Tech Duinn: An Ether Collapse Series (Ether Flows Book 1)
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Azrael Level 12
Class: Revenant
Class Skills: Soul Strike (V), Soul Cloak (V)
Health Points = 270/270 Points
Ether Pool = 160/160 Points
You have 0 stat points and 2 skill points to distribute.
Stamina – 27 (Stats X +3)
Strength – 19 (Stats X +3)
Agility – 26 (Stats X +3)
Dexterity – 27 (Stats X +3)
Intelligence – 16 (Stats X +3)
Wisdom – 16 (Stats X +3)
Charisma – 16 (Stats X +3)
Luck – 12
Skills:
Analyze – Moderate 5
Combatant – Moderate 12
Endurance – Weak 17
Martial Arts – Moderate 42
Obfuscate – Strong 1
Sneak – Weak 16
Swordsmanship – Strong 21
Tracking – Weak 12
His heart caught. He hadn’t chosen Soul Strike or Soul Cloak. What was going on? He hastened to open his skills, his heart in his throat.
Skills
Tier 1 Skills
Soul Strike
● Soul Strike coats your sword in personal Ether and Soul, which can project an invisible attack at enemies. The density of the sword-like blade increases as you level and increase your Intelligence.
Skill gained, “Soul Strike V.”
Cost is 10% of Revenant Ether pool per stack of this skill.
5/5
--
Blood Mend
● Blood Mend increases the natural healing of a body by controlling your very blood flow. At one Skill point, it will close wounds and regenerate blood, increasing healing speed by 200%.
Skill gained at 1/5, “Blood Mend.”
0/5
Cost is 10% of Revenant Ether pool per stack of this skill.
--
Tier 2 Skills
Soul Cloak
● Soul Cloak creates a 10-foot sphere of converted Ether and Soul around the user. Within this sphere, the user can ‘feel’ disturbances. The Soul in this cloak will try to adjust incoming attacks, helping the user avoid them.
Skill gained, “Soul Cloak V.”
5/5
Ether cost is 10 Ether initiation and 2 Ether per minute upkeep.
--
Blood Poison
● Blood Poison stacks a debuff on your opponent with each cut made. At one Skill point, the Blood Poison Debuff reduces all stats by 1% per wound, up to a maximum of 15%. Debuff lasts five minutes.
Passive Skill gained at 1/5, “Blood Poison.”
0/5
No Ether cost.
--
Tier 3 Skills
Soul Storage
● Soul Storage allows the user to store an attack and trigger it at will. Users can save any attack or Skill they can perform. Additionally, with permission, the user can store other individuals’ attacks. The attack stored is performed exactly as stored when released.
Skill gained, “Soul Storage.”
0/5
Cost is Ether invested in the stored attack.
--
Blood Boon
● Blood Boon stacks a buff onto the user whenever blood hits their skin. One Skill point increases statistics by 0.5% per stack up, to a maximum of five points. Buff lasts five minutes.
Passive Skill gained at 1/5, “Blood Boon.”
0/5
No Ether cost.
What had happened to his original skill tree?
Azrael read and reread each skill. The skills he had chosen were the same as before but also different. He felt stuck between euphoria and frustration. It felt almost like his entire class had changed, but without his consent.
However, based on his lessons, soul and blood were options for class specializations which suggested that his class had upgraded. The blood options were entirely new to his class as well. Maybe if they had been there before, he would have chosen differently.
He considered the skills tree carefully, noticing that Mend had morphed to Blood Mend and moved to the first tier. From everything he could tell, the skill was more powerful and available at a lower tier rank. This discovery convinced his body to settle on the feeling of excitement at the changes.
Caught up in that excitement, he scanned both of his tier three skills.
Was Blood Boon worth it for the passive buff? An increase of five stat points was nothing at high levels but would be very powerful right now. It also had the potential to increase in potency as he added more skill points, but the additional points could also just increase the buff duration.
He turned his attention to the other available skill, Soul Storage. It was an obvious offensive powerhouse. He could theoretically have a trump card stored for each battle. It felt like it was the stronger of the two, with far less guesswork. He placed his two points into Soul Storage and looked over his skill tree again.
