Lonesome Will
To fall into the space between is a death sentence. Your anomalous nature has saved you from destruction but soon you will wish it hadn’t.
Part 1: Heal your shell 4160/4160
The strong wither to dust in the space between. Will you do the same?
Part 2: Survive 21 days.18/21 -Available Resources have been extended to beyond this objective’s time limit.
Even the souls of the dead are made less in the place between. Will your feeble shell withstand the winds of desolation?
Part 3: Withstand the Winds of Desolation 0/1
You have found your path to survival now you must sustain it.
Warning: Do not leave the platform or allow it to be destroyed.
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Escape the place between: 0/1
Time Limit: 78 days
Rewards: Title, Two mortal lives.
Sweat continued to pour from Kal’s face as he continued the constant step between each clash between will tendril and thread of destruction. His will tendril production had slowed as the onslaught of the winds pushed him further and further.
He could not spare as much attention to the creation of will tendrils so instead he focused on improving his reaction time and power behind each parry and deflection with his will. Soon instead of simply deflecting each thread some snapped and exploded with a flash of pearlescent light.
When he managed to destroy a desolation thread it allowed him to more efficiently deflect another as his will tendril continued into the next, freeing up another to deflect another thread from a more awkward angle.
For now, his growing experience was enough to allow him to keep up with the increasingly more aggressive winds but Kal could not get complacent. Every moment he had to continue to improve, if a single thread managed to strike his chest or head he would die. There was no making mistakes, no room for a blunder, no time for rest.
But even after days of continuous exertion and mental strain he couldn’t help but smile as each strike detonated, showering the void with white light. It was exhilarating, this challenge was what he had dreamed of as an unascended.
“~~~”
Kal felt something at the very edge of his perception but the constant detonation and mental strain of battling the winds almost drained it out completely. Kal didn’t dare spend the concentration on looking into the sound as another line was carved into the platform with even that tiny recognition.
“Kal!”
This time Kal heard it and he turned his head in confusion to gaze around at the utter black of the void. He had the sudden feeling that he was being watched and then he recognized the voice.
“Dalen?”
How could he be here? The feeling of being watched vanished and Kal frowned. Dalen couldn’t be here, could he?
“No, they had time. They made it out…”
His lapse in concentration caused another line of platform to vanish in an instant so Kal growled and dragged his mind back to the fight. There was no time for distractions.
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Quotz sat down calmly on the lounge and gave her brother an even smile, “Of course Brother it has been too long. My studies have truly distracted me in the past few years.”
Dhinir’s presence distorted the pleasant sky above her domain with his golden light but she ignored it and focused on her brother’s face.
His face remained neutral but his eyes burned with such anger that it gave her chills. Before she could have just shrugged it off but now, now things are different.
“Of course Sister, I trust that you would inform me of any discoveries?” Dhinir’s eyes hardened further, “Or would simply keep that information to yourself like how you failed to mention the death of one of my inquisitors in one of your prophet's very cities?”
Quotz didn’t flinch at the accusation,” As you know Brother I have little contact with my followers, whether they chose to disclose that information to me is up to them, assuming it happened at all,” She patted down her dress,” Were you not informed by your own followers? ”
Dhinir’s face darkened despite it remaining perfectly still,” Of course, I should not have suggested it as such,” The darkening faded as he continued but his tone remained harsh,” Tell me Sister, How is it that a freak like this Kalum Lesta could remain unnoticed within a city under your prophet’s control?”
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Quotz frowned internally but didn’t let it reach her face,” The mortals are beneath us, as you say, Brother. I pay little attention to them. Why would he be anything different? Is this something to do with the experiment our traitorous brother mentioned?”
Dhinir frowned this time,” You would believe the words of a traitor Sister? Perhaps I have been too lenient on you and Dhoerin,” Dhinir’s eyes burned brighter,” I will be blunt Sister, since you seem to be so willing to dance at the edge of betrayal. My followers will cleanse every last mortal who has made contact with Kalum Lesta,” Golden arcs began to warp the air around Dhinir’s form, and the blue sky marred with gold was completely washed away with blinding light,” You will not stand in my way.”
And then he was gone. The sky shuddered as the golden light retreated, leaving a dark divide that showcased the frailty of her domain. Quotz frowned as she watched the regenerative threads of her domain reach out to repair the damage but she knew it was a waste of energy. It wasn’t like before.
Quotz took a quiet breath, opened her mind, and reached out to the only brother she could really trust, “The time comes… Prepare your people.”
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The sound of countless scribbling pens and the panicked groans of students filled the examination hall of The Grand Academy of Vandarra. The room was lit by hundreds of dim blue lights that hung over every student's head as they hunched over their small desks and filled in their exam papers.
