Taking a moment to tie a bandage over his right eye, so it would stop leaking, Ambros sat hunched over a stone block the size of the elfe, in other words, not too big. That made the process more complex than on someone larger was something he just needed to deal with for the moment. He had almost made a healing array for himself first, but he doubted the elf would survive for him to be back on his feet, so until then. “Slow is smooth, and smooth is fast.”

Placing the next healing rune in the correct spot on the stone block, he ensured the rune sequence would align with the previous and next rune stone he would place. Healing runes were a combination of Life, light, earth, wind, water, fire and necrotic mana. In other words, they were a pain to make for their complexity, and they sucked up mana like it was nobody's business, so he would need to make several sets of them. Scratching out the next rune sequences, he finally placed the last two rune stones in their carved-out slots in the stone bed. The runes would need to work on several different things at once and in the right sequence, or they would get stuck in a loop of rehealing the same thing over and over until it ran out of power, hence setting it up as an array. The elf should be damn glad he had studied elven anatomy, or he doubted he could get her back into shape.

Turning around, he looked at the elf lying on some of the clothes he had plundered from the vampiress, a bed of silks and other flimsy things. He almost felt a smidgen of empathy if he wasn't so annoyed at her. The latest set of wounds he had bound as best he could was just the newest series of abuse she had been through. Whoever she was, her story must be a difficult one. Alright, so maybe he was a tiny bit empathic towards her. No one should have to live with all of the things he had found while cataloging the problems with her body. He was honestly afraid that she would turn out to be a raving lunatic when she finally woke up. Well, no more silken bed for you this night, he thought as he removed the tatters that remained of her clothes and placed her on the stone block. The effect was immediate. His Arcane Sight told him the runes were working as intended. Sadly he could not do anything with the engraving on her back and neck, he couldn't figure out what it was for or what purpose it served, but it gave him the chills just looking at it. Letting out a tired sight, he turned around and walked over to a surprisingly comfortable stone chair after he had padded it with some more pisces of the vampiress silk.

Unlike the elf, he didnt need such a complex healing array to get him back in shape. His body didnt have years of abuse and torture behind it to fix. Even his missing eye should heal up, and no scars should remain. Taking a new stone in hand, he started carving another healing rune. This one only needed to be a closed sequence, so much easier to engrave. The stylus he had found in one of the dimensional rings the vampiress had been carrying certainly helped. It was his new treasure, and he would kill to keep it. His Analyze skill only claimed to be a very valuable object, and he was inclined to agree as it cut through stone and metal like butter. A tad mana greedy in use, but he was more than happy with the trade-off. He saw it as compensation for breaking his sword cane. Well, that and all the other loot he had gotten on top of the vampiress life, if it could be called that. He finished up the rune stone and popped a stone of power in it. He could immediately feel the healing effect spread through his body. He was just glad he had the forethought to stop any itching that could occur while the healing commenced.

About to lean back and close his eye for a moment, he felt another surge pulsing out from the bunker outside.

Battle Award

54 Exp

1,620 Sp.

Do you wish to loot the corpses?

Yes, he would, and he got another bunch of ears and grains. Either the fop or one of the vampiress underlings was pissed over her death, or Ambros had looted something extremely valuable. He would put money on it being the latter. He found two boxes after breaking up the silly trap seal on the vampiress necklace. They were made of petrified wood, and a single vial of black liquid was inside each. He would guess it to be some sort of blood, possibly the catalyst to set a vampire down the same self-destructive road as the vampiress had been on. Be that as it may, someone had been sending clumps of zombies to test the bunker's defenses, and while they stood firm, it was starting to annoy him. He really needed to sleep soon. Besides, the zombies only gave him 1 experience point now. They still gave the same amount of system points and loot, so there was that, but at this point, he had so many grains of power and zombie's ears it was getting ridiculous.

Deciding that he was well enough from the healing rune to walk around a bit, even if it would be hours until he was back in top form, Ambros walked over to the wall where the zombies had been coming from and commanded a section to open for him as he walked outside.

