by Jamey Sultan
Only one of his strategies was viable, but it would drain pretty much all his remaining Essence. Still, if he let the fight go on any longer, he’d die for sure.
Here goes nothing.
James took a deep, calming, breath and waited. The instant he felt Danforth’s dagger cutting into him, he cast Arcane Teleport.
The battlefield froze.
Corpses of Dwarven guards were scattered everywhere. There were three guards with swords swinging down, but their target was gone. Lucien was already behind one of the guards with a dagger in hand. He was coated in a thick layer of red blood.
James ignored the sight and carefully extracted himself from Danforth’s blade. He quickly ran his hands over the Dwarf’s body and cemented Danforth’s position in his mind.
Grinning to himself, James got into position directly behind Danforth. Teleportation might not be useful against an invisible enemy, but the ability to stop time and feel around the battlefield was. He was pretty proud of himself for what he considered a particularly clever move.
When Arcane Teleport was close to wearing off, James swung Tyrfing, timing the swing so that his blade would slice straight through Danforth just as time resumed.
Unfortunately, James underestimated the assassin’s ability.
With supernatural speed and reaction time, Danforth spun around to face James. His eyes widened and he lifted his dagger to block. Then his eyes flicked over to the pile of guards who’d unsuccessfully tried to block Tyrfing.
For the first time, James saw fear in Danforth’s eyes.
The Dwarf threw himself toward the ground, and Tyrfing passed over where his head had been, missing by a hair.
He didn’t dodge completely though. While he’d managed to block a killing blow, when he’d thrown himself out of the way of James’ blade, Danforth had left his arm out for balance.
With a spray of blood, Tyrfing bit into Danforth’s right wrist, the one holding his dagger.
Danforth let out a howl of pain and anger. He threw a glass vial at the ground and it shattered. Black smoke billowed up, obscuring James’ vision.
When it cleared, Danforth was gone, nothing but a trail of blood in his wake.
James collapsed to the ground, his head pounding. It felt as though he were looking through a long, dark, tunnel. His ears were ringing, and he could barely muster the energy to push himself to a seated position. When he checked, he had 72 Essence left.
“Ughhh,” James groaned, reaching toward his pouch for a Weak Health Potion. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Lucien kill all three guards around him.
The teenager grinned as he walked towards James, blood dripping into his mouth and staining his teeth red.
His eyes glowed a dark violet and, as James watched, azure flames swirled in a pattern around his neck, charring the flesh and leaving behind a brand in the shape of a hooded figure.
“Ozure…” James whispered in horror.
“That’s right,” Lucien replied. “You thought this was about you?” He laughed. “You’re nothing. Nobody. I’m Ozure’s chosen. And you have my blade.” Lucien reverently lifted Tyrfing from James’ numb fingers. He ran his hands gently over the blade before sheathing it and strapping it to his hip.
“But… why?” James asked weakly. “What was… the point?”
Lucien’s brand glowed bright and his body froze unnaturally. When he next spoke, grey smoke leaked from his mouth. James recognized it as the mist that had escaped the dungeon along with him. He’d barely taken note of it at the time.
Ozure’s voice billowed out from Lucien’s open mouth and filled the room. “You don’t know how long I’ve been waiting for that.”
Through sheer willpower, James pushed himself to his feet and faced Ozure. He reached down to grab a Weak Health Potion from his pouch, but Ozure shook his head. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” He spoke a word of power in a language that James couldn’t comprehend.
James froze, crackling green light surrounding his body.
“That’s better. Now, I believe you wanted to know why this happened? Or more specifically, why I needed you and nobody else? It’s not because you’re special. But I think you already know that.”
James felt a sinking feeling in his chest. “My… Core?” he grunted, forcing the words out through the spell.
Lucien’s body stayed frozen, but James could imagine Ozure nodding. “There is powerful magic keeping me locked in here, but with your Core, I was able to send a fraction of my power out to bond with this vessel. He is full of hatred. Now, with his help, I will free myself from this prison.” His voice took on a considering tone. “I think I’ll leave you alive, as a thank you, and so that you can see what you’ve done.”
Through his haze, James struggled to process the onslaught of information. “But… Sytar? And the contestants? What about sending me home?”
Ozure laughed. “Sytar is dead. As for you…” His voice shifted to one that James remembered from his entrance to Novis.
It was that of Baradiel. “Welcome to Novis… bitch.”
Chapter 20
The smoke cleared and Lucien took a shuddering breath, his body his own again. He turned to face James. There was regret in his eyes, but also a hardness James hadn’t noticed before. “Sorry, James,” he said, his voice back to normal. “He promised me revenge.”
With that he walked away. When he reached the door, though, Lucien paused and, without looking back, called out, “Also, he wanted me to give you this.” He snapped his fingers and a notification flashed across James’ vision.
Quest failed: Temple of Sytar
Fuck you.
