"That fight was… glorious." Voran thought through the pain.
So this was what death was like? When Rowan died on earth, it had been instant. An exploding facility filled with ancient tech tended to do that.
Before they could bleed out, though, they remembered something critical. Something so important that it could change fate forever.
They had fucking potions!
But meh. Who cared. They wouldn’t ever top a fight like that, anyway. So why bother?
That thought created a dissonance, however, and caused them to split.
Vorn took over immediately and gulped down a healing potion. It wouldn’t instantly heal their wounds, but the additional vitality would certainly keep them alive for another few hours.
“What the hell is with you?! Are you trying to die!”
“eh, i guess. sure.” He spoke mildly as if discussing the weather.
“Why!?”
“i dunno.”
“Just… check your notifications, alright?" Vorn had a theory.
“sure.” Rowan said, unenthused at their continued survival.
Title Earned:
Final Stand (Orcish) - Epic
You stand facing your death. You stand with honor. You stand with purpose. You are going to die, but now that is your enemy's problem. For you have nothing left to fear. Godspeed, and send as many down with you as you can.
Temporary Boon: Dying Might
At the cost of your True Vitality, increase your strength and agility. Increase scales with the amount burned.
Permanent Boon: Orcish Nightmare
All Orcs must fight an intense fear when facing you.
Temporary Bane: Abandoned Survival Instincts
For the next twenty-four hours, your survival instincts will be completely gone. Good luck.
Temporary Bane: Apathy
For the next twenty-four hours, your ability to care about anything is gone. Good luck.
Vorn groaned internally. Of course, Rowan’s first Title would be something like this. Final Stand was rather famous for ending in the deaths of most who earned it. It was in the name, after all, you weren’t meant to survive it.
Most who gained it died in battle, but a fair amount of people died after the battle too. You only got the Title when you gave up on living, and the System respected that. If you were willing to abandon even the thought of surviving, it would grant you power beyond your imagination.
Burning your True Vitality for power was insane, though. You only had a limited amount of True Vitality, and you didn’t get more of it until you evolved. Oh, and it also determined your lifespan. Fuck. Just how many years did they burn?
“Rowan, check your status!”
"sure."
Voran, Level 19 Twin Soul Spellblade
Age: 16 | Class 1: [Twin Soul: Mind Path] | Rowan: [Twin Soul: Body Path]
Attributes:
CON: 285
STR: 285
AGI: 285
DEX: 285
WIS: 570
INT: 570
CHA: 114
LUCK: 114
[Titles: Vorn - None | Rowan - 1 New Title(s) Acquired]
[Perks: Vorn - 2 New Perks Acquired! | Rowan - Unchanged]
[Skills: Vorn - 2 New Skill(s) Available | Rowan - 1 New Skill Available]
Status: Leveling Rush - Extreme, Potion Sickness - 59 minutes, Fatigued - Extreme, Injured - Extreme, Dehydrated, Plagued
Huh. Vorn had forgotten that he picked his Class for a moment. There went his dream. That he had spent his whole life chasing. Gone. Forever.
He was not emotionally prepared to deal with this right now.
This was the worst moment for Rowan to be functionally useless.
Vorn prepared himself for a moment and then took over the body.
The pain was immediate and extreme. Maybe it was for the best that Rowan couldn’t feel much of anything right now. That was a mercy.
And they were sixteen now. That… that was less awful than he was expecting. Still younger than he had been when they evolved into a Unique Being. Hell, they were legally an adult now! Not that it mattered, as most people went off of level, not age. You needed to be an adult to have a Class in the first place, after all.
There were a few edge cases where children got Classes, but that was extraordinarily rare. Huh… wait, were they one of those edge cases? Rowan picked his Class when he was only a day old!
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“Alright, enough distracting myself. Time to move.” Vorn spoke to himself.
“good luck, i guess.” Rowan replied limply.
“Thanks for the encouragement.” Vorn replied with a dry tone.