A few hundred steps before him, he could see the vampire fop and the greatsword-wielding one with a few robed followers. Turning on Arcane Sight, he could see the brown and black-robed ones were necromancers, weak ones at that, by the little necrotic energy they had swirling in them. They had traded away the option to use other aspects of mana to be able to use necromancy more efficiently and eventually become a lich. It was one way to power. Tired, hurt and angry, Ambros stood there momentarily, letting the light from his eyes bathe everything in its shade of purple before he loudly proclaimed. “I'm going to say this once. You can leave now. If you disturb my sleep again, you will piss me off.” The fop, dressed in new clothes but looking slightly crispy, still shouted back, “I will feast on your blood before this night is over, weakling. Now where is the mistress's jewelry? You have one minute to procure them, or I will order another group of zombies to attack your little hut!” Ambros would have facepalmed if he wasn't afraid to break up his wounds more. Looking at the other vampire, he summoned the two boxes in one of his hands and said, “You deal with this, and I'll give you the boxes. I'm out of patience.” Even as the fop turned slack jaws towards the one wielding a greatsword, it had already left his back, and moments later, the fop's head rolled on the ground before it, and his body turned to dust.

Why couldn't everyone be this reasonable? Ambros thought as he started walking towards the vampire. The vampire met him about halfway, and when Ambros handed over the boxes, he opened them quickly, checking the content before signaling to a couple of robed people to come and take them. Turning back to Ambros, he watched his face intently before saying, “My sire ordered me to acquire the samples without starting a clan war. It seems you solved an issue for me, human. I am Gregorius Talbot, of the house Talbot. I owe you a dept. These were to be my binding price to Narcisa. I am quite happy that I will no longer be joined with her. Be warned that I will have to report what happened here this night, and when I do, Narcisa house of Bayntoni will probably seek to redress the matter with you. If you ever find yourself in the Talbot lands, know you will be welcome there. The hounds will have your scent. Farewell, human.” Ambros nodded at his words. He was familiar with the intricacies of vampire courts and houses. They probably made things as convoluted as possible out of boredom. While he didnt know how much of what Gregorius had said was true, at least he could get some rest. Deciding it was enough, he said, “I will take you up on the offer of hospitality one night in the future, Gregorius. I am Ambros. Good night.” Turning around, he walked back into the bunker, sat back in the chair and promptly fell asleep.

Ambros was almost positive Revitalize would have been under controlled substances if introduced to Earth. It was like having someone shoot caffeine and happiness right in your vein and then giving you a bear hug. It was, in other words. Amazing. Opening his eyes, both of them he was happy to note, he looked over at the stone table the elf was sleeping up. She was still out cold, but it wasn't too strange. Her wounds had been deep and old. Getting up and doing a quick scan, he decided the array wouldn't be disturbed by a blanket or something. While she was tiny, there was little doubt about what gender she subscribed to. Besides, waking up naked on a stone and only in the company of a stranger was probably not the best way to start a morning. Rummaging through the pile of flimsy clothes she had been dumped on last night, he found a few scarves that would do the trick. Walking to the cooking section, he started a gruel with the rations he had found in his dimensional bag. Some honey and dried fruit would help make it partly edible. He really disliked gruel. Opening his system information to look at the new skill he got while stirring the pot of horrors.

Name: Ambros Mardux

Race: Human, variant. Grafted Primus modus

Titles: Eques

Class: Arcanist

Level: 15

Experience: 974/1,882

System rank: Questor

Circle: Neophyte

Step: 0/6

System points: 22,730

Body: 5 ( E )

Mind: 5 ( E )

Spirit: 5 ( E )

Unspent attribute points: 30

Active Skill: Analyze ( F ), Meditation ( F ), Arcane Sight ( D ), Sanctum ( F )

Passive Skill: Giant Slayer I ( F ), Mana-Core ( F ), Revitalize ( F ), Omnilingual ( A )

Spells: Arcane Bolt ( F ), Arcane Shield ( F ), Control Heat ( F ), Control Earth ( F ), Control Wind ( F ), Control Water ( F )

Let's see what we got here.

Giant Slayer I ( F ): 10% of the contender's damage output can not be annulled or suppressed by beings of a higher power. This skill has levels and grades. To increase the skill level, the contender must keep slaying beings of a higher power. Increasing the skill level and rank will unlock new options. It will also increase the efficiency of existing ones.