As Lucien disappeared into the distance, James felt his bonds snap, tendrils of energy crackling as they faded away. Without the energy supporting him, he collapsed. His vision darkened and the words of the prophecy kept repeating themselves in his head.
The tale of a man who lost his sight
Stained with blood from an endless fight
Caught by the Fae
He lost his way
And now he rules in the night
Prince of thieves and lord of lies
Better watch out for his endless eyes
Magic of old
No hero too bold
To stop him before he can rise
The death of a brother
Replaced by another
All he can do is despise
Most of the prophecy remained unclear to James, but two lines stood out.
The death of a brother. Replaced by another.
Then, the darkness took him.
***
James woke suddenly, gasping for breath. He flailed for a second, reaching for his sword. It wasn’t there. Then the events of the previous night came rushing back to him. Lucien had betrayed him and was going to free Ozure. Not only that, Sytar was dead and his quest a lie.
“Ughhh,” he groaned as he shifted in bed. It felt like he’d been put through a garbage disposal and then flattened by a steamroller. Everything hurt, even his eyelids.
James cracked his eyes open, squinting against the bright light coming from the opened window. He was laying on a bed in a familiar room. He was in Karim’s house, wrapped with warm blankets.
“James?”
Nidra’ was next to him, along with Arik.
“What happened?” James asked.
“We’d just finished with the distraction when we spotted a group of city guards heading toward the house. We figured you’d been caught and went to try to help, but when we arrived, there was a flash of violet light and Lucien walked out, holding your sword,” Arik explained, his voice shaky. He took a deep, studying breath, and continued. “We tried to talk to him, but something was wrong. He told us if we followed him, he’d kill us. Then he gestured to the building and told us to hurry if we wanted to save you…”
“James… What happened?” Nidra asked, softly.
James coughed as he sat up and then he told them everythi
ng. When he finished, they sat in stunned silence.
“So… the prophecy is about Lucien?” Arik asked, scratching his head.
“I think so,” James said. “Or at least some of it applies. Like, think about the last three lines. The death of a brother, replaced by another, all he can do is despise.” As he spoke each line, he ticked off a finger. “The death of a brother, we saw that happen. Replaced by another, not sure about this one, maybe Ozure replaced his brother or something? And then the last line, all he can do is despise. Well, Ozure said it himself, Lucien’s hatred was what let him in.”
Nidra nodded. “It might fit, but might not. We just don’t know enough.”
James opened his mouth to reply, but before he could, Karim and Branden entered the room.
James quickly filled them in.
Karim swore and Branden put his head in his hands. “The entire plan is scrapped,” Branden said seriously. “I just got back from an emergency meeting at the palace. Apparently, your friend Lucien—”
“Ex-friend,” Nidra interrupted.
“Fine, whatever. Your ex-friend waltzed right up to the palace and walked straight through the palace gate. Oh, and he destroyed it.”
“Destroyed it?” Arik asked, surprised. “How?”
Branden shrugged. “Does it matter? We’re screwed.”
“Not necessarily,” James said. “There were two other choices, right? Besides,” he grinned, “it’s not all bad.” Before anyone could ask what he meant, James pulled out the Mythic rarity item, Noctis, and tossed it to Branden. He’d considered keeping it for himself, but that just wasn’t the kind of person he was. He believed in treating other people right and honestly.
Branden let out a yelp as he fumbled the catch, but he recovered and grinned triumphantly. “Thank you,” he said to James. “I promise, I will do everything in my power to get you out of the city.”
***
After about four hours of planning, James kicked everyone out of his room. He was exhausted and still had to go over his notifications from the fight. Tomorrow would be a busy day.
You have gained 1 Skill Rank in Swordsmanship.
You are now Skill Rank 33.
You have killed Dwarven Guard (x7).
+ 903 experience points
Level up! You are now level 24.
James grinned, he was only one level away from 25 and already about a quarter of the way there. Then his grin faded as he realized how much harder fighting would be now that he didn’t have Tyrfing. He wouldn’t be able to one-shot everything anymore.
With that realization, James decided to focus his stat distribution on Constitution. Because of the bonuses he’d received to his other stats, it was his lowest stat at 53, but now that it affected his maximum Essence, it was one of the most important stats he could invest in. James put five points into Constitution and two each into Intelligence and Wisdom, to improve his spell power. Without Tyrfing, being a spellsword was a liability because damage and spells both drained the same pool. He’d need to focus on his spellcasting in the future.
Once he’d finished distributing his stats, James pulled up his Ability sheet. He had three points, but he already had a good idea of where he wanted to place them.
If he wanted to focus on his magic, James needed to improve his Arcane Missile spell. His three options were Longer Ranged Arcane Missiles, More Powerful Arcane Missiles, or More Arcane Missiles. In James’ opinion, More Arcane Missiles was his best bet. Each point he placed in More Arcane Missiles would not only effectively double the spell damage, but it would also make it more versatile.
He placed his first point into More Arcane Missiles.
