Icarus Awakens

Khiat hadn’t had any plans to cross the threshold tonight. That was before the wyvern had threatened her home. While it turned out to be just a misunderstanding, it exposed the fact that she was unprepared for game greater than mere animals and weak level 1 monsters. She had been holding back, planning to wait a few weeks, or even a few months as her mother had suggested. Wait until she felt ready.

What would happen if the next thing to come out of the sky wasn’t under the control of a mortal? Or if, gods forbid, a desert wyrm found them? Khiat had a thought after that encounter. What if she’d never be ready? What if she hesitated, and for that was judged unworthy?

After retrieving her bow and handing off the sesel, she’d gone to her parents and explained. Her father had to depart midway through to deal with the travelers, which left Achia to try and talk her out of it. Her old cautioning hadn’t worked because Khiat had seen the folly of waiting too long. She wasn’t ready, but she wasn’t going to hold back either. It would be tonight.

It seemed the Octyrrum didn’t feel the same way, or at the very least the climate didn’t. The night air was cold, though not freezing thanks to the heat trapped in the oasis. The fact that it was now well in the fall had little meaning here. Aughal’s days were hot, and its nights were cold, with little seasonal variation between.

In the sky were clouds. Not an overcast night, the kind of cover that could offer her people some relief during the day. Instead there were high, wispy clouds, the most common in this water-deprived region. This night didn’t feel special, even with the visitors. They were mostly human and bird people. There was another name for those but Khiat couldn’t remember it exactly in this moment. A handful of the vine people too, which was a surprise.

Then Khiat’s eyes caught a four-legged creature standing by two mortals, garbed in bright golden armor. Some kind of feline monster. Khiat was familiar with cats and had wanted one herself, though the village was too hard for one to survive. Without the monster presenting as a threat, Khiat even found it a bit cute. It was clearly some kind of pet, as who would go through the trouble of armoring a monster otherwise?

That inspired her. The two standing by this monster, which had been broken and bent to the will of mortals, were everything she wanted to be. Someone that could not only just live but stand up to the threats of this world. She clenched a four-fingered hand, which fit better around the bow now that she could get out of her shell. She had to do this. It had to happen.

The cruelest joke Khiat could imagine was hitting her wall tonight in front of her village, and in front of so many people she didn’t know and the heroes with them. These new people might have an actual Hero! The thought of failing now would have paralyzed her, if she wasn’t hardened by the necessities of survival in this part of the world.

“You don’t have to do this,” a voice behind her said. Her uncle, father’s side. Of everyone in the village, twelve were her direct relation. He, as well as the others, were following her lead. In a directional sense. “With all of these outsiders here, I can imagine the stress you are under. Why waste the potential and risk embarrassing all of us?”

Another following Khiat struck him. “Phyl! This is a sacred night. Keep going on like that and you will be the reason for our shame!” That was her aunt. Once removed? Khiat didn’t have a good grasp on how those labels worked past the obvious ones. Either way, it was to the chitin so no injury had been meant.

“Are you sure about dexterity, Khiat? We’re better suited to strength or endurance.”

“Srila, why is that important? It’s her mental attributes we should be worried about. Why not use one of those to acquire your class? It’s more predictable that way.”

“Khiat is leaving the decision to the Octyrrum!” Xtalo stated, cutting off the bickering. He and her mother were the ones walking right behind her, protecting her from the family as best they could. The subdued grumbling still made it to her auditory pits. What was happening behind her was the culmination of every side argument, bet, and personal opinion over her impending class acquisition whipped into a frenzy by her sudden decision.

She could hear the reasoning in what everyone was saying. Well, maybe not for Uncle Phyl who was mostly concerned with her not making a scene, but the others had good ideas. Going for strength or endurance was something she’d thought about. Playing to her racial advantages made sense.

