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Abyssal Road Trip
322 - Strong for someone else

322 - Strong for someone else

Amdirlain’s PoV - Material Plane - Qil Tris

When Jan’era let Amdirlain into her car, she didn’t immediately ignite the core and instead sat in the driver’s seat, looking at Amdirlain. “How powerful is your ‘sister’?”

“Why do you say sister that way?” grumbled Amdirlain.

“From the colouration and scent of the two of you, it’s obvious you’re not remotely related,” replied Jan’era.

“We’re related by oath. My parents aren’t around,” replied Amdirlain.

Jan’era paused and gave a sharp nod. “I’m sorry. I won’t pry further, but what she did for Del’krin was incredibly generous, even if you prompted her to contribute.”

“Sarah can be stern, but she’s also not stingy. It’s not like the Mana is doing anyone good just being held by her,” commented Amdirlain.

“That’s not how many of the strong view it. What they can gather gets husbanded for the benefit of their pride,” responded Jan’era, and she got the vehicle started.

Del’krin’s place was an apartment in a low-rise building a few minutes from the dance hall. Despite the short drive, as they headed inside, Amdirlain caught Del’krin providing Kadaklan details about the operations and therapy her injury had required.

The building’s internal layout resembled the apartment building where Jal’krin had his one-bedroom place. The family had a multi-room apartment off the side corridor of the building’s internal junction.

A low partition broke up the main room into a lounge with a dining area at the left end, closest to the kitchen. Through an arch on the lounge’s far side was a corridor that linked assorted rooms along its curve. The lounge space had four leather backless couches, for sprawling as much as sitting, and a metal panel display smaller than the one at Jan’era’s place.

“Make yourself comfortable anywhere,” instructed Del’krin, gesturing to the couches as she led the way inside.

“No windows at all,” murmured Kadaklan.

Sarah shrugged. “They’re harder to ward; the stone smells like an alchemist created it. The inner layer is reactive to even the faintest Mana flow. Does it change colour at all?”

“I know it goes yellow if the wards get compromised,” advised Amdirlain.

“The walls change to other hues for different emergencies. I’ll take you over those and the response protocols at the apartment,” Jan’era stated.

Kadaklan looked at the silver panel by the door and poked it with a finger. “Does this accept Mana as well?”

“Yes, it’s a way to offset bills‌. Also, if the grid has an outage, a resident with Mana can still put Mana into the local grid to shore up the wards,” explained Del’krin.

“This is interesting. I think I will learn many new things,” chirped Kadaklan. “This is all to handle the local ghosts, yes?”

“Yes,” replied Del’krin. “Would you like a drink, or something?”

“Only if it’s no trouble,” replied Kadaklan. “I appreciate you putting up with my questions about your injury. I’ll have to look into the therapy you undertook to regain motion.”

Del’krin waved them towards the couches. “All of you, please sit down. It’s not any trouble.”

Sarah took Amdirlain’s hand and dragged her along, only relaxing when she’d settled on the couch beside her.

“Bully,” muttered Amdirlain playfully.

The others distributed themselves among the couches, and Del’krin got Jul’iane to distribute drinks to everyone before sending her to wash up.

“You mentioned possessing Prestige classes on the way over. How are you a powerful healer, so young?” asked Del’krin.

Kadaklan’s gaze darkened momentarily, and he gave a lop-sided shrug. “Lack of choice. Life is tough in the South. Where I was born, there isn’t time to wait. You grab life and run hard or die. I had the knack and interest in healing and alchemy, so I learnt.”

“With your strength, surely you two can’t spend long from your pride then,” Jan’era observed.

“There are other healers, so we’ll see. If they need me urgently, they know how to contact me. Just the same as we got here, I can return quickly,” countered Kadaklan.

“Am is my sister, and if she has a need, I’ll be there,” replied Sarah.

“I didn’t mean to cause a bother,” apologised Amdirlain.

Sarah gently pressed a finger to her nose. “Share information and plans, thank you. Don’t leave messages with others.”

“Sarah, do you need time to chew on Am’s ears?” enquired Kadaklan, setting his drink carefully on the lounge room table.

“Do the stairs lead up to an accessible roof?” questioned Sarah before she fixed Amdirlain with a dire look. “I might need to throw her off a few times to let light into her skull.”

Del’krin smiled. “Yes, they do, but try not to have her yell too much. Who knows what the neighbours might say?”

