Not willing to perish the thought, Luke cast Essence Bond on Sooty. She let out a bird warrior’s rattle as she looked toward the nearest unbroken mirror. A tense moment passed between Luke and Sooty, waiting for the results.
The mirror stayed serene, deflating poor Sooty, her warrior spirit fleeing the scene. She let out a disappointed click. Rubbing his warrior-birds feather, Luke cheered her up.
“At least we know it works now, right? Come, we can figure out the next mirror somehow.”
The two of them came to the next set of mirrors, those being in the 3rd row. Sooty flew up close to the mirror. She hopped around, almost taunting the creatures inside. Luke imagined she said something like: Can’t break free now? What are you going to do then? I’m right here, suckers!
Before Luke’s imagination could run too wild, Sooty sent over some feeling from the Reaver Link. Roughly, the emotion was one of readiness. This mirror was clear-able, according to Sooty at least. Essence Bond reached the end of its duration.
Not looking for any other confirmation, Luke took off the blindfold. Letting his devilishly good 'looks' do their thing. The mirror cracked faster than a water tank full of lava. Don’t ask.
Before all the glass fell to the floor, Luke rolled in. Subconsciously, essence began to flood his eyes. A silver-blue glow made his already blue eyes impossibly bright. Reminiscent of the Spectral Lord’s sockets.
The gravity in this realm was triple what it was outside. Immediately, Luke’s shoulders felt the strain. Sooty could fly still, but her speed wasn’t comparable to its normal pace. However, his strength stat wasn’t just for show, and swinging around Whispering Edge was only slightly more difficult.
Unfortunately for Sooty, as nearly all of her stats went to intellect or agility, she met a severe counter for the first time. The crow adapted to the situation, firmly attached to Luke’s shoulder. She’d only have short flights while in here.
The realm was akin to the inside of a gray plane, with each section cubed. There wasn’t any sky, or dirt for that matter. Every inch of the place was just long slabs of rough stone. It should come as no surprise, then, when the only monsters occupying the area were a few rock element creatures. Humanoid in shape but made of brownish-red stone. They had minor, worn-down indents for eye sockets.
Luke hurriedly pulled up their information using the Interface.
[Rock Man] (Elite)
Level: 17
HP: 800/800
Yes, I know the name is *super* inventive. I don’t make the rules, okay? Somebody else does that.
Being surrounded by elite Rock Men would’ve been worrying for Luke usually, but he’d had enough of that mindset. Moreover, they were sparse in number and mainly spread apart. Only about ten were in the strange space he occupied.
“Let’s just tackle now, worry later.”
Doing his best to incorporate situational awareness, Luke spread Wraith Wail to the more concentrated group within its range. The group of four slowed to a crawl. Rock Men were already slow creatures in this gravity-intense environment, and a 50% slow for five seconds capitalized on that weakness perfectly.
With one set of Rock Men effectively controlled, Luke let his eyes do their work. A well-placed Essence Lance could slow down another three in one batch. The frosty Essence shimmered, swirling into a deathly blue structure. The lance shot, used not for damage but to slow those three down for as long as possible.
Treating this fight as a way to test his limits, he attempted to cast Essence Bond onto Whispering Edge. The ability bounced back, and his resources were refunded. Instead, Luke remembered the skill would give a percentage of all his stats.
Rather than cast it on an enemy like I usually do, giving it to Sooty would be better here. Luke thought. The additional strength would let her become a deadly flying menace like usual.
Using a free hand, he touched Sooty. Essence Bond passed through his hands and onto her. The bird let out a caw in thanks. At least Luke liked to think so. During the short process, the duo closed in on the only Rock Man by itself.
Luke took the front. With the helping hand of Luke’s Essence Bond, Sooty managed to fly, although at reduced capacity. For the slow-moving Rock Men, however, it would be enough. A stony fist missed Luke as he tilted his head while moving his neck—a rush of air passed by the Reaver’s face.
