Pandora Unchained - a Cultivation Progression Fantasy

A light blue mana shield rippled as their group of seven left the protection of the outpost and entered demonic territory. The gentle and calm mana characteristic of human-inhabited territories was replaced by a wild and chaotic variant.

Cultivation and energy recovery grew several times more difficult, and their emotions, already in high gear due to the impending exam, suddenly grew unstable. "We'll stop here to regulate our emotions," said Assessor Haley. "Remember that this is fall, which is very different from either summer or winter." Summer was the domain of Violence, while Winter, the deadliest of the seasons, fell under the influence of Madness.

It took a few minutes for their makeshift team to fully grow used to pressure. Sorin was not an adventurer, but his father had taken him out into the wilderness on several occasions. He was, therefore, the second to rehabilitate himself after Lawrence, an unexpected acquaintance for this trial. It was clear that Lawrence had also been trained by his father in preparation for his adventuring debut.

"Communication with the outpost will become difficult going forward," explained Haley. "Only precious consumable treasures can be used to communicate, and even I only carry three on my person. It is, therefore, important to remember that anything that happens in the wilderness is likely to stay in the wilderness.

Haley led the way, and the rest of their group, still struggling with the emotional impact of the demonic forest, followed. They were mostly silent and kept to themselves, though Lawrence approached Sorin and gave him a thumbs up.

"Physician Kepler," said Lawrence. "Out of all the people I know, you're the one I least expected to see here. Have they started bringing physicians along to look after the wounded?"

"I'm not a physician anymore," said Sorin. "So please call me Sorin. Besides, we're the same age. Addressing each other with titles is just uncomfortable."

"But Sorin just sounds wrong," said Lawrence. "It's hard to face a person who's seen your privates and busted your boils a half dozen times without a certain degree of social separation."

"Deal with it," said Sorin. "If we're adventuring together, it's very likely that at least half of these people will see you naked by day's end."

"True," said Lawrence. "Though my father always said that half of being a rogue lies in not getting hit."

"And what about the other half?" asked Sorin.

"That… well… it involves seeing other people naked while also maintaining a pure and unsoiled body," said Lawrence. "Eeek!" he suddenly froze as a sharp projectile flashed by his ear and drew a stream of blood. "Assessor Haley, how could you!"

"If you keep spewing nonsense during this assessment, I won't hesitate to fail you even if it is the tenth time you've taken this assessment," said Haley, not even deigning to look back.

"She's a vicious assessor," whispered Lawrence. "Which is why my dad said I can't take the test for anyone but her. He also said that in all these years, he's the only one to have seen her –"

"Lawrence!" snapped Haley. The rogue wisely shut his trap and fell in line.

"Now that we're a fair distance away from the outpost shield, let's get down to the meat and bones of this assessment," said Assessor Haley. "You're all here to take the adventurer's examination, and as far as I'm concerned, it started the moment we set foot outside the Adventurers Guild. And Daphne?"

"Yes?" said the mage in their group, blinking.

"Are you daydreaming on me?" asked Haley. "Because in my eyes, that's already a failing grade. You've got a lot of negative marks to make up for."

Surprisingly, the mage took it in stride. "All right. I'll do my best." Her eyes glazed over as her mind drifted once again.

Haley put her hand to her forehead. "Fine. If you die, my conscience is clear. Vetner?"

"Yes, Assessor Haley?" said a nervous-looking warrior. He wore chain mail and wielded a sword and shield.

"As the only person who seems to be able to take hits on this team, it falls to you to be the tank of the party," said Haley. "Daphne, hold your spells and only use them if you have to. Lawrence, keep an eye out for sneaky demons and potential ambushes."

"Yes, ma'am!" said Lawrence. He was amazingly quick and blurred off into the distance. It was only thanks to his strong spiritual perception that Sorin could make out his shadow flitting from tree to tree.

"Janice, you're a healer, so you won't be expected to defeat any monsters individually," continued Haley. "Just focus on providing support and use your mana sparingly. You'll fight in a group with Vetner when the time comes. Gareth?"

"Yes, Assessor Haley?" said a sharp-eyed youth. He was a dark-haired boy with golden eyes that never seemed to stop moving.

