Chapter 6 (Patreon)

The sun had long disappeared behind the Gator Teeth Mountains by the time Flint reached his destination. The mule got skittish once the sky darkened, but it got them to the Sleeping Fort’s crumbling walls. Flint found a grassy knoll just outside, shadowed by boulders and rubble. He parked the cart and attached a feedbag to the mule. To er on the side of caution, he left the beast tied to the vehicle. He didn’t know what to expect and thought it best to have an escape plan.

Flint prided himself on never making the same mistake twice—even though he often did. So, he secured the crossbow’s strap across his shoulders before looking for a hole in the outer wall. There were plenty of collapses and openings, but they were all too high up. Eventually, Flint found himself with no choice but to go over. He had plenty of experience climbing. However, he had the safety of harnesses and scaffoldings most of the time.

Once at the top, he finally got a good look at what he needed to work with. The last war against the fae ended long before the Iron Lords existed. History had never interested Flint, but he knew the Iron Council didn’t come into power until a couple of centuries ago. They abolished the monarchy and unified the human lands under the Iron Army. According to the stories, the disk had been at peace until the last war started. Even though the Slumbering Fort long outdated the Iron Council, the design resembled the outpost Flint had not long left behind.

The fort in question stood far above him, deep in the pass. The outer wall stood reasonably close to its mouth. An opposing army would still need to enter the bottleneck and march several hundred feet before reaching the gates though. The mountains on either side featured smooth, near-vertical cliffs. Even winged fae would have trouble clearing them without several breaks.

A narrow road ran between the outer and inner wall, weaving between old stone buildings. They acted as a perfect deterrent for vehicles and mounted troops. War beasts and siege engines would have to struggle against the incline and countless twists and turns. It made sense why the villagers thought they were safe. Flint had seen the Wyld armies, though. They were a determined lot. If they wanted to invade Lea’s Slumber, they’d have little trouble doing so.

Unlike the runes, the road appeared well maintained. Flint had passed an abandoned campground at the pass’s entrance. He guessed it was an Iron Army encampment. They must’ve used the road to trade with the villagers. It took him a moment of scanning to spot the gate. It almost blended into the walls on the outside.

Meanwhile, it stood out as clear as day within. The old builders were brilliant. The road leading into the pass ended twenty feet from the walls before widening to run along it. Attackers would need someone on the inside to figure out the weak point.

Make-shift barricades and rubble sat piled up against the gate’s inside. Flint guessed the residents of Lea’s Slumber had cut themselves off from the outside world after the Iron Army left. The village was either self-sufficient, or they had chosen to forsake several luxuries.

Once the darkness of night settled in, [Keen Eye]’s effects weakened. Flint hoped the ability would grant him night vision at higher ranks. He guessed that the cliffs’ shadows would leave him blind in the darkness without his enhanced vision. So, he was thankful to see anything at all. On the bright side, the outer walls’ Heartstone revealed itself to him. The glowing runes that covered lit a square slightly uphill.

Flint scrambled down the wall into the Slumbering Fort’s grounds and started his quiet trek towards the life quest’s first objective. Maya joined him soon after. He guessed she had found a hole in the wall. It would need to be one of the first holes he patched.

When Flint first read the Life Quest, his primary concern had been procuring materials. The Iron Army’s Building Division relied on masons and carpenters to get them the necessary materials. He occasionally used the [Shape] and [Bind] abilities to mould pieces to fit but never relied on them. Flint didn’t see a lot of wood, but thanks to the rubble and topography, stones were in abundance. It was the perfect opportunity for him to level the abilities. He intended to start at the bottom, strengthen the wall, then slowly work his way towards the fort, building defences along the way. That’s how the military engineers and architects planned their builds.

Strongholds were visible from miles away. Walls, on the other hand, weren’t. It made sense to Flint. If the outer defences were set, he could focus on the inner layers in reasonable security. He wondered whether life would be easier with an apprentice. Now that he had a Life Quest, Flint would soon enjoy a windfall of skill stones. Picking up a helping hand would’ve made his life much easier. Perhaps he’d find people willing to work with him in Lea’s Slumber. He’d been tasked with their defence, after all. Ordinary people held classers in high regard due to their rarity and the rewards that accompanied life quests. Greed would win over pride sooner or later.

Maya remained alert as they snuck towards the glow in the distance. At first, Flint worried she detected predators in the area. He didn’t sense any fear through their empathic link, though, just caution. They wove their way through old, broken buildings and found themselves at the Heartstone a quarter-hour later. Instead of rushing to the stone monolith and claiming his class, Flint did a circuit of the area first to ensure nothing would jump him while he communed with the arcane machine.

“Keep watch,” he told Maya, handing her a bite of jerky. She snapped it up and sat down, looking at him expectantly. “That’s it for now. We’ll set up camp and have dinner once I’m done.”

Her tail stopped wagging, but she maintained eye contact. Flint chuckled to himself and scratched behind the ear before pressing his hands to the ten-foot-tall pillar. The runes brightened around him before his mind got sucked into the endless white again.

For the first time, the node compass wasn’t the only existence in the emptiness. A pedestal stood in front of it, carrying an old book. Flint discovered that he wasn’t a disembodied consciousness either, but the Heartstone projected his body. As he approached the pedestal, Flint realised the book was as wide as his torso and twice as long. He doubted [Builder’s Brawn V] was enough to lift it. Words formed on the open page as soon as he was in touching distance.

[Saving the Savior]
You have completed the first objective.
To complete the tasks, trials, and challenges that follow, you’ll need a class.
Pick wisely.

The ink seeped into the aged yellow paper, and bodies of text replaced it. They spread to the opposite page, too, creating six separate sections. Flint focused on the one to his left first.

