by A F Kay
The grey-haired man returned the bow. “Pleased we are to greet you, Ruwen Starfield. I am called Phoenix.” Phoenix pointed to the heavy man. “This is Willow.” Turning to the woman he continued. “This is Thistle.”
The other two bowed and Ruwen bowed to each of them. His Perception had seen enough to provide some data. Interestingly, his Perception only provided estimates. Cultivators, it seemed, weren’t as easy to quantify as the Ascended.
Name: Phoenix
Deity: One True God
Class Type: Cultivator - Diamond
Level: 72
Health: 1,100
Mana: 0
Energy: 1,500
Spirit: 800,000
Armor Class: 1,900
Name: Willow
Deity: One True God
Class Type: Cultivator - Topaz
Level: 59
Health: 600
Mana: 0
Energy: 700
Spirit: 1,300,000
Armor Class: 950
Name: Thistle
Deity: One True God
Class Type: Cultivator - Sapphire
Level: 65
Health: 900
Mana: 0
Energy: 1,200
Spirit: 3,100,000
Armor Class: 1,350
Ruwen had found two people he knew from the Spirit Realm, although he couldn’t let them know he knew them or that he wore the Scarecrow Aspect. Willow had been the judge for the battle with Phoenix and had hoped Blapy’s coin would provide him the information to break into Sapphire. He remained a Topaz, but it had only been a few days since he’d received the coin.
Phoenix looked nothing like Ruwen had imagined. It had taken all Ruwen’s abilities and tricks to keep from being melted by Phoenix’s attacks. If Ruwen’s Perception was accurate, Phoenix’s Spirit pool had suffered from those attacks. He was the only one under a million Spirit.
“Please stop your vibration magic,” Thistle said. “You feel like a toddler stomping your feet.”
Ruwen hid his surprise that they had detected Stone Echo’s vibrations. But it made sense. The ability Stone Echo was just a combination of Essences, and Thistle had reached Sapphire, which meant she had far greater expertise than Ruwen at combining them. She likely recognized and could create hundreds of spells. He turned off Stone Echo and bowed to Thistle. “My apologies.”
“What brings you here, Child of Uru?” Phoenix asked.
Ruwen didn’t waste any time. “War.”
Phoenix nodded. “Unfortunately, we are aware of your conflict.”
“I am truly sorry for its impact on your Clans,” Ruwen said. “Our people are victims as well.”
“Hardly,” Thistle said. “It is the nature of your gods to war.”
Ruwen locked eyes with Thistle. “I can’t speak for the past. But we did not provoke this conflict.”
“Why are you here?” Phoenix asked again.
Ruwen faced Phoenix. “To offer a new start.”
“Start of what?” Phoenix asked.
“Friendship, partnership, and mutual protection,” Ruwen said.
Thistle turned to Phoenix. “I told you they would come begging.”
Ruwen took a step forward and everyone tensed. “I do not beg. I come to offer you something valuable.”
“What could you possibly provide us?” Thistle asked.
“A home,” Ruwen said.
The crowd’s murmuring grew louder, and Willow turned and slashed his hand through the air to quiet them.
“The world is our home,” Phoenix replied.
Ruwen nodded. “A home to us all. And yet a tree must put down roots to thrive.”
Thistle took a step toward him. “A home? You will use us as fodder in your war and then turn on us when it’s over. Uru’s children do not differ from any of the others. You call us Outcasts and Unbound. You vilify us.”
“I do not deny it,” Ruwen said. “But change has arrived. The indignities of the past are at an end.”
“What authority do you have to speak like this?” Phoenix asked.
“I am Uru’s Champion, and I have refounded the city to the south, where I rule. The change has already begun.”
Thistle stepped in front of Phoenix and Willow, her back to Ruwen, and whispered to the pair as she waved her arms.
Rami, this is a harder sell than I thought. Can Resource Dungeons produce the twelve essences?
Two seconds later Rami responded. Yes, although it’s rare.
