Gritty, it turned out, had developed a strange skill. “I can insert my blood into others and control them directly using it.”

“That sounds super broken,” Ray said.

“I love it. Now, hold still.”

“It’s kind of hard to do that when you look and smell like you just climbed out of a monster’s guts… which you just did, I suppose.”

She glared at him, and Ray decided to do his best to still himself. It wasn’t difficult. The growing pain definitely made movement hard.

The swirling blood around Gritty’s hand slowed and turned into threadlike strands of glowing red, which then slowly inserted themselves into Ray’s bloodstream through the wound. He realized he was placing a good deal of trust in Gritty now. She could leave a residue, try to control him permanently, or perform some other diabolical shit.

But they had grown some kind of bond. Ray wasn’t so dumb as to not realize that. A bond, and a kind of trust.

Different though they might be, they both shared some surprising similarities.

Ray twitched as the blood Gritty inserted did something weird within him. “What level and Tier was that monster? If I’d known stuff like that was inside a lake, I wouldn’t have had to run around to level up so much.”

“Level 15 and Tier 5. And stop twitching.”

“I can’t help it.”

The pain was slowly lessening. Whatever Gritty was doing, it was working. The weird sensation of something small moving inside him spread farther and farther throughout Ray’s body. It was almost a little alarming just how far it went.

“Do you need to do that around my head too?” Ray asked.

“Just being thorough.” She grinned at him. It didn’t inspire any confidence at all. “Might get some Reputation Points, you see.”

At least that made him laugh a little.

Eventually, the sensation started receding. The blood that Gritty had inserted began sluicing out of the same wound it had entered through. But it wasn’t just the blood that came out. Ray looked down to see that it was heavily tinged green. Toxic green.

“You’re pulling out the poison,” he said, a little wondrously. “That’s incredibly useful.”

“I know, right? I love Blood Manipulation.”

Ray stepped back. While his Recovery regenerated enough for him to fix up his wound, he took a peek at Gritty’s Status again with Presence of the Primordial. He didn’t feel the same hesitation with her as he had done with Joaquin. With her, it was more like a secret they shared together.

Because, if Gritty wanted, she could take a peek at his abilities too.

“Oh wow, you’re at level 14 already. That was fast.”

“And you’re still ahead of me. Bummer.”

Ray grinned. “I’m just that great.”

Gritty rolled her eyes, then turned around and headed towards the lake. “I’m going to wash off this filth. Where you headed next?”

Where was Ray going next? He was so close to another level after taking care of those Vilebugs. That was his main priority. But that was achievable. What came after that was what likely interested Gritty the most.

“I’m going to head back to the Faction,” Ray said finally.

“Why’s that?”

“You know why. You’re even the one who told me what the Wild Tides and the Sylvans have been planning together.”

“Oh, that.” She made a dismissive gesture like it wasn’t important. “They won’t make a move until they’re in position within the Faction itself, and now that I’ve warned Mrs. Boss about what’s going on, those cowardly bastards won’t be able to do a thing.”

Mrs. Boss? “That’s what I’ve been thinking about. What if we let them take over the Faction?”

Gritty, who had dived straight into the murky water as though it didn’t look at all like it had nuclear waste dumped into it for a zillion years, broke the surface. Her dark hair was plastered on her head. “Go on, I’m listening.”

Ray told her what he had done with the Sylvans recently, emphasizing the fact that he had pretended to be a member of the Wild Tides. “So, there’s definitely going to be some trouble. After that trouble, they’re probably going to try to recalibrate their plans to take their new circumstance into account. But we don’t want that.

“We don’t?”

“No. We want them to act on their original plan because we know their original plan. If they make a new plan, we’ll lose our advantage, right?”

“So you’re going to help accelerate their original plan to force them to go through with it.” Gritty grinned. “Just so we can lay a trap for them.”

“Exactly.”

“I think I like your devious little mind, wingman.”

Ray snorted. “If I was devious, I’d have thought of this before attacking the Sylvans. Now, we’ve got only a short window to work with. So hurry up, will you?”

Gritty made a dissatisfied noise. “But it’s so nice. I haven’t had a proper bath in ages.” She splashed some of the water around. “You should join me. You look like you could use some R & R.”

Ray stared at her for a moment before laughing a little. “I’d return your flirty bait, but I make it a point of not diving headfirst into liquid cancer.”

Gritty tutted. “I wasn’t flirting, wingman. If I was flirting, you’d be floored, I tell you. Floored.”

Snorting again, Ray decided to rest while Gritty took care of her business. He looked around at the giant sea serpent’s body. It explained why the notification from Presence of the Primordial had disappeared so quickly. The monster had died as soon as his spell had acted. Fucking Gritty.

His Recovery had, well, recovered enough that he could heal himself up back fully now. He supposed he ought to be thankful to Gritty.

She had acquired a neat ability.

