by J. J. Thorn
“And even then, you might try to continually expend your Energy by using Skills, but how long can that go on? Your body needs to rest. It isn’t made to constantly expel Energy. Professor Valk would have told you in her first class. We are all still humans. And because we are still human, we are held back by our human limitations.
“So, a warning to any of you who might try. Wait until you reach a higher Rank, and even then, consider if it is something you absolutely need. And this brings me to the second technique. This technique is similar in nature, but instead of drawing in Energy from your environment, you’re taking it from others. This one does have a name and it’s called ‘Siphoning’.
“Once again, the ability to steal Energy from monsters seems amazing, but remember that you are introducing something foreign into your body. And beyond that, the experience is described as intoxicating. Most people who have had this ability have gone on to kill hundreds of humans, both regular and Affinity users.
“Once they realize it is possible, they have a difficult time stopping. When a regular human loses all of their Energy they die, and the same is possible for Affinity users. Both of these techniques are allowed by the Kingdom but are incredibly dangerous to both the user and those around them. Prep does not necessitate the teaching of these techniques, but I thought you should be aware of them.”
Throughout the whole talk, Professor Wilk’s often bubbly and happy attitude was gone. She spoke with a seriousness we had not yet seen in class.
She waited a few moments for us to consider what the techniques meant for ourselves and the Kingdom. I, however, knew that I wouldn’t be trying either technique anytime soon. Even though Chet had been able to create two Skills, my Energy manipulation abilities were still non-existent.
In our training yesterday, Britta had actually unlocked the ability to enhance her arms while sparring with Jen! It drained her Energy completely, as expected, but other than my eye augmentations, she was the first in our group to make meaningful progress in manipulating her Energy.
Professor Wilks took the next few minutes to answer questions from the class, before we went back into talking about the techniques we had learned last month. The techniques were a starting point, as we continued to learn more about each one in-depth.
She ended the class with some practice meditating. By the time I came out of my trance, most of the class was gone, including Chet.
I left to get some dinner before my evening training with Jen. Tonight, we were doing some weight training before breaking out the swords. Britta was also going to try and explain how she had augmented her arms. But knowing Britta, she probably wouldn’t be too happy to have so much attention while trying to explain something. Or to have to talk for too long.
My conversation with Chet could wait until next week.
Chapter 9 – Stocking Up
“If you guys don’t stop asking,” Britta said, “I’m going to find new friends.”
“Okay, guys, let her off the hook,” Jen said, as we walked into Krader. “We’ve asked her enough already.”
Britta stalked ahead of us. “Don’t act like you’re not the worst of the bunch, you black-haired control freak. You ask me every chance you get. I’m just lucky to be rooming with Cass. She doesn’t bother me about it like the rest of you do.”
Rather than hearing more questions about her new ability to augment her arms, she decided to run ahead of us.
I honestly couldn’t blame her.
Other than Cassie, the rest of us asked her about it constantly.
For Zane, it was a new piece of information and that made it exciting. More details to add to his strategies for the group, or to research further. Jen was in many ways our “leader”, but Zane had taken to the strategist role quite seriously. As a result, he made sure to get as much information about our group as possible.
I was happy to see him so involved in the Hunting Trip. For a couple of weeks, the days he came home from the library depressed seemed to happen more and more often.
Jen saw Britta’s triumph as a challenge against her own abilities. I could swear she only wanted to know so that when she eventually learned how to do it, she could do it better than Britta.
I couldn’t blame Jen for being a bit competitive, but I was mostly disheartened and frankly a little jealous. Most of my questions were around what the enhancement allowed her to do. So far, she had only been able to do it a handful of times, but this is what we had learned so far:
It completely used up her Energy.
When used, the weight of her shield lessened dramatically.
After its use, both her arms and her head hurt.
From all of this, we had gotten together to try and understand what was happening. First off, we knew that the complete use of her Energy was just because she was learning to use the new ability for the first time. As she progressed, she would either get more Energy to use, or find a way to do it with less.
For the second point, this also made sense. We had asked her several times to try lifting weights with and without the augmentation. So far, she was reluctant, but we kept trying. We knew that the augmentation probably made her stronger, but we didn’t know by how much. Britta didn’t want to turn it into an experiment. For her, the abilities and Skills we gained were all based on intuition. Any opportunity to test it out wasn’t her thing.
We would continue trying, but for our trip to Krader, I decided it wasn’t worth pushing the issue.
The last point was also pretty expected for Britta when she was just trying it out. When she used her full Energy on her arms, she was pumping everything she had into those alone. As a result, she was exhausting herself physically and also putting herself into ‘Burnout’.
We planned some extra training sessions throughout the week to have her try it out. This was another way to power up the team before our Hunting Trip, and we wanted to use everything at our disposal.
This also happened to be the reason why we were in Krader today.
