Oath of the Survivor

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Hello everybody, and Happy Friday!

A quick update going into the weekend about future plans: with demands at work continuing to rise, my writing speed has taken a bit of a hit.  If we continue 5x weekly uploads, at this pace I'll need another month-long break to catch up, likely in May.  Instead, I decided to reduce the posting to 3x weekly (M, W, F) until things have stabilized and I have more of a buffer to work with.

Ultimately, my goal is that you all have a chance to continue to enjoy the story as much as I enjoy writing it!  You've stuck with me this far, and if you have strong feelings one way or another I'd like to hear them.  

I offer a truly heartfelt "thank you" that you've all chosen to take time to read, and I look forward to many more chapters of Kyle and C.H.A.D.D.'s adventures.

~~~ 

Kyle finally deactivated IGNITION when C.H.A.D.D.’s scanners had been devoid of awakened life signs.  Every fiber of his body ached, and despite his mana reserves staying relatively full he felt absolutely exhausted.  His skill had been active for hours, and his body was paying the price for it.  Mana-enhanced recovery was wonderful, but when it was all said and done, Kyle was looking forward to getting a good night’s sleep in his own bed. 

For now, however, he kept moving, though his pace slowed to a walk.  His body felt… off.  Even though it had only been for a short time, he’d quickly grown accustomed to the equilibrium between constant damage and rejuvenation.  The more he recovered without IGNITION active, the slower the pace of the recovery became.  He couldn’t help but be disappointed in the mundane feeling of Adaptive Regeneration, after having experienced the magnified version when Ignition boosted it.

On the other hand, this had given him a great opportunity to reflect on his next big milestone: Level 60.  It was where he’d be able to upgrade HEAL, and Kyle hoped he still had time to apply the skill in ways that would nudge it in the direction he was hoping for.  Overall, it was a great basic skill, and was foundational to most other types of recovery skills.  It simply used mana to encourage cellular regeneration and recovery.

Because of its widespread use and availability for most Healer classes, it came with a wide variety of well-documented upgrades.  The most common directions were to either add range, increase the potency, or add secondary effects.  Kyle figured his use of the skill in conjunction with PARASITIC RESONANCE would likely contribute towards unlocking some sort of ranged option, which was entirely unnecessary given that he had, well, PARASITIC RESONANCE. 

He was confident that he would be able to unlock options in the other two veins as well.  What interested him the most, however, was trying to tie together both components. 

If, during the process of rejuvenating damaged cells, he was able to leave either some remnant energy or cellular directive to enhance further healing and replication, he would be able to build stronger synergy alongside his other skills and his own ridiculously high Vitality to allow for even more seamless recovery.  Even more, it was the type of upgrade that would make his skill more valuable in group environments, rather than being entirely self-focused.  Kyle recognized a project like that was much easier said than done, but was a direction that excited him, and one that promised even more the further he progressed. 

While it was true that he’d grown far more powerful than he’d ever dreamed, Kyle’s eyes had been opened to the scope of the universe.  While much about the C Grade evolutions and beyond was unknown to him, Kyle’s destination was set firmly at the peak.  Even if he found answers to who was behind the destruction of Earth, Kyle was simply too powerless to do anything about it.  The testimonial of a backwater D Grade wouldn’t mean much to the Collective if there were B Grades or higher working against him.

As he grew in power, however, that would change.  While organizational power and reach was important in the Collective, personal power still went a long way.  His time learning about the fae from Tillienne was proof of that, with their leaders still being widely respected despite their limited reach.  It was a stretch to think he’d get that far, but Kyle was determined to make it happen.  Everything he’d accomplished so far had been in defiance of the odds, and to him this would be no different. 

A particularly sharp pain in his side brought Kyle out of his thoughts.  Let’s get recovered first.  ADAPTIVE REGENERATION was still hard at work, and he shelved his practice theories for the time being, instead turning his attention to something else that had been on his mind.  “C.H.A.D.D., what can you tell me about the boosting skills the birds were using?  From what I could tell, it felt pretty comprehensive, and without a lot of backlash.”

