Dante sat cross-legged on the sand, eyes closed. The late-day sun was pleasantly warm, a salve to his many aches. A medley of bruises and cuts demanded his attention, on top of the many other concerns he had. He tried to clear his mind because, well, that''s what you do during meditation, right? No matter how often he did, they always had a habit of creeping back.
How long is this moment of calm going to last? Will I be ready? How should I escape? Or should I escape?
And, above all others.
Will I ever be able to go back?
This last one especially had been weighing on him. He had time to process all the events after his death and he decided to face the possibility. That he would never be able to go back.
Nothing about this reincarnation had been like his expectations. Why should his assumption that there would be a way back also be true? If he were to accept this, then what was the point in all of this?
There was a sharp pain between his eyes and he opened them to see Pauwna leaning forward, her finger cocked like she had just delivered a flick.
“Ow.” He complained, rubbing a new bruise that was quickly forming. She had not held back.
“Your breathing was unsteady. Crowded thoughts. Train your mind, train your body.”
Before he could ask what that meant, she had sat back outside the range of [Overloaded Warding Flesh] and closed her eyes. Not wanting to interrupt her, he followed suit. Training with Pauwna was often like this. She did not like to mince words and often taught through ‘example’. Which always resulted in more sparing. The woman was a battle fanatic. Ever since he had started training with her a few days ago, he hadn’t rested for a single moment save for a daily visit to the baths. Those were necessary given how sweaty and blood he tended to be soaked in after these matches.
Given how much time he had spent in this sparing field, he might as well live here. If Dante wasn’t practicing his marksmanship with T’zonos, he was here receiving his daily dose of bruises. At least it confirmed that he healed faster than was naturally possible for a human. Dante had the records to prove it. After a few days, his first injuries had faded to thin white lines and discolored splotches. Even those were rapidly disappearing. It was like the entire healing process had been sped up.
Not that it mattered.
He was accumulating injuries faster than they healed. A fact that he was keenly aware of as he was in more and more pain every day. More tired as well. It was strange, though endurance was one of his highest attributes, his stamina seemed unchanged. Perhaps even worse than before. When he had asked Pauwna about it, she hadn’t had an answer for him beyond asking if he had a disease or an ability that used stamina.
Annnnd he had gotten distracted again. This was hard. Maybe if he concentrated on something external? He remembered hearing something about that and meditation. Dante focused on his senses other than sight, keeping his eyes closed.
He could hear the wet sound of struck flesh, feel the momentary gusts caused by some of the field''s more scary combatants, and smell the stench of old sweat accumulated over the years. Dante wrinkled his nose, very much wishing that he had not noticed the last one. Then, there was that one strange sensation.
It was like nothing he had ever felt before. Describing it was like trying to explain a color to the blind. It had been nagging Dante ever since he had noticed it a few days ago. It was like noticing you could control the rhythm of your breathing. Except it never faded.
He chased the feeling, determined to figure it out. It was giving him some kind of feedback, but he couldn’t understand it. Though … it changed when he focused on it, growing more intense. It was more than one sensation! Progress. He hyperfocused on them, trying to tease them apart. Some strange version of touch and … vibration? There were other things there too, but it was too much, so he restricted himself to the touch-like one. Strangely, it felt separate from his body, like touching water through thick rubber gloves. With this new sensation, he felt the sand around him. All at once. On the very edge he could feel something strange.
It was overwhelming and Dante could feel a headache nearing. He persevered and pressed onwards. He could sense … a face?
“Mind training went well?”
Dante opened his eyes to see Pauwna leaning forwards to look at him. She pointed down and he followed the finger. There was nothing there except for sand. Some of it was contorted by [Overloaded Warding Flesh], but otherwise was normal. He frowned, uncomphrending of why she was pointing. Looking between her face and the sand, he was about to say so when a realization struck him like a bolt of lightning.
The ring of sand before him was broken.
Usually during their training sessions, Dante was constantly surrounded by a slight ridge of sand at all times as [Overloaded Warding Flesh] pushed away the top layer. Eventually an equilibrium would be reached and he would be left in a small depression. Or so it had been until after his meditation. Now a small ‘V’ shaped channel had been carved toward’s Pauwna, almost as if he had taken his hands and pushed the sand towards her. It wasn’t a big change, only a few inches had shifted from the normal boundary, but he had done it without moving. With his mind.
