Ethan and Glenn were ducked behind some trees, watching the large blue-gray monster slowly walk through the shallow water. The creature really did look like a dinosaur, one of the quadrupedal herbivores with the long necks to reach vegetation–though it lacked a tail. The lutumstrider wasn’t content with greens, though, using its neck to spear into the water, emerging with a large fish in its mouth that it quickly devoured. Thankfully it wasn’t quite so large as a true dinosaur, being somewhat smaller than a giraffe.
They’d been watching it for a few minutes, trying to strategize. The creature was in front of a small waterfall that fed the river in which the lutumstrider was feeding. The river was wide, full of large stones, and surrounded by dense forest. “I don’t see a lot of ways to use the terrain to our advantage,” Ethan said.
“Nor I,” Glenn agreed. “The water will offer poor footing, but luring it to the forest will make things even worse for us. I’ll barely be able to swing my sword, and I’ve seen striders smaller than that one knock down trees.”
“So we go in swinging, and deal with the water. Are you going to Valanor for this one?”
Glenn smiled broadly. “You want me to stand in front and let it beat me senseless while you poke it from safety? Yeah I think I can manage that.”
“We each play to our strengths,” Ethan said with a wink. “Just give me a sec, I want to think through how my abilities can be used effectively here. I’m still a long way from used to them.”
“Take your time, I’m in no hurry to be slapped by a giant lizard head. You get that’s what they do right? It’s going to slap me. Slap me with its stupid, giant lizard head.”
“Your sacrifice will be remembered,” Ethan replied, then turned to Tomo. “Any advice? I enjoy teasing Glenn, but I’d rather not get him killed.”
“You have the tools you need for this challenge,” the little demon assured him. “The creature is large, but far from the most deadly monster you’ll encounter at this rank. You must cycle, though. You cannot rely too strongly on any one Bond, or you will drain your mana and cripple your ability to fight.”
“Right. Time to do something I’ve been putting off,” he said, pulling up the system. Ethan had been avoiding it, still struggling with seeing the title of his new class.
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Ethan Bishop
Class: Assassin
Rank: Dawn (Dusk Rank: 1%)
Familiars:
* Devee: (Dawn Rank 0: 2%)
* Revan: (Dawn Rank 0: 3%)
* Onitomo: (Dawn Rank 0: 43%)
Attributes:
* Mind of the Devourer: Dawn Rank 0
* Body of the Guardian : Dawn Rank 0
* Soul of the Mystic : Dawn Rank 0
Abilities:
Dimension: (1/4)
* Rift (Dawn Rank 0: 6%)
Flare: (2/4)
* Volatile Infusion (Dawn Rank 0: 61%)
* Internal Combustion ( Dawn Rank 0: 23%
Mystic: (2/4)
* Trick of the Light (Dawn Rank 0: 6%)
* Many-Faced Blade (Dawn Rank 0: 1%)
Ruin: (1/4)
* Knife in the Dark (Dawn Rank 0: 12%)
* Gain 1 more abilities to unlock!
* Gain 4 more abilities to unlock!
* Gain 7 more abilities to unlock!
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“Wow, you’re ranking up way faster than my other Familiars,” Ethan commented.
“That is natural, as I’m defending you in the Astral Realm at all times, as well as extending your senses. We will develop a specific training routine to ensure you’re utlizing your other Familiars appropriately.”
“Right, good call. I feel like I’ve been ignoring them lately; they’re just not the conversationalists that you are.” He stared at his abilities for another moment. “It’s great that my Ruin abilities can be used at any time, but it doesn’t really help when the one I have only works while I’m hidden. At least my conjured weapons don’t disappear when I channel another Affinity.”
“Some conjurations will fade, but those are typically high-cost, high-damage abilities. Your weapons are versatile and will grow as you do, but not your most powerful attacks.” Ethan nodded, summoning the Many Faced Blade as twin wakizashis, looking like smaller versions of Last Resort.
Ethan turned back to Glenn. “I think I’m as ready as I’ll ever be. Mind getting its attention? If I try to sneak through the water I’m pretty sure it’ll notice.”
“Oh sure, I was hoping to charge in alone. By the way, have you ever been slapped by a scaled head that weighs as much as you do?”
“Of course not, I’m a gentleman,” Ethan said as he faded from sight. “Maybe buy the nice monster a drink before you take out your great big sword?”
