Skill Level Up: Running has reached level 6. Running currently burns 11.0 times more stamina than walking. You can run at 7.0 miles per hour. You have gained 75 experience points from leveling a skill
Vina ran to the quest marker, trying hard to balance her running speed and stamina burn rate against her stamina regeneration rate. The reality was she was still just burning more stamina than she could recover. However, she was trying her best at taking Nori’s suggestion to heart and began to focus on her skills each day.
While she ran, she considered Nori’s odd reaction to Valanire and subsequent refusal to enter the portal. “Did she not want to come because of the city or the portal I made?” she wondered to herself. She had no real way to discern the truth behind Nori’s actions, but it was clear to her Nori had some hangups about the city even before she had seen Vina’s ability to activate portals. With that concern in mind, she had saved both her sprinting ability and running skill specialization so she could run nonstop stamina free for 10 minutes in case things went bad in the city.
As she neared the quest marker, Vina watched the massive cloud swirling around. It didn’t move with the wind, but seemed to operate on its own rules. As she got nearer and nearer to the cloud, she grew more confused and concerned. “Well that isn’t normal”, she said quietly. She slowed her run down to a quick walk. She wasn’t sure if she would gain much skill at this speed, but she needed some time to figure this out.
She tried to use all of her skills. Listen just shared with her the intense sounds of the field around her. Observe didn’t see anything wrong with the cloud. Oddly enough Examine was the most useful skill.
Anomalous Formation Unknown Rarity This formation is not a cloud and does not contain any water vapor.
Vina soon reached the base of the cloud-like structure. It rose before her like a wall, far above her head. It continued to swirl in a counterclockwise direction. She reached out with her hand and tried to sweep it away, but her hand merely passed through it without any disturbance. “What the hell…” she said. Her hand didn’t even feel anything. She summoned a blood knife and threw it through the vapor barrier. The knife flew through and vanished. Her blood sense skill told her the knife had disappeared as well. She tried to use Blood Call, but it did not return.
She came up with the idea of several more experiments, but ultimately she realized she didn’t have a choice. “I have to enter it”, she thought to herself. She checked once more to ensure all of her gear was well attached and summoned two fresh blood blades into her hands and stepped into the mist.
Vina held her breath against the mist, unsure if it was safe to inhale. She walked forward quickly, squinting with her eyes. Although the mist didn’t seem to have any affect on her body, the whiteness obstructed her vision, making her feel the compulsive need to protect her eyes. The mist wall was not very thick and she passed through after just six feet. Immediately she was soaked.
Rain pummeled the ground around her like stones falling from the sky. They crashed into her from above and the roar of the droplets was all her ears could hear. She blinked away at the water, trying to look around. Her blood sense immediately picked up on the blood blade she had thrown earlier. She called it back and absorbed the blood back into her body. The rain was thick enough that it made visibility difficult, but she managed to see the path before her and began walking.
Some time later, Vina noticed the rain was slightly letting up. The view began to clear and what she saw took her breath away. In front of her was a massive hill with sharp cliffs that stood above the field. Carved out of the hill were a series of flat mesas and on them someone had managed to construct a beautiful stone city. The hill rose out of the field like a miracle and Vina had a hard time imagining that it was naturally formed. It was so out of place that a stone bridge had been constructed connecting the lowland plains to the first flat mesa of the massive city. Vina stared in awe at the beauty in front of her. But the respite was short when the rain soon returned.
After she managed to gather herself, she continued her walk. As she neared the bridge, she began to see several simple homes and farms. Without being too nosy, Vina tried to peer inside their windows. She didn’t see anyone at all. As she passed each hut, she was growing more uncomfortable, not only with the rain still pounding, but there was a complete absence of any people. Finally she could no longer resist and poked her head into one of the huts. “Hello?” she called out above the rain.
There was no response and she quickly stepped inside, gaining brief shelter from the rainfall. The hut was humbly furnished. She took nothing, but searched the two rooms for the residents. Vina knew to trust her Blood Sense, but everything was so strange, she felt disoriented. She left completely bewildered.
Vina continued walking down the path, past each home as the path gained elevation above the plains. The path she followed was a sort of ramp that had clearly been built in preparation for the bridge she knew was ahead. “It’s not too far ahead from here now”, she thought to herself, careful with where she stepped. She knew from her view when she arrived that the bridge sat a hundred feet or so from the grasslands below. As she neared the last few houses, blood sense warned her of someone huddling just past the final home. Vina excitedly called out “Hello! I am new here. Can you help me?”
