B3 CHAPTER 314: SANCTUARY, PT. 2

Kaius lounged against the safe room wall, sipping from a mug of the thin sap that pooled in the natural basin in the room’s corner.

It was thin and watery, but had a faint sweetness and tasted subtly floral — the perfect refreshment as the remnants of his wounds closed.

Porkchop had recovered well — once Kaius’s Vesryn Pact had grown strong enough to stave off the venom, his prodigious regeneration had quickly healed his wounds. Still, they would be here for some time yet.

Neither Kaius nor Porkchop had regenerated anywhere near to the full amount of their resources they’d burned in the battle against the rootborers.

With the rush of battle fading from him, Kaius couldn’t help but feel a weight in his stomach as he thought back on his fight with pale parasites. It had been a fraught thing, that battle. In many ways, the worms had been safe. With his resistance Skill, the monster’s main danger had been cut off at the knees.

It had also been a stark reminder that even with their growing strength, the depths could be fickle. His brother, for all of his Vitality and Health, had still been nearly brought low by a single bite. Any other team, in any other circumstance, would have been completely blocked from progressing to the safe room in which they now resided.

If Kaius had lacked his skill, they would have been forced to hold in place and simply hope that no depthsborn stumbled across them while they were recovering from their fight against the kolnirs.

In the end, match ups were still king.

There was only one thing that would let them escape that simple fact. Overwhelming power. With enough strength, no one could exploit your vulnerabilities — if they could even find them in the first place.

The worms would have killed him if he possessed any other Skill. In turn, Rapid Adaptation had provided him an opportunity to grow strong. With the jump in their stats and two more skills waiting to be chosen, they’d gotten closer to that point of safety — where nothing within this layer would threaten them.

Until they descended further, and the whole cycle would repeat itself again. An endless wheel of death and growth.

It was funny, how many of his problems seemed to be rooted in weakness — how many things could be solved with simple power.

Being forced to hide their potential. Getting kidnapped. Dealing with Old Yon. Learning more about the Onyx, and the man with a scar on his face.

With more power, his father would have never died. Hells, if Father had been strong enough Unterstern would have never fallen in the first place!

Even the integration — how many deaths would occur simply because no one was strong enough to prevent them?

Kaius leaned back, putting his hands behind his head as he stared at the glowing grubs that littered the ceiling.

He supposed many people would think it cruel — would despair at the mindless injustice of it all. Not him. He’d made his peace with the way of the world. At least he tried to. As much as he might wish for peace and prosperity for all, there was one thing and one thing alone that could secure it.

Power, again.

He couldn’t afford to slow himself down by wallowing in melancholy. Besides — he loved it. There was nothing sweeter than pitting himself against the world and coming out on top. Especially now, with friends who revelled in it as much as he did. At the very least, even if he lived in an unfair world, he was lucky enough to be the kind of man to thrive where others floundered.

A faint pulse of warmth flickered from his last pillar — lacking in the burning truth of its siblings. Animus, making its presence known at last. Kaius smiled, but did not try to force a revelation.

After igniting two of his pillars, he’d long since learned that insight had a certain way of creeping up on you when you were ready. His pillar wouldn’t ignite today, and that was just fine.

Kaius let his mind drift, enjoying the quiet of the safe room as he and his team relaxed.

They’d earned a break, but with their new levels they were far better positioned to cross the jungle. It wouldn’t be easy by any means, but they wouldn’t have to be so careful of the depthsborn that stood in their way. At their current speed of progress, by the time they’d reached the next biome they would even be ready to step it up.

If the match up was good, it would be the perfect time to face a Guardian and push deeper into the Depths.

Kaius could already smell the loot. If he was lucky, he might even get his last material for A Father’s Gift.

The thought of the Wyvern Bone waiting for him back at the guild sat heavy in the back of his mind. It was a supreme material. He wanted to wait for it, but if something appeared…he wasn’t sure if he could justify waiting.

His sword was starting to hold him back. It was sharp and strong, but even with the enhancements it had already gained, he was struggling against the durability the monsters of this layer possessed.

A temporary replacement would do, but really what he wanted was something so amazing that it bested the Wyvern Bone. Unlikely, even with his Honours that improved his Guardian rewards. Ekum could almost certainly make it happen, but the ascendant had already implied he wouldn’t.

Kaius shook his head. As easy as it was to get stuck thinking about all the possibilities of his future growth, he had more current concerns right now.

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Like which skills he should pick. He nudged his status, pulling up his options for the first skill.

Word Cleaver:

Class Skill - Tier I

Affinity: Arcane

Type: Spellsword, Armament Technique, Defence, Leech

Selection Available!

Unique

Magic is surprisingly delicate with its reliance on form. Focus your intent on a single keystone, and the whole cloth unravels. It’s quite the bitter surprise the first time it happens to you — and sweet indeed the first time you pull it off against someone else.

This skill infuses your blade with Arcane attuned Stamina, destabilising woven magical effects and allowing you to physically cut through spells if they lack the strength to overwhelm this skill. Destabilised mana is siphoned, stealing a portion for your own use.

