Andrew opened his eyes to a bright blue sky. He was laying on his back, and no longer wearing his armor. The skin on his chest and face felt tight, and his right arm was wrapped tight with bandages. He could faintly hear the sound of metal clanging and clashing, and bolted up to see Shelby and Kalan facing off in full armor, a square hobgoblin sword held by each.

The smell of blood and char filled his nose as he blinked back grogginess. His armor lay in a pile near the stool he passed out on last night. The wagon was still pulled up against the crevice, and he could see a great cloud of smoke rising from just beyond the crevice walls. There was a pile of axes and short blades near the crevice exit along side another smaller pile of furs and pelts.

Ahh fuck, how late is it?

That was a real bad time. Fucking goblin night raids.

We need to get rid of those goblins. I don't like it, I don't want to have to do it, but they're going to kill us soon if they can attack with that kind of firepower. Where did they get it? The blades look like smaller versions of the hobgoblin swords. If they're communicating, trading, then we could be in a lot of trouble. I got lucky with the hobgoblin caravan before and Kalan said they only sent those out once every two weeks or so. If they send a group out to deal with us here we'll be in big trouble. I don't think we stand much of a chance against a well prepared hobgoblin force.

HP: 560/570

Health regen still going strong though, more than enough to get some work done today.

Show log

[Goblin level 16 defeated]

[Goblin level 19 defeated]

[Goblin level 15 defeated]

[Goblin level 17 defeated]

[Goblin level 14 defeated]

[Goblin level 12 defeated]

[Goblin level 18 defeated]

….

[Goblin level 17 defeated]

[Scavenger level increased]

[Scavenger level increased]

[Scavenger level increased]

[Scavenger level increased]

Alright, a few extra levels, nothing to call home about. Which would be nice to do. Calling home. Have to stay focused, that's not important right now. Phone is busted anyways. It's time to look at catalyst options, if we want to take on that hobgoblin work camp I might need a serious increase in firepower.

[Your current skills and achievements allow you to choose from the following Catalysts]

[Druidic Apprentice: You gain understanding of the nature mana around you. The basic elements heed your call and you gain a simple understanding of the natural life around you. You have immersed yourself in nature while practicing mana control, and imbued items with natural mana.]

[Mana Binder: The binder draws in mana like moths to light. They control the flow of mana and make use of arcane tools and runic circles to bind it into the material world. The binder can draw mana in, alter it and contain it, but will struggle to shape and guide it. Their greatest strength lies in powering high capacity magical tools and creating impressive mana batteries.]

[Rune Forger: The Forger creates rune based tools from the ground up, carefully altering or creating materials to best suit the nature of their runes and purpose. They make use of advanced knowledge of the flow of mana and affinity of materials to push the efficiency and power of the inscribed arcane to it's limit. A skilled Forger can construct a tool equal to any skill, and usable by any with the mana to power it.]

[Runic Pioneer: You have begun to tread on a path unknown to even those of the age before. Runes were rare knowledge then, acquired by only the most dedicated of enchanters and closely guarded. You will be the first to tread the path of a pure rune mage. With time and dedication you will hold powers any nation would fear. Any home a fortress. Any weapon an unmatched tool of your will. With time to prepare the Runic Pioneer will have no threats. Your dedication to learning the runic arts, mana control, infusion, empowerment, and inscription allow you to access this class. Note: choosing this catalyst will consume the pioneer title.]

[Runic Destroyer: Destruction is shaped by your hand. You utilize ancient knowledge to create instruments of widespread death and destruction. You follow recklessly in the footsteps of the enchanters who jealously guarded their secrets, experimenting without regard for your surroundings. With trial, error, and luck, you will survive to create weapons capable of changing the landscape and exterminating nations. This is a pure path towards the power that scoured all life from this planet's surface once before. Note: choosing this catalyst will consume the pioneer title.]

Alright, okay. Options are definitely evolving, though I'm starting to have second thoughts about waiting so long to pick a catalyst. I only have access to five choices, which means that I could reach a point where all of my options will require me to give up my Pioneer title, or be forced into an undesirable choice because it's the only one which allows me to keep it. Like this mana binder catalyst, what the hell is that?