Well, Fractal is one of a kind. I’ll make it happen. I’m going to name drop, too.
Ruwen didn’t wait for Thistle to finish. He raised his right arm, pulled his sleeve down, and focused on his Dungeon Master mark. A deep yellow-orange sphere covered in dark rifts blazed under his wrist, and its hundreds of escaping light rays caused everyone to squint. The mark burned like a star, and everyone but Phoenix stepped backward and away from the heat.
“I am the Dungeon Master of the Shattered Sun,” Ruwen shouted. “A Resource Dungeon with a newly created portal in our city, New Eiru. The Companion herself has struck a deal with me. I have given those under her care land. Their rights and treatment are identical to those bound to Uru. Everyone is welcome in New Eiru, including your Clans.”
“Does the Companion fight with you?” Willow asked.
Ruwen lowered his arm. “The Pact forbids it. But I don’t expect you to fight either. Regardless if you help us, a section of the city will be set aside for your Clans. In addition, I will provide a large portion of land for your people. We will be your allies in this dangerous world, and in the future, if you travel within our country, it will always be on equal terms.”
“At what cost?” Phoenix asked.
“Nothing. I will do the things I’ve stated. If your Clans flee across the mountains, and we survive this war, you are still welcome in New Eiru. But there are things worth protecting, worth fighting for, in our new city. Including the Shattered Sun, which will generate essence to help you on your path.”
The crowd had tripled in size and shouts erupted at the mention of essence.
“You lie!” Thistle shouted.
Ruwen nodded. “I have. I will again. But I have not done so here.”
Chaos exploded as the crowd surged forward, and Ruwen heard his name multiple times.
I keep hearing my name. Can you tell why?
Rami laughed. Because of my mom. Evidently most of the people who used their Wyrm Coin to ask about advancing their Cultivation Level were told, “Ruwen Starfield is the shortest path.” Including Willow.
She never misses an opportunity to stir the pot.
Nope. But you aren’t far behind. That was a masterful job of manipulation. You are becoming dangerous.
Not really. Everyone wants equality and a safe place. It sells itself.
Ruwen shouted over all the noise. “The Clans are welcome in New Eiru. A place is being prepared for you. Until we meet again, may the True God light your path.”
Without waiting for a response, Ruwen turned, channeled two Energy per second into Dash, and pushed his Gold legs to their limit.
Chapter 22
On the six-hour return trip to New Eiru, Ruwen didn’t bother trying to increase his Fortification level since it wouldn’t go up anymore. Instead, he threaded Spirit through his Meridians with the new Refinement form and increased his Core Velocity to speed the essence processing.
Ruwen used three hours to finish reading the book on Naktos that Tremine had given Ruwen on his Ascension Day. Aggressively attacking Uru seemed out of character for Naktos, who loved knowledge, books, and alchemy. Even his subjects had a love of alchemy and many used potions and elixirs in their attacks.
Probably from reading about all that alchemy, Ruwen had the urge to create something. He removed the Small Mobile Alchemy Lab from his Void Band, used his Falcon Gloves of Training to help increase skill levels, and created fifty Major Health Stickers. He still couldn’t figure out how to force a common
picture on them, so they would probably be random, and embarrassing, when applied.
Ruwen’s Alchemy skill had gone up three times as he struggled with the difficult recipe. It reached sixteen and made his stickers eight percent more effective.
Shing!
You have advanced a skill!
Skill: Alchemy
Level: 16
Effect: Alchemical creations gain a 8.0% increase in success and effectiveness.
Ching!
You have created…
Health Sticker, Major
Quantity: 50
Effect: Heal 108 Health on contact.
Effect: Heal 11 Health per second for 30 seconds.
Effect: Halve all Bleed effects.
The last hour Ruwen had tried to recreate the Observer spell Distract with the essences visible below the spell. While knowing the essences involved was valuable information, not knowing the amounts and order of each essence made perfecting the spell extremely difficult.
