by Jez Cajiao
I slumped to the floor, spotting the dirk hanging from the SporeMother’s face as she hunched down again, trying to get free of the doorway. She’d obviously decided enough was enough and was pulling back. As she tried to retreat, I saw Bob, or what remained of him, jump onto her back. His single working arm drove a sword deep into her body, and caused her to scream in pain again. I grinned at the summoned minion’s moxie, and forced myself to my feet, wheezing. My chest felt like a vice had gripped it, but I stumbled forward. Bob continued stabbing her as the flames of ‘Cleansing Fire’ scoured the DarkSpore from him and further injured the SporeMother. I looked around for a weapon, finding my naginata off to one side. I lunged forward, sweeping up the weapon before staggering to my feet.
I braced the weapon as best I could. Blood dripped from numerous wounds, my chest partially crushed, and my armor all that seemed to be holding me together. My face was a mess of torn flesh and exposed teeth and bone. I knew there was only one thing I could say at this point.
“LEEEEROY JEEEENNNNKINS!” I wheezed out. A liquid burbling noise accompanied my cry as blood started to fill one lung, and I half ran, half staggered forward.
I kicked off a step and jumped, putting all my strength into my last push, and stabbed with the naginata. Its razor-sharp blade pierced the SporeMother’s chest and sank deep. She collapsed backwards, her attention having been focused on Bob. As her face swiveled around to see me, her multiple eyes widened in pain and terror. The blade of my naginata was half buried in her chest, as a silvery white light bloomed forth, filling the stairwell and banishing all shadows. Her legs spasmed, collapsing under her, and we fell backward. I felt a claw tip pierce my right thigh, and bones broke as her body rolled over me. We clattered down the stairwell, round and round, until I lost consciousness.
It was Oracle’s voice that I heard first. A whispering sound slowly built, until I recognized it as conversation, even if it was a one-sided one.
“No, Bob, slower!”
“…..”
“I know you’ve only got one arm! Do I look blind? Just free that clasp!”
“….”
“Pull it free, that’s it!”
“….”
Then I felt something, a sudden wrenching pain, and as weak as I was, I felt something come free. My chest felt like a weight was lifted as the breastplate was removed. I gasped and coughed, blood spraying from my mouth and pain roaring through me as I came fully awake.
“It’s okay, Jax! We’ve got it. Just try to relax!”
I felt a healing spell envelop me again and winced as my chest was rearranged by the magic. After a second, something popped, and my bones began to shift. I screamed, finally able to get enough air to make a sound loud enough to echo through… wherever I was, before passing out again.
The next time I awoke, I was more lucid, with a gently glowing Oracle resting on my chest and looking into my eyes. As soon as I focused on her, she smiled and straightened up, wiping her eyes as though brushing aside tears and visibly relaxing.
“Jax, do you know where you are? Are you okay?” she whispered, leaning forward to stroke my face with one tiny hand.
I frowned, trying to recognize where I was. Long, thin columns rose all around me, and the room was dark, but light shone down from a stairwell to my right, and there were piles of bones everywhere I looked. It seemed to take a few seconds, but as I focused on one of the columns nearest me, it resolved. In the way a picture can be a young woman or an old witch, depending on perspective, I watched the column become a long chitinous leg, curled up in death. My eyes widening, I stared around, discovering that they were surrounding me, and my mind kicked into high gear. I rolled over and kicked myself free, lunging to my feet as Oracle flew free with a squawk of annoyed protest.
I’d been laid out on the underside of the SporeMother, her curled legs forming a loose cage around me. I found Bob standing to one side, watching me, and Oracle flew over to sit on his skull as I looked around the room in shock. I was alive, Oracle and even Bob had survived, and the SporeMother was dead!
“How…What…” I muttered, my hands going to my chest, then my face and arm in turn. All were healed, and my mana bar was slowly refilling, even as notifications flashed for my attention.
“We did it, Jax! We killed the SporeMother!” Oracle crowed, leaping to her feet and starting to dance on Bob’s head, swaying, sultry movements that were interspersed with poses straight out of ‘Saturday Night Fever’. I dropped my gaze from her to Bob, who was standing impassively with a dagger jutting out between some ribs. A sword stuck out from his lower chest, held in place by bones that had trapped it. Dozens of cracks covered the bones that were mostly whole, while other sections of him… well, almost an entire third of his mass was missing. If he’d been alive to start with, he’d never have stood a chance. As it was, he stood there unconcernedly, watching me and waiting for another command. Scanning the rest of the room, I discovered that it was as I’d expected. My quick glance was enough to pick out bones freed of the taint of the DarkSpore. I looked back to Oracle, and she grinned at me.
“That’s right, Jax! We killed them! The Cleansing Fire stripped the corruption from all the lesser creatures, and whatever you did to the SporeMother, you killed her too! I used Bob to get your armor off and to straighten you out as best I could, and then I healed you! Aren’t you proud of me?”
