timewalk
Malika Malika peered around the bone-encrusted bookcase, squinting against the darkness beyond. By the light cast by their small, distant campfire, she could easily make out the four Kobolds, and the hulking shape of the Piercer Scorpion standing guard behind them. She had no idea what they were talking about as they hunched over their fire, their voices carrying over to her as muffled yips and quiet chirps.
Instead of impatiently waiting for and Mato tee their mana, she had volunteered to scout their surroundings, but now she was feeling more than a little out of her depth. If the Kobolds hadn’t made an easily visible fire allowing to point out the way to her, she was sure she would have just tripped over their camp in the darkness. Even now, she was still so far away, she could barely tell them apart.
I o get closer. At least, she would o risk it if she wanted some real information for this fool’s errand.
Choosing her footfalls carefully to minimize the g souh her feet, she crept forward to a nearer lump of bone and poked her head out again.
The Piercer Scorpion, of course, loomed rge behind the campfire, standiirely motionless. If she hadn’t seen one in a, she might have mistaken it for a realistic statue. The twues were easy to make out by the daggers they had sheathed at their waists, their bck-stained leather armor, and their pitch-bck scales. The mages, however, were something new altogether. They wore cloth robes of far higher quality than Malika had yet seen in this dungeon, and even their coloration was different. Their exposed faces and tails were covered with off-white and gray scales, and their rge pale gray eyes were visible even at this distance because of the soft glow against the darkness.
A new kind of mage?
She backed away, making every effort to move silently. Hopefully, had fully regeed his mana by now – with his skills, he should have much less trouble sneaking up on this group. As soon as she reached the bone-encrusted bookcase, she retraced her steps to rejoihers, resolving to leave all future scouting in the dark to .
“Two mages, twues, and a Piercer Scorpion,” Malika announced. “I’m not sure what the mages are, but they’re not the normal, red-scaled kind and their gear looks better than usual,” she said. “How do you think we should do this?”
“Mato on the Piercer, obviously,” said.
“Good, I’m looking forward to a rematch!” Mato growled, flexing his bulky shoulders.
Initially, Malika had thought Mato’s fidence was just bravado, however, she had e to appreciate that he cked any kind of pretense uile. He simply enjoyed a good fight. I guess he’s growing on me, she thought, a little surprised by the realization. If two people could have opposite values reting to preparation and risk, it would be her and Mato.
“What do we do about the rogues? Me and the shamans?” Malika asked, knowing that her armor and evasion would be signifitly better fag off against the rogues thaher Ali or .
“That works,” said, his expression focused, clearly thinking. “And then Ali and I will take out the two mages first?”
“Sounds good,” Malika said after gng at Ali to see if she had any objes to the pn.
The Fae shrugged slightly. “Sounds good to me.”
“Ok, I’m ready,” announced, standing up. “Mato, I’ll bring the Piercer Scorpiht to you.” He disappeared into the shadows, leaving his motes of light floating in the air above.
Seeing him vanish silently into the darkness, Malika realized she had been oblivious to just how many skills he had to help him with this kind of scouting task. It wasn’t just the ability to cloak his presence, sound, and see in the dark. He had mentioned being able to identify things from much further away, he had a trag skill, and he could shoot from extreme range. In fact, the only skill she shared, that was remotely relevant, was the ability to run faster than normal.
A few moments ter there came a distant, pierg screech, a otion of chirps, and the ground began to shake and the bone-covered bookcases rattle from the heavy impacts of the Piercer Scorpion running. appeared from the gloom with the massive Bone Elemental hot on his heels, both easily outpag the rest of the Kobolds by a rge distance. She hung back waiting for them to draw closer, and for Mato to secure the target, before engaging.
Bone burst from the ground as a dozen spikes shot up, grasping for ’s body and capturing him in a bird cage, sized for a Half-elf. His head made a loud crack as it bounced off the instant bone prison ao his knees. With a groan, he raised his head, twisting around to stare at the onrushing mountain of bone elemental bearing down on him.
He’s going to get crushed!
Malika sprang into a, sprinting for ’s bone cage while pushing her speed to the limit with Diviep. She crossed the distan a sed and stepped past to intercept the monster. Her heart hammered in her chest as she stared up at the gigantic Piercer Scorpion thundering toward her while its bde-like legs ed the ground making the stone quake. The frontal spear legs drew back, coiled to strike as it closed the distan a fsh. Malika swallowed and took her stance, pg her body between the monster and as he struggled to free himself.
