by Dakota Krout
Alexis and Joe were both happily tossing the fairies' remains into their bags. Each of the fallen monsters left behind a small bag of fairy powder; something Joe recognized as a rare but often required component in several alchemical recipes. As time passed, they reached the end of the hallway… and heard the sound of battle from the boss room.
Joe peeked around the corner and confirmed that there was a team engaged in combat with an extra-large Fairy Queen. Just within the few moments that he observed, the boss used every basic element, each of them clearly imbued with holy power. The magical damage the team must be taking should be massive. Joe focused in on the Fairy and used Intrusive Scan before committing to any actions.
Ursula, Seelie Queen of the Fairies.
Highest stat: Wisdom.
Before he could get any more information, the Fairy glanced his way and flitted to the other side of the room, breaking his line-of-sight. This helped the team that was in combat, but concerned Joe. Since the Queen was in combat, someone observing her shouldn't have even registered. Though the highest stat shown was wisdom, her perception couldn’t be far behind.
“Two options, guys.” Joe looked at the others, laying out his plan. “We either join combat now, and have to deal with the two groups ourselves. Or… we wait until one side falls and attack the other right away.”
“I say we snatch the reward,” Poppy instantly stated. “Let them duke it out, then we kill off the weakened party. They got here first, let them fight.”
“Nah, hit ‘em both while they’re distracted.” Bard disagreed with the fighter. “Never know what sorta out-of-combat recovery they have.”
“We should…” Alexis looked around, counting faces. “Where’s Jaxon?”
“Craw!”
“Nyah!”
The battle cries of Jaxon’s hands joined in on the cacophony of spell effects and crashing metal. Joe cursed and stalked into the room. “Looks like we’re fighting.”
Jaxon had somehow gotten onto the back of the Fairy Queen, and his hands were chewing into her wings, greatly reducing her mobility. “No one should have wings! If you want to fly, you should be a bird or build an airplane! These should be artificial! No, even then! Are you a bird? No? Then stop acting like one, you overgrown cockroach!”
It appeared as though the other group of people had been inflicted with a confusion spell. The main tank of the party glanced at the leader, a Mage, for orders. The Mage shrugged and launched a neutral magic spell: Concussive Blast. “Not our people, fire at will!”
The Fairy and Jaxon were both slapped into the wall. Jaxon fell off her back, but managed to take a wing with him. He came running to Joe with the Queen sprinting after him screaming bloody murder. “Joe, toss this into a bag!”
Joe did so, and as soon as the wing was gone… Queen Ursula paused and turned crimson with rage. A holy-flame nova exploded from her, knocking back anyone that had been getting close. When Joe turned his eyes onto her once again, he felt sick. Her skin was boiling, the flesh moving as though snakes were slithering under the surface. Her size increased by almost double, the loose clothing she had worn now straining not to tear. Ursula’s hair, previously gold, turned black. The golden eyes flipped to red, and her straight teeth elongated into something an angler fish would wince at.
Joe managed a scan for only long enough to get her name before she attacked again, moving in a flash.
Sabine, One-winged Unseelie Queen of the Fairies.
Swooping in front of Jaxon, Sabine swept deep gouges into his chest with her three-fingered hands, sending Jaxon tumbling in a spray of blood. Joe reacted instantly, a Mend spell reaching the Monk before he even rolled back to his feet.
Cursetouch I has inhibited healing! Healing spells and items have their effect reduced by 50%!
“Well, feces.” Joe managed to get out just before a straight snap-kick caught him in the face and sent him into the wall a half-dozen feet away. A shadowy image of himself appeared and slapped the Queen, interrupting her follow-up assault on the now-prone party leader.
Damage taken: 0 (233 absorbed by Exquisite Shell.)
Cursetouch resisted! (50% resistance to Dark Magic.)