Sarah’s tail rose and looped lightly around Am’s neck. “Right, I’ll make sure she doesn’t scream.”

“Eek!” squeaked Amdirlain, and she pretended to struggle to free herself from Sarah’s tail.

“Just as long as she can still sing afterwards,” muttered Jan’era, her lips curling upwards as she watched the byplay between them.

“I am in so much trouble,” lisped Amdirlain, and she set the cold drink Jul’iane had given her on the table as they left.

“Trying to be cute isn’t helping,” declared Sarah firmly.

Amdirlain pouted at Sarah with a pleading, innocent expression, and crocodile tears appeared in the corners of her eyes. “Only trying?”

“Talk to the hand,” retorted Sarah, and she grabbed the end of Amdirlain’s muzzle and waggled her head back and forth gently.

“Don’t you love me anymore?” whimpered Amdirlain.

Sarah snorted. “Should we see if you can sing underground? I’m sure I can find a shovel.”

Lifting her hands in surrender, Amdirlain smiled. “I’ll be good.”

Waving Amdirlain out of the apartment, Sarah followed her to the rooftop and looked over the scattered chairs and some battered tables that had seen better days.

‘You doing the illusion?’ asked Sarah mentally.

“Already got it spun,” confirmed Amdirlain. “Why are we up here?”

“Were you staying out of Kadaklan’s thoughts?”

Amdirlain raised an eyebrow. “If I was prying like you are, would I need to ask?”

“We’re buying time for Kadaklan to finish talking to Del’krin about her injury. It seems, like you, he can’t just leave someone in pain. He was handling it delicately on the way here but didn’t have enough time,” explained Sarah, and she huffed and stepped close to scratch Amdirlain’s ears. “Your tufted ears are so cute.”

With a yelp, Amdirlain gently swatted her hands away. “Don’t do that.”

“Maybe at some point we can get you to turn into a Dragon hatchling,” proposed Sarah and stroked under Amdirlain’s chin. “Or a Dwarf.”

“You don’t get to play mummy Dragon with me,” rebuffed Amdirlain, ignoring the reference to Ebusuku’s bet.

“No, because I’m not at adult growth yet. Though I could carry you around if you are small enough; you could pretend you’re a dragon doll,” advised Sarah.

Amdirlain crossed her arms and gave her a sad head shake. “Did Livia fill you in on all the Eldritch fun?”

“All the details you told her. She let me vacuum them out of her mind. You don’t have to fight the Eldritch yourself,” insisted Sarah. “Have you considered ritual magic teams?”

“I didn’t want them turning those on me,” admitted Amdirlain. “I don’t want to prompt thoughts in that direction.”

“Who says they don’t already have them? Ensure they have nothing to trace back to you and never meet them at an agreed location and time,” instructed Sarah. “Are the Eldritch inhabiting people or latching onto them?”

“Both, but some had manifested independently,” advised Amdirlain.

“Tell me more, and I’ll see what I can suggest,” Sarah said, beckoning Amdirlain to spill.

Amdirlain mentally projected events but obscured the details of the entities and sigils she’d seen.

“Clues left in old temple ruins might be more trouble. That Arch-Wizard fellow might have gone to the easiest location,” commented Sarah.

“If Mor’lmes can find any expedition maps, I’ll investigate while my legs heal,” stated Amdirlain. “You know you’re a bad influence. I hadn’t intended to indulge my curiosity about their old ruins until after I’d gotten the Eldritch and my Charisma contained.”

“Yes, because you’re an equally unknowable horror,” laughed Sarah, and she danced away from Amdirlain’s half-hearted attempt to tail swat. “Wait until I’m back in Dragon form; you’ll get yours.”

“I’m not scared of you. While your arse is big, it still needs to grow,” teased Amdirlain.

Showing her teeth, Sarah grumbled. “Are you saying my arse looks big with scales?”

“The scales never lie,” chirped Amdirlain. “Once you’re looming over a house, toboggans are involved.”

“Bitch,” laughed Sarah. “That’s the last time I let you ride this Dragon.”

“Oh baby,” snickered Amdirlain.

Stepping closer to Amdirlain, Sarah proceeded to scritch her ears.

“Careful, or I’ll pick Phoenix and burn your butt,” grumbled Amdirlain, and she tried to wiggle free from Sarah’s hands.

“Whatever that means,” hummed Sarah as she kept scratching the wiggling Amdirlain.