“So, what should we try to grab first?” I asked Zane, who was walking at my side. Jen and Cassie were directly ahead of us.
We hadn’t gotten to spend much time with Trish or the twins lately, since we had spent so much of our focus on preparing for the trip. I made a mental note to follow up with them more often in the second semester.
“Let’s go over what we have already,” Zane said. “We’ve got about one gold between us that we’re willing to spend for the group.” We passed the Guards and started to walk towards the market.
Before today, we had all decided to put some of our own money into the trip. We didn’t have much between us, but we had decided that twenty silver each was fair. Zane and I both had money from our parents. The money had been received in very different ways, but we were lucky to still have it. Jen had also received money from her family, who were well off and capable of giving her some money every now and then.
Cassie’s family was not in the same financial position, but she herself spent a lot of time volunteering with healers, doctors, and nurses across town. When she was younger, she did it for free, but when she got an Affinity, she now got paid for it.
This gave her the ability to use her Skill as much as possible, while also gaining some money.
So, it was a win-win for everyone.
Britta had been hard-pressed to get the twenty silver but managed to borrow some from her parents. They had already spent a lot of money on the trip, and her new shield, so we didn’t think it would make sense to ask for anything more than twenty silver.
Britta’s dad did well, but running a business was expensive, and so was living in Krader.
“And for equipment, we all have our training gear to use. We’ll probably have to make do with that for now unless we can find some really cheap leathers.” Zane started to list off our current list of equipment. “Britta has her shield. Jen has a sword and some slightly more expensive gear.”
“My mom and dad insisted on it,” Jen said.
She jumped forward and joined us. “You can’t blame me for that.”
“Mommy and daddy can’t have their little sword princess get hurt,” Cassie teased, as Jen started to pout.
She was self-conscious about her parent’s money and didn’t like relying on it often.
The gear they had eventually compromised on wasn’t enchanted, but it would keep her protected better than the rest of us if anything happened. They were a type of leather, but from what monster, I didn’t know. They also made her look amazing. But that was just a bonus. One that I decided to keep to myself.
“I have my daggers and some hunting gear I took from home before I left. I’ve grown a bit, but I think everything should still fit. Last I asked, Cassie had some gear as well. And then you, Ren, have your regular training clothes. They aren’t the best, but that’s probably okay for this trip.”
“Don’t forget my arm guards. I’ll be bringing those.”
“Are you sure? Those were made specifically by your dad and I know for a fact that they’re probably worth at least fifteen gold. It sounds like he used an entire month to make them, they’re apparently enchanted and can even be used by someone at your Rank. They’re really valuable…” Zane took my shoulder as he looked at me seriously.
“It’s not like we’ll be fighting anything,” Cassie said. “It’s probably not worth getting them covered in Skink juices.” She and Jen stepped beside us again.
Jen didn’t say anything, but looking at her as well, I could also tell she felt the same.
“I think you’re worrying too much,” I said. “This is what they were made to do. My parents wanted to keep me safe. That’s why he spent so much time and money on them. When you told me how much they were worth, that only made me realize it even more. My dad loves me so much that he probably gave up a ton of business to make sure they worked for me. And besides, we’re all going to get covered in ‘Skink Juices’. We’ll have to clean all of our stuff anyways.”
“Okay, Ren, your call. So we’re mostly okay for gear. I’d love if we could each get some more specific gear, like a helmet for Britta, or better boots for all of us, but we can’t right now. Instead, we’ll focus on the essentials.
“First, we’ve got to focus on food, water, and shelter. We need to find enough non-perishable foods to last us the trip. We don’t have to buy it today, but we need to make sure we have enough money for it before we leave. We’ll buy some water sleeves today as well. Our most expensive purchase might be a tent, but it’s probably worth it since we’ll be sleeping out in the wild every night.”
“Did we decide on if we’re all sleeping in the same tent?” Britta asked as she came back into the group.
This was a team excursion, and we needed to all do this as a team.
“What’s the issue? I’ve seen all of you sweat and bleed… I don’t think I’ll have an issue seeing you in your underwear.” Cassie smirked. “Terrence, are you worried about Jen seeing you in your underwear?”
I made the mistake of not responding automatically. Instead, I caught eyes with Jen before looking towards the sky as quickly as possible.
“Ugh, no, no issue,” I stammered.
My eyes were now firmly facing forward, unwilling to look at any of my friends. Sweat poured from my forehead as I hoped for Zane to save me from the awkward moment.
Luckily, he did.
“Yes, we’re going to get one tent for all of us,” he said. “I don’t think we have enough to get two and still have money for anything else.”
“Fine by me,” Cassie said, still chuckling at me.
“So, after all of that, I think we’ll have about sixty silver left.” Zane squinted, counting in his head. “That leaves us with a few options. I know we’ve discussed getting some poison, but I don’t think it’s worth it. It’ll ruin the Skink for Mr. Rolle and it isn’t necessary for low-Ranking monsters. Instead, I was thinking about backpacks. Jen, how durable is your bag at home?”