Only, Khiat liked using the bow. Up-close fighting did not strike her as what she wanted to specialize in. Her flight from the oncoming wyvern was a symptom of a much larger problem. She flinched. As in, whenever a childhood squabble had broken out, or she’d sparred someone to train, she couldn’t help but look away from an oncoming blow. How could she expect to fight up close with that weakness?

As for the other ideas, they were good. Arcanists rarely developed powers requiring them to get close, and the Cleric class opened up almost as many doors as Craftsman. Still, Khiat didn’t want any of that and she was putting everything on the hope that the Octyrrum understood her aspirations. What she wanted, and what she didn’t want. She didn’t know the ins and outs of every class. Khiat probably didn’t know half of all the ones she could get, not to mention the infinite possibilities inherent in the powers she could receive.

Powers. That suddenly hit her too. She would get one tonight. A spell? A new way to attack? The excitement of endless possibilities buoyed her flagging spirit and she bounded towards where she wanted to undergo her next advancement. The oasis, of course. Other times she’d done it in the privacy of her home, or with the other young of the village when they were being taught how to.

Every child was taught how to advance in the hopes they’d make it to where Khiat now stood alone. Some had failed early, others tragically close. Vtidi was an example. Whether it was not being able to face someone succeeding where he’d failed, or just the exhaustion of his day shift, the man was practically the only one not here. Would he hate her when she did it?

How would the rest of the village react? Celebrations initially, of course, but then? They’d expect a lot of her. To fight every time a monster threatened the village. She couldn’t run again. How long would it be until she left to join the Hunter’s Guild? Was she ready for that? It was time to find out.

Khiat knelt slowly by the water’s edge, then took a cross-legged position. She placed her bow across her lap, praying to every god and the Octyrrum in case it would matter. Closing her eyes, she began to concentrate, reaching out to a part of herself that could not be seen by any means. A fraction of her soul. Gathering the gift from the Octyrrum earned by slaying beasts, she started the slow process of taking its power and adding it to her own.

Silence fell over the village. Around her was her family, in order of relation. Further out were the villagers, and then the visitors. None of them mattered to Khiat in this moment. It was time.

…

Daniel, Lograve, and Hunter sat on the slopes of a dune at a distance from the duskers and those from their group who’d chosen to watch out of interest. Lograve reached out to both of them with his Telepathy, his power combining with their bond to create a Telepathic Network. If something dangerous approaches the village during this time, tell me before you shout a warning. If it’s not too powerful, I’d rather send Gadriel to handle it alone than interrupt this.

Gotcha.

Understood.

Good. After Daniel, Lograve had been the first to hear Hunter’s voice in a mental form and had grown, if not used to it, then used to him having it. So, the transition from a normal mortal to one who possesses a class. You may be the only one in this world with powers that hasn’t experienced it. Lograve waved a hand, remembered what was going on around him, and lowered it slowly.

They were saying she couldn’t choose her class. Is that true?

In a sense. The attribute you take to 10 first will determine your class as you’ll receive one that has the chosen attribute as a core attribute. Personal motivation and desire can shape the direction you take, but it isn’t always consistent. There are a small few who report hearing, visualizing, or otherwise observing concepts when gaining their class, but that’s not associated with either gaining a rare class or even one of their preference.

Daniel listened to the explanation while sitting cross-legged as if he was back in kindergarten. In addition to being the highest-level mortal present, Lograve was also a teacher and former librarian. His normal blithe demeanor became more formal under these circumstances, similar to how he sobered during battle. That wasn’t a total change though. Still, your personality and talents should shape your class and the powers you awaken. Murdon is a classic counter example. If you ever want to make him annoyed, ask what kind of Knight he wanted to be.

Why would I ever want to do that?

He gets too serious sometimes. Anyway, with the knowledge that this young lady is advancing dexterity, and that that bow across her lap will likely become her Focus, Martialist, Ranger, or Rogue are safe bets. Odd choices for a dusker considering their limited mobility during the day, but I can see the merits. That’s hardly the stickiest point of gaining your class.