Sooty struck from behind, taking lessons in backstabbing. The Spatial Feather lit up, and ancient magic surrounded Sooty. The talon strike made the Stone Man shudder. She rotated Reaver Beak with regular attacks.
Luke refused her Iron Feather this time, insisting she keep it for herself. Her mobility wasn’t its usual picture in this place. As such, a few rock men surrounding her may land a hit. Infusion and Essence bond helped the corvid, but it wasn’t a total fix.
He lashed out with the sword, taking Whispering Edge into a firm grip. Getting a feel for a more evasive style. His cuts left a slight frost after he struck. Only stopping when Infusion’s stacks ran out.
What changed? How did my Essence become ice cold enough to release frost?
Leaving the mind chatter be, he continued the slow dance against one stone man. While he was landing plenty of strikes, the simple but sturdy monster had high HP and armor—a classic tank type.
The attack patterns were too simple for Luke by now. Just one of these wouldn't pose a problem. As the stone creature fell, two of its brethren reached Sooty. Luke twisted his sword and let Essence Fissure rip out. The outpouring of Essence dominated the sky once more, and the two monsters buckled to their knees.
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Using Reaver Link’s ease of communicating emotion, the bird and man team focused one down. The two’s attack speed reached maximum momentum without worrying about defense or dodging. Re-infusing Whispering Edge and Sooty midway gave enough power behind the tactic to dice and rake one Stone Man to zero hit points.
The other stone man struggled to its knees. While the other fell from its position, no longer moving. The third group was closing the remaining distance. The two of them would be unable to destroy the remaining stone man in time.
Aiming for silver instead of gold in that case, the two targeted one knee of the Stone Man. The frost continued to stack, making the pinpointed area increasingly brittle. Making the most of his final strike, Luke rotated semi-circularly. The sword sliced through the air, frost leaving barely perceptible ice crystals in the wake. His blade met a fierce resistance. Despite everything, the stone man’s body was still tough as nails.
Forcing his feet back, Luke reamed Whispering Edge through its knee, albeit losing all momentum in the process. Luke was struck in the stomach in return for the blow, skidding back a few inches.
Not wishing to be surrounded, the two moved now that they had ruined the stone man. Kiting the remaining seven able-bodied Stone Men, Luke waited for a few seconds. Once Infusion was available, he spread it between Sooty and Whispering Edge.
Currently, the seven were still in two separate portions. This excursion would be pointless if he ran around waiting to spam Essence Lance. No, Luke needed pressure.
Combat with the Spectral Lord would demand constant dodges. Parrying that man-slaying blade would be folly. These mirror realms would be his last chance to practice that skill. Choosing pain now for survival later, Luke whirled himself at the three stone men.
Arching back his body, several fists weaved past. Sooty struck as she pleased, going into a freestyle loosely focused on distracting monsters for Luke when needed. Essence flowed to his eyes, and keeping track of multiple moving parts wasn’t as taxing.
There wasn’t some silly effect, like being able to ‘see faster’ if he had to put sense to it. He was more efficient at tracking the movements around him.
Yet another unexplained component. Just how many aspects are there to a Reaver I have no clue about?
Light slashes were all that he could manage. The purpose wasn’t to grind these stone men down but to have them as unwilling practice partners. Adjusting to the strange human, the stone men began to kick, as well as their usual sweeping punches.
The types of dodges and tactics Luke used continued to vary. In particular, he tried to use feints and false movement more. Expanding your limits always came with the occasional failure, and he took more than a few strikes to the upper leg or torso.
Bits of blood would appear from repeatedly struck areas. With health regeneration from the neckpiece and health steal from his rings, Luke achieved a prolonged decline in health. Wanting to extend his training, he asked Sooty to tag team with her Shadow Wing on the steadily approaching group of four.
The pressure from three stone men was lessening. Their patterns were too stale. His experience against them had become too great. Frost stacked more, continuing to spread over the area. Stone began to shiver. Permafrost enveloped the air. The frost aspect of his abilities developed further.
