030

“Dad!” Jane rushed across the road to hug Erick. She buried her head against his shoulder. “I’m so glad to see you.”

Erick embraced his daughter, laughing, saying, “Hi, so-glad-to-see-you. I’m Dad.”

Jane left the hug. “That’s terrible.”

“You ran right into it.”

Erick stood back and looked Jane over. She had gone out wearing cloth, jeans, and a shoulderbag. She had returned wearing the same, but with her hair cut short and her skin a shade darker. And dragging a cart of… stuff? Bumpy stuff covered by a brown cloth. Savral arrived in the same dark armor as he always had, but as Erick looked, his armor dissolved into mana, revealing his normal tunic and pants. Ah!? He was using [Conjure Armor] all this time? Was Jane using that, too?

“What’s in the cart?” Erick immediately followed that question with, “What’s your [Conjure Armor] look like?”

Jane smiled wide, then she transformed.

Solid bands of silverblue laid crisscross around her body, loose and mostly unconnected. Threads of blue light zipped back and forth through the bands, layering across her form, holding the bands together in loose fashion. Soon, Jane was wearing the most plain looking ‘armor’ Erick had ever seen. It was a winter jacket and thick jeans. She had gloves now, but they were just blue gloves; not gauntlets.

What the fuck was this? Living in a fantasy world and this was the best she could do?

All wonder and amazement left Erick like a stale fart. Pfft! Then gone.

Erick complained, “Where’s the spikes! Where’s the wings! Where’s the design!”

“That’s what I said!” Savral laughed loud.

“Looks rather plain,” Al agreed.

Jane got both huffy and smug, saying, “This can take a center stab from a crystal mimic. Savral’s armor can’t do that without crunching in and needing to be reformed.”

Al looked to Savral, and Savral reluctantly nodded.

Erick still wasn’t over the bad design. “It looks hideous, Jane. At least work some embroidery into the design. You can do that, right? Maybe some flowers?”

“Phhbt! I’m not wearing flowers!” Jane moved around as she spoke, “The gambeson has full range of movement, has no weak spots in the joints, it’s breezy and easy to live in, and no one expects it to hold up as good as it does. It’s basically just clothes!”

“She has proven her armor many times over the course of the trip.” Savral pointed to the cart. “Though I’m not sure if those are going to work like you think they will.”

Erick looked to the cart.

Jane dismissed her ‘armor’ then stepped to the cart. She tossed the tarp off, revealing… Bumpy stuff. And a few chopped short crystal agave leaves. The leaves were at least 14 inches wide and twice that long, nearly filling the cart completely. Their sliced portions revealed a fully translucent core. The only color on the leaves was a faint blue tint to the skin, and the bumpy-lumpy blue and a bit of brown lumps at the end of the leaves. The bumps jiggled in the sun. They had to be an animal, of some kind. Not crystal slimes; Al had said what those looked like and these bumpy things were not balls of clear goo with a ‘diamond’ at the center. They were like bluish bean dip on large tortilla chips.

Erick asked, “What are they?”

Jane announced, “Mimics! They’re everywhere out there, on every single agave. The only ones that give experience are the ones large enough to copy an agave all on their own. Those are all around level 30. Did you know the mimics are what keeps the desert a desert? We found an oasis out there and it should have been growing green but mimics were clearing out anything green.”

“… Why do you have them?”

Savral answered, “She has something special in mind, but they have to be eaten alive.”

“They’re alive!?”

Erick rushed closer for a better look. Al frowned, and stayed where he was.

The lumpy bumps were slowly moving. Faster now as time went on. Jane covered them back up with the tarp.

She said, “They don’t like direct sunlight.”

Al narrowed his eyes, “To what end?”

“She wants to become a Monster Mage,” Savral answered.

“Jesus Christ, Savral.” Jane said, “I can answer my own questions.”

Savral smiled, shrugging.

Jane sighed, and said, “Mimics gain [Polymorph] at higher levels. I want [Polymorph]. Since I’m not going to take the chance of talking to a dragon, nor do I want to fight a dragon and eat its heart, I’m going this route.” She looked down at the crate, and said, “They’re toxic like this, but the alchemists in the Adventurer’s District know how to remove the toxins without destroying what I need, like how [Cleanse] would. Lanore turned me on to the idea; A lot of people from around the world come here to get this kind of service performed. I’m not able to get the Class, yet, but I can learn the spell.”

