Liza and Sam
September 4<sup>th</sup>, 2029 / Day 1 within the Astral Plane
Liza worked her way through the forest. Sam was working his way along the obvious path to scout it out while she went in the opposite direction from the Elven Camp. Liza had activated Stealth and moved off toward the area where Elder Vinlan had indicated the largest astral tiger had set up its territory. Without Connor nearby, they couldn’t remain in contact, so they had to be careful. Personal Shroud was a potent ability; as long as they didn’t run into anyone above their rank, they should be okay.
Liza and Sam had talked with Elder Vinlan for another hour before they’d headed out. They’d discussed the surroundings and both Sam and she had shown the Elder that they had access to spells that would allow them to create food and water, which should make them both valuable to the elves when they set out to head home. She could cast the spell once every 10 seconds with no issue as her mana regeneration rate was 17 points in the same period. Sam was a bit slower with a regeneration rate of 5 mana per turn. Since it required 10 mana to cast Create Food, they could create meals for everyone within five minutes as long as the magical density was high enough. Of course, their spell Create Water was immediately useful and they’d spent 10 minutes filling the reservoir for water the elves had set up. Connor might not be with them, but the spells he provided for them were showing their worth.
Liza brought her attention back to the forest around her and perked up when she heard a roar and then a scream. Switching into high gear, she began moving through the forest, allowing her Cat Reflexes to take her up into the trees. She then started pushing forward. She could Shadow Step up to 100 feet for only one mana, which allowed her to pass quickly through the forest like a ghost.
As she came to a small clearing in the foliage, a roar that reverberated passed over her. At an instinctual level, it was a call for her to help, and she knew that the other cats would be coming soon. That didn’t matter, though. What mattered to Liza was the fact that the Matriarch of the Astral Tigers had been covered in a magical net and one of the six bipedal creatures near the cat was moving toward her with a spear. The fifteen creatures appeared to be human-sized, sort of. Their skin was made of reptilian scales and they had tails. Tails?
That was the last thought that made it through the intellectual part of her mind before instinct took over. Later, when she checked her Combat Log, she would come to understand that her various Cat Related Titles and Perks worked on her as well as all the cats she encountered.
You are Enraged!
Title: Rage Rider I has activated
You have ridden the wave of unbridled rage and come out on top. With the help of your Claw sisters, you have learned to control the rage, not let it control you. When enraged, you will no longer lose control. Berserk and Frenzy status conditions no longer cause you to lose control. Additionally, while enraged, all attacks receive +10 to damage.
Perk: Wrath of the Claw Mother has Activated. The following eight attacks require no Stamina and receive +80 To Hit and +80 to Damage each.
***
Sam had done as requested and started following the path the elves had indicated. There was no North or South in this place but the light came from one direction so maintaining a path in the same direction hadn’t been that hard. He’d kept Stealth active and stayed off of the trail while he kept it within visual range. About thirty minutes after he’d left the camp, a roar had echoed through the forest, and an explosion of movement had erupted from his left, right, and directly in front of him.
Sam shifted his position to the side of the nearest tree away from the eruption and waited. A moment later, he watched as three huge Astral Tigers sprinted through the tree tops and headed toward the camp. Unlike Liza, Sam’s Shadow affinity only allowed him to Shadow Step ten feet for one mana, not 100 feet. But it was still enough to allow him to Shadow Step to a tree branch and begin running after the cats.
Ironically, he found that he was almost as fast as they were and that he was able to keep up with the tigers as two of them went around the elven camp to the right and one went to the left. Sam followed the two tigers around the right side of the camp as they continued past the base and zeroed in on the roar. Within two minutes he’d traveled the distance that had taken him 30 minutes and reached a point on the opposite side of the camp that was just about as far away.
One of the cats staggered from the branch and fell to the ground when an arrow struck him. A second arrow struck the second tiger. At that moment Sam caught sight of a small clearing where a group of humanoids was falling apart. With his Perception at about five times normal human, Sam noticed that claws were ripping the creatures, which were attacking the largest Astral Tiger he’d ever seen, apart. After the first attack, Liza became visible as she tore through the six bipedal creatures near the largest Astral Tiger. He’d seen something like this before, when Liza had lost control. Anyone that appeared to be a threat to those cats was going to die.
