Amy and Seth showed off their new upgrades first. Amy’s class seemed like an absolute nightmare on the battlefield now.

Blight Stalker (Platinum): The blight stalker is a master of toxic warfare. No longer content with only the cold steel of their blades, the blight stalker spreads decay and misery upon their enemies. Every wound left behind by the blight stalker’s touch festers into a reminder of the deadly force they bring to bear. They are masters of stealth and subterfuge. The blight stalker deals lethal damage to a single target, while also gaining the ability to suppress entire battlefields under their toxic deluge. (Power +2, Speed +8, Control +6)

SKILLS MODIFIED

Static Cloak -> Miasmic Shroud

Miasmic Shroud: The blight stalker vanishes in a cloud of miasma, becoming completely invisible. Activating a skill or dealing direct damage with their weapons will deactivate the invisibility. The miasma will remain for a short period after deactivation, affecting any hostile targets that find themselves within the cloud. The miasma slowly saps the vitality of the target draining their stamina and health.

Echoing strike -> Stinging Swarm

Stinging Swarm: The blight stalker hurls a flurry of six blades. The blade flurry carries all toxic effects present on the weapon at the time of skill activation. The blades can be fired in a fan for area coverage or all concentrated on a single target. When concentrated, the blades will strike in a circular area, creating new puncture wounds with each strike.

Toxic Load -> Blight Bloom

Blight Bloom: The blight stalker infuses their weapon with blight bloom toxin. This toxin deals bio damage over time. This damage slowly increases in intensity as time progresses. As the damage increases, blooms begin sprouting from the wounds inflicted with the toxin. The blooms will burst when damaged or when the duration of the skill expires, spreading the effects of Blight Bloom. Each new target that is affected resets the timer on the affected target.

Amy leaned into the toxic aspect of her path. Previously, she was incredibly powerful, but the biggest benefit she’d brought to the battlefield was her toxins. The shadowthorn toxin in particular was incredible at hobbling their enemies and weakening them in combat. If she replaced that dagger, they would lose a big part of their combat effectiveness. By integrating toxins directly with her path, she would continue to strengthen that portion of her skill set. It did leave her particularly weak against anything non-biological, however, the rest of the group would fill in those blind spots. Amy was going to be death incarnate.

Seth was beside himself. It hadn’t gone unnoticed that Seth was a MASSIVE reason for their success thus far. His ability to supplement the group with ingenious gadgets, and invent new ways for them to overcome challenges through essentially hacking the rules of the system had been critical to their efforts. His grenades and mines allowed them to make use of skills in ways completely unintended by the skills themselves, and his drones were continuing to prove themselves every single day with information about the surrounding areas, offensive and defensive capabilities, as well as giving Seth something to study while working on his experiments. He hadn’t even scratched the surface of what he could perform, and his class evolution was just the next step on that road.

Aetherforge Adept (Platinum): The Aetherforge adept is the arbiter of creation. They are skilled at using the Aetherforge to draw upon the energies that sit between dimensions. The Aetherforge is a construct that few can use, and even fewer are able to master. With these skills, the Adept is unlimited in what they can create. Mastering the Aetherforge is a path not easily followed, but one that offers unlimited potential. Some of the most powerful creations in existence have been forged within the Aetherforge. (Toughness +2, Power +2, Control + 12)

SKILLS MODIFIED

Fabricate -> Aetherforge

Aetherforge: The Aetherforge Adept has direct access to the Aetherforge. Through this cosmic foundry they’re able to pull upon exotic energies from a variety of sources, including the void between dimensions. The Aetherforge is capable of producing, transmuting, and converting materials into physical constructs without limits to their size. The capabilities of the Aetherforge are limited only by the skills of the one using it.

With the class, came an innate understanding of how to operate the Aetherforge. Seth also realized that while it sounded ridiculously overpowered, the road to mastering the Aetherforge would be a very long one. He wouldn’t be churning out cosmic level creations by tomorrow unfortunately, but damn, he was excited to get started.

Ian didn’t want to be outdone and if there were awards given for the most badass-sounding class, he thought would have taken the trophy.

