Serpentlord (Rise To Omniscience Book 9), page 28
She let out a frustrated breath, then actively calmed herself, reaching into the small pack and rooting around until she found the item she’d been saving. Sarah had packed a few pieces of fresh fruit when they’d sent her the pack, and she’d been saving them for today.
Grace bit into the first one, a blueish fruit that had pink flesh on the inside. It was sweet, juicy, and delicious, and just the thing she needed to improve her mood. It was scary, what they were about to do, but by the end of the day, they would all be on ships, out on the open ocean and sailing back home.
She’d get to see Morgan again and spend some proper time with Sarah, which she was oddly looking forward to. She mentally planned what she was going to tell them, running through her experiences here and compartmentalizing all the best and worst aspects of being on her own for so long.
When she was finished eating, Grace licked her fingers clean, took a long swig of her dwindling water supply, then reached into the pack and removed the supply of beast cores. She then spread a small cloth to catch the core dust, as she didn’t want to risk leaving evidence. Even if the guards did seem dumber than rocks, she didn’t want to take an unnecessary risk.
She took a quick look over her shoulder and, when she saw the guard was still asleep, reached for the core’s energy. An electric feeling rushed through her as she pulled the energy into her own core, the feeling of her rank increasing making her almost giddy.
The core crumbled to dust between her fingers, and Grace reached for the next one, feeling her lips tugging up into a wide grin.
Just twenty minutes later, and she’d absorbed the final core. Her entire body was buzzing with energy, so full of her newfound power. She’d grown as she broke through barriers, maturing her further. The clothes she now wore felt small, the shirt pulling up from her stomach and curving more around her chest.
Her arms and stomach were more toned, and when she pulled up the bottoms of her now too-short pants, she could see that her legs looked much the same. Lifting the mirror, Grace held it up to examine her face. It was a strange thing to see, considering she was still only halfway to fifteen.
She appeared to be a nearly full-grown adult, her features looking closer to seventeen or even eighteen. She’d known that this was a real possibility, as it had happened the last time she’d moved up significantly in rank, but it was still just a bit distressing. She wondered if she would still be treated the same now that she looked this way.
The rank increases forced an older body on her before she really felt ready. For the sake of what was to come, she had no other choice, but she sincerely hoped Morgan and Sarah wouldn’t treat her differently.
Sighing, she put the mirror away, then reached for the now-empty sack so she could drop all the core dust inside. However, as she lifted the bag, a small note fluttered out. Curiously, she picked it up and saw neat, slanted handwriting she didn’t recognize.
If you’re reading this, Grace, then you’ve absorbed all the cores, and your body has changed as a result. It can be a bit jarring, but I promise everything will be okay. We’ll talk more when I see you again.
~Sarah
P.S. One of the sets of clothes I packed should be a better fit.
Grace felt her bottom lip quiver for a moment as she read that, then quickly stuffed the note back into the small bag. It seemed that Sarah had already known how she would feel and prepared ahead of time. It was nice, she thought, to have a woman looking out for her.
As great as her father and Morgan were, they were both men, unaware of some of the problems she faced as a girl. Sarah, on the other hand, had likely gone through much the same as she did. After reading that note, the last bit of jealousy she’d been holding for her vanished, now well and truly gone.
Grace found herself smiling as she packed the last of the core dust into the bag, tying it tight and dropping it into her pack. She then rooted around, removing her other outfits and unfolding them. Sure enough, one of the sets was a bigger size, and although they didn’t fit perfectly – Sarah wouldn’t be able to predict how much she’d grow – they were far more comfortable than the ones she’d been wearing before.
Stuffing her old clothes into the pack, Grace sat back and opened her status. She felt incredibly powerful – more so than anyone her age, she suspected – but with all that new power came a lack of understanding, one that she was sure Morgan would work to train out of her once they were back and safe in the Five Kingdoms.
Name: Grace
Supermage: Rank - 47
Energy to Next Rank - 1,681/1,250,000
Ability - Sound Self
RP - 2,210/2,210 (Regen - 22.2 per second)
Strength - 254
Agility - 201
Constitution - 245
Intelligence - 221
Wisdom - 222
Skills - Expand Blows IV, Body Shaper, Siren Scream, Superior Echolocation, Soundwave, Partial Transformation
Traits - Perception Field, Sharpen Mind, Aura Sense (inherited)
Extra - Wail Wall (Massive), Strong Smite
Grace looked over her new status with a mix of awe and a bit of disappointment. Morgan had been right about the fact that no training in between ranks had given her only the minimum strength increases. She had gotten a couple of new skills, and some of the others had even improved, despite the fact that she’d been expecting them to stay the same.
She was happy that she was so much stronger, and even though she probably couldn’t do massive damage to the guards here, she no longer felt so overwhelmed by their strength. Additionally, Morgan had assured her that he had a way to make up the difference, and from experience, she knew that he could deliver on that promise.
Grace pulled up each of her skills, looking through the upgrades and changes. Her Expand Blows had moved up by three stages, giving her the ability to shrink and increase various parts of herself with far greater speed. There was now also a slight strength and speed enhancement as well, and she was looking forward to testing them out.
