil was going to help them with the element of surprise through speed.

 Chapter 27 - The Inter-Cohort Battle: Diving Towers and Stacking Combos

    Chapter 27 - The Inter-Cohort Battle: Diving Towers and Stacking Combos


    Running through the brush Palinus enjoyed the sensation of the tall grass parting as he streamed through. As a boy from the city he had never run through grass that stood above his head, but a part of him knew that plants that were translucent at odd times and made barely any noise were not a natural occurrence. Thinking too much about the oddities of the rift ruined the moment.


    He burst out of the brush, his legs felt like they were moving normally but the speed he travelled through the meadow of no-man''s land between the two forests was startling. With his Tier I Strength his legs felt like they were pushing him further and the Tier I Mastery meant that his feet moved quickly catching his strides and starting the next movement before he had landed.


    The speed he travelled was faster than the feeling of his body, it was like he was taking an extra half stride for each of his steps. That made sense as he considered the 45% speed boost, it wasn¡¯t affecting how fast his body moved or he thought, just the linear distance he moved. It gave a heady feeling of effortless speed that felt reckless but not out of control.


    As he reached the edge of his smoke field ars he was almost disappointed, the speed was fun. There was something else to the ars, as if the veil of smoke made him feel safe and the scent of smoke in his nose gave him a phantom nostalgia for a time and a place he had never been.


    The edge of the Saternine Veil was marked with a wispy wall of smoke which was thicker than the inner field, he could see out of it fine but as he burst through he couldn¡¯t see back into the smoke.


    He stumbled awkwardly and nearly fell on his arse. The sudden change of pace as well as trying to turn to look backwards sent him off balance and he flailed his arms like a goose to keep his footing. He secretly hoped that the girls hadn¡¯t been able to see him through the smoke.


    When Vesuvia rushed through the smoke with a smirk on her face he knew that wasn¡¯t the case.


    It was strange that she had come through first, Palinus could have sworn that she started from behind Seline, and he knew that she had lower strength and mastery stats.


    ¡°Ugh, I¡¯m glad to be out of that.¡± Seline said as she made it out of the smoke.


    ¡°Huh,¡± Palinus said, puzzled.


    ¡°It wasn¡¯t bad at all.¡± Vesuvia added.


    ¡°Yeah it wasn;t unpleasant at all for me, and how did Vesuvia overtake you there?¡± Palinus questioned Seline as they collected themselves and started jogging towards their target.


    ¡°It must be to do with the attunement of the ars, I was running as fast as I could and V just skipped past.¡± she replied.


    ¡°Ohh, yeah it is a dark red. That makes sense with Vesuvia¡¯s high red attunement giving her the full buff.¡±


    ¡°I was still moving faster, but she was moving even fasterer.¡± Seline chuckled. ¡°Focus now.¡±


    She pressed her finger to her lips and dropped into a stalking crouch as they approached the brush. Through the obscuring shrubbery they could hear the sounds of fighting and the recurring whoosh and blast of a tower attacking.


    As they got nearer they got a sense of the lane. It looked like they had just missed some action as Bruchts stood panting under the tower, he was covered in gashes and his tunic was barely holding itself together.


    The attacking enemies following their big blond team mate were visibly conflicted. A pretty support mage who was using her staff to hold back a man carrying a long sword.He looked to be in his mid twenties which marked him as significantly older than most of the conscripts, his beard and fully grown body felt out of place in the conscript uniform.


    As they watched the man pushed the support away and rushed towards the turret.


    ¡°We have time, they won¡¯t be able to get here yet.¡± The man with the longsword yelled.


    With a startled expression Bruchts backpedalled further behind the turret.


    ¡°It¡¯s not worth it, WAIT!¡¯ The support mage yelled after her impetuous teammate.


    As the man charged in he swung the long sword with quick slashing motions, Palinus could see why Bruchts was so cut up now. The slashes of the sword were projected in a golden light towards the minions just in front of their tower and were swiftly dismantling them.


    As the swordsman plowed through their minions he was getting closer to hitting Bruchts but rather than focus on direct damage to his avatar the man kept splashing the damage across the minions and angled his run with an odd curve to pick up essentia that dropped rather than dive straight.


    With a flash of essentia Palinus could suddenly understand why as the man managed to level up with the collected essentia motes.


    Not missing a step the swordsman selected and started channeling an ars. A bright yellow light lit up his shoulder and he pulled his arm back for a mighty thrust.