Well, that had the potential to become quite the hidden card. With a yawn, he added the dried fruit and a big dollop of honey straight into the gruel, stirring it with the long spoon he had made with Control Earth. He didnt feel like washing up his own equipment. Tasting it, he decided it to be ready, and not a moment too soon since he heard a loud gasp from the stone table. Bolting upright, a sword in each hand, the elfe looked frantically around, eventually settling her gaze on him. Holding up a hand palm out, he said,” Why don't you get dressed and get some gruel? While you look quite lovely, I would prefer to have breakfast without your assets in my face.” Her gaze bore into him for a long minute before she put them back in the dimensional bag she wore in her ear. Keeping half an eye on her as she put on something she had in her dimensional bag, he used Control Earth to make two bowls out of the kitchen bench and two spoons, ladling a good-sized portion of the gruel in each. Sliding one bowl to the other side of the bench, he tasted it with a grimace. Gruel never tasted good, no matter how much you added to it.

She sat down on the stool opposite him and, without hesitation, started eating. He wasn't too surprised. Much of the tissue needed to heal her had come from her own body. He refilled her bowl without saying anything as she finished it before he had even gotten a few spoons, not that he planned on eating more than absolutely necessary for the horrible thing. He watched as she slowly ran her tongue along her teeth before she finally spoke. “I have all my teeth. What do you demand for such a gift?” Trying to swallow another spoonful, he said, “To start with, you can eat up the rest of the gruel. How you can swallow it without gagging. I'll never understand. Then I want information about your world.” She had the big expressive eyes of most elves, so he could easily see the questions she wanted to ask. “My world? You are a starman? Like the vile men of the West. The Imperials? You look like them. Too tall and skin that has never known sun or toil. It has honey. How can you not want honey? It's precious and sweet.” She seemed to think briefly before telling what she knew of the world he found himself in. She had a straightforward way of talking that he found refreshing, and Ambros found himself enjoying listening to her talk despite his initial annoyance at her making things so damn difficult last night.

Probably the most important thing he learned was that they weren't in her world. They were inside a rift. Before he could demand to know where the nearest exit was, she said it had been connected to her world for thousands and thousands of years. She didnt know why or how that had happened. Ambros, however, had some idea of the forces involved in stabilizing even a small rift world to another world. It would, in effect, stop any other dimensional travel by complex life forms to and from the worlds connected by the stationary rift, and that raised so many questions about how he found himself here that he wasn't ready to explore all of the possibilities. He did understand that getting rescued by the Council would be impossible as long as the rift, or as he learned, rifts since they existed all over the overworld as she called it, and let people travel between the two worlds. Since the distance was warped in the rift world, you could save months by traveling through the rift world to reach your destination in the other world.

She knew little about the world at large, but he learned about the rift settlement she called home. She told him it belonged to the Free City of Lemadis. It was a free city since it was ruled by the city and not an Imperial underling, not anymore, at least. It had broken free together with other cities a long time ago. He learned about how most professions were run by guilds, like the mercenary guild, adventurers guild, healers guild and so on. They normally had a guild house, chapter or temple in most cities representing their interests and protecting their members. She? She was on contract with the rift settlement garrison. That was all she would say about that.

Then he learned about currency. That copper was the normal thing to pay with, then silver and gold. There were other things like platinum, but that was more money than anyone by high-ranking adventurers or nobles would ever see. You needed a hundred to exchange for a higher value in coins, so a hundred copper coins made a silver coin. The thing he called power stones were also possible to trade or exchange into coins at a bank or a guild. She called it Energy stone, with a capital E as far as he could understand. The value mostly went by its size, and the greater the size, the more insane the price became.

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

She told him about free city culture, and no, despite its name, slavery was prevalent because why not. It always seemed to be. The free cities were ruled by someone elected to serve for life. No, of course, only nobles got elevated and could vote. Ambros needed to bring some good old fashion anarchy to this world. He despised talking with nobles, mostly. The cities fought amongst themselves but would unite if an outside enemy threatened any one of them. It sounded a bit like ancient Greece to his ears. No, she didnt know much of the kingdoms surrounding them or the Empire, just that the Empire was evil. When he asked why she shrugged and said it just was.

