by Sean Oswald
Chapter Twenty-Nine
“The way forward is best achieved in unity. Seeing divisions where none need to exist is the burden of a tiny mind.” — Yun Tul’ror minotaur philosopher and prophet, prior to his death at the hands of an angry mob.
Eris’ Rise - Emily and Dave Nelson
Emily woke up well before the first rays of dawn. She reached over to touch Dave, and was surprised that she had awoken so early. Only, she found that the other side of the bed was empty. She worried, at first, about what danger the man might have run off into now. Then she remembered that he had agreed to take Jackson for some training with Daichi. It felt strangely proper for her that her son should train with an elven master. After all, he was being sent back to a human academy. A place that had been most cruel to him. It was all she could do to let him return to school. She didn’t quite understand why she felt such satisfaction in knowing that Jackson was training with Daichi, but it made her content–perhaps in the same way that she liked knowing Mira was apprenticed to Hiroto.
Intellectually, Emily knew that she was no different from the person she had been before. She had all the same memories. She had the same loves and interests and goals, simply modified for her new location. Yet, somehow she felt a connection to all things elven. Was it really possible that a mere external change, a new body, could change her priorities? Was she beginning to think of herself as an elf rather than a human?
It didn’t really matter she supposed. Unless it did. But she had no time for that now. Emily needed to level up. She might not have the same fervor for it that Dave and the kids had for it, but it was a necessary thing. She had come to accept that it was a good thing. It would give her more power, and that power was a means to bettering the lives of those around her, starting with the citizens of Eris’ Rise.
Even better, this leveling up would allow her to make an immediate difference. It would give her access to level three spells, and she was pretty sure with this that she would be able to heal Jaselm. His rasping breaths weighed very heavily upon her each time she heard him. Were it not for him, she and Mira might not have made it out of that dungeon, and he bore the price of that loyalty in his own body.
So she turned her mind to the notifications she had received after finishing the dungeon.
Ding! Levels gained: 19, 20, 21, 22. This now makes you a Tier 3 character.
Stat Points Gained: 20
Character Points Gained: 140
You have 241 unspent Character Points
You have 20 unspent stat points
You have gained a tier bonus: class specific skill to level 20
* * *
Tier 3 bonus skill gained: Daughter of Redemption, you are more in tune with your need than others around you. In response to your need, you will receive a unique class skill based upon your prior life experience-
Internal Medicine: You may now focus for 1 minute per spell level and then apply the effects of any essence spell to the internal structures of the body. This will allow you to bypass the need for surgery. It is often easier to solve a problem from the inside out. Any essence spell applied to the internal aspect of the body will have a dramatically increased effectiveness. The increase in effect is equal to 10%/level.
Watcher’s Preparation: ongoing- As a result of reaching character Tier 3, 5 of your prior life skills will have their base level doubled. Each tier gained will provide an increase to a decreasing number of these skills, and only the skills enhanced at this or a prior tier gain will be eligible for future improvement. Choose wisely.
Running: 8
Swimming: 16 You have reached Tier 2.
Perk: able to hold your breath for twice as long, a useful trait while under water.
First Aid: 32 You have reached Tier 3.
Perk: A synergy exists between this skill, your class, essence magic, and knowledge contained within your head. Hence forth, you will be able to add ½ your level in First Aid to the level of any healing spell regardless of Tier limits.
Speak Languages: 8
New languages added: Minotaur, Orcish, Treant, Draconic.
Emily chose new languages based upon the needs that they had. She wanted to be able to speak to Rak’kar and Balayria in their first tongues. It just seemed respectful. She hoped that she might get a chance to speak to another of the elder treants and, if so, wanted to be able to better communicate. Finally, she thought that Draconic might allow her a chance to speak to the drake that Sara had made friends with. It was simpler for Emily to think of it as a drake friend than some rock known as a dungeon core.
Balance: 120 You have obtained the level of Grandmaster in Balance. Only a precious few will ever reach these lofty heights. Yet, know that this is only the beginning of understanding in ways that you may not have even noticed before. You receive the standard Grandmaster Balance skill which is that you will treat your body as weighing only 10% of an ounce for all balance checks and are able to freely shift your momentum to change directions.
* * *
Since this is your first Grandmaster skill, normally you would receive a special perk. You may, however, choose another skill to apply this perk to given that another balance grandmaster has appeared recently. Do you wish to apply this perk to Balance, another current skill or save this perk for a later time?
It was not a hard decision. She had no idea when she would get another skill to grandmaster level or if she ever would. So without hesitation, she chose the First Aid skill. She had seen the potential synergy between this skill and her healing magic a moment before she might have been inclined to select one of her cool ninja abilities. Because of that, the choice had been obvious.