Dante tried to replicate his mindset from before. It was harder with his eyes open, but he knew what to look for. He was rewarded with a headache and movement as something invisible parted the sand again. There was no doubt now, he could manipulate the boundary of his ability. More, he could ‘feel’ through it. As this realization struck him, a notification opened before him.
[Overloaded Warding Flesh] has reached Level 7
You have acquired the [Aura Manipulation] skill.
A little bit late isn’t it? I noticed the new sense days ago. Maybe I have to reach a certain level of understanding for it to trigger? It also seems to have advanced my most problematic ability. Can’t exactly say I am thrilled about that. Also, aura? What, should I start using crystals with this thing or something?
After thinking it over, he decided he quite liked the skill. With a little practice, it was a tidy solution to his problems with eating. Something that was especially welcome given that [Overloaded Warding Flesh] had also leveled. It gave him a way to see in his blind spots, though it currently took too much concentration to be useful. Most importantly, it opened up a lot of new possibilities. Why, just off the top of his head, he could use it to empower his crossbow more.
“Stop thinking, start fighting.”
He moved without thinking, throwing himself back and scrambling to his feet. It was barely in time. A fist soared through the space his skull used to be. He backpedaled and fell into a loose combat stance.
It wasn’t the first time Pauwna had pulled that trick on him. Admittedly, it was the first time he had dodged it. Ensuring that he kept his stance steady, he backpedaled. It was one of the first things he had learned. If you didn’t have solid footing, you fell.
You went to the ground, you died.
Pauwna did not let up, dogging him. Normally, he would be content with fighting defensively. This time, however, he was frustrated. When he was cornered, Dante abruptly reversed direction and charged Pauwna.
She dodged nimbly out of the way and stepped behind him, into his blind spot. Dante had been expecting that. Dante concentrated on his new sense and waited.
Gotcha!
Reaching blindly, he grabbed Pauwna’s foot right before it smashed into the side of his head. Dante grinned at the small victory. Then, pain erupted on the other side of his head. Pauwna had used his grip on her to leverage a kick with her opposite foot. They went to the ground and Dante was placed into a chokehold. He gave up, tapping her arm. Any contest of strength with her was doomed for failure. She did not immediately release him, instead she patted his cheek playfully.
“Better. Less thinking. New skill good, although slow. But, plan bad. Careful. When you think fooled, easy to be fooled.”
She let him up and Dante climbed carefully to his feet. Even moving his face caused a pulling sensation. Likely, a sizable bruise.
If I were back on Earth, people would think I was getting abused with all of these bruises.
Dante assumed a combat stance, resigned to another round. However, Pauwna waved him off and began climbing out of the pit. After a surprised moment, he followed her.
Seeing his questioning look, Pauwna told him: “Rest. Fight tomorrow. Real fight”
It took him a second to figure out what that meant, but when he did, the amount of terror that those words brought him was unmatched. Greater than the time when the judge had sentenced him to one year of medium security jail or when he was told his fingers couldn’t be reattached after the accident. Firm hands clamped over his own and he realized that he had been trembling.
Dante looked up into Pauwna’s sunset orange eyes. Usually he would shy away from such contact, but he was surprised that he did not feel that now. This had only ever occurred with his sister and a few of his good friends.
“Hey. Slow your breathing. You are ok.”
He followed her advice, and steadied his breaths. To his surprise, it did help. It was only after a solid minute that he realized that Pauwna had walked him over to a bench where she had sat them down.
“Sorry.” Dante averted his gaze, realized that was bad manners, then flicked it back up. If anything, this made a small smile appear on her face. “It scares me. The fight.”
“That’s good.”
He looked up at her in shock and found that she was staring into the distance with a wistful look.
“Fear is a warning. Keeps you sharp. Be afraid when it is gone.” She hesitated for a moment, then continued: “Sorry, but I am needed. Are you ok?”
“Sorry yes, bad thoughts gone. Don’t worry.”
