Battlefield Reclaimer, Ch 52: Grey Shard Seekers (Patreon)

When he reached Ayala, Sam set the lizard down to the side as he looked at her. Her eyes were closed in meditation. He debated whether or not to disturb her, but he wanted to see if there was something he could do to help.

“I brought you a lizard,” he announced, trying to sound positive. “Are you alright?”

Ayala’s eyes opened slowly as she looked at him, and then she took in the lizard next to him. A flicker of some emotion passed through her expression, but it wasn’t enough to change her overall calmness.

“Thank you,” she said quietly. “Don’t worry about me, though. I know what I need to do. Beyond that..., I’m just thinking of life and how things don’t always go the way you expect.”

“Krana told me you didn’t always want to be a Priestess,” Sam replied, looking for more information. “What did you want to do instead?”

“I was going to be an Elemental Artist, like my mother,” Ayala said, as she gave him a long, quiet look and then shook her head, tossing her hair to the side before she gathered it back behind her head. “I wanted to draw and paint, to capture natural moments. Just silly things now.”

“What’s an Elemental Artist?” Sam asked, before he could stop himself. He’d never heard of it before.

“It’s a class that uses fire and water, or other elements, to create art,” Ayala answered, her eyes turning distant. “It can even be used in battle, but the best part is making the world come to life, to create a sunset or a tree...that is so much more than people imagine, and to share it with others. Every stroke can radiate life and energy. It’s magical.”

“You still can,” Sam replied, not quite understanding. “Just draw anyway. What’s stopping you?”

At that, a small laugh burst out of Ayala and then she reached out and patted him on the arm, her eyes brightening. It didn’t change her overall attitude, but it was like the sun breaking through the clouds for a moment.

“Not everything is so simple, but I’ll try,” she agreed, before her expression returned to the same calm look. Now, however, there was a hint of laughter hiding behind it. “But you should go and prepare too. More things are coming.”

It was a polite request to be left alone. After a moment, Sam nodded at her and turned back to his own work as he headed toward the lizards again. He wanted to collect as many of their horns as possible, to use for experiments.

He didn’t quite understand what Ayala was struggling with, but if it was not getting the life she wanted, then he sympathized. He knew how that went. It was only a little bit of sympathy though. She had two strong classes, a powerful family, and influence, so things couldn’t be that bad for her.

As for being an artist, he had been honest when he told her to just do it anyway. There was no reason to just accept what the World Law allowed, as long as you weren’t trying to damage the seal.

Even if she didn’t get the subclass abilities that went with Elemental Artist, maybe there were skills that could do something similar. He wasn’t sure what abilities that class had, but it had to be something like elemental manipulation, and it made him wonder if something like his Fire Affinity could be used for that.

Could someone learn to manipulate an element through a skill? It sent his thoughts down a long, interesting path that encouraged him to explore what he was capable of in more depth. He doubted he’d even scratched the surface of what his Fire Affinity and Aura of Crystal Flame could really do.

Even the abilities that came with his Scion subclass weren’t structured that much. He had been the one to think of turning the crystal flame into arrows, fireballs, and Essence Blade. His fingers tapped on the crystal horn of the lizard in front of him, letting the crystal flame swirl into a blade that cut it free.

He needed to keep experimenting with his abilities and to work on more skills in the future. There had to be other ones out there that would be useful to him, whether it was for crafting or something else.

There also had to be something like a library that held records of skills people had gained in the past. He’d have to look for that. But, for now, he had an idea of where to begin. Every time he heard of a new class, he just had to try to imagine what abilities came with it. Then, he would try and experiment, to see if he could do something similar.

First up, he decided, was to turn his Crystal Flame into some type of art, even if it was just to prove to Ayala that it was possible. It would prove that you didn’t have to be content with what the World Law gave you, and it would also help him with imagining new attacks.

The very first kinds of art that came to mind were runes and enchantment patterns. He was fairly sure that with enough focus, he could use his crystal flame to directly create runes in reality, or even create spell formations. He just wasn’t sure if they would work. They could end up as hollow shells.

Beyond that, it would be kind of fun to make a crystal flame tree, he decided as he sent a look back at Ayala. Just to prove that it was possible.

He returned to gathering the horns from the lizards. There were three per lizard, which should have been six horns for each of them, but Krana, Ayala, and his father let him have theirs.

