Fate Points - Ch 65 (Patreon)

Tom was outside the fortification and using his soul storage to shift away any loose rocks or scraps of wood from the base. It was busy work as far as he concerned but as Everlyn assured him sometimes to fit in you needed to do crap and he was not strong enough to strike off by himself in what had to be a rank fourteen area.

“Incoming from the sky,” Everlyn yelled. Others took up the cry.

Tom instinctively drew back closer to the hard wall with his spear appearing in his hands as he scanned the sky above him, trying to work out how to fight whatever was coming.

The type of flying monsters varied. Some were creatures of air who relied on magic for their flight and were dangerous unless you had magic to counter them. The other type, which included birds and flying reptiles like drakes relied on physics. They could usually be countered with a purely physical approach.

Tom had a decision to make. He had regained the mana for a summons and if it was a physical enemy, then an air elemental would be the most effective choice as it could probably affect the monsters flight and a big arse wyvern crash landing would do more damage to itself than Tom poking it with his tiny spear. However, an air elemental against magic flyers would do nothing.

His eyes caught the specs high in the sky but he couldn’t resolve their characteristics.

“Physical bird type. Enemy has near air elemental immunity,” Everlyn yelled out. “This includes high levels of resistance to related elements. Weak to crushing damage and opposite elements. Size is that of a hawk.”

Tom could have almost kissed her for that information. Lightning would have been the wrong choice, as it was closely related to air. His mind went over the other options he could choose and decided that against agile fliers he needed something fast.

Ten fate bled away as the threat of an unknown enemy inspired him to take a risk. He was being a little careless with his fate and the pool was lower than he liked, but the spend had been justified in each moment.

An element that was fast and a hard counter to birds.

It was a straightforward decision.

His mind structured the summon wisp spell, and he went for fire.

Tom had to rush the summons because he knew how fast birds could swoop to attack. Once spotted, you had tens of seconds to react.

The spell to summon a fire wisp reacted to his need. He punched a hole into the flame plane. Searing heat washed over him as the plane greeted him with ferocious energy. It wanted to burn and consume him and there was stinging pain as the flames burnt his defences. He was not there physically, but the flame plane was dangerous and it could burn more than just physical entities.

Not at this level, Tom reminded himself. Higher up he would need to be warded, but down here the flames, while plentiful were weak and the threat was more illusionary than real.

His mind flicked over the options, searching for the right mix. He discarded four before spotting one he liked. Like always, it was a wisp on the cusp of evolution with a personality type of impulsive fast.

You, his mind latched onto the wisp and formed the contract, and then he drew it back. Surprising another wisp came with it. Yes, he knew it was a twenty-five percent chance, but it still surprised him whenever the bonus triggered.

The spell ended, and he was on immediate alert. The first of the birds had already reached their camp. They were smaller than the promised hawk size, but not by much Tom would have described them as being closer to the size of a large crow. They were four legged with two feathered wings and they looked like they could run as freely along the ground as fly.

Kill them, he projected to his two helpers and then he used his spears to scare away one of them that was swooping towards him.

The moment the spear moved it flapped its wings and shot back into the air to avoid the probing point.

Everlyn had slipped down next to him. Her axe was in her hands, but currently unbloodied. The two fire wisps rushed off to his bidding.

Tom was not concerned. The bird he had scared with his spear had only been rank ten, which meant they should be easy enough to hold away.

Three more swept down to threaten them. His spear danced and Everlyn swung her axe threateningly and they all spread their wings and swished up out of range before either of them could draw blood. They were clearly ambushed cowards, as opposed to one of the more suicidal varieties. A flaming bird sped through the air, helplessly out of control, and slammed into the ground. It bounced and its shriek cut off at the same time. Feathers and blood were left on the rock.

It landed and still burning remained still.

Protected by the wall, nothing else even approached them. They watched more of the birds crash to the ground enveloped in flames. Experience flowed steadily into him.