"I see that you've already taken stock of our surroundings," said Haley. "Keep at it, and grow into your role as we move."

"Yes, Assessor Haley," replied Gareth. He began paying more attention to their back and sides, leaving the front for Lawrence and probe in detail.

"That just leaves Sorin," said Haley. "Sorin Kepler. Any relation to the Kepler Clan in the capital?"

"Regretfully," said Sorin.

"Then, given your origins, I'm sorry to say that I've never seen a sadder application," said Haley. "No experience? No training? Did you think that since the classes at the Adventurers Guild were free, they weren't worth taking? I'd at least expect you to pass your family's screening. Don't you know that can cause huge issues for us?"

"That… my situation is a little unusual," said Sorin, but Haley cut him off before he could explain.

"Save it," said Haley. "You're from a big family. You feel stifled. I get it. But that also means the bar is much higher for passing than it would normally be. You'd better be damned impressive, or you can forget about getting a passing mark. Is that understood?"

"Yes, Assessor Haley," said Sorin.

They were less than twenty minutes into the forest before Lawrence came rushing back, and Gareth, the group's archer, called them to a stop. "Our flanks are clear. Lawrence – what did you find?"

"Three minor demons, horned rabbits," reported Lawrence. "Shouldn't be too difficult to take care of them alone, but I figured it was your call."

Gareth looked to Haley, who nodded to him. "Vetner, take point. I'll cover you with arrow fire. Serious wounds are unlikely, but Janice, please keep an eye on him. Lawrence? Approach from the right and take out one of them. I want to familiarize myself with your movements and attack speed. And Daphne? Hold your fire. Daphne?"

The mage blinked and looked at Gareth. "Yes?"

"No spells, please," said Gareth.

"Okay!" said Daphne, giving him a thumbs up.

"That just leaves Sorin," said Gareth. "I have no idea where to fit you, so act how you please and don't get in the way."

"Confirmed," said Sorin. He would take the chance to try out his abilities against living targets if he could. Demons had different physiologies than humans, and mana interacted with them very differently.

Lawrence led them into a clearing. Upon seeing the three-horned rabbits, Gareth called a stop and signaled for Vetner to initiate.

The warrior began to glow with a soft blue light as he activated a combat skill. Sorin thought it was overkill against minor demons, but he took out his dagger and needles and prepared to fight if required.

Demons had keen instincts and immediately reacted to Vetner's charge. The three-foot-long creatures channeled demonic energy into their horns and aimed their attacks at Vetner's torso.

"Shield Extension!" shouted Vetner, pouring mana into his arms and through the shield on his left arm. A mana projection twice as large as the shield appeared to block two of the rabbits. As for the third, Vetner swung his sword down and took a chunk out of its cheek.

The two rabbits Vetner had blocked bounced back quickly. One of them tumbled to a tree and used it as a springboard to attack the unprotected Daphne.

An arrow came flying out of Gareth's bow and struck the horned rabbit in the neck. It tried to get up, but Sorin flicked a crystal needle imbued with poison into its neck, extinguishing the last spark of life in its corrupted flesh.

The rabbit Vetner had chosen to fight was putting up a fierce struggle, so he had no time to block the remaining rabbit. Fortunately, Lawrence had recovered from the loss of his initial target; he appeared behind the stray rabbit and struck it cleanly between the shoulder blades.

This only left Vetner's rabbit. They stood back as Vetner finished it off. He took a blow to the shoulder in the process, but fortunately, his chainmail absorbed most of the blow.

"Clear up the battlefield and inspect all wounds," ordered Gareth. "Sorin, I hear you're good at surgical work. Get their cores and their horns, will you?"

Sorin shrugged and did as he was told. The anatomy of a horned rabbit wasn't complicated, and he quickly located the small demonic crystals located in their skulls. Their horns were thick but hollow, so he had no problem using a surgical saw to retrieve them.

It was only when he'd finished his retrieval work that he paid attention to Vetner. The warrior had gotten supremely unlucky in his exchange, as his shield extension had failed just as the horned rabbit was making a dying lunge. His chainmail was currently stripped back, and Janice, the healer of their party, was pouring ridiculous amounts of mana into the shallow wound.