Congratulations! Aren’t you just the crafty one? You have figured out a way around some of the basic elements of the system set forth in Eloria. Maybe certain people are having a bad influence on you. You have gained Intelligence +3 and Wisdom +3 for this feat. No luck bonus for you as you have pushed your luck far enough already.
Emily didn’t know where the snarkiness had come from. Dave had mentioned getting a couple of messages that were like that, but he didn’t have an explanation for it either, so she just let it go. She was too excited to see what the next notification would be.
You have gained the Grandmaster Perk for First Aid. This grants you the ability known as Healing Hands. You may touch any individual and channel your mana into them for healing purposes- bathing them in positive energy. This will promote the body’s natural healing process and seek to make the individual whole. There is no cool down for this ability unlike healing spells. May restore health at a rate of 1 mana for 2 health. This is also affected by your class healing bonus.
She was very pleased with how this had gone so far but really wanted to get to learning the healing salve spell. So she pushed on. Her stats were simple. She added stats to both increase her healing as well as her ability to not only survive in combat but also to contribute. So she added 5 to Strength, Constitution, Intelligence, and Wisdom.
STRENGTH: 14
DEXTERITY: 13
AGILITY: 27
CONSTITUTION: 20
ENDURANCE: 15
INTELLIGENCE: 27
WISDOM: 48
CHARISMA: 16
LUCK: 10
Spending her character points didn’t take her much longer either. She spent 20 points each to bring Essence Magic, Abjuration Magic, Short Blades, Stealth, and Sneak Attack to their maximum levels. Then, she proved she had been paying attention while Dave and Mira had been talking, and she spent 40 points on Weapon Specialization: Small Blades to increase the damage with her primary weapon.
She then tried to put 40 points into Evocation magic. She wanted to be able to contribute damage and kill the monsters which seemed to so often be trying to kill her family and friends. Just like when Dave had gotten a blocked message about Essence magic, Emily got a rude shock that she was unable to learn Evocation Magic. That pushed her into her second choice which was Conjuration Magic. She tried an
d was able to immediately put the 40 points into it.
Conjuration Magic: this is the magic that controls the very dimensions of reality. A conjurer can both call forth items from the very ether of the universe and beckon forth beings from other places or even other planes of existence. With this magic, you will never be without. Determines the highest tier of Conjuration spells available to you as well as increases the effectiveness of those spells by 5%/level. 1 spell gained of each Tier 1, 2, 3
* * *
Minor Messenger Bird: conjures a minor air elemental in the shape of a songbird. It can record up to 1 minute + 1 tick/level of a message to be delivered to any target in the known world. Cannot cross planar barriers. Travel speed of the messenger is 400 mph. Caster knows when the message is successfully delivered. If a message cannot be delivered within 24 hours, then the elemental is dismissed and the caster knows.
Cast Time: 1 minute
Mana: 20
Cool-Down: 5 minutes
Tier 1
* * *
Acid Spear: conjures a slender spear of acid which is then hurled at a target. Should it miss, it will circle back around, and the caster can attempt to hurl it the next tick. This is only possible 3 times. After that many misses, the spear will dissipate. If the spear hits a target, it causes 10-30+1/level dmg each tick for 7 ticks or until the acid is removed.
Range: 60’+1’/level
Cast Time: 12 seconds
Cool-Down: 1 minute
Mana: 45
Summon Celestial Avatar: conjures a celestial version of yourself with wings and a radiant sword and shield. Avatar can’t use magic but may use long blade skill 60, weapon specialization: long blade: 60 and has STR/AGI/CON equal to double your Wisdom. Alternately may use a bow and appropriate level skills.
Duration: 1 minute
Cool Down: 6 hours
Cast Time: 7 seconds
Mana: 100.
She was vastly more than pleased with the spells that she received. So much so that she almost forgot to keep spending her character points. Fortunately, she remembered to add 40 points to First Aid bring it to 72. This gave her Journeyman and Adept perks which were simply bonuses to treating poison and disease, respectively.
Emily decided to save her final 21 points as she was too psyched now and really wanted to sit down to learn the spell Mira had pointed out to her. She found Mira so that she could learn the spell. The two of them sat down and lost track of time for the few minutes it took for Mira to teach her the spell. When Emily opened her eyes, she had the notification about success but most importantly the notification about the spell.
Life Salve: Creates a magical salve which can be applied to the body. This salve embodies the metaphysical concept of wellness. Any tissue which comes in contact with the salve will regenerate and attempt to reach optimal health. Regeneration effect is 10+1 per 2 levels per tick. The salve will work on any living tissue so long as there remains the tiniest spark of life.
* * *
Range: Touch
Mana: 75
Duration: 1 hour
Cool-Down: 10 minutes.
When Dave and the others got back to town, the first sun had already broken the horizon. The farms that they passed showed activity as morning chores were completed by children and adults alike. One of the farms was the source of some rather dreadful noises that alternated between snarling and squeals.
