It wasn't a far sprint, but I cast [Haste] on myself as I ran. Time was of the essence. In the meantime, I dug into the pouches at my side and tried to formulate a plan. Sure, no one brought weapons to the World Events, but I didn't need weapons. I was a Tinker. A sub-class of Artificer, Tinkers excelled in mechanical traps, bombs, and gadgets. They had a knack for taking things about and putting them back together in new and fantastical ways. Some even imbued a little magic into their creations. Tinkers built the deadliest traps, most charming automatons, and most innovative gadgetry around. I liked to call them the MacGyver class. Luckily, that was just my specialty.

Search Guidebook for Reavers, I thought in command. The page came up within a second, settling to the side of my vision so I could still see where I was going.

Reavers

Dark, deadly, and unpredictable, Reavers look for one thing: weakness. Usually found in desert areas, they can expand their reach when food is scarce. With wide, bat-like wings and deadly talons, Reavers strike fast and strike hard. Legend has it they feast on the flesh of their enemies, be they dwarf, elf, or man.

Strengths: Speed, bloodlust, flying.

Weaknesses: Water, poison, cold.

One of the reasons Reavers tend to stick to desert areas is that their body regulates temperature different than most. In many climes they can get too cold and "freeze up". Water, also, disrupts their internal cooling system and can damage their muscles. Because of their aversion to water, they stink. Quite badly. An injured Reaver excretes poisonous gas as a defense mechanism. Look out!

Prepare yourself if you're ever up against a Reaver. They're vicious opponents, and not for the faint of heart.

Water, I mentally noted. That was it. I knew they were averse to some element, but in the chaos I couldn't remember what. I closed the Guidebook and gathered ingredients from my bag. Perfect.

I bumped up against a small group of organizers who huddled and pointed at the sky. "Get as many as you can to safety, then return back here."

They looked at me in surprise, but nodded and ran off, ushering the children toward the teleporter. I pulled [Amica Skin], [Rope], [Water] and [Sap] out of my bag and set to work. The sap mixed with the water made a clear, sticky substance that would cling to their skin and sink in, just like I wanted. The Amica skin was translucent and stretchy, pulled from the body of a reptile found in the underground caves of Daeldra. Tie off the Amica skin like a water balloon, fill it with the sap mixture, and throw. The resulting explosion would deter them for at least a little bit.

As I tied one off, I inspected their properties to double check:

Resin Bomb. Quality: Very Good. Deals 10 Water Damage on impact, -1 damage over time for 20-30 seconds. > Your Bombcraft skill is now level: 6! Congratulations! Bombs have a 5% longer "sticky" timer, meaning bombs with DOTs will last longer.

A dwarven man returned to me, looking for instructions. "How can I help?" He asked.

"Take these," I said, handing him a few of the orbs. "Be gentle, now. Gentle until you hit those bastards with it, that is."

"Duck!" The dwarf yelled, swerving out of the way.

I turned and a Reaver headed right toward us! A split-second of adrenaline later, I readied a Resin Bomb in my hand. As an example, I chucked one toward the Reaver. It shrieked as the skin on the bomb burst, exploding the sap-water mixture all over its exposed torso. The stickiness made it hard to slough off, and it flailed about wildly before dodging us and flitting back toward the trees.

Direct hit! 10 Damage + 1 damage over 23 seconds. +33 XP

As the Reaver flew away, I smelled a sickly burning sensation and nearly gagged.

"Use this!" The dwarf said, tossing me a head scarf before I could breathe much of it in. It was a thick red weave I'd seen used by the desert folk.

Head Scarf. Durability: 8/10. Provides 15% resistance to Poison damage. New Status: Poisoned. Lose 1 HP every 5 seconds for 300 seconds. Remedy: Lesser Antidote or above.

I nodded in gratitude and wrapped it around my face. It didn't help much, but it brought the Poison status down to -1 HP every 5.75 seconds. In a fight, every little bit helped.

I tried not to pay too much attention to my dropping HP bar and focused on creating more Resin Bombs. I split them between myself and the dwarf, setting some aside for latecomers. If we could get an army of folks chucking these bombs, perhaps we'd stand a chance.

He tossed his first into the air and it smacked a Reaver with a satisfying splatter. Ethereal screeches filled the air as it retreated. We were making good progress, but the fumes left behind would stack up quickly unless we could get out of here. I covered my mouth and nose, gesturing toward the dwarf.

"This way," I said, nodding toward the Society building.

The elven caster followed along with us and we made a beeline for the safety of the building. The number of people still around had thinned out considerably, but many were still scrambling for the teleporter. I saw out of the corner of my eye a golden glow--crap, that meant it was getting overloaded! There were still two families left standing in line. If the teleporter went out now, they wouldn't make it!

"You," I said, pointing to the Elven caster. "With me! We're gonna get those families to safety. Charge up your [Force Shield] ability as much as you can...you're gonna need it. And you," I said, nodding at the Dwarf. "Take these and don't look back. Take someone with you and fire as many as you can. Keep 'em off us until they get through, okay?"

"Deal," he said with a wicked grin, taking a handful of bombs. I only had a few left, and I hoped I wouldn't need them. I'd already exhausted my stores.

"Come on." I waved to the caster, and we broke away, running toward the teleporter.