Glenn swatted at the air where Ethan had been while shaking his head, but he didn’t hesitate in his duty. Jumping into the river, his armor bursting into being around him, he splashed forward. The two handed sword was out a moment later, and as soon as the lutumstrider noticed him, Glenn leaped in the air, the blade slicing down across the beast’s chest.
The monster roared in pain, though the wound was shallow. Its round face split open like a snake, revealing wide jaws still bloody with fish gore. But just as predicted, its actual attack was like using its own head and neck like a flail. Glenn had to time his counter perfectly to catch the attack with his blade instead of his body.
Thankfully the monster was indeed distracted. [Knife in the Dark] abruptly sent a blast of destructive power ravaging into the strider’s back left leg, severing tendons and causing the creature to fall to one knee. Ethan wasted no time, slashing desperately with the twin blades at the existing wound, hoping to cause as much damage as possible.
As the beast’s large head turned, desperate to attack the little man who’d caused it such pain, Glenn showed it why he wasn’t someone to be ignored. His massive sword slashed into the monster again and again, forcing its attention back onto him. His Familiar Kit even made an appearance, bounding through the water as another distraction, barking out small blasts of force.
Things weren’t going as well as Ethan hoped though, as after his initial attack, his blades had only left the most minor of wounds. “Cycle!” Tomo said urgently, and Ethan grunted in acknowledgement. It was harder to think during a battle like this than he expected, and his scars ached as he forced mana through them. The massive body was constantly shifting, and he had to move with it, aim his attacks, and not get stepped on, all while trying to avoid slipping on submerged rocks.
Revan! he called, and the fiery Familiar was suddenly there with him. His teeth and claws tore into the lutumstrider’s wounded leg, leaving Ethan to take another angle of attack. Reversing his grip on the short blades, he stabbed them into the creature’s hide with all his strength, using them like picks to scale the monster.
Finally when he was up, and safe from the constantly stomping feet, Ethan went to work. [Internal Combustion] made his wakizashis glow as if fresh from the forge, and suddenly Ethan’s shallow slashes were anything but weak. The strider’s back was quickly covered in small lacerations, the special attack leaving burning veins and glowing blood, pulsing with agonizing fire.
Glenn was still doing his part, alternatively slashing furiously with his big, heavy attacks, then dodging or parrying violently when the monster counterattacked. Somewhere along the line the knight had gained a faint yellow glow, and his armor shone brilliantly. It proved its defensive power each time the lutumstrider managed to get in an unpredictable plan.
Seeing his comrade was holding strong, Ethan began the next phase of his plan, charging three daggers with [Volatile Infusion], then stabbing them into the creature’s back. Unfortunately, whether to escape the burning pain, or somehow sensing what was happening, the lutumstrider abruptly side-stepped directly into the waterfall, dragging its one limp leg with it. It moved shockingly fast for its size, and Ethan was hurled into the jagged rock behind falls.
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Ethan felt the bone-jarring thud of the stones through his light armor, then tumbled unceremoniously back into the river. He found himself blinded as the water crashed down on him from above, and barely managed to avoid being stomped on a moment later. The strider clearly knew he was down, and the stomping continued. Abruptly Ethan felt himself dragged out of harm's way, and he looked up to see his Revan tugging him by his coat.
“Thanks buddy,” Ethan coughed, then turned back to the battle. He was soaked now, and so was the creature. He remembered only too well how little effect a fire attack would have under the circumstances, though [Internal Combustion] seemed unaffected. With a grimace, he swapped out the explosive attack for his more reliable one, hoping the embedded daggers would keep pumping the debuff into the monster.
Unfortunately, the lutumstrider had apparently reached the point of going berserk, as it suddenly made its Dimensional Affinity known. Valanor had been correct that teleportation was extremely rare, but the monster demonstrated that dimensional power could be used in other, highly destructive ways.
The large, snake-like mouth opened once more, and blue-white energy began to gather. Glenn had only a moment to react, wisely throwing himself underneath the creature as a beam of energy struck the water where the knight had just been. For a moment there was only a void where the attack impacted, tunneling several feet under ground before water rushed in to fill the space.
Glenn was still struggling to his feet–while avoiding being trampled–when the monster revealed it was more than capable of using the same attack again. This time the knight wouldn’t be able to dodge, and Ethan needed to react fast. He desperately scrambled up the side of the monster, easier now that it wasn’t moving. Once there he channeled Mystic, and a chain with a weight at one end, and sickle at the other appeared in his hands a moment later.