The guards were tempted to keep their share until he reminded them of the enchantments and all of the crystallized Earth mana he’d used. After that, he ended up with all 36 of the horns, and he grinned as he stored them all away in his dimensional bag.

There was still a while until the next wave arrived, so after that he sat down to meditate, charging as many of the new auras as he could. He was up to 62 essence, which meant he could charge three of them every two hours, if he spent all of his time meditating.

Time was limited, however, and he needed to keep his essence full, so he was only able to charge two and a half of the auras before Krana’s warning rang through the area.

“They’re almost here!” the Seer announced, waving them all to their feet as her eyes went distant. “Six Stalkers, Two Hunters. They’re moving quickly now. Perhaps they caught some scent from the battle.”

Sam stood back up and returned the aura he was working on to his storage. Then he took up his position at the exit to the maze, while the others did the same. Crystal Focus brought the area around him into stark relief as he waited to see what was coming.

Ayala had already restored the outer wall, but the signs of something suspicious were still obvious from the outside. The lizard tracks ended and there were still signs of rubble scattered around.

Sam moved into the maze far enough that he could sense what was on the outside and waited for the new monsters to arrive. About five minutes later, he sensed the first one entering his aura and information about it began to enter his mind.

It was a sort of bipedal lizard around five feet tall with a spear in one hand and two daggers at its belt. There was a dense, bony ridge along its spine that gave it a slight hunch, pushing its shoulders forward, but it didn’t seem to impede its movement. As he studied it, a prompt appeared.

Grey Shard Stalker (Subterranean)

Its face ended in a blunt, ridged snout with sharp fangs sticking out from the bottom of the top jaw. Its skin was a pattern of grey scales, lighter in some areas and darker in others, and on the top of its head was a fan-like frill that had to serve some purpose, whether it was for sensory perception or radiating heat. Its eyes were dark grey, almost the same color as its scales, and it seemed to have no difficulty seeing down here.

Its hands ended in short, four-fingered claws that gripped the spear easily, and it was wearing a dark grey cloak that covered most of its body and that was a shade very similar to the stone walls. At its belt, along with the dagger, there was a series of pouches that had to hold either food or some type of poison for hunting. All he could tell was that it was various types of powder and sticky substances.

As soon as it saw the lizard tracks stop, it spun around and hissed something to the group behind it. A moment later, four more of the same type were next to it, all of them prowling around the tunnel outside the wall.

Before long, three more joined them, including two that were a bit taller than the others and held bows instead of spears. Those two had quivers at their belts and even more pouches full of similar substances. They were clearly in charge, since as soon as they arrived, they hissed at the others and sorted them into an organized team.

Grey Shard Seeker (Subterranean).

The two Seekers turned to look at the wall, their eyes focused. The grey color in them seemed to brighten and then the snout of the first one opened, showing a row of rough fangs, as it hissed again, telling the others something. Then, it let out a cough that almost sounded like laughter.

Immediately, the six Stalkers rushed toward the wall, digging at it with their claws as they ripped away chunks of stone. Their claws weren’t big, but something about them allowed them to cut through the stone like it was barely there, as easily as if they were moving sand.

Their actions were nothing like the Horned Water Lizards, and Sam frowned as he watched them. These monsters were focused, like a hunting team that had been sent to look for something. If that were true..., then it seemed that the Flaw had gotten their attention.

It was going to take them a minute to dig through the wall, so he went back to his position and called to the others.

“They’re about to break into the maze,” he announced. “They’re focused and they’re definitely looking for something. It looks like an advance scouting party.”

“There’s more of them coming too,” Krana agreed as she looked toward the tunnels. “It seems we’ve gotten the attention of a Grey Shard tribe. The only question is what the bigger thing is behind them and if it’s with them or not. These Stalkers are around Levels 20 to 25. The Seekers are about 30.”

Sam nodded as a spiral of crystal flame spun around him, ready to split off into other spells. He wasn’t too concerned about this group, but they did look intelligent. They wouldn’t be fooled so easily by the maze.

If more like this came, along with something stronger, and attacked them all at once.... He imagined a wave of poisoned arrows flying from every direction while the Stalkers attacked out of the shadows. If they also had spell casters, that would be a lot of trouble.

Maybe there would be time to enchant some better defensive items and make more scrolls before the rest arrived, but he’d done what he could for now.

