“You have been with me for a while now, Tási. You have seen so many amazing things in that time. So many things that have been laid out for me, centuries in advance. And all of it, every last bit that has been planned for me has been for our benefit. If I am the key to discovering the gift that your mother left for you, then she is also part of the preparations that were made for me. If your mother’s actions had anything to do with my arrival, then I have no doubt that her gift to you will be helpful as well.”
As I spoke, Tási gripped my hands tightly and tears streamed down her face. When I finished, she nodded her head, reluctantly accepting my words, but clearly not believing them.
“I hope you’re right,” she replied meekly. “But just in case, I think we should be careful until the others return. If it is something dangerous, I don’t want you to face it alone.”
“I understand, Tási,” I answered her. “We have a lot to do anyway. We can focus on that instead for a while if that makes you more comfortable.”
“It will,” she said, clearly relieved.
I laid back down and threw the blankets on top of me. Even within the comfort of the soft covers, I missed feeling the warmth of Tási’s body pressed against me. Fortunately, my utter state of exhaustion allowed me to fall asleep quickly despite my longing.
5
The next morning came, and I woke up alone. I smelled the smoke from our campfire almost immediately and realized that Tási had left to begin preparing for the day ahead. Although I had leveled the previous night, in my tired state, I had never taken the opportunity to look over my updated personal sheet. As I gathered my gear, I pulled up the window and gave the new information a quick review.
Dreya Dae
Sintári Female
Title: Sintári
Level - 25
262229/281200
Health - 319/319 Aura - 648/748 Endurance - 319/319
Sintári – Sintári interact with their surroundings in unusual ways. The effects of these interactions can be unpredictable
Class – Warden – Wardens gain a 10% bonus to skills associated with nature or which have natural effects
Specialization – Protector
Mastery –
STR - 32 (+3)
CON - 27 (+2)
DEX - 24 (+2)
INT - 23 (+2)
WIS - 22 (+2)
CHA - 40 (+4)
Abilities
Ignore Armor – Your next arrow will ignore a portion of the target’s armor. Cost – 20 Aura. – 36%
Stun – Your next arrow has a chance to stun its target on hit. Cost – 20 Aura. – 35%
Block – You may attempt to use your bow to parry a single melee attack. Cost – 20 Endurance. – 20%
Swarm – Your next arrow duplicates itself in flight. Cost – 20 Endurance and 20 Aura. – 46%
Flurry – Perform three rapid strikes with a bladed weapon. Cost – 30 Endurance. – 25%
Parry – Chance for your blades to block next melee attack targeted at you. Cost – 20 Endurance. – 23%
Hamstring – The next arrow fired has a chance to cripple your opponent. Cost – 20 Aura. – 32%
Hilt Bash – Stun your opponent with a successful hilt strike from your bladed weapon. Cost – 30 Endurance. – 23%
Blood Price – Your arrow inflicts a damage-over-time bleed effect. Cost – 30 Aura.– 37%
Blind – Your next arrow has a chance to inflict blindness on a successful hit. Cost – 30 Aura. – 35%
Achilles Strike – Cripple your target with a slash of your bladed weapon. Cost – 30 Endurance. – 25%
Penetrator – Advanced Ability – Your arrow pierces through armor easily. With increased proficiency it may penetrate through even greater barriers. Modifier – Strength. Cost – 60 Aura. – 16%
Disable – Advanced Ability -A successful strike of your blade to an extremity renders the affected limb completely useless until healed. Modifier – Strength. Cost – 60 Endurance. – 5%
Shockwave – Advanced Ability – Your arrow explodes on contact, dealing minimal damage but generating a stunning Shockwave in a radius around its detonation. Size and scope of this effect increase with proficiency. Modifier – Strength. Cost – 120 Aura. – 1%
Sintári Abilities
Natural Affinity – The Sintári’s unique connection with the natural world may manifest itself in random ways at times. While these effects are generally beneficial, they are also typically outside the direct control of the Sintári. Modifier – Charisma.