With that thought, Sam decided that coming in behind the cats was probably not a good idea and spent 10 mana to Shadow Step to the highest branch that he could where he remained Stealthed and held his position. As he did so, he looked for where the arrows had come from and found two more creatures with bows in trees on each side of the clearing. Well, he saw what was left of the archer type creatures because they were falling out of the trees in pieces. Just then, three Astral Tigers entered the clearing near the largest tiger as Liza appeared between the two fallen tigers. She pulled a single arrow out of each tiger and then placed a hand on each. Sam watched as she healed both. When she was done, she whispered under her breath, “Sam, I can sense you in the tree. I’ll make friends with the tigers. Why don’t you go find where the creatures that attacked them came from?”
Following her lead, Sam whispered, “You''re sure, that’s a lot of tigers,”
“I’m sure. Just be careful.”
Sam watched for a moment longer as the two tigers Liza healed woke up, shook their heads, and moved into a defensive position between the matriarch and Liza, before they backed away slowly. Sam turned his attention to the ground around the clearing and found where the brush had been broken near the ground. A quick Shadow Step to the location and he was moving through the growth as he moved away from the clearing. When he didn’t hear the tigers attacking or roaring after thirty seconds, he put them out of his mind and began following the tracks he’d found.
While Sam didn’t have tracking skills, his perception was 132, which seemed to make a big difference. The tracks almost called out for him as he began to follow them through the forest, even in the areas where it looked like they’d doubled back and tried to set up places where it would be tough to follow them. The tracks led him to an area of rolling hills where the path led to a spot where a break in one of the hills that had formed a path which led down into darkness.
There were two of the bipedal creatures near the entrance. If he attacked, Stealth would drop. So, he might be able to take out one of the creatures, but the second would get a chance to react. Then he remembered that he’d picked up Soul Drinker, an enchanted Longsword, and this looked like the perfect time to test it out.
Soul Drinker
Advanced Short Sword
Durability 400 of 400
+4 to hit / +4 to damage
All Kills feed the sword, which regenerates the Durability by an amount equal to the damage done.
Additionally, durability can be sacrificed to add damage to the target if backstabbed successfully.
For example, the wielder could sacrifice 300 points of durability to inflict 300 points of damage. If the attack is successful, the damage inflicted will replenish the durability up to the total damage inflicted. If the target only has 50 Hit Points, it only returns 50 durability for a net loss of 250 durability.
If the attack fails, the durability is lost.
Durability can be replenished through combat and corpse absorption. One point of Durability can be replenished by planting the blade in a corpse. One durability is returned to the blade per full 50 pounds of the corpse. Soul Drinker can absorb four points of durability per Combat Turn in this manner. When finished with a corpse, all that is left is a dried-out corpse.
Yes, his Stealth skill would drop after his first attack, but he could spend enough durability to ensure that each attack was a one hit kill, if they didn’t have too many Hit Points. Sam moved within 100 feet and activated identify for 100 mana. Luckily his stealth skill utilized his Stamina pool so this shouldn’t cause him to become visible.
Race: Saurian / Rank: Uncommon
Class: Guard / Level 15
Hit Points: 115
It was going to take him at least three minutes to regain the mana he’d just spent, so he’d have to trust that the other Saurian was also a guard and not much higher in rank or level than the one he’d identified. Sam drew Soul Drinker as he looked over the Saurians'' placement. Both were posted beside the entrance to the cave, one on each side. Same moved within striking distance of the Saurian he had identified, imbued 100 points of durability in the strike and attacked.
First Attack: 10 Stamina
Weapon: Soul Drinker imbued with 100 durability, +100 to next attack.
Surprise Attack Successful
Critical Hit: 363 damage.
Base Damage 121 x3 Backstab Multiplier
Uncommon Level 25 Guard Killed
Durability returned to Soul Drinker: 100
Current Durability 400 of 400.
