Glade took his first real breath of fresh air since they had stumbled out of the caves. The crisp mountain breeze burned against his face as the snow covered vista brought peace to his soul. If he never saw the inside of a cave again, it would be too soon.
“Oi! What do ye think yer doin?” Krazzik cried. “Yer the one who done said we need to get the slagging spider out o’ the hall, and now yer the one lollygaggin? Shameful, I tell ye. Just shameful.”
Glade laughed, spreading his arms wide and lifting his face to the sun. It had been far too long since he had felt this free. He wasn’t claustrophobic by nature, but after having the literal weight of a mountain hanging over his head for so long may have tilted his preferences toward outdoor living.
Turning back to the entrance, Glade rejoined the effort to maneuver the spider queen’s body through the hall’s double doors. It wasn’t easy. They had to first chop off the spider’s many legs, which was harder than one might think seeing as no one had the proper tools to cut through crystal exoskeleton. It had been a far messier experience than one would think but they had finally removed the legs and were almost done.
A few minutes, and a great deal of dwarvish swearing later, Glade sat down and simply enjoyed the novelty of clouds rolling by. Seeing as he didn’t have any other responsibilities, he pulled up his prompts.
You and your party have defeated 49 x level 1, 31 x level 2, 19 x level 3, 5 level 4, and 3 Level 5 Astral Spiders. You have been awarded 3,095 XP ((17,841 XP / 23) + (17,841 XP x .13 Strategist/Tactician Bonus)).
You and your party have defeated 2 x level 11 and 1 x level 13 Astral Spiders (Strikers - Evolved Form). You have been awarded 1,206 XP ((6,950 XP / 23) + (6,950 x .13 Strategist/Tactician Bonus)).
You and your party have defeated 1 x level 19 Lesser Astral Spider Queen. You have been awarded 1,453 XP ((8,400 XP / 23) + (8,400 x .13 Strategist/Tactician Bonus)).
Congratulations! You are now level 10! Through hard work and sacrifice you have advanced along your path. Let the knowledge of who you are and what you stand for guide you throughout your journey.
As an Enlightened Human you gain 5 attribute points to allocate, with an additional point being auto allocated to the attribute most used since the last level gained.
Note: One attribute point has been auto allocated to Willpower.
The XP and level gain were more than welcome. Kedryn was almost to level 11 and while Glade didn't feel like he was behind, he didn't like the fact the Kid was about out level him. Pushing that particular problem aside, he resumed reading his prompts.
Congratulations! By demonstrating all required skills to advance by defeating a being two full ranks above you in skill, the Adjudicator of Courage has found you worthy to progress from the rank of Amateur to that of Trainee!
Note: You have favorably demonstrated that you can communicate with more than one entity; you have withstood a psychic assault from a level 19 Lesser Astral Spider Queen; you have overcome a level 19 Lesser Astral Spider Queen’s defense. +1 INT, +2 WIS for accomplishing such a feat.
Warning! Demonstrated telepathic abilities do not reflect true talent or understanding. It would be wise to find a better method of learning the art of psionic combat than fumbling around like the masochist that you are.
Congratulations! You have attained skill level 9 in Telepathy! At the Trainee level you may communicate telepathically with 2 targets. Current Radius: 15 feet per skill level. Cost: 10 mana + 5 stamina per 10 seconds of active use after connecting to target. Total range: 135 feet.
Glade stared at the last two prompts in his queue. If he didn't know the adjudicators were watching him before, he most definitely did now. Only ranked experts could transition someone from one skill rank to another, or so he had thought. Apparently, almost getting killed while going up against something more powerful than you had its perks besides the XP. Truth be told, he still didn’t understand how he had overcome the spider queen. Which was why the warning was important to take to heart. Hopefully, the book Acumen had given him had some pointers.
Fortunately for them, any spider still alive after their battle with the spider queen had gone completely comatose. From what they could piece together, not only had the queen been commanding the lesser spiders with her hive mind ability but she had given them purpose as well. Once she had been removed from the equation all the other spiders had just… stopped.
They were easy enough to exterminate after that. All except the remaining Striker. Leave it to the dwarven scholar and morbidly curious Corporal to intentionally study the most dangerous live specimen out of the bunch. The only person missing was Riya.
Glade turned his gaze toward the elf who sat meditating under a pine tree. That she was under a tree in the first place wasn’t the unusual part, even though she had told them how dangerous such an act would be for her people.
No, what bothered him was that Riya was wreathed in wisps of shadow so dark her appearance was like she was engulfed in nothing but black flame. He couldn’t even see the details of her face.
Glade reread the specs on the Ring of Shadow Armor they had recovered from the shadow elf’s remains.
You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.
You have found a Planar Ring of Shadow Armor. This gold and ebony twined ring is inscribed with ancient elvish runes and embossed with treated black and yellow diamond dust. The bearer of this planar ring may call Armor from the Plane of Shadow once per day. Provides an active defense by encapsulating the bearer with planar shadow armor at the first sign of danger or if called. Reduces any physical attack by 50%. All magical attacks (with the exception of light-based spells) will pass through to the Shadow Realm, leaving the bearer unharmed.
Durability: 734/750
Grade: Exquisite
Rarity: Rare
Weight: 0.2 lbs
Charges: Unknown
Duration: Unknown
Value: Unknown
According to Patch’s report, he and a fellow dwarf had followed Glade’s directive to rescue Riya to the letter. They just hadn’t known they accidentally dragged her under the boughs of a pine tree until it was too late.
Glade still didn’t understand exactly what the curse entailed, but apparently there had been a few moments before the shadow armor kicked in that had shaken the no nonsense quartermaster to his core. Patch still refused to talk about it.