    Bruchts sensed something about the ars and stopped running away to lift his shield to protect as much of himself as he could. The golden light from the ars flooded through the man¡¯s sword and as he thrust it forward towards Bruchts it made a thick beam of light and an enormous image of the sword flashed into the giant teenager.


    Bruchts 5/616 | Level 0


    Warden - Swordsman / Warden / Defender


    He barely survived the strike and his assailant was considering following him further under the turret. He was taking damage from the turret already and if the man chose to dive further turret he would take significant damage and possibly die, but he would almost certainly be able to land the killing blow.


    Trying to assist their team mate Palinus, Seline and Vesuvia didn¡¯t hesitate to charge in.


    ¡°YahGHH¡±


    ¡°DIIIEEEEE¡±


    ¡°STOP! You big meanie!¡±


    The trio yelled unintelligibly as they tried to take the attention of the enemy swordsman. Seline began firing as quickly as she could as she got into range first, while Palinus and Vesuvia ran to get an angle to attack.


    A moment of surprise at the sudden appearance of the team startled the swordsman. The momentary hesitation was enough for Bruchts to resume running away as fast as he could and as the man started to follow it seemed the distance was enough to pull out of range as the man swung his glowing sword for the killing blow, but just missed.


    ¡°A Sylvanian curse on your family you rat!¡± The swordsman yelled frustrated at Brucht¡¯s escape.


    The man whirled and with a dark expression ran out of the turret range. A third bolt of the turret struck a bubble shield covering the man¡¯s back and mitigated the damage significantly.


    The support mage hadn¡¯t been idle as they launched their surprise attack. Casting the bubble shield that protected the swordsman from much of the turret blow and their wave of attacks.She channeled another ars and the damage from the tower began to heal more rapidly as the swordsman turned towards Palinus and Vesuvia.


    A sharp glint of menace in the man¡¯s eye made Palinus gulp as he started firing his wand.


    ¡°Target the mage first!¡± Seline yelled. She was right to change targets with the support mage¡¯s ars on cooldown; she would be the easier target and was the priority with her defensive ars and healing.


    It was a challenge for Palinus to turn his eyes away from the swordsman, the man¡¯s face was an ugly snarl that promised violence against Vesuvia, but he managed to focus and reminded himself that they had a numerical advantage and the superior position. Even if the swordsman held a level advantage and was really scary.


    The support mage screamed as she realised the danger she was in. To cast her ars on the swordsman she was deep down the lane and had a long run under fire to escape. Thinking quickly she started her retreat and chose not to run directly towards the protection of her tower and instead rushed into the brush on the other side of the lane.


    ¡°Do we follow into the brush!?¡± Palinus questioned.


    ¡°We have to! It¡¯s our only chance!¡± Seline responded as she moved subtly to cut off the support mage¡¯s escape route, firing every few steps to continue her combination damage.


    Palinus didn''t have as many hits on the support so he elected to run all out, forgoing firing and moving, to cut her off from the protection of the brush.


    ¡°Don¡¯t forget to apply your level!¡± Seline yelled after him.


    He grimaced as he realised that he had forgotten to select another ars after his level up.


    As he ran he quickly checked his options:


    <table style="width: 89.9752%">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 10.0243%"> </td>


    <td style="width: 25.6607%">


    Wandslinger


    </td>


    <td style="width: 32.2779%">


    Red Mage


    </td>


    <td style="width: 31.5444%">


    Mage


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 10.0243%">


    Ars


    </td>


    <td style="width: 25.6607%">


    Multi-Strike


    </td>


    <td style="width: 32.2779%">


    Fireball


    </td>


    <td style="width: 31.5444%">


    Magic Missiles


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 10.0243%">


    Attunement


    </td>


    <td style="width: 25.6607%">


    nil


    </td>


    <td style="width: 32.2779%">


    nil


    </td>


    <td style="width: 31.5444%">


    nil


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 10.0243%">


    Cooldown


    </td>


    <td style="width: 25.6607%">


    n/a


    </td>


    <td style="width: 32.2779%">


    60 secondsIf you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    </td>


    <td style="width: 31.5444%">


    30 seconds


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 10.0243%">


    Compatibility


    </td>


    <td style="width: 25.6607%">


    n/a


    </td>


    <td style="width: 32.2779%">


    n/a


    </td>


    <td style="width: 31.5444%">


    n/a


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 10.0243%">


    Skill Type


    </td>


    <td style="width: 25.6607%">


    Enhancement


    </td>


    <td style="width: 32.2779%">


    Projectile, Area


    </td>


    <td style="width: 31.5444%">


    Projectile


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 10.0243%">


    Slot


    </td>


    <td style="width: 25.6607%">


    [Wrist], [Arm]


