Guardian Angel Chapter 20 (Patreon)

Petra and Mestendi, arms at the ready, looked at each other, then stepped into the Delve and dissolved. That was the best word Ana could think of for it. They rushed through, Petra first, shield up, then Mestendi with her sword and dagger at the ready, and as each inch of them passed through the boundary they dissolved into the background.

It was profoundly disturbing on an existential level, but since only Deni seemed to share her reaction, Ana didn’t say anything. This, she assumed, must be normal.

“Count to five, then follow me!” Kaira commanded Ana and Deni. Then she, too, stepped through and diffused into nothingness.

“One, two, three…” Deni counted out loud. Her voice was steady, but the look she gave Ana was anything but.

“... Four, five. You’ve got this,” Ana said with a bravado that she didn’t feel. She looked at the rift in reality. Just do it, she told herself. Like ripping off a bandaid.

She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and moved.

*****

Ana stepped into a brawl.

There had been no sense of transition, only a feeling of passing into a slightly colder place. No bizarre visions, no swirling, stretching liminal space full of impossible colours, or anything else the Hollywood visual effects wizards might have dreamt up. One moment she was running at the tear in space, her buckler in front of her and her heart hammering in her chest, and the next she was fighting in a dim, dank space, her bonuses active. The ceiling, the floor, even the walls seemed to be made of some kind of black glass, making the contours of the space they were in hard, but not impossible, to see. Her sword was already bloody. There were strong smells of blood, charred flesh and ozone in the air. Someone was screaming in pain and someone else was screaming even louder in absolute fury.

Ana’s Danger Sense made her twist to her right, her buckler coming up to lodge in a massive maw of misshapen fangs and noxious drool. The label Possessed Wolf (Threat: Considerable) flashed in her vision, but she barely had time to read it or to see the giant paw ready to swipe at her before a whole front quarter of the thing that she had been fighting blew apart in a shower of gore and bone, hot enough to sting her bare skin where it spattered her.

“Damnit, Ana! Back! Grab her and fall back!”

It was Kaira’s voice. Grab her? Who? Ana had no damn idea what was going on! Then she saw Petra on the ground ten feet in front of her in a small pool of blood, brown and tan and vivid red against the black background. One leg was a mess from hip to knee as she tried to crawl backwards while holding a fox-thing the size of a dobermann off with her shield.

By the time the sight registered, Ana was already moving. Right. Grab her, and fall back.

Ana took two running strides past the steaming carcass and kicked. It wasn’t elegant, but she put all of her strength into it, and her boot collided with the fox demon like a runaway motorbike. She could feel her foot sink in, halfway to the ankle, flesh tearing and bone snapping before the demon flew off Petra and collided hard with the not-quite wall of the space. Taking her sword and shield both in an awkward grip, she took the collars of Petra’s shirt and jacket in her free hand and effortlessly dragged her backwards, Petra groaning through gritted teeth, to where she could see the three others gathered.

Mestendi was curled up on the ground, wailing weakly with her hands clasped over her belly as Deni and Kaira stood over her, casting as fast as they could towards a group of demons approaching at a run from a connecting passage.

Ana had been told several times that Kaira was good at what she did. That she was powerful, at least for her level. Dangerous. And she had believed it, in a general sense. But seeing her fully in her element, face twisted in feral rage, her too-many pointed teeth bared as she screamed and sent a sheet of flame racing toward the oncoming enemies, causing them to howl and stumble, Ana understood.

One particularly quick creature reached Kaira well ahead of the pack. With a howl, Kaira raised one hand, crackling with energy, and brought it down like the hammer of Thor. Just before it struck Ana could see lightning arc off it and into the demon’s head, and when she struck its whole head caved in. The whole demon jerked and seized and burst into flame as it barrelled into Kaira, taking her to the ground with it.

For a moment Ana just stared slack-jawed, then she realised what that meant. Deni was the only one on her feet, and she had three demons, singed but very much alive, bearing down on her.

She didn’t have time to think. She dropped Petra by Mestendi. She would live a while longer without aid. Mestendi, unclear. Nothing she could do about that. She grabbed the flaming carcass on top of Kaira and heaved it off, then grabbed her sword and shield with lightly burned hands and charged the oncoming enemies. It was reflexive. Instinct. Deni was in danger, so were the others, and so Ana moved.

The lead creature was the possessed deer that Rayni had seen, or one like it. It stood as tall as Ana and must have been considerably heavier, but she faced it head on. She couldn't let any of the creatures pass, and she would do anything to make sure they didn’t.