“My parents said it was a pretty good one. It’s not enchanted or anything, but it can carry a bunch of stuff.” She was obviously holding something back as I saw her fidget with her hands and avoid eye contact with the rest of us.
“She’s understating it,” Britta said. “Trish isn’t here to tell us for real, but I bet her bag has got to be worth at least two gold.”
“I sort of figured. My bag is also good quality. For the rest of you, I think we should spend the money getting you something good. It’ll help us carry anything we find and make the trip more comfortable. That should cost us another forty silver, so we’ll be left with about twenty.
“With that, I think we should try to find any potion that can distract a monster if something shows up that we can’t handle. We can’t afford most potions, but there has to be something cheap that’ll either smell good or bad. I’m fine with either. What do you guys think?”
“No, we’re fine, chief tactician, your logic seems sound.” Jen smirked at her second-in-command.
“I still like the poison idea,” Britta grumbled. “But I think you’re right. Let’s find some food before we go shopping. Maybe we can even visit RenArt today. All of your questions make me want to pet Stinky.”
We were nearing the market, but I was also hungry and could use a bite to eat before looking for Zane’s suggestions.
We had suggested sending only a couple people from the group today, but Jen was adamant that the whole group needed to be included. At first, I didn’t see the point, but as we discussed the different things we might need, I agreed with her decision.
We got some food, before spending the rest of the day looking for the best prices on our equipment and potion. Zane didn’t have a Skill for it, but he did have a skill for haggling. Throughout the day, his ability to get the best price was amazing. If his eye was set on something, he made sure he got it.
He would pit merchants against each other, berate them for the quality of their goods, demean their character, and belittle their shop. He was actually a bit scary.
At the end of the day, we left the market with a few new bags, some waterskins, a large tent, and a couple tonics. We hadn’t been able to afford a true potion, but the tonic was sufficient for the type of monster we were hoping to deal with.
Buying food was left for the end of the semester, but we made an order to come pick it up the day before we left.
Less than a month remained in the semester and I was only counting down the days. I was excited to spend two weeks with my friends. I was excited to potentially fight some monsters. And I was excited to make use of my new knowledge and abilities.
With goods in hand, we were one step closer to the Hunting Trip.
* * * * *
“As all of you know, this will be the last class of the semester for General Magic Studies. It has been a fantastic semester and I thank you all for taking this seriously. Though you did not receive a choice in coming to Prep, your ability to stay engaged is what keeps each of your classes interesting.
“Since this is the one class you all attend, it falls on me to give you some details about the break. As you know, your classes will be stopped entirely. Professors are also given a chance to take a break, while on-campus staff will remain as needed.
“This means the Dining Hall will still be available for those of you that choose to remain in your dorms during the break. Though I would advise you to keep revising and practicing what you have learned, I also think there is value in letting your mind rest. As such, I recommend you take the opportunity to actually rest.
“If you do not choose to stay in the dorms, we expect you back two weeks from next Monday. General Magic Studies will resume at that time, and you will even have your first guest speaker to start things off. I’ll keep that as a surprise for then.
“A series of wagons will be leaving this coming Saturday to take you home. Please contact the administration office to indicate if you will take part in one of these trips. This will help us keep track of how many wagons
must be sent to retrieve students towards the end of the break.
“Also, some of you have expressed that your break will be spent in the company of monsters. Your time at Prep is in a controlled environment. Each professor is trained to teach you as effectively and safely as possible. You’ll also notice that there is very little live combat in your time at Prep. This is deliberate.
“You are all still Rank 1, and as such, you should not put yourselves in any dangerous situations. As such, I ask you to stay cautious. You are all young and have a lot of growing left to do. Do not throw your lives away.”
Professor Valk took the opportunity to pause and walk around the podium in her usual fashion. Despite having seen it dozens of times by now, her eyes managed to unnerve and reassure me as she tried to reinforce the seriousness of her words.
It was the last week of class, and with so few classes left, I was both excited and sad. I had changed so much, both physically and mentally, since I came to Prep. It felt odd to leave it behind, even for a couple of weeks. The thought of leaving it altogether at the end of the year felt daunting.
After her tour of the stage, Professor Valk continued. “Moving on. The majority of today’s class will be spent reviewing any questions you might have. These can be based on things we have already addressed, or they can be things you’ve come across but need more information on.
Before that though, we have one final lesson to discuss before the second semester. With the second semester comes a series of new courses for you to choose from. This is done on the Sunday before class, but I would like to give you some suggestions.
I will try to split this into three categories. Things that I recommend to all of you. Things I recommend for fledgling Dungeon Divers. And things I recommend to fledgling crafters.
“There are multiple other paths for you to take, and do not believe these are the only ones available, but these suggestions can hopefully help the majority of you.