    </td>


    <td style="width: 32.2779%">


    [Fist, hand, wrist]


    </td>


    <td style="width: 31.5444%">


    [Fist, hand, wrist]


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 10.0243%">


    Slot Bonus


    </td>


    <td style="width: 25.6607%">


    n/a


    </td>


    <td style="width: 32.2779%">


    n/a


    </td>


    <td style="width: 31.5444%">


    n/a


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td style="width: 10.0243%">


    Description


    </td>


    <td style="width: 25.6607%">


    Each strike applies effects twice.


    </td>


    <td style="width: 32.2779%">


    Shoot an explosive fireball damaging everything [200] within 2 metres and applying [Burn].


    </td>


    <td style="width: 31.5444%">


    Shoot three bolts of energy doing [50] damage each to up to three targets.


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    He was disappointed to find the same generic ars as his first rift after he had selected the only ars he currently possessed for his smoke mage class. A part of him had hoped to get some new abilities that separated him from generic Red Mages, but he would need to find some more calculii to do that.


    The decision as to what to take for his secondary class was harder than he had anticipated, especially as he wouldn¡¯t be able to take another class when he hit level 3+. The Red Mage abilities would do more burst damage and help him secure a kill right now, but he would only realistically be able to fire one fireball in the fight, that style of attack didn¡¯t gel with his smoke veil ars that allowed him to skirmish and drag out fights. The Mage ars magic missiles would do less burst but more reliable damage and he could target multiple enemies, he was more likely to get off a second shot with the lower cooldown as well.


    As an ars was channeled from behind him and a flash of green light triggered below the support mages feet causing her to stumble before she made it to the brush, Palinus made his decision.


    He passed the support sprawled on the pavers of the lane and took a stance at the edge of the brush. Lifting his wand as he tried to look menacing and started firing.


    As the bolts of the wand flew towards the support mage still prone on the ground they struck with the same muted meaty slapping sound, but now they had a subtle echo effect as the effect of Multistrike caused his combination stacks to apply twice.


    The second bolt from the wand flew and struck the support mage who still writhed on the ground trying to free her feet from the roots Seline had summoned. As he lined up the third shot a roar of rage caused him to look up.


    The swordsman had given up trying to attack Vesuvia who had been leading him the slightly wrong direction and was taking less damage than the man expected, protected either by her bolster and healing ars. She laughed at the big man as he turned away firing her staff bolts into him as she followed like a school yard bully.


    The swordsman growled and activated an ars that suddenly made him burst towards Palinus faster than he could react and all of a sudden the big two handed sword was swinging down towards Palinus¡¯s face.


    ¡°Arp!¡± Palinus yelped and stepped backwards into the brush.


    The swordsman¡¯s blade didn¡¯t have the golden light activated and it missed his face by a tiny margin. It didn¡¯t need the extra range as it struck his arm and carved into his flesh.


    The feeling of the blade cutting into his flesh was awful and it did significant damage for a single strike.


    Palinus 523/635 | Level 1


    Smoke Mage / Wandslinger


    Losing sight of Palinus in the brush the swordsman hadn¡¯t followed, prioritising helping his support.


    Palinus knew he needed to use this to their advantage to disrupt the swordsman and keep the pressure on the support mage. He pushed down his desire to create more distance from the blade and stepped back out of the brush.


    Throwing his damaged arm up he quickly shot off another bolt from his wand.


    He was just in time to preserve his combo damage and the tick up of the fourth application was starting to do noticeable additional damage to the support mage.


    Between Palinus¡¯s wand and Seline''s arrows stacking damage the support was starting to look severely injured with her health points under a third.


    The swordsman had lost sight of Palinus as he entered the brush and assumed that he had retreated. As the bolts from the wand blasted his support still struggling on the ground he hesitated and considered turning to resume his attack.


    With an expression only evident to Palinus from behind by the set of his shoulders he committed to assisting his team mate and with a burst of power he pulled her bodily away from the grasping root. She gave a shriek of pain as the root came loose with her ankle twisted in an awkward angle to free her.


    As he placed her on her feet he kept a grip on her waist tugging her back towards their tower and trying to stand between Palinus and his target. Freed from the roots but clearly in pain as she hobbled, the support mage was crying and wailing as she ran. Palinus was surprised by her weakness and lack of urgency, as if she had never been in a true life or death situation and was treating this as a game that was suddenly too rough.