What’s that? Daniel filled in the silence left by Lograve and was rewarded with a finger covertly pointed towards him.

Your class is an excellent example. Almost no one has tried to be an Artificer because of how rare that is to get. There are even some theories to suggest there are limits on how many can exist at one time, but how would you even confirm that considering how random class acquisition can be? Gaining a rare class is basically winning a lottery, though you still have to advance the right attribute during your class awakening to buy the ticket.

Thomas seems to think I should keep my class secret here, Daniel thought with some trepidation. I can see how rarity is good, but wouldn’t that mean there are people who’d look to exploit that?

How would you exploit a person? Lograve winced as he realized he’d asked an obvious question while trying to be snarky. Uh, don’t answer that. We should try to keep this conversation light. You shouldn’t have to worry overly much. This kingdom has laws regarding certain unsavory practices. That’s not to say you don’t have other reasons for discretion.

They fell silent for a minute as Daniel absorbed the point. Watching what was happening below, he was struck by how still the duskers were being. Even with their shell broken, they were able to stand as still as statues. He glanced at the one named Khiat who was the center of attention, trying to discern any ongoing change. To his eyes, she was just sitting there.

What about advancement itself? After that guy did whatever he did to Hunter he said he could understand it now, but he can’t explain it.

I can’t, Hunter confirmed. Maybe once I try it, but we move too much.

Yes, a lot of people are waiting for the city to convert their potential into power. Myself included! Hmm. Well, at face value what that young lady down there is doing is advancement. It involves meditation on the aspect of yourself you want to improve.

Then what was everyone doing before we fought the giant sparkbat swarm?

To Daniel’s surprise, Lograve’s cheeks reddened. Oh, gods, please don’t remind me. That was so embarrassing. And don’t ever tell anyone about that!

W-why?

That’s how children learn to advance! Playing hide and seek, gods. Murdon suggested it as a ‘team-building exercise’ when we should have just been advancing by ourselves.

Daniel added that to his list of things to remind Lograve of if he ever wanted to annoy him and tried to hide his smile. So it’s just meditation?

Essentially.

Why doesn’t everyone get a class then?

Ah. There is more to it. Being able to reach the state of advancement is only one of the reasons someone may fail. Lograve coughed quietly and took a drink. Damned sand. I’ll have to ask if this village can spare some of its water. Aquakinesis is going to be a pain to use here.

What are the other reasons?

Oh? Yes, of course. There’s a concept known as the advancement wall. I haven’t mentioned it before as it hardly matters for you. Some people just find they can’t go past a certain point with their attributes. For most that happens before they ever get their class, and of the people that do gain a class they’ll flame out somewhere in level 2 on average. Advancement just grows more and more difficult as they reach their limit. I’d say one out of a hundred in this village’s case is a fair approximation of the average rate of achieving a class at all.

There were more adventurers than normal people in the Thormundz, though.

Adventurers? Lograve’s thoughts were almost giddy as he looked at Daniel with one eyebrow raised.

I haven’t heard anyone use a word to describe people with classes in general, so that’s what I’d come up with.

Blessed is what most people use. Blessed by the Octyrrum, of course. That does bring up a good point. Do you know why people go to developing regions? It’s very dangerous compared to the rest of the world.

Manifest destiny? It was a fair guess. The religion of this world had a very expansionist trend when it came to the mysterious Crest that surrounded it. Considering that the monsters would stop coming once it was defeated, or banished, or whatever, that was understandable

I have no idea what you mean. A term from your world? Well, I’m trying not to get too off topic but it is relevant and we have at least an hour to burn. There’s a thought that the Octyrrum rewards service in these regions by granting the ability to surpass one’s wall. There are documented accounts of this occurring. There are also monetary rewards and the draw of exploration. And, in this kingdom, clemency. That last part he added hesitantly.