A moment later, he felt the Grey Shard Stalkers break through the wall. Unlike the lizards, they didn’t rush into it immediately. They raised their snouts and sniffed at the air, smelling what was inside. Then, at the command of one of the Seekers, two of them slipped through the wall. He could sense them activate some type of stealth ability, their energy changing to more closely match the stone around them.

The two Stalkers split up, moving part of the way into the maze. After a minute, they returned, hissing something to the first Seeker. At his gesture, the rest of the Stalkers all moved forward, slipping into the maze. Behind them, the two Seekers followed.

“They’re in the maze,” Krana announced to the others. Her voice was firm and confident. “Get your defenses ready for arrows and spears. Be careful of poison.”

As she said the last part, she looked toward Ayala, who nodded back at her. The Priestess would be ready to act if needed.

In front of Sam, an Essence Shield started to appear, ready to spring to life. He also formed half-a-dozen crystal flame arrows. A moment later, two grey blurs darted out from his exit, trying to slide to the side as they reached the open area. At the same time, two streaks of metal whistled through the air toward him.

The Essence Shield was already there, and the knives clanged as they ricocheted away from it again, falling to the stone below. Summoning the shield distracted him for a moment and the two Stalkers were already moving, speeding forward as they split up to come at him from each side. They were a lot faster than he’d expected, almost as fast the pythons.

It forced him to change his tactics a bit, and he realized that he’d been a little overconfident. An Essence Shield hardened around him as another knife clanged off of it, thrown by the one on the left, and he pivoted, sending three crystal flame arrows towards the other one that was trying to sneak up on him from the right.

The arrows flared like burning blue meteors as they hurtled toward the Stalker and tore through his body, his scales and cloak offering no defense against the condensed flames. Halfway through, they erupted, shattering his body into pieces.

Before he could turn again, a series of thudding attacks struck Sam’s Essence Shield, which flared with crystal blue sparks as a spear and dagger tore at it. One point of essence flowed away as the structure was damaged, and then another. The Stalker wasn’t weak.

Sam spun back to him, the other three arrows flying forward at his command. They struck their target with unerring precision, tearing through him in an explosion of blue flames that sent his body spiraling away in chunks.

Instead of watching what happened, Sam turned toward the others, worried for how they were faring. His father was surrounded by his Earthen Shield and the glow of Stamina was highlighting his muscles as he struck down a Stalker. One hammer knocked aside the spear and trapped the point as the other sailed in and shattered the monster’s chest, sending a wet thud and the crack of breaking ribs echoing across the cavern.

Krana was protecting the guards, her shield flaring to block attacks as the Yeres and Lesat faced off against another Stalker, but there was no sign of another one near them. A quick count made that one the fifth Stalker, which meant....

Sam spun around as he looked toward Ayala, only to see a stone palm rising out of the ground, wrapped around the sixth Stalker. A moment later, two rocky spears flew up from the ground and drove through its body, finishing it off.

At the same moment, arrows whistled through the air in the middle of the cavern as the Seekers announced their presence. Both of them were aimed for Ayala. The arrowheads hissed as some corrosive substance burned the air and left a thin trail of smoke behind them.

There wasn’t time to raise an Essence Shield in front of her, so instead he turned toward the two Seekers as another half-dozen arrows condensed out of the spiral around him. With a flick of his hand, he sent them flying in a return volley.

To his surprise, the Seekers were even faster than the Stalkers, and they flowed out of the way as the arrows approached, suddenly appearing a dozen steps away as if they’d teleported there. Either that, or they were so fast that he just wasn’t able to keep track of them.

Ayala reacted in time to block the arrows they’d fired, but they hit harder than expected. The first one shattered against a bright yellow shield that flared in front of her, and the second landed with a small explosion in the rocky hand as she sent it surging upward from the ground. A moment later, it began to break, falling apart into great chunks of stone.

The arrows that he’d sent toward the Seekers continued on past them, and he reached out with a flicker of will to redirect them. He was too late to get two of them. Those exploded onto the maze behind the Seekers, breaking off chunks of it.

The other four curved in the air, hissing as they flew back toward the Seekers. The redirection made the energy in the arrows drop, leaving them weaker than before. The Seekers jumped out of the way again, and this time the arrows didn’t have enough energy to be redirected. They exploded harmlessly against the ground.

Crystal Focus helped him to see what was going on around him, but that didn’t mean he could respond immediately to everything, a point that was proven a moment later as the Seekers sent two smoking arrows flying in his direction.