Erick frowned. “What’s [Polymorph]?”

“By Rozeta!” Al huffed out a great billow of annoyance. “How do you not know that?”

Erick looked at him. “I don’t know a lot of the more funny-named spells people have been throwing around in Spur. People kept referring to [Nature’s Fury] but I had no idea what that actually was until a few days ago, and I still don’t know because the guards interrupted Krakina. Do you know about gamma radiation? Or 401ks? Or the difference between a car and a truck?”

Al balked. “Well… No.”

“Gamma radiation has to do with rads, right?” Savral guessed.

Erick said, “Incorrect!”

“Damn.”

Erick turned to Jane. “So? What’s [Polymorph]? Exactly?”

“Transform into monsters!”

Erick frowned. “Gonna need more than that, Jane.”

Al answered more correctly, “Transform into any living creature that you know.” Al said, “The more familiar you are with a creature, the better your transformation. If you don’t know what the hell you’re doing, you hurt yourself with Error messages. Familiarity is usually gained through living with the creatures, or eating the heart and brain of the creatures. Familiarity through observation maintains your mind, which is a bad thing if you’re trying to fly without the instincts of a bird. Familiarity though eating shifts your mind towards that of the new body, which is bad if you transform into some murderous kind of animal and you have a low Willpower. Any Willpower under 25 is considered ‘low’ in the case of [Polymorph].” He added, “It’s a very specialized spell.”

Erick started Al’s monologue with a frown. That frown only deepened as Al kept talking.

Jane said, “I want to explore the entire world, Dad. Swim in the oceans, fly through the skies, see in the dark and live anywhere.” She patted the crate with the mimics. “And [Polymorph] is how I do that. My armor that you think is stupid? It can be altered to fit any body type. [Conjure Weapon] works with natural weapons, too.”

“It’s just weird, Jane. You’re going to hunt monsters and then eat them—” Erick paused. He conceded, “Okay. Now that I said the words, I think it’s better than killing monsters for experience.”

Savral smirked off to the side as he said, “She’s going to do that, too. She wants to get to level 100.”

Al scoffed. “Never happening.”

“What level are you now?” Erick asked.

Jane smiled, then said, “Why don’t we go inside, first?”

 

– – – –

 

Jane, Erick, and Al sat in the living room while Savral began chopping up vegetables and meat in the kitchen. Jane was on the edge of her seat with big news and big questions.

Jane started, “What is Scion of Balance, Al?”

Al nodded. “It’s considered the second weakest of the Scions because it requires many more points in Vitality than most are willing or able to commit, as well as giving up the x4 multiplier of the three major Scions in return for only a x2 modifier to all. There are a few cultures that cleave hard into Scion of Balance, though. The wrought in particular are fond of Balance, as well as several orcol cultures, since we usually start with a high Vitality anyway. Scion of Balance also doubles your resistance to Health Fatigue and Mana Exhaustion.”

Erick asked, “Why not tell us about that one, too?”

“Because.” Al huffed, “You should both go for Scion of Focus. Mana Exhaustion is the real killer for mages. All Scion of Balance does is give you, at minimum, 1500 of your HP, MP, and regen statistics. That’s not enough for any of the high-maintenance spells.” He said to Erick, “Like your [Exalted Storm Aura], which is … 15 times 60 times 24… 21600 mana for a full day of rain. At your current 35 focus, that gives you an exhaustion cap of 21000 if you went for Scion of Balance AND you’d need to spend a lot more ability points to get 25 in Strength, Vitality, Willpower, AND Focus, AND all four of the x3 skills.”

“Okay.” Erick said, “That’s… not something I think I want or am capable of. No mana exhaustion would be preferred.”

“Exactly!” Al said.

Jane smiled wide. “I think I have to go for Scion of Balance.”

