I was over the moon with my new choice. I’d wanted an area of effect attack for a while and with my shiny new acid rain skill I had one.

Hopefully the new addition to my power set would round out my abilities and help me to be more capable in a wider range of situations.

Reflecting on previous fights I could already see how acid rain would have been extremely useful. For example, when fighting the zombie hoard.

With a satisfied smile, I placed my hands behind my head and nodded contently as I pulled up my stats sheet in my HUD.

Status Sheet:

Name: Kaleb Akabane

Race: Outworlder

Class: Apex Predator (unique)

Adventurer Rank: Temp

Level: 50

Map Pieces 2/10,000

HP: 510/426 (510)

Stamina: 633/470 (633)

Strength: 426 (489)

Agility: 173 (199)

Perception: 172

Vitality: 346 (414)

Intelligence: 83

Personal Skills: Speak English Damnit!, Eat Anything, Minor Poison Resistance, Usurper (unique), Health Sense (common), Eye of the Dragon (rare)

Class Skills (Passive): Newly Qualified Bowman (72.4%), Newly Qualified Apex Skirmisher (Dual Wield) (23%), Acidic Dhampir Weapons (rare), Environmental Hazzard

Active Skills: Perception of the Apex Predator (rare), Soul Shot (ancient), Scales of the Apex Predator (ancient), Acid Rain (uncommon)

Blessing: Blessing of Wealth

Familiars: Panda (Daemon), Asmodeus (Soul Bond)

Titles: Audacious Soul Expander, Dragonslayer

Admission: Pentagram [Right hand (Morningstar Hotel and Spa)]

“Oh yeah, that’s the stuff,” I said in a low, breathy voice.

“Happy with your notifications, kid?” Panda asked from the edge of my bed, I barely even noticed the smell of burnt tobacco that came from his persistently lit bamboo pipe anymore. That didn’t stop me from reprimanding him though.

“Yeah, and I’d be even happier if you didn’t singe my sheets with your cancer stick.”

“I helps me think,” he protested sulkily. “Anyway, if you’re done why don’t we get some food in you, check on Bell, and then see if there’s any update on the cat?”

***

Bell woke up not long after I’d finished eating. Following a short stint of meditation to check on my coil, rope, and soul core, I watched her lips grow wider and wider as she read her own notifications.

“Kaleb, I’m almost at phase three!” She squealed in high pitched extasy once she’d finished her read through.

“That’s great,” I replied with genuine excitement, “I just hit level fifty.”

Though her smile didn’t fade, it did become slightly narrower as she nodded and congratulated me flatly. Her wounds weren’t bad, just like Panda had said.

She’d gotten off with a concussion and a few cracked ribs: horrible injuries on Earth, mere flesh wounds in Celestia. It was nothing a healing potion and some sleep couldn’t fix.

This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

Next, the entire team left the tent to find Freja and get a report on Sally’s condition. We also needed to talk about our quest reward and find out when we could leave the city.

Outside, the city was a wreck.

We exited into what amounted as a tent town located in the ruins of the toppled Adventure Society building. Broken neon lights that once adorned the side of the glass skyscraper flickered nearby as dirty, injured people hobbled around looking lost.

Cali Port was covered in a thick smog and though there was little in the ways of shouting and screaming, the general mood of the place was forlorn.

“To think I had a part in this,” Rex mumbled from my side, “I’m a disgrace to my people.”

“You didn’t know,” I said quietly.

Turning towards me with a steely look in his eyes, Rex motioned with his head for me to slow my steps. Without a word I slowed my pace allowing the others to continue on ahead.

“I need to ask you something,” he said seriously. “Will you allow me to join your team, even if it’s only temporarily? Cali Port is ruined and I need a fresh start. I’ve spent a long time fighting beside the gnomes and now… now I don’t know what I should do.”

Looking into the lycanids sad eyes I knew I wouldn’t be able to refuse. Especially after he had risked his life to help us with the proto-gnome.

On a more selfish note, I expected the monsters we’d inevitably encounter on the way to Castalor would be much tougher than what I was used to. Having a close combatant would diversify the team’s fighting ability and Rex seemed like a good fit.

Though I wasn’t even sure I wanted to leave yet. It felt a little irresponsible considering the current crisis the city was facing. Part of me wanted to try and help the adventurers of Cali Port in their fight against the communist menace I’d unwittingly helped to unleash. Would Rex still want to join us if I decided on that?

I looked him up and down. He was powerfully built, fury, and a little tapped in the head. Also, he seemed to be a bit of a battle junkie.

Another weirdo, just what our ragtag group needs, I thought facetiously, though I also kind of meant it.

At first I wanted to put off making the decision on my own by telling him we all had to vote, but that simply wasn’t the case. It was my team, I started it, I decided our members, and I wanted a capable fighter to join us.