— — —
It took a few hours, but they managed to crawl themselves over to the tree that Ark was passed out on. Luckily, she wasn’t actually in the tree, as he had no chance of climbing it as he was now.
Unluckily, she wasn’t in the tree because she had fallen out of it.
Luckily once more, the fall hadn’t killed her.
Vorn slowly crawled to her and poured a potion down her throat. He had been taking one every hour and had downed three at this point.
Ark woke up sputtering and coughing.
“What the hell!” She shouted, then paused.
“Holy shit, we’re alive!? How did you manage that!” She exclaimed much louder.
“Maybe don’t shout right now,” Vorn rasped out, “I’m kinda indisposed at the moment.”
“Yeah, I can see that. You look like a dragon stomped on you and then ground you into paste.” She said straight-faced.
“Thanks for the kind words.”
“Anytime.”
“Say, you wouldn’t be able to use that healing skill again, would you?” Vorn casually pleaded.
“Nah, impossible. I had to burn all the microbes I put in you to make that… work…” Her eyes widened, and Vorn suddenly felt much better.
“What was that?” Vorn accused.
“Nothin’,” Ark said a little too quickly.
“Ark.”
“Fine! I don’t actually have a way to prevent my plagues from spreading to other people! I just use my microbes to defend my party members from it! And since I burned yours for a healing boost…”
“I caught the vitality burning plague. I was wondering why recovery was taking so long.” He sighed.
“In my defense, I totally thought you were going to die.”
“That… that’s fair. I did too.” Vorn wanted to be mad, but couldn’t.
“How did you manage to survive that, anyway?”
“Well, for one, your plague weakened them a ton, and secondly, this moron,” Vorn tapped on his head, “Managed to get the Last Stand Title”
“Oh shit. How bad?” Ark winced.
“Not terrible. Our age got reset when we evolved, so we’re only sixteen now.”
“Thank the Gods. I did think it was weird that you didn’t look like a wrinkled prune! How is Rowan dealing with the after effects?” She asked.
Vorn sighed, “Not well. I’m going to have to be the one in charge for today.”
“Well… do you still want to stay in the dungeon?” She asked tentatively.
“No- Well… I guess I do need practice with my new Class.” He quickly interrupted himself.
“Oh? I thought you were going to that fancy Acade- Oh. I’m sorry.” Ark began to jokingly mock, before realizing what must have happened. He had told her about his dreams while questioning her a few hours ago.
“It’s fine. I probably would have picked this anyway… It’s just… That was my whole plan, ya know? What do I do now? I was basically running purely on spite and idealistic dreams for the past couple of years.” Vorn asked, finally thinking about his future.
“That’s tough. I don’t know. Do you at least like your new Class?”
“Like? I love it! It’s practically tailor made for me! I just don’t know what to do with myself now. I have a Path sure, but I can follow that Path while doing basically anything else. Should I become a researcher? Could I with Rowan in my head? I just don’t know.”
“Correct me if I’m wrong, but I’m pretty sure you’re overthinking this. Do you think Rowan has some grand overarching plan when he goes out to whack things? Sure, you were doing dungeons for money to go to school, but do you really think that was why he agreed to do them? He just does it for fun. You can too.” Ark explained.
“I guess, but that just feels… empty. Sure, I could see Rowan being plenty fulfilled doing just that, but I always imagined myself leaving a mark, you know? Changing how we perceive magic forever or something grand like that.” Vorn rambled out.
“So, do that. You just explained what you wanted right there. What’s stopping you?”
“I would need- Huh. I guess… I guess I could. I have the power. I have the ambition. What is stopping me?” He asked more to himself than anyone.
“What were your options anyway? I know you won’t tell me what you actually have, but what about the ones you skipped over?” Ark asked with the social grace of a bulldozer.
Vorn found that he didn’t mind.