[THAT’S AN APT SUMMARY, DR. MAYHEW.  WHILE I CAN’T SPEAK TO THE NUANCES OF THE SKILL, IT APPEARED TO PROVIDE MANA IN PROPORTION TO MUSCLE DENSITY.  FOR EXAMPLE, NEARLY SIXTY PERCENT OF THE TOTAL MANA OF THE SKILL INFUSED THE CREATURES’ LEGS, WHILE LESS THAN TEN PERCENT INFUSED THE MUSCLES ALONG THEIR SPINES.]

“Do you think the backlash is mitigated by doing so?  Effectively putting most of the strain on the parts of the body that are best equipped to handle it?”

[I BELIEVE THAT WOULD MAKE SENSE, TO AN EXTENT.  WITHOUT FURTHER DETAIL I CAN’T BE CERTAIN, HOWEVER THAT IS A REASONABLE HYPOTHESIS.]

Kyle nodded thoughtfully.  There was almost certainly more to it, and given that beasts tended to get more passive skills in the early grades, it was likely that their anatomy in E Grade was bolstered specifically to be able to handle the types of skills the D Grade variants were using.  Even so, it offered room for continued refinement in his application of both IGNITION, and to a lesser extent IDENTIFY. 

Right now, the skills worked more or less evenly across their effective areas, and he hadn’t taken the time to refine them like he had with HASTE back in E Grade.  Even though his “to-do” list was growing, Kyle couldn’t help but smile at the thought.  If Phase One of the Practicum had allowed him to shore up some of his physical foundations, Phase Two had really opened his eyes to improving his mana control.  Challenging environments were the crucibles he needed to refine himself, and he’d missed the challenge during his months of study.

 Looking at his nav bracelet, Kyle anticipated about it would take another day of travel to reach the city.  He could cut that time down significantly with the use of IGNITION, but ultimately decided against it.  His plan was to walk, practice some energy control, and hopefully develop some exercises for control he could take with him when he returned to the Hub.  First though, it was time for a snack, and to reflect on his gains.  He felt it during his escape from the flock that he’d managed to gain one more level, and it had been a little while since he’d truly reflected on his status. 

After gulping down some dried rations and a healthy drink from his canteen, Kyle settled into meditation.

KYLE MAYHEW.  ARTHRO-HUMAN CHIMERA (PARASITE), SURVIVALIST.  LEVEL 47 (D)

CORE OF THE PARASITIC DEVOURER 0%

ADAPTIVE ANATOMY – 7/? – ENHANCED CARAPACE, AURIC PERCEPTION, EXOSKELETAL STRENGTH, CEASELESS VITALITY, INSTINCTIVE INTELLIGENCE, COVERT DEXTERITY, UNBREAKABLE WILL

VITALITY: 751

ENDURANCE: 872

STRENGTH: 329

DEXTERITY: 582

WILLPOWER: 1095

INTELLIGENCE: 1095

PERCEPTION: 843

FREE ATTRIBUTES: 18

Even though is leveling had slowed quite a bit, Kyle was still impressed with his overall attributes.  With a thought, he allocated his free attribute points between Endurance, Willpower, and Intelligence.  Still, there was one thing that still confused him as he looked at the status.  What is this core, and how do I develop it?  It had been quite a while since he defeated the Storm and absorbed the last essence he needed to get his Adaptive Anatomy completed, and yet the core hadn’t seemed to budge. 

It was a problem that both relieved and frustrated Kyle.  On one hand, he wanted to figure out what moved the needle for it; while on the other, he was thankful that it wasn’t growing without him having any idea why.  Between it and the World Tree Seed, he had two enigmas he needed to try and solve.

Shelving those thoughts, Kyle exited meditation and continued his journey towards the city.  “C.H.A.D.D., can you give me images of my mana concentration?”

[CERTAINLY, DR. MAYHEW.]

