This had to be the absolute worst of the worst first days that Seth had ever had. First Days at the compound sucked. Orientation, gear and supply distribution, Sandy Johnson brushing up against him only for her boyfriend to walk by and beat the living shit out of him because he was wasting space. Seth never could figure out why his brother liked that guy. The first day of basic training wasn’t so bad come to think of it. They were in the last few years of the war and everyone was more exhausted then strict. This day though. This had to be the worst. Never on the history of first days could someone say that they were drug off the side of a thousand foot wall by a horde of fire breathing, soul sucking demons. Well, besides him and Roberto…Yeah, Oh shit!? Roberto.
“Glitch, Can you link up with Moe?” Seth asked.
“Creating a party chat now.” Glitch replied.
Thanks to the modifications they received, The Matrix and The Power Augmentation Spheres, PAS, were now able to communicate. Moe was Roberto’s bonded Matrix. She seemed nice. They had all practiced doing a party chat earlier that morning. It was weird having so many more voices in his head. A small chat window popped up and Seth could see a thread of lines going. He didn’t have time to read those so he let Glitch handle it.
“Roberto is having trouble getting out of the ropes.” Glitch said
Ropes? Oh! The whips those demons used. Seth looked down and noticed that he was one, falling really fast and two, was also still tangled in the ropes. He looked to his right and saw the wall was there just a few hundred feet away.
“Can he use mana?” Seth asked.
He formed a light orb in his palm and tried to focus it in a thin line. Light magic was essentially pure energy. Some argued that it was a solar aspect and should be part of the fire affinity. The debate as to what all fell into a main and sub category of magic was ongoing and no one had a correct system to go by. Hundreds of years and many smart people finally came to the consensus of the following. Fire, Water, Earth, and Air were the most basic of basic elements. Nature was often thrown in there but Seth honestly thought it should be a sub element. The sub elements were Steam, Sand, Lava, Metal, lightning, and Ice. The elements of Light, Holy, Dark, and Void were the next type of magic. These had a near infinite amount of subcategories such as shadow, death, transcendence, chaos, and life magics. Most Dark magicians could harness some level of Void just as most light magicians could access Holy. Some systems even combined them together because in all of history there was not a user who couldn’t use both. That was until he came along. He had an affinity for light but absolutely nothing when it comes to the Holy.
The light energy pressed into the whips and with a bit of back and forth, he was free. Looking up Seth saw Roberto struggling. He was only about ten feet away. Seth formed a water orb in his opposite hand and shot himself over using the recoil of the water blast. They collided and started spinning.
“We are getting close to the ground sir.” Glitch said.
“We need to slow our fall.” Seth screamed.
“How?” Roberto asked
“Water Blasts!” Seth screamed.
He formed two water orbs in his hand. The orbs combined and grew to the size of his head. Roberto followed suit and they aimed downward. The ground was getting closer as they fell. Seth saw the demons up above circling downward waiting for them to splat. When they were finally in range of the rocky surface Seth screamed “NOW!” They both sent a full power water blast downward. The two attacks combined and struck the surface. Seth felt the recoil and their descent slowed. Roberto stopped his attack and summoned a gust of wind at the last second. The air created a quick updraft and they hit the muddy surface of the ground floor.
Seth checked himself to make sure he was okay. No breaks or bruises. He looked over to Roberto and noticed him holding his shoulder.
“I dislocated it.” He said. Seth moved to help him set it but heard a loud roar from above. He looked up to see a swarm of red and black rushing down on them
“Wands!” Seth yelled.
He manifested his light wand and started firing bursts upward. Roberto grabbed his wand and sent a mana bolt up. They pulled themselves out of the already drying heap of mud. Seth was sweating buckets while he laid down suppressive fire. Roberto was switching back between firing his wand and stumbling on the harsh landscape. They were two hundred yards from the wall but as Seth ran forward he noticed that there was no entranceway leading to the other side. They were running towards a dead end.
“Glitch, we need a route.” Seth mentally said
“The nearest entrance is two hundred and fifty-four yards to the left and one hundred Seventy-five yards to the right.” Glitch replied
“We can’t make it. Roberto we have to fight.” Seth said
“Can’t move my fencing arm but sure. Let’s do it.” Roberto said as they reached the wall
Seth grabbed Roberto by his bad arm and spun in place to slam him hard against the wall. He twisted and shoved his shoulder forward. There was a small pop and Roberto screamed from the harsh agony of it. Seth muttered a word of power and shiny light flooded from his hands up Roberto’s arm and throughout his body. Roberto collapsed from the pain and fell to the ground.