Al said, “But you won’t have the benefits of high stats! Scion of Strength for 6000 HP! You won’t even die if someone took an axe to your neck. Not to mention having 50 strength; you could punch a juvenile dragon or a very large bear away. Willpower for 6000 Mana? You got yourself a 6000 point absorption [Ward], and that same axe would have the same problem with your same neck. Focus for 6000 Mana regen AND no Exhaustion? You’re a workhorse, able to lift cities from the desert or—” He turned to Erick. “Or turn that desert into farmland!” He digressed, “6000 HP regen isn’t that great, I admit. Scion of Vitality is the weakest of the four Scions.”

“Five Scions,” Jane corrected.

“Fine! Five Scions!”

“And with 1500 mana I can Favored Spell [Ward] for a 3000 point absorption [Ward].”

“Favored Spell on [Ward] is a nice, safe choice. Rather bland, but very safe.” Al said, “But! You could do that with Scion of Willpower for a 12000 point absorption [Ward].”

“Yes.” Jane said, “But those Scions of Willpower [Ward]s regen only 600 an hour, so there’s no point, whereas my 3000 point [Ward] would regenerate 1500 an hour.”

Now Erick was lost. He asked, “Regenerating [Ward]?”

Jane’s mirth vanished. She was six years old and someone had knocked the icecream off of her cone.

Uh oh. She was mad at him, wasn’t she? And Erick had just reminded her that she was mad.

“Dad.” Jane spoke with an undercurrent of anger, “What level is your [Ward]?”

Erick called up the box for [Ward], saw this was a problem he could fix, and dumped all of his mana into a personal [Ward]. The spell was going to level when he got around to casting his daily personal [Ward], anyway!

No slackers here, no sir!

 

 

Damn that box was huge— OH. That’s what Jane was talking about.

 

 

“I just didn’t read it close enough. It says right here: Your Wards regenerate Z based on your Rested MP regen rate.” Erick nodded, then closed the box. “So you’re going to make [Ward] a Favored Spell? That seems good to me.”

Jane stared at him, her anger fading, relief taking hold. She breathed out. She said, “I think it would be prudent.”

Al added, “Your Rested regen rate. If you were a Scion of Focus, your [Ward] would be up to full in a matter of minutes. And don’t discount the ability to shape a [Ward] with [Force Shrapnel] or other cheap spells inside. You can make some nifty higher tier magic that way. Like this one—” Al pushed a box over to both Erick and Jane.

 

 

Al said, “It restores 2 mana to its pool of 200 every second. And that 55 damage is highly misleading. Against a large creature and a well shaped [Ward], it’s more like a thousand damage a second. Anything that can’t move will die.”

Jane read the spell a few times. She dismissed the box, saying, “That’s something to consider, sure. But I’m not going to be a mage like my father. Besides. Lanore, Gorgush, and Savral all said that it’s easier to obtain stranger Classes when you have Scion of Balance, and Polymage is a strange Class.”

“Polymage?” Erick dismissed Al’s blue box. He felt lost again. Then he latched onto a problem. “You didn’t even tell me Classes existed, Jane. Or any of you. And then I got one shoved at me!”

Jane looked at him. “It’s been in your Status since we got here! You never thought to talk to anyone about those blank lines?”

Erick ignored that fact. “What’s a Polymage? Someone who specializes in [Polymorph]?”

“Broadly, yes,” Jane said.

From over in the kitchen, Savral said, “It’s the official name for Monster Mage. And yes, it’s a weird class. All of the blendy mage and warrior classes are weird and harder to get than usual.”

Al sat back in defeat. “Whatever Scion you pick, or if you pick none, your stats determine what Classes the Registrar will allow you to Quest for.” He narrowed his eyes. “You really want to be a monster mage?”

Jane said, “What I want is to be able to fly, and swim, and explore, and live anywhere and do anything. To go everywhere. To talk to the mermen in the ocean, or the harpies in the mountains. Or any number of people anywhere they might be. Killing and eating monsters is very low on my list, but I don’t want to be scared of anything, either.”

“Adventurers will see you as a monster unless you’re careful.”

“I can be careful.” Jane said, “And I’ll have a 4500 buffer either way. [Ward] every morning!”

Savral repeated, “[Ward] every morning!” like it was some sort of mantra they had formed habits around.