    He ran behind them to try and find an angle to strike at the support, but as he saw a bolt from Vesuvia and another arrow from Seline strike her he made the choice to switch targets and start putting damage on the swordsman. It was a risk to not focus damage, but it would mean that he could start stacking the combo points required to get enough damage for the second kill. A choice to not only catch up to the enemy team, but bury them now.


    ¡°Can you buff us with smoke?¡± Seline asked with a yell, on the same page and thinking ahead.


    Saturnine Veil - 2:09


    ¡°Ages on cooldown!¡± He replied, surprised it had been less than a minute and a half since he checked.


    Seline winced as she fired off another arrow, already running to try to get in position for another.


    The arrow struck the support mage in the back with a heavy strike that was bringing the support critically low, but it wasn¡¯t enough to kill. As she ran the support began to channel an ars and her health points began to tick up.


    Another blast from Vesuvia¡¯s staff was not enough to finish the support off with her health ticking back up. Vesuvia gave a huff of frustration and began to channel an ars of her own.


    ¡°Don¡¯t waste your heal! We are going to have to dive!¡± Palinus yelled.


    Vesuvia gave him a look of disdain as she finished channeling her ars. The heal targeted not Seline, who was still quite damaged from her previous tower dive, or Palinus who had some light injuries, but it instead directly targeted the support.


    Before Palinus could question the point of healing their target the support mage started violently coughing as she hobbled. She leaned to one side and spat out a glob of thick blood which was tainted with lashings of black mucus.


    The damage of the ars triggered and did a sliver of health points, but more importantly when another wave of the healing ars came a moment later it seemed to heal the support mage for far less.


    Giving a nod of apology and approval, Palinus resumed trying to avenge the cut on his arm as he launched bolts into the broad back of the swordsman.


    ¡°-An enemy has been slain!-¡±


    With the reduced healing and repeated arrows to the back Seline finally managed to kill the support mage and beads of essentia scattered through the lane.


    The swordsman was suddenly off balance without carrying the woman¡¯s weight and took a stumbling step forward.


    Recovering his balance despite the strikes of an arrow and the bolts of a staff and wand the swordsman started to accelerate to full pace.


    ¡°How long on roots?!¡± Palinus asked desperately.


    ¡°Still another 5 seconds!¡± Seline responded.


    ¡°Bahahah!¡± The swordsman laughed as he surged away from them. With his second level his strength and mastery stat differences made his physicality significantly superior.


    The trio charged after him but weren¡¯t able to fire off any shots and were falling behind.


    Despite the damage of the tower and the smattering of wand attacks from Palinus the man was still at above half health points.


    They hesitated as they reached the edge of the tower''s range with a fresh wave of minions streaming past it.


    ¡°We will destroy you! Our idiots in mid lane are already on their way to claim their revenge!¡± The swordsman turned and grandstanded.


    ¡°Go ahead and dive.¡± Bruchts voice came through team chat.


    Not hesitating to trust their teammate, Palinus instantly took the plunge and stepped within the tower¡¯s range.


    ¡°Bahahaha! You are idiots!¡± The swordsman crowed at them as he backpedaled slowly. He activated his sword ars and began to attack Palinus. He could feel the effects of [Bolster] Vesuvia had applied mitigating damage. The golden licks of the sword felt like the strokes of a heated yet dull knife, the strikes of the melee minions were the taps of unruly toddlers, but the bolt from the tower still packed a punch like a mule.


    Despite the mitigating effect of Vesuvia¡¯s ars the damage was still stacking up and Palinus knew that they were taking a desperate gamble. He knew he could take only one more shot from the tower if the swordsman chose to unleash his blasting ars on him.


    Looking into the man¡¯s eyes as he maintained smirking eye contact as he kept moving backwards past the tower, Palinus knew that that was just about to come as he shot off a final wand blast and braced himself for the barrage.


    ¡°We need to run!¡± he yelled.


    ¡°Keep the pressure on girls!¡± Bruchts voice came through again encouraging Vesuvia and Seline to continue to dive the tower despite the danger.


    The swordsman''s ars took a moment to channel which felt like it dragged for minutes.


    The golden light surged from his chest and down his right arm and shot from the tip of the man¡¯s sword a ray of light projecting violently that tickled and burnt Palinus¡¯s chest.


    As soon as the ars began to coalesce, Palinus turned and started to sprint out of the tower.