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Amdirlain finally wiggled free and snorted. “Just because shapeshifting isn’t safe for me doesn’t mean you can just do that, Sarah.”

“You’re so fuzzy. I want to use you for a fluffy body pillow,” gushed Sarah.

“Hello? You are also in a Catfolk form. I’m not laying down anywhere close to you,” muttered Amdirlain.

“That’s hardly fair. There were so many times you tickled or cuddled me in baby Dragon form, I deserve compensation,” objected Sarah.

Poking out her tongue, Amdirlain huffed. “I don’t remember all those times, so you can’t claim repayment on them.”

“Did your enduring spiritual vivisection and hammering for over two days help anything besides getting your legs back?” asked Sarah. “No transcending pain and sprouting memories?”

“Not so much sprouting memories, but it’s what I meant when I referred to picking Phoenix earlier. The process advanced Protean a lot, along with other skills. Protean ticked into Grand Master and got me three evolution options.” explained Amdirlain, and she shared the details.

Sarah released Amdirlain and clicked her nails thoughtfully. “Interesting. Going to share your thoughts on the powers you got offered?”

Folding her arms, Amdirlain shot her a sullen look. “Now you’re taking advantage of my theory crafting.”

“Too right,” nodded Sarah, and she motioned for Amdirlain to continue.

“Fine. Since Primordial Malleability is an evolution of Protean alone, if I’m going to take it, I’m sure it would need to be second. Otherwise, getting Protean again for Phoenix’s Immolation might be impossible,” explained Amdirlain.

“Maybe. I guess the question is, with a massively high regeneration and combat aura, would you need to use Protean in the same way?” asked Sarah.

“All the form shifting is useful for fighting,” insisted Amdirlain.

“You just discovered the danger of being close to the Eldritch when fighting them. Maybe take the aura option and use weapons? Having an aura of Primordial energy and Ki State might help prevent Eldritch power from latching on. That aside, what else you got?”

“The mind protection effect of Immortal’s Endurance is tempting,” admitted Amdirlain. “However, there is also the fact that just because I got offered these three doesn’t mean there isn’t another option I’m currently short on obtaining.”

“If you push Protean too much higher, it might evolve to Primordial Malleability on its own,” cautioned Sarah.

“Yeah, I know,” sighed Amdirlain. “Mental Hardening ranked up, but Pain Eater and Angelic Aura are nowhere close, and those might not even be what I need to improve.”

Sarah pulled a face, and her ears flicked about briefly. “One thing I’ll volunteer is that I’m sure Ori had something like Immortal’s Endurance. Though maybe it was a higher version. I’d seen her fighting Eldritch that could warp aspects, and her body didn’t even develop a haze.”

“Okay, that’s interesting,” allowed Amdirlain. “I might have to see if I can retrieve any details while meditating. I’m holding off on choices of Power for a bit.”

“That Power discussion is interesting, but I’d like to know when you became a bottom?” questioned Sarah.

“What?!” yowled Amdirlain.

Sarah beamed. “Do you have a safe word picked out? Normally I avoided taking friends as clients, but I could help you with little roleplay sessions. Have you been a naughty kitten?”

Amdirlain growled. “Sarah! Please, don’t go there.”

“What did you do to get Pain Eater, young lady?” asked Sarah, and she stepped in and grabbed Amdirlain by the back of the neck. Instead of scritching Amdirlain again, Sarah’s strong fingers started massaging the muscles along the sides of her neck. “Spill buster.”

“It was an evolution of Pain Tolerance. Anything else you would like to know?” huffed Amdirlain. “I was theory crafting the current powers, not going into my old skills.”

Nodding slowly, Sarah’s smile didn’t fade, and she pressed the side of her muzzle against Amdirlain’s. “What, don’t you want my insights into options? How high had you gotten Pain Tolerance before this evolution, and how?”

“You’re going to insist on dragging out all the details?” protested Amdirlain.

“Not all, but are you sure you don’t want me helping you level Pain Eater? I certainly wouldn’t say no to spanking you for the worry you caused,” purred Sarah as she oozed a silken satisfaction. “How about buttercup for a safe word? Just rolls right off the tongue and goes with your silliness of enduring stuff instead of asking for help.”

“Could you give me the massage without the lecture?” rumbled Amdirlain. “Feels good.”

Sarah stopped immediately and tweaked Amdirlain’s ear. “Well, now I have a carrot. Tell me more, or I might have to find the stick. Though potentially, tell me more and I will find the stick.”

