Kyto and Tiddles had been escorted into the back of the barracks and down the corridor which held the cells. At the end of the corridor, there was a staircase that wound back up onto the second floor of the building. They walked upstairs to walk past several rooms before opening into a dining area. A few guard members were grabbing food from a flustered-looking cook. She was a buxom woman in her early forties by the look of her, and she was turning the air blue as she cursed and swore about the amount of food she had been preparing and the guards were eating.
The guard accompanying Kyto ushered him to one of the tables, indicating he should wait before turning and leaving again. Tiddles flopped down beside the table, snorting.
"I can not stay here. I need to go and grab the cub's food soon," he said.
"Don't worry, I do not plan to be here long," Kyto replied.
The guards in the room looked at them with uncertainty, not so much at Kyto but more at the monstrous beast.
"I suppose you are after food also." the woman said, walking over to them. She paid no heed to Tiddles, ignoring him.
"She has no fear," Tiddles said idly.
Kyto glanced at Tiddles before replying. "If you are able, that would be appreciated."
"Able! Of course, I am bloody able," she replied.
"Sorry, I did not mean to be rude. I meant...."
"I know what you meant, boy," she said, glaring at him.
"Yes, then I would love some food. Would it be ok to have some for the beast as well?"
The woman glanced at Tiddles. "Hmmph. I suppose I can make him something." she turned, walked back to the kitchen area, and began banging pots around, stating how much she was underappreciated.
"She is feisty," Kyto said.
"Yeah. As I said, she has no fear as well. Only one other I have met like that is Lars." Tiddles said.
"How do you know?" Kyto enquired.
"Fear smells," he replied.
"Well, I have a mountain of notifications to look through. I assume you do as well. While we wait, we may as well start."
Tiddles's eyes glazed slightly as he focussed on his display, and Kyto did the same.
The logs were ridiculous. Every combat action that Tiddles had performed was listed alongside all of Kyto's healing details. "This is going to take a while," Kyto said.
The smell of freshly fried Keefir meat and spices wafted across the room as they sat there, distracting Kyto from his logs. The scent was heavenly, and Kyto's stomach grumbled angrily. He had not even realised he was hungry, but the smell was now anxiously driving his stomach mad. He stood, walking over to the kitchen area. "Excuse me?" he called to the cook behind a long-topped counter.
"What do you want?" she snapped back.
"I was wondering what spices you use to make the meat smell divine," he said truthfully.
The woman stopped turning and looking at him. "Are you a cook?"
"I do cook quite a lot, yes."
"It is called Watergill. It is not a spice."
"I have never heard of it. Where do you get it?"
"It is common around the lakes in the shallow waters. I usually get fresh delivered each morning by one of the youngsters in the town."
"I will have to get some."
"Your food is ready now anyway." she turned with a skillet pan with freshly cooked Keefir strips covering its wide bottom. She grabbed a couple of plates and served the strips up, then grabbed a pot full of water and spooned the Watergill alongside the strips. The Watergill was a vibrant green and had small pods along its stem. Kyto picked one off the plate, blowing it and tasting it. It had a saltiness yet warm, spiced aftertaste, and he knew it would go well with the Keefir strips.
"That is delicious," he replied, smiling at the woman.
The woman looked at him, raising an eyebrow, and then smiled. "It is nice actually to be appreciated for a change. Unlike these lazy bastards who just come in here and order food all the damn time." she raised her voice, looking over at the table of guards sitting there eating.
"Thank you," Kyto said, picking up the two plates and returning them to the table.
He sat down to eat his and placed the other plate on the floor for Tiddles. "Really? You think that will even fill one paw?" Tiddles said, looking at him.
Kyto chuckled in response. Tiddles chomped the contents of the plate in one mouthful.
"Not bad," he said, resting his head.
Kyto ate, savouring the flavour of the food, and once he finished, he took the plates back over and placed them on the counter. The guards had left and left everything where they had sat. The woman was busy preparing some meat, and he walked over to their table and collected their plates, bringing them to the counter.
"Thanks," Kyto called to the woman. She ignored his comment, and he went back to sit with Tiddles.
"These logs are crazy. I have been scrolling for ages and still haven't reached the bottom," Tiddles said as Kyto sat down again.
"Any useful information?"
"Not yet. The experience gains have been pretty good. There is also a 5000 experience reward for completing wave one. Have you checked yours yet?"
"Not yet. Let me look." Kyto focussed on his display and noticed that his experience was flashing. "Oh, I have 50126 of 50000 experience. It says that I can level up."
"What does that do?"
"Do not know yet. Let me see."
Would you like to increase your level to 26? Yes/No
Kyto accepted yes.
Congratulations on reaching level 26. The following bonuses have been awarded. +1 to each of your core statistics, +5 arcane knowledge points. You have commenced on your true path as an Enlightened. Your progression will increase your ability to combat the challenges ahead.
