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Jace dove for Priam and knocked the smaller rabbit-man off to side. But the beam of grey, sickly-green light shot off to the side and impacted the Pulsar Priest’s golden, glimmering barrier. It cracked almost instantly. The beam hit the bunny-boy, slamming into his arm. He screamed in pain and Jace rushed over.
The arm began to wither and decay from the wrist. “It is going to spread until it consumes him!” Ollie shouted.
Jace grimaced and brought his sword to bear. Priam was still conscious but was in a daze. “I’m sorry,” Jace whispered as he chopped the arm off just below the elbow. Priam screamed, but the [Contingent] heal went off and stopped the bleeding as the stump healed over.
This seemed to bring some clarity to the bunny-boy, as he looked at Jace with a little smile. “Sorry…big…brother…” he passed out.
The Archmage above cackled. “Wow! That’s something. I’ll give you a moment to say your goodbyes.”
Jace felt that kernel of hatred explode into an inferno. A screen appeared in his vision. The same crimson as the nebula surrounding the blade that was in his left hand.
<<<<<>>>>>
[Extreme emotional state detected.]
[Qualifier of 50 levels in a base Class met.]
[Class Expansion available.]
[Swordmage
[Confirm selection?]
<<<<<>>>>>
“Yes,” Jace growled. “Ollie! Level up! Now! I want Skills that let me fuck this guy up!”
Ollie floated in front of Jace and nodded. His eyes were filled with a sense of understanding. “Well, time to see what a Class Expansion for Swordmage does.”
<<<<<>>>>>
Name: Jace Seren (Aspirant, Tier 3)
Power [Class Level]: Dark Matter [Swordmage
Skills: Skill Name (Rank) [Evolutions]: Universal Translation, Environmental Adaptation, Dark Matter Blade (Rank 5) [Rending], Dark Matter Shield (Rank 3) [Reflecting], Swordmage Stance (Rank 3) [Astral Annihilator], Dark Matter Dart [Exploding] (Rank 4), Dark Matter Cloak (Rank 3) [Group], Dark Energy Mine (Rank 3) [Distant], Cosmic Infusion (Rank 10) [Innervating], Dark Energy Beam (Rank 12) [Limited Range], Dark Matter Mending (Rank 4) [Vampiric], Energy Cost Reduction (Rank 7), Wrath's Embrace (Rank 2), Starfire Stride (1/day), Arbiter's Anathema (3/day), Shadow Nebula Smokescreen (1/day), Archmage Geomancy (1/day), Archmage Hydromancy (1/day), Archmage Pyromancy (1/day)
Stardust: 680
Equipment: (Returning) Starstorm Sword, (Medium / Snowguard / Burnguard) Aegisleather, Ghostlight Grapnel Arm, (Thrice Judged) Anathema Arm, (Overclocked / Lightfoot) Dragonclaw Devastation Legs, (Terrifying) All-Seeing Dragon's Eyes, Mind's Eye Amulet, Thellor's Everguard, (Heavy) Venture Pack, survival meals (x3), enhanced canteen, optimized medical kit, flint bar, flashlight, Omnitech prosthetic repair module (x1 charges), (Restful) Wildercloth tent, Devilsram wool bedroll, Guardian's Loop
Boons: Legendary (Variable)
<<<<<>>>>>
Wrath’s Embrace (Rank 1) - Disables any non-melee, non-shield/barrier, and non-passive Skills until Wrath's Embrace ends. Amplifies the user's physical, sensory, and cognitive traits by x2.
Wrath’s Embrace (Rank 2) - As Rank 1, but in addition the user's attacks will be x2 as damaging.
<<<<<>>>>>
“It’s a constant energy drain while active,” Ollie said in his ear. He was loud, too. Almost screaming. Jace barely heard the deep voice, as he could hear a roar inside his head. Some ancient battle cry from humanity’s past when fighting for those they loved, brought to the forefront by the suffering of their friends and loved ones.
Jace saw red. Quite literally, as his vision was consumed with a red hue despite the daylight. His Dark Matter Shield covering his body flared with the crimson nebula even more vibrantly, and his sword surged with a deeper, red glow alongside the [Rending] and Dark Matter Blade (Rank 5) effect.
“I’m going to kill you!” Jace screamed as he curled his feet under him and leapt straight up – twenty-five feet. The Archmage was surprised and flew backward – but Jace shot out his grapnel line, pulled himself to the figure, and slashed into him over and over – inflicting him with several deep, carving gashes.
“Repulsion Sphere!” He screamed.
Jace just punched him in the face with the Anathema Arm holding his blade’s hilt. Turn that shit off, he thought. Thankfully, this Skill seemed to be based on a spell, as Jace was not moved at all and he kept hacking at the skeletal figure, watching with glee as the crimson spread. “Just die!” he shouted, consumed by a battle frenzy at seeing Priam suffer.