    Two strikes hit simultaneously like being kicked by two horses at once as the blast of the golden sword hit and the bolt from the tower struck.


    Palinus 135/635 | Level 1 [Bolster]


    Smoke Mage / Wandslinger


    Checking his health points, he let out a sigh of relief. He was well in the clear but he wouldn¡¯t be able to take another blast from the tower.


    ¡°You splinter dick! Come fight me!¡± The swordsman yelled after him.


    The taunt hit a chord and Palinus was frustrated as he did all he could, dragging out a few more hits from the minions as he retreated from the swordsman and the towers'' range.


    Seline and Vesuvia were well under the tower still and kept the pressure on the enemy, preventing him from finishing Palinus off.


    The swordsman kept slowly jogging backwards taunting the women who¡¯s attacks were piling up, but were not doing enough damage.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll stay and entertain the ladies!¡± he taunted.


    He began to slash his golden swords at Vesuvia who was taking damage quickly from the tower and ranged minions.


    ¡°You¡­ you¡­ you''re the splinter dick! Why won¡¯t you die?¡± She screamed lamely as she was forced to retreat.


    ¡°Bahah¡­ huh?!¡± The swordsman¡¯s laughter was cut off as he suddenly ran into a wall.


    ¡°My turn!¡± Bruchts said calmly, appearing from the brush behind the swordsman.


    As the fight had progressed Seline and Vesuvia had pushed the swordsman nearly through to the other side of the tower. Standing just outside of range of the tower on the far side Bruchts now joined the fight.


    He attacked with a vicious strike from his shield, bashing the bewildered swordsman and swiftly jabbing with his sword. As the enemy tried to flee past Bruchts he blocked the man with his shield and sword preventing the man¡¯s retreat.


    Seline¡¯s arrows kept flying in and were starting to make the man resemble a pin cushion and were now doing significant combination damage.


    ¡°Ugh! You little twigs!¡± The swordsman spent his last moment as ran out of health points making a rude gesture to Seline.


    ¡°-An enemy has been slain!-¡±


    Seline and Bruchts quickly collected the essentia on the ground and ran out of the towers range on the far side.


    ¡°I thought he would never die.¡± Seline sighed. ¡°I guess that is the level advantage at work. Perfect timing on your entrance?¡±


    ¡°Just a walk in the forest¡± Bruchts replied calmly as he led her through the forest around the tower. ¡°It felt good to strike back at that bully.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s get to our laning assignments and bury these fools.¡± Seline eagerly sent across the team chat.


    ¡°Yeah!¡± The team cheered in agreement, they were in good spirits and on their way to an unexpected win in this rift.

 Chapter 28 - ICB: The Overworld Tower Dive

    Chapter 28 - The ICB: The Overworld Tower Dive


    <blockquote>


    Inter Cohort Battle Report:


    Cohort 1: 841/924


    Cohort 2: 755/833


    Ongoing Rifts:


    1st River Tower Rift C1 21 : 1 C2 [Victory C1]


    2nd River Tower Rift C1 1 : 14 C2 [Victory C2]


    3rd River Tower Rift C1 - : - C2 [Seeding]


    1st Middle Tower Rift C1 12 : 13 C2 [Victory C1]


    2nd Middle Tower Rift C1 - : - C2 [Seeding]


    1st Creek Tower Rift C1 13 : 21 C2


    Century Battle Status Report, II, VII:


    Location - In the field between Misty Tower and River Tower


    Strength - 62/74


    Incapacitated - 10


    Missing - 2


    Dead - 0


    Rift Teams -


    Fifth Decio - Full strength


    Sixth Decio (aka Team Palinus) - Full strength


    Seventh Decio - 4/5


    </blockquote>


    ¡°They weren¡¯t supposed to win!¡± Centurion Armiger kicked at a shrub beside the path as the century reformed. They had taken nearly half an hour to turn the century around and collect the various decios strewn through the forest in the retreat from the river tower. ¡°They are just a pack of street rats from the 7th Hill with no pedigree at all! That one is a bloody stoneman!¡±


    Optio Magunnus was used to his superior¡¯s ¡®opinions.¡¯


    ¡°Winning a rift is generally considered to be a good thing.¡± Magunnus said carefully, he had worked with Armiger for over a year and knew how to manage the man. ¡°You are looking good with a skirmish win against the 11s and a counter rift.¡±


    ¡°But now we have to attack them head on¡­ ¡° The centurion¡¯s gruff frustration crossed into whining as he channeled an ars to slash the offending shrub with lashes that removed it¡¯s spiny leaves. ¡°...or do we?¡±


    ¡°Yes, we do. The 9th Century are already moving to support. ¡± Magunnus said calmly,


    ¡°Fine.¡± he agreed sullenly.