Vina felt the woman’s head snap toward her in an almost unnatural way. Vina could see fear plastered on the woman’s face as her wet hair stuck to her, slightly obscuring her eyes. With an ear splitting scream, she fled. Vina hesitated for a moment, unsure what to do. Then she ran after her, splashing through puddles she would otherwise have avoided, “Please! I mean you no harm!” Vina tried to yell above the sound of rain.
The sky let loose at that moment. The amount of rain falling down was unlike anything Vina had experienced in her life. The rainfall blocked her sight as the amount of water falling seemed to occupy the air around her. Vina pressed forward against the curtain of water. She headed toward the bridge where the woman had run. Vina had a feeling she knew where the bridge was, but proceeded forward slowly so she would not miss it. Vina tried to wipe the water from her eyes, but the futility of it became readily apparent. She squinted against the rain, trying to see ahead of herself. Blood Sense told her the woman was just ahead of her.
Her efforts were soon rewarded when she felt her boots clatter onto cobblestones. “The bridge!” she thought to herself in excitement. She blindly turned toward where Blood Sense said the woman stood, but her forward movement was stopped by a stone railing. She reached out to stop herself from falling over, but when her hand touched the stone railing, she also found the ankle of a woman.
Vina looked up and saw the woman that had run from her. Through her grip, Vina could feel the woman shivering. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you!” Vina shouted above the rain.
The woman looked down at Vina, her face still a picture of terror. Vina read the woman’s lips more than she heard the words, “Do you see them?” the woman asked.
Vina looked around, “See who?” Her head snapped back when she felt the woman move. She had spread her arms out. “Wait!” Vina yelled.
The woman took a step forward off of the bridge. Vina felt the woman’s ankle slip from her hand. Everything suddenly slowed down for Vina. Her agility and dexterity and mastery activated together as she leaned over the railing and grabbed for the woman. Somehow she got her hand around her wrist and she held her tight. Everything lurched back into motion suddenly.
Vina looked over the edge and saw the woman had her eyes closed now, a perfect face of peace. She strained to pull the woman up, but her strength wasn’t up to the task. The high railing prevented her from getting two hands onto the woman’s wrist. She braced herself against the railing to prevent herself from being pulled over.
The woman’s eyes suddenly popped open, the rain splashed off of her face. Her lips parted as if she was going to say something as her other hand reached into her water soaked pants.
Vina struggled again to pull her up, but only felt her grip loosening. Vina shook her head when she saw what the woman pulled from her waist. She slowly raised the knife in her hand up and then quickly plunged it into her own wrist.
“Stop!” Vina screamed. But she saw a different intent in the woman’s blue eyes now. She raised the knife higher than the first attempt. Time slowed a second time for Vina as the woman plunged the knife toward Vina’s hand.
Vina saw the woman smile, her own blood splashed onto her teeth. Then suddenly the woman fell. Vina screamed as her body vanished into the rain.
Vina leaned against the stone railing, feeling completely drained. She held her hand close to her body, clenching and unclenching it. The pain from the cut on her hand mirrored the pain she felt in her heart. She mindlessly fished through her backpack and applied a bandage to her wound, no thought given to how well a wet bandage would work.
“I can’t stay here”, she thought to herself. She held her hand close to her body, and tried to find shelter from the constant downpour. She walked across the bridge toward the city, her mind a rush of different thoughts at what she just witnessed. When she found the other side of the bridge, she also found a tavern waiting. She pushed on the door and much to her relief, it opened without effort. She didn’t have the heart to try to pick a lock right now.
She made her way inside and found a fireplace with a fire already burning. “Who made this fire?” she thought. She felt wet to the bone as she removed her clothing and hung it to dry. She changed quickly, still unsure what was going on in this place. She listened closely to her Blood Sense skill, but it had not told her anything since the woman at the bridge. The skill told her the tavern was completely empty.
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Despite that, Vina heard footsteps upstairs in the living quarters of the tavern. Vina activated her Listen skill, trying to get more details. The skill merely told it was not just a single person, but several. They were small too, like children. Vina quickly gathered her gear once more. The clothing was not anywhere near dry, but Vina had a feeling being wet would be a constant experience until she figured this out. “Should I go upstairs?” she wondered to herself quietly. She really didn’t want to go upstairs.
Thankfully the decision was already made for her when her Listen skill told her whoever was upstairs was coming down. There were giggles and screeches. Vina began to move toward the tavern door. She was faster than the things that threw themselves down the stairs. She immediately recognized them. “Pilidar?” she thought as she backed toward the door.” Vina immediately started throwing blood knives at each of the creatures. She could throw with such force now that the small creatures were knocked backward and off their feet with each blade.