I am not sure how I feel about the change to percentage costs on skill use. But that does usually mean that the skills automatically increase in power as the user’s Ether pool increases.
He joined Jophiel and together they began packing up the cabin onto a portable tent of Ogma and Jophi’s. Admittedly, Jophi’s looked much larger and newer than Verimy and Dara’s. He sighed and continued to load bundles she handed to him. Had he just traded his two trainers for two others?
According to Mark, these two might have a way offworld, which would be invaluable. Since these two knew nothing about him, he could theoretically hang around and catch a ride. If anything went terribly wrong, he could likely escape as well. Lord Ogma might make escape difficult, but Azrael was well-trained and could be patient, if it came to that.
They waited in the main room in uncomfortable silence. The packing had gone quickly. Lord Ogma and Jophi were quite prepared to leave at a moment’s notice, it seemed.
Azrael didn’t understand any of the political complexities here, and he didn’t like that. He cleared his throat. “Care to explain some of what is going on?”
Jophi shook her head and gave him a strange look. “I assume you are quite young to only be at level twelve. It is very strange to see people below level fifteen of the Apprentice rank and still alive. Especially on Tech Duinn.”
Azrael’s blood froze in his veins. She was seeing discrepancies based on his sheet. If she was already poking holes in his backstory based on his low level and older appearance, Ogma might dig deeper. If Ogma did dig, he likely would discover Azrael’s heritage...
He forced a neutral expression onto his face and breathed out, “I thought you were the one who wanted to help me?”
No point worrying about the blood on your shirt when you had a knife to your aorta.
Jophi frowned. “I don’t want to see another person chewed up and spit out by the Tuatha. This entire planet is wrong. To force free citizens into slavery. To call them prisoners and subject them to the dangers of this planet with practically no protection.”
He narrowed his eyes. Altruistic much? Out loud, he said, “Well, I will take all the help I can get—I think?”
She laughed. The sound relaxed his nerves. She likely wouldn’t laugh so freely if she suspected his heritage.
The door flew open and Lord Ogma rushed inside. He was sweating and pale.
He caught his breath and gasped, “Oberan’s army has this place surrounded.”
Azrael looked at the Master ranked Firbolg. Why was he worried in the slightest about a few grunts?
“Can’t we just sneak through the line?” Jophi asked.
Lord Ogma shook his head. “He sent an entire Legion. We would have to fight our way through.”
Yeah, that’s exactly what we should do. I could likely do it myself. A Master rank should be able to sneeze his way through.
Jophi’s shoulders crumpled like wet paper. “Diplomacy, then?”
Lord Ogma stood up straight and took a deep breath. Once collected, he nodded.
“Wait. Wh
at?” Azrael asked. “Why not just bowl through the encirclement?”
“They are members of the Tuatha De Danaan. Any fighting would void my diplomatic immunity. Oberan could come after me himself after that,” Lord Ogma stated.
“Lord Ogma, based on your earlier conversation, Jophi has no immunity. And I definitely don’t. So, if you don’t mind, I am going to leave,” Azrael spat.
“Azrael, don’t be stupid. Ogma rushed back to ensure he was here for the army’s arrival. We are safe as long as we stay inside. An officer in Oberan’s army wouldn’t dare trespass in the home of a son of Danu,” Jophi countered.
“Lord Ogma, come out and talk. I don’t want to have to dig you out of there, but I will,” a deep baritone interrupted, through the log walls.
Jophi began shaking as she fell to the floor, hugging her knees. From her reaction, Azrael knew that wasn’t just any officer.
“Oberan… came himself,” Lord Ogma stated as his head fell.
Chapter Twelve
Azrael looked around the cabin. Was there a back door out of here? He took a step and a hand on his shoulder stopped him.
The hand belonged to Ogma. The giant man stood straight and took a deep breath. “I am coming out, Oberan.” He made some hand motions at Jophi that might have meant lay down and die. Or stay where they were. Azrael assumed the latter, but honestly…
Ogma stepped through the door and called, “What brings my mother’s servant to my cabin?”
