"It's time you started using first-person pronouns, Tidbit." I cracked my knuckles and then turned back to my exercises. Clap push-ups, then burpees. "You're a big fire-breathing girl now. No more baby talk."
Karalti regarded me pensively, her in eyelids half closed. "So I can say stuff like… ‘If you make me fly hoops, I’ll set you on fire?’"
"As long as you say it in first person."
"What about… I hate hoops, and I hate you for making me fly through them? And I want five chickens, aaand..."
"You're a Queen Dragon, not a dragon princess. You’ll eat what you’re given.”
The little dragon finally hopped to the floor, stretching her wings and curling her back feet up against her ribs one at a time, like a bird. "I’m so hungry though. Bleh. Well, I guess hoops are okay, but do I have to wear the…?"
Her pupils contracted to points, and then she turned her head away from me, studying the ceiling intently.
I stood up, and arched an eyebrow. “The what?”
“Nope! Nuthin!” Karalti made a show of preening underneath her wing. “Wow, I sure got really big after I levelled, huh?”
I rolled my eyes, and went to get the source of her dread. My backpack.
Karalti whined aloud, flattening her wings against her body. "Nuuuu! No backpack!"
"Yes, backpack." Everything we owned was loaded in my pack, which weighed about sixty pounds. Karalti was still too little to carry all of it while flying, so I sorted about half of the weapons, junk, and tools onto the floor while she griped and stamped her feet.
“Don’t wanna!”
"Of course you don’t wanna. But you're already twice as big as you were at Level 1. Think how strong you’ll be by your next level after some resistance training.”
“I don’t care! It’s heavy!”
I sighed, standing up with it over one shoulder. “You want to carry me some day, don’t you?”
Her wings drooped. “Yeah.”
“I weigh a hundred and eighty pounds. This weighs less than a quarter of Hector. Do you remember why we use the backpack for training?"
She looked sidelong. “Because you’re a fatass?”
I mock-scowled, and reached back to grab my butt. “I’ll have you know that my ass is a supple, perky marvel of nature, young lady.”
Karalti play-bowed to me, tail lashing with mirth. “Yeah! Because it’s fat!”
I narrowed my eyes. “If you want to make your stand on that hill, be prepared to die on it, because I will twerk on you.”
Dragons were intensely visual creatures, and the rant made Karalti squeal with laughter and cover her eyes. How she knew what twerking was, I’ll never know. “Aaaaghhh, whyyy??!”
“Me and my perfect ass have no shame whatsoever, and you will regret ever questioning the mass and might of my posterior. Now, unless you want to see Uncle Hector crack walnuts with his buttcheeks, try again,” I said.
Karalti's eyes and nostrils scrunched up in a draconic pout. "Because resistance training with balanced weight makes it easier to fly?”
“That’s right.”
“You better wear it too!"
“I will. I’ll even go first.” I walked over and booped her on the snout with my finger. “I don’t expect you to do anything I wouldn’t do myself.”
Once we actually got outside and got moving, Karalti's surliness was replaced by giggling enthusiasm. She bounded across the rolling deck and practically threw herself over the railing, chirping with delight as she swooped up into the cold, choppy wind. This time, her exuberant morning flight was accompanied by gouts of white fire.
I watched her for a few minutes, admiring the way she cut the air. That one skill point had made a noticeable difference in her agility. While she warmed up, I did two sets of ten while wearing the pack where she could see me. I hadn’t told her it didn’t actually weigh thirty pounds – it weighed forty. That was for my benefit, as well as hers. When I was done, I’d gained another point to Strength and Stamina. "Okay, Tidbit. Time to work."
"Oki!" Karalti swung around and backwinged to land on the banister of the ship, flapping to keep her balance, and turned to present her back to me.
"That’s the spirit." I buckled the straps back around her wings and arms, then around her chest. “Soon we’ll be able to do this together.”
“Yeah!” She looked around inquisitively. “Where should I train?”
I pointed up at the ship’s masts and overhead, horizontal sails. “I want you to cut figure eights through the rigging. That’ll force you to keep with the ship, too.”
"Oof. That's hard." She looked up at the rigging with trepidation. “How heavy is this pack?”