Pauwna patted his hands and then released them. She gave him a piercing look, like she was trying to read his mind, then walked away. Leaving him to stew over those words. And that look.
If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
Dante had been the target of many such looks from her recently and he felt like their relationship had changed in some subtle way. He wasn’t quite sure what to make of it. It was like some distance had been reintroduced between them. Why this had happened, he wasn’t sure. Dante didn’t remember anything happening between them, but it wouldn’t be the first time something like that happened.
Having nothing better to do, Dante decided to return to his tent for an early night. He certainly was tired enough. He had something he wanted to test anyway and he could not afford to miss it. With a thought, he opened his [Status].
<table style="border-collapse: collapse" border="1">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 99.3644%">
Name: Dante Embry
Race: Human
Class: Unclassed
Level: 4
Attributes
<table style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 90.0644%" border="1">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 36.4036%">Alacrity</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 14.9015%">9</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 34.1037%">Endurance</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 14.6011%">14 (17)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 36.4036%">Charisma</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 14.9015%">7</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 34.1037%">Fortitude</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 14.6011%">17</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 36.4036%">Cognition</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 14.9015%">14</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 34.1037%">Perception</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 14.6011%">11</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 36.4036%">Constitution</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 14.9015%">18</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 34.1037%">Strength</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 14.6011%">8</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 36.4036%">Dexterity</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 14.9015%">12</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 34.1037%">Willpower</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 14.6011%">14</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
Skills
<table style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 90.0644%" border="1">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 72.3152%">Aura Manipulation (Rare)</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 27.6949%">1</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 72.3152%">Brawl (Common)
</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 27.6949%">4</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 72.3152%">Crossbow (Uncommon)</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 27.6949%">3</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 72.3152%">Deception (Common)
</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 27.6949%">1</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 72.3152%">Lock Picking (Uncommon)
</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 27.6949%">4</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 72.3152%">Logic (Rare)
</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 27.6949%">4</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 72.3152%">Builder (Common)
</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 27.6949%">6</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 72.3152%">Sleight of Hand (Uncommon)
</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 27.6949%">1</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 72.3152%">Stealth (Uncommon)
</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 27.6949%">2</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
Abilities
<table style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 90.0644%" border="1">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 72.3073%; text-align: center">Chameleon (Rare)
</td>
<td style="width: 27.7027%; text-align: center">3</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 72.3073%; text-align: center">Sharpen Senses (Uncommon) [Specializations Available]
</td>
<td style="width: 27.7027%; text-align: center">5</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 72.3073%; text-align: center">Split Second Reaction (Rare) [Specializations Available]
</td>
<td style="width: 27.7027%; text-align: center">5</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 72.3073%; text-align: center">Warding Flesh (Unique)</td>
<td style="width: 27.7027%; text-align: center">7</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
Traits
<table style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 90.0644%" border="1">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 72.2072%">Fickle Fate (Unique)
</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 27.8028%">MAX</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 72.2072%">Human Tenacity (Racial)
</td>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 27.8028%">4</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<REDACTED>
<table style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 90%" border="1">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 72.3592%; text-align: center"><REDACTED></td>
<td style="width: 27.6225%; text-align: center">3008</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
Dante glanced over the list and happily noted that [Aura Manipulation] was rare. His eyes lingered on [Brawl], which had leveled again a few days ago, before being drawn to the line at the very bottom.
The strange <Redacted> one.
Now that he wasn’t being threatened with death daily, he had more time to think about what it was. He had a theory about what it was about, but had no way to confirm it. Dante rather hoped he was wrong. It was a rather grim theory. That wasn’t the important thing anyway. For a while now, his interface had been changing. It had started rather bare bones, not even telling him the rarity or what his abilities did. Both of those functions had been added soon after he came, first telling him a little, then a lot about what they did. All that time, the unknown number had been counting down. Since that realization, Dante had been watching it like a hawk but no further changes were forthcoming. However, this was the first time it was now nearing 3000. If something was going to happen, it was going to be then.