“There were a couple interesting ones,”
Arcane Scholar Path - Epic
Your fascination with the arcane is second to none. Now you can study it to your heart's content! Casting may be out of your reach, but your understanding is second to none! You are the pride of any research tower! Your path is of Understanding, Arcane, and Research. +Magic Mind
+6 INT +6 WIS +6 CON +6 DEX +6 Free Points per level
Druid of Ages - Legendary
Your mother was one of the most well-known sorceresses of her Age, but you can become the most legendary one of several. While her magic was powerful, yours will be overwhelming. Gain potent druidic magic and nature at your beck and call. +Plant Call +Loved By Hyal’bern
+8 INT +8 WIS +8 CON +8 DEX +8 CHA per level
Soul Manipulator - Transcendent
You have learned grave secrets. You know how to manipulate a soul with mental energy, and you have stumbled onto the knowledge of how to combine souls if you so wish. You do so wish. Become a God among mortals on Hyal’bern. No one is out of your reach, for everyone has a soul. Ascendancy is but a step away. +Soul Manipulation +Psionic Manipulation +Soul Rend +Soul Storage +Spirit Sunder +12 more
+25 To All Attributes per level
+12 more, would you like to see the five that fit your personality the best?
Y/N - Y
Untalented Mage - Common
You have always wanted to step on this path, and you can. Your talent with this path calling isn’t great, but passion can lead to great strides nonetheless. Please don’t pick this. Your path is of Magic, Research, and Perseverance
+2 INT +2 INT +2 Free Points per level
Elemental Sorcery - Rare
You have the elements at your fingertips. Just feel for them, and they will answer gladly. You have never been overly fond of taking this path, but that was the past. Now, you can see past your foolish obsession with magecraft. Your path will be of Intuition, Elements, and Combat. +Elemental Understanding
+4 INT +4 WIS +4 CON +4 Free Points per level
Wild Sorcerer - Epic
Those on the Mage path think of magic as a controllable force. A static energy that follows predetermined laws. You know better. Mana is a beast all its own, and it is Wild. Free. Uncontrollable. Follow the whims of magic as you seek to serve it as much as it serves you. Your path is of Freedom, Chance, and Expression. +Mana Body +Guaranteed Ace
+6 INT +6 WIS +6 CON +6 LUCK +6 Free Points per level
Druid of Ages - Legendary
Your mother was one of the most well-known sorceresses of her Age, but you can become the most legendary one of several. While her magic was powerful, yours will be overwhelming. Gain potent druidic magic and nature at your beck and call. +Plant Call +Loved By Hyal’bern
+8 INT +8 WIS +8 CON +8 DEX +8 CHA per level
Vorn didn’t tell Ark about the actual Class he picked,
Twin Soul: Mind Path - Unique
All of your life, your love of the Arcane and its mysteries has guided you. You have been ridiculed and shunned for your determination, but that never once stopped you from pursuing your dreams. Your mind is mythril and your soul is adamantine, and though the words hurt, they never had a chance of stopping you. Now, your dreams come to fruition. You may not be the most physically inclined, but you have your soulmate for that. Truly enjoy yourself for the first time. Your path is of Learning, Discovery, and the Arcane. +Spell Forge +Spell Storage
+30 WIS +30 INT per level
“Huh, I knew you were a magic nerd, but I didn’t think it would be literally all of your options!” Ark playfully jabbed.
“Yeah, yeah. I think it comes with the whole Unique Class thing. You have to be obsessed with a subject to get one, at least, that’s my theory.” Vorn stated. A few hundred points in his intelligence attribute helped significantly with his confidence.
“Oh? So you got a Unique Class? I figured you would have. And I think you’re right. I am completely obsessed with microbiology, so it’s not exactly shocking that this was the Class I got.”
“That’s a pretty new field, isn’t it? Just discovered a few decades ago, right?”
“Sure is! I thank the gods everyday for being born after that discovery! I don’t know what I’d do with myself without it! It’s basically all I think about.” Ark violently spouted her gratitude. Vorn found himself agreeing with the sentiment. The thought of being born in a dead zone... horrific.
