If the shadow tiger had been fully healthy, Sylvi would likely have died as it barreled into her. As it was, it bore her down to the ground, hitting her hard enough to knock the wind from her lungs. Its fangs flashed towards her throat, and Sylvi did the only thing she could, putting her arm between her throat and the tiger's maw. It bit into her arm with force, and Sylvi gasped as she heard the crunching of bones breaking. She desperately tried to wrench her injured arm free, agony lancing throughout her entire body as she did. It was useless; its bite strength was likely stronger than a normal tiger's, and Sylvi was fortunate that her arm hadn’t been completely severed.
Avery slammed into the creature as if he intended to tackle the creature that likely weighed nearly a ton. Predictably, the tiger wasn’t moved at all, barely noticing the force Avery had exerted. It continued to savage Sylvi’s arm, spelling likely doom for the pair of humans. Suddenly, the tiger let go, letting out a deep yelp of agony. The smell of burnt flesh hung in the air, and two hand-shaped burns had appeared where Avery had grabbed it. Avery stumbled unsteadily, clutching his head, likely having used more mana than he would have liked.
Sylvi didn’t hesitate to take advantage of the opening. She slashed up with a knife in her one good hand. She got lucky, catching the tiger in the throat with a deep gash that tore open an artery. Blood sprayed out like a firehose, getting all over Sylvi.
The shadow tiger stumbled back, trying to escape for a second time. Neither Avery nor herself were in any condition to pursue the creature. Fortunately, it didn’t get far, after only a few steps before it began staggering, then eventually crumpled to the ground. It whimpered and then stilled as a large puddle of blood coalesced where it had collapsed.
Sylvi sighed in relief, though she couldn’t celebrate just yet. She was beginning to feel faint from blood loss. She ignored the pain, sterilized the wound, and tightly wrapped it in gauze and bandages. Slowly, the blood loss receded, and she quickly downed the best HP potion she had brought with her. Unfortunately, she hadn’t brought any MP potions with her; otherwise, she would have given one to Avery.
“Thanks for saving my life. I owe you one,” Sylvi said as they collapsed into the tall grass.
“I think that just makes us even,” Avery said as he rubbed his temples.
Sylvi’s pain was somewhat alleviated when she felt the notification pinging at her mind.
New Profession Gained Description Trailblazer (1F) You relentlessly forge a path for others, never stopping until everyone has reached their destination. Experience is awarded for finding and forging new paths and for leading people on those paths Primary Stats / Level Secondary Stats / Level Strength .05% HP .15% Agility .15% FP .45% Constitution .2% Willpower .1%
Trait Gained Tier/Rank Description Recall the Trail 1F Improves attributes by 5% for the purpose of recalling details about the trail you blazed. Relentless 1F Improves all resource regenerations by 1.5% while not resting.
Achievement Upgraded Group Hunter 7 upgraded to Group Hunter 8
Sylvi Vesik has reached Level 9 in Sharpshooter Ranger (1E) Sylvi Vesik has reached Level 1 in Trailblazer (1F) Sylvi Vesik has reached Level 9 in Human (1F) Primary Stats Gained New Value +1 Agility 132 +1 Constitution 112 Secondary Stats Gained +2 HP 120 +4 FP 152 +1 MP 131 +4 Attack Efficiency 179
Sylvi smiled despite the immense pain in her mangled arm. She had gained not one but two levels in her ranger class. She had also gained a profession and had a strong suspicion as to why.
“Are you alright?” Avery asked, though it was unclear whether he was referring to her arm or her mental state.
“Between potions and slightly improved regeneration from my class and profession, I’ll be fine. I won’t bleed out, and once we get back to camp, there are both magical and mundane healers,” Sylvi said.
“That sounds good. We should start heading back to your camp as soon as you're ready to go,” Avery said.
Sylvi shook her head, “I still have a mission to complete,” she said. Avery stared at her in disbelief.
“But your arm,” he exclaimed.
“Like I said, it will be fine. I might not be at full combat readiness, but this is a recon mission, not a combat mission. I can still accomplish the objective,” Sylvi explained. That was why she had gotten the trailblazer profession. The moment she had decided to continue her mission, she had gotten the profession.
It took Sylvi a while to convince Avery that she wasn’t completely mad. She had spent long enough with Imri and Zhaire that she had forgotten how most people react to perilous situations. She also came from a baseline of special forces operators who wouldn’t think twice about continuing the mission injured as long as they didn’t jeopardize the team.
Eventually, Avery relented when she gave him an ultimatum. He could either come with and help her or find his way back to the camp. Something in the way she spoke must have convinced Avery because he finally relented.
With the pointless argument concluded, Sylvi instructed him on how to harvest the creature, especially the core. Based on the achievement upgrade she had gained, the tiger was at level 15. Fortunately, that was easy enough, its core being the largest she had seen, about the size of a golf ball. It also glowed far brighter than any of the others, with flecks of black shadow-like motes swirling throughout the gemlike structure of the core.