The Archmage growled and punched Jace in the head – but it hit the Shield. Jace could feel the tiredness coming on, but he staved it off with the hatred and anger raging through him. “If spells won’t work then I guess I have to deal with you the old-fashioned way!” The Archmage drew a dagger from some hidden pouch and stabbed it at Jace.
To his shock, the blade sank deep into his abdomen. He did not feel any pain – thankfully this Wrath’s Embrace seemed to have a hidden side-effect of shutting off his pain receptors. But his Dark Matter Shield was popped. Kicking off the Archmage, he kept the grapnel line attached and threw the sword at him.
Dark Matter Blade (Rank 5) [Rending], he thought, focusing on his foot-claws. As the Archmage parried the sword, Jace retracted the line and kicked with his clawed appendages, delivering rapid-fire blows as he kept kicking into the skeletal-figure’s torso.
The Archmage stabbed at Jace – but he kept hitting the prosthetic legs which did not suffer any damage from the blade. Magitech is stronger than your stupid knife, Jace thought as he started to feel tired. Kicking off once more, he let himself down to the building below and withdrew the grapnel line.
He let the Wrath’s Embrace fade, and muttered, “Dark Matter Mending (Rank 3) [Vampiric].” Almost instantly his wounds sealed over – costing him no energy thanks to the multitude of bleeds on the creature above. Looking up, he saw the Archmage almost fully covered by the crimson and purple nebula. Just die already!
“He’s undead,” Jace heard from Priam next to him. The bunny-boy was awake but looked to be incredibly weak. “Undead have to be killed by divine power.” He raised his hand and grinned, “My turn to save us. Priest’s Smite (Rank 1).”
Jace looked up at the fully-covered-in-nebula Archmage and saw him holding an enormous sphere of prismatic energy. Before he could throw the Skill, a pulse of bright, white and gold light shot down from above him.
“…Howww?” The skeletal figure asked as it fell from the sky and shattered into dust on the ground.
Priam passed out from lack of energy as a screen flashed in front of Jace’s eyes.
<<<<<>>>>>
[Quest Completed: Kill Yholl Tristrus.]
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[Time Limit: ASAP.]
[Reward: Artifact (Equipment) Boon.]
[Sender: Nethal Species Representatives]
<<<<<>>>>>
“Ollie, is he worth dusting?” Jace asked as he sat back on his butt and held himself up with his hands. He pulled the hood back and the mask down as he sucked in air.
“I will see.” Ollie flew over and dusted the…dust. Small particles of blue Stardust were sucked up to Ollie’s paw.
<<<<<>>>>>
[Stardust Acquired: 200]
<<<<<>>>>>
“Give half to Priam,” Jace said as he heard crack and crunch. Glancing over to where the entrance was, he frowned. “They’re breaking through. Shit.” He got up and picked Priam up, slinging the bunny-boy over his shoulder. “We have to get him a real arm,” he muttered as he saw the withered and desiccated arm on the ground.
“Get to the tower,” Ollie stated as he flew to wrap around Jace’s neck. “Your pursuers will be hesitant to enter the Archmage’s tower. I will notify Xera that we are trapped and need a rescue. Pulsar Coalition will be happy to oblige, since we just got them a whole world.”
Jace nodded and ran over to the tower, stumbling a few times as his energy was still low. But, since he was not fueling any Skills and let them all lapse, he felt it slowly returning, getting a little more awake with every passing second. Getting to the door he saw the shimmering light. “Yeah, fuck that.” He instead shot the grapnel up and ascended to the top floor. Getting into the room, he saw what appeared to be a study.
It was well-appointed, and he saw several glimmering, green orbs on a shelf. “What’s all this?” Jace asked. “It looks like the Legendary Boons.”
“They are,” Ollie whispered. “He must have stocked a few up for Dungeon Runs.”
Jace walked over and grabbed the three that were there. “One for Priam, one for Greg…can Shhiv use a Boon like this?”
Ollie nodded, “She could.”
“Then one for Shhiv.” Jace picked up all three, and Ollie touched them, adding them to his currently held Boon list.
“I will transfer them when we find them,” Ollie stated.
Jace looked around the room and saw nothing else glimmering. He set Priam on the bed, and went to the corner. There was a ladder and climbing down he found a well-appointed bedroom. There were several shimmering items in here, and he pulled them from their various cabinets, cupboards, and closet. One chest was glowing, and he hefted the whole thing into his (Heavy) Venture Pack.
Glancing down another ladder, he saw what looked like a science lab. Sliding down, he found several glowing vials. He shoved those into his pack as well. That’s full, he thought as he heard noise at the bottom of the tower. Time to get back up and wait. He clambered up, grabbed Priam and climbed out of the balcony and onto the roof.
“Pulsar Coalition is here,” Ollie stated. “Just sit tight.”
Jace nodded and tapped Priam. The bunny-boy didn’t rouse. Just sleep then. I’ll get your arm fixed. I promise. “Can you send a message to Jonsar? Ask him to be on standby at the hospital for an emergency case?”