    ¡°...and you need to let the 2nd team take a run at the 111s.¡±


    ¡°The First Team¡­!¡± Armiger started to object weakly, but his face pinched into a calculating look. ¡°Maybe you are right.¡±


    The optio sighed, he almost preferred the petulant version of the centurion than the overtly corrupt one.


    ¡°They can take the tower rift, if they can get there in time. If they don¡¯t make it in time to compete with the 111s¡­¡± The centurion shrugged. ¡°Either way they have no hope and it will be quick. It¡¯s not like Augustus will complain to his father about avoiding another thrashing.¡±


    Stomping on the stubby shrub with his sandal, Centurion Armiger twisted the heavy leather sole of his sandal and ground what remained of the plant into the dirt.


    He scowled at the rift and the conscripts below it.


    Tendrils of mostly red essentia already crept from the Misty Tower through the rift and towards the River Tower. It sapped essentia from the 1st Cohort conscripts who were currently positioned beneath the tower. Steadily reducing their power as it also empowered their conscripts the closer they got to the tower they had claimed with the impending victory in the rift.


    Standing straight and putting on his gruff soldier persona he finally turned to face the century that was now fully formed, besides the bodies of 5 who lay strewn below the rift they guarded.


    ¡°We go to recapture the tower!¡± The Centurion yelled with his chest out and sword raised.


    Some within the century cheered weakly. Most warily eyed the first century, they had won a small victory with a surprise attack, but they would still be a fierce enemy in a melee¡­ even with buff provided by the tower.


    ¡°...after we surround and bombard the 1st for a while!¡± Armiger added, which prompted a much bigger response.


    <hr>


    Palinus found the return to his body awkward. He smacked his head into the earth as he reoriented himself from walking victoriously through a rift to his face down prone position under one.


    As he rubbed his head and as he sat up found Centurion Armiger crouching in front of them, uncomfortably close.


    ¡°Um, hi.¡± He said.


    ¡°Get in formation!¡± Centurion Armiger yelled.


    He hadn¡¯t expected much, but the complete lack of acknowledgement of their victory was underwhelming.


    They stood up and ran to stand in a line.


    ¡°You are assigned to rift 3. Congratulations.¡± The centurion said with an evil smile.


    As they digested the statement the rift behind them pulsed and shuddered. Its aperture closing like a kaleidoscopic flower folding in on itself.


    Through the forest they could see the river tower.. They could feel the pulsing of essentia from the rift they stood by to the tower and could feel the pull of the rift within.


    They could also see that the tower was defended.


    ¡°But the rifts probably just about to open!¡± Seline was the first to react, but the whole team knew the score.


    ¡°Well, you might want to run.¡± The centurion commented.


    The team quickly shared a look. They had 5 minutes realistically, and they would need to fight through to the rift.


    Without a word they began to move. Rather than the clearer path towards the road they started off into the forest.


    ¡°Wait!¡± The voice of Armicustos Cico pulled them to a halt.


    They turned to find not the impressive woman but Decurion Marius running towards them carrying a chest with a copper horn mounted on the top of it. The portly Decurion was panting and sweating in the heat as if he had been running for quite some time.


    ¡°Good boy Marius, set it quickly so we can let them get underway.¡± Cico¡¯s voice sounded tinny as it was projected from the horn. ¡°Did you get any loot?¡±


    ¡°Nothing for us.¡± Palinus replied with frustration. He had hoped for something that might get them an edge on the 111s.


    Both Cico through the horn and Marius laughed at him.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.


    ¡°It¡¯s rare to get something fit for you unless it is a formed rift you idiot.¡± Marius stated bluntly. ¡°Show us what you got.¡±


    The team pulled out the two calculii they picked up:


    [Stone Wall] and [Polymorph]


    ¡°Good choice not applying either of those.¡± Marius stated, it didn¡¯t sound like a compliment as much as a statement of relief that the team weren¡¯t that dumb.


    He took the two stones and tapped once on the lid of the chest. It opened for a moment and he stuffed the stones in.


    ¡°Anything else?¡±


    ¡°This vitis dropped.¡± Bruchts handed over the ornate stick that had formed from the essentia in the rift.