As the day wore on, Kyle immersed himself in the process of refining his skills.  Unlike HASTE, which drew on his existing mana reserves, IGNITION drew in atmospheric mana it two locations on his back below his shoulderblades.  As a result, the energy was raw and less filtered than his own energy, which is partly why it was so damaging to his body. 

Kyle’s first task was to try and direct the flow of the power, which was easier said than done.  He would activate the skill, draw in the mana, and it would race through his mana pathways in an instant, behaving almost like a high-pressure environment flooding a low-pressure one.  When this happened, he would deactivate the skill, perform a quick application of HEAL alongside ADAPTIVE REGENERATION, and then try again.  In this way, he was able to practice some foundational concepts of both projects.

Even though the progress was frustratingly slow, Kyle felt that he was on the right track.  His first minor breakthrough came after nearly six hours of travel, and almost entirely by mistake.  In his haste to try and control the mana that he was drawing in, he found that he narrowed the pathway slightly.  That resulted in the flow being more directed, even though it dispersed through his body just as rapidly afterward.  Still, it gave him an idea. 

Kyle activated PARASITIC RESONANCE, taking advantage of the flexible mana pathways granted by the skill.  Focusing tendrils from the skill around the areas he would draw in mana, he then activated IGNITION.  He completely failed to interact with the skill, but his gut told him he was on the right track.  After another half an hour of practice, he managed to replicate the first feat once.  Another half an hour, and he could consistently shape the direction of the intake, even if was immediately undone. 

It wasn’t an elegant, or even feasible solution for combat, and Kyle recognized that.  He tied up nearly half of the tendrils he could create, and in conjunction with his use of HEAL and ADAPTIVE REGENERATION the mana cost for this method marginally outstripped what he would recover through absorbing the atmospheric mana.  Even so, using the skill as a crutch was important for him to get the feel of drawing the energy in. 

As always, C.H.A.D.D. proved invaluable.  With its sensors upgraded for D Grades, the drone had no problem showing him detailed illustrations of how the mana was being drawn in, only enhancing Kyle’s understanding of his work.  He was reminded of their time training in the cave before his fight with the Infernal, and a wistful smile played across his lips.  He hadn’t received any messages from Earth in a while, and wanted to check in with Garth, Thomas, and Amir when he had some spare time back at the Hub.

He was just about to attempt another quick test as he crested a hill, and his breath caught.  It was well into the evening, and as he looked out into the fields, he saw the border of a magnificent city.  He could make out the outline of guard posts along a wall, behind which stood towers and buildings with mind-bogglingly bright colors.  Even in the darkness, the city glowed like a brilliant, multifaceted jewel.  Before he could fully appreciate its beauty, a chill ran up his spine. 

Auric Perception screamed a warning as he felt a surge of incredible power in front of him.  Space itself seemed to tear in his path.  A leather boot stepped through the tear, and soon the form of a man appeared, shadows obscuring everything but two orange eyes.  Space mended itself as the mana faded. Kyle didn’t need C.H.A.D.D.’s warning to understand the threat posed by the man now standing before him. 

Kyle activated IDENTIFY as his other skills were prepared, ready to engage at a moment’s notice.  He saw mana flowing around and through the man, and he saw the circulation of energy around his eyes.  He’s scoping me out, too.  Kyle got strong impressions around Perception and Dexterity, with Willpower and Strength not too far behind.  Intelligence was his lowest attribute, which told Kyle that he likely wasn’t a Mage, at least not classically. 

Most significant, however, was the overall level of power the stranger displayed.  As D Grades were concerned, the only two Kyle had met who were stronger were Duroc and the mysterious velgian.  And while Kyle didn’t know the man’s intentions, he didn’t suspect that many folks casually stepped out of tears in space for a casual stroll.

The two stood for an eerie moment.  Kyle’s senses were alert to the distant sounds, the shifting lights of the nearby city, and the gentle rustling of the tall grass.  Finally, the man spoke, his voice rough as gravel.  “I don’t suppose you’d be so kind as to hand over the egg?”