It highlighted that Ray didn’t have anything in his repertoire to help himself in these sorts of situations. No spell to cure poisonings. Things like that. Definitely a lack he ought to address somehow.

He also looked down at his clothes. The Shaper Raiment had definitely seen better days. Its right sleeve was ragged, nicks and tears covered several areas, and a good chunk of the white bit in front was now missing thanks to him using it as a makeshift armband.

Did this mean he had to think about looking for a new raiment at some point soon? At what state of disrepair did the garb stop providing any protection and other benefits?

There was, unfortunately, no handy manual that told him all about that.

When Gritty was finally done, they got a move on. Ray had offered her the Drakescale Robes in place of the wet clothes she had worn while she had taken her dip. She had declined, saying her raiment provided certain bonuses she was loathe to part with.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

That made a ton of sense, although… “You realize your clothes are very…” Ray tried to think of the right words for a second. “…clingy now, right?”

“Yes. Why?” The upward slant of her mouth was like the curve of a dagger. “You hot and bothered?”

“Why would I be hot and bothered by someone who makes my grandfather’s walking stick look healthy?”

Gritty guffawed. “Ah, I knew you were worth it.”

“Worth what?”

She shook her head and walked on.

“Worth what?”

Gritty didn’t reply, only walked on. She brought out a heavy, dark cloak from nowhere—likely from a Storage Ring she had acquired at some point—and wrapped it around herself. A second later, it began steaming. The cloak was drying her off.

Ray stared. Then with a sigh, he followed.

As they travelled, they talked a bit more about what they had been up to. Ray explained the Windbane dungeon and how he had met Joaquin and learned about the Ascenders. Gritty, meanwhile, had sort of infiltrated a contingent of the Wild Tides before killing them off.

She said it so casually. It would have made Ray at least look at her weird, but then, he remembered what she had said.

You won’t believe the things I had to do to survive.

Some time later, they came across another dungeon that was being cleared by some members of the Insurge Faction. They also reached another little grove of dark trees bearing a Mana fruit.

Ray plucked it, but since he was so close to a level, he didn’t leave it at just that. Gritty stood back as he attacked the dark trees to make the monster far under the earth emerge. Then, just as he had with the one that had attacked the keep, he killed the Duskshell.

[Enemy Defeated—Duskshell]

Tier 6 Monster: Duskshell [Level 19] x1

Essence: +1,140

Knowledge: +3

Mana Restored: +190

[Level Up!]

Reward

* +3 Intellect, +3 Spirit, +2 Vitality, +4 allocatable free stats.

* 1 Tier Point

Essence to Level 17: 400/14,200

Knowledge to next Threshold: 277/300

Excellent. He had now finally reached level 16. Just as he had hoped to do. His improved Chaos Chymify had also caused Lifeblood Crucible to activate with new Soul Aspects he was pretty sure he hadn’t seen the last time he had fought and beaten a Duskshell.

The list had more than Ray wanted, actually, but he narrowed it down to the choices that were interesting.

[Lifeblood Crucible Activated]

Chaos Chymify has stolen the soul of a defeated Duskshell. Please select which Aspect of the targeted soul to retain.

Soul Aspects

* Impervious Shell [Tier 5]: Channel the power of your shell to create a defensive barricade that stops all incoming damage at or below this spell’s Tier.

* Duskshell Torso [Tier 6]: Enormous torso of a Duskshell, containing all its innards and joints for other appendages.

* Retractable Maw [Tier 6]: Enormous mouth of a Duskshell with beady eyes and no brains. Riddled with teeth to rend to dust anything caught within the maw.

* Retractable Tail [Tier 6]: Slim tail of the Duskshell that allows for enhanced underground navigation where there is no light.

The other choices were things he had seen before. Its limbs, the Mana Surge ability, and the Mana Accumulation Sprout that grew the trees bearing Mana fruit.

Ray had no need for any of those. To be fair, he didn’t need most on the current list either, but the new options confirmed that yes, Chaos Chymify did indeed provide more advanced options. In fact, if Ray wanted, he could now create an entire Duskshell construct of his own.

After putting the Tier Point into Lifeblood Construct to take it to Tier 4, the spell would now call up four different Soul Aspects at the same time. Just the number Ray would need to create any full-on monster.

It was kind of insane to think that was possible. Constructing his own Duskshell was a completely different from constructing his own Brighthorn. Like building a tank versus building a kennel. They just didn’t compare. Which meant there had to be some equalizer or limiter that Ray wasn’t aware of just yet.

Whatever the case, he didn’t actually want to make his own Duskshell, so he picked Impervious Shell.

“All done?” Gritty asked. “I need to kill one of those things too…”

Ray nodded. “You can stick to your underwater sea monsters.”

They reached the Base before long. Ray took some time appreciating how it was growing as a settlement.

High above, people had strung up clotheslines on the battlements and hung wet clothes to dry. A group of men and women were carrying lumber and masonry into the keep from a pile just outside. Even from the distance, Ray could smell something good cooking. They really were making this whole place feel lived-in.

