“The Bosqovar town guard!” Seth blurted, pulling out the flint and steel the man had given him to start the fire and cook Glenda’s dungweed, and handing it to the chief, asking, “Is this one of your flint and steel?”
The chief confirmed, and considering the exchange finished, said, “You go now.” Seth and Aurora began their retreat up the tunnel they’d come down. Seth asked Aurora why they seemed so accepting that they’d killed their guards, and she explained the resident spirit would just spawn replacements in the next few days. She seemed distracted as we exited the cavern, so Seth asked why.
She said, “It doesn’t make any sense. Why would Enrique go through the trouble to steal this statue from the enchanter, and then sell it to these random kobolds for less money than he probably makes in a week?” Seth stepped into the setting sunlight, and started to reply that he had no idea why Enrique would do that, but was cut off by another voice.
“Ironic running into you here, isn’t it?” Seth whipped his head toward the voice and saw Enrique, the town guard from Bosqovar, standing with his shining silver sword drawn, the setting sun behind him.
Chapter 11
Aurora stepped around Seth, whispering, “Stay out of this, you’ll just get in the way,” and moved towards Enrique. She spoke to the guard, still trying to appear cordial, but Seth could see the tension in her movements, and her hand lingered near where her sword hung from her midsection. “What’s going on, Enrique? Let’s talk about this, no one has to get hurt here.”
Enrique smirked and replied, twirling his sword in a graceful arc as he spoke. “I don’t particularly like assassination contracts, and I told myself I’d left that life behind, but some friends reached out to me last week with a contract for you. No hard feelings, but it’s going to pay so much that I’ll never have to work again. I hope you understand.”
Seth expected him to keep monologuing, but at that instant, he activated his Charge ability and shot towards Aurora. The ground ruptured where his feet had been, throwing dirt clods in the air as he shot forward. Seth’s eyes barely followed the warrior as he rocketed toward the knight. She raised her left arm just before the collision, and a partially translucent blue shield sprung from her left bracer in an instant. The shield was several feet tall, with a wide, round top, and a tapered sharp point at the bottom, it looked to be some kind of force field.
Enrique’s shining sword lanced point first into the magical barrier, and dirt collected around Aurora’s metallic boots as the impact actually pushed her back several inches. She retaliated swiftly, and Seth breathed an internal sigh of relief that blocking his charge had prevented the stun debuff.
Aurora stamped her left foot forward, throwing the weight of her body and massive armor into her shield and smashing it back into the warrior, who was now standing very close to her with his sword in contact with her shield. Enrique stumbled back several steps and regained his footing, but the knight wasn’t finished.
She pointed her sword at the warrior and a blue white magical glow appeared around the blade for a split-second before launching forward and slamming into Enrique’s center of mass. He grunted but didn’t retreat further, and his health bar revealed itself, a ghostly red rectangle floating above his head. It showed at around ninety percent full, and Seth realized this may not be an easy fight.
Aurora was a dominating force to any monster he’d seen so far in this area, as she had fifteen to twenty levels more than most of them. Enrique, however, must have been a closer match in level to Aurora. Seth toggled to his combat log with an effort of will, and was horrified at what he saw.
Your party member Aurora hits level 34 warrior (Enrique) with Shield Bash for 48 damage.
Your party member Aurora hits level 34 warrior (Enrique) with Riptide for 142 damage.
Just then, Enrique whipped his left hand in a wide arc, and a bolt of fire flashed through the air at Aurora. She tried to pivot her shield to the right and catch the projectile, but wasn’t quick enough, and it slammed into her exposed right shoulder, taking off almost an entire fourth of her health and dropping another notice in Seth’s combat log
Level 34 warrior (Enrique) hits your party member Aurora with Firebolt for 438 damage.
Seth felt the seed of worry in his gut begin to bloom as he realized Enrique had every advantage here. He was seven levels higher than Aurora, and apparently his second class was a mage. He was entirely damage oriented, while Aurora was defensive. Seth decided that, however stupid and useless it may be, he needed to try to help.
Seth took a step forward and his foot made contact with something, almost sending him flat on his face. He glanced away from the fighting for a brief second and saw a short wooden club sitting on the ground, belonging to one of the kobold guards Aurora had dispatched on the way in.
It was roughly half the length of Seth’s starter sword, having been made to fit the smaller stature of the kobolds. An idea bloomed in Seth’s head, and he drew his sword before activating Quick Change Artist to swap his outfit. His clothes turned from dark maroon to royal blue, and his sword ceased to exist. Seth picked up the club with his now free hand.
He looked back towards the ongoing battle and wasn’t pleased with what he saw. Enrique had apparently decided that distance was the way to play the fight, and was now standing around twenty yards from the knight, peppering her with a fireball about once per second. Seth saw Aurora cast a healing spell on herself, but it seemed to be a losing battle. Her once pristine translucent blue shield was showing cracks, and fire curled through those cracks and around the shield on every impact, singing her. Another glob of fire hit as Seth watched, and her health dropped again, passing the halfway mark.