“Wait a moment… Did you say ‘New Class’ As in, you have two?” Her thoughts finally caught up with what they had been hinting at, it would seem.
“Yeah? I thought you had gathered that? I mean, I practically told you that outright when I said I wanted to go to the Academy to become a mage, right?”
“I didn’t really put that together until now! You and Rowan are pretty gods-damned different so I just kind of think of you as separate people! I forgot that you share the same body for a moment!” Ark defended herself.
“A moment? It’s been like six hours since I told you that!” Vorn shouted.
“Yeah, and I was unconscious for like, half of them!”
“That’s still three hours!” He said disbelievingly.
— — —
After a few minutes of playful argument, Vorn decided to check his available skills and read the description of his perks. He would tell Rowan to check his available skills, but Vorn was afraid he would just pick the first one out of pure disinterest.
First, his Perks:
Spell Forge - Unique
You have long gazed at spells and wished to accomplish their effects. Whether they be sorcerous in nature or meticulously crafted magecraft, your avarice for the arcane should be a legendary skill in itself! Now, every spell is at your beck and call… if you are able to craft it. You must truly understand how a magical construct works before reconstructing it. Really though, we all know that researching isn’t a downside for you.
Spell Storage - Unique
You’ve forged a spell! Congratulations! Now, you won’t ever forget it! Though you won’t ever forget spells in storage, you will still have to recall them if you want to cast them. Something that may be a tad difficult to do in combat. Maybe keep a few spells on hand if you don’t want to be caught with your pants down!
Well, those were certainly useful. Just the thought of what he could do with [Spell Forge] made him salivate. It was truly a dream come true… it just cost another one.
[Spell Storage] Was less obvious in its power, but it was still extremely useful. Most mages carried a grimoire of spells that they could read from when they needed to refresh their memory, his was built in. And permanent! He was still human, of course, so he wouldn’t be able to keep several complex spells in mind at all times, so the ability to refresh his memory at any time… was almost as good as his other perk.
Now, for the skills:
First Selection:
[Mage Hand - Common]
Summon a hand made of mana to do your bidding.
[Discovery - Unique] The urge to discover is in your bones. Where others see an unknowable mystery, you see a challenge. Your intelligence isn’t unrivaled by any means, but your determination is. You will not give up until you understand. This skill points you in the right direction. Scales with Magic Stats
[Mythril Skin - Epic]
Your skin is not steel or adamantium, but it is one thing those other metals aren’t. Conductive. Energy spells go right through you and are grounded, significantly reducing damage. Also keeps all that pesky energy away from your internal organs.
The choice was immediately obvious, but he still wanted [Mythril Skin]. Whatever, you can’t have everything.
He made his choice.
The change was distinct and incredible. It was like his mind pointed perfectly in the direction of obvious conclusions, only they weren’t so obvious. If his mind was now a compass, then before it was a couple of pencils that someone balanced on one another. Sure, they would move with seemingly no input, but it was random and frequently based on unknowable factors. Now, his mind pointed seemingly unerringly.
Simply astonishing.
He went for his next skill.
Second Selection:
[Ember - Common]
Light a candle or campfire with a flick of your fingers!
[Air Step - Rare]
Take a step on a thin pane of mana, allowing you a limited form of flight! If you could call it that.
[Avatar - Legendary]
You are in a unique position. Most take years to obtain this skill by closing the gap between their mind and spirit through meditation. Your mind is in your spirit most of the time. Create a gestalt projection of your mental and spiritual energy that can act on the world. An Avatar. Beware, you are projecting your physical soul upon the world and that opens it to harm.
Another easy choice, thankfully. That whole, ‘soul can take damage’ thing was concerning, but he needed a way to interact with the world when Rowan was in control.
He could test his avatar skill later, however. Now? Now it was time to forge.