Another sixteen hours passed with relative speed following Bahamut’s hatching. Bael’tharax and Tarixi both took it upon themselves to test the limits of their new bond, both in terms of speed of communication and capability of coordination in combat. Aurelian had at first baulked at the idea of his freshly hatched companion getting right into fighting, and it was only when Bael’tharax explained that dragons were born with an equivalent or even superior level of intellect and physical capability to a human adult that he relented.
He and Bahamut had been put through the ringer after that, with the little dragon undergoing every endurance, focus, and communication stress Bael’tharax — his father, as weird as that was — could throw at him. After nearly ten hours of it Bahamut had seemingly proven his capability in a manner that satisfied the elder dragon, and so Aurelian had been tasked to train alone while father and hatchling discussed things that were for Bahamut’s knowledge alone.
Given the whole ‘dragon king’ detail, Aurelian wasn’t too bothered by the exclusion.
Not that Tarixi allowed him the time or energy to be bothered.
“Okay. I’m done.” Aurelian announced at the top of the sixteenth hour, and with their remaining time left until undead apocalypse at single digit hours. “Enough training. I’m as strong as I’m going to get, and we have other things to worry about. I have questions too. So. Let’s get down to business.”
He resisted completing the natural extension of the words in verse, and instead turned his gaze to where Bahamut was at that moment scaling Bael’tharax like a cat on the world’s largest and most lethal climbing tree. Despite being the size of a large dog, the freshly-hatched dragon looked comically miniscule against the weathered hide of his father, and scurried across the larger dragon’s body with relentless enthusiasm.
He took a quick moment to review his sheet, as well as his new title and trait.
Name: Aurelian Lucis Imperius
Temper: Untempered (Purified Novitiate)
Core: Calamity Core (Ignition Stage)
Level: 18 | Race: Elysean (L) | Origin: Nephilim (L) | Gender: Male | Zodiac: Dragon (L)
Health: 620 | Mana: 246 | Stamina: 161
STR: (59) 64 | AGI: 50 | DEX: 43 | VIT: (57) 62 | END: 33 | INT: 40 | PER: 23 | WIL: (70) 77 | CHA: 24
Mind Skills: Revelate (E) 9 | Linguistics (UC) 1 | Philology (R) 5 | Exploration (UC) 6 | Investigation (UC) 6 | Dragon’s Resolve (E) 5 | Tactician (R) 9 | Deception (UC) 3
Body Skills: Pain Tolerance (UC) 23 | Longsword Mastery (C) 23 | Running (C) 22 | Dodge (C) 20 | Durable (UC) 22 | Brawling (C) 21 | 14 Fire Resistance (UC) 11 | Lightning Resistance 8 (UC) | Ice Resistance 5 (UC) | Breath Control (UC) 12 | Acrobatics (UC) 21
Spirit Skills: Mana Control (R) 24 | Firebolt (UC) 18 | Shockbolt (UC) 15 | Soul Sense (UC) 6 | Spirit Bond: Dragon (M) 5
Traits: Fast Learner (E) | Dragon Force (E)
Titles: Elysean Reclaimer (U) | Survivor (R) | Mana Savant (E) | Dragon Rider (E)
62% to Level 19
You have 18 Skill Points Available!
You have 3 Skill Upgrade Points Available!
You have 2 Skill Evolution Points Available!
Name: Dragon Rider
Type: Title
Rarity: Epic
Description: You have achieved an epic feat and become the rider of a dragon! Your bond to this creature comes with a host of benefits, including longevity to match your dragon’s.
Effects: Lifespan increased to match that of your Dragon. -50% Experience Gain from all sources.
Name: Dragon Force
Type: Trait
Rarity: Epic
Description: You have bound your soul to that of a dragon, and gained immense potential for power both martial and magical as a result. Your Soulforce has been forever changed, and will now permanently carry a partially draconic signature within it. You will be recognised as a friend and kin to all dragons, and as an enemy to all those that worship the gods.
Effects: This trait increases your Strength, Vitality, and Willpower by 10%.
Aurelian grinned to himself again at the changes. The experience loss sucked, but the Dragon Force trait made up for it in spades. A ten percent increase to three primary attributes was absolutely nutty as far as he was concerned.
With both the elder and youngling dragons still distracted, it was Tarixi that answered him after he finished his sheet review.
“An excellent idea, Aurelian.” She said when she came over. “Let us begin with your questions.”
“Okay, so… I have a few. Firstly and most pressingly,” he breathed to steady his workout-excited heart rate, “I have the option to claim a unique trait and I haven’t fulfilled it. I’ve been saving it, actually, though I’m not entirely sure when I would even want to use it. Do you have any advice on that?”