12,500 XP Earned
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
125 Credits Earned
Congratulations you have reached Level 64 as a Common Rogue
54,199 XP to next Level
Attributes Adjusted
Second attack: 20 Stamina
Defenseless Attack
Weapon: Soul Drinker imbued with 200 durability, +200 to next attack.
Attack Successful
Base Damage 221
Durability returned to Soul Drinker: 115
Current Durability: 315 of 400.
11,500 XP Earned
42,699 XP to next level
115 Credits Earned
Sam looked down at the two dead Saurians. That had been a lot easier than he’d thought it would be and they’d been worth a nice bit of Experience as well. Sam quickly went over their bodies and placed anything they were carrying in his inventory, which consisted of two swords, 23 silver pieces, and two rings. Unfortunately, he didn’t have any spells that could detect magic or analyze magic items so he placed the swords and rings in his inventory. He left their clothes because they were sized for creatures with tails. Once done looting the bodies, he took Soul Drinker and stabbed it into the first corpse''s chest.
Sam watched as the body of the Saurian shriveled into a desiccated corpse which turned to dust. The dust was then drawn into the sword. When he checked the durability after the first corpse vanished, Soul Drinker had 320 of 400. It had taken almost a minute but the corpse and everything it had been wearing was absorbed. He did the same to the second corpse, which increased Soul Drinker’s durability to 325 of 400.
He hadn’t heard anyone coming to investigate, so Sam activated Stealth again and entered the cave. It turned out to open into a tunnel—not a den—just an opening with a tunnel that led downward at a pretty steep angle. Once he was about thirty feet in, he realized that it was getting very dark. That was fine, Eyes of Eris allowed Sam to see out to 100 feet.
Sam continued down the tunnel until he came to a branch. Off to the right was a small cave with a camp containing three Saurians in it. There were sleeping mats for thirteen creatures. There had been six Saurians attacking the large tiger, two archers, two at the cave entrance, and three here. Yep, that was thirteen. The other branch led deeper underground. The fact that there was a ground here in the Astral Plane was concerning, but not something he could worry about right now.
One Saurian was cooking something in a cauldron while the other two were sleeping. Sam remained under Stealth as he moved in and used Identity on the three Saurians. The first two he checked were the sleeping ones.
Race: Saurian / Rank: Uncommon
Class: Soldier / Level 33
Hit Points: 123
Race: Saurian / Rank: Uncommon
Class: Commander / Level 65
Hit Points: 135
The third, who was cooking, was actually a cook.
Race: Saurian / Rank: Uncommon
Class: Cook / Level 3
Hit Points: 111
Sam started with the cook. He imbued 50 points of durability, moved into position and backstabbed the Saurian with Soul Drinker. The strike did 213 points of damage and replaced 61 durability. He also earned 369 Silver, 36,900 Experience, and only needed 31,599 Experience to reach level 65.
For the two sleeping Saurians, he only utilized 50 durability for each coup-de-gras. Within thirty seconds the three Saurians were defeated. Within a minute, the equipment they’d been carrying, which consisted of three rings, three long swords, and a bracer that looked ornate, were all in his inventory. He also picked up all of their water skins and packs.
Just as he was finishing his search of the cavern his skill Eyes of Eris picked up a predator like chameleon effect directly behind him as a dagger appeared within six inches of his back directly over his heart, far to close for him to dodge, Sam activated Shadow Step as he spent 100 mana to put himself down the passage and within ten feet of the cave entrance. That had been the plan at least. Even with his heightened agility and dexterity, the tip of the blade pierced his back a full inch before he vanished,
WARNING! Magical Interference Detected.
Shadow Step Activated
Common Shadow Affinity Detected
Target Destination…ERROR!
You have taken 10 points of damage.
Blade of Wounding has inflicted a Bleeding; 1 Hit Points per turn until magically healed.
Sam found himself floating in the middle of nowhere completely weightless. Gaseous clouds of various colors surrounded him. He quickly cast Heal on himself to recover some of his hit points and stop the bleeding effect. Then he activated Stealth while he looked around. How far had he traveled with that Shadow Step?