The creatures haphazardly flung themselves down the stairwell. Their bodies were uncoordinated as they recovered and threw themselves toward her. Their long tongues hung loosely from their mouths. Vina stood at the opened doorway as she continued throwing blade after blade. When the number of pilidar spilling down the stairs became absurdly numerous, she knew this was a battle no one could win. She recalled all of her blades and fled the tavern.
As she ran, she looked over her shoulder. None of the pilidar followed her out into the rain. A few faces stood at the door, staring with unseeing eyes at her retreat. Vina slowed and used Examine on the creature.
Creature: Pilidar? Level: 5? Unknown It is what we know when we know that we don’t know.
“What the hell does that mean?” Vina said. She checked her experience log as well, trying to find any clues she could about what was happening.
You have gained 620 experience points from killing 9 Pilidar of various levels. Experience earned is reduced by half.
“Experience earned is reduced by half”, she echoed to herself. “But why?” she questioned. Vina stood in the pounding rain and looked at the pilidar that still stood in the doorway. It looked back at her, unblinking. After a moment it headed back into the tavern, closing the door behind itself. She squinted at the door in confusion. “There wasn’t enough room in that tavern for that many pilidar”, she whispered to herself. She shivered when some rain found its way down her back. She turned and headed further into the town.
~~~
Vina made her way to the town center. It was quite a climb up the hill to the many different mesas that made up the city. With the rain, she thoroughly hated the experience. When she finally arrived, it too was completely devoid of people. Only scattered carts, shopping stalls, and some spoiled food remained. She looked around at the stalls, but after her experience in the Tavern, she was unwilling to enter any buildings. She turned toward the massive castle ahead of her. It sat roughly in the center of the cloud system swirling around her atop the largest mesa. She guessed whatever must be happening, started inside there.
Suddenly a door behind her opened with a creaking sound. Vina whipped around and saw someone in the doorway. The door opened just a crack, but she recognized the pale face immediately. Her blood turned ice cold when she saw who began to speak.
“Why did you kill me?” Ebba asked. Her voice was so weak, Vina could barely hear it above the rain.
Vina didn’t answer. She couldn’t. Her guilt struck her like a hammer as every justification she had made entered into her mind. Before Ebba, they were all laid bare once again.
“After all I did to help you, you killed me. You couldn't even let me rest. You collected my blood into a box and kept it in your backpack like a trophy. Before my body had cooled, you and Haco split my possessions. You didn’t even try to stop her from desecrating my body.”
Vina finally managed to get her mouth to work, “I’m sorry! I didn’t want any of that to happen.”
Ebba frowned at her, “You’ve always been a liar, Vina.”
“I didn’t mean to…”, Vina said, softly.
“Just once, Vina. Speak the truth. Why did you kill me?”
Vina struggled to speak, the pain of the truth worked its way through her, “I… I had to kill you to protect my sisters.”
Ebba nodded her head and just before she closed the door, Vina thought she saw a smile.
Vina shook her head, “What the hell!” she screamed as guilt and fear threatened to overwhelm her. She looked around at the other buildings and doors. “Okay Vina. Calm down. None of the buildings are safe to enter”, she said to herself, trying to figure out what to do. “Pilidar in the tavern and some kind of Ebba doppelganger in a random side building.” She knew she couldn’t remain in the rain, she would eventually freeze to death. At this point, she felt any building was possibly dangerous. “Is this why that woman was huddled outside?” Vina wondered.
Without any other options, she continued onward toward the castle. “The castle won’t be safe either though”, she thought to herself. She wrapped her arms around her body, partly to keep warm, and partly to comfort herself. She stopped when she heard a voice crying. It was a girl. Vina ran toward the sound and found a girl standing out on a balcony of one of the second story homes. It was Milly from the town of Prosit.
“Please, save me, Vina”, Milly cried.
Vina looked up at Milly with some suspicion, “I already saved you, Milly. How did you get up there?”
“I don’t know. Please help me!” she cried.
Vina was confused as she looked at Milly. She looked exactly like the little girl she had saved from the pilidar from so long ago. Yet, something seemed off. She couldn’t put her finger on it. “Milly, it is not far. Jump down to me and I’ll catch you.”
Milly stopped crying and merely walked back into the building, shutting the door behind herself.
Vina’s skin crawled. She ran back to the path she was on and continued toward the castle. She tried her best to make it there as quickly as possible. These encounters were affecting her on a deeply emotional level, however she couldn’t help but stop when she heard one more voice.
“Vina?” a woman said.