“Still haven’t accepted your fate, I see. Wait a moment. Would you look at that! It looks like you figured out a way around Stasis, but staying in the Master ranks can no longer save you, kiddo.”
“Ah yes. Well, I see you were all too happy to take up the kingly seat. Go kiss Danu’s boots and leave me be, King Oberan.”
“I’m afraid I can’t do that, kiddo. Danu was absolutely heartbroken when she heard that you were harboring an enemy of the Guild.”
Azrael’s eyes narrowed. He looked to Jophiel, head tilted, and she was looking right back at him, mouth hanging open. There was a moment of confusion for Azrael, before he felt his mouth drop open and his heart kick into overdrive. Oberan knew!
“I am not sure what you told Danu. But I can assure you that there is no enemy of the Tuatha here. Only my wife and a young man.”
“Lord Ogma, you are under arrest for conspiracy against the Tuatha De Danaan. If you come quietly, your mother will hear your story—”
“What? You dare. Search the cabin if you must. I am not harboring an enemy.”
“You just admitted to harboring a young man a moment ago, Lord Ogma. I have reason to believe that the young man is a Sovereign Son.”
Jophi was glaring at Azrael. He could feel his skin heating up as adrenaline increased the tempo of his heart. He needed to get out of here.
Azrael took off towards the opposite side of the house. The most logical place for a back door. There wasn’t a door, but a massive window dominated a wall. He sent a Soul Strike through the glass and followed after the crash and tinkling shards.
He rolled to his feet and engaged his Soul Cloak. He needed to get out of this clearing right—
The Soul Cloak cried a warning, but the speed of the strike overwhelmed any reaction Azrael might have been able to make. A thump sounded through his bones as fire and pressure built at the back of his head. He saw the corners of his vision begin to blacken as a debuff floated onto his interface.
Unconscious
● Your brain has bumped into the inside of your skull. Your skull refused to let your brain out of your head and resorted to imposing a time-out.
Time remaining: 5 hours, 59 minutes.
***
Something jolted Azrael, and the split-second feeling of weightlessness roused him fully awake. He blinked his eyes, trying to remember where he had fallen asleep the night before. He could hear the sound of a gravity engine. Right, sleeping on Mark’s transport truck. Dreaming of his eighth birthday—definitely a strange dream to imagine Oberan, Ogma and Jophi.
“The Sovereign Son is awake.” Ogma’s scathing voice cut through his fantasy.
Azrael sat up. Wind whipped through his shabby clothing, cooling the sweat on his skin. His eyes could see the bluish light of stars. Nighttime. He was sitting in some sort of prison transport. Thick metal bars ran from the floor to the ceiling, leaving the sides of the truck exposed to the elements. He slid over the shiny floor to steady himself on the bars and felt his heart stop as something jolted through his hands.
He sat back up, breathing hard. His arms felt like someone had burned them from the inside. He looked at his fingers and saw two black marks. Lightning. He moved away from the bars and closed his eyes, trying to slow down his breathing and regain control of his emotions.
“Tell me. How much did King Oberan pay you to come to my cabin?” Ogma prompted again. This idiot got all three of them captured, and now blamed Azrael? He was done calling this man Lord. High and mighty Ogma probably hadn’t even put up a fight.
Azrael opened his eyes. Ogma sat cross legged in the middle of the metal floor. Jophi leaned into his side. Figured that they would just surrender. What did they have to fear? A high-ranking member of Cathodiem and the leader of the Tuatha’s son.
Azrael raised his chin. “I have never met Oberan before in my life. If you two have a stat point of intelligence between you, you should be able to figure out what happened.”
Both Jophi and Ogma’s faces went bright red and the Firbolg’s knuckles cracked. Azrael shook his head. He didn’t care about these two idiots. They had gotten him captured because of their naivety. Clearly, Oberan had taken the opportunity presented to him after he captured Mark, Verimy, and Dara. Azrael doubted that the slimy merchant held out long before he told Oberan’s men about Azrael’s heritage.
He examined the cage around them. Enchanted. Ogma could probably still break out if he wanted to. “Why don’t you just break out of here?”