Traveling in Shelly was so smooth that Ruwen could never tell if they were moving or not. He monitored his map, and when it showed they’d reached New Eiru, he left the bedroom he’d occupied and entered the main room.
Sift lay on his back in the middle of the room, his body twitching. His Falcon Aspect made him look like a sick bird.
“Are you okay?” Ruwen asked.
“No,” Sift said. “Against my better judgement, I put on that Suffocation Vambrace.”
“Oh.”
Ruwen felt bad for his friend. The Divine Fortification form, while effective, caused immense pain. Adding the Suffocation Vambrace would have increased the difficulty of the process significantly. He hoped that once they broke through to the Gem levels, it would get easier. At least he had Last Breath to help him deal with it. Sift only had meditation, which he was terrible at.
“We’re back home,” Ruwen said.
Sift shifted his head enough to see outside. “It’s still dark.”
“It’s three in the morning.”
“Everyone will be sleeping,” Sift said. “I should be sleeping.”
“Have you slept as much since you created your Core?” Ruwen asked, curious if Sift experienced the same lack of sleep that Ruwen had.
“I only slept a little last night, and none tonight. I miss it.”
Ruwen sat down near Sift’s head. “I’m headed back up to the temple, and then I think I’m going to jump over to Blapy for a while. You want to come?”
Sift turned his head enough to look at Ruwen. “Are you crazy?”
“What?”
“Since my parents last saw me, I’ve connected my Air Meridian to my center, created a Core, Refined Air Essence, and Fortified my body from Lead to Copper. Not to mention this Falcon Aspect I can’t get rid of.” Sift patted the floor. “Also, I’ve bonded with an amazing flying star turtle. It will be nonstop questions and prodding. No thank you. I’m putting that off as long as I can.”
“They will be overjoyed,” Ruwen said. “And as soon as they see me, they’ll want to know if you’re safe.”
“Tell them I’m okay, but leave out the details.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Lylan is sleeping or doing her Specialization thing. I don’t want to bother her, so I think Shelly and I will explore the lake while I try to reach Silver.”
“Okay. You want me to top off your Spirit before I go?”
Sift sighed. “Yes.”
Ruwen placed a hand on Sift’s chest and pushed Spirit into him.
“That’s good,” Sift said with a wince. He locked eyes with Ruwen. “Thanks, brother. I know I complain, but I have never been happier. Despite the pain, this is a dream come true.”
Ruwen stood. “So basically, you owe me everything, and I make you happier than Lylan.”
“No, that’s not what—”
“Got it,” Ruwen said, laughing as he dodged Sift’s attempt to grab his foot. He strode toward the exit. “If I see Lylan, I’ll let her know I made your dreams possible.”
Whiskers jumped through the exit and disappeared into the darkness. Ruwen brought his Core Velocity down to zero and stopped his Refinement flows. The Scarecrow Aspect disappeared and Ruwen exited Shelly, leaving Sift’s protests behind. Ruwen triggered Glow to make the walk down Shelly’s leg safer. The darkness hid the height, which Ruwen was thankful for.
As Ruwen stepped onto the beach, Shelly slid into the water, disappearing under the surface in a blink. Whiskers had already made it to the city gates and had doubled back, checking the route for danger. Ruwen strode toward New Eiru.
You there, Lir? Ruwen asked.
Where else would I be?
Good point. Have the Temple Guardians found anything? Ruwen asked and then hurriedly added a clarification. About the advancing armies.
Yes. I have prioritized them by category. The first three thousand categories—
Let me stop you right there, Lir. Rami?
Three seconds later, Rami responded. The summary is there are about ten thousand visible troops two weeks south of here. The underground Temple Guardian detected significant underground anomalies but did not investigate due to your safety directive. There are also forty-eight small scout teams that are spread all the way to the Cultivator camp to the north, the sea to the east, and deep into the mountains to the west.
Doesn’t ten thousand seem low?