Control – Effect varies, applies to all Sintári Abilities. – 27%
Protector Abilities
See Truth – Once per day, the spoken words of your target become visible to you, allowing you to see the truth held within them. Strength and duration of this effect increase with proficiency. Cost – 60 Aura. Modifier – Wisdom. – 18%
Spells
Enhanced Sight – May be cast on self or ally. Improves visual acuity of the recipient in dark or obscured conditions. Cost – 20 Aura. – 46%
Create Trap – Place a magical trap upon an area. Size, type and trigger of traps is determined by your proficiency. Cost – 40 Aura. – 51%
Elemental Arrow – Your next arrow is imbued with elemental energy and causes additional elemental damage accordingly. Cost – 30 Aura. – 28%
Bolt – Release a Bolt of pure Lightning at your target(s). Cost – 40 Aura. – 24%
Find Weakness – Highlights vulnerable points on the target. Modifier – Intelligence. Cost – 80 Aura. – 9%
Summon Elemental – Summons an Elemental creature. If you succeed in binding it to your will, the creature will serve you faithfully until the spell’s expiration. Modifier – Charisma. Cost 100 Aura. – 8%
Skills
Bow – 50%
Critical Hit – 40%
Blades – 34%
Long Sword – 37%
Short Sword – 29%
Dagger – 26%
Critical Hit – 29%
Two-Handed – 30%
Pole Arms – 14%
Spear – 23%
Armor – 30%
Medium Armor – 35%
Perception – 43%
Environmental – 45%
Identify Enemy – 43%
Identify Person – 39%
Combat Dodge – 25%
Subterfuge – 30%
Stealth – 35%
Find Trap – 11%
Disarm Trap – 8%
Set Trap – 10%
Manipulation – 35%
Persuade – 47%
Barter – 30%
Survival – 24%
Tracking – 26%
Identify Creature (Beasts) –19%
Skinning –16%
Field Dress –15%
Alchemy –17%
Herbalism – 25%
Potion Craft – 21%
Lore – 3%
Identify Magical Item – 5%
I had so many talents that I needed to improve before the orcs or any other threat might attack us. In addition, I needed to come up with some new defenses—if the orcs did return, as we were certain they would, they would be prepared for my traps next time. But first I needed to get something to eat and look over Ridge’s progress. Stepping out of the tent, I made my way over to the small fire Tási had built, and she handed me a bowl of oats for breakfast.
I sat down and chewed my way through the pasty mush. Even with my enhanced senses, the gruel was difficult to tolerate. While Tási was certainly not the worst cook among us, this was by far her most uninspired creation. Knowing that she was struggling with her internal doubts, I said nothing and continued to choke down the oats as I examined the fortifications.
The wall that had been eight feet tall now rose well over ten feet into the air. Ridge had even begun constructing the arch that would eventually form the wall’s gateway. The elemental was nothing if not efficient, and his progress was simply phenomenal. As I admired Ridge’s work, Bane flutt
ered down and perched on my shoulder.
I left you alone last night, but I have watched her moping around all morning, Sintári. Are things not well between you?
I placed a hand on his little body, holding him in place as I rose from my stone chair.
“Tási. I’m going to go have a closer look at Ridge’s progress.”
She nodded weakly, barely glancing in my direction as I left her behind. Once I was far enough away for her not to overhear me, I finally replied to Bane’s question.
“I need your advice, Bane. She is having a true crisis, and I’m not sure how to help her.”
I relayed an abbreviated version of our conversation to him, hoping he might have some insights. The Rhastoren had been the one to reveal her secret, and I wanted to believe that he might be able to help her with it as well.
Like you, Sintári, Tási has a dual nature. She is both exactly as she appears, and yet something more as well. If you are the one who is stirring that nature within her, then only you can truly bring it out.
“But how? How do I help her find out who she is?”
You cannot help her do that. You must pull the truth out of her yourself. Her nature is hidden within her heart—her true heart. You must send yourself inside her and tear it from its hiding place.
“I don’t like the way that sounds, Bane.”
It sounds much worse than it is, Sintári. In fact, it is much like the bonding I performed on you when we met. Although the process requires you to use force, it is a beneficial one. I am not saying that there will not be some unpleasantness, especially if she resists you. But when it is over, there will be no lasting ill effects.
“How do I do this?”
You must feel her heartbeat and then tune yourself to its rhythm. Once you have done this, the way forward should be clear to you. That is all I can tell you, Sintári. The process is different for all who attempt it. Only that first part is the same for all.
Ding!
What was that?
“You heard that sound?” I asked him incredulously.
Yes, there was a chime. I heard it in my mind, but I sense that it came from you.
“It was an alert. Something that is a part of my Deathless side. I guess you were able to hear it because we were in the middle of a conversation when it went off.”
You are probably correct, but I also think it is a sign that you are getting closer to being able to speak to me directly, Sintári.
“I hope so,” I smiled at him. “Just think of the conversations we could have with nobody listening in.”
You truly know what makes me happy, Sintári.
He smiled back at me mischievously as he settled back down on my shoulder. While he wound his sinewy tail around my arm, I stopped for a moment at the base of the wall and pulled up the new notification.
Sintári Quest, Control, Advancing – It will require a great deal of discipline to uncover your friend’s true nature. Should you succeed, the rewards will be equal to the challenge you face.
I was positively overjoyed by the message—I knew that there was absolutely no way my quest would lead me to do something hazardous to myself, making me certain that whatever Tási had tucked away inside her was both important and beneficial. And it certainly meant that it presented no threat to me as she so desperately feared. I almost rushed back to tell her the good news but decided to finish surveying the fortifications first since I was already there.
