Amazon Apocalypse 2: Chapter 12 (Patreon)

“Carter!” Myrina screamed the moment she saw me collapse to her knees. She shot a glance at the vanishing figure running off into the distance, then shouted at the top of our lungs.

“Enemies! Enemies in the city!” Myrina yelled, touching a device she had around her neck at the same time. “We need a healer right away!” The device looked a bit like a pendant, and I sensed a flicker of mana.

She tore the pendant off, and it sprouted tiny wings and flew like a little bee back toward the Castle.

Myrina fussed over me for a few moments. I wasn’t paying attention, though. My vision started going dim. I turned my attention inward.

I’d been caught entirely off guard. Myrina’s home city wasn’t exactly safe, but I’d expected trouble in the form of thugs and bandits, not surprise attacks from assassins. Based on the power of the shard of shadows sticking out of my stomach, that assassin had been far higher level than I was.

An ordinary caster who focused on spellcasting stats would already be dead. I was lucky I’d put so many points into vitality. Otherwise, I would have died right away.

As it was, things still weren’t looking good.

The initial strike had cut my health bar down to one-third. Worse, it was still dealing damage the longer it stayed in me.

Notifications scrolled past my vision.

You’ve been afflicted with Shadow Toxin! You are poisoned.

You’ve been afflicted with another dose of Shadow Toxin! Your damage from poison will increase.

You’ve been afflicted with another dose of Shadow Toxin! Your damage from poison will greatly increase.

I had to act fast. I first activated Mind Over Flesh, expending mana points to generate more health points. It wouldn’t save me, but it would buy me time.

If I wanted to survive this, I had to get this shard out of me. I reached down and tried tugging at it, only for my hands to pass through it. Worse, the shard had attached itself to my flesh somehow. Through blurry eyes, I could see sickly purple veins spreading from the shadow shard and into my own flesh. It was crawling into my body. It was alive.

But if it was alive, it also had a health bar.

“Back!” I spat past bloody lips. Myrina had my shirt off and clawed at the shard, though her hands passed through it just as mine had. She’d been desperate to get it out of me, but helpless to do so.

I charged a mana bolt and unleashed it on the shard.

A wave of absolute agony tore through me. I felt like someone had just shoved their hand in my guts and then torn a chunk of them out. This shard had attached itself to me thoroughly enough that I feared that was an apt analogy.

Still, I hardened myself. I had an iron will, at least based on my stat sheet. I’d come back from Death itself before. With it, I’d fought off the Rat Matriarch’s bite. Something like getting caught up in a war that had nothing to do with me wouldn’t be my end. I wouldn’t allow it.

I switched from Mana Bolt to Eldrich Blast. Perhaps that would deal more damage.

To my great fortune, it did. Eldrich Blast coated the shard, and I heard something akin to shattering glass. The hazy mass of sickly veins running across my stomach faded.

“I’m alright,” I croaked out to assure her, though my words were weak. The poison affliction stopped growing the moment the shard was gone. Thanks to Mind Over Flesh and my proficiencies, I could barely keep up with it.

Your Poison Resistance Proficiency has increased to 5!

Your Regeneration Proficiency has increased to 22!

Notification after notification ticked by, and eventually, I had myself stable. Bit by bit, I was gaining ground on the poison, though my mana bar wasn’t looking too good. I’d be in trouble if I ran out before I had things under control.

I would survive, but it wouldn't be without pain or risk.

Myrina must have realized I was stable enough to move because I felt her toss me over her shoulders and start running toward the castle.

Halfway there, I felt the same familiar wave of warm light that I’d felt at the end of our sparring match.

Your poison has been cured!

You have been healed! You are now at one-quarter health.

You have been healed! You are now at one-half health.

You have been healed! You are now at three-quarters health.

You have been healed! You are now at full health.

Your Regeneration Proficiency has improved.

I opened bleary eyes and let my senses return to the waking world. There was a loud bell beating over head, ringing repeatedly. The city streets were filled with shouting, and I heard armored feet pounding across cobblestone streets. There was fighting too, and the clashing of swords.

The whole city was in an uproar for little old me. It was a bit flattering.

“Carter! Carter!” Myrina shook my shoulders.

I yawned. “A little tired, but I’m fine, Myrina. I’m just low on mana.”

She pulled me tight to her chest. “I’m sorry. That was way too close.”

I chuckled. “It wasn’t your fault. Besides, I’ve lived through worse.”

“I just knew that stupid witch was evil the moment I saw her!” Myrina growled. “I should have immediately called my whole family down on her head! Now she’s got a stupid head start and might get away...”

I shook my head to shrug off the exhaustion from the loss of mana and from healing my wounds. I was starving too. That was probably a side effect of redistributing biomass after being healed. Someone like Myrina, with a racial trait that bolstered total mass wouldn’t feel the change, but for me I sensed the gnawing in my guts keenly.