Even knowing that the thing had much more momentum than herself, Ana tackled it. She dug in her feet best she could at the last moment, and slammed her shoulder into the demon’s chest and twisted, putting everything she had into it. It didn’t stop the deer, but it did divert it sharply to the side, making it stumble and fall as Ana was knocked down and to the opposite direction herself.

The next demon, another thin that had once been a fox, pounced on her as soon as she’d found her bearings. From her sitting position she slashed wildly with her sword, catching the thing in the chest. The sheer force she could put behind it drove the sword through muscle, bone and organs, cutting through the spine and finally lodging in what was probably the demon’s shoulder blade. As the thing's back legs went slack it tumbled, jerking the sword from Ana’s grasp as the third demon, some kind of large forest cat, fell on her. Its claws dug into her legs as it used her own flesh for purchase to get at her throat, front paws raking across her leather chestpiece.

With her sword gone, Ana simply punched it. The buckler in her hand took the cat in the side of the head with a crunch, and it fell off her. Ignoring the burning pain of the cuts on her legs, Ana threw herself after the demon and punched it again as it tried to right itself, putting it on the ground. Then she punched it again, and again, and again.

She was dimly aware that she was screaming.

A burst of heat and light to her left snapped her out of it, drawing her attention just in time for most of the deer demon to crash into her. Heaving it off herself Ana saw that it was charred and pockmarked, but more importantly it was very much dead, most of the back half lying several feet away after one of Kaira’s spells bisected it. Back and to the right Deni stood only feet from the fox, which was dragging itself towards her. With a look of utmost concentration the girl raised her hand, screamed like a banshee, and slammed one of her flaming bolts into the thing, blowing most of its face off.

[Congratulations! Your party has defeated…]

And then it was over. Ana’s bonuses left her. With that, pain and fatigue rushed in. She keeled over, and everything went black.

*****

“... good pants, too!”

Ana woke up to a very annoyed voice.

“Cost of doing business, you know that,” said another voice. Kaira, Ana thought.

“Yeah, well, they fit really well. Hard-wearing, too! And they’re rags now,” the first voice grumbled. That was Petra. Petra was alive and well enough to complain. That was good.

“At least you don’t have a cut right through your jerkin,” Mestendi’s voice said angrily. “It was new, too. I’m going to tear that leatherworker a new asshole when we get back!”

Hey, Mestendi’s alive, too, Ana thought.

“Guys? Her breathing’s changed and she‘s moving a little and I think she’s awake!” That was Deni. Good. Everyone was alive and well, somehow. That was good.

Then she was being dragged to her feet by a short, stout woman who wrapped her arms around her, before someone else embraced her tightly from behind.

“Woman of the gods-damned hour!” Petra said with a grin, still holding Ana’s arms after pulling back from the embrace. “Saved my rotund hiney back there, didn’t ya? Your room is half off, as long as you want it! Least I can do!”

“Can’t believe you did that,” Mestendi whispered into Ana’s shoulder. “Can’t believe you risked your life for me like that!”

“Right,” Ana said, turning her head between the two and trying to catch up. “Thanks. Don’t mention it. Uh… what happened?”

“I was overconfident, that’s what happened,” Kaira grumbled. “Petra and Messy walked right into a pack of stronger bastards than have any right to be here.” Then her morose expression turned sunny again. “But then you came through and saved the day!”

“Petra tried to keep that big bastard off me while I fought two smaller ones,” Mestendi said. Petra had backed up, but the elfin woman was still pressed against Ana’s back. “But it swatted her out of the way, and got a good swipe at my guts and put me down. The little ones were about to do me in when Kaira came in and blasted one to…” she indicated a mess of fleshy scraps spread around part of the chamber they were in, “and then you came in! You just sliced the other little one’s head off, kicked the big fucker away, and dragged me back!”

Her grip on Ana tightened. “You saved my life, no doubt about it. Thank you!”

“Yeah, of course,” Ana said, more than a little uncomfortable. She gently pried one of Mestendi’s hands loose, which made the elfin woman let go and back up.

“You were amazing,” she said grinning sheepishly. “And then you just went right back, trying to get to Petra!”

“Thanks again for that,” Petra said. “Like I said. As long as you want.”

“Yeah, I’ll take you up on that,” Ana said. “So… it’s not always that intense?”

“Shit, no,” Mestendi said. “That was the worst entrance I’ve ever seen!”

“But everyone’s alright?” Ana said, looking around. Petra’s pants were a mess of blood and torn fabric, and Mestendi’s equally bloody leather jacket had deep rents in it, but they seemed otherwise fine. And while her own trousers were likewise torn, she didn’t feel any pain.

“We brought plenty of alchemical aid,” said Sendra’s voice, “and Mistress Touanne is very good at her craft.”

Turning around, Ana saw that Sendra and Dilmik had come through as well.