With its longer reach, the moruck fast, spear limbs blurring as it shed out with unfathomable power. She dodged left, and then right, feeling the wind of the bdes caressing the skin of her neck before she leapt into the air and kicked it in the maw, unleashing her Soul Strike magic. Her foot cracked painfully against dense bone and bounced off, only her magical energy peing, and not particurly deep either. The only thing she aplished was getting its attention. Which meant would live.
Unfortunately, that meant she had its attention. She ducked again, avoiding a spear strike by a hair, and saw a blur of movement from above. Desperately, she scrambled backward, but the tail strike sliced through the muscle of her left thigh and smashed into the stone below. Malika instinctively dropped her ter of gravity and forced her momentum downward with Diviep so the brutal withdrawal of the serrated tail wouldn’t fling her across the room. She couldn’t hold back the gasp of pain as the creature ripped its on out of her leg, tearing through muscle and spraying her blood across ’s cage. She stumbled, falling heavily to the ground as she pulsed her Healing Mantra to fix her leg, but she was still on the ground and the strike was already ining to impale her.
The massive form of a Bear barreled over her prone body, colliding heavily with the moaking the shing strike to his shoulder. Mato roared furiously, retaliating with a swipe of his heavy paw.
Oh, Mato, perfect timing…
Panting heavily, Malika scrambled to her feet, intensely grateful that she had been saved. The irony of it was not lost on her, she had leapt in to save , and then she had bee the person needing saving. What’s , Ali rescues Mato?
wriggled free of his prison. From the looks of the scorched and burnt fragments of his bone cage lying around him, Ali’s mages had had something to do with that.
“You ok?” Malika asked.
“I… yes, thanks,” he managed, scooping up his bow.
A great grinding ch was followed by a heavy thump. Between two distant bookshelves, a broad wall of bone sprouted, covered with oversized protruding ribs, and reinforced with haphazardly piled vertebrae the size of small dogs.
Malika spluttered, “What the…”
“Watch out!” hissed, darting sideways.
Malika barely had enough time to throw herself to the ground again when a high-speed spear of sharpened bone shot past her ribs. What… but a glimpse of movement made her roll, and a sed spear punched into the ground, slig her calf muscle open. She winced, healing it, but immediately had to dodge again as another volley of spears cleared the distant wall of bone, shooting for her body lying exposed out in the open.
A shimmer of gold flickered before her, and three bone spears shattered against Ali’s barrier.
“Go kill the rogues,” said, diving for the cover of the barrier, catg himself in a forward roll, and arriving on his feet with his bow drawn. “Ali and I hahe mages.”
“Right,” Malika said. Oh yes. Before everything had gone belly-up, there had been a pn. Malika searched the darkness, catg sight of the painfully bright Lightning Nova totems. The shamans seemed to be holding the line against the twues, apparently evenly matched. Malika sprinted over to disrupt the bance.
She admired the lightning shield entment that retaliated with sparks every time the shamans blocked one of the rapid dagger attacks. Sparks of lightning that tore through the bone armor like butter. She dove into the midst of the fight, unleashing a flurry of puhat impacted against pliable scales rather than heavy bone armor. Her soul magic burst from her fists into the already softened-up rogue’s belly.
It should be close now, she thought, giving her body over to the flow of bat, the dance of strike and terstrike, pulsing her magic every time she hit. The rogue was fgging, looking rather worse for wear, bleeding, and scorched from several wounds already.
She punched again, striking the Kobold in the ribs and feeling a crack of bone under her fist. The Kobold’s scales glowed with a soft yellowish-white light, and her punch smmed into a fully intact boe.
What?
Malika’s punch literally bounced off an apparently fully recovered and grinning rogue.
That looked an awful lot like my Healing Mantra, she realized with the chill of knowing something with absolute certainty. What did we miss? She quickly turo s the battlefield but found nothing obviously amiss.
Her gaze was suddenly drawn to a flicker of light and movement in a dark er. Behind a blocky protrusion of boood a lone Kobold. It was dressed in a flowing, full-length robe with white embroidered symbols. Soft yellowish-gold scales covered its fad arms, and small horns of pure white poked up from its head. It blinked. It was the eyes that had caught her attention. They glowed brightly, yellow against the darkness.