Another bird swooped near them. The tip of his spear dissuaded it from getting any closer. As it rose on one of those artificial wind currents. A streak of red hit it. The bird squawked as its feathers caught fire.

“They’re retreating.” Someone yelled.

Everlyn grabbed his shoulder. “Boost.” Her eyes flicked up to the base of the wall and he linked his hands together and she put her foot on it and then he threw her in the air. She caught the lip of stone and scrambled up.

“Definitely retreating.” The same voice yelled.

Tom used the wooden supports to scramble up to where Everlyn had disappeared to.

The flock of birds were rapidly receding and the two dancing wisps both of who were significantly diminished came and buzzed around him.

They had done their job, and he dismissed them with a thought of thanks. They would become lesser elementals after this, and he wanted to be on good terms with them in case they could work together in the future. When Tom looked down, he shook his head in appreciation at the number of burning corpses he could see. He was sure it was not just his wisps, but over sixty birds have been eliminated in those few moments of chaos.

It was awesome. He relaxed and listened to everyone around him.

“They weren’t dangerous at all.”

“They were if they got the drop on you. Sven got clawed from behind.”

Tom didn’t shift in response to that. Everyone who had gotten injured had been healed before the fight had ended.

His attention turned elsewhere.

“Those fire elementals. Destroyed them.”

Tom smiled and paced away from the conversation.

“Fire hard countered them. The fire mages must have earnt a bucket load of experience.”

He would check later as no matter large the windfall was it would not be enough for him to purchase the next Spell he was after.

“We need aerial security.”

Tom stopped to listen. A small group had gathered near him to discuss the solution.

“There’s no point defending against anything this small,” an Indian man was arguing passionately. “They are agile enough to get through any gaps and we’re not building a roof. Additions need to be constructed to stop a Roc or wyvern.”

“Smaller, even a horse sized bird might carry someone off.”

“Fine,” the Indian man continued. “If that’s important to you, then that is what we do. Stakes a metre apart.”

Tom tuned out as they started discussing the difference between deterrence and traps designed to kill.

Everlyn having completed a loop of the wall gave him a radiant smile and linked an arm through his as she did her duty and looked out at the wider world in front of them. “Admit that being out here is more exciting than bashing in wasp hives.”

“Too much fuss.” he muttered. He nodded towards where the impromptu defence group was breaking up. “Those idiots are going to push for extra defences.”

“And win.” Everlyn said immediately.

“I know,” he grumbled.

She chucked. “We can’t stop them.”

Tom rolled his eyes as suddenly filled with energy two crafters ran over to get help for their new pet project. “It’s all pointless.”

“Effort in defence is never pointless.”

“Then reactionary.”

She smiled at that.

“Hey Tom, you busy.” Michael yelled out from below.

Next to him Everlyn buried a smile.

With a resigned expression, he looked down to where Michael was standing with a large group of people, including three of the crafters who had decided that getting anti air spikes up was a vital activity.

He had a bad feeling. “Just helping to ensure nothing sneaks up on us.”

“Your skills might be better served down here. We’re going on an expedition.” Michael beamed at him. “You know you want to help.” The other man was enjoying annoying him.

“Of course I do.” Tom smiled frostily even as Michael’s eyes twinkled.

“You too Everlyn. We’ll need your eyes.”

“Damn it.” She whispered, but turned around with a neutral expression. “I’ll be right down.”

Michael had assembled a third of them for the trip. There were five scouts assigned, and everyone had weapons out.

It was so much overkill. Their target was only a hundred meters away, for goodness’ sakes. With scouts watching, Tom wasn’t even sure that they needed an escort, let alone one this side.

Everlyn moved out, and he watched her. Magic rippled around her and she seemed to fade into the background. Clear evidence she had purchased an extra stealth skill and given that piece of information he kept a close eye on her, interested in her abilities.