Ambros made another pot of gruel for the insatiable elfe a few hours later. She had also emptied a skin of water. He really wasn't surprised. She needed a lot of food. She had been silent for a few minutes, looking lost in thought, so he planned on letting her be for the moment. He had enough to think about himself for now when she suddenly said, “My bones, they do not hurt. I could not sit still this long without getting pain in my knees and elbows. Now I have no pain. My muscles would cramp, but I don't cramp. What did you do?” Drumming his fingers on the stone surface, he would have to admit it was not as satisfying as doing it on a wooden desk. He considered how detailed he should be. There had been damages that came with all sorts of possible trauma he had healed. Deciding to let her figure it out for the most part, he said, “I already said I healed you. I'm not propper healer, so when I heal someone other than myself, I heal everything or nothing. I have to be very careful that I finish what I start, or there can be some nasty complications on the one receiving the healing.” He figured to let it be at that, but true to character, she said, “I can have children?”When he nodded, he could see her eyes grow moist, and then tears started streaming out of her eyes. With a cry, she was over the kitchen and hugging him while she kept saying thank you, over and over between ragged sobs. Not really sure if saying anything was required, he just sat there patting her back as she got it out of her system. It wasn't like it had been what he intended when he healed her, but it wasn't like he could pick and choose what to heal using rune stones.

Maybe a quarter of an hour passed until she was coherent. She almost seemed reluctant to let go of him as she got up and sat down on her own stool again, wiping away tears that still were falling freely. When she spoke, her voice was ragged, but there was a warmth in it he hadn't heard yet. “I owe you a debt I can not pay now, starman. One day I will. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. You need to get into the settlement. I will help you. ” He almost told her it was nothing, but clearly it was, and he didnt want to cheapen the moment for her. Nodding, he said, “Thank you, I would appreciate joining something that seems like civilization again. Ambros, my name is Ambros, by the way.” She smiled and answered. “Whisper, I am named Whisper by my parents. Now, let us see what you won from that horrible vampire.”

She went through his loot in under an hour and proclaimed him stupidly rich. He was okay with that. Then they found three weapons that would fit him, and Analyze didnt say it was junk. A steel flanged mace, a steel falchion and an iron spear that was in the style of a Dory, so he thought it was fitting for the free cities. He would carry the spear on their travels. It felt right. Then they were off. He was almost sad to leave the bunker, but civilization called.

They made good time through the green zone, but there were still wandering zombies about, quite a few of them. Enough that Ambros made level 16. Whisper had seemed a bit careful at first, but when she got used to her body working as it should again, it was like watching a mini tornado cutting through zombies. Yeah, she was far more experienced fighting than him. That was clear pretty fast. She also had much higher attributes than him. When he used Arcane Bolt for the first time, she asked him not to, not this close to the settlement. If a noble house found out he was an unaffiliated caster, they would have him locked up and guarded in a moment. Casters weren't free. They were guarded treasures of the powerful houses. At least until the caster grew too powerful, then the temples took over, and if they couldn't, the caster was declared heretic. He would be hunted and killed unless he made it to one of the caster islands in the inner sea. When he asked why, she didnt know. It had always been like that, best to use his spear, for now, she told him. No, she didnt know what islands were caster islands either, since no one sane would go to such a place. Ambros really, really wanted to find these islands. After a few hours of traveling the forest, he found himself enjoying Whisper's company between bouts of zombie decimation. She was amazed that they dropped an Energy grain from each one. It was unheard of. He finally asked what would happen when they were to enter the settlement.

Whisper said, "First, you will need to be assessed as not being a threat to the settlement or the free cities. They will ask you a few questions, and if you are found to speak truthfully, you will be let in." They walked passed more woodlands and the ruins of a civilization lost to time for a few more minutes before Whispoer continued. "They will test you with a truth stone to see if you can be allowed into the settlement.” Sensing if someone was telling the truth was the hallmark of a Mind Mage. Ambros hopefully asked. "That's fine. Does that mean you have a mind mage at the settlement? That would be great." She looked confused momentarily but answered readily, "No, the artificers guild made the stone. They may know more about this mind mage." The downside of being able to use mana as he did, or most casters that didn't use mediums, was the eventual degradation of the psyche. In his case, it manifested as a lack of empathy and more than a bit of megalomania. Luckily it took quite a while for it to become a problem, but staying on top of it ensured that no unforeseen problems would start popping up.

