Chapter 43 – The Break Up
Matt looked at his armor as it sat on the interface pad. It was everything he could have hoped for. It was rather protective, quite comfortable and most importantly just the way he wanted it. Tori had confirmed that the dividing token wouldn’t inherently break anything or even change it that much. He was still hesitant.
Trying not to think about it too much and psyche himself out, he placed the token down and accepted the prompt. This armor flashed, the same golden light as everything else the System did. Then before he could put any more negative waves out there, the light flashed again, then again.
Where once Matt’s armor had been a single piece affair, the seam hidden in one side and covered by armor plate, it was now 2 sections. It thankfully split at the waist, forming upper and lower armor. To his relief, the armored section appeared to be separated by plate segments, not leaving a gap where it split. He walked over and inspected the armor, top first then moving on to the lower portion.
Pilot Upper Armor, Semi-powered, Set (Rare) (Upgradeable)
The armor consists of a base layer which acts as climate control, soft armor, and strength enhancement. The hardened sections are attached directly to the base layer, providing protection against a myriad of threats. Armor is capable of sealing and providing a limited amount of breathable air in toxic environments. For maximum benefit, matching helmet must be worn. Power only applied when Upper and Lower armor are worn at the same time. Enchantments: Self Repair, Enhanced comfort.
Armor Effects: +5% to physical stats. Resistant to piercing attacks, slashing attacks, blunt attacks chemical attacks, extreme weather.
Pilot Lower Armor, Semi-powered, Set (Rare) (Upgradeable)
The armor consists of a base layer which acts as climate control, soft armor, and strength enhancement. The hardened sections are attached directly to the base layer, providing protection against a myriad of threats. Armor is capable of sealing and providing a limited amount of breathable air in toxic environments. For maximum benefit, matching helmet must be worn. Power only applied when Upper and Lower armor are worn at the same time. Enchantments: Self Repair, Enhanced comfort.
Armor Effects: +5% to physical stats. Resistant to piercing attacks, slashing attacks, blunt attacks chemical attacks, extreme weather.
Matt read the description a couple times through and other than some wording, it didn’t seem to change much. He was feeling like the token was a waste but then he noticed that the armor effect was applied twice. He just doubled its effective stat bonus in one shot. He now had 15% boot across the board except for dexterity which had 20%.
Not wasting any more time, Matt put the armor on. He was very happy with how the seam in the base layer magically melded together not even leaving a gap. The fit was just the same as before and he briefly wondered if he could do another division with each half. What would the outcome be and how much would the bonus stack?
Just as he was about to do some testing and find the limits of his new bonuses, Tobias came in. “Ah, good you are still here. I might have a lead on the dungeon.”
“Well, lead on. I assume Rohm and Jess are already there?” Matt said, tugging once at where the seam in his armor was before following Tobias.
*****
After gathering in the offices of the forge, Matt and the others looked at the 3D projection of the area map. Tobias was leading them through the findings and how he came to his conclusions.
“I had one of our clerks look at this with me and plot this all out, but here it is.” He adjusted the setting and showed a series of red dots overlaid on the map. “Here are all the initial contacts the sensors have returned since they went up. After that, we isolated the ones with a group of 10 or more.”
He made another adjustment and most of the dots faded away. “These were the remaining ones. Then we plotted their course.” Each dot got a line as it moved. “From there we estimated the return path of them. There were some that just were random and lead off in odd directions but these ones…” He highlighted nearly a dozen in yellow. “These ones had large numbers and similar points of origin. It looks to be far out of sensor range, to our southwest. This is our best guess and probably all we will get with current equipment.”
Everyone leaned in and began to look more closely at the map. They didn’t have accurate data on that area, but Franklin suddenly stood bolt upright. “I think that’s it. I just opened the quest log, and it had 2 updates. The latest one was to investigate this origin.”
Rohm and Matt looked at each other before the commander spoke up. “I think that settles it. Matt, you have a plan for this?”
“As much as any plan I have.”
Tobias sighed. “Hit it hard, fast and with overwhelming firepower?”
Matt nodded sagely. “I see you already know the holy gospel.”
Tobias threw his hands up in exasperation but Jess, Lisk and Rohm were all nodding along with Matt. They all had used the codex and knew there was logic to making everything that could fight back die very quickly.
Matt turned to Rohm and Jess. “Commandos plus 4 teams from you.” He pointed to Rohm. “Make sure your pilots get the cannister shot for their constructs, the fighting probably won’t have much need for long range solid shot. We are leaving tomorrow morning and moving fast.”
Both of them gave their confirmations then left to go find their teams and carry out their preparations. Lisk said he would be going to check on a couple things and left along with Franklin who went back to the hub. Tobias had Matt place his tablet on the table and copied the map over to him.
“Thanks. Are you coming on this one?”
Tobias shook his head. “I have things to do here. I really want to focus on my class and there are a couple projects I wanted to get started. We will have a lot more actual manufacturing opportunity with the mine up and running.”