It was a high-skill weapon, and Ethan was nowhere near ready to use it to its full potential, but a chain was still a chain. When the beast opened its mouth again, the weighted end of the kusarigama flew out, wrapping around the thick neck. Ethan hauled back with all his strength and weight, forcing the monster’s head backward.
The blue-white blast of energy erupted harmlessly into the sky, and Glenn moved back into position. Ethan wasn’t done, however, and with an overhand chop he embedded the sickle into the monster’s rump, then stamped it down for good measure. The lutumstrider thrashed, but with its head pulled backward, the underside of its neck was greatly exposed.
Ethan grinned, glancing down at Last Resort. “Four runes active,” he said with glee, then channeled Dimension. Devee immediately raced into the air, splitting in two as it did so, understanding what he needed. Ethan disappeared in a flash of his own blue-white light.
Suddenly he was at least fifty feet in the air, hurtling downward. He let his fall build as much momentum as possible, as his hands reached for his inherited blade. Ethan’s eyes locked onto the creature’s exposed, writhing neck, shifting slightly to adjust his fall and stay on target.
Just as he reached his prey, his hands flashed. Draw! Last resort exploded out of its scabbard, the blade glowing a dim red as it carved through the air, passing through the monster’s thick neck just as easily.
Ethan was gone in that same heartbeat, a rift opening in the opposite direction near the water, and he emerged soaring upward, his momentum quickly fading and allowing him to splash down into the river.
Glenn had to step backward so that the massive head didn’t slap him one last time as it fell into the water. The knight looked from the huge collapsing monster, to Ethan, who had definitely not immediately slipped on a rock after his cool landing. “Next time you stand in front, while I play the hero, deal?”
“I think you look most heroic when you stand in one place, defiantly being smacked around for the cause,” Ethan said with a grin. Deevee had already raced to the monster’s body, and was glowing softly as it unlocked a new ability.
“Do you think you’ll get that beam attack it used?” Glenn asked.
“I don’t know,” Ethan replied. “I guess that’s up to Deevee. That attack was pretty awesome, but I’m not sure it’s quite in line with the rest of my abilities.” He turned and looked at the knight, who seemed to be in good shape after the battle. “Say Glenn, I noticed the Grand Tournament is pretty much only for teams.”
Glenn’s wet armor disappeared, and he stretched before answering. “Yeah, you can hunt five times as many little monsters, or tag team the big ones. Hard to compete with that.”
“You may have also noticed I have a bit of a challenge fighting on my own, any chance you’d consider a team-up? Are knights even allowed?”
Glenn smiled, but looked a bit sad. “Technically we are, if we get special dispensation, but you don’t really want knights on your team, Ethan. Sadly I’m no exception to that.”
“What are you talking about? We just embarrassed that stupid mud dinosaur together, and we trusted each other on our little mountain getaway. I think we work well together!”
Glenn’s smile widened. “Kind words, Chosen, but you don’t understand. You’re only just beginning to see how important cycling is, but I saw you do it a half-dozen times in that battle. How many times have you ever seen me do it? Do you even know my other Familiars?”
Ethan blinked as he realized the truth of that statement. He thought about Maggie and realized it was the same thing. “You’re right, I only ever see Kit. You do have the other Bonds though, I’ve seen the runes.”
“I have the Bonds, yes, they’re standard for knights. We all get them from the pens beneath the city. There’s only a few combinations. I have Kit, an insect, and a little Earth Elemental. Now don’t get me wrong, I care about each of them, but it’s a terrible combination.”
Ethan considered everything he’d been told about how difficult it was to find the right bonds, especially in service of an unknown Soul Rune. “Okay, so what’s so bad about the combination?”
“I’m not the best one to teach you cycling, Ethan, since I basically don’t do it. But the point is that every Bond should work on its own. Even better, it should flow into the next Affinity in your ‘cycle’. The best Hunters cycle so smoothly you’d never even notice.”
“And you can’t do that?” Ethan asked.
“Doesn’t make sense to. Kit has all my offensive abilities, my bug has all my utility, and Jacob, my Earthy fellow is pure defense. Usually I’ll buff up before battle, and only swap to Jacob in an emergency. Means I’m always saving mana and being careful with Kit. There’s no real future for me as a proper Hunter.”