“What is that thing?” Avery asked, transfixed by the strange core. Sylvi did her best to explain what cores were and why they were important. She hadn’t even considered how much more knowledge their group had. Most of their information came from Imri or his ability to converse with the Chixel defectors.
“You were in the military before the integration?” Avery asked.
“It's that obvious?” Sylvi asked with a grin.
“It took about five seconds to tell, the way you talk and the way you hold yourself. It’s nice to have someone who knows what they’re doing,” Avery said. Sylvi practically snorted up some of the water she was drinking.
“I was prepared for a lot of things, but an all-powerful system reconfiguring our universe was not one of them. I just got lucky and found some competent people who kept their heads on straight,” Sylvi said.
“More military personnel?” Avery asked.
“No. The one who knows the most about all this shit was a software engineer, though I suspect there is something else going on with him,” Sylvi said.
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“Something else?”
“It would be one thing if he had some class that gave him this knowledge, but it's not from that. Like you, he’s a mage, but he can manipulate space and time.”
“That sounds cool,” Avery said, entirely missing the point.
“His girlfriend is a nurse that can read and manipulate people's emotions. She’s also the magical healer who can fix my arm when we return.”
“Manipulate people’s emotions? Like magically?” Avery asked.
“Yes, and fortunately, she’s more of an empath than a psychopath. As far as I know, she hasn’t used that ability for more than calming down panicked crowds.”
“And I thought I was special for having magic. Throwing some fireballs around seems less impressive all of a sudden.”
“Don’t sell yourself short. We’ll need everyone if we’re going to make it in this fucked up world. What did you do before the integration?”
“I was a welder, not the most useful in an apocalypse.”
“That could come in handy. I’m sure we’ll have some welding projects once our settlement is established, and you could use your magic until we get you set up. It’s certainly more useful than another accountant or project manager.”
Sylvi was exhausted, and as she curled up on the ground, she quickly passed out. She woke before dawn, Avery still sleeping. She stared out into the distance, towards the towering mountain range that still called to her. As she stared, she saw more of the shooting stars off in the distance, clearly visible against the dark background of night. She didn’t do anything for some time, just staring at the beautiful display across the sky. After about an hour of staring, she willed herself to confront the rapidly approaching day.
She roused Avery, and together, they had a hearty breakfast of shadow tiger steaks. Avery still looked half-starved but could keep a much larger portion down. Sylvi also ate her fill and then some. With no good way to preserve the meat, they would end up throwing most of it out.
They made their way through the strange grass, moving straight towards the mountains with no notable features that needed to be navigated around. They were both on edge for signs of a predator stalking them. With Avery’s mana still at a relatively low level and her arm unusable, any attack would likely be lethal. Eventually, their path ran into a small creek that likely flowed from melting ice.
“So, what exactly are we looking for?” Avery asked as they refilled their water.
“I’m not exactly sure,” Sylvi admitted.
“But you think it’s in the mountains, whatever it is?”
“I do,” Sylvi said confidently. She wasn’t sure why, but it wasn’t a lie. She genuinely felt confident that they were headed in the right direction.
“It doesn’t feel foreboding to you?” Avery asked.
“I didn’t say that. It’s foreboding as hell. That doesn’t mean it isn’t where we need to go,” Sylvi pointed out.
“I know there might be something interesting up there, but do you really think people will want to settle down there?”
“It might discourage some, but it will also discourage our enemies from pursuing us. Besides, if we can find a reason, people will get over it.”
Avery nodded, though he didn’t look convinced. They finished filtering water in silence, drinking a good portion of the water and refilling it. Avery was about to say something when Sylvi felt a vibration, throwing up a hand for silence. It only took a moment for the rumbling to become more distinct. A quick scan of the area didn’t help much; there was nothing to see and nothing more substantial than the tall grass. She reached for an arrow instinctively and winced in pain as her body refused to obey. All she could do was crouch and hope whatever caused the noise wouldn’t notice them.
The creatures came into view as they crested a small rise in the rolling plains. They moved with incredible speed despite not appearing to be labored in the slightest. They resembled a large horse, though their leathery skin accented with chitinous armor made them far more imposing, something more akin to a lithe rhino or a barded warhorse. A large jagged horn extended from the end of their snout, though it was long and thin enough that Sylvi didn’t think it would survive more than a single use.
Sylvi’s fears were assuaged when she noticed that Avery brought his hands down and relaxed his posture. “They're amazing, aren’t they?” He said as they watched the herd of creatures gallop in a line that wouldn’t intersect with them.
“Yeah, they are,” Sylvi said, dumbstruck.