Echo of Ragnarok (Platinum): Nearly all civilizations spanning the multiverse have legends that detail the end of days. For many, these legends are history, and for some, these events have yet to pass. The Echo of Ragnarok is the manifestation of these events in physical form. With the command of all elements at their fingertips, the Echo of Ragnarok is cataclysm incarnate. Their footsteps shall leave flames in their wake. With a thought, valleys become mountains, with the wave of their hand the void itself tears asunder. Those who walk the cataclysmic path have access to immense wells of power, however learning to wield this power comes at the cost of physical resilience. This class is heavily skewed toward mastery of the elements. Nearly all skills directly related to this class will evolve, beginning as minor destructive forces until their true cataclysmic powers are unlocked.(Control +16)

SKILLS MODIFIED

Storm Surge -> Supercell

Supercell: Generate a spontaneous supercell on the battlefield. This storm persists at the cost of continued expenditure of energy. This skill can be deactivated at any time. While active, lightning periodically strikes enemies on the battlefield. This is a continuously evolving skill, having many options to evolve and grow with the wielder.

Enkindle -> Combust

Combust: Create a targeted eruption of at a specific spatial point. The eruption persists, continuing to deal damage as it cools. Continuous application of this skill refreshes the duration. This is a continuously evolving skill, having many options to evolve and grow with the wielder.

Rock Shot -> Stalagmite

Stalagmite: Shards of earth erupt from any surface like spears, penetrating their target. Channeling additional energy into this skill will increase the size and length of the Stalagmite. This is a continuously evolving skill, having many options to evolve and grow with the wielder.

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

Marshall had taken the longest to choose a class besides Calvin. He had deliberated over many choices. He loved his pistol, and he’d probably keep one handy just in case, but the usefulness of it was marginal at best. It gave him something to do when he wasn’t healing, but with the addition of Tank and his crew to the team, their projectile damage was pretty solidly covered. He’d wanted to lean into healing even more, but also worried that would leave him exposed otherwise, and healing first required people on his team getting hurt. Also, his nanomist was great, but that could easily be supplemented with Seth’s grenades if they had a method of infusing bio-energy into them, plus Liara’s potions added another layer to that.

So, Marshall did the only thing that made sense. He became a badass karate master with healing powers. His ability to modify his body and even turn his fists to stone made a pugilist class sound extremely appealing. This was by far the furthest departure from their previous class any of them had selected.

Disciple of the Obsidian Heart (Platinum): The obsidian heart contained the final breaths of the Aetherian Collective. These breaths issued a decree among those who would hear it. Defend all sentient life from The Corruptors. Carry on the path of the Aetherian Collective. The Disciple of the Obsidian Heart embodies these virtues. The Disciple is a pugilist class, mastering the use of their bodies as a weapon on the battlefield. Through the application of their will, they can bring to bear many positive effects on the battlefield, healing those in need, shielding those in danger and empowering those who would put themselves in danger while on the Aetherian Path. The Disciple is a heavy support class with moderate damage capabilities. (Toughness +5, Power +5, Speed +5, Control +2)

Marshall was just about to bring up his skill screen when they heard a commotion.

“Raptors, North Wall!” cried one of the soldiers on watch.

“Aww c’mon!” Marshall hadn’t gotten to finish showing off his skills. It looks like they’d have to come back to that soon. The group charged off toward the wall to get a look.

They crested the wall and took in the minor battle before them. Six raptors, all between level 16-20 had arrived at the walls. That was an interesting turn of events. When they’d gone toward the beetle hive, there were no creatures whatsoever, leading the group to believe that defeating the beetle boss had cleared the area. It looks like that wasn’t the case for the raptors. Maybe the system was reminding them not to dally.

The town wasn’t in any danger from this group though. Down below, four soldiers were fending them off with more getting geared up. The four soldiers below were handling themselves pretty well, although some of them had taken minor wounds. They were using this as a training platform, which is why the defenders on the walls hadn’t chipped in yet. Marshall called down to the ones getting prepared.

“I got this. You guys get back to the party.”

With that, he jumped from the wall. He’d instinctively known that he could alter the makeup of his bones to better absorb the impact and he did his best impression of a superhero landing.

He stood up and walked calmly to the defenders.

Marshall placed his palms together and pulled them apart like he was making a large soap bubble. Except this bubble was pure bio-energy. He threw it forward at a defender who’d taken a large gash on his thigh. In moments, the wound began sealing, and the defender scrambled back out of the way.

The raptors had focused on Marshall now, quickly identifying him as the biggest threat of the group. They surrounded him in a semi-circle, each of them clicking and hissing to signal their intent in their weird little tactical raptor language. For a brief moment, it was a standoff. The raptors were circling, positioning themselves for an opening and Marshall just stood there, scanning each of them. The defenders had backed off now and remained near the gate.