The laws of physics didn’t seem to apply to this world, at least as far as Glade understood them. Which meant, every time he had experienced something out of the ordinary since arriving from earth was a surprise. He had been surprised a lot over the last week.
That being said, the first time seeing Riya sitting under a tree while her body was wreathed in wisps of shadow hadn’t surprised him as much as it caused him a moment of panic.
“How are you doing?” Glade asked, sitting next to Riya.
A flash of annoyance crossed her face, or at least what he interpreted as annoyance. It wasn’t like he could read her expression with tendrils of shadow covering her face.
“The same as I was the last time you asked,” Riya sighed. “The curse was stopped before it could do any real damage and the shadow armor lets me experience the Trees Embrace.”
By the time she finished, Riya’s mild annoyance had transitioned to quiet awe. He hadn’t known what she meant by the Tree’s Embrace until Kedryn had explained that elves have a racial bonus when they are around trees. They get a small increase to health, mana, and stamina regeneration as well as heightened dexterity and concealment.
“Yes, I can see that,” Glade responded. “But you have already strained your mana channels keeping all of us alive. From what you mentioned earlier, the ring uses your mana to stay active. How are you doing, really?”
It took Riya a moment to respond. When she did, Glade finally detected a hint of strain in her voice.
“I have enough mana for another 20 minutes, maybe 25 if I can meditate. The Embrace gives me a bonus for regenerating mana, which helps. But the feeling…” Riya trailed off, her darkened face looking up to the boughs of the tree. “It's like nothing I have ever felt before. For first time in my life, I feel whole.”
Glade almost said he understood what she was going through. But how could he? If he had been forbidden to enjoy the shade of a tree his entire life, he too might have found the experience intoxicating.
Instead, he grunted an acknowledgement. He, like many of the male species, liked using a good grunt. It was a universal means of communication good for almost any situation.
They sat there in silence for another minute or so until Glade spoke again.
“You know, you can do this again tomorrow once your mana pool has fully regenerated and you get some rest. In fact, I recommend it. We still need to find out where the Mana Well is located and any other resources if we’re going to survive. Your expertise in Natural Lore will be essential for that. Also, do you really want to run the risk of pushing your mana channels beyond what's healthy?”
Riya grunted back, making Glade smile. If he translated the grunt correctly it meant ‘thanks, but mind your own business.’
A dozen ideas sprang up in his mind to help Riya understand that she needed to leave the shelter of the tree sooner rather than later so she could rest. Out of all of them, only one felt like it would work.
“If I was the one in your position, what would you tell me?” Glade asked.
After a moment's hesitation, Riya sighed.
“I’d call you a Vlakas before I started hitting you with a stick,” she sighed.
“What does that even mean?” Glade chuckled, knowing he had gotten through to her.
“A vlakas is a particular breed of ox that is so obstinate it is considered brainless,” Riya said with a shrug. “They have been known to die from floods, fires, or predators simply because they refused to move.”
“Yeah, that sounds about right,” Glade laughed. “What do you say we get out from under the tree before you faint from mana loss? Unless you want me to start calling you a Vlakas?”
“Wouldn’t be the first time someone has called me that,” she sighed, getting to her feet. After they started walking she glanced his way. “Did you really defeat an Astral Spider Queen?”
“It was a close one,” Glade replied, following her as they walked out from under the branches. “But we finally got her. Kedryn landed the killing blow. Croon wants to carve the corpse up for tonight's dinner. Between you and me, I think you have a better chance at harvesting the spider and not poisoning us.”
“I’m sorry I wasn’t there to help,” she whispered, her shadow armor dissolving now that she wasn’t in danger of the curse. “It's just that… What I mean to say…”
“No need to explain,” Glade replied, patting her on the shoulder. “I can’t imagine what that felt like. First the curse, and then experiencing the tree’s embrace.”
Riya brushed a tear from her face, glancing back to the tree with a longing that worried Glade. That wasn’t the only thing he was worried about. The back of her hand had a jagged black line that ran right through the middle, like cracked porcelain.
“Is that…” Glade began but stopped himself mid-sentence. He didn’t want to pry.
Riya looked at the back of her hand and stifled a gasp.
“I’d forgotten,” she said in a strained voice. “I think the ring didn’t register the curse as an attack until it was too late. This is what happens when we banished elves are brought under a tree. The cracks are supposed to remind us of our broken promise. When the crack reaches our heart…”
Riya left the rest unspoken. Glade got the gist without the details. What he really wanted to know was why. What was the curse’s purpose? Why punish generations of people for the mistakes of a few that were long dead? That was just… stupid.
“Does it hurt?” he asked instead.
“It did, but not anymore. The pain only lasts when my kind are under a tree.”
Glade didn’t know what else to say. No, that wasn’t true. He knew exactly what to say. It just wouldn’t help anything.
They walked back toward the hall in companionable silence, until the corpse of the spider queen came into full view. More specifically, when they saw Croon on top of the spider’s massive abdomen readying to cut into it with a spear.
“Stop!” Riya cried. “What do you think you’re doing?”
“Dinner!” Croon said with a smile. “Me mum used to make the best cave walker stew. It tickled on the way down and filled ye right up from yer toes all the way to the hairs o’ yer beard. Guess what the main ingredient was?”
“Do you even know what you're doing?” Riya asked, her hands on her hips.
“Spiders!” Croon called back, either ignoring Riya’s question or hadn’t been listening to her in the first place. “She even taught me the recipe!”
He raised the spear again.
“Wait! That's where she secretes her eggs!” Riya cried.
“Perfect!”
Glade gagged, but left Riya to deal with the eccentric dwarf. If anyone could steer Croon in the right direction, she could. Needless to say, he wasn’t looking forward to dinner.
That was when Gent arrived with the elk they had hunted earlier.
He almost cried.