When Amdirlain huffed, Sarah’s smile transformed into a hard gaze. “I’m serious. What the hell were you doing to yourself? What Analysis says about that Skill makes me worry about you. Just to jog your perfect memory, I quote: Only those who have deliberately sought and endured pain in various forms come to possess this Skill. I was the Kyton, and I never gained Pain Eater. I think my question about being a bottom is valid.”

“Unfair, Kyton’s don’t feel the pain; they just feel pleasure,” observed Amdirlain.

“When did you get Pain Eater?”

Amdirlain smiled sheepishly, remembering the fun of the maze. “When I was battling the constructs in the Maze.”

“We spent years lying low together, and you didn’t mention this. I find it an interesting secret to be keeping. Now I know battle gets your freak on; I see how it goes,” sighed Sarah. “I’m not enough for you.”

“Are you trolling me?” huffed Amdirlain as she rolled her eyes in frustration, her ears twitching erratically.

“Only a little, sweetie,” said Sarah, and she stepped close to Amdirlain and tilted her head to rest against Sarah’s chest while she rubbed the back of her neck. “I remember lifetimes of us together, and you remember snippets of Ori’s life but no one else, which is such a strange reversal since you always knew me as Ori. You made me, asked nothing from me, and protected not only me, but my children. There are so many lifetimes that I so adored and loved you, but you were the unapproachable eternal mother figure or the big sister who knew best. All those memories are mine, and you can’t know exactly how odd this is, to be the one who knows but shouldn’t say.”

“Why shouldn’t you say?”

Sarah tenderly stroked Amdirlain’s ears and down along her head before she resumed massaging her neck. “Because I want my friend Julia, who has grown into the beautiful Amdirlain, to remain. A swan turned into a different, stronger swan.”

“Who else should I be remembering that you mention other lifetimes?” enquired Amdirlain, catching at Sarah’s earlier comment and steering away from others.

“That’s not important right now, but I also remember the lives in between. It’s a little odd you don’t recall anything but instants from them. Maybe they drowned in Ori’s memory, an opportunity lost when they were individual faces in the lake.”

Amdirlain frowned in confusion. “The Soul memories said that Ori is just part of the whole now.”

“I believe, from my perspective, Ori wanted it to end. Won’t the primary contributor of your gestalt influence what it tells you? What would happen if you got back that many memories, dreams, hopes, and griefs too quickly? Feeling what she felt and knowing what she knew, how would that not drown you?” advised Sarah. “Maybe you wouldn’t be Ori, but would you be Amdirlain still?”

Licking her lips, Amdirlain let out a slow breath and set it aside. “Do your memories have details you’d offered about the conflict with the Eldritch?”

Sarah opened her mouth to object to the subject change but stopped and, with a sad smile, nodded. Massaging Amdirlain’s neck gently one last time, Sarah stepped back so they could look each other in the eye.

“From my memories, I know several cultures have successfully imprisoned Eldritch beings. Though each building’s construction followed their deities’ instructions, some used arcane rites, not divine intervention,” replied Sarah, a note of hesitation in her voice.

“What’s the but?” asked Amdirlain suspiciously.

Her lips curled into a pained smile, and Sarah coughed. “It was knowledge gained from the species that followed them, since no one discovered what became of the builders. In becoming able to stop the Eldritch, they also seem to have vanished.”

“I’d rather the current civilisation not be contenders for one of the great mysteries of the realm,” drawled Amdirlain. “I am glad you came along, but I’m sorry I’ve distracted you from Gaius.”

Sarah smiled in response and hugged her.

They’d been holding each other for a bit when Amdirlain snorted. “Kadaklan’s tending to Del’krin’s leg.”

“The energetic lad’s got a married lady out of her pants,” agreed Sarah, and her gaze gleamed in amusement. “He’s as bad as a Bard.”

“Did you pick up information on where her mate is?” asked Amdirlain, ignoring Sarah’s teasing. “He could barge in with a projector drawn.”

“He’s full-time in the military, currently in a deep cavern expedition. Del’krin doesn’t expect him back for a few months,” explained Sarah.

“Let me guess, it pays well?”

Sarah nodded and rested her chin back atop Amdirlain’s head. “Hazard pay.”

“Did you both pick forms taller than me at Livia’s prompting?” laughed Amdirlain.

“How could you think such a thing? Neither of us wanted to be a squirt, that’s all,” rebuffed Sarah lightly. “What else do you plan to do besides Charisma training while waiting for your legs to recover?”

