Second Skin- Fractures

by M Damon Baker

  I could see the foul creature’s health bar rapidly declining as it suffered the full effects of our combined blows. In the background, barely audible above the din of our crashing weapons, I was just able make out Venna chanting some spell or incantation. As we continued to relentlessly pound the creature’s battered body, Venna completed her casting and a second ray of light shone through the chamber.

  A soft glow began to circle the undead lord, and even in its battered state, it let loose a screeching wail of pain. The light spun around the creature, increasing in speed as it encircled its target, and slowly formed a physical barrier that forced us back.

  As we watched from a distance, the light spun a cocoon around the undead lord and sealed it inside a barrier of solid light. The beast’s cries of pain only increased as the shell of light grew, and its howls rose from a pitiful moan into roars of absolute torture. Fortunately, as the shell completed itself, the creature’s screams became muffled and were mostly contained inside the ball of light that had encased the putrid, undead lord.

  I watched in fascination as the ball of light began to slowly contract. It continued to shrink until it became smaller than I thought the undead monster could even fit inside. Even so, the shell of light still continued to dwindle away. Before long, the luminous orb was only the size of a small marble, and yet it still continued to shrink away.

  Then, with an abrupt ‘pop,’ it vanished completely.

  The undead lord had us, and by all rights, we should have been dead. While I would have respawned outside the ruins, my companions’ deaths would have been permanent. The only thing that had delivered us from that fate was Venna’s magic.

  “You saved us all,” I said, turning to Venna.

  When I looked at her, I could see that whatever artifact she’d used had been reduced to a crumbled pile of ash in her hand. She was looking at it forlornly, clearly disappointed to have lost such a relic.

  “No, I did not,” she replied. “We were saved by the foresight of my Abbott. It was he who insisted that I take the banishing rod with me. He suspected the liege of this warren might be more powerful than the reports indicated. It is well that we defeated the wraith, but the loss of the rod was a high price to pay. A more senior Curate would have been able to defeat that abomination without resorting to the use of such a powerful relic.”

  “Yet he would not have given it to you had he not wanted you to use it if needed,” Stel countered.

  “True enough. I count our lives spared as worth the bargain. But that does not prevent me from regretting the need to pay such a steep price,” Venna lamented.

  “Leave those thoughts for another time—come look what I’ve found!” Khorim exclaimed.

  I was surprised that Khorim was not tending Broda’s wounds, but when I glanced over at him, I could see that she was by his side. She had obviously already used a healing crystal or potion as she was gingerly flexing her injured arm, testing out the newly knitted-together bone.

  Broda and Khorim were standing upon the dais where the wraith, as Venna had identified the creature, had been perched when we first entered the chamber, and when I joined them on the raised platform, I could see what they were gazing at. Behind the dais were piles of loot. Armor, weapons, backpacks, pouches, and coins were strewn about haphazardly. Scattered among the various items were even a few gold and silver objects that had most likely been gathered from the unfortunate victims of the undead nest.

  “These must be the belongings of all those who were either killed or turned into undead by the wraith,” Broda said, giving voice to our thoughts.

  “We certainly can’t carry all of it,” Stel replied. “We’ll have to sort through and just take what is most valuable.”

  We spent the next hour sifting through the piles of gear and treasure. There were only a few gold and silver artifacts, so we took them all. Each of us also found better backpacks, which allowed us to haul off even more of the loot than we had originally hoped for. In the end, we managed to come away with almost everything of value, and we left the ruins with our own packs stuffed full of loot and each of us toting an additional loaded backpack. While carrying around a second pack was awkward, none of us wanted to leave any of the valuable loot behind if we could help it.

  When we finally reached the exit from the ruins, the sun was beginning to set. While we only had about an hour or so before dark, no one wanted to spend the night anywhere near the undead lair, so we used the time we had to get as far away from the ruins as possible.

  Once we were far enough away, we found a likely spot and set up camp for the night. After that was taken care of, Venna began making her rounds, tending to everyone’s lingering wounds. While we had all taken healing potions or crystals to address the worst of our injuries, everyone still had some remaining damage. Everyone except me.

  My position at the rear of the group left me almost completely unscathed during the entire series of fights. Even the slight bumps and scrapes I had received were already healed by my Deathless abilities, and I knew this would not go unnoticed. I had already told my companions nearly everything else about me, and it seemed that this was the opportunity for me to trust them with that one last secret. So, as Venna approached to offer me healing, I spoke up.

  “Thank you Venna, but I’m fine,” I said hesitantly.

  We had never discussed their feelings on the Deathless that were trapped on their world. I realized that I had no idea how any of them felt about the issue. Still, reluctantly, I continued.

  “Actually, I’ve been wanting to tell you something for a while. My injuries are all healed because I… I’m one of the Deathless,” I blurted out before I could stop myself.

  Their eyes were all focused on me as I finished speaking, and an uneasy silence came over the camp. The tension was broken when Khorim kicked a rock across the ground and muttered something under his breath. I immediately tensed up, thinking that I was about to be rejected by my companions, or worse, but then Khorim spoke.

  “Damn you, Stel,” he cursed. “I don’t know how you do it.”