Her skills fought against his perception and for the first forty metres and he made a note of each type of distortion that was occurring. She did not have an invisibility skill, and he had known that she was ranger druid class, but she had used her class skills to pump up her vision. That meant that she had purchased a tier 2 skill or both of the lower tiered stealth and camouflage versions and he wouldn’t be surprised if there was an attribute stone inn there to pump up the Skill levels.

His eyes flickered down to pick his way past a particularly rough section of rock and when he looked back, he could no longer find her. Despite knowing exactly where to look, she was invisible to him. It was for the best if he could not locate her, then enemies could not, which would give her a measure of safety.

The grove of trees that they were targeting was small. There were eleven in total and the largest was only as wide as a dinner plate and ten metres tall. No monsters leapt out to attack.

“What!”

The shout rang out and Tom’s spear dipped into a ready position as he instinctively moved towards the noise.

“It’s okay.” The same voice said immediately. “It’s a dead goat. I assume the scouts went through before us.”

There was an awkward moment as Michael hurried over to look. Tom silently rotated on-the-spot ears straining for anything out of the ordinary.

“At ease.” Michael declared suddenly. “We’re secure. Let’s harvest the trees and head back.”

Tom felt like he was the only person who did not relax. With a spear at the ready, he moved toward where the shout of surprise had come from.

His feet crunched on dry leaves, and he could smell blood.

Michael shifted to the side, and he saw the dead goat. It had been killed by an axe a minute before they had arrived and the grove of trees. Everlyn was probably responsible, but if not her then one of the other scouts had removed the threat efficiently.

“There’s a second.” Michael told nodding over to another corpse four metres away.

Tom nodded, feeling slightly foolish for his hyper vigilance, but he did not banish his spear. No matter how many people were around when he was outside he had learned that a threat could emerge at any moment.

“She does good work.” Michael told him.

“Maybe,” he muttered and knelt next to the first goat. The fight had been quick, with the opening blow severing both of the monster’s carotid artery along with its windpipe. Then whoever it was had not slowed down and hacked all the way through to guarantee the kill and ended up with the goat decapitated.

“Brutal and efficient.”

Tom grunted in response and wandered over to the second body. This animal had been smaller and had also not been caught by surprise most likely startled by the death of its mate. The nearby trees had gouges in the trunk caused by the creature spinning rapidly with its horns cutting into everything around it. Not that move had helped it. Pre-fight or early within the struggle, the smaller goat had been hamstrung and then with its mobility reduced the axe wielder had landed consecutively deeper cuts till it had bled out.

“Less elegant.” Michael commented.

“Shut up.” Tom snapped. “This was a more aware opponent. You can see from how it was brought down that she knew what she was doing.”

“She?” Michael grinned at him. “Are you admiring your girlfriend’s handiwork?”

“Shut up.”

Michael chuckled and walked away to yell instructions about how to cut down a tree. “Tom, get to work.” He pointed at some branches that had been stripped off a truck. “Keep the work areas clear.”

The processing went quickly as various Spells and Skills were brought into play to turn the trees into convenient logs.

“We’re not loading up fully,” Michael told them. “Two trips. The harnesses are designed so that we can switch from work mules to fighters in under two seconds. And it’s going to be hard work so hopefully we can get natural attributes points in strength.”

A variety of groans greeted the announcement, but personally Tom was glad. Dutifully, he moved to his position. The thinner branches of the trees had been repurposed by Sonya to create a type of yoke for each of the humans. He crouched down put the wood over his shoulders.

“On three,” Michael ordered from the front, where he had put his own yoke on his shoulder. “Is everything adjusted.”

“Yes, I’ve adjusted them all for height.” Sonya told them.

“Alright, let’s go.” Michael said with false brightness. “One, two, three.”

Tom stood. His hands grabbed the wood lessoning some of the pressure on his soft shoulders and his quads screamed in process as he pushed himself upwards. Then he was standing, and the weight was no longer unbearable. Next to him the logs had been lifted and swayed twenty centimetres off the ground. He dropped his hands and shifted his body. The crafters had done a great job. It was not that painful, and it was only a good hundred metres back to camp.