But Jayne barely paid attention to any of that as she focused on her own paper, “This is bloody ridiculous! How many pages do they need?!”
All of the examinations were hard throughout her first few years in the academy but this one was something else and of course, it was her worst subject. It was on the workings of time mana and how it interacts with other affinities of mana.
“Why do I need to even know this stuff?! I’m an ice mage damn it!” Jayne muttered to herself internally.
She didn’t dare speak and she was reminded why an instant later as Paul, a small long haired earth mage muttered something, “Is it C? No B,” The light floating above him flashed red and both the boy and his desk vanished in a puff of smoke and heat.
Speaking was utterly forbidden during an examination. The punishment was an automatic fail along with the terrible recovery from the sudden teleportation. Paul would be emptying his guts for the next few hours if it was anything like the time Jayne had experienced during her first exam.
Jayne shivered at the thought and turned her focus back to her paper. She was struggling. Time mana and skills were bloody weird in her opinion and despite her frustration with learning it, she understood why she had to.
In the past few hundred years the average rarity of people’s classes was slowly dropping which on its own did not sound too serious since the larger The Empire of Van’dar’s population got, the more common it would be to see the lower rarities as well as the high but it was also taking a toll on the average level of the entire empire.
People with inferior classes were lucky to make it to their class upgrade, and common classes above level forty-five were practically unheard of. Uncommon normally reached into the eighties after years of growth. Only those with rare or higher classes were able to have a chance at reaching the great heights of one hundred and reaching their second-class upgrade.
It was something that had divided the people of the empire for centuries and it was only getting worse. Jayne’s own father was a perfect example of the strange phenomena, he had worked in the mines for decades and still only remained at level forty-one. He had been incredibly lucky in gaining the Opal Eye skill that had won him status far above his rarity. Even so, he was quite weak. Jayne didn’t like to think of her father that way but it was the truth. He was cursed with both the lesser attributes and the endless grind of what was now being called The Drain amongst scholars.
Thinking of her father twisted her heart as it brought back the memory of what he did. He had abandoned Kal in all but name and on the rare occasions that she had been able to return home to Farninghold he had refused to even let Jayne see her brother.
A tear threatened to well up in her eye but she bit her lip and concentrated on this damned exam. If her father wouldn’t bring Kalum home she would just have to be famous enough to get a house of her own.
A loud crash startled Jayne from her concentration and nearly a dozen students shouted before winking out of the room. The entry door to the examination room had slammed open hard enough to hit the stone wall. Three men in the green-red tabards of The Van’dar Empire stood scanning their eyes across the students.
A large muscular man with black hair and a scar that left a cleft in his nose locked eyes with Jayne, he sneered and stepped into the room. Before his foot had touched the ground the air beside him warped and an elderly woman in a deep purple robe appeared. It was Professor Gera, the examination supervisor.
“You! What are you doing here? This is an examination!” Professor Gera yelled into the face of the scarred man. Her voice was reedy and frail but the tone of authority was as clear as ever.
The scarred man began to answer but Professor Gera cut in,” No don’t answer that. I do not care,” His face twisted into a snarl but before he could do anything all three of the men vanished.
Jayne would have felt sorry for them but her heart was pounding, “Why did he look at me like that? Were they looking for me?” Jayne had been forced to deal with people like that before. Sometimes the nobles who weren’t fond of a common man’s child being allowed entry into the Academy of Vandarra would send people to terrorize her. Most of the time they were just common rarity thugs, she may only be fifteen but she could handle herself, she was a soon-to-be ice mage after all.
But those men were different, they were actual soldiers. She looked again at the Identify results.
[Theran Dalna | Marauder ? | Human]
[Sedric Langly | Swordsman ? | Human]
[Lendan Smalan | Hunter ? | Human]
She gulped, if they were looking for her she was in trouble, “No Jayne, you're just imagining things. Why would they want you anyway?” It was a ridiculous thought. But something else had caught her eye in the moments before the three men had vanished.
Insignia of Dhinir [Uncommon]
This insignia is worn by the faithful warriors of the Lord of Conquest Dhinir. Only those who have served their lord in combat have the honor of wearing this insignia.
“Ok everyone, we will recommence the examination. I have added fifteen minutes to the duration to allow you time to regain your composure. Do not worry about the student who triggered the teleportation arrays. They will continue their examinations at a later date,” Professor Gera waved her hand and vanished in a puff of smoke.
It took Jayne far longer than fifteen minutes to clear her mind but she eventually persuaded herself that she was indeed imagining things. But a memory she had from the day she first returned home to see her family and learned of her mother’s death and Kal’s abandonment.
Her father had said something as he stood over his wife’s grave.
“Dhinir scum…”