by David Burke
It was exactly what he needed, a way to blunt the attack, to literally ground the electrical energy. Suddenly a flicker of information popped up in his vision, but he had no time for it. So single-minded was his drive to reach Gilthan that he ignored everything else. Even the sudden rush of two points of Earth Essence leaving his body didn’t stop his forward drive.
He felt the essence swirl around his body and a slight heaviness came to his limbs, but he was used to pushing past exhaustion and lactic acid. This would be enough to slow him even if he had failed to use the power as he wanted.
Yet he hadn’t failed. The audience gasped as the man they saw as a brutish but exciting warrior was suddenly being encased by the ground. The sand and hard-packed earth beneath it, even the solid stone, rippled up around him. Whereas before most of him had been unarmored, now he was covered in an earthen armor that moved with him.
What Kyle perceived as a slight bit of tiredness in his muscles was in reality the shifting of the new armor around him. His mind had such a narrow focus on his target, though, that he didn’t initially realize he had succeeded.
It clicked into place when he saw the flash of light on Gilthan’s hand. He gritted his teeth and braced for the impact. His only thought was to force himself forward. He was so close now. But then there was no pain, no muscle locking shock, no teeth jarring impact.
His focus was distracted for just enough to look down at himself between strides forward. He saw the swirling earthen armor as it formed and reformed under the onslaught of the lightning bolt all while grounding the charge to keep him from feeling its impact. Rather than be distracted, he roared out, “Rarrr!” Exultation pumped through his body; he had done it. His foe was finished.
Too late, Gilthan realized the lightning attack wasn’t going to work and refocused his depleted essence stores into flying again, but Kyle wasn’t having any of that. He sent the massive maul flying out before him. The head of it struck Gilthan, who crumpled up under the blow.
Kyle had seen the elf in training and knew that despite his pretty boy face, he could take a hit, so for him to be so completely dropped this blow caused Kyle a momentary fear that he had used too much power. But focus returned and he plowed into the staggered elf.
Another roar of battle frenzy escaped Kyle’s lips as he pulled back a fist to pummel the elf. Even as his fist was descending, he realized that the elf was already tapping on the ground.
The wind had been driven out of him when the maul struck, but he managed to gasp out, “I yield.”
Kyle paused for a second to make sure the elf wasn’t going to die immediately, then stood up. He didn’t wait for Saber to announce a winner but instead lifted both his hand up into the air with clenched fists. The earthen armor shed off of him like scales. Then, with his head pulled back to look up at the sky, he roared his defiance while his fists shook.
He might not have asked for this second chance at life but in this moment, he was feeling it. Victory felt so intoxicating. He could understand how a boxer or MMA fighter felt. Beating an opposing pitcher was the closest he had come to this in-your-face kinda victory before coming to Verden. It was so much more intense than even the feelings he had for beating an opposing team.
That had been a game, but this was life. Battle was life. He felt so alive. He almost smashed Saber when the man came up next to him to announce him as the winner. In this moment, Kyle felt like he could do anything.
He searched the audience. The nobles were among the only ones not standing to applaud but they all had hungry looks on their faces, perhaps for different reasons. Sitting next to Lady Meeka was the only unfazed face he saw. Marie was staring back at him. Her gaze seemed to pierce into him.
Well, all he could think was let her bring it. He would be ready. He was the damn war god and no one could stand against him.
Other faces caught his attention. Nyda was standing in one of the tunnel entrances with some towels draped across her arms. She stared at him with a strange look of pride on her face. Beside her, still supported by one of Selma’s aids, was Kierra. She was staring just as intently at him with a faint smile on her face. Her tail was wagging, and her eyes flashed with passion until she saw him looking back at her. Then she averted her eyes as if ashamed of what she had been thinking.
All in all, it was good to be the victor. This was a feeling that both Kyle and Krig could agree on and in that moment, he found an increased level of unity within himself. He was anxious for the chance to speak to Hilde about it. He wanted to study and replay the fight to learn what he could do better and to figure out how to repeat the things he had done right.
For now, though, it was enough to bask in the cheering of the crowd.
Chapter 25 - Learning Himself
After being inspected like a side of beef, propositioned, and haggled over by the nobles, Kyle was sent back to his cell. No sooner had he reached the bottom of the ladder than the voice of an overly excited Hilde burst into his head.
“You did it. I didn’t think it was possible, but you used Earth Essence. It shouldn’t be possible. But you did it. Then again, nothing about this is normal. Heck, you even learned a Skill on your own.”
“A Skill?” Kyle asked.
“Yeah, remember that little blue flash in the corner of your eye when you were fighting? I did my best to minimize it as a distraction, but that was your character sheet being updated to show you had gained a new Skill,” Hilde answered.
He didn’t even say anything but instead focused on his sheet.