Luke’s essence attributed. A sign of any Reaver trying to reach deeper into the class beyond what the Interface revealed.
The monsters around continued to slow, layers of ice stacking. The three practice partners had lost their purpose. As a sign of gratitude, Luke cleaved through all three, sundering the stone men into ruin.
Stepping forward, the three bodies fell around him. Taking Whispering Edge, he rushed to assist Sooty. The shade had just dissipated. Four stone men proved too much for his crow, and she took a direct strike. Fortunately, the shade left its Iron Feather previously, softening the blow.
Luke’s expression twisted, and the Reaver’s eyes closed partially. Sooty rotated back his way. Taking one hand off Whispering Edge, he caught the only friend he could trust in this strange place. Placing her on his left shoulder, Luke spoke to Sooty.
“Strike when you see an opportunity, pal. I’ll take it from here.”
Infusion powered around Whispering Edge, and the frosty attribute intensified. Four sets of stone limbs came at him. Dodging and positioning continually to the left lowered their effectiveness as a group.
Aiming only to tap the monsters lightly with Whispering Edge, Luke continued practicing his dodging skills. Taking extra care that Sooty wasn’t injured in the process. At times, he’d integrate redirection using Whispering Edge.
Essence Bond had worn off Sooty some time ago. Luke instead applied the skill to one Stone Man. Then Sooty dutifully spread it to the other creatures using Essence Screech. The debuff put the four creatures into a more manageable range to train with.
A dance took place, one where Luke took a few wrong steps. Rather than tripping up, the punishment was a stone fist or a leg ramming his body. Ensuring Sooty didn’t take any damage herself amped up the difficulty, precisely what he wanted.
Adjusting the angle of his body, shifting his weight, and the position of the targets, each factor needed to be calculated. Over time, the frost continued to whittle away at these toyed-with Stone Men.
Once his health points reached dangerous territory, around 200, the intent to train vanished. Receiving Luke’s emotion, Sooty struck the first stone man to overextend itself. A talon strike to the throat caused the frozen stone to turn into ice dust.
The monsters became guarded, no longer trying to focus purely on offense. The change of pace was too late. Luke swiveled behind the three remaining targets, and Whispering Edge pierced two through the back. He took a single step back, and the alarmed counterattack of the stone man missed. Sooty flapped from Luke’s shoulder, and Reaver Beak finished the job.
Casually walking over to the stone man Sooty and Luke immobilized earlier, Luke garroted the defenseless monster.
Taking a seat near a pile of dead stone, he mentally ran through the training he subjected himself to. Luke called it training, but really, it was a battle with strings attached. Xera and Veronica had both made it clear. The current Luke wouldn’t cut it against the Spectral Lord.
His optimistic side knew that there were more stats to gain, health especially, and hopefully, one last helping hand through these crystals, but what then? Would it be enough? Twice now, he was told it wouldn’t be.
Sooty nestled herself next to him and let Luke take his breather. He planned to sit here until most of the damage from earlier regenerated. Although the grim reminder in the corner of his vision ensured he never stayed passive for too long.
[03:27:12]
Feeling the back of his neck, a missing chain involuntarily caused a few words to rush to the forefront of Luke’s mind.
You're shaping up to be a proper Reaver, lad. Time to ponder on what that truly means—there's more to it than you've uncovered so far.
Behind Wayfinder’s occasional rough guidance betrayed an experience that didn’t match his usual tongue. Yet, the compass couldn’t hide it completely. Those particular words stuck onto Luke’s mind, refusing to leave. His subconscious must’ve been working on the question, as Luke felt he had a partial answer.
“What being a Reaver means?” He said aloud. Only Sooty was around to hear him. His class was one that stole from others, among other traits. Going along with that train of thought, to him, being a Reaver was his means of freedom and survival.
“A Reaver means stealing back freedom.” This class would let him steal his way out of this cave and even out of this world. Luke would continue to steal until he got all the answers he needed.
And to make whoever or whatever sent him here pay dearly for it.