Seth began walking towards Enrique, kobold club held out in front of him. Enrique slammed another fireball into Aurora’s shield and it completely shattered, little blue shards like glass evaporating into dust, the fireball careening right through into her chest and sending her stumbling backwards.
Her health dropped to around thirty percent. Seth tried to activate Charge but was still too far away from Enrique, so he picked up his pace. He wasn’t quick enough, however, and Enrique let loose one more Firebolt. It streaked towards Seth’s party-mate, and he shouted to her. Mere fractions of a second before the magic landed, Aurora bared her teeth and clenched her fist like she was crushing something in her hand.
Golden light bloomed around her in pulsating waves, and though the fireball still struck her right in the chest, it seemed to have no effect. Seth flicked his eyes to his combat log as he neared the outer limits of his Charge ability, now running towards Enrique at a full sprint.
Level 34 warrior (Enrique) hits your party member Aurora with Firebolt for 0 damage. Aurora is immune to damage due to the effects of Divine Aura
Seth’s eyebrows shot up at that, and he wondered how long her skill lasted. He didn’t have to wait long, though, as the golden light faded from view around Aurora and she cast another healing spell on herself. Just then Seth entered range to perform his Charge ability, and triggered it immediately, feeling his feet thunder into the dirt and propel him towards Enrique, flying over the intervening ground like some angry, club wielding Olympic long jumper.
The world seemed to slow down, and several things happened almost simultaneously. Seth saw Enrique’s eyes flick towards him, and the man began to turn himself in Seth’s direction, preparing to block or dodge the Charge.
At that moment, though, Seth heard Aurora bark, “Hey!” at the warrior, and he subconsciously noted how deep and amplified her voice sounded.
As if controlled by some unseen puppet master, Enrique’s head shook for a moment, resisting, before whipping back in Aurora’s direction again, leaving Seth to complete his Charge with Enrique only able to see it through his peripheral vision.
Just as Seth thought the wooden kobold club would connect with the warrior’s face, though, his left hand appeared from nowhere, literally catching the wooden weapon inches from his head and sto
pping Seth’s flight like he’d collided with a brick wall. Seth stood there, right next to Enrique, dumbfounded at his pure strength. Whatever Aurora had done to force the man to look at her wore off, and Seth heard her shouting, her armor clanking as she rushed to close the distance to the two warriors.
A cold feeling erupted in Seth’s gut then, that quickly turned to white hot pain, and he glanced down to see Enrique’s shining silver sword run clear through his shirt and into his belly, presumably sticking out of his back. Seth lost feeling in his legs, and his health bar plummeted toward zero.
Just before blackness started closing in on Seth’s vision, he looked Enrique in the eyes. He looked smug, a wry smile twisting his features into something repulsive, as he stood with his left hand still holding the kobold club inches from his face.
Seth let loose a silent, wordless prayer and activated Quick Change. Darkness had started to encroach around the edges of Seth’s vision, but he saw the kobold club instantly replaced by his starter sword. The sword, being significantly longer than the too-small club, occupied different space. The pommel was in Seth’s hand, matching where the handle of the kobold club had been, but the sword blade extended right through Enrique’s hand and deep into his left cheek, terminating somewhere inside his brain.
The sword’s abrupt appearance had pushed gruesome holes open in the man’s hand and face to accommodate the blade’s presence, and Seth saw his eyes go glassy, cruel smile still plastered on his face, before his health bar hammered to zero, and all went black.
Chapter 12
The first thing Seth noticed, as he found himself standing in the featureless black void again, was the message window staring him in the face.
You have died! As an adventurer above level 1, your level will be reduced by 1, and a new body will be formed. 1,207 experience will be deducted from your total.
9:00:00
The timer at the end ticked down the seconds as Seth watched, 8:59:59, 8:59:58, and he groaned at the thought of waiting in the black void for nine hours. He sat down hard on his rump and opened his combat log, hoping for an answer as to how much damage his little trick had done to Enrique. He was hopeful that he would be able to see what had happened afterwards, and if Aurora had made it.
Level 34 warrior (Enrique) critically hits you for 277 damage.
You critically hit level 34 warrior (Enrique) with _unnamed_action_142z for 1,656 damage.
You’ve slain level 34 warrior (Enrique), +0 experience (experience not awarded for killing humans), 1,910 experience until level 11.
You have died.
1,207 experience deducted, your level has been reduced from 10 to 9. 1 experience remaining until level 10.
You have created a new attack! _unnamed_action_142z has been auto-assigned to Thoatl, god of names, for naming.
Thoatl has reassigned the naming of _unnamed_action_142z to Matrox, god of war, for naming.
Direct message from Matrox, god of war: That was some quick thinking, kid. To be honest, I don’t think anyone’s ever actually chosen the Quick Change Artist boon, but it’s nice to see you exploding some heads with it. I’ll name your skill, but try not to make any more work for me, or I might have to smite you or something.
You’ve gained the skill, Quick Change Pierce!
Quick Change Pierce - Utilize the spatial warping effects of Quick Change Artist to swap from a shorter weapon to a longer weapon, ignoring 100% of armor, shielding, and defense. Requirements: Be holding a weapon while your secondary outfit has a longer weapon equipped, and activate this skill. May combine with other attacks. [Invented Skill: Invented by Seth]
Seth shouted into the void, “YES!” He’d only just met Aurora, but he felt like she was his key to surviving in Morgenheim, at least in the short term. Or not surviving and dying, as it were.