Some very skilled psychiatrists could help, mostly by finding what prescription the particular caster would need to keep things together. Some of the really good healers could also recognize what chemical imbalance was causing it and put it back the way it was supposed to.

Ambros much preferred Mind Mages. They were the least invasive of the options. It was something casters had to live with until they grew too powerful for their mortal bodies and transformed into beings of power. He would need to find a long-term solution for that potential issue sooner rather than later.

Whisper continued, "We will introduce you as a Rift runner. They will test you. That will give you access to the outer ring. To access the inner ring and, by extension, the rift, you must prove you have legitimate business with Lemadis, the free city in control over this rift, or be in good standing with the Free Cities." She seemed lost in thought for a moment before continuing, "You could also claim nobility, but they can see if your claim is false, so I would not recommend it. There is also the issue of adventurers of some status and every noble challenging you to a duel when you inevitably insult them." He couldn't really disagree there. His ego would inevitably get him in trouble with people of equally sensitive egos. He chuckled as he answered. "Yeah, let's not do the last part. It sounds painful. What do you suggest then, Whisper? As lovely as this place is, I would rather not be stuck here indefinitely." She answered readily enough like she had a plan. "First, to get you into the outer ring, which will let you sign up as an Adventurer. It will be the easiest way to earn merit points. Enough, merit points put you in good standing, and it is not like you need to spend them with your current wealth." Whisper let him digest that information before continuing, "You could also sign up with a mercenary company if you can find one to take you in. It is safer, but it will take longer. They only rotate out when a contract is completed, and it is set to last for the minimum time of a year. There was a rotation a few weeks ago." He answered, "Well, that sucks. There are no other possibilities?" She scrunched her lips before saying, "You can always try to find an unguarded rift, but who knows where in the land above it emerges. No, I do not know about any before you ask." Chuckling, he said, "Fair enough, it's not like I'm on a time limit, just the tattered remains of my sanity," He said, smiling at her. He wasn't mad. He was giving it some thought after he learned that he wouldn't be stuck here by a rift suddenly closing.

He may as well spend some time here building himself up. He still didn't know what sort of competition this was, but everything faded in front of true power. He needed to become an unstoppable force to win. There was also Whisper. She had proven to be an interesting companion, if a bit formal at times. Maybe they could do a few things for the Adventurers guild together. He didn't have to worry about her learning something others would chain him to the floor for anymore.

Whisper quipped back, "That should be fine then, Ambros, I discovered early that sanity and you are incompatible. Strange man." That made him snort.

The sudden shift from ruins and trees to just a flat expanse was so abrupt Ambros had trouble believing his own eyes. In the distance, he could see a walled city. That was not a meager settlement. This looked like an overgrown fortress. Whisper gestured at the fortress. "Here we are. The rift settlement of Free City Lemadis."

At a guess, he would say they needed a couple of hours to reach the settlement. He could see no road to it either, just a flattened landscape. It was too far to see any details, but he could see massive spires rising from the middle of the settlement. They had to be massive in scale.

Clearing his throat, Ambros answered, "That's not a settlement, Whisper. That's a city. A rather big one at that. How did you manage to build this inside the rift?" She shrugged and said, "Slowly, over thousands of years, from my understanding. Earth casters were a large part of its construction too. Lemadis only built the outer wall. The empire used to govern these lands, so that's where the inner wall comes from."

As they drew nearer, Ambros noticed something strange. There seemed to be a dividing line crossing the landscape and running straight through the city. On the side they had come from was the ruined city with some greenery. As far as he could tell, things looked like a hellscape on the other side of the line. He could see the same types of ruins on the other side of the line but twisted, more organic. There seemed to be ash blowing around, and the red hue of magma gave everything a hellish glow. The settlement seemed unaffected by this, but as they drew nearer, he could see clouds turning from white to red on the other side of the line.