“Those bars are enchanted Iridium. It would take everything I had to break out. Then what? Become an enemy to the entire Tuatha. Right now, Oberan still must try Jophiel. And he can’t even think about touching me. If we break out, then we would be giving him the excuse he needs,” Ogma said.
Azrael shook his head again. Even he could see that something had changed. “Come on. You think that Oberan, in a day, mobilized the entire army to surround your cabin, after he found out I was a Sovereign Son? You can’t be that naïve. Your capture was coming with or without the excuse I provided.”
Jophi gripped Ogma’s wrist, her knuckles going white. “If Oberan didn’t plant the boy or pay him, Azrael is right. You can’t mobilize all of this in a day. To travel to your cabin from Samheim takes a full day or more. Oberan was already nearby!”
Azrael pointed his open palm at Jophi. “I’m assuming that’s why his army captured Mark’s transport. They must have seen the transport cross the perimeter they had set. Oberan didn’t want anyone coming to give you an excuse to flee.”
Ogma’s face had changed colors drastically through the revelations. It flushed red when Azrael insulted them. Then paled considerably when Jophi agreed. Now it was a sickly shade of green. “We were getting too close to the Tectonic Dungeons,” Ogma whispered.
Jophi tried to comfort the bear of a man. But Azrael was fed up. “Explain. What have you been doing that would stir up the Tuatha, enough that even your own mother would turn against you?”
“We don’t owe any answer to you, kingly dog,” Jophi spat.
Azrael had been told that Sovereign Sons weren’t well received by others, but this was the first time experiencing it himself. And from Jophi…
His heart clenched tightly, and he breathed in to regain control over the organ. Ogma held up a hand and shook his head. He sighed, “This is not his fault, Jophiel. Please begin to explain. I will fill in what I can.”
Jophi glared at her husband. But relented after he patted her hand and motioned to Azrael. “Fine. Ogma is on
e of three sons of Danu, the de facto leader of the Tuatha De Danaan Guild.”
Yeah, I kind of caught on to that…
“As Ogma tells it, his brother became the first sacrificial pawn of his mother. She used a vat, of untold proportions, filled with mixed Planetary Essence, and transformed her first son into this very planet.”
Azrael rolled his eyes. He hadn’t asked for a fantasy story. “People don’t create Planetary Gods, Jophi. Planetary Gods create sapient life forms. This is well documented.”
Jophi sniffed disdainfully. “Azrael, that is what is fed to the common people, yes. Listen and think! What happens after someone reaches the Legendary rank? What comes next?”
Azrael’s brain stuttered and he blinked. “They kill all their enemies, become rich, own entire planets, and one day die?”
Jophi smiled at his blunt words, then, chuckling softly, said, “That is an… interesting way of looking at it. Yet, Cathodiem’s leadership shared the truth with me. After Legendary ranks exists Planetary God, and a further theorized God rank after that.”
Azrael blinked, stunned by the information just shared. While it made a logical sort of sense, he was skeptical. “Why would you tell me, a kingly dog, something so secret?”
Jophi squeezed Ogma’s forearm with one hand and hugged her knees with the other. “It’s essential to understanding what Ogma and I have been doing. About understanding Tech Duinn and why shiploads of people arrive here. May I continue now?”
Azrael nodded, realizing he wasn’t in a position to give her permission and that her asking for it was sarcastic. She continued, “Dagda was the eldest twin-brother of Ogma. They always had a strange connection. When Danu placed Dagda into the vat of Essence, Ogma felt incredible pain emanate from his brother. Since that day, Ogma has been feeling that same pain coming from something deep within Tech Duinn. Dagda was only in the Epic ranks when he ascended. And everyone knows nothing good comes of fast-tracking ranks.”
Azrael nodded to her, showing his understanding. All students took a course on this in the Sovereign Halls. There were a ton of items and methods to advance ranks. Pills created by necromancy, technologies designed to convert your body, alchemical solutions that transformed your very blood, enchanted gems that enhanced your mind, and the list just kept going. Each item the teacher showed them and lectured about came with the same warning: Do not accept any unearned rank increases.