"Damn, that is awesome. +1 each stat and +5 arcane knowledge." Kyto said.
"Wow, I am still at 46826 of 50000."
"I had only reached it because of the hidden quest bonus when I bottled the healing mana."
"Not sure if I have any hidden quests. I hope I do."
"Well, these extra arcane knowledge points are going to help. I can now increase my skills further."
"Which will you go for?"
"Not sure, but with our party bonuses, I was thinking Siphon to level 2. It helps with my mana drawing as well as my manipulation rate. Healing is also good, but it is working well currently. It is more maintaining the mana pool."
"Sounds fair."
Kyto focussed on his Siphon skill.
Would you like to increase your Siphon -Tier 3 to Level 2 for a cost of 6 arcane knowledge? You currently have 11 available. Yes/No
Kyto accepted yes. Nothing happened apart from the bonus changes on his skill tree, which are now adjusted so that he can draw with a 40% efficiency rating. 'Well, that was a little underwhelming', he thought.
Kyto checked his character sheet.
Name:
Kyto
Title:
Enlightened
Species:
Homosapien
Sub-species:
Risen
Age:
20
Profession:
The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
Chosen
Class:
Wielder
Figures:
Total points
57
Acrobatics
11
Brawling
8
Charm
8
Defence
7
Endurance
9*
Free thinking
14
Elite Skill:
Actualisation
Active
Specialisation:
Arcane Knowledge
53 of 58
Tier
Name
Cost
Level
Tier 1
Mana Manipulation
15
5
Tier 2
Wielder Support
20
4
Tier 3
Siphon
9
2
Heal
3
1
Familiar
3
1
Shield
3
1
Level
26
Experience
126 of 50000
* - Due to your advanced understanding of Mana, your Endurance is redundant if you have mana available.
Kyto was happy with his progress, and now that he knew that for every level, he would gain five more arcane knowledge and the stat bonuses, he knew that the more healing he could perform and the more experience he could earn, the stronger they would both become.
"We got over 12000 shared experience for the Geblex kills," Tiddles said.
"At 150 experience each, that is a lot of Geblex," Kyto replied.
"Not as many as I would have liked."
"Have you seen the damage over time graph?" Kyto asked.
Tiddles focussed on his display, and during phases of the fight, he managed to maintain a DOT rating due to injuring so many of the Geblex and their bleeding damage as they lay dying.
Kyto jumped as there was a bang on the table next to him. "Here you go, and thank you for cleaning the plates up; those lazy bastards never do anything. I think their mothers still ween them." the cook said.
Kyto refocused to see a steaming pot of coffee sitting on the table and a large mug with a small jug of Keefir milk.
"Thank you," he said, smiling, pouring himself a mug. "I am Kyto, and this big lump next to me is the beast."
"Hey, I am not a lump," Tiddles complained.
"I am Matilda. Not wanting to sound rude, but the pair of you stink."
Kyto looked at himself and then at Tiddles. They were still covered in the remains of the Geblex from the fighting, and now that she mentioned it, they did absolutely reek. "We are stuck here until they decide we can leave, so there is not much we can do about it."
"The whole town reeks of them awful monsters," Matilda said as she walked back to the kitchen area as a couple of guards entered the dining hall. They were chatting away when one of them noticed Tiddles and pointed at him, whispering.
"You Risen are not very good at whispering," Tiddles said.
"Why is that?" Kyto asked.
"Those guards were trying to whisper, but I can hear everything they say."
"Anything interesting?"
"Nothing, really. It was just how amazing I was at killing the Geblex," he said, smiling at Kyto.
Kyto rolled his eyes and tutted.
They sat for a while, watching various groups of guards come and go from the dining area and working through their notifications. Tiddles was getting frustrated at being unable to leave and get to the cubs, and Kyto still needed to get a message to the girls and find Sniffer.
"We need to go," Tiddles said.
"Where can we go? We are sat in the barracks block. It is not as if we can walk out of the front door."
"Kyto." a voice called from behind them.
Kyto turned to see TJ's fatigued but smiling face at the entrance.
"Hey TJ, how are you doing? Have you seen Sniffer?" Kyto asked.
"Tired, and yes, Sniffer and the girls are helping the injured at the hangar."
"How bad is it out there?"
"We lost 76 in total. Nineteen guards in that number."
"Shit, that is a lot more than I thought."
"We have currently accounted for over 500 Geblex corpses. They are currently being burned to try and get rid of the damn stench. Mentioning stench, you two stink bad." He said, scrunching his nose up.
"Well, we are currently prisoners here, so there's not much we can do about it."
"I would not say you are prisoners; otherwise, you would be in a cell. I have been speaking to Reece, and he is adamant that you two should be protected."
"Protected from those crazy bastards following Yen?"
"Yes. They have been picketing in the square wanting Yen freed."
"Free him then."
"The bastard tried to kill you," TJ said in surprise.
