Joe carefully took hold of the dwarf’s hands. Thornon’s arms, from his elbows all the way to the tips of his fingers, looked inflamed and swollen. There were blisters that were angry and red. Thornon Kinbrow was a tanner. Joe had no idea what the process was that turned animal hides into leather but whatever it was, it had done a number on the craftsman’s skin. Joe moved the arm into a spot of sunlight that made its way through the canopy of leaves overhead. In the brighter light, the arm looked even worse. This was one stoic dwarf. If Joe’s arms were as bad as these looked, he would not be sitting passively on the log waiting for Joe to start healing.
The pair sat in the center of Crowfield on a circle of well-tended grass that encircled a massive oak tree. The trunk of the tree had to be at least ten feet wide and was marked by many large runes. Originally Joe thought the sigils had been carved but after a closer look, he saw that the bark had been shaped not cut. He had no idea what the symbols did or meant, but they had that flowing cursive style that made one think of elves. The oak provided a welcome shade over much of the green. There were several benches around the lawn and, to one side, a stage had been built. Rhiley and Joe had set up on the other side of the green where a campfire ring was surrounded by several large sitting logs and a few wooden plank lawn chairs. Joe had a [Heart Fire] flickering in the ring of stones giving a passive heal to anyone nearby. Rhiley had borrowed a stool from someone for Joe to use. The three-legged seat allowed him to sit close enough to see what was going on with his patients and touch them with his healing skill.
“Is this normal, Thornon ?” he asked.
“Not typically. No. But it can happen now and then. Some of them beasties out there are still dangerous even after they be dead. This here comes from a Foulgut Wyrm. I was braining the hide and, next thing I knew, my hands were all a-blistered. When my wife heard Rhiley accounting ye be a healer, she told me I had to get out here and see ya. Guess she was tired of me moaning about the house.”
“Ok. I’m new to the area. What are Foulgut Wyrms?”
“They are poisonous little burrowers. Maybe three feet long. Four ta six inches wide. They got a couple ridges of scales that stick out ta help em burrow. The worst part about em is how toxic they be. Ain’t got no natural predators up here on the surface since anything that eats em dies. Their hide can be used for some great poison-related gear but ya have ta be very careful when ya handle it. Or ya gotta be a dwarf,” the tanner stated proudly. “I’ve skinned dozens of them before without a problem. I guess I got one that was more toxic than usual.”
“Let me start with a basic heal first. I have some antivenoms in my bag if this doesn’t work.” Joe activated his [Healing Touch] but for the first time, it seemed like it might not work at all. The spell seemed to splash up against the dwarf’s skin and instead of moving into the arms, it bunched up on the surface. It felt more like he was pushing a balloon than the normal release of energy. There was a barrier there that was blocking the heal. Suddenly the obstruction gave way and the healing magic flowed into Thornon.
You have restored 6.0% of Thornon Kinbrow’s total health. You are unable to determine Thornon Kinbrow’s current health. The underlying cause of damage still remains.
Joe was hit by a couple of different impressions at once. The first was a sense of confusion regarding the blockage he had encountered. The other was a pending sense of excitement that filled him. It felt like at any second something great was about to occur. He felt a smile spread wide across his face even though he had no idea why he was grinning. Not sure what to do with these feelings, Joe tried his healing again. The spell hit the same barrier before finally pushing through it. This time when it did, that sense of anticipation became a burst of euphoria. A cascade of lights erupted around Joe and a triumphant note of music rang out.
You have reached level 2 in your Healer Class. You have gained 1 unassigned attribute point and the following trait and skill.
[Aware] +1 to Perception. You have gained 1 common perception-based skill.
[Assess Wounds]: You are able to analyze and identify ailments and determine the relative health of those around you. Passive Ability.
You have restored 6% of Thornon Kinbrow’s total health. His current health is at 93%. The underlying cause of damage is preventing any additional healing of this type.
Your skill [Assess Wounds] has increased to rank 1.
“Congrats, son,” Thornon exclaimed, giving Joe a friendly thump on the shoulder. “I can tell by the look on yer face ya just advanced, didn’t ya? What level does that make ya now?”
“Two. That was my first level up.”
“Well then double my congratulations. Ya always remember yer first. Hopefully, ya won’t be too disappointed it came staring at my gnarly mitts.”
“Not at all. That was amazing.”