Pardons? From, like, stealing?

Yes, but also for more serious crimes. Murder, and the like.

Daniel almost shouted his reply before he too remembered where he was. What? Wait, did you-

Murdon and I came to the Thormundz at the beginning out of, say, civic duty. Our team had broken up and the timing seemed right. You should know that for those who have redeemed themselves, the past is left in the past. Only, I’m not sure in this case. It’ll depend on how what happened is interpreted by the various governments and the king in Rikendia.

Ok. Ok. Not going to ask who the murderers are. Even though Tlara is totally one. Any other reasons people can’t get a class?

Those are the main ones. People can get tired of trying to earn advancement or run out of ways to do so without fighting and choose not to. Remember our conversation on the downsides of how Gadriel advances his attributes?

Yeah.

So, what other hour-long lectures would you like me to compress into four sentences?

What am I? Hunter asked.

Lograve jumped a little. That is not a question I am prepared to answer.

Have I been Grafted?

I don’t know! Not in any way. Your entire existence confounds me, I must admit. My best guess is no, this is something new.

Could I be Grafted?

You did hear me the first time, right? Lograve put his head in his hands and his mental voice grew strained. Why? Do you want to be? Hunter offered no answer and Lograve in no way wanted to continue the conversation with the murder cat sitting across from Daniel. Well, if either of you have questions later, I suppose I could answer them. Now, it’s my turn. Have you any thoughts on the new design?

Daniel made sure nothing interesting was happening in the village below and then observed Lograve draw patterns in the sand with his finger. They were all reminiscent of chemical structures, a topic that for some reason was intimately related to Lograve’s new power. It was also one of the key reasons they’d made it out of the Thormundz alive.

It all started when Daniel drew the symbol for caffeine after being reminded of chemistry class. Unfortunately for Lograve, that was the only one he remembered well enough to draw by memory. Instead of providing new structures, he was using what he knew of how chemical structures worked to help Lograve make new symbols.

Getting the symbol just right was important for both the effect and its potency. Caffeine had allowed submerged gestalt to swim faster than a native water creature, though later they’d suffered symptoms of what could only be described as withdrawal after. The only other group buffs Daniel had seen were from the Bards, who required sound and appropriate music as a medium. Ritualism, the power Lograve used to form symbols and create effects from them, had its limits but was far more powerful than anything Evalyn could do. According to the Arcanist, he’d never heard of anyone getting it before level 6.

The symbol Lograve was trying to perfect next was far more complex. Ring structures everywhere, bridged by lines with more coming off the sides to give it a spiky appearance. This was also just a two-dimensional representation of the final product, which Lograve would tune on his own. Wait, here. Daniel hovered his finger over a single point. This has too many lines coming off of it.

Are you sure? I remembered your rule but this feels more appropriate.

Daniel scratched his head. The two problems with this arrangement were that he didn’t remember high school chemistry well, and Lograve had an intuition he didn’t share. It’s not supposed to. Too many electrons, or something. Unless that’s not carbon?

Yes, the small balls of lightning and dirt, Lograve thought dryly. I’m not entirely sure you heard your prior instructors correctly.

No, I know that’s right. In my world, at least.

The one without magic, which is made of differently charged small balls of lightning?

That is not how I described them.

Yes, well, I had to fill in the gaps. Lograve drew a circle around the completed structure. Is this too big? I haven’t memorized other symbols but I have seen them. This is about the complexity I’d expect, but it flies in the face of the simplicity of the first. I’m worried about how effective it would be. Efficiency and all.

Not sure. I know some stuff can get pretty big. Like DNA, it’s one huge chain of this stuff.

What’s that?

Uh, Daniel assessed his understanding of genetics and found it wanting. It’s not important.

I’ll keep working on this then. Any other thoughts?

Daniel looked down to the sand and fervently wished his phone could reproduce all the textbooks he’d read like the music he’d listened to.