I k! They have a healer!
“Healer in the back!” she shouted and immediately charged across the battlefield, knowing there would be nress until the healer had bee with.
Suddenly, her face smmed into spines of bohat sprang up to imprison her. She yelled in frustration, smming the bars with her fists, trying desperately to break through the unyielding bone.
“Ali, arget, all mages and rogues on the healer. Follow my arrows,” ’s calm voice pierced Malika’s frustration. At least they had uood the urgency of taking out the healer first. Her attention was suddenly wrenched back by a long bone spear pung through her ribs. She gasped, pletely winded. She grasped the blood-slick spear with her hands and hauled it out while g her teeth against her muffled scream and then she healed herself.
A golden barrier materialized in front of her prison, shattering several more ining high-speed spears. Ugh, I’m a sitting duck out here, they are going to turo a pincushion in this cage. Obviously, that was the point, but she refused to give them the pleasure. She was a Street Rat for a reason. Malika shed out, pung at the thick curved bone bars while a veritable volley of Firebolts and arrows flew overhead. Finally, she got one of the bone spio shatter and she squeezed her body through the narro.
Malika charged for the healer, sprinting in aie – and, sure enough, another bone prisoed from the ground. Fortunately, this time it appeared two feet tht side and she hurtled past the bookcase, still free of the Bone Mages’ frustrating attacks.
She puhe Kobold healer, catg her right under her left arm, and knog her to the ground. Malika kicked her several times while she tried to scramble to her feet. The Kobold’s scales glowed with pulses of her magid it seemed to shake off all her damage. I’m going to need help with this. Carefully, Malika aimed a sweeping kick, knog the Kobold’s legs out from under her, makiumble bato the open. Immediately, several Firebolts smmed into the glowing creature, pung through some of the bone armor. That was enough of an opportunity for Ali’s twues to shimmer out of the shadows stabbing in tandem with their gleaming daggers. Malika ighe whistle and crash of bone spears flying through the air and shattering on golden barriers, i only on pung the dangerous Kobold before her.
It took the bined might of three mages, , herself, and the twues, but they finally overcame the Kobold’s powerful healing magid the regeing bone armor. As soon as it colpsed, Malika breathed a big sigh of relief.
“Mages , Mato seems to be ok,” said, calling out the arget.
’s firm, calm dires trasted against the personality she had gotteo. He’s normally so quiet. Malika ran for the bone wall as the twues ducked behind a dark bookcase and vanished. As she arrived, she saw the intensifying red glow reflected off the gray bone wall. She took three steps up the side of an ossified bookcase a over the wall, just as three Fireballs detonated below her, blowing the bone wall to shards. As she reached the apex of her flip, Malika sighted the two Bone Mages below her. Adjustirajectory with a twist, she kicked the mage in the back of his neck, trying to break it on the way down. Landing beside it, she ducked backward, giving all Ali’s mages and a free lio attack the creature, while she unleashed her punches from behind. From her vantage point, she could see Ali sweating with focus and tration, her barriers flig ience every time one of the Bone Mages cast their Bone Spear attacks.
She kicked the staggered mage in the back of the knees, and it colpsed before her, taking three Firebolts and an arrow to the face before keeling over. The sed Bone Mage died far faster, victim to a pair of Ambush strikes as Ali’s rogues reappeared, burying their daggers in its kidneys with identical, chittering snickers of glee.
Without the regeing bone armor, I could have taken these out by myself. As soon as the seage died, Malika felt the pressure of the fight ease up. She took a moment to collect herself and breathe. One of Ali’s shamans y colpsed on the ground beside the corpses of the two enemy rogues. The ones Malika had been supposed to take care of – at least acc to their carefully id pns which hadn’t survived past two seds into the fight. The remaining shaman had already re-engaged, now attag the Piercer Scorpion.
Malika checked on Mato first, but his health seemed fine even tanking the Piercer Scorpion. His fighting style had ged dramatically. Malika studied it for a few moments, deg he seemed vastly more fident in himself pared to the st fight. His new skill must give him an enormous edge. Good bat perception skills had that reputation, she knew, after all, it was what her Ahn Khen bloodline was renowned for.