While Sabine started laying into Joe’s team, the other group had taken the initiative to back off and heal up. They watched Joe’s team with angry eyes, though they were clearly mocking them as well. A ranger sent an arrow at Alexis, but his barbed words had more impact. “Should have minded your own business! Now we get to clean up after that thing wipes your group!”
“Abyssal Jaxon!” Bard roared, using both his axes to block the black claws that were aimed for his eyes. Even though he was successful, Bard skidded back a few feet and black mist seemed to drift into him. “This curse stacks! Watch out!”
Alexis was in front of Bard suddenly, and the massive crossbow on her back swung into position. The Queen’s red eyes narrowed as a huge bolt flew at her, and she managed to catch the bolt just behind the barbed head. Still, the force sent the Fairy backward and put her in striking range of the other party.
Joe realized then that the Fairy must be very light, though her body was almost the same size as a normal human at this point. He applauded Alexis’ perception, and was about to compliment her when he heard her soft mutterings. She was glaring at Sabine, “Petite double zero, you better stay away from my… emulsify!”
A small glass barrier inside the bolt that the Queen was still holding shattered, and the two liquids stored in the shaft mixed together and erupted into a cloud of sparkling pink smoke. The other team and the Fairy screamed as welts appeared on their skin, and Alexis winced. “I’m so sorry about that!”
“What just happened?” Joe asked as his team got back into a formation.
“Yeah… that’s a really nasty itching poison.” Alexis grabbed Jaxon and pulled him as he tried to rush forward. “Wait! I don’t have an antidote for that, and if you try to itch yourself, you’re gonna get bitten! Three seconds before it doesn't make new welts!”
Sabine screeched, alternating between mauling the other party and tearing at her own skin. The lines that her claws left behind oozed a dark light, and Joe realized that she wasn’t immune to her own abilities. Each of the people impacted by the poison were screaming, both in pain and fury. It seemed that the melee fighters had gone berserk, ignoring defense in an attempt to deal as much damage as possible.
The spellcasters and ranged fighters kept interrupting their own actions by scratching at themselves, and Joe decided to help the battle along by getting close enough to spray their opponents with acid. The open wounds combined with the itching welts, and the other team became desperate. One strike, two, and some kind of bash brought Sabine to the ground. The fighter raised his sword for a coup de grace, but as his sword reached Sabine’s heart, she vanished into a ball of light.
Another ball of light zipped toward Sabine’s position, and in a moment both Poppy and Sabine appeared. The Queen was no longer moving, Poppy’s rapier having pinned her to the ground and bottomed out her health bar. “Not totally honorable, but still counts toward my level.”
Jaxon launched himself among the furious team, his hands tearing into the unprotected flesh of the healer and mage. They fell in seconds; their melee teammates having been forced into combat with the remainder of Joe’s team. In under thirty seconds, the other team had vanished into motes of light, and Joe was shown a listing of the items they had collected. There were a few interesting items, and he was even able to see a description of what they did.
Everything they had collected so far had its description hidden, and they could only go off of context and hope that they had collected something good. As Joe was pondering what the difference was, a notification appeared.
Hunter position updated! Assigning random item in ten seconds. Make sure to choose an item before this if something specific is desired. 9…
Joe quickly chose a cauldron from the list, since nothing else had stuck out to him. He remembered something
from his alchemy book about cauldrons, and he knew that Jake the Alchemist took care of his own cauldron as if it were a fragile flower instead of a five-hundred-pound, magic-imbued metal that couldn’t be damaged by a level fifteen berserker using a warhammer. The item appeared in his codpiece of holding, and they worked to collect everything not bolted down. Soon the room was bare, and a familiar notification appeared.
Zone cleared! For party ‘Extra-friendly’, current Hunter ladder ranking: 17/22. Gatherer ladder ranking: 18/22. Time elapsed: 9:38:56. Returning to safe zone in three… two…
A meaty *thunk* caught his attention, and the teleportation message vanished. Joe turned to the side to find Jaxon pinned to the ground by a familiar Monk who was sending continuous attacks into his side, and Poppy had taken a warhammer to the side of his head. Alexis fell with two arrows in her neck, and Bard charged into combat with a roar.