Body Shaper was the upgraded version of Body Shift+. This allowed not only for an increase or decrease of density all the way up to ten times her current weight but also allowed her to use them on targeted areas, like just a single arm or finger. Siren Scream had just grown in power and range, giving her soundwaves more destructive capabilities.
Superior Echolocation allowed her to see everything within three hundred yards and even allowed her to highlight specific targets and keep a lock on their location and movements. Soundwave was the newer version of Sound Burst, giving her the ability to target even smaller areas and project waves from the tips of her fingers or toes.
It would definitely also help with her defensive abilities, giving her an effective layer of armor. But it was the last skill, the new Partial Transformation, that got her the most excited. Apparently, this skill was a beast aspect skill that allowed her to partially transform her body into one of the many beasts she’d absorbed. She could store up to eight at once and switch them out as she absorbed more cores.
But it was the actual application of this skill that had her the most excited. For example, if she absorbed the core of a silver-maned lion, the Partial Transformation skill would allow her to take on some of its raw power, transform the tips of her fingers into wicked claws and give her legs the increased jumping power and speed the beast had possessed.
She also suspected there would be some cosmetic changes while the skill was active, such as sharpened features or perhaps some light dusting of fur on her body. And the best part about this skill was that if she found a cooler beast, she could just ditch one of the eight she currently had stored and switch them out. Then, she would have access to the new beast’s abilities, though she would lose the old ones as a result.
Grace moved down the list to the last skills, as her traits had remained the same in name, though a quick glance did show that their effects had improved.
Her Wail Wall (Massive) was just that — a massively increased wall of sound, capable of mass destruction and complete disorientation and ability to focus. Her newest skill, Strong Smite, was pretty cool, and Grace was oddly excited to test it out, especially on the gnomes who’d dragged her here.
The skill actually worked in tandem with her Partial Transformation, briefly enhancing her body with all of the attributes of the beasts she had stored at the time. If all eight of them had 100 points of Strength each, she would briefly have a Strength score of 800 added to her own.
It was an extremely powerful skill, which was probably why it only lasted for all of ten seconds, cost 2,000 RP to use, and had a 12-hour cooldown timer. Still, ten seconds with all of her attributes enhanced that massively could make a huge difference. It definitely made her rethink her own personal ability to destroy the guards singlehandedly.
Grace gave herself a quick shake, reminding herself of one of Morgan’s most important lessons: never underestimate your enemy and never overestimate your own strength. Grace had never used any of these skills before, so she needed to be careful. In this upcoming battle, she was sure to have plenty of opportunities, but in the meantime, she still needed to convince the gnome to help her.
With a mental sigh, she leaned against the bars of her cage and began calling to the sleeping pile of rags. She just hoped that she could find some way of convincing him to help in the next few hours.
43
Sarah stood, perched on top of one of the many small hills, as their forces walked by below. In the distance, she could see the forces of Shedra’s armies congregating, and they were formidable. A row of beasts, all bearing the mark of Strangler somewhere on their bodies, made up the entire front line.
She wasn’t as good at sensing these sorts of things as Morgan, but she could tell they were strong. Not Pinnacle beasts, but definitely Advanced, and all in the rank 60 range. Behind them were wagons, all mounted with the same cannons that had been strapped to the Pinnacle beasts by the border wall.
They actually had a few of those cannons themselves, and after Ivaldi had analyzed it, had informed them that it got its power from a special crystal built into its base. The crystal was charged with chi, and because it contained a power source, it could deliver a much more concentrated and destructive blast.
Additionally, the cannons themselves were constructed from an alloy even he didn’t know about. It contained adamantite, but there was some other sort of metal worked in, one he was sure came from some sort of beast. Quite a powerful one at that, seeing as an enhanced blow from Morgan hadn’t even dented one of them.
The enemy wouldn’t know this, but Ivaldi had figured out how they worked, and they now had some of the enemy’s weapons to use against them.
The next lines in the gnome army were filled by rank after rank of gnome forces, all armed and armored. To both sides stood the cultists, teeming in unorganized groups. They made up nearly half of the overall force, the total between the two numbering around twenty-thousand. Of course, they were counting on another ten to come pincer them from the opposite side, but Morgan had contacted Katherine to let her know that his negotiations had been successful.
Sarah smiled grimly as she watched Shedra, the twisted, horrific monstrosity that had once been a gnome, march back and forth whilst shouting orders. They were going to be in for a very nasty surprise once this battle began.
She half-turned as the ground trembled and shook. She could see the chaotic storm in the distance. The World Beasts were close. Very close. The fact that it was near eight in the morning and the sun was nowhere to be seen was evidence of that. Dark lightning flashed in the sky overhead instead, thunder rumbling in the purple and green clouds.
No rain would be forthcoming, she knew. The chaos kicked up in the wake of the World Beasts was causing this strange weather, and the faster they smashed through the enemy and took Arcane City, the better. Loading everyone onto the ships was still going to take time, and although she couldn’t see Morgan just yet, she knew he’d be showing up.