    The vitis, also known as a vine staff, was a symbol of the centurion rank, it was a stick exactly a meter long that was used for drill as well as for flogging.


    Marius hefted the stick for a moment and eyed the markings along it, channeling his essentia he swung it and a lash of dark red energy flickered from it¡¯s tip.


    ¡°Hmm.¡± The decurion seemed to be deep in though. ¡°This could work¡­ Huh. Interesting.¡±


    Moving over to the chest he whispered into the horn. The whispered conversation that Palinus could hear was from more than one voice, but he couldn¡¯t place who was speaking.


    When Marius finished he handed the stick not back to Bruchts but to Palinus.


    ¡°Try this instead of your wand.¡±


    ¡°Am I allowed to carry a Vitis?¡± Palinus asked.


    There was an ugly sound of disapproval from Centurion Armiger who Palinus had forgotten was hanging around.


    ¡°It is just a stick, it is almost more like a whip in truth. ¡± Marius laughed. ¡°Even if it does look a lot like a Vitis, it is ultimately just a weapon, the Auxilia don''t care for arbitrary status symbols."


    ¡°Hrmph.¡± Centurion Armiger didn¡¯t argue but he looked pissed off as he stomped away.


    This made Marius laugh even harder once the man was out of earshot.


    "It is shorter range than you are used to, but a possible long term option as a weapon. Give it a try.¡±


    ¡°Can we go now!¡± Seline was getting agitated, ¡°We have a rift to get to!¡±


    ¡°Just a moment. Cico is just finalising some trades for the calculii you picked up, she¡¯ll get you something nice it''ll be worth the wait.¡±


    Through the horn on the chest they could hear a muffled argument.


    ¡°... I know¡­ I know¡­¡± Armicustos Cico¡¯s voice came back to the fore, clearly still arguing with someone in the background. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter how fun that woul-¡±


    Then sound cut off for a moment before Cico came back to them.


    ¡°Go ahead and grab the stones before someone else comes in and adds their opinion¡­ Good luck!¡±


    She wished the team good fortune as the lid of the chest opened and the team crowded around.


    Inside the chest was plain, but the size was far smaller that the full chest. The edges of the box blurring to connect itself, the effect gave palinus a headache and he focused on the two calculii within.


    One a deep orange with a square gem cut, its facets were gleaming as if the light within chased itself around the edges as it entered the stone.


    The other was a turquoise. It stood out from all the other calculii Palinus had seen as it had rounded edges, dark black veins and the blue and green colours within clashed against themselves rather than blending homogeneously.


    The team instantly felt who they were intended for.


    A flash of disappointment tugged at Palinus, he wanted a new calculii and had hoped for something that would add to his offence.


    Sharing a look with the team, he knew he was not alone. In Rufian¡¯s eyes was bloodlust and in Vesuvia¡¯s undisguised greed. They wanted more.


    <hr>


    ¡°Do you think we would have got a warmer response from a first cohort centurion?¡± Vesuvia joked as they ran towards the tower.


    The team chuckled as they dodged around trees and cut a wide path towards the River Tower.


    ¡°It''s a pile of shit.¡± Rufian was still fuming, ¡°We were pivotal in setting up the ambush and then we managed to win the rift with a disadvantage! Armiger should be kissing our feet!¡±


    ¡°Well you didn¡¯t exactly contribute to either of those things, you feeder!¡± Seline teased.


    ¡°What?!¡± Rufian said in mock outrage, ¡°I¡¯ll have you know I killed three of them¡­ and that was twice by myself in the top lane.¡±


    ¡°Then you ruined our clean slate by diving their nexus towers.¡±


    ¡°I was just securing the kill.¡±


    Their banter as they ran had an odd gallows humour quality. They knew they were about to do something silly.


    ¡°I wonder if tower diving in the overworld hurts as much as in a rift¡­¡± Bruchts mused


    They were pleased to find as they reached the edge of the forest that the seventh century had not been completely idle. The first cohort were starting to look a bit the worse for wear under fire from the empowered second cohort.


    It pleased Palinus to see them under fire from siege weaponry and it looked like there was an ongoing battle as the conscripts with long ranged spells and projectile weapons took shots at each other.


    The second cohort were winning handily in the trades, but the first cohort didn¡¯t need to win, they just needed to delay until their rift team had an advantage.


    ¡°We¡¯re running out of time.¡± Seline sighed.