“Thirty pounds,” I lied.
Karalti groaned under her breath. “Thirty! I can’t fly with thirty!”
"Of course you can. You can do it, muscles.” I clapped her on the shoulder. “Embrace the suck, enjoy the pain – it means you’re growing.”
She wibbled for a couple of seconds, but then looked back at me with determination in her eyes. “Okay… I’m gonna do it! I’m gonna be the strongest! Watch me!”
When I stepped back, my dragon stood on her back legs and stretched her wings out to their full ten-foot span. She had long, streamlined wings, like a sea bird. Karalti dove off the railing and dropped like a stone for a good twenty feet before she caught a thermal and rose, puffing with effort, and headed for the rigging. While she did that, I tied myself into an improvised rope harness, and knotted that to the railing before leaping up to balance on the edge. It was, in a word, terrifying. The ship was bucking up and down on the currents of air. To my left, there was nothing but sky and an eight thousand foot drop onto land. It was exactly what I needed.
My dragon had to build her strength to be able to carry me, and I had to build my mental strength to being able to fly on her – and fight on her back. Even though I was immune to vertigo and had no fear of heights, that didn't mean that I was immune to the very rational fear of falling off. I could look over the edge of a skyship like this and not feel sick or dizzy, but my inner monkey still screamed in horror whenever I wobbled on the railing. If I was going to be a good dragon rider, I had to be completely unafraid of falling. Even though Karalti was nowhere near being able to carry me yet, she wasn't going to be a gawky little hatchling for very long - and riding a dragon wasn't as simple as sitting on it while it flapped around. Archemi’s physics were very real, and you didn't just magically stay on something diving at two hundred miles per hour without the proper skills and gear to hold on.
There was something else I had to master, too: using my HUD while suspended over extreme heights. I found stable footing on the railing and called it up, holding my spear out for balance while I glanced over my own character sheet:
Dragozin Hector - Dauntan (Tuun)
Level 9 Dark Lancer
==Stats==
Strength: 20
Dexterity: 24
Stamina: 22
Will: 21
Wisdom: 22
Intelligence: 19
HP: 482
XP: 2038 (576 to Next Level)
Adrenaline: 55
Renown: Notable adventurer (General); Wanted Outlaw (Ilia), Heretic (Hercynia)
==Abilities==
=Racial=
Blessing of Burna: +10% bonus to resist disease; +5% Stamina bonus to recover from illnesses. Immune to Pox and Lockjaw. +10% cold resistance. All physical needs accrue 2% slower.
Plateau Native: No Stamina penalties in thin air, -2 Stamina penalty at sea level.
Saddle Born: All Riding skills increase 5% faster.
Sun-sight: No vision penalties in bright or very bright light, -5% penalty in dark environments.
Blessing of Tarn: +15% movement speed.
Blessing of Hrrun: No airsickness, reduced inertia, no vertigo.
=Dragonforged Abilities=
Mana Tolerance: You have great resistance to Stranging and Mana Sickness, and may consume magica
l potions without permanent ill effects. Your toxicity threshold is now equal to your HP. See the Mana Tolerance ability entry for details and related skill and ability trees. Exceeding your Mana Threshold brings on symptoms of Mana Sickness and drains HP.
Eagle Eyes: 20/5 eyesight with enhanced spectrum, 340-degree visual field.
G-force resistance 1: You can remain conscious at up to 5 g of horizontal or vertical pressure.
Stone Bones 1: +10 resistance to crushing damage, 5 damage reduction.
Deep Breather: 1.5x lung capacity.
Iron Body 1: You are practically immune to extremes of heat and cold. You can safely weather extremes between -20 and 120 degrees Fahrenheit.
Gyroscopic orientation: You cannot be disabled by extremes of motion. You are immune to disorientation and vertigo, and suffer no penalty to vision or concentration while spinning, falling, or while upside down.
Blood Pact: By undergoing the Rite of Marantha, you have become dependent on dragon blood to sustain your metabolism. Every week, you must consume at least one Dragon Blood Elixir to maintain your abilities. Failure to consume the potion will trigger the Starvation and Withdrawal statuses. All abilities gained through the Rite will become unavailable, and AP will regenerate 50% slower.