The battle would be starting at any moment now. As soon as the last of their forces had filed into the natural funnel, Shedra would call the attack. Then, the final battle for Faeland would begin in earnest.
***
Morgan leaned against the far wall as he watched the gnomish engineers frantically moving about the massive portal. He’d been wondering how they were going to get so many soldiers into place on time, and it seemed that despite what he’d thought they were going to do, they’d had another plan. It was smart, when he really stopped to think about it.
They would have scouts watching the area, so if they saw enemy forces coming from both the front and rear, they would have turned to attack Tagar’s army before they were trapped in the pass. What none of them had considered was that the gnomes might make use of some of the permanent portals in their lands, as travel through all of them had been sealed.
“You almost ready?” he asked as Fortuna walked by, talking urgently with a gnome in a long white coat.
The gnome stopped for a moment, waving the white-coated man on and turning to face him.
“Do not think that we are your friends just because we are willing to ally with you,” she said icily. “You killed thousands of my comrades, friends, and allies. For that, I will never forgive you.”
“Are you going to answer the question or…?” Morgan asked with a raised eyebrow.
Truthfully, he didn’t care how Fortuna felt about him or how the entire gnomish race as a whole viewed him. Tagar had agreed with his assessment that the continent was on the brink of collapse, and when he’d offered him a way out, the gnome had accepted. For the good of his people and their assured survival, he was willing to betray Shedra, which was all that mattered.
Fortuna gave him a scornful sneer, then controlled herself with an effort of will.
“The portal will be up and running in the next twenty minutes. After we’ve connected with one of the fixed portals near Aster, we’ll start sending the civilians through. And for your sake, you’d better not be lying about the captive gnomes or number of ships. If even one of my people gets left behind, I’ll—”
“You’ll what?” Morgan asked, not moving from his spot. “Attack me? Kill me? I can assure you that many have tried. As you can clearly see, I’m still here.”
Fortuna ground her teeth together, her eyes narrowing even further.
“Once we land on the shores of your Five Kingdoms, I expect you to hold up your end of the bargain. If the rulers of these human nations reject us, you will be the one who will be held accountable!”
That said, Fortuna whirled, her armored skirts clanking against one another as she stalked over to yell at some of the engineers for not working fast enough.
Morgan watched her, feeling a small sense of amusement. The woman was fiery, much like another someone he knew. He might have been upset at all the hatred, but despite the way she felt, Fortuna had put that aside and was working with him to assure the survival of her people. The fact that the leadership had been so open-minded about working with their enemy showed that he’d guessed correctly.
He just wished he could read the strings of fate a bit better. Now that the battle was at hand, they were all jumbled and chaotic — a mix of emotions, flashes of color, and a whole lot of screaming.
Many were going to perish in this fight, but if all went according to plan, they would escape the collapsing Faeland, leaving the World Beasts to quarrel and bicker over what remained. He wasn’t worried that they would be followed back to the Five Kingdoms because the prize these Beasts wanted was here.
Perhaps they might come over eventually, but that could be hundreds or even thousands of years from now, and by then, he was confident he’d be strong enough to see it coming well in advance, as well as powerful enough to keep them in line or destroy them entirely if they insisted on fighting.
Morgan pulled up his status as the gnomish engineers began their test run of the oversized portal. This was the last time he’d be able to check before his fight, so he once again did a careful analysis to remind himself of what skills he had at his disposal.
Name: Morgan
Title: King of Eternity
Pinnacle Supermage: Rank - 84
Energy to Next Rank - 19,206/950,000,000
Ability - Downfall
RP - 16,700/16,700 (Regen - 158.0 per second)
Strength - 1,770
Agility - 2,120
Constitution - 1,730
Intelligence - 1,670
Wisdom - 1,580
Traits - Eternal Soul, Perfect Aura Control, Devourer, King’s Might
Skills - Gravity Release, Bestial Might, Starforge, Earth Mastery, Expanse, Rift
Superior - Infernal Star, Light Star, Meteoric Downfall, Continental Collapse, Soulstream
Ultimate - Eternity Beam, Sunscorch
Skills:
Gravity Release - Gravity no longer claims a hold over you. You may now soar through the skies or even into space itself! This skill will increase in cost, based on speed and height.
Base Cost - 75 RP per second
Base Speed - 200 ft per second
Base Height - 600 ft
Increase Cost - 1 RP per second per additional ft of height/speed
Bestial Might - Tap into the power of your bestial nature and increase your Strength, Agility, and Constitution by a factor of 5. Your body will heal itself 5 times faster while this skill is active.
Cost - 1,000 RP
Duration - 30 seconds
Cooldown - 30 seconds
Starforge - Forge mighty constructs using the power of the stars. You can channel any skill through the constructs, summon them at a distance of up to 50 yards, and change their size and shape at will. The power of gravity and lightning suffuses these constructs upon being summoned and maintain them for a full 5 minutes.