Amdirlain smiled. “Investigate the issues with the Gods’ Grave and make some changes.”

“You say 'investigate', and I hear, ‘I’m planning changes’,” noted Sarah.

Smiling sheepishly, Amdirlain nodded. “There may indeed be some of that occurring in the future.”

“If you shift a Gods’ Grave around, will it impact the others?” asked Sarah.

“Not going to shift it around or alter its general behaviour, more fine-tune and streamline it. Imposing a framework around its manifestation and how they access it could reduce casualties,” replied Amdirlain. “However, I’m going to get more information first. Currently, it seems like they’ve got two issues.”

“Besides caverns that vomit out undead around their cities?” asked Sarah dryly.

“Yes, besides that one. First, there aren’t enough local critters to level outside the ghost caverns. Second, the caverns randomly open and close pathways to where the spawning abominations form,” explained Amdirlain.

“I can see how that second would make planning hard if your path of advancement and retreat is always changing,” allowed Sarah. “Mana getting consumed isn’t something you can just correct.”

“It’s the shifts in Mana flows, not the lack of Mana, causing issues,” corrected Amdirlain.

“Wanting to put a framework in place so it always uses the Mana the same way; we’ll make an Artificer of you yet,” snickered Sarah.

Amdirlain huffed. “Spell formations do it the same way.”

Sarah shooed her off with playful little finger flicks. “Spells are temporary constructs; since you’re talking about a permanent construction, it’s in Artificer-land, sweetie. But importantly, how do you know your changes won’t screw it up?”

“I don’t know, but I’m not trying to change what the curse is doing. I’m going to streamline its energy flows so the ghost caverns stop shifting about,” replied Amdirlain. “Part of the problem is it gathers the energy inefficiently. I’ll streamline and throttle the energy feeding into it and use the excess to maintain training areas to strengthen their defenders. Since I’ll be here for a while, I’ll have time to monitor it.”

“You’re planning to build a dungeon like one from your computer games or novels?”

Amdirlain grimaced. “Yes. But with the curse, it won’t be safe like Xaos’ tower.”

“The biggest rewards come from the greatest challenges. I’d avoid a complete safety net in your training areas as well. You’d end up with people dying or getting others killed when the stakes get real because of bad habits,” cautioned Sarah.

“Even the regenerative fields?” questioned Amdirlain.

Sarah shrugged. “Put them in the entrances, ‌but make them work to get back to them.”

“I’ll have to design the levels differently then, to keep the degrees of separation the plinth looks for,” complained Amdirlain.

“You’re not forcing them to go into the room. Make it clear there is a risk involved; then it’s not you attacking them with whatever critter you put in place. Their choice to take the risk is another degree of separation.”

“Live fire exercises,” murmured Amdirlain, shaking off the thought, she projected details of the stacked caverns stretching out across each other. “I was thinking of making safe zones as well. Maybe around where they do the mining and gathering operations.”

“How deep are you planning to make these things?” grunted Sarah.

“This isn’t me adjusting things,” rebuffed Amdirlain. “The ghost caverns already go deep. If the passages are open, reaching the deepest caverns can take weeks or months. From what I can tell, between all the graves, they likely pull tonnes of materials out of them every month; if not for the resources and materials spent inside, they’d be having issues.”

“Have you figured out how they did it?”

“To some extent, the gods that constructed the curse didn’t come into the Material Plane. Its focus is on the edge of the Astral Plane, anchored to extend a conduit where their enemy’s souls transition across the planar threshold, feeding off their transition. The more people that have died in a region, the stronger and larger the conduit becomes,” explained Amdirlain.

Sarah hissed and clicked her tongue. “Wizards like to stay put and study. Civilisations need stability for advancements to occur,” commented Sarah. “They tried to sucker punch them right where it would hurt. Anything anchoring it from this side?”

“Sympathetic magic to the bloodlines of those enemies, from what I can tell, though I don’t know if an enchanted object or relic is helping with that aspect,” admitted Amdirlain. “The noise of the curse is pretty loud.”

“Can’t handle opposing divine might just yet?” quipped Sarah.

Amdirlain gave an exaggerated sigh. “Not yet.”

“How about a division of labour?” proposed Sarah, her smile unfaded.

“What did you have in mind?”

Sarah held out a hand. “You can provide a gadget to isolate and wipe the infested memories, and I’ll kill the Eldritch Manipulators. That will free your time for Charisma training, music, the graves, and planning for stronger Eldritch.”

