Even in these early morning hours, many of the townsfolk of Fort Coral were out and about spiffing up the battered streets for the festival due to start in a few hours. Like true frontier-folk, they were going to soldier on, not letting something as simple as a cataclysmic event dampen the day to come. People were sweeping the street with both mundane and magical means, making piles of glass and broken bricks. Those piles were being sucked into dim-bags which in turn were poured into large shipping crates that had been acquired from somewhere and placed all around Midtown.
Even those crates were getting treatments for Founders Day. Joe watched as one young man painted wavy oceanic lines around one crate. Another was draped with colorful garlands. Joe noted that the colors used were always the same four hues: white for Mira, red for Jequa, blue for Margen, and purple for Tintze. As they walked, Joe used [Fetching Fist] to pluck stray scraps of wood or stone, tossing them into the nearest crate and earning him nods and waves from the clean-up crews.
As he and Earcellwen reached Serra Lane, Joe found himself growing anxious. He barely had gotten to know his neighbors, but they all seemed like good people. Runk and Mahq were especially cared for. He fervently hoped Abaaka House had been spared from Cauldrakon’s furious storm.
When the apartment building came into view, Joe let out a relieved sigh. The walls were all intact. There were a few missing shutters and broken windows. Additionally, large swaths of the flowering vines had been torn away. Joe was not too worried. He was confident the young druid wouldn’t have any trouble regrowing them.
He could see Halten and the now straight-backed Runkbadok raking up the loose leaves and clipping the ripped vines. Senrella, the elven singer, was pushing a broom in the courtyard to the street, not for rubble but to expel waves of water from the tiled atrium.
Earcellwen cocked her head, picking up something unusual with her crazy high perception. Joe had tried to use [Morphic Form] before to see if he could enhance his hearing, but so far, he had not figured out the trick for doing so. He did not have to wait long for the mystery to resolve itself.
Sprinting from the other side of the building was a fleet-looking creature. It was built like a greyhound, but instead of a short coat of fur, the beast had a pebbly-looking hide with a leathery armadillo-like shell covering its back. Joe smiled widely when he assessed it.
Mahq Catstaff: Human: Druid/Savant 11
Joe's twelve-foot-long, black-and-white terror came bounding around the house, hot on the heels of the armadillo-hound. For such a big creature, Finn took the corner almost as tightly as his quarry. The akhlut jabbed its rounded nose forward, bumping the small beast. Mahq skidded sideways but kept his footing.
“Will you two …,” Halten shouted, shaking a fist in the air, but the pair dashed into the apartment’s side alley before he could even finish his old-man tirade.
RC closed her eyes, listening. “They’re making a pretty big circle, but they should be back around in a minute,” she relayed, smirking.
“Well, at least it seems he’s been reasonably good. I just hope he and Mahq aren’t terrorizing the neighbors,” Joe lamented. He waved to Runk and his landlord. Joe thought about closing the distance, but Mister Rigg seemed to be in a grouchy mood, though that might just be that man’s default emotional state. Instead, he and Earcellwen waited for the racers. Joe flared his body modification skill again, focusing on his hearing. Just as he was about to give up, he heard a surprised squawk come from a street away. The sound went from a faint cry to clear as a bell in that instant.
Your skill [Morphic Form] has increased to rank 17
Joe had to open and waggle his jaw around as it felt like his ears needed to pop. His efforts caught RC’s attention. When she looked up at him, her eyes opened wide in surprise before she broke out giggling in a light, charming laugh. Joe reached up. Sure enough, his ears felt considerably larger. Unfortunately, they did not seem to have grown into shapely elongated forms like hers or even a wolf’s. His fingers just registered comically oversized pancakes sticking out of the side of his head. Joe felt his face blush as he shut down the effect quickly. That was one modification he’d save for when he was alone.
Even as he was dismissing the enhancement, he could hear the pair heading back in his direction. He moved with Eacellwen to intercept them. A minute later, the runners rounded the corner again. Spotting Joe, Mahq dove between him and RC, causing Finn to have to dig in his heels in order to stop before he bowled over the two people in his way.
“You guys look like you are having fun,” Joe both spoke aloud and projected through his connection to the chimera.