Now Erick was scared. Erick vividly remembered Al blasting that shadowolf to ash. But he couldn’t tell Jane not to be who she wanted to be; to not become the person she wanted to become.

Erick said, “You really need some embroidery or something on your armor, Jane. Something flashy that says, ‘I’m not a monster’.”

“Okay.” Jane relented, “Maybe Polymage, specifically, is not a good idea. I won’t know for a long time. I’m only level 32. But I am buying Scion of Balance. I am a fighter, and a mage. This is who I am.” She looked up in the air, then said, “There we goOoOOoo…” She paused. She said, “That felt weiii…” She laid back and closed her eyes.

Erick stared, stock still, his voice a whisper, “Jane—”

She started snoring.

Savral and Al laughed.

Savral said, “She ran herself ragged out there! I’m surprised she didn’t crash as soon as she sat down.”

Al asked. “How many points do you think she assigned?”

“At least 25. She was waiting to hear what you had to say, but she already knew what she wanted. She’s really good, Dad.” Savral spoke to Erick, “Your daughter is one of the best talents I’ve ever seen. She certainly has the range to make it as a Polymage.”

“Truly, Savral?” Al asked.

Savral said, “Dropping down to almost a third HP and MP here with Scion of Balance is much worse than anything that happened out there. She’s really good.”

Al and Savral joked about making monumental Script decisions in the living room.

But Erick could only watch Jane, as she laid there snoring gently. He looked upon his daughter and knew that she would be alright, but the thought of Jane in danger still scared him. It was a primal fear and well known, etched deep into his very core, born when Jane was a little girl he held in his arms and fed with formula every night, then nurtured by helping her grow into a very strong young woman, and seeing how the world treated strong young women.

The crucible of life turned some people hard, and Jane was one of them.

Erick’s fear for Jane had grown from those simpler times on Earth, to become a multifaceted terror on Veird. He had always managed to push the terror away with denial and wilful ignorance, but sometimes fear reared out of the darkness with flashing white teeth and burning white eyes. He couldn’t conveniently forget his fears today, not at this moment, as it mutated into something even more horrible.

Of Jane, dying as a monster on the end of some idiot’s sword.

Of Jane, falling from the sky as her wings gave out.

Of Jane forgetting who she is, and becoming a beast.

Of Jane reveling in the murder of monsters first, and then people.

Of Jane deciding that a person needed to die for what they had done, or did not do.

Because that was the real darkness; the real fear. Erick had known, ever since Jane held a knife at a kid’s throat in highschool, that she was capable of murder if she deemed it necessary. She wasn’t psychotic; not by a long shot. She was very simply, a very moral person, in the way that a soldier has morals, or that a country has morals.

What would happen when Jane’s morals caused her to take a life?

What would happen if it was Erick’s own death, or murder, that precipitated Jane’s fall from grace?

Dark humor sprang forth an answer:

You won’t have to live with the consequences.

He laughed to himself, and Jane blinked open her eyes. Not even 5 minutes had passed.

Erick put on a smile, and said, “You feeling okay, Sleeping Beauty?”

She stretched. She yawned. She said, “I think so. I… I actually feel really good.”

“That’s that doubled Fatigue and Exhaustion resistance.” Al said, “You’ve been burning the candle from both ends, haven’t you?”

“I have!” Jane yawned again, then said, “We have that expression, too. Kinda nice hearing it on a different world.” She smiled, then said, “So…? How about some show and tell! Come on, Dad. I want to see how much you’ve progressed.”

Al held up his hand. “One second.” A burst of sparkles flowed outward, and soon, the windows and the whole room were obscured, probably with [Ward] Medium Effects: Area Hostile Visual Disruption. Erick felt he was getting better at identifying the spells around him, and maybe he actually was. Al said, “There. Shouldn’t be showing your status out in the open, Jane.”

Erick looked to the obscured window. “I wonder if Poi will dislike that.”

“Don’t think I didn’t notice your personal bodyguard, Dad. But first things first. Here.”

Jane shoved a bunch of floating boxes his way. Al read over Erick’s shoulder.

She asked, “Where’s yours?”

“Right.” Erick gently pressed his Status toward her. “Now don’t get mad at me until I’ve had a chance to read all of this.”

It might take a while.