It depends on what Naktos is responsible for. No one expects resistance from the south. And if the other gods are responsible for taking Deepwell and Stone Harbor, Naktos might only be here to catch those fleeing and secure the farmland.
Yes, that would be low risk and more in line with what I’ve read about him. He seems cautious.
The sudden doubling of Uru’s Blessing and the appearance of New Eiru on the map will definitely change their plans. If they’d intended to leave this place alone, they won’t now.
Naktos will be under some pressure. His easy victim just gained three Champions back, and the other gods will blame him. He must be having second thoughts.
Hard to know with the gods.
Okay, we can discuss strategy after we’ve revived a bunch of experts. Thank you, Rami. Ruwen switched his focus back to Lir. Lir, is anyone awake in the city?
Worker Bliz is overseeing the construction of his tavern, and Mage Tremine is reading a book in the dining hall.
Who can Bliz be overseeing?
He produced twelve golems from his Inventory and many prefabricated parts. Significant progress on the construction has already occurred.
Ruwen shook his head. Bliz continued to amaze him. Of course he would have golems in his Void Band, and the pieces for an entire tavern. Remembering the underground Naktos temple, Ruwen opened his Void Band and pulled the cool night air around him into his Inventory. He didn’t stop until he entered the temple, satisfied with the one hundred seventy-five thousand cubic feet of air he now had. Between the oil and the air, Blapy probably wasn’t happy with him.
Walking directly to the dining room, Ruwen found Tremine there, just as Lir had said. He sat down next to the librarian.
“Good morning,” Tremine said. “Did you find the carbon we need?”
“Yes, along with an underground Naktos temple.”
Tremine raised his eyebrows. “Interesting.”
“It blew up during my investigation.”
“That sounds like an exciting story.”
“I’ll tell everyone about it when we sit down to strategize. What are you reading?”
Tremine held up the silver-colored book. “Rune crafting: Novice to Master in Thirty Days.”
“Well, that seems a bit optimistic. Plus, isn’t it a little late to second guess your Specialization?” Ruwen asked.
“On the trip here, Bliz told me a theory he had regarding Rune Mages. He thinks they’re closet Stone Mages storing their spells in square rocks. That in reality, any Mage could store their Spells if they found the proper medium. It opened my eyes
to some possibilities I’d never considered.”
“That is interesting. So, you’re researching Rune crafting to understand the basics.”
Tremine nodded. “Yes, once I have the fundamentals down, I plan on experimenting. Bliz always surprises me.”
Ruwen thought about the golems assembling a tavern as they spoke. “I know how you feel.” He took a moment to gather his thoughts. “My parents won’t finish reviving until eight tonight, and everyone else has things to do. So, I’m thinking of heading to Blapy to finish up some library quests.”
“That is a good use of time.”
Ruwen nodded. “But it makes me a little nervous to just leave. I was hoping if something goes wrong or if someone needs me, you could portal over and grab me.”
“Of course.”
Ruwen relaxed. “Thanks, I appreciate that.”
“You seemed distracted at lunch.”
“I know. Finding my parents has consumed the last year of my life, and now that I found them, I’m worried what else I’ll uncover.”
“They’re the same people they were when they left on that job.”
“That’s what concerns me the most. That maybe I never really knew them. A lot of secrets have come to light already.”
Tremine leaned forward. “We all have secrets. Even you. If I can be sure of anything, it is that your parents love you more than their own lives. Use that as the prism when you hear their side.”
Ruwen nodded. “Thanks. I will.” He stood and then snapped his finger. “I almost forgot. I stopped by the Cultivator camp up north and encouraged them to join us. I don’t know if any will come, or how long it will take them, but if any show up, they’re welcome here.”
“Smart,” Tremine said. “We could use the help.”
“Thanks again,” Ruwen said, and then headed for his room.
Did you hear that, Lir? Ruwen asked.
I did. Are Harvesters now called Cultivators?
Yes, they changed their name because they only use natural sources of Spirit. No killing.
