Lair
Page 22
Item properties:
Razorback (14-36 damage)
Damage type: piercing/slashing
Improved chance to learn one-handed weapon skills
Improved chance to critical attack 20%
“Nick! How come you didn’t tell me about this?”
“The material is so rare, I didn’t analyze it. Would it have changed anything you have done so far?”
Gus pursed his lips and looked skyward, trying to recall if it would have made any difference. He finally shrugged and conceded that the answer was probably no. He was just glad that he knew now. Without the Foundry, it didn’t make a difference one way or another.
Gus liked the idea of maybe changing Razorback back into a spear, only professionally-crafted this time. He was becoming more and more skilled using polearms, and he needed to keep the Mantids and zombies at bay. He doubted he had enough to make anything in the armor department, but maybe as a liner of some sort.
Would that improve the whole, stat wise? Maybe. Rather than risk it, he focused on the sure thing. Having a weapon that would grow along with him at such a low level had a much higher potential for major growth in the long run.
He set the Foundry to process the ‘vanilla’ armor and he turned his attention to weapon possibilities. All the pieces would be ready in six hours. Gus could see conveyors moving and the hum of machinery coming to life down below the control room. He turned back to the console, bringing up the weapons tab, multiple questions and possibilities coming to his mind.
“Nick, what happens if I use this Kroutonium in the Foundry to make a new weapon. Does it lose the bonuses?”
“The material returns to its base form, but the Foundry will gain the schematics to reproduce the effect in future items of a similar nature. If you change armor into a weapon, or vice versa, all bonus effects are lost,” Nick replied.
Scrolling through the weapons, Gus checked to see what could be fashioned at his current level. It would be nice to have something more robust than a weapon designed solely for training. A list of different classes of polearms was displayed, and Gus had to read through the descriptions and view examples of each class to understand what the difference was between a glaive and a halberd.
Thinking about his latest battle with the Mantids, he chose the glaive class, then specialized with the naginata form. The large blade to slash would do well with fighting Dark Nth. He was able to play with various modifications, adding a circular handguard between the blade and shaft, to catch claws and push them away. He chose the option to make the back of the blade serrated, allowing him to cut hardened carapace if needed.
Would you like to use the last saved body scan for weapon size and dimensions? (Y/N)
Would you like to repurpose Kroutonium to current weapon design? (Y/N)
Gus entered yes into the console twice, then left the control center and went down the metal mesh stairway to the indicated area. Peeling off the foam putty handle, Gus reverently placed Razorback in the hopper. A console beside the receptacle came to life and asked:
Are you sure you wish to sacrifice [Razorback]? (Y/N)
Pushing yes again, it was a done deal. The receptacle disappeared within the machine and began a low hum. Gus felt almost guilty. Making a new weapon was fine but knowing the metal was sentient made it harder to sacrifice it. He doubted his decision the moment he couldn’t take it back.
“Nick, would the Kroutonium hold a grudge if it doesn’t like its new form? Would it be resentful for losing the bonuses it evolved?”
“Anything’s possible, but I doubt it, if it’s becoming more powerful. I wouldn’t worry… too much.”
“Thanks… I guess,” Gus said in the same tone.
Heading back to the control center with questions on his mind, he checked the build queue and saw that the process would add six more hours to the queue.
He was almost ready to leave when he remembered the scanners. He opened the Defense tab and found what he wanted. He selected a dozen scanning pylons, and a dozen motion-sensitive smart turrets. The sensors would take only an hour to fabricate, while the turrets took a whopping six hours each. Woof. Gus entered his instructions into the queue; it would be a while before everything was ready. Fortunately, there were no material requirements. The manor must have some stock of basic crafting materials, and all that was required was to meet the FP cost.
For once, one less thing to worry about! Looking at the queue before leaving, Gus moved the naginata to the top of it. That done, he felt a small sense of relief.
Mischief managed. Next on the to-do list was his daily training. He headed to the arena, ready for some more punishment.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Electric Slide
Day 7 7:15 AM
7:05:19 remaining
As Gus entered the training arena, Chop Chop was in his usual stance and greeted him with a slight nod. Gus went to the control terminal and started the module.
Gus stood on the scanner, eager to see what new skills he would be able to unlock today. He also wanted to incorporate his new Dash ability into his fighting style. He was imagining different ways to combine it with his other skills to make combos and flank the quick Mantids.
Quest Granted: The Chain
Quest Conditions:
1) Learn the skills Slide and Dodge
2) Successfully utilize 5 different skills
3) Execute 5 Chained Attacks
4) Defeat 10 opponents
Quest Rewards: 1000 XP, 600 FP, retain new skills
Time Requirements: 3 hours
Do you want to accept this quest? (Y/N)
They were definitely raising the stakes! This training seemed like it was ramping up to another level in difficulty. Still, Gus was grateful he had a chance to practice his skills in a zombie-free environment. Plus he was eager to see his stat increases in action. One slip-up while learning a new skill against zombies would be the end of him, so it was best to get in as much practice as possible.