It seems like an alteration on what I do with runic circles right now, but with a focus on storing the mana for later use. I imagine it would give me skills that would allow me to reproduce the mana crystals I still have, which I don't think has a ton of practical use right now. It may allow me to create high power items, but it would likely require even more prep time, and would be situational. It might also lock me out of more advanced rune carving skills in the future and turn me into a glorified mana generator. Seems like a high-prep magic support type thing, and not really capable of the kind of independence I'm looking for.

That makes my only serious options here Rune Forger and Druidic Apprentice, because the Runic Destroyer class consumes my title and sounds way more foreboding than the Runic Pioneer catalyst. 'A pure path towards the power that scoured all life from this planet's surface' sounds really bad. 'experimenting without regard for your surroundings' is a little harsh, but regardless I wouldn't trust myself to mess around with planet scouring power. That description seems to imply that whatever wiped out this planet before was related to the runes I'm learning to use, which is, concerning. I think I'll have to be careful about who I share this book with in the future. If someone else gains access to this catalyst and kills literally everyone by fucking around with it, then that’s kinda on me. I think it would take a lot of work to get there, but it's still not something I want to spread all over, I suppose.

As far as the Rune Forger catalyst goes, it does look fairly well suited to what I'm doing right at this moment. The lack of fireball spewing power is a slight disappointment, but that’s more of a daydream anyways. If I specialize in making items like the one I made for Kalan it would give me the ability to increase the strength of all of the people around me. I need to remember why I'm picking a catalyst in the first place.

Right now I need to build up enough strength to take on that big camp of hobgoblins. What happens after that though? I'll have a big group of people with whatever the fuck random skills they picked up while working in mine, and a larger society of hobgoblins that will probably fucking notice if a big ol' mining camp goes dark. More people means it would be easier for them to find us, and harder for us to defend them. If I can make or alter items that those people can use though, then I could increase the strength of the group as a whole.

Druidic apprentice would probably give me more direct options though, something like a fireball or like a vine whip entanglement thingy or the ability to talk to animals. Super neat fun stuff, but lacking in efficiency.

Do I pick one now. Shit. What If I pick a profession and come back to find that all of my catalyst options require me to give up my pioneer title? This thing doesn't exactly have a reset button.

Blacksmithing is at nine. Rune inscription is at eight. I could get there in a day or two.

AAAAHHHHH.

If Kalan and Shelby were not deeply concentrating on the sparring match between them they may have witnessed the sight of a bandaged up Andrew throwing himself backward onto the sleeping pallet and rolling from side to side, clutching his head and pausing only to briefly mutter up at nothingness before returning to his brainstorming exercises.

Alright. Okay. Alright.

Alright.

I'm in this far right? I've waited this long right? What's a couple more days? What's a little more experience? What possible, permanent, life altering harm could gaining a few more levels and a profession do?

Fuck.

Move on, I'm waiting. I've made up my mind, I'm waiting. In it for the big one. Holding on. Waiting.

Fine.

There's a lot to do. If I'm not picking a catalyst right now I’m just wasting time.

Andrew pushed himself up from the pallet and stretched taking in the scene of destruction once again.

Okay. Priorities. New ones, Old ones.

Inscribe armor for Shelby. More Grenades. Blacksmithing and Inscription to ten. Express goblin genocide. New wall. Alcohol or like mushrooms or something for after? Probably not responsible, or practical.

First, a plan.

"Hey Kalan! Shelby! I'm up, let's talk business!" Andrew shouted to the pair as he stood and walked to a stool by the table and sat down. They stopped from where they were circling each other and pulled off sweaty helmets.

"Hey buddy, good to see you back up! We had a wager going, loser has to throw more bodies on the burn pile outside." Kalan said, approaching and taking a seat across from Andrew.

"Yeah we have to talk about that. I know you like it here, but I don't think we can burn enough of those things to get the stink out." Shelby said, taking another seat. "And those things very obviously know where we are, and aren't going to stop."