I shook my head in confusion, before catching myself and speaking up as a hurt expression appeared on her face.
“I mean, yes, of course I am! Sorry, Oracle; it’s just a bit of a change, you know? I don’t remember much of it. It all happened so fast, and that potion, the Silverbright…it was Her blood…” I whispered, memories flooding back to me as I searched my mind for Him. He was back from wherever He’d been locked away, but whatever He’d done to support me had left Him exhausted.
“Who’s ‘she’? And that magic, Jax! Whatever it was, it was awesome!”
I grinned back at her, then looked down at the SporeMother’s corpse, which had shriveled up in death much like a spider would. My flashing notifications finally filled my mind’s eye as I let them expand.
Congratulations! Through hard work and perseverance, you have increased your Agility by 1 point. Continue to train and learn to increase this further.
Congratulations! Through hard work and perseverance, you have increased your Dexterity by 1 point. Continue to train and learn to increase this further.
Congratulations! You have killed a DarkSpore Adventurer. You have gained 100 Exp.
Congratulations! You have killed a DarkSpore Parasite. You have gained 25 Exp.
Congratulations! You have killed a DarkSpore Wandering Guardian. You have gained 25 Exp.
Congratulations! You have killed a DarkSpore Parasite. You have gained 25 Exp.
Congratulations! You have killed a DarkSpore Wandering Guardian. You have gained 25 Exp.
Congratulations! You have killed a DarkSpore Parasite. You have gained 25 Exp
.
Congratulations! your minion, Bob, has slain a ….
Congratulations! You have defeated a Level ?? SporeMother! You receive 12,600 Exp. Progress to Level 6 stands at 6500/6500 Exp. Progress to Level 7 stands at 6750/14000 Exp.
Congratulations! You have reached Level 6! You have 5 points to invest in your stats. You are now at 6750/14000 Exp toward Level 7.
You have achieved progress in your quest ‘A place to lay your head’
Wisps sworn fealty: 2/3
Locations cleared and secured: 2/5
SporeMother killed: 1/1
Guardians: 0/10
Servitors: 0/10
Reward: The Great Tower is yours to command. Surrounding area will become aware of your rightful ownership. Access to supplies and facilities. 100,000 Exp.
I blinked, dismissing my notifications, and brought up my stats page. I called out to Oracle as I read the text.
“Hey, Oracle, you said I couldn’t use any more skill book
s or Spellbooks for a while. How soon could I learn another one? I know it hasn’t been long, but I’ve leveled again, so come on, give me good news!” She flitted over to me, sitting on my shoulder and putting one hand flat against my temple.
“Good try, Jax. It’s been two days since I said that. Seriously. You can learn another spell in about four weeks’ time, by your calendar, and that’s only if you get plenty of rest and some very specific healing. A skill memory, well… not yet. I’m sorry, but it will probably cause you permanent damage if you try, and the majority of the knowledge would be lost.”
“Damn. I could have done with some memories from a damn alchemist, that’s for sure…” I muttered, going back to my stats.
“Well, there’s nothing to stop you from experimenting and learning on your own, and then hopefully, you can add the skill memories over the top later. That way, you might even retain more than a normal aspirant would!”
“Meh, I’d still rather have it now…” I said, looking at my details. My Charisma and Luck were by far my lowest stats, and I had five spare points to use, but where to put them… I could use them to boost my mana pool, or mana regeneration; I could make myself faster or stronger. It really came down to my build, in the end. I could be a jack of all trades, or a glass cannon, able to do tremendous damage, but unable to take it.
I liked the idea of the glass cannon build. The power I could get eventually by doing that was amazing, but despite having Bob, and despite planning to let him take the lead in fights, I still found myself in the middle of it. I needed to stick to what I’d planned before by putting my points into areas I couldn’t develop as easily on my own, and exercising for the rest. I took a deep breath, and dumped all five points into ‘Luck’, boosting it from twelve to seventeen and confirmed it, checking over the details one last time.
Name: Jax
Class: Spellsword
Renown: Unknown
Level: 6
Progress: 6750/14000
Patron: Jenae, Goddess of Fire and Exploration
Points to Distribute: 0
Meridian Points to Invest: 0
Stat
Current points
Description
Effect
Progress to next level
Agility
16
Governs dodge and movement
Average speed + 60%
17/100
Charisma
11
Governs likely success to charm, seduce, or threaten
Success chance +10%
25/100
Constitution
15
Governs health and health regeneration
HP+100, regen 5pts per 600s (+10% regen due to soul bond, -20hp, each point invested now worth 20hp)
92/100
Dexterity
16
Governs ability with weapons and crafting success
+ 60%
23/100
Endurance
17
Governs stamina and stamina regeneration
STM +70, regen 7pts per 30s
38/100
Intelligence
15
Governs base mana and number of spells able to be learned
+50 mana, Spell capacity: 7 spells (-20mp due to soul bond)
49/100
Luck
17
Governs overall chance of bonuses
+70%
37/100
Perception
18
Governs ranged damage and chance to spot traps/hidden items
+80% ranged damage, +18% chance to spot traps/hidden items
50/100
Strength
19
Governs damage with melee weapons and carrying capacity
+9 damage with melee weapons, +90% carrying capacity
65/100
Wisdom
20 (15)
Governs mana regeneration and memory
+100% mana recovery, 2ppm, 100% more likely to remember things
98/100
I grimaced; putting the points into something that I’d never be sure of working was always going to suck. I shrugged and reverted to my habit whenever I encountered an issue I couldn’t fix with my fists: I forgot about it and moved on. I searched the SporeMother first, finding no wealth or usable gear, but a large selection of potion ingredients that I packed away carefully.
