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23: Accidental Throat Punching

We didn’t find an undead golem, but we did find an undead, wandering in a clearing filled with boulders.

Beyond the clearing was something icy and blue.

“I knew there was a lake!” Koren whispered excitedly.

I was more focused on the monster wandering in front of it.

Undead Ice Giant

Goliath-class Monster

Level: ???

It was a giant skeleton made of ice, with bits of what perhaps was supposed to be rotting ice-flesh draping off parts of it.

“Is that thing being controlled?” I asked Koren. “Or is it a drone?”

“Look for yourself.”

“You sure?”

He nodded. “What’s the worst that could happen?”

“Uh, that it notices me?”

“That’s the goal. Go on. Have more faith in your abilities.”

I sighed, and opened up my manasight using the method Koren had taught me, getting a look at the giant’s mana. It didn’t seem to notice, which I have to admit I was rather proud of. “How do I tell if it’s being controlled?”

“How do you think?”

I shrugged. “I’d see mana connecting to it from outside?”

He stared at me, mouth open.

“What? Is that stupid?”

He slowly shook his head. “No. It’s exactly correct. I’m surprised you got that.”

“Thanks,” I said sarcastically.

“You’re very much welcome.” He turned back to the giant. “This is perfect. It’s Goliath and you’re Copper. A more ideal combination I couldn’t dream of.” After a moment’s pause, he added wistfully, “Too bad there’s only one.”

“Why, are you planning on taking it out?”

“Oh no, this is all you.”

“Do you want me to die?”

“That depends. Do you have another resurrection token?”

“No, I—” I stopped, remembering something. “Actually, I do.”

Both Koren and Vyrania had been watching the giant skeleton lumber about, but now both turned to look at me.

“Really?” Vyrania asked.

“Yeah. It’s from my hobby.”

“I thought you didn’t choose Loreist.”

“I didn’t. It’s from Fodder itself.” I pulled up the description to show them, which had actually changed slightly since ranking up the hobby.

Fodder (hobby)

You are the expendables, the ones who throw yourselves to the monsters for the entertainment of others.

Grants the following while in a broadcast area:

• A summonable set of armor and weapons.

• A map that displays areas as you visit or discover them and increases in utility as hobby increases in rank.

• Specialized storage abilities.

• Gain a single-use resurrection token upon entering broadcast area and any subsequent broadcast types contained within, including but not limited to arenas and events.

Koren glanced at Vyrania, nodding. “Makes sense. Make them take more risks.”

Vyrania nodded slowly. “I think I remember that berserker guy coming back.”

Koren chuckled. “Oh yeah. He was great.”

“Whatever happened to him?” she asked. “I loved the broadcasts he was in.”

“No idea.”

“Huh, I’ll have to look him up when we’re done here.” She looked at me. “You should still try not to die. A resurrection token is a valuable thing.”

“Unless you’re rich,” Koren added.

“Which our friend here is not, as you yourself pointed out.”

“I did do that, didn’t I?” He slapped my shoulder. “Well, no insult meant.”

“None taken. I am quite poor.”

“Don’t be so hard on yourself. You own a store now.”

“I did before too. It didn’t help.” I looked at the giant skeleton, a little less fear now that I’d remembered the resurrection token. “You really think I can take it? I can’t even see its level.”

“Twenty-nine,” Vyrania said.

“Twenty-nine! There’s no way I can take that. Did you guys forget we’re supposed to be testing out my new ability to punch fire into people?”

“And what better test than on a giant skeleton made of ice?” Koren asked. “I am sure it will be beautiful. We’ll be able to see the flames travelling through its body.”

“That would be pretty cool,” I agreed reluctantly.

“Just whatever you do,” he said, “don’t push your mana into it. I don’t think you’re ready for that yet. You’d be unconscious for days.”

“That sounds less cool.”

“Don’t worry,” Vyrania assured me. “We’ll step in if you are in danger. I’m not going to let you waste your token on this. And there’s no telling where on the floor you’d resurrect.”

I sighed. “Yeah, okay. But I’m keeping my clothes on this time.”

Koren and Vyrania spoke simultaneously, one saying yes, the other no, but I couldn’t tell who said which.

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I looked at both of them, eyebrows raised.

They exchanged a glance.

“Well,” Vyrania said, looking at Koren but clearly speaking to me, “you’re testing a card. You can already feel your mana.”

“And,” Koren said, looking at Vyrania but also speaking to me, “you won’t be reaching Iron anytime soon, and that’s replacing things on the inside.”