Vina looked at the woman who appeared in the store display window. The woman reached up and unlatched the window, letting it swing open. She had long brown hair that cascaded down her shoulders. She had intensely brown eyes that stunned her. The woman wore armor nearly identical to her own. A red stone was embedded on her left hand.
“How do you know my name?” Vina said, confusion on her face. She did not recognize the woman in front of her.
“It is you! Oh, I’m so glad you are alive. I’m your mother, Priya. When Shan sent you away, I didn’t know if you would ever come back. I…” the woman made to exit the window, but stopped. “Oh. That’s not right.”
“Mom?” Vina asked, tears forming in her eyes even as the rain washed them away. Vina moved toward the window, but Priya stopped her.
“Wait. It warms my heart to hear you call me that, but something is not right here, Vina. It appears I am a danger to you. Hold on for a moment.”
“I know. I’m scared”, Vina said.
“It’s okay dear. I’ll figure this out in a second.” Priya moved her hands in a weird manner and Vina saw some runes begin to form in the air in front of her. The runes soon scattered in mild sparks. “Well, that’s disappointing. It appears I am not really your mother. Something made me. It’s trying to call me back now. I think I can delay it.”
Vina saw Priya explode into motion as her hands drew numerous runes in the air. They activated in a chain of sequences around her. Vina couldn’t even keep track of her mother’s movements as she spun so many different actions together. Soon her mother was highlighted in a slightly blue aura.
“There we go. I’ve stabilized the divinity used to create me for just a few more minutes. Vina, whatever is happening, this is very dangerous. Have you read all of my notes?” Priya asked, her hands rested on the window frame in anticipation.
Vina nodded, “All but one. I haven’t had time to unseal it yet. The Watch has forced me to join them. I’ve lost my sisters”, Vina said, everything wanted to spill out.
Priya looked at her sadly, “You’ve been through so much already. Very little is going according to our plan. I’m so sorry Vina. Where are we currently?”
“We’re in the city of Valanire. There’s some kind of mist covering the entire city”, Vina said.
“Oh no. Not Valanire again”, Her mom said, a deep sadness in her voice.
Vina gave her a confused look, “What happened here?”
“I’m sorry Vina, there isn’t time for a history lesson”, her mom said as she poked her own body and touched the walls. Her eyes flew left and right as if she was reading all of her status screens “I see. Well isn’t that fascinating.” Priya laughed suddenly, “I’m a memory! I always wanted to be a memory.”
Vina looked at her in confusion, “A memory?”
“Oh yes. Perhaps as a baby you saw me just as I am. Or maybe I am someone else’s memory. I am quite young after all. The Aspect of Memories must have made me, although very imperfectly.”
“I think I’m seeing some bad memories too”, Vina whispered.
Priya made a sad face again, “I’m so sorry Vina. Our world wasn’t always like this. I hope Trina can someday fix this. For now though, the owner of this Aspect is trying to recall me. They must be seriously regretful of creating me.” Her mother made several more motions.
“I can’t break free from them, though. It’s just a matter of time. Vina, I don’t know much more than you do as I’m mostly just a reflection of your knowledge and what you remember of me. Some of what I know must have come from others in this city. But my goodness, you must have seen me do some fun things.” She paused for a second, swiping her fingers around the window frame in quick motions. When she finished, she made a pained expression.
“Mom? Are you okay?” Vina asked, her distress rising.
“Yes I am for now. Vina, here is what I know that you don’t. Open the final letter you have as soon as you leave this place, there is vital information inside there. Your real mother loves you more than anything in the world. She would die for you and your sisters.” Priya’s face grimaced again, “I don’t think Priya is actually dead. Someone in this city remembers seeing me work on something. Based on my rune carving knowledge, it is some kind of massive divinity storage device. Your mother likely used it to power a portal ring to escape The Darkness and the twelve. It is also possible she was trying to find a way back to Earth to find you.”
Priya stepped back from the window and Vina lunged forward, “Mom! Don’t leave!” Vina tried to reach through the window, but it was stopped by some kind of barrier that flashed blue at her touch.
“Vina, I want to hug you badly, but I know if I do, the bonded owner will try to force me to kill you. With my skills…” her voice trailed off. “I will never allow myself to hurt you.” Priya smiled then, “Vina I know your skills and abilities from your memories. In some ways I am more blessed than your real mother to know you so intimately. Your blood skills are beautiful. You are beautiful. We are both so proud of you.” Her mother sighed, “But it seems I am being taken back again. I love you.”
Vina cried as she pounded on the blue barrier, unable to stop her mother from dissolving into a white mist.