You have found SporeMother Eyes x19, SporeMother Poison Gland x6, SporeMother Kidney x3 SporeMother Liver x1, SporeMother Essence Core x1 and SporeMother Brain x1.
I had no idea what an ‘essence core’ was, but figured it’d probably come in handy somewhere along the line. Looking poor Bob over, I could tell that he really needed an upgrade. The poor bugger was barely able to stand upright. I laced my fingers together and cracked them, shaking my hands out and grinning at him.
“Upgrade time, Bob!”
I ordered Bob to stand in the middle of the room, surrounded by the bones and remains of the fight, casting Summon Weak Skeleton on him. I channeled my mana continuously as I rebuilt him. Bones lifted on waves of magic as I picked them out, old fleshy connections falling apart and new ones being forged by my will alone.
When I finished, Bob stood straight again, once more on two legs, but far stronger, thicker legs than before. He was at least twice as broad as he had been, humanoid in shape, but built for war. His four arms and two legs were made of multiple overlapping bones, his torso enhanced with layers upon layers of ribs, and his skull had been replaced with that of the Naga, giving him a fearsome bite. I’d considered using the SporeMother’s head, but that was still a bit too raw for me, and I needed to be able to relax with Bob around, plus it was far too big for his body right now. In addition to his four arms, two upper and two lower, he now had two of the SporeMother’s shorter spiked legs attached to his back as flexible chitinous spears, ready to stab out. I had also given him a tail, made up of dozens of spinal columns fused together and tipped with a Scenttal’s bladed arm.
He looked fucking terrifying, and I loved it. As soon as I finished my creative experimentation, which took nearly all of my mana, I received another series of prompts.
Congratulations! You have raised your spell ‘Raise Weak Skeleton’ to level 5. Once this spell reaches level 10, you may choose its first evolution.
Congratulations! You have raised your spell ‘Raise Weak Skeleton’ to level 6. Once this spell reaches level 10, you may choose its first evolution.
Congratulations! You have raised your spell ‘Raise Weak Skeleton’ to level 7. Once this spell reaches level 10, you may choose its first evolution.
Congratulations! You have raised your spell ‘Raise Weak Skeleton’ to level 8. Once this spell reaches level 10, you may choose its first evolution.
Your creation ‘Bob’ has survived long enough to earn an upgrade! Choose from the following options:
Level 1 Upgrades:
Skeleton Defense
Strengthen your creation’s physical form to increase its resistance to damage by 10%.
Magical Resistance
Grant your creation increased resistance to arcane effects and damage by 10%.
Skeletal Minion
Grant your creation a basic level of sentience, enabling it to carry out simple tasks without direct supervision.
Congratulations! You have upgraded your minion ‘Bob’ from a ‘Weak Skeleton’ to a ‘Skeletal Minion.’
I didn’t even pause. As soon as I read the options, I chose the Skeletal Minion perk and confirmed it. Bob could always be a little harder to kill; it was a rabbit hole to disappear down, and while arcane resistance would be great, to have him able to act and react on his own? That was awesome.
I decided to test his upgrade by telling him to collect all the loot together on one side of the room for me while I went back up the stairs with Oracle to check on the barrier we’d been building.
“Seneschal, you able to hear me, buddy?”
&nbs
p; “I can hear you, Jax.”
“Can you sense anything else in the Tower, now that bitch is dead?”
“I cannot sense anything else in the Tower itself…”
“Booyah!”
“…but I can only extend my senses to the seventh level. The final manawell must be claimed by you to allow me full access to the Tower’s lower and subterranean floors.”
“Crap…so there could be anything left down there still; another SporeMother, or who knows what!”
“Unlikely. A creature such as the SporeMother would not permit a rival to survive near its nest. There may be other slave species nearby that have escaped detection until now, such as Scenttal burrows, but beyond that, the area appears clear at this time.”
“Crap! Okay; the barrier, it’s ready now, right?”
“Yes, Jax, it can be sealed at any time.”
“Well, keep it ready just in case. I’ll look it over and collect my gear, then check over the loot Bob has found. Once I’ve done that, it’s time for food and rest, then setting off for the last wisp.”