“We call them star seekers. They roam around in packs, looking for those shooting stars. That horn of theirs seems to attract the shooting stars and absorb them. As far as I know, they are peaceful.” Avery explained as they watched the pack of star seekers gallop across the plains. As they watched it became apparent that some of them were playing, racing against each other. It was a beautiful sight, reminding them that not everything about this new world was monstrous.
They didn’t resume their journey until the sight of star seekers disappeared over a distant hill. Despite the break, they quickly made up the time, both invigorated by the sight of the majestic creatures. When they stopped for the night, the mountain loomed over them, their view of the entire range dominated by the nearest ascents. The shooting star phenomenon was far more pronounced closer to the mountains, producing a dazzling light show.
The next day, they set a more leisurely pace when it became apparent they would reach the foot of the ascent near the end of the day. It made more sense to begin their journey into the mountain range at the start of the day instead of the end of it. For that reason, there was no rush; they simply needed to reach the foot of the mountain before nightfall. This also had the added benefit of giving them a day where they didn’t push themselves, allowing them to start with full stamina.
Throughout the day, they saw several more packs of star seekers, though they galloped around with enough speed that it could have been a single pack running circles around them. There were no signs of shadow tigers, though Sylvi doubted they would spot one unless it came closer. She also noticed a change in the grass as they drew closer; it was far more active than before. It made it far more apparent that it wasn’t regular grass, whereas before, it had taken her a few moments of observation to notice the behavior. Several of the shooting star-like objects had landed nearby, and Sylvi noticed the grass had moved toward where the object had landed.
Eventually, there were too many shooting stars, and one of the hurtling objects slammed into Sylvi, nearly knocking her off her feet. She expected it to hurt, but it felt more like someone had thrown a water balloon at her as the object dissolved upon contact, giving off a mist of hazy blue fog before dispersing into the air. Sylvi wasn’t sure what to make of it. It had been moving fast enough that even water would’ve hurt far more, but it was almost like a gas pocket. Sylvi was sure Imri would be delighted to study the strange substance, whatever it was.
The next day, they started their ascent. It started easy enough; most routes up were challenging hikes but nothing too technical. This quickly changed, as many of the steep hills became sheer rock faces. Even if they had wanted to climb, their lack of equipment and Sylvi’s injury made that nearly impossible. Instead, they spent much of the day hiking upward, only to have to backtrack in search of easier ascent. By the end of their day, they had only traveled a few kilometers, though the view of the plains far below them made it clear that they had made some progress.
The next day progressed similarly but involved even more arduous hikes and frequent backtracking. Finding a reasonable route might have been impossible, but Sylvi’s new profession alleviated some of their issues. No matter how many times they backtracked, she could perfectly recall the routes they had already tried.
Eventually, they found a moderately sized hot spring. The water was nearly scalding, almost too hot to be comfortable. Sylvi didn’t hesitate to strip out of her clothes, shocking Avery with her brazen behavior.
“We can take turns. I’ll wait just out of sight,” Avery said as he averted his eyes.
“That’s a waste of time, and there’s plenty of room. Besides, you're not my type,” Sylvi explained. Enough room was a bit of an understatement. The spring probably could have fit twenty people and still had plenty of room.
“What do you mean I’m not your type? I might be a little scrawny now, but I’ve been starving almost constantly since the integration,” Avery said defensively, though it was obvious he wasn’t too offended. He hadn’t shown any interest in her in that way during their days together. Sylvi couldn’t help but chuckle at his expense.
“You’re not my type because you have a cock,” She said with a wry grin.
“Wait, what?” he asked, his brain working slower than his ear. “Oh, got it,” he said as his surprise wore off.
“Hurry up and get in here. This water is amazing,” Sylvi said. The water was indeed amazing, and it had been ages since she had a proper bath. While the water initially felt too hot, her body had acclimated faster than expected.
“At least turnaround,” Avery insisted once he had stripped down to his underwear. Sylvi did as he requested; moments later, she heard him splash into the water. He tentatively sank into the hot spring.
They relaxed in the water in silence for a time. While a hot bath did wonders for aches and soreness, this water was a step beyond that. Sylvi felt the number of small aches and bruises she had accumulated washing away. She wouldn’t have thought much of it if it was just that, assuming it was just overused muscles getting a therapeutic soak. However, she felt a tingling sensation spread throughout her broken arm. It wasn’t an entirely pleasant sensation, and she had to restrain herself from scratching at the bandages. She would have removed the offending limb from the water, but the constant throbbing pain seemed to be fading by the second.
“Is everything alright?” Avery asked as he noticed her confusion. Sylvi didn’t answer, instead she carefully inspected her body. She found the spot where she had a minor scrape, now completely healed with unmarred skin and no signs of so much as a scab. She tried moving her broken arm. It still hurt, but instead of unbearable agony, it was a slightly dull pain, like the broken bone was almost completely healed. She confirmed this when she unraveled the bandages and revealed undamaged skin.
“I think we found our first natural treasure,” Sylvi said.