Turning to his companion, he asked, "Whisper, have the neighbors forgotten to turn off the barbeque grill, or is that the normal state of affairs?" Pointing a bit to the side of the settlement so she could see he clearly meant the dividing line. She shook her head and said, "That is how it is in this rift. Some places just turn from one thing to the other. On this side, it is mostly undead and their ilk roaming around. On the other side of the divide, there are demonic creatures. I much prefer the undead side. My hair smells like a campfire for days whenever I have to scout the demonic side. The settlement is unaffected by the divide anyway."

Giving the matter some thought, he still couldn't see why it would work like that. "I see. So if you go far enough in some direction, you could stumble upon a desert or an ocean. Seems a bit extreme to divide them like this." Whisper answered, "There are rumors, but I have only seen these two cityscapes. I don't know how rifts work, just that I have to be here." There was a finality to her last sentence that told him there were things unsaid, and they would remain unsaid for now.

There was still one thing bothering him, however. "Fair enough. One last question. Since it may come up, what exactly is a rift runner?" Whisper snorted and answered, "Yes, I can see how this would be considered a good thing to know in your situation. Rift runners are mostly merchants or messengers. Some are said to be insane people that enjoy the thrill of always being on the verge of death. They are not considered right in the head by most people. However, they do fulfill an important role. You can travel from one rift to another in weeks. If you were to travel between the same rifts in the overland, it would take months. Did I mention they were considered insane? You won't even need to act. Just keep speaking like you have until now." Ambros answered with a fake pout, "I'm glad you can find some humor in my mental instability."

With a laugh, she said, "Yes, now let us get to it. We are too close to be joking around now. Do not speak until spoken to, do not look nobles in the eyes, and ensure you have some sample of what you should trade ready."

Ambros kept staring at the gate that just became larger and larger. It must be as tall as a fifteen or twenty-story building. It was hard to tell as they drew closer. He could see around two hundred guards spread into groups around the gate area, all dressed in chainmail and with conical helmets. Each one had a teardrop-shaped shield and a spear. Some sort of sidearm was hanging from a strap on their belt too. As he got closer, he could tell one of them had a crest of sorts, probably the commander. They looked tough. They looked professional, and they looked short. Ambros would be standing head and shoulders above them.

As they got into shouting distance, Whisper let out a relieved sigh and shouted. "Gate Captain Marcus Varius! Scout Whisper Terites reporting in!" The captain walked towards them alone, his stride and body language showing his complete confidence, leaving no question about who was in command of the situation. "Scout Whisper Terites! You have overstayed your allotted time outside the settlement. Report!" He literally bellowed back. Ambros was almost positive his voice would carry to the other side of the city.

When they reached normal talking distance, Ambros could see that the captain was smiling and let out a relieved sigh. Few things are more annoying than a functionary on a power trip, especially if they have the power to back it up. The captain didn't exude the casual neglect and cruelty of a man needing a powertrip at others' expense. He could feel the captain's aura exuding competence and controlled violence. It made him glad he was shrouding his own aura.

Standing at attention, Whisper saluted with a right fist to the heart. "At ease Whisper. Now what happened? I had to stop Stefan from having you struck off the garrison rolls and branded an escapee. He was practically drooling." The captain said, the disgust clear in his voice.

With a nod toward me, he asked, "And who are you? I can't remember your face among any groups going out in the last few days. New adventurer?" Whisper finally answered. "I came across Ambros here after picking up his trail heading towards the settlement. He ended up saving my life. That's why I'm a day late. He wants to enter the settlement to trade and, if possible, join the adventures guild."

The captain, whose hand had inconspicuously moved to his sword hilt while she spoke of Ambros, finally answered. "My scout tells me she owes you a life. That is the only reason I'm allowing you to test for entry without a strip search and a lot more questions. If you mess up, she will be blamed. If she is blamed, I get blamed. You do not want me to get blamed. Understood?" Ambros answered. He figured less was more at the moment. "I understand," The captain gave him a long look before saying. "Good, let's get you tested. Whisper, I expect a full report in writing before the sun is down."