Stranged: The Rite has resulted in permanent mutations to your body which are visible and identifiable by some creatures. In places (or with people) where Stranged or magical beings have pariah status, you suffer a Severe penalty to all social interactions.
=Traits=
Curiosity: You are an open-minded and engaged person, willing to question your modes of thinking and doing and readily accept new ideas. Combat, craft, and class skills gain 5% more quickly.
Introvert: With a preference for your own company or small groups of loyal friends, you gain a 5% bonus to accumulate skills in solitude, provided you are not disturbed. Fatigue accumulates 10% faster in large groups and crowds outside of combat situations.
Dyslexic: The written word is something of a mystery to you. Books take longer to read, and all language-related skills gain -5% slower.
Natural Leader: You have a natural inclination to take charge. Social skills increase 2% faster when engaged in leadership activities.
Endurance: You are becoming accustomed to pushing yourself, even when you are exhausted. You may spend adrenaline to offset starvation, fatigue, or bleeding for +1 minutes x your Stamina.
Mark of Matir: This may convey special abilities at higher levels. When the Mark is activated, it will drain health from enemies on a critical hit. HP regained is equal to remaining AP + Will bonus. 300 second cooldown. You are immune to undead fear effects. – 500 Infamy in places hostile to worship of Matir.
=Path Abilities=
Doubletap I
Jump II
Bluster II
Shadow Dance II
Whirlwind Butcher I
Blood Sprint II
Chain: Blood Storm I
(New!) Umbra Burst I
=Gifts of Matir=
Fury Drain: When your HP falls below 20%, you can drain 10 HP per good hit from a single enemy (Cost: 5 AP. Cooldown: 10 sec).
Blessing of the Raven: You call on your power and gain increased insight into knowledge and skills. +10% Skill EXP for 45 min.
Life for Life: Channel a blast of damaging dark energy into your enemy and drain their lifeforce to replenish your own. Inflicts Corruption debuff.
=General Skills=
Riding 15
Riding Specialization (Dragon) 1
Navigation 9
Stealth 9
Negotiation 6
Intimidate 10
Survival 16
Acrobatics 12
Acrobatics Specialization: Freerunning 8
=Crafting Skills (Common)=
Foraging 15
Improvise Shelter 13
Alchemy 7
Herbalism 10
=Crafting Skills (Advanced)=
Potion Creation 4
[You have 3 unspent Ability Points!]
[You have 3 unspent Skill Points!]
[You can select 1 Gift of Matir!]
[New Knowledge!: Gifts of Matir B!]
Since we were on the ship and not having encounters, I’d hung onto my Skill Points to think about how I wanted to invest them. I’d already maxed out Herbalism and Alchemy without an instructor, so I couldn’t spend them on my favorite skills. I planned to hold onto my points until I reached Taltos and could find someone to teach me Intermediate Potion Creation. I’d actually forgotten about the Ability Points. I couldn’t take any new combat abilities at Level 9 – probably why I’d forgotten – so I quickly assigned them to three of my combat abilities: Blood Storm, Whirlwind Butcher, and Shadow Dance.
Gifts of Matir were related to him having chosen me as his champion. Being Matir’s champion was kind of annoying, because it meant that I got shoehorned into some quests - like the Myszno one - but it came with perks in the form of bonus powers. I got a small selection every four levels. Fury Drain was an ability I’d gotten when I first met Matir; at Level 5, I’d gotten to pick two powers. At Level 9, I was allowed to pick one.
Swallowing against the nauseating fear, I pushed the HUD to the side, then stepped forward and rolled into a beam handstand on the ship’s railing. The ship bounced just as I got vertical, and for a crazy moment, I thought I was about to topple off the side… but I bent my arms, and held the position. Sweet, sweet adrenaline washed through my body, and I grinned madly as I swiped my HUD back in. Upside down.