***
As Sam investigated his surroundings, Liza began a telepathic conversation with the matriarch, while the other members of her claw ranged out and set up a perimeter. Two Astral Tigers stayed near to guard her. It had taken a few minutes for the tigers to calm down, and only after they’d each sniffed Liza and she’d sat outside easy range of the Matriarch had the Astral Tigers reduced their threat response to her presence. She only waited for a moment before, Liza felt pressure against her mind, not unlike when Connor used telepathy. She allowed the link to be established..
Thank you, Human
You are welcome, I am Liza, do you need healing? Liza sent back.
No, I am uninjured. Humans are not natural to the Eternal Forest, the Matriarch sent.
No, we’re not, Liza agreed.
Again, thank you for the assistance Claw Mother. Where Claw?”
My Claw? Killed by Sect.
Anger, Vengeance? The Matriarch asked.
Vengeance, yes, Liza agreed.
At that moment a stealthed Saurian passed under one of the tigers holding the perimeter. Liza activated Shadow Step, appeared behind the rogue, and attacked with Shadow Claws. Before the rogue could react, she’d attacked four times, inflicting 168 points of damage. The first attack was considered a critical hit and resulted in 84 points of damage. The subsequent three attacks inflicted 28 points of damage each. The Saurian dropped a dagger he’d been carrying as his arms and legs were removed until he fell dead to the ground in five different pieces.
As the Tiger nearby jumped down to investigate, Liza cast Detect Magic and checked the Saurian''s equipment. That’s when her high perception and Eyes of Eris picked up blood on the tip of the magical dagger. Liza did not have the Identify skill, but she had smelled Sam’s blood various times and detected his scent on the Saurian''s body. Liza picked up the dagger, activated Stealth and began following the Saurian’s trail.
It didn’t take long for her to find the entrance to the cave Sam had entered, follow his trail down to the camp in the cave and see where he had vanished. With Eyes of Eris, she could detect everything within 100 feet, but he was nowhere to be found. As she searched the cave, she detected the Matriarch above her as she made her way into the cave and down to the cavern. Two of Matriarch’s Claw stayed at the branch and guarded against any creatures that might be coming from deeper down. The other tigers must still be above ground. Liza deactivated Stealth and waited for the Matriarch. Once she was within Line of sight, Liza felt the request for a telepathic link and allowed it.
Thanks to you again, the Matriarch sent.
You are welcome, Liza sent back. Sam was nowhere nearby and it couldn’t hurt to ask so Liza sent another question, Can you detect another human anywhere nearby?
The Matriarch sniffed the air. She looked thoughtful for a moment before she sent, "Another human was here. Chaos, Shadow, and Space magic are here also. It feels like your friend teleported away. Yes, teleported.
Do you know where to? Liza asked.
It smells like the destination was the Deep Astral. Far away from here.
How far? Liza asked.
Suddenly an image of traveling for weeks, if not months, entered her mind. Through the Eternal Forest to a mountain range, into the mountain range and through a portal that exited into the deep astral plane. Liza considered what she’d been shown and decided that there was nothing she could do for Sam at the moment. Instead she would try to help the elves. Besides, he hadn’t traveled into the Deep Astral the way the Matriarch showed. No, he’d reached it by accident. Their last accident had sent the three of them back in time, which meant he was probably well out of range, and that meant that he could be anywhere. She would have to look for Sam once the elves were safe, if she could make a deal with the Matriarch. Sam would have to take care of himself for now.
Do you know of the elves in the camp? Liza asked.
Yes, they camp at the location where we first detected your scent; that’s why we left that area to you.
“Left the area..” to me, Liza smiled. That made sense. If she had traveled through time, perhaps they had detected her presence through the temporal barrier that had held them. Would you allow me to escort the elves out of your territory, they wish to return home?” Liza asked.
We thought they were yours, so we haven’t attacked them. Of course, you may escort them through our territory. Is that all?
At the moment. After I have helped the elves, I will try to return to look for my friend. Liza sent.