He laid down, put his hands behind his head, and contemplated the events of the last several days. He still wasn’t sure how he felt about the predicament he’d been put into. One moment he’d been driving home from work, finally past a meeting he’d been dreading for weeks, and now, several days later, he’d just killed a mercenary trying to carry out a hit on a magical medieval knight he’d just met. It was insane, it hardly made any sense. He missed his family and apartment. He didn’t really miss his job.
So far Morgenheim had proven to be an exciting, if dangerous, place, and he felt torn between enjoying it and missing his old life.
Seth took a deep breath and tried to relax, fully prepared from his job on Earth to do absolutely nothing for the next nine hours.
***
Seth jerked awake moments before the timer finally ticked down to zero, and he again noted how the world seemed to transition like the turning on of an old-time television. He found himself standing in the midst of some mossy old stones, standing vertically like pillars from Stonehenge.
It was dark, and Seth noticed the stars twinkling in the night sky. He didn’t see any constellations he recognized, though he’d only known how to find the dippers on Earth. His sword was in its scabbard on his belt, and all of his other belongings seemed to be present. Seth idly wondered if another version of his body lay somewhere, miles away, with copies of all of his belongings.
It was difficult to see by the starlight, but he appeared to be on some grassy hillside. Rolling hills stretched off to the dark line of the horizon in one direction, but in another direction, Seth could see a town lit by several torches on lamp posts scattered throughout the settlement.
Seth quickly realized that he was actually looking at Bosqovar from the north. He debated heading into town or the other direction Aurora’s house, but didn’t think it was a great idea to do either in the middle of the night. He sat down on the soft grass with his back to one of the large toppled stones and opened up his character statistics window, wanting to take a deeper look at how he’d progressed through the training with Aurora.
Seth
Main Class: Level 9 Warrior (1,899/1,900) Second Class: None 324/324 Health Points 0/100 Fury Points Factions: None Stamina: 18
Dexterity: 18
Strength: 27
Intelligence: 9
Wisdom: 9
He found himself wondering what each of the statistics did, and a new window appeared. He grumbled to himself in the darkness about how there should be some kind of information icon indicating more information can be requested.
Stamina: Your stamina affects how much you can endure. People high in stamina have more health, can exert themselves for longer periods of time, and are less likely to get sick. Stamina is highly correlated with physical defense for all classes. Stamina directly affects HP (health points).
Dexterity: Your dexterity affects fine motor skills, agility, and speed. People high in dexterity may be able to move incredibly quickly, have lightning fast reflexes, and perform superhuman feats of acrobatics. Dexterity is highly correlated with physical attack power for dexterity-based classes, like Rogues and Scouts, and dodging ability for all classes.
Strength: Your strength affects your physical power, both in combat and out. People high in strength may hit extremely hard and can lift absurdly heavy objects. Strength is highly correlated with physical attack power for all non-dexterity-based classes.
Intelligence: Your intelligence affects your problem solving ability and understanding of the arcane arts. People high in intelligence may be better at performing magic, can solve puzzles quickly, and have a better memory for details. Intelligence is highly correlated with magical attack power for all classes who are able to perform magic.
Wisdom: Your wisdom affects your insight and understanding of healing arts. People high in wisdom may understand the motivations of themselves and others more easily, and may notice something amiss before their peers. Wisdom is highly correlated with both magical defense and for all classes and healing aptitude for classes who are able to heal. Wisdom directly affects MP (mana points).
Seth closed the window, feeling a bit of information ove
rload. He laid down on the grass and tried to see patterns in the unfamiliar stars.
***
Hours later, as the sun was just breaking from the horizon, Seth made his way down the hill and met up with the road leaving Bosqovar, heading towards Aurora’s house. He made it there and didn’t see any sign of whether or not she was home. Seth lightly knocked on the door and heard some stirring inside.
After a few moments Aurora opened the door, wearing a loose-fitting shirt and some light-colored linen pants, but no armor or shoes. Seth was somewhat surprised at how much smaller she looked without the bulky armor. A look of relief spread across her features as she took in the sight of him, and she wrapped her arms around him in an abrupt hug, before awkwardly pulling back and looking away, embarrassed.
“I was worried that you were actually…dead. Just some lunatic who thought he was an adventurer, but your body disappeared after a few hours, just like the monsters in the wild! Thank you for saving me. I don’t think I was going to win that fight. How did you do that, make your sword appear inside of Enrique?” The words tumbled out of her mouth as she ushered Seth in the door and sat down on the simple bed in the corner, pointing to a single chair next to a small table for him to sit.
Seth looked around the room. Her armor was being worn by a wooden armor stand in one corner, and it looked just as intimidating and regal there. Her small bed sat in the other corner opposite the door, with several wooden storage crates slid under the frame for storage. The house had a serious log cabin feel, and Seth was surprised by how cozy it felt inside.
Quick Change Volume 1: Slyborn Page 8