When Dave moved to investigate the noise, Daichi said, “It is not an urgent matter Baron Murkwood. I have a guard posted there around the clock. That is the farm which is raising the wolf-pigs that young Mira brought back from the dungeon.”
“Is there something to be concerned about?”
“There may be, but my guards will notify myself or Lady Emiri right away if things appear to be getting out of hand.“
Dave vacillated between listening to the cacophony and looking at the monk’s earnest face. “Very well. I trust your judgment. Besides, it would be nice to get a quick bath and breakfast before things get crazy today.”
A few minutes later, the monk parted ways from them, and father and son walked to their new home. Dave couldn’t help but wonder to himself how long it would take for this town, this world, to truly feel like home. He smiled to himself as he thought about the research ideas he had come up with while resting for the last few hours this morning and the ways that he might improve Eris’ Rise. It was sure to be a fun few months coming up if they could survive the goblin army.
“Thanks, dad,” Jackson said just as they reached the front door.
“You are welcome. I would do anything for you, son,” was all the reply that Dave mustered. There was so much more that he wanted to say, but much of it flashed back and forth in a knowing glance between the two. “Just make sure that you don’t let Gunidar drag you off before I give you the okay. I want you to be here for the official ceremony today.”
“Sure thing dad. Do you want to take a bath first, or should I?”
“Have it. Your mother will probably want to hear about how things went this morning, and she and I should probably discuss the ceremony today before we appear publicly.”
Dave watched Jackson nod and then enter the house heading to the back where the bath was located. He stepped in right behind his son but headed towards the bedroom he shared with Emily. When he got there, the room was already empty, and the bed wasn’t made. That meant that whatever got her up was either an emergency or was so important that it was all-consuming to her. Dave sighed. He was used to his wife’s projects, but he just hoped she wasn’t trying to cram too much into what was already a full day.
Next, he went and checked on the girls. As expected, Mira was still sound asleep. She might be an adult by Albian standards, but she was still a teenager and as much as it irked him at times, Dave realized she needed her sleep. Then, he went to check on Sara. She was combing the hair of one of the dolls made for her by some of the ladies of the village. He couldn’t tell if it was one of those made for her by the elves or by the humans. It was not really surprising to him that both of the races made dolls for their children to play with, and both races had women who wanted the Baron or Lady’s daughter to have a toy. Most of the dolls she had been given had a dusky skin tone like she did, although a few of the human women had given her pale dolls with blond hair. Normally, the way Dave could tell them apart was by the style of clothing on each doll, but of late, Sara had taken to switching the clothing around between the dolls as she played. So unless he got up close enough to see the shape of the doll’s ear, he wouldn’t be able to tell if it was supposed to be a human or an elf. Leave it to a child to see that there was no real difference between the races.
“Hi sweetie,” he said as he peaked in his head and made himself known.
Sara’s face lit up for an instant, and then she must have remembered that she was angry with him for grounding her. “Oh, good morning.”
She must have been very upset still because she didn’t even call him daddy. Oh well, he hated punishing her, but she needed to learn to be more careful. “I have a question for you if you don’t mind pumpkin.”
“Okay, I guess it’s fine.”
“So, are you able to talk to your monster friends when they are here? I mean, like, can you know what they are thinking or something like that?”
Sara’s little face scrunched up in thought as she looked at him. “It’s not like that. I don’t know what they are thinking, but I can feel what they feel. Sorta, I think. I don’t know. That is what it feels like.”
“Okay, so can you tell where Snowball is now and what she is doing or feeling?”
Once again Sara got a distant look in her eyes as she seemed to concentrate. “Snowball is that way,” she said while pointing north. “I think she is building a nest. Ummm, is that what you call a rabbit’s home? A nest?”
“I guess I always thought they were called a warren, but not sure what they call them here on Eloria. Maybe we can find out one day when we aren’t q
uite so busy.”
Sara offered up that little half smile. Dave realized that was the expression she made when she resigned herself to being put off. He couldn’t help but ask himself if it was really that bad. Things had certainly been hectic for the past few months here in Eloria, but as he thought about it, maybe the truth was that he all too often put Sara off. Either he was too tired when he got home from work for her to sit in his lap, or he was too busy to watch the play she wanted to do for him. Now she was getting to be too big to want to sit in his lap. If he wasn’t careful, these days would be gone all too fast.
“What about Krinnk? Can you tell where he is?”
“He is in town. It is easier to tell where they are and what they are feeling the closer they are to me. I can tell that he misses me, but I think he is trying to make a surprise for me.”
“That’s nice. Krinnk really is a good friend for you, and don’t take this the wrong way, but you have to remember that part of your job in being a friend to Krinnk is going to be helping to keep him out of trouble,” Dave said as he sat on the bed next to Sara and put his arm around her. “Can you do that for me?”