Dante had reached his tent by this point. He was getting better at navigating through the camp and only rarely had to consult his map. Drawing back the flap, he sighed in relief when Svōl was not revealed. It was always awkward when they were both there and that was only partly because of the limited space. Despite Dante trying many a time, Svōl refused to open up to him. Whenever he tried to initiate a conversation, he only ever got one or two word answers. The man never acknowledged his existence beyond what was required. All of this only reinforced the jailor and prison relationship that he felt they had.
All of this meant that it was very hard to relax when the man was around. Dante climbed into the tent and kept the flap drawn. After checking if the number had changed — it had not —, he sighed and took his journal out of the bag. It was now bound with leather strips that he had salvaged from a set of ruined armor he had found. He flipped through pages of notes on his abilities, his incomplete map of the camp, and many notes on language. It was only until about three quarters of the way through that he found a blank page and he lamented that he would have to buy more paper. Then, he began taking notes on the new words and features of the new language. He made sure to practice everything that he could.
As per his norm, he occasionally took a break to use [Chameoleon], though ability remained stubbornly at level 3. It was quickly becoming his greatest regret and he felt it was far less useful than his other abilities. Harder to level as well.
Maybe, I am training it wrong. Perhaps I need to try something else?
He decided to ask Pauwna the next time he saw her.
It wasn’t until well after the sun set and he was alone with his thoughts that the number turned to three thousand. He rubbed his eyes, checking again, before sitting bolt upright. He opened his status only to find that nothing had changed. Refusing to believe that he could be wrong, he checked his [Split Second Reaction] specialization and was delighted.
<table style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 80%" border="1">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 99.0385%">
Choose a new [Specialization] for [Split Second Reaction]
Overloaded (Rare)
<table style="border-collapse: collapse" border="1">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center">Effect: Increase all aspects for a short period, but will only activate when you have charges.</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center">Requirements: Unlocked by facing enemies more than 20 levels above you.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
Dilated (Legendary)
<table style="border-collapse: collapse" border="1">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 98.8472%; text-align: center">Effect: In a small area around you, the external time stream mirrors your own. Sharply reduces ability power.</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 98.8472%; text-align: center">Requirements: Negate an attack with chronal authority with an aura while not having a class.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
Frozen (Rare)
<table style="border-collapse: collapse" border="1">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 98.8472%; text-align: center">Effect: Time stops for you. You are not able to take any actions during this time, but can think and sense normally.</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 98.8472%; text-align: center">Requirements: None.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
Dante released a breath he had been holding, falling back to his bed roll in relief. The interface had changed. He had been right to wait!
The section about the unlocking requirements had not been there earlier. It wasn’t necessarily what he wanted, he would have preferred the exact percentages abilities would change, but it was enough to prove it. Reading through the options only increased his excitement.
My first legendary option! It’s about time with the shit that I have gone through. No beginner should have to face a dragon in his first month! That’s like fantasy 101. Finally I am rewarded for that! Now, what about the other specialization?
<table style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 80%" border="1">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 99.0385%">
Choose a new [Specialization] for [Sharpen Senses]
Overloaded (Rare)
<table style="border-collapse: collapse" border="1">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 98.8472%; text-align: center">Effect: Increase all aspects for a short period, but will only activate when you have charges.</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 98.8472%; text-align: center">Requirements: Unlocked by facing enemies more than 20 levels above you. </td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
Focused (Uncommon)
<table style="border-collapse: collapse" border="1">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 98.8472%; text-align: center">Effect: Choose a sense. Greatly increase that sense but lose enhancements to all others.</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 98.8472%; text-align: center">Requirements: None</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
Mana (Uncommon)
<table style="border-collapse: collapse" border="1">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 98.8472%; text-align: center">Effect: In addition to other effects, this unlocks the ability to see Mana.</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 98.8472%; text-align: center">Requirements: Manipulate an aura.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
Predictive (Rare)
<table style="border-collapse: collapse" border="1">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 98.8472%; text-align: center">Effect: The path of all objects in motion will become obvious to you.</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 98.8472%; text-align: center">Requirements: Used a ranged weapon conjunction with two abilities, including this one.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
At least he had more options here. He was beginning to think that three options were the max. Though he was slightly disappointed to see no legendaries here.
I am getting greedy. Legendaries are likely … well legendary. Having one is probably a big thing.
The only question left is, which to pick?