“Rayni?” Ana asked.

“Coming through in a moment. We killed one on the outside, and she’s harvesting.”

“So we’re going on? You’re all fine with this?”

“No reason not to,” Kaira declared. And everyone seemed to agree. Spirits were surprisingly high for a group that Ana had thought were just nearly killed.

“Alright,” Ana said. If they all thought so…

She was still unsure what had happened at the beginning. She’d suddenly been in the middle of a fight with a wolf demon, halfway across the space between Petra and the entrance, which she could see hanging in the air behind Sendra and Dilmik. No memory at all of going from there to where she’d been. The group did not need to know that, though. She’d take it up with Kaira later.

“You really were amazing, Ana,” Deni said, her voice vibrating with awe. “The way you just tackled that huge deer and knocked it down! I didn’t know a person could do that!”

“You should check your notifications,” Kaira said happily. “I know I stole some of your kills, kinda couldn't help it, but your contribution must have been huge!”

“Oh, right,” Ana said, and checked. The after-combat notification was gone, and she didn’t know how to bring it back, but the rest:

[Congratulations! Your Skill Long Blades has improved to level 2! You have been awarded: Growth Crystal (Lesser)]

[Congratulations! Your Skill Defence has improved to level 2! You have been awarded: Growth Crystal (Lesser)]

[Congratulations! Your Skill Unarmed Combat has improved to level 5! You have been awarded: Growth Crystal (Minor). You have gained the Ability Iron Body.]

A new ability? From a Skill increase? That got her heart racing. The ones she already had were amazing! She quickly brought up her Summary to check it out, but her eyes stopped near the top.

[Storage: 6 Shard, 7 (5 bound) Growth Crystal (Least), 6 (1 bound) Growth Crystal (Lesser), 2 Growth Crystal (Minor)]

That was a whole lot of Crystals. The bound ones, her bonus Crystals, couldn’t be sold, but that didn’t bother her. She wanted experience points. And at 10 points per Shard, 50 per Least, and then doubling for each tier…

“Ladies,” she said, and the place went silent, “is there any reason for me not to level up right now?”

The… cavern? Room? Space? that they were in erupted with congratulations and questions about how many Crystals she’d received, as well as a rather scandalous – judging by the others’ reactions – question from Mestendi about which Attributes she intended to boost. But what caught Ana’s attention, and caused her some worry, was the way Kaira’s face fell before she plastered on a sickly smile and said, “Only if you don’t want to sell the Crystals. Don’t you need the coin?”

Ana pretended not to have noticed Kaira’s dismay, but knew that she would have to talk to her soon. She’d been unhappy last time, as well. “I think I’ll be alright,” she said, then went back and consumed 1140 points worth of Crystals.

[Congratulations! You have reached Guardian Angel, level 5. 5 Advancement Points awarded. You have gained the Ability Companionship.]

The rush of gaining a point in every Attribute was as pleasant as ever, though it was nothing compared to the intoxication of the boost she got when she fought. It couldn’t distract her from the final part of the notification, though. Another ability!

Around her, the others seemed to relax, just a little. Looking a little calmer, a little more relaxed. Breathing a little more easily. That was… interesting, and she quickly went to look at her two new Abilities.

[Ability: Iron Body: Your body is hardened from giving and taking blows in unarmed combat. Your base Strength, Endurance, and Vitality are each increased by 1. Values increase with Unarmed Combat skill level.]

[Ability: Companionship: Your presence lends strength and comfort to those under your protection. As long as an object of devotion or a member of your Party is within 25 feet of you, they recover more quickly from fatigue, mana depletion, and injury. Range and effect increases with class level.]

[You have 5 Advancement Points available. Please spend Advancement Points now!]

She’d been expecting that notification. Looking forward to it, even, and she already knew what she wanted to do with the points. She quickly spent them on her Strength and  Vitality modifiers, both because she expected it to help as they continued, and, being honest with herself, because she expected another rush of pleasure as her Attributes increased. She’d never been hooked on anything in her life, but this…

She exited the Summary, time resumed, and she almost staggered at the sense of strength and wellbeing that suffused her. It felt like it spread from her soul outwards, making everything it touched feel just… wonderful. She took a deep breath, smiled, and opened her eyes.

The others were looking at her a little funny, but she didn’t let it bother her. She felt too good.

“You, ah, you get a big bump there, in something?” Mestendi asked with a smile.

“Could say that, yeah,” Ana replied, smiling back. “When are we moving on?”

“We’ve got to harvest first,” Petra said. “Rayni should be along at any moment, but let’s just sit tight and keep our eyes and ears open until then.”