Arcane Warrior II
More Arcane Missiles (1/15):
*Requires Arcane Missile 5
Each point in this Ability adds an extra missile to your Arcane Missile spell.
There was a node leading off of the More Arcane Missiles perk, but it was locked. When he tried to see what it said, a message popped up, telling him that all Tier III Abilities would be available when he chose his Journeyman Class at level 25.
To see what had changed, James pulled up the Arcane Missile spell.
Arcane Warrior I
Arcane Missile (5/5):
Range: 100-feet
Cost: 78 (100) Essence
Cast Time: 1 Second
Shoot 2 missiles of Arcane energy at your opponent. The missiles are capable of adjusting their direction to follow enemies within range.
Immediately, the spell cost jumped out at James. Before, each cast had cost 50 essence. Now, each cast was 100 Essence. To test a theory, James added another point to the More Arcane Missiles Ability. He wanted to see if it would double the cost again, to 200, or add another 50 Essence, for a total of 150.
If it doubled every time, there was no way James would ever have enough Essence to upgrade the Ability to its max Rank of 15.
Thankfully, when James added the second point to More Arcane Missiles, the spell cost only increased by 50. Even so, James was beginning to understand how important the spell reduction properties of his Arcane Mastery Ability were. At Rank 15 of his More Arcane Missiles Ability, his Arcane Missile spell would cost 750 Essence.
James placed his last Ability point into Arcane Mastery, bringing it up to Rank 23. He’d debated putting a point into More Powerful Arcane Missiles, but the spell was pretty powerful already, and the long-term benefits of maxing out Arcane Mastery would be better.
Once he’d finished assigning his points, James pulled up his character sheet. He hadn’t checked it in a while, and he wanted to see how he’d progressed.
James
Shakti (Arcane Warrior)
Level: 24
Essence: 2880/2880
Stats
Strength: 25(76)
Dexterity: 28 (67)
Constitution: 44 (58)
Intelligence: 55 (70)
Wisdom: 56 (75)
Endurance: 42 (56)
Charisma: 0 (1)
Luck: 0 (5)
Resilience: 5 (19)
Spells
Arcane Teleport (Rank 4)
Sphere of Influence (Rank 1)
Syreus’ Wrath (na)
Abilities
Death’s Stare (1/7)
Spirit of the Sword (n/a)
Of Body and Mind (n/a)
Blood of the Mountain (1/1)
Solar Powered (1/1)
Absorb (1/1)
Arcane Mastery (23/30)
Arcane Missile (5/5)
Mage Armor (10/10)
Graceful Oaf (n/a)
More Missiles (2/15)
Brands
Mark of Sytar
Divine Quest (Minor)
Liberator
Titan
Achievements
Dumb Luck
Clumsy I
Solo Dungeoneer
Mad Dash
Why Not?
Dumb Luck II
Ancient Mysteries
David and Goliath
Obliterator
David and Goliath II
Pure Blood I
Baby Steps
James grinned at his progress. It was hard to believe he’d entered this world for the first time only a few months ago. It felt like a lifetime.
Once he’d finished going over his character sheet, James settled in to go to sleep.
The next morning, James and the others gathered in the kitchen to say goodbye to Branden. Lucien’s recent escape and the fallout of their assault on House Gilden had sent the already overworked guards into a frenzy. It was the perfect time for them to head toward the tunnels to the Old City.
***
“Stop where you are.” The guard stepped into the middle of the street with his hand out. James’ heart beat nervously, just like the past two times they’d been stopped.
The three of them were cramped together, lying flat in a hidden compartment under the floor of Karim’s carriage. James wondered why they stopped
; they’d made it out of the palace ring and the inner ring. They were now in the outer ring. As far as he knew, there shouldn’t be any other gates they needed to go through to get to the tunnels.
The carriage rolled to a stop. Through a hole in the wood, James could just barely make out dirty cobblestones and a pair of dusty boots standing in front of the carriage.
“Name and identification, please,” the guard said.
“No problem,” Karim replied. “It’s Karim Fractus. What’s with the blockade? I thought you all would be busy at the palace.”
The guard sighed. “Whole fucking city’s falling apart,” he grumbled. “Here I am, a sitting duck waiting for that Vampire to attack me because they recalled half the guard for some issue by the palace.”
“Sounds rough,” Karim agreed.
“I can’t let you through.” The guard sounded apologetic. “Sorry, the whole quadrant is on lockdown, the—”
“—Holy shit, it isn’t…” A female voice, tinged with laughter, interrupted the sympathetic guard. “It is!”
A new pair of shoes joined those of the first guard. These were much nicer, crafted from what looked like snakeskin and well-polished.
“Lynn,” Karim said stiffly.
James shifted, adjusting his view so that he could see what was going on a little clearer. In the process, he accidentally kicked Arik. The Dwarf grunted, and Nidra shushed him. They stayed silent for a second, hoping no one had noticed. Luckily, the Dwarves above were busy with their own conversation.