“Yessiree. The One Above sure do make it a joy. Careful though, some folks get addicted to that feeling and go hunting levels so hard they start ta bite off more than they can chew.”
Joe could understand that desire. Leveling up was such an incredible high. He noticed that his mana had been completely refilled. His health and stamina had been at full already but he imagined that they would have refilled if needed as well. It took a second for him to shake off the exhilaration and get back to business.
Looking back at the arm he was holding Joe could see so much more than he could a moment ago. The new skill he gained immediately changed his perceptions. People had auras now. Most people had a pale blue shimmer around them. Thornon’s was mostly blue except for in his arms where an ugly greenish-brown haze lurked. The color looked toxic, so Joe assumed it was some form of poisoning from the Foulgut Wyrm. There was no more damage he could fix with his [Healing Touch] or [Heart Fire]. He guessed would need a Remove Poison to clear out the rest of the problem.
“Thornon, do you have an active Poison status?”
“I don’t see one but that is not unusual. As a dwarf, especially one following the Heritage of the Akulur, our resistances are so high that most minor status effects don’t even show up on my slate. Do you want to look? Maybe being a healer you’ll see something I don’t.”
Joe looked up stunned. “Slate? Do you mean your window? You can do that? You can share them?”
The dwarf let out a deep rumbling chuckle. “Sure ya can. I keep forgetting how new ya are. Here, take a look.”
A slab of stone appeared in the air. It looked like smoky quartz at first but when Joe focused on it it took on the appearance of a rough-edged chalkboard. Its contents were very similar to his own, listing Thornon’s race to be Dwarf and his level was twenty-five. He had attributes and skills, just like Joe. The most interesting thing Joe saw was the tanner had half a dozen traits marked by a different type than Joe had ever seen. Besides the Racial traits and the Achievement traits, the dwarf had Heritage traits too.
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“Holy cow. I didn’t know we could do that.”
“We all grew up sharing our slates, so it’s pretty unremarkable for most folks. Granted when you become an adult you don’t share them quite so much. Ya, do so with your spouse or yer kin. Teachers and trainers often share them with their students. Feel free to share yours if ya want to but know it's bad manners to ask to see another’s slate out of the blue. You being a healer might give ya a good reason to look but I would be careful how ya ask if you do need a peek. See anything?”
“Nope, under Conditions it says ‘No Significant Conditions’.”
“Well, that is more than I see. For me it says ‘None’. I always wondered if classes would change what folks saw. Good to know.”
“I wonder if I had a skill that could affect the condition, would I see specifically what it was.” Joe started digging around in his satchel for some of the antitoxin he had seen in there earlier. He opened the tin of pink ointment and took up Thornon’s arm again to see if the salve could help the still ravaged skin. “Do you mind if I ask about some of your Traits? You mentioned the word Heritage and you have a bunch of Traits marked that way. What are Heritage Traits?”
“Heritage traits are those that are passed down through a clan or sect. I belong to the Underbrow Clan, which are the KinBrows, the Cragbrows, the Duskbrows, and a bunch more. I could pass a heritage trait to a kinsman if that kinsman had the requisite attributes for the trait. Heritage traits are one of the biggest advantages of belonging to an established lineage or joining an hereditary order. Ooh, that feels better.”
Joe could see the toxic-looking aura start to fade under the area he had coated. “Looks like this will work,” he said, grinning. The expression of sheer joyful relief on Thornon’s face was infectious. Joe scooped out more of the paste and worked it in between the man’s blocky fingers.
“Sorry. Mind wandered a bit there. Where were we? Oh yeah, Heritages. Most races got their own. For example, there are three main heritages among the Dwarves, but we got dozens of less common ones too. There is Kadrel, The Path of the Forge. This heritage is why everyone wants dwarven-made weapons and armor. For the warriors, there is Az, The Path of the Axe. Then there is Batok, The Path of the Stone. Batok has a bit of both, trade skills and warfare. It balances stone carving, mining, and crafting with overall toughness. Most dwarves you meet will likely have one of these three heritages. My clan belongs to that last one, Batok.”
As Joe finished covering the damaged skin, he asked, “So if I were to join a couple of these Hereditary orders, I could gain traits just for joining them?”