An Essence Shield flared around him and the arrows exploded against it with a bang, covering the area around him in thick smoke. He held his breath as the flames around him surged, pushing the smoke away. He wasn’t sure if it was poisonous, but he didn’t want to find out what his tolerance for that sort of thing was like.

A moment later, two more impacts struck against his Essence Shield, sending another billow of smoke out. The Seekers were fast and apparently used to this sort of a fight, trying to pin him down and block him at a distance. A flicker of irritation spread through his body as he formed a larger shield and used it to sweep the smoke back towards them, trying to obscure their vision as he changed tactics.

He could still see them with Crystal Focus, even as they tried to dart to the side again, and he took a moment to shape a larger crystal fireball, compressing it between his hands. A moment later, it was ready and he sent it whistling through the air toward them, aiming for the first one.

Whatever other skills they had, the smoke seemed to block their vision too, since they didn’t react to the fireball until it burned through the other side. Then they slid away again, their movement ability causing them to blur, as the fireball exploded where they had been standing. It sent shards of stone and a wave of explosive heat rolling outwards.

Annoying, he decided, as another flight of crystal flame arrows formed out of the spiral around him. Whatever class abilities or innate qualities they had as Seekers, they were much more difficult to deal with. But that just meant he needed to go bigger.

One by one, at random intervals, he sent the crystal flame arrows at the Seekers to distract them, watching them slide around each time as he got an idea of how their ability worked. It looked like they could jump about a dozen feet in any direction, and they almost always did it to the right or left, away from each other.

From what he could see, they also hesitated after every slide, as if it took them a moment to get their bearings, and they couldn’t use it again immediately. That gave him an idea.

As the arrows kept their attention, a sphere of crystal flame formed in his hands. When it was done, he set it to hang in the spiral of flame that was already around him, like a star over his shoulder. A moment later, he created another one, and then a third, until they were all hanging above his head.

His essence was already down to half, which made him shake his head, but he pushed the thought out of his mind. He really needed to collect more auras and charge them. A new surge of crystal flame flared out of his body, dropping his essence down another ten points, as he got more creative and started to shape something he’d never tried before.

This time, he shaped the crystal flame into a long line, compressing it down on itself again and again. He didn’t want a spherical explosion this time, but something broader. Something that would really cover the area these Seekers could cross.

It didn’t need to be as strong as his Essence Blade, it just needed to be big. When it was ready, he turned toward the two Seekers and released another wave of six arrows at them, followed by the rest of what he’d just prepared.

It was the largest bombardment of spells that he’d ever created, and it drove home the point that he was going to have to think about how to counter fast opponents. He had good explosive power, but not everything was going to be slow enough that he could hit it easily.

Krriiisshhh.

The arrows flared toward the Seekers first, three heading toward each of them. As usual, they slid out of the way, one heading to the right and one to the left. They were like shadows darting along the stone.

The compressed line blast he’d prepared flew out next, expanding outwards in a ripple of energy like a rope that suddenly grew from being just a foot wide to over three dozen. It was a line of scintillating blue light that ripped towards the Seekers and expanded into an enormous wall of flame, one that was long enough to cover the original target area and their new positions with room to spare.

BooooOOOOmmmmmMMM!

When it hit, it exploded into a rolling surge like an ocean wave, followed an instant later by the arrival of the three fireballs behind it, which were spread evenly along the line. Those exploded like falling stars in the middle and at both ends, covering the area with a roaring three-part explosion and a enormous wash of flames as the stone on the ground shattered. Splinters of heated rock went flying in every direction.

The Seekers tried to escape, but both of them were caught directly in the explosion, unable to jump again. Their forms crumbled as the flames ripped them apart, sending chunks flying away from the blast. Behind them, a quarter of the maze also exploded into fragments as the blast washed over it.

The combination of flames and flying stone filled the air, spreading outwards from the center of the blast as crystal blue light covered everything. Sam dropped his hands, panting for breath slightly.

It hadn’t been a very long fight at all, but his essence pool was down to a quarter. He really needed to be more efficient. He looked around the cavern, checking on everyone else, only to find them staring at him.

A quarter of the cavern was ablaze as crystal blue flames burned away at the stone.

“What...?” he asked, as he glanced around and pretended to be innocent. So, maybe a few things were on fire....