“Got anything to eat?” I asked.

The healer produced a few biscuits, likely brought along for just this purpose. I quickly scarfed them down and felt much more energetic after doing so.

“Is he okay?” Myrina asked the healer. Before the healer could answer, she realized she could just ask me. “Carter, are you going to be okay?”

I nodded. “My stats have stabilized. I’m at full health, though not full mana. I won’t die, though, if that’s what you’re asking.”

“Healer, fetch a mana potion for him. System knows we’ve raided thousands off them of wizard corpses. There have to be some in the vaults. Get him as many as you can find. I want him able to defend himself,” Myrina ordered. The healer bowed and departed in search of a mana potion.

Myrina took a knee. “Now that I know you’re going to be alright, I’m going to help the others. The rest of my family is already searching the city. Apparently, the person who attacked you was an agent of the Shadefall Clan, our mortal enemies. She must have been here to spy on us.”

“She wasn’t exactly discrete...” I grumbled. I figured a spy would be far more careful to keep their cover.

“That Spell Book must have been important enough to her to make some waves. And when she saw you, she must have discard her cover.” Myrina shrugged. “I don’t know the specifics. I know we’re going to beat everything she knows out of her. And after what she did to you, I intend to do the beating personally.”

Myrina slammed her fist into her open palm.

I bent my ear to listen to the city again. As before, the ring of boots on cobblestones and weapons clang sounded throughout the city.

“It sounds like you’ve mobilized an entire army out there. All this to chase the one spy?” I couldn’t believe that the Samhain Clan had mobilized their clan over an attempted assassination of someone who wasn’t even an official guest of their clan.

Myrina shook her head. “It’s just one spy-turned-assassin. But the Shadefall Clan are not honorable fighters like us. They’re summoners. Specifically Shade summoners. They love to summon powerful ghosts to cause chaos in our ranks. Only a few types of enchanted weapons can damage them, so we have to mobilize extra personnel to mitigate damage. We can’t afford to have an incident here in Valkyrie’s Watch. This is the seat of our power, so letting the Shadefall Clan cause trouble would undermine our credibility. We’re trying to corral the shades where they can’t cause harm to the people here, and we can slowly whittle them down.”

“Shades, huh?” I ran my fingers over my bare and recently wounded stomach. “Let me guess, they can only be wounded by magic damage?”

Myrina looked surprised. “You’ve fought this kind of dastardly foe before?”

I nodded. “You could say that. Bring me with you. I’ll throw a few spells at the shade. If it’s giving your clan trouble, it’s bound to be higher level than me, but I should be able to help whittle it down.”

This sort of thing would be perfect for my Mana Bombs. Hopefully a few of them had found their way into the right hands. Then I was certain they'd prove their worth.

Myrina bit her lip in thought. The healer returned just then with two armfuls of blue potions.

“Ah, mana potions? Perfect.” The little vials of blue liquid were just what I expected a mana potion to look like. “I’m assuming I just drink these?”

The healer nodded.

"Normally, those things are even more expensive than health potions. But the Samhain Clan has no use for mana potions, so we have plenty to share." Myrina smiled, hand on her hip.

I popped the cork on one of the potions and downed its full contents. The effect wasn’t instant, but my mana regeneration rate soared. A ten-minute timer appeared in one corner of my vision. Apparently, I would have to wait before consuming another mana potion. But this was enough to ease the pounding in my head and prepare me for a fight.

“Alright, Carter. I know you’re no coward. If you want to fight, then follow me!” Myrina led the way, and I followed close behind.

***

Local Quest Available!

· The Samhain Clan is calling all able-bodied fighters to repel the spectral threat plaguing Valkyrie’s Watch!

· Assist them in removing specters for a minor increase in favor with the Samhain Clan.

· Assist them in capturing the spellcaster responsible for summoning these specters for a major increase in favor with the Samhain Clan.

As we ran through Valkyrie’s Watch, one thing soon became certain. The city was haunted.

And not in the eerie sounds around every corner and creepy groans in the dark of night. It was haunted in the sense that there were ghosts with knives for fingers chasing citizens and guards through the streets alike.

“Lady Myrina, it’s after me!” a guard screamed as a ghost the size of an ox chased after her. The massive halberd in her hands was useless against this foe, and its blade passed right through it.

Myrina grimaced. “My weapons aren’t enchanted, so I’ll count on you, Carter!”

I nodded. “I’ve got your back. But don’t let this experience go to waste. Party up with me!”

Ironhide Boar Ghost (Level 42)

Myrina quickly accepted my party invitation, and I was surprised to get a request to join from the guard as well. She must have heard free experience points and decided to hope for a piece of the action herself.

I accepted her as well. Since she led the Ironhide Boar around, talking with her through the party system would be handy.