Crossing her arms, Amdirlain grinned. “I think you can do better than just that. I know you were a Wizard in other lives. Do you remember any Spell lists that would help?”

“I can prepare the grimoires,” proposed Sarah. “But you learn them first before handing them over. Some aspects might endanger you since, technically, you’re not from this realm originally.”

“Speaking of endangering me: what did Kadaklan tell you about his ability to track me?”

“I wondered when you’d ask. It's not as bad as it sounds. He can track you because of the amount of Ki you’ve got contained. An impossible life hot-spot that was only useful because we knew the world and city you were in,” explained Sarah.

“He mentioned he had a way to get in touch with me. I worried it had allowed him to do more,” admitted Amdirlain. “Still, if I’ve missed that aspect, I’ll need to improve my concealments.”

Sensing Jul’iane exit the apartment, Amdirlain tilted her head towards the stairs and let the illusion drop. While Jul’iane was climbing the stairs, Amdirlain implanted songs into a crystal block to handle the purge of corrupted memories and de-aging, and then she set it for Sarah’s use. After handing it over with instructions, Amdirlain sat down on one of the battered chairs.

It vanished from Sarah’s hand, and she smiled. “So they want to get you to meet a companion. That sounds saucy.”

“No idea what Class is involved, but it makes me wonder if they gain experience from entertaining higher-levelled people,” Amdirlain responded.

“Some classes like that are more confidantes and psychologists, not sexual, but others are more rock-you-all-night-long types. Want to bet which their companions are?”

“Not with how my luck has been with skills,” grumbled Amdirlain.

Jul’iane appeared at the entrance to the stairs and waved. “Hi. Mum asked if you could wait longer as Kadaklan offered to examine her leg. She also said she’d heard enough to warrant sending off a note to her friends. Hopefully, she’ll hear from them or their employers soon.”

“Thanks for letting us know,” said Amdirlain, and she waved Jul’iane over. “Care to join us?”

“As long as I’m not intruding,” replied Jul’iane. “The way you walked across the hall was a boneless glide. Do you think that’s whatever skills you and Mum were referring to?”

“I don’t know what factors contribute the most,” replied Amdirlain. “Your moves were incredibly athletic and aggressive. Do you have combat skills you draw on to contribute to that dancing?”

“I don’t know what you mean. That was just a classical Dance routine,” replied Jul’iane.

“I know enough hand-to-hand fighting that you would have seriously hurt foes if those moves landed. Some were too showy to be practical in a fight except to finish an incapacitated opponent, but others were direct attacks or blocks,” stated Amdirlain, and she mentally nudged Sarah.

“Like a training kata?” asked Sarah.

“A difficult and dramatic kata,” agreed Amdirlain.

“Can you show me some moves?” asked Jul’iane.

“How about I take you through the moves you did first and consider their purpose? Knowing the reason behind something can lend emotional weight to a performance,” suggested Amdirlain.

Jul’iane nodded. “Okay.”

Amdirlain grinned and moved over to Jul’iane. “I’ll go over the small moves I recognised first. How about we go through the different moves your mum called 'hand accents'?”

The move Jul’iane started with went from hip to her opposite shoulder.

“That could gut someone if your claws were out,” noted Amdirlain. “You’d need to draw your arm back further so you’ve got enough momentum before making contact; otherwise, your claws would scratch along their skin.”

“No way,” protested Jul’iane.

Sarah chuffed. “Does everyone in the city only use energy projectors for fighting?”

“Unless they’re wizards. After all, it’s not like biting and clawing will hurt a spectre or other undead,” dismissed Jul’iane. “Dad and the other soldiers learn what works against serious threats. It’s not like we’re hunting for our supper.”

They’ve neglected their natural weaponry, but I guess what Jul’iane said makes sense without something like Ki.

“If you could use Ki like Kadaklan and others, you’d be ripping apart spectres with your bare hands,” huffed Amdirlain.

Not to mention being able to heal people better than Life Mana spells.

Jul’iane scoffed. “You’re kidding, right?”

“No, you can ask Kadaklan. If you’ve not got any classes yet, maybe he can show you options you never dreamed of before,” advised Amdirlain.

“I will, but will you show me some of your moves?” asked Jul’iane.

‘She’s not only meaning attacks, you know.’ Sarah broadcast.

‘Hush you. She is a real teenager.’