“He is okay. Moe is still transmitting. He needs a few minutes to come to but he should be okay.” Glitch said.
Seth turned to face the oncoming horde. The larger demon landed twenty feet in front of him. The smaller demons hovered above at a distance.
“What is it waiting for?’ Seth thought
“I am getting some data from the Wall’s overwatch. This is a demon wrangler. A mid rank demon. He is responsible for keeping the other in line. Those flying above are lesser demons. They have low intelligence and are all instinct and hunger driven rage.” Glitch said
The Wall had its own monitoring system called overwatch. It connected to everyone and provided important information as needed. Glitch was in direct communication with them due to the modifications that were made. The PAS were also connected, however the person had to directly communicate and sort the information themselves. Having a matrix made handling the information much simpler as Glitch could process everything and simplify if as Seth needed.
The wrangler let out a large roar and stomped its feet on the ground. Its wings flared and it held a large claymore-looking sword in its right hand.
“What is it doing?” Seth asked
“Looks to be challenging you sir.” Glitch said
“I can’t manifest my sword or shield yet.” Seth said
Certain items had a bonding effect. That meant that if they were ever lost, it would reappear in the bonded person’s inventory so they could manifest it again. Seth’s sword and shield were back up on the top of the tower. It would be another five minutes before he could manifest them again. Seth manifested his spare short sword and small buckler. The stats on them were lower and their were no special traits, however it was better than going unarmed.
“Glitch, is help on the way?” Seth asked
“Yes. Just hold off until reinforcements arrive. Try not to get caught in..”
Just then the wrangler let out a loud roar and a wave of energy flooded over the field. A wall of flames formed between him and Roberto. It circled around until only Seth and the demon were left in the middle. The other demons began circling and letting out horrifyingly loud screams and growls. A combat log appeared and Seth focused on it.
Demon Wrangler - Sephilimire has activated ability
Infernal Circle of Dueling
Description: Casts a ring of fire around the caster and target. One cannot leave until the other has been vanquished. Allies are unable to join.
+12% to fire based attacks
+10% to demonic based attacks
Target health & Stamina reduces by 2% every 10 seconds
“Well shit.” Seth said to himself.
Sephilimire lunged forward with its claymore and slammed downward. Seth leaped to his left and hit the ground hard. He attempted to slide through the wall of flame but was knocked back from the flames’ force. His jumpsuit caught fire and he quickly threw dirt on it to extinguish the flames. He scrambled forward to avoid another strike from the wrangler. Seth formed a light orb in his palm and blasted it forward. The light hit the side of the wrangler but nothing happened.
“You need holy magic for that sort of thing to work sir.” Glitch said
“I don’t have a holy affinity!” Seth yelled inside his mind
“Oh.” Glitch replied “Are you sure?”
Seth did not have time to argue. He imbued his sword with light energy and rushed forward to strike the beast. Sephilimire was fast but the claymore was heavy and slow. Seth sidestepped another vertical strike and tried to piercing the demon in its heart. The blade went through and the beast struck him in the side with its left hand. Seth flew backwards and his the ground again. His sword fell a few feet to his left
You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.
“You need to imbue your weapon for that to work sir.” Glitch said
“Glitch! These Comments are not helping. If you have a plan or a way for me to kill it. Please tell me” Seth said under his breath.
He lunged forward into a roll and grabbed the sword. He came up just in time to block a right diagonal strike from the wrangler’s claymore. The beast tried to scratch at him with its free hand and Seth managed to get his buckler up in time. The screech of claw on metal was nauseating and he felt disoriented from it. Seth jumped backward trying to create some distance and felt his leg trip off a small boulder that was in the way. There was a loud roar from the onlookers above. Seth could feel them laughing at him.
“Sir. There are a number of ways to vanquish a demon. The ways that you have attempted thus far are adequate for vanquishing them outside their realm. The demon whose head you removed a few days ago would have died if we were not here in the infected lands. This is also true for the pierce to the heart that you just did, although a mid size demon may still have been fine if we were elsewhere.” Glitch stated
Seth remembered the fight on the train and nodded. They were well within the infected domain when he decapitated that lesser demon.