Besides sharing the experience, I also had another reason for forming a party. My leadership bonuses boosted my stats when I was leading one, and the moment I felt the boost from Myrina and the guardswoman hit me, I stood a little straighter. Both of them were much higher level than me.

Plus, doing a little spell damage while in a party now might help me build up to an ultimate. I wanted to have one of those ready in case we ran into something my normal spells couldn’t handle.

“Alright, Carter. I know you’re no coward. If you want to fight, then follow me!” Myrina led the way, and I followed close behind.

Myrina attacked the Ironhide Boar Ghost. Her sword passed through the beast, but she caught its attention.

“Over here, you mangy mutt!” Myrina yelled. The boar turned, evidently sensing Myrina’s blow as an attack, even though it didn’t do any damage. The boar turned to chase new prey, giving the guard a moment to catch her breath and giving me an opening to attack.

Mana Bolt, an Eldrich Blast, appeared in either hand, and I unleashed a barrage of bolts at the ghost boar.

The ghost boar cried out in rage, snapped at Myrina, and then turned toward me.

I turned to make my hasty escape to take the boar by surprise again, but there was no need. Another figure jumped in front of me.

“I’ll draw it away! You keep doing your thing, boy!”

The guard lashed out with a swing of her halberd as the boar ghost tried to close in with me. The blow passed right through the ghost, doing little besides stirring up a gust of wind and cracking the cobblestones. But it drew the ghost boar’s attention.

Perhaps it held some visceral fear of warriors in its afterlife, not realizing that it was now beyond their reach. It turned to the guard, thinking her the bigger threat.

Perfect.

That pattern continued for several minutes more. Myrina and the guard would pass the boar between them. Their teamwork was admirable, but the damage they dealt was less than ideal. The guards and lady of the Samhain Clan out-leveled the boar, but they couldn’t bring it down because of their lack of magical damage,.

Not without me. It took dozens of spells, but with the two of them keeping the boar busy, I could unleash those spells to my heart’s content.

“Eat this!” I yelled, targeting exploit weakness just as the ghost boar opened its mouth. One last mana bolt slammed into the roof of its spectral jaw, scoring a critical hit and bringing it down for good!

“Victory!” Myrina raised her sword high overhead.

“Loot!” the guard yelled as a tiny gemstone dropped from the edge of the ghost boar’s tail and fell to the ground. “So that’s where that thing was. I’m not sure I can split it three ways without destroying it.”

Myrina shook her head. “Keep that one. You did good work. Besides, there will be plenty more where that came from!"

I cleared my notifications. I'd improved my proficiency once again. My ranged attacks in particular hadn't gone unnoticed.

You have gained the Spellsniper Proficiency!

Your attacks can now deal critical strikes! The probability of a critical strike will increase as your Spellsniper proficiency increases.

"Onward!" Myrina roared, sprinting with her sword overhead as she charged toward the next battle. I trailed along behind the bellowing red-headed battle maiden, screaming a battle cry at the top of her lungs.

She didn’t need to run far. All her shouting soon attracted the attention of another ghost.

Spectral Flame Serpent (Level 45)

“By the blood in my veins and the sword in my hands, you will foul this city no longer!” Myrina screamed at the serpent. She jumped, cracking the stones beneath her and whipping her sword forward so fast the air cracked in its wake.

She charged the ghost, looking for all the world that she planned to behead it with a single swing. Only she must have forgotten it was just a ghost because of landing her deadly blow. She soared straight through the beast and slammed into the side of a building across the street.

She rose from a pile of loose roof tiles a moment later, just as ready for battle as she’d been before.

The guardswoman with us charged in, far less impressive in her charge, but more practical. She ran by its face, taking a swipe to get its attention.

Meanwhile, I lashed out with spell after spell, doing all the real damage and slowly whittling away at the ghost serpent’s health while stacking Corrupting Marks.

Killing took several long minutes of fighting, but with the three of us working together, I had plenty of good opportunities to land deadly blows.

Myrina passed me the little red gemstone that dropped this time. I suspected it was some sort of monster core. Those I’d gotten used to dropping on earth. Only this one had something done to it. There were symbols carved along each side in intricate patterns.

Studying it in the brief window between fights, I realized what it was. Someone had slain the real Flame Serpent, then used its core to make the ghost we’d just fought. That was a clever use of enchantment. This Shadefall Clan that the Samhain Clan was fighting likely had a lot of supplies, blueprints, and tools useful for a beginner Artificer.

Suddenly, I was eager to have a chat with the woman who attacked me as well.

<Note>

I'm able to give this story my full attention while Spellheart 9 is with the editor, so I was able to squeeze in an extra chapter. I figured yesterday's cliff was a bit rough, so this would be the day to give an extra chapter if I'm going to do so.

Next week we'll be back to 4 while I'm doing Spellheart edits and release prep.