Name: Krig (Kyle Hudson/Warborn)
Race: Demi-god (War God/human)
Stats: (Current/Max)
Strength: 16/42
Agility: 6/42
Constitution: 15/45
Will: 11/45
Mind: 7/39
Charisma: 5/29
Essence: (Current/Max)
Air: 0/12
Death: 0/25
Sea: 0/12
Deceit: 0/13
Earth: 10/25 – Conversion rate: 1/15 seconds
War: 12/50 – Conversion rate: 1/second
Raw Essence: 11,345
Skills:
Flowing Earth Armor, 1 - 2 Earth
Divine Ability:
Rage Burst, 1 - 4 War
The changes to his character sheet were interesting, even more so because Kyle realized he was an idiot for not keeping up to speed on what changes were happening. It was just an alien thought process to try to measure results from a sheet that popped up in his head. He just had to equate it to tracking his batting average.
It was fascinating that instead of all eight types of essence, it now showed the six that were represented on his wheel. The new data also showed him which spokes were the bigger spokes. War obviously was the largest, but earth and death were the next largest, with deceit, sea, and air being the smaller spokes. That, of course, meant that the mortal part of him had no aptitude for lust or judgment essence.
Stat wise, he had gained a single point in each of his physical stats.
Hilde said, “You need to remember that, for you, those stat gains represent your body becoming better acquainted with how this construct works, as well as implementing essence into it better.”
“You have called this body a construct before. What do you mean by that?” Kyle asked.
“Simply that a god can create a body anytime. The destruction of your body is not permanent, or even that serious of a setback. Your mantle is a spiritual and elemental container for your soul and essence. As long as you have your mantle, then you can always make a new body.”
“But my mantle is stuck in the void, I thought.”
Hilde hummed for a second before saying, “Quite right, and the view outside is dismal. Seriously, though, I have been operating on the assumption that it would just migrate to you once you gained enough control of it. You are still connected to your mantle, but I don’t know more than that.”
“Yeah, yeah. First time and no one knows. Is my soul even in my body, or is it in the mantle with you?”
“Hmm… That is an interesting question. If your soul was here, then you might be able to manifest here. Ooh… we could have some fun then. And I’m not just saying that because I’m bored silly. As far as no one knowing, well maybe one of your siblings would know, but asking them would be a straight up death sentence, so I don’t recommend it.”
“If I get the chance, don’t think I won’t take you up on it. I’m not so much of a gentleman to tell a wise and worldly woman like yourself no. But what about those stat increases?” Kyle asked. The grin on his face carried through in his tone.
“Promises, promises. If you deliver on that, you will be way ahead of your old self in my book. Stats, though. I don’t have much else to do but pay attention to your growth here, so I can tell you what is triggering those changes. Your strength went up after the match with Skrug, which sorta makes sense. Agility was after sparring with Kierra, and constitution after your match with Gilthan. Apparently, getting repeatedly electrocuted is good for building your body’s durability, at least if you survive it.
“But don’t get too caught up in those. I would say that your mental stat increases are at least if not far more important than your physical ones. Your Charisma jumped up by three whole points, which is likely a representation of how well you are doing teasing all the women around you. I swear that even old Selma would jump your bones if she thought she could get away with it.”
Kyle laughed and said, “Always had a way with the ladies.”
“Whatever,” Hilde said. “The other stats are more significant. Your Mind score increased, but that doesn’t mean that you got smarter, it means that you got better at using your mind. From having been around Krig, the mind of a god is something different. He was able to perceive things that I couldn’t see, and even operate multiple constructs at the same time. And I already am more mentally agile than your average mortal by a good margin.”
“So maybe it will help me process essence and learn new skills,” Kyle said.
“That is highly likely, but it will take time to increase, and your level is still solidly in the mortal range. Equally important to go along with your Mind increase is the increase in your Will. That came about because you pushed through. That will be just as important as your mind, and distinctly more important than strength or any other physical trait.”
“Okay, and the skill? Will I be able to learn more skills, or will I be able to use Earth Essence like I use War Essence? I could feel the War Essence helping me leap higher, run faster, throw the maul more accurately,” Kyle said.
“You keep asking these questions like I am going to be able to answer them.”
“Yeah, yeah, I get your point, we’re just trying to figure this out as we go. I will say this. Using Earth Essence felt like I was manipulating a vessel of power within myself yet distinct from me. It wasn’t at all how it feels when I use War Essence. That just feels as natural as breathing. That is, when I can make it work at all.”
“Sorry, I know that as strange as this is to me, it is even more strange to you. As for the skill, it is much like your Divine Ability. Look at the description of it for more detail; you just need to focus your mind on it.”
Kyle did just that and pulled up the following:
Flowing Earth Armor: Pulls up the ground at your feet and forms an armor over your body. The armor will continually replenish itself until the Earth Essence is depleted. User may channel to maintain the armor.
Armor provides 100% resistance to electrical attacks, 75% resistance to heat and cold attacks, 50% resistance to acid attacks, and 25% resistance to physical attacks.
Cost: 2 Earth Essence
Duration: Up to 1 hour, varies based upon movement and amount attacked. Movement is slowed by 10% for the duration.
“Cool, but why can’t I get a description like that for my Divine Ability?” Kyle asked.