“Give me a short list of how to defeat them here and now.” Seth said. He did not have time for Glitch to give him a long lesson. That could wait for later.
“Inside their domain, elemental or mana imbued strikes to the heart or head will vanquish them. Decapitation with elemental or mana imbued blades will vanquish them. They are completely resistant to fire, earth, and lava attacks. Magic that completely annihilates them will also work.” Glitch said
Okay. That makes sense. Seth vaguely remembered the class he took on demons and deadly creatures. Outside their domain, he could decapitate and pierce the heart or head and it would work. Inside their domain, he had to do everything with magic. This was why very few non magic residents were sent here. Nearly two-thirds of the kingdom’s forces were not magically adept. This was why the compounds were so important and why children were sent the moment they were found to be adept in mana control.
“Why do light attacks not work?” Seth mentally asked. He was shuffling back and forth with the demon blocking and parrying its attacks. His health and stamina were slowly declining as he tried to think of a way to kill it.
“Light and Holy magic are connected to one another, however due to the nature of demons and their power, holy magic is the absolute true method of killing them. Light based attacks are wonderful against creatures of shadow, undead, dead, corrupted, void, and dark nature. Holy is the direct enemy to demonic and light magic does not have the right properties to hurt them.” Glitch explained
“What about water?” Seth asked
“Water based attacks will help combat the temperature and some of the effects that are being presented. You can also use your holy magic.” Glitch said
“I do not know any holy magic Glitch. I do not and have not ever been able to use holy mana.” Seth screamed.
He managed to slash the demon’s left arm off before being knocked back again. He looked up to see a new arm growing back in its place. A puff of black smoke rose from the severed limb until it disappeared.
“Sir, the magic core installed in us has holy attributes.” Glitch said
‘What does that mean?” Seth asked with a bit of confusion.
“Sir, I think we can access some of the information and abilities of the old user who had this core.”
“How?” Seth asked
“I'm sorry sir. It says we need to progress further in order to access everything. Oh, we have the ability to advance to the next stage. Would you like for me to activate it?” Glitch said
“Glitch, you have had access to all of my shit my entire life as a mana user. Why are you acting like you are just now seeing everything for the first time?’ Seth asked annoyingly
“Sir, I do apologize. I have not been the best version of myself. The reset and installation of this new core is slowly granting me access to items that I was never able to view let alone comprehend before. I am truly sorry for my failure as your matrix.”
Seth let out a sigh. “It is okay buddy. We will work on it. I was told not to progress for at least a week. That is why we have not advanced to the next stage.”
“For most people, that is well advised. For this situation, I would suggest a different approach.” Glitch said
“Are you saying we can get a boost to kill this guy now without the backlash?” Seth asked
“I am saying that the backlash will hurt, but the hurt is nothing in comparison to death by this creature.” Glitch said
Seth weighed his options while ducking under the demon’s next strike and slashing at its exposed legs. His blade got stuck in the thick muscle.
He formed a water orb and sent a small water blast up and into the demon's face. The beast stumbled back and he was able to break the sword loose. He retreated back and looked up to see the lesser demons were no longer there. The demon must have noticed this also because he looked around in confusion. Seth looked past the demon and saw a group of dark figures standing on a nearby hill. He could not make them out but part of him thought he saw a humanoid figure standing next to a short large figure and a skinny tall figure. A smile came across his face when he realized it had to be Lance, Stubby, and Picard. Reinforcements were here. They just could not do anything due to the circle of fire.
“Glitch, I trust you. Make all necessary decisions and get us the hell out of here.” Seth said.
There was a slight pause and a surge of mana left Seth’s body. It was being sucked into the matrix. Seth felt a heat radiating from his left shoulder. It felt like cold steel stabbing deep into the very core of his being. He momentarily blacked out from the pain and dropped his sword. He came too just as Sephilimire was bringing his claymore down to cut him in half. Seth saw his life flash before his eyes. If he was being honest with himself, it sucked. His brother was the center of attention. He received all the new everything while Seth was given broken hand me down leftovers. His mother would have rather he been a girl. His father paid little mind to him. His other family ignored his existence. There were a few good moments such as becoming friends with Atiyah, graduating the compound despite not having a working matrix and even his time during the war. He was so far from the frontlines where his brother was shining that he actually was able to have a life. No one compared him or had unrealistic expectations. Even healing his commanding officer of all his many diseases wasn’t the worst. He focused on the good as the blade came down. He wish he could have been a better protector. Maybe once he had died, Lance would be able to save Roberto and kill this demon. He wished he could have advanced further in his mage class. He had spent hours upon hours reading and learning about different spells that he could never learn due to his disability. If only he could have had the proper time to progress his skills. The blade fell down and time seemed to stop as the it creeped closer to his face. A bubble shield formed around Seth stopping the blade in its path. White, gold and blue mana flowed from his pores and his body began dropping in temperature. Status windows popped up in his vision and he briefly looked at them as Glitches voice came back into focus.