The Bear seemed to be moving with uny precision and effiow. Blindingly fast spear strikes that should have impaled him were blocked, leaving shallow gashes instead of debilitating injuries. Even the deadly tail strike that had nearly killed him while fighting the first scorpion now merely broke bones or left bloody gashes rapidly healing uhe power of his restoration skill.
She settled in for the long battle of attrition against the giant bone monster, finally stepping bad watg it explode as Ali fi off with her favorite strategy – filling its armor with fireballs. The soft sound of her notification chimed in the back of her mind.
Malika was quite low on stamina and breathing heavily after the fight. A couple of emergency heals, and a lot of frantic damage to try to kill the healer and the mage had really takeoll on her resources. She walked across the now quiet battlefield and into the darkness where the golden Kobold healer had fallen. Grabbing the corpse by an ankle, she dragged it over to where the others sat rec from the long, hard-fought battle. She dumped the corpse in front of Ali, earning a wide-eyed look of puzzled worry from her tiny friend.
“This thing was a real pain,” Malika expined. “You o learn how to make them.”
Aliandra nodded, and chirped, “By which logic, I should make a few more of you?” Malika gaped at the ued, hirious snipe. Her expression made Ali turn pink. “I’ll just get busy over here, shall I?” she muttered.
“You do that.”
Malika sat down with a sigh and began her Meditation. It would take quite a while tee all the stamina and mana she had burned during the fight. At least I have Mato’s aura. As she rexed, she took the opportunity to review the results from a day’s worth of bat.
Yroup has defeated Acolyte of Azryet – Kobold – level 21.Yroup has defeated Bone Mage – Kobold – level 22-23 x2.Yroup has defeated Dagger Rogue – Kobold – level 19-24 x2.Yroup has defeated Piercer Scorpion – Elemental – level 27.
Soul Monk has reached level 18 (+2).+20 attribute points.
Getting closer! Ali had unlocked the css skill slot at twenty, and the Guildmaster had firmed that was the usual progression. Just two more levels… I don’t want to get behind.
Martial Artist has reached level 11 (+2).Soul Strike has reached level 14 (+2).Perfect Body has reached level 10.Soul Armor has reached level 12 (+2).Enlightened Evasion has reached level 10.Diviep has reached level 8 (+2).
Appraise has reached level 9.
Solid progress all around, Malika decided, particurly chuffed that Diviep had leveled twice. She had used it a lot during this battle – she had o, because the amount of damage their enemies had been throwing about was no joke. She spent seven points each boosting her dexterity and endurance, and then the remaining six on wisdom.
Name: MalikaRace: HumanTitles: Street Rat
Active Buffs: Perfect Body, Soul Armor, Enlightened Evasion
Css: Soul Monk – level 18- Martial Artist – level 11- Soul Strike – level 14- Healing Mantra – level 9- Perfect Body – level 10- Soul Armor – level 12- Enlightened Evasion – level 10- Diviep – level 8- [Locked]- [Locked]- [Locked]
General Skills- Meditation – level 6- Dang – level 4- Calligraphy – level 3- Lockpig – level 5- Appraise – level 9
Aptitudes- Languages: on- Bloodline (Ahn Khen): Dormant- Mana (Affinity): Soul- Relentless (Css): +100% to Stamina Regeioless (Css): You pay for any abilities with stamina instead of manaAttributes- Vitality: 35- Strength: 10- Endurance: 85 (+30)- Dexterity: 106 (+37)- Perception: 15- Intelligence: 17- Wisdom: 75 (+26)
Equipment- Ring: Bronze Guild Ring – level 10
Armor: 84Physical Damage Redu: 14.28%Evasion: 70Dodge: 12.19%
Health: 350/350Stamina: 765/850 (85 Reserved)Mana: 525/750 (225 Reserved)
Aliandra
Ali sat on an unfortably lumpy roursing a pounding headache, wishing she could have a bath. Her well-crafted Tailored Cotton Clothing g to her skin, drenched in her sweat, with a big spsh of crimson blood across the left sleeve – thankfully not hers. Everything stank of smokey fme and ozo was no wohe Kobolds’ Tattered Robes always stank – they tossed fire about like nobody’s business.
The tration and focus of stantly reag to the Bone Mages with barriers for most of the fight had taken a toll on her. It had demanded so much of her attention that she hadn’t even noticed that none of the enemies were dying until Malika had shouted her warning about the healer. ly keeping an overview of the battle, there.