They marched stiffly automatically falling into synchronisation because if you didn’t the wood around his shoulders would shift abruptly with everyone else movements. Sometimes the weight would vanish in its entirely and then half a step later, the entire load would descend and almost knock you from your feet.

When they reached the compound Tom sunk to his knees gratefully. The pressure released, and he touched his neck. The skin stung rubbed raw by the harness.

Touch Heal fixed the superficial injuries requiring a single point of mana. Tom went around healing the others and was only half surprised to find that everyone else had suffered more than him. He had been uncertain whether their higher vitality would help them more than his Elastic Skin protected him, but he guessed in hindsight his vitality wasn’t that much different from everyone else’s now.

Using his magic to heal others highlighted a weakness in the healing spell. If another left field evolution came along Tom wanted to be able to purchase it, but the spell he was targeting was expensive and he lacked the experience to get that.

With a blink, he was in the system room. The information he was after was displayed in front of him.

Experience: 17,944 (-13,000 classes, +27,123 experience from killing monsters)

Spell: Directed Remote Heal (Tier 3)

This spell creates a connection between you and your target that allows you to direct the type of healing that is carried out. Range, strength, healing cost and stability are all improved with levels.

Spell starting proficiency is 12 because of Touch Heal

Threshold level benefit 4: Distance of spell is doubled.

Threshold level benefit 8: Cost of all healing is halved.

Cost: 52,000

A day being attacked by monsters had let his experience shoot up even with the two levels he had purchased. But the spell he was after was still well out of his price range. It was a premium tier 3 spell and pretty close to tier four, and was probably better than any of the spells the other healers had available. That was not why he was targeting. He wet his lips with his tongue, suddenly nervous. He didn’t think it would work, but he might as well ask the experience shop the question.

“How much to buy information about whether Healing Tranquillity will be transferred over with this spell?”

There was a pause and the cost of six thousand popped up.

Tom hissed at the price tag. It was too much to spend to satisfy his curiosity. The simple fact was if any healing spell could accept the transfer of Healing Tranquillity it was this one. For six thousand experience, he would take the risk.

Tom left the system room and felt unexpectedly down. Sometimes he regretted not taking the regeneration trait. Would it have been that bad if he had moved into a straight damage role? He remembered the ferrets and that frenzied first battle and the aftermath.

He had made the right choice.

They trooped back to collect the second batch of trees.

With an oof of effort, he pushed himself upright.

“This sucks.” Thor grumbled.

“What’s the problem. I’m magic speced and I’m not complaining.” Michael pointed out.

“That’s because you rigged the harness by pretending to be taller, so you’re carrying hardly any weight.” Sven quipped.

“That’s not true.” Michael protested. Everyone stared at him. Now that it was mentioned, the harness seemed to sit lighter on Michael than the others. “Get it checked if you don’t believe me.”

“That’s a splendid idea.” Sven agreed. The veins on his forehead were jutted out, which made Tom wonder if the weight on his shoulders was lower than it should be

“Let me check,” Sonya who had shaped the harness said cheerfully. She immediately went up Michael fiddled with the harness. She tusked at herself. “Yeah, got the calibration.”

“Told you.” Sven crowed.

“Slightly wrong.” Sonya finished with an annoyed look at Sven. “You know I can increase the weight I’m carrying.”

“Sorry.” Sven looked abashed for a moment. Then a huge grin split his face. “Just glad Michael will carry his share of the weight.”

“I was always happy to.” Michael ground out.

“Let me check everyone.” Sonya declared into the silence, putting her words to the actions she had already been doing. She went around to each of them. By the time she had finished, the yoke on his shoulder felt significantly less heavy.

Sven’s point had been valid.

“Lets head back.” Michael declared his voice sounding far more laboured than it had been previously.