The holographic emitter kicked to life and three Mantids were displayed. Pillowbots assumed their positions within the holograms and froze, waiting for Gus to step into the arena. Gus found a naginata among the polearms, deciding to become more familiar with the weapon while he could do so in a controlled situation. He looked through a couple varieties until he found one with the metal guard in the middle. Once satisfied, he headed back to the arena and the simulation began.
Compared to fighting two enemies, three was a different ballgame. One of the Mantids was always trying to flank him and when two started to circle around from the left and the other from the right it required Gus to stay in motion to keep all the enemies in his field of view. Deciding to take the initiative, Gus rushed toward the Mantid on the right. He tried to sweep low and was able to trip the Mantid, but he overcalculated the length of the dash and was too far away to score a hit before the Mantid regained its feet and faced him again.
He attempted another attack on the Mantid on his right this time, but the center Mantid was ready for him and timed its attack accordingly. Gus received a clawless but powerful swipe right to the face before he could connect with his target. Gus’ vision burst with white stars as the force of the blow spun him around before he fell face first to the mat. His ears rang and he had to roll out of the way to avoid the pounce of one of the Mantids. He clambered to his feet just in time to block another swipe out of sheer reflex. Without thinking, he used Sweep the Leg and flipped the Mantid on its back. A quick jab later and the hologram melted away, revealing the naked pillowbot, frozen in defeat.
Gus saw a flicker from the side of his eye and quickly used Dash to jump backward. Gus saw the virtual talon pass right in front of his eyes as TimeSight changed his perception, slowing events so he could react. A chime sounded.
You have just unlocked a Subskill of Dash: Dodge (Level 1)
Evade a blow using an ether pull to escape danger, can be chained into Sweep the Leg. Causes a 3-second TimeSight time
dilation effect at level 1.
MP cost: 20 MP
Refractory period: 1 minute
100 XP awarded
200 FP awarded
100 XP to level 9
The virtual Mantid continued its movement past Gus’ face in slow motion, leaving its side overextended. Time snapped back to normal and Gus almost missed hitting the exposed flank of the creature. As the blow connected, Gus saw a red arrow pointing to his left with a tiny icon of a chain with three links. Focusing on the tiny icon, his Chained Attack ability fired and instinctively, Gus knew where to move.
Twisting in the direction of the arrow, Gus saw the final Mantid midair and barely had enough time to withdraw his naginata and connect with his new attacker right in the throat. The momentum knocked him flat, and the Mantid flipped overhead as the butt of the polearm buried into the mat and rotated. Gus stood and saw that he had managed to dispatch the final two attackers. The hologram reset and the pillowbots assumed their positions for another go.
Gus dashed to the left with his weapon in front of him. He expected the Mantid to dodge and so he feinted and switched directions mid-Dash, activating the skill again, this time to the right. The misdirection worked well and he was able to connect with the Mantid on the other side of the arena as it was trying to flank him.
The chain icon appeared and Gus activated the skill. His body flowed into the next attack, spinning low and stabbing the middle Mantid in the torso. Gus pulled the blade of his naginata upward and when the tip reached the neck of the virtual Mantid the chain icon appeared again. Gus activated the skill once more and felt the pull to move in the opposite direction, bracing the shaft by his hip.
The rotation brought the blade’s tip around to contact the last Mantid at shoulder level and swipe downward across the Mantid’s chest. It spun around with the force of the attack and froze on the mat, like a dead bug, limbs frozen in the air.
Chimes sounded as Gus stood there, amazed at how effortlessly the combo came together. He was not sure how he moved in just the right ways but suspected the Nth must be monitoring the area around him and fired the appropriate muscles. He also knew where he had to be on an unconscious level, and the entire experience was a different feeling than when the Nth tingled to guide him. Gus checked his logs:
Related skills learned with Spear Mastery applied to Polearms progress.
You have leveled up the skill: Polearms to Level 4!
50 XP awarded (level 3), 50 XP awarded (level 4)
100 FP awarded (level 3), 100 FP awarded (level 4)
LEVEL UP! Congratulations, Level 9 reached
5000 XP to next level
You have been awarded 500 FP
You have (5) additional stat points to assign.
You have leveled up the skill: Chained Attack to Level 2!
50 XP awarded
100 FP awarded
Taking a moment to enjoy the level up euphoria, Gus pulled up his stats:
Agility: 15
Constitution: 14 (13+1)
Charisma: 8
Strength: 12
Perception: 16
Intelligence: 16
Luck: 7
Gus had five more stat points, so he decided to drop three points into strength. Fifteen points seemed to be a threshold of some sort. He bumped his constitution stat up two points in case he lost his armor buff, bringing the base stat to fifteen.
A painful yet almost welcome soreness infiltrated his muscles, reminiscent of the day after a good workout. He felt like his skin was becoming taut as his muscles enlarged and expanded. Get swole! Gus smiled as he watched the effects of the strength boost. The burning sensation faded as the muscles settled into their new form, and Gus felt eager to try his new power in the arena.