"yeah, that’s exactly what I was about to say. We do need to do something about those goblins. Last night was way too close. I know where they live too, and I think I have a plan for dealing with them. They live in a cave right? I'll need to do some testing, but I might have a runic circle that can remove air, or block it from passing through. Either way we might be able to smoke out the whole cave. Start a big fire in the entrance and seal it up, or just pull the air out directly. Easily one of the most horrific ideas I've had since coming here, but I don't know if I'd bet on our chances against even two of those laser shooting goblins." Andrew said.

"So you would suffocate all of them in their cave?" Kalan said. "It is a grim thing to do. I was the first to suggest wiping them out if they attacked again though, and they were certainly quick to do that much."

"Couldn't we just move though? Take our stuff and cover our tracks behind us? Find somewhere else to camp, maybe somewhere closer to the hobgoblin camp? That's still a few days walk away you know." Shelby said.

"No, unfortunately I don't think we can afford to let the goblins sit any longer, for a couple reasons. I don't really know anything about tracking, so I might be wrong here, but I don't think it will be easy to hide us shoving a wagon through the forest, first of all. Secondly, I'm worried about those goblins snitching. Seriously. I'm pretty sure they speak the same language that the hobgoblins speak, the swords these guys had look pretty damn similar to the ones the hobgoblins have, and goblin is literally in the hobgoblin name. If these goblins can run a distress call or something out to their hobgoblin buddies and they bring a prepared force after us, we're toast. I think we'll have to do both. Pack up the camp, and take out the goblins so they can't track us." Andrew said emphatically.

They both frowned and shared a look before nodding.

"I'll need to test the circle out, but I think we should do this today. If the camp is really only a couple days out, we don't have a lot of time to deal with them and get out of here. I'll need you guys to defend me while I carve the circle, but theoretically we won't have to deal with too many while it's running. I'm pretty sure those circles will kill pretty much anything at a high enough mana saturation level. We might want to start packing early." Andrew said.

"What if this circle thing doesn't work at all? If we just start a big fire on their front door and they all come swarming out?" Shelby asked.

"Well, plan B is I carve an explosive rune on one of the boulders outside and we roll it up to the front entrance and blow it the fuck up. Way more chance of us killing ourselves with that one though, and getting in to check out what they have stashed away would be almost impossible. We also would probably just delay them, rather than clear them out, and it would be best to just run and regroup at that point." Andrew said. "I'll make sure to carve plan B first, I've been getting a lot of practice with that one, and it can be a lot smaller than the one around the cave entrance."

"Got it. Ok. So, pack up the cart then?" Shelby said.

"Pack up the cart. Do you need any of your forge stuff or can it all go in?" Kalan said.

Andrew stood and pulled on a shirt. "Pack it all up. All I need to test this is that long white stick, and all I'll need to carve the trap is my chisel. I'd like to do more forging, but this takes precedence."

He gathered up his stick and chisel, pulled his boots up onto increasingly chaffed and gritty sockless feet, and set off out of the messy, stained little valley. The sight and stench that greeted him was far from the comforting freshness he used to enjoy from forests. A pile of goblin corpses sat next to a burning pyre made up of branches and chunks of log piled tall near the river. Thick grey smoke poured up out of the pile. The river was clear, but the mud that lined its banks was far darker than it should be, and dotted with crimson.

Yes. We definitely can't stay here. Damn.

Andrew walked until the smoke no longer clogged his nose and the stench was a consequence of the shifting wind before carving out his circle. The first was an inverted air mana circle. He scratched a moderate circle out quickly before pressing the stick into the dirt and beginning to charge it.

It was hard to make out the changes that an air gathering circle made, the air removing circle was even harder to see. After pumping two hundred mana into the circle there was still no difference in the air inside of the circle. The grass that lined the bottom seemed thinner, maybe, hard to tell. Andrew threw a couple leaves in and they grew slightly pale as they approached the circle, before flitting away at it's edge. Andrew cautiously pushed a hand towards the edge of the circle and felt a faint breeze flowing upwards, away from the runes carved into the dirt.