She gazed down at the corpse of the yellow-scaled Kobold lying on the ground in front of her, the possessor of a Holy magic affinity. Acolyte of Azryet. Malika had been frustrated, but she was right. The healer had been by far the most dangerous Kobold in that group, and it would be incredibly powerful if she could learn to make it. Knowing Malika, though, she robably most frustrated that she hadn’t figured out the healer quicker.
She reached doced her hand on the Kobold’s scales, now soft and supple after the bone armor effect was removed. She tur into motes of mana with her magic. I’ll least two more before I learn this kind. She picked up the bone bracelet and robes the Acolyte had been wearing and examihem.
Acolyte’s Bone Bracelet – level 14+5% spell power to Healing skills.+8 Wisdom.Requirements: Wisdom 49.Hands – CharmSimple Robes of Healing – level 15Resistance: 105+7% spell power to Healing skills.+17 Intelligence.Requirements: Intelligence 53.Body – Cloth
The Bone Bracelet was just like the fire one she had given to one of her mages. Its smooth surface was marred only by the runic magiscribed upon it. Ali examihe entment. Using her Runic Script, she studied how the magical runes bio create the healing entment – but it immediately became clear that it would be a matter of more than just a few mio uand. The Simple Robes were not as good as what Ali was already wearing, however, the entment might be useful if she ever learo make the Acolyte.
No more Tattered Robes. The Kobolds ihe library seemed to be yet aep up in gear quality. I could do with some gearing up, too.
Ali got up and walked over to where Malika was s various items the other Kobolds had dropped. “ you use this?” She handed Malika the Acolyte’s Bone Bracelet.
Malika took it, turning it over a few times before putting it down beside two other simir-looking bracelets. “Unfortunately, it’s too small for me. But perhaps we keep it for ter?” Malika poio the other two on the ground, “These are the same, only the entment is for bone magic.”
Ali nodded and begaask of destrug the remaining corpses. Her Grimoire flickered and pulsed with energy and runes as she worked her way through the Kobolds. The level twenty-four Kobue articurly wele addition, hopefully allowio make even higher-level rogues. If I get lucky with the random summons, she reminded herself. One more before I learn the Bone Mage variant, too.
Ali destructed the sed huge Piercer Scorpion.
“Do you think you learn to make those?” asked.
“I sure hope so,” Ali answered. The Piercer Scorpions were so devastating, that Ali felt they could certainly repce creatures like Bugbears in her repertoire. “I’d have to level up a bit first, though.” More than that, they would o defeat at least a dozen more.
“You ride oo battle,” Mato grinned.
Ali dutifully chuckled. No, she would not. She’d much rather keep out of the line of fire.
“Are these simir enough to learn?” Malika handed her three Simple Robes. The two gray ones had entments boosting the wearer’s bone magic spell power but were otherwise the same as the Acolyte’s white Simple Robes of Healing.
“I think so,” Ali said.
“Ok, worth a try,” Malika said.
Ali destructed the three robes, delighted to see her Grimoire react.
Variant: Simple Robes added to Imprint: Armor.
Malika smiled at the obvious light show. Clearly, she had gotteo how Ali’s magic worked. “Do these ,” she said, handing Ali a set of four bone daggers, presumably looted from the rogue corpses.
Each dagger was hoo a fine edge, so sharp and polished that it gleamed. With the same teique as the bracelets, the polished bone bdes were delicately inscribed with magical runes down the ter of the bde.
Deadly Bone Dagger – level 20Damage: Pierg, Physical+11% increased critical strike ce.Requirements: 70 DexterityOne Handed – Dagger – Bone
Ali quickly destructed all four of them, getting the expected update to her imprint after she destructed the third.
Variant: Deadly Bone Dagger added to Imprint: Dagger.
Unfortunately, her level twelve and fourteen rogues would not be able to take advantage of her dagger imprint. I’ll need higher-level rogues – hopefully soon.
“I don’t have enough spaymore; you carry these until we either get more or decide to sell them?” She handed Ali two sets of leather armor with bone splints sewn in to reinforce them, and the three bone bracelets. Ali o Malika, st the items in her ring.
“Ok, what now?” Ali asked.
“My mana is nearly recovered,” answered, getting to his feet aing his bow. “I’ll go look for more monsters.”
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timewalk