Fluid sprang from Joe’s hands, but the abomination that was Sam_King threw a paper into the air, and Joe’s acid fell to the ground as it encountered an arctic wind that froze it solid. Joe saw the air surrounding a floating book shake like the aftereffects of an explosion, and Sam nodded like he had just heard something important. “He has a retaliatory effect, everyone. No big hits, death by a thousand slices for that one.”
After his party was slain, Joe was slowly and carefully beat to death. Somehow, the other team had access to lots of health-restoring potions; so even though Joe’s shadow appeared and slapped them around, and a Dark Lightning Strike caused them to wince in pain, it only took a few moments for Joe to lose his Exquisite Shell. From there, it was only two seconds before he fell.
You have died! Calculating… no experience lost. You have been barred from the Hallowed Grounds for one year.
Calculating… item snatched by party ‘Wolf Pack’: Golden Tome of Divine Favor.
Quest failed: The Golden Tome of Divine Favor. You have failed to return with the quest item! Return to an altar of Tommulus to gain pro-rated rewards.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Joe pounded his fist into the wall as he appeared in the Grand Temple of Ardania. “That slimy son of a-”
Reward calculations granted! Item descriptions available! You now have a choice: you may forfeit any of the items collected. You may keep any of the items collected. Each item will be assigned a point value, and all items turned in will grant each party member an equal share of points. If there is a dispute, party members may use their points to purchase an item. The spent points will be shared to the other team members. All leftover points can be traded for experience or coins.
What followed next was a huge listing of all the items that had been collected through the course of their time in the Hallowed Land. The five party members went down the list quickly, and most of the items were converted into points and shared out. Everyone took a few trinkets or things that they wanted, and there were a few surprises.
“Seriously, Poppy?” Joe’s voice was strained from pure exasperation. “You stole the couches?”
“And I would like to keep them, thank you very much.” Poppy grinned as he considered how well he had slept on the plush, golden, overstuffed cushions.
“Challenge,” Jaxon demanded instantly. They started a bidding war with their points, and soon Poppy was wearing a pleased smile.
“Thank you,” Poppy lightly stated. “Joe, would you be so kind as to keep those stored for me till we get back?”
“…Sure.” Joe and the others kept moving through the listings. Joe claimed the cauldron, but it cost most of his points, since Alexis also had a use for it. She got most of the crafting materials, and Bard saved his points in case he saw something he really wanted. At the end of the bidding war, Jaxon had taken a small Unique necklace named ‘Attention’. There was no other information on it, but Jaxon wanted Attention so badly that he got it pretty easily.
“There’s a list where we can spend points on things we didn't find.” Bard happily informed them as his fingers moved a screen only visible to him. “Expensive as all get-out, though.”
Each extra point could be taken as ten experience points or one silver. After the sale of all the other items in their possession, Bard had collected thirteen thousand points in total. He had enough to bring a level zero character directly to level fifteen if he cashed out, but he only had eyes for one option. He made his choice, and golden light bubbled up in his hands. It formed into a two-handed axe; the weight of which made him grunt.
“Now we are talkin’.” Bard shifted the weapon, letting one of the sharp edges rest on the ground.
“What did you get, Hon?” Alexis carefully inquired.
“It’s ah triple axe!” Bard told her excitedly. The blank expressions around him made the Skald snort, so he decided to show them. With the handle pointed into the air, he brushed his hands against the golden handle and a mellow chord rang out. “Not only is it an axe that ah can use ta slice an’ dice, it’s an axe. An electric guitar! Well… mana guitar?”
You are under the effects of Power Chord. All damage dealt increased by 5%.
“Ha! That’s naw even ah song! That’s just an idle strum!” Bard crowed excitedly. “Jus’ wait till I figure out how to use Beast to his best effect! That’s a Special Unique weapon for ya!”