Tarixi stared at him for a long moment and then seemed to deflate, insomuch as a ghost could do so. “Of course you have that as a reward. Why do I bother being surprised?” She half-answered, half-griped to herself. “Unique traits are incredibly, incredibly rare. I suppose you surmised that from the name, though. There are no set-in-stone approaches to how to handle such things, but my advice would be to wait until a moment presents itself where you might turn a bane into a boon.”
“A bane into a boon? Like a curse or something?”
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“Yes, actually.” Tarixi said with an approving nod. “That is exactly the right circumstance.”
That’ll be useful against the Necromancer if they throw some voodoo at me. He noted mentally while nodding to Tarixi. Good to have up my sleeve, at least.
He paused.
Man that better not be self-fulfilling…
“Was there something else you wanted to know, Aurelian? You said questions plural.”
Aurelian blinked out of his self-reflection and nodded at Tarixi. “Yes. Sorry.” He took a moment to gather his wits and then continued. “The second point I wanted to ask about was what you said about Tiers, and the System’s own designation. I’ve been informed about them loosely, but—”
“Ah. Yes. That is important knowledge.” She said with an approving nod. “Very well, the breakdown is as follows: level one to ten is considered to be the Beginner period, where denizens of the Realms are finding their feet. Most natural-born people here on the Prime Material and in other Realms tend to move past this phase during their tenth year, when the System opens itself to them.”
“Okay, that makes sense.” Aurelian said as he listened.
“Indeed. From level ten onward is what is called the Novitiate Tier, wherein you are finding your feet more firmly. This continues until level twenty-five, which is called Aspirant Tier. This is also when most people achieve their First Temper, or Aspirant Temper. The Tiers and Tempers are named interchangeably.”
“Okay, so when I reach level twenty-five—”
“Ah.” Tarixi said ruefully. “My apologies, it is easy to forget to be specific. No, your overall level is irrelevant. It marks your growth and provides bonuses from the System, but it is your skills that decide when you Temper. It is, however, advisable to match your Core development to your Temper, in order to ensure a lack of laggardly development.”
“That’s Ignition, Constitution, Inscription, and Awakening right?”
“Correct.” Tarixi said in approval. “Those are the stages for each respective Tier. Which as I was saying are Novitiate, Aspirant, and then at level fifty Specialist, followed by Expert at seventy-five, then Master at one hundred, Titan at one hundred and twenty-five, and then Deiform at one hundred and fifty.”
“What comes after Deiform?” Aurelian asked immediately.
Tarixi smiled wryly. “Ascension.”
“Which is—” His eyes widened in realisation “—oh.”
“Indeed.” She responded drily.
“Okay so that’s the different tiers, and I apologise for asking you to exposition dump on me—”
“What is—?”
“—but I really need to know this stuff. So! What is ‘Tempering’ exactly?”
Tarixi blinked at him in confusion for a moment, and then shook her head with a murmur of “Nephilim” and focused on answering. “Tempering is when a skill reaches a Tier threshold, like level twenty-five, fifty, et cetera. You may then choose to Temper it by introducing an Essence Draught, such as the ones you have, mixed with creature essence. Different creatures apply different effects, and some are stronger than others when applied to different areas of Tempering—”
Aurelian smiled faintly when she once more returned to happy-teacher-voice.
“—such as a Beholder and the Mind, or a Manticore and the Body, or a Phoenix and the Spirit. Some creatures of immense enough power, like leviathan-stage dragons, can be applied more or less universally. Actually…” Tarixi eyed him for a moment, and then glanced at Bael’tharax. “It would not be a terrible idea to ask Bael’tharax if he would be willing to infuse your current Essence Draughts. They would make for potent Tempering agents…”
Aurelian followed her gaze to the giant dragon and watched Bahamut gleefully winging his way around the older dragon’s face with happy, juvenile roars of delight.
“Isn’t that sort of rude?” Aurelian asked with a flicker of uncertainty.
“Oh normally it would be quite inappropriate,” Tarixi replied seriously, “but these are hardly normal times, and you are hardly a normal individual. There is as much riding on you for Bael’tharax as there is for anyone. It cannot hurt to ask.”
“What does the process entail?”
“He would segregate a mana-infused piece of himself. Blood, flesh, part of a scale… whatever is needed to carry a sufficient amount of his Essence. In the case of a creature like Bael’tharax, however; a drop of his blood would be overkill as it stands. He could infuse more mana in that than most creatures could offer with their entire being, even ancient ones.”
“That seems a little overpowered…” He muttered.