Especially with Sally being injured. Maybe Rex could take the brunt of the frontline work whilst she recovered, then with the two of them at full strength we might actually become a balanced strike team – even if Sally wasn’t technically a Dissident Flame member… yet.

“I’d like to check with the others before we shake on it, but I’d be happy to have you along Rex. We could use a melee fighter anyway.”

“I’m grateful,” he said, a sad smile adorning his lips as he stared straight past me and into the wreckage that had once been his home. “I won’t disappoint you, lycanids are as loyal as we are tough.”

“There is one thing though,” I said, “if you’re going to be part of this team officially, I’m pretty sure you need to be a fully-fledged adventurer. And at some point you’ll need to tell us about your skills and level.”

“Already taken care of,” he replied absently. “Freja made me a temp for now and after completing a few quests with you I’ll be eligible to jump straight to Bronze rank, in accordance with my level… Assuming you pass me that is.”

***

My dragon’s eye burned in its socket as we approached the hastily assembled prefabricated building at the base of the topped skyscraper.

Violent purple aura shrouded the entire area like an angry haze. As we got close, the aura thickened to a density that was almost unbearable as Freja paced back and forth with her fists clenched at her side.

Her midnight purple skin almost blended into to her overwhelming level capper aura. When she noticed us, turning with a dangerous look in her eyes, my heart skipped a beat.

“If looks could kill,” Bell murmured behind me.

“In this world, sometimes they can,” Panda said quietly. “Some level cappers have been known to be so powerful that they can kill a lower phase with a single glance.”

“Hogwash,” Asmodeus grumbled, way too loudly for my liking, “it has nothing to do with the eyes. You’re referring to an aura attack and mine was strong enough to destroy entire armies… back before I was fragmented.”

Freja approached us, arms crossed and brow furrowed. Her long trench coat billowed in the breeze behind her creating an odd flapping sound.

“How is she?” I asked, adopting a business-like tone.

“Not good,” Freja sighed, her anger abated slightly, but only slightly. “She’s taken a lot of damage. If it was merely physical it wouldn’t be a problem, but her aura has taken a beating as well. When I found her, every bone in her body was broken yet she was still standing… holding that damned sword above her head.

“She held up half a building by herself, she’d have been crushed if she wasn’t so damned strong willed. It… feats like that take their toll on a person’s soul.”

Closing my eyes for a long moment, scrunching the lids together until it almost hurt, I took a breath to steady myself. I really didn’t want to ask my next question, but I needed to know.

“Will she… will she live?” I asked in barely a whisper, fearing that uttering those words any louder might just be more than I could handle.

My arrow caused the building to collapse. This was my fault and everyone knew it.

“I don’t know.”

“Sally’s a fighter,” Panda said, placing a soft paw on my leg, “she’s the strongest person I know. If anyone can pull through soul damage it’s her.”

No one else spoke for a long moment as I crouched down and covered my face in the nook of my arm. The darkness was somehow soothing.

At some point I felt Bell’s hand on top of mine. It was warm and a little clammy, I welcomed it.

I wasn’t sure how long I stayed like that; at some point I started meditating in the same position simply to take my mind off everything.

Looking through my soul was oddly calming, a place to control and compartmentalise my emotions faster than was usually possible for regular people.

The red rope that visually represented my health was thicker and stronger than ever, entwining with my muscles, which also seemed to have grown.

Thank you strength stat increase.

My yellow stamina coil seemed vibrant and buzzing as it shot little bolts of electricity, which were really just a visualisation of stamina to help my mind comprehend the inner workings of my body, throughout my central nervous system.

Deep in the pits of my core was the familiar soul ball, rotating like a miniature planet contained in my stomach. It was calming to watch it, though I noticed that it had changed colour again.

Where once it was bluish green it now seemed much darker. It looked more akin to a condensed black mass, like a cannon ball, cracked with sharp green lines reminding me of the golden streaks Japanese people put into the broken parts of bowls.

The green was much more vibrant now, though still light. It truly did look like acid. I wondered if Asmodeus’ connection to me as a soul bonded familiar had altered it somewhat.

“Kaleb.”

I heard a soft, female voice calling to me from far away and suddenly I was back in the land of the living. My senses sharpened and I could feel a second hand lightly squeezing my shoulder.

Looking up I saw piercing scarlet eyes which shimmered so closely to mine that had I not been in a tranquil state of mind after my meditation I probably would have fallen backwards.

“Come on, let’s go sit down in my makeshift office,” Freja said, her aura seemed calmer though I feared it was merely the eye of the storm, “you can’t stay out here anymore, it’s been over an hour.”

Oops, I guess time flies when you’re ogling your own soul.