Mahq's form flowed into that of the smiling boy while Finn trilled a series of high-pitched squeaks.
“He likes to play,” Mahq uttered, his eyes focused on a spot high on the wall beside them. “He should go soon. He is getting dry.”
“Yeah,” Joe agreed. “That is what we were coming to figure out.”
“Figure out,” the elf asked. “What do you mean?”
“Well, he is my companion now. He should return to the ocean for a while, but how do I call him back if I need him again? That was what I wanted your help with.”
“Ah, you need the skill for it. It’s called [Call Nature’s Ally]. I can teach it to you.”
“So can I,” Mahq added in his monotone voice. “It’s a druid spell too. Take a look.”
A faint window appeared directly in front of Joe instead of at the corner of his eye. Unlike the blue he was used to, this one was green. It grew opaque as Joe gave it his attention, and he could read the description.
[Call Nature’s Ally] (Spirit) (C) Send a call to a bound companion and open a magical crossroad, which allows them to fast travel to your location. Their travel speed to you increases by 200%, plus 25% for each skill rank you have with this skill. Cost: Major Mana.
Having just gained four unassigned attribute points, now was the perfect time to grab a way to call Finn back. Joe spent a point into Spirit and focused on the skill.
You have learned [Call Nature’s Ally]
“Well, that makes this much easier,” Joe sighed, relieved. “ I was racking my brains on where and how to keep Finn today with all the celebrations going on. Letting him head back out to his pack is better than anything I had come up with.”
“The other cool thing about that spell is you can use it in reverse, too,” the archer noted. “If you were to cast it now on Finn, you can open the crossroad for him to fast travel back to where he lives. Naenaeon lives deep in the forests of HartWald, far from here. The spell allows him to head right back home.”
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“Would he have to travel through town, or should I bring him down to the coast first? I’d hate for there to be any misunderstandings. I’m surprised that no one was freaking out about him when you two were tearing around the block.”
“They didn’t really see him,” Mahq muttered. “I made his core fuzzy. Only if he was really close did they notice him. Then they forgot him.”
Joe looked at the strange young man, curious as hell. Just as he was about to ask for clarification, he felt a pull along the connection he and Finn shared. The creature was trying to get his attention. Joe looked at the looming creature and felt something pushing between them. There was something there, but Joe could not seem to grasp what the akhlut was trying to tell him.
“He wants to share something with you,” Mahq explained. “He has a scroll too. Like ours, sort of. You have to accept it.”
The window that opened in front of him was pitch black with white symbols. There were lines of writing, but instead of letters, there were hieroglyphs that Joe could not understand. One line suddenly grew bolded and larger, as if Finn was pushing it toward him.
You have been offered the racial trait [Alpha] from Finn via your [Anyone] trait. Do you wish to accept it?
Even though Joe was uncertain what the ability did, since traits did not require resources, he saw no reason not to accept Finn’s gift.
[Alpha] has enhanced your [Pack Master] skill
[Pack Master] You will be able to dominate lupine and chimeric creatures. Your ability to command, intimidate, and charm gains a 10% to overcome emotional resistances plus 2% for each skill rank you have with this skill. Wolfen and chimeric creatures will be naturally drawn to follow you.
Joe felt Finn’s sense of satisfaction as if something that had been bothering the big brute now was right. The chimera was only part wolf. Through their bond, Joe could feel that the orca part wanted a connection to him as well.
“How did you do that?” Mahq exclaimed. “You just changed your heart. You now look more like Finn.”
“I have a trait that allows me to take traits of other races,” Joe replied, scratching his head. “I guess it works with monsters as well as people. Didn’t know that.”
“Any race?”
“I think so.”
“Show me,” Mahq declared.
A window opened in front of Joe for the third time, green again. Joe saw that Mahq had about as many traits as he did, even though he was only two-thirds his level. It made sense when Joe thought about it. Most of his traits had been earned in his early levels when everything was a first for him. Like with Finn, suddenly, one trait grew more prominent. Mahq was extending the human trait [Talent Diversification] to him. Again, seeing no reason not to, Joe accepted.
[Talent Diversification] +20% chance to meld classes.