Andrew dumped a hundred more points of mana into the circle without noticeable change before pulling up handfuls of grass, and scattering them around the edge of the circle. They moved outward the quickest near the bottom. The higher he spread the grass though, the more it pulled upward before scattering away. When he threw a clump high into the air above the circle it fell normally until a couple feet off the ground where it seemed to swirl inward at the center and fly into the circle with increased speed before scattering within the circle and flowing outwards.

Interesting. So If I put this at the mouth of a cave and set a fire inside it would probably pull a constant stream of smoke out, and air in anyways, though it would be significantly slower than natural.

Next Andrew got to work scratching an air mana binding circle around the inverted air gathering circle. He laid the stick longways across both circles and pumped more mana in. After only a hundred mana he could already see a faint pale film form in the air between the two circles. He threw a couple extra points of mana into the circles for good measure before ripping more tufts of grass out of the earth and scattering them towards the circle.

They entered the first circle and fluttered upwards following the dome of the circle before being pulled into the center of the top where they scattered down and out, only to be caught in the upward breeze once again. Some were scattered with enough force that they escaped the circle, but most were caught in a strange swirling pattern, becoming increasingly pale and moving increasingly quick before being pulled into the circle and darkening once more only to be expelled again.

I'm sure this combination has uses with the other elements. It seems extra effective for concentrating elements within a small space. Anything inside is still going to be subject to the mana drain though, so not exactly usable as a defensive skill at this point. At least not near force field shield levels yet. Regardless, I think this and a good bonfire will be enough to block up a cave and suffocate a bunch of goblins.

Andrew used his stick to scuff out the circles he drew and was rewarded with a sharp gust of air that tussled his increasingly unmanageable black hair.

First thing on the list next time we have a stable camp. Scissors for the hair and a razor for this beard.

Andrew trudged back towards the crevice and the column of smoke and charred goblin corpses. When he returned to a camp that was being cleared with shocking speed. The cookpot and stand, cold box, and forge stones were already loaded in the back. Their extra shirts were folded and stacked inside empty ration bags. Ingots filled another bag, and the scavenged weapons were piled in the center. A dwindling supply of the boards he brought from his very first camp lined one side of the cart, and a coil of rope was stacked on top of it. Kalan was winding up a roll of bandages that had been stretched across a stone to dry while Shelby frowned over the hides she pulled from where they had been left to smoke over night.

Nearly done already, this move is already way better than the last one. With the exception of the oncoming slaughter and all. Shit. I hope I don't get more destroyer-type catalysts. Might have to find some community service to do after this if I want to balance things out.

Andrew set to work dismantling the sleeping pallet and packing those boards away too. He then gathered up the piles of stones he marked for future carving, and the two he had carved into grenades already, which he set aside in the foot well of the wagon. It wasn't even noon by the time the wagon was fully loaded.

"Alright, now they seem to be most active at night. Last time I encountered them they seemed to be gearing up for a big meal right as night fell, and they've always attacked late at night. I'm hoping they're mostly asleep after that attack on us last night, so let's try and move quick and get the drop on them." Andrew said, as they clustered up outside of the crevice.

"You'll need to cover me while I carve the runes around the entrance. It's not huge, maybe four feet high and a little wider, not much larger than some of the circles I've already carved. I'll have to carve two though, and if we want this to work I'll need to be touching them almost all the time."

"Got it." Kalan said.

"Yeah we can do this." Shelby said "Besides I picked out a class after the fighting last night. [Ranger] I wanted something more magical, but I got a Piercing Shot and Wilderness Tracking skill out of it, and I imagine this will result in a lot of levels for all of us. And I got the first level of sword mastery training with Kalan this morning. I think I'll be able to help out fine if they get close. I think."

"Alright. Alright, good. Well lets get moving then we'll want to move fast till we hit the boulders, then slow down. Hopefully they won't have any hunting teams out until the afternoon, and by that time we'll already be posted up at the entrance." Andrew said.

He broke off from the group and waved for them to follow before beginning to jog back along the cliffside. Spear in one hand, shield in the other, Chisel tucked into a pocket. His bare feet shifting in gritty boots, a faint throb pulsing from one ankle.