With that, Matt left the forge. He wanted to work on his own skills a bit before they had to leave. Echo had been following him and Matt told the drake that he was free to wander if he wanted. Echo just shook his head, clearly intent on staying nearby. So, he climbed into the cockpit and took his mech out to the perimeter of the city, headed for the range they had set up.
*****
At some point, someone had noticed that the area outside the walls was being used as a test fire range and set some tree trunks out in the grassy field. Matt was using one of those tree trunks as the target for his testing purposes. He assumed that was their purpose, since there were clear signs of bullet holes in them.
Looking through the sight of the recoilless rifle was impossible with his helmet on but thankfully, the sight linked to his display without issue. He centered the reticle over the massive section of tree trunk at the 400-meter mark and made the inputs.
Type: Air Burst. Range: 405.4M [(-)2]. Set: Confirm. Matt pressed the trigger straight back, the electrical impulse igniting the propellant charge of the 75-millimeter round and launching it out the front of the tube. It raced down range in an incredibly flat trajectory and at exactly 2 meters in front of the log, exploded. A flash, some smoke and a ring of shrapnel erupted, peppering the entire area in steel fragments.
A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
Matt could clearly see the beaten impact area just below where the round detonated. He estimated that the kill radius was significantly larger than the ones on Earth but was expecting that. His weapons all appeared stronger than they should be, which he attributed to the way the System worked.
With a hand on his ammunition tube, he summoned another projectile, inserting it into the back of the Carl G. This time he selected the delayed fuse, setting the time delay to a fraction of a second after impact. Taking aim, he fired at the trunk again.
Once again, the round arced out toward the tree. Where things differed was where the explosion was in relation to the slab of wood. The first round had exploded in front of it, this one had a slightly different approach. After penetrating the wood, it punched right through then, shortly after exiting, it exploded. The tree was hardly moved, showing how far it was sunk into the ground, but Matt saw a large hole in the trunk and daylight on the other side.
Matt was satisfied with how both of those played out and saved them as the defaults for those fire modes. It wouldn’t be nearly as labor intensive in the future when using the air burst or delayed fuses. The process wasn’t actually that difficult with his neural interface, but it was one less thing to think about if he suddenly needed an explosion to happen.
The entire time Matt was testing, he was evaluating the way the rockets were summoned and noticed how similar it was to his other munitions. An idea suddenly popped into his head, and he just couldn’t shake it. He would have to talk to the enchanters later and see if they could add something to his new weapon, something he was already using to great effect. I wonder if they can put the Imbue Weapon enchantment on this.
His idle wondering was halted once he remembered that would mean letting Nix and Sari play with his stuff. Looking down at the launcher in his hands, Matt let out a sigh and stored it away after loading a fresh round into it. He decided that would be a problem for future Matt to deal with. He still had one more thing he wanted to work on before they set out to deal with the dungeon.
Matt walked over to an area that was relatively free and clear of grass. It looked like a small depression had been filled in with the displaced dirt from the buildings in the city. Without much ceremony, he plopped down in the middle, sitting cross legged as he began the process of centering himself.
He had meditated several times since being abducted, or rather inducted into the System. Each time felt like it was more useful than the last. This time he had no set goal in mind. He wasn’t looking to get anything out of his meditation but wanted to immerse himself in calm. Slowly, he sank into the void that was his own mind.
He once again saw the field of blue-white energy around him. It extended all around, slowly fading at its extremities. He noticed that there was now some more of that vapor around, seemingly sitting above the field of his plasma. The void was still on the outside, kept at bay by the harsh mana.
Matt peered into that void, trying to sense if there was anything out there. He felt like there was something but couldn’t actually pinpoint anything. With a mental shrug, he moved on, instead beginning to shape the field of mana around him.
He pulled in the vapors that were present, condensing them and adding to the field. He didn’t plan to fully expand it, instead strengthening the core, making it denser. After collecting all the vapor, Matt began to shape the field around him.
Using his will to adjust the density, creating an internal flow of energy that he could cycle at his leisure. Soon, the fading edge pulled back ever so slightly but became all the denser. Its far edge no longer mostly transparent, but now a harsh and defined line. Just before he moved on to his next project, he felt a nudge on his shoulder.
Matt brought himself out of the meditation and noticed that there was once again a charred circle around him. This time was a little different than last. Where previously it was an even burn, this time showed that the center around him was far hotter than the edges. The dirt that he was sitting on was now a several centimeter thick slab of glass, only the ground he was sitting on being spared. Heat waves rose off the circle that was now nearly 50 meters in diameter.
Echo was sitting beside him, clearly not bothered by the heat. It was also clear that he was the one to nudge Matt and rouse him from the meditation. He could feel something as the meditation ended. It felt like being in the water with large swell carrying him toward the shore. Matt didn’t know what to make of it, leaving it for future investigation.
Looking out to the setting sun, Matt turned to Echo. “Ready to head in bud?”
Echo gave his trilling growl and started heading toward the gate, flashing Matt the image of one of the restaurants and a plate full of meat. Matt just laughed as he climbed into the mech and followed after his familiar.