Joe was blown away by the utility of what Bard had gained, but as he looked at his own point balance under a thousand, he knew that there was nothing he would be able to gain beyond regret if he looked at the listing of purchase options. He swallowed and exited out of the purchase options.
Points remaining: 861. Convert to experience or coin?
“Experience.” Joe stated firmly. The next question that popped up made his eyes bulge, and he shouted for everyone to wait before choosing to buy anything else.
Where would you like your experience points to go? Character level, class level, or skill level?
“We can convert the points into experience for class or skill levels!” Joe explained when he gained odd looks.
Class level selected. Active class: Rituarchitect.
“Wait! Back! I was just telling them that…” Joe trailed off as he watched his point values drain away into nothing. Then, silver light poured off of him, and he was filled with euphoria.
You have reached level 7 as a Rituarchitect! 5,214 experience remains until level 8!
Rituals used to build structures now have a fixed 10% chance to absorb a portion of the mana invested in the ritual, gaining an additional effect. The effect will be random unless you learn how to stabilize the mana draw from the materials.
“Well that’s pretty neat.” Joe was utterly elated. He had gained two class levels just from-
Now quantifying growth from event ‘The Hallowed Lands’. Calculating… 5,355 experience gained! See full listing of monsters defeated by clicking *here*.
Joe skipped clicking the listing, and a golden aura lifted him off the ground and exploded around him as he was lifted to level seventeen. His party members were undergoing similar effects, and the combined energy scoured the surrounding area clean. He landed on his feet, and the notifications continued. There were so many that he simply stared. Every ability he used had increased by at least one skill level, even if he had only used it a single time.
The bounty of the Hallowed lands has boosted the energy you are able to maintain. Boost has been compounded by Ritualist class bonus! Skills increased:
Mend (Student VII).
Lay on hands (Apprentice IX).
Neutrality Aura (Apprentice VIII).
Corify (Beginner I). Created Cores now have a uniform size, regardless of the amount of experience they contain! Caution, powerful Cores may cause blindness if you play with them too much!
Hidden Sense (Apprentice I). Items that were lost or hidden by amateurs hold no mystery for you! They will practically whisper to you, and you will need to intentionally ignore them if you don't want to bother finding them.
Retaliation of Shadows (Apprentice VI). Getting a
little slap happy, aren't you? You know you need to get hit in order to rank this up… right? Or are the concussions getting to you?
Polearm Mastery (Apprentice I). You want to use your silly stick to hit other people that have actual weapons… okay. Yeah. Let’s see where this goes. While using a polearm, you now have a flat 1% chance to disarm an opponent that is using a one-handed weapon.
Mana Manipulation (Student IV). More mana!
Coalescence (Student VII). Denser mana!
Acid Spray (Apprentice II).
Dark Lightning Strike (Beginner VII). You are attractive. To lightning. Still, it's a start.
The gains were, in a word, unbelievable. Especially in the case of Dark Lightning Strike, which had directly doubled in skill level. Sure, he had used all of these, but… this was too much! The others also started muttering about their increases in an excited tone. Joe’s pupils shrank to dots as he had a disturbing thought. “We need to leave. If this is what we got for being in the middle of the pack, what is the first place team going to come back with? I think we may have made some enemies…”
The general consensus was that yeah, it was time to go. Joe promised himself that he would come back soon to talk to the powerful cleric of Elemental Water, but for now he contented himself with looking at his status as they fled to the safety of Towny McTownface.
Name: Joe ‘Tatum’s Chosen Legend’ Class: Mage (Actual: Rituarchitect)
Profession I: Tenured Scholar (Actual: Arcanologist)
Profession II: Ritualistic Alchemist
Character Level: 17 Exp: 157,498 Exp to next level: 13,502
Rituarchitect Level: 7 Exp: 22,786 Exp to next level: 5,214