“Sure. I’ll send it off now.”
The earthen dome above the two split asunder, and Jace’s hand instinctively summoned his blade to his grip as he took up a ready stance, holding Priam in his left arm.
An enormous, humanoid-bee flew down towards them with a characteristic buzzing noise. It’s weird hand-like grippers were glowing with the calm blue of the Pulsar Coalition. “Ah, you lived. Here, let me affect you with a Skill, please.”
Jace nodded, and felt himself pulled aloft, hovering next to the Ascendant. He could see the small, deeper blue dot within the Cosmic Power Symbol of Pulsar on their gripper. “I’m Flicker.”
“I know. My name is Zzorth. Leader of the Pulsar Coalition. We have much to thank you for. This world is very close to the singularity at the center of the Universe. This will be an excellent staging ground for my forces to fight against the Black Hole Conclave.” The bee-person did not have a face that Jace could read, but the voice did bring him a sense of calm. As if the buzzing was a soothing lullaby that tickled at his subconscious.
“Can you get us to The Cosmic Corridor? I can make my way from there.”
“Of course. X has conveyed as much…Signer for Dark Between Stars.” He…laughed? Jace wasn’t sure what the noise was. “Well, you do not owe us, and now, we do not owe you.”
“Promise me one thing,” Jace replied. “Let the Nethal people come back here.”
“X had negotiated as much, do not fret. Now come, young one.” Zzorth buzzed over to the shining, pastel-blue portal and Jace felt the hover effect fade as he landed softly on the ground. “Best of luck. Now, I have to deal with all those Aspirants and get them out of here. Let me know if you ever want to take the fight to the Conclave.”
Jace nodded and gave a small wave before he entered the portal. The other side in The Cosmic Corridor was startlingly different. An enormous fortification was erected in front of him, manned by members of the Pulsar Coalition. One of them looked back at him and nodded, “You’re good. No Conclave out there right now.”
Jace nodded. Not taking any chances. Dark Matter Cloak (Rank 3) [Group]. He vanished and began walking to the hospital. A minute later, reality shifted and he walked through the doors into the building. Two elevators later, and another long hallway that was familiar, he was buzzed in for an emergency appointment – much to the grumbling of the other patients in the waiting room.
Jonsar was seated next to the table, tablet in hand. He looked up as Jace entered, “Ah, I was not expecting you back so soon. But, Oliver advised me of the situation. Put your friend on the table.”
Jace did so, and Jonsar tapped Priam’s forehead, seemingly using the same pain-removing Skill. “Strap him down would you?”
Jace nodded and set to doing just that. Ollie floated above the operating table, “What you going to do, doctor?”
Jonsar walked back over with a vial and some surgical tools. “I will have to cut away the stump, but I can regrow the limb since it is such a fresh wound and the area is rather small. A whole arm? Not easy to regrow. But elbow down, a hand, or some fingers? Piece of pie.” He set to work, and Jace walked back to the edge of the room to give the man plenty of space.
Ten anxiety filled minutes later and Jonsar stood up, releasing the straps. “All done. It will take about two days to regrow.” He went to a cabinet and pulled out a weird capsule-shaped container. He pulled off one end and pulled the container over Priam’s freshly-cut-into stump. “No touching it for those two days or else it might grow back weird. Hence this device.” There was a thwip noise and a quick suction.
“How much do I owe you?” Jace asked.
“Simple operation, 10 Stardust. But, with the accelerated healing capsule? 50 total.”
Ollie flew over and tapped his Cosmic Power symbol. “Done.”
“Pleasure as always,” Jonsar said. He looked hard at Jace, “Mind if I do a readout view on you again? I’m curious how the CIF is holding up.”
Jace nodded and stood still as Jonsar used some Skill and a screen appeared in the air. “Why didn’t you do this for Priam?”
“Ah, well, he was very organic. I could tell by smell alone. Versus you…well, you had a lot going on.” He adjusted his glasses, “And still do. New eyes? And everything is still at 100% integration from the CIF.” He smiled and shook his head, “Incredible. Absolutely incredible. You are truly the perfect prosthetic candidate. I’ll keep an eye out for interesting ones you might want.”
Jace nodded, “Alright. Thank you.”
“You are welcome. I have patients, so if you will please.” Jonsar gestured to the door, and Jace followed the instructions along the walls back to the streets of Khrox. Now…I want to get home. He began walking, and a minute later arrived. “Ollie…I don’t have the eye scan anymore,” he muttered.
Ollie flew up and tapped the panel. Jace walked in and was shocked by the change. The whole first floor was an enormous entry hall, with plenty of chairs, couches, tables, and other areas for socializing including a weird, partly-sunken-into-the-ground pit lined with plenty of cushions and a firepit at the center that flickered with dancing, orange flames. “Welcome home,” Ollie stated.