Ethan heard the regret in the man’s voice, and felt like another piece of the puzzle of how this society worked fell into place. “Valanor said that the Bond stones were outrageously rare and expensive…”
“That’s right. Becoming a Knight of the Realm means working in the pens for years, until you’re lucky enough to form some True Bonds.”
“Sorry Glenn, I didn’t really understand what I was asking. I still think we fought well together, are you sure that–”
Glenn smiled again and put a hand on Ethan’s shoulder. “Stop feeling sorry for a commoner lucky enough to crawl his way to the palace itself! You may not understand the disadvantages I have, but you also don’t understand how lucky I am.”
He smirked then, and gave Ethan a playful push. “Besides, not getting the honor of being a human shield for Ethan Bishop, mighty Chosen isn’t the biggest loss of my life.” They shared a laugh, then Glenn gestured at the dead monster. “Come on, tell me what we did all this bloody work for, and maybe throw me a few coins when you loot this thing.”
Deevee had already returned, so Ethan obligingly looked at his new ability. “Well?” Glenn said. “Do you shoot beams now?”
“No…Kind of the opposite,” Ethan focused on his new ability, and suddenly his entire body glowed with a soft, blue-white glow. Little dimensional tears shifted and slashed across him, reminding him of the cracks that he’d seen in Deevee’s egg. “It’s called ‘Dimensional Mantel’,” he said. “Wanna try hitting me?”
“Not really,” Glenn said, making a face. “You look like you're made of rifts. I don’t like rifts.”
Ethan laughed, “You can poke me with a stick if it makes you feel better, but it won’t hurt you.” Glenn sighed, but obligingly delivered a half-hearted punch to Ethan’s chest. A jagged line of dimensional energy moved to intercept the attack, and Glenn’s fist appeared to pass right through Ethan. The knight pulled his hand back like he’d touched fire, but he was unharmed.
“I hated that so much,” he said. The glowing cracks disappeared a moment later. “Some ability, though. Maybe you can stand in front of the monsters now.”
“Not for long, extreme mana cost,” Ethan said, feeling drained, and his scars burning with fresh pain. “Thanks for helping me try it, let’s loot the big guy and head home. Don’t want to miss the next stop.” Ethan had purchased a pocket watch in town that showed when the traveling city would reach the various landings around the valley.
Moving through the water, he put a hand on the monster, and felt his loot power go to work.
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Attention! Loot power has reached Dawn rank!
You have gained the ability to loot [Crafting Materials]
You have looted [Dawn Rank Lutumstrider]
You have received:
* 2 Dusk Coins
* 434 Dawn Coins
* Waterproof Ring (Dawn Rank)
* 1 Lutumstrider Gem (Dawn Rank)
* 8 Lutum Leather
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“Oh nice, a ring that keeps you dry, want it?” Ethan offered.
“My armor does that, you keep it,” Glen said dismissively. Ethan nodded, then produced a small bag of coins which he tossed to the knight.
“I wasn’t serious, Ethan, this is my duty,” Glenn said, looking at the heavy bag.
“Well today you work for tips, meat-shield,” Ethan replied. He summoned Tomo a moment later as he pulled out the third notice. “This one is to help me emulate the prince, right?”
“It should provide a lightning attack that will grow to include fire, a fitting use of the Flare affinity.”
Ethan nodded, “Thunder Drake…there’s warnings on here, it’s nearly Dusk rank in terms of danger.”
“Indeed. You are not ready. Now that you have a functional suite of abilities, we must begin your training immediately. We must work until your body reacts without thinking, and we must also fill the gaps in your knowledge. For instance, you will gain a new ability from your Soul rune for every three you gain from your Bonds.”
Ethan’s eyes widened, remembering that he’d seen that in his status screen. Sure enough, when he looked down he realized the system was still blinking. He opened it without hesitation.
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New Ability!
Ability: [Fleeting Shadow] (Dawn Rank 0: 0%)
Type: Ruin, Persistent Illusion
Upon slaying a valid target, you may choose to conjure a short-lived illusion, allowing you to fade from sight. This ability has no mana cost, no cooldown, and is not affected by being directly observed by hostile targets. Breaks upon performing a hostile action.
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Ethan grinned after reading the description. “Okay, looks like Knife in the Dark is going to be a bit more practical than I thought.”