“Ten.”
Class Archetype Progression Log:
Glitch has initiated Stage advancement:
Seth’s jaw dropped and his eyes widened as he read the information. Using sound and strategic movements, put his hands up to push against the flat end of the blade while sidestepping to his right.
“Nine
Stage 2 - Guard level 25 advance to Stage 3 - Knight Level 20
Water Guardian's Sword and Shield has respawn to your inventory
Seth manifested his water Guardian's sword and shield. The increase it gave in stats brought him back up to halfway on his health and stamina.
“Eight”
Stage 2 - Cleric Level 23 advance to Stage 3 - Priest Level 20
New Skills:
Heal III
Cleanse III
Mend Broken Bone III
Seth Cast Heal III and Cleanse III on himself. His health and stamina returned to thier max and then to Seth’s surprise, kept rising.
“Seven”
Stage 1 - Mage level 10 advanced to Stage 2 - Wizard level 5
New Skills:
Mana Bolt I
Mana Web I
Imbue Weapon III
Sephilimire turned his blade and tried to make a horizontal cut towards Seth’s stomach. Seth brought his shield down and struck it firm into the ground. He brought his light wand out as the claymore struck and bounced away. Seth Cast Mana Web I. A line of energy flowed from his wand as he made multiple movements in one fluid motion A web of energy formed before shooting outward and surrounding the beast. Its Flesh began to burn wherever the net lay.
“Six”
You have progressed enough to reach a Stage 4 Archetype. Do you wish to advance?
Yes or no?
“Five”
Matrix Glitch has selected Yes.
Newly Installed Matrix Core has unlocked New Power
Dual Stage Advancement Initiated
Seth cast mana bolt five, ten, twenty, thirty times in quick succession. The arrows of energy frozen in the air around him before shooting forward.
“Four”
Congratulations!
The bolts hit the beast and pierced its body. Smoke began seeping out as it tried to heal itself.The beast dropped its claymore in the onslaught and was pushed back ten feet.
“Three”
You have reached:
Stage 4 - Holy Paladin - Level 1
New Skills:
Animate Shield
Smite I
Banish I
Almighty Push I
Summon Holy Familiar
The demon wrangler pulled the mana net free and rushed forward with its claws outstretched.
“Two”
You have reached:
Stage 4 - Torrent Sage - Level 1
New Skills:
Water Bullets
Rainstorm
Hailstorm
Water Manipulation II
Light Manipulation II
Holy Manipulation I
Summon Water Spirit
“The water shield flew up and blocked the attack. Seth blinked and his vision changed. He saw the bloodstream of the creature in front of him. With his hand he reached. He felt the fluid’s in the demon’s body react to his reach. He made grasping motion and gave a little tug, The fluid oozed out of the pores in Sephilimire’s flesh. Seth formed a ball of yellow light and noticed bits of white energy within it. He concentrated on the small bits and concentrated the holy energy into small sphere the width of his thumb. He sent the orb towards the demon while yanking the fluid outward. Blood and water burst outward as the white orb hit. A column of white energy shot up into the heaven’s delivering a final judgement of Holy Damage.
“I Smite you Sephilimire. I Banish you from this land forever. You may now rest in peace.” Seth said as the demons was completely obliterated into the cosmos. The Circle of fire around him vanished and he hit a knee.
“One. Good Job Sir.” Glitch said.
Advisory
You have advanced beyond your scope while ignoring the cooldown restrictions
Backlash will now commence…
Seth felt as if his insides were exploding. Mana radiated outward in a very painful way. He had only ever experienced a spell backlash once, and had to spend an entire day in bed to heal the mana pathways that were damaged. With this power boost, the inner mana network of his body splintered into pieces. With a sigh, Seth fell forward out of consciousness.