I shook my head. “You guys are weird sometimes.” I summoned my new weapon from the hobby specialization I’d chosen. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have some arson to inflict.”

∎ ∎ ∎

I punched the giant in the throat.

I hadn’t at all meant to do that, I just wasn’t prepared for how strong my new Copper body was. I easily leapt the twenty foot gap between me and the giant but shot far too high into the air and barely had time to course-correct, aiming for the neck, as it was all I could manage to hit as I went soaring over the giant’s shoulder and landed on the ground behind it.

I didn’t land well, but was completely uninjured. I felt like I could land straight on my head onto asphalt at this point and be perfectly fine.

The giant turned around to face me as I regained my feet, and I saw a small spark make its way through the inside of the skeleton, radiating out from the point of impact.

It quickly extinguished, but was encouraging. At least it didn’t resist, which was apparently a thing that could happen going by Rilen, Koren, and Vyrania being surprised by my Contract card working on Rilen, though I remembered Meredith saying it wasn’t as likely with monsters.

I could tell that the card would be ready to go again soon, so in the meantime I decided to test out my new weapon more thoroughly.

I had taken the Fiend specialization and practiced with the new weapon, Horde, a bit already. Doing so made it clear it would be much more useful than the fire staff had been. It could take on many different forms. Basically, it could become any melee weapon I could think of.

It also gave me an instinctual understanding of how to use whatever form it took. It didn't make me an expert, but it did help.

I focused on it now and it became a chain with two handles and a sickle on the end.

I began swinging it over my head and my new Copper body got it spinning so fast I thought I might generate enough lift to helicopter into the air.

Alas, flying was out of my reach. For the moment.

I let loose the weapon just as the giant started toward me.

It was quick, I had to give it that. Despite its size, it got up an arm in time to deflect the attack. But not without injury. A chunk of ice flew from its arm and my new ability activated, giving me health and stealing a portion of its mana.

Devour

All attacks steal a commensurate but reduced amount of mana to heal your own wounds.

Much like the undead ice golem, it did not like having its mana stolen, even if this felt different than that. It roared at me lunglessly, a sound like broken static.

Then before I knew what was happening and in an even more impressive display of speed, it slammed a fist into me that I had absolutely no chance of dodging, sending me flying back into one of the many boulders in the clearing.

That actually hurt.

“All right you overgrown icicle,” I grunted as I wiggled myself out of the crater I’d made in the boulder. “See how you like… this!”

I plopped to the ground.

“Not that,” I said, quickly getting to my feet. It seemed Copper did little for my reflexes. “This.” I focused on my weapon, summoning it back to me and changing it into a spear which I launched at the giant as it stalked toward me.

My aim was good, and the spear hit center mass.

Unfortunately, it was mostly a skeleton, and a spear to the ribs simply flew right on through.

I swore, unsummoned the weapon, then resummoned it.

I looked down at it, getting an idea.

Even though I couldn’t turn the weapon into a gun or bow and arrows, if I could throw the weapon and recall it, I basically had unlimited projectiles.

The question was, could I transfer an effect into it?

With a thought the weapon became a mace with a large spiked ball on the end. It became much heavier, which seemed to defy physics, but I gave this little thought. “Fester and burn,” I chanted, activating Smoldering Caress and then hurled the weapon at the giant skeleton and dove out of the way just as it slammed a fist into the ground where I’d been standing.

There was a crunch as my mace connected and ignited a fire within the icy monster.

I rolled between its legs, summoning the weapon back to my hand and changing it to a giant sword which I swung with all my might at the back of its shinbone.

My body listened to me in a way it never had before, perfectly executing the motions I had in mind.

The blade carved through the ice-bone with ease and the skeleton toppled to the side in the midst of turning to face me.

Not sure how exactly to kill it, I dashed for its skull, ready to drive the blade into it, but it caught me with a sucker punch the size of my torso, sending me sprawling into another boulder. I didn’t stick inside this one, instead bouncing off and landing face-first on the ground, a mere foot away from a fluffy snowdrift.

“Oh that hurt,” I grunted, pushing myself up.

But that was okay. I could feel myself getting stronger the more injured I became.

Fiend’s Rage

Damage output increases as your lifeforce dwindles.

The skeleton picked its lower leg up and reattached it, fresh ice forming to join it back.

“Cutting it up’s not going to work,” Koren called.

“I can see that,” I called back.

I changed my weapon into a chain with a spiked ball on either end, then charged for the giant.

This time it went to kick me instead of punching, but I was ready, leaping into the air, spinning the chain above my head then letting loose at the apex of my flight.