We have his scent, and if he returns, we will help as we can. However, the Eternal Forest, like the Astral Plane, is vast and ever-changing; he may never return.
Understood. I appreciate your consideration.
How could we do otherwise for a Claw Mother. Go now, and see to your people. We will defend this entry point into our territory. These lizard folk chose poorly when they attacked me.
Liza nodded and made her way out of the tunnel. Once she was above ground again, she activated Stealth and used Shadow Step to return to and move through the treetops. Shortly, she was back at the elven camp. After she spoke with Elder Vinlan, they could be on their way.
***
Sam, Day 7 within the Astral Plane.
Well, there were a couple of good things about being trapped in the Astral Plane. First, the temperature was about 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Also, the mana density was good so his mana was regenerating normally which allowed him to Create Food and Create Water as he needed to whenever he wanted to. Also, the requirement to utilize nonorganic material was rescinded here. The spells drew what they needed from the environment directly.
He thought using the bathroom was going to be embarrassing, but the first time he did, he noticed that anything that traveled away from him just evaporated after a bit. He knew something was up when, for the first time, the smell had disappeared within minutes, and then any evidence of his biological waste was gone. He didn’t understand what was going on, but he definitely appreciated it.
So, for the last seven days, he floated in an extended twilight without a sun or stars and only gaseous clouds around him. Unfortunately, he had no idea how to move through the Astral or how to find his way home. One thing he did have was time, so he started exploring his affinity with Shadow and his Shadow Step Skill. He could use it, and he felt as if he’d moved, but where he stepped to and from felt the same. He knew he had moved because of Eyes of Eris, but he couldn’t determine how. He needed to get back to the Prime Material Plane. A thought crossed his mind. Maybe if he could get to the Plane of Shadow he might be able to get to the Prime Material Plane a bit easier. With nothing else to do, he started.
Sam, Day 31 within the Astral Plane.
It took a bit, but Sam was eventually able to perceive and then step into the Shadow Plane from the Astral Plane when he spent his last Skill Slot to pick up the Skill Step into Shadow.
The Uncommon Skill Step into Shadow has been forcefully learned at Common Rank due to the Ability Unfettered.
Cost: 1 Skill Slot, 1,000 Mana, and a Test of Will
Success!
Step into Shadow
Rank: Common
Mana Cost: 100
This Skill allows you to shift your physical body into the Plane of Shadow at the location of transfer from a Prime Material Plane or the Astral Plane.
The Plane of Shadow mimics the Prime Material closest to it or the Astral, whichever has an environment that might produce shadows.
Note: that not all locations are linear and that there might be vast distance separation on the Prime Material Plane that is only one foot across in the Shadow Plane.
Note: Stealth does not work within the Plane of Shadow.
Sam spent 100 mana and vanished into the Plane of Shadow where he appeared in an empty sky and began to fall. He knew this because within seconds he could feel a breeze against his face. As he looked around in the perpetual twilight, he could see stars all around him as he fell toward a large round dark sphere. He could breathe and it wasn’t cold. He was technically in space, but he wasn’t in a vacuum. If he had to guess, he figured he was somewhere between the Earth and the Moon and he was falling toward a planet. Hopefully, that planet was Earth.
Sam felt wind resistance, so he tried moving his body and found that, if he was careful, he could use his hands and legs as ailerons and elevators. Of course, as soon as he streamlined his angle of attack so that he was falling head first with his legs and arms at his side, he began to speed up. It seemed that gravity was a universal force with the Plane of Shadow as well.
Over the next 12 hours, Sam fell towards the Earth until he saw a moon come into view. After a couple of more hours, which allowed him to compare his distance at different angles to the Moon and the planet, he estimated that he was halfway between the two stellar bodies. The moon was about 240 thousand miles from the moon, which meant that he was about 120,000 miles from the planet. Suppose he was falling at terminal velocity, which was about 220 miles per hour. That meant it would take about 546 hours to reach the earth or just under 23 days. 23 Days? Well, at least he had time to try to figure out how to try to survive the fall.