Cost: 150 stamina

Each level significantly increases the potency of magic that can be severed.

Each level moderately increases the amount of mana that is able to be siphoned.

Every 20 levels the maximum range of the skill increases by a stride.

…

Mercurial Reversal:

Class Skill - Tier I

Affinity: Martial

Type: Armament Technique, Longsword, Parry, Armour Piercing

Selection Available!

Unique

The art of control is a contradictory one. You must meet their blade with dragon fury, guide it with the gentle touch of a lover’s kiss, steal their strength with a heart of spite, and deliver your retribution with the care of an artist.

This skill allows you to parry with enhanced speed, leeching power from your opponent’s strike to deliver a devastating riposte that penetrates armour.

Cost: 100 stamina

Each level significantly increases armour penetration.Each level moderately increases the amount of force stolen from contested blows.

Each level slightly increases parry speed.

…

Runebearer’s Physicality:

Class Skill - Tier I

Affinity: Primal

Type: Self Enhancement, Mobility

Selection Available!

Unique

You need to be quick for this kind of work, lad. It’s vital — I know it won’t make ya lift more, but hitting something fast is the same as hitting it hard.

This skill burns stamina to enhance your reaction times, and speed of movement. Usable for rapid traversal, repositioning, or overwhelming assault. Powered by infusion, the discomfort of physical exertion is reduced, aiding you in pushing yourself to your limits.

Cost: 100 stamina/minute

Each level significantly increases reaction time and speed enhancements.

Each level moderately reduces the negative sensations of physical exertion.

Kaius read through the list, smiling at what was available. Stamina skills — not unexpected considering how much the resource had languished despite the fact he was a frontline fighter.

They weren’t unwelcome either. So much of his Mana was tied up in his inscriptions — he had to scrimp and save every point as much as possible. Having a way to project force without relying on it would make him all the more deadly.

One in particular jumped out to him. Mercurial Reversal. He was good with a blade, but often he found himself struggling against many of their more monstrous opponents when he was unable to parry. It was a vital part of sword play — not just for defending himself, but to open up opportunities to attack.

It was…exceedingly difficult to parry when he was fighting something both larger and stronger than himself. The skill would help with that.

Plus, it would help him break through his enemies defences. Both the kolnir and ruinbringers had proven how valuable that was.

Runebearer’s Physicality was another good pick, even if it still came second best. An enhancing skill — one that would improve his movement as well as his offensive capability. It would have been an easy pick, if not for Aelina. He was confident he’d be offered a spell-hymn that would fill a similar hole soon enough.

Kaius moved to his next available skill — withholding locking in his choice until he talked to his team.

Runeblade Hymnfocus:

Class Skill - Tier I

Affinity: Martial, Arcane

Type: Spellsword, Longsword, Metamagic, Glyphbinding

Selection Available!

Heroic

Our art is more than the mystic left hand, and the martial right. It is a union — a balance of body and mind. If you wish to prove yourself worthy of VOS, you must succeed at this step.

This skill allows you to infuse your bound blade with an offensive runic spell hymn at the cost of proportional mana expenditure and the spell's inscription. Stamina is burned to strengthen the bond you have with your blade. Infused spells are altered to be delivered by a melee attack, and have their potency boosted.

Cost: 20% of spell hymn mana cost as stamina, spell hymn inscription.

Each level greatly increases the additional potency of infused spells.

…

Hungering Hymn-link:

Class Skill - Tier I

Affinity: Arcane

Type: Metamagic, Glyphbinding, Sorcery, Spell

Selection Available!

Unique

With the right litany, runes hunger to gather. A natural predisposition to stability, you see?

This skill allows you to channel mana and cast a spell that brands a target with a glyph at a chosen location. All offensive spell-hymns that are cast subsequently home towards the brand. Lasts for one minute.

Cost: 100 mana

Each level significantly increases the strength of homing.Each level moderately increases the difficulty of the target resisting the brand.

Each level moderately increases brand duration.

…

Runeburn:

Class Skill - Tier I

Affinity: Arcane

Type: Metamagic, Glyphbinding

Selection Available!

Heroic

Arcane is a caustic thing — mana refined until it becomes an aspected affinity all of its own. All runic magic inherently deals in the arcane, regardless of if it leverages its compatibility with other affinities. That compatibility is fraught — it can be twisted to shatter what it might otherwise bind.

This skill causes your offensive spellhymns to inflict the Runeburn for a short time.

Runeburn: An affliction that reduces the effectiveness of all mana based skills for five seconds. Can potentially destabilise in-progress channeling. Can be resisted, or overcome with sufficient mana control.

Cost: 200 mana

Each level significantly increases skill duration

Each level moderately increases affliction potency and duration.

Kaius grinned as he saw the first offered Skill, only to pause as he read its epigraph.

It was exactly the kind of ability he hoped to see at some point — something that blended the two major spheres into a unified whole. A metamagic and swordart, something he could leverage seamlessly in combination with his other melee abilities.

Yet he couldn’t help but focus on one thing.

What in the hells was Vos?