  As he spoke, Khorim reached into his pouch and pulled out a handful of coins. Stel’s face bore a smile which bordered on a smirk as he reached out his hand and accepted the silver Marks from Khorim.

  “You knew?” I asked, dumbfounded.

  “Aye, we knew,” Khorim grumbled.

  “Khorim here wagered it would take you at least a month to admit it to us,” Stel added as he tucked the coins away. “I said it would be less than a week. Although, I must confess that I did not suspect you would trust us with your secret quite as soon as this.”

  I could only shake my head in disbelief. I thought I had been so discreet, yet they had seen right through me. I glanced up at Venna, and saw a look of compassion and understanding in her eyes as she sat down next to me and took my hand in hers.

  “We only knew because we spent so much time with you, Dae,” Venna offered, as she seemed to sense my concerns. “I doubt that anyone you encounter more casually would be able to tell.”

  “Thank you,” I replied, somewhat reassured. “I certainly hope so. My life may depend on it, at least for a while.”

  A sudden impulse came over me. I still had one small thing I was keeping from my friends, and there was no better time to let it go.

  “I guess I might as well give up my final secret then,” I announced, as all eyes were on me once again.

  “Like all Deathless I have two names, and my last name is Dae, as I have told you,” I began. “I don’t think the Bloody Hearts know that name, so please continue to call me by that whenever anyone else is around. But any other time, if you wish, please feel free to call me Dreya.”

  “I hope that little disclosure doesn’t cost you anything, master dwarf,” I added with a sideways glance at Khorim.

  Khorim looked me back in the eye as he slowly reached for his coin pouch yet again and my face almost fell to the ground. How the hell could they have known my name? But then, w
ithout withdrawing any coins, he burst out in laughter.

  “Ahhhhhh, that was a good one!” Khorim exclaimed. “I wish you could have seen the look on your face!”

  The damn dwarf had indeed gotten me good, and there was nothing for me to do but join in on the laughter.

  “Well,” I said once everyone had finished enjoying Khorim’s jest. “Since all my secrets are now out, I’m just going to take a few moments and take care of a few Deathless things.”

  31

  I hadn’t looked at any of my notifications since the beginning of our trek through the ruins. In fact, I had been trying hard to ignore them most of the time, fearing that they might distract me at a crucial moment. But since I had the opportunity and was no longer concerned about my companions noticing my actions, I opened up my notifications and allowed the messages to scroll across my vision.

  Experience gained – You have gained 477 XP.

  Experience gained – You have gained 477 XP.

  Experience gained – You have gained 477 XP.

  Experience gained – You have gained 477 XP.

  You have gained a level! – You have earned sufficient experience to advance to level 6.

  You have gained five Attribute points. Three of your points have been automatically assigned to CON, DEX, and CHA. You may assign the remaining points to any two other Attributes as you see fit.

  Your choices are final and must be made now.

  I was frustrated to discover that, yet again, the fates had placed one of my precious Attribute points into Charisma. But where this had been a cause of great concern for me in the past, by now I had simply resigned myself to my destiny. I actually might have been more surprised if one of my points wasn’t automatically assigned to Charisma. So, with a silent internal sigh, I placed my two remaining points in Strength and Intelligence and closed the window.

  You can now choose a new Ability. You must choose one of the following:

  Rapid Fire — After firing an arrow, your follow-up shot takes half as long as normal to be fired. Cost — 10 Endurance.

  Seeker – Your next single shot has an increased chance to hit. Cost – 10 Endurance.

  Body Blow – Your next dagger attack, if it lands, will cause your opponent to suffer an Endurance penalty. Cost — 20 Aura.

  Impale – Your dagger inflicts a damage-over-time bleed effect. Cost — 20 Endurance.

  Hamstring – The next arrow fired has a chance to cripple your opponent. Cost — 20 Aura.

  Focused Fire – Your next arrow causes increased damage if it hits. Cost – 20 Endurance.

  Hilt Bash – Stun your opponent with a successful hilt strike from your bladed weapon. Cost – 30 Endurance.

  Your choice is final and must be made now.

  My choices were comprised of all the Abilities I had passed over previously, with the addition of a melee stun option. While I could see the value of that option, one of the choices I had overlooked before caught my attention.

  In bypassing Hamstring, I had dismissed it as a functional duplicate of Stun, but the fight against the wraith made me realize just how wrong I had been. While Stun dazed an opponent into inaction or immobility, Hamstring was more of a physical restraint. The wraith had clearly been immune or at least resistant to Stun’s effects, and I could only wonder how different the course of that particular fight might have been if I had been able to rob the undead lord of its mobility.

  In the end, my choice came down to that fact that, while I wanted to be more versatile, I was still primarily a ranged damage dealer. In fact, my focus on that particular aspect had proven quite valuable during our clearing of the abandoned ruins. I wouldn’t always overlook close fighting options, but I knew that I needed to make sure that my capabilities for ranged attacks were more complete. So, I ultimately selected Hamstring, and as the menu closed, a new option appeared.

  Having reached level 6, you can now choose a new Spell. You must choose one of the following:

  Muffle — May be cast on self or ally. Dampens sound in a radius around target. Cost — 20 Aura.