"But he failed, and I don't care what he thinks. We have more important shit to deal with than worry about a bunch of zealots. There is a second wave coming."
"WHAT?" TJ said in shock.
"Reece not mention that part? When the fighting finished, we got a message saying congratulations on surviving the first wave."
"Fucking hell. So we can expect more of them."
"Seems like that, and I have no idea when. There is no countdown like there are for the challenges."
"If we expect more of those things, we must ensure we are ready for them this time."
"Tiddles needs to leave as well. He needs to feed the cubs."
"They have been fed. They came in with the girls and Brandon."
"The cubs were let in?"
"Not really, but Lars was at the gate when they arrived, and I do not know one guard member who will argue with him," he said, smiling broadly.
"Ha. Good for Lars."
"I need some sleep. I am so tired," TJ stated, yawning.
Kyto had not felt tired once since the incursion, even though they had been up all night, and he wondered if it was because of the mana change he had identified. 'I wonder', he thought.
"Let me try something," he said, looking at TJ.
TJ looked at him quizzically. "What?"
Kyto focussed on TJ and tried sending the broken mana towards TJ, but it would not leave his body. "Damn."
"What?" TJ said again.
"I am just trying something. Give me your hand."
TJ placed his hand out with a confused look on his face. Kyto took hold of it and again began trying to force the broken mana from his body. It resisted initially, but he could feel the particles leave him very slowly. "What the fuck is that? My hand is tingling." TJ said in shock.
"Mana, give me a moment," Kyto replied as he continued to break down more of his pool and push it from him. "How do you feel now?"
"Like I have put my hand on a generator and got a shock, my hand feels numb," he replied.
"No, I mean, do you still feel as tired?"
TJ suddenly frowned. "Now you say it no, not as tired as I was. At least, I felt exhausted before." he shook his hand as if trying to get blood flow back into it.
Kyto smiled at TJ's response. " I can transfer some of my mana to others through touch. It is not healing mana, however. It is more like endurance but not endurance. It is difficult to explain in words that make sense. I just knew it may be viable."
"Healing and endurance-boosting. They are two amazing skills."
"The transfer is not a skill. It is just something I have learned through mana manipulation."
"So you can use mana without skills?"
"I'm not sure, but I understand that mana is and makes up everything."
"Everything?"
"It appears to. It is more like an energy source, but the only word I can use to describe it is magic."
"Magic, are you being serious?"
"Yes, and how else can you describe it? I can heal people and shield them. There is no other word that gives it the justification it deserves."
"I suppose I could say it like that, but the only magic I have ever seen was the sleight-of-hand tricks that some raiders used to do."
They talked for a while and discussed the potential for a second wave. TJ knew they needed to be prepared in advance if a similar wave occurred. They could not chance a similar attack to that of last night. It had been too uncontrolled and random.
"Maybe we can control where they try and enter the town?" Kyto said.
"I was thinking the same, but we do not have time to arrange anything before tonight. We could only stop them by creating better defences and digging pits or something similar to stop them from traversing the wall gap. They got over the stockade so easily with those damn claws of theirs."
"The town's perimeter is too big to cover all areas at once, but I have no idea how you can control their assault."
"I am not sure we can. We definitely need all the watch towers manned, though. The biggest issue is that the town has never been attacked, and the guard number needs to be bigger to defend it. We are also running low on ammunition."
Kyto looked at TJ with concern. The town guard's weapons were a huge advantage against the Geblex, allowing many of them to be removed before reaching the defenders. If ammo ran low, he could imagine many more casualties if a second wave came.
"I had heard that there was someone making ammo here?" Kyto said.
"There is, but it is on such a small scale. There is no way enough can be made to replace what was used last night."
“Is it something I can help with?”
"How?"
"No idea until I see the process used to make it, but I may be able to think of something to help. I can turn my hand to most things."
"I know, but one of the biggest issues is the powder. There is only a limited supply."
"Do you know how it is made?"
"No idea. The man who makes the ammo is based behind the auctioneers. You would have to speak to him to see what is needed."
"Well, maybe that should be a priority. I can always go and talk to him."
"Reece still does not want you out on the streets, at least not now. Those fanatics are still vying for blood."
"I cannot stay here cooped up. I need to be out helping, and I also need to get cleaned up and changed. So does the smelly beast next to me."
"Oi," Tiddles responded.
"There is a bathhouse inside the compound at the back of the main barracks block. You can go and clean up there. I will get you some new clothes sorted out." TJ replied.
"That sounds like a start, at least."
Kyto and Tiddles followed TJ back downstairs and out of the rear of the barracks block. Kyto had never been around the end of the building, and it was fenced in with a couple of single-storey blocks. One was a bathhouse, the other looking at the guards coming and going, the armoury. Tiddles followed him into the bathhouse.
"Ok. Bath time," he said, smiling at Tiddles.