“Well yes and no. Yes, ya can gain the basic Traits that way. At least as long as ya remain a member of that order. No, in that, most of the Hereditary orders are exclusive. Ya typically cannot belong to more than one. I have seen folks with two heritages but that was because they had a clan heritage and order heritage but I have never heard of anyone having multiple heritages of each type. Kids whose parents each have different heritages have to choose which one to follow since they can’t learn both. Boy, can that cause fights in a household.”
Joe opened his own window and looked at his racial abilities. “Are hereditary traits also called racial or ancestral traits?”
“Yeah. That be another name for them. Why?”
“Because I have a trait that allows me to gain racial or ancestral traits from other races and lineages.”
“Really! Well, that’s a new one. Do ya mind if I see?”
Joe was a little nervous about showing his screen to someone but Thornon had been straight with him so far. Joe willed his window to be visible to the dwarf and waited, hoping he did it right. Thornon’s gaze swung to where Joe’s window was but he looked perplexed.
“Just how high is yer [Deception], son? Everything here is just a blur. Even yer name.”
“I don’t have any deception skills. I do have something that prevents me from being assessed.”
“That’s probably it. Hmmm. Well, I think I have a grand idea. It's a custom ta give a gift when someone gets their First Cascade and since you have made me arms a whole lot better, let’s see if that ability o’ yours works. What is your vigor? Vigor is the primary attribute for my heritage path.”
Joe’s face reddened. “Uhh. One,” he replied wincing.
“What! Boy, how are you still alive? One! A dwarven toddler has more Vigor than that. The lowest one I have needs at least two points.”
“I have one point I could spend since I just leveled.”
“That’s right. Ok, do you have at least a point of Spirit?”
“I have two.”
“Then we can do this. Do ya mind upping yer Vigor, which any sane person should say yes to?” he stated, giving Joe one of those sports coach glares. Joe had no objection to increasing his Vigor anyway. Even though healing was his primary ability, more health and stamina were always a good thing to have.
You have increased your Vigor to 2. You now have 29 points of Health and 65 points of Stamina.
“Done,” he replied. “Now what?”
“Now, look at my slate again and focus on [Iron Mind]. As soon as the One Above lets me know ya got it in your sights, I’ll share it.” Joe looked at the entry in Thornon’s window and suddenly an echo of the words jumped off the stone and zoomed into Joe’s head through his eyes.
You have been given a hereditary trait from the Batok branch of the Dwarves. As long as you retain this trait you cannot learn traits from any other dwarven racial tree.
[Iron Mind]: You have Major Resistance against Domination and Confusion effects.
Joe was astounded. A major resistance against mind-control and mind-altering attacks was huge. “This trait is amazing!”
“Yeah, that one is quite good but most hereditary traits are better than your typical traits. That is why folk join Hereditary orders or marry into noble lines. Ye can get some damn good boosts. ”
“I can’t thank you enough, Thornon. This is great.”
“Yer more than welcome Joe Healer. It’s been a long time since I had the opportunity to give a First Cascade gift and my hands feel a world better than they did when I sat down. I have no doubt that my vigor will break down any poisons left over in no time now thanks to ya.”
There was an emphasis on ‘my vigor’. Joe could tell the dwarf was still flabbergasted by his low attribute score. Joe knew all of his scores needed boosting but, so far, it looked like Healer was heavily focused on Spirit. As he was closing the tin of antitoxin, Joe noticed it was still almost full. He had slathered a large amount of the cream on Thornon’s arms, enough that the tin should be almost empty. As he dropped the canister back into the satchel, he saw that he still had a full set of bandages too. He had used a roll to rewrap Sorsa’s arm before he and Rhiley had left the farm, and yet there it was back again. His healing satchel was not as mundane as he thought it was. While it contained only minor treatments and first aid supplies, it looked like it replenished itself magically. Joe looked up amazed at the discovery and saw Rhiley leading an elderly woman across the green.
“Perfect timing,” the tanner exclaimed. “Looks like your next patient is arriving. Come and see me if ya have any leather to sell. I’m gonna go give the missus a hand around the house, now that I can do so without them aching like they were.”
The dwarf clapped a heavy hand on Joe’s shoulder before walking off. Joe shook off the satchel revelation and called after the marching dwarf. “I will, Thornon. Thank you for everything.”
Sitting up straighter on the stool, he waited for Rhiley to finish crossing the green with the elderly woman. He could not stop smiling. Joe felt healthier than he could ever remember feeling. He was gaining skills and abilities. So far, it had been a very, very good day.