I checked out my new knowledge first. It was a short update to my previous Gifts of Matir Archemipedia entry. It upgraded my knowledge from C-grade knowledge to B-grade:
Gifts of Matir (B-Grade Knowledge)
Gifts of Matir are powers bestowed upon you by the draconic god of Darkness, Matir. His dual nature gives you access to two branches of Gifts: The Gifts of Life and the Gifts of Entropy. Gifts of Life enhance your abilities, heal disease, and combat the undead. Gifts of Entropy ravage and destroy your enemies, but may physically corrupt you and those on whom you use the abilities. Choose carefully, and use your powers wisely! Gifts of Matir are permanent and cannot be changed.
“Hmm.” Curious, I had a look at my current Gift abilities with this new information in mind. Fury Drain and Life for Life, which both sapped vitality from enemies, were Gifts of Entropy. Raven’s Blessing, which gave me +10 Skill EXP for 45 minutes, was a Gift of Life.
“Probably best to keep this shit balanced.” As the ship bucked, I folded down from the handstand and back to the deck, then had a look at what was offered for Level 9:
Close the Wound (Life)
You draw on your own raw lifeforce to heal another’s injuries.
Heal other player/NPC 50 HP per sec while ability is active.
Cost: -30HP and -10AP per sec.
Suppurate (Entropy)
You channel dark power into a person’s wounds, destroying the body’s ability to heal and causing their injuries to fester.
Cost: 20 AP + 10 HP.
Damage: 120% + 5% max HP per hour until enemy receives treatment for infection.
+1% chance to cause Blood Poisoning per 5 Levels.
Inflicts Corruption debuff 15m (Target).
Bury the Dead (Entropy)
You can strike incorporeal targets with a normal, non-magical weapon.
Duration: 30 seconds.
Cost: 25 AP.
Spider Climb I (Life)
You gain the ability to climb and travel vertical surfaces, crawl across ceilings, and hang on walls. Level this ability to extend duration.
Duration: 20 seconds.
Cost: 30 AP.
“Spider Climb.” I selected it without hesitation. Didn’t even have to think about that one. It was a great ability for someone who was destined to fly – an ability that could one day mean the difference between life and death.
The Mark burned cold on my skin for a moment, sending shooting thrills of
ice through my veins, and with it came the knowledge of how to do the Spider Climb maneuver. I reached out and grasped the ship’s railing. I felt shards of dark energy gather on my palms and the pads of my fingers. They dug into the wood like a glove of tiny claws, and when I flexed my hands, the tendons in my arms, wrists, and shoulders contracted like steel cables. Awesome: I was a tarantula now. Or perhaps… a Hecturantula.
“Hector! I did it! And I caught a seagull!” Karalti’s voice broke through my focus. I turned as she swooped down, panting around the twitching carcass of the unfortunate bird. “And I saw land! Did you see me fly?”
“Of course I did.” I rubbed the top of her head, which now came up to my navel when she stood on her back legs. “How far away from land are we?”
“I ‘unno. Maybe five miles? It’s on the other side of the ship.”
I checked my mini-map, and saw that she was correct: we were only ten minutes or so from making landfall. I nodded, then crouched down and smiled at her. “So… want to know a secret?”
Karalti cocked her head. “What?”
“I didn’t tell you the truth about something,” I said, pointing at the backpack. “That pack? It doesn’t weigh thirty pounds. It weighs forty pounds… and look what you did. You did your exercise and caught a seagull. You did it with ten more pounds than you thought you could handle. How amazing is that?”
Karalti dropped the dead bird on the deck, and blinked several times. “Why didn’t you say so?”
“You already thought you weren’t going to be able to train with thirty. But that struggle? It’s all up here.” I tapped the side of her head. “Any time you think you’ve maxed yourself out, you’ve only really given fifty percent of what you’re capable of. I hated the Army, but I learned that bit of wisdom there… and as much as I hate to say it, they were right.”
“Whoa.” Karalti looked down. “That’s deep.”
“Yep. Anyway, we better go pack up. Also, it’s potion day today. Are you okay with me doing a blood draw?”
“Sure!” Karalti happily trotted ahead of me. We both knew that my health and our bond required me to drink a potion made from her blood, but I always asked her permission anyway. “My strength went up! And so did my flying, and my stamina, and…”
Archemi Online Chronicles Boxset Page 40