Suddenly, a spike of pain lanced through Joe's head. It was akin to a massive brain freeze from gulping down an entire milkshake at once.
“Ow. Ow. Ow!” A status condition appeared, and Joe flicked what little attention he had available to it.
[Overextension] You have used the ability [Anyone] in rapid succession. This trait requires a significant cooldown before reuse. -15% to your maximum mana and stamina pools. This damage remains until the cooldown period elapses.
“Oh crap,” Joe growled. “That would have been nice to know beforehand. Why was that not in the description, Hawking?”
Experiences are a valuable part of Illuminaria, Joe.
Grumbling at the inscrutable entity, Joe used [Healing Touch] to remove the pain from his head, noting the condition remained. Looking to his resources, he huffed. He had just lost around 700 points of mana and 300 points of stamina, with no idea when he was getting them back.
While Joe grumbled to himself, he became aware of another strange sensation tickling its way through him. It was as if the new trait was shuffling through all the little pieces of himself, making notes and connections. Joe was suddenly very aware of Earcellwen and Mahq standing beside him. Finally, the feeling settled down, and another window appeared.
You have significant synergies with the classes of your local allies. Two class meldings are available:
* Fell Bane Ranger
* Fell Bane Druid
“What the …,” he muttered.
“Are you ok, Joe,” the archer asked, placing a hand against his arm. “You look pale.”
“So much just happened. I gained a human trait from Mahq. Then I overloaded myself, damaging my mana and stamina pools in the process,” he groaned. “And now I have a notification asking if I want to meld one of my classes with a class from either you or Mahq. Your ranger or druid from him.”
“Oh. Wait! Don’t accept or deny it. Just leave it. I’ll send a bird to get Kendell. She knows character builds better than anyone, even Myllo. Why don’t you send Finn off while I cast [Animal Messenger]?” The elf rubbed her chin. “She might be asleep. Better use a woodpecker,” she mused quietly to herself.
Joe really did not feel like casting a spell right then in the aftermath of his overload, but it made sense. He walked closer and ran a hand over the slick black hide. “You go have fun with your friends … family. We’ll get together again in a couple of days. I’d love to have you with me in the fight ahead, but I don't know if that will work. There are contagious undead, and inside a cramped ziggurat is probably not the best place for you. Let’s not worry about that yet. You go have a good time, bud. I am very glad you came to help me.”
For the second time, Finn butted his huge domed head into Joe. Through the connection they shared, he felt a fierce kinship, as well as a deep sense of gratitude. The beast focused Joe’s awareness on the cursed hunger gnawing at the akhluts. It was one of the reasons the beasts were so feared. They had to eat, or they suffered horribly. Yet within Finn, the relentless appetite was no longer a grinding agony. It was still there, but the bond the chimera had formed was holding that terrible starvation at bay.
Joe gave the round nose a good rubbing. “I’m glad. Maybe we can find a way to help the others, too. One more thing to research.”
Finn seemed to understand the idea of what Joe was thinking, flaring back to him a hopeful question. It was as if Finn had just blurted, ‘Really!’
“Yeah, really,” Joe replied, only to have a window appear sharply as if demanding his attention.
[CURSE OF TARKIK] (Rare)
You have sworn to seek out the nature of the ravenous curse afflicting the akhlut pack. Can you free them from the unrelenting torment of their cravings?
Reward: Mantle of the Deep
“That was not what I was expecting, but you know what? That is one quest I’d be happy to accept. You guys are too awesome to be enemies. I do have to deal with the undead first, but as soon as that is done, I’ll get the whole team to help me work on freeing you and your family.”
Joe rubbed the beast's face once more and cast his new spell.
Your skill [Call Nature’s Ally] has increased to rank 1.
Finn bumped his big head into Joe’s chest one last time before turning and heading for the ocean. As the creature lopped away, it looked as though he was passing through obstacles as he went, as if he was not fully solid at the moment. In seconds, the beast reached the ocean. The last Joe saw was the tall black fin slicing away through the sea.
Joe watched until even that speck of black vanished. Even though it had only been such a short period, he knew he had become very attached to the big brute. That hole, the one he had not even been really aware of, the one that had been filled for 90% of his life with his dogs, was no longer empty.