Fighting with Dark Nth was unnerving, to say the least, but he thought about what the future would hold in terms of fighting other supers if he ever managed to get off the island. With him being such a low level, and his powers so new and undeveloped, relying on his wits would be incredibly important. It would take some time for him to level to the standard that most supers had trained their skills.
Most supers usually received their powers in their early teens, and there was rigorous training, depending on what Faction they joined. There were Factionless supers, but they were at a definite disadvantage in terms of training, gear, and the support of others. Gus wondered how his relationship with his father would change after he learned that Gus had joined the party and got himself some super powers. Gus scowled at himself for needing that validation.
Gus was still thinking about the implications when two Mantids tackled him and almost winded him as he slammed into the mat. That reset time was much quicker than the last one! Gus coughed and rolled to the side, and noticed there were four Mantids ready to spar against him. Shaking off the hit, he hopped to his feet. He effortlessly performed a kick up, hopping to the balls of his feet from lying prone, shocking himself and causing his attackers to pause briefly.
Before he could fully form a plan, two of the Mantids rushed him. Gus feinted at one and swung the butt of the naginata to hit the other in the head. Gus felt the unique jolt as he fired Wreck-tums! and the Mantid retreated. Gus jumped back, dodging the remaining Mantid closing in on him.
Another Mantid rushed to meet him, attacking from his flank, and Gus hit Dash to meet it halfway. They clashed together, the metal band blocking the outstretched claws and folding the Mantid’s arms back, pinning them to its chest. Gus launched Counter-attack, bashing the Mantid in the face with the metal band and then swiping the blade across its face, downing the enemy.
Gus fired Dash again, to retreat and get some room to assess his opponents. The Mantid he had hit with Wreck-tums! was lurking behind two of its buddies, using them as a shield. Gus dashed and vaulted over the other Mantids using Basic Flight. A simple kick was enough to remove the last HP of the cowardly bot. Another chain icon appeared but resulted in only a glancing blow on the back of one Mantid, due to activating the skill late.
The final two Mantids coordinated their attack simultaneously, and Gus blocked one attack but had to dodge the other. That put him out of position to retaliate. After another block, Gus counter-attacked late and barely scratched his opponent. The Mantids were beginning to copy his dodges and they were getting better at effectively dancing in and out of strike range.
After one failed attack, one of the Mantids jumped backward and ended up next to the other, so Gus rushed straight at them. Mentally choosing the one on the left, he braced himself for a bash from the other Mantid. At the last moment, he dropped to his knees and slid, swiping low to knock the Mantid off its feet with Sweep the Leg.
A tone went off again and Gus saw the chain icon appear. Gus activated the skill, not sure what would happen since he was not in an ideal battle stance. He spun backward, still gliding as if he were on a slip and slide, and threw the naginata at the other Mantid, scoring a direct hit.
The tripped Mantid was still momentarily stunned and Gus jumped to his feet and dashed toward the Mantid. He activated another jump, assisted by firing his Basic Flight skill, to sail over the Mantid to retrieve his weapon. A slight headache started to kick in and Gus saw that he had drained almost all of his MP.
Time to go old school. Grabbing the butt end, he used the shaft as a fulcrum and used the last available MP to use Basic Flight to swing around, changing his direction. After turning, he deftly yanked the naginata out at the last minute. He hit the Mantid feet first just as it was getting to its feet, carrying it back to the mat. Gus landed in a crouch and stabbed forward, ending the battle.
Gus stood trying to catch his breath, being a little more winded, and seeing that both his stamina and MP was getting pretty low. He stepped out of the ring and checked his logs again.
You have unlocked the skill: Slide (Level 1)!
Glide along a frictionless ether sheet, regardless of medium texture.
Level 1: Maximum glide 10 feet
MP:
2 MP per second of gliding effect
100 XP awarded
200 FP awarded
You have unlocked the skill: Thrown Weapon (Level 1)!
Increased damage if attack connects (+5n damage where n=skill level). Note: Weapon may not be recoverable, I hope you’re good at hand-to-hand combat!
100 XP awarded
200 FP awarded
Quest Complete: The Chain
Quest Rewards: 1000 XP, 600 FP
Gus looked and saw that he finally had fulfilled the conditions for the quest. That and the dimming of the lights was also a dead-giveaway that training was done for the day. Even though he had trained hard, he still felt more amped than ever. He had most of the day to kill, literally, before his new weapon and armor were done. He kicked himself for not going there sooner and getting things queued up, but no sense in crying about it now.
How could he have known about Razorback’s true nature? He almost grabbed an arena naginata, but checking his watch, the new one should be done at the Foundry in a little over an hour. Gus headed to the elevator, an idea springing to his mind on how to spend the time.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
If Only
45 years ago…
They were finally underway. Methiochos’ hand-picked crew were aboard and en route to the island. Everyone, from support personnel to command, were supers in some way, shape, or form.
As soon as he landed, Methiochos planned on raising the bio-stasis field and giving orders for the crew. After unlocking the manor and getting personnel into their departments, training and expansion could begin. In the ship were numerous projects of the world’s best minds. Both ones developed by Manticorps itself, and those that were obtained in less-than-ethical ways from other thinktanks around the globe.