“Right,” Ana said. That was the smart thing to do, yeah. Couldn’t leave all this money on the ground. Then she remembered something. The new Ability, Companionship, had said that it affected her objects of devotion, i.e. herself, and members of her Party. “I got an Ability that affects you guys, I think. It should help you recover faster.”

“Oh, that’s what I felt!” Deni said, then went glassy eyed for a second. “What’s an ‘object of devotion’?”

“It’s a Class thing,” Ana said, then smoothly let her face drop and lied, “I’m supposed to have one, but… he died. The kid I came here with.”

Her simple statement, delivered with just the right amount of regret and backed by the force of what was now 20 Charisma, shut that line of questioning down with ruthless efficiency.

Soon Rayni came in. She actually looked quite cheerful for once, having received a decent haul of Crystals for practically nothing. Ana was watching her work, harvesting the scattered remains in the strange space with some of the others, and thinking about joining in. There must be a Skill for that, she figured, and if not it would be useful just to know how to do it. But then Kaira came up to her, looking uncharacteristically concerned. “Ana, can we talk a little?” she asked, gesturing off to the side with a nod.

“Sure, Kaira,” Ana said, rising smoothly and following as the other woman moved off.

“You, uh, you got another level!” Kaira started with false cheer once they were a couple of dozen feet away from the others. “Congratulations!”

“Yeah,” Ana said, and decided to cut the bullshit. “Kaira, what’s up with you? You’ve looked sick ever since I even mentioned levelling.””

“Have I?” Kaira's smile stayed plastered on, but her eyes fell. The woman had no skill at deception at all, and definitely no Skill. “Don’t worry! I feel fine. I’m fine! But about that… you took another level of Companion.”

“Yeah,” Ana fibbed. “Got a nice Ability out of it too.”

“Right, right. I can feel the effect, too, you know? It’s not huge, but my mana is coming back noticeably faster. Very nice! It’s just, I just sort of… I’d thought… I meant to talk to you, but then you levelled so fast…”

She trailed off, and Ana was about to speak when Kaira’s whole demeanour changed, her disappointment and anxiety quite suddenly melting into obvious relief. “Of course!” she said, as though she had just solved a complex puzzle. “Right! You’ve read up on your Class, of course you have! You knew that there was a strong party skill at 5, and then instead of resetting you’re going to stop there and switch over! It’ll slow your progression a bit, but you’re a team player, right?”

Ana stared silently, not sure what to say.

“You’re slowing down your progression in whatever combat Class you’re taking because you want the social utility! Gods, it’s so easy to blind yourself when all you focus on is Delving. I’m sorry if I worried you, I'm fine now. I get it! Oh, I was right about you, you’re perfect! Good talk!”

“Yeah,” Ana said to her friend’s retreating back. “Good talk.”

She was really going to have to talk to Kaira. Setting things straight, managing expectations, things like that, and sooner, rather than later.

She’d do it right after they got back to the settlement. They didn’t need the distraction.

Partially out of a desire to avoid Kaira until she knew how to handle her, but also out of genuine interest, she joined the group harvesting the remains of the wolf demon that Kaira had blasted apart.

“Hey,” she said. Rayni tensed minutely as Ana crouched next to her. “I’d like to get my hands dirty. Show me what to do?”

“Yeah, sure,” the Huntress said, relaxing again. “Get your knife out. Right now we’re going for a kind of crystal that forms above the kidneys…”

-------------------------------------------------------------

POST NOTE

For the reader’s convenience, here is Ana’s updated Summary

INDIVIDUAL SUMMARY

Name: Anastasia Cole

Race: Outsider, Summoned (Human aspect)

Age: 26

Classes: Guardian Angel (5) (Hidden, shown as Companion (5))

Experience: 0/1800

Storage: 2 Shards, 1 Growth Crystal (Least), 1 Growth Crystal (Minor)

Attributes: Base Multiplier Effective

Strength:    17       1.3             22

Endurance: 21       1                21

Vitality:         18      1.2             21

Agility:         20        1              20

Dexterity:    17         1              17

Perception: 15       1.3             19

Acuity:         15         1               15

Willpower:  17         1                17

Charisma:  20        1                20

Connection: 15      1                15

Advancement Points: 0

Abilities:

Hidden Class (Guardian Angel)

Guardian Angel

Devotion

Danger Sense (Special)

Iron Body

Companionship

Skills:   Level

Acting   3

Charm   1

Command  2

Crossbows  1

Defence  2

Negotiate  2

Inspect   2

Intimidate   4

Long Blades   2

Sense Motive  2

Shields  1

Small Blades  3

Unarmed Combat 5

---------------------------------

I know I whine about this every time, but Patreon is seriously the words page on the internet for posting anything resembling a table. Ah, well.

Thanks for reading!

//AB