[Purist Classes]
Purist Classes focus on improving on the gifts from a single skill stone by upgrading it two tiers or evolving the stone if it’s near its peak. The class stone provides additional abilities to assist the skill stone and helps it interact with the residents of other nodes as well. Over time, the class and the relevant skill stone will gain tiers and evolve to improve the class’s potential further.

[City Planner: Building focus]
Building is just the first step. City Planners focus on the bigger picture. Infrastructure is just as crucial as defences. Their constructs last longer, are harder to rip down, and project specialised auras based on the building type. Their infrastructure helps residents live longer, healthier lives and flourish. A City Planner also hastens the building, repair, and maintenance of their constructs, making them last for aeons.

[Sharpshooter: Marksmanship focus]
End your foes before they know you exist. Sharpshooters specialise in hiding, moving between cover, and, most importantly, taking out targets without getting noticed. They know how to reduce ammunition uses, counter the elements, and make the most of singular shots. They’re not to be underestimated at close range either, as aiming becomes less of an issue, and they can pull off devastating attacks with little preparation.

[Packmaster: Canine Friend focus]
A pack is nothing without his leader. Packmasters doesn’t stop at commanding man’s best friends but nurtures their strengths, covers their weaknesses, and imbues them with terrifying power. Their auras, passive and active abilities extend their pack’s lives, heals their wounds, and grants them supernatural strength.

Grand patterns surrounded each class option, but none of them gave Flint more information regarding their capabilities. “What good are such big pages when you don’t fill them out properly?”

No one answered. Instead, the artwork expanded, covering all the empty spaces. Flint sighed and moved onto the page to his right.

[Hybrid Classes]
Hybrid Classes combine the gifts of two class stones to cover a wider base. They upgrade two skill stones by one tier or help them evolve if they’re at their peak. The class stone provides additional abilities to assist the skill stone and helps them interact with the residents of other nodes too. Over time, the relevant class and skill stone will gain tiers and evolve the class’s potential.

[Hybrid Classes] sounded like the better long-term option straight away. They provided fewer starting bonuses but would affect two skill stones over one. He guessed [Purist Classes] had other hidden perks to help them flourish, but the lack of information had him leaning away from them.

[Huntsman: Canine Friend and Marksmanship focus]
The most successful hunters rarely head out alone. Huntsmen take advantage of their animal companions’ keener senses to track prey and limit their movement. They don’t just empower their bodies and weapons, but their companions too. It takes a lifetime to raise a good hunting party and caring for them, so they gain up healing and life-extending abilities too.

[Kennel Master: Building and Canine Friend focus]
Assassins and infiltrators fear dogs more than armed guards. Kennel Masters don’t just focus on rearing their dogs but also fortify the grounds they protect to create a more secure home. They extend lives, heal wounds, and grant strength either through skills or constructs. Most only affect dogs. Some stretch to everyone they protect.

[Artillerist: Building and Marksmanship focus]
Sometimes the best defence is a potent offence. Artillerists don’t limit themselves to ranged weapons but also expand into the construction and use of siege weaponry. They benefit from highly destructive skills that can devastate armies while keeping safe behind mighty walls.

After reading through his options, Flint was confident he didn’t want any of the [Purist Classes]. The first two were too specialised. [Packmaster] fit his personality, but [Huntsman] and [Kennel Master] did much of the same without limiting him too much.

[Artillerist] appeared perfect for Flint’s needs. It would enable the construction of excellent offensive and defensive structures. It fit the life quest’s needs. However, he had worries concerning material procurement. Flint had assembled siege weapons and installed them before but never crafted or used them before.

After some thought, he removed [Huntsman] from his pool of choices. Even though it sounded terrific, Flint didn’t foresee him going into the wild a whole lot. He would most likely need to head out on occasion to hunt for meat, but the quest required him to restore the fort and protect Lea’s Slumber. Picking a class that focused on heading into the wilderness felt pointless.

Only [Kennel Master] had enough to compete with [Artillerist]. The hybrid class made [Packmaster] redundant. It did all the same things but focused on construction too. The class would limit his movement and tie him to the kennel and whatever else he built, but given the life quest, he didn’t mind the lack of mobility. It was what Flint wanted from life, after all: to find a quiet settlement far from the war, build a home, and settle down. He had left out the bit about wanting female companionship while talking to the officers, but that was a part of his desires too. Flint very much wanted to get married and have little Flints and Flintettes running around.

Before he could make his decision, a firm tug broke his communion. Flint staggered away from the Heartstone to find Maya pulling on his coat with all her strength. He heard panicked braying before Maya’s whines. It was the mule. The beast of burden sounded terrified. Flint scrambled up a wall to get a better look, but given the cart’s hiding place, he failed to see anything. There was nothing in the distance, not even a light.

The mule’s cries cut off suddenly. Flint stood still, waiting for something to fill the silence, but he heard nothing. Maya didn’t make a sound below him either. Something had just killed the creature. Even though Flint hadn’t formed a proper bond with the beast, a pit formed in his stomach. After all, he had spent two weeks with the mule, fed it and brushed it. Flint had spent ages trying to think of a name for it but hadn’t come up with one yet. A part of him felt guilty for still referring to the beast as ‘it’ when he knew the gender.

Flint sighed, scanning the walls. He kept his ears pricked up for the sounds of tools moving around or wood breaking.

Was it a predator or something worse?

“Something worse,” Flint whispered to himself when three shadows appeared atop the outer wall. He guessed they were the shapes he had spotted earlier in the day. One of them was humanoid, while the other two stood on all four. The two-legged shape’s head moved from side to side before they leapt into the fort’s grounds together. He followed suit and joined Maya.

“Get ready, girl.” He didn’t know how much she sensed through the empathic bond, but he projected the image he had just observed. “I think this will end violently.”