But domestic affairs weren’t all that was progressing. The people were still tense. Ray could sense the jitteriness, the anxious expectation that the members held onto.

That probably explained all the other preparations he saw.

Off to one side, the Insurge Faction members had cleared up a patch of ground to serve as a sort of training field. People were exercising and sparring there already. At the moment, a group of sword-fighters were practicing their swings, stabs, and slashes.

Stakes had been erected all around the Base. Maybe that was part of what the lumber was for. Ray spotted people at a lot of the windows all around the keep, each of them manned by someone keeping an eye out. They were also often armed with bows or even short spears, and those who weren’t likely had some sort of spell or ranged skill to take advantage of.

Maya greeted them within an office-like chamber inside the keep. She sat behind a table on a chair, both of which were somewhat crudely made. They lent her an extra air of authority, though. A window on the side let in light and air. She looked stressed, but also a little relieved to see Ray.

Randall was in the room too, apparently consulting Maya on something, but he gave a friendly nod to Ray before heading out.

“You’re finally back,” she said with a bright smile. “And you brought Gritty with you too. I wasn’t sure I’d ever see you again.”

Gritty dragged a hand through her hair to make it even messier. “I thought I’d pop by before things went to shit.”

“Well… they haven’t yet, but I’m glad you’re here all the same.”

“Everything alright?” Ray asked. “Other than an imminent invasion, of course.”

“As well as it can be with a bunch of people who don’t know each other now forced to live together. Some small issues here and there, but most people have adapted remarkably well. I’m…” She smiled, half with pride, half disbelievingly. “I’m actually quite hopeful. Or would be, if we weren’t… you know.”

“Right. And that’s good, because I think I have a plan for dealing with all this.”

Maya sat up straighter. “Oh?”

Ray spent the better part of the next half an hour or so explaining his idea. If they could force the Wild Tides to commit to their plan, then they could lay a simple trap and take care of the entire issue. All they’d have to do was pretend to capitulate while waiting for the opportunity to strike.

“What if they don’t appear here?” Maya asked. “What if Derrick refuses?”

“We’ll have to think of ways we can get him to come here. You can’t move. This Base is too important, and you can make it a condition for joining them—that you get to keep the Base.”

“Hmm, we’ll see I guess. He seems like a shrewd guy. We’ll have to make any reason for coming here convincing.”

Gritty raised a hand. “Hold on a second. You sound like you’ve actually met him?”

Ray raised an eyebrow in surprise. Gritty was right. Maya had spoken with a certain familiarity.

“He sent us a formal warning,” Maya said. “So, no, I haven’t met him, not really, but the message does give a few insights.”

“What’s the message?” Ray asked. “And how’d you even get a message?”

Maya told them the whole story. It was really weird. Apparently, a giant bat had flown in and dropped a scroll next to a few Faction members. They had been scared and tried to kill it, but the bat had apparently been way too strong. Eventually, Maya had gotten a hold on the scroll and read through it.

“Here you go.” She handed it to Ray from the table. “Have a look.”

Ray read through quickly. The letters were tidy, the script small and written in red.

“Greetings, Faction Leader Maya,” it read. “If you don’t know of us already, we are the Wild Tides, a growing Faction of Denizens who seek to claim the entirety of the First Floor for the benefit of all those who reside upon it. In this new world, if we don’t stand together, then we are all doomed to fail. As such, there is only one tenet that we stick to.

“You are either with the Wild Tides, or you are against us. There is no in-between. If you do not seek to join the Wild Tides, then we must unfortunately come to regrettable conflict. It would be in all our best interests to avoid that. We MUST stand united against the foes that imperil us in the Tower of Forging.

“This letter is likely surprising and perhaps even rude, but if you would prefer, we can schedule a meeting. Simply write your reply on the opposite empty page of the letter and burn it. I shall receive it then. If I receive no reply in a week’s time, then I shall take it as a declination of our generous offer.

“I await your reply.”

It was signed with a single, familiar name.

Derrick Orden.

“Ugh,” Gritty said. “He sounds like a politician.”

Ray handed the letter back to Maya. “I can see why you think he’s intelligent.”

“It’s why I’ve been stressing.” Maya folded the letter into a scroll again and carefully placed it on her table. “Not sure what we should reply.”

“Easy.” Ray smiled. “We’re going to stick to our plan. That means agreeing to this ridiculous proposition. Better yet, you need to send it as soon as possible. Now, if you can.”

“What? Now?”

“He started some chaos in their ranks,” Gritty said, explaining how Ray had pretended to be a Wild Tides member to stir up trouble. “Best to take advantage of it while we have the chance.”

Maya stared at him with a mix of shock and… what was that? Fear? Apprehension. Ray had a hard time telling, but it made him feel a little bad inside, which was stupid since why should he care if Maya found his deeds troubling.

But her face cleared in seconds. “Alright. Let’s plan out our plan, shall we?”