My legs sped faster as she cast [Haste] on me. As a professed Caster, her spells were much stronger and I found myself moving faster than I ever had before. "Let's do this," She said, a determined gleam in her eye.

The families drew back in alarm as they saw us running. A young boy clamored for his mother and she drew him closer, eyeing me warily. "We mean you no harm," I said, my hands outstretched. "We're here to help. Everyone form a line at the teleporter, and stay calm. We're going to get you out of here."

They shuffled and whispered, but formed a semblance of a line just as another wave of Reavers crested the horizon. "Get ready," I told the caster as they drew closer. "Now!" I shouted, ducking.

She stretched her hands in a wide arc and chanted the invocation. A shimmering blue field appeared above her head and expanded, covering us in its light. It grew larger and flickered, this time only wavering around the remaining families and the teleporter. I crouched near the gate as it glowed a dangerous orange. I had to get this fixed, and fast.

Drawing my goggles over my eyes, I activated [Mechanical Knowledge], and a schematic appeared before me.

I left reality behind as I poured myself into the inner workings of the teleporter. I'd seen them before, but never built one myself. It was still above my level. Dissecting one, though? That, I could do. It was an incredible piece of artistry, and I wanted to congratulate whoever had made it. Unfortunately, the Mass Transfer circuit was fried, severing the connection to the destination portal. I sucked in a breath through my teeth. Not good! I dug through my inventory and tried to think what could fix it. It needed to be something malleable, something conductive...

The Daeldran Dust. I let out a long, slow breath. It had taken me nearly my entire time here in the Veil to collect that stuff. Painstaking caving explorations were not easy, scraping off the rare Dust such that it didn't disintegrate in my hands even more so. But it was conductive. It could fit into small spaces. And it was just what we needed right now.

I grit my teeth and took out the vial of Dust. Unstoppering it, I pinched a bit out and looked at it one last time. Goodbye, old friend. Then, with my magnified vision, I used a pair of tweezers to place it at the juncture of the fried circuit. It sparked and crackled as the circuit completed, and I fell backward in surprise. I whipped my goggles off, deactivated my ability, and hoped I wasn't too late.

I came to in a world where the Force Shield was only barely hanging on.

Danger: Force Shield damaged! 45% efficiency and falling.

Shit! I cursed silently. The caster looked drained, but was holding her own, for now. The Reavers flew against the shield but hadn't pierced it yet. We just had to get these last families through. "Come on!" I yelled, taking their hand.

A gentle whirring grew louder as the teleporter came back online. Instead of an angry yellow glow, it once again shone a pale blue with a beacon of light reaching up toward the sky.

I led the mother in toward the beam of light and she looked at me with tears glistening in her eyes. She held a babe to her breast and a little boy by the hand. He looked up at me with childlike wonder. I was that child once. Only this time, they'd have a happier ending than I did.

"Thank you," She said, and they stepped into the light.

Only one family remained. I looked over at our caster for a status update. She grit her teeth and looked strained, but didn't dare say it. I scanned the landscape for anyone else who could help. Everyone was either running, fighting, or both. The dwarf in my party recruited two others and they formed a line, chucking exploding Resin Bombs at the remaining Reavers. While they hit many of them, several still remained. I cursed myself for not bringing more supplies...how was I supposed to know we were going to get attacked?

Way too many corpses for my liking lay motionless on the ground, staining the grass red over the fallen pavilion. My stomach churned. Just one more family. Just one more...

"Hurry," I said and took their hands. A man came forward this time with two little girls. One had bright red pigtails and a face full of freckles. I couldn't help but smile wistfully. God, she looked so much like me at that age. "We're gonna help you," I said, ushering them into the light. "It's gonna be okay."

"I'm losing it!" The caster yelled as the Force Shield flickered above her. Oh no. Bad timing.

Danger: Force Shield critical. 10% efficiency and falling!

"Go go go!" I yelled, giving them a push. The man went through first, his daughter in tow. But then, the light from the teleporter faltered. Oh no.

A scared little girl stared up at me with big eyes. "Where did they go?" She asked, and my heart sank.

Danger: Force Shield failing. 5% efficiency...4%...3%....

I grabbed the girl and shoved her behind me, crouching down toward the teleporter again. I tried to activate [Mechanical Vision], but got an error message instead:

You don't have enough mana to cast Mechanical Vision.

I growled, swiping the goggles away. I really needed to grind some more levels, and soon. This mana cap was getting to me. I'd just have to do this by feel.

"All right," I said, taking the girl's hand, "Now when you see this machine glow blue, you jump right through it, okay? Then you'll be back home with your daddy and sister, safe and sound."

She nodded wordlessly, and I've never been a praying woman but I prayed to all the gods above I wouldn't fuck this up.

"Get ready," I told her. "You're gonna see your family again soon, I promise."

Danger: Force Shield failing. 1%...

"No!" The caster yelled, falling to the ground. The Shield above us shattered and I did the only thing I could do: think. In a flash of intuition, I yanked out a bobby pin from my hair and jammed it into the circuit. It sputtered and sparked, sending a shock down my arm as it whirred back into action. "Now!" I screamed through the pain.

The girl leapt through, and I collapsed, the sound of exploding Resin Bombs and shrieking Reavers echoing around me.