My aim was perfect, and the chain hit the giant’s head, wrapping around it and one of the balls actually slamming into an eyesocket and sticking there.

Whatever it used to see with, it apparently wasn’t that, as even though I was out of ‘sight’ of its other socket, it raised its hand to grab me from the air with perfect aim.

This wasn’t exactly my plan, but would work well enough.

“Fester and burn!” I slammed my fist into its much larger one, the impact propelling me away.

A spark ignited inside the giant’s fist, travelling all the way up to its shoulder before dissipating.

By that point I had landed, resummoned my weapon, and was already charging again. I hurled my weapon, now a double-bladed sword, at the monster. It spun through the air and connected almost silently, severing the giant’s leg. Again.

I dodged its fist as it slammed into the ground to try to squash me, then punched its arm, another spark igniting, some of the ice melting.

I avoided its attacks, hacking at it with my sword, until Smoldering Caress was charged again, then went in for a hit center mass.

I was too slow and caught a glancing blow to the head.

I was dazed, but even stronger for it. The next hit I landed sent fire throughout its entire body.

Which was exactly what I was hoping for. My hobby ability Fiend’s Rage increased the damage of Smoldering Caress thanks to it scaling with attack strength and there was now an incipient blaze kindling away inside the skeleton.

I just needed to survive long enough for it to catch into an inferno.

I was forced to block another punch with my sword and was sent flying into Koren and Vyrania.

“Ugh,” I grunted as I bounced off Koren. “You hurt more than slamming into the rocks did.”

“The pleasures of Iron,” he said happily. “Now get back out there. You’ve got it on the backfoot.”

“It only has one foot at the moment,” Vyrania observed.

“Exactly,” Koren agreed, yanking me to my feet and pushing me back toward the giant skeleton, which was hopping toward its severed leg.

“Oh no you don’t,” I shouted, and tossed my sword at it, wishing I’d changed it to a mace first.

To my surprise, it became one while spinning in the air toward it.

“Oh, that’s a neat trick,” Koren said.

“Yes it is,” I agreed, and charged back in.

∎ ∎ ∎

I slammed my fist into the giant’s skull again and an absolute inferno ignited inside of it, blazing hot, melting the ice that made up its bones.

Then it exploded, showering me with ice pellets, several embedding themselves in my face.

I quickly directed all my mana to my eyes just in time for a shard to slam into my eyeball, blurring my vision briefly but not penetrating.

I collapsed to my knees in the pile of slush that was the giant’s corpse and which was quickly melting into a puddle of water, panting and in pain, but elated.

That took longer than I’d have liked.

Cheers rang out from behind me.

A moment later Koren and Vyrania were at my side, helping me to my feet.

“Exceptional work,” Koren said.

“Yes,” Vyrania agreed. “You just took out a level twenty-nine Goliath at Copper. That’s quite impressive. It takes most a lot more training to manage it. And I’m amazed you were able to use Smoldering Caress so well despite it not being of your affinity and a different aspect than Contract.”

“It did take him a while,” Koren said. “And he almost died.”

“That’s the only reason I was able to beat it,” I said. “I kept getting stronger.”

“Yes, I noticed.” He shook his head. “Why couldn’t I get Fodder as a hobby?”

“Because then you’d be even more insufferable,” Vyrania told him as I looted the giant sparkling corpse. Well, giant sparkling puddle of slush.

“Ah,” Koren said wistfully, “I suppose that’s true.”

The corpse contained a large amount of fragments as well as a single arcana, both of which went into my card storage. It also had something called a Creature Clash voucher.

But it was the final item that was the most interesting, and the most confusing.

Your [Fodder] hobby has granted you specialized storage ability [Artifact Storage].

You have looted an event item. Prepare yourself.

Koren, oblivious to what I’d just looted since it’d gone directly into my new storage ability, smiled and opened his mouth to say something else, but a loud crack interrupted him.

It quickly became obvious where the sound had come from: the frozen lake. It had cracked, and the crack was growing.

Koren looked down at his feet. “Oh. We’re on the lake.” Then he looked over at me, kneeling by the corpse puddle. “You looted something, didn’t you?”

“This whole thing was your idea,” I shot back defensively.

“We should—” he began, but another crack echoed from behind us.

“Rude,” he muttered.

We were surrounded, both cracks growing toward us at an alarming rate.

Maybe he or Vyrania could have moved fast enough to get away, but I couldn’t.

“This shall not be pleasant,” Koren said. “It’s an—”

Then we were swallowed into darkness.