Save for the truly amazing increase in height, the barrier appeared mostly the same. Ridge was busily adding still more blocks to the top of the wall, making the already impressive bulwark even more imposing. Although I wanted him to help clear out some of the scrub and trees that had not only let the orcs approach us so closely before we could even begin to fend them off, but also allowed them to escape so easily, I thought it better to let him raise the wall high enough to bridge the gap over the gateway first.
“Excellent work, Ridge!” I complemented him as I got closer to where he was working. Even though he seemed unfazed by my praise, I still liked to commend him for his diligent efforts.
“Thank you, Mistress,” he replied in his grating voice.
“How long will it take you to link the two sections of the wall?”
“I should have them connected sometime tomorrow, though it will take a little longer to finish the work completely,” he informed me.
“That’s good news,” I answered. “But we will need to see our enemies as they approach us. Once you have the two ends joined, can you clear away some of the brush and trees that block our view?”
“I can do that, Mistress,” Ridge answered. “What would you have me do with the timbers?”
That was an excellent question, one I hadn’t thought to consider. If we simply left them outside, our attackers might not only use the fallen logs for cover, but as readily available resources to construct ladders or siege machines against us. Even though I had no way to mill the wood, it would be far better to hold the timbers behind our fortifications for now.
“Bring them inside, Ridge. We will figure out what to do with them later.”
“I will begin the task as soon as I am finished here.”
With my oversight of the construction complete, at least for the time being, I rushed back to the campsite to find Tási. She would be relieved to hear the good news, and I had already delayed informing her for too long. I hoped to cheer her up before we began training in earnest. Trying to advance her talents while she was so depressed would only make things more difficult.
Tási was still sitting where I left her, appearing hopelessly lost and out of sorts. The rock she sat upon was a little too small for the both of us, but I nudged her aside and sat down next to her anyway.
“Do you want the good news or the better news first?” I teased her.
“Whatever,” she replied, clearly not welcoming the attempt to brighten her mood.
“Well, little miss sunshine, the good news is that Ridge is almost finished joining the two sections of the wall. Once he’s done with that, he’s moving on to clear the fields in front of the canyon.”
“That’s helpful,” she offered unenthusiastically.
Bane responded to her miserable attitude by crawling off my shoulder and wrapping himself around her. He gazed into her eyes as he spoke in my mind.
I feel her pain and it hurts me, Sintári. Tell her what you have discovered.
I sensed the empathy in his voice as it echoed in my head. He had never expressed such feelings for her before, and I quickly blurted out what we had found.
“Bane has helped me figure out how to find out exactly what your mother left behind for you,” I told her. “And when he did, I received a quest that promised to reward me when I succeeded in doing so. Not just a normal quest, but a Sintári Quest.”
She stared at me questioningly, not yet comprehending the meaning of what I had said.
“My quests would never reward me for doing something harmful to myself,” I enlightened her. “Especially not one of my Sintári Quests—they only point me in directions that are helpful.”
“Are you sure?” Her voice quivered as a hopeful tear streaked down her cheek.
“I’m positive, Tási. Absolutely positive.”
She reached out to hug me, and we lost our precarious balance atop the too small stone block. We both giggled hysterically as we lay on the ground, too happy over the revelation to even care about our tiny tumble to the dirt. Finally, as our laughter faded, Tási asked me a question.
“When can we do it?”
My response was not going to be what she was looking for and I took a deep breath before answering her.
“I think we may need to wait until everyone else gets back first,” I told her reluctantly. “The process Bane described to me sounds like it could be very intense. We may need their support afterwards, and it’s probably not safe to even attempt it as long as the threat of the orcs returning is hanging over us.”
; “I’d rather find out sooner, but you’re right,” she sighed. “We should focus on our preparations for now.”
“Good,” I replied as we picked ourselves up off the ground. “I have a new Skill I want to try out.”
I sent Bane off to scout again while we walked back through the canyon and into the valley beyond. I had no idea what my newest Ability would really do, so I aimed my shot at the nearest stand of trees and let my first Shockwave arrow fly. The effect was quite impressive, to say the least.
The arrow slammed into the trees with the incredible force imparted by the Bow of Impact. The shaft burst apart violently, and a forceful wave of energy radiated out in all directions from its point of impact. The surrounding trees and foliage shook violently from the powerful effects as leaves and even small branches were shorn away in the maelstrom. The whole thing was over in an instant, but when the dust finally cleared, everything with ten feet of where the arrow had hit was in shambles.
“Wow,” Tási whispered in awe as we stared at the devastation. “That’s pretty amazing.”
“It won’t really hurt anyone, but it will definitely take them out of a fight for a little while,” I replied. “Unfortunately, it requires great deal of Aura, I can probably use it only two or three times in battle.”
We stayed in that same area for the rest of the morning. Tási practiced her spells, while I focused on gaining proficiency with the several talents I now had that were still under 20% proficiency. My progress was slow, since both Penetrator and Shockwave had exorbitant Aura costs, forcing me to spend a great deal of time waiting for my points to regenerate.
Second Skin Omnibus Page 93