Curious townspeople had climbed on top of the walls now to watch the spectacle below. They’d known that Calvin’s group had gone for their evolutions and everyone was curious to see what had come out of the other side. The defenders on the wall stayed their weapons and spells, watching Marshall do his thing. There was no fear evident anywhere in the town, only fascination.

The raptors all charged at once. Marshall had been completely encircled. He’d done nothing to prevent it, he really didn’t feel the need to against these creatures, being as low-level as they were.

One of the raptors who’d been the closest, leaped toward Marshall. His right fist turned to stone as he brought it up in a savage punch. His fist connected with the leaping raptor, and crushed its skull in an instant. He swept his leg back and rotated his body, tracing lines in the dirt below as more raptors approached. He brought his hands together, forming a triangle with his fingertips before a golden rune appeared between his palms. He threw his hands forward, sending the rune and a wave of pressure through the air at two more raptors. The wave struck them and sent them tumbling backward. He swept his feet again, rotating to face a raptor who had just begun to slash at him with its deadly talons.

Marshall grabbed the raptor’s leg and ripped it off balance, driving his palm straight into the creature’s ribs, crushing them and stopping its heart. He pushed the dead raptor back away from him and centered his body. The four remaining raptors had regrouped and charged from all different directions, aiming to attack him all at the same time.

He swept his foot one more time and stomped down just as the raptors had jumped. The lines he’d been tracing with his feet erupted in a golden glow and a shimmering golden barrier rose from the outer edges of the rune, fully encircling him. The raptors, unable to arrest their momentum in flight, were given a helping hand by the impenetrable barrier that was all too happy to bring them to a crashing halt. As the raptors fell backward, Marshall stomped on the rune below him again and the barrier burst outward in a wave throwing the creatures back. They were all severely wounded. The impact with the barrier and the following burst of energy after had left them with broken bones and internal bleeding, they were down for the count.

Marshall walked back to the defenders who had stayed by the gate in case he needed any assistance. He placed his hands on each of the wounded ones and channeled energy, healing their minor slashes and scratches.

“Those kills are yours. I just wanted to test out my new stuff a bit. Thanks guys!” Marshall said as he walked back into the gate.

Cheers erupted from all around. Not because Marshall had really saved the town or anything, the soldiers on watch could have handled that easily. No, the cheers were at the display of power he’d shown. It was of course a little exaggerated, these raptors wouldn’t have even been a challenge for him before he’d evolved, but now, they were mere pests. The citizens of Olympus had all recognized that Marshall was a healer class. If this was the kind of power their healer had now, the others had to be absolute monsters.

“You’re a showoff, you know that?” Ian said.

“Man, we got interrupted before my grand reveal. It was only fair.” Marshall said in mock defense.

A few people clapped him on the back as he walked back toward the cabins.

“Alright Marshall, show us what you got.” Calvin prodded, “We’ve got a party to get to, and I notice you’ve got someone waiting.”

Liara stood patiently waiting for Marshall to finish up with his friends. She had an appraising look of admiration in her eye.

He flipped up his skill changes for the group to see.

SKILLS MODIFIED

Double Tap -> Force Push

Force Push: The Disciple can harness the essence of kinetic energy itself. Materialize a runic script, binding the kinetic attunement and propel it forward with willpower. The pressure wave has strong crowd control capabilities as well as providing moderate damage.

Nanomist Surge -> Wellspring

Wellspring: The Disciple is attuned to the universal font of life. The Disciple channels bio-energy through their palms and directs it toward those in need. The strength of the healing is determined by how much energy is fed into the skill on activation. Channeling for longer durations increases the healing potential. This skill can be delivered at range.

Triage Tent -> Shattering Sanctuary

Shattering Sanctuary: Through mastery of their connection to the nanite-fabric, the Disciple can erect a sanctuary to prevent those in need from coming to harm. While standing within a sanctuary rune, the Disciple can activate this skill to form a barrier along the entire outer edge. This barrier is highly resistant to all forms of damage. The Disciple can activate the skill again to shatter the barrier, directing a powerful kinetic wave away from the sanctuary rune. The size of the barrier and the cost to activate the skill are directly tied to the size of the rune.

“Are you like, our sensei now?” Ian asked.

“Just yours. Everyone else seems like they don’t need one. But really, I’m pretty excited to see what you get up to with your new skills.”

“Me too. Before we head out to our next quest, we should all get together outside town and run through our skills so we can get familiarized.” Calvin said, “But enough of all that. I’m starving and we’ve got some celebrating to do.”