*****
Watching from the shadows, Venri observed the entire range session. She had stumbled upon Matt as he left the gate and just followed along. She had overheard Jess telling her teams about Matts new weapon but hadn’t expected it to be that terrifying. Truly a blessing of the vei… no, not a blessing. It was Matt and his individual ability.
She saw him take a seat and then… nothing for several minutes. She was about to walk over to him but wisely decided to stay put when she noticed the air shimmering around him. Venri kept her distance, knowing that Echo and his construct were always watching.
Before her eyes, the shimmering air began to do something. Venri wasn’t sure what, but it looked like it became denser. Both hardening and flexible as it expanded outward stopping in a hard demarcation around him. Then the air burned.
Venri had no words to describe how it made her feel. The entire sphere ignited not only in that superheated energy Matt used but also became saturated with his presence. She instantly fell to her knees, barely able to focus on the spectacle before her.
Waves of Matts aura washed out from him. Each one carried the promise of both protection and annihilation. Venri’s soul was buffeted by the waves. They thankfully didn’t carry the heat with them, only the intent. All the plasma was contained in a clear, colorless, roiling ball around him, not expanding and only growing denser over time.
As suddenly as it began, the mana and presence faded away, withdrawn into Matt, finally allowing Venri to catch her breath and regain her feet. She looked back over to where Matt was becoming more visible as the plasma dissipated. Then she saw what had caused him to stop. Echo had his paw on Matts shoulder, but his eyes were locked squarely on Venri. Those bright blue draconic eyes never left her until Matt began to stir, then the connection was broken as Echo turned to look at his master.
Venri shuddered and began to retreat back into the city. She couldn’t handle the full attention of Echo and Matt at the same time. She would wait until they passed before going to inspect the site herself. Shortly after, a drake passed in front of her, sparing a brief glance as he was followed by Matt in his mech. She quickly scampered out the gate after they had left line of sight.
Reaching the edge of the blackened circle, Venri had to stop in astonishment. There were the prints from Matt and Echo but not the cracks she would expect until the very edge. She carefully back tracked along their footprints until she reached the center. It was still a bare spot of dirt which she scooped away, digging down. After several centimeters she finally found the bottom of the glass. The plate was nearly 9 centimeters thick of amalgamated glass.
Trying to remember her schooling back on her home world, Venri tried to figure out how hot the fire must have been to create the disk in such a short time. It was a waste of time; she couldn’t even begin to account for the System and how things worked yet. Walking back to the edge, Venri took one of the broken pieces and examined it.
Plasma Mage Glass (E) (Rare)
Glass created by the exertions of a mage early in their journey but displaying power beyond their level. This variety was created using the affinity of plasma, superheating it into a homogeneous mass. This glass can be used in various alchemical creations, rituals and other crafts.
Venri’s Eyes widened as she read the description. Her alchemy class giving her insight into the nature of the material. She was torn however, what to do with the rest? After a few moments, she came to a decision and carefully broke the remaining glass into sections and stored it in her spatial necklace.
She was hoping that nobody would ask too many questions and if so, would accept the explanation of her finding it to be a useful ingredient. Venri then began to move back into the city, noticing that a few of the guards atop the wall had been spectating. She wasn’t sure who they were and guessed that they wouldn’t know her either. Thankfully, the distance was providing some anonymity.
Moving through the streets of the city, Venri found her way to the workshop that had been built for her. The front area was where transactions took place with the back room being a small living space. Her actual work area was in the basement, the stairs and a small closet separating the two upper areas. She didn’t bother to flip the sign on the door over to show she had returned as she went down to the workshop.
Venri planned to have a very thorough crafting session. She had to refine the glass in order to truly comprehend what it would be useful for, but she had a feeling that it would pay off. Mage glass had to be useful, especially if made by a conceptual affinity like Matts. If she was lucky, it might even allow her to create something for her new combat class.
Finally, having spent several hours crafting, Venri finally had several results. The first was a potion of cold resistance which would perhaps be useful. Then she had distilled a catalyst that could potentially lead to imbuing certain properties while enchanting. Then came what she had been hoping for.
Venri examined the vile of liquid. Watching the bright blue swirling within the golden mixture was almost hypnotic. With an effort of will, she broke her gaze away from the swirl and examined the liquid with her identify skill.
Reactive Reagent of Plasma (Uncommon)
When used on a projectile or melee weapon, this reagent will impart a violent reaction within the target. Requires exposure to vital energies to react.
Having finally gotten a positive result, Venri stopped to inspect the fruits of her labor and take a breather. She would be up long into the night working on alchemy projects for the expedition the next day. She still had orders for regular healing, stamina and mana potions to fulfill besides her personal projects. As she took a drink of water, she reflected on how the past couple hours had played out.
Venri was pretty sure this was the synergy that her patron had spoken of. The balance of both classes acting in support of each other, leading her to have more power than her class would normally suggest. She couldn’t disagree with the logic. After all, what better class to pair with alchemy than an assassin?