  Elemental Arrow — Your next arrow is imbued with elemental energy and causes additional elemental damage accordingly. Cost — 30 Aura.

  Detect Life – Casting this spell allows you to detect the essence of nearby living creatures. Cost – 20 Aura.

  Restore Health — May be cast on self or ally. Heals a small amount of damage. Cost – 30 Aura.

  Create Trap — Place a magical trap upon an area. Size, type, and trigger of trap is determined by your proficiency. Cost — 40 Aura.

  Your choice is final and must be made now.

  I still wanted both Muffle and Elemental Arrow, and my new options were also pretty good, but Create Trap was so appealing that I selected it almost immediately—the ability to lay a magical trap opened up so many possibilities for combat ambushes that it was just too good for me to pass up. Even just the potential to protect our campsites at night made selecting it a complete no-brainer. I was going to have so much fun experimenting with this Spell! Once I made my selection, the window closed, and the XP notifications resumed scrolling by once more.

  Experience gained – You have gained 477 XP.

  . . .

  Experience gained – You have gained 477 XP.

  The XP notifications continued to fly by rapidly, and I was shocked when something different eventually popped up.

  You have gained a level! – You have earned sufficient experience to advance to level 7.

  You have gained five Attribute points. Three of your points have been automatically assigned to STR, CON, and CHA. You may assign the remaining points to any two other Attributes as you see fit.

  Your choices are final and must be made now.

  I quickly assigned one of my points to Intelligence, since I had no doubt about that choice, then thought about my remaining option for a scant moment. Between Wisdom and Dexterity, there really was no choice. While both played a role, at least passively, in many of my skills, Dexterity was currently far more valuable to me. Although I didn’t want to let Wisdom fall too far behind, I felt the need for increased Dexterity was more of a priority at that time.

  You can now choose a new Ability. You must choose one of the following:

  Rapid Fire — After firing an arrow, your follow-up shot takes half as long as normal to be fired. Cost — 10 Endurance.

  Seeker – Your next single shot has an increased chance to hit. Cost – 10 Endurance.

  Body Blow – Your next dagger attack, if it lands, will cause your opponent to suffer an Endurance penalty. Cost — 20 Aura.

  Impale – Your dagger inflicts a damage-over-time bleed effect. Cost — 20 Endurance.

  Focused Fire – Your next arrow causes increased damage if it hits. Cost – 20 Endurance.

  Hilt Bash – Stun your opponent with a successful hilt strike from your bladed weapon. Cost – 30 Endurance.

  Long Range Shot – Increase the effective range of your bow. Cost – 30 Aura.

  Your choice is final and must be made now.

  Having to make a second Ability choice so soon again made things a bit easier for me. I didn’t really see a need to increase the range of my attacks, and I had only just resolved to keep my build somewhat more balanced, so I chose Hilt Bash to round out my melee skills.

  I had already surmised that Spells might only be an option every three levels, so it wasn’t much of a surprise when my level-up menu closed, and the XP notifications resumed once my Ability choice had been made.

  Experience gained – You have gained 530 XP.

  . . .

  Experience gained – You have gained 477 XP.

  You have reached 20% proficiency in the Perception sub-skill, Identify Enemy. Proficiency gains of non-combat skills will slow after achieving 20% proficiency

  Experience gained – You have gained 530 XP.

  You have gained a level! – You have earned sufficient experience to advance to level 8.

  You have gaine
d five Attribute points. Three of your points have been automatically assigned to DEX, WIS, and CHA. You may assign the remaining points to any two other Attributes as you see fit.

  Your choices are final and must be made now.

  I was surprised when yet another level-up window appeared—the sheer volume of experience that I had gained on this one dungeon run was absolutely incredible. I realized that advancement tended to come rapidly during the lower levels, particularly the first ten to twenty, but it probably would have taken me months to gain this amount of experience adventuring on my own. Once I had assigned my two points to Strength and Intelligence, I carefully looked over the Ability choices that immediately popped up.

  You can now choose a new Ability. You must choose one of the following:

  Rapid Fire — After firing an arrow, your follow-up shot takes half as long as normal to be fired. Cost — 10 Endurance.

  Seeker – Your next single shot has an increased chance to hit. Cost – 10 Endurance.

  Body Blow – Your next dagger attack, if it lands, will cause your opponent to suffer an Endurance penalty. Cost — 20 Aura.

  Impale – Your dagger inflicts a damage-over-time bleed effect. Cost — 20 Endurance.

  Focused Fire – Your next arrow causes increased damage if it hits. Cost – 20 Endurance.

  Long Range Shot – Increase the effective range of your bow. Cost – 30 Aura.

  Blood Price — Your arrow inflicts a damage-over-time bleed effect. Cost – 30 Aura.

  Your choice is final and must be made now.

  Blood Price was simply too good to ignore. If its effect stacked, and I could think of no reason why it wouldn’t, I could easily drain a significant amount of health from even the most resilient enemy. When I selected it, the level-up screen disappeared, and I was brought back to the seemingly endless scroll of XP notifications.