The growth of his ‘Spirit’ had plunged since Ewan became a Step-1 Severynth, as it was the norm for his level. Even months of feedback from his Astylinds only pulled him up an inch, and it would persist for the rest of the step, more so at higher stages. Frost and Orange stood at Grade-B while Iris was on Grade-D, so he still had a lot of room until he reached the final extent of the feedback, not to mention he’d yet to contract a new Astylind. But potential was a cloud of smoke, and the current reality weighed down on him. After all, if he went with the current pace, he would reach his peak when his life would end.
The predecessors left their solution for the succeeding generations, and it lay in external assistance. And Ewan chose potions for it while the crushing defeat from his last experiment ate away at his confidence.
Lance swung his scythe in the training hall, hurled his shield, pulled the chain back, and looked for his own style of combat, doused in sweat. Kidd worked on his combination with Willy, honed his agility with the daggers, trained his stealth with the Dark-Anima, developed ‘cool’ techniques, and haunted the ceilings of the corridor. Stefan gazed at the stars from the deck, adjusted the map and their direction along the way, repaired any damage to the ship he could, and often hummed a blue melody as he swept.
As the three got busy and as the Stormfalcon made its way to the next island, Okona Key, Ewan chose a recipe series from his journal to realize his purpose, a set of recipes under the same umbrella named Hunter’s Worth—Hunter’s Worth: Tonic, Hunter’s Worth: Anima, Hunter’s Worth: Feedback, Hunter’s Worth: Zeal, and Hunter’s Worth: Enliven.
Recipes meriting a name easily distinguished themselves from the pack of their unnamed brothers. Unless it was a self-proclaimed potion lacking the peer reviews, their conferred names lived up to their outperformance. However, even with their high efficiency, their excellence came at the cost of more resources and higher valued ingredients. So much so that a single brew of a named potion could wrinkle a well-fed pocket. And even though he only wanted to brew one type from the series right now—Hunter’s Worth: Feedback—his now bigger space of his claw-ring failed to deliver.
The auxiliaries and the catalysts hovered in his claw-ring, tucked away safely in their wooden boxes. He could procure the needed Anima-Crystals too, and even their elements weren’t an issue because of his
The feedback version of the potion worked on the paths that belonged to a specific system—it enhanced the incoming feedback for those who used it to progress. And the Severynths reigned the category, the potion came to be for their needs. The only concern was its operation process, for the Astylinds had to ingest it to amplify their feedback. Ewan trusted the journal and believed in the remarks of his family, but this concerned his Astylinds who couldn’t detail the problems for him if the potion had any. And so, his skepticism bucked up. If only he had a guinea pig to test the potion on first…
“Now, where could I possibly find one…,” he muttered aloud and strolled towards the training hall with an impish tug on his lips. The mirth he expected from the process of verification tore a slit in his gloomy clouds and a ray of warm sunlight cascaded on him.
The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.
….
“Please state your highest rank, names, and your purpose of visit.” The communication channel flared up in the bridge with white noise when a man’s garbled voice came in. The island of Okona Key had cleared the horizon and its lush now lay before the Stormfalcon, the milky walls of the only colony contrasting the green around, and the peak of its snow-capped mountain sticking out above the bounds. It was an age ago since Ewan last saw a walled colony. All the islands he visited so far, even the coastal city of spices, bared it for the nature to take its course. Nonetheless, this was a familiar change of taste.
“Step-1. Ewan Ayres, Kidd, Stefan Rad, and Lance onboard Stormfalcon. Visiting for business.” Ewan opened the channel and replied, the other three also staring at the screen with him.
“Will they attack us too?” Kidd asked.
“Unlikely,” Ewan said.
“Please maintain the lowest thrust possible and follow the canal,” the man said in common tongue. “Please do not deboard unless given the permission to. Please kill your thrusters when you reach the wall. You may maintain your defense shield but please refrain from any violent fluctuations that may trigger our response. Please do not extend your Ryvia beyond the walls. Please be mindful of your actions as any and all forms of aggression will be taken as a threat to our oligarchy and will be retaliated against.”
“That’s a long list of requirements,” Lance said under his breath.
“We comply,” Ewan said into the channel and led the Stormfalcon towards the shrinking canal, the lines of foliage welcoming them on the sides. The thrusters died with a few flutters when they reached the wall, and they parked near the bank, the tweets of birds taking over again amidst the rising silence.
“Do you have any questions for us?” the man asked.
“How’s your Rigen stock?” Ewan asked.
“We’re running low.”
“That’s all then,” Ewan said.
----------------------------------------
Next Chapter Free on Patreon
Status: Healthy
Step-1 Severynth [Spirit-Nebula: Zeroth Surge]
Subtype: Step-0 Elementalist
Name: Ewan Ayres
Species: Human
Vitality: 7.0
Spirit: 25.4
Anima: [Fire – 25.4 | Ice – 25.4 | Blood – 25.4 | Mystic: 25.4]
Astylinds: 4 [Potential: 1]
Rolling Cat [Toast]: Step-1 Severynth [Spirit-Nebula: Zeroth Surge]
----------------------------------------
Fire Monkey [Orange]: Step-1 [Level-10] [Grade-B]
----------------------------------------
Imp [Frost]: Step-1 [Level-10] [Grade-B]
----------------------------------------
Bloodthorn-Lotus [Iris]: Step-1 [Level-10] [Grade-D]
Equipment: Common Clothes; Yurn [Neck Gaiter]; Moonkeeper [Crystal-Ball]; Rainwarden [Staff]; Blackfeather [Overcoat].
Storage: Journal; Elementalist—The Path of Anima [Subtype-Book]; Spellbook; Bloodlust [Spell]; Transmute [Spell]; Unknown Book [Radon’s Legacy]; Anima-Crystals [Novas Coins]; Hub-Connector; Ingredients.
Novas: 25,145
Crelith: 1,014