“Aurelian, it is insane. It is almost an impossibility. It is something that would never be permitted were the Empire still standing, as the power imbalance it could cause — especially on a first Temper! — would be devastating.” She sighed. “You, however, will need all the help you can find. If you wish to survive to be the Calamity, then turning down advantages out of some bone-headed idea of ‘convenience’ or ‘fair play’ will only serve to secure your destruction. You may have had a reasonably good turn of luck in finding both myself and Bael’tharax, but what if you had not?”
“Or if I had found you without being strong enough to fight those skeletons…”
“Indeed!” Tarixi said in agreement. “The realms are no place for the weak, nor the vainglorious or empty-headed. Take every advantage, use every resource, and save your ideals for what matters. You are the hope for the Mantle. You cannot forget that.”
“The what?” Aurelian asked quizzically.
Tarixi hesitated. “It is… something that can wait. Should wait. Until you better understand the… it can wait.”
Aurelian blinked at her in confusion, but had no reason to push despite her previous deception, and thus did not. If she was hiding something from him, even after knowing that he resented her for the last obfuscation, then it likely was for the better… he hoped. Trust wasn’t a commodity he was willing to just throw around, but reason and logic dictated that Tarixi usually had good reasons for her choices, even if he disagreed with them.
Usually.
“That’s the end of my immediate questions. I was going to ask if the rarity of the skill mattered for Tempering, but—”
“It is entirely about what is comfortable, and what resonates with you.” Tarixi said firmly.
“—I remembered what you said about comfort.” Aurelian finished with a wry smile.
The Echo had the good grace to flush in mild embarrassment. How a ghost could blush he wasn’t sure.
“I suppose next up, before the armoury, is my sword. You said ‘crest’ as if that meant something. Why?”
“Ah! Yes! That is an excellent question.” Tarixi said with a nod while recovering her composure. “Your blade is not just a weapon, it is also a symbol of your station in the Empire. Given our commitment to protecting the people of the Prime Material, all Elyseans of sufficient rank were expected to be masters of both statecraft and warcraft.”
“Zug zug!” Aurelian said with a grin.
“Pardon me?” Tarixi asked with a confused look.
Aurelian shook his head and waved for her to continue while suppressing a laugh.
“Very well…” Tarixi said while giving him a suspicious look. “A crest is the Novitiate level incarnation of a Runesword. Runeweapons can come in several forms, though swords were the most popular. Even then there were many derivations among…” She shook her head. “Not pertinent I suppose. As I was saying, a crest is the Novitiate Tier manifestation. As you grow in power and trigger evolutions in your weapon—” she lifted a finger to stop him before he could speak, and shook her head firmly in a gesture he took to mean he could not ask how to trigger the evolutions “—toward its subsequent tiers, its classification will change as well. From crest to insignia, insignia to emblem, emblem to regalia, and regalia to artefact.”
“So that’s Novitiate, Aspirant, Specialist, Expert, Master?” Aurelian clarified.
“Correct.” Tarixi confirmed. “And while it isn’t guaranteed, there is a chance each evolution will also bring with it a new ability or effect that the blade can grant you. It is a very personal, very individual thing unique to each Elysean. It is rare for any two to be the same, though likeness is not unheard of among close relatives or lovers.”
“Interesting…” Aurelian said while considering her words. It did sound cool.
“Now then, shall we see about the Armoury? I am myself quite curious as to what is within.”
“AS AM I.” Bael’tharax boomed with a suddenness that made Aurelian leap two feet into the air and curse out loud.
You should be more aware of your surroundings, brother. Bahamut chided mentally.
“Bloody dragons…” Aurelian grumbled good-naturedly while eyeing the small black creature as he glided languidly toward him. The smugness still emanating from the link was only tolerable thanks to the underlying, permanent warmth and love that formed the link’s permanent foundation. Their souls had been connected in a way that was inexplicable. He did love Bahamut, as he might love any sibling or family member. He would die to protect the little dragon, and he knew Bahamut would do the same. It was a staggeringly powerful connection, and one he still couldn’t quite believe he’d had the privilege of receiving.
“We are indeed losing time, Aurelian. Perhaps it would be prudent to see what stores we have available?”
“Right, right…” He muttered while projecting his will to the System.
Alpha-One User Identity confirmed.
Welcome, Reclaimer Aurelian!
Awaiting input.
“Unlock Armoury Access.” He said out loud for the others’ benefit.
Input acknowledged.
WARNING: Armoury exterior compromised by Undead infestation. Safety of accessing Alpha-One User cannot be guaranteed.
ALERT: Remote Access has been damaged by Undead infestation. Projected window of operation: 5 minutes.
Do you wish to proceed?
Y / N