“Likely because you haven’t synced with your mantle enough yet, which is something I think we should try now,” Hilde replied.
“Okay, I’m game. But how do we do that? And what are the benefits? Maybe if I had a goal in mind, it would help motivate me more,” Kyle said.
“Hmm… well first off, the more you sync with your mantle, the stronger you will become, but you already know that. It will also allow you to not just temporarily summon me, but also to permanently manifest me on whatever plane you are on. Given what I know about your life on Earth, I’d think that the kind of gratitude I could show you would be sufficient motivation.”
Kyle said, “Sold, but I haven’t even learned how to summon you and, no matter how tempting, I don’t want to risk pulling you through the void just for a booty call. You made it seem dangerous, and I won’t do that to you without good reason. Besides that, we need to work on breaking these manacles off too.”
“I find your concern for me to be touching. You are the war god; it is inevitable that your servants will be placed into dangerous situations. But I do like that you consider me more than an expendable pawn. So here is what I need you to do: focus on nothing at first.”
Kyle laughed. “You mean like empty my mind?”
“Yes, but only briefly. Think of it as a reset. You can’t be focused on anything external. If you can stop stressing about the circumstances around you, it will enable you to turn your focus inward. Then comes the part that you won’t like.” Hilde’s voice was hesitant as she spoke this time.
“I already accepted your oath. I felt the connection that it started between us. I’ve only known you for a couple of months now, and still haven’t met you in flesh, but I find myself trusting you more each day. Just tell me what you think. I’m not promising to do what you say or to think it is the best way, but I promise to listen to your counsel,” Kyle said.
“And that is why you will either be so much more than Krig or so much less. Only time will tell.”
Kyle wasn’t entirely sure how to take that last part, but he let it go. “Okay, so what do you want me to do after I relax?”
“As I said, try to empty your mind of all concerns. Block out the outside world. Then I want you to try to remember anything from your prior life. Try to connect with the part of Krig that is still in you. As best I can tell, you are two beings merged into one, and you can’t ignore that part of yourself. I know you are afraid of losing yourself, but you have to embrace all of yourself.”
That definitely had Kyle on edge, but truthfully, Hilde hadn’t misled him yet so he would try. He practiced breathing deeply and trying to relax. As always happened, his mind started to race about other things. It could never be easy, after all. But he focused on one single thought first, a perfect swing of the bat.
He went through how it looked, how his feet pivoted, how his hips rotated, how the head of the bat came around. He could virtually feel it all. It was his calm place. The thing he was best at in the world and what made him feel relaxed. Others stressed about it, but to him a perfect swing was a thing of beauty, so he captured that feeling in his mind.
From there it was easy to turn his thoughts inward. He hesitated only for a second before diving into that part of him that he associated with Krig. It was like a mass inside of himself that he could feel, but more spiritual than physical. As he pushed into it, he could feel how dense it was. There was so much packed into it, and Kyle couldn’t get a good sense of it.
It occurred to him to start channeling essence into it, but it didn’t seem to respond to his War Essence or Earth Essence. That, or maybe he just wasn’t doing it right. This was like he was moving around blindly, going by feel.
Then a thought occurred to him. If he was trying to connect to his mantle and his mantle was in the void, then maybe it required raw essence. Some of what Hilde had said before seemed to imply that he would need to use raw essence to travel through the void or at least to summon her.
So, he focu
sed on the raw energy that he always felt storming within himself. It didn’t have the feeling of focus or purpose that he sensed in his War Essence, or the steady nature that he sensed in the Earth Essence. It was more like chaos and unpredictability incarnate. Still, if that was what it required, he would find a way.
Kyle stilled himself further. He let go of a plan and simply tried to react. In that reaction, he managed to create a small channel for raw essence to flow into that part of him that was Krig. It was like before. He saw an explosion of light and everything faded from his vision.
All around him was a gray emptiness. It was so empty that it could never be filled. Not like space where energy and matter existed even if in small amounts. No, there was nothing here. It was anathema to his being in a way that he didn’t understand.
Even Kyle, who barely could sense let alone understand his essence, knew that this was alien to all that he was. As an Earthborn human, he would not have been able to react. He simply would have been quashed, drained, and emptied into a bottomless void. Somehow, though, as the war god, an existence he didn’t pretend to understand, he could fight to survive in this place that drained him of energy.
Then he saw it, or sensed it at least. There was a beacon in the emptiness. A presence that called to its like kind. Kyle pushed with the channel of energy that he was tied to and travelled to that other place. He couldn’t say for sure if it was instantaneous or took eons, he only knew that he felt a sense of movement and then he was there.
Massive, hundred-foot-tall doors opened, and he stepped through into a great hall. It was formed of pristine, white stone. Gold paved the floor and crimson tapestries lined the wall. Each was embroidered with vivid scenes of battle.
As he looked from side to side of the hall, he felt an echo within each of the scenes portrayed. He knew those battles. Not in a stuffy academic sense, but in a complete sense. When he looked at them, Kyle didn’t just see well designed, artistic tapestries.