"That wound doesn't need that much healing," Sorin interrupted her. "You'd be better off preserving your mana for something else."

Janice frowned as he approached. "He's clearly bleeding quite a bit. Blood loss can become a real issue if not taken care of promptly."

"It won't be an issue," said Sorin. He unsheathed his dagger and cut away Vetner's shirt around the wound, revealing a small hole where the horned rabbit had stabbed him. Sorin then poured a disinfectant solution over the wound and then did the same to his knife and left hand. Then, to Vetner's horror, Sorin reached into the wound with his fingers.

"Are you insane?" shouted Janice. She tried to pull him away, but fortunately, Lawrence was around and stopped her.

"Just let the doctor work," said Lawrence. "He knows what he's doing."

"Horned rabbit horns appear to be solid, but they're actually hollow on the inside," said Sorin as he rummaged under the man's flesh. Vetner gritted his teeth, but the pain wasn't so serious since Sorin had stealthily rubbed a powerful anesthetic on his fingers. "The horns easily splinter when piercing into flesh, aggravating the otherwise shallow wounds that they cause."

His fingers finally found what they were looking for – a chunk of bone lodged into muscle. He yanked it out and placed a finger over the wound and the man's three torn veins. "Treatment is simple," continued Sorin. "Extract the bone fragments. Stich the veins. Apply healing potions as required or apply a healing salve or small amounts of life qi to staunch bleeding. Stitch and heal over torn muscles. A healing salve will be sufficient for superficial wounds. Janice?"

"Y-Yes?" stammered Janice.

"I already finished stitching up most of this," said Sorin, tugging on a needle and thread and snipping through it with a pair of surgical scissors. "Three units of life mana should do the trick." Two if she was half competent, thought Sorin, but decided to keep that part to himself.

Thirty seconds later, Janice was done healing most of the damage. Vetner winced as he rolled his shoulder but grinned. "Nice! It's good as new!" he said.

"Warriors typically regenerate quickly, so you should be right as rain within the hour," said Sorin. "Apologies, Janice, for usurping your role. I'm just quite fearful about what other threats we might face and thought it best to preserve your life mana."

"Is everyone done?" asked Haley once Vetner put his chainmail back on.

"Yes," replied Gareth. "We've recovered and are ready to move out."

"Not so fast," said Haley. "This was your first fight coming out here, so it doesn't count towards your actual assessment. But I must say – this was one of the most disgraceful fights I've ever laid eyes on." She glared at Vetner. "Your shield skill is unpolished. When did you learn it? Three days ago?"

"Four," admitted Vetner.

"Rookie mistakes like that will get your friends killed," scolded Haley. "Use only skills you've practiced. If it's a minor encounter, let others know that you're practicing something new so they can back you up." She looked at Lawrence next. "Lawrence. Not bad this time around."

"Thank you, Assessor Haley," said Lawrence.

"Gareth," said Haley. "Keep this up, and you'll fail."

"Yes, ma'am," said Gareth, accepting her criticism.

"Do you know what you did wrong?" asked Haley.

"I didn't fully familiarize myself with the team and inquire as to their specific abilities," said Gareth. "I assumed they would fall into specific roles, but I should have verified before first combat."

"At least you have the self-awareness to admit it," said Haley. "Normally, it's either a warrior or an archer that leads the team. Archers are typically most observant, so they'll call shots mid-battle." Her eyes roamed to Daphne, who was yawning, then Janice, who averted her eyes. Then they fell on Sorin, who was still figuring out how he fit in the group. "Sorin?"

"Yes, Assessor Haley?" replied Sorin.

"Good work on the stray bunny," said Haley. "It was the only thing you did right in the entire fight. Daphne's so oblivious the half-dead bunny would have probably gored her. I'm a little surprised at your lack of reaction to killing a demon. Did your parents send you to the arenas for training in the big city?" Sorin confirmed this. "Gareth?"

"Yes, Haley?" said Gareth.

"Sorin is a close-quarters poison user," said Haley. "Short-ranged or point-blank support as required. Situational medic. Squishy but very strong against tougher demons. Work him into the team."

"Yes, ma'am!" said Gareth. He then called the team together and began running them through a series of questions. Thirty minutes later, they ran into their second minor encounter.