    ¡°We have to just charge.¡± Rufian stated. ¡°Otherwise we are potentially delaying our starts in the rift.¡±


    ¡°But we also all need to make it to the rift.¡± Palinus replied, ¡°Otherwise we are at an even bigger disadvantage¡­ even if we do make it, we¡¯re probably going to get destroyed.¡±


    ¡°We have a chance if we all make it in,¡± Bruchts added. ¡°¡®Night Dive¡¯ to get there and ¡®Deep Fist¡¯ in the rift?¡±


    The team around him nodded.


    ¡°Good plans, but we need to stick together for the dive. I¡¯d rather we all go to the infirmary together than face a 5v4.¡± Palinus agreed.


    ¡°Sorry Pal I¡¯ve got a new ars to test! Get ready for a slight spin on the dive strat. When we get out of this you need to rate my warcry!¡± Rufian said excitedly before he ran off.


    ¡°What is he talking about, isn¡¯t this a stealth attack where we go in tight?¡± Seline said with a worried look.


    They started to move out of the forest quietly, they could hear Rufian making a racket in some thick bushes not far away.


    Before they were completely ready to go it seemed like Rufian decided to make his move.


    ¡°Let¡¯s do this!¡± They heard him yell. ¡°RRRRUuuuuuuFFIIIAANNNN RRRAAAMMMMIIRrrrruuUUUSSSS!!!¡±


    ¡°Oh Vestra, he¡¯s running in!¡± Seline exclaimed.


    ¡°Rufian you idiot.¡± Brucht grumbled.


    ¡°We¡¯d better go and save him.¡± Palinus sighed.


    The team ran as quickly as they could. A stealth approach was thrown out and the first cohort conscripts on this side of the tower began to prepare themselves for battle.


    As they ran they quickly got within range for Palinus to use his ars and he was quick to channel the Saturnine Veil. It gave them a boost to speed and some cover from the projectiles which were already being launched at them as they ran towards the tower.


    Palinus quickly lost track of his team as he charged headlong through the smoke. He held the Vitis that he had just got and hoped that it might be useful trying to fight through a shield wall, though he wasn¡¯t hopeful.


    As he got closer to the tower he saw what he was dreading.


    The first cohort conscripts had formed a wall and it looked solid with an interlocking bubble of projected shields that might as well have been made of brick.


    He flicked out with his stick in frustration.


    As the stick came down thick strands of dark red energy streamed out of the tip like half a dozen whips of energy. As it cracked against the shield it made a sound like the vicious whips they had experienced only that morning. He felt that the damage was more than he might have done with the wand, but it was not going to be enough to break through the shield wall.


    As Palinus started to lose hope he heard a growling that he recognised from off to his left. It seemed like Rufian had run slightly around the formation to the left rather than straight into the enemy. It was impressive misdirection but Palinus wasn¡¯t sure he could do anything.


    As his friend started to channel an ars Palinus felt a moment of hope.


    A sharp line of orange light shot like a laser through the formation of First cohort conscripts. It looked similar to the ars the swordsman in their previous rift had used. It also didn¡¯t seem to do any damage, which was why it hadn¡¯t been deflected by the shield wall.


    Rufian¡¯s ars quickly locked on to a far conscript and began in earnest. His arm was locked to the beam as if the fist he pointed was tied to it. He began to fly forward.


    It was slow at first but he quickly picked up speed.


    It would have hurt a great deal as he bashed himself into the shield wall.


    *SMACK* *Smack*


    His fist hit the wall and his whole body followed into it secondary thud. The fist and body pressing as if trying to squeeze through an invisible hole.


    The shield wall flickered and with a shudder gave up against Rufian¡¯s body pressed into it.


    Rufian flew through the line of conscripts holding up their shield. He came in from the side and scattered them like pins as he flew through.


    With a yell Palinus took the opportunity to run through the line and up into the tower.


    As he got through the door he could tell that he was joined by several of his team, but that they were also being pursued by their enemy.


    ¡°Stop them!¡± from in front a handful of resting conscripts stood to fight.


    With a slash of his wrist Palinus flicked out the whipping tendrils of his new weapon and was morbidly satisfied with the cry of pain as he hit the person in front of him.


    Not wasting any time to see the damage he darted past and dove headfirst into the waiting tendrils of the rift.


    As he felt the lurching sensations of entering a rift he hoped that the rest of the team had made it. He especially hoped that Rufian had managed to unentangle himself from his impressive ars. They would need him for their plan to win in the rift.


    A plan they had dubbed ''Deep Fist.''