The first time Dante came up with this technique, he read about an old fighting style called ‘capoeira’. At first, he just wanted to impress Julz with a unique form of dance- like a bird trying to court a mate.
It worked, and she really enjoyed the performance. But from there, he tried it in sims, then added a hula hoop and made it a blade. It took a lot of practice. A lot of cuts to get it right but he eventually pulled through and found his rhythm.
It's probably been his favourite strategy since he figured it out- he’s definitely worked harder at it than any of the others.
His shield is pretty nifty- he didn't know how much damage it could truly take until Cassie threw him in the deep end. He has so much more trust in his shield now, he didn't realize how much he didn't trust it before then.
But what else? Does he need anything else? He’s got a closer quarter offence and a long-range defence. Maybe a range attack is a good idea but that wouldn't feel comfortable. He’s more familiar with fighting up closer so doubling down on that could be his best bet. Cassie’s energy blades are really cool.
She’d be so pissed if I copied her, He chuckles to himself as he lays on his rickety single bed- trying not to move too much because he might wake Julz.
_DANTE FORST (FIFTH TEIR)
_SCORE: 0.2
STRENGTH: 2
AGILITY: 6
MANA: 8
PERCEPTION: 2
STRATEGY: 2
**28 STAT POINTS AVAILABLE
“Holy Shit!” Dante blurts aloud- before freezing in place to make sure he hasn't woken anyone up.
He looks back at his HUD to reread. Twenty eight? Most of this must have been from that combat experience. This will put me about halfway to a score of one!
Most Fourth-tier Zo’an pass the test when their score is around one, with anomalies here and there where some might achieve it sooner or later than the average.
I've got to achieve it sooner, Dante thinks to himself before the looming weight of washing Nadia’s clothes comes to vision- I could be doing it for months! Year's even! Until they get to third tier.
He looks over to Nadia’s bedside where all he sees are a few messy sheets.
Don't tell me she’s training right now, Dante sighs.
He hops out of bed, slowly putting on his overalls and his PEG before making his way to the sim. Nadia’s obviously the type to work her ass off so of course she’s in the sim at three in the damn morning. Of course, Dante has to train too. Otherwise, he’s basically accepting defeat.
As he walks through the camp, complaining to himself about getting up for training, he can't help but empty his mind at the sight of the skyline- sure it's filled with the rubble of a fallen civilization… But, it's beautiful.
In a grim, sombre kind of way.
“Couldn't even let me get a head start?” Nadia chuckles as Dante enters the main tent, where even in the dead of night, there are soldiers awake and scattered throughout the cafeteria.
“You’ve got a higher rating than I do,” Dante responds, “You already got a head start,”
“That’s not true, you just haven't used your stat points yet,” She says as she leans against the railing of the arena.
That's true, Dante still needs to use them. It's probably best that he does so now and begins training with his new limits.
“You’re finally going to use them?” Nadia says as she hops over the barrier of the arena and looks at Dante’s stats alongside him.
_DANTE FORST (FIFTH TEIR)
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
_SCORE: 0.2
STRENGTH: 2
AGILITY: 6
MANA: 8
PERCEPTION: 2
STRATEGY: 2
**28 STAT POINTS AVAILABLE
“You probably have a bunch too,” Dante rolls his eyes, “Have you used yours?”
“Not yet,” She replies as her stats appear in front of Dante.
_NADIA MEHDI (FIFTH TEIR)
_SCORE: 0.34
STRENGTH: 4
AGILITY: 10
MANA: 4
PERCEPTION: 8
STRATEGY: 8
**26 STAT POINTS AVAILABLE
“I don't really know what to use them on either… I've never had this many points before,”
“Same,” Dante sighs.
“Maybe we double down on our current paths?” Dante suggests, “We’re going to get more points anyway,”
Nadia tilts her head in consideration before her expression changes to resolve, and she suddenly begins allocating her stat points.
_NADIA MEHDI (FIFTH TEIR)
_SCORE: 0.34 (+0.26)
STRENGTH: 4 (+5)
AGILITY: 10 (+9)
MANA: 4 (+1)
PERCEPTION: 8 (+6)
STRATEGY: 8 (+5)
**AWAITING CONFIRMATION
Dante squints as he wonders what her selection process is, “Wait, why did you put-?”
“I’m not telling,” Nadia grins deviously before confirming her decision
_NADIA MEHDI (FIFTH TEIR)
_SCORE: 0.6
STRENGTH: 9
AGILITY: 19
MANA: 5
PERCEPTION: 14
STRATEGY: 13
**CONFIRMED
**0 STAT POINTS AVAILABLE
They both sheepishly glare at one another as the sound of her implants briefly whirr in place.
“Feel any different?” Dante asks.
“A little…” Nadia says as she holds up her hands and rotates them in front of her face, “I feel, lighter,”
“That’s so cool! Your score jumped by almost double!” Dante says getting excited about her approach to a score of one.
“Yeah,” Nadia briefly blushes at Dante’s gushing, “Your turn,”
“Oh,” Dante stammers before looking back at his stats and taking a long hard look at them.
Cassie said Dante needs to commit to his decisions. That his versatility is useless if he doesn't commit mana to his decision- from what he’s experienced training against Melinda and his first time in combat, it's safe to say she’s right.
“Well?” Nadia asks, crossing her arms.
Dante says nothing, and starts inputting his points.
“Wait,” Nadia says as she watches Dante’s stat distribution.
_DANTE FORST (FIFTH TEIR)
_SCORE: 0.2 (+0.28)
STRENGTH: 2 (+3)
AGILITY: 6 (+5)
MANA: 8 (+15)
PERCEPTION: 2 (+3)
STRATEGY: 2 (+2)
**AWAITING CONFIRMATION
“Are you sure?…”
Dante looks up and smiles, “Only one way to find out,”
_DANTE FORST (FIFTH TEIR)
_SCORE: 0.48
STRENGTH: 5
AGILITY: 11
MANA: 23
PERCEPTION: 5
STRATEGY: 4
**CONFIRMED
** 0 STAT POINTS AVAILABLE
Dante raises his hands in a similar fashion to Nadia, absently gazing at the intangible change he feels. As if a pool you regularly swim in has gotten deeper- and you must now familiarize yourself with these newfound depths.
“Feel any different?” Nadia asks with a glare of curiosity.
“Kinda,” Dante responds before looking at her.
“Then if you're done gawking at yourself, let’s go try out our new